Author's Note: I know, longest wait yet for a chapter, but I wrote seven different versions of this chapter before I went with this version. And I honestly lost track of who I replied to and didn't reply to review-wise when the site was being an evil-spawn and not letting me reply to them, so I'm sorry if I didn't reply to some of you. I was banging my head on the wall over everything lately, haha.

Anyways, I hope you enjoy a slightly calmer chapter.

Chapter 23:

Bruce woke up alone, and given that the other side of the bed was cold, Natasha had disappeared hours ago. It probably wasn't fair to wonder where she was, but given what had happened, he couldn't help but to be worried. He had no reason to think she hadn't just left without a word to go and 'fly Barton from the coop', but he hoped she hadn't, so he asked, "Jarvis, is Natasha still in the tower?"

"She is, Doctor. Miss Romanoff is currently—" and there was an awkward silence from the AI before Jarvis finished the comment, "dancing in the training center."

Bruce felt his brow ruffle at the comment. "She's...dancing?"

"Yes, Doctor Banner."

He shook his head a little at that before rolling to his feet and pulling on fresh clothes. He padded slowly to the door and onto the elevator as he headed down towards the training center. Confused as he was about the 'dancing', he wasn't sure if he should actually go down there, it felt a little like intruding on something personal. Bruce wasn't sure that he was allowed to go and intrude of personal things yet, not without her consent, but then wouldn't she do it somewhere that didn't have access from the other Avengers? Either way, the opening doors of the elevator led to a sight he wasn't sure would ever leave his brain, it would be eternally burned into the back of his mind.

No music, no fancy clothes; just her hair in a ponytail, bare feet, yoga pants and a tank top. The music was only for her to hear, coming through earbuds attached to the ipod clipped at her waist. Ballet was something he had seen a few times and she was doing a rather impressive and gracefully stunning Adagio. It was soft and slow, her movements never ended, and it generated the perfect illusion that one position flowed directly into the next.

This was something Bruce had never known that Natasha could do, especially not so well, it was like watching a professional. Everything was perfectly executed, her grace in ballet was as fluid as her grace in battle, and he couldn't take his eyes off of her.

And then she faltered in an insanely amazing pirouette, cursed in Russian and she looked...disappointed. "Natasha? Are you alright?" he dared to question. She didn't look at all surprised to hear him as and he supposed she had known the moment he stepped inside the room, but she also didn't answer, instead he watched as she started from the beginning. Several minutes, exactly as beautiful before, and she faltered in exactly the same spot. Another string of curses left her lips before she started for a third time. At least it was the third time since he was here, God only knew how long she had been doing this. "Natasha." Nothing. She ignored him as she moved through the motions all over. And over. And over. She did it six times. She didn't falter again, not that he could tell, but she still looked angry and disappointed with herself. She was about to start for the seventh time when Bruce couldn't handle it any longer. He moved forward and placed a hand gently on her shoulder. "Natasha..." he tried again.

She yanked the earbuds out and finally looked at him, really looked at him, and he wasn't sure what to make of what he saw in her eyes now. "What?" she questioned.

It was an empty voice, hollow eyes, a void expression and eerily like when she had first shown up in Bahir. "How long have you been doing this?" he asked quickly.

"I need to finish, let me finish, I need to get it right," was her only answer as she pulled away and put the earbuds back in.

He pulled them back out, "Natasha, you need to stop. Why are you doing this?"

"It needs to be right. It needs to be perfect."

Bruce frowned at that and moved around it front of her. He placed his hands on either side of her face and forced her to look back at him, "It was perfect, Natasha. It was perfect. Like you."

"It wasn't, it wasn't, I'm not. I need to get it right," she insisted.

"You don't need to do that, you need to sit because—because you didn't tape your feet, you're lucky they aren't bleeding," he told her quickly and she stared down at feet. She shook her head and moved to step away again and he had to stop her once more. "Natasha, stop! Stop, please..." and she blinked a few times at him before some semblance of sense seemed to come back to her. "Alright, alright come on..." he kept his voice gentle as he pulled her to sit down on one of the benches. He crouched down in front of her and kept his eyes on hers, "Why are you doing this?"

She opened her mouth to answer and then promptly closed it as she shook her head a little. His worried face must have been enough because she parted her lips and finally answered, "It was just a dream. Or maybe a memory. I...I'm not sure."

"Of what?"

"Dancing, or failing at it anyways."

"You...danced?" he asked next.

Natasha gave a small nod at that, "It wasn't just about ballet. Not for Red Room. It taught a lot of things, discipline being the main one."

