A/N- I do not own Avengers or anything remotely super, just my characters! Sorry for the short chapter, I promise the next one will be longer. Reviews are always welcome, and if you do I'll give you a cookie!


1949 Germany

The First Time

I stepped onto a slanted piece of building and walked away from the cries of the dyeing and the stench of the dead. This was one of the last war camps in all Europe. Soon the war would truly be over. It might be years before I could participate in another. World War 2 was one of the bloodiest I've been in. Not the bloodiest mind, but in the top ten. I would be sad to see it end. Having an existence based on darkness, war and death was a pain sometimes… but other times it was fun.

"Stop right there!" I loud feminine cry cut through the air. I didn't even have glance back to know who was yelling at me.

"Or what?" I laughed but stopped abruptly when something whizzed past me at top speed. She shot at me. The woman shot at me! I turned around.

Peggy Carter was a sight to behold. With her dark brown hair a mess from the fight and her usually pristine uniform in tatters, she looked like she was about to invoke the 'alive or dead' part of my bounty.

"Agent Carter, I'm surprised at you. I didn't think you had it in you; your men lay around you dead or dying yet you thing you've won because you've got a gun pointed at me?" my smile was merciless.

"I'm bringing you in, Sinister." She glared up at me for all the world thinking she called the shots.

"You're a good agent, Carter. Tell you what; one day I'll actually let you bring me in. Until then, I have things to do, people to see." Selina would be waking up soon, the sun rising in the tropics. I turned to leave again this time via over a fallen tower.

"I said stop! I don't know who you think you are but let me tell you I have nothing to lose so if it's a fight you want you'll get it!" her gaze was intense but she still flinched slightly when I froze and slowly turned around.

"Agent Carter, I pride myself on my word. I told you, you could bring me in, but not right now. I have not lied to you. Please give me the same courtesy." My voice was hard. How dare this woman lie to me?

"I haven't lied to you." She huffed at me.

So fast she couldn't track my movements, I was right in front of her. Both of her wrists in my left hand and my right held the gun to her abdomen. Her breath caught and I could feel the fear rolling off her in waves.

"I could shoot you right here." I nudged her lower belly. "You would live… but something else would not. Am I right Agent Carter?" We were nose to nose so I could see the tears well up.

"Don't. Please." Her fear stunned her to motionlessness.

"I won't. Many things I have done in my life, but I will never kill an innocent." I stepped back and tossed the gun aside, losing it in the smoke.

Looking around properly I took in the small war factory for the first time since my arrival. The destruction was absolute. Shells of cars and buildings burning, walls crumbling, bodies everywhere. The smoke was thick. I vaguely remembered SHIELD showing up amidst the destruction and havoc I reined. Nothing had survived. I had never left anything or anyone alive before. This woman and the child she dared to bring on to the battle field were the first. The first in almost three centuries.

But I would not kill a child who had yet to live in this wonderful world. A child who had yet to experience the basic joys of life, only to be brought into a war zone before it could take its first breath. It should be able to swim in the oceans, breath fresh mountain air, catch tadpoles or butterflies, and fly a kite. Not be witness to the blood, smoke, and darkness that followed me everywhere.

I looked back at Agent Carter who had fallen to her knees among the rubble. "Go home, Agent Carter. Raise your child, love your husband. We will meet again, but on my terms." Once again I turned to jump over the rubble that was once a watchtower.

"Thank you." The whisper was faint.

I looked over my shoulder and nodded. Jumping down from the top of the twisted metal heap I was gone. Before my feet touched the ground on the other side, I was hundreds of miles away in the blink of an eye.

The sirens were gone; air clear, sun just rising. The beach was beautiful; sun bleached white sand, clear blue waters that were near transparent. I sighed, it was nice to be home. I turned around to face the jungle behind me. Nestled in the trees, half hidden but not at all rundown was a small bungalow. Two surf boards leaning against the side and a small fire pit out front were the only indications that it was being inhabited. I could smell fresh baked blueberry muffins and hear Selina singing Fly Me to the Moon by Frank Sinatra.

Yeah, it's good to be home.