Natasha came upstairs after an intentionally long workout to find Vision sitting in the blue rocking chair primly, and Wanda asleep on her bed with a blanket very carefully folded around her. "Enjoying watching her sleep?" Nat deadpanned, knowing quite well he had certainly not done anything untoward to Wanda just because she had let herself fall asleep.

"No, I have been guarding Wanda because you were not here." Vision seemed to rethink this answer and amended, "Yes, it pleases me that she has granted me enough trust to allow herself to sleep." He stood up and then floated over to Wanda silently. "I can feel her mind, through the stone. She does not feel quite so smothered any longer."

"Smothered..?" Nat asked quietly.

Vision appeared to be processing and considering how to explain that. Besides, he did not want to wake Wanda up now, either. "Wanda's mind felt like there was something restraining her inside previously, locking her down. She seems healthier now."

"...Could you feel her with your infinity stone during those three weeks?"

Vision considered this, touching his own forehead and then studying sleeping Wanda. "I do not know precisely, but there were disturbing flashes whilst recharging. It felt as if I might be somewhere else being ripped apart and silently crying for help. I believed these flashes were my own equivalent of a nightmare, but if my interpretation is correct, those things were not merely nightmares. However, Wanda is not in pieces, of course, so perhaps I am wrong. You have been caring for her. Do you believe she will cease being in pain entirely soon?"

Natasha decided not to tease the concerned synthezoid this time. "Probably not, but she's fine. She's safe, she's getting stronger, and she feels much better than before. Don't fuss over her, Vision. She will hate it. Just treat her the same as you would have before."

"I do not wish to treat Wanda the same as before. She let me kiss her, and she reciprocated. It was quite pleasant."

Natasha smirked slightly. "I see. Well, that took long enough. You just make sure she's comfortable with whatever you two decide to do. No more incidents like with her hair."

Vision continued studying sleeping Wanda, eyeing her red braids. "Wanda has lovely hair. Those people should not have been yanking it," he stated in a strangely flat tone, and carefully adjusted the pillow he had tucked under Wanda's hurt arm before.

This made Wanda stir and wakeThank up with a jerk, but she quickly relaxed. I am safe here. I must have fallen asleep out on the balcony deck and...Vis put me in here? The idea did not disturb her; she trusted that he wouldn't have done anything to her while she was sleeping, but she felt guilty for doing so and wasting their limited time together. "Sorry I fell asleep," she said sleepily. There was only Natasha and Vision here. She did not need to be frightened or anxious here, so there.

"Humans need sleep, especially ones healing from severe injuries," Vision answered, and happily accepted Wanda's hug. "I am glad you have awoken though, as I must leave soon."

Natasha watched them fondly, mostly just pleased to see Wanda happy and not quite so jumpy. Knowing the girl had been comfortable enough to fall asleep in the first place said much more than any hugs or kisses ever would.

"What did you two do last night after dinner and Tony left?" Clint asked the next morning after breakfast.

Wanda paused in her own tiny morning exercise plan to simply walk the length of the balcony deck repeatedly until she was too tired. The smooth slats of the deck were easier than the uneven gravel of the hilly driveway, and she could practice walking a few steps without support while still knowing she could grab the railing again when she needed to. "A short walk outside in the driveway. I fell because I was so tired, and then Vis carried me up here. We sat on the balcony for a bit before I fell asleep," she explained briefly.

Clint was very sure Wanda was telling the truth but leaving things out. "Very vague," he commented.

Wanda hesitantly released the railing and walked the few feet over to her friend a bit shakily, who immediately took her arm and helped her sit. "I know I'm getting better, but it is taking too long," she muttered. "This is frustrating. My ankle doesn't even hurt anymore. I'm just...shaky. Balance all ruined."

"I'm glad it isn't hurting you anymore, at least." Clint thought hearing Wanda casually say her ankle no longer hurt was a big deal, because regardless of how much she claimed she was 'fine', it had been very obvious that the sore ankle still pained her before. He watched her turn to the little glass-topped table near the chair and lift the tray she'd left there with her magic and move it to her lap.

