A big thank you to everyone who is reading this story. As well as a thank you to those who have added it to their follow/favourite list.

I'm deeply moved by all of the responses this story is still getting. Especially when it comes to Charles and Ann, the opinions you all have regarding those two is overwhelming...It almost looks as if Erik doesn't even stand a chance (perhaps that will change once he gets more moments).

But seriously, thank you all so much! Shout out to Intothevoid, guest, , Mary-Ann, Isanxd, guest and Cassie-011.

Enjoy this new chapter

Chapter 9 - The value of numbers

Him and his big mouth. Charles cursed at himself as he made his way through the metal double doors. If only he had waited a couple of minutes before saying anything then he wouldn't be here now running after her. Of course, he didn't really need to go after her. What happened had been nothing more than an innocent bet between him and Hank. Charles wasn't even entirely sure it counted as one.

"I wish you good luck with that. If by some miracle Ann does decide to help you with obtaining your data, I'll buy you lunch this entire week."

It was just a bit of fun from his end, as he wanted nothing more than for Ann to help Hank out with his research. In fact, when Hank had told him about his plan of asking her, Charles had sincerely wished for her to go for it without hesitation. Not that he had any doubts it would have been the only way for Hank to improve this machine he was apparently working on, but because he wanted Ann to get more comfortable around them.

And not just around them, but also when it came to her powers. Charles was certain she was capable of much more, even though he had no proof to support that line of thought. Right now, it didn't matter. He had to gain up on her and apologize or at the very least explain himself. On the one hand, why was he even bothering with this? Past interactions have proven that it was no use to reconcile whenever he'd done something which Ann perceived as wrong.

"Would you please stand still for a moment?" He called out calmly to her as he increased his speed to keep up with Ann's swift pace. She'd obviously heard him, but chose to ignore it. Charles gritted his teeth and took another quick sprint as she rounded the corner.

"Ann, please." He finally caught up with her. He grabbed hold of her upper arm and pulled gently. She stopped and turned towards him.

"May I help you?" She asked, her expression stoic.

Charles removed his hand and ran it through his hair. "Look, I know I must have said something to upset you,-"

"Upset? If you followed me because you think I am, then you are wasting your time. Besides, I'm sure Hank would have preferred for you to stay back at the lab to discuss his findings or some other business the two of you might have."

Her words were direct and cold and without giving him the chance to reply, Ann continued her way, leaving Charles standing with his mouth slightly agape. He did not have to be a mind reader to know that he was right about how she was feeling. As always she was blowing him off yet again, but he was in no mood to let her get away with it this time.

"Of course you are." Charles replied. "What happened back there was incredibly insensitive of me. I shouldn't have mentioned what Hank and I,-"

Ann abruptly halted. "You shouldn't have mentioned?"

"Made any sort of deal with Hank in the first place." He corrected himself as he exchanged looks with her.

"No you shouldn't have." She agreed. "But I appreciate your apology."

"Sorry?"

"An apology?" Ann repeated. "That is why you actually came after me, isn't it?"

"I wasn't,- I mean,- what I want is to explain myself. I agree what has been said in your presence was rather inconsiderate, but it was never intended that way. The entire thing was meant in a light-hearted manner. In fact, I'm incredibly glad I was wrong about you and your possibly unwillingness to help Hank out."

As soon as those words crossed his lips, Charles realized he had chosen them poorly. So poorly, that Ann stared at him with the most bewildered frown he'd ever seen on her. Then she blinked and mouthed an oh, my god. before turning and walking away from him.

"Ann, wait. That's not what I meant." He called, once again taking a short sprint to keep up with her.

"Charles, will you please just stop talking? You know it's only going to upset me." She replied without looking at him.

His mouth twitched slightly at her response. It was pointless. Anything he'd say would have the opposite effect. He could do nothing right with her. The only time she'd ever been nice to him was the day before yesterday, when she was completely smashed and he brought her back to her room like the gentleman he was taught to be. Even last night after he'd stopped Erik it seemed they were getting somewhere. But now it looked like he was back to square one. There was only one thing he could do now to make this better. Listen to her and stop defending himself.

