AN: Okay, so I'm all moved in but school starts this week so updates will still be a little slow. In a few more chapters we'll get to the start of The Avengers. I hope you enjoy. Please review and thank you to those who have reviewed so far.

I own nothing.

Chapter Six:

After her eventful morning, Waverly sat curled up on the couch, her laptop balanced on her knees. Steve was engrossed in a show Waverly had seen many times before; Mythbusters. Glancing over at the armchair, Waverly had to smile. Steve was completely transfixed. The soldier's blue eyes were wide and he was hunched forward, drinking in every word that spilled from the television's speakers. Who could blame him for being so excited? The current episode was about the moon landing. To Waverly, this was old news and a little boring; but to Steve, it was fascinating.

Waverly transferred her gaze from the captain back to her computer screen. She was logged in to SHEILD's data base and was looking through Steve's file. She had read this many times in preparation for the assignment but was now combing through every line of text searching for a clue as to who Peggy was. Of course, the agent could have just asked Steve who she was, but she didn't want to trigger a flashback or anything. Right now, Waverly could tell Steve was content. Every once in a while, usually during commercials, his leg would bounce a certain number of times, but other than that, his mind seemed to be at ease.

Finding a document that contained information on Steve's military unit, Waverly finally found something interesting. There was a woman in Steve's unit by the name of Peggy Carter. The document contained a link to information on the woman, so Waverly clicked on the blue text. She scanned a file before her. Peggy was an English soldier who came to America. She had been an officer in the Strategic Scientific Reserve, which was involved in the Captain America experiment. The SHIELD file was so in depth, Waverly found out everything about the woman, even her favorite color, except one thing; her current location. There was no death date on the file, so Waverly hoped the woman was still alive.

The agent opened another tab on her internet browser and began a search for Peggy Carter. She used SHIELD's search engine, which was about ten times as useful as Google, and soon narrowed her search to about a dozen Peggy Carters in the United States. Of course, Waverly thought, she may be back in England, but we can address that later.

Waverly clicked on the first hit and began weeding out potential Peggy candidates. She was so engrossed with her work, she didn't hear Steve mumbled something about going back to the gym. It wasn't until about half an hour later, after she had eliminated four of the Peggys, that Waverly noticed Steve was gone. Looking up, Waverly surmised the reason Steve left. Mythbusters had ended and the current show was a documentary about World War II. Of freakin' course. Waverly reached across the end table and snatched the remote from where Steve had left it in the chair. Pressing the 'info' button, Waverly began to read. The show was about Hitler and his vision for the world once it was under his power. From what Waverly know, Steve had never actually faced Hitler. But he had faced a greater threat; Red Skull. Red Skull, Waverly could never remember his real name, was one of Hitler's most trusted men before he formed the secret HYDRA organization. The show had mentioned Red Skull several times in the few short minutes Waverly had watched. That's his name, Johann Schmidt. No wonder Steve had left.

After switching off both her laptop and the television, Waverly went in the kitchen to make herself lunch. While she prepared a sandwich, she was deep in thought. Steve really needed to find a better way to deal with his flashbacks and the other effects of post-traumatic stress. If Steve was to become a part of this world, if he was to be the founding member of the little club Fury had planned, he'd need to be able to deal with his problems quickly and efficiently. Steve couldn't just run off to the gym in the middle of acting as Captain America in battle.

So, Waverly thought. The nervous twitches, the feeling of guilt, the flashbacks; what could Steve do to combat those things? Well, first thing's first. Waverly needed to find out where Peggy was. She would take Steve to meet her once more. Maybe then some of Steve's unresolved feelings would be put at ease and he could relax more. Waverly took her sandwich to the couch and rebooted her computer. She was determined to find Peggy's location by the end of the night.


It was dinner time by the time Steve returned. He entered the apartment to find Waverly leaning against the counter, stirring a pot on the stove. The oven was also running and Steve smelled something baking. He dropped his gym bag near the door and slid his shoes off his feet. Waverly smiled at him when she saw him.

"Good, you're back," She said, switching off the stove. She took the pot of whatever was cooking and dumped it into a strainer balanced over the sink.

"What are you making?" Steve asked.

"Macaroni and cheese," Waverly answered. "It's not much, but I know I won't kill you if I make it. It's pretty straight forward. There're rolls in the oven too."

Steve watched Waverly drain the noodles of water and then dump them back into the pot. She set the pot on the still warm burner and added milk, butter, and some weird orange powder. Then she stirred. Steve washed his hands in the sink and by the time he was done, the noodles in the pot looked exactly like macaroni and cheese.

