Magneto's gaze remained unyielding, a mask of cold indifference that had often sheltered him from the tumult of emotions. His son's words struck home, not because they were false, but because they danced perilously close to truths that lingered in the depths of his conscience. He wanted to ignore the words.

As Pietro lashed out with the bitterness of a son abandoned, Magneto's eyes, hidden behind the imposing helmet, revealed an unusual glint of remorse. It was a regret that whispered of missed opportunities, of failed attempts to bridge the chasm between them.

"Failure - It's the cost of being what I am, of doing what I do. But failure at the hands of your own choices, your own arrogance, that is what worries me." He says with more anger in his tone than he had intended to slip through. "No, Pietro. You will not die. Fail perhaps-"

The master of magnetism was always doing everything himself. And it was only a matter of time before he failed. It was only a matter of time before more people died while he was away focusing on the threat that had the most likelihood to kill everyone. Everything was a lose-lose scenario. If only Pietro did not have his superspeed, then Magnus could at least illusion himself with the fact that his son would not see the crack of the facade happening in slow motion. He also tells himself that the magnetic shield he puts up to keep the boy away from seeing it is just a subconcious act.

"Failure, Pietro, is something we both have a history with," Erik says, calmly, not authorative but Pietro could read the tone well enough. "But being me ... is one thing you will make sure you do not fail at. I don't want you to become like me. I want you to be better, to build a world where mutants can live without fear, without needing a savior. But don't mistake my concern for weakness."

And he should not claim to need him and speak that he can do everything on his own in the same sentence. It makes him sound foolish, Erik thought. But his son, he had to admit, had all the right to need him.

He had wondered when Pietro would eventually bring this up to him. It was a very bold move for the speedster, given the fact that he always seemed to be so reluctant to spend time with him. But it had to mean something, that the speedster had taken some of his time to ask for something like this. Even though the rumor mills of his nation are not something he normally indulges in.

The unexpected revelation that Pietro and Miss Pryde were on amicable terms left Magneto genuinely surprised. The notion that these two, in his eyes, vastly different individuals would even entertain the prospect of romance struck him as a peculiar twist of fate, almost amusing in its own right. Erik found himself facing an intriguing dilemma.

His natural inclination was to maintain his silence on the matter. After all, the island of mutants already buzzed with its fair share of speculations and gossip. But he realized that this very silence could inadvertently fuel the rumors further, adding an air of mystery to the alleged romance.

"So you are here to... not woo her?"

Erik and Pietro were not the best individuals to have private conversations in a lonely room. Erik could read the speedster not like Wanda could, but Pietro would never lower himself to asking his father for anything were it not... something more. Something to the rumors. But he pushed that thought away with haste.