"And the dream?" he dared to ask next.

"I was..." she paused and looked away with a sigh. "I was thirteen and I couldn't get it right," she admitted. "I was good, really good, but I couldn't get it right. Every single time I faltered it was...it was bad."

Bruce found himself faltering now. He knew what she meant by that. He knew that Natasha was saying that when she messed up the dance that she got punished, very likely painfully so, and it was wrong on so many levels. He placed his hand back on the side of her face, "They can't hurt you, Natasha. Not anymore."

And by the blank look on her face he knew that wasn't entirely true. They hurt her all the time, even ten years later, they still hurt her. Nikolao Constantin, the file from Red Room, and even her trigger. She couldn't escape her past any better than he could. His own past came out in the form of a giant green rage monster, and lately, General Thaddeus Ross. They were both being tormented and it was no wonder they were getting along the way they were. Tortured souls often became kindred spirits and they were both tortured.

Maybe he just needed to do something to make her feel better, to get her mind off of it, because the mask of indifference she wore told him she wasn't going to talk about it further. He was lucky that she even bothered to say what little she did. "I can dance." The empty expression flipped in an instant and she gave him this absurd and hilariously incredulous look. "Hey, I can do it. Not your kind of dance, but I can dance."

"Yeah...I don't think you can dance," she answered with the smallest smile.

He took that as a dare, "Oh...I could dance."

She gave him something akin to a stink eye, "Prove it. Jarvis, put on some music."

"Any preference?" came Jarvis' reply.

Bruce just shrugged.

"Apparently not," Natasha answered with the tiniest smirk.

"No judging," Bruce warned her. "Jarvis, play Walk the Line."

"Of course, Doctor."

Natasha chuckled, "Johnny Cash? Well...alright then." And he stepped away and did the most ridiculous move in the world. To his enjoyment, the laugh from Natasha's lips was almost instantaneous. "Bruce," and she snorted out another laugh as he kept going, "Are you doing the sprinkler?"

"I've got moves," he answered with a cheeky grin.

The grin on her lips was worth it and then he switched causing her to laugh even harder, "No. No, no, stop," she huffed out in a laugh as she stood up and stopped his 'roll the dice' move. "Stop and never ever do that again," she told him with the amusement still clear in her eyes. "Don't you know how to actually dance?" came the next question.

"Haven't done it in a while, but I think I could manage," he answered with a small shrug.

"Okay then," she replied with a smile, placing each of his hands on her waist before wrapping her arms around his neck, "Let's dance."

"Oh—oh, uh...sure," Bruce mumbled out. This wasn't exactly the best song for it but he went along with it when she rested her face in the crook of his neck and he swayed with her. "I was probably better at the sprinkler."

She let out a breathy little laugh on his neck, "It was a good sprinkler, Bruce." And he chuckled but kept quiet after that, even when Jarvis switched the song to something more appropriate without being asked. Tony's AI was definitely thoughtful, there was no doubt about it. "Thanks, by the way, for snapping me out of that."

"You had a...bad day yesterday," he answered without thought. "You're allowed to freak out and dance like a ballerina zombie."

"I couldn't sleep, so after you fell asleep, I went to the theater room. I watched a movie, must have fallen asleep during it, and then I had that dream...and then suddenly you were in here, yelling at me to stop."

Bruce was quiet at that for a moment, "Are you alright now?"

"Trust me...I was better the second you did the sprinkler," she answered with a small laugh.

"Do me a favor? Never tell Tony about that."

"Done."

And he would honestly stay there forever, swaying to whatever song was playing that he wasn't paying attention to, and for that moment he really wished he could have more than a thing with someone. With her. Bruce had kept worrying that she would need and want more only to realize he was the one who needed and wanted more. That was something he would have to keep to himself. This supposed thing hadn't even been going on for that long, it wouldn't be right to bring it up now even if he could have more, it probably wasn't even right to have whatever this was now. Maybe it was wrong, maybe it wasn't fair, but wrong felt right.

Natasha felt right.

And that was a little scary. Nothing had felt right in a long time, right always seemed to go wrong, and wrong was something he was very used to.

Natasha was still exhausted even when she arrived at Clint's family home. Sleep wouldn't come to her no matter how much she tried and Bruce had laid down with her for hours before she had given in, liberated Tony's jet, and taken off to Iowa. She let out a breath of frustration before she was close enough for it to be obvious and then made her way towards the front of the house. She only made it to the fence before the front door swung open and her biggest fan came bounding out of it.

