Chapter 3

Goodbyes and Hellos

"Stay safe and don't forget to write me," Howard insisted, wrapping Anna up tightly in his arms. The wind blowing in off the harbor dried away the tears that had been gathering in his eyes, erasing the evidence.

"Dad said the same thing," Anna commented, squeezing Howard a little tighter. "Better be careful or you'll wake up with a bald spot and a penchant for bridge." Anna's attempt at lightening the mood had Howard harrumphing and gently pulling away.

"Let your hair down every once in a while and have that fun we talked about," Howard added with a crooked smile. "There, bet dad didn't say that."

"Definitely not," Anna chuckled, wiping a stray tear that leaked out when her eyes crinkled with the soft laughter.

"Show those men what you're made of by stitching up their asses better than anyone can," Howard added, tapping Anna Banana on the nose.

With one last hug, Anna scurried up the gangplank to the ship. If she dawdled any longer the ship would leave without her, and then she'd never hear the end of it from General Johnson. Shifting her bag on her shoulder, Anna set off to find her cabin on the ship. After asking a sailor for navigational help, she finally made it to the small cabin she would be sharing with one of the nurses. Stowing her bag under her bunk, Anna felt the boat shift beneath her feet. They must have left the dock. As the boat pitched again, moving with the water below it, Anna felt her stomach turn in warning.

Closing her eyes and breathing through her nose, Anna attempted to keep the nausea at bay. She could do this. It was just a week and then they'd be on dry land. In the middle of a warzone. God, what had she gotten herself into?

"One problem at a time," Anna murmured to herself. That's what Howard always said. She'd focus on her nausea first and the warzone second. She needed to find the kitchens. Ginger helped settle the stomach. Though it wasn't Anna's favorite, ginger tea would be a constant during her week on the ship.

The kitchen was tiny, but at least Anna didn't have to search long to find a tea kettle. Halfway through her cup of tea and the ginger was already starting to settle her stomach, if only it would settle her nerves as well. Anna didn't regret her choice to volunteer with the army and help the soldiers. She just felt a little out of her league. She'd only just graduated and now she would be working under the pressure of war waging around her. Sure she'd graduated top of her class, and she'd had rotations in offices and hospitals around the city. But school tests and helping with scheduled surgeries was drastically different than the unknown, unscheduled surgeries of war. It didn't help that most of the men she worked with, and would be treating, had their own doubts about her. Anna already missed Howard boosting her confidence.

After drinking the last dregs of her tea, Anna meandered back to her room. Hopefully she could get some rest before the effects of the ginger wore off. Lord knew she wouldn't be getting much rest once they reached land, she needed to take advantage of her secure bunk and the lack of patients while she could. Turning the corner leading to her room, the possibility of sleep evaporated when Anna found a soldier knocking on her cabin's door.

"May I help you?" Anna asked, stepping up beside the man. She didn't recognize him, so unless he was there for her roommate, it wasn't a social call.

"Sorry miss, I was looking for the doc. He around?" The soldier addressed her, pulling his hat form his head as he spoke.

"I'm the doctor," Anna responded, running her hands over her skirt as the soldier skeptically looked her over. Obviously word hadn't gotten around that she'd replaced the doctor who had gone AWOL. "Is there something I can help you with?"

"Um…they need a doc in the med bay. A soldiers been injured," Seriously, already. They hadn't even made it to the war yet. "Are you the only doc on board?"

"You're welcome to look for another one," Anna challenged, crossing her arms. Apparently the soldier thought it better to take the doctor he had, because he turned to lead the way to the infirmary instead of searching for a male doctor.

Anna found herself repeating her positive mantra in her head as she followed the soldier. The one she'd started third year and used daily once she'd started helping the army: she deserved to be there, she was a good doctor and she wouldn't let anyone else make her feel any different. Back straight and head high, Anna entered the infirmary with authority. If she didn't act like she belonged, she'd be treated as such in the one place she actually had authority over others.

"Ace?" One of the soldiers spoke before Anna had the chance to. To Anna's surprise, she turned to find familiar blue eyes.

"Sergeant Barnes," Anna greeted, looking him over and trying to find the injury she'd been tracked down to treat. "Are you my patient?"

