the queen cobra, cobra kai

𝟬𝟭𝟰

MARIA LAY SOUND ASLEEP in her bed. This time, her sleep schedule had gotten back to normal, and was sleeping the perfect amount instead of too much.

She had been dreaming of the unknown woman almost every night. It was of her and Maria, either as a baby, or as a little girl. This time, was no exception.

"What's this one, mama?"

In her dream, Maria was standing in a beautiful garden back in her home country, Ireland. In front of her, stood the same woman, but this time, there was someone else. It was her, except she's a little girl, around 4-5 years old.

They were in the garden, looking at different types of flowers. Despite not knowing who the woman was, Maria felt like she was witnessing a true mother-daughter moment.

Young Maria was wearing a dress of pure white, symbolizing her youth and her innocence. The woman was wearing a dress that had a mix of red and black, flowing behind her. Her hair was let down, the curls cascading down her shoulders.

Young Maria pointed to a beautiful flower that was in bright shades of yellow and pink. It was yellow in the middle, and the pedals were pink.

"That is the Primrose." The woman replied with a smile. "It's quite beautiful, isn't it?"

"It's so beautiful!" Young Maria exclaimed. "I think it might be more beautiful than me."

The woman turned to her, her smile remaining as she cupped Young Maria's face in her hands. "No flower, no matter how beautiful it is, will ever outshine you, bambina."

Young Maria's smile grew. "Really?"

The woman's gaze never wavered. "Really." She leaned in and placed a tender kiss on her forehead.

Young Maria threw her arms around the woman and hugged her tightly. "I love you, mamma."

The woman's smile grew as she wrapped her arms around her and hugged her back just as tightly. "And I love you, mia dolce ragazza. Always."

Maria, who had been watching the interaction from a distance, felt tears flood her eyes. Mama? Could she be...her mother?

"YOU GOTTA UNDERSTAND THAT Mogadishu in the '90s was a hellhole." At training the next day, Kreese was telling Maria, Aisha, and Hawk some of his stories from when he was at war. "Warlods controlled whole swaths of the city. My team and I were charged with cleaning the place up."

"How many warlords did you kill?" Hawk asked, interested. So were the girls.

"You keep track of every ant you stomp out?" Kreese asked back. Miguel quietly scoffed as he was stretching.

"Woah." Aisha said.

"Badass." Maria added with a smirk.

"They were outgunned, we were outmanned. I tell you...Rwanda was no joke."

Miguel got up. "Don't you mean Somalia?" He asked Kreese. "Mogadishu is in Somalia, Rwanda's a whole different country."