Time is the Only Constant

The apartment still buzzed from what Maria could only assume was a verbal (and possibly physical) reprimanding courtesy of the two Avengers who stood in solidarity next to Fury. Agent Gerber was still present and taking in information from the Director who stood in front of Maria’s TV. Bobbi and Maria hung towards the background in the kitchen as they caught up on the details. 

“As I said, at this time it is believed that this was a targeted attack not only on the Deputy Director but on her child.” He took a step to the side and the TV illuminated with a picture of Ellie, “Due to the sensitive nature of this kidnapping, we will not be disclosing whose child this is, nor will we give explicit details to anyone outside of this room. Do I make myself clear?”

“Yes, sir,” the group answered in unison. 

“The task force will work as our liaisons between SHIELD and local government. I want half of you combing through any records you can get your hands on, CCVT, missing person reports, and suspicious activity reported, the other half will go on foot patrol. Anywhere you could imagine a child hiding or being hidden, you will talk to the police, you will visit hospitals, you will be our eyes and ears for the surrounding 20 blocks. After 4 hours, you switch positions, clear?”

“Yes, sir,” the task force stood up and waited to be dismissed. Fury nodded and started Gerber down as he approached Maria. 

“I apologize for questioning you and your orders, ma’am,” his face was red on one side, and his hands shook slightly. Still, the man seemed genuine. 

“I shouldn’t have yelled,” she wasn’t ready to accept his apology, not just yet. 

“My team is going to try our best to find your daughter,” he stuck his hand out. 

Maria shook it and watched as he left the apartment. 

“That leaves us with you lot,” Fury spoke to the rest of the agents present. 

Bobbi followed Maria into the living room as she looked at the rest of the occupants. Steve and Natasha were still stationed next to Fury, there were several other faces who Maria wasn’t as familiar with including agents Carter, and Hunter, and a man she had only met twice named Rhodes who she was pretty sure had another Ironman suit. She was appreciative of each and every one of them. 

“Elizaveta is indeed an enhanced person, this is known only to a few people, and for that reason, I will not be expressing exactly how she is enhanced to keep that information out of the wrong hands,” Fury glanced around the room, “that being said, she can travel extreme distances in an inhuman amount of time so she could very well be in a location much further away than where the Taskforce is searching.”

Maria tried her best not to think of just how far away the girl could be, but still, her mind started to spin at the thought of it. A firm hand braced her shoulder, yet she kept her face neutral and focused on Fury, positive that if she fell into the comfort she would break down. 

“I understand that you all have missions outside of this. I also understand that I’m the head of this fucking organization and I get to decide what missions are important currently, and which ones we can push off. As of now, you are all null of obligations outside of this mission,” the group glanced around at each other, “that doesn’t mean you can just blow off your SHIELD responsibilities, but it does mean that your primary focus can be on getting Elizaveta home.”

Every time Maria was reminded that the girl wasn’t in the next room, was like a gut punch. Still, she kept the mask in place. 

“Hill, I need you to go through each agent's current missions and determine how relevant they currently are, and who can cover for them in case it’s a priority,” he focused his gaze on her. 

“Yes, sir,” she knew it was busy work, but at this point, she wasn't sure what else she could handle. 

Fury then went through the pairings of each agent and explained what resources were available for their use (more or less everything in their arsenal). It was well past 11pm by the time her apartment started to clear out as agents strategize with each other, Maria kept quiet but was already formulating the best plan of attack for each group. She would have their mission reports typed up by the morning.

“I don’t want you going out there tonight,” Fury sat on the coffee table in front of her.

“Is that an order?” she countered.

“It is if I need to make it one,” he sighed and put his hand on her knee that bounced ever so slightly, “we’re going to find her, but until then we need to assume that you are in as much danger as she is. There’s no telling if she was what they wanted, or if they’re just using her as leverage against you.”

“You’re sidelining me,” the blue-eyed woman was smart and knew when her talents weren’t being used to their full potential, “Current mission statuses and backup agents? Really Fury?”

“You’re the only one who has a high enough clearance to see what everyone is working on. Plus, she’s your family, you shouldn’t be working on anything related to the case at all.”

