An agent's world is one of suspicion. To be told so plainly and directly that you are trusted is disarming.
Natasha's fingernails dug into her palms, the painful indentations that nearly bled the only thing keeping her from entertaining the thought of resigning and following John.
"You are a very cunning person," Natasha said suddenly.
John smiled slightly. "Is that a compliment?"
"No," she replied, "it's a description."
Natasha took out her phone, sent a message, then set it on the table and leaned back on the sofa, all pretense of formality gone. "Natasha is off work. Natalie is on duty."
She got her wish. John's expression froze for a satisfying moment. Natasha, her mood instantly lifted, shifted on the sofa to better show off her figure and said with a smile, "You didn't think I just came to pass a message for S.H.I.E.L.D., did you?"
John thought for a moment and asked tentatively, "All the salary you had deducted was for your absenteeism."
"...I'm not here to ask for back pay," Natasha said irritably. She hardly needed Taran Industries' salary to live. "I have something to ask you!"
John, however, felt that asking for a salary was no small matter.
"I came to invite you to my house," Natasha said, the words tinged with a hint of hesitation. The invitation was deliberately ambiguous. For anyone else, hearing such a stimulating offer would be as direct as being handed a room key.
But John was unusual. He asked a key question.
"You still have a home?"
Who does he look down on? Natasha fumed internally. She was a super-agent working for S.H.I.E.L.D., after all. After all these years, there was no way she didn't have enough money for a house. Sometimes, Natasha wished she could be as shameless as Fury. She could greet people with such cordial salutations and not have the slightest psychological burden about damaging her image.
***
John had just been asking casually. He hadn't expected Natasha's home to be so simple and cozy.
She inserted the key into the lock, turned it, and the door opened. There was no fancy fingerprint verification, no titanium alloy walls. It was just a simple, small house on a quiet street.
Dust lay on the desktop. "Haven't been back in a long time?" John asked.
Natasha folded her arms and nodded. "I come back once a year."
"This was originally where I..." Her voice paused. "Planned to live when I retired."
John looked around. The layout wasn't that of a tough agent. It was simple, with cozy, personal touches. A brown carpet, a sofa covered with a dust cloth. A withered flower sat in a glass vase, with no water to sustain it.
John raised his hand and touched the flower. It came back to life.
"Why did you call me here?" John asked. "You're not going to try and sell it to me, are you?"
"Not selling," Natasha's gaze kept darting around. "But I need you to do me a favor."
John followed her gaze. It wasn't at the ceiling, under the sofa, or behind the curtains.
"Who are you looking for?"
"Looking for..."
Before she could finish, Natasha darted forward, pouncing under the table.
A furry hand patted her on the forehead. With a single-armed vault, a small figure leaped over her head.
A small pink bear, moving with impossible speed and silence, scurried upstairs.
John quietly watched Natasha, who was bent over with her rear in the air, without any intention of helping.
Natasha got up, seemingly used to this. "It's that guy."
John's mind was filled with the image of the little bear toy with the pink headpiece.
"That is..."
"Ariana gave it to me," Natasha stood up again, her expression unchanged. "After I came back, I found it could move."
She looked at John. "Perhaps this is because of Ariana's magic."
Compared to Natasha's uncertainty, John was certain it was Ariana's magic. Young wizards often experience surges of uncontrolled magic. Some make objects disappear, others make things change. Children's emotions are far more extreme than an adult's. Even a certain Legendary Auror had once inflated his aunt and sent her flying into the sky.
As an Obscurial, Ariana's magic was even more volatile. This wasn't the first time her power had leaked into her personal belongings. That little bear contained a piece of her magic, something akin to Transfiguration that animated it, driving it to act like a living thing.
Natasha explained that she had always carried the bear, but some missions were too dangerous, so she had left it here. When she came back for Christmas, she found it had come alive and was now hiding from her. She suspected it was connected to Ariana, which was why she'd called John. Wizard matters required a wizard's touch.
Hearing this, John didn't refuse.
He walked upstairs and saw the little pink bear peeking out from a corner, its unmoving eyes watching him. He walked over unhurriedly as the bear turned its head and scurried away, its soft feet padding silently on the ground as if playing a game of hide-and-seek.
John followed it from the second floor to the attic, which was filled with various miscellaneous items Natasha had stored away.
He walked over and, in a cardboard box, saw the little bear reaching out its arms for a hug.
He held out his hand to let it climb up. Holding the bear in one hand, he looked at the cardboard box. Ariana's name was written on it.
Natasha followed him up. "Ariana sends me things. This is what she sent for Christmas."
Opening it, he found some handmade items and a book. The bear in his hand patted his arm and pointed to the book.
He took it out. The cover was blank white, like a pure brick.
"It seems to be a notebook," Natasha added. "It's empty inside." As an agent, the first thing she'd done upon receiving the package was check for any hidden information.
"Now I understand why the little bear was hiding from you."
John looked at the book. It looked ordinary, but inside was something only he could see.
More accurately, this was something he had given to Ariana. Only family and friends were worthy of having the Wizard King personally write a book for them. This wasn't just a book; it was a powerful alchemical tool, containing everything John had prepared for his sister.
Ariana was special. She was an Obscurial who had never attended a magic school. So John had recorded all the magic she would ever need inside this book. The contents were enough to make the entire Magic World go mad with desire.
Thinking of this, he handed the bear to Natasha.
Under her curious gaze, John took out his wand and lightly tapped the book. He spoke strange, unintelligible words, filled with weight and antiquity.
"Phoenix, Fire Dragon, and Silver Wolf."
As the words fell, the previously blank cover shimmered, ink spreading across its surface. Hot-stamped golden letters appeared.
"A Practical Magic Picture Book?" Natasha read, raising an eyebrow. "Sounds like some kind of children's book."
"This is not a children's book," John said, his fingers rubbing the edge of the book. The thick cover was rounded and wouldn't hurt his fingers.
He looked at Natasha and asked, "Where was it sent from?"
"I checked. A small town in New Jersey," Natasha said, the little bear now perched on her shoulder. "But that was two weeks before Christmas. Ariana wasn't there."
John narrowed his eyes. What was Ariana's intention in sending this book? Why hadn't she come to him directly? The bear must have been activated by sensing Ariana's aura, which in turn activated the magic within it, guiding Natasha to find this book.
A strange feeling surged in his heart. Perhaps he shouldn't let his sister stay out in the world any longer.
(End of Chapter)
***
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