Teresa quietly poked Scott's bruised cheek, expecting him to wake up in pain, but he remained still. His face was a mosaic of purples and blues, swollen and tender from the blows he had taken during the contest. A particularly nasty bruise marred the side of his jaw, contrasting starkly against his usually fair skin.

Teresa's eyes traced the outline of the bruises that decorated his arms and torso, visible through his slightly dishevelled shirt. Each bruise seemed to tell a story of its own, some faint and yellowing while others were fresh and dark, pulsating with a dull, angry red. She noticed a large bruise on his ribcage that looked particularly painful, and she couldn't help but think about how much it must ache whenever he moved or breathed.

He had overdone it. Teresa knew Scott had a high tolerance for pain, but even she knew it was crossing his limits and she began to wonder if he was torturing himself on purpose.

All of a sudden, a certain blue-silver furred wolf licked Scott's cheeks in an attempt to wake him up. The wolf's name was Lion, a loyal and unusual pet that belonged to Teresa. His fur shimmered under the dim light, a striking mix of blue and silver that gave him an almost mystical appearance. Despite Lion's odd name, it suited the wolf perfectly, and those who tried calling him by different names quickly learned that Lion only answered to the one given to him by Teresa.

"I'm up, Lion! I'm up!" Scott said in a defeated tone, patting the wolf's back. He slowly sat up, using his pillow to support his back and leaning against the bed headboard. His movements were slow, each shift causing his bruises to ache.

"You always know how to get me up, don't you, Lion?" Scott murmured with a small smile, scratching behind the wolf's ears.

Lion only wagged his tail in response.

"What did you just do?" Scott questioned Teresa, his voice still rough with sleep and discomfort.

"Checking to see if you were dead," Teresa replied bluntly, grabbing a pen and poking Scott's cheek again, a bit harder this time.

He winced in pain, the sharp jab sending a twinge through his swollen jaw. "You could've checked if I was breathing or something. That hurts," he muttered, rubbing the sore spot.

"Stop whining like a big baby. This was mainly your fault since you joined that sparring contest. The rest of the blame goes to Kurt for not trying hard enough to prevent you from joining," Teresa said without hesitation, giving him a sharp look. "And no offence, Scott, but you look like a sweaty and bruised vampire."

Scott managed a cocky smile despite the pain. "I'm taking that as a compliment, Teresa. Vampires are pretty hot."

Teresa rolled her eyes. "I don't think you heard the whole sentence I said,'' she sighed. "Does your face still hurt?"

"Why? I didn't think you'd care about my injuries," Scott raised an eyebrow teasingly.

Teresa turned away, hiding her concern behind a mask of annoyance. She quickly turned off the lights and went to her bed, leaving Scott to rest and recover.

"Hey! What are you doing?" He asked in annoyance as Lion hopped onto his bed.

"You have to go to sleep. The sooner you sleep, the faster your face might heal," Teresa explained, though she wasn't entirely sure if it was true. She was just hoping it would make him quiet down and get the rest he needed.

Scott grumbled but complied, lying back down with a groan. As the room fell into silence, Teresa couldn't help but feel a bit restless. After some time had passed and she realised Scott was still awake, she decided to break the silence.

"You could have told me about the contest, you know," Teresa began, her voice cutting through the air.

"So, that I can get scolded by you?" Scott retorted, his tone slightly defensive.

"So that I can place some bets on you," Teresa corrected him. "You're not the only one who wants money too. And you're lucky Warren didn't know about this contest or he would be the one taking the prizes."

"I can easily beat Worthington," Scott boasted confidently, a cocky smile forming on his lips. Teresa couldn't see his expression, but she had a feeling he was rolling his eyes at the mention of Warren.

"Perhaps," Teresa responded simply, her tone neutral. She didn't want to feed into his ego, but she knew better than to outright dismiss his confidence. After all, he had just proven his abilities in the competition.

Scott chuckled, the sound soft and a bit weary. "You don't believe me?"

"I'm always the type of person to believe it when I see it," Teresa reminded him. "But for now, you should get some rest."

She was about to adjust her pillow when she remembered the news she had wanted to tell him. "Oh, by the way, Jean was looking for you and Peter earlier today while you were busy with your little contest."

