Dec. 27th, 2021

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[ yelena's lived in worse places. some of them had been a day-long stay, others had been months and almost years at a time. kate's apartment isn't the worst, although it's the most sad. it's in desperate need of a little christmas cheer and some sprucing.

it's in desperate need of sprucing. yelena was just trying to be nice in her assessment.

it's so dark and depressing. no wonder kate only has one fork—who would want to come back where with the scorch marks in the floor and the dilapidated rug? the dog's cute, though. she'd definitely come here for the dog.

in the aftermath of the party, yelena doesn't return to her hotel room. considering she had thought she would be on her way to her next destination (currently unclear—she doesn't want to go back to ohio during the big family season and now especially on the back of the news of natasha's truth), she doesn't have anywhere to go. she doesn't have anyone to go back to. she's grateful she still has alexei and melina, but she doesn't want to be around them right now. the gaping void of natasha's absence weighs heavily down on them, too. she doesn't think she has it in her to reveal the truth to them. it's still a heavy weight she carries; she still feels so angry, but clint barton is no longer the target of that rage.

she invites herself to kate's apartment. it's easy to pick the lock (kate really needs to invest in a few more) and it's easy to go through her cupboards (there is absolutely nothing in them, it's so sad) to try and find some decorations to liven the place up. even the dog helps her, although she thinks he's more or less trying to give her some comfort when all she finds is a christmas hat and nothing more.

she gives herself a new mission: make kate less depressing and weird. suspecting she'll have time before kate comes back (assuming she does—doesn't she have a mother and her best bud clint to possibly spend the evening with?), yelena takes lucky out on a stroll and in search of christmas stores that are still open late at night. it's nice to keep her mind busy. she talks to him, asks him for his opinion. he's a good dog who's clearly desperate for a walk. she comes back an hour later with some christmas decorations in hand and a few treats for him.

she's strung them all up around kate's apartment by the time the door twists and groans on its hinges. lucky's wearing a christmas hat and chewing on a little bone happily. a small christmas tree sits in the corner with a few gifts wrapped beneath it (all for the dog) and the windows are decorated with bright lights. the apartment is still depressingly empty, but at least it's a little cheerful now.

yelena belova, the saviour of christmas. there's no need for applause.

sitting on her heels on the floor, she's still in her black widow outfit and her messy braid. she's brushing lucky's tail gently as he enjoys chewing on his early christmas toy. she doesn't look up—she doesn't need to. the heavy footsteps that enter belong to kate bishop. ]


I walked your dog for you. He likes me more than you, just so you know.