The first step to slowly introducing Matthew Murdock to the rest of the Avengers: casually wearing her engagement ring to breakfast one morning.

She really hopes they're not so oblivious that they don't notice.

When she walks into the kitchen, she immediately goes for the coffee maker. Bruce, already there, gets both of them mugs, and when he hands her one, he raises an eyebrow at her hand but doesn't comment. He's discrete like that; that's why Nat likes him.

It takes a bit for the others to walk in. Nat takes a seat by the kitchen counter with her mug of good coffee and takes an aggressive bite into an apple, scrolling on her phone all the while. It's a normal sight, really, with an obvious difference, at least to her.

Wanda sets her food down and sits across from Nat. She takes a sip of orange juice before abruptly choking and coughing into her hand. Okay, two down.

"You good, Wanda?" Sam asks with a raised eyebrow, flipping pancakes on the stovetop.

"I'm good," Wanda says with wide eyes at Nat.

"These pancakes for me?" Tony asks with a tired grin, strolling into the kitchen like he owns the place, which he does.

Sam scoffs. "Of course not," he says, but then he gets a closer look at Tony's eyebags, for once not due to tinkering all night. "Okay, maybe you can have some." They all know Tony was joking.

"Thanks, Sam," Tony says, patting him on the shoulder as he passes him and walks over to the overused coffee maker.

Pepper comes in a few minutes later with Morgan in her arms. She kisses the top of Tony's head and hands Morgan off to Nat. "She's getting so big," Nat says, carefully cradling Morgan in her arms with a soft smile.

"Isn't she?" Pepper says with a smile of her own. She nods at Nat's hand, bracing Morgan's body. "Nice ring."

"What ring?" Tony asks, painfully swinging his head over to look at Nat and spotting it. "Holy shit."

Nat covers Morgan's ears just to be annoying about it.

"Congrats!" Sam says. "When do we get to meet the guy?"

"I'm still used to thinking of you in the dating stage that this is changing my whole worldview," Tony says. Nat rolls her eyes. "Wait, is that an engagement ring or a marriage ring?"

"Engagement," Nat answers. "Relax, you didn't miss my whole wedding." Which she hasn't planned or really thought about all that much.

"I'm still in shock. Congrats Nat, really!" Tony says with wide eyes.

"Interrogation time," Sam announces, coming over to place his hands on the counter. "How long have you guys been dating?"

Nat tilts her head with a frown. "Six years, more or less," she says. Questions like this are difficult to answer nowadays, what with the five months half the world had been gone.

"And how long have you been engaged?"

"A few months," Nat admits. "He proposed to me literally the day we got everyone back."

Tony groans. "You didn't propose to him? I believed in you!"

Nat snorts. "Did you or Pepper propose?"

"Happy did. Anyways, why didn't you?"

Nat frowns. "I could've planned something if I hadn't been grieving him for five months prior." Silence, except for the sound of pancake batter sizzling. "Sorry. This announcement was meant to be happier."

Bruce shrugs. "I'm really happy for you," he says, which means a lot considering he's known the longest.

"Why did you suddenly decide to tell us now?" Pepper asks curiously, reaching down to wipe spit off of Morgan's chin. Morgan smiles happily up at her and clumsily claps her hands together.

"I felt it was time," Nat says honestly. "I don't exactly like keeping secrets."

"I repeat my earlier question," Sam says. "When do we get to meet this guy? I'm sure he's a pretty good person if you've decided to marry him, and the fact that he got you to agree is impressive in its own right."

Nat laughs. "You guys will meet him when I say so. Maybe I'll surprise you one day."

"Please invite us to the wedding," Tony begs.

Nat mock glares at him for a few seconds. "I'll think about it," she says eventually, even though she's already made the decision to theoretically invite him to her theoretical wedding in her head.

"By the way, where are Steve and Bucky?" Sam asks, looking around. "Aren't they usually the earliest to wake up?"

As if summoned, Rhodey runs into the room, out of breath. "Guys, we got a problem," he says. He spots Nat's ring and pauses for just a moment. "Congratulations," he tells her, before running back out.

They all stare at his retreating form before following.

Turns out Ross is back on their asses. "Public opinion sided in our favor after we brought half the world back," Steve says after they have all gathered in the conference room. (Sam had to run back to turn off the stove, only to realize Pepper had done it for him since she's the only responsible person here.) "That's why we didn't have to do anything to get the UN to repeal the Sokovia Accords."

