A/N: This is a rewrite of an absolutely terrible fic I wrote a while ago. Trust me when I say this version is a lot better, but please don't expect it to be a masterpiece. That being said, I hope you enjoy!
Hazel Patisal's life was always hectic.
She was a mutant, for one thing, and that automatically guaranteed her a life of chaos. For another, her parents kicked her out of the house as soon as they found out about her powers.
And, finally, she lived at Xavier's School For Gifted Youngsters. A ridiculously long title, in her opinion.
Hazel had been ecstatic when the school first opened. At last, there was a place she belonged, a place where she could be with others like her. It was every bit as amazing as she'd hoped, but it didn't last very long. Too many teachers and older students were being drafted, so the school was shut down and the students were sent home.
But Hazel had nowhere to go, so they let her stay.
She mostly stayed out of the way of Charles and Hank, instead opting to privately train with her powers, training that seemed to be fruitless. While she had the basic stuff down, her telekinesis needed some work.
Nothing ever happened at the house, nothing exciting, no new people. That is, until a stranger showed up demanding to talk to Charles.
Of course, Hazel likely wasn't supposed to know that. She probably wasn't supposed to be near them. And she most definitely was not supposed to be eavesdropping on their conversation.
And yet, there she was, hiding in the hallways and listening to every word they were saying.
"So, you mean to say they took Raven's power and what?" Charles was asking. "They weaponized it?"
"Yep," The stranger answered nonchalantly.
"She is unique," Hank commented. Hazel could practically see Charles' eye roll.
"In the beginning, the Sentinels just targeted mutants," The stranger said. Hazel had no idea what he was talking about, but she was intrigues. "Then they began to identify the genetics in humans who would eventually have mutant kids and grandkids. A lot of humans tried to helps us but… it was a slaughter. Only the worst of humanity was left. And it all starts with her. She-"
"Hang on," Charles interrupted. "Hazel! I don't even have my powers and I know you're eavesdropping."
"Damn it," She cursed quietly. She then sighed and stepped into the room, holding up her hands in mock surrender.
"You should be upstairs."
"Well, I was until I heard all the crashing," Hazel defended herself. "Sorry for making sure you guys are okay."
"There's no need to act like a teenager," Charles said.
"I am a teenager! What do you expect me to act like?"
"Sorry, who's this?" The stranger asked.
"I'm Hazel," she said. "And you are?"
"I thought you said all the students left," The stranger said to Hank, ignoring Hazel's question.
"She didn't have anywhere to go," Hank whispered.
"I can explain my own tragic backstory, thanks," She muttered. "Now can someone tell me what the hell is going on?"
"Hazel, this is Logan," Charles said. "He believes he's been sent from the future."
"I was sent from the future," Logan corrected.
"I believe him," She said with a shrug. "I mean, I can move things with a flick of my finger, Hank can turn into a blue monster, and you can literally read people's minds. Is time-traveling really that far-fetched?"
It wasn't until she finished speaking that she realized her mistake. She mentioned Charles' powers as if he still had them.
"Hazel," Charles sighed annoyedly. He was always doing that, acting as if she was a burden to have around. Then again, she probably was a burden to have around.
"I know, I know. Sorry."
"All right, Logan," Charles said, turning his attention back to the stranger. "Let's just say for the sake of… the sake that I believe you. Raven won't listen to me. Someone else filled that role a long time ago."
"I know," Logan replied. "So we're gonna need Magneto, too."
Hazel snorted, Hank scoffed, and Charles looked like he was either going to burst out laughing or start crying.
"You do know where he is, right?" Hazel asked, amused.
"Yeah."
"He's where he belongs," Charles muttered bitterly. He stomped out of the room and into the foyer, where he started to trudge up the steps.
"You're just gonna walk out?" Logan asked.
"Ooh, top marks," Charles said without even turning around, his voice dripping with sarcasm. "You really are perceptive."
"The Professor I know would never turn his back on someone who'd lost their path."
That stopped Charles dead in his tracks. Hazel and Hank exchanged a knowing, worried glance.
"You know," Charles said in a low voice as he turned around. "I think I do remember you now. Tall, angry fellow with the contentious hair. We came to you a long time ago for your help. And I'm going to say to you what you said to us then: Fuck off."
It was Logan's turn to lose his cool. He shoved Charles against the wall, the rage clear on his face.
"Listen to me you little shit," He growled. Hazel started eyeing the room for possible weapons. "I've come a long way, and I've watched a lot of people die. Good people. If you're gonna wallow in self-pity and do nothing, you're gonna watch the same thing. Understand?"
The two of them held eye contact for a long time, almost as if they were seeing who would break it first. Predictably, that was Charles.
"We all have to die sometime," He whispered before slowly trailing up the steps, receding into himself once again.
"I told you there was no professor here," Hank said once Charles was out of earshot.
"What the hell happened to him?"
"A better question would be what didn't happen to him," Hazel sighed. Hank launched into a quick explanation about the teachers and older students being drafted and the school having to be closed. On top of Raven and Erik leaving him, it had simply been too much for Charles to bear.
Hazel tuned out. She knew the story all too well already.
"I'll help you get her," Came Charles' sudden voice. All three people in the room whirled around to see that he was, in fact back and talking to them. "Not for any of your future shit, but for her."
"Fair enough," Logan said with a shrug.
Hazel, for one, was shocked. She thought there was no way he would agree to help Logan, even if Raven was involved.
"I'll tell you this," Charles continued. "You don't know Erik. That man is a monster, a murderer. You think you can convince Raven to change? That's splendid. But what makes you think you can change him?"
"Because you and Erik sent me back here together."
There was a very long and shocked silence that followed.
…
"The room they're holding him in was built during the Second World War," Hank was explaining, using blueprints that covered the table to help the rest of them visualize it. Hazel still couldn't quite believe that they were organizing a prison break for Magneto of all people. "…the foundation is pure concrete and sand, no metal."
"He's being held one hundred floors," Charles lightly banged his fist on the table for emphasis. "Beneath the most heavily guarded building on the planet."
"Why is he in there?" Logan asked, his face twisted in confusion.
"He didn't tell you?" Hazel asked, once again amused. Apparently Future Charles and Future Erik had quite a way of withholding extremely important information.
"Uh, JFK," Hank explained awkwardly.
"He killed…"
"What else explains a bullet miraculously curving through the air?" Charles sighed. "So, you still want to carry on with this? We have no resources to get us in or out. It's just me and Hank."
Hazel coughed loudly.
"And Hazel."
"I know a guy," Logan said. "He'd be… well he'd be Hazel's age now, I guess. Grew up outside of D.C. He could get into anywhere, I just don't know how the hell we're gonna find him."
"Is Cerebro out of the question?"
Charles' silence was the answer to Hank's question.
"If only you guys had the Internet."
"The what?"
Logan let out a very long sigh.
"We have a phonebook," Hank offered.