Wanda poured the cup of acorns out across the tray, and began methodically moving them one by one back into the cup. "Me too, but I still hate it. I just..." Wanda closed her eyes, struggling to find the right words. "I can't fix my head. I think...I think that I can't help hoping if I fix the outside of me, then maybe the rest will...fix too. And I sort of miss our missions, even if they were unpleasant often. I like helping people. Now I can't. I feel like a...one of those broken pool toys Cooper had to throw out because they weren't usable anymore. But..." she trailed off, and then just decided to tell the truth. "Then I have things happen that really do feel like things a normal girl my age might have. I was so happy last night. We didn't...do anything, really. But I was still me, and it didn't matter."

Clint saw a single tear fall to Wanda's lap and instantly wrapped her in a hug. "I don't know what you see in that robot, but-"

"He isn't a robot," Wanda interrupted firmly. "He has emotions and feelings just like you or me, and I think he...he cares for me. I don't know why, but he does. I don't mean like you and Nat do, either." I don't know how to explain. I'm trying.

"I'm glad he makes you happy, Wanda. I just...don't want you hurt yet again if he doesn't love you the same way back, or breaks your heart in some other way. I've seen you. You are deeply, deeply attached to the people you love, feel things very intensely, and you're very emotive even if you try not to be." Clint did not add that he rather thought throwing romance into that mix just accentuated that aspect of Wanda's personality. This morning her big green eyes had been practically glowing when she came downstairs for breakfast, and not the often glowing red from her powers when she was distressed or angry either. Then she'd whispered something in Natasha's ear that clearly amused her and made her happy, because she stifled a quiet giggle. "Exhibit A: your behavior at breakfast this morning."

Wanda blinked in surprise and went back to moving the acorns, though she was happy Clint stayed close to her. Company was good. Company meant she was not locked somewhere alone. "Vision kissed my hands," she said quietly. She twirled a bit of scarlet around her fingers and stared at it. "They ruin things. But he was not scared of them." I wasn't going to say anything, but I think I would rather just...share it than wait and have Clint find out later. He probably already knew, anyway.

Clint did not tell Wanda that he had quite frankly been very worried and assumed the two had jumped to much more than 'just' that. "This made you happy."

"Very much. I, um...I didn't think anyone could ever like me...that way. Not after...you know. I am not normal anymore." Wanda moved the acorn tray back to the table telekinetically and impulsively gave Clint a hug. "Thank you. I think Papa would be glad I can talk to you since he isn't...here."

Clint found Wanda hugs special, since while she did enjoy hugs very much, she was picky with who could have them. Reserved, quiet Wanda including him in her circle she deemed safe to hug meant a lot, especially when she then just casually compared him to her father, even after those miserable weeks trapped in the Raft. "You might be bigger than Lila, but you still remind me of her. She just talks more than you."

Wanda didn't add her immediate thought, and she can't mind-control or kill people with a thought, because right now that did not matter; she was safe and in control of herself and her magic, too. "Let's practice like back at the Compound. You liked sparring with Nat yesterday, right?"

Clint sighed. "It was refreshing, yes. Still don't want you overdoing things though. Promise you'll tell someone if you feel tired?"

I almost always feel at least a little tired now, Wanda thought, but she nodded. "If it feels like I'm hurting myself, I will tell you."

Much to Wanda's relief, Clint agreed to let her practice with both Natasha and himself out in the woods on the hill behind the vacation house. Wanda still could not really handle climbing a hill on her own, but as Nat pointed out, dealing with working together with one team member injured was technically very useful practice anyway. "Maybe I could just put up a shield and end any danger there," Wanda deadpanned. "If you are carrying me, I can protect us."

Natasha smiled but shook her head. "You could, but let's have you catch Clint's arrows instead. I've got you, so don't worry about falling. We already know you can create shields; you did that even during the Raft escape. We need to increase your reflex time and practice less obvious skills than encasing yourself in a force field. Not only that, none of us can neutralize a threat if you're protecting us that way."

"Okay."

"And don't try using your magic with the fractured arm yet. I know you feel better, but I don't want you re-injuring it, either."

