PTR Arachnid 24601

Ch 9 - Decisions and post-meeting discussions

3rd POV

Wanda stepped out of the Med room that Peter was occupying, quietly closing the door shut behind her. She couldn't face the others yet. Firstly, the witch needed to take a deep breath and take in everything that just happened. The girl sighed and slid down the wall onto the floor. She brought her hands up in a sort of praying motion over her nose and mouth and allowed a few silent tears to fall. Wanda sat there for around three minutes, replaying everything and calming her mind down from what she'd seen inside Peter's head. It was ridiculous how similar yet worse the boy was to herself, Pietro, and Bucky. But that only made her feel even more awful.

When she pulled herself together, Wanda got up and made her way to the elevator. All the while, she felt pretty happy with herself. The meeting went well and Spider didn't seem like a bad person. Her English had improved greatly since coming to America and moving in with the Avengers. Maybe not as good as her brother, but she was getting there. Wanda was snapped from her thoughts when the elevator dinged, announcing her arrival on the common floor.

Wanda emerged from the elevator and all heads turned to her. Before she arrived, they had gone back to watching Tron: Legacy when the meeting ended. But now, they waited for her to speak.

"I had FRIDAY save everything from the mindscape. And I wrote down notes just in case," the witch said as she placed the notebook on the coffee table. She looked around the room nervously and her hands began to fidget. "Before we get into the heavy stuff... Medically-wise, he's fine, besides the food issue. I changed some bandages and stuff but he's almost fully healed. He doesn't look like he's in any physical pain. But hat might be the painkillers. I'm sure Spider is perfectly capable of leaving his bed today."

"That's good. How about his head?" Natasha asked.

"If you mean the concussion, it's hard to say. Bruce will have to check that. And for everything else, nothing good. It's war in there. His mind and HYDRA's influence are really hurting him mentally." She sighed heavily and flopped down beside her brother. "He– he doesn't even know why he hurt Bucky or why he was sorry. He doesn't know anything. He's lost. I don't know how to help him other than calming him down with my magic."

A few minutes of discussion passed and the conversation eventually died out, but Steve spoke up after a long pause.

"How is he right now?"

"Who? Peter or Bucky? Because they're both not here right now and they're both in some kind of distress," Clint remarked as he kept running his fingers through Pietro's hair.

"Both."

"FRIDAY?" Tony inquired.

"Mr. Parker has just slipped into sleep after intense emotional and mental distress. Sergeant Barnes is in his room reading a book. He appears to be much calmer than before," the polite voice of the AI informed them.

"I think we should talk about a few things with Bucky. I know I need to, at least," Wanda murmured quietly from where she was curled up in the corner of the couch. But with the silent room, she was heard just fine.

"FRIDAY, send Bucky in here," Steve commanded, avoiding saying Peter's name. FRIDAY responded and a few minutes later, Bucky emerged from the elevator.

He walked up to the group with his hands shoved in his jeans and his face sporting a look of mild confusion and calmness. "What's goin' on?"

"I want to talk to you and the others about Peter, if it's okay with you," Wanda spoke up. The soldier only nodded and sat down on the floor beside Steve. "You saw most of our meeting and I don't think it's good if–"