TW: Pain
Pov y/n
My eyes shoot open again and I look at Wanda in a panic. Her expression is similar to mine and she glances towards where Shuri is working. I don't dare to look but it doesn't feel like she is done. Wanda's eyes glow red for a second and without needing to communicate with her, I know that it's the anger towards that alien who stabbed the stone into me. Her eyes find mine again and she forces a smile onto her face.
"Shuri, how long will this take?" I hear Mom's voice from a few feet away but keep my eyes on Wanda. Even though she is more or less visibly freaking out as well, it keeps me calm to look into her eyes.
"Well, it surely isn't done within the next few minutes." Shuri replies, sounding stressed as well.
"I hate to say that but you need to hurry up, we might not have the time we expected to have." Mom says, which makes my stomach twist. That doesn't sound like there are only two aliens out there like the last time.
On the way up, Shuri told us about a dome-like shield that protects Wakanda and nothing can get inside without permission. That's the only thought I'm hanging onto right now and that keeps me halfway sane.
"Alright, I'll see what I can do." Shuri replies and in the next few movements, I can tell she is hurrying.
"I'm sorry, y/n, this might hurt a little more now." She apologizes and I realize that she really tried her best to make this as less painful as possible. I clench my jaw and whimper a little but what chance do I have? Mom's step get more silent again, so she is moving around.
"Get your ass back on the table, Vision." She says harshly and in any other situation, I would have laughed about this but not when me opening my mouth would only lead to me making noises at the pain. Wanda's eyes dart back and forth between the window front and me. She is clearly stressed by this whole situation.
The next steps that enter are my Mom again.
"I got earpieces for you, just in case." She says and I see Wanda taking them, putting one into her ear.
She looks at me before sliding the second one into a pocket of her suit. Smart choice, probably. I'm not sure, if I could handle listening to a potential fight or a strategy talk right now. My free hand tightly holds onto the table I am lying on and I close my eyes again, grunting a bit. Wanda's thumb doesn't stop to rub over my knuckles or circles onto the back of my hand but I can tell that she is stressed out too.
"Wanda, you stay up here with y/n and Vision. We will handle the situation down there. Whatever happens, don't leave y/n out of sight and make sure, the stone gets out of her." Mom gives Wanda instructions, who nods.
"I will make sure of that." She replies and I hear steps again. This time, Mom comes closer and I open my eyes again. She kneels down in front of me. Stress and tension are written all over her face but her eyes are still soft.
"Stay strong, I love you, malyschka (baby)." She says and leans forward to kiss my forehead. I weakly smile.
"I love you too, Mom." I reply and she smiles shortly before she gets up and her steps get more and more distant again. I hear some rustling in the room and exhale a little shakily.
"Wanda, I'm scared." I admit and she nods and cups my cheek with one hand.
"Me too, but nothing will happen to you, I promise." She says and I let her words settle in and decide to believe them. What other choice do I have?
There are a lot of steps moving away from us and I have to fight the urge to get up and see what's going on outside. I think it really is better if I don't know that.
"It could hurt a little now." Shuri warns and I wanna make a comment about it hurting the whole time already but all that leaves my mouth is a little cry and tears well up in my eyes.
"Fuck!" I curse and grind my teeth together. Wanda caresses my face soothingly but it barely helps with the pain shooting through my upper body. I know, Shuri doesn't really have any other choice than to work fast now but I really hate it. On the other hand, it will be over sooner this way.
For a while, no one says anything and I just try to get through this. Suddenly, Wanda's face drops.
"What is it?" I ask but she seems to listen to the earpiece, before she lightly shakes her head and concentrates back onto me.
"Is it bad?" I ask and Wanda's eyes tell me that it is.
