Belladonna Barnes

PROLOGUE: 1945

I was stationed at my desk, scribbling a letter to my brother. It had been two years since he'd gone off to war, and two years since I had been bound to a wheelchair. It had been a big change, not necessarily a bad one, but a big one.

Dear James,

I hope you are doing well. It's been a while since you've responded, so I'm not even sure if these letters are finding you at all. I just hope... no, you couldn't possibly be dead. You are the strongest man I know. I pray for your wellbeing and hope to whoever may be up there that you are winning. The radio is broken, so we're finding it difficult to catch up with the news. Mom is doing well. She's pretty worked up about your lack of response. I keep telling her that you're fighting a war and writing supplies aren't easy to come by.

I'm worried about you James. So please, come home in one piece.

Love, Belladonna.

I sealed the envelope and wrote the address. I tucked it away in my satchel, saving it for when the mailman did his rounds.

A loud crash came from down the hall. I figured it was just mom, who usually made a mess whenever she tried to do something new.

"Mom!" I shouted.

No answer.

"Mom?" I yelled again.

Still nothing.

Sighing, I rolled myself away from the desk and out of my room. The hall was slightly downhill, so gravity did the work for me. Possibilities ran through my head. Maybe she couldn't hear me? Maybe she was too engrossed in her project that she didn't notice my yelling? Maybe she...

I was not expecting the scene I rolled into.

Ten men, all dressed in black armour and wielding guns, were surrounding my mom. Her favourite flower vase sat shattered next to her, where blood was staining the carpet. All the guns that had been trained on her were now pointed at me, though I didn't see what a threat I was. How could a girl in a wheelchair fight off army men with guns?

"Ah, there's the rest of your sweet family." a man said. He stepped forward, dressed in a dark green military uniform. It wasn't something worn in combat, so he must've been a general or high ranking official. His accent was heavy, and clearly German.

They were Nazis.

Panic flooded my system. Why were they here? What did they want? Most importantly, why did they hurt my mom? I tried to move forward, maybe run to help, but again I realised sadly that I wasn't able to.

"Don't hurt her, please!" I cried out.

"Oh please. She hurt herself, young one." the man rolled his eyes. "You must be the family of Mr. Barnes. I'd like to introduce myself; I'm Johann Shmidt, leader of Hydra. And you are?"

"H-Hydra? Like... the Nazis?" I asked shakily.

"Exactly. And you are...?" Shmidt waved his hand in an impatient gesture.

"Bell... belladonna. Why are you here, Mr. Sh- Shmidt?" I questioned.

"For you. Or, your family more so. You see, your brother is-"

"James? What's happened to James? How do you know who he is? What have you done to him?" my mom immediately piped up, concern for her eldest and only son etching her face.

"Why don't you ask him yourself?" Shmidt gestured to the front door, where three Hydra soldiers were blocking a man standing there. He nodded to them, and they moved, revealing a very tall, very familiar looking man.

It was James, but he was different. The protective fire in his eyes had been put out. The warm smile he always wore had been replaced by a monotone frown. What had happened to him? Had war really changed him that much?

"James? Hon, what's the matter?" mom asked, reaching out a bloody hand to her son.

"Who is James?" he asked in a cold voice.

"Son...?" Mom sounded hesitant. Why? This was her son. But... Why didn't he remember?

"James? You know, you?" I said.

"I am not James. I am the Winter Soldier." he stated.

"What? What the hell is that? James-" Shmidt interrupted me.

"He is no longer James. He has no memory of his past. He obeys Hydra now, dear." Shmidt declared.

"... How?" I frowned.

"Hydra is much more advanced than any nation or country in the world. We have our ways. And I'm afraid to say that any threat to the Winter Soldier's identity has to be eliminated. We can't afford to lose this asset, so anyone who can enable him to even falter at remembering is a threat to Hydra. Let me tell you a little secret: Hydra doesn't like threats."

"You can't kill us! We've done nothing! We're innocent! Please, I beg of you!" I felt petrified. My heartbeat pounded in my ears. My hands shook, and tears started misting my vision. I nearly died once. I survived death. I couldn't die at the hands of a German Nazi with delusions.

"You're right, my sweet girl. Tell me, how old are you?" Shmidt smiled wryly.

"Sixteen." I exhaled.

"Not bad. We can use that. This frail old woman though... she won't do." he gestured to my mom, and a soldier pointed his gun back at her. "No. Let the Winter Soldier do it. Soldier... strelyat'."

"NO!" I screamed as a gunshot echoed through the room. My mom's body slumped down, fresh blood pouring from her chest and staining the carpet. Tears streamed down my cheeks as I sat helplessly, unable to do a damn thing.

"Why?" I sobbed, "Why would you do that? I Hate you! I hate all of you! You all deserve to die! Let my brother go, you goddamned foul demons! Let my James go!"

"Oh, sweetheart. Dear Belladonna, your mother was not useful to Hydra. You, on the other hand, are." Shmidt walked closer.

"How am I u-useful? I can't even walk." I looked down, avoiding his eye contact.

He gently tipped my chin up to look at him. "You, dear Belladonna, can be fixed."

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'Allo loves! Hope you are all doing great! sorry it's been a while, i've had writers block haha. anyways, hope you like this new story and new character! Belladonna has no IDEA whats in store for her. the picture above is a younger Belladonna and you will see it again later in the story! bfn, MarvelVerseGirl.