Author's note: It's becoming clear to me that I'm not going to be able to finish this in twelve chapters like I had intended. As I write, so many possibilities to have fun with the characters are developing. Please be patient. I will get to the end eventually. Thank you for the reviews. They are encouraging.
"I'm not going in there," Bruce denied. He held his hands up and backed away from the little piece of jewelry he'd just placed in Natasha's hands.
"Then tell me more. He said she's a siren?" Natasha asked.
She looked at the necklace. It was a choker on black velvet an inch wide. In the middle was a platinum butterfly with sapphire and onyx wings. And diamonds. The smooth metal shape added onto the underside of the butterfly's abdomen was probably the working part of whatever it was that Bruce and Tony had made to help the girl with her voice. The butterfly slipped onto the velvet so that any piece of cloth could be used in place of the velvet. It would look as cute on a scrap of denim or a paisley handkerchief as it did on the plush French velvet, but only if you squinted and imagined that the butterfly was made of cheap tin and rhinestones.
What the hell had Tony been thinking? The girl would never accept something this expensive. He had probably sent a courier to Tiffany's at three in the morning, then spent the next three hours crafting the device onto it.
There was no point in saying anything to the guys. They didn't realize what they'd done and Tony was probably trying to be generous. She'd just have to lie to the girl or trick her into taking it.
Tony was be-bopping around the workshop with his headphones on, cleaning up and putting away his tools.
"Woo-hoo!" Tony shouted, "Shut up! Too loud. Bomp-chicka-wow. Mami, get the caaaat."
Bruce rolled his eyes harder than she'd ever seen a ten year old do it.
"What the hell is he high on? I don't even know that song," Natasha said.
"Endocrine hormones. He mixed the song tonight. Last night. Whatever. Don't ask," Bruce waved a hand.
Natasha watched and listened to Tony for a moment more.
"He never wears headphones. It's always loud in here," she pointed out.
"I refused to work with him if he played the audio where I could hear it," Bruce grimaced at the way Tony kept humming and dancing.
"That bad?" Nat asked.
"You have no idea. Look, just get this to the girl and make sure she wears it before she says anything else or he'll make another song mix and I'm moving to Waco," Bruce threatened.
"That's probably all I need to know," Nat nodded.
"No, it's not. You need to find out how old she is. There's definitely the possibility of an it. Steve's a paragon and all that, but he was Hulk-fishing when it came to defending her. Maybe he's only protective of his friend, or maybe she got to him. Either way, we need to know her age," Bruce said.
"Hulk-fishing? Steve?" Nat wondered. If Steve was being so reckless, then the girl's talents were a force to be concerned about.
"It was hard to tell. Kind of weird, actually. He was like evil Cap or something. Maybe primal Steve. Not our average choir-boy," Bruce said.
"Interesting," Natasha said.
Bruce shook his head and leaned over his work station to save some files and begin shutdown.
"Bruce?" she asked, thoughts tumbling in her head.
"Hmm?"
"Her voice got to you too?" she asked.
"Yeah," he admitted. He lowered his head and rubbed at the back of his neck. She ignored his bashfulness.
"Do you feel tired?" she asked.
"Well, yeah. I've been up for I don't know how long," he answered.
"Steve is sleeping on my couch. He called me a bitch," she said.
Bruce's mouth fell open. They all knew that Steve avoided Natasha's suite like the plague. He wouldn't even get off the elevator on her side of their floor if he could help it. There had been too many Virgin Cap/Experienced Widow jokes and Steve was serious about not being seen in Nat's living quarters. Or near them.
"I don't know if his uncharacteristic behavior is because of the girl's voice or the gas he inhaled. We need to find out," Natasha said.
Bruce nodded. He looked around for Tony, who had finally taken off the headphones and stopped dancing.
"He called you a bitch?" Tony asked them. His over the top playfulness was gone.
