Who: wanda and others When: april & may Where: solvunn, horizon What: catch-all for the month, closed and open prompts within. Warnings: none at the moment, will mark as needed.
[wanda's noticed that those who were abducted have wanted to... keep their distance from the rest. she understands the reasoning, she understands why they want that, but it still pains her a little to see people she cares about hurting silently, on their own.
steve isn't hard to spot, especially not considering that wanda has been going about the settlement placing sigils in specific locations.
the stream's quite the peaceful area to sit at. some forest critters approach it to drink before bumbling away, the canopy of the tree whistles soothingly as the breeze sways the leaves. wanda joins the young man, sitting on the shore of the river, atop some rocks, letting there be some distance between the two of them.]
I like it here. [she says quietly, not really expecting to get a response. he's probably lost in his thoughts.] It's peaceful.
[ it's true - ever since returning to solvunn, steve's felt...not quite there. part of him assumes it's because there's no 'real world' to jump back into. he doesn't have to pretend to go back to work, doesn't have to come back home and lie to his parents. and, perhaps more importantly, there aren't any kids that he has to put on a brace face for. for a brief, shining moment he'd had robin, but even that seems to be gone, considering when he went back into the horizon last there'd been absolutely nothing where her domain had once been.
that's not to say he isn't trying - he gets out of bed each day, he goes and helps out at the nursery, he wanders out to the shrines that feel familiar (even if he can't shake the feeling each of them might have something sinister hidden inside) and goes about his tasks. when he's not doing any of those, he finds himself kind of hovering around eddie which he knows must be annoying. so in a way he's still going about his day, but it all feels...distant. distracted. like some part of him didn't really make it out.
which is stupid, it's really stupid, and he should just be better now that he's cured. it should still be easy to just get better.
he's sitting up on the rock because he got tired. because everything feels exhausting. he'd planned on it just being a couple of minutes, because he's sure there's something else he could be helping with, but- well. he's lost track of time, the nails of one hand scratching over the scar of one of the lesions absentmindedly.
steve doesn't necessarily hear wanda approach, but it's not a surprise when she settles, something in the air shifting. something he can smell, which is weird enough in its own right and something he's just recently started to notice. but it's also wanda, which means the smell is also familiar - floral, powder, but with a hint of something dark and heavy underneath. steve takes a slow, deep breath and lets the smell actually relax him a bit - still weird, still freaky, still not anything he would tell anyone quite yet. but it helps. ]
Yeah. [ he says when she settles somewhere next to him, but not too close. ] And clean. [ which, steve realizes, is kind of a weird thing to say. he shakes his head, one hand going back to comb back some of his hair - which is...too long, he notices. he needs to find someone to cut it for him. ] I mean like- the plants and animals and stuff. It's...spring, so it's all kinda new, you know? Nothing's dying, or rotting. It smells nice.
[it takes him a moment to notice her presence, but at least her words stick. he's not that far gone, yet. with a small smile, wanda turns to him, notices the thoughts about his long hair, how he wants to do something about it. and then he rambles about how it's clean, not dying. not rotting.
healing will take a long while.
when his hand returns to scratch absentmindedly at one of the scars, wanda reaches over to put a gentle hand over his. she doesn't tell him to stop, but hopefully the action will give him the awareness that he should.
[ once the words are out of his mouth, steve feels...well, vulnerable isn't the right word, but a little embarrassed. he supposes it has more to do with how distracted he still feels, partially here and partially there, and how it means he's not as aware or in control with what he's saying. it's not that he winces, exactly, but there is a voice in the back of his head - that was weird, harrington. get it together, you're making things awkward. it's not something he'd ever think wanda would say, or even think, but it is what he thinks and it probably is what has his attention off again, his hand moving to another scar, another healing lesion.
that is, until wanda places a gentle hand over his. his eyes are immediately down to her hand, to where it's stilled his own, and he realizes then what she's doing. what he'd been doing. and...god. he's really kind of a mess, isn't he? ]
What? [ he'd been looking at his arm, at the scarring that he can already see taking place since he can't seem to leave the wounds alone, so he hadn't quite heard the question.
but then he does, or at least seems to remember what she asked, and he exhales. ] Sorry, I'm. [ truth is, he's not hungry at all. hasn't really been hungry since the pit, and the rotting roots and rations they'd resorted to eating just to have something in their stomachs.
but he should eat, he knows that, so he corrects himself before he answers - mouth curling into a small smile. ] Sure, I could eat. Are you?
