Goddess of Light

Chapter 45 ~ Friends into Lovers

The lifeboat that Clint, Steve, Pietro's body and I were on finally lodged itself into the main Helicarrier, allowing its passengers to safely exit as we returned to the surface.

The atmosphere was incredibly solemn and tense as we rode alongside the boy who sacrificed his life for Clint and that child. The blue blur. I just couldn't believe that he was dead. One moment, he was zipping around, making jokes and snarky comments and the next he was dead with bullet holes in his chest.

I hadn't even seen Wanda yet and I couldn't even begin to imagine the pain that she must be feeling. If I lost Thor, I don't know what I would do. It is one thing losing a friend, another losing a loved one, another losing a family member, but losing a twin is a whole new level of pain. It is losing your other half, your partner in crime. I wouldn't even be able to look at myself without thinking of Thor or do any of the things we did together without them being plagued with grief.

We helped direct the Sokovians off of the lifeboat and onto the Helicarrier. Once everyone was off, Steve and I guided ourselves to the control room, leaving Clint to make sure Pietro's body was taken care of. He insisted it was his responsibility.

The first person to make eye contact with me once we entered the flurry of people in the control room was Nat. She had a confused, sad and hardened expression, trying to disguise her emotion but I knew something was wrong.

I smiled to Steve as we parted from each other before making my way through the crowd to my friend. She smiled sadly when I approached her and I pulled her into a tight embrace, slightly surprising her but she quickly returned it. I could tell that she may have needed it.

I look into her worried eyes and furrow my eyebrows in concern. "What happened?" I ask her softly, despite the noise around us.

"The city fell." She replied bluntly while looking to the floor with a dry chuckle.

"I hadn't noticed." I responded sarcastically before ducking my head down a bit, forcing her to look at me. "You know that's not what I mean. What's wrong?" I ask her again.

"When the Hulk chased after one of the Ultrons, into the Quinjet, he stayed inside of it, flying away from the city. The jet was set in stealth mode and Fury helped me get in contact, but he shut me down and we lost contact." She explained trying to bite back her emotions. I could see the tears threatening to fall in her eyes but knew she wouldn't let them.

I placed my hand on her arm, supportively. "I'm sure that he's fine and didn't mean to shut you off. He probably landed the jet somewhere warm and 'stress free'." I tried to joke but I knew she must be feeling awful about it.

She gave a small, sad smile before nodding in agreement. I think she knew that that wouldn't be the case but, a glimmer of hope was holding onto that idea. Maria Hill then called out for Nat and she smiled apologetically before following after her, leaving me looking at a broken brunette girl huddled up in the corner of the room.

I understood that not a single other person would know how she was feeling right now. I had thought that I had lost my twin several times but always knew, deep down, that he was okay. Wanda hadn't even seen her twin's body yet but knew that he was not coming back.

I sat myself down next to her on the floor, sliding down the wall and could hear stifled sobs coming from her head. She was just like Nat, trying to hide her feelings behind a brave mask. I wasn't particularly good at that. When I felt something, I felt it strongly and there was no hiding it.

I rubbed my hand over her shoulder and as soon as she realised it was me touching her, she flung her face into my chest and started crying on me. I stroked the back of her head, running my fingers lightly through her hair, pulling out any loose knots and dust.