The three Shield fugitives start their journey to New Jersey after Steve steals a truck from the shopping centre parking lot. "Where did Captain America learn how to steal a car?" Nat asks from the back seat. "Nazi Germany, and we're borrowing so take your feet off the dash" Steve answers and nods to Rachel's feet as she sits in the passenger seat. Rachel smiles at him as she lowers her feet from the dash. "Okay, I have a question. Which you do not have to answer, but I feel like if you don't answer though, you're kind of answering it" Rachel starts. "What?" Steve asks, interrupting her rambling. "Was that your first kiss since 1945?" she asks. "That bad huh?" Steve assumes. "No, I didn't say that" Rachel defends. "Well it kind of sounds like that's what you're saying" Steve argues. "No, I'm just wondering how much practice you've had" Rachel explains. "You don't need practice" Steve states. "Everybody needs practice" Rachel argues. "That was not my first kiss since 1945. I'm 95, I'm not dead" Steve states, shutting the conversation down.
"I assume that you used the PDA trick" Nat states from the back. "Yeah" Rachel nods as she avoids looking at Steve. "Nobody special though Steve?" Nat questions. "Believe it or not, it's actually hard to find someone with shared life experience" Steve chuckles in response. "That's alright, you just make something up" Nat replies. "What, like you?" Steve questions. "I don't know. The truth is a matter of circumstance, it's not all things to all people, all the time. Neither am I" Nat answers with a grin. "That's a tough way to live" Rachel comments as she looks over her shoulder. "It's a good way not to die though" she responds. "You know it's kind of hard to trust someone when you don't know who that someone really is" Steve explains to Nat. "Yeah, who do you want me to be?" she asks in response. "How about a friend?" Steve asks. "Well there's a chance you might be in the wrong business Rogers" Nat replies with a grin.
"For the record, you don't need someone with shared life experience. You just need someone who loves you no matter what your life experience is" Rachel explains to Steve and he gives her a thoughtful nod before turning his attention back to the road.
---
They arrive at Camp LeHigh and walk up to the fence. "This is it?" Steve double-checks with Nat. "The file came from these coordinates" she answers. "So did I" Steve states before they enter the camp. Rachel searches the camp while Nat uses her phone to scan the area while Steve wanders the site. "This camp is where I was trained" Steve states. "Changed much?" Nat asks. "A little" Steve answers before he seems to get lost in thought. Rachel glances at him and sees his sad expression. She knows his transition after coming out of the ice was hard, she did her best to help him but there was only so much she could do. She makes her way towards him and rests a hand on his arm causing him to quickly look at her. "Are you ok?" she asks quietly. Steve sighs deeply before answering "I'm ok", giving her hand a quick pat before following Nat.
"This is a dead end. Zero heat signatures, zero waves, not even radio. Whoever wrote the file must've used a router to throw people off" Nat explains until she notices Steve catch something in the distance. "What is it?" she asks. "Army regulations forbid storing munitions within 500 yards of the barracks. This building is in the wrong place" he explains before breaking the lock. They enter and Nat turns on the lights to reveal the old furniture and old Shield logo on the wall. "This is Shield" Rachel states. "Maybe where it started" Steve suggests. They wander the facility, looking for any answers to their questions.
They approach a wall with 3 photographs, Colonel Phillips, Howard Stark and Peggy Carter. "There's Stark's father" Nat states. "Howard" Steve clarifies before turning his gaze to Peggy's photo. "Who's the girl?" Nat asks but Steve only looks away and wanders off. Rachel watches him but doesn't say anything, she's aware that he loved Peggy. "If you're already working in a secret office" Steve says before pulling a bookshelf. "Why do you need to hide the elevator?" he adds when the elevator is revealed. Nat uses her phone to determine the passcode and puts in the numbers.
They arrive at a lower level to a completely dark room. They slowly make their way through and the lights flicker on, revealing all the old technology stored within the room. "This can't be the data point, this technology is ancient" Nat states in disbelief. "Uhh Nat" Rachel says as she points to a modern USB port on the desk. She plugs in the drive and the systems comes to life. 'Initiate system' the computer says and Nat types 'yes'. "Shall we play a game? It's from a movie that was really pop-" Nat jokes and starts explaining but Steve interrupts. "I know, I saw it" he says and Nat smiles at him.
The screen comes to life with a green face and starts speaking. "Rogers, Steven. Born 1918" it states as the camera is pointing at Steve. "Romanoff, Natalia Alianovna. Born 1984" it states as the camera is on Nat. "Forbes, Rachel. Born 1985" it states as the camera is on Rachel. "It must be some kind of recording" Nat assumes with a confused expression. "I am not a recording Faeulein" the system responds unexpectedly. "I may not be the man I was when the Captain took me prisoner in 1945. But I am" it explains as a newspaper article is revealed on the screen. "You know this thing?" Rachel asks Steve. "Arnim Zola was a German scientist who worked for the Red Skull, he's been dead for years" Steve explains as he wanders around the system. "First correction, I am Swiss. Second, look around you. I have never been more alive" Zola corrects, creating an uneasy feeling in everyone's stomachs.
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I Can't Help It - Steve Rogers
FanfictionWhen Rachel and Steve meet through Steve's experience of waking in a different century, they get to know each other. And when they reconnect due to Loki's attack on New York, they become very close friends who start to trust each other more and more...