"No, that would be this idiot over here," Sergeant Barnes stepped back so she could get a good look at the soldier behind him whose hand bled profusely. "He was playing with his knife when the boat shifted."

"I was practicing, not playing," the soldier corrected, a light blush coloring his cheeks.

"Let's take a closer look," Anna murmured as she stepped closer to the injured soldier. Wiping the blood away with a towel she pulled from the tiny closet in the corner, Anna was relieved to find the cut itself wasn't too bad.

"You're lucky," Anna commented as she went to the cabinet in the corner where she hoped she'd find the supplies she needed. "You didn't sever any tendons in your hand. It just needs some stitches."

"You sure you know what you're doing?" The soldier asked, hesitantly pulling his hand closer to his chest as she approached him.

"More than you did with the knife," Anna retorted as she prepared the needle. "Besides, I'm all you've got. Unless you want to stitch it up yourself," Anna added with a shrug. Her words got a smile out of Sergeant Barnes, and had the injured soldier to relinquish his hand.

Bucky watched the doctor while she worked on Thomas' hand. He didn't have to stay, but he found himself curious, once the shock of seeing the woman who had cleared him wore away. She'd said she wasn't being sent over, yet there she was. He didn't peg her for a liar, and it had him wondering what had changed between yesterday afternoon and this morning.

The doctor was meticulous as she stitched up Thomas' wound. Her hand remained steady while she worked, showing no signs of unease or nervousness. Hopefully that helped suppress Thomas' worry that she wasn't a competent doctor and he'd spread it to the rest of the soldiers. It had to get tiring, having people second guess her. Bucky could see the way she stiffened at Thomas' question about knowing what she's doing.

"You're going to need to come back to see me or a nurse in a week to remove the stitches. Keep them dry and cover the stitches when there's a chance they might get dirty," Anna instructed after finishing up her work. "Do not attempt to remove them yourself and resist the urge to scratch them."

"Yes, ma'am," the soldier replied with a humble nod before taking his leave from the room. Letting out a soft sigh, Anna began cleaning up the materials she'd used. She'd say she was unaware that Sergeant Barnes was still in the room with her, but that would be a lie. The medical bay on the ship was only so big and she kept seeing him out of the corner of her eye.

"Not that I mind the company, but is there something I can help you with, Sergeant Barnes?" Anna broke the silence as she tossed the bloody towels in the medical waste bin.

"Bucky." His one word response didn't exactly answer Anna's question, and it had her turning to look at him for the first time since she'd entered the infirmary.

"Excuse me?" Anna pressed, not sure what she was supposed to make of his answer.

"It's my name," he chuckled at the confused crease in the doctor's forehead. "My friends call me Bucky. You don't have to be so formal."

"I'm afraid I do if I want to maintain any respect around here," Anna countered. She could just imagine the implications others would make if she started calling any soldier by his first name. Especially charismatic soldiers with brilliant smiles and strong jaw lines.

"Thomas was an idiot to question your ability just because you're a dame," Bucky insisted, rubbing the back of his neck when the doctor raised an eyebrow at him. Normally he knew what to say to girls, but he felt like a complete dunce at the moment.

"It's nice to hear you speak so highly of the men you will be fighting with," Anna quipped, unable to hold back an amused smile. "It fills me with confidence as we sail off to war."

"He's an idiot who can follow orders and hold his own in a fight," Bucky amended with a shrug of his shoulder. Then as nonchalantly as he could, he voiced the question he'd been stuck on since he saw her on the ship, and prayed she didn't take it the wrong way. "I thought I remembered you mentioning you weren't going overseas."

"I wasn't. Not until the doctor scheduled to leave with your troop decided to abandon ship, literally. I got the call last night." What a way to end the night. At least he'd had days to prepare for the possibility of being sent out. The doctor only had hours to mentally come to terms with it.

"So General Johnson has come around then?" Bucky pressed, remembering her comment about General Johnson sharing opinions with Corporal Keller about women doctors.

"I'm fairly certain I was his only option," Anna corrected with a sigh. It'd feel better being picked for the team if she wasn't picked last, and then only as a last resort.

"At least he considered you an option." Bucky knew a lot of times women were overlooked in the world. For General Johnson to send the girl over at all was a step in the right direction for him.

