Wanda watched from the porch of their log cabin, smiling as Claire's giant wolf chased Jemma around while she was holding a sandwich. She giggled at Jemma's playful screams and cries for help, but she stayed on the porch twirling a small red wisp of energy around in her hand. She was happy, happier than she's been in a long time, and she had Claire to thank for that.

Their relationship was good and stronger than ever, and this past year they celebrated their second anniversary. The two of them were now living back in Victoria's Island with Jemma, having decided that the two of them needed a bit of a break from hero business. The team was understandably upset at the news that they wanted to leave and go off on their own, but they understood and in the end, agreed with them. The team—at least to Wanda's knowledge—had stayed in Greenville and went around the world doing low-scale heroing.

Before Wanda, Claire, and Jemma departed, Steve had given them a two-way tracker that allowed the three of them to track the rest of the team and vice versa, that way, if there was ever an emergency on either end, help would be on the way.

As much as Wanda liked being with Claire and Jemma, she did miss the rest of the team, but leaving was the better choice. Ever since they moved to their cabin, Wanda's anxiety hadn't bothered her. Everything was perfect, and she couldn't be happier.

"Wanda, protect my sandwich!" Jemma yelled as she tossed her sandwich away from her and Claire to Wanda. Wanda didn't hear her or see the sandwich that came hurtling towards her. Her instincts kicked in right at the last second as she saw it coming from the corner of her eyes, and before she could comprehend what the object was, she flexed her hands, creating a scarlet forcefield in front of her to protect her. Jemma's sandwich hit the forcefield with a small thud as it bounced off and fell apart in the grass. Claire ran over and ate the broken sandwich off the ground, her wolf yipping happily as Jemma stared in sadness.

Once Claire finished Jemma's sandwich, she walked up the steps to the cabin to the porch, still in her wolf form, and sat next to Wanda, laying her giant head in her lap. She licked around her mouth for a few minutes, making sure to get every bit of sandwich that was left and Wanda let out a giggle as she ran her fingers through her soft fur and scratched the base of her ear when she got to it. Claire let out a low growl of pleasure that sounded something like a purr and she closed her eyes, enjoying the feeling.

"You couldn't have at least tried to save my sandwich?" Jemma asked as she came up on the porch and sat on the other side of Wanda.

"I'm sorry. I was..."

"Distracted? You've been distracted a lot lately. Is everything okay?" Wanda sighed and stopped petting Claire and her head snapped up.

She let out a little whine as Wanda looked at her. Claire could sense that for a while she had been feeling worried about something, regardless of her happiness. Claire sat up and leaned her head over towards Wanda's and lightly licked her cheek and nuzzled her snout in her hair.

"I'm fine; just a little worried I think." Wanda moved her hands back to her lap and played with her rings. Claire shifted back to her human form and took Wanda's hand into her own.

"Is it the visions again?" she asked when Wanda turned her head to look at her. Wanda nodded.

"They're not really visions, but it's like my powers are trying to tell me something, but whenever I try to listen, it just sounds like a large group of people yelling. It's incoherent, but...it worries me. I'm fine though, I just have a bad feeling." Claire placed a kiss on her hand.

"Should we leave? Find the others?"

"No. I'm sure it's nothing. Let's not bother the others, especially since we don't know what it is. It's probably nothing," Wanda said leaning back to lay in Claire's arms. Claire looked over at Jemma, silently pleading with her to talk some sense into Wanda. They both knew she never had these "visions" before they separated from the rest of the team, and that for some reason something changed, and that worried Claire.

She was worried more for Wanda's sake. She would often wake up at night either from a nightmare that her powers would give her or it was these "visions", and because she didn't want to wake Claire, she would go outside and sit on the porch. Eventually, Claire would sense that she wasn't there and it happened enough that every time it happened; she knew that Wanda was outside. Because of her lack of sleep, Wanda started going to bed earlier in an effort to make up for the sleep that she lost from her "visions", but it never seemed like enough.

"Wanda," Claire said, bringing Wanda's face up to look at her serious one, her overprotectiveness coming out. "I think we should tell them. That way, if something does happen, they'll be aware and can help us. We don't have to leave, but...I think we should let them know."

"She's right, Wanda," Jemma said in a low voice. "Just as a precaution."

Claire was glad that Jemma was taking her side on this, because if she didn't Wanda wouldn't do anything about it. It was harder to say no to both of them than one. She sighed and stood up.

"Fine. I'll call Steve now," she said disappearing into the cabin. Claire scoot closer to Jemma.