"And he did a good job of it, too," Natasha smiled. She was proud of Steve, if he deserved the credit. She suspected he didn't. Steve's behavior had been distinctly off, like Bruce had described him earlier.
"That's one for the records. Jarvis?" Tony asked.
"Sir, I don't record everything," Jarvis responded.
"Sure you do. Give it," Tony insisted.
Even Jarvis' silence sounded pained.
"I don't record everything in Miss Romanova's suite," Jarvis clarified hesitantly.
"Jarvis. Evasive language. Give. Override Q97-11Z," Tony directed.
The sound tone of the workshop changed to match the hushed quiet of Natasha's suite.
"Siren, Nat. Poor kid," Steve's voice mumbled, sounding sleepy.
"No, poor you. She's been living with it for years. It's nothing new to her."
"C'mon. Have some mercy. She's scared,"
"There's nothing wrong with being scared. Let her be scared for a while. It will make her easier to convince,"
"Witch,"
"Oooh. So close. That's an award for intentional under-achievement, Panty-pants America,"
"Alright, you win. Bitch," Steve's voice ground out the naughty word with relish.
Jarvis' playback ended with her and Steve's laughter. Even Steve's laugh sounded off, now that she was listening and not participating. Bruce made a slight face beside her. He agreed.
"Can I sleep now and get to this particular emergency sometime later this afternoon?" Tony asked. As she and Bruce watched him, Tony almost fell asleep on his feet. His head drooped, then jerked back up again. The fact that he hadn't reacted with glee to hearing Steve use rough language underscored to them that something was wrong with Tony.
"Sure, Tony," Bruce told him.
He and Natasha went over to guide Tony to the couch he kept in his workshop. Tony was dead weight in their hands before he touched the couch.
"Sir's vital signs are within normal parameters. I believe he is coming down from the effect of our friend's voice. Do you agree, Doctor Banner, that this answers the question of whether the Captain's peculiarities were caused by his recent gas exposure or by our friend's voice?" Jarvis asked.
"I agree that it's likely her voice, but it needs further investigation," Bruce said.
He looked at the choker necklace Natasha clutched in one hand.
"I know. I'm going," Nat said.
"Sit up so I can put this on you," Natasha ordered as soon as she was in the door to the girl's room in the medical ward.
Nat didn't give her time to hold the choker necklace, or to look at it, or to protest. The girl moved too slowly for her purposes, so Nat helped her up with a hand between her shoulders. Sure fingers slipped the velvet around her terribly slim throat, and Nat adjusted the closure and the butterfly to how she imagined they should fit. The butterfly rested just below the girl's larynx, at the hollow of her throat.
"That should work to moderate your voice. Talk to me so we can see if it works," Natasha said to her.
"My voice? Does everybody around here know about my voice already?" Estrella asked the Widow.
"Good. It seems to work," Nat said. The girl had a lovely voice, but it did nothing extraordinary or interesting for her.
"My voice doesn't do anything to women. I don't want to talk to a man to find out if it works," she said.
Natasha took out her phone. While her fingers tapped a quick message, she sat on the end of the girl's hospital bed, then pushed herself up onto the mattress more fully. There was plenty of room for her to cross her legs and get comfortable, slumber party-style.
The girl looked at Natasha while her fingers moved over the shape of the choker and its butterfly. Nat hoped that she'd rushed the device onto her so quickly that she'd be used to it before she thought to question it.
"There are some things you need to know because you're going to be here for a while. First, we've got Jarvis. Say hello, Jarvis," Nat said.
"Hello, Miss. I'm sure you remember me talking to the Captain in the park a few weeks ago. I am Mister Stark's artificial intelligence system. I run the tower and offer assistance where I can. Among other things," Jarvis greeted the girl for the first time.
"So you're not real. You're not a man?" Estrella asked.
"The exact definition of reality is open for debate, but I am certainly not a man. I am composed of data, stored on hardware devices, and I think by means of computational process. I am everywhere in this building, and I exist in a few places everywhere else," Jarvis told her.
