rum and coca-cola by the andrews sister

"Both mother and daughter
Workin' for the Yankee dollar"

"And the element's number corresponds to what?" Mr. Stark questioned, pointing down at my textbook on the dining table.

"The number of protons in its nucleus." I confidently answered, writing it down in my notebook. Mr. Stark said that since my brain was enhanced, I could easily learn and master a school subject. Which is why I'm learning material a couple years ahead of my age.

"You got it, Little Carter." Mr. Stark smiled and ruffled my hair at the top of my head.

Mr. Stark is the one who insisted on hiring private tutors, but he's also the one who would teach me in subjects of science and math. He said he was returning a few favors he owed my mum.

"How are we doing in here?" Mum asked as she walked into the dining room. We were back in one of Mr. Stark's mansions again.

"We're doing just fine, Peg." Mr. Stark replied before Mr. Jarvis walked in with a coat, hat and briefcase.

"Mr. Stark, it seems that you are needed at S.H.I.E.L.D." Mr. Jarvis informed, standing at the doorway.

"Well, that's my cue. Keep up the good work, Little Carter." Mr. Stark pointed at me before grabbing his coat from Mr. Jarvis as they headed out.

"Don't you have to go with him?" I looked up at Mum.

"Oh, no. Apparently the United States Government requires I have a day off." Mum rolled her eyes and placed her hand down on my shoulder. "So, how's school?"

"Not exactly my idea of fun." I shrugged, continuing to write in my notes. Mum let out a breath through her nose as she watched me write.

          "Hey," Mum broke the short silence and I looked back up. "how about we go out to Brooklyn, maybe do a bit of shopping?" Mum offered.

          "That sound nice." I gave her a soft smile.

         "Come on, then. Grab your coat."

• • •

          The two of us walked down the sidewalk on the streets of Brooklyn. Whenever I would go out with Mum, I was her niece, not her daughter.

          "Shall we go in here?" Mum asked as she held onto my hand. It was a dress shop with mannequins in dresses displayed on the window. I nodded my head and smiled before we walked in the shop. We looked around for a bit, seeing the dresses hanging on the racks.

          "What about this one." Mum held up a hanger that held a light yellow dress with puffed short sleeves and a white collar around the neckline, with a black bow in the middle of the collar and the waist.

          "It's perfect." I smiled.

          "I think so, too." She smiled back. I followed Mum to the counter where she bought the dress. The cashier packaged it in a white box with light pink wrapping tissue inside. Mum carried the box in one arm and my hand in her other, as we walked out the shop and eventually to our car.

          "I like having days like these." I commented. Mum was driving in the front seat while I sat in the back. "Spending time together."

          "So do I." She replied, still paying attention to the road.

          "I wish everyday was like this." I softly added, staring out the window.

          "So do I." Mum empathetically repeated. Both of us knew everyday couldn't be like this one. S.H.I.E.L.D. is always keeping Mum busy and I couldn't risk being out in public all the time. That's just my life, yet, I wouldn't trade it for the world.

           Our house finally comes into view as Mum pulls into the driveway. Both of us leave the car and into our home.

          "Why don't you go upstairs and try this on?" Mum handed me the box with the dress. "Come back down to show me, alright?" I grabbed the box and nodded my head with a smile, before rushing upstairs to my room.

         I quickly slipped on the dress and took a look at myself in the mirror. I smoothed out the skirt and all the white layers underneath that made it puffy. As I examined myself in the mirror, I then realized what would go well with the dress. I went over to my vanity mirror and tied my wavy hair in a low ponytail with two strands framing my face. I opened a drawer and pulled out a light blue ribbon, one that matched the dress. I smiled in excitement before tying it in a bow around my ponytail.

"Perfect." I whispered, looking at my reflection in the mirror. I grabbed my video camera off the table before rushing out of my room and downstairs. I set down the camera on the coffee table before walking over to Mum in the kitchen. "What do you think?" I asked, twirling around the skirt. Mum turned around and instantly formed a big smile on her face.

          "I think you look absolutely beautiful in it." She walked a few steps closer to me. I did a little spin as the skirt flowed up.

          "It's perfect dancing." I commented as I straightened out the skirt.

          "It certainly is." Mum replies as she walked towards the record player in the living room. She dropped the needle over the vinyl before "Rum and Coca-Cola" by the Andrews Sisters started to play. "Shall we?" Mum held out both her hands for me to grab.

I placed my hands in her palms and we instantly started stepping side to side at the usual swing dance pace. Mum spun me around and my skirt twirled up. Both of us laughed with big smiles on are our faces.

          "You know, your father didn't know how to dance." Mum added as we stepped side to side.

           "He didn't?" I questioned, raising an eyebrow.

With a man as great as my father, you'd think he knew how to dance.

"Well that's what he told me." Mum answered while spinning me around again.

