The cold, desolate winter bit at any exposed skin, the sound of the howling wind muffling any noise a human could emit.

It was a good thing too, that the wind was working as a noise cancelling agent, because if it hadn't, nearby towns, villages, and anyone in a five mile radius would have heard the bloodcurdling screams of a man.

He had dark, dirty hair— probably a result of being imprisoned, in a way. His body was drenched in sweat, his breaths were heavy, and the screams were unlike any known to humankind.

The man was strapped into a chair, a mechanical device securing his head, stuck inside a cylindrical chamber that the scientists in the labratory desperately hoped could hold him.

His screams echoed around the chamber, but the other man, who was stranding in front of him with a book in hand, paid no mind. He ignored the painful yells and began to speak words in Russian, only encouraging the man's pained cries.

"Желание."

Longing.

"Ржавый."

Rusted.

"Семнадцать."

Seventeen.

"Рассвет."

Daybreak.

"Печь."

Furnace.

"Девять."

Nine.

"Добросердечный."

Benign.

"Возвращение на родину."

Homecoming.

"Один."

One.

"Грузовой вагон."

Freight Car.

The room went quiet, everyone tentatively looking at the silent man before them.

"Доброе утро, Солдат." The supervising agent looked down at the prisoner, murmuring a few words.

Good morning, Soldier.

It was silent for a moment more, almost as if the man was hesitating to say what was required of him. "Я готов отвечать."

Ready to comply.

•

"All right, what do you see?" Steve Roger's voice crackled through Natasha, Wanda, and Dahlia's earpieces.

Some of the team were out on a mission at the moment, and the three women were trying their best to blend into the town, wearing street clothes and sipping coffee at a local cafe. Well, Wanda and Natasha were drinking coffee. Dahlia, being an eternal child, had never liked the bitterness it held, and instead of the 'adult' drink, a hot chocolate with a mountain of whipped cream sat in front of her, accompanied by a glazed donut. The girl had a sweet tooth, that was for sure.

After about ten minutes of surveillance, the three reported back to Steve, trying to gather as much intel as they could from the quiet street.

"Sam, see that garbage truck? Tag it."

A small drone came into view, attaching itself to the bottom of a large green garbage truck that drove down the street next to them.

"That truck's loaded for max weight. And the driver's armed." Sam responded, and the three women stood up from their chairs, inconspicuously leaving the patio.

"It's a battering ram." Natasha's heels clicked on the ground.

Steve grabbed his shield and left the building he was scouting from. "Go now."

"What?"

"He's not hitting the police."

Wanda looked to Dahlia and nodded, the two running towards the building on the far end of the street, which had a sign that read, 'INSTITUTE FOR INFECTIOUS DISEASES'.

The truck rumbled forward, and just as it was about to reach the gate, the driver jumped out at the last minute, sending the vehicle straight into the gateway. Dahlia pulled Wanda behind a wall to duck from the flames that burst out, and they watched as several men with fire retardant gear enter the newly-made hole, climbing past what used to be the security.

"Fuck. Steve, they compromised our entrance. Can you see anything?" Dahlia swore over the comms.

"Body armor. AR-15's. I make seven hostiles." He responded gruffly.

There were a few grunts from Sam's end of things before he said. "Make that five."

Wanda and Dahlia exchanged a look, knowing that they couldn't get into the vicinity by just walking in.

They had practiced it before, but she was still wary. Nonetheless, it was their only option at the moment.

Dahlia braced herself, feeling Wanda's powers surround her and push her up and into the premises. She followed soon after, and the two landed on the roof next to Sam, who had just taken down yet another soldier. "Four."

The three Avengers jumped down to the lot below, Steve fighting off a soldier as he did so. Dahlia landed on her feet, and immediately sprang into action— sweeping her leg underneath another one of Rumlow's soldiers and knocking him to his feet.

With one swift kick to his chest, the man was unconscious, with Dahlia's foot keeping him firmly on the ground. She wiped the sweat from her brow and brushed a strand of hair out of her face before saying, "Three."

Sam looked up at the building, scanning the floors. "Rumlow's on the third floor."

"Natasha? Status?" Steve asked, moving his hand to his earpiece.

