"Hey, kid. Want some pizza?"

"What is that?"

"Holy... you've never had pizza!?" Sean asked and I shook my head. "Your parents never got you some?"

"I don't remember my childhood. All I remember is the pain of being injected with adamantium, drowning afterwards and my dad getting killed when we tried to escape a few days later... at least I think it was a few days." I shrugged and sat in between Alex and Raven. "I've been locked in a cage ever since."

"Here. You're going to love it." Alex smiled and handed me a slice. "And I promise it doesn't have rats or raw meat."

"It smells weird."

"It's pepperoni, and this... is a Coke."

"Why is it fizzy and brown?"

"It's just like that."

"Oh, I didn't know the circus was in town!" An agent said and I immediately bared my teeth. "Come on, let's see those claws, sweetie."

"Would you like to see your intestines too!?" I yelled, standing up and was immediately held back by Alex and Angel. "Let me go!"

"It's not worth it." Alex whispered as Hank ran up to close the curtains and I continued to struggle.

"They're not mutants, right? Erik said I can't kill mutants. He didn't mention anything about killing those assholes!"

"You do that and you continue to give us a bad reputation." Raven defended.

"Good! They should fear us."

"No, they shouldn't." Angel said and slowly let go of my arms. "You're not a weapon, you're human just like they are... You just have a special gift, like we do."

"It's not... What is that?" I mumbled, elbowing Alex in the abdomen so he'd let me go.

"What's what?"

"That noise. You don't hear it?" I asked as the banging increased and a body fell from the sky. "Oh..."

Alex immediately grabbed me and we both hid behind the couch, his body shielding me from the shots being fired outside.

"Stay here, my ass!" Darwin yelled. "Alex, stay back with Lyla. The rest-"

"As if." I scoffed, showing my claws and ran towards the red mutant but he teleported behind me.

Every time I tried to slash him, he somehow managed to teleport away with a smirk.

"Little girl joining the big leagues." He taunted just as I grabbed his tail. "Why don't you go play with your dolls, sweetheart?"

"Why don't you get off my ass!?" I yelled, yanking his tail and slashed one of his eyes, successfully removing it from its socket.

Don't kill him... We don't kill mutants.

"LYLA!" Alex yelled when the tail wrapped around my throat but I slashed it just enough to make him let go and ran back towards the rest. "Are you nuts!? You took out his eye!"

"I can't kill them but nobody said anything about making them wish for it!"

"We've got to work on your anger issues, kid."

"Bite me."

"The mutants are in there. Just take them and let us normal people go." Someone said from outside and a loud crack was heard before a man opened the door.

Alex and Sean made quick work of grabbing my arms before I could even take a step forward.

"Where's the telepath?"

"Not here."

"That's too bad... I guess I'll just take this silly thing off." The man chuckled and took off the helmet. "Good evening! My name is Sebastian Shaw. And I am not here to hurt you."

The moment I opened my mouth, Alex pushed me behind him.

"My friends, there's a revolution coming. When mankind discovers who we are, what we can do, each of us will face a choice... be enslaved or rise up to rule. Choose freely, but know that if you are not with us, then by definition you are against us." He smiled and moved to the side to look at me. "You can stay and fight for the people that hate you and treat you like animals, or you can join me and live like kings."

"Alex-"

"Shh!"

"No, no. Let her speak." Shaw protested and waved at me. "Ah, but you're just a little girl... And from the looks of it, you've been through hell, haven't you?"

I stayed quiet and held the back of Alex's jacket tightly before closing my eyes.

Don't kill... Erik said we don't kill our own kind.

"What's your power, kid?"

"That's none of your business." Raven defended. "Wait, Angel..."

"What's-"

"Shh. Just keep your eyes closed and cover your ears." Alex whispered and guided me to a corner. "Keep your head down and those ears covered."

"But I-"

"Stay, Lyla. Promise me?"

"Fine..."

。✯ ＼ ｜ ／✯ 。

"Lyla!"

"Erik!" I exclaimed and ran up to hug him.

"Are you hurt?" He asked and I shook my head. "There's blood on your hand and face."

"It's not mine."

"Lyla..."

"I didn't kill anybody!"

"We've made arrangements for you to be taken home immediately." Charles said and my eyes widened. "This is over."

