A/N: Hey fanfictioners. I hope you are enjoying my story so far and I'm sorry I haven't updated as soon as I wanted to. Please favorite, follow, and review my story. Natasha shot Pepper in the side, because she wasn't going to help her. She then knocked her unconscious so she couldn't alert anyone. She ran out of the room at full speed, needing to get back to the red room. They would punish her if she didn't, well, she would get a worse punishment. She had been gone for a few more hours than they expected, so she has to find a different way home.
Natasha didn't know these halls, so finding a way out was going to be difficult, but not impossible. Noticing the air vents, she silently slipped into them and crawled her way to what seemed to be a good direction. Going up, to get to the first floor, she heard the "hulk", or as Pepper called it. She looked down through the air vents and saw two people attempting to calm the creature. A man in armor and a red cape, along with a man in a red metal suit where getting torn apart by the hulk. The green monster seemed to be enjoying himself, and she couldn't see any weak points to hit if needed. She felt the urge to go and help them, but she quickly put this thought away. Weakness and mercy weren't good, they led to bad punishments, ones some don't live through.
She continued to crawl through the vents until she found the place that she thought would lead outside, but it was closed off. These people aren't as dumb as I thought. Closed air vents, locked doors, these people really mean locked down. She jumped into the elevator and pressed the floor she originally was on. She needed to gather supplies if she was going to get out. But she didn't know the elevator wasn't working, and soon it would be a death trap of memories.
Tony called Thor immediately when he found out the Hulk had to swallow the liquid, because getting it to do something would be tricky. So when Thor got there, Tony had a plan, a bad one, but a plan all the same. He told Thor to distract the Hulk, so he could shoot the stuff into its open mouth. Thor did as he was told, and he was doing great. Tony had a shot lined up and was about to shoot, but Jarvis told him about Pepper, and his world stopped. Knowing by leaving, he would be endangering Pepper because she might need medical help. It would be hard to get her out while an angry Hulk is in the way.
Since captain wasn't doing anything important, he decided he had to trust him to save his Pepper, the most important thing in his life. If Pepper left him, he would breakdown and never be able to love again. His days would consist of grieving for her, his one perfect thing, one he couldn't let go of.
"Captain, I need you to go help Pepper now!"
"Ton-"
"She is dying so get your ass over to her RIGHT NOW!"
"On my way."
Tony let out a sigh of relief when he heard captain say that. Maybe things wouldn't be so terrible today. That thought was quickly proven wrong seeing as Tony missed a shot, Thor was getting beaten badly, and the widow is gone. Today was currently being destroyed by a widow, who when he sees again, will suffer for what she did to his beautiful, wonderful Pepper.
Concentrating on the task at hand, he started to line up a shot. The Hulks mouth was open and he was going to fire in three, two, one…..
Steve found his first aid kit and rushed to the basement, where Pepper was currently bleeding on the floor helpless.
When he finally got there, later than he would have wanted, she had a pool of blood forming around her with no sign of stopping. He rushed to her side and found a side wound, with what appears to be from a bullet, and a head gash. He immediately went to her side, attempting to stop the bleeding. He put pressure on he wound while he said reassuring to her. "Pepper stay with us okay. Tony wouldn't be able to live without you. You are not allowed to die now. You still have many happy years left." But his efforts were in vain, seeing as how Peppers heartbeat was slowing down, and he couldn't do anything.
"Tony, she is going to die unless you get her to a hospital right now!" Steve shouted to Tony through the earpiece. Steve knew people died all the time in a war, and those people are innocent. But the only problem was, who was considered innocent, and who was the war with.
Tony took the shot and it landed in the hulks open mouth. He chewed it, swallowed, and smiled. Then captain told him about Peppers condition, so he rushed down to her, no caring whether it worked on the hulk or not. He saw her lying there in her own pool of blood and picked her up. She might not make it, the chances where slim to none, but he had hope. And it seemed to be the only thing he had lately that would stay, the only thing that never left him. Because everybody left, and sometimes without saying goodbye.
He flew Pepper to the nearest hospital. When he walked in, a nurse looked up saw her, her eyes widening. She immediately gathered more people to help Pepper and Tony out her on a gurney, holding her hand.
When the nurses came back moments later, he was shoved out of the way. The nurses started talking and checked for a pulse. When they found the faint beating, they gave something to help her breathe and decided she needed surgery. Tony tried to go into the room with them, but someone stopped him.
"You can't go in there, sir"
"But my Pepper is in there! I have to make sure she stays safe!"
"The nurses will do better if you aren't distracting them." The nurse stated calmly.
"But I love her." Tony said in a low voice, his words cracking a little bit. He gave one last longing glance to the door, and then retired to the waiting room. He sat in an uncomfortable chair, waiting for her. He would always wait for her.
He didn't know how long he was waiting there until his friends came in, still messy from battle. They all sat down with him, minus the widow, which was a good thing. If she was here, he would kill her, especially if Pepper died in surgery.
They all sat in silence until Pepper came out of surgery. Rushing to the room they put her in, they all piled in and sat there, happy the widow didn't kill her.
After a couple minutes, they left the room and went back to the tower. Tony was left all alone, and dosed off sitting in the chair, holding Peppers hand tightly.
