Hey everyone here's the next update. This one doesn't skip anytime. It picks up exactly where the last one left off. This chapter concludes Nora's not technically birthday. I'd like to thank everyone again for all the support. I know this may seem annoying but I'd like to ask you all to please read and review. I look forward to reading them everyday so please continue to do so. Thank you. Enjoy :)
I decided not to tell anyone about my apparently new accelerated regenerative ability. It might have just been a fluke or one time thing right? I got out of the bathroom and got the first thing I found lying around. It just so happened to be the shirt I borrowed from Steve. The shirt reached a little lower than mid thigh.
I was brushing my hair when there was a knock on the door. "Doll can I come in." I heard Bucky through the door.
"Yeah come in," I say.
"I brought you some tea." He says putting it down on the nightstand. He set it down and then turned around to look at me. "I really like how you look in that shirt."
"I just grabbed the first thing I could find." I say brushing my hair.
"You sure you're all right, you seem distracted." He says not taking his eyes off of me looking for a tell or something that gives me away.
"I'm fine, the time traveling really exhausted me a lot. Gave me a lot to think about too. I think I'm going to take a nap." I tell him.
"That's a good idea, you want to be fully awake later for your surprise."
"I thought my pop quiz was the surprise." I tease.
"What kind of birthday surprise would that be?" He gets up and kisses my forehead. "Get some sleep I'll wake you up later."
"Thanks." I tell him as he walks out of the room and closes the door. I grab a blanket from the closet and lay down on the bed. I turned off the lamp and drifted off to sleep. It had been a long day.
I don't know how long I was out for but I woke up when I felt someone put an arm on my waist and nuzzle and kiss the back of my neck.
"Time to wake up beautiful."
"Mmh Five more minutes." I said turning over hugging him and nuzzling his neck.
"You can sleep more later, you got to get dressed, we're going out for dinner."
"Where too?"
"Still a surprise."
"So how will I decide what to wear?"
"Well if I had to pick, I'd have you stay in that shirt the rest of the night. It really does look better on you than it ever did on me." That makes me giggle and blush. "But since we're going out, I'd say go with a dress. Doesn't matter which one, you look amazing in any of them." He gives me a kiss and then gets up.
"We'll be waiting in the living room." He says walking out of the room.
I sigh, damn I just want to stay in bed but I get up anyway. I go over to my closet and pick out a navy dress. It had a plunging V-neckline. It was still pretty conservative by the standards of my time. It was fitted at the top but the skirt flared out. I put on my necklace and some simple stud earrings. I found some black peep tow heels in the trunk and wore those.
My long brown hair was wavy but manageable. I decided to put it in a messy bun with a braid tying into it. When I was done, I grabbed a matching navy scarf and a grey coat.
"So does this work because I can go back and change." I say walking into the loving room.
"You look, gorgeous Doll." Bucky says not taking his eyes off of me.
"Told you anything you wore would work, You look beautiful." Steve says blushing slightly.
"Well thanks, you two look pretty dapper yourselves." I say checking them out. "And I have to say you two look good in uniform." They both give me flirty smiles.
"We should start heading out." Steve says.
"Right, can't be late." Bucky says.
"We have reservations or something?" I say. They are dressed way too formal for just a regular dinner.
"Or something." Bucky says giving me a smirk.
Steve takes my coat and helps me put it on. Then we're out the door. Out side there is a car waiting for us.
"Captain Rogers, Sergeant Barnes, I have orders from Mr. Stark to take you to your destination." A man said. He had an English accent and was dressed in a suit.
"You must be Mr. Jarvis." Steve said offering his hand.
"Yes, I am. It is a pleasure to meet you Captain, Sergeant. You must be Miss. Stark." He says looking at me.
"I'm guessing Howard told you of our situation." I say. I was really hoping to keep more people from finding out.
"He did ma'am. I was also told of the importance of keeping this a secret. Rest assured no one will hear of this from me." He said. If this is the same Edwin Jarvis dad and Nana told me about I know he's telling the truth.
"Thank you." I said.
The car ride was quiet. We made a turn and that's when Bucky pulled something out of his pocket. "You need to wear this." He handed me a bandana.
