New X-Men (Marvel Omega)

New X-Men Annual 2014 - "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen"

The Old Church
Xavier Institute, Westchester County, New York

The many students of the Xavier Institute for Higher Learning moved across the snow covered grounds of the grand estate in a state of silent reverence. It was a sight that would warm even the coldest of hearts, a show of undying commitment to the faith and magic of Christmas. There were those unhappy to participate and those who had no interest in observing a Christian holiday when they had their own faith to follow but the Mutant Christian Union, as led by the detestable Idie Okonkwo, had organised a midnight mass to emphasise on the prayer and celebration of the festive time. Laurie Collins had always loved Christmas, and she'd loved attending masses with her mother but she struggled to feel anything but anger and bitterness as of late. Her boyfriend had been taken in the months prior and her every waking thought reverted back to him when she found a moment of silence. She'd tried keeping busy but nothing could snap her out of the funk she'd so easily descended into. Still, Laurie had to keep her emotions in check – they had a habit of spreading to those around her when uncontrolled.

"Am I late?"

The pheromone-manipulating mutant looked up, much of her lower face was hidden amidst the swaths of blue cotton that made up her scarf but the dazzling sapphire eyes, so much like those of her mother, were clear to see. "Mom?"

"I got a phone call from Doctor McCoy this morning and he thought that since I lived so close I might like to come and join in with your midnight service, sweetie," Gail Collins smiled brightly at her daughter. Her vision danced as she took in the entirety of the grounds, which had a beauty mostly taken for granted by the students and staff that surrounded her. "It really is beautiful with all the snow and the lights."

She noticed Laurie hadn't replied. Things had changed in recent months since the abduction of Joshua Guthrie. Laurie had lost both of the men in her life and a distinct lack of a father had regrettably left her needy. Gail had always pampered her in an attempt to overcompensate for the mistakes of her youth and the secrets she'd kept hidden but Laurie wasn't the girl she had been back in Connecticut. Distant and colder, Gail barely recognised the only person in the world she'd ever been able to truly love. She reached her hand out, drawing the light blue scarf drew her gloved fingers.

"I'm glad you liked it."

Laurie nodded. "It's getting cold."

"I've been speaking with Mister Guthrie, honey, and–"

"Don't," Laurie pleaded.

"Maybe if we just stepped to the side for a minute," reasoned her mother. "We could join up with the procession again after."

Laurie frowned. "I don't want to talk. I'm all talked out. I want to do something, to help, to save him, but I can't. I couldn't then and I won't get the chance too. I need time and space for that and I don't want McCoy or Guthrie or you or anyone else sticking their noses into my business. I'm fine."

It was clear that Gail had so much she'd wanted to say, so much she'd wanted to protect her from, but in her haze of frustration, Laurie wasn't ready to hear it. She'd once been pleasant and happy, popular and unafraid, but things had changed since she'd become a mutant and found herself in an entirely unfamiliar world. It was a world Gail hadn't experienced and for the first time in her life, the Connecticut-born mutant was entirely on her own without a guiding hand to catch her should she fall. It was terrifying. Still, the added pressure of being an outcast was nothing compared to the trauma's she'd faced since arriving at the school. Death and destruction seemed to be an annual occurrence and mourning a part of the curriculum. Laurie, who had only known her mother for the majority of her life, had never known grief and now, she felt it all too harshly.