Chapter 1: Out of The Ashes

Hey guys! So this is the start of my new fanfiction Rising Phoenix! I just want to warn you, there will be OOCness since I'm adding in a new factor to the story that will have an effect on some people's characters, especially Natasha's. So sorry in advance to those that don't like OOCness! I'm only writing in 3rd person for this first chapter. Anyways, I hope you enjoy! –Cleo

Disclaimer: I don't own the Marvel universe or anyone in it, just my Ocs and any plot twists.

"Agent Romanoff, report to Director Fury on the bridge."

Natasha looked up as she heard her name called on the intercom. Sighing, she put down the knife that she had in her hand before gathering her things and leaving the training room. She wondered what Fury wanted. She hadn't been with SHIELD for very long, so he still hasn't trusted her to go on any missions by herself. She was surprised that Clint's name hadn't also been called.

Because Clint had been the one to bring her in they were made into partners. She was still wary of the agent, but he was growing on her. He gave her another chance at life and decided not to kill her even though it was his mission. He was either very intuitive or just plain stupid. Either way, it was a life debt that she would work to repay.

Walking down the hallway she arrived at the door to Fury's main office. She pressed the button on the side of the wall and the door slid open. Stepping inside she walked up to Fury's desk.

"Agent Romanoff, reporting for duty sir." Natasha lifted her hand up in salute as she looked at him. Fury sighed as he placed a manila folder on the table and pointed at the chair in front of him.

"Sit down agent." He ordered as he folded his hands in front of him. Natasha pulled out the chair before sitting down. Fury pushed forward the file on the table so that it was in front of her.

"The reason I called you here is within this file. I want you to infiltrate a certain organization and gather as much intel as you can." He opened the folder and Natasha had to bite her tongue to keep from gasping. On the front page was a name that she knew very well. KGB.

"But-."

"You are the one with the most knowledge on this. I don't want to hear any complaints. I understand that this is very close to you, but I need you to put that aside and complete this mission." Fury gave her a stern look with his good eye to let her know that she couldn't back out of this. The cold assassin stayed silent for a moment before reluctantly nodding in agreement. She was trained to put her emotions aside. She could handle this.

In reality she felt a whirlwind of emotions. This was her life before SHIELD. This was the red ledger that she would bare for the rest of her life. Memories filled with agony and pain filled her head as she forced her face to maintain a neutral expression. Showing vulnerability was a weakness, and Natasha hated being weak.

Pushing aside all darker thoughts, Natasha went into mission mode. "If I'm infiltrating, shouldn't I go with someone else? It would be safer to have backup." She suggested. The KGB bases were highly secured locations and even though she knew she was good, even she would have trouble getting into some. Fury shook his head before flipping to the next page in the file and handing it to her.

"You aren't going to need backup for this. It's purely a stealth mission and I feel that others would slow you down. You'll be infiltrating a smaller base on the outskirts of Russia. It isn't nearly as protected as the other bases, but I've heard news that they're doing something big there. Rumors have been going around that the Russians are beginning to mess around with serums again. I want you to gather as much intel as you can on Project Revival and report back. You leave at 0600 tomorrow. Dismissed." She nodded as she took the file and stood up. Just as she was about to open the door Fury's voice stopped her.

"Romanoff, I'm trusting you with this mission. Don't disappoint me."

"We're nearing the drop zone agent. ETA, 5 minutes." Natasha nodded at the pilot as he looked at her over his shoulder. Standing up, Natasha grabbed onto one of the overhead bars and tightened the straps on her parachute. She was being dropped off on the edge of Sakhalin, a large island off the coast of Russia's mainland. When Fury said that the base was on the edge of Russia, he really meant the edge.

"We are now over the drop zone, drop when ready agent!" The pilot yelled over the sound of the wind as he lowered the quinjet's hatch. Natasha walked to the edge before leaping straight out. She squinted her eyes as the wind rushed passed her face and she tucked her arms to the side of her body while pulling her legs together. She nosedived towards the ground at top speeds.

Looking down at the tree filled area, Natasha scoped for a good landing spot. Finding one, she aimed towards the small opening. She focused on the fast approaching earth.

