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imjustthemechanic · 3 years

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The Price of a Soul

Part 1/? - Agent Russel Part 2/? - The Letter Part 3/? - Miss Lake Part 4/? - The Stewardess Part 5/? - An Assassination Part 6/? - Fallout Part 7/? - Face to Face Part 8/? - Deals, Details, and Other Devils Part 9/? - Baggage Part 10/? - Private Funding Part 11/? - Just Passing Through Part 12/? - Party of Four Part 13/? - Resolute Part 14/? - The Wreck Part 15/? - Body Snatchers Part 16/? - Out of the Frying Pan Part 17/? - A Miracle Part 18/? - A Matter of Circumstance Part 19/? - Nome Part 20/? - The Future Part 21/? - A Hero’s Welcome Part 22/? - Up to Speed Part 23/? - Expect Further Delays Part 24/? - The Welcome Wagon Part 25/? - Fugitives

Alone and on the run from the law, Peggy and Kay have to decide what to do next.

ince Kay’s bunker was a no-go, they ended up spending the night in an abandoned farmhouse on the edge of the Pine Barrens. This was exactly as creepy as it sounded, with no electricity, and rats and raccoons nesting in it. It started to rain around midnight, drumming on the roof and coming in through the long-broken windows. Peggy and Kay broke up some pieces of the stair bannister and used them to light a fire in the fireplace, and by that flickering light, they tried to figure out what to do next.

“I don’t suppose you can go back in time again and start over,” Peggy said.

Kay shook her head. “This was a one-shot thing.”

“I see.” Peggy thought for a moment. “When we’re caught, I’m going to tell them you kidnapped me.”

“Cool,” said Kay. She sighed heavily, hugging her knees to her chest she stared into the flames. Peggy noticed that her root were growing out, coming in darker than the blonde, although by the firelight it was impossible to say quite what colour they were.

“Everything was supposed to be better,” Kay said. “Steve was supposed to get the happy ending he wanted, with you and James. HYDRA would be rooted out once and for all before they could really get their claws into the government.” She reached up to scrub at her eyes with her fingers. “The Red Room would be destroyed. I don’t know if I’d be able to force Howard to hug his son once in a while but I was going to try. I don’t know if I’d be able to do anything for Clint or for Bruce… I’m not going to live that long.” She shrugged. “And after that… I don’t know if we can destroy the Infinity Stones with the technology of this decade, but if anybody could figure it out, it’s Howard Stark.”

She hadn’t been joking when she said she had an extensive to-do list, Peggy thought. Most of the items on it meant absolutely nothing to Peggy, but she could tell they were things Kay cared about very much.

Which made for one odd omission. “What about you?”

“The Red Room,” said Kay. “That’s the code name for the place where they raise girls into spies. If that doesn’t exist, then I won’t be drafted into it when my parents abandon me. I don’t know what will happen to me, but even starving on the streets of Volgograd would be better than that.”

Peggy thought of some of the things she’d seen at that facility in Siberia, and shuddered.

“The thing is,” Kay added, “I know I can’t do it alone. I need you guys. If you’re in prison and Ste… and Captain America’s off shaking hands with his fans, then I can’t do it. I might be able to do it myself in the twenty-first century, but not now, I don’t know enough. Even if I did, it would be so much easier with help. I had one shot, and I ruined it.”

She fell silent then, and Peggy wondered what it was she wanted. Reassurance that everything would be okay? Peggy couldn’t give her that. “Well, you certainly didn’t improve things by taking us both on the run,” she said.

“Probably not,” Kay agreed.

Peggy wrapped her coat around herself to use as a blanket, and lay down with her own elbow for a pillow. “In the morning,” she said, “we should head to the nearest town and turn ourselves in.”

“Then what happens to Steve?” asked Kay. “And to James?”

“At the moment I’m primarily worried about what happens to me,” said Peggy. Steve was doubtless worried about her, and about Sergeant Barnes, and if Kay said was true, Barnes did need help, but Peggy was not in a position to do anything about that right now. Her focus had to be on her own survival, both physical and political. “If I wasn’t going to end up in prison before I certainly am now.”

“I know,” said Kay. “I’m sorry.”

“Apologies don’t do a lot of good at this point,” Peggy told her.

