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━━ AFTER FIVE DAYS of testing the power stabilizer, Nat and Fury agreed that it was safe for Aleyna to handle. Steve agreed begrudgingly, though he completely disagreed with their assessment.
Now, Aleyna sat at the kitchen table, a plate of huevos rancheros sitting half-eaten in front of her. As the girl ate, she felt another presence enter the room, but decided not to turn around to see who it was; she had a feeling that she knew.
Sure enough, heading to the fridge was Wanda herself. The girls had been a bit tense; Aleyna suspected a bit of jealousy. After all, she got a stabilizer ring and Wanda hadn't. In an attempt to get a bit of closure, Aleyna had decided to ask why Wanda hated her so.
But, before she could get the words out, the Sokovian girl beat her to it.
"What's that?" She pointed to the girl's plate. "Oh, just huevos rancheros," Aleyna explained.
At Wanda's perplexed look, Aleyna went into depth. "Ranch eggs. It's two fried corn tortillas topped with fried beans with two sunny side up eggs and hot sauce, coriander, and black pepper."
Wanda could only nod, thoughtfully staring at the plate of food. "Do you... wanna try some?" Aleyna offered with a smug smile.
Wanda paused before grabbing another fork and taking a bite. Wanda's spite didn't allow her to say that she liked it and that she wanted more, but a slight smile appeared on her lips anyway. "Aw, you like it!" Aleyna chirped happily.
"No I don't, shut up." Wanda snapped, her normal, cold expression inhabiting her face yet again. "Why do you hate me?" Aleyna asked as her smile fell as quickly as it appeared. "We had a... a friendship moment! Like normal people!"
"We are not normal people." Wanda let out piercingly as she turned to the fridge, opening it forcefully. "We're mutants. Infected. Diseased."
"Infected?" Aleyna repeated in disbelief. "Wanda, we're not infecte-"
"You aren't, but I am. I killed my brother, and I got these freakish powers from a nazi organization!" She screeched, a surge of energy flying out of her hands and hitting the ground. Aleyna flinched at the loud noise, peaking down to see the damage.
"Look," She began firmly. "You think you're shit. I understand you're hurting. You're stuck in the compound of the company that killed your parents. I'd be upset, too." Aleyna got up and slammed the fridge door shut forcibly, her face mere inches from Wanda's.
"But we have to live together and at least tolerate each other. So, I get that you're hurting, and I'm not bashing you for it, but you are not going to sit here and be a little bitch to me because you're hurt. If you need to talk, that is absolutely fine, but you're not gonna talk down to me and try to fight me in other people's rooms." She spat out angrily before storming out of the kitchen, leaving a shocked Wanda by herself.
Although neither of the girls' had seen her, Nat had stood behind a nearby wall, listening to the argument at hand. She had to do something; if not, one of the girls would kill the other.
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Nat softly knocked on the door leading to Steve's room, patiently waiting for a response. Nat seemed to take the gentler approach when it came to Steve.
An infatuation? The world may never know.
"Come in!" Steve called in, Nat opening the door. Steve's room was small and cozy, an aesthetic he had purposely chosen to remind him of home.
A tall lamp beside his bed was the only thing that illuminated the room. He had a large book collection, yet he hadn't read most of the books. Nat's eyes scanned over everything before stepping onto the brown tiles.
The spy slowly walked in to find the blond sitting at his computer, trying to find the fastest way to search. "You live with all of this technology and you still can't work it?" Nat teased.
"Bruce and Tony usually did it for me." Steve told her without taking his eyes off of the screen. "Oh... what are you looking for?"
"Hydrokinesis." He answered, Nat looking at the screen. "You spelled 'hydro' wrong."
"I did?"
"...Steve, that says 'hydra.'" Nat corrected as Steve paused. "Oh." He paused, pressing the backspace key repeatedly. After helping Steve search for the correct term, Nat finally got the chance to ask him her question.
