Natasha had, admittedly, known Ivan had been sick for awhile but hadn't really been able to bring herself to care more than the occasional call to Russia once a week warranted just to check on how he was doing. Anyway, she reminded herself for the hundredth time, Alexei and Vanko were taking care of Ivan, at least they should have been. Were supposed to. They'd stayed in Russia after all to take over his company, and though it was in their best interest if he ended up dying they'd come to care for him as if he were all of their fathers. He'd raised them after all, though he'd always taken more interest in the boys than he ever had Nat. It wasn't uncommon she supposed, not the way he'd been raised, and she was doing her best not to think too poorly of the man now that he'd passed. She hadn't seen him since she'd left seven years ago, and yet it was back to Russia she had to go, Ivan's passing having happened several weeks ago. It figured, she thought, that it and the funeral happened to coincide with the last few meetings of her Doctorate program, and though she's cleared her absence with the head of her program she still felt nervous about leaving in the middle, having packed her thesis to edit for what felt like the thousandth time on the flight. At least it would give her something to do in the twenty or so hours she had until her flight landed in Moscow.

Her mind flitted back to the present as the cab came to a slow stop at the airport entrance, forcing herself back into the moment as she thrust the fare for the cab plus five extra for his tip, before stepping out . She was nearly running late as it was, only half an hour before the flight was supposed to take off, thankful to be the only one in line, the woman behind the desk smiling brightly as Nat handed over her luggage and her confirmation information. Thank God no one seemed to be flying out of Laguardia in the middle of October at five in the morning, or at least if they were they were already on the plane. She bit back a curse as she watched the woman tap away at the computer in front of her, Nat's smile permanently frozen on her face. She wasn't even back in Russia and already the mask was in place.

"Running a little late?" The woman asked politely, still smiling as she looked up from her computer to heft Nat's luggage onto the conveyer belt behind her, slipping the luggage slip onto the handle, her expression a little too cheery for Nat's taste.

Nat smiled anyway. "Yeah. Traffic. Hard to believe so early in the morning."

"Welcome to New York," the woman laughed before looking over the flight information with a quiet hum of approval. Without another word to Nat she pulled the phone beside her computer up and tapped at the number pad there. Nat's stomach dropped. What on earth could be wrong with it now? She looked down at her hands as the woman murmured into the receiver, then handed Nat her ticket soon after. "Don't worry-they're holding the plane for you," she said with a wink. "Have a good flight."

Stomach easing, Nat flashed her a wider smile and thanked her before heading off. Well, at least that was a pleasant surprise. Hopefully it was a sign her damn flight wouldn't suck so much. She hated flying enough as it was.

Positivity and optimism, though, had never been her strong suit. Soon after she skirted down the halls towards the security checkpoint-red jacket off, shoes off, carry on checked, phone, laptop, extra copy of her thesis for her to edit on the flight all made it through the scanner no problem. The two security guards smiled as she passed through, though Nat wasn't sure she really liked the way the guards looked down her shirt when she bent to slip her shoes back on. Gross.

Trying to ignore it-'Think positively for once, Romanov.'-she texted Steve quickly to let her know she made it safely there and through security, having just enough time to see his response.

'Awesome. Be safe please, see you soon.'

Bless her roommate.

She had ten minutes to spare as she handed her ticket to the woman at the ticket desk, this one also all grins despite it being an ungodly hour in the morning. Was it just Nat's lucky day that she seemed to get the nice people? Or was there something stuck in her teeth? As the brunette woman checked over the validity of the document Nat swirled her tongue over her teeth, not feeling anything, barely able to stop herself from reaching up to make sure her hair wasn't standing straight up or something. That would be awkward.

"Alright," the woman said finally, marking something down on the ticket. "You'll be in first class, that's gonna be third row-."

"Wait, what?" Nat asked, brow pulled together. What was she talking about? "That can't be-I'm in regular, coach." She said, trying to peek at the ticket. Shit, did she pay extra for it? She wasn't going to get that much back from Ivan's will, she was positive. Not enough to warrant such an expensive trip.

"There was a family who needed your seat for their kid and you never showed up so they bumped it up to first class rather than displace them." There was a pause. "Is that okay?" The woman's eyebrows rose, as though daring Nat to say otherwise, that she was really going to argue at a free bump up to first class on such a long flight. Cowed, Nat shook her head.

