Disclaimer: I own nothing Captain America-related…though I might consider asking Marvel to loan him and the rest of the Avengers to me for a while. Until then, only original characters are mine.
AN: Yes, I am back with Cap and Adena! Of course, it won't be exactly like the new movie, since I don't have the entire film memorized word-for-word, but this is fan fiction, so I'm allowed to take a few liberties. And, of course, Sharon Carter will not be in this fic (because of what happened in the previous series I wrote). Instead, there will be another agent watching over the Rogers'; more details about that later, though. For now, please enjoy, and don't forget to review!
Chapter 1: Married Life and Adjustments:
"Married life suits you," Natasha often told me whenever we met up for lunch or coffee.
I was more than inclined to agree with her. Life with Steve had always been a comfortable one, but after getting married, things seemed to deepen in ways that never would have been possible while we'd just been friends.
Not that my marriage to Steve was perfect –like any couple, we fought, and occasionally had a fight so bad, we spent the entire evening where we didn't speak to one another. Lucky for us, those kinds of things were few and far between, and only made our 'making up' so much the better when we went to bed at night.
So, our arguments were far from being the bumps in our marriage. Although bumps were expected, there were some that more resembled road blocks, and those took a lot of effort to get around.
The first 'bump' had been me finally deciding to call Steve by his first name. I still called him Cap occasionally, but it was more an affectionate nickname for when we were alone –and that was quickly beginning to give way to me addressing him by his actual name.
Unfortunately, my decision about Steve's name had been due to an outside incursion into our lives. Namely, my husband's identity being openly shared with the public.
Yes, Steve's anonymity had been wiped away, simply because some government officials had decided that he needed to have his own exhibit in the Smithsonian. It was meant to be a tribute to the courageous, patriotic hero who had helped save the world from the alien invasion, and for the most part, the public had agreed with this idea. However, the public also wanted to get the full story of the man that they had forgotten about over the previous decades.
Due to the public's demand for information on their new favorite hero, and thanks to pressure from Washington officials, Fury had been put in an awkward position. He didn't want to give up Steve's identity, but it was clear that people wanted answers –with so much interest focused on this, it was clearly a situation that wasn't going to go away anytime soon.
So, in a move to placate everyone, including those who wanted to know what sort of individuals were watching over and protecting the world, Fury gave up the goods. It was a move I was not happy about, since I now wasn't able to call my husband "Cap" in public. His nickname was popular, and often used throughout his fan-base, so of course, that meant I couldn't use it unless I wanted people looking in my direction to see who I was talking to.
Anyway, with the new available information, Washington quickly approved the building of the exhibit, and it was completed in record time, thanks to the donations that had poured in from across the country (including from Tony Stark, the stinker). A whole wing was added to the already immense Smithsonian museum, and the exhibit was packed full of items that had been dug out of Army storage, or from mementos kept by the families of men Steve had served with. Included were tons of rolls of film, historical and documental films, memorabilia and tools from various units Steve had served in, and even some of the outfits he and his group had worn during WWII. When told about it, even I had to admit that the effort being put into the displays was very impressive.
On the day of the exhibit's opening, Steve had been forced to attend, as it would have looked bad if he didn't. I, however, was not with him onstage as he cut the ribbon to the building's entrance –I wasn't even allowed to attend the ceremony. There was nothing I had wanted to do more than stand by his side to offer my love and support. But in the end, I couldn't.
Unfortunately, my not being there was part of the deal Steve and I had made with Fury: no one would know that Steve and I were married.
Our marriage was a secret that particularly needed to be kept. Fury, Steve and I agreed that everyone ought to know Captain America had a wife, if only to keep the more obsessed fan-girls at bay, but Fury decided that they didn't need to know who his wife was, exactly. That information was to be kept confidential, like our address and other personal data, to preserve at least part of our privacy.
Fury had also made a deal with the newspapers and tabloids: no reporters or photographers were to try and seek out more information on Captain America or his wife. The world would have to be satisfied with the information that SHIELD had already provided, whether they liked it or not.
Of course, I highly suspected that threats had been made by Fury as well, but after a quick thought, I decided to look past it. If it kept us out of the public eye, so much the better! It meant that Steve and I could live our lives relatively peacefully, and without having to worry about our safety.