5000…

4000…

3000…

2000…

NOW!

Natasha's body jerked as she yanked on her parachute cord and her freefall slowed to a slow decent. She bent her knees as her feet hit the ground and pushed a small button on the side of her parachute, retracting it into its bag. Natasha quickly ripped the bag off of her body before going towards the nearest tree and climbing it. Once she got to the top, she scanned the area to get her bearings. In the distance to the north of her was a large building made of stone. It had walls surrounding the base with barbed wire on top.

Natasha spotted a few guards around the area, but Fury was right. Compared to other bases, this one was practically wasn't guarded at all. She quickly jumped out of the tree and ran to the base. When she arrived at the wall she practically ran up it before pulling herself up with both hands and casually getting over the barbed wire. Her suit prevented annoying pinpricks like this from getting through.

Hiding behind some boxes as a guard walked by, Natasha glanced over at the main base. It had plenty of windows along its side, so she knew how she was getting in. She silently crept towards the base, hiding from the occasional guard. All in all, this might be one of her easiest assignments. Natasha arrived at the side of the main building and, after glancing around, ran up the wall and climbed through the window.

Looking up, she came face to face with a scientist. He gaped at her before reaching frantically for something at his waist. Natasha never let him get it. In a split second she had pulled out her gun and shot the poor man straight in the head.

"Nothing personal, you were just in my way." She stated as she bent down and rummaged through the man's lab coat. It was apparently Natasha's lucky day since she pulled out a key card from the breast pocket. Standing up she took a good look at her surroundings. It appeared to be a lobby of sorts with stairways at the sides.

Natasha sighed as she shot a guard who happened to walk into the room at that moment. She hid the bodies behind a desk before walking up the stairs and arriving at a long hallway that had doors everywhere. She pulled out the keycard before entering it into the slot on the first door. "What's behind door number 1?"

After nearly half an hour of opening doors, surprising random people, and dispatching of them via a good kick to the head or a gunshot, Natasha could honestly say that she was a little annoyed. She had hacked into a dozen computers and had not found anything useful on Project Revival.

All she knew was that it had to do with enhancing molecular control with a serum. But, that meant nothing if she couldn't find out the effects of the serum and who the subject was. There were some images on one of the computers, but the subject's face was blurred out. The only thing that Natasha could make out was that it appeared to be a girl with blonde hair.

Busting into another room, Natasha quickly scanned her surroundings. Unlike the other rooms this one was basically empty. A large bookcase stood by the wall to her right and a desk stood in the middle of the room. It seemed as though the desk was completely untouched, as if it was just for decoration. Maybe it is. Natasha mused as she stepped over to the bookcase. On the floor were faint track marks, evidence that something had been repeatedly moved across it.

Natasha put her hands on the side of the bookcase and pushed hard. Her body jerked forwards as the bookcase gave way and moved to the side. Behind it was a staircase leading downwards. After barricading the door to the room so no one could get in behind her, Natasha stepped forward cautiously before beginning her trek down, the bookcase closing behind her.

The staircase led to a large set of double doors. There were two guards standing by the doors and a slot in the middle for a keycard. Natasha quickly pulled out her gun and shot the first one. The second man looked in alarm at his fellow guard before getting similar treatment. Moving the bodies away from the doors, she pulled out the keycard and slid it into the door. She expected to see more scientists and computers. She did not expect to see something, or someone, else.

Lying in the middle of the room was a girl strapped down to a table. An IV was connected to the girl's wrist and her body was completely bare, revealing crisscrossing scars all over. But, the most striking and strange thing about the girl was the pair of white wings coming out of her back.

Natasha stared in shock before a loud alarm rang throughout the base and shook her out of her reverie. She cursed under her breath before shooting the stray scientists in the room. Natasha had been so distracted by the girl that she didn't notice the other people in the room and they managed to trip the alarm. She had approximately two minutes to get out of there before reinforcements came.

Running to the center computer, Natasha hacked into it and skimmed over the files. These ones seemed to have much more data on Project Revival, so she jammed a USB into it before beginning to download everything off of the hard drive. While that was going she went over to the girl.