"Not a problem at all-that's amazing, actually. Thank you."

Business returned to normal as the woman's smile reappeared on her face and handed Nat the ticket, assuring her that the stewardess would help her find her seat. Nat thanked the woman and headed through the connecting tunnel, the kind eyed woman at the end of it taking a quick peek at the seating arrangement before pointing Nat on her way.

"Third row from the back, where the gentleman in the suit is? The window seat."

That didn't help Nat much, considering it was first class and most of the other guests were businessmen or women, most of which were dressed in much more comfortable versions of business casual. But third from the back she couldn't really mess up, and she was grateful to see that she wasn't the only one who would be putting her things away, the others around her fidgeting with what they would pull from their carry ons as well. All she had to do was pull out her thesis and-.

'Oh, shit.'

She caught sight of the man who she'd be sitting next to and felt her feet stop right where they were, smack dab in the middle of the aisle, as he stared back up at her. To say he was gorgeous was pulling it lightly, she thought, swallowing hard as he stood and smiled, which was just the icing on the damn good looking cake that embodied her seating partner. How the hell was she supposed to get anything done sitting next to him?

"Hey, need a hand with that?" He asked, holding out a hand.

Forcing herself to breathe evenly she smiled and nodded, perhaps a little quicker than she shouldn't. "Yeah, sure thing. Just lemme grab some work," she murmured, grateful her fingers weren't shaking as unzipped the top of it, snagged her portfolio and a red pen, and zipped it back up. His long fingers encircled the handle, stowing it within the luggage rack above their heads with ease, along with her coat, before allowing her to take her seat and following her.

"I wasn't sure if I'd get an extra seat to myself or not," he teased, green eyes bright as he pushed a strand of black hair out of his face, and Nat felt her face heat up a little.

"I'm usually a lot more on time than I was today," she admitted with a laugh at her own expense, pulling her belt over her stomach before sneaking another look over at him through her lashes. He'd taken the sky mall magazine from the back pocket of the seat in front of him, flipping through it from halfway, where she'd likely interrupted him before, smirking as he stared at the ridiculous things for sale. She couldn't blame him, peering over at what had seemed to catch his eye. A tree-face, complete with incredibly creepy eyes and smile, that was somehow being turned so that she could better look at it.

Horrified, she looked up to see him staring at her, a smirk playing on his lips. "Want to look?"

"No, wow. I'm sorry that was really rude," she murmured, turning back to her thesis. "I mean, thank you. I didn't mean to look over your shoulder."

So much for her good day.

He laughed, though, and the noise was soft, more of a breathy chuckle than anything else, and closed the magazine, staring at the front of it, where a family of four was advertising a series of snuggies in horrendous colors. "I think they got their capes on backwards," he teased, shifting the page so she could see it better.

She smiled in spite of herself. "Can't imagine why," she said. "Though I am partial to that one," she said, pointing out the bright pink cameo. "Think it'd go great with my hair. Don't you?"

He reached one of his long-fingered hands out to touch her hair gently, and she actually felt her breath catch for half a second. That was awfully familiar of him, though he didn't seem to think anything differently about it as he felt her soft red curls.

"It would certainly cause a stir," he said, winking, before releasing her hair. She swallowed the squeak that wanted to burst through her lips, forcing herself to calm down. Flirting was nothing she wasn't familiar with. Hell, she was damn good at it when she could slip herself into the right mindset, and she was even better and dishing it back when it was given to her. She'd had her fair share of relationships, flings, and one-night stands, after all. She forced herself to relax, shoulders loosening as she smiled over at him.

"What other colors do they come in?" She asked, leaning over to brush her wrist against his as her hand took the front cover from his hand-and damn, did he have big hands-to flip it open and find the assortment of fabrics and styles available. "Oh, so many."

"It almost begs credulity," he teased, eyes flickering to catch hers.

"Hey, you can trust a sky mall," she said, face going serious as she stared back at him, pulling the magazine closer and pressing it against her chest. "This is my life. I swear by this."

They had half a second between them before he cracked up first, snickering as she dissolved into quiet laughter.

"I'm sorry," she gasped, holding her sides tight as she tried not to irritate the people in front of them, who were already casting the pair less than pleased expressions, the two men looking as though they were on a sales call for Brooks Brothers. Nice suits, but too bad their attitudes couldn't match.