"I'm not going back to the cage!" I yelled and moved to attack him but Erik held me back. "I'm not going back there! You can't make me!"

"You're not going back, liebchen." Erik assured.

"She's not going back to the cage and Alex isn't going back to prison." Sean defended. "Those guys killed Darwin."

"All the more reason for you to go."

"Darwin's dead, Charles. And there's not a body to bury." Raven added.

"We can avenge him." Erik simply said and gently stroked my head to calm me down.

"Erik, a word." Charles sighed and dragged us away. "They're just kids."

"They were kids. Shaw has his army, but we need ours."

"They'll have to train... And Lyla needs to control her impulses."

"I'll handle her. You take the kids."

。✯ ＼ ｜ ／✯ 。

"When I was a child, I was just like you, Lyla."

"Your skeleton is full of adamantium and your father was shot in front of you?"

"Just the last part." Erik laughed and helped me hang upside down on a tree branch. "But I also lived in a cage of sorts with my mother. I didn't have an identity, but a number on my forearm just like you... I was experimented on and my mutation was triggered when I was separated from my mother."

"I don't remember how I discovered my mutation. All I remember is being dragged to a tub kicking and screaming and my dad killed like three of those men in white... after that, it's just black." I hummed and swung back and forth. "My dad would sometimes sing to me when I had nightmares. That's all I remember from my time with him."

"I think that's a beautiful memory to have, Lyla."

"He also used to tell me a story but I don't remember much... Something about a moon and a Wolverine."

"Your father seemed like a nice man, liebchen."

"I miss him." I admitted and climbed down. "I miss him and it makes me angry because they let me cry and beg for him to wake up before they dragged me away... I was covered in his blood for days."

"So you take your anger out on other people." Erik said and I shrugged. "It's a completely normal and valid response to trauma, Lyla. I sometimes tend to do the same."

"Whenever I get angry, people die... and then they see me for what I really am."

"What they made you." He corrected and placed his hands on my shoulders. "You're not a rabid beast, Lyla. You are just a kid who was dealt a pretty shitty hand."

"I just want my dad back, Erik." I whimpered and quickly wiped my eyes.

"I know you do, liebchen. And that's completely normal."

"It never goes away, does it?"

"Not really... you just learn to live with the pain after a while."

。✯ ＼ ｜ ／✯ 。

"Let me inside your mind, Lyla."

"Fuck you."

"Lyla, to gain control of your emotions, you must face them head on." Charles sighed, leaning against the kitchen counter. "And you do know I can easily slip inside, right? I don't need permission."

"You do that and your body will be scattered all over the state of New York when I'm done with you." I spat and showed my claws. "And I have perfect control of my emotions."

"You gouging out someone's eye says otherwise."

"What can I say? He pissed me off."

"He could've killed you."

"No, he wouldn't. The adamantium bonded to my skeleton makes me practically indestructible... I don't go down easy." I smirked and retracted them. "They tried in the lab and didn't succeed."

"So they went after your dad instead?"

"Daddy already died before that."

"Let me in, Lyla."

"Why?"

"Because to help you, it helps to understand what happened." Charles explained and I scoffed.

"Nobody knows what I went through and they sure won't understand."

"Then let me in so I can at least try to." He begged and sat across from me. "You're hurting, Lyla. Deep down you feel like you're back in the cage me and Erik found you in."

"Even if I let you in, you still won't be able to understand, Charles."

"I'll just scratch the surface and we'll start from there." He promised and held my hand. "Just close your eyes and let me in."

"Lyla, come here for a sec!"

"Yeah?" I asked, running up to Dad and tackled him to the grass. "I'm getting strong like you, Daddy!"

"That you are, sweetheart." Dad laughed and sat up, placing me on his lap. "There's gonna be a day where I'm gonna have to share you with the world, my moonlight... And the world will not always be kind to people like us."

"Like us?"

"Yes." He smiled and showed his claws making me do the same. "The world will not always welcome us with open arms, Lyla. But I want you to know that your daddy will always be right next to you no matter the circumstances... But there will come a time where you're gonna have to learn to fight back."

"I... I don't understand."

"People can be mean when they see things they don't understand. The important thing is to be strong and stand your ground. Don't let anyone push you around."

