wanda maximoff (fears) wrote in valarlogs, @ 2019-03-02 20:29:00 |
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The so called ‘weirdness’ that was the Orange County wasn’t something Wanda had fully gotten used to. She was still struggling with this alternate life dream stuff that was happening. Equating that and her own life was a trial in compartmentalisation, something that she’d never been especially good at.
And now she was magically bound to someone she didn’t know, tied to them by some invisible cord.
Disconcerting wasn’t the word for it, but it was the closest one that Wanda knew. Hayley didn’t seem terrible, like a crazy person or judgemental. But then it wasn’t like they were baring their souls to each other -trying to be polite and considerate, yes. Opening up might take a little more to get to.
“Do you— I mean, do you have preferences for dinner tonight?” At least she wasn’t eating alone? That was a new treat, but she still wasn’t exactly comfortable either.
Hayley was taking this all in stride, it was odd to wake up with someone she didn't know, but Wanda seems like a good person, didn't give Hayley any reason to fear her She had her work, which she could take time off, it helps that the staff covered for her. She was sitting reading a book on Grand Canyon, planning her next adventure to whitewater rafting in the Colorado River when Wanda spoke, she looked up, debating for a moment.
"Honestly," she paused, "no, not really," she offered a kind smile at the other woman, back as she closed the book and placing in her ap. "You'll find I'm fairly easy in the food department, I love just about any kind of food." She moved to place the book on the table, "do you?" she asked.
"I don't like fish." It came out instantly, like she were just talking to a friend -and she was trying to take this like that, Hayley was just anyone else she might spend time with. At the very least Hayley didn't seem to be all too keen on dragging Wanda to places she didn't know or where she wanted to go. Which was nice. "The texture is strange and sometimes they smell."
Thankfully, there wasn't a lot of fish cooked at home, and even less since Wanda was on her own now. "How do you feel about goulash?" There was enough of an assortment that Wanda could rustle up a traditional stew, and some crusty bread, so no need to go to the shops and manage to not be yanked too far apart. "I can make it mild or spicy, depending on preference."
"I could eat it," Hayley replied with a nod of her head, "spicy will be fine unless you rather have it mild?" Hayley stood up, stretched her muscles out and offered a small smile, "Anything I can do to help?" she figured she'd offer since the pair would have to be in the same room together anyways do to whatever is bonding them together.
"Maybe afterward, can get some yoga in, my body feels strange from now teaching these past few days." She offered another smile, "If you want to learn, I can teach you." than Hayley added, "no pressure, you can say no."
Wanda had found the basics in the kitchen, pulling out what would be needed to work with, “Do you want to cut up the meat while I make the sauce?” It would obviously go quicker with the two of them, but it was usually nice have some company through the process too. Since Wanda liked her food rather hot, she didn’t mind keeping things spicy, just a little less hot than she would normally have it maybe.
Given her school (which she’d thankfully been able to email in her assignments and get the work from her professors) Wanda didn’t have a lot of time for things like yoga or working out. It didn’t mean she didn’t want to try though. She’d started hiking with Padme and it felt like a good thing, getting out and active. “That would actually be nice. Although I’ve never done it before. Is it very hard?"
"I'd be glad to," she nodded her head with a small smile as she moved around Wanda to wash her hands in the sink. When she wiped her hands, she nodded thanks to Wanda who was setting things up. "It's actually not that hard," Hayley assured her.
As she picked up the knife, she began cutting, "what yoga really does it stretch out your muscles, tones them, and it's not very high pace, so gives you a moment of quiet to reflect on things. On what you reflect on is totally up to you."
Finding things to keep her busy would be good; something she could do on her own once she got the hang of it, without needing Padme to go hiking or bothering Peter with late night texts. Something to help the dreams not leave her so shaken.
"That could be nice, quiet reflection isn't often something I can find just sitting." Maybe something to focus herself would help. "Learning would be nice, and being able to stay healthy with some light exercise." It was just nice of Hayley to offer to include her in something she did in her free time.
Hayley smiled at her, "You can find reflection in any place, just need to atone your senses to your environment. I find it's best to find something within to focus on. Like a place you have visited that brought you peace or relaxation, could be anything that works for you?" she kept chopping as talked. "What was the last place or time that you felt truly at ease with yourself?"