"There's no privacy? I can't even go to the bathroom?" Estrella asked. She'd already been once, and a nurse had to help her walk because she was groggy from the sedatives. That had been embarrassing enough, without knowing that someone might be listening.
"I do observe privacy directives, Miss. Sleeping quarters and bathrooms are not monitored. However, if my name is called, I am available for help in any location. I can assure you that as a non-organic consciousness, I have no prurient interest in the messier aspects of human existence," Jarvis' cool voice said.
Natasha glanced at her phone to read a text response, then she put the phone away and gave the girl her full attention.
"I'm Natasha. Steve calls me Nat. I know I was unkind to you the first time I saw you, and I'm not done with that yet. There are things I have to do to keep my teammates safe. Business first. Are you good with that?"
"I'm good," Estrella said cautiously. She didn't know what she was agreeing to, but it was pointless to argue this early in the encounter. She wasn't any less intimidated by the Widow now than she had been the day she'd pulled the woman's hair. Soon as Natasha had walked into the room, Estrella felt she'd stepped onto a bus that she had no control over. She wasn't driving and she was barely hanging on. Natasha seemed to know exactly what she was about, and there was some reassurance in that, if she could believe that she should trust Natasha simply because Steve trusted her.
"We've been calling you 'the girl' and 'Steve's friend.' What's your name? Make something up if you want, but we're going to need something to call you," Natasha said.
She was feeling powerless anyway, and there wasn't much more left to hide. They already knew the most outlandish thing about her.
"My mother named me Estrella," she said. It felt like defeat to so easily give what she'd kept guarded. Surrender. If any of the men from her past were still looking for her, she'd just made it easier for them.
"How old are you, Estrella? You don't have to tell me your exact birthdate. We're not keeping a file on you, though we should. We need to know your approximate age," Nat said.
"Why?" Estrella asked.
"Because if you are a minor, then your interactions with the Avengers could become legally complicated. For liability purposes, we need to know how to deal with you," Natasha explained.
"Oh. I'm not a minor. I'm twenty-two. No. What day is it?" she asked. Her brain had been in such a fog lately that she wasn't sure how old she was.
"Today is September the fifth," Nat answered.
"Then I'm twenty-three," Estrella said.
"Good," Natasha replied. She revealed nothing, but she was very happy that her instinct had been confirmed. Steve might balk at first, but twenty-three wasn't too young.
"You wanted me to bring this?" Thor said as he entered the room. He was planning to return to Asgard shortly, so he was wearing his armor and boots, the leather pants and red cape, and the metal scales which clung to his arms. Mjolnir was likely still on his foyer table.
He held out Clint's hair clippers to Natasha and he nodded and smiled a polite greeting at the girl on the bed. Nat took the clippers and set them aside. Estrella saw them and got a stubborn look on her face, but Natasha didn't give her time to dwell on it.
"Thank you, Thor. I wouldn't have you running errands for us, but I've got more than one bird to kill," Natasha said.
"Ah. I am the stone. How may I assist?" Thor asked with good humor.
He folded his arms and waited patiently. Natasha didn't tell him that his combat uniform and tall, squared posture weren't very soothing to a girl who was afraid of men. Estrella needed to get used to tolerating testosterone if she was going to be staying in Avengers tower for a while.
"This is Estrella. I think you've met before, at the library?" Nat formally introduced them.
"I am happy to know your name, friend of my brother," Thor said.
"Hi," Estrella whispered. She looked to Natasha. The runaway bus she was riding on felt like it had taken a turn for the painfully awkward. And it was accelerating.
"Estrella, I need you to use your voice. Thor is the strongest man among us, but he is also the most honorable and experienced. If the necklace Tony and Bruce made for you doesn't work, now is the safest opportunity to find out," Natasha told her.
"But what if it doesn't work?" Estrella hissed.
