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Sara took in a deep breath, visualizing the target. She felt the hairs on the back of her next stand up, felt and heard the faint whoosh that followed a second later. She drew her arm back and three seconds before the second whoosh was to arrive, she reared her arm back and tossed her knife. She opened her eyes, her blond hair blowing in her face, in time to see Pietro catch her knife an inch from the target.
“Aww! It was so close, but no!” Pietro, in his silver and blue top and silver sneakers spun around, his blue eyes bright and his grin wide. “You see, I warned you of my excellent abilities, but you thought—” A gush of red energy flew at him, and he was knocked back against the target, and a second later, another knife left Sara’s hand, and found home in the red centre of the target.
The knife in Pietro hand was wrapped in red, and Sara opened her hand to catch it as it was returned to her.
“You should watch yourself, brother.”
“No! No! I call a foul! This was me and the beautiful Sara! You—”
“Oh,” Sara laughed, twirling her knife around as Wanda came to her side, grinning. “We never agreed to this. You simply said I was to try and hit the target. I did, therefore, breakfast will be made by you for the next week.” Sara crossed her arms and smirked.
Pietro huffed, lifted himself up on his elbows, yet remaining on the floor, as he smirked at her. “You know if you wish to have food with me, we can always—” Wanda’s red energy struck his elbows and Pietro dropped with a grunt.
“Sore loser,” Pietro called out.
“Am I?” Dark green eyes with a glow of red in the pupil fell on Sara. “Do you wish to share lunch with me?”
Sara grinned. “I would love to.”
Wanda grabbed her hand and tugged her away, laughing as Pietro muttered under his breath. Off in the distance, the door to their training room opened and Clint’s head popped through the crack. “Hey, Speedy! You’re needed.”
Pietro was on his feet a blink later. “Duty calls upon the gifted.” He said before racing away, leaving a trail of silver energy in his wake.
Sara and Wanda rolled their eyes, sharing a grin. Alone, they wondered over to the vending machine that Clint and Tony had insisted be installed. It was only because Natasha and Bruce insisted on the matter, that healthy bars and protein bars were offered alongside tons of candy. Wanda pressed a thumb into the pad and FRIDAY’s voice echoed.
“A nutty bar for Sara and a packet of salted pretzels for Wanda.” Friday predicted, with a hint of smugness in her tone.
“Thank you, Friday.” Sara answered, smiling when Wanda shook her head at the vending machine.
“For years, I have lived on manual labor.” She said, bending down as their selection fell into the slot. “It’s odd to have a machine meet my needs.”
“I know.” They walked over to the benches, both wordlessly deciding that the floor would be better. They leaned back against the bench, stretching their legs out before them. “I hand washed my clothes and the dishes for weeks before Steve finally talked to me. He shared his experience with getting used to living well-off, and he helped me… But, yes, it still is strange.”
Wanda nodded, chewing on her pretzel. She turned the bag and offered it to Sara. They shared the bag and halved her bar, eating silently. All the while, Wanda’s attention was on her hand, her fingers bending and moving fluidly as she manipulated a ball of red energy. Sara felt her skin react to the presence of the power, but unlike everything new and unknown, she felt no danger in it. Of course, she knew that Wanda’s abilities were still unexplored, that not even Wanda knew how powerful she truly was, but, still, Sara had yet to feel guarded around Wanda’s powers.
“Did you know, yesterday, I was able to trick Pietro into thinking he was in an ocean.” Wanda’s voice cut through the silence. “I didn’t mean to, I had wanted to calm him, and he’d always loved the sound of water and waves, so I thought I’d give it a try. He was gasping for air by the time I was able to pull him out of it.” Wanda fingers curled one by one until she smothered the red ball into a fist.
Sara said nothing, waiting and listening.
“This was not the first time I had gone too far, so he was not mad at me. We went to Natasha shortly after, and both her and Clint reassured us that as long we waited before we tried something like that again, it would be okay.”
Sara leaned the tip of her training shoes pressed against Wanda’s, silently expressing her support.
“You know… I know, how difficult it is to not know your strength, to hold back in fear of harming others. Bucky and Natasha, too, but… the other’s don’t. They push and have no way of knowing how far is too far.”
Sara swallowed, looking down at their feet. After a moment’s beat, she asked, “Do you?”
Wanda’s green eyes looked over and she frowned. “What do you mean?”
Sara looked away, and instead focused on her own hands. “In Hydra, they push as well. They twist you to their will, and often, they twist you beyond recognition. The trick is, to know your own form, your own mind, and your own self.” Sara felt a lump in her throat, as horrid flashes of her training invaded her mind. “It was hard at the time, and often, you forget… what you are, who you are… But then… something brings you back. For me, it was the eyes of a mother… my first mission. She had been with her child, and I was to kill her. I remembered her kindness to me, her warm hands as she allowed me into her home.” Sara blinked hard, shutting the memory away.
