A year ago
"Soldat?" The agent crouched down to her eye level.
"Ready to comply." Her face was expressionless.
Blank.
"Good." He gave her a sinister smile as he closed the leather journal. "This is your target." He held up a security footage on a tablet of a red-haired woman. "Find her and kill her."
"Understood."
Meanwhile
"I'm going out to get some snacks, anyone want anything while I'm out?" Nat gazed over to the few people in the kitchen.
"How 'bout some little juice boxes for Parker over here." Sam chuckled, slapping Peter on the back.
Nat smirked as the elevator doors closed in front of her. She got off at the ground level, walking to the nearest grocery store. Tony always protested that she didn't need to go and buy things like that on her own, but her and Wanda always scolded him, reminding him that booze, tortilla chips and blueberries couldn't be the only source of food in the complex.
"Right... Thor likes pop-tarts, Sam secretly also likes juice, what else?" She slowly paced down the junk food aisle.
"Popcorn!" She snatched a bag of kernels from the shelf and threw it into her bag.
She grabbed a few different types of chocolate and candy and made her way to the checkout. She unloaded the snacks, the lady at the checkout eyeing her down in the process.
Nat looked up and smiled awkwardly. The lady returned the smile, continuing to stare her down.
"C-can I help you?"
"Oh sorry. It's just you look so familiar." The lady laughed to herself. "I've seen you somewhere."
Nat half expected this kind of encounter every time she left the house, although it wasn't something she'd ever get used to.
"Oh maybe it's because I-"
"Ghost World!" The lady pointed. Nat stopped and creased her forehead in confusion. "What?"
"You look exactly like that girl Rebecca from Ghost World. Oh and the sister from that Home Alone movie that didn't have Macaulay Culkin in it."
Nat chuckled weakly, handing her the cash and leaving, completely dumbfounded and confused.
She twirled the plastic grocery bag around as she made her way back to the tower where everyone was waiting for her. The shortest way by foot was an alley that stretched from the busy street to the one where the tower stood.
Her footsteps left a clunk clunk noise as she ventured into the alley. It wasn't until she was about halfway through when that same sense and paranoia rose in her chest that there was someone lurking around her. Maybe it was something that just naturally came with being an assassin your whole life.
She slowed down until her steps no longer echoed off the walls. That's when it came to her.
Whack
"You're fast. Should've known sooner you'd been watching me." Nat smirked after narrowly dodging the kick coming straight for her with her forearm.
The masked assailant leapt backwards and faced her. The mask, as well as heavily tinted glasses concealed their identity.
"An alley, really?" Nat scoffed. "It's a little cliché don't you think?"
They remained silent, much to Nat's expectation. Instead, they lunged right back towards her.
They directed a sidekick straight for her torso, to which Nat shifted to the side and struck them from behind with her elbow, sending them into the cold concrete.
The person took no time to rebound, springing straight back up and diving towards Nat with a knife.
Nat didn't fight back, strictly keeping defense. There was something about the way this mysterious person was fighting, almost hasty and forced. Nat was taken aback however at the power and speed they held.
"Who are you, what do you want..." Nat hovered her hands in front of her, signaling that she meant no harm, but still prepared for any attack.
They remained still, one foot slightly forward in preparation. Nat's eyes darted towards their mask and shades, them becoming her sudden target.
This time, Nat was the one to attack. She ducked under their punch and sent them off the ground with an uppercut. They countered by flipping mid-air and skidding on the gravel coated ground, leaving marks in the pavement.
Their skills were remarkable, proving to be more of a challenge than Nat initially expected. They swiftly pulled the knife back out, twirling it in their fingers before flinging it straight for her. She dove under it, and before the person could react, Nat hook kicked past their face, knocking the two things that were covering their identity, right off.
They winced, rubbing their face in pain. It was when their hand left their face that Nat's eyes softened.
A girl? No, woman. She looked no older than 25, maybe 26, but she had a hint of innocence behind her eyes. Her hair was madly tangled, tumbling down her face. However what really struck Nat was her face. It was scarred, coated with a look of exhaustion and terror. One that Nat had once put on when she was first encountered by Clint all those years ago.
"You don't have to do this, let me help you." Nat slowly stepped towards her. She paused when the girl pulled out the gun hidden in her belt and pointed it to her.
"Who gave you your task." The girl froze when the words left Nat's mouth.
"Task." What was it about that very word.
"I can't give you that information." She said monotonically.
"Do you have a name?" Nat was approaching her little by little.
"I.." The girl creased her forehead as she searched her mind for an answer, lowering her weapon. She shook her head and held up the gun once again.
Nat continued pushing her for answers. "Were you instructed to kill me?"
She nodded. "Now let me get back to that, you're distracting me."
Nat chuckled to herself. "You're like a mirror image."
Confusion tainted her face when Nat stepped closer. "If you come with me, we can protect you. Your superior won't be able to hurt you anymore."
The girl's expression softened. Her eyes trailed to the gun that was still pointed at Nat. "But... if I fail." Her hand was shaking as she gripped the gun firmer in her grasp.
"You become a member of S.H.I.E.L.D." Nat smirked. "Whoever sent you here knew you'd be an ideal match for me. I don't doubt you have amazing skills, that of which you can use to save instead of kill."
The girl shook her head. "Why are you helping me?"
Nat gently took the gun from her hands. "Because I can see your pain, your constant suffering, all just from that one fight. I've been in your shoes, and after being saved, I want to do the same for you."
