Chapter 24 - That Nagging Feeling
Upstate New York
New Avengers Facility, Kitchen
10:25 a.m.
“A pinch of paprika,” Vision mumbled to himself, reading the ingredients off of the white sheet of paper in his hand. He looked up. “A pinch.”
Looking down to his left, he pinched a small dose of paprika from the nearby plate, adding it to the mixture. He grabbed the large spoon, mixing the dish tenderly, just as the instructions required.
“Is that Paprikash?”
Looking up, Vision noticed the young Wanda Maximoff entering the kitchen. He noticed the bags under her eyes, the drag in her voice, helped only by the small hint of hope and wonder, presumably to the food. Despite her appearance, Vision still believed her to be quite presentable, probably more so.
“I thought it might… lift your spirits,” he told her. She smiled a little, attempting a chuckle but resulting to a simple exhale. She came to his side, Vision stepping away to allow her to address the dish he had prepared.
Wanda stirred the mixture within the pot. Bringing up the spoon, she took a quick sip, taking a moment to taste the flavor. Vision, curiously intrigued, came to her right, waiting for her reaction. She licked her lips, looked to him and smiled. The smile was enough to comfort the synthetic.
“Spirits lifted,” Wanda said.
Looking down, Vision said, “In my defense, I haven’t actually… eaten anything before, so…”
“May I?”
Wanda smiled again, giving him a reassuring nod. Vision bowed his head. “Please…” he said, offering his ingredients to her. Wanda assumed command of the dish, sniffing some spices and adding it to the larger mixture. The entire time, Vision stared at her, studied her graceful movements. He walked around the table, still staring, palms wrestling with one another.
“Wanda…” he finally said.
“Hmm,” she mumbled, attention still focused on the dish.
“No one dislikes you, Wanda,” he said, pausing on the opposite end of the table.
Seeming somewhat surprised by Vision’s outward comment, Wanda still smiled and said, “Thanks.”
“Oh, you’re welcome.” He waved his finger around his head, saying, “No, it’s a… involuntary response in their amygdala, they can’t help but be afraid of you.”
Stirring the mixture, staring into the swirling brew, Wanda looked up, asked, “Are you?”
Taking a seat, Vision responded, “My amygdala is synthetic, so…”
He began to smile. It was pretty contagious, as the Maximoff smiled herself. That smile shifted into giggling, which transformed into a short burst of laughter. Vision seemed somewhat proud of his dry sense of humor, choosing to stare at the fruits displayed before him.
A moment of silence between the two, the spoon smacking the inside of the warming pot of Paprikash. Wanda’s smile disappeared, her eyes lowering to the mixture. “I used to think of myself one way. But, after this…” she waved her palm, a small, red orb dancing between her fingers. “I am something else. And still me, I think. But…”
Sighing, Wanda lowered her palm. Staring to Vision, she said, “That’s not what everyone else sees.”
Vision looked away. “Do you know, I don’t what this is.” He tapped his forehead, the stone shimmering to his touch. Wanda, having somewhat fallen from the conversation, returned, and stared from the gem to Vision’s eyes. “Not really. I know it’s not of this world. But it powered Loki’s staff, gave you your abilities, your brother his—”
He tried stopping himself, but it was already too late. Wanda’s eyes fell back to the pot, her lips tightening. Vision, after clenching his own fist, cleared his throat. “I apologize. Sometimes I… have trouble remembering not to…”
She shook her head, not even looking up. “It is fine.” Sighing, she continued to stir the mixture. Another brief moment of quiet between the two, Vision’s gaze falling to the table. Wanda didn’t have it in her to keep the silence building into a wall, separating them. “Nothing’s really been the same since Equestria.”
“It truly hasn’t,” Vision agreed, recalling the terrible events of the Ultron Offensive. He lifted his eyes, studied her expression, then said, “And yet… seeing them here, the equines, gives me a sense of… ease.”
Wanda looked at him.
