She buried her face in the pillow, and her hair stuck to her cheek. Tears stung her eyes and she sobbed. Grief suffocated her, flooded her vision, constricted her neck. Her unwillingness to let go of Pietro, to sever their bond, hung over her like a storm. All her emotions- her fear, her anguish, her rage- spilled through her broken dam, thundered in her veins. Something inside her willed for her brother to return, yet the thought, the belief, that he was gone forever, invited terror to pump her heart faster than she could survive. She would rip it out and give it to him just to see him smile, just to hear him laugh one more time. She bottled it too long, and the sorrow swelled. Its magnitude grew larger than the vial it was contained in, and the glass shattered beneath the pressure. She was broken. Pietro was gone.

The Avengers were outside, enjoying themselves with a game of ultimate frisbee, something awfully strange for a group like them, yet they managed to enjoy it. It became a custom.

She found an opportunity to be alone, yet her agony swamped her before she made it to her room, so she lay on the couch, screaming into a pillow because she didn't know what else to do. When she had a problem, there was Pietro. When she needed encouragement, there was Pietro. When she needed coaching, there was Pietro.

There's no Pietro.

Her loneliness tormented her even more, isolating her from the others. She had begun her journey on the wrong side, and for that, she had paid again and again.

So she punched and smashed the pillow, releasing her anger while controlling her powers.

"I don't suppose you have a certain animosity against that pillow."

She froze, red mist forming around her hands, energy zapping her fingertips. She reached for her intruder's mind, yet thoughts raced like lightning and her head screamed in protest, the ideas expanding beyond the capacity she could manage. She flinched away, yanking her powers away from the invader's mind.

Impossible, she thought, still glaring at the pillow. Nobody should think like that, and their thoughts can't be hidden for long. She was about to try again when he spoke up.

"You do not need to try to uncover my thoughts. You may simply ask what's on my mind."

"You can lie."

"I will not lie to you."

She raised her head to meet the trespasser's gaze. The Vision stood before her, the hint of a smile planted on his lips. She quickly turned away, wiping away the tears and swallowing the lump in her throat.

"What do you want?" she asked, staring at the couch, refusing to look back up at him.

"You appear to be upset."

"It is not important."

"Of course it is, Ms. Maximoff. You are a member of the team."

Then why do I not feel like I am?

"Ms. Maximoff," he took a step towards the couch, then hesitated. "May I?" Wanda nodded, and he took a seat next to her, his face earnest. "Would you like to share what is upsetting you?"

She shook her head and tucked her legs beneath her, clutching the pillow. "No, I... I can't."

He nodded. "As you wish. Would you rather stay here or join me? The rest of the Avengers are playing... Ultimate Frisbee." He said it as if the words were foreign on his tongue. She couldn't help but smile.

"Sorry, Vision, but I don't know how well I would..." Fit in. "-throw."

"That is certainly no problem," he said, offering her a hand. "I can show you."

She hesitated, yet he waited patiently until she took it. As she did, a warmth spread through her body, sinking into her tense muscles until she was relaxed. When she let go of his hand, a sense of tranquility lingered. He guided her outside.

Rhodey, Sam, Steve, and Natasha were already outside, tossing the frisbee around. Steve stopped when he spotted Vision with Wanda.

"Hey," he said, ambling over with a smile. "We were wondering where you guys were." His gaze met Wanda's. "You wanna join?"

"Girls versus boys," Natasha said, her smirk malicious. "Us two could really teach these guys a lesson."

"Of course," Wanda replied, the words automatically rolling off her tongue, "but Vision offered to show me how to properly throw."

"Sounds good. Catch you later." She snatched the frisbee from Steve and jogged off, tossing it to Sam. Steve shouted and sprinted after it.

"It's quite strange." The Vision frowned at them, eyeing the Avengers critically.

"What?"

"There is no point to this... game, yet they enjoy it."

"Do you like it?"

His frown deepened. "It provides adequate distraction so not to worry about inevitable danger."

"You did not answer my question."

His eyes locked onto hers. "I do. It is a privilege to be a part of their joy."

"Then what is so strange about the game if you know why you and them enjoy it?"

He smiled. "Interesting argument. I suppose you're right." He reached down and grabbed a frisbee lying on the grass. "Come, and I'll show you how to throw."

She knew how to throw- she and Pietro often found or made frisbees to play with, and it wasn't something that was hard to master once again. Apparently, Vision had picked it up very quickly, as well. Soon, they were tossing it back and forth, practically firing it at each other in a silent competition to see who was better. She enjoyed the contest and was quickly carried away, laughing as the Vision attempted to sprint backwards after she told him he wasn't allowed to fly.

The frisbee flew too far and too quickly for him to reach (it did need a little encouragement, but if the Vision noticed Wanda adding extra oomph to it, he didn't mention it), and he eventually tried to jump up and catch it only to fall backwards as the frisbee soared away. Wanda bent over laughing, and the Vision indignantly rose to his feet, a light smile spread across his lips as he turned to chase it down.

"I win," she said, catching the frisbee as he tossed it back to her.

"Won?" he asked innocently. "Was there any competition?"

"Oh, you know there was," she said, sauntering up to him and pressing the frisbee against his chest. "And I just beat you."

"We did not declare a match," he said, taking the disk and casually spinning it on a finger. "How was I to know that I should actually give you tough competition?"

"Are you saying that you went easy on me?" She crossed her arms and arched an eyebrow.

"I do believe I rather implied it, Ms. Maximoff."

"Wanda! Vision! Are you joining or what?" Natasha leaned against the building with her arms crossed. Wanda nodded.

"We'll be right there," she said, following behind Natasha at a jog.

"And one more thing," the Vision said as he trailed after her. "I expect that you won't be cheating this time."

Wanda smiled. "Cheating? Please, I hardly know the meaning of the word." She caught up with the rest of the Avengers, a smile planted on her lips.