"No need to be sorry for anything . . ." He trailed off, obviously waiting for her name.

She stuck her hand out. No harm, right? It wasn't as though she'd ever see him again, though she might end up wishing it. Who knew? "Natasha Romanov."

"Ah, small wonder you're going to Russia then," he smiled as he took her hand in his and pressed his lips to the back of it, showcasing a broad smile and a full set of perfect, white teeth. "Loki Laufeyson."

This time Natasha managed to keep the flush from settling on her cheeks, her own expression turning wry. "I bet that works on all the ladies, doesn't it?" She asked when she pulled her hand back. He gave a shrug of his shoulders and an endearing laugh at his own expense.

"It certainly has its merits. You are not so easily wooed, I see." He teased, settling back into his seat and giving her a quick once over, his eyes fixing on the thesis on her lap before finding her face again. "Giving a conference?"

"No. Just working on it. Trying to get my doctorate." She winced. It was a lot of work, but it would be worth it in the end.

"Oh? In?"

"Business," she smiled. "And Law."

"Oh. Well, remind me to never get on your bad side. The last thing I need is someone who is far more well versed in the knowledge of the law angry at me," he teased, feigning fear before winking.

She laughed and shook her head. "Oh don't worry, I'm more interested in the way that the law interacts with business. I'm not so petty as to sue you for looking at me the wrong way," she said, her turn to wink. Let him draw what he would from that. For the briefest of moments he looked surprised at her boldness, but a soft laugh filtered from his lips moments later, as if it couldn't be contained. It was infectious, and once more she was laughing with him.

"So, Loki," she started once they calmed down and things seemed to be settling in for the long haul. Great. She needed something to take her mind off of it, popping a piece of gum into her mouth to help with the pressure changes and offering him one. When he declined, she pressed on. "What brings you to Russia? If you don't mind that I ask." She did her best to relax, though the hand nearest the window started tapping furiously on the arm rest. It was just a flight, with a quick stop in Germany to refuel, then the rest of the way to Russia. "Unless you're getting off in Germany?"

"No, I'm for Russia. I-."

He was cut off by the stewardess going through the motions of how important the seat belt was, how to use the oxygen masks, where the informational card was and where the emergency exits were located. When they'd finished Nat caught the eyes of the stewardess, her stomach already knotting up as the woman stepped closer, curious. It wasn't going to get any easier from here, so she might as well indulge herself. From her pocket she fished out her wallet and offered up her credit card.

"Can I get a few of your travel sizes of vodka, please?"

"Any juice-?"

"Nope. No, thank you. Just straight," she gave the woman a tight, apologetic smile, already able to feel the plane start to move. God, she needed it soon. The woman smiled and assured her she'd grab them for her quickly, before Loki looked over at her. She hated the way he looked concerned, her pride flaring a little. She couldn't help it if she hated flying.

"You don't have to impress me by drinking it straight, you know," he teased, playing it off cooly with the smallest of winks. Nat felt at least one of the knots in her stomach release, though she couldn't understand why she was looking for his approval. She didn't need it, never had needed or wanted a man's approval, but there was something about Loki that . . . well she couldn't put her finger on it. She was just glad for his respect.

"Don't worry, this isn't for your benefit," she said, forcing her voice to even out. "It'll just work better without having to worry about getting too sick from all the sugar."

"Admirable. Normally people would use the sugar to their advantage to get drunk quicker."

"I just need to be pleasantly buzzed-thank you," she smiled to the woman, accepting the few single serving bottles from the kind stewardess, who assured them that she'd be back once the flight had leveled out. Nat just dipped her head in understanding, already screwing off the small lid from the bottle of Skyy and guzzling it without so much as pulling a face. She was a seasoned veteran at taking vodka shots, not only from having grown up in Russia but also having gone through college with Clint Barton. He was no lightweight. The two bottles of vodka digested, Nat forced herself to breathe deep, closing her eyes and squeezing them hard together, trying not to focus on all the literature she'd read about how not all flights were safe to go-.

"What's your thesis on?"

Loki's voice was soft in her ear, the heat of his breath warming her cheeks as she opened her eyes with a soft gasp, skin flushing in her surprise and lack of concentration at keeping it all covered up.

"On the-ah, dangers of big business pushing into smaller countries. How it doesn't give them as much of an opportunity to thrive in a smaller community where there is only a few options. If you put a chain store in a country where there was already a mom and pop store, so to speak, well the chain can afford-." She cut out, biting the inside of her cheek as the plane hit a bump.