[he isn't hungry, wanda can tell. or, at least, he's convinced himself that he isn't. steve is forcing himself to be and feel some kind of way so that it detracts from how he is perceived.]
I am. [not that hungry, but she had some fruits not too long ago.] Wait here.
[she stands, moving to a point behind them. she had come here by horse, having left faisca to graze about; looking into the pouch at the side of the saddle, she brings out a small leather bag. now, as she returns, she sits right beside steve, the bag on her lap, unopened.]
My boyfriend [congrats, steve, you're the first to hear wanda call him that] was abducted, too. When he came back, he kept saying he wasn't hungry. He ate a little bit of the stew they were serving because I asked him to, but the next day I got him a cheeseburger—he's from New York—and would you know it, he ate the whole thing.
[the food here in abraxas isn't great for their palates. can't just go to a familiar fast food place to get comfort food.
she turns her face to him, elbows and shoulders bumping a little with his.]
I got savory cupcakes in the bag, but. [but] I can turn them into something else. Is there anything you miss from home? Something you — wish you could eat right now?
[ steve's eyes follow wanda as she stands and moves back to grab something from her horse. his brow's a bit furrowed by the time she makes it back, if only because he doesn't really know what she's doing with the small leather bag. did she bring him food all the way out here? there's a very slight curling in his gut at the idea that she came all this way out just to track him down, but now really isn't the time for that, is it?
that's just about when wanda comes back and settles next to him, and that earlier guilt dissipates as he turns to face her - now more interested in her and what she's saying than anything else. she mentions her boyfriend and steve's expression shifts from what? to oh of course yeah, wanda's super gorgeous of course she'd have a boyfriend and then they just move on from there. the fact that he was also kidnapped has steve...not relaxing, exactly, but some part of him does loosen up. if only because it feels a bit like maybe he doesn't have to be the one to explain what happened to wanda. that maybe he doesn't have to explain much at all for wanda to understand. and that does end up feeling a bit like a weight lifted from his shoulders.
he doesn't really move all that much as their elbows and shoulders bump, comfortable with the closeness. at the mention of the cheeseburger, steve's eyes widen and there's a definite brightness in his face. ]
Wait- you can turn them into anything? [ because yeah, that is what it comes down to, isn't it? the food isn't bad, exactly. but it's also not what steve really craves when he wants to be comforted. the horizon helps, with the ice cream and the ability to think up anything he might want to eat, but it isn't real in the end.
but now it's on him - to think of something he misses that he wishes he could eat here. there's a moment or two where he just thinks, and it definitely looks like he's putting way too much effort into the thinking part, but this is important. ]
Fried Chicken. [ he says after those couple of moments. ] Like- KFC Fried Chicken. Can you make that?
[wanda smiles, and that small smile grows as he turns to her with eyes wide and a lightening to the otherwise grave expression on his face when she first walked up to him.]
Absolutely anything.
[she nods, giving an answer to his question, and encouraging him to think about what he would like to have. she waits, patiently, because it is important, and steve really is just a young adult trying to fit into the boots he's expected to fill.
and then, there it is.]
I like KFC. I had it a few times in America.
[—so, she won't have any trouble creating it. in fact, she will use her magic, plumes of scarlet from her finger over the bag on her lap, to turn the savory cupcakes into something that resembles, actually, a box of kfc food: three chicken pieces, some popcorn chicken, the mashed potatoes with the gravy, a piece of corn, and two biscuits. wanda hands it over to steve—hoping it's not too much for him.]
