Chapter 4
Shutting the door gently behind her, the first thing Laura took note of was the lack of softly hissed Russian. While Laura didn’t know Russian she assumed that whenever Nat was muttering under her breath in her first language it was muttered curses, it always managed to bring a smile to her face especially when those words were directed at her reckless husband as the redhead patched him up. The other thing she noted was how still Natasha was while sitting on the couch, her gaze blank as she stared at the floor. She didn’t know what kind of headspace the younger woman was in and she didn’t want to trigger a fight or flight response. Shuffling her feet a bit to alert Nat to her approach, she rounded the couch taking in the blood and dust covered woman. “Nat?” Laura called, keeping her voice gentle and soothing.
Natasha’s head jerked up at the sound, her eyes unfocused as though seeing something that wasn’t there. She struggled to get to her feet, her legs refusing to cooperate causing her to land painfully on her knees. “Hey, Natasha. It’s me, Laura.” Laura cooed waiting patiently for Nat to refocus on her and answer.
Natasha ignored her, keeping her head down and arms behind her. Laura could see that Nat’s right arm had taken the brunt of either an attack or fall at some point as the younger woman struggled to get that arm behind her. “Nat, hey look at me sweetie.” Laura knew if she didn’t break Natasha out of her flashback then things could go from bad to worse.
Nat’s head came up though she still refused to make eye contact, choosing instead to stare at the wall just behind Laura. “Ready to comply.” The whispered words broke Laura’s heart and she fought to keep the tears in her eyes from falling.
“Nat, sweetie, it’s Laura. You’re safe. You’re at the farmhouse. Whatever you’re seeing isn’t real.” Laura coaxed. Laura debated reaching out to brush away a strand of Nat’s hair that had fallen in her face, she knew the touch could either set her off more or help to ground her. Deciding to risk it Laura reached forward and tucked the hair behind Natasha’s ear, letting her fingers brush gently against her cheek.
Laura saw a look of confusion cross Nat’s face as her eyes met Laura’s for the first time. “Yelena?” Nat whispered. “No, you need to go, it's not safe.”
It was Laura’s turn to be confused now. She racked her brain trying desperately to recall the name. Wondering if maybe it was someone Nat and Clint had encountered on a mission. “Nat, it's Laura.”
Natasha shook her head, her eyes finally focusing on Laura’s face. “Laura, I-”
Laura cut her off knowing the younger woman was about to apologize for showing up the way that she had. “It’s okay. Clint’s out with the kids, right now they don’t even know you’re here. Why don’t you tell me what happened and let me look at your injuries?” Laura said gently.
Nat nodded. Laura helped Natasha to her feet letting the redhead lean heavily on her as they made their way to the downstairs bathroom. Setting Nat on the closed toilet seat she closed the door and locked it, then opened the closet to pull out the bigger first aid kit Laura jokingly referred to as their superhero kit as Clint kept it stocked with things like local anesthetics, heavy duty pain killers, strong antibiotics, sutures and a small bottle of vodka that Laura had a feeling Clint kept in there for Nat. Turning back to Nat, Laura set the kit down on the edge of the sink taking a moment to observe her friend.
Natasha had at some point since the fall of S.H.I.E.L.D. abandoned her suit in favor of combat boots, jeans, a t-shirt and a leather jacket and had pulled her hair up into a low ponytail. Thinking about it, the casual dress made sense seeing as Natasha’s S.H.I.E.L.D files were probably less than pleasant and more of a reason for people to demand she be thrown in prison. So instead of drawing attention to herself by wearing her Widow suit, Natasha had opted for a less suspicious look. Though the t-shirt and jacket looked as though they had both been put through a paper shredder. “Can you help me with the jacket? I think I cracked a few ribs.” Nat’s soft voice carried in the small bathroom.
Stepping forward Laura helped slide the jacket down Natasha’s shoulders and arms trying to be as gentle as she could so as not to jostle her ribs. “There’s no way this shirt is going to be salvageable. Is it okay if I cut it away?” Laura asked. Nat gave her a nod, still trying to get her thoughts in order.
Laura worked in silence giving Nat the space she needed to process things. Laura winced at the sight of Natasha’s ribs, they were a mix of purple and black bruises that favored the right side. As she took in the injuries she noted what looked to be a bullet wound in her shoulder that had been haphazardly treated. Deciding that that wound was one she needed to focus on first as the other injuries she could see looked to be scratches, Laura pulled on a pair of gloves tossing the ruined shirt in the trash she turned digging through the med kit. Laura reached for a small vial of local anesthetic, when Nat’s voice cut through the silence. “Vodka.”
