Peggy's PoV

As Dr. Hill checked her stitches, Peggy had to stop herself from giggling. She felt like a silly lovesick teenager who was swooning over a secret. And she has to admit; she didn't hate the feeling.

"What's got you in such a dandy mood at this time of the mornin'?

Peggy looked over to Nora who was grinning at her knowingly.

"Nothing, just happy to be home," she replied with a small smile, her eyes dropping down her cast as the Doctor checked the stitches on her chest.

"Uh huh, suuuure."

Once the Agent had received the all-clear from Dr. Hill, he packed up his kit and headed on his way to another house call, leaving Nora to clean up the rest before going on her rounds.

"So," Nora asked, turning to make sure the Doctor had left. "Did you have fun last night?"

Peggy raised a brow.

"What?"

"Well, I'm presumin' by the fact that there are two of everythin' out. I mean, two glasses in the sink, two mugs-," Nora pointed to the table. "-or was that this mornin'?" She asked, with a wink.

The Agent gave her a dirty look.

"Oh shut up."

"What? No goss? You sure?"

Peggy just looked at her.

"Look, Peggy. I ain't gonna tell no one. Hell," she threw her hand up. "I don't really have any friends, anyways."

The Agent bit her lip, looking over at the door. She sighed, figuring it would be nice to have at least one girlfriend she could talk to about that stuff.

"If you must know-" she started in hushed tones. "-he slept on the couch."

Nora's face lit up at the fact that Peggy had shared.

"Whatever you say, Carter. Whatever you say," the Nurse mocked, nudging her with her elbow.

Peggy tutted, rolling her eyes as the Nurse began putting a sling on her.

"And you do have a friend, Nora." The woman smiled at her as she tied the knot in the sling. "Yeah, Howard was saying you too are pretty close."

"Haha, very funny."

Peggy laughed as Nora gave her a dirty look and soon the Nurse joined in.

"Ah, you're okay, I guess, Nora..." She dragged out the nurse's name, silently asking her to fill in her surname.

"Williams," she offered with a laugh. "You're alright too, I guess, Peggy Carter," she said with a grin, packing up the last few things into her bag.

"You know what they say," Peggy said, picking up the mugs and bringing them to the sink. "Keep your friends close and your enemies closer."

"Oh hush," Nora said with a giggle. "And just so you know, if you say he slept on the couch, then he slept on the couch. I'm not here to judge," she added with a warm smile.

"Thanks Nora and likewise."

"Anytime, Peg." She picked up her bag and moved towards the door. "I'll see ya around."

"Feel free to call over anytime," Peggy called, turning around, a cloth in her hand to wipe down the table once her friend had left.

"I will. And hey, if Mr. He-Slept-On-The-Couch is over and you're busy, just put a sock on the door an-"

The nurse was cut off by Peggy throwing the cloth at her.

"Get out, Williams."

Nora let out a yelp as the cloth collided with her face. She shoved it off her, fixing her hair with a smile.

"I'm only pullin' your leg, Carter," she said with a laugh, her hand on the door knob and the cloth that was thrown at her head now on the floor beside her. "Feel free to drop by the infirmary whenever!"

"Mmm hmmm," Peggy said with a crooked smile as her new friend waved goodbye and left.

The Agent scoffed to herself as she bent to pick up the cloth before going to get ready for work, a smile still on her lips.

*

After fighting with her blouse to get her cast through her sleeve and successfully getting dressed on her own without bursting any stitches, Peggy hailed a cab and headed to S.H.I.E.L.D.

There was no way she would miss that interrogation.

It was only as she made her way down the corridor towards the interrogation rooms that she realised that she didn't actually know what time it was to start at. For all she knew, it could have been over already, but she wasn't going to give up the opportunity to see it on the off chance she had missed it.

As she rounded the corner to the rooms, she heard a loud crash as someone slammed through the viewing room door. And that someone looked awfully familiar.

"Steve?"

The blond didn't stop. He didn't even seem fazed by her calling his name. His jaw was set, his hands in fists.

That was not a good sign.

Suddenly, he burst through the interrogation room door and out of sight.

"Oh no."

She hurried after him, moving as quickly as her damaged body would let her. Peggy reached the door, pausing there for a second, just as the Russian hit the wall.

"Steve!" She shouted. "Steve, stop it!"

McCabe ran past her as Peggy willed her aching body forward.

"What are you talkin' about," the Captain spat.

"The famous Steve," the Russian replied matter-of-factly. "The one the Asset used to scream for every night. At least, until we fixed that."

The HYDRA Agent sneered at the super-soldier, despite the hold the latter had on him.

Or at least he did, until Steve squeezed.

