Retnikopf: Widow Of Siberia (old Version)

Chapter 2 - A Happier Time

Several years earlier

"Look Nat!" Vienna said in Russian as she showed her sister the new ballet steps she had learned.

The ballet wasn't all that important, except for fitness and form, even then they got that training elsewhere. It was just a front. The red room trained assassins. Spies. But Vienna liked to dance.

Natalia clapped as Vienna landed perfectly on her toes and took a bow. On the technical side of things; the fighting, the shooting, the acrobatics, she was brilliant. Hard working and extremely talented. But when it came to practical application, Vienna froze, everytime.

"English Vienna," Melina said as she came through the door, she then switched to Russian so that Vienna understood her better, "I know you find it hard but you must learn."

"Stupid," Vienna said in English, her soft Russian accent distorting the word slightly, "backwards language."

Melina laughed as the young girl frowned up at her, "I know."

Melina put a hand on top of Vienna's head, making the little one smile again.

"Where's Yelena?" Melina asked Natalia, gently pinching Vienna's cheek, making her screw up her face.

"I don't know," Natalia shrugged, "I haven't seen her since this morning."

Melina nodded, turning to Vienna who was no longer looking at her.

"Vienna?" Malina asked, leaning down so that they were on the same level, "where is your sister?"

Vienna just shook her head, continuing not to look at Malina.

"Do you know where she is?"

Vienna shook her head again.

"This isn't even a good lie," Melina sighed, taking Vienna by the chin, "you're avoiding eye contact. Look at me. You're breathing is all over the place, you need to calm down. And you can't just say no to all my questions, you have to say something."

"I don't know," Vienna mumbled.

"That won't work for you," Melina told her as she placed her hands on Vienna's shoulders, this becoming more of a training session than trying to find Yelena. She was sure Vienna was better at lying than this, "at this point you need to tell me something I don't want to here but still protects the truth. Try again."

Vienna took a deep breath and thought for a moment, but she seemed to give up as she sighed. Relaxing her shoulders and looking away again she said, "she's in the kitchen. She wanted to have party just the two of us, she knew that I had a bad day again. She's doing it for me."

"You couldn't shoot," Melina sighed, standing up properly.

"How do you do it so easily?" Vienna asked, finally looking into Melina's eyes.

"Practice little one," she smiled sadly, not wanting to damage the innocence that Vienna had but knowing that it had to happen, "you'll get better at it."

Melina nodded at Natalia as a goodbye and to tell her to keep an eye on Vienna as she left the room to go and find Yelena.

Natalie watched as Melina left then turned to Vienna who, to her surprise, was smiling.

"Where is she really?" Nat asked, frowning down at her.

"I don't know," Vienna shrugged calmly, leaning back against the wall.

Natalia burst out laughing, "your going to get her in trouble."

Vienna shrugged again, "all she will get is a scolding, in my story she wasn't being selfish so Melina will give her al-a low ance--"

"Allowances," Nat said, helping her out with the word.

Vienna nodded in thanks.

Nat laughed again as she watched Vienna's smirk.

"It was not really about Yelena," Vienna  smiled as she pushed off the wall, "the look on Melina's face latter will be enough for me."

"Later," Natalia corrected her.

"Later," Vienna repeated, pronouncing the word more thoroughly this time.