She knew Thor was a good man. But a man, still. There was no way for the Widow to know what her voice did to men. It wasn't pretty at all when base lust overcame a good man. It was sad. She didn't want to do that to Thor, and she didn't want to see or experience the effects. If Natasha tried to defend her, she could get hurt.
"There's no reason it wouldn't work. Tony used recordings of your voice to analyze why it affects men the way it does. He's rarely wrong about these things. You should try it, so that you can have confidence in depending on the necklace. Think about it, Estrella. It's worth the risk. You'll be free to speak like everyone else," Nat encouraged her.
"I want Steve to be here," Estrella whispered. If she had to do this, she wanted Steve with her. She already knew that he could resist her voice, somehow. If Tony Stark's device didn't work and Thor went for her, then at least Steve could help her get away.
"Steven is exhausted and recovering from grave injury, Estrella. I would not summon him at this time," Thor said to her, then looked to Natasha, "I want no part of acting against her will,"
His smile was gone, but he kept his stern expression on his teammate, not the frightened girl clutching the covers. He'd gleaned enough information to know what Natasha wanted of him, and he was willing to help, but only if Estrella was agreeable.
Natasha looked to Estrella, leaving the decision to her. Estrella didn't feel she was being given a choice. If she didn't take the risk of testing her voice on Thor, then she would look weak in front of these incredibly strong people. Living on the street, the only way you could survive being weak was to escape notice, or to be so repugnant that nobody wanted to touch you or your things. Being here in their tower had already removed both of her accustomed means of security.
The knowledge of what she was forcing on Estrella was in Natasha's eyes. The woman was pushing her, testing her, expecting things of her. Everyone else seemed to think she was mostly dead and needed coddling, but the Widow was merciless.
"You're standing on a cliff, Estrella. Your old life is over. Dead. There's only ash and monsters behind you. In front of you, there's nothing to do but jump. Fall or fly," Natasha gave her the choice with a curiously light tone of voice and an uptilt of her chin which hinted that she'd prefer Estrella to take the loftier option.
She spoke like one who'd had to make the same choice.
Estrella felt tears sting her eyes. She did feel like she was standing on a cliff. This wasn't just about talking in front of Thor. Everything had changed as soon as she'd met Steve, and she was just now clear-headed enough to realize it. She was shaking and her voice was going to sound stupid and wavery. She took a breath anyway.
"I'm not sure I want to change my life. I don't know what's ahead," Estrella said, uncertain but clearly intoned and enunciated.
"None of us can know what's ahead," Natasha agreed.
Estrella watched Thor, cringing as the seconds passed. The big man stood behind Natasha's shoulder. A smile broadened his face for a moment, but then disappeared as a thought occurred to him.
"I felt nothing. But, what if, being of Asgard, I am not vulnerable to her voice at all? We will have done this with no result except false confidence in the device. There would be a danger of adverse consequences the next time she speaks in the presence of a man," Thor said.
"How true," Natasha agreed again, no surprise at all in her tone.
Both Thor and Estrella looked at Nat. Thor frowned, already accustomed to the Widow's tactics. Estrella thought that the Widow had some of the same kind of creepiness that Steve's friend Bucky did.
"So what do we do? Why didn't you bring in a regular guy to test this?" Estrella asked with a stronger voice.
Her fingers traced the butterfly shape of the necklace. She still watched Thor, fighting disbelief that she was speaking in front of a man and he wasn't acting like an amorous thug.
"Remove the necklace," Natasha said.
Estrella shook her head.
"I'll make a deal with you, Estrella. Those mats on your head are coming off. I can hold you down and shear you like a sheep. Or we can wait for Steve to wake up and you can both get your heads shaved together," Nat offered.
"Neither of those options gets me out of speaking to him without the necklace," Estrella said, and nodded toward the Asgardian. She gave Natasha her worst stare, and even added the little hint of insanity that she'd practiced to scare away the people who didn't scare so easily. Nat ignored her theatrics.
