May 2015

Wanda huddled in the helicarrier's morgue. It was the first place she'd gone after Vision set her safely on the deck, finding Rogers setting Pietro down on one of the tables and Barton draping a sheet over him. Rogers had left without a word, merely pausing for a moment to squeeze her shoulder, but Barton had tried to talk. He'd stumbled through a few sentence openers before shaking his head, pulling up a chair for her, and settling on an exhausted, guilt laden "I'm sorry."

"What am I supposed to do without you?" she whispered.

Pietro had been energetic even before the superspeed that made every second feel like an eternity to him. He was always moving, always looking for something interesting, jiggling his leg, fidgeting with his clothes or hair. Even in his sleep, he snored and rolled around.

But now, lying on the cold metal table, he was perfectly still. His eyes were closed, his hair unbothered by wind or fidgeting fingers. His mind was just… gone. No buzzing thoughts, no love for her, no grumblings at whatever was annoying him this time. Not even the sense of hunger that had been near constant after gaining his enhanced metabolism.

She reached out with a trembling hand, brushing stray hair from his forehead. Her fingers brushed his skin, and he wasn't cold, not yet, but he wasn't… he wasn't there. He was gone.

My twin is dead.

What am I supposed to do now?

"Hey."

Wanda jumped, twisting around in her chair. Scarlet power flickered instinctively around her palm before she remembered. She let her hand fall. "Do you want your jacket back?"

"No," Romanoff answered hurriedly, pulling up a chair. "No, I think you need it more than I do right now."

Wanda nodded, drawing it more tightly around her. "Thank you," she said. "And… I'm sorry."

Romanoff smiled bittersweetly, nodding to Pietro. "I'd say you've apologized enough."

She shook her head. "That was all him. I just-"

"-fought alongside us, risking everything you had to fix your mistakes," Romanoff finished. "Plus, Clint trusts you. That's all I need."

Wanda furrowed her brows, looking over at the Avenger.

"Clint recruited me, way back when," Romanoff elaborated. "And I'm sure that as an ex-Hydra employee with a vendetta against our team, you know what the infamous Black Widow was doing when he found me. So I tend to trust his judgment when he takes someone like us under his wing."

"Someone like us," Wanda echoed, her gaze drifting back to her lifeless brother. "People with no families who made all the wrong choices."

Romanoff leaned over to rest a hand on her knee, looking Wanda in the eye. In that moment, Wanda realized she had been crying, too. "People who did awful things, but decided not to let those things define us. And people who, thanks to Clint, have a new family."

Tears welled anew in Wanda's eyes. "Really?" she whispered.

Romanoff leaned back, a wry little smile playing across her lips. "Well, he hasn't kicked me out yet."

Wanda laughed.

-MCU-

September 2015

Wanda swiped her arm across her sweaty forehead, glaring at the punching bag. She'd been working all evening and into the night, trying to perfect the punching technique Sam was teaching her. All she'd earned for her efforts was a throbbing ache from her knuckles to her elbows.

"Can't sleep?" Natasha called.

Wanda massaged her left wrist. "Just trying to learn how to punch."

"Sam's idea?"

She switched to her right wrist. "Yeah."

"He's right," she pointed out. "You always need a backup plan if your powers fail."

"So everyone keeps saying," Wanda muttered. "Doesn't do much if I can't figure out how to punch."

"Fair." Natasha crossed her arms and leaned on a weight rack. She nodded to the punching bag. "Show me."

Wanda sighed. Taking up her stance and bracing for the pain, she threw a few punches.

"Not the worst I've ever seen," Natasha said, pushing off the rack and coming over. "That award goes to some creep trying to drug a girl at a party."

"…Good to know I punch better than a creep."

Natasha chuckled. "First of all, make sure to hit with the knuckles of your index and middle fingers first." She took Wanda's right arm, nudging it into position. "Keep your wrist straight and elbows tight, but don't tense them. Try and copy that with your left arm."

Wanda tried it, lifting her left arm to make it match her right arm.

"Good," Natasha said, giving a couple tiny taps to fix it. "Remember this when you're throwing the punches. Now, your posture…" She poked Wanda in the shoulder. Hard.

"Hey!"

"Good balance," she observed.

"I was a dancer before I lost my parents," Wanda told her, rubbing her shoulder and shooting Natasha a petulant look. "Balance is something I can do."

