Pietro's back ached, his head hurt, he hadn't slept well at all, and yet he was the happiest he had been in ages.

The reason for his strange behavior?

Dahlia Anelace, what else?

The two had spent the night buried in each other's arms, both hiding and shielding the other from the world, which they both knew was not always kind.

If he was being honest, the feelings he felt for the girl that lay in his arms, snoring away, scared him quite a bit. When people claim that their feelings scare them, usually it means that they are afraid of commitment, or that they were wary of a relationship, but for Pietro Maximoff, this was very much not the case.

When he claimed that his feelings scared him, it wasn't in that sort of sense, it was the situation they were in that made the ordeal terrifying. If it was simply the two of them in a small town, with high school dances and truth or dare, Pietro was sure that they would be together in an instant, but being apart of the Avengers, that made everything different.

Every time he thought of a life with Dahlia Anelace, the fear of putting her in danger chased those thoughts off. Not only that, but he also worried about getting hurt himself, and possibly leaving her alone. Who would listen to her sarcasm then?

But, even though it was terrifying, not even the prospect of danger could erase his love for the witty, smart mouthed, cursing brunette.

Her nose twitched in her sleep, causing Pietro to look down at her head on his chest. She looked so peaceful when she was asleep, when she didn't put up a front.

She shook her head a tad and slowly opened her eyes, looking straight up at him and blushing a bright scarlet shade.

"Take a picture, it'll last longer." Dahlia grinned, teasing him and knowing it was working.

Though it was, indeed, working, Pietro didn't let it shock him. "I would, but I think you'd break your camera with your beauty and I don't feel like buying you a new one."

She smacked his arm and 'coughed' to hide her blush, though he had already seen it. She took another look at his electric blue eyes, and looked down as she talked.

"I know we joke a lot, but I really appreciate you talking to me last night. I probably would've kept it all bottled up unless someone forced it out of me."

Pietro genuinely smiled at the thought of being needed in her life. He opened his mouth to reply, but was interrupted by a knock on the door.

"Come in." Dahlia said to whoever the person was.

Wanda opened the door and was about to speak, but her words fell flat as she saw her brother and Dahlia curled up by the window. No one had seen either of them since last night, and now the pieces were starting to fit together.

"Well, I hope I'm not interrupting anything," She winked dramatically and Dahlia laughed. "But you both should get ready, there's a whiny little bitch downstairs, waiting to talk to us."

"Oh, but Dahlia's right here!"

Dahlia punched him in the arm before turning to look at Wanda. "Who is it?"

"The Secretary of State or something."

She groaned and hid her face in Pietro's chest again. It was starting to become a force of habit. "I hate that guy. Thanks though, Wanda."

Wanda turned to leave, but Dahlia stopped her. "Oh, and Wan?"

"Yeah?"

"Take your idiot of a brother with you, please, before he can make another joke about watching me get dressed."

"I've been trying for like two years now, you gotta give me some credit." Pietro smirked as he stood up.

"I am giving you credit," Dahlia paused her search for clean clothes and put her hands on her hips. "Credit for being an idiot."

He stuck his tongue out at her before exiting the room, leaving Dahlia to ponder which outfit would piss off Secretary Ross the most.

That was why she arrived in the living room wearing a black t-shirt that said 'Fuck the government', in white letters.

You know, in case anyone asked.

Pietro choked on the drink in his hand when he saw her walk down the stairs, donning her anti-capitalism shirt with a grin.

Wanda's face was extremely red, sort of resembling a tomato, since she was trying to stifle a laugh.

"Secretary Ross, wow!" Dahlia's voice was filled to the brim with a fake sweetness Pietro had never heard from her before. "I had no idea you'd be here! They must have lifted the anti-asshole rule for this compound, just for you! You should feel very special."

"Anelace. I see you're still just as disrespectful as you were the last time we met." His voice was stony, a byproduct of Dahlia's presence.

"Well, of course! Don't fix what ain't broke, am I right?"

He decided to ignore her and turn his attention to the general table of Avengers.

Ross cleared his throat and began his speech, which Dahlia was sure would be completely stupid.

"Five years ago, I had a heart attack."

"Good." Dahlia muttered under his breath, and Pietro heard, snickering quietly next to her.

"I dropped right in the middle of my back-swing. Turned out it was the best round of my life, because after thirteen hours of surgery and a triple bypass... I found something forty years in the Army had never taught me."

Secretary Ross groaned when he saw Dahlia's hand in the air, but he knew better than to ignore it. If he did, it would just get worse.

"The hell do you want, Anelace?" He rubbed his temple, too tired to deal with this.

"Oh, I was just going to ask if the thing, you know the thing the Army never taught you, was how to read."

Wanda and Pietro both choked on air as her expression remained still.

"No. It was not." Ross snapped.

"So you still don't know how to? That's a shame, Secretary, because there's a message on my shirt, and I really thought you'd like it. I can read it out, if you'd like." Her expression was one of mock-sincerity. Steve shot her a warning look, and Dahlia understood, making a mental note to try to shut up, not that she could guarantee anything.