"...Okay." Wanda scanned the woods, looking for Clint. An arrow thunked into a tree trunk a couple feet away, and she knew he was just purposely aiming close but not right at Natasha and herself, for obvious reasons.

"Find him mentally," Nat said quietly. "You can do that without poking into his head, like when you sensed the raccoons before." She pulled Wanda into a small copse of brush and shrubby bushes and ducked further inside with her.

"I'm not supposed to use any mind tricks," Wanda said, surprised. I did that too much during the Raft escape and then I wanted to do it to those people at the hotel. I feel like I shouldn't do it at all.

"Pretty incompetent villain out here," Clint called. "If they're half as good a shot as me, you two would be caught by now."

Natasha ignored this and gently rested her hands on Wanda's shoulders. "Fury isn't here now. I've changed my mind, and I'm sure Sam and Steve would agree if you asked them. Arguably this is not mind tricks regardless. I want you to sense him, not do anything to his head. You do that much on instinct often."

"And you feel comfortable at the idea of me doing that to you?" Wanda asked softly. I know Nat cares about me, but I also know she wouldn't feel comfortable with that.

"Wanda, you do it to me fairly often passively. I know you do. It's okay. If you can do it passively, you can do it by choice, too," Nat told her.

Clint's head popped into their little hideout, and Wanda instinctively pushed him out with her magic. "Let me in," he called. "Timeout on practice."

"Oh...sorry." Wanda dispersed the scarlet wisps and scooted away from the opening, leaves crunching beneath her.

"You're okay?" Clint asked. When Wanda nodded, Clint raised one eyebrow and just stared at her. "Then, you should have easily caught me, busted arm or not. This isn't no-magic sparring. Not right now. Either you're not ready for this yet, or you're holding back. Explain."

I don't know. "I feel guilty," Wanda said finally. This was not the same as just playing with Lila and Cooper, or telepathically talking to Vision, or using her magic to help support herself walking when she was tired.

"You've been saying you wanted to practice 'properly' for awhile," Clint said gently. "Does it have anything to do with feeling less than generous about what you'd like to do to Ross?"

"...I don't know. I suppose. I wanted to mind-control him. On the Raft. And now I wonder if I should have. If I could have gotten us out."

"If you could have, then that asshole is lucky you were merciful and didn't shred him," Clint answered. "I suspect you could have at the beginning and none of us knew how, just not...later on."

Wanda nodded; she agreed with that assessment completely. All she really would have needed to do was mind-control the guards aboard the helicopter taking them to the Raft. Then she would have still been shocked once in order to accomplish that much, yes, but after that, she would have been able to rip the deactivated collar off herself...and force the pilot(s) to say or do whatever was necessary to not complete the prisoner transport and prevent the helicopter from being shot down. But no, she refused to use that mind-control as per previous instructions, and there had been nothing else at her disposal to do. And that's basically what Nat told me immediately. "Let's try again. I will do my job this time."

Much to Wanda's surprise, Vision called her in the afternoon while the vacation house group was all out by the pool. "Hello. I didn't expect to hear from you again so soon, but I'm glad," she greeted him.

"I suppose you might not be as glad when you hear the current news. The footage clip Ms. Romanoff sent over immediately pulled strings. Hawkeye and Falcon are cleared for house arrest, for an as yet undetermined amount of time. Mr. Wilson would have to turn over his suit," Vision began.

Wanda frowned and caught Natasha's glance, nodding for her to come over to her. "Vis, I am putting the call on speaker. What about Scott? Sam doesn't even want to cut a deal," Wanda reminded him.

"The problem is Mr. Lang's previous criminal record. I believe with more time, his should be pushed through as well. But we wished to update you." Vision paused, and Wanda knew he must be thinking.

"I know there is more," Wanda said quietly.

"Secretary Ross denies any condoning of the way you were being treated and claims ignorance, which makes him appear incompetent but not criminal. No one has any issue with those...inhumane restraints, but it seems many government and UN individuals do have an issue with other incidents occurring in that prison."