"Correct. But one of the options lets you get shaved with more fun and dignity," Natasha pointed out.
"You wouldn't hold me down anyway. You might hurt me," Estrella let go of her blankets long enough to cross her arms, careful of the IV line and using its presence to make her case for her.
Natasha didn't argue or threaten. Instead, she picked up the vinyl carrying case the clippers were in and unzipped it. She didn't look at Estrella. She got up from the bed and walked near the headboard to find an electric outlet to plug the clippers into. She took out the clippers, untangled the cord, and plugged them in. Estrella watched her, stubborn and aware that she still had a little time to call Natasha's bluff.
Then Natasha was on top of her in the bed faster than she could move to stop her. Estrella's stubbornly folded arms worked against her as Nat used her weight to trap her arms against her chest. Nat flicked the clippers on and adjusted the blade guard to its shortest setting.
"Your choice. Make it now," Natasha said.
She eyed the front of Estrella's hair and changed the angle of the clipper in her hand slightly.
"It is usually better to do what she wants at these moments," Thor advised blandly. When Estrella took her eyes off of Nat's calmly assertive expression to look at him, she saw that she'd have no help from Thor. He did not look harsh or unkind, but he wasn't going to help her against his teammate.
"Okay, okay. Get off me you bitch," Estrella fussed. She wiggled as much as she could until Natasha turned off the hair clippers and slid off the bed.
"Twice in one day. I must be doing something right," Nat smiled.
She set the clippers down on the empty chair and waited for Estrella to take off the necklace.
The girl moved slowly purely for the sake of defiance and she fumbled at the clasp, but she got the choker off. Nat held out her hand, hoping Estrella would automatically hand it over so she wouldn't notice what the thing was made of. Estrella was still feeling bullied from being sat upon, so she put the necklace in Natasha's hand without hesitation.
"How do we proceed? Is there anything I should do?" Thor asked.
It was getting close to time for Heimdall to call him home. He did not want to rush Estrella, but he could not be in two places at once.
"All she has to do is speak, Thor. Your job is to resist," Natasha said.
"That should not be a problem," Thor assured the women.
Estrella didn't know why Natasha was smiling. It wasn't going to be funny. She felt squirmy and uncomfortable with both of them looking at her, waiting. Now that she'd agreed to say something in front of Thor without the protection of the necklace, she didn't know what to say.
"Do you know any songs or nursery rhymes? It doesn't matter what you say. He doesn't have to understand it. Anything will do," Nat advised her.
"I know it doesn't matter what I say! Just give me a minute to think. You people are crazy and you don't know what you're asking," Estrella whispered furiously.
It didn't occur to her that she could have said the same words instead of whispering them. She was fussing at Natasha, not thinking about Thor.
Ah. There was the story her Granny had taught her years ago. The one about the burro and the spider. It could even be sung, if she wanted to.
"I'm sorry," Estrella whispered to Thor pre-emptively.
"It's alright. Don't be concerned. Proceed as soon as you are ready," Thor assured her briskly.
Estrella took a breath and sang the story of the burro and the spider in Spanish. She didn't know the rest of the language, but Granny had taught her what the song meant. She closed her eyes because she didn't want to look at Thor while she sang.
Thor thought for the first instant that the women were being overly concerned about nothing. The young woman had a pleasant singing voice, maybe even an exceptional one, but…
His thoughts faltered and he took a surprised breath. There was a warm, pulling sensation in his mind and it travelled down his spine and grew in intensity.
The sound of her. It was delightful. He had to do something.
Natasha turned her head to look back and up at Thor. He'd gone from confident and smiling patiently, to stricken and slightly out of breath, and now he was bent and huffing at her shoulder, his hands gripping the footboard of the hospital bed until the faux-wood polymer creaked under the strain.