The Russian spluttered as the Captain gripped his neck tighter, pulling his free hand back and ramming it into his face over and over again. Punch after punch rained down on the face of the now reddening Russian.

McCabe rushed to rip Steve off him, as did the Colonel, but Peggy knew him, knew how he'd react. She knew how best to stop him, how best to calm him. She put on arm out to stop the two.

"He's going to kill him," McCabe hissed.

"Steve, stop."

"McCabe, give her a shot. This better work, Carter, or so help me," the Colonel said quietly.

She moved to the Captain's side, watching as he punched him for the sixth and seventh time.

"Steve," she spoke softly. "Steve, Darling, look at me."

The Captain paused, his fist mid-air as he slowly turned his head to look at her, blood splattered across his face here and there.

"Steve, that's enough," she said softly, but with authority.

His eyes were wild as he searched her's, his pupils blown wide as he gradually nodded his head, lowering his fist and loosening his grip.

The Russian Agent's breath came out in rasps now, his face well and truly messed up. And yet somehow, he still managed to speak.

"She has you trained like a dog, Steve," he croaked. "She-"

The broken-up man was cut off as Steve slammed his head against his, knocking him out cold and dropping his limp form to the ground.

The Captain slowly stepped back from the heap of a man, hesitating for a moment before wrapping his sense around her, pulling her tight against his chest. She could feel his heart racing, his whole body shaking and so she put her good hand over his heart, silently willing him to calm down.

"Carter," she heard the Colonel behind her.

"Come on, Steve. Let's go somewhere more quiet, hmm?"

Peggy led her love out of the room, her arm around his waist as they headed to Howard's office.

They had some explaining to do.

*

They sat in Howard's office in silence; Steve and Peggy in the chairs and Howard leaning at the edge of the desk; the same places they were before their first mission back together.

It seemed like such a long time had passed since that day. Her whole world was turned upside down. And yet, somehow, it still felt like it had only been two days.

She sat with her legs crossed, her hand resting in her lap, her other still in its sling, as she watched the other two. Howard wouldn't meet her gaze, neither would Steve. Her boyfriend had his head in his hands, dried blood still dusting his knuckles as he sat hunched forward in the chair. Her friend just leaned against the desk, taking a sudden, but extremely focused interest in his own hands.

She just sat there quietly, absentmindedly playing with the leg of her most comfortable trousers.

Peggy knew they wanted to say something, to address the elephant in the room, but they just didn't seem to know how or what to say.

If she was completely honest with herself, she didn't know what she wanted them to say, if anything at all. It would change anything. It wouldn't make the scars she would be left with disappear, but she knew that they cared and, at that moment, that was really enough.

After another moment, Peggy cleared her throat and sat up, the silence getting to an uncomfortable stage.

"So, did I miss anything before Steve started dishing out knuckle sandwiches?"

Howard's gaze flickered up to her, his mouth open and closing like a fish, as if he wanted to say something, but every time he went to say it, he thought better of it. He pursed his lips for a second before Steve piped up.

"Blood. Somethin' about blood," he said quietly, sitting up slightly, his elbows on his knees, his hands clasped in front of him.

"Blood?" She asked looking between them both.

"It was the package. The one given to Ormand," Howard said, with a creased brow.

"Do you know who's blood?"

"The Soviet doesn't know, or at least that's what he's sayin'. But I-" Howard paused for a second, looking at Steve, who had taken an interest in the floor and back at Peggy. "-I think I've an idea who's blood it is."

"Who's?" She asked, leaning back in her chair.

"I think..." He paused again, looking back at the Captain. "Steve, I think it's yours."

The super-soldier looked up at him and then at Peggy for the first time since sitting down, as much shock uncertainty in his wide eyes as he was sure was in hers.

"Howard," she whispered. "How can you be sure?" She asked, her eyes not leaving those of her love.

"I can't. S.H.I.E.L.D.- back in the S.S.R. days- took loads of samples of your blood after Erskine died, which I'm sure you both remember. Some they used for experiment, I got a few, and I think one or two were kept in storage. But all that was back when Steve first got the serum. They were tryin' to recreate it. Still are. I have one left, but only I know where it is and believe me it's saf-"

"Howard, the point," Peggy said impatiently.

"Right, sorry. What I'm sayin' is, they used up their supply in no time, so there were those two in storage that I know of, but when Cap defrosted, they insisted on takin' more samples and I don't know how many. I don't know who has them or where they were stored. For all we know, anyone could have gotten to them; a S.H.I.E.L.D. Agent, an outsider... A HYDRA Agent..."

"Oh my god," Peggy whispered, her hand covering her mouth.

