[closed to Wanda] you can't go wrong if your will is strong

[worldsaway]

[It is with some surprise that Thor accepts the offer to infiltrate the little town that Wanda is holding captive with her incredible magic. He's got some time to burn on Earth, but he'd stay as long as she needed him to.

His surprise is only for the fact that, although they've worked together for some time now they've spent very little one on one time. Not for lack of interest, when they speak they get along well and they have a surprising amount in common. The timing has just been difficult, since they started thinking of those stones and their powers and of problems beyond this realm.

Perhaps this is an opportunity. Perhaps it has come at a good time.

He wonders if she feels as lost as he does, as alone as he does. If he would do the same if he had her power, to exist in a reality without the pain.

With that in mind, he accepts and infiltrates.

In Wanda's mind, she sees that one of her neighbouring homes has a For Sale sign and then, suddenly, there's a SOLD sticker over it. Moving vans and moving men follow and soon there is a large, obnoxiously yellow Jeep with a surfboard strapped to the top on the driveway. It's seen better days, muddy and dusty like the owner must travel often.

One sunny Sunday morning, she'll finally meet her new neighbour. A tall, broad and thick man wearing nothing but a pair of red board shorts, his thongs and his sunglasses. His messy, blond hair pulled back into a ponytail and his scraggly beard desperately in need of a trim. He's washing the muddied jeep with a sponge and a hose with very little regard for how wet he gets in the process.

He gets the sense he's being watched and so he turns with the hose in hand a brilliant smile on his face.]

Oh! Hello there!

Comments

[explosion]

[ she opens her mouth and quickly considers how long the 1950s to now would constitute. a week? two weeks? several decades? ]

A few months.

[ it sounds more legitimate than "a few decades". now, that would require a lot more explanation, and wanda's trying to stop cutting so much of her footage from the final cut.

she scrunches up her face and shakes her head, attempting to appear humble. ] I don't think so. It's just... people are nice here. Most of them are. [ wanda smiles, ] If you tell them the little bear story, I think they'd like you more than me.

[worldsaway]

You think so? [Thor asks, faintly amused.]

That's good advice. Maybe I'll embellish it a little more next time. [He smiles, then looks down at his empty glass.]

Guess I ought to be out of your hair-- unless there's anything you need help with?

[explosion]

[ it's instinctive of her to want to be left alone. she needs time to think, to tinker… to wonder what thor's doing in westview. ]

Yes!

[ for a very brief moment, wanda's surprised at herself. recovering quickly, she smiles charmingly at him. even though she should let him go so she doesn't show her hand, she doesn't want to be alone. ]

I was going to check a roof tile that seems a little loose, but I… [ she appears sheepish. ] I'm a little afraid of heights.

[ ironic. absolutely ironic. ]

[worldsaway]

[Thor, blissfully unaware of how much Wanda is cognisant of, is pleased that she has a completely legitimate reason for him to stay. Pleased and a little relieved, since he doesn't relish any of the time he'll spend alone here.]

Why don't you show it to me?

[He asks, smoothly. Internally, he realises he's never unloosened a roof tile. He usually smashes them off, he's never been a part of the clean up crew.]

Do you have ah-- [What do people use?] A hammer?

[explosion]

I do. I have many hammers.

[ and yes, she can name them. wanda has spent some time watching home improvement and reality shows about fixing houses during her time at the avengers compound. there wasn't much to do when the only person who'd phase through her walls was vision.

she smiles and, after realising she's simply standing there awkwardly, claps her hands (more awkward?) and twists, cocking her head in the direction in which they'd entered the kitchen. ]

I'll take you to the garage.

[ where she'll quietly magic all the hammers imaginable to be in a shiny toolbox. ]

[worldsaway]

More than one? You might be a better handyman than me.

[Thor teases, politely ignoring the weirdly long stretch of time between her saying she has hammers and actually taking him somewhere.

He peers around curiously at her home as she leads him through, letting his eyes fall over any photos or decorations to try and get a sense as to whether she is sending subliminal messages through the decore. He realises that, even if she was, he probably wouldn't understand it.]

You've got a lovely home.

[explosion]

[ he'll see photographs that may appear like posed photographs, if he's ever watched any muggle television. a lot of them have come from stills of each episode. there are photographs in black and white with wanda sporting shorter hair, then wanda in colour with a different hairstyle altogether. none of the photos seems particularly genuine.

she leads him through the back and to her neat little garage. with a subtle wiggle of her fingers, she ensures that there's a toolbox with hammers and hammers hanging from hooks on the wall for when she does open the door and gesture for him to step inside first.

it's a neat little garage. perfectly styled, perfect for a television scene. there isn't a tool out of place nor even any dust. ]

Thank you. [ she smiles at him genuinely. ] I quite like it. Except for the rose bushes. [ she gestures at them lining the side of her yard. ] They refuse to be round even when I try and trim them. [ she shakes her head and tsks under her breath like that's the worst thing she's ever faced in her life. ]