Happy Holidays, jinxed_wood!
Title: Au Revoir
Author: Princess Sparkle Pants
Written for: jinxed_wood
Crossovers with:Agent Carter/MCU
Characters/Pairings: Amanda, Peggy Carter, Howard Stark, Matthew McCormick
Rating: PG-13
Word Count: 4659
Summary: A chance meeting in wartime London leads to an unexpected friendship that lasts a lifetime.
Au revoir
London, 1944
Amanda crept through the darkened house, not even moonlight filtering through the heavy blackout drapes that were a must in every British household these days. These people were rich, they had bought the regulation drapes and shutters rather than making the best of what they had available. But Amanda already knew they were rich, that was why she was here in the first place.
She had met Trevor Norton and his good lady wife at a function a few days ago. Austerity measures had yet to impact on the well to-do set of Mayfair so the ladies were in their pre-War finery. Mrs Norton had been sporting a matching set of diamond earrings, necklace and bracelet that Amanda knew were worth enough to get her safe passage to the United States.
All her money was tied up in European banks that were currently in Nazi occupied territory, so she’d been relying on her English stash of cash and rainy day jewels since escaping from Berlin in ‘36. But the war had lasted much longer than anticipated and London was getting far too war-torn for Amanda’s tastes.
With everyone in the nearest bomb shelter, it was a simple matter to make her way to the master bedroom and take the jewels from their resting place.
Not even in a safe. It’s like she wants them to be taken, Amanda mused as she removed them from their display box and put them in her bag.
She began to go back the way she had come, towards the back door, but just then the all-clear sounded.
“Merde,” Amanda muttered under her breath. The Nortons had their own Anderson shelters, one for themselves and one for their staff, in the garden. They would be coming out shortly so she couldn’t risk going out that way and she couldn't chance the front door either.
Up was her best option. If she could make it to the corner, she recalled there was a house with a small first floor balcony; an easy drop onto the street and then she could mingle with the throng of people leaving the nearest public shelter and disappear before any alarm was raised.
She hurried up the stairs to the servant’s quarters and found she was in luck as there was a door out to the flat rooftop. Not uncommon in the houses on this row, but some owners had blocked them to prevent servants having sneaky cigarettes on the roof.
She clambered out onto the tiles and carefully, quietly, closed the door behind her before she made her way towards the end of the row. Then, she dropped onto the balcony and, once she’d confirmed the coast was clear, she dropped to the pavement below.
A few short steps and she was out to the main road, where people were beginning to come up from the shelter. From there, it was easy to fall in step with the crowd as though she’d been there all along.
Once she was a good distance away from the Norton residence, she left the crowd and headed to her hotel to change. In the morning she’d meet with Basil and sell the diamonds and other little baubles she had collected recently but tonight she was going dancing. There may be a war on, but Amanda never missed a party. Especially when the party was being thrown by Howard Stark.
*-*
“Amanda! Sweetheart!” Howard crowed as she entered the ballroom.
Only Howard Stark could throw a party of this magnitude in the middle of the Blitz. He had hired the Ritz, the entire hotel, and spared no expense in every luxury imaginable. He had pulled strings to import rationed goods directly from the US, billing the event as a war benefit to avoid pesky local laws about the black market.
A full jazz orchestra was playing up on stage and the best and brightest of London mingled with Allied troops of all nations. In the middle of it all, as always, was Stark himself. He waved with his cigar for Amanda to join him and then started toward her.
She sashayed through the crowd to meet him, helping herself to champagne from a passing tray on her route.
“Amanda, there’s someone you just have to meet. She’s a real pip,” Howard said with a grin, scanning the crowd. “Peggy! Come over here a minute!”
Amanda followed his gaze and saw a young woman headed towards them. Amanda knew instantly that she wasn’t rich or famous, her clothes were far too sensible and shop-bought for that, although still smart enough for the evening’s festivities. Her make-up was simple but flattering, and she was adorned only with a small pair of diamond stud earrings and a matching hairpin. She carried herself with confidence, and her eyes scanned the party as though looking for trouble. This was not Howard’s usual type at all.
“Amanda Extegaray, meet Peggy Carter,” Howard said once Peggy was in earshot of them.
“Miss Carter,” Amanda demurred, holding out her hand.
“Miss Extegaray,” Peggy returned, cautiously shaking the proffered hand. “Extegaray. That’s Basque, isn’t it?”
