Wanda wasn't sure how many times she could apologize or even how much longer she wanted to feel sorry for mistakenly setting Natasha on Bucky. Over the past two weeks, things between them had reached a level of coolness approaching his first days at Avengers' HQ, without the constant threat of a Code Winter. She certainly felt like he was freezing her out. Even Natasha seemed to be getting along better with him, which Wanda felt he was doing specifically to get under her skin, in spite of Natasha's reassurances.

It was manageable if uncomfortable when they were on base, but it became downright dangerous when they were in the field. She was distracted, plagued by doubts that he wouldn't have her back – or worse, that he would save her from injury or death and nothing would change. Steve had noticed and told her, somewhat more gently than she felt she deserved, to get it together and help the team or stay home.

To that end, she was spending more time working with Vision, learning to use her powers more effectively. He had a calming effect on her, with his steady personality and quiet intelligence. Today they were in a field a fair distance from any buildings in the complex with a box of flashbang grenades as she learned to pause an explosion and move it to a safe distance before letting its energy disperse. She was glad they were using non-lethal ordinance; her first few attempts had been miserable failures. In spite the earplugs and dark glasses she was wearing for safety, the results had been uncomfortable. With Vision's encouragement, however, she was getting better. Her latest effort traveled several hundred feet, nearly to the treeline, before she could no longer hold the forcefield around it. The light and sound were far enough away not to bother her.

"You are improving quite rapidly." Vision picked up another flashbang from the box. "Now that you have mastered distance, perhaps you can work on other movements. Differing directions or heights, perhaps?"

"I will try."

"Shall I?"

"Please." She readied herself as he pulled the pin and tossed the grenade into the air. Only the smallest discharge was visible as she contained it and sent it flying safely away to detonate completely. The acquisition of a new skill was serving not only as a distraction from her personal issues, but was also providing her with a sense of satisfaction. She could imagine how much she could help the team in the field, preventing shrapnel wounds or even some of the property damage Stark was always complaining about covering from his relief fund. She smiled and nodded to Vision to indicate he should throw another.

To her surprise, he was floating in the direction she'd sent the last grenade. Pulling out her earplugs, she called, "What is it?"

"I heard something incongruous after the last bang."

With her ears still ringing from her first few poor attempts, she couldn't hear anything. She followed Vision on the ground at a jog. Her stamina was good, but telekinesis was as draining as any sparring session. Well, maybe not if she was sparring with Natasha. Or Steve. Or Sam, sometimes. Whatever. She had been caught up in the exhilaration of achievement and hadn't realized how ready she was for a break.

The image of how proud her teammates would be when they saw her new talent was wiped out of her head when she saw Steve stumbled out of the woods near where Vision had landed. She fell into a sprint, arriving as Bucky appeared with his metal hand clamped over his eyes. He was swearing loudly in Russian, a string of expletives that Wanda couldn't completely understand. Given his tone, she was certain she didn't want to.

Steve was already clasping Vision's shoulder. "We're okay. We were just surprised when it went off so close."

"I do apologize."

"It's not your fault. We were running and thought you guys were working farther away."

"I am so sorry," Wanda gasped, reaching toward Bucky before pulling her hand back. He was still struggling to regain his vision and she wasn't sure how affected his hearing was. This would be the absolute worst time to surprise him.

Fortunately, Vision had taken charge of the situation. "Is it just the two of you?"

"Yeah, just us," Steve replied leaning forward with one hand on his thigh as he rubbed his eyes with the other. "Wow. Glad I've never been on the receiving end of one of those things during a mission."

"Shall I call for medical assistance?"

"I'll be okay. Buck?"

Another flood of Russian curses poured from his mouth.

"Yeah, he'll be fine, too."

"That is most welcome news. It is fortunate that Freckles was not running with you."

Steve looked at Vision with some alarm. "He's back at HQ with Nat. But thanks for putting that in my head."

"It was not my intention to cause further distress."

"No, I just…my head's ringing a little. Maybe you guys could come back to base with us so Bucky and I can check in with Dr. Cho."

"Of course, Captain. I will retrieve the rest of the grenades." He waved his hand toward the two men. "Wanda, I will rejoin you in a few moments."

Steve reached out to grasp her arm as Vision floated away. "Hey, Wanda. It's okay. We're not hurt."

"We should still go to the infirmary."

"Lead the way. I've still got some after-images that make it a little hard to see."

"Do you need me to…hold your hand?" She glanced over her shoulder involuntarily, as if Natasha would suddenly burst from the bushes to unnecessarily defend her territory, but nothing was moving. "I mean, if you need me to."

"Not necessary. If you just stay a few feet in front of us so I can distinguish you that should be fine. Bucky? Okay?"

"Fucking peachy," Bucky spat, finally speaking as he slowly removed the hand covering his eyes. He blinked hard several times before glaring at Wanda. "Y'know, it's not like Natasha needs help to ambush me, if that's what you've got planned."

