"Good God." Peggy threw the magazine across the room into the wall, "Nat just plan it for me."
Natasha stood up and retrieved the bridal magazine. "Just ask Pepper to help!"
"But she's so busy." Peggy put her head down on her desk. They didn't make enough caffeine in the world for her life. She had a terrifying theory that the Serum made it so coffee didn't work, but she didn't want to test it. With everything happening in her life the last thing that she needed to know was that her body was betraying her, "And it feels like something I should be able to do."
"Is Steve helping?"
"Yes. We are both drowning. Inside, outside? Big, small? Traditional, Modern? Public, Private." She listed, "And I've been looking at dresses for weeks and I'm no better off." She just needed to rant for a minute.
Nat reached into her pocket and pulled her phone out, "Yeah I'm calling Pepper."
"It's probably best." Peggy mumbled.
She pulled the phone to her ear, "Hey Pepper… Peggy's having an identity crisis over the wedding… Oh really, how convenient… see you in a bit." Natasha hung up, "See. Pepper's going to fix everything."
"Thank you Natasha." Peggy kept her head down on the desk, "I swear I'm never like this. Well… I never act on it."
"What can I say, I have a gift of getting people to fess up." Natasha smirked, "How's the new apartment?"
Peggy sat up and finished her coffee cup and threw it in the trash, "It's good. We're moved in alright, not that I had much to move in. It's no Brooklynn- as Steve reminds me- but it's close."
"Brooklynn isn't Brooklynn." Natasha sat down.
"That's what we agreed on. Living there would be too much of a reminder I guess." Peggy sighed, "I made Steve decide."
"Hell's Kitchen is closer to The Tower and SHIELD." Natasha took her phone out and started playing a random game. "Have you talked to the team after Ward lately?"
Peggy scoffed, "No. Coulson took me off the team for the time being. I mean there's nothing he can do to keep me from snooping, but I haven't been cleared by a single doctor or Psychiatrist to go back in the field. I mean if I ever got a look at the rat again, I'd really test out how indestructible my new foot is. I'd-"
"I think we get it.." Natasha stopped her, "When we catch the guy, I swear the line to punch him in the face is going to be a mile long."
Peggy scoffed, "If Bobbi and Hunter don't kill him first. There's no one left to deal with him that wouldn't deal with it personally. Steve can hardly handle people not opening the door for each other. If he gets his hand on him."
Peggy's assistant stuck his head in, "Should I order lunch for you?"
"No thank you Eric." She looked at the time, "I imagine I'll be going out."
He left as quickly as he came. Natasha chuckled, "Taking advantage of Director Power. Leaving for lunch?" She said like it was a scandal.
"I know." Peggy gasped playing along with Natasha, "It's quite a slippery slope to embezzlement isn't it?"
Peggy sat at the conference table next to Pepper's office. But it was still too high end for her tastes. She was on her phone sending a text to Steve, "I'm with Pepper and Nat doing wedding Plans. Any new thoughts?"
Within a few moments-someone else must be texting for him- "Yes actually. I'd like to be married. And I'd like to be married to you."
"Not helpful, but I'll make the note."
Peggy put the phone down, "As usual Steve has no major opinions about the whole thing. Oh, other than he wants to be married to me." She was sure to carry on his unhelpful request.
"Well at least you don't have to worry about that." Natasha added.
Pepper came in carrying a binder and an armful of magazines. "No. For the love of God no more magazines."
Pepper ignored her plea and put them down on the table anyway, "Just hang in there. This binder is yours… and Steve's too. But in here is a checklist of all the things you need to decide. Then there's the matter of the dress… which I mean you can't get a dress until you know where you're having the wedding."
"Why not?" Peggy inquired.
"Because it might affect what you-" Pepper stopped herself, "Baby Steps Peggy."
"Baby steps." Peggy repeated.
Pepper sat next to Peggy and opened the binder, "Do you know what month you're thinking about?"
Peggy crossed her hands. She couldn't tell if the list in front of her was longer or shorter than she suspected, "July. That's enough time to get everything together right?"
"7 months is great." Pepper assured her, "Big wedding or Small wedding?"
It felt like a vice was slowly securing itself around Peggy's temples. She tried to rub them so it would go away, "Small." The answer sounded steady, "I mean… neither of us know too many people. But do we invite everyone or do we just invite a few people. Or what if we want it to be private but the press show up anyway. And what if it's a terrible party-" Peggy started to spiral, "Or I look ridiculous stupid dress that makes me look like someone's great grandmother! I should be worrying about the 500 other things the world needs to me. Trying to figure out how to keep people safe when it seems like the only thing the world wants is another war!-"
"Hey!" Pepper got her to stop, "Who are you?"
"What?" Peggy looked up from her stress rant.
"Who are you." She made a gesture like Peggy should get on with it.
She wasn't sure where this was going, "Peggy Carter?"
"Right! You're Peggy Carter. Agent Peggy Carter. Director Peggy Carter. You took down the Nazi's, you kicked ass in heels and you make us all look terrible in red Lipstick. And you know what?"
