Where your loyalties lie (Two New Bartons book 2) (completed)

Betrayal - Wanda

The drive to San Francisco starts out fun. For the first day and a half, we think of it as a road trip. Pietro and I sing songs in Sokovian, talk loudly, laugh, communicate in our minds and overall annoy Clint. Several times, he threatens to "turn this car around", but he never actually does it. 

It feels just like that one time when we were eight, and Dad took us to Hungary for the weekend. When I tell Pietro this, he nearly dies from laughter, while thinking, Without, you know, the stress of crossing the border with poorly concealed alcohol and a hidden puppy.

I slap him. 

Pretty soon, though, we can't pretend the Sokovia Accords away. The stress of them begin to hang over us like a rain cloud. 

Clint says you're undecided, Pietro thinks, taking my hand.

I don't need to ask what he's talking about.

Yeah. What do you think?

I think they could be a good idea.

That shocks me. Nat told me both him and Clint were "retired". Why did he change his mind?

That's not what I heard, I tell him.

I wasn't given the option to make up my own mind before now.

What does he mean by that? There's no Hydra to control what he thinks anymore. He's free to think what he wants.

Before I can ask, however, he says, Clint assumed I'd be against.

And you're not.

And I'm not.

This scares me, because I'm leaning further and further away from the Accords every second. I can feel a fight coming, and I know it will be about the Accords, at least partially. If Pietro fights next to me, it will be assumed he's against the Accords. If he's for, he won't want to be thought to be against, not again. Which means we'll be on different sides. Which means I might have to end up fighting him. I can't fight my brother, not even to save my own life. But I can't fight on the side of the Accords, because then I'll be forced to sign. I'll be fighting side by side with Stark, against Clint and Cap and Sam. I can't do that, either.

You're against, aren't you? Pietro asks.

Yes. 

I- I don't know.

If you don't sign, you'll be an outlaw. You'll be wanted in 117 countries. 

You sound like Rhodey.

Maybe he had a point.

I don't like arguing with my brother, but I need to get him to see reason. I need him on my side in this.

If we sign, we won't have control about where we go, who we save, I think, echoing Cap's point.

Maybe we need someone to control us, Pietro shrugs, Someone who can stop incidents like Lagos from happening.

I let out an involuntary gasp and draw back from him, pulling my hand from his. It feels like a slap in the face. Those words hurt even more than when Vis said them. My brother. My own twin brother. Even he is against me. For the first time in a while, I feel completely, utterly alone. Not him. It was bad enough losing Vis to these stupid Accords, but Pietro? Is this some sick game the universe is playing on me? To see how many people I can lose before I break? 

I can still hear Pietro's voice in my head, saying something, apologizing maybe, I don't know. I don't know what to think, to feel. The extra voice, usually so comforting, is just confusing me. I do something I've never done before, never thought I'd need to do: I shut him out.

There's a moment of silence, then he starts talking out loud. I don't know what he's saying, don't want to know. What if it's more accusations? What if it's more betrayal?

That's it. That's what I'm feeling. Betrayal. Stronger than with Vis, stronger than anything I've ever felt before. Just pure, unrelenting betrayal. Threatening to tear me apart, to destroy me, to eat me from the inside out. And I don't know what to do about it. 

I stare out of the window, not seeing the cars and trees beyond them flying past. Slowly, my vision turns red as my emotions spiral out of control. If I don't do something about it soon, things will start floating, but right now, I don't care. 

I don't care about anything anymore. It's all meaningless. Nothing matters if Pietro is against me. He's all I had left, and now I don't even have him anymore. 

I feel like I've been punched in the stomach with an iron fist, knocking out all the air from my lungs.

I feel like I've been electrified, jolting me away from reality, away from emotion, away from this world.

I feel like I've been stabbed by a red hot knife, searing my flesh, burning everything in its path, carving me out, leaving my body an empty husk. 

I can't stay here anymore. I feel trapped, like I'm back in a Hydra cell. I have to get away. I push open the door and fly out, not bothering to ask Clint to stop the car, not looking for oncoming traffic. 

Word count: 865