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1943 – November
"Senator Brandt, I regret to report that Captain Steven G. Rogers went missing behind enemy lines on the third. Aerial reconnaissance has proven unfruitful, as a result I must declare Captain Rogers, killed in action. Period." Phillips dictated to an enlisted man who couldn't have been older then nineteen.
Every now and then Phillips would glance Kats way as she sat there, brooding. Her orders from Dr. Anderson were clear, she was to wait until someone could fly her back to London for an assigned furlough. Against her wishes of course. But, apparently if you break three test tubes while sobbing hysterically you'll get labeled as 'Emotionally Unstable.'
"The last surveillance flight is back." Kat heard Peggy say, as she made her way into the tent. "No sign of activity."
Which wasn't all that different from the surveillance from yesterday. Or the one from the day before that, or the one before that…
"Go get a cup of coffee, Corporal." Phillips said to the young man. "I can't touch Stark, he's rich and he's the Army's number one weapons contractor." He then point to Kat, who was still sitting in her chair. "You, are the only one who has even the slightest possible chance at duplicating the serum."
He finally then turned to the agent. "But you, don't fall into any of those categories, do you?"
"Please, don't put this on her." Kat said standing up, to come to the aide of her friend. "I begged her to help us. So, if you want someone to blame, then blame me."
"With respect, Sir," Peggy chimed in for herself, "I don't regret my actions. And I don't think Captain Rogers did either."
"What makes you think I give a damn about your opinions?" Phillips barked. "I took a chance with you, Agent Carter. And now Americas golden boy, and a lot of other good men are dead, because you had a crush."
"I wasn't that." Peggy replied coldly, not liking how he automatically jumped the conclusion that she was some heartsick school girl. "I had faith."
"Well, I hope that's a big comfort to you when they shut this division down." He told her, as a commotion began to develop outside out the tent. Only agitating the officer more.
"What the hell is going on out there?" he said before storming out of the tent, allowing the two women to follow.
Kat found that just about everyone from the camp was making there was toward the commotion. And when she got there she understood why. There had to be over three hundred men marching toward the camp. One man in particular she was the happiest to see.
"Bucky!" Kat shouted out as she ran out from behind Colonel Phillips, who made his way towards Steve.
"Kat!" he called back, letting his little sister throw her arms around his neck, knocking the wind out of him. "Ugh."
"I'm sorry." She apologized releasing him from her hold immediately.
"No it's fine," Bucky groaned, "definitely worth the pain."
The younger Barnes laughed with relief and gave the older one a gentler hug.
"You're late." Peggy said to the hero, which made Kat turn her attention to him.
"Sorry, I just couldn't call my ride." Steve told the agent. Sending charismatic a wink Kats way as he took her now destroyed transponder, out of his jacket pocket.
"Hey! Let's hear it for Captain America!"
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It didn't take too much convincing on Kats part for Bucky to want to get checked out by Dr. Anderson, who in the end gave him something to put him to sleep. Something he sorely needed. Kat now sat with Bucky's hand in hers, as he slept on the cot in the medical recovery tent.
"How's he doing" Kat heard a familiar voice ask. Turning around in her chair she smiled at the sight of Steve walking towards her and her sleeping brother.
"I'm not really sure." she said as he took a seat in the chair beside her. "Before he went to sleep, he told Anderson that Zola injected him with something, but he didn't know with what."
With a clenched jaw, Steve nodded. "While we were walking back here he mention something about that."
"I -uh never got to say thank you for bringing him back." The brunette told him timidly, letting go of her brothers' hand.
"Don't mention it. You and Bucky have been coming to my rescue for years. I'm just glad I can finally return the favor."
"I'm just so happy you two made it back." Kat told him. "I was going crazy not knowing. Crying with every little thought of worry."
"I've always hated seeing women cry, especially you." Steve admitted poking the side of her stomach, and with a teasing smile said, "Because you've always had this very loud, annoying, nasally kind of cry-"
Kat huffed and punched his arm playfully that probably felt like a soft pat to the soldier. "Have you always been this mean?"
They both laughed at each others antics and began sneering the conversation toward other topics that would constantly be changed. Every so often a nurse would come glare at the two friends and tell them to 'keep it down'. Kat and Steve would try to contain their fits of giggles only to burst out laughing when she left. And soon the minutes began to turn into hours.
"I should go." Kat said glancing at Steve's watch. "I've got a plane to catch."
"Phillips is still making you go?" He asked incredulously.
"Yeah I couldn't talk him out of it. Says he'd have to fill out twice the amount of paperwork to cancel a furlough and he didn't join the military to become my travel agent."
"Sounds like Phillips alright." The soldier nodded. "I'll see you in London then."
"In London." She repeated, and with a hug and a kiss on the cheek she said. "Thank you, for everything."
