AN: When I first read the prompt list for #JanuaryJumbleScribbles, I wondered where today's quote came from. Imagine my surprise last week, when I was watching re-runs of L&O:SVU and hear the incomparable Odafin Tutuola spout them. Anyway, have some more platonic (for now! 👀) Avengers & short Avenger Reader (Pip) for day 17.
Unbeta'd. Banner by me and divider by @firefly-graphics
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Relationship: Avengers & Short! Avenger! Reader (Pip) (Platonic)
Word Count: 300
CW: Canon typical violence
It was chaos. Bad guys and bullets everywhere. Overhead the sky whined with the sound of Tony’s repulsors and Sam’s wing thrusters. Somewhere over your shoulder, Clint was perched up high, using his sniping skills and keeping an eye on patterns. Off to one side Bucky and Steve were slamming goons into the tarmac, Hulk copying them with glee on the other and just ahead of you Nat was alternately zapping and shooting. However, for every one you each took out, another ten seemed to appear. Clint said there weren’t any visible portals, but it seemed never-ending nonetheless.
Directions, updates and general cursing rang through the comms unit in your ear, but really you were focussed on clearing the horde around you. It was hard not to notice Nat though. Sure she didn’t have the same amount of raw power as some of the others on the team, but to call her weak would be a disservice of the highest magnitude. She was strong, tough, and agile. There was a reason she’d stayed alive this long when so many others had died. However, those abilities weren’t always enough when surrounded by enemies this numerous, which is why a person needed friends – team mates.
You saw the swarm surround her even as Clint’s warning sounded through the comms. You didn’t hesitate, sprinting across the ground, guns blazing. It was a blur and you screamed viciously as you took them down. Suddenly there was only one left and you were emptying your clip into him even as a large hand clamped down on your shoulder.
“He’s dead, Pip,” Steve stated. “I think you probably could have stopped at two bullets.”
“Sorry, Captain,” you shrugged. “If I’m shooting I’m emptying the whole gat.”
Your eyes met Nat’s and she smiled back at you.
Tag list: @km-ffluv, @wheezy-stucky, @kmc1989, @kombatfather1796, @castielscaplan, @rnurse-kole @gremlin-girly @peaches1958
A/N: This is my entry to @multifandom-flash, Here There Be Monsters Bingo.
Links: Wattpad, Ao3, Spanish version.
@saiyanprincessswanie
My native language is Spanish so I wanna improve my writing skills in English if you notice any mistakes, please let me know and I will correct them.
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The mission initially seemed simple: investigate some strange disappearances around the old building.
“Something's not right here,” Natasha whispers, scrutinizing every corner of the place.
“My suit is picking up energy fluctuations, but I can't pinpoint where they're coming from,” Tony replies.
You move a little further, your flashlight illuminating the debris on the floor, old wooden crates, and dust-covered furniture. That's when you see something in the corner of a small room, partially hidden by a threadbare curtain.
“What is it? “you ask in a whisper.
Steve steps forward a little more, Natasha moves up beside him, and the light from the flashlight illuminates the figure, revealing a small doll sitting on the floor.
It is strange and unsettling. It is a childish-looking doll, no more than fifty centimetres tall, with red hair, blue overalls, and a colorful striped shirt. His eyes, though plastic, seem to stare at you.
“That's disturbing,” Clint murmurs, lowering his bow to take a closer look at the doll. Who leaves a doll in a place like this?
Tony walks over and scans the dummy with his sensors.
“I don't detect anything unusual, but it's... weird.
It's at that moment that the dummy lifts its head. The sound of gears is heard as its eyes glow with an intense red light. And then, in a hoarse, high-pitched voice, the doll speaks.
“Hi, I'm Chucky! Want to play?"
“Did anyone else hear that? “asks Clint.
“We all heard it,” says Steve, not taking his eyes off the doll. But this isn't just a toy.
Before you can process what's happening, the doll jumps up and runs toward you surprisingly. A scream escapes your lips as you recoil, but Natasha is faster. She kicks it away, throwing it against the wall in one motion.
Chucky stands up again, laughing maniacally.
“That's all you got, Avengers? Come and get me!
“This guy in serious trouble,” Tony says, firing a bolt of lightning from his palm, which hits the doll and sends him flying through the air.
“You can't kill me. I'm invincible.”
