This is a short little fix-it, because Wanda and Vision had the worst time in IW and they deserve happiness. It takes place two years after the universe is undoubtedly restored, and by this time Wanda and Vision are married and expecting the twins - because this makes it extra adorable. This one shot shows Wanda reminiscing over the past two years, before she comforts Vision after a nightmare about what happened. This is meant to be really sweet, so I hope you like it!
Wanda lifted her head, blinking in the dark. She propped herself up on her elbows, to see drops of water trickling on the other side of the glass. The gentle pattering of rain on the windows hadn't been what had stirred her, but rather a movement within her belly. Remembering with a soft smile, she reached down to cradle her bump.
"You're a restless little one, aren't you?" She whispered, unaware that there were two little lives growing inside her womb. Wanda lay back against her pillow with a happy sigh, before turning her head to look at Vision, reaching out to caress his cheek with her other hand. He slept beside her, the mind stone glowing softly in the dark.
Wanda and Vision didn't know how it happened - they'd never dreamed that this was possible, but somehow, her powers had granted their wish. Wanda loved being pregnant, each little movement inside her making her heart feel as though it were going to burst. Vision was so loving and attentive, never leaving her side, and every time the baby kicked, Wanda would take his hand and place it on her belly, so he could feel their little miracle too. To say that they were excited was an understatement. The news had been a shock to their friends - Sam had quite literally fallen out of his chair - but nonetheless they were delighted for them. The baby shower had been quite the spectacle.
Now seven months along, Wanda's fears that this was merely a dream were growing increasingly distant. But the feeling was familiar - it was the same fear she'd felt when Shuri had told her that they'd brought Vision back. That terror, that one day she might wake up in a world where she was still alone, and he was gone...
Two years ago, that had been the only world she'd known. She couldn't forget it, no matter how desperately she wanted to.
Feeling herself fading away, she'd been so relieved. It was over. She'd be with Vision, Pietro, and her family again soon... no more fighting, only peace. But no. She found herself back on the forest floor, collapsed in the leaves where she had first vanished. Bucky, Sam and Groot were picking themselves off the ground in bewilderment, T'Challa came staggering out of the bushes not long after. But she'd stayed there on the ground, weeping, for Vision's body had been moved a long time ago. All she remembered was the barely audible declaration of love before an explosion... and then, a terrible green light... and everything after that, was too much to bear. Her world had been reduced to ashes. She wished she'd stayed that way too.
Wanda was alive, but didn't want to be.
This was different to when Pietro died - that had been one of the darkest times of her life, and she still felt his scar in her heart, everyday. But now it was broken, shattered into pieces along with her soul. She couldn't heal from this, not when the death she was mourning had happened twice, first by her hand. She was tortured knowing that Vision had suffered so much, in those last days and then in those last moments.
Gathering up to courage to destroy the stone and him with it had broken her. The realization that she didn't have to put herself or him through that, that killing Vision first didn't even matter, had completely destroyed her.
Without Vision... what did she have? Nothing. Her broken heart would never love anyone again. She'd spent so long sitting, alone, in a dark room graciously given to her by T'Challa. Wanda had been hiding in there for weeks, barely touching the meals brought to her. She had simply stared at the wall with eyes filled with tears, ignoring the worried voices of her friends on the other side of the door. They'd come by one at a time to try and coax her out, to no avail. Nothing could bring her out of that room.
One day Okoye came by, whispering about something Shuri was working on, and then her friends had hurried away. Wanda didn't know what could have made them all rush off so quickly but she was just relieved to hear them go, to be alone at last, free to cry without being heard. But soon she missed them, for the only thing she could hear now was Vision's voice inside her head, one of the last things he had said to her. "You could never hurt me." She released an anguished cry at the irony of it, and her powers had surged free, sending several objects flying and crashing to the floor.
But I did! Fresh tears had rolled down her cheeks, and she had begun to cry into her hands, rocking ever so slightly.
The silence and darkness had been broken by a soft tap at her door.
"Miss Maximoff?" Shuri had to knock several times before getting a reply.
Wanda's voice was barely audible. "Just leave me alone."
"Wanda... there's something we need to show you..." Shuri somehow managed to open her door, likely using her kimoyo beads to do so. Wanda had leapt to her feet, about to scream at her to get out, to slam the door with her powers. But the look on Shuri's face stopped her. It was no longer that of guilt or sympathy. "Someone wants to see you."
After Shuri told her what she had been trying so hard to do over the last few weeks, Wanda had never run so fast in her life, praying that this wasn't a cruel dream conjured by her grief. After what felt like an hour, she finally reached the lab. Several of her friends spun round at the sound of pounding footsteps, but Wanda didn't slow down, tearing past them and reaching the room she could feel his consciousness in. She stood there, frozen, as he slowly turned to face her. There was silence. Their eyes met, the mechanical blue irises meeting the green.
"Wanda." He said, softly.
The only one who moved was Wanda. She took a few steps towards him, slowly coming closer. Vision remained still, no matter how much he wanted to fly across the room to close the distance between them, to hold her in his arms. He waited for her, frozen in place.
Wanda had stopped in front of Vision, terrified by how real this dream felt. Slowly, uncertainly, she reached to touch his face. Her trembling hand made contact with his skin, and at that moment the realization crashed down upon her like a wave against a cliff.
