Chapter 3

The thick fog that hung over the city had slowly begun to lift. Natasha slipped between baggage carts and moved towards one of the planes. The door was open and the stairs were deployed. The faint sound of a vacuum cleaner drifted from within the cabin. The appliance powered down and Natasha heard the dull thuds of the cleaner walking along the planes aisle.

She took a chance and scaled the steps. She entered the cabin and glanced down the aisle. The cleaner was readjusting the safety instruction sheets. He didn't seem to have noticed Natasha.

She raised an eyebrow at his appearance. A tight black tank covered his upper body. He had a reflective vest tied loosely around his waist. His pants matched his top, they were black but with panels of leather and were extremely form-fitting. 'Not like any cleaner I've ever seen.' Natasha thought to herself.

The cleaner continued down the aisle, checking each seat before arriving at the opposite end of the cabin and disappearing behind a curtain. Natasha waited until the ripples in the fabric settled and turned to enter the cockpit. As soon as her hand gripped the handle the set of stairs outside the plane disappeared from view and the planes door closed with a sharp snap.


Outside one of the small plane windows, he saw her moving across the tarmac and returned to the area at the back of the plane. He turned on the vacuum cleaner and set it down outside the curtain that separated the area from the rest of the plane.

He eyed the bright yellow reflective vest, which was hanging up beside the doorframe, and decided to tie it around his middle. Then, he positioned his quiver and bow next to the doorframe. He grabbed his communicator, secured it to his belt and re-entered the cabin.

Quickly, he switched off the vacuum and repositioned himself with his back to the entrance and fiddled with a safety instruction sheet. He barely heard the feather light steps that climbed up the stairs but, that didn't matter. Throughout his years of training he had been taught the subtle changes that can occur in an environment when another person is present.

Listening for her breathing he continued down the aisle. With each step the atmosphere changed, the tension growing thicker and her gaze, stronger. Her eyes seemed to bore into his back. He could almost feel the pupils burning perfect circles in the fabric of his top. Before he knew it, he was back at the curtain.

Calmly, he swept past the curtain and gathered his bow and strung his quiver around his shoulder. He grasped the emergency door lock, took a deep breath and pulled.


Natasha whipped around and clawed for her gun on her thigh only to meet Clint's eyes and arrow staring right back.

"Put your hands behind your head and get down on your knees." Clint's stern voice rebounded off the cabin walls. Natasha stared insistently at the mystery archer and slowly dropped to the ground, entwining her hands behind her head.

He lowered his bow and moved towards her. There was no point in making a mess, if he could avoid killing her he would. "I have been following you for months." Clint growled as he removed the gun from her holster.

"Looks like you finally caught up with me." Natasha's smirk that accompanied her response defied the tense atmosphere within the cabin.

"You have no reason to be happy, under the authority of SHEILD and ally associations I now place you under arrest and..." Clint was interrupted by a small giggle that escaped Natasha's lips. Clint's patience was wearing thin. "Like I said you have no reason to be happy, you are in SHEILD custody now." Clint's teeth gritted in an effort to restrain from slapping the look off her face.

"I'm well aware of that, Agent, but are you really going to apprehend me like that?" Natasha cocked her head, "You have been looking for your time to strike for months, don't let a little government organization ruin all the fun. How did you imagine this would go in your head? A fast paced chase through the streets of Dubai or an ambush on the West African plains?" Natasha kept her voice steady, praying her rouse would last a little longer, "I don't know about you but doesn't this all seem a little domestic? You are trained to kill and yet here you are, your weapon lowered."

Clint's grip tightened around his bow and he took a breath, ignoring Natasha's attempts to distract him. He began again "Under the authority of SHIELD, I place you under arrest for the murder of three operatives and direct violation of Clause 1113. You will be taken to a secure SHIELD facility and be provided a trial date where your fate will be decided by the Board of Directors." Natasha's smile fell as Clint motioned for her to stand. He gathered her hands in his and clicked a pair of handcuffs around her wrists.

As Natasha stood bound by her metal restraints Clint warned her. "There is no way out so I suggest you stay here."

Clint began to pace backwards towards the curtain to retrieve his pack. He raised his communicator and said "Come in, Agent Williams. Agent Williams, come in." When he received no response he tried again, "Agent Williams, the target has been detained. Urgent assistance is required." Barton waited but, he was met only by static. "Agent Williams…"

Clint turned slightly in order to grab his pack from behind the curtain and before he could react Natasha flew at him. She leapt down the aisle and swung her cuffed arms which made contact with his left temple. Clint hit the floor with a hollow bang that echoed against the cabin walls.

Natasha stood over him. "Rule number one; never turn your back on your opponent."

Whilst the agent was dazed and gripping at his temple, Natasha grabbed the keys from his pocket.

"Rule number two; never handcuff a prisoner when their hands are in front of them." She stepped over Clint and reached behind the curtain.

"Rule number three; get better backup." She said as she nodded towards the communicator which was still crackling with static.

"And you call yourself an agent." She laughed as she flipped the emergency door latch and swiftly moved towards the other end of the aisle.

The door slid open and the stairs lowered slowly and when it was finally open Natasha was blinded by the winter sun that had been hiding behind the clouds then CRACK! CRACK! CRACK!