Hello, everybody! Just finished my first semester of college, so here is a little present!
I just want to start off by saying thank you to everyone who has reviewed, favorite, and followed this story so far!
And, for the reviewer who asked to make the story angsty, don't worry. There will be plenty of angst :) Angst is probably my favorite thing to write, so just prepare yourselves :)
Also, for the reviewer who asked about the format of the chapters: yes, they will continue in this present then flashback sequence. That's at least how they are formatted for the first seven chapters or so. After that, there will be a pretty good chunk of chapters that are all flashback/set in the 40s. Then the chapters will mostly be set during the present time/when Steve wakes up and so on, with probably smaller flashback scenes in some of those present setting chapters. I hope that made sense to everyone.
Anyway, down to business :) I don't own Captain America.
Enjoy!
-:-
Hydra base in Strasburg, France; 1946
Natasha opened her eyes, blinking against the harsh light as she did so. She sat up quickly, the fire, the fight, her capture, all of it coming back to her in a rush. She stood up from the cot she had been laying on, which turned out to be a bad idea. Her vision went black for a moment and she stumbled back, sitting heavily back down on the cot. She gave a small gasp, bowing her head until her vision cleared. Natasha lifted a hand slowly, touching her temple where the man with the metal arm had struck her. She winced, the spot tender and sticky with mostly dry blood.
She stood up, slower this time, and looked around the room. It was small, with plain white walls, with a similarly plain door, and nothing in it but the cot she had been lying on. She checked her pockets, the back of her boots, for any of her hidden weapons. Not surprisingly, they'd been thorough. She'd have to improvise, because there was no way in hell she was staying here. Just as Natasha was about to take a step towards the door it opened and a man stepped inside. There were two guys backing him and two more by the door. Natasha's heart dropped a little. She'd taken on more guys than this at once, but with the way they were positioned, the second she went after the guys in the front, the two by the door would open fire on her. And their guns weren't exactly small. Force wouldn't get her out of here. At least not at the moment. She'd have to outsmart them first, before she could fight her way out.
Natasha straightened her back and held her chin high, meeting the lead man's eyes steadily. He was a fairly average looking man, not quite six foot, with brown hair, and an angular face. The formal suit he was wearing was perfectly pressed, a silver Hydra pin glowing dimly on his lapel. He had the posture of a military man. His hands were folded in front of him and with his arms against his abdomen, she could see a bulge in his jacket which undoubtedly was a gun. One corner of his thin mouth turned up at her, a hint of smug arrogance glinting in his blue eyes.
"Ms. Romanoff," he addressed her, German accent thick. "I am Anselm Ruppert."
She raised an eyebrow at him. "You'll have to excuse me, I usually don't bother to learn the names of Hydra scum. Am I supposed to be impressed?"
He chuckled, but she could see offense had been taken. Good, she thought.
"No, you probably would not know who I am," Ruppert said, and she could tell he was a little bitter about the fact. "But perhaps you recognize the name General Werner Reinhardt?"
Natasha felt her heart crawl into her throat, and she forced herself to swallow it down, to keep her face passive. Reinhardt, one of Red Skull's top Hydra leaders, who continued his quest to find obscure and powerful artifacts for Hydra even after Johann Schmidt and died in the plane Steve had gone down in. Peggy and the Howling Commandos had captured Reinhardt in '45, not long after Red Skull had died, right before Natasha had helped Peggy and Howard Stark form SHIELD. Natasha had only seen Reinhardt in passing when he'd been taken into custody, but she remembered him clearly—his pale, angular face, white-blonde hair, and those wire rim glasses that almost made him more intimidating. It was clear, from those split-second moments that she'd seen Reinhardt that he was a man who had done horrible things and didn't regret them at all.
The fact that this man in front of her was taking Reinhardt's place meant that, even after its supposed fall, Hydra was doing just fine. Blooming, it seemed. Natasha felt white-hot fury blaze in the pit of her stomach. Red blurred her vision. She wanted each of them dead. She could do it. She could take them all out. She would kill all of them. Steve was gone because of Hydra and here they were, growing, thriving, a parasite with the world for its host.
"We have a few questions for you, Ms. Romanoff," Ruppert gestured for one of his guys to come forward. The hydra goon came up behind her and yanked her arms back. A second later she felt the cold metal of handcuffs against her wrists. She gritted her teeth, forcing herself to stay calm. Shure, she could take these five guys out, but what about the rest of them? She had no idea where she was or how many Hydra agents were outside this stone cell. And that man with the metal arm could be one of them. She was wounded, not at full strength, and she couldn't beat that man before. She definitely wouldn't be able to beat him now.
