Agatha's eyes gaze up at the ceiling. It is still dark and she isn't sure why she woke up. Then she hears it again. A scream as if someone is being tortured. Agatha throws the blankets off herself and rushes out of her room. She needs to get to Wanda. What if someone has attacked the cottage? And on her first night out of Westview too.
Agatha runs through the halls, running through all the possibilities of what could be happening to Wanda. Agatha gestures with her hands, trying to extend her magical senses to feel what is happening. Nothing happens and Agatha remembers that she can't use her magic here. Those stupid glowing runes. She can hear her heart racing as she grabs what looked like a weapon in the darkness, hoping she won't need to use it.
Agatha bursts into Wanda's room.
"Wanda, what happened? Did someone break in?" Agatha scans the corners of the room, swinging the weapon wildly, but no one is there.
Wanda is lying in bed, crying, her head in her hands.
"Wanda?" Agatha asks softly, sitting down next to her.
"I'm sorry, Agatha. I—I had a nightmare. I've been having nightmares every night, not just that one time I told you about. I didn't want you to know." Wanda confesses. Her shoulders shake as tears run down her face.
Agatha reaches her arm around Wanda's shaking body.
"Oh, Wanda. You have to tell me about things like these. I can help you."
"I just feel so ashamed."
"Why? It's not something you can help, is it?"
Wanda stops crying and looks at Agatha, her eyebrows scrunching together.
"Why do you have a broom, Agatha?" Wanda giggles.
"I thought there was an intruder. And thanks to your stupid runes, I can't use my magic." Agatha brushes her hair out of her face. "Now tell me, can you do anything that will prevent you from having nightmares?"
"Ye—I mean, no… I can't." Wanda stares at Agatha, her eyes seeming to be scanning Agatha's face.
"So that means you shouldn't worry about it. Do you trust me?"
After a tense moment of the two women gazing into each other's eyes, Wanda responds.
"Ye-yes, I do trust you." Wanda stutters over her words.
"Good. You know, I could have left already, if I wanted to." In truth, Agatha doesn't know why she is staying. It would be easy enough to find where Wanda had hidden the Darkhold and then she could just walk outside and fly away. But it just felt wrong to leave Wanda in this state. Wanda needed her, and Agatha promised she would help.
"If you do trust me, you need to tell me things. Alright?"
"Alright." Wanda mutters under her breath, staring at the floor again.
"What did I say about speaking up, darling?"
"Alright, Agatha." Wanda says with a greatly exaggerated eye roll.
"So, what we're going to do is that I'm going to make you a hot drink and you're going to tell me about your nightmare."
"Right now? It's the middle of the night!" Wanda looks out the window, only to see an orange glow on the horizon. "Well, we could at least try to get a few more hours of sleep."
"And are you going to sleep?" Agatha touches her finger to Wanda's nose. "Or will you just sit in your room, trying to ignore your feelings? You know that's not healthy, Wanda."
"Agatha." Wanda breathes a sigh and stares at the wall. "Why do you have to call me out like this?"
"It's fun, Wanda. And you know it will help you. In the long run at least." Agatha chuckles and walks out of the room. Without so much as a glance backwards, Agatha says, "I expect you out here in no more than three minutes."
Agatha is rummaging through the cupboards in the kitchen, trying to find the ingredients for hot chocolate in the cupboard. Ah, there it is! Hiding behind a container of flour, there is a tin of hot chocolate mix. The milk isn't boiling yet, so Agatha sets the hot chocolate mix down on the counter and sits at the table.
She is looking around the empty room when Wanda walks through the doorway.
"You forgot this." Wanda throws the broom at Agatha. Agatha reaches her hands out in an attempt to catch it, but the broom clatters to the floor.
"That wasn't even a bad throw!" Wanda giggles.
"Just because I'm good at magic doesn't mean I have good coordination." Agatha frowns.
The pot of milk gurgles as it begins boiling. Agatha stands up and hands the broom back to Wanda before ladling milk into two mugs.
"Hot chocolate?"
"How did you know?" Wanda turns around to look at Agatha while placing the broom into a closet.
"Just had a feeling." Agatha winks, spooning liberal amounts of hot chocolate mix into both mugs.
"My mother always made hot cocoa for Pietro and me when we were young." Wanda explains.
"Ah, Pietro. I remember him."
"Yeah, you really did me dirty with him."
Agatha chortles. "That was fun, dearie. Here's your hot chocolate—or as you say—hot cocoa." Agatha's eyes light up in a smile as she passes Wanda a mug.
