For the First Time

Summary: A wide variety of firsts for Natasha Romanoff. Clintasha.

III – First Time She Cried for a Man

January 2001

She ran, and ran, and ran…but she was only hitting dead ends. Another door that she kicked down was a disappointment. It was empty. Every room so far, was empty and it was breaking her heart for the first time. Natasha couldn't be too late, she couldn't.

Clint had gone missing during a mission three months ago, and since then, Natasha hasn't stop looking for him. It became an obsession for her, to find her partner and bring him home, safe. She had gone so far as to disobey every SHIELD rule in order to search for him. Basically, Natasha had gone rogue.

This last clue of his captivity place brought her to Paris. An old neighbor that was residency to a lot of bad people. The factory she was tearing apart, looking for Clint, was making her lose hope. He could probably be dead by now, but Natasha just wanted to find him. She couldn't live with herself if she never found him or if she never knew what had happened to her partner.

They had had the biggest fight and then he had left alone for a solo mission. Fury was starting to get suspicious of all of their fights – he could 'smell' feelings on them – and he decided that they should have some time alone in the field. Natasha had her own mission and she was about to leave when Phil told her that Clint had gone missing. The assassin dropped everything.

"Vous là-bas, qu'est-ce que tu fais ici? C'est une propriété privée!"

[You there, what are you doing here? It's private property!]

Natasha's hands turned into fists and a cruel smile crossed her lips. Turning around, she faced the big man with a Glock and a threatening look.

"Je suis perdu?" She tried with an innocent look, approaching her mark.

[I'm lost?]

"Je vais devoir vous amène à mon patron, il n'aime pas les intrus!"

[I'll have to take you to my boss, he doesn't like intruders!]

With a swift motion, she kicked the gun out of his hands and held his throat by her hand. The big guy choked and his knees started to shake.

"Vous avez mon partenaire. Je veux savoir où il est!" She asked in a low, icy voice.

[You have my partner. I want to know where he is!]

"Je ne..."

[I don't…]

Natasha tightened her grip and the man's face started to turn red. "Look, you idiot, you better tell me where your boss is keeping my partner, the SHIELD agent you kidnapped or…"

The man didn't talk, turning redder by the second. With a vicious growl, Natasha snapped his neck. The guy fell dead on her feet but she really could care less. She was on to something and she would be damned if she didn't bring Clint home tonight.

Quietly, she climbed to the second story of the building and she literally froze when she heard him scream. Her eyes turned cold and her hands turned into fists. Walking down the hallway, armed men started to pop up from every corner. Idiots. She was the Black Widow. A half a dozen guys was no challenge to her.

Five minutes later and their dead bodies were dropping to the floor. She kicked the door opened and didn't even look to the direction they were holding Clint. The three guys that tried to take her down, ended up dead and finally, the boss, looked horrified.

"You should have never touched the man that I love," she hissed at him.

"The Black Widow loves?" The man joked in a thick French accent.

She tilted her head to the side. Reasons of why he took Clint be damned, she wanted this man dead. "I guess I talked too much," a wicked grin was set on her lips as the man fell back. "I'll have to kill you now."

He didn't even had the time to yell before his neck was broken.

With a sharp turn, Natasha looked over at Clint hanging from the ceiling by metal chains. His body – he was only wearing his uniform pants – was battered and bruised, he had blood everywhere mixed with sweat and she was pretty sure he could barely breathe. Rushing to his side, she cradled his face on her hands.

"Clint? Clint is me! Clint?"

Slowly, he opened tortured grey eyes and Natasha's eyes burned. "Ta-…"

"Ssh, don't say anything, you're safe now, I'm here," she nodded, matting their foreheads together. "I'm here and I'm not leaving you!"

Releasing his arms from the chains, she tried to hold him up with little success, Clint had little to no strength left and he was so much heavier and taller than her. She ended up with her butt on the floor and Clint on his knees. Reaching into her pocket, she retrieved her phone, hitting the #1 in the speed dial.

"Natasha?" Phil's worried voice answered.

"I have him. I got Clint," Natasha breathed, holding Clint's body to her. "But he's in bad shape and I can't take him out on my own. He needs medical!"

"Calm down, where are you?"

After giving Phil her coordinates, he promised her that the medical team from the French branch of SHIELD would be there in no time. Hanging up, she hugged Clint, tears streaming down her face.

"I got you," she whispered into his ear. "And I do…" she grabbed his face, gently, making him look at her. His eyes were unfocused but she knew he was listening. "I do love you, silly," she nodded, crying like a baby. "You didn't had to get yourself kidnapped just to make me confess."

Clint gave a sort of a smile before Natasha pulled his head to her chest, stroking his hair. "It's alright now, you're alright."

Natasha didn't know who she was convincing. Clint or her. For the first time, she was crying because of a man. It wasn't any man. It was the man she loved and that was a good enough reason for her to go rogue and to be a sappy schoolgirl.