Camp LeHigh,
Wheaton, NJ
─ 1942

Hannah stands stiffly at attention in the line of recruits. Her uniform's sleeves hang off her shoulders and swallow her hands in the cuffs. Good thing she brought a sewing kit for herself and Steve. Every part of the uniform is baggy, ill-fitting, and annoying, but she can't help grinning because it's her own. A thin piece of fabric has her name written over her heart and a thin set of metal tags lays cold against her chest. This really is happening to her.

She hasn't seen another female in the camp except for the nurse that patted her down and handed her the uniform when she arrived. But Hannah was informed that her bunk would be separate from the men's with another female officer. Hannah's beginning to doubt her existence.

Hannah runs through everything Dr. Erskine had told her about how her trials would be different from the boys. Although she'll train beside all the other recruits as though she is a man, there's less expectance of her to be good at any of it. No one is expecting her to keep up with the rest. No one is expecting her to make it to testing.

But Dr. Erskine told her the reason that he had pulled her aside is because he is expecting her to keep up with the recruits. He is expecting her to get to testing. In fact, he has money on it. Hannah merely grinned at him, telling him that she was planning on making it through.

She also had to attend "mandatory check-ins" with Erskine. Hannah is honestly looking forward to those. He assured her that he had no plans to go through with the questions and tests the military wanted him to put her through during that time. Instead the man said he would spend the few hours they would share after hours tutoring her in anything that she wished, whether it concerned military training or not.

Hannah is thrown from her thoughts as officers and agents appear and examine the line from afar. The first bubble of relief Hannah has felt since arriving at the camp rises in her chest as her eyes find a female agent walking down the line.

"Recruits, attention!"

The brunette stalks the line, eyeing each of the recruits up and down. "Gentlemen," she sends a softer smile to Hannah before continuing, "and lady. I am Agent Carter. I supervise all operations for this division."

Hannah smiles back at the Agent as she walks in front of her part of the line. She watches as Carter's eyes freeze on Steve for a moment before she is interrupted in her evaluation.

"What's with the accent Queen Victoria? Thought I was signing up for the U.S. Army."

Agent Carter turns to the smirking recruit, a terrifyingly calm look washing over her face, "what's your name, soldier?"

"Gilmore Hodge, your Majesty."

"Step forward, Hodge."

Hodge smirks wider as he steps forward, eyeing Carter up and down with a hungry look in his eyes. Hannah smiles to herself as she watches Carter's hand form a first at her side.

"Put your right foot forward."

"Hmm... We gonna wrassle? Cause I got a few moves I know you'll like."

Hannah nearly cheers as Agent Carter's fist connects with the ass' nose and knocks him flat on face. Hannah's eyes widen in awe as she sees Carter smile down at him while the recruits chuckle among themselves as she straightens up.

A military jeep pulls up behind Agent Carter and Colonel Phillips exits the vehicle swiftly. He nods in respect to Carter, a light hearted smile on the older man's lips as he addresses the group.

"I see you're breaking in the candidates. That's good!"

His tone turns nasty as he reprimands Hodge, "get your ass up out of that dirt and stand in that line at attention 'til somebody comes and tells you what to do."

"Yes, sir."

"General Patton has said that wars are fought with weapons, but they are won by men. We are going to win this war because we have the best men."

Hannah sees the exact moment that the Colonel falters as his eyes find Steve. And then she makes eye contact with the man as he sees the first woman he's ever had in his ranks.

"And because they're gonna get better. Much better. The Strategic Scientific Reserve is an Allied effort made up of the best minds in the free world. Our goal is to create the best army in history. But every army starts with one man. At the end of these few weeks we will choose that man. He will be the first in a new breed of supersoldiers. And they will personally escort Adolf Hitler to the gates of Hell."

Two dull knocks rap against the wooden door frame of the small room.

"Agent Carter?"