"The world sounds scary." I hummed, resting my head on his chest. "Can I just stay here with you forever?"

"You'd like that?"

"Mhm."

"You're five years old, moonlight. There'll come a day where you're gonna be tired of your old man." He laughed and hugged me tight.

"Who else would I have tea parties with, Daddy?"

"Ah, yes. The tea parties... my favorite time of the day." Dad smiled and stood up, swiftly swinging me over his shoulders. "Hey, how about a game before we get you ready for bed?"

"What game?" I asked as he set me down before he took off running.

"If you catch me, we'll go to the town to get some ice cream! And no using the trees to cheat, moonlight! Fair and square!"

"ICE CREAM!"

"I... I didn't even know I had that memory." I gasped and wiped my tears.

"They were buried in your subconscious. The trauma you experienced may have blocked those memories. It's a completely normal response." Charles said and I heard his heartbeat increase.

He's hiding something.

"Go deeper." I decided and closed my eyes again. "Take me back to the lab after the adamantium. Take me to the day Daddy died."

"Lyla, I don't want you to-"

"You say you want to understand, right? So dig deeper, Charles."

"Daddy, what's-"

"Keep running, Lyla!"

We were both drenched in blood at this point. Once Stryker opened the cage to try and erase our memories, Dad and I immediately kicked him back and ran away to try and find an exit.

"You won't escape, Howletts!" Stryker yelled as a scientist grabbed my arm. "WE OWN YOU!"

I turned around and slashed his entire face before piercing his chest, feeling his heart beat on my claws.

"Where's the exit?" I asked, twisting my hand and he screamed in pain. "Where is it!?"

"Down the... Down the hall to the left is the emergency exit." He choked out as Dad slashed his neck.

"Let's go." He ordered and we both sprinted down the hall. "Once the door opens, you run and don't turn back, Lyla. You run like hell and I'll find you."

"But what if-"

"I'll always find you, my moonlight." Dad assured and picked me up when someone shot my leg. "But I need you to be safe first, okay?"

Once my leg healed and we saw the door, Dad set me down and shielded me while I tried to pry it open.

"Shoot to kill. I've had enough." I heard Stryker whisper and I tensed.

"You leave my kid alone." Dad snarled as I turned to see everyone pointing guns at us. "As if that'll do shit to us."

"Daddy..."

"Close your eyes and cover your ears, Lyla." He ordered, guiding me to a corner and I covered my ears but kept my eyes open. "Let my girl go, Stryker. Let her go and I'll do whatever you want."

"Better idea. How about we kill both of you." Stryker smirked and gave a nod.

Dad widened his eyes and turned to shield me as everyone started shouting at us. One particular shot went through his forehead and he tensed, making eye contact with me before falling limp on the ground.

"DAD!" I cried and everyone lowered their guns. "Daddy... Daddy, wake up, please... Please wake up."

"Oh my God..." One of the soldiers whispered and I looked up, making all of them take a step back.

"He's dead, Lyla." Stryker simply said as I tried to stop the blood coming from his chest. "And it's all your fault for trying to leave."

"Fuck you." I snarled, feeling my claws grow and slowly stood up. "You killed my dad."

"You killed him. It's all your fault."

"Shut up."

"Logan's dead because of you."

"I SAID SHUT UP!"

"Oh my..." Charles jolted back and I looked down to see scratches on the table and my claws on full display. "Lyla, I'm so sorry."

"I killed about forty people that night before they dragged me back to that cage. Last time I saw Daddy, they were dragging his body out through the same door we tried to open." I admitted and retracted my claws. "After that, I was locked in that cage and fed dead rats and raw meat... Stryker said that if I was gonna act like an animal, I was gonna be treated like one."

"You didn't deserve to be treated like that, Lyla. You are just a kid."

"It's fine, Charles... I genuinely don't care anymore."

"I can help you regain what you lost."

"There's no bringing my dad back. Unless your abilities include bringing people back from the dead." I rolled my eyes and stood up just as Erik walked inside. "And by the way... Judging by the way your heartbeat increased and your smell changed, you're hiding something. And I don't like secrets."

"We're not keeping secrets from you, liebchen." Erik said and I scoffed walking past him.

"Tell that to your boyfriend."