A/N: just a little ficlet that crossed my mind a few days ago. Enjoy.
In a classroom somewhere at the Avengers compound, Tony Stark is standing in front of two particularly disgruntled students.
Captain Steve Rogers had been on ice for so long that he had little concept of what advances in technology had taken place in recent years. He wasn't particularly that keen on finding out.
Wanda Maximoff had lived through a particularly underprivileged upbringing, and, even though she was aware of most technology, she had little idea how to use it.
Tony was bound and determined to get his teammates up to speed on the latest tech, but was failing miserably at this point. All he had early managed to do was frustrate his teammates who didn't even want to be here in the first place.
"Ok, class dismissed," he grumbled as Cap and Wanda made a break for the door.
Tony could see Vision standing just outside the door, talking with Wanda briefly before he turned to enter the room.
"Mr. Stark. I think that your students may not be entirely interested in a technological education."
"You really think so? I hadn't noticed that at all." Tony's response was dripping with sarcasm. "Ya know what, sonny boy? How about you teach the old man and your little girlfriend how the whole world works now, huh?"
Vision looked back at his creator with a confused, but curious, expression, which went unnoticed as Tony stormed out of the room.
When Vision finally caught up with Wanda, she was curled up on the couch in the living room. She looked so peaceful, wrapped in a soft blanket, reading from a compilation of classic poetry.
"Hello Wanda."
She looked up and slipped her bookmark between the pages, laying her book on the end table next to her. Her smile lit up her whole face as she saw her favorite Avenger approaching.
"Hi Vis!"
Wanda patted the empty space next to her, then reached for his hand, pulling him down next to her almost quickly enough to make him lose his balance. She giggled as he stumbled, surprised that she was able to do that to him.
As soon as he sat down, Wanda leaned into his side, cuddling into the one place in the universe she felt she actually fit the days.
In recent weeks, they had closed what little distance that existed between them and solidified their relationship, much to the surprise of the majority of their teammates. No one could be quite sure which of them were happier about their status change.
"Why the sudden interest in classic poetry, my dear? I thought you were learning guitar?"
"Oh, I'm still learning guitar. I just took a break because I realized that there is so much learning I missed out on in the Sokovian schools. Everyone here seems to have volumes of knowledge I've missed."
"Well, you must also consider that the majority of our teammates are at least 10 years older than you, with the exception of myself, of course."
"That is true. I just hate feeling so far behind." She looked away sadly.
Vision reached over to bring her eyes back up to meet his, "It will all come with time, my love."
"Yeah, says the walking internet!" She teased, snuggling back into his side. She sighed. "I'm just going to rest my eyes for a moment…" she mumbled before promptly falling asleep.
The next day, when Cap and Wanda reported for "technology class", they were surprised to find that Vision occupied the room rather than Tony.
Cap scowled over-dramatically, making it abundantly clear he was joking, "Great! A robot teaching us about computers!" he said in mock sarcasm.
"Watch it, grandpa!" Wanda teased him back.
Vision smiled at their comfortable banter, pleased that Wanda seemed to be starting to enjoy being an Avenger after all she'd been through.
"Ok, let us get started!"
Vision was the picture of enthusiasm, and it was slightly contagious. His teaching style was, not surprisingly, much more intuitive than Tony's. He taught kindly, and made everything he did look effortless.
Wanda spent most of the class in awe of her boyfriend, not sure that she really learned much of anything at all. But, at one point, she let her mind wander back to her thoughts from the day before. Part of her felt like she'd never really end up "getting" this. She felt like everyone around her was infinitely smarter than she was, and she worried that she would always be far outmatched by her walking-internet of a boyfriend who had the whole world's knowledge accessible within his head.
Vision froze suddenly as he was showing Steve something on his smartphone. He stared at Wanda, his mouth falling open a bit.
Oops, she hadn't realized that he would be able to hear that thought. She could feel his heart break a little as he realized how she felt.
Steve looked up at Vision as he completed whatever it was he was doing. "Earth to Vision." he waved his hand in front of Vision's face.
"My apologies, Captain Rogers. Very good work there! You are free to go for the day."
Steve nodded, knowing that there was something unspoken happening. He took that as his cue to get out of the way of whatever was brewing.
Vision looked at his girlfriend, his eyes infinitely sadder than she'd ever seen them.
"Wanda…. I cannot bear for you to feel that way."
He crossed the room to be closer to her, looking down and grabbing both of her hands.
"You are amazing, smart, strong, and beautiful in measures that I cannot even quantify. Truth be told, you have just as much access to knowledge as I do. It is just a matter of knowing how to find what you are looking for."
Wanda squirmed a little under the intensity of the moment. "Does it count if I found what I didn't know I was looking for without even trying?" She joked with him playfully, stretching up to kiss him lightly on the lips.
