Family Tree

Steve x reader x Bucky x Tony

"I thought they'd never let us leave," Natasha commented when the two of you were in the air. "I thought I was going to have to pry them away from you."

"They just worry." You told your sister.

"They act like you're alone. Like I'm not going to save your ass." Natasha teased.

"Suka." You muttered, causing Natasha to smirk. "Is there still a car outside the city?"

"A car, change of clothes, spare currency, and a medical kit," Natasha told you.

"Nice that you think we're going to need a medical kit." You said before a bang echoed through the quinjet.

Both yours and Natasha's heads snapped behind you before you both took out a weapon.

"You fly." You whispered, rising to a stand silently and making your way into the back of the jet.

Silence was an old friend.

A skill beaten into you by the Red Room and utilised throughout the rest of your life.

You stood in the open space, not seeing anyone, listening for even a pin drop.

And you heard it.

You heard a noise coming from the small cupboard the team used to store spare clothes.

Holding your gun in one hand, you silently counted to three before ripping the small door open.

"Don't shoot!" Peter squeaked, holding his hands in front of his face.

"Peter?" You exclaimed, staring at your stowaway son in confusion. "What the hell?"

"Peter?" Natasha called as your spider clad son crawled out of the small cupboard.

"Peter Benjamin, what are you doing here?" You demanded, your hands falling to your hips.

"Would you go for sleepwalking?" Peter joked, causing you to narrow your eyes. "Alright! I snuck on! But I just wanted to help!"

"Peter."

"Because I'm the one who pushed aunt Tasha to tell you, and if this goes bad, I would feel horrible for making the two of you do this. And I don't want either of you getting hurt because I love you, and I don't want any more of my family getting hurt."

"Peter."

"And this is your family. And that makes them my family, and I don't know anything about your family.

"Peter!" You cut your son off. "Let me see if I have this right. You snuck on board, despite me saying this could be dangerous,"

"You never said that!"

"And even though I told you Natasha and I didn't need help, you decided that wasn't a good enough answer and hid on our jet?" You rose a brow at him.

"Well, when you say it like that, it sounds bad," Peter mumbled.

"Then how would you say it?"

"I love you, and I wanted to help," Peter said, causing you to sigh.

"Damn it, kid. Why are you so cute?" You asked before pulling the kid into an embrace.

"You never answered me," Natasha said, walking out of the cockpit.

"What's happening here? Are we turning around and dropping the kid off? Or what?"

"We're already on route. We'd be wasting time going back to drop Pete off. I guess you're coming along for the ride, bud." You told your son, who grinned. "But you're calling your fathers and telling them what you did." You said, causing the grin to slide off his face.

"Boy, I promise Peter will be fine." You said, watching your sister and son talk to each other. "He has the world's best assassins watching his back. Nothing is going to happen to him."

"I'm telling you, he is grounded when he gets back here." Tony sighed down the line. "No more Ted for that kid."

"Y/N, are you sure you don't want us to pick him up?" Steve asked for the third time. "Because we can."

"I know, but I can handle this. I can handle one stowaway."

"He's got his suit? His slingers?" Bucky clarified.

"Yes. And with Pete's spidey sense, I think it'll be enough to keep him safe if things go sideways." You told him.

"You're not going to make him stay on the jet?"

"I want to make him stay on the jet, but we all know he's not going to stay on the jet. He was supposed to stay home, and where is he?"

"Not home."

"I promise, I have this under control. That kid's safety is my number one priority. We're all going to be fine." You promised your partners.

"Alright, but maybe you should also prioritise keeping safe?" Steve suggested.

"Always do, Cap. I'll call you later. I love you."

"Love you too."

"Love you, doll."

"Be careful, babe."

"I've never been to Budapest before," Peter said, looking out the window in awe.

"Budapest." Natasha corrected her nephew as she drove.

"That's what I said."

"Oh, Pete, don't get her started. Nat, won't accept any other answer." You told your son.

"Because it's the correct pronunciation," Natasha said as the car pulled to a stop.

"Is it safe to just walk in?" Peter asked as you and Natasha stared at the building before you.

"It's an apartment building. There's only one apartment that hasn't been occupied by a family or a couple for longer than two years." You said.

"The top floor apartment, 267," Natasha added.

"How do you want to do this?" You questioned the redhead.

"I'll take the roof," Natasha said. "Let's hope there are still only three sensors to avoid."

"Alright. We'll go through the front door." You nodded.

"We?"

"Well, I'm not leaving you in the car, kiddie. And I don't think you'd actually stay in the car if I told you to." You told the boy.

"Besides, that spider-sense might actually come in handy here," Natasha said, cocking her gun. "Let's get moving."

"Peter. Please, stay behind me." You begged your son as the two of you entered the apartment complex.

"Mama."

