Whatever it Takes: Civil War

Chapter 1

It had been a year since Loki had given Natasha a second chance after her death on Vormir and let her create a different universe, landing her just before Ultron was created in 2015.

She spent the past year helping Wanda, Pietro and Vision and their place on the team. Pietro eventually opted to stay with Clint full-time and both men only helped when they were called. Wanda was still trying to gain control over her abilities and would often turn to Bruce if something went wrong since he had experience with losing control over the Hulk. Vision spent most of his time with Wanda. The humanoid AI and Bruce were needed during more dangerous missions.

Natasha became a mentor to Wanda and tried to be there for her more than the last time. There were days when Wanda missed her brother, which Natasha understood, and offered to hang out with her when Vision was busy. Sometimes she would drag Wanda out of her room to join team activities. Other days, the younger woman would go to Clint's house.

Natasha's relationship with Bruce was everything she knew it would be and hoped for. He made her feel adored and safe, and in return she did the same with him.

They had their days when both of them being back in the past was difficult or nightmares plagued them. Bruce would wake in a sweat sometimes or Natasha would lock herself in the bathroom to gather herself unless Bruce was already awake. Some nights when one of them was having a bad dream, one would stay awake until the other woke up. If Natasha was alone in her room or on a mission for Fury, she fought her own demons like she had always done.

It took her a few months to let herself be completely vulnerable around Bruce, but in the end, she was able to let him see a side of her that no one else saw. Natasha didn't have to be the Black Widow around him. She was taught that emotions made her weak, but the truth was that it made her stronger.

Bruce had his bad days as well and she knew it had to do with what happened in the original timeline after her death. There were days when he looked like he was carrying the weight of the world on his shoulders. Then there were times when he wondered what was going to happen to Thor, Loki and Valkyrie.

Most days they were both so happy that Natasha wanted time to stay still. Even though their relationship was serious from the start, the couple took their time with it and didn't rush into anything.

The year had flown by so fast that Natasha didn't realize the accords were nearly in place until Steve needed her, Sam and Wanda for a mission while Tony was at a lecture. Bruce opted to stay behind and work in the lab.

They landed in Lagos and Natasha had just ordered coffee while waiting on her other teammates for the all clear. They were tracking down Rumlow, a HYDRA agent who used to work for S.H.I.E.L.D.

Wanda had sat down with her coffee at a nearby table, which meant Sam and Steve were in position.

"All right, what do you see," Steve asked over the comms.

Wanda answered, "Standard beat cops. Small station. Quiet street. It's a good target."

"There's an ATM on the south corner, which means?" Steve tested her.

"Cameras," Wanda answered.

"Both cross streets are one-way."

"So compromised escape routes."

"Means our guy doesn't care about being seen. He isn't afraid to make a mess on the way out. You see that Range Rover halfway up the block?"

"Yeah, the red one? It's cute."

"It's also bulletproof, which means private security, which means more guns, which means more headaches for somebody," Natasha added. "Probably us."

"You guys know I can move things with my mind right," Wanda asked.

"Looking over your shoulder needs to become second nature," Natasha told her.

"Anybody ever tell you you're a little paranoid," Sam asked Natasha over the comms.

"Not to my face," Natasha teased. "Why? Did you hear something?"

"Eyes on targets, folks," Steve commanded. "This is the best lead we've had on Rumlow in six months. I don't want to lose him."

"If he sees us coming, that won't be a problem," Sam said. "He kind of hates us."

Sam tagged a nearby garbage truck and everyone sprung into action.

Unfortunately, just like last time everything went the wrong way and Wanda lost control over her abilities when a bomb went off, which led to her accidentally destroying part of a building with people inside.

While Steve and Sam went to go save whoever they could in the building after calling an ambulance, Natasha ran straight to Wanda and looked her in the eyes.

"Hey, it was just an accident, okay?" she said in a calm and sisterly voice.

Wanda nodded but stayed silent. Natasha took her back to where they parked the quinjet before the press could ask the younger woman any questions.