Here's the next chapter. A little more insight on Jean and Wanda's friendship. Hope you guys enjoy.

Chapter 20

Erik had been working when he felt the shake.

The whole factory building skook, upsetting the machinery and equipment surrounding him and his fellow coworkers. One of the equipment's cables broke and fell. There was a man underneath it on the ground.

He wouldn't be able to get out of the way in time.

Erik didn't think, it was a reflex. He reached out and stopped the equipment from crushing the man.

The second people came over to help the man, horror filled Erik. What had he done? He quickly put his hand down, and went back to work. He felt eyes on him and he looked around. Some of the workers threw glances at him, but mostly everyone's attention was on the man Erik had just saved.

Nobody came to confront him, so Erik went back to work like normal, keeping his head down. He would continue working like nothing was wrong, but as soon as he was able to, he would run. And he would be taking his family with him.

000{{*}}000

Everyone had come out of their rooms, and were looking towards the direction where Jean and Wanda's bedroom was in fear.

"They're doing it again," one of the students whispered.

"Mommy?" Charlotte heard her daughter's frightened voice from behind her.

"It's okay, darling. Just go back to bed," she gently told the young girl.

She rolled herself down the hallway, telling everyone to go back to bed. She felt their annoyance of being woken up and their fear of what Jean and Wanda could do.

Hank was standing outside their door when Charlotte reached it. He opened the door, and Wanda's black cat immediately shot past them, running down the hallway.

Charlotte focused her attention on her two students who were both obviously in the midst of a horrible nightmare. Both girls were prone to nightmares ever since they started coming here to Charlotte's school. They slept on opposite sides of the room, but Charlotte could see the damage they were already inflicting in their sleep. Jean was tossing and turning, whimpers escaping her, while Wanda thrashed in her sleep, her scarlet energy shining in her hands as she cried out. "No! Stop!"

"I've never seen either of them like this," Hank whispered to Charlotte, worry evident in his voice.

"Nor I. Don't let any of the children come this way," Charlotte told him before she entered the bedroom.

On Jean's side the pictures and walls were dissolving in smoke, and on Wanda's side the window was cracking and her dresser seemed to be on the verge of being set on fire. Despite all this, Charlotte continued on, suppressing her fear until she was in the space between Jean and Wanda's beds.

"Jean. Wanda," Charlotte whispered, trying to wake the poor girls who both seemed to be in physical pain from their nightmares. She tried delving into their minds, only to find herself in pain as well as she saw the images of their nightmares.

Fire.

Fire everywhere.

It filled the sky, burning everywhere.

Ash flew as buildings burned.

People screamed as they themselves burned.

Charlotte felt herself burning as her skin burned and she felt herself dissolving into ash.

Jean! Wanda!

Both girls woke up startled and shakened, and the dream ended. All three of them panted, their heart racing.

Hank watched them in worry.

Wanda sprung from her bed and went over to Jean, wrapping her arms around her like a child seeking comfort. Jean wrapped her arms around the other girl as well, and they held each other, the nightmare fresh in their minds. Charlotte was reminded of the stories the girls' parents had told her about when they were children, how they always sought comfort from one another after a nightmare even before their powers had manifested. The sight reminded of her and her sister Raven when they were little girls, comforting each other after a nightmare.

"I saw the end of the world," Jean whispered. "I could feel all this death."

Charlotte looked up at them. "It-it was just a dream," she tried to sooth.

Wanda shook her head, pulling away from Jean so she could look at the professor. "It felt real."

"I know," Charlotte whispered. "Your minds are the most powerful I've ever seen. They can convince themselves and each other-"

"No, it was real!" Wanda shouted, and a tear fell down her face.

"She's right," Jean agreed. "It's not just the mind-reading, the telekinesis, or the probability manipulation, it's something else. Some dark power inside and it's growing. Like a fire."

Charlotte had the feeling Jean wasn't including Wanda about this struggle. Both girls had extraordinary powers that could be just as powerful as they were dangerous, and yet they faced different challenges in dealing with them. Wanda, having grown up with a father who understood having unusual powers and had tried to help her to his best abilities, had more reassurance in her control. Whereas, Jean on the other hand, having normal human parents that didn't understand, had less confidence in her abilities.

