The Sokovian Shadow

Chapter 13

TW: Still none. Some more fluff for you. Enjoy.
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The back of the Quinjet opened and the Avengers stepped out. I hesitated before Natasha nodded encouragingly. I slowly stepped out of the Quinjet, staying close to Natasha.

'What is this place?' Thor asked.

'A safe house?' Stark didn't sound that sure about what he was saying.

'Let's hope.' Clint added. We entered the "safe house" and Clint set down his bags at the door. 'Honey? I'm home!' A woman entered the room, and I was shocked to see she was heavily pregnant. Clint walked up to the woman and kissed her. 'Hi. Company. Sorry I didn't call ahead.' I tilted my head to the left, thoroughly confused.

'Hey.' The woman replied.

I looked away as they kissed, shuddering at the memory of what happened to Wraiths in the inter-world when they showed affection in public, no matter how small. I'd been present for multiple, and it was always hard not to flinch at the screams. Wraiths didn't get "married". They mated for life. And the mates could always feel each other's pain. It made the punishments twice as worse. They were wounded at the same time, left on the brink of death, then separated. They died alone, but they knew when the other had died, and they were driven insane, but sometimes healed so they would live.

'This is... an agent of some kind.' Stark murmured to Thor.

Clint turned to the rest of the team. 'Gentlemen. This is Laura.'

'I... know all of your names...' The young woman, Laura, spoke up with a small chuckle. She then noticed me standing in Natasha's shadow. 'Except yours.' She added, looking at me with a warm smile. I smiled back at her shakily. I liked her.

'Arina Novak. She can only speak Russian.' Natasha spoke up for me and Laura nodded in understanding.

I focused for a moment, then spoke up in heavily accented English. 'Hello.' All of the Avengers' heads snapped to me and, with help of my blood magic, I blushed, ducking further into the shadows. Natasha chuckled.

'You, young lady, are a very good actor.' She commented.

'Thank you.' I replied confidently.

'So there are certain phrases you can say in English.' It wasn't a question, but I still nodded.

'Hello, goodbye, thank you, I'm sorry, you're welcome, etcetera.' I replied.

'Ooh, incoming!' Clint exclaimed happily. I turned towards the stairs as a young girl and boy ran into the room and ran right towards the archer.

'Dad!' the little girl squealed as Clint picked her up.

'Hi, sweetheart! Hey buddy! How you guys doing?' I tilted my head to the side as Natasha murmured their names in my ear. The girl's name was Lila, and the boy's was Cooper. My eyes widened as I watched the happy family. This was what had been taken from me when I was stillborn. I didn't even know who my parents were. I felt wetness pooling in my eyes as I pursed my lips and ran outside.

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Natasha found me in a tree a couple of hours later. She was in casual clothes and her hair was wet. She sat below me on a protruding tree root as she waited for me to come down. She wasn't going to force me to do anything, and I thanked her for that. After a couple of minutes, I rolled off my tree branch, twisting in mid-air and landing square on my feet. I tilted my head at her and switched to Russian.

'Did you want something?'

'Yeah. To know why you ran out of the house. The others are really worried about you.' She announced, standing up. I sighed and beckoned her to follow me as I turned on my heel and walked deeper into the forest. Her hand drifted towards her pocket, where I had no doubt she had stored a gun or weapon of some sort. After a while, we arrived in a clearing. I sat down and motioned for her to sit opposite me.

'I promised you answers about the Sokovian Shadow. What do you want to know?' I braced myself for what was about to come.

'Why did you leave?' I winced. That was going to be hard to explain. I debated for a quick minute on whether or not to tell her the whole truth. I took a deep breath as I made my decision, but before I could answer, Natasha interrupted. 'And what's said here stays here.' She promised me.

'I'm not human. I'm what's called a Wraith. We can't reproduce, so stillborn children are what you'd call the next generation. I'm happy for them but seeing them reminds me of what I never had. I never even knew my own parent's names.' I took a shaky breath as I finished. Natasha's eyes widened as she finally understood.

'Do all Wraiths have the same skin, hair, and eyes?' She sounded hesitant as if she didn't want to push too deep.

'Yes, but it changes after we make our first kill. For the first five years of a Wraiths, they look like they would have if they'd lived. After they make their first kill, they change in appearance and maturity.' This was easier than I thought.

'Why have you stayed away from Clint so far?' I winced. Celes and I both hated that memory.

'My closest friend is a young falcon named Celes I found when I was young. She'd been shot through the stomach by an arrow and she pleaded with me to put her out of her misery rather than get help. It's not that I don't trust Clint, he seems like a very nice guy. I just don't trust archers in general. Not after what happened to Celes.' I was careful to keep my voice calm. Natasha looked shocked. She thought for a moment.

'What's your real name?' I had no idea what to answer to this.

Should I tell her my name was Alita? I asked Celes. She was as confused as I was.

I don't think so. She may be on your side, but she's still an Avenger. She replied slowly.

'My real name is Aorta Necros.' I replied to Natasha. She nodded slowly and must have noticed my stiff posture because she stood up and offered me her hand. I took it warily and stood up. She took a few steps away from me and raised her fists.

'No weapons and no holding back. I want to know how good you are, Aorta.' She challenged. My eyes lit up with the challenge. I took a few steps in the opposite direction and took up a similar fighting stance.

This was going to be fun.