In Darkness, Be My Light

Gifts and Examinations

Warning: Mentions of abuse, rape, and electroshock.

Wanda woke up to sunlight streaming into the unfamiliar bedroom. The smell of lavender filled her nostrils. She panicked for a moment and sat up straight until she remembered that they moved locations. She sighed heavily and collapsed back into bed. She stared at the ceiling. Something felt wrong and odd.

She woke up without a nightmare. That's a first. She felt relieved from not having another nightmare. It was painfully tiring waking up scared multiple times during the night and finally in the morning.

She turned her head to look out the floor to ceiling window, halfway draped with beautiful green curtains, and rested both of her hands on her stomach. God, it was beautiful. Her eyes glistened as she took in the view of the futuristic-looking city. She just had to turn on her side to get a better view. Wait, where are we exactly? Wherever it was, it was peaceful and serene. She relaxed a bit before, out of the corner of her eye, she noticed something sitting on the dresser. She turned to look and what she saw made her smile a bit. There were flowers, folded blankets, a basket of bath products, and what looked like a box of chocolates. She also noticed a single envelope in front of it all. She tilted her head out of curiosity.

She looked around the room and sat up. She was still wearing her clothes from the night before and her shoes were by the wall next to the bed. She carefully and nervously walked over to the dresser at the opposite side of the room. She lightly bit her lip and smiled as she saw that the flowers were her favorite: Amaryllis. She bent over slightly, pulling her hair back with her hands as she smelled them. Their scent was ideal to her. She loved it. She looked over to the box of chocolates and her eyes lit up when she saw that they were Sokovian. It's been a while since she's had them, but then her stomach turned with fear as she didn't have the courage to eat. God, how she hated it.

She shook her head and looked at the other gifts. She felt the softness of the folded blanket and felt like immediately curling up on the bed with it wrapped around her. She also looked at the soaps and lotions in the basket. She smiled when she noticed that they were scented with spearmint and eucalyptus, one of her favorite bath scents. She looked at the envelope that stood out among the rest of the gifts. She was filled with some excitement when she saw that the card had her name written in cursive. Vision's writing. She couldn't mistake his perfect, unique cursive. Her heart was filled with warmth. She took the envelope and sat down on the desk that was next to the dresser and in front of the window.

She carefully opened the envelope and took out the carefully folded piece of paper and unfolded it. From left to right, top to bottom, she read the handwritten notes from all of her teammates.

The first was from Sam:

Let me start off by saying how proud I am of you. You are so strong, Wanda. So strong. Even if you don't realize it. You've made it so far despite the trauma you faced. You've experienced more than any of us have in the Raft. We're so proud of you for not giving up yet, even if you still have challenges that you're still facing right now.

We'll always be by your side no matter what. We all love and care for you and we're here to listen if you need to talk. I'll always listen, Wanda.

Best wishes, Sam.

It made her smile. The writing was short but every word was not wasted. It was filled with meaning.

The next was from Scott:

Hey there, Wanda. You are such a precious gift from God. I'm so glad that I've gotten to know you, even if it was in the worst of circumstances. But I gotta say that from the stories of heard about you, I know you are so much more than what I've seen from the Raft. You are so powerful and bewitching, and you are honestly amazing for that. I wanna say that you are probably the most powerful Avenger I've come to know (don't tell Thor I said that.)