“What kind of sorcery is this?“ Thor asks furious.
“This is ridiculous,” Natasha snarls, pulling out a knife and throwing it at Chucky.
The knife goes right through him, but Chucky barely staggers, laughing loudly as he pulls it out of his little plastic body.
“Do you think you can stop me with that?”
Thor raises the Mjolnir and hits Chucky with all his might. The doll screams, his body writhing and sizzling as the lightning envelops him. Finally, Chucky's little body disintegrates, leaving only a trail of smoke and ash on the ground.
“Was that real?“ Did we just fight a killer doll?
“It looks like we did, but... I need a drink after this.”
Summary: Your friends are up to something, a surprise for your birthday maybe?
A/N: It's my friends @ynscrazylife birthday and I decided to write her a little fic as a present.
Birthday message: Happy birthday Jess 🎉🥳🎊 I'm hoping you're having a fabulous day and wish you all the best for your special day. I'm very glad we are friends and mutuals because when you pop up on my dash it makes my day. Have fun, celebrate and have a great time ❤🧡💛💚💙💜
PSA: Do NOT copy, steal, translate, plagiarize, republish, etc any of my works on Tumblr or any other platform. Also, do NOT claim any of my works as your own. All of these works are either requests I’ve gotten that people have wanted me to write or original ideas I’ve had for works. If you happen to take inspiration from anything I’ve written and want to write something inspired by that, please a) ask me first and b) IF I say yes, credit me as inspo in your post by tagging me and link whatever work of mine that inspired you. Thanks.
PSA c/@ynscrazylife
You just got into the kitchen when you heard hushed talking that abruptly stopped as soon as you entered. You raised a brow at Bucky and Sam who were clearly trying to hide something behind their back and turned back to make yourself some breakfast, ignoring the rustling in the background.
While you were munching on your cereal and scrolling on your phone you were acutely aware of the two Avengers and how they were looking at you. After another 10 minutes of this weird staring you finally gave in.
"Okay what is this all about?" You asked, "if you're planning some crazy party or anything just do it but stop the staring."
Sam just looked at his watch as if he was waiting on something to fall out of the sky or something. Meanwhile Bucky was suddenly very interested in finishing his mountain of pancakes.
Rolling your eyes you snatched a pancake from Bucky and checked you messages, smiling at the many birthday wishes you received. Wanda and Vision had called in from Scotland last night to wish you a happy birthday and Peter had swung by to hand you his present earlier that evening.
Nat came down sometime after you had finished breakfast and silently made herself a cup of coffee. She would have pulled off the act of not knowing what was going on if she hadn't had grabbed a pancake as well.
Nat only ate pancakes when she was stressed.
After a very akward morning Sam suggested to go to an ice-cream parlour nearby and Bucky immediately agreed, something that never happened. So now you four were sitting in a car and were very clearly driving in the wrong direction but honestly you didn't care.
The radio was blasting a song from Rogers The Musical and both Sam and Bucky were loudly singing in the backseat as Nat was pretending not to be affected by their high spirits but you could see her mouthing the words to the song.
You were driving out of the city and were seemingly going to butt-fuck nowhere. You had to make a stop as Sam wanted to take a close look at the big cow statue that was standing in a field next to the road but other than that your drive went smoothly.
After another hour you stopped at a small lake where there was a table set up with balloons, next to a giant spaceship and a smug looking Carol.
You couldn't believe it.
Getting out of the car you ran towards her and got pulled into one of her famous bone crushing hugs.
"Happy birthday from your favourite captain."
You heard an offended "hey" from Sam and saw Nat punch him in the shoulder.
"And how do you like your surprise?" The redhead asked with a smug grin.
"It's amazing", you told her.
Looking around you saw that there were party garlands hanging around the spaceship and there was a delicious looking cake on the table next to a stack of presents that were waiting for you to open them.
First was Sam's present. It was the newest Sims game and you were looking forward to spend hours on your perfect Sims with him. There was also a card that promised you his support should you ever engage in a prank war with anyone, besides Nat.
Next was Bucky who hadn't just made the cake but also gifted you a knitted sweater with your Hogwarts house colours and crest. You knew his love language was gift giving and you appreciated the gesture greatly, putting the sweater on immediately and loving how comfy it was.
