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"Hawk Phoenix."
"Wanda Maximoff."
After exchanging names, their eyes met.
"I've come from the future."
"The future..."
Wanda absorbed his words. The Scarlet Chaos Magic swirling in her eyes flickered as she studied him.
"That explains why you feel like you're not really here."
"But if you've come from the future and know about this place, why haven't you—"
"The past cannot be changed."
Hawk knew what she wanted to ask. He cut her off, his gaze drifting to Billy and Tommy in the crib. Something occurred to him. He looked at Wanda.
"Do you regret it?"
"What?"
Wanda was still processing the meaning of "the past cannot be changed." Hearing "do you regret it," she glanced up at Hawk instinctively, then followed his gaze to Billy and Tommy. Understanding dawned. She met his eyes.
"Are you going to kill us?"
"No."
Hawk didn't waste time deliberating.
From every angle—emotional or logical—he had no motive to harm Wanda.
Even killing had to follow certain principles.
Besides, Hawk wasn't some bloodthirsty maniac. Sure, he'd wiped out families and exterminated entire tribes—but setting those aside, he was actually quite reasonable.
Emotionally speaking, whether he wanted to admit it or not, Jean, Billy, and Tommy were his biological children.
'Even tigers don't eat their cubs...'
He had no reason to kill these three children. And as their mother, Wanda deserved even less to die.
Legally speaking, Wanda was also a victim. Even if she'd initially been willing, looking at it from another angle—if she hadn't been willing, Strucker would have made her willing anyway.
So—
The one who deserved death was Strucker. Not Wanda.
The moment Hawk thought of Strucker, he remembered that after acquiring the Mind Stone, he'd been so focused on breaking through to the Seventh Sense that he'd completely forgotten about Strucker rotting in his Underworld prison.
'Just wait... Once I'm done with the Seventh Sense, I'll visit you personally in the prison.'
The Eight Great Hells of the Underworld!
I'll make you the first lucky contestant to experience all eight—courtesy of yours truly.
Hawk's thoughts churned.
Meanwhile.
The moment he said he wouldn't kill Wanda—
Her voice followed immediately.
"Then I don't regret it either."
"..."
Hawk refocused, looking at her.
Wanda met his gaze. Her eyes settled on Billy and Tommy in the crib.
"They're my sons. So no—I've never regretted it."
Hawk watched her expression shift as she looked at Billy and Tommy—the light in her eyes, the smile on her face. In his mind, he saw the blonde woman holding him and baby Anya with that same look.
Wanda's expression right now was identical to that woman's.
He could tell she wasn't lying.
Still—
Hawk withdrew his gaze.
"I should go."
"They're your sons too. You should name them."
Wanda's voice was soft as she watched him turn to leave.
Hawk answered without hesitation.
"Billy. Tommy."
The instant the names left his mouth—
Hawk felt disoriented.
He'd assumed Wanda had named Billy and Tommy. After all, in canon, Billy and Tommy were the names of Wanda's twin sons.
But—
Turns out he had named them.
The realization hit Hawk the moment "Billy" and "Tommy" escaped his lips. He snapped back to the present.
Wanda considered the names he'd given, nodded thoughtfully, and turned to the twins in the crib with a gentle smile.
"Billy. Tommy."
Hawk watched this scene unfold, then turned and vanished from this point in time.
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Within his Cosmo.
As Hawk used the Time Stone to swim upstream through time and then drift back down—constantly perceiving and comprehending the nature of time through this cheat-code method—
The Mind Stone's golden light, his Cosmo's crimson glow, and the Reality Stone's blood-red radiance all collided and intermingled.
The essence of Hawk's Cosmo—the crimson phoenix head at its core—gradually shifted. The aureate tinge began to shed its yellow, leaving only gold.
Time was closing its loop.
Hawk's timeline was contracting.
The longer he lingered in his past timeline, the clearer his perception of time became. If at the beginning he'd needed the Time Stone just to swim upstream through his own timeline—
Now, Hawk had the distinct feeling he could travel upstream without the Stone.
Though... Even if it was just an illusion, that was a good sign.
Because this kind of illusion only appeared when one's power was experiencing exponential growth. Just like when he'd first awakened his Cosmo years ago and felt like a single punch could tear the sky apart.
But illusions, however pleasant, couldn't be mistaken for reality.
The moment Hawk recognized this sensation as an illusion, he shifted his focus. Instead of concentrating solely on comprehending time, he began carefully cataloging and organizing the illusion itself.
