𝘗𝘳𝘰𝘭𝘰𝘨𝘶𝘦
PAIN.
THAT'S ALL SHE FELT IN THE RED ROOM.
Pain.
The same nightmare, over and over again. She hated it. All she wanted was for the pain to stop.
She could still remember it. Sokovia. The nightmare. Every single detail of it.
There she was, in her widow suit. Going down the stairs. Of some random boat. On the African coast of the salvage yard. Everything became disoriented.
Natasha clutched onto the railing as she then found herself in the red room. Girls performing ballet, with their hair in buns as a group of little girls sat in the corner watching them.
Natasha took a step closer, then another, then another. She then found herself looking through the glass of the girls. A man in another corner, shouting "Again." Every single time they don't do it perfectly.
"You'll break them." She whispered.
"Only the breakable ones." A woman replied. "You're made of marble. We'll celebrate after the graduation ceremony."
Flashes went through her mind of the 'graduation ceremony' before she shook her head and watched the girls again.
"What if I fail?"
She remembered herself as a teenager. Shooting a target three times before switching to the other hand. Again. And again.
The target was then a man through her eyes.
"You never fail."
The man was whimpering, as several girls watched from behind the young redheaded teenager. She hesitantly raised her gun at the man and took a shot.
She looked away as a tear streamed down her face. She slowly opened her eyes again and looked at herself fighting a man much bigger than her. She was struggling. The same lady, looked disappointed at her as the man let go.
"Sloppy." She sighed.
"Pretending to fail." She then spoke softer. "The ceremony is necessary." She remembered everything. "-for you to take your place in the world."
"I have no place in the world."
"Exactly." The women agreed.
She remembered herself being strapped down onto a hospital table. Girls not being able to talk for themselves.
Pain.
It was all she felt until she finally got up.
Natasha gasped awake and thrashed around in her bed. The light-coloured sheet laid on top of her was now twisted and tangled between her legs. Sweat covered her whole face as she sat up properly. Her breathing was rapid and shallow as her chest heaved up and down with every breath she took. She put a hand on top of her mouth as her eyes closed. Before pushing back her red locks
'I'm safe' She thought to herself
'Yelena and I defeated the red room. The other Widows are free. Everything is fine'
Yet that feeling still stayed within her. It was at least 3 years since the Avengers disbanded and 3 years since. She was 27 now. And she lived in Japan. In an apartment.
'Yelena is fine. I'm fine '
Guilt consumed her whole as she rested her head on the headboard of the bed. Natasha then looked around in her room. It was plain, yet perfect through her eyes. Tony had insisted she lived off of his money. But yet Natasha refused. The reason she moved to Japan was to start fresh and leave the old life behind. She kept in contact with a few people like, Clint, Pepper, Tony, Wanda, Nick Fury...
She shook her head. Natasha wasn't supposed to be looking through her past. The whole reason she was here was to start a fresh life. She was happy. She was happy
S H E W A S H A P P Y . . .
'*•.¸♡ ♡¸.•*'
"Did you hear the news? Our offices may have been robbed!"
Natasha had turned up for work and was in the staff area, making herself some tea. Her hair was down and she was wearing a white blouse along with some black trousers.
"The perp only broke into cabinets containing female employees' info. Like for real? What kind of creep does that?" She spoke
"He's got nothing on our creep of a chief." Another woman said before Natasha took a seat and drank her tea.
"I swear, all he does is ogle at me all day."
"That's because your skirt's always so short." Another said. She was smoking.
"Really? My BF loves the view, though!" Natasha mentally rolled her eyes. Who even has time for boyfriends?
"You've got a beach body yourself, Sharon. You should show off a little!"
"Such things are off the table once you have kids."
Natasha hesitated to take another sip of her tea and pursed her lips. Kids
The one thing she couldn't have because of... Them
"So hey, what do you think, Nat? Doesn't it creep you out?" The three girls turned to look at Natasha. Who then looked up at the three girls
"Pardon?"
One of the girl's eyes softened.
"You know, Nat. I've gotta say you're kinda... Unique is the word, I guess?"
Natasha set her cup of tea down on her table before looking up at them. She could see right through their lies.
"I was just thinking that! She lives in her own world. Betcha that's why she's single."
"Watch it, Millie."
Natasha looked between them as they spoke.
"You've got the curves in all the right places. You'd be a knockout if you just tried!"
"I don't have time for things like that."
The girls looked surprised when Natasha snapped at them. She then realised her mistake.
"I mean... I'm content as long as I can keep this job." She gave them a small smile
"But aren't you, like, 27? You gotta be careful at that age! There are spies everywhere these days. People get reported over the tiniest little things, know?"
You got that right. Natasha thought.
She used to be a spy herself. She knows the experience. Natasha took another sip of her tea.
"Just the other day, some single woman in her late twenties was reported by her neighbours for being "extremely suspicious"."
"Wait, what? That's hilarious. You got like all the juicy gossip, Camilla!"
Natasha raised an eyebrow, I don't see what's hilarious about someone getting arrested
"Yeah, I can see why she seemed suspicious. What kind of girl's still single at that age?"