“They tend to look on the brighter side of things, as opposed to us. I tend to look at what humanity is truly capable of, both its faults… and its strengths.” Wanda listened carefully, hanging on each of Vision’s words. “Now, with these devastating attacks, loss of human life, and wavering threats from HYDRA agents, I would assume that the faults of humanity have affected them.”
Wanda chuckled, mindlessly stirring the dish. “Lord knows they have affected me.”
“And I, as well,” Vision agreed. “I have seen some change in them, specifically Twilight Sparkle and Rainbow Dash.” Wanda nodded. “The two don’t act the way they used to, the way I used to see them. They are… more hostile… presumably from the effects of this world.”
“I wouldn’t keep it against them,” Wanda commented.
He seemed to pause, his eyes elsewhere. “Just I used to be. When your magic infected the gem, I didn’t see the world as it used to be. For a moment, I was lost… and the world was darker. The gem was strong, though, and now I see things as I used to. But…” he paused, rubbing the stone, “its true nature is a mystery. And yet, it is a part of me.”
Having been focused on Vision’s story, Wanda almost left the pot unattended. She continued to stir, asking, “Are you afraid of it?”
Vision smiled mysteriously. “I wish to understand it.”
Hopping happily into the living room, Pinkie Pie hummed a soft tune to herself. She paused in mid-air, humming ceasing, twisting her neck to Vision and Wanda and then quickly over to the couch and the running television. Spread out, head resting on about three pillows, Spike mindlessly flipped through the channels, pausing every now and again, not to watch what station he had stopped on, but to grab a clawful of popcorn and shove it in his mouth.
It wasn’t anything special. The past few days have been the same routine: wake up, shower, make breakfast, go swimming, make lunch, watch TV, make dinner, go to bed. That schedule changed every now and again, but it mostly remained in that order, and Spike had remained stationed in that day-to-day lifestyle. Today’s lunch may have just consisted of a big bag of buttery popcorn, but it still suited him.
Oh, and thank Celestia for television. Spike hadn’t realized how addicting the large box was. He could watch all the movies he wanted, from a nearly-endless set of “DVDs” to thousands more thanks to the online subscription Stark had set up. If he didn’t want to watch movies, there were hundreds of channels that played human sports, cartoons, news, and so much more. Spike tended to stray away from the news channels, as all it seemed to talk about was more bad news.
In fact, the call a few days back from Natasha and the recent news that morning of the Winter Soldier’s capture pretty much called for another trip to the European continent. The ones that left were Stark, Rhodes, Applejack, Rarity, and Fluttershy. Spike was surprised to say the least knowing that Applejack wanted to get involved with the Accords again. But after seeing the news and seeing Rainbow Dash getting arrested—Spike was sure the girls were probably watching it now in Berlin—they had to figure out what exactly was going on with Steve and the Winter Soldier.
So, most of the house left for Berlin. The ones that stayed were, of course, Spike, Wanda, Vision, and—
“Pinkie Pie!” the mare screamed in Spike’s face, appearing to hover over him.
“Gah!” Spike wailed, nearly choking on his popcorn and instead falling into a coughing fit. The mare let him compose himself, still hanging over him. “Pinkie, what are you doing? Can’t you see I’m trying to watch—?”
“Yeah, yeah, yeah! But look!”
Gripping Spike’s head between her hooves, she lifted the baby dragon and set him on the couch’s backrest. She flipped over to hide behind the backrest, as well, the two peeking over. For a moment, Spike didn’t know what he was meant to be looking at, and he opened his mouth to tell Pinkie off, but stopped when her hoof shot into it.
“Looooooook,” she whispered, pulling her hoof—now covered in Spike’s drool—out and pointing it to the kitchen. Spike, more annoyed than intrigued, did as she asked, and looked to the kitchen.
“Vision, are you not letting me leave?”
“It’s a question of safety.”
“I can protect myself.”
In an attempt to push past Vision, Wanda found herself stopped by his right arm. Gentle, but assertive. Pinkie reached down and pulled up Spike’s popcorn bowl, eating right out of it. Spike shot her a glare, but she was far-too focused on the events unfolding in the kitchen.
