November 26th, 2015

         "I thought Ophelia was having a nightmare last night; she was muttering in her sleep which woke me up. I could hear her mumble, but I couldn't make out the words right away. Doing what I always do -pull her into my arms and wait until she wakes up- I began to make sense of what she was saying. 'Run, O.'

        I remembered the day like it was burned into my mind, the day of my very first mission for HYDRA. They sent me out in the Siberian mountain, still recovering from the fall and the surgery, they sent me out to terminate her.

        At the time, it felt wrong, but I did what they told me to do. The perfect soldier, they sent me out after her. I remember when I found her, she thought she was free, the look on her face said it all. And then she saw me and all hope was ripped from her; I saw that in her eyes. After the fight for her life, it was the first time I held a gun to her. The first time I held a gun to a woman; but I couldn't do it. There was something in her eyes that told me I knew her, and I vaguely remembered, I knew that she meant something to me somehow.

         When Ophelia woke up, she wasn't scared. I thought maybe having that nightmare, she would be scared to look at me. It wouldn't be the first time, though she always recovered quickly, when she remembered who I am versus who I was once made to be. This time, she took a deep breath. I asked her if she wanted to talk about it, and she said that she'd had a dream of the moment she realized she loved me. It feels wrong to know that she realized this during a time I was sent to kill her, but it reminds me that she will always see what is good inside of me."