Spring 2001
"Who is he?" Alina smirked mid spar making eyes at the boy in the doorway.
Natasha flashed her gaze to the boy who was just brought into the room. "I don't know, but you shouldn't be looking." Natasha got in a cheap blow to Alina's ear.
"Bitch!" Alina blocked Natasha's next hit and hooked her leg behind Natasha's trying to trip her.
Natasha went limp and threw Alina's balance off and threw her down to the mat. Alina hissed and sat up, rubbing her stinging shoulder.
"I hate you." Alina growled.
"Only because I'm better." Natasha said coolly and tugged Alina back up.
"Line up!" Their sparring teacher barked. In seconds they formed a line facing him. All eyes fell on the commander and the boy behind him.
Natasha noticed he had a metal arm. Boys from the training program for soldiers almost never were around the red room girls. Natasha heard stories of the soldiers being involved in the tests and graduation. But she didn't know if any of that was true. Alina pinched Natasha's arm, "Stop looking so hard."
Natasha punched Alina's arm which earned them the attention of their teacher. "Markov, Romanova. Front and center."
She realized she had missed the teacher explaining something. "Because you two have better things to discuss you can be our examples. You'll spar with your new sparring assistant."
"Both of us?" Alina asked with a cocky smile. "How is that fair for him?"
Natasha was busy sizing up the boy. She supposed he was on the verge of being a man. He seemed young, but impossibly strong. The metal arm worried her.
Madame threw a cautious gaze at Alina, "Your arrogance will get you killed one day."
Their teacher sighed, "Markov first."
Alina threw a proud glance at Natasha before sauntering to the middle. Natasha stepped back and was smart enough to study him more. She could care less how Alina performed.
Alina's fight was famously short lived. The boy threw her around like a doll. Alina's pride caused her to make careless mistakes. The boy had a grip on Alina's throat. The girls face turning purple. She could yield, Madame would be pissed about it. But Alina wouldn't do it.
Natasha surged forward and kicked herself off the ground. Her leg hooking his around the neck and throwing him down. Surprise worked in her favor. Alina dropped to the ground.
Natasha hopped to her feet and kept lower to the ground. He was sturdy and she'd only win by breaking his footing. He swung at her, and she dodged, sweeping her feet quickly. He dropped to the mat. In an instant he had her leg trapped.
She elbowed him in the chest, earning a huff of pain. She broke away and somersaulted once to her feet. He was up charging at her again. She waited for the right moment and arched into a back flip. Her feet connecting with his jaw. Acrobatics being her strength in fighting left her able to bound swiftly out of his reach. He looked at her wildly, spitting blood onto the floor.
She wasted no time leaping onto his shoulders. Locking his head back. He staggered. His hand wrenching her legs trying to get her to break the grip she had. She threw her weight sideways taking him to the mat swiftly. She locked a leg around his head again her hand gripping his human hand. Trying to pin it. With a surge of energy he gripped her hand and hurled her over him. She rolled across the floor. The air knocked from her lungs and she staggered to her hands and knees.
He was on her again. She blocked three hits before his fist to her abs sent her back to the mat. He pinned her arms in one hand, his legs trapping her legs between him.
She got a good look at him. Full dark eyelashes, dark eyes and dark hair. Strong jaw. He was looking at her too, curiously. Almost impressed. She knew she caught him off guard and cracked her head against him.
"Son of a…" He growled and lost his grip just enough that she broke a leg free and pushed him onto his back. She forced his arm up over his chest, her knees digging into his chest. She was slowly suffocating him.
He growled and forced her arms back. She wasn't strong enough to pin him for long. She hissed and doubled her efforts. He dug his feet into the ground and threw her balance off. She tumbled into the mat and suddenly he had her. Her arm forced up against her back. His weight pushing air from her lungs just as she had done to him.
Natasha hissed and hooked her free hand into his shirt. Tugging as hard as she could to throw him off. She couldn't do it. She dug her knees into the hard floor pushing against him, but he forced her arm up higher. A resounding snap echoed in the room.
The boy instantly let go of her as she screamed in pain. Alina who had been sitting against the wall stood up. Even though she and Natasha fought and bickered, she was pissed that she had gotten hurt.
Natasha curled in on herself, her free hand cradling her arm as she fought not to cry. Hisses of pain escaped her lips. Her shoulder noticeable dislocated.
"Jesus.." The commander hissed and pushed the boy back into line. "Barnes I said spar with the girls, not break them."
Alina hurried over to Natasha. "Get up, c'mon. Hurry…" She whispered. But she had shown weakness too long.
"Get up, Natasha." Madame stepped forward. Her tone was firm. Alina stepped away no longer able to help her friend.
All eyes were on Natasha. Her face red with exertion and pain. Tears sparkled in her eyes. Her red hair was falling loosely out of her ponytail. She stood, her arm clutching the other against her side. Her breathing ragged, as her heart hammered in her chest.
The boy stared at Natasha regretfully. Madame stepped closer to her, "Is this fight over?"