I feel myself getting nervous, for multiple reasons. I wanna help them fight because I know that this is partly because of me but at the same time, I just wanna be safe and get away from here, not ready to fight. My body doesn't nearly have the energy to fight right now, not after being 'operated' on for a while now. But I feel like just laying here and doing nothing is worse than anything else. There's nothing else I can do though. It's not like I can just hop off this table and go out there and fight whatever it is. Maybe Wanda could because she is really strong but I don't want her to go, not as long as Shuri is still working on me because it still scares me.
"Ha!"
That makes me whip my head around and I see Shuri holding up the purple stone in a paper towel. It shines just like when I first saw it and pure relief washes over me, it's finally out.
"Now I only need to stich you back up." She says and I hear the pride in her voice at this achievement. I nod and look away again, not needing to see that. Wanda gives me a little smile and kisses my cheek.
"Everything will be just fine." She says and now I start to believe her, at least when it comes to my body and the situation with the stone.
I manage to smile a little and pucker my lips, making Wanda lean forward and give me a kiss. It helps me to ignore the feeling of Shuri stitching me up and I allow myself to melt into that kiss, forgetting our surroundings for a few moments. But then Wanda pulls away and her expression tells me, that something out there just happened.
"I'm gonna be fine, you can go." I say, even though I don't want her to go but I know they need her right now. Wanda looks at me and raises her eyebrows a little.
"Are you sure?" She asks and glances at my chest. I nod and put my hand onto her cheek.
"I am. The worst part is over now, so don't worry." I assure her. Even though I don't want her to go, I have to have trust into her and her powers right now. She can do a lot out there and if it helps saving people, then I can't hold her back for my own sake.
"Okay, but I'm gonna wait until-"
"All done." Shuri says and leans back, turning off the machine above me. I slowly turn my head back around and dare to look at my chest. The stone really is out and there are only the stiches visible now. That might give me a scar but it feels way better than before.
"Thank you Shuri, that's really impressive." I say and she grins cheekily and wipes her hands clean.
"I did my best. I'm gonna check up on Vision's process. Take care of this." She says and hands me the stone that's now wrapped in a little towel. Right, Wanda still has to destroy it. Shuri leaves the little 'room' to check on Vision and I slowly sit up. Wanda helps me and scans over my body with her eyes.
"She really did a good job." Wanda says impressed and I nod but feel exhaustion wash over me.
Withstanding the pain the whole time really tired me out. Wanda helps me to put my sweater back on and I put the stone into the pocket at the front. Even though I have my suit with me, it's obvious, that I won't fight today. My body is just too exhausted and fragile for that right now.
I slowly get up and need a few seconds for all my muscles and my brain to catch up on it. My upper body still hurts but I can manage that.
Wanda hands me the second earpiece and I mainly hear Steve yelling commands or someone grunting. I slowly walk to the windows, holding my chest a little. I gasp when I see the battle outside and when I glance at Wanda, I can tell that she really wants to go down there and help.
"They keep coming!" I hear Sam shout over the coms and Wanda's hands start to fiddle a little. I take them into mine and she turns to me.
"Go, help them." I encourage her. "Do what you need to do and we'll destroy the stones after that. I have to wait for Vision to be done anyway. I'll tell you when I'm ready." I point to my ear and Wanda's eyes shortly dart to the battle outside.
"Don't follow me. I need you to stay safe. You just went through a lot and can't go out and fight now." She says, her voice between soft and a warning. I nod.
"I know, I'll stay here. But you have to promise me that you'll stay safe too. I need you." I remind her and hold up the hand with the ring. A tiny smile plays around Wanda's lips and she nods, taking my hand in hers.
"I promise that I'll stay safe." She says before leaning closer and giving me a searing kiss. I return it and lean my forehead against hers for a few seconds.
"I love you." I say and she smiles, giving my hand a little squeeze.
"I love you." She replies and leans back. After a last, promising smile, she runs out of the room to join them on the battlefield. I turn back to the windows and look outside. Let's just pray or hope that it'll work out and nothing will go wrong.
A/n: Fingers crossed, I suppose.
Thanks for reading and love to you all <3