[ absolutely anything. steve hadn't even thought that was a possibility. he's been so dependent on the horizon for all of this, for the comforts of home and for reminders of what he still considered normal. but even then, he couldn't really taste anything different if he didn't remember what it tasted like. and it's been...god. it's been so long.
and the concept it could just happen. that wanda has the abilities to just make it happen...what has he been doing for these last few months that he didn't even know this was possible? ]
Holy shit. [ his eyes are still wide, still in wonder as the scarlet whisps circle the bag in her lap. he adjusts, almost like a kid excited to see a magic trick. if he were any more aware of himself or how he looked, he'd probably be a bit embarrassed about it. but right now?
right now wanda hands over a box, and the smell is what hits steve first. something overwhelmingly familiar but distant, and the nostalgia of it feels almost like a punch to the gut. ] Holy shit. [ he says as he pulls open the top, staring at the contents.
his stomach does audibly growl, so wanda will get her answer right then and there. ]
Can you do a Coke? Like- the old Coke. Not the new one. [ sorry for being distinctly 80s here, wanda. but he has to be specific. ]
[wanda tries to hide her laughter behind a hand at steve’s reaction being such a genuine thing—holy shit, said so earnestly. ut there is delight, too, her smile growing wider as he receives the box and looks the contents over. there is nothing to be embarrassed about, excitement and hunger-made-obvious, so she just waves it off, dismissing it.
what is important to her is that steve starts eating something, anything, from the box. all while she ponders what he means by ‘the old coke’.]
I’m… not sure I’ll get it right? I was born in 1989, Steve.
[it’s impossible to ignore, the mannerisms and the way they speak, a few conversations about it, about how steve and eddie are from a time before wanda was born. she scrunches her nose.]
I think the Coke I remember the most from my country tastes very different from the one in the United States. Yours has a lot more sugar, you know?
[ with very little ceremony and absolutely no patience, steve shoves one of the drumsticks from the top of the tin into his mouth. his immediate response is pretty unnecessarily dramatic, too, with how he lolls his head back with quite a bit of euphoria. honestly, if he wasn't so busy stuffing food into his mouth like the teenage boy he's just barely left behind, he would be crying.
for now, though, any weird knots in his stomach are gone. that ashy, putrid taste that's clung to the back of his throat has also left. all he can taste is chicken, and their seven signature spices, and really he hit the nail on the head with holy shit. so much that he almost misses the comment she makes.
almost. but then i was born in 1989 happens and steve chokes on that bite, needing a couple of moments of coughing to get through it. goes as far as to smack his fist against his chest. ] 'm sorry- did you say you were born in nineteen eighty nine?
[ there are a few thoughts that happen fairly quickly - about how, by that math, he's old enough to have been her father. about how he never even considered the possibility that people can be from the same place as him but just....years ahead. (how eddie will never see 1989 in hawkins, or anywhere else) ]
Oh- I mean. The chicken's right on- finger-lickin' good and all that. It's good to know they didn't change that, I don't even know how they would change it, anyway. I mean, you've got the- [ oh, he's rambling now isn't he. steve stops himself before he can get caught up and takes a breath.
and then immediately takes another bite of the drumstick. through the mouth of food- ] You can make whatever you remember. I don't even know if I remember what Coke tastes like.
[and wanda can sense the way his thoughts whirr at the possibilities of a scenario he never quite considered. it doesn't take away, though, from the fact that wanda is older than him, right now, because life experience comes from what they have lived through, and not whatever potential age discrepancy there is.
his reaction to the chicken is pretty good, though, considering it's been a while since she had kfc herself. she steals one of the popcorn chicken bits, chewing on that as he speaks.]
Let's see what we can put together...
[with a bit of a thought, and a tap of her finger into thin air, a coke can appears near his feet. it's cold to the touch, as if having been taken out of a fridge where it's been sitting in for hours.]
[ steve gives himself a moment or two longer to let that all spin wildly around in his head before he can't take it anymore. before he just places this as one more thing he can't think too hard about and he'll be fine. wanda is just wanda, and it's not the nineteen eighties here, so why should it matter?
he breathes, shakes his head, and decides to - instead - focus on the food. the chicken, the mashed potatoes, the...god. the rolls. he eats a bit like a teenage boy for another few moments, and when the coke appears, his eyes go a little wide.
steve doesn't hesitate for even a minute, reaching for the can and taking a long, appreciative drink. ]
Holy fuck that's good. [ and his voice does sound a bit awestruck. when steve turns back to wanda, he's definitely grinning, looking probably a lot more like the twenty year old he actually is and a lot less like whatever it was she approached on this creekside not that long ago. ]
Thank you. [ and he means it, really and truly. he takes another long drink from the can before he's reaching for the food again. ] God- I wish I knew you could do this like, months ago. Or remembered it. Jesus christ.
