(Fair warning, I haven't seen Agent Carter so any background I give on Anna and Howard's parents will be purely made up. I'm not sure if it's ever mentioned in Agent Carter because it has yet to be put on Netflix, but I'm making my own background stories)
Chapter two: Father knows best
Anna was running late. Again. She hadn't even been able to change after clearing the last soldier. Her father was sure to comment on it. He didn't approve of her working with the army. He'd much rather her to take up practice somewhere in the city. Preferably Manhattan.
"You're late," Howard pointed out as Anna came rushing through the front door and practically ran into him.
"Thank you for pointing out the obvious," Anna huffed as she ripped off her white coat. "What mood is he in?"
Their father took family time very seriously. Friday nights were for family, no matter what Anna and Howard's work or personal schedules looked like. Not that Anna's personal life had ever been an issue. She'd never had much of one, focusing on school.
"Slightly more irritated than last Thanksgiving, but not as much as the New Year's debacle of '38," Howard responded with a chuckle.
"What is so funny about that?" Anna demanded in a hushed whisper, straightening out her skirt.
"He's got some lawyer from the upper east side here. I think he's playing match maker again," Howard laughed outright at the way Anna wrinkled her nose. Ever since Anna turned twenty their father has been trying to get her to settle down. In his mind, a husband would make Anna happy. Howard new Anna didn't need a man to make her happy, but their father never listened to him, or Anna on the subject. Though he felt for his baby sister, it always amused him whenever their father found another candidate.
"Where does he even find these guys?" Anna muttered, closing her eyes and taking a steadying breath through her nose. It was a habit she had picked up after learning it could help ward off asthma attacks. Although perhaps if she had one she'd be excused from dinner.
"I think he puts an ad out in the paper," Howard teased, before pulling Anna into a side hug. "But don't worry Anna Banana, you're favorite older brother is going to get you out of this early."
Howard was presenting one of his inventions at the 'World Exposition of Tomorrow' later in the evening. It was a huge accomplishment, and he had no doubt their father would let Anna skip out early on dinner to go with him. Even with the whole work not intervening in family time rule, the World Exposition was in the paper. There was no way their father would force Howard to miss it.
"Anna, finally," her father's voice called out as her and Howard entered the dining room. "Peter, I'd like you to meet my daughter, Anna. Anna this is Peter Sheffield."
"It's a pleasure to meet you. Your father's told me so much about you," Peter greeted her with a warm smile. At least he hadn't tried to kiss her hand like the last guy.
"I'm sorry I was late, it took a bit longer to clear the soldiers than I'd anticipated," Anna responded, choosing to forgo the lie that it was a pleasure to meet him as well. It wasn't as if Peter was ugly, or old. He was probably around Howard's age, with blond hair and light brown eyes. He was fairly tall, but then most men were compare to Anna. Out of all the men her father brought home for her, Peter was probably the best looking. It still didn't mean Anna wanted to date the man. Especially if his personality matched the previous men her father chose.
"Ah, yes you're little volunteering efforts. Your father told me how you're helping out with the war efforts by screening our soldiers," Peter's smile stayed in place as he helped Anna into her chair. Meeting Howard's eyes across the table, the siblings shared in an eye roll at the way Peter talked down to Anna. Both were used to it, and it usually came from the doctors and lawyers their father brought home. The doctors in particular would talk as though Anna wasn't quite up to their caliber. Which might have been true when it came to experience had one of said guys not graduated with Anna.
"Anna actually graduated with honors, top of her class. The military is lucky to have her," Howard cut in, not wanting to listen to the man of the month, talk as though his sister played dress up when it came to her being a doctor. Anna Banana's degree was every bit as real as the lawyer's and his own.
"It's only temporary of course," their father interjected with a jovial laugh. "I'm trying to get her to set up practice near your side of town."
"That would be lovely. We could do lunch together," Peter commented, smiling more at her father than Anna. He was trying to impress the wrong person. Anna's father obviously already approved of him. It was Anna he had to win over, and he was doing worse than the last guy.
"Actually, I've been thinking about taking a more prominent position with the Army. They're sorely understaffed when it comes to medical personnel," Anna retorted tightly, taking a bite of her potato as she eyed her father. She had yet to tell him her thoughts on increasing her work with the military, and by the stern look he shot her, it was clear he didn't approve. Which was exactly why she'd brought it up in front of company. He'd have to play nice while they had a guest.
"We'll have to discuss that in length later," her father managed to force out with a nonchalant air.
Dinner passed with bragging on Peter's part, polite conversation on their father's part, carefully worded sarcasm on Howard's part, and mostly silent stewing on Anna's part. By the time Howard brought up the World Exposition, Anna wanted to stab Peter in the leg with her fork. When her father allowed them to be excused Anna was beyond relieved, until he suggested Peter go with them. Peter readily accepted. Apparently Anna's lack of conversation and Howard's increasingly pointed comments hadn't deterred him at all.
"Please don't leave me alone with him," Anna begged as Howard and her stood behind the stage. Peter had wandered off to get them some popcorn, giving Anna a brief reprise from his recounts of famous court cases.