"I can read, Anelace." Ross's voice was gruff as he continued.

"What I was saying was, I found something that forty years in the Army had not taught me. Perspective. The world owes the Avengers an un-payable debt. You have fought for us, protected us, risked your lives... but while a great many people see you as heroes, there are some... who would prefer the word 'vigilanties'."

Nat shot Dahlia a wink before asking, "And what word would you use, Mr. Secretary?"

Thank the gods for Natasha, who was purposely poking around at Ross's beliefs on Dahlia's behalf.

"How about 'dangerous'?" Ross said, trying his best to remain neutral. "What would you call a group of US-based, enhanced individuals who routinely ignore sovereign borders and inflict their will wherever they choose and who, frankly, seem unconcerned about what they leave behind?"

"Badass." Dahlia stated.

"Excuse me?"

"Oh, excuse my manners. Badass, sir."

From the looks she received from several people around the room, Dahlia could tell she'd done her job well.

Ross turned away from her and started projecting images.

"New York."

It showed a city smashed to ruins, monsters flying all in the air.

Rhodey tensed up at the sight.

"Washington D.C."

Three helicarrier a were firing at each other, causing chaos and death on the floor below.-

Now it was Sam's turn to react, stiffening up.

"Sokovia."

Citizens were running in every direction, all while the city rose.

Dahlia pursed her lips and looked down at the floor, Pietro taking her hand when he noticed.

"Lagos."

The photo showed the building burning, paramedics rushing to the scene, and a dead girl.

Wanda's breath hitched in her throat when she looked at it, as Steve noticed this, clearing his throat.

"Okay. That's enough."

Ross nodded and the images disappeared. "For the past four years, you've operated with unlimited power and no supervision. That's an arrangement the governments of the world can no longer tolerate. But I think we have a solution."

He threw a thick document on the table and Wanda picked it up, examining the pages.

Dahlia raised her hand once more. Ross felt like he wanted to throw himself out a window when he saw this, and that was how Dahlia knew she did her job.

"What do you want now, Anelace?"

Dahlia propped her arms up on the table and began, with a mischievous glint in her eyes. "Oh, I was just wondering how you knew that it was the solution, you know, cause you can't read."

Ross opened his mouth to argue back, but she beat him to it. "I don't blame you, sir. It's a big book with lots of big words. It's a hard read, for a beginner with the subject like yourself."

"Dahlia." Tony said from the back of the room, his voice stern.

She leaned back in her chair, satisfied she annoyed him thoroughly.

"The Sokovia Accords. Approved by 117 countries... It states that the Avengers shall no longer be a private organization. Instead, they'll operate under the supervision of a United Nations panel, only when and if that panel deems it necessary."

Steve's brow furrowed. "The Avengers were formed to make the world a safer place . I feel we've done that."

"Tell me, Captain," Ross started, staring Steve down. "Do you know where Thor and Banner are right now?"

When he didn't answer, he just kept going on. "If I misplaced a couple of 30 megaton nukes... you can bet there'd be consequences. Compromise. Reassurance. That's how the world works. Believe me. This is the middle ground."

Dahlia opened her mouth to speak, and Steve didn't even try to stop her this time. "That's a very specific scenario, Secretary. Did you? Lose 30 megaton nukes? Cause that kinda situation doesn't just pop into your head, with all due respect, which is none, by the way."

Rhodey's face held a look of amusement, but he wiped it off to ask Ross a question. "So, there are contingencies?"

"Three days from now, the UN meets in Vienna to ratify the Accords. Talk it over."

Natasha raised her eyebrow at him. "And if we come to a decision you don't like?"

"Then you retire."

"Maybe you should be the one retiring, Ross, seeing as you're older than time itself." Dahlia grinned.

Pietro didn't even try to hide his laugh that time.

•

The team was gathered in the living room, talking out the Accords, or rather, as Tony wa doing, remained completely silent.

Rhodey and Sam were not following after Tony in that sense, because they were loudly arguing behind the couch.

Dahlia was a sucker for drama, so she was watching them go back and forth with a bowl of popcorn in hand.

"Secretary Ross has a Congressional Medal of Honor, which is one more than you have." Rhodey explained desperately.

"Well," Dahlia chimed in. "Maybe Sam has one too, and you never knew! He probably has a medal in uh- flying? Bird cosplay?"

Sam cracked a smile. "Thanks kid."

He turned back to Rhodey. "Let's say we agree to this thing. How long is it gonna be before they LoJack us like a bunch of common criminals?"

"117 countries want to sign this. 117, Sam, and you're just like 'No, that's cool, we got it'."

"How long are you going to play both sides?"

Vision stood up, earning all the attention in the room. "I have an equation."

"No math, please." Dahlia groaned, hiding her head in Pietro's shoulder once again. He tried his best to conceal his smile, but failed abysmally.

"Oh, this will clear it up." Sam said sarcastically.

"In the eight years since Mr. Stark announced himself as Iron Man, the number of known enhanced persons has grown exponentially. And during the same period, the number of potentially world-ending events has risen at a commensurate rate." Vision said.