"Why are you giving me a bandana?" I say.
"It's a blindfold." Steve says getting it out of my hand. "Turn towards Bucky."
I do as he says and puts it on me. "Don't you two think this is a bit excessive?"
"Stop fussing its only a bit longer Doll." Bucky says.
"Just don't let me fall, I'm enough of a cluts without the blindfold."
"Never dream of it." I hear Steve whisper into my ear.
"We're here." Bucky says as the car stops.
The car door opens and someone (I'm guessing Steve by the way he held my hand) helped me out of the car. I hear the car door close and then Bucky puts his arm over my shoulder.
"Just keep walking straight, five more steps… Stop there Doll." I hear the door open. Then one of them puts a hand on the small of my back.
"Walk a few step forward, stop. There's two steps in front of you so careful." I take the two steps and almost trip but someone caught me.
"I got you," says Bucky. He helped me stand up. Once he was sure I wouldn't fall he led me further inside wherever we were. "Take three steps forward and then turn to your right." I did as he said, "Take a few steps … and stop."
I stood there until either Steve or Bucky took of the blindfold.
"SURPRISE!"
"Happy Birthday kid" Gramps says while I just stood there frozen. I was not expecting a surprise party. It reminded me of my eighth birthday. Dad had told me he wasn't going to be able to make it that year so instead Nana was going to take me to Disney World. I was sad and a bit mad but there was nothing I could do so I tried to make the most of a bad situation. When we got there, Dad had rented out the whole park for the day. Don't know how he managed that but he did. He met us at the entrance and the first thing he said was 'Happy Birthday kid'.
I was holding back tears when I hugged Gramps and said "thanks."
I was greeted by a bunch of people. Most of them worked for the SSR the newly formed Howling Commandos were also there. I got to apologize to Lieutenant Moore. He said all was forgiven as long as I didn't tell anyone I was the one to knock him out. Something about keeping up appearances. I laughed and agreed to it.
After I said hi to everyone I sat down between Bucky and Steve in a booth along with Gramps and Peggy.
"So I had a meeting with Colonel Philips." Steve says not as casually as he tried to be.
"I heard."
"He told me you passed all the tests he gave you."
"Really."
"Got a nasty bruise because of it." Bucky added.
"What?! Are you all right? Do you need to go see a doctor?" Steve just started bombarding me with questions.
"Steve I'm fine. It was just a bruise, it'll go away." I tell him putting my hand on his knee, under the table. "If it doesn't I'll go get checked out, promise."
"So she passed?" Bucky says trying to steer the conversation away from Steve being over protective.
"Yes Nora passed. There's only one thing left for you to do." Steve says giving me a look.
"I know and they're right over there." I say looking over to the other side of the bar
"Then lets go" Bucky says.
We get out of the booth and start walking before I remember. "Hold on a second." I walk over to the bar and ask for a pitcher of beer and a bottle of bourbon. One thing Nana taught me was that you never show up empty handed. I carry both of them and walk over to the Commandos with Steve and Bucky at my side. "Hey guys."
"Happy Birthday, ma'am." Says Morita.
"joyeux anniversaire Madame" (Happy Birthday Ma'am) Says who if I remember correctly is Jacques Dernier.
"Merci, mais s'il vous plaît Je n'ai que dix-huit suffit de m'appeler Nora" I answer before turning to the rest of them. Who just look at me with curiosity.
"Thanks guys but like I just told Dernier, I'm only eighteen so stop calling me Ma'am, just stick to Nora." I say setting down the pitcher of beer and the bottle of bourbon. "Brought you all some drinks."
"Thank you ma- Nora but isn't it your birthday, we should be bringing you drinks, not the other way around." Falsworth points out.
"It is technically my birthday but my Nana always taught me that you never show up empty handed especially when I'm about to ask you all something very important."
"What is it?" Dugan asks.
"So Steve was telling me you guys were looking for a medic, and I volunteered. Of course he didn't agree right away he put some conditions. Colonel Philips gave me some tests to see if I'm qualified which I passed. The only thing I need is your approval. It has to be unanimous. Each of you has to agree or else I can't go."
