PURE AND TAINTED ( wanda maximoff )

thirty-one → i'm technically an abomination against nature

The suit was simple, but it felt perfect to her. It wrapped comfortably yet tightly around her legs, and the silver and gold detailing on the hood were old Nordic runes and words in several dead languages, all of which Tony had to heavily research to make sure he wasn't putting anything weird on it. Sure, he liked trolling Aline, but he didn't want her to have the word DICK written across her hood for the public to see. Some of the details, she had discovered, were also little stars and constellations. She was immediately touched at Tony's gesture. It may not always seem like it, but Tony genuinely cared for her and there was a part of her that was actually glad for Tony to have known about her past.

Aline didn't particularly like that her teammates and friends knew about her past and the blood she had spilt, but she had to understand that there was a certain process when it came to opening up and trusting people again. Besides, she basically knew all about them; it only felt right for them to know about her.

Holding the green gem pendant tightly in her hand, Aline quickly tossed it around her neck and tucked it under her suit. She fully zipped it up all the way, once again admiring herself in the mirror. It fit her perfectly. When this was all over, she was going to get answers out of Tony. Aline grinned to herself, then shifted her dark eyes to look over her shoulder. Wanda was standing in the doorway of the room, her fist raised to knock against the door. The only difference about the Enhanced girl was that she was now wearing one of Natasha's red leather jackets. In all honesty, she had to admit that it fit Wanda much better than it had the assassin, but she'd never say it aloud.

"Hey," Aline greeted, turning on her heel. "You need something?"

Wanda bit her lip anxiously, hesitating before locking eyes with Aline. "I'm sorry," she rushed out, holding her hands in front of herself.

The tribrid blinked. "I-I'm sorry, what?"

"Back at the boatyard." Wanda looked over her shoulder, as if she were afraid someone was going to hear her apology. "What I did to you... what I made you see, it was... unforgivable and too horrible to put into words." She rubbed the inside of her arm, and for a moment, Aline wondered if that was where Wanda's soulmate mark was. All she really knew about the whole soulmate business was that it was located on different parts of people's bodies; hers was located on her side, and Madelaine's had been on the inside of her thigh. "What you saw in that vision, that girl..." She paused, trying to find the right words. Wanda had seen those memories of hers, the fright in Aline's eyes as she screamed for those two running girls and that dying one.

"Her name was Madelaine." Aline turned and leaned her back against the wall, exhaling softly. Even after all this time, even after accepting her death, she couldn't help but feel her heart clench at the name. "Long story short, she got caught up in my world and died because of it. Because of me." Aline cleared her throat, wrapping her arms tightly around her body. "Even after all this time, I can't seem to forgive myself."

"I'm sure it wasn't your fault," Wanda tried.

She bit back her sarcastic laugh. "You obviously weren't listening," Aline said. "Those damned witches brought her into the fight because of me, and she died." Before she even realized what she had done, she had slammed her fist on the wall. It left a large, fist-shaped dent and she growled under her breath. Aline looked up, seeing that Wanda had jumped back in fright. "Sorry, sorry, I'm just..."

"You're still angry," Wanda concluded with a nod. Slowly, she took a step forward. Then she took another and another until she was standing right beside Aline. The two brunettes were so close that they could feel each other's breaths. The Sokovian slowly took Aline's enclosed fist in her hands, gently pulling her fingers apart and taking her hand in hers. "It's okay."

Aline shook her head in disbelief, letting out a humorless laugh. "Witches, man. They just always continue to be a pain in my ass."

"Witches?" Wanda echoed. Her hands were still holding onto Aline's, feeling that the slight tremor in her hand was starting to die down. "I don't understand."

"Look, Wanda," she slightly paused when she saw Wanda's lips twitch upwards at the sound of her name, "my entire existence is confusing and barely anyone can really understand it. To put it in the simplest way I know possible, I'm technically an abomination against nature. And when I say abomination, again, simplest and lightest way. People, like witches, tend to hate people like me and my sister because of our existence. We upset the natural order of things; we're not supposed to exist, but we do." With her other hand, she ran a hand through her hair and let out another sigh. "I promise you that once we kick Ultron's ass and we make it out of there, I'll explain everything to you. And I mean everything, so that includes all of the weird technical stuff."

A smile graced its way onto Wanda's lips. "I'd like that."

"And I forgive you... about what happened back there," Aline continued. "Someone told me that what you did was protecting me, despite hurting me in the process. That if you didn't do it, then Ultron would've made you do worse or done worse himself." She shrugged.

"I like this person," Wanda said. "They sound rather intuitive."

"I do too," Aline said. "She's... even though I haven't known her very long, she acts like my mother, something I haven't had in so long and feels nice to have. I honestly think you'd like her even more if you met in person."

Wanda gave a sweet smile. "Me too."