"Are you saying it's our fault?" Steve asked.

"I'm saying there may be a causality. Our very strength invites challenge. Challenging incites conflict. And conflict... oversight is not an idea that can be dismissed out of hand."

"Boom." Rhodey gestured with his hands.

"I hate facts." Dahlia's voice was muffled by the material of Pietro's shirt, but they all knew what she said, if only because they knew her so well.

"Tony," Nat said, looking at the man lying on the couch. "You are being uncharacteristically non-hyper-verbal."

"It's because he's already made up his mind." Steve said gruffly.

"Boy, you know me so well." Tony stood up and headed to the kitchen. "Actually, I'm nursing an electromagnetic headache. That's what's going on, Cap. It's just pain. It's discomfort. Who's putting coffee grounds in the disposal? Am I running a bed and breakfast for a biker gang?"

Tony projected an image of a smiling boy in the air with his phone. "Oh, that's Charles Spencer, by the way. He's a great kid. Computer engineering degree. 3.6 GPA. Had a floor level gig at Intel planned for the fall. But first, he wanted to put a few miles on his soul, before he parked it behind a desk. See the world. Maybe be of service. Charlie didn't want to go to Vegas or Fort Lauderdale, which is what I would do. He didn't go to Paris or Amsterdam, which sounds fun. He decided to spend his summer building sustainable housing for the poor. Guess where. Sokovia."

Everyone collectively looked down.

"He wanted to make a difference, I suppose. I mean, we won't know, because we dropped a building on him while we were kicking ass."

Tony took a pill with some coffee and faced the team. "There's no decision-making process here. We need to be put in check! Whatever form that takes, I'm game. If we can't accept limitations, if we're boundary-less, we're no better than the bad guys."

Steve tried to reason with him. "Tony, someone dies on your watch, you don't give up."

"Who said we're giving up?"

"We are if we're not taking responsibility for our actions. This document just shifts the blame."

"I'm sorry. Steve. That - that is dangerously arrogant. This is the United Nations we're talking about. It's not the World Security Council, it's not S.H.I.E.L.D., it's not HYDRA." Rhodey said, desperation evident in his voice.

"No," Steve started. "But it's run by people with agendas, and agendas change."

"That's good. That's why I'm here. When I realized what my weapons were capable of in the wrong hands, I shut it down and stopped manufacturing."

"Tony, you chose to do that. If we sign this, we surrender our right to choose. What if this panel sends us somewhere we don't think we should go? What if there is somewhere we need to go, and they don't let us? We may not be perfect, but the safest hands are still our own." Steve was beginning to grow wary.

"If we don't do this now, it's gonna be done to us later. That's the fact. That won't be pretty."

Wanda spoke up, her face stony. "You're saying they'll come for me."

"We would protect you." Vision's voice was quiet.

Pietro noticed the closeness between the two and Dahlia had to fight to keep him in his seat, not wanting him to break up the sweet moment.

"Maybe Tony's right," A voice that Dahlia never expected to agree with him said. Natasha. "If we have one hand on the wheel, we can still steer. If we take it off-"

"Aren't you the same woman who told the government to kiss her ass a few years ago?" Sam asked, shocked.

"Nat?" Dahlia's voice was barely above a whisper, but the whole room heard it. Natasha and Dahlia always went together with everything, protected each other, looked out for the other, but it looked as if they were splitting onto opposite sides.

The look her daughter gave her was almost enough to make her crack, but she stayed strong. "I'm just... I'm reading the terrain. We have made some very public mistakes. We need to win their trust back."

"Focus up. I'm sorry, did I just mishear you, or did you agree with me?" Tony asked, shock written on his face.

"Oh, I want to take it back now."

"No, no, no. You can't retract it. Thank you. Unprecedented. Okay, case closed, I win."

Suddenly Steve looked down at his phone, a message popping onto the screen.

Evidently, it was important, since he stood up and said, "I have to go."

As Steve headed downstairs, Dahlia knew she had no inner conflict at the moment, unlike so many others in the room. Both sides made logical sense, but her heart wouldn't let her sign her rights away. It just wouldn't.

"Alright, kids, outta the room, the adults need to talk." Tony shooed Dahlia and the twins, but she didn't leave right away.

"The twins turn twenty-five next week, and I do too in a month. We're far from kids." Dahlia crossed her arms.

"Fine, only people who are twenty-six and older are allowed in here."

Dahlia glared and flipped him off, but left the room anyway.

Out in the hall, the three had a very simple discussion.

"Dahls? How do you feel about all of this?" Pietro asked.

"It's very simple. I'm not signing. I won't let the government take away my choice."

The two agreed immediately, and there was no further discussion to be had.

"Alright, we can't do anything about the world outside for now, so let's go watch Camp Rock in Tony's surround-sound movie theater while we can!" Dahlia said excitedly, and Pietro groaned.

"Do we have to?"

"Yes!" Both Wanda and Dahlia exclaimed.

"Fine. But only because I love you two so much."

"Fuck yeah, now where's my popcorn?"