As Vera sat tied to the pole, she let out a continuous string of curses in German just under her breath. She hadn't expected this morning to be a pleasant one by any standards, after all who found pleasure in being shot at while waiting to freeze to death? Still, that had to be better than where she was now, tied up as an American prisoner, waiting for them to figure out her secret.

"Hey, Private. I'm here to replace you." Another voice filled the air, interrupting her cursing. Vera looked up, her eyes narrowing at the newcomer as he looked at her. She recognized the man as one from the group that had captured her in the first place. The man had red hair with a matching scruffy beard. His face, just like every other hardened soldier, was worn from battle, but there was still a certain kindness in his eyes. The war hadn't taken that away from him. At least not yet.

"Thank God you're here, Mal. This Kraut has been muttering under his breath for the last half an hour, I wasn't sure how much longer I could listen." Her guard said, standing up and patting the new man on the shoulder. "Have fun." Vera watched the man as he left the tent and headed in the direction she had figured their camp was in. Not that that information really helped her now.

"Hey. Hey, you." She heard the new guard speaking to her after a while, but she didn't look in his direction. Her focus was still on looking for a way out. "Uh, sprec- sprechen sie English?" The man said in even rougher German than the translator earlier.

"Nein." Vera breathed out before turning to actually look at him again. A heavy sigh escaped him as though he had been expecting this to be easy. He should have known better than to hope for that. That was not enough to deter him though.

"Okay, um… your Luger. Um, the gun," the American paused to mimic firing a pistol. "Your Luger, do you remember," the man pointed to his head a few times. "Who took it?"

"Why would I tell you?" She asked in German causing the man's brow to instantly furrow. "I will be taking it back for myself." Vera scoffed at the clueless American. If he actually thought that she was going to act it out for him, especially considering she was tied to the post still, he was sorely mistaken.

"Um," he took a heavy breath and Vera just watched him coldly. "It's just… Mein brother…. Little brother," the man held his hand at a low height. "I told him I would bring him one." The man shrugged awkwardly, unsure if the captive understood any of what he was trying to convey. But still, Vera's expression softened slightly. She not only could understand what it was he was trying to say, she also understood doing something for family. Perhaps his was a much smaller gesture than her own had been, but it was still for his family.

"I do not know." Vera finally said slowly in English. "It was all very fast and then I was knocked out" The man stared at her, mouth gaping a little as she spoke. Even when she had finished speaking, it took him a moment to recover and respond.

"You can understand me? This whole time you could speak English?"

She shrugged a shoulder, not able to do much else. "Only little."

"So, when I was looking like an idiot…" As the man spoke, a smirk split on her face. "That's what I thought." He chuckled awkwardly.

"I am tied up; I need… entertainment somehow." Vera chuckled now as well, relaxing ever so slightly. As a silence settled between them, however, she grew serious once again. "What is with you Americans and Lugers?"

"They're an officer's sidearm so it's a good…" The man hesitated for a moment, remembering he was talking to a German soldier. "It's a trophy." He finally said and Vera let out a soft scoff, that reaction made the American bristle a little. "Hey, I've heard plenty of stories about German soldiers. I don't exactly think you have the right to act high and mighty."

The woman opened her mouth, ready to respond with some biting remark, but she found none. Her mouth closed again and she looked down at the ground next to her. It was war, no one was truly honorable. This time, the silence that settled between them felt heavy.

"Your Bruder, erm, brother…" She started slowly, gauging him for a reaction, seeing if he even wanted to continue to speak to her. "How old is he? What is he like?"

"Um, he's just a kid, really." The redhead said, setting his chin down on his knees. She was almost relieved that he wanted to keep talking. "Far too young to get dragged into this mess, thankfully. He's a good kid, a little too good almost." He paused for a moment, lost in a thought, before continuing. "My other brother, however, he's a pain in the ass and he knows it." The man laughed softly as he sat up. "What about you? Do you have any family?"

"Just my mother and my father." She closed her eyes, thinking of home once again. Even now, in the position she was in, she couldn't find any regret for what she had done. "I came to fight so he would not have to." Her brow furrowed, realizing she might have slipped up and what she said might have sounded odd. "At least one man per household must serve, yes?" The other man nodded in understanding.

"Do you miss them?" He asked, making the woman raise her brow.

"Do you miss your family?"

"Fair point… it was a stupid question." He laughed softly as he scratched his head. "I'm Donald Malarkey. What's your name?"

"Tobias Dietrich. And that is all you will get out of me, Yankee." She said, a smirk on her face once more. "Your questioning will not break me."

