September 1942, Camp Claiborne, Louisiana

"You really have to go?" Harry asks me, and I nod slowly. "Yep, Colonel Dunn ordered it. I'm being transferred to the 101st." "Unbelievable," Harry says, shaking his head. "And all because of a little scuffle? I mean, Johnson had it coming, if you ask me." "Dunn said if it were only once, he wouldn't have said anything, but... You know... It doesn't really help that my dad gets involved, either." Harry grins at me. "Once a week is more like it." "You don't have to say anything, do you? Mister look-at-me-and-I'll-slap-you-in-the-face! I still can't believe they put you forward for the OCS, and that's after they demoted you; wait... Six times?" "You're not the only one, Liv... I still can't believe it, but they just think I have what it takes to lead people." "And I couldn't agree more," I laugh and put my hands on his shoulders.

Harry sighs and then puts on his cap. "I'm definitely going to miss you, kiddo." He takes me in his arms, and I wrap my hands around his middle. "I'll miss you too, Harry." "Who knows, maybe our paths will cross again soon." "You never know; that's true." "Depending on where they put me after that, and I don't like it, I may come back to you. Maybe your relations will still be useful then." I break away from him and laugh. "Well, I can try. Take care, Welsh! And when you finally go to war... don't die, will you?" "Likewise!" He waves at me before I get on the train to Georgia. Sitting in a compartment, I open the window and look at Harry again. "What's the name of the place you're going to?" "Camp Toccoa in Georgia, 506th Infantry Regiment, as far as I know." "Good luck! And don't let them get you down. You may be a woman... But you're still the toughest son of a bitch I know." "Thanks for the flowers Harry," I grin and give him one last wave as the train pulls away.

September 1942, Camp Toccoa, Georgia

When the train stops, I grab my bag and get off. As I stand on the platform, I rummage in my breast pocket for the information letter from Colonel Dunn and read it through again. "Report to Colonel Sink," I mutter and look around. There is chaos on the platform, as I am not the only soldier who has just arrived. I am used to the strange looks of the other soldiers by now because I know that most of them have never seen a woman in uniform.

"Sergeant Stark?" I then hear a voice and look up. "Yes?" "I'm Private Barton. I'm supposed to take you to Colonel Sink." I nod and then follow the Private. "Did you have a good trip, ma'am?" he asks as he leads me through the camp. "Yes. Long, but otherwise quite relaxing." "I'm glad to hear that, ma'am." Slightly skeptical, I look at the Private from the side. Soldiers are rarely so friendly to her right from the start. Most of the time, they instead keep their distance and give her funny looks. But maybe Private Barton is just a friendly person.

He leads me further through the newly arrived soldiers, still staring at me, and then to a building. He stops in front of an office. "I'm going to take a quick look to see if the Colonel is ready for you yet, ma'am. Why don't you have a seat," he says, pointing to a chair in front of the office, then knocks on the door and disappears into the room. I take a deep breath and then sit down on the chair. My gaze is fixed on the office door marked 'Col. Robert F. Sink'. I let my mind wander as to whether or not my father once told me anything about him. I can't remember. But Dad certainly wouldn't have me transferred here if he had a problem with Sink as a leader.

Suddenly the door opens again, and Barton comes out. "The Colonel is ready for you now, Sergeant," he says, gesturing invitingly toward the door. "Thank you," I smile and stand up. I enter Colonel Sink's office before Barton closes the door behind me. I stand in front of the desk and salute the Colonel, who also salutes me. "At ease, sergeant," he says with a strong southern accent. "Sit down." I do as instructed and sit down in front of Sink's desk. "Welcome to Camp Toccoa and the 101st, Sergeant." "Thank you, sir."

Sink takes out a report and reads through something briefly. "You were transferred here with high recommendations, Sergeant. Still, I have to ask: What happened to get you transferred here? It just says miscellaneous incidents." The Colonel looks at me and raises his eyebrows. "Well, sir, it has mostly been minor disagreements." "Minor disagreements?" "It may be that these have led to minor brawls in each case." Sink is still looking at me. "You have to know, sir, in my old company, not everyone was thrilled about having a female sergeant. And some of the men made me feel that. Sir, I'm not a person who gets handsy on my own, but I don't put up with everything either, sir." "I should hope so, sergeant. Respect is fundamental to me. Your father speaks only highly of you, Sergeant. I understand that it's not easy for you, and I hope you continue to not put up with everything." He takes out another paper.

