The Widow's Daughter - A MCU Fanfiction

Chapter Seventeen

NATASHA POV

I suddenly woke up to the sound of a woman's voice. I quickly opened my tired eyes and saw a nurse standing in front of me. I sat up, shaking the sleepiness off. 

"She's awake Ms. Romanoff," she told me with a smile and a nod. My heart sped up as I rose quickly. I felt slightly lightheaded from standing too fast. She smiled and motioned for me to follow her. I quickly did, my mind racing. After walking down what felt like an endless maze of hallways, the nurse stopped outside of an ICU room. 

"Did the doctors inform you of what they did?" She asked me, picking up her chart. I shook my head. She nodded and opened the file. 

"Well they had to do surgery to remove the infected tissue, which I assume you know, and she's now on heavy dose of antibiotics. So she may be out of it," she explained. I nervously shook my head. She kindly laid a hand on my shoulder and led me into her room. 

I froze in the doorway, seeing her pale figure in the hospital bed. Her eyes fluttered open. Her pale lips moved, as if she was trying to speak. I went to her side and sat down, taking her hand. 

"Liliya? How are you feeling?" I asked, tracing circles on the back of her hand with my thumb.  She swallowed and took in a shaky breath. 

"I- I'm ok," she mumbled quietly, looking as if she had no idea where she was. 

"Good, you scared me to death," I exhaled and held her hand to my face, kissing it softly. Her eyes met mine, but darted to the door quickly when Yelena appeared in the doorway. She was out of breath. I raised my eyebrow at her. 

"You didn't wake me?" She breathed, coming over to my side. Liliya gave me a confused look before staring at Yelena. 

"Liliya, this is my sister, Yelena," I explained. Yelena had a huge smile on her face as she looked at Liliya.

"I'm so happy to meet you," Yelena said, offering her hand. Liliya looked at me before reluctantly talking it. 

"So you're- my aunt?" She asked, shaking Yelena's hand. Yelena nodded with a huge smile. 

"I- It's nice to meet you," she weakly said, looking at me again. She looked so lost. A wave of sadness washed over me.

I looked down at the floor, trying to contain my emotions. Yelena nudged me. I looked up to see her offering me a vial of the red dust. 

"Set her free Natasha," she whispered, handing the small container to me. I took it, staring at the bright red liquid. Liliya looked confused and worried. 

"What is that?" She asked, staring at the vial. I stood up and pointed it towards her. 

"Your cure from Dreykov," I said, about to activate it. I saw a flicker of panic in her eyes. 

I froze. The last thing I wanted to do was to scare her. 

"He's controlling your mind," I explained, "And this will free you from that control." She looked terrified.

And angry. 

"What? You're crazy," she snapped, sitting up. Her eyes quickly shut in pain. 

"Hey don't move," I said sitting by her, smoothing out her blanket. She quickly shook her head. 

"Don't touch me," she pushed herself to the opposite side of the bed, starting to panic. I stood, looking desperately at Yelena. She walked over to me and took the red dust out of my hand and activated it without hesitation, the scarlet mist from the vial filling the room. 

Liliya fell back, the dust striking her face, filling her eyes. Her breath slowed and her hands stopped shaking. She blinked hard, looking around the room, desperate confusion written all over her face. I quickly went to the bed and turned her face to look at me. 

"Liliya?" I asked, moving her hair out of her face. She stared at me, her lip quivering. Her eyes glossed as a tear fell. I sighed with a mix of relief and sadness, pulling her gently into a hug. She held me tight, starting to sob. I saw Yelena stand behind her, laying a gentle hand on her shoulder. 

I held Liliya's shaking body close, feeling the urge to cry burn in my eyes. After several minutes she pulled back slightly, looking into my eyes. I leaned forward, my forehead meeting hers. 

"I'm so sorry," she stuttered. I sat back and took both of her hands into mine. 

"Don't ever be sorry," I said, giving her hands a squeeze. She shook her head, more tears falling. Seeing her cry pushed my emotional barrier down, allowing for my own held back tears to stream down my face. Yelena came around the bed and hugged me from behind, resting her head on the top of mine. 

I sighed, feeling relief and love for the family around me. 

And in that brief moment, I felt at home.