“Very good, Miss Carter. Most English people can’t even say it, let alone know where my name comes from. My grandfather was Basque,” Amanda extemporised.
“I’ve spent some time in France.”
“Recently?” Amanda asked. Peggy just smiled.
A soldier then, or a spy. That explained a lot about Miss Carter. Amanda knew that Howard had been doing some work with the American government as part of the war effort. He wasn’t very good at keeping secrets, especially in the bedroom.
“Peggy is attached to the Howling Commandos,” Howard said, as proof of his lack of discretion.
“Isn’t that Captain America’s unit?” Amanda asked at the same time that Peggy threw Howard a look that could have killed.
“That’s right,” Howard continued, apparently oblivious to the death glare Peggy was giving him.
“You two know Captain America?” Amanda sounded like an awed schoolgirl, but she didn’t really care. It fitted with the version of her that Howard knew and, honestly, she was a little star struck by the Star-Spangled Man. Even in her one thousand years of life she hadn’t come across anything like him before.
“Sure, Steve’s a pal. Who’d you think designed his shield?”
“Howard, I’m quite sure Miss Extegaray isn’t interested in such things,” Peggy said lightly but Amanda could hear a warning in her voice. Howard apparently could not.
“Would you like to meet him? He’s supposed to put in an appearance tonight, raise some money for the war effort. I could arrange it,” he said.
“Oh, Howard! That would be swell,” Amanda replied with genuine enthusiasm and rewarded Howard with a kiss.
*-*
Somewhere in Europe, 1952
Mario Cordoza was an evil, manipulative son of a bitch. Amanda was already plotting a thousand different ways for revenge. But for now, she needed to get as far away from Warsaw as possible.
The bastard had made her accessory to mass murder. The blood on her hands and on her conscience would never wash clean and it was because she’d allowed Cordoza to use her. Never again. From now on she’d only work for herself.
She stopped running somewhere near the northern border of Italy, exhausted, and booked herself into a little bed and breakfast near the foot of the Alps. She’d rest a day or two and then cross into southern France. It had been too long since she’d been on the Riviera.
She slept soundly that night, exhaustion allowing her the first good night’s rest since the bombing. Waking refreshed the next morning, Amanda went down to breakfast starting to feel a little like herself again.
She seated herself at an outside table, enjoying the crisp air and the view. Focus on the small pleasures; that was how she would get past this, as she had got past all the other horrors she’d endured.
After ordering a light breakfast of fruit and coffee, Amanda leaned back in her chair and closed her eyes, feeling the warmth of the morning sun. It was going to be a glorious day, she decided. After a moment though a shadow was cast over her and she opened her eyes, squinting, to see what had caused it.
“Miss Extegaray! I thought that was you,” the voice was female, English and familiar, although Amanda took a second to place it.
“Miss Carter, this is a pleasant surprise. Please, won't you join me?” she said with pleasantry she didn't really feel. But perhaps company was the distraction she needed at the moment.
“So, who do you work for, Miss Extegaray? Or would you prefer Miss Novak? That was quite some mess you left in Warsaw,” Carter said as she took a seat.
Shocked, Amanda briefly flirted with playing dumb, but she knew it was pointless. Honesty then, of a sort.
“That was not my intention. I was played for a fool,” she said quietly.
“And I suppose it was not your intention to learn everything you could from Howard Stark about Captain… America,” Carter continued, an almost unnoticeable hitch in her voice before she said ‘America’.
“I was sorry to hear about Captain Rogers. I only met him that one time, but he seemed a wonderful man,” Amanda said, quite sincere. Captain America had been unique in disposition as well as physique and Duncan had spoken highly of him.
“Don't change the subject. I thought then that you might be working for the Nazis. Is it the Russians? Or HYDRA?”
“Peggy, what are you talking about? I'm no spy!” Amanda protested, her voice dropping to a hiss as the waiter brought the coffee. He stopped to take Peggy’s order for tea and then left them again.
“What were you doing in Warsaw then? You know, I've been monitoring your activity since that night at The Ritz. You’re very well-travelled, Amanda. May I call you Amanda? Your Christian name appears to be the only constant about you,” Peggy said quietly, not breaking eye contact.
Amanda was too surprised to come up with anything other than the truth, and she knew instinctively that somehow Carter would manage to trap her in a lie, no matter how good it was.