“I can-” she started.

“Do I need to remind you of article 42, subsection 6, amendment 3?” The man pinned her with his one working eye. 

“No.”

It was actually an amendment that she had filed and brought to the board for approval herself after a rookie went awol and killed two civilians after their brother had been shot. She saw how family ties could cloud judgment, she knew, and yet she still wanted to hate the man in front of her for using it against her.   

“Then try your best to rest and leave this to us,” Fury stood up, “It’s going to be okay, Maria. We’re going to find little miss, but she needs a mom to come home to.”

Maria nodded and watched as her boss left the apartment, leaving only Steve and Natasha in the space. She met them by the widow that was still missing, noticing that at some point, someone had cleaned up the broken birthday gift. 

“No, it’s only a single hung so 24” by 36”, I can get my hands on one,” Steve looked at the hole that was letting in the cold winter air. 

The fire escape next to their main living room window hadn’t been used, they knew that there was a camera in its sightline. There was no shattered glass, there were no scuffs on the paint, whoever removed the widow knew exactly what they were doing, and how much time they had to do it. They had been watched, it sent shivers down Maria’s spine. 

“I’ll pick one up and head back over, give me an hour and you’ll be good as new.”

“You don’t have to, I can go to the hardware store tomorrow,” the brunette continued to stare into the night. 

“I don’t mind, plus it’ll give me a chance to make sure the Taskforce is doing their job,” the blonde took one more look at the window and then turned to leave, “coming, Tasha?”

The Russian glanced quickly at Maria, “I’m just going to grab my bag from the apartment but I’m coming back. Okay?”

As much as she wanted to trust that the woman had changed, she couldn’t help but think that she wouldn’t come back. It had gotten too real, too quickly and the Widow would run, she always was a flight risk. Still, the Commander nodded. 

And then it was just Maria. She busied herself first, pulling out her phone to call Liam’s parents, knowing that it was late, but also knowing they were used to working nights and getting late calls.

“Hey, Hill,” the agent sounded as if she hadn’t yet gone to sleep, “we switch gloves again?”

Ellie and Liam often switched gloves, no one really knew why but on multiple occasions Maria had found mittens that she hadn’t purchased in her laundry. 

“Um,” she cleared her throat, “No. When we got home tonight Ellie ran inside to pick something up and someone- someone kidnapped her.”

“What?” the woman’s voice was laced with concern, “Do you need me to come over? Is there a mission I can pick up?”

“I might call you to cover another agent's mission depending on availability but you’re too close to the missing person.”

“Anything, anything you need I can make sure it gets done.”

“Thank you,” she was genuinely appreciative, leave it to Ellie to pick a best friend with the nicest parents. 

“What happened?” Ruiz dropped her voice.

“We don’t know for sure,” she stared at the ceiling to keep the tears from falling, “the window in our kitchen was removed and there were no traceable prints. She was here, and then she was gone.”

“I’m so sorry, please let me know if there’s anything else we can do to help. Anything at all.”

Maria said her goodbyes and hung up the phone, returning to the eerie silence of her apartment. It had been months since she could properly hear the hum of her fridge, most of the time there was music playing for Ellie to dance to, or the child humming to music she had made herself, if not it was a show about space on the TV playing in the background, or Maria talking to the little girl as she made dinner- 

She could feel her heart start to race as she threaded her fingers into her hair and slowly slid down the wall outside Ellie’s room. The brunette tugged slightly at the base of her hair as she tried to keep it together, crying wasn’t going to bring her daughter home. She squeezed her eyes closed tightly, wondering why Ellie hadn’t done the same. 

It was a big enough question to get her up from the ground and over to her desk where she started on a list of anything and everything she could think of. 

Missing Person Report Sheet:
Break-in occurred sometime between the hours of 6-9pm through corner window of apartment 1608. No traces or signs of forced entry (other than missing glass) were visible under fluorescent and blue light.
Removal of window shows that the assailant has knowledge of building 443, inner workings, possible blueprints. 
Individual is able to teleport, teleportation limits unknown.
Individual did not attempt to teleport during the kidnapping. 
MH believes the individual was unable to, possible reasons include knowledge of assailant, unconscious, unable due to circumstances unknown.