“Apologies never do a lot of good for me,” said Kay. “I’ve always been the one who throws the other guy over a cliff. Looks like nothing’s changed.”

Peggy woke up early, stiff and cold from sleeping on the floor. The fire had burned itself down to a smolder, and Kay was gone. For a moment Peggy was furious, thinking the other woman had abandoned her, but then she rolled over and discovered Kay’s red purse, still sitting there on the floor. Had she simply left that behind, or was it intended to tell Peggy she was coming back?

She got up, stretched the kinks out of her neck as best she could, and went to look out front. The car was still there, and Kay was sitting in the driver’s seat. When Peggy came closer, picking her way between the puddles and the rotten boards of the front steps, she found that the radio was on.

“They haven’t said anything about us yet,” said Kay, “but I’ve only been here about ten minutes. Weather’s supposed to be nice today.”

Peggy climbed in the passenger seat to listen for herself. There was a weather report, and then it began talking about Captain America.

New York Senator Elect Vernon Masters brought the Captain home to Brooklyn last night to tremendous fanfare, the announcer said. Captain America will be embarking on a tour of the state capitals, along with the Senator Elect and industrialist Howard Stark, who was instrumental in locating the wreck of the German bomber.

“Of course they don’t mention Jason,” grumbled Peggy. If anything, he had more trouble getting recognition for his achievements than she did.

“They don’t mention us, either,” Kay mused. “That means they don’t want people knowing we’ve escaped.”

“Specifically, Thompson doesn’t want people knowing,” said Peggy. “He must be dreadfully tired of people escaping from him.”

“He ought to take better care of them, then,” snorted Kay. “You still want to turn yourself in?”

Peggy had to think about it. “I think we’d better,” she said. “But not to Thompson. We need to find a pay telephone, and I’ll speak to Daniel.”

They drove into the nearest town, where they found a little diner to order breakfast. Kay clearly had no appetite, nibbling at her toast and forcing herself to eat her scrambled eggs. Peggy didn’t feel very hungry, either, despite some grumbling from her stomach. She got through about half of it, and then pushed her plate away and checked her watch, which was still on Los Angeles time.

The moment it reached eight-thirty AM, she went outside and picked up the pay telephone. “Hello,” she said, “I’d like to make a long-distance call.”

She gave the number for the storefront in Los Angeles, and waited while switchboard operators across the country made connections. Finally, the line picked up, and Rose’s somewhat staticky but familiar voice said, “good morning, Auerbach Theatrical Agency.”

“Good morning,” said Peggy. “May I speak to Mr. Auerbach, please?”

“Peggy?” Rose asked. “Where are you?”

“I can’t say,” Peggy replied. “I just need to speak with Daniel right away.”

Rose lowered her voice. “You can’t,” she said. “He was arrested yesterday, just after you left! What’s going on?”

Peggy’s insides turned to ice. Daniel had been arrested… because of course, Dottie had told Thompson that Daniel had colluded with Peggy in letting her out of jail. She’d probably implicated Mr. Jarvis, too. This wasn’t just about what would happen to Peggy anymore, not at all. This was about what was going to happen to all of them.

“I… can’t say,” Peggy repeated. “Listen, please don’t tell anybody I spoke to you. We’re all in a lot of trouble.”

“All right,” said Rose. “What are you going to do?”

“I’m not sure yet,” said Peggy. She hung up the phone and stood there a moment, digesting what she’d just heard. ‘Borrowing’ Dottie to get the sample of Zero Matter had been Peggy’s idea. Daniel and Mr. Jarvis had helped, but none of it would have happened without Peggy, and now they were possibly all going to hang for it. Would pleading that they’d done it to save the world do any good? Not likely. Masters’ lawyers would argue that there must have been other options. It was just that in the hurry of the moment, Peggy hadn’t been able to think of any.

Kay was waiting for her outside the phone booth. When Peggy opened the door, her eyes went wide.

“Sit down,” she ordered. “Put your head between your knees.”

“I am not going to faint!” Peggy snapped. “Daniel has been arrested as well, and Mr. Jarvis. I don’t know if she’s implicated Howard and Jason or not.”

“Oh.” Kay covered her mouth. “This is… this is all my fault…”

“No, it isn’t,” Peggy said. “It’s mine.”

