Author's Note: I'm sick and have tons of time on my hands, so I figured I may as well start another chapter. I've decided that most of the story will be from Iris' point of view, simply because it's more fun to write. Reviews are my heroine, feed the addiction!

Disclaimer: I do not own Band of Brothers. The men from Easy Company own themselves and anyone else you know or recognize aren't mine. Colette and her family are creations of my imagination. Please use your own and don't steal my characters.

Kudos to: GottaPenny. Gee, I'm flattered. Thanks so much for the words of encouragement. But don't worry, I plan on writing this one to the end. :-)

Dedication: To the men and women who serve our country each and everyday. Thank you and God bless.

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Blah Blah French untranslated

(Blah Blah) French Translations

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Chapter Three

Countryside, France

June, 1944

"You can't walk away forever," Colette called up to her sister, who was determinedly walking a good ten feet in front of her.

"Watch me," Iris yelled back, turning to walk backwards and give Cole a good glare before turning back and jogging a few steps more ahead. She ignored the weeds and burs that nestled their way into her boots and clung to her skirt and kept walking towards their house.

Iris hadn't taken the news of having to be an unofficial member of Easy Company very lightly. It had nothing to do with the work, or the men themselves, but Iris had hoped to get as far away from the brutality of the war as she could get. Instead she was following a company of soldiers while Colette helped the Medic with the wounded. Iris had been informed that she wouldn't be expected to help Cole, but simply to help the troops in any way she could, from the back of the line.

On one hand Iris understood the reasoning behind Colette's decision. While being with Easy, there was almost no way that the Germans would be able to find them like they had before. On the other hand, now Iris and Colette were helping the very men who could kill or already could have killed Dimitri and Luc. She had no loyalties to Hitler and the Germans, but she did have them for her brothers.

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Iris waited hidden behind a bush as Liebgott and Malarkey circled around the house for any signs of Germans. The two soldiers had been ordered to go with the Bristow sisters to their home and collect what few things they had. Colette had spent most of the two mile walk talking with the two, as Iris stayed a few feet in front of them.

It was already starting to aggravate Iris already that she could understand almost nothing of what the soldiers in Easy were saying. A select few, including the commanding officer Lieutenant Winters, spoke French but about as well as David had. Iris planned on finding the trooper who best spoke French and beg to be taught English. Asking her sister for help was out of the question, within minutes they would be bickering. But possibly one of the men would be willing to help her.

Malarkey gave them a wave and together Iris and Colette stood up from behind the bush Liebgott had left them at. As they entered the house, Iris wasn't completely surprised to find it torn apart. Papers were thrown across the floor, drawers were left upended on the floor, and cupboard doors were open. She picked her way through the disarray and made her way to the stairs. Colette was trying to explain what had happened, but was finding it difficult without telling about Luc. Eventually she just left them in the foyer and disappeared into her room.

Five minutes was all it took for Iris to gather all that she needed or wanted to bring with her. She packed everything hastily into an old army bag that Luc had sent to her after his basic training in Berlin. All she brought were an extra skirt, two pairs of leggings, a warm sweater, two shirts, three changes of socks, and a few other necessities that she deemed appropriate. Glancing down at her feet, Iris grabbed a pair of work boots on the way of her room and pulled her old shoes off as she hoped down the stairs.

As she laced up the boots, Colette came out of her room with a pack strapped to her back. She had pulled back her hair into a bun and tossed a hair tie to Iris before turning to Malarkey and spoke to him. He looked back at Iris and saw her ready and motioned for them to move out. As she pulled up her hair into a messy pony tail, Iris looked over the house that had once been a safe place for them. She gave a deep sigh and jogged out the door to catch up with the other three.

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"I hate nature," Iris muttered quietly to herself.

In all reality, she practically lived outdoors at home. But as Iris stepped on the bur that had buried itself into her boot for the millionth time under the course of five minutes, she about ready to pull out every blade of grass by hand. It didn't help that the bur was in her left boot, which also happened to be the leg with the injured knee.

She had been walking in the field with the rest of Easy Company for near two hours already. Iris wasn't exactly sure where they were going, but she hoped it was somewhere near by. Her knee was starting to hurt again, worse than before, and her feet ached. Looking ahead, Iris could see that Colette was growing tired as well but kept herself busy by talking to some of the men.

Finally tired of the continuous poke of the bur, Iris sat down in the middle of the field and proceeded to unlace her boot. While muttering colorful wording beneath her breath she picked out the bothersome bur and quickly put back on her boot. Her knee protested at being bent but she ignored it and laced up the boot and climbed to her feet.

"You alright there, Miss?" a voice asked concerned.

Without thinking, or even noticing that the soldier had spoken in French, Iris retorted sarcastically, "Right as rain, thanks so much for your concern."

She took a few steps before stopping abruptly and spun around. A medium built man with dark eyebrows and a lopsided grin stood a few feet behind her, a red cross on the side of his jacket. Iris gapped at him for a few moments before turning a light pink in the face.

"You speak French," she said it as more of a statement than a question. Suddenly realizing how stupid she was making herself sound, Iris gave him a sheepish grin. "Sorry."

"I'm half Cajun," the man explained with a shrug and gave her a small smile. He walked over to her, hand outstretched. "Eugene Roe. Easy Company medic."

