Disclaimer: The Avengers, its characters and The Marvel Cinematic Universe belong to Marvel Studios and The Walt Disney Company, among many others. Just as Daredevil and its characters belong to Marvel Televisions, ABC Studios, Netflix and many others. I'm only a fan, writing this for love of this film franchise and personal pleasure.

A.N.: Set at the very end of CA:CW, starting out with the extra scene with T'Challa in Wakanda.


To Build a Home

13. Prison Break

"You know if they find out he's here, they'll come for him." Steve knew T'Challa was aware of that already, but he felt obligated to voice that out loud.

"Let them try." The soon-to-be new crowned King of Wakanda said calmly, looking out at the forest surrounding his fortress.

The super soldier smiled ruefully to himself. He doubted even Ross with all his resources would be able to breach through Wakanda's defenses, from what he'd seen of the hidden nation so far. He was really grateful to count T'Challa as his new friend and ally.

Steve cleared his throat then, looking down at the ground for a moment. "I'd hate to ask even more, after everything you've done for me─"

"Please, Captain. Do not hesitate to ask me anything." T'Challa interrupted him right away, making a dismissive hand gesture. "How may I assist you?"

"I need information," Steve said with a smile. "Now that Bucky will be alright here, I have to take care of my other friends."

"I'm sure our intelligence service would be able to provide you with whatever you need," T'Challa smiled easily back at him. "I'll have the General look it up for you."

They walked out together to set things up for Steve with Okoye. T'Challa needed to prepare for his coronation rituals and ceremony and he'd offered Steve to stay with them for the duration of the festivities, but the super soldier didn't want to intrude on such an important moment for the wakandans and he also needed to get things moving and make his own preparations.

It took Okoye only about two days to give all the information that Steve required, and he took another day studying the Raft and perfecting his plan to break out his friends from prison. Along with the vital information that he needed to execute his mission, Shuri and T'Challa had also given him a few tools to help him along, considering he was adamant to do this on his own.

So by the time he headed out on the "borrowed" Quinjet to the floating prison in the middle of the North Atlantic ocean, Steve's injuries from his battle with Tony had all about healed ─ the physical ones, that is. The emotional scars would take way longer to fade, if ever. Four days had been enough for him to recover, but he only dreaded just thinking of what those days in the Raft may have done to his friends. He approached the floating prison at the same time a cargo ship was headed in. With the Quinjet's stealth mode and auto-reflective panels on, they'd never seen the airship land quietly next to the small cargo plane. And Steve wasted no time heading into the prison in his usual manner: punching and kicking his way in, quickly incapacitating just about anyone in his path.

It all went quite smoothly, Steve practically only needing his fists to handle all those prison guards until he reached the control room and was greeted after stepping through the door by a guard that seemed to anticipate his move, quickly grabbing his wrist and twisting his arm behind his back in a surprisingly strong grip. Before he could react to this a second guard appeared at the doorway, leveled a gun at him and was about to take a shot when something just flew at the man out of nowhere, causing an electrical discharge that instantly toppled the guard over to the ground, unconscious.

Finally snapping out of it, he twisted his arm free and whirled around to face the first guard, but suddenly Steve was looking at a very familiar smirk and intense green eyes. "Whoa. Easy there, soldier."

"Nat?!" His eyes widened impossibly as he just gaped at her. Natasha was wearing a prison guard uniform, her hair was honey blonde and pulled up into a tight bun and she had in one of her hands her widow bites, ready to be used at a moment's notice. In her other hand he saw a synthetic mesh mask that obviously she'd been wearing until now, as he was sure that guard had not looked like her when he'd first entered the room. He also saw several guards already unconscious on the ground further into the room, which bore clear signs of a confrontation with some cracked screens and toppled chairs strewn about.

"Hi, Steve." Her smirk melted into an affectionate smile as she took him in. She noticed a faint hint of a fading bruise on his right cheekbone and privately wondered at what new invisible scars he was carrying now. She still wasn't sure of what had happened to him, but it was obviously bad.

"What are you doing here?" He unconsciously took a step forward, hand going up as if to touch her arm when he stopped himself and just stood before her, still wrapping his head around the fact that she was suddenly there with him.

"What does it look like?" She raised an eyebrow at him as she still regarded him with that smile, obviously pleased that she'd managed to surprise him so. "Helping you break out our friends from prison, of course."

"How did you get here?" He shook his head slightly, still marveling at her.

"I can tell you all the details of my infiltration plan later," she drawled out in her characteristic dry tone. "But I think it would be better if we hurry up now, before these guys wake up."

"Right." He seemed to focus back on what they'd come to do then, nodding back at her. "Okay, let's go."