"I did not plan anything!" she shouted back, all the frustration and guilt manifesting as anger. She took off down the wide path at a faster pace than she had intended.

She heard Steve admonish Bucky about the flashbang being an accident before he caught up to her. "Don't listen to him. He's just being difficult." Steve lowered his voice. "He doesn't like the way things are between you two right now, but he's even worse about talking about feelings than Nat used to be."

Wanda didn't really want to consider Bucky's feelings when she was so conflicted. Still, she peeked over her shoulder to make sure he was following, if at a surly distance, before saying, "Vision was right."

"Wanda, you don't have to justify anything to me. It was a complete accident and everyone is fine."

"I meant that it is good Freckles was not with you."

"Oh, that. Yeah. He heard Nat say she was going to lie down after lunch and his afternoon was planned."

"I'm sorry, did you just say Natasha is napping?"

"Uh-huh. I thought it was weird too, but she said she feels like she might be getting a cold. Sam said he's getting congested, too." He shrugged. "Can't say I miss stuff like that. I hope no one hits us while half the team is bravely battling the sniffles."

"It is fortunate that at least two of us will not be sickened," Vision said, landing on Steve's other side with the metal box of flashbangs in his arms. "Does our newest compatriot have similar immunity?"

"Bucky!" Steve called, pausing as he caught up with a scowl.

"What?"

"Do you still get colds or the flu or anything like that?"

"Don't think so. But I can still get drunk if I put a little effort in."

Steve clapped his shoulder. "Are your ears still ringing?"

"Kinda. Should I be seeing halos around everything?"

"I think they're starting to fade."

"No thanks to…hey!" Bucky elbowed Steve back. "I was gonna blame advanced military technology, punk."

"Sure you were." The small group continued walking until they left the woods and walked onto the lawn in back of the main building. "Bucky and I are going to stop in at the infirmary. I'm sure you two have to check those unused grenades back in."

"Of course," Vision said with a nod.

As they walked in the opposite direction, Wanda could hear Bucky complaining about having to go to 'the damn hospital.' She was about to enter the hangar when Vision caught her arm. "You seem to be in conflict over Sgt. Barnes."

"With," she corrected, perhaps a little sharply. "I am in conflict with Bucky."

"That as well. However, I believe the latter would be easily resolved if you were to confront the former."

"And what do you suggest?"

"Please stop me if I am overstepping my bounds, but I believe you have romantic inclinations toward Sgt. Bar…toward Bucky, and they seem to causing you a great deal of emotion."

She briefly wondered if he had spoken with one of their teammates or if she were just that easy to read, but settled on a dismissive, "So?"

"In my admittedly limited experience, talking about an issue seems to have a positive effect. I am simply letting you know that I am always available if you would like to speak about this. Or anything."

After taking a deep breath, she said softly, "Thank you, Vision. You are a good friend."

"Ah. I believe that translates to a firm but polite 'no thank you.' My offer remains, should you decide you would like to talk. I should be getting these back to the quartermaster." He strode off into the hangar without looking back.

Wanda felt even worse. He had spent the afternoon helping her train and she had turned down his sincerity with no regard. Weighing her options, she chased him down rather than heading to the infirmary to catch Bucky. He was leaving the quatermaster's when she spotted him. "Vision, wait!"

"Did I drop something?"

"What? No."

"A poor attempt at levity, I admit." He smiled. "Shall we find a quiet corner?"

"We can talk in my room."

"Very well."

He ended up staying for hours as she complained, cried and worked through her feelings. She was feeling incredibly weary as she finally came to the conclusion, "I just…I look at Steve and Natasha…and now Sam and Maria, too…and I think that I want that with someone. I want to love so deeply that the rest of the world disappears. I had that with Pietro, but it was different. He was my brother. It sounds selfish, but I want even more. I want to love and be loved and be in love. It sounds like so much, but when I see it every day…"

Vision nodded, still listening attentively after so much time. "And do you feel that you can achieve this love with Bucky?"

"I don't know."

"Let me rephrase – do you want to find out if you can achieve this love with Bucky?"

"I think so? I am confused. I really don't know." She leaned against his shoulder, closing her eyes. "How do I know?"

"Can you know without taking the risk to find out?" He settled an arm around her. She wished he gave off some body heat. "I cannot ethically advise you to choose one way or the other. I can only help you recognize your choices."

"Thank you." She sniffled and sat up. "I feel as if I have taken advantage of you. Is there anything you would like to talk about?"

"Not at the moment, but I will be sure to find you if something arises. Right now, I believe it is time for dinner."

It was sometimes hard to read Vision's facial expressions and Wanda found it particularly difficult in this moment. He was smiling, but behind it was something almost overwhelmingly sad. She wished he would tell her why, but decided not to press. She needed a good meal after the day she'd had.