She swallowed, cleared her expression before facing Wanda, who’s own eyes had gained a sheen. “I remembered her during my training, of what a woman can be and who she saw me as. If you think of something…” She turned to Wanda, lifting an arm to rest it on the bench. “Close your eyes.” She demanded, and Wanda’s eyes fell close without hesitation. “Now… picture a vision, it can be anything. Its how you feel, how you wish to feel, how you wish to remain… It’s strong and no weather and fire can destroy it.” She watched, waiting, seeing the way Wanda’s dark brows pulled together, but then, the corner of the lips ticked up.
“Have it?” She asked, grinning when Wanda nodded. “Now hold onto that.” Suddenly, a thought occurred to her. She jumped up, and Wanda’s eyes snapped open and up. Sara grinned down at her, offering her a hand, “Let’s try it.”
“What? No!”
Sara beckoned on, curling her fingers inward. “Come. You never know until you try.” Wanda looked down at her hand, her own fingers curling into a fist, but Sara saw the faint colour of red furled around her black painted digits.
Sara took in a breath, steeling herself before uttering. “I trust you.”
Wanda’s green eyes widened and locked with hers. Disbelief was clear in her orbs but Sara held true, leaving her hand open, and holding Wanda’s gaze. Hesitantly, fingers curled around her palm and Sara gripped onto it, tugging until Wanda stood up. Sara pulled them away from the benches, dropping Wanda’s hand to walk a few spaces ahead of her. She spun around and faced the other girl.
“Now, picture the image. Yes?” Sara asked. “Do you have it?” She checked.
“Yes.” Wanda closed her eyes, spreading her hands slowly, turning it as red balls formed in her palms, her fingers moved elegantly, as she was stroking life in a power that was her own.
“Okay,” Sara planted her feel. Her heart suddenly made its presence known, slamming against her chest so hard that she felt it in the pit of her stomach. She swallowed, nodding to herself. She took a deep breathe, and said, “Now, lift me.”
Wanda green eyes fixed on her, unworldly in it’s scarlet color, but she swung her hand out, red tendrils flying through the air like a mist, curling around Sara’s legs. She felt pressures curl around her calves, phantom fingers pressing against her skin, and she bend her knees, pushed up on her toes and then she was air-borne.
Sara was used to heights. She had scaled the highest of builds, dropping from airplanes and jets. She had flung herself from one building to another, and all her life, when she was hovering in mid-air, with the air in her lungs trapped, and her legs bend as if it refused to acknowledge that there was ground to find purchase on, she had never felt this… free… this safe.
She felt Wanda push her up, felt her body bend and her arms being wrapped around Wanda’s power. She thought of spinning around, visualised it and then, like a whisper of an unknown voice in her head, she felt Wanda’s power against her back and around her legs and her body was spin around in a perfect mid-air flip.
Sara’s smile widened as she let go a laugh of shock and joy, her eyes crinkling. Her hair come loose form it’s half-bun, and it fall down in blonde waves, the sight making her laugh more.
There was a flash of panic through her mind.
Wanda shouted in alarm, “Sara, I—”
Sara laughed, “It’s okay! I’m…” She laughed, unable to think past the wonderment of being in the air life this, truly flying free like the birds she’d dreamed of joining as a little girl.
“I’m…” Wanda’s power tightened around her, wrapping around her waist and arms. “I’m bringing you down.”
Sara’s smile dropped, as she was righted, her legs falling straight, her hair falling over her face. The second her feet touched touch, Wanda’s presence left, and for a moment, Sara left unbalanced. She swayed, pressing her feet to the floor to remain on the ground. Wanda rushed over but before she could offer any help, Sara lifted her hands, holding her off.
A beat passed before Sara looked up, blowing a hair away from her nose, a bright smile claiming her face. “See!”
But Wanda did not smile back. The other girl had a deep frown on her face, her lips pressing together, her jaw flexing. “I entered your mind.” She stated.
Sara’s smile softened. “I know. I felt it.”
Wanda became more distressed, reaching out to grasp Sara’s wrist. “Sara, I entered your mind without meaning to! I could have hurt you or worse.”
“But you didn’t.” Sara stated, foolishly. She knew she sounded foolish, and while she may not understand yet, she knew that Wanda’s presence in her mind had been welcomed. Like always, her walls felt no need to come up. It was as if something within her recognised Wanda, and accepted her.
“That is not the point, Sara, I could have—”
The hair in the back of Sara’s neck stood.