"Unless you wanna dress up like Carol here and come on stage, I really can't help you out Anna Banana," Howard retorted distractedly as he pointed to a woman in fishnet stockings. There was no way Anna would wear that in front of hundreds, if not thousands of people. She'd worked hard to get respect. If anyone she knew saw her up there she'd lose it all in a second.
"Maybe I can lose him in the crowd up front," Anna mused. Giving her brother a good luck hug, Anna made her way towards the attractions, hoping it was dark enough that Peter wouldn't be able to find her. The odds weren't great, given she was still in her military regulated clothes. Blending in would be more successful if she looked like a civilian.
When she got around front, Anna elbowed her way to the front of the stage. It was her brother's showcase, if anyone deserved a front row spot it was Anna. Unfortunately for Anna, Peter found her before her brother had even stepped out on stage. It was going to be a long night.
…
"You should have heard her put Keller in his place though," Bucky continued his story with a smile, thinking off the feisty doctor.
"Leave it to you to find a date during your physical. Did you tell her to bring a nurse for me?" Steve joked, tossing the paper Bucky handed him into the trash can they were passing.
"I didn't ask her out," Bucky admitted, rubbing the back of his neck. "Didn't even get her name."
Steve raised his eyebrows at his friend. He'd never known Bucky to miss an opportunity to chat up a girl. With the way he talked about her, the fact that he'd even brought her up at all, Steve had assumed he'd be meeting her tonight.
"Was she older, or something?" Steve asked, trying to figure out why Bucky hadn't made a move.
"No," Bucky insisted, his brows furrowing. "She was just so focused on her job. I guess the guys have been giving her a hard time about being a woman doc. Besides, with her brains, I don't think she'd be interested in me."
Steve had a hard time imagining any girl not being interested in Bucky. They'd all been clamoring for his attention since high school. He just sold himself short when it came to his intelligence. He was the one interested in going to the real world science fair tonight. Steve just hoped whoever Bucky was meeting tonight, she'd bring someone who would at least try and converse with him. Bucky tended to exaggerate Steve's accomplishments, leading to many disappointed blind dates.
When Jenna Marigold stood on her toes, waving and calling for Bucky as they made their way towards the front of the World Exposition, Steve felt his shoulders sag. Jenna had been after Bucky since junior year in high school. She wasn't particularly nice, or loquacious. But she was pretty. He knew right away he wouldn't be hitting it off with any friend of Jenna's.
"Don't give me that look, it was last minute on a Friday night," Bucky muttered, noticing Steve's mood change. "Besides, I'm sure she's matured since high school," he added before turning towards Jenna with a smile and a wave.
Jenna, it turned out, had not matured much at all since high school. She was still the same giggling, non-conversationalist Bucky remembered, but at least she seemed a little interested in the Exposition. Or, at least Howard Stark's portion of the Exposition. Jenna made a beeline for the stage, pulling Bucky behind her. He had a feeling her interest was more in the rich inventor than his inventions, but Bucky wasn't complaining. He was interested in seeing what Stark had up his sleeves tonight.
Bucky found himself people watching as he waited for Stark to come out on stage, giving a story to all the people he saw. A momentary part in the crowd had Bucky's eyes drawn to a girl dressed in the military medical uniform standing twenty feet in front of them. If her height and uniform didn't give her away, the second her face turned to show her profile did. It was the doc who had discharged him. Bucky was about to get Steve's attention and point her out, when a man in a fancy suit joined her and handed her a bag of popcorn. So the doctor had a date. Maybe even a boyfriend. There'd been no ring on her finger, so it wasn't any more than that.
Bucky was only able to catch a glimpse of the doc's jaw clenching before the crowd obscured his view and Stark came on stage, offering a distraction. Stark claimed he could make cars fly, and the presentation was impressive, until the car shuttered back to the ground as its power source gave out. As the crowd chuckled at Stark's expense, Bucky found his eyes searching the crowd until he caught a glimpse of the doc again, leading her date away from the stage. Off to another exhibit, or maybe to dinner and dancing.
"Hey Steve, what do you say we treat these girls to dancing." Turning away from the doctor, Bucky's heart sunk when he found Steve missing and spotted an enlistment ad posted nearby. Shit.
…
"Looks like it's back to the drawing board," Peter commented after the car crashed down on the stage. Anna found herself gritting her teeth at his tone. Howard had more creativity and brains in his little finger than Peter had in his whole body. He had no right criticizing her brother.
"I'm going to meet him backstage," Anna retorted, moving through the crowd without even looking to see if Peter followed or not. She'd prefer he didn't. There were plenty of available women around them who would probably enjoy his company more than her.
She found Howard backstage pouring over the blueprints of his design and trying to figure out where it had gone wrong. Anna knew he would spend the rest of his night hunkered down in his lab if she didn't step in. As much as Howard loved a good time, he was also a perfectionist when it came to his work.
"What do you say we get a milkshake? My treat," Anna offered, sidling up beside her brother.