"I'll be able to provide backup in about five minutes."

Cap grumbled under his breath. "Great. I'm going after him. Anelace, hold them off. I'll call in the one-man backup." He spoke into the comms one more time before taking off. "Speedy, it's a-go."

Wanda used her magic to lift Steve up onto the third floor. He used his shield to break through the glass, and the younger Maximoff used her magic to clear the building of the toxic gas.

A flash of blue ran to her aid, and Dahlia grinned at the sight of Pietro Maximoff. During their training— which she had passed with flying colors, by the way— Steve had figured out that the two worked perfectly in synch, so ever since then, when it came to holding off their opponents, Cap had taken to sending them together, since they performed at their best together.

"Miss me, Dahls?" His accent thickened as he punched a guy in the face, as it did often when he was focused or nervous.

"Always, Zippy." She winked and twisted another soldier's arm backwards.

Rumlow looked down at the parking lot from a balcony and faltered upon seeing Pietro, Wanda, Sam, and Dahlia taking down his squad.

"He's here." He growled, his face hidden underneath a full-face mask.

Steve's voice filled her ear, sounding fairly pissed, "Rumlow has a biological weapon."

"I'm on it." Nat said and arrived, taking out a soldier with her motorcycle and engaging in hand to hand combat with Rumlow.

"That fucker." Dahlia grimaced as she and Pietro switched sides, and therefore switched opponents.

The soldiers weren't used to this move, since the Anelace girl had created it herself, and they were taken off guard by it, giving the two the perfect opportunity to knock them out.

"I still think we should name that move after me." Pietro grinned as they took the weapons from the unconscious men in front of them.

Dahlia scoffed. "Fat chance, you didn't even help!"

"Without me, you wouldn't be able to perform it." He argued back with a smile on his face.

She was quiet for a second as she thought. "Fine. Let's split it halfway.We can call it the Maximoff-Anelace Switch."

"Sorta sounds like we're married, Dahls."

"I don't see a problem with that," She flashed a smile in his direction. "Besides, it would be Anelace-Maximoff, since the better of the two goes first."

Pietro made a face. "I don't think hyphenating is for us. We'll both be Maximoff's soon enough, darling, don't worry."

"If anything, you'd have to be Pietro Anelace, since my last name sounds cooler." Dahlia snickered.

"Does not!"

Sam watched the two with a confused expression, nudging Wanda with his elbow. "So lemme get this straight. They're not dating, or affiliated in any sort of way, but they're discussing marriage super casually?"

Wanda smirked. "Yep."

"This goddamn generation, I swear." Sam rolled his eyes.

Suddenly, an explosion detonated to their right, about five feet from where Pietro and Dahlia were standing, but luckily Wanda and Sam were at a safe distance.

The older Maximoff threw his body on top of Dahlia's, shielding her from the blast.

However, there was no time to relax when everyone was found to be fine, because Steve jumped out of the balcony at that moment, and spotted Rumlow leaving the area.

"Sam, he's in an AFV heading north." He panted, and Sam nodded and took off, the rest of the team running after him on the ground.

Dahlia could no longer see him up ahead, but obviously Steve could, because he was staring at a specific point, unwavering.

"I got four, they're splitting up." Sam said from up above.

Natasha rode past on her motorcycle, calling out to them as she passed. "I got the two on the left."

"Anelace, Maximoff One, follow Romanoff." Steve instructed, and Dahlia grinned.

"Can I use it?"

"Fine, but be quick."

"Hell yeah."

Pietro looked completely confused. "Where are we going?"

"Not all of us can keep up on foot, Maximoff. I have a ride from my days with S.H.I.E.L.D." Dahlia looked giddy at the prospect of getting to use her motorcycle for the first time since before the whole Ultron-shabang.

She found her bike where she parked it in an alley, and climbed on, looking at the purple lightning bolts painted on the side with a loving look.

And so they took off, Pietro keeping pace with the motorcycle.

Side by side, the two made their way to Natasha— riding or running directly behind her.

"Heya, Nat! Need a hand?" Dahlia smiled at her, and the red-haired woman's eyes lit up at the sight of her.

"Actually, yes. Maximoff, take the wheel for me, will you?"

