The Trial of Bruce Banner

Undercover

Natasha studies her handiwork and drops the hair straightener.

Somehow, in an attempt to make B-Ex look less like B-Ex, she resembles photographs Natasha has seen of Rebecca Banner, her namesake, even more. With her bright brown eyes and now brown hair, she bears strong similarities.

Natasha sighs and bends at her hip to look Rebecca Jr in her eyes. She flicks the now brown bang of a self-inflicted pixie cut from her forehead and smirks playfully;

"What do you think?"

The child laughs and covers her mouth, "Mama has blue eyes now."

Natasha widens her eyelids and turns her pupils inward mid-play to draw another giggle from her daughter.

Rebecca loses her smile as she studies her dress with a slight pout as she tugs at her yellow sweater with its ruffled sleeves, "It's itchy."

Natasha sticks out her bottom lip, "...solnyshko."

"Cover me Sunshine," she tries her best finger snap.

The elder Russian slaps her forehead dramatically, "I shouldn't have said anything about sunshine-."

"Powdered wit' good time."

"'Shower,' the word is 'shower'..."

"Powder," she chuckles.

Natasha stands tall and crosses her arms, "Bozhe moi, we are giggly today."

Romanoff turns her head to pack the hair weaponry with regret, already missing how she and her daughter should look. She finds her eyeballs in the mirror and mentally reassures herself that it is only temporary.

Her head falls, and she immediately bites her cheek over Rebecca's Hulk plush.

"Mama?" Rebecca calls.

"What malyshka."

"Why are you sad?"

Natasha catches herself and shakes her head, "I'm not sad. I'm excited for our vacation. Our otpusk."

She turns, lifting the plush.

Rebecca's eyes light up as she reaches.

Natasha rotates the toy with one hand, "Your Hulk plush, and Max will need a disguise."

The young girl thinks hard, legs swinging as she sits on the edge of one of Laura's bathroom chairs;

"A cape?"

"You want to put a cape on Max?"

"Yeah."

Natasha gives into the play, snaps her fingers, and returns to packing, "That could work."

"Show daddy, mama."

Natasha freezes, nearly dropping the flatiron she lifted over the bag.

She rotates slowly. Her gut and her heart conflict when she resolves to lift her phone and pretends to make a call with a forced smirk despite being on the verge of tears;

"...I think daddy is busy."

Rebecca's head falls.

Natasha immediately snaps into Black Widow mode upon seeing her daughter's reaction;

"Bruce. How are you? I hope the project is going well....yeah? ...Becks, uh, Becks wanted you to see her new hair..."

"Daddy!" She leaps up toward her mother.

"-I will tell her how much you love it,' Natasha swallows, reaching to hug Rebecca, who is glued to her knee in the hope that she will hear his voice, 'how much you love her."