"Vision. Keeping someone restrained like that for weeks is in of itself torture," Natasha snapped. "You can tell Tony and the entire UN that. If you need to take advantage of the more obvious torture that was happening there, then do it. But you make damn sure you don't let anyone forget what was happening literally constantly."

"Romanoff, the problem is that they believe that some concessions must be made regarding human rights laws because she's an unpredictable, unstable, very powerful enhanced," Tony put in now. There was a brief complaint from Vision saying that Tony was interrupting. "She's a walking nuke, that's just a fact. On top of that, she's also in a pinch because she isn't technically a US citizen. Forget windbag Ross, that's making it difficult too. What Vision is trying to say nicely is that we've got that Damian guy fired. But all we've got for Wanda herself is that if she handed herself in peacefully, she wouldn't be interrogated or tortured again constantly in the Raft, aside from the restraints themselves."

"Why the hell would I agree to that?" Wanda snapped.

"Chill, Little Red, I don't expect you to do that. I'm just updating you. Obviously you're much safer as a fugitive," Tony shot back immediately, in an uncharacteristically kind voice he never used on her.

Wanda sighed, ignoring the milder now but still lingering pain in her ribs. "Tony, stop attempting to help cut me a deal," she said quietly. "You are not going to be able to do anything for me that...that I would agree to, and you trying to...help me, is going to make it more difficult for you to stay on...on Ross's good side." Oh wait, he doesn't have one, Wanda thought, but she didn't add that.

"Thought you'd be willing to stay at Hawkeye's on house arrest."

Wanda's eyes grew hot with tears, and she scooted closer to Natasha, who put an arm around her shoulders. I would. I definitely would. I would stay there permanently if I had to, if Clint and his family wanted me. "Nobody will let me," she choked out finally.

"Tony, she's right. While that's a nice thought, it isn't going to happen. If you're getting into red tape with Scott, who isn't even enhanced, you're certainly not going to be able to help Wanda," Natasha said firmly. "Don't bother with me, either. I don't want any deal anyway. The two of us are messy to deal with. Scott isn't, in comparison."

"You and Little Red are going to have to leave that house if Barton goes home," Tony warned. "Not because I don't want you there, to be clear. Vision and I will move some money around and dump some in an off-shore account under one of your aliases."

Natasha took a deep breath and glanced at Wanda. "Sounds fine. Thank you."

"It doesn't, in fact, sound fine."

"God, Tony, money isn't really the problem, though we do appreciate that very much. It isn't you. I'm just thinking how to help Wanda stay hidden once we do leave, that's all. She's much better, but not ready to travel easily, either."

"Eh, if she's with you, she'll be fine. Give this a few more days and we should have Lang's deal through."

Over the next several- not few- days, the calm daily routine in the vacation house continued, with Wanda practicing disguising her natural accent with Natasha and eagerly practicing her magic outdoors with both Clint and Nat. The long uneven driveway began to look not quite so daunting; and while she still couldn't go running with the others, she did take gradually longer walks with Cooper and Lila instead, which seemed to help.

Twenty-fourth day since the rescue, Wanda thought, staring at herself dressed in her hero suit, just sans long jacket, in the bathroom mirror. I have been out of there for longer than I was stuck there. She was glad nearly everything was healed entirely by now, all except the leftover itchy marks across her neck, though it did look much better now...and her arm, which remained contained in its splint, though she had been trying to use her bad hand more for small things anyway. "If I leave here, I am not going to get us caught. I won't," she ordered herself.

"Are you all right?" Nat called from outside the bathroom. "You're taking an awfully long time in there."

Wanda quickly opened the door. "Sorry, I was just thinking. I know we will have to leave almost any day now, and, well..." she put her hand to her neck. I hate it and I'm scared someone will put two and two together if they see me. The two small areas where she suspected those prongs painfully dug into her skin the worst had left angry raised scars, but the rest just looked pink and blotchy now and looked better every time she studied it.

Natasha gave her a critical look and didn't question why her younger teammate had decided to don her suit all of a sudden. "That isn't so bad, Wanda, really. Looks like that cream Vision brought you before is helping quite a bit. How's it feeling now?"