Pietro looked shocked for a moment, but complied and swapped with Nat, taking control of the black motorcycle.

Natasha jumped off of the bike and hopped from car hood to car hood, catching up to the soldiers on foot. Well, more accurately, on hood.

"They ditched their gear. It's a shell game now. One of them has the payload." Steve said just as Dahlia and Pietro pulled up next to him.

A bomb was thrown at Steve, latching on his shield, but he threw it into the air, and it detonated at a safe distance as Pietro and Dahlia worked on taking out two of the mercenaries that were accompanying Rumlow.

"There you are, you son of a bitch. I've been waiting for this!" Rumlow growled, grabbing at Steve's throat

Dahlia snuck up behind the man, quietly loading her gun and holding it to his head. "Put down the frail grandpa, Rumlow, or I swear I'll blow your brain to chunks."

Pietro watched her carefully, nervous for her safety. It wasn't easy to care about someone as much as Dahlia and Pietro cared for each other, especially when each other's lives were constantly in danger. The Avengers life wasn't exactly made for couples, not that they were one.

"Ah, Anelace, my old friend. It's so nice to see you, and such a shame I'll have to kill you." Rumlow chuckled darkly, but as he moved to stab Dahlia with the knife in his hand, Pietro took over with a flash.

Before anyone could do anything, Pietro had Rumlow's arm securely pinned against the wall, staring down at the man with contempt.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you." Pietro hissed through his teeth.

Yet another laugh escaped the soldier's lips. "Who's this, your boyfriend?"

"Go to hell, bitch." Dahlia sneered.

"Maximoff, let him go. I'll deal with him." Steve warned, putting a hand on Pietro's shoulder.

He sent Rumlow one last glare before backing off.

The two men engaged in a hand to hand fight, neither one seeming to be the clear victor. They didn't dare intervene, knowing Cap knew what he was doing.

Dahlia winced as Rumlow shoved Steve onto the wall, and grabbed Pietro's hand to distract herself from the fight. Pietro grinned internally but kept his face still for her sake.

"Come on!" He yelled in Steve's face.

"Say it, don't spray it." Dahlia murmured under her breath, which Pietro heard and had to disguise his laugh as a cough.

"This is for dropping a building on my face." Rumlow held up a blade to Steve's cheek, but when Dahlia made a move to stop him, Cap put up a hand, as if to say 'stop'.

Steve pulled the gauntlet which held the knife off, only to reveal another underneath. But somehow, despite the rage that fueled Rumlow's fight, Cap managed to beat him, and before they knew it, he was on his knees in front of Steve, utterly defeated. His mask had been ripped off only to expose a severely scarred face underneath.

"I think I look pretty good, all things considered."

Steve's voice was firm. "Who's your buyer?"

"You know, he knew you," Rumlow manically grinned. "Your pal, your buddy, your Bucky."

Cap visibly faltered at his words. Dahlia's knowledge of who they were speaking of was limited, but she managed to understand what he was saying. The last time they had a run-in with him, a few of the Avengers tried to contact her, but at the time, she was in Moscow, taking down a whole mafia ring. She would definitely explain the whole 'Bucky' situation to the twins later, as she was sure they wouldn't understand what was happening.

"What did he say?" Steve's voice had quieted considerably.

"He remembered you. I was there. He got all weepy about it. Till they put his brain back in the blender. He wanted you to know something. He said to me, 'Please tell Rogers, When you gotta go, you gotta go.' And you're coming with me."

Dahlia's eyes widened as the bomb vest Rumlow was wearing was activated, and they all collectively flinched, sure it was going to explode and kill them all. Dahlia was sure the last thing she would see would be the man in front of them, and the last things she would feel would be Pietro's grip on her hand.

It wouldn't be that bad a way to go, after all.

However, she would never know for sure, because the bomb didn't explode. Well it was about to, but a red circle surrounded it, and it seemed that Wanda, who was standing behind Dahlia, was delaying the explosion, but for how long?

She lifted the ball of red light into the air, but she lost control midway, and it went off on ten corner of the nearest building.

