ROMANOGERS: PAST TO PRESENT

Chapter Forty One

Springing to her feet she ran into the street trying to avoid other people as they panicked and rushed by. Soldiers were lining the streets some familiar others not. Closing her eyes she ran. Slamming hard into something she opened them and to her horror a non Soviet soldier was looking over her. Grasping the bag she scrambled backwards as the soldier !ade a lunge at her. He spoke in an unfamiliar language. Something clamped onto her arm and she lashed out trying to get away. There was a loud bang and from her peripheral she could see the other soldier fall. Glancing at the person who held her she recognized his insignia. The man picked her up and ran much like Natasha's father had.

The images faded yet again into that terrible blackness. How was this happening? How was I seeing all of this and how was I feeling it? All to soon a new seen emerged from the dark.

"My name is Ivan." The man who had rescued Natasha from the soldier sat across from her. She was huddled up in a blanket, a cup of steaming liquid in her hands. She didn't answer but stared blankly at the floor. I could feel the emptiness that surrounded her. "I am a retired Soviet soldier."

"Then why were you in uniform?" Quipped Natasha. Even at a young age she had her quick wit.

"Because when I say I retired I mean I retired that night. I didn't have time to change!" The man laughed. His hair was beating and he looked at Natasha fondly. This comment brought a small smile to Natasha's face. "Tell me. We've been together now for two days, have you thought about my offer?"

Natasha pursed her lips and I could practically see the wheels turning in her head. She glanced back at Ivan who had a lopsided grin on his face. He Stuck his tongue out at her and she laughed, setting her cup down on the coffee table. "If it's because I tell bad jokes and eat toast every morning that is the reason you say no, I promise I can change!"

"No Ivan! Don't change. That's not why. I just...I miss them." Ivan's smile disappeared and use placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder.

"You do not have to give me a definite answer. You can stay here as long as you like, yes? I do not have to be your permanent guardian, but know that out there is a scary place." He pointed his thumb towards the door that rested behind them.

"Thank you." Natasha mumbled and getting to her feet she pressed a kiss to his cheek before scurrying off.

Another series of images much shorter swirled around my head. The first was this;

A slightly older Natasha maybe six, walking the streets with I Ivan while he held her hand. The two of them paused before sitting on a bench in the park. A sense of familiarity comforted me. "Now Natalia I wonder what people we will see today?"

"Miss Havish will come soon with her dog Whiskers. Then Mr. Skova will follow a little later with his Sunday best clothes on." Natasha noted absent mindedly and kicked her feet. Ivan studied her with a look of admiration.

"Well we are people watching today Natalia, aside from the usual park visitors, what do you think we'll see?" Natasha shrugged but turned her attention to the park. Her eyes squinted as a young boy skipped across the way. After a moment or two Ivan leaned in and whispered of her. "Tell me what you think of him, yes?"

I noticed Ivan had a way of placing his sentences as questions. He made a point of giving Natasha a choice on how she wanted to answer. He hardly ever demanded a yes or no response. Excitement bubbled in me and was expressed on Natasha's face by her smiled and raised eyebrows. "Well He slouches meaning he either is part of the working district or is a lower class member. But from the looks of his hands, the long fingers, and swollen wrists, he's a working member. Though there isn't a technical division between economical and social classes there's sort of an invisible separation. His jacket suggests that he doesn't regard anything with much importance considering how many times it's been patched up. His hair is brown and his eyes are blue, but his jaw suggests he's not just Russian."