The sea pitching beneath the boat had Anna forgetting whatever response she had on the tip of her tongue. Afterwards, she was terrified to open her mouth, afraid something other than words might spill out. That would be beyond embarrassing.

"What's the matter?" Bucky pressed, noticing the shift in the doctor's mood. Had he said something wrong that upset her? The boat rocked beneath them again, and the doctor's hand moved to her stomach as her face paled.

"You're seasick," Bucky commented, recognizing the ashen shade of her face. "Here, take a seat," he ordered, leading her towards the cot she'd stitched Thomas up on before turning towards the supply cabinet and digging through it. Finding a couple buttons and rubber bands he used the medical scissors to finagle them together before slipping it around the doctor's wrist.

"The pressure should help with the nausea," Bucky added, pulling his hands away after they lingered a little longer than necessary.

"Where did you learn this?" Anna murmured when she was sure she wouldn't hurl. Her right thumb brushed the button on her left wrist. All the years in medical school, and she'd never learned that handy trick.

"My best friend gets car sick easy. I just read up on pressure points to help him out," Bucky shrugged, returning the scissors to their drawer.

"I think you've missed your calling Sergeant Barnes," Anna mused with a teasing smile. "Perhaps you should be the medical liaison for your men."

"I think they'd prefer to look at you while getting stitched up," Sergeant Barnes mused, sending Anna a crooked smile. "Not to mention you'd have them looking better with your stitching than I would."

His words had Anna blushing at both compliments, her fingers fidgeting with the material of her skirt. She wasn't used to this feeling of buoyancy mixed with tangled up nerves when talking with anyone. Anna was no stranger to conversing with men. She had been the sole woman in the doctorate program in New York. But none of the conversations she'd had with her fellow medical school graduates nor the men her father invited over for Friday dinners had made her feel like she did when talking with Sergeant Barnes. Perhaps because they had all been condescending asses.

"Thank you for this," Anna offered sincerely, holding up her wrists. "I might have to steal this design. I'm sure I'll have a few seasick soldiers this week."

"It was my pleasure, Ace," Bucky insisted with a wide smile, leaning casually against the wall.

…

"I heard the new doc was a girl. That true Thomas?" One of the men from another regiment being shipped over asked, leaning against the railing of the deck.

"Yeah. A looker too. Barnes seemed familiar with her," Thomas shot back with a sly smile towards the Sergeant.

"She discharged me and my men before we left New York. Get your head out of the gutter," Bucky snapped, slapping Thomas upside the head. "She stitched up your stupid self just fine. Show her some respect."

"You sound a little defensive of her for not knowing her well," the same guy who'd asked Thomas about the doctor chimed in.

"Because she's a good doctor and all you guys want to talk about is her looks," Bucky grumbled, pushing off the railing and leaving the group behind. He'd come up there for some fresh air. The men from the other regiment had eventually joined him. They weren't bad company until they started talking about the doctor like that.

"Still haven't asked her name. And you tell them to show some respect," Bucky muttered to himself, shaking his head. The first time was understandable, but yesterday they'd had a full conversation and he still hadn't gotten her name.

Not feeling like going back to his room, Bucky continued further down the deck. The salty air reminded him of trips to the shore with Steve. They'd spend all day swimming and all evening at the boardwalk arcade. Sunburns and showing off around girls made those summer trips a fond memory. He'd have to hold on to memories like that to keep his morale up in war. Them and the promise of the life he could live once he returned home.

Stopping once he reached the bow of the ship, Bucky found the doctor leaning against the side of the ship. She had a pen in her hand, the paper she wrote on fluttering in the breeze along with her dark hair. Hesitating a moment, Bucky debated turning back the way he'd come, but he wanted to return to his room even less now. Decision made, he approached the doctor, announcing his presence before he got too close so as not to startle her.

"Writing a letter to someone special?" Bucky asked, thinking back to the suit he'd seen her with at the World Exposition.

Looking up from her paper, Anna found Sergeant Barnes beside her. She hadn't heard him approach with the sound of the water lapping against the bottom of the boat, and the wind rustling her paper. Stepping a little closer, Sergeant Barnes leaned against the railing beside her, keeping his eyes on her. It was then she remembered his question.