"I have decided to assign you to Easy Company of the 2nd Battalion under the command of 1st Lieutenant Herbert Sobel. I can assure you he is strict, but under his leadership, this company will be the best the 101st has ever seen. Lieutenant Sobel has already been briefed. I must warn you, however. Sobel will not give you special treatment." "I don't want him to, sir." "I expected nothing less from you. Report to Lieutenant Winters. He will assign you to your barracks and your platoon and explain everything else. Private Barton will take you to him." "Thank you, sir." I salute him and then leave his office.

Barton leads me into another building and then knocks on a door before opening it. "Lieutenant Winters, Lieutenant Nixon. This here is Sergeant Stark," he says, and Liv steps into the room behind him. A dark-haired man and a red-haired man stand in front of her and stare at her for a moment before the red-haired one, labeled 'Winters,' clears his throat briefly. "Right, our transfer from 82nd." He extends his hand to me, and I take it. "2nd Lieutenant Richard Winters and this is Lieutenant Lewis Nixon", he says, and I smile at them. "Sergeant Olivia Stark. Nice to meet you." "Likewise," Winters says, smiling at her. Nixon is still staring at me, which is why I look fringed at Winters. "Hey, Nix. Snap out of it, will you?" says Winters, and Nixon shakes her head. "Sorry. I just... I've never seen a woman in uniform before," Nixon said, and I smirk. "I get that a lot. No worries."

"Well, let me show you to your quarters. I assume you are aware that you will be sharing these with the men, right?" "Of course, sir," I say. "This is not the first time. I was in military school, and in the company in the 82nd, I didn't have any special treatment either. Which I don't even want, sir." "Good, good. Come with me, then." Winters leads me back outside and then over to some barracks. He opens the door of one, and the conversations, which were in full swing a moment ago, immediately fall silent. The men stand quietly by their beds. "At ease, soldiers," Winters says, and the men stir. "This is Sergeant Olivia Stark. She was transferred here from the 82nd. I hope you treat her with respect she deserves. Sergeant Lipton?" he calls out, and a man with brown hair steps forward. "Lieutenant Winters, sir." "Your responsibility." "Yes, sir." Winters turns back to me. "Sergeant Lipton will explain everything else to you." I nod and salute him. He salutes me as well and then leaves the barracks.

Sergeant Lipton walks up to me and smiles at me. "Carwood Lipton," he says kindly, extending his hand to me. "Olivia Stark," I say, also smiling. "Here, this bed is free," he then explains, pointing to a vacant cot. I place my bag on it and briefly look into the eyes of the men next to me.

On my left, a black-haired soldier has thrown himself back on his cot and is reading a Flash Gordon comic. I look at him briefly, but he doesn't intend to talk to me. I shrug and look to my other side, where a friendly-looking brown-haired man with equally brown eyes is grinning at me. "Hi," he says, grinning. "Hello," I return, slightly skeptical. Then he stands up, wipes his hands briefly on his uniform, and then extends one to me. "George Luz," he introduces himself. "Olivia Stark," I say, and he's still grinning. "Got that." "You better change into your OD's now. Sobel expects us at the drill site at 1300," Lipton then interjects. "Oh, and Olivia, 2nd Platoon, okay?"

I nod and sit down on the bed. As I'm taking off my boots, I notice the soldier across from me looking at me. I look up and look into his brown friendly eyes. He smiles kindly and then stands up before putting on his helmet and following the others. The soldier next to me has also gotten up in the meantime and follows the others out. I quickly change, grab my helmet and weapon, and run out.

I stand behind Winters and in front of the men and look briefly at Lipton, who nods barely noticeably. In the heat, we stand there and wait. It seems like Sobel is making us wait. Suddenly, however, I hear a voice and stand up straight.

