She's glad it's a short service for Pietro. She's glad there are only those who were on that floating piece of land when it happened, because she is sure that they won't judge her at all when she balls her eyes out.
She wants to blame them so badly for the death of her brother – she wants them to pay for her loss – but she knows that it isn't their fault – it never will be their fault; Pietro had the heart of a hero and he made his own decisions.
He was always the brave one.
But, being brave doesn't stop death, and for Pietro that is all too true; there's nothing she can do to bring him back.
She's clutching Clint as if her life depends on it as her brother in his casket is lowered gently into the hole – it's the last time she'll ever be in the immediate presence of him and she's not ready for the loneliness of being by herself. She's never been completely on her own before; she's always had her brother.
He's always been there for her – through hell and high water. She'll try to deal without him, good god, she'll try, but she knows that it isn't going to be easy; it isn't going to be pleasant and she's going to need all the help she can get to survive the first couple months.
And as soon as it begins, it's over; he's buried – left to rot in the earth with a simple stone left to mark where he is and who he is. She's sobbing hysterically and each member of the Avengers comes over to pat her shoulder and say they are sorry for their loss. She can tell that they mean it, but their words still seem hollow.
Honestly, if they were anyone else, she wouldn't even try to convince herself that they were sorry that her brother was dead.
The only one who doesn't say anything is Clint, whom she is still gripping for dear life and he's also become her handkerchief. He lets go of her, and she makes her way to the headstone. She hesitantly creeps close to the stone where she collapses in a fit of sobs.
She tubs her fingers shakily along the engraving of his name in the stone, then pounds her fists into the freshly packed dirt, which is ruining her black funeral dress, but she doesn't care because her bother is dead and there's nothing she can do to fill the hole in her heart. (Plus, pounding her fists in the dirt is making her feel a little better.)
Today marks the third day that she's been without him and she's already been reduced to nothing more than a mere child. She misses him and she understands that she always will. She knows that he wouldn't want to see her falling apart like this, so she holds in the tears and clenches her fists against her sides. She stands up and walks back over to Clint, who she asks to drive her back to HQ, where she'll be able to grieve without any onlookers.
He agrees and they begin their drive home in silence, until about half way, when Clint starts telling her how sorry he is, that if she needs someone to blame, she can blame him because he already blames himself and he feels this unmeasurable guilt that he's alive and Pietro isn't. It breaks her heart even more because she believes that Pietro would never blame Clint, and he would never want her to blame Clint – her first and best friend, a father figure- for a decision that was made wholeheartedly by her brother.
So she tells him that it is not his fault. He nods in agreement, but she knows better; words aren't just going to magically make everything better.
Even though she doesn't blame Clint one bit, she still forgives him, because that's what her brother would want her to do. Pietro would want her to be happy and he'd want her to be brave for him.
Even if it kills her, she's going to work her ass off for him; he didn't die for her to just mope around and cry all day. She would do it all for him – she'd save the world for him. She would finish the job that he isn't able to, and that feeling of goodness makes her feel as if she has a purpose in life other than being a slave of someone or something with selfish intentions.
For the first time in her life, she is calling the shots; she's in charge of her own existence and it feels wonderful and she wishes her brother could be here to experience this feeling with her at this moment.
Then her thoughts drift back to the nostalgia memories of her childhood and her brother. Clint turns up the car's radio and ups the volume to his old man music, well she called it that to bust his ass even though she honestly liked the classic rock scene just as much as he did.
They reached headquarters in the middle of their jam out session to 'Carry on My Wayward Son'. She gives Clint a hug before exiting the car. He tells her to be careful; if she ever needs anything, she knows where to contact him.
She tells him he's being "Daddy Clint" again, in a teasing manner and he makes a joke when he replies with a simple "saving the world is my side job".
She calls him an old man with a smile and he scowls, gaining a laugh from her. Finally, she bids him farewell and enters the building, scanning her clearance card at every doorway, which was really annoying; she's going to have to complain to Tony Stark about the annoying British robot voice that says "access granted" every time she swipes her card.
She finally reaches her room and collapses on her bed and cries one last time for her brother as she holds his memory very close to her heart.
Her name is Wanda Maximoff and she's the Scarlet Witch; she's going to make the most of her life, no matter what happens later.
Okay, Howdy y'all; its bleuboxes.
My dear friend, the shippingprince have decided to do a collaboration! (Hopefully it'll be found on both of our profiles soon enough)
We're more than likely going to alternate between chapters, I wrote this one, so I think he's going to get the next which should be hella cool and im really super excited to get to work with him on this project because he's a fantastic writer and one of my best friends on the world wide web. (So I'll post a link or something so y'all can get to his page to read the next chappie)
I REALLY HOPE YOU LIKE IT SO PLEASE FOLLOW AND FAVORITE AND REVIEW BC WE LOVE REVIEWS A LOT (and we want to know if you like it!)
