PURE AND TAINTED ( wanda maximoff )

forty-five → what happens

PURE AND TAINTED
CHAPTER FORTY-FIVE
( what happens )

"FIVE YEARS AGO," ROSS SAID, "I dropped right in the middle of my backswing. Turned out it was the best round of my life because after thirteen hours of surgery and a triple bypass, I found something. Forty years in the army never taught me perspective." Aline could hear his heart beat flutter anxiously, and she chewed on the inside of his cheek. She always hated instances like this; it never meant anything good. "The world owes the Avengers an unpayable debt. You have fought for us, protected us, risked your lives, but while a great many people see you as heroes, there are some who would prefer the word vigilantes."

When Aline had heard that the Secretary of State would be coming in and talking to the team, she was immediately put on edge. She was never on good terms with any form of government, ever since the fifties with the Red Witches, and she was on even more edge when Natasha had leaked the S.H.I.E.L.D. files about two years ago. Although most of what they had on Aline had been blacked out, like her name being completely scrubbed from any file, she was still anxious about what they'd do to her.

"And what word would you use, Mr. Secretary?" Natasha asked, tilting her head towards the man.

"How about dangerous?" Ross asked, his tone hardened. "What would you call a group of U.S. based, enhanced individuals who routinely ignore sovereign borders and inflict their will wherever they choose and who, frankly, seemed unconcerned on what they leave behind." The Secretary of State turned to the screen behind them and they turned their attention to it.

"New York," he said. The screen immediately showed a video being played, showing multiple explosions and fires in the streets of New York. Chitauri soldiers roared, destroying everything in sight. The Hulk jumped high in the air, destroying the aliens around him. That had been one of the biggest fights she'd even participated in and now, and looking back, she never really thought to wonder what happened to the people. How many of them lost their lives and homes because of what Loki had done? Even though she lived in the city, the tribrid never really though about the havoc and damage they wrought.

"Washington, D.C." This one, Aline hadn't been a part of, but she remembered watching it on the news. It showed the three helicarriers floating high above the Triskelion and the Potomac River before shooting at each other and crashing into the river. People fleeing for their lives as the waters splashed high. That had been the end of the S.H.I.E.L.D. and the end of HYDRA, and while that should have been a good thing, everything had been leaked. Conspiracies and coverups and all sorts of missions had been published onto the Internet.

"Sokovia." It showed shots of Novi Grad floating high in the sky, buildings crashing hard onto the ground. People screamed in fear as robots crawled out of random holes in the ground. Aline's hand involuntary moved to grip her stomach as she remembered the impact of each bullet, feeling them pass through her body. It had been painful, one of the most painful things that's ever happened to her, and she's broken all of her bones several, several times. She remembered waking up with Wanda at her side, seeing the girl crying as she held her hand, and the unending guilt that continued to eat up at her after the battle. Pietro's death was because of her, that was her fault. Wanda could say whatever she wanted 一 her brother's dead because of her soulmate.

"Lagos." Instead of watching the screen, Aline turned to look at Wanda. The brunette had avoided looking at the video feed, chewing on her lip and ducking her head. The media continued to harass and attack Wanda for events that weren't her fault, but that didn't matter to them. They just needed someone to blame. Aline managed to sneak her hand under the desk, tightly grasping Wanda's in hers. She gently rubbed her thumb across her knuckles, exhaling deeply. There was so much she wanted to do, so much to say, but what could she do?

"Okay, that's enough," Steve interrupted, moving his hand from his face to the table.

Ross did as he was told, shutting the screen off and moving to speak. "The past four years, you have operated with unlimited power and no supervision. That's an arrangement the governments of the world can no longer tolerate. But I think we have a solution." A man passed Ross a book and allowed Wanda to take it in her hands. It had the blue symbol of the U.N. on it, the words 'Sokovia Accords' written at the top. Rhodey silently asked for it and Wanda slid it over to him. "The Sokovia Accords 一 approved by over one hundred and seventeen countries. It states that the Avengers shall no longer be a private organization. Instead, they'll operate under the supervision of a United Nations panel, only when and if that panel deems it necessary."

She instantly hated this, everything about this. She hated that they'd be controlled not just by one person, but every country in the United Nations. They'd have to get the go-ahead from every country, and even then, who knows if a certain mission will ever be deemed necessary? Who's to say the U.N. would have even allowed them to have gone to Sokovia the past year for Ultron? And once they do this, Aline knew they weren't going to stop. Once people like this get ideas like this in their heads, they're going to see just how far they can go. All her life, she's had people try to control her 一 governments, her sister Maggie, her cousin Rome 一 and now there was someone else.

"The Avengers were formed to make the world a safer place," Steve said. "I feel we've done that."

"Tell me, captain, do you know where Thor and Banner are right now? If I misplaced a couple of thirty-megaton nukes, you bet there'd be consequences. Compromise, reassurance, that's how the world works. Believe me, this is the middle ground."

"So there are contingencies?" Rhodey asked, still holding the Accords.

Aline snapped her head to him. Was he actually serious right now?

Ross nodded. "Three days from now, the U.N. meets in Vienna to ratify the Accords. Talk it over."

As he turned to leave, Aline spoke up. "Wait a second," she called out and Ross looked over at her. The tribrid leaned forward in her seat, pressing her arms against the edge of the table. She looked a bit unsure of herself. Hearing Ross speaking like that, it sounded like as if they had but no choice to sign this. "What happens... what happens if we don't sign, if we don't agree with you?"

"Then you retire."