"You people are in the position of attention," calls a rough man wearing a leather jacket who stands in front of us. He lets his gaze glide through the men and lingers briefly on me but says nothing. Then he stands in front of a small southern-looking soldier. "Private Perconte, do you have your pants over your boots like a paratrooper?" he asks, and the private holds his rifle forward. "No, sir." "Then explain the creases at the bottom," Sobel demands, and I already know he's an ass. "No excuse, sir." "Volunteering for the paratrooper infantry is one thing, Perconte, but you've got a long way to go to prove you belong here. Your weekend pass will be revoked," he says before moving on to the soldier who introduced himself to me as George Luz.

"Name," Sobel demands. "Luz, George." "Dirt in the rear sight opening. Pass revoked," Sobel says, then continues walking through the men. He stops at Lipton's side, and I look at him nervously for a moment. "When did you sew on those chevrons, Sgt. Lipton?" asks Sobel. "Yesterday, sir." "Long enough to notice this. Revoked." "Sir," Lipton says, and as Sobel continues, he looks at me briefly. I press my lips together sympathetically for a moment.

"Name." "Malarkey, Donald G." I look to the side for a moment, and Sobel is now talking to the soldier who smiled at me earlier from the cot across from me. "Malarkey? Malarkey is slang for bullshit, isn't it?" asks Sobel. I have to hand it to these men. They give themselves that shit. "Yes, sir." "Rust on the butt plate hinge spring. Private Bullshit. Revoked." I quickly turn my gaze back to the front, hoping I haven't drawn attention to myself. But I was hoping for nothing.

Sobel stands in front of me and muscles me. Then he squeezes his eyes shut for a moment before reading my name tag. "Sergeant Stark, is it?" "Yes, sir," I reply, staring straight ahead. "Yes, yes... Our transfer from the 82nd... I'm going to tell you something now, Sergeant, and I will not repeat it. If you think you'll get any special treatment here, I will have to disappoint you. You're a soldier here, just like any other. Understood?" "Yes, sir." He eyes me again before continuing.

"Name." "Liebgott, Joseph D., sir." I turn my head to see Sobel now facing my other bedmate. Liebgott..."Rusty bayonet, Liebgott. You wanna kill Germans?" "Yes, sir." "Not with this," Sobel says, then steps back in front of the company. "I wouldn't take this rusty piece of shit to war, and I won't take you to war in your condition. Thanks to these men and their infractions, every man or woman in the company who had a weekend pass has now lost it," Sobel shouts, looking at me intensely to make it clear that he doesn't like it at all that he now has to watch me all the time. "Get your PT gear on; we're running Currahee." Sobel walks away, and Winters turns to us in front. "Second Platoon, move out. You have two minutes."

The men and I quickly run back to the barracks. A trick I learned in my old company is to wear the PT gear already under the ODs; one can take off only the upper layer. My gaze briefly wanders to Liebgott, who is also changing next to me but continues to ignore me. He is handsome; you have to give him that. I quickly discard the thoughts as I take off my pants and straighten the shorts. Again I feel the looks of the men on me. They have probably rarely seen so much leg of a woman in public. But as Sobel said, I don't get any special treatment here either, and that's completely fine, but it also means that the shorts are pretty short, and the shirts are too big for me. I look briefly at Malarkey, who is eyeing me, but as soon as he realizes that I know he's watching me, he averts his gaze.

"Olivia?" I hear Lipton call out, looking at me urgently. "We're going through the barracks. Come on," he says, and I follow him outside. I tie my long blond hair into a high ponytail as I walk. I follow Lipton into the barracks next to us since ours is already complete. "You can call me Liv," I say hastily, and Lipton smiles at me. "Lip," is all he says, and I nod.

