Pietro woke up next to Nadia, who was still sleeping peacefully. They had been too exhausted to even care the prior night, but he didn't mind.
He stared at Nadia who was breathing in and out evenly, debating wether or not to wake her up. She looked cute as she slept, Pietro thought, but pushed it out of his head. Thoughts like that could be acted upon once he found his sister.
The corners of her lips were slightly raised, making a peaceful smile lighten her face.
Pietro sighed, knowing they would have to get up at some point and that it was better to wake early.
"Nadia," he said quietly while shaking her shoulder.
"Hmm?" She grumbled, not yet coherent.
"Wake up, we have a long day ahead of us," he told her.
She sighed and rolled over, then realized their situation. "What time is it?"
Pietro looked around the plain room and couldn't find a clock. Although Nadia couldn't see, he shrugged. "Sometime around seven o'clock I'm guessing."
"Oh thank god," she said in relief.
"For what?"
Nadia blushed. "It certainly wouldn't look right for me to come out of your room in the morning; nobody will be around to see us at this time."
Pietro laughed, "Probably not," he agreed, while watching her leave the room.
-
Nadia loved to cook, just not early in the morning. Cooking often took her mind off hard times in life, instead she could relax with her mind set to a single purpose. She hadn't been in her parents house in years and didn't know where everything was, but that wouldn't stop her from cooking some golden pancakes.
She poured some batter on a pan and pondered about how peacefully she had woken up at first, though she was glad Pietro didn't let her sleep in.
Nadia sighed. The birds were chirping outside, oblivious to the harsh weather, the sun was streaming through the sheer curtains and the batter from the pancakes was sizzling. It was almost as if it were a normal morning. Almost.
The previous day had been chaotic, and brought more worry for the three of them. For a moment she wondered what she'd be doing if she hadn't run into Pietro on the street, but quickly banished the thought from her mind. She liked him too much to wish she had never met him, plus she was helping the world by doing this. Not everyone got that chance.
"Morning," her mother greeted, pulling Nadia from her musing.
"Morning mom, I hope you don't mind me messing up the kitchen."
Her mom laughed. "If you weren't right now, then your dad would be and he wouldn't even bother to clean it."
Nadia smiled, that was very true.
"I know you told me all about your situation, but do you all have a plan to get yourself out of the mess?" Her mom asked, clearing the light mood.
"Roman said he may have a few ideas, but we're unsure at the moment. We'll have to think about it a lot today, as we only have six days left," Nadia explained while flipping a pancake.
"That poor man, being caught up in all of this. I hope you all make this okay, but please don't put yourself in immediate danger for him, Nadia."
"I don't regret becoming... involved in all this mom, I may be in danger at times as a trade off, yet I'll be fine," Nadia said carefully. She wasn't close to her parents, but she didn't want them to worry any more then necessary.
Pietro then walked into the room with a slight smile. That was a tell that he had heard the later part of her conversation.
"Morning Pietro, hope you like pancakes," she said, handing him a steaming plate full of them.
"Who doesn't like them?" He retorted.
While he sat down to eat, Nadia continued to cook. "Mom do you mind waking up dad? I don't care if Roman misses breakfast, it's his own fault if he does."
Pietro snorted. Nadia's mother gave him a funny look, but went to wake her husband up anyways.
-
Later in the day Pietro, Nadia and Roman sat around the table discussing their plan to free Wanda.
"I still have my ID on me, so I could bypass most security easily, that is of course, if they haven't seen my face" Roman explained.
"I don't know about this," Nadia added. "The whole plan relies on them not having knowledge privy to our involvement with this, Roman."
"But what else do we have? I know whereabouts their keeping her, I can get us in and I know the layout. We don't really have any other choice."
Pietro was about to add to the conversation when the voice in his head spoke again. Every time was the same; 'powerless' appeared to the the only phrase the voice knew, yet that didn't stop it from scaring him.
Pietro fell out of his chair in both surprise and exhaustion.
"Um, are you alright?" Nadia asked, ignoring Roman's laughs.
Pietro gave a weak laugh. "Yeah, fine if you don't count the bruise on my elbow," he was more concerned about the affects the voice had on his mind.
"Are you that bored that you fell out of your chair?" Roman asked between laughs.
"You're the one who threw a fit over a broken plate," Pietro shot back. He shakily sat back down, not wanting the incident to become a regular occurrence.
"Fair enough, but honestly, this plan could work as long as Nadia causes a distraction and succeeds," Roman said.
"When should we set out, and how will we even get there?" Nadia asked.
Pietro rubbed his elbow then replied, "I think tomorrow would be good; better sooner than later. Do you think your parents would mind if we were to use their car?"
Nadia winced. "I hope not, but just know that I won't be driving."
Roman laughed. "I wouldn't let you anyways."
Throughout the evening, they ironed out the small details of their plan, ensuring they would be able to leave safely in the event something went wrong. They all hoped that Pietro would be able to use his powers in the case anything went wrong.
-
Nadia knocked on Pietro's door quietly, hoping he was still up and she wasn't bothering him.
She was greatly relived to when Pietro opened the door a crack.
"Yes?" He asked.
"Mind if I come in, I just want to talk," she stated.
He nodded and opened the door wider for her to come inside.
"What do you want to talk about?" He asked, slightly confused.
"Earlier today, when you fell out of the chair, that wasn't just because you were clumsy or bored."
"No, it wasn't," he stated.
"Then why?"
Pietro sighed and sat on his temporary bed. "This is going to sound really weird."
"I don't think anything can weird me out at this point. Aliens and a flying city are more than enough. I want you to tell me."
"I hear a voice in my head sometimes. It never says anything but the word 'powerless'. At first, I thought I was just hearing things, but after the second occurrence I knew I wasn't just being crazy."
"So you heard it this afternoon?" She asked.
"Yes, it's like I can't hear anything else for a moment. In my mind it's such a dominant sound," he described.
"I'm sure we can look into it later, for now you don't seem to be in any immediate danger," Nadia told him.
He smiled a bit. "It's not like it would be any different if I was in danger."
Nadia laughed quietly, "No, not really." She agreed.
"Isn't it kind of surreal that we're going to break into a government building tomorrow to rescue your sister from totalitarian like political figures? Seems to be the type of thing you'd watch it a movie," she added.
"Are you nervous for tomorrow?" Pietro asked.
"Yes, a lot actually, but I want to help. I know it won't do me any good to worry about it all night though, I've learnt that much from university."
Though really, it wasn't the same as an exam, it was so much more real. Her life would be on the line. It only felt like that while in university.
"Listen, Nadia, whatever happens tomorrow, don't throw your life away for mine. You've helped me so much already, it would kill me to see you in jail or worse."
"Then I promise you that I'll try not come into any form of harm."
"I suppose that's all I'll get you to agree with?" He asked.
She nodded. "Goodnight Pietro, I hope we all make it out fine tomorrow."
-
An: I feel as though I could add so much more to this chapter to add depth. I also think some parts are written nicely, but then other parts seem like I didn't even care?? That's why it's been like ten days since the last update, I've been in a bit of a jam. Anyways I'm really excited to write the next few chapters. I just want to add more excitement to this one and the previous one.
I'd really like feedback on the past few chapters and especially this one.