Sample scene flavor one for marvel_universe

[cold_shoulder]

Since they had given him the assignment to train operatives, the Winter Soldier had seen quite a few go through the Red Room - the training for which happened far from only in any particular room. Most of them were fast and precise and eager to do things right. Some of them were smart and could be taught to be quick-thinking.

But nobody had been using their mind to the objective at hand until she had appeared, gun in one hand and grenade in the other. Brave, determined, beautiful. Not allowing herself to be distracted from the tasks she had, and at the same time with a hint of a sense of humor which meshed inexplicably well with him, somewhere below the level of his usual thought processes.

He's been watching, yes.

Natalia Romanova.

He'd been watching others try to emulate her, too, and had been greatly amused at girls imitating her motions without fully realizing the ideas behind them. And then feel disappointed at failing.

But mostly, he'd been watching her. He wasn't allowed access to much information about her; that was classified and not a part of his assignment. So he'd been piecing things together. Little things betrayed by her motions, but her reactions to knowledge betrayed by others.

And he'd been watching the beauty of her. The dancer training was clear in everything from her flexibility to the graceful efficiency of her motions. It stirred something in him. Something warm and unknown and strange, separate from the definite physical desire. The latter he could define and control. The former... it confused him. And drew him closer to her, until the evening when, all exercises complete, he knocked on her window.

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[natalia_romanova]

She breathed a soft not quite word as he spoke of being proud of her and what she’d done. She had begun to see what set her apart from the others and concentrated on it more and more. There was no limit to what she was capable of with careful thought and preparation. He had shown her this, he had made her see that she was more than simply a tool to be honed and used as the program desired. She was still a product of Red Room and served proudly, but she was far from the trained animal the others seemed to be.

As he spoke her eyes never left him, he looked tired but paradoxically alert. As if he’d pushed past the exhaustion and found clarity in the lack of rest. He looked powerful, and unusually unfettered by his rigid composure. It showed in his voice, his poster, the reaction of him to her touch. It showed in the way his gaze moved over her body and gave her a delicious shiver of excitement.

She had been looked at before, appraised, had her body critiqued in every manner possible, but to feel his gaze on her was something entirely new. She found she liked it.

Then he spoke of Cairo, and she frowned. “You are not telling me everything.” His left eye squinted slightly, his posture and breathing had changed. She could tell when he was being truthful, lying or as now, withholding truth. “You’ve taught me too well James, I am beginning to read you easily.” She smiled wryly, proud to have put her lessons to practical use.

[cold_shoulder]

"I'm not." And for a moment, his eyes were tired. "There are things about missions... the missions we go to, which you don't want to know beforehand. Or it would impair your ability to act. They'll chase away your focus during training, leech away sleep, and question things." He shook his head. "Don't ask me to try to give you that before it's time, Natalia." And his voice went soft, nearly helpless. "Please."

Let yourself keep your innocence that way a little loner. Don't let me steal that from you when they aren't making you surrender it yet.

WHY were the thoughts like that settling in his mind? He knew the cause he was fighting for, the cause that was just, real, fair. And those lives he had taken were saving the lives of many more.

Weren't they?

[natalia_romanova]

He was…protecting her. Had she not already felt a deep attraction to him she would have with that alone. The one man who had seen how capable she was, who above all knew her strengths, wanted to spare her something of emotional pain. It was a connection she hadn’t known or dared assume he had for her, but that bit of restraint on his part illustrated it clearly. He cared for her, beyond a pupil, beyond an agent with promise, he cared for her comfort and peace.

She sighed again and her fingers moved quickly, those fluid digits grazed his chest as they moved up to caress his cheek. Just a moment of touch before they slid back and gently held his jaw. Strength enough to hold him, gentle enough to release should he pull back, but her intention was obvious.

Natasha leaned in, her thigh brushing his, her warmth radiating from her as her lips gently captured his. A first kiss, slightly awkward, highly anticipated, and beyond her expectations.

[cold_shoulder]

His eyes shot back up to hers as soon as her caress warmed through the skin underneath shirt; when her fingers touched and held his face, they widened.

