"Family. Back together again." Alexi said as he picked up the glass that was set for him. Melina had already filled up Natasha and Yelena's glasses again.
"Sure." Natasha rolled her eyes and felt that she'd been rolling her eyes a bit too much today.
They all toasted and drank the shot.
At this point, Natasha had had enough, "So, here's what's going to happen…" She started.
"You haven't aged a day since…" Alexi started flirting with Melina, completely discrediting Natasha's words.
A few more moments later, their words started getting graphic, and both Yelena and Natasha were disgusted, "Ugh, can you please stop…" Yelena commented.
Natasha tried to get the conversation back on track, "So here's what's going to happen—", "Natasha don't slouch" She was interrupted again. By Melina this time.
"I'm not slouching" She got defensive. Just because Natasha knew about the mental manipulations didn't mean that she was immune to them. Melina's motherly figure was engraved in her mind for a long time.
"You're slouching," Melina stated again in a motherly tone. "Listen to your mother, Natasha," Alexi said. The whole table started spiraling down to a family argument.
"Shut it, All of you!" Natasha snapped but it was useless, "What did I do?" Yelena asked. "Don't drink so much, Yelena." Melina was fully leveraging her status in the minds of the two girls. "I'll do what I want," Yelena said.
"Tell me where the Red Room is now!" Natasha had had enough.
Immediately, Melina's reaction was a scoff filled with derision. "Alexi, you remember when we used to tell the girls that they would be able to catch Santa Clause if they waited up long enough," Melina said to Alexi.
At this point, Natasha was done. The situation was completely out of her control and the people in the room were doing their best to push her buttons. She decided to listen to Melina while thinking of what to do later.
"Finding Dreykov is not a fantasy. It's unfinished business." Natasha said.
"You can't defeat a man, who commands the very will of others, Natasha," Melina said to Natasha who had skeptical eyes.
"I'll show you something, Natasha. Something that will tell you just how out of your depth you are, going after Dreykov and the Red Room." Melina understood that Natasha would require convincing and grabbed her tablet before tapping on it a few times, "Come in." She said into the tablet.
There was the sound of the creaking of a door and a pig came into the room.
"Did that pig just open the door?" Natasha asked, impressed.
"Yes, it did. Good boy, Alexi. Good boy." Melina scratched it under the chin.
"You named a pig after me?" Alexi, the Red Guardian, was offended.
"You don't see the resemblance?" Melina said unapologetically, "See, he's just like a dog. Sits like one, acts like one, and everything." Melina looked at Natasha and Yelena.
"Now. Stop breathing." She moved a slider on the tablet. And the pig stopped breathing. It was as if it didn't know how to breathe and was just looking up at Melina.
"This is what the mission in Ohio was about. 3 years undercover. Acting as a big happy family with him and both of you girls. All to get the formula that could bring this to fruition. It was a front for Shield scientists. Or well Hydra. I'm sure you know more about it than me." Melina looked at Natasha.
Melina turned to Alexi who was still offended and said to him, "We didn't steal weapons or tech. We stole to key to free will itself." Melina drank the shot and filled up her glass of vodka.
"All right, you made your point." Nat eyed the dying pig that was still not breathing.
"It's fine. Alexi could've survived for another minute or so." Melina said and sent it away, "Dreykov has such chemically subjugated agents planted all around the globe that he can order around whenever he wants. It's completely out of your depth." Melina stated.
"Do you know whom they used this stuff on?" Yelena interjected.
"Hm? No, that's not my department. But it's usually orphan girls with no one to look after them. They're the easiest to manipulate after all." Melina didn't realize how each of her words was hurting Yelena more and more.
"Ahh. Come on. Don't lie to them. You're Dreykov's architect. You definitely know." Alexi said, "No I—"
"Shut up. You are an idiot," Nat said to Alexi, "And you? You are a coward." She snapped at Melina.
"Oh, bullshit—" Melina was interrupted by Yelena again.
"You know… those agents. Those agents that you chemically subjugated around the globe. Those orphan, easy-to-influence women. That was me…" Yelena broke down as her voice started cracking, "And you," She looked at Natasha, "You got out. After you, Dreykov made sure that no one could escape. But you got out." Yelena blamed Natasha.