"Ah well, it was worth a shot." The man sighed holding back another laugh. A few moments passed before he opened his mouth to speak again. Before he could say anything, however, the sound of artillery filled the air. Both Vera and Donald flinched, but the shelling was further down the line from them.

"Great, this is just what I was afraid of." Vera grumbled in German, drawing her knees in closer, hoping to make herself a smaller target in case the shelling moved towards them. She closed her eyes and continued muttering to herself until the noise had died down.

"Now you know how it feels…" Donald said a minute later, still tense from the shelling. In a moment, he was moving to her side. "Alright, Tobias, we're going to move you somewhere a little more covered. It won't do us any good for us to have a dead prisoner." He said as he began to work on the knot keeping her in place. "Just remember, I do have a gun and you are still a prisoner."

"How could I have forgotten?" She asked. Her eyes darted around them as she looked for what could be a possible escape route. Despite his threat, the minute he untied her, she would run and somehow find her way back to the German line. Or get shot in the process.

"You gave them a bit of a fight earlier so… I wouldn't put it past you." The American muttered as he finished untying the rope. "Alright, let-" The sound of artillery returned only louder this time. It seemed as though the Germans had readjusted their aim. "We need to go!" He yelled, grabbing her arm, ready to run to safety. Vera struggled to get to her feet, her legs a little weak from how she had been sitting. The momentum from him racing off with a firm grasp on her arm, matched with the loss of feeling in her lower limbs almost sent Vera flying face first into the frigid powder. Thankfully she was able to keep her balance, for the American wasn't slowing down for anything - certainly not for some German officer.

Explosions rained around both soldiers, snapping the towering trees like twigs; sending large pieces of debris in all directions. The shelling drowned out the screams of terror, and the screeches of pain from a wounded soldier having a limb impaled or blown off. Out of nowhere both American sergeant and German lieutenant were blown off their feet, an artillery shell impacting into the frozen ground not to far from them. The shockwave was still enough to send them flying back, however, slamming Vera into a nearby tree.

Vera half groaned, half gasped as she tried to catch her breath, the impact had knocked the wind out of her leaving a pain in her chest. Thankfully, that was the worst of it.

When she finally felt like she could breathe again, she reached up to lightly grab her head, the ringing in her ears was blocking out the sounds of the chaos around her. Vera looked over at the motionless body next to her, the whole world a blurry mess. She rapidly blinked, willing to make her eyesight clear once again. She rolled over onto her stomach sluggishly and groaned once again. The young German took a moment before pushing herself up with unsteady arms. Her brows furrowed in concentration before pushing her body to stand up.

Not even a moment later Vera crumbled over onto the still body of the man named Donald Malarkey. She lay there momentarily, wishing for the nausea and the spinning to stop. The woman took a deep breath and looked over both their forms, noting the absence of blood. She rolled off the limp form and reached for the closest helmet, not caring that it had giant white spades plastered on both sides. All that mattered now was that she had something to protect her head.

With one last look at the incapacitated man, Vera took off in the direction that seemed to be the most plausible way back to Foy. That said; it would be proven difficult as the trees were identical, and the danger of the shelling also complicated things. Before being captured, the idea of shelling the enemy was a sound one that she hadn't really been bothered by, but now being on the receiving end she realized just how effective it was. The experience was terrifying and she could only imagine how badly it affected morale. The explosions thundered in her ears as the maneuvered around the various man made holes with Americans cowering in them to protect themselves from the splintering trees around them. As Vera made it past the first few foxholes, the yells of fear became shouted orders as the men noticed the German soldier run by. The Screaming Eagles must have had no intention of letting a Nazi officer escape on their watch and relay any intel he may have gathered back to Foy, because not soon after gunfire broke out and bullets dug into the ground and trees around her.

Just then, a tree next to the young German officer exploded, sending splintered pieces of wood soaring in every direction. Vera yelled out as one wayward piece of wood pierced into her flesh, sticking out of her shoulder. The pain caused her to trip up and stumble forward onto her knees, the jagged frozen ground digging into her legs. Vera fought the urge to kneel in place and fuss over the shrapnel embedded in her flesh, she knew the more time she took doddling - the chances of being recaptured only increased. She pushed herself away from the ice-encrusted ground, and willed herself forward, away from the dangers of the artillery and the American soldiers. The young woman pumped her legs as hard as she could, the only thing pushing her will to escape was the thought of being able to have the chance to see her mother and father again. Because of this, she tore through the wintery maze quickly. Just not quick enough. As she reached the snowy crest of the hill, a sharp crack rang through the woods surrounding her; fiery pain engulfed her calf - causing her to topple down the other side of the hill.