"Thanks." Wanda grabs the mug. "Ouch, this is hot!" Wanda sets the mug down on the counter. She opens a drawer to grab a blue towel and wraps it around the mug. Agatha leans on the counter watching Wanda and sipping her hot chocolate.
"So you're just going to watch me?" Wanda takes a sip of her hot chocolate and winces as the heat burns her tongue.
"Yup. I am." Agatha continues to look at Wanda, watching her spill her hot chocolate. Does she feel uncomfortable to have Agatha watching her? That's cute. Agatha always thought Wanda was beautiful, but she had never allowed her mind to dwell on that fact. When she was in Westview, she was singularly focused on figuring out how Wanda had created the hex while also hiding her true identity.
"Hey! Stop staring. It makes me feel weird." Wanda brushes her hair behind her ear. "Was that good using my words?" Wanda looks at Agatha with a smug expression on her face.
"Yes. Good girl." Agatha pats Wanda's head. "Now, bring your hot chocolate to the couch and we can talk about your nightmare."
Wanda scowls at the floor, but grabs her mug just the same. They head to the couch and set their mugs down on the table before plopping down onto the couch. Wanda tries to take another sip, but it is still too hot.
"You really need to wait until it has cooled down a bit, Wanda." Agatha chuckles when she sees Wanda wincing again.
"I know. It just feels like it takes so long sometimes."
"Patience, my dear, patience."
"So, how are you liking it here in Norway?" Wanda attempts to make small talk with Agatha in an effort to avoid the impending conversation about her nightmare.
"Wanda, I've been here for less than 24 hours. That was a pretty pathetic attempt to change the topic." One side of Agatha's mouth turns up as she looks at Wanda at the other side of the couch. Agatha leans forward, her chin propped up on one fist.
"Now, tell me about your nightmare."
"Agatha, do we really have to do this now? I'm sure any other time would be just as good."
"Wanda, you have to work through the feelings when you have them. And you might forget your nightmare if we do this later."
Wanda shudders.
"How could I ever forget what I just saw…" Agatha motions for Wanda to continue speaking. "Fine. I'll tell you."
Wanda runs her fingers through her hair and sighs before beginning her story.
Wanda could see trees around her, although she was standing in a clearing inside them. She turned around to look at her surroundings and saw a maroon figure kneeling in front of her.
"Vision!" Wanda rushes forward to embrace him.
"Wanda, no!" Vision holds his hand up to stop her. "You have to destroy the mind stone."
"No, no! I can't. I won't!"
"Wanda, if you don't do it, the universe will be destroyed." In a softer voice, Vision continues. "It's okay, Wanda. I know you can do it."
Wanda turns her face away, tears running down her cheeks, before shooting a beam of red light into Vision's head. She can hear loud footsteps approaching her and moves one of her hands to shoot magic in that direction before concentrating even harder to destroy the mind stone.
And then it works. The mind stone explodes in a blast of yellow light and Wanda is thrown backwards from the force of the explosion. Wanda lies on the ground in a daze. Everything is out of focus and there is a loud buzzing in her ears. She needs to get up, needs to see if Vision is okay, but she can't seem to move her legs. Then Wanda is sucked forward and back into a standing position. There is another explosion, but this time instead of getting bigger, it starts big and reduces in size. All Wanda can do is stand and watch as Thanos forcefully pries the mind stone out of Vision's skull. Vision falls to the ground, pale and lifeless.
Wanda screams and falls to her knees, her hands covering her face. When she removes her hands, she is in a different place. She pushes herself into a standing position, but her foot slips and she is hanging from a cliff that is only a few feet wide in every direction. Wanda tries to pull herself up but her arms just aren't strong enough. Her fingers are beginning to slip and her arms feel like they are going to fall off.
Then she hears a sound.
"Mom! Mom! Help us!" Wanda sees Billy and Tommy hanging onto another pedestal just like hers. A cloaked, faceless figure floats away from them. How she hates that figure for putting her boys there. Wanda fills with rage and her eyes glow red with anger and magic. But she needs her hands to do magic. No matter how hard she looks at her sons, nothing happens.
"Mom! I'm slipping!" Billy cries, his voice shaking in terror. His right arm slips off the cliff and Billy swings on his remaining arm, trying to find his grip again.
"No!" Wanda lets go and shoots her magic at the twins, trying to surround them in red light and transport them somewhere safe. But Wanda is freefalling in mid air, which makes it incredibly hard to aim. Instead of surrounding the boys in magic, the red light goes through both of the boys' chests. Their bodies go limp and they fall off the cliff.