"Pete, I'm serious. This could be someone who wants to kill Nat or me. And if that's the case, you need to come out of this alive." You said, holding your son by the shoulders. "I need you to live. So, if someone starts shooting at us, your run, okay?"

"Yes, mom." Peter nodded with a sigh.

"Why didn't that inspire confidence in me?" You groaned, beginning to climb the stairs.

"Because I'm dad's son," Peter smirked.

"Yeah, that makes sense." You nodded.

It wasn't long before the two of you had made it to the top floor and were standing outside of the last apartment.

You raised a finger to your lips and silently shushed Peter as you held your gun up.

You counted to three in your head before you put your hand on the doorknob.

It didn't surprise you as much as it should have that the door was unlocked and easily opened.

"I know you're there." A woman's voice called as you and Peter quietly entered the safehouse.

"Is that why you left the door unlocked?" You called back as you ushered Peter behind you.

The woman didn't respond as you slowly began to walk further into the apartment.

For a small space, there were many hiding places. That's why you and Natasha had loved to use this place.

You rounded a corner when a body slammed into your side.

You let out a grunt as you were knocked to the ground, your gun flinging itself from your grip.

But instead of letting your attacker pin you to the ground, you rolled the two of you over, throwing the woman across the room.

The woman slammed into the cabinets with a loud bang. She let out a groan before she snatched a knife off the shelf and threw it your way.

You quickly rolled out of the way and grabbed your gun off the ground.

Before you could shoot, the woman let out a small yell before she jumped back to her feet and rushed your way.

The two of you grappled with one another before there was a sound of someone running your way.

You caught a glimpse of red in the corner of your eye before the woman was thrown away.

"Spidey, webs!" Natasha called, holding your attacker to the wall before Peter webbed her up.

"What happened to running?" You demanded, turning to your son, who shrugged.

"You were always were a cheater, weren't you, Natasha?" The blonde asked, straining against the webs that held her. "You could never stand letting either of us win." She said, causing Natasha's breath to catch.

"Peter, give me the dissolvent." You said, holding your hand out to the teenager.

"She just tried to kill you!"

"She won't try again. She's proven her point." You promised your son. Peter sighed as he handed you the dissolver, and you walked over to the woman.

You quickly applied two drops to the webs holding the blonde to the wall, releasing her from their hold.

"You're not dead." You whispered, staring at the woman in front of you.

"No shit." She said before you drew her into an embrace. The woman let out a startled squeak before eventually melting in your hold.

"You're all grown up," Natasha said as the two of you pulled apart.

"No shit." The woman repeated with a smirk.

"Yelena," Natasha whispered, staring at the blonde in shock.

"No hug?" Yelena teased before Natasha threw herself at her. "Jesus, I didn't ask you to strangle me." She grunted.

"You're not dead."

"Yes, we've been over this. But I will be if you don't stop strangling me!" Yelena said, causing Natasha to let her go.

"I've never been to a family reunion like this," Peter muttered, causing the three of you to look over to him and him to blush at your attention.

"Come here, Pete. Yelena, meet your nephew,"

"Peter. Or the Spider-Man." Yelena nodded. "I'm not sure what was bigger news you adopting him or his identity being revealed."

"You saw that?" You asked, raising a brow at your sister.

"There's no one who didn't. The news wouldn't shut up about the widow and her partners adopting a son." Yelena nodded.

"That was two years ago. You've known we were alive for two years."

"Longer." Natasha cut in, eyeing the younger woman. "There was non stop stories about us after New York for months. About everyone on the team."

"I saw them too," Yelena said as she grabbed a glass out of the cabinet and poured herself a glass of water. "Well, the ones I thought would be entertaining."

"Yelena, why didn't you reach out years ago? Why didn't you try and find us?" You demanded.

"Did you ever look for me? Did you ever try and find me? Either of you?" Yelena countered.

"Lena, I did. The second I got away, I was looking for you and Nat. I never gave up, even when I thought you were dead." You told your sister.

"You never were good at hide and seek."

"Why didn't you reach out to us before?" Natasha asked the blonde.

"Honestly? I didn't think you wanted to find me, let alone see me. Ohio was decades ago. I figured you both wanted to forget that part of your life. Forget me." Yelena shrugged.

"Yelena, you're my sister. You're my twin sister." You said, causing her to crack a small smile. "You're my family. I never forgot you, and I never wanted to."

"Oh, well, that's new information."

"Yelena, you're our sister," Natasha said, moving to your side. "I fought to keep you safe, and I failed you."

"Don't say you're sorry." Yelena cut Natasha off. "None of us stood a chance once we were back in the program."

"I shouldn't have let them take us."

"Well, you certainly stopped them from taking anyone else. Nice job-killing, Dreykov." Yelena complimented the redhead.

"I did what I had to."

"Hm."

"Yelena, why did you send Nat those photos?" You asked. "Why now? Why at all if you thought we'd moved on?"

