Loss and life hit new avengers Wanda and Vision pretty hard, as both are left under the stewardship of people they feel need more help than they can give but they come together and try to make sense of life with the fragments of it they have. First chapter Wanda centric.

Revised for wording mistakes- the grammar like commas and capitalization is still better bad.

Chapter One: It's going to Take Time

Clint Barton was a man who had seen a lot of things that were incredible: a guy who could fly and summon lighting from space, a soldier who had survived being frozen for almost a century, a scientist who turns into a green rage monster, and those were just the highlights but what really kept amazing Clint after so many years of being surrounded by the impossible was people's ability change.

Not silly things like clothes or hair but who they were and what they fought for, how despite all the odds people's entire lives could change from one little decision. "I want to be different." Natasha, his dearest friend and godmother of his children was a prime example. She'd lived through and done things no one should have to even listen to and despite how much damage they'd done, the red room could never stop Natasha from changing, from breaking free. He'd seen, of course, change go in the other direction good men and women who fought and saved lives beside him at one point of his life change into the most heinous of people. This was the only thing that kept amazing him in a world of "gods" and "monsters," how quickly people's heart could change.

He mused on all this as he drove through the country side with the sister of the young sokovian avenger who had saved his life. An Avenger, he thought to himself, the young man deserved that title and more. The young woman had been practically catatonic after saying her good byes to her brother at the morgue. She wept so much and so hard there was no one in the room that had the nerve to keep her from holding onto the body.

Thor was the only one who eventually approached her.

"I know your loss, but you must…

"LEAVE HIM?" She replied shouting the words with pure venom in her tone. "WHAT DO YOU KNOW OF MY LOSS?" She demanded weeping bitterly. Equipment around the room began to levitate and her eyes glowed a raging red.

"You tell me, can you not see into my mind, young sorceress." he asked. "Can you not see that I have lost family too, that my brother died saving my life, and took his last breathe by my side?"

"You left him." She accused, horrified and shutting her eyes as tears streaming down her face. She clutched her brother's body as she saw the memories in the thunderer's mind. "How could you-

"What would his body do for me, if the brother I loved was gone?" He responded though his mind confessed the choice was not as easy as he made it sound. "I could not save him… but I honored his sacrifice by thwarting the dark elves, protecting the nine realms, and living a life for the sake of others… as you have."

"I have?" she asked confused but her rage had subsided and her hold on the items she was levitating was released. At this point Barton stepped in.

"I told you, when you stepped out that door… you were coming out an avenger."

"your brother fought as an avenger, he protected people as an avenger." Thor added.

"Wanda, you have to-."

"I- I know… but I can't."

It was a long time but eventually they managed to coax her away from his body. After that day she had become very quiet and complacent. Talks of where she would stay and with who were decided between the team. She had been very blunt with them about her apathy towards it all. "if you want me to stay, I stay, there's nowhere else I need to be."

Clint had expressed his interest in getting her away from Sokovia while the incident was still fresh in people's minds and thought the tower was too much too soon.

"Not everyone can deal with loss by just throwing themselves back into the fray. She needs rest, some time to collect herself. She's lost a lot."

"speaking from experience, I imagine." Steve questioned.

"not everyone can be soldier 24/7."

"where should she go then, The new facility's not done being built, and there's not really-

"she can come to the safe house, some fresh air, a little distance, it'll give her some time to heal."

"Clint, are you sure? You barely-

"I know exactly what I'm risking by bringing her, but I trust her."

"alright, it's your call."

Wanda agreed to arrangement rather quickly. His wife however had been a little harder to convince.

"I know this is a little unorthodox but-

"she tried to kill you guys! And almost succeeded!"

"that's kind of a thing in this profession, Nat tried to kill me, and I tried to kill her,via brainwashing sure but still-

"Clint those were- those were different circumstances."

"somebody got in her head and said all the right things and poked all the right places and wrapped her and her brother around their finger. He saved me, Laura and she lost everything…. She's paid her dues."

"…are you sure about this?"

"as I am about any of my crazy plans."

"your confidence is doing wonders to reassure me."