“If I hadn’t been here…”

“Even with you here, we wouldn’t be in trouble if I hadn’t had the blindingly stupid idea to break Dottie out of jail to begin with!” Peggy informed her. This sensation of crushing weight on her chest, as her bad decisions rained down like bricks to bruise and bury her… this must be what Kay had felt last night when Thompson had tried to arrest them for treason. If so, Peggy found herself reacting to it in what had to be a very similar way.

“Bugger it,” she said. “You are a bad influence.”

“I know,” said Kay.

“Do you have any more change?”

Kay dug into her purse for some coins, and Peggy lifted the receiver again. “Hello, operator. I would like to make a long-distance call. Can you get me the California FBI office in Sacramento?”

She didn’t actually know if the FBI opened as early as the SSR, though it seemed likely, so it was a relief when she heard a receptionist pick up and greet her. “FBI, can I help you?”

“Good morning,” said Peggy, affecting an American accent. “May I please speak to Agent Ned Russel? This is his wife, Alice.”

“Oh, I’m sorry,” the woman replied. “He’s still in New York, working on a case.”

“I thought he’d been taken off that case,” Peggy said.

“I don’t know the details,” said the receptionist. “I think he was reinstated as a favour for somebody from another agency. Would you like to speak to the chief?”

“No, no thank you,” Peggy said. “I’ll see if I can call him there. Goodbye.”

She hung up, and turned to Kay again. “I have an idea.”

The black SSR vehicle they’d been driving so far was far too recognizable to take back into the city, so the women left it behind and stole a green Ford coupe they found parked beside the diner. Peggy drove this time, as they headed north back towards the city.

“What’s your plan?” asked Kay.

Peggy took a deep breath. “The easiest, although perhaps not the most legal, way to get everybody I know and love out of trouble is to make sure Dottie cannot testify,” she said. “Masters and Thompson didn’t make their move until they had her, so she must be the cornerstone of their case. We remove Dottie again, and they have nothing.”

“Makes sense,” said Kay in a deadpan. It was impossible to tell what she thought.

“Unfortunately, we cannot get in to see her,” Peggy went on. “Last time I got her out by wearing a disguise, but that’s not going to work again. The police guarding her know me now, because I was in there to see you, and there’s the possibility that Dottie herself will raise the alarm. And you certainly can’t go in because they know you as well. However, we know somebody who probably has every right to be there, we know that he is slightly terrified of both of us, and we possibly know where he eats lunch.”

It was with that in mind that they parked their stolen car behind the Automat up the street from the telephone company building. The lunch rush had just ended, and Peggy could see Pearl standing by the back door on a cigarette break. She approached.

“Hi, Peggy,” said Pearl. “What are you doing back here?”

“I need to see Angie right away, privately,” said Peggy. “It’s very important. Don’t tell anybody else I’m here… and tell her it’s Phone Company Business.”

“Ah… all right,” said Pearl. She dropped the remains of her cigarette on the pavement and went inside to get her co-worker. Angie appeared a few minutes later, looking concerned – she knew very well what Peggy meant by Phone Company Business.

“What’s wrong, English?” she asked.

“Angela Martinelli!” Kay exclaimed.

Angie blinked. “Do we know each other?”

“You’re going to be in Stark Pictures’ Captain America movies,” said Kay, “opposite Burt Lancaster!”

“Ignore her, she thinks she can see the future,” said Peggy. “Listen to me, Angie… did we frighten Agent Russel away permanently?”

“No, he had his lunch here today,” Angie said. “He didn’t sit in my section.”

Peggy smiled. “Excellent,” she said. “Here’s what we need you to do.”