A nurse came in a little after midnight and checked on Pepper. Tony jolted awake and decided to go home to change, planning to grab the ring along the way. Walking out of the hospital, he flew on autopilot all the way home. He went into the shower, letting the warm water run down him. Getting out, he changed into a pair of new jeans with a band t-shirt and put the ring into his pocket. Grabbing a set of keys, he drove back to the hospital bearing gifts. He had bought her a teddy bear holding a heart saying I hope you feel better along with her favorite candy. Knowing when she got out of the hospital she would want a change of clothes, he brought her a comfy shirt with a pair of nice jeans and black sneakers. He didn't think she should be wearing five inch heels after being in the hospital. Sitting back down in the chair, he continued to wait for her to get up, which shouldn't be long.
Natasha pressed the third floor, when an image flooded her mind of her and a man with blond hair and grayish eyes. He was smiling at her and they were talking in a café. She wasn't on a mission, they were just talking. Sitting outside, feeling the breeze and the summer sun. Music was playing somewhere, a soft tune she liked. He looked at her with adoration, and then reached out to hold her hand. She put hers out and they sat there, looking at each other and holding hands, like an average couple.
Another memory hit her and she grabbed her forehead. A sharp pain developed and continued to grow. Images started flooding her head, her with a man, her in the red room, her in a battle. Her life was flooding back, but it was like a different person. She grabbed onto the wall when dizziness started to overtake her. The floor started to draw closer quickly and she soon found herself lying in the corner, attempting to crawl through the elevator doors. She slowly found herself in her room, and she started to remember more. Her personality slowly started to melt away and was replaced with her old self, the Natasha who loved Clint and worked for shield. Putting her head on the floor, she allowed the memories to flood in, making her who she is, not who the red room wanted her to be.
The memories stopped and the nightmares started. She was slowly losing consciousness by the second. Fighting to stay awake was a lost battle, but she was able to mutter two words before she fell into a hole of nightmares, "I'm sorry". She was sorry for everything, for what she did to Pepper, for what she did to Bruce, for what she did to the group, and most importantly to Clint. She would never be able to marry him or start a family; it just wasn't what she was taught, or what she would be able to give. She loved him but she didn't know how to be normal, and it was something Clint wanted.
After half an hour of waiting, Pepper opened her eyes and grabbed her head. Tony grabbed her hand and held it, talking to her.
"How do you feel? Are you in any pain?"
"Yes, my head hurts. Tony, what happened?"
"I'll tell you later. But right now I am calling in a nurse to help your headache." Tony stated as he pushed the button, calling a nurse. Pepper noticed the basket Tony had mad for her. Smiling, she reached for it when the nurse came in. She had blond hair in a ponytail with light brown eyes and was about five and a half feet tall. She was wearing dark purple pants and shirt with black sneakers.
"Hello Ms. Potts. I am Amber and I am just going to ask some questions, okay?
"Yes."
"Do you have any aches or pains?"
"Yes, I have a headache."
"On a scale of one to ten, how bad is it?"
"It's a five." Then the nurse nodded and asked a few more questions before leaving to get pills for her headache. Pepper once more looked over to the basket and picked it up, setting it on her lap. She looked at Tony and smiled.
"Thank you Tony, this was very thoughtful of you."
"Only the best for you Pepper." He paused and stared at her seriously. "Pepper, when Natasha shot you, I thought I was going to lose you. You were limp when I found you and lost a lot of blood, I thought you were dead. That made me realize how much I need you and love you. You always made sure everything was okay, and you comforted me when I needed it, and you stayed with me when I did stupid things." He chuckled at the thought. Pepper was tearing up and he continued. "I love you and I can't live without you. Virginia Potts, will you marry me?" He stared hopefully at her and pulled out the ring. Pepper was now crying and shaking her head. "Yes, I would live to."
He pulled her into a hug and wiped away her tears. Slipping the ring onto her finger, he found a true moment of happiness.
The nurse walked in and gave her a pill and some water. Amber told them that Pepper would have to be in the hospital for a few days until she went home. She needed lots of rest and to stay hydrated. They nodded and talked until Pepper said she was tired. Tony nodded and stayed with her until she drifted off to sleep. He left the room and drove home, happiness flooding him even through the damage caused by the widow. Pulling up into the driveway, he turned off the car and stepped into the house. Jarvis said "Sir, Miss Romanoff has passed out in her room and should get medical attention.'
Stunned, Tony raced to her room and found her on the floor convulsing. He told Jarvis to call an ambulance and to wake the others. Tony held down Natasha's arms and legs. She soon had him off her. The others came soon and they started to pin her down, much to her protest. They could hear sirens in the distance, but he knew she wouldn't make it. Her body was still convulsing and she needed help now. Running and getting a sedative, he injected her with it, hoping it would work. It took effect fast and she soon better. They picked her up and moved her to the couch. The ambulance came and the medics rushed up, knowing of her previous condition. They burst through the door, immediately spotting Natasha. They moved her onto the gurney and started to move her out of the room. She started to flail and as they hurried to the ambulance, she just got worse. When they got to the hospital, her heart was beating at unhealthy levels. If she kept this up, she would die.
Arriving at the hospital, she started to slow down. Her heartbeat started to drop and she stopped moving. They all sighed in relief, not knowing what was actually happening to her. It was all happening in her head, the nightmares that would kill her from inside to out, affecting her mentally first, then physically. The pain she was suffering right now was unknown to everyone, and it would kill her leaving no trace.
Natasha was in an unknown location, not remembering being captured. She had a blindfold on with her hand and feet tied with thin, strong rope. She heard footsteps echoing off the walls and assumed she was in a large room. The footsteps got louder and her blindfold was ripped off revealing Clint.
A/N: I hope you liked this chapter and I feel the need to tell you that Natasha is currently in her own head, she is not actually doing these things. I don't want you to get confused about that.
