𝐓𝐑𝐘𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐓𝐎 𝐌𝐀𝐊𝐄 𝐌𝐄 𝐉𝐄𝐀𝐋𝐎𝐔𝐒?

༻ ❁ ༺

October 9, 1944

          IT WAS THE SUN that woke Bucky. The sun landed hard on his face, lancing through torn curtains. He groaned and curled tighter around his girl. It wasn't real. Alice was still wrapped in his arms.

He wasn't ready to wake up and have this end.

"Morning." Alice nuzzled his chest. It felt nice. The heat radiating from him. The soft fuzz of hair against her cheek. She could get used to waking up like this.

No wonder Gwen was willing to risk the consequences when it was really cold.

"Shhh." Bucky whispered, shifting her half on top of him. "It's not morning. It's the middle of the night and we have hours before I have to let you go."

"This is exactly why Gwen calls you Romeo." Alice teased, kissing his cheek. "Come on. They'll come looking for us soon."

Bucky grumbled and rolled out of bed.

Alice's mouth went dry. She hadn't actually considered what a shirtless Bucky would look like in the full light of day. Not in the context of standing over her bed, at least. Nobody could blame her for pausing to savor the view, or for wishing fervently that the conflict would end so she might take full use of it.

In response to her hungry stare, Bucky fought the impulse to lick his lips. That was the kind of look that made a man feel confident in his own skin. And it made him want to jump back on top of her and give her the taste she clearly craved.

"Getting out of bed was your idea, Sugar."

Alice cautiously drew her knees up to her chest. She couldn't tell if he was so sure of himself because he was used to waking up next to ladies or because waking up next to each other seemed natural and simple. "I've never... I've never done anything like this before."

"Kinda figured that out." Bucky chuckled as he sat next to her on the side of the bed. So his bashful and sweet girl was still in there with the minx from the night before.

Hair sticking out at all angles, obvious impressions where his fingers had been, she still looked like the minx. He couldn't stand by and watch her run around like that. People would start talking. Fortunately, he was a decent enough gentleman to be able to intervene.

"Let me fix your hair."

Alice leaned in close to him as he braided her hair down her back in a clean, tight braid. The deed didn't address any of her dozens of questions regarding their future, but it did help to calm her nerves.

Bucky loved her. It was in his touch that she sensed it. That love would be enough, no matter what the future brought.

Bucky kissed the nape of her neck, silently promising himself that he would find a way to kiss every inch of her.

He'd have to wait though. Today he had to protect her. First her reputation, then her innocence.

They'd almost certainly come across the refugees they were looking for today. The easier portion of their loop had been yesterday. They would be confronted with villages and all that involved today. "Alright. I'll be the first to descend. You must wait five minutes before following me. In the yard, we should be lining up."

  
༻ ❁ ༺
 

Around lunchtime, they discovered the promised refugees. Crouched in a grove of trees about a mile outside of one of the settlements, not in any of them.

Approximately a half-dozen families, the majority of them are made up of women and children. They were all looking a little worn out. Skinny and underweight, with troublingly visible ribs and the dark bruises and lifeless eyes Alice had come to associate with those who had seen too much.

It was worse with the children. This war has stolen from them most of all. An entire generation robbed of their innocence. They deserved so much better than this. So much better than the fear and the violence that had been part of their lives for the last few years.

She did her best to comfort them, was as gentle with them as she could be. Reassured them that they were going to be taken somewhere safe, that she and the soldiers with them would do everything they could to protect them.

Several of them were injured, but she and Gwen were able to treat them with kisses and loving smiles. The worst of them, thankfully, was an older girl with a sprained ankle. It was a relief to see her giggle as Steve swept her into a piggyback to take the weight off her leg.

It was a joy to watch all of the Howling Commandos interact with the children.

Gabe and Jacques were the standout favorites, with their soft French and broad smiles. A couple of the British, Lawrence included, joined in, singing nursery rhymes and folk songs to make the children laugh.

Bucky and the others doled out little bits of candy that they kept stashed in their pockets. That seemed to be the thing that relaxed the parents the most.

Feeding their children had been such an anxiety for so long, it had to be a weight off their shoulders to see them eating for pleasure instead of desperation.

