"Hey, why are you still up so late?"
Pietro, who had stepped out of his bedroom to use the bathroom, noticed the light still on in the living room.
When he entered, he saw Wanda and Natasha Romanoff snuggled together on the sofa.
Natasha had one arm around Wanda, and Wanda seemed to have lost the wariness she'd shown when they first met Natasha that afternoon.
Pietro couldn't help but ask, while subtly shooting Wanda a warning glance.
Be more cautious—don't get too close to this S.H.I.E.L.D. agent.
After all, there was no escaping their "clutches" once they were in them. Better to be careful.
Who knew if these people, who were being so kind now, might turn on them in the blink of an eye?
Seeing the look in Pietro's eyes, Natasha knew he hadn't fully accepted her—or S.H.I.E.L.D.—yet.
But that was fine; Natasha understood.
If she were in his shoes, she'd probably be even more wary.
Wanda, however, gave Pietro a reassuring smile after catching his glance.
"We're going to bed now. Natasha and I have some girl talk to finish," Wanda said, making an excuse since she couldn't mention the diary.
"Why does it have to be so late…"
"Just go to bed! Why do you care so much about what we girls talk about?" Wanda put on her big-sister act, shooing Pietro away.
Seeing Pietro's hesitation, Wanda picked up a sofa pillow and threw it at him.
Honestly, the older he gets, the more rebellious he becomes! Doesn't even listen to his sister anymore!
"Alright, alright! I'll go to the bathroom and then to bed!"
Seeing Wanda's "annoyed" expression, Pietro had no choice but to raise his hands in surrender.
I'll have to talk to Wanda tomorrow—can't let her trust them too much.
After all, as Baron Strucker at the Sokovia base had said, S.H.I.E.L.D. wasn't exactly a friendly place.
After Pietro left for the bathroom, Wanda whispered to Natasha, "Pietro doesn't know about the diary, so he doesn't understand why S.H.I.E.L.D. brought us here. So…"
"I understand."
Natasha smiled and hugged Wanda reassuringly. "Don't overthink it, and don't feel pressured to explain."
"I'm your and Pietro's guardian. You can think of me as your older sister."
"And this place is your home too!"
Hearing Natasha's words, Wanda felt a warmth in her heart.
Home…
But the home she and Pietro had known had vanished long ago in that damned attack.
"By the way, Sue mentioned in his diary that he was attacked in the parking lot on his way back," Wanda said, her tone turning serious as she recalled Natasha's phone call earlier.
"And the attacker seemed to have targeted him on purpose. So, Natasha, will S.H.I.E.L.D. step in to help Su?"
In Wanda's eyes, no matter how strong a person was, how powerful could they really be?
But S.H.I.E.L.D.—even the mighty HYDRA base with its tanks and Baron Strucker didn't dare provoke them!
"Of course we will."
Seeing the seriousness in Wanda's eyes, Natasha wasn't disappointed that Wanda hadn't called her "sister."
She knew winning over the twins, who had lost their parents as children, would take time.
"But as you've seen in the first two diaries, Su doesn't trust S.H.I.E.L.D.—or rather, he doesn't trust some people within S.H.I.E.L.D. right now."
"The only ones he might trust are me, Nick Fury, Hill, and a few others."
Natasha patted Wanda gently. "However, even so, if Su ever needs help, S.H.I.E.L.D. will fully support him."
"After all, Nick Fury, the director of S.H.I.E.L.D., takes Su very seriously!"
Hearing this, Wanda let out a sigh of relief.
Even though Su's diary and Baron Strucker had both warned that S.H.I.E.L.D. couldn't be trusted, S.H.I.E.L.D. seemed alright so far.
With their help, Su shouldn't have to worry too much about that villain Olivia Temple, right?
Watching Pietro exit the bathroom and finally return to his room with a concerned look, Wanda and Natasha leaned in together to continue reading the diary.
[I never expected that after my parallel world was destroyed, I wouldn't be the only one who came to this world.]
[However, because of this attacker—this guy corrupted by Olivia Temple's influence—I was reminded of a bold guess I once made.]
[That is, this guy, who goes by the nickname "Balrog" but claims to be a messenger of the gods, probably isn't an alien from another galaxy like Thor.]
[He's likely from a different dimension!]
[After all, when my Earth was destroyed, my entire universe seemed to collapse entirely.]
[Planets can be destroyed, and universes can collapse. But alternate dimensions do exist—this has been confirmed by the Time Variance Authority.]
[I just haven't figured out what he meant when he said during our battle: "I am the end of the fate of the god he believed in." What does that mean? And why would it be me?]
[Well, it seems my fateful entanglement with him—and even with the so-called god behind him—is still ongoing.]
[In the past, I had Steve and Tony by my side to help.]
[Tony could use Stark Industries' satellites to monitor every jewelry store in New York for me. Steve would fight alongside me with his shield.]
[Just like how I once helped Tony and Steve battle their old enemies.]
[But this time, it's only me!]
[Maybe I could go to Natasha Romanoff and Nick Fury. After all, she's working as a waiter at my Peach Blossom Forest Café to "experience life."]
[But should I really involve them? Will they believe I'm an Avenger from a parallel world?]
[I'm not sure. And S.H.I.E.L.D. isn't fully trustworthy right now. I don't want to reveal my identity yet.]
[Another point: whether in my world or this parallel world…]
[When Olivia Temple, an enemy from another dimension, appeared, why didn't the Supreme Mage Ancient One—the guardian of Earth's reality dimension—intervene?]
[Is it because the Balrog isn't as devastating a threat to Earth as Nightmare or Dormammu, so she can't be bothered?]
[Or is it because Ancient One knows that once the Balrog is completely eliminated, the so-called god behind Olivia Temple will come to Earth?]
[I don't know. But I still choose to trust that Supreme Mage, Ancient One.]
[Perhaps, as Olivia Temple once said, he and I are natural enemies!]