"Thank you," she whispered. Jemma's head turned towards her, watching as Claire stared out into the tree-line.

"For what?"

"For siding with me."

"Well...I know she would've let it go if I hadn't." Jemma followed Claire's gaze and stared into the trees.

"I'm worried about her," Claire said after a moment of silence. Jemma looked back over at her and saw the small tear that rolled down her cheek and her heart broke.

"Yeah, me too."

"I thought us getting away would help her, and in a way it has..." she paused to swallow the lump that formed in her throat. "Jemma, I'm supposed to protect her. But I can't protect her from this. I just feel so...helpless."

Jemma reached out and pulled the younger woman into her arms, holding her and rubbing her back.

"Claire, you know better than I do that she's been happier since we came out here. I know you're worried, but she can protect herself."

"I know she can, but I'm still—"

"I just told Steve. He said he'll be on the lookout for anything suspicious," Wanda said as she came back outside. Claire straightened her legs out and opened them slightly, creating room and Wanda came over and sat in the open space. Claire wrapped her arms around Wanda's waist and leaned forward to kiss her neck. "What were you guys talking about?"

"Nothing, babe. Just talking about the weather," Claire said kissing her neck again. Wanda squealed as strands of Claire's hair tickled her as Claire moved her head to kiss different parts of her face and neck.

"You two are so cute," Jemma gushed as she got up and headed for the door. "I'm gonna start making dinner. How's pasta?"
"That's fine," Wanda said craning her neck to look at Jemma. Claire let out an approving groan as she continued to pepper Wanda's face with little kisses. Jemma smiled at them and disappeared inside.

"I know you two were talking about me," Wanda said in a low voice. Within the past two years, Claire noticed the subtle disappearance of her Sokovian accent that was replaced with a more American accent. A part of her was sad to see it go, but the rest of her knew that it was important for Wanda to do all she could to keep from being recognized, and if changing her accent helped, than Claire was all for it.

Claire sighed and shoved her face into her recently dyed hair. The subtle red color would take some getting used to since she was used to her natural dark brown, but Claire had to admit; the lighter color suited her.

"We were just saying how much you've changed since we came back here."

"I hope it's a good change," Wanda said as she turned around and wrapped her legs around Claire's waist and her arms around her neck. Claire smile at her and pressed her forehead against hers.

"It's definitely a good change. You're...happier. You're calmer. More carefree, despite your "visions". I like this Wanda." Wanda bit her lip and sent her a cheeky smile.

"So, you didn't like me before we came here?" Claire laughed.

"I never said that."

Wanda leaned her head down on Claire's shoulder, relaxing into her hold.

"I know. I'm just teasing."

"Hey, we have a little while until dinner's ready. You want to go for a run?" Claire asked, her eyes glowing. Wanda picked her head up off Claire's shoulder and smiled.

"Sure." Wanda got up from between Claire's legs and helped her up. Claire ran down the steps and shifted into her wolf and knelt down in the grass waiting for Wanda who ran inside to tell Jemma they were going for a run. She ran out of the cabin and hopped on Claire's back, grabbing fistfuls of fur to help her hang on.

Claire waited a second, turning her head to look at Wanda, making sure that she was ready and then quickly took off towards the tree-line, disappearing into the forest. Wanda laughed as the wind rushed by her, blowing her hair into her face and mouth.

"Don't go so fast," she squealed as she laughed. Claire turned her head a little and slowed down her pace.

Claire ran all the way to a small waterfall that she found one day while she was running. She stopped at the cliff, the roaring sound of rushing water filled their ears and Wanda giggled as the light mist sprayed her when she got off Claire's back. She shifted back and grabbed Wanda's hand and led her to a patch of grass that wasn't as long as the grass around them. Claire sat down facing the water fall, the setting sun casting its last rays at them. Wanda followed her lead and once more sat in between her legs. She grabbed Claire's hands and wrapped them around her waist and leaned back against Claire chest. Wanda took one of Claire's hands and intertwined their fingers and brought it up to her lips, gently kissing each finger.

Claire sighed and tightened her grip on Wanda's body, suddenly afraid that this was just a dream; a figment of her imagination that she thought up because she was lonely, and that she was really all alone in her cell in Sokovia or the Raft. Wanda sensed her change in mood and shifted a bit, craning her neck to look at Claire.

"What's wrong?" Claire inhaled a shaky breath, a tear rolling down her cheek. Wanda reached up and wiped it away.