"And now?" Nat asks.

"Despite that, Ross is still going against Bucky."

Bucky scowls, crossing his arms in front of his chest. "I haven't skipped a single one of my therapy sessions," he says. "'Violation of conditional pardon' my ass."

Rhodey winces. "Ross asked me to arrest him," he says. "There's no way he thought I'd agree."

"He still thinks we're on two separate sides," Nat surmises. "He probably thinks you specifically have a grudge because of the injuries you sustained."

Rhodey rolls his eyes. "I told him to fuck off."

"Good choice of words," Tony says in approval. "Never thought you'd follow in my footsteps regarding talking to important government officials, but here we are."

"Y'know," Bucky says suddenly, "maybe it'd be better to arrest me."

They all look at him incredulously. "What? No way!" Steve says. "This is unlawful."

"Exactly. If we can prove in a court of law that I'm somewhat not guilty—"

"Entirely not guilty."

"It's all HYDRA's fault," Tony has to admit.

"—then Ross can't possibly mess with us anymore," Bucky explains. "It'll be a lot easier this time around, with the public on our side."

"...You know what? I can't argue with your reasoning," Sam says. "It's unusually sound. Are you sure you're feeling okay today?"

"Shut up."

"Okay, but would there be any lawyers willing to defend you?" Steve asks.

Nat is starting to come up with an idea she doesn't necessarily like.

"I know a lot of lawyers," Tony says. "They aren't that good."

"Don't you pay them to be good?" Rhodey asks, amused.

"But that's exactly why," Tony explains. "They're here for the money. If we want to win this case, we need someone who cares."

Nat is really starting to dislike the idea she's come up with.

"Someone good who cares?" Bucky asks. "Rhodey, you're literally about to arrest me. Can we really find anyone on such short notice?"

"I may know some lawyers," Nat says.

They all turn to look at her.

"They're very good lawyers," Nat continues.

She's going to regret this, isn't she?

She takes off her engagement ring.

Nobody else really needs to know.

Rhodey arrests Bucky. It's a surprisingly private affair, considering all the news reporters who would definitely want to know every detail.

To their surprise, Bucky is offered bail. This probably has to do with that one video circulating around the internet of him happily letting kids climb all over himself and swing from his metal arm in Louisiana. (This definitely has nothing to do with Sam, who took the video.)

To the surprise of many people who aren't them, Tony throws his money around and bails Bucky out of pretrial detention.

Ross scowls at them, already unhappy with how things are going.

For the first time in a while, the Avengers are presenting a united front, and Nat finds herself worrying less about the outcome because she's missed this feeling of teamwork, of belonging. She's missed it a lot. She can't wait for them to succeed.

Later that day, Nat finds Wanda outside the compound, staring at the darkening sky. Nat opens the screen door and walks out to stand next to her. Something's wrong. Wanda has tears in her eyes.

"I'm sorry," Wanda says quietly, voice wavering.

"For what?" Nat asks her softly.

Wanda sniffs a little. "I'm happy for you, really. I'm so happy for you. I'm happy that you're happy. But sometimes, I miss..."

"Yeah," Nat says after a second. She swallows a little. "Yeah."

"Vision, he- he bought a property for us in New Jersey. It was kind of him. I loved him so much."

"And now you don't know what to do with the place," Nat surmises.

"Yes." Wanda lets out a shuddering breath, and Nat can't help it. She turns to give Wanda a hug. Wanda sinks into it for a few moments before pulling away and wiping the tears off of her face. "It's been months," Wanda says angrily. "I should be over this. I should have moved on."

"Grief isn't like that," Nat tells her gently. "It comes and goes. It never truly leaves you." She frowns. "And you should already know that." From the loss of her parents, of Pietro. Wanda is just as lost as Nat had been when she'd just defected from the Red Room.

But she hadn't been alone. She'd had Clint, and Nick and Phil and Maria. She'd had them. Wanda has the Avengers, the people beneath the heroes. She has them. They won't leave her.

"I had forgotten how fresh grief feels," Wanda says. "I don't know how I could have forgotten."

"But here's the thing about grief," Nat says, placing her hands on Wanda's shoulders and imploring her to look at Nat. "Grief is different for everyone, for every loss. There is angry grief and tragic grief and just pure loss. There is so much more than that. Each and every loss is unique. No grief is ever the same."

