Saving Grace || Peter Parker

part 3

Nadia had eventually let Peter go since she figured she couldn't earn his trust (or manipulate it) if she had him hostage. It probably wouldn't work too well if she held him hostage in his own home either.

The two of them had come to an agreement. Peter would help Nadia with whatever she needed to do and she wouldn't kill him. Win win, am I right?

Peter saw this as an opportunity. He was only one person, and unlike Hermione Granger, the vigilante couldn't be in two places at once. He was just trying to strike up enough courage to actually ask the girl if she would help him and the city out.

She was clearly well versed in combat, maybe she had other skills too. He wouldn't know unless he asked.

"Hey, Natalia?" Peter asked as the two were sat in his room in silence.

It took her a second to respond, realising he was talking to her. She turned her head to look at him and raised her eyebrows. "Yes?"

He laughed nervously and rubbed the back of his neck "sooo, I wanted to ask you something"

She sighed "no, you can't have sex with me"

His eyes widened and his head snapped towards her "what? No-no, I don't- that's not what I- no-"

She looked at him "am I not good enough? Is that what you're saying, Parker?"

"No! God no, you're beautiful, obviously, but that isn't what I was going to ask" he stammered.

"Get on with it then" she waved her hand in a hurrying motion.

"Why, got somewhere to be?" He teased. Maybe that was a bad idea as a pillow was thrown into his face, with such force it knocked him of the bed.

"Okayy, actually I was going to ask if you could help me-"

"-get hard?"

"-out in the city"

Peter stared at the girl with wide eyes whilst she just stared blankly at him. She sighed, stood up and stretched, then stared at him again.

"Okay what is going on?" He asked and pointed around the room.

"I will help you out in the city, sure, but I do it on my own rules. Not on some moral high ground shit you spider-men like to do" she smiled sarcastically at him.

"Okay you keep mentioning this other spider-man or Peter Parker and I'm just so confused" he shook his head.

"You and me both honey"

Nadia walked towards the window and stared up into the sky. It was night by now and the stars waved hello to her. They called out to her, welcoming her and she smiled slightly. She had been up there, in space. It was crazy to think about. To think about  the fact that her, Natasha and Clint were amazed by the different planets and laughing in the ship to then be forced into a depression of despair and dread just an hour after.

She didn't know what to think. Did the exchange happen? God she hated to call it that. To act as if they, humans, were some sort of trading cards. A soul for a soul. An everlasting exchange. How Nadia now despised the stars. How her smile fled of her face as quickly as it arrived. How she hated how they were laughing at her and her predicament.

"Do you have any siblings?" Nadia whispered. She hated how she felt so vulnerable in that moment. How if Peter got close enough, he'd be able to reach into her mind and pluck at her memories. But she needed to speak to someone. Anyone who would listen. And Peter would.

"Erm, no. No I don't" he shook his head "do you?" He asked.

Nadia nodded her head. She started to wring her hands together, and act out of nervousness.

"I have two sisters" she said "Natasha and Yelena"

"Are you Russian by any chance?" Peter asked, having an inkling she was. She had an accent sometimes, mostly when she was angry or fighting him and spoke Russian too. It wasn't too hard to guess.

"Yes" she laughed "I'm Russian"

He coughed awkwardly " you aren't like- I don't know- some type of Russian spy or anything, right?"

Nadia smiled at him mischievously "not anymore"

His smile dropped "-anymore?"

"I mean, once a spy always a spy? That part of you never goes away. But I'm not actively a Russian spy anymore" she shrugged as if it was no big deal. As if it was perfectly normal. But to her it was. Her whole family are Russian spies. Trained killers. Their ledges are dripping, just gushing, red. But at least she's trying to make up for it.

"I can't tell if you're joking or not" Peter admitted.

"Don't even worry about it bug boy."

✩ ♥ °

Nadia was stood on the top of a building in Hell's Kitchen that night. She had accepted Peter's offer and was helping him out around New York as a thanks to letting her stay in his house. He had taken over Queens tonight and she was taking over Hell's Kitchen. They were the two highest crime rates in the past week around New York, so they decided to primarily focus on them.

"The spider has landed" came a voice from comms. Nadia rolled her eyes and lifted her left hand to her ear.

"Have you seriously never used comms before?" She asked.

"No, cant say I have" he replied.

"It's abundantly clear. Keep comms on and call if you need back up, I'll do the same" she told him.

"Message received captain"

Nadia sighed and scratched her head, seriously regretting even teaming up with him. She had on her suit but Peter had it modified slightly. There was a hud attached to the top of the suit and a matching mask that covered her mouth and nose, only revealing her eyes.

She had hacked into the police departments data base and was watching out for any signal of trouble.

It was a pretty quiet Tuesday night. Yes, Nadia had found out what day it was. And no time had passed since she was in space. Everything was normal, until it isn't.

Nadia heard a scream from bellow. She lent over the side of the building and came to witness a man holding a gun to a woman's head. The woman was holding onto her daughter and crying, praying for their lives to be spared.

Nadia acted quickly, hating when children where involved in things like these. She attached herself to a wire and ran down the side of the building. When she landed, she immediately kicked the gun out of the mans hand, causing it to lock and land on the floor, sliding away.

"Run" she said to the woman and her child who wasted no time in listening.

"Who the fuck are you?" Asked the man but Nadia did not answer. Instead she walked towards him and threw a punch to his face.

"Do you feel big praying on defenceless children?" She shouted, punching him again. He tried to strike her but was unsuccessful. She grabbed his clenched fist and twisted it backwards. She still wasn't satisfied with the snap that sounded as she crushed his knee.

"What did you want with them?" She asked, now hearing police sirens.

"The bitch-took my money" he gasped between pained breathes. He was slumped against a wall and nursing his crushed knee. Nadia attached a wire to him and watched as he suspended in the air, hanging upside-down.

"Hang tight" she winked to the man and strolled of before the police could catch her.

"Who the fuck are you!?" He screamed in agony.

"Call me the red widow" she said, before disappearing into the shadows to watch his arrest.

She smirked before whispering to herself "it's time to play"