When Star Shatters - Natasha - Wanda

It's almost my birthday when I'm writing this, who knows when I'll publish this or if I would even publish it.

Update: One person commented that they love it already so I'm releasing this chapter, it's past my birthday so yay.

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Livia Arcanis Arcane was used to working alone. That had been the deal—Nick Fury let her operate solo, taking down rogue operatives and criminals under SHIELD's watchful eye. She got a paycheck, a place to stay, and as long as she didn't cause too much collateral damage, Maria Hill only checked in when necessary.

It was a good arrangement.

But apparently, SHIELD had other ideas.

She was sent to Prague to capture Anton Markov, a former intelligence agent who had gone rogue. He was selling classified information, and SHIELD wanted him taken in before that information fell into the wrong hands.

The mission was supposed to be hers.

Then she showed up.

Livia had Markov cornered in a narrow alley, her ice spreading across the pavement to block any escape. She took a step forward, ready to freeze him in place—

And then she felt it.

The shift in the air. The almost silent landing behind her.

Livia whirled around, ice crackling at her fingertips, and came face to face with Natasha Romanoff.

The infamous Black Widow.

Natasha barely reacted to the obvious threat in Livia's stance, her green eyes cool and assessing. She stood at ease, but Livia could tell she was already calculating the fastest way to incapacitate her if necessary.

Livia arched a brow. "I wasn't aware this was a team effort."

Natasha didn't blink. "It's not. You were taking too long."

Livia scoffed. "I'm taking my sweet time."

Markov took advantage of the distraction and bolted.

Before Livia could move, Natasha was already in motion. She took off after him, weaving through the alleys like she had them memorized. Livia cursed and launched herself forward, skating over the ice she summoned to close the gap.

She caught up just in time to see Natasha slam into Markov, bringing him down in one fluid motion. A flick of her wrist, and she had the man cuffed before he could even groan in protest.

Livia came to a stop, hands on her hips, breathing hard. "Neat tackle."

Natasha shot her a sidelong glance as she pulled Markov to his feet. "Neat trick."

Livia smirked. "Could've handled it myself."

Natasha didn't dignify that with an answer. She just started hauling Markov toward the extraction point. Livia watched her for a moment, then followed, an amused glint in her eye.

"Oh, I like her."

Back at the safehouse, Maria Hill was already waiting.

Livia barely had time to roll her shoulders before Maria was on her. "I told you to keep it quiet."

Livia flopped into a chair, lazily stretching her legs out. "Didn't break anything."

Maria didn't look convinced. She turned to Natasha. "How was she?"

Natasha was silent for a moment. Then, finally, she said, "Efficient. But reckless."

Livia snorted. "You mean fun, good looking, and fabulously cool."

Maria sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose. "Fury wants her under supervision."

Livia sat up. "Supervision? I thought you were already babysitting me."

Natasha simply folded her arms. "It means you'll be seeing more of me."

Livia blinked. Then she smirked. "Lucky me."

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Livia had never been one for rules.

Sure, she was technically working under SHIELD now, but she still liked to do things her way—fast, loud, and with minimal patience for authority. So when Maria Hill informed her that she'd be working alongside Natasha Romanoff for an upcoming mission, instead of being babysat? Her first reaction was to laugh.

Her second reaction was to argue.

"I work alone." she had said, lounging across the briefing table like it was her couch.

Maria, unamused as ever, had simply replied. "Not this time."

And that was that.

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The mission was a weapons retrieval op.

Some low-level arms dealer had gotten his hands on SHIELD tech—prototype energy rifles that could level a building if handled improperly. Their target, Viktor Solovyov, had holed up in a heavily guarded compound in Moscow, planning to auction off the weapons to the highest bidder.

The plan was simple: go in, retrieve the tech, and get out.

The problem? Livia and Natasha had very different ideas of how to do that.

Livia preferred direct combat. Get in, break bones, freeze anyone who got in her way, grab the objective, and walk out. Natasha, however, was all about stealth—silent takedowns, careful infiltration, and avoiding unnecessary attention.

