8714/The First Day Of The Rest Of Josh's Life

The First Day Of The Rest Of Josh's Life
Date of Scene:	09 August 2019
Location:	A Swiss bed and breakfast
Synopsis:	Josh and Wanda need downtime after his death and resurrection, and they decide to renew their bond
Cast of Characters:	Frank Quaid, Scarlet Witch, Elixir

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Elixir has posed:
The night passed in a blur of desperate love-making, tears and clinging bodies. The two had been too overcome to do anything more than assure themselves they were together in the most primal way they knew. Eventually, emotional and physical exhaustion overtook them both and they slept.

Josh wakes with a start feeling something was missing. Sunlight filters through the drapes of the little room in the bed breakfast. It twinkled off his gold coloured face and bare chest. The window was open a crack and fresh mountain air off the Alps raise goose bumps on exposed flesh.

The young mutant looks down and exhales. Wanda was there. Still there. Still tangled with him, auburn hair splayed out on her pillow. Josh pulls the sheet and blanket over the Transian woman's nakedness and his own. He flops back against the pillow and runs a hand down his face.

Scarlet Witch has posed:
Even after the physical and eager reassurances, it was long into the night after Josh had dozed off, before Wanda Maximoff finally found sleep. She couldn't stop gazing over at him. Couldn't stop softly touching his face. His hair. His chest. Her hand rested over his heart for the longest time. So used to knowing the beat of it as well as she knew her own. And how long since she'd been this close to him and their hearts hadn't practically beat in unison?

Eventually, exhaustion claimed Wanda and she slept. Long into the morning until finally she stirs. Body feeling him against her. Wanda moves a little just to feel his skin on hers. Her eyes flutter open and search out his face where he lays with his head on the pillow, awake.

She slides up his body a little. "How do you feel?" she asks, her hand going over his heart, resting there to feel the reassuring beat within his chest.

Elixir has posed:
When Wanda slides up against him, Josh wraps an arm around her.

"I'm okay," he says quietly.

Josh kisses Wanda gently. Her lips feel the same, her body against him is the same. The way his heart beats faster every time they kiss feels the same. But it is all different. Their lips part and his eyes open. The woman of his dreams could be a million miles away for all he could sense from her now.

"Um, a little messed up, I guess. It's all. Crazy," he adds after a moment's pause when it occurs to him that Wanda has no idea how he feels. Not really. "How're you feeling?"

Scarlet Witch has posed:
Wanda leans into the kiss, sharing it with him and reaching up to hold his cheek. They part only slowly, and Wanda slides up a little further still, leaning her elbow on the pillow as she lifts her head up to see him better.

"Well. Better. I was a wreck," she says softly. "But you're back. And I love you. That hasn't changed at all," she says, though as if Wanda has noticed something that did change. Something where he'd have known without her saying.

Wanda wets her lips. "Besides your skin, does anything feel different?" she asks. She slides her fingers slowly over that beautiful golden hue he has. "This reminds me of what I sensed inside of you, that one night," she tells him, when she looked deep inside of him with her magic.

Elixir has posed:
Josh's eyes water. He wipes at the corners of his eyes with a thumb and then looks at his hands.

"I guess so," he agrees with Wanda. "Didn't think of that. Just like the glow when I do things."

Josh rubs his face with both hands then rolls onto his side. He lays a hand on Wanda's waist. "I'm so sorry, love. I didn't want to hurt you ever... I should have seen it coming... I didn't think Richie would really hurt me..." Josh says and looks pained. "I don't want you to ever feel hurt."

Scarlet Witch has posed:
Wanda is shaking her head right away. "I shouldn't have let him near you. I let him use a possible threat to become a real one," she says. Wanda lets out a shaky breath. "You came back to me, Josh. I... am amazed by you. I was amazed by you before. But this?"

She rests her hand atop his. "What all do you remember of it?" she asks him softly. Her tone is gentle. Compassionate. Her eyes can't stop taking in the sight of him. Golden skin or flesh, he is the most beautiful thing she has ever seen. And she can't stop looking at him and thinking that.