"What were the tests?" Gabe Jones asked.
"The first one was testing my ability as a medic. That one I passed when I helped that soldier after we were rescued in Azzano. The second test was marksmanship. That was fun. The last one was hand to hand combat."
"Who'd you fight?" Morita asked.
"I sort of made a promise not to tell anyone who I fought." I say.
"She fought Moore," Peggy said from behind me.
"Moore?" Falsworth asked Peggy.
"The man at the bar with the black eye." Peggy pointed him out. Well I technically didn't break my promise.
"Are you serious?" Jones asked.
"I wouldn't lie about something like this." Peggy says.
"It's fine with me, It'll be good to have someone besides me that can understand Dernier." Gabe says along with Dernier.
"Did you go to university?" Falsworth asked.
"I did my undergraduate degree in Biochemistry, Mechanical engineering, and Physics along with a Ph. D in thermonuclear astrophysics from MIT. I was attending Harvard Medical School before I ended up Hydra's prisoner."
"And you're only eighteen?" He asked astonished.
"Yeah, I skipped a few grades." I say.
"Well its fine by me, it's obvious you're more than qualified." Falsworth asked.
"Before I give my answer there's one thing I need to know, how did you end up with Hydra?" Dugan asked.
I looked over to Steve and Bucky they just gave me a look with a shrug, which I interpreted as, 'It's your call'.
"Before I tell you, you all need to keep an open mind. What I am about to tell you is going to be hard to believe?" I say.
"Kid we were kept locked away by a Nazi with weapons I'd only seen in my kid brother's comic books, How…" Dugan started before I interrupted.
"I'm from the future." I blurt out.
"Come again?" Morita says.
"I'm from the future. I'm a time traveler." They just stay quiet and keep staring. "I was born November 8th, 1992. In 2011, I was in Geneva, at a physics conference. There was a malfunction and this bright light then poof. I was in a hallway of that Hydra prison." I finish and they all stay quiet. "Oh, and Howard happens to be my grandfather. There's a test to prove it." I add in awkwardly.
"Never heard that one before." Dugan says. The rest of the guys just stare at me. "And it wasn't a joke, was it."
"No it wasn't." I say very awkwardly. I started to get anxious. "So think I'm crazy now?" I ask scared of their answer.
"After the past two weeks, I'm giving you the benefit of the doubt. I say yes, now pass the bottle of bourbon." Dugan says and I hand him the bottle.
"After hearing that, anyone change their mind?" I ask.
"I still say yes." Gabe said.
"I as well." Falsworth.
"Oui" Responds Dernier.
"That settles it then." Says Steve. "Welcome to the team."
"Thanks Cap." I say with a smile.
"You're going to need a uniform." He replies.
"I know a guy who can help me with that," I say looking over at the bar where Gramps was trying to flirt with someone. "I should probably go tell him the good news." I say getting up.
"We'll go…" Bucky starts.
"Sweetie, stay here. Have a few drinks with the guys. I'll be back in a few minutes." I tell them.
"Are you sure?" Steve asks.
"Guys I'll be right over there. Relax." I lean up to kiss Bucky's cheek and pat Steve's shoulder.
I walk over to Gramps apparently having no luck. When he decides to let that one go. "There's the birthday girl, what's it like being -49."
"Same as being eighteen and a half apparently." I say with a smirk. "I got news. I passed all my tests and they all agreed. I'm officially part of the team."
"That's great." He said, giving me a forced smile. He gets up and hugs me. "We need to toast this." He gets us each a shot of whiskey. We clink the glasses and we drink them.
"I also need to ask for a favor."
"Which is?"
"I need a uniform."
"Sure, anything specific you want?"
"I'll leave it up to you. I just want something comfortable and practical. Also no Stars and Stripes. Steve can pull them off but I sure as hell can't."
"I can work with that can you come to the lab tomorrow so I can take measurements and we can work on some sketches, see what works."
"Sounds good." I say.
"One more thing." He gets an envelope out of his coat jacket and slides it to me.
"What is this?" I ask.
"Open it."
I open it and inside is an American Passport, Birth Certificate, School Records, etc. Essentially a brand new Identity. I look through more of it and realize there's also the information to access a bank account under my name.