And for the most part, it was kind of easy to hide who we were. Steve would put on a hat with a visor to hide his face, but not make it look like that was what he was doing. Occasionally, he'd put on sunglasses (on a sunny day), or nerdy eyeglasses with fake lenses to fool people. The sight of him in those glasses always made me laugh.
Lucky for me, I didn't have to resort to any of that, though I still felt bad for my poor husband. JT was able to tap into satellites owned and operated by SHIELD to tell me if there was going to be a problem with people following me, so I had that little bit of a security blanket when it came to staying away from unwanted attention.
Other than him being recognized, the only complication with Steve's identity being out was my family finding out about him.
I honestly hadn't wanted my family to know the truth, but it was better than them finding out another way, like from an online search, or worse -by visiting the Smithsonian and reading Steve's biography, particularly about him being alive and married.
Obviously, my folks blew a gasket once they found out who their son-in-law really was. They'd thought him to be a descendant of Captain America, but to find out he was the real deal freaked them out a bit. For hours, I had to listen to my mother lecture me through the phone, telling me that keeping secrets from my parents was wrong, and that they'd had a right to know who Steve really was. My dad was slightly more understanding, but he hadn't liked being "deceived" either.
On the flip side of our parents' reaction, my brother thought it was "totally awesome" that I was married to a superhero, and told me that the next time he came to visit, he wanted to hold Captain America's shield. Steve thought it was a perfectly reasonable request, and agreed to it, if only to keep one member of my family happy. Luckily, my brother couldn't afford to travel, so that wish wasn't going to come true for him anytime soon. Plus, I think that Director Fury would not be happy about him tossing the shield around in public.
My extended family was a mixed bag when it came to what they thought about my situation. Some thought it was wonderful, some were hurt that I hadn't simply told them the truth, and some wanted me to divorce Steve ASAP, because they thought it was too dangerous being married to him. My only response to all of this was to have Fury slap them with confidentiality agreements and telling them to sign them, for their own good.
Since the documents were being handled by a top government agency that had secret agents and assassins on call, the negative family members stopped arguing with me after that.
The third hurdle Steve and I had to clear was our move from New York City to Washington D. C.
For me, the move to Washington had been the hardest, since the last thing I'd wanted was to move away from a city I had grown to love. Besides, New York was where I had met Steve -it was where our new lives had begun with one another, so it had a special place in our hearts.
But it couldn't be helped –Washington was where Director Fury had set up SHIELD's headquarters, known as the Triskelion, and once Steve decided to become part of SHIELD, that's where Fury had wanted us to move.
For the briefest of moments, I'd been angry at Steve joining the agency –but that anger quickly gave way to resignation. I knew that Steve wasn't the type to sit around and do nothing, and that he desperately wanted to help the world in any way he could. Besides, his determination to help keep the world safe was one of the reasons why I loved him.
The thought of defying the Director had occurred to me, but I knew it would be a bad idea. Steve hadn't like the idea of moving, either, but after talking about it, we agreed that it'd be better to go where Steve was needed (for the greater good and all).
In the end, I was able to put my prejudices aside and 'take one for the team' –I packed up, moved, and settled into our new place like a good girl, determined to try and make this new place work, if only for Steve's sake.
It was hard, at first, because I'd never really thought of the nation's capital as a place I'd ever visit, much less move to. Politics weren't really my thing, and being at the center of power for the country wasn't the least bit appealing. I also suspected that I was allergic to politicians, as I tended to get the urge to gag whenever one was close by.
Much to my relief, our apartment in D. C. was in a quiet neighborhood within the city limits. There was a park nearby, and a lovely street with a line of shops, eateries, and grocery markets. We even had a couple parking spaces reserved for us, since Director Fury had decided to allow us to drive ourselves wherever we wanted to go. Steve had a nice place for his new motorcycle, which he took to the Triskelion when he was called in, while I had a new two-door, sporty car to get around in.
During our first few weeks in our new place, Steve and I had gone out, toured the city, and gotten to know the place. We gradually grew to admit that while it was a beautiful city, it wouldn't really feel like 'home' to us, like New York. We still agreed to make the best of it.
In spite of our doubts, we soon developed favorite hang-outs and places to eat, as well as sights or monuments we enjoyed.
