Chapter Text
The arrow slides past her fingertips like a magnet drawn to the metal backing of the target. The thirtieth consecutive bullseye in under sixty seconds. She does a little mental fist bump. She could totally beat Clint’s record.
“Nice one, Kate Bishop.” It’s a distinct Russian curl around her name that has Kate almost dropping her bow. Almost. “That was good form, really good.”
Yelena is perched on the railing wrapping around her apartment roof. One leg bent underneath her, propping her up against the brick, while the other is anchored to the ground. She exudes the same airy confidence she wore the first time she caught Kate off guard in her home.
“Yelena,” Kate says. And nothing else. Like an idiot. Luckily, Yelena takes it like the question it is. She rises away from the railing, stepping towards the makeshift target Kate had set up on top of her apartment. “Yes, it is me, you’re favorite assassin,” she says. The casual ease with which she says these words disorients Kate. “I know, I know. You’re thinking what? Yelena Belova, infamous Black Widow assassin, most beautiful woman I have ever met-” Kate had never voiced that fact but her cheeks heat up just the same. “-here on my roof after beating me so gracefully three months ago?”
Kate didn’t appreciate Yelena’s ability to seemingly read her mind. She knew she wasn’t a hard person to read but the way in which Yelena did it always seemed to put her at an unfair disadvantage. Each time she had interacted with the assassin so far, it felt like tiptoeing through a field of landmines even as the blonde smiled with a teasing lilt in her voice, acting as if they were old friends.
“No need to grip your bow so tight, Kate Bishop,” she says, raising her hands up. “I come in peace.”
“What do you want, Yelena?” Kate’s surprised that her voice sounds so steady. She hasn't seen Yelena in six months, not since Christmas Eve when she had been trying to kill her mentor. But, as Clint had assured her, that was all sorted out. She can’t think of any reason for Yelena to be on her roof tonight of all nights. Before what was probably going to be the most important day in Kate’s life (excluding any possible marriages or offspring).
“I was just in the neighborhood,” Yelena says, smiling at her as if she hung out on Kate’s roof all the time. “Wanted to say hi.” Kate herself felt like she waiting for a bomb to drop.
“Really?”
“Really.”
Kate lifts a skeptical brow. Yelena grins. “Ah, you got me,” she says, sheepishly shrugging her shoulders. “I wasn’t in the neighborhood. I just wanted to see you.”
“Really?” Of all the things Yelena could’ve said, Kate did not expect that.
“Yes, I thought we should celebrate.”
“Celebrate?”
“I heard a certain little hawk is going to be an avenger.”
Kate’s brow furrows. “How did you hear about that?”
It was kinda true. In the absence of Tony Stark and Steve Rogers, Nick Fury was putting together another team. Clint had been the one to call and tell her about it to gauge her interest. To say she was ecstatic was a bit of an understatement. She nearly jumped through her roof.
Yelena quirks her brow at her. “I know many things.”
“Right.”
“For instance, I know your favorite drink is tequila and there’s a bottle waiting on your kitchen counter for us. Along with two new glasses since your kitchenware is lacking.”
***
“Seriously, why are you really here?” Kate’s back is pressed against the edge of the counter, hands folded across her chest as she leans against the solid surface. Yelena has her arms spread out along on the countertop across from Kate, swirling her second glass of tequila in one hand. Kate was still working on her first one and she already felt a buzz warming her around the edges.
Yelena holds Kate’s gaze, keeping her pinned with an unreadable expression as she brings the glass to her lips. Kate’s eyes drop to the bobbing of her throat briefly before sliding back up to find an amused smirk and a dangerous glint in Yelena’s eyes. “To see you. I meant what I said, Kate Bishop.”
That name again. Kate’s name. It had been annoying at first but it had circled around now to just arousing enough that Kate kept getting distracted. It was not something Kate had ever been into before, the repetition of her own name, but each time Yelena spoke it, a drop of excitement slid through her, collecting in the pit of her stomach. By now, there was a whole pond Kate was slowly drowning in.
Maybe the tequila was a bad idea.
“But why?”
“You interest me.”
“Interest you how?”
Yelena straightens, rising up from leaning against the counter. “I have been an assassin almost my whole life,” she says. Kate’s eyes raise into her hairline. That’s definitely not where she thought Yelena was going. “In my line of work, it’s hard to let loose without fearing for my life. I can’t blow off steam like others might be able to, with anonymous strangers or trusted friends. This kind of life doesn’t provide me with that privilege.”
“Right, right,” Kate says, nodding her head. “When you say blow off steam, you mean?”
“Sex.”
“Uh-huh,” Kate says. “I’m sorry, I think I’m missing something. What does this have to do with me?”
Yelena raises a brow as if the answer were obvious. “We might not be best friends, Kate Bishop, but I trust you.”
“You do?” Kate can’t help the beam of pride that flares up in her chest.
“Mostly.”
“Okay.” Dots were starting to connect in her head. A growing realization partnered with a specific kind of dread overtook Kate. “So you wanna…have sex with me?”
Yelena’s face brightens in relief, happy that Kate was finally catching on. “Yes,” she says. “I thought the flirting would be enough for you but it’s okay. Not everyone can be as perceptive as me.”
Kate decides to let that one go. She has more pressing issues to deal with than arguing her deductive reasoning skills.
“I, uh, I don’t- I don’t know-”
“Ah, Kate Bishop.” There’s her name again. And there was that feeling in her stomach, letting her know exactly why this was a bad idea. “What’s a little sex between friends?”
“Uh, I don’t have sex with my friends. Usually.”
“Usually.”
“Yeah.”
“Can’t make an exception for me?”
Kate can only blink, her mouth dry and no words coming to mind. When did they become friends? Kate must’ve missed that bit in between Yelena kicking her ass across a whole floor of a building and attempting to kill her mentor.
Yelena smirks, chuckling. “Still so funny, Kate Bishop. You should see your face. I’m only kidding.” Yelena rounds the corner of her kitchen counter, placing her empty glass in the sink. “If you don’t want to have sex with me, that’s okay.”
“It’s not that I don’t, it’s just-”
Yelena turns to lean against the sink, now only a couple feet between them as she waits for Kate to gather her thoughts. Which are racing like bottle rockets through her head, unable to form any cohesive sentiment as Yelena’s shirt rides up, revealing a sliver of midriff.
“Why me?” Kate asks. It’s only one of a dozen questions flitting through her mind but Kate needs to know. Does Yelena want her or just someone to keep her bed warm? For some reason, the answer matters to Kate. She has no problem with casual sex. Hell, she’s had a few one night stands where she barely remembered their first name. But the thought of being just a body to Yelena perturbed her for some reason.
Yelena closes the distance between them until there’s no space between their bodies. She cups Kate’s jaw, angling her head downwards to meet her gaze. She hopes Yelena can’t hear her swallow. “Because you are funny, gorgeous and very charming in spite of your adoration of Clint Barton.” Everything in her expression tells Kate she’s being genuine. “I’m very attracted to you and,” her eyes drop from Kate’s face to slide down her body. She takes her time going over every inch of her, Kate flushing under the blatant inspection. “I believe you’re attracted to me too.”
Kate nods, not trusting herself to speak.
“That’s what I thought.” Yelena’s other hand is planted on Kate’s hip, as if holding her upright. “I think you also want to have sex with me but if I’m wrong, I’ll respect your decision and leave.” Her hold on Kate is delicate, as if a breeze could brush away her hands from Kate’s body at any second. “Just say the words, Kate.”
It’s the single Kate , sans her last name, that does it for her. Her forehead falls against Yelena’s. Kate can feel Yelena’s breath brush against her lips. “What does this mean?”