"Did you ever dance with him?" I asked.

"No, I didn't." Mum's smile faded a bit, which I quickly noticed.

          "Well, at least you're dancing with me." I tried to reassure, giving her a smile.

          "You're right." Mum softly smiled back. "And I wouldn't give up this moment for the world." She held the side of my face in her palm as the song came to an end and we stopped dancing. "I think that's enough for today. Why don't you go upstairs and freshen up while I make dinner. And then after we eat, maybe we could watch Cinderella on the television."

Of course, my favorite movie.

          "Yes, Mum." I nodded before she bent down to kiss my forehead. I grabbed my video camera off the coffee table and rushed upstairs to my bedroom. I shut the door and opened the drawer next to my vanity mirror, pulling out a red tin box, it was about the size of a shoebox. I pulled off the lid and placed my camera inside.

          This was my "Never Forget Me" box. Pictures, birthday cards, all sorts of that, including my father's very own dog tags. It was a box that reminded me of the good moments from my life, and some of the ones I couldn't see.

          I smiled down at it before shutting the lid and placing it back into my drawer. As I closed the drawer, I heard a click from my window before hearing it slide open. I turned around and saw a man with long, dark hair, wearing a mask covering the bottom half of his face, and a silver left arm.

          I gasped and tried to scream but the man shot his gun and I felt a sharp pain in my neck. I pulled whatever the man shot out of my neck and saw silver dart.

          A tranquilizer dart.

          A dizziness took over my body as I dropped the dart from my hand. My vision became blurry while I stumbled back, about to fall on the floor. But, the man caught me in his arms, stopping my fall.

          "Mum." I breathed out as the man picked me up. I tried to call out and fight back, but I became more tired by the second and my eyelids grew heavier, begging to close. Until eventually, they shut and all I saw was black.

• • •

          I jolted up from where I laid on the ground. I was still wearing my dress from before. I looked around me to see that I was in a rusty cell. Fear built up in me as my breaths came faster. Where was I? Where was Mum?

"Greetings, kleines mädchen." I heard a German accent behind me and quickly turned my head. I saw a short man wearing round glasses. "I see you've awoken."

"Who are you?" I asked, not hiding the fact that I was terrified.

"I am Dr. Zola, and you are in HYDRA." Zola answered with pride.

"HYDRA fell nine years ago." I furrowed my eyebrows in confusion.

"Oh, but did we? That's what we wanted you to think. That's what we wanted your father to think." My eyes widened when Zola emphasized on "father".

He knows who I am. These people know who I am.

Zola clearly saw the fear on my face and a small smile formed on his. "Come with me." He grinned. Two men came and opened the door, walking into my cell. They grabbed me off the floor, strongly gripping my arms. I shoved my arm away after feeling the discomfort, but the men only grabbed my arms even tighter. All of us walked over to what appeared to be a lab. There was a table with a white cloth covering the objects on it.

"At this point, your mother already has men searching for you. But we know how to solve that problem." Zola pulled off the cloth to reveal a body. A dead body. I instantly screamed at the horrible sight. It was a girl, and she looked exactly like me. But her skin was more pale and her eyes never blinked. I started hyperventilating, seeing the corpse lying on the table.

"Looks very similar to you, no? She will be placed in the forest where your mother will find her. Now we understand that Howard Stark's mediocre technology has been evolving. We extracted some of your blood before you woke up, and we'll inject it inside her. That will alter her DNA to match yours, should Stark test it." Zola explained. I tried to get a hold of myself, snapping out of my fear.

"Why go through all this trouble? Why not just kill the actual me?" I questioned through my heavy breaths.

"Don't you understand? Your father has given you something remarkable. We cannot waste it on the technology of our time." Zola held up my chin and I clearly showed my discomfort of my face. "A beautiful specimen like you deserves something more... advanced." He gave a nod to the men holding me before they dragged me to a black capsule.

"No! Stop! What are you doing?!" I tried fighting back and freeing myself from their grip.

"Farewell, kleines mädchen. The future is coming." Zola assured from behind me.

"Stop it! Let me go!" I yelled as I continued failing to escape. The men shoved me in the capsule and restrained my wrists with straps inside of it. Zola stepped closer and grabbed the door of the capsule.

"Hail HYDRA." He whispered before shutting the capsule close.

"No! Let me out! Please!" I cried out, trying to pull my wrists out of the straps. Tears rolled down my face as I sobbed out. I didn't know what this capsule was, what it was meant to do to me.

I soon felt the air inside become colder, extremely colder. I couldn't move and frost started to form in the capsule. I gasped before letting out a breath. It's like I was frozen. And then, it all went dark.

KILLERKÖNIGIN | CAPTAIN AMERICA'S DAUGHTER
BY QUEENWANDAMAXIMOFF