Agony (Wanda Maximoff)

Chapter 52

||Everything I need I get from you.||

Wanda kicked off her blankets, feeling way too hot for sleep. After dinner, Pietro insisted she get some rest, but she was only able to sleep for a few hours before wanting to check on Katarina. The memory kept appearing in her head--of Sapphire and of what might have happened to her. It was obvious Trask had something to do with it, but she couldn't imagine what he might have done with her. 

On the floor, Pietro stirred, and Wanda got up to pull the blanket over him. She wanted him to sleep in his own room, but he didn't want to leave her alone. 

Quietly, Wanda left the warm room, and made her way towards Katarina. The last Wanda checked, Emma stayed with the girl, but it had been hours, and she was sure that Emma had gone back upstairs to get some rest as well. 

The two Agents standing guard in front of the hall that led to Katarina spotted Wanda immediately, but she was in no mood to use her magic on them. "May I see her?" she asked them kindly, and they looked at each other for a moment before stepping aside to let her in. When they opened the door, she was surprised to see Steve sitting down in the hall in front of Katarina's room. His head was resting against the wall, and he looked as though he was asleep. 

Tentatively, she walked over to him, kneeling down beside him. She watched as his eyes moved around in his sleep, and she wondered what he was dreaming about. 

Wanda brought her hand up to touch his face, and she ran her finger down his cheek, admiring his soft, warm skin. She knew he hadn't slept in days; he was too busy trying to come up with a plan of attack, but he kept hitting a wall. And it wasn't his fault, it wasn't his job to secure everyone's safety--he chooses to do that, out of the goodness in his heart. And Steve was always so worried about everyone else, that he sometimes forgot about himself. 

Without disturbing him, Wanda cuddled up beside him, putting his arm around her so that she was nuzzled up against his warm body.

On the other side of the glass, Katarina was asleep. Her body curled up in the corner of the room, with embers scattered across the floor around her. From where Wanda was sitting, they looked like individual stars, all surrounding her with light and warmth. 

"Hi," his deep voice caught her attention, and when she lifted her head, Steve was staring down at her, his eyes still glossy with sleep. 

"Go back to sleep," she whispered, and he grinned. 

"Is that an order?" 

"Yes," she answered, and he closed his eyes. Wanda watched him, and she knew he wasn't asleep, because his beautiful smile soon took over, and he just pulled her in closer to him. "What are you doing down here?" she asked him, resting her head on his chest. Beneath the sweater he wore, she could hear the steadiness of his heartbeat, and she closed her eyes and waited for his answer. 

"I don't really know," he said candidly. "I thought I came down here to talk to her, but, she was sleeping." He began to rub her arm slowly, relaxing her even more. "Is there any hope of helping her?" 

Wanda shifted against him, placing her hand on his stomach as she got comfortable. "There is always hope," she said to him. "We just have guide her, and she will find that control eventually. I just don't want her father getting in the way. Who knows what he would do to her." 

"If there's anyone who can help her, I think it's you." 

She smiled, wrapping her arm around his waist. "What happened between you and Bucky?" she asked him randomly, and she could feel his body go rigid beneath her. Wanda lifted her head to meet his eyes, but he just looked away. "You don't have to answer that," she immediately said, feeling as though she had crossed a line she wasn't supposed to cross.