Hello. Back for chapter number 10. Sorry for the wait. Here is a surprise!

Enjoy the story.

The days went by turning into weeks, which then turned into months, the time blurring together for Wanda, who continued her training as an Avenger and acclimating to her new life in America. The time had clearly been kind to her on both fronts as she had gotten much stronger both physically and mentally, her powers growing with reach passing day as well. While there hadn't been a world ending threat for the Avengers to face since Ultron (not that anyone of them really wanted to) she was nonetheless continuing her training as though there would be one at any moment and the time had clearly affected her body beyond its regular limits, as did her mental prowess. Her body had grown more muscular as a result of the rigorous training that she had gone through, mostly under the supervision of Natasha but she also took up weight training and cardio to enhance her body as well. As for her powers she was more proficient with them, both offensively as defensively but under Natasha's guidance she also began studying basic martial arts techniques in order to fight with relying on her powers should the need arise Wanda was proud of her progress and would hopefully be ready when Earth was in trouble in the future.

Time had changed her as well. Aside from the aforementioned experience she had gained with her time as an avenger, her Sokovian accent had also began to change, mixing with a slight American accent lessening her native accent considerably but Wanda didn't care about it too much; it was a side effect of mingling with Americans and improving her English, even if she never lost her native accent.. She was proud to defend her new home and with Sokovia destroyed and her brother dead there was nowhere else for her to go. Despite this however she rarely ever left the compound to explore America and what it had to offer (which her lack of a driver's license contributed too) even if it was just too the city for necessary supply runs. The farthest she had ever gone was the forests surrounding the compound and that was only for training purposes (not counting her trip to the Barton farm.) Steve wanted to keep Wanda close after her trip, acting very much like a big brother figure to her wanting to keep her safe. In some ways this reminded her of her brother, but Steve was far less annoying, having grown up in a time where respect was everything compared to the modern day she was familiar with. She supposed that made Natasha her older sister (or aunt considering that Wanda thought of Clint as her father) not that she wanted to revisit that conversation she had with Natasha on the subject. As well there was really no need for Wanda to even leave the compound in the first place; as a celebrity she was bound to be hounded by the media and quite frankly she didn't want that to happen to her since she liked her privacy; though if she had to resort to her powers to get them off her she might. Then again no one would really like that not even her.

That being said she was itching to go to the city for a while on her next day off; she could use the break and it would be nice to get away from the others for a while and pretend that she was just a regular girl. The only problem was that she still had to get her license; though she had improved her driving skills using the bike Clint had graciously given her, she didn't have the time between her training schedule to just go out into the city and actually take the driver's test granted as she wasn't a civilian it was not the biggest issue and even though she was technically illegal she could get a license in New York, but that would be a lot of red tape that she wasn't sure even Rhodes could help her though. It would be nice though but for the time being she could get away with not having a license, but she didn't want to rely on her teammates to be her chauffeurs to the city like she was some sort of teenager.

Oh wait….

In any case Wanda was happy to be where she was at with her life even if she missed her brother terribly during times of loneliness and wished she could return to the Barton farm, which she hadn't been able to do for the past three months; she missed them very much but she still called them on occasion but it wasn't the same to actually be with them; Clint hadn't visited either in the time she had been here either. She knew he was retired, and time wasn't exactly a luxury, but it didn't change how she felt about being apart from her father.

On the bright side she had been getting closer to the others particularly the Vision, who at the very least shared her isolation and curiosity about being in America, which was funny when he had the infinite wisdom but absolutely no experience to draw upon. So much for that Stone of his being one of the strongest powers in the universe. Then again just like her, the Vision needed time to learn how to harness its power and probably would be a force to be reckoned with once he mastered its power. If what Thor said was true, then she couldn't imagine what it would be like to have the other 5 stones at their disposal. Maybe they could use the stones to create a permanent peace in the entire universe

And that was how Wanda found herself in her bedroom staring outside the window towards the lake that she so graciously had a view out of. She had to admit Stark knew how to do some renovations to this old warehouse and waking up to this view every morning was definitely a plus. She could however do more to improve the homey feeling in her room, which was pretty empty. Perhaps she could convince Natasha to take her shopping. Starks money might not approve but she wanted to make the space more her own. There wasn't much in the room to begin with, just a bed and a desk with a TV on it, which was almost never used anyway; whenever Wanda did use the TV it was mainly to learn more about American culture. Thank goodness for Netflix and the available options that it had. But since she was more focused on training and reading books to pass the time, TV was not exactly her favorite thing in the world to do. But she didn't want to take Natasha or anyone with her really simply because she didn't think it was necessary to drag them along for things that she needed no help in. it was one thing needing help for buying cloths it was another to get things for her own personal tastes