And then she kissed him. And it stunned the thoughts out of his mind... and, at the same time, surprised him not at all... as a fact. But the sweetness that spread from her lips, soothing away tension and exhaustion and rigid control which had held for years, not knowing that there was an option... all of that swept through his body and mind with a force he couldn't have suspected can result from this soft a touch.

Instead of freezing, or pushing her away, his arm reached to encircle her shoulder, not quite pressing her closer but still holding them nearer.

We shouldn't, he probably ought to say. This isn't how things are, maybe.

Except here and now, he didn't care about the first, and the second...

It wasn't true.

Not that what they have discussed all the times before had been a lie, and she could see that it wasn't herself. But to deny that this was true, too...

He'd already concealed something important from her tonight. Lying on top of that - and for what? So he could slip away, hide behind obligations and duties and let something good and real go?

No.

He leaned nearer in turn, and kissed back. Not deep or forceful, but less hesitant than she had.

Doing so... felt right and wrong and right again anyway. Right because he wanted and she wanted. Wrong, because he couldn't remember doing this, not without pushing against walls he couldn't penetrate. Right, because... because...

Words didn't fit. Her lips did.

[natalia_romanova]

They probably shouldn't be doing this, she herself had guided them away from the window out of fear of discovery. Nothing had been spoken about their meetings but she'd realized they were out of the norm. What did that makes them then?

Natalia was afraid for a moment that he would pull away, the fear was dispelled once his arms wrapped around her. He drew her closer and she leaned in her hands slid to his shoulders and one wandered up to run fingers through his hair.

Though the actual mechanics of kissing were new to her she'd learned enough to know the generalities. Like all her training she took what she knew and added to it with creativity and passion. Natalia moved closer, her body pressing to his.

A soft sound escaped her lips, a sigh, his name....unknown but it signified pleasure on her part and she was not releasing him.

[cold_shoulder]

He remembered-didn't remember-just acted. It all wrapped up in a single uncertainty in his mind, and that drew him back. Not any doubt or reason. The confusion in his own head was getting too ... too loud to properly be here. And being distracted during a kiss - that just didn't feel right. (Just how wrong in the head was he? The thought flitted through his mind and was gone.)

But he didn't pull back far.

Instead, his fingers - of the right hand - crossed the short distance to her face, and he ran his thumb over the arch of her cheek, then down the curve of it. Then ever so lightly along her lower lip.

So beautiful. So radiant. It was almost like a light radiating from the bright green eyes. Light that-- light that he wanted to protect at any cost, and yet he knew it would dim. It was what their place here--

His breath caught slightly, though he ... still didn't let go. He merely suddenly realize just how much of a danger he'd put them in.

(But if he hadn't come to her in the first place, wouldn't she have been in more danger for lack of proper training?)

(But if he hadn't come, what would they be?)

But he had come. And kept coming, and he was here, and-- He sighed softly, and his voice was quiet and gentle. "This - this can turn very dangerous." his fingers combed some of the wet, silken strands away from her face. "You don't have to put yourself to the risk... anymore." It was necessary to say it. Even if he wasn't sure if she would still know just how perilous it was.

[natalia_romanova]

The kiss was everything her mind could have conceived. It stole her breath and made her heart race. The kiss drove away her thoughts for a seductive fog of emotion over reason. The kiss was also over too quickly.

Natalia leaned in the slightest bit as he pulled back, trying to keep that contact until his intent became obvious. Her eyes opened and fixed on him, intense and wide, clear and shining for him.

The passing touch of his thumb left her nerves dancing in its wake, as though the contact itself painted her with feeling. She searched his eyes as he chose his words so carefully. He didn't want to continue to see her? Confusion furrowed her brow as she tried to process this.

Was he displeased with her? Had she not preformed to his standards? Was it that she was unskilled in this new physical aspect they'd added to their interaction to their..relationship. Whatever his reason he stated the danger and gave her a chance to step aside.

"I.. don't want this to stop. We can be careful, I will be the best student and work hard. You can trust in me, I will not fail you, James." Her eyes pleased with him, the words she didn't know how to speak yet. Don't take this away from me, don't take yourself from me.

