So, he was basically surrounded by a load of people who would much rather it if he wasn't present. Between mutants who didn't even know who he was, to those who did and stayed clear, to those he had called friends and lovers, Erik was basically on his own; which was fine, he could deal with being on his own. It wasn't like he had much company for the long dragging years, was it? The only person he ever saw was a smug guard who'd bring him food and drink before walking off with a self-assured attitude, like he was untouchable, well, Peter had made it rather clear that was not possible. 

The mere thought of the silver haired teen caused Erik to shift and open his eyes. He was simply sitting motionless, admittedly partially meditating, ignoring all the noise around him, and focussing on nothing; he'd seen Liesel do it a few times and wondered if it worked. It oddly did. Though he found his mind wandered, and it wandered onto the topic of a possible son. Lifting his head he slowly looked to the corridor which led to that room, with all its files and notes, and her. 

Uncrossing his legs at the ankles, Erik pushed himself to stand. Slowly he walked back towards that room, "How did you do it?" He asked, Charles and her were talking until he reappeared. 

"For pity's sake! You still don't listen, do you?"

Erik smirked and shrugged. "I'm afraid not."

Liesel hung her head in her hands and just muttered something under her breath before gesturing a hand at him. He clearly wasn't going to go away. She got it. She knew when he was annoyed at being shut out; even more so if someone got the attention he thought he so rightly deserved. Liesel didn't even want to dwell on the topic of Erik maybe being jealous of Charles. Out of the two she could tolerate him more at the moment, and that was the truth. "How did I do what?" She questioned while watching as he sat back down beside Charles and leaned forwards against the table. 

"How did you succeed where we both failed?" Erik asked, Charles let out a noise of discomfort. He shot him a look, "It's the truth, get over it." 

Liesel smiled, "Do you want to know my secret, is that it? So that when the time comes for you to attempt to build another Brotherhood, it won't fall apart? Pfft, as if..."

"No, I'm genuinely curious. Out of all people to amass the many, I didn't think it would be you." Liesel bristled at Erik's words and shot him a look. If looks could kill, he'd be on the floor right now. Her eyes brightly lit up, which caused Erik to raise an eyebrow. At least she was no longer looking at him with something akin to agony. He could take her anger. Her anger was so less than his own that it was easy to deal with. He'd dealt with it in the past. He could deal with it in the future. 

"Free will. Don't project on them a false sense of superiority. Don't make them feel like Gods. They're mortal, except those with ridiculous healing abilities; but even they need to be grounded somehow. Nothing lasts forever, even if you so pathetically wish to believe in that. It's a lie. Don't feed them a lie. The truth is usually the best way to get someone to trust you and like you. So I tell them the truth. I tell them that I have saved them and that I want nothing of them in return. I tell them I'll take them somewhere safe, somewhere no one knows even exists and they can live in peace with others like themselves. I tell them if they don't have control to find someone who can help, because I can't be everything to everyone. I can't be a saviour, a friend, a teacher, a guardian, an adoptive sister, mother, leader...I can only be me, and this is me," Liesel said honestly while gesturing to the stacked room around her. Both Charles and Erik looked at her with rather clear and honest expressions. What she said was the truth. They could hear it in her tone. She believed in what she was saying, and what she was saying was clearly true because everyone here seemed so at peace. "I'm an itty bitty lil spider in a web of endless information." Liesel said while pinching and forefinger and thumb together until there was only a small space in between them. "The best part is this is just one room of many. This is one vast web which links to another." 

"You have information on anyone?"

"And anything. Why? What do you want? I knew there was something. I said so earlier." Liesel rolled her eyes, Charles looked at Erik curiously. He wasn't surprised if he was scheming away at something right this second. He should know better than to think he wouldn't be. 

Erik shrugged and looked about. "Just wondered if we all had a little file in your collection." He said simply. 

Liesel frowned and hung her head. "Yeah, you do." Erik turned his head to look at her. "What part of your past would you like to see? Post-war? Post-Shaw? Post-Brotherhood? Private life activities? War schemes? War attempts? Your tremendous screw up which led to you being arrested?" Liesel listed and shot up when the metallic table moved erratically. "Really?! You started this, don't like what you hear then piss off like I hoped you had!" Liesel shouted, the raised voices got attention and Newt along with everyone else appeared in the doorway. 

"What's going on?" Gretchen asked while moving forwards. She shot Erik a look, which he returned darkly. Why was he not surprised that Gretchen merely looked at him with the same level of anger? 

"Nothing, here," Liesel stormed off to the side and returned with a thick file in her hands. She held it out to Erik, "Whatever you're looking for, I hope you find it. And also, don't even think of destroying that; I have copies."

