"Captain Rogers." FRIDAY's announced his name with urgency that had the soldier jumping out of bed and pulling on sweatpants over his boxers before she began the next part, "Miss Maximoff appears to be having a nightmare."

He had asked the AI to alert him if Wanda became distressed in the night. He did not share the same corridor with Nat and Wanda so he would not be able to hear her, and he did not have the same sixth sense that Nat had for when a nightmare might occur for the girl. He had a hunch though and thought he would prepare for it. "Thanks FRIDAY. I'm on my way."

Hurrying out of his room, Steve rushed to Wanda's room pushing his way inside without a second thought as the lights partially raised for him. The teenager still seemed to be asleep though she thrashed about with tears wetting her cheeks and distraught mumbling filling the air. He called out her name, trying not to startle her, "Wanda."

She did not wake up and Steve went to sit on her bed, gently touching her shoulder, "Wanda.. Wanda, sweetheart, wake up."

The little witch did wake up then, sitting upright with a gasp that immediately turned into sobs that wracked her whole body. Instinctively, Steve wrapped his arms around her, and Wanda pressed her face into his chest, his t-shirt rapidly dampening with her tears.

"Steve, Tasha is gone.. Tasha is gone." The girl wailed against him.

From how hysterical she sounded Steve could guess she did not just mean that Nat was gone on her mission. And he could guess vaguely what her bad dream had been about if she thought the Black Widow was not coming back. For a split second, there was a spasm of fear in his chest that something had happened to Natasha, as if Wanda would somehow know. But the spy would not even start her ops until tomorrow, today had just been for travel and while she was running the mission solo FRIDAY would alert them if things had gone south. No, it was just a terrible dream that he felt helpless to assuage. Captain America tried though as he offered her gentle words, "Natasha is not gone. She's away on her mission, that's all. Remember we said goodbye this morning? Nat will be back in a few days. She's alright. You're alright."

"I want Tasha. Please, Steve." She whimpered at him, his heart breaking for her at her request he could not fulfill. Wanda snaked her arms around his neck and pulled herself closer to him with Steve helping her by lifting her to sit across his lap.

He considered calling the woman, knowing that Nat would answer immediately and sweet talk Wanda back to sleep with ease. However when they had been arranging the logistics Fury had limited contact only for emergencies or in the event the plan deviated to limit exposure. While this certainly felt like an emergency to him, Steve doubted their former director would consider soothing a child's nightmare in that category. He would give Wanda more time to settle before he broke the protocol, trying to have a little more trust in her and himself to handle the situation. Then sooner than he could answer Wanda's small voice floated up again as she tugged on the collar of his shirt, "Please, Steve."

"I'm sorry, sweetheart. Nat is working. I know it's hard being away from people you care about, but Natasha will be back in a few days. I promise." The girl whined at his statement but did not ask again. Wanda sniffled more quietly then but her tears kept falling and she made no move to extract herself from Steve. Deciding that if she could not be with Natasha that perhaps she would be more comfortable somewhere that she could feel closer to her, Steve rose to his feet with the teenager curled up in his arms. She made no protests as the captain walked with her out of her room, across the hall and into the Black Widow's bedroom. He placed her onto the made up bed and the little witch instantly turned over to press her face into the pillows, which seemed to have the desired calming effect on her.

Instead of lying down with her, Steve turned to Natasha's walk in closet. He peered at the shelves above the racks of clothing at a section that had folded scarves and shawls and grabbed the top article, a tan and black plaid swathe of material with some subtle red lines. As he pulled it down, it unfolded into a size that could be a small blanket, and he remembered seeing Natasha wearing it around her shoulders with more frequency than the other patterns. Most importantly it was soft, and he thought it smelled of the woman, so he took it back out into the bedroom where Wanda had situated herself under the duvet, her tears finally come to a stop. Steve draped the soft fabric overtop of the girl, her hands appearing from underneath the cover to clutch at it and bring it unconsciously to her nose.

Steve then lay down on the other side of the bed to watch as the Sokovian twisted the blanket around herself. As she settled, he settled too until Wanda tentatively said, "Steve?"

"Yes, Wanda?" He perked up.

"My head hurts." She confessed.

