I trust you
The bruises have just faded the day that Robin gets a call from the school that Natasha got into a fight and that Robin needed to come collect her.
Robin heads to the school and finds Natasha along with two other children seated in a row just outside of the principal’s office. One of the children is a few years older than the other two.
“Mrs. Lewis!” The principal ushers her into his office.
Robin is told that Natasha had been fighting against the bigger boy defending the other child in the seats. If Robin promised to talk to Natasha about fighting then the school would let her take the punishment at home.
Robin does. She smiles and makes promises on how she’d turn Natasha’s attitude around and thanks them for being ever so helpful.
Natasha looks small in the chair as Robin collects her. Her head is bowed and her toes scrape the ground as she idly kicks her feet. The child next to her was one from the pictures of children Natasha was supposed to befriend.
“Come on,” Robin picks Natasha’s backpack up and sets a hand on the back of her neck to guide her out. Natasha doesn’t speak, her shoulders hunched as she stares at the ground.
She seems to try and disappear as Robin leads her up the stairs and into her office once they arrive home. “Tell me why you’re going to get swats.”
Natasha stands stiffly in place as Robin approached the umbrella stand. When she doesn’t answer, Robin glances at her.
“Natasha.” She prompts and the girl swallows hard. “Why are you going to get swats?”
“I… broke cover. I started a fight,” Natasha mumbles quietly and Robin nods her head.
“You know how I want you. Hands on the wall and legs spread shoulder width,” Robin instructs and Natasha turns around to do as Robin asked.
“Do… do I take my jacket off?” Natasha asked quietly as she hesitantly reached up to brush her fingers against the wall.
“Not necessary,” Robin shakes her head. “Come on now. Don’t forget to count them.”
Natasha does and Robin is surprised when she sees tears fall down her cheeks. She sets the bamboo stick back in place when she’s done.
“Stand in the corner,” She instructs, slightly puzzled on why Natasha cried this time. Robin had given her swats a few times but she never cried and always non-verbally asked to be held afterward with a gesture of her arms.
Natasha stands in the corner and Robin watched worriedly as Natasha holds herself stiffly, little sniffles echoing from the corner where Natasha had pressed her face.
Robin calls her over after a few minutes and Natasha stands in front of her office chair. Robin reaches out with a small frown as she wipes away the tears on Natasha’s face. “What’s wrong, sweetheart?”
Natasha’s lips twitch like she wants to say something but hesitates.
“Natasha?” Robin prompts. “Tell me. What’s wrong?”
Natasha shoves her left arm out toward Robin. Robin looks down at the arm and reaches out to grasp her wrist in confusion. Natasha sucks in a sharp breath and Robin recognized the pain response and her heart sinks.
“Jacket off.” She orders and Natasha reaches up to fumble with the buttons on her coat. She doesn’t use her left hand.
Robin reaches out and undoes the buttons for her, gently sliding the jacket off of Natasha’s shoulders until it falls to a pile on the floor.
“Oh Natasha,” Robin breathes out upon seeing the swelling in the wrist. “Why didn’t you say anything?”
Natasha doesn’t reply and Robin is filled with guilt at the fact she assumed Natasha was okay. That she hadn’t stopped to think that she could have gotten hurt because she was used to the fact that Natasha was a Widow and could take down fully grown men.
Tears roll down Natasha’s cheeks again and Robin pulls her head forward to kiss her forehead. “I’m not mad at you. I wish you would have told me, honey. You can tell me when you’re hurt.”
“Sorry--” Natasha sniffles and Robin shifts into doctor mode as she inspects the swelling of the wrist. She has Natasha move her fingers and tell her about the pain.
She’s pretty sure that her wrist is broken but she won’t know without an x-ray. She doesn’t have one in her office and she remembers General Dreykov’s word.
She was only to take them to the hospital if they were on death’s door. If not then she was to take them back.
Robin stares at Natasha’s wrist for a long time as she debates about what to do. “I need an x-ray of your wrist so I can set and cast it.”