"Itchy. I just...I don't know. I shouldn't care, but I still do anyway. Nat, I still can't even get my arm into the coat." And I had to use my magic to put the top on. Wanda looked more annoyed than upset, which Natasha was honestly glad to see. Annoyed Wanda meant she was more okay than not.

"We're not doing any missions until your arm heals completely anyway. I've seen you using it more, and we adjusted that lock hinge a few days ago so you can use your elbow a bit. Don't rush it, and please don't take that splint off yet."

Wanda experimentally moved the tender elbow the small amount the splint had been adjusted to allow her to, and bit her lip. "I won't. Moving it hurts. Don't tell Clint that, because I might have let him think it didn't." She shrugged and walked back into the bedroom, happy that she could at least do that much easily without support now. "Did Yelena text you back?" I know Nat has been trying to set something up for us, but we're still just stuck in limbo for now.

"She has. What do you think of hiding out at Melina's for a little while?" Natasha suggested. "I still have...mixed feelings about her, but I do trust her not to turn us in. It was Yelena's idea. Otherwise, it's just a matter of us picking a safe house. You've seen our list. As far as I'm concerned, you can pick."

"A colder area would be better to hide me," Wanda mused aloud. "And I would love to meet Yelena. I just...I hope she doesn't hate me." I wouldn't like me. Nat hasn't been able to come visit her in weeks because of me.

Nat decided not to share that while Yelena was clearly interested in meeting Wanda, she also continued calling her 'Nat stealer' in messages. "She's not going to hate you, and you just remember that two of you being around doesn't mean I care any less. So...go to Melina's? I do want to warn you that Alexei is there and he can be a bit much, to say the least."

"Is he going to turn us in?"

"Absolutely not. He's a narcissistic obnoxious character, and he'll be infuriating to be around, but he would not do that to us. If anything, he would happily defend us if there was trouble."

Wanda smiled a little and nodded. "Okay. I trust you. What about Sam and Steve?"

"They'll stay in France for now unless something happens. Like Steve pointed out when we all video chatted yesterday, they're in a tourist trap right now. They can blend in as dumb American tourists there. Your disguised accent isn't perfect, but it's already fairly decent, so once we leave here, use that. Then when we do reach Europe, switch." Privately, Natasha wished she had practiced that with Wanda months ago, but back at the Compound, Wanda had always either been cast as the 'I don't speak much English' undercover role, or she was speaking Russian or German, both of which the girl sounded much more natural speaking than English. Or, it was simply a mission where the team needed Wanda's firepower and her accented English did not matter in the first place. "For the two of us, it will be easy to blend in Russia. Cap and Sam...not so much."

Wanda nodded, feeling a bit excited about the plan along with the anxiousness that would not go away. Maybe...maybe we can actually do this.

Vision reappeared at the vacation house the next day in his human disguise, with a vehicle after messaging Wanda first, saying he would love to take her out somewhere nearby. Wanda's initial gut reaction was to say absolutely not, too dangerous, but Natasha suggested going to a drive-in movie, which sounded fun and such a normal thing to do that Wanda grew excited even before Vision said yes or no. That was something she had seen on her vintage sitcoms, and she honestly hadn't even realized any still existed now.

"There's one about an hour or so from here. Glen Drive-In Theatre," Natasha said casually, looking quite pleased with the idea. "Little interaction with others, Wanda can practice disguising her accent, and you two can spend time together safely on your own."

Wanda smoothed her simple black dress and fiddled with the soft light scarf Nat had given her awkwardly, unsure if she should say something else or not. Natasha had also done a small waterfall braid in her hair and lightly curled the rest, leaving it in loose red waves over Wanda's shoulders.

Wanda suspected Nat simply enjoyed helping set up a date, especially since Nat knew the idea made Wanda happy.

Clint sighed very deeply but just patted Wanda's shoulder. "I don't like this, but I still want you to have fun. You call us if you need anything. I don't care what it is. Even if you just feel uncomfortable, please let us know."

Wanda worried Vision might be offended, but he only nodded. "Mr. Barton, I will bring Wanda back immediately if she is no longer enjoying herself. I promise."