The girl was the one on the cover of the project's files. Getting a closer look at her, Natasha realized that this girl couldn't have been more than 8 years old. The girl was covered in dirt and dry blood, and her ribs were poking out. Natasha was reminded of her own time in the Rooms and hatred filled her mind. She shook her head. I have a job to do.

Natasha unstrapped the girl's limbs from the table and pulled the IV out of her arm. Immediately after the needle left her skin the girl's eyes flew open. She rolled off the table quickly before crouching down and getting in a defensive position. Natasha recognized the look in her eyes. Fear. Pain. Vulnerability. But, what Natasha found interesting was the defiance she found. This girl was only a child, but she had a fighting spirit and would not just lie down and die. Natasha liked that.

"W-who are you?! Stay away from me!" The child shouted as she backed up even more and bumped into a desk. Natasha held up her hands in a placating manner.

"Calm down, I'm not here to hurt you. I'm here to help." She stated in a soothing voice. The sooner this kid calmed down, the sooner they could get out of here.

The girl shook her head. "That's what the strange men said…I don't believe you." The girl glared at Natasha as tears filled her little green eyes. Even if Natasha would forever deny it, her heart broke a little for the child. She knew what it was like to not trust anything or anyone for fear of the betrayal that was sure to follow. She knew what it was like to have no one. Natasha crouched down and let a small half-smile cover her face.

"I'm here to get you out. I agree, these men are bad. But, I promise that I won't ever hurt you. I'm here to protect you. You want to leave, right?" The girl hesitated before nodding slowly. Natasha held out her hand.

"Then come with me." The girl stared at Natasha's hand for a minute, before she stood up and cautiously reached out her hand. Natasha had to hold back her surprise as the girl's wings seemed to retract into her body. Interesting…

The girl grabbed Natasha's hand with her tiny one. Natasha smiled again before standing up and leading the girl to the doors after she grabbed the USB. She could hear footsteps pounding in the halls above and she knew that the time was up. Natasha looked down at the girl again.

"I'm going to need to pick you up and get you out of here. It's going to get bumpy and it might be a little scary. Do you trust me?" She asked. The little girl looked up at Natasha before a little, shy smile spread across her face.

"I think so…but, what's your name?"

"Natasha. What's your name?" Natasha replied as she picked up the little girl with one hand and pulled out a gun with the other. The little girl's face lit up with pride as any 7 year old's would.

"I'm Elena!"

After meeting little Elena, Natasha carried the girl out of the room and up the stairs. She managed to jump out of a window before guards entered the room. Natasha landed on the roof outside in a crouch and, after checking Elena to make sure she was okay, she ran off the roof and landed on the ground.

Guards began shooting at her and she immediately took cover behind some boxes. Putting Elena down, she peeked over the box before shooting down some of the guards. Elena crouched onto the ground and covered her ears as the loud gunshots filled the air. She was scared, but Tasha promised to protect her, so she knew that it'd be okay.

Natasha glanced down at the crouching girl before resuming her attack on the guards. She noticed that the guards were thinned out and realized that this was her chance to get out before the next wave of guards arrived. After shooting one last man, Natasha bent down and picked up Elena. She turned and immediately ran at the walls surrounding the base. Natasha ran up it before pulling herself the rest of the way up with one hand. She jumped up and over the barbed wire and landed on the soft dirt outside.

Clicking the button on her earpiece, Natasha began talking.

"This is Agent Romanoff. Mission completed and awaiting pickup." Elena looked up at Natasha in confusion, probably wondering why she was talking to herself.

"Roger that agent. Evac ship awaiting at drop zone." A deep voice reported through the communicator. Natasha immediately took off towards the area that she had been dropped off at. She weaved through trees, running from the loud footsteps that she heard trailing behind her. The men were approximately 30 seconds behind her. When she got to the quinjet she'd have to go and go fast.

After a minute of running, Natasha finally arrived at the clearing where the jet was waiting for her arrival, a rope ladder dropped down. She grabbed onto the ladder securely with one hand while sticking her feet onto the bottom of the ladder. She secured her grip on Elena before signaling the pilot to take them up. Immediately they were ascending into the air.