"I mean it, I'm sure."

As he looked in the rear view mirror at the young woman he realized how destitute she looked. Her eyes scanned the horizon with a sorrowful hollowness. He knew that feeling all too well. He remembered trying to piece together the shards of his soul after the tesseract had had its way with his mind.

"this place." He thought to himself. "this is what got me back." he let his gaze fall on Wanda again. "hopefully it's going to get you back too."

Introductions has been brief, Laura had already given the kids the house rules for their guest which consisted of being polite and leaving her alone, of course, they were exploding with curiosity over her arrival but their mother had let them know Wanda was very unwell in spirits and had come to rest, which meant no annoyances on their part.

They'd shown her to her guest room which was on the far right corner of the house across from the kitchen and downstairs away from the other rooms which were all in the second floor.

"it's a nice little nook of the house for you to unwind at." Laura stated when she'd shown her the room. "Do you need-

"no… beside you should not be carrying anything, you are very far along, yes?"

"yes, I- three weeks we think. We're having a midwife come from the town 50 miles from here, she'll be stay in the other guest room upstairs."

The girl nodded at the information.

"if there's anything you need just give a holler."

"… thank you."

"oh… you're welcome."

Wanda tried her best not be a burden on the family and helped with the quick chores Laura showed her how to do, and every so often Clint would manage to get her come out with him onto the farm and help him. She would be very quiet, responding with either nods or a word or two. The glossed over look in her eyes while Clint spoke to her let him know that her mind was far away but he keep talking, he didn't mind her silence, he knew it would take time.

She leaned down beside by a patch of young tomatoes he was working on and had brought him the pruners he need. She tied her hair into a bun and watched him work. It was soothing to her to hear his voice. He'd ramble on and on and it help fill the silent void in her mind. Pietro's thoughts and feeling had been so frequently intertwined with her own that his absence rang in her mind so loudly it hurt. She'd never admit it but she was always grateful Clint always has something for her to learn or do. It kept her busy, purposeful, sane.

"Alright since this is the third time you've seen me do this how about giving it a try." He offered. His voice dispelled her thoughts and she looked up at him in confusion as she hadn't been listening to him at all. He chuckled at the sight of her. "don't look so surprised, I'm sure you've been paying attention the whole time right?" he taunted. She gave out a trace of a smile at his teasing tone.

"I was but-

"I'm just kidding, but listen honestly it's easy, and you learn best by doing so just here." He handed over the pruners. "Just grab there and cut this part. She did as instructed and listened to him guide her. They worked for a little longer and then they heard the children's laughter and voices from the distance. They looked up to see Cooper carrying a small basket and Lila trying to keep a jug of Lemonade steady as they rushed towards them.

"Hey, No running!" Laura warned shaking her head giggling at their excitement.

"Daddy, we made you lunch!" Lila proclaimed eagerly.

"all by ourselves!" Cooper added.

Wanda looked on at the scene with a sad smile then looked down at the dirt. She remembered being young and having so little to eat. Pietro always managed to "find" food outside of the orphanage. She wasn't a fool, she knew her brother had stolen it but it didn't matter, what mattered was being with him, under the bed so the nuns wouldn't see the crumbs, as they quietly munching on the sweet bread he'd taken.

Tears rolled down her eyes as she remembered his magical ability to always split everything he'd "found" into a perfect half. He'd hold her hand as she cried and wished they could both go back their warm kitchen table with their parents by their sides, where their father kissed their mother to thank her for the meal. If she'd had known… she would've traded every morsel of food in the world just to be back under that bed holding onto Pietro's hand and never letting go.

"Wanda." Clint called out at the sight of her tears. She looked away from him horrified that she had ruined such a happy moment between him and his family. The kid's quickly approached them.

" I-."

"eeeeh!"

she didn't get to finish her thought as the sound of Lila squealing from getting her foot caught in a patch of dirt shocked them both. More shocking still was that the little girl and the pitcher she carried never hit the ground. Covered in a red glow Lila's body and the lemonade pitcher hovered over the ground. Out of base instinct Wanda's powers had kicked in.