A mischievous smirk reached Wanda's lips as a plan formed in her mind. Perhaps her brother was rubbing off on her for this, but what was the harm in taking her bike for a little spin to the city? She could always use more practice anyway. Leaping off of her bed and running out of her room Wanda raced down the hallway going passed everyone's room and out of the personal quarter section of the compound at speeds only Pietro could hope to match when she rounded a corner and almost ran smack dab into Steve Rogers himself who looked surprised to see the young witch emulate her deceased brother. Wanda for her part let out a small shriek and skidded to a halt before she could collide with her leader. Stopping right in front of the WW2 veteran Wanda looked at him wide eyed slightly embarrassed for almost running into him, while trying not to look like she was up to something. While Natasha might let her go just for the fun of seeing her get in trouble upon her return, Steve wasn't going to let her break the rules and actually would chaperone her and quite frankly she did not want that. She didn't think that Steve would embarrass her nor would her purchases set off any alarm bells to her teammates but she was 17, so she didn't want someone with her ALL the time.

In short she needed to come up with an excuse fast or Steve would put the brakes on her plan and accompany her.

"Wanda?" the time displaced Captain asked, looking at Wanda curiously "where is the fire?"

The young girl resisted the urge to gulp in order to avoid being suspicious. Luckily Natasha had been teaching her to keep her cool and think on her feet so she said the first thing that came to mind "I was just going to go for a walk around the compound get some fresh air." She said unfortunately a little too quickly for her liking causing Steve to raise an eyebrow at her response.

Darn it! Of all times for her lessons to fail her why now? She could only hope it fooled the Captain, otherwise she would dread him asking to join her whether it be for an actual walk or her having to tell him the truth in which case she would get a scolding from him for attempting to drive to the city without a license and would probably offer to drive her like the gentlemen he was.

Thankfully Steve seemed to accept that answer, giving Wanda a warm smile and said "Alright but don't go wandering to far." He said acting very much like the kind man he was before stepping aside. Wanda flashed him a smile before taking off once again.

Later that day Wanda arrived in New York City proper with minimal trouble and obviously not detected by her teammates, having hijacked her newly acquired motorcycle and racing out of the compound garage so fast she doubted anyone would notice that she was missing for a while; though giving that she told Steve she was going for a walk around the compound lake he was bound to get suspicious, at least out of everyone at the compound. But as much of a big brother figure as he was, he also respected privacy so hopefully she wouldn't get too much of an interrogation when she got back.

In any case, Wanda was proud of her driving skills during the trip to the City. Thankfully there hadn't been much traffic during the drive, for which she was grateful because she hadn't been out on the open road during her driving practices much. The problem was of course she hadn't expected the sheer amount of traffic in New York (though she should have) and was now somewhere in the city caught in heavy traffic far from the mall she was intending to get to. The only good thing was at the very least she was near a parking lot that she could park. That would be great so she could get out of the traffic and actually explore the city for once.

Plus the very angry atmosphere was kind of getting on her nerves. Amid the buildings and cars in the streets everyone seemed to be yelling in some shape or form whether it be actual yelling or honking their horns because of some aggressive or otherwise angry drivers. It had its own charm if you were interested or ok with that sort of thing but Wanda was not. All it managed to do was give her a headache and she wanted to be somewhere quieter.

Doing her best to block out the annoyance that was New York City roads, Wanda made her way to the parking garage and parked there. Securing her bike, Wanda made sure that she had everything she brought with her during the drive (most notably her phone and wallet) before exiting said garage and taking a look around her to mark her location.

"Maybe I should have brought a map" Wanda muttered to herself (momentarily forgetting that she had a map on her phone) before running her hand down her face in annoyance. She had been in such a rush that she hadn't really thought things through. She had no idea where she was going other than 'to the mall' but she hadn't really been sure which mall she should be going to for the things she needed and therefore where to go anyway. Her GPS had brought her directly to the city and that was it. Whenever she had gone with Natasha, she hadn't memorized the locations since she had been more concerned with getting cloths at the time not really paying attention to which stores they got it at so long as Wanda was able to purchase what she needed that was all that mattered to her. Now t seemed like that was coming back to bite her in the back side.

Taking another look around Wanda couldn't help but give an irritated groan. The only thing. The only thing she saw that was remotely a landmark was a Starbucks amid brick buildings at the edge of the city. And if she knew one thing about America it was that Starbucks were practically everywhere so memorizing a Starbucks wasn't going to be very helpful to her without any other sort of landmark. But since she had no idea where she was all that would accomplish was getting lost if she wasn't careful.

Before Wanda could continue to complain about her situation, her stomach gave a loud rumble. The Sokovian blushed slightly before looking back at the Starbucks. Perhaps it wasn't such a bad thing that she was near a Starbucks now wasn't it. At the very least she was going to be able to get a snack.

