driftfleet | Twin Roses Mingle

[He'll notice eventually, but right now he's just...comfortable. Disturbing conversation or not, he feels safe with Wanda here. More importantly, he knows she's safe here where he doesn't have to worry.]

That is the downside of this place, I'm afraid. You can control your own situation to an extent, but you have no control over when you might disappear, or when an augment glitch might do something very strange to you.

[He squeezes her hand back and meets her eyes.]

The best strength you can have here is your friends, Wanda. They can bring you back to yourself, and you can do the same for them. I can't tell you how glad I am that you're here with me; you can always count on me to be there for you. I want you to know that.

[Wanda's also comfortable and definitely not complaining. The ship is slightly colder than she'd prefer and Vision is warm.

She shifts a little closer, as if she could somehow hide from the possibilities. There are people at home who act like she's a ticking time bomb, but here it's actually true.]

I don't know if I would hurt anyone, or what these glitches might do to me, but... [She bites her lip. Tony isn't here, and though she'd only heard terrible things about the Avengers, she's not sure if she'd try to go after them or not.

Regardless, there's nothing either of them can do about it. All she can do is trust in Vision's innate goodness to stop her if there's ever a problem.]

Thank you. And I'm here for you too.

[For a moment he's lost in memory and stares at the picture of Bucky--Winter, really--that's on the mural. He had lost it badly and rampaged through the Iskaulit. Hurt people he'd cared about. Hurt other people who were just in the way. Much like back at home, in a way.

And now he was one of the few people the Vision was not only overjoyed to learn was still here, but was someone he'd trust with his own life and that of his friends.]

They might not affect you at all, in fact. I think the worst they've ever done to me was give me a cold. Though I did find that rather miserable.

[One can only hope, and it's not like there's anything anyone here can do about it. Maybe one day Wanda will learn to worry less, but today is definitely not that day.]

Colds are terrible. I'm sorry.

I hope you don't get sick like that again, but I'm glad it wasn't something worse.

[He gives her shoulders a squeeze.] As am I. And it was well before I learned to process food, so I couldn't even have chicken noodle soup.

[And that's about when he realizes he's been standing there with her in a pseudo-embrace for the better part of a few minutes, so he quickly drops his arms and steps back to a more reasonable distance. He keeps one of her hands in his, though.]

There's a good deal more to see on this ship, if you'd like to continue?

You've learned to eat? I'll have to bake for you when I get used to the oven.

[Wanda grins, excited even though part of her misses the warmth of being close. It should be all right if it's every once in a while, and her love of baking and cooking is something she's always wished she could share with him.]

What do you want to show me next?

I'd be happy to eat anything you make for me, Wanda, though I will caution you that taste isn't anything I've developed. [Is it because vibranium-infused cells don't have taste buds? It is because his brain is wired differently? Who knows!]

Let's head up a level. Makie from our ship works in the restaurant there--the <Melting Pot, it's called. There are also two bars. Malum is the "classy" one and the Space Bar is the "dive".

[A cold dash of logic doesn't do a thing to put a damper on her enthusiasm.] But maybe we can share it? I've never tried to share taste with someone before.

[Look, she just wants him to be able to experience the wonders of chocolate, or whatever passes for chocolate around here. It's a noble goal. And failing that, there has to be something worthy of sharing in one of the restaurants.]

We might be able to try it now, if you want to.

[Now there's a thought. Thoughts and emotions she can share easily, he knows, but would the taste actually come across? Or just the feeling associated with it? It's enough to make him curious.]

Why not? Everything should be well-stocked, as we did just come from a planet with agriculture.

[Heck, if it works, he can finally give his cooking-prone friends something to be proud of.]

[Wanda grins brightly. It's rare to find such a benign way to experiment with her powers and she's excited to try if he is. She just hopes he'll be able to get something out of it, even if the full experience doesn't translate.]

Is there a kind of flavor you'd like to try?

Sweet, I think. There must be some desserts that can be approximated here.

[Plus he knows it's a strong flavor, and Wanda does like her desserts when she can get them. So even if the experiment fails, she'll get to eat something good.]

I wish we could get chocolate. Or strawberries. But if not, we can try something new together.

[Two of her favorites, but there are so many things she wants to share with him that picking just one is impossible. It's hard not to feel a pang of sadness that she can't take him to the twins' favorite bakery in Novi Grad. It was an experience for the senses, one she can't guarantee they'd be able to replicate just anywhere.]

We have a bush which produces a kind of purple berry I'm told is good. The so-called "chocolate" protein gel is, I'm afraid, very much fake.

[Maybe...maybe he can talk Eugene into making something. People always said Eugene's cooking was good, and the man was used to working with odd ingredients to make the most out of them. Of course, they can also just go to the restaurant here and see what they have.]

Though either way, it would be a new experience for me. I'd be happy to try it with you.

[He directs her up one of the tunnel-like hallways to the main level, which has many signs of human passage. There are a few well-marked rooms with various titles, and the two bars are located across the hall from each other further down.]

Er, I'm not sure where the restaurant is. It's new.

Maybe one day I'll learn how to fix it? Or make it a little better.

[She's done more with less, after all. Weird gel food is still a serious step up from questionable canned meat, and the berries sound promising.

Wanda can feel the presence of more minds as the ascend back to the main level. She's glad Vision is here, or she would have likely gotten terribly lost trying to find her way back. While she isn't normally given to claustrophobia, the tunnels really aren't her favorite.]

Something smells good. [Something fried, so it could be either the restaurant or the bars, and they're all in the same direction.] Come on, we'll find something.

