The Halloween Costume(s)
The toaster popped two perfectly cooked waffles up as Maria finished pouring her second cup of coffee. She pulled the pastries out and added a generous layer of peanut butter between them before placing them on a plate where Ellie always sat. She wanted it to be as normal of a morning as she could.
“Breakfast,” she called into the still-dark apartment.
The curly-haired child emerged from her room in clothing they had laid out the night before. Her space shirt was neatly tucked into a pair of navy shorts, her pink socks were sticking out from her velcro shoes and while Ellie grimaced slightly, Maria couldn’t help but feel like she was going to cry. In the two seconds of looking at her, she understood why parents often got more emotional on the first day of school than their children.
“You look so ready, Bear,” she watched as the child climbed onto the chair and picked up the waffle, licking the excess peanut butter before taking a bite.
Maria pulled her phone out and handed it to the girl as she continued to eat, pressing play on the video that filled the screen.
“Good luck Lellie!!” Cooper yelled into the screen, “hope you have a good first day of school!”
“Hi!” Lila yelled, clearly unaware of the actual reason for the video.
Ellie waved back at the screen, eyes glued as Laura and Clint came into frame, “we hope you have such a fun day today and meet new friends.”
“Good luck, rug rat!” Clint smiled.
It was quiet as the video ended and Maria worked on braiding the girl's hair, “are you nervous?”
<yes> she signed as she finished her breakfast.
“I bet you’ll feel better as soon as you see Liam” she kissed the top of the child's head.
The two had been placed in the same class after Maria personally met with the principal, explaining the girl’s unique talents and where she had been raised. She then had two additional meetings with Ellie’s teacher, a kind older woman named Mrs. Dorthy, and emailed a list of what to expect in given situations.
“Алена?” the girl licked the last dollop of peanut butter off the plate.
“I think it would be safer if you leave it at home,” she finished up the second braid and looked at the girl in front of her who squinted, “how about this, I’ll leave it in your cubby at The Center so it’s there when you get back.”
<okay>
The school she was attending was just over a mile away from the Triskelion and frequented by so many children of agents that one of the bus stops was at the front gates. Ellie would go to school with Liam and be picked up from the gates by a member from The Center where she would spend the rest of the afternoon until Maria was off work. The parents had done a practice run the week before, but still, it put the Commander's stomach in knots as she worried about what could go wrong. A feeling she had only ever had before complex missions.
It was another 10 minutes before both of them were ready and standing by the front door where Maria couldn’t help but take a picture of the child. She stood with her fingers tightly gripping her space backpack and a lopsided smile, Maria had never been more proud. They headed down to the lobby, passing Sergius who gave Ellie a kind smile and words of encouragement. It wasn’t until they were standing in front of her classroom that the girl finally let on to how nervous she was.
“Bear, I have to go but I bet Liam will be here in just a minute,” Maria crouched down and pulled Ellie off of her pants leg.
“Do not go,” the girl's bottom lip wobbled as her eyes filled with tears.
“You’re going to have so much fun, it’s going to be okay,” she pushed a few stray hairs out of the child’s face.
“Please do not go,” Ellie begged as the tears finally fell.
“How about we breathe for a second, hmm?” Maria swiped her thumbs over the fresh track of tears, trying to not cry herself.
<okay> the girl nodded.
“Okay, breathe in nice and slow for 4 counts remember? One…two…three…four… now hold it and let it out nice and slow for one…two…three…four… five,” the brunette walked her through it twice more before she stood up and took her hand.
“Hello there Elizaveta,” Ellie’s teacher smiled.
She was an older woman with short grey hair and a kind smile that reached her eyes which sat behind rounded frames. Her long skirt flowed under a well-worn sweater that Maria could tell was soft and inviting for scared children. Including the scared child who was still clutching the Deputy Director’s pant leg.
“I think we're having a little bit of a hard time saying bye,” Maria said for both herself and the child.
“Well that is just fine, it’s an exciting day full of big emotions,” the woman nodded and reached out a hand, “do you think you want to come talk to your friend Liam about how you’re feeling?”
