Disclaimer: I own nothing. Actually, I don't even own that...

A/N: You see? THIS is what happens when someone (cough) my sister (cough) forces me to write fluff.

Wanda smelled the smoke before she saw it. The scent was unmistakable, even to someone without a knowledge of fire, which she was not. Mildly concerned, she diverted from her aimless wandering of Stark Tower to investigate.

By the time she reached the source of the fumes(the kitchen), her eyes were stinging and her throat was burning from the smoke. Pushing open the swinging doors, she glanced this way and that, looking for an open flame. Instead she found a certain cape-clad android flinging open a fuming oven while muttering "oh dear" in a surprisingly calm voice.

"You?" Wanda blurted in disbelief.

"Miss Maximoff!" the Vision seemed startled, but he quickly recovered. "How lovely to see you!"

"What -(cough)- what are you doing?" she asked him, after a few moments of attempting to figure out the answer herself.

"Baking." He carefully pulled from the oven a large cookie sheet, laden with what Wanda could only hope was charcoal. He tilted it towards her. "See?"

"Why?" she coughed again.

He set the tray down on a counter and removed the oven mitts from his hands. "Cooking is a necessary skill for all adult humans to have."

"And one that you clearly -(cough)- lack," Wanda said as she fanned smoke away from her face.

The Vision looked right at her with a small, hopefull smile. "Then, are you here to assist me, Miss Maximoff?"

"What? No! I was just making sure-" But her sentence was cut off by a sudden sharp ringing from overhead. The fire alarm.

Wanda covered her ears, but the noise still reverberated through her skull. "Ugh! Fine!" she shouted in frustration. "I'll help you." She sent a ball of energy crashing into the annoying alarm, leaving nothing but a large scorch mark on the ceiling. "But you have to clear out this smoke first."

"I'll see to it immediately." With that, the android flew(literally) to the opposite end of the huge kitchen and propped open the exit. Wanda did the same to the doorway she was still standing in. Vision procceded to turn all the ovens' fans on full blast, and soon, the smoke began to dissipate.

He motioned for her to join him next to the counter. "I've been working on this recipe all morning," he said, brushing flour off a thick cookbook and pointing to one of its pages. "With little success," he added when Wanda didn't respond.

"Chocolate chip cookies." Her eyes scanned the description. "'For beginners.'"

"Indeed; that is why I chose it. Although," he said, picking up the now cooled cookie sheet and inspecting his latest batch a final time, "I believe 'beginners' is a relative term." He dumped the black cookies into a nearby trash bin.

"I've never made these," Wanda objected. "And the measurements are strange."

"I can convert them for you."

She sighed. "No, I'll figure it out. But you can turn that oven down." She jerked her thumb over her shoulder. "It's far too hot."

"But the instructions say 375 deg-"

"Yes, but I say you're going to burn this next batch to a crisp as well if you don't turn the temperature down."

"Very well, Miss Maximoff," the android consented, not unkindly. "How does 325 sound?" he asked, making the adjustments.

"That sounds fine. Also, can you shut off the fans, please? The smoke is cleared."

"Certainly." Vision answered cheerfully, setting about immediately to the task.

Wanda watched him quizically. He radiated neither sarcasm nor aggravation; he seemed genuinely pleased to do as she asked.

"Shall I prepare the butter next?" Vision asked when the room was quiet again.

Wanda shook her head. "No butter."

"But the recipe-"

"Let me give you some advice about being human," she interupted. "Don't believe everything you read."

He smiled again. "Thank you, Miss Maximoff. I'll remember that."

She looked away from him, suddenly uncomfortable.

"If this recipe isn't trustworthy," he said after a bit, "you may need to give me a proper list of ingredients to gather."

Wanda picked up the recipe book. "I'll need..." She searched for the word. "Oil! I'll need olive oil."

"Right away." The Vision rushed off towards the pantry.

"And different chocolate chips!" she called after him, and began to clear an area on the counter for them to work.

"Different in what way?" the android's asked from behind the door.

"Darker."

"Ah."

By the time Vision returned with the requested items, Wanda had located two clean mixing bowls and a large spoon.

"There you are- light olive oil and semi-sweet chocolate chips," he said, placing them on the counter.

Wanda inspected the bottle of oil. "That'll have to do," she muttered. Then she turned to the Vision. "Alright, so, the first thing you need to do..."