She walked across the street when it was safe and made her way into the café. She hadn't been inside a Starbucks before so it would be an experience for her. Everyone in the store paid no mind to the young woman as she got in line for her coffee, more preoccupied with their phones or talking to one another than a new Avenger (since she hadn't gone public yet). However, it was quite a long line, so sh would have to wait a bit until she was able to get something to satisfy her stomach. Well she wasn't going anywhere so she folded her arms and waited behind the line of people in front of her. She hadn't been waiting lone when she heard a familiar voice behind her.

"Wanda," Wanda jumped and whirled around when she heard the voice and her mouth immediately went dry as she drank in the appearance of Xander Dawson looking at her with surprise (which she was no doubt mirroring with her own face) in the middle of a Starbucks in New York City.

Of all the things that Wanda could have ever thought could happen in her life, seeing the boy she was crushing on (what she could admit it to herself) in her new home city was certainly not something she was expecting to happen today. She could feel her heart race and blood rush to her cheeks as she continued to look at Xander, her mouth opening and closing as her mind became blank and she became bereft of any and all words that she might have been able to come up with in that very moment.

Then, she remembered the note that he left her with and her face into a glower as she reared her hand back and punched Xander in the shoulder as hard as she could. This clearly took the boy by surprise and he let out a yelp that caught the attention of several customers but Wanda paid no mind to that giving her would be crush the most evil womanly glare that she could muster.

"Wanda!" Xander cried in indignation rubbing the sore spot that Wanda jabbed gently to ease away the pain "what was that for?" he hissed trying not to create more of a scene. Wanda just glared at him, folding her arms and responded with "That was for leaving behind that stupid note you jerk!" she seethed with anger "you couldn't just come and see me at the Barton's would that have been so hard?" the poor girl raged with annoyance trying her best not to let her emotions get the better of her in the moment. Lest she cause a red mist to appear in the room.

Still she hadn't expected to see her crush here in New York of all places though he hadn't left any indication where he was going in his note to begin with. But for him to be here of all places was nothing short of a miracle and while she was happy to see him, she wanted a better explanation for his sudden departure than that half assed note that he couldn't bother to have delivered in person. He better have a good explanation or she wouldn't hesitate to hypnotize him whatsoever.

Xander smiled sheepishly, a small blush appearing on his cheeks. "oh" he muttered seemingly at a loss of what to say before he regained his bearings "That…." He bit his lips and looked away for a moment before returning his gaze to Wanda "I wanted to give it to you in person; I thought I should, but I couldn't bear the thought of looking at your face and never seeing you again, if not knowing if I ever would." He told her in a sincere voice

Wanda's gaze softened slightly, upon feeling the sincerity behind Xander's words and realizing that in that moment he truly cared for her, in his own way. Her heart beat faster slightly at her own thoughts and a small smile graced her lips. She never met anyone who was so selfless. But as she gazed at him her powers kicked in and she heard a few of his thoughts as they stood in a comfortable silence "god how is it possible for someone to be so kind yet fierce at the same time? She sure knows how to throw a punch that's for sure."

Wanda couldn't help but chuckle at Xander's thoughts before she looked at him with a beautiful smile. "so, you mentioned in your letter that you were going to college to pursue your dreams." Wanda stated Xander smiled a nodded "yeah I just moved here in august, care to get a cup of coffee with me and talk about it?" he asked with a dazzling grin that made Wanda's heart sped up all the more.

Wanda's eyes widened and a small pink blush stained her cheeks at the proposal, before remembering the last time the two had an outing together. How she ran off on him because of the fact she mentioned her deceased brother. He did deserve an explanation for that one, since he probably was confused about that one. Besides she did have fun with him regardless and wanted to continue pursuing him as long as both he and fate continued to give her that chance and she knew that he wanted the same so why not? trusting her instincts, Wanda smiled and grabbed Xander's hand with her own flashing him her own smile. "I'd love too Xander." She said her voice barely above a whisper. She watched as Xander looked at her his own cheeks going red. It was quite adorable, and Wanda wished that she would have been able to take a picture but she couldn't without Xander noticing her deed

Xander nodded before gripping Wanda's hand tighter and mouthed "Thank you" causing Wanda's grin to widen before to two moved to stand next to each other in line. unconsciously Wanda, moved closer to Xander, molding her body close to his. The two waited in line for a while until it was their turn to order. Xander (reluctantly) moved away from Wanda (much to her dismay) and moved closer to the barista to rder a drink but not before turning to Wanda and asking "What do you want Wanda?" he asked the angel he was enamored with.

