AUTHOR'S NOTE: Okay. Third time's the charm. Maybe. 'The Scarlet Witch' was never really a story, it was just the outline of a story - and that outline in its turn was developed from the story fragment 'The New Recruit', which was little more than a couple of unrelated and unfinished scenes stitched together. It kept bugging me that Wanda's inclusion into the Avengers was never fully developed in the canonical MCU movie series, they just kind of skipped over it, and my own take was still basically unfinished as well. So, finally, here's my attempt to write out the whole damned thing in longhand. No promises, if I ever finish it I bet it's still a mess :P The story begins where 'Age of Ultron' ends, with the Avengers returning from Sokovia to New York, with Wanda Maximoff in tow... and they find that their troubles with her are only just beginning...

An icy wind was blowing across the damp sidewalk, and Natasha Romanoff shivered in her light jacket as she hurried along the deserted street.

"So much for spring," she muttered to herself, as she sprinted towards the private entrance of the luxury hotel where she and her fellow Avengers were staying. It had been just over a week since the destruction of Sokovia, but the event was still front-page news, and the leading story on every newscast. People on every continent had been horrified by the events of the last several days: first, a rampaging Hulk leveled several high-rise buildings in Johannesburg, and then a high speed rail line in South Korea was destroyed by what was described as a small group of terrorists possessing super-powers. But those events paled in comparison to what followed just a short time later - the near-complete destruction of the entire capital city of Sokovia by an army of (apparently) sentient robots. There were protests and near-riots in several major cities around the world as local officials tried to assure the public - without much success - that the situation was safely in hand. The mood grew so ugly, so quickly, that to prevent a mob scene, the Avengers had split up just before arriving in New York. Returning to Avengers Tower was out of the question, at least temporarily; so Tony Stark had surreptitiously confiscated his wife Pepper's reservation at one of the finest luxury hotels in downtown Manhattan - the entire top floor of the building had been reserved for a business conference - and each member of the team made their way there individually and incognito, save for Wanda Maximoff, who was escorted into the building by Steve Rogers, both of them heavily disguised. Clint Barton had elected to return home to his family, with the promise to be available if his services were needed.

Natasha and her remaining fellow Avengers had spent the last several days holed up in their hotel suites, recovering from their own injuries, dealing with their own shell-shock, and trying to take stock of an increasingly ugly and volatile public outcry.

A light rain began to fall just as Natasha made it to the lobby door. She slipped inside quickly, glad to escape the biting wind. The intimate, private lobby was not accessible to the regular hotel guests who used the main entrance, and was manned by only two people, a desk clerk and an armed security guard, both of whom acknowledged Natasha with deferential smiles as she walked to the elevator. Natasha was reasonably sure that the guard was actually one of Nick Fury's men, and she felt a palpable sense of relief. The S.H.I.E.L.D. organization might be gone, but there was still a small core group loyal to Fury, always willing to lend a hand. She gave the guard a grateful smile as she stepped into the elevator.

As the doors closed, Natasha removed her never-needed sunglasses and let her long, dark red hair spill out from under the ballcap that kept her signature tresses hidden. It hadn't been much of a disguise, but Natasha had been itching to get some fresh air for a few minutes at least, and at this hour of the day, she was not likely to be spotted, let alone identified, by anyone.

As the elevator car arrived at the top floor, and its doors opened, Natasha could hear Steve and Tony arguing - again - in the hotel's conference room, their raised voices easily discernible even from the opposite end of the hallway.

"Don't change the subject," Tony Stark was saying. "It's not my fault the Maximoffs were corralled by Strucker and his goons. I'm not the one who turned them into living weapons."

"She's not a weapon," Steve Rogers answered, unable to keep an edge of irritation out of his voice. "She's a young woman, not much more than a kid. She didn't ask for any of this to happen to her."