The agent looks up and smiles at Hannah Rogers poking her head, politely, into the room they are going to be sharing. Her eyes trail down the girl, several years younger than herself. Hannah's blonde hair is pulled tightly into a bun at the back of her head, her whole body is swamped in the men's uniform, and her blue eyes flit around the room nervously as she waits for Carter's reply.

"Come in, come in! Agent Peggy Carter. It's so nice to finally meet you in person."

"Hannah Rogers. Um, have you heard of me?"

"Of course, you're almost the only thing that anyone can talk about now! And Dr. Erskine told me all about you when he decided you would be joining the program."

"Oh yeah... I definitely didn't prepare myself for how much people were going to talk about me."

Hannah's cheeks darken with a blush as she rubs her wrist anxiously. Peggy's eyes catch onto the nervous habit, but the woman simply smiles at the younger girl. Her hands find Hannah's shoulders, forcing her to look into Peggy's eyes.

"I don't believe that all the attention that you are going to get is a bad thing. I have a feeling, that once you get used to having eyes on you, that you are going to use it to your advantage."

"I hadn't thought about it like that."

The women smile at one another before turning back to the things they have to do. Peggy going back to a handful of open reports on the desk in the room and Hannah working on altering her uniform.

Despite the freshness of their relationship and the tension in Hannah's bones, a comfort falls around the two as they settle into the other's company.

Hannah quickly realizes that this section of the army is not about camaraderie and patriotism. Steve is bullied as much as he is back home, except here neither of the Rogers can throw a punch without horrible consequences.

And Hannah, Hannah is even closer to fighting every man in the camp then she's ever been to fighting another human being in her life. They infuriate her. Mocking her with every word that they say. Taunting her, saying things no decent human says, taking every opportunity to try to make her uncomfortable. Openly talking about the bets they have on how quickly her brother will die or when she'll quit. But at least she's a natural at surviving people like this.

The first thing that the group does is an obstacle course. Army crawling, climbing up rope walls, running through trenches. Hannah loves it. She's smaller than the others and faster too. And she loves to show it off. But after the first time through, when she finds Steve close to having an asthma attack and covered in mud, well Hannah knows what she needs to do.

The second run through she stays at Steve's side. Even when Hodge kicks a board supporting the barb wire over them until it falls in. Even when they try to shove Steve backwards on the climbing wall. Even when they try going after her. The rest of the recruits quickly realize: Steve Rogers may not be their equal in strength, but his little sister has enough anger in her bones to take them all down.

A little bit of mud is smeared on Hannah's flushed cheeks as she runs into Dr. Erskine's lab the moment that training is over.

"Hi, Doc!"

The older man turns immediately, smiling at the young blonde as she comes up beside him to peer at the machine he's working on.

"More parts for the secret project?"

Dr. Erskine merely nods, motioning with a mutter toward his bench and Hannah quickly hands him one of his particular screwdrivers. He mumbles a thank you before he dives back in.

It's been almost two weeks in the camp now. Two weeks since Hannah's life completely transformed. Two weeks since Steve set off on his toughest challenge yet. But it's also been the best two weeks of Hannah's life. She's broken the small expectations they had set for her and she's reaching for even higher goals than the others. She's also managed to get closer with Peggy and she's learning more from Doc every night.

"What did you want to go over tonight, since we finished code last night, correct?"

"We did. I was wondering if you'd be willing to teach me another science?"

"You know I can't resist," he turns over his shoulder to smile at her. Hannah can't help smiling in return. She feels like she's living in all of her dreams, except it really is reality.

So far Abraham has taught her military code, schematics, tactics, and strategy. He is teaching her German and morse code too. Hannah even asks for several science lessons in between the military sessions. And just as promised, Doc teaches her anything she asks.

He had asked her, one or two of their sessions in, if she wanted to look at the questionnaire's he had been given to ask her. Hannah was incredibly relieved that Doc didn't want to go through those after reading them. They were filled with mindless, probing questions that were directed at any fears a person could hold. They were traps meant to spook her enough to want to abandon the army.

