"Choice"
An act of selecting or making a decision when faced with two or more possibilities.
French Translations
Lèves tes yeux hors d'elle : Get your eyes off of her.
Lèves tes bras hors d'il : Get your hands off of him.
Arrêter ce: Stop this.
Anything in italics and underlined is in French.
Sebastian Shaw was not the kind of man Marianne had been expecting him to be.
The lack of regard for human life that had been displayed by his underlings (as Marianne guessed them to be), of course, was exactly what she had been expecting of him. But from how Charles and Erik had described him as a person, she had pictured him in her mind as an older man. She had thought he would be an obviously aggressive man, perhaps muscled, someone who came off slightly unhinged; shorter, maybe, and broader. She had pictured him more like the men she would see in the pubs late at night or drinking on the street corners, the type of man who lashed out at the world and the people around them because they felt they had been dealt a raw deal.
The real Sebastian Shaw in front of her was worse.
He was handsome, she could admit that, tall and lean, with a good face and lush hair. He wore a nice suit, black with a wine-red shirt underneath. He was relaxed, completely at ease as he walked towards them with a charming smile, even as he casually ordered the devil-man (who he called Azazel) to kill an agent who had run into the courtyard. He had an air of superiority around him, like the men who would rarely come into her store who were always looking for the first edition of some pretentious book written by a famous author or a relatively unknown author he would look down at her for not seemed like the kind of man who could do anything and get away with it and had been raised to know it.
There was a thrum of energy within him. She could feel it. She had to ball her hands into fists to keep her hands from shaking.
This man had power. Too much power.
He smiled and chuckled as the final agent collapsed outside (Marianne flinched when she heard the body drop - a good agent, one who hadn't offered them up as a sacrifice or fled when he could have, was gone) and he passed the ugly helmet off to the man who had come from the tornado. "Thank you, Riptide," he said politely to the man, who nodded in acknowledgement.
"My friends," he said, looking back to them, "there's a revolution coming."
As he came closer to them, Marianne clenched her fists tighter and stood up straighter. She raised her chin and glared into his eyes. He merely raised an eyebrow and kept smiling when he noticed her dark look.
"When mankind discovers us and what we can do, each of us will face a choice: to be enslaved, or rise up to rule." His voice lowered to a whisper as he shared his enticing offer. A chill ran down Marianne's spine. The man had a voice like silk, but his words left her feeling grimy. She followed his eyes as he looked at each and every one of them, lingering for seconds longer than what would have been appropriate. "Choose freely, but know that if you are not with us, then, by definition, you are against us."
He was threatening them. Threatening all of them. Non. She stepped forward slightly, even as something inside of her screamed to stay away from him. She realized too late it was not a wise move, as his gaze shot back to her. He smiled. She dug her nails into her palms and darkened her glare. Her nostrils flared as her heart raced and her breathing quickened. The lights hanging from the ceiling began swaying back and forth slightly, even though there was no breeze.
"You?" He asked, almost thoughtfully. "I can feel... potential in you."
"No," she said sharply. "Stay away from us. All of you. Leave."
He examined her, looking disappointed. "I see. So, you're rejecting me, and the chance to rule and protect your own kind, in favour of... what, exactly?"
"Humanity."
"You'll fight for the people who hate and fear you?" He asked with a smirk. "I will love to see how that goes for you. My offer will, of course, remain open for you and anyone else who remains blinded by... weakness."
"It is not weakness," Marianne said, lifting her chin. "If you see it as such, then I know I have made the right choice."
Humanity didn't mean all of humankind, not to her. To her, it meant her family. Humanity was the people she loved and who loved her. It did not mean everyone. She had not come here for everyone.
She had come here for Henry. Her human son, the son of herself and her human husband.
She would not join Shaw.
Shaw put his finger to his lips, not to silence her but like he was judging her, examining her once again.
"You," he said, lowering his finger, his hands returning to his sides as he looked down at her with a soft smirk, "are making a very poor decision, and that is a shame. A waste of potential. As for the rest of you," to her alarm, he returned to looking at the others, still with the same smirk, "those of you who do not want to fight for those who, again, hate and fear you, are welcome to join me, and live like kings... and queens."
