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Tweak says, "slippery when dead..."

Wanda Maximoff (scarlethex) wrote in newalliance,
@ 2013-09-24 21:14:00

Entry tags:

jessica jones, scarlet witch

Who: Wanda Maximoff + Jessica Jones.
When: Saturday, September 21st; Evening.
Where: Wanda's apartment.
What: After an afternoon of birthday festivities, Jess finally talks to Wanda about her association to Loki. It goes about as well as you think.
Rating: PG-13 for guaranteed language.

The day had been quite a busy one. After returning from France, Wanda spent the whole morning getting things ready for Eira's birthday get-together. She decluttered the house, making sure the living room and kitchen were especially clean. She baked a small vanilla cake and covered it with blue frosting to match the color scheme of the decorations. A single balloon was tied to each chair around the table and a small pile of bags consisting of little party favors for the younger guests sat on the counter. She hardly had time to sit down by the time the first party guest arrived, sending her into full on hostess mode.

By the time the party was over and the over-excited Eira was coaxed to sleep, Wanda was exhausted. She plopped down onto her couch with a tired groan. "What a day," she sighed, looking over to Jess sitting not far from her. She had decided to stay after the party had ended to chat like they often did. Though Wanda wondered if Jess simply wanted to engage in idle chatter or if there was something in particular she wanted to talk about. She could tell something was on her friend's mind based off of the awkward behavior she had displayed throughout the whole party.

"Is something the matter?" She asked, tilting her head to the side and looking at her curiously.

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jesstastic
2013-09-25 08:10 am UTC (link)

Jessica knew what it was like to avoid things; she'd spent her time since being mind-controlled by the Purple Man avoiding talking about it, avoiding being a super-hero, avoiding even any talk of her being a superhero. She knew she had a problem and had been seeking help from Professor X for several months now.

So, she also understood, to an extent, what it was like to forget reality for the time being. And that's exactly how she saw Wanda's behaviour during the birthday party for Eira. At least, that's what Jessica told herself it had to be.

Despite being on maternity leave, she had gone in to SHIELD to help locate Loki, who had badly wounded their fellow co-worker, Agent Coulson, and had learned of Eira's true parentage and that Wanda still had ties to the father. The father being Loki.

At first, Jessica did not want to draw any conclusions. She was surprised that Wanda had not called the authorities when Loki showed up at her apartment after Wanda had been questioned by Agent Romanoff and told then precisely what had been done to Agent Coulson. Wanda's actions could lead her to being charged with aiding and abetting a criminal; SHIELD deemed Loki a mass murderer and terrorist (and with good proof). But then she got the e-mails this morning showing that Wanda had gone with Loki to France. And based on their interactions in the photos, it did not look like a straightforward kidnapping. Wanda looked like she was happy to be there.

Jessica had been unusually quiet during the party, considering her and Sue's talk. When all the guests had gone and they finally had an alone moment, Jessica watched Wanda curiously. She can alter reality and it's like she is choosing to ignore it entirely right now.

"Yes, actually, there is," she said as she pulled her bag closer to her, rooting through for a large filing folder and placing it on the coffee table. "What is going on with you? What are you doing, Wanda?"

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scarlethex
2013-09-25 02:39 pm UTC (link)

Wanda stared at the file folder with furrowed brow, spying the SHIELD insignia plastered on the front. Her mood grew dark when she realized just what the folder was and what it likely housed. A stabbing pain, one of betrayal and hurt, shot to her heart. Jess was going to question her about Loki? Was they why she had been distant this whole time? She invited Jess as a friend to her daughter's birthday party and now she was going to play Ms. SHIELD informant?

She moved get gaze from the file to Jess, anger and hurt flashing in her stormy blue eyes. "I should ask you the same thing," she responded tightly. "It is my daughter's birthday. Why have you brought this here? This is not the time."

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jesstastic
2013-09-25 03:40 pm UTC (link)

There was a part of Jessica that was genuinely surprised by Wanda's darkened mood and her reaction (which showed by her raised eyebrows), and another part of her that wasn't. It wasn't just Wanda, it was anytime Jessica had to act in a detective role. People didn't like it when someone snooped around in their private things.

Heck, Jessica didn't like it herself. But, she had a job to do and a friend she was worried about. And the fact that it was Eira's birthday was cognizant to her; but it was also just an excuse. She of all people knew that.