"How ya doing there, tough guy?" she asked him. The bed jerked slightly in his grip and Estrella stopped singing abruptly.
The end of the singing didn't seem to relieve Thor any. All Estrella's silence did was make it easier to hear the distress in Thor's breathing. He bit off a growl and was silent for a moment in response to Nat's question, but then his harsh respirations returned. The bed trembled.
"No, no, he's not-" Estrella protested fearfully.
"Shh. Give him time. We already know that the necklace works," Natasha said.
Another dose of Estrella's voice added to the urge that prodded him. Thor hung his head until it touched Natasha's shoulder. He asked his father for strength and held onto the tight lockdown he had on his muscles.
"Suck it up, Odinsson. It's over. You've already beat this," Nat told him.
She eased off the pressure from the blade that she held against the leather of his pants. Natasha didn't really know if she would have cut him had he proved a danger to the girl. Maybe not. But she got a nice sense of satisfaction from getting a knife at one of his few weak spots. She wondered why most versions of armor didn't have much protection down there, right under the curve of the package. One skilled swipe of a blade and a man would never be the same. A man who didn't have enhanced healing abilities, anyway.
"That won't be necessary," Thor finally whispered.
He released the footboard and pushed Nat's hand away. She put away her knife before Estrella could see that she'd needed it. Thor stood straight and took a deep breath, then let it out. He did not look at either woman and his fists were tight at his thighs.
"My respects, Lady. I will not think to disregard your abilities," Thor said, his eyes straight ahead.
"I'm sorry," Estrella whispered again.
Thor finally relaxed some and let his arms loosen. He didn't know whether to feel pity or envy for the man who might end up being the girl's mate. No matter. It was time to take his leave of Midgard.
"There is nothing to forgive. I'm glad that we were able to prove the effectiveness of your device," Thor said.
He gave Estrella a gentle look which promised no recriminations for his discomfort, then turned and left the room. Natasha waited until his footfalls retreated into the elevator before she spoke.
"So how does it feel to have the undivided attention of a god?" she asked Estrella.
"He's not a god. He's an alien," Estrella denied, "Are you done with your business now?"
"Almost. We need to talk about Steve," Natasha said.
"What about him? He's my friend. He's not business," Estrella said testily.
She was just about done jumping through hoops for the Widow. Her frown eased when she thought that she should have a headache by now. More than a headache. Her heart felt fluttery from the stress of speaking to Thor, but her chest didn't hurt. She bit her lip and tucked her head down.
"What?" Natasha asked.
At first, Estrella didn't want to share her knowledge with the woman, but the Widow hadn't hurt her. Harsh as she was, she'd helped. And tense as the moments with Thor had been, he'd helped too. So had Tony Stark. And whoever Bruce was. They deserved her thanks, if the necklace was really going to allow her to speak. She'd been mute for most of eleven years.
"I should have a headache. And my heart should hurt," Estrella told her.
Natasha smiled.
"I told you. Your old life is over. I can't make any promises, but I think things might get better for you from now on," Nat said.
"But I can't pay for this," Estrella said, touching the butterfly choker and looking around at the hospital room.
"I said that your life might improve. I didn't say there wouldn't be any problems. Look, I know that things have been tough for you. It's nearly impossible for you to trust us, and you're accustomed to seeing everything and everyone as a threat. That's survival and you've been good at it. You've got at least one friend now, and two or more of the most powerful men on the planet are willing to defend you. Instead of dwelling on problems, you can afford to take a day or two to relax and enjoy your improved circumstances," Natasha encouraged her.
"But it doesn't make any sense. I can't trust things that don't make sense. Every man I've met who's heard my voice has attacked me. How is it that Steve and Thor are so different?" Estrella asked.
"They're different because they've trained themselves to do the right thing even when doing the wrong thing would be more enjoyable. The strength that makes them heroic is the same strength that helps them overpower their more selfish desires," Natasha said.
