Caged Hearts

Poland, 1944

The little girl with honey blonde hair sat on her hard wooden chair, staring vacantly ahead with bright green eyes, like emeralds, at the blank wall.

She was bored beyond anything else she had felt so far today. Her father was out at the moment, having to take his twelve year old daughter to work with him, as the babysitter never showed up, much to his distaste and annoyance. And that same daughter was the one sat in his office behind his desk, now playing with a coin, a pout upon her face when she remembered her father telling her to stay put for a moment.

She got down now from her chair, walking over to the window and tried to jump a little to see outside, but failed. She growled a little, then jumped again, only for the door to open and her father to walk in, then scowl.

"Alexia, what did I tell you about looking out the window?"

The little pout returned as she turned to her father. "To not to..."

"Correct." he sighed, then picked her up and set her down on the desk, reaching into his pocket and bought out an apple, making the little girl grin and take it.

"Thank you Papa." she smiled, taking a bite out of it, then turned as her father sat down in his chair with a sigh. She giggled now. "You are looking old again Papa."

"I know Sweetheart. Until next week, yes?"

"Yay!" she said, then added. "Oops-" as the apple went flying, but she caught it mentally and made her father stand up and pluck it from the air, giving it back to her.

"See? Your powers are getting better all the time."

But now Alexia frowned. "But sometimes I hear voices inside my head... other peoples."

Sebastian Shaw stared at his little girl now, then sighed, taking her face in his hands. "Sweetie, you have a gift. A powerful gift as well. Who knows what your mind will be capable of when you get a little older."

"But I want to be special now..." she pouted, pulling away from her father. Shaw chuckled, ruffling her hair. "So very young, aren't you?"

"Yes..." she said, staring at the floor, then threw the apple core at the bin, promptly missing it and making her father laugh- she was so very playful at times.

But she was already showing some extraordinary talent in the field of the mind and telekinesis.

There were loud yells coming from outside now that alerted him to something with the new prisoners that were just in, fresh from Germany.

He walked over to the window and looked out of it, Alexia now complained about how she couldn't see, but saw her fathers frown, then he said to her. "Alexia, be a sweetheart and wait in the other room."

"Why?"

"Alexia." he said, and she knew that tone well, so she scowled and stomped into the other room, wondering what her father was up to.

It didn't take too long until the door opened and she heard voices, prompting her to open the door a tiny crack and spy through it, frowning a little at the dark haired boy of her own age in the uniform all the other people her father "studied" as he'd once said to her. What did he study? she wondered now, then saw her father push the coin she had been playing with across the table towards the boy, saying something like "make it move."

Alexias frown deepened as she stared through the crack, knowing her father would be furious if he knew. He cared about her, but was very strict when it came to her seeing people at his job.

She looked down at her feet now, readjusting her footing when a loud bang echoed, making her jump and fall over her feet and into the stool, knocking it over in her haste to press her eye back to the crack, then gasped quietly as she saw the woman dead upon the floor.

Alexia backed up now, a shiver of fear shooting up her spine at the young boys expression- like a man possessed. She kept backing up now until her back was pressed against the wall, her silver heart necklace was pulling forwards now towards the other room, until she grabbed it to stop it from snapping off, her heart pounding against her ribcage as the commotion stopped.

She stayed there for a moment, then the door opened, her father coming in.

"Alexia?" he frowned, walking forwards. "Are you ok? Did the sounds scare you?"

But she wasn't listening, she was looking ahead to the other room where the boy had seen her, his eyes wide and fixed on hers, and she could see he was fighting tears until a guard grabbed him and pulled him away.

"Who was he?" She asked now, letting her father lead her into the other room.

"He was, ah... special, you could say."

"Special like me?"

"Yes, just like you."

"Can I talk to him?"

"No." He now said sharply, making Alexia flinch a little. Shaw sighed, then knelt down so his face was leveled to hers. "He might hurt you, that is the only reason."

"But I'm not scared!"

"Uh-uh. You stay away from that boy, Lexi." Shaw said firmly, then sighed as she scowled a little. "Come on-" then led her into the room he'd had set up as a bedroom for her on the sofa.

Alexia was lying in the makeshift bed when she heard the voice.

"Someone help me..."

She frowned, sitting up and looking around, but no one was there.

"It's so cold..."

Alexia got up now, following the scared voice in the darkness, dragging her blanket after her as she did so, hearing total and utter silence as she walked up the stone corridor.

It seemed to go on forever as she walked into the darkness, the shadows growing longer as she walked, a shiver of fear shooting down her spine once more as she did so.

The voice seemed so loud in her head now as she stopped in front of a solid door, massive and tall before her as she spied a lock on the door, then a small metal slider that she pushed aside and peered inside, seeing a small figure sat in the corner of the room, quiet sobs echoing a little as his arms tightened around his knees.

"Hello?" Alexia called now, forgetting her fathers warnings. The boy looked up, his eyes wide in fear it seemed to her.

"Leave me alone." he said, but to Alexia, it was more of a quiet whimper, his body shaking with emotion and cold.

"I'm not going to hurt you." she said in surprise, then the boy looked up, and she saw the tears in his eyes, then-

"Who are you?"

"I'm Alexia." she said, kneeling down more so she could see better. He was silent, then said so quietly she almost missed it.

"Erik."

She nodded, then frowned. "Why are you in here?"

"I- I don't know... my mother..." he let out another little sob now that Alexia saw he had been hiding since that loud bang in the other room. Alexia realized now that it was his mother getting shot...

"Don't cry." She pleaded now, getting upset herself as she watched him sob once more. She reached into her pocket now and broke off some of the chocolate she had, holding it out to him through the gap. He stopped crying a little now, looking up, then hesitantly took the chocolate from her.

"Thank you." he sniffed, biting into it, but then his head snapped up when he heard the distant bang and footsteps. "You need to leave." he said huriedly, and Alexia nodded, going to shut the metal slide.

"Will you visit me again?"

Her hand froze now, then she looked in at his wide eyes, then nodded. "I promise." then closed the slide and swiftly ran up to her fathers office, getting back into the makeshift bed before anyone realized about her little midnight expedition.

She closed her eyes, the little boy called Erik on her mind-

Why wouldn't her father let him play with her?

Since my other X-men story is, sadly, nearing its end, I thought I'd start up a new one:D Sorry this chapter is shortX( they will be getting much more longer. So, I hope people are interested, and I'll update if people like it enough. So, reviews are much loved and thanks!