"I'll go get you some medicine." He got back out of the bed and into the bathroom to rifle through Nat's medicine cabinet. Wanda sat up when he came back with a couple Tylenol and a paper cup full of water for her to consume. Climbing back in bed, he slid under the covers too while Wanda resituated herself, seeming to try and wrap the blanket around tighter around herself. When the girl stopped her fidgeting, Steve let his eyes close, feeling the late or early hour washing over him in a wave of tiredness. He was on the brink of sleep when, "Steve?"

"Hm? Yeah, little bird?"

"Can I hold your hand?" Wanda's voice rasped.

"Of course." He found her smaller hand on the mattress in between them.

The little witch continued though, "I mean, can I hold your hand like with Tasha? With my magic?"

"I'm not sure what you mean sweetheart." His brow wrinkled in confusion.

"I can show you.." Wanda said slowly. He nodded in agreement. Steve felt warm tendrils emanate into his palm and twirl up his forearm, the red magic surprisingly active despite how tired the girl seemed to be. It hummed strangely against his skin, but he found he did not mind the sensation and if it helped Wanda then it was fine by him.

"Yeah, that's all right. Whenever you need." He affirmed for her. Falling silent once again, the witch's magic that endlessly looped with investigation around his arm eventually beginning to settle to a gentle pulse in their palms. Steve started to finally drift off once more, relieved that the girl was at ease for now.

"Steve?"

His name lightly startled him out of that blank space before sleep, "Yes?"

"Thank you.." He did not respond to Wanda, but his heart swelled in his chest as she shifted closer to him, resting her head against his shoulder and promptly falling asleep. Watching as she faded off, her face half obscured by plaid fabric, Steve knew he was meant to take care of this girl- make her pancakes, try to draw out a smile when she was sad, chase away the nightmares, protect her- just as Natasha was meant to do. He did not understand how she could not see that Wanda belonged with them. Of course the Barton's were wonderful people. Clint had always been a good man in fight, reliable and focused on the team as a whole. Then after spending Christmas with him and Laura and the kids, he saw why Natasha was so fiercely protective of them. They were this encapsulated bubble of goodness in her otherwise harsh and dangerous world. In that way, he could understand why Nat would want Wanda to go stay there and be a part of that life, safe and surrounded by goodness.

What the Black Widow was not considering was what Wanda actually wanted. He had meant what he said at Pietro's funeral all those months ago, that he recognized a passion and belief in doing the right to make the world a better place. Steve had seen it in both twins, and he knew that those tenets did not just go away. He knew Wanda still had them, waiting for her when she recovered from her grief. Even if that were not enough reason for her to stay at the Compound, the little witch had fallen in love with Natasha, as her caretaker, her protector, her mentor, and whether either of them ever admitted it, as her mother. And Natasha had fallen just as hard for Wanda, as if loving the girl came naturally to her, as if it had always been a part of her make up.

Maybe it was selfish for wanting the teenager to stay, but did Natasha not deserve to be selfish with this one thing when so much had been taken from her early in her life, when it was something they both clearly wished for and maybe needed. Did they not get to hold onto a little bit of goodness for themselves? Steve finally let his eyes rest as exhaustion came for him as well, promising that he would do anything necessary to keep his family together. Still, the captain had faith in Natasha and Wanda that they would be able to figure it out before he had to intervene. You're not going anywhere, little bird, the man thought as he slipped off into sleep.

/

Steve thought about going to check on Wanda again. It was the day after her nightmare and their second day without Natasha and the Sokovian was not faring well. Her yoga session had helped marginally though not as much as it had yesterday. So far she had barely eaten a piece of toast and drank a glass of orange juice for the day and was currently sitting in her room with the television on away from everyone, even Vision who she would usually let sit with her. When Steve periodically came in to see how she was, the teenager was always sitting cross-legged at the end of her bed with Nat's shawl around her shoulders emotionlessly watching the TV. She looked tired with bluish shadows under her eyes, but apparently refused to even nap despite having her sleep interrupted last night. Wanda seemed to be rejecting all her usual activities or comforts in favor of moping.

The captain got up from where he was sitting up in his bed and went to the closet in search of something to change his tactic. He would suggest a new distraction, or new to Wanda. It was a coping mechanism he had when he was a kid, when he was often picked on and pushed around due to his small size. Finding the box he was searching for he opened the lid and sitting at the top were two worn baseball gloves and a scuffed, old baseball. Steve grabbed the items and headed over to Wanda's room. When he got there, he politely tapped on the door.