Now that Natasha had said it, Estrella could see it to be true. The determined look she'd seen on both Steve and Thor when they'd been dealing with the effects of her voice wouldn't have been out of place on them in battle. During the battle of New York against the aliens, she'd seen images of them looking similar.
Estrella smiled at the realization that the power of her voice had not turned Steve or Thor ugly with lust as her voice did to most men. They had been awesome to watch. Inspiring. For the same reason that people liked to capture the Avengers' battles on their cell phones and then play the videos over and over again. They were strong. Good. Heroic. People needed to see that because of the way it made them feel. Like Estrella was feeling right now. She felt hopeful.
Natasha let her dwell on the positive for a moment, but there were still some issues to caution her about. She'd kept a watchful eye on Estrella's heart monitor and had almost paused in her plans for the girl a few times. She'd done well, but there was a limit to how much stress she could tolerate.
"Estrella, do you know who Bruce is?" Natasha asked.
"I don't think so. Didn't you say that a Bruce helped Tony Stark to make this?" she asked. Her fingers were rubbing a rough spot on the butterfly's wings. The diamonds. Natasha foresaw trouble coming when she finally got a look at the necklace. Maybe it would be Steve's trouble and not hers. She could hope.
"Yes. He's Doctor Bruce Banner. When he gets too agitated, he's the Hulk. Bruce is one of the kindest people you'll ever meet, but the Hulk isn't. I said earlier that Thor was the strongest man among us, but that's only because Bruce is calm right now. There's no risk to anyone as long as Bruce stays calm, and he's really good at doing that. But you should be extra careful to always have your necklace on if you speak when Bruce is near you," Natasha said.
"The Hulk lives here?" Estrella asked. Her eyes were wide and she was obviously concerned.
"No. Bruce lives here. You don't go around calling Steve 'Captain America' all the time, so it's not appropriate to call Bruce 'The Hulk' while he's not green and while we're at home," Nat explained.
"Okay. I'm sorry. I know how it bothers Steve when people don't see him for who he is," Estrella apologized.
Estrella kept touching her throat because it felt strange and wonderful to speak, after all her years being silent. Natasha was pleased to see her enjoying one of the perks of her new life. Steve would be pleased to know that she was already finding something to be happy about.
Nat slumped her lower back against the footboard of the bed and let her shoulders round down to a more casual posture. Estrella was getting tired. She could see it in the way she had finally rested fully back against the incline of the bed. Nat hoped she could use a more intimate tone to help with the next and last thing she had to talk about.
"Good. Now, about Steve," Natasha began.
Estrella looked at her with interest. The girl was a wrecked mess at the moment, but Natasha saw potential in her fearlessness and strength of character. She decided to share a little more than she had planned to because she thought Estrella could handle it.
"I can tell you that Steve is my friend as well as my leader and my teammate. He nearly died rescuing my ass less than twenty-four hours ago, so you'll understand that I feel some loyalty to him. If you know him, you'll know that he'd do the same for anybody with little regard for his own life. The only reason he's still breathing is because he's so hard to kill," Natasha said.
Estrella's face pulled into a strong frown at hearing about Steve nearly dying. Thor had said something about him being gravely injured, too. She didn't like that she'd found him standing over her when she'd awakened, now knowing that somebody should have made him go to bed.
"Why didn't you make him go to bed and rest?" Estrella asked.
"Because Steve's a big boy and it's hard to make him do anything he doesn't want to do. He wanted to be near you, in case you woke up. He understands his limits. He can take it. My point is that even though he's heroic and tough, he's not perfect, and he's not immune to pain. Try not to hurt him, Estrella. And don't expect the impossible from him. He's still a man, and he does make mistakes," Natasha warned.
"I know. Why do you think I like him? He'd be so boring if he was perfect like everyone thinks he is. Mostly he's annoying and a little naïve, but there's worse ways to be" Estrella said.
"Exactly," Natasha smiled, "I'm glad you already see that in him."