[wanda thinks it’d be more impressive if she could actually make the fried chicken and the rolls after spending some time in the kitchen, herself, but suppose that magic is even more exciting for some.
she leans to the side, bumping shoulders with him.]
—you’re welcome.
[he’ll know now, at least, that he can always come to her if he’s craving something from home that isn’t the usual farmstead meal.]
I could probably have more things like this for you lot. I know Americans are very particular about their sugary breakfasts. [cereals, she means.] Nero, Himeka and I are going to build a place of our own outside the settlement. I can have the pantry full of whatever snacks you want.
[it’s not much, but perhaps this is something that can help steve with that process of overcoming the experience back in the pit.]
[ she should take it as a compliment, before steve means it as one. making it in the kitchen versus making it by magic doesn't really feel all that different when it's been as long as it has since he's had...what feels like an actual meal.
listen, he's a child of the eighties, he doesn't really have a palette. but this right here is a godsend. the bump to his shoulder has steve's attention back once more, and then he's grinning, pushing back.
it's night and day, the difference he feels from when she first found him on this rock. all he can smell is the chicken, the sides, the vague underpinning of something that is only and wholly wanda. he feels a bit like he's relaxed for the first time in months, like himself. ]
You can? Rea- [ but then he stops, or rather he seems to only just then seems to have understood the other part of her comment there. it stills him, not in a bad way but rather his focus has shifted. ]
[the idea of moving was met with resounding agreement between all those involved; declan would be married, they needed the space in gardsbruk farm. it was a no brainer, to establish themselves in a place they could call home, to allow it to be a place that brought respite to the other summoned.
wanda is glancing out at the brook, pulling a knee up to wrap her arms around, leaning into it.]
Just out of the settlement, by those lakes that you can see over the hill. [so, it’s not necessarily far, even if the road there is long.] It’s not like I won’t be around, anyway. [at this, she turns her face towards him, a small smile on her features.] I can teleport back and forth—and, besides, wouldn’t it be nice to have a place we could, what is it you’d call it, chill and hang around at? Watch some TV, have an actual shower, eat Fruit Loops and KFC whenever we want?
[that is to say,]
We’ll have a guest room and space for others, too.
[ and he doesn't mean anything by his tone, even if there is a kind of...weight. and she mentions the lake over the hills and steve looks in that direction. objectively, yeah, he knows that isn't far. he knows it's not like they're suddenly disappearing. it just also feels...he's not sure.
he hadn't realized he was going to suddenly lose access to both nero and wanda in one go. and yes, okay, that's kind of dramatic. he's being a child about it, thinking in that way. and steve knows that isn't fair, either, which is why he nods. takes a breath. tries to just move right passed that feeling and offer wanda a smile. ]
No that's great- you all have been here a while too, I'm sure you want your own space. And I know it'll look cool, if you're the one building it.
—you'll come around to help, won't you? Building it, that is.
[even if he is feeling a little dramatic in the idea of 'losing access' to two people he's gotten used to, wanda can understand the sentiment. it's pushing towards something that is slightly different from the norm. it's perfectly normal to feel askew about it.
better than he knows now than later, but.
he can be part of it.
by teasing him.]
We're going to need strong guys to carry logs and planks around.
Uh- yeah, sure. If you need the help. [ he hadn't really considered the combination of people moving into that place to need help, but he's definitely not going to say no.
but it's the strong guys to carry logs and planks around and steve huffs, a half laugh and a half sigh, recognizing when he's being teased. ]
Uh-huh, I'm sure you will. But I'll still come by. Would be cool to see how you do it all.
[he's still eating the magically conjured fried chicken boxed meal, so wanda is gentle when she lightly bumps at his arm with her shoulder, keeping her hands on her knees and turning to him with a smile.]
I'll be happy to see you there, Steve.
[wanda understands that he is still processing a lot of what happened back in the pit, so it's a slow healing process.
and she won't mind, sitting here with him, keeping him company while he eats.]
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—steve /hairington.
steve isn't hard to spot, especially not considering that wanda has been going about the settlement placing sigils in specific locations.
the stream's quite the peaceful area to sit at. some forest critters approach it to drink before bumbling away, the canopy of the tree whistles soothingly as the breeze sways the leaves. wanda joins the young man, sitting on the shore of the river, atop some rocks, letting there be some distance between the two of them.]
I like it here. [she says quietly, not really expecting to get a response. he's probably lost in his thoughts.] It's peaceful.