"You danced?" Natasha asked curiously, nudging her foot forward slightly.

Wanda nodded, looking down. "Ballet. I miss it."

"I do ballet. I can teach you everything you didn't have time to learn."

Wanda looked over, surprised. "Really?"

"We can't always go shopping when we want some girl time," Natasha joked.

"We can try."

Natasha laughed.

She gestured to the bag. "Now, when you punch, don't use your full strength. You'll get there in time, but start off easy, otherwise you'll hurt yourself. And punch fast. The bag should make a smack sound when you punch it properly. Got it?"

Wanda nodded.

"Then go."

She settled into her stance, taking a deep breath. Then she struck, remembering what Natasha had said. She kept her wrists straight and elbows tight but not tense; she hit with her index and middle knuckles first, fast and light. The room filled with resounding, satisfying smacks.

After half a minute, she stepped back. "That didn't hurt as much," she said, pleasantly surprised.

Natasha nodded. "That was a good set. Keep that up, and you'll be a pro in no time."

Wanda started peeling her gloves off, wincing as pain flared in her wrists and hands. "I don't know if I want to be a pro."

Natasha shook her head affectionately, helping with the gloves and wrappings before wrapping an arm around Wanda's shoulders and leading her to the kitchen. "Let's get you some ice, kid."

-MCU-

March 2016

"You're it!" Lila exclaimed, hitting Wanda's arm and bolting.

Wanda skidded to a halt, spinning to look around the farm for someone else to tag. Movement by the barn caught her attention and she ran towards it. Natasha and Cooper burst from its shelter. "Scatter!" Natasha cried, veering left when Cooper veered right.

For a heartbeat, Wanda considered chasing Cooper. But then she remembered Natasha kicking her ass in team trivia night last week, and she turned to chase her friend.

I'll get you. I will make my brother proud and I will get you.

Natasha glanced over her shoulder, eyes widening at the sight of her. She swerved towards the pastures, racing alongside the fence. Wanda put on a spurt of speed, steadily gaining on her target. She smirked, the gap closing to mere feet.

Natasha doubled back sharply, passing within easy reach of Wanda. "Hi!" she exclaimed as she breezed past.

Surprised, Wanda missed her chance and stumbled trying to turn after her, grabbing the fence to stay upright. She recovered quickly, but Natasha was already well out of reach. The assassin tossed a smirk over her shoulder. "Bye!"

Wanda licked her lips. "I'm not done yet."

Guessing the path Natasha would take, Wanda took a different one. When Natasha ran uphill, Wanda kept to flatter ground, and gained quickly. Straining, she sprinted over the final distance, stretching her arm out to reach her. "You… are… it!"

She just managed to catch Natasha's elbow. She spun, surprised. Wanda skidded to a halt, but ended up tripping over the uneven ground. Natasha tried to catch her, but they ended up falling together, landing in a panting, dirty, laughing pile.

"Even Clint can't catch me," Natasha gasped through laughter.

"Because he's old."

"Hey!" Clint protested from the porch, holding little Nate.

"They're right, honey." Laura patted his shoulder, smiling at the two younger women. Clint spluttered. "All right, it's time for dinner!" she called. "Come inside and wash up."

Stomachs rumbling, still laughing, Natasha and Wanda helped each other up and retreated inside.

-MCU-

May 2016

Wanda sat in the room King T'Challa had provided her yesterday, sitting very carefully still on the bed, legs crossed and hands folded in her lap. The TV was playing an episode of Too Cute that a month ago she would've loved, but now she was focusing more on suppressing her telepathy, making sure it didn't activate so much as one single neuron.

She had been shocked too many times in the last several weeks to do anything else.

Someone knocked on her door. "Wanda?"

Wanda jumped. Her telepathy reached out, trying to check that it was actually who it sounded like, and she hurriedly reeled it back in. She tensed all the while, waiting for the inevitable shock from the phantom collar she could still feel around her neck.

Natasha stepped inside, easing the door shot behind her. "Hey, kiddo."

Wanda's shoulders slumped. "What are you doing here?" she whispered.

"Clint called me," she answered, coming to sit beside her. "And Sam. And Steve. And I wasn't going to stay away when you needed me."

Wanda looked down, wanting to fidget but forcing her hands to lie still. "You shouldn't have come," she said, keeping her voice quiet.

