Just Like Heaven
A.N.: I promised I'd do this, lets see how it goes. Based off the Ruffalo movie of the same name.
"This is your fifth mission in less than two weeks, Natasha.", she barely chooses to acknowledge Steve's voice, but she can still hear it ringing in her ears. "You sure you don't wanna sit this one out?"
Natasha chuckles. "And let you have all the fun? Never."
Steve shakes his head. "You know, this much work ain't good for you. You should get some rest, go on vacation somewhere."
"Vacation? Seriously?", she asks him, raising an eyebrow.
Steve shrugs. "Yeah, why not?", he replies. "I heard Fiji's real nice this time of year."
"Then why don't you go? I'm sure Sharon would love to join you.", Natasha teases him while checking her weapons. She had an impressive arsenal. "You could turn it into a romantic getaway.", Steve rolls his eyes and Natasha smiles in brief victory. "Plus, isn't it enough that you already talked me into going on that idiotic blind date?"
Steve nods his head to the side to get a better look at her. "After all those set-ups you did for me, Romanoff, you owe me big time."
"I'm completely capable of finding men on my own.", Natasha adds.
Steve shrugs. "Yeah, but I'd just like you to meet one that's not bleeding."
Natasha ignores the statement. "Who are you setting me up with, anyway?"
"A friend of a friend."
"Seriously? Not even a name?", she inquires. "I always gave you a name."
"Yeah, but wouldn't that kind of ruin the whole concept of a blind date?", it's Natasha's turn to roll her eyes. "And don't act like you wouldn't hack the shit out of the guy in less than five minutes. You'd probably start off the date talking about his finance records."
"Hey, a girl's gotta be prepared.", Natasha replies with a smirk on her lips and Steve shakes his head while tying up his cap.
"Look, Natasha, just go on the date. It's not gonna kill ya.", he steps into the jet to grab his shield just as the pilot yells out that they're okay to jump.
"If it's one of Stark's friends, it just might.", she replies and Steve gives her a look which makes her cross her hands on her chest and give him the best death glare she can muster. "It is one of Tony's friends."
"Blind date, Romanoff.", is the only thing he says before jumping out of the jet without a parachute.
"Country treasure or not, you're a dead man, Rogers.", Natasha mumbles before securing her chute and jumping out as well.
After she kills him, she'll go after Tony.
Steve uses the hand free of the shield to gesture to a dozen men on behind him. "We'll take that side. Widow, you take the others and secure the back.", he says and Natasha nods even though he can't see her. "Make sure to take all the information you can salvage from those computers. Fury's counting on 'em."
"Don't I always?", she replies and Steve just gives her a look. "On it, Cap.", she then adds, resisting an eye-roll. "Come on, boys and girls, let's get this shit over with.", Natasha orders to the half of S.H.I.E.L.D. agents that ended up on her team and they spread out, covering the back floors. She's done this more time than she could count – especially since she started working under Fury's orders and not the KGB's – and usually her senses aren't on this high of an alert because, dammit, she could do all this blindfolded, but the lack of sleep in the past few weeks is finally getting to her, and Natasha can't help but think how she used to go even longer with a handful of hours of sleep and that all this is just a sign of how long she's been in the spy business.
Well, she did start young.
Natasha shakes the thoughts out of her head. She's got to put her head in the game and get the job done – maybe even set a personal record – and then she can allow herself some rest.
A few soldiers come after her, guns already aimed in her direction, and she takes out her widow bites, ready to sting. Natasha knocks five of them out in the span of twenty seconds, playing with the last remaining one just for a few more minutes, somewhat reminiscent of how a spider plays with its food. Well, Natasha's got to keep true to her name.
"My floor's covered, Captain.", she tells into her earpiece. "I'll start checking the computers now.", she continues towards the computers lined up in the center of the room. The static in her ear tickles softly and she knows Steve's about to reply.
"I've gotten a bit tied up, but you do your magic.", he says and Natasha can almost see him prepare his shield. Maybe he'll even take off the cap, for dramatic effect.
"Take your time, I've got this.", she sets up the memory stick and begins the download, making sure to put an extra virus that will take effect once she's done with collecting all data.
Everything's silent until the download hits 72%, at which Natasha hears a ruffling behind her, maybe two minutes away. She furrows her brows before speaking into her earpiece. The agents she had with her were supposed to secure the hallway, but the noise sure as hell doesn't sound like them. "Why isn't the damn hallway clear?", she yells into the comm. "Someone take care of it!"
She gets no reply.
"Anyone copy?", she speaks again and a slight sense of dread comes over her; not from being left alone, she's done enough solo missions worse than this one, but because she doesn't know just how many people she's lost. And – judging by the silence in her earpiece, they've all been either killed or left immobile.
Natasha prepares her guns and widow bites before giving a glance to her back to check her batons. They're still there and ready, which is convenient since she's getting low on bullets and – depending on the number of men approaching the room – she's about to run out real soon.
About a dozen men enter the room and she looks them over quickly, calculating her odds. Natasha smirks, then before speaking up, her guns at the ready. "Hello, fellas.", she says and steps forward. "Any last words?"
She doesn't let them answer and instead simply starts shooting, taking three of them down. She lets go of the one gun that ran empty and moves the other to her dominant hand, even though she's equally as good of a shot on both hands. She uses the widow bite on the other arm as well, until she runs out of bullets on the one gun she had left. For a moment, she thinks of using the guns strapped to her thighs only to remember that those are only night night guns, and she already almost used all their power on the way to the room.
"Shit.", she whispers before grabbing the batons on her back and extracting them with a jolt. She nods her head to the side as about another five men come towards her. She's got them almost all down when she can hear the slight sound that announces a completed download. She takes care of the two men left – leaving them unconscious on the floor – before she moves to grab the stick, planning to then just make her way out and find Steve.
She turns around to take the stick and when she takes it out and puts it in her pocket, she smiles. But, before she can turn back and head to the door, a gunshot fills the air. And then another, and another. She thought she got them all – she was sure. They were all on the floor, they were all immobile. She fucked up.
She fucked up and now she had half a dozen bullet holes in her abdomen. Her suit didn't protect her well enough, and she's sure the bullets that managed to find their way into her body were currently doing irreparable damage.
"Natasha!", Steve's voice fills her ears as she goes to stumble to the ground, managing to hold herself up only a while longer, her strength already going away.
Steve knocks out the shooter with his shield before the asshole can shoot him and then makes a beeline for Natasha, whose body is about to hit the floor. He catches her, and she can see he really did take off the cap.
Well, he always did have a soft spot for the dramatics.
"Get an extraction team in here, now!", Steve yells into his comm. "Black Widow is down. I repeat, Black Widow is down. She's in need of medical assistance.", he then stops yelling and turns to face her. She knows what she's supposed to do; keep her eyes open, make sure to stay awake and not let the fatigue take over, but right now..
Maybe that vacation came earlier that she thought.