where melina makes a choice and gives her girls the life they deserve.

or what could've been if melina took natasha and yelena away from the red room with s.h.i.e.l.d.s help

"Where are we going?" Yelena asks from the backseat in her usual cheery and curious tone. Her words barely make it through the racket in Melina's head.

"Home," she mutters in answer.

"You're silly, Mommy." Yelena giggles. "We just left home."

Melina knows the girl's words are the truth and a lie at the same time.

They are true for Yelena, who doesn't remember any other home.

It's both for Natasha, who knows that this home was never real, no matter how strongly she tried to believe that maybe it'd become one, that maybe someone would change their mind and let them stay like that forever. She tries to cover her fear, but looking at her in the rearview mirror, Melina sees the cracks.

It is a lie for Alexei. He never wanted this in the first place. It wasn't home, for sure not his. But what he doesn't know, is that they're not going home either.

Melina isn't sure what it is for her. These walls are all she knows. But it's not home. What was Ohio for her? She doesn't have an answer. Three years before she never thought that this mission might lead her to this point. That these girls that they gave her like a prop in a play, will turn out the be what she needed to find the courage in herself to say enough after all these years.

She wants to yell it all out loud. She wants to reassure Natasha and tell her that everything will be okay. Tell her that she will never have to hold a gun again if she doesn't want to. That the only punishment she'll ever get won't be more than a time out. That the only fight she will ever get in again, won't be more than a squabble in school. She wants to smile at Yelena and tell her that it really is an adventure. That she'll never learn the truth about the place that brought them together. That she'll do her best to help her remain this pure and kind soul all her life.

But she can't. Not yet.

Melina doesn't believe in any god. But at that moment, as the six-year-old in the back asks for her song, and Alexei turns it on, without any objections, making her believe even stronger that this is just a ride, at that moment Melina prays.

That she made the right choice.

That this will all work out.

That she's not leading her girls from one prison to another.

That the Red Room won't reach them ever again.

The car turns into the dirt road, and Yelena keeps singing, unbothered and unaware. Natasha keeps looking out of the window, trying to remember as much as she can, grasping at the last seconds of normal life. She's not sure yet that this is the end, but she has her suspicions. And the past few years she had already spent in the Red Room, had taught her enough to know better and prepare for the worst. Melina sees the slight tremble of her chin, she's sure that Natasha's tugging at her fingers, the anxiety taking over. She hopes that this is the last time she sees her like that and that she'll hear Yelena sing again and again, to the point they all get sick of it.

Alexei turns the engine off, and they all get out. Melina helps Yelena out, Alexei grabs his rifle, and Natasha scrambles to the front and takes out the pictures from behind the sunshade. Melina looks around, searching. Nothing. She has to play along. Just a little bit longer. They wouldn't stand her up. Not after all of that. Not after all that risk.

Yelena runs inside the greenhouse turned into a hangar and starts pulling the chocks away. Alexei runs out to hurry Natasha. When she joins them inside, Melina finally sees them. Two figures, clad in heavy tactical gear, creeping from around the corners.

She and the girls are already inside the plane when Alexei notices them. He starts shooting, but the agents remain unbothered, protected by whatever their armors are made of, as more and more of them start to show up, reinforced vehicles joining, their light illuminating everything.

Yelena screams for Alexei and manages to jump outside before Melina catches her. Natasha doesn't lunge forward, instead, she steps outside too and looks at her, confusion taking over the fear. Who are they? Are they good? Are they allies? Enemies? Both? Neither? Will they help? Will they separate them? Yelena keeps trying to get out of Melina's grasp, her yells turning into sobs.

"Mom?" Natasha whispers, her eyes darting between her, the agents, and Alexei.

And it's enough for Melina to get distracted enough to lose her hold on Yelena. She races toward her Daddy, at the same moment as he frees himself of two agents. He grabs the girl, the rifle still in his hand as he backs away, showing his real face. Yelena doesn't understand yet, but Natasha does, grasping Melina's hand as she screams for her sister.

