"Steve, wake up."
Peggy's voice flowed into his ears, slowly forcing his eyes open. He looked around, still a bit groggy.
"How long…"
"Over 10 hours." Peggy said, smiling. "It's morning already. I hope you rested well. Any dreams?"
Steve moved a bit, now sitting more upright in his seat. He looked around and saw that Jarvis and Dugan were not inside the tank, while Howard was slumped forward, snoring quietly.
"No, maybe for the better. Where's the rest?"
"I guess so." Peggy said, with a quiet sigh, before continuing. "I sent the two to get some supplies for us before we move out."
"New mission?" Steve asked immediately.
"No, we're just regrouping to await further orders. God knows where they send us next, to be honest. Heard rumours about Cherbourg, but nothing more than that."
"It would make sense."
"From my experience, nothing in war ever makes sense." Peggy retorted. Silence blanketed them for a moment, before Peggy spoke again.
"Do you have anyone back home to go back to?"
"Not really." Steve answered, lowering his head. "Dad died before I was born, mom not soon after. And girls don't want to date someone they can step on." he chuckled "Bucky is the only link I have to home."
"He must mean a lot to you."
"Yes, he does. And how about you?"
Peggy didn't answer immediately, reaching for a cigarette and lighting it.
"There is a reason I'm here and not back in England." she said, inhaling the smoke. "I don't remember my father, he died when I was a toddler. The rest of the family helped, but then the war came around. I lost my mother and my siblings in the Blitz. After that there was no reason to stay back, so I enlisted. Cue Africa, Italy, and now I'm here." Steve was sure he could see her fighting back tears. However, they didn't drop.
"Must have been hell for you." he said, sympathetically.
"The first year or so was." she said, puffing out smoke. "After that you move on, focus on what the future brings."
Their discussion was then interrupted by a loud banging noise to the side and Dugan entering the tank with a crate in his hands.
"I'm back, fellas!" Dugan exclaimed, loudly. Howard suddenly sprang back into a seating position, groaning.
"God damn it, why do you have to always be so loud?" he exclaimed, rubbing his eyes.
"I managed to snag some HVAP rounds from the Tank Destroyer battalion, I think I deserve some recognition here!" Dugan retorted, his voice happy.
"Good job." Peggy said. "Mr. Jarvis?"
"Rations and water, as you requested Ms. Carter. We still have enough fuel, so I didn't inquire too much about it."
"Fine." She took the last whiff from the cigarette and squashed it against the turret wall. "Load everything in here and then take positions. We're still waiting for concrete orders."
"You think we'll meet some Krauts today?" Howard asked.
"That remains to be seen, doesn't it?" Peggy answered.
Half an hour later, they were back on the road. The engineers managed to somehow fix Thompson's tank, so it returned to the lead position in the column. The drive took them towards Cherbourg, confirming Peggy's speculations. She knew well how badly the Allies needed to capture a sea port on the French coast capable of unloading tons of supplies from hundreds of merchant ships. Cherbourg ticked all those boxes. The ride up to that point was fairly uneventful, save for columns of French civilians moving deeper into Allied lines, trying to escape the horrors of war. It was close to 3 PM when the calm was shattered.
Suddenly, the tank directly behind Peggy's exploded. Its turret popped off the hull like a champagne cork and then slammed down on the ground upside down. Flames shot up from the hole in the hull as the wreck lost momentum and stopped. Immediately, Peggy felt their tank swerve of the road into the bushes nearby.
"What the fuck was that?" Dugan asked, terrified.
"I didn't see it… wait, I have it. AT gun, three o'clock, 700 meters".
"Roger, traversing" Jarvis replied, his tone calm.
Peggy then saw a flash from the barrel of the enemy gun. The shell fell short, digging itself into the ground.
"Load HE!" Peggy commanded.
"Clear!" Dugan shouted, pushing the shell into the breech.
"Fire!" Peggy shouted, louder than she expected. She observed as the gun recoiled and the shell whizzed through the air, hitting the enemy emplacement. A large explosion confirmed that the hit was successful.
"Target destroyed." Suddenly, Peggy heard bullets whizzing over her head, coming from the front of the column. She saw tracers flying from both sides, and soon both tanks that were ahead of hers in the column fired their main guns in unison.