The men below had finally caught up to them and began shooting at Natasha who barely flinched as a bullet grazed her arm. The ladder began to retract into the jet, carrying Natasha and Elena into it. Natasha only allowed herself to relax slightly once they were safely inside the jet and flying off. Elena, who had been hiding her face in Natasha's shoulder, cautiously leaned back and looked Natasha in the eyes.

"Is it over yet?"

Elena fidgeted under Fury's gaze as he examined her carefully. Her wings were back out after Natasha had requested that she expose them. Natasha herself was sitting in a seat opposite of the child, her arm wrapped in gauze. Director Fury tilted his head.

"What's your name kid?" He questioned firmly as he leaned on the table in front of him. Leave it to Fury to interrogate a kid. The girl in question looked up at him.

"I'm Elena, why do you have that patch over your eye? It's weird." Elena stated as she put one hand over her left eye, mimicking Fury. Maria Hill, who was standing in the corner of the room, put her hand over her mouth as she hid a smile of amusement. Natasha even cracked a smirk at the motion. Kids were refreshing with their bluntness. Fury merely stared back.

"I like it. Do you have a last name Elena?" Elena's head tilted in confusion.

"Last name?" she scratched her head as she considered the notion. Natasha realized that Elena might need an example. She leaned forward.

"Do you have a full name? My full name is Natasha Romanoff." She explained as she pointed at herself. Elena stared at her before her gaze dropped to her lap.

"I-I think that I used to. I can't remember much…" the little girl mumbled as she rubbed her forehead. Fury just nodded.

"That's to be expected I suppose, considering where you were. How old are you?" he continued. Elena thought about it again before shrugging. She didn't know that either. Natasha decided to fill in that blank.

"I managed to look into some of those files that were on the computer. Apparently, she's 7 years old, birthdate unknown." She stated. In the corner of her eyes, Natasha saw Maria's gaze harden. Even Fury's normally neutral stare gained some anger at that statement.

Natasha could understand, she saw the scars on Elena. The notion that someone had done all that to a little girl was despicable. Natasha had experienced things like that first hand and she wouldn't wish it on her worst enemy, let alone a little girl. And, even if both Maria and Fury were normally stone cold, they weren't heartless.

Elena, oblivious to the tension in the adults, began talking. "The bad men said something about young kids being the best specimens. They said something about my blood too, but they used big words…" She scratched her head at the thought. Natasha let out a wry smile.

"Adults do that kiddo. You'll get used to it, and someday you'll speak the 'big words' too." She stated. Elena smiled at that and began swinging her legs.

"Elena, now that you're out of that place, people will come after you. You're going to have to stay here to be safe, do you understand?" Fury cut in as he gave Elena a serious look. She stopped swinging her legs and stared back.

"Are you going to hurt me too?" She questioned as her body tensed up. Fury shook his head.

"No, we want to protect you." He stated simply. Elena still seemed suspicious. Natasha's eyes widened slightly in surprise as Elena looked up at her with a questioning gaze. The little girl seemed to trust Natasha and therefore was looking to her for guidance. Getting over her shock, Natasha nodded, signaling that it was okay to trust Fury. Elena's gaze shifted back to the Director and she nodded.

"Good, now we're going to set up for one of our agents to take care of you-."

"What about Tasha?" Elena cut in with a questioning gaze. The other three people in the room balked in surprise, Fury hiding his the best while Natasha's eyes were wide. Maria looked like she was expecting that. Natasha wasn't surprised by the nickname. She guessed that her name was too long for the little girl so she decided to shorten it. But, Elena's question took her off guard.

"Natasha?" Fury questioned, equally as surprised. Elena nodded vigorously.

"Yeah, Tasha promised to protect me, so shouldn't she stay with me?" Her head tilted to the side. Fury seemed to be deep in thought for a moment before he stood and began to walk out the door.

"Agent Romanoff, I wish to talk to you in private. Agent Hill, entertain Elena." He stated as he walked completely out the door. Natasha nodded before she stood up and began to follow. Elena looked up in horror before jumping out of the chair and latching herself to Natasha's leg.

