Aim: Hydra | Y/N Story | Sequel to "Aim: Avenger"

2 - Masquerade

"This isn't going to work." Gestorben whispered, annoyed.

"Yes it will. We've been over this." I hissed.

"It could still go south. We should go with my plan." He grumbled, leaning back in his office chair, and crossed his arms in front of him.

"Blowing up a S.H.I.E.L.D. building is the opposite of our objective. And it would attract too much attention." The three of us were sitting in my makeshift office. Various hand-drawn maps and schematics covered the walls and every available surface that wasn't already occupied with some sort of weaponry or tool.

"I must say, you make a very convincing Black Widow." V giggled.

"Thank you, V. At least someone is supportive." I glared at Ben, who held up his hands.

"Hey, I support you. I just don't support the plan." V punched him in the arm, and he narrowed his eyes at her.

"No ghost fights, please. Last time you almost put a hole in my wall." I scolded them. I looked at my reflection in the mirror, and realized V was right; I really did look like her. The photostatic veil I made worked perfectly, and V helped to braid my red wig. Finish it off with a catsuit and a pair of heels, I looked so much like the heroine it made my heart ache for her signature smirk, how she always had the perfect comeback. But what I missed the most was her gentle heart, something very few people ever saw. "Okay, now we just simply . . . walk into a S.H.I.E.L.D. building and hope nothing goes wrong." I smiled at myself, then turn towards my messy table. I grabbed the coiled up belt and wrapped it around my waist before securing the various handguns and knives along my hips.

"Ready?" Ben asked.

"As I'll ever be."

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"Scan ID card now." An automated voice said. I pulled out a card I had once seen in Natasha's wallet, and held it up to the scanner. "Welcome, Natasha Romanoff." Several heads turned when they heard that, and their eyes widened.

"Wow, Agent Romanoff. You haven't been here in a while. Is something wrong? Should I send for Director Fury?" An agent walked up to me.

"No, thanks." I walked away from the agent, and mentally pulled up the map to the building. Natasha's office was on the ninth floor, right below Fury's. I pressed the button to call the elevator and stepped inside, again pressing the glowing buttons. It stopped at the second floor and someone else walked in, her heels clicking on the tile flooring.

"Agent Romanoff. Long time no see." The blonde woman smiled, holding several files in her hand. I noticed a small handgun hanging from her waist.

"Hello. Where are you off to?" I replied politely.

The woman seemed to accept my facade, responding, "oh, you know me, always busy. What about you? You haven't paid us a visit in, oh, two years."

"Stark likes to keep me occupied. You know how it is; I always have to pick up after him." I smirked, Nat's signature expression.

"This is my stop. It was nice seeing you. Don't forget to come by and see me." She said as the doors slide open, revealing a bustling scene of agents.

"No promises." I said. The doors slowly slide closed as I climbed the last two floors to my destination. There was a stark contrast of this floor to the other; it was just a network of empty hallways. No one was around, which made my job easier. Stopping in front of the door with the plaque "ROMANOFF", I slide the card into the door. The light flashed green, and I swung open the door gently. Automatic lights blinked on, covering the room in a blanket of harsh white light.

"No wonder Nat doesn't come here. These lights are killing my eyes." V complained.

"You're already dead." Ben reminded her.

"Oh. Right."

I ignored the two and started going through her desk. Finding more than a few loaded guns and small knives, I looked for any thing I would find helpful. My search came up empty, and I moved to the drawers on the other side. I pulled it open, and realized it was longer than the other one.

"Oooh, intrigue." V cheered, hearing my thoughts.

"It's really annoying when you do that." I glared at her before inspecting the first drawer. I tapped the back of it. Hollow. Using one of my knives, I pried it open, and found a very small black book; a photo book, or a journal of sorts. It started as a list of everyone she'd killed, written in different inks, some obviously older than others. I noticed slight changes in the handwriting as the list progressed. She was growing up, aging. I realized. Towards the tail end, it included pictures. One of Clint practicing archery. A photo of Pepper and Tony. A photo of her and Bruce at a bar. So many memories. I need to hurry, I reminded myself, shaking my head. I turned on the computer and was welcomed by a boring screensaver, and the need for a password. I had once seen Natasha log in to her laptop, so I really hoped it was the same password. I tried it out, remembering which keys she had hit. Her computer was always in Russian, her native language, but I was fluent in dozens of languages.

Будапешт
Budapest

The computer opened up. "Yes!" I clapped triumphantly. I had gotten it right, although I was still confused why the capital of Hungary was her password. "Okay, where are you, General?" I took a hard drive from my pocket and plugged it in. The software inside it would scan for any relevant documents, and would upload them to a remote location, just in case I lost or broke the drive.

While that was working, I fixed the room so everything was exactly as it was before. That way, if Romanoff ever came to her office, she wouldn't know I was there. I heard a ding, and looked up to see a file had popped up. "I didn't ask the program to do that." I didn't bother to cover the camera, as I was still wearing my disguise, and opened the file. It was a short video clip. "This ought to be good."

"Hello to whoever decided to infiltrate my office. You know who I am, and I will know you. See you soon." The video played, as Natasha uttered those few words. I saw the lens on the camera open, and I waved. Assuming there was also a mic, I spoke.

"Sorry, but I guess I'll have to cancel dinner with myself again. Ta-ta for now!" I said, and shot out of the chair towards the door, opening it. The hallways were still dead quiet, but I silently stalked towards the staircase, not wanting to take the chance of an elevator fight. The sound of the door creaking open was still the only sound, and it echoed throughout. I decided to take the faster route and jump from the different levels as I bounced in between, being careful to not fall. As I had reached the third floor, a hand grabbed my foot and pulled me onto the stairs. I collided with the wall, and struggled to breathe as all the wind was knocked out of me. I rolled to see my attacker, and noticed a familiar glint of metal.

"Oh, hey Bucky." I breathed.

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Edit: The only change with this chapter is the image at the top. I forgot I made graphic for some of the chapters.