“Not yours. Mr. Stark would like to avoid the possibility of another public incident.” Vision looked to her, to the young woman in his arm. “Until the Accords are a… more secured foundation.”
Though not a foreigner to Vision’s touch, feeling his powerful, synthetic arm wrapped around her and gripping her arm felt somewhat… comforting. Strangely so. She looked to him, stared from his eyes to the stone in his forehead, the same stone that gave him his powers, as well as hers. It was a strange connection, but one the two were forced to share.
“And what do you want?” she asked.
Vision stared right into her eyes. “For people to see you… as I do.”
The two could hear a shocking gasp emerge from the living room. Turning in that direction, both Vision and Wanda could see Pinkie Pie duck her head behind the couch, dragging the poor baby dragon alongside with her. Cute. It seemed to be, as Wanda chuckled at the scene, Vision turning back to her.
“Well…” Wanda sighed, taking a step away from Vision’s touch, “a pizza does sound nice.”
“I’ll call right away,” Vision said, making the first steps to the phone book hiding within one of the shelves.
“I’ll be in my room,” Wanda called.
“I will inform you once the pizza has arrived.”
Pausing by the hallway’s entrance, she chuckled. “Okay, Vision.”
Once Wanda had retreated to the hallway and Vision was busy searching for the phone book, Pinkie finally found the coast to be clear, raising her head over the couch. Spike followed by his own will, turning his eyes to the pink party pony.
She looked ready to pop. Eyes big and bright, cheeks a glowing crimson, a smile wide enough to reach from ear to ear, and a body that couldn’t seem to hold still. She looked to Spike, the dragon backing away for safety reasons, and squealed like a newborn kitten.
Spike frowned. “What?” he asked.
Her only response was a wiggle of her eyebrows, a knowing look in her eyes. Spike’s response was a simple raise of the brow.
And then she was gone in a puff of smoke, leaving Spike alone on the empty couch. He looked down, noticing his popcorn was gone, too, only worsening his frown.
“Spike,” Vision called from the kitchen, “you wouldn’t happen to know the best establishment for serving pizza, know, would you? Also, do you know where the phone book is?”
Spike sighed, his claw instinctively meeting his forehead. Still better than Berlin.
New Avengers Facility, Wanda’s Room
10:36 a.m.
Pinkie Pie appeared in a cloud of smoke by the entrance to Wanda’s room. There, she saw her on her guitar, strumming away at a few chords. Breaking away from the instrument in her lap, Wanda raised her eyes, smiled to the mare at her door.
“Pinkie, I saw you and Spike spying on me,” she said, looking back to her guitar. “There something on your mind?”
“Oh, nothing,” Pinkie declared nonchalantly, strolling innocently into Wanda’s quarters. “But I do think there’s something on your mind!”
Strumming down, Wanda smiled. “Oh, really?”
“Really!”
“Yeah…” she set her guitar on her bed behind her, her arms placed behind so she could lean backwards. Smiling, Wanda asked, “Then what is it?”
Pinkie shot forward, her hoof outstretched, her eyes squinting, her smile contagious. “You think I didn’t know! You thought you could keep it hidden away, deep down inside, but you let yourself slip, Wanda!”
Wanda chuckled. “What are you talking about, Pinkie?”
“I saw the way you were talking with Vision, the way you looked at him, the way he held you…”
At that moment, Wanda’s breath instantly shortened, her eyes widening, her cheeks warming. Pinkie sighed in a heavenly way, practically floating—despite her lack of wings—onto Wanda’s lap. With her hooves over her heart, Pinkie looked up to the Maximoff and smiled in a dream-like state.
“So… romantic,” she whispered.
“Whoa, whoa, okay,” Wanda said, standing up and knocking Pinkie off her legs. The mare landed with a soft thud, a tiny squeak escaping the mare. Wanda scoffed, then laughed, then closed her eyes. “I wouldn’t go that far, Pinkie.”
