Your intent was never to lead anyone on; to portray any interest in them if it wasn't there, and you would definitely protect them from the effects of your powers if you could. Unfortunately, any time that you tried, it failed, and even if you masked your true image, the sense of your supernatural beauty would seep through the shield and they would somehow be consumed by it. You had considered carrying out a plan of emotional manipulation on your team to spare them from the embarrassment of how they felt around you, knowing that those feelings weren't true, but after consulting with Dr. Strange, he advised against it. He believed that eventually, their minds would adapt to your presence and the overwhelming attraction would wane.

It had been three years now, and so far, he was completely wrong.

"G'morning, (Y/N)."

Rhodey greeted you first as you entered the kitchen with a groaning yawn and a flippant wave of your hand to shut him up. You hadn't slept well, and the evil fire ball in the sky was too bright and too enthusiastic about lighting the world for your taste. Wearing one sock, a pair of Bruce's sweatpants that had somehow landed in your laundry, and a threadbare t-shirt that was maybe Clint's, you stumbled into the room and to the refrigerator, cracking open and slamming down a can of soda when the coffee wasn't ready fast enough.

"Bad night?" he tried again, barely peeking over his newspaper, using it as a shield without even realizing it.

"Mmm hmm, sleep...coffee...Steve snores...thin walls...destroy that damn sun..." you mumbled almost incoherently, tossing the can aside and turning back towards the door. But because the universe had seemed to hate you from day one, Tony turned the final corner to face you, coming down the hall with a skip in his step and a stupid whistle coming out of his stupid face. "Stark," you warned, "I'll sew those lips shut myself."

"Aww, mornin' sweetheart! Crawled out on the wrong side of the bed today?"

"Every side is wrong today, Tony, but since Steve has inhumane training sessions at all hours of the morning, I can't go back to bed. I need to get ready, excuse me."

"What do you mean? I thought you already were?"

You stopped in your tracks and turned to look at Tony as if he had grown two extra heads. How could he be seeing that you were anywhere near ready to spar with Steve? You weren't even sure if the sock you were wearing was your own or not. Raising your hand up in front of his face, you hoped that he would give you the right answer to a simple question, otherwise you all had bigger problems to deal with. "Tony? How many fingers am I holding up?"

"One," he shrugged, "that very special one that I see more than enough, if you don't mind putting it away."

"Okay, so at least we know you're not blind. How could you possibly think that I'm ready for training dressed like this?"

"What? You look great," he scoffed as he turned to Rhodey, who gave a nod of agreement, "but then again, you always look great."

"Tony, we've talked about this-"

"Yeah, I know, it's all voodoo, head games, messing with my senses crap that your kind do, but I'm telling ya, I honestly think you look great."

"Mmm hmm," Rhodes muttered enthusiastically, trying to not spill the coffee from his mouth. He wanted to be sure you knew that he was giving you due attention as well, so that you didn't question his interest. It was just another failed attempt to get, however, as you knew this wasn't how they really felt. Every time that poorly executed flirting came your way from the team, it made you question if this was where you should be; how would they ever find their true person to share their lives with if you were blinding them to anyone else?

"Alright then, thanks. I'm still gonna go get cleaned up a bit, if that's okay with everyone?" With that, you turned and made a quick exit before they could actually give you an answer that you didn't want anyway. Hurrying back to your room, you ducked inside and slammed the door behind you, hearing the voices of Nat and Clint coming down the hall. Clint would be his usual smartass self with his witty off-colored remarks, and Nat would try to cover for him and apologize the comments away, only to offer her own.