"Can afford to undersell while the home owned business goes without." Loki completed without skipping a beat.

"Ex-ah-actly," she said, not proud of the way that her words caught. God, she hated this. Hated it hated it hated it.

"What do you propose instead?" Loki asked, taking her hand in his and letting her squeeze it. She was grateful, though sure that he'd regret it once he found out that she wasn't exactly muscle-less.

"Well I suggested that the chain make a deal with the smaller companies. Not necessarily a merger, but a partnership. It's not as though they can't afford to provide the goods for a cheaper price, and by allowing them to sell the products at such a low price saves people enough money, stimulates their economy, and then allows the smaller store to make money for themselves as well as their backers. They just need to stop being so greedy-." She was cut off again by another bump, but it seemed to be the last one as the plane rose for another couple minutes before leveling out. Loki's thumb worked soothingly over her soft skin, rubbing the back of her hand as he prompted her to keep going on about the markets, what would be expected in a situation like that, what sort of obstacles might get in the way. He even seemed to know enough that he could add in his own thoughts about the arrangement.

Color Natasha impressed.

"Were you a business major?" She asked, smiling thankfully at him as she felt the liquor heating her veins and her fear slipping away with every soft swipe of his thumb over the back of her hand. He gave a muffled laugh and shook his head.

"No, but my adopted father ran his own business and I picked up a few things from him training my elder brother. I was never intended to run a business."

There was the softest edge of bitterness that thrummed beneath his voice, and her expression softened. Her hand, which had gone lax in his, tightened.

"Hey, same here. My adopted father had no use for daughters, and the only reason I was even allowed to come here was because I managed to raise enough money to, basically, run away." Why was she saying this? How was it that she felt so comfortable beside him when it had taken years for Barton, of all people, to get the truth out of her? He'd been the first person that she'd really trusted, and even then it had been slow going. She dismissed the liquor as the deciding factor, able to hold it well enough to keep her secrets in every other time, though as she watched the slight lines in Loki's face tense a little, his eyes bright as they took her in as though he was just seeing her for the first time, she thought of how she might not see him again. It made it easier, she supposed, knowing that he wouldn't be able to ever hold this against her, that after this very long flight his knowledge wouldn't have any sort of repercussion on her. Who would he tell that she would know, anyway, if they hadn't met until then? New York was a big state, Russia an even bigger country. The odds of him knowing anyone she did were astronomical.

The realization hit her hard in the gut as she looked him over. Maybe the flight wouldn't be so bad after all.

As promised, the stewardess came around with complimentary drinks for them, and Loki ordered a gin and tonic while Nat just requested another bottle of vodka smiling at the woman and thanking her profusely. The woman just nodded knowingly, winking, before moving on to the next passengers.

"So, what do you do?" Nat asked after he'd gotten a couple sips of his drink down. It was only fair play that since he knew so much about her she returned the favor with her own questions.

"Oh I pick up jobs here and there," he assured her with a chuckle.

Her eyebrows flew up. "Well, they must be rather well paying if you can afford to fly first class to Russia. C'mon," she nudged him. "Spill it."

He snorted, though he was still relaxed beside her. "Alright. The truth?"

"The truth."

"I'm working on taking over a teaching position if I can get a recommendation from one of my old professors. He's since retired and I thought going to meet him might convince him that I was serious enough for te position."

"What do you want to teach?" Natasha asked, leaning back in her seat. "And the guy must be worth if it you're flying all the way from New York to Russia."

"Well it'd be teaching at NYU, so yeah that's worth it," he laughed. "And-promise you won't laugh at me?"

"I promise," she said, forcing her face to go straight and sober, though the corners of her lips kept flicking upwards. She couldn't help it-he looked like a puppy waiting for a treat as he looked at her, his green eyes big and searching hers. It was almost enough to melt her heart. "Really, I do promise."

"Theater." He said with a small chuckle.

"Really?" She asked, blinking rapidly. Huh. She was getting rusty if it was taking her that long to peg him down as something. Theatrical, yes, she could see that now as she knew his profession choice. Enigmatic, charaismatic. Yes. He'd do well at what Ivan had once taught her, how to forge and sneak her way into any situation, usually to get blackmail. It had been one of the many reasons she'd left his care.