"Sentimentality." Yelena shrugged. "I saw a family. Two parents, three kids, and I got sentimental. I knew Nat had a couple of P.O boxes. I thought I'd risk losing my heart."

"You didn't lose anything." You promised, taking your sister's hand.

"Good. That's good." Yelena nodded, her voice cracking ever so slightly.

"Yelena, do you know what happened to Alexi and Melina?" Natasha wondered.

"Mom, Melina lived, I know that much. But Alexi's been in prison for years. Drekov threw him in there not long after the mission ended." Yelena admitted.

"What? Why?"

"No one knows. But they won't let Alexi out because everyone's still scared of Dreykov." Yelena shrugged. "I tried to visit. No one would let me in."

"Damn it." You swore.

"What's the big deal? They gave us back. They put us through hell. They never came back for us." Yelena reminded you.

"Yeah, and I wanted an explanation." You told her. "I wanted to look them in the eye and to demand if any of it was real."

"Well, we're not getting into that prison without some serious firepower," Yelena told you.

"Well, we have that," Peter spoke up, causing the three of you to look over to him. "We have the jet."

"I like the way my nephew thinks," Yelena smirked. "Come, Peter, have a shot with Auntie Yelena."

"Don't even think about it." You scolded your son.

"We do not need firepower," Natasha told the three of you. "At least not right away."

"Y/N, are you sure you're making the right decisions, now?" Steve asked you.

"I don't know." You sighed, watching your sisters and your son in the front of the jet. "But it feels really good right now."

"It feels good finding a family member who tried to shoot you?"

"I tried to shoot her too. We've all tried to shoot each other. It's how this works."

"One family counselling session coming up," Tony mumbled.

"She likes Pete." You mentioned. "And he seems to like her too."

"It's hard for anyone to not like our kid," Bucky said, smile clear in his voice.

"Hopefully, it's the same with Alexi."

"You're sure about this plan?" Steve asked you.

"Yeah, doll, wouldn't it just be easier to break him out?" Bucky asked, causing Steve to sigh.

"Yeah, I think our plan's a bit better than breaking out of prison, possibly causing a riot, and maybe getting someone killed."

"Keep it in mind for plan B," Bucky told you.

"The jet does have a stealth mode, and so does Pete's suit." Tony chimed in.

"Don't encourage this!"

"Fury owes Nat a favour, and he's already said he'd do this for us." You said, stopping your boys from arguing. "Everything's going to work out just fine."

"You're sure, Y/N?" Steve probed you.

"I promise, Steve. I'm doing everything I can to make this go as smoothly as possible."

"Y/N, stop talking sexy with your husbands and get over here!" Yelena yelled, causing Natasha to chuckle and Peter to groan.

"Gotta go." You smiled. "I'll check in later. I love you."

"Love you, too."

"Be safe, doll."

"Love you, sweetcheeks."

"What are you going to do when Alexi finds out you're married to his worst enemy?" Yelena asked as you moved over to the three.

"What? Who are we talking about?" Peter wondered.

"You didn't know? Captain America is the Red Guardian's nemesis." Yelena rolled her eyes. "He used to tell us stories about Captain America eating little children."

"What?"

"Alexi is the Soviet Union's, Captain America." You told your son. "He was given some jacked-up version of Steve's serum, and he became the Red Guardian."

"Steve's great nemesis," Natasha smirked. "Supposed to battle and beat Steve for Russia's glory."

"Has he ever even met Dad?" Peter asked.

"No. Steve was still in the ice when Alexi became the Red Guardian." You shook your head.

"And now we finally get to see the fight of the century." Yelena laughed. "I have money on Alexi winning."

"No one is going to fight anyone."

"Except you. You'll have to fight to get Alexi out." Yelena said. "Why are you going in again?"

"Because you're impulsive, and Natasha's not sure where she stands yet." You told your sister.

"I'm not impulsive!" Yelena exclaimed.

"You tried to shoot us four hours ago." Natasha reminded her.

"You broke into my home." Yelena shrugged.

"Oh, please. You practically invited us in." You said, sitting beside your son. "How long until we're there?"

"Half hour," Natasha told you.

"Great, more time for me to tell my nephew embarrassing stories," Yelena said, turning towards a grinning Peter.

"No. No more, please." You groaned.

"Yes, more, please," Peter begged.

"I'm regretting everything."

"Y/N, stop it."

"I'm not doing anything."

"I'm not even in the room with you, and I know you're pacing."

"I don't pace."

"You pace, mom."

"It's taking too long." You sighed, sinking into one of the chairs. "You sure Fury did his part?"

"And more. Everything's going fine. Just wait." Natasha said before the door creaked open.

It was not the man you remembered.

This man had greasy hair, a crazed look in his eyes, and seemed tired. More tired than he did pretending to be another person all those years ago.

"Hi, dad."

But you said those words, Alexi's lit up, and for a second, you saw your father again.

