Hi Everyone! So this is an idea I've had bouncing around for a while. I decided I'd post it, and if the response is good I'll continue it.
(Next update will be "The Cost of Victory"! I promise!)
Love,
TMG4899
When Tony had instructed all the Avengers to meet at (weird name of expensive formal restaurant), they weren't surprised. They also weren't surprised when, following Tony Stark, they bypassed the line outside the door and were seated at a large table almost instantly (Tony seemed to have that effect). Out of all the Avengers, only Natasha was missing. Even Thor had come, though he had insisted that he bring Jane Foster along.
When everyone had been seated and food and drinks had been ordered, Tony got everyone's attention.
"Now, I'm sure you all know why we're here," he stated, in a matter-of-fact tone.
The others simply stared at him blankly.
"Oh, for the love of…" he muttered. "Recently, there has been an extended absence of our favorite red-haired assassin."
"So?" Steve asked. "Fury told us she was fine."
"And you're going to trust his word?" Tony questioned, and then paused. "I did a little research and found out that while 'Natasha Romanoff' might very well be her real name, it's certainly not her only one," he announced.
"She's an undercover assassin, Tony. She probably has hundreds of aliases," Bruce pointed out.
"True, but then I had Jarvis run searches on all of the names. Tonight, at seven, Miss Cathryn Shepherd has a reservation here for two people," Tony revealed proudly. "I arranged it so that they will be sitting in that table right there." He gestured to an empty table directly within eye's view but just out of earshot. "I then attached a listening device to the table and hooked it up to my phone and some earpieces. It's completely undetectable." He passed tiny earpieces around the table.
"There could be a dozen Cathryn Shepherds in New York." Clint said. "How can you be sure it's the right one?"
"Just a hunch," Tony answered with a smirk. "It's six forty-five now, so she should be here any minute."
Now, the Avengers were curious and made minimal small talk, waiting to see if the plan would work.
At six fifty-seven, a passive waitress led a girl to the table and seated her. She couldn't have been more than fourteen with electric blue eyes, pale skin, and waist-length black hair that had barely-visible purple streaks in it. She wore a simple black dress that fell to her knees with black and white striped leggings underneath it.
A small crackle was heard in the earpieces, but then a young voice became clear.
"Just water, please."
The waitress asked if she wanted to order food yet.
"Not just yet. I'm meeting a friend so I'll wait."
The waitress nodded and left.
The Avengers listened closely until they heard, "There you are, Nat! It's so good to see you!"
The company looked to see and, sure enough, the girl had stood up and was embracing one Natasha Romanoff. Clint started to rise, but Steve held him back.
The girl and Natasha sat down across from one another. The team almost didn't recognize Natasha for the feminine clothing she donned. She was wearing a long green shirt that was split into pleats at the bottom and she wore navy capris that were edged with lace.
"How are you?" Natasha queried.
"Oh, I'm fine. Busy as ever, of course, but the real question is, how are you feeling?"
The Avengers saw Natasha give a small smile. "As well as can be expected. It all feels so strange, and the nausea can take some getting used to."
Jane opened her mouth in an 'o'. She knew exactly why Natasha wasn't currently on missions. The shock on her face gradually grew into a secret smile.
Meanwhile, the rest of the Avengers had been making small talk, so as not to appear suspicious. Unfortunately, they were a bit distracted, so it came out like this:
"So, uh... you been injured lately?"
"Huh?"
"Good, I'm glad to hear that. What about the new fireplace?"
"Here, have some more bread."
At the other table, Natasha and her friend, whose name was Via, were completely unaware that they were being observed. Nat trusted Fury to keep her secret, and also to keep her friends off her trail. This was something she needed Via's help with, and knowing the Avengers, they would undoubtedly try and stop her.
She watched Via closely and notice the girl favoring her left hand, even though she was primarily right-handed. Via met her eyes and smiled.
"Don't worry," she told Natasha. "It's just a sprain." She cleared her throat and hesitated. "You remember the psycho dude who tried to take over New York a couple years ago year? Loki?"
"Yes…"
"So, he may have contacted me with a, um, proposition."
Natasha frowned. "Business?"
Via shrugged. "Seems to be a bit more than that. He was quite…agitated when I spoke to him."
"Via, I wouldn't mess with him," Natasha cautioned her friend. "He's a liar and you should trust him about as much as I do. Which would be not. At. All."
The Avengers were staring at one another open mouthed.
"We need to talk to her," Steve said.
"Which one?" Clint half-joked.
"Both of them," Tony answered him.
Natasha suddenly realized why the voices she was picking up faintly were familiar. She felt under the edge of the table, her fingertip brushing the listening device.
Why did I ever doubt they'd come looking? She silently questioned herself. She nudged Via's foot and mouthed, Bug. Via raised an eyebrow and nodded in a direction, at a table that was partially hidden from their view. A table that had captured her subtle attention the moment she had been seated.