Vera let out a scream of pain as she landed; the wooden shrapnel that was sticking out of her shoulder was pushed deeper into her flesh. No doubt the splintered wood causing even more damage as it viscerally cut through the tissue. As she attempted to right herself, Vera hissed in pain, the throbbing in her right leg only getting worse. Blood bloomed out of the hole in her trousers, staining the dark grey fabric crimson. The thundering sounds of artillery ceased, letting her hear the shouts of American soldiers in the vicinity. Vera cursed as she placed the helmet back on her head and pushed herself upright - doing her best to fight the agonizing pain in her leg. She would rather be in excruciating pain than be recaptured by the enemy at this point. The young German hobbled painfully through the moderately deep snow, a trail of red staining the fluffy white ground.

Vera refused to look back.

"Scheiße." Vera cursed. The area around her now showed no sign of life. The snow was untainted, untouched by either armies. The trees were whole and standing tall, the shells having not obliterated their grandeur yet. She spun around trying to find any sort of familiar markers, anything to point her in the direction to Foy. There was nothing. She huffed in frustration and tore the helmet off her head. She finally noticed the spades painted on the sides and rolled her eyes. Figures she'd pick up the wrong helmet along with everything else. She plopped it down on the snow and sat on it, needing a moment to rest. She gingerly stretched out her leg in front of her, turning it to get a better look at the wound. The fabric clinging to it obscured her view of the damage done and so she cautiously rolled up her pant leg. The skin was pierced in the back of her calf and was most likely lodged in the bone or muscle - as there was no exit wound. Vera reached down and halted her movement when her shoulder pulled painfully.

"Christ." She growled in pain. She huffed repeatedly and reached up. With another few breaths, she ripped the giant shard of wood out of her shoulder. "Gah!" The piece of wood was pulled free, followed by a steady flow of blood. Vera patted down her jacket pockets, searching for an aid kit or anything that would help with stopping the bleeding.

"Right they took everything from me…" She hesitated for a moment before working the long, heavy coat off her frame, carefully maneuvering it over her injured shoulder. She dropped the jacket on the ground and shivered, the cold air biting her. Next, she took her fatigue jacket off and her undershirt soon followed. If anyone had walked by at that moment, they would have been stunned beyond belief to see a German soldier, nay a woman posing as a soldier, with no shirt on. Vera sat there shivering as she struggled to undo the binding that flattened her chest.

It was better to risk being discovered then dying in this icy hell.

The pin that kept the bandage snuggly tied finally gave away, and the cloth unraveled easily, releasing her breasts from its clutches. Another violent shudder shook her to the core, her exposed skin not agreeing with the chilly Bastogne air. With the bandage in her hands now, Vera pulled the undershirt back over her head as quickly as her shoulder allowed. Soon her fatigue jacket followed suit, doing little to stop her chattering teeth as another smaller shiver ran through her. She grabbed the bandage in both hands and pulled, but her arm seized up painfully from the sudden tug. "Fuck!" She immediately dropped the cloth from her grasp. With teeth clenched together, she placed the bandage under her foot and pulled with her uninjured arm, causing the worn bandage to rip half. The snapping of the bandage caused Vera to tumble backwards off the helmet. She let out a cry as her leg bent under her, causing her weight to push down on the wound.

"Son of a bitch."

Vera rolled over quickly to relieve her leg from any more unnecessary pain, still gasping slightly. She took one of the ripped pieces of cloth and hastily wrapped around the bloody calf, tightly tying off the ends. She groaned at the snug fit, but knew that was for the best. She reached a little ways to grab the other snow-covered bandage and reached across her body to cover the medium sized hole in her shoulder. She placed one end in her mouth and wrapped the rest around her shoulder and across her back to finally tie both ends across her chest. Vera moved her arm to test the bandage and let out a small whimper. As minimalist as the patch jobs was, they would have to do until she could get back to Foy and the medics look over her. Being discovered be damned. Then again, none of it mattered unless she could get out of this frozen wasteland - and find some sort of shelter.

The young blond woman struggled to right herself before reaching over and pulling the American helmet towards her. A small smile cracked across her pained face, the thought of her running around with his helmet while some American was forced to run around with hers. Even in a time of chaos and horror, it was amazing how such a small thing could be found to be amusing.

That's it gang, tell us what you think!