Natasha can pick up on the terse tone. “Are we going to the hospital?”
Robin thinks it over in her head before sighing. “No. We’re going to the Red Room.”
Natasha stiffened and Robin barely has time to elaborate before Natasha is kneeling at her feet and begging her to not send her back. “Please! I’ll be good! Don’t send me away. Don’t send me away, mama!”
Robin reaches out and pulls Natasha against her, careful of her left arm. “I’m not sending you away. I didn’t phrase that right. Listen to me, sweetheart. Breathe.”
Natasha squirms in her grip and Robin grasped Natasha’s forearm to keep her wrist steady as she pins Natasha to her.
“Listen to me. You’re not going anywhere, sweetheart. Mama’s got you, it’s okay,” Robin kissed her forehead. “Look at me. Look at mama.”
Natasha’s emerald green eyes flicker to look up at Robin’s face.
“Good girl. Breathe with me, sweetheart. Come on, follow me,” Robin coaxed, keeping her voice low and soft. Natasha slowly manages to slow her gasping until she’s breathing deep breaths with Robin. “I’m not abandoning you at the Red Room. I’m not allowed to take you to the hospital so we need to go to the Red Room so I can repair your wrist.”
Natasha shakes her head. “I don’t wanna go back.” She said quietly. “I wanna stay here. Can’t you fix it here?”
Robin is starting to doubt herself but sticks firm. “We need to go back… but you’ll barely even realize it,” Robin shifts so she can reach a locked cabinet, pulled it open, and picked up one of the sedatives. “This will knock you out. You will barely remember anything.”
Natasha’s eyes grow wide at the sight of the needle. “Robin, I don’t want--” She hesitates. “It’s not bad. It barely hurts.”
“I know, sweetheart,” Robin sets the sedative on her desk and pulls Natasha back into her arms. “I have a very important question for you.”
Natasha waits, looking up at Robin.
“Do you trust me?” Robin asked gently and Natasha doesn’t hesitate to nod. “I will protect you. It will be okay.”
Natasha takes a deep breath before steeling her face and nodding. “Okay.”
“You’re being very brave and I’m very proud of you,” Robin tells her gently. “I’m going to call for a ride and then we’ll ice your arm.”
Natasha went quiet as Robin calls and explains to General Dreykov what happened. He promised transport within a few hours.
Robin then calls Melina and tells her what she planned on doing. Melina tells her to stay safe and to bring both of them back in one piece.
Robin doesn’t inject the sedative until the men arrive. She slips another one into her pocket in case they were there longer than a few hours.
Robin doesn’t let the men touch Natasha. She carried the girl out to the car and held her in her lap between the two men.
Natasha slowly slumps against her and keeps trying to fight the sleep that threatened to overtake her. Robin doesn’t make any movement that could threaten her cover. Despite how much she wanted to snuggle Natasha close and rub her back and whisper to her gently to comfort her, she can’t.
Natasha is fast asleep by the time they reach the helicopter. The ride was much shorter than usual and Robin figures that he moved the Red Room closer to Ohio so he could reach her easier.
Robin throws on her ‘just another doctor’ mask as she carried Natasha toward her old office where she had the proper equipment. She laid Natasha down on the table and briefly checks her pulse and breathing.
She rushes the x-rays. She calls in a favor with one of the guards to direct General Dreykov away from her office for as long as they can.
She’s setting Natasha’s wrist when the door to her office opens and she tries not to tense up.
“My little songbird,” He hums as he approached. “And my most promising little Widow.”
“Sir…” Robin greets, her hands pausing in setting the wrist.
General Dreykov waves his hand. “Don’t stop on my account, my pretty birdy.”
Robin focused down on Natasha’s wrist and sets it before starting to cast it. She can feel General Dreykov stare at her the whole time.
“You’re being dismissed from my project for the time being,” General Dreykov finally said and Robin spins to look at him.