Carol got you some cool space rocks that she assured, both you and Natasha, we're perfectly safe and not radioactive. The were floating around in their glass container and were glowing in all the colours you could imagine.
There was also a photo of Thor and the Guardians with a hand made sign saying "Happy lifeday".
Natashas present was last.
It was a small box wrapped in red and blue wrapping paper with a silk bow on top. Inside was a giant stack of photos that showed you, Natasha and various other Avengers.
The photo on top showed you, Sam, Bucky, Nat, Yelena and Peter grinning into the camera. Yelena was sitting on Bucky's shoulders, both of them wearing matching tiaras. Peter was clutching a giant Stitch plushie that was almost as big as himself and Sam, Nat and you were wearing funny glasses (not voluntary on Nats part though)
You smiled fondly as you remember your trip to Disneyland you took last summer. Flipping the picture around you saw there was a note on the back in Nats handwriting.
"Time may pass but memories stay forever"
"I hope you like them, I thought it was a nice idea to just print them all out. Although Yelena pestered me on making her copies of all of them. She sends her regards by the way and told me to give you this."
You took the wrapped gift from her hands and opened it up, inside was a jacket and a little notes that said "Happy birthday from your favourite Russian, have this jacket, it has lots of pockets. Yelena"
That was a typical Yelena.
"Thank you, all of you, this is absolutely amazing."
You were just happy, this was turning out to be on of the best birthdays ever.
And then Sam fell into the cake.
Silence.
You looked at Bucky who was staring at Sam, then the cake and Sam again. When you locked eyes you started laughing.
Soon everyone was joining in and a cake-covered Sam was wheezing on the ground while you and Bucky were clutching each other for support. Meanwhile Nat was taking pictures and Carol was trying to stop Goose from eating an unfortunate pigeon that got too close to the Flerken.
As you said it before, this was turning out to be one of the best birthdays ever.
How are you?? Just wanted to ask when are you going to post the rest of the ‘It’s the Avengers’ also is there a next season or is season 3 the last one?
Darling?!
Whoever told you this was the last season???
Why would you even consider this to be the last season?????
What makes you think this is the season??? To be jolly????? Flalalalalala?????? La la????????
And I will post the rest of It's The Avengers Season 3 when my soul finds a little peace darling. Just a little. Not much. Just enough to let me have a few moments to write in this stupid whirlpool of frustrated thing called a 'job'
Fandom: Marvel
Pairing: Avengers & Male!Reader
Summary: They’re try to be a better family and show you that there’s more than just good grades.
Request: How about the avengers x reader (platonic or you pick the Avenger) where they find out that with his large family- he was often forgotten? And he only got attention when his grades in school was good? So the reader goes to university and then freaks out because he isn’t ‘good’ enough pulling a near 4.0 GPA, since he got a C on a exam?
(Apologies to the person who requested this, as it took too long for me to post it!)
The Avengers are … complex. They have busy lives - saving the world, stopping bad guys, trying to bond together so that they don’t break apart again.
But they tried to have time for you, whenever they could. It was nice.
After being in such a large family, it was nice to see that this smaller one was more than welcoming. They talked to you about your favourite topics, the kinds of food you liked. Sometimes it felt overwhelming with how welcoming they were to you.
But there were still some things that needed to be worked out.
“I can’t believe I got a C on an exam,” you muttered. This wasn’t exactly ideal. After everything, great grades were something that you prided yourself on. They were worth something. It was hard to make anything have any worth. Results had worth, brought more things to reality.
“You alright?” You jumped at the voice, and saw Clint looking at you with that worried older brother look. You wondered how he managed to have that kind of look, considering he was a younger one. Maybe Barney had given it to him once or twice before.
You shrugged and looked back at the exam paper. “Shitty mark.” you said, trying to sound blasé about it. But it was still hurting.
Clint moved over and looked at the marks. “It’s not a shitty mark. It’s a pass. Passing’s good. I wouldn’t think you’d be human if you got perfect As all the time. Imperfection makes us human,”
“What, even Steve?”
“Steve’s about as imperfect as they come. Probably why he’s such a great Captain.”
It was still a little weird to think about. Steve Rogers was considered the perfect man. But here Clint was saying he was as messy as anyone else.
