Mortality

To Wanda, the silence that surrounded the ship was maddening. Beneath her, engines rumbled violently, signalling their departure from the Earth's atmosphere. It wasn't every day you got a summons from another galaxy and as soon as they heard what Thanos planned to do with the first infinity stone he had in his possession they had started their journey immediately.

Wanda had seen many breathtakingly beautiful sights over the course of her life but none compared to the sight of the galaxy laid before her. Stars glittered like gold suspended in a sea of rich dusky velvet. Nebulas spiralled across the expanse in varying shades of violet and amber, having swirled into existence aeons ago and extinguished long before she had been born.

It was that moment whilst staring out of her window in her habitation suite that she finally considered the events that were about to take place.

Vision could die.

Since Thanos was after the infinity stones it was likely Vision would be targeted first and the gem that gave him life all those years ago would be ripped from his head. No one was willing to say it and even she had been unwilling to state it to herself until this point. Wanda had been seconds away from begging Vision to stay on earth where he would be safe, but the certainty in his eyes had convinced her that her feelings for him would not be enough to keep him home.

"Wanda?" a soft voice called her from the doorway behind her.

"Vizh," she greeted, forcing herself to smile at the synthezoid that held her heart.

He was unwilling to meet her eyes and preferred to stare at the synthetic imitation wood that covered Wanda's floor. In a few strides, he had crossed the distance between them before stopping with his hands clasped tightly before him. As he stood, uncertain, Wanda made a decision and moved boldly to reach for his chin. Steadily she lifted his gaze to hers.

"Wanda," he exhaled, the two syllables barely audible. "I have made a terrible mistake."

Her breath caught in her throat as she watched his expression turn mournful.

"We both know I may not be returning from this voyage and the thought that I will never see you…" he stopped, unable to continue. His eyes spun wild shades of blue and green as he tried to articulate his thoughts. "Love is portrayed as a positive emotion throughout the world but I've never felt pain like this before…" he confessed. "I'm in love with you Wanda Maximoff and I have been for a considerable stretch of time. There is never a moment when you are not on my mind and I can't cease to exist without telling you that you have become the highlight of my existence."

Wanda's heart ached and she felt like her chest was about to break. All the sleepless nights and the tears and the hurt and the time wasted on suppressing her emotions had been the reason she missed her chance with Vision. After five years of thinking her love was unrequited, they only had one night together before the battle they would not both survive.

"Vizh, it's too late," she whispered, fighting a sob. One solitary tear escaped her defences and started a slow journey where cheekbone met her nose. "We have no more time left."

Wordlessly, Vision brushed the tear away with the pad of his thumb. His touch was a ghost as it glided across her face, his fingers winding themselves into her hair when he reached the feathery strands. He followed the strands to the very tips before he lowered his hand to his side. It hung limply.

"Even… Even if you don't make it," Wanda faintly began, "my love for you will be like the starlight that surrounds this ship. The stars themselves burned out millions of years ago but their glow still shines on us now." Gently she laid her hand on his chest and he lifted his to do the same to her chest. "Our love is for our souls, not our bodies," she told him. "It will outlive anything and everything."

There was a battle in Vision's eyes as he took in what she had said. Every word had been internalised and he would revisit this moment later as the life left his body. For that moment, though, he had other ways of spending his time.

As soon as he knew Wanda had finished, he wound his hands around her waist and effortlessly lifted her. Instinctively, the Sokovian wrapped her legs around Vison's midsection as their lips crashed together, unleashing years of pent-up emotion. Pressed together, wrapped in each other and sharing the same breaths, Vision and Wanda lost themselves in the moment, trying to live their lives in one single night.

When they both collapsed on Wanda's bed hours after their confessions, Vision held Wanda close.

"I don't want to fall asleep," Wanda admitted, tracing the lines of Vision's face as softly as she could, "because when I wake up we'll have to leave and I can't imagine my life without you Vision." As her eyes welled up, her voice shook. "I'm terrified."

"One of the factors that contribute to my emotional attachment to you," he whispered, one arm wrapped around her abdomen protectively and the other feeling the steady beat of her heart, "is that you are the strongest individual I've ever known. You'll continue to do great things without me, Wanda, I can feel it."

Her reply was a sob and a lingering kiss that burned their lips. They fell asleep with their minds intertwined, and both dreamed of the life they could have had together had things been different.