Laura turned to look at the younger woman. “Nat I need to stitch your shoulder, you should really-”
Natasha cut her off, shaking her head frantically. “No, no, vodka. I don’t do needles.” The frantic undertone to her voice told Laura that this was not something she should push, knowing it probably had something to do with the other woman’s past; she passed Nat the small bottle of vodka.
She watched Nat down half the bottle before the redhead nodded to Laura. Taking the nod as a go ahead, Laura moved towards the younger woman. Pulling gauze pads from the wrappers, she gently poured peroxide over the wound and let it bubble for a few seconds before placing the gauze pads over it and gently wiping at the injury. Had she not been so close to Natasha, Laura probably would have missed the small flinch. Reacting on instinct, Laura pulled the gauze away from the wound and blew softly on it to relieve the stinging. Pulling away to get the sutures and throw away the gauze, Laura noticed Nat’s eyes had closed and she had a small smile playing on her lips. “S’nice.” The younger woman muttered.
Laura smiled. It was rare that they got to see the redhead relaxed like this. “What is?” Laura asked, keeping her voice quiet.
“What you just did. It’s what Melina used to do for us.” The admission caught Laura off guard. She knew the ex-assassin had a troubling past and that said past still haunted Natasha. But this was the second time tonight Nat had mentioned someone who she didn’t recognize.
Laura bit her lip debating for a moment if she should push Nat. Deciding to pry just this once, Laura picked up the package of sutures. “Who’s Melina?”
Nat tensed for a moment, before opening her eyes to stare at the shower curtain. “She was my-” Nat cut herself off with a slight shake of her head, before she spoke again. “She played the role of mother for three years to Yelena and I when we were children for a mission.” She spoke stiffly. Filing the information away, to ask Clint if he knew anything about the two names Laura just nodded her head. Allowing silence to fill the bathroom again as she set to work on Nat’s shoulder.
Twenty minutes later Laura was tossing the remaining suture thread into the garbage and tucking the needle into the used sharps bin that was kept in the med kit. She gently taped a few gauze pads to the wound and stepped back. “Anywhere else?” She broke the silence.
“Nothing except a couple bruised or cracked ribs, but there’s nothing you can do for them.” Natasha said tiredly, her eyes closed and head leaning against the wall.
Laura nodded, pulling out some ibuprofen for Nat to take before tucking the kit back in the closet. “Alright, let’s get you to your room.” Laura told her, moving to Natasha’s uninjured side to help her up.
Nat muttered something in what Laura thought was Russian then relented to Laura’s insistence of help, when she realized that in her state she wouldn’t make it more than a few steps. As they passed the sink Laura pocketed the pill packets to give Nat once she was settled comfortably in bed. Luckily for them, Nat’s room was just off the living room so they wouldn’t have to manage the stairs. Laura wasn’t sure Natasha would make it to the bed without collapsing, much less be able to manage the stairs in her current state. The pair stumbled along slowly, each step drawing a harsh breath or hiss from the Russian woman as her ribs were jarred.
Finally making it to the room, Laura quickly helped the ex-assassin into clean clothes and then into bed. After a small dispute over Natasha taking the medication, one in which the redhead lost when she went to swat the pills out of Laura’s hands with her bad arm and ended up flinching back into the bed as pain radiated through her arm and ribs, Laura kissed her forehead before making her way to the door. Pausing for a moment, she turned to face the younger woman. “I’m glad you came home, Nat.” She whispered.
Natasha’s hoarse voice answered back. “Me too.”
“Call if you need anything. I’ll see you in the morning.” Laura told her, flipping out the light. Nat hummed a response as she let her body relax into the comfortable bed. The feeling of finally being safe for the first time in a few days allowing her to surrender to the sleep she had desperately needed. Laura pulled Nat’s door shut quietly before heading for the front door to rejoin Clint and the kids for a bit, thoughts of the two mystery women Natasha had mentioned, floating through her mind for a brief moment before Lila’s laughter snagged her attention.
“Finally momma!” The girl called from across a roaring fire, a stick clutched in her hand with a burnt marshmallow on the end.
Laura smiled at her, taking a seat next to Clint. “Sorry baby, momma had to take care of something.” Clint shot her a look. One she recognized as his ‘everything okay?’ look. She sent him a small nod and a look of her own telling him they’d talk later.
He responded with his own nod, then pulled a stick from a small pile he had next to him and with a flourish handed it to her. “Coop picked everyone a ‘perfect marshmallow roasting stick.’ Here is yours.” Clint told her with a grin.
Laura took the stick and accepted the marshmallow Cooper was handing her. “Thank you Coop.” She smiled at him. For a brief moment Laura wondered if Natasha had any memories of doing something like this with the woman who had pretended to be her mother. Shaking those thoughts away for the moment she sat back, watching Clint interact with the kids and vowing that she would make sure Nat had good memories with Cooper and Lila to look back on.