"What have you done?" Alexei fumes, his eyes shooting daggers at Melina. His hold on Yelena tightens as he drops the rifle and reaches for a handgun that is tucked behind his belt. "Let us go." he addresses the agents, pressing the weapon to the girl's head as she starts to understand what's going on. That her daddy isn't the hero in this story. "Or I'll kill the girl."

"NO!" Natasha screams, ready to run towards them but Melina holds her and doesn't let go. Not this time. The girl struggles at first but gives up quickly, tears streaming down her cheek. "Yelena..." her voice cracks. She looks at Melina with wide, shining eyes, begging, for help, explanation, anything. One agent steps closer, shielding them.

Yelena's cries echo through the night as some try to bargain with Alexei, try to give him a chance, and reach his right judgment. But Melina knows it's something that this man doesn't have. She knows it's pointless and when someone finally fires at him, it's the biggest relief she felt in years. It's not a lethal shot. But it's enough to bring him down and to make him let go of Yelena who sprints back to her and clings to her legs.

"It's okay," she assures, rubbing her back and pulling Natasha closer. She hides her face in her shirt. "We're fine. It's over."

"You can't get out! Do you think it's that easy? Dreykov will never..." Alexei's threats are cut short by a syringe in his neck. A man dressed in a suit, so not fitting the situation, pulls it out and drops it aside.

Two agents lift Alexei's limp body up and shove him inside one of the bigger cars that take off immediately. The man in a suit approaches her. Natasha glances at him and Yelena follows suit, yet a bit more unsure. He bends down, to match their level and offers them both tissues, smiling at them. Natasha accepts it, and Yelena turns back to Melina. The man straightens his back and nods at Melina.

"You've made the right choice," he says. "I'm Agent Coulson. S.H.I.E.L.D will take care of you, I promise."

He gestures with his arm towards one of the cars and gently guides. Melina scoops up still terrified Yelena, and grabs Natasha's hand. She isn't sure what to think. She can't wrap her head around what just happened. But something tells her that it's good. Or it will be, very soon.

Instead of getting into a plane, they sit in a car. All three of them are in the back, Coulson takes the passenger seat and this time offers the girls some candy. They both accept. Yelena even adds it's her favorite. Natasha smiles, seeing her smile. Melina breathes out in relief, feeling as if someone lifted a great weight from her shoulders, and lets herself close her eyes for a minute.

Instead of Cuba, they go to D.C. Yelena doesn't cry. She falls asleep, her head resting on Melina's shoulder. Natasha looks through the window again, but this time with anticipation of what's to come, not with grievance over what's lost.

Instead of Dreykov and the Red Room, they're welcomed by Nick Fury and S.H.I.E.L.D headquarters. They're not home. Not yet. But they are closer than they have ever been.

S.H.I.E.L.D. fulfilled the promises that they made after Melina first contacted them, risking everything. No one separated them. They got a clean slate. A safe haven waiting for them, set up by the organization and kept off files. She knew she had a debt to pay off now. But it was worth it. Natasha and Yelena were worth it.

Sometime later, Melina will gladly join S.H.I.E.L.D. after tons of evaluation, tests, and being watched like a hawk, until they deem her trustworthy. Just as happily, if not even more, in exchange for help and another chance, Melina will give them everything she has on the Red Room and Dreykov himself. A few months later, she will take part in taking it down once and for all. And nothing ever will feel so freeing and satisfying as coming home to her girls, knowing that it was all over.

Alexei will end up in the organization's custody, treated as every other captured member of the Red Room. Melina will never ask about him. Natasha won't either. Yelena will once, but never again. None of them will ever see him again.

Every other dream Melina ever had, regarding their little family will also come true.

The only tests her girls will ever have will be the school ones.

The only fights they will ever have will be the ones in school, where the worst injuries are bruised knuckles and the worst punishment any of them will ever get will be a two-day suspension.

The only punishments at home will be groundings or time-outs. Nothing physical, not ever.

When Natasha trips on the stairs, she will get a bandaid for her scraped knee, instead of being told to walk them again and again until she isn't able to even stand anymore.