[...she could offer to try to share the smell, but that seems cruel to do without also having food in front of them to be able to provide the full experience.]

You'll have to tell me if it works. You'd be quite popular with a reliable source of chocolate, I think.

[Luckily, the hallways open up wider as they get to the more public sections. This was a long-haul merchant ship once, and the natives apparently liked to have at least a few large open areas.

He sniffs, and it sure does smell like fried oil and carbohydrates. Donuts? Not pizza. Something in the dessert category. It's a food he associates more with Rhodey than with Tony, either way.]

It's coming from Malum, I think.

[The fancy bar.]

If it works, you'll be the second person to know.

[Surely she can at least figure out a halfway-decent hot chocolate if nothing else. Maybe not while they're drifting, but the next time she has easy access to supplies...

Wanda sniffs the air again but she still can't quite place it. Something sweet, some sort of fried dough, but whether it's something stuffed or doughnut-like is anyone's guess.]

We can try it, if you want to?

[They don't need to go to the restaurant for her sake unless there's something Vision really wants to try there.]

[That gets a smile, both because it's very kind of her to offer and because he knows having goals one can work toward on the ships makes the time pass by faster.]

I suppose it depends if you're hungry or not. We could try it any time.

But this is your first time tasting -- I hope.

[This is an Important Choice, okay. Food is one of life's great pleasures for humans and she's not taking that away from him for anything.

Wanda also doesn't want to overpromise but she's 99% sure this is something she can give him. If she can affect and feel echoes of other senses, why not taste, too?]

I'll be fine with whatever you want.

Then I'll save it for something you know you like.

[That way, even if he doesn't get the flavor, he'll at least get a good feeling from her rather than a surprise ick from an unwanted ingredient.

Besides, why rush? Waiting to taste some food is nothing compared to waiting to see if she...still likes him. Develops a liking for him? Wants to be more than friends, anyway. And if she doesn't, he's still happy to be her friend.

He shows her around the rest of the main concourse area, pointing out the establishments that he knew of before and investigating the ones new to him. There are others on the other levels, and some that are hidden or locked, but the main public ones are all here.]

We'll find it. It has to be somewhere on this level.

[And to be honest, she's not in any rush, either. Nothing about this experience is 'normal,' but this might be the closest they're going to get. She can almost pretend they're just at a really weird-looking mall.

And Wanda never once lets go of his hand.

It's not just that it hasn't really occurred to her that she's been holding it for quite some time. She actively wants to hold on to him for a little longer. Just don't ask her if it means anything; her feelings for him are Strange and nearly impossible to pick apart or pin down.

One of the doors they pass is simple - it's labeled 'Meditation Room' and has a few decorative chimes outside the door, but other than that, she could have gone right by it. It's dark inside in every sense of the word - no lights, no minds. Wanda pauses.]

They really do have everything. [And this could be the perfect place for a witch who frequently needs a quiet place to hide away to keep in mind, especially since she's temporarily lost what refuge she had in Vision (whatever it is, she'll wait until he says it's all right).] Do you mind if we look?

I don't mind at all.

[The meditation room. Had he ever been here before? He doesn't think so, which means if he had he didn't attach any particular significance to it.

He pushes open the door and turns on the lights. Inside, there are shelves with a few unlit candles and mats and pillows on the floor. One of the walls has a painting of an avian he thinks he recognizes from the forest planet they'd visited long ago. Shutting the door behind them closes off much of the sound of the rest of the ship, leaving only the deep thrumming of the engines (he's not sure if the average human can even hear that, but he does).]

It's quite peaceful, isn't it?

[For Wanda, it's nothing but sweet silence and the first real peace she's had in weeks. She takes a deep breath. The only thing that could make it better is some form of psychic shielding.

Wanda closes her eyes and takes a quick moment to reinforce her mental walls. It's a little easier here than elsewhere in the Fleet.]

It's nice to have a place like this. I'll have to make time to come back soon.

[She opens her eyes. On closer examination, a fine layer of dust has settled onto most of the items on the shelves - someone might have been in here recently, but the room's seen better days.]

But it seems like no one's been cleaning it. Maybe the owner left?

[If he had any idea how to make psychic shielding, he'd make it a priority (and offer some for her bunk), but that's something he didn't learn from the last telepaths he'd met here. Alas.]

It's likely. I remember someone holding daily lessons in here, but it was some time ago.

[He squeezes her hand lightly.]

You could make it a project of yours. I'll be doing the same with Wrath's mural, actually, so I'll likely be over here on a regular basis. It would be my pleasure to share the shuttle ride.

[She squeezes his hand back automatically. Yes...that could work. Give her something to do that she understands, not all this technical ship stuff that is laughably over her head. She's trying not to feel ridiculously out of her depth, but there's no denying that she is ridiculously out of her depth.

She could apply for an implant upgrade but she's had enough of people playing around with her mind to last a lifetime, thanks.]

I'd like that. And maybe you can join me when you're done.

[She smiles brightly, newly energized now that she has somewhere to direct her efforts.]

Did Wrath teach you to paint?

It would be my pleasure. [Why not? He knows his mental presence won't disturb her while she's meditating, even now while he's keeping some secrets from her (which won't be forever, he just has to work up to them, he thinks). And meditation is a good skill to have.

He laughs lightly at her question.] Oh, goodness, no. I haven't the faintest idea where to start, although I think there is an art studio in here somewhere. But she'd always planned to do more, and Bucky kept her notebook when she left. I'd like to do what I can to continue it.

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