Charles sighed, shrugged slightly and placed his hands in his pockets as he walked next to her. "Fine, I'll just be quiet from now on."

"Thank you."

"You're welcome."

Thus Charles kept his word and remained quiet as he strolled along side her. Taking every turn she took and through every door she went, throwing a glance her way every couple of seconds until they reached the other side of the facility where they were stationed. After a few minutes, Ann finally came to a halt at the end of a corridor which led into the same sitting area they'd spent time in last night.

Charles followed her example and stopped only a couple of inches behind her in front of the closed double doors. His hands still in his pockets and his mouth shut, not saying anything, simply waiting for her to make the next move. But she was getting frustrated. He had seen it in her face, which was becoming more flustered with each passing second. He pressed his lips into a tight line to stifle a laugh he slowly felt creeping up to the surface.

There was really only one way for her to go now, either through the doors or turn around. But the latter would result in her standing face to face with him. Honestly, Charles wasn't entirely sure why he was doing this. He could have gone and head back to the lab, but instead he'd followed Ann all the way through the base without any idea what the consequences of this choice would have in store for him. He lowered his eyes as Ann reached for one of the handles and turned it.

"You know for someone who is able to read minds? You certainly have no idea how to use it to your advantage, do you?" She spat all of a sudden.

"I wouldn't say that. It usually works rather well in certain situations, with certain people. It hasn't failed me yet." He shrugged. Again that was the wrong reply as it caused Ann to practically stomp through the door.

"My lord, you are such a smug,- conceited, inconsiderate,- PRAT!"

Her outburst shocked him more than he thought it would. It was no secret that the two of them had butted heads since day one, and he knew very well it was mainly because of him. Only she had never called him a name before. Normally she would either ignore him, make a sarcastic comment or pretend not to care. He'd certainly managed to finally push her over the edge. Idiot. What one earth was wrong with him? Why couldn't he withhold his witty remarks for one second?

"Ann! Stop, I'm sorry, alright?" Charles reached forward and wrapped his hand around Ann's wrist pulling her back to face him. "I,-"

But as he turned her, he quickly paused. What was he going to say to her? He wanted to apologize, for real this time, he knew he did. However, he had no idea how to even begin. He felt at a loss for words. Ann's cheeks were flushed from aggravation, her jaw clenched and he could feel a slight tremble as he held part of her hand with his. He kept his gaze focused on her blue-green eyes and wetted his lips, feeling a little anxious.

"Listen, I am truly sorry. Not only for just now, but for a lot of other things as well. Ambushing you in London. Not leaving you alone during the flight over. For telling agent Frank you are a mutant, when you specifically asked me not to. This is all just from the top of my head, but there's probably more based on your obvious dislike for me."

He stopped for a second and took a deep breath as he loosened his grip to see whether or not she would use the opportunity to walk away. She didn't. However she did lower her eyes, breaking the connection between them. She retracted her arm and rubbed the spot where he'd touched her. Charles watched as he waited for his words sink in. It already felt like a small victory because the reddish colour slowly faded from her cheeks and her shoulders appeared to relax a little.

It wasn't as if Charles had never tried to apologize before or make amends one way or another. But this was different, because for the first time in a long while, he had done something he hardly ever did. Offer a sincere apology. Saying sorry wasn't a difficult thing to do and he did it a lot without meaning any of it. However, this was unlike any of his past apologies. He couldn't really explain it, but it felt different, more heavy. As if more depended on it.

"I do want you to know how incredibly thankful I am that you are here with us. That you decided to stay. I mean, you even went as far as helping Hank by showing him your powers and allowing him to analyse it. That took courage from your end. I know it did."

He tilted his head sideways to catch her eyes once again, and when he locked with them, his mouth formed a small smile. "I honestly have no idea what I can do or say to show you I mean every word of what I just said. Knowing me it'll only be a matter of time before I manage to blurt out another stupid,-"

Unexpectedly, Ann raised her hand and Charles abruptly stopped midsentence.

His heart began to pound heavily in his chest as he was unsure what her action meant. Preventing Erik from leaving last night had been much easier than even having a simple conversation with the woman in front of him. He couldn't tell if she was planning on calling him another name, walk away or anything else.