We step into the barrack next to ours together. I first notice that Perconte is in his training uniform but still has his jacket on and is angrily ranting something. As soon as we enter, Lip already speaks up. "Alright, let's go. On the road, in PT formation. Let's move, move, move." His gaze also falls on Perconte. "Perconte, let's go, Perconte." The latter looks briefly from me to Lip before angrily taking off his jacket and throwing it on his bed, and walking outside. I look after him with satisfaction, but then my eyes fall on a soldier still in his OD's sitting on his cot. Lip looks at me for a moment before addressing the soldier. "Private White, why are you not in your PT gear?" he asks him but receives no response. "I asked you a question, Private." Again Lip looks at me, and I just shrug. I've heard that in the Airborne, many soldiers don't last. I see Lip take a deep breath and then shake his head before ordering me outside.

Outside we follow the other men who are already getting ready to run. Lip and I walk behind the other men, who seem annoyed but continue anyway. "Ah, Easy Company. Hey, while you're running, don't worry; we'll take your dames to the movies for you," says a soldier from another company. "Yeah, good, they need some female company," Liebgott quickly replies, and I can't help grinning, but the soldier spots me. "Oh hey, maybe we'll just take her out? What do you say, sweetheart? Then you'd have a real man for once," he says suggestively, wiggling his eyebrows. I frown and look at him. "And that's supposed to impress me now? I wouldn't even go out with you if you were the last man on earth," I say and jostle him as I walk by, making my men laugh. "That's right! Give it to them," laughs Malarkey, who is now suddenly running beside me.

I look over at him and grin. "You just can't put up with everything," I say, and he nods. "That's right. I'm Don, by the way," he says, and I nod. "Nice to meet you. I'm Liv." "I'll tell you one thing. You've got some serious balls coming into this company." "It's not like I have a choice, right?" "True. Still... but you could always leave ." "I could, but I don't want to. I grew up with the Army, which is why all this is only half bad. Even Sobel..." "We'll see about that," Don quips, winking at me. "I'll ask you again after Currahee. You can get used to it. Three miles up, three miles down." "If that's all it is," I wink at Don, and he laughs. "Big mouth, it seems, huh?" "Kind of been trained to be... As a woman in the Army, you have to be to fight back." "True again. And yet, I think you'll soon wish you'd stayed with the 82nd." "That's where you're wrong, Don... I think I should be with you now. Even though not everyone seems to be thrilled about it." I point my head at Liebgott, and Don smirks. "Don't worry about it. Liebgott is just like that... Even he will come around to the idea." "We'll see."

When we get back to the bottom, I'm drenched in sweat. I lie down on my back on the grass and stretch my arms from me. "Okay... you were right, Don. This mountain is a fucking bitch!" "Told you so," Don says, propped up on his thighs beside me, breathing heavily. "You held your own, though," a new voice interjects. "The first time I had to run up there, I almost collapsed." I prop myself up on my elbows and look up at the soldier. "That's reassuring," I grin. He holds out his hand, and I take it. "Warren Muck, but most people call me Skip," he says with a smile. "Olivia Stark... But call me Liv," I say, also smiling. "Have you asked her yet, Malark?" Muck then turns to Don. "No, not yet..." he says and then looks at me again. "Asked what?" "We're playing cards tonight and wanted to ask if you'd like to join us? It's a good way to get to know the men a bit," Muck explains. He's a genuinely friendly guy. "I'd love to... Although if it's poker or blackjack, I'm out... No idea how that shit works." Don and Muck laugh. "Don't worry, you'll learn..."

After dinner, we finally have free time. Completely exhausted, I let myself fall onto my camp bed. "Finished already?" George grins next to me, and I shake my head. "No, I'm just not used to it anymore, I noticed," I grin back. "Smoke?" he asks, holding out a pack to me. Gratefully, I accept it and pop it into my mouth. George is quick and lights my smoke right away. "Thanks." "You're welcome."

"Hey, Liv... After the showers, we're going over, yeah?" Don calls then, and I nod. "She's coming?" Liebgott now interjects, looking at Malarkey. "Yeah, why not?" Liebgott doesn't answer but simply snorts before grabbing his shower gear and walking out of the barracks. "What did I say?" I ask, directed at Don as we both look at Liebgott. "After one day, it doesn't count, okay? He'll come around."