"Ever pragmatic, aren't you?" Erik asked while taking the file from her hands. He turned and flicked through hand written and typed pages. He couldn't believe he even had a file, he was more in shock that everything he had done was within the folders cover. He looked slowly up at her and she looked at him sadly before sitting back down and gathering some things up and putting them to the side. One doesn't tend to keep extensive watch over someone if they didn't care in some ways. Erik wasn't fooling himself, Liesel cared, she still did, of course she did. Why else would she be so explosive and angry? It wasn't just the fact that he was back in her life, it was the fact that him being back bought a lot of locked away memories and feelings with and for him. Shutting the file he held it out to her. Liesel looked up and snatched it back before rather carelessly throwing it onto the shelf she got it from; so much for being careful with this place and its contents. 

"Have you found anything?" Logan decided to break up their little whatever it was. They were here for a reason. Liesel pinched her eyes shut and nodded. Standing she rolled out a blueprint that she bought up from the floor.

"Where'd you get this from?" Charles asked with a frown. 

"I stole it," Gretchen said simply earning a shocked look to be sent her way. "What? You thought I was the good twin or something? Please, we're as bad as each other." Gretchen scoffed and went around the table to stand beside Liesel. 

She shrugged, "I'm a little worse."

"This isn't a competition," Gretchen said while narrowing her eyes at Liesel, she grinned and shrugged. 

"So, what are we looking at, exactly?" Logan asked tilting his head. If this was a Sentinel, it certainly wasn't like the ones from his time. 

"It's an early schematic. See parts aren't finished. But the bare bones are there." Liesel explained while trailing her hands over the print. "The general information is there. See," she pointed to a bullet pointed list. "These things use some sort of mutant tracker. Newt?" Liesel looked up at the reptilian lizard man. 

"Ah, yeah, I looked into this," he said nervously now that all eyes were on him. He didn't do public speaking. 

"And?" Charles prompted kindly with a small smile. He was hoping to calm the poor guy down slightly. Which seemed hard seeing as how both Logan and Erik were intently staring at him, imploring him to hurry up, the twins were just looking down at the print, and Hank seemed very curious. Technology. Moth to the flame, came to mind. 

"It's weird, without fully seeing their plans I can only imagine it is something which is like a metal detector." Newt said, Liesel scoffed and got an odd look sent her way. 

"Sorry, irony," Liesel said while looking briefly at Erik, he sighed and didn't even bother to reply to her words. He was not a metal detector. "Go on."

"Okay...well, excuse me," Newt shuffled forwards awkward and had to get past Erik to get to the table, only Erik didn't move. 

"Move, idiot," Liesel grasped onto his arm and pulled him out of the way. "Stay there like a good boy and don't get in other people's way when they're being useful." She lectured and then smiled at Newt, she tried to ignore the looks she got sent from scolding Erik, more he got looks sent his way for not reacting to said scolding. Anyone else said those words to him, everyone was sure they'd be suffering in some sort of pain by now, or dead. 

"Considering the size, the logical place for these scanners is either here, or here." Newt pointed from the eyes to the hands. "But they probably have heat vision of some sort. I mean, we're not so technically advanced that they could shift between two sets of eyes." Trying to find out tactical weaknesses was all well and good, but having the real thing in front of them was when it would come to knowing if they were right. 

"As for Trask?" Charles asked watching as Liesel folded the print away, she grinned up at him.

"Yes?" Erik knew that look. She'd cottoned onto something good and couldn't wait to share all. He frowned slowly, she seemed to like being the centre of all knowing. He never fully realised how truly clever she was. It was something he just seemingly took for granted, like the rest of her really. 

"This is my favourite bit!" Liesel strewed papers over the table. "He's going to a conference in Paris! But! And this is the best part, I know exactly where and when! I know the place...I've not been but I almost got killed near to the building!" Liesel rambled happily. 

"Sorry, did you just say you almost got killed near where he's going to be?" Charles looked at her truly shocked. 

"I almost got shot."

"The informant." Erik looked slowly down at her. Oh, he remembered that idiot that he dealt with in the park, but left alive. 

"The informant," Liesel smiled. 

"How's he involved?" Erik frowned not liking the thought of anyone else from their long distant past cropping up. 

"He isn't. He's dead. But the hotel that I almost got shot near is the same as the one that Trask is going to be at. So...who's up for a road trip?! Me! I am! Come on, guys, look enthusiastic, yeah? You're killing me with downtrodden stoicism. Cheer up, it isn't the end of the world, is it?" Liesel smirked. 

"Too soon." Erik commented, Liesel waved a hand at him and shrugged. "Paris?"

"You've not been anywhere for so long. Don't you deserve a holiday?" Liesel questioned with a small laugh as she packed everything away and turned to look at him before looking back at everyone else. "My guess, seems your sister is gunning for him, she'll be there. We stop her from doing whatever, and we can stop Trask too, maybe." Liesel crossed her arms and nodded slowly. No one else seemed to disagree so she figured she hit the nail on the head.

----

Edited: 13/June/2019

Reedited: 25/August/2021