"We've struck it rich!"
On the way home, Pietro shouted excitedly, waving his arms vigorously...
The energetic young man was now dressed in a crisp suit with his hair neatly combed back. In just one hour, he had completely transformed, looking like one of those elite professionals commonly seen on Wall Street.
He threw his arm around Sean's shoulders with unprecedented enthusiasm, his face beaming with smiles, all traces of his previous wariness and defensiveness gone as if they were long-lost brothers.
What caused such a dramatic change?
The answer lay in the additional check in his hand, which was identical to Pietro's pale yellow slip except for the amount. This one could be cashed for a five-figure sum at any time.
To Pietro, this was an astronomical amount that could provide him and Wanda a comfortable life. Whether starting a small business or leaving Sokovia behind to escape war and poverty, both were excellent options.
What shocked him even more was how Sean had handed it over without a second thought, as casually as discarding scrap paper, not a hint of reluctance on his face. Pietro began to realize that perhaps the man Wanda had picked up wasn't trouble, but a massive gold mine...
"So the doctor recognized you as some wealthy person and wanted to hire you as senior management?" Even after repeating it multiple times, Pietro still found it unbelievable.
He held the check overhead, planning to cash it at the bank immediately, afraid this might all be like last night's wonderful dream that would vanish upon waking.
"Correction... he recognized me as a scholar from New York State University specializing in biological research. Apparently I've even been on the cover of Time magazine. I saw the book, and that was definitely me." Sean shrugged, speaking with complete seriousness.
He had decided to participate in Baron Strucker's superhuman experiments, contributing to HYDRA's grand cause.
Mastering the Mind Stone's power required test subjects, and borrowing HYDRA's resources seemed perfectly reasonable. Surely they wouldn't mind.
"Same difference. You're still rich." Pietro dismissed the distinction.
In his limited vocabulary, people were simply divided into rich and poor. Sean, now revealed as an American scientist, clearly belonged to the former.
Returning to their dilapidated house, the newly transformed Pietro kicked aside a brick with his shiny new leather shoes to reveal a hidden key.
The apartment building near the abandoned factory exuded decay. Built of red bricks, its walls had long faded and peeled under years of weathering. The paint on the iron railings had flaked off under prolonged sun exposure. The damp corners downstairs, neglected and covered in slippery moss, reeked of age and decline...
"Maybe we can get a better place now," Pietro mused with boundless anticipation.
They could move to a nicer apartment instead of cramming into this tiny old house. Maybe even buy a Cadillac, his childhood dream.
When Wanda returned from work and learned the news, Pietro's six-hour fantasy came to an abrupt end. She dragged her brother into their room for an extended lecture.
"You didn't have to do this." Sean smiled from the rooftop as Wanda returned the check.
Maintaining kindness and self-respect despite living in poverty was truly admirable.
It reminded him of Captain America. That man (Steve Rogers) hadn't been born tall and strong. On the contrary, he had been small and weak, unable to pass military physicals.
Yet this undersized man became the one and only super soldier. He never let ambition consume his reason like Red Skull, nor descended into the Green Goblin's path of letting violence dominate his being.
Captain America remained unique, steadfastly maintaining his principles and bottom line...
Wanda stammered, "W–we shouldn't accept your gift. Pietro just lost his head. When I brought you home, if it were someone else–"
Sean interrupted the girl, "They'd rob me blind and throw me on the street. Wanda, I'm grateful. This money means nothing compared to what you've done, which far exceeds monetary value."
He wanted to give something back to these siblings, at least sparing them from becoming Baron Strucker's lab rats and turned into monsters by hatred.
In the original timeline, Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch's fates were tragic. Their parents' deaths made them despise Tony Stark, volunteering for Strucker's experiments and becoming rare survivors.
When the Ultron crisis erupted, they initially opposed the Avengers before realizing Ultron's genocidal plans and temporarily setting aside their hatred to help. Quicksilver died saving Hawkeye, while Scarlet Witch was nearly imprisoned during the Civil War.
Sean's arrival, like a butterfly flapping its wings, changed what should have been.
The Mind Stone was now in his hands, and the Ultron crisis was nipped in the bud. Having met these siblings who only had each other, offering appropriate help was nothing major.
After all, in the future landscape, whether it's SHIELD or HYDRA, they would ultimately be phased out by the new era...
Sean looked at the stunned Wanda as the gem phantom in his mind flickered, "If it makes you uncomfortable, you could join the research team. Twin experimental data is quite rare."
He was curious. How would the Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch created by his hands differ from the originals?
Wanda blinked her large eyes, meeting the young man's profound gaze as her heart suddenly raced. Her thoughts became chaotic, inexplicable emotions surging like tides.
Unconsciously, she recalled last night's fairytale-like dream, 'Perhaps that was an omen...'
Sean's eyes seemed magical. They swirled with endless visions of creation and destruction that most would instinctively avoid, yet Wanda found irresistibly attractive.
The night breeze danced past, carrying fresh air as the two lingered on the rooftop, sharing amusing anecdotes and experiences, their happy laughter carrying far into the distance.
"If that bastard dares lay a finger on her, I'll beat him to a pulp! Don't think some lousy check can buy me off!" Pietro pressed his ear against the rooftop's metal door, muttering incessantly to himself.
A young American millionaire meeting an innocent country girl; this wasn't the start of any good story.
As her brother, Pietro's imagination ran wild with scenarios of Sean seducing and abandoning Wanda, leaving her to raise a child alone.
"Too horrible. I object to this marriage," he shook his head vigorously, trying to dispel the disturbing thoughts.