Red Room

RR37 Ghosts

Natasha had to admit, it was lonely flying in her new jet by herself. She was used to isolation all her life but since having Darcy room with her, she kind of missed having a human presence. She was sure that Tony had located his jet that she had stolen by now, but she was already hours away from dumping it and stealing a new one.

Finding that private airport had been a lifesaver. Tony's jet didn't even have a full tank of gas and she was in danger of running out of fuel. She landed it safely though and then dumped all of her electronic devices on the pilot's seat with a scribbled note that simply read 'sorry guys, I had to. Please don't follow me.' She grabbed her pack and then stole the fastest looking jet she could find

Russia was still just as cold as she remembered it. It was snowy, wet, and cold but it didn't bother Natasha all too much since she was always cold now. Dumping her jet in an open field, she grabbed her things and set out on foot for town. She knew she was close to the old Red Room base but she couldn't bring herself to visit it yet.

Trekking through the forest reminded her too much of the night she lost Ksenia. With those memories fresh in her mind, it felt like only a little while ago that it happened. Every pile of rocks she passed, every bare spot she saw, and every small cave she crossed she couldn't help but wonder if Ksenia could be in that spot. It would take a lifetime to search all of Russia to find her daughter so she knew it would be best to try and wait for Lady Sif, no matter how long that took. She only wished that Loki wasn't upset with her so that he could tell her, or even show her. Based on their last meeting though, she knew that it would mean trouble for her if she tried to get in touch with him. But if he was so mad at her, what was stopping him from finding her?

After hours of walking and reminiscing, she finally found a small town that was only a few miles from the Red Room. The town was a dump with not many people out and about, probably due to the weather or some other unforeseen danger she wasn't aware of yet. A small inn caught her attention so she went in to request a room. The old man at the shabby little desk never said a word, but instead took her money and thrusted the room key in her direction. He seemed annoyed to have being disturbed by the red head but Natasha was used to people like that. It took all of it in her not to smack him across the face but that could get her recognized and thrown out. And judging from the size of the town, this could be the only place she would be able to find.

She quickly found her room and was pleased to find that it was semi clean and spacious. It had two beds and a lumpy old couch that was a shade of sickly green. She threw her bag onto it and then fell back onto the bed, covering her face with her hands.

Now what do I do? She was freezing and tired. Deciding to go ahead and get some rest, she took a long shower and then went to bed. Sleep was hard to find as nightmares plagued her dreams. She felt even more tired when light peered in thought the window the next morning. She groaned and then rolled over for another few minutes. Those few minutes passed, and then a few hours. Natasha had fallen back asleep. This was something she hadn't done in years. When she woke back up, it was around noon. Freezing, she got another warm shower and then tried to think of something to do. She went through her bag and counted her weapons, cleaning them as she went. When she was done with that, boredom sunk in.

Not finding anything else to do in her room, she decided to explore the town. She pulled on her hat and wrapped her jacket back around her and headed into the cold. When she locked the door and turned to leave, she almost collided with a man in a dark hood. The man quickly hurried off and then disappeared around the corner. Brushing off the strange encounter, she continued on her path.