She whispered his name and he nodded, eyes filled with tears as he reached to hold her face in his hands.
All uncertainty and fear, all doubt that this was merely her imagination - vanished. Wanda'a shattered soul stitched itself back together. Her heart surged back to life. With a strangled cry, she threw her arms around his neck and broke down, sobbing. He pulled her tight to him, kissing her crown over and over, his own tears falling onto her hair. Wanda lost count of how many times she had tearfully thanked Shuri, who had smiled before ushering everyone out to give them some privacy.
There had been a lot of crying, a lot of tear-filled apologies and many, many declarations of love. They had gone to Wanda's room soon after and spent hours simply laying in bed together. She had been nestled close to him, hand never leaving his cheek, as Vision's forehead rested close to hers. He had whispered that he was sorry, for asking her to do such a thing, to which she insisted he couldn't have possibly known what cruel trick the time stone was capable of. She had kissed him, before hours of simply laying in bed turned into something else.
All their friends, and those who had tried to protect them from Thanos at that last minute, had been at their wedding. Clint had walked her down the aisle, Nathaniel-Pietro had carried the rings. Without question Natasha was maid of honour, and Shuri was a bridesmaid as a thank you for all she had done for them.
Overhearing the talking raccoon plotting to steal Bucky's metal arm sometimes made Wanda question whether or not she was dreaming. Tony had been crying for much of the ceremony. Mantis had been filling her pockets with cupcakes. Quill and Gamora had been slow dancing long after the dance floor emptied. And of course, Peter Parker had asked Thor what happened to his hair. That had been the most wonderful night, ending with her and Vision in bed at the private island Tony had given them for their honeymoon.
They'd spent just over a year in marital bliss, although there had been an underlying sadness - the knowledge that it would only be the two of them, no more.
Wanda was suddenly brought out of the wedding memories by a mutter. She glanced over to Vision in surprise; it was so unlike him to talk in his sleep. She placed a hand on his arm. "Vizh?" She whispered, and he was twitching slightly, muttering still. Her heart lurched - he sounded afraid, in distress. She raised a hand to the mind stone, but hesitated. Ever since then, she had been so reluctant to touch the stone, to feed even the smallest crimson tendril into it after what happened so long ago. But this time she felt she had to look...
Seeing it through Vision's eyes, Wanda heard her scream abruptly cut off as she was struck by a huge purple arm, her body flinging across the forest floor. That was the last she saw of herself as a golden hand seized her by the throat and raised her high into the air. Her fingers clawed uselessly at the cold metal, as a huge hand reached up above her eyes, where she couldn't see...
Wanda tore herself free, horrified. Before she could try to wake him from that awful nightmare, the feeling of her fingertips accidentally grazing the stone, at the same time everything went black, woke Vision. He cried out and sat up so fast and so suddenly that he almost threw himself out of bed, seizing the side table to stop himself. He didn't need to breathe, but he was gasping for breath, as though he'd just spent an hour underwater. He was sobbing, his back shuddering, hands covering his head, as though to protect it.
"Vision... Vizh..." Wanda crawled over to where he was, his face in his hands. She pulled him into her arms, and he was clinging to her, weeping against her neck.
"Wanda..." He shook against her, the sobs wracking his body. She could feel his tears falling onto her skin. She cradled him close to her heart, remembering with regret that scars only faded, and didn't fully heal. Most of the time, they forgot what happened, but the darkest hours of their lives sometimes came back to haunt them. She closed her eyes, silvery trails forming on her cheeks, as the tears escaped.
"It's okay, I'm here. You're alright..." Wanda stroked the back of his head, trying to calm him.
"It felt so real..." Vision's voice was so small and barely audible. "His hand... reaching for..."
"Ssh." Wanda pressed a kiss to his crown. "Our friends fixed it. You're fine. You're here, with me..." She lifted his face with gentle hands, sweeping away his tears with her thumbs, her heart breaking at the terror in his gaze. Vision looked at her with glistening eyes before his tension turned to sheer exhaustion. He held her hands within his own, pressing kisses to her palms to try and calm himself. She leaned forward, and at the feeling of her lips upon his, Vision finally stopped trembling.
"I'm sorry I woke you." He whispered.
"Don't you dare apologise." Wanda took hold of his hands. "You're safe now... what happened, it was a long time ago..." She raised a hand to the stone, showing him all that she'd just been thinking about. Vision's mind filled with images, chasing away the memory of that cruel purple face so close to his. He saw the reunion. The wedding, their first dance. The first day they'd felt the baby move.
Wanda guided his hand to her swollen belly, holding his palm there with both hands. "Tell me what you feel." She murmured, echoing that night in Edinburgh. Vision's still-frantic mind began to focus on the feel of her warm hand over his, and a slight shifting under her skin. Then, there it was - the feeling of a gentle kick under his hand.
"Our little miracle."
Vision smiled, a loving smile both for her and their creation. He looked up at her in a mixture of adoring and amazement, before placing a kiss upon Wanda's stomach, where he had felt the kick. She pulled him back into the warmth of their bed, nuzzling her face against his neck.
"Goodnight, Vizh. I love you." She murmured. Vision held Wanda close as sleep began to claim them. The nightmare drifted from his mind, as he once again felt that reassuring movement under his palm, that precious reminder of what he and Wanda had overcome.
"Goodnight, Wanda."