"You know." Livia whispered as they crouched behind a stack of crates, waiting for a guard to pass. "I could take out this whole room in, like, thirty seconds."

Natasha shot her a sideways glance. "That's not the plan."

Livia smirked. "Yeah, but my plan sounds way more fun."

Natasha ignored her and moved forward, sticking to the shadows.

Livia sighed dramatically but followed.

Livia crouched behind a stack of crates, watching Natasha disable a guard with practiced efficiency. She moved like a ghost, her movements precise and quiet. Meanwhile, Livia had already taken down three men with a mix of ice blasts and fists—though, in her defense, she had kept the noise to a minimum.

Mostly.

Natasha slid into cover beside her, whispering. "You're making too much noise."

Livia smirked. "And you're making this boring."

Natasha gave her a sharp look, then gestured toward the warehouse entrance. "Security is heavier than expected. We need to stick to the plan."

Livia rolled her eyes but followed. They moved through the shadows, dodging patrols and slipping past security checkpoints. Natasha took point, using her Widow's Bite as Livia likes to call it (it's actually just taser gloves) to silently neutralize any threats. Livia resisted the urge to roll her eyes every time Natasha took the careful approach—she could have froze them all in seconds and been done with it.

But then, of course, something went wrong.

One of the guards wasn't alone.

Natasha had just finished choking out one of Solovyov's men when another stepped around the corner. His gun was already raised.

Natasha pivoted, ready to engage—

Crack.

The guard's feet froze to the ground, ice racing up his legs before he could pull the trigger.

Livia stepped into view, flicking frost from her fingers. "You're welcome."

Natasha didn't say thank you. Instead, she just exhaled and muttered. "We need to move."

They had made it inside the warehouse where Viktor Solovyov was keeping the stolen SHIELD weapons. Rows of crates stretched across the room, stacked high and unguarded—for now.

As Natasha moved to disable the security systems, Livia leaned against a wall, watching her work.

"Y'know." Livia murmured. "for someone with a reputation, you're a little too serious."

Natasha didn't look up. "I like to get the job done."

Livia smirked. "I bet you're fun at parties."

Natasha's fingers didn't pause over the controls. "Do you ever stop talking?"

Livia tilted her head. "Not when I'm around a beautiful woman or women, no."

That made Natasha glance at her. Just for a second.

Livia caught the look and grinned. "Oh, don't look so surprised. I'm just saying—spy or not, you've got great legs."

Natasha didn't react. But Livia noticed the slight twitch of her lips—like she was fighting the smallest smirk.

"I should've let you work alone." Natasha muttered.

Livia grinned wider. "But then who would keep you entertained?"

______

The moment Natasha disabled the system, a klaxon blared to life. Someone had tripped the backup alarms.

Livia groaned. "There goes your sneaky sneaky tactics."

Natasha grabbed a rifle and tossed another to Livia. "Time to move."

Livia manages to catch the rifle. "What the heck am I supposed to do with this?"

Natasha quickly packs up her rifle and turns to leave. "We need to bring them back remember. Look alive."

The next five minutes were chaos.

Guards stormed in, and Livia went all out. Frost spread across the floor, sending enemies skidding while she slammed into them with brutal force. She conjured ice spears, knocking rifles out of their hands before they could fire.

Beside her, Natasha moved with lethal grace. She weaved through enemies, striking pressure points and disarming them with ease.

For a moment, they were in sync.

Livia would freeze a guard's weapon, and Natasha would take him out. Natasha would shove an enemy toward her, and Livia would send him flying with a blast of ice.

By the time they reached the exit, the compound was in shambles.

Livia smirked. "Well, that was fun."

Natasha sighed, tucking her gun away. "That was messy."

Livia just grinned. "I like messy if you catch my drift wink wink. And besides we still got the job done."

Maria Hill's voice crackled over their earpieces. "I swear, if you two destroyed another mission site—"

Livia and Natasha exchanged glances.

Then Livia hit the detonator.

The rest of the warehouse went up in ice, sealing the stolen weapons under layers of frost.

