You ran through the shadows, your mission clear, your orders etched in your mind like an endless echo. HYDRA had trained you not to hesitate, not to question. You remembered no other life, only the war, only duty.

Until you saw her.

A precise blow knocked you off balance, your body hitting the ground hard. You rolled and drew your weapon in a fluid motion, ready to counterattack, but you froze.

So did she.

Natasha Romanoff pointed her pistol at you, her eyes cold and calculating. Anyone else would have been dead by now. But her finger didn't pull the trigger. Her gaze scanned your face with something you couldn't identify at first.

Then you understood.

It wasn't anger. It wasn't disdain. It was... sadness.

"It can't be..."she whispered, barely audible.

Your heart hammered against your chest. Why was he looking at you like that? Why wasn't his expression that of an enemy, but of someone who... regretted something?

Your hand trembled slightly on the trigger. A mistake. A miss.

"You don't know me!"you growled, but uncertainty betrayed your voice.

Natasha took a step forward, slow, almost fearful. As if she were afraid you'd disappear.

"I do know you,"she affirmed, and something in her tone made the entire world feel... wrong.