One of these, oddly enough, was the Smithsonian's exhibit on Steve.
My first visit to the Captain America section of the museum came a couple months after our move to D.C.
I didn't want to admit it, but I had always put off going. After all, I'd always thought that my grandmother had told me everything there was to know about Captain America while I was growing up. Given that my great-grandmother had known women who danced in the Captain's shows, it kind of figured that they would have the inside scoop.
Of course, I was wrong. All it took was a few steps into the exhibit, and I knew that there was a lot I didn't know about my husband's past.
All through the large hall, there were rooms with video recordings, glass walls with detailed etchings of biographical information, names or faces, and a million other displays that held information I had never known, because I'd never thought to ask Steve about it.
Being the understanding man he was, Steve didn't hold it against me. He said that his past was still something that pained him to talk about, if only because he had lost it so suddenly and so completely, all because of his decision to take down Red Skull's plane.
"But you've helped ease that pain so much, Adena," he whispered as we traveled the hallways, his face hidden under his hat and behind his (rather geeky) glasses. "If you hadn't been brought to me by Fury, I know that it would hurt so much more. I'd be lost."
Then he'd smiled as he put his arm around me. "And as cheesy as it sounds, having you and your love does make things so much more bearable."
I'd laughed and cuddled up next to him as he pointed out the outfits he and his group of fighters had worn during their battles against Red Skull's forces. "Though where they got the name The Howling Commandos, I'll never know," Steve muttered as I read the information on the display.
"Didn't you name the team?" I quietly asked as a group of tourists walked by.
He shook his head. "I was busy worrying about other things. I'd considered letting one of my men name us, but things got so chaotic, I forgot about it. Now it makes me wonder if they'd named us behind my back and never told me."
I agreed that could have been the case, and told him so as we drifted to a large glass monument stationed in the center of the room. The name and image of a good-looking young man, James Buchanan "Bucky" Barnes, was engraved there, and the minute Steve saw it, he froze, eyes fixed on the image engraved into the glass.
"He was my best friend," he whispered, a look of guilt and sorrow flashing across his face. "We lost him during a mission. I stop by here sometimes, to see this."
I was surprised at this little revelation, but kept quiet about it. If Steve wanted to occasionally revisit his past, I wasn't going to argue.
Then I felt his arm around my waist tighten, and knew that his fears about losing me were swelling up inside him again. Bad enough to have to deal with losing your best friend, followed by your first love –then to have the trauma and drama of my being kidnapped by Loki and Sharon Carter piled on top of that was something that would make me paranoid about losing people I cared about, too.
From there, we made our way to the small theater they'd built to show various recorded interviews with people from Steve's past. For me, it was fascinating –for Steve, not so much. I knew that he'd been given the full tour of the place before it had been open to the public, and assumed that he sort of hardened himself when it came to the exhibit. The look on his face told me otherwise, and one of the films immediately showed me why.
In one of the documentaries was his former love, Peggy Carter.
Sitting beside him, I heard his breathing grow shallow, as though he were hyperventilating. I immediately slipped my hand into his, squeezing it tightly as the film played. I learned that she had married several years after Steve had gone missing, and it was clear that she was uncomfortable talking about it to the film crew.
"At least you know what happened to her afterwards," I whispered to him as we walked out of the theater. "She moved on and managed to find love again, just like you did."
Steve smiled a little. "I know. Director Fury even offered to give me an update on where she is now, in case I wanted to go see her."
I had to admit, my heart stopped at the thought of Steve wanting to reunite, even briefly, with Peggy Carter. "And?" I asked, trying not to swallow my tongue.
"And nothing," Steve replied, giving me a reassuring smile. "I know where she is, and that she has a condition called Alzheimer's –it's at the point where she's coherent one minute, and all of a sudden she doesn't recognize anyone, or loses track of time. I don't want to remember her like that."
He kissed me then, and only stopped when an elderly security guard told us to move along and take it outside.
After that, Steve took me to the exhibit twice a month. It became a sort of quiet hideout for us, where he could tell me all about his late or former friends, as well as their adventures. For the most part, it was entertaining and fun, watching him get excited and smiling at fond memories as he talked.
