Fight For Freedom |4| The Ascension

Chapter Thirty: Тили Тили Бом

Zoë poked her head in to see Pietro lying on their bed, staring at the ceiling. "Can't sleep?" she asked softly, slipping into the room.

He turned his head to look at her. "Нет. Too energetic, but also too tired, if that's a thing."

She smiled fondly. "That's about every night for you, huh?"

He chuckled, then winced. "Ой."

"Are you okay?" she asked, her eyes widening. She rushed to his side, her hands hovering over his bare chest.

"Да, да, I'm fine," he assured her.

She bit her lip. "You're lying. Where does it hurt?"

He took her hand, guiding it to his chest. Her fingers brushed over his skin, and he winced again. "Right there."

She shivered. "Sorry."

He shook his head. "Нет, you saved my life. Again."

"I'm not very good at it," she commented, lying down next to him. "Last time you got shot, and this time I broke your ribs."

"Ah, but you broke them in the process of restarting my heart, which I'm pretty sure qualifies as a success," Pietro pointed out. "Спасибо, Zoë, for that."

She chuckled, shaking her head. "Well, you're very welcome. Now, what do we do about you not sleeping, hmm?"

"Мама used to sing us lullabies," he recalled, his face glowing with nostalgia.

"What, like Тили Тили Бом?" Zoë asked, smirking.

He stared at her. "That was my favourite. Have you been talking to Wanda again?"

"Pssh, no," she lied. "But she may have mentioned, you know, in passing, that it was a song you liked and, well, you know me, I was curious, so I may have just sort of Youtubed it and now my entire suggested list is variations upon the song," she rambled. "Did you know someone's done a montage of Natasha's existence with Тили Тили Бом as backing music? It's pretty cool. I also think Mum did it."

"You're rambling," he told her, smiling gently.

"Yeah, well, you're cute," she returned. He grinned and she blushed, groaning. "I can't believe I physically spoke those words."

"You are adorable when you're flustered," he told her, taking her hand.

"I'm not sure if I'm dying or in love," she admitted, fanning her face with her hand.

He snorted. "So dramatic. Let's hope you're not dying, да?"

She took a few deep breaths and the blush faded but the smile didn't. "Окей. Where did Тили Тили Бом come from, anyway? I mean, is it a monster?" she asked as she put the song on, giving him the other earphone as she used her own.

"No idea," he answered. "Nobody does. Well, perhaps Nat. Beyond 2007, nobody knows where it came from, except there are thousands of children who've fallen asleep listening to it. All anyone knows is you must fall asleep before he finds you." There was no reply, and he lifted his head slightly to see Zoë was already drifting off, curling into him automatically. He smiled, brushing her hair out of her eyes. "Sweet dreams, милая. You're safe from the monster now." And with that, he laid back and closed his eyes.

***

"Нет, нет, Wanda, Wanda, Wanda, honey, I swear, he's fine," McKenzie assured her daughter over the phone. "He was drowning, but we resuscitated him. I did a scan, he's perfectly okay--or he will be once he's got some rest."

"I wasn't sure," Wanda admitted. "I just heard Zoë screaming his name, and then... water. Just water. As far as the eye could see, in all directions. He was struggling, and then--then it all went black." She hesitated. "Are you sure he's alright?"

"Да, we're sure. JENSEN did a scan, the TARDIS did a scan, the Doctor even gave him the once-over," McKenzie told her. "He really is all right. We've sent him away with strict orders to get some sleep, окей? If anything goes wrong, we'll bring him back to you and we can sort it out together, да?"

She could practically feel Wanda relaxing. "Да. Спасибо, мамочка. Really, thank you."

McKenzie smiled. "That's quite alright, Wanda. Now, goodnight."

"Спокойной ночи, Мамочка." She hung up, and McKenzie sighed, taking JENSEN off.

"How was she?" the Doctor asked, coming into the room to find his wife on the bed, rubbing her forehead.

"Fine, once I'd explained what had happened," she answered, opening her eyes.

"And you?" He raised his eyebrows.

"I think I'm okay," she assured him. "That got really close."

"I know," he agreed, running his hand through her hair softly. "I don't know about you, but I'm exhausted."

"Same. Let's just -" She was cut off by her own yawn. "Let's just go to sleep."

"Couldn't agree more," he mumbled, resting his head against her lower back.

"Night, night," she sighed, letting her head sink into the pillows, and smiled softly as she heard his gentle snores. "Don't let the bed bugs bite."

~~~

fluff is currently the Di Angelo way of life lmao also in case you were wondering милая (mee-la-ya) means darling or sweetheart in Russian which I figure is a very Pietro thing to say :))