She grudgingly let them lead her out of the small room. She started counting her steps down the hallway, noting when they turned. The place was huge. She nearly lost count of how far they'd gone. She caught glimpses of lab-like rooms, storage rooms full of crates, weapons rooms, all of them just snapshots at the pace they were moving. Finally they reached a steel door and they moved her roughly inside.
It was clearly an interrogation room, with a steel table in the middle of the room and matching chairs on either side. It had the cliché single bare bulb hanging over the table and she scoffed. Ruppert chose to ignore her and guided her over to the chair facing the door. He shoved her down into the seat. Natasha slouched back in her seat, looking as at ease as she possibly could, watching Ruppert as he sat down in the chair opposite to her. He folded his hands on the table in front of him, trying to put on a smile, but it turned into a half grimace. To anyone, he looked calm enough, but Natasha could feel his impatience charging the air.
"Ms. Romanoff, I will begin by saying that this will be much less painful for the both of us if you cooperate." Ruppert smiled with his lips pressed together.
"And if I don't?" Natasha challenged.
Ruppert tilted his head like he'd been expecting this response. He gestured to one of his men posted at the door. That man disappeared out the door. Ruppert was watching Natasha as she watched the door. She kept her relaxed posture, not giving away any indication of the bad feeling that was snaking its way through her insides. A few minutes later the man came back, and for the second that she thought he was alone, Natasha relaxed. That is, until she heard another set of boots approaching.
Natasha's breath caught in her throat as the man with the metal arm came into the room. He was wearing black leather and his mask over his mouth, though no goggles covered his blue eyes. He had a gun strapped to his back and she was sure there were various other instruments of destruction tucked inside his belt. He looked over at her, eyes cold, murderous even. She wondered if he even had another expression. The man walked almost soundlessly over to the corner, where he stood, silently, watching her.
Natasha swallowed and looked back at Ruppert, hating the gleeful glint in his eyes.
"Now," the Hydra agent addressed her. "Are you ready to cooperate?"
-:-
SSR Base; December, 1943
"Colonel Phillips," Steve called out, saluting as he stopped the Colonel outside the interrogation room. "Has she said anything yet?"
"Not a word," the Colonel replied. "Whatever this Black Widow program was, they sure as hell knew what they were doing."
Steve glanced through the dirty window on the door, seeing Natalia Romanova sitting there, staring at the opposite wall, features completely passive, just like every other time he'd walked by and observed her through the window. She'd been here for three weeks and she hadn't uttered a word. Christmas had come and gone, and New Year's was nearly upon them, and the Colonel was losing his patience very quickly.
"Maybe if I could talk to her—?" Steve tried to offer.
"No way in hell, Rogers," Phillips cut him off.
"Then at least let me sit-in on the interrogation. She might be more willing to talk that way," Steve argued.
Colonel Phillips pondered that for a moment before heaving a deep sigh. "Fine—"
"Thank you, sir,"
"I wasn't done," Phillips snapped. "You can sit in, but, you are not allowed to say speak."
Steve nodded. "Understood, sir."
Phillips raised an eyebrow. "I mean it, Rogers. One word and I'll knock you out on your ass."
Steve nodded again and followed Phillips into the interrogation room. Natalia looked up at Steve as he sat down next to the Colonel, one corner of her mouth quirking up the tiniest bit.
"All right," Phillips said as he sat down. "Brought you a friend. Are you ready to talk now?"
Natasha smirked, glancing between Steve and the Colonel. "Possibly."
Steve looked out of the corner of his eye at the Colonel, who looked like he wanted to hit his head against the table. Phillips shook his head and met Natalia's eyes. Steve could already imagine the scolding he was going to get after they were done. Something along the lines of 'I spent hours, weeks, in there with her and got nothing! You come in and she finally decides she's not mute anymore? I don't get paid enough for this crap'.
"Okay, then," Phillips said, pulling a small notepad and pen out of his pocket. "Let's start with your name, then."
"What? Your super-soldier didn't put that in his report?" she said, raising an eyebrow.
"Just answer the question," Phillips told her.
She flicked her gaze over to Steve and he gave her an encouraging nod. She exhaled slowly, then met Colonel Phillip's eyes.
"Natalia Alianovna Romanova," she replied.
"When were you born?" Phillips questioned as he wrote down her name.
"November 22nd, 1918 in Stalingrad, Russia."
"Parents?"
Natalia paused and Steve saw her jaw clench. "Dead," She finally responded.
Phillips looked up at her and Steve thought the Colonel's expression softened a little bit. He didn't bother writing that down in his notes.