"Oh my god, Lila!" Laura cried.

"Whoa cool!" Cooper exclaimed.

"Mommy, what's going on." Lila asked in a scared voice.

Wanda stood frozen, horrified that she'd shown the children her powers. Clint placed a gentle hand on her shoulder.

" it' alright… you did good, Wanda. She's good, you can let go." He reassured.

"I… I didn't…" her words trailed on but she composed herself.

The red glow dissolved and the child and the pitched fell to the ground. The shattering sound startled Laura as she rushed over.

"Lila!" she exclaimed. The little girl stood- a little shaken about what had just happened as her mother's arms enveloped her. "What did I tell you about running!" Laura demanded.

"I'm so sorry." Wanda whispered as she stood getting some distance between her and the family. "I didn't mean to-

"It's alright… Wanda, it's-

"Are you a witch?" Cooper asked excitedly.

Clint winced as that had been the final nail in the coffin and Wanda ran off into the distance heading towards the barn. He looked down at his son with an annoyed stare.

"What?"

"Well that was an eventful afternoon." He mused to his wife. She dried the dishes he passed her as he washed them. She gave him a sympathetic look. "I was finally feeling like I was getting through to her."

"That wasn't something you could've stopped it's been four days, Clint. She needs time, she needs I don't know whatever it is girls who can make things glow and float need and unless you've recently purchased a book for said demographic I think you should give yourself a bit of a learning curve."

"How about you, you got a little spooked out there."

"well I'm not used to seeing people do the impossible on a day to day basis, seeing my daughter float was… definitely unexpected."

"Kids loved it, they're practically bursting at seams with questions."

"yeah well, kids are kids."

"but you're okay… you know with… it."he asked. "the way she is."

"I had two geniuses who built a murder bot upgrade my computer and use all my hair mousse, one of which is the Hulk, I had a guy who was experimented on during world war II help me chop onions for dinner and add paprika to my stew, and I had the director of SHIELD ask me for more toilet paper in the guest room. I can handle weird, Clint." she replied. "It's part of why I like you so much."

"you're wrong you know."

"about what?"

"You do see people do the impossible on a day to day basis, at least if all the mirrors in the house are still up."

"oh shut up, Hawkeye, you big cornball."she pushed him jokingly while he managed to latch on to her and steal a kiss."it's gonna take time okay." she reassured kissing his cheek.

"yeah, I know."

Wanda looked out from the barn window. She'd gotten herself up to the haymow and just stayed there consumed with her thoughts and regrets.

"be strong, sister" he'd asked holding onto her hands as they braved Strucker's insane experiments. All the other subjects died, one by one, but not them. They were strong together and by his side she felt like she could move mountains as long Pietro believed she could.

When they had come further along showing signs of their powers developing, Strucker had separated them into see-through cells. There were times she thought it'd be too much… that this power would consume her, that the insanity that had gripped at her all her life, that her brother had kept at bay, would finally end her.

Do something! Stop her! Kill her! She heard in the middle of it all. That fateful day when her emerging powers proved to be too much and in a fury of madness she began tearing the lab apart. She floated up into a cloud of red mist, it was the first time she'd ever levitated. She attempted it after but never could. Pietro made her dismiss the idea, "why would you need to fly, I can get you anywhere at any moment." The memory made her smile bitterly.

She thought she was going to die that day. She looked down in her madness and despair and saw her brother pounding at the glass of the container- his knuckles bleeding. She saw his tears but couldn't make out what he was shouting and then she saw it … him fall to his knees in exhaustion and his two hands make what was now her trademark hand gesture.

"I love you…"

It was one of the only signs they'd learned from a mute friend of theirs in the orphanage. She couldn't die… she didn't have right… her life was half his and his hers. She made the same sign to him and watched him laugh through his tears as the storm began to pass but not before shattering his cell and letting him rush to her side to catch her as she floated down. It had taken a long time before Strucker's men were ready to experiment on her again but they'd learn something very important that day, that for the sake of everyone involved in the project if anymore experiments were to be done it was imperative that the twins not be separated.