"I didn't realise that." Natasha set her teacup down. "Thank you for letting me know." She slightly bowed her head. That was another thing she learned during her time in Japan. They always bowed in gratitude. It was another way of saying 'thank you. I'm grateful'
"Oh, yeah. I'm having a party at my place this weekend. You should come, Nat. Make sure you bring a date!" The group of girls then walked past her and Natasha's eyes slightly widened. A date?! Where the hell was she supposed to get a date in such a short amount of time?
"Might be asking a bit much."
Another thing on her list. Great, just great.
"Maybe she could ask our residential creep if she wants to go with her."
Natasha clutched her mug. Another thing around here, is people don't respect you. If they knew who she was in America, they would be so sorry.
"That's so mean!"
Natasha gave out a breath before putting her mug in the sink, gathering her files and going back to her office. The City Hall isn't where she usually works, it was Yor's thing, but she's always assigned there quite often, so she'd had to deal with those girls.
A few girls stopped by before bowing at Natasha, Nat just bowed her head as she continued walking.
But then again, she's not wrong.
Natasha slowed down.
Who is single in this day and age? She thought to herself. Besides, even if she did find a boyfriend or a husband, it's not like she could give birth. Children were the one thing she and Yelena used to talk about from time to time.
Natasha always dreaded being a mother and raising a child with her friends. She smiled, what fun that would be.
She slowed down and came by a window, where she saw several children playing with a ball. She would do anything to become a mother. Anything
Natasha had just arrived home after a long day at work. As she stepped inside, she felt a sense of relief wash over her. She placed her bag on the counter and leaned on it, trying to catch her breath. She looked around the place, which was now her home. The living room and kitchen were combined, giving the space an open and inviting feeling. The decor was tasteful, with a hint of sophistication. The walls were painted in a warm beige colour, and the furniture was modern and stylish.
As she glanced around the room, she couldn't help but think about how she ended up here. This place was given to her by Tony as a parting gift. He wanted to express his gratitude for all that she had done for him in the past. Natasha couldn't deny that Tony had great taste. He knew exactly what she liked, and it was evident in the way the apartment was decorated. The living room had high ceilings, and the large windows let in plenty of natural light, making the space feel even more welcoming.
Just off the living room, there was another door that led to her bedroom. The bedroom was cosy and comfortable, with a queen-sized bed, a dresser, and a large closet. The walls were painted in a soft blue colour, which complemented the white bedding. The room had a peaceful and serene feeling to it, making it the perfect place to unwind after a long day.
Natasha let out a slight laugh as she thought about how Pepper must have helped Tony decorate the place. She was grateful for their thoughtfulness and couldn't have imagined a more perfect place to call home.
She was happy through her eyes.
That evening, Natasha got a phone call in her apartment. She picked up and brought the phone to her ear. She sat up in her chair in her bedroom.
"Hello? Natasha here."
"Hello, Natasha."
"Oh, Fury?-" Natasha got up from her seat,
"I didn't realise it was you."
"Good evening, I've got an assignment for you. A 'client' has requested your service, Natalie Romanov." She gave out a small sigh as she listened. "Go to the Royal Hotel. Room 1307. Oh and you're friend can come along."
"Yes, sir," Natasha smirked
*:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ
Yor and Natasha were in the elevator. Natasha was in her widow suit, and Yor was in her dress.
"I still don't get how you can fight in a dress. A Goddam dress, Yor." Natasha deadpanned
"Well, I still don't get how you can fight in something so tight, Natasha," Natasha smirks.
"You know me, Yor."
They then came to their stop. And the elevator doors opened up. Several men stood there.
"Hold it, lady. This entire floor has been reserved" Yor took a step forward. However, Natasha was nowhere to be seen. Another man looked behind him.
"Did anyone call for a chick?"
"I dunno." One replied.
"But we were told that... a traitorous scumbag was staying here." Yor knelt as a few men looked surprised.
"We"?" Yor took out her dagger with a sharp slicing sound. And flipped it over before she held it by the handle. Natasha then appeared behind one, before she twisted the head of a man. He then fell to the ground. Before Natasha looked at Yor and winked. The other men who stood there looked surprised.
˚₊· ͟͟͞͞➳❥
The men in the reserved area of the hotel were sat down. Then all of a sudden the men that Yor and Natasha took down were sent flying through the door.
"What in the world?!" One yelled.
Another man then came rushing into the room.
"We're under attack! A pair of women just-" He was cut off when a bullet went through his head. A very silent one at that. He then fell to the ground. As Yor came in, her heels clicked before Natasha followed suit. Leaning on the door, tying her hair back as she got ready to take out some punks.
"Excuse us." Natasha started.
"Vice Minister Brennam from the auditing department, we presume?" Yor continued as she brought the dagger in front of her.
"Our apologies for arriving unannounced, but could you kindly permit us to extinguish the light from your eyes?" Natasha looked at her with furrowed eyebrows. Why was she so posh at times like this?
