punched_hitler | ☆ 6 ☆ (VIDEO)

So I know it's only been two days, but anyone who's made it through two days of Basic so far - trust me. It could be worse. [He cocks a wry grin. Bucky's not the worst drill sergeant Steve's seen, and besides:] You could have asthma.

[Yeah, he's pretty sure he almost died at least ten times during Basic. And he got the much abbreviated version.

Anyway.]

If anyone's got any questions, or just wants to get in some extra practice with a different face, let me know. But, [he raises one finger,] I'm not your Drill Sergeant, and I'm not about to contradict anything he says just because you want to hear he's wrong - because he's not. [So just keep that in mind. Steve might be helping Bucky, but Bucky's in charge here.]

[PRIVATE TO MINDY MACREADY]
Hey. Just because I'm not your temporary warden anymore doesn't mean we need to ignore each other, right? Remember, I'm right down the hall if you need anything - whether it's a couch or a punching bag. [Literally or figuratively.

Still, he doesn't want to push. She doesn't seem like she'd respond well to that. He can only offer, she's got to take him up on it. So.] Otherwise... I'm sure I'll see you in the gym.

[PRIVATE TO VEX]
[He's seen Vex on the network, but they've never spoken. Now, though, it looks like that's going to have to change.] I guess I should introduce myself - I'm Captain Rogers. Or you can call me Steve. I admit, I don't know much about you - but I'd like to think I'm a pretty good listener.

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[He grins - okay, so he never did anything like that, but every kid played pretend. It's like that, right?] Hey, that's not a bad idea, you know. Pretty creative.

[Still. He doesn't want her to shrug something like that off.] I know the drill, sure. But I've never liked it. Wars - any kind of wars, the big ones and the small ones - all have casualties that shouldn't have happened. Most people just write 'em off. I think they're important to remember.

[Allison focuses on Steve's observation about wars more than her creativity, because...well, he's doing that thing. The thing that a lot of people she meets tend to do, trying to convince her that what she is, what she's allowed herself to become, is some form of damage. It's not malicious or spiteful, it's what they believe because they're civilians.

Steve's coming at it from a slightly different angle, and in a weird way Allison appreciates it, enough that his words hold some weight with her.]

The casualties agree with you on that. [And yes, Steve, that is her way of admitting she knows something pretty grim about her future without making a huge fuss about it.] But what side a soldier is on determines how they're remembered. Their comrades will remember the best of them...their enemies will remember the worst.

How the world remembers them...well, that depends on who wins the war, and if the world even realizes that the war's been fought in the first place.

[It's not even so much that he thinks it's damage, as he thinks the world has been particularly cruel to yet another person who doesn't deserve it, and that always sits pretty poorly with him.

He won't ask her to change, but he does wish she'd see that she still has people that care about her, and that hasn't changed.]

Yes and no. I know the victors always write the history books, but... honestly? Most soldiers I know aren't really doing it because they care how they'll be remembered.

[He has a feeling she might feel that way, too.

And, unfortunately,] Memories can be pretty short.

[He runs into a lot of guys who fought in his war, but fewer every month. And he runs into more people that think his war might as well be as "ancient" as George Washington's.]

☆ 6 ☆ (VIDEO)

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