She pulled her knees closer to her body and wept into them. How could she even live without him? For so long she assumed their hearts beat as one and that if one ever stopped surely the other would follow. That's how it should have been, she was ready for the end but the choice was taken from her by that… creature? What could she call him, no machine had a mind she could read but… he wasn't human. She shut her eyes and let out a somber chuckle.

"then again neither am I."

She felt the pulse of Barton's mind come near her and let out a sigh. A part of her wanted to dive in and see what went on in his head. He'd been the only one she hadn't cast her "spell" on. However, another part of her was horrified at the idea of going into another person's head again, after all, it was because of her awful powers that so many had suffered. She could blame Stark from dusk till dawn but the truth was following Ultron, aiding him, and eventually fighting against him had all been her idea. Pietro had trusted her, he always had…

"It's all my fault, oh Pietro … I'm so sorry." She sobbed into her knees in her native dialect.

"it's not all your fault."

She looked up to see her host by the ladder of the haymow; his words had been in her own dialect. It was rusty, his sokovian but he hoped she was glad to hear it maybe it would make her feel closer to home.

"You know it is." She accused looking away from him as she wiped her tears. He shook his head as he walked closer to her.

"I know it wasn't, look am I saying your innocent in all this, no, that just be lying." He replied sitting himself across from her. "But Ultron's making, his plans, all of that, those were the actions of other people and saying it's all your fault is making them seem like they're not responsible for their actions and they are."

"but I was the one who-

"yeah you messed with Stark's head, but you know more than anyone that you didn't make his fears, they were in there, festering, gnawing at him, if not you something else."he replied. "You know your powers better than anyone."

"that's just it, I don't!" she cried. "every time it's something different nightmares, memories, loss, delusions- so many minds, so much! Too much!" the girl wept. "I feel your child's mind forming in your wife, Barton… do you know how terrifying it is… to know that one bad day, one bad decision and I could make it so someone could just… stop…"

"but you haven't."

"I'm a weapon! A monster! I hated the world so much for the loss it made me live, the cruelty of it all that I went to work with monsters just to have the power they had! And now that I'm as powerful as people that took everything from me, I hate myself!" she shouted at him. "Why on earth would you let me near your family! Why do you even care! Do you feel guilty? Do you think Pietro died because of you, is this your way of making it right? Paying off a debt? What am I to you?" she demanded standing up towering over him as she sobbed from her rage.

"An Avenger, a comrade, and maybe one day even a friend." He replied in a matter-of-factly voice. She sank to her knees defeated by the feeling of sincerity his words gave her.

"what is wrong with you?" she asked cupping her face conquered by the worthlessness of it all. Who cared whose fault it was or why, all that mattered was the person she loved and lived for was gone. Agent Barton chuckled to himself. "Are you laughing at me?" she demanded.

"No… it's just- you're not the first person to say that to me or to say some of the things you just said 'I'm a monster… a weapon," yeah- I've heard that before." He explained sighing. "It was wrong then and it's wrong now."

"what are you talking about?" she replied in a frustrated tone. "You read Strucker's files, what our goals were, they weren't trying to make people there, they wanted tools."

"Listen, what they wanted you to be- heck what you wanted you to be, it doesn't matter anymore because people don't get the luxury of being weapons." He retorted.

"what?"

"you see this knife?" he asked taking out the instrument. She nodded in annoyance. "it doesn't feel pain, Wanda, it doesn't feel remorse, and it certainly doesn't care how you use it. Maybe that what you wanted to be - both of you." He added. "It's easier saying you don't care or it's not your fault- 'just following orders'- 'just doing my job,' well no too bad you felt something, you both cared."

"we wer-

"Yeah, yeah sure the whole, 'I live on this planet too' spiel." He shook his head. "I don't believe it for a second, between the two of you, you could've even persuaded Ultron to let you two live for your services, but you didn't. You wanted something more. Pietro didn't have to save me or that boy. He chose to. He chose. Wanda, your brother might have been trained to be a weapon and told that was the only way he could serve his country but when he went out there he choose to be a man, to be held accountable for his actions, and to be the hero his people needed." He placed his arm on her shoulder. "Don't you dare call him or yourself a weapon, don't take his actions or yours for granted, good or bad, right or wrong they're yours that's something the world can never take from you."