There were times, however, where he would get sad, particularly when he talked about Bucky Barnes. He had been with Steve ever since they were kids –Bucky had defended Steve from bullies, and had stayed by him after Steve's mother had passed away. The two had always been together, right up until Bucky's death during that fateful mission.
Even now, I don't think Steve ever forgave himself for not being able to save his closest friend. The haunted look he got while talking about Bucky was heartbreaking, and it took a lot of hugs and kisses from me to cheer him up again.
Thankfully, those trips were the only really depressing part of our move to Washington. The rest of the time, things were good, even after Steve got back from his missions. And there were a lot of missions.
I had thought that, after the Battle of New York, Steve wouldn't be called up much by Fury. The most I'd pictured my husband being summoned by SHIELD was once every few months, and even then, only as a last resort.
Turns out, the world was a lot more dangerous than I'd thought, and a lot of it never made it into the media. Natasha told me that most of it was thanks to the collaborative efforts of SHIELD's best agents and tech geeks –data went missing, videos and photos were scrambled or deleted, written documents were shredded 'accidentally,' and a bunch of other things that made it impossible to prove that certain events had happened.
It was a bit unsettling, knowing that a bunch of computer experts sitting in a room somewhere handled things like this. But of course, I couldn't protest against it; I highly suspected that this was how Fury managed to keep me and Steve living under the radar, but that didn't mean I approved of it.
Anyway, Steve's missions were the one thing that made me grumpy. It was one thing to get an hour's notice before he had to up and leave, but it was especially annoying when we'd be asleep, all nice and cozy in each other's arms, and JT would go off, letting us know that Fury wanted Steve to report in.
The first few times it happened, I'd very harshly suggested that I go give Fury a piece of my mind. Steve, of course, talked me out of it, and said that he would take the matter up with the Director himself. I had no idea if he had or not, since we still got those calls, but in the end, I grudgingly accepted the fact that they would continue to happen, whether I liked it or not.
One of the few comforts I had during Steve's missions was that he had Natasha Romanoff as his 'partner' whenever he went out. Having the infamous Black Widow keeping an eye on my husband's safety was probably the best balm that could be offered for my frayed nerves, especially when it came in the form of her personal promise to always bring Steve back to me. She became one of my most favorite people after that.
Another thing that ticked me off about Steve's missions, before I got used to them, was the fact that Steve could sometimes be gone for days, or maybe a week or more, leaving me alone and with not much to do. Until our move, I'd had no other job than helping Steve continue to adjust to the modern world. Now that Steve was well-adjusted to today's culture and out at least two or three times a month on SHIELD business, I was at a loss as to what to do during this free time.
I'd made the mistake of mentioning getting a part-time job to Director Fury, and gotten a pretty straight-forward response: I was forbidden to accept any kind of work position outside what I had been hired to do by SHIELD. Fury couldn't risk anyone finding out who I was and who I was married to, so that was out of the question.
In the end, I decided to talk to Pepper during one of her occasional visits to Washington. She was used to being separated from Tony for long periods of time, and over a lunch out, I broached the subject of what I should do. After some thought, she suggested that I either get myself a hobby, or, barring that, volunteer work.
"You aren't in the same situation as me, Adena," she gently told me, after I'd explained (and complained) about what was going on. "Tony and I are part of a structured, corporate world. We go by schedules that have been in place for weeks, or even months, and we always know where the other is, so that we can call and discuss things.
"What Steve has is different. He's on-call; he goes when they need him, and where he's needed. Just be grateful that he isn't being deployed long-term overseas to someplace dangerous, and that he comes back to you after every mission."
After I let that sink in, I realized she was right. While I didn't really like this new turn in our lives, I knew that I would have to tread the path similar to that of an Army wife. My husband would have to go when called, whether I liked it or not, and I should be grateful that he came back afterwards. At least he wasn't going to be forced to stay away for huge lengths of time.
I also decided to take my friend's advice and take up some volunteer work somewhere close by.
After my lunch with Pepper, I'd gone straight home and searched through the long list of charities, shelters, and other foundations that needed assistance, and after a week of searching, I settled on a local community center for war veterans.
After all, I was technically married to one, so why not help others who so desperately needed it?
AN: Guess who the elderly security guard was? Seriously, if you've seen the film, you know. (winks) I mean, I had to put him in there somewhere, right? Anyway, please review?