Hannah knows that she isn't going anywhere, especially not now.

Running is the worst for Steve.

His height, asthma, and small endurance make it impossible for him to keep up with the group. It hurts Hannah, seeing her brother struggle so much for something that he desperately wants. She's knows though, if they make it, if Steve is selected, the serum Abraham has been telling her about could change everything for him.

"Pick it up ladies!" The squeaky voice of the man in charge of them strains Hannah's ears as he does his best to scream.

"Let's go! Double time! Come on! Faster, faster! Move, move! Squad halt!"

Hannah jogs to a stop with the rest of the troops, smiling when she looks back to see Steve only a few yards behind.

"That flag right there means we're only at the half way point. First man to bring it to me gets a ride back with Agent Carter. Move, move! Nobodies' got that flag in seventeen years!"

Her attention snaps to the flagpole as all of them scramble to get to the top of the slick pole. She can feel eyes on her as she examines the pole from afar, just as Steve runs up beside her.

"Now fall back into line!"

Hannah stares at Steve as he pants heavily, doubling over to try to bring more air into his lungs. She looks back to the pile again, then at Steve once more. Hannah shakes off the nerves in her stomach, pushing her body into motion. She stalks over to the pole, despite the screaming from the officer.

"Rogers! I said fall in!"

But Hannah, well, she's more worried about her brother now than she is about repercussions for disobeying an order. She bends down, unlocking the flag pole's lock in a second and steps back as it begins to tilt downward.

The entire group falls into a heavy silence with mouths' agape as they watch the flagpole hit the ground. Baffled looks follow the blonde as she pulls the flag into her arms and walks back to her position. Steve tries to argue with Hannah as she places the flag in his hands.

"Hannah—"

"Don't, Steve."

He rides back beside Peggy. But Peggy's eyes are on Hannah, nodding to the young girl as all eyes stay on the only woman in the troops.

"That's it, darling."

The sound of lead moving against paper fills the quiet room. An occasional clatter interrupts the calm peace as Doc fiddles with a trinket on his desk. Hannah slides the piece of paper over after double checking the math, watching Abraham's expression carefully to determine just how she did. He picks it up, turning away from her as he knows her habits well enough after a month of tutoring her in the night.

"You know, Agent Carter told me an interesting story about you earlier today."

"Really? What did she tell you?"

"That you just about sacrificed your chance for your brother during a drill a week ago."

Hannah pales slightly, his tone shifting to one of almost disappoint. Then she sees the soft smile that graces his lips as he tapes the paper with a finger.

"Completely correct! You're catching on even faster than I guessed you would."

"Did I really almost-"

"If you had been unsuccessful, there would have been a firm consequence. If you had been selfish, there would have been rumors. If you hadn't tried at all, there would have been nasty remarks. Nothing and everything that you do here can be twisted in any way. Yet you merely proved the one point I have been trying to make towards further acceptance of you going through the experiment.

Congratulations, Miss Rogers."

Her breath catches in her throat, and Hannah's eyes run to meet Doc's as his smile widens.

"They're really going to let me do it?"

"It's far too late for them to back out now. The second pod is already under construction."

Hannah laughs, closing her eyes to fight the tears she didn't expect to have trying to fall. A warm hand squeezes her shoulder, screaming to her that this is happening.

"How? When?"

"I got confirmation just yesterday. But you received the support you needed to go further from Colonel Phillips."

"The Colonel?"

"Apparently he has been paying you close attention. But Agent Carter's report may have pushed his decision further."

"What report?"

"Here," Erskine passes Hannah a growing manilla folder. When she opens it she is met with a picture of her own face and her personal military file.

FILE 021: Recruit Twenty: Hannah G. Rogers.

*A last minute addition to the group. Addition made by Dr. A. Erskine. The only female soldier admitted and in trial for the super soldier project.