She needed to stop thinking about that. He was rolling his eyes, muttering that he told her not to laugh and she quickly backtracked, reaching out to take his shoulder in her hand.

"Hey, not judging you, I promise." She said with an easy, reassuring smile, the same she'd give to her students when she'd taught as a graduate assistant to tell them that their ideas weren't completely terrible. "No judgement."

"You business majors with your solid professions and majors," he said, and had she not seen the glint in his eye she might've thought that he was serious. "Always looking down on the rest of us. Our majors are just as important as yours."

She smirked, sitting back in her seat as her hand trailed down. "Well, if you're that hung up about it I could make it up to you."

That got his attention. Those nearest to them had their attention elsewhere or else were sleeping, the flight attendants were off in the coach section of the airplane, and Nat's eyes flicked to the bathroom.

"I'm going to go powder my nose," she said, sitting much closer to him so that her lips brushed against his earlobe. "And I'll give it a few minutes. If you're not interested and I've been reading you incorrectly-" which she wasn't. "Then I'll come back and we'll pretend this never happened. If you are interested, though. Well, I'll see you soon." She winked, feeling a thrill of adrenaline and power as she saw him straighten in his seat, shifting his legs not so subtly. Heh. She didn't think she'd been wrong, and well she'd been looking for an excuse to get him to follow her. That looked as good as any, she supposed. As she shifted to undo her seatbelt he mirrored the action, standing so that she could get through. She wasn't very subtle with the way she pressed her backside into his groin, grinning to feel him already hard, and for once he seemed to be without a sort of come back, his Adam's apple bobbing quickly as he swallowed, his eyes following her as she slipped into the bathroom. The door firmly shut behind her, but not locked, she took half a minute to check her appearance in the mirror, noting with distaste that the color was higher in her cheeks than it ought to have been. She blamed it entirely on her buzz having kicked in, and for a split second, as she was left in the empty bathroom, she thought she'd made a complete ass out of herself. Her and her stupid words.

The next second the door opened and Loki's grinning face appeared, locking hte door behind them as he pressed his lips hard to hers, catching her face in between his two hands as he pressed his tongue to the seam of her lips, making Natasha gasp and part them for him without issue. They didn't have much time, she knew, and without preamble she shucked her pants slipping one long leg out of them entirely as he fiddled with his belt, his hands on her now bare hips, hiking her up onto the counter space, the linoleum cold against her backside. He slipped two fingers into his mouth, wetting them, before pulling her panties to the side and pressing his fingers inside of her. She bit back a loud moan as her head tipped backwards and her eyes closed, whimpering as he stretched her out hurriedly, slicking his hand with her arousal before bringing his hand to his cock, already hard and waiting. Her eyes caught on it and widened. Well then, tall men really did have all the best secrets.

He pushed into her in one swift thrust, choking her in surprise before he pulled back just as hard, repeating the rhythm until she was shouting into his clothed shoulder, her hands having snaked up under his shirt to scratch at his back.

He hissed in her ear at how good she felt, and she whimpered as he picked up the speed once more, the faucet sticking into her back and making her arch up against him, her breasts pressed hard to his chest. She didn't last long like that, whispering his name over and over as she clung to him, her orgasm overtaking her and nearly making her shout in surprise, her whole body tightening around him. He followed shortly after, pulling her by the hair to kiss her hard on the lips, and didn't pull away until the aftershocks had finished between the both of them, Loki thrusting shallowly to help her through them.

"Wow," Nat whispered against his lips, grinning up at him. Not bad at all for a quickie-she hadn't come that hard in years.

He hummed his agreement to her before pulling out with a groan. "You want out first?" He asked.

"Yeah. If you don't mind." At least she wouldn't get the brunt of the attention. She hoped. Even if she did to hell with it. There'd be a new plane, a new batch of stewardesses, and a ton of new passengers on the next flight. What did she have to worry about? Cleaning herself up she straightened her hair as best she could, kissed Loki once more, and finally left. The stewardess glanced at her, curiously, but left it at that, the pieces not coming together until Loki followed shortly after Nat. She thought she heard the woman mutter something about 'disgusting kids' before Nat finally took her seat again.

A/N: Well, here we are again. This will be a one-shot in a longer stretch of them, all of which will be connected. As the story goes on it will be explained, but there's much more where this came from =] Thanks for reading!