[ There's no denying that what she feels he's projecting is in her mind. But as she stands there in the doorway it occurs to him that perhaps some of his amusement isn't entirely appropriate in this moment. Whatever levity might have existed in his expression immediately drops as she begins to fidget, makes herself small.
Almost immediately he reaches out, gently gathering her hands in his for a moment if just to still her. ]
No. [ And when she eventually looks up he continues. ] Nothing had to happen. That's just what I'm used to, Wanda.
[ There's another pause as he holds her gaze suddenly overcome with the oddest feeling. Like he can feel the anxiety that prickles across her skin on his own. ]
I got into some trouble. I didn't want to get anyone involved. That's why I left.
( gathering her hands in his untethers wanda from this ugly feeling pulsing through her skin, this expanding anxiety that was gaining traction in diminishing how she feels about her place in the world. it's a constant, ever since she lost pietro, of being uncertain that she's doing anything right—of believing that she has nowhere else to fit in, with people.
it's warm, even if she wasn't feeling particularly cold, and as wanda remains stuck to where she stands, feeling it all melt away as her gaze keeps to his brown eyes, his words knock away her worries. )
You did say.
( —is her whispered response, letting him finish what he wants to say. no, cassian hadn't said exactly why he had left, but he had alluded to it in a way that made her figure it was something like it.
she can't really pinpoint if he came back because he wanted to, or because of her asking to see him. regardless of the answer, wanda reminds herself that he didn't seem annoyed or disappointed to find her waiting, and his wariness comes from wanting to keep her uninvolved.
suddenly, it becomes a little less difficult to ascertain where she stands with him. )
You're always helping me when I'm in a pinch. ( when he had offered her a ride out in the fringes, picking her up from the rave when she was out of it, when he came looking for her when she was drowning inside her grief, even after he had banged the door into her nose— ) Let me return the favor some time.
( that certainty cements itself in wanda pulling her hands away now, if just to wrap her arms around him for an embrace, her anxieties gone now (if just to be replaced by a different kind of sentiment). sounding a little annoyed, she says, )
I know how to handle 'some trouble'.
( and draws away, as to not make the moment any more awkward. )
[ In some ways Cassian can relate to that. Feeling "othered", feeling as if he didn't necessarily belong even if the majority of those around him were technically kind and welcoming to him. In reality he hadn't felt like he was a part of Ferrix's stone and sky until he had earned it. Even when he felt like he had, even when people accepted him as a part of the planet's fabric and its community, he still felt like a part of him existed elsewhere. Still feels like that in fact. Though, like any wound, it eventually heals even if it stays persistent.
Maybe that's what it feels like for Wanda. He hasn't asked so he can presume. But the feeling that resonates from her (he can't even begin to understand why he feels that way) only seems to prove that assumption. They stand there in the doorway to his room seemingly trying to puzzle one another out until Wanda seems to come to her own conclusion first and wraps her arms around him for an embrace that is returned though brief.
When she pulls away he's left standing there again with amusement peppering his expression. ]
I know. You told me.
[ There's more that it seems he'd like to say before stopping himself short. Telling her that he doesn't want to get her involved, telling her that it isn't her fight or mess to help clean up seems like a moot point. So for now he acquiesces, the corners of his lips twitching upwards in appreciation before ushering her inside as the sounds of C4T stir from inside. ]
( after losing pietro, it was difficult for wanda to feel like she could hold a bond with someone as close as she did with him. being wrapped up in an embrace came without asking, and there was never any feeling of awkwardness or shame about it. ever since coming here, she's been learning that letting her hands be held feels gentle; letting herself be hugged back feels warm.
it'd be easy to brace herself for an expected teasing from cassian during or afterward, but it never comes. and that's the bit that surprises her, how much she can still be surprised (and feel content about).
he smiles softly and wanda can't help but mirror him, doing the same, shrugging her shoulders as she's ushered in. )
Right, robots. And teaching me about cars— ( she looks at him from over her shoulder ) —don't forget.
( before her attention falls, ultimately, in the robot that she considers more of a pet than actual object. )
no subject
Almost immediately he reaches out, gently gathering her hands in his for a moment if just to still her. ]
No. [ And when she eventually looks up he continues. ] Nothing had to happen. That's just what I'm used to, Wanda.
[ There's another pause as he holds her gaze suddenly overcome with the oddest feeling. Like he can feel the anxiety that prickles across her skin on his own. ]
I got into some trouble. I didn't want to get anyone involved. That's why I left.
no subject
it's warm, even if she wasn't feeling particularly cold, and as wanda remains stuck to where she stands, feeling it all melt away as her gaze keeps to his brown eyes, his words knock away her worries. )
You did say.
( —is her whispered response, letting him finish what he wants to say. no, cassian hadn't said exactly why he had left, but he had alluded to it in a way that made her figure it was something like it.
she can't really pinpoint if he came back because he wanted to, or because of her asking to see him. regardless of the answer, wanda reminds herself that he didn't seem annoyed or disappointed to find her waiting, and his wariness comes from wanting to keep her uninvolved.
suddenly, it becomes a little less difficult to ascertain where she stands with him. )
You're always helping me when I'm in a pinch. ( when he had offered her a ride out in the fringes, picking her up from the rave when she was out of it, when he came looking for her when she was drowning inside her grief, even after he had banged the door into her nose— ) Let me return the favor some time.
( that certainty cements itself in wanda pulling her hands away now, if just to wrap her arms around him for an embrace, her anxieties gone now (if just to be replaced by a different kind of sentiment). sounding a little annoyed, she says, )
I know how to handle 'some trouble'.
( and draws away, as to not make the moment any more awkward. )
wrap soon?
Maybe that's what it feels like for Wanda. He hasn't asked so he can presume. But the feeling that resonates from her (he can't even begin to understand why he feels that way) only seems to prove that assumption. They stand there in the doorway to his room seemingly trying to puzzle one another out until Wanda seems to come to her own conclusion first and wraps her arms around him for an embrace that is returned though brief.
When she pulls away he's left standing there again with amusement peppering his expression. ]
I know. You told me.
[ There's more that it seems he'd like to say before stopping himself short. Telling her that he doesn't want to get her involved, telling her that it isn't her fight or mess to help clean up seems like a moot point. So for now he acquiesces, the corners of his lips twitching upwards in appreciation before ushering her inside as the sounds of C4T stir from inside. ]
Robots, right?
WRAP NOW!!!!
it'd be easy to brace herself for an expected teasing from cassian during or afterward, but it never comes. and that's the bit that surprises her, how much she can still be surprised (and feel content about).
he smiles softly and wanda can't help but mirror him, doing the same, shrugging her shoulders as she's ushered in. )
Right, robots. And teaching me about cars— ( she looks at him from over her shoulder ) —don't forget.
( before her attention falls, ultimately, in the robot that she considers more of a pet than actual object. )