application.
PLAYER INFORMATION
Your Name: Carlee/Car
OOC Journal: yourlivewire
Under 18? If yes, what is your age?: Well over it.
Email + IM: seemssosurreal@hotmail.com | this pink ribbon @ AIM
Characters Played at Ataraxion: N/A
CHARACTER INFORMATION
Name: Natasha Romanoff/Romanova (alias Natalie Rushman in Iron Man 2, code name Black Widow)
Canon: Iron Man 2/The Avengers
Original or Alternate Universe: Original.
Canon Point: After her assignment to Tony Stark in Iron Man 2.
Number: 012
Setting: Link #1 (general Wiki); Link #2 (MCA wiki); Link #3 (Iron Man 2 page on the MCA wiki).
History:
Very little is known about Natasha as she exists in the Marvel Cinematic Universe so far, but there are several things that hint at the experiences that lead to her becoming the character we see in Iron Man 2. The fact that she holds such a high-ranking position within S.H.I.E.L.D. and has as much experience as she does at such a young age suggests that she started out in her field at a very young age, possibly in early adolescence or even childhood. Comic book canon states that she was orphaned in Russia as a child and raised in a covert government program that trained her as a spy and assassin (the Black Widow Ops). Since this has yet to be hinted at or confirmed in the canon I intend to play her from, I don't feel totally comfortable saying that this is that case when it comes to her, but I do feel that it's safe to assume that something similar happened - her family was killed when she was a child, she was raised in an orphanage the first few years of her life, and then eventually chosen by a program that trained young women as spies, likely in her early teens. Natasha remained with the program for several years, going through rigorous training in which she learned how to become an expert spy and assassin. She acquired valuable contacts and learned how to play people and to use them to her advantage to get the job done. After her time in the program, Natasha was recruited by Colonel Nick Fury as an agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. and has remained one ever since.
Again, all of the above is based on comic canon and while I feel it's a good place to draw inspiration from, we've only gotten a glimpse of who Natasha is in the MCU and the people behind the movies could very well decide to go in an entirely different direction regarding her history and how she became a member of S.H.I.E.L.D., if they even decide to explain it in the upcoming Avengers movie. If that happens, I'll adjust things accordingly.
Personality:
We're introduced to Natasha in the Marvel Cinematic Universe as she arrives at the home of Tony Stark to have him sign over his company to Pepper Potts, and shortly after that he hires her as his new assistant based on what he finds when Googling her and seeing her take on Happy in the boxing ring. However, there's more to Natasha than meets the eye. (Or the Google search.) What we see of her from that point until she reveals herself to be an agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. is a construct; it's one that's based in elements of reality, but it's still a put-on, a character she's playing. Natasha was trained since childhood to blend in perfectly with any given situation; at one point in the movie, Tony lashes out in frustration and asks if there's any part of her that's real. This says a lot about who she is a person - so much of her life has been spent playing a character that it's possible that she struggles internally with who she really is. But if she ever does, she never shows it - she is stoic, unflappable, and one-hundred percent professional and devoted to the task at hand, whatever it may be.
Natasha takes pride in what she does and how she presents herself; it's very important to her that she be taken seriously and seen as an equal by her peers. Those who underestimate her quickly come to regret it (an example of this is when Happy tells her never to take her eyes off her opponent and she immediately grabs the opportunity to take him down). She works twice as hard as anyone else with the same qualifications because she feels she has more to prove due to her sex, age, and the fact that she works with people with extraordinary advantages over the abilities of a typical human being. Her interest and training in ballet and gymnastics come through in her style of fighting, as well as how she presents herself. How she presents herself is also a weapon; she's a master in the art of seduction as a weapon (her appearance is the first thing that Tony Stark notices about her and plays a big role in why she gets hired), though it's something she typically uses as a way to distract and disarm her opponent. This is the way she prefers to do things because it offers her the opportunity to gather more information about who she's taking on; people are more willing to divulge secrets to a beautiful woman who is trying to chat them up than they are to a beautiful woman who's got a gun pointed to their head.
While she's not exactly unfriendly, it's hard to get close to her because she rarely lets people see past the mask she's learned to keep up. Those who don't know her get the impression that she's cold and aloof, those who know her better see her as someone who's friendly enough, but that they couldn't really tell you about if you were to ask. Not getting involved with people is easier because it means there's less to lose if things go wrong (and in her line of work, things going wrong could mean someone getting killed - it's easier to lose co-workers than lovers or friends). This aloof behavior is a shield she's developed over the years that's like a second nature to her at this point; it's something that slips into place automatically and would take her a lot of work to bring down. This doesn't mean she's incapable of becoming either a lover or a friend to someone or that someone hasn't broken through that shield over the years, but we haven't seen her exhibit that kind of behavior towards anyone in film canon yet, so we can only assume that it's possible.