He smiled as she pulled away, "I suppose that means that you are way ahead of the curve," he chuckled at his joke and pulled her in for a hug.
Over the following week, Vision found that Wanda's worry still nagged at his mind.
He watched as she learned not only in their technology trainings, but in team combat trainings, and in her free time when she read, practiced cooking, and gained a considerable amount of skill with her guitar. She was magnificent in so many different ways, and he was determined to prove it to her.
One day, while she was practicing guitar in her room, he heard a perfect opportunity to do just that.
He knocked on her door, as he knew he was supposed to, and heard her playing pause for a moment.
"Come in Vis."
She always knew it was him.
He opened the door slowly and stepped in, letting it softly click closed behind him. He stopped for a moment to marvel at how beautiful she looked when she was comfortable, and doing something that she seemed to enjoy very much.
"Have you ever considered the idea that a single piece of music exists differently in the minds of every person who has ever heard it?"
She tipped her head to the side, thinking about what Vision had just said. He found it adorable.
"No, I don't think I ever have. Why do you ask?"
"I was just thinking that most individuals are able to tie deep emotional meaning and memories to specific songs, and that no one person would attach the exact same meaning to a piece of music as another would. It is intriguing to me, as I have not yet developed such attachments. I am sure that someday I might, but I suppose that I have not experienced enough to have done so yet."
Wanda thought about this for a minute, idly drumming her fingers on the side of her guitar, making an interesting sound in the process.
"Do you think that you could show me?" Vision gestured towards her as he reached out with his mind, asking for permission to see what she was thinking.
Wanda nodded her head, granting him access immediately. "Yes, but I can't play it." She gently placed her guitar back on its stand and reached for her phone. She felt glad, for once, that she'd gained enough skill to at least get some music downloaded and play it without too much fuss. She picked a particular favorite, and let her eyes slip closed as the music washed over them both.
Vision recognized the song almost immediately as an old Sokovian lullaby that Wanda had requested his help finding in her early days at the compound. He became lost in the way that emotions and memories tangled amongst Wanda's current stream of thoughts. She narrated for him in her head as he began to see scenes containing people that he did not recognize.
First was one of Wanda's earliest and fondest memories. She and Pietro, toddlers at the time, were snuggled into their mother's lap in a rocking chair in their nursery. Their father crossed the room to kiss them both on the head and let their mother finish putting them to bed for the night. She sang as she rocked them and they drifted off to sleep.
Next was a more bittersweet memory. Wanda was curled up in her bed at their foster parents' house. She had been crying and having a nightmare. Pietro and their foster mother knelt at the side of the bed, and he whispered something to the older woman, who then smiled and began to sing. Wanda began to calm as Pietro took her hand and stayed with her until she fell asleep.
The following was a bit more difficult to stomach. Neither of them needed open their eyes to know that tears were rolling down both of their faces as Wanda remembered Pietro holding her while they were in Strucker's lab, trying his best to soothe her as she struggled in agony from the pain the experiments caused her. Still, this was one of her favorite memories of Pietro, because it reminded her of just how much he'd loved and cared for her.
The next memory was much more recent. Wanda and Vision in the common room of the Avengers compound the night they finally found the recording of this song. They were sitting on the couch, searching for the elusive piece of music. Vision could feel through her memories the very beginnings of the love that had developed since then. As they listened to the finally-uncovered recording, the ever-present tension eased in Wanda's body and mind. She slowly started to slump towards him, and fell asleep leaning against his shoulder.
At that moment, they both realized that Vision had formed his own connection to this particular song. The memory they were reliving was colored suddenly with his realization that he was completely in love with her. Looking down at her, innocently sleeping on him, he was surprised he hadn't realized it before.
As they both opened their eyes, her smile was nearly blinding, despite the tears that still clung to her cheeks. Vision reached up to gently wipe them away.
"I suppose that means I was wrong about not having formed such connections to music," He said, smiling back at her.
Wanda's mischievous grin could have said it all, but she just had to tease him. "Really? The smartest person I know was wrong about something?"
"Wrong Indeed. This further illustrates my point from last week, though. I have not had enough experience to meaningfully connect music to emotions and memories. That is something that comes with time. There are many such things I have not learned."
"I guess you're right. I've never thought about it that way." She looked away from him, suddenly ashamed at how much she'd worried about such a simple thing.
He put one finger under her chin, bringing her eyes back up to meet his. "My dearest Wanda, do not ever feel like you are not more than enough for me." He connected their minds once again, allowing her to see herself through his eyes, feeling what he felt for her.
She suddenly leaned forward, placing her head on his chest. He wrapped his arms around her, laying his cheek on top of her head.
"I love you, Wanda Maximoff."
"I love you too, Vis."