Fighting The Past - Natasha Romanoff x Reader

Chapter Thirty-Seven

Two Weeks Later

Y/N stared down at the floor, time had become impossible to track now, they weren't sure how long they had been locked in the cell. To keep them disorientated amongst all the beatings, the guards would switch between having the room in total darkness, pitch black to the point Y/N couldn't see their own hand in front of their face and then they'd have the lights turned up so bright that it hurt Y/N to keep their eyes open. 

They'd meant what they had said when Antonia had recorded that first video, they didn't want Natalia to come for them. They didn't want her to be anywhere near whatever hell hole this was that Antonia had created. It was clear that Dreykov's daughter had no issues with violent torture and Y/N wanted in no way for Natalia to be at risk of becoming a victim of it. 

Guards had come into the cell earlier and dragged Y/N up from the ground and reattached them to the chain, suspending them from the ceiling once again. This was often the sign that the next round of brutal punishment was due to begin. Y/N wasn't sure why Antonia was keeping this up, why she hadn't just killed them already. Clearly she was taking too much delight out of the constant suffering and pain to let it end too soon. 

Y/N closed their eyes, letting their mind go back to those two days in Budapest with Natalia. How hopeful they had been then that life might finally work out for them. Waking up beside Natalia in the penthouse had felt like a dream, to the point Y/N'd had to reach out and touch her just to make sure it was real. 

For a few hours that day they had gotten to be normal, Y/N had gotten a glimpse of what their life could have been like together, to finally be free to love one another, then it had been torn away from them as quickly as it had begun. 

A tear slowly rolled down Y/N's bruised face, they would never get to hold Natalia again, or tell her how they would love her forever. There would be no happy ending for them. 

The door to the cell opened and several guards walked in, the one in charge smirked darkly at Y/N as he activated his taser baton. 

"You know this could all be over Y/N if you just agreed to Antonia's plan. Be the bait and get Natalia here and then this stops" He said to them as the other guards moved to surround Y/N. 

"I'm going to make sure to kill you first" Y/N snarled back. 

In response the head guard just laughed in Y/N's face before slamming the taser baton with crushing force into Y/N's already fracture ribs. 

**

Nat stood on the balcony of the penthouse, Dimitri had allowed the Avengers to use it as their base camp in Budapest. She expected it had to do with him not wanting his criminal associates seeing the Avengers hanging out at the club all the time. 

It had been two weeks, two weeks since Y/N had been taken and every day that past broke Nat down just a little bit more. They had been searching, working all hours, the whole team trying to figure out where Y/N had been taken. But Dreykov and Bucky had seemed to of dropped entirely off the grid, there wasn't a single murmur about their whereabouts. 

"Mind if I join you out here?" Steve stepped onto the balcony, closing the door gently behind him, "It's kind of loud in there with everyone, this place is a little smaller than the compound." 

Nat gave him a small smile, before gesturing for him to come and stand with her. Her eyes drifted back to look out at the city. It felt like the city would always be cursed for her and Nat promised herself that as soon as they found Y/N, neither of them would be coming back here. 

"Want to talk about it?" Steve asked as he lent against the railings on the balcony. 

"Do you think this is my fault?" Nat sighed, tilting her head to look over at Steve, "Should I have just stayed in New York and let Y/N live their life?" 

Steve thought about it for a moment and then slowly shook his head. 

"Nat I supported you coming here. I saw the ghost you became after Y/N left, after all that stuff went down at the cabin. I'm not going to pretend I get it, or that I'm an expert on relationships but you two seem connected in a way that seems kind of destined. Like neither of you truly exist without the other" Steve began trying to explain his thoughts, "So no I don't think this is your fault Nat, and I also won't have you blaming yourself for the actions of some lunatic like Antonia Dreykov. All of this, it's her fault not yours."

"Thanks Steve. Don't worry I wont tell the others that you're a total romantic" Nat laughed softly as she nudged him. 

"I appreciate that, Stark doesn't need any more ammunition to tease me with" Steve said with a smile. 

They both stood there quietly for a moment. 

"What are you going to do about Bucky?" Nat asked the question that everyone had been avoiding since they'd gotten to Budapest. 

"I wish I could just go back to the day he stormed out and talk sense into him. But I thought he just needed to blow off some steam and then he'd be back" Steve sighed, "He's not really left us much choice, what he's done, it only leads to one place and that's him being put on the Raft. I never thought I'd be losing my best friend all over again." 

Nat could see the hurt in Steve's face, he had definitely taken it the hardest when the team had been briefed on what had happened and how Bucky had been the one to orchestrate the trap to get to Nat and Y/N for Dreykov. 

"Do you think there is any chance that Dreykov reactivated the winter solider?" Nat asked, she wanted nothing more than to believe that could be the only way for Bucky to have turned on them like he had. 

"Buck spent all that time in Wakanda training his mind out of that, I don't know how Dreykov would be able to then reactivate it. But I guess it might be possible" Steve shrugged slightly. 

"I'm sorry about all of this Steve. What happened between me and Bucky, I shouldn't have gone there and then none of this would have happened" Nat frowned sadly. 

"Don't apologise Nat, he's made his choices and there isn't anyone to blame for them other than him" Steve reassured her, moving to put his arm around Nat's shoulders. 

Sighing Nat rested her head against Steve's chest. Nat hadn't realised just  how exhausted she was, sleep hadn't come easily and when she did sleep, she found herself stuck in the same nightmare, rewatching that clip of Y/N being tortured and that cry of pain from Y/N rung in her ears. 

The door to the balcony swung open and Yelena came rushing out, quickly followed by Wanda, Tony, Bruce and Clint.

"We've got something!" Yelena announced, cutting Tony off who had looked ready to say the same. 

"What? What's happened?" Nat asked suddenly alert as she turned to look at the others. 

"We picked up a Russian police report, there was mention of a man with a metal arm and some massive fight at what I think is a military science facility" Bruce explained now, holding up the laptop he had carried out with him, "Some teenagers apparently tried to break in and well they are now in hospital with several life threatening injuries. Clearly whoevers there doesn't want people knowing, but one of the teenagers was able to give a report to the police before going in for surgery." 

"Alright let's get hold of Dimitri and co-ordinate. Looks like we'll be taking a trip to Russia" Steve nodded as he took the laptop from Bruce.

"Fury isn't going to like this" Tony said with an amused look in his eyes, "Makes me like this plan even more." 

"Yeah well Fury and Shield can shove it" Yelena scowled, "Not like they were much help with this anyways, keeping all their secrets from us." 

Nobody disagreed. 

"Alright let's get suited up and grab what we need. We're going to have to move quick incase this has spooked Dreykov and her operation decides to up and move before we get there" Steve said as he ushered everyone back inside. 

Nat lingered behind for a moment. 

"Just hang in there a little longer Y/N. We're coming for you" Nat said softly before heading back inside.