Fire and Ice

Part 5: More Frustrations

(Natasha)

Briar and I began walking slowly back towards her apartment. I had so many questions, I didn't really know where to start, and I didn't want to push or make her feel uncomfortable. I'd been around enough people with powers gained voluntarily or otherwise to know that coming to terms with them could be challenging even when not under stress. She walked quietly for several minutes, staring at the ground before she began to speak, her voice soft but not the least bit hesitant.

"I'm not from around here." I smirked to myself.

"You don't say." She looked at me sharply, clearly not expecting that reaction from me. I grinned. "In my line of work, I meet a lot of interesting...people." She smirked to herself, staring back down at the ground.

"I suppose I know what you mean." She shrugged her shoulders. "I was brought here years ago to save me from some people believed to be my destiny." She frowned, and I saw her flinching a little. The look on her face told me that she was remembering something rather unpleasant.

"Hey it's okay, you don't need to explain." She shook her head, sighing before she continued.

"It's okay. You're part of the good team. I get it." I couldn't keep the grin off of my face at her name for the Avengers.

"We try to be." I shrugged my shoulders nonchalantly. "Sometimes we succeed more than others." I looked up to catch her looking at me again, her expression one of understanding and compassion. I frowned, shaking my head slightly. "You were saying?" She smiled, allowing me to not-so-smoothly redirect the conversation back to her.

"Carol Danvers is the one who brought me here. To protect me." Now she caught me staring at her, and I'm the shock was evident on your face.

"Danvers?" I asked, surprised. She smirked.

"You know her?" There was a flash in her eyes, one that I recognized. She was teasing me.

"You could say that," I mumbled. I got the feeling that she could read my mind through my eyes and that she knew – somehow – that my first feeling at the information was jealousy.

"She comes to visit when she's nearby, told me that if I started using my abilities visibly that I might fall onto the Avenger's radar."

"She could have warned us, too." I chuckled, not entirely surprised. Carol wasn't big on opening up, and I got the feeling that with all of the things she'd seen around the universe, she had a lot of secrets. It also probably didn't help that her and Wanda had gone on a few dates during one of the periods we were broken up.

"I think she was probably hoping I'd take the hint and keep out of trouble." I caught a playful smile on her face.

"I take it that 'staying out of trouble' isn't exactly your thing," I couldn't keep the flirtation out of my voice. Briar was incredible, and that was even before she explained what her powers exactly were. She chuckled.

"Not so much. Really, I just like to help if I can." I nodded, recognizing the feeling.

"Me too." She was about to reply, but I crouched down suddenly, pulling her down with me.

"What?" Her eyes were wide as she glanced around, turning back to me confused when nothing stood out.

"Something's here," I hissed. Briar gasped and I saw her eyes go wide as she stared at something over my shoulder. I spun around just in time to duck under an oncoming swing by a blue blur. What the fuck is this? I quickly spun around, flipping my legs over the thing's neck, pulling it to the ground where it stopped moving. I looked up in time to see two more similarly-blue creatures making their way out of her building's front entrance. She looked at me, eyes wide with fear. I grabbed her hand, pulling her with me as I crouch ran away from the oncoming goons as quickly and quietly as possible.

"What are you doing?" She asked between pants for air as we ran.

"New plan. I'm taking you to my place." She stopped moving suddenly, and I was forced to stop as well.

"I'm not sure that's such a good idea," she said hesitantly. I frowned.

"I'm not bringing you in, I just want to make sure you're safe." She hesitated a few moments longer before nodding. We were starting to move again when a blast knocked us both sideways. I heard her shriek in pain before a blast of fire came shooting out of her hand in the direction the blast came from. It made contact with something, because I heard a thud and then a scream behind her. I got up quickly, rushing to her side, seeing her bloodied leg. "Can you walk?" She looked up at me, clearly in pain, but nodding. I wrapped my arm around her waist to help support her weight as we quickly continued moving towards the tower. In the interest of expediency, I bypassed the regular entrance, knowing the chances of running into someone we didn't have time to talk to were much higher there. Instead, I took her around the back, moving down the hallway quietly until we reached the medical wing. I sat her down in one of the more private exam rooms before rushing back out to gather some supplies. I returned, clutching some antiseptic, some soap and a whole pile of bandages. She winced as I began examining her leg. "It's okay детка." She frowned at the unfamiliar word, but the blush that rose on her cheeks told me that she understood the tone of my voice as I said it perfectly.

"I'm sorry, it just hurts," she sighed, resuming her former position to let me get back to work.

I stood, cupping her face in my hands, moving my lips inches away from hers. "It's going to be okay, детка." I could practically hear her heart thudding in her chest at my proximity. I watched her eyes dance between my eyes and my lips, and the tip of her tongue licked across her top lip slowly, giving me goosebumps.

"What are you doing?" She breathed, her breath hitting my skin.

"Can you be brave for me?" I asked, moving impossibly closer, grazing my lips across hers before pulling back. She groaned, breathing heavier.

"Yes." It was little more than a whisper. I wrapped my hand around the back of her neck, pulling her into me, kissing her hungrily. She wrapped her arms loosely around my waist, her eyes closing as she leaned into it. I smirked as I gently wiped the cleaner over the wound, checking to make sure the bleeding had stopped. She didn't flinch at all. I kissed my way down her jaw slowly so I could see what I was doing and her head fell back, mouth hanging open. I felt her hands dig into my shoulders as I wrapped the bandage around her leg, securing it loosely before pulling back and breaking contact. She whined.

"You did good, детка." She frowned at me, confused before looking down and realizing that I had cleaned and bandaged the wound without her noticing. She flushed instantly but smiled as well.

"You're evil, Ms. Romanoff," she teased. The smile on my face widened.

"You have no idea."

"Show me." It was my turn to feel my knees go weak as she grabbed me by the waist and pulled me back into her. I was busy memorizing the way that her tongue felt when it slipped over mine when I heard the lab door crash open with a bang.

"Natasha! They said that they saw Briar come in..." Her voice trailed off as she rounded the corner, catching Briar and I mid make out. I pulled away slightly to catch my breath, but left my hands resting securely on Briar's thigh.

"She's fine, I took care of it." Wanda looked past me to Briar, smirking. Briar blushed, glancing uncomfortably between both of us.

"I bet," Wanda smirked, but her tone was playful, not mean or jealous. "Hi Briar," she said. The woman raised her hand in greeting, getting back on her feet and testing out the new bandage.

"Hi Wanda."

"They want to see you guys in the conference room," Wanda said to me. I nodded. She scrunched up her nose, leaning in to me slightly before firmly planting a thought inside my head. "Don't keep her down here all to yourself too long."