PURE AND TAINTED ( wanda maximoff )

forty → let's go to our fancy dinner date then

PURE AND TAINTED
CHAPTER FORTY
( let's go to our fancy dinner date then )

BOTH ALINE AND WANDA HAD slowly gotten accustomed to their new lives, their relationship evolving over time. It felt rather nice for the tribrid to be able to depend on someone like this, to open her heart once more and allow herself to feel so... good. Of course, she had opened herself up to Natasha and Steve and all the other Avengers, but this was different. They'd never be able to give Aline the type of comfort she relied on Wanda for. And they had quickly realized this and felt happy for Aline. They'd all seen the torture she put herself under, constantly blaming herself for the death of her first soulmate and the blood on her hands. She deserved true happiness after all the shit she endured in her life.

Even though they all relentlessly teased the couple 一 especially Sam and Natasha 一 they thought it was rather cute to see the two girls holding hands and cuddling on the living room couch, sneaking a kiss here and there. It was adorable. And when Aline had revealed to Natasha her plans on taking Wanda out on their first real official date, at a real restaurant with real food and not someone's leftovers, Natasha had been completely over the moon with joy.

She had never seen Aline so flustered before, and she had to say she was thoroughly enjoying it. Natasha sat lounging on the bed, a beer bottle in one hand and her phone in the other. She was playfully smirking as she watched Aline sort through the different clothes in the closet, and said, "We're going to a really nice restaurant. Like, five stars nice. I wanna be, like, classy with just a touch of sexy. Without being too trashy, you know what I mean?"

Natasha cocked a brow. "So you had to go through my closet? I have some pretty trashy things in there, that I'm not exactly proud of." The ex-assassin had only suggested looking through her closet as a suggestion, nothing more, and she hadn't seriously expected Aline to accept it. But she did, leading them to this situation.

"But," Aline stepped out of the closet for a moment, holding a blazer in one hand, "if I paired this with a sexy looking dress, I'd sorta look classy. Kind of. Should I go with this dress?" She pulled out her other hand, wielding a dark blue dress.

"Ali, did you properly check that dress?" Natasha placed her phone down beside her, leaning forward on her elbow. "More importantly the sides?"

"No, why... oh." Once Aline had fully examined the dress, her eyes widened at the long slit on the side, which would reveal her entire leg and maybe even her underwear. She then tossed the dress behind her, hearing it quietly thud to the ground. "Maybe a later date, who knows." She stepped back into the closet.

"That's my dress!" Natasha shouted. "This is my room!"

"Uh-huh, uh-huh, thanks, Mom."

The red haired woman rolled her eyes. She hoped Wanda was doing better.

___

Wanda had never been to a restaurant as nice as the one Aline was taking her to. She had looked up the restaurant after the tribrid explained it to her, and immediately blanched. She'd feel even more out of place here than at the dance studio; how different would this situation be? And it didn't help that her closet had more everyday casual clothes than formal. All her outfits looked more suitable for cute brunch dates. Wanda couldn't help the anxious feeling spreading through her body; this would be their first official date. Before, it had only been little movie date nights, but that didn't really count seeing as an Avenger or two would join them halfway through. Someone was bound to recognize her there. If people at Aline's dance studio would recognize her, there was definitely going to be a bunch of people who would see her face and only see her as the girl who helped that mad robot who tried to destroy the world.

A knock sounded at her door just as she was trying on another dress, a dark blouse with a cute skirt. It wasn't formal or classy or anything like that, but it was one of the best outfits she had. When she turned out, she spotted Steve at the door, a light smile on his face. "So you're doing just as badly as Ali then," he commented, seeing the mess currently gathering on Wanda's bed. "Maybe slightly better."

Wanda shrugged. "I'm not exactly sure what to wear." She turned to look back at her closet. All of the nicest dresses and shoes she owned were sat on the left side of the closet, and was currently a huge mess. She'd clean it at a later time. "I looked up the restaurant earlier and... I'm sure none of my clothes fit the criteria."

"Yeah, there's really nothing that's screaming posh and high end fashion." Steve moved to stand next to Wanda, hands on his hips. "Maybe we could ask Natasha. I'm sure she has a few nice dresses in your size." Hopefully Aline had finished and was back in her room finishing getting ready.

"I suppose." The brunette bit her lip and twiddled her thumbs.

"Are you okay?" the blond asked, tilting his head towards her.

She chewed on her lip, then sighed. "I'm..." Wanda plopped down on the ottoman behind her, shaking her head. "I'm... nervous. Is that weird? When we were fighting in Sokovia, it had been so easy to be brave but now, I can't shake this feeling away. I don't want to ruin this." The brunette bit her lip even harder, and instantly regretted it the moment she tasted blood. Then again, it's not like Aline would mind; she was part vampire, after all.

Steve sat beside her, leaning his elbows on his knees. There was a kind look in his eyes, one that Wanda was always thankful to see. He's always been a good friend to her, even when she didn't deserve it. "Can I tell you something about Aline?" he asked, to which she nodded. He paused, trying to search for the right words. "Aline, she's gone through a lot, an insane amount of trouble. Each time we'd fight, I always saw her conquer her fear and beat the bad guys. But the moment it ended, once the guns stopped firing and they were defeated, she changes. When it comes to moments like this, she freezes."

"What are you trying to say?" Wanda asked, a brow raised and playing with the hem of her skirt.

"What I'm trying to say is that Aline's just like you: she can beat up HYDRA operatives and rip apart robots with her bare hands all the livelong day, but she is always terrified of messing up anything with you." Steve grinned. "Trust me, you two are gonna be just fine. Besides, she's not expecting you to be putting on this facade; she's gonna expect you to be you. So just be Wanda."

___

An hour later, Wanda was fully dressed and waiting for Aline in the living room. She had taken Steve's advice and borrowed a dress from a teasing Natasha, nearly blushing when the older woman winked at her and wished her good luck. Wanda had done her makeup natural, all nice colors to match tone, and her hair was let down her back in gentle loose waves. A lovely gray dress fell to her knees, the sleeves pulled down to reveal her shoulders, and she made sure to grab a dark blue shawl.

Biting her nails had always been a nervous habit of hers, but she was still hesitant to do so. She knew that Natasha would be furious with her for ruining the nails she had taken so much time to paint, but she was nervous. So Wanda had started anxiously tapping her fingers against her side, fear griping her heart each time another minute passed. She had arrived at the living room seven minutes early, just to be prepared, but that only made her more anxious. Was the dress appropriate? It wasn't too short or anything, right? Or was she overdressed and this was way too much? Would Aline like it?

It wasn't for another four minutes until she heard Aline walking down the hall, her heels gently clicking against the linoleum floor and muttering something incoherently under her breath. When she eventually walked into the room, Wanda couldn't contain her smile. Her soulmate was dressed in a forest green dress, sleeveless to reveal the silver armbands that curled around her biceps. Her dark hair was placed in a loose bun, a few strands free to frame her kind looking face. Her hands were held behind her back as she grinned to herself, biting on the ruby red lip. "Wow, hot damn."

Wanda looked down at herself. "Do I look okay?"

Aline nodded quickly. "Yeah, I mean, did you not hear what I said? God, you look... stunning." She chuckled to herself. "So, um, do you wanna... head out?"

Wanda nodded and held out her hand. "Let's go to our fancy dinner date then."