"I'm afraid," she whispered, another tear falling down. Wanda's eyebrows knitted together in confusion and she fully turned around, once again wrapping her legs around Claire's waist.

"What are you afraid of?" Her left hand circled around Claire's neck while her right hand wiped at her tears and rested against her cheek.

"That this isn't real. That you're not real. That we...that this is a dream. I'm afraid that I never met you and that I'm alone in Sokovia, still being tortured by Strucker and that I'm losing my mind to cope with the pain. I'm afraid that I'll go to sleep one night and when I wake up you'll be gone because you were never really there to begin with. I...how do I know you're real?"

Wanda's heart broke. She wasn't sure how long Claire had been feeling like this or how long she had had these thoughts. How many nights had they spelt together that Claire spent half the night awake because she was afraid that if she fell asleep, Wanda would just disappear? How many nightmares had she had where she woke up in her Sokovian cell alone? How many sweet dreams turned into haunting nightmares that included Claire losing the one thing that kept her tethered to her sanity?

Wanda removed her left hand from around Claire's neck and placed it on her opposite cheek, forcing her purple eyes to look into her green ones. Her thumbs wiped away the tears that continued to spill and Wanda gave Claire a sad smile.

"I'm here Claire," she whispered, the remnants of her accent poking through as she said her name. "I'm right here. Do you feel me?" Claire nodded her head. "I'm real. I'm really here and so are you. I once told you that I felt like I was...I was back in the Raft and do you know what you told me? You said, 'You are not back in that place. I will never let you go back there, okay? I'll fight anyone that tries to put you back there. I'm not going to let anyone hurt you ever again.' And guess what. The same goes for you, Claire. I'm never going to let you go back to that cell. You're here with me, safe and sound."

Wanda finished her speech by pulling on Claire's neck, bringing her down to connect her lips with Wanda's. Claire closed her eyes at the contact and more tears spilled out. Wanda pulled away after a minute and stared into Claire's tear-filled eyes and placed light kisses on the wet streaks. The sun set behind them, its golden light landing on Wanda's hair, illuminating it and setting it ablaze. Claire smiled at the image and swallowed the lump in her throat. Wanda soon pulled away and placed another hand on her cheek and smiled.

Claire leaned her head into Wanda's touch. Her heart felt content, and her mind was clear. This was it; this was the moment that she had been waiting for. She reached up and took Wanda's hand off her cheek and held it, pressing her soft fingers against her chest above her heart. Wanda's green eyes sparkled, and Claire's heart melted. She was finally ready to admit it, out loud that she loved Wanda Maximoff.

"Wanda," she said, her heart beating faster. "These past two years with you have been the best years of my life. You mean the world to me, and I'm so incredibly lucky and thankful that you came into my life. I don't know what I did to deserve you or your love, but I thank God every day. You literally make me a better person, and I'm so thankful and indebted to you. Wanda, I..." she took a deep breath. Here goes. "Wanda, I love you."

Wanda's eyes widened and tears slowly rose as she processed the words that Claire had just said. To say that she had waited two years to hear these words was an understatement, and if she was being honest, she was beginning to think they would never come. And yet, here they were, sitting in a forest, next to a waterfall with the sun setting in the background, and the woman that she loved admitted that she loved her. Her mind went blank. She didn't know what to say—well, she knew what to say because she spent a little more time than normal practicing in a mirror what she would say when the time was right and how she would react if Claire ever said it first, but all that practice went out the window. She was frozen in place, and she didn't realize how long she had been staring without answering.

Claire's mind was reeling as she watched Wanda stare at her, not saying anything. She started second guessing the moment, thinking that maybe she jumped the gun and that it was still too early to admit that. She bit her lip as the nervousness and silence started to suffocate her. She wanted Wanda to say something—she needed her to say something, anything.

"Say something," Claire whispered, her voice cracking. Wanda still stared, her mouth opening and closing a few times, though no sound came out. Claire sighed and looked down. "I'm sorry. I think I just got ahead of myself. I didn't mean—"
"You love me?" Wanda asked, a tear rolling down her pale cheek. Claire lifted her head back up and looked up at her.

"I love you," she repeated. Wanda bit her lip and glanced down.

"I—I love you too." Claire's worried frown disappeared and in its place appeared a glowing beaming smile that took up her whole face. She chuckled as she cried happy tears and pulled Wanda's face closer to her, pressing her lips against hers.

