This was originally going to be Wanda's birthday but Christmas felt like a better idea. I also only had a rough idea of where I was going, I pretty much made it up as I went.

Since there are so few Scarlet America stories on here it is my fondest hope that my works inspire others to write some of their own. If not it's hopefully an interesting read.

Enjoy.

Wanda had expected at least some sort of problem on this day, but she was an Avenger. She thought no matter what she faced, no matter what she heard, Wanda could deal with it.

Only she quickly found that she couldn't.

Wanda was actually not in any danger. In fact, she was standing in the entryway of the common room of the Avengers Tower. Almost all of the Avengers were here, plus a few others close to them. Such as Stark's girlfriend, Miss Pepper. Maria Hill was there as well.

The presence of so many Avengers made this one spot one of the safest in the country. Perhaps even the whole world.

So why was Wanda rooted to the spot on the brink of a panic attack?

Her senses were currently being completely overwhelmed. From the sounds of the Christmas music playing on the speakers, to the smells of baking wafting outward from the kitchen, to all the decorations scattered about everywhere.

Everyone was all over the large room. Some were putting up last minute decorations, others were just having a drink and talking. The ones who were missing were likely in the kitchen as the source of the smells.

Wanda felt like someone had poured ice water down her back despite the warmth inside the tower. She couldn't move an inch, her eyes having become glazed over as her mind was wracked by vicious flashbacks of her childhood.

Wanda couldn't take anymore. She needed to get out of here, right now.

Turning on her heel, the young woman rushed out of the room. She was immensely grateful nobody saw her the whole time she was standing in the doorway. Except she didn't notice that she was seen by someone, a certain blonde super soldier.

Rushing down hall after hall, Wanda frantically searched for an exit. Really anything that led outside, she was in desperate need for fresh air.

"Next turn on the left down the hall to the right Miss Maximoff." Jarvis' voice sound quietly from the speakers in the ceiling. Normally Wanda would have thanked the AI for the help but her mind was too far gone to do so.

Following the directions, Wanda soon found herself on one of the tower's balconies overlooking the city. It was still freezing cold outside, only a few flakes of snow still falling from the sky.

Wanda stumbled over to the edge of the railing. She gripped the metal of the rail until her knuckles turned white. The steel beneath her touch was even more frigid than the air around her but Wanda felt almost none of it.

Sucking in several large lungfuls of oxygen, she was finally able to start calming down.

Right then she became aware of her state of dress. A long-sleeved shirt beneath a sweater and a long black skirt was not a very effective defense against the cold.

Wanda shivered as she contemplated going back inside for the warmth at the very least. But if she did, all of the feelings would come back.

Panic attack or freeze to death. Neither option was all that good.

Wanda nearly jumped out of her skin when a large jacket was draped over her shoulders.

"It's freezing out here Miss Maximoff." Wanda looked up to see Captain Rogers had stepped out onto the balcony with her. He must have came through the door while she was distracted.

"Aren't you cold?" Wanda was having trouble forming words so she latched onto the only thing she could think of. The fact that all he seemed to have on was a t-shirt and pair of jeans.

"Nah, super metabolism. I'm more resistant to the cold than most." Steve waved a hand dismissively.

"Thank you." Wanda muttered as she clutched the lapels of the jacket to pull it tighter around her. The material wasn't all that heavy but it was covered in Steve's natural body heat coupled with his scent that radiated off the garment in waves.

Wanda found the jacket surprisingly comfortable.

"You're welcome." Steve stood beside her, leaning on the rail in almost the identical same position as her. The super soldier seemed to be gazing at the gray horizon before them.

At first neither said a word. Wanda was actually enjoying the comfortable silence. That was Steve for you, if he knew something was wrong he wouldn't press the issue. Steve would wait until you were ready to talk. Something Wanda was immensely grateful for right now.

She knew he had to of seen her leave the room. It was an obvious explanation for why he had found her so quickly. Jarvis may have had something to do with it too. The AI did try to look out for everyone when possible.

It was Steve who finally broke the silence. "No one should be alone on Christmas."

Wanda didn't know how to respond. She let the nod of her head be Steve's answer.

"You must be cold out here."

