Chapter 301: Another Barbecue Celebration
"Are you going?" Wanda asked, approaching Silas.
"Of course." Silas rarely turned down good food.
Wanda felt a surge of secret joy. If Destiny was going to eat barbecue, he would have to take off his mask—otherwise, how would he eat?
Pietro stood behind Silas like a loyal subordinate. Silas had saved his life twice now; he felt that even dying once for Silas would be a fair trade.
Meanwhile, Natasha had helped the Hulk transform back into Bruce Banner. Banner lay on the ground, every muscle in his body aching. "You really hurt my feelings..."
"Sorry," Natasha said with a smirk, playfully pinching Banner's cheek. She was, of course, referring to the way she kissed him only to shove him into a pit to force the Hulk out.
The group temporarily parted ways to handle the post-battle logistics, agreeing to meet at Clint's farm later that evening.
"Is he an Avenger?" Wanda asked, watching Silas's retreating figure.
Natasha glanced in the same direction and shook her head. "No, he isn't."
"He's not?" Wanda looked disappointed. She had assumed he was part of the team.
"Don't worry," Natasha said, sounding a bit exasperated. "Even if he isn't an official Avenger, he can walk into SHIELD headquarters whenever he feels like it." She recalled the time Silas had used his Shadow Portals to drop into Nick Fury's office for a chat—though what they talked about, she still didn't know.
SHIELD Helicarrier
Nick Fury felt a growing sense of unease upon hearing that the Scepter had not been recovered. Where could it be? If Ultron had simply hidden it, that was one thing, but Fury feared Ultron might have handed it off to someone else—someone who might use its power for even greater evil.
The New Avengers Base
"Any word from Stark?" Steve asked as he and Natasha walked down a corridor.
"Not yet. He said it might be evening before he gets results," Natasha explained.
Steve suddenly stopped. He saw two figures standing on the balcony, looking quite dejected. Natasha sighed. "Those two have been like that since we got back."
Steve nodded and walked over to them. "What's wrong?"
Thor sighed and shook his head. "In my vision, that 'thing' appeared, yet now there is no trace of it."
"And you, Bruce?" Natasha asked, hands on her hips.
"Huh?" Bruce snapped out of his daze and adjusted his glasses. "I'm just... here keeping him company."
Natasha rolled her eyes.
Evening at the Farm
The yard at Clint's house was no longer quiet; it was buzzing with life.
"And then, these robots just swarmed me. Without blinking an eye, I used the big gun on my shoulder and leveled the whole lot of them!" Rhodey was busy boasting about his heroics. The other Avengers just smiled, but Peter Parker was listening with rapt attention.
Rhodey was thrilled to have an audience. He clapped a hand on Peter's shoulder. "I'll make sure to put in a good word for you to join the team."
"Really? Thanks!" Peter was delighted. He didn't realize that Rhodey had only officially joined the team that day himself—he was also a rookie.
"How's the chip decryption going?" Steve asked, sitting down next to Tony.
Tony flipped a skewer on the grill. "Still nothing. The data is still very corrupted."
Steve's heart sank. If Ultron's final words were hidden in that chip, they were more important than ever. "Don't overthink it, Cap. The war is over, Ultron is dead. We'll get there," Tony said, sensing Steve's urgency. In a situation like this, patience was the only option.
On the other side of the yard, Thor held a steak. Despite the delicious aroma, his expression remained grim. What went wrong?
"Everyone seems... distracted tonight," Wanda whispered, leaning toward Silas. She could sense the underlying tension in the Avengers; none of them seemed truly focused on the celebration.
The only people who actually seemed happy were Rhodey, Peter, and Pietro. Bruce and Natasha were off in a corner having a heart-to-heart.
"Let them be. We should just enjoy the food," Silas said. He found the barbecue quite tasty—it was, after all, grilled by "Chef" Stark himself.
This only made Wanda more annoyed. Silas was eating his barbecue by only uncovering the lower half of his face; the upper half remained firmly hidden behind his mask. "Isn't it awkward eating like that?" she asked, taking a bite of a skewer.
"Not at all. I think it works great," Silas shrugged.
"Wanda!" Pietro suddenly blurred to her side. "Here." He handed her a plate with a steak. Wanda took it and immediately offered it to Silas. "Do you want some? We can share."
Just as Silas was about to speak, Pietro produced another plate from behind his back like a magic trick. "Don't worry, I grabbed two!"
"Thanks," Silas laughed, accepting the plate.
Wanda's face darkened. "Pietro."
Pietro noticed the change in her aura and swallowed hard. "What is it... Wanda?"
"If you have so much free time, why don't you go help the others grill more meat?" Wanda gave him a smile. To Pietro, that smile felt like a sudden arctic blast.
"I'm on it!" Pietro vanished in an instant.
"Uh... shouldn't we let him sit and eat with us?" Silas asked, a bit stunned by the interaction.
"It's fine. Pietro just loves to be helpful," Wanda said. Her cold smile melted instantly into one so warm it felt like the sun rising.
"If you say so," Silas said, glancing skeptically at Pietro by the grill. He didn't remember Pietro being that helpful.
With Pietro out of the way, Wanda tried to keep the conversation going. "How old are you, anyway?" she asked. If he wouldn't show his face, surely he could tell her his age.
"A man's age is a secret," Silas replied, giving her a smile of his own.
"I thought that was a woman's rule," Wanda countered.
"No, it applies to men too." There was no way Silas was telling her his real age.
"Then guess how old I am?" Wanda challenged with a mysterious grin.
Silas thought for a moment. In the cinematic universe, Wanda was supposed to be around high school age, so probably eighteen or nineteen. "eighteen?" he guessed on the lower end, knowing women usually liked being guessed younger.
"How did you know?" Wanda's eyes lit up. He was right.
"Just a lucky guess," Silas chuckled.
At this point in time, Wanda was indeed quite young. Despite her appearance, she was technically still a minor—younger even than Peter. Silas couldn't help but notice that people just developed differently; looking at other eighteen-year-olds compared to Wanda, the difference was striking.
He caught himself glancing at her—she was certainly maturing well.
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