Clint nodded and gave her a little push toward the door. "Go enjoy yourself. You deserve it."

Hearing that about something good instead of someone spitting this is what you deserve at her on the Raft made her feel like crying, but she turned and just hugged Clint as tightly as she could. "I don't...know if I can believe that yet, but thank you for saying it," she whispered. I do want to be happy. I'm trying.

This time Clint did not attempt arguing with her; he merely hugged her back and told her he would keep saying it until she did believe it.

Once in Vision's vehicle, a nondescript sedan this time, Wanda realized she did not have Natasha here to make it less anxiety-inducing. She sat stiffly in her seat hugging herself and staring at the floor debating how to explain herself. Say something, she ordered herself. "I don't- don't like seatbelts now. Can...can we open the window?"

Vision was confused, but quickly opened the window just as Nat came over from the porch. "Do you wish to remain here instead?"

"...No."

"Wanda, do the same thing we've done a dozen times over the past week or so. You don't need me," Natasha said, leaning her elbows on the open window.

Wanda understood what Nat meant easily. Over the past several days, Natasha had brought her out to the charcoal SUV every day and simply had her sit in it with her seatbelt on for a few minutes each time. It was, admittedly, a little better than before and not quite so horribly unpleasant. "I'll try."

"Of course you will. Vision, you pull over and comfort her if she panics, you hear me? You better take good care of her and treat her properly."

"Properly...? What else would I do with Wanda?" Vision thought it was obvious that he should take care of Wanda, especially if she was upset. "Obviously, I should take care of her. I have invited her out and wish her to be happy."

"Oh good god, forget it," Natasha muttered, but she was smiling. "You two have fun."

Wanda managed to fasten the seatbelt herself, her gaze on her friend while she mentally listed sensory things of the immediate surroundings. This is not so bad. And...it helps that simply sitting here isn't making my ribs hurt so badly now, either. She waved at Natasha, Clint, Laura, and the children all outside.

The driveway itself was still not exactly pleasant, but it was still so much better than when she and Nat had to leave the vacation house temporarily before. Once she and Vision were out on the road, she just said, "Thank you for inviting me to do something...normal."

"Of course. Your company is always enjoyable. Do you consider this a date? According to my research, couples often go to movies together."

"Yes, but..." Wanda considered how to explain for a moment. "It's a date because of how I feel about you, not because we are going to a movie. I could go see a movie with Nat or Clint, and it wouldn't be a romantic date outing."

"But my brain does not produce dopamine and norepinephrine, and I believe I am feeling the same or equivalent emotions towards you regardless of that." Vision reached for Wanda's hand and then thought he should probably maintain safety with both hands on the steering wheel. "I do not wish to be unable to reciprocate the emotions you are willing to show me."

"Vis, I don't even know what those things are. Maybe your brain produces something else that we don't have a name for yet. You are unendingly kind to me and you...you kissed my hands. Someone willing to do that to someone like me doesn't...not have human emotions," Wanda said firmly, and quickly swiped at her eyes before any tears could fall. I don't know how to explain any better. She hesitated again and finally just finished telepathically instead. "I can't explain how much that meant to me. Especially after I couldn't move for so long because I am dangerous. It made me feel like a normal girl. That I am not just what they made me. Someone willing to care for me like that has human emotions, period."

Vision privately decided he would hold and kiss Wanda's delicate hands, those same hands also capable of ripping vibranium apart, all the time if that made her so happy. "Why do you refer to yourself in such a derogatory manner even when you are happy?" He could easily sense that Wanda was genuinely content and mostly relaxed at the moment.

I don't know. "Because it's...true. I am still me, I think. I know I can't control people being scared of me, not unless I literally mind-control them of course. Knowing that still hurts anyway, even if I am happy otherwise." Wanda spoke slowly, carefully switching to her disguised accent voice that Natasha wanted her to practice.

Vision's immediate reaction was, "Wanda, what did you do to your voice? You sound different."

"Practicing my American accent to help disguise my natural one."

"Oh." Vision considered this for a moment. He understood that Wanda disguising her Sokovian accent would make it easier for her to hide, but he also liked hearing her natural accent all the same. "You are doing a good job, though I do enjoy hearing your natural voice."