"We have infantry to the front. HE, again. Steve, get ready." Peggy said, as she prepared her own machine gun. When the Sherman joined the other two, she saw what the fuss was about. In the field stood an abandoned tank, a Panzer IV with two holes visible in the front armor. Around it were dozens of foxholes, from which the Germans fired back, although rifle bullets could only chip off the paint off a Sherman. Suddenly, one of the soldiers sprang from the foxhole, holding a long, metal tube propped on his shoulder.
"Panzerschreck!" Peggy yelled, pressing the trigger on her machine gun. The bullets cut the soldier in half, but before that he managed to press the trigger. The rocket whizzed a meter to the left of the tank before exploding after hitting a tree. The loss seemed to finally crumble the enemy's morale, as some sprang from the foxholes trying to escape, only to be cut down by the concentrated Allied firepower. Others waited a moment before raising their hands and yelling loudly.
Nicht schießen! Bitte, nicht schießen!
Peggy gestured at them to come closer, while at the same time grabbing her personal weapon and aiming it at the approaching Germans.
"If any of them tries to shoot or do something stupid, shoot them, Steve." She said, her tone calm.
A moment later, the new prisoners of war formed a line. They were all a miserable sight – dirty, with bags under their eyes, their head hanging low. Peggy climbed down from the tank and moved up to the one in the officers uniform – a captain, by the look of his stripes. She noted the Iron Cross hanging on his neck and a few other pins on his jacket.
Von welchem Division sind Sie, Hauptmann? She asked, her tone leaving no room for objection.
The officer didn't respond at first, before levelling his gaze with Peggy's eyes. Behind his eyes she saw nothing but hatred and fire.
Ich will dir nichts sagen, verdammte Ami Hure. He spat out, hatred palpable in his words.
Peggy didn't answer. Instead, she punched him with full force, smirking slightly when she heard his nose crunch under her fist. The officer fell down, clutching the bleeding body part. The rest of the prisoners shuddered.
Ich bin aus England, Dummkopf. She said, punctuating the last two words. She aimed the Thompson at the rest, which caused them to stumble slightly and raise their hands higher. She spoke again.
Kann jemand von euch auf meine Frage antworten?
Wir sind aus der 709er Infanterie Division, spoke the youngest looking German. He couldn't have been older than 17. Wir hatten Befehle, nach Cherbourg sich zu bewegen, aber wir sind von Flugzeuge angegriffen worden. Dann haben wir hier die Stellungen vorbereitet, aber jetzt haben Sie uns. He ended his little speech with a shrug of his shoulders.
Danke sehr. Peggy answered. Alle, komm mit mir. Sie auch, Hauptmann.
The officer stood up, defeated. He quickly joined the rest of the group as Peggy escorted them back to the road.
Steve watched the whole spectacle with his eyes wide open. His respect for Peggy rose even higher, and seeing her knock down a smug German officer was oddly satisfying. Howard must have seen his slightly sheepish expression, as he nudged him lightly on the shoulder.
"Enjoyed the view?" he asked, smirking.
"Most definitely." Steve answered, smirking himself now.
A/N - Translations for the German phrases:
Nicht schießen! Bitte, nicht schießen! - Don't shoot! Please, don't shoot!
Von welchem Division sind Sie, Hauptmann? - From what division are you, Captain?
Ich will dir nichts sagen, verdammte Ami Hure. - I won't tell you anything, you fucking American whore.
Ich bin aus England, Dummkopf. - I'm from England, idiot.
Kann jemand von euch auf meine Frage antworten? - Can anyone of you answer my question?
Wir sind aus der 709er Infanterie Division. Wir hatten Befehle, nach Cherbourg sich zu bewegen, aber wir sind von Flugzeuge angegriffen worden. Dann haben wir hier die Stellungen vorbereitet, aber jetzt haben Sie uns. - We're from the 709th Infantry Division. We had orders to move towards Cherbourg, but we were attacked by aircraft. Then we prepared the defences here, and now you got us.
Danke sehr. Alle, komm mit mir. Sie auch, Hauptmann. - Thank you very much. Everyone, come with me. You too, Captain.