Elixir has posed:
"It's not your fault," Josh says and squeezes her side gently for emphasis.

Josh flops back again and looks up at the ceiling. His face scrunches up a bit as he thinks. "Not much? I don't even know what happened. Richie was yelling at me, and then I couldn't see or feel anything. Like, nothing at all, not even you," Josh says and swallows. "I was so scared I lost you. I just kept trying to find you, I don't even know how I was looking but I was. I found something, I don't even know what, and then I woke up. Except, I wasn't sleep before. But I could feel everything, except you."

His forehead creases. "I think I was dead. And now I'm not. I don't understand," Josh says and looks over to Wanda. "I don't know what that means. Do you? It didn't feel like your magic, but you can do just about anything, right?"

Scarlet Witch has posed:
Wanda slowly slides up to a sitting position, her back against he headboard. She reaches down and softly brushes her fingers through Josh's hair. If he allows, she guides him over to rest his head in her lap as she brushes her fingertips along his face. It takes her a little before she starts answering, but finally she does.

"He... Richie, was on you before I could react. Stabbed you. Beneath your chin, upwards," she says. "I was too slow and... I barely remember then. I threw him away and went to you. And it was something, it was so deep I didn't know what might happen to you with my magic so I tried to get you to heal it. Brought your hand to it," she says, shaking her head. Looking away at her failure.

Wanda takes a few seconds to look back. "I lost control, seeing you like that. The factory is gone. When the police started arriving... I wasn't thinking. I just left. Took you away. We ended up where you woke. The place of my birth. Wundragore Mountain in Transia."

Wanda swallows. "I think hours maybe passed. I've never tried to bring someone back, Josh. I was afraid what it might do to you even if I succeeded. And I... didn't know what to do. So I held you and... and then I noticed your skin changing. And the you started breathing and finally..." she says, trailing off. He knows the rest.

Elixir has posed:
Josh lays in Wanda's lap while she tells the story. He looks thoughtful and his eyes are unfocused. When she finishes he looks up to Wanda, heartbroken for her.

"I'm so sorry you had to see that, and feel it," Josh whispers. "You've lost enough for a dozen people already... I'm sorry."

He gathers Wanda's hand in his so he can kiss it and looks away again. "It's all okay now, we're still together," he says and squeezes her hand. Josh looks thoughtful.

"I knew it wasn't you, but what I was feeling sounded crazy. I just needed to check... When I woke up? I was pulling on the... that thing we found. I dunno, lifeforce? Pulling harder than I've ever done before," Josh says quietly. "And I feel it so much more even just lying here. Like someone turned up the volume inside."

"I don't think we ever have to be apart. I'll always come back to you," the blond mutant says. "I feel it. I'll come back."

Scarlet Witch has posed:
Her arms gather about Josh and Wanda hugs him as he rests in her lap. "You came back to me, Josh. Any amount of fright is worth that," she tells him. She leans down, pressing herself against his head and hugging his shoulders tightly. Wanda nuzzles her face down into Josh's hair. Ever breath that fills her with his scent is another affirmation he returned.

"I believe you," she says of Josh coming back. Wanda adds slowly with a gentle nod, "But... let's avoid testing it just the same, yes?" she asks him, managing a little smile for him after. Her arms relax some, her hand moving back into Josh's to hold and caress.

"I sent word to Jarvis, while you were in the shower. So, no one is worrying anymore," she tells him quietly. "Jarvis heard what was going on. I turned on my comms. And the paramedic who called you is safe," she says quietly. "No more than some bruises, dumped from a moving vehicle."

Elixir has posed:
Wanda's embrace is about the most grounding and comforting thing in the world for Josh. He smiles and nods for Wanda when she suggests not testing things.

"Oh man," Josh says and closes his eyes. "I totally forgot about Susan. Man, I'm gonna have to talk with her, that's brutal. Reavers are fucking animals."

Josh makes a face and lets out a breath. "Thank you for finding out about her, and telling the others," Josh says. "And for staying with me. All I could think of was finding you."