Report Date: ▇▇▇;  Agent M. Carter.

While in training, Rogers demonstrated valued character, intelligence, and physicality. Rogers maintained equal pace and endurance with the rest of her male soldiers throughout the entirety of the exercise.

In the instance of the customary break at the flagpole, Rogers opted out of attempting to climb the pole to check on her brother and observe the troops trying to climb the pole. When the rest of the men were called back into formation, Rogers broke orders. Rogers walked up to the flagpole that remained intact, simply unlocked the pole from its' upright position, and passed the flag off to her brother in order to give him the free pass instead of taking it for herself.

Not only is Rogers physical strength becoming closer to equal her fellow troops, but Rogers is an actively intelligent, observant, and compassionate soldier among her men.

These things only make her a more so prominent choice for the super soldier project.

"This is what made him agree?"

"Amongst other things. Hannah, you are fully aware of the eyes that have been on you throughout the last month. But I highly doubt this is the only time in your life where people have been watching you. No matter what situation you are in, you remain the constant in the equation. Your character, your skills, your heart. It all shines through everything. I saw it the night I offered you this chance. There is no doubt in my mind that everyone else can see the reason you are here. And I doubt that by the end of this, pray to all our gods that this goes the way we want, the whole world will see you the same."

Hannah hurries to wipe the tear that escapes her struggle to keep her emotions together. Only Doc beats her to it, holding her hand as the tear slips down. She meets his eyes in confusion, but the tears that fall from his eyes form all answers to the questions laying on her tongue.

She laughs again as she allows her tears to fall, moving from her seat next to him to hug Abraham. And there they hug, laughing as their tears roll down smiling faces.

Hannah never imagined the day that this was.

That she would have a friend like Peggy Carter in her life. That a few smiles and a few jokes would turn into sisterly closeness and welcomed comfort. That in a world that she has been told is only meant for the men, she would meet a woman who knew exactly how to rule them all. That she would have someone like Peggy to follow, to show her the way to the very top of her desires and dreams.

Hannah Rogers didn't know that all that Peggy had told her that first day would be true for the rest of her life.

Or that Hannah would meet a man who would pull her under the safety of his wing and guide her through a place she desperately wanted to belong in. That the doctor who gave a little girl a chance to be a soldier would become the closest thing to a father she could have known in so little time. That a man who saw the fight in her in a single moment would teach her everything he could — that he would ensure her success far after he was gone.

Except Hannah Rogers could never guess just how little time she would get with him...

With either of them really.

But there is a shadow growing over them, a monster sharpening its' claws. And there is no possible way that she isn't ready to fight.

Oh, if only she was ready to lose too.

11.25.2022 — a late little thanksgiving update me thinks 🥰

what are your thoughts? feelings? ideas? i want to hear everything rambling around in your head, even if it's just screaming about how I need to stop tearing out your heart <3

and now, we can all join hands and cry as one—

i hope that you liked the chapter!! this one was fun to write and figure out because in the movie, Steve's failure montage is only like fifteen minutes. BUT a lot happens to and for Hannah during this part that affects her for the a very long time. Hannah genuinely builds a relationship with Abraham and Peggy (and even an odd connection with Colonel Phillips) during this time!! and these relationships are so important for her for much later reasons.

and that's where my real AU plotline begins to shine through! this fic isn't about Steve right now! it's all about Hannah and her relationships. Erskine will still have fond feelings for Steve, but in the threeish months they spend during "government ordered questionnaire time" the two get really close. Erskine teaching Hannah about lots of military related things makes her a more reliable leader later on! it also gives Hannah a further education that makes her a more valued asset further down the road

AND Peggy is having absolutely no relationship with Steve except for a small friendship! Hannah is who's important to her from the start. they have a very cute big—little sister vibe from the very beginning that holds them together even after the war!

jsjs if you cannot tell, i love this book to pieces and so many small details and changes go into much much larger ones!!

love you all so much 💕