“I'm not a spy. Someone tricked me into thinking I was retrieving a certain object d’art for them, but they were setting me up as the patsy for an assassination,” she admitted.
“In that case, help me capture the one who is responsible.”
“Still with SSR then?” Amanda replied. She didn't wait for confirmation before continuing. “I'm sorry, I can't help. I never knew who hired me. Everything was done through couriers. I'm known for my discretion.”
Plus, as much as she wanted revenge on Cordoza, he scared her and no mortal prison would hold that sociopath for long.
“I'm sorry to hear that, Amanda,” Peggy said, sounding far from sorry. She paused as her tea and Amanda’s fruit arrived. “That means you're the only suspect we have,” she finished once they were alone again.
“Suspect, yes. But what evidence do you have?” Amanda pointed out with a smile.
Peggy smiled and took a pen from her purse. She clicked the top and Amanda’s voice began to emanate from it. She clicked it again and put it away.
“I have your confession. Miniature recording device, one of Howard’s more useful toys,” she explained.
“I'll be sure to congratulate him,” Amanda said dryly. “So, what happens next? Do the goons swoop in to whisk me back to Warsaw for trial?”
“I have a much better use of your singular talents. Come and work for me and I'll make sure this recording never makes its way to Warsaw,” Peggy explained.
Amanda was starting to really enjoy the way this woman thought. She looked stern and thoughtful for a moment before breaking into a grin.
“Blackmail, Peggy? I approve of your methods.”
“That's Director Carter, if you please.”
*_*
Amanda had agreed to Peggy’s deal because it had seemed like an elegant solution to an intricately messy problem. Warsaw had already left her planning to burn this alias so all she had to do was get killed in the line of duty and she could disappear without any further worry of Carter, SHIELD or Warsaw.
Unfortunately, Peggy and Howard had other ideas. It seemed that Peggy didn't trust her in the field, not even under supervision, and all her efforts to meet an untimely accident had been thwarted.
Amanda had spent the first few months helping to identify and catalogue items that had been captured from the Nazis or HYDRA by SSR and had now been transferred to the care of SHIELD. Peggy insisted that this was the most productive, and least tempting, utilisation of Amanda's vast knowledge of art and antiquities.
At night Peggy wanted her under close supervision, so Amanda was forced to share an apartment with the director. Fortunately it was a luxury penthouse owned by Howard, but it was still a gilded cage and even less opportunity to end her life.
As time went on, something surprising happened; Amanda found herself wanting to stay. Already fond of both mortals, as she spent more time with them Amanda came to genuinely care for them. Peggy was fierce, strong, and very intelligent. Howard was also intelligent, funny, and charming.
Sure, SHIELD was a little too noble and like a government agency for her liking, but it was a secure and safe place to stay out of the Game for a while. On top of that, she couldn’t fault Howard’s generosity; as well as the rent-free accommodation, he constantly wined and dined Amanda, lavishing her with everything she could possibly desire.
He asked for nothing in return; he told Amanda that despite his playboy image, he would much rather be friends with her and Peggy. She occasionally did feel a little bad for taking his gifts, especially as Peggy never accepted any, but if it made both her and Howard happy, then who was she to refuse?
So it came to pass that Amanda settled into her new life and had all but forgotten her plans to kill herself and escape. Peggy eventually decreed that she had served enough penance in the archive and promoted her to Howard’s lab assistant, with the promise of a move to the field if she performed well.
“Watch that dial. If it goes into the red we could lose the whole building,” Howard instructed, somewhat melodramatically.
They were working with Vita-rays on a project that Howard insisted was Top Secret. Amanda suspected that he was trying to recreate the experiment that had given Steve Rogers his powers. Mainly because every time he got frustrated Howard would mutter ‘Steve… Erskine… formula’. He still wasn’t very good at keeping secrets.
Dutifully Amanda watched the dial on the panel in front of her. It stayed resolutely in the green zone.
“Everything’s normal.” she reported.
Just as she finished speaking, an alarm began to wail. Howard darted between controls, a look of panic on his face as he frantically pushed buttons and twiddled knobs.
“No, no, no! This isn’t possible… everything's in the green!”
“What’s wrong, Howard?” Peggy asked from behind them, startling Howard. He obviously hadn't realised she was watching them.