"Take that Romeo," Josh says lightly. "I didn't die for the woman I love, I came back to life again."

Scarlet Witch has posed:
Wanda smiles and gives a soft laugh. "Would have made the ending of Shakespeare in Love go a little differently too," she tells him. Ok, she loves that movie. One of her favorites. And being able to joke about such things is such a wonderful thing after the fright.

Her fingers tease over skin, grazing her nails over his chest while they talk. "Not that I did not think they were problems before. But I did not really think of them coming after you like this, just for being aware you were there. This Richie was the one you healed?" she asks him quietly.

Her eyes drift away across the room. "And they are enhancing themselves with cybernetic parts? Was that something that they had done in the past that you know of?" she asks him, finding out more about the Reavers now that she knows the magnitude of the threat.

Elixir has posed:
Josh is pleased to see Wanda smile. Her smile is one of his favourite things.

"Yeah, that's Richie. We were friends... I dunno since like grade 3. Long time..." Josh says and grimaces. "Um, yeah, they've been cyborgs for a while. Even Donald Pierce is a cyborg. The real Reavers get enhanced when they finish training. So they can actually take mutants, you know? No idea how they get their hands on stuff like that, but they do it somehow. I've never seen the red eye thing, though. That was... Creepy."

Josh shifts a bit to get more comfortable. "I knew they were after me. You can't just leave the Reavers, especially someone who turned out to be a mutant. They just, hadn't done much for about a year. I thought I'd fallen off their radar."

Scarlet Witch has posed:
Wanda takes Josh's hand in hers. Brings it to her lips to kiss, and then nuzzles her cheek against his palm for a few moments. This will be a frequent sort of thing for some time to come. Not that it wasn't already, but the woman will be seeking out this contact more regularly.

"I hadn't realized they were to the point of actively hunting or setting you up," Wanda says, frowning at herself. "I should have asked more. Well, we cannot change the past, so we will just have to make certain we take more precautions in the future," she says.

She looks over into his eyes. "Not that I think I ever took you for granted. But it has a way of making you truly see what is important to you," she says of the experience they've been through. "I want to share my life with you, Josh. And I want to share this... new life of yours with you. My handsome golden man," she says, looking at his skin on the back of his hand before pressing a kiss to it.

Elixir has posed:
"I know what you mean," Josh replies and squeezes Wanda's hand. "I want us together each step of the way. More than anything. And to be close to you again, like we were."

Josh sits up and turns to face Wanda. He takes both her hands in his. "The only thing I really have to give is me," he says with a smile, but there is something serious about how he speaks. "But I'm yours. Every bit. If I had choose whether to be so terrifyingly close with you again, I'd do it. No question."

Scarlet Witch has posed:
Wanda's smile goes nearly ear to ear, and she finally has to look away from Josh, looking down, as if nothing else can stop that spreading smile before it leaves her face entirely. She squeezes his hands back. "I want that too," she says. "I want that so much." The auburn-haired woman finally looks back up and over to Josh. The soft, cool mountain breeze comes in the window, stirring her hair, and carrying the scent of the flowerbeds that grow outside the window.

"I think we do have to choose that, if we're to have it like we did." she says. "I can't feel you like I used to. My love for you is no less. But I already miss the way it makes me feel, to sense what you do when you look at me. And knowing when I think about you, even when you're not here, that you know that I am. I can't describe how special that was to have between us," Wanda tells Josh quietly.

She bites her lip, both of her hands holding to Josh's as they look to each other. "I'd like to share that again. I know it was something that wasn't intended at first. And I don't need it to love you. I'll love you regardless. But, would you like to renew what we've lost?"

Elixir has posed:
"I do," Josh says. "I know you'll love and I'll never stop feeling the same about you."

His skin glitters a bit as Josh brings Wanda's hands up so he can kiss each one.

"But I want you to feel how I feel for you. Cause I'll never be able to describe it."

Scarlet Witch has posed:
The kisses to her hands leave Wanda smiling with such warmth, they could have left the window wide open and never felt a chill for her smile. "I'd never doubt your love. But feeling it... there's nothing better," she tells him.