Kate can feel rather than see Yelena smirk. “Don’t think about it too hard, маленький ястреб.”
Yelena’s kiss is rough. It’s aggressive and searing and melts Kate from the inside out, her knees almost buckling as Yelena grips a fistful of her shirt. Kate is shoved against the closest wall, groaning into Yelena’s mouth on impact. She takes the opportunity to slide her tongue past Kate’s lips, earning another moan. Kate’s hands anchor themselves on her hips, desperate for a place to steady herself. Yelena holds her against the wall for a few more moments, nipping at her jaw, until she’s tugging her towards the staircase. She pulls back from Kate’s lips and Kate tries to follow her with a whimper. Yelena’s smirk only heightens the arousal coiling in her stomach. “Watch your step,” she says. “Wouldn’t want you to break anything before I’ve gotten to taste you.”
Kate almost whimpers again but, still reeling with embarrassment from the first instance, remains silent. She follows Yelena up the stairs on shaky legs.
It’s been a while since the last time Kate got laid. In between her mom’s trial, prepping to be an avenger, and taking on a figurehead role in Bishop Security, Kate had had a lot on her plate the last few months. She’s been wound up tighter than the elastic on Hulk’s underwear for a while. Which is why there’s already an abundance of moisture building between her legs as she follows Yelena eagerly up the stairs.
Her room is a mess. She hasn’t done laundry in almost two weeks. The clothes chair in the corner of her room is atrocious, threatening to tip over and spill an avalanche of semi-clean shirts and pants across the floor. But Yelena doesn’t seem to give her room more than a passing glance as she pulls Kate towards her. They stumble into Kate’s dresser which knocks against the wall with a resounding thud. Yelena lets out a moan that has Kate gripping her hips with renewed vigor. Her hands tangle in Kate’s hair, holding her possessively as she licks into her mouth. She pulls back, eyes dark and hungry.
“Take off your clothes,” she says.
Without a second thought, Kate is pulling her t-shirt over her head while trying to shrug off her pants. Yelena’s hands go to her waist. One hand unbuttons her jeans while the other holds Kate by the hip, keeping her upright as she hops out of her pants. Kate is left in just her sports bra and boy shorts when Yelena pulls her back in. “Good girl,” she says. Kate can’t help the sound that escapes her, something like a whimper from deep within her chest. It's a surprise to Kate. She doesn’t ever remember making that sound before.
Yelena grins, hand fisted in Kate’s hair again. “I thought you’d like that.”
“You did?”
"I made an educated guess,” she says, leaning to press her forehead against Kate’s. “Issues with your mother, overachiever, heroic aspirations….” Yelena’s fingers tighten in Kate’s hair, earning a groan from her. She smirks. Kate feels it in her knees. “Do you want to be good for me, Kate Bishop?”
More than anything . The thought is immediate and surprising but Kate keeps it to herself. Yelena already has more power over Kate than she’s comfortable with, especially with her hands on her body, telling Kate exactly what she wanted her to do. It would only inflate her ego more to know exactly how desperate Kate was to please her at the moment. And she hadn’t even touched her yet.
All Kate can do is nod her head. That seems to be enough for Yelena.
“On your knees,” she says, the firmness of her voice running down Kate's back and collecting between her thighs.
Kate drops to her knees without hesitation, watching as Yelena strips off her shirt above her. Beautiful, tan skin, littered with scars, is on display before Kate. There’s a jagged red line below Yelena’s belly button that disappears beneath the waistband of her jeans. Kate has the urge to lean forward and trace the mark with her tongue. But she restrains herself, getting the sense that Yelena was in charge now and any movement would require her permission.
She glances up, meeting Yelena’s amused gaze. “Are you just gonna stare or are you gonna put that mouth to good use?”
Kate makes quick work of Yelena’s zipper. She pulls the fabric down her thighs, tugging it off, until Yelena is completely naked before her. Kate’s eyes drag over every inch of bare skin. Yelena’s hand curls along the back of Kate’s head, tilting her gaze up towards her again. She lifts a brow as if to say well?
The sound Yelena makes when Kate dives in between her thighs is devastating. Kate can feel it go straight between her own legs as she licks along her entrance. Kate would normally ease her way into sex much slower, taking her time with foreplay before barreling straight ahead into the thick of it. But, with Yelena’s fist in her hair and the sounds leaving her mouth, Kate gets the idea that she wouldn’t want to be kept waiting. And she seems to be right.
With her hand in Kate’s hair, Yelena guides her to where she wants her the most. With Yelena’s moans driving her, Kate feels an insatiable urge to please. She wants nothing more than to push Yelena over the edge, right there, on her tongue.
Kate holds the back of Yelena’s thighs as she breathes her in, savoring her taste. She’s still propped against Kate’s dresser, the wood creaking against the wall with every sharp twitch and thrust from Yelena. Kate’s tongue circles around her clit. “Блядь, Kate,” Yelena hisses, thighs tensing underneath Kate’s hands. "So good.” Kate laps up the praise, increasing her pace as Yelena opens her legs wider for her.
“Such a good girl.” Kate whimpers, the pressure at the base of her skull increasing the tension already building between her own legs. The sound seems to egg Yelena on as she twitches against Kate, pulling her in with more urgency. Her noises increase as she greedily meets Kate’s mouth, bucking against her tongue. It only takes a few minutes before her whole body slackens against the dresser and Kate is lapping up whatever she can while she’s still between her legs.
Yelena’s hand loosens in Kate’s hair, sliding from the base of her skull to the edge of her jaw. She angles Kate’s chin up to meet her gaze. Kate gets the feeling that she enjoys being above her like this. Kate can’t say she’s not a fan as well. “Very good, маленький ястреб. Now it’s my turn.”
Yelena helps her up and guides her towards the bed. Her movements are much more controlled than Kate’s, steady and sure. Her hands move along Kate’s body with purpose. Kate groans as her mouth nips at her earlobe, making a trail along her neck, down towards her chest. “How do you want me, Kate Bishop?” Yelena asks against her collar bone. Kate’s brain is lagging, still caught up in the feeling of Yelena’s thighs tight around her head. The taste of her is still hot in Kate’s mouth.
Yelena nips at her skin the same time as a thumb flicks at her nipple. Kate hisses at the sensation. “Hmm?” She asks again.
“Anyway you want,” she says. Kate can barely get the words out as a thigh slots between her own; hard, solid muscle coming up against her center.
“What’s the magic word?”
Kate could die. She really could and it’d be the assassin’s fault. “Yelena,” she pants, hands fisting her sheets.
She chuckles against Kate’s chest. “Not quite,” she says. Her tongue flicks out to circle her nipple, moaning into her skin.
“Please,” Kate says, everything coiled up and ready to implode inside of her. She’s already so close and Yelena hasn’t even really touched her. “Please, just-”a moan cuts her off, Kate canting her hips up for any friction she can get. Yelena watches the display with a smug amusement. “Please, just touch me.”
“As you wish, милая.”
A hand covers Kate’s breast as Yelena kisses a path down her stomach. Her other hand holds Kate’s hip down into the bed as she settles in between her legs. Kate swears her heart is about to thump out of her chest as Yelena lowers her mouth, keeping her eyes on Kate the whole time.
Kate breaks the gaze as Yelena licks through her folds, tossing her head back. She spends an agonizing amount of time seemingly just lavishing in the taste of Kate. Kate bucks her hips, trying to find some relief, but Yelena’s hands are firm around her thighs, holding her in place. Kate can only whimper in agony.
But Yelena seems to take pity on her. A hand loosens around Kate’s thigh as Yelena lifts her head up. Kate groans at the loss of contact. “I’m going to use my fingers, okay?” she says. Kate only nods. She’ll take whatever Yelena wants to give her.