At the mention of the boy's name, Ellie released her grip on Maria’s leg and finally looked up at the woman in front of her. She nodded once and peered around to try and see her friend.
“How about you tell mommy bye and we go on inside?” Mrs. Dorthy asked as the bell rang.
The girl froze at the sound and looked to Maria frantically.
“That’s just the bell to let everyone know it’s time for school,” Maria explained as she knelt down, “so that means it’s time for you to go to school little one.”
“Be Center after?” the girl asked, eyes looking tearful once more.
“Of course, just like I am every day. You’ll get off the bus with Liam and you’ll see Grace and Carter and I’ll come to get you as soon as it’s pick-up time.”
“Promise?” Ellie stuck out her pinky.
“Promise.” Maria interlinked hers and gave the child one last hug before leading her into the classroom and walking back to her car.
She blinked away her own tears as she sent the obligatory first day of school picture to Laura, and in a moment of maternal instinct, also set the photo as her background on her phone. Throughout the day, she would look at the photo of the nervous child and find comfort.
“Deputy Director?” a senior agent called for her attention in a meeting.
“I would like to proceed with option four, I believe that it will yield the best results with the lowest threat option even if the time of day is suboptimal,” she locked her phone and continued on with the work as usual.
The rest of the day whizzed by as she oversaw a mission, planned a new deployment strategy, and read over mission reports. She had just finished another as her alarm went off indicating that it was time for her to go and pick up the 5-year-old that she had worried about between every meeting.
“Hey there Commander,” Grace smiled from behind the counter.
“Hi,” Maria craned her neck around to see the little girl who was still sitting and coloring with Liam, “Is she okay?”
“Other than coming in with only one braid and a new scrape on her knee from playing too hard, yep,” the blonde laughed, “I’ll go grab her.”
It only took the sound of Grace turning the corner for Ellie to whip her head up and smile, tapping Liam's arm to get him to stop talking and focus on Maria. The little boy waved and smiled.
“Hi Miss Maria!” he called out.
“Hi bud,” Maria waved back before she was almost taken out by the small Russian who hugged her legs tightly.
“Hi, mommy,” Ellie panted out.
“Hey kid, you have a good day at school?” she waited nervously.
“Yes,” the girl muttered into the fabric of Maria’s pant leg.
The Deputy Director smiled and ran her hands over the single braid that Grace had done, happy that her kid was slowly but surely transitioning into the life she deserved.
Time moved quickly after Ellie was in school. She had picture day (which she insisted on bringing Fury a copy of), battle of the books (where Ellie read the second most books in her grade), and her first birthday party invitation (that they politely declined after Ellie threw up from nerves). It was Halloween by the time Maria felt like she had finally caught her breath from the whirlwind that became her life.
The metal of the hangers slid from one side to the other of the clothing rack as she searched for a youth extra small. Ellie was the smallest in her class, something that was even more evident as she searched for the outfit that they apparently did not make in her size.
“You’re set on an astronaut?” Maria looked at the girl who sat contently in the cart, watching all the other shoppers.
<Yes> she signed.
“Alright,” the Commander pushed the cart towards the section of younger children's clothing.
<Babies> Ellie frowned.
“Well, honey, you’re small,” she exhausted all of the girl’s costume options and flipped to the boy’s side, “and you want it to fit properly.”
The brunette had a feeling the costume wouldn’t be coming off any time soon, even if it was just for two events. The first event was the classroom Halloween party at the end of the week, the second was Halloween itself which Maria was still unsure of how well the girl would actually respond to.
All sense of embarrassment left as soon as she held the fabric spacesuit up to the girl who reached for it immediately. The girl looked at the white material and traced over all the patches until her hands found the American flag on the left arm. She looked up at Maria and cocked her head to the side, squinting.
“Bear, I don't think they make cosmonaut suits,” the Deputy Director shook her head, “or at least they don’t make them here. You happy enough?”
“Yes,” the child nodded and continued to look at the suit as they made their way to the registers.
Maria pushed the cart to the check-out section and thought about how so much of her life had changed in a matter of months. She couldn’t remember the last time she bought a Halloween costume, in fact, she thought that this may have been the first time. Her grandmother had always made her costumes before she passed, she didn’t celebrate after. It had become a dreaded day of trying to keep her father from flying off in a drunken stooper on children who would come to the front door of their dark home.