“I would!” Pinkie declared, sitting up like an alert canine. “The moment I saw you two, I knew it was destined to happen!” She raised one of her hooves. “He’s connected to the Mind Stone,” she raised the other, “your power comes from the Mind Stone. It just makes sense that you two would be bound together. Face the music, Wanda, you and Vision are destined for each other.”
She smacked both hooves together, causing Wanda to flinch.
“Take advice from the Love Pony, Wanda,” Pinkie said, pointing to the Maximoff. “Don’t let him slip away. A synthetic android like that only comes around once in Phase 2, and I doubt there’ll be another in Phase 3.”
Pausing at the strange statement made by Pinkie, Wanda shook her head. “No, Pinkie, you’re being childish. There’s no way it could work… It can’t work… And I don’t have feelings for him, for your information.”
Pinkie just shrugged. “Eh, keep lying to yourself, but soon enough… you’ll know.”
Wanda stared at the pink pony, watched as she slithered out of her room, hooves waving to her as if she were trying to recreate some of Wanda’s telekinetic powers. Pinkie moaned like a ghost, slipping into the dimly-lit hallways.
“You can’t lie to your heart, Wandaaaaaa…”
Then she was gone, leaving Wanda to finally breathe again. Another breath that was caught in her throat and escaped as a terrified yelp the moment Pinkie stuck her head at her room’s entrance once more, this time declaring very loudly, “Oh, and pizza’s here!”
And then she was gone. Just in case, Wanda looked out in the halls, seeing them empty.
In precious solitude, Wanda Maximoff let loose one of the biggest sighs of her life, her heart pumping unusually fast. Placing a hand to her chest, another to her cheek, she realized how hot she had become. It was unlike her. Completely foreign. She had never thought of it before… thought of… Vision before… but now that Pinkie put the idea in her head…
She couldn’t stop.
She just couldn’t stop.
But she did. She forced herself to push it down and keep it hidden, like the rest of her emotions, like she used to do all the time. Then, Wanda stepped into the hall and made her way to the kitchen, the aroma of fresh pizza making her nearly forget about her recent conversation with the delusional pink pony.
Nearly.
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Honestly, i can see where Pinkie's coming from, and just her being Pinkie, maybe the friendship will deepen into something more, though I don't know what for sure. Great chapter, and can't wait to see whats next!
I have the feeling a certain Hawkeye is going go put that blossoming bond on hold soon. I wonder how Spike and Pinkie's presence will affect the following events.
Twilight Sparkle lecture time with Rainbow Dash as reluctant spectator next chapter?
did did pinkie just break the 4th wall ....again?
Neat
Some new stuff
It would've been great if pinkie said there's nothing more powerful than the power of pinkie
s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/originals/2f/6a/d6/2f6ad66b91267db7c82c75d23d70a0f3.gif
8129354 should we really be surprised at this point considering what she has done. I mean she breacks reality almost as Discord.
68.media.tumblr.com/298711bae7b4b152f904271f2133c9db/tumblr_o7g2lqSDOU1v99mhio1_500.jpg
That will never not be funny.
Uh, oh...
Pinkie, this isn't a Deadpool comic, you can't read ahead in people's inner monologues!
This ship seems to have been confirmed by the creators.
DON'T REMIND ME OF THAT! In all honesty, though, I wouldn't be surprised if they use the Infinity Gauntlet to resurrect Vision after they defeat Thanos. Think about it. If he and Wanda do get together, it'd be a great segway into Young Avengers.
This keeps getting better and better.
Well that was much happier than in the film. Let's see how Clint makes an absolute mess of all this happiness.
Ah well maybe not a synthetic android Pinkie, but the Soul Stone is still unaccounted for and we've been suspiciously Adam Warlock free. A synthetic man may very well be on the horizon.
The relationship between Wanda and Vision is very complicated. There's just a certain bond they share from their connection to the Mind Stone. Vision obviously shows care and concern for Wanda and, as he puts it, wants the world to see her as he sees her. Though what makes me conflicted on who's side I stand is that even though he's only protecting her even on Stark's orders, I feel like he's keeping her secluded against her own will, something which I feel is wrong, because he's being overprotective of her and can't let her go out on her own and take the risk that she may cause another incident that will taint her image further to the public, at least not until the Accords serves to balance that to his calculations. Either that or Vision is still trying to understand the concept of what it means to be human.