"I'm writing my brother, Howard. I promised I'd stay in touch and I figured I'd start a letter while I had the free time." Moving her arm to rest on the paper, Anna hoped Sergeant Barnes wouldn't see what she'd been writing. Nothing much had happened to write about besides stitching up Thomas and her conversation with the Sergeant. He'd been the only one who had any confidence in her abilities. However, the last thing she needed was Sergeant Barnes to see his name in her letter. That would be even more embarrassing than if she'd thrown up in front of him.

"How does he feel about you sailing off with the troops?" Bucky asked, intrigued at the idea of learning more about her. If his little sister sailed overseas for the war effort, Bucky knew he'd be a nervous wreck.

"He's equal parts supportive, proud, and worried," Anna sighed. It had only been a day and she already missed Howard's sarcastic sense of humor and exuberant personality. They'd never been more than a city apart. Now they had half an ocean between them.

"Sounds like you two are close," Bucky commented with a smile. Perhaps the suit he'd seen her with had been her brother.

"We have our moments," Anna agreed. "How about you? Do you have any siblings?"

"I have a younger sister, Rebecca. She helps my mom make uniforms for the troops. Though she'd rather help assemble planes and automobiles," Bucky smiled thinking of his sister. Their mother had already gotten her a job in the factory by the time women were allowed in the mechanical assembly line. She hated sewing, but she didn't want to leave their mother alone.

"Ambitious, my kind of girl," Anna responded with a nod of approval.

"Yeah, she's a firecracker. Then there's Steve. I've known him so long he's as good as my brother," Bucky pressed on, running a hand through his hair.

"Is that the friend who inspired this contraption?" Anna asked, holding up the wrist that wasn't covering her letter.

"Yeah, that's him. He's the skinniest, scrappiest guy you'll ever meet. With a laundry list of medical conditions, he still stands up to the bullies without a second thought. I got my first black eye covering his back in a back alley fight." There was a look of admiration on the Sergeant's face that had Anna smiling. This Steve sounded like quite the character, and it was easy to see he meant a lot to the Sergeant.

"You're lucky to have such a good friend," Anna murmured. She'd always found it hard connecting with girls her age as her interests and theirs always seemed so vastly different.

"How about you? You had to leave more than a brother behind worrying after you." Staring down at her fluttering parchment, Anna didn't catch the glint in his eyes nor the hidden meaning behind Sergeant Barnes' question.

"It's mostly just my brother and my father. My mother died when I was young and I spent most of my childhood tagging along after Howard. I lost touch with most of my friends when I started medical school." All the long hours studying had led to a lackluster social life. It was hard staying in touch with friends when you always had exams to study for and had to decline their offers to meet up. Eventually the offers stopped altogether.

"I'm sorry about your mother," Bucky offered sincerely. He couldn't imagine what losing a parent at such a young age would be like. It'd be hell on him if he lost either of his parents. "And good friends don't let a busy schedule come between them. Don't blame yourself for that, Ace."

"Why do you call me that?" Anna asked what she'd been wondering since first seeing Sergeant Barnes on the boat.

"I never got your name," Bucky shrugged with a smile. "And it seemed to suit you."

Despite his smile and nonchalant attitude over it, Anna felt like a complete idiot. She'd never realized she hadn't introduced herself when they met; too riled up by Corporal Keller and too distracted by Sergeant Barnes' smile. Still, it was horrible bedside manner to not introduce yourself to the patient.

"Anna Stark," Anna responded, refraining from reaching out her hand out of habit. She didn't want to make herself into an even bigger idiot by using the formal gesture after they'd already had conversations on three separate occasions.

"Stark," Bucky repeated gaping at her. "You're the Howard Stark's sister. The guy that made a car fly at the World Expo, well, sort of."

"That'd be my big brother," Anna beamed proudly. "His repulsion technology for the car was his baby. He's probably driving himself insane trying to fix it since it didn't work like he planned."

"So you weren't at the Expo just for fun. You were supporting your brother," Bucky murmured, turning his body until he faced out towards the sea. Knowing her brother was Howard Stark, the greatest engineer in the United States, was mind boggling. It also meant the guy in the suit wasn't her brother.

"You saw me at the Expo?" Anna asked. She hadn't realized he was there. Then again, she'd been pretty busy trying to avoid Peter.

"Yeah. I would have said hi, but I didn't want to interrupt you and your boyfriend," Bucky responded, his hand finding its way to his hair again. Anna cracking up laughing beside him had Bucky turning to face her again. He wasn't expecting that reaction.