“You’re going to end up killing yourself,” Peter said, looking over at you with huge concern. “I know a 4.0 GPA is the-the endgame and all, but you gotta take care of yourself,”
Tony looked over, as did Bruce. “Parker’s right. Give yourself a break, Y/N. 4.0 GPA is excellent, but you don’t have to physically screw yourself over because of it. Have a break,”
Bruce saw the expression on your face. “Kid, I get where you’re comoing from. University’s a big step, and the workload and everything is placed on you. Some lecturers suck because they might not help as much as other teachers. But you have to give yourself breaks. You’ve got a few years at uni. Build yourself up with the work over time. Don’t bring it all on yourself at once. It’ll make everything worse.”
Peter and Tony both pointed at Bruce in agreement.
You sighed a little. “I guess a break wouldn’t hurt,”
Peter grinned in his childish way, pulling you out of the lab, chattering away about how cool Bucky’s arm was. Peter was refreshing. He was the kind of annoying, good little brother. Better than the annoying, bratty kinds.
Clint and Natasha smiled at you as you passed. They knew things, most likely knew that you were finally taking everyone’s advice on giving yourself breaks, relieving yourself of work you didn’t have to put on yourself.
Summary: There’s no rest for the Avengers even during the Holidays. Why is there a giant cookie terrorizing the streets of NYC?
by: bigeyes-redmouth
A/N: this was part of the Christmas challenge that I never finished. I thought it was cute and finished it. Enjoy!
You stared at the scene in front of you. With a trembling hand, you reached for your other arm and pinched yourself. Nothing changed.
You turned to Steve and pinched his side. He jumped slightly and turned to glare at you. Yup, definitely not dreaming.
There really was a giant Gingerbread man stomping through 8th Avenue.
“Does anyone have a tall glass of milk?” Tony called, flying beside the creature. “I’m suddenly really hungry."
The gingerbread man took noticed of him and somehow its frosty eyes narrowed in anger. With a giant roar that knocked you to your knees, it took a swipe at Tony.
He swirled away in time.
“Guess he doesn't like being treated like food," Clint said dryly through the comms. He was safely perched on a nearby building.
"Chatter," Steve chastised, helping you up from the ground.
"You know I think Clint and Tony are on the right track," you said slowly, an idea forming in your mind. Steve looked at you questioningly.
"Well, hopefully, this ginger man is food and if it is it can easily be dissolved," you said.
"So we really do need a tall glass of milk," Tony mused.
"Maybe not," Natasha spoke, leaning against a fire hydrant with a pleased smile.
You and Steve shared a grin.
"I guess we’ll actually have leftovers this year," you said, aiming your hands towards the fire hydrant. You could already feel the water building up.
“Remember to concentrate the blast, I want as little damage of our surroundings as possible,” Steve ordered. You nodded sharply.
With a small flick of your wrist, the fire hydrant popped open and then a long stream of water shot out, curving strangely and hitting the cookie in the legs.
“Don’t forget to aim at the rest of it!” Clint called out, “I don’t want to end up splattered all over the concrete.”
It took you less than an hour to make the cookie squishable and boy did the team go to town on the poor thing. You sat on the hood of a Hummer, wiping at the gooey remains off your suit, and watched the Hulk sit in the middle of all the goo, smashing at it with a terrifying and yet endearing grin on his face.
Natasha approached you, a scowl on her face, as she rubbed a towel through her hair. She glanced over at the Hulk. “Looks like we don’t have to give the Hulk a gift anymore.”
“Thor will be so disappointed when he gets back,” you said, leaning back against the window. “He’d been planning something for him.”
Natasha hummed and joined you, handing over the towel. You thanked her and began scrubbing at your neck.
“Off the car,” Steve commanded from your feet. You felt him wrap a firm hand around your ankle. You met his stern gaze. “That’s not yours.”
“Sir, yes, sir,” Natasha and you said in unison, hopping off the car. You both shared an amused glance, before Natasha went off to speak with the Hulk. You made to follow, but Steve stopped you with a hand on your shoulder.
“Good work. Here,” Steve said, reaching into his utility belt to pull out a water bottle and a candy cane. You accepted both with a laugh. He always kept a water bottle on hand for you since controlling water often left you dehydrated, but he never brought you snacks. The Christmas bug must have bit him.
“You are such a dork,” you said, chucking his chin. “You sure you won’t accept your mom title?”