#fanfic #captain america #agent carter #peggy carter #steve rogers #steggy #fix it fic

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the-firebird69 · 3 years

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It's a visual aid we provided on purpose for you s to gawck at

Hera Zues

Now I know what it means do you know what it means you've perverted pieces of s*** you two there you're going to tie everyone up and that's all you're going to do just keep on blabbing like chicks in a casino this is horrible you suck at this so bad Mac why are you so bad at this you keep doing it and you're looking at a craps table you lose and don't care

Ghwb

I don't know why I'm so bad at it but you're right every time I turn around someone has their hand in my pocket I'm trying to take stuff and it's not working I'm trying to hold it it's not working and I'm trying to enforce the law not really that's probably why I'm not doing anything yeah

Mac

Let me say this perfectly you're a pile of suicidal jerks keep on coming down on me for some easy way out of a whole bunch of stupid crap that you're doing that stupid crap looks like you're trying to set him up as the enemy versus your entire realm to try and have the foreigners attack them I've seen some weird shows and this is very weird because you had the factories and you had to the minds and things that he's taking we're not going to have any and we need them and you're not going to care cuz you don't know who they are I'm here to say that you're fired and you should be fired and he agrees as a man that you are not doing anything for us you can't just sit there and encourage him then you're harboring him and enabling not just enabling I mean not just harboring and it looks like you're harboring because you're enabling and it's just a nightmare I have to say it that way so few of you will understand it you seem to forget a few minutes later as if you're not living your own life I should get to the bottom of this because it doesn't make any sense since people are free me who attacked me it is so damn dumb they don't know what they're doing he's yelling at her going what are you stupid these people are with s*** to your cause and he is and you're attacking him and I'm not even provoking it I don't know why you're doing that she goes it's a moment of hate and who gives a s*** you're stupid and he's not so you need him she laughs as well these are dumb things in my life three of those words don't mean anything to him they don't either you're such a ravenous assholes for other races was to let practically anything go we let it go to the wrong person if it's him because he's not going to stop like we do we do it in a cycle of keeping calm he doesn't get rid of you doesn't matter what you're doing you stupid elves although it was certainly soften it if you weren't doing it like you are here

Ghwb

Any other name means Europe or something that we don't care cuz we're just sitting here being assholes great assholes about something you don't get we got you out and we ran after you weren't even there and that's greatness no that is so stupid and hokey I don't know why anyone cares and I don't care if you're going after him we know about this thing and we know about the whole thing and we knew about before you because you're an idiot so now they're going to hog wild going after George there's actually stop them because they're Maniacs about it he's laughing nobody putting me in a stupid mental hospital and that's George your mistake is going to get a f****** thing from anybody he says I agree that's a stupid thing to do

Mac

It's actually quite dumb and we think these retarded people did it cuz it put some right on it there's something you can't do with them and that's insult them and you insult them every day over and over and over you can't insult me that much with him it's ridiculous you're looking at me wrong you piece of garbage what are you thinking piece of s*** and he says attacking the person if he hits you you're going to die you're so weak he lives in that whole tree that tree was gigantic that's all I did it I think she had me do it and then we see this she's having him do it standing there please :-) what are you doing if anything these two can't with that tree together show me a little shut up there's something wrong here and it's because of this plan that we think we're finding today with these idiots who are going after themselves and exposed it because they're trying to have us find their plan to have us fight them because they think they're too big and they are too big is sit here doing this stupid s*** and I can't tell anything this is so stupid this is remarkable and fighting raccoons or something and it sounds like it like this a****** did will say the same thing like for half an hour but Jason will go for hours even while his entire force is being devoured by monsters you're gross you pig this is the problem

Ghwb

He says he didn't invented the go like this and that you're nuts and people here and they're very stupid and lame and weak and it's gross being around people who don't know anything about life you do certain things that are wrong and you're going to pay for it and your kingdom and you're around if you do certain things you're idiot a****** animals will be back Non-Stop regardless miles you can't say that about him it's not what I'm talking about I said got this little and then he lets it go cuz it's not as dumb as you people you keep coming at me Dan out of something that you derived it's your stupid idea non-stop too like an idiot and you get crushed just really this is my idea because your pussies I said why not go through these pussies and take all their stuff fightmax is there drum in it works that's what he's been doing killing all of you off to war with us and you can hardly even notice that I'm amazed at how dumb you are and he says they're probably end of world wars and have no clue at all second issue a statement to Mac you can see this clue either it's too smart enough to sense of stuff like huge pyramids being pointed out for you to you and you said something before and after and seeing the same thing and figuring out what they are cuz you like home tonight like you used to figure out what that is it's like being told where LaGuardia is to him and him sensing all of the electronics and stuff and then like going over there and that you still don't get it

Ghwb

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