Chapter 27
Streets of Bayville
Ellie stood and watched the smoke rise from the wreckage in front of her. Her chest was burning inside and breathing was still a challenge for her, but that wasn't the main thing on her mind. She thought back to the faces of the people that were trapped on the bus. Children with runny noses and wet faces were crying as adults looked to one another for help. Ellie tried to imagine her younger self with her parents.
She wondered if it had been her family trapped inside that bus, moments away from death, if her mother would hug her tight; If her father would stroke her hair and put on a brave face to try and keep her calm. Ellie narrowed her eyes when she couldn't imagine that scenario.
"I can't believe I risked my life for people that mean nothing to me," she thought. "It's not my job to take care of everyone."
"You okay?" Eli asked his sister with a raised eyebrow.
"Perfect," she answered quickly.
Pietro kept his eyes fixated on his father who stood perched above the scene. He folded his arms over his chest as he tried to figure out what had possessed him into causing this destruction out of the blue. His eyes darted to Ellie as he tried to piece the puzzle together.
"Magneto wanted to crush Ellie in that bus, but why?" Pietro wondered. "Was it intentional or did she just interfere with something?"
"Young lady! Barry Meadows, Channel 6 News, can I speak with you?" the reporter asked as he pushed his way up to Ellie. Before she could reply he was shoving a microphone in her face.
"What possessed you to storm into the wreckage earlier? You came out of nowhere, completely unannounced and yet you managed to dig your way through this pile up to rescue those people. How?"
Ellie nervously looked into the camera lens that was recording her. She saw her reflection and quickly changed her expression from surprised to neutral. She looked around to see that the X-Men, including her brother were nowhere in sight. The Brotherhood stood off to her left, Pietro eying her carefully.
"Well Barry, I just-"
"Miss Dingo do not answer that man," Charles voice ordered in Ellie's mind. Ellie furrowed her brow and looked around.
"What?" she thought in reply. "Why not? I did something good, right? Shouldn't people know that?"
"Miss? How did you do it?" Barry continued.
"You did something very brave Ellie. Something that was so brave that the general public will never believe an average teenage girl can do. The interview will only raise more questions," Charles explained.
"So I don't get any credit for what I just did? What about the X-Men? Or the Brotherhood even?"
"I think the smoke may have gotten to her folks, ha-ha. Now Miss please, explain what happened," Barry urged. Ellie snapped her head in his direction.
"Barry, please! I can't hear myself think!" she angrily said.
"Heroes don't need credit, Ellie. Doing something great is reward enough. Now I'm sorry, but I'll be wiping the public's minds of what actually happened here today. It's the safest option for our kind."
"What?" Ellie said in disbelief. She looked to a surprisingly quiet Barry Meadows to see his eyes were glazed over and the camera man had lowered his camera.
"Come on, let's get out of here," Lance urged the Brotherhood.
"I'll catch up with you guys later," Pietro said. "I've got something to do."
"Whatever man. See you later." The three boys of the Brotherhood began to walk away and Pietro looked back up at the building.
"Did you tell me to hit that guy in his handsome face?" Blob asked as he followed Lance.
"Man, I inhaled too much smoke!" Toad replied. "I dunno what I said." Pietro quickly ran down the nearest alley away from public view and ran right up the side of the building.
"Pietro," Magneto said without turning to see his son. "I was wondering when you'd show up."
"I guess I could say the same to you, dad," Pietro replied. "What are you doing here?"
"I'm looking for some new additions to my team."
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"I think you know what that means."
"Don't tell me you're as dumb as ya look," Sabretooth said as he walked past Pietro on the rooftop, ramming his shoulder into the young boys as he passed.
"I should have guessed you'd be here too," Pietro said with a grimace. "Maybe you should be looking for a new pet instead." Sabretooth snarled at the comment.
"Sabretooth is loyal to me," Magneto finally turned to his son. "Unlike some mutants." Pietro looked away.
"Well it's kinda hard to be loyal to someone who isn't around."
"It's just as well, I've already found some new prospects for my team."
"What? Who? You know all of the mutants in Bayville already."
"I've got my sights set on those twins that you've been getting so well acquainted with. I just needed to see how they perform first. The boy is a bit quick to run into a battle, but the girl seems a little bit too hesitant. No matter, they should do just fine."
Pietro's eyes widened and he turned back toward his father. He looked over the edge of the building and down at Ellie. Now it was beginning to make sense to him.
"So…you were the guy at the grocery store that bothered Ellie?" Pietro asked, thinking back to what Ellie had told him a few days earlier.
"Indeed. I handled her myself and I sent Sabretooth to handle the boy in a fight after I coaxed him into it."
"What do you mean by that?"
"He means that we took some photos of the girl at the grocery and sent them to her brother," Sabretooth explained, annoyed by the questions Pietro was asking. "Kid took the bait without a second thought."
Pietro's breathing had increased. The puzzle had finally been pieced together but he did not like the picture. All along there was a giant web being spun and he had gotten himself tangled up in the middle of it without even realizing it. Did Ellie even find the Brotherhood on her own? Or was that Magneto's doing too?
"It doesn't matter," Pietro explained. "Those twins think for themselves. They're not going to just up and join you."
"I already know this," Magneto answered with an annoyed sigh. "That's where you come in."
"What?"
