"Not going to look over the contract terms?" Homelander teased. "Vought's legal department is famously bloodsucking."
"No need."
Natasha closed the contract and pushed it in front of Homelander.
"Back at S.H.I.E.L.D., Fury always talked to me about ideals, sacrifice, and doing it for all humanity. Then he'd turn around and dock my field allowance."
She looked at Homelander, her tone more relaxed than ever before.
"But you're different. You talk directly about money, benefits, and health insurance. It may be vulgar, but you genuinely have my best interests at heart."
"To be honest, Anthony." Natasha looked at Homelander, her gaze complicated. "After doing dirty work for S.H.I.E.L.D. all these years, I always thought I'd die in some nameless gutter."
"...But now, I truly feel that working for you might be the best decision I've ever made."
"I never sell my employees dreams. Because I have enough flour to bake them a cake outright."
"And... Natasha." Homelander walked around to stand before her, looking directly into her eyes.
"...Here, you won't need to do that kind of dirty work in the shadows anymore. You can stand in the sunlight and accept people's applause. You can be a hero, not an assassin."
Natasha fell silent for a moment, then suddenly broke into a bright, heartfelt smile.
"Everything is great, except the fifteen-thousand-dollar reimbursement limit for work clothes is too low."
"HAHAHAHA!"
Homelander burst out laughing.
"Go find Ashley. I'll have her add three zeros."
The system notification sounded at just the right moment:
``` "Detected that founding Avenger Black Widow Natasha Romanoff has officially joined the faction!"
"Special Popularity Points gained + 50000!"
"Reward: [Allied Super-Spy Combat Suit]!"
"Black 𫛭 Custom Pistol: Two pistols, capable of switching between armor-piercing and high-explosive modes, with an effective range of 300 meters."
"Hyper-Temporal Belt: