Yelena has specific ideas about where she wants to go in New York, and she tells these to Kate. But the truth is, she doesn't really want to see those places, not like this. Not alone. Because once upon a time, before Thanos, before her fragile new world collapsed, Yelena made plans to visit New York under very different circumstances.

The screen flickered a few times, then stabilised. Natasha's face appeared, frowning for a moment, then breaking into a grin.

"Hey, little sis!"

"Hey, yourself!"

Yelena wore a matching grin. She peered closer at the screen, trying to scrunitise Natasha. Her sister looked tired, but otherwise seemed all right. That was good.

"You've been busy. Sam's got an ear to the ground, heard you've been doing good work."

Somehow, Yelena's already-huge grin widened even further. A ball of joy began to grow in her chest, warm and comforting, as she basked in Natasha's tone of pride.

"It's hard work," Yelena admitted. "Finding them, seeing them wake. But worth it."

Natasha nodded seriously. She, of all people, understood.

"What about you?" Yelena questioned. "You look tired."

Natasha shrugged. "Oh, you know. We're always on the move. Being on the run can get exhausting. And-" There was a flicker of sadness behind her eyes."-I miss people, you know. I haven't seen Clint or his family, and you know that I haven't even been able to get a secure line to you for months."

This was true. It had been one of the great frustrations of Yelena's new life - she'd just found Natasha again and they barely ever got a chance to speak safely. But Yelena didn't want Natasha to be sad. So she tried to liven things up a bit. "You can say you miss me, poser," she teased. "Those words will not kill you."

That got a smile out of Natasha. "Fine," she conceded, "I miss you."

"I miss you too," Yelena replied sincerely.

There was a pause, as both sisters pondered this exchange. Then, Yelena broke the silence, "You know, once this is over, once we've found all the widows, we can be together again. Like when we were small."

This thought seemed to appeal to Natasha very much indeed. A thoughtful expression settled upon her features, and she gazed pensively up at the ceiling.

"I want to see New York," Yelena continued. "I want to see where you fought the aliens. And the Empire State Building, the Statue of Liberty-"

"Those are tourist attractions!" Natasha laughed. "And the Statue of Liberty is practically rusting into oblivion. They really should make a new one."

"Yeah, but I want to be a tourist," Yelena persisted, "Maybe we could visit for Christmas. I hear there's a huge tree at the Rockefeller Center."

Natasha smiled. "Fine. I'll have to dig out a disguise of some sort, seeing as I'm still a wanted fugitive."

"Ah, you'll figure it out," Yelena said, waving a hand dismissively. "Seriously though, it'd be so cool to spend Christmas together."

"Yeah, we can invite Alexei and Melina."

Christmas had been one of Natasha's favourite celebrations. Even though it wasn't real, even though there weren't any real presents, they had set up the tree and put up lights just like all the other American families. There had been that same atmosphere of excitement, of anticipation, and Alexei had even let the stay up for Santa, at least until Melina called veto rights and sent them both to bed.

Judging by the delighted look on Yelena's face, Christmas had also been one of her favourite times of year.

"Remember when Alexei told us to wait up for Santa?" Yelena asked eagerly.

Natasha laughed. "You asked so many questions. You wanted to know how he visited every house in the world so quickly, and how his reindeer flew, and why Rudolph had superpowers."

"Yes! Rudolph the super-powered reindeer."

They bathed in the nostalgia for a long moment, remembering simpler, happier times. But their happy childhood had been cut short, and no amount of reminiscing could erase the memories that came after.

"Did you ever-," Yelena began in a much darker voice "you know, did you ever do the Siberian wilderness training exercise?"

Natasha suppressed a shudder at the thought. "Yeah. Three months. All alone. So many girls died..."

"Yeah," Yelena agreed. "I learnt to hunt on that trip. I'm not as good as your buddy Clint, but I can shoot." She took a deep breath, and Natasha leaned forward slightly. This story was an important one, and it was costing Yelena considerable courage to share it. "One night, I shot a reindeer. I almost didn't take the shot, Natasha, I almost didn't. But I was so hungry, and cold, and before I knew it, I'd released the arrow. It hit the reindeer straight in the heart. It was young too, just a juvenile."

"Oh, Yelena..."

"All I could think was 'I killed Rudolph. I killed Rudolph.' But then I went ahead and removed the guts and cut the meat. Reindeer is tough, chewy. I had to braise it for a long time. But Rudolph kept me alive, Natasha. In more ways than one."

Natasha watched her sister carefully. She saw the pain in Yelena's eyes, always simmering in the background, and an irrational surge of guilt swept across her. She shook it away impatiently - Yelena didn't blame her, and it wasn't her fault. Natasha looked again, and was surprised to notice that there was something lighter in the way Yelena held her shoulders, as if it had been good for her to tell this story. Maybe that's how she could take care of Yelena now, by being someone who could listen and understand in a way that no one else could.

"I'm sorry, Yelena..."

The corners of Yelena's lips curled up into a sad smile. "Don't be. You had to do it too."

Natasha nodded. "It's over for us now."

"Yes. And soon, it will be over for all the Widows." This thought put a genuine smile back on Yelena's face, but it did not last long. "You should go, we have been on this line too long."

She was right, Natasha admitted reluctantly. But this phone call had been far too short.

"Take care, Yelena."

"Always. And Nat, I can't wait to see you again!"

"Likewise."

And with that, the line broke, and Yelena was left alone in the dark. She let out a sigh and got up from her chair, shuffling over to the heavy wooden table to light the lantern. This tiny mountain cabin had been home for the last two weeks. It was comfortable here, and safe, but she would have to leave soon. Time to free the next widow on Dreykov's neverending list.

Yelena peered out the tiny window at the moonlight filtering in. She imagine where her sister was, hiding away from the authorities, keeping the remnants of the Avengers alive. Natasha was the closest true family she had in this world and without her, Yelena was all alone.

Soon, she promised herself. Soon she would finish the task that Natasha had left to her, and she could be with her big sister again.