Red Thorn

Chapter 25

Late 2016

Natasha hadn't seen her sister in a while, she wasn't in their apartment, nor the gym or any of the other common areas and Lola was still perfectly parked in the garage, which only left one place for her to be and the redhead didn't know why she hadn't thought of it sooner.

Sure enough, as Nat pushed the door to the roof open she saw Charlie sat with her feet dangling over the edge. "Thought I'd find you up here."

"Coucou," she beamed, smiling fondly at her sister over her shoulder. She patted the spot next to her, telling Natasha to come. "Viens."

"You know one of these days you're gonna fall off," the elder of the two warned.

Charlie shrugged. "What a shame that would be."

"Charlotte Barton Romanoff," Natasha scolded, concern etched into every inch of her face. "Do not say stuff like that!"

"I'm kidding, I'm kidding," she assured, but Charlie could tell her sister was still worried. "I mean it, I'm kidding I promise." She rested her head on Nat's shoulder. "I quite enjoy life nowadays."

"So do I..." Natasha relaxed, returning her sister's embrace. "It's funny, because despite the fact that we're still fighting. Fighting battles that we never really asked to be a part of. This place, these people, they sort of feel like–"

"Home," Charlie finished, smiling as she watched Wanda and Pietro play fighting with their powers in the field next to the hangar. It was strange, up until she'd left six months ago, she would have thought that she couldn't care less about the twins, they were simply there. Nuisance strays that were brought back to the Compound. But much to her surprise, whilst she was away she found herself missing Pietro and his relentless teasing, and finding the Darkhold made her want to protect Wanda with all she had. Whilst she was away, Charlie realised that in a way the twins had become her siblings, the same way Natasha and Clint had all those years ago. Though she would never admit it to them, especially Pietro.

A stray tear rolled down Natasha's cheek, one that she was quick to wipe away. "We're finally home."

"Oui." Charlotte began absentmindedly playing with one of her small push knives. "Yelena deserves a home too, Natalia."

"I thought you hated her," Natasha pointed out.

"Correction. She hates me."

"That's true." Natasha started laughing, though deep down the rift between her two sisters tugged at her heart. "But you're also right about her deserving a home. She's just too stubborn to accept it."

"Then you try again," Charlie told her. It was true, Red and Yelena had their issues, the latter feeling Red was a replacement for her. But all Red wanted was the same thing she wanted for all the little girls in the world, for them to have a safe place to call home and where they could be free. "Yelena is stubborn so you must be even more so. Whether she hates me or not, she is your sister too and I shall not come between you."

"Thank you." Natasha placed her hand over Charlotte's, stopping her blade spinning. "Speaking of strained relationships, you can't avoid him forever, you know?"

"Which one?" She asked, feigning innocence.

"You know exactly which one I'm talking about." Natasha's voice was sweet, but also serious the way a cool breeze feels on a hot summer's day. "It isn't something you can just run away from."

Charlie shrugged, dismissing her sister's concern. "I can try."

"Daggers, you two are drawn to each other, and for good reason."