Wanda/Maria

Maria made it through her day through deep breathing and the promise of a relaxing bath when she got home. If she ever made it home. At this point, chances weren't looking too good.

When the hell had blowing a city out of the sky become a thing? How the hell had they come to this point? Aliens. Genocidal robots. What next? Never mind, she didn't really want to know. Forget she asked.

She'd been working almost nonstop since the disaster that was the Sokovia Incident. Stark and SHIELD both had people on site now aiding in the relief efforts. Coordinating that had been a nightmare. A week later, and things were finally starting to calm down, even if the amount of paperwork and red tape she was now having to plow through meant long days, and sometimes late nights, at her desk. Dealing with world governments could be such a hassle.

She needed a break from the, for lack of a better term, bullshit.

Maybe it was time to check in on the Avengers' newest recruit. Well, newest human recruit. She really had no idea what to think of the Vision yet, and was keeping a cautious distance for now. Tony's last project had been a disaster. Vision seemed to be a completely different sort of being, but she still wasn't entirely comfortable with him yet. However, with Banner disappeared off into the wild blue yonder, Barton retiring, Thor leaving for parts unknown, and Stark deciding to focus on other things for the moment, the Avengers were a bit short staffed. Rogers and Romanoff were throwing around some ideas for replacements, but nothing had been decided quite yet. Maria had seen the contenders list, though, and she knew who she had her money on. It was just a matter of time.

Time they were putting to good use finishing construction on the new Avengers facility. Having the Avengers out of Stark's tower and out of New York City seemed like a good idea. They were having absolutely terrible luck not destroying the place. At least here they had wide open spaces in case of alien invasion or experiment gone wrong. It would house everything from a science division to living quarters for the Avengers team members themselves.

Speaking of which, Maria made her way down the hall leading to the brand new section of living quarters. This was one of the first things that had been completed in the new base, if for no other reason than to provide a place for the newest Avengers to live. Stark was throwing money into getting this place fixed up fast, so she had a feeling he was compensating for something, but she really didn't care to figure out what. Tony Stark's neuroses were not her problem, and she was damn grateful for that. She wouldn't want to be his therapist.

She sighed and promised herself some wine with her relaxing bath. Wine and, after her bath, takeout from the Chinese place down the street. A guilty pleasure, and one she could definitely use tonight.

She stopped in the Maximoff girl's doorway and did a quick double take. The Vision was there, with his arms wrapped around the girl, and they were just standing there in the middle of her room, holding each other. She heard the girl sniffle, and Maria's heart went out to her. She'd heard about the sacrifice Pietro Maximoff had made for Barton and that Sokovian child. She honestly hadn't thought the boy capable of something like that, not from their past experiences with him, but he'd proven to be a hero in the end, and had been the only one of them to fall in the battle.

Leaving his sister all alone and grieving. Maria couldn't imagine what the Maximoff girl was going through right now, having lost her brother and her home in one fell swoop, after having colluded with Ultron in the first place.

The girl noticed her first, straightening up and pulling away from the Vision awkwardly, and running a hand through her hair to pull it off her face. Vision seemed hesitant to let the girl go, but turned to face Maria anyway.

"Greetings, Ms. Hill," Vision said. "Is there something we can help you with?"

Maria hadn't had a chance to speak to speak to Wanda Maximoff yet. She took a good long look at the girl now, and noted how skinny she was, and how her hands trembled as she wiped her tears away. This girl was a mess. Was anyone watching her? Anyone but Vision?

"I was hoping to speak to Miss Maximoff for a moment," she told him. Vision nodded and turned to the girl, offering her a small smile.

"I will see you later, Wanda."

"Thank you, Vision." The girl's voice was lower than Maria had imagined, and rather alluring, with that accent. She scolded herself as she watched Vision phase through the wall and out of the room. She wondered if she would ever get used to that.

The Maximoff girl wrapped her arms around herself and stood there quietly, waiting for Maria to speak. Maria found being the focus of those green eyes was a bit discomfiting, and she had to force herself not to fidget. God, she hadn't been this nervous in years. What the hell?

"I'm Maria Hill. I basically supervise the Avengers' activities and run the base, and I'm sort of the liaison between the Avengers and, well, everybody else. I'm here to see how you're settling in." She was proud of herself for sounding so collected in the face of that utterly disarming gaze, a gaze that was now looking a little bit panicked. The girl's breathing had sped up and she was looking decidedly queasy now. "Did I say something wrong?"

All she got in reply was the girl shaking her head and rubbing her palms over her dress. Okay, she knew she called the girl weird before, but there's weird, and then there's weird.

"Do you need a doctor?" Maria asked, moving into the room.

"No doctors! I'm alright," the girl said quickly, and Maria froze in her tracks as a stinging heat Flared up on the small of her back. Oh god. They stood there staring at each other in silence, eyes wide and disbelieving in each of their faces.

"You're my soulmate," Maria said. "I always wondered why someone would say that. I guess I get it now, after everything HYDRA put you through, it makes sense." She laughed, and if the laugh sounded just a little hysterical, Maximoff let it pass.

"You are Maria Hill," the girl said, and Maria shivered at the way her name sounded when she said it. "I have had your name on me all my life. P-Piet… My brother…used to tease me about it all the time. I hated it," she said softly. Sadly.

"I'm sorry," Maria said, not knowing what else she could offer.

"Please call me Wanda," the girl said, frowning. "You and I should not be so formal." She paused, looking suddenly shy. "May I see it?"

Maria swallowed hard, but nodded. She turned around, untucking her blouse and tugging it up in the back to show her mark. She glanced over her shoulder as Wanda moved closer, and shivered when she felt the girl's fingers trace the writing on her back. God, the things this girl was doing to her self control.

"What color are we?" Maria asked to distract herself. She felt Wanda's fingers trail over her sides, then back to her mark.

"Purple," the girl said. "It is beautiful."

"I wish I could see that." Surprisingly enough, she really did. She wanted to know what color they were. She wanted to see it with her own eyes. And she sort of wanted to see her words scrawled on Wanda's skin. Was it getting hot in here? She should have someone check the air conditioning tomorrow.

"I could show you," Wanda said, taking a step back and reaching for the hem of her dress. Maria grabbed her hands, stopping her from taking it off. She knew her face was red. Had to be. She hadn't been this flustered since she was a teenager. Damn it. "Do you not want to see?" Wanda asked, her tone innocent, but her eyes holding a hint of challenge.

"Yes. I do. The mark, I mean, not…," she gestured at Wanda, who raised an eyebrow.

"Do you not find me attractive? I think you are quite beautiful," Wanda said. "I would like to know you better. I would like to be able to embrace the one person left in this world who is mine." The girl sighed. "I am not so young or inexperienced as you might think, Maria. It is alright."

Wanda had hit the nail on the head. This girl was so young, and so lost, so sad. How could Maria take advantage of that? No matter how much she might want to. Wanda tilted her head, her gaze fixed on Maria's face, then she growled in frustration and grabbed Maria by the face, pulling her into a heated kiss. Wanda released her quickly, but Maria was still left reeling.

"I want this, Maria. Make me feel something good. Please."

Maria Hill had intended to return to her paperwork, then go home and take a hot bath and relax alone. Instead, she closed the door to Wanda Maximoff's room and locked it. She smirked at Wanda, having decided to let loose and give in to what she was feeling.

"Come here. I'll take care of you," she said.