“The power source is overloading!” he replied
“Get out of there, now!” Peggy commanded. Howard shook his head.
“Can’t. If this explodes it will take the building and most of the surrounding neighbourhood with it.”
“What can I do?” Amanda asked.
Howard looked at her briefly, clearly about to tell her to go.
“Two of us stand a better chance of stopping this,” she said to forestall any argument. Howard considered this for a second before nodding.
“That lever across the room. It needs to be pulled to the up position.”
Amanda followed his gaze to the panel in question and quickly moved over to grab the lever.
“Wait! You need gloves; that panel will be coursing with thousands of…”
Too late, Amanda grabbed the lever and realised he was trying to warn her that the panel was electrified. Electricity coursed through every fibre of her body, causing her to jerk and flail about. It was nothing she hadn’t endured during a Quickening, although it was far more painful and not at all enjoyable. Thankfully she was able to retain enough motor function to throw the lever, cutting the power and releasing her. As she collapsed to the floor, she heard a hissing and Howard shout,
“The fire suppression, Peggy get out!”
*-*
Amanda had no idea how long she was out - she'd never been electrocuted before- but it couldn’t have been very long as it appeared she still lay where she had fallen. She cautiously opened her eyes and confirmed that was true, and that the room appeared to be empty.
This was it, her opportunity to get away from SHIELD. Sure, her body’s disappearance would raise questions, but she’d just need to find a remote part of the world to hide out in until a sufficient amount of time had passed.
She sat up, already plotting her escape route. There was a handy hat on one of the consoles that would be enough disguise to allow her to slip out unnoticed in the inevitable ensuing chaos triggered by the accident.
“Amanda?” Howard’s voice, crackly but unmistakably incredulous, through a nearby speaker. Amanda cursed herself for forgetting about the observation room.
“What happened?” Amanda asked, feigning ignorance. She coughed weakly for effect.
“This is incredible! The electricity in that panel should have killed you! And if that didn’t, the fire suppression system sucked out all the oxygen and pumped in a combination of chemicals that is deadly,” Howard explained, his voice animated. “The room should be clear now, stay there and we'll come to you.”
A few moments passed before Howard and Peggy entered the room. Howard looked like all his Christmases had come at once. Peggy looked suspicious, although that was how she often looked.
“It’s a miracle!” Amanda exclaimed.
“A miracle of science, maybe. I clearly haven’t replicated Erskine’s original experiment, but the only logical conclusion is that the Vita-rays somehow protected you from harm,” Howard said and started to look around at the damaged lab. “Just think. If it protected you… if Vita-rays have this power, then there’s a chance that Steve..”
“Let’s not be hasty,” Amanda interrupted “I wasn’t exactly exposed to the Vita-rays, was I? There must be another explanation. Perhaps the electricity stopped my breathing for long enough that the gases didn’t affect me.”
“I don’t think that’s it. And I don’t think that Howard is right, either,” Peggy said, picking up a scalpel from a nearby table. Before Amanda could react, Peggy slashed Amanda's arm with the blade, drawing blood. Within seconds the wound healed.
Howard gasped, but Peggy wasn’t fazed at all.
“You’re like Duncan MacLeod.”
There was no point trying to bluff her way out, and if Amanda went with Howard’s theory she’d go from lab assistant to lab rat. Once again Peggy had cornered her into telling the truth. Amanda sometimes wondered if Peggy was telepathic. She considered herself a world class liar, but there were times when Carter could read her like a book.
“I am,” Amanda admitted. “Duncan and I have been friends for … some time. How do you know him?”
“Steve.”
Amanda chuckled. Of course, she knew that Duncan had known Steve, but she didn’t know he’d revealed his Immortality to him.
“Would someone like to fill me in?” Howard asked.
Amanda sighed, but it was Peggy that answered.
“I’m sorry, Howard, but the Vita-rays had nothing to do with Amanda surviving. The exact nature of that survival is something that should stay between me and her.” She laid a comforting hand on his shoulder. “Let’s say no more about it. Now, who would like some tea?”
Amanda just nodded, stunned that Peggy was going to keep her secret.
*-*
Amanda cursed as a bullet zinged past her head and she turned and ducked down an alleyway. It was a dead end. She looked around for a means of escape or somewhere to hide, but no opportunity presented itself.
“Damn. Peggy, I could really use that extraction team right about now,” she said into her cuff. The radio concealed there crackled.