"I thought I was getting better," Jean whispered.

Wanda rubbed her arm, comfortingly.

"You are," Charlotte told her. "You will. You just have to be patient. Both of you."

Jean shook her head furiously. "No, you don't know what it's like to be afraid to shut your eyes. To be trapped inside your own head."

"Oh, I think I do," Charlotte said, remembering what she went through those lonely years thinking she would go insane having all those voices in her head until she started taking Hank's serum.

"It wasn't so long ago that I was plagued by voices myself," she confessed to the two girls. "All their suffering. All their pain. Their secrets."

Both girls' ire faded, and Charlotte saw two frightened children before her.

"I'm afraid one day I'm going to hurt someone," Jean's voice sounded so small.

"Me too," Wanda whispered.

Charlotte's heart broke. She could remember as a little girl, her and Raven holding each other, terrified, and wishing someone would comfort them. That's what she saw as she looked upon Jean and Wanda huddled on the bed, and knew that's what they needed. "Lie back," she told them.

They did so, Wanda getting under the covers with Jean.

Charlotte brought her wheelchair closer to them, and managed to pick herself up from it and onto the bed. She looked down at the two girls. "Everyone fears that which they do not understand," she said to them softly. "You will both learn to control your powers, and when you do, neither of you will have anything to fear."

She brushed Jean's ginger locks from her face, and wiped Wanda's tears, smiling softly and reassuringly at them. "Both of you get some rest."

She got back into her wheelchair, but before she could leave, Wanda's voice caused her to stop. "There was something else in the dream. Before the fires came."

Charlotte turned her head and saw the haunted look in Wanda's blue eyes. "I saw a man in pain. Agonizing pain. Surrounded by death."

Those words sent a cold chill through Charlotte's spine, and she couldn't understand why.

000{{*}}000

"Their nightmares were different this time," Charlotte said to Hank as they went down to the basement.

"Well, it could account to something I saw when I was in my lab earlier," Hank suggested. "There was some kind of tremor. Like an energy surge. I picked it up on one my meters."

"You're saying that Jean and Wanda created it?" Charlotte asked.

"No, I'm saying something else did," Hank answered. "Maybe they were reacting to it. I don't know. But the epicenter was halfway around the world."

"Halfway around the world?" Charlotte asked incredulously.

"Yeah, that's why I was hoping you could take a look," Hank said as they reached Cerebro.

"Let's see what we can find."

The scanner checked her. "Welcome Professor."

They entered enter Cerebro. Over the years, the machine had been modified with newer tech, a big improvement since '73 when Charlotte had regained her powers.

They went over to the consul. Charlotte picked up the helmet and placed it on her head as Hank flipped the switches. "The source came from Cairo. I'll put in the coordinates," he said.

Cerebro came to life, and Charlotte was connected to all the minds in the world. She narrowed her search to Cairo, searching for answers until she found one mind in particular. Charlotte couldn't believe it.

"What? What is it?" Hank asked.

Charlotte realized she had a stupid grin on her face. "It's him."

"Who?" Hank asked. For a moment he was worried it was Erik.

"Maurice." She was brought to the moment she first met him when she was young and looked forward to her future, and how he made her feel special.

"What? Maurice MacTaggert?" Hank was surprised. He hadn't been expecting that. "Give me the details."

"He looks great. He's barely aged a day," Charlotte said, lost in thought as she took in Maurice's appearance. Damn, he looked good. Why did all the men in her life look good the older they got?

"No, I meant what is he doing there?" Hank asked. "What does the CIA want with this?"

Oh, right, Charlotte remembered. She knew she had to be blushing, but she focused on listening to Maurice's thoughts. "He's going back to Langley to deliver a report," she told Hank. "I'm going to go there, see if he knows something about the tremors."

Hank smirked. "You want to go see Maurice."

Charlotte looked at the projected figure of Maurice. "I want to go check him out," she said. Then realizing how that sounded, quickly reiterated. "Check out the situation."

Hank raised an eyebrow, and Charlotte cleared her throat.

The man continued to smirk at his old friend. "Maurice MacTaggert."

