Trigger Warning- Mentions of self harm
Numb. Nothingness. Empty. That's all she felt. The things that had consumed her since that fateful full day three years ago.
Mila had never felt anything like what she experienced that day. The hot tears on her pale cheeks, her throat scratched and broken. Seeing the cold, lifeless body of a woman she considered her mama, laying on the tainted cement floor.
That image took over her brain at night. For the first few months after that day, all she could see was the shoes. The grey coffee stained shoes Yana wore all the time. Splatters of blood danced across the torn fabric. The same pair of shoes Mila kept in the box under her bed, filled with our nightmares she would never forget. It haunted her.
It's not like she could talk to anyone about it. Her superiors laughed at her, Irina wouldn't take her emotional mornings and her papa, well her didn't even remember. The Old Man had his memory wiped the day after Yana's death. Mila had no time to process anything.
After a while she gave up feeling anything at all. Hydra took advantage of this. Sending her on missions whenever there was a chance. Mila had become ruthless, merciless and unsympathetic. She no longer hesitated when she killed. No longer cared about the family of the man she held a knife to.
Her missions with the Winter Soldier had been brought to light in some places. They were ghosts, no one could find them and if they did they were gone before anyone could get any evidence.
Everything changed that day. Her family had been torn apart, her papa barely remembered the happy times. Mila had figured out a way to make her feel something, even if it was just for a moment.
The burn marks from Irina had grown, only they weren't just from the psycho instructor. She got her hands on a lighter from the Old Man's office and sometimes at night when her papa was sleeping in his own cot Mila would pull the lighter out from under the pillow. The flame lit up her sunken face, bringing warmth to the cold room. She dragged the flame across her forearms just long enough to feel something, then she'd flick it off and shove it back under her pillow.
Her papa had no clue about her nightly activities. She planned on keeping it that way. There were a lot of things Mila kept from her papa, like the abuse she received during training with Irina, the secret missions she went on when he was training or when he was in cryo for a few months. Whenever she had the urge to talk to him about Yana, she stopped herself before she could get a word about the brunette. She definitely kept quiet about the meeting she had with the strange woman a few years ago.
The woman with the purple streaks in her hair came back to see Mila. It had been about a year since Yana's death and Mila had grown merciless. She had more blood on her hands in her first year as an assassin then the Winter Soldier did in his first 10 years.
"You have gotten better Mila," her footsteps echoed throughout the room as well as her voice. "Changes like that are important to your growth and I want to commend you for your brave work for Hydra". Her voice was cold and meaningless, there was nothing behind her words.
Mila shifted in her seat, the blank walls of her cell staring at her mockingly. "What is that you want?"
"Oh Mila, I don't want anything. I am here to give you something". Mila perched up in her seat. The woman laughed, "I thought that would change your spirits".
"What could you possibly give me," the young girl spat, not wanting to put up with any of this crap.
The woman sat on the cot next to Mila, taking off her sunglasses. She pulled something out of her bag. "The legacy of the Viper has been passed down for years, every woman who has carried the mantle has been the best assassin of their generation, rivaling none," her tone was cocky. She handed Mila the object from her purse.
Mila opened her hand revealing a belt buckle. It was beautiful, a gold jeweled buckle. A green snake sat upon the middle, a gold tongue slipping out. Mila smiled down at the glittering pin.
"It's yours if you want it. Mila you could become the next Viper. The youngest ever to carry the mantle," she smirked, "then it would be me of course. I was 15 when I took it".
Mila kept her gaze on the belt buckle. A smirk pulled at her lips. She wanted this, but she didn't want this woman to think she held any power over her. "You know, I had an offer like this one five years ago, to become the next Black Widow". She was lying, but it wouldn't hurt to stretch the truth a bit. "I would have been the youngest Black Widow there had ever been," again, another lie, she had no idea if that was true. "What makes this any different, what will I get in return for carrying your mantle?" Her voice was cold and calculated, Mila knew what she wanted and she wouldn't stop until she got it.
The woman looked at her oddly, she was seething on the inside. No one had ever talked back to her like this before, but she liked it. This is exactly what the Viper needed. "I can make sure you and your papa are safe. No more mind wiping, no more dreadful training with that treacherous woman who burns you as a punishment," Mila snapped her neck up, looking at the woman with a look of surprise written along her face. "Yes I know about that, and I know that dear old dad doesn't so I won't tell him if that's what you're worried about.
Mila let out a short breath of relief, thinking maybe the woman also knew about her own endeavors with a lighter. The woman continued, "As long as you wear that pin around your waist, no one can hurt you".
She thought about it for a while, thinking about the good things this would bring to her and her papa. They wouldn't torture him any longer, no more six hour training sessions. They would finally be free, as free as they can be in a place like this. "Okay and what do you get out of this?"