Wanda's eyes go wide as she sees what she has done.
"No!" Wanda screams as she falls through the air. Wanda never hits the ground, but she keeps screaming and screaming until her eyes fly open and she realizes where she is. She is in her bed and has almost definitely woken Agatha up. Tears run down Wanda's face as she sits up, hearing Agatha's footsteps getting louder as she approaches Wanda's room. This is exactly what Wanda had hoped would not happen.
Wanda sits on the couch, staring blankly at the floor. It had been even worse than she thought to relive that terrible nightmare.
"So you used magic in your dream?" Agatha asks Wanda.
"Yes." Wanda doesn't want to talk any more. She takes a sip of hot cocoa to distract herself. Great. It's cold now. Apparently she can only drink hot cocoa when it is so hot it burns her tongue or when it is cold.
"Wanda!" Agatha says Wanda's name so loudly that it jerks Wanda out of her thoughts and right back into the present.
"There's no need to yell, Agatha."
"Then why didn't you answer the first six times I said your name?"
"Sorry, sorry."
"No, you're not." Agatha snaps.
"Why are you the one that's angry? I'm the one who was just forced to relive a nightmare, for goodness' sake!"
"For goodness' sake?! And I thought I was the old one." Agatha laughs, her eyes crinkling and her mouth turning up.
"Oh, shut up, Agatha." Wanda says darkly.
"I don't think I will. But we can get back on topic, now that you're here again." That makes Wanda quiet again and she resumes staring at the floor.
"Are all your nightmares like this one?"
"Yup. Every. Single. One."
"How do you get enough sleep when you're waking up from nightmares every night?"
"Simple. I don't."
"Well that's great, Wanda. No sleep, nightmares, no wonder you're having these problems with your magic."
"Thanks for telling me. I had no idea." Wanda says, glaring at the floor as if she was trying to burn a hole through it.
"Wanda. Look at me." Agatha says in a firm voice. After a few moments, Wanda reluctantly turns her face towards Agatha. "You have to stop letting your nightmares have power over you. They are just dreams. They do not predict anything about reality or tell anything about you. They are just dreams about your own worst fears."
"But… they feel so real. I don't know what to do, Agatha." Wanda's eyes drop again as she starts to tear up.
"I've got an idea. Maybe you won't get nightmares—or at least they'll be better—if you have someone in the same room as you."
"You mean you, in the same room as me?" Wanda raises her eyebrows and then scrunches up her face as she can feel heat rising up her neck.
"Not in the same bed, Wanda!" Agatha shakes her head. "I'm sure we can figure out something." The two women sit in silence for a few minutes, their now empty mugs sitting on the table. By now, the sun has risen and its beams are streaming in through a window.
"Let's make a plan for the day. First, we'll eat breakfast. Then we'll go for a walk in the woods."
"Not the woods!" Wanda protests.
"Yes. The woods." Agatha continues. "When we get back, we'll munch on a delicious lunch and then you are going to do some magic."
Wanda gulps and looks at Agatha nervously. "I don't know how that's going to go."
"It's going to go just fine, dear. You'll have me to help you, after all." Agatha chuckles and gets up from the couch.
"It doesn't seem like I get any say in the plan." Wanda calls after Agatha's retreating back. She turns around and winks at Wanda.
"That's because you don't."
Wanda sits on the couch, rubbing her eyes and staring blankly at the wall. At least Agatha has a busy day planned. That ought to take her mind off of her horrible nightmares. Wanda just wants to go to sleep, but not really because then she would have another nightmare. Wanda can hear pots and pans banging around in the kitchen, and she knows she will have to go help Agatha if she wants to have breakfast within the hour.
After the two witches ate a delicious breakfast of yesterday's bread, eggs, and fruit, they got ready for their walk in the woods. Wanda got dressed in jeans and a red sweater before sitting on her bed and mentally preparing herself.
"It's going to be fine. It's going to be fine. It's going to be fine." Wanda repeats this mantra to herself, her head in her hands, while simultaneously thinking of what happened last time and all the other things that could go wrong.
"It's going to be fine. It's going to be fine. It's—agh! Agatha!" Wanda jumps off her bed and brushes her hair behind her shoulders.
"Did I scare you?" Agatha laughs.
"No." Agatha raises an eyebrow at Wanda. "Yes." Wanda frowns, scrunching up her nose and eyebrows.
"Ready to go?" Agatha asks Wanda.
"Mentally ready? No." Wanda mutters to herself.