"Iris Bristow," she said, shaking his hand politely. "Half Cajun?"

Eugene nodded as the two continued back on the walk through the field. "Louisiana native all my life," he said. A quick glance at the way Iris was walking sent red flags up in the medic's mind. "Something wrong with your leg?"

Iris followed Gene's gaze down to her knee and shook her head. "Just bumped it," she lied. The look in the medic's eye told Iris he didn't believe her but as he opened his mouth to say more, someone called his name. Gene gave her one last look before nodding his head to her and jogging up to the front of the line. She waved to his back before turning around to walk backwards.

Malarkey was with a couple of other privates, laughing at something one of them had said. Liebgott walked next to a bulky man who was smoking a cigar and some other men, and Luz was walking with two other men. Seeing that Luz was with less she didn't know, Iris made her way over to him, falling into step beside him. He gave her a grin but said nothing which she was happy for. Iris wasn't exactly in the mood for trying to communicate with anyone and make herself into a fool again.

She listened as the three men spoke. One of them was short, about the same height as Iris and had darker skin and hair. He seemed to be complaining about something to Luz and the other man. The other soldier was tall like Luz and and Winters but seemed a little bit more built than they were. He had a wide grin and his eyes shone while he talked. He didn't seem at all phased by the one man's complaints, which Iris found amusing.

Suddenly Iris found herself pulled to the ground by Luz as mortars hit the ground around the company. Everything seemed to happen all at once as the soldiers crawled their way to the ditch and started to return fire. Somehow, Iris managed to fling herself over the edge of the ditch and tumbled a bit down the slope. She watched as Luz and a few others appeared and leaped into the ditch before turning to return fire.

Unknowing as to what to do and not wanting to get in the way, Iris slid a short was down the slope and leaned against a tree. She pulled her knees to her chest and winced every time a mortar hit the ground. She wondered if this was how Luc and Dimitri had felt when they had been in their first battle. But then again, they had been trained and knew what to expect for the most part. They could help , while Iris was unsure what to do.

Soon, the rain fell hard enough that it matted her hair to her face and most of the gun fire stopped. The sun was far behind the hills and it was quickly becoming dark. A hand reached out and nudged Iris on the shoulder, causing her to jump.

She looked up to find Luz standing above her, hand hanging in mid air. Iris grabbed it and he pulled her to her feet and motioned for her to follow him. Like a lost puppy, Iris followed him through the trees and past dozens of men in their foxholes. Some were eating and talking while others sat watching the ditch where the Germans sat. Luz came to a stop in front of an empty foxhole and jumped into it, patting the ground beside him. Iris looked around for a moment before jumping into the man made hole and sat down on the mud beside Luz.

The two sat in a comfortable silence as Luz smoked. As the Germans started to sing, Iris wondered what they were so happy about. What part of war did they not understand? It wasn't a place that you just decided to sing in the middle of the night while having your enemy just across the way from you. It was place where young men risked their lives for a cause that they believed in and were willing to die for. Iris shook her head as more Germans joined in singing. They just didn't understand.

A rustle in the bushes above their foxhole caused Luz to reach for his gun just as Colette and Lieutenant Winters emerged. Luz relaxed and greeted them while Iris remained seating and gave them both a wave. Winters nodded to her with a gently smile before turning to explain something to Luz. Colette slowly walked to where Iris sat looking at the wall of the hole.

"You alright?" Cole asked tentatively, leaning over the side of the hole carefully. Concern was written in her face, and Iris felt bad for being so stubborn towards her.

Iris nodded her head still looking anywhere but her sister. "Just dandy. You?"

Colette simply gave a shrug and looked out towards the German side of the line. "They really are horrible singers," she muttered with an annoyed tone.

Iris gave a laugh and nodded her head. "Hell yes they are," she agreed. Suddenly she was laughing so hard that she couldn't stop. Colette looked at her and began to laugh as well, trying to smolder the noise with her hand. "Reminds me when Luc and Dimitri did their duet at your wedding," Iris choked out, remembering the so called 'duet' that the two men had sung at the reception. Granted, it was after a few too many glasses to drink, but the two had been absolutely dreadful.

The memory seemed to cause Colette to laugh harder. Soon the two sisters had gathered the attention of the two men beside them, who looked on confused but amused none the less. Eventually, Iris and Colette managed to calm themselves and were looking at each other slightly awkward.

"I'm sorry," Iris blurted out, unable to take the silence between them anymore. Over the course of a day not talking to her sister, she realized how much she had missed her. It had felt awkward and weird not being able to talk to Colette, and Iris wanted that to change.

Colette's eyes softened and she waved off the apology. "It's fine. I guess you were expecting something else other than this?" She spread her arms wide, gesturing to the woods and other foxholes around them.

"Yeah. A bit," Iris admitted with a shrug.

Winters stood up and called to Colette. She said something to him and turned back to her sister. "I have to go, but I'll see you tomorrow. Stay out of trouble," she said sternly with a half smile. Iris flashed her a grin.

"Always."

Author's Note: So, ick. I didn't like it that much, so I don't blame any of you if you don't either. Think of this as kinda a filler chapter that leads to better ones. Please still review, feedback is amazing.