Which Monster Is Worse?

Get out.

The doors slamming open downstairs did little to satiate his guilt as he felt the shock inside Anna-Marie's mind upon entering the bloody halls.

He felt anger rising from Wanda, as well as a suspicion towards himself. He tilted his head as he sensed something loose within her mind, some frayed threads with a current running through them. A circuit was short and Charles wasn't sure how long until it sparked and caught fire to the world around her.

As the doors to his study burst open, Charles didn't dare look towards the two women standing there.

Wanda dropped all pretenses of kindness as she strode over to the Professor.

"What did you do here? I don't have to go inside your head to see the guilt on your face. It's plain as day." Her voice lowered to a tone that sent chills down Anna-Marie's spine. Wanda was truly furious at what had happened here, but Rogue couldn't piece the puzzle due to her not being telepathic. Although it didn't take long for it to be laid out in front of her with a world shattering revelation.

"I...The Beast got loose. I've already told you." Charles spoke with false indignance, not anticipating Wanda's reply to hit him as hard as it did.

"Then tell me why I can still feel Adam. His pain...grief. Everything. He is still in control." Wanda's lips moved in the time it took to momentarily access Adam from countless miles away. The grief was a beacon to her. But there was a small tinge of another presence remaining in his mind. Small sutures left by Charles lined Adam's psyche, signaling a large piece lost.

The emotion quickly shifted on her face as the muscles around her nose tightened, revealing a devilish snarl as she bent down and gripped the armrests on Charles's wheelchair.

"What. Did. You. Do?" The question was spoken slowly, with venom dripping through the silence after each word spoken. Her accent seemingly made it that much more terrifying to look her in the eyes.

Charle's face contorted in grief as he looked away from Wanda once more, which caused the woman to raise a hand and twist her palm, using her magic to force his gaze back to her with a quickness.

"I won't ask again..." Wanda whispered, mere inches away from his face.

"I...I wanted to help him. After the grief of losing you the last time, I knew Adam was on borrowed time. The Beast would show its face eventually. I had to fix this. So I cut the Beast away entirely from his mind. I tried my b-" Charles was cut off by his jaw snapping shut due to the magic holding his head steady in its place.

Wanda turned her head slowly to Anna-Marie, a scarlet glow behind her irises.

"Get out." The words were spoken harshly, though they were meant to save Rogue from seeing what came next.

Without any argument, Anna-Marie slid through the open doors without making a noise. She kept her eyes closed as to not see all of the blood covering the school surrounding her. It was a harrowing thing to see. In her listless pattern of thoughts, she wandered out to the courtyard and towards the treeline beyond the moor, enjoying the fresh greenery amongst all the red she neglected to notice.

When Wanda was sure Anna was gone, she returned her focus to Charles.

"The only Beast here is you, Charles. You won't even leave this room to see what your actions did. What your lack of personal boundaries brought about. You killed every single student here!" Wanda shouted, releasing her hold over his jaw.

"Why did you think you could just let all these kids die because you couldn't handle a situation properly?" Wanda pleaded with him, wanting to fix this more than anything.

Charles's face twisted in anger as righteous indignation took over his once regretful features. He narrowed his eyes as a silent connection wove its way into Wanda's mind. He saw flashes of Isabella, the crash, Westview, and the interaction between her and Adam.

He didn't know it, nor did he intend for it to be so, but the pride now present in his reaction to being confronted would be the signature on Charles's death warrant.

"Why did you let yours?" Charles retorted to the woman in front of him, goading her into thinking about the hail of gunfire only accessible if she chose to dig deeper. But she didn't. Instead, her face grew taught as she yanked her free hand sideways, causing a sickening crack to echo from the chair now vacant of life before Wanda.

Tear tracks plastered themselves on Wanda's face as she walked out to find Rogue, unaware of just how much guilt would eat her up at the emotional tear jerk killing of Charles. But the man deserved it. He had meddled with things beyond his control, and his death came through those terms he chose to lay out.

In her mind, Wanda called out for Rogue, receiving no reply as she struggled to cling to sanity, the full weight of yet another murder finally sinking into her skin. All she needed right now was a friend, someone to help make some sense of the clusterfuck she now found herself in.

When she believed Anna-Marie to be running through the treeline, Wanda turned her attention to beyond the front doors only to see that the figure coming through was a far cry from the girl she had come here with.

With short steps, Wanda inched out of the foyer onto the front stone stairs leading to the courtyard.

"You.." She whispered as she watched the monster tilt its head. The gesture signified some sort of familiarity, but Wanda had no time for formal gestures as she cupped her hands to her mouth. If the Beast wasn't immediately attacking her, then he was no priority of Wanda's.

"Rogue!" The first word shouted caused the Beast to do nothing whatsoever, only standing in his place still transfixed on Wanda.

"Anna-Marie!" Wanda shouted once more, eyes finally settling upon the red staining the Beast's hands and chin. The blood was fresh, bright, and dripping down to the green grass below.

The wider her eyes grew, the closer Wanda came to the truth. Of course there was no reply from Rogue...

Wanda's hand reached up to cover her mouth. "No.... no, no, no...." She cried as she looked across the tree line, searching out for her mind. "Anna-Marie!!!" She screamed, feeling nothing else but the Beast. Her eyes turned back to him, standing in the distance. "Why?" She asked as she began to choke on tears. "Why?!?" She screamed at him as she stumbled back and shock took over her body.

Her legs gave out from underneath her as she sobbed harder. Power began swirling around her hands, her sobs growing as she looked back up at the Beast. "Why her?!?" She screamed as a burst of energy shot from her hand, destroying the fountain in the center of the courtyard. She had nothing else to say as she violently tore apart the remainder of the courtyard, leaving ashes in her wake. She lost focus on everything around her until she looked up into the woods, the Beast now the last thing on her mind. She began to walk, she didn't know where she was going, or what she'd find. But she continued on all the same. It grew darker the longer she walked but she truly didn't care. It wasn't until the smell of iron grew strong that her feet froze in their place. It made her sick beyond comprehension but, to her, Anna deserved peace. Wanda shook her head, not having the courage to look at what was left. Not yet. Tears filled her eyes as she thought of the last thing she said to her.

Get out.

Wanda choked on a sob, forcing herself to look at what she had done. Forcing herself to memorize what happens when people get close. She held out her hand shakily and quickly used her powers to bury the tattered remains. Her sobbing eventually quieted as she knelt numbly where she had buried her friend. She wasn't ever religious but she felt the need to mark the grave with a wooden cross. "Anna, I-" She choked on her words and had to stop to gather herself. "You didn't deserve this." She said softly as her eyes stared out into the endless amount of trees. She had no one. Pietro, gone. Anna, gone. The people she once called her team, gone. Until she thought of Adam.

Her other half from another time and she searched out for him mentally. When she connected with him, she was hesitant, mindful of the beacon of emotion he was earlier while she dealt with Charles. "Adam?" She questioned, making her voice soft and calming to him.

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Hope everyone is having a good day!

- 01/03/2022