FROM FINE COMBED waves to the blue-white lace of the shore, the waves brought a beauty to the beach that etched in every heart that saw. Eleanor watched the sea, lost in the rhythmic percussion of the waves on the sand. Her eyes are steady to the horizon, face aglow with the early morning rays.

Genosha was indeed the perfect island paradise.

And it had been her home now for eleven years.

Just after Erik and Eleanor's Jewish wedding, the U.S. government granted their petition of building a mutant sanctuary. Located a few miles from the coast of the eastern seaboard, their island nation stood tall and heavily fortified with the metal pieces the couple summoned from the sea. It was as if the government imparted it to them as a wedding gift.

Eleanor scoffed at that thought. Getting the island wasn't supposed to be a gift or a pity offering, it was their right. They deserve it. Mutants need a safe place from all of the humans' act of violence against them.

As the years passed by, Eleanor slowly began to see her husband's reason for his past actions. As she and Valerie intrepidly fought for the mutant rights in public and in the Congress, she saw how unfair the system was. She frowned, softly rubbing her arms. As if mutants asked themselves to be mutants in the first place.

The brunette then felt a cool draught of air whip over the waves, bringing a taste of the ocean with it. It tossed her hair every bit as roughly as the ocean at her feet. She smiled fondly at this.

It was now the year 1994 and everything was going well and steady for the Lehnsherr family.

Her firstborn son Nathaniel was now in the army, joining immediately after he graduated from the Institute while Anastasia remained in the mansion to teach. Over the years, they have slowly grown to accept Erik as their real father although they politely requested that they remain to be a Xavier. This, of course, saddened Erik and Eleanor but they respected their children's decision. They knew Nathaniel and Anastasia were highly capable of choosing the best for themselves. After all, they were now adults.

"Mom!" She heard a shout behind her and the brunette grinned upon recognizing her other son's voice. Almost immediately after the wedding, the couple were blessed with another son who they named Alexander.

Her eyes caught sight of her brown-haired young boy approaching her with an excited smile on his rose lips. "Yes, Alex?"

"Look, I did what dad taught me yesterday." Alexander pointed his finger to his side. "Isn't it great?"

Eleanor glanced at the metal lion sculpture her son hsd recently just refashioned. Yes, it was her youngest who inherited her husband's mutation and there wasn't even a single day when he wouldn't boast or flaunt that Alexander Magnus Lehnsherr would be as great and good-looking as him one day. She internally rolled her eyes at the good-looking part.

She turned her gaze back at her youngest son, observing him. Alexander almost looked identical to Erik, even in personality and gestures. He refused to display his emotions, would always brood, wave his hands in a sophisticated manner, and his anger -- oh, he definitely got it from his father. Thankfully, Alex would only retaliate if provoked.

"Yes, darling. It looks magnificent!" complimented she, tugging at her son's black turtle neck sweater. "I'm glad you have now fully mastered your ability."

"I'm glad too." He looked at his hands. "You and dad taught me well." Alexander pursed his lips. "Dad even said I'm a natural. Do you think the same too, mom?"

Eleanor grinned, humorously. "Of course, you are. You're the son of two powerful mutants. You will always be a natural."

"Good. I want that."

The mother ruffled her son's hair, chuckling. "Now, come on. Let's get inside. Your father must be awake now." She said, gently pushing him forward towards their home.

The woman glanced at the half-constructed bungalow house near the seashore. It was going to be their new home since Erik decided for them to move closer to the ocean since he wanted to always see the sun rise over the horizon. She sighed. They had many plans for the new house. Not only will it be their new home, but it would also serve as a small school for the mutant children in their island.

They still had yet to discuss whether they'll put up a bigger educational institution, but for now, they'll cater first to the needs of the group of children now residing in Genosha.

Upon entering their shelter, Eleanor sent her son straight to his room to clean himself up and set foot inside her bedroom where she saw her half-naked husband just waking up. "Good morning, love." greeted the woman, picking up her brush from her vanity and using it to straighten the slight knots in her brown hair.

"Morning..."

She tied her hair up into a messy bun, letting a few strands of her hair fall in the sides of her face. "So, what do you want for breakfast?"

A moment later. "You."

Eleanor snapped her head towards him, nonplussed. She scoffed and telekinetically tossed a pillow to his head. "I'm serious, Erik. What do you want for breakfast?"

"My answer won't change."

The brunette rolled her eyes. "And my answer is no." she affirmed. "You already kept me up until four in the morning."