Natasha covertly glanced. Around it were sitting the Avengers, leaning in to the center of the table and whispering, most likely about her. She gave Via an affirmative nod of the head. Silently, they both rose from the table and walked out the door of the restaurant without even so much as a "goodbye."
"I still can't believe we lost her." Unfortunately, Clint really could believe it. When it came to disappearing, Natasha Romanoff was practically the best of the best. The thing was, Clint had gotten to know her pretty well over the years and he prided himself on being the only human being who could find her at times. This time was different, though, because she left none of her usual tracks.
By this time, everyone else had gone home and the only ones remaining were Tony, Steve, and Clint. All of them were disheartened that they'd lost the opportunity to speak with their friend. Also, of course, there was the fact that they'd had a chance to interrogate the girl (Via, apparently) about Loki's whereabouts these days. Thor had been intrigued that he hadn't recognized the girl. After what happened with the Chitauri, Asgard had kept an extremely close eye on Loki and who he visited and communicated with. They had no records of him contacting a girl named Via. Thor had promised to look into the situation extensively when he returned home later.
Clint had an idea and returned to the restaurant with Tony and Steve in tow. He asked for the manager, Roosevelt Flores. Mr. Flores, as he was called, was young and new to the position of manager.
"Hello, sir. How may I help you?" Mr. Flores asked Clint.
"Earlier this evening, a woman had a reservation for Cathryn Shepherd at 7:00. She was meeting a friend, a girl, called Via. We were wondering if you had any other information about Miss Shepherd or her friend."
Mr. Flores seemed a bit flustered. "I am sorry, sir, but we are not able to give out personal information about our patrons."
Clint leaned in closer, "Look-"
"The girl Miss Shepherd was with is my… daughter. She's been missing for a few hours and I wish to find her," Tony interrupted Clint. Poor Steve looked absolutely appalled, and even Clint looked surprised for a moment before shrugging. It was believeable. With Tony's habits... "Now, I could buy this restaurant and fire you on the spot if you don't comply with our wishes."
Mr. Flores blinked before nodding slowly and walking over to the computer. He typed in a passcode before starting to scroll through the list of reservations. He found what he was looking for and clicked.
He rubbed the back of his neck. Clint watched him closely.
"Here it is," Mr. Flores said. "Miss Cathryn Shepherd had her name in for 2 dinner guests. Miss Olivia Messenger, er, sorry, Miss Olivia Stark was meeting her here," He finished uncomfortably.
Tony kept up the act. "Is there a phone number or anything for this Cathryn?"
Mr. Flores nodded again. "Yes, there is. Here," he picks up a piece of paper and scrawled a phone number on it, then an address. "This is the information she gave us. I wish you well with your search, Mr. Stark. And don't worry, I won't tell anyone about your secret."
Steve, still speechless, followed Tony and Clint out of the restaurant.
Roosevelt Flores left the front desk and let himself into the break room, located behind the dessert counter. Via and Natasha sat on chairs, awaiting his return.
"Thank you, Roosevelt. I owe you one," Via thanked him profusely. Roosevelt held up his hand.
"Nonsense, Miss Olivia. This is what you pay me to do, after all."
Cathryn, or rather, Natasha watched the interaction between the two with interest. She spoke up. "You're sure they took the bait?"
"I certainly hope so, Miss Shepherd," he answered.
Natasha grimaced. "Call me Natasha, please. I've never liked that alias all that much." However, out of her many identities, this was the hardest one to trace because she used it so seldom.
Mr. Flores nodded once and excused himself from the room after bidding farewell to Via. He ensured she had a spare key to the restaurant and showed them the back door, where they could exit when they were finished.
Via laughed at Natasha's facial expression, which quite suited her feelings about the name Cathryn Shepherd. "I guess 'Cathryn' isn't on your list of girl names then?"
"It's not that I have anything against name itself; I knew a woman once with the name and she was not pleasant. Besides, I told you already, Olivia: You're adopting the kid, so you're naming it," Natasha responded quickly.
Via laughed again. "Speaking of kids… Tony Stark's daughter? Are you kidding me?"
Natasha snorted, "I don't know Via. You are pretty smart. Though, I will admit, you are definitely smarter Tony Stark."
"The sad thing is, it's totally plausible!"
Tony circled his car back around the restaurant, parking in the shadows and opening the windows slightly.
"That 'Flores' guy was lying. He knew more than he was telling us," Tony explained when Steve questioned him. "We're going to follow him when he leaves."
"So, now we get to be stalkers." Clint announced this almost happily.
"Whoah, wait! Look," Steve pointed to the back door, which had opened. To their shock, Via stepped out with Natasha in tow. They embraced and parted ways after saying their goodbyes.
The men watched them for around thirty seconds before Clint jumped in.
"I call Natasha. You two follow the other one. Meet back at the Tower with your hostage."