"Can you tell me what happened when Captain Rogers found you?" the Colonel moved on.
With a quick glance at Steve, she started to recount the events at the base, matching what Steve had put in his report, only from her point of view.
"Just to clarify," Phillips said, waving his pen around. "You didn't know about the bomb planted at your super-secret training facility?"
"No," Natalia confirmed. "I did not. Otherwise I would not have been there when it went off."
"Any idea why they tried to blow you up? I thought you worked for this, uh, this Black Widow program?"
"I do," she insisted. "I did, at least. My guess? Clean slate."
"Meaning?"
"Exactly what you think it means. Wipe the program. They no doubt killed the other participants, burned all the files."
Colonel Phillips nodded, jotting down a few more notes. "So, why didn't they take you with them? Kill you with the others?"
Natalia gave the Colonel a dry smile, a dangerous gleam in her eyes. "Colonel, I'm not someone you can just force into a back room and empty a bullet into my skull. I'm the person they ask to do the executions. Hence, why they left me on the base, hoping the bomb would take me out."
"And you didn't think to go look around the base? It's not exactly like they hid the thing," Colonel Phillips remarked.
Natalia exhaled. "I was given orders to stay at my post. Think whatever you want of me, Colonel, but even trained assassins follow their superior's orders. Maybe I should have trusted my instincts, but I trusted the program. I trusted my orders. Won't be making that mistake again."
Phillips grunted and tapped his pen against his paper. "And those superiors you mentioned, where are they now? What about the program?"
"Oh, they're deep underground by now," Natalia told him. "There's no chance they'll be resurfacing anytime soon. And when they do, I can assure you there's no way they'll work with Hydra. Just like they weren't working with Hydra now. That's your concern, isn't it? Whether or not Hydra had the best assassins in the world working for them?"
The Colonel nodded. "You or your program weren't associated with Hydra in any way?"
"No," Natalia reiterated. "Never. In case you hadn't noticed, the Black Widow program is Russian. Hydra is German. And last I checked, Russia wasn't best friends with any of the Axis Powers. Plus, the Black Widow program is exactly the kind of group Johann Schmidt would want to eliminate. We'd be a threat to him and Hydra. We have the power to challenge him because of our skills, and as far as I know, he's all too keen on being the special one. The only special one."
She looked at Steve as she said this and he couldn't help but thinking of Schmidt, not too long ago when he'd gone to rescue Bucky and the rest of the 107th, when Schmidt had revealed what the premature serum had done to him. Red Skull could not have been a more befitting name.
"Thank you, Ms. Romanova. I think that's all we needed," the Colonel said, standing up from his chair.
"A thank you? That's all I get?" Natalia looked offended.
"We'll let you know what our decision is regarding your release shortly," the Colonel told her. "Till then, sit tight."
As the Colonel headed for the door, Steve cast her and apologetic look and then hurried to catch up with the Colonel.
"Sir, wait!" Steve called.
"What now, Rogers? I let you sit in on the interrogation. I got what I needed. That's it."
Steve shifted on his feet. "Well, what are you going to do with her?"
"Probably send her back to Russia, son." Phillips said.
"You can't do that," Steve protested.
"Well last I checked, boy, I pull rank. You may be Captain America, but that doesn't mean you can be giving me orders. I can do whatever I damn well please with her, this is my base."
"If she goes back there, her superiors are going to hunt her down and kill her." Steve argued.
"That's not my problem, Rogers." Phillips said. "Once she's back on their soil, she's not our responsibility anymore."
"Well, what if there was another solution?" Steve asked before he could really think about what he was saying.
"Yeah, and what would that be?" Phillips raised an eyebrow.
Steve swallowed. "We could recruit her."
Colonel Phillips blinked, then shook his head. "I'm sorry, son, I must've had something in my ear. What the hell did you say?"
"Sir, I think we should take her on," Steve repeated.
"Yeah, that's what I thought you said," Phillips muttered. "The answer is no. In fact, make that a hell no."
"But sir—"
"Rogers, do I have to repeat myself? The answer is no! She tried to kill you! She is an assassin who we know nothing about, and the second you turn around she'll stab you in the back. No way I'm risking that."
"But—" Steve tried to protest one last time.
"No more 'but's, Rogers!" the Colonel snapped. "We're done here. You bring this up to me again and I'll have you shipped out of here so fast…"
Steve nodded before Colonel Phillips could finish his threat. "Understood, sir. My apologies, sir."
"Damn right," the Colonel muttered before walking away.
