Natasha's first reaction when she started looking into Barnes was revulsion. Very few men had ever gotten the best of her in battle, yet the man in the picture had beaten her. She'd never known his given name. They called him the Winter Soldier, and he never missed a target. Her one and only encounter with him had been shortly after she joined Shield, and she still wore the scar where he shot her.
This was impossible. Rogers said his friend died in the war, and even if he hadn't, the man should be pushing a hundred by now. Was he given a serum of his own? Did Rogers know? Natasha immediately dismissed that thought. Whatever James Barnes was involved in, Rogers was clueless about it. She decided the Winter Soldier note would go straight to the back of the book, and closed the tab on her screen just as Steve walked into her office.
"Am I disturbing anything?" he asked.
"Just a little research. What do you need, Rogers? Having trouble figuring out the kruieg?"
"No," Steve blushed, "that one was surprisingly easy. Actually, I was wondering if you'd mind coming to my place? Not a date, I'm not trying to move in on Barton's girl or anything, but Hill arranged for some of my personal things that were on exhibit to be delivered later and," he paused, "I could use a friend. I'm not sure what I'm going to find." He stopped talking and shook his head. "I'm being ridiculous. Forget I asked. I'm a grown man. I shouldn't be afraid of couple of boxes."
Steve turned to leave, but Natasha stopped him. "Wait, Rogers, I'll go with you."
Steve turned, a smile on his face, "You will? I don't want to impose."
"Sure, it'll be fun. I'm sure it'll give me more ammunition to tease you with," Natasha replied. "And, I could get the lead I need," she added mentally.
"I really appreciate it, Romanoff."
They weren't at the apartment more than a few minutes when the delivery arrived. Steve carefully opened the first box. It was mainly pictures. Steve held one up and smiled. "This one hung over the fireplace. It's my ma and pa. It was taken when they were newlyweds." Natasha nodded then Steve picked up another. "Me and Bucky at the World's Fair, that was a good day. See the two girls in the background? One was supposed to be my date, but they both preferred Buck. I didn't mind though. They weren't really my kind of girls anyway."
Natasha noticed a change when Steve picked up a picture of himself with Howard Stark and Peggy Carter. "That's Tony's dad." Natasha watched as his fingers delicately touched Peggy's face then he looked up with a serious expression. "Do you know what fondue is?"
"I do," Natasha replied, slightly puzzled.
"It doesn't have anything to do with relations between a man and a woman, does it?"
Natasha tried not to laugh. "Where'd you get that idea? It's food. We can try it sometime if you want?" she offered, remembering Fury's order for her to work harder in her attempt to help Rogers adjust.
Steve's face went red. "No, I'm not fonduing with anyone's girl. I was just remembering a conversation from the war. Thanks for being here with me." Steve grinned as he picked up the next picture. "Dum Dum is the one in the middle. I didn't even know this picture existed." He flipped it over. "Donated by Annette Dugan-Clark, that's Dum Dum's daughter."
Natasha just nodded. She already knew that from her personal research, but Rogers didn't need that information. The second box had a note that read CONTENTS OF STEVE ROGERS' PACK AT THE TIME OF HIS DISAPPEARANCE. Steve held the note for a moment before gently folding it and sitting it aside. Natasha waited patiently while he took out normal odd and ends a soldier would have carried in his pack. Her heart started to pound as he gently lifted a little rag doll-her rag doll.
It took a moment for her to find her voice. "What's this?" she asked, desperate to know why her doll would have been among the items he carried throughout Europe.
"A reminder," he said solemnly before carefully placing the doll back into the box.
"Of?" Natasha prompted.
"I don't want to talk about it," Steve replied with a little more venom than she expected.
"And, that only makes a spy more curious," she replied, picking up her doll for the first time in nearly seventy years.
"Let's just say, I was hoping I'd get to return it to it's owner, but I never got the chance."
"Why not?" she pushed. She was so close to getting her answer.
"Because I failed!" Steve shouted, yanking the doll from Natasha's hands. "I'm sorry. It's just a sore subject, okay. I was in Russia with the Howling Commandos and Peggy. We shouldn't have been where we were and we were trying to get back on course when I saw a house burning. I looked up and saw a little girl in a second story window. She looked so afraid. I got her out then I lost track of her. This doll is all that is left of Natalia."