"Auntie Nat!"

Natasha chuckled as the little girl came running and she grabbed hold of the speeding tiny person and hauled the giggling child over her shoulder as she continued her trek to the front door. "You know what? Eventually you're gonna be too big for these shenanigans, kiddo," she informed Lila as she walked through the open front door.

"Aunt Nat, hey!" Cooper chimed in with a grin.

Natasha put Lila back on her feet, kissed her forehead and then got enveloped in Cooper's bone crushing hug. "Now where's your mom and dad, hmm?"

"Mom's lecturing dad on being safe," Cooper explained casually and Natasha laughed in an instant, even harder with his next comment, "You're laughing now, but she's gonna lecture you too."

She didn't doubt that for a moment, especially when both kids giggled at her, "She can lecture me all she wants. I come here just to hear her lectures."

"Liar!" they both claimed at once and she chuckled.

Natasha pressed her index finger to her lips and shushed them. "Now, what are we doing while your father gets lectured?" she asked them with a grin.

"Movie!" Lila shouted in an instant. "Can we watch Frozen?"

"You're always watching Frozen," Cooper complained with a groan.

Natasha snickered as Lila grasped her hand and pulled her into the living room, "Frozen first, then Cooper's choice next."

"Yes!" Cooper followed after them in an instant and Natasha shook her head in amusement as she found herself seated on the couch with a kid pressed into either side of her.

She almost wished that she had shown up sooner, right after she had been back to herself. The Barton kids were cathartic for her and they always had been, and Natasha supposed that was the reason why she didn't remember anything twenty minutes into Frozen. The next thing she knew her eyes were fluttering open because Clint was pulling her off the couch.

"You weren't kidding when you said you needed sleep, eh, partner?" and she huffed out what might have been a laugh before resting her head on his shoulder and closing her eyes again. "You alright, Nat?"

"Yeah..." she mumbled.

It was silence again as she drifted back to darkness until she found herself in the bed of the guest room, or rather, her room. The only place she's ever stayed that held pictures of her. Pictures of her and the kids. Pictures that were drawn for her. Regardless of being awake and aware, she rolled over on her side and feigned otherwise.

"She usually never sleeps," came Laura's voice.

"Yeah, I know. Something happened."

"As opposed to the nothing that usually happens? There's no SHIELD anymore, Clint. Maybe you guys need to throw in the towel, hang up your capes, leave being the heroes to supersoldiers and gods and billionaires in metal suits," Laura suggested.

Natasha would be damned but it sounded like a half-way decent idea with the way things had been going lately. Unfortunately, retiring wouldn't help her wipe out her ledger, she at least needed to see this scepter thing through.

Clint seemed to know her thoughts, sort of, "Natasha won't do that."

"You should."

And Natasha sort of agreed with Laura because unlike her, Clint had a reason to give up the Avenging business, and he had another reason on the way.

"Lila, sweetie, don't wake up Aunt Natasha," Laura called but it was clearly too late.

Natasha felt the bed bounce in an instant and turned to see Lila crawling under the covers next to her. "It's okay if I nap with you, right, Auntie Nat?"

"Absolutely, Lilabug," she answered as she tugged the little girl closer and hugged her.

"And when we get up we can play princess?"

"You bet," Natasha agreed with a smile, "And have a tea party."

"Can't forget the tea party," Lila agreed as she snuggled further into her side.

Natasha glanced over at Clint giving her that shit-eating grin. "You're grinning now, but you won't be when you're wearing a princess crown, Barton."

Laura laughed in an instant and grabbed her husband's hand, "Let's go. Let them take their nap."

"Oh sure, Natasha gets to nap, I get more safety lectures," her best friend grumbled.

Natasha shook with silent laughter and grinned at Lila's giggle as Clint and Laura left down the hall. She tugged the little girl closer, closed her eyes, and let the drowsiness take over.

She supposed it wasn't all that long later that she woke up given that there was still plenty of daylight out and Lila was still cuddled up against her side. Apparently said little girl was already awake because she sat up on the bed and turned to her in an instant, "Princess tea party time?"

"Princess tea party time," Natasha agreed with a smile.

"YES!" Lila hooted out as she rolled off the bed and made a beeline out of the room.

Natasha chuckled as she stretched and got out of the bed as well. She only made it out the bedroom door when she came face to face with Laura. "Hey," she greeted the wife of her best friend.

"Hey, you look better," Laura replied with that warm smile.

"Feel better too," Natasha assured her.

"You can have your lecture later," Laura told her, "Go play princess tea party. And if the world could hear me say that to the infamous Black Widow of the Avengers..."