“But you didn’t.”
This did not come from Sara but from someone off in the distance. The smooth husky voice echoed through the empty space, and both Sara and Wanda spun around to face Natasha, seeing her leaning against the door, arms crossed and red hair a beacon. She was dressed in black sweatpants and a purple top.
“Which is interesting.” Natasha continued, pushing herself off the wall. Sara turned and steps back, falling in line with Wanda, their knuckles brushing briefly. Natasha’s green eyes were very similar to Wanda’s now that Sara thought about it, but there was a sharpness to it, a specific glint that made them paler in some sense, whereas Wanda’s eyes were softer, cooler. It was an odd thing to notice, but Sara filed the observation away for later.
Natasha finally reached them, putting her hands in the pockets of her sweats. “Have you done this before?”
Wanda answered, “No. We… Sara had an idea to help with my control, after what happened with Pietro.”
Natasha looked between the two, before her eyes fell on Sara. “And you thought it was a good idea to try this out without practice?”
Sara shrugged. Although it’s been months, a part of her still fell the need to fall silence and obedient, to lower her eyes when under the gaze of her superior. Her body fought the urge to gather her hands behind her back, to straighten her spine and plant her feet. Sara clenched her fist, forcing an unaffected mask.
“It would have worked, or it would not have. No amount of practiced would have helped.”
The corner of Natasha’s lips curled and her head tipped a bit the side as she regarded Sara with what could only be described as an amused look.
“What?” Sara narrowed her eyes.
“Nothing. You just remind of another blond, who would have done and said the exact same thing. Jumped on a grenade once, too.”
Sara’s cheeks heated, but she willed her body to remain calm. She gave Natasha another shrug, knowing she had nothing better to say. Wanda huffed a laugh beside her and Sara rapped her knuckles against hers in retaliation.
“Steve is a great strategist. I take that as a compliment.”
“You would.” Natasha shot back at her, not missing a beat. She looked between Sara and Wanda once again. “Back to the topic. I think it’s interesting.” Her eyes fell on Wanda, “your relationship with Pietro is unique and until now, we haven’t considered teaming you up with another.” Then her eyes fell on Sara, “But this will not go well with your fathers. It was a risk, Wanda is right and no matter the trust you have in her ability, it still could have ended horribly.”
Sara felt guilt and ashamed and hated herself for feeling like she had failed somehow. She gritted her teeth, and held firm, knowing worse was to come, as it was the order of things.
“So… I’m going to talk to the team, and discuss possible having you, Wanda and Pietro on a team. That means, if we all agree, your training will be done together.”
Green eyes and silver-blue eyes locked together, bright with excitement.
“Do you think they would go for it?” Sara asked Natasha, barely containing herself.
Finally, Natasha dropped the stoic act and allowed a smile, her posture relaxing and it was as if she was talking to Natasha, her friend, and not Natasha, The Black Widow.
“You’ll find I’m quite convincing. But that doesn’t mean you two are allowed to do this again without one of the Avenger’s present. You’re free to train together as you had before, but nothing further.”
Sara nodded, seeing Wanda mirror the action from the corner of her eye.
“Good. You two might want to get dressed, we are done for the day, and Tony and Bruce have a new concoction of what is apparently food waiting for us.”
“We’ll be there.” Wanda answered.
They remained still, watching as Natasha turned around and walked out the training room, disappearing behind the door. Sara waited a few breathes before turning to look at Wanda, a smirk forming on her lips.
“Do you want to continue training for a bit?”
Wanda looked at her, “we won’t be doing that again.”
Sara rolled her eyes, “I know, we won’t. But we still have a good hour or two, unless you are eager to find out what Tony and Bruce have waiting for us upstairs.”
Wanda’s left hand glowed red. A good distance away her bo-staff, where it was leaning against the wall, was wrapped in red. It flew to her, and Sara caught it easily, twirling it around until it was parallel to her arm. She turned to Wanda who hand floated herself away, red hands poised and ready.
Sara grinned and took off into a run.
*
Two weeks later, Sara and Wanda were once again facing each other. Only this time, Sara was dressed her white suit, her eyes fixed above as Wanda’s red coat fluttered around her, her hands glowing as she formed two red orbs.
“Ready…” Steve called out from the side lines, standing beside Bucky who was leaning forward with his arms resting on a railing, his eyes alight and his grin proud.
“Go!” Steve demanded, and Sara spun her Bo-Staff around and jumped, her foot landing meters from the ground, having been steadied by a red mist. She pushed off and flipped, attacking the simulation just as Wanda’s power tore through another. Not far, a gush of air passed her as Pietro sped ahead.