A/N: This is based on the Black Widow background from the comics. I do not own any of these characters.

The People Who Stand By You

Then and Now

Now

"If this was the last birthday party you were going to have..."

The words echoed in her head as Natalie drove away. Twisted and swirled in her gut in a way she thought could no longer feel.

As the churning turned to nausea, she pulled the car over to pull herself together. He's dieing. She took a deep breath, willing her stomach to settle. Shield suspected this. She knew that going in. But it was different to hear it from his own mouth. To hear the fear, to know he dropped all of those walls to ask her an honest question.

She answered him with honesty.

"I would do whatever I wanted to do..."

Fury needed to do something now.

Then

It was easy to get hired by Stark: an outfit just barely professional, high heels, and a display of competence followed by a show of strength. Then she just stayed indifferent to his flirting (at first) and she was hired.

She was supposed to gain his trust. Get the intel on the reactor.

Seducing him was never the plan.

Now

She tells herself she's being useful, working with Pepper and leaving Tony alone with Coulson.

She feels more useful wading through security at HammerTech. Feels a wave of relief sweep over her when she hacks into the computer and, after resetting Rhodes suit, notices Tony's vital stats are working their way back to normal.

And when he defeats the drones, she feels...proud. Yes, that's definitely pride. She wants to wrap him in a hug and tell him so (but she won't.)

He would never let her. She lied to him and now he doesn't like her. But he might be starting to trust her.

She tells herself that it is enough.

(It is. Almost.)

Then

She found herself enjoying his company. She never thought she would. But obviously he didn't have a reputation as a ladies man for nothing. She let him talk her into bed. It was strategic, she told herself.

After, he dressed quickly. He spoke quietly but firmly, denying everything, threatening her job if she told anyone of this, offering her money for silence. She agreed to keep quiet for a raise and to continue her job. He left without looking back. She told herself she didn't care (but she sort of did).

She decided to use this experience as leverage later.

Now

The report she gave Fury was 80% bullshit. It read exactly how he expected it to. Telling him Tony wasn't cut out to be an Avenger. She knew he was. She just cared to much to let him.

Iron man yes, Tony Stark no. It was the only was she could protect him.

Then

She would have preferred to have a menstrual cycle interruption but the Red Room had taken that from her already (so she thought) or to have felt a flutter of movement in her abdomen. Instead, she realized she was pregnant while leaning over a garbage can on the street after getting a whiff of the meat roasting in the deli she just passed, trying desperately not to vomit.

Now

"I can close the portal..."

And she did. On Rogers' orders. She didn't even hesitate to shut him on the other side. She loved him and she didn't hesitate. (She would never love anyone else the way she loved him.)

Just before it vanished, she saw him fall through the portal. Something like hope welled up within her. When she heard his voice on the comms, she cried. Just a little. A few tears with no one to see but Selvig and he wasn't paying any attention to her. He was alive.

(She could never tell him.)

Then

She considered how to play this. Whether to appeal to the business man or to the Shield consultant. One thing was for sure, this baby was not going home with her. The Red Room would turn him into a tool, like her. She might not have a way out but he did. His hands were clean.

He would be safe. Anthony would be safe.

She finally decided to start with "Howard, this is your son. I can't keep him." and go from there. She'd use his reactions to judge which story to tell.

The last journal was half empty. Tony flipped halfheartedly at the rest of it while the film ran in the background. Howard on screen called for his attention before he got to the back cover, slightly thicker than the front, dried glue seeped through to the last page. Didn't know what that back cover concealed.

Until he came back. After the Expo, he repacked his father's trunk. He kept out a couple of things that would be useful. When he moved to pack that last journal away, he noticed the back cover creaked awkwardly. Pulled at it until the glue gave way. Pulled out the photo tucked away inside.

It was a picture of his father sitting at a desk with Natasha hovering over his shoulder holding a legal pad. She had blonde hair, but otherwise looked the same. His father was young. He flipped the photo over.

Howard Stark & Nadine Radcliffe; Summer 1969

Well, well. Quite the mystery. Calling to Jarvis, he began digging for the truth.