“Funny,” he said, pulling off his cowl to reveal his slightly sweaty face. He rolled his eyes at you. “I don’t know who is more hilarious you or Tony.”
“I resent that I’m not even in that category,” Clint said, appearing beside you, throwing an arm around you. “I’m hilarious.”
“Yes you are,” you cooed, pinching his cheek. Clint didn’t even react, staring up at Steve with an expectant look. Steve didn’t answer, just stared right back with the most bored expression you had ever seen.
You didn’t know who started the whole thing about Steve being this wholesome vanilla guy, but they were so wrong about him. He was a little shit. Frankly, the whole team was and you couldn’t love them more.
“I hate to break up this riveting staring contest,” Tony began, landing beside you and Steve. His faceplate went up. “But I’m hungry and I’m pretty sure I spotted a Korean Barbecue around the corner.”
You immediately threw Clint’s arm off your shoulder and jumped on Tony’s back, your arms and legs wrapping around his suit like an octopus. “Onward, my shiny steed!”
“You’re cute,” Tony said sarcastically, but dutifully began walking down the street, his boots clunking loudly against the asphalt. “You’re buying my dessert.”
“Deal!” You chirped, resting your head against your arm and catching just in time Clint trying to jump on Natasha’s back and being thrown straight into the goo.
Fandom: Marvel
Pairing: Avengers & Male!Reader
Summary: Just because you use a cane, it doesn’t mean you’re weak.
Request: Could you write an Avengers sparring with weapons against Male reader who uses a cane so they try to go easy on them at first but reader just beats them all easily?
They recruited you. It hadn’t come as much of a surprise. They were aware of your abilities just … maybe not the fact that you have to use a cane for the most part.
“Hey, I don’t think you should spar,” Rhodey said. He was eyeing up your cane.
You shrugged a shoulder. “I can handle a little sparring. ‘Sides, I reckon being an Avenger means more than just a simple spar,” you said. You leaned against the wall and twirled your cane in your hands, waiting.
The others took their turns sparring with each other before it was your turn to take place.
“Feel like you can take me on?” you asked Steve as you got onto the mat, leaning against the cane.
“I wouldn’t want to accidentally hurt you,”
You scoffed. “Come at me, bro,”
Steve threw the first punch. You blocked it with your cane with ease - too much ease - and you looked at him with raised eyebrows. You threw the cane aside and looked at him, ready.
He made to throw the second punch, but you caught his fist and then kicked his legs out from under him. He barely had time to react before you twisted him onto his front and held his arms in place so he couldn’t move.
“How did you do that?” Tony asked after the silence before Steve tapped out. “Y/N, please for the love of god, teach me.”
You smiled a little and shook your head. “Maybe later, T.” You looked at the others. “Who’s next?”
Each Avenger in turn god their ass handed to them by you. It seemed that each time, none had wanted to go too hard on you because of your need to use the cane. But they all ended up on their asses, all in varying states of shock.
It was fun, to say the least. Possibly worth having been recruited by them.
A/N: Okayyyy so... part 1 (read it here) wasn’t very popular on tumblr, but thanks to @carol-romanoff and a few people on ao3 asking for a part 2, I got the motivation to write some more of this story :) so here’s the reunion between Y/N and the rest of the Avengers team, but mainly Natasha!
This one is the happy ending version! It contains mostly the same text as ‘will you stay here with me?’ but the last part is different. So if you want angst, read that one. If you want a happy ending, you’re in the right place, so read this one!
“Not on Sasha, no. It’s Y/N’s college…they sent out their final exam results this morning.”
“Natasha, we cannot get distracted.”
“I know.” Natasha groaned, “We’ll find Sasha, I promise, but after that I’m going back to America for Y/N’s graduation.”
“But-”
“Yelena, we’ve been doing this for years, alright? The child I raised was 18 the last time I saw them, and now they’re graduating college. I’ve missed so much; I’m not missing this too.
“Fine. We find Sasha, go to your child’s graduation, then-”
“Then back to this, I know…It’ll just be a few days.”
Exhaustion was too weak of a word to describe how you felt. Post-graduation parties with your – now former – coursemates had continued until the early hours, and your reluctance to return to the silence of an empty compound had you crashing at a friend’s house while the party raged on around you.
The midday sun had long since passed before you wordlessly trudged home. Your head hung heavy and you listened to nothing but the beat of your footsteps for the whole journey, too engrossed in your own mind to care about anything else.