Wanda sighs, long and lonely.

"Come inside," Nat tells her, grabbing onto her hand and gently pulling her towards the door, but she won't force her if she doesn't want to. People grieve in different ways, too. "We're all here for you. We can all be here for you in different ways."

After a few seconds while Wanda searches Nat's face for something—Nat doesn't know, it's for Wanda alone—Wanda whispers, "Okay."

"Okay," Nat repeats reassuringly.

They go back inside.

After that long, long day, Nat sends a quick text to Matt apologizing and saying she won't be home again tonight. It occurs to her as she's sending it that Matt's place has become the norm, and she doesn't know what to do with that realization. Fortunately, Matt sends a quick text back saying the news have told him what happened and that he understands. She feels so lucky to have him, especially 'cause she's going to bring him into this mess come tomorrow.

Tonight, though, most of them pass out in various positions and in various parts of the compound's living room, not wanting to be apart. This is probably bad for all of their backs, but when Nat sits on the couch and proceeds to slump against Steve on the side unoccupied by Bucky, Steve puts an arm around her and mumbles, "Night."

It's not a bad sleep, all things considered.

For once, Nat gets to enter Nelson and Murdock without sneaking in. She walks right to the entrance, leans against the open doorway, and knocks lightly against the front door. "Open for business?" she asks casually.

Matt, who definitely heard them coming from a mile away, just blinks blankly at them while Karen internally freaks out and Foggy points at them and asks, "Is that...Captain America?"

Bucky pats Steve on the back. "Show them your American charm, Cap," he says with a grin.

Steve winces. "Hi," he says awkwardly, very unlike Captain America. Nat elbows him in the ribs. "Ow! Hi, hello! How are you all doing?"

"You're Captain America," Foggy whispers in awe.

Karen smiles politely. "We're doing well, thank you," she says, reaching over to poke both Matt and Foggy in the arm in an effort to get them to act professional. "Can we help you with anything?"

"Have you seen the news lately?" Bucky asks flatly.

"Can't say I have, no," Matt answers, shaking his head. Nat can see that his cane is, conveniently, in his office and not by his side.

"What?" Steve says.

"He's blind," Foggy explains quickly.

"Way to out me," Matt mutters.

"Anyways," Karen says loudly, valiantly trying to save their dignity in a tired, practiced way, "this is the office of Nelson and Murdock. I'm Karen Page, their secretary slash investigator. Would you like to come into the meeting room so we can discuss taking your case?" Evidently, she's the sole holder of the law firm's brain cells.

"We'd love to," Steve says with a smile.

Nat has memorized Foggy, Matt, and Karen's usual coffee orders, so she leaves the five of them to get bribes AKA the good coffee. The coffee isn't so that they take the case, but so that they don't go completely insane over it. She knows they would take the case even if she tried to convince them not to. Not that she would, seeing as she brought Steve and Bucky to them, but she's making a point here.

By the time she gets back, they seem to have most of the details hammered out.

"So, the good news is that the Sokovia Accords are unconstitutional, so we can use that as a basis for our argument," Foggy says brightly.

"The bad news is that there's quite a bit of evidence—eyewitness accounts, security footage—that points to you as the perpetrator of numerous crimes," Matt says, significantly more grim.

"The good news is that this won't involve a military tribunal," Foggy says, closing a folder and clasping his hands on the table in front of him.

"The bad news is that Ross is very determined to get you declared guilty of anything," Matt says, nudging his glasses up the bridge of his nose.

"But the good news is that we are even more determined to get you acquitted," Foggy says with an air of finality, "so you'll probably be fine."

"Probably?" Steve asks.

"Definitely."

"I dunno, I'm sticking with probably," Matt tells them. "We'll see how it goes."

"Ha. I see what you did there. But guys, don't trust him. Well, trust him in the court of law, but just know he's a huge pessimist."

"Am not!"

"He's in denial."

"Do you guys always do this good cop bad cop kinda thing with your clients?" Bucky asks with a frown.

"No, they don't. You guys are getting special treatment," Karen mutters. She looks up to see Nat at the door. "Ooh, coffee! Thank you so much! I'm sorely in need of it."

Nat smirks. "I can tell," she says, setting a cup of coffee down in front of each overworked member of the law firm. "12 o'clock," she murmurs to Matt, who had noticed she was there long before the others and smiles warmly at her in thanks.