"What's that?" Agatha taps her ear.
"Yes." Wanda groans.
"That's the spirit, dear!"
Agatha is wearing a dark purple dress and a witchy cloak that looked sure to get caught on every branch that was sticking out.
"Are you sure it's a good idea to wear that cloak in the forest?" Wanda asks.
"What are you talking about? Of course it's a good idea! I always wear this cloak when I go walking in dark forests that I will likely get lost in!"
"Thanks for the confidence boost." Wanda says, her tone dripping in sarcasm.
"Of course." Agatha smirks. "I'm always here when you need one of those."
Wanda and Agatha walk out of the house into the surprisingly warm air. It is sunny, with only fluffy white clouds in the sky.
"So, where are we going?" Wanda is not keen to be going into the forest and she has no intention of leading the way.
"We are going…" Agatha looks around before pointing right at the forest that Wanda got lost in. "Thataway!"
"Oh great. The exact same forest I got lost in."
"Well, I didn't have very many choices, did I?"
That is true. There is only one forest on the island, and it was her least favourite forest.
With no other ways to stall, Wanda is left to face her fears and walk into the forest. At the very least, it is daytime, so the wolves won't be out now. Wanda's feet are still sore from her very long walk a couple of days ago, but she doesn't mind. It is nice to be outside, and she really does enjoy the sights, smells, and sounds of the forest.
Wanda and Agatha had walked for about an hour when Wanda spotted the rock with the star shaped patch of moss.
"Agatha…" Wanda's voice trails off.
"Yes?"
"This is the same rock I saw when I got lost here. Are you sure you know where we are?"
"Wanda, I have no idea where we are."
Wanda starts and her wide eyes dart over to Agatha. "What?"
"I have no idea where we are."
Wanda starts breathing faster and she can hear her heart racing. She walks over to the rock and sits down. She remembers sitting on this rock before. Worrying about what would happen and hearing the wolves approaching her.
"Agatha?" Wanda reaches out to the other woman, who is right in front of her. "Can you hold me?" Agatha looks taken aback by the request, but she agrees and sits down next to Wanda, putting her arm around her. They sit like that for a few minutes until Wanda calms down.
"Thank you, Agatha."
"No problem. Great job using your words, by the way." Wanda laughs, remembering their conversation the day before. Wanda abruptly stops laughing as she remembers that they are still lost.
"So, Agatha, how are we going to get out of here? This time we don't even have any food!"
"Wanda, you are so funny!" This time it's Agatha's turn to laugh. "When are you going to remember that I'm a witch too!"
Comprehension dawns on Wanda's face as she remembers and smiles at her own stupidity.
"Well, you can't do magic in the house, so I guess I just forgot."
"Just because I'm not as good as you doesn't mean I'm good for nothing!" A quick look of jealousy passes across Agatha's face before she continues laughing.
"You know I didn't mean to forget, Agatha." Wanda had noticed the look of jealousy and she worried that she had hurt Agatha.
"I'm just poking fun at you." Agatha says, and it is impossible for Wanda to tell if she is being truthful.
Agatha waves her hands in the air and her purple magic flourishes in the air, forming an arrow.
"See, that's the direction we'll need to go to get back to your cottage."
Wanda breathes a sigh of relief.
"You know, your magic is quite pretty." Wanda comments. "And so are you." She clasps a hand over her mouth and her eyes go wide. "I didn't mean to say that out loud!"
Agatha chuckles. "Thanks, Wanda. You are too, you know. Even if the way you dress is, well, not very witchy."
"What's wrong with my clothes?" Wanda frowns.
"As a witch, you should dress in loose flowy clothes that catch on branches in the forest." Agatha speaks in an exaggerated teacher-like voice that causes Wanda to start giggling.
"That's the second time you've disapproved of my clothes, Agatha." Wanda says, shaking her head with a sparkle in her eyes. "I'm sure they're fine."
"I'm not so sure, but there's nothing that can be done now." Agatha lets out a large sigh and the women continue on their walk. They walk for another hour or so before they decide to turn back. Wanda is beginning to feel a faint nagging of her stomach to eat something and Agatha's feet start hurting too.
"I'm used to the hurt by now. My feet have hurt this whole time." Wanda brags.
"Well, it's almost time for lunch anyway." Agatha says. "So are you ready to cast the arrow that will point us home?"
"Wait, what?" Wanda splutters. "Me? I thought we were going to work on my magic in the afternoon?"
"Changed my mind, darling." Agatha says, a smirk dancing across her face. "You'll have to get used to that with me here."
