Hey, so sorry about the long delay I kind of had major writers block. I know its been about two months and again, sorry. I got a review from Blonde4ever the other day and it reminded me to keep going so here's a new chapter. I'm gonna finish this story!

The next day was Tony's turn to baby sit again. Steve had gone to talk to Doctor Strange after the man's face had appeared in his mirror first thing in the morning. Tony was more than pleased to do the duty, he enjoyed having little Natasha around and especially liked having someone who would listen to him talk in his lab even when they didn't understand. He spent the morning teaching her about his robots and the robots that had come before and she seemed very fascinated and kept asking him questions. While he worked he kept an eye on the news. With Steve at Strange's and Clint and Bruce dealing with a hurricane in the South Pacific he was the only Avenger in the City. Even Thor was in Los Angeles on a mission with Falcon.

He didn't expect any trouble but this was New York City and despite having Spider-Man, the X-Men and damn near every other Superhero in the country based there, there were always enough disasters to go around.

Around noon he set an alert on his pager and took her upstairs for some lunch. She was hopping with energy and he thought he might take her for a walk and a lunch out. They deserved a normal lunch after the last one had resulted in a bank robbery interruption.

This time however he took her to a small ice cream deli and got her a sandwich and some Ice Cream. After that they went for a walk and she told him the plot of a movie she had seen. It was only when a loud explosion nearby caught their attention that they deviated from their path. They had been walking along the river when a warehouse a few building ahead bust into flames. Tony immediately pushed Natasha between two buildings and crouched down. "I'm going to go see what's happening. Promise me you'll stay here."

She glanced at the flames curiously but nodded. She trusted him. A second later he had donned the Iron Man suit and taken off towards the fire. She crouched down, watching intently. She was far enough away that she wouldn't be touched by the flames but she could feel the heat.

Tony made one last check to make sure she was safe and then returned his attention to the fire. People were fighting to get out of the building. They were workers. He studied the scene for a second before diving into help clear the doors. It looked like an accident. Inside the warehouse he could see several barrels of oil. One of them had spilled. He stopped a fleeing worker and asked what happened.

The man stopped, panting. "Martin!" He gasped. "He lit up and-" The man waved his hand around wildly and Tony understood. They had probably been unloading barrels to store and someone had light a cigarette. That being said there were several barrels still dangerously close to the fire. He began picking up as many as he could and hurrying them out. The trouble was that he could only carry two at a time. A second barrel exploded inside and the force of the explosion sent him hurtling backwards. From his point in the sky he could See Natasha watching curiously. She had moved from between the buildings and was standing in the open watching. He cursed, wishing she had stayed hidden.

A third explosion caught his attention and he hurried back to the warehouse. A quick sweep of the building told him that there were no more people inside. He rushed to get the barrel nearest the flames out but just as he headed for the exit the structural integrity of the building began to collapse. A managed to get the barrel out and dodge a falling rafter before a chunk of roofing caught him and he crashed to the floor.

From her vantage point a few buildings away Natasha followed Tony's progress with bated breath. Each explosion made her worry more. Then when he didn't come out she began to grow afraid. After a few moments she ventured closer and tried to see through the flames. She didn't have much training for fires. Someone had said that would come later. Still, she knew enough to know that fire would hurt.

She teetered as close to the flames as she could get, getting too close once or twice and singeing her hair. Tony was in there and she couldn't see him. She yelped as another explosion sounded and the flames leaped at her. Inside she could hear a noise, unconnected from the fire. Then suddenly Tony was back in the air and another barrel was thrown into the river.

Tony stopped to breath, he had gotten trapped under the chunk of roof and the suit had been temporarily knocked off line. As he tossed the barrel into the water he noticed Natasha dangerously close to the flames. Damn it. He swore. The little girl was peering into the flames intently, wringing her hands. She looked scared. He wanted to swoop down and move her to a safer place but the metal of his suit was too hot. "Natasha, get back!" He yelled.

She looked up and relief washed over her face. Just then another barrel ignited and he had to fly down and shield her from the flames. Natasha yelped as her palms were singed. Tony swore and shoved her out of the way. She toppled over and then ran as quickly as she could away from the flames.

It only took a few more minutes for him to clear out the rest of the barrels. Soon after the fire department arrived. As soon as he had let them know what was going on Tony rushed to find Natasha who was sitting on a crate by the water's edge, cradling her palms in her lap. She looked up when he approached and looked worried. "I'm sorry." He said softly.

He deactivated the suit and it returned to the Tower on it's own. Without it he could feel the effects of the fire a lot more powerfully. He had been burned a little. The suit had overheated. When he returned to the tower he would have to recalibrate it to withstand higher temperatures. He had a few burns on his arms and body but nothing serious. He examined her palms and then frowned. "What the hell were you thinking?!" He yelled.

She recoiled slightly. "You didn't come back out." She whispered.

He paused, regretting his tone of voice. Of course she had been worried and of course she thought she could stand the flames. She wasn't a normal little girl, she could do things even grown men couldn't. "Hey, I'm sorry. No one got really hurt. Lets get back to the tower. I wanna put something on your hands."

She nodded and they hurried back. Once in the tower Tony took care of her hands before checking himself over. Natasha seemed to think that she had made him very angry and wasn't speaking. That evening when the others returned she shut herself up in her room.

Tony told them what had happened and then worried that his yelling at her had set things back. He made several attempts to get her to come out. Eventually he sat down outside her bedroom and let her know that he wasn't leaving until she talked to him.

It only took twenty minutes for her to open the door. "I'm sorry." She said softly.

From his seat on the floor he had to look up at her. "You don't need to be sorry. You were just worried. I'm sorry for yelling."

She twisted the hem of her shirt. "I should be better at following orders."

"Wasn't an order. . . well, not that kind. I just wanted you safe."

She sat down opposite him. "In the Red Room when we do not follow orders we are punished. Sometimes we are not allowed to eat. Other times someone hits us. One time a girl would not do what she was told and they punished all of us."

he reached out and dragged her over to his side of the hall, putting an arm around her as he did so. "Well no one's gonna do that here. Least of all me. I was just worried about you. Like you were worried about me."

"I am changing." She said softly. "'I'm not the same person I used to be."

He looked down at the floor between his knees. "Do you like who you're becoming?"

She gazed at her bandaged palms. "I think so. I am happier."

"Well, that's a good thing isn't it?"

She nodded. "Yes, I think so."

They sat for a moment before she rose to her feet. "I dropped my ice cream when we heard the explosion. Could I have some more?"

He frowned for a moment, startled before smiling. "Sure. I think there's a tub in the freezer."

So if anyone has any idea for things they'd like to see I'd love to hear them. Again, I'm really sorry about the delay. I promise an update a week again!