Dahlia's life-saving tendencies sprung into action, pulling Wanda away from the sight of the chaos, and forcing the twins to leave with her— knowing it would only leave more horror behind.

"We need to go back to the compound, Steve," Dahlia said quickly. "Now."

He nodded and called the plane, loading Wanda onto it hurriedly.

"Can we grab some donuts on the way out?"

There was a collective groan.

"Guess that's a no."

•

Pietro paused outside Dahlia's door and swallowed his nerves.

As soon as they had gotten back to the compound, Dahlia had rushed to make sure Wanda was okay, and after a few hours of comforting her, had locked herself in her room.

"Are you alright?" He spoke from outside her room, his voice soft.

"Always am, Speedy." Even though it was muffled, Pietro could still hear the pain in the tone she was using.

He was silent for a moment more. "You don't have to be."

"But don't I?"

Pietro sighed. If she was being this unresponsive, it was something big, and he refused to let her deal with it alone.

He needed to help her, but he knew she wouldn't let him in so easily. Pietro pushed open the door, and at first glance he couldn't see the girl.

Her room was extremely unlike what he'd imagined it would be. He had only ever been in her room back at the tower, and it wasn't really hers then, anyways. But since they had moved into the compound, Dahlia had finally let the room start to feel like her.

It was far from clean, but that was to be expected. She was no neat freak, that was for sure. Posters of things he didn't recognize adorned the walls, clothes littered on the floor. He saw his reflection in the large vanity on the leftmost wall as he walked by.

Dahlia was curled up on a bench in front of her window, a large plush blanket wrapped around her body as she looked out over the countryside.

Pietro didn't know how to comfort her, so he didn't say anything at first, sitting across from her and looking at the view, waiting for her to speak first.

"Lots of people might say that the view from here is gorgeous," Dahlia's voice was shakey, and a bit hoarse. "But when I look out there... I just see nothing. It makes me feel so alone."

He thought over his next words carefully. "You might not think I get it but I understand," Dahlia looked up at him. "When we lived back in Sokovia, back when Wanda and I were still very young, people would yell outside all day and all night. I would try not to listen to their shouts, because I was worried I'd hear something I wish I hadn't. But even with the incessant noise, it meant they were alive, and the silence... well you know what that would mean. I've never liked the silence. Not one bit."

Dahlia looked at him, and saw the broken boy behind his eyes. She never liked to trust people blindly, but he just seemed so caring.

"I knew him, you know. Rumlow." She said quietly. "I mean, he said that today, but I really knew him."

Pietro stayed silent, not wanting to discourage her at all.

"We trained at S.H.I.E.L.D. together. Of course, he was in his thirties and I was seventeen, but our skills matched up at the time." Her eyes turned glassy, holding back the tears that threatened to spill. "He was my first friend. I thought I could trust him... but I guess I was wrong. And I know it's dumb and I know he was a bad guy, but I can't help but mourn, even though I know he doesn't deserve it."

Dahlia wiped her face with the blanket before continuing. "He would've killed us all today, so I know it's better like this, but he was my friend."

Pietro moved a bit closer to her, letting Dahlia rest her head on his chest and wet his shirt with her tears.

They sat like that for hours, saying and doing nothing except watch the sky turn from blue, to pinky-orange, to pitch black.

Only when the compound stood silent, and the only sound was of Dahlia's steady breathing, fast asleep, did Pietro say anything.

Well, it wasn't exactly 'saying' something, more like singing.

His instinct was to hum the tune that his mother would sing to him as a child, on nights where he had a particularly hard time sleeping. She believed that if she sang bits and pieces of English to them, it would give her children a better grasp of the language later.

Quietly, in the gentlest way he could, Pietro sang.

Come, little bird, come down from the tree,

Down to the lake and it's gold.

Come little children, from dark until day,

And sing us the song of the old.

Through branches and leaves,

The sun still it beams,

And the river's they shimmer with light.

Oh, the girl in the sky,

From the mountains she cries,

Until daybreak is gone once more.

The sound of his own voice and the feel of the girl's breaths were enough to send Pietro into a deep sleep, dreaming of the sun, of rivers, and most strangely, the girl in the sky. He had dreamt this before, but this time it was different.

He recognized the girl.

Dahlia.