"Y/N." Alexi grinned as he was pushed inside the room and the door was slammed shut behind him. "There's my girl!"

"Sit down, Alexi." You said, nodding to the chair in front of you.

"So formal already. What happened to dad?" Alexi asked as he sat.

"We'll see about formalities by the end of this." You said, struggling to keep your face neutral. "How's prison?"

"Shit." Alexi deadpanned. "The food's as bad as your mother's cooking, no one listens to my stories, and everyone here is shit."

"Thought Dreykov would've put you up somewhere five stars?"

"Dreykov doesn't care about me." Alexi snorted. "You think he would have drugged me and then locked me away here, with no word for two decades, if he cared? Bah!"

"What'd you do to piss him off?"

"I don't know! Maybe I said something about his haircut, or maybe I make suggestion on the political state of the country! I don't know!"

"Right, as interesting as that is, I only came here because I have a question." You cut to the chase.

"One question?"

"Hm-hm."

"Anything for my girl."

"How much of my childhood did I imagine?" You questioned the man. "And be honest, how real was any of it?"

"Y/N."

"And I know it was a mission, but we spent four years together, and every birthday you made an effort to celebrate it. Every Christmas, you went overboard. You would come home from work and play with us, and when Lena or I had a nightmare, you would be the one to check for monsters. Christ, my earliest memory is you singing me back to sleep after a nightmare."

"Miss America Pie." Alexi nodded, his hand going to a tattoo on his forearm.

Your gaze followed his movement, and you caught sight of one tattoo that stood out above the others. It was the word 'American' over the image of a pie.

Your breath caught, but it wasn't answer enough.

"How much of my childhood was real?" You demanded.

"You have always been malen'koye solnyshko. I have always been your father. And I have always been proud of you. Of all my girls." Alexi said, reaching across the table to take your hands. "I mean, your ledgers must be gushing red."

"What?"

"The three of you were the best in what you did. You killed so many. I'm so proud." Alexi gushed. "I always tell people my girls are best. My girls are the best in the world, and their ledgers are dripping."

"Unbelievable." You scoffed, pulling your hands away. "Did you ever think that maybe we didn't want to be murderers? That maybe all we wanted was to stay in Ohio and be with our parents?" You asked, rising to a stand.

"Y/N."

"I should've known that I was wrong. I should've known we were nothing more than a mission to you." You said, beginning to pace.

"No, Y/N, you misunderstood," Alexi said, moving to his feet.

"Did I?" You demanded, crossing your arms.

"Yes, you are my girl. Toughest girl in world. All I ever wanted was for you to have the best, to be the best, Yes, we had a mission, but everything else was a choice. I chose to be your father outside of the mission. And I wanted what's best for my girls." Alexi told you.

"But you gave us back. You let Dreykov take us and hurt us. Do you know what happens in the Red Room? Do you know what Dreykov did to us and what we had to do to survive?" You asked the man.

"A little. Melina told me little before the end." Alexi told you. "This was not a good place when you were young, Y/N. I was made to be super soldier for a war that never happened.

I was supposed to be symbol for people, but whenever I tried to make things better, they got worse. No one wanted my ideas.

And at the time, the red room was the best option. I thought you girls would be helping too. Trained in politics or something."

"That is the dumbest thing I've ever heard."

"I know, but I did think we would be helping in our own ways. Making the country better, but by the time I realised how broken your mother was and what would happen to you girls, it was too late.

I should've known better, but I was a puppet. But if I could go back, everything would be different. If I had seen through Dreykov sooner, I would have run and taken you, your sisters and your mother with me. But I didn't, and you were taken, and you survived, do you know why? Because you're my girls." Alexi smiled. "Everything that could be, was real."

"Everything?"

"Everything. I didn't want to be on that mission, but the second you were handed to me, I had to be. Because you and Yelena were these tiny little things, so easily broken, but you trusted me. Trusted me to take care of you, and so did your sisters. Everything that could be real was. You are my girls."

"You know, none of us are assassins anymore." You told the man. "We don't kill because someone points us in the right direction. We have lives, good ones. We're good people."

"You've always been good, Y/N." Alexi smiled. "I'm happy you're happy."

"That's what I wanted to hear." You nodded. "You guys catch all that?" You asked, touching your comm.

"Loud and clear."

"Every word."

"What's going on?" Alexi asked, staring at you in confusion.

"Where do we stand everybody? Yay or nay?"

"Yay."

"Yeah, let him out."

"I believed him, mom."

"Great. Today's your lucky day, dad. You're gonna die today." You said, turning back to your father.

"I knew it would end this way." Alexi sighed.

"Oh, you're not dying yet. A prisoner is going to start a riot in two hours, and you'll be fatally stabbed and pronounced dead. Lucky for you, you won't be here then." You told him.

"That didn't clarify much."

