"Y/n?" Kate's voice wavers as she jostles my shoulder. "Y/n, please wake up."
"Did you overdose her?" Yelena sounds further away.
"It happened so fast, I don't- no. I didn't." Kate reassures herself.
"She should be awake by now." That's Melina's voice, similarly accented to Yelena's, but a higher tone.
"Shit!" Kate jostles me again. "Please, y/n."
"Hhhm," I groan, my eyes still closed, and Kate gasps. "Katie?" My eyes flutter open, and she throws her arms around me.
"Oh, thank fuck. I didn't kill you!" She pulls away and I see that I'm restrained to a hospital bed again.
"What did you do?" I look around to find I'm in the lab where Melina took my blood. Melina herself is a few feet away from us by a centrifuge, and Yelena is next to the door. I feel myself straining at my restraints when I look at her.
"I uh, well, I gave you a really strong sedative." Kate's gaze doesn't leave the ground.
"She gave you a horse tranquilizer. You have been out for a long time," Melina tells me, and pulls something from the centrifuge. Studies it.
"Jesus, Kate." I give her a surprised look, and she blushes.
"It worked, didn't it?" she defends herself. "Speaking of, Melina thinks she's close."
"I am better than close, I am done," Melina corrects her, and comes to stand on the opposite side of the bed from Kate. "Your body will fight this. It will be exhausting."
"But, I'll be here the whole time." Kate interjects as Melina starts to prepare me for the shot she's going to inject.
"You're sure this'll work?" I ask Melina, and she glares at me.
"Of course it will work." She tightens a stripof cloth around my arm and folds my hand into a fist to get my veins to pop out.
"Nothing like a suicide attempt and a jail break to make science work faster," Yelena quips from the doorway. Melina mutters in Russian.
"We are having a very serious talk about that attempt as soon as y/n is done here," Kate warns her, and I catch Melina smiling slightly at the protective tone in her voice.
"You know my reasons, Detka." Yelena throws her hands up in defeat. "But, as you wish." Melina holds up the syringe she's prepared.
"Ready?"
"As I'll ever be," I grimace as the needle enters my arm, and when the plunger is pushed down, my body explodes in hot pain. It's agonizing, flames licking up and down my veins. I grit my teeth, and Kate's hand grips my forearm. I focus on her touch, impossibly cool, as my body burns itself from the inside. I squeeze my eyes shut.
"I'm right here, y/n," Kate murmurs to me softly. Another hand grips my other forearm.
"You're okay, Malishka." Yelena's voice, close to my ear. I panic, pulling at the restraints holding my arms down. "You're okay." I feel her brush my hair off of my forehead, and focus on the sensations in my body. I feel my arms relax as Yelena strokes my hair and Kate squeezes my arm. The fire in my blood starts to calm down and I open my eyes.
"Y/n?" Kate practically jumps in the air when I look at her. "How do you feel?"
"It hurts," I tell her, and see Melina at the foot of the bed, nodding. Yelena brushes my forehead again, and I chance a look at her. My heat races, but I don't try to break out of the restraints. "Lena." my eyes water, and she cups my cheek.
"Can we have a moment?" she asks Melina, who nods and leaves the room. When she's gone, Yelena leans down and kisses my forehead. "I am sorry. I should have been more patient."
"It would have killed me to-"
"I know." She cuts me off. "It was killing me to see you being controlled. It was selfish of me." She tucks a strand of hair behind my ear needlessly.
"It was ridiculously selfish." Kate glares at her. "Y/n, do you think I could unlock the restraints?" Her fingers light on the restraint at my wrist, and I freeze. Yelena notices my hesitancy and stays Kate's hand.
"How far can you hear right now?" she asks me, and I reach out. The feeling of my senses stretching out as far as they can without being muted by the subjugation is ethereal. I get goosebumps when I can visualize and hear things as far away as I used to. "What happened to you, y/n?" This question comes softer than the first.
"I was chemically subjugated by Val. She made me physically torture myself before sending me here to-" My voice breaks, "to kill you." Finally being able to say it breaks something in me. A violent sob wracks my body, and Kate hurriedly takes the restraints off of me. Both women crush me into a hug, and I cling to them as I sob.
"Malishka," Yelena murmurs into my hair, "You are okay now." She holds me tightly as Kate rubs my back. "We've got you." My body eventually clams down, and Kate wipes the tears from my eyes.
"She made you do all that to yourself?" Kate's hands stay on either side of my face as I nod. "The way we found you- oh, Baby." She pulls me into her again, kissing my temple and stroking my hair. "I'm gonna kill her," she resolves as she lets me go.
"Katie," I chide, "You have a reputation to uphold."
"Yes, Love. Leave that part to the professionals," Yelena agrees with me.
"I don't have the energy to discuss this right now," Kate sighs.
"What do you have the energy for?" I ask her, attempting to get up from the hospital bed. I'm too weak to stand though, and my legs crumble under me. Kate catches me and laughs.
"Keeping you from hurting yourself," she chortles as she helps me to my feet and holds on to me to keep me upright. "Are you okay?"
"I'm fine, I'm just exhausted. That was excruciating," I explain, leaning heavily onto her.
"Then let's take you to bed," Yelena suggests, and I raise an eyebrow.
"I'm into it, but I doubt I'll be much fun right now," I tease, and she rolls her eyes. Kate swats my arm. "You're insufferable."
"You've always said that. And yet, here you are, still suffering."
"Alright, enough teasing." Kate swiftly picks me up and carries me princess style to the door.
"Kate! Let me walk!" I swat at her weakly.
"You can barely stand." She deadpans, and Yelena shrugs at me. She opens the door for us, and Melina jumps to attention in the hallway.
"It worked, yes?"
"Yes." I smile at her. "Thank you, Melina."
"Why are you not walking?"
"I'm exhausted. Kate insists," I shrug. "Who am I to tell her no?"
"Exactly." Kate adjusts her grip and I shake my head at her.
"We will see you for dinner, Mama." Yelena tells Melina, and I feel a tug in my heart at her using that name. She doesn't often call her anything but her first name, and when she does, it always makes Melina absolutely glow. It's the same when she calls Alexi any form of 'dad'. "Come on, idiots." She leads us to the elevator and we're off.