Yelena ease back down between her legs, tongue focusing on her clit as two fingers slide into her easily. “Fuck,” Kate says, on the precipice of the kind of orgasm that shatters worlds. She pants Yelena’s name repeatedly, not knowing anything else except the swipe of her tongue and the pressure of her fingers.
Yelena curls her fingers and Kate’s gone. Her body tightens as she tumbles over the edge, Yelena helping her ride it out. When the final tremors leave her body, Kate glances down to see Yelena still between her legs, grinning up at her.
“You’re not tired already, Kate Bishop?” Yelena asks, a mischievous grin revving Kate up again.
“No. No, ‘course not,” Kate says. “Just give me a second to catch my breath.”
***
“That was…” Kate trails off, unsure how to put into words every orgasmic sensation that had ran through her body in the last few hours.
“I know,” Yelena says, turning on her side to face Kate. She lifts her arm to rest her head on her palm, staring down at Kate with a satisfied grin. “I’m very good.”
Kate chuckles. “Yeah, you are,” she says.
Yelena leans down, grin turning lecherous. “You were also good, Kate Bishop.” Warm breath tickles Kate’s neck before a tongue starts tracing her earlobe. “Very good.”
Kate tries to laugh off the sudden desire coiling in her stomach but it turns into a groan as Yelena’s teeth nibble at her skin. Her hand snakes across Kate’s stomach, trailing up her chest. Yelena shifts until her whole body is covering Kate’s, both of her wrists held within Yelena’s grip. “I’m not done with you yet.”
Kate glances at the clock on her bedside table even though she already knows it’s going to be an ungodly hour. She’s right and she hates herself for what she’s about to say. “Tomorrow is my first day at the compound,” Kate says. “I have to get up in like five hours.”
“If you’re quick, we can make it four,” Yelena says. Kate rolls her eyes.
“Kate Bishop,” Yelena loosens her hold on Kate’s wrist, one hand holding her up over Kate while the other trails down her body. “You’ll be training for who knows how long and when will I get to see you next? This might be the last time I can do this-” A finger runs through the fresh wetness that had quickly gathered between Kate’s legs. “Fuck,” Kate hisses, every rational and responsible thing in her brain being replaced by the sensation of Yelena’s finger. “You make a good point.”
“I know.”
“You’re such a bad influence.”
“Yeah, but you like me.”
***
Kate wakes up in bed, groggy and alone. Her phone alarm is going off and someone is knocking on her door. Turning off her alarm, she sees a text from the driver that was supposed to meet her downstairs five minutes ago. Kate was right, that last round was a bad idea but she can’t find it in herself to regret it as she sees the evidence of Yelena’s visit in her bedroom mirror. What an unexpected send off before Avengers training. Luckily, all the visible marks Yelena left on her body were able to be covered with a sweater.
Kate hurries into a pair of shorts and a hoodie from her laundry chair as the knocking continues. “Coming!” she shouts as she scrambles down the stairs, still half asleep.
She opens her front door to see a middle aged man in a suit behind it. “Miss Bishop?” he asks.
“Yeah.”
“I’m Happy Hogan, here to escort you to the Avengers compound.”
“Great, just, uh,” Kate glances down at her shorts then back into her apartment. “Give me a second, please? Sorry, thank you.” She shuts the door as politely as she can before racing back up to her bedroom.
Great, Kate was already making a stellar impression.
Luckily, she had already packed her bag the night before. A duffle sat on her living room couch, ready to be grabbed as Kate shimmied into her cleanest pair of pants and her t-shirt from the previous night. She really should’ve done laundry. But all her clean clothes were already in the duffle. On top of the bag, Kate finds a still-warm breakfast burrito and a note folded beneath it. Written in elegant scrawl: Good luck, little hawk.
***
Kate can’t get her leg to stop bouncing in the car. She doesn’t stop fidgeting even as the car pulls up to the compound, a large sprawling mass that Kate only gets a glimpse of as they park in some kind of driveway. Happy opens her door and she can feel her heart pounding painfully in her chest. This feels like the first day of freshman year except a hundred times worse. She trails behind Happy as they walk into a building where the whole front wall is floor to ceiling windows. Very sleek and modern. Probably bulletproof or something or otherwise a massive safety oversight for the Avengers headquarters.
They walk into some kind of lobby with plastic shrubs and doctor’s office furniture scattered around the room. There’s a desk at the far end with a blonde woman sitting behind it, a headset wrapped around her head. “Hey, Sheryl,” Happy says as they walk past the desk. She gives them both curt nods and a smile. The only other person in the room is a boy in a hoodie and a backpack, standing slightly to the right of the desk. He looks about as anxious as Kate feels.
“Happy,” he says once he notices them, relief evident in his voice.
“Peter,” Happy nods, a fond smile on his face as they approach him. “This is Kate.” He gestures back and forth between them. “Kate, Peter. Peter, Kate.”
Peter’s eyes latch onto her, wide with recognition. “You’re the new Hawkeye, right? I saw a video of you taking down the tree and actually fighting like, the whole tracksuit mafia. That was so cool. Are you here for the, uh, the thing also? ‘Cause that’d be really-”
“Peter,” Happy interrupts. “Cool it.”
“Sorry,” Peter says, smiling sheepishly as he looks between Happy and Kate. “Just a bit nervous, I guess.”
“Yeah, well, this is small potatoes compared to when you fought Captain America,” Happy says, leading them down a corridor. They fall in step behind him and Kate turns to stare at Peter. “I’m sorry, you did what?”
***
Happy leads them down several hallways and one elevator ride before they enter what looks like an apartment. It’s a nice space, already furnished like a showroom at IKEA. A large window in the living room area looks out at the sky and the wilderness surrounding the compound. Only trees and dirt for miles and miles. Something that Kate wasn’t used to. “This is where you’ll be staying,” Happy says, leading them around another corner. “There’s ten bedrooms in this place, all spaced out from one another, so you kids don’t kill each other.” Kate and Peter glance at one another, following Happy. “There’s also ensuite bathrooms so you’re welcome.”
They stop abruptly in the middle of a hall with doors on either side of them. “Pick whichever room you want, you kids get first dibs since you’re the first two here.” He turns back around, leaving Peter and Kate in the hall. “Don’t follow me, I have other work to do. You should be able to figure out how everything in this place works yourselves. If you have any questions or need any help, you have my number.” They listen to his steps fade away until it’s just the two of them left in awkward silence.
“So this is pretty cool, huh?” Peter says. He radiates awkward little brother energy and Kate is immediately endeared by him. She feels the urge to ruffle his hair but restrains herself since they’re basically strangers.
“Yeah, this is awesome,” Kate says. His face lights up at Kate’s shared enthusiasm.
Peter grabs the door knob closest to him and eases it open. The room is pretty bare except for two dressers, a desk, and a tv mounted on the wall. Against the far wall is a bed made up with sheets almost as nice as the one’s Kate had at home. “I guess this is my room?” Peter says, dumping his backpack onto the floor.
Kate, deciding they were going to be friends, sets up her stuff in the room across the hall from Peter’s. He doesn’t seem to have brought that much stuff so he wanders into Kate’s room after dumping the contents of his backpack onto his bed. He keeps her company as she unpacks and reveals his super identity to her.
(“You’re spider-man! But you’re like sixteen.”
“Nineteen, actually.)
They trade origin stories and bond over their shared adoration of the Avengers.
“So you’re like Hawkeye’s mentee?”