As his active perception of time slowed, the aureate color that had nearly transformed his silver Cosmo into gold also slowed its spread.
But... The pure gold continued saturating faster than ever.
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One day.
Strucker's face twisted with confusion and displeasure as he led a team of HYDRA scientists out of Wanda's residence.
Pietro waited until Strucker and his people were gone, then returned to the room. He approached his sister and looked at Billy and Tommy—noticeably bigger now, crawling energetically across the floor mat.
"Billy and Tommy didn't inherit his power?"
"That's what the tests say."
Wanda watched Billy and Tommy with the same doting expression, then glanced at Pietro.
"It's perfectly normal. Genetics aren't a hundred percent guarantee. What—now that they haven't inherited his abilities, you don't like Billy and Tommy anymore?"
Pietro shook his head quickly.
"Of course not! They're my nephews. Blood nephews. How could I not love them?"
But—
Though Wanda's words seemed directed at Pietro, her peripheral vision had drifted toward the dining area—where Hawk sat playing with building blocks alongside Jean.
Hawk sensed her gaze. He said nothing.
❁❁❁❁
That evening.
After tucking a freshly bathed Jean into bed and lulling her to sleep, Hawk prepared to leave.
For good this time.
Because the phoenix power accumulating within Jean had reached a threshold. When it finally erupted, she would appear instantly at 521A Palm Street.
So—
His time loop was about to close. Next, he needed to fully contract his timeline.
This didn't mean there would only be one Hawk across the entire universe after contraction.
Other parallel universes still had their parallel versions of him.
But—
Once Hawk contracted his timeline, no one would ever be able to use temporal manipulation against him again.
Put simply:
He was locking his past in place. From now on, no one could travel through time to kill him.
Something like Deadpool from another parallel universe jumping through time to murder Weapon X? That would NEVER happen to him.
Just as Hawk had tucked Jean in and pulled up the blanket, preparing to read her a bedtime story, Jean clutched the covers with both hands.
"Daddy, don't you like Billy and Tommy?"
"..."
Hawk paused, surprised. He looked at his daughter and smiled.
"Why would you ask that?"
Jean's big eyes gazed up at him.
"Billy and Tommy are different from me. They didn't inherit your power. They're not like you."
Hawk smiled gently.
"That's impossible. Even if they didn't inherit my power, they're still my sons. Your little brothers. Right?"
Jean pressed further.
"But does Daddy like Billy and Tommy?"
Hawk's smile softened.
"Yes."
"I like them too!" Jean's face broke into a radiant grin. She wriggled under the covers, rolled over, and snuggled into Hawk's arms.
"Daddy, tell me a story."
Hawk chuckled, holding his daughter close as she nestled against his chest. He opened the book to the page Wanda had carefully dog-eared.
A while later.
Jean drifted off to sleep, lulled by Hawk's voice.
Hawk didn't leave immediately. He finished the entire story first, confirming that Jean had fallen asleep wrapped in the warmth of phoenix fire. Only then did he gently lay her back on the bed, tuck the blanket around her, and phase through the wall into the master bedroom next door.
Wanda had just managed to settle the energetic Billy and Tommy. Despite wielding Scarlet Chaos Magic, exhaustion showed on her face.
After all, childcare had been draining since the dawn of time.
Hawk observed Wanda—forehead damp with sweat, several strands of auburn hair plastered to her skin. He considered for a moment.
"That looked exhausting."
"They're my sons."
Wanda brushed the hair from her forehead, gazing at the sleeping twins.
Hawk nodded.
"I'm leaving now."
Wanda looked up at him.
The next second.
She nodded.
"Okay."
"Goodbye."
Hawk met her eyes, offered a small smile, and turned to leave.
At that moment.
Wanda's voice stopped him.
"Wait."
"..."
She watched Hawk pause and turn back to face her.
"Billy and Tommy didn't inherit your power. Do you really like them?"
Hawk held her gaze.
"Whether they inherit my power isn't up to me."
Wanda frowned.
"Then who—"
"You'll find out."
"Goodbye, Wanda."
Hawk said nothing more.
He'd come here to close time loops—not to punch new holes in the timeline. With those final words, he turned and vanished from this point in time.
The next moment.
Hawk—sitting cross-legged on the riverbed of time—opened his eyes.
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~# 70 Advanced Chapters Available on my Patreon!
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