She slides her arms around Josh, hugging him and pressing her body in against his. Nestling as close as two people can be. Her cheek rests against his as she sighs, taking a moment just to enjoy the feeling of him like this.

Slowly she sits back enough they can see each other. She takes his hands in hers. Josh's hands are guided to rest atop his own heart, and atop Wanda's. Then her hands rest on his own.

"Open yourself up to your mutant power," she tells him softly. "I think I came to realize... it wasn't just my magic that made our bond last that long. It was both of us, together," she says of the moment they healed Sarah of her otherwise fatal overdose.

Wanda's hands will slowly wreath in the scarlet energy that is her calling card and her moniker.

Elixir has posed:
Josh is smiling broadly by the time they finish their embrace. He raises a scandalized eyebrow when Wanda places his hand on her chest and winks. The young man settles in though when Wanda starts to give him direction.

Josh draws on the lifeforce. It comes very easily, which registers as a brief moment of surprise followed by a smile, and his whole body glows faintly. Instead of the slow wash of before, the warmth and glow spreads across Wanda in a flash. It seems so much simpler now and clearer. He is aware of every part of his and Wanda's bodies down to the smallest detail. The feeling that it is all so much clay that could be sculpted is inescapable.

He looks into Wanda's eyes and smiles brightly. Gently, their breathing and heart rates fall in sync with one another with the most delicate of nudges from Josh.

Scarlet Witch has posed:
Wanda's magic flows into them both with Josh's as it did before with Sarah. As Josh uses his power to sense everything of the physical, very gradually the golden-skinned mutant will start to sense everything of the spirit and the soul. Wanda's chaos magic joins with his, melding with it. As it did the first time, but then Josh's power was more muted, and Wanda did not sense it as she does now.

She again passes control of what she's drawn to him. And as she does, it's like a new sense is opening up. Like someone who was deaf and hears a hollow rushing noise that slowly begins to separate into individual sounds. But this is not hearing, it's a sense of Wanda's soul and being. Her love flows through the newly forged bond, echoing back and forth with his own feelings, growing to a beautiful warmth that fills them both as it once did.

Wanda's mouth falls open and she sighs as she feels him inside of her again, finally. She lets her magic slowly fade, but the bond persists as it did before. Her hands move to him then, hugging him. Feeling her heart aligned with his. Her breaths coming in unison with his own. Her fingers slip up into his hair and she kisses him deeply, letting him sense the depth of her love.

Elixir has posed:
Josh melts when the bond forms and links the two again. He meets Wanda's kiss by holding her to him, running his hands up and down her back. His heart is ready to burst for Wanda and she feels every bit of it. Madly and deeply in love, drunk on the real return of Wanda to him, Josh rolls the Transian woman onto her back to bring them together in every way he knows how.

Scarlet Witch has posed:
The window being ajar lets the sounds of what transpires next escape outside. Thankfully no one is around outside today to hear it. Though it ends with Wanda's giggle of delight and pulling the blankets back up over them.

"Mmmm," she groans against his chest. "I told the Avengers we'd be back in a day or so. So we have... well, a little longer. Though we need to find a house still, too," she comments. "And a 24/7 nanny. Well, one and a backup. Because... we've just lived through the because." She rests her cheek to Josh's chest, listening to his heart, though she can feel it beating even without using her ears.

Elixir has posed:
"Hmm, yeah," Josh murmurs. The fingers of one hand trace idly along the curves of Wanda's back and hips. "And security. Probably smart. And interview schools. And, and, and. It's a lot. But it'll wait just a bit longer."

Scarlet Witch has posed:
A long sigh is given by Wanda as Josh mentions security. "Yes. I think we have also proven the need for something a bit sophisticated in the way of security," Wanda says quietly. "I can probably do the spell for the school much easier about the house, it being so much smaller," she says thoughtfully.

She relaxes, sighing in a warmer way to feel the fingers upon her. "Tell me about Anna some more?" she asks him. "She's been getting by on her own? Or does someone there help take care of her?" she asks.