The Commander continued to type out every detail she could think of, and revise who would be best fitted for further exploration until Steve walked through the front door. 

“You didn’t lock your door,” he stood in front of her with a new pane of glass.

It was unlike her to forget to do something like that, she didn’t want to psychoanalyze the reason behind it. 

“I’ll be fine,” she tapped her thigh holster, “plus if someone really wanted in, apparently they can just come through my window.”

“Not for long,” the blonde held up his toolbag, “Tasha isn’t back yet?”

“No,” Maria continued to type, knowing that there was a high possibility she wouldn’t see Natasha again.

“I’m sure she will be soon,” Steve walked over to the window and pulled out various tools, “It’s pretty cold in here, Ria. You should throw on a coat.”

The Deputy Director hummed and continued to type, regardless of how her fingers ached in the cold air. They sat with the only noise coming from her typing for a while until Steve finished the installation and came over to her desk.

“Is there anyone I can call for you?” Apparently, he got the message that the Russian wouldn’t be returning as well.

“I’ll be fine,” she didn’t look away from her screen, searching now for anything on missing children or strange phenomena. 

“Are you sure? I don’t think you should be here alone-”

“I said I’ll be fine,” Maria snapped, finally looking up to meet Steve’s gaze. 

“Ria…” The man leaned against her desk.

“I don’t have anyone else,” she spoke quietly, “Laura is with the kids and thousands of miles away, Phil’s dead, and May’s gone.”

For the first time in a long time, she wanted nothing more than her Aubela, she would know what to do. It felt like everyone but her knew what to do. 

“Then let me stay,” the blonde put his hand on her shoulder.

“It’s okay, you need to rest. I’ll be fine,” she turned back to her computer and continued searching.

“Call me if you need anything, okay?” Steve stood back up and walked towards the door, “and at least come lock the door behind me.”

Maria nodded and followed the man out, “thank you, for fixing the window and everything else.”

“You’re welcome,” he brought her in for a hug, his arms enveloping her body as he kissed the top of her head, “we’re going to find her, Ria.”

The woman nodded and closed the door behind him, flipping the lock into place as she quickly brushed tears off her cheeks. She sat down and scanned more headlines, trying to find anything she could to bring Ellie back home as everyone had promised. 

Her fingers were sore and her eyes burned as she finally hung her head in her hands in a moment of rest. She hadn’t looked at a clock since Steve left, but if the ache in her body was any indication of how late it was (it was, she was a seasoned pro at reading it), she figured it was well past 2am. In that time, she had found nothing useful. The CCTV had been spray painted over rather than having the wires cut, almost confirming the suspicion that whoever had done this, knew the workings of the building well. If the wires had been cut, the batteries would have kicked in and information would still have been stored, the paint was also sprayed from behind on all the cameras, even the ones that looked nothing like cameras. 

Maria took another deep breath as she dug the heels of her palm into her closed eyes. She could hear the lock on the front door turn as she lazily disengaged the safety of her gun, not taking it out of the hostler until the person who had entered was a foot from her. By that point, she could hear the lack of footsteps, and the smell of orange blossom, vanilla, and ever so slightly like cigarettes.  
  
“You would have been in a world of pain if it had been someone else,” the spy noticed her re-engaged the safety. 

“Yeah,” Maria looked up, Natasha’s face was slightly pink around her rose and the tips of her ears.

The two stared at each other, their expressions so different than they had been a few hours earlier on their date.

“You weren’t going to come back,” Maria figured.

“Old habits die hard,” Natasha averted her gaze, there was no use in denying it, “but, I’m here now.” 

Maria sagged at the words, letting Natasha pull her into her chest from where she stood next to the desk. 

“I’m here now,” the woman reiterated as she stroked Maria’s hair. 

“What if we don’t find her?” Maria could barely get herself to ask.

“We will.” Natasha seemed adamant.

“How do you know that? Everyone keeps saying it but we don’t know, she could be dead-” the brunette felt like she had the air ripped from her body as she said it out loud. 