Wanda looked at her crush, surprised by his thoughtfulness before she looked at the menu and pondered over it for a moment before deciding on one in particular, the French Vanilla latte. "I'll take the French Vanilla Latte." She said. Xander nodded before turning to the Barista, ordering the Latte for Wanda and much to the girls surprise getting a hot chocolate for himself. The boy paid for his drinks and led Wanda to a nearby table. Xander place the drinks on the table even took the time to pull out the chair for Wanda "my, what a gentleman." Wanda thought as she took her seat never taking her eyes off of Xander as he sat in his own seat.

"One French Vanilla latte made especially for a beautiful woman." He said slyly pushing the drink closer to Wanda. Grinning, Wanda took the drink and gingerly took a sip from the cup reveling in the warm feeling of Vanilla going down her throat. Moaning slightly, she pulled her lips away from the cup, placing it down to see Xander taking a swig of his own sweet concoction. That's when Wanda realized that she better make some conversation since this was technically her second date with Xander and she wanted to make it a good one this time around. Since the last time she had seen him was about him following his dreams, per the note she had read at what was their usual spot at the Barton residence and that had been months ago, she had a lot to catch up on and she wanted to figure out why Xander was in New York of all places. It seemed like a dream come true for Wanda, if not a unusual set of coincidences, either way she was very happy to accept the idea of Xander in the same area as her. It would make for a better time getting to know him as opposed to seeing him only when at the Barton farm. Her heart warmed at the very idea of being able to meet Xander in the city at the very least once a week if she could find the time to squeeze him in her very heavy schedule (which she no doubt would) that is, if he could also do the same. But given she was a superhero and he was a civilian it shouldn't be that hard to do, at least for him. And it wasn't like there was a world ending threat every other day, so hopefully Wanda wasn't going to be too busy all the time.

Xander placed his cup down, only for Wanda to look at him oddly when she realized that there was a distinctive white moustache on his upper lip. She clapped her hand over her mouth trying to contain her giggles, causing Xander to tilt his head and look at her like she had grown a second head "What?" he asked, though his voice broke, her laughter infecting him slightly. Wanda just continued to giggle in her hand, doing her best to contain her laughter until….

"Is there something on my face?" Xander asked, raising a hand to his lips only to answer his own question when he felt the whipped cream on his upper lip. That did it. Wanda burst out into laughter, her beautiful voice mingling in the air like the sound of a melodic bell. Xander despite being taken by the wonderous laugh was quick to grab a napkin and wipe his face, after clearing away any creamy substance from his lip, he glanced at Wanda, who was still giggling, and a mischievous smirk came over his face as a wicked thought entered his mind.

"Oh Wanda…." He said dipping his finger into his whipped cream, but Wanda didn't notice as she began to get control of herself. She opened her eyes, the word "Yes" on the tip of her tongue but, unfortunately, she was never able to speak the word for as soon as she opened her eyes, Xander wiped his finger over Wanda's nose, smearing it with whipped cream. Wanda froze her eyes widening in shock… before she burst out laughing once again surprised by Xander's guts and enjoying the friendly if not flirty behavior. Xander also began to chuckle likely due to the success of his prank. Wanda continued to giggle even as she quickly dabbed her nose with her napkin taking a moment to then settle down. Afterwards she looked at Xander with a sly grin "You sure have guts Xander I'll give you that." She said teasingly. "But I wouldn't recommend doing that again."

Xander just returned Wanda's grin wagging his finger in a playfully threatening way "why is that my dear Wanda?"

Wanda opened her mouth to respond when she realized that out of all the things she should say 'because im an Avenger' was not one of them, at least at the moment so she clamped her mouth shut and swallowed her words trying to think of a good cover. Thankfully he training with Natasha came in handy and she was able to come up with a good cover story very quickly 'because I have my friends on speed dial." She retorted. Not exactly a lie, not the whole truth. Perfect. Xander just grinned wider at that and said "so you do live here in New York then?" he asked "well then I'm glad I'm going to school here for the next few years.

Wanda's eyes widened slightly, remembering the note. "so that's what you meant by following your dreams." She said leaning forward and placing her head on her hands. "You're going to school here?" she asked. Xander nodded "I'm getting an art degree at Columbia University starting this year."

Wanda smiled remembering the drawing that she still had tucked away in her room back at the compound. Xander would do well with an art degree if his drawings were half as good as that one was. Partly she was jealous of Xander, as he had the benefits of parents and a normal life, something that was stolen from her when she was only 10 years old, but she wasn't going to let that bother her. Instead she let one of her hands fall on the table, and much to her surprise Xander reached forward and gently grabbed Wanda's hand. Wanda looked up at her crush and the two locked eyes and for the first time Wanda felt locked in place. The next thing she knew, she was leaning forward, with Xander reciprocating the gesture and the two locked lips together in a tender kiss

As always leave your thoughts.