“Eh,” Kate shrugs, setting her regular arrows onto her desk. “More like I’m basically the new Hawkeye. I mean, Clint’s retired and he gave me the name so I’m pretty sure I’m just Hawkeye now.”
“That’s so cool.”
“I know, right?”
“Do you have any trick arrows?”
“Are you kidding me?” Kate scoffs, going to her duffle bag. “Of course, I have trick arrows. I’m not an amateur.” There were definitely arrows Clint had deemed too dangerous or too tempting (whatever that meant) but Kate decided to keep that to herself.
The unpacking of her clothes gets derailed by the bundle of trick arrows she spreads out on her desk. She watches Peter look them over in awe. He immediately launches into a dozen questions that Kate can only partially answer because she’s not a mechanics geek like Peter. They’re disassembling an arrow so Peter can take a look inside when the sound of footsteps and a slew of voices reaches them. They glance at each other. Kate follows Peter out of her room and towards the voices.
In the living room, there were five people glancing around the place, looking about as clueless as Kate had felt when she had first arrived. All movement stops once the others notice Peter and Kate. Awkward silence permeates the room as they all glance at one another until a brown-haired boy, holding the hand of the muscly blond beside him, clears his throat. “I’m Billy,” he says with a little wave. “I’m a witch.” He glances at the blond boy beside him, nudging him with his elbow.
“Teddy,” the blond says. He brings his hand up in a small wave. “Since we’re sharing, apparently, I’m a shapeshifter.” He rubs at the back of his head, thinking. “Technically, I’m half-kree, half-skrull, but I don’t know if you guys know what that means.” Kate did not. “Oh, I also have super strength.”
There’s another blond boy on the other side of Teddy, almost identical to Billy except for his nearly white hair. His expression was tired as if he were already done with this. He rolls his eyes as Billy and Teddy who look at him expectantly. He sighs, nodding his head towards the semi-circle they had formed. “Tommy,” he says. “I can run really fast and blow shit up.”
The girl beside him looks around Kate’s age. “I’m Cassie,” she says. “My dad’s ant-man so I basically just do what he does.”
“Eli,” the next guy says. He holds himself up with a certain stoic confidence that reminds Kate of a soldier. He explains how his grandfather was the first super soldier, before Steve Rogers, and how he had inherited some of his abilities.
The next one up is Peter. “Hi, I’m Peter,” he says, sticking his hands into his hoodie pockets, rocking on the balls of his feet. “And I’m Spider-Man.”
There was a ripple of surprise through the group. But no one asked any follow up questions. They were waiting for Kate to introduce herself. She suddenly became aware she was the only person in the group who didn’t have some kind of superpower. Which was fine. Clint and Natasha had never had superpowers either. And neither did Yelena. It was one of the main reasons Clint was her idol in the first place, taking on gods and aliens with just a stick and string. She didn’t need anything but the skills she had worked hard to earn. Clint told her just that often.
“I’m Kate,” she says. “I guess I’m the new Hawkeye.” She almost cringed at how lame she sounded but that’s what came to her mind first. She didn’t wanna say that she was just really good with a bow and arrow. That sounded unimpressive even to her.
She could see a few raised brows from the new people around her. Well, everyone raised a brow (except Peter) but at least Billy and Cassie tried to hide it. Eli didn’t try to mask his skepticism at all. Which was, first off, rude. Peter had actually fought with the Avengers multiple times, in space , and had been impressed with Kate as he should’ve been. She couldn’t see what Eli’s problem was. Sure, she didn’t have super strength but she could damn sure take Eli out from far enough away that he’d never see it coming. Not that Kate would ever actually hurt another teammate.
Any further Introductions were cut off when a voice, coming from no speakers Kate could see, announced that they were due in the training room. Since Peter apparently had been there before, he led the way.
***
“Your objective is simple,” Maria Hill says. “Don’t die and stick together.”
The simulation around them changes. Soot and embers cover everything. They’re in some kind of fiery debris, what looks like what’s left of a city block in the aftermath of some disaster. It reminds Kate of what Manhattan looked like after the Battle of New York.
In an instant, it becomes clear that their main obstacle is the large, monstrous green men barreling towards them. Everyone rushes into action without hesitation. Kate can only think of Maria’s words. Don’t die and stick together.
She glances around at her teammates. Everyone is preoccupied with at least two or three of the green men. Peter is too busy shooting webs across the sky to notice the two coming up behind him. “Peter,” Kate shouts. The arrows are out of her quiver and sliding into their chests in an instant. “Duck!”
Two arrows are impaled in their bulky shoulders, sending them to the ground. “Holy-” he glances over at Kate, out of breath. “Thanks!”
Kate spends a few more minutes covering Peter and everyone else within her view when the simulation melts away back to the training room. Maria Hill stares down at them, unimpressed.
“You didn’t stay together,” she says. “Eli was turning up eighth while you all were still back here.” The boy in question is a few yards away from them, obviously having left them behind. He manages to look mildly irritated. “Run it again,” she says.
***
They go through six more training scenarios, only just barely managing to stay together during the last one. And they had only managed to stay together because they had been backed into a corner, too close to wander off from one another. Kate hasn’t even seen Nick Fury yet. It’s only Maria Hill standing at the railing above them, looking them over with an intense scrutiny that Kate tries her best not to focus on.
Her arms are threatening to fall off by the time the simulation ends. Everyone is covered in soot and sweat. Peter has a cut on his forehead. And they didn’t even manage to take out all the green guys. It was like a hellish version of varsity basketball tryouts, waiting to see who was gonna get cut from the team and who was gonna make it. Although Kate wasn’t sure if anyone could be ‘cut’ from the team at this point. She wasn’t really sure what the rules were. She had only skimmed the paperwork they had sent her, mainly just signing her name on every dotted line she could see.
Nick Fury walks onto the platform to join Maria Hill above them. He looks down at them with an unreadable expression, hands held behind his back. Kate thinks she hears Peter audibly swallow.
“Run it again,” he says. Kate can feel their silent, collective groan.
***
It feels like boot camp. Not that Kate has ever been to boot camp. The closest she ever came was the particularly hard ass, drill-sergeant-esque Jiu Jitsu instructor she had had throughout middle school. But this was a hundred times worse than that. Kate didn’t even get snack breaks.
She doesn’t know how long they’re in the training room for but she knows that by the time they limp out of there, they’re all bruised, sorely in need of a shower, and too tired to talk to one another. Except for Peter.
“Do you think we can be cut from the team?” he asks, glancing at Kate. But Eli responds before she can. He scoffs, a little annoyed sound that irritates Kate. “What? Like this is varsity basketball?”
“It’s a fair question,” Cassie says from somewhere behind Kate.
“Probably,” Tommy says. “I’m thinking Nick Fury wouldn’t want a liability in his new pet project.”
With that delightful comment, Peter and Kate part to their respective bedrooms while the others grab their stuff still laying out in the living room and search for a room to claim.
***
The next month, they spend every day pretty much the same way. They all wake up at varying times. Billy and Teddy are dressed and eating breakfast by eight a.m. Kate is barely getting out of bed by eleven. Everyone else wakes up sometime between. By noon, they’re all due in the training room where they spend six to eight hours running through varying simulations or practicing their own individual skills. After they’re dismissed, usually with a grimace from Maria Hill, the rest of the night is theirs to do whatever they want with. Which usually means movie nights with Peter in Kate’s room. Usually, Cassie joins them. Sometimes Tommy too. Eli keeps his distance for the most part. Billy and Teddy are cool, Kate gets along well with them, but, understandably, they spend the limited time they have outside of the training room wrapped up in each other. It’s mostly cute if not a little irritating since it reminds Kate of her glaring loneliness and the fact that the last time she had sex was with a certain blonde assassin she hadn’t anticipated missing as much as she does.
