A/N:Thanks for reviewing!

Baby, things sure ain't the same

Being a spy meant dealing with unpredictable and sometimes volatile situations. Plenty of ops had gone south on her before, through no fault of her own, and she had managed to get them back on track. So this should be child's play. Not tracking down Lukin's trainee – working with the Winter Soldier. James. Bucky? He was reportedly almost as skilled in the field as she was, and very qualified when it came to wet work. So he might even be a more useful addition to the mission than Clint could have been.

That was all perfectly reasonable and logical, and Natasha could think that way when she was alone in her bedroom. But the thought of him just outside, and the way he stared with those big blue eyes… Well, she wasn't sure how long logic would fit into the equation if there was going to be prolonged contact.

So, the facts. Once upon a time, when she was a lonely and desperate young woman, she'd met a man in similar straits. They were both weapons, once – to be used. And it had been a significant turning point in her life when they'd decided to do something for themselves instead of for their handlers. It hadn't been a long affair, but it had given her a reason to defect. Well, another reason. She had realized what she was doing and that there might be options for her life other than being in the Red Room. Not to mention that his training had helped her become the best – thereby ensuring her survival until she could escape.

But then they were punished and he had continued living in that hell for a long time. The next time she'd seen him, he'd shot her. She could have died if she hadn't received prompt medical attention. So when Steve said he'd shown up in DC, she had tried to be ready. But she wasn't, and ending up shot and getting medical attention again. No one else had managed to shoot her in all her years in the field. And then, most recently, her counter attacks had little effect on the Winter Soldier and T'Challa had likely saved her life.

So she had a feeling that, at least deep down, he might be holding a grudge after what she'd inadvertently done to him.

After she'd escaped the Red Room, she had gone to look for him. But he was a ghost. She hadn't known, then, that he was put into cryo. Until she happened to be searching through some of the nasty things HYDRA kept in storage and found him. It was a shock – taking her back years to the frightened young Widow she'd been when they first met. She didn't know how to wake him, and was forced to leave before making any attempt to get him out of there. And, when she'd returned a few days later, he was gone.

It was still more of a shock to find out that he was Bucky Barnes – a hero she had not heard about until she had read up on recently thawed Steve Rogers prior to meeting him. But he was still someone who was well-regarded in the history books. And it had occurred to her that they didn't have that much in common after all. He hadn't been brought up to this life like she had. There was a normalcy in his history that was alien to her. So what had once connected them felt lost.

From their interactions in Berlin and at the airport, there was no reason to suspect he remembered their history. And, even though he'd been acting strange today, that could easily be attributed to surprise at seeing her and guilt about the previous encounters he did remember. So there shouldn't be any danger on his side of things. She just had to keep in mind that he was a WWII veteran, an American hero, Steve Rogers' best friend, and the man she loved had just been a shadow – a ghost.

Romance tended not to work out too well for her anyway. She was alone right now, more than she'd been for a long time. A friend would be a nice change of pace – but she didn't need or want more than that. If he was going to accompany her on this mission, she wouldn't expect anything else.


She didn't get a whole lot of sleep, but she used the time to read through everything Clint had sent her. At dawn, she got up and busied herself in her room for as long as possible. But they really needed to get a move on, so she went to the door and opened it slowly, ignoring the way her heart pounded at the thought of seeing him again.

He was asleep. Stretched out on his right side, wearing the same clothes as the day before, with his hands tucked under his pillow. He used to be a messier sleeper, she thought with an ache in her chest. Some of his hair had fallen across his face and she couldn't help but think how young he looked. Was she technically older than him now? She certainly felt older. Who would he have been if HYDRA had never gotten their claws in him?

Perhaps sensing her presence, he began to stir. So she covered for herself. "Time to get up, James," she said quietly, opening the door all the way and walking out of her room as though she hadn't just been standing there watching him.

Blinking owlishly when she opened the shades, he sat up slowly. "What time is it?" he asked, voice rough with sleep.

It took an effort not to think of other times she'd heard his voice sound like that. "6:30. There's a plane we need to be on in an hour."

"Where are we going?" he asked as he shoved a notebook in his backpack and then swung it over his shoulder.

She busied herself with making sure the safe house had no evidence of their stay, and could remain uninhabited for a while. "Clint has a reliable source in Rhapastan who spotted the woman sixteen hours ago in the capitol city. We may be able to catch her before she finishes whatever she is doing there."

Nodding, he stood off to the side of the room, out of her way, and waited. It was a challenge to look at him. It had been easy to convince herself that she was fine with all of this when he wasn't in the room. But now… She'd have to steel her resolve if she was going to keep from asking him about what he remembered.

"Where's Rhapastan?" he asked after a pause.

"The Middle East. An ally of the former Soviet Union. It would not surprise me if Lukin had some followers hiding out there," she answered. "Ready?"

"Yeah."

She led the way out of the small apartment, locking the door behind them with one of her spare keys. It was tucked into her boot to be disposed of later, and they were on the way. A cab was hailed on the street and she slid over so he could fit next to her. It wasn't a large vehicle and his closeness was more than a little claustrophobic. Yes, that was the word she was going with.

After directing the driver to take them to the airport, they sat in silence. His hands were clasped in front of him and he seemed to have the nervous habit of wringing them together from time to time. Other than that, he appeared calm enough. "Did you talk to Steve?" she almost blurted, mainly to avoid saying something else.

He glanced up at her, taken aback, but just for a moment. Gaze fixed on his hands again, he nodded. "Yeah. He asked me to say he was sorry, and if there was anything he could do, to let him know."

Smiling slightly, she nodded and looked out the windshield at the road ahead. "I'm sure I can come up with something."

His lips turned down in a thoughtful sort of wince. "You probably saved my life." She must have looked confused because he continued. "When you stopped that king, I mean."

He seemed rather uncomfortable with the thought of owing her, but she couldn't very well explain that she was just returning a favor. Or that she'd done it more for Steve, since she wasn't entirely sure that was true. She hoped he didn't know about her visit to Wakanda. If he intended to lead the conversation that direction, she wasn't going to let him. Time to try to lighten things up.

"I bet you never expected to be rubbing elbows with royalty, let alone engaging in fisticuffs," she teased.

"Fisticuffs?" he said incredulously, amused. "How old do you think I am?"

"Very," was her straight-faced response. "I mean, you look good for you age, but still."

"Well, you know, it's true what they say about getting plenty of sleep."

She broke her façade with a snort and he grinned. "I'll keep that in mind," she answered drily as the taxi came to a stop outside the terminal. "Let's go, Barnes. I'm sure you can sleep more on the way."

"Oh, good, I'd hate to start looking my age."