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that's not to say he isn't trying - he gets out of bed each day, he goes and helps out at the nursery, he wanders out to the shrines that feel familiar (even if he can't shake the feeling each of them might have something sinister hidden inside) and goes about his tasks. when he's not doing any of those, he finds himself kind of hovering around eddie which he knows must be annoying. so in a way he's still going about his day, but it all feels...distant. distracted. like some part of him didn't really make it out.
which is stupid, it's really stupid, and he should just be better now that he's cured. it should still be easy to just get better.
he's sitting up on the rock because he got tired. because everything feels exhausting. he'd planned on it just being a couple of minutes, because he's sure there's something else he could be helping with, but- well. he's lost track of time, the nails of one hand scratching over the scar of one of the lesions absentmindedly.
steve doesn't necessarily hear wanda approach, but it's not a surprise when she settles, something in the air shifting. something he can smell, which is weird enough in its own right and something he's just recently started to notice. but it's also wanda, which means the smell is also familiar - floral, powder, but with a hint of something dark and heavy underneath. steve takes a slow, deep breath and lets the smell actually relax him a bit - still weird, still freaky, still not anything he would tell anyone quite yet. but it helps. ]
Yeah. [ he says when she settles somewhere next to him, but not too close. ] And clean. [ which, steve realizes, is kind of a weird thing to say. he shakes his head, one hand going back to comb back some of his hair - which is...too long, he notices. he needs to find someone to cut it for him. ] I mean like- the plants and animals and stuff. It's...spring, so it's all kinda new, you know? Nothing's dying, or rotting. It smells nice.
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healing will take a long while.
when his hand returns to scratch absentmindedly at one of the scars, wanda reaches over to put a gentle hand over his. she doesn't tell him to stop, but hopefully the action will give him the awareness that he should.
abruptly—]
Are you hungry?
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that is, until wanda places a gentle hand over his. his eyes are immediately down to her hand, to where it's stilled his own, and he realizes then what she's doing. what he'd been doing. and...god. he's really kind of a mess, isn't he? ]
What? [ he'd been looking at his arm, at the scarring that he can already see taking place since he can't seem to leave the wounds alone, so he hadn't quite heard the question.
but then he does, or at least seems to remember what she asked, and he exhales. ] Sorry, I'm. [ truth is, he's not hungry at all. hasn't really been hungry since the pit, and the rotting roots and rations they'd resorted to eating just to have something in their stomachs.
but he should eat, he knows that, so he corrects himself before he answers - mouth curling into a small smile. ] Sure, I could eat. Are you?
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I am. [not that hungry, but she had some fruits not too long ago.] Wait here.
[she stands, moving to a point behind them. she had come here by horse, having left faisca to graze about; looking into the pouch at the side of the saddle, she brings out a small leather bag. now, as she returns, she sits right beside steve, the bag on her lap, unopened.]
My boyfriend [congrats, steve, you're the first to hear wanda call him that] was abducted, too. When he came back, he kept saying he wasn't hungry. He ate a little bit of the stew they were serving because I asked him to, but the next day I got him a cheeseburger—he's from New York—and would you know it, he ate the whole thing.
[the food here in abraxas isn't great for their palates. can't just go to a familiar fast food place to get comfort food.
she turns her face to him, elbows and shoulders bumping a little with his.]
I got savory cupcakes in the bag, but. [but] I can turn them into something else. Is there anything you miss from home? Something you — wish you could eat right now?
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that's just about when wanda comes back and settles next to him, and that earlier guilt dissipates as he turns to face her - now more interested in her and what she's saying than anything else. she mentions her boyfriend and steve's expression shifts from what? to oh of course yeah, wanda's super gorgeous of course she'd have a boyfriend and then they just move on from there. the fact that he was also kidnapped has steve...not relaxing, exactly, but some part of him does loosen up. if only because it feels a bit like maybe he doesn't have to be the one to explain what happened to wanda. that maybe he doesn't have to explain much at all for wanda to understand. and that does end up feeling a bit like a weight lifted from his shoulders.
he doesn't really move all that much as their elbows and shoulders bump, comfortable with the closeness. at the mention of the cheeseburger, steve's eyes widen and there's a definite brightness in his face. ]
Wait- you can turn them into anything? [ because yeah, that is what it comes down to, isn't it? the food isn't bad, exactly. but it's also not what steve really craves when he wants to be comforted. the horizon helps, with the ice cream and the ability to think up anything he might want to eat, but it isn't real in the end.
but now it's on him - to think of something he misses that he wishes he could eat here. there's a moment or two where he just thinks, and it definitely looks like he's putting way too much effort into the thinking part, but this is important. ]
Fried Chicken. [ he says after those couple of moments. ] Like- KFC Fried Chicken. Can you make that?