"Excuse me, 'hostage'?" Steve inquired worriedly.
"We want to talk to Natasha and we need to question the other girl about her business with Loki," Clint rationalized.
It was at this point that Tony's phone rang. As this was Tony, his phone was the car. It was automatically answered when the number was recognized as Bruce's cell. He didn't even bother with a 'hello.'
"Tony, after Thor left, Jane told me something she thinks you might find interesting. About Natasha."
"Mhm, well, spit it out Brucie."
"Tony, please be serious. Jane strongly suspects that Natasha is, well… expecting a baby."
All three men, at this point, were completely slackjawed.
Clint was running as fast as he could across the New York rooftops to catch up to Natasha. A baby was… well, a baby was big news. He wondered silently why Jane thought that Natasha was pregnant. Maybe it was that comment about the nausea.
He saw her below him on the sidewalk, walking swiftly. He dropped down behind her, knowing full well not to surprise her. He'd done that once before. It didn't end well for him at all.
He cleared his throat and Natasha whirled around, glaring at him through narrowed eyes.
"What do you want, Clint?" She demands an answer.
"Well, you've been absent for a couple of weeks-" he stammers.
"So, you start stalking me," she challenges him fiercely.
"Hey, the restaurant was Tony's idea. We didn't even know what he was planning until we met him there," Clint defended himself. He then took a deep breath. "Um, Nat, Jane has this crazy hypothesis about why you've been gone-"
"It's true. I'm pregnant, Clint."
A few minutes later, Steve and Tony apprehended the girl, Via, as she made her way down a deserted alley that ran behind several tall buildings. Of course, they didn't get to interrogate her because Tony sedated her with a tranquilizer dart.
"Stark!" Steve admonished him.
"Oh please, now we can get her back to the tower without any fuss," Tony argued. "You get to carry her."
"What? A twelve-year old too heavy for Tony Stark?" Steve said half-jokingly.
"No, but if she wakes up, I want her to see you first."
"You're very thoughtful, Stark."
The girl on the ground stirred, her eyes flickering. "I'm sixteen…" she muttered softly, barely conscious.
Tony didn't miss a beat, responding quickly, "Well, you look like you're twelve. And I'd be willing to wager you don't weigh more than 110."
The girl moaned a bit from the headache the tranquilizer was giving her. She attempted to push herself off the ground, though not very successfully. "I'm... 102, and p-proud of it," she finished in a yawn. "Now, please, let me go," she demanded this in a weary voice before collapsing in a heap on the sidewalk.
"Yes, yes, very intimidating. Steve, grab her before the paparazzi show up."
Eventually, everyone arrived back at the Tower. Nat had followed, but only after she learned that Tony and Steve were pursuing Via. Which she was not happy about. And made this well-known to Clint.
After greetings, cold ones on Natasha's part, and after the still-unconscious-Via had been settled on the couch, everyone sat to hear from Natasha.
As they watched her, Natasha took a breath.
"Okay. It started out as an interrogation mission. The objective was to get the info we needed from two men. Should have been easy in, easy out. Until it went wrong and there were five men."
"One of them is…" Clint started, but trailed off.
"One of them is the father," Natasha finished his sentence. Via mumbled something next to Natasha on the couch. Natasha smiled. "About a eight weeks later, I started feeling very nauseous and dizzy. Certain things would make me sick and other things would be comforting. Then I started vomiting. This lasted for about a month before I decided to go to the Health Center at HQ. They told me that I was expecting.
"Fury was the second person I told personally. The first was Via. Fury put me on immediate maternity leave. Over the span of the next two months, I would drop in to see you and pretend everything was normal. You, I think, started getting suspicious. So, I stopped coming in at all."
Tony watched her carefully, only now noting the slight bump under Natasha's shirt, clearly meant to cover any evidence. He wanted to know exactly how far along she was. "By my math, Natasha, including the time you've stopped seeing us, that totals about… seven months?"
Natasha nodded. "Seven and a half. Almost eight."
By this time, Via had raised her head and was listening intently. "Approximately 31 weeks last Monday."
Tony pointed at Via. "And you. What do you know about Loki?"
Via gave him a snarky look, then turned to Nat, serious again. "Nat decided early on that she didn't want a baby. She was going to abort. Fortunately, I found her and talked to her. We were able to work something out. Kind of like a deal."
"What are the terms of this deal?" Steve probed.
Natasha took a deep breath. "A closed adoption. Via gets the kid. I want nothing more to do with it than that. I promised I wouldn't endanger it, and Via is taking care of everything. Medical expenses, hospital stay, and apparently she is insisting on giving me some sort of monetary compensation for it."
At this statement there was a volley of voices hurled at both Natasha and Via. The protests were strong and loud. Natasha rolled her eyes and focused her attention on Via.
"This is why I didn't want to tell them."
Let me know what you think! Thanks for reading!