Chapter Text
Yelena passes her exams with flying colours and Maria magnets her grade sheet to the fridge, where it sits proudly alongside Anya’s star of the week certificate.
Maria shakes Kate’s hand politely when they meet at a family dinner, and subtle nods to Yelena ‘shes a good one’
Yelena gets into her first choice of college and cries into Maria’s shoulder as Anya screams in delight
Maria feels déjà vu at carefully packing each of Yelena’s clothes, the blonde throwing jacket haphazardly into a suitcase behind her (if maria wakes up in the middle of the night to refold all of them, no one noticed) (except Yelena)
Yelena puts each of the cases into the truck herself, Maria watching from the office as she arranges and rearranges in an attempt to seize everything in, standing back with her hands on her hip sin delight only to spot a hile of sheets on the floor.
Maria hold open the door to her college dorm, and is introduced proudly as ‘my sister’ to Yelena’s dormmate (who has been stalked twice)
Its only when Maria’s standing by the door that Yelena feels tears from
‘hey, no, don’t cry. Its happy’ Maria laughs brushing a stray strand from her ponytail away from Yelena’s face
‘not sad, happy’ Yelena wipes her eyes ‘fuck’
‘language’
‘hmmm’ Yelena spins around and rummages in a bag ‘hang on’ she pulls something out and holds it tightly in one fist
‘lena, breathe’ Maria reminds her, amused and she inhales loudly
‘here’ she thrust it out in front of her ‘for you’
Maria recognizes the tiny black box as soon as she sees it
‘Lee-‘
‘nope, just take it’
‘I- I…’ Maria takes it in both hands, feeling the smooth velvet and flattened edges, then she pops it open.
Yelena watches Maria carefully as the older woman ducks her head, tears dropping onto the carpet, but a small, hopeful smile growing on her face
‘Maybe one day you’ll find someone else to give this to’ Yelena winks and Maria sighs
‘I doubt it’
Lena pokes her ‘I’m worried you’ll get lonely, Romanoff-Hill’
‘Yeah yeah, i have Clint, and Fury and Coulson and all the others. They wouldnt leave me alone if i begged them to’
‘Thank god for that too’ Yelena doesnt know what else to say, so they stand, framed in the door for a couple for moments
‘I love you’ she says suddenly, meeting Maria’s eyes ‘I love you, my sister’s wife. My niece’s mother. My sister’
Maria bites the inside of her cheek ‘I love you, fashion designer extraordinaire Yelena Belova. Survivor, fighter and comedian’
‘Uh huh’ Yelena wipes her eyes
‘Taylor swift mega-fan’
‘You got that right’ yelena laughs, still crying and Maria hugs her tightly
‘Call me, kid. You got that?’
‘Yes ma’am’ Yelena salutes and pushes her out the door ‘go away now, I gotta facetime Kate’
‘Tell her I say hey’ Maria steps back over the threshold ‘I’ll see you soon’
‘I’ll be home before you know it’ Yelena nods ‘goodbye, Maria’
‘See you, Lena’
And then shes gone, walking away down the corridor, Anya leaping off a luggage rack to grab her hand and Yelena watches until they round the corner. She blinks away the tears, and just for a moment sees a flash of red hair alongside Maria as they vanish.
She looks back at her dorm and picks up three photos from the desk, pinning them pride of place above her bed.
Natasha with her blue hair on the swings beside her, a foot higher than Yelena, whos sat gazing up at her big sister.
Natasha and Maria at their wedding day, stood back to back in Charlie’s angels pose. Maria mock serious and Natasha giggling.
Her, Maria and Anya spread out on the sofa, Maria asleep, Yelena’s head resting on her shoulder, Anya laid out along their legs, sticking her tongue out.
Family, home, somewhere to go back to. Shes found it, her purpose, between the late nights and the peppermint tea and the dance runs, between the pins and the pinking shears and the buttons, between Maria’s eyebrow raise and Anya’s laugh and the peace, finally in her own mind.
Yelena Belova Romanoff-Hill might be a bit of a mouthful, but its who shes grown into, and shes damn sure shes going to do the name proud.