His eyes dropped to Angel, who was visible over Marianne's shoulder. He held out his hand. Marianne stepped slightly to the right, blocking Angel from his view.Lèves tes yeux hors d'elle.
Then Angel slowly walked around her and placed her hand into Shaw's outstretched one.
Marianne stared as Shaw closed his hand around Angel's and led her to the window, where Azazel and Riptide stood, waiting.
"Angel?"
"Are you kidding me?"
Angel stopped and turned back to them. She didn't look cold or cruel as Shaw and his lackeys looked. She looked resolved, and yet... tired. She gestured with her head for them to follow her. "Come on," she said, in a voice that sounded moments from breaking. "We don't belong here. That's nothing to be ashamed of."
Marianne's heart clenched.
As much as she instinctively hated Shaw, for everything he stood for, as much as she knew Angel's choice was an act of betrayal against them and everything they were supposed to stand for, she could not hate Angel. Not when Angel had told her of her parent's abandonment, had looked so angry at the mockery of the two human agents, had told them all of the struggles of being herself. Not when they had all heard the final human standing between them and Shaw give them up, so the "normal people" could go free. Not when Angel was looking at them like that, so tired.
"Angel, do not do this," she pleaded, taking a step forward. "Please. It does not have to be this way."
Beside her, Darwin reached his hand out. For a moment, Angel stared at them and it felt like she might let go of Shaw's hand and take Darwin's.
The moment passed. Angel's expression grew resolved and stony when she realized they were not coming with her, and she turned and walked away with Shaw.
Marianne closed her eyes and looked down.
Angel had made her choice. It was a choice Marianne did not agree with, and a choice that hurt her even if she understood why Angel had made it.
She did not understand how Angel could so willingly go with the men who had just murdered an entire building full of people, but she could understand the choice she had made.
"We have to do something," Raven said.
"To stop Angel, or to stop Shaw?" Marianne questioned.
"Either. Both. We have to do something."
"I have an idea," Darwin whispered. Marianne opened her eyes. He turned around. "Alex. Push me."
Alex looked from Darwin to Shaw in the background, and then back to Darwin. Darwin put a hand on his shoulder. "I protect Angel, you get Shaw. Got it?" He whispered. Alex glared at him and shoved Darwin away from him. Darwin flashed him the quickest smile.
"Darwin, no." Marianne grabbed his arm. "You can't."
Darwin yanked his arm out of her grip, giving her a quick wink and another smile. The smile fell as he turned around. "Stop." He went after Shaw and the others. "I'm coming with you."
Marianne stared as Shaw approached Darwin, giving another charming smile. She felt Alex lean over to her. "Nice acting," he whispered.
"What acting?" She whispered back, her eyes trained on Shaw and Darwin. This could go wrong in so many ways. Logically she knew Darwin's mutation should protect him. But things could go wrong, and if they did-
She stood in her spot even as Alex approached the middle of the room, the others slowly followed behind. In the courtyard, Shaw gestured for Darwin to join their line. She did take a small step back, standing closer to the wall just in case. She squared her shoulders and clenched her fists tighter as Shaw patted Darwin on the back. Lèves tes bras hors d'il.
Darwin stood next to Angel. "Alex!"
"Get down!" Alex yelled. Everyone ran for cover. Marianne shoved her back against the wall, not taking her eyes off of the scene before her. Darwin pulled Angel into his arms and turned his back on Shaw, covering himself in a layer of rock. The scarlet rings of energy swirled around Alex's body and went flying towards Shaw. Just like before, they went flying all over the courtyard, but one managed to go in Shaw's direction.
Shaw just simply took a few steps forward, raised his arms above his head, and grabbed the energy with his bare hands. The ring grew smaller and smaller and Shaw's skin shimmered and glowed with red - he was absorbing the energy. Something happened to his body as he did. He went blurry - or he had two heads - or his hands grew in size - Marianne didn't know, it happened too fast. Her stomach dropped.
The energy she had felt. It was within him. He absorbed energy. Her mind raced. She tried to remember what she had learned about energy from her high school lessons-
Alex stood in the middle of the room, his hand outstretched, his triumphant grin vanishing as he watched Shaw absorb his energy.