She watched with a fond smile as the girl in the cart carefully examined the costume, realizing that she too had probably never purchased one before. It was the thought that kept creeping back into Maria’s mind as she drove them home and made dinner, aware of the fact that the two of them were experiencing so many things for the first time, together.
“Mommy,” Ellie brought Maria back into the present as she sat, squinting in the tub, “eyes.”
“Oops, sorry,” the Commander wiped the accidental soap out of the girl's eyes and resumed rinsing the conditioner out of her hair.
The child continued playing with the toys she had brought into the room for bathtime which included a plastic figure of Steve and one of her (many) astronaut toys. Unsurprisingly, the action figure of Captain America was losing (again) which made Maria chuckle because she knew it would have destroyed Coulson. She stopped smiling when she saw that America’s golden boy had green marker covering most of his face.
“Elizaveta,” Maria was stern as she gently took the figurine out of the girl's hands, “what’s rule number five?”
“Treat people and thing with respect,” the child looked at her fingers and then at the blonde toy.
“Right, so what happened here?” she held the toy up to the girl who quickly glanced to the side of the tub.
While rare, it wasn’t the first time Ellie had gotten in trouble. Maria had learned early on that the child was petrified of consequences, including now where her hands started to shake.
“Bad so didn’t… is… do not want to get in trouble,” her eyes filled with tears.
“Come here,” the Commander held a towel out for the girl who hesitantly got out of the tub, pulling away as soon as she was wrapped in the soft material, “why did you do this?”
“Because he is bad guy,” the curly-haired child stared at the floor.
“Captain America is a bad guy?” Maria choked back a laugh, remembering who the little girl was raised by.
“Yes,” Ellie nodded and stared at the floor, “Soldat says was made so he could get rid of him.”
The Deputy Director was sure many soldiers who worked in the Red Room had told Ellie this for her to have said it with such ease. She watched as the child kept her eyes trained on the ground.
“Go ahead and get dressed and we're going to talk about it,” about what she wasn’t exactly sure yet, “and then you’re going to have to sit on the time-out stool for 5 minutes. That’s the only punishment.”
The last point was something she had read in a parenting book, explain the punishment first or the child will sit and wonder in fear. Ellie nodded and started to dress while Maria walked into the living room and got out the old wooden stool that she kept to reach the top of her closet. She placed it in the corner of the room and waited for Ellie to reappear.
“Come on over and take a seat,” she motioned to the item that was placed next to a wall at the entrance of the apartment, “even if someone is playing the bad guy, you still don’t get to draw on them or treat them with anything other than respect. Okay?”
<okay> the girl signed, sitting her little body down on the stool.
“Why are you in trouble right now?” she asked, making sure the girl understood.
“Because did not treat the American man with respect,” brown curls hung around her face.
Once again, Maria had to stifle a laugh and the urge to change Steve’s contact name in her phone to “American Man”.
“That’s right, okay I’m going to set the timer for 5 minutes, and then it’s all done,” the Commander got up and set the timer on the stove.
She then went and drained the tub and took nail polish remover to the Star-spangled man and cleaned off the marker but not before she took a picture and sent it to Steve.
Maria: 1 img.
Maria: Looks like the smallest member of the Communist party is not a fan.
Steve R: Get that girl a hot dog and a sparkler, only antidote.
Ellie continued to sit on the stool, letting her wet hair drop on the floor around her, until the timer went off. Maria put her tablet down to give the little girl in front of her, her full attention, knowing that the mission report she was reading wasn’t going anywhere. The child squinted and stood just out of arms reach as she waited for whatever Maria had to say.
“Will not color on toys again.”
“I know you won't, you’re a good girl,” the Commander opened her arms as an invitation that was gladly met by the child who climbed up and shared the chair space.
<mad> Ellie signed closely to herself.
“Are you asking if I’m mad?”
<yes>
“No, little one I’m not mad. I was a little upset that you ruined something Phil had given you, but it’s fixed now,” she kissed the top of the girl's head.