"Get down there, I'll override their security protocols to open the cells." She said, going over to the main computer system and motioning with her chin down at the prisoner's floor. Then she raised an eyebrow at him once more. "What were you even going to do if I weren't here? Just punch your way through those doors?" Even if Steve had caught up quite easily to their current technology, hacking wasn't really his strong suit.

"It's worked before." He shrugged and grinned back at her, then walked over and took something out of his pocket. "But no, I got a little something to help out with that." It looked like a modified pen-drive, but nothing like she'd ever seen before, all black and smooth lines and made in vibranium, unless she was mistaken. Steve attached it to one of the system ports and a program started running automatically, going over resetting and overriding the prison's security protocols.

"Huh. I'll want to take a closer look at that later," Natasha merely said, raising a rather impressed eyebrow at him.

The pair quickly made their way out to the holding cells to free their friends, seeing as they'd already laid out all the prison guards between the two of them. Steve grinned as he walked up to Sam's cell and as he stood in front of him, there was a sudden beeping noise and the door retracted, automatically opening once Shuri's program concluded its task.

"Aren't you guys a sight for sore eyes," Sam chuckled at him, glancing over and seeing Natasha walking up to Clint's cell.

"Sorry we took so long." Steve murmured, clapping his arm and pulling him in for a quick hug.

"You're here now, it's all good." Sam grinned back at him and looked over Steve's shoulder at Scott, who was coming out of his cell. "See? I told you we wouldn't stay here for long."

"Never doubted you, sir." Scott said, making a hand salute at Steve.

"We've been over this, Scott," the super soldier rolled his eyes at him. "Just call me Steve."

"Friends?" Natasha smiled as she stood in Clint's cell, offering him a hand as he was still laying down on the bed.

"Always." He smiled and took her hand, pulling himself up to his feet. "Especially now that you came to your senses."

"We can talk about all of that later." She smiled ruefully back at him then motioned out with her head. "Help me with Wanda, will you?"

The Scarlet Witch looked at them with relief visible in her bloodshot eyes and pale face as they entered her cell. Natasha's expression turned dark and grim as she took in the girl's appearance, kneeling before her to remove the shock-collar from her neck. Pulling her gently to her feet, Clint wrapped his arms around her and supported her weight as Natasha removed the restraints and quickly shed her of the straight-jacket.

"Thank you," Wanda told her in a shaky, hoarse whisper as tears overflowed and ran down her face. Natasha only smiled and gently wiped her tears away with her fingers and Clint easily pulled her up in his arms to carry her out before the girl could even protest.

The group quickly headed out to the aerial pad and into the Quinjet, Sam and Scott grabbing their gear and suits out of the evidence vault and Natasha taking a detour back to the controlling room to erase the footage from the security system and recover Steve's pen-drive. As she joined them in the jet, she closed the ramp behind her and Sam was already in the pilot seat, taking them to the air and away from the Raft. Steve had quickly administered a sedative to Wanda to get her to sleep for a while, as she was rather in a state of shock and wouldn't stop silently crying, after Clint laid her down on the cot in the medical bay.

"So where are we going now?" The black man asked, turning in his seat to look over his shoulder at the group.

"I have a safe place we could stay at for a while, but I don't want to overstay my welcome." Steve said then, a concerned frown marring his face. "We're on the wrong side of the law now, so we'll probably need to keep moving to keep Ross off our track."

"Hold on," Natasha held up a hand and stepped up to Sam. "Before we do that, we need to drop off Clint and Scott in New York."

"New York?" Clint raised an eyebrow at her.

"Why?" Steve continued to frown in concern at that.

"I made some arrangements," Natasha said, shaking out her newly blonde hair out of the tight bun, leaving it out to fall in gentle waves down her back as she explained it. "I took care of Laura and the kids, made sure they were okay while we got you out. Your ex-wife and kid are also okay, Scott. But you guys can't be on the run with us, you have families that need you."

"What arrangements?" Scott asked, looking at her in surprise. "What are you talking about?"

"I have a friend in Hell's Kitchen," Natasha said. "He's a lawyer."

"Murdock?" Clint's eyebrows raised up high in his forehead at this.

"Yes." Natasha's green eyes snapped quickly to his and a silent conversation seemed to take place between them in just a couple of seconds. "He's going to work out a plea deal with the feds for you. The details are still under negotiation, but we're thinking house arrest, two years, maybe."

"How did you manage that?" Sam asked, his voice full of wonder as he glanced over his shoulder at her.

"Cashed in a few favors, twisted a few arms." The blonde shrugged easily at that. She wasn't about to go into details of what exactly she'd done, but she'd probably used all the favors and leverage she'd had for this. It'd been very lucky that she'd once saved the life of the current Director of the FBI on one of her assignments with SHIELD, as well. "I could probably also get you the same deal if you'd like, Sam."