The other girls stifled gasps. Others had been made to fight with less significant injuries. "No, Madame." Natasha grit her teeth. She looked at the boy.
"Will your targets suddenly stop when they've hurt you?" Madam asked. Even
Natasha looked at the floor, "No."
"What will you do then?" Madame asked and gestured widely.
Natasha didn't need to answer. She turned back to the floor and readied herself again. She knew she didn't need both hands to finish the fight. The boy looked at his commander who looked a bit stunned. He motioned for the boy to go back to the floor.
He approached her and readied himself before striking first. A sweeping punch that she kicked away. She hopped to the side and kept moving. Evading hits and kicks with her agility. She had gone from aggressive to defensive.
She managed to get a hold on his shirt and threw herself into him. Her leg hooking over his shoulder. She swung herself around, toppling him to the floor again. She trapped his metal hand with her legs and pushed his face into the floor with all her might. Her injured arm limp against her side.
He stretched from her hold and she slipped as her leverage broke. With only one hand to catch herself she was slower in getting up. Again he got her free hand and pushed her down. Her body slumped forward into the ground. The angle aggravating the injury. She yelped in pain, her feet scrambling to break his hold. He forced her second hand back against her back again.
Natasha grit her teeth and gasped, "Yield!" She panted and pressed her forehead against the floor. She had injuries before, but nothing as painful as this.
"Class is dismissed." Madame called and the commander moved to talk with her outside. Everyone filed out except the boy, Alina, and Natasha.
Alina threw a haughty glance at the boy before tapping Natasha's back.
"Don't!" Natasha hissed. Pain erupting every time she moved.
Alina looked lost. "Fine, have it your way." She stalked out of the room.
Natasha whimpered and forced herself up to her knees. The boy walked over. "Are you okay?"
Natasha gave him a firm gaze and looked at her shoulder. A telling gesture. He looked at her reproachfully. "I can help you stabilize it before you go to medical. It doesn't hurt so much when it can't move."
She grimaced, "Just pop it back in. They do it to us all the time."
He nodded and grabbed her elbow, "You know it would be a lot easier if you just went to medical."
"No. Notice how she didn't tell me to go to medical." Natasha nodded at Madame outside the door.
"Yeah…"
"She wants me to fix this on my own." She looked up at him. He pushed his hand against her collar bone, and she winced. He seemed to be waiting for a moment to do it. "Just do it. Don't count. Just…" she breathed and shut her eyes. Before she could finish he jerked her elbow upward. A sharp snap and her shoulder slipped back into place.
Natasha had cinched into his uniform sleeve. She yelped in pain and felt herself instant slacken in his arm. He grabbed her arm and held her up.
"Hey, don't do that." He reminded and watched her gain some color back.
"Oww…" she muttered and looked down at her arm in his hand. He lowered her arm and her shoulder jutted out again. She hissed and grabbed the joint. "What did you do!" She flushed red and breathed quickly.
He sat back, "I know that that means you have to go to medical. They're going to have to do something fancy to it." He looked around, "Give me your shirt."
Natasha groaned loudly at his comment about medical. She then frowned, "Excuse you?" she huffed.
He laughed a little, "Not like that… I need it to make a sling, unless you want to walk up 3 sets of stairs in constant pain." He had a kindness in his eyes that intrigued her.
She tugged her thin white shirt off and handed it to him. No stranger to being in leggings and a sports bra for training. "Here… Work your magic."
In a few seconds he ripped the shirt and used it to stabilize her elbow from moving and wrapped it across her body to knot at the other shoulder. He finished and stood up. Carefully he helped her up and stepped away.
"Why are you still here?" She asked bluntly.
"I feel bad." He admitted and motioned to her shoulder.
"Don't. Last week a girl fractured her pelvis in a spar. This stuff is normal." She looked up at him.
"That's messed up." He said and looked at the fresh bruises on her hands and arms. "You were really good. Better than the others, you know that?"
She smirked, "I have my suspicions…" She pressed her lips together to stop from smiling. "What's your name?"
"James… Here they just call me Barnes." He crossed his arms over his chest.
She nodded, "I'd shake your hand but I don't want the other shoulder dislocated too." She laughed at her joke.
"You've got me cornered there..." He held up his hands in defeat. "Tasha was it?"
She like the way he said it, "Well.. close.. Natasha."
He stared at her for a second before looking away. The commander stepped into the room with Madame. "Barnes, you're needed in weapons."
James straightened up, "Take care of the shoulder. You'll need it in class tomorrow."
Madame approached her, "Did you figure out your shoulder?"
"With the soldier's help. It wouldn't set back in." Natasha admitted.
Madame pressed her fingers around the joint, Natasha knew better than to wince or pull away. Bruising was spreading down her arm and back. "Go to medical. There's most likely a fracture. You can make up dance and coursework tonight after dinner."
Natasha hurried off to medical following the boy who was several flights ahead of her in the spiral staircase. She swore she saw him look down once and smile.
