Can't Catch a Shadow

Hetalia and Nat giggled girlishly as they sat together on the plush hotel bed. “He really said that to you?”

Nat nodded, still giggling uncontrollably. “Yeah, and he still thought it was an okay thing!”

Hetalia howled with laughter, leaning backwards until she was almost lying on the bed. “That is rich!” she said through her giggles. “Men are so stupid sometimes!”

Her sister agreed, taking another scoop of ice cream out of the carton. “But not all are completely stupid,” she said as her voice came back.

Hetalia nodded, also taking a scoop of ice cream. “Some of them are really clever,” she agreed.

After a few minutes of blissful silence, Nat looked out the window and gazed at the beautiful cityscape. “Have you ever been in love, Hetalia?”

Hetalia shrugged. “I don’t know,” she admitted. “I haven’t really had anything to go off of. I think…I think if I ever loved anyone, it would’ve been Andre.”

“Andre?” Nat asked. “Who’s Andre?”

“The warden’s son. Kerchef. He helped me escape from The Cage.”

“I didn’t know he had a son, let alone that he let him in the prison.”

“He was supposed to be learning from his father. And learn he did. He learned compassion, or so he told me.”

Nat nodded, showing understanding. “Do you know what happened to him?”

Hetalia shook her head. “No. I never found a body and he never came looking for me when I called.”

“So you don’t know if he’s alive or dead?”

The ginger shook her head again. “No, I don’t. It gives me hope, though. Since I never found a body, I can hope to myself that he’s still alive, but he got out before or after I did. I like to believe that somewhere, he’s safe and well.”

“I know how that goes,” Nat said quietly, taking her sister’s hand. “Love is pretty tough and perfect at the same time.”

“And who do you love?” Hetalia asked with a smile, forgetting her pain.

Natasha blushed slightly. “The agent I happen to be on this mission with.”

Hetalia’s mouth gaped open in shock. “Tell me about him!” she demanded. “Who is he? What’s his name? Does he have a Social Security number?”

“Hetalia, calm down,” Nat said with a smile, remembering the old joke her dad used to tell them about Social Security numbers. “His name is Clint Barton. He’s a fantastic archer with a great body.”

“How good of a body?”

The elder sister blushed again. “I’m hoping I’ll be able to find out tomorrow night. He wants me to stay in his hotel room with him instead of this one on my own.”

Hetalia gasped and put a hand over her mouth. “No. Way!” she said excitedly. “You’ll have to tell me exactly how it goes! I want to know all the details!”

Nat chuckled and nodded. “Of course, Hetalia. I promise to tell you everything.”

****

Natasha was safe with Clint, but that didn’t stop Hetalia from worrying about her big sister. She wandered around the city nervously until she spotted the man Natasha had mentioned was her “handler” of sorts.

Hetalia followed him to a small café where he ordered a coffee in Hungarian and picked up the newspaper at his table and began reading. She sat down across from him, ready to make an introduction.

“Coulson,” he said without even looking up from his paper. “Agent Coulson. You must be The Shadow.”

“How do you know who I am?”

Coulson set down his paper, folding it neatly. “SHIELD has been keeping tabs on you. It turns out that your good friends with our new agent, the Black Widow.”

Hetalia scoffed and leaned back in her chair. “So that’s what she’s calling herself now.”

“The only thing I’m curious about,” Coulson continued. “Is why you’re following me around Budapest.”

Hetalia nodded once, remembering why she had entered the shop in the first place. “I’m here to strike a deal,” she stated.

“A deal?”

The Russian nodded. “Da. I want you to swear on your life that you will protect her. She is very important to me, and I would hate to lose her.”

“And what will you give me?”

“Not you,” Hetalia corrected. “SHIELD. In return, I will leave you and everyone else there alone and off my radar. Not a single agent, janitor, or operating system will be bothered.”

Coulson nodded. “Sounds like a fair deal. I’ve seen the damage you can do. When will you be leaving?”

“Tomorrow night, after I’ve had a chance to say goodbye to my…friend.”

The agent nodded and extended a hand to be shaken. “We have a deal, then.”

Hetalia nodded. “Da.”