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Absolutely anything.
[she nods, giving an answer to his question, and encouraging him to think about what he would like to have. she waits, patiently, because it is important, and steve really is just a young adult trying to fit into the boots he's expected to fill.
and then, there it is.]
I like KFC. I had it a few times in America.
[—so, she won't have any trouble creating it. in fact, she will use her magic, plumes of scarlet from her finger over the bag on her lap, to turn the savory cupcakes into something that resembles, actually, a box of kfc food: three chicken pieces, some popcorn chicken, the mashed potatoes with the gravy, a piece of corn, and two biscuits. wanda hands it over to steve—hoping it's not too much for him.]
Do you want a Pepsi, too?
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and the concept it could just happen. that wanda has the abilities to just make it happen...what has he been doing for these last few months that he didn't even know this was possible? ]
Holy shit. [ his eyes are still wide, still in wonder as the scarlet whisps circle the bag in her lap. he adjusts, almost like a kid excited to see a magic trick. if he were any more aware of himself or how he looked, he'd probably be a bit embarrassed about it. but right now?
right now wanda hands over a box, and the smell is what hits steve first. something overwhelmingly familiar but distant, and the nostalgia of it feels almost like a punch to the gut. ] Holy shit. [ he says as he pulls open the top, staring at the contents.
his stomach does audibly growl, so wanda will get her answer right then and there. ]
Can you do a Coke? Like- the old Coke. Not the new one. [ sorry for being distinctly 80s here, wanda. but he has to be specific. ]
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what is important to her is that steve starts eating something, anything, from the box. all while she ponders what he means by ‘the old coke’.]
I’m… not sure I’ll get it right? I was born in 1989, Steve.
[it’s impossible to ignore, the mannerisms and the way they speak, a few conversations about it, about how steve and eddie are from a time before wanda was born. she scrunches her nose.]
I think the Coke I remember the most from my country tastes very different from the one in the United States. Yours has a lot more sugar, you know?
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for now, though, any weird knots in his stomach are gone. that ashy, putrid taste that's clung to the back of his throat has also left. all he can taste is chicken, and their seven signature spices, and really he hit the nail on the head with holy shit. so much that he almost misses the comment she makes.
almost. but then i was born in 1989 happens and steve chokes on that bite, needing a couple of moments of coughing to get through it. goes as far as to smack his fist against his chest. ] 'm sorry- did you say you were born in nineteen eighty nine?
[ there are a few thoughts that happen fairly quickly - about how, by that math, he's old enough to have been her father. about how he never even considered the possibility that people can be from the same place as him but just....years ahead. (how eddie will never see 1989 in hawkins, or anywhere else) ]
Oh- I mean. The chicken's right on- finger-lickin' good and all that. It's good to know they didn't change that, I don't even know how they would change it, anyway. I mean, you've got the- [ oh, he's rambling now isn't he. steve stops himself before he can get caught up and takes a breath.
and then immediately takes another bite of the drumstick. through the mouth of food- ] You can make whatever you remember. I don't even know if I remember what Coke tastes like.
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[and wanda can sense the way his thoughts whirr at the possibilities of a scenario he never quite considered. it doesn't take away, though, from the fact that wanda is older than him, right now, because life experience comes from what they have lived through, and not whatever potential age discrepancy there is.
his reaction to the chicken is pretty good, though, considering it's been a while since she had kfc herself. she steals one of the popcorn chicken bits, chewing on that as he speaks.]
Let's see what we can put together...
[with a bit of a thought, and a tap of her finger into thin air, a coke can appears near his feet. it's cold to the touch, as if having been taken out of a fridge where it's been sitting in for hours.]
Give it a taste?