"Yelena…" Nat said as Melina brought her hand to Yelena's shoulder. But Yelena ignored Nat and shook Melina's hand off before grabbing the bottle of vodka and getting up.
"I'll go after her." Alexi got up and went after her, leaving Natasha and Melina alone to talk.
Natasha got up and Melina followed after her, "What? You're going to do it alone?" Melina asked.
"If you're not helping then I'll look for another way. You won't be the first mother that abandoned me." She said and looked at Melina, only to see her stiffen up. Nat narrowed her eyes as she felt an old doubt surfacing in her mind.
"Right?" She asked Melina again.
"I believe that you weren't abandoned…" Melina trailed off, thinking about what to say.
"What…" Natasha had a dark expression and asked with a frigid tone.
"You were taken… Dreykov had this system that could determine if children had the genetic potential for his training. Your parents were paid off, I believe," She said, "But your mother. She was relentless. She kept snooping around." Melina said.
"What happened to her?" Natasha asked with the same frigid tone.
"Dreykov had her killed," Yelena saw the slight confusion in Natasha's otherwise cold expression and explained, "Normally a snooping civilian wouldn't warrant an execution. But as I said, she was relentless."
"That so, huh?" Nat's voice lost its coldness and was not flat.
"I'm… sorry. I've already informed the Red Room." Melina finally stated, "They should be here any minute."
"I know," Natasha said with a smile, but her eyes were cold as she stared at Melina.
"Hm?" Melina was confused about how Natasha was so confident.
[Alex is she under control?] Natasha asked Alex.
[Nope, fully conscious. I've checked those pigs and the widow from before. They were all chemically subjugated. But not Melina.] He explained to her.
"We're done here." Natasha walked to Melina as the sound of whirring aircraft was heard from the outside.
Before Yelena could even react, Natasha reached her and shocked her, sending her to the land of dreams.
[Give her a few nightmares while you're at it, Alex…] She asked Alex. Natasha was unbelievably angry right now. She'd expected all of this from the start. But that didn't change the fact that she was disappointed and angry.
She didn't waste any time before kicking open the door to the room where Alexi and Yelena were. She saw an unconscious Yelena who was sitting on the ground leaning against the bed and Alexi struggling to keep his consciousness while looking at the curtained windows where the lights were shining from.
"Go to sleep, Alexi. I'll be taking over from here," Nat said and within two seconds his resistance failed and he also succumbed to the drug that Melina had fed them through the vodka.
Nat looked at Yelena and asked Alex, [Could you wake her up?]
[It'll take a minute.] Alex said as a tendril extended from Nat's sleeve and wrapped around Yelena's neck, forming a choker.
[Don't wake her up, yet… And what is it with you and chokers?] Nat asked as she was formulating a plan in her head that would get her access to Dreykov in the easiest way possible.
[I don't know.] Nat could imagine Alex shrugging as he replied to her question.
[I presume that you've already checked Melina's memories?] She asked Alex.
[You know me so well.] He smiled inwardly.
[I need concealed earpieces.] She told him.
[Behind the bookshelf right side, corner most cabinet. There's a set.] He said.
[I also need you to turn me into Melina, and turn her into me.] She asked him.
[Easy.] He agreed as Nat went into the bookshelf cabinet and got what she needed. She'd already turned into Melina.
[You have got to take over the Red Room.] Alex said to her in an excited voice.
[What?] Natasha asked while waiting for the cavalry to enter into the mansion.
[Nat. It's a fortress hiding in the clouds. Trust me. We want it.] He told her.
[Why?] Nat didn't share his fascination.
[Think about it. What will you do with the army of mind-controlled assassins that Dreykov has under his control? It's practically impossible for most of them to live normal lives. We might as well take them in and use the Red Room as a base of operations. You could make them into a general crime-fighting division of the Avengers. The main team deals with large-scale threats while these girls who don't know anything better than to kill can put their skills to some use by taking a more street-based approach. It's a win-win.] He said to her, appealing to the person inside her who wanted to do good.
[We'll discuss this later.] Nat decided to think about it later.
And soon, Dreykov's Trickster Project walked into the living room where 'Melina' was standing.
"Let's not keep him waiting," Nat said to the intimidating armored individual in front of her while copying Melina's mannerisms. She'd observed her enough to copy her well enough.
***
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