For a moment she just looked up at him with mix of awe and bewilderment before eventually embracing him and crying on his shoulder. Her words were muffled and choked between sobs but he got the gist of it. I'm sorry… I miss him… I don't know what to do.

"Yeah, I know, kid." He comforted patting her back. "I know… but whatever it is that's coming up next in your life, blaming yourself and running away from it all is never going to help, no matter how smart Banner makes it seem."

the rest of evening was just getting her to come on down back to the house reassuring her that Laura and kids weren't afraid of her. Eventually she returned, shuffling into the house. Laura greeted the two as they entered. Without making eye contact Wanda mumbled a quick apology only to have Laura tell her there was nothing to be sorry about. The girl dismissed her kindness and quickly returned to her guest room.

"it's going to take time, right, Boss?" Clint asked while they watching the girl leave the room. His wife sighed and smiled with a nod.

"right."

Breakfast the day after came to be a mini-press conference as Hawkeye's children pestered him endlessly about the nature of Wanda's powers.

"Okay but can you at least tell us if she's from space like Thor?" Cooper begged trying to squeeze something out of his father's tight lips.

"first off her business isn't mine to tell and secondly you're going to end up having to do extra time at the chicken coop if you get there late from all this interrogating you're doing." Clint replied taking a crunchy bite out of his toast.

"dummy, she can't be like Thor if she doesn't fly!" Lila corrected, matter-of-factly.

"who says I can't fly." Wanda proclaimed startling the family with her unannounced presence. The children quickly ducked their heads with their cheeks red from being caught meddling in her business. Laura was the first to address Wanda greeting her with a "good morning" and offering her some coffee.

"I -yes black, please." She replied softly. The girl stood awkwardly in the middle of their kitchen avoiding eye contact with everyone. She fidgeted with her long necklace and was internally beating herself up for barging in on the family's breakfast without any sort of invitation.

"He-hey!" Clint started finally picking up on her discomfort. "Come on take a seat, we've got some extra pancakes, I'll get some eggs goin-

"No please, I just-

"It's no trouble." Laura added handing her a mug of coffee. "It's just good to see you're feeling better."

Wanda smiled slightly and let out gentle sigh. "I actually came to… apologize… for yesterday." She clarified.

"What? We already told you that was-

"No, I mean to them." She gestured to the children looking at them. They looked at her, surprised by her declaration. "You had such a nice lunch planned for your father and I- I never meant to ruin it or to… What happened, Lila, I'm sorry if I scared you."

"…It's okay, Ms. Wanda, dad still had lunch with us."

"yeah and I didn't get hurt, it was just kinda… weird." Lila added. "but mom says I might've gotten really hurt with the glass from the pitcher if you hadn't helped." Wanda smiled at the girl's kind comfort and her honest reply.

"Looks like apology accepted, so how about sticking around, I don't think I've ever seen you up before noon." Clint offered standing up and pulling up a chair. Wanda shook her head but gave him a sincere smile.

"Thank you but I just- I'll just take the coffee in my room."

"Alright but… don't be a stranger in the morning." Clint replied with a fatherly smile." I'll see you later to get working on the zucchinis."

"of course." She smiled, turned and began to head to her room but Cooper called out to her and made her pause. She turned to face him and saw him rubbing his arm awkwardly.

"I'm- I'm sorry I called you a witch, I didn't mean it in a bad way." He confessed. She let out the brightest smile she had in long time and chuckled.

"it is alright." She replied smiling deviously as she snatched a strawberry from his pancakes using her powers. "After all that's exactly what I am." She finalized taking her exit hearing bunch excited comments from the Barton children behind her.

To be Continued

Chapter Two: Filling in the Blanks,- Vision Centric Chapter.

I will have Wanda and Vision eventually come together in chapter three.

please leave reviews, advice, CONSTRUCTIVE criticism. I'm newb no Flames. ps. sorry about the grammar.