Humanity's faults have already affected them the moment the Avengers and Ultron laid foot on Equestria. At this rate now, I believe that Earth and Equestria are not yet ready to co-exist with each other.
pbs.twimg.com/media/C6Wl-skU4AAWChy.jpg
"Zip it, Pinkie!"
8129538 Hell, I'd buy that book. Even better idea! I'd buy the audio book! Because nothing says an awesome/soothing day quite like cooking a homemade meal to the sound of Vision's voice.
snickers Ok, that was pretty funny.... if not a little ominous.
Ya know... as far a filler chapters go, this wasn't quite as bad. It might have something to do with my synthetic bro Vision, but definitely the main treat of this chapter has got to be Pinkie and her ability to lighten the mood of things. And considering this is (in my opinion at least) the darkest and emotionally packed MCU movie to date, a little lightheartedness can be needed.
What do you guys think? DO you think there's a thing going on between Vision and Wanda?
Wanda developing feelings for the Vision? This I like.
8129216 Thanks a ton for reading!
8129268 Both Pinkie and Spike will definitely add something new to the inevitable confrontation.
And yes, the lecture is coming next chapter. 
8129354 It's like second nature for her to rip the fabric of reality every now and again.
8129397 I want to see a legitimate Gravity Falls crossover. Pinkie and Mabel FTW!
8129538 But Pinkie is Deadpool, so...
8129664 Clint, the bastard's gonna ruin my ship.
8129972 Perfect.
Nothing a little Deadpool to shut the pink party animal up.
8131180 I expect a full-blown kissing scene in Infinity War.
8132101 Me too.
Damn it Pinkie...
8133244
Rainbow should better get noise muffling earphones!
8133244 Will we get another GOTG cameo with Mantis? Dr. Strange? Speaking of which, did anyone like Dr. Strange? Because I did. I just felt it moved TOO damn fast though.
Shame that this fanfic came under the radar. Seriously underrated. I think it would deserve at least 300 likes.
Where have the 120 missing up-thumbers of the previous story gone, that is the question.
8153253 I appreciate that. Despite this story not being as popular, I'm not gonna give up on it anytime soon.
Expect a chapter update this weekend.
8153942
Not not popular, under-known and a pearl lost in the sea of fics on this site.
Well I don't know seeing some of the comments last story- OH! You mean in universe. Never mind.
Not sure that's going to make her feel better Vision.
Pinkie pie being a match maker and her I thought Rarity so ke be the one to take that role.
Anyone got ACME Anti-Toon Sticky Tape? That Pinkie... does she even have an off switch? Maybe call Colossus to deal with her.
Do you have off switch?
Yeah, it's right next to my tail, silly! Or is it the on swi-
Enough! (Right hooks Pinkie into a car)
actually Captain America Civil War was a part of phase 3, after Avengers 4 will be the start of phase 4.
Pinkie is the "Love Pony"? When she gets back, there will be a certain alicorn who wants to have words with her.
Pinkie you don’t want to see what happens in phase 3...trust me.
It's true given how the world is supposedly changing Twilight and Rainbow so to speak. It was supposed to be a simple trip, a matter of diplomacy or so, and yet one terrorist attack later along with orders for supervised heroic observations and the two are butting heads more seriously than before. But in regards to the possible connection between Wanda and Vision, leave it to Pinkie to think she can help bring them together. But if it's bound to be anything as similar as trying to get Maud Pie and Starlight Glimmer to be best friends, but not in their own way, Pinkie is bound to cause a bit of trouble even if she doesn't mean to.
On the other hand, as much as Wanda denies it, I think she 'does' harbor some feelings toward the synthetic. At this point, I'm willing to believe that almost anything is possible. It's all in the matter on whether they can choose when to act.
Ah, Spike discovers the wonders of television. He basically echoed my feelings on the News channels. I prefer to stick to my streaming services these days.