That didn’t mean you were off guard.
Living in the Avengers Compound, you could never afford to be; the logo alone made it a constant target for attack and, since the others had left, you were alone to defend yourself. Would the team care if you were attacked? Would they reunite to rescue you from a kidnapping? The thought crossed your mind often, but a larger one always replaced it: would they even notice?
This time, you stalled as you raised your key towards the door. Your arm remained frozen so close to the keyhole but your head darted around. Tracks of dirt you certainly hadn’t left on the carpet and porch ornaments haphazardly rearranged; whoever it was that had broken in hadn’t done a very good job of covering their tracks. An amateur? you considered, or someone who didn’t care for the element of surprise.
You wrapped your hand around the phone in your pocket, ready to call 911 if needed, then turned the key. The door squealed and you winced, regret took centre stage as you remembered the grease left nearby; you could still have the upper hand if you hadn’t procrastinated so long-
“Surprise!”
Eager, smiling faces popped up from behind the furnishings, the antithesis of your clenched fists and jolting eyes. In the initial fear, you’d jumped back over the threshold, and when your brain finally slowed for long enough to identify the intruders, you were glad you had.
The whole team grinned from the entryway, the most you’d seen in one place since just after your 14th birthday. Wanda stood front and centre, making it impossible to avoid looking at her; she smiled when you did. It seemed genuine, that she was happier was undeniable, but your mind could only flash to the year prior; to the bitter insults and accusations and the “we’ll come visit” that never came true…until now at least. All the Avengers watched expectantly, they waited for the shock to break and for you to smile and cheer and celebrate their return.
You faced them all… then did the opposite. They watched you toss your bag to the floor instead.
Hesitation flickered across some of their faces, but you paid it no mind. In fact, you revelled in it. To prove to them that they no longer knew you, that you had changed since they left, and that you did not forgive them. It was all you wanted, and you didn’t have to say a word. The silence only broke with the slamming of the door, the Avengers on one side, you on the other, and the barrier formed in their absence recreated in a physical sense.
You needed space.
For the length of your walk, flashes of their surprise returned to your mind. You started to analyse it, trying to remind yourself of the faces you had spent so long without when you realised one member of the team had still been absent. Typical.
The sensation that materialised upon the realisation was hard to express and even harder to understand. It had been years since you’d last seen her. You’d felt rage and grief and shed countless tears over her. You’d cursed her, sworn that you never wanted to see her face again, and even convinced yourself to hate her for leaving.
If you’d seen her smiling at the reunion, you knew the long-dormant anger would have bubbled right back to the surface, so your own emotions surprised you. If you hated her… if you wanted to scream to her face and cry at her memory… then why did your heart fall so low when it noticed her absence.
Natasha’s brows furrowed when the team filtered in. It was supposed to be celebratory, but their slumped shoulders and flitting eyes indicated it would be anything but; you weren’t even with them.
“Where’s Y/N?”
She had heard the door open, heard their exclamation, so why weren’t you there?
“They left. Saw us all standing there and turned right around.”
Natasha took a step forward. The team all stepped back. “Where did they go?”
“I don’t know, Widow,” Tony scoffed. “Look, I’m no spy, but turning and slamming the door behind them isn’t the kind of body language that says ‘oh please come follow me, I’d love to spend time with you.”
Natasha had her things at the door before Tony could even finish his point, and before anyone else could agree with the billionaire, the door was slammed shut.
“This door didn’t deserve today’s treatment,” came the muffled sigh.
Natasha knew as soon as she left the building. After the long winding driveway, towers and skyscrapers reappeared in view and, just beyond that, the edges of trees and greenery peaked out into the street. Years of memories flooded back as she ran; even if this park was closer to the Compound than the Tower, she’d taken you every week when you were younger, content to let you run and play safely in such a quiet space.
She didn’t know you quite as well as she had four years ago, that was for sure, but she had to hope you hadn’t changed enough for this.
Switching from a run to a walk, it was like the whole world slowed. You sat on a bench ahead of her, facing away, but with your knees drawn up into your body and resting under your chin. Even now, you still looked so young in Natasha’s eyes. Four years could have been four minutes for all she saw, and she wondered how she had ever thought you were old enough to leave.