-o0o-

Vision followed her instructions to the letter. She was releived that he didn't argue with her; instead, he asked her simple questions like 'why is that?' and 'if I don't, what will happen?' He was so eager to learn. And she was grateful for the distraction.

When it came time for him to add the flour, Wanda stopped him.

He looked surprised as she took the bag from his hands.

"First of all," she began, "you should always pour flour, never scoop it. Secondly, what is this?"

"Unbleached, all-purpose flour," the Vision answered, confused.

She tasted a bit of the powder. "This isn't flour. This is ground up chalk."

Baffled, the android knit his brow.

"No, flour is more... It's supposed to have..." She bit her lip, frustrated at her limited knowledge of the English language. Finally, she breathed out the word in Sokovian.

Understanding washed over Vision's face. "Are you referring to whole wheat flour?"

"How did you-?"

"My apologies, Miss Maximoff," he said, attempting to set her mind at ease, "I might have mentioned sooner that I am fluent in over 200 dialects."

She eyed him warily.

"I'll retrieve the correct flour for you, if you like," he offered after what felt like a long silence. When she didn't answer, he turned and disappeared in the pantry once again.

Wanda set the bag of flour down and leaned against the counter, not wanting to hear what she already knew Vision was planning to say next.

"If it would be more convenient," he said, returning to the kitchen, "I could speak like this." He finished the sentence in Sokovian.

Wanda squeezed her eyes shut and shook her head. "Please don't."

She could hear his thoughts like his approching footsteps.

"I'm so sorry," he said, but not out loud. "I didn't mean to upset you."

She shook her head again, struggling to keep her breathing regular. Her own mind was racing with memories and voices she didn't want to recall. She focused on Vision's instead. His thoughts were full of worry, sorrow, compassion and kindness. And cookies. He was thanking her for helping with the cookies.

"You're welcome," she whispered, opening her eyes at last. She was met with his gentle smile and wonder-filled gaze.

After a few moments, he slid the bowl of cookie dough closer to her. "If I'm not mistaken, it is ready to be baked."

"Yes," she agreed, her voice still quiet. "It looks perfect."

-o0o-

"Give them another couple minutes!" Wanda said, looking over the Vision's shoulder from her seat on the counter. The android had already checked on the cookies four times, and she couldn't help but be amused.

"I am merely being vigilant, Miss Maximoff."

"Yes, but you're also letting the heat escape, which will keep them from cooking evenly."

Vision sighed. "I wasn't aware cookies were so sensitive."

"They're not," she replied. "But it does help to have some practice making them."

He opened his mouth to speak, but decided against it. She knew what he wanted to ask, and why he didn't. That bothered her. Of all the people she'd met in this place, Vision was the only one who wasn't afraid of her. She didn't want that to change just because of one near-emotional breakdown.

"My mother taught me," she said eventually. Vision turned and gave her his full attention, but she couldn't look at him. She couldn't look at anything, really, so she just stared down at the floor as she went on. "She was the best cook in the world. She didn't bake sweets often. A few times a year, maybe. But when she did, she'd always let me help. Mixing, measuring, kneading, all of it. I loved it. Once, when my father and P-" She stopped abruptly, the name catching in her throat.

Vision pretended not to notice. "I think these are quite done now, don't you?" He motioned to the baking cookies.

She swallowed hard and nodded.

"Splendid!" he declared, opening the oven.

He was right. They looked and smelled delicious. He set the tray on the countertop and began removing cookies with a spatula and placing them on a cooling rack.

"They're best fresh," Wanda said, finding her voice once again. "You should try one."

"I'd love to, Miss Maximoff. But I am an android; therefore, I cannot."

"Oh. Right. Sorry," she said, feeling a little exhausted.

"There's no need to be sorry," he reassured her with a smile. "But it would please me greatly if you'd taste one."

"I'm not really hungry." She fiddled with her skirt. Suddenly, she looked up, but not at Vision. She glared into one of the upper corners of the kitchen before saying(a little too loudly), "Perhaps our friends would care for some?" With that, she hopped off the counter and headed for the exit.

"Miss Maximoff!" Vision called, hurrying after her.

She slowed to a halt but didn't turn around.

"I was not aware we were under surveillance."

"I know."

"I am truly sorry."

"I know." She started to walk away again.

"Miss Maximoff?"

She stopped in the doorway. "Yes?"

"I think..." he hesitated. "...you have your mother's gift."

She met his eyes for a moment. "I know. But thank you." Then she was gone, like the smoke that had led her there.

Thank you for reading!