The Scarlet Apprentice

The village

The second the sun began rising over the hills in the distance, y/n instantly sprung to consciousness. She didn't want to stay alone anymore, not even for a second. Eager to get to the village - to get to people - y/n packed up the few items she took out of the duffel back and stood up with a stretch.

From where she was, she could no longer see wanda's lonely little cabin in the distance, which made her sigh to herself, realising she was finally leaving. With the duffel bag slung over her shoulder, she continued her journey to the village by walking through the rest of the mountains.

Meanwhile, back in the cabin, wanda tossed and turned. She'd been tossing and turning for hours, really. She didn't have any intention of getting out of bed, mostly because she couldn't think of any way to distract herself from the argument yesterday.

She still regretted what she said last night, not even sleeping on it changed her opinion. She tried to force herself to go back to sleep - to sleep through the day - but it didn't work.

Once again, wanda maximoff was alone. Alone in her bed, alone in her cabin, alone in her heart.

Even though she was physically alone, the connection she formed with y/n was unbreakable, no matter how far apart they were. But it was going to take proof for the both of them to believe it.

As y/n overcame the final bump in her path she finally saw her destination in front of her and sighed in relief, relaxing the aching tenseness in her body.

There it was, the tiny little village. Rows of little stone houses stood wearily beside each other, creating alleyways and roads paved in passengers and plants.

There weren't many people in the village all together, but the population that were there were mostly outside. With the sunny weather that overcame the area, everyone wanted to be outside as much as they could.

It's discreteness only made it appear more beautiful to the eye of a wanderer, which was what y/n now was. Without wanting to waste any time, she paced down the small hill and stepped into it with the hope of finding her way home.

However, of course, she didn't know much of the language everyone else spoke: Romanian. She only knew the basics from what her previous jobs had taught her, since they were international organisations. Even though she knew she'd have barriers, she wasn't going to let that stop her, not at all.

The stone walls of the houses were falling apart, but the vines that tangled in the cracks made it look ever so beautiful. Most of the village consisted of houses that looked the same; dilapidated yet stunning, but there was a quarter that was a small market place.

Y/n's eyes were truly entranced by the sights she saw: the healthy and happy communications of the population, the selection of vibrant fruits in the baskets at the markets that shone in the sun, and the smell of the clean air that brought a certain sense of joy to y/n.

She was now alone, yes, but she was distracted. And that was enough for her. For now, at least.

She slid her hands into her pockets as she began walking through the town, her boots setting nicely on the stone path. As she trailed around, she saw the people smiling and looking at her. It was very obvious that she was foreign to the village, but none of the looks were judgmental at all.

One person she passed in particular was a gentleman in a loose shirt and comfortable trousers. As he walked closer to her, he smiled.

"Buna dimineata doamma." The man nodded his head with a smile.

Before she could clarify that she didn't know what he was saying, he'd already set off, so she just smiled and watched him walk away.

Continuing her trails, she walked through the village with a smile until she got to the market place, where a lot of life was. People walked through with their children, buying fruits and handmade jewellery, and some people wandered by themselves, but they were content none the less.

During her mindless trail, one of the ladies standing at the fruit stand called over for her attention with a question.

"ai vrea unul?" She asked with a smile.

"Uh-." Y/n stammered, trying to think of the right thing to say, "nu vorbesc... romaneste." She squinted, hoping the person would understand what she was trying to say.

The woman nodded, understandingly, "do you speak English?"

She exhaled in relief, "yes, I do. I was really worried that I wouldn't be able to get any directions around here."

She laughed softly, "what are you looking for, dear?"

She thought, "this might be a stretch, but have you seen any agents in a lot of armour walking around through here? Or anywhere near, maybe?"

"I can't say I have." The lady shook her head, "I'm sorry."

"Oh- its okay. You don't have to apologise, I didn't think they would've come here." She assured her, "I guess I'll just have to wander around for a bit."

As she began walking away, the lady called over to her, "would you like one?" She asked, referring to the tray filled with bunches of grapes.

"I don't have any money." She shrugged with a disappointed look on her face.

"No, no, for free." She corrected herself, "take some."

"Seriously?" She asked.

"Here, take this before I change my mind." She laughed softly, handing her the bunch of grapes.

Taking the bunch in her hands, she smiled back and chuckled, "thank you."

The smile remained on her face as she trailed off, picking grapes from the bunch and putting them in her mouth and she walked.

Even though she was in such a peaceful and positive environment, she couldn't help but think back to wanda. She wondered what she was doing, how she slept, if she'd eaten. However, she couldn't dwell on it completely because of how many distractions surrounded her.

So, for the time being, she decided to entertain herself with as many distractions as she could, even if it wasn't a fully thought out plan.

Back in the cabin, wanda remained in her bed. Although, she had sat up in a slump and zoned out while staring at the floor. She was going to lay down for as long as she possibly could, but the sudden arrival of a headache forced her out of whatever bit of comfort she had left.

The headache lingered over her, no matter what she did to ignore it. If she tried to lie down, it stayed. If she tried to take a medication, it fought it. If she drank water, it returned. For it wasn't a headache that she could push down with help, it was a headache that warned her of something that was ahead.