[OOM: Marching back to Itay]

[thekidfrombrooklyn]

Previously:

"I thought you were dead!"

"I thought you were smaller."

Getting four hundred men safely out of Austria and to Allied territory is not easy, but somehow it's happening. The worst of the wounded are on the tank (driven by Jones and Dugan, two men Steve intends to keep track of) and everyone is helping each other along, sharing water, telling each other of home. They're not only from all over the US but from Europe as well, Free French and English and more.

Steve moves through the group periodically, making sure no stragglers are left behind, but mostly he's at the front of the long, uneven line, leading the way south.

Best of all, he's got Bucky by his side.

He's going to bring Bucky home.




To be continued...

Comments

[nerves_of_ice]

He'd managed to get himself a weapon from the stash that they'd captured almost as soon as they got underway. There hadn't been enough to go around, not quite, but no one argued with him - enough of them have seen him shoot to know his mettle.

(It's comforting, the feel of the gun in his hands; knowing he's no longer strapped down and unarmed.)

Bucky falls into the easy rhythm of the march automatically, scanning the trees ahead of them, keeping an eye out for scouts or any other sign of trouble.

"Hard to believe, isn't it?"

He glances over at Steve, a wry grin quirking the corner of his mouth.

"Never dreamed you could jump like that."

[thekidfrombrooklyn]

"Me neither." He grins back.

"It's going to be a long slog."

[nerves_of_ice]

"I'll take it over the alternative any day."

He gives Steve another sideways look.

"Means we've got time to catch up on a few things, yeah?"

[thekidfrombrooklyn]

"Yeah," says Steve, momentarily subdued. "That would have been an ugly way to die."

Or not die. The healing would have been even worse.

He takes a deep breath. "Do you want me to go first?"

[nerves_of_ice]

"But we didn't, so."

Bucky's grin flashes.

"Sure. We can take turns."

[thekidfrombrooklyn]

"Okay.

"You remember that night at the World Expo, when I tried to enlist again?"

He's told this story many times, now. His telling is spare and simple, and he doesn't dwell on the bullying of Hodge, the physical change he felt from the injections, or the pain of growing to his new, current height. He does go into detail about Dr. Erskine and the bond they formed in the week they knew each other, and the kindness of Agent Carter.

"...so now, they've got me touring with the USO and selling war bonds."

Beat.

"I wear tights."

[nerves_of_ice]

Sounds to him like this Agent Carter's something special, and that the doc Steve ended up with was a hell of a lot better than the little weasel HYDRA's working with.

And then Steve hits the part about the USO, and Bucky can't help it.

"Tights?"

That's all he manages before he starts laughing.

"You never -- did anything -- halfway," he wheezes.

[thekidfrombrooklyn]

Steve nods and rolls his eyes, letting Bucky get the laughter out.

"Wait until you see the serial and the comic books."

[nerves_of_ice]

"Comic books?"

Bucky's grin is bright and sudden.

"You drawing them still?"

[thekidfrombrooklyn]

"No, I'm not drawing these. They're about me--about Captain America, anyway."

Beat. He tries not to look like he's about to burst out laughing.

"You're in them too. Only, they, uh, re-imagined you."

[nerves_of_ice]

"I am? They did?"

He darts a quick glance into the trees at some movement, then back in almost the same instant and gives Steve a suspicious look.

"Re-imagined me how?"

[thekidfrombrooklyn]

Steve says, "Plucky teenage sidekick who gets kidnapped a lot."

[nerves_of_ice]

His jaw drops.

"Oh, come on!"

"You wanna keep it down, Barnes?" someone calls from behind them, half-amused and half-serious, and Bucky waves one hand in the air to acknowledge it.

Quieter, but no less horrified:

"One lousy capture isn't a lot!"

[thekidfrombrooklyn]

"They don't even know about this," Steve says. "The writers asked me for a few personal details to include and I had to tell them about you, and teenage sidekicks are expected--it gives younger readers someone to relate to--so they decided that was your role.

"But at least they included you, right?"

[nerves_of_ice]

".... I guess," Bucky says.

Beat.


"Just tell me I'm not wearing tights."

[thekidfrombrooklyn]

Steve pats Bucky's back in comfort.

"We both are, Buck. We both are."

[nerves_of_ice]

"Hell."

He gives up and finally just laughs.

"At least we're in it together. But I'm not doing the USO tour with you, Steve. Don't even think about it."

[thekidfrombrooklyn]

"I wouldn't ask. I've heard you sing."

[nerves_of_ice]

Bucky makes a face at him, but doesn't argue.

[thekidfrombrooklyn]

Steve laughs and nudges him with an elbow.

(He knows his own strength now, so Bucky shouldn't even stumble.)

"There's so much to tell you," he says quietly, "when we're on our own."

[nerves_of_ice]

"Maybe we can find a quiet corner once we make it back. Speaking of..."

He does a quick check of their backtrail, then looks ahead again before returning his attention to Steve.

"Just how far behind the lines was that place?"

[thekidfrombrooklyn]

"Thirty miles.

"I didn't walk in," he adds. "The plan was to fly us all out, but then the transponder got busted..."

[nerves_of_ice]

"... please tell me you didn't fly yourself in without a plane."

Bucky shakes his head.

"Probably just as well; it'd have been hard to fly the tanks out without drawing more attention than we'd like."

[thekidfrombrooklyn]

"There was a plane," Steve assures him. "Agent Carter got Mr. Stark to pilot it. Apparently he's the best civilian pilot around."

[nerves_of_ice]

"As long as his planes fly better than that car of his did."