Charlotte's eyes remained on the projected image of Maurice. "It's like a ghost from the past," she breathed. She remembered his kindness, not only to her, but to other mutants back when they were training them in '62, and how he helped her adapt to life in a wheelchair during those first hard weeks.

Hank was smiling at Charlotte. In the past several years, he had wanted Charlotte to go out into the world, maybe try seeing someone. She spent so much of her time raising her daughter and running the school, Hank believed that she deserved to find happiness in love. Charlotte had told him about how she had refused Maurice years back, but judging from her reaction right now, maybe it was time to give it another go. Hopefully, Hank thought as they left Cerebro to get some sleep, Maurice would be able to help Charlotte move on from Erik and the pain and had caused her in the past, so she could have a better future.

000{{*}}000

The second his shift was over, Erik raced his home as fast as he could. Magda was there to greet him with a smile like she always did, but when she saw the panicked expression on his face, it dropped instantly. He took her upstairs, explaining what had happened at the factory as he began to pack their bags. Magda, after hearing what had happened, tried to talk him out of it. "You did a good thing. You saved that man."

Dear, sweet Magda. She had more faith in humans that Erik did, but Erik had spent too many years of his life on the run to believe in blind faith. "That's not the point," he said to her. "If I'm exposed, we're all exposed." How could he have been so stupid? By revealing himself, he had endangered his entire family.

"We have to leave." He pulled out a drawer filled with money, passports, and fake ids he had hidden for this event.

His wife stopped him. "This is our home. This is our daughter's home."

Erik held her face. "We are her home." He hated dragging his daughter away from the things she knew, but as long as they were together that's what mattered. He looked into his wife's beautiful dark eyes. "I told you who was, the first night I met you." He had told her everything, his family, the Holocaust, what he could do, the Brotherhood, and he even told her about Charlotte and the hurt he had caused her. Despite all of that, Magda had loved him and kept his secret, and he couldn't love her more for it.

"I trusted you then. I need you to trust me now. We can't stay here anymore," he said to her.

His wife nodded tearfully before kissing him. She pulled away from him. "I'll get Nina," she whispered.

She left their bedroom, and Erik continued to pack. There was no telling when the authorities would come, but the sooner they left, the better. Erik had to hurry.

"She's not in her room," his wife's panicked voice caused him to stop and look at her. "And I don't see her out back."

Fear showed in Magda's face before she ran downstairs, Erik following her as they went outside, and called for their daughter.

"Nina? Nina! Nina!" they called out, desperate to hear her.

A scream was heard.

Erik felt as if ice had been dumped on him. Please, no.

He ran in the direction where he heard the scream, into the woods with his wife following closely behind him.

"Nina!" Please, let her be alright, Erik prayed for the first time since he was a little boy. Please, not his little Nina. Erik had been scared many times in his life, but never, never had he been so terrified as he felt when he reached a clearing.

A dozen policemen, holding bows and batons were waiting for him, and among them was his precious Nina.

He slowed his pace and motioned Magda to stay back. Calmly as he could, he slowly walked towards them. He forced his voice to not show any of the fear and panic he felt at this moment. "Nina, are you alright?"

"She's fine," one of the officers told him briskly.

"Then let her go!" Magda demanded.

"We will," said the officer holding Nina. "We just wanted to have a word."

Erik looked at all of them. He couldn't feel any trace of metal on them. No badges, no watches, or even wedding bands. "You're not wearing your badges."

"No metal," one of them growled.

"Some guys at the factory said they saw something today. Something that didn't add up," the one holding Nina said.

"Put your weapons down," Erik tried to tell them. They didn't have any metal he could use. Just their numbers was enough to overwhelm him. They should know that he would do nothing to endanger his family.

The officer continued as if Erik hadn't spoken. "You've been a good citizen, Henryk. A good neighbor, a good worker. I want to believe that's who you are."

"It is!" Magda insisted.

The man continued. "But nobody in this town really knows you."

"Yes, you do," Erik told them. They knew the person he was now. "I am Henryk Gurzsky." He recognized one of them. "Jakob, I've had dinner in your home-"

"And you were lying the whole time," Jakob snarled. "I brought a killer into my house."