"What?" Peggy saw for the first time why Tony sounded equal parts infatuated and terrified of Pepper.
"You're getting married to Steve. This wedding shouldn't be happening. If you two weren't incredibly lucky you'd be some old lady by now and Steve would be Steve. And that's what this is about."
"Me being old?" Peggy lost her trail.
"It's about You and Steve. It's not about dresses, or venue's, or months, or guests, or media. This is You having the wedding little Peggy Carter and tiny Steve Rogers dreamed about…"
Natasha nodded, "He strikes me as the kind of guy who thought about that kind of stuff."
"He did." Peggy nodded.
Pepper continued on her crusade to boost Peggy up, "So I swear to god if you plan this wedding to make someone other than Steve happy… I will… do something." The threat didn't fall through. Pepper doing an ominous something seemed to be a good motivation. "Understood?"
"Yes Ma'am."
She gave a small nod, "Good. Now, Big wedding or a small wedding?"
"Small." Peggy answered as Pepper happily jotted down notes.
Natasha looked at Pepper astounded and impressed, "You know I've been trained in interrogation tactics by 3 different secret intelligence organizations, and have used that training in the field… but that was the best interrogation I believe I've ever seen from a civilian."
"Thank you." Pepper sat up straight.
Peggy walked through the door to their flat and locked the door behind her, "Darling I'm home."
"You're early!" He called from the living room.
She put her work bag down on the kitchen island and removed her coat to put in the closet, "I was going to do some work here later. Anything I can get at the office I can get here."
Steve walked out from the living room with tousled wet hair, "Bucky just went to get some food, I can have him get you something still."
"I'll be fine, the girls and I ate while we were planning our wedding." She said with excitement. Something the subject was never able to warrant before.
"Did everything go well?" He spoke hesitantly.
"Pepper had to give me an ultimatum but yes. It went well." She pulled out the binder from her work bag. "In here contains Pepper's ideas for the wedding. We are to look at it, make notes and then she will make the arrangements."
"She's okay with doing all of that?" Steve took the binder.
Peggy nodded, "Turns out, she enjoys this kind of thing. And since we'd both rather boot camp again before handling this stuff on our own-"
"That's an understatement." Steve chuckled.
"I'm going to go take a bath," She pulled him in for a kiss, "And I'll try not to fall asleep in it."
He put some of her hair back in its proper place, "If you're tired, you should sleep. The world won't collapse with you taking a nap."
"Maybe you're right." on cue she yawned.
Steve kissed the top of her head, "I know."
The bathroom in their apartment was huge by their standards. Why there needed to be so much space, she didn't know, but the space allowed for an luxurious bathtub. It was in the tub while the bubbles swallowed her whole that she decided the future was a wonderful place.
"Peggy!" Steve called through the door.
"Yes, Darling?" He kept speaking but she couldn't make much out, "Just come in!"
He hesitated then walked in. His face was bright red from embarrassment and he looked everywhere but at her.
"For God's sake man, just look at me." She teased, "You've seen me more exposed than this."
"That's different." He had a sheepish grin, "But I won't refuse your demand."
"What can I help you with?" she said with fake professionalism.
He looked her, taking note of the details the bubbles weren't covering and filling in the gaps with what he knew to be true, "Yah know.. I don't remember."
She chuckled, "That's alright, you just saved me from falling asleep."
"Oh, Coulson wanted to know if you were busy. I told him you were." He shrugged.
"I am very busy." Peggy stretched then sank a few extra inches in the tub. "Was it urgent."
Steve sat on the edge of the tub, "I don't think so. Hell, anything could be I suppose."
"I need to set up an urgency scale. Like a No calls under a level 7 when I'm relaxing. Policy."
He nodded, "Seems logical."
"Is Bucky back?"
He nodded, "Yeah he's picking something to watch. You know there's this thing that has like hundreds shows? It even has old movies."
"Well there goes my weekend." she smiled, "I'll be out soon."
Steve stood up and put her phone on the edge of the tub, safely away from falling in. "No rush."
Peggy took a deep breath before slipping all the way into the water to get her hair wet and have a final moment of peace.
"Why are new movies so depressing?" Peggy asked with a handful of popcorn they made. Microwaves: Who knew. "And this is a cartoon about fish!"
Bucky reached over Steve and took a handful, "I don't know, our movies were sad too."
Steve took the bucket so they could each reach it easily, "Yeah, remember when we went to go see Dumbo?"
"Please no." Bucky pleaded.
"I had to walk him out of the theater." Steve laughed, "I had to go back the next day to see the end."
"I swear to god Steve, if you tell Nat-"
"She already knows." Steve grinned.
Peggy leaned on Steve's shoulder, "A sensitive side is good." The movie carried on undisturbed until her phone went off, "Sorry-". It was Coulson, "Hello?"
"Director. There's some new information we found."
"Please tell me good news Phil."
"We are moving into the next phase of the operation… When can you get here?"
Peggy looked at the time, "We can be there before the end of the day."
"Sounds good.
She looked at Steve and Bucky, "They located Ward."
Bucky stood up from the couch and cracked his one real hand, "Let's go get this bastard."