"Maximoff and Tunikova keep arguing. What... what would you do?" She implored begrudgingly. "Back in the day, you'd give them both a quarter and let them go to the movies." Steve answered, looking up at her.
"Steve, I don't mean what'd you do in the forties," Nat sighed. "They're superhumans, and they're arguing. A lot. I think M may kill T."
Steve paused, searching for a good response. "Try and keep them separate?"
"They have to eat, Steve. We can't just lock them in their rooms."
"Why are they mad at each other in the first place?"
"That's the issue! I don't know!" Nat groaned, putting her head in her hands as she sat on Steve's bed. "I don't know what their problem is."
Steve turned his chair to face her with a smile. "Aw, you're... you're thinking like a mom." Steve realized. "It's kinda cute."
"I never had a mom. This isn't gonna be cute." She cut through, Steve's smile fading. "Never mind. Maybe Vision can help. He's the personification of the internet."
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"Vision?" Nat peaked her head into Vision's room to find the synthezoid's legs crossed, his body suspended in the air as he meditated, his eyes closed.
Vision's room was silver-grey, with a simple queen-sized bed in the middle against the wall. He was a very simple soul, so he never felt the need for extra decorations.
"Agent Romanoff?" Vision opened his eyes, his body lowering to the ground. "I'm having an issue."
"Agent Romanoff, if it's your menstrual cycle-"
"I'm sterile, Vision. I don't get a menstrual cycle."
"I apologize, Agent Romanoff," He bowed his head ever-so-slightly. "Statistically, 78% of women ask for help with their cy-"
"I have a question that doesn't have to do with blood." Nat interrupted. "Tunikova and Maximoff had a fight in my room, and they had an argument in the kitchen. I think they're gonna kill each other."
"Well, they're both teenage girls, Agent Romanoff. With their hormones and such. They're going to act rather catty towards each other."
"True, but their powers...teenagers say they'd kill someone else; T and M actually could. Maximoff already has. It's only a matter of time until Tunikova unlocks her full potential."
"Sit them down and have a talk with them. Lots of moms say that this helps with their kids." Vision suggested. "But I'm not their mom!" Nat groaned, sitting down on his bed. "I can't just go in and lecture her!"
"Then talk to them separately. Find the cause of the problem, then eradicate it." Vision suggested while Nat nodded.
"I have to pray they don't murder each other before I get the chance to."
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Nat entered the kitchen to find Wanda eating a bowl of cereal. "It's three in the afternoon. Why cereal?" Nat inquired, opening the fridge door. She tried to be as casual as possible, so Wanda didn't feel as if Nat was ganging up on her.
"I like cereal." Wanda shrugged, although her words were slightly muffled. "Mhm." Nat only nodded, pretending to search for something in the fridge.
"What do you want, Natasha?" Wanda's head tilted to the side as she spoke sharply. "I know something is wrong."
"Why do you hate Tunikova so much?" Nat turned around to face Wanda, closing the fridge door.
"I don't hate her." Wanda denied, setting her spoon into her empty bowl.
"Maximoff, you two physically fought in my room, then you argued in the kitchen."
"How did you-"
"My job is literally to figure out other people's conversations and lives. Of course, I found out about the kitchen incident. My question is why it happened."
Wanda sighed while using her energy to set the bowl and spoon into the sink. "I don't have to tell you anything."
"I'll tie you into the lie detector again."
"You wouldn't dare."
"I did it once. I'll do it again."
Wanda opened her mouth as if to speak, but then paused. "I don't hate her," Wanda began quietly. "I really don't."
"So why act like it?" Nat asked, letting her forearms rest on the kitchen island.
"She's not a terrible person, I know." Wanda's voice lowered. She was uncomfortable by the fact that she had to be so vulnerable, especially to a person that practically kidnapped her.
"She just... she reminds me of my mother."
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word count: 1,465
a/n:
I kinda like vulnerable Wanda ngl
Also, we're so close to 500 reads!! Thank you!!
-v