The Other Symbiote

You Were And Still Are

Raiva's vision came back into focus as the blinding light of power dissipated into the air. She lunged for the Titan but only just managed to scratch his armour before he used the Space Stone and disappeared. 

"Where'd he go... Thor, where'd he go?" Raiva asked the god, who simply picked up Stormbreaker and clutched it tightly.

Steve stumbled towards them, asking the same question but Raiva was more interested in Bucky looking at them awkwardly. 

"Steve?" 

Raiva yelped in shock as he fell to the ground, only to dissolve into ashes. She raced over to him, trying to pick them all up and piece him back together. 

"Up, General, up!" Raiva turned to see T'Challa reaching for Okoye, who lay on the ground in pain. 

"This is no place to die." He whispered, but Raiva choked back a cry as Okoye lost her grip on him and the king turned to ashes as well. 

"Okoye." She lifted her onto her feet, the General sighing as she felt some sort of anchor to this world. 

"Raiva?" A croaky voice spoke from behind her, Wanda's face stained with tears. 

"Wanda! Thank God you're okay!" She scrambled to her, clutching the witch in her arms as she stayed on the ground. 

"I'm not, Rai." She showed the woman her slowly disintegrating hands, her eyes a bright red as she tried to prevent it, tried to savour this rare moment between them. 

"No... no, no, you can't leave me, Wanda. You can't." Raiva's voice broke at the end, her lungs filled with sobs as she held Wanda close to her chest. She felt something in Nemesis unlock, the symbiote seeping back into her skin and the veins in her hand began to glow black. 

"What-" 

*We are taking her pain. At least, I'm trying to.* 

Raiva watched as the black in her veins faded away, turning back to Wanda who had a small drip of blood from a cut on her forehead. 

"I can't take your pain. Why can't I just take it?" 

"Because, Rai." Wanda cupped her cheek. "It doesn't hurt." 

"No, Wanda." Raiva's voice hardened, her emotions spiralling as she tried to take more pain. 

"It's okay. It's okay, it's perfect." 

"What?" 

"I'm in the arms of my first love. The first person I've ever loved. The person I'll always love." Raiva's bottom lip began to tremble at the sentimental words. 

"I love you, Raiva. Raiva Brock." 

"No, Wanda, don't you dare leave me. Hey, hey." Raiva kept Wanda's eyes from closing, noticing how the dust was creeping up to her hips. 

"Do you regret it?" Wanda whispered, Raiva now holding her like she always used to when they slept.

"Regret what, Wands?" She cooed into her ears, trying to suppress her sobs to hear every word coming from Wanda's soft lips. 

"I don't know. Everything." 

Raiva was quiet for a long moment, because she never wanted it to end. She was both the happiest and saddest she had ever been in her life. She felt Wanda's cheeks open to tell her to forget what she asked, but Raiva beat her to it as the dust crept up her back and towards her neck.

"Just because we didn't work out, it doesn't mean you weren't the best thing that happened to me. Because you were. God, Wanda, you were and still are the love of my life."