Author's Note: This will be a shorter chapter, but pivotal to the storyline. Forgive me for the Google Translate Russian…
Lelia is the Slavic goddess of mercy, associated with the Ursa Major constellation which so happens to be Christiane's favorite constellation. Lelia comparable to Artemis, the Greek goddess.
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January 1 1944
Her hair wiped in the air, the wind picking up with the start of the rotors of the airplane. Anya hugged her sister tightly, already in her uniform of a dark blue coat, brown trousers and boots, her arm cuffs under her sleeves.
Anya looked around, making sure no one was around them, her voice low, "One thing is for sure is that your blood does not look the same compared to anyone else's. It's got the same composition as Bucky's and Steve's, like your body is changing."
Christiane leaned in closely to her sister, an eye glancing to Bucky waiting by the door of the aircraft with Steve for her, "What about…"
"I still can't be sure about the results. But I don't think you're pregnant, I'm 70 percent sure. By three months, you should be showing a little but yet nothing. I'll keep looking at your blood and see if I can find something."
Christiane nodded, glancing again to Bucky as he sent her a smile, before she looked back to Anya, "The SSR, they can't find out."
"I won't tell anyone, not even Peggy. But you might want to talk about it with Bucky?" Anya glanced quickly to him, looking back to her sister, eyes in concern.
"We'll see," Christiane breathed out shakily, putting the thought away as her mind went to the mission.
"Don't play hero, you go with them and you work as a team, do you hear me?" Anya told her sister, her hug tightening as she looked to the corner of her eyes, seeing the men starting to board the plane.
"I know, Anya," Christiane smiled back, brushing a stray hair from Anya's face. "We'll be back soon."
"I got you this," Anya handed her a package, bundled around cloth and a leather string, "It's a bow with a set of arrows in the quiver. I know how much you dislike using guns, and you can't just use your baton all the time." She chuckled, rolling her eyes to herself, "I remember how you always tried to win whenever maman got us to practice when we were little."
"Just couldn't seem to miss," Christiane smiled, remembering the memory of them practicing in the field behind the house in the alps, their mother a skilled archer as she taught them their aim.
"Take care of yourself, je t'aime" she held onto her sister, sending her off to the door of the plane.
"Je t'aime aussi" as she waved to her sister.
The Howling Commandoes flew into Czechoslovakia, parachuting into a forest as they set up camp through the night, a small fire cackling in the center. Christiane slept beside Bucky on the floor, watching her curled up, the shadows from the hearth casting her skin an amber, eyelashes ghosted on her skin, her hair out of its plait curled. He laid a hand on Christiane, keeping her close to him.
He kept watch at night with Steve, Morita and Sawyer, watching the forest until first light where they packed up, moving again through the forest nearer to the Austrian border before setting up camp once again.
Christiane kept watch with Dugan, Dernier and Falsworth, rifles in their arms as Christiane sat against a tree trunk, her bow by her side, Bucky curled up beside her.
She watched the stars through the canopy of the tree line, taking in the quietness of the forest. She quietly stood, stretching her legs as she walked over to Dugan, his eyes lazily on the fire, whispering, "I'm going to make a round, I'll be back." As he nodded simply, leaning his head back against the tree trunk he was on.
Christiane held her bow in one hand, swinging the quiver around her as she walked silently into the forest, trying to recollect her thoughts. She walked for 20 minutes, hearing faint whispers from a dark corner. She treaded lightly, taking an arrow to line to her bow, ready to aim as she got closer.
"Заткнись! Скоро кто-то придет! (Shut up! Someone will come get us soon!)" a voice hissed.
"Никто не придет, чтобы забрать нас, мы оказались здесь в ловушке. (No one is coming to get us, we're trapped here.)" the other voice groaned, his voice shaking as if he was in tears.
Christiane jumped down the slight dip in the forest, her bow aimed at the two men, one with blond hair and one with brown hair.
"Кто ты? (Who are you?)" she looked to the two of them, eyes fierce against the moonlight.
Both men looked to her in shock, eyes in fear as they raised their arms up. Christiane looked to them, seeing one of them who's leg was trapped under a tree, the other holding onto his side.
"Тебе больно. (You're hurt)" she glanced to the two of them, lowering her bow as she came to sit beside them.
"Ты русский? (You are Russian?)" the brown-haired man asked, looking to her.
"I won't tell you, but I will help you. Promise me you will not hurt me" she eyed them suspiciously, waiting for their response.
"Please, help us. I have a wife and a son to get home to," the blond-haired man pleaded, his hands clasped together almost in a prayer.
Christiane nodded once, getting up as she put her arms under an empty space where the tree had fallen over the man's legs. The brown-haired man looked to her bewildered, eyes wide, "There's no way you can carry the weight!"
She felt pressure to her legs, at first with no avail as she tried to lift the tree, knowing full well during the past weeks she had tried to test her new strengths. After a few seconds, the tree lifted under her hands, the man scrambling out, pulling his leg out before she dropped the weight down.
The blond-haired man pulled himself sitting upright against the brown-haired man, looking to the woman in front of them stunned.
The blond-haired man whispered, eyes wide to her, "Лелия. You are Lelia," a smile beginning to form on his face as he clasped together his hands again.
Christiane sat down with them, pulling out the first-aid kid she carried by her belt, taking out ointment and a few strands of cloth. "Кто такая Лелия? (Who is Lelia?)"
"Богиня милосердия (Goddess of mercy)," the brown-haired man replied watching Christiane soak the cloths with ointment, passing it to him to put on his wound.
"You have come a long way. Your heavens in Ursa Major," the blond-haired man smiled again, looking to her like a sign of hope.
Christiane took a thick branch, putting it against the man's leg as she wrapped it with more cloth, acting as a stilt for him.
"Старайтесь не накладывать на него свой вес (Try not to put your weight on it)" she focused, tying the strands of cloth around his leg before she turned to her small backpack, taking out a canister of tea and biscuits, passing it around to the men.
"I do not know how long you have been here. This is for your strength" she looked to the men as they passed the tea between them, tucking into the biscuits.
"Мы обязаны вам жизнью, you have given us a second chance. Our regiment left us here to die. Because of you, we can go home to our families, Лелия " the brown-haired man looked to her, eyes full of hope and gratitude.
"Где ваши семьи? Как вас зовут? (Where are your families? What's your name?)" Christiane asked, taking a sip of her canister.
The brown-haired man extended his hands, taking Christiane's into his in a handshake, "Viktor, I am from Sokovia"
The blond-haired man extended his hand, tightly holding Christiane's, eyes full of hope, "Ernst, from Latvia."
She nodded, handing them another wrap of biscuits and a map.
"I must get back to my group, but the nearest town should be a night's hike."
"Go, Lelia. I hope we meet again soon so we can repay you one day." Viktor looked to the darkness of the forest behind her, glancing back at her.
"Пусть Бог защитит вас и вашу семью (May God protect you and your family)" Christiane stood, smiling to the two as she helped them up.
"Спасибо, Лелия (Thank you, Lelia)" Ernst smiled, turning around on his good leg as Viktor supported his other side, the two of them disappearing into the night.
Christiane looked back up to the sky, a sudden chill down her spine as she walked back to the campsite, sitting beside a sleeping Bucky, her hand brushing his hair gently before she leaned her head back against the tree trunk, looking up to the stars.