A/N: I know, I know, this is late and I'm sorry, but I got called into work unexpectedly and didn't have time to finish revising the chapter and only did that this morning before I had to go to work again and then my parents decided to make it "family night" so I couldn't exactly say "sorry, I have to update for the few people reading my dumb story" and get out of it. Anyway, I'll be uploading two chapters tonight to make up for. Lemme know what you think!
Maria Hill marched into Agent Coulson's office and dumped a file onto his desk. He sighed and looked up at her. "Agent Hill, it's always such a pleasure."
Maria rolled her eyes and frowned at the agent. "Care to tell me why you've transferred the Widow to another location, one that- very conveniently- happens to be a safe house generally used for Council members. It's secure and comfortable. Only one of those things is something she needs and we both know it isn't the latter."
Coulson sighed. "And here I though no one would care." He took a moment to stare at her, frowning back. "I know Fury doesn't care, he approved the transfer. So why do you?"
"Because she's a killer! Barton should have killed her in the first place, but he didn't and she's our mess to clean up, yet for some reason she gets treated to a beachfront property in freaking Florida, enjoying the sun and surf when she should be six feet under. It is more than a little strange and I intend to get to the bottom of it."
Coulson only let out a sigh, taking a hold of her arm and stopping her from storming from the room. "We're going to take a little field trip."
A couple hours later, they were in front of a beachfront property in Florida and Maria dug in her heels as she recognized the place. "No way in hell am I going in there. She could probably kill me just with a glare and I won't die because you let her get what she wanted."
Coulson shook his head. "It's not like that. You'll see."
Maria was hesitant, but the calm way the other agent was dealing with it was enough to sooth her and she followed him to the house. He knocked in a pattern that Maria made sure to remember and waited for the answering "It's open" to walk in. Maria took a look around the house, going over the details in her head. Three bed, two bath, living room at the front, kitchen in the back overlooking the ocean. Only a short walk to the beach and had a Jacuzzi out back. It was two stories with an office, fitness center, and entertainment center upstairs and all the rooms as well as the kitchen and living room downstairs.
Maria thought the house looked awful homey for an assassin that had never been out of the Red Room, but she didn't say anything. A few steps later they were in the kitchen and the Russian's smile surprised her, though it did droop upon seeing the SHIELD agent. "Hey, Phil. Want to explain what's going on? I thought we weren't going to tell anyone from SHIELD."
He smiled. "Agent Hill was being nosey. I thought she might want to meet the people she was spying on."
Maria felt her eyes widen slightly. People? Wasn't the Widow the only person living there?
The red-head nodded and moved to a play pen in the corner off the room that Maria had failed to notice beforehand. She picked up the black haired boy in the crib and rested him on her hip. "Agent Hill, this is my son Dmitri."
She almost choked. "Son? When…"
"He was born before Clint brought me in. He's almost six months old now."
Dmitri babbled something in baby talk and tugged at the necklace his mother was wearing. Maria frowned. "Who are you and what have you done with the Black Widow?"
The other woman smiled and held out her free hand. "I'm Natasha Romanoff and I'm still the Black Widow."
Maria, not knowing what else to do, shook Natasha's hand and spent the afternoon playing with Dmitri.