Alice volunteered to entertain some of the younger passengers, diverting their attention away from the long ride with tales of valiant knights battling the armies of a many-headed monster.

Children needed heroes now more than ever, symbols of hope in an uncertain future, heroes to believe in when the world around them was crumbling down.

So, much to Peggy's delight, she mythologized the Howling Commandos' exploits, incorporating aspects of Greek mythology and Arthurian romance, as well as a Lady Knight named Margaret.

Bucky's heart warmed as he observed her animated narration. He had never seen her with children before. She was a natural. He couldn't help but see her cradling their child and wonder how many she wanted.

More than once she caught him glancing at her as she continued her tale, and could not help but smile back at him. There was her brave and loyal archer, who always guarded the back of the noble Knight-Captain.

She thought it was fun to add the fantastic elements to their journeys. Steve and her Bucky, in especially, appeared to have stepped out of a fairytale.

So why shouldn't she romanticize them a bit? The children certainly didn't seem to mind.

They were especially amused by her stories of the other knights, particularly the Knight who was so enamored of the gleaming helm he wore that he once faced down a lightning-spewing dragon to keep it.

Bucky, recognizing the description of Dugan, chuckled and nodded in his direction so that the young girl he was carrying would catch the reference as well, earning a giggle.

Dugan wiggled his mustache at her, always a good sport when it came to that sort of teasing, and always a softy for children.
 

༻ ❁ ༺

The civilians slowed them down, stretching the last leg of their foray out until well after dark.

The men took turns carrying the small children. Despite the fact that none of them weighted as much as they should, they contributed to the weight of already hefty bags. Adult refugees were also unable to move quickly. They lurched along, occasionally needing assistance to keep moving.

Steve kept two of the oldest children with him the entire march. The twelve-year-old with the sprained ankle in a piggyback, an eight-year-old tucked under his left arm behind his shield.

Bucky made a point of taking long turns with some of the other older kids. He was in better shape than a lot of the other guys. The extra rations Howling Commandos got combined with his determination to keep up with Steve had kept him in good condition.

Red Cross volunteers descended on them as soon as they entered the camp. Lanterns in hand, arms full of blankets.

Alice was surprised when the blonde and blue missile collided with her. Martha's arms going around her neck and squeezing her tightly.

"You two are never allowed to leave me alone again. When they try me for Polly's murder I expect to have co-defendants." Martha's voice was muffled as she buried her face in Alice's shoulder.

"Don't be ridiculous. Gwen would never let us get caught." Alice said, hugging her back.

Bucky passed the toddler he was carrying to a waiting volunteer. He wasn't sure how he felt about how much the girls had evidently thought about this murder.

"Sorry." Martha flushed and took a step back. Her hands were twitchy as she fixed the wimple that had been pushed out of place by her strong hug. "Just... I had been gone from you guys for the longest time in five years, and I missed you."

Alice pulled Martha back into a hug. "We missed you too."

Bucky sidled up to the women, slipping an arm around Alice's waist. "Trying to make me jealous, doll?"

Alice gazed up at him, innocently fluttering her eyelids. She wasn't attempting anything, yet it appeared to be working. "When Jacques hugged me yesterday, you weren't jealous."

"Martha is cuter than Jacques." Bucky pointed out. Behind him, Jacques made a sound of protest.

It was true, though. She really was.

Dugan agreed that the blonde nurse was attractive. Bucky saw him lurking around, waiting for an introduction. Bucky patted him on the shoulder but walked away without lending a hand.

Poor guy was barking up the wrong tree.

As they walked, Alice stroked her hand over Bucky's broad back. His blue Commando jacket appealed to her. It had a protecting aspect about it. From the tough blue fabric to the rich quilting across the front to the sharp cut around his hips, everything about it was rugged.

As they headed back to her barracks, Bucky drew Alice into a dark alleyway between two tents. The chance to sneak peaceful moments like this was one of the few benefits of camp life. It wasn't a private enough moment for anything more than a kiss, but it sufficed for the time being.

"I don't know how I'm going to sleep without you tonight." Bucky whispered, pushing her helmet back so he could work his fingers into her hair. "I love you, Ally."

Alice wrapped her arms around his neck, dragging his mouth down to hers. "I love you too."