"Yes?" Wanda's voice called out.

He took this as his approval to open the door, "Hey little bird. How are you doing?"

As he predicted, Wanda was still sitting on the end of her bed with the same cheesy sitcom that had been playing. The teenager shrugged at him, turning her head to rub her cheek against the blanket on her shoulder. Steve tried to give her a disarming grin, "Why don't you come on out from under there, I want to show you something."

"What is it?" She asked with only mild curiosity.

"Come on, I'll show you." He encouraged. Wanda considered him for a moment, then pushed the shawl from her shoulders, revealing her favorite SHIELD sweatshirt, and stood to follow him. The captain led her to a breezeway, a long hallway connecting the buildings, with big glass windows that filtered in the late afternoon light. Presenting her with one of the gloves, Steve declared, "I'm going to teach you how to throw a ball, and we'll play catch. Bucky and I would always play catch if we wanted to get our minds off things. Want to give it a try?"

The girl looked contemplative once again, maybe a little dubious, before nodding and taking the proffered glove. He slipped his hand in the other glove and she copied him as he assessed the fit, "We may have to get you a smaller mitt, but this will do for now."

He then handed her the ball, "Here. Let's see what you got."

Steve backed up a bit and held up his gloved hand. She looked terribly uncertain, but Wanda pulled back her arm and tossed the ball. It fell terribly short. Wanda blushed, "Sorry."

Walking up to the ball rolling towards him, the man reassured her, "That's alright. You're just releasing the ball too late. I'll show you."

He showed her when she should try to release the ball for optimal velocity. He jogged back down the corridor, not as far as before, and waited for her to try again. Wanda pulled her arm back and this time when she threw the ball it went farther, Steve just having to lean forward a little to nab it out of the air.

"Much better." He commended, "You might be releasing a little early. Now I'm going to toss the ball to you. See if you can catch it."

Wanda held out her glove in preparation. Steve then added, "If you think you're going to get hit by the ball make sure you use your powers to deflect it."

The witch took a few steps back worriedly at his statement. Back tracking a little Steve assured, "It's not likely to happen, it's for just in case."

If Natasha came back from her mission and he had given Wanda a black eye, the Black Widow would probably return the favor. No, she would definitely return the favor. He made sure the girl was ready then lobbed the ball underhand to her. She made an attempt to catch it, but the ball just clipped her glove and it dropped to the floor with a thunk, starting to roll back towards Steve.

"Keep your eye on the ball. If you know where the ball is you'll know where to put the glove." Steve advised, "Let's try again."

The captain moved in closer so he could more accurately toss the ball into Wanda's glove. She caught it that time, "Good!"

His enthusiasm had her give him a shy smile before her face went back to a more neutral expression. Wanda threw the ball at him again, this time with better force though it was a little wild. Steve instructed her to keep her hand and elbow aligned to keep the ball going straight. They went on like that- Wanda dropping the ball or making a wide throw while Steve continued to give her pointers or demonstrate a better form. As the teenager improved, Steve moved back a little farther and the pair settled into an easy rhythm.

"Steve, who is Bucky?" Wanda asked abruptly as she made a decent throw.

The man faltered for only a second as he caught the ball. "Bucky was my best friend growing up. He and his family took me in and got me on my feet when my mother passed away. He died in the war, or I thought he died in the war."

"Oh, I'm sorry." The girl looked apologetic as if she had done something to hurt him. He did not spend a lot of time thinking about his past, it had been a lifetime long ago. And it did have a lot of heartache but there was a lot of happiness too. He gave her a bittersweet smile.

"It's okay." Steve lobbed the ball back and Wanda managed to get her glove under it. He went on, "I suppose you don't know much about my life before."

Wanda shook her head no.

"I can tell you a bit about it if you'd like."

"I'd like to know." Wanda said returning the ball to Steve. As they continued to throw the ball back and forth, Captain America told her about his childhood- how his father died in the First World War before he was born, about how his mother Sarah was the kindest woman, how she died from tuberculous when he was only 18, how his best friend Bucky made sure he had a place to land and saved his hide several times from an ill-advised fight he had gotten himself into. The teenager seemed interested as she listened, however soon her throws became worse as her arm tired.

