Assessing the Possibilities
"Hey, come on!" Peter shook his adopted mother, trying to wake her up from her nap.
Natasha grumbled something under her breath and blinked a few times, looking up at her son. "What is it?"
"We've got shit to avenge, so get your ass up," came a snarky reply from Clint as he tossed her Black Widow outfit on the bed. "This time, it's your home country."
She slowly sat up, letting her red locks fall in her face. "Russia."
Peter watched her closely. "Yeah. Some morons are trying to restart a HYDRA base in Vladivostok. Steve said if you want to sit this one out, you can. He knows how hard it is for you, going back there after...after everything."
A twinge of happiness hit Natasha in the stomach and she felt relieved that Steve was still looking out for her, despite what happened between them earlier. It wasn't really a surprise because he never let interpersonal issues conflict the safety and well being of the team. That's what made him such a good leader.
"Ah, no. I'm fine. I can handle it."
Clint nodded. "Alright. Wheels up in thirty." Then he left.
Natasha turned her gaze to Peter, who had a look of worriment in his eyes. God, the boy really needed to work on his poker face. She chuckled and patted his hand to reassure him. "Stop looking at me like that, Pete. I said I was fine and I meant it."
"Okay. If you're sure..."
"Of course, I'm sure. Now get outta here so I can change." She nudged him playfully.
"Alright." He started to leave, but turned around, remembering what he needed to tell her. "Oh! Um, so I've been kinda dropping hints about your Lorna Doone's and making bets with Bucky about who could have eaten them."
"...you've been making bets?" She raised her eyebrow at him.
"Hey, it's investigative work and I've narrowed the list down to four people."
"Really? Tell me who you've got." Natasha got up and took her catsuit with her to the closet so she could change.
Peter sat cross-legged on the bed. "Wanda, Clint, Vision and Tony."
"Bucky's not on your list?"
"Nah. He hates shortbread, remember? His go-to sugar craving is Honey Nut Cheerios."
Natasha laughed and shimmied out of her skirt. "Cereal. Ha. That's definitely Bucky for you. But why is Vision on your list? He doesn't eat sweets."
"True, and he's the least likely culprit on my list, but he is still learning about humanity. For all I know, he could be playing a joke on you as research or something. Wanda's been teaching him some things and they've been kind of secretive about it."
"That's odd, but I guess anything's possible." Honestly, Natasha wasn't concerned with her stolen cookies at he moment. She just wanted to talk to Steve, but for the sake of helping Peter feel useful, she let him continue.
"Since I already brought her up, it could be Wanda. She's got a playful streak and maybe she just wanted to push your buttons out of boredom. She could have taken your cookies with her weird mind-bending powers. Or she could've accidentally sent them to another dimension."
Natasha stifled a laugh and snickered into her palm. "Another dimension."
Peter's cheeks turned red and he crossed his arms defensively. "Hey, I'm not leaving any conclusions out. That's the smart thing to do."
"Well, that does make sense. Although, it's still hard to wrap my brain around. Go on."
"Clint because he's your best friend and he knows you better than anyone...er, almost anyone. He knows that you'd forgive him, albeit begrudgingly, for eating your cookies and he'd replace them later."
"Yeah, that sums Clint up to a t."
"Then there's Tony. He has a habit of eating everyone's snacks and being all holier-than-thou about it because he likes to be an ass."
Natasha came out of her closet and closed the door, smirking. "Are you quoting me?"
Peter grinned cheekily. "Yeah. Is that alright?"
"Are you kidding? You're too cute." She went over to him and kissed his forehead softly. "Thank you for being my little investigator arachnid. It's sweet."
"No, problem. I have to spend more time with each of them before I can get any specific hints or clues about how and why any of them would steal your cookies. Fortunately, I have a talent for getting people to become chatterboxes, so I believe that I'll have more results tomorrow."
His confidence was refreshing and Natasha couldn't help the feeling of pride that ran through her as her adopted son gave her a happy smile. "I have every confidence in your abilities, Peter."
"And so do I," said a voice that came from behind them, near the door.
Natasha knew that voice anywhere and she swallowed nervously, then turned to face him. Steve stood at the threshold of their bedroom, donned in his Captain America gear sans mask.