"That has to be it," Steve muttered, his knees bouncing as he pursed his lips. "It has to be. How else would they get it." He took in a shaky breath, hands moving to his face, covering him mouth and sliding up to his forehead. "After everything I did to stop HYDRA and they're still five steps ahead," Peggy could only watch as he ran his had through is hair, gripping it tightly. "After everythin' Dr. Erskine did to stop them from getting the serum and now they have the key to it. After all this time, after everythin' Erkine wanted me to do, I'm still a damn lab experiment." He sighed. All Peggy wanted to do was take his pain away, her heart aching as she watched him hurting. "He shoulda picked Hodge. He might've actually finished it; stopped HYDRA once and for all. Saved the world. Saved Bucky. Saved-"

"Steve. Steve, stop," she pleaded with him, moving to kneel beside him, nodding to Howard who understood and headed out of the room. "Steve, Darling. Listen to me," she put her hand on top of his, trying to loosen his grip on his hair. "Erskine never would have picked Hodge. Not in a million years. He is a bully, an arrogant pig when he wants to be. He might have been a perfect soldier, but that's it." Steve didn't loosen his hold. His jaw was set tight, his eyes screwed shut, his whole body tense. She hated seeing him like this. It make her heart break. She could feel tears stinging the back of her eyes as she tried to convince him. "Steve, those are not the traits the Doctor wanted. He wanted someone true to themselves, someone compassionate, empathetic. Someone who knew the true value of strength." She squeezed his hand under hers. "He was looking for a good man, Steve," she whispered, smoothing her thumb across the back of his hand. "And he found that in you. And, so did I," she my moved her hand down to his forearm. "Maybe not in the same way," she said with a small laugh, smiling when he saw him loosen his grip slightly. "Sweetheart, what happened to Bucky was not your fault. You did your bet by your friend. There's no way you could have known he survived," she whispered.

She cupped his cheek in her hand, smoothing her thumb across his cheekbone.

He looked at her just then, his eyes filled with tears, seeming to scream out in the pain he was feeling. She felt like she was being stabbed in the heart. And when he spoke, his voice was so small and quiet that she almost couldn't hold it together.

"But I couldn't save you," he whispered.

She smiled at his sadly, a tear falling down her cheek.

"Oh but you did, Steve. You did, my Darling. More than you will ever know."

"I-I wasn't there. I couldn't protect you from there. I should have been there. I shouldn't have let it happen. I couldn't even protect you from me," he said quietly, his gaze dropping to the floor, following the tears that fell.

"Steve, you might not believe you saved me on that mission, but you did. Do you know how?"

He didn't answer. Peggy didn't stop her tears falling now.

"You saved me because I knew that I had you waiting for me and that all I had to do was survive a bit longer and I'd be with you. You saved me, Steve. You were that last bit of strength that I found that let me keep breathing. You always save me, Steve," she whispered, letting her fingers brush his hair out of his eyes. "Even when you think you don't, you do."

He looked up at her again, his beautiful, broken blue eyes searching hers as more tears fell from his long lashes, matching the steady flow of her own.

"I'm so sorry," he said quietly, reaching his bloody hand up, gently brushing his fingertips along his cheek.

"Shhh," she soothed. "You don't need to be sorry."

His fingertips continued to trace gently along her cheek as if she were a piece of china and he was afraid she would shatter in his hands. The Captain's fingers dusted ever so softly over her bruises until his hand rested at her jaw, leaning forward so his forehead almost touched hers.

"I am so, so sorry, Peggy."

"Steve," she started, trying to stop him, but he continued.

"For everythin'. For leavin', for comin' back, for ruinin' everythin', for hurtin' you, for not savin' you, for lettin' you get hurt-"

She put her finger to his lips.

"Steven Grant Rogers," she scolded quietly. "Don't you dare apologise for coming back. Ever. Do you hear me?" She asked quietly, her voice breaking slightly. "You did not ruin one thing. You saved me by coming back. You're my everything, Steve; everything," she whispered, her voice shaking as she made him look at her. "And I love you," she said, emphasising every word against his lips.

"I love you, too."

"Well then," she said with a small smile. "That settles things."

He smiled back, a small upward tug of the corner of his lips, but it was there. It was enough. And she pressed her lips against his in a soft, but lingering love-filled kiss. One that reinforced everything she had just said to him, that told him she loved him without the need for words.

"Well, if Mr. and Mrs. Star Spangled Man with a Plan are about done?" Colonel Chester Phillips voice boomed through the room.

Peggy laughed, wiping away her tears, while Steve did the same, albeit more discreetly.

The Captain cleared his throat and the Agent stood, stepping backwards and leaning against Howard's desk.