After insisting he sit down and relax, Waverly dished out two heaping bowls of macaroni. Then she slid the rolls from the oven and placed them in the middle of the table with a tub of butter.

"What do you want to drink?" She asked Steve from behind the refrigerator door.

"Milk is fine."

Having poured two glasses of milk, Waverly finally sat at the table and joined Steve for dinner. The captain couldn't help but noticed how red and swollen her cheek still was. Yet, the girl looked surprisingly upbeat.

Steve hungrily ate his dinner, but was Waverly engulfed her meal as if she had been starving for weeks. When she was finished, she set down her fork and looked at Steve with a wide smile on her face. Steve raised an eyebrow in confusion but before he could ask what was up, Waverly spoke.

"I hope you don't have plans tomorrow night," Waverly said.

Steve shook his head.

"Good. There's somebody I want you to meet." Waverly said cryptically.

"Your brother?" Steve questioned.

"No. He's rather busy right now. But I'm sure you'll enjoy the visit." Waverly gave another mischievous smile. Then she picked up her dirty dishes from the table and placed them in the dishwasher. As she walked out of the kitchen, she patted Steve's shoulder. "You get some sleep, big guy. You'll want to be rested for tomorrow."

Waverly then disappeared into her bedroom, leaving Steve all the more confused. He stared down into his bowl, stabbing orange noodles with his fork. What in the world was Waverly planning? The girl had been oddly quiet after the incident with her former boyfriend, but now she was practically bouncing off the walls with excitement. What had the girl done while he was down at the gym?


Steve once again found himself in the passenger seat of Waverly's car. They had just finished a late lunch at the apartment and were now on their way to whatever it was that Waverly was being so secretive about. Though New York had changed greatly since Steve had last been in the city, he recognized that they were heading to Queens. Waverly drove with greater care this time, taking turns more easily and obeying the speed limit on the crowded streets. Their journey lasted about half an hour. They had left the big city and were cruising through a quiet neighborhood. Waverly pulled up to a large, bright white town house and parked the car.

"We're here." She said brightly. She hopped from the car and eagerly walked towards the sleek red door of the house.

Steve followed at a slower pace, asking, "Where exactly is 'here'?"

Waverly smiled at him over her shoulder but didn't answer. She knocked on the door and waited for someone to answer.

A few moments later, a woman, appearing to be in her early forties answered the door. She was a good five inches taller than Waverly, but short in stature compared to Steve. Her brown eyes glanced over the visitors. Though it was flecked with gray, her hair was still a deep shade of reddish-brown.

"Can I help you?" She asked.

Waverly held out her hand and the woman shook it. "I'm Waverly Barton. I called you last night."

Recognition flickered in the woman's eyes and she smiled. "Oh! Right. And this must be Steve." The woman offered her hand to Steve. The soldier shook it and nodded politely. The woman continued. "I'm Michelle. My mother was beside herself when I told her you were coming."

Steve looked from Michelle to Waverly, confusion painted all over his face. Michelle led them into her home while Waverly muttered a soft, "Just wait," to the super soldier.

Michelle led Steve and Waverly through her house, to a staircase. She explained how she lived with her husband, their teenage son, and her elderly mother. They had converted the attic into a suite for her mother. Steve followed the woman as she led them up to said suite. He kept glancing back at Waverly but all he got in return where mischievous smiles.

They reached the attic door and Michelle knocked softly. "Mother," she called, "he's here."

Steve heard a voice laden with age and a British accent answered back, telling Michelle to send him in. Michelle opened the door and stepped aside, gesturing Steve inside the room. The captain gave one last confused look at Waverly who simply urged him forward.

So Steve entered the room. Sitting in a rocking chair near the small attic window was an elderly woman wrapped in a blanket. Her hair was snow white and her face was etched with wrinkles; but still, Steve recognized her. He stopped a few paces short from the woman's chair. He felt his mouth drop open and knew his eyes must be the size of golf balls.

His heart was pounding against his rib cage and Steve feared that if he said the woman's name, she would vanish and be lost from him forever. He took another tentative step forward and took a breath before uttering her name. "Peggy?"

The woman had tears in her chocolate brown eyes. She nodded. "Yes, Steve. It's me."

Steve let out his breath and actually dropped to his knees. "Oh my God. I can't believe it's you."

Peggy let out a raspy laugh. "Oh Steve," she said, "You always were one for the dramatics." She rose shakily from her chair and crossed to Steve who stood and steadied her with one of his massive hands. He guided her to a cushy sofa near the room's other window.

"When they told me they had found you, I almost didn't believe it." Peggy said. "But, here you are. You don't look a day over twenty three."