In the cinematic universe, her past is still a mystery, but her field is not one that you go into without a lot of thought or without being prepared to face a lot of risks. Her job requires her to face a lot of difficult situations, many of which are life or death, and it's possible she's already seen a lot of people lose their lives to their jobs or because of other unfortunate circumstances, which is one of the reasons she's developed such a hard shell. There are times where I'm sure she regrets acting this way and wishes she could let herself get close to people, but at this point, she's so used to acting that way that she doesn't realize that it's unusual, and removing it would take her way outside her comfort zone.
Earning respect is also something that's very important to her; it's why she works so hard to prove herself among her colleagues. This determination has served her well - she's considered one of the head agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. among people who are older and have more field experience than she does, something that must be frustrating to other agents. Despite wanting to be taken seriously, being aloof, and having a one-track mind a lot of the time, she is not a robot. She has a dry, quiet sense of humor and is loyal to the end to her allies and when it comes to protecting those she's tasked to, both of which tend to catch people by surprise. She remains an enigma, even to those who think they know her well.
Abilities, Weaknesses and Power Limitations: Natasha is a skilled fighter in many forms of combat, hand-to-hand (martial arts and boxing) as well as armed (guns, knives, and her armed wrist cuffs that deploy an EMP charge). She is also a trained acrobat and ballerina (this is not explicitly stated in Iron Man 2, but is hinted at with her style of fighting), an expert hacker (she is able to hack through Ivan Vanko's firewall and return control of the War Machine suit to Colonel James Rhodes while he and Tony are trying to fight off the Hammer Drones attack at the Stark Expo and also sets up a Google-searchable biography for her cover identity), multilingual, and an exceptional spy and strategist.
As far as limitations go, she is exceptionally good at what she does, but being a non-superpowered human who does not rely on armor gives her a fair amount of limitations - she can get injured, sick, and killed, and it's possible for an attacker to get the drop on her (though highly unlikely).
Inventory: Her S.H.I.E.L.D. uniform, which includes her widow's bite wrist cuffs, which deploy electric energy blasts, and her utility belt (for lack of a better word) that contain two guns, smoke bombs, wire, and a spray that leaves her enemies incapacitated. A set of leather fingerless gloves are also included.
Appearance: Natasha stands at about 5'4 and is fairly slight with some definite curves to her frame - it's obvious that she works out, but you wouldn't think to look at her that she could take you in a fight. Her hair is dark red and curly (worn long in Iron Man 2 but cut some time between the events of that movie and The Avengers) and her eyes are wide and green. (For reference: 1; 2.)
Age: It's not established in canon, but based on Scarlett Johansson's age (27) and the fact that she's likely been training from a very young age, I'd say in her mid-to-late 20s.
AU Clarification:
SAMPLES
Log Sample:
Natasha doesn't typically question Fury's judgement, but she'd be lying if she said she fully understood his plan. The group he's assembled aren't particularly well-suited to being team players; they're too used to doing things their way to fall in line, and the ones that are don't seem all that enthusiastic about being a part of the project. Banner has been understandably wary, given his experiences, and Rogers...well, Rogers is still adjusting to the world at large. It's going to take time that she's not sure they have on their hands to learn to work together without egos getting in the way, and their line of work doesn't allow for error out in the field.
This is what is on her mind as she heads down to one of the computer labs at around two o'clock in the morning. She can't sleep and while she would typically head to one of the training rooms, either to take out her frustration through practicing boxing or lose herself in ballet and gymnastics, she decides to run through several of the language training programs instead. It's important for the mind to stay sharp as well as the body, and she hates to think that either could be getting soft.
Once in the lab, she presses the power button and waits for the massive screen to flicker to life. Now it's just a matter of choosing which language to run through first. Russian has already been given the last slot (for obvious reasons, it's her native tongue and it's the one that she'll never, ever let herself forget), and French and German are easy enough but she hasn't had a chance to speak either in a while. The cursor hovers over the German tab for a second before she shakes her head and keeps searching. Too easy. This is meant to keep her sharp, not to let her rest on her laurels.
Her lips purse together as she scrolls down the menu options, and she debates for a minute or two longer before she finally spots the program she wants. The Latin program is pulled up, and she smiles as it fills the screen and sits back in her chair.
"Iam incipiunt."
Comms Sample:
[ natasha has had the comms device in her hands for over an hour, going through past entries and trying to figure out whatever she can from the people who've arrived before her and made their presence known. no one seems know anything more than anyone else, everyone here is fresh meat, plucked from wherever they previously were to be deposited in outer space. literally. she doesn't like this, it's not supposed to be possible and she doesn't like not knowing what she's in for. when the screen eventually flickers on to show her face, her mouth is set into a grim line and her eyes are determined and angry. ]
I doubt that anyone's had the chance to figure out who's behind bringing us here, so instead I'll ask who else has had a chance to speak to each other and develop theories on the matter, be it in person or over this device. And if no one's done it yet, now's as good a time as any and I'm not going anywhere for a while.
[ she sets her device on a shelf as she retrieves her cuffs, assembling them before snapping them into place on each wrist. once they're secure, her eyes go back to the screen, a challenge in her voice and eyes. ]
So let's get started.