He gave her a small smile before giving her a kiss on her forehead. After that their faces began to inch closer together again. Kat slowly let her eyes close and soon their lips touched. Both of Kats hands moved onto the opposite side of Steve's stubbly cheeks, while his remained at her petite waist slowly pressing her to him. Now keep in mind, the kiss wasn't much at first, very chaste. But as both of their lips began to move, it turned into a very tender and loving embrace. It was that kind of kiss that at first glance, you would think they had been romantically involved for years. And for Steve this was the greatest moment of his life.
"Three-Two-Five-Five-Seven" Bucky chanted his serial number softly in his sleep, pulling the comprised couple back into reality.
It wasn't until then that Kat realized what had just happen. She felt her stomach twist into knots. Dizzy almost. Had she really just done that with her best friend? With Steve? With her unconscious brother in the same room?
"Kat?" Steve said, noticing her state of fret.
"I'm sorry…" She muttered pulling out of his arms before fleeing the tent.
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"Have I told you how much I missed you?" Asked Kat as she swished around her wine in the glass. She and Bucky sat in the completely full pub that was nearest to the SSR headquarters, along with everyone else in London it seemed.
"This would be about the hundred and ninth." He said taking a sip of his beer.
"Well then make it a hundred and ten, because I really missed you."
Bucky chuckled softly at her statement. "And for the hundred and tenth time, I really missed you too."
The siblings continued to talk, mostly about Kats job and what it entailed until he spotted someone that quickly caught his eye.
"Steve!" Bucky shouted over the crowd to get the blonde man attention.
Kat unconsciously blushed at his name. She had been purposely avoiding him since the incident that had happened back in Italy a week ago. And she wasn't too sure if she could face him after she had ran away so cowardly. When she felt a new presence beside her she didn't dare look up from her drink.
"Hey." Bucky greeted him with a manly hug. "What are you doing here? I thought you said you were meeting with Phillips tonight."
"I was. Phillips has given me the task to wipe out the rest of the hydra bases." Steve told him. "I'm here to recruit. What do you say? You in?"
"I'll be sure to get back to you on that." Bucky replied with a small chuckle. "Who else are you thinking of asking?"
"Dum Dum, Jim, Gabe, James, and Jacques."
"They're all going to say yes, you know." Bucky said to the blonde man.
"Why do you think that?"
"Cause they're all idiots."
"Hey, don't you two go anywhere yet the next rounds on me." Bucky told them. "Kat, I know wants more red wine. Steve?"
"Whatever is fine." Steve answered back.
"I'll be right back then." He said patting the back of Steve's shoulder, before heading to the less crowed bar, leaving her and Steve alone.
"Hi." Steve said trying to break the awkward silence.
"Hello." Kat replied, finally looking up at him.
"I like your dress." He said motioning to the green colored outfit.
"Oh, thank you." Kat answered politely to the small talk. "I like your new uniform. It fits you, very well."
He thanked her for the complement just as she did before him. The conversation halted once again and fell into an awkward silence. Making them both think: How long does it take to order three drinks?
"I-"
"We-"
Both chuckled nervously at the collision of their words.
"You first." Kat said.
"Okay. I- uh- thought we should talk about what happened in Italy."
It was one thing to not see her for a few months, but the past week of her purposely avoiding him was absolute hell. And after what happened in the medical tent a week ago, this would be the perfect time to come clean about how he felt about her. What he had always felt about her…
"Oh."
"Yeah."
"Look, I think I know what you're about to say."
"You do?" He asked widening his eyes a bit.
Kat nodded. "That thing that happened between us, I know it was a mistake."
"A mistake?" Steve repeated softly feeling his heart slowing being clenched.
"I'm so sorry that I avoided you for so long. I just- I really don't want this to ruin our friendship." She explained. "And I thought you would be angry for what had happened."
"I could never be angry with you. Not for long anyway."
"So can we go back to the way things were?" Kat asked.
"Whatever you want, Kat." Steve said carefully hiding his disappointment with a sad smile.
Kat, on the other hand felt mostly relief that she no longer had to worry about it anymore. But she couldn't shake this unrecognizable feeling that was gnawing at the bottom of her stomach.
"Okay!" Said Bucky when he returned with drinks in hand, once he handed out the other two glasses he raised his own, "To us! The Three Musketeers!"
"Here, Here!" Kat sounded out, taking a drink.
"To us." Steve repeated half-heartedly. And after downing his drink he said, "I'll be right back."
"Good luck with that recruitment." Bucky called to him as Steve left and headed toward the back of the bar.
"Whoa, take it easy there champ." Kat said, taking away the shot of whiskey Bucky had just ordered. "Anderson barely released you from our care. Don't go getting yourself sauced."
"Yes mother." Bucky said teasingly, trying to get the drink back. Which only made her try to keep it out of his reach more. "Come on Kat, I'm a grown man."
