A/N This one could fit anywhere in the story, time-wise. It comes from an idea that I've had in my head ever since Suffragette City aired, and finally, today, I figured out how to put it all together.
"Oh, you would have to fight for that one." Annie commented to Auggie. They were discussing possible future changes at the Agency. It was turning out to be more of a wish-list than actual possibilities.
"I don't mind a good work related fight every now and then. They can get pretty exciting."
"Yeah, I heard."
Auggie pinched his eyebrows together. "What did you hear?"
"I heard that you were a man on a warpath when I was in the hospital."
Auggie became a little more serious. "You heard that, huh?"
"From a few sources. Not sure how much is true, or if I got the full story, but I heard enough."
"Enough for what?" Auggie asked.
"Enough to know that you defended me far more than you should have."
"But I was right." Auggie said, as if all other options were silly. "It's easy to fight for things, when you know for a fact that you are right."
Annie waited a moment, then asked "But what if you weren't?"
"If you were really a traitor?"
"Yeah. Lena was right under the whole Agency's nose all this time, and nobody would have thought she was a traitor. It had to cross your mind as a possibility that I was actually who she said I was."
"Nope."
"That seems foolish for a super spy like yourself."
"Maybe it was. But I needed to believe in you. I needed to have something to focus on other that the constant beeping of the monitors by your bed. Without going to your defense, my only focus would have been the hospital shift changes, the strange smells only present in medical facilities, and the soft sound of your breath. I assure you that I would have found somewhere else to direct my anger if I didn't defend you."
"But what if you were wrong?" Annie asked, softly.
"If I were, I wouldn't have wanted to stay at the Agency anyway. If my judgment were that bad, if I had been a tool used by you to dupe the United States of America, I wouldn't have blinked before turning in my resignation."
Annie stared at him while he sat up, straightened his back, and while looking every bit like the soldier that he once was added "And then I would have used everything in my power to hunt you to the ends of the earth to be sure that you suffered for your crimes."
Would anybody like to see that AU?