Survivor (Charles Xavier)

2

March 23, 1960

She overlooked London, seeing people bustling and pushing each other over to move. London became more interesting than ever.

She hadn't aged a day ever since that night in 1863. Day and night, she watched over London, having no need of sleep, eating, or drinking. The serum that was injected into her fed her always, keeping her as healthy as the result of a science experiment could be. She protected the weak against the strong, knocking them out in a flurry of movements. No one knew of her existence, the people who were witnesses swore she existed. If she knew correctly, she had a name for them already.

Feather.

Stupid name, but she appreciated it. Sad thing is, no one knows where to dump the trucks full of money. She simply just.. exists. No one's ever seen her face. Some people prefer to call her a vigilante rather than a saviour, but she pays it no heed. People speculate that she was a monster, a mutant. And they would be right, with the handful of powers she possessed.

She kept watching the people. The night was the time most killers and kidnappers began their search. She wanted to rid the world of people who wanted to harm the innocent, beginning with the good 'ol USA.

Glaring at a man who suspiciously trailed a woman, she jumped swiftly from roof to roof, never taking her eyes off the man. She landed swiftly, soft footsteps and quiet movements.

"The feather herself." A voice said, and her heart nearly stopped. She froze in her place, as the suspicious man turned away from the woman, as the woman walked straight as the man turned around. She focused her now blurry vision. Her heart had never pounded so hard, as she watched the eyes of the man before her.

"You." She groaned. He laughed sarcastically.

"What, no love for your best friend, Willows?" He joked, as she rolled her eyes.

"What do you want, Filmore?" She glared at him, hoping to scare him off.

"Aw, buddy! I want a pal to hang out with, y'know, take a break on the saving the innocent from the bad type of thing you do, etcetera etcetera." He said. "Don't you have, like, hobbies?"

"I have plenty." She tells hin in a monotone voice. She barely has time for Zachary Filmore's shenanigans.

"Let's see, jumping over buildings, fighting, what else?" Zach asked, ticking it off his fingers. "Oh right, nothing. You gotta go out more often."

"I am out, trying to cleanse the world from filth who want to harm innocent people." She said, mumbling. Zach scoffed. "And I don't have to do anything, Filmore."

"'Who want to harm the innocent'? What kind of logic is that?" Zach said, "For all you know, that girl you just 'protected' could be the daughter of a drug lord. That boy you just knocked out, he could be a man who's family died and being out for revenge."

"My sense of justice doesn't concern you, Filmore." She grunted, staring at him with her brown eyes. "Now, what do you really want?"

"Here to send a message." Zach said. "Guy by the name of Sebastian Shaw's been looking for you. Apparently, he means business."

"I don't know him so I won't do business." She replied, now looking Zach in the eye. He rolled his eyes.

"Gotta try some new things, right? The other day, I tried a 2076 burrito. Worst decision ever, but at least I tried." Zach said. "I might go forward in time and eat that again.."

"We're getting off track, Filmore." She sighed. "Does he have a small group?"

"Yes."

"Is he powerful?"

"Yes."

"Is he a mutant?"

"Yes."

"Are you listening carefully?"

"Yes."

"Are you deaf?"

"Yes." Zach paused, thought for a moment, and answered again. "No."

"Did you even hear anything I said?" She sighed, tired of him in general.

"Kinda, but not really, but he's a mutant and really powerful and power to the mutants type of guy, you know? Like that guy from that movie, Star Wars: A New Hope." Zach said, as Lauren raised her eyebrow.

"What's a Star Wars?" She asked, confused.

"You don't know Sta-- Of course you don't, it's in the future.." He mumbled. "It's coming out in around 10 years tops, don't mind me."

"Whatever." Lauren said. "Where is he?"

"Probably here. Overheard him say he'll pay you a visit." Zach said, as Lauren's eyes widened.

"And you tell me that now?!" She exclaimed. Zach shrugged.

"Dunno, you never asked." He said, as she jumped away, her hoodie flowing in the air.

"Goodbye to you too." Zach drawled, and he teleported god knows where.

Lauren, on the other hand, jumped from building to building, searching for her apartment. Everything had changed after that night, and even though she couldn't genuinely sleep, eat, or drink, she wanted to act as human as she could. Which lead her to renting an apartment (the new buying and selling system was hard to get accustomed to) buying a bed, sleeping in said bed, and all in all trying to live as normal as she could.

The serum that runs through her veins right now kept her alive a century after Lauren Hawforth's death, and Lauren Willows' birth. People had suspected her to be related to the Pickman Killings, Lauren Hawforth being the last death as Robert K. Pickman was found dead in his home's basement, head smashed with blood on the floor. The story was that Robert Pickman went insane after losing his wife because of a medical condition that was slowly eating away her body and life. As Robert struggled to create his own cure, being an apothecary, he tested it on many women, Lauren included, before he was killed by her. In the end, Robert Pickman died, while Rita Pickman waited, dying, for her husband to come back for her.

Lauren had ruined two people's lives by saving herself.

She finally came upon her apartment, preparing herself in case Sebastian Shaw was in her home. The adrenaline kicked in once more, a side effect of the serum, as she slipped in through her bedroom window, the floorboards barely making a sound against her quiet footsteps. She made it into her living room, standing in the middle. She felt movement at her couch.

"Can we stop playing games, Sebastian Shaw?" She asked out loud. In a few seconds, they appeared, the woman removing her fingers from her temples. Sebastian Shaw grinned a terrifying grin.

"You knew I was there? Even after Emma blocked us from your vision?" He asked amusedly.

"You should pay attention to detail more." She said, clenching her fist. "Now, what do you want?"

A figure emerged from the shadows, never seen before. Her heart stopped.

"I want to talk to you about what we can do for this world, sparrow."