"I got in trouble all by myself, Wanda," Natasha assured her. "My exile is not on your conscience."

Wanda slumped further down, slowly pulling one knee up to her chest. "Everything else is."

"Hey," Natasha rebuked firmly. She cupped Wanda's neck in one hand and bent down to look her in the eye. "This is not your fault. We're all adults who made our own decisions, and Ross is on his own level, using Lagos to spring the Accords on us. You saved so many people on the ground, including Steve. You saved lives at the airport battle, too. Never blame yourself for being turned into a government pawn."

"That's not what Ross said when he put this shock collar on me." And the straitjacket. And put me in solitary confinement.

"Like I said, Ross is a dick," Natasha said. A faint smile flickered across Wanda's lips. "And it's not this shock collar, not anymore. It's gone. You will never have to wear it again."

Wanda wrapped her arms around herself, hating that the now-familiar position actually eased some of her anxiety. "It doesn't feel like it."

"I know," Natasha murmured, rubbing her neck. "It was years before I got used to not sleeping handcuffed to my bed. I can still feel them, sometimes. But it gets better."

It was childish, so childish, but Wanda couldn't keep the tiny "Promise?" from escaping her lips.

Natasha smiled. She slid her arm around Wanda's shoulders to tuck her against her, holding out her other hand. "Promise."

Swallowing, Wanda pried her arm free of the phantom straitjacket and took Nat's hand, clutching it like a lifeline.

-MCU-

December 2016

Wanda curled up in bed, twirling her burner phone round and round between her fingers. The call had ended mere minutes ago, but already she missed Vis's voice with an aching heart.

A key scraped in the motel room's lock. She lifted a hand warily, dropping it when Nat walked in. "I bring soup," she announced, holding up a Styrofoam takeout bowl. "Soup and tissues."

"Oh, thank God," Wanda moaned, pushing herself upright. Nat tossed her the tissues and she tore one free, rubbing it across her runny nose. "Sam? Steve?"

"Their mission is taking longer than they expected," Nat answered. She locked the door and carried the takeout over to the beds, cramming it onto the tiny nightstand between them. "Not surprising, considering we're here."

Wanda laughed, throwing the tissue away and taking the hand sanitizer Nat set down beside her. "You didn't have to stay with me."

"I'm not leaving you to suffer alone. Nor do I trust those two to not attract all sorts of trouble that would slow your recovery."

"Fair," Wanda conceded, picking up her soup. She couldn't really smell it, but it was delightfully warm. "I love you."

Nat narrowed her eyes. "Are you talking to me or the soup?"

"…I can love two things," Wanda mumbled.

Nat chuckled, opening up her own much more substantial meal. "Quality save."

Wanda ate her first spoonful, closing her eyes and savoring it. "But I think I love the soup more."

"A woman's gotta have her priorities, I suppose."

They lapsed into companionable silence, flipping the TV on and finding the cooking channel. Wanda was about halfway through her soup when Nat set her meal down. "You keep looking at that phone."

Wanda blinked, pulling her gaze back to the soup. "And?"

"And we all know that you didn't buy that phone like you told us. Clint didn't give it to you, either, and there's only one other person we left behind that you're close enough with to lie to us about for months."

Wanda winced. "Am I that easy to read?"

"You just don't hide when you love someone," Nat corrected gently. "That's a good thing. Except in front of your enemies."

Wanda shook her head affectionately. "If you say so."

Nat leaned back and stretched out, plucking a chip from the remains of her dinner. "So, how is Vision doing?"

"Good, I guess," Wanda answered, sipping at another spoonful of soup. "He's pretty sure Tony knows we've been talking."

"There's not much he doesn't know," Nat agreed. "He'll protect you, though. He always does."

"Yeah," Wanda murmured, staring absently into her soup. "He does."

Nat tilted her head. "What is it?"

"What does…" Wanda bit her lip. "Have you ever been in love?"

Nat hesitated so long Wanda thought she wouldn't answer. "Once," she finally answered. "Why?"

Wanda looked up at her. "What does it feel like?"

Again, Nat hesitated. She looked away, her gaze growing unfocused. Without even trying, Wanda felt her burst of mingled grief and nostalgia. "It…" she started. "I'm not sure I should be the one answering that."

"But I'm asking you. Woman to woman. Friend to friend."

