Chapter 4
"Nothing lasts forever."
Natasha hadn't been kidding when she said the next seven months would be hell. Every day, The Avengers gathered at the gym and performed excruciating exercises, practiced fighting with their weapons and armor, and sparred. Sam and Wanda would be paired up against Natasha; Rhodey and The Vision with Steve. They would alternate every other day, changing up their fighting styles and combat skills. Natasha and Steve showed no mercy during training. The less experienced Avengers would crash into their beds with their bones feeling broken and bruises coating their bodies. The only exception was The Vision, who Steve organized special one on one practices with, due to him being an android.
Throughout this time, Wanda and Natasha grew closer as friends, and their meetings in the gym at night became more and more frequent. Some days they would sit on the hard floor in silence, while others were spent recounting painful and happy memories. Wanda was surprised when Natasha talked about Red Room, since she barely ever opened up about her past. Nevertheless, talking with the older woman helped dull the pain Wanda still felt from Pietro's death, and Natasha taught her how to use that pain to propel her into fighting harder and longer. Wanda also became good friends with The Vision, since the two of them were more different than the rest of the Avengers.
As for The Winter Soldier, mutterings of his presence would pop up every now and then, and usually Steve would take Sam with him to investigate. Steve never went overboard with his searches, but Natasha kept an eye on him just in case.
Overall, the team grew stronger than ever before. The shaky tower of trust they'd had before had strengthened into a seemingly unbreakable one. Any mission involving the entire team usually ended in success; they moved flawlessly and easily with each other. Boundaries were respected among them all, and orders were followed through, whether they be given by Steve or Natasha.
Natasha kept them all in line and handled all the paperwork and evaluations. Hill visited more frequently, something that made the ex-Russian assassin a bit suspicious, but the agent usually left on good terms. There was one incident however, during which the other Avengers had to keep Natasha from smashing Hill's face in. No one knew what the problem was between the two women, and were too afraid to ask. Not even Wanda could get it out of Natasha, which was surprising, since the two were basically best friends.
Press was going well too. Stark had made several appearances in public, and spoke about some of the things The Avengers were doing. People were still wary of the team, but the hatred after Sokovia had lessened somewhat. Natasha joined him once at a conference, but her presence sparked some rumors, and security personnel had to escort more than one person from the area. A year ago, she wouldn't have cared. But she was co-leading The Avengers now, and the ever increasing publicity was getting on her nerves. The government claimed to be leaving the team mostly alone, but Natasha still noticed agents tailing her every now and then. While she was an expert at being undercover and evaded them easily, the rest of the team needed some practice, which resulted in a three week long undercover and espionage training session. Steve and Sam complained constantly, but everyone was secretly relieved to get a break from all physical work.
As for missions, they were kept low-key and quiet; something that Steve made sure of. Sometimes it would just be Natasha and Wanda on an op, since they could easily sneak in an out to receive Intel, whereas the others preferred barging in and eliminating their targets on the spot. Not many incidents occurred, but Wanda broke her wrist during one mission while heading to extraction, and Sam almost fell to his death when his wings malfunctioned. Other than that, The Avengers were making really good progress in terms of publicity and proficiency.
Although no word was heard from Bruce, Thor had visited once during winter, eager to meet with Jane, who was now working part time at the Avengers Facility with Eric Selvig. He recounted his experiences in Asgard over beer and a large meal at the dining hall. The god had fun messing with the new members of the team, and teased Sam mercilessly. Unfortunately, he couldn't stay long since things were heating up slightly in his home realm, but left the Avengers cheerful and refreshed.
Steve was incredibly proud of the work his team had accomplished, and when Stark invited them to the tower after a mission, the two actually got along. Natasha introduced Wanda to Pepper, and the three women had an off day, going around New York and forgetting about all their problems for once. Natasha had always respected Pepper, seeing as the woman had to put up with Tony and run one of the largest industries in the world, yet still was able wake up with a smile and incredible posture. It was a nice experience for Wanda specifically; Pepper was basically the exact opposite of Stark and extremely supportive and kind.
However, nothing does last forever, something that became clear when everything The Avengers accomplished in the past year cracked and crumbled into pieces after one heart-wrenching, painful, and catastrophic mission.
Short chapter, but it's the last one before things start to heat up and move a bit faster. :) Thanks for reading, and let me know what you think.