"You're getting out of here." You told your father. "Since no one will let you out because they're too scared Dreykov's corpse will attack them, you'll be pronounced dead, and no one will be any the wiser apart from us and a few others who owed us a favour." You said, reaching into your bag and taking out a hoodie. "Don't start any fights on the way out, or I'll leave you here."

"Why?" Alexi asked as he pulled on the garment. "Why are you doing this?"

"You're my father. And you didn't really do anything to deserve to be here." You told him. "Now, c'mon. Not a word to anyone else, capiche?"

"Capiche." Alexi grinned before pulling you into a bone-crushing hug.

"Save the hugs for when we get out of here."

Thankfully, Alexi followed your orders as the two of you quickly made your way out of the prison and towards where the jet was.

"What's the plan now?" Alexi asked as the two of you came to a stop a safe distance from the prison.

"Hang on." You said before a string of webbing attached itself to your chest and another to Alexi's.

"What the?" Alexi started before the two of you were pulled off the ground.

The quinjet's stealth mode flickered for a second, allowing Alexi and you a glimpse of your family inside.

Alexi let out a laugh as the two of you were pulled through the air and dragged onto the jet.

"I'm still disappointed there was no dramatics to that rescue," Yelena said as she approached with the web dissolvent in her hands.

"It's not about dramatics, Lena. It's about subtlety." You told the blonde.

"Yelena." Alexi breathed, staring at the girl in wonder. Yelena didn't say anything as she applied the dissolvent. But once the webs were gone, she drew back and punched Alexi in the face.

"Yelena!"

"Impulsive."

"Jesus."

"I deserve that." Alexi nodded.

"You do," Yelena said before wrapping her arms around his middle. "You smell really bad." She said, pulling away.

"I haven't showered in a while."

"Gross."

"There's a shower on the jet," Natasha said, appearing from the cockpit. "It's only cold water, and it only lasts twenty minutes, but it's better than nothing."

"Natasha." Alexi grinned, moving over to the redhead.

"I'm still pissed with you," Natasha grunted as Alexi yanked her into an embrace.

"Oh, is it that time of the month, Natasha?" Alexi teased.

"None of us have a uterus." You told your father. "Can't get a period without that."

"Or ovaries," Natasha said as she was let go.

"What?"

"Yeah, that's because of the Red Room. They give you an involuntary hysterectomy." Yelena added.

"Oh."

"Yeah, they go in and just start ripping out all your reproductive organs." Yelena continued. "They just cut you open and start chop, chop, chopping."

"Okay, okay! I understand! There's no need to get so clinical and nasty about it." Alexi shivered. "I didn't know that would happen."

"Yeah, it was a surprise for us too."

"Yelena, Natasha, it is so good to see you. I know I have done so much wrong, but you are still my girls,"

"We heard the whole speech already." Natasha cut him off as you pulled out your comm. "And for the most part, you're forgiven."

"You get points if you let me punch you again."

"But," Natasha continued as if Yelena never spoke. "We need something from you."

"We need to know about mom." You told him. "Is she alive?"

"You can't kill a fox that swift." Alexi chuckled. "She always had a hole to run to when things got bad."

"She's alive?"

"Oh yes. And I know where Melina is." Alexi said. "She brought a safe house under the table years ago. No one knew, not even Dreykov."

"But you do?"

"Yes, she told me one night after the two of us made passionate love,"

"Okay! That's all we need!"

"Don't need to hear it!"

"Jesus Christ."

"She has house just outside of Saint Petersburg. If she's anywhere, Melina's there." Alexi told you.

"I'll set course," Natasha said before walking back into the cockpit.

"Are you showering?" Yelena asked Alexi.

"I need to sit. I'll shower later." Alexi said, collapsing onto the bench.

"Great. I'm going to vomit." Yelena grumbled before moving into the small bathroom.

"Who are you?" Alexi asked, finally noticing Peter sitting across from him.

"Oh, dad, meet your grandson, Peter." You said, sitting beside Peter.

"But you just said you all got all yucky nasty things done!"

"He's adopted, dad. He's mine." You said, throwing your arm around his shoulders.

"It's nice to meet you, Mr Red Guardian." Peter greeted, reaching a hand out with a shy smile.

"Aha!" Alexi exclaimed, jumping to his feet and pulling Peter into an embrace. "It's dedushka! My grandson! I have grandson. Natasha, Yelena! I have grandson!"

"Yeah, ask who his fathers are," Yelena smirked as she exited the bathroom.

"...Excuse me?"

"I have three partners, dad, and I'm very happy. It's entirely consensual, and it is just the four of us, and I don't want to hear a word about it." You said, raising a brow at your father.

"Of course not. Never. But I must meet them. Tell them what happens if they hurt my daughter or grandson." Alexi told you.

"One of her husbands is Captain America," Yelena said with a grin.

"Yelena!"

"What!"