This kiss was different than their other kisses. This one was long, hard but delicate, passionate but filled to the brim with every ounce of love the two of them had for each other. It was one that they'd remember for a long time. They pulled away to bring air back into their bodies, not because they wanted to, and their breathless selves gazed lovingly into each other eyes as they continued to cry in each other's arms.

"I love you, so much," Claire mumbled as she nuzzled her face into Wanda's neck and hair. Wanda laughed as more tears spilled from her eyes, and she was thankful that she decided to not put make-up on earlier. Claire pursed her lips and planted tiny butterfly kisses along the length of Wanda's neck, moving upwards until she got to her forehead and then she came back down and recaptured her lips.

"I love you too." Wanda broke the kiss and embraced Claire and rested her chin on her shoulder, her hands moving up her back to tangle themselves in her long curly hair. She wiped her tears away and inhaled the sweet scent of Claire's hair. "I was beginning to think you weren't going to say it."

Claire pulled away and gave her a soft smile and said, "I was giving you space, I guess. I didn't want to say it too early and make you uncomfortable or make you feel pressured to say it back. You know when I originally wanted to say it?"

"When?" Wanda giggled as Claire rubbed her nose against hers.

"Halloween. There were actually a lot of times that night that I wanted to say it. There was a moment in the restaurant, when we were trick-or-treating, our first dance; that was a big moment, when we were in the car heading home. I almost said it, actually."

"I remember that," she said smiling. "You slipped and covered it up with you saying you loved my opinion." Claire giggled and wiped her nose.

"Yeah. I was hoping you didn't catch that."
"I figured that, which is why I didn't say anything. What were the other times?" Claire thought a moment, though she didn't need to. Each instance in which she had wanted to say "I love you" stuck out in her mind.

"Let's see...there was our dance in the driveway, when we were watching the movie and you were curled up against my side, and then when I carried you back to your room and tucked you in. That was it."

"I wish you had said it," Wanda mumbled.

"I do too, but you gotta remember Wanda, at that point we were dating for like a couple weeks. It was too early. I wanted you to be absolutely sure."

"How does now differ from then?" Claire wasn't sure, but this moment felt different than those many moments on Halloween. This moment simply felt right.

"I don't know. All I know is that now feels right." Wanda leaned head against Claire's and gazed into her eyes, smiling brightly.

"I can't thank you enough," she said gulping. Claire's eyebrows knitted together.

"What for, love?" The tears returned to Wanda's eyes and she gulped again.

"For loving me," she said, her voice low and cracking. Two tears fell from her eyes, creating a wet trail down her cheeks that dripped on her clothes when they reached her chin. "For not being afraid of me. For giving me a chance. For not giving up on me. You saved me, Claire. You're a hero."

"Wanda. I'm no hero. You're the hero. Captain America and Iron Man and Falcon are heroes. I'm not a hero."

"You're my hero, Claire. I never would've made it this far without you. Before Steve came for us, you were the only one there for me in the Raft. You didn't even really know me. Since then, you've protected me from physical harm countless times, and comforted me whenever I have an anxiety attack or some kind of breakdown. You might think you're not a hero, and who knows maybe you're right, but you're my hero. And that's one of the reasons why I love you."

○○○

The dinner table was quiet as the three of them ate their dinner. Jemma eyed the two women mysteriously, sensing the change in the mood when they returned. They were both glowing and radiating happiness and the curiosity bugged Jemma. She remembered how Lily would often scold her for being too nosey and curious about things, but she couldn't help it; she was a curious person. She studied the two in front of her; Wanda and Claire were sitting closer to each other than usual and whenever they looked at each other, they would smile and blush a little (not that that was out of the ordinary for them, but it seemed...different). Jemma put her fork down on her plate and cleared her throat. Wanda and Claire looked up at her confused.

"Is everything okay? The air feels weird and it's been like this since you guys came back. Did something happen?" Wanda and Claire looked at each other and their faces reddened some more. Realization hit Jemma and she groaned and covered her face with her hands. "Oh okay, I get it. You don't have to tell me. Lord knows I don't need to hear about your sex life." Claire's head snapped over in Jemma's direction, eyes wide and eyebrows knitted together. Her blush spread to her neck and Wanda started coughing as she almost choked on her water.

"Jemma, what...the...fuck?!" Claire said loudly as she placed a hand on her chest to feel her heart. Still beating, though it doesn't feel like it. Jemma looked at the both of them, confused.

"What? I don't need to know all that. That's your business and you're both adults so you can do what you want, just...be safe—"

"Jemma, we're not having sex," Wanda mumbled from her end of the table, her pale face a beet red. Her eyes were looking down and Claire could tell she was playing with her rings again.