"All finished?" Steve let the ball roll into his glove once again as Wanda could not make the same distance she had been managing.

Wanda exhaled heavily, "Yeah."

They met in the middle of the hall and Steve put an arm around her shoulders, "What do you think? Did you like it?"

"Yes, it's good." Wanda settled on, then asked, "..Steve, where is Bucky now?"

"Well, it's complicated. And maybe a story for a different day." The captain did not know how much Natasha would want her telling about the Winter Soldier and Hydra. It would be a conversation the three of them should have together. He changed the topic, "How about you go get cleaned up and then we can see about dinner. Do you think you could eat something?"

"Yeah." She agreed, sounding a bit reluctant but he would take it.

They both went to clean up then found Sam in the kitchen who was trying a new salmon recipe, which was enough to pique her interest to at least eat a little bit of the meal. After finishing and cleaning up dinner, Sam asked if they wanted to watch a movie, then suggested a baseball movie from light conversation around the dinner table that included Wanda telling him about the game of catch they played. So that was how Steve, Sam, Vision and Wanda ended up watch A League of Their Own in the theater room. Wanda had brought Nat's shawl and her stuffed shark that she tended to like to use as an improvised pillow. She had rested her head against Steve's lap instead though, and she wrapped the shark up with her in her blanket like an adorable burrito. The girl did not make it far into the movie before her exhaustion took over and she fell asleep.

Steve observed her fondly at the sight snapping a covert picture so he could show Natasha later. He would carry her off to continue her slumber in Natasha's room, hoping that would be enough to curb anymore nightmares. They could finish the film tomorrow.

/

On the third day Natasha was away Sharon returned from Washington and Steve was relieved to see the agent. So was Wanda as they found her and Sam chatting close to one another in the kitchen. The little witch made a beeline for the woman still in a navy dress suit from being at the capitol, "Sharon, you're back."

"Hey honey." The blonde opened her arms for the girl as she approached. "How are you doing?"

"Natasha is away on a mission." Wanda said in lieu of an answer.

Sharon squeezed the girl a little tighter, "Oh I heard. I bet that's hard. But you know what it means?"

Wanda pulled back to look up at Sharon, "What?"

"It means we get to have a sleepover." The agent gave her an infectious grin and wagged her eyebrows at her, "We'll bake cookies, paint our nails, watch chick flicks.. How does that sound?"

"Sounds good." Wanda managed her own small smile at the prospect of the distraction.

"Great, I'm going to get changed, then we can start the cookies, yeah?"

"Yeah." The teenager nodded. Instead of letting the woman go off without her, Wanda trailed after Sharon as she grabbed the handle of the small rolling suitcase by her feet and heading in the direction of the sleeping quarters. Steve watched them go with Wanda asking her how Washington was and the agent groaning dramatically as she warned her to stay away from politicians.

"Man, I thought I was going to have a sleepover." Sam grumbled from where he leaned against the counter, looking a little bewildered that his girlfriend had been usurped from him so easily.

Captain America chuckled, "Welcome to the bench, my friend."

/

On the fourth day Natasha was due to come back to the Compound. FRIDAY had announced that Agent Romanoff would returning a little later in the day and while the news elated Wanda, it also made her horribly antsy, having her flitting around all day from one moment to the next. She did her yoga in the morning, then tried to read with little success, then she went down with Sharon to the gym to work on some self-defense moves, she got cleaned up and then only finished half a game of chess with Vision before she could not sit still anymore, and they went for a walk around the building. However, nothing took up as much time as she wished it had.

Now it was nearing dinnertime and Natasha had still yet to make an appearance. She sat with Sharon on the couch somewhat glumly, her head resting on the woman's shoulder and Nat's blanket wrapped around her so that it covered the bottom of her face as she tried to enjoy the documentary about elephants that Sharon had put on for them. Steve and Sam were lazily throwing out dinner ideas but then ultimately turning them down when abruptly Wanda's head lifted up from the agent's shoulder. It was faint but she was certain she could feel Natasha once again. The girl shot up to her feet and took off to the stairs that would lead her outside to the landing area. She did not pay any attention or slow down as she heard Sam ask, "Where is she going in such a hurry?"

"The jet is approaching with Agent Romanoff." FRIDAY supplied for them, which again Wanda barely registered as she scampered down the steps.

The only thought Wanda had in mind was Mama.