The Revenge of Devil | Irondad, pepperony

Chapter 65

Natalia finished her dance and took the first position she held while waiting for Madame B's verdict. She was tired and wanted to go to sleep, but she was not allowed to show any of it. That would be a sign of weakness and she would be punished.

"Again," she ordered.

The redhead remained in the first position. "Why? It was perfect," she said convincingly, even though she knew it wasn't true. She was really exhausted throughout the day of training, so she slacked off some movements. Of course, the older woman did not miss it. Madame B never missed anything.

"It could have been perfect if you did it properly. Your posture is terrible, in places you hunch over more than babushkas. And your demi-tour is too fast. You have to learn the difference between fighting and dancing. You can't rush a ballet," she told her in her typical icy voice.

"Why aren't the others here? Did you pick up on me? If you think I don't have it in me, fire me," she said angrily but did not interrupt the first position.

Madame B smirked. "You know there are only two ways out of here. A ceremony or an execution," she reminded her, even though she knew it wasn't necessary. "I've been doing this job for a very long time. Basically my whole life. Do you think I don't know that you are making mistakes on purpose? Accept that you will pass the ceremony. It'll be better if you stop resisting, Natalia. You will be my pride. All of you will become Black Widows, but you will be the Widow. Fear of all countries and our enemies. And now start dancing, or I'll punish you for indiscipline," she said sternly.

The redhead wanted to protest, but she knew it was useless, so instead, she started dancing, this time trying not to make a mistake.

She was distracted by the click of a teapot, which told her she had boiled water for tea. With a sigh, she poured two cups of herbal tea. On the way from the base, she wrote to Bruce that she would wait for him at home. When she arrived at their penthouse, she changed into black leggings, put on one of Bruce's sweatshirts, and braided her hair. Then she decided to make them the tea Bruce always drank when he needed to calm his nerves. Now she lacked only the scientist she had been expecting at any moment.

She decided to wait for him in the living room. Just as she took the mugs in her hands, she heard the keys in the lock. Her heart pounded faster, and perhaps for the first time in her life, she had something to do to keep her hands from shaking. She took a deep breath and walked into the living room.

"Hello," she said softly as she found him standing awkwardly in the doorway. "I made you your favorite tea," she whispered, handing him the mug, trying not to disturb his personal space too much. She didn't know if he needed a distance from her, even though she just wanted to curl up in his arms.

Bruce gave her a grateful smile and went to sit on the couch. For the first time he saw Natasha's other face, he should probably be surprised by what he witnessed, but somehow he wasn't surprised. He didn't know her past, but he knew it was nothing pink. And when he saw her here, he felt he fell even more in love. She looked so small and vulnerable in his sweatshirt. He was the only one who saw this page of hers. Whom she allowed to see her like that. And he loved her for it. And he loved her in spite of Black Widow, just as she loved him in spite of the Hulk.

"So—" she began as she sat on the other end of the couch, but was immediately interrupted.

"I've been thinking about it, and I don't want to know, Nat. It does not matter to me. Nothing can change how I feel about you," he told her softly and sat closer to her. He didn't like the distance between them.

Natasha was pleasantly surprised, but his words calmed her for only a few seconds. "You say that now because you don't know what I did. How many corpses did I leave behind. I think I would beat Winter Soldier by that number," she muttered reluctantly.