“Not a big fan of surprises, huh?” she joked upon approach. You could hear the smile on her face, though you didn’t turn to look, and you certainly didn’t reciprocate.
“So you were there, then.” you muttered.
“I planned it. I know you’re graduating, so I thought you might like to see the whole group again.”
“It must have been a while since we were all in one place,” she mused. “Either way… I guess I was mistaken.”
“I guess you were.”
“Has something happened recently? Is that why you’re barely answering?” Natasha couldn’t take it anymore, she shuffled closer, ready to beg for answers. “I haven’t seen your mood so down since that incident with your friends in High School.”
“Yeah, I’d rather not remember that.”
“So what is it?”
“It’s you, Natasha.” The Widow pulled her hand away, recoiling at your tone, though you hardly had it in you to feel bad about that. “All the Avengers, everyone in that room. Everything you’re doing today, to- to what? To get back into my life? To make yourselves feel better for being absent all this time? To act like you actually want me after years of no contact?”
“I know I’m being harsh, but you know what? You deserve it. You fucking deserve it. You were my mom, Nat! It might have just been guardianship on paper, but I saw you as my mom and you knew it. You knew I trusted you. You knew I forgave anything you did because I loved you, and you took advantage of that!
When you left, and promised you were coming back? I believed you. How stupid and naive of me to believe you, but I did. And you know why? Because you’re the only parent I had. I didn’t become an adult the moment I turned 18 and I didn’t suddenly stop needing a parent; though, with that said, you didn’t even wait until I was 18 to leave did you? That’s just how old I was when you stopped coming back.”
Natasha’s mouth dropped into a silent gasp. Her hands fidgeted with indecision on whether to comfort you with her touch of stay away; it was a choice you made for her by shuffling away. The weight of the years had finally caught up to Natasha; thoughts of you had been the only break for her one-track mind, but the mission hadn’t allowed her a second to truly think about it, or else she would have realised sooner that thoughts did not equal actions, and four years had passed without you in her life.
Soft wind and rustling leaves took their space in the silence your speech had left. Natasha’s always perfect hair ruffled in the breeze, but even that couldn’t carry away the words that lingered. No, those remained stationary. They were the only things to fill the area of the bench that neither you nor Natasha dared inhabit.
Had a stranger walked past, they may have noticed the equal looks of discomfort and questioned the similar mannerisms; but for you, with your chin tilted up and a refusal to look anywhere but forward, Natasha’s matching stance may well have been invisible. You were different people now; nothing could ever be the same.
You noticed movement, just out of the corner of your eye, and suddenly you pictured Natasha. She was fidgeting with her jacket, that much you knew, but her head bowed in your mind’s eye with an uncharacteristic doubt across her features, no doubt preparing an apologetic disquisition.
Her hands settled and you prepared for the speech. You hated to still know her so well. And yet…you still fell for her polite cough. You turned only to find her facing you already, with legs crossed identically to yours. You unfolded yours and waited.
“I know you’re expecting excuses from me, but I won’t do that to you again. With all my heart, I know that you’re right and that you deserve a genuine apology for everything I’ve done– not done even–” she corrected with a hint of a smile, “in these past four years. I haven’t been around, left you with false promises, haven’t texted when you know as well as anyone that I could’ve found a way– I’ve not fulfilled my role as your guardian at all and I am so, so sorry. I don’t expect forgiveness, especially not right now, but know that I will do everything I can to work towards it.”
You sighed. How could you answer that immediately? It took time to process, not least to formulate a reply, but at last you managed a whisper. “Can you stay with me for now? Stay here like we used to. Please?”
She nodded, already shifting off the bench when she answered. “Of course I will. The sun’s already going down.” With that, she lay back against the rock and let her gaze relax at the sky. Content, you followed her lead and lay beside her.
“It’ll be a pretty sunset,” Natasha added after a moment; her head tilted towards you with a faint impression of a smile on her features. For the first time that day, you smiled back.
She may have been a trained spy, but Natasha’s efforts to conceal her reaction were fruitless. The first betrayal came in her eyes, the spark returned to them as they crinkled at the sides. She turned away from you next, but even a full tilt of her head wasn’t enough to hide such an open smile.
“You don’t have to hide being happy, you know.”
Natasha sighed. “The only years I didn’t were the years I was with you.” Defeat resounded in her tone, “I’ve fallen back into old habits.”
