A warm breeze fluttered through the cottage, and the red roses in the windowsill rustled in the wind.
The Vision woke up slowly. Grogginess pulled at him, and he drifted in and out of sleep for a few minutes. Eventually, he woke up completely, and rubbed his eyes. He felt...different. As his hand pulled away from his eye, he realized it wasn't purple anymore. It was pale; it was human.
He got out of the bed, hoping this wasn't a glitch in his visual processor. He stood in front of the mirror, and happiness flooded his limbs as he realized that yes, he was human. He had pale cream skin and short blonde hair. The metal attachments on his head were gone. He was human; he was normal.
Vision crawled back into the bed. He loved this sensation of being half awake and half asleep. The blankets were warm and inviting, and he was almost asleep when he felt someone stir next to him. A head full of black curls rose from the sheets. Wanda. He suddenly noticed the picture of their wedding on the dresser and wedding rings on the nightstand.
"Good morning, sweetheart,"she croaked groggily. She wore red flannel pajamas with little motorcycles on them. She kissed his forehead, right where the Infinity Stone used to be.
"Good morning," Vision replied, half dazed at the realization that he was married to Wanda. He knew he was attracted to Wanda, but he always dismissed his feelings as a desire to be more human. He knew now, though, that his feelings were legitimate. He felt happy. He was married to the woman he loved.
Vision brought Wanda in an embrace, almost ready to fall asleep, even though he was drunk on happiness. Then he heard the pitter-patter of little feet. Two little children, one girl and one boy, ran into the room and jumped on the bed.
"Mommy! Daddy!" Each one exclaimed. They couldn't have been more than 4 years old.
"Good morning, Pietro and Quinn," Wanda called, leaving Vision's arms and bringing Pietro into a hug. His son. His daughter. Their children looked somewhat alike, although Pietro had Wanda's face, while Quinn had Vision's blonde hair. He had always wanted children, mainly because of its ties to humanity, but now that he was human, they brought him a sense of satisfaction that he never would have imagined.
Still somewhat in disbelief, Vision brought Quinn in a hug and closed his eyes. The entire family curled up under the white, fluffy comforter. Vision wondered what he had done to have achieve such happiness, but decided not to question it.
He opened his eyes, and the sunlight darkened. The children faded, as did the cottage. The room slowly molded into his room at Avengers HQ. Wanda disappeared last.
It was all an illusion. A construct created by his mind. He felt pathetic- how silly of him to actually believe he could be human. He was physically incapable of sleep, so he lay in his small bed and curled the sheet up to his neck. He felt so defeated: he could never have "the quiet life" he dreamed of. Even if Wanda reciprocated his feelings- which he was almost positive she didn't –she wouldn't agree to marry him. She didn't seem like the type to settle down, either, and if she did want to- they couldn't physically have children. A hopeless dream for a hopeless robot.
Wanda felt her eyes slowly open. It was late into the night, and she felt something come across the telepathic channel between her and Vision. They shared a bond within short distances, but she usually wasn't woken up by the passing thoughts. This was different, though- Vision was in distress, which was unusual in itself.
She leaned up in bed as the thoughts sent to her became more clear. He dreamt- or rather, constructed –him as a human, which she didn't find all that surprising. She found that the desire for him to be more human was deeply ingrained in his mind. The fact that he was human but wasn't was one of his only insecurities. Wanda found the idea of him yearning to be a human somewhat sweet and admirable.
She moved on in the illusion- and suddenly she was there, in the room with Vision. She saw their wedding rings, and a picture of them on their wedding day. Wanda snapped out of the construct, and ran a hand through her hair. While she did view Vision as a close friend, and sometimes she did think of him in a romantic way, she had never thought of marrying him. She wasn't offended- she found the whole idea a bit flattering. She was shocked, though, and wasn't sure if she wanted to continue in the illusion. It now felt too personal, even if they shared everything together. Her curiosity got the better of her, though, and she resumed the construct.
In the dream, she kissed him on the forehead. He brought her in his arms, and she almost fell back asleep. Two little children, one girl and one boy, stormed into the room and jumped on the bed. Illusion-Wanda took the boy, who was named Pietro, and gave him a hug. The entire family cuddled under the comforter, but the room darkened, and it all disappeared. Vision was alone.
Wanda was stunned. Not only was she married to Vision, they had two children together. She found it all unsettling. This wasn't just a dream conjured by Vision's subconscious, which he had little control over, this was an intentional illusion that he created. Like before, she wasn't offended. The more she thought about the idea, she found it somewhat adorable. While she was uncomfortable that she was included, she knew that this was all rooted in Vision's desire to be more human. There was also the intense desperation and sorrow associated with the construct, which only added to the conflicting emotions Wanda was facing. She tried to go back to sleep, but was too shaken by the event to do so. Wanda slipped out of her bed and made her way to the roof of the Avengers facility. Vision was already there, sitting on the edge of the building; she was too consumed in her own thoughts to sense him before she got there. She saw him raise his head and knew he felt her presence. Too late to turn back now.
She wanted to say something, but couldn't find the words. She found that sending the words telepathically was easier, so she sent one word: Hello. Vision turned around and sent back: Hello. What brings you here?
He didn't know that she knew. It was somewhat of a relief, but she knew he would know if he entered her mind, which was bound to happen eventually. There was no use in trying to hide it. I couldn't sleep, she replied. She sat down next to him and stared at the stars. Wanda entered his mind, and found it was much more disorderly than it normally was. Emotions were strewn everywhere- sadness, despair, and loneliness. It still was more orderly than any other mind she had ever been in, but he was obviously very distraught. She felt him enter her mind, and Wanda took a breath. Once Vision realized, he looked the other direction. A new emotion entered his mind- embarrassment. Wanda felt there was no cause for him to be embarrassed. His intentions were pure and innocent, and there was nothing wrong with what he wanted.
She reassured him, It's alright. It's a very human want to have a family. There's nothing to be ashamed of. Wanda placed a hand on his shoulder. She intentionally didn't address his feelings for her; that was for another time. He looked at her, a glance that she could have sworn was tearful.
I feel pathetic, he sent.
There's no reason to be, she replied. He looked out into the sky. Silence. Eventually, she fell back asleep on his shoulder, using his cape as a blanket. Vision's feelings of sadness waned, and he found a bit of mental peace in the roof. While he knew that the future he dreamed of would never be, maybe he could find happiness in another one.
A/N: Thank you for reading! Prompts are welcome, although please keep them PG, thank you. Reviews/favorites/follows are always greatly appreciated! :)