"Oh, I think she did," Stark retorted. "The Maximoffs volunteered for Strucker's experiments. That's on record. And psycho little sister was clearly on Ultron's side when we tracked them to Klaue's base. Hey, maybe you remember that little dust-up? When she did all those lovely mind jobs on us, and basically tore our entire team apart? I'm pretty sure she was working for the bad guys then."

"She sided with us when we needed her to."

"Fine. Whatever. So, what are we supposed to do with her now, Cap? Hmm? Lock her in a basement for the next thirty years? Even if we still had Fury's fancy Hulk cage, it couldn't contain someone like her. She can warp reality as we know it with a wave of her freakin' hand. How are we supposed to control something like that?"

"It's not about control, it's about responsibility, and right now, we are responsible for her. She has no home to go back to. She has no family. Her brother died - helping us. We're the closest thing to a support system she's going to have."

"So, we're running an orphanage now?"

"Oh, for God's sake," Natasha muttered angrily under her breath. Didn't Steve and Tony realize that Wanda could clearly hear every word of their heated argument? She'd have some sharp words for her colleagues soon enough. Right now, there was damage control to be done - to say nothing of offering some simple human comfort.

"Hey," Natasha called out softly as she entered the suite she shared with Wanda, not wanting to startle the young woman. "How are you doing?"

There was no answer. Wanda Maximoff was curled up on the long couch in a near-fetal position, her head tucked into her folded arms, crying softly. Natasha threw her jacket across a chair, crossed the room, and sat down on the edge of the couch. After a moment's hesitation, she leaned over and placed her hand on Wanda's back. She began to give the sobbing girl a gentle back rub, hoping the gesture would provide some comfort.

"I'll go tell the boys to keep it down," she said. "They can be real blockheads sometimes."

Wanda didn't respond, but her sobs quieted; Natasha continued to rub gently between Wanda's shoulder blades. She could feel the girl's knotted, tensed muscles beneath her fingers and sighed sympathetically.

"Oh, Wanda, it's going to be all right," Natasha murmured. "You're safe here. I promise. You're safe."

As she heard the voices of the men rising in argument again, Natasha grunted in annoyance, pushing away her own irritation with an effort.

"All right, I'm going to go yell at the boys, and I will be back in just a few minutes to check on you, okay? I will be right back."

She left the room, leaving the door to the suite open a crack before striding angrily down the long corridor.

"You know, she can hear you," Natasha remonstrated as she entered the conference room. She carefully and deliberately closed the door behind her.

"We weren't that loud," Stark replied, uncertainly. "Were we?"

"Tony, I'm sure you guys can be heard all the way to New Jersey."

"Sorry." Steve Rogers' apology was abrupt and perfunctory. He was as agitated by the argument as Stark was. "How is she?"

"How do you think she is?" Sighing, Natasha took a seat at the table. "She's a mess."

"Yeah, well, since we neglected to turn her over to the authorities when we had the chance, now she's our mess," Stark said glumly.

"There were extenuating circumstances, Tony," Natasha reminded him. "Wanda helped us defeat Ultron. We might not have stopped him, without her help. We had to bring her with us."

Stark scoffed derisively. "Correct me if I'm wrong, but didn't she start this whole fiasco by helping Ultron in the first place?"

"And Ultron destroyed her only home, and murdered her only living relative. Trust me, Tony. She regrets it."

"The question still remains," Steve cut in. "What do we do with her now?"

After having spent the better part of the afternoon pacing the room, Stark settled himself in one of the chairs next to Natasha.

"We put ourselves in a real bind, legally, by bringing her back to New York with us," he sighed dejectedly. "If we'd just left her in Sokovia -"

"Let's not go through that again," Steve waved a hand impatiently. "She's here now. Taking her back to her ruined homeland isn't a viable option. So, what other options do we have? Realistically?"

"Just about every international peacekeeping body on the planet is demanding her extradition," Stark answered. "We could turn her over to them, I suppose."

"Not an option," Natasha declared coldly.

Steve Rogers frowned; he sensed that Natasha was about to make a suggestion. "What are you thinking, Natasha?"