"It was every night!" Alexi laughed. "Every night for a week, your mother had nightmares about Captain America and would crawl into our bed!"

"Really, mom?" Peter chuckled.

"I was told that Captain America ate children and put them into apple pies." You defended yourself. "I was four. Of course, it freaked me out."

"Didn't Melina make you then sleep on the couch for a week because of that?" Natasha asked as she stood in the cockpit's doorway.

"Ah, well, yes. Apparently, you're not supposed to scare your children with stories like that." Alexi shrugged.

"You still told them!" Yelena protested. "When Christmas came around, you told me someone was going to break into our house!"

"That's Santa! You're supposed to tell kids about him!" Alexi exclaimed. "Peter, agree with me on this. Santa is good."

"You're not really supposed to say breaking in, dedushka," Peter told the man.

"He comes in through the chimney! That's breaking in!"

"Still not the right term when it comes to a beloved holiday mascot," Natasha said. "We're here."

"This isn't Melina's house," Alexi said, looking out the window. "This isn't even a house. It's the woods."

"We have to walk from here," Natasha told the four of you. "We can't get any closer because of the woods."

"Okay, spider-baby, two water bottles and I want two of those protein bars in your pockets." You told your son.

"You're so bossy, Y/N," Alexi told you as you threw Peter a water bottle. "Lighten up, let the boy live."

"Trust me, Pete will faint on this hike." You told your father.

"He will. I've seen it." Natasha agreed, pulling on her backpack.

"It only happened once, aunt Tasha." Peter sighed.

"Once in front of me." Natasha reminded him. "Do I have to call your friend Ned for his list?"

"No."

"That's what I thought."

"C'mon, it's going to be dark by the time we get there," Yelena whined.

"Scared of the dark, Yelena?" Alexi teased.

"We're all murderers. I don't want to be in the woods with any of you." Yelena said. "Except Peter. I can be in the woods with Peter."

"Oh, I'd be in the woods with you too, aunt Lena." Peter smiled as the woman pulled him into her side.

"Let's go. We're losing daylight." You sighed before making your way off the jet.

"So, girls, does he ever talk about me?" Alexi asked as you all made your way through the woods.

"What?"

"Who?"

"You know, Captain America?" Alexi pushed.

"Dad, Steve doesn't know who you are." You told the man.

"What? Of course, he does! I am his great nemisis! His father-in-law! The grandfather of his child! What do mean he doesn't know me?" Alexi demanded.

"Steve didn't get out of the ice until 2011. He only knows you as our father, not the Red Guardian."

"Well, maybe I'll have to introduce him."

"Please, don't."

"No murdering my husbands."

"Will you three be quiet!" Yelena demanded, turning to the three of you.

"You scared away the reindeer." Peter pouted by her side.

"Sorry, kiddie."

"Sorry."

"I've never been a fan of reindeer," Alexi said as the five of you started walking again. "It's too chewy."

"No one actually likes to eat reindeer," Natasha said.

"I know a couple people who eat it as a staple," Yelena mentioned.

"I don't know what your problem is. I like reindeer meat." You said.

"You guys would eat that reindeer?" Peter asked, sounding mildly horrified.

"Oh, no, Peter. Only your mother would." Yelena told the teen.

"Mom!"

"I'm not going to apologise for this, Pete. It's meat, and I've definitely eaten worse." You shrugged.

"Have you had bull testicles?" A new voice asked, causing you, Yelena and Natasha to raise your guns and Alexi to take up a fighting stance. "That's not something I'll be trying again." The woman continued before appearing from behind a tree.

"Melina."

"Mom?"

"Did I teach you girls nothing?" Melina asked. "You tripped a sensor about ten feet ago. And none of you noticed. You're lucky I have cameras. Otherwise, I can set an explosion to take out this chunk of the forest."

"Melina." Alexi sighed, taking a step towards the woman. "I just want to say, you haven't aged a day. You're still as beautiful and as supple as the day they staged our marriage." He smiled.

"Oh, gross."

"I'm gonna throw up."

"You got fat," Melina told him bluntly. "But still good." She added with a smile.

"I've, uh, I've been in prison. I've got a lot of energy." Alexi said with a chuckle.

"Oh, come on, you two! There's a child here! He didn't need to hear that!" You exclaimed, slapping your hands over Peter's ears.

"Neither did I." Yelena groaned.

"Come," Melina said, nodding her head as she turned.

"Where?" Natasha questioned.

"Home," Melina said simply before beginning to walk away.

The five of you shared a look before you began to follow after her.

The six of you walked through the woods for another fifteen minutes before Melina's house came into view.

"You've got a lot of pigs," Yelena commented as you passed the pigpen.

"Pets." Melina smiled, reaching down to pet a passing pig. "Make yourself at home," Melina instructed as the five of you entered behind her. "Let's have a drink."

