Evermore

Chapter 35

The Hulk's roar was deafening and sad, as if he knew Bruce's time was almost up.

From her spot at the doorway Natasha saw the hail hit the awning, but not pierce it. She took a chance and went outside, pocketing her gun, but still hovering her hand over it.

She couldn't see anything in the pouring rain, hail and darkness, and hoped Fury and everyone fighting was alright. She went back inside and opened the hallway door.

"I need you all to spread out in the castle and Sterns and Blonski. Walker's running," Natasha ordered the group. "I'll handle Ross."

"We don't have anything to fight them with," Scott said.

"We don't need weapons," Bucky said. "We just need to knock them out."

"Agreed," Sam said.

"What if we run into Ross," Scott asked.

"Punch him," Natasha answered as if it were obvious.

"Let's kick some butt," Peter said.

"Hey, Peter," Natasha said to get his attention. "Don't play your walkman while going down the hallways. We don't need you singing and dancing, then getting distracted."

"Aw," Peter said with disappointment in his voice.

"Sam you're with Scott, Bucky you're with Peter," Natasha ordered. "Rick, you okay with Fanny?"

"I'll take her to a separate wing and guard her with my life," the man answered, knowing she didn't trust many people with her dog.

All of them nodded, then Sam said, "Let's go, Tic-Tac."

"I eat nothing but tic-tacs for one day and no one lets it go," Scott complained while following Sam out of the sanctuary and into the castle's hallways.

"Nat," Bucky said as he passed. "What about Banner?"

"He won't hurt you as long as you don't hurt him," she answered his unspoken question. The man nodded and left with Peter in tow. Rick and Fanny followed the group.

Natasha took a breath and left the room. She had a feeling she knew where Ross was going. The hallways were darker than they normally were and Natasha wondered for the briefest moment if it was the spell sucking the life out of it, or the darkness outside.

The dark didn't bother her and she lived in the palace long enough to know exactly where she was going. She stayed close to the walls, dissolving into the shadows as she went to the other side of the castle and found Ross on the balcony where she and Bruce first got to know each other. There wasn't a good view of the castle's roof from there and she knew all she had to do was wait for Ross to come inside. She pulled out her gun from its holster and prepared to face the man.

When Ross came back in, she stepped out of the shadows and into his path with her gun at the ready.

"Going somewhere," she asked with slight humor in her voice that had scared people before.

"Romanoff," Ross muttered.

"Get out of here, Ross," she warned.

"Is this love, Romanoff," he asked with a smirk and mocking tone.

"Love is for children," she replied without missing a beat.

"Yet, you came back to save him," Ross rebutted.

"Leave," she ordered in a calm yet deadly tone.

She knew the man was stalling as he said, "I've known you for a long time, Romanoff. You don't save or help people unless you care about them. You care about Banner."

"If you cared about the people in our town, you would have left this place alone," she replied, not giving him the satisfaction of a proper answer. "You don't know what you are messing with. This castle and the people living in it are cursed. If you allow them a month or so, then they can live in peace."

"Peace?" Ross laughed in her face. "There is a man who becomes a monster here-"

"And you think he is a threat to your power over the town," she interrupted. "He's royal and you're not. That gives him more power than you have over the people."

Ross face went cold and deadly as he said, "Move, Romanoff."

Before she could take the safety off of her gun, a roar was heard and then a thud on the roof. Natasha's eyes never left Ross as the man looked up and prepared to shoot at the ceiling.

"You think a gun bullet will make it through layers of tile and bricks?" she mocked partly to distract him.

He darted his eyes toward her as she turned off the gun's safety. He glared at her and shot at the ceiling, but as she suspected, it didn't go all the way through. She shot near his foot in response.

"Missed on purpose," she said before he could mock her aim. "Leave. Now."

Ross aimed his gun towards her and before she could shoot her own, Tony flew in and pushed Ross so hard that the man was unconscious by the time he hit the floor.

"He's on the roof," Tony warned as Natasha turned the safety back on and put her gun up. "He could use a lullaby."

Will that work," she asked, not knowing if it would work on a full moon.

"I don't know, but he needs you. I've never seen him like this."

"I'll see if I can get him away from the castle. The rose... the rose has one petal left."

Tony took off his helmet to reveal tears in his eyes. He nodded and said, "I'll warn the others as soon as this fight is over."

Natasha nodded and ran to the direction of the Hulk's roars, which seemed to be Bruce's bedroom. As soon as she got there, she saw him on the balcony. His brown eyes met hers and he seemed to calm down.

"Hey, Big Guy," the redhead greeted him.

His gaze softened as she approached. When they were just a few feet away from each other, he shook his head and backed away from her as he fell to the ground and de-hulked.

Natasha walked toward him and hesitated before asking, "Bruce?"

He looked around as if confused and asked, "Did I hurt anybody?"

"I don't know," she answered. "I'm confused. I thought the Big Guy responded to touch. All I did speak and walk towards you."

He stood up and walked towards her, then said, "That shouldn't be possible on a full moon, but... all I remember is hearing your voice and fighting to get control. There's only one petal left, so the curse is weaking."

"We need to get you somewhere safe. Ross has a gun that can kill you."

Bruce nodded then said, "Where is he now?"

"Tony knocked him out in the hallway near the balcony."

"And the gun?"

"I don't know. Must be on the floor or Tony picked it up."

She mentally kicked herself for forgetting about the gun, but Bruce's hand on her cheek brought her back to reality. He pressed his forehead to hers and told her, "It's okay. If you were in danger I would have forgotten about it too."

"Are you positive that no one can cross the border? Now that Agatha has messed with it, maybe you can-"

"We've tried that before," he said in a soft tone. "And knowing Agatha, she would want us trapped here. Believe me, I want nothing more than to just disappear with you, but I can't."

He moved his head, but instead of meeting her eyes he appeared to be looking behind her. His eyes widened in fear and he covered her body with his.

She saw his skin turn green and his body grow. Natasha turned her head to see Ross charging towards them both. Blood was gushing from his nose and was aiming the gun at them.

The Hulk roared in anger as he finished transforming and blocked her sight completely as the gun went off.

Note: Sorry for the long wait on the update. This chapter took awhile, but the good news is the last couple of chapters are drafted!