“I know because she’s from the Red Room, she escaped from the Red Room, you don’t just do that,” Natasha pulled away from Maria until she could look her in the eye, “You have to be incredibly strong to get away and then survive. She’s a survivor.”

It was quiet for a moment before Natasha spoke again, “And to appease the Deputy Director part of your brain, they wouldn’t kill her. They want something from her, if it was just to get back at you they would have killed her and left her here.”

As twisted as it was, the logical part did in fact bring peace to the Deputy Director. She knew that it was the truth, they wanted Ellie most likely because of her ability to teleport, they couldn’t separate it from the girl. They would need her alive. 

Natasha continued to sit with Maria for a while longer as the Commander continued to work. It wasn’t until she had made the same mistake three times on the Missing Person Report Sheet that the Russian tugged at her shirt. 

“Come on, Masha,” the redhead got up, “you need to try and rest, even if it’s just for a little while.”

Maria wanted to fight it, to tell her that she was fine to keep going. But she knew that she was past the point of creating anything useful and sent Fury and the Taskforce what she had. Her body hurt as she stood up and followed Natasha into the bedroom, stopping by Ellie’s room one last time. 

The woman walked over to where Aлена was still sitting on the girl's nightstand and flipped it on, hoping that the batteries wouldn’t run out in the night. 

“If she comes back-” she swallowed and looked at Natasha who was still standing outside of the door, “she’ll want…”

The Russian nodded and closed the door after Maria finally exited and walked into her bedroom. She sat on the end of her bed and toed off her shoes before stripping out of her clothes from their date and pulling on a pair of joggers and an old west point that Ellie called her “oosma shirt” because of the school's acronym written across the chest. She pulled the fabric between her fingers until Natasha beckoned her over to lie down on the bed properly. 

The two curled up into one another for a night that was anything but restful. Maria would wake with a start at any small noise, searching the spot in front of her closet first, and then darting her eyes over to where she could see the light still shining from under Ellie’s bedroom door. It would take Natasha a few minutes to calm her and get her to lie back down. 

“We’re going to find her,” the Russian would kiss the side of her head and pull her back down to the bed.

It was barely past six when someone knocked on the door. Neither of them had been sleeping, Natasha signed <Clint> to ease Maria’s worries as she went to let the archer into the apartment. 

The Commander went into the bathroom and pulled her hair back before washing her face and taking a look at the woman in the reflection in front of her. Her eyes were icy and irritated, the bags under them only harshened her look. There was nothing she could do about it now and so she flipped the light off and exited the room. 

Barton’s voice was low as she walked further into the apartment, she was about to ask him about his delayed arrival when she saw another person standing in her living room. 

“Maria,” the blonde inclined her head.

“Yelena,” she returned. 

The young woman was looking much better than she had been the last time she saw her. Over the months the blonde’s cheeks had filled out, she no longer looked gaunt and weary, she also didn’t look as if she was going to bolt at the drop of a hat. 

“Ria,” Clint opened his arms and took her in, “Laura says to call, day or night. She’s going to try and help from the farm as much as she can.”

“Thank you,” Maria rested her head on the archer's shoulder for a moment longer before righting herself and walking into the kitchen.

“Coffee?” she asked the group who all nodded. 

She had just started the pot before instinctively reaching for the pill bottle on the counter and shaking out two pills. It had been such a routine at this point to get the little girl's medication out that she didn’t think twice. Luckily, Natasha quickly walked over and sealed the bottle once more, taking Maria’s shaking hand in her own. 

“It’s okay.” 

It felt like anything but okay, still she accepted the hand willingly and in a matter of minutes was sitting with the others in the living room. Coffee wafted over all of them as she got the two newest members up to speed on what happened. 

“Anything come up on SHIELD's radar yet?” Clint was finished reading over the report.

“Nothing so far,” Maria had checked again as they waited for the coffee to brew. 

“All building cameras were disabled?” He continued to question

“All cameras in the surrounding blocks as well.”

“And there were no prints, no broken glass, and the fire escape wasn’t used?”

“Correct,” Maria nodded as the room fell silent.

“You have a rat,” Yelena spoke what everyone had been thinking. 

“Lena,” Natasha warned. 

