3rd Person's POV

Steve stands alone on a stage, confident. But instead of applause, he receives dead silence. Hundreds of battle-hardened GI's stare at the man in red, white, and blue pajamas.

Steve gulps looking across the tent, "Okay...I'm going to need a volunteer."

A random GI yells rudely, "I already volunteered. How do you think I got here?"

The crowd laughs and Steve stiffens.

"Bring the girls back!"

Steve looks across the stage to the girls standing behind the curtain shrugging, "I think they only know the one song, but... I'll... see what I can do..."

"You do that, sweetheart!"

In the crowd, Hodge nudges the GI next to him.

"Where do they get these guys?" He laughs.

The guy next to him shrugs then together they boo. The rest of the crowd joins in. Steve looks bewildered, trying to keep order.

"Hey, guys, we're all on the same side."

Another heckler interrupts and yells while standing, "Hey Captain, sign this for me!"

The guy moons him. The GI's laugh as somebody throws a tomato. Steve has to block it with his shield in order to not get hit.

As the chant "Bring back the girls" becomes a roar... rain falls.

............................................................................................................................................................................

Steve, in an overcoat, sits on the edge of the stage. He sketches a champ dressed as if it were Captain America while it rode a unicycle.

"That was quite a performance."

Steve turns to see Peggy. He stands, surprised.

"Yeah, I...had to improvise a bit. The crowds I'm used to are usually more...twelve."

"I understand you're 'America's New Hope'."

He see his Cap suit is exposed. He shuts his coat and sits back down.

"People buy bonds, bonds buy bullets, bullets kill Nazis. Sales rise ten percent in every state I visit."

Peggy frowns, "Is that Senator Brandt I hear?"

Steve frowns back, "Hey, Phillips was going to stick me in a lab. At least Brandt got me here."

"And are those your only option?" She sits beside him then looks down at his sketch.

"Lab rat or dancing monkey? You know you're meant for more than this. I believe in you... Erskine believed in you... and mostly Sammie believed in you. Why can't you believe in you?"

Steve takes this in, "It's just, you get enough people telling you you're a hero, after years of them telling you you're nothing... All I dreamed about was coming overseas, being on the front lines, serving my country. I finally get everything I wanted...and I'm wearing tights."

Steve looks up, seeing a platoon of tired wounded soldiers. An ambulance rolls up to the hospital tent. Corpsmen unload the wounded onto stretchers.

"Looks like they've been through hell."

Peggy glances up with sad eyes, "These men more than most."

Steve eyes her, understanding.

"Hydra?"

"Not officially."

"Back home, that's a yes."

She considers protocol, but leans near him instead.

"Schmidt was moving a force through Azzano. 200 hundred men went up against them, less than fifty came back. Your audience contained all that's left of the 107th. The rest were killed or captured."

Steve stands up quickly with wide eyes, "The 107th?"

"Yes, what?"

He stands pulling her up as well.

"Come on."

A Corporal types at a desk across the tent as Colonel Phillips signs a stack of letters. Just then, Steve barrels in with Peggy right on his tail.

Phillips smiles and teases, "Well, if it isn't 'the star-spangled man with the plan.' What is your plan exactly?"

"Azzano. I want to see the casualty list."

Phillips points to the rank insignia on his collar.

"You don't get to give me orders, 'Captain'."

Steve grumbles while rolling his eyes, "I don't need the whole list. Just one name. Sergeant James Barnes from the 107th."

Colonel Phillips looks over at Peggy and slightly glares, "You and I are going to have a conversation later that you won't enjoy-"

Steve moves infront of Peggy in impatience, "Just tell me if he's alive, sir. BA-"

"I know how to spell son." Phillips picks up a thick sheaf of letters, leafing through the first few. "I've signed more condolence letters today than I'd care to count. But the name does sound familiar. I'm sorry."

Steve pales, Phillips' words sinking in. He stares at a map of Austria on the wall, alongside aerial photos of a facility.

"What about the others? You're planning a rescue mission?"

"Yeah. It's called 'winning the war.' "

"But if you know where they are-"

Colonel Phillips frowns, "They're thirty miles behind the lines. Through some of the most heavily fortified territory in Europe. We'd lose more men than we'd save. I don't expect you to understand that, because you are a chorus girl."

Steve nods slowly, "I think I understand pretty well."

"Then understand it somewhere else. If I read the posters right, you've got some place to be in a half hour."

