In Hawkeye, I believe we will find out if Yelena survived the snap or not, but the general consensus for it is that no, she didn't. So I wanted to see what it could've been like if she did.
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It was as if the world went cold. Half of the world fell silent while the other half froze in time, mere fragments of the people they once were. Breathing seemed like a chore. All hope, lost.
Natasha felt like a shell of a human being. She wanted to cry; she wanted to yell; she wanted to do anything. But she didn't have the strength to do it.
Steve was still trying to be hopeful. Even his transition into Nomad couldn't take his faith away.
But Natasha wasn't like him. She needed to do something, and she needed to do it now.
"I'm taking the jet," she told him after a few days of chaos, not willing to take no for an answer.
"Where will you go?" he asked, not so much questioning her motives, more where she could run to.
"Home."
xxx
Natasha's mind raced as she approached Melina's farm. It felt like it had been an eternity since she had stepped foot on this land. An eerily silence fell over the location like a thick cloud of smoke. The pigs she remembered from her last visit weren't even around to greet her.
Natasha swallowed hard. The gate surrounding the farm was closed and locked. Without a soul in sight, her only option was to hope this fence wasn't electric and to climb over it. The assassin gently grabbed onto the enclosure, testing it. She knew Melina well enough to trust her security measures may be extensive. She shook it once, twice. It seemed steady enough, so she began scaling the fence. Natasha clambered up and over it with ease, landing with a soft thud on the other side. She rubbed her hands together and trudged onward towards the house.
Shivers ran down Natasha's spine as she surveyed the scene. A hastily discarded bucket of what looked like food for the pigs laid abnormally in the middle of the path, surrounded by flies. The pit in the blonde's stomach grew. Melina would never be so careless. Alexei, on the other hand...
Natasha shook her head vigorously. No. She had already lost Wanda, Vision, Sam, and Fury. Tony and Peter were missing. Her new family of superheroes was broken into pieces, and she couldn't lose this too, not now. Too much was already gone. There was only so much loss a person could take.
The Avenger reached the front door and gently pushed it open. Her hand naturally grazed over the gun tucked in the back of her waistband as she crossed the threshold into the house. It was a tick. Either nobody was here, and her adoptive parents were dead, or they were here, minding their own business. The second option seemed less and less possible. Natasha carefully stepped around the corner and headed toward the location of their unhappy family reunion. Everything was silent as if someone had accidentally hit the mute button on the TV. At least, it would be; if Natasha's footsteps hadn't echoed loudly in her ears. "Melina? Alexei?" she called out with what little hope she had left. Nothing but the wind greeted her.
Natasha chewed her bottom lip and glanced around again. Maybe she missed something. A clue, something to indicate they left instead of being turned to ash.
Her foot slipped. Natasha stumbled a bit but caught herself quickly, looking down to see what had tripped her up. She almost choked. Ash. Her head snapped up, and she saw another pile of familiar-looking substance a few feet away. They were here. Together.
And then they weren't.
Natasha's knees wobbled. Grief overtook her body, and for a moment, she resisted the tears trying to force their way out but gave up quickly. There was no one here to look down on her. She dropped to the floor in a heap of tears. This was too much. After everything she had been through, this was her tipping point. The assassin looked back at every time she said it couldn't get worse and laughed about it bitterly. How wrong she was.
But life didn't give her long to grieve. Life was rearing its ugly horns.
A floorboard creaked.
Natasha instinctively pulled out her gun in one swift movement. Her tears could wait. She rose to her feet, holding her weapon out in front of her as she waited to see if whoever else was here would move again. "I know you're here," she spoke into the empty room, taunting the mystery person. She hoped her voice didn't shake.
More shuffles.
The Avenger clenched her jaw and began moving toward the noise. Maybe this was a stupid move on her point, but she was pissed. Whoever was here must have a death wish.
"And I know you're here."
Natasha broke out in a cold sweat. She knew that accent. Her steps slowed down to almost a crawl as she continued to the open door. About halfway there, a flash of a gun and a blonde-haired woman appeared in the threshold.
That gun was pointed straight at her chest.
Natasha almost dropped her weapon. "Yelena?" Her sister's name came out a whisper, one that barely reached the other woman.