Scott sat up almost immediately, groaning from the pain of his bruises and aching body. Although it was hard to see in the dim light, the moonlight shining outside allowed Teresa to see the surprise on his face. "Why didn't you tell me this sooner?"

"Well, I was busy making sure you weren't dead," Teresa pointed out, before continuing, "or turning into the undead. You know, I will kick you out of the window if you even try to eat my brain in my sleep. I don't need a zombie mutant coming after me while I'm trying to rest."

"Okay, I get it. No need to continue," Scott retorted, rolling his eyes. "And I don't need the contest to turn into one when we have Hank's essays this week about the history of mutant-human conflicts, the ethics of using powers in public, and the theoretical limits of our abilities."

Teresa hummed, not disagreeing with him, before she thought back to Jean. "But seriously, do you know why she was looking for you? She seemed a little relieved when I told her Peter was in the library."

Scott shook his head as he slowly lay back down. "She mentioned in class yesterday that she wanted to talk to me today, but I lost track of time with the contest, so..." he trailed off.

"Sounds like you might be in trouble," Teresa mused, her tone light.

Scott sighed. "Yeah, maybe. I'll talk to her tomorrow," he said, his voice tinged with uncertainty.

"Good idea. Now get some sleep, undead boy," Teresa remarked, adjusting her pillow one last time before closing her eyes.

"Goodnight, Teresa," Scott mumbled, already sounding half-asleep.

"Goodnight, Scott," Teresa replied, hoping tomorrow would be more eventful.

•••••

Screams of terrified children echoed throughout the night, waking the older mutants from their sleep. Even if the screams hadn't been enough, the earthquake-like shaking of the mansion surely would have done the trick. The ground rumbled and groaned as if the earth itself was in agony. Windows rattled violently in their frames, threatening to shatter. Pictures and personal belongings tumbled from shelves, smashing onto the floor with resounding crashes. It was impossible for anyone to sleep through the commotion, except maybe Teresa, who was sleeping peacefully until Scott's yells jolted her awake when one of her heavy books fell on his feet due to the tremors.

Teresa sat up groggily, rubbing her eyes. "You had to wake me up at—" she paused and looked at the shaky clock, seemingly unbothered by the earthquake, "—three in the morning, Scott?"

Scott winced, holding his foot. "With everything that's going on, no one is sleeping right now, Teresa. I don't even know how you're able to sleep through all of this," he shouted over the noise. The floor continued to shudder beneath them, and the ceiling lights flickered, casting eerie shadows that danced wildly on the walls. Teresa rubbed her eyes, looking around at the chaos.

It was certainly a sight to wake up to, and her wish for a more eventful night had certainly come true. Perhaps next time, she should wish for it not to ruin her sleep, Teresa thought.

She stretched her arms casually, as if she had all the time in the world, before she got up with ease, unlike Scott who was struggling to stand on his own and needing the help of Lion to stay balanced. "Oh, I do feel it. I just chose to ignore it."

"HOW CAN SOMEONE CHOOSE TO IGNORE THIS?!" Scott would have facepalmed himself at that very moment if he didn't need his hands to stay upright. His voice barely rose above the noise of the quake, as the walls groaned and creaked, as if it was in pain. Teresa's lips twisted into a small yet simple smile, carefully stepping over a fallen lamp.

"It's a skill," she said calmly, her voice steady amid the chaos, "and panicking won't help anyone right now. Earthquakes don't last very long either and we're in a safe place, Charles made sure to keep the mansion earthquake-proof."

Scott shook his head. "It's not a regular earthquake and it's been going on for almost an hour," he told her and Teresa furrowed her eyebrows. "I have a feeling Jean is having a nightmare again. The last time an earthquake as strong as this came was from her."

Before Teresa could reply back, the door to their dorm suddenly swung open with a loud bang, bouncing slightly on its hinges as it rebounded from the force. The abrupt sound echoed through the room, momentarily drowning out the distant rumble of the ongoing tremors.

Sofia stood in the doorway, her eyes wide with terror, her small frame shaking. Without hesitation, she ran to Teresa, clutching her tightly. "What is happening?!" Sofia exclaimed, her voice trembling with fear, almost drowned out by the unsettling sounds heard clearly throughout the mansion.

Teresa wrapped her arms around Sofia, trying to soothe her. "It's okay, Sofia. Jean is just having a little nightmare, that's all." She patted Sofia's back gently, hoping to calm her down.