"I'm fine." Wanda spoke softly, voice shaking as her body did the same. The warmth of the jacket could last only so long.

Steve didn't say a word. The look he was giving the young woman said all that needed to be said.

"I... can't." Wanda finally got the words out. Just the thought of going back inside was making her shiver, this time not because of the cold.

Again Steve was silent, waiting for Wanda to continue.

"I don't..." Wanda was swearing under her breath in her native language. Why the hell couldn't she figure out how to explain it?

"When was the last time you actually celebrated Christmas?" Steve's words made Wanda's train of thought grind to a halt.

"We were orphaned at ten." Wanda swallowed hard at the memory of her brother. At least now she could talk about him without bursting into tears. "We were too busy trying to survive day to day."

"Then you volunteered for HYDRA." Steve finished her thoughts before she could voice them. His tone held no judgment, he knew what it was like to willingly join an experiment for your country.

"Never had the chance to. Not like there was much to celebrate anyway." Wanda gazed at the streets below while she spoke under her breath. There were few cars or people below. Most of the city's inhabitants were probably staying home with their loved ones.

First time in Wanda's life she actually had a chance to celebrate Christmas and Pietro couldn't be here for it. It felt like a needle through her heart, it was at least an improvement over when she used to feel like it was being torn from her chest.

"So the real issue is you don't know how?" Steve asked.

"Something like that." Wanda answered. He was partially right, that along with some bad memories the holiday dragged up.

"It's not all that difficult. Pretend it's just like any other gathering of friends." Steve was trying his hardest to reassure her. Wanda found the gesture quite endearing.

"I guess the others sent you to come get me?"

"Nope, I said I was going to the bathroom, no one knows where you went." Steve answered.

"Wait, you lied?" Wanda arched an eyebrow at the super soldier.

Steve shrugged, a half smile tugging at his lips.

"You've been spending too much time around Sam." Wanda found herself giggling quietly. The noble Captain America telling a lie? Perhaps the universe was coming to an end.

Steve shrugged again as he turned so that he was facing the door, his back leaning against the rail.

Wanda found it strange how after just a few minutes of talking to Steve she was already feeling a little better.

"Maybe you should come back inside though." Wanda instantly tensed at the words. She wasn't sure if her nerves could handle another attempt.

Steve must have sensed her hesitation. The super soldier placed a hand on her shoulder and squeezed gently. "Hey, I'll be right beside you the whole time. Or if you don't want to be around so many at once we can go somewhere else and celebrate with just you and me."

"Really?" Wanda wouldn't lie to herself, an entire evening alone with Steve would be quite pleasant. But she was mildly concerned about ruining his own Christmas. "You'd do that for me?"

"Absolutely, like I said no one should be alone on Christmas." Steve flashed her a smile than immediately made Wanda feel warmer despite the cold.

"Okay." Wanda whispered it to herself with a nod of her head. "Okay, let's go inside." Wanda spoke louder.

Steve sent her another dazzling smile as he led her back into the tower.

Part way back Wanda realized she was still wearing Steve's jacket. "Here you can have this back." Wanda started to remove the garment but Steve stopped her.

"Hang on to it for now, you need it more than I do." Wanda was all too happy to comply, she didn't really want to give it back anyway.

The pair made it back to the common room a lot faster than Wanda thought they would. Every step of the way Wanda gathered her courage. It was only a room of her teammates and friends, not enemies to be afraid of.

Wanda stopped at the exact spot she had been frozen to earlier. Except this time when she started to lose her composure she felt a hand on her back.

Closing her eyes, Wanda turned her focus toward the physical contact from the super soldier. With her mind locked on to the sensations of his fingers fanned out on her lower back she was able to push aside her fears and worries.

Wanda took in a deep breath before exhaling.

"Thank you Steve," Wanda whispered, giving Steve a small smile of her own.

"There you are Wanda! I was looking for you." Before either could do or say anything more, Pepper came out of seemingly nowhere. She took Wanda by the arm and led her to the kitchen. "I can use some help with these cookies."

"Umm... I don't really know anything about baking Miss Potts." Wanda almost stuttered out as she was pulled along by the older woman.

