Charles stared out at the mass of mourning faces. They had been gathered in front of the school, that had been fully rebuilt and restored thanks to Erik's and Jean's combined powers. He looked upon the faces of all his students and all of his friends, not knowing what to say. Zezelia was gone and they all felt the pain of her loss. Charles felt it more profoundly than any other feeling he had ever known. He locked eyes with Erik in the back of the crowd, knowing that if anyone understood his pain, it was him. A memory popped into his head and he took a deep breath.
"Zezelia has touched the lives of everyone here….some more than others. She has fought along side of us….grown with us….been there to teach us…..and has been there to pull us out of our darkest days. She cared about all of us deeply and I know…" he broke off as the tears began pooling in his eyes and he drew in a shaky breath. "What she did, she did for us….to protect us. She sacrificed herself and the whole world owes her a debt that can never be repaid." He shifted in his seat and reached over to grab hold of the cloth that was draped around the newly constructed statue next to him. He gave it a swift tug and the fabric slid over the smooth stone and fell in a pool to the ground.
The beautiful form of Zezelia stared back over the crowd, her features perfectly chiseled into a block of white marble. She was depicted with a flowing gown that reminded Charles of their wedding day. He stared up at her stone face, no longer being able to hold back his tears. His sight dropped down to the plaque on the base of her statue that read "In loving memory of Dr. Zezelia Xavier. Friend. Wife. Teacher. Mutant. Hero." She now stood at the entrance of the mansion, forever greeting and looking over the people inside….the people she had loved so much. The people she had given her life for.
Charles cleared his throat, looking back over the crowd. "A long time ago Zezelia came across a boy. A boy who had lost his mother." Charles said, looking over at Erik. "I'd like to share with you all what she told him." He said, drawing in a deep breath. "'Loosing someone you love….it leaves a hole inside of you that never heals. And it's only natural to want to fill that missing part of you, to ease the pain. You're first instinct will always be to fill that hole with anger and resentment…it's the easiest path and while it might numb the pain, if only momentarily…..that anger will only tear the edges of that hole wider until it does nothing but consume you. Do not cry because you can no longer feel her touch…..instead, be thankful that you knew her touch." Charles stopped to let out a shaky breath, wiping at the tears on his face. "Zezelia has touched everyone here. Do not fill the void she has left with anger…..fill that void with everyone you see around you. She is present in all of us…through our memories we are lucky enough to have shared with her. She lives within all of us and therefore as long as we hold onto those memories and each other….she will never be lost to us."
The group of mutants, gathering to remember their friend were overtaken by grief. Tears fell. Sharp gasping and sobs could be heard drifting over the crowd. And hearts broke as Charles spoke. "She said something before she died." Charles continued. "'We may stumble and fall. And yes, sometimes we fail. But we get back up. We never give up….on each other… and ourselves. We never stop fighting. That's what makes a hero.'" He said, looking back up at the statue's face. "We can never repay the debt we owe her, but we can do our best to make her proud. We can do our best to be heroes."
Wow…..I can't believe we're finally here….at the end. This story was just supposed to be a fun little thing that I did in my down time. Somehow it pulled me in to the point that I couldn't help but keep going and going….needing to get Zezelia's story down into words. To all of you who have made it this far….THANK YOU. Thank you for giving me your time and letting me share Zezelia's journey with you all. I really hope you love her as much as I do. And while I'll still continue to post one-shots of Zezelia's life in A Moment in Time….this is sadly the end of her journey and the end of the story Of Monsters and Mutants. If you liked it, PLEASE leave a review and let me know! I would love to know what you think of Zezelia's story. I'll be continuing my work in fanfiction….I'm going to be starting up a Avengers story that spans all the movies and is really just a monster of a story. So, if that interests you, feel free to give me a follow so you can keep up with future posts and stories! And if not, and this is where we part ways….I just have this to say….Goodbye, old friend. Xoxo-NickyLynn