Ophelia's Story
"Ophelia! Wait up!" Peter yelled after Ophelia as she briskly walked toward the museum's exit. Her fists clenched and her eyes bright red. Peter ran up beside her and then stopped right in front of her.
"Get out of my way Peter." Ophelia seethed. Her eyes flaming an even brighter crimson.
"I know your angry. And i'm sure you have every right to be. But whatever Bucky did, he wasn't himself." Peter said standing his ground.
"I can't believe this." Ophelia said shaking her head in frustration. "Actually. You know what? I can." Ophelia continued unclenching her fists and sticking a finger in Peter's face. "You Avengers. You always defend each other. No matter what crazy thing you have done! It doesn't matter who dies in the process you will always take the side of Earths Mightiest Destroyers!" Ophelia was yelling in Peter's face now. Peter sighed. She was hurt. And it was evident in her tear soaked face. She had good reason to hate the Avengers. But Peter needed to know what that reason was. So instead of yelling at her back and continuing the very loud argument in a very crowded area, Peter grabbed Ophelia's arm and dragged her to the restroom. Ophelia could have easily just yanked her arm out of his grip but she went with him willingly. Because deep down she needed answers. And so far Peter was the closest source she had to them as of late.
Peter checked each stall then locked the door behind them.
"We're alone. Now talk." Peter said folding his arms and leaning against the far wall. Ophelia ran her shaking hands through her hair and attempted to calm herself. Eventually she did and her eyes went back to normal. She walked over to a sink and leaned against it. Looking over at Peter she could tell he was waiting for her to explain herself.
"When I was a kid. I was stolen from my mother. From my home." Ophelia said.
"Where is home?" Peter asked. Ophelia pressed her lips together tight. She had never spoken of where she was from to anyone. Not even Levi. She always just told people that her accent was handed down from a parent who never spoke of their distant family. She avoided the question at all costs. But in order for Peter to understand why she reacted the way she did to seeing James Barnes speak on that stage; she needed him to understand why she recognized him in the first place. And it all starts with where she was born.
"Sokovia." Ophelia replied and Peter's eyes lit up and he looked around the room with a furrowed brow as if he was trying to put some sort of puzzle together in his mind. "You alright Peter?" Ophelia asked him.
"Yeah, yeah. I'm fine. Sorry. Go on." Peter replied.
"Okay. Um. I was kidnapped by agents of HYDRA. I had always had powers. My entire life. But I never used them. My mother always told me that I was meant to help people. And to only use my powers when the world needed aid. That's why she named me Ophelia. It means "aid" in Greek. My mother's native tongue." Ophelia said and Peter smiled at the meaning of her name.
"It's a pretty name." Peter said and Ophelia shed another tear. The memories of her mother flooding her mind. Her soul taken too early from this world.
"When I was taken my mother was killed in the process. She was innocent. They took me from her. They experimented on me. Made me stare at this stone for days at a time. Until eventually I became obsessed. I couldn't go an hour without being in the same room as that thing. I went crazy." Ophelia said then walked over to the bathroom door and slid down it and sat on the ground. The weight of the conversation making her feel unstable.
"What happened?" Peter asked sitting down where he stood. Wanting to get on her level to make her feel more comfortable.
"When I was about sixteen I lost control. I started hurting myself, trying to get my captures attention. And when they finally came into my cell. I...I killed three of them." Ophelia said and covered her face in her hands. Soft sobs left her lips as she attempted to speak. "I...I know they...they were bad people. But... I didn't... it's just..." She couldn't speak. Peter got up and went over to Ophelia's side. He sat down next to her and placed a hand on her shoulder.
"It's okay. You don't have to finish telling me if you don't want too. I can see now how much this hurts you." Peter said softly.
"No. I need to tell you. I need to tell someone." Ophelia said getting herself together and Peter nodded once in understanding. "They were angry with me. That I killed some of their best scientists, if you could even call them that. So they restrained me to my bed. They pumped me full of god knows what. It made me tired and dizzy. I had no control over my own body anymore. And one day there was a loud crash. At first I thought I was just halicinating when I saw through the window of my cell HYDRA agents being thrown through the halls like rag dolls. My cell door burst open and that man walked in." Ophelia said.
"Bucky?" Peter asked and Ophelia nodded. She took a deep breath in before continuing. Trying to hold herself together.
"He looked right at me and grabbed the tablet next to my bed. He scrolled through it for a few moments then turned and left. I screamed for him to help me. But he kept moving. He never looked back. And after hours of being left alone while the dust settled HYDRA agents from another base showed up and took me to a different facility. I was so drugged I didn't even struggle. But I remember those eyes. And that arm. He saw that I was helpless and I needed saving. But he just left me for dead. And it wasn't until years later that I escaped after the blip. But I could have been saved from years of torture if he had just helped me. But instead he chose to leave me behind. Some Avenger." Ophelia finished telling her story and Peter rubbed his face with his hands.
"That's a lot to take in. I'm sorry you had to go through all of that. But if I know Bucky as well as I think I do, then he wasn't himself back then. I guarentee you he was the Winter Soldier then. He had no control over his own mind. He was helpless. Just like you." Peter said with pleading eyes. Ophelia listened to Peter's words. She knew what it was like to be controlled. But the feeling of being left behind in your darkest time of need still echoed within her. She couldn't forgive him. Not yet.
"Regardless. I don't think he deserves my understanding. And whether or not what you say about him is true, I still hate him. And I probably will for a long time. You can't expect me to just be okay with this. I've been through too much." Ophelia replied.
"I understand. But please try not to kill him if you ever see him again. He may be a super soldier but he's still human." Peter said standing up and holding his hand out to Ophelia to help her up from the floor. Ophelia gave her hand to him along with a small smile.
"I won't kill him. But I won't forgive him either." Ophelia said reaching to unlock the bathroom door.
"Deal." Peter said. He understood why Ophelia couldn't forgive Bucky. He had hurt a lot of people as the Winter Solider. And before he could truly move on with his life he had to make amends when possible. And maybe this chance to make amends with Ophelia could help them both heal. But Peter decided that it would have to wait. Just by Ophelia telling him the truth about her past was a step in the right direction. And Peter could accept that.
For now.