<Sad> she signed.
“Am I sad?” Maria once again clarified.
<No> the child's fingers came together.
“You’re sad about Phil?” He was the first adult the girl had trusted, something that would never go away.
Ellie nodded, glancing up towards Maria who had her wrapped in her arms.
“It’s okay to be sad, I’ll tell you a secret,” she let out a deep breath, “I miss my Abuela almost every day. She would have loved you so much.”
“She is nice?” the misuse of the present tense stung slightly.
“The nicest,” Maria swallowed, “she made all of my Halloween costumes for me every year, and the day after we would celebrate el Día de Los Muertos.”
Ellie squinted and cocked her head to the side.
“It’s a day where all of the people we love get to come back to this world, just for one night,” she hadn’t celebrated in years publicly but privately she would leave offerings to her grandmother, “we leave out all of the things that they liked so that they can have them again. It’s like a celebration just for them.”
“Can I leave candy and America Man?” big green eyes locked on to Maria.
All she could do was nod and kiss the girl on top of the head, knowing that if she tried to speak, nothing but tears would come. They sat there until Maria finally regained control of her emotions and pulled her tablet back out, making plans for how they would celebrate the day after returning from the farm. It had been a long long time since she had celebrated, and even longer since she had someone to celebrate with.
That night, Ellie requested to sleep in her costume to be extra ready for the Halloween party at school the next day and while Maria couldn’t think of an outfit less comfortable to wear to bed, the kid was adorable in it. They compromised on letting her sleep in the jumpsuit but not the helmet, the girl blissfully unaware of the fact that the school party was taking place days before the actual event.
The next day the Deputy Director dropped Ellie off and took a picture of her and Liam for the boy's parents. They didn’t have the flexibility that she did which meant he rode the bus both ways and wouldn’t be able to properly explain just how cute the pair looked. Maria snapped a picture of the astronaut and the vampire and sent it over to his parents. She once again changed the lock screen on her phone.
The rest of the week had come and gone, and before she knew it, they were at the store with the oldest and youngest member of the Barton family. Lila sat in the shopping cart with Ellie, only unlike the little brunette, the Barton girl constantly tried to escape. Clint chatted away as he pushed the girl repeatedly back into the basket, a task that grew more difficult as they turned down the candy aisle.
“Did she say one bag, or two?” he paused in front of the large display, asking Maria who held two fingers up to the man.
“Chocolate or candy?” Clink questioned as he wrangled his daughter.
“Mix it up,” the brunette grabbed one bag of sugary candy, and one bag of chocolate. She handed them both to Ellie who held them away from the other little girl with grabby hands.
“This is why they put you in charge of us,” the man concluded.
Maria snorted and continued to joke, “oh yeah. Coulson and I took a whole class on rapid decision making, candy included.”
Talking about the man was getting easier, she no longer felt the sharp pain in her chest at the mere mention of his name. It was now more of a dull ache that subsided with smiles and fond memories.
“I knew it,” the archer smiled and continued pushing the cart.
They picked up a few more items that Laura had requested, and some she had not as the two selected alcohol and added it to the basket. They were on their way back to the front of the store when a noise from the cart stopped everyone.
“Wait!” Ellie spoke as loudly as she could from her spot.
For Maria, it wasn’t uncommon to hear the girl’s voice, but for the blonde next to her, it was. He immediately stopped, his eyebrows coming together in worry.
<Out, please> she signed to him and waited to be let out of the cart.
From there she snaked her way through the rest of the shoppers until she was standing in front of a display of costumes. There, in miniature sizes were all 6 of the Avengers including one that the child already had her hands on. It took only a second for Maria to understand what Ellie did not. The girl did not know that it was a costume, all she saw was a widow's uniform that she had seen growing up, never old enough to have one herself.
Where Maria was nervous, Clint was not as he laughed loudly and joined the girl at the display.
“Ya know, I don’t think we see a dime of this money,” he held up the red, white, and blue material in front of him, “you want the Tasha one?”
Ellie looked at the outfit for a moment longer before giving the smallest nod. Clint then spent another 5 minutes rifling through the rest of the outfits, settling on a tiny Hulk costume for Lila and a Hawkeye costume for Cooper.
