Stay Down - Steph & Natasha (platonic)

Natasha's POV

Some missions were just doomed from the get-go and no amount of preparation or surveillance could fix them. Budapest had been like that, yet somewhere in the hail of bullets Clint and I had realized that Fate was right and we really were meant to be together. Or, rather that was when I had realized it, finally, even though Clint had been saying it for months. I finally confessed to it after The Battle of New York, and Clint stopped looking at me like I was crazy when I mentioned Budapest in a positive context. In fact, now he got a look on his face like a love sick puppy anytime I so much as thought the word "Budapest". It was really embarrassing, really.

We'd been doing surveillance on what was our first mission back in the field together now that Clint was fully mentally healed and able to go into battle post-Loki, and I was already seeing a lot of parallels. The first seemed to be the fact that we weren't the only ones running an op and keeping surveillance on this guy. Which was odd because we had informed the local PD of our plan and they had agreed to stay our of our way.

We were behind schedule at the moment because I'd taken some time to try to figure out what was going on and who those big black SUVs with tinted windows belonged to. They practically screamed government or military, yet when I ran the plates, they came back private security.

"Guys, heads up. We've got company on some level here, not sure if they're friendly, neutral, or enemy, but no matter what, they'll probably be a problem."

"What've you got, Tash?" Clint asked over the earpiece.

"Three big black SUVs set up- two out front and one in back. I can't see inside because the windows are tinted, but JARVIS is picking up at least two large masses of body heat per SUV as well as communications equipment signals."

"Secure channel seven," Cap interrupted and I rolled my eyes at the idea that I wouldn't have done so before I'd started talking.

"Seven secure," I replied before continuing. "Plates come back to a Rangeman Securities. Seems to be a private security contracting company with offices in Trenton and a few other cities. They seem to be on the up and up, so hopefully they're just providing security to some dumb rich guy who likes to get drunk and start shit on weekends."

Sam coughed into the comm something that sounded like "Stark," and I bit my tongue to keep from responding to Stark's denial that he'd ever been like that. I usually found it best not to remind Tony of the time I infiltrated Stark Industries to spy on him.

"This is a serious mission, everyone." Steve said in full Captain America mode, "target is Robert Morgan, and if this guy knows even half of what we think he does, we need to bring him in quickly and alive."

"Alright, Tasha, go in there and do your thing," Clint said and when I looked over my shoulder at his perch, staged as a worker from a Cable company up in a cherry picker, he blew me a kiss.

As soon as I walked in, I realized that luck was not in my side. There were way too many big, bulky guys for my hopes of what Rangeman was doing here to be realized.

"Yeah, looks like this thing is going to turn into a party real soon; I think all of these security guys are former military. Probably special ops since they're actually blending in well. And they look to me on an operation of their own, not standard security."

As I looked over the men, trying to figure out what they were up to, all hell started to break loose around me. It seemed to start with a woman with curly brunette hair who was about my size kneeing a man in the size of Cap (with fewer muscles) in the crotch. From the looks of it, she'd put a decent amount of power behind it.

"That had to hurt," I murmured with amusement barely able to contain a laugh.

Catching sight of our target, I started moving toward him hoping to get him out before anything g further happened. That's when the bullets started flying. Only in fucking Trenton would that many people be in a club armed!

"How many times do I have to tell you not to start bar fights without me?" Clint complained over my earpiece, "it's no fair since you always finish them before I get there to help."

"I swear it wasn't me," I replied.

"Likely story, Red," Stark replied.

"Our man's on the move. Back door," I said.

I waited patiently, dodging out of the way, taking out a few armed men I couldn't dodge. and generally keeping an eye on everything until I heard Tony say, "got him. Meet you all at the rendezvous point." That was followed by the sound of his repulsors firing and a man screaming in surprise.

"Alright, Natasha, get out of there," Steve commanded.

I had every intention of following him, I really did. Even when I felt the bullet rip through the side of my arm and my brand new leather jacket, which just pissed me off. That momentary distraction was the only reason that she got the drop on me, but I found myself pushed to the ground and the brunette from earlier covering me with her body for a moment.

Then she yelled at me over the noise, "stay down, I got this!" Sure enough she proceeded to stand up with a taser and take out who I assume was the gunman. When the guy she'd performed the testicle rearrangement on earlier stepped around him to grab her, I saw a moment of panic in her eyes before she blinked it away and managed to use his momentum to toss him on the floor in front of her. Hard. She pulled cuffs out of I don't know where given the way she was dressed and said, "Chucho Perez, you failed to appear in court, and I am apprehending you on behalf of Rangeman, Trenton PD, and women everywhere you sick, sick son of a bitch!"

The chaos had died down around us and several large men strode forward to take "Chucho" from the small woman. When the one with the medic bag asked if she was okay, she waved him off before steering him in my direction.

"Sorry about that, I was hoping to get him outside without incident, but he recognized me and had way more backup in here than my team and I thought. This is Bobby, and he can look you over if you want."

"The hell he will," Clint said over the com.

I waved the man off and strode toward the woman, not pausing when all the men around her tensed up and several drew their weapons on me. Holding out my hand, I shook her hand and said, "that was a decent showing." I paused before adding, "Acceptable technique, I suppose, for a civilian, who was no doubt trained by a bunch info men twice her size. But I'm definitely going to have to show you a lot more moves more suited to someone of our stature."

Her eyes lit up and she bounced just as much as her curls while clapping her hands. She pulled off a very nice stiletto shoe and showed me "that was a decent showing" written on the bottom of her foot in grey and what was definitely my handwriting. I smiled at her up, turned around, pulled back my hair and rubbed off the makeup displaying to her the words, "stay down, I got this."

She pulled me into a hug and said, "Stephanie Michelle Plum. But just Steph to you!"

I smiled, hugged her back and said, "Natasha Romanov, or whatever abbreviation of that you want."

"Oh hell, Babe," the man who seemed to be the leader said, "only you would have the Black Widow as your platonic soulmate. The two of you together will probably burn down the world for fun, and heaven help us if one of her teammates is your romantic soulmate."

"Well, what do you say we go meet the ones who are brave enough and find out?" I asked, nodding when she agreed, looping her arm through my good one and chattering about all the fun tricks she wanted me to teach her. I let out a mischievous smile at the groan I heard in surround sound from all the men in the room but also from Clint over my earpiece when I of course agreed to teach her everything I know.