look after you × winterwidow & oc

II. get a grip, romanova

july 2016

"Hey, Shuri, have you seen Ka..." Natasha asked stepping inside the lab and stopping midsentence when she noticed Katya on top of the table, her legs dangling in the air and a pack of chips of some kind in her hand.

"No, I haven't." the princess giggled and winked at Katya who answered with a chuckle, yet her smile faded upon noticing her mom's expression.

Natasha huffed, putting her arms on her hips. "Have you been here the whole time?"

The girl swallowed and smiled sheepishly. "I just wanted to see Papa on my way up and then we started talking and Shuri gave some cool math problems and I lost track of time... And my phone died. I'm really sorry, mama."

Romanoff sighed. She got worried when she returned from work and didn't find Katya home yet. She decided to give her another few minutes but it turned into half an hour, then a whole hour and she started to get worried, especially when the girl didn't pick up any of her calls. Thankfully, she found her in the first place she looked in.

"I'm not angry, I was just worried," Natasha explained and Katya hopped off the desk. Trying not to spill her snacks, she grabbed her backpack, threw it over her shoulder, and crossed the room.

"Bye, Shuri!" she called, waving. The princess waved and stuck out her tongue. Natasha had no idea what this was about but smiled anyway seeing their interaction. "Wait, don't you wanna see Papa?" Katya asked Natasha gesturing at the door behind them.

"I'll come by later," Romanoff assured as they left the lab.

And that was most likely a lie. She wouldn't come by later, just like she hasn't for the past weeks.

It's been three months since they arrived in Wakanda. The dust had already settled, allowing Natasha and Katya to fall into a routine they were still working on. Just like T'Challa informed her at the beginning, they had some time for themselves, to get settled in their temporary apartment and get a grip on their lives back.

Technically, they had nothing, aside what they had on and the clothes were given to them after the initial examination. Even the backpack Katya took with her when leaving the Barton's and going to Norway got lost. Getting a hold of whatever they left in the States would be quite hard and as they were informed, not recommended - it was better no to give Ross any ideas.

They were offered a lot of help in getting back on their feet, but Natasha didn't want to abuse anyone's hospitality. So when after two weeks of doing nothing aside from some much-needed shopping with unfortunately borrowed money, two women knocked on their door, Natasha was relieved.

One of them, whose name was Zakiya, was sent by one of the schools nearby and was supposed to focus on Katya - inform her about everything she needed to know, including a placement test, she would have to take if the evaluation deemed her ready to go to school, regarding her mental state after the recent events.

When the other woman introduced herself, at first it took Natasha by surprise. She worked at an orphanage and wanted to offer her a job there, saying they always need more hands and their only requirements for possible workers were resourcefulness and fondness for kids. Surprising mostly herself, Natasha agreed almost immediately.

They both started next week. Not speaking Xhosa yet wasn't an issue as English was just as commonly used. The fact that it was the middle of a school year, also wasn't a problem. Katya was overjoyed, even more than Natasha expected. It made her happy to see her daughter so excited and yet hurt at the same that to know that it was about something so ordinary like going to school. Even Natasha had that chance before, back in Ohio. Katya never had that chance earlier, but now on the other side of the world, nothing stood in her way anymore.