“No, she’s,” Maria scrubbed at her face, “she’s probably right.”

“I am right,” the blonde inclined her head, “I have been doing this since I was 6, Talia even longer so she can confirm. You do not get this type of knowledge from observation alone. To know each camera location and how to dislodge the window quietly and efficiently? Someone needed to give that information.”

Natasha subtly nodded in agreement. 

“What you do with this information is,” Yelena moved her hand back and forth, “eh, up to you. But I would be cognizant as to remember who you have looking for Lizavetka.”

The Commander knew that Yelena had a close relationship with the girl’s original handler and that it spilled over to Ellie as well. The late nights when she would cradle the younger girl on the couch as if she was the most precious thing in the world would not leave Maria’s memory for as long as she lived. The blonde herself had just come down from chemical subjugation and was still able to offer a kindness-

“Subjugation,” Maria snapped her head to look at the other two women, focusing in on Yelena, “what if they put her under chemical subjugation before taking her? What if that’s the reason she hasn’t come home?”

The room was quiet as everyone took in the information, Natasha drummed her fingers on her sister's knuckles, seemingly bringing the younger woman back to the conversation. 

“It would have caused her to lose consciousness to be put back under quickly. If you are not given the injection slowly it will cause you to pass out until your conscious and subconscious are no longer fighting.” 

Maria went over to the main window of the living room and opened it, it was all too much, she needed air. The others continued to talk as she braced herself on the ledge between the widows and the fire escape.  

“Do you know who still has access to the serum? If we find the manufacturer then we might be able to see who they sell it to,” Clint offered.  

Yelena’s eyes darted quickly to Natasha before landing on the coffee table in front of her, “I am unsure. I could ask but… I… I do not know.”

Yelena suddenly looked very much her age as she pulled a knee in close to her chest, her sister was unsure of if the blonde was nervous because she didn’t know who made the serum, or more nervous that she did. Natasha began to question the younger woman in Russian, a move that caught Maria’s attention as she turned back to face the room.

“I will try, but I cannot promise anything,” the younger of the two spoke in English once more.

“That’s all I’m asking,” the redhead squeezed her sister's hand, “and that you’re safe while you do it.” 

The days seemed to simultaneously drag on and fly by as Maria continued to field questions from anyone and everyone working on the case. It had been 4 full days since Ellie had been kidnapped and the only things they had to go off of were the possibility of subjugation and a single electrical phenomenon in Argentina. She had been allowed to return to work on Monday to not raise any suspicion as she used her work computer to continue and try to search for her daughter. 

By Tuesday afternoon, she was noticeably meaner than she had ever been, agents actively avoided her, staff kept their heads down. She had almost fired the member of the IT department who let her know that someone tried to hack into her personal file.

“But don’t worry ma’am, we stopped them before they got any of your information!” the woman explained cheerily on the phone. 

“Who was it,” the Commander asked.

“Ma’am?”

“Who tried to get into my file?” Maria gritted into the speaker.

“Oh… well we don’t really know, you see with this kind of cyber attack the IP address is-” the woman continued.

“I don’t need a fucking history lesson on IP addresses, I need you to tell me who tried to get into my personal file!”

“Yes, ma’am. I can- I can try and get that for you. It’s just-”

Maria hung up, tired of excuses, tired of the bullshit, and pulled up the agent's commanding officer’s number. She picked up the phone to call when Natasha walked in and clicked the receiver with a single finger before wrapping her hand around the phone and hanging it up. 

“You’re tired and angry, and looking for a fight,” Romanoff herself didn’t look much better than Maria. She had gotten a little more sleep but spent most of her time juggling the mission, and keeping her sister out of SHIELD's sights as she sat right under their noses. 

“The person who tried to get into that file might know about Ellie, they might be looking to get more information on her or-” she pulled at her hair until Natasha’s hands wound around her fingers and she released. 

“Or it’s just another security breach that’s happened before,” the spy took the woman's hands and kissed her knuckles, “come on, let’s go home.”

Maria glanced at the clock on her desk, it was late, another day that Ellie was out in the world without her. Another day without her medication. Another day where Maria Hill failed. 