"Nonsense, nothing to it. And for the last time, it's Pepper."

Just like that, Wanda was dragged into baking Christmas cookies with the CEO of Stark Industries. If Wanda wasn't used to such things she would have found it weird but as it was, such a thing was basically normal.

While the two women were baking, Pepper was telling Wanda about how her grandmother used to bake cookies for the family every Christmas. It was a tradition the CEO had continued on for her own family, the Avengers.

At first Wanda had been worried that since Pepper had practically kidnapped her, Steve would have wandered off to talk with the others. Of all of them Pepper was one of the most welcoming of the group but she was no substitute for the super soldier.

To Wanda's relief, Steve was actually in the kitchen with them. He was talking to Sam and Natasha but the blonde man was always facing her direction. It brought a rush of affection just knowing Steve was watching over her.

"Hey Pep! How goes the cookies?" Stark, being his usual energetic self, practically came flying into the room. In the process the billionaire snatched up one of the still cooling cookies from the counter. He immediately proceeded to take a bite out of the sugary treat. All within the span of a couple heartbeats.

Stark did it all so fast that neither woman had a chance to even say hello. Let alone give a warning that the cookie tray he took it from was still extremely hot.

The man instantly yelped as his tongue was burnt. Pepper reacted by sliding a glass of ice water across the table to him. Stark downed the contents at record speed. When he was done Pepper handed him a cookie from one of the already cooled trays.

Pepper said nothing, only letting a scowl cross her features with a sigh of exasperation. It was all as if she knew exactly what Stark was going to do before he did it.

After Stark left, grumbling about cookies being out to get him, Pepper leaned over to Wanda. "Every time I bake anything he does that. He might be a bit crazy but he's predictable."

Wanda couldn't help it, she burst out laughing.

There was a cough that sounded a lot like the word 'bullcrap' from the doorway where Rhodes was suddenly standing. Once more Pepper said nothing, only took a second cooled cookie and tossed it to the colonel. He gave her a small salute before going back into the main room.

"I swear, sometimes it's like babysitting children." Pepper sighed in annoyance again but was still smiling.

"Preaching to the choir ma'am." Steve piped up from where he was leaning against the kitchen island.

It took some time but Wanda wasn't feeling all that out of place anymore. This was the first Christmas celebration of the Avengers that Wanda had been to. Everyone did try their best to make her feel welcome but only now was she actually feeling it.

The only thing that could possibly make this even better would be to have Pietro here. But there was nothing that could be done about that. Her twin was gone, no amount of hopes were going to bring him back. It was best to focus on the now, and the now was her new family she was so lucky to be part of.

A sharp whistle brought Wanda's attention to Clint in the doorway. "Come on guys, gift time."

That made Wanda pause. She hadn't bought anyone a gift, not a single one.

Before she could even start to get worried, Pepper was whispering in her ear. "Don't worry, most of us don't actually get a gift for the others. If we allowed that Tony would take it as a challenge and kick the crap out of everyone." The blonde CEO's words were very reassuring to the younger woman.

In the blind of an eye everyone was seated all over the room. Wanda had found a place on one of the couches, seated between Steve and Clint.

Pepper had been right, there were only a handful of gifts to hand out. Most of the actual gifts were actually things from Stark's workshop. Like an upgraded machine pistols for Sam, some Warmachine armor enhancements, things like that.

To Wanda's utter shock, there was an actual present for her. Wrapping paper, bow, the entire deal. It took a few seconds for Wanda to remember that you were supposed to tear the paper off to unveil the gift inside. She couldn't remember the last time she was given a real present.

Hoping the others couldn't see the flush starting to stain her cheeks, Wanda started ripping into the paper. Once the paper was off, she opened the newly revealed box.

Inside was a long crimson colored leather coat neatly folded to fit into the box. The color was an almost exact match to the red tinted energy generated when she used her powers.

Wanda's breath caught in her throat as she ran her fingertips over the coat. She was by no stretch of the imagination an expert on such things but even she could tell that the material and craftsmanship was a very high quality.

"What do you think?" Steve asked from beside her. Something about the slightly nervous way he asked told Wanda that the gift was from him.

The words snapped Wanda from her trance. "It's beautiful."

