i've never been. i kept meaning to check it out, but my social calendar's been a little busy lately.
[ that's all she sends, at first. but then, minutes later, carol's addendum comes, and natasha has to pause too. not because she's editing, but because she's just not sure what to say.
natasha doesn't do emotions. not well, anyway. what she feels for her team is complicated at best — loyalty, guilt, a debt that needs to be repaid. she trusts steve with her life, leans on bruce and tony to provide the skills she could never hope to add to her belt; she's expanded, in the last few years, to trust rhodey and okoye and others when she has to.
but missing people is dangerous. emotions are messy, complicated things; they make it hard to see clearly, to do the job that has to be done, to survive. she's tried not to let anyone under her skin enough to miss them.
and yet. i miss you, plain as day, from a woman a million times stronger than she could have ever hoped to be. it hits her like an anvil. ]
[carol knows the statement is an inconvenience, that it probably threatens natasha's careful compartmentalization of everything in her life, a necessity in her line of work, a necessity during times like these.
she'd considered not sending it, of setting her phone down and turning on the tv to drown herself in a dumb sitcom or anything that might get her mind off the loneliness that came with being out there in the vastness of space, but there was something about having her feet on solid ground, about being home that always made her more contemplative and made it harder to ignore the pull of connections with other people.
in the years since the decimation and despite their very different backgrounds, carol had found plenty in common with natasha. secrets shared over drinks, sometimes spiked, though more often not. cold meals because neither had managed to pick up cooking as a life skill. the bond they'd forged wasn't enough to stay grounded forever, but was certainly enough that leaving got a little harder each time.]
considering, but it's late, isn't it?
[she's already mapped out the distance to the compound, knows that if she rides the currents just right she could be there in maybe an hour.]
i'm waiting on okoye. they're due to hit a weapons shipment in gibraltar at 0800.
[ two am east coast. natasha would be awake until then, at least. she had to be. someone had to be awake in case of emergency, and considering there was no one else in the compound, that someone just had to be her.
does she know what carol's offering? in a sense. companionship's a heady drug to seek after a long stretch of isolation, but it's also addicting — no less so than anything illicit, if you weren't used to it. getting used to another person's company and then going without wasn't an easy thing to cope with.
it also meant it was a lot harder to say no. ]
rocket hooked up space cable on his last visit, but i can't figure out this weird remote. i can pay you in pbj sandwiches if you feel like fixing it.
[she does the math, figures that nat should still be waiting on a status report by the time she touches down. it'll give her enough time to wash up, get comfy and maybe lure nat away from the mind-numbing nature of space reality tv shows. it sounds better than that itchy blanket and a night alone. just like that the decision's made.
carol pulls on her flight suit while trying to fire off a reply. it's only somewhat successful.]
mmm. i see how it is. you only want me for my ability to translate obscure alien languages. but don't worry. i'll fix your tv problem. just don't forget to cut the crust off this time.
[carol makes one last sweep through the safe house, gathering the last of her scant belongings. once outside, she pushes skyward, a long contrail marking her path all the way to nat's base of operations. and within the hour she's touching down on the roof.]
knock knock. hope things haven't gone sideways while i was airborne. and do you mind grabbing the roof access?
[ there's a lot to unpack in you only want me that natasha leaves to the imagination. she doesn't bother to justify her allowance for carol's impromptu visit or the quirk at the corner of her mouth that blooms at the sound of something settling against the blast panels on the roof. ]
friday's got you covered.
[ a set of panels slide out, revealing an opening near the east wall. it dumps into an empty room, a makeshift receiving bay that's seen almost exclusively weird alien tech since rocket started using it for his own devices.
when carol does decide to join the party, she'll find natasha leaned up against the doorway to the receiving bay, a square plate in one hand loaded with the promised no-crust pbjs. ]
[she floats down from the roof with the kind of practiced ease of someone who has done this a million times over. it's a world away from that first crash landing as vers that led her back to being carol once more. she blinks, adjusting to the dimly lit bay before she spies natasha with her casual lean and that promised plate of sandwiches.
her heart swells with something that she's patently refusing to define as she strolls on over, plucking one of the halves from the plate and nibbling on it.
sue her. flying always makes her hungry.]
More like didn't want you having to read about some giant streak across the sky heading straight to this secret base and deal with the fallout.
[she says with a roll of her eyes. discretion and subtlety had never been her strongest suit, case in point how she'd dispatched those kree ships all those years ago — by literally flying into them.
a pause and carol follows it up with a quieter, more concerned comment.]
You look worn out. Tired. Tense. Gimme a bit to get the smog off my skin and you can wrap up whatever with Okoye? Meet up after?
[carol thinks she'd like to rub away the worry lines from natasha's brow, to help relax the tension between her shoulders, hopes nat won't put up too much a fight about it.]
Yeah, well. [ that's because she is all of those things, and more. but she doesn't argue it or deny it, because that's a waste of her time and energy when carol so clearly knows the truth. she's tired. they're all tired. the last few years have been exhausting in all the ways that possibly count. ] We'll see what she has to report.
[ if it doesn't go well, natasha's stress levels are about to skyrocket, and she'll feel a little guilty for dragging carol into that. ]
You know where the showers are.