Nat sighed. She leaned her head back and closed her eyes. "Love… It feels like everything. Excitement, like you're going on an adventure. Joy, like you're on top of the world. Terror, like you're on the edge of a cliff. Falling, like you're crashing to the ground with no hope of stopping. Flying, like gravity has no hold on you and the wind is whipping through your hair. It… it feels like you're either about to lose everything, or gain the only thing that'll ever matter."

She opened her eyes. "At least at the start. Which… I never got any farther." She looked at Wanda. "Is that what you feel?"

Wanda picked up the phone, brushing her thumb over it, remembering the calming fluttering of her heart when she heard Vis's soft voice on the other end. "Yeah," she whispered. "It is."

-MCU-

February 2017

Wanda stepped out of the changing room, pulling uncomfortably at the baby blue dress Nat had picked out. "I don't know. It's not… me."

From her seat on the bench, Natasha considered the dress. "No," she agreed. "Next dress."

Wanda retreated, pulling it off in relief. "Isn't this weird?"

"What?"

She picked up the next dress, a cute yellow one. "Shopping for a date. What if I have to run?"

"That's why you pick something that looks good with sneakers."

Wanda stepped out again, looking at herself in the mirror. "It fits well enough."

Nat came up and tugged at the skirt, frowning. "Not long enough for shorts."

"Why do I need shorts?"

"Because I'm not letting you get caught in battle in just a skirt ever again. Also, 'well enough' isn't good enough for your first date with Vision. Next."

Wanda sighed, going back and changing into a longer black dress. "Not bad," Nat said when she came back out. "But not the one."

Wanda retreated, grabbing the last dress, the one they had been avoiding for two hours.

The moment it settled on her shoulders, she knew.

She emerged, head ducked. Part of it was shyness, most of it was admiring the skirt.

It swished around her knees, wine red and soft. She tucked her hands into pockets set below a black belt tied with a cute little red bow to the side. It came up to her collarbone in a comfy jewel neckline that left her covered and secured but with freedom to move her arms.

Nat's eyes lit up. "Well, hello gorgeous," she said emphatically, coming over to smooth out the straps.

"I thought we were avoiding this color," Wanda said with absolutely no conviction, twisting to admire how it flattered all the right curves.

"I guess we can't fight that this is your color," Nat said, poking the bow. "Even this is cute."

Wanda's jaw dropped. "The dress that convinced Natasha Romanoff to think bows are cute. This is a keeper."

Nat smiled wryly, turning to look at Wanda in the mirror. "If he doesn't love you in this, I'll kick his ass."

"Nat!"

-MCU-

June 2017

Wanda flipped her phone shut and stuck it in the glove compartment, slumping back with a disappointed sigh. Her wounds from the fight yesterday ached anew, right alongside her heart. It had been two months since she and Vis had been able to meet, and he had just had to cancel their weekend on account of an emergency in Florida. Leaving her alone at a drive-in movie.

She picked half-heartedly at the popcorn she'd brought, preparing for two hours of loneliness.

The passenger door open, and in dropped Nat. "Hi," she said, reaching immediately for the popcorn.

Wanda stared. "How did you get here?"

"I had a feeling, so I followed you, and then I got a call from Vision saying you would need some company." She pointed at the popcorn. "This is good. You should eat some."

Still not quite processing Nat's appearance, Wanda blindly picked up a couple pieces and ate them. "You… you followed me to another country?"

"It's Europe, kid, it's not that far. But I'm driving us home."

"Why?"

"Because you drive like paranoid dad Clint taught you."

Wanda pursed her lips and threw a piece of popcorn at her. "I drive fine."

Nat threw a piece of popcorn at her. "You drive like an old lady."

Wanda retaliated with a couple pieces of popcorn. "I drive the speed limit. You're a speed demon."

"It's fun," Nat said, throwing a couple back. "You're too careful."

Wanda grabbed an entire fistful. "I'm trying not to die!"

Rather than pretend to be affronted at the fistful of flying popcorn, Nat swerved to catch it in her mouth. She caught a single piece, the rest bouncing against her face and hair and shoulders before bouncing to the floor. Wanda's snort turned into laughter. She threw another handful and, grinning, Nat tried to catch it again.

She swallowed the piece she managed to catch and leaned back. "Feel better?"

