"Brave New World"
Chapter Fourteen
by darthelwig
*** I own nothing. I'm just having fun. ***
A/N: Update 2 of 4 today.
Wanda sighed and stared at her phone.
"A watched phone never rings," Pietro said, and she scowled. He grinned and draped his arm over shoulders, allowing her to cuddle closer to him. The Quinjet was fast and convenient, but shit for creature comforts, and Pietro was growing quite used to those. These seats weren't designed with comfort in mind, and he still sort of ached from training. Avengers played rough.
"She is probably busy," Wanda said morosely. "I will see her soon enough, I suppose, but I have missed her."
"You text her all the time," Pietro pointed out.
"It is not the same," Wanda said, and sighed as she put her phone away. "Are we almost home?"
"Do you realize we call Barton's place 'home' now?" Pietro asked, and his sister turned to him with slightly startled eyes. "It had not occurred to me until a couple of days ago, while I was speaking to Steve. I said we were going home."
"Does this bother you?" Wanda asked. She looked hesitant, as if she were suddenly afraid to speak her mind, and Pietro wouldn't have that. He tipped her chin up and smiled.
"It would only bother me if it hurt you," he said honestly. "I like having a home again. It feels nice." He shrugged.
"It feels good to have a place to belong," Wanda said softly, her expression thoughtful. "Do you think this could be our family, Pietro?" She seemed almost afraid to be hopeful, so he grinned cockily and puffed his chest out.
"Pretty sure they already are," he said, infusing his entire being with confidence. And he realized he was confident in his answer. Clint and Laura welcomed them with open arms. Their children treated them like siblings. He and Wanda were going to school and acting more like teenagers than they ever had before. It was... nice.
"Yup. You're my kids now. Get used to it," Clint said from the cockpit, and Pietro made a face at him.
"Do you listen to everything? Got nothing better to do, old man?"
"Nope. My entire goal in life now is to be a pain in your ass. Turnabout is fair play," Clint said, and Pietro could hear the smile in his voice. Maybe before he would've been irritated by the old man's insistence on butting into their lives, but it didn't bother him as much as it used to. There were still many things that he and Wanda could and would handle on their own, but it also felt nice to have someone at their back, watching out for them. Not even as a father, but as a friend. As whatever Clint chose to be to them in the moment.
"What about the boy from the party?" Pietro asked his sister, speaking quietly so Clint couldn't hear.
"She has not seen him again," Wanda murmured.
"Or so she says," Pietro felt the need to point out. Wanda hummed thoughtfully.
"She would not lie to me," she said finally.
"You are so sure?"
"Yes," she said. "Carol is very honest. She would not lie to me."
"Okay," he said, and hugged her close. If Wanda trusted in that, so would he. She was rarely wrong about people, especially now, and he had faith in her. "What do you want to do when we get home?" he asked. Wanda thought for a moment.
"I think I would like to bake. Laura is teaching me to make cookies. Carol might like some," she said. Pietro shook his head.
"Always with the Carol." He grinned. "Maybe I will sneak some. Stealing from her sounds fun." Wanda slapped his leg.
"I will make you your own cookies. Leave hers alone." Pietro tried to appear properly chastised, but knew he failed spectacularly. Wanda scowled at him, but the corner of her mouth was twitching up in a smile.
"I suppose I could eat Clint's share. He should lay off the cookies anyway, before he gets pudgy."
"I heard that, kid," Clint said.
"I should hope so."
"Hey Wanda," Clint called. "When am I gonna meet this Carol girl?" Pietro's sister huffed.
"You do not need to meet her," she said, folding her arms over her chest.
"Actually yeah, I do. It's part of my job as both a father and an Avenger," Clint said, and Pietro had to admit the old man had a point. As Avengers, it was his job to assess any potential threat. And Clint had a right to know if anything threatened the secrecy of his home.
"Soon, okay?" Wanda sighed. Pietro knew she understood. "We have not even gone on a date yet."
"You will, and I wanna meet her before this date."
"Yes. Alright," Wanda said. Pietro gave her a squeeze.
"It will be fine," he reassured her. "Carol can take meeting the family."
"I did not expect to expose her so soon."
"Eh. Best to get it over with," he said. "Then you can get to the good stuff and fuck her brains out." A loud, choking cough came from the cockpit, and they both laughed.