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[ steve gives himself a moment or two longer to let that all spin wildly around in his head before he can't take it anymore. before he just places this as one more thing he can't think too hard about and he'll be fine. wanda is just wanda, and it's not the nineteen eighties here, so why should it matter?
he breathes, shakes his head, and decides to - instead - focus on the food. the chicken, the mashed potatoes, the...god. the rolls. he eats a bit like a teenage boy for another few moments, and when the coke appears, his eyes go a little wide.
steve doesn't hesitate for even a minute, reaching for the can and taking a long, appreciative drink. ]
Holy fuck that's good. [ and his voice does sound a bit awestruck. when steve turns back to wanda, he's definitely grinning, looking probably a lot more like the twenty year old he actually is and a lot less like whatever it was she approached on this creekside not that long ago. ]
Thank you. [ and he means it, really and truly. he takes another long drink from the can before he's reaching for the food again. ] God- I wish I knew you could do this like, months ago. Or remembered it. Jesus christ.
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[wanda thinks it’d be more impressive if she could actually make the fried chicken and the rolls after spending some time in the kitchen, herself, but suppose that magic is even more exciting for some.
she leans to the side, bumping shoulders with him.]
—you’re welcome.
[he’ll know now, at least, that he can always come to her if he’s craving something from home that isn’t the usual farmstead meal.]
I could probably have more things like this for you lot. I know Americans are very particular about their sugary breakfasts. [cereals, she means.] Nero, Himeka and I are going to build a place of our own outside the settlement. I can have the pantry full of whatever snacks you want.
[it’s not much, but perhaps this is something that can help steve with that process of overcoming the experience back in the pit.]
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listen, he's a child of the eighties, he doesn't really have a palette. but this right here is a godsend. the bump to his shoulder has steve's attention back once more, and then he's grinning, pushing back.
it's night and day, the difference he feels from when she first found him on this rock. all he can smell is the chicken, the sides, the vague underpinning of something that is only and wholly wanda. he feels a bit like he's relaxed for the first time in months, like himself. ]
You can? Rea- [ but then he stops, or rather he seems to only just then seems to have understood the other part of her comment there. it stills him, not in a bad way but rather his focus has shifted. ]
You're...moving?
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wanda is glancing out at the brook, pulling a knee up to wrap her arms around, leaning into it.]
Just out of the settlement, by those lakes that you can see over the hill. [so, it’s not necessarily far, even if the road there is long.] It’s not like I won’t be around, anyway. [at this, she turns her face towards him, a small smile on her features.] I can teleport back and forth—and, besides, wouldn’t it be nice to have a place we could, what is it you’d call it, chill and hang around at? Watch some TV, have an actual shower, eat Fruit Loops and KFC whenever we want?
[that is to say,]
We’ll have a guest room and space for others, too.
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[ and he doesn't mean anything by his tone, even if there is a kind of...weight. and she mentions the lake over the hills and steve looks in that direction. objectively, yeah, he knows that isn't far. he knows it's not like they're suddenly disappearing. it just also feels...he's not sure.
he hadn't realized he was going to suddenly lose access to both nero and wanda in one go. and yes, okay, that's kind of dramatic. he's being a child about it, thinking in that way. and steve knows that isn't fair, either, which is why he nods. takes a breath. tries to just move right passed that feeling and offer wanda a smile. ]
No that's great- you all have been here a while too, I'm sure you want your own space. And I know it'll look cool, if you're the one building it.
THEIR DRIVING ICONS LAUGHS
[even if he is feeling a little dramatic in the idea of 'losing access' to two people he's gotten used to, wanda can understand the sentiment. it's pushing towards something that is slightly different from the norm. it's perfectly normal to feel askew about it.
better than he knows now than later, but.
he can be part of it.
by teasing him.]
We're going to need strong guys to carry logs and planks around.
MATCHIES
Uh- yeah, sure. If you need the help. [ he hadn't really considered the combination of people moving into that place to need help, but he's definitely not going to say no.
but it's the strong guys to carry logs and planks around and steve huffs, a half laugh and a half sigh, recognizing when he's being teased. ]
Uh-huh, I'm sure you will. But I'll still come by. Would be cool to see how you do it all.
and a nice wrap-up point, yeah!
I'll be happy to see you there, Steve.
[wanda understands that he is still processing a lot of what happened back in the pit, so it's a slow healing process.
and she won't mind, sitting here with him, keeping him company while he eats.]