Wanda smiled at that. "If you told me what I would be doing now a month ago, I would have thought I was just dreaming," she told him. She touched her curled hair and then ran her fingers over the dress. While under ordinary circumstances she would, admittedly, have accessorized the simple dress much more, Wanda still felt pretty, just like Natasha had insisted she would. Before Vision had arrived, Nat made her look at the finished ensemble in the mirror, saying she would surprise herself.

A month ago she had still been trapped in that underwater prison cell, scared and hurt. That girl definitely would have thought she was just imagining things.

Vision knew exactly what Wanda meant, and he carefully removed one hand from the steering wheel to squeeze Wanda's hand. "You are safe now. This is real."

"I know. I'm glad."

They rode in a pleasant silence the rest of the trip, and Wanda was just content to sense Vision's presence with her. Though she still didn't like riding in the car, she felt more or less okay about it right now. This was safe, and while she could tell Vision knew she was still a bit anxious, he didn't question it either.

Vision found the drive-in theater easily, and once settled, pulled the two collapsible chairs Laura had found in the vacation house for them, and set them up in front of the car. "Do you want anything to eat?" he asked.

Wanda shook her head. "I just want to sit with you." Vision couldn't eat anything, and she didn't want to ask for popcorn or anything like that just for herself. She was hesitant to get out of the car at all, but Vision offered her his hand and hugged her close the second she accepted. I am here, I am safe, and I am doing something so ordinary and normal it's special to me.

"You look lovely," Vision said softly in her ear.

"See, don't you like me better like this than when you first came to visit?"

"No, unless you are merely addressing the fact that you feel better. You feel better here," Vision told her quietly, touching Wanda's forehead lightly. Then he thought he should have asked before doing that, but Wanda didn't seem to mind; she just buried her face in his shoulder and stayed very still hugging him.

"I do feel better. Thank you." Wanda thought Vision's comment was sweet. While she genuinely enjoyed dressing up and doing so made her feel better about herself no matter what Vision said, it was still reassuring to her that he did not seem to care what she was wearing at all. "Obviously you don't have to if you don't want to, but I am just reminding you it's okay to talk to me this way."

Vision grabbed the blanket from the car in case it was too chilly (also provided courtesy of Laura), guided Wanda to their chairs, and sat down with her, draping the blanket around both of them. He genuinely did not feel cold at all, but Wanda was just wearing her lightweight black dress, and he knew she seemed to feel chilled more easily since the Raft. Vision wasn't sure why, but he didn't want her to be cold, either. "You are sure this is acceptable? I don't wish to intrude," he ventured carefully. "You know I can sense your feelings more if you let me do this."

Wanda didn't answer, telepathically or otherwise, for a few minutes. She just rested her head on Vision's shoulder and stayed as close as she could. The paranormal comedy movie seemed funny, but she was not particularly paying all that much attention to it, either, content to simply be there. Finally she simply replied, "That's okay. You usually sense how I feel anyway."

"I do not wish to intrude. I know you like your privacy, but as long as you are certain." Vision was extremely relieved that Wanda remained at ease and didn't seem anxious or upset now at all. He gave her hand a gentle squeeze and received a contented sigh in response.

No one bothered or even approached them throughout the movie, and they were able to leave the drive-in smoothly with no issue whatsoever. Vision even helped with the seatbelt issue, unintentionally making Wanda laugh by saying, "This is illogical, so I will help you process this fear so that it no longer distresses you." This reasoning was so matter-of-fact and sensitive coming from Vision that it inherently helped her feel better about it.

Wanda texted Nat to say they were leaving, just for safety purposes. Certainly she and Vision could take care of themselves if they did run into trouble, but she wanted to make sure her friend knew what she was doing all the same, just in case.

"Did you like the movie?" Vision asked once they were back on the road.

"It was okay. One of the characters looked sort of like Thor, if he had glasses," Wanda commented, sounding quite amused. "But I would have been happy with any movie. I just...I really, really enjoy being with you. I've never had a real date before. This is perfect to me." Absolutely perfect.