"Protecting your fellow mutants?" Shaw asked. Marianne grit her teeth at the amusement in his voice. "That's a noble gesture. Feels good."
Azazel yanked Angel out of Darwin's arms. Darwin lunged at Shaw just as the man turned around, aiming a punch straight for his face - but Shaw blocked it, and the same warping happened to his body once again.
Lèves tes bras hors d'il-
Shaw grabbed Darwin's jaw, forcing him to open his mouth.
Her eyes grew wide.
He raised the glowing ball of Alex's energy to Darwin's open mouth.
Non, non, arrêter ce, non-
"Adapt to-"
The end of Sebastian Shaw's sentence was lost as a giant fish tank crashed into him, the glass shattering into millions of pieces over his head, the water drenching him and his finely pressed suit from head to toe, the fish landing on the ground where they began to flop around his feet. Shaw's reaction - a dropped open mouth - seemed to be more because of the water, rather than the tank breaking over his head. Everyone slowly turned to look at the person who had attacked.
Marianne stood in front of Alex, her right arm outstretched, her hair slowly floating around her face as though untethered by gravity. Her dark blue eyes almost seemed darker as she stared at Shaw with a chillingly cold expression, a contrast to the fury blazing in her eyes.
Shaw stared at her, somehow managing to still look haughty even as his suit (now surely ruined) dripped puddles onto the pavement and fish flopped around his feet or, for one unlucky fish, inside his jacket pocket. His loss of concentration allowed Darwin to yank himself free and run back into the room. He stood in front of the other mutants, who stood watching Marianne in shock.
Darwin was out of Shaw's grasp. Marianne lashed out once more. The jukebox flew from the wall and smashed into Shaw. Shaw did not lose his footing and the jukebox smashed into pieces as it hit his body. Marianne pivoted on her foot, throwing her left arm forward and her right arm back. The couch went flying, brushing past Marianne so closely she felt it graze her shoulder, out the window and into Shaw. Shaw caught the couch - she heard him laughing in delight, the monster - and flung it back at her, only slightly faster than when she had thrown it at him. She reached forward and threw her arms out to the side and the couch split in half, the pieces flying past her on either side.
Shaw stared at her. Then he laughed. She pressed her lips into a thin line.
"Alright, I can see I'm not wanted," he said, raising his hands in what she assumed was supposed to be a peaceful gesture. "We're leaving."
Behind him, his lackeys - and Angel - stood into a line, holding each other's hands. Shaw joined them at the end of the line, still watching her and smiling. Without saying a word, he lifted his hand.
The glowing ball of Alex's energy swirled between his fingers.
Marianne reached behind her, grabbed Alex's shoulder and placed her other hand on his back, and pushed him towards the others, following right behind him. Darwin grabbed Alex and herded him and Marianne back with the others. Marianne stood behind Darwin.
In a puff of red smoke, the group disappeared, but right before they did, Shaw opened his hand and released Alex's energy.
Marianne: I'm only here for Henry
Sebastian Shaw: [gets anywhere near the mutant kids]
Marianne: [Kill Bill sirens]
Darwin lives because He Deserves It.
I don't know about the rest of you, but I always understood Angel's point of view. Her perspective, I think, is kind of the same as Raven's is at the end of the movie: "My mutation is way more obvious than anyone else's. I'm always going to be an outcast, people hate or fear me because I'm an outcast, so why shouldn't we fight to defend ourselves before they can hurt us?"
Plus, they literally just faced two agents making fun of them and heard another agent selling them out so he could live. I think her bitterness is justified.
I'm assuming, of course, Angel doesn't know about Shaw's history of being a fucking Nazi.
Apparently in Quebec, they use words related to the Catholic church as profanity, but they change the spelling so it isn't totally blasphemous or something. I'm going to have fun with that. In the translations, if you see a word that's in (parentheses), then that's a Quebecois swear.
Hope you liked this chapter! Don't be shy, leave a comment, please. Let me know what you thought - if you liked it, why you liked it, whether or not you thought characters were In Character (That's definitely important, so let me know your thoughts on that), your thoughts on what may come in the future? Anything. I appreciate all and any comments left on my stories.