The routine of grueling, all day training sessions continues uninterrupted for six weeks straight until, instead of the training room, they’re summoned to a meeting room. It’s a room encased in glass walls with a large, circular table sitting in the middle of it. At the front of the room, Nick Fury and Maria Hill stand at the head of the table. “Congratulations, you have a mission,” he says. “What’s left of the avengers are busy handling a threat elsewhere which means you seven are going to handle the b level supervillain tearing up Manhattan.”
“Right now?” Peter asks.
Fury gives him a look. “Yes, if that fits into your schedule, Spider-Man,” he says. “Right now.”
***
They haven’t learned how to communicate as effectively as Maria and Fury want them to, Kate knows. But still, they have some flow between them to work with. Sure, Eli still heads off on his own sometimes impulsively, without telling anyone. And Tommy is a little trigger happy with his explosions. But, overall, none of them have died within their simulations in the last week and Cassie only got left behind once. Which was real progress for them.
On the jet ride into the city (because that’s how they get places now, apparently), they get a rundown of the guy terrorizing Manhattan. Specifically, a city block where a very big bank was located. A guy named The Jester that Kate had never heard of but apparently was one of Daredevil’s regulars.
“We should come up with a plan, right?” Peter says, anxious energy flooding the air around him.
“Yeah,” Eli says. “Okay, we should-”
Kate’ll be honest. She was only half-listening to Eli. She was mostly focused on not getting into a bickering match with him, something they often did since it was clear neither of them liked being told what to do, especially by each other. But Kate swallowed her irritation for the team since no one else seemed to be having a problem with his plan. Kate could suck it up for their first mission. She could be a team player.
They touch down on the roof of the bank. As they deboard the jet, Kate silently hopes their first mission doesn’t end in chaos and humiliation. Her year has been rough enough already.
***
Their mission ends up with everyone alive, the Jester in handcuffs and a nasty bruise on Kate’s hip. Could’ve been worse, all things considered. The news crews and their cameras are flocking the streets as soon as they leave the building. None of them seem to know what to do but stand in shock for a moment as lights flash in their eyes and a barrage of questions are shouted at them. Tommy is the first one to snap out of it. Kate sees him grin at the cameras then wrap his arm around her shoulders. His other arm wraps around Billy, who’s standing on the opposite side, pulling him in closer.
“Say cheese, guys,” he says. “This is gonna be all over the internet in about three seconds.”
That springs the rest of them into action. Everyone seems to strike some awkward pose or facial expression. Kate just smiles, thinking back to the galas and red carpets of her childhood when the who's who of the New York socialite scene would get their pictures taken at every black tie event. She’s had enough practice faking smiles for it to be a reflex at this point. Peter, Billy and Teddy seem to squirm and shrink under the attention. Eli is just grimacing. Cassie waves as she smiles, almost like a Disney princess.
***
Tommy is right. It’s all over the internet. The minute they get back on the jet Kate’s phone vibrates with an onslaught of notifications. It doesn’t stop the whole flight. She gets a barrage of messages from people she doesn’t even know on every social media platform she has. Before they land, she turns off her phone. Maybe not wearing a mask was a bad idea. But it was too late now.
They get off the jet and reconvene in the meeting room once again. Fury and Hill are waiting for them. They go over point by point what happened in agonizing detail. Fury grills them on what they should’ve done versus what they did. Kate feels like she’s back in high school, getting reprimanded by her chemistry teacher for not understanding the assignment. She supposes there’s comfort in the fact that it’s a shared chastising, scolds doled out equally to everyone around the table. At least they’re getting chewed out as a team . When Fury is finally finished, he stands back and it feels as if the whole room takes a breath.
“That being said,” he says, hands clasped behind his back. “You did good today. No one died and that’s all Hill and I could’ve hoped for. As a treat, you guys get the long weekend off.”
Everyone blinks at him, uncomprehending. He rolls his eyes. “Even heroes need breaks. And you guys finally get one,” he says. He raises his finger at them, stressing his next words. “But I want you all back here in three days. Do you hear me? Three days. If any of you are not in that training room by noon on Monday, well, you don’t want to find out what’ll happen.”
He dismisses them. Kate files out of the room with the rest of the team, still in a daze over the last few hours. She was gonna need some ice packs and a shower.
“A break?” Cassie asks. “Does this mean we get to go home?”
“He said be back in three days,” Teddy says.
“That implies we’d have to be somewhere else for those three days,” Billy says.
“Well, I’m gonna go visit my grandma,” Eli says as they enter the apartment. They all glance at him. “What?” he asks.
“I didn’t peg you for a grandma’s boy,” Billy says. “But on second thought, I can totally see it.”
A blush falls over Eli’s face. He waves them off and stalks off to his room.
“Well, I’m gonna go home,” Kate says. “I have a Netflix que to catch up on.” And maybe a beautiful assassin waiting for me . Although Kate tries not to get her hopes up.
“Same. Wonder if Fury will let me use the jet to get back to San Francisco,” Cassie says. “What about you, Peter?”
He shrugs, looking away from them as they turn the corner towards their bedrooms. “ ‘M probably gonna just stay here.”
Kate glances at him, brows furrowed. “What?” She asks. “Why?”
He shrugs, attempting a smile. “It’d just be easier,” he says. Kate can tell he’s withholding something. She can’t imagine what since it seemed like he had told her everything about himself within their first hour of meeting. But Kate doesn’t push him on it.
“Well, if you get tired of this place, you can stop by my apartment any time,” she says. “I’m not gonna be doing anything but watching TV.” If Yelena doesn’t show.
He smiles, rubbing the back of his neck. “Okay,” he says. “Maybe. Thanks, Kate.”
“No problem,” she says, ruffling his hair. He shoves her off and she cackles as they continue down the hall.
***
Happy drives her back to her apartment that night. Her body is sore and there’s still rubble in her hair but the relief that fills her as she unlocks her front door is unparalleled. It feels good to be back in her own home, in a place that was completely hers. Kate was glad everyone had their own bathroom at the compound. She didn’t want to imagine what it would be like otherwise. They barely managed not to chew each other’s heads off when sharing the kitchen in the morning. Well, it was mainly Eli and Kate, Eli and Tommy, and Cassie with anyone who talked to her before she ate her two bowls of Honey Combs.
Billy, Teddy, and Peter were all easy to get along with. Teddy even cooked breakfast for them most mornings. What a sweetheart.
Kate threw her bag onto the kitchen table and fell down face first onto her couch. She exhales deeply into the cushion, which smells faintly of pizza and Febreeze, and basks in the silence for a few moments.
“Long time no see, Kate Bishop.”
Kate wrenches herself into an upright position. Her hand reflexively tightens on the knife in her pocket but relaxes as soon as she registers the voice. “Yelena,” she says, looking at the blonde leaning against her table.
She’s grinning at Kate, looking entirely too attractive with the cocky gleam in her eye. “You kept me waiting long enough,” she says. “I missed you.”
Kate furrows her brow. “How did you know I was coming back?” Although Kate had been hoping to see her, it was a little concerning that she was already in her apartment. But only a little.
“I put a tracker in your phone.”
“You put a tracker in my- Wait, did you say you missed me?”
Yelena grins. “Yes to both questions.”
“You can’t just track me!”
“Why not?”
“Because-” Kate’s arms flail about her and Yelena watches her with amused eyes. “Because I’m an Avenger now and you shouldn’t do that. Pretty sure it goes against national security or something.”