"And be confined to a house, sitting on my ass?" He raised an eyebrow at her. "No, thanks. I'd rather stay out here with you."

"Figured as much." She smiled and flickered an eyebrow back at him, then turned back to Clint and Scott. "We won't be able to be in contact with the two of you, at least while this situation with the Accords doesn't change. I'm also working at that from another angle, but it may be awhile before it's cleared out. But at least you get to be with your families."

"Wow. I don't know what to say." Scott blinked his eyes at her. "You don't even know me."

"It was nothing," Natasha shrugged dismissively, turning with a smile to her best friend then. "I had already promised I'd take care of this one for his wife, so negotiating two deals is no harder than negotiating one."

"Thank you so much. I can't believe I get to go home and see Cassie again." Scott said, taking her hand then and shaking it vigorously. "Now I'm really sorry I tried to take you down at that airport."

"Yeah, keep telling yourself that, Ant-Man." She drawled out, smirking up at him. "You were never even close to taking me down."

"Only because I held back." He argued back good-naturedly. "I didn't want to hurt Captain America's girl!"

"She's not my girl!" Steve exclaimed suddenly and rather exasperatedly at the same time as Natasha raised an eyebrow and said in a calmer tone, "I'm not his girl."

Scott frowned his brow in confusion, his eyes darting from one to the other. "Okay…?"

"Don't worry about that." Clint said easily with a smirk, clapping a hand on his shoulder and leaning close to whisper in his ear. "These two have issues."

Natasha merely rolled her eyes at this while Steve's jaw tightened in tension as their enhanced hearings were enough for the two of them to catch that. Natasha stepped up to take the co-pilot seat next to Sam, giving him directions and looking up a place where they would be able to safely land in New York and Steve turned and walked back to check on Wanda.

A few hours later, night had fallen when they reached Manhattan, finding a rather isolated point at the piers next to Hell's Kitchen to land quietly and safely in stealth mode. As Natasha, Clint and Scott got changed into regular clothes and got ready to head out, Steve had a soft frown on his face as he stepped up to her.

"I should go out with you," he said then. "Just to be on the safe side."

"Safe side of what?" She said, shaking her hair out after pulling on a top. "This is Manhattan. No one's going to notice three more people just walking around in Hell's Kitchen."

"What if you run into trouble or someone recognizes you?" He continued to frown in concern at her, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Steve, I'm actually a master at blending in and going on the run, remember? Clint is, too," she assured him with a soft smile. "Besides, if anyone's going to be recognized out there, it's you. The news has been all over you being a fugitive of the law again." His eyebrows flickered up momentarily as he inclined his head in a conceding gesture and she reached out, placing her hand comfortingly on his arm. "We'll be fine. I promise." He nodded back at her. He knew she was right, but he couldn't help but worry.

Wanda had woken up just before they landed and Clint knelt down in front of her before heading out. "Hey, kid. Cap tell you what's happening?"

"Yes," she whispered. "I'm glad you get to go home to your family, Clint."

He smiled back at her and just looked at her face for a moment, wondering not for the first time if he'd done the right thing by dragging her into this. He shook his head lightly, no room for regrets, after all. "He's gonna take care of you now. Make sure you have his back once you're up to your feet, alright?"

"I will," she smiled a little then.

He placed a tender kiss on her forehead then stood up, facing Steve, who had just stepped up to him. "I don't think I have to ask you to take care of them, right?"

"I got this," Steve said calmly with a somber nod.

"Good." Clint pulled him into a hug then glanced over Steve's shoulder at Natasha, who was pulling on a dark leather jacket. "You'll keep her safe, yeah?"

"I think you know better than anyone that she doesn't need me to take care of her," Steve said with a small smile. "And I always have her back."

Clint smiled ruefully back at him. Sharing a quick hug with Sam while Scott gave Wanda a kiss and pulled Steve into a too long hug of his own, the two of them then headed out after Natasha off towards Nelson & Murdock, Attorneys at Law.


"Hold on. Wait a minute." Foggy Nelson said, hands up and his voice pitched almost as high as his eyebrows had crawled up his forehead. "You know Black Widow?"

Natasha raised an amused eyebrow as Matt's partner was still gaping at her. The blonde man had widened his eyes at her and gone still in shock from the moment she'd stepped into his office with Clint and Scott in toe and had been quiet as she greeted Matt and made the introductions until he suddenly found his voice once more. They'd arranged to meet after their assistant had left to avoid awkward questions, but Matt wouldn't be able to keep this from his partner, as he'd need Foggy's assistance to work on the deals with the FBI.