Erik chortled, smirking. "Well, you were too distracting." He then leant against the headboard, placing his hands behind his head. The thin blanket slowly slid down from his chest, ending just above his abdomen as if he did it on purpose.

Attractive bastard. She thought to herself.

"Keep your libido under control, Erik." She tugged down the end of her polo sleeves. "I swear, we're so lucky I age slowly now or I'd have back pains today because of you fucking me like it's going to be the end of the world." She finished, squinting her eyes.

It was actually Hank who noticed that she had started to age slower than all of them and no, it didn't have to do with Eleanor having some good genes. Years ago, her medical examination showed that her mutation evolved and Hank's best guess about it was that it had to do something with En Sabah Nur's action. He even claimed that some latent abilities in her have been unlocked and amplified though he wasn't sure what they were exactly.

Eleanor gently set down her brush and walked over to him, climbing up to his lap. She wrapped her arms around his neck, brushing her lips against his cheek. Erik let his hands ran down to her waist and lower back. "I love you, you know that, right?" he murmured, laying his head above her collarbone.

She hummed, smiling.

She placed her hands on the sides of his face, pulling him away to stare at him. She let herself stare straight into his steel-colored eyes that always captured her soul. Combing her fingers through his hair, she asked. "You're being extra sweet today and last night. What did you do?"

Erik furrowed his eyebrows, evidently baffled. "Nothing... as far as I am aware of."

"Good," She leant closer to him, tapping her finger against his bare chest. "I swear to god, you better not fuck around, Erik. Because if you do, I'll silently pack my bags and leave you. You'll hear nothing from me, and you will expect divorce papers immediately the next day."

"Where is this coming from?"

"Nothing. Just warning you."

Her husband pulled her closer to him, letting his lips graze her neck. "You have absolutely nothing to worry about, El. You have -- "

Eleanor hissed, suddenly feeling a fierce stabbing pain shot through her head. Her vision blurred for a moment and for a moment, she thought she saw a bright red mist swirl around. She winced as she bent her head down, pressing her fingers to her temples.

"Eleanor, are you okay? Talk to me..."

The brunette heard her husband call for her, but he seemed too far, too distant. She could hear a faint, chilling laugh somewhere and instantaneously, goosebumps rise on her skin. What the hell was that?

"Eleanor!"

Erik placed his hands on the sides of her face, eyes wide and troubled for her. She shut her eyes and the stabbing pain disappeared as if nothing happened. She furrowed her eyebrows, utterly perplexed at what just occurred. She shook her head, staring back at her lover. "I'm fine. Yeah, I'm fine." she assured, now nodding.

"Are you sure? You look like you're going to faint."

"Yeah, I think you might wanna catch me." She uttered, teasing. This didn't amuse him though since he frowned and cross his eyebrows. At this, she winced and immediately placed a soft kiss on his forehead. "I'm kidding. I'm fine, I'm fine. I promise I'm fine, my love."

Erik observed her for a moment. "No, you're not. This has been happening for three months now, Eleanor. We're visiting Hank tomorrow again. Try to see what's all this." he asserted, his face serious. He was deeply worried about her condition.

"Erik..."

"You also told me you have been having vision-like dreams too, right? We'll ask Charles about those."

"Erik..."

He frowned, raising his hand. "No, Eleanor. We're not ignoring this anymore. We're going tomorrow and that's final."

"Okay, fine." acquiesced the woman, sighing a little. Indeed, once Erik had set his mind onto something, it was hard to pull him out of it. Actually, she just thought it was normal, especially she was already getting older. However, seeing and hearing things wasn't. Maybe Erik was right, they had to figure what was it.

Just three months ago, Eleanor began to experience vision-like dreams that seemed to be almost prophetic. They were often blurry, but she always remembered the feelings of grief and rage -- uncontrollable rage. There were often green and red vapor of energy around and a phoenix shaped flames would show up, soaring high as if displaying its power. There were even instances where she would see herself weeping and holding someone close to her. Everything looked hazy, but she knew it was her. She didn't know what it even meant.

If it was a premonition, she didn't like it one bit.

Eleanor let her index finger drag across his stubbled jaw, leaning close to brush her lips against his own. "And if I go away, I will find a way to return to you always." recited the woman, reminiscing her wedding vow. "And I'll choose you. I'll keep choosing you and our family. Without a doubt, without a pause, every time, I'll keep choosing us." She mumbled before capturing his lips with hers.