“Five minutes out,” came the reply.
“Then they may be retrieving my corpse. I knew I shouldn’t have let you talk me into this,” she said.
Fifteen years had passed since the lab accident. Once Peggy had realised the situation she had released Amanda from SHIELD and erased all record of her, but the two had stayed in contact and become firm friends. Peggy had asked Amanda for help retrieving an item that they believed might have had alien origins. It had seemed like a simple heist, the kind of thing Amanda could do in her sleep.
Amanda had broken into the property and located the artefact. It looked like a black opal, but it glowed with an unnatural light and was warm to the touch. She slipped it into her knapsack and began to make her exit, when the worst possible thing that could happen occurred.
She felt the presence of another Immortal.
Seconds later, alarms were sounding, dogs were barking, and Amanda was running as fast as her legs could carry her towards the extraction point. Guards were hot on her heels and that was how she’d wound up in this alley.
Amanda was contemplating trying to climb the thirty foot wall in front of her when she felt the Immortal approaching. With an exhausted sigh she drew her sword from its hidden sheath and turned to face her opponent.
“Amanda!?”
Amanda let out a sigh of relief as she realised that it was Matthew of Nottingham, although she didn’t put her sword away just yet; after all, she had just robbed either him or his employer.
“Matthew, this is a pleasant surprise,” she said with a smile.
“Did you just steal the Phoenix Opal from the museum?” he demanded.
“What, no foreplay? No witty repartee? You disappoint me,” she replied. “I’m completely innocent, officer, I was just in the neighbourhood and these men started shooting at me.”
“In the neighbourhood. In the middle of the night. Dressed in black and carrying a knapsack and a length of rope. That’s one heck of a coincidence, Amanda,” Matthew replied. He pulled a radio from his belt and spoke into it. “Call off the search, I have detained the suspect. Regroup at the museum.”
Amanda pouted.
”Amanda, what’s happening?” Peggy asked over the comms. Amanda fingered the button on her cuff so that the mic was open.
“So, are you planning on arresting me, Matthew? What name are you going by? Just so I know who to file the police harassment report against,” she said.
“It’s North. Agent Matthew North, FBI.”
“Leave it with me,” Peggy reassured her.
Amanda put her sword away and raised her hands in surrender.
“Lead on Agent North.”
Twenty minutes later, Amanda was sitting at a desk in a small office in the museum, awaiting more feds to arrive and take her away. Matthew was sat opposite and the opal sat on the table in front of them.
“This is rather small fry for you, Amanda. The Crown Jewels, the Mona Lisa, those are far more your speed,” he said. Amanda smiled.
“I would never repeat myself, how unoriginal,” she replied.
A phone on the desk began to ring at that moment. Puzzled, Matthew picked up the receiver.
“Agent North… Mr Hoover, sir… well, yes…” he looked at Amanda, the look of mild puzzlement turning into one of shock and complete confusion. “Absolutely sir, right away… thank you sir, it’s an honour to serve.”
Matthew hung up the receiver and then stared at Amanda for a moment.
“You’re free to go. With the opal,” he said.
Amanda beamed and reached for the gem. As she did, Matthew grabbed her wrist.
“I don’t know who you know that got you out of this, but they won’t always be around. Be careful, Amanda. Our kind shouldn’t be in prison,” he warned, his voice low.
Amanda patted him on the cheek with her free hand.
“Matthew, darling, I told you I was innocent.”
*-*
Amanda stood under the shade of a tree and watched Peggy lay a flower on Howard’s coffin before she gave Edwin Jarvis a brief kiss on the cheek and hugged young Tony.
There weren’t many present that would recognise her; too many years had passed, but Amanda couldn’t take the chance. In that company the questions would be awkward, as she had discovered when Hank Pym had raised a few before he’d been distracted by Janet’s disappearance. That had been Amanda’s cue to separate herself from her SHIELD connections forever, but she couldn’t bear to part completely from Peggy.
She’d said her goodbyes to Howard some years ago; he’d changed so much that she hadn’t recognised her friend for a long time. That said, she still felt the need to properly mourn his untimely passing.
Almost seeming to sense her, Peggy looked in her direction at that moment. She made eye contact and nodded before returning her gaze to the service. Shortly after, the gathered mourners began to disperse and Peggy made her way over.
