Avengers/MCU Oneshots

It Never Went Off (Wanda Maximoff)

I've got so many updates on this today cuz I had a bunch of stuff in my drafts that I just finished, lol.

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Tony, Steve, Natasha, and Wanda were scavenging through a few blocks of a semi-destroyed area of Novi Grad, Sokovia. They were trying to make sure there were no active weapons in the area, as there was a weapon factory in that section of the city. It was fairly newish, having been built just three years before. It went out of business a little less than a year before after Ultron's attack on the city.

It was eerie for Wanda to wander around the place were she'd lived her life and see it empty. It sent shivers down her spine. The buildings were all too familiar to her. Some were cracked or partially caved in. There was more damage than she remembered.

'It's my fault,' She couldn't help but think. She did her best to shove away the unwanted thought as her stomach churned. It wasn't the time. She could go back to blaming herself once she was alone in her bedroom again. But now she was on the field, and had to keep a clear head. Emotions couldn't interfere.

Wanda racked her mind for where the factory was. It was built to blend in with the other buildings in that area, so it would be less noticeable. That wasn't great when you were trying to locate it. She suddenly remembered, racing towards the building. Natasha was at her heels.

The did a quick check of the building, finding several weapons that would need to be disabled. "We found the building. We're coming to you, and we'll figure out a plan,' Nat said through the comms.

"Alright, good," Cap replied.

"Holy f***ing sh**!" Tony suddenly yelled.

"Language!" Steve scolded. "What's wrong?"

The girls ran over to where Tony and Steve were now standing, climbing up the rubble.

"Would you look at that," Steve said quietly.

Wanda suddenly recognized the building. It took all of her self control not to vomit. Despite her knowing better, she didn't leave. Her gut churned and vile rose in her throat, but she gulped it down. She hadn't been here in nearly three years.

A bed was sitting in the rubble. Clearly, it was dug out to rescue someone who was trapped under it. The two legs at the end had collapsed, making a sort of cave. A bomb rested in the rubble three feet away from the broken bed, which had faded red marks under it. Bloodstains. The word on it wasn't visible from this angle, but Wanda knew what it said.

"Yikes," Natasha said. "Whatever happened here doesn't look pretty. I wouldn't go near that thing yet. It looks like it's been there for years, but it doesn't look like a dud."

"It never went off," Wanda muttered.

The others gave her weird looks.

"I... I have to go. I'll meet you at the quinjet." She took off before anyone could say anything. She arrived at her destination and sat down, pulling her knees up to her chest. She shut her eyes as flashbacks consumed her. She didn't realize she was mumbling until she felt a hand on her back.

"Hey, hey," Nat said. "Hey, it's ok. What's wrong?"

"That-" Wanda tried to breathe deeply and relax, but her breath was shaky. "That was my old apartment building. That bed was my parents'. That was where Pietro and I had to take cover when-" She lost the battle to relax and started to sob.

Despite not being one for physical contact outside of fighting, Natasha pulled her into a hug. "Hey, it's ok. It can't hurt you anymore."

"It can and it is."

Nat sighed. "Wanda, I know that was upsetting, and I'm sorry. But, you can't change what happened. Maybe if you go back, you can get some real closure."

"It's just... seeing the bomb... and Tony being there..."

"It's painful," Natasha finished.

"Exactly."

"But that's the best way to find closure, I think. Wanda, that was how you got to where you are now. And who knows, maybe having Tony there can help. I know he feels awful about it. What better place for you to talk it out and finally that closure. Both of you."

"Maybe."

"I think we find out." Natasha lead Wanda back to the decimated building. They got back to the top of the rubble once again.

"You good, Maxi?" Steve asked, concerned.

Wanda nodded slightly.

"What's got you so shaken up?" Tony asked.

Wanda ignored him and walked closer to the bomb, once again flirting with death.

"Maximoff, are you crazy?! Get away from that thing!"

"If it was gonna kill me, it would have already."

"What the h*** is that supposed to mean?!"

Wanda ignored him, walking over to the bed. She wrinkled her nose at the molded sheets. She tripped slightly over a piece of brick. She steadied herself on the bed. A glimmer suddenly struck her eye. She had moved the pillow slightly on accident.

She lifted it up and out of the way, revealing a pair of silver earrings. They each had a silver circle with a red gem in the center of each circle on the ends. They matched the necklace Wanda was currently wearing around her neck. Her mother's favorite jewelry. Wanda's father had given them to her for their first marriage anniversary. They were part of a set. The ring was her engagement ring, and Django had saved the rest of the jewelry for a

later occasion. Wanda had borrowed the necklace from her mother the day of the bombing.

Wanda's heart twisted. She cupped the earrings in her palm. She slipped them into her ears.

"Wanda, what are you doing?" Tony asked her.

"Don't worry, Tony. They're basically mine."

"Huh?"

Wanda rolled her eyes as she walked back over to her friends. "I thought you were a genius, Stark."

"I am."

"Are you though?"

"Why do you say I'm not?"

"You haven't pieced together anything I said."

"What is there to piece together?"

"This was my apartment building way back. Before it, ya know, got bombed. That was my parents' bed, that probably saved me and Pietro's lives."

"I didn't know," Tony cringed.

"Of course you didn't. How would you have? I didn't say anything about it until just now."

"Still, I'm sorry."

"It's ok," Wanda took a deep breath, as some of the hardest words she'd ever said came out of her mouth. "I forgive you."