"What made you think that?" Claire chuckled, fining the whole thing embarrassingly funny.

"What—You're not...? I...It doesn't matter where I got the idea from." Jemma dropped the issue and returned to her meal, her face turning a bright pink. "Just forget I said anything."

Claire shot Wanda a look as she recovered from her coughing fit. They both laughed quietly to themselves as they went back to their dinner. Under the table, Claire's hand reached out and found Wanda's and they both intertwined their fingers. Wanda smiled as Claire's thumb ran against the surface of her hand, putting her at ease.

After they all had finished eating and cleaning the dishes, Wanda and Claire disappeared into their shared room. Claire flopped on the bed as Wanda carefully shut the door, still a little frazzled at what happened at dinner. Claire let out a sigh and ran her hands over her face, giggling. She still couldn't believe it. Jemma really thought that we were having—Claire couldn't even think it with a straight face.

She sat up on the bed and looked over at Wanda who stood with her back against the wooden door, her lip between her teeth and her eyes staring straight ahead as she played with her rings again. Claire didn't miss the subtle trembling of her hands. She quickly got off the bed and walked over to Wanda, placed her hands on her shoulders and pulled her from away from the door. Wanda reluctantly looked up Claire, but she still played with her rings. Claire's eyes turned serious as she searched Wanda's green ones. She was still trembling, but her heart rate and breathing were normal.

"Hey, you okay?" she asked. Wanda gulped and nodded her head.

"Yeah. I'm fine." Claire didn't buy it for a minute.

"Wanda, what's wrong?" Her voice was stern and low, and it scared Wanda. She wasn't sure what was wrong with her; all she knew was that Jemma's comment bothered her, much like Natasha's comment had bothered her all that time ago in their motel room in San Pedro. She wasn't even sure if she could put it into words other than "I don't know". And yet, that's what she said.

"I don't know."

"Bullshit. Now tell me what's wrong." Claire started to worry and she felt her wolf stir in her mind, getting angry, but not at Wanda. Her eyes flicked to a lighter purple and then back to their normal color. It was quick, but Wanda caught it, and took a step back from Claire. Claire's eyes softened and she subconsciously let out a small whine. Guilt washed over her; she didn't mean to scare her. "I'm sorry. I...I didn't mean that. She's not angry at you. I'm not angry. I just..." she huffed and ran a hand through her hair. "I know something's bothering you, and I just wish you'd tell me."

"Honestly, Claire, I don't know what's wrong. I just feel...weird. I have no explanation." Wanda stepped back into Claire's embrace and leaned her head on her chest. She was still trembling when Claire ran her hand through her hair.

Sighing, Claire said, "Don't get me wrong, I love your hair this color, but I miss the brown." Wanda snorted a laugh and a smile formed on both of their faces. Claire craned her neck down and planted a kiss on the top of her head. "Well, whatever it is, I hope it leaves you alone. And you know that you can always talk to me and tell me anything. You know that right?"

"Right. I love you."

"I love you too."

"What else do you miss?" Wanda asked looking up at Claire, her chin resting against the middle of Claire's chest. Claire giggled and grinned down at her.
"To be honest, I miss the accent."

"Really?"

"Yeah. It was incredibly sexy. Especially when you would say my name, and you'd roll the "r" just the tiniest bit." Claire groaned and shivered slightly, the sound playing in her mind. "It was enough to make me go weak at the knees."

Wanda laughed loudly, red creeping up on her face and spreading down to her neck. Claire was grateful that she got her to laugh and relax. Her trembling had stopped which made Claire relax too. She leaned down and planted a delicate kiss on Wanda's lips. She smiled into it when she felt Wanda's fingers curl around the fabric of her shirt, grasping it tightly in her hands.

"Wanda! Claire! Can you two come out here for a minute?" They pulled away; hearing Jemma call them and Claire sighed softly. Wanda giggled and kissed her cheek. "There's someone here to see you!"

"Come on. We should go out there. It could be Steve." Wanda opened the door and left the room, Claire following close behind her. They walked down the hallway until they reached the kitchen and turned left into the living room. Jemma was standing in the middle of the room standing next to a bald man that Claire didn't know with red and silver skin with a yellow object sitting in the middle of his forehead. The man wore a gray outfit with a golden cape. Wanda froze when she saw the man, her hand flying up to cover her mouth and a small gasp escaped her lips.

"Vision?"