Skies Clearing (Maximoff Twins fanfic)

Chapter Twenty-One

"Hero, noun: my brother."

RED

The silence in the bookstore makes me uneasy. I think I'd rather be in a gym where feet pound and boxers let out yells. Or a street where people talk and cars fly by.

Vision leads me through the shelves, past the sign marked Poetry, eyes flickering over titles. We've read through so many other poetry books together. He is too much of a romantic to quit now.

My ringtone breaks the silence and I jump.

"Who is it?" asks Vis.

I pull it out, the contact name lit up across the screen. "Bucky." I answer the call. "Hey."

"Wanda, we need you back." His voice is urgent and soft.

I tug on Vision's hand and motion to the exit. "We're on our way, what's up?"

"It's Pietro, he remembered - he remembered a bad one. Me and Sam, we were talking through it with him and he panicked, quit breathing, and passed out."

I look back at Vision, and he must see the concern on my face because he hurries us out the door, scoops me up and takes off.

"What did he remember?" I ask Bucky.

"It wasn't - Wanda, it wasn't just any scene, this was his death. The end for him."

Worry flashes through me. "Oh, that must have been so much all at once...."

"But that's just it, it wasn't all at once. He'd known parts of it for a long time, it was messing with his other memories."

I bite my lip and curl my fist in my jacket. "Have you called Clint? He's the only other one in that memory."

"Yeah, he's on his way too. Hurry."

"Yeah, we're hurrying."

Vision lets me down, keeping hold of my hand, and we take off faster side by side.

*

Clint beats us to the common room by four seconds.

Bucky is standing by the couch where Pietro lies, a hand on the younger man's chest to keep him down as Pietro frantically searches the room.

When he catches sight of Clint he falls back to the cushions, relieved. "I did save you," he whispers. "I did."

Clint grins, and smile wrinkles appear at his eyes. "You did, kid. You saved me."

Pietro's smile lights up the room.

"Piet," I say. "Are you alright?"

Bucky moves aside to let me through, and I take my brother's hand.

"Yeah," Pietro says. His face grows serious. "I am alright. It was terrifying, Wanda; it was painful; I didn't want to relive it again. But there was something good inside all of that, a pride and a relief because I saved Clint and the boy." He tightens his hold on my hand and smiles again. "I saved them. I did something good."

"Told you you were a hero," I say. "I told you."

"Yeah, yeah, the little sister always has to be right."

"Shut up, hero."

He laughs. "I was dead for over a year. That's enough shutting up for me."

"A bit morbid." But I can't help but laugh too, if only because it's him who said it.

Bucky finally steps back in. "I think we should leave Silver to rest a bit, okay?"

"If you insist, old man," Pietro grumbles. But he is clearly worn out from his panic attack and his memories.

"Okay." I flick his hair out of his face. "Волим те, Piet."

"Sap. You too."