sestreka: Russian for 'my sister'


Three

The sun was dipping low behind the horizon when we finally found a hotel we thought was far enough away from the facility we'd escaped from. We didn't have any money, but this would not be a problem. As soon as we reached the front desk, Wanda lifted her hand and twirled her fingers, the eyes of the woman working the front desk morphing from brown to red. Once she was completely relaxed, Pietro moved behind the counter and grabbed a room key. Wanda didn't release her hold on the woman's mind until Pietro had his arm wrapped securely around us and we bolted down the hallway.

As quick as always, we had reached our destination and Pietro opened the door for us with a smile. "Ladies first." He held his hands out towards the room.

Wanda and I both rolled our eyes at his antics, but when she moved into the room I stood on the tips of my toes and pecked his cheek before following. He may be silly even in times you would think he shouldn't be, but it was a large part of his charm.

"We should all get some rest," Wanda suggested, already pulling the blankets down from one of the two twin beds in the room. "Now that the Avengers have seen us, they will not likely leave us be. We should be ready for them when they come."

"You have always been the sensible one, sestreka." I smiled at Wanda, following her lead with the second bed. "I will admit that sleeping somewhere other than a concrete prison does sound inviting."

"You two rest," Pietro agreed, sitting at the end of Wanda's bed. "I will stay awake, just in case." He didn't have to explain in case of what. It was obvious to us all that any number of things could go wrong in such an unguarded place. One of us staying awake would be safer for all of us.

Still, I was not comfortable with the idea of Pietro staying awake all night by himself. "You deserve sleep just as much as much as the two of us," I motioned between Wanda and myself. "We will take turns. You should not have to stay awake all night, it is not healthy."

"I agree," Wanda nodded. Pietro looked between the two of us before shaking his head with a chuckle.

"How can I argue with my girls?" He stood from the bed and kissed Wanda's forehead before walking over to the bed I had unmade, repeating the action with me. "I will stay awake first, then. Get some sleep. I will wake you in a few hours."

I placed my hand on his cheek affectionately, running my thumb across it with a smile before nodding and climbing into bed. I pulled the covers up to my chin and curled into a little ball, relishing in the comfort I had never felt in the small metal beds I was used to sleeping in. Before I even saw Wanda lay down, I was sleeping.


I was woken up by a tickling sensation on my collarbone. When I lifted my hand to brush it off, my fingers tangled in familiar silky hair. I chuckled as I realized what was happening and opened my eyes, smiling at Pietro. He lifted his head from my neck with a smirk and I rolled my eyes at him. "Good morning," he greeted, wrapping his arm around my waist and pulling me closer against him.

At some point in the night he had managed to get into my bed without waking me up. He was stealthier than I gave him credit for, it seems.

"Good morning indeed." I grinned, running my hands through his hair. "Is it my turn to watch?" Instead of answering, he brought his lips down on mine in a series of gentle kisses. "As much as I enjoy this," I said in between kisses, "Wanda is in the bed right next to us."

"She is sleeping," he dismissed, trailing his lips down to my neck. "We have not been truly alone in years."

I placed my hands on his cheeks and lifted his gaze to mine, smiling before kissing his forehead. "I know," I breathed into his skin. "I miss us too."

Pietro moved us to lay next to each other in the bed, holding both of my hands in one of his and placing the other on my cheek. He pressed our foreheads together, and I closed my eyes with a smile. The last time we had been able to be absolutely alone with only each other for company was before we volunteered for Strucker's experiments.

I opened my eyes to see that Pietro was still staring at me, and I chuckled. "What are you looking at, Lyubovka?"

"I am grateful that you came to us in the rubble." I was surprised that he brought that day up from so many years ago. We almost never talked about it as it was a painful memory for all of us, but I suppose seeing Stark and the other Avengers reminded him of it. "I am grateful that it was you to find us. I am grateful that you stayed with us. I am grateful for you."

I pulled one of my hands free from his to trail my fingers down his cheek lovingly. "I am grateful for the very same reasons. You and Wanda are my everything."

"And you are ours."

We kissed once more before I sat up. When Pietro tried to sit up with me, I pushed his shoulders back down against the bed. "Sleep," I commanded gently. "I will watch for danger now."

Before he could protest, because I knew he would, I pulled the blankets up over his head and stood from the bed. I watched with a smile as he situated himself more comfortably in the bed and laid down to rest. He did so much for Wanda and for me that in my mind, he deserved a good night's sleep more than anyone else.


There was a knock at the door hours later, during Wanda's watch. She woke both Pietro and I before opening the door, but whoever had been there was long gone. The only indication that they had been there at all was a small note taped to the door- completely blank except for a location.

Church of Belostok

It might have been a trap, but at the time we were confident that we could take care of ourselves. Besides, Wanda pointed out that- judging from what she had seen from Stark's vision- there was bound to be someone else out there to help us destroy the Avengers.

Her word was all we needed to abandon the stolen hotel room without a second glance, making our way to the old church.