"Elena? You have to let go." Natasha stated as she tried to pry the 7 year old off of her leg. Elena shook her head.

"No! The bad men will come back without you! Don't leave!" The girl was nearing hysterics. Natasha glanced at Maria helplessly, but the woman seemed just as lost. Natasha kneeled down next to the girl and placed a hand on her head.

"Hey, I won't be gone for long and you're safe here. The bad men can't get to you from here. Agent Hill over here can protect you too just in case, okay?" Natasha said as she smiled comfortingly at the girl. Elena looked up with tearful eyes as she sniffled. The little girl held up her hand and stuck out her pinky finger.

"Pinky promise?" Elena asked as she looked Natasha in the eye. Natasha smiled as she lifted up her hand and locked her larger pinky finger with Elena's.

"Pinky promise." She nodded. Natasha stiffened as Elena suddenly launched at her with a hug. She couldn't remember the last time she'd ever had a hug. Natasha was far too dangerous and damaged for that type of tender connection, but here was this little girl fully trusting and innocent. Natasha's arms were out in front of her, frozen. But, she slowly let her arms curl around the girl in front of her in a warm embrace.

Elena was smiling brightly as she backed out of the hug, and Natasha remembered that Fury was waiting for her outside. She stood up stiffly before rubbing Elena's head and turning towards the door, smiling as Elena glared and fixed her dirty hair.

Note to self: get that kid a bath. Natasha mused as she opened the door. Stealing a glance at Maria, Natasha glared at her as she realized that the woman was smirking smugly having seen the whole thing. She quickly walked out and shut the door behind her, ignoring Maria's chuckles.

"Took you long enough agent." Fury stated as she stepped outside.

"Sorry, Elena threw a little fit." Natasha shrugged as she explained. Fury nodded before a little smirk covered his face.

"Oh I know, saw the whole thing." He looked at her with his eye as he pointed at the one-way mirror that showed what was going on inside the room. Natasha held back a groan. Of course he saw that…

Natasha quickly began to change the subject. "What did you want to talk about sir?" Fury looked back inside the room at Elena as she and Maria began to converse.

"Elena seems quite attached to you agent." He stated simply. Natasha looked back in the room. Maria was smiling at Elena who seemed to have become comfortable with the woman. But, Natasha could see that she was still tense.

"And, you also seem to be attached to her." Fury mused as he looked at her. Natasha realized that a subconscious smile had crept onto her face and she quickly schooled her expression.

"No need to hide anything agent. This might make things a little easier in the long run." Fury reassured her as he saw her tense up. Natasha looked over at him in confusion before understanding filled her eyes.

"Sir, you can't seriously be thinking of-."

"Oh, I'm doing more than just thinking Romanoff. That little girl won't be happy with anyone else I set her with. Plus, I think you want it just as much as her. I think this could be good for you." Fury placed his hand on Natasha's shoulder as he continued. "She'll need someone to protect her and you need someone to protect and connect to."

"Never took you as the sentimental type."

"Natasha." Fury's serious tone and use of her full name told her that he wasn't fooled by her attempt at avoiding the main issue. Sighing, Natasha leaned on the wall.

"What do you expect me to do? I can't take care of a kid." She shook her head. Fury turned back towards the glass window.

"She needs someone Romanoff. I had some agents run a face scan, DNA scan, anything to find out where she's from. She's nowhere. The kid literally has no records anywhere except from that base that we found her in. Apparently even the main KGB offices had no idea the kid even existed. This was apparently a secret experiment done independently by that one base, which explains why it was so poorly guarded. She has no relatives. She's also going to be hunted down for what she is, what she has. We're not sure exactly what effects the serum she was injected with will have, but we know that those wings were not an effect of the serum." At that, Natasha looked at him in surprise.

"What? But, then where did they come from?" She questioned as she looked at the dirty white wings that spread out behind Elena. Fury shook his head.

"That's the thing, we have no idea. That's why we're trying to keep this under wraps. If people found out that some girl had wings? She'd be hunted for her DNA alone. Now that she has some super soldier genes as well, the kid is like a walking gold mine for scientists. The decision is up to you Romanoff, but just know that you made a promise to Elena that will be better kept if you're her guardian." Fury finished as he stared her in the eyes.