"I went over the calculations a hundred times. It should have worked," Howard muttered, flipping wildly through his lab book and ignoring Anna.
"Howard," Anna ground out, covering his notebook with her hand. "The exhibit is over. Just have some fun tonight and I promise your brain will thank you for it tomorrow."
"Says the woman who wouldn't know fun if it stared her in the face," Howard countered dryly. At least Anna had gotten him to look up from his notes.
"Then teach me how to have fun," Anna challenged him, crossing her arms and leaning back. Howard never backed away from a challenge.
"For starters, you need to let your hair down." Reaching his hand out, Howard pulled Anna's hair free of the pins that were holding it until her hair fell in loose waves. "Then alcohol is usually involved. And a pretty girl, or in your case a handsome guy."
"I'm willing to be the guy," Peter spoke up from behind Anna. So he had followed her. Perfect.
"I have to work in the morning, I can't drink tonight," Anna countered, ignoring Peter's invitation.
"I'll walk you home then," Peter insisted, stepping up beside Anna and showing he wouldn't be ignored. Anna couldn't help but make a face at the offer. She didn't want to spend any more time alone with Peter. It might give him the wrong impression.
"That's alright, I'll see my sister home myself," Howard sighed, noticing the discomfort in Anna's pinched expression. A night of fun might not be enough to get him to abandon reworking his design, but rescuing his little sister from the tentacles of the boring, chauvinistic lawyer before him sure was.
…
"Thanks for chasing him off, metaphorically of course," Anna murmured as her and Howard rounded the block to her apartment. It wasn't much, just a small on bedroom on the second floor, but it was in a decent neighborhood.
"One of these days, you're going to find a bloke you actually like. I'd like to think of myself as doing a service to both you and him right now," Howard chuckled, loosening his tie as they started the climb up to Anna's apartment.
"What if I end up like Aunt Matilda?" Anna shuddered at the thought. She didn't mind being single for the rest of her life, as long as she didn't end up like crazy Aunt Matilda.
"You won't," Howard insisted, chuckling at his sister's obvious disdain at the idea. "For one, you're allergic to cats. For another, you're too compassionate not to find someone you care about. Just keep being picky, no matter what dad says. It's good to have standards."
"Says the man you has none," Anna teased, turning her head to stick her tongue out at Howard as she swung the door open. Her phone ringing, blaring through the quiet night, had her jumping half a foot in the air and had Howard laughing at her. Anna wasn't really paying Howard any attention. Moving towards the phone so she could shut it up, Anna wondered who would even be calling her at that time of night. Peter came to mind, and she prayed her father hadn't given him her number.
"Hello?" Anna answered hesitantly, expecting to hear Peter on the other end asking if she made it home okay.
"Thank God you finally answered," the General's gruff voice barked out through the receiver. Anna recognized him immediately, thanks to his irritated tone. He'd used that tone a lot her first week with the Army. "I've been calling for the last hour. Where in the Sam hell were you?"
"I was with my family," Anna responded, her brain still playing catch up. She hadn't been expecting a call from the General. Especially not since she was due to see him tomorrow at zero eight hundred.
"That was a rhetorical question. I really didn't care where you were," General Johnson grumbled. "There's been a change of plans. The doc we were sending over with the troops tomorrow went AWOL. I need you to pack your things and be at the dock downtown tomorrow at zero seven hundred. Got it?"
Anna froze at the General's orders, her finger pausing in twisting the phone cord around it. She was going overseas. The General wanted her to go to Europe on the next ship out. He was sending her into an active war zone. Either his opinion of her skills had miraculously changed, or he didn't have any other options. Anna bet it was the latter.
"Stark!" The General shouted in her ear, breaking Anna out of her trance.
"Yes sir," Anna responded, her voice softer than she intended it to be. Before she could clear her throat and try again, or ask any follow up questions, there was a click and the line went dead.
"What was that all about?" Howard asked from behind Anna, having come closer to try and eavesdrop on the conversation. He had Anna jumping in her spot. She'd forgotten he was there at all.
"I'm being sent overseas," Anna murmured, still a little dazed from the news herself. It's what she'd signed up for: to help the soldiers. She just hadn't thought she'd be sent into the trenches so soon.
A/N Hope you liked the next installment in this story. I had a fun time writing it. It's going to be even more fun when Bucky and Anna get thrown together again. Anyways, let me know what you thought!
Guest review responses:
To the guest who is so excited for this story, I hope you still are excited and that you still love my writing
Dream Weaver Dil: Hello again :) I'm glad you found the first chapter intriguing enough to want to read more. As you know now, this is going to be a full blown story on its own. Hope you continue to enjoy this one.
Red Roses5: Your review had me beaming. I'm so glad I can write characters that destroy you (in a good way). I am making this a full blown story so that should be good news. I know, it's going to be different with Bucky not calling her Anya but they'll hopefully still be as adorable as ever. I agree, I like the idea that no matter what time they met or what circumstances, they'd still be pulled together.
Rach
xoxo