"Sorry Colonel," Steve said, getting to his feet.

"For what, Rogers? For kissin' Carter, nearly killin' a HYDRA Agent durin' my interrogation or knowin' somethin' about the Winter Soldier and not tellin' me?"

"I-"

The Colonel stepped further into the room, holding up his hand.

"Let's skip the part where you explain why you were lockin' lips with Carter and go right to the bit where you give me reasons why I shouldn't fire your sorry ass right now for, to put it lightly, blowin' your goddamn top!" He asked, raising his voice.

Steve didn't answer for a second.

"I can't give you any reasons, Colonel. I couldn't let him talk like that."

Colonel Phillips pursed his lips for a second and sighed, putting his hand over his mouth, taking it away again to speak.

"Join the club, son, but I told him to shut his piehole. I didn't nearly kill the man."

"He went to far," Steve said, his face completely serious.

"So did you, Rogers."

Peggy looked between the Colonel and the Captain in silence, unsure of what to say to fix the situation.

"Yes, Sir. I did."

"And are you gonna apologise for what you did?"

The Captain looked him dead in the eye.

"No, Colonel. I'm not. I shouldn't have lost it, but I did. I don't like bullies, Sir, and I'd do it again if I had to 'cause he had it comin'."

Colonel Chester Phillips looked at him with a cocked head, while Peggy unsure how this was going to play out. More than anything she explode in anger, but she was wrong.

"Alright. Fair enough. Don't think you're just getting off 'cause you're you, Rogers. The only reason I haven't given you the boot is 'cause if you hadn't done it, I would have. Today's you're lucky day, Captain. You're not a wuss and you didn't get fired-"

Peggy smiled at Steve, who looked relieved.

"-yet," the Colonel added. "So, what have you two not told me about our good ol' Russian assassin friend?"

Peggy swallowed and Steve set his jaw.

"Colonel," Peggy started.

"I know who he is," the Captain interjected.

"The Winter Soldier?"

"Yes."

"You know who the Winter Soldier is?" Colonel Phillips asked, his eyebrows furrowed, his arms folded across his chest.

"Yes, Sir."

"Well why didn't you tell me god damnit! Who is it, for cryin' out loud?"

Steve looked at Peggy, his face stricken. She just nodded at him and he nodded back and turned to their senior.

"You know him yourself, Colonel. His name is Sergeant James Buchanan Barnes of the 'one-oh-seventh' infantry. Service number; 32557038. Died in 1944.

"What? That's impossible."

"It's him, Colonel. I know my best friend and it's him."

"Rogers-"

"Colonel, it is," Peggy confirmed.

"How do you know?"

"Sir, with all due respect, Ste- Captain Rogers grew up with this guy." Peggy answered. "He's known him all his life. I think if anyone knows him, he does. And I watched him fight. I might not have fought much with Barnes right by my side, but I know his stance - I know all the Commandoes' stances from seeing them fight - and although his style has changed slightly, the stance is the same."

"And so, when the Russian said he used t-to... scream my name-"

"-he was just teasin' you?" The Colonel finsihed.

Steve nodded, a solemn look taking over his face.

"Right. Jesus, Christ. Ormand does not like you. First, Howard tells me, he has your blood and now he's gone and tortured your best friend and turned into a HYDRA fighting machine-"

"And he almost stole your girlfriend while you were frozen in the ice," Peggy said quietly, her eyes on the ground, not realising she had said it aloud.

Her eyes widened as the two looked at her in shock.

She did not mean to say that.

"Oh bugger."

***

Hi guys,

Okay, I know it's been a while and for that I'm sorry. School is craaaaazzzyyy right now and I literally only just about have time to type this.

My end of year exams are in three weeks (holy god it can't only be three) and I am losing my head with stress. I missed more than I'd like to admit when I was sick at the start of the year so right now I'm trying to revise everything from the whole year and learn everything I missed. Don't get me wrong, I'm not going to go mad and stay up all night for the next three weeks. These exams aren't going to go as well as I'd like and, while I'm trying to except that, I'm a perfectionist and can't half arse stuff. I literally can't. So I need to focus on study as much as I can. That's why I haven't updated in the last month and why I'm going to take a hiatus (this month has been like a hiatus but I'm actually going to give myself a break from constantly thinking "shit I need to update" and panicking because I don't have the time to).

So yeah, I'm officially on hiatus until my exams are over and I can breathe again.

I'm sorry updates have been all over the place and thank you all for putting up with me. For now though, I need to put school and my mental health first so I'll be back when I can.

Until then, enjoy Civil War if you haven't already seen it (IT IS FECKING AMAZING)!

See you in a while, my dears.

Slán x