Day three: Crossover

Friends and (Almost) Relations

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The rain had been coming down all day. Even though it had been hours since she'd taken them off, Peggy's galoshes were still wet by the time she went to put them back on. She struggled into them, standing first on one foot and then the other, leaning against the doorframe for balance as she held the decoded translation that she'd come for between her teeth.

She hadn't been to Whitehall in what seemed like ages - particularly not to this wing. It brought back memories of earlier, happier days. A few of the girls in the code-breaking department had remembered her from Bletchley Park, and they'd had a nice enough reunion. She couldn't talk about her work though, and they couldn't talk about theirs, so most of the time had consisted of waiting for the cryptographers to finish with her translation.

"Peg?"

Peggy momentarily froze, suddenly very conscious of her damp, disheveled clothing, of her hair coming out of its pins, of her undignified attitude. With a wrench, she got the last boot over her heel and straightened up, taking the paper out of her mouth.

"Hello, Fred."

Because it was Fred. Fred Wells, the man she had almost married. She hadn't realized he still worked at the Home Office after all this time, but apparently nothing had changed. Nothing except his hairline, which had crept still further back in the time since she had seen him. He would be as bald as his father in ten years.

"Peg!" He sounded positively delighted, coming down the hall toward her, masterfully ignoring the condition of her hair as he reached to take her coat. He had always been such a perfect gentleman. "Here, allow me."

She turned, allowing him to help her on with her coat, still trying to decide how to react. He smoothed the fabric solicitously over her shoulders - the military cut hadn't escaped his notice. "So, how is the army treating you? Your mother used to keep me updated, but these days I don't hear much."

Ouch, that stung. And the worst of it was that he hadn't even meant for it to - the man didn't have an intentionally spiteful bone in his body. But Peggy was very aware of the fact that she'd barely corresponded with him at all since breaking off the engagement. She'd needed a clean break from her past, and that was what she'd got.

"Well enough," she told him lightly as she turned to face him, because there was no way she could tell him about her work with the SSR. Her clearance level was higher than his, these days. "You?"

Fred sobered instantly, taking both her hands in his with one of those compassionate gestures that he was so prone to. "I never did get the chance to offer my condolences about your brother. I didn't know him well, but he seemed quite remarkable."

The smile died on Peggy's lips. It had been four years, and she still couldn't talk about her brother without a heavy heart. "Thank you. I - yes. He was."

She withdrew her hands and started buttoning her coat as she began down the long staircase, but he kept pace with her.

"Imagine meeting you here, though - of all places! Are you stationed in London? The girls in the office could use someone with your codebreaking expertise, and it must be nice for you to be someplace civilized."

Peggy laughed over her shoulder. "Loose lips," she reminded him with a gaiety she didn't entirely feel. "I couldn't tell you even if I wanted to, Fred." Truthfully, she didn't do much codebreaking these days - her time was far too filled up chasing Hydra all over creation.

They reached the foot of the staircase, and Peggy looked out through the front windows at the sheets of rain pouring down. Of course - this would be the day she'd left her umbrella on the Tube.

On an impulse, she swung around, hand outstretched. It had been far too long since she'd seen someone from her past. Those days seemed so far away. She had been younger, then.

"It's been nice, Fred," she said honestly. "I hope you have a wonderful evening."

He took her hand holding it between both of his. "But are you going now? We've just begun to catch up." Glancing up at the clock on the wall, he visibly brightened. "I say, Peg. There's a reception tonight - very exclusive, but they do always extend an invitation to us at the Home Office. Perhaps you'd like to come along? There will be a band, and we can catch up properly then."

Peggy knew about the reception. In fact, she had an invitation to the reception in her pocket at that very moment. Colonel Phillips had wrangled it for her, declaring that he "wouldn't go to a **** thing like that alone."

She smiled, and tried gently to extract her hand. "Actually, I believe I may see you then, though I'll be working through it. There won't be much time to chat, I'm afraid."

"No, really?" Fred never did do well hiding his dismay. "Well, perhaps just one dance, then. I do want to hear all about - oh, excuse me."

That last was directed to the exterior door and the person who had just blown through it - a very tall, dripping person who appeared to be having a great deal of trouble with his umbrella. Then the wet folds collapsed into order, and Peggy came face to face with Captain Rogers.

Oh, fate certainly had it in for her today.

"Peggy!" Steve said, appearing almost as startled as she was. Then he realized she wasn't alone, and belatedly amended, "Agent Carter."

"Captain," she responded, aiming for composure, since evidently her dignity was doomed. "Captain Rogers, this is Lieutenant Wells. Lieutenant Wells, Captain Rogers. Captain, the Lieutenant and I grew up near each other in Hampstead."

Fred saluted smartly, and Peggy took advantage of the moment to put her hand safely in her pocket. Steve returned the salute with good will, although he showered the floor around him with drops at every movement.

"Glad to meet any friend of Agent Carter's," he told the other man. "She's the best agent I've ever worked with."

Fred didn't seem to recognize Steve as Captain America, which was at least one good thing about this whole situation. "She is remarkable, isn't she?" he beamed. "Doing her part for King and Country, laying aside all personal interests. We put all our own plans on hold, of course, once she'd made up her mind. One wouldn't have expected it of our Peg, but it's quite admirable."

