Daughter of a Witch

Chapter 11:

Flashbacks:

The halls of SHIELD had felt sterile and cold, starkly contrasting the warmth that Agatha and Rio had always cherished in their home. Back then, as new agents trying to make their mark in the world, they believed that they could protect anything. But when they had brought Y/n into the world, their dreams of a family seemed so within reach-until they were ripped away from them.

Agatha stood in the hospital room, her heart swelling with joy as she cradled her newborn daughter in her arms. Y/n had been so tiny, her fingers curling around Agatha's with an innocence that filled the room with light. That night, she had sung a lullaby, the one specific version of the Ballad of the Witches Road, her voice soft and soothing, laced with love and hope. The gentle melody wrapped around them like a spell, a promise of safety and warmth that only a mother could offer.

"If I can't reach you," she had crooned, her heart swelling with dreams of the future. "Let my song teach you."

In that precious moment, Natasha stood by the door, her eyes glistening with emotion. She had always dreamed of being part of a family like this-one filled with laughter, love, and the kind of unbreakable bonds forged through shared experiences. "Want to hold her?" Agatha whispered, stepping closer with hesitant excitement.

Natasha smiled and nodded her head carefully; Agatha passed Y/n to Natasha. As she cradled the baby, a radiant smile spread across Natasha's face, the weight of the world momentarily forgotten. "Hey there, little one," she had said softly, her voice a warm embrace. "I promise to protect you, always."

That promise had felt profound, a vow that echoed through the chambers of their hearts. But it all shattered mere days later when Hydra stormed into their lives, taking Y/n from the hospital. Agatha remembered the chaos-the alarms blaring, the shouts of agents, and the frenzied scrambling of medical staff. She and Rio had been caught in the maelstrom, helpless as they watched the only thing that mattered to them disappear.

The emptiness that settled in the wake of Y/n's absence was unbearable, a gaping hole where their daughter had once been. Agatha recalled the helplessness that had washed over her, the feeling of being stripped of her very essence. Each moment felt like an eternity, each hour stretching into a day filled with despair.

Rio, too, bore the weight of their loss. She remembered the sleepless nights spent searching for any sign of their baby, scouring through files, chasing leads that often ended in heartbreak. Every whisper of information was a flicker of hope, quickly snuffed out by the harsh reality that their daughter was gone. As she poured over SHIELD intelligence reports, the endless possibilities filled her mind: Was Y/n safe? Did she know they were looking for her? Was she afraid? Each unanswered question was a dagger to her heart.

Every day dragged on as they struggled to hold onto their sanity, the pain of separation cutting deeper with each passing moment. In the quiet hours of the night, when the world was still, Rio would find Agatha sitting alone, her shoulders shaking with quiet sobs. "What if she never comes back to us?" Agatha would whisper, her voice thick with despair. "What if we've lost her forever?"

Rio would slide onto the bed beside her, wrapping her arms around Agatha. "We will find her," she would insist, her voice steady despite the tremor in her heart. "I promise you, we will bring her home. She needs us to be strong."

"I don't know how to keep going without her," Agatha would admit, her tears soaking Rio's shoulder. "It feels like part of me is missing; I can't breathe without her."

Rio would hold her tightly, letting the warmth of her embrace speak volumes. "You're not alone in this. We'll face it together. I won't let go of hope, Agatha. Not now, not ever."

As the weeks turned into months, they found solace in their work at SHIELD, throwing themselves into training and missions with a singular focus. Agatha and Rio trained alongside Natasha and Maria Hill, honing their skills to become a formidable team against the looming threat of Hydra.