"Try it on." Sam spoke up.

Wanda tried her best to ignore the fact that almost everyone's attention was on her. Shrugging of Steve's jacket and laying it over the back of the couch, Wanda slipped her arms into the new coat. It was a near perfect fit, the material felt comfortable on her skin.

"How do I look?" Wanda asked, her voice unsure. The question was more directed at Steve than anyone.

The first answer she received was a wolf whistle from Stark, whom in turn received an elbow to the ribs from Pepper.

"You look great Wanda." Steve finally answered. The words made Wanda blush even harder as she muttered a thanks to the super soldier. If anyone noticed her burning cheeks no one mentioned it.

In a bid to avoid any more attention, Wanda sat back down on the couch so they could resume their gift giving.

"Hey Wanda do you mind bringing in one of those trays of cookies into here? They should be cooled enough by now." Pepper called from one of the other couches.

"Sure." Wanda was up and moving over to the kitchen. When she got there, Wanda was greeted by the sight of several trays they made together. Since there were several different kinds, Wanda wasn't sure which ones the older woman wanted, so she went to go ask.

When she did, Wanda suddenly ran directly into a solid wall of muscle when she tried to cross the threshold. Wanda's mind was still racing a little faster than she would have liked so she was walking faster than necessary. She bounced off and would have hit the floor if a pair of strong arms hadn't of caught her in time.

Wanda looked up into the concerned sapphire eyes of Steve. "Whoa I gotcha."

Wanda was paralyzed in place. Was Steve's eyes always that blue?

Something above them caught the super soldiers attention. "Oh, damn it Stark."

Out of sheer confusion, Wanda followed his gaze up, only to see something that nearly made her heart stop.

There was a sprig of mistletoe hanging over the doorway.

Just because Wanda hadn't celebrated Christmas in a long time did not mean she was oblivious to the meaning and ways of things related to the holiday.

"So should we uhh..." Wanda whispered shyly while her heart began racing faster and faster. She had never actually kissed anyone before, not on the lips at least. What if she was a horrible kisser?

"Um, I guess so." Steve sounded every bit nervous as she was. It was a minor comfort for the young woman.

"Oh to hell with it." Wanda scolded herself silently. Sometimes you just needed to take the plunge. Reaching up, she took both sides of his face into her hands and pulled him down to her level, his lips mashing into hers.

The fact that the young woman caught the super soldier so far off guard was the only reason she was able to pull him at all.

Steve was completely surprised, even Wanda was surprised at her own boldness. It didn't take long for Steve to relax into her, his arms coming to wrap around her petite waist.

Wanda eyes fluttered closed as she shifted her hands so that she could wrap her own arms around his neck, trying to pull him even closer to her. Unfortunately such a thing was impossible, their bodies were already flush together.

Running her fingers through the super soldier's hair, Wanda all but moaned into the kiss.

It wasn't until the pair had to separate for air that they pulled apart. Even then they stayed close, their lips brushing against the other's.

Wanda frantically sucked in air, her heart pounding so fast and wild that she was certain the blonde man could hear it as close as he was to her.

At this point Wanda's mind had completely shut down. All that remained of the world was herself and the man whose arms she was still wrapped in.

She was about to go in for a second kiss when she remembered they were not alone in the room.

"Whoo go capsicle! You owe me ten bucks suckers!" Tony called from his own couch with Pepper, at the same time Sam along with several others were applauding.

Wanda really had no clue what Stark was talking about, but right now she couldn't bring herself to care.

With her face now on fire, in a pathetic attempt to hide, she buried her face into Steve's chest. Right then she could both feel and hear the rapid beating rhythm of Steve's own heart in against her skin.

Was that sound all because of her?

"Tony behave yourself," Pepper scolder her boyfriend.

As mortified as she was, there was no force on earth or beyond that could have wiped the smile off Wanda's face.

I feel like the red coat we see Wanda wearing at the end of Age of Ultron very easily could have been a present from one of the other Avengers, so I made it so here.

This one actually kinda got away from me and ended up being much longer than I expected.

You can't have a Christmas story without a mistletoe kiss scene either. It was a last addition too.

Let me know what you all think.