"I'm thinking she could stay with us."

Steve Rogers and Tony Stark exchanged a dubious glance with one another.

"What, you mean, join the Avengers?" Stark said, after an awkward pause. "Please tell me you're not serious."

"Why not? We've all experienced firsthand the power that Wanda has," Natasha pointed out. "I don't know about you, but I'd much rather have power like that on our side, than on the side of the bad guys."

"Do you think she's still one of the bad guys?" Steve asked, in all seriousness.

"No. I don't," Natasha said firmly. "When Ultron tried to get her to follow through with his plan, she balked."

"Of course she did," Stark snorted. "Otherwise, she'd be dead."

Natasha shook her head sadly. "I don't think that's why she switched sides. Or not the whole reason, anyway. I almost get the impression she was hoping she wouldn't survive."

"You mean, she wanted to die?" Steve frowned with obvious concern. "You don't think she's suicidal, do you?"

"No. I don't think she's in that kind of a spiral. At least... not yet." Natasha sighed. "But we have a very limited window of opportunity here. Wanda's already blaming herself for the destruction of Sokovia and her brother's death. She was in a bad place to start with. But now..."

"Now she's a ticking bomb," Stark finished her sentence glumly.

"One we still have a chance of defusing," Natasha insisted.

Tony Stark sighed heavily, running his fingers through his dark hair in agitation.

"Let me get this straight. You want us to welcome, with open arms, a woman who basically tore the Avengers apart with a flick of her wrist, hates every one of us, who has God only knows what kinds of psychoses, and powers we can't even chart?"

"She fought by our side, Tony," Natasha answered evenly. "And gave a good account of herself. I'm willing to bet if we approach her the right away, she would fight by our side again."

"You do realize Banner's still missing, right?" Stark shot back. "And I'm willing to bet my entire fortune that the little Scarlet Witch we have locked away back there is the real reason he's gone AWOL."

Steve Rogers leaned forward in his chair; Natasha's suggestion was beginning to intrigue him.

"Tony's right, Natasha," he cautioned. "Until very recently, Maximoff was an enemy combatant, and we still don't know the full extent of her powers. And frankly, the ones we do know about make me very nervous."

"Wait a minute, are you agreeing with me?" Stark exclaimed, feigning shock.

"I'll try not to make a habit of it," Steve said, with a humorless smile. He turned back to Natasha. "Anyway, even if she's sincere about making amends, we can't put her through any sort of ordinary vetting process."

"I realize that, Steve. But think of the risks we take, if we don't at least try to bring her in-house. If she decided to lash out again at the world..." Natasha couldn't quite suppress a shudder. "Well, frankly, I'm not sure the Avengers could stop her," she confessed. "So I see absolutely no risk in holding out a carrot instead of a stick, and see where that gets us."

Natasha looked at her two friends pleadingly. "Look, she's going to be stuck with us for the time being anyway, at least until her legal status gets sorted out. So why don't we take advantage of that time, and see if she's willing to work with us on a permanent basis?"

"Do you really think you have a chance of getting through to her?" Steve asked.

"Yeah. I think so..." Natasha gave Steve a dismayed look. "What, this is all going to be on me?"

Steve didn't answer immediately, and Natasha glanced over at Tony Stark.

"Hey, don't look at me," Stark protested. "Comforting grieving super-villains is not exactly in my skill set."

"And what makes you think it's in mine?" Natasha retorted. "Tell me, which one of us in this room is the career assassin?"

"Natasha." Steve gently called her to a halt. "You're the one who's advocating for her."

Natasha glared angrily at Steve for a moment, and then relented. "Yeah," she conceded. "I guess I am."

"And realistically, I think she's far more likely to respond favorably to you, than any of the rest of us."

Reluctantly, Natasha nodded. "Okay. She's my project. Got it."

"And at least for now, it's probably better if Tony keeps his distance. Sorry, Tony, but you are something of a trigger for her."

Stark shrugged. "I get to stay away from the Scarlet Witch? I have absolutely zero problem with that."