"You are a life saver, Nat," Foggy says. "Not that you aren't in other ways, but coffee is practically the elixir of life."

"'Nat'?" Steve asks with curiosity. "How long have you guys known each other?"

Foggy frowns. "Not as long as you guys have," he says after a moment. Matt nods along and refrains from answering by taking a long sip of his coffee. Smart.

Steve smiles. "Has Nat told you her...news?"

"What?"

"Romantic...news?"

"Oh!" Karen exclaims, jumping in. "Yeah, she has. Her engagement ring is beautiful, isn't it?" Nat almost laughs at this because Karen had helped Matt pick it out.

"We knew before you, actually," Foggy says with a grin, as if trying to one-up Captain freaking America.

"You did?" Steve asks, frowning.

"No, I'm sure Nat would have told her teammates before us," Matt protests, desperately trying to mitigate the situation.

Bucky narrows his eyes at Nat and says, "I feel like I'm missing something and I don't like it."

"Well, you guys are done, right?" Nat says brightly. Foggy and Matt both nod hurriedly. "Okay, we'll see you whenever you're next available. Bye!" And then she drags the two super soldiers out the door and into the street. A few passersby gape at them, so at least Matt and Foggy will be seeing more business soon enough.

"What'd you guys think of them?" Nat asks when they're back at the compound in Tony's lab. She'd strategically refused to answer any questions on the ride back.

"They're good people," Steve says. "I can tell, somehow."

"Passionate," Bucky says.

"Involved with several known vigilantes," Tony says, typing furiously into his computer.

Nat sighs. "Don't tell me you did a background check on them."

"I didn't. I just...researched a lot about them."

Sam smirks, sprawled out on a chair and eating chips. "He's been at it for a while," he tells them.

Morgan babbles in Wanda's arms. Wanda looks down at her, a bit teary-eyed.

"How'd you even meet them?" Rhodey asks with curiosity.

Nat shrugs. "They're good people," she says, repeating Steve's words. "I always keep tabs on useful connections."

Bucky snorts. "Nah," he says. "They knew you."

"Sometimes I keep tabs in a more personal manner."

"You're being very suspicious, Romanoff," Tony says, still staring at his computer. "Oh, the Murdock guy fought my law department years ago and won. Nice. What kinda name is Matthew Michael Murdock anyways? Even I know the alliteration is a bit much."

"What else have you found out?" Bucky asks with far too much interest for Nat's comfort.

"Nelson and Murdock also went up against Wilson Fisk and won, before he escaped from prison and was Clint's to deal with. I'm impressed. Maybe I should hire them."

"I thought we established that the people you hire aren't that good," Rhodey comments.

"I'll make an exception."

"I don't think that's how it works."

"They're not going to agree," Nat warns.

"Watch me try."

"What kinda asshole does Stark think he is?" Matt asks incredulously over the phone later that day.

"A rich one," Nat says, smiling.

"Throwing his money around like that will get him into trouble."

"It already has."

"Yelena has been bumped down from her title as least favorite future in-law," Matt complains.

Nat snorts. "She won't be very happy to hear that," she tells him, laying on her bed at the compound and staring up at the ceiling. But she's not actually seeing it at all; she's envisioning Matt in her mind's eye.

Matt laughs, and it's a balm to her ears. "I'm counting on that," he says. There is the sound of shuffling papers on the other end of the line.

"Don't overwork yourself," Nat says fondly.

"Me? Never," Matt says back, and Nat can hear the smile in his voice.

"Is that Nat you're talking to?" comes the distant voice of Foggy. And then, much closer, "Nat, you could've warned us Captain fucking America was coming to see us."

"It was funny to see you flounder," Nat tells him.

"Evil! You are evil," Foggy says.

"Foggy got a signature," Matt tells her in a conspiratorial tone of voice, as if Foggy isn't right there next to him. "Very unprofessional of him."

"Lies!"

"You're both unprofessional," Karen complains, probably screaming at them from her desk. "I'm losing another piece of my sanity every passing day."

"But you love us," Foggy says brightly.

She sighs. "I suppose."

Nat snorts. "I hope I haven't given you guys more of a headache with this case, but I didn't know who else to turn to."

"Oh, you've definitely given us a headache," Foggy says, "but a good one."

"I already have so many arguments to throw at the attorneys," Matt says gleefully, as only a lawyer would do.

