A/N: So, I have been rewriting this fic on and off for a couple years now, as I started toiling with the idea of almost all my Marvel fics becoming intermingled into the same plot line eventually, once Infinity Wars 2 comes out. I'm finally far enough along that I feel comfortable posting the new chapter one. If you hate it, go ahead and let me know. If you like it, let me know.

If there is anything that could be triggering, I will post a warning at the beginning of the chapter, and a summary of what happened.

Disclaimer: This story is based on characters and situations created and owned by Stan Lee and Marvel Studios. No money is being made and no copyright or trademark infringement is intended.

Chapter One

October 13. The Fridge.

The glass of her prison vibrated, stirring her subconscious from the trappings of simulated serenity masking thinly veiled programming reverberating through the arctic waters. She only saw glimpses, but it was enough to wake her further, desperate to leave this place. Dark eyes, strong jaw, and a deep set innocence buried by childhood fear. He was close, on the right path, but one wrong turn, he would lose his way and she would be left behind for eternity.

She reached out, luring him in the right direction.

She had been locked away for far too long…

This way…

Grant Ward took a detour, checking the depths of the Fridge for the most powerful object that had been locked away by HYDRA. It had been agreed, no matter how powerful, it had the ability to destroy everything HYDRA had worked for since infiltrating SHIELD in the 50s. Garrett had no idea, but Ward had worked endlessly to dig up the information that had been buried so well, everyone had forgotten about it. Now was his chance to unleash it, use it to bring HYDRA to full power. It would be his redemption, and he would rise to the top.

Come, Grant Ward… You are close.

A sweet voice echoed in his head, and it was like a beacon, a guiding light turning him in the right direction.

He followed the pull of the voice, finding the access point below the basement level, where a maze of corridors twisted his sense of perception. Something was wrong with this place, echoes and identical turns, a taste in the air that suggested the vents were releasing a hallucinogenic toxin. Whatever, or whoever, HYDRA had hidden underneath the Fridge, it was clear they had taken extreme measures to thwart anyone's attempt at locating whatever it is they didn't want let out.

It was freezing.

The walls were covered in frosted ice, the stone floors slippery, and the air biting. The further he journeyed into the maze, the more his limbs pricked with the cold, and the more desperate he was to leave this place. He was being guided, each turn a flash in his mind, the voice a plea in his head. It was as if someone was down there with him, could see into his very soul, wanting him to find her, free her.

It was woman.

Help me…

Please…

There was an eerie glow emanating from a corridor up ahead, and the pull was getting stronger. He had walked through the maze and entered a winter prison. It was like Siberia; sub zero temperatures, cutting ice and crunching snow underfoot. He couldn't breathe. The further he ventured, the louder the voice in his head became, and the harder it was to take a full breath. It was suffocating, the presence that lingered down in this prison was all encompassing, overwhelming.

Turning the last corner, he was faced with a chamber of white snow. The ceiling shuddered, and the flakes drifted down, adding a magical quality to the sight that lay before him. Unlike anything he had encountered before in his life since being recruited by Garrett for HYDRA, or joining SHIELD, or tagging along with Coulson and his ragtag team. He knew HYDRA went beyond to neutralize threats, protect their assets, hide their secrets, but this was something else entirely.

It was definitely a woman.

Iron Man would be shitting himself right now, and all Grant Ward could do was smile.

Inside a tank of the bluest, purest water, and encapsulated in ice. It was like looking into the heart of a glacier. And inside, floated a young, thin, frail blonde, dressed in a white dress, ripped and flowing around her. She was fully awake, and staring at him through the crusted ice. With a gloved hand, he wiped away the first layer and found a beauty looking back at him, no tube to breathe, no IVs to keep her alive. She was simply existing, and he had no idea how it was possible, but it was probably something to do with HYDRA.

She offered him the warmest smile, a hand pressing against the ice, like a mother would for her child. It wrapped around him in the midst of the arctic chamber, heating him up from the inside out. It was like being embraced with maternal love, something he hadn't experienced in a very, very long time. And it was like a spell that he never wanted to break. He wanted to stay here, and feel this kind of warmth until he died.

"Maria Stark," he breathed, pressing his hand against the ice to mirror her own. He knew what he had to do. "Let's see about getting you out of here, shall we?"

He pointed his weapon at the ice and pulled the trigger.

The tank cracked and crumbled, spilling its contents onto the floor. The water was bone chilling, washing up against his legs, but Ward had more important things to deal with.

Tony Stark's mother lay gasping on the icy floor, younger than the day she supposedly died, and shivering, but alive, nonetheless.

Now he just had to control her.

"Here," he said gently, offering her a hand. He helped her up, noticing she was shaking, and struggling to find balance on legs she hadn't used in decades. It didn't matter though, it would all melt away once he uttered the words to control her. He smiled, at her, let her lean on him, and spoke softly, evenly, and with a soothing tone, "Take a deep breath-"

She struck faster than the human eye could comprehend, and it wasn't even painful. No, she stopped him with a hand to his cheek, filling him with so much love that it brought him to his knees. He met her gaze, so inviting, so loving, so motherly, and that was all it took for her to gain access into his mind. She seeped in, gently. She soothed his frayed edges and raw nerves, ventured deep to the darkest recesses of his mind, whispering encouragements and absolving him of all the horrible acts he had committed, all the lies he had spun.

"You have so much innocence in you, Grant," she said, so sweetly and so full of compassion. "John Garrett fed on that, corrupted you, but that isn't who you want to be, is it? You're not HYDRA, sweet boy. You're so much more, and you can be a great man. I promise you will be one day. You just have to fight it."

It was like a wave crashing through an impenetrable fortress. All the love he had been deprived of his entire life, all the hopes and dreams he had buried deep down, all the hate and rage and pain, was all unleashed. He was whole again. He was no longer a wayward child, seeking approval. He had all the approval he could ever need from her. It filled him to the brim, made him impervious to the cutting cold, and the loneliness of life. With a touch, she was fixing all that was wrong with him. She was all that he needed, and she was giving him the strength to fight what he had been told to do, trained to do, brainwashed to do.

He was his own person again.

When she pulled away, Ward realized he had been sobbing into her chest, safe in her embrace. She helped him to his feet, wiped away his tears, and smoothed out the wrinkles in his clothes. She smiled at him again, and it relayed everything he had ever needed to know.

He was worth it.

"We have parts to play, don't we?" she asked, but it wasn't really a question. "Say the words, everything will be okay, sweet boy."

Taking a deep breath, Ward steeled himself, ready to fool the man who had personally molded him. Taking her by the arm, he guided her out, repeating the words like a mantra, and she played her part for the cameras, once they reached a level that security feeds were installed. She struggled, cried, and then slowly fell under the spell. No one would suspect a thing.

"Take a deep breath. Calm your mind," Ward continued, Garrett in sight. "You know what is best. What is best is you comply. Compliance will be rewarded."

Garrett caught sight of them both as she hid behind an emotionless mask. She was steady on her feet, fluid in her movements, and a blank slate as she came face to face with John Garrett, whose own jaw dropped, recognizing her.

"I'm ready to comply," was all she sid, and empty void ready for direction.

"Maria Stark?" said Garrett, utterly guffawed and ecstatic. "Oh, my god. I haven't seen you since the inauguration of Alexander Pierce. If I had known… Whew, boy. No wonder Stark snatched you up. You were gorgeous as all get out. Good job, Ward. Good job."

"Thank you, sir."

Getting out was the easy part.