Budapest

Tough Decisions

Clint Barton was glad he survived  the rest of the night in the med bay. As Clint expected, the nurse held no appreciation for his break-out and made it very clear that he wasn't to leave under any circumstances until discharge at noon the next day. Falling asleep shortly after his return to the bay, he was glad to wake up without hand-cuffed hands, maybe the director had been overreacting last night in his anger. Clint could only hope, but it was short lived as he remembered his debrief was right after discharge, how would he explain the impulsive actions that lead him to save Natalia without endangering them both? He didn't know the answer, but he certainly felt better about Natalia after the interrogation. He was grateful she had willingly given up the answers to the questions he asked, her compliance a significant factor in their shared fate. Thinking of Natalia, he wondered how she was faring in her cell, hopefully the agent guarding her cell wasn't insufferable; for his sake of course, Clint had no doubt Natalia could hold her own.

***

Natalia's night was rather uneventful in the small cell she was directed to shortly after interrogation. She didn't know why that was what they called questioning, there were no invasive questions, torture, or tricks that she was used to. Not that Natalia was complaining, she was pretty content keeping her secrets close to her chest, she was a spy after all. Natalia was quite comfortable in the cell, afforded a nice pillow to sleep on and a toilet in the corner of the cell. She was slipped a tray of food for dinner but she wasn't so easy to trust so she didn't touch it in fear of poison.

She also didn't sleep a wink the whole night. The pillow was comfy, but her wrist ached for the handcuffs that typically held one hand to her bedpost back at the Room. She had yet to quit the habit, buying a pair even at her own apartment for comfort. She would not fall asleep without meeting SHIELD's director, she was not foolish enough to leave herself vulnerable in a cell where she held no power or protection. She appeared asleep to the guard she saw lurking outside for hours, and she was content when he left her in silence to her thoughts.

He did not offer the same treatment when she "woke up" however, and Natalia found herself longing for the silence once again. She could ignore the man of course, but knowing it wouldn't achieve anything, she found herself responding to various jabs or questions for the Widow. Questions like how many people she killed, she didn't know, and her stylistic choices, the choice wasn't hers. A particularly interesting question came up when the man asked, "What do you know about Agent Barton?" She didn't know why the question intrigued her so, but she was relieved the attention was directed away from herself.

"What kind of things do you mean? If it's intel you're looking for, I just met the man," Natasha replied.

"Weaknesses, anything of that sort. He's been a pain and I figure he could take a beating or two, especially since you knocked him down a peg. I heard a rumor the nurses were going to throw a riot over the man," the agent on the other side responded.

Natalia didn't want to grace the agent with a response, his goading for information wouldn't get anything out of her. She had of course picked up on a few weaknesses in their short fight, but the agent in front of the bars didn't deserve her answers. She was curious at the supposed rumor however, why would the nurses be angry at Clint? Unless... he escaped the previous night to interrogate her? It didn't make sense to Natalia, and she found that she was puzzled by the agent once again. Clint Barton was a mystery to Natalia, one she was determined to crack, but she needed more time.

***
4 hours later...

Clint Barton was seated at an oval table with the figureheads of SHIELD. There was Director Fury, Deputy Director Hill, and his supervising agent, Phil Coulson. The air in the room was so thick Clint could cut it with a knife, but he didn't speak first, no that was Fury.

"You know how debriefs work, we ask you questions, you answer. Typically we would follow the mission parameters, but you went so off the bar, that wouldn't accomplish anything. Agent Barton, you've got the next few minutes to explain the logic behind your actions yesterday. You're lucky Romanova talked yesterday or the WSC would've taken precedence over your case. Tell the truth. Don't make me regret vouching for you," Fury finished with a nod and all the attention turned to Clint.

"Once I arrived in Moscow, I staked out the Black Widow from my perch. She approached her target and incapacitated him, taking the card from the man's suit pocket. It had the names of children who were to be trafficked later that night. Next, I headed to the bar where Natalia was drinking by herself. One moment she was there and the next, she approached me. I thought I'd been made, but she just remarked on my lack of drinking. She ordered some Russian vodka with two hits of something that was hella strong, then she apologized before walking over to Agent Khofsky. I recognized him from the mission report, but something was wrong. Either the intelligence we got on him was wrong or someone else was at play, but the man didn't have a scratch on him. In fact I'd say he was boasting, he had his arm draped around Natalia far too tight for them to have just met. It wasn't until I caught the drugged drink that was slid to the widow before I figured out he was a lit fuse. I didn't know what he planned, but looking at the Black Widow slip into submission, I moved without thinking. I punched the man in the jaw and he dragged me into the alleyway. Natalia must have slipped away in the commotion and I got the upper hand on Agent Khofsky. I knew the mission didn't explicitly say anything about killing the man, but the man was running a fucking human trafficking ring, I wasn't just going to let him get away. Cleaning up the scene was when I was shot, it was a kill shot no doubt but I was lucky to see the barrel and dodge before it hit its target. My abdomen hurt like hell but it was easy to get the advantage over Romanova with the adrenaline and her weakened state. I took out my bow and arrow for the kill shot and had it lined up within seconds, but I just couldn't make the shot. Phil, you know how I was when you picked me up, everyone said I was a lost cause and I believed them. I saw that when Natalia was at my mercy, she wanted to die at my hands rather than return to the Red Room. And Hill before you say it was manipulation, just look at her eyes. She was begging for escape and the least I could do was offer defection. I think she'd be a powerful asset to SHIELD, she saved my life when she stitched me up. She could've run off, escaped, and let me bleed out from my wound, but she didn't and that says mountains about her character... I know I'm going to face disciplinary actions, but I plead with you to give Natalia a chance, like Coulson did with me and I promise you won't regret it."

Hill, Fury and Coulson shared a glance and Clint didn't think he'd ever been this afraid before. He could only hope they saw what he did in Natalia, it was the only hope for them both.

As Fury nodded at the agent standing guard at the door, Clint half-expected to be marched out in handcuffs but knew they made a different decision when none other than Natalia walked in and sat in the seat across from him.

***