“Relax, Kate Bishop,” Yelena says, rounding the table to come take a seat beside Kate on her couch, angling her body to face her. “I have no nefarious purpose. I only wanted to make sure you were safe. Who knows where Nick Fury would have you go?” She grins at Kate. “Although I saw you on the news with the other baby avengers. A little ridiculous but very heroic looking, Kate Bishop,” she leans over, swatting at Kate’s shoulder playfully. “Good for you. You already have many adoring fans on the internet.”
Kate can’t help the blush that burns her cheeks. “Really?” Kate asks. “I’ve had my phone off since we left the bank.”
“Really,” Yelena says. “Many girls and boys wanting you to step on them or-”
“Eh, I don’t need to hear anymore,” Kate says, grimacing.
Yelena smirks. “Are you sure? Those aren’t even the best ones-”
“I’m sure,” Kate says. “I’m really not interested in getting any action just ‘cause I’m a superhero.”
“Well, lucky for you, Kate Bishop,” Yelena says, throwing her legs over Kate to straddle her. “You being a superhero does nothing for me.”
Kate’s hands reflexively go to Yelena’s hips, gripping them as the blonde’s hands settle on Kate’s chest. “Really?” Kate asks. “Nothing?”
“Well,” Yelena says, breath ghosting along Kate’s lips as she leans closer. “Maybe a little something.”
“That’s what I th-” her words get swallowed up by Yelena’s mouth, slotting against Kate’s. Yelena’s tongue slips past her lips and she groans into the kiss, gripping Yelena tighter, trying to bring her as close to Kate as she possibly could.
Kate hadn’t been touched since the last time she saw Yelena, six weeks ago. She hadn’t even touched herself, her body and mind too battered and overworked to summon the energy to do so after spending all day in the training room. There was over a month's worth of tension pent up within Kate, not having found any release. She felt like a live wire as Yelena licked into her month and rocked her hips against her ever so slightly.
She pulls back and Kate goes to chase her lips. But Yelena’s hand is firm against her chest as she laughs. “Patience, Kate Bishop,” she says. The mischief in her eyes pools deeply in Kate’s stomach. “I brought you something.”
Kate lifts a brow. “You did?”
“Yes,” Yelena says, leaning back in. Her hands slide up Kate’s collarbone to wrap around her neck. “But if you wanna see it, we’re gonna have to go to your bedroom, маленький ястреб.”
Kate practically sprints after Yelena up the stairs. She tumbles into her bedroom with her arms wrapped around Yelena’s middle, pressed against her back, and her face resting in the crook of her neck. Yelena leans back, hand gripping the back of Kate’s head as she pulls her in. She only lets Kate nip at her neck for a few moments before she’s walking over to the other side of Kate’s bed.
Kate, suddenly very cold without Yelena’s body pressed up against her, watches as she retrieves something from underneath the bed. She holds a black plastic bag in her hand as she walks back towards Kate. She hands the bag to Kate who eyes it curiously. Her face burns as she glances inside. She looks at Yelena who’s eyeing her with a grin that says she’s very pleased with herself. As if she knew Kate would have no qualms about whatever Yelena wanted to do with her. Kate wonders if there’s ever a time when she’s unsure of herself or if it’s just an act she puts on. But that was a thought for another time as she unearths the contents of the bag.
“You want me to wear this?” Kate asks, holding blue silicone in her hand and a bottle of lube in the other.
“Yes,” Yelena says, stepping closer. “Is that okay?”
“Yeah, no, it's totally okay,” Kate says, quick to reassure her. “I've just, uh- I've never worn one before.” Kate’s not inexperienced by any means but there were still some queer sex staples she had yet to experiment with. Holding the black harness, Kate wonders how she’s supposed to use it. She’s read fanfiction before, of course. She knows the general logistics of it. But still, Kate can see herself fumbling through the motions like a teenage boy losing his virginity and Yelena being utterly disappointed in her lack of technique and the devastating humiliation would scar Kate for the rest of her-
“Relax, маленький ястреб,” Yelena says. Kate’s unease must be obvious. “I'll show you how to use it.”
Yelena has somehow eased herself into Kate’s personal space again and taken the toy from her hands. She holds it out in front of her, demonstrating for Kate. She shows her the straps that loosen and tighten when pulled and a slit in the harness where more silicone comes through. “What’s this for?” Kate asks.
“That’s what you'll feel as I ride you.”
“What?”
“Don't worry, I’ll take care of you” Yelena says. She slides Kate’s shirt and pants off with gentle hands, watching her for any signs of hesitance. But whatever nerves Kate has are overtaken by the hungry glint in Yelena’s eyes as she looks her over. Once she has Kate stripped bare before her, she helps her step into the harness. Yelena tightens the straps and the toy slips into her with ease. Kate lets out a broken moan that Yelena quickly swallows. “This time you can just lay there and enjoy yourself,” she says.
“Are you sure cause-”
Yelena grabs the back of Kate’s head, slotting their mouths together. Kate’s question turns into a groan as she takes Kate’s lip between her teeth. She moves her mouth to Kate’s ear, nipping at the lobe. “Get on the bed.”
Kate scrambles onto the sheets, resting her back against the pillows. She feels a little awkward with the toy and the unfamiliar weight but she’s quickly distracted by Yelena undressing, holding Kate’s gaze the entire time. She watches with eager eyes as Yelena climbs onto the bed. She crawls over Kate’s legs before settling her hips over Kate's thighs, the toy standing at attention inches from her entrance. Kate can feel Yelena’s wetness smear against her skin.
Yelena reaches out towards the strap and pulls, Kate yelping as the toy moves inside her. She smirks, watching Kate's reaction. "Just testing to see if it works,” she says, shifting until she’s balanced over the toy. “Now just lay there and-" Kate watches her sink down and almost passes out. Everything in her is hot and spring loaded and ready to combust. Yelena lets out a moan that has Kate wanting to curl up into her, strap first, but minding her directions, she remains still, flat on her back. At the same time, Kate feels the toy brush against her clit.
"Watch," Yelena finishes.
Kate does just that. Her hands anchored on Yelena’s hip, she watches as she grinds down with an unrelenting rhythm that Kate feels against her clit. She lets out a slew of unintelligible curses as Yelena increases her speed.
“So good, Kate Bishop,” Yelena moans. Her hands slide up Kate’s stomach to rest on her chest, palms brushing over her nipples with an erratic incoordination as she bounced on top of Kate.
Fuck, I’m gonna die. Kate can’t believe everything she’s seeing, hearing and feeling. The world was a total overload of her senses while she was inside of Yelena. She’d close her eyes but she wants the sight of Yelena, head tossed back in pleasure above her, burned into her memory forever. She could actively feel herself trying to savor the sight before her, wishing with everything in her that she could remember every detail about this moment to return to it later as much as she wanted to.
Eventually, as a sheen of sweat covers them both, Kate feels herself getting close. And from the sounds leaving Yelena’s mouth, she was too.
“Don't come,” Yelena says, still maintaining the devastating roll of her hips against Kate. She even had the audacity to tug at Kate’s hair, earning a guttural moan that had Kate rocking up into her, meeting her hips.
“What?” She asks, her brain cloudy. Every cognitive part of her brain was too busy focusing on where their bodies met and the pursuit of earning every moan she could from Yelena’s mouth.
“I said don't come,” Yelena says, her pace still unforgiving.
“But-” Yelena’s hand tightens in her hair, her words lost to another groan.
“Be a good girl for me, милая. Wait until I say you can.”
Kate had never been made to wait before. She chased her pleasure eagerly, lacking patience throughout every aspect of her life. Including the bedroom. But with Yelena riding her, looking like the most beautiful erotic painting Kate had ever seen, she’d do anything she asked of her.