[cold_shoulder]

"You are the best student I have. Above and beyond anyone else." His words were certain, but way too quiet and close to be firm.

Another moment of hesitation, but the frightened look in her eyes was... difficult to resist. (And a small part of his mind filed that knowledge away as something they may work on later, another weapon in her arsenal.) But then he shifted, holding her to him even closer, kissing her again. Longer and just a bit deeper, because there was only so much he could formulate, not right now.

Eventually, they broke off, though he didn't quite pull back, not this time. Instead, he leaned his forehead against hers, closing his eyes and trying to ignore that the towel had shifted with how close they were, with the kisses, the motions...

Instead, he focused on the scent of her, still warm from the shower which she seemed to have come out of an eternity ago, and so soft. "We will need to think through this very well, Natalia. We don't belong to ourselves, here." But... "I won't fail you, either."

Could he afford his folly to take away her future, the bright and amazing future that he couldn't not see?

It wasn't his folly alone, it was theirs (but she was barely more than a child...) and... and maybe they could be careful. Maybe they could ... could somehow share this warmth. Truly share it.

Because it was intoxicating, holding her this close and kissing her and talking with her. Like nothing he could readily remember - not waking up from stasis, not praise for well accomplished mission, nor even pride in the successes of those he trained. Nothing. And it also felt right in ways he couldn't justify. How could trying to take for himself be right?

He didn't have answers. Just more and more questions, and tiredness that he could feel way too acutely beneath the touch of her soft skin.

[natalia_romanova]

He praised her again and she smiled, it was not the tone he used in training sessions. Softer, warmer, a voice meant only for her.

Then another kiss, he drew her close and she pressed against him. The contact made thinking clearly impossible. Her thoughts could not be bothered with the trifles or logic, not while he was there with her like this.

He broke their kiss bur remained close, in contact with her. His hand pressed to her side, holding her to him. "We belong to the program." She agreed, unable to nod without moving from him. She knew the reality of their positions, even if her feelings on the matter had changed.

Whatever the risk involved she was as willing to take it as he, and she slid her arms around him to let him know that. Her lips found his again, more bold than before. She became the aggressive one, whispering his name between movements of her lips.

She knew the program dictated who they belonged to, but she knew her heart was already claimed.

[cold_shoulder]

He nodded slightly. "We belong to the Soviet Union. To the people who need protection against threats they don't know. The program... the people who run Division X and the Red Room, they know where we'll be needed." His lips pursed slightly. She knew this, they both did. And he took a breath to go on, or to apologize for telling her things she knew, or-- something, but then her lips had covered his, and coherent thoughts flew out of his head. There was just the rhythm of her kiss, all-encompassing as the sea...

His hand cupped the back of her head, holding her close, fingers digging into the wet strands... and he could feel that touch, feel every point of contact between them and the soft friction of the small motions. Head swimming, and yet his body knew exactly what to do - his hands, his arms, even the unreal one; his mouth and lips, the small sound in the back of his throat.

And, a small eternity later when his eyes met hers again, the quiet "yes" which he wasn't even certain which language he uttered in. It didn't matter. She did.

He was leaning in for another kiss when a small noise outside her window made him still, completely, even his breath held in, suddenly in full alertness. After an excruciating moment of worry - for her - his mind kicked in and suggested that it might be a late-night practice drill that he'd seen scheduled for some of the trainees.

Still, his voice was barely more than a loud breath when he explained, "practice."

[natalia_romanova]

Yes, they both knew what was expected of them. To say demanded would have implied that they felt there was an option to it. Which neither did, you are a child of the great and proud Soviet Union, and as such owe her your life's breath and all that comes with it. National pride, pride in their organization and all it could do to ensure the safety and security of their great nation. They were the tools wielded by Red Room, and they were thankful to serve.

But it was not her country nor her program that Natalia was focused on now. It was a far more real and substantial presence. His strong arms around her, his lips seeming to know precisely how to kiss her and she learned from them in kind. She was lost to the bliss of such physical contact and would have had it go on forever but for the sound they both heard.