"Well, I guess I'll leave you to it," Nat says with a smile. "Love you." And it's truly a testament to how much things have changed, because her words of love are thrown around so casually now, but they are filled with no less meaning.

"Love you," Matt responds happily. "I'll try not to get beat up too much tonight."

"You better."

"What kinda assholes do they think they are?" Tony says, storming into the kitchen where the rest of them are eating meatloaf, courtesy of Wanda's successful experimentation in cooking.

"Who?" Steve asks, swallowing a bite.

"Nelson and Murdock. They refused my money! Who does that?" Tony throws his hands into the air in frustration.

Nat raises an eyebrow. "I did warn you," she says.

"Y'know, I respect them even more now," Sam says with a nod. "They've got integrity."

"And the stubbornness to beat Stark," Bucky comments, grinning. "They're definitely going to outlast Ross."

"But what if I want them on my staff?" Tony asks desperately.

Nat tilts her head to the side. "I thought Pepper was in charge of Stark Industries?"

"She's the CEO. I still own Stark Industries."

"These types of things have honestly never made sense to me," Wanda comments, cutting another slice of meatloaf for herself.

"Me neither," Yelena says. Nat smiles at that, before freezing and turning around to see her own sister waving at her.

"Who are you?" Tony asks, gesturing at her in accusation.

"Yelena Belova, at your service," Yelena answers with a dramatic bow. She's been watching too many dramas.

"That's not much to go on."

They're all tensed up and ready for a fight, so Nat takes pity on them. She gets up from her seat at the kitchen counter and walks to Yelena with a bored stride. She looks Yelena up and down and asks, flatly, "How'd you break in?"

"The artificial intelligence took pity on me," Yelena says.

"FRIDAY!" Tony says, looking up at the ceiling.

"Ms. Belova told me her reason for entering and why it should be a surprise. Her good intentions compelled me to let her in," FRIDAY explains impassively.

"I need to update your security protocols," Tony complains, pointing at the ceiling angrily.

"Of all the people who have wanted to break into here, no one else has tried asking nicely," Bruce says, amused. "You're the only one who's succeeded."

"Yes, I'm talented like that. Thank you," Yelena says, and Nat smacks her on the shoulder. "Abusing me in front of your friends? Really?" Nat rolls her eyes.

"Okay, but who are you?" Steve asks with a frown.

Yelena throws an arm around Nat's shoulders and says, voice dramatically low, "Your greatest enemy."

"Oh, I didn't know you were me," Tony quips. Nat ignores him.

She jerks her thumb to the side. "This is my sister," she grouses. "Unfortunately."

Yelena turns to her. "Unfortunately?!" she says.

"Sister?!" everyone else says.

Nat rolls her eyes again. Sometimes, she can't believe she's willingly sticking with these people. "Yes. Sister," she tells them. "Not by blood, but it doesn't matter. It's a long story."

After a moment, Tony says, "You're just giving us one revelation after another this week, aren't you?"

"Yep," Nat says unapologetically.

Sam pulls out a chair, offering it to Yelena. "Well, welcome to the chaos that is the Avengers. You're never escaping."

"I escaped the Red Room," Yelena says, moving over to sit in the offered chair while Nat goes back to her own seat. "It can't be that hard in comparison."

"No, you're stuck here forever," Nat tells her.

"Yeah. I've tried," Tony says.

Bruce frowns, putting down his empty plate. "Didn't you try really hard to get in first? After all that work, and you want out?"

"Wait, I want to know this story," Wanda says, leaning in.

"I'm here for a mission, so I can't stay long," Yelena tells her as they sit in Nat's room at the compound. They are on the floor, their backs against the footboard.

"Any way I can help?" Nat asks her.

"Nah," Yelena says. "I can handle it." Nat trusts her.

A few moments of silence pass.

"Do you ever imagine how our lives would be if we were normal?" Yelena asks. "Not running around the world saving people but just living our own lives."

"I can imagine it," Nat tells her, envisioning their house in Ohio. Playing on the swings, hanging upside down from tree branches, catching fireflies, eating ice cream before it melted. They hadn't just pretended to be normal, then. They had been, for a little while. "But I can't see myself not saving people now."

"Me neither," Yelena says after a second. "It's a fundamental part of our identities now, I suppose."

"In addition to multi-pocket jackets."

"Of course. The most important part."

