Agony (Wanda Maximoff)

Chapter 29

||Sometimes it's hard. But sooner or later every man shows himself.||

She hid in the trees, holding her breath as she watched Natasha and Steve quietly. The moment Clint ran off, they began to argue, but what interested her is what they began to argue about: her.

"What are the chances that she'll find it? Plus, it's shielded with a cloaking mechanism. She can't possibly see it." They were discussing the building she saw earlier, the one she couldn't get into. From above, she moved up further, just to hide herself more, then she leaned over to listen in.

"She's smart," she heard Steve say, and she felt herself warm up.

"Relax, Rogers, it's not like she's strong en-"

"Natasha stop. Stop acting like lying to her is so easy, even for someone like you I know this is hard. She trusts us, and we've spent the last five months betraying her. I hate looking at her and seeing pain. I hate that I can't tell her the truth. I know you feel the same way." Steve cut Natasha off before she could finish, and she wished he didn't.

What did he mean they were betraying her?

"Of course I do. I don't enjoy this, not one bit, but I know the consequences and I know what'll happen if things spiral out of control. She's more than just a girl we look after. She's more than just a friend. She's family, and I'm not going to let her die because you don't know how to keep your mouth shut."

Consequences? Nothing was making sense, and Wanda worried that the secret they were holding was far more bigger than she could possibly imagine.

"I care about her, and I know you do too, maybe a little differently than me, but you still care. So for heaven's sake, please, don't say anything." Wanda watched Natasha press something down into her ear, and she heard the slight bing of her comm turning on. Instead of listening on Natasha, she focused on Steve, watching him as he kept an eye on Natasha, but he looked sad for some reason. "Bruce says there hasn't been any activity since early this morning. i don't think she's over there."

Bruce? What would Bruce know about this?

"She has to be around somewhere. You go East and I'll go West, comm me if you find her, I'll come find you." Wanda watched the two Avengers run off in opposite directions, and she waited a few minutes before using her hex to float back down. She had never used her hex to fly, and the sensation caused a bit of numbness in her head, but it wasn't long before it went away.

She had to make a choice: follow Natasha, or follow Steve.

Steve was headed near the closes town by going East, and Natasha was headed back towards the farmhouse, so she decided to run after Steve.

If someone was going to tell her the truth, it'd be him.

She ran after, keeping her movements quiet and making sure she didn't get too close to him. But Steve was a fast runner, a lot faster than the average man, and a whole lot faster than she was, so she picked up her pace.

It wasn't long before she lost him, and she stopped abruptly, catching her breath.

"Wanda," her name startled her, and she jerked away, noticing Steve walking out from behind a tree. "What's going on?" he asked her nicely, and when he began to walk towards her, she stopped him, lifting up her hands and stepping back.

"Don't," she said to him in a cold tone. "I don't want to hear anything from you unless it's the truth. Do you understand?" her voice quivered, but she kept still, holding Steve's gaze. He looked agitated, and his t-shirt tightened even more has his chest rose with anxiety. "What have you been lying to me about these last five months? What don't I know?"