"Where are all the weapons?" Natasha asked, looking around the home.

"Away. There is a small child, Natasha." Melina told the woman. "Y/N, where are your manners?" Melina asked, causing your head to snap up from the photo you were looking at. "Introduce me to my grandson."

"Oh, Melina,"

"What happened to mom?"

"This is Peter." You said, wrapping your arm around the boy's waist.

"He's too small." Melina tsked. "Do you not feed my grandson?" She questioned you.

"I get fed a lot, ma'am," Peter interjected quietly. "I just have a fast metabolism."

"I'd imagine. And it's babushka." Melina said, nodding to the spider suit he still donned. "Come, sit, do you like ptichye moloko?" She asked, stealing your son from your grasp and sitting him at the table. "Of course, you do."

"Any booby traps we should be worried about, Melina?" Natasha asked the woman.

"Please, Natasha. I didn't raise my girls to fall into traps. Well, more than one." She told her. "Besides, this house is a sanctuary. There is one closet of weapons, and I haven't gone near it."

"I don't believe that."

"Believe what you want. Take this to the table." She said, shoving a container into the redhead's hands and another into yours.

"Where's Alexi?" You asked, sitting beside Peter.

"Bathroom," Yelena said before grunts echoed throughout the house.

"Do I want to know?" Peter asked you.

"We'll probably find out, Pete." You sighed.

"Let's drink," Melina said, filling shot glasses and sliding Peter a glass of water.

"We didn't come here to eat, Melina." You said as the woman filled a plate and put it in front of Peter.

"Push your hair out of your eyes, Y/N," Melina said before you could continue.

"What? It's not in my eyes." You said, brushing the hair off your forehead anyway.

"Yes, it is. You always hid your eyes. I did not raise you to hide away."

"You didn't really raise us."

"Natasha, stop slouching," Melina told your sister. "You're gonna get a back hunch."

"I don't slouch."

"Yes, you do."

"You kinda slouch, aunt Tash."

"Where's the loyalty?" Natasha mumbled as Yelena laughed.

"Yelena, stop laughing at your sisters. It's not nice. You never liked it when they laughed at you." Melina reminded the blonde.

"Look, we didn't come here to be given posture lessons or to drink." You told Melina. "We came here to get some answers."

"This is not a good interrogation, darling."

"It's not supposed to be an interrogation." You snapped before sighing loudly. "We just want you to answer our questions."

"Fine, ask away."

"What was Ohio to you?"

"Ohio was a mission." Melina shrugged. "A mission Dreykov trusted me to complete, and I did. We did."

"Is that all it was to you?"

"It was four years that I had to pretend to be a wife and mother because I was told to." Melina elaborated.

"So, it meant nothing to you?" Yelena asked the woman.

"No, it meant something. It meant many things now that I look back on it." Melina said. "It was the last big mission I ever went on. After Ohio, Dreykov put me to work on the disc we recovered, but that was before his death."

"Okay, you're both too subtle." Natasha sighed. "What did we mean to you? What do we mean to you?"

"Well, I raised you for four years, didn't I? Dreykov said I was your first handler."

"Enough about Dreykov." You snapped, glaring at the woman. "Dreykov is dead, and we're not asking him. We're asking you."

"And I'm answering."

"No! You're not."

"Y/N, calm down."

"Nat, she is the only one who has evaded our questions like this." You reminded your sister before turning back to Melina. "You raised us. You weren't our handler. You were our mother. And if that's not how you felt, fucking own it."

"Don't swear, Y/N."

"You're evading point-blank accusations." You scoffed before rising to a stand.

"Where are you going?" Natasha asked.

"I need some air." You said, making your way to the door.

Not knowing where you were going, opted not to explore and made your way back towards the pig pens.

"At least your life is easy." You sighed after watching the pigs interact with one another for a few minutes. "None of you have to worry about anything, except maybe when you're gonna be eaten."

"They all have plenty of time left before anyone becomes a meal," Melina said, appearing at your side. "And, Alexi, there will be first because he's the eldest."

"You named a pig after dad?" You rose a brow.

"Look at him. I think it's very fitting." Melina said, nodding to the pig in question. "So, your son is very good at guilt-tripping," Melina mentioned. "Did you teach him that?"

"He gets that from Steve."

"Well, I'll have to compliment the Captain next time I see him because he taught Peter well," Melina told you.

"Peter guilt-tripped you?" You rose a brow.

"Very well. So, I'm going to tell you what I told your sisters after I ran off."

"I didn't run off." You protested.

"You ran off," Melina said, leaving no room for an argument. "That mission was to recover a disc from SHIELD." "Our mission in Ohio was to steal a disc from SHIELD. On that disc was the first real deconstruction of the human brain, and it was used to create the first and only cellular blueprint of the basal ganglia. The hub for cognition." Melina told you. "Everything that can control a human was on there. Dreykov wanted to unlock free will, make it so none of his widows could have it. He was going to chemically subjugate agents so he could plant them around the world."