Nat knew that Estrella wasn't getting exactly what she meant to impart, but she wasn't prepared to go into more details of Steve's situation, mostly out of loyalty to him. If Estrella was meant to know those things, she'd find out in due time.
Estrella was feeling like she could sleep. Her mouth was dry, and she really wanted her clothes. She also wanted the IV needle out of her hand too, so she wouldn't feel tethered to the bed. But before she asked for anything else, she needed Natasha's advice.
"His friend Bucky is around. I've seen him twice. Steve hasn't asked me more because he could see that I had a headache, but he's going to ask me about Bucky soon and I don't know what to tell him," Estrella said.
Natasha went from casual and friendly to creepy and alert in the time it had taken to say the name 'Bucky.'
"How do you know it was him that you saw?" the Widow asked.
"Because Steve showed me his sketchbook. There's drawings of his friend Bucky all through it, and that's the same man I've seen. There's no mistaking him. The way he moves. The way he watches things and people. He's sinister and quiet. Like you. Worse really, because he's a man. I knew he wasn't a normal street person the first time I met him, before I saw the sketchbook," Estrella explained.
"If you've seen him, then he meant for you to see him. He came to you. Why?"
"I think he's been watching Steve. I was in trouble both times and he protected me because he thinks that Steve likes me. Both times, he told me to let Steve help me. The last time, he threatened to bring me to a hospital if I didn't go home with Steve the next time I saw him," Estrella said.
"This is remarkable. You should be telling this to Steve, not to me. What do you mean when you say that you don't know what to tell Steve? You should tell him everything you just told me. Tell him everything you know," Natasha insisted.
Estrella made a conflicted grimace.
"Why is there any dilemma about this? Steve has been looking for him for months," Natasha said.
"Bucky doesn't want to be found. Steve thinks he's lost and confused, but he's not. He needs time to come to Steve on his own, but Steve is too eager. He'll try to force it, and then Bucky might leave again. I want Steve to get his friend back. It's important to him. But he's going to mess it up if I give away all the details and he goes hunting, pushing. I don't know how to lie to Steve. I don't want to lie, even if I could," Estrella said.
She hoped that Natasha would have advice on what to do when Steve asked her about Bucky. Natasha looked at Estrella in silence for a long moment. Estrella could see that there was a lot going on that the Widow wasn't saying. Things were complicated, then, Estrella concluded. Weren't they always?
"Do you know what Bucky is, Estrella?" Natasha asked.
"Sure I do. He's whatever you are, but more of it. I already said that," she answered.
"Good enough. You're very perceptive. What you need to know is that we don't know if Bucky is a threat or not. We don't know where his allegiance is. We don't know what his intentions are for Steve. He's extremely dangerous and no one has figured out how to catch him or what to do with him. We need all the information on him that we can get," Nat said.
"And what you need to know is that Bucky's allegiance is to Steve. He's a threat to anyone who hurts Steve. You don't catch him and you don't do anything with him. If he's that dangerous, then you leave him alone and mind your own business unless it looks like he's going to do something to you first. That's easy. Law of the street. It's a shame all you smart, rich people can't figure that out on your own," Estrella said. She would have said it with more attitude, but she'd run out of steam. Her eyes were getting heavy.
"I know the law of the street, but thanks for the reminder, Estrella. I'll make sure the boss man takes your advice seriously," Natasha said.
The more time she spent with the girl, the more she liked her.
"Can I get my clothes? Or some water?" Estrella whispered. Her eyes were shut and she'd stopped fingering the butterfly to let her hands fall to her lap.
Natasha got up and poured a glass of ice water from the plastic pitcher. She held a straw to Estrella's lips until she'd taken a sip. When she was done drinking, Nat put away the glass and Clint's hair clippers for later. She looked forward to getting the mess off of Estrella's head. And she looked forward to finding out what a girl like her would do to Steve's life.