IC Voicemail, Driftfleet:

[tothefly]

[There is no recording, just a few clicks and a beep.]

[Leave any IC voice messages or texts for Natasha here.]

Comments

Re: action;

[tothefly]

[It's a behavior she recognizes, if only because it's something the three of them share. And that sorrow she sees roll across his face she recognizes because it mirrors something of her own. She'd grown to count on Steve, the last few years. To keep being immutable, unchangeable. He was the standard, the rock, the milestone, and not because she put him on a pedestal. He was just a man, but very possibly the only Good Man she'd ever known.]

Don't try to be him.

[You can't be, the words imply, but also you shouldn't. The Soldier doesn't need that, not here from a man that wasn't Steve. For once, he could use something resembling honesty.

If he didn't come after her, first.]

I won't make promises about the future.

[Slightly abrupt, but he knows what she's saying, and why. If it becomes necessary. Black Widow has always been good at doing what's necessary.]

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I thought you might say that.

​​​​[ Whether he means her first statement or the second, he leaves that ambiguous. Nat said it often, he didn't owe Steve carrying on with Captain America. He didn't have to fight anymore if he didn't want to — but war was all he knew. His fingers curl inwards, slightly, and he looks at her, wearily. ]

Do what you must. ​​​​[ soft, ] Death is sometimes a kindness.

Re: action;

[tothefly]

[Ambiguity is fine, familiar for both of them. Things have almost settled from their earlier flare-up, though there are words she won't forget. Like his last ones. The look she fixes him with is immediate, aware, focused.]

If I didn't know any better, I might be worried you'd go looking for trouble.

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​​​​[ He laughs. ]

Lucky me you do know better.

​​​​[ Troublemaker? Him? That's all Steve. Bucky's expression is briefly fond, and then creases out to his usual. ]

Hey, can I ask you something?

Re: action;

[tothefly]

Mm.

[She doesn't look convinced, by that laugh or by his words. But then, she doesn't know him, not really, even though they've been slowly fixing that, little by little. Still doesn't know what's him and what's am act, what he's picked up from his Natasha, what's there from the Soldier. And the wariness doesn't go away at his question.]

Depends on the kind of answer you're expecting.

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​​​​[ It's a careful balancing act. He can't lie to someone who lies for a living, so he inhabits his duplicity of truths. Perform well enough, and the audience will clap. It's a magician's trick, and he thinks, maybe he has the whole world fooled, and Natasha can get front row seats to the show. ]

​​​​[ His eyes settle on her, concerned. ]

SHIELD. They turned out to be rotten. Are you okay?

​​​​[ She and Peggy — they gave everything. He might not know what that loss feels like precisely, but he knows the pain of losing your whole world in an instant. ]

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[tothefly]

[This again. Questions, caretaking. She doesn't bother to hide the brief flash of irritation on her face, since it's there and gone in a moment--and it serves as warning, as much as it does answer.]

I always land on my feet.

[She's always fine. Always got a backup plan. Always knows that any organization larger than three people is prone to corruption, to weakness. Fury wasn't part of the corruption, and that's enough for her--for her, the relevant power tree ended there.

And she was never really a part of it, to begin with. Always an outside agent. Always one foot out the door.]

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Okay, ​​​​[ he says, quietly, stepping back. This isn't his until it's earned, and the selfish thought that it might be nice to have a friend is just that: selfish. The fingers of his left hand twitch. ] that's — all, I guess.

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[tothefly]

[It would be nice to have a friend. Have just one person in this place she can count on, someone who recognizes who and what she is and doesn't think her a monster for it. But she hadn't earned that. Can't and won't just step into someone else's shoes.

I care about you.

She can't think about that, not now. Not about the fact that they were almost something like friends, or getting there. She doesn't have the luxury, right now. Has to be practical. Instead, she collects herself, puts the mask on, though there's something to her eyes that speaks to everything going on behind it.]

Captain.

[The briefest hesitation. An unspoken thank you, maybe.]

Let me know what happens with the Soldier.

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​​​​[ Only a guess as to the depth of it. The reassuring smile he wants to give her in return becomes a grimace. He straightens up, mirroring Steve's usual Cap posture. ]

I will.

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[tothefly]

[It's not a smile, not really, and that means she doesn't have to offer one in return. It'd be a lie, anyway, and she'd rather not lie to him. There have been no lies in what she's said already, not really. So instead, she acknowledges him with a flicker of her eyes, watches as he heads for the door. And just before he leaves:]

...Be careful.

[She may not need looking after, but she gets the feeling he might. That comment about death isn't sitting right.]

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​​​​[ He stops at the door, and half-turns to her. Speaking of things that don't sit right, this smile doesn't. It's crooked, like some dark shade has taken amusement and is dancing with it. ]

I'm always careful, Romanoff.

​​​​[ He shuts the door quietly behind him. ]