Quiver and Crown // KateLena

Dungeons and Damsels

"Okay, what about Sharon? The palace nurse?" Natasha asked, shifting uncomfortably in her wrist shackles. "Or, I don't know, what happened to that Ranger of yours?"

Steve shrugged, leaning back against the cold, damp stone wall of his cell. "Sharon would be a bit much for me. And as for the Ranger, well... we had our chance."

"How are you so much more interesting than me?"

"I wouldn't say that. You survived a terrorist attack. And a week in jail."

"So have you, Steve."

Steve laughed despite himself. Though the pair and many other nobles had been imprisoned for nearly a week (though keeping track of days was difficult in the perpetually dark dungeon under the palace), the two managed to stay relatively upbeat. This was thanks in no small part to the fact that they were alive, only slightly injured, and knew Wanda was out there somewhere gathering reinforcements.

At least, Natasha hoped that's what occupied her fiancée. It came to light that Pietro was the main orchestrator of the attack, and he made the fact well known as he gloated to his captives, stalking the halls of the dungeon with sadistic glee. It was tempting to Natasha to allow the betrayal to warp her senses, question everything, question Wanda's loyalties. But in the end Natasha knew the brunette too well, and the way she looked into Natasha's eyes was real. Their love was real.

"Okay but seriously, gotta tell me about the history between you two, you and that Ranger," Natasha continued, boots kicking idly at the bars separating she and Steve. "We quite literally have all day, Rogers."

"It's a delicate subject, alright?"

"Poor Stevie got his heartbroken?"

"Something like that."

"Will you two shut up?" Pietro urged, Ledian accent thick as he shuffled down the stairs into the dungeon. Other quieter prisoners cowered in their cells, Natasha simply rolled her eyes and Steve bit back a laugh.

"What's the matter, P?" Natasha taunted. "Hey, your shiner looks better today. You can almost open your eye again."

Pietro seethed, rushing forward to bash his hands against the cell bars. "You're insufferable."

Natasha stood, making her way to stand square with the man, staring directly into his beaten, purple face. "Wanna come in here and talk about it?"

"I don't engage with maggots," he responded, cooling off. His expression calmed, and he nodded toward the cell of a man about three down from Natasha. "Take him," he said, and armed guards unlocked the cell, roughly dragging the man out. "I don't care how long you interrogate. Someone has to know where they went."

Natasha shared a look with Steve. They? The absence of a few key players from the dungeon, including her younger sister, her mother, and Kate, tugged at Natasha since she was imprisoned. She just assumed they were stowed elsewhere to keep the family from conspiring, but apparently, more than one person escaped. Natasha had the feeling Yelena, clever and calm as she was, made it out alive, and where she went, Kate went.

"Hey, P," Natasha tried again, desperate to annoy the man. "You let someone get away, huh? What kind of a coup is this?"

"More successful than you know." He stepped close to the redhead again, utterly fed up with her antics. "I'd suggest you show me a little bit of respect. You're lucky I'm keeping you alive."

"Oh, my gracious and merciful brother in law," Natasha mocked. "You threw me in a cell, don't expect a parade."

"You know," he said, "you should be thanking me. I've made you Queen. I'll be making all the decisions, of course, but once we find that sister of mine, you'll be married and coronated. It's just a shame Melina had to go... she was beautiful. I liked her."

Pietro took his leave with a smug smile, and Natasha fought to hold herself together until he was out of sight. In hindsight, the plan was brilliant, really. Take out the king quietly, then eliminate the queen in a public, though controlled, show of force. Keeping the eldest princess alive would help quell uprisings and make the coup more legitimate; they could even pass the coup off as failed and have Natasha as a secretly captive puppet head of state. Pietro planned to keep Natasha docile and compliant through the legitimate love of his sister, and she had to admit, that was a fair assumption to make.

Deep down, a lovesick, pained part of Natasha mulled over complying, offering to be a figure head for Pietro's whims if it meant living a peaceful life with Wanda. This thought was quickly crushed when she remembered Yelena, Kate, and Wanda were all free somewhere in the kingdom, and that all hope was not yet lost. She could still have her happy ending, she just needed to be patient.

-

Upon hearing the name 'Wanda', Kate and Yelena bolted out of the pool and threw their clothes on before Peter even knew what happened. Already winded, the boy struggled to keep up with the sprinting women, who flew swiftly through the forest.

Kate reached the village first, knocking fervently on Sam and Bucky's door with Yelena behind her. Bucky let the two in, and unbelievably, there she sat. Shaking, guant, and bleeding profusely from bare feet, she had certainly seen better days, but here she sat.

"God, did you run here?" Kate asked, rushing to her side. She knelt beside the trembling form of the woman while Sam gathered first aid supplies. "Are you hurt? How did you know to come here?"

"Kate, don't overwhelm her," Yelena advised gently, kneeling in front of Wanda's chair. "Wanda, you don't even know how good it is to see you."

Wanda wordlessly dropped out of her chair to the floor, nearly launching herself at Yelena. She crushed the blonde in a hug, body now shaking with tears.

"Natasha..." Wanda started, though her sobs cut her short, and Yelena's heart dropped.

"Natasha what?" Kate asked, rubbing Wanda's back.

"She saved me. She had Steve boost me out a window. They captured her, I think. But she saved me. Told me to get help."

"So you came... here?" Kate asked.

Wanda leaned back, calmer now. "I've heard Steve talk about this place before, how he knew a Ranger here. Plus, it's close to the kingdom of Asgard, so..."

"Wait, are you thinking of asking King Thor for help?" Sam said, offering Yelena alcohol and bandages for Wanda's wounds.

"Yes." Wanda confirmed. "The attack on Aram was undoubtedly sent by King Draykov of Ledas, no? If Draykov is behind this, then the allies of Galon have cause to act."

"You're correct," Yelena ventured, unsure of how to address her next point. "But Wanda, when Kate and I fled the palace, we ran into the ring leader of all those raiders, and..."

"It was Pietro," Kate filled, wincing. "I kind of beat the hell out of him. He's alive, though, at least he was when we saw him."

"I had a feeling," Wanda sighed, guilty. "I'm so sorry. I should have seen it coming, should've prevented it. When Natasha and I started dating, he always made comments that one day I would be queen, that I could rule, but... I didn't know it would come to this."

"None of that matters now," Yelena dismissed. "What matters is we get help to the palace, and quickly. Have you any more news? What of my mother? What of Clint?"

The brunette paused. "When I escaped the palace, I ran into a group of Ledian reinforcements on the outskirts of the city. They didn't see me, but I got close enough to hear their conversations. I think... oh, Yelena, I'm sorry. I think the Queen is dead."

Kate and Wanda continued their conversation of tactics, of how best to approach King Thor in Asgard, but Yelena's senses left her. Her ears rang, vision blurred as her world came crashing down around her. Her worst fear had been realized, and nothing would ever be the same.

____________________________
Sorry I keep making Pietro evil lol. I promise I love him he's in my top 10 MCU characters. He's just an easy target because he gives Wanda angst and he has no love interests.

Okay, quick question. Top 5 favorite MCU characters? Mine are Wanda, Natasha, Bucky, Peter Parker, and maybe Thor. Pietro, Yelena, Steve, and Kate are all up there though. So hard, I love them all.