Natasha fought back her need to scream. He remembered her name. It took her a moment to regain her composure. "I'm not sure how rescuing a little girl translates into failing," she finally said, hoping to drag out more information.
"I tried to rescue her parents but they were dead before the fire started. There was a bullet hole in each of their heads. By the time I got back to where I left the girl, she was gone."
"I'm sorry. I've got to go. I just remembered something I was supposed to do for Fury. I know I said I'd-"
"It's okay. I understand," Steve replied.
Natasha made it out the door and halfway down the hallway before the nausea overwhelmed her. Sharon was walking into her apartment, so Natasha made a beeline in her direction. Sharon looked around before letting her inside. Natasha went straight to the bathroom and threw up.
When she came out, Sharon was standing there with a cool, wet wash cloth. "You shouldn't be here," Sharon warned. "If Steve sees you-"
"He won't," Natasha replied, shaking her head. "He was preoccupied. He didn't see me come inside."
"What was that about?" Sharon asked, nodding slightly toward the bathroom.
"I guess I picked up a bug," Natasha lied.
"You never get sick."
"I rarely get sick," Natasha replied, and that part was true. Her serum was a nice protection from germs, but it wasn't perfect.
"Hmmm," Sharon replied, "well, I guess we should figure out how to sneak you out."
Natasha nodded. "How's it going with Rogers? Any progress on your mission?"
Sharon rolled her eyes. "It shouldn't be my mission. I was supposed to be security and back up."
"What's the problem? I'm sure you've had the training."
"It's complicated. I'd just rather not be the one who played Captain America, okay? Besides, Steve Rogers would never be interested in a nurse who lives in his building. You've heard the stories about Peggy Carter?" Sharon asked. Natasha nodded. She'd found quite a bit out about Peggy throughout her investigation. "You'd have been the smarter play. Fury should have known better."
"I said no," Natasha paused. "It wouldn't be a good idea. We are members of the Avengers Initiative. If Rogers figured out what I'd done to 'secure his loyalty' to Shield, we wouldn't be able to work together."
Sharon gave her a look she couldn't quite define before responding. "All the same, I have no intention of sleeping with Captain America."
"I thought everyone wanted to bed the captain," Natasha teased, trying to lighten the mood and find a way out of the conversation.
"Apparently, we are the exceptions to the rule," Sharon replied. "I'll take the super soldier some fresh baked cookies, while you make your escape." Natasha watched as Sharon pulled a few cookies from a Jason's Deli bag and placed them on a plate. She shrugged. "He'll never know the difference."
Natasha went straight to her notebook when she got home. She carefully wrote the notes "doll in Rogers' possession" and "remembered my name" under the category in his favor. She sighed as she wrote "bullets to the head" on a sticky note and added it to the back of the notebook. After all these years, she now knew their fate. Her parents were killed before the fire even started. Why? It made no sense, and, sadly, Steve Rogers wouldn't be able to give her that particular answer.
Knowing Rogers had regrets about the night softened Natasha a little, but she wasn't sure it was enough. His ignorance destroyed her life. "The verdict is still out," she muttered and closed her notebook.
Natasha didn't sleep well that night, so she opted to go in to work a little late. She ran into an irritated Maria before she'd even made it to the gym.
"Fury wants to see you now," Maria informed her. "Agent 13 is with him."
"Sharon shouldn't be showing her head around the triskelion. She'll blow her cover."
"Rogers is out for at least the rest of the week. Said he had personal business out of town. Don't keep the director waiting. He isn't in a good mood."
Natasha nodded and headed for Fury's office. As soon as she made it into the room, Fury spoke. "Sit." Natasha did as she was told, chancing a glance at Sharon as she took her seat. Sharon looked nervous, so Natasha braced herself for whatever lecture was coming. "Did either of you know Rogers was making another trip to Boston?"
Sharon shook her head at the same time as Natasha. "He doesn't tell me all of his plans," Natasha replied.
"Oh, I know that's the truth," Fury grumbled. "That's also the problem. You're good spies, and you've been briefed on the importance of your mission, but neither of you have given it even an ounce of effort."
Sharon spoke first. "When I asked for this assignment, it was supposed to be a security detail with minimal contact with the captain. You know good and well why I don't want to be his girlfriend. You should have went with Agent Romanoff like we discussed."
"Like we discussed?" Natasha repeated. "You suggested me to Fury? Why would you do that?"