She was incredibly hard to read, another reason why he was tempted ever more to peek into her mind. Ann opened her mouth and Charles let out a shuddering breath, ready to face what she was going to throw his way.

"Charles, look,-" She sighed and rubbed the back of her neck.

"It's not as if I dislike you completely. Yes, there are a few traits of you I'd rather not see on a daily basis. And I have never met anyone who has the ability to get under my skin in more ways than one as you manage to do over and over again."

Ann's voice was soft, despite her harsh words and her intense gaze. Charles felt a lump form in his throat as she stared at him with piercing eyes.

"But it would also be unfair of me to disregard the good things you have done over the past couple of days. I suppose I could have shown you some hospitality, despite my personal feelings. I have been acting rather hostile towards you, especially compared to the others. What I'm trying to say is,- I guess I owe you an apology too."

Charles blinked. Slightly confused and unsure if he'd heard her correctly. She was apologizing to him? For a second there it seemed as if she was solely planning on insulting him. Though he certainly agreed with her when she admitted to having behaved most belligerent towards him compared to everyone else. Even Erik, whom she'd met just two days ago.

"You're apologizing?" He asked.

"I guess I am." She said once again.

Charles crossed his arms and frowned at her. "That is a surprise, I must say."

"Something you don't experience often, I take it?"

Charles ignored her witty remark. He was more focused on something else. He wanted to pry. Read her mind. Figure out if she meant her apology. But more importantly, the specifics of these undesirable traits she'd mentioned. He could already guess one of them, however the way she'd said it, indicated that there were more things he managed to annoy her with.

"You know, Ann. It would be really helpful if you could elaborate on what it is that I do that rubs you the wrong way? That way we might be able to avoid any type of quarrels in the near future."

The upper right corner of Ann's mouth twitched. "I'd prefer it if you'd just accept my apology, just as I will accept yours."

"Fine. It is all water under the bridge." He smiled for a swift second. "Now, about my question,-"

"Good Lord, Charles. You are never satisfied, are you?" Ann shook her head with disbelief and scoffed. "Why don't you make a list. Show it to me later and I'll tell you then, alright?"

Without any further ado, she threw him one last glare before walking away, muttering something under her breath as she passed him. Charles glanced over his shoulder and watched quietly as she headed out of the room. He went after her, but stopped once he reached the doors and leaned against the wall just outside of it. He raised his hand and pressed his index and middle finger against his temple.

That stuck-up, ugh! Dim witted,- How on Earth is he able to think with that thick headed skull,- I should have just, just,-

Charles lowered his arm as Ann rounded the corner. His mouth forming a mischievous grin.

Ten hours later

Erik Lehnsherr glanced down at a piece of paper he held in his hand. Its entire page filled with a series of numbers. They were coordinates. Locations of mutants spread across various parts of America. But none of them was the location of Klaus Schmidt. Charles claimed that he had searched for him using Hank's newly designed machine. Cerebro. An incredibly weird looking device with over three dozen thick wires attached to it. Of course, it didn't matter what it looked like though. As long as it could get the job done. Find Shaw and possibly other mutants while Charles was at it. Although a part of Erik suspected that Charles was more focused on the latter.

Erik let out a sigh and smacked the paper down on the table before pushing himself out of his chair. Tomorrow him and Charles were heading out to a couple of those places. Find mutants and recruit a few of them. Erik figured he might as well join in on all of it, now that he'd decided to stay. Besides, Charles had been right about one thing. Erik had seen first hand what Shaw and his followers were capable of. If he was going to go after Shaw, he needed help.

The tall dark haired man halted in front of a small fridge and crouched down to grab himself a drink. It had been a long day. He'd spent his early morning roaming around the facility, as far as that was allowed. Eventually found Charles in agent Frank's room, where they talked about the machine Hank was working on as well as how much the CIA should be involved with finding other mutants. Luckily Charles supporting Erik's point of view and Frank told them he would back off. For now.

