Fire and Smoke - Wanda Maximoff x Reader

Chapter 74

"Focus."

"You focus."

"Stop being annoying."
"No." I retort, planting my feet on the frozen ground, staring at Wanda's dark silhouette a few steps ahead of me.

"What are you doing now?" She turns around, the moonlight shining in her eyes, an exasperated look on her face.

"I'm not doing this." I stubbornly say, trying to fight my body's impulse of keeping in line with what I've been ordered to do. Wanda raises a questioning eyebrow, no doubt seeing my struggle.

"I don't think you have much of a choice." She scoffs, crossing her arms over her chest with a small smile on her face.

"Maybe not, but you do, Wanda. You know you do." I murmur and Wanda's lips part slightly as she exhales, her breath coming out in a little foggy cloud that disappears as soon as it was born.

"Stop it." She mumbles back at me, her smile faltering.

"Why are you ignoring what you know is true?" I shoot back at her and she looks like she's almost, almost considering what I just said, before one of the so-far mute guards pushes her, making her stumble and almost slip on a patch of mud.

"Move it, witch." He hoarsely says and Wanda looks at him with an expression which I would not want to be at the receiving end of, but she does as told, the red light of her collar happily flashing.

"Asshole." I mutter and join in with the rest of the silent group as we march on.

We've been tracking through a half frozen, half mud-infested field which I swear is going to be the death of me. If I don't slip and fall or sprain my ankle I think I might kiss Strucker.

And so we keep tracking, constantly fighting to stay upright and not be lost to the mud forever. There are a couple of times where I have to stop myself from trying to steady Wanda as she slips. Instead, I stay close by, just in case anything would come to happen to her. Our odd little procession is made up of us and eight of Hydra's guards. A few of them seem vaguely familiar, but I don't really know why. Maybe it's because all of them share three main personality traits: stupid, annoying, and narcissistic. Did I mention stupid?

"Remind me again why we could not just drive up?" I huff as I pull my foot out of a particularly sticky pile of mud, my boot wanting to stick to it.

"Were you not briefed before?" The biggest of the guards grumble, a big man with tattoos coming up his neck.

"My briefing consisted of do it, or we electrocute you. So, pretty brief of a brief." I hiss, annoyed at this whole fucking situation.

"Hmm, rising in the ranks." The guard chuckles slightly and I narrow my eyes at him, an odd feeling of deja vu striking me.

"Want to swap?" I quip and he shoots Wanda a glance.

"All good." He retorts dryly, his voice gruff and a sneer at him.

"So? We are tracking through this hell because you love fields at midnight?"

"You're still annoying. This is where being a bitch will get you." The guard slaps my back, sending me stumbling forwards, almost bumping into Wanda in front of me.

"Excuse me?" I pant, regaining my balance by some form of miracle.

"I've worked with you before. Didn't like you then, don't like you now."

"Well, I ain't much of a fan, either." I grimace, trying to place him, and he huffs.

"We have to walk. Safety." The guard finally says after a moment of silence, only pierced by our labored breathing.