"Peggy," Steve said softly. He brushed a stray strand of white hair from her face. "After all these years, you are still beautiful."

Peggy's cheeks tinged the slightest shade of pink. "Steve," she said with a playful eye roll. "You are far too kind. I know I am old. I am not the woman I once was."

Steve opened his mouth to object, but Peggy continued. "I know you loved me," she said, her voice quiet. "I loved you too. Part of me still loves you. But after the war, life had to move on. I never stopped hoping that you'd come back, but life goes on."

Steve nodded. "I'm sorry I broke our date." His blue eyes fell to the floor and, ever the shy one, he blushed.

"Steve," Peggy took one of Steve's hands in her shriveled old ones. "Don't blame yourself for anything that's happened. Life had to go on. You understand? It is so good to see you, to know you are alive. You're what this world needs, now more than ever." Peggy took a hand and gently turned Steve's face back to face hers. "You are a great man and a brilliant soldier. But, you and I, we are from different times now. You need to embrace your new role. I know you can do it, Steve. You've done it once before."

Steve nodded, placing one of his hands on Peggy's cheek as well. "I know." Still, Steve couldn't help the tears forming in his blue eyes.

Peggy leaned forward and gently kissed Steve on the opposite cheek, still caressing the other one. "You will always be my Captain America," she said. "I have my family now and you have a new one as well." Peggy looked over Steve's shoulder and nodded towards Waverly who was still out on the staircase with Michelle.

"It just means so much that I got to see you again," Steve said. "I've been trying to adjust. There's so much wrong in this new world that I want to fix."

Peggy nodded.

"I just, I had written you a letter. If I had known, I would have brought it." Steve looked down in disappointment. Behind him, he heard Waverly quietly enter the room. She fiddled around in her jacket pocket before producing the letter Steve had written to Peggy. She handed it to the solider and back quietly out of the room.

It didn't occur to Steve to question how Waverly got the letter or why she had it. He instead unfolded the paper and handed it to Peggy. The woman read each of the soldier's lines, tears gathering in the wrinkles around her eyes. When she was finished, she folded up the letter and placed it in the pocket of her thick, pink robe.

"Thank you, Steve," she said. "You were my partner too."


Back at the apartment, Steve and Waverly were eating pizza that they had picked up on the way home for dinner. Waverly was beside herself with giddiness. Steve had not stopped smiling since they left Peggy's daughter's house. At first, he showed some sadness, after all, Peggy was right there but he still couldn't be with her. But then, he seemed rejuvenated. He told Waverly story upon story on the ride back, telling her all about Peggy.

It wasn't until half way through dinner that Steve remembered Waverly handing him the letter. His brow furrowed and he abandoned his half eaten slice of pepperoni pizza on his paper plate.

"Waverly?" He ventured. "Where did you get that letter?"

Waverly's cheeks turned bright red and the hand mark from her ex-boyfriend stood out glaringly. She wouldn't meet Steve's eyes and stuttered a bit before answering. "The other night, when you had the nightmare and left to go to the gym… well you left your light on. I went to go shut it off and I noticed the letter. So, I sort of read it."

Steve felt his own cheeks redden in a mix of anger and embarrassment. That letter consisted of his private thoughts about Peggy. Waverly just waltzed into his room and read it without his permission. He rose from the table, no longer hungry. "What gave you the right to go through my personal belongings?" Steve was pacing the kitchen, glaring at Waverly.

The girl's cheeks turned a deeper shade of red and she dropped her head in shame. "Nothing did, but – "

"But nothing! Just because we're roommates doesn't mean you can go through my stuff!"

Now Waverly rose from her chair, anger creasing her forehead. "What was I supposed to do, Steve? I had to do something! I'm supposed to be here to help you and so far I feel like we've gotten nowhere. You have to learn to deal with your problems, not run to the gym whenever you're upset."

"And what does reading my letter have to do with that?"

"I needed something! I read that letter and knew that if Peggy was still alive, she could be able to help you. I had to do it, Steve. I can't let you keep festering inside these negative feelings. Fury thinks you're suicidal, for crying out loud."

Steve wasn't sure if it was just the anger talking or if, deep down, he really was suicidal, but he snapped at Waverly, "So what if I am? Everyone I knew is gone. Peggy's the only one left and she has her own family now. Who would really miss me if I was gone?"

Waverly huffed, put her hands on her hips, and met Steve's eye. "I would." She turned on her heel, stalked to her room, and slammed her door shut.

Steve sighed and ran a hand through his hair. He dropped back into his chair and picked up his now cold piece of pizza. He tore bites angrily from the slice, refusing to think about all that had happened today.