The woman smiled. "I get you and all you are capable of Mila. You will be extraordinary". She stood up from the cot and headed for the door. "There's something waiting for you in the training room, if you take up my offer". Mila jumped up, pin in hand.
"Wait! I still don't know your name," her voice was quiet, still trying to process what was going on.
She placed her sunglasses back on her face, a smile gracing her face. "Just call me Val". And with that she left. Mila went to the training room later that night when her papa was asleep. It was cold and dark, the silence was killing her. The lighter she had brought with her left very little light. Her face was glowing a warm orange, the only heat she had felt in days.
The closest in the back of the room was open slightly, Mila made her way over to it. The squeak from the hinges made her jump, her head moving frantically back and forth in case someone heard. When she realized the coast was clear, she carried on. Running her cool fingers down the side of the closet door, Mila realized her heart was racing. Pounding in her chest so hard she could hear it in her ears.
Swallowing her fear, she opened the door. Whatever it was she was expecting, it was definitely not this. Hanging on a hanger was a suit. Similar style to her black unitard but this one looked different. The black suit was lined with an emerald green seam, the outline ran across the chest, cut outs revealing the shoulders. The top went up her neck, allowing for no skin to be shown if she was wearing a mask. Right in the middle was the belt, an empty space in the center. Mila took the suit out from the closet.
Looking at herself in the mirror, the new suit brought a smile to her face. Her red hair pulled back into a braid around her shoulder. With the pin in her hand, Mila clipped it onto her belt. The Viper mantle had been passed down successfully.
Mission after mission the Winter Soldier and the Viper took down their targets. Two years of success, two years of the most kills in Hydra history. Two years of endless nightmares for the father and daughter.
Her training was run by her papa, with Hydra supervision of course. Mila became stronger with his help, she matched his speed and strength. Her agility and hand-to-hand combat actually surpassed his abilities. He taught her long distance shooting, which she became better than him at.
There were no more intense toruture sessions or memory wipings. The two of them went unbothered for the most part, unless they were needed for a mission. There was the odd occasion where they didn't need the Winter Soldier so they put him in cryo for a few weeks. Nothing that affected Mila.
A few days before her 14th birthday her papa wanted to talk to her. "Mila, come here please," his voice was quiet. Her hands fiddling with the lighter, her eyes staring at the blank wall. He moved his gaze from his own hands to her back. She was wearing a pair of black leggings that had holes in the knees and one of his old sweat shirts. Purple socks covered her feet.
"Mila," he called again, "Mila are you okay?"
She snapped her head up, quickly wiping her eyes and stuffing the lighter under her pillow. Her green eyes met her papa's blue ones. "Da papa, I'm alright". Yes
He motioned for her to come sit next to him. She cringed at the sound of the old squeaky cot as she got up. Her papa letting out a soft chuckle at the sight of her scrunched up nose. Mila sauntered over to her papa's cot, curling her feet under her thighs as she sat next to him. He wrapped his flesh arm around her shoulders, bringing her in closer to him. "I know you think I don't have any idea of what's going on," he spoke.
She felt like all her oxygen had been cut off. No idea about what? Her hand began to shake slightly, he picked it up and held it in a comforting manner.
"I know you think I am oblivious to your change two years ago, to the woman who visits you. I know our superiors call you the Viper Mila and I know about the missions without me". She couldn't tell whether he was mad or disappointed.
She sat up abruptly, facing him, wanting to explain. "Look papa I can-," he cut her off.
"I'm not mad at you miere," his voice was soft and warm. Not his usual sound. Honey
"You're...not". Her eyes met his, confusion danced across her iris.
She felt his cool metal hand on her cheek. "Of course I'm not. I'm just disappointed, that's all. That you felt like you couldn't tell me about what was going on. That you felt like you needed to hide things from me to protect me. That's my job, to protect you". She subconsiously rubbed her forearm, the feeling of blistered and bubbly skin under her blue sleeve.
"I'm sorry papa. I know I should have told you but I just, I just didn't want to be a burden," she whispered, blinking back hot tears.
He got off the cot, kneeling in front of her, hands on her knee caps. "Look at me Mila, you are not a burden. You never have been and you never will be. Do you understand?" He stared her in the face, waiting for her to acknowledge him. "Do you understand?" his voice broke but he pushed past it.
Mila nodded. "Yes, I understand". The hot tears burned her cold face. He put both hands on the side of her face, pulling her in and resting their foreheads together.
"I love you Mila, more than you will ever know," he whispered, kissing her forehead. Mila closed her eyes at the image of Yana doing the same to her years ago.
"I love you too papa". Mila had no reason to pull the lighter out again that night.
Thank your for 1K reads! That's so crazy. I appreciate every single one of you so much. It means a lot. We are almost in CA:TWS and I can't wait for Mila to meet the others. I hope yoy are enjoying the story so far!
-Emma:)