Her fingers tightened in their grip on him. Her own body frozen in perfect silence until the noise was identified, cataloged for threat and began to pass on. Only after he spoke again, clarifying as if it was necessary, oh you had trained her well James, did she speak again. "You cannot leave now, but you will need to soon." She knew it was true, and she would have it another way if possible. But he needed his rest, he needed to be safe. If not he could not come back to her.

"But you will be back." This time it was not a question to him, not as before when he left for his mission. This time it was a statement of fact. He would be back because now a line had been crossed and they could not undo it.

Nor did she want to. As if she needed to make that point clear she pulled him hard against her for a kiss that was sparked by passion and a hint of desperation. If he said no, if he refused..if he lost interest... She would do everything in her power to encourage him to come back to her. Strength and passion made powerful weapons, even if they had not yet been on her list of training, she employed them with a natural skill and beguiled him. Seduced him to the degree that her relative innocence would allow.

He would come back.

[cold_shoulder]

"Oh yeah," he breathed over her lips. "I'll be back." He knew it wasn't a question just as well as she did; however, the other part...

Somehow, from the depth of confusion and exhaustion, a slight hint of a challenge tickled him with her words. And he gave in to it, it was more familiar, after all... and possibly safer, on the off chance that despite her day, somebody might decide to include her in this at the last moment. He kissed her again, quiet but fast and deep, and then his eyes crinkled slightly.

"Know your terrain. Move like a shadow."

And he did disengage, though it took him an effort to make it as light as he could, and slid silently to the wall by the window to get a view of the outside without being noticed. The window was far less trouble to open quietly from this side, and with a nod good-night (or maybe, this is how it's done) he slipped out, and up. Small controlled bursts of motion, quieter than the wind making things creak, keeping his mechanical arm moving to its quietest minimal range and never moving long enough or abruptly enough to catch attention. It was only dangerous while he could be connected with where he was coming out from; being out and about in the night in a place where he was supposed to give roster duty in the protection of wasn't going to raise any flags. But until he was safely away... well. He was a ghost.

A ghost. Nobody existing.

The words were taking a whole different meaning inside his mind by the time he reached his own room, and he started the routine of securing the weapons that had been about his clothing and arranging them so that they would be accessible to him but not anybody coming into the room and a stranger to it. Systematic; mechanic.

He had no idea how he ended up sitting in bed, the blanket wrapped tightly around him and his knees curled up under his chin, shivering.

It hurt, trying to remember past waking up without his arm and trying to answer questions he didn't have the answers to. There were facts hanging over the empty space, but they didn't fit with it, corners sticking out and grating in the chill void. It literally hurt, but he wasn't going to stand up and retch, he didn't have energy left for that.

The facts didn't quiet fit. They made a story, but it wasn't his story, which would make sense if he had another story. But he didn't. Little shreds, barely more than ratty threads, like glimpses of where some of his motions came from, flashes of images too quick to catch. The name, the name he had given when she had asked. The kisses which were so hauntingly familiar as action and he couldn't recall a single thing about any kisses before. The certainty and the want and the defiance against knowing what he should do in this situation.

This wasn't the Winter Soldier. The Winter Soldier executed orders. Precisely and infallibly. And yet this difference... it was him. It fit in the emptiness better than the life before losing his arm that he knew... that he knew about.

When the waves of nausea receded, he was still clinging to that. Sticking to what he wanted. Making it work, despite the impossible odds. Making what work? Well, it was too soon to say. But... this. That. Which had happened in her room. Her. Natalia. Her and him and the way his knees were trying to turn to cheese when her eyes lit up because of him, or the way his whole body... heh. That effect was done with, after the attempt to see through the darkness, but he had been on fire, a burst of energy he was probably going to pay for, tomorrow.

There was so much about this which he would be paying for. Him, not them. Whatever happened, she would be protected from the responsibility of this. He was her trainer. She had to trust him, do as he said. That was going to be his story if... or when it all went south.

His mind was picking apart the possibilities of their course of action - their - when exhaustion finally overtook him with its own different kind of demon-ridden darkness.