"Like a candle, she was willing to melt to death to light uo everyone. Willing to set herself on fire to keep others warm."
☆
Nyxa
All the new recruits sat sweating and taking deep breaths on the floor. All except Nyxa. She felt kind of awkward about that and was debating whether she should join them on the ground just to get the attention off of herself.
"How are you not dying, new girl? Those shadows giving you some type of energy boost? Think you could give me some of that?"
It was Sam Wilson, looking up at her with a genuine question on his face. She didn't get a chance to reply, Natasha beating her to it.
"You should be used to S.H.I.E.L.D agents kicking your ass."
The Falcon looked at her seriously, pointing a finger. "That's not funny. Besides, half of them were HYDRA."
The smirk Natasha sent him was so painfully Kienna that Nyxa's heart cleaved in two and she looked away. They were different people, she reminded herself. She should know that better than most.
"Personally, I think we've all earned a night off," Rhodey voiced.
"Oh, I agree."
It was Wanda this time, the voice causing Nyxa's attention to shift to her, receiving a small smile from the Sokovian.
"Ah, hell yes." Obviously Sam.
Steven Rogers let out a good natured sigh, hands on hips. He looked at her then. "How about you, Nova? You also want a night off?"
The question surprised her. Things like 'nights off' weren't something she desired. When you had no friends or family, or really, a life you loved, then there wasn't much of a point to things like time off.
"Hate to break it to you, Rogers but Nyxa doesn't do things like fun," Natasha grinned.
Nyxa's eyes widened. She was teasing her. Something friends did. Such pleasant surprise moved through her it was embarrassing. Had she really been that lonely? How depressing.
Nyxa wondered how she'd ever fallen so far. This used to be normal for her, a team, friends, family. Nights out were often and she used to be fun.
Sam grinned. "You gonna take that, Nova?"
"Yeah... I think she just called you stiff," Rhodey summarized.
"She definitely did," Wanda smirked, eyes lingering over Nyxa who saw the challenge.
They were all teasing her. For the first time since the year she'd arrived, Nyxa felt... she felt happy.
Looking over everyone she acted like she was thinking. "I don't know... it's only Friday. There's still a lot of training to do-"
Sam laughed out loud. "Would you look at that. Shadow lady can make a joke."
"Fine. Training over for the week, you've earned it. We can meet up as a team in half an hour. That work for everyone?" Steve asked and received enthusiastic agreements. They dispersed quickly after that.
"I didn't think you had it in you," A voice spoke.
Nyxa looked at Wanda Maximoff beside her. "You've only known me for two weeks."
A soft laugh escaped the redhead's mouth. "True."
Movement in the corner of Nyxa's eyes caught her attention and she saw a tendril of shadow reaching out for the Sokovian woman next to her.
"Stop it," She chided and they both watched as the shadow paused before snaking back guiltily.
Nyxa looked back and took in the brilliant smile on Wanda's face. It was wide and happy, green eyes alight.
Wanda paused, smile softening but not disappearing. "What?" A nervous laugh escaped her this time and her green eyes darted to avoid eye contact.
"Nothing," Nyxa replied with a causal shrug. "My shadow likes you."
Wanda's nose scrunched up. "So they're the friendly extension of you?"
Her eyebrows rose. "I'm so bad that literal shadows are my lighter half?" That brilliant smile reappeared as they headed to their side of the facility together. Nyxa wanted it to stay there.
"Something like that."
"Good to know," She laughed quietly. She'd done that more in the past two weeks with this team than she had in the past five years she'd been here. It felt so nice to be light for once. She was worried it wouldn't last.
Their pace slowed and Wanda's face wore all the signs of someone about to say something vulnerable.
"You're different to how I thought you would be."
Asking the same thing she once had last time Wanda had said that-- about her shadows that time-- Nyxa looked at her. "How so?"
Wanda took a breath. "I don't know, you used to seem... far away. Like you weren't really here. It always seemed like you were just going through the motions."
"And I'm not like that anymore?"
"Only sometimes, when you're thinking for too long."
"Sounds like you've been watching me."
Nyxa noted as Wanda immediately avoided eye contact again. She suddenly felt her guard go up. This conversation was beginning to feel like more than casual words and she wasn't ready for that. It would only complicate things.
"You often seem sad," Wanda said softly, trying to smooth over her nervousness. She took a deep breath. "After... after Pietro, I felt like you would understand. And you seemed like a comfortable option, removed from things the way the others aren't."
"Don't think anyone's ever described me like that before."
Wanda gave her a gentle push at her dry tone, smiling. They'd reached their destination by now, having to split up to get to their rooms.
Nyxa's guard was still up from earlier and she couldn't help her curtness. "Well, I'll see you soon."
She left quickly after that.
____
Why the facility had a whole bar, Nyxa didn't know. But no one was complaining.
The team was sprawled out on various couches, a few agents scattered throughout the room as well. There was still a lot to be done in terms of moving things into this new facility so there were lots of people running around during the day.
"What you drinking, shadow lady?" Sam asked as he headed to the bar.
"I'll take a beer."
He frowned a little, still smiling, as if that surprised him. "Never would've pegged you as a beer girl."
"Sounds like bad intuition."
Nyxa turned as Natasha entered the conversation, two beers already in hand. One went to the spy's own lips while she handed the other one over.
Nyxa allowed a smile as she took it, Sam raising his hands in defeat before leaving.