Steve gave him a few seconds and made sure the coast was clear before he opened the door and slipped back into the interrogation room. Natalia raised her eyebrows in mild surprise, but she didn't say anything. Steve sat down, knowing that what he was doing could get him in serious trouble. He could feel a twinge of doubt worm its way through his stomach. He pushed it away. After all, it wasn't the first time that he'd blatantly ignored direct orders.
"Here to offer me a deal, Captain?" Natalia broke the silence finally.
"Sort of." He tilted his head. "I'm here to get you to switch sides."
Natalia barked out a short chuckle. She shook her head and gave him a look that he could've swore was damn near close to pity. "You really don't know a damn thing me. What is it about assassin that seems to have escaped your understanding? I kill for a living. I have no motive other than the fact that I am ordered to do so. Sometimes quite painfully. Sometimes I torture them first. I'm not a team player, Captain, and you certainly don't want me on your team."
"I believe everyone is worthy of second chances," Steve argued.
Her green eyes studied him for a moment. "I'm pretty sure I've used up all my chances, Captain."
"Not with me, you haven't." he shook his head. "You easily could have killed me at the base. I wasn't fighting for the kill, but you were. So, my only question is, why didn't you?"
"You got the upper hand," she replied flatly.
"I don't believe that. And even if I did, you had plenty of chances to escape. At the base, on the way here. Even now, I doubt handcuffs and locked doors are a challenge for you, so you've had weeks to escape. Why haven't you?"
She was silent for a long time. Then, in a cool voice, "I'm not joining your band of—what are they? Howling Commandos, is it? Like I said—not a team player. I have no loyalty or to your United States—"
"Oh, but you're loyal to Russia and the people who tortured and manipulated you and turned you into a killer?" Steve challenged.
Natalia's face turned into a stone mask, her gaze hard and icy, and Steve could see the east within her. She kept it well under control, years of training at work, but he knew, without a doubt, that she could kill him right here and now.
"Don't presume to know anything about me or my past, Captain," she said, voice low and sharp and dead-serious. A warning. Possibly a threat. "We're done here. I bid you farewell, Captain, seeing as they'll ship me off soon enough here."
Steve stood, his metal chair scraping across the stone floor harshly, making the quiet seem all that more deafening. He walked to the door and laid his hand on the knob.
"Do you really want to run for the rest of our life?" he asked her, angling just enough so he could look at her.
"I've done it before," she said coolly, her tone conveying that she was simply being polite, but not cooperative. "I'll do it again."
-:-
Over the next few days, Steve continued to sneak into the room they were keeping Natalia in. well, they called it a room, but Steve knew that it was her temporary cell until they shipped her out and back to Russia. All of his persuasive efforts, though, were met with snide remarks. That or she just plain ignored him until he left. Finally, New Year's Eve, two days before she was to be shipped out, Steve thought of something that was his last chance to save her.
When Steve entered her room, she sat up on her hard cot, watching as he sat down in the chair opposite of her.
"You just don't give up, do you?" Natalia wore an amused smile.
"Nope. Not really my style," he responded.
"You know, this persuasion thing hasn't really been working for you so far," Natalia pointed out. "What makes you think today is going to be any different? You gonna sing me a song? The Star-Spangled Man with a Plan, perhaps? Gonna wave an American flag in my face? Well, whatever it is you plan on saying, it's not going to work."
Steve shrugged. "Maybe not. But I figured you'd at least be interested in hearing what I have to say if it saves your life."
She was silent for a moment, and he could tell he had piqued her interest. "You really think I'm in so much danger in going back to Russia that I need saving?"
"I think you can take care of yourself just fine," Steve disagreed. "But I also think that if you really wanted to go back, you would have gotten out of here already."
Natalia exhaled through her nose, a flash of irritation crossing her features. "What do you want form me? I doubt you act this way towards all the people that have tried to kill you."
"You're right," he said quietly. "But I meant it when I said that everyone deserves a second chance. I'm giving you that second chance."
"Yeah, and what exactly would that be?"
"I saved your life. You owe me a debt. I'm giving you a chance to repay it."
She gave a short laugh. "A life debt? Who's to say I even believe in those?"
"I think you do," he said. "Which is why you haven't tried to escape. Look, I get it. You don't give a damn about me or the U.S. or whatever. But if you were to save the life of Captain America…you wouldn't have to run. You could go anywhere. All I'm asking is that you stick around long enough to fulfill that debt, and then you're free to go."
Natalia looked down at her hands, as if she could see something on them that he couldn't. "And what if I were to say no?"
Steve tilted his head. "Then there's not really much I can do about that."
"And if I said yes?"
"It's your choice," he replied. "I'm not asking you to like me or anyone else here. All I'm asking is that you let me give you your second chance."