"But… I don't even know how to cast that spell!" Wanda protests.
"I'll teach you."
Agatha raises her hands to demonstrate the motions.
"Concentrate on the cottage and let its presence become known to you. Then sweep your hand through the air with your index finger pointing up like so." Agatha gestures, showing Wanda the correct hand motion.
Wanda looks on hopefully, but her face falls once Agatha finishes. Noticing this, Agatha questions Wanda.
"You weren't hoping that I would cast the spell, were you?"
Wanda looks away in answer. "I'll at least give it a go."
"Of course you will."
Wanda plants her feet, readying herself to cast the spell. Then she realizes something. Agatha hasn't told her the words to the incantation. That's strange.
"What's the incantation?"
"The incantation?!" Agatha laughs. "You've been using an incantation to do spells?"
Wanda flushes. "Uh… yeah? Is that a bad thing?"
"Wanda, you've been doing magic without spells for how long? And you could do basically whatever you want. If you focus on the intent, you don't need incantations. See, this is why I told you that you would need my help."
"You predicted that I would think I needed to use incantations instead of just concentrating? That's quite specific"
"You know what I mean. Now, concentrate on the cottage and give it a go."
Wanda can feel butterflies in her stomach. What if she gets it wrong and leads them to something dangerous? What if she gets them killed? She can't do it.
Wanda gasps for air. "No, Agatha, no. I can't."
"You can do it, Wanda." Agatha speaks in a comforting voice.
Wanda closes her eyes and pictures the cottage. It is a quaint little place, made out of wood with ivy covering it that shouldn't have had enough time to grow. She pictures it so strongly that she feels like she is already there. Without opening her eyes, Wanda flicks her wrist in the way Agatha showed her. She tentatively opens her eyes and there it is. A glowing red arrow, pointing straight ahead.
"I told you that you could do it, Wanda!" Agatha smiles.
Wanda is so proud that she grins from ear to ear. They begin walking in the direction the arrow is pointing. The arrow stays in place.
"Is the arrow supposed to come with us?" Wanda asks Agatha.
"Yes. Concentrate on moving the arrow forward in the line that keeps it pointing toward the cottage." Agatha instructed Wanda.
"Okay." Wanda closes her eyes again and focuses. She hears a swishing sound past her ear. It must be working! But before Wanda can open her eyes, she hears a loud booming noise. She opens her eyes and sees the arrow zooming forward at an incredible speed, lighting up the trees it passes with an eerie red light. Then it collides into a tree. The tree bursts into flame.
"No, no, no, no, no!" Wanda cries.
The tree is engulfed in orange flames, and if the fire isn't stopped soon, it could start a forest fire. Wanda stands watching in shock, as if her feet are rooted in the soil. Then she sees something that gives her hope that she will live to see another day. Waves of purple magic wash over the tree, fighting to quench the orange flames. Agatha is trying to stop the fire.
Agatha had run closer to the tree and she pushed her hands in front of her, concentrating to the best of her abilities to quench the fire. If she surrounds it with her magic, it would have to stop because it wouldn't have access to any oxygen. Agatha summons more magic to surround the fire, and this time it is enough. The tree is completely surrounded in a shell of purple and she can see the orange flames diminishing until they fade away completely.
But even Agatha's quick action hadn't been enough to save the tree from the fire's destruction. Agatha lowers her hands and the purple magic fades away. The tree's bark is blackened. Wanda walks to the tree and touches it. A piece of the charred bark crumbles away at the touch of her hand. A tear runs down Wanda's face as she sees what she has done.
Wanda kneels on the ground, her tears falling on the ground in front of the tree. She feels Agatha's hand on her shoulder and turns around.
"See what happens when I do magic? Even when it seems to work, something will inevitably go wrong." Wanda pushes Agatha's hand off her shoulder and storms off into the woods.
Agatha tries to follow Wanda, but she quickly falls further and further behind until she can't see Wanda anymore. She tries to cast the spell she had shown Wanda, but the arrow just spins in circles. Wanda must be hiding herself using magic, whether consciously or unconsciously.
If Wanda doesn't want to be found, Agatha isn't going to be able to find her. At least not without the Darkhold. And using the Darkhold is a last resort. Agatha doesn't want to have to search all over the cottage to find that book, especially because it would betray Wanda's trust. But there isn't anything else Agatha can do here. With a resigned expression on her face, Agatha casts the spell to point her back to the cottage. She looks behind herself one last time, but there is no sign of Wanda. Agatha sighs and begins what is likely a long trek back home.