breathing forced to steady. scarlet stirs; tracking down the unseen individual by her awfully spiked emotions. “ i can feel you, hiding won’t save you. you should have made it count. ”
a strained cry slips———though her hand managed to twist at the last second, the shot grazing deeper than wanted but not quite as clean. ichor trickled, seeping through her sleeves. what a nuisance.
a moment of silence, giving false sense of retreat, before a second bullet flies through her other hand in a skillful shot. taking out the sources of wanda’s magic.
sharp gasp. crimson sputters at the moment of impact, bullet tearing clean through unguarded hand. slight tremble, fingers flexing before curling tight around the pain. breath unsteady, hues snapping up.
( initial magic hold releases. she steps closer, hand reaching to caress the side of altered head; soothing. thumb grazed along under - eye, grounding the other. ) easy, sweetheart.
( so many thoughts .. not hers, but wearing her voice. hand grips her head, a desperate attempt to relieve the pressure behind her eyes. it’s as though her brain is being reshaped——like it’s no longer her own. )
oh, 𝘯𝘢𝘵𝘢𝘭𝘪𝘢. ( if only she’d taken this … gentler approach from the start, maybe wanda wouldn’t have been so straightforward. 𝗶𝘁’𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗯𝗲𝘀𝘁, she reminded herself; rewriting her lover’s thoughts anew. )
( a slow breath——controlled, measured. she’s been in worse cages than this. she’s strong enough to take it. but that doesn’t stop her voice lowering. ) .. baby, hey. listen. this isn’t you.
mm … ( disapproving hum, cranium slanting to the side. such a fighter, how could wanda not fawn over her? persistent, insistently trespassing her mind. ) no more fighting it.
you always say that. ( sharp inhale——then complete stillness. she’s trapped. her head lifting, green eyes cutting through the red haze. ) wanda, .. 𝙨𝙩𝙤𝙥. last chance.
we can’t have that. ( brows furrow, lips momentarily pressed into a thin line before a faint, scarlet glow threaded slim digits. wrist flicked, rooting the widow in place. this won’t take long. )
i’m going to make her forget about her. just a temporary fix———yes, to smooth things over. technically, it isn’t the same line crossed … this doesn’t count. right.