“I thought he was a Rogers fan,” Maria questioned as she lifted the girl and placed her in the basket once more.
“Yeah well… we can tell him they were all out of his size,” he muttered under his breath, “Plus imagine a little me and Tasha running around.”
Maria had to admit, it would be cute and after watching Ellie hold the widow costume close to her chest, she nodded and they finally went to check out.
Halloween itself had gone as Maria had predicted, Ellie stayed back at most of the houses refusing to get close enough to actually obtain any candy. Luckily the eldest Barton child (in his Hawkeye costume) was able to explain to most of the adults that the girl was shy and took extra candy for her. They had made it to their 10th house before things went awry.
The house they walked up to was covered in fake cobwebs and spiders which Ellie wanted a closer look at. What she had not noticed was the adult at the front door in a ghoulish mask who jokingly shouted “boo!”. It was enough for the miniature black widow to panic and teleport out of the location immediately.
“Shit,” Maria pulled her phone out just as it started to ring.
“Safe,” Laura spoke quickly.
The woman had stayed home, mostly to hand out candy, partially in case the child had teleported at some point. It was one of two spots the girl knew to get to if she was in danger, the farm, and the apartment. Maria sighed in relief finding out she had gone to the former as instructed.
“Thanks, one of the houses scared her. I’ll come on back now,” she sighed <ok> to the archer in front of her.
“Take your time, we're going to make some hot chocolate,” Laura’s voice was as calm as ever.
As it turned out, Ellie loved Halloween, or rather Ellie loved Halloween from the safety of the farm. As soon as she heard more kids, she would get up from her spot between Laura and Maria and race to the front door to hand out treats. Over and over again she would hold the bowl of candy up to children and adults, making sure everyone had a piece before waving goodbye and settling back down on the couch.
“I mean she has Yelena now, she’s busy,” Maria took a drink from the bottle in her hands before looking at the front door where Ellie was waving bye to another group.
“And you have Ellie, it sounds like an excuse,” Laura raised an eyebrow.
“Ellie?” Ellie herself questioned as she walked back up to the couch.
“I’m trying to convince your mommy that you should come live here forever,” Laura wrapped her arms around the child who smiled.
“No, because I have to go school,” she giggled and Maria’s heart soared.
“Okay okay that sounds like a good reason to go back to DC,” the ex-agent released her grip to allow the girl to continue watching the space show on the TV, “You’re making excuses Ria.”
“It hasn’t worked in the past,” she shrugged.
“You two haven’t actually given it a chance. When was the last time you two actually went on a date?” Laura spoke nothing but the truth.
“Two thousand… ten? No that can be right,” the brunette furrowed her brows, had it really been that long?
“Sounds right to me, I say you give her a call and see when she’s in town next. Take her out somewhere nice, not the diner for once,” Laura rolled her eyes.
“She loves the diner,” Maria had been to the diner by her house countless times, it was the best 24-hour option, “plus who’s to say she would even want to go?”
“El,” the blonde got the child’s attention, “more trick or treat- oh actually that’s the kids.”
If on cue, Lila screeched from where she was sprinting with her brother back up to the house. Still, Ellie got up and opened up the front door for her friends.
“I’m just saying give her a call tomorrow before she’s on her mission and make a plan, maybe for her birthday?” how the woman knew that Natasha was going on a mission was beyond her.
“You’re a threat to national security,” Maria shook her head and took another swig.
Which is how the Commander found herself selecting the contact for Natasha on her phone the next day. She nervously picked at her cuticles and listened to the line trill as Cooper and Ellie ripped into the kitchen and towards the candy bowl that sat like a prize for the taking. Both children were still in their costumes from the night before, something that made the security of the candy bowl even more at risk somehow.
“Hey,” Natasha’s voice flooded the phone in a comforting way despite the bustle of noise behind her.
“Not until after dinner… no- Hey Tasha!” she picked the bowl up and placed it on top of the fridge, out of the reach of mini Black Widow and Hawkeye.
“Bad time?” the Russian asked with fluid ease.