She sighed because she did want to approach this more delicately, but she didn't feel she had much choice considering Wanda's reaction.

"OK. I get that. This is a shitty situation. For all of us. But let's face it, Wanda: when is a good time to talk about your involvement with a mass murderer and terrorist, then?"

Frankly, there was no good time. But it was happening, anyways.

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scarlethex
2013-09-25 04:50 pm UTC (link)

"He is not--!" She shouted, springing from her seat. She stilled her tongue before she could say anymore. She needed to be quiet or she would wake up Eira. A tiny part of her wanted to wake up the little girl in hopes of keeping Jess from continuing with this, but it wouldn't have been fair to her. Besides, Jess might not give up and she didn't need her daughter witnessing this.

"Is this really how you want to do this?" She hissed, shooting daggers at the woman with her glare. "I invited you to my home as a friend, Jessica Jones, not as a SHIELD lackey looking for information on a man I can give none for." Her hands were balled into fists and her jaw set tightly. "Ask Romanov or the other SHIELD agents watching me. I know nothing."

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jesstastic
2013-09-25 07:46 pm UTC (link)

She sighed and closed her eyes for a moment. Her friend was obviously in denial. Well, perhaps now was the time for tough love. Jessica did not move from her seat despite Wanda getting up and looking quite angry.

She unraveled the knot binding closed the filing folder and pulled out some photos. One was of Agent Coulson's injury, a close-up shot. Another was a group of gang members, murdered in a massive facility in Philadelphia. A third photo was a photo of Loki as a woman speaking to a well-known mafia boss.

"I'm not here to be a SHIELD agent. I'm here to be your friend. And as your friend ... I want to show you something." Jessica pointed to the picture of Coulson. "Phil was in an incredible amount of pain when I visited him at the hospital. Did you get a chance to visit him? When I saw him, he couldn't even hold Danielle, and she doesn't weigh that much."

Jess took out several more pictures of Phil, showing the period when he had greatly deteriorated due to the injury from Loki's spear. "He almost died. Our co-worker. Our friend. Phil. A person that we know. Almost died. And maybe we could have ended his suffering sooner. We could have healed him quicker. If we had known where Loki was. But we didn't and his condition did get detrimentally worse. He's lucky to even be alive."

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scarlethex
2013-09-25 11:50 pm UTC (link)

Once again, Wanda merely stared at the contents on her coffee table. She heard the words Jess spoke, but didn't retain them, her attention solely on the files in front of her. Her expression was blank as her eyes moved from one photo to the other. She leaned forward and gathered the pictures into her hands so she could see them more closely. The pictures of Phil earned a brief glimpse of sadness on her otherwise unreadable face, but the others appeared to leave her unmoved.

But what her expression told was far different from what she was experiencing inward. The fact was the images were upsetting for her. Seeing Phil's health quickly deteriorating in front of her eyes caused a pang of guilt. She wished she could have helped him somehow. Jess seemed to think having Loki in custody would have, but Wanda knew better. Letting him go did nothing to limit his chances and it angered her that that was what she was implying.

"A friend trying to force guilt upon me," she spat, throwing the pictures down onto the table. "I did not limit Phil's chances to survive!" She ran a hand through her hair, turning away from Jess and beginning to pace. "Loki would have done nothing to help you. Nothing!"

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jesstastic
2013-09-26 03:50 pm UTC (link)

Jessica had truly never seen Wanda act so... irrationally. Ordinarily, Wanda had been the one she turned to when she needed help with Danielle. Wanda was an excellent mother and her advice on child-rearing was sound. But her behaviour now...

It actually reminded Jessica of that time Rick Jones' (no relation) wife was searching for him. The woman had come to Alias Investigations begging for Jessica to help find her husband. She was just so blindly in love with him. When Jessica finally found him, he was hiding from his wife, living a life free of responsibility. When she saw them together again, his wife was so ecstatic that he'd returned to her that Jessica just let her go on living in her made-up world, not telling the woman about Rick Jones' activities.

Except, she didn't feel like she could let Wanda continue on in her world of make-believe. It was just not... healthy. If Wanda had guilt, then that was very likely because she had something to feel guilty over. Jessica suddenly wished she had not quit cold turkey so long ago or at least had a cigarette lying around somewhere. "No, Wanda. I am trying to get you to see reason. Why do you think that Loki would have done nothing to help Phil?"