"Uh, Gramps, why is there a bank account under my name?"
"You're not always going to be around one of us. You're going to need Identification and everything to build a life. I haven't figured out how you keep jumping through time and I don't know how long you're going to be stuck here so it's better to be safe than sorry."
"The birth certificate uses my name." I point out.
"Yeah, that's an edited version of my kid sister's birth certificate. The best way to build an identity is to take over someone around your own age that died."
"Sorry, didn't know." I say sadly.
"It was ten years ago, she was always healthy. One day she got the flu and she didn't make it." He says taking another drink. "I think your soul mates want you back." He says looking toward them.
I look back and see them both looking towards us. "They can wait a bit longer. Now what happened with the girl you were talking too?"
He smirks and tells me the whole story. The resemblance between him and dad is uncanny. They have the same smirk and the same spark in their eyes when they're focused on a project.
Third Person's POV-
Steve and Bucky watched as their soul mate walked across the room, avoiding bumping in to people to speak to her grandfather. They both couldn't help but smile at the interaction between the two. They got along more like best friends than grandfather and granddaughter.
"Cap, Barnes, you two listening?" Dugan asked.
"Uh sorry, you said something." Steve said snapping out of his trance a few seconds before Bucky.
"How do you two feel about Nora going with us?" Falsworth asked.
"All right, she's already shown she's more than prepared. She can take care of herself." Steve answered.
"She's good under pressure and she's as smart as they come." Bucky asked.
"And you're both okay with your girl coming with us?" Gabe asked them.
"As okay as I can be?" Bucky answered.
"Cap are you sure you want to bring your girlfriend along?" Morita asked.
"She's…" He started before he was interrupted.
"Cut the crap, it's obvious that the both of you love that girl. You can't take your eyes off of her since you found her in Azzano." Dugan said.
Steve and Bucky shared a look. They were a part of a team. They were going to risk their lives together and in order to work together well together they had to trust each other but could they trust that telling their team that the three of them were soul mates would not split them up.
Bucky turned to look at their soul mate who was still at the bar. Steve turned around and looked at her. At that moment Nora turned to look at them. She gave them a smile that lit up the room. They couldn't stop thinking how lucky they were to have her. She was smart, beautiful and brave. She was stronger than she looked. She overcame her fears of rejection and told the Commandos her secret, the secret that she had only told a few select people. If she trusted them then they knew they could as well.
They turned to look at each other and Bucky gave Steve a nod.
"We both love her and she loves us. The three of us are soul mates." Steve told them.
The commandos shared a look before Dugan let out a sigh and said, "Damn it. Looks like you were right Jones."
"Pay up guys," jones said taunting them
Dugan, Falsworth, Dernier, and Morita took out their wallets and slid some money to Jones.
"What's going on?" Bucky asked.
"We all knew there was something going on between the three of you but couldn't figure out what exactly. So we made a bet. We all came up with possible answers and waited. Jones was the only one that guessed the three of you were soul mates." Falsworth explained.
"Are you mad?" Steve asked.
"Were mad we lost money." Morita said.
"Are you all still fine with me leading the team?" Steve asked.
"You've punched Adolf Hitler more than 200 times, You're the Star spangled man with a plan, there's no one better to lead this team. So quit worrying." Dugan told them.
"Although you may want to start worrying about how much Nora's had to drink already." Morita said looking towards the bar.
"We should probably…" Steve started but Bucky had already started getting up.
"Got to go guys, enjoy your night." Steve said following after Bucky.
Nora's POV-
After Gramps surprise gift of a new identity and a very well funded bank account we decided to play a game of twenty questions.
"What is the strangest, most alcohol containing drink you've ever had?"
I thought about it but only one thing came to mind. I could handle my alcohol but I didn't really try new ones often unless Jess forced me.
"Irish Car bomb."
"A what?"
"Irish Car Bomb. Its half a pint of Guinness with a shot of whiskey and Irish cream."
"I've never heard of that, It sounds similar to a boilermaker." Gramps said.
"Don't think I've heard of that one."
"Well in that case, bar keep two boilermakers." Gramps said sliding money over to him.