That was a bit too much. "I find my work quite stimulating, actually," Peggy broke in, smiling brightly. A little too brightly, probably. "Captain? Were you looking for me?"

"I was." Steve rustled the umbrella in his hand. Between all the water coming off the umbrella, and the steady drip of his overcoat, he was developing quite the puddle. "Phillips sent me. Wanted to make sure you weren't 'drowned in a ditch somewhere.'" From the twist of his mouth, she knew that last was a direct quote. Then he offered her the umbrella. "Also thought you might find this handy."

Oh, bless him. How had he known she'd lost hers? Peggy reached to accept it, and then stopped. "Wait a moment and I'll go with you. Just give me two seconds, all right?"

Steve nodded, and tugged of his hat, shedding more water on the floor. How he had managed to get so wet while carrying an umbrella, Peggy couldn't imagine. "Sure. I'll just - I'll be right over there. Take your time."

He retreated to stand and drip by the front door, occupying himself with furling the umbrella, since there wasn't much else for him to do. Peggy turned back towards Fred, and smiled.

"Goodbye, Fred. It was nice seeing you again. Good luck with your work."

Fred took her hand again, and once again didn't let go. He was smiling, that great, charming smile that had won her over once upon a time. "I'll see you tonight, then? Save me the first dance; It'll be just like old times. I have missed you, Peg. You haven't changed a bit."

Peggy hesitated and then shook her head. She hadn't wanted to do this within the supersoldier's hearing, so she drew the lieutenant a little further away and dropped her voice, eyes pleading earnestly for him to understand. "Fred - the girl you fell in love with was a lot younger. She still had a family, a - a brother." She tried to steady the quiver in her voice, but it didn't quite work. "I'm not that girl anymore, and I don't believe I ever shall be again. I've moved on, Fred."

Fred had always been sympathetic to a fault, even if he had never really understood her. For a long moment he looked at her, at the army uniform she wore with confidence - and then his eyes flickered past her to the American soldier by the door, standing in a puddle and studiously staring out the window at the driving sheets of rain. When he looked back down at her, she saw a trace of quiet resignation in his eyes.

He must have known that it couldn't work - not after this long. The war had changed both of them, whether sequestered in the Home Office or not. But they had had something, in those long-past days, and it was for the sake of that something that made Peggy step forward and put both arms around him for the briefest of embraces.

He let her go when she pulled away.

"Goodbye, Fred," she said kindly.

Steve was ready for her when she crossed the entryway, holding the door for her and expanding the umbrella to its full width as they stepped out into the weather. Neither one said a word for a block and a half, both busy with their own thoughts.

Then Steve cleared his throat awkwardly.

"Funny the way you run into old friends," he said with great nonchalance.

Peggy hummed absently. She wondered how much he had heard. Knowing the captain's enhanced abilities, he'd probably tried very hard not to catch any of it, and had picked up just enough to make him uncomfortable.

"You two have plans tonight?" he asked after a minute. "I mean - I'm not doing anything, so if you need me to cover - I mean, if the two - um." He floundered and fell silent.

She kept the corners of her mouth from quirking up. "That's sweet of you to offer, but Fred and I have no plans to go dancing. That was all over long ago."

They crossed a street together, Peggy taking two steps to Steve's one. The mist and water in the air made everything appear blurred, softer. Her hair wouldn't have an ounce of curl left by the time she got back to deliver her translation.

"He seems like he might be a pretty good partner," Steve said after a while, very quietly, voice almost covered by the rush of the rain. "I'd be happy to cover for you if you want. Phillips won't mind."

Peggy stopped dead in the middle of the sidewalk, so quickly that the person behind her almost ran her down. Steve spun on one heel, trying to keep the umbrella over her. "Peggy?"

She looked up at him. His blond hair was dark with moisture, clinging to his forehead beneath his hat; his blue eyes as humble and straightforward as ever. He stood there, stooping slightly, holding the umbrella more over her head than his own, and waited patiently for her to explain why they were stopping in the middle of the walkway.

Peggy's heart swelled fondly.

"I haven't changed my mind about saving my dances for the right partner," she reminded him softly, and reached up to poke his hat straight. "And Steve - Fred dances beautifully, but he isn't it."

She saw the moment he understood what she was saying, saw the warmth leap into his eyes, the relaxation of the jaw she hadn't realized had been tightly clenched. Dimpling, she slipped her hand through the crook of his arm and tugged him along until his feet started to move and he remembered how to walk.

"Come on, Captain," she ordered gaily. Somehow the world seemed brighter than it had a few minutes ago. "Let's get back before the colonel starts dragging the Thames for us. And if we're quick enough, there might be time to get dinner before the reception starts."

There was a spring to the captain's step as he fell into rhythm with her, and a brightness in his face that fairly illuminated the grey day, despite the rain drumming down on them both.

"Yes, ma'am," he responded with a smile in his voice as he folded her hand closer. Then arm in arm, they set out through the rain, the umbrella bobbing merrily over their heads with every step.

It wasn't a dance, not yet. But it was with the right partner - and that fact alone made all the difference in the world.

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So this was my crossover for yesterday (CA:TFA and Agent Carter totally counts as a crossover, right?). But I hurt my hands typing at work and couldn't finish it until today. Hopefully you all won't mind?

See you tomorrow!