She was quiet for a long time. She remained still, unmoving, the anticipation making the air thick and heavy. Finally, she sighed and looked back up at him.
"The second my debt is repaid to you, I'm gone," she said firmly.
"Understood." Steve nodded. "I'll go let the Colonel know."
"You didn't tell him?" she gave him a look and he shrugged innocently.
"No point in telling him before you'd agreed to anything."
She just shook her head as he walked out the door.
-:-
It took a nearly hour long argument to get the Colonel to agree to his plan.
"A life debt," Phillips mumbled angrily as he stalked around his office. "Unbelievable."
"Sir, I know it's risky but it didn't feel right letting her go, knowing she'd be killed," Steve said.
The Colonel looked at him incredulously. "She's an assassin, Rogers! She's killed plenty of people, including U.S. citizens! Or have you already forgotten all the reports I showed you?"
"I remember them very clearly, sir, but she was forced into doing those things."
"I don't recall any of the reports saying that she had a gun held to her head, making her shoot her target or else," Phillips countered.
Steve's face fell. "That's a fair point, sir."
"Damn right, it is," the Colonel agreed. "I can't agree to this, Rogers, I'm sorry."
"But, sir—"
"Dammit, Rogers—"
"I'm sorry, am I interrupting?"
Steve turned to see Natalia standing in the doorway. The two guards that were escorting her turned and took up posts right outside the door. Phillips turned and gave Steve a dirty look, before looking at the red-head.
"I'm sorry, Ms. Romanova, I don't think this deal—unauthorized deal—" he gave Steve another look. "is going to work out."
Natalia gave the Colonel a polite smile. "And I understand that completely. You have no reason to trust me. I sure as hell wouldn't trust me if I were in your shoes. It's a dumb idea."
"Thank you. I couldn't agree more," Colonel Phillips said a little smugly before Steve could even open his mouth to protest.
Natalia turned her gaze briefly onto Steve. "But, the Captain here is right?"
"Come again?" Phillips asked.
"A life debt is not something I take lightly. I owe him," Natalia said in resignation. "I'll cooperate until my debt is cleared, and then I will be out of your hair for good."
Phillips looked like he was going to pop a vein. He looked between Natalia and Steve, his jaw twitching. Finally, he heaved a deep sigh and turned to Steve. "You better be right about her," he muttered. "She can join the Commandos. Show her around, and don't take your eyes off her. I have some paperwork I'll need her to fill out, and more tomorrow as well."
"Yes, sir." Steve nodded.
"Don't make me regret this, Rogers."
"No, sir."
Colonel Phillips dismissed Steve, and he waited outside the Colonel's office for Natalia to finish up the initial paperwork. It was an hour later when she came out.
"You didn't have to wait for me," she told him.
"Except I did. Colonel told me to keep an eye on you," he responded.
"Right," she muttered. "Time for the grand tour?"
"Guess so. Ready to meet the rest of my Howling Commandos, Natalia?"
"Sure," she agreed mildly. "But it's not Natalia anymore."
He looked at her, puzzled. "What do you mean?"
"Hey, if I'm gonna be out in the open, fighting with you, I need to take some precautions. I don't want my name floating around if Russia starts looking for me. So, a little name change was in order."
Steve watched her for a moment. He figured, as a spy and an assassin she was used to changing her identity. He couldn't see himself as being anyone other than 'Steve Rogers', but she wasn't him. Even if Russia and the U.S. were allies, it didn't mean they were best friends. What tied the two countries together was their mutual hate for Adolf Hitler. And this act, joining his Howling Commandos, even temporarily, could be seen as her turning her back on her mother-country, trading it for another. Just another reason for Russia to seek her out and kill her. So, she was shedding one of the most identifiable things tying her to Russia: her name.
"So what should I call you now, then?" he asked politely.
She met his eyes. "Natasha. Natasha Romanoff."
-:-
There's chapter 2! Hope you guys liked it :)
I'm working on chapter 8 right now, trying to keep p this pace of updating weekly. And now that I'm on break, I'm hoping to write quite a bit :)
Just a side note and something to think about for later in the story: I'm planning on writing this story up through the events of the Avengers and Winter Soldier. Depending on how far I am into this story when the time comes, I may include stuff from Age of Ultron as well. Anyway, I'm obviously not going to go through every detail of Avengers and Winter Soldier, but I have few scenes in mind that I may rewrite/add in from this AU POV. But if you guys have any requests for scenes from either Avengers or Winter Soldier that you would like to see in the story, let me know!
Please review! I would love to hear your thoughts and comments; it would really mean a lot to me!
Thanks for reading!
-DaughterOfPoseidon333