Chapter Text
The pain was more bearable than Peggy had expected. Slightly. Sure, it still hurt like accidentally stabbing herself with a thousand sewing needles while simultaneously swallowing scalding hot tea, but she lived. And she was now tall enough to look her coworkers in the eye without straining, so that was a plus.
Of course, that didn’t matter when she was essentially exiled from any work of significance that the Allies were doing. It was frustrating, the fact that she had the potential to make a difference but she still wasn’t being listened to, just because she was a woman. This wasn’t what Dr. Erskine would have wanted his work to come to. At one point, she almost considered agreeing to those humiliating USO tours. At least then she’d be doing something rather than banging against a seemingly unbreakable glass ceiling.
And then Steve came to the rescue. Steve, who was supposed to be the one in her shoes, who had every right to resent her for spoiling his chance to be the Allies’ golden boy, but instead kept smiling at her like he’d always done, like she’d hung the moon and stars. It was far from the way most men smiled at her, with a sort of predatory look as if they believed they could take her down in seconds rather than take orders from her. Please. Even before the serum, Peggy could overpower any of them without breaking a nail. But Steve looked at her as if he was surprised she even noticed him. Like he treasured every moment her focus was on him, in case it was the last and she would move on to someone taller and less likely to keel over. And that made Peggy want to seek out every person who made Steve feel invisible and slap them to kingdom come.
Steve had a plan. Well, it was less of a plan and more insubordination that could get them both discharged. But Peggy could excuse a spot of insubordination if it meant stopping Hydra from getting hold of an immensely dangerous power source. Plus, Steve had apparently been sweet-talking Howard Stark, and they’d struck up quite a friendship. Steve appreciated Howard’s technical genius and dry wit, while Howard basked in the praise Steve fed him and connected with his tendency to bend the rules to his will. Honestly, watching them converse was exhausting. But it resulted in a rather dashing – if a little conspicuous – suit and a shield that turned out to be pretty useful. And immediately after that first successful mission came the news that Steve’s best friend and dozens of other soldiers were captured behind enemy lines, and the army had no plans to help them.
Peggy found Howard in his workshop. He had spent the past couple of days holed up in there, with no sleep and barely any food (just a sandwich that Steve and Peggy basically had to force-feed him), but with the amount he was buzzing with excitement about his new project – what seemed to be a giant robot – someone who didn’t know him as well as Peggy did would easily mistake him for having just awoken from a full night’s sleep. “Have you seen Steve?” Peggy asked him.
Howard turned off his blowtorch and flipped up his visor. “Hmm?”
“Have you seen Steve?” Peggy repeated.
“Yeah, he was down here a couple hours ago, but he left. I was probably too loud for him.” Howard’s expression softened. “He’s fragile, Peg. I’m kinda worried about him.”
“Me too,” Peggy said. “I’m worried that he’s going to end up doing something stupid that will get him killed.”
“Oh, he’ll do something stupid alright,” Howard said. “But we’re gonna make sure he doesn’t get killed.”
Peggy rolled her eyes. “Sometimes I wish you two had never met. That way you wouldn’t be able to encourage each other.”
“Hey, Peg?” Howard called as Peggy was leaving the workshop. “When you find Steve, can you send him down here? I got something for him that might lift his spirits.”
Eventually, Peggy came across Steve in a deserted corridor, staring blankly at the wall. She cleared her throat as she approached, and Steve jumped. “Oh, hi, Peggy. You gave me a fright,” he said softly.
“Are you alright?” Peggy asked.
“No,” Steve said with a dry laugh. “Growing up, Bucky was my only friend. He looked after me when I was sick, he got me food when I couldn’t find work, and his family practically took me in when my ma passed. He is the most important person in the world to me. I don’t know if I can live without him.”
“Which is why you won’t have to,” Peggy said. “I’m going to rescue him.”
Steve gaped at her. “Are you kidding? That’s suicide!”
“Someone has to at least try and release those men. I’m not going to sit here and let the Allied forces give up on them when I could be out there, making a difference.”
Steve searched her face for a moment before sighing. Peggy assumed that Steve had realised that there was no changing her mind. “Alright. I suppose if I was in your position, I’d do the same. Just… don’t die.”
Peggy smiled her best ‘don’t worry about me’ smile. “I’ll make an effort not to. Oh, and Howard wants to see you. He said he has something for you that might cheer you up.”
Steve raised an eyebrow at her. “It’ll take something pretty big to do that.”