“It’s good to see you, despite the circumstance. Howard would be glad you came,” Peggy said once she was close enough. She leaned in and hugged Amanda. “How’s Duncan?”
“He’s good. I haven’t seen him for a while though, he’s living with a mortal woman, it’s a bit awkward. You look well, retirement suits you,” she answered.
“Retirement. You look the same as the day I met you and I have a granddaughter. How did I get so old, Amanda?”
“Don’t be ridiculous. You are as beautiful and brilliant as the day we met.”
“You’re sweet. A liar, but sweet,” Peggy said with a smile. She took Amanda by the arm. “Now, why don’t you buy an old woman a cup of tea and we’ll reminisce some more.”
*-*
It broke Amanda’s heart to see Peggy in a nursing home, and the coward in her wanted nothing more than to run away and never see her again. But she also knew that she was a familiar face and that talking about the old days helped keep Peggy present. It was the least she could do for a woman that had done so much for her.
She sat by Peggy’s bedside, held her hand and talked with her about the war, SHIELD, Howard and whatever else Peggy was able to remember that day.
"It's so nice to see so many old friends. Steve was here yesterday," Peggy said after a while.
"Was he? That's nice, Peggy," Amanda replied, a tug of sadness in her voice.
"Don't patronise me Amanda. I may be senile, but I'm not hallucinating. Yet. This wasn't an old memory, Steve was here, in this room," Peggy replied, her voice strong, defiant and so like the Peggy she used to know. That was somehow worse than the weak and confused version of moments earlier.
Amanda laid a gentle hand on Peggy arm.
"How can that be possible? Think about it, cookie. Steve's plane went down seventy years ago. Even if he somehow survived, he'd be an old man."
"You're possible."
“That is true, but I haven't heard anything about Steve miraculously coming back. I want it to be true, I really do, but if they had found him don't you think it would be in the news? Or Duncan would have heard and told me,” Amanda reasoned.
There was a cough from behind her. She turned to see a face she never thought she’d see again.
“Steve?!” she spluttered.
“I've been meaning to catch up with Duncan, do you have his number?”
*Fin*
Author: Princess Sparkle Pants
Written for: jinxed_wood
Crossovers with:Agent Carter/MCU
Characters/Pairings: Amanda, Peggy Carter, Howard Stark, Matthew McCormick
Rating: PG-13
Word Count: 4659
Summary: A chance meeting in wartime London leads to an unexpected friendship that lasts a lifetime.
Au revoir
London, 1944
Amanda crept through the darkened house, not even moonlight filtering through the heavy blackout drapes that were a must in every British household these days. These people were rich, they had bought the regulation drapes and shutters rather than making the best of what they had available. But Amanda already knew they were rich, that was why she was here in the first place.
She had met Trevor Norton and his good lady wife at a function a few days ago. Austerity measures had yet to impact on the well to-do set of Mayfair so the ladies were in their pre-War finery. Mrs Norton had been sporting a matching set of diamond earrings, necklace and bracelet that Amanda knew were worth enough to get her safe passage to the United States.
All her money was tied up in European banks that were currently in Nazi occupied territory, so she’d been relying on her English stash of cash and rainy day jewels since escaping from Berlin in ‘36. But the war had lasted much longer than anticipated and London was getting far too war-torn for Amanda’s tastes.
With everyone in the nearest bomb shelter, it was a simple matter to make her way to the master bedroom and take the jewels from their resting place.
Not even in a safe. It’s like she wants them to be taken, Amanda mused as she removed them from their display box and put them in her bag.
She began to go back the way she had come, towards the back door, but just then the all-clear sounded.
“Merde,” Amanda muttered under her breath. The Nortons had their own Anderson shelters, one for themselves and one for their staff, in the garden. They would be coming out shortly so she couldn’t risk going out that way and she couldn't chance the front door either.
Up was her best option. If she could make it to the corner, she recalled there was a house with a small first floor balcony; an easy drop onto the street and then she could mingle with the throng of people leaving the nearest public shelter and disappear before any alarm was raised.
She hurried up the stairs to the servant’s quarters and found she was in luck as there was a door out to the flat rooftop. Not uncommon in the houses on this row, but some owners had blocked them to prevent servants having sneaky cigarettes on the roof.
She clambered out onto the tiles and carefully, quietly, closed the door behind her before she made her way towards the end of the row. Then, she dropped onto the balcony and, once she’d confirmed the coast was clear, she dropped to the pavement below.