It was everyone falling under the wash of your influence, and they didn't even realize that they were doing it, but that was a part of your power over them. That was the point of it, to control. You just never meant to make the point with these people. That plan of emotional manipulation was more and more appealing every day; living a lie didn't seem like all that bad of an option anymore.

~~~

"You cannot use one power to supersede another of your own powers, (Y/N). The commitment of energy that it would require of you, at a constant rate of concentration, would eventually incapacitate you."

"But you don't live here, Stephen," you tried to argue, "it's all the time. The worst of it is, they don't mean to feel this way. It's my own fault that I'm projecting this on them. This isn't about me, it's what's fair to my teammates."

"Then perhaps you shouldn't live here. Perhaps it's time to consider moving to the sanctum."

"There has to be something else..." you said under your breath, your mind beginning to race. This wasn't the answer that you were expecting, though you probably should have. Stephen was looking at you so expectantly for what your reply would be, that you had to turn away just to be able to keep your composure under his stare. "Isn't there something that you can do? Is there something that can just...I don't know, turn it off?"

Stephen was never good with emotional conversations in the first place, though he was getting better when it came to you, so when you turned away he followed, taking your arm to turn you back to face him. "You don't mean that, (Y/N). Even if you did, and even if my abilities would allow it, I wouldn't do it. We can find another way."

"I don't see how-"

"(Y/N), is there a problem?" Steve broke in, hurrying to cross the living room to meet you. "You're late for training and I wanted to be sure everything was okay."

You turned your wrist to glance down at your watch, letting out a groan at the sight of the time, "Steve, I'm two minutes late. Doesn't that feel a little overbearing?"

"Did you find her?" Bucky called out across the room, his worry dropping and his smile widening as he saw you. With a bit too much happiness in his step, he all but skipped over to stand next to Steve to make this conversation a foursome. "Hey, (Y/N), you were late to training."

"So I've heard."

For the first time, Steve allowed his focus to leave you and shift to your guest, as if his manners startled him back into the moment to realized that you weren't alone. "Strange? What brings you all the way out here? Something we can help you with?"

"No, thank you. There was a matter that (Y/N) and I needed to discuss, and it was easier to come here than to try to talk over the phone."

"What could there be that you and (Y/N) need to talk about without the rest of us?" Bucky added with a sense of concern, taking a step closer.

"Guys, I think that maybe it's time that I think about moving out. I've been here for three years now, and my abilities are still affecting you. I've tried everything that I can to protect you from it, but it hasn't worked and your minds are just as clouded as the day I moved in. I think moving to the sanctum with Stephen is the best option."

"FRIDAY, where's Tony?" Steve simply blurted out in response. His face was pale and his eyes were wide at your revelation, and he began to panic at the thought of you leaving. Not so unexpectedly, that same panic was growing in his best friend as well.

"Boss is in his office, Captain."

"Get him."

"Steve, what the hell? You're freaking out for no reason," you said, trying to keep your voice calm, "I'll still be on the team. I'll just have to commute in. It might even give me more time for my caffeine fix every morning so I don't have to take it out on you guys anymore."

"Okay, but why the sanctum?" Bucky asked, but then the understanding pushed through the fog of desire that covered rational thought, and his stature straightened to give himself a boost of confidence. When he caught the slightest movement of Stephen's hand come to rest gently on the small of your back, that was all he needed. "Oh, I get it. Are you and Strange a...a thing?"

By now, FRIDAY had done her work efficiently, and Tony was scurrying into the room to catch the conversation for himself. He stood at Steve's other side, waiting for you or Stephen to either put them out of their misery, or to become one of them within it.

"Yes, Buck," you sighed, "we are. I hadn't said anything about it because it never seemed to be a concern, and it never interfered with my work."

"How much of a thing?" Tony joined in.

"Is it serious?" Steve added, sounding much more nervous than his friends.

You began to answer, but Stephen took a step towards your teammates, his expression and posture shifting to an almost protective one, looking each man directly in the eye, slowly and methodically as he spoke. You swore that you saw a slight of hand just before he turned to where you couldn't see, but he would never admit that he had done anything, and that the men were still of their own mind where you were concerned. "If you would consider being engaged as serious, then yes, she's taken."

It was quite the sight to see hopes be dashed and ideas fall apart in their minds one by one, as Stephen's words registered with each man staring back at you and then to him. Steve was the first to come back to his manners, stepping forward with a hand extended to Strange, offering a sincere apology and congratulations.

"I'm sorry to both of you if I was at all inappropriate," he said quite respectfully, "and I'm very happy for you. But why didn't you say something sooner?"

"We didn't want it to affect the team, or the chance that you might feel it best that we not work together."

"Because we can," you added quickly, "we can keep personal and private separate."

"Clearly," Tony chuckled, stepping up to offer his hand to you, "I think you've proven that. Still won't change the fact that I think you're hot." When a displeased grumble came from your fiancé, Tony's focus rapidly shifted and he allowed your hand to drop from his. "I mean that in the best way, of course. Complementary."

"Do you mean as saying something nice, or that your attentions are free?"

"Smartass," he winked, turning away. "Great ass, too."

You felt Stephen's arm tighten under your grip, and his intention to follow Tony to wherever it was that he was going, but you held firm so that he would stay in place. The groan in his chest was just loud enough for you to hear, and you knew that there would be a conversation about your work around Tony in the very near future.

Again.