When Yelena breaks her arm, she will get a pink cast and a new My Little Pony instead of a bullet to the head for being useless.

When Natasha breaks a plate, all she will have to do will be to clean it up, instead of being devoided of meals for three days.

When Yelena begs for a dog, they will get one.

When Natasha wants to dye her hair again, she will.

When Yelena wants to have a sleepover in the backyard, she will. She won't see sleeping outside as a punishment.

They will get to be the children they were supposed to be. They will get to celebrate all the holidays, knowing it is real. Without different backdrops and empty boxes. They will celebrate their birthdays, without the fear of what being older might mean for them. And the eighteenth birthday won't mean losing a part of themselves. It will mean friends, music, and gifts.

Natasha, quiet as a child, will gradually find her voice over the years. Considering her past, the few years of training she got in the Red Room, and her potential, when old enough she will be offered a place in S.H.I.E.L.D's academy. She will ask for a few days to think it through but will accept it, initially surprising Melina who won't be a fan of the idea. But when she explained that this was her chance to use everything Red Room did to her to do good, Melina understood.

Natasha will become of one their finest agents. One day, she'll be sent out to Budapest to take a man named Clint Barton out. She'll make a different choice and will bring him in instead. A few years later she'll join the Avengers. When the time comes, after meeting the right person, she will help out of Hydra's grasp, just like someone once helped her out of the Red Room, she'll take a step back and focus on herself. On them. She won't ever completely retire from her missions, even after getting married and having kids she always dreamed of. Melina will be proud of her.

Yelena will be the opposite. From a loud child, she will quiet and slow down. Despite a different upbringing, she'll show potential too and also will be offered a place in S.H.I.E.L.D.'s ranks. She will refuse, immediately. She never got scarred by the Red Room. But she will remember Natasha waking up from nightmares, screaming, even after years. Yelena will want a normal life, away from any fights. She will discover her love for animals and that will be the direction her life will go into. Melina always thought about her younger daughter as street smart, not book smart but the sudden love for biology and chemistry that Yelena will start showing in high school, will prove her wrong. She will be one of the best students in her class.

Already as a teen, Yelena will know that she doesn't want kids. She will know that she's fine on her own and all she needs is her mama, sister, and her dogs. Yet she will be the one celebrating Natasha's engagement and wedding the loudest and will be the best aunt to her nieces. Melina will be proud of her.

Melina will pay off the debt she had to S.H.I.E.L.D. for helping them out. She will become Nick Fury's right hand and she will be one until the organization falls, after the discovery of Hydra's infiltration. Tired of spies, plots, and conspiracies, she will retire after nineteen years of service and will finally get to be herself. She will discover her passion for gardening and painting, something she never fully got a chance to do, and only suspected she may like it.

Melina will clap the loudest at all of her girls' graduations. She will tear up while walking Natasha down the aisle and when meeting her grandchildren for the first time. It will take her a bit of time to get used to being a grandmother when she wasn't supposed to be a mother in the first place. Natasha and Yelena will be proud of her.

But they don't know it yet. They don't know it as Melina unlocks the door to their house for the first time. It's still empty, but she knows that it will change. She watches Natasha and Yelena take off their shoes so they can slide across the bare floors in their socks, and then run off to pick their rooms. She knows that soon this house will be filled with laughter, memories, and joy. No more fear, no more threat in the air. No more lies and pretending. Only them. Only family.

Later Natasha and Yelena will race each other in the backyard. The younger one will fall and scrape her knee. Melina will come out to blow on it and then they will observe the fireflies. Then she will usher them inside, already having a deja vu. But this time, Alexei won't come home. They will eat dinner, just the three of them, the macaroni and cheese Yelena wanted. Then they'll watch some TV, and she will tuck them in. Yelena will ask for a bedtime story and Natasha will listen too, even if she keeps saying she's too big for that.

Everything will be alright.

They will finally be home. 

if you read look after you, remember that once scene when melina said she wanted to run away but was scared? yeah, that's how this would end if she made that decision.