A few short steps and she was out to the main road, where people were beginning to come up from the shelter. From there, it was easy to fall in step with the crowd as though she’d been there all along.
Once she was a good distance away from the Norton residence, she left the crowd and headed to her hotel to change. In the morning she’d meet with Basil and sell the diamonds and other little baubles she had collected recently but tonight she was going dancing. There may be a war on, but Amanda never missed a party. Especially when the party was being thrown by Howard Stark.
*-*
“Amanda! Sweetheart!” Howard crowed as she entered the ballroom.
Only Howard Stark could throw a party of this magnitude in the middle of the Blitz. He had hired the Ritz, the entire hotel, and spared no expense in every luxury imaginable. He had pulled strings to import rationed goods directly from the US, billing the event as a war benefit to avoid pesky local laws about the black market.
A full jazz orchestra was playing up on stage and the best and brightest of London mingled with Allied troops of all nations. In the middle of it all, as always, was Stark himself. He waved with his cigar for Amanda to join him and then started toward her.
She sashayed through the crowd to meet him, helping herself to champagne from a passing tray on her route.
“Amanda, there’s someone you just have to meet. She’s a real pip,” Howard said with a grin, scanning the crowd. “Peggy! Come over here a minute!”
Amanda followed his gaze and saw a young woman headed towards them. Amanda knew instantly that she wasn’t rich or famous, her clothes were far too sensible and shop-bought for that, although still smart enough for the evening’s festivities. Her make-up was simple but flattering, and she was adorned only with a small pair of diamond stud earrings and a matching hairpin. She carried herself with confidence, and her eyes scanned the party as though looking for trouble. This was not Howard’s usual type at all.
“Amanda Extegaray, meet Peggy Carter,” Howard said once Peggy was in earshot of them.
“Miss Carter,” Amanda demurred, holding out her hand.
“Miss Extegaray,” Peggy returned, cautiously shaking the proffered hand. “Extegaray. That’s Basque, isn’t it?”
“Very good, Miss Carter. Most English people can’t even say it, let alone know where my name comes from. My grandfather was Basque,” Amanda extemporised.
“I’ve spent some time in France.”
“Recently?” Amanda asked. Peggy just smiled.
A soldier then, or a spy. That explained a lot about Miss Carter. Amanda knew that Howard had been doing some work with the American government as part of the war effort. He wasn’t very good at keeping secrets, especially in the bedroom.
“Peggy is attached to the Howling Commandos,” Howard said, as proof of his lack of discretion.
“Isn’t that Captain America’s unit?” Amanda asked at the same time that Peggy threw Howard a look that could have killed.
“That’s right,” Howard continued, apparently oblivious to the death glare Peggy was giving him.
“You two know Captain America?” Amanda sounded like an awed schoolgirl, but she didn’t really care. It fitted with the version of her that Howard knew and, honestly, she was a little star struck by the Star-Spangled Man. Even in her one thousand years of life she hadn’t come across anything like him before.
“Sure, Steve’s a pal. Who’d you think designed his shield?”
“Howard, I’m quite sure Miss Extegaray isn’t interested in such things,” Peggy said lightly but Amanda could hear a warning in her voice. Howard apparently could not.
“Would you like to meet him? He’s supposed to put in an appearance tonight, raise some money for the war effort. I could arrange it,” he said.
“Oh, Howard! That would be swell,” Amanda replied with genuine enthusiasm and rewarded Howard with a kiss.
*-*
Somewhere in Europe, 1952
Mario Cordoza was an evil, manipulative son of a bitch. Amanda was already plotting a thousand different ways for revenge. But for now, she needed to get as far away from Warsaw as possible.
The bastard had made her accessory to mass murder. The blood on her hands and on her conscience would never wash clean and it was because she’d allowed Cordoza to use her. Never again. From now on she’d only work for herself.
She stopped running somewhere near the northern border of Italy, exhausted, and booked herself into a little bed and breakfast near the foot of the Alps. She’d rest a day or two and then cross into southern France. It had been too long since she’d been on the Riviera.
She slept soundly that night, exhaustion allowing her the first good night’s rest since the bombing. Waking refreshed the next morning, Amanda went down to breakfast starting to feel a little like herself again.