♥︎ A few days later ♥︎
Nat paced in front of the screen, her arms folded. "You're absolutely sure?"
"Everything we need to know is right here." Shuri pointed to the various screens in front of them in the futuristic, Wakandan lab.
"Young female from central New York suburbs missing since Tuesday. October 7th, 1989.
"Y/n Y/l/n, 18, missing since early this week, mother says disappearance occurred while
Y/l/n was out that night. October 8th, 1989.
Nat shook her head as she studied the articles laid out in front of her. "Poor thing, life's really thrown her to the wolves haven't they?"
Shuri sighed from behind her. "The damage to her brain is extensive, almost as bad as..."
"Barnes." Nat finished, frowning to herself. "Have you gotten anywhere?"
"We were able to cure her amnesia, however she woke up completely erratic, scared. She would not let a single person touch her until I informed her you were here."
"And what about..." Nat's face fell when she noticed Shuri's melancholy stare.
"I've done the best that I could with eliminating the HYDRA part of her, however there's no way in telling for sure if she's fully cured or not." Shuri frowned as her eyes fell back onto the screen.
Nat rubbed at her eyes tiredly, before flashing a glint of a smile. "Thank you, Shuri. I appreciate everything you've done." Nat glanced to the left. "I know he does too."
Shuri smirked to herself. "I'll leave you two." She offered Nat a warm smile before leaving to work on other projects.
It wasn't until they were left in complete silence when Steve finally spoke.
"You've got a good heart Nat."
She made her way towards him and stopped just beside him, following his gaze out the window that out looked Wakanda.
"It just hit me, the way her voice sounded so controlled, terrified..." She trailed off.
Steve stared at her with somber eyes. "And it was almost like a reflection, wasn't it?"
Nat let out a soft chuckle. "I just want to do for her what S.H.I.E.L.D did for me."
♥︎♥︎♥︎
"So, you're feeling better?" Nat stood at the doorframe of the small Wakandan guest bedroom.
Y/n nodded. "I remember everything. My name, where I was born, when I was born."
Nat walked over and sat on the edge of the bed. "Well I'm glad you got a chance to rest outside of cryo freeze."
She chuckled lightly. "Yeah, that's true."
Y/n couldn't help but gawk at the wondrous city on the other side of the window. The technology, the buildings.
Nat laughed from behind her. "Don't worry, the rest of the world looks like nothing compared to here."
Y/n turned and gave her a questioning look. "Well, certain parts maybe. I used to think S.H.I.E.L.D had the best technology until I came to Wakanda for the first time." Nat reminisced back to only a few months ago.
They stay in silence for a few seconds when Nat pulled something from her pocket. "I forgot about this! Here." She handed Y/n a brand new iPhone. "Shuri will teach you how to use one of those."
Y/n's eyes widened as the screen lit up. She'd seen a few being used by the HYDRA leaders, but never fully understood what they were. "There's only one button on the front."
She set it down slowly on the small table next to the bed, being careful not to break it. Nat grinned and patted her on the shoulder. "For another day. Don't worry."
Y/n nodded, smiling weakly. Everything felt so new, so unfamiliar and odd. It was like she'd been in a coma for 27 years and just woken up, except the fact that she had memories of being an assassin for that whole period of time.
Nat gestured out the door. "Let me know if you need anything. I'm gonna go check in with Shuri."
Y/n waited for her to leave before slumping back into her bed, her gaze shifting up to the ceiling. "The ceiling..." She thought to herself. It wasn't the usual stone, mildew-covered one that she was usually greeted with every night.
The mattress, it was so soft, she wouldn't be surprised if she sunk right through it.
She slowly stood up and stretched her arms over her head, hissing from the sudden coolness of the tile floor. Shuri mentioned Y/n was free to go wherever she needed in the living quarters, it'd be the first time she ever stepped out of the room as Y/n, not a brainwashed soldier.
She stepped towards the door and peaked past it into the hallway. No one.
She made her way to the small kitchen across the hall, admiring the building interior. After grabbing a mug from one of the glossy cabinets, she scanned the room for a coffee maker. She furrowed her eyebrows and ventured around the room in search of something to make her coffee with.
Her eyes fell onto a machine with a large screen on the front. She approached it slowly. "How the hell..."
She ignored the steps of someone nearing the kitchen, trying to figure out how to make a simple coffee.
It wasn't until she heard someone clear their throat beside her. She turned to see a tall, brown haired man with mid-length hair loosely falling above his shoulders.
Without thinking, Y/n stepped to the side, clearing the way for him. He was handsome, despite his tired, sunken eyes and drained demeanor, there was something about him.
Y/n watched as he tapped the screen with his finger and selected an espresso. The drink immediately poured from the machine into the cup. As mesmerizing as the modern technology was, her gaze had fallen on his left arm, made completely of metal, but moved and functioned like a normal arm.
She quickly looked away before he could catch her staring. The whole time, he hadn't said a word. The machine made a small beep, after the beverage had filled near the brim.
"So that's how it works." Y/n muttered to herself, loud enough for him to hear and think that she wasn't being nosy.
He offered a quick smile, which faded quickly. Before she could ask him about anything, Nat called out from the hall. "Pack your bags Y/l/n, we're off to New York!"
Y/n creased her forehead. "What bags?"
"Oh uh... well. Just hurry alright?" Nat said with a wave of her hand.