Wings
You were sat on the sofa with the rest of the Avengers watching a movie, as per tradition on a Tuesday night. It was Thor’s turn to pick and for some reason he had his heart set on the Lizzie McGuire movie. You weren’t paying attention though, all of your thoughts were focused on your wings. No one could see then at the minuet, but you could feel them. You could feel the bones poking from under your skin begging to be let free, begging to uncurl.
But you couldn’t let that happen. Not when you’ve seen the way the team look at you when you do, with some of them it is like a mixture of wonderment and disgust. The science bros just wanted to poke and prod you until they understood how it all worked. Natasha just looked at them, it was difficult to tell what she was thinking. You hoped for the best since you secretly loved the red head, but you were convinced she was as disgusted as the rest of the team.
The feeling of your wings against your skin was getting unbearable so you made your excuses and headed to bed early, “Night Hedwig” came the calls from you team mates as you headed to your room. They called you Hedwig because your wings resembled that of a Snowy Owl, that and you refused to be called Angel. Once you were in the safety of your room you set your wings free, through the holes in the back of your t-shirt. You stretched them out and felt the tension in the bones release. You wings stretched beyond your out stretched finger tips, the soft white feathers would have been perfect on an owl. But you couldn’t help but think of all the looks of disgust you had received. When you had controlled the element you were a hero Avenger of New York, when more details emerged and they saw pictures of you wings, you were a freak. You sighed and got ready for bed.
Natasha was worried about you. Well she always was, ever since she met you she felt something inside her changing. Things that the Red Room had taught her being slowly disproved. She realised she could love and, from the way she seen you look at her sometimes, she hoped she could be loved. She worried when you went on missions. She was terrified you wouldn’t come back. She worried you would get hurt, worried you would get kidnapped. When she was watching the movie, she was worried about the growing levels of pain and discomfort she could see on your face. She worried about the fall you had in training, was that hurting you. Or was it that old wound from your MI6 days acting up. Either way she was worried. Her worry increased as you went to bed claiming to be tired, she knew you weren’t. You act differently when you’re tired, she thought you were cute when you were tired. No you sounded in pain.
She left 5 minutes after you and headed to her room and pulled on shorts and a night shirt. She sat on the side of her bed and debated with herself. What if you were really just tired? But what if you were hurt? She couldn’t just sit there and worry. She had to see you, to make sure you were alright. She smirked as she realised how silently she walked to your room, she wasn’t even trying. She reached your door and hesitated for a second before knocking the door and entering.
“Erm Hi Nat” you said as you turned to see the red head, making sure that your wings were pinned behind your back so she couldn’t see.
“Hey (y/n)” she said, she was the only person on the team to use your actual name. You liked that, the way she said your name. It felt like it was a secret, to only be shared by the two of you. There was a moment of silence before Natasha said, “Are you ok” She said taking a step closer to you, you saw the worry that crossed her face as she said “You looked in pain earlier”.
You knew you couldn’t lie to her. “The wings were a bit uncomfortable that’s all” you said, your tone was soft and gentle. Your voice was only like that when you talked to Natasha, she secretly loved this. She knew of your past as an MI6 agent, it took a lot for a spy like you to be like this, it meant more than you would believe to her that you were like this with her.
“Then why do you hide them?” she asked looking into your eyes in confusion. She never understood why you hid them, she thought they fitted your form perfectly. When she first saw them in the Battle of New York, she thought you were like a Guardian Angel. She frequently gazed at them wondering what it would be like to touch them, to be cuddled under them. You wings were something she found beautiful.
So she was confused as to why your shoulders slumped and head dropped. You sighed “Because they are repulsive, and I can’t stand the looks of disgust people give me”. As you finished you felt her lips pressed against yours, you gently moved your lips against hers. One of her hands moved to cup your face, the other nestled itself into your hair. Arms wrapped around her waist and pulled her closer to you. You stayed there just gently and sweetly kissing before the two of you pulled away, leaning your foreheads against each other.
“Your wings are like you, they are beautiful” she whispered, her lips brushing against yours as she did so. Her hands dropped from your face and trailed over your skin until her hand gently brushed against you left wing. For you it was an unfamiliar touch, someone gently stroking your wing. Natasha was the first person who wasn’t a doctor to touch them. She was gentle. She smiled as she saw you slowly relax under her touch. “They are so soft” She whispered as she pecked your lips. You kissed her lightly back.
You felt her pull away she gently took your arms from around her waist and held your hands. She slowly pulled you towards you bed. She sat on the far side and pulled you into her, you wrapped your arms around her frame. She nuzzled you neck as you did so. You slowly wrapped one of your wings around the two of you. You could feel Natasha smile as you did so, “I love you” she whispered, her voice low. “I love you too” you whispered back as Natasha’s eyes closed and she slipped into a land of slumber with a content smile gracing her lips.