Preview to chapter 38 plus a sketch!

(Underground)

Patience is key when it comes to infiltration missions. Waiting for the right opportune moment to make a move, any move, to avoid detection. Natasha had that drilled into her head very early in her life. Not something she enjoys recalling but…

She is around a corner of the base with her partner Silver Sable beside her. Alarms blaring, drowning out any noise they make, soldiers running and shouting, making it difficult to slip by them. They are waiting for the soldiers to run by before they make a move. It took a minute for them to figure out where they were supposed to go after they split up from Spider-Man and Ross. 

Both she and Sable have not interacted with Osborn much, but they do know about him. Psychotic he may be, the man was an industrial titan. A businessman through and through, and one that had the reputation of being a shrewd businessman who perfected the art of sealing deals with contingencies that ensured his survival, no matter if failure lurked at the edge.

So chances are he kept information about the people who invited him into Project Cosmic. It’s reasonable to think that he kept the invaluable information close at hand—not necessarily tucked on his person at all times, but hidden somewhere within easy reach. Hence why they are waiting for the soldiers to pass by, so that she and Sable can go into the madman’s personal quarters. 

There is a very good chance he would have it on his person, if only because he would want to make sure nothing happened to the information during this situation, but it’s also unlikely if only because something could happen to it when he gets involved directly. 

Romanoff doesn’t hear anything else and signals Sable to follow her. They quickly and silently cross the hallway and reach Osborn's quarters. It’s a simple metal door, so picking the lock is a cinch. 

Natasha opens the door, the creak drowned out by the alarms, and enters with Sable following after. Shutting the door they take a quick scan of the room. 

Despite its small size, the space accommodated just enough for a neatly made bed, a compact desk laden with documents and notebooks, and a discreet private bathroom. Every element in the room was meticulously organized: rows of books lined the shelf, notebooks were arranged neatly atop the desk, pencils and pens sat in an orderly cup, and clothes were tucked away in a small, utilitarian closet. 

Making sure there is no surveillance in the room, Natasha quietly speaks up, “Alright, let’s look around. Osborn has to have the information here.”

Without another word, both begin to search the room for anything. Natasha at the book shelf and Silver at the bed desk. Natasha flips through the books while her partner opens notebooks and combs through them. 

“He’s made a lot of notes,” Natasha voices as she flips through the pages of a book. What she has in her hand is Homer's Odyssey, and the notes on the book circle around the Trojan horse idea and Scylla. 

She glances at Silver looking through a notebook with a furrowed brow, “These seem more like the ravings of a madman. And most of it surrounds Spider-Man.” She informs Natasha and shows her. 

The page she sees is jam-packed with words, frantic scribbles on the header, the side columns, and it looks very disorganized. Hell, the page is consumed by a spiraling paragraph, while scattered throughout are crude sketches of spiders with knives though them or with skulls on them. 

Silver turns the notebook back around and continues to turn the pages, “Why is he so obsessed with him?”

A good question. One Natasha does not have an answer to. “I honestly couldn’t tell you,” she voices as she goes back to looking through the books.

“You’re his friend, aren’t you?” Silver inquires as she glances up at her, “Wouldn’t he have spoken with you about these sort of things?”

Natasha pauses for a moment before she responds, “We’re more allies than friends. Our interactions have been limited to missions and such.”

She is of course not including her time as Natalie Rushman. That was a whole other issue.

She hears Sable hum, “I’ve been of the mind, he trusted his fellow heroes. I didn’t realize he was that wary.”

From her tone, Natasha can hear genuinely surprised Sable is by this. She looks at the mercenary with a raised brow, “You’re surprised?”

“Very,” Sable responds, as she goes back to reading the notebook, “I’ve often gotten the feeling he was open to those he considered close friends.”

All true, but that’s just on the surface of things. If Sable was more involved with the Avengers or even Spider-Man, she would know that he is more complicated than that.

“He keeps things close to the chest,” Romanoff informs her as she continues to flip through the books, “From what he’s told us, too many times the people he loves have been put in danger. And too many times, he’s had to fight people he’s trusted with his secret.”

“Hm,” she hears Sable and glances to see have a contemplative expression, “Well, then I am surprised at him for being involved with a thief like the Black Cat.”

Natasha gives a small nod since she can understand that, “I’d like to say it’s typical male instincts in him putting cup size over everything else, but-”

“I don't think he is the sort to do such a thing,” Silver comments. 

Widow gets a small fond smile, “He’s not. He’s the sort to see the best in people, never assume the worst. To the point where he thinks people like myself and Logan are good people.” 

It gets quiet for a moment before Sables voices something, “You have feelings for him.”

Natasha's face returns to her usual neutral state. Damn. She slipped. She let her guard down and Sable saw it. Natasha could just avoid this, say to focus on the mission, but…

“I do,” Natasha confesses to the mercenary, surprising Sable and herself slightly, “I wouldn’t go so far as to say I love him, but I know that I am attracted to him.”

No point in denying it. Especially since her teammates might suspect the same thing. 

Natasha looks at the silver haired woman who now has something of a concerned expression. She can see though, that it’s not over her admission or at the notebook. Her eyes are unfocused and her brows are furrowed. 

Natasha ventures a guess it’s over Spider-Man’s disclosure. “He told me about the kiss you two shared,” the redheaded Russian states, bringing the Symkarian native out of her thoughts, “He also said he told you about his current relationship status. Which is more than complicated.”

Sable looks down at the notebook, unfocused again, and says, “Three women. Such things are usually for men of money and power, to show dominance and superiority.”

“That’s not his reasons,” Natasha states instead of telling her. 

“I should hope not. I would hate to have misjudged him,” she says. She then gets conflicted look on her face, “Still, it is very unusual.”

That is certainly true. When Natasha first heard about the circumstances surrounding Spider-Man’s love life, from Tony’s mass text to every Avenger current and former, to say she was floored is an understatement. She thought Tony was pulling her leg but after confirming with Steve, turns out it was true. The Webhead was in a relationship with three women, Sonja, Hardy, and an unnamed supermodel. 

At first, she thought what many other heroes thought; that Spider-Man wasn’t the upstanding guy everyone believed. The kind of guy that is comparable to Captain America in regards to morals. But the fact that he was having an orgy at the Avengers mansion, essentially breaking the place in in a way that makes Tony proud, makes one question whether or not street hero is a good man. 

But after confirming a few things from Steve and Tony, meeting two of the three women, and then talking to Spider-Man himself, she sees now how genuinely in love he is with the three women. 

She won’t lie, not to herself about this at least, she was heartbroken by this. She recalls hearing about his death against the Rasputin siblings after he rescued her and other Avengers from their hellish imprisonment. She was devastated by this. And it took for him to come back to life for her to discover how she felt about him. 

“In our line of work, usual is unusual for the average person,” Natasha points out. 

Silver raises a brow at her, “Your point?”

Nat closes her eyes and takes a breath, “My point is that he has genuine feelings for you. He said as much. That there is a connection between you two,” she opens her eyes and looks at the mercenary, “Maybe one that’s worth exploring.”

Silver tries to hide it, but Widow can see the hope in her eyes,  “What are you saying? That I should join this harem of his?”

“The only thing preventing you from pursuing anything with him is social norms. And let's be honest, if we cared about social norms, we wouldn’t do what we do. 

That’s almost poetic. 

He didn’t come up with it. Sonja, one of the women he’s involved with, did. 

Silver nods, “That makes more sense. So let me ask a question then,” she looks at the redheaded Russian directly in the eye when she asks, “If offered, would you want to be a part of that?”

That is the question isn’t it. If she were to act on her own feelings, would she want to be a part of that.