Natasha shrugged before aiming her silencer gun towards the lamps and lights of the room. The lights went out.
"Nighty, night."
Yor was seen cleaning up in the bathroom as Natasha continued to talk, taking a few sips of the vodka they had that was left unoccupied. She even used Yor's daggers to paint the walls with her signature sign.
"And then apparently I have to find a 'date' to this party of theirs. and then they even dared to talk behind my back! I mean, do they even know who they're talking about?" Natasha ranted before she took a sip of vodka, soaked the dagger into the blood of the dead body and painted the wall by flicking the dagger. Getting the blood onto the walls.
"The Black Widow," Yor replied, as she smiled and listened to her rants.
"Exactly!" Natasha chuckled to herself.
Yor was the only one that knew of her occupation as an Ex-Avenger and the red room. She felt a lot more comfortable, around her. Her brother, however... Now that was a different story.
Yor murmured to herself.
"Ugh, the stains aren't coming off."
"Hmm?" Natasha hummed before peeking over.
"Huh. No way! What terrible timing!"
"What happened?" Natasha then came into the bathroom and found a part of the dress, torn.
"This is the only nice dress I own!" She wailed.
Natasha smiled at her before she sighed.
"If you want, I could take it to the tailors for you?" Yor then looked at Natasha with hopeful eyes.
"Could you?"
Natasha shrugged.
"Sure. It's not like I'm doing anything tomorrow.-"
"Aw! Thank you!" Yor then threw herself onto Natasha. Getting her into a hug. Natasha awkwardly pats her back. She was never really good with hugs.
Besides, she owed Yor, she did most of the killing anyway.
•·.·"·.·•
The next morning Franky set a bunch of papers down on the table. He put a hand on top of the papers.
"I copied all the files of unmarried women from the city hall."
"Great, thanks," Loid replied, bored.
"Seriously, though. She's gotta be elegant, ok with a kid from a previous marriage, and if that wasn't enough, who's willing to marry within 48 hours?" He crosses his arms in front of his chest.
"If an angel like that exists, I'd sure love to meet her. I can't score a date in the first place, and I'm not even picky!"
"Sorry to hear that," Loid replied. Franky then slammed his hands onto the table. Making Anya, hide behind the couch.
"Spare me your pity, asshole!"
Anya then peeked over from the couch.
"Is having a kid bad?" She asked. "An I scaring the mummies away?"
Loid put a hand on Anya's head.
"Don't worry, it's not your fault. Go watch your show and don't worry, ok?"
Anya nodded.
"'kay."
She then went on to turn the tv on. Franky took a seat on the single couch. Anya put on the series Spy Wars before Franky then leaned over to Loid.
"Why can't they just hook you up with a lady spy from work?" He asks as Loid goes to take a paper from the pile.
"Most of them were caught in the recent spy hunts, so I couldn't find anyone suitable for the job."
"Fair enough. Being a snitch is all the rage right now."
Loid went to change the papers.
"We don't have enough hands to go around, I got an additional mission thrown on my lap." Anya laughed at the show as Loid talked to Franky discreetly. "I've got to break up some smuggling ring."
Loid kept looking through the sheet of papers as the two speak.
"They're working you to the bone, man!" Loid hesitated for a moment before going through the papers again.
He was right. They were working him to the bone. On top of that, Operation Strix still hasn't exactly launched yet.
Sure, Anya past the exam, but she needs a mother to help her with things. Not only for Anya but for him as well. Just to pass the interview.
"Whatever, let's start playing Cupid. The quickest would be to find a girl who is looking to marry who'd "cooperate" with you. Finding dirt on 'em might help, too." Franky went to get a file and showed it to Loid.
"I'd like to minimise any risks."
"Oh, please. You missed the little busy bee over there?" Franky pointed at Anya.
"Does she look like a rich family's precious little princess to you?" Anya excitedly jumped up and down as she made little sounds to accompany the scene.
"You've got a point." Loid put a hand on his head. "I'll see what I can do about her image, at least."
He looked at Anya who kept fiddling with the TV switches, trying to switch from channel to channel. But although nothing was found, when-
"-has been murdered-" Anya switched the channel.
"Wait!" Anya stopped and looked at her father. "Could you go back a channel?" Anya nodded before switching back to the channel her father asked her to. Loid set the papers down before resting both of his elbows on top of his knees and joining his hands together. He looked at the screen, where a reporter was seen with his mic. And dead bodies were covered with a white sheet behind him as police-men worked around them.
"Vice Minister Brennam from the auditing department and several of his men were found dead at exactly 4 am this morning." The reporter spoke.
"Police have not yet told us any information yet, but it could be said that this BLACK WIDOW, had done it." The camera then zoomed into a huge marking on the wall that was written with blood. The sign of the Black Widow. Loid pursed his lips.
'The Black Widow strikes again huh? W.I.S.E does have a struggle to find out who this masked woman or man is. More preferably a woman, but that doesn't matter. Whoever they are, they seem to be talented.'
She looked towards her father, her eyes sparkling as she listened to every thought he had in mind.
'Waku waku!'