War

Chapter 15

5 years later

The sheets next to him were empty as he jolted awake from the nightmare, Wanda's calls for help fading away as Pietro gradually calmed down. These dreams were rarer and rarer since his twin's death but time had done nothing to quell the agony they caused. He looked over to the space next to him where Raptor always slept; the sheets were empty and cold.

Pietro felt worry go through him, the fear from the nightmare carrying over to reality as he glanced quickly around the room. Dashing to the living room however, he found her lying in a pile of extra blankets in the corner of the room. A scaled head lifted up from the nest-like pile as he walked closer, her amber eyes watching tiredly.

"Did I disturb your sleep again?"

Raptor slowly stood up and stretched before shifting back into her human form. "No, I um, I just wasn't feeling well."

The way she said it was odd, as if she was lying or hiding something. He couldn't tell if she just didn't want to hurt his feelings or if she honestly felt sick. "Are you feeling better?"

"Yeah." A yawn escaped her before she stared at him, a hand caressing his cheek. "...You had another dream about it."

"I get so close to saving her..." He released a long sigh. "But she always turns to dust before I can reach her."

Silence fell between them. Pietro knew there was nothing he could've done to stop what happened. It was a discussion the two of them had spoken about several times. The snap had destroyed everything the world had known, ripped families apart, all by a random selection. By some miracle he still had Raptor- his now beloved wife.

"I'm getting breakfast..." She walked past him before looking back over her shoulder. "You want anything?"

Pietro glanced at the microwave clock glowing in the kitchen before shaking his head. It was far too early to be awake. "I'm going to try getting more sleep."

Hearing her shuffling around in the other room was enough to relax his worries about going back to sleep. Eventually, he managed to doze off, comforted by the knowledge Raptor was alive and well close by. Not long after, Raptor rejoined him. A smile grew on his face as he wrapped an arm loosely around her, falling into a deeper sleep soon after.

The alarm woke him up several hours later and Pietro yawned, before snapping awake and jumping to his feet in a blur of movement. Once more Raptor was missing from the room. Stepping into the hallway, he could faintly hear the sink running in the bathroom. Worry wormed into his stomach as he watched Raptor walk out, still looking unwell for a moment before hiding it as she saw him.

"You're not well." His mind was racing faster than he could run as he thought about what could be causing it. Currently it was ranging from food poisoning to her getting injured while out hunting in the forest.

"It's nothing." She waved off his concern and moved past him.

"Raptor..." He followed after her. "If something is wrong I want to know- I can't lose you too."

"Nothing's wrong." This time her tone held a dangerous edge to it and her eyes burned into his as she turned to face him.

She'd never gotten upset at him before for his worrying and her sudden change in tone took him off guard. Raptor huffed and turned away, slinking back into the bedroom to get changed. Pietro stared at the doorway for a few moments before reluctantly leaving her alone to get ready.

"Something isn't right... Wanda would know what was wrong." He began pacing around restlessly.

"I'm going hunting." Raptor announced, finally making a reappearance and breaking Pietro from his thoughts.

The sound of birds chirping in the forest outside reached his ears as she opened the front door. He observed her carefully, hoping to find a simple answer to the strange behavior, but she looked just the same as ever.

"Alright. I plan on patrolling later, stock up on supplies from town."

"Be careful..." She gave him a concerned look. "We don't know if the riots have calmed down."

"They won't even see me." In the blink of an eye he was standing behind her in the yard. "Would you like to make it a race back to the house- you'll have a head start."

"We both know you'd win." She shook her head with a faint grin. "I'll see you when I get back."

The familiarity of their banter tried to bury his worries but the nagging suspicion wouldn't disappear entirely. Pietro had seen her shift a million times but today seemed unintentionally slower. Raptor took a step forward and gave a quiet growl, as if the shift into her larger form had taken more out of her than expected. Had he not been a speedster, he probably wouldn't have even had time to notice. Unlike earlier though, he stayed silent to avoid annoying her further with his pestering.

"...I wonder if Stark would know." Neither of them had heard from the man since he'd recovered from being in space and sent word to them that Thanos had been killed. Would he even be willing to help them now if they needed it? "If not him then Banner... Banner's probably the better guy to ask."

He looked at the tree line where Raptor had disappeared. Her white and black scales already hidden by the leaves that rustled faintly in the light breeze. Turning his back to the forest, Pietro went back inside, intent on digging through the drawers and desk for Banner's phone number. Hopefully the number still worked. He was sure the scientist would be willing to help if Pietro explained the situation- the only complication would then be getting Raptor to comply.