“Which project?” She clears her throat when the words seem to get stuck.
“Finding a suitable Widow for my heir. The other specimens are indisposed of,” He tells her, and Robin’s heart drops.
“They’re on missions?” She plays stupid as she moulds the cast around Natasha’s arm.
“They were useless to me so I had them killed,” General Dreykov replies curly and Robin focuses on Natasha. “I will contact you when I have more specimens lined up and ready.”
“Yes sir,” Robin agrees before looking up at him. “Did you need something else, sir?”
She knew she had pushed too far when he backhands her and she stumbles backward.
“Manners, my dear songbird,” He tuts before he approached Natasha and reached out to tuck a strand of hair out of her face. “She’s grown and put on some weight. She’s doing well with you. I know I picked the best for the job.”
“Thank you, sir,” Robin wants nothing more than to shove him away from Natasha-- from her daughter. But she knew the risks when coming here and focuses on cleaning up the mess of packaging and equipment.
“Then again, she got into a fight at school,” General Dreykov grips Natasha’s chin. “I put you in charge of her punishment.” Robin forces herself to stay in place when General Dreykov rolled Natasha onto her side and lifted her shirt to inspect her back.
“I haven’t let her become unmanageable,” Robin promised him and he glances at her before letting out a low chuckle.
“You’re such an antsy thing, my little songbird,” He approached her and reached up to thread his fingers into her hair before pulling her closer with a yank. “She’s failing her mission to secure contacts with the other children.”
“She protected just one of those children today,” Robin tells her weakly. “Soon.”
He narrows his eyes at her before letting her go and Robin collapsed to her knees. “Do not make contact with me again unless it is an emergency. I will contact you. Do you understand?”
“Yes sir,” Robin replies hoarsely and General Dreykov turns and leaves the room.
Robin wastes no time in collecting Natasha up into her arms despite the fact that the cast hadn’t set yet. She tries not to speed as she strides down the halls to make a quick exit.
Natasha starts to stir halfway through the helicopter ride and Robin doesn’t hesitate to inject the other sedative to keep her quiet and pain-free.
Robin smacks the hand of one of the guards when he tries to touch Natasha. She threatens him when he tries to scold her. They finally arrive and Robin breathes out a sigh of relief.
She all too happily darts out of the car and up the driveway toward the house. Melina answers the door after the first knock and Robin slips inside.
Melina’s eyes fall onto the bulky white cast wrapped around Natasha’s wrist before looking up at Robin. “Are you okay? What happened? Did they drug her?”
Robin pulls Melina close with her free arm and kissed her desperately. “I did it. I drugged her.” She doesn’t want Melina to be mad. To think that Robin is just like all the others.
Melina’s face softens as if she understood the tough choice Robin had to make. “You’re here now. You’re home and you’re safe,” She gently runs her fingers through Robin’s hair that was sticking up from where General Dreykov had grabbed her. “Let me take her. Yelena’s in the living room.”
Robin transfers Natasha into Melina’s hold and kissed both of their foreheads, reassuring herself that they were safe and alive.
Yelena had been watching cartoons in the living room and perks up when she sees her. “Mama!” She runs to throw her arms around Robin’s legs before starting to babble on about a drawing she did at daycare.
Yelena squeals in laughter when Robin scoops her up and peppers her face in kisses. The sound comforts Robin.
“Mama watch cartoons too?” Yelena asked, her fingers reaching up to play with Robin’s hair.
“I would love to watch cartoons with you,” Robin replies, settling the toddler down in her lap as she sits on the couch.
She could relax for the first time in a while. No more weekly meetings with General Dreykov for the moment which would mean no more punishments.
“Mama?” Yelena tilts her head up at Robin.
“Yes, little one?” Robin runs her fingers over Yelena’s hair.
Yelena lets out a happy hum of content. “Love you, mama.”
Robin can’t help the smile on her face. “Oh, my baby. I love you more than you will ever know.”