Livia shrugged. "Oops my hand slipped! Besides it's.....Not destroyed. Just...preserved."

Natasha exhaled. "We're going to have to work on your definition of subtle."

Livia just smirked. "Guess that means I'll be seeing more of you, huh?"

Natasha shook her head, but this time, she didn't disagree.

Livia, still riding the high of combat, shot Natasha a sideways look. "Admit it." she teased. "you like having me around."

Natasha didn't respond.

Not until they reached the rendezvous point.

Livia turned to her, arms crossed. "Well?"

Natasha finally smirked. "You're reckless."

Livia grinned. "And?"

Natasha hesitated. Then—just as she climbed into the SHIELD vehicle—she muttered. "And you're not completely terrible."

Livia's smile widened.

"Oh, this was going to be fun."

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Undercover at the Masquerade

The suit was too tight. The tie was annoying. But at least it wasn't a dress.

Livia adjusted the cuffs of her tailored midnight-blue suit, the fabric fitting snugly against her frame. The open collar left just enough room to breathe, but the moment Natasha—or rather, Natalie Rushman, as she was going by tonight—looped her arm through Livia's, she realized the real problem.

It wasn't the suit.

It was the fact that pretending to be Natasha's fiancée was far more distracting than she'd anticipated.

"You look good." Natasha murmured as they approached the grand ballroom entrance, her voice teasing but sincere. "Almost too good. Try not to draw too much attention."

Livia smirked. "Hard to do when you keep staring at me."

Natasha let out a soft, amused exhale but didn't deny it. Instead, she squeezed Livia's arm and led them inside. Chandeliers bathed the guests in golden light, and a string quartet played a piece that was probably expensive enough to pay rent for a year. Livia scanned the crowd—a mix of politicians, criminals, and people rich enough to be both. Somewhere among them was Viktor Ralov, an arms dealer brokering a deal for stolen alien tech.

"Try to act the part." Natasha said, tilting her head just slightly toward her. "Loving, devoted, head over heels—you know, everything you're terrible at."

Livia scoffed. "And you're suddenly an expert on my love life?"

"Considering your flirting skills involve sarcasm and smirking like you just got away with something?" Natasha's red lips curled. "Yes."

Before Livia could fire back, a low voice cut in.

"Ms. Rushman." Viktor Ralov greeted, approaching them with a whiskey glass in hand. He was broad-shouldered, with graying hair and sharp eyes that took in everything. His gaze flickered to Livia. "And you brought company."

Natasha/Natalie gave a slow, practiced smile. "My fiancée." she corrected, her grip tightening slightly on Livia's arm. "I thought it was time she saw the finer things in life."

Ralov raised a skeptical brow. "Didn't take you for the settling-down type."

"Oh, you know how it is." Natasha said, leaning in just enough that Livia caught the faint scent of her perfume. She glanced up at Livia with a look—play along. "She swept me off my feet."

Livia hesitated for half a second before deciding: If Natasha was going to put her in this situation, she was going to make her suffer for it.

She slipped an arm around Natasha's waist, tugging her just close enough to feel the heat between them. "More like I caught you when you almost fell in six-inch heels." she murmured, just loud enough for Ralov to hear.

Natasha didn't stiffen. She didn't react at all—at least, not outwardly. But Livia caught the slight flicker in her green eyes, the way her breath hitched before she masked it with a playful scoff.

Ralov chuckled. "Fiery one, huh?" He took a sip of his drink. "Try not to kill each other before dessert."

As soon as he walked off, Livia exhaled. "I can't believe you—"

"Oh, relax." Natasha plucked a champagne flute from a passing tray and sipped it like nothing had happened. "You did fine."

Livia eyed her, still feeling warm from their exchange. "That was cruel."

"You started it." Natasha said, glancing at her over the rim of her glass. Her lips curled into something half-amused, half-something else. "Careful, Arcane. I think you might actually be enjoying this."

Livia scoffed, but her pulse was still racing.

And worse? She wasn't sure it had anything to do with the mission.

"This woman is going to be the death of me."

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To be continued