The Black Hawk | Yelena Belova & Kate Bishop Story

~Red Room~

After 1 hour Kate came back in the room with lugged medicine she had bought at the store a few blocks away.
As she poured the medicine into a cup, she heard a small voice mumble something behind her back:

'I'm sorry I'm sick... '

Without turning around, she continued to concentrate on measuring so as not to make a mistake and give her just the right amount later. However, she did not hesitate for a moment to respond to Yelena's statement.

'What? That's nothing to be sorry about Yelena, that's normal. It can happen. Its totally fine.'

'I'm sorry Mme B.' the voice continued,

Kate perked up, apparently it wasn't about her, but about a certain Mme B. After she finished preparing the medicine, she turned to Yelena.

'It won't happen again, tomorrow I will
be fully usable again. If not, I will bear the resulting penalties and consequences.'

Kate stirred near the bed.
Yelena had her eyes closed, obviously asleep.

As she got closer she watched as Yelena began to jerk her head back and forth as her whole body trembled while trying to kick off the blanket on top of her.

'No... please...' A quiet almost not audible whimmer escaped the woman's mouth.

Kate quickly realized Yelena was having a nightmare and immediately tried to rouse her out of the dream.

After Kate shook her by the shoulders and tried waking her by calling out her name, Yelena woke up with a gasp.
As soon as she saw Kate's face above her, she pushed her off the bed with abrupt force, which caused her to fall on the bedroom floor beneath.

Kate slowly stood up and held up her hands to show her she had nothing inside.

'Hey, it's me Kate. You just had a nightmare... I wanted to wake you up. '

With a numb look in her eyes Yelena starred at the wall in front of the other side of the room.
Kate noticed this and raised one eyebrow questioningly.

'Are you okay. ' She asked Yelena in a quiet tone, she didn't want to startled Yelena in her state.

'Do you mind... leaving me alone for a second?' Yelena croaked out after a moment.

'Yeah sure... just call if you need me. I'll be in the living room.'

When the door was closed Yelena broke down.
How could she be so weak?
Her nightmare ran through her head, although it was only in her dream, she begged them not to harm her, what good agent would do such a thing?

"Only the people who crawl on the ground and are worthless are begging."

Those were Mme B.'s words.
She heard her voice so clearly, could remember every tone of voice and her hard gaze as if it were yesterday.

Yesterday she was a 8 year old girl who couldn't handle and process all the horrible things that were going on and she had to endure each day in the Red Room.
As much as she tried to hide and repress her fear and weakness, she had failed. Right in the middle of one ballet class she suddenly started crying in front of everyone in the room.

Showing weakness was one of the highest offenses in the Red Room and was severely punished there.
She quickly begged for an apology, hoping to avoid severe punishment.
However, nothing of the sort happened, instead she was brutally dragged out of the room and taken to a cell where she was badly beaten.

As she laid on the floor in utter exhaustion and pain, crying softly, Mme B. came in and said the words about begging to her.

'Let this be a lesson child, Widow's, they never beg for anything... if a Widow does that...' She hardly grabbed the little girls face and moved closer. 'She'll die...do you get that?'

The girl sniffed terrified and quickly nodded in response.

'Use your words!'

'Y...yes Madame B. I understand.'

'Good...'

And since that very day she never once begged anyone for anything...until now.

She knew it was a dream and nothing to worry about, but no matter how many times she tried to tell herself it, her younger self seemed to slip through her protective shell and she felt the moments in the Red Room lit up to hold on.
All the long gone fear and pain in her body came back.

A big lump formed in Yelena's throat and she felt tears pooling in her eyes.
She sank to the ground, grabbed her t-shirt and her neck in a tight grip, and let out a silent scream.
Tears streamed from her eyes and gasped for air.

I can't... I can't anymore
Please let this be over, I want to go home, I want Natasha and my parents
Why can't I have a normal life.

That's what she thought as a child and it hadn't changed at all. She stopped living since the day she first came in the Red Room.

After 20 Years in the Red Room, Yelena thought she finally got a chance which the never thought would even be possible: Being free, living your life with the people that you love.
She briefly thought she continued living as she met her sister after all the years of being separated. She finally had her little family back and could make her own decisions.

The moment she found out her sister had died, it all fell apart like a house of cards.
She had lost again - her newly won life.

She knew Natasha certainly hadn't made the decision lightly, and she certainly had made it with her in mind, but what she didn't know, was that it took away Yelenas only reason for actually wanting to live - The person she loved most, more than anything in this world, Natasha herself.
...

Kate sat on the other side of the door and listened at the quite sobbing inside the room.

This whole day was just chaos, she was used to Yelena constantly mocking her and trying to joke about almost everything in their life as roommates and this was a side she never expected from Yelena, so vulnerable and scared.

Kate had never seen her in that state, of course she knew Yelena was jsut a normal human like any other with feelings and bad days but somehow she always came across as the toughes woman she had ever encountered.

She didn't really know Yelena, but it became more and more obviously, that behind the happy and often joking person there must have been another serious past.
A part of her she continually tried to hide.
As Kate listened to the strained cries of the woman, she desperately wanted to know exactly what that was, and hopefully get the chance to help her.

She took out her phone and went to ask the only person who could help her except asking her directly.