Stopping cutting, she looked over to Wanda, "just for a moment, close your eyes and picture the place or time where you had no cares, no worries, you were just you."
Taking a moment from the mixing, Wanda wondered if it was a bad thing that it took her some time to find something to focus on, something that didn't stir up bad memories. She settled on when she'd gone hiking with Padme, when they stopped to get their feet in the ocean, trying to remember the scent of the ocean and the feel of the sun on her face and the sea at her feet.
"I don't really have a lot of those moments." Mostly because a lot of things made her miss her brother terribly.
"Just focus on the ones you have and make more," Hayley offered, "it doesn't have to be a big moment, something small, something that made you at peace,"Hayley went back to chopping, "I use a few views I've seen in my travels, sometimes my mom laughter, just little things can work as well." She put what she was cutting int a bowl and moved for the next item.
"Maybe what we work on tonight could be a moment," she offered, "it's all about what you think is peaceful to you."
Wanda did like the idea of having more peaceful moments, taking some time to herself, maybe just being for a while. And if Hayley could help her find that in yoga, Wanda would be happy for it. "Maybe through yoga I'll be able to find many more moments." Ones that didn't trigger bad memories too.
"I know that this is all quite strange," being tied to someone by some invisible bond, unable to go to their own lives, it was more than strange, "but I feel rather glad that we were able to meet." Maybe it was some grand design that Orange County had.
A genuine smiled flashed at Wanda for her kind words, "So am I," she told her with a nod of her head, "since I've been back, I haven't met any new friends. "There's a few females, I've spoken to on the network, maybe two I've met, and Freya, even then she's the sister of the man I'm currently seeing."
Scooping up what she just chopped to put in another bowl, "Are you seeing anyone" she asked, before she started to chop up the next item.
The network had helped Wanda meet a few people; Padme and Peter, even Tony and Anna. If she hadn't been on the network, she wouldn't have met any of them. "It's the same for me, the network has helped me meet people, but I'm not really good at making friends." At least not without some kind of help.
Dropping some salt and pepper into the mix, Wanda blushed a little at the question about seeing anyone, "Um, no. I'm... I'm not seeing anyone." She wasn't terribly sure about how to meet people like that, people that she might be romantically interested in. And even then, she wasn't sure if anyone she was interested in would be interested in her.
"To be honest, same for me," she admitted, "Females, especially when younger, like a lot of drama, I could care less about it. I think it's why I make male friends easier." Hayley shrugged her shoulder, what could she do?
"I think we are almost finished with the cutting," she did a few more chops and than put it in another bowl. When she saw the blush, she offered a kind smile, "there's someone out there, meant for you."
Wanda agreed with the sentiment, she didn’t need drama and gossip in her life, she had enough of that to last several lifetimes. “That’s probably a good way to look at it,” she supposed men weren’t as geared towards the drama as females could be, no one was gossiping about other girls flirting or what someone wore.
“Yeah, maybe.” She wasn’t holding her breath, but it wasn’t like Wanda was actively looking for it either, not right now. She had so much with school and scholarships, and now these dreams. She figured what would come her way was fine, and she’d manage, with or without a romantic partner. “Let’s get this in a dish and cooked. It shouldn’t take long at all.” Goulash never did take too long to cook, it was just about the prep. “Thirty five minutes should do it."
"While we wait, how about we work out," Hayley offered as she stepped back, "Actually, I have some mats, we can focus on centring you first and then. after dinner, get the stretches in, that way I'm not overloading your sense with everything at once." She smiled at her as she moved to wash her hands, drying them off, "if you are up for it. "
Sitting the towel down, "let me go get the matts," she headed out of the kitchen, but then paused, "Wanda," she said with a warm smile, "I'm glad we got," her hand gesture between them, "I hope we can become and remain friends."
“I would like that,” it would help the time pass, and Wanda thought that the completion of the meal would help her find her centre too, and if spreading things out would help her, she’d be good with that.
Hayley’s honest appreciation of their time together, whatever was causing it, letting them meet each other, had Wanda smiling softly in return. “I hope so too,” because Wanda really did think Hayley was lovely, and she hoped that something came from this like them being friends for real instead of this being forced for them.
Maybe they could make something good out of it.