Cold as Ice - WinterWidow One-Shots

from one side comes another

"Buck!"

The Winter Soldier turned, metal hand locked over her throat as he eyed Steve.

"Eyes on me, Soldat," Natasha snarled in harsh Russian. His attention flickered and in the moment it took him to turn back, she wrapped her leg up over his arm and rolled.

His hand unlocked from around her throat, but the relief was short-lived. Deeming Steve a bigger concern, the Winter Soldier jumped toward him. Eyes wide, Steve barely ducked in time to dodge the metal punch aimed at him. Behind him, Natasha could see Sharon and Sam come skidding to a stop.

"Get out of here!" she ordered, waving them away. They didn't.

Sam jumped forward, attempting to pry James off of Steve only to be thrown back against a wall. He groaned and while Sharon slipped over to make sure he was alright, Natasha returned her attention to James.

He and Steve were equally matched in strength, that much was true, but James was not in charge of his own mind. The Winter Soldier was and while Steve was fighting to stop a friend, the Winter Soldier was completing a mission.

"Goddammit, James," she muttered, leaping back into the fight.

She slipped between him and Steve with relative ease. Decades of fighting together had taught her how to read him, how to analyze his next move and react before he had the chance to act on it. She'd hoped never to use the knowledge but now, with Steve in danger and an international security council looking to lock them all up, she relied on all of her previous observations.

His eyes narrowed, his movements quickened, and it was all Natasha could do to keep up. But even in the Red Room, even before their forced partnership and following relationship, they'd been perfectly matched. He swung and she countered, dodging nimbly and swinging in return. It was all she could do to avoid her own predictable attack pattern and anticipate his next move. It was only after she used one of his own attacks on him that she was given a moment to strike.

At his momentary pause, a brief second where she could see confusion and frustration fill his eyes, she swung. Her fist hit his temple hard enough to make his eyes roll back and her wrist cry out with sharp pain. He collapsed, she gasped, and the room went silent.

Kneeling on his back, Natasha pinned his arms behind him. She wouldn't be a heavy enough weight to keep him down if the Winter Soldier was the one to wake up, but his breathing was erratic and the hit had knocked him out before he'd even hit the ground, so she was confident that it would be James who awoke underneath her.

Three long, silent seconds later and she was proven right.

His eyelids closed tightly, a groan coming from his lips, and he turned his head until he could see her out of the corner of his eye.

"Natalia?" he breathed, pain and panic etched across his face. "Tell me it was a bad dream."

"I'm sorry, my love," she murmured, her hand dropping from his wrists to gently brush over his cheek.

She glanced back only to see Steve, Sam, and Sharon watching them both warily. Making up her mind quickly, she slid off of his back and pulled him to his feet in one swift move.

"We need to go."

He didn't wait for further instructions. Sparing one more glance at their three friends, she pushed James in the direction of the back door and they disappeared.

* * * * *

There was a safe house that they had used shortly after leaving the Red Room. They hadn't yet connected with Barton, but they couldn't very well sleep in the streets, so they'd found an old apartment and stashed food and weapons inside to last them weeks. From Vienna, it was only a short ride in a stolen car until they got there, not speaking a word until they had inspected the room for hidden bugs or wires that could have been left since their last visit.