Genesis: the Beginning and the End | Band of Brothers

【Ｃｈａｐｔｅｒ ８３ － Ｓｉｃｋ】

Chapter 83 - Sick

Hitler, the bastard he was, had launched a counteroffensive in Alsace. So of course, Easy Company was bound for Hagenau, France.

The journey was long, and Peggy was with the remnants of Second Platoon. It was February now. A whole month. A whole month without Bill, without Joe Toye...without Skip Muck and Alex Penkala...

It was so bizarre.

The time had passed too quickly.

The letter still sat tucked away in her pocket, she couldn't bear to open it.

As they were pulling into Hagenau, a familiar face appeared. Though she was glad to see him, Webster was just a little too chipper for Peggy.

"Hey guys! Some Lieutenant told me to report to 2nd. Your name's Jackson, right?"

Jackson was nice, polite, sweet, not really standing out in any way. Just nice.

"So who's leading the platoon?"

Malarkey. He was a good fit, it's just a shame about the circumstances. He looked after them. He'd actually stood up a while ago, and wasn't really listening to any conversation. Peggy was like that at the moment, only really half listening.

When she tuned back in, Webster was in the truck, and Lieb was talking.

"Must've liked that hospital-"

"Lieb," she warned.

"I'm just sayin', we left Holland four months ago."

"I wasn't there the whole time. There was rehabilitation, then the replacement depot."

Peggy didn't like where this looked to be going. She didn't need this.

"Well I'm sure you tried to bust out and help us in Bastogne, Web."

"I don't know how I would have done that."

Jesus, Webster didn't know when to stop talking did he? By saying that, he'd just made it worse for himself.

"That's funny, 'cause-"

"Joe, give it a rest." Liebgott gave her a funny look, obviously confused. "Why can't you just be glad that he's back? Glad that he can walk again. You should be fuckin' glad he didn't have to go through Bastogne! That he's alive!"

She ran a stressed hand through her hair, it was too long to be army regulation, and grimey. Maybe she needn't have raised her voice so...

"But how hard could it have been? I found a way, in Holland."

Pinching the bridge of her nose, she took a deep breath.

"Joe, if you don't stop I'm going to flip you out of this truck."

"Don't you mean throw?"

She shook her head, no she did not mean that.

"No. I'm gonna grab you by your legs, and tip you up over the side. So please just stop."

Everyone was starting to look a little concerned. She was just too tired to deal with this.

"But Popeye found a way, so did Alley, you and Guarnere-"

"Yeah where is Guarnere? He still your platoon Sergeant?"

She flinched, and Liebgott seemed to suddenly know it was time to stop. He put his hand on her thigh, and brought her in for a quick side hug before the truck stopped.

"Nah, he got hit."

"Yeah, Bill got hit. Blew his whole leg off."

They were hopping out of the truck.

"And I never got to say it back."

Web gave her a funny look but she ignored him. She went over to see Malarkey.

"Hey Don? I'm gonna go check on Lip, he seemed really sick last night."

"He's got pneumonia. Try CP."

He saw the flash of panic on her face and gave her a sympathetic look as she took off towards CP.

And sure enough, he was there on a sofa looking halfway to death itself.

"You should be sleepin'."

When had she started dropping the g's from words?

He coughed and fear coursed through Peggy's veins. No no no.

"Jesus Lip, c'mon. You need to sleep this one off. Don't want it developin' into pneumonia."

Another cough and she was at his side, starting to fuss.

"Too late."

Luz came in with a pillow, and stuffed it behind Lip to prop him up a little bit more. He offered her a weak smile before muttering about trying to find a blanket.

"Please, go and rest."

"I've got responsibilities, can't just go and sleep the day away now."

She took herself by surprise with how loud she was when she responded.

"But you're no use to anybody when you're halfway dead! Now for fuck's sake, go and rest because I will not lose anyone else! Not to pneumonia, not to this," she gestured around her.

She was shaking just a bit and needed a smoke, but she wouldn't in there, not with Lip so ill.

So Peggy mumbled something about seeing him later, and ducked out just as Webster was coming in. There on the doorstep she stayed, lighting a cigarette and running her thumb over the engraving. She wouldn't cry. No. Not again.

Lipton remembered Peggy fussing over Babe when he was getting sick back in Bastogne. He tried his best to remember who it was she'd lost to pneumonia, but the brain fog that came with illness wouldn't let him.

"Captain Speirs, sir, this is Lieutenant Jones."

Speirs looked right at him.

"Listen, Christ's sake will you go back in the back and sack out? There are beds there with fresh sheets."

"I will, sir. Just trying to make myself useful. Sir?" Speirs turned back to him. "You sound just like," he looked around, "Watkins. Whatever you do, don't get sick around 'em."

"Well if you aren't going to listen to me, listen to Watkins."

"Will do sir."

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Headcanon (is that how you spell it?) : Peggy is the mum-friend