After that, the two of you fell back into silence, with just rustling trees and the inescapable noise of traffic to soundtrack the setting sun and rising stars. Beyond that, Natasha focused on the subtleties of your breathing; despite years away, she still had the rhythm memorised and concentrated on it until the pattern softened and slowed.
Natasha leant on one elbow just to see how your face relaxed in peaceful sleep. The sight wasn’t new – she’d seen it innumerable times while tucking you into bed, carrying you off the couch after late-night Stark parties, or even from looking in after returning from a mission. Seeing you sleep had always allowed her a moment of quiet in an otherwise hectic life; it was the one thing that had never changed through the years of watching you grow and, even now, it felt like the only part of you that hadn’t changed in her absence.
The spy let you fall deeper into sleep before she shifted to pick you up. With a strength and grace that only a Widow possessed, she cradled your sleeping form in her arms and carried you back to the compound. Back home.
Natasha had barely set you down in bed before her phone started to vibrate. She hastily pulled the cover over you and took a step back, making sure she wouldn’t disrupt you if she answered it.
“Yelena, it’s 2am here. If you’ve got something to say, say it quickly.”
“We have a lead on another Widow. She is in America for now but we do not know for how long. Natasha, you are the closest to go look for her, so-”
“I can’t go.”
“What?” There was a pause through the line, “Natasha, this is urgent-”
“Yeah, I know. But Y/N and I… we need to spend more time together. I've been away for too long and it’s on me to make up for that; I can’t just appear for a day, make some promises that things will change, then go right back into the mission that originally took me away.”
“But I need your help with this, the Widow needs your help, she could disappear any day now and we will lose the only chance we have to save her! You don’t know what that mind control is like to be under, but it’s torture, Natasha, we have to get her free.”
"Yelena, we have freed hundreds of Widows around the globe who all have the same skill set as me. Ask one of them, go yourself, whatever! My place is here."
"сестра-" (sister)
"Keep me updated, okay? If there's any desk roles I can take from here, I'll do it and I'll help you, but I'm done with missions." Natasha held the phone away when her sister continued to argue. It was tempting to fold, to return to the job that had always been her life: from a childhood spent training to an adulthood where she let it take centre stage. But you'd become her priority 22 years before, and it was high time she showed it.
Yelena was still talking at her, but Natasha had made up her mind. "Good night, Yelena. I hope you find someone for the job."
The room was still when you awoke. In your morning daze, it could be mistaken for any of the days that came before, with silent halls, empty rooms, and your bag still tossed on the floor. But things were different. Flashes of memories reminded you that you hadn’t been alone the night before; Natasha had returned with the team, she’d apologised with an authenticity that you hoped not even a spy could fake, and she’d promised to make things anew.
Despite all her words, the rational part of your brain didn’t believe it – it wouldn’t let you believe it – not without the fear of getting hurt once again. And yet… something she’d done had gotten through to some part of you, a part that had always held out hope for her, and Natasha’s verbal confirmation that she’d do better had germinated the hope that blossomed inside of you. It had seeped into your very soul, infiltrated your subconscious thoughts, and besieged the walls you’d taken years to build.
But then you sat up, rubbed your blurry eyes, and- "Nat?" -she was still there. The redhead sat at your desk, one leg folded under her and her head slumped in her arms. She jolted awake at the sound of her name.
"What are you still doing here?"
"Oh. Um. Well… you fell asleep in the park so I brought you back here. Then of course I have my own room but I haven't been here for years so it didn't feel right to sleep there so I just-"
You stared through her uncharacteristic rambling, until finally processing her misinterpretation. "No, I didn't mean in this room. What are you still doing at the compound? Graduation day is over; don't you need to be back off on your mission?"
You watched Natasha's face fall, her eyes widened and her mouth dropped open at your statement. To realise you still didn't trust her to stay.
She shook her head in a vehement no. "Yelena did call," she admitted, "but I promised you yesterday that I'd do better and not leave you alone like I did before. So I turned the mission down because I want to stay and I want to be here for you if it's not too late."
"You mean it?"
"I mean it. I'll work to prove it every day. Whenever you need me, I'll be there. And if you want me to stay…I won't ever leave you again."
It was real. The distrust cleared slowly from your mind, but her words inspired the belief that she would see it through.