During the first meeting between Nelson and Murdock and the prosecution, one of the lawyers tries to make small talk, saying to Matt, "I like your tinted glasses! Interesting choice to wear them inside, though. Are they prescription?"

For a few seconds, Matt frowns at them, unimpressed, holding his cane in full view. "I'm farsighted," he deadpans eventually. Nat isn't able to witness more of the meeting, but she assumes it went just as poorly. For the other side, that is.

The very publicized trial occurs a few weeks later. The upside to that is that Matt, Foggy, and Karen are going to have a steady source of income for months, if not years. The downside to that is that reporters are everywhere, and it's getting a bit stifling, even to Tony, who's used to it.

Bucky is in front with his lawyers, while the rest of them are sitting in a long, formidable row behind him. Nat swears the opposing lawyers are sweating, and Ross's mustache looks worse than usual.

Bruce leans towards her to whisper, "I don't know if I'm being paranoid or not, but does he keep looking over at me every so often?"

Nat glances at Ross out of the corner of her eye. "At us, yes," she mutters. "At you, I honestly have no clue."

"I really hope he's forgotten about me."

"I really doubt that."

"At least he's given up on you," Steve whispers from Nat's right.

"Sometimes, I feel like he tried to kill me not because of Hulk but because I tried to date his daughter."

"You did what?!" Rhodey hisses from Bruce's other side, and is immediately shushed by Tony, of all people, on Rhodey's left.

Sam, on Steve's right, mutters, "Why you always gotta sit on my left, Steve?"

"May I remind you that the Sokovia Accords have been repealed," Matt is saying heatedly in response to...something. Honestly, Nat isn't completely following. This is why she isn't a lawyer. She could follow along if she put effort into it, but she's too bored out of her mind to do so, despite how tense the situation is.

She sees Karen and Foggy discretely share a fist bump, though, so she probably has nothing to worry about.

Matt and Foggy are good. She knew that before, but in a distant sort of way. It hits her in the face now, as she listens to their eloquence and watches them call up witnesses such as the Princess of Wakanda to prove evidence of mind control and Steve Rogers to emanate Truth, Justice, and the American Way. Matt has this small smirk on his face that he wears as Daredevil sometimes, when he knows he's got someone trapped.

It's a breach of secret identity, maybe, but she likes seeing this, likes seeing his passion as a lawyer as much as his passion as Daredevil.

"Thomas Metzinger, a well known German philosopher, defines mental autonomy as, and I quote, 'The specific ability to control one's own mental functions, which include attention, memory, planning, rational thought, and decision making.' In what world did James Buchanan Barnes have mental autonomy during his time under HYDRA and the perpetration of the crimes he is being accused of?" Foggy asks at one point.

"Damn, he's good," Tony mutters. "Such a lost opportunity."

"Shut up, Tones," Rhodey whispers.

After the first day of the trial, Nat, Bucky, and Steve sequester themselves in Nelson and Murdock's offices and attempt to recover from the day's activities with a shared bottle of wine, courtesy of Tony's pantry.

Foggy eyes them tiredly and says, "I really want to get drunk, but as your lawyer that wouldn't be a very good idea."

"As the guy being charged, this isn't a very good idea," Karen comments.

"Enhanced metabolism," Bucky and Steve both say.

Nat just makes an annoyed face. "My stubbornness makes up for it. It's unlikely I'll be called up to the witness stand, anyways."

"And we're drinking more than you," Steve says, lifting the bottle up in a lazy toast.

"Okay, you guys are being pathetic and miserable," Matt says, abruptly standing up. "Come on. You guys got a change of clothes?"

Fogwell's Gym is empty at this time of night. Matt leads them inside, cane knocking against the floor at constant intervals. He passes the light switch without pausing, so Foggy's the one who has to turn on the lights.

"Looks sketchy," Bucky says. He smirks. "I like it."

"This is where I go to blow off steam when I'm tense and frustrated, like I'm sure you guys are," Matt says. "It'll help, for tomorrow."

"You go to an old boxing gym to blow off steam?" Bucky asks curiously.

"Yep," Matt says. Among other places in Hell's Kitchen, like dark alleyways, or rooftops.

Steve reaches out to smooth out an old poster, and Nat sees Matt pause, anticipating the question. "Battlin' Jack Murdock," Steve murmurs. "Any relation?"

Matt smiles weakly, folding up his cane and setting it down on the ground next to his bag. "My dad," he answers after a moment. "I've been coming here since I was a baby." They all know what long-held grief sounds like, so they don't push further.

