fiction | Part of the journey is the end

9. Ronin - 1

In 2018, Yelena and another Black Widow, Sonya, broke into a mansion.

"2018 is right now," said Steve. "What is your sister doing, Natasha?"

"She's with another Widow, so I'm guessing that they're freeing a Widow," Natasha replied.

They faced a woman named Ana and greeted her.

Natasha blinked in surprise. "Ana?"

"You know her?" Wanda asked.

"We graduated from the same class, but I haven't spoken to her in years. She was a good Widow, not one of the best, but good enough that Dreykov and Madame B didn't kill her."

"You were the best Widow, weren't you?" Bucky asked.

Natasha nodded. "Top of my class."

Ana threw her teacup at Yelena, who dodged it and started to fight Sonya. Yelena pointed her gun at Ana, who told her to do it.

All of them grimaced.

The three Widows started to fight, and Yelena pinned Ana down.

"Damn, they really are Black Widows," said Sam.

"Stop. I'm trying to help you!" said Yelena.

Bucky looked away as guilt welled up in him. Those Widows were under the mind-control formula based on his brain. Logically, he knew it wasn't his fault, but it still hurt knowing what the Red Room had done to them.

Ana asked why they broke into her house. Yelena was confused and asked Sonya to hold her hands.

"Her house?" Natasha said, confused. She took a closer look at the mansion. "What the hell has Ana been doing the past few years?"

Yelena hit Ana with the antidote.

"The antidote your mom copied?" Tony asked.

Natasha nodded.

Bucky wished he could've gotten out of his mind control that easily. A tiny part of him couldn't help but be jealous that Yelena and the Widows only needed an antidote to be freed from their mind-control. It took years and a lot of hard work from Shuri and Wakanda's best doctors to get rid of his programming.

"The next bit is gonna be really scary, but we're here to help you," said Yelena.

Bucky and Natasha had a lump in their throat as they remembered the state they were in after they had gotten free of HYDRA and the Red Room, respectively.

"Good, they need support," Steve said quietly.

Natasha was incredibly proud of the work Yelena was doing. She just wished Yelena had continued freeing the Widows and not gone after Clint.

However, Ana was more concerned about the mess they made on the rug.

Everyone furrowed their brows.

"Huh?" said Peter.

"I don't think she was brainwashed," said Sonya.

"But Ana would've been on the drive I got from Dreykov's computer," Natasha said, confused.

"Not all the Widows were brainwashed, though, right?" Clint said. "Melina wasn't, and you said that an older Widow from Melina's generation made the antidote, so I don't think she was brainwashed. Maybe Ana wasn't ever brainwashed either?"

"Maybe," Natasha agreed. She couldn't help but feel guilty, though. None of this would've ever happened if she had confirmed that Dreykov was dead. Yelena and the rest of the Widows could've gotten out much earlier. It was a rookie mistake.