"Because it was the right play," Sharon said defensively. "Captain Rogers never understood the rules of engagement when it came to romance in the 40's, and he needs someone to help him start living again. Without the right person, he'll either be miserably pining for Peggy Carter or, like Fury said, he'll be easy prey for a, forgive my choice of words, black widow."
"I am the Black Widow."
"And, you know you weren't the first or the last Red Room graduate," Sharon replied.
Natasha glared at her then turned his attention to Fury. "How does she know so much about me? My file is sealed. We had an agreement."
"I didn't break our agreement, Romanoff. Agent 13 has another source. Her source has a vested interest in Rogers," Fury paused, "and you."
"Excuse me?" Natasha asked.
"Agent 13, I suggest you tell her."
"I didn't want preferential treatment or any extra targets on my back when I joined Shield, so I chose not to share my last name publicly. My name is Sharon Carter and I'm Peggy's niece. I grew up hearing stories about Captain America from Aunt Peg. She loved him, and he felt the same way about her. She also talked quite a bit about her experiences after the war, and she had run ins with Red Room graduates. She and the Howling Commandos even had a run in with a trainee after the war. Bringing down the Red Room is the one mission Aunt Peg never fully completed."
Natasha only nodded. She very vaguely remembered one of those run ins. Living such a long life had it's advantages. The human brain wasn't wired to remember so much life experience. She had probably forgotten more things than most people ever even experienced. Since doing her research on Dugan, she had recalled why he looked familiar. He and, apparently Peggy Carter, had found the facility once. She escaped by beating him up. "Why didn't you tell me you knew about the Red Room?" she asked Sharon.
"I figured you wanted that file sealed for a reason," Sharon replied. "I'm honestly surprised there was a Red Room by the eighties."
"It was still the height of the Cold War," Natasha replied. Of course, Natasha had long since graduated but she wasn't going to divulge that information.
"If you ladies are finished, can we get back to the matter at hand?" Fury asked. "Rogers is back in Boston with Dugan's family and I need to know why. We are changing tactics. Carter, as soon as Rogers returns, you are coming clean. Tell him part of the truth. Tell him you are Shield and tell him your relationship with Peggy Carter. You can tell him you were on security detail, but leave out the rest."
"Yes, sir," Sharon replied.
"Then get to Boston and find out what's going on with the Dugan family and Steve Rogers. Go as Peggy's niece. It'll get you in the door. I need to know why he's giving them all of this money."
"Yes, sir. And, my other assignment?"
"Seducing Steve Roger's is no longer on your agenda," Fury replied. "Romanoff, build his trust. He's not going to be happy when he learns Shield put a security detail on him. Convince him you knew nothing."
"I can do that," Natasha replied.
"Good, because I have a few suspicions and it will be your job to get them confirmed."
"Can I ask what we are looking for?" Sharon asked.
Fury glared at her briefly before answering. "There are some red flags with Dugan's daughter and granddaughter. Dugan's daughter married an MI6 agent in the late sixties. He was highly decorated and one of the best until he was caught making unauthorized trips into the Soviet Union. He made eleven trips over the course of two years. The British government could find no evidence of wrong doing, but he was still dismissed from his position. The couple moved to Annette's hometown of Boston and eventually had a daughter. Her name is Elizabeth, and she's a recently widowed mother with two daughters of her own.
"We have reason to believe, she is the recipient of the missing money. Either Captain America is her new sugar daddy or-"
"He could be just helping the granddaughter of an old friend," Sharon suggested.
"Maybe, but her husband died in the plane crash last fall. Remember the Russian passenger jet that crashed leaving Moscow? Why was a high school shop teacher in Moscow alone while his wife was sitting at home eight months pregnant?"
"I don't know," Sharon replied.
"Find out. Your dismissed," he paused and looked at Natasha, "you, stay."
Natasha nodded and silently prayed, "Please, not the nuclear option."
And, now we are ready to get into our story. Agent Carter fans might have picked up on the Red Room reference. In my story, the girl Dugan found was Natasha. Also, if you have read my previous stories, you know I refuse to villianize Sharon or Bruce. I just don't like the MCU shipping them with Steve and Natasha after setting up the perfect romance in The Winter Soldier. This story is fully plotted out and it's been much easier to write than I expected. I'm actually writing a few chapters a day, so there shouldn't be many delays over Christmas. Hope you're still enjoying it. Comment with your theories and tune in tomorrow for the next chapter.