Kate holds on for as long as she can. She does the unthinkable and closes her eyes as everything tightens to a fine point within her. “Yelena,” she pants. “Please.”
“What, Kate Bishop?” Yelena’s voice brushes against her nose. Kate feels her lean down to rest her forehead against hers. “I didn’t hear you.”
“Please,” she says, her voice strained and weak. “Please, please, Yelena.”
“Okay, Kate Bishop,” she says. “Come for me.”
Kate lets go as Yelena’s hips writhe against her, helping Kate ride out her orgasm. “Fuck, Yelena,” she says, trembling.
“That’s it, милая.” Kate feels a warm hand hold the right side of her face as she continues to wide out the waves of her orgasm. “Good girl.”
The movement of the toy inside her doesn’t stop even as her orgasm subsides. Kate opens her eyes to see Yelena continuing to rock against her, moaning a slew of things in Russian that she can’t understand. She catches Kate’s eye. “I’m not done yet, Kate Bishop,” she says. She continues to roll her hips at a brutal pace.
Kate can feel another orgasm quickly following her first one. “Jesus, fuck,” Kate groans. Yelena laughs above her. It cuts off into a moan as Kate lifts her hips to meet her movements.
“Fuck, Kate,” she says, hands moving from Kate’s shoulders to grip the back of her head. A new fervor rushes through Kate. Her hips snap up to meet Yelena’s with every undulation of her hips, her second orgasm taking a back seat to chasing Yelena’s first one. It’s an insatiable need to bring Yelena to that same brink that has Kate ignoring the pain in her thighs and lower back. She had just barely foiled a bank robbery not even a few hours ago. Her body wasn’t happy with the lack of rest. But Kate couldn’t care less.
Yelena’s hands tighten in her hair as her pace fastens. She moans into Yelena’s chest, her second orgasm rushing through her body. Yelena falls apart seconds later, a broken moan escaping her lips in time with the increased pressure at Kate’s scalp. Kate’s hips work to coax Yelena along her orgasm until she slumps forward, falling against Kate.
The only sound in the room is of the two of them trying to catch their breath. Yelena doesn’t move off of Kate immediately. She keeps her head resting against Kate’s collarbone so she can feel the rise and fall of her chest as her breathing tapers off into a steady rhythm. Kate closes her eyes, finding comfort in the rhythm and the sensation of being completely enveloped by Yelena.
It’s then that she realizes that she came home with the specific goal of napping. She hadn’t slept well the night before. She had actually managed to wake up that morning pretty early (for her). The adrenaline from the mission left her body as soon as they had arrived back at the compound. All she was left with was a soreness centered in her arms and hips but that radiated to a lesser extent throughout her whole body from being thrown around with the rest of the team. The overwhelming need to rest rushes back at her as Yelena lays on top of her chest, still naked and still very much connected to Kate.
***
When Kate wakes up, it’s dark outside her windows and Yelena is still naked. But rather than laying on Kate’s chest, she’s resting beside her with her back against a bundle of extra pillows she must’ve taken from Kate’s closet. She has her phone in her hands, Kate able to make out Words with Friends on her screen.
Kate shifts and Yelena glances at her, putting her phone down. “Finally, you’re awake,” she says. “You tire so easily, Kate Bishop. One round and you fall asleep?”
“Hey, I just foiled a bank robbery right before you jumped me,” she says, stretching her body out along her sheets. “Cut me some slack.”
“I thought superheroes were supposed to have super stamina.” She says the word super as if it were an insult.
“I’ll show you super stamina in a minute,” Kate says. “Let me get a glass of water first.” She goes to stand up but Yelena puts a hand on her chest. “No, stay. I’ll get water and snacks,” Yelena says, sitting up. “Rest. You’ll need your energy for when I come back.”
Kate’s eyes stay glued to her backside as she disappears into the hall. She sighs, arms folding beneath her head as she relaxes into her sheets. It’s good to be home.
***
As the weekend progresses on, Kate has the distinct feeling that she's being used by Yelena for sex. And she doesn't mind a bit. If anything, her sexual horizons are definitely expanding with each visit from the assassin.
They spend almost every second Kate is conscious exploring each other’s bodies, mapping out each other's scars with their lips and finding out exactly what makes the other tick. Kate feels like Yelena has a better handle on how to get exactly what she wants out of Kate, being an international spy with decades of training and all. She can play her like a fine tuned instrument while Kate barely has a grasp on what could make Yelena lose control like Kate does. She knows she likes having control, especially over Kate. At least, in the bedroom. She likes to have Kate on her knees or on her back. Kate willingly gives over whatever Yelena wants. In her bed. In the kitchen. In the shower. On the living room floor. Wherever, whenever. Kate has never felt this insatiable in her whole life.
But there is rest time in between all the sex. Kate couldn’t stand it if they didn’t talk at all while she was familiarizing herself with the taste of Yelena.
“If you could be anything in the world, what would you be?” Kate asks. Her body is spread out languidly along her living room couch, her arm folded beneath her head on the armrest. Yelena is stretched out on top of her like a cat, her head on Kate’s stomach. Kate’s hand runs through blonde hair as a cool breeze from the open window brushes over their still-hot bare skin.
“I don't know,” Yelena says, folding her arms underneath her chin to look up at Kate.
“I wanted to be a ballerina when I was a little girl. Funny enough, they made us do ballet in the red room,” she says, telling the story as if it were a casual anecdote from her childhood. Which Kate guesses it is, unfortunately. “But that took the joy out of it.”
“I'm sorry,” Kate says. The more she learns of Yelena’s time in the red room, the more she feels sorry.
“Don't be,” Yelena smiles, dropping her chin onto Kate’s stomach. She hums as she leans into Kate’s hand, fingers massaging her scalp. “I'm a very talented dancer.”
“Are you?”
“I’ll have you know I’m as graceful as a swan, Kate Bishop,” she says, eyes closed as she relaxes under Kate’s palm. “How else do you think I can tiptoe around your house without you hearing me?”
“I don’t doubt it,” she says. With Yelena’s eyes closed, she takes the time to familiarize herself with her face once again, eyes running over every blemish and scar with an alarming adoration.
“What about you, Kate Bishop?” she asks. “Did you always want to be Hawkeye?”
“Pretty much, yeah,” Kate laughs. “I think before that I wanted to be a marine biologist but then I realized I was afraid of the ocean.”
“Afraid of the ocean?” Yelena smiles.
“Have you seen the creatures that live at the bottom of it? And how deep it can go? Like, why are we down there at all?”
“You’re very funny, Kate Bishop.”
“Well,” Kate shrugs. “I try.”
“Should we have sex again?” Yelena asks, opening her eyes and stretching out her back above Kate.
“Actually, do you wanna just watch a movie? My hip is still kinda killing me.” It’s true. Kate’s hip was still feeling wacky since the bank robbery and the extensive exercise with Yelena that took place right after. But she also just wanted to hangout with Yelena. She wanted to know if she enjoyed Kate’s presence outside of sex. Kate really hoped she did.
“As long as it’s good,” Yelena says, nestling into Kate’s chest in a way that has her stomach fluttering.
“What does good mean to you?” Kate asks, scrolling through her queue.
“Good is good, Kate Bishop. I cannot explain it to you.”
Kate rolls her eyes and settles on She’s The Man. Kate didn’t know if she’d like it but it’s a classic in Kate’s world and she was gonna see whether or not she liked it.
