Music is "Broken" by Patrick Watson.

Picture is Claudia Doumit as Sarai.

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Apis Andreniformis

Commonly referred to as the black dwarf honeybee, Apis Andreniformis is a relatively rare species whose native habitat is the tropical and subtropical regions of Southeast Asia. A. Andreniformis was the fifth honeybee species to be described of the seven known species of Apis; however, it was originally thought to be part of A. Florea and was poorly understood. Recent studies have highlighted notable differences and have thus separated them into distinct species. Unlike many bees, A. Andreniformis queens are not genetically determined, so any young female larva can become a queen. And if a queen is separated from her hive, the workers will leave the nest to search for her.

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Chapter Thirty: Andreniformis

The weeks following the events of the Eco Innovations Fair were strange, to say the least. No one really thought it would end the way it did--with Max giving himself up and destroying his own creation to save the world--and from the moment he was taken into custody, things haven't been the same. Not my friend group, not my relationship with Wanda, not the college itself. 

Max was arrested and charged with multiple crimes--among those being assault and battery, owning and creating a weapon of destruction, and all the smaller crimes that spread from his bees' actions--and that fact has shaken the school to its core. Stephen was lucky enough to get rid of any evidence of our tampering, as well as the proof of Max's magic, but there was nothing we could do about his crimes. Those are his to pay for.

Nothing has been the same, but we try to move on all the same. Wanda and I visit Max in his jail cell a few times over the past few weeks, trying to spend as much time with him before his trial in a few months, and he's apologized for what happened every time. I know now that he never intended it to go as wrong as it did. Dark magic or not, all Max wanted to do was save the world. He didn't realize how that motivation led him down a dark path; it was up to Wanda and me to pull him out.

"I never meant to hurt any of you," he told us yesterday when we visited. "I never meant for the bees to go as wrong as they did."

Wanda nodded from across the glass, the phone pressed to her ear. "We know, Uncle Max."

It was then that he told her about the future of MaxEffect Industries. "I've left everything to you," he told her. "My spot in the company, all my shares, my title, everything. You own and run it now."

Wanda was shocked, to say the least. "Max, I don't know a thing about running a company. I haven't even graduated yet."

He nodded. " I know, I know. My chief administrative officer--you remember Laura, right?--she basically runs the company at the ground level. Let her help you. You can trust her. She's as good a CAO that you can buy."

"Are you sure about this?"

Max smiled sadly. "You can do better things with MaxEffect than I ever could. If I nearly ended the world with it, you can save it. I know I left you a mess of lawsuits to deal with, but I know you're strong and capable. And if you realize you're too in over your head, or just don't want to be a CEO, then that's okay, too. Tell the Board, and they'll assign someone else. I have faith in you, Wanda. You and Sarai, both." Max then turned to me and signed, "You'll take care of her, won't you?"

I nodded once as I signed a reply, "I wouldn't have it any other way."

That conversation was hard, but not nearly as hard as the events that have happened today.

Wanda got a call from the hospital earlier this afternoon, right in the middle of math class. Everyone looked to her in confusion, and when she saw the I.D. of the caller, she answered right away. Then, with a world-shattering look and a scarlet energy burst, Wanda dropped the phone, picked up her bag, and ran towards the door. Professor Fury looked confused but didn't say anything to stop her. I stood up and ran after her, immediately knowing what upset her so much.

Today is the day we'd both been dreading. Today is the day of The Tower.

"Sarai!" Carol shouts from the doorway.

I turn back towards her and sign one word: "Pietro."

We take an Uber to the hospital, and I don't let go of her hand the entire way. She's shaking and lets me run my thumb across her knuckles. I don't know how to comfort her. I don't know what anyone could have said to me to make me feel better as Hal died last summer. There's no cure for losing family. None at all. I know that more than most. All I know how to do is to be here for her as it happens, to show her that there's a light at the end of the tunnel--and that it's not just the sun in her eyes.

When we get to the hospital, I let her talk with the nurses and doctors. They tell her that Pietro isn't responding to life support any longer, that there's only so much longer they can keep him alive. He hasn't been here for a while, and Wanda knows that, but she's held on to the hope that he'll come back. Somehow, but some miracle, she's prayed that he'd come back.

But now we know he won't.