[ but in case she doesn't, natasha waves helpfully in the appropriate direction. friday keeps things well stocked. ]
[carol calls out over her shoulder as brushes past natasha. if her hips sway a little more than they usually would, well, it's not an accident. that's for sure.
as much as carol loves flying, she loves a hot shower even more. the showers, along with the assortment of bath products, don't disappoint. she stays under the spray, letting the water pressure relax away knots she didn't know she had, until her skin glows red in a way that has nothing to do with her powers.
she dries quickly, a holdover from her days in the airforce, and pulls on a tank top and some lounge pants before padding barefoot back to natasha's office.
she's still chatting away with okoye when carol arrives, so she hovers in the doorway until their call is complete. natasha doesn't look any more distressed than before the call, but it's always hard to judge. her poker face is legendary, after all. still, natasha hasn't said anything since carol strolled in and plopped herself on the corner of her desk so she figures it's up to her to do the heavy lifting.]
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
no subject
i kept meaning to check it out, but my social calendar's been a little busy lately.
[ that's all she sends, at first. but then, minutes later, carol's addendum comes, and natasha has to pause too. not because she's editing, but because she's just not sure what to say.
natasha doesn't do emotions. not well, anyway. what she feels for her team is complicated at best — loyalty, guilt, a debt that needs to be repaid. she trusts steve with her life, leans on bruce and tony to provide the skills she could never hope to add to her belt; she's expanded, in the last few years, to trust rhodey and okoye and others when she has to.
but missing people is dangerous. emotions are messy, complicated things; they make it hard to see clearly, to do the job that has to be done, to survive. she's tried not to let anyone under her skin enough to miss them.
and yet. i miss you, plain as day, from a woman a million times stronger than she could have ever hoped to be. it hits her like an anvil. ]
you planning on stopping by?
no subject
she'd considered not sending it, of setting her phone down and turning on the tv to drown herself in a dumb sitcom or anything that might get her mind off the loneliness that came with being out there in the vastness of space, but there was something about having her feet on solid ground, about being home that always made her more contemplative and made it harder to ignore the pull of connections with other people.
in the years since the decimation and despite their very different backgrounds, carol had found plenty in common with natasha. secrets shared over drinks, sometimes spiked, though more often not. cold meals because neither had managed to pick up cooking as a life skill. the bond they'd forged wasn't enough to stay grounded forever, but was certainly enough that leaving got a little harder each time.]
considering, but it's late, isn't it?
[she's already mapped out the distance to the compound, knows that if she rides the currents just right she could be there in maybe an hour.]
i wouldn't want you to have to wait up for me.
no subject
[ two am east coast. natasha would be awake until then, at least. she had to be. someone had to be awake in case of emergency, and considering there was no one else in the compound, that someone just had to be her.
does she know what carol's offering? in a sense. companionship's a heady drug to seek after a long stretch of isolation, but it's also addicting — no less so than anything illicit, if you weren't used to it. getting used to another person's company and then going without wasn't an easy thing to cope with.
it also meant it was a lot harder to say no. ]
rocket hooked up space cable on his last visit, but i can't figure out this weird remote. i can pay you in pbj sandwiches if you feel like fixing it.
no subject
carol pulls on her flight suit while trying to fire off a reply. it's only somewhat successful.]
mmm. i see how it is. you only want me for my ability to translate obscure alien languages. but don't worry. i'll fix your tv problem. just don't forget to cut the crust off this time.
[carol makes one last sweep through the safe house, gathering the last of her scant belongings. once outside, she pushes skyward, a long contrail marking her path all the way to nat's base of operations. and within the hour she's touching down on the roof.]
knock knock. hope things haven't gone sideways while i was airborne. and do you mind grabbing the roof access?
no subject
friday's got you covered.
[ a set of panels slide out, revealing an opening near the east wall. it dumps into an empty room, a makeshift receiving bay that's seen almost exclusively weird alien tech since rocket started using it for his own devices.
when carol does decide to join the party, she'll find natasha leaned up against the doorway to the receiving bay, a square plate in one hand loaded with the promised no-crust pbjs. ]
You getting slow in your old age?
[ a whole hour. tsk tsk. ]
no subject
her heart swells with something that she's patently refusing to define as she strolls on over, plucking one of the halves from the plate and nibbling on it.
sue her. flying always makes her hungry.]
More like didn't want you having to read about some giant streak across the sky heading straight to this secret base and deal with the fallout.
[she says with a roll of her eyes. discretion and subtlety had never been her strongest suit, case in point how she'd dispatched those kree ships all those years ago — by literally flying into them.
a pause and carol follows it up with a quieter, more concerned comment.]
You look worn out. Tired. Tense. Gimme a bit to get the smog off my skin and you can wrap up whatever with Okoye? Meet up after?
[carol thinks she'd like to rub away the worry lines from natasha's brow, to help relax the tension between her shoulders, hopes nat won't put up too much a fight about it.]
no subject
[ if it doesn't go well, natasha's stress levels are about to skyrocket, and she'll feel a little guilty for dragging carol into that. ]
You know where the showers are.
[ but in case she doesn't, natasha waves helpfully in the appropriate direction. friday keeps things well stocked. ]
no subject
[carol calls out over her shoulder as brushes past natasha. if her hips sway a little more than they usually would, well, it's not an accident. that's for sure.
as much as carol loves flying, she loves a hot shower even more. the showers, along with the assortment of bath products, don't disappoint. she stays under the spray, letting the water pressure relax away knots she didn't know she had, until her skin glows red in a way that has nothing to do with her powers.
she dries quickly, a holdover from her days in the airforce, and pulls on a tank top and some lounge pants before padding barefoot back to natasha's office.
she's still chatting away with okoye when carol arrives, so she hovers in the doorway until their call is complete. natasha doesn't look any more distressed than before the call, but it's always hard to judge. her poker face is legendary, after all. still, natasha hasn't said anything since carol strolled in and plopped herself on the corner of her desk so she figures it's up to her to do the heavy lifting.]
Penny for 'em.