The redhead took the seat across from her, small grin on her face as she lounged comfortably.
"Surprised you agreed to all this," Natasha voiced, looking her over as Nyxa took a long sip of the alcohol. She had a feeling she'd to need it.
"Apparently I'm full of surprises." Their bottles clinked together in cheers. Looking over the spy stretched out before her, Nyxa felt her own posture relaxing.
"So? You just here for my good company?"
"Something like that." That damned smirk still occupied her lips and Nyxa internally winced. Natasha didn't always make it easy to separate her and Kienna in moments like this.
She also didn't have to look that damned confident and content.
"You're doing well in training. Naturally, your combat skill are way ahead of theirs. But your shadows- your gift, sorry, has grown too- since I last saw it that is."
Nyxa had told the redhead a few things about her 'planet' before, including how common it was to have people with 'powers', as they called it here. She'd also explained how the proper word back home was 'gifts'.
"You keeping tabs on me, Romanoff?"
"Making an observation." The redhead shrugged but that smirk was still there.
"Whatever you say."
"Careful, Nova. You're starting to sound like you might actually have a personality under all that seriousnes," She warned, voice raspy.
Nyxa leant forward, an instinctive part of her reacting to the teasing challenge. "You should know better than that, Nat-"
Natasha's smirk dropped and Nyxa's own words cut off as they heard the nickname she'd used. Their eyes locked and Nyxa knew they were thinking of the same thing. The same night.
Faster than her, Natasha recovered. "So, you and Wanda seem to be getting pretty close."
Nyxa shrugged, trying to remain calm and in order. "I like her. She's nice."
"Nice," Natasha murmered with a grin. Using her earlier words against her, she said, "Whatever you say."
"I do say."
Natasha just remained with that little grin and light in her eyes before standing.
"Well, as... interesting as this has been, some of us have things to do. Looks like I'll have to do your job tonight of being all work no play."
"Not as easy as it looks," Nyxa grinned, seeing an answering look on Nat's face.
"See you later, Nova."
____
They'd all been here for a little less than half an hour when the boys voiced the question that Nyxa herself had been asking. Where was Wanda?
"Should one of us go look for her?" Rhodey asked.
"I'll do it. Her room's close enough to mine," Nyxa offered.
A few minutes later she found herself outside the redheads door, knocking.
The second Wanda opened up, Nyxa knew she'd been crying. How'd she know? Well, she'd gotten very good and breaking down and pretending she hadn't.
There were a lot of different reactions running through her head right now but she simply asked, "Can I come in?"
Wanda took a little breath, blinking but stepping back and letting her enter.
Looking around, Nyxa noticed that there wasn't a lot of personal items in the room. Her own room was bare but that was only because she planned on living back at her apartment once the four weeks were up.
"You didn't meet up with us. We got worried."
Nyxa's heart hurt at the smile Wanda put on and the waved hand as if it were nothing big. She was trying to brush this all off and act like she was okay. With a little bit of time and practice, the act might be good enough to actually fool.
But Nyxa didn't want to let it get to that point. She knew what that was like, to be utterly alone and breaking while trying to seem the opposite. Just because she'd been forced to become that way didn't mean Wanda must.
"Sorry about that. I think training took it out of me. Bad headache."
Hearing her words, Nyxa continued to survey and walk around the room. There was a picture frame with a family in it, a young boy and girl with their mom and dad. She smiled softly at how happy they all looked.
Another picture lay beside it, this one printed out in a small strip, showing an older Wanda and Pietro Maximoff.
"Are you okay?" She asked softly.
"It's just a headache. Should take care of itself by the morning," Wanda said with a soft laugh.
She turned back to face the Sokovian, walking a little closer. "Are you sure?" She received a nod but one look into those green eyes told her that if she pressed only a little harder, everything would come pouring out.
Like when you were on the verge of tears and someone asks 'are you okay?' That's where Wanda was right now, and Nyxa was going to push. Just a little.
"It's okay if you're not. You don't have to pretend." It didn't take much, no great cost of emotion. Nyxa simply said the words that she herself had needed to hear but never had. Did what she'd wanted someone else to do.
Like she'd known they would, the words caused her facade to break, a stray tear slipping. "I just... feel so heavy, all the time. Sometimes it's okay but other times..." Wanda's breath shook. "Other times it's too much and I remember he's really gone."
The words were pouring out now, the tears with them. "He was everything, all I had left. He's gone. I'm completely alone."
Nyxa saw as the weight of all that pain became too much and Wanda's legs starting to give out. So she took it on.
The redhead fell into her the moment she held her and Nyxa supported her weight, taking everything she could onto herself.
"I've got no one left. The pain just doesn't stop."
Clutching her tighter and holding her closer the same way she had when carrying Wanda off of Sokovia, Nyxa let her thumbs rub in soothing circles. She didn't say anything like, 'that's not true', 'you have me and the team', or even 'you'll be okay'. Because none of those words would do anything, none of them would matter.
Nyxa just held her firmly, steady in the same way she always was. She wouldn't let Wanda be alone in this, knowing how that felt.
Her shadow circled around them, enclosing them in a safe black bubble where Wanda could hide without being hidden.
Knowing the other words or reassurances were useless, Nyxa simply murmered the same words over and over again.
"I've got you."
☆
Couple interesting things happening and so many double meanings and small snippets of who Nyxa is at her core in this last section with Wanda.
Anything you want to see then just let me know x