Rogue Shadow

Chapter 19 - Ice Breaker

Chapter 19 – Ice Breaker

10:30 Thursday, 19th October 2017

Slade walked through Tash's open door, scanning the room to find her curled up in the corner, her face buried deep within the encaptivating world of her novel. Slade wrapped his knuckles against the door. The sudden noise startled the young girl, nearly causing her to drop her book. She had been completely unaware of what was going on in the world around her. Natasha snapped the book closed sharply, looking up at the entrance.

"Relax, Tash. You're not in trouble," he said. After a few seconds, Natasha's shoulders untensed and she lowered the book to rest on her knees.

"I've got something for you to do." Slade jerked his head in the direction down the hall. She had spent most of her time cooped up in her room or occupying herself with trivial stretching and gymnastics stunts. Slade had exchanged scarce words with the girl over meals, planning on giving her some time to process everything that had happened to her. He had a plan for her future but would have to wait until she was ready before letting that ship sail.

Leaning her back against the wall, Tash used it to stand up, sliding against the wall so she didn't have to let go of her book. She held the book between her hands as she walked up to the imposing man, her mind running a thousand scenarios through her head of what this 'task' could be. Despite being told that she could venture into any room that was not locked, she hadn't explored the den. Which was a little unusual, considering that little children normally loved to uncover every detail of a new setting. Slade supposed that maybe she didn't feel safe enough to roam around without feeling like she was intruding. Not that she had to worry about that, anything important had been locked off, accessible only by a fingerprint scanner, Slade's room and private study being a few of the off-limit rooms. And the invisible rooms were... well... invisible. She hadn't found any yet.

He almost felt sorry for the kid; she was so young and all alone in this adult world, but he was careful not to let her see it. Pity was not something survivors were fond of. Tash didn't need pity, she needed guidance. And some form of stability or trust before she collapsed under the pressure.

"Lord of the Rings?" he asked. The girl stopped moving once she was next to Slade, shuffling between her feet uncomfortably. She nodded her head once but didn't say anything. "It's a good series, the movies are pretty good too," Slade mentioned offhandedly. "I think you'd enjoy them."

"Come on," he said, leaving the room. Books, movies, and cartoon shows, what other innocent childhood pleasures had she missed out on? And how much of it could she get back?

Nat trailed behind slowly, wary to not get too close as she followed. The Shadow was still a mystery. She knew that he was strong enough to kill her in a second if he wanted to. She had seen him fight. However unlikely it seemed that he would kill her – considering the fact that he had rescued her from Hydra and apparently defied the law to keep her hidden – it didn't mean that he was safe. It did not matter how trustworthy he appeared; Nat wouldn't get too close. Until she knew what his true intentions were, she would keep her distance. Just because he hadn't betrayed her, didn't mean he wouldn't.

Nat reopened the book in her hands, her finger still marking her page, and moved the ribbon connected to the spine of the book in between the pages to save her spot. They entered the kitchen where Natasha's attention was immediately drawn to the paper booklet atop the wooden table, accompanied by many writing implements. Wilson went for the table and pulled the chair in front of the paper out slightly, gesturing for Natasha to sit.

"It's a test. I know your education has been interrupted," he said the word with caution. There was a lot of unsaid weight behind that word. She had been on the move so much she'd never managed to settle down. Everything had been interrupted.