Natasha stared back before turning to Elena who had somehow gotten her hands on some crayons and paper from Hill. She was coloring a few figures on the paper. There was a tall man with a dark circle over one eye, a woman that had a brown circle on top of her head (Natasha was guessing that it was Maria's signature bun), another woman with curly red hair, and Elena was currently working on a small child. The thing Natasha noticed was that the red-haired woman was holding the child's hand.

Natasha considered it all. Elena had no family and needed someone to protect her. But, was Natasha the right person for that? She wasn't going to lie, she found herself caring for the girl and wanting to protect her. But, she felt that her hands were too unclean, too red to hold such an innocent girl in her care.

Natasha looked at Elena and she felt her walls weaken. Maybe, just maybe, this child could be the white in her life. Natasha looked over at Fury with a sigh, and nodded. Fury smiled and patted her shoulder reassuringly.

"Let's go tell her the news. She'll be happy."

"-and then I dreamed that the uni-bunny fell off of the chocolate train, but it was okay because he landed on the marshmallow frog. But, the marshmallow frog ended up going smoosh." Natasha and Fury walked in just as Elena finished describing her dream to Maria who was smiling the 'aw, you're so cute even though I have no idea what you're talking about' smile.

Natasha raised one eyebrow before looking over at Maria. "Uni-bunny?" she questioned. Maria just shrugged.

"Unicorn/bunny." She explained. Natasha nodded in understanding. She'd never understand the mind of a 7 year old. Fury just ignored the whole thing before sitting down in a chair.

"So, we've decided what we're going to do." He waited until Elena was actually looking at him before continuing. "You will stay with Agent Romanoff during your time at SHIELD. She'll be your guardian/mentor." Elena's eyes lit up with excitement as she smiled up at Natasha brightly before a thought struck her and she cocked her head in confusion.

"Men…tor?" she tried out the word. Natasha was guessing that she didn't know what a mentor was, so she stepped in.

"A mentor is a teacher of sorts. I'll be helping you out in SHIELD when you don't understand certain things." She explained. Elena nodded in understanding as she started swinging her legs again. After that was explained, Fury continued with other business.

"Elena, now that you have people after you, you're going to have to learn to defend yourself. It's completely up to you, but do you want us to train you to protect yourself?" He questioned as he leaned forward on his elbows. Natasha and Maria were paying close attention to Elena for her answer. This would decide the girl's future.

Unlike before, Elena completely understood this topic and what it meant. She went into deep thought about it as she stared at her knees.

"I want to be able to help people, not just protect myself. Could I do that too?" Elena looked Fury in the eye, and for the first time, he smiled at her.

"We give you the skills you need, but it's up to you what to do with them. You won't be allowed to actually get missions until you're 18, but we can teach you to fight, and if you want to, you can become a great agent who protects others when you're older." He promised. Elena stared at him for a moment before smiling and sticking out her hand.

"It's a deal!" she stated proudly. Fury nodded before reaching out his hand and shaking Elena's. After taking back his hand he called other agents into the room.

"Someone get this kid a bath and a sandwich!"

As Elena was taken away to get cleaned up and fed; Fury, Natasha, and Maria went to the labs to see if there was any news on the blood they had gotten from the girl.

"It's seems that most of it is comprised of the same coding as regular people. There are some differences of course, but we can't determine how some of these will affect the girl. Out of all the differences we found, we've only been able to distinguish the effects of four.

The first affects her healing process. She'll heal nearly three times as fast as a normal person, and this ability has the potential of growing as she gets older. The second is a DNA coding for her wings. Like we suspected, she has had her wings since birth. They weren't the work of some serum.

The third is her enhanced strength. We aren't sure exactly how strong she is, but we're assuming it has the same effects as the Black Widow's serum unless they've upgraded since then. Fourth, the serum also affected her brain. She can learn twice as fast as a regular person. In other news, we haven't been able to find out what 'enhancing molecular control' does yet. We're guessing that the girl will display some abilities later that we won't be able to find out just from bloodwork." The doctor finished his explanation and looked up at Fury. Natasha herself was curious on what abilities Elena would possess, plus she was very curious on how Elena could've been born with wings.

