The truth is a matter of circumstance. It’s not all things to all people all the time. And neither am I.
A spy, an Avenger, and, most significantly, anyone she wants to be, Natasha Romanoff (alias: Black Widow) defines herself through roles more than anything else. As a KGB agent and freelance assassin, she was ruthless and slick. As an agent of SHIELD, she was knowledgable about all the files available at her clearance level (supplying information on the several missions namechecked during The Winter Soldier) and maintained confidentiality, following procedure whenever possible (such as keeping her own mission to retrieve SHIELD data, not rescue hostages, a secret from Steve at the start of The Winter Soldier, despite their amiable relationship after the events of The Avengers). As an Avenger, a protecter of earth and its people, Natasha forsakes her own safety and comfort by exposing HYDRA's corruption of…show more content… Most times, she is respectful, believably amiable, even towards those she dislikes. Her words are often neutral and innocent in tone, if not phrasing. Overall, her temperament is mild, largely due to her controlled nature. Although Tony Stark provokes her in conversation throughout Iron Man 2, Natasha's expression remains impassive, amused at most. She masks panic or pain with humor, generally, undercutting being shot through the stomach and losing a life under her protection by saying, "A Soviet slug, no rifling. Bye-bye bikinis." Similarly, when she and Steve learn he sacrificed himself under false pretenses, she quips, "You seem pretty chipper for someone who just found out they died for nothing." Evidently, she utilizes levity to maintain a calm, careless facade, disarming her allies and enemies alike. It is as much a tool to obscure herself (masking her intentions or discomfort) as to enjoy herself (sincerely making shitty dad jokes, like when she calls Steve a