"You know how to box?" Bucky asks, but not in the way some people ask when they truly can't believe a blind person capable of it.

"Yeah," Matt says, beginning to wrap his hands in a practiced way. Steve, Bucky, and Nat try to do the same, but of course they're not as practiced at it. At least, that's what Nat thinks until she looks over at Steve's hands. She raises her eyebrows at him, and he just shrugs sheepishly at her. Nat smiles and continues wrapping her own hands, because while she can get the same quality, she's very slow at it.

Foggy and Karen, still in their court clothes, move to the side to watch. "I feel like I'd break a finger or two or three trying to hit this," Foggy says, lightly pushing a nearby punching bag with his palm so that it swings gently on its chain.

"Please don't," Karen says.

Bucky sighs. "I'm not sure if I'm doing this right," he says honestly, looking at his one sloppily wrapped hand.

Matt walks up to him and reaches out to clumsily clasp his shoulder, lightly running down his arm to find...the wrong hand. "Why did I think you'd wrap the metal one?" he asks, almost to himself.

Bucky laughs. "Here," he says, wrapping his other hand around Matt's wrist.

Matt runs his hand over the cloth and mutters, "Too tight."

"Yeah, I've never been much for hand protection." HYDRA wouldn't teach their Winter Soldier how to wrap his hands properly, would they?

Matt carefully and methodically fixes Bucky's handiwork. Once he's done, he lets go of Bucky's hand and steps back.

"Nice," Bucky says with a nod of appreciation.

"He just nodded," Foggy narrates.

"Sorry."

"It's fine," Matt says with a genuine smile.

"Don't destroy any punching bags," Nat reminds their resident super soldiers.

They split up. Foggy and Karen hang out for a bit before patting Matt's back and announcing that they're heading home. "Don't die between now and tomorrow morning and we're good," Foggy says. Steve and Bucky both nod, thinking the comment is for them, when it's actually for Matt, who smiles innocently.

"I'll buy you guys coffee again," Nat calls out.

"Oh!" Karen says. "You really don't have to—"

"We appreciate the offer," Foggy says. "A steady source of caffeine really is a way to a man's heart." Matt snorts, and then tries to cover it up with a cough when Foggy turns to glare at him.

For a while, all Nat hears is the sound of slightly heavy breathing and fists punching bags. It's soothing, satisfying to hit her own. She chases everything out from her brain and sinks into the monotony of her actions. She can kind of see why Matt values beating up punching bags so much, sometimes even more than beating up criminals on the street.

It's also safer, so there's that.

After an indeterminable amount of time, Matt punches his bag one final time and walks to the bench to drink water. If Steve or Bucky notice his sudden ability to tell where certain things are, they don't comment on it. Matt's not as sweaty as Steve and Bucky are, used to this type of exertion for longer periods of time, and also without an enhanced metabolism sweating it out.

This is the point Nat notices that Steve and Bucky are really too into their punching to notice too much around them. Nat knows they're not stupid and they're certainly going to notice something, but she's too tired to care.

And really, she has nothing to hide, not anymore.

She punches the hanging bag in front of her for a few more minutes, imagining Ross's face on it. After she steps back and catches her breath, she walks towards Matt and steals his water bottle to take a drink. Matt rolls his eyes as she moves to sit next to him, and it's almost casual how they interact with each other now. It's nice. Nat doesn't have to try putting on a front, not with her people around her.

She leans into Matt, and he reaches over to unwrap her hands. He smiles gently and brushes a thumb against her knuckles once he's finished, and Nat kisses him on the cheek in thanks. He's sweet like that, most of the time, when he's not out as Daredevil or fighting in court.

"You going out tonight?" she murmurs.

"Nah," he says after a second. "I remember what happened during Castle's trial."

Nat snorts softly. "Learning from your mistakes. Proud of you," she says sarcastically. She lays her head on Matt's shoulder without further ado, watches Bucky and Steve beat up punching bags without destroying them, and thinks she could stay like this forever, if it weren't for life.

Just her and some of her favorite people. No Ross, no bad guys, no blood.

Tomorrow will be different.

But right now, it's just them and the peace and quiet around them.

She thinks she could get used to this.

Random life updates:

Got my wisdom teeth taken out. Do not recommend.

Finally read The Anthropocene Reviewed by John Green. I very much do recommend that.