After I shower, which is really the ONLY exception where I get special treatment, I brush my hair, tie it into a side braid, and then head back to the barracks. I put on my OD pants but a white shirt above them. This is a little tighter than the one from my PT Gear, which is why you can now see my curves very well. Some of the men look up when I open the door and examine me. I throw my shower utensils into the box in front of my bed and then turn back to Don, who also looks at me. "What?" I ask, raising my eyebrows. "Nothing, nothing. Ready?" "Yeah." "Good, let's do it. Penkala? Liebgott? You coming?" he then asks to the back. "Go ahead, I'll be right there," Liebgott mutters, and Don shakes his head. Another soldier comes out from behind, and we make our way to the other barracks. "Liv, this is Alex Penkala," Don introduces him, and I give him a friendly nod.

In the other barracks, the game is ready so far. "Poker, after all?" I ask Don, looking at me apologetically. "Ah, here you are at last. And our guest of honor is here too, perfect. Where is Liebgott?" Muck greets us, and the others look at me. "He said he'd be right along." " Whatever... So Liv, are you ready?" "Well, actually... I'll sit out for now and watch you guys." "Oh, come on," Don says, looking at me. "Don't worry; I'm sure you'll find another way to take away my money," I grin and sit down next to Don. "This here is Bill Guarnere, Joe Toye, and Skinny Sisk," Muck introduces the others playing along. "Pleased to meet you," I say, smiling forcedly at them.

When they finally get everything ready, the door opens, and Liebgott walks in. As always, he doesn't glance at me and then sits down next to Muck. The boys start playing, and I'm still trying to figure out how this game works. "Where are you from, kiddo?" Bill then asks me, and I look up, surprised that he is addressing me directly. "California," I say, and he's eyeing me. "Newport Beach, Orange County," I add, which earns me an amused snort from Liebgott. "You got a problem with that?" I ask him, finally looking at me. His brown eyes bore into my blue ones. "No, I don't. Rich girl," he then says, but in a sarcastic tone. "Don't you dare talk about me if you don't have a fucking clue, got it?" "I know Newport... And I know what kind of people live there, too." "Oh, come on, Liebgott. Give her a break, will you?" then Don interferes again. Liebgott, who until then was still looking me in the eye, averts his gaze again and shakes his head in annoyance. "I'm out," he says and throws down his cards before he lights a cigarette.

Then Bill turns to me again. "West coast, huh? Don't take him too seriously, will you? Just because he's from San Francisco, he thinks he knows all of California," he grins, and I have to laugh. I briefly look at Liebgott again but quickly avert my gaze. "Explain something to me..." Joe Toye then says. "How does a young woman like you end up joining the paratroopers as a sergeant? I'd be interested in that story." He looks at me and frowns. He's not the only one, though, because now I have all eyes on me. I look around and bite my lips for a moment.

"Well, as you know, I was in the 82nd; I was assigned there when I was done with the OCS." "You graduated from OCS? Shouldn't you be a lieutenant then?" asks Muck, frowning. "Are you kidding me? I mean... look at me," I laugh, and Muck seems confused. "I'm a woman, Muck... Do you really think they would give the rank of Lieutenant to a woman? Not a chance. That's why I'm 'just' a sergeant," I say, underlining the word 'just' with quotes. "Unbelievable," Muck grumbles and Toye also shakes his head. "And why did they transfer you here?" Skinny asks, and I smile at him. "Well, in my old company, some couldn't handle having a female sergeant, which is why they gave me a pretty hard time. I didn't let it get to me, though, so I kept getting into... well, rackets." The boys look at me, but none of them say a word. "I can fight back, even if I don't look like it. I went to military school, and I've been trained in physical combat since I was little. Anyway, my colonel didn't think this was very funny, and he got into it with Sink, and here I am..."

"I, for one, think it's great. I mean, why not get all the help you can get? And then if she looks like you... With a kiss on the hand," Don then says and smiles at me, which I return. "Suck-up," Liebgott grumbles, propping himself up on one elbow. "I agree with Don," Muck grins at me, and Toye and Bill nod. "Thanks, guys. I hope I don't let you down."