Hello to everyone! Thanks for reading the first chapter, I hope that this one will not disappoint you. I am sorry for the mistakes, English is not my first language, but I hope that it is legible for everyone :)

The grimace Fred Wells put on when looking at Peggy showed his disapproval. Every member of the Howling commandos had already met a similar glare as they worked with Peggy for some time. The look of utter disapproval of women in the US army. This stare was, however, more than that. It was not just disapproval of women in general. His face showed disapproval of Peggy in the US army. He looked her up and down. Her shoes were mostly covered by mud. The dirt was reaching her knees, and the rest of her uniform (and her skin) was covered in dust. She had a few straws sticking out of her hair and a scratch on her chin which put more colour into her dust-covered face. Even though she was covered with dust and her skin was even paler than usual, her eyes were as dark as he could remember, and her lips were red even without her lipstick. The commandos left their last camp five days ago which was also the time during which no one had the chance of using showers. Furthermore, to his biggest surprise, she did not look ashamed at all.

When he dated her, she looked always representative. Her hair was always combed, her face covered with an accurate thick layer of makeup, and her dress matched the colour of her nails. Now, however, a small amazon was standing before him. That happens when you let women join the US army. He thought to himself.

She could feel it more than she could actually see it. The slightest changes in postures of the Howling commandos. She was afraid that they start looking at her differently. She did not see that all of them looked at Fred Wells firmly and that they were letting him know that they will protect her at any cost. Wells got the message and turned on his heel. They followed him even though a little bit reluctantly. Wells pointed at the tent on his right.

"This tent was cleaned for you. There are eleven beds. However, we do not have any tents for women. If you want, you can use the medical tent which is currently unused…"

The smirk which appeared on his face scared her a little. She did not have any particular reason to worry. Nobody from the army even tried to hurt her just because she is a woman. Anyway, the feeling that he was not welcomed was detectable.

"She stays with us," Dugan said firmly. Wells raised his eyebrows but did not say a word. In his head, he tried to justify the reason why was she accepted by the famous team. She could only imagine what played in his head when he was told that she is staying with all the men alone. However, she knew better, and she did not need to prove herself to him.

Wells stayed where he was and pointed at different places in the camp. "There is a gym, and there is our canteen. If you need showers, you can find them there, but again, we have no special equipment for women. Our codebreakers are in the town which is 20 miles North and will be back in two hours. When they arrive, I will inform you. If you need anything, you can ask me." He was on his way out when Peggy asked:

"And what about a password?"

He stopped, turned, and raised his eyebrow.

"Do not you have patrols overnight? What should we tell them in order not to be shot?"

"The password is Captain America". His face blushed and then he left.

"How very patriotic." She emphasized loudly enough for Fred to hear it on his way. The howling commandos was looking at Steve smirking.

"We can only hope that we will not forget that." Remarked sarcastically Dugan.

"So that is why we are all alive!" said Happy Sam Sawyer and he slapped his forehead dramatically. He emphasized every word. "In order not to be shot… we should say CAPITAN AMERICA! And because we are shouting at him the whole time, we are protected!".

They entered their tent. They usually let Peggy occupy a bed which was on one side of a tent. It was supposed to provide a little privacy as she could face the tent fabric when falling asleep. The atmosphere of the camp, however, gave them a feeling that she would be better protected in the centre of them. Their movements were purposeful. The mutual understanding between the men caused them were quick enough to take beds situated on sides so that she could not pick up a bed on her own. Even though she could feel the change in their behaviour, which changed to more protective than she would have liked, nobody wanted to express their feelings towards the situation out loud. She sat on the edge of her bed and tried to keep her face unreadable.

"I can use a bath," sighed Dernier.

"You all could use a bath," said Peggy aloud. Everyone laughed appreciatively.

"Ladies first?" offered Dugan.

"I think that in order not to poison the air in this tent, it will be better if you start." She retorted. "I'll go after you".

They laughed but left for the showers. The only one left was Steve.

"You stay here?" He asked her nervously.

"I think I will go to the gym."

"Alone?" he spoke before he could think. He knew that she hated it when they treated her differently only because she is a woman.

"I am completely capable of going to the gym myself, thanks a lot." She retorted quickly.

"I do not think that you are not capable of taking care of yourself," he answered to set it clear. "It is him who I do not trust."

She looked at Steve. "There is no need to worry. He would not do anything to me." She said it more confidently than she felt.

Steve nodded. Not that his opinion of Fred Wells changed, but because he knew that she would only get angry.

Peggy stayed in the quiet tent alone. For the first time in five days, she was completely alone, and she could let her mask of confidence slip. She looked at her hands which were folded in her lap. She lifted them only a few centimetres into the air and checked on them. They were trembling. She observed them for a while and then she clenched them into fists. There was no time or place to lose her nerves. She stood up and headed to the gym.

What Fred Wells called "the gym" was in fact a tent with three punching bags which were hung from constructions which resembled gallows. She put off her jacket. Before she folded it and put it on the ground, she took old bandages out of one of her pockets. She bound them around her hands, picked up one bag and started to punch it.

Her muscles started to sore early because she did not have proper sleep for two days. The feeling of tiredness, however, woke up also the anger. The more she hit the bag, the more tired she was, the angrier she was and the more she hit the bag. It was a circle that she was not able to control. After half an hour, she heard somebody enter the tent. She did not want to look around. She also did not know whether she was more terrified that the visitor was someone from the Howling commandos or that it was Fred. She realized that her damp face was not covered only with sweat, but also with tears. It was not that she was crying about Fred or about the life she lived before she joined the army. But seeing Fred brought back memories of her brother. She was not prepared for the feeling of loss and sadness which appeared every time she started thinking about him. She stopped punching the bag when she started to feel the blood on her fingers. Bandages or not, she was training too harshly.

She stayed, facing the bag instead of the visitor, and waited. It was Dugan's gentle voice that ended the silence.

"Peggy, are you alright?"

She only nodded.

"I am not trying to query you. But is there anything you need to say? My sister always needed to spill everything out. I just want you to know, that if you need an older brother … to talk to… we are here for you."

He did not know what he caused by the mention of older brothers. Suddenly it was too much even for an English woman. She tried to muffle her sobs with her hand. He came closer to her and put one of his hands on her shoulder. She leaned towards it but refused to turn and expose her swollen wet face to him. It took her a few minutes before she stopped crying and found her lost composure. She straightened up, wiped her tears away and took a few deep breaths. When she was sure that she would not continue crying, she turned to Dugan. His face was full of sympathy and something about his posture reminded her of Michael. She smiled at him tiredly and before she could do anything against it, he hugged her. The hug lasted a few minutes.

"Now, I must tell you something that only older brothers can say." He started, broke the hug but left his hands on her shoulders.

"You could use a shower."

She smiled and let him lead her out of the gym tent. The feeling of loss of her brother became, to her great surprise, suddenly smaller. For the first time, she could feel two different emotions, both of equal strength. Yes, she had lost her brother, but she got nine new brothers. Bucky, Jim, James, Gabe, Jacques, Sam, Pinky and Junior. The desperate feeling of loss and despair was somehow filled with the feeling of brotherhood, friendship, and love. For the first time since her brother died, she could think about him and did not feel the tears in her eyes.