Holding back tears as her heart breaks, Wanda does the one thing she swore she'd never do: she's letting her brother go. I walk with her to the hospital room, where Pietro lies on the single bed, as still as he was last time I came. I don't let go of her hand as she sits with him for a few minutes, in silence, saying her last goodbyes. The heart monitor sings its song, and Wanda brushes her brother's hair from his forehead with a tearful smile.

"Goodbye, Pietro," she whispers.

She clasps her hand around his and turns up towards the doctors. She gives a nod of approval, and the doctor slowly turns off the machines that have kept him alive for years. The breathing apparatus slows to a stop, and the feeding tube is extracted. As soon as those life-prolonging devices are taken away, the heart monitor ticks away.

Blip...Blip...Blip...

And at the moment between life and death, I make a promise to the man I never met. I promise Pietro Maximoff that I will never let Wanda be alone. Not ever.

Blip.

Blip.

Blip...

The monitor sounds off a long beep sound, the sound that anyone who has lost someone in a hospital knows means that the end has come and gone. The person you love has passed, and your heart breaks all over again. Wanda whimpers softly and continues to clutch Pietro's hand. She knows she lost Pietro years ago after he was shot, but the monitor gives a sense of finality.

The machine is unplugged, and the doctor's leave to give Wanda and I a few moments alone. For that, I'm glad. I pull up a chair beside hers, opening my arms to her. She releases Pietro's hand and turns to me, grasping on to me desperately, letting her sobs pour out.

I want to tell her I'm here, and not just with my hands. I want to speak the words I want to say. The words I need to say. I want to open my mouth and shout that I love her, that I'll always be here, that I'm with her for the rest of our lives. But when I open my mouth and configure the sentences in my brain, nothing comes out. No matter how hard I try, I'm still mute.

Wanda must sense the frustration in my mind, and in the time that I should be the one comforting her, she pulls back and shakes her head at me. "You don't have to say anything," she tells me as she wipes her eyes. "I know what you would say."

"I want to be able to say it out loud," I sign frustratedly. "You deserve someone who can comfort you."

Wanda grabs both of my hands tightly, looking me in the eyes. "You already do."

We stay at the hospital for a timeless period. In each other's arms, letting each cry on the other, I know we'll get through this. Today is the day of The Tower, the one we've been apprehensive about for over a month, but I know it's not going to be the end. As Wanda said, it might be the end of one book, but there's always another story to tell.

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Sometime later, after we finish at the hospital and escort Pietro's body to the funeral home, we find our way back to the dorm building. In the dark, linked arm-in-arm, we breathe easier than before. Wanda leans her head on my shoulder as we walk, no longer in tears, and I clasp my hand over hers. Even as it begins to rain, we aren't bothered about the weather. We have each other, and that's enough.

When we get back to our dorm room, we curl up together on Wanda's bed. It's all we can do to not break down again. We sit there, together, staring at the wall ahead. I see Melizza fluttering down from her moss patch by the window. She lands on Wanda's knee, giving the witch some of her endless love.

Moments later, familiar faces peek through the cracked door. Peggy and Natasha enter from the joined bathroom as Pepper and Carol push through the entrance. They offer soft smiles of condolences but thankfully say nothing of what happened. Even though we haven't told them exactly what happened, they know about Pietro and his situation. They must know what Wanda had to do today.

Pepper and Carol crawl onto the bed and sit on either side of us, wrapping us in tight hugs. Peggy and Natasha do the same on their sides, the six of us making one, giant friendship hug. The warmth and love around us cause me to sigh in relief. No matter what happens next, if I have the girls right here, I'll be okay.

A few minutes of silence later, more friends enter the room. Clint, Sam, and Bucky linger by the end of the bed while Tony, Rhodey, and T'Challa lean against the adjacent wall. Steve sits next to Bruce, Thor, and Vision on my bed across from us. Stephen and Loki stand near Wanda beside her mattress, lending their sympathy for their closest friend.

We started out the semester with heartache and loneliness, and now we're nearing the end of it with so much more. I've gained new friends and someone I adore with my entire heart. Even though we're feeling the waves of loss today--and probably tomorrow, too--I know that we'll pull through.

This little group of students, we're more than just college kids that share a basic math class. We're family, and there's no magic on earth that can change that.

END CHAPTER THIRTY.