Yelena's eyes flickered, but the gun stayed directed at her. "Is this some kind of cruel trick? My family is dead; what more could you do to hurt me?"
Romanoff blinked, then began slowly lowering herself to the floor.
Yelena's gun followed her.
She placed the weapon squarely on the floor and started her careful assent back to her feet. "I won't hurt you. I won't, I promise. It's me, Rooskaya."
"Don't." The young assassin's hand trembled, but she still held her ground. "Only she can call me that. I know this is a trick so just cut the BS, okay?"
"Little one."
Yelena's lip quivered, her hold adjusting to grab the gun with two hands.
"It's me," Natasha emphasized, taking a bold step forward.
"Stay where you are!" the Russian ordered, baring her teeth like a rabid animal. She was afraid, Natasha noted.
She stayed put, listening to her demand. Maybe that would give her a reason to believe Natasha was who she said she was. If she wanted to hurt her, it would've already happened.
A small noise escaped Yelena's throat as the pair continued to stare each other down. Her body ached from head to toe. She wanted nothing more than to trust that this really was her big sister, but she had already seen too many people die recently to believe it. "Tell me something only she would know," Yelena spoke, her voice losing her edge. The act was getting hard to keep up.
"You are Yelena Belova. And this is your vest." Natasha tugged gently on the fabric of the vest she was wearing. "It has a lot of pockets. And some of your modifications. You gave it to me after we destroyed the red room together. I... wear it all the time now."
A single wall of Yelena's fell. But it wasn't quite enough. "T-that information could easily be traced. Tell me something else."
Natasha thought for a moment, then smiled a little.
Yelena shifted on her feet.
"I'm a poser. You made fun of me for it, but it didn't stop you from copying my moves."
Yelena scoffed.
A beat.
The gun finally lowered to her side. "Is it really you?" Yelena asked, her voice just as quiet as Natasha's was when they started.
Natasha nodded a little, tears pooling in her eyes. "It's me, Sestra... I came home..."
Yelena dropped her weapon without much care. All she could see was the person in front of her. That was all that mattered.
They both rushed forward and wrapped their arms around each other tightly. It took only a moment before they both dropped to the ground, sadness and relief finally getting to them.
"Nat...," Yelena whispered into her sister's shoulder, all of the love and care she could muster going into just that one word.
"I'm here," Natalia reassured, running a hand down her back. "I've got you..."
"What's happening?" her sister asked, her voice laced heavily with fear. "I-I was with the widow's I've been saving... Suddenly they were gone so... So I came here to make sense of it a-and Mama and Dad are gone too... But you're here. Why?"
Natasha nuzzled into Yelena's hair, allowing herself to breathe for just a moment. Her heart was pounding, and she was nearing a state of overstimulation.
Yelena seemed to understand what was going on, so she kept her questions to herself for the time being and pressed closer to her older sibling. She couldn't remember the last time she was held like this. It was... nice.
"Something bad happened, Rooskaya," the Avenger murmured after a few moments, gripping a little bit harder to the blonde's torso. Natasha didn't care if she was acting clingy. She hadn't let herself be emotional in front of anyone until now, and there would be no stopping her.
Yelena cupped the back of Natasha's neck and applied gentle pressure. "Tell me. I want to know where everyone went."
"They're not coming back, Sestra... We lost," came the heartbreaking response Yelena wasn't ready for.
"No, no, there has to be something! Things like this can't just happen," she rationalized, shaking her head in disbelief. This could not be happening.
"Listen to me." Natasha pulled back a bit and pressed her forehead firmly against Yelena's. "There was a fight, and we lost. Half the world is gone. And there's nothing we can do. That's why I came here. I needed to know if... they were a part of the billions lost..."
Yelena stared into her eyes, trying to make sense of it all. She could tell by the way Natasha's voice shook that she was telling the truth. Not that Yelena thought she'd lie about this. Their relationship was still mending, but she trusted her. "... Half the world?"
Natasha nodded, their noses brushing together for a moment. "Yelena, you have no idea how happy I am to know you made it out alive. I lost a lot of people, but I didn't have you lose you again."
The young assassin allowed herself to smile a little. "Yeah. It's good to see you."