As he stood back up, two female voices sounded in the distance. Erik set a bottle of white wine on the counter and quietly listened as they got closer towards the sitting room. It was easy to recognize the owners as there were currently only three women around the facility. Raven, agent MacTaggert and Ann. However, Erik had already deduced that neither of the voices belonged to Raven. He continued preparing a glass of wine for himself as Moira and Ann were about to walk through the door.

"I'll be waiting for you at the bureau. Frank will be the one picking you up. Ten o'clock, sharp." The brunette said as she stopped in the entrance. "Don't be late."

"If agent Frank is on time, then I won't be late." Ann replied. "Will you have everything I might need in order to help?"

"Don't worry. I'll do the best I can. See you tomorrow. Get a good night sleep."

Erik listened as high heels clacked down the corridor. But only one pair. This time, the metal bender did look up to see who it was that had stayed behind, though he already had a suspicion. He watched quietly from behind the bar as Ann walked inside. She headed straight for the table and began to take off her long red coat. Next she unwrapped a scarf from around her neck and draped it over one of the chairs. She ran her hand through her hair and sighed.

"Drink?" Erik said out loud and immediately Ann jumped back and let out a loud shriek.

"Good grief!" She exclaimed grabbing hold of the table to balance herself. "When did you get here?"

"I'm pretty sure I got here first." He told her. "Judging by your attire, you have been out?"

Ann nodded. "I have."

Erik was well aware of that, he was just trying to be polite. In fact, he'd been looking for her for the majority of the day. After he'd found Raven this morning and she'd informed him about Ann being in the lab with Hank testing out her powers, Erik had been set on getting there as quickly as possible to witness it for himself. Unfortunately by the time he got there, she was already gone. It wasn't until Charles had informed him that she'd left the facility with Moira, that he stopped looking for her.

"You sure I can't offer you a beverage?" He asked again, holding up the bottle of chardonnay this time for her to see.

"Thank you." She replied as she pulled back a chair to sit down at the table.

Erik smiled as he poured a second glass of wine before making his way over to her. He handed her the drink and sat down across from her.

"Salute." He raised his glass and bobbed his head before taking a sip. Erik smacked his lips and let out a satisfying sound. "Delicious."

Ann followed his example and nodded approvingly after tasting the dry wine. "It is."

Erik lowered his drink and looked at her. "It is unfortunate you were out. You missed something quite interesting."

"Oh?" The woman frowned.

"Hank finished his device earlier today. Cerebro? Charles actually used it this afternoon."

Ann shifted in her seat and for a split second she seemed to show a genuine interest in what Erik was talking about. "Did it work?" She asked.

Erik nodded. "It did." He paused and leaned forward, reaching for the paper he'd dropped on the table earlier. He pushed it towards Ann, who took it from him and let her eyes roam over the numbers.

"Are these coordinates?"

"Yes. It was rather exciting to see it happen. The device somehow translates Charles's brainwaves into geographic coordinates and onto paper. I don't know how he did it of course. But it is clear that Hank's machine definitely works."

A small smile appeared on Ann's face. "I'm glad to hear it."

However, Erik shrugged and took the paper back from her. "I agree. But sadly, it seems that Charles's reach is still rather limited. Despite what Hank tried to analyse this morning by testing your mutation. Charles tried to pinpoint Shaw's location, but couldn't find him. He claims he wasn't able to go that far yet."

Ann's expression faltered and she leaned back in her chair. "I'm sorry to hear that."

"That makes two of us." Erik replied as he took another swig of his wine. "Thankfully, there are many roads that lead to Rome. Charles is not the only option."

He lowered his eyes and locked them with Ann's, who obviously caught the not so hidden meaning behind his words. As expected, he was referring to her powers and how she would most likely be the last resort used to find Shaw if nobody else was able to. Erik set his drink aside and reached into one of his pockets. He'd actually been planning on doing this last night, if it hadn't been for Charles stopping him in the heat of the moment.

Now was the best time to try. It was late. Charles was nowhere to be seen and Erik was alone with Ann. If he didn't take this opportunity now, he probably wouldn't get it again. He still found it weird how adamant Charles had been on stopping him last night. He even had gone as far as to freeze Ann without her knowledge in order to talk Erik out of it. He couldn't understand what it was Charles was trying to protect her from.

