✓ Lost at Home ≪Pietro Maximoff≫

Strength to Believe

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II. Strength to Believe
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Pietro followed the woman through the biting wind. He held his arm to his chest in an attempt to keep the pain at bay, not that it was doing much for him. He didn't even have a reason to trust the woman in front of him, but he felt rather desperate for aid at the moment. And honestly, escaping the stares from people on the street would be welcome.

The two didn't say a word to each other on the way back, making it an awkward and tense trip. They both had questions on their minds but neither had the courage to say anything. In fact, Nadia was having a difficult time justifying her own decision to take Pietro back with her. It was well-known throughout Sokovia that nobody held any love to the Avengers, so she couldn't fathom why she was helping the Maximoff when she knew the repercussions.

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It wasn't like anyone would be able to track him to her. As they made their was to Nadia's area, there were less people around and the wind began to blow stronger, causing it to bite into any exposed skin. She couldn't imagine how the Maximoff trailing behind her must feel. Maybe it was her compassionate streak that lead her to help him; the sight of him so throughly confused and in pain probably pushed her over the edge and caused her to speak out.

That was how they ended up outside her apartment.

"I need you to be quiet, alright? My roommate is probably asleep. You look confused, and I'll try to answer everything I can. For now, I need to check out your wrist, so try not to talk much."

Pietro nodded in response. He felt better once they had made it inside, but the warmth didn't help his wrist. If anything, it made the pain intensify. Once he stepped inside the apartment, he observed the tiny place. It wasn't anything fancy, as he could tell from the chipping paint, and there was minimal decoration. Through the hall they entered there was doors to both the left and rightーone of which he assumed to be a closet. Further inside the apartment there was a kitchen conjoined with a living space and a small place to eat. The was also another hall which probably led to a bathroom and bedrooms. At least the apartment wasn't cramped.

"Go sit at the counter, I'll go find my kit," she instructed him.

Pietro took a seat at the counter and watched her disappear into the hallway. He took the time to better understand his situation: he'd woken up in an alley wearing clothes he didn't remember owning, his hair was blonde, and he skipped several months. Hell, he'd woken up to find there were people who wanted him dead and the Avengers had done something to his country. Worst of all, he didn't know where Wanda was.

The woman returned to the room with the kit in hand. She placed it down on the counted and began to dig through its contents. "I'm Nadia, by the way. Sorry I didn't tell you earlier, I was a bit caught up in my thoughts."

"Thank you, Nadia," Pietro returned. He knew she didn't have to help him, yet here she was. He was beyond grateful for her help, despite his reluctance earlier. "I'm Pietro-"

"Pietro Maximoff. Yes, I know who you are."

Pietro stared at her, his eyes slightly widened. He lost all comfort in his posture and tensed up. He'd had a gun pointed at him earlier, so he figured it would be wise to keep his guard up. Had he been too trusting?

"How?"

Nadia looked at him in perplexment. "How could I not? You and the rest of the Avengers are on the news constantly. It's all anyone ever talks about, even two months after the disaster."

He'd gone crazy. This was it, he'd lost his mind. Pietro resisted the urge to pinch himself lest he was dreamingーor more accurately, having a nightmare. Never in a million years would he side with Tony Stark. And that was assuming Nadia was telling the truth in the first place.

"You're lying!" Pietro exclaimed.

"Why would I take you back to my home only to lie to you? Do you truly not know what I'm talking about? Do you need proof of who I am, or more importantly, who you are?" Nadia asked him.

Pietro frowned. Nothing was making sense, everything was plain crazy now. The only sensation that made sense was the pain his wrist was still emitting. It has dulled already, but the ache was still present. "Just help my wrist first, then you can explain all of this," Pietro gestured to himself.

Nadia nodded in silent acceptance of his request. It was better than Pietro freaking out over events be apparently had no knowledge of. Though, that would explain what he was wearing as well as why he had uncontrollably slammed into the wall in front of her. "Hold out your hand," she stated.

Pietro silently held his hand out.

Nadia took it gently and began to assess it. "I can't believe it..." She trailed off. "It's already part-way healed. I'd heard of your abilities, but this..." Amazement shone on her face as she inspected his wrist further.

"Abilities?" Pietro questioned, astonished.

"I'll explain in due time. As for your wrist, it's sprained, but that's nothing some time won't fix. Just keep it still and it should be better in the next day at this rate."

"And now you'll tell me what's going on?"

"Yes. But first, you have to tell me what you last remember," Nadia told him, packing the kit back up.

"I remember I was with my sister, back at home. That was in April, ten months ago apparently. You have proof of everything you've said right? To prove that I haven't gone crazy?"

Nadia nodded. "Let me grab my phone. I'll show you."

She moved to grab her phone but froze when the sound of a door creaking open sounded throughout the apartment. She knew that it would be too late to hide Pietro, so she didn't even bother to attempt.

"Nadia, what's going on? I heard shouting," said a man who had just appeared from the hallway. He appeared to still be sleepy but was coherent enough. His eyes landed on Pietro before realization dawned on him.

Before he could say anything, Nadia stepped closer to the man. "Listen, Roman, I can explain. I found him outside disoriented and in painーyou know I can't ignore situations like that! Nobody even knows he's here, we'll be safe, I promise."

"Calm down Nadia, you're acting like I'd call the police on you. Now care to explain further?" Roman asked.

"Right, well Pietro doesn't know what happened in the last ten months, and I was going to show him. Whatever is going on, we need to help."

"If you know what's going on, I'd like to know," Pietro interjected.

"It'll be easier to show you," Nadia grabbed her phone and began to type on it. Roman came closer to the counter with his eyebrows knit together.

"Nadia..." He started, his voice quieted, as if to keep Pietro from hearing. "Isn't he supposed to be dead?"

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AN: There were quite a bit of changes made to this chapter and it may not make a whole lot of sense with the next one, but hey. That's what editing does sometimes. I just figured this is a much better place to end the chapter.

Also, I have a Bucky Barnes story that I'm working on and I'm super proud of it. If you're interested, check it out!