“Nope, all yours- er- I mean. No, it’s not a bad time,” Maria backtracked as she tried to force the blush across her face away.
“Well good, I have several free minutes before my flight and would like to say hi,” Natasha's accent and the rigidity of her words spoke to just how long the woman had been away from the States.
Hearing the woman speak calmed the brunette instantly, the cadence, the accent, the words themselves. All of it was enough for her to feel at ease even as her mind raced with the nerves of the question that she was dying to ask.
“Well, hi,” Maria suppressed a smile, “off to the Mediterranean?”
“Yep,” the redhead had never been the best at phone conversations.
“Three-week intel?” the Commander tried to prompt her, pulling out the information she knew from… a few too many times she read over the details of the mission that was very much not her own.
“Yeah, but it should not be too bad. Maybe I’ll work on my tan,” Natasha responded.
“Natasha Romanoff with a tan?” she snorted, it was a ridiculous picture to paint.
“Hey, you never know,” Maria could hear the smile in the woman’s voice as she answered, “did you decide to go to the farm?”
It had been a long trip after work two days prior, and she didn’t realize that she had forgotten to let Natasha know that they had arrived safely. The two of them had texted about the anxiety surrounding the holiday not only for Ellie but Yelena as well.
“Yeah, we're here now. Laura and the kids say hi to Auntie Nat, Clint said to text him if anything changes between now and evac,” she responded, knowing that she would need to ask Natasha about dinner soon or else Laura would do it for her. She was positive the ex-spy was listening from the living room, regardless of how engaged she looked while playing with the kids.
“Yes, I will let him know,” Natasha answered over the background noise that sounded distinctly of airport passengers.
“Cool cool cool… so- speaking of when the missions complete- I know it will be a few weeks but um,” Maria cleared her throat, trying to tame her racing heart, “I was wondering, just because it’s close or whatever but if you don't have any other plans Iwouldbehappytotakeyoutodinner… for your birthday I mean.”
There was a pause too long and she visibly winced, maybe it was too soon, maybe Natasha just wanted to be friends. Her face was warm as she tried to backtrack once more.
“Just- I know you don’t celebrate so it wouldn’t have to be anything big and maybe you want to see Yelena but if you didn’t,” she spit all the words out until the Russian stopped her.
“As of now, I have no plans,” the redhead answered, “and would be happy to have dinner with you.”
“Okay, cool. So I can text you about it then,” Maria smiled, relief.
“Thank you,” Natasha spoke to someone in her beautifully wonderful mother tongue, “Yeah, Ria, that sounds good but I have to go.”
“Yeah, yeah of course,” Maria cleared her throat, “I’ll text you, stay safe okay?”
“I will. Okaybye.” The agent hung up first, her accent was as thick as Maria had ever heard it as she spoke in a phrase that was so distinctly Natasha.
“There, I did it, you happy?” although she spoke quietly, she was positive the woman in the room next to her would hear her.
“Ecstatic, she said yes of course?” Laura called back.
“You know it’s no fun when you’re always right,” Maria rolled her eyes.
“You’ll be thanking me that night, you both need to get laid,” Laura rattled off in Spanish with ease.
“Who is laying down?” Ellie questioned in perfect Spanish.
“LAURA BARTON!” The Deputy Director spun around from where she was standing in the kitchen to face the woman.
“Whoops, since when do you speak Spanish?”
Ellie shrugged.
“You speak Spanish?” Cooper tilted his head before chasing the girl again as they played. It was becoming more and more obvious that Ellie needed an outlet like this to keep her energy at bay.
“I’m going to go make lunch,” the mom of two excused herself.
“You’re just trying to get out of trouble.”
“Ooo trouble, I love trouble,” Clint came down the stairs, Lila in tow, “whatcha talking about?”
“Taking Natasha out for dinner. I don't think she’s had much time to breathe since Yelena, I’m going to take her out before she's back in sister-” she started to explain.
“What sisters?” Clint cut her off.
Maria was positive that the two of them only knew one pair of sisters and eyed the man, checking for any signs of mental deterioration, “Natasha and Yelena…?”
“Oh, you mean the spider sisters?” The man beamed triumphantly.
“How long you been working on that one?”