"But she stopped having nightmares since Apocalypse," Scott murmured with wonder, his eyes widening at the implication. Teresa shot him a look that clearly said they would discuss it later, but now wasn't the time.

"How can Miss Grey make something as powerful as this from just a nightmare?" Sofia exclaimed in disbelief, having never experienced anything like this before.

"One of the flaws of being a powerful mutant," Teresa explained. "If they get overwhelmed by something or someone, they can lose control of their powers, and it can... cause a bit of chaos."

Seeing Sofia's quivering lips, Teresa quickly asked in an attempt to distract her, "How did you manage to get here? Your room is on the first floor with Lily."

Sofia sniffled, her eyes wide and tearful. "I only got here because of Mr. Maximoff. He wanted to get all of us out of the school, but Professor Xavier told him not to yet, so he made sure the younger kids were with the older students first. Everyone is in the common room or in their own rooms, but I asked him to bring me here. "

She must be talking about Peter, Teresa thought to herself, mentally thanking Peter for bringing Sofia to safety. "Did you say thank you?" Teresa inquired gently, hoping to shift Sofia's focus.

Sofia nodded, her small face showing a bit of pride amidst her fear. "Yeah, I did. He also gave me some sweets to make me feel better." She took out the colourful sweets from her pocket to show Teresa.

Teresa smiled softly at the sight of the candies but quickly shifted to a more serious tone. "Alright, but you can't eat those right now because it's late, okay?"

"Okay," Sofia agreed reluctantly, putting the sweets back in the pockets of her pajamas. She let out a yawn and Teresa noticed how droopy the little girl's eyes were becoming.

Teresa glanced at Scott, who was still grimacing from the pain in his foot. "Scott, can you get to Sofia's room with us? She needs to get more sleep."

Scott winced, but nodded. "Yeah, I can manage it."

They made their way through the dimly lit corridors. Though the tremors had lessened, the ground still occasionally shook, causing Sofia to clutch Teresa even tighter in fear that something bad might happen. As they walked, Teresa kept an arm around Sofia, who clung to her with wide eyes. The hallways were filled with the sounds of students murmuring and shuffling about, trying to understand what was happening.

The unsettling atmosphere was palpable. Doors creaked open as students peeked out, their faces marked with worry. Teachers and older students were ushering the younger ones towards safer areas. Teresa guided Sofia with a steady hand, offering quiet reassurances.

When they finally reached Sofia's room, Teresa took notice of Lily's absence. Lily was Sofia's roommate and another girl from the orphanage. She had the gift of producing a sonic scream, similar to the former X-men member Banshee. However, Lily was shy and almost never used her gift since it would leave her with a sore throat afterwards. Teresa deduced that she was in the common room with the others, as Sofia had previously mentioned. She made a mental note to check on Lily afterwards.

"I don't want to go to sleep," Sofia stated as she climbed into her bed, crossing her arms defiantly.

Teresa sighed as she placed Sofia's teddy bear next to her. The teddy bear, a gift from Teresa for Sofia's sixth birthday, was one of Sofia's most cherished possessions. It reminded her of the orphanage and the friends she had left behind, who were still too young to attend the school.

"If you don't sleep, you'll be too tired to play with your friends tomorrow," Scott tried to reason with her, but she stubbornly refused.

"And you'll also have to take a nap," Teresa added, knowing very well that Sofia hated naps more than anything else. With that, Sofia immediately tried to fall asleep, and Teresa chuckled softly.

"Goodnight, Teresa," Sofia murmured, clutching her teddy bear tightly.

"Goodnight, Sofia. Sleep well," Teresa replied, brushing a strand of hair away from Sofia's forehead. She left Sofia's room, maintaining her balance as the mansion continued to shake with residual tremors.

"How are you still walking?" Scott asked, astounded, as he kept on falling down due to the tremors, needing to hold onto an object nearby to help him stand. Teresa shrugged, not quite concerned with the matter, as she helped Scott stand up, offering her arm for support.

"I'm serious, the others have to crawl in order to get anywhere," Scott pointed out.

"He's right, you know," a familiar voice said from behind Scott, causing him to immediately move forward and turn to face the speaker. "Even Peter is having a harder time helping, and he can slow down time. If Grey even had it, it must have been one heck of a nightmare she had."