The Blue Mage (Wanda Maximoff X Male OC) (ON HOLD)

Chapter XXV - It Was Agatha All Along

February 18th, 2019, Salem, Massachusetts US

Victor Faust POV

"Your grandmother was my aunt. I'm Agatha Harkness."

Victor was completely frozen. Everything, yes, even his grief, seemed to stop for a second. No pain, no sadness—even the sounds and smells of the forest were gone. Surely, this was some sick joke?

"So, your mother...?"

"Was a witch named Evanora. She spoke about her sister from time to time. Ida escaped the United States when the witch trials were starting." Agatha's voice was strong, yet the blood on her face disappeared. Her eyes were solely fixated on him.

"Would that make you." Agatha scowled when he started to count on his fingers. He couldn't help but smirk. "Like over 300 years old?" She kicked his shin and smiled, hearing his girly whine.

"Call me old again, and I will turn you into a fly!" She straightened her velvet jacket. "I'm 343 years old, if you must know."

"This makes us... what?"

"I suppose we are just cousins?"

"Christ on a stick, I have a family." He breathed.

"Wait, I have a family now. Oh my God, I have family now..."

"It's as surreal to you as it is to me, I assure you." She said this, frantically moving her hands through her raven hair.

"Is anyone from our family still alive?" Despite his better judgment, a spark of hope ignited within him. Agatha, his cousin! Continued to walk forward.

"No. At least not from my side. It was either them or me, you see."

This time, it was Victor's turn to stop.

"What?" Agatha turned abruptly. Her long skirt billowed around her. Her eyes glowed purple as the surrounding air started to thicken.

"You heard me. My darling mother tried to kill me and took away my magic! All the witches of the coven tried that. All I did was defending myself." She was panting hard. Her raven hair was losing its previous silky order. Now it was turning into a wild black storm. Victor had to take a step back. The magical aura of hers was making his weakened mind dizzy.

"For what reason? Why did they try to kill you?" His voice was gentle. He just couldn't bring himself to be either angry or scared. Not after his father.

"They felt threatened by my power, my skill, and my knowledge."

"Is that all, cousin?" She took a step back, as if burned. The madness in her eyes evaporated. Her hair fell as her aura retracted.

"You don't understand. Being a woman and a witch at that time... I was in danger by simply breathing, and my coven restricted me at every step. What was the point of being a witch if I couldn't defend myself? Why was I the one hiding? Biting my nails and praying they won't burn me?"

"So, you wanted to get stronger." Victor was staring to connect the dots. And oh boy, what dots those were...

"Indeed. What other choice did I had?" Agatha took a few calming breaths and fixed her hair. "I've explored all branches of magic: transfiguration, conjuration, necromancy, blood magic, and many more. Most of them were deemed dark or unethical by my coven. They ambushed me with my mother in the front. They tied me to a stake! The same way humans burned our kind! They tried to lock my powers away and take them for themselves, and they dared to call it mercy, cousin. What was I supposed to do?"
"And then you killed them."

"My magic defended me." She sighed and kept on walking through the forest. "I don't expect you to understand, cousin."

The way she said the word 'cousin', it felt both foreign and familiar, sweet, and sour. Victor was growing more and more certain that they really needed this. Family. On the other hand, he already had a family composed of some of the most ridiculous and over-the-top people on the planet.