"Peter is not my boyfriend," Anna insisted, once her laughter at the idea of Peter and her had died down. "I'd just met him that night. My father has this idea that I need a man, and every month sets me up with someone. Pompous Peter was this month's cracker jack prize."

"I take it you're not a fan of your father's taste in men for you?" Bucky chuckled, finding Anna's description of the blond in the expensive suit humorously appropriate.

"No," Anna retorted with a long sigh. "He means well, but I wish he'd stop setting me up with every eligible bachelor from the Upper East Side."

Ever since Howard had made enough money to move their father into a home in the Upper East Side, he'd been adamant in finding Anna a suitor from the neighborhood. She knew he only wanted the best for her, but so far she hadn't been impressed by the men from her father's new neighborhood. They might have successful careers and a decent apartment or house, but most of them had the attitude of being better than everyone else because of their address or profession; sometimes even both. And none of them had taken her career choice of becoming a doctor seriously. That was the biggest turn off of all.

"Stark!" General Johnson called, interrupting Anna's thoughts as he approached their side of the deck looking agitated. "I didn't bring you on this ship to socialize. I need you in the infirmary. Three soldiers can't seem to keep their breakfast in their stomachs."

"I believe its Doctor Stark, General," Bucky corrected, standing to attention as he addressed the General. He didn't want to come off as disrespectful, but Anna deserved to be addressed by her title as much as the General did his. For a moment he thought the General would go off on him.

"I need you in the infirmary right away, Doctor Stark," The General corrected, his voice tight with agitation. "Sergeant, I think you'd better return to your quarters," he added before stalking away.

"I better go," Anna murmured as she watched the General's retreat. "Thanks for standing up for me. Even though I'm capable of standing up for myself, it's always nice having someone else in your corner." Sergeant Barnes had somehow became that someone else in her corner.

"You worked hard to become a doctor, just like every other man with the title. You deserve to be respected, Ace," Sergeant Barnes responded. He probably had no idea how much his words meant to her. When you're a woman in a field society deems is for men, you don't expect anyone to stand up for you, least of all to think you belong there. Before she could think of a response, General Johnson interrupted again.

"Let's go people. I don't have all day," the General shouted without a backwards glance. His order had Anna shuffling her papers together and following him down the deck. The last thing she needed was to give the General another reason to look down on her for by dawdling after an order.

Bucky followed after Anna and the General at a leisurely pace. Anna had seemed surprised by his response to her thanks, her eyes widening when he stated she deserved respect. She wasn't used to getting respect for her work, and that bothered him. More so than it probably should.

A/N: I know it's been a long time since I've posted here or on Relentless. I'm sorry I can't post as regularly as I used to when I was still in school, but I promise I will continue posting :) Hope you enjoyed this installment.

Guest Review Responses

Starshine: No, I don't find it weird at all that you want Anna to become the first black widow. That's actually a lot of fun thinking about her becoming a bad ass fighter on top of a doctor.

Jo: I'm so happy to hear you're loving it so far!

Hannah: Yay for making it interesting. Hope it stays interesting for you. Not much happened this chapter, but I promise it'll pick up more in later chapters.

Pam: Hello again :) I'm glad you gave this story a chance. I completely understand loving the storyline of Rehabilitate and Relentless. That story will always be my baby and hold a special place in my heart. I love writing that version of Anna and James. I am also having fun writing this version of them. I have different ideas of how to end this, including having Anna be around during the Agent Carter seasons or pre season 1 agent carter. I finally got them on DVD but haven't finished the second season yet. Thanks for sharing your opinion!

Geneva: It's nice to hear you're enjoying the 1940s version of Anna and Bucky and me bringing in Howard.

JoJo: Ahh I'm so glad you're a fan of all three of my stories! Hope it stays that way

JoCa: Thanks! I'm glad you think it's good so far. I'm having fun playing around in my head with how this will end. As I mentioned to Pam a few guest review responses up, I have some thoughts of having bits of Anna in pre season 1 or in season 1 of Agent Carter. I've been watching it lately and can see where Anna would fit in some places. But I also have other alternatives. I haven't settled on just one yet. Hope you enjoyed the update!

Rach

xoxo