“About a week, it’s good, right? Laura said I’d never be able to use it organically but look now- Laur! Hey Laura! I got to use spider sisters totally organically!”
Maria snort laughed, nothing about that had been organic but from the wild look in Ellie’s eyes, nothing she had ingested in the last 24 hours had been either. She truly wouldn’t change it for the world, or rather, the only change she would make would be to add one more person to the chaotic scene.
Which is why two days before Natasha’s birthday, she found herself dropping Ellie off with Liam’s family for a few hours while she and the birthday girl would have a nice dinner. She had followed the mission the Russian had been on for the last few weeks, and after seeing that it had been a success with no real problems, she made a reservation at a steakhouse for two.
“Mrs. Ruiz has my number, so if you need anything at all you call me, okay?” Maria smoothed some of the curls that lay against Ellie’s cheeks.
“Okay, mommy,” the girl nodded, still clearly nervous.
“We’re just going to be a few blocks away for a couple of hours,” she straightened out the girl's jacket and glanced up to see Natasha walking towards them.
“Hey Tasha,” she hadn’t seen the woman in months and wasn’t able to resist wrapping her arms around the redhead.
She smelled like orange blossom and vanilla, she smelled like home. Maria could feel Ellie push into her leg as Natasha pulled away from the embrace.
“Hey,” Natasha smiled and glanced down, bringing her attention to the child tucked behind Maria, “Hi, Ellie.”
Ellie stiffened and waved, keeping her gaze set on the stone below her feet. Maria knew the position of nervousness well by this point and waited to see if the child would look up. Finally she glanced up, her cheeks flushing as she made eye contact with the woman in front of her. There was a moment of pride from how far the girl had come, she was no longer the terrified widow who barricaded herself into hospital rooms. She was much more like any typical 5 year old who was just a little shy as she waited for her friend.
“Look,” Maria placed her hand on the girl's head, guiding it to where a family of three was walking up, “once second, Tasha.”
“Take your time,” Natasha nodded as Ellie ran over to greet her friend.
“Hey Hill,” Liam's mom smiled as she watched the kids hug and climb onto the swings near by.
“Hey Ruiz, thanks again for this,” she waved her hand in the general direction of the two children, “You let me know when I can repay the favor.”
“We’re just happy Liam has a friend, especially one as sweet as Ellie,” Dominic laughed.
“Well either way, thank you,” she smiled back at the two, “we should be done before 8 but if there’s anything wrong at all, give me a call, we're only a few blocks away.”
“I’m sure it’s nothing we can’t handle.”
Maria had explained Ellie’s “special skills” the first time they had gone to the park together, knowing that the girl was in the hands of a nurse and agent, she felt at ease.
“Ellie come say bye,” she called over to the child who hopped down from her swing and ran over, “now you be good for the Ruiz’s okay? You listen to everything they say and if you need to call me, you can. Okay?”
“Okayyyyyyy,” the green-eyed girl squirmed.
“You be good,” Maria kissed the top of the child’s head before releasing her, < I love you>
<I love you> Ellie signed back and took off towards the slide.
“Thanks again,” Maria waved to the adults.
“No problem, really, you two have fun.”
“Okay, we're good,” she sighed and smiled as she walked up to Natasha, “dinner?”
“Dinner,” Natasha smiled back. Maria didn’t miss the fact that the Russian let her lead them out of the park and towards the restaurant.
They had made it about a half a block before Maria pulled her hand out of her coat pocket and linked her pinky finger with Natasha’s, hoping that she wasn’t overstepping. The spy linked hers back, looked up and smiled.
“You’re such a softie,” the green-eyed woman smiled.
“We can’t all be Miss intense Black Widow” she rolled her eyes.
“Your nickname is literally Hard-ass Hill,” Natasha laughed.
“People really call me that?” she looked down at the woman next to her in shock.
“Oh yeah, you scare the shit out of the agents,” the Russian continued to walk down the street as she nodded.
“That’s a terrible nickname,” Maria shook her head in disbelief.
“It is,” Natasha pulled herself closer to the brunette until her head was leaning on the taller woman's shoulder, “I much prefer Masha.”