No. 8. "Don't Say Goodbye"/Abandoned/Isolation

Where Did Everybody Go?

Natasha had been alone for 1 week now, trekking alone in the wilderness, trying to get to the rendezvous point she had missed 4 days ago. She and Clint had become separated after an ambush, and she hadn't seen him since. She'd heard the touchdown of a helicopter, but it had never flown over her location, and never returned. Surely SHIELD wouldn't just abandon her like that? Or would they? Natasha was a very strong person, but isolation was never one of her strong points. Sure, she'd lock herself away sometimes if she were feeling down, or her PTSD was too bad, but eventually she'd come out, craving attention. It was the Red Room that had made her that way, years of isolation had broken her spirits. She hated being alone.

And that was where she was right now. Alone. Alone in the great big forest, Not quite sure where to go to next. She had the coordinates loaded into her GPS, but it had gotten wet at some point, and wasn't working so well. Food wasn't a problem, she had plenty of rations, for now. It was water that was the problem. She had about half a liter left, and she hadn't seen another river since she had last filled up her canteen.

The sun peeked down on her between the leaves, and she ducked beneath a tree and sat down. She tugged her GPS out of her knapsack and banged it on her palm, willing it to work. It turned on momentarily, flashing the coordinates and direction before turning off and dying. Natasha sighed.

"Looks like we're doing this the old-fashioned way," she muttered, tugging a compass from her knapsack, and a pacemaker to count how far she'd gone. She knew she had to head north, so north it was. She stood quickly and started on. If she could get somewhere high, she could activate her tracking beacon. It wouldn't work under all the tree cover.

She counted she'd gone 8 miles by the time dusk was falling, and she had climbed a hill high enough for the tracking beacon. She pulled it out and slipped it over her wrist, activating it with the press of a button. She then set about setting up her small tent and crawling inside. Natasha curled up in a ball, and pulled a blanket over her head.

It was two more days Natasha stayed camped on the hill, praying, hoping, that someone would come. Her water had run out, and she began packing up, needing to go in search of more. She hiked down the mountain, in search of a water source, sighing as she heard her tracking beacon click off. She was surprised when she found a river not far from the other side of the mountain. She filled up her canteen, then began her trek up the mountain again. She was still holding out a sliver of hope that someone would come for her. She heard her tracking beacon click on again as she ascended the hill and set up camp once more.

She had been alone for 10 days now. She had accepted the fact that Shield wasn't coming for her, and she would have to find a way back herself. If she could even figure out where she was, that is. She spent one last lonely night on the hill, culred in on herself, weeping.

"Wakey, wakey, 'Tasha," a familiar voice said outside her tent the next morning, around 6 am. Natasha snapped awake.

"Clint?!" She crawled out of her tent as fast as she could, throwing herself into his arms.

"Don't say goodbye yet, Partner!" Clint exclaimed.

"I thought you weren't coming!" Natasha said, pulling back.

"We've been trying! We've been trying so hard! There's been so many complications!"

"I'm just glad you're here now!" Natasha exclaimed.

"Me too, Nat." Clint gave her another hug. Natasha squeezed him hard, relief flooding her mind. She wasn't alone anymore.