The Bartender immediately prepared the cocktail. He set down two pints of beer and two shots of whiskey.
"So you get the shot, dunk it in and chug it down, right?" I asked.
"Yeah. Are you ready?" I nod. "On three. One. Two. Three!" We dunked the shot in and drank it was fast as we could. At first it was fine but halfway through I I could feel the whiskey burn my throat on its way down. I kept drinking until I was done and put the glass back down.
"Ahh, I haven't done that since Junior/Senior year of college." I tell gramps.
"Not much of a drinker?"
"I can handle my alcohol just fine, I just don't drink often. Mostly just special occasions." I say.
"Hey Doll" I hear Bucky say as he wraps his arms around my waist, hugging me from behind. "You doing all right?"
"Yeah just had a few drinks. Everything okay over there?" I ask.
"Everything's good, we just talked about some things. We'll catch you up later." He says kissing my cheek.
"We should get something to eat" Steve says walking up to us.
"Sounds good I'm starving." I say. "Gramps, the red head on my six just broke up with her boyfriend and she's on the rebound." I tell him getting up and he just smirks.
I follow the guys to a table where there is food set on a table. We each get a plate and serve ourselves a bit of everything; chicken. String beans, mashed potatoes, macaroni and cheese, and other amazing food.
Then after dinner there was cake. I don't know how Gramps knew that chocolate was my all time favorite.
The rest of the night there was singing and dancing and of course drinking. It was a fun night. I didn't stop smiling the entire night.
I did get drunk again but not as bad as last time. I was buzzed the entire car ride home. When we got back to the apartment Steve picked me up and took me to the couch.
"You still have to open our gifts beautiful." He said kissing my cheek.
I giggled, "You didn't have to get …" I was interrupted but Steve kissing me.
"Stop being stubborn and let us spoil you."
"Here they are." Bucky said placing two wrapped gifts on the coffee table.
"Start with this one, Doll" He said handing me a small rectangular box.
I take it out of his hand. I untie the red ribbon and lift the lid of the box. Inside is a frame with a picture of Steve and Bucky on a pier. Steve was still scrawny. They both looked younger. They were probably in their teens when the picture was taken.
"What a great photo. Aww Steve you were adorable." I say smiling.
"That's one word for it." He says.
"Oh shut it, you were just as handsome then as you are now but that's not what I love about you. You have a big heart and no matter what size you are you still stand up for what you believe in. That is something to brag about."
Steve pulls me to his side and kisses me. It was different than before. Normally when Steve kisses me it's short and sweet but this time it was intense and passionate. By the time we separate we're both panting.
I turn around and kiss Bucky just as passionately as I did Steve. When we break the kiss I leaned my forehead against his and said, "Thank you I loved my gift."
"I'm glad you did." Bucky says smiling at me.
I sit back down and open the other one. The other gift was a roll of paper held together by a ribbon. I untied this ribbon and unrolled the paper. When I saw it tears started rolling down my face. It was a drawing of a farm that looked almost exactly like the ranch I grew up on.
"It's not much…" Steve said but I interrupted him by jumping on him to hug him. I buried my face into his chest.
"Nora, are you okay?" He asked. I just stayed there hugging him until I finally managed to calm down.
"Sorry, I over reacted. The drawing looks exactly like the ranch I grew up on. I love it thank you." Steve and Bucky both hugged me and held me. We stayed like that for a while until finally I had to get them to let go so I could go use the bathroom.
I got ready for bed but instead of waiting for them to come in I went to their room. I was wearing Steve's shirt again. I got under the covers and waited for them to get into bed. Bucky came to bed first and laid down in front of me on his side. He rested his forehead against my head and pulled me into a hug. Steve came in and scooted in behind me. He rested his head on the pillow next to mine. I could feel his exhales on the back of my neck. He put and arm over me so that his hand rested on Bucky's arm. I was sandwiched between the both of them and normally I'd feel claustrophobic and would try to get them to give me space but right now I felt like I needed this. I wanted them close. I fell asleep lulled the sound of their breathing. Tomorrow was another day. I had to start looking for answers. I need to know what's happening to me.