"Yesterday you told me, that if you had something that belonged to Shaw, you would probably be able to find him?" Erik asked, raising one of his eyebrow questioningly.

Ann's brow furrowed immediately. She knew that particular comment she'd made would come back to haunt her at some point, she just hadn't expected it to happen already. She licked her lips anxiously and nodded. "It is a possibility, not an guarantee. Why?"

Without saying anything else on the matter, Erik revealed what he'd pulled from his pocket and Ann tilted her head sideways. She couldn't exactly tell what it was, but it was small. Circular from the looks of it. She could feel her heartbeat increase as Erik stood up and walked around the table until he stopped a couple of inches from her seat. He opened his hand and showed her the object.

"Take it."

Ann hesitated for a second, but eventually did what he asked. She held it up in front of her. At first glance it looked like an ordinary thing, a manner of payment. A silver coloured coin. But it didn't take long for Ann to register the symbols carved on it. An eagle with its wings spread. The number five, indicating the value of the coin. A equilateral cross,- Ann's lips slowly parted. Swastika. And at the bottom of the coin, written in a crescent moon direction, Deutsches Reich 1934.

Her hands began to tremble and her head shot up to catch Erik looking at her with a concentrated stare. Her mouth went dry.

"Where did you get this?" She breathed.

"I have had it since,-" But he stopped the second he noticed the look of shock on her face. That wasn't the only thing he spotted. She was also trembling, her eyes large and staring at him with such intensity that he felt sorry for having even shown her the coin in the first place.

"What's wrong?" He asked.

"Were you one of them?"

"One of whom?"

Ann jumped out of her seat and the chair fell back with a loud bang. She held the coin between her thumb and index finger and practically shoved it into Erik's face.

"Ich arbeite nicht mit Nazis!" She hissed through her teeth and she dropped the silver on the table.

It twirled for a split second and then came to a full stop on the flat surface. Erik couldn't do anything but stare at her. She'd spoken to him in German. But not only that, she'd called him something he never expected to ever be called. A Nazi. His clenched his jaw and his hand formed a fist.

"Nazi?" He spat as he took a step forward towering over her. "Wer ist ein Nazi?"

"Du!"

"Ich?!"

"Ja."

Erik reached for his wrist, loosened the cuff of his shirt and rolled back its sleeve. A number was clearly visible on his light skin. 214782. He breathed heavily, his chest heaving up and down as he showed it to her.

"Would a Nazi have one of these?"

Anger shone through in his voice. How dare she call him that. The thing he despised most of all in the entire world. Ann raised one of her hands, her eyes glued to the inked numbers on his lower arm. She touched the surface with her cold fingers and quickly retracted them as if she'd touched a hot stove instead. She tilted her head back, her eyes shimmering.

"Es tut mir leid, Erik."

Swiftly she turned around and headed for the doors, not even thinking about taking her coat and scarf with her. But when she reached them and was about to push them open, neither of them budged. Ann pushed harder against them, even going as far as using her shoulder. But they remained still and unmoved. She glanced over her shoulder until she caught Erik with a raised arm and open hand directed at the doors in front of her.

"Bist du auch,-" He started to ask but couldn't finish his sentence.

Was this why Charles was so protective of her? Had he seen something about her past? Something similar to Erik's? Was that the actual reason why he had stopped him last night? Erik didn't understand it at all.

He exhaled deeply and lowered his arm before averting his gaze from her. He listened to the sound of the doors moving and a pair of heels clacking. When he looked back up, Ann was gone.

And that is it for this chapter.

Let me clarify something. German is not my first language (neither is English by the way), therefore if you happen to be German and you see any errors or mistakes in my stories regarding the translation, please let me know :)

Hope you all enjoyed this chapter. I would love to hear your thoughts.

Until next time, have a great day!

Translation:

Ich arbeite nicht mit Nazis! - I don't work with Nazis.

Wer ist ein Nazi? - Who is a Nazi?

Ich? - Me?

Du. - You

Ja - Yes.

Es tut mir leid - Sorry

Bist du auch - are you also/too