Natasha laughed in an instant, "I don't think one living soul would ever believe it." She listened to Laura snicker as she made her way down the hall and into Lila's bedroom. The moment she was inside she arched an eyebrow at the sight inside. It was only three minutes between leaving her own room and making it to this one and yet Clint sat at a child's table with a crown on, Lila already had on a princess dress, and Cooper was holding a plastic purple magic wand. "Wow, kiddo. You got your brother in here too, that's some serious skill."

Lila grinned and held up her index finger, "Got 'em wrapped around my finger, Auntie Nat, just like you taught me."

Clint chuckled, "I hate you, Nat."

She winked at her partner and accepted the princess crown and wand that was handed to her. She placed the crown atop her head, bopped Cooper on the head with her wand and took a seat at the table.

"And this is why this child gets your name," Laura stated from the doorway with a hand over her stomach, "I can never get all three in one place at one time and then you walk in the door, bam."

Natasha arched an eyebrow up as she looked from Laura over to Clint, "She's serious right now, isn't she?"

"Apparently you are our savior," Clint informed her, "Therefore my third child will be Natasha, and I'm totally okay with that."

"You can't name it Natasha," Lila told her parents with a ruffled brow, "Auntie Nat is Natasha. It can't steal her name. How do we tell them apart?"

Natasha snickered, "See? Even your child thinks this is a terrible idea."

Laura rolled her eyes, "Accept it, Nat. We're naming this kid after you."

"Fine, fine," Natasha agreed and waved the wand at her, "Name it after me, but when your third kid has a hundred and one problems, that's on you." She leaned down to Lila and spoke in a loud whisper, "And if your mom says Natasha peed or puked on her, it's safe to say she's probably talking about the baby."

Lila giggled.

"That's so gross," Cooper groaned out.

Clint was smirking.

"Mom, put your crown on," Lila ordered as she held up another crown.

"Ohh, I'm invited too?" Laura questioned.

Natasha smiled when Lila skipped up to her mother and handed a crown over, "Duh, you're always invited."

And that was why she loved being here.

Then Lila yanked her hand. "I got something for you," the little girl whispered as she pulled her away from the table and towards her dresser. Natasha smiled again when Lila opened the drawer and handed something over, "For your friend."

Natasha laughed in an instant as she took the blank postcard that was handed over. "Went to go see Grandma?"

"Mmhmm."

"Thanks, Lila," she added with a grin. It was a little funny. The left half showed part of Miami and then looked like it was ripped off where the ocean water should be and said, 'I spent so much money in Miami Beach that I could only afford half a postcard.'

The kid was a genius, but it sort of made her miss Bruce, and that was ridiculous given that she hadn't even been away from the tower for that long. She wasn't supposed to miss him. This wasn't supposed to be a thing where one of them missed the other.

"You look bored and unhappy, why do you look bored and unhappy?"

Bruce glanced up at Tony's question and arched an eyebrow up in uncertainty. "I'm not bored and unhappy," he insisted.

"You're bored, bored and unhappy," Tony insisted again. "You've been staring at that computer screen for the last three hours like a lovesick little puppy dog," he stated. "Nobody is around to interrupt the conversation, no redheaded assassin here to stab me, so... is this love, Bruceyboy?"

Bruce sighed and shut down the computer screen, "I'm not talking about this."

"I think you should," Tony informed him.

"It's not love, Tony," Bruce stated as he rubbed his eyes, "I don't know what it is."

"Dude, you did the sprinkler. You did the rolling the dice move. Have I taught you nothing?" Tony questioned.

"How the hell—"

Tony arched a knowing eyebrow up, "I have cameras everywhere."

"Right..."

Tony chuckled. "As your best friend, I'm reserving judgment, and I'm reserving said judgment because it was actually pretty damn hilarious and Red seemed to think so too." Bruce blew out a breath of frustration at the comment but the next one was unexpected, "All I'm saying is, you've got me to talk to about these things with, so...talk to me."

Bruce frowned a little before he sighed again and went with it, "I don't know what Natasha and I are. We just keep calling whatever we are this. She says she doesn't want or need more and...I can't have more."

"Sure you could."

"Tony..." Bruce chuckled sadly at that, "I can't. You know that, I know that, she knows that. It's physically impossible to have more. I almost went green when I kissed her, I think enough has been proven over that."

Tony smirked. "Again, as your friend, you just need time. So you have obstacles to deal with, obstacles aren't impossible, just difficult," came the unwarranted advice. "Bruce, women are women, eventually they want more."