"Thank you doctor, you're dismissed." Fury nodded. The doctor nodded back before leaving the room. Fury opened a file that was given to him by the people that went through the Project Revival USB.

"Romanoff, did Elena ever mention remembering anything from her past?" He questioned as he gazed down at the papers. Natasha shook her head.

"No, all she said is that she didn't really remember much." She shrugged, wondering where he was going with this. Fury just nodded before handing her the file.

"I think this might explain why." He stated. Natasha took the file and looked through it. Her eyes widened in surprise. Project Revival had started 4 years ago, meaning that Elena had been there for most of her life.

"How is this possible? Elena acts like any normal kid would, besides being a little smarter than most." She questioned. Elena acted like she had a normal childhood besides the whole serum thing.

"When the scientists were working on Elena it seems that they programmed normal child behavior so that she'd know what it looked like. They planned on sending her out when she was older as a spy, and they wanted to make sure that she knew how to act. She knows what normal children have and do, but she's never actually experienced it. It's like knowing the book definition of what a friend is, but never having one." Fury explained.

Natasha nodded in solemn understanding. She knew what it was like to be programmed like that, and she hated that it had happened to Elena ever since she was a toddler. Glancing over at Maria, Natasha noted that the agent had schooled her expression. Fury sighed before switching topics.

"Anyways, that was just so you understood her situation. On other news, Romanoff, you'll be in charge of Elena's training. I want you to teach her hand-to-hand combat and have her specialize in a weapon of her choice." He stated. Natasha nodded in affirmation before a thought crossed her mind.

"Where will Elena and I stay? My room here is too small." She questioned. Her room here was a small space with only a bed, closet, and bathroom inside. It was standard issue for the agents here. Fury nodded in understanding before tossing something her way. After catching it, Natasha realized that it was a set of house keys.

"We've set up a house just outside the base within walking distance if you need to get here quick. It's fully furnished and child safe, and don't worry about security we've got that covered. You'll find directions to the house inside a new minivan we got you. You're stuff has already been moved over and Elena should be waiting in the garage for you. You two have fun now." He waved over his shoulder as he began to walk away with Maria.

Natasha looked between Fury and the keys in her hand. This seemed too planned out. Seeing the smirk on Maria's face Natasha put two-and-two together.

"You knew right when I brought her in that I'd be taking care of her, didn't you." She sighed as she looked at Fury's retreating back. He merely looked at her over his shoulder with a smug smile.

"I'm not the director for nothing Romanoff."

After arriving at the garage Natasha instantly spotted Elena. Now that the dirt and grime was washed off of the girl, she had beautifully golden blonde hair that practically glowed in the sunlight. Her skin was fair and her green eyes seemed to be brighter than before. When she's older this girl is going to be a little heartbreaker. Natasha mused. Elena was currently describing another one of her dreams to some agents animatedly.

"-and then the goose smacked the polar bear on the head and said, 'You can't eat that! Trix are for kids!" Elena shouted as she mimicked a goose flying around by flapping her arms. The agents around her laughed before one of them picked her up and lifted her into the air, flying her around. Elena let out squeals of delight as she flapped her arms around more and the agents all laughed again. Natasha smiled at the scene before she schooled her expression.

"Agents, don't you have work to do?" She questioned as she crossed her arms. Immediately everyone was silenced and they ran off to do their work in fear of getting on the Black Widow's bad side. Only Elena was left as she looked up at Natasha in confusion.

"Why'd you do that?" She asked. Natasha observed that she didn't sound upset, merely curious.

"Well, they need to work and we need to get going." She explained as she grabbed Elena's hand and began walking towards the silver minivan that Fury had gotten her. Elena shook her head.

"No, not that. Why'd you frown like that? You should smile more!" Elena declared. Natasha looked down at the girl and thought about how to explain this.

"Elena, I'm not a very open person most of the time. People here are scared of me for what I did before, and I don't trust them either." Natasha explained gently. Elena frowned as she considered this.