Natasha hummed and kissed her brow before she finally pulled away. "It's good to see you too. Just wish it didn't have to be this way."
Yelena stared down at the floor, picking at the wood paneling. "So... that's them, right?" She pointed vaguely toward where Natasha had slipped.
The Avenger looked over her shoulder and sighed heavily. "Yep... I wish I had given them a more proper goodbye. I mean, don't get me wrong, it was messed up what they did to us but... still." She cleared her throat and shook her head, turning her attention back to the younger woman. "So the other Widows. They're all gone?"
Pain flashed behind Yelena's eyes. "Yes. Suddenly everything went quiet, and I didn't know what to do. That's why I'm here. I suspect same as you?"
Natasha nodded. "If I knew where to find you, I would've immediately come to find you after this. But-" She gestured to Yelena and smiled a tight-lipped smile. "-here you are."
The Russian's lips parted slightly. "You... would've come and found me?"
"Of course," her sister answered firmly, placing her hand over Yelena's. "You're my family. I wanted to make sure you were safe."
Yelena bit her lip and almost pulled her hand away. She didn't want to cry. But Natasha treating her as if she loved her was something she was not used to. Eventually, their eyes met again.
The corner of Natasha's lip twitched upward.
Yelena matched her slight smile and raised a playful eyebrow. "Hey, Nat?"
Natasha knew that look. "Oh no. What?"
The assassin removed her hand from under Natasha and began gently playing with the tips of Natasha's dyed hair. "You're blonde."
"Really? I hadn't noticed," Natasha deadpanned, leaning into Yelena's touch.
"And you're wearing my vest," Yelena continued, poking Natasha's stomach.
The Avenger slapped her hand away and rolled her eyes. "Just say it; I know you want to."
Yelena grinned. "That makes you a..." She quickly threw up finger guns, which made Natasha groan audibly. "Poser. But as me this time. Didn't know you were so jealous of my look, Sestra."
"I was in hiding. And what have you been up to? Keeping up with the current trends, I see," her sibling shot back, clearly relieved to have a distraction.
Yelena hummed. "Well, I couldn't end up like you, could I, grandma?"
Natasha laughed for the first time in a while, shaking her head fondly. "Look at us. We're a mess, aren't we?"
"Yep." Yelena tilted her head and moved her body closer to Natasha's. "But we're together."
Natasha scrunched her nose in response. "You're a sap." She carefully stood and offered her a hand to take.
The Russian took her hand and was tugged to her feet. "I'm a sap." Yelena scrunched her nose back at her. "But you're a poser."
"Should've seen that coming."
Yelena smiled sadly, her playful nature finally wearing off.
Natasha stood up straighter and called Yelena over to her arms.
Yelena did not hesitate. She buried her face in Natasha's neck, wanting to hide from the world as if it were a bad dream. "Nat, I don't wanna be here anymore..."
The Avenger leaned her head against Yelena's and gently swayed them. "Okay. Where will you go?"
"I don't know, just... Anywhere but here."
Natasha paused for a moment. "What if... What if you come back with me?"
"What?" The assassin pulled back and looked her in the eyes. "Are you serious? Do your super scientist friends even know I exist?"
"No, but... I'd like them to." Natasha shrugged. She suddenly felt exposed. "If you want."
Yelena searched her face, looking for any sign that she was joking. She always assumed Natasha didn't want the Avengers to know about her. But she couldn't detect a lie. "I... Really?"
"Yes!" Natasha reached out and squeezed her sister's bicep. "It's just us now. I'd like us to stick together if that's something you'd want."
"Okay."
The Avenger raised her eyebrows. "Really? Just like that?"
"Yeah." Yelena bumped her shoulder against Natasha's and started to leave. "Let's go."
Natasha jogged to keep up with her, then matched her pace with Yelena's. "Are you sure you want this?"
"I wanna stay with you." Yelena looked at her and smiled a little. "I won't lose you again."
Natasha hummed and smiled back. "Then it's settled. Welcome aboard."
xxx
So, I don't intend to write a sequel to this unless I get inspired to do so. For now, this will remain a stand-alone one-shot or a What If. I hope you liked it, and thanks for reading :)