“Come on,” Natasha beckoned, pulling the woman to her feet as she prepared to leave the office. 

They left the nearly quiet building and headed back to the apartment that had been a common meeting place for everyone who was working on the mission of bringing Ellie home. By far, one of the most heartbreaking moments of Maria’s day (other than turning the flashlight on and off every day) was when she walked by Sergius, the doorman who had been briefed on what happened. 

“Any word?” he looked hopeful as he opened the door to the lobby for the women.

Maria shook her head, “no.”

“There will be soon, I know it,” Sergius offered. 

“Thank you,” Natasha spoke up as the two walked towards the elevator. 

The apartment was quiet as they walked in, everyone had been investigating any activity they could get their hands on and were unable to come until the next day. Even Clint had left to investigate the possible energy surge in South America. Which left Yelena, Maria, and Natasha alone for one of the first times ever.  

Yelena looked up from her phone for a moment as the two walked in, raising a single eyebrow in an unspoken question. Natasha shook her head back in silent answer, Maria scrubbed a hand over her face in frustration as she walked through the apartment that was still far too quiet. It was another day of failure, another day of agony that felt like no matter how many scraps of information they had, the full picture was falling through Maria’s fingers as she tried desperately to hold on to them, to make them make sense. 

The Commander walked into her bedroom and closed the door behind her as she stripped out of the clothes she had been in for too many hours, in favor of the soft material of her old shirt and worn joggers. The door of her closet closed with too much force as she knelt on the spot in front of it. Maria pulled her hair tie out and let her hair fall freely as she hung her head and closed her eyes tightly. 

She clenched her jaw as she prayed to a God she had stopped believing in long ago, bargaining, pleading, and finally begging for Ellie to come home. There was nothing to show for it as she opened her eyes before closing them once again, this time asking to the universe, to different gods, to Phil, to anyone she could think of. She opened her eyes once more and yelled in frustration as she stared at the empty floor in front of her. 

“Come on! Please!” she begged through gritted teeth, “I don’t know what else to do!”

Her hands ached from how hard she had balled her fists in anger as she continued to let the feeling course through her body. The anger slowly turned to sadness, which encased her as she lay down next to the closet. It was hard to tell how long she had been laying in sorrow before she finally cried herself to sleep, waking up later to a stiff body, and a blanket that had been draped over her. 

Maria winced as she stood up fully in the empty room, the night sky was visible through her window, as was the flashlight that was on in Ellie’s room. Feeling foolish, and knowing she had wasted vital time crying, she went to search for Natasha, hoping the woman was fairing better. 

The apartment was dark and quiet as Yelena woke from her sleep on the couch and pointed to the main window in the living room. Maria opened it slowly, knowing that the other Russian was most likely sitting on the fire escape. 

“Hey,” Natasha only looked half surprised as she scooted over to accommodate the new person, “you okay?”

Maria nodded and took a seat on the steel surface, knowing that she was fooling no one. 

“I’m sorry,” the redhead spoke quietly, only continuing after Maria cocked her head to the side in confusion, “for not finding her yet. I’m- I’m trying everything I can- accessing everything I have and talking to everyone I know but-”

“I know,” Maria looked at the lights of the city, “we’re all trying our best, it just hasn’t been enough.”

The two sat in silence for a while longer before guilt and stress finally crept in enough to cause Natasha to pull a pack of cigarettes out from where she had stashed them in the stairwell of the fire escape. The Commander sat and listened to the familiar sound of a lighter followed by the woody, bitter smell of smoke. 

“Those things will kill you, ya know,” Maria warned as she reached over and pulled the cigarette from Natasha’s mouth and stuck it between her own lips as she took a log drag. 

“I know,” the Russian eyed the brunette's hip tattoo as the woman reached over to hand the cigarette back. 

Maria noticed the gaze and tugged her shirt down as she looked over at Natasha who was back facing the city. They sat in the cold December air for a while longer, Maria only speaking again as she stood to head back into the apartment. 

“Ursa Minor,” she spoke softly.

The spy tilted her head.

“You asked me if I was going to get another tattoo, and I told you I wanted one but didn’t know what I wanted,” she clarified, “Ursa Minor.” 

The little bear.