Changed (Captain America)

Chapter 4

 I walk through some training exercises while I wait for lunch to come around. I've seen the men walking around and after lunch we're lining up the men again for Colonel Phillips.  Sweat rolls down my back as I continue working out. I look at the sun trying to find the time and I walk back to my cabin.

I quickly change into regular army pants and shirt. I'm not like Peggy. I don't wear skirts anymore. I like to feel the freedom the pants give my legs and I don't have to walk with short choppy steps. I only wear skirts and dresses when needed so that's rarely.

I walk to the dining hall that the soldiers have lunch at. Men begin to file in and I watch them come in and sit down at the tables waiting for the signal to eat. Hodge and the men that I threw the daggers at watch me wearily. I haven't yet seen Steve yet. Two minutes before lunch starts he darts through the door and I sigh in relief. I continue watching the door for any late men. Three come in late as a group and I stand up and stop them.

"Soldiers, look at these men here." I point to them. "They are two minutes late for lunch. Twenty minutes for each minute so you three men have forty pushups after lunch and before Colonel Phillips. So you better wish the men here finish their lunch early because you don't want to have the Colonel wait for you to finish. When I make threats I make then and take them seriously, this is a warning to the rest of you. Now you all may eat." I say and the men line up. I get the end of the line. I look around for a spot to sit and I notice Steve alone. I go up and stand across from him.

"Is this spot taken?" I say and he looks up and smiles. He gestures for me to sit and I sit next to him.

"Why were you so hard on the three men?" He asks me trying to make a conversation.

"Trust me, I had worse when I came." I shiver at the thought. "I do take my threats seriously. Some men think ladies go easy, but I don't. As you can see I wear army clothes and nothing similar to like back in Brooklyn. I've went through plenty of pain and that's how I got here. Trust me, they are lucky." I say and take a bite of my food. Steve looks at me.

"You are different." He says and I nod. I swallow my food and take a deep breath.

"I've seen a lot of death. Went into battle, been captured and tortured. I have scars and they won't go away. Death threats are at times, common. I am a spy after all." I tell him. "You can ask, Mr. Stark. I have scars." I say to him. He gives me a questioning look. "He likes to be a trouble maker sometimes and he wouldn't leave me after he screamed in my ear so I changed in front of him not caring and he saw my scars. May I say, he's been avoiding me since yesterday morning." I say to him. He nods his head and I feel a hand on my shoulder and I stand up.

"Hey doll, ease up." A man says and I glare at him. He grabs my arm and I snatch it back out of his grasp.

"Can I help you, soldier?" I ask the man looking him in the eye.

"Just wanted to ask if you're rationed." He asks me and I glare at him.

"No need for such questions. So why don't you take a powder and tell the boys over there that I can snap your cap and give some extra training to whoever needs it." I say and the man backs away from me. I look down at Steve and he snickers at me. "What?" I laugh and sit back down across from him. A/N Take a powder= to leave. Snap your cap= get angry.

"I've just never seen you like that. You have authority. You just don't deal with their gobbledygook." He says and I laugh. Gobbledygook= nonsense.

"Yeah, men do that to me and it gets under my skin. A lot of the men go doll dizzy around me. I heard Bucky is quite a hoofer back in Brooklyn. I never got to teach you. Are you still a dead hoofer?" I ask him with a laugh. A blush creeps up his face and he nods. "Don't worry anytime you want a dance partner, I'm your gal." I say and pat his hand. He smiles over at me and I smile back. Hoofer= dancer. Dead-hoofer= poor dancer. Doll dizzy- girl crazy. "So you got a girl back home or do you carry a torch?" I ask him and he smiles shaking his head.