Erik flinched.

The leader, holding Nina then held up an old newspaper clipping. Erik recognized himself in it, taken ten years ago.

"Is this you? Are you the one they call Magneto?"

Erik felt hopelessness crash into him. He couldn't hide it anymore. His secret was out.

He turned his head to look at his wife. She looked so scared and worried. Erik knew what he needed to do. He had failed and brought so pain in the lives of the people he loved. His mother, Charlotte, and now Magda and Nina. it was time for that to stop.

He turned back to the policemen and forced himself to be strong for his girls. "Take me in. please, just let my daughter go."

No more hiding. No more running. It was time he faced the consequences of his actions. Nobody else would be hurt. Nina would be safe with Magda, and his wife would see it that she and their daughter would be alright.

Surprise showed in the leader's eyes at his corporation, but he released Nina and Erik made his way over towards them.

As his daughter passed him, Erik touched her face, engraving the image of it into his memory. "Go with your mother," he whispered to her. Tears burned in his eyes, knowing this would be the last time he saw her, but he forced them down. He had to be strong for her.

Confusion showed in her eyes, and when Erik put his hands behind his back for the police to bind, it seemed it finally dawned on her what was happening.

"Please!" she cried.

Erik shook his head. Please, Nina don't make this harder than it already was.

"Don't leave me!" her cries tore through Erik's heart, and he tried not to shed tears from them.

"I'm not going to let them take you!" Nina cried.

Magda tried to calm her down, whispering reassurances in her ears.

Rustling sounded in the forest, and the men looked around in fear. Crows screeched as they flapped around them.

"What's going on?"

"She's one of them!"

The screeching grew louder as did the men's fear. "Tell her to stop!"

"She can't control it!" Erik tried to tell them. Nina's powers had just come. At that stage there was no on and off switch yet. "She's scared of you!" He looked back at his daughter and saw a wild look in her dark eyes.

"I'm not going to let them take you!" she told him.

Birds screeched and they descended upon the policemen.

"Make her stop!" they cried in fear as they ducked from the birds' attacks.

Magda kneeled before her daughter and tried to calm her to stop this, but none of it stops. None of it stops until an arrow is loosened, and it hits both mother and daughter together.

It happened so slowly, Erik felt like he was trudging through mud as he pulled away from the policemen and shot to his wife and daughter. The arrow that hit them may as well have pierced his own heart as he reached them before they hit the ground.

Erik repeated his daughter's name. He had seen death so many times to know the signs, but that didn't stop him from begging for a miracle. That his beautiful wife and daughter would survive. But he felt their warmth leaving them. No, please. Not again. Please not again. The tears blurred his vision and he held them close to him as he sobbed. He felt Nina's soft hair and smelled the familiar cinnamon from Magda. He remembered meeting Magda for the first time and falling in love with her. He remembered holding Nina's tiny body in his arms for the first time, watching her first steps, and dreamed of her growing up, falling in love, and starting a family of her own, always promising to be his little girl.

Now she's gone.

Magda's gone.

They're both gone.

"Not my babies," he sobbed.

He found the locket hanging around Nina's neck and it fell into his hands. He could feel the metal of it, and he remembered the policemen watching him as he grieved for his dead family. The family they had killed.

Like a tempest rising, fury filled Erik as he thought of these monsters who had taken his family away from him. He let go of the locket and it flew from his hand. He made it go through and kill every policeman standing behind him until they were no longer standing, and it returned to him, covered in blood. He gripped it tightly in his hands even as it dug painfully into him.

He roared at the heavens above him. "Is this what you want from me?! Is this what I am?!" So many people Erik had loved harmed because of him: his parents, Charlotte, all his mutant brothers and sisters, Magda, Nina… it didn't stop.

"Is this what I am?" he sobbed.

Monster.

That's what he was.

A monster who killed and destroyed everything no matter what.

000{{*}}000

I'm not going to lie, I got a little misty eyed writing the deaths of Erik's family. Michael Fassbender did a brilliant job with that scene. I hope you guys liked this chapter. Reviews are best the way to encourage a writer. I know some of you guys will be wondering when the twins will find out about their real parentage, you'll just have to wait and see.