Wanda nodded, leaning back. "Thanks."

Nat smiled in satisfaction, turning to watch the movie. "Any time."

-MCU-

August 2018

Wanda walked down the street, glancing between the note in her hand and the addresses on the buildings. She'd woken up to any empty motel room, with only the note left to tell her anything. In Nat's tiny, neat handwriting, it had told her to dress cute and meet the team at the address given. Confused, half expecting it to be trap (except no one, in her experience, had ever been able to replicate the miniscule size of Nat's handwriting, nor had there been any hidden messages), she had set out to obey.

201… 203… 205… 207.

She stopped outside of a little diner. A glance at the menu hanging inside the window made her stomach rumble longingly. "Nat?" she called, opening the door to the chime of a bell. "Sam? Steve?"

The lights were off, but the morning sunlight let her see the quaint little interior, loaded with the vintage charm she loved. She could feel the team's minds, but she couldn't see-

"Surprise!"

They jumped up from behind a table a few feet away. Steve reached to the ceiling, tugging on a little string, and a poster swung down over their heads. Happy Birthday, Wanda! it read in colorful bubble letters. Sam popped a confetti popper, and the image of a rainbow of glittery confetti falling to coat Black Widow, Captain America, and Falcon made Wanda double over laughing.

"I told you she'd mock us," Sam complained.

"You can't always be the coolest person in the room, Sam," Nat teased.

Wanda sucked in a breath, straightening up. "I love it, Sam, I do," she promised. "It's just that…" She moved over and plucked a bright purple piece of confetti off his head. "You're covered in glitter."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah." He pulled her into a hug. "Happy birthday, Scarlet."

Steve chuckled, hugging her next. "Happy birthday."

Nat took her turn, smiling like a proud sister. "How does it feel to be 20?"

"Weird," Wanda answered. "Definitely weird."

"You're officially old, kid," Steve said. "Welcome to the club."

Wanda arched an eyebrow. "I won't be in your club until I'm white-haired and wrinkled."

"She's right," Nat agreed, patting Steve sympathetically on the shoulder. "You're still on your own, Cap."

Steve looked to Sam for help, but found only an amused smirk. He let out a ragged sigh. Wanda laughed.

Chuckling at the old man, Nat pulled Wanda aside. "Clint's going to call in a few hours," she told her, laughter fading away. "He'll let you talk with Nate."

Wanda's eyes widened, the ache of missing her twin's namesake hitting her anew. "Really?"

She nodded, taking a new burner phone out of her pocket and putting it in Wanda's hand. "I know we agreed to keep the kids out of this as much as possible, but, well, it's your twentieth. We thought you deserved something special."

Wanda threw her arms around Nat, tears pricking her eyes. "Thank you, Nat, thank you."

Nat smiled, and while she would never admit it, Wanda knew there were tears in her eyes too. "I love you too, sestra. I love you too."

-MCU-

May 2018

Wanda only let herself feel her own pain when Vision entered sleep mode. Still holding him close, she slumped back against her seat, closing her eyes with a groan. Her entire body ached, the cut on her forehead stung, and the fading adrenaline surge left her trembling.

"Never do that again."

Wanda rolled her head to look at Nat. "Do you really think I want to?"

"No." Nat opened up a medkit, picking out some antiseptic wipes. "It doesn't mean you won't do it on accident."

"So what's the point of telling me not to do it again?"

"Don't sass me, I just nearly lost you."

"I know," Wanda whispered. She looked back at Vision, fast asleep in the mode he had installed purely to feel the joy of waking up to her curled up in his arms. "I nearly lost him. Right in front of me. It was- it was like-"

"Hush," Nat soothed, taking her chin and tilting her head back to her. "You can't focus on that. You both survived, and now you're with us. We'll protect him."

Nat started gently cleaning the cut, and Wanda winced from the sting. "You can't promise that."

"I can't promise we'll succeed," Nat corrected her. "But I can promise we'll do everything in our power to try."

Despite it all, Wanda gave a weary smile. "You always know just what to say."

"I wouldn't be a very good sister if I didn't."

Nat finished cleaning, and Wanda dropped her head to rest on Nat's shoulder, letting the warmth and security of Nat's presence lull her to sleep. "Thanks for taking care of me."

Nat pressed a gentle kiss to the top of her head. "Always, little sestra. For as long as I can."