"But, you're not scary. And, just because you don't trust them doesn't mean that you can't smile!" She protested. Natasha snorted. Elena just didn't know how scary she could be, but she let the girl's innocence be. Elena huffed at being scoffed at and she crossed her arms before looking pointedly away from Natasha.

Natasha sighed. "Look, I'm sorry for laughing at you. I promise to try and smile more, okay? I'll try, but I can't promise that I actually will smile more." She stated as she rubbed Elena's head again. Elena quickly fixed her newly washed hair before smiling up at Natasha.

"I forgive you! And, it's okay if you don't actually smile a lot as long as you swear to try." She stated as she rose up her pinky again.

"Pinky promise?" Elena questioned. Natasha rolled her eyes, but smiled.

"Is this going to become a thing with you kid? Fine, I promise to try." She promised as she locked her pinky with Elena's. Elena nodded in satisfaction before running up to the minivan and jumping into the car seat that Fury had so kindly added for her. Natasha rolled her eyes fondly at her enthusiasm before she walked over and buckled the girl in.

Natasha walked over to the driver's side and got in. There was a GPS in the middle of the dashboard and someone had already entered the address of their new home.

Home…It was a strange concept that Natasha would have an actual home. Elena was new to the whole thing too, so they could experience this together. The whole drive there Elena was asking where they were going and also the infamous 'are we there yet?' question. Natasha guessed that they hadn't told Elena about getting a new house, so she stayed silent to surprise the girl.

After just a couple minutes of driving they arrived at the house. Since the SHIELD base was already on the edge of the city, the house was on a little hill overlooking part of the city. It was a two story house that looked like it was a good size. Natasha parked the car in the driveway before getting out and unbuckling Elena from her seat.

Elena practically flew out of her seat and ran up to the front door. She waited on the front porch, bouncing up and down excitedly. Natasha shook her head with a small smile before walking over and taking out her keys. She picked Elena up and covered her eyes with one hand as she opened the door with the other.

Stepping inside, Natasha closed the door behind her and set Elena down with her eyes still covered.

"Ready?" Natasha asked as she bent down next to the girl. Elena nodded vigorously, still bouncing. Natasha slowly pulled her hand away, revealing the house to the girl who gasped in excitement.

They were currently standing in a large entrance area with a curved staircase to their left leading to the second floor. Through the entranceway was a large, carpeted living room with a leather couch, flat screen TV, and a fireplace. To the left of the entranceway was a formal dining area. To the right of the entrance was a room filled with instruments. Natasha was guessing that they wanted to be prepared in case Elena got interested in that stuff.

Elena ran through the living room to look around more. To the left of the living room was the kitchen. It had a marble island in the middle with the appliances being lined up on the far side of the room. At the end of the large kitchen, towards the back of the house, was a table with a window behind it that had a great view of the city. Windows like that also lined the living room. There was a porch outside also.

Elena ran back towards the staircase and ran up to the second floor, Natasha sighing tiredly as she followed. Upstairs there was a hallway that had two doors on either side, with all of the doors leading to fully furnished rooms.

There was a master bedroom at the beginning of the hallway which Natasha quite liked. It had a nice red and black theme going on with plenty of places to hide weapons. Elena's room had her name on the door and inside her room's color scheme was light blue and white. She had a big bed and little stuffed animals lined the wall. The other two rooms were plainer and would probably be used as guest rooms.

At the end of the hallway was a large toy room filled with stuffed animals, dolls, and games to play. Natasha had to admit, whoever designed all this was really good at what they did. Elena fell in love with everything and smiled up at Natasha brightly.

"Is this our home now?" She asked excitedly. Our home. Natasha was suddenly hit with the reality that she would be taking care of Elena. They would be living together and Elena would have needs that Natasha would have to fill. It will be a lot of work. But, somehow, as Natasha looked down at the little girl in front of her, it would all be worth it. She smiled as she put her hand on Elena's head.

"Yeah, welcome home kiddo."

That's a wrap on chapter 1! I hope you enjoyed and will continue to read! Constructive criticism appreciated!