"Pietro, we're family. You help family. I need you to convince those two that the X-Men aren't all that they're cracked up to be. Get them to join the Brotherhood if you can. Then when the time comes, I'll send for them."
"You're crazy. That'll never work. I can't make them do anything."
"You're pretty notorious as a ladies man, or so I've heard. Romance the girl into staying with you. If her brother notices a relationship brewing between the two of you there's no way he'll allow her to live with you without his supervision."
Pietro listened to his father intently. His emotions were mixing together. On one hand his father was sort of complimenting him, but at the same time he remembered what happened with Ellie in the park. Not too mention how large Eli is. If he could catch Pietro he could snap him in half with his bare hands.
"You need to do this Pietro. Do not disappoint me."
"If I agree to this, what's in it for me?"
"My respect. Also, there may be a spot for the Brotherhood boys on my team. Trust me, that's a team that you won't want to turn down." Storm clouds started to roll in near the building, no doubt Storm's way of clearing the smoke and fire from the accident.
Pietro thought to himself for a moment. There wasn't much for him to lose if he made this deal. Maybe Ellie wouldn't want to speak to him again, fine. Eli already hates him so there's no loss there. As long as he kept his head in the right place and knew he was just scamming the twins, he'd be golden. Pietro extended his hand.
"Deal," he said. Magneto grasped his hand.
"I knew you'd see it my way." Pietro kept his eyes fixated on his father's while his heart grew heavy in his chest.
The rain had started when Ellie stepped away from Barry Meadows and the accident. She looked around once more for her brother, but when she didn't find him she ran to the nearest building with an awning outside. Ellie pushed her wet bangs out of her face and watched as the people on the street regained their composure.
A burst of wind caught her off guard for a moment until she noticed Pietro was standing next to her. She eyed him momentarily, wondering how he was able to change his clothes so quickly. He was leaning against a steel support beam and smirking at her.
"What?" Ellie asked.
"You've got soot all over your face," Pietro pointed out.
"Whatever." Ellie walked out into the rain and started down the road. Pietro caught up to her in no time and walked next to her.
"Where are you going now?" He asked.
"To get my backpack."
"What about after that?"
"Why do you care?" Ellie snapped as she stopped walking.
"Just making sure you aren't coming back to the Brotherhood House," he said with a shrug. "You did run out again, you know."
"Don't worry, I have no plan to go back there."
"Good." Ellie rolled her eyes and started walking again. She groaned as Pietro did the same.
"It's gonna be a little weird without you at the house." Ellie didn't say anything.
"It might not be so bad. Now I can walk around without my shirt on and not worry about embarrassing you."
"You're the only one who should be embarrassed by your body Pietro." He smirked at this.
"Oh I don't know about that," he said smugly. "I suppose I could take my shirt off now and we can find out who is more embarrassed."
"It's raining, you'd get sick. That's a stupid thing to even consider doing. Actually, go ahead. Maybe you'd become deathly ill."
"So you want me to take my shirt off then?" Ellie stopped again and pushed Pietro back.
She shook her head as she looked at him. Her face was scrunched up as she tried to figure him out. So far she had witnessed numerous personalities from this boy and none of them made sense to her. The longer she stared at him she watched his smirk fade.
"What is up with you?" Ellie asked. "Do you have a multiple personality disorder or something? I don't get you. You either dislike me or you don't. Now make up your mind because you're frustrating as hell to be around."
"Maybe you should make up your mind about me," Pietro replied before it thundered overhead.
"What is that supposed to mean?"
"Well, you and I fight all the time and then you run off. Yet you always find a way back to our house, don't you? Why do you keep coming back?"
Ellie pursed her lips together tightly and continued down the road until she could see the tree her backpack was under. Pietro grabbed her arm and turned her toward him. Ellie pushed away from him and glared at him.
"Why do you keep coming back?" he asked once more.
"Why do you always try and convince me to stay?" she shot back. Pietro didn't reply.
Ellie turned and walked over to the tree. Before she could grab her backpack, Pietro had spun her around and pinned her against the tree. His hands rested against the tree as his face sat inches away from Ellie's.
"I'm gonna give you one last chance," Pietro said calmly. "Why do you keep coming back?"
Ellie searched his eyes for a hint of what he was feeling but had no luck. Her heart was pounding as she felt Pietro's breath on her face. He was much closer to her than she was comfortable with. Her eyes widened as Pietro stroked her cheek with his thumb, cupping her face in one of his hands.
"Fine, don't say it," he said quietly. "We both know why you keep coming back anyway." Ellie stopped breathing when Pietro put his face as close to Ellie's as he could without touching her.
He smirked when he saw her bottom lip quiver. Pietro pushed himself off the tree and stepped back from Ellie. She stood with her back against the tree, staring at him with wide eyes.
"I'll see you at home," he said before walking down the road. Ellie snatched her backpack from the ground and watched Pietro disappear down the road, confused.
"Yep, I've still got it," Pietro thought to himself as the look on Ellie's face when he pinned her against the tree flashed in his mind. "She's going to make this far too easy."
A/N: So my anxiety medication is the devil. It seriously diminishes all of my creativity. I decided to cut back and get back in touch with myself and I've missed writing so much. It's nice to emotionally connect with my story again. Hopefully you're enjoying it as well.