"Doesn't matter. Cause I'm not about to let you get yourself sick, Bucko." Kat told him, pinching his cheek like a grandmother would do to a young child. Making the older sibling scowl at that nickname and slap her hand away.
"Hey, did Steve seem a little upset to you?" he asked her.
"What?"
"Yeah, I don't know." He continued, "I just got the feeling that he was upset about something."
"Maybe he's just… Stressed." Kat told him.
"Yeah, maybe." Bucky said right before he noticed Steve come toward them once again. "See I told you, there all idiots."
"How about you? You ready to follow Captain America into the jaws of death?" Steve asked him.
"Hell, no." Bucky replied immediately. "That little guy from Brooklyn, that was too dumb not to run away from a fight. I'm following him."
"Aww!" Kat cooed, "That was really sweet Bucks."
"But you're keeping the outfit, right?"
And there went the moment...
"You know, it's kind of growing on me." Steve responded with a small smile.
"Oh, that reminds me, Howard wants you to stop by the lab tomorrow morning to look at some gadgets and talk about updating your costume." Kat informed him.
"It's not a 'Costume' it's a uniform." Steve told her defensively.
"'Costume,' 'outfit,' uniform,' same difference." She said, taking another sip of wine. "So will you come or not?"
"Alright I'll be there."
"Hello Kat." A British voice rang out.
"Hey Peggy." Kat greeted, very happy to see her friend was able to take the night off from work.
"Captain."
"Agent Carter." Steve said with nod.
"Oh Peggy, this is-" Kat started until she noticed the look Bucky was giving her British friend. Prompting her to jab her elbow into her brothers' side, pulling him out of his trance. "This is my brother, Bucky"
"Ma'am" he greeted politely.
"Howard has some equipment for you to try, tomorrow morning?" Peggy informed Steve.
"Oh, I already-" Kat began.
"Sounds good." Steve told the agent cutting Kat off.
"I see your top squad is prepping for duty." Peggy said glancing toward the back of the bar at the people singing loudly to the tune of the piano.
"You don't like music?" Bucky asked her.
"I do, actually. I might even when this is all over go dancing."
"Well then what are we waiting for?" Bucky said, his voice oozing charm.
"The right partner." Peggy said thoughtfully. "0800, Captain."
"Yes ma'am, I'll be there."
"I'm invisible." Bucky spoke not believing what had just happened. "I'm turning into to you. It's like a horrible dream."
"Don't take it so hard. Maybe she's got a friend." A jokingly smug Steve told him.
"Yeah, her friend is Kat and that's most definitely not gonna happen." Bucky replied before looking over to Kat. "Hey you okay."
Was she 'okay'? No she wasn't 'okay'! Kats mind was moving a mile a minute. What was that whole spiel about, huh? Were her and Steve an item now? Was there a particular reason Peggy was wearing that stunning red dress? And why would she just come and go like that? Just to be a tease?
"Oh yeah, just peachy." She said bitterly, quickly drinking Bucky's shot of whiskey that she had taken from him earlier. "I'll catch up with you boys later, alright. I'm going to go dance."
"Save the last one for me?" Steve asked her, remembering their tradition.
"Yeah, we'll see about that." She said with an almost cold sarcastic tone before heading to the dance floor.
"Well, that was strangely out of character." Bucky said when his sister was out of earshot, picking up his now empty shot glass. "Is there something I should know about?"
"No." Steve replied quickly. "Nothing at all."
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After about twenty minutes of dancing with some handsy men Kat really wasn't in the mood to stay in a crowded bar any longer. All she wanted to do now was to work. On her way out she passed by Howard, who had both of his arms wrapped around two pretty girls.
"I mean, I'll tell ya it's not easy being one of the world most brilliant minds. A huge set back is it just gets so lonely..." Kat heard Howard telling the now cooing girls, making her to roll her eyes at the obvious line.
"Hey where you going?" Howard asked when he spotted her trying to make her way toward the exit.
"Oh-I was just gonna see if I could sneak into the lab." She told him, "Work on a few things."
"Alright." He said instantly dropping his arms that were around the two girl and standing up from the table. "Sorry ladies, but duty calls."
"What- Oh, no Howard you don't have to come with me."
"Yes I do. I have the key to the lab."
"You-Wait, Phillips authorized you a key?" Kat asked incredulously, "He won't even let me have a key."
"Let's just say that this key is something that Phillips really shouldn't know about…"
From the other side of the room, Steve watched as the two lab rats walked out the exit of the pub. He couldn't help but feel a little jealous and wonder if Howard was the reason why Kat thought that their kiss was a mistake.
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Sooo…. I hope everybody liked this chapter! And I really hope that their first kiss was okay because I really wanted it to be unexpected! Anyway please leave a review!