His lips were firm and warm, playing over her own, enticing her until she was panting for breath. Erik captured the sound in his mouth, taking advantage of her open lips to run his tongue along them, tasting her delicately.

Eleanor felt herself melt in a very wonderful way. All her longings, dreams, and secrets that rested profound in her came awake. Everything just made sense when she was with him. After many years of being together and being through so much already, nothing had changed. They were still mad about each other.

As they slowly pulled away, Erik's fingers slid down the back of her neck as if tracing its shape. They leant close to one another, just feeling the moment.

"I don't know what I'd do without you."

The way Erik said it made Eleanor's heart clench in a painful way she didn't understand. She could hear how he meant it as a confession. That he wouldn't be able to live without her.

"I won't go away." She softly replied, then looked up. "Well, right now, I have to or we'll all starve and Alexander will complain... again."

"Let him." Erik tugged her closer to him and Eleanor nodded, scrunching her nose. She pressed herself to him, slightly growling and crushing him. This caused Erik to groan and he drew back, grimacing. "Love, love, you're crushing my spleen."

Eleanor rolled her eyes. "Please, you don't even know where your spleen is."

"Excuse me?"

"I'm kidding." She grinned. "But, seriously though, you know where it is?"

"Eleanor, I'm not dumb."

"You sure about that?"

Erik was about to retaliate when a knock on their door suddenly interrupted them both. Eleanor didn't have to turn her head for she immediately sensed their son's presence. "Yes, Alex?"

"Ana just called. Said she wanna talk to you both."

The brunette pursed her lips and tapped Erik's cheek twice. "Come on, dress up." She removed herself from his lap and wore her slippers, getting out of their bedroom. Eleanor picked up the telephone, answering it. "Anastasia," she began. "Is everything okay? We just talked yesterday."

"Have you seen the news, mom? We're going to do a rescue mission in space."

This caught Eleanor's attention and she gripped the telephone tighter. Since when did the X-Men did space missions? How were they even going to get up there? As far as she knew, Valerie and Hank modified the X-Jet for acceleration not elevation. "What? You guys do that now? And also, no. I haven't seen the news." She shrugged. "Actually, we don't get any news in here."

"Well, that sucks. But, you can reach into my mind, right?"

Upon this, Eleanor tapped into Anastasia's mind with little effort. Yes, she could now breach into anyone's mind without the use of Cerebro, an ability unlocked by En Sabah Nur. News of the Space Shuttle Endeavour encountering problems on its mission instantaneously popped in Anastasia's head and the concerned parent tilted her head. "Ana, it isn't unusual for astronauts to experience problems in outer space. So, what's different with this one?"

"Well, we don't know yet, but we're about to find out. Where's father dearest?"

As if on cue, Erik appeared by her side with a raised eyebrow. "He's here." declared the mother, handing the telephone to him. "They're about to do a rescue mission in space." apprised she.

"What?" he expressed, bewildered. He took the telephone from her. "Anastasia, why is Charles letting you all do this? Tell him I'm not allowing you to go up there now."

Eleanor stepped aside and used her telepathic connection to listen to their conversation.

"Erik, it's just a simple extraction." reasoned their daughter. "Well, at least that's what aunt Raven told us."

"Ana, listen to me -- "

"I can do it, Erik. I'll be safe. You and mom don't need to worry about me, okay?"

"Fine." the father relented, sighing. "But, call us as soon as you land."

"Yup."

"Watch your brother Peter as well."

"Roger that!"

Eleanor knew Erik was aware that Peter Maximoff was his son. Due to the silver-haired boy's behavior and comments, Erik figured it all out himself. Even Nathaniel and Anastasia sensed Peter's strong emotions and the twins knew then that they were all siblings. As Erik was about to confront Peter, Eleanor told her husband that his son was already preparing himself to reveal it and suggested that they patiently wait for him. However, up until the present, Peter still didn't have enough courage to tell Erik that he is his son.

The head of the Lehnsherr family set down the telephone just as Eleanor ambled over to the window, settling her eyes to the gray sky. Far in the distance, storm clouds had gathered, dark and ominous, surely promising something terrible and fierce. Ravens flew around, their wings forming truncated crosses and she remembered what these birds often symbolized: misfortune and death.

Eleanor's heart began to race and her mind grew wild and frantic. A gnawing feeling then radiated from her guts.

Something bad was going to happen.

She knew it.

She felt it.

And they weren't going to be ready for it.