"She was pretty clear," Bruce added, "She doesn't want more."

"Oh, she was definitely lying." Both Bruce and Tony turned to look at Pepper as she stared at them with that knowing look and Bruce turned to his friend with a look that said 'no interruptions, eh?'. "I'm just saying, Tony wasn't wrong, us ladies always want more than we're willing to admit to you guys." Bruce smirked when Tony shifted uncomfortably and Pepper was grinning as she continued, "If you want I can feel her out when she gets back. See what she really thinks. Girl talk."

Tony looked somewhere between admonished and ready to laugh his ass off, "You think Romanoff will adhere to the laws of girl talk? Pepper, sweetie...I love you but you've lost your mind."

"You think you can do better?" Pepper questioned as she folded her arms over her chest.

Tony smirked, "The key, my dear, is to be drunk. She really opens up when you're drunk."

And Bruce gave him an odd look, noticing that Pepper was giving the exact same look. "Isn't that supposed to be the other way around?" Bruce questioned in curious amusement.

"Probably, but like I said, Natasha doesn't adhere to the natural law of girl talk. Or the law of girl in general, really. An engagement ring says your girl talk doesn't work," Tony informed them both.

Pepper arched an eyebrow up, "Let me get this straight, Tony. You're proposing to me through a bet?"

"Only if you win, if you lose, we have boatloads of fun in Malibu."

Bruce wasn't sure what was more surprising, that Tony thought that was an acceptable proposition, or that Pepper agreed to it with a grin.

"You're on."

They were the weirdest couple, or they could have been, if couples didn't include a guy who turned into a giant green rage monster, and a former KGB spy and assassin, to be the weirdest thing. It was a little hard for Bruce to decide which was actually more strange. And were they actually a couple? They kept skirting around the conversation. He would ask, she would insist that they didn't need a definition. Maybe Pepper could get the answers for him. Anything was worth a shot.

And Pepper was giving him the strangest look now. "You know, I heard that your opinion of you and Natasha was that you can't have more. You didn't say that you didn't want to..."

Bruce bit down on his lower lip.

"Oh! And that is why I love you, Pepper. See? I didn't catch that," Tony stated as he plopped his feet up on the desk. "So, do you want more? And don't answer with the can't bullshit again."

This was getting horridly uncomfortable.

"You could always try a date," Pepper suggested.

"Last time we went somewhere outside the tower I turned green," he reminded them both.

Pepper rolled her eyes, "Because you didn't know to be extra careful. Now you know."

"Not happening..." Bruce mumbled out as he shook his head.

"Then do something here," Tony suggested.

"Yes! Do something here," Pepper agreed.

And now it was a double team. Bruce rubbed at his eyes and leaned his head on the table a moment later. "We do things here already."

"Something that doesn't include platonically sleeping in the same bed or watching movies from before she was born," Tony ordered.

And that was a reminder he hadn't needed.

"Tony!" Pepper grumbled out. "Bruce, it's clear that she likes you, you don't have anything to worry about here. Whatever you're doing, just keep on doing it, she clearly likes it..."

Bruce lifted his head up and gave her a small smile, "Thanks. Apparently I'm a dork."

Pepper let out a heartfelt and warm little laugh, "You are. It's adorable."

Bruce watched as Tony gave his girlfriend an incredulous look, "Are you hitting on my best friend?"

"Yes, yes I am," Pepper answered without a hint of sarcasm, "He's charmed me. I'm going to steal him from an infamous assassin and believe that I'll live to see this steamy romance through. You don't mind though, right?"

"Of course not," Tony assured her and waved off the idea, "Play with my best friend at your will, just make sure you come to bed later."

Bruce rolled his eyes, "You're both terrible. I'm not sure why we're all still friends."

"Because you love us," Pepper stated as she came over and gave him a peck on the cheek, "But seriously. Think about that date. I'll get all the dirty details for you."

"Appreciate it...I think," Bruce stated with a small smile.

He watched as Pepper left the lab and then Tony spoke up again, "I'm gonna have to go buy a ring, aren't I?"

Bruce grinned at that, "She was really determined. You might have actually motivated her to make sure she got the information."

"Huh, well...better get started on that," Tony mumbled, "Wanna go ring shopping?"

"Not really my thing," Bruce stated with a chuckle.

Tony looked a little green around the edges, "Never thought it would be mine either..."

Sorry it also wasn't a super long chapter. But when you write one chapter 7 ways, you give people what you got so that the hazard stops. xD