Elixir has posed:
"Jess has been out there most of the time when I can't be," Josh says. "She's pretty awesome. Loves strawberry shortcake. Like, will stuff the whole piece in her face at once if you let her. And smart."

"We've been playing this game, I'll point something out and give her the word in English, and she teaches me the Spanish," Josh says with a smile. Wanda can feel something new in her man when talks about the little Dominican girl. There is a blossoming attachment there, warm and protective. It is really the only strong feeling like that Wanda has felt in Josh toward anyone beyond herself. Josh continues without pause though, unaware as he smiles and recollects. "And we surprise each other later trying to get them right. It's pretty cute. She's even putting a little weight back on. Nights are harder, it's all new, even just being in Santo Domingo in the consulate. You're gonna love her, Wanda. She's great."

Scarlet Witch has posed:
Wanda lies close as she listens, her eyes shining with warmth. It's not just hearing the cute story, but feeling what Josh is feeling for the little girl. He'll get some small echo back from her of how it feels, seeing his caring for the girl grow. "She sounds completely precious," Wanda tells him with a warm chuckle.

Wanda's fingers send a bit of magic to a pitcher of water on a table in the room of the Bed and Breakfast, causing it to pour a glass and float it over to the bed where she takes it and takes a long sip, then offers it to Josh. "I can't wait to meet her," the Eastern European woman tells Josh quietly. "I can tell how much you care about her already." After the frightful day previously, sensing such warm feelings from Josh through the restored bond are such a blessing.

Elixir has posed:
"I do, she's amazing," Josh says. He takes a sip after Wanda and then it strikes him.

"Holy shit. I would've left her behind, too. Oh wow. I didn't even think... She's really counting on me, on us. That's big..."

"But crazy, cool. I just can't wait for you to meet her away from the Dominican. Home," Josh says and hands the glass back to Wanda. "No ganging up on me with her though," the younger man grins.

Scarlet Witch has posed:
Wanda takes the glass back and lets out a warm laugh. "Ganging up on you will totally depend on whether you do anything worthy of being ganged up on," she tells him with a wink. She takes another sip and says, "I would have gone and got her, and raised her, Josh. But, you aren't leaving either of us behind, so that really doesn't matter now," she says.

Wanda leans close, resting her forehead against Josh's for a few seconds, just enjoying the feeling of having him with her. Of having him back. "So, you said that you wanted to go visit Transia. I'm afraid it was not the visit I was hoping to give you," she tells him.

Elixir has posed:
More than the smile it's the feeling that tells Wanda how much her assurance about Anna means to him. Josh uses their closeness to steal a kiss, beyond grateful for Wanda.

"Hmm, yep. We can go back though," he says and steals another kiss. "I want to see where you were born and lived. All of it."

Scarlet Witch has posed:
Even without seeing Wanda's expression, Josh will know that it gladdens her heart that he wants to see more of Transia. See Transia, even. Did he even notice anything but the sky and her face? Possibly not. Wanda surely didn't.

"Maybe it can be a first family trip," she says with a gentle smile. "There are some beautiful places we could take Anna too, take pictures with her. The cathedral is beautiful, and the Bridge of Souls has a lovely view of the river," Wanda says, smiling with her memories of the place she once called home.

Elixir has posed:
"It sounds like a perfect first trip," Josh says.

"Those'll be some photos. A beautiful, famous Transian woman with red hair and fair skinned, a five year old Dominican girl and a gold-skinned guy. It's like a diversity ad."

"We're going to make beautiful memories together."

Scarlet Witch has posed:
Thoughts of walking together, Josh and Wanda swinging the little girl between them as they walk down lanes covered by trees in Autumn flash through Wanda's head. "You know," she says softly, "I only had a family when I was younger, and then lost them. Only to find some family again later in my life. You had a family longer, but then lost them as well. Maybe we'll be able to get this right, together," she tells him. "We both know how important family is. How much it is worth the work to stay together."

Wanda leans in, curling her arm around Josh. Hand resting on his shoulder from behind as she is often want to do. "Such beautiful memories," she agrees.