***
Kate’s growing curiosity about the woman taking her to her sexual brink gets the best of her. She blames it on the fact that her mind is still mushy and deprived of sufficient oxygen from spending an extended period of time between Yelena’s thighs. Also on the fact that Yelena was currently in her kitchen, attempting to make them food, only in her underwear and an old t-shirt of Kate’s that went down to her mid thighs. Kate was very distracted. At least, that’s the reason she gives for why her mouth moves the way it does. She doesn’t mean to be crass or insulting. And, fortunately, Yelena doesn’t seem to take it that way anyway.
“So you’ve been with other people before, right?”
Really, dude? Kate could smack herself in the face. Yelena could smack her in the face. But she only raises an eyebrow at Kate, surprised but not looking particularly insulted, as she sets a pot on the stove.
“Yes, I've had lovers before, Kate Bishop,” she says. And Kate had figured, of course, she had. A woman that beautiful, talented and self-assured obviously could have anyone she wanted. “Does this upset you?”
“No,” Kate shakes her head. “No, of course not, I was just curious.”
“You've also had lovers before,” Yelena points out, stirring the macaroni in the pot.
“Well, yeah, of course.”
“How were they?”
“What?”
Yelena glances up, still stirring, expression innocently curious in a way that didn’t fit the implications of what she was asking. “In comparison to me, how were they?”
“I'm not sure…” Kate trails off.
“You don’t understand the question?”
“No, I do. I just don't know if I can answer that.”
Kate knows there’s no such thing as a ‘normal’ sex. Everyone’s experience was different. That being said, Kate liked to think of her sexual history as standard for her age and demographic. She had dated a few people casually throughout college. She’d had her fair share of one night stands. A slew of friends with benefits. She had enjoyed most of the sex she had, apart from her first, awkward forays into sex during her teen years or the one time she attempted a threesome with a couple already on the brink of collapse (that one still haunted her).
This is what Kate gets for asking deeply personal questions without any forethought.
“Am I not the best you’ve ever had, Kate Bishop?” Yelena’s tone is teasing. But something about her expression causes Kate to believe it’s a genuine question, despite the mirth in her face.
Sex with Yelena was, without a doubt, the best sex Kate had ever had. But, still, it feels wrong to compare all her past sexual partners to the gorgeous assassin in her kitchen. Unfair to them. How could anyone compete with someone like Yelena?
“I don’t think that’s a fair question,” Kate says. She knows Yelena expects Kate to reverse the situation and ask that same question of her. But Kate doesn’t want to hear the answer (in case she’s not the best). Really, it’s none of her business. All that mattered was Yelena was with her now and Kate had never felt as good as she did when Yelena’s arms were wrapped around her.
Yelena tuts, leaving the macaroni on the stove as she rounds the counter towards Kate. “I’m only kidding, милая.” She slides her arms around Kate’s neck and Kate’s hands immediately settle on her waist. “I know I’m the best.” She smiles against Kate’s lips and Kate can’t help but agree as she leans into her.
***
Monday comes quicker than Kate would’ve liked. Yelena doesn’t let her leave bed except for bathroom breaks until eight p.m. on Sunday night. Kate puts off packing her stuff back up, wanting to spend every free second she has left wrapped up in Yelena. But ten p.m. comes around quicker than Kate expects and she gets a text letting her know that Happy was downstairs, waiting to take her back to the compound.
“Mmm, gone again so soon, Kate Bishop,” Yelena purrs into her neck, nipping at the skin. She has her pressed up against her kitchen counter and Kate is having a hard time finding the will to leave.
“Duty calls,” Kate says, her voice strained as Yelena’s hands slide down into her back pockets. She captures Kate’s lips in a searing kiss that Kate can feel in her toes. She’d be on the ground if it weren’t for the counter and Yelena’s arms holding her upright.
Yelena steps away, letting Kate catch her breath. “Alright, маленький ястреб,” she says, rubbing at the corner of Kate’s lips where she’s sure Yelena’s lipstick has stained her mouth. She wishes she could take a look in the mirror and see how Yelena has marked her. But Yelena’s already wiping it off and Kate can’t look like she spent the weekend getting fucked when she returns to the compound. “Go be a hero.”
Kate, sadly, steps away from Yelena and snatches her bag from the table. She turns back towards her before reaching the door. “Will you be here when I get back?” she asks.
She never took the tracker out of her phone. Yelena never asked about it and Kate wouldn’t know what to tell her if she did.
“Maybe,” she says. “I don’t know, Kate Bishop. I’m a very busy lady,” she shakes her head, a small smile on her lips as she glances away from Kate. “I have more important things to do than wait around for you when you’re done fighting supervillains and rescuing damsels in distress.” She says it with a playful mirth dancing across her face. And, if Kate didn’t spend all weekend encased in her arms, then she might’ve taken offense. But she could still feel the places on her back where Yelena’s fingers went deep enough to pull a groan from Kate. And a specific kind of soreness in her thighs and hips that already brought back memories of one of the best weekends of Kate’s life. She was gonna be riding this high for a while, she could tell.
Kate grins, stepping towards Yelena. She plants one last kiss on her lips before turning back towards the door. “Don’t forget to lock up,” Kate calls out right before the door closes behind her.
***
Monday morning sees the team gathered in the meeting room again. Fury stands at the head of the table, in front of a large screen while Hill stands off to the side. “Hope you enjoyed your weekend,” he says. “We have another mission for you.”
The languid tone of the room quickly shifts into a somber attentiveness. Everyone watches Fury with straightened backs. “Something of great value and not within any of your clearance levels was stolen from a S.H.I.E.L.D facility last night. It is a priority that we get it back,” he says. He steps away from the monitor mounted behind him. “Luckily, we already know who stole it.”
When Yelena’s face shows up on the screen, Kate feels everything give out from beneath her. It’s a picture of the blonde in an outfit similar to what she had worn the night her and Kate first met all those months ago. A tactical suit ready for war. With a gun steady in her hand and her face hardened, she looks every bit like the world renowned assassin that she was. A total contrast to the woman that had been giggling between Kate’s legs less than twenty four hours ago.
“For now, all you’re doing is locating her,” Fury says. “Do not approach.” He turns toward Kate and her stomach sinks even further into the ground. “Kate has had a run in with Miss Belova before, isn't that right?”
All eyes turn to her.
“Mmhmm,” Kate hums, mouth suddenly dry. “That's right.”
Fury addresses the whole team. “Yelena Belova is a former Black Widow assassin, currently a contract killer. All relevant information is on the tablets placed in front of you.” Kate picks up the device, not having noticed it until then. Yelena’s file is already opened on the screen but most of it is redacted. And everything that isn’t, Kate already knows. “She is very dangerous, and, quite frankly, could kill you all without breaking a sweat. The current goal as of this moment is to locate her,” Fury says. “Do not engage. It was a pain in my ass to put this team together. I don’t want to have to locate a replacement for any of you because you got ahead of yourself and decided to disregard my orders.” He seems to pointedly look at Eli who bristles under his gaze.
Fury dismisses them soon after with orders to meet him in the training room in fifteen minutes. Kate’s stomach is lodged in her throat as she stands up from the table. She can’t participate in any of the post-meeting speculation that they usually engage in. She’s quiet. Which is enough of a rarity to draw Peter’s attention.
“Hey, are you okay?” he asks, slowing down to walk beside Kate.
“Yeah, I’m fine,” she says, eyes pointed towards the floor. “Just feeling a little sick. I think I might have a stomach bug or something.”
“Oh, do you need anything?” he asks, glancing around the halls. “Pretty sure Banner has a whole pharmacy in the-”
“Nah, I’m good,” Kate says, waving off his concern. “I’m just gonna take an Aleve and power through. I’ll be fine.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yup.”
They depart to their separate rooms. In Kate’s bathroom, she grips the toilet with unsteady hands as she empties out the contents of her stomach into the bowl.