The blind attorney shifted his weight rather uncomfortably from one foot to another. "Well…" Even if it had been awhile now that Foggy had learned about his alter-ego, they'd never gone into detail on his past endeavours as the Daredevil.

"How the hell do you even know Black Widow?" The blonde man exclaimed, throwing his arms up in exasperation and bafflement. "Is there some sort of secret superhero society? Are you friends with Iron Man, too? Spent holidays with Thor in Asgard? Own a timeshare with Captain America in the Hamptons?"

Scott snickered a little and Clint huffed in silent laughter at this, both watching with mild interest at this exchange between the two law partners. Natasha merely raised an eyebrow to herself once more at the thought of Matt and Steve owning a house together anywhere.

Matt heaved a small sigh. "Remember that summer internship I took in San Francisco back in 2011?"

"Yeah, at that bigshot law firm that turned out to be involved in that case of international money laundering." Foggy said at once, then furrowed his brow in thought. "Or was it terrorism? Whatever, it was something big and bad."

"Oh yeah, I remember that," Scott commented with raised eyebrows. "It was all over the news back home. They had ties to Al Qaeda or the Ten Rings or something."

"Yes, that one." Matt nodded back at him. "That's where we met."

"I was infiltrating the law office as a new associate to gain intel on one of their clients for SHIELD." Natasha decided to contribute a little to the explanation and help out the blind man with this apparent conundrum. "They were implicated later on as a branch of the Ten Rings in the US, laundering money for their terrorist actions all over the world."

Foggy's eyes widened once more has he took in her words and dawning realization was visible all over his face. "Holy shit." He whispered then turned back to his partner. "Are you actually telling me that that hot new associate that started working there around the same time as you and that became your girlfriend Natalie Rushman was Black Widow? You went out with Black Widow?"

"Better yet, he lived to tell the tale." Clint quipped easily, earning a half-hearted backhanded slap from Natasha on his arm.

"Or not, actually." Matt turned to him with a rueful smile then continued in a teasing tone. "I believe I was threatened with bodily harm if I ever made such claims to any third party."

"Can we focus here?" Natasha crossed her arms sternly and resisted the urge to roll her eyes at all of them and this rather ridiculous conversation. "In case anyone's forgotten, I'm an actual fugitive of the law, so I can't stay around for too long."

"And now we're housing criminals." Foggy muttered dryly. "Awesome."

"I don't think you have much of a leg to stand on there, buddy," Clint interjected once more, as he raised an eyebrow at him, "being partners with Daredevil and everything."

"Oh." The blonde man merely said and paused for a moment. "I wasn't aware you knew about that. Okay, cool then." He shrugged his shoulders easily.

"You're Daredevil?" Scott raised his eyebrows at Matt in admiration. "Wow, dude! You're kind of huge here. I mean, New York has had a rise in heroes lately, but I have to say I think you're doing a great job, man."

"Okay, enough with the fangirling and the side talks." This time Natasha did roll her eyes at them, as she was growing tired of this. "Matt, I'm leaving these two in your hands. They'll be staying in a safe house here in Hell's Kitchen until everything is settled. Please take care of them and get them back to their families. Fast."

"Don't worry, we've already started on the paperwork that you sent ahead." Matt assured them, smiling easily back at her. "Like I told you, we might actually get a very good deal. I'm thinking two years in house arrest, ankle monitors. I got it covered, Nat."

She thanked and hugged him then, also shaking hands with Foggy, who was still regarding her with wide and apprehensive eyes. Scott then pulled her into quite a bone-crushing hug as he thanked her once more for everything she'd done for him and she just chuckled back at him as he finally let her go.

Clint then stepped up to her, smiling softly. "Hey, thanks."

She rolled her eyes a little at him. "Shut up." And then she was the one pulling him into a tight hug as they just stood in each other's arms for a moment, the other three men in the room looking away to give them some sense of privacy.

"Keep those guys out of trouble." Clint said, pulling back from the hug at last.

"I'll do my best." Natasha raised an eyebrow and smiled back at him. "Give Laura and the kids my love."

He nodded back at her and she turned around and walked out the door.

"I still can't believe you're on a first name basis with Black Widow." She heard Foggy's voice inside the office as she walked down the hallway.

"Well, we were almost living together in San Francisco, it would be very weird if we weren't on a first name basis." Matt had replied rather smartly, and Natasha merely rolled her eyes to herself as she took the stairs down to the lobby.


A.N.: I hope you liked Matt and Foggy's short participation in this story and in how Clint and Scott got their deals. There is a rather lengthy conversation between Steve and Nat that was supposed to be in this chapter, but I've left it for the next one instead. We still have about six or seven chapters to go here, but they might take longer to come out, as I had a great portion of the previous chapters already written when I started posting this and now I need to write new content.