"Tony, please stop calling her that," Natasha sighed. "It's just mean."

"But accurate," Stark retorted.

"Even if your idea works, we still need someplace to keep the girl safe in the meantime," Steve pointed out to Natasha.

"Yeah, we can't stay here indefinitely," Stark added. "The authorities are swarming all over the Avengers tower, waiting for us to show up there. Good thing Pepper had the top floor of this hotel reserved for private business use. Otherwise, we might all have been led away in cuffs by now."

"Actually, I was thinking of taking Wanda to our new upstate facility," Natasha suggested.

Steve frowned. "That site's still under construction."

"I know. But the residence wing is more or less complete. And nobody will be looking for us there. At least, not right away."

Steve and Tony exchanged a quick glance.

"That could work," Stark allowed.

"I mean, the electricity's on, and the plumbing works, right? Wanda and I can camp out there for a while... at least until the dust settles."

"Let's be clear on what we're doing here," Steve cautioned. "If our endgame is to have the Maximoff girl join the team, then that also means we're also officially fighting any extradition charges on her behalf."

"Steve, Tony, her name is 'Wanda'," Natasha rebuked her friends gently. "Not 'the Maximoff girl', not 'The Scarlet Witch'. She has a first name. Use it."

Steve nodded somberly. "You're absolutely right," he agreed. "Wanda it is."

Natasha turned to Tony Stark. "How bad is this going to get?" she asked apprehensively.

"Oh, it's already bad," Stark assured her. "Even my team of lawyers is going to need a team of lawyers."

Natasha mulled that over. "I still think she's worth the risk," she declared finally.

Steve nodded thoughtfully. "I do, too," he concurred. "With S.H.I.E.L.D., Thor and Banner all out of the picture, we don't have a whole lot of resources or firepower to fight off anything like another Chitauri invasion. Wanda could certainly be a big help to us there."

Natasha and Steve turned to Tony Stark with an expectant look.

"Okay, okay, I'll get my legal team on it," Stark agreed, with obvious reluctance. "We can begin the filings to keep her here in New York for the time being, and fight the extradition charges. That doesn't mean she won't eventually have to stand trial somewhere," he cautioned. "Now that S.H.I.E.L.D. is gone, the Avengers don't have any special protections under international law. Sooner or later, we're going to have to deal with the question of our own legal status. Or whether or not we even have a team, without Banner and Thor on board."

"One crisis at a time, Tony," Natasha said.

"Okay. Crisis One. I'm on it." Tony Stark got up from the table, and headed for the conference room door, phone in his ear. His voice faded as he strode away down the corridor. "Happy? Hey, it's me. Yeah. Can you have the car brought around the side entrance, please? And put me through to our legal department. Murdoch, if he's there. Yeah... oh, we definitely have a lot of work to do..."

Natasha turned to Steve with a despairing sigh. "What are we going to do, Steve? Project Insight may be ended, but there are still dozens of HYDRA cells out there planning God knows what, and we're back on our heels, just trying to scrape a team together. Not to mention, an organization to support it," she added sadly.

Steve Rogers shrugged helplessly. "I wish I could tell you, Natasha," he said. "But right now... honestly, I just don't know."

A few minutes later, the hotel elevator brought Tony Stark to the private lobby on the far side of the hotel. He nodded perfunctorily to the desk clerk as he headed out to the street. As Stark exited the door, a man in a dark suit hurried over to him. Realizing that the man was a stranger, Stark immediately held up his hands in a halting gesture.

"Whoa, there, friend. That's close enough."

The man held something in his hand. Stark glanced down long enough to see that he was carrying a sheaf of unsealed court documents. Stark's expression blanched, and he groaned in dismay. "Oh, son of a -"

"I'm so sorry, Mr. Stark," the man apologized breathlessly, holding the papers out to him. "I don't want to give you these papers, any more than you want to take them. But I'm hereby ordered by the court of the state of New York to notify you that you've been served."