"Yes, sir. I do." Steve says with determination as he exits, taking one last look at the maps as he goes.

Phillips goes back to signing letters, "You got something to say now's the time to keep it to yourself."

............................................................................................................................................................................

Backstage at the Camp, musicians hustle as Brandt's Aide searches for Steve.

"Where the hell is Rogers? Anyone seen him?"

He grabs the three girls from the motorcycle number, "Get out there. Now! Stall!"

The first girl hurries to a shelf and grabs her "U" helmet. The second girls grabs her "S" helmet. The last girl reaches the shelf to find it... empty. She looks around for her missing "A" helmet.

"Where's my helmet?"

............................................................................................................................................................................

The "A" helmet from the USA show sits on a bench. Beside it, Steve buttons fatigues over his Cap shirt.

"The Hydra camp is in Krausberg, tucked between two mountain ranges. It's a factory of some kind." Peggy says as she sits across from him, studying a map.

Howard Stark leans back from the controls, "We should be able to drop you right on the doorstep."

"Just get me as close as you can."

Steve turns to Peggy, "You know, you're both going to be in a lot of trouble when you land."

Peggy raises an eyebrow, "And you're not?"

"Yeah, but where I'm landing, if anybody yells at me, I get to shoot them."

"They're undoubtedly going to shoot back."

He shows her his shield strapped to his back, "It's got to be good for something."

Howard glances back at the two then interrupts, "Agent Carter, if we're not in too much of a hurry, I thought we'd stop in Lucerne for a late night fondue."

Howard grins. Steve's a little tweaked.

"Why is he saying fondue like that? What's fondue?"

Peggy smiles quietly amused, "Stark's the best civilian pilot I've ever seen, and mad enough to brave this airspace. We're lucky to have him."

"Do you, are you two...fondue?" Steve grimaces.

Peggy looks out the window then her face turns blank.

"Take this transponder. Activate it when you're ready and the signal will lead us right to you."

Steve looks at the insignia, "STARK INDUSTRIES."

"You sure it works?"

Howard laughs from the plane wheel, "It's been tested more than you have."

BAM.

The plane lurches to the left. Anti-aircraft guns hammer the plane. Howard executes evasive maneuvers. Steve straps on his parachute and throws open the jump door.

Peggy jumps up from her seat, "Rogers, get back here. We're taking you all the way in!"

Explosions rock the air. Steve hesitates realizing what he's about to do.

BAM!

He turns to Peggy with a serious look.

"Once I'm clear, turn this thing around and get out of here!"

Peggy frowns while scoffing, "You can't give me orders!"

Steve braces the doorway, "The hell I can't, I'm a CAPTAIN!"
========================================================================

Connie walks into her apartment with a pile of mail in her hands. She hurries to the kitchen and dumps all her bags. She fishes through the mail trying to see if she had a letter from Sammie or Bucky.

Connie screams in delight as she sees two letters. One from Steve Rogers who happened to be Sammie's new beau and one from Bucky's Colonel.

"What happened?!"

Lana runs into the kitchen with fear and worry on her face then sighs in relief as she sees Connie's face.

"Oh never mind."

"We have letters from Sammie and I have one from Bucky!!"

Lana smiles seeing her friend happy. She stands and watches the wide smile on her face fall as she opens both letters. Tears quickly start to fall down her face as she hiccups and cries.

"Connie?"

"Oh my god..."

"Connie?!"

Lana hurries forward as Connie falls to the ground on her knees. She sobs loudly holding her heart with one hand as she grips tightly onto the letters.

"Connie... What is it?"

Connie shakes her head and continues to sob as she looks at the letters again.

"No! It can't be! Why?!"

"Connie! Stop it! You're scaring me!"

Connie tears apart the letters as Lana shakes her trying to find answers.

"No! Why?! I can't lose them both!"

"Connie please!"

Connie looks into Lana's teary eyes and starts to sob harder.

"Bucky was said to be taken prisoner in the war but now he could be dead... and Sammie died in a fire at Erskine's house."

Lana drops to her bottom in shock then holds her hand up to her mouth shaking her head.

"That can't be true... it can't be..."

Connie nods and holds up the papers, "I wish it weren't. What are we going to do? Oh my god..."

The two friends sit on the cold tile sobbing holding onto each other the rest of the night. All because of two letters... and because of two losses.