"Oh, my god."

"After I healed, Dreykov gave me the task of going through the disk. He wanted me to be the one to create him the perfect weapons. To be the one to remove all free will from his widows.

And I would have."

"But you didn't?"

"No. I was born in that cage. I didn't know anything but obey, not until Ohio. There was a reason they, operated, on girls for their ceremony, and I never fully understood until Ohio.

Because something clicked in me, I was your mother. And if I didn't think he would have found us and killed us all, I would have run with you three, Alexi too." Melina said.

"He would have slaughtered us without a thought." You murmured.

"He would have. No one could hide from him. And I could never ask about any of you because he would have killed you to spite me. So I did everything I could to protect you." She said.

"You didn't make the serum on purpose." You realised, turning to face the woman.

"No." Melina shook her head. "Irritated Dreykov to no end, but I didn't do it. Because I knew it would be used on you, and I couldn't do that to my girls." She smiled at you, reaching over to take your hand.

The two of your drifted into silence for a moment, watching as her pigs played together.

"When Natasha killed Dreykov, it was the best and worst day of my life," Melina admitted. "Because I had never been free before. I had the illusion, yes, but Dreykov held the leash. But it was one of the best days of my life because I was finally free."

"Why didn't you ever come for us?" You asked her. "Nat and I didn't exactly keep a low profile after 2012. You could have come for us."

"I couldn't." Melina shook her head. "I hid for a long time because I thought Dreykov was still out there. That he was hiding, and if I came out of hiding, he would make his move.

But when I realised he was well and truly dead, I was going t come for you. But then I saw you got a family. The two of you had the Avengers, and you, you got husbands and a son. You didn't need me."

"But I did." You said. "I didn't know what I was doing. I'd never been in a serious relationship before this, and I wanted to talk to you. And then Peter came along, and I think I spent more nights than not, begging the universe to bring you along."

"Y/N."

"You were my mother. The only one I've ever had, and I just needed you. I needed to talk to you, to know I was doing things right." You told her.

"You have done everything right without my help, darling," Melina said, squeezing your hand. "You have a good life, good people, a good son."

"You know, Peter's the reason we're out here?" You mentioned. "He had this project for school about family trees. And while none of you ever left my mind, I couldn't stop thinking about you after that. I needed answers. I needed to know what memories I had made up for my childhood. I needed to know if you were really my family or if I had made it all up."

"I think we were a good family," Melina said after a second. "We weren't conventional, but we were good. And, at the end of the day, you are my daughter. You and your sisters are."

"Yeah?"

"Yes." Melina smiled. "I'm proud of everything you've done in your life. I'm proud to be your mother."

Melina paused for a second before she pulled you into an embrace.

"I love you, Y/N."

"I love you too, mom."

"Alright, enough, mushiness." Melina said, pulling away a minute. "Let's get inside before Alexi eats me out of house and home."

"I'm telling him you named a pig after him."

"And I'm telling you right now, Alexi found his old costume."

"You tired, Pete?" You asked as your son yawned beside you.

"It's been a long week." Peter nodded.

"A good one, though." You smiled. "And it's all thanks to you." You said, throwing your arm around his shoulders. "Thank you, sweetheart."

"Sorry, I snuck along, mama." Peter mumbled.

"You shouldn't have snuck on." You agreed with the boy. "But I'm glad you did." You said, pressing a kiss to his curls as the elevator doors opened.

"Hey! There they are!" Tony grinned, jumping from the couch and rushing towards you, Steve and Bucky on his heels. "Everything intact? No broken bones, gunshot wounds, or concussions you're hiding?" He asked, checking the two of you over.

"We're both okay, Tones." You smiled at his overproteciveness. "I told you we'd both be fine."

"You look tired, doll." Bucky said as he pulled you into an embrace.

"Extremely." You laughed, resting your face on his chest. "I'm ready to sleep for a week."

"But you got everything you needed to know, didn't you, kitten?" Steve asked you.

"Everything and more." You grinned.

"That's good. That's great." Steve smiled, pulling you into an embrace. "C'mon, you two, go get changed. We can do movies, and you can tell us everything." Steve offered, causing you and Peter to share a look.

"That's really fun, pops, but," Peter started.

"We have guests to entertain." You said as the elevator dinged.

"Y/N! Natasha stole my bags!" Yelena complained.

"Oh, I did not." Natasha scoffed.

"Ah, Captain America!" Alexi exclaimed. "We meet at last!"

"Y/N, show me the kitchen." Melina demanded of you. "I need to know where you put your shot glasses. Who likes Vodka?"

"Me." Bucky and Tony said at once.

"This is our family, huh, mama?" Peter chuckled, watching the chaos unfold around him.

"Yeah. This is our family Pete." You smiled. "It's all ours."