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scarlethex
2013-09-26 04:34 pm UTC (link)

"Because he shot him!" Wanda shot back. Wasn't that obvious? Why would Loki feel compelled to help the man that shot him? It wasn't something only Loki would do either; SHIELD would have been reluctant to do anything for him if the roles had been reversed. "A person refusing to help the man that attacked them is not an abnormal thing. Really, Jessica, don't be stupid."

She let out an aggravated huff and stormed into the kitchen. She needed to get away for a moment so she could collect herself. Going to the sink, Wanda turned on the faucet and splashed water onto her face. She blindly reached for the hand towel hanging above her and dug her face into it. She let out a scream into the fabric, squeezing the cloth tightly against her mouth so it was effectively muffled. She slowly moved the towel from her face and turned off the faucet, taking deep breaths. Finally, she went back into the living room and threw the damp towel at her currently unwanted guest.

"Stop pussyfooting around," she snarled, seeming a less flustered but no less angry. It was obvious Jess wanted her to 'see reason' when it came to her association with Loki, but so far all she had done was make her feel cornered and unwilling to listen. "If you have something to say, then say it plainly before I kick you out of my home."

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jesstastic
2013-09-26 08:08 pm UTC (link)

Jessica did not handle such aggression directed at her well. She stood up, defensively. She kept her voice low, still cognizant of the sleeping baby, but her anger now matched Wanda's. "Oh my God, Wanda. Are you actually this naive? Is he feeding you this bullshit? Phil fucking shot that asshole because he was acting in self-defense! Loki threw a fucking bomb on the Helicarrier! That's what started it. But if you don't believe me, you can watch the goddamn tape!"

She grabbed the DVD out of the folder before dumping the filing folder on the table, spilling out a good portion of its contents. "You want me to stop pussy-footing around? Here," she angrily pointed to another picture. "At least 100 people have died because of him; We believe at least fifty by his hand alone. The names are all there for you. Oh, and here's another one for you: this guy you're protecting at all costs?"

She slapped down a photo of Loki and that white-haired girl at the Gansevoort Hotel, naked and kissing. It had been caught on camera via an adjacent building's security footage. "He's cheating on you." ...Shit. Jessica instantly regretted that last statement... it was not her intention to tell Wanda about that... at least in the way that she did. Not in such anger. That was a total asshole move, Jess.

She grabbed up her things, shoving them into her purse. She started for the door, but left the filing folder behind. She had copies of everything already. She stopped just before opening the door. "I hope he's worth it. Your life. Our friendship. I just hope he's worth it."

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scarlethex
2013-09-27 02:58 pm UTC (link)

Wanda felt an intense stabbing pain in her chest, so strong she instinctively brought her hand up to cling to it. The images of Loki's victims - while disturbing and definitely upsetting - did little compared to the single photo of the god with the white-haired girl that she knew to be called Ravager. She had always suspected the girl that had helped rescue her and her daughter was more to Loki than a simple ally in battle, but, like with everything else, she forced herself to not dwell on those thoughts. Oh, what a horrible fool she was believing she was anything special to a fickle god like him!

"After I sacrificed so much for you," she mumbled, staring down at the picture with a despair that was practically palpable. That despair was quickly coupled with anger, not just at the man that had betrayed her, but at the woman cruel enough to reveal it to her.

"GET OUT!" She shrieked, pain and disgust present in both tone and expression. Then she sank down onto the couch, her anger giving way to overwhelming anguish. "Just get out," she commanded again in a soft, trembling voice.

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jesstastic
2013-09-28 08:52 am UTC (link)

Jessica shook her head and left, closing the door roughly, but not slamming it. She wished she could have, though. She ran down the stairs in a blur and ran into the nearest convenience store, buying a pack of cigarettes.

She was angry at Wanda for choosing some douchefuck over everything else that mattered in her life; angry at herself for blowing up the way she did; angry at SHIELD for the fact that she would have to go back to Hill and recommend Wanda be brought in on aiding and abetting charges. She wished that she had responded better, that Wanda had acted differently.

She ripped open the package of cigarettes and shoved one into her mouth before stopping and wiping her tears away. She couldn't do it... couldn't do that to Danielle and Luke. She took the cigarette out of her mouth and dumped the entire package into the garbage. Fingers shaking, she picked up her phone to call home. "Luke... it's me. It didn't go so well..."

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