She seated herself at an outside table, enjoying the crisp air and the view. Focus on the small pleasures; that was how she would get past this, as she had got past all the other horrors she’d endured.
After ordering a light breakfast of fruit and coffee, Amanda leaned back in her chair and closed her eyes, feeling the warmth of the morning sun. It was going to be a glorious day, she decided. After a moment though a shadow was cast over her and she opened her eyes, squinting, to see what had caused it.
“Miss Extegaray! I thought that was you,” the voice was female, English and familiar, although Amanda took a second to place it.
“Miss Carter, this is a pleasant surprise. Please, won't you join me?” she said with pleasantry she didn't really feel. But perhaps company was the distraction she needed at the moment.
“So, who do you work for, Miss Extegaray? Or would you prefer Miss Novak? That was quite some mess you left in Warsaw,” Carter said as she took a seat.
Shocked, Amanda briefly flirted with playing dumb, but she knew it was pointless. Honesty then, of a sort.
“That was not my intention. I was played for a fool,” she said quietly.
“And I suppose it was not your intention to learn everything you could from Howard Stark about Captain… America,” Carter continued, an almost unnoticeable hitch in her voice before she said ‘America’.
“I was sorry to hear about Captain Rogers. I only met him that one time, but he seemed a wonderful man,” Amanda said, quite sincere. Captain America had been unique in disposition as well as physique and Duncan had spoken highly of him.
“Don't change the subject. I thought then that you might be working for the Nazis. Is it the Russians? Or HYDRA?”
“Peggy, what are you talking about? I'm no spy!” Amanda protested, her voice dropping to a hiss as the waiter brought the coffee. He stopped to take Peggy’s order for tea and then left them again.
“What were you doing in Warsaw then? You know, I've been monitoring your activity since that night at The Ritz. You’re very well-travelled, Amanda. May I call you Amanda? Your Christian name appears to be the only constant about you,” Peggy said quietly, not breaking eye contact.
Amanda was too surprised to come up with anything other than the truth, and she knew instinctively that somehow Carter would manage to trap her in a lie, no matter how good it was.
“I'm not a spy. Someone tricked me into thinking I was retrieving a certain object d’art for them, but they were setting me up as the patsy for an assassination,” she admitted.
“In that case, help me capture the one who is responsible.”
“Still with SSR then?” Amanda replied. She didn't wait for confirmation before continuing. “I'm sorry, I can't help. I never knew who hired me. Everything was done through couriers. I'm known for my discretion.”
Plus, as much as she wanted revenge on Cordoza, he scared her and no mortal prison would hold that sociopath for long.
“I'm sorry to hear that, Amanda,” Peggy said, sounding far from sorry. She paused as her tea and Amanda’s fruit arrived. “That means you're the only suspect we have,” she finished once they were alone again.
“Suspect, yes. But what evidence do you have?” Amanda pointed out with a smile.
Peggy smiled and took a pen from her purse. She clicked the top and Amanda’s voice began to emanate from it. She clicked it again and put it away.
“I have your confession. Miniature recording device, one of Howard’s more useful toys,” she explained.
“I'll be sure to congratulate him,” Amanda said dryly. “So, what happens next? Do the goons swoop in to whisk me back to Warsaw for trial?”
“I have a much better use of your singular talents. Come and work for me and I'll make sure this recording never makes its way to Warsaw,” Peggy explained.
Amanda was starting to really enjoy the way this woman thought. She looked stern and thoughtful for a moment before breaking into a grin.
“Blackmail, Peggy? I approve of your methods.”
“That's Director Carter, if you please.”
*_*
Amanda had agreed to Peggy’s deal because it had seemed like an elegant solution to an intricately messy problem. Warsaw had already left her planning to burn this alias so all she had to do was get killed in the line of duty and she could disappear without any further worry of Carter, SHIELD or Warsaw.
Unfortunately, Peggy and Howard had other ideas. It seemed that Peggy didn't trust her in the field, not even under supervision, and all her efforts to meet an untimely accident had been thwarted.
Amanda had spent the first few months helping to identify and catalogue items that had been captured from the Nazis or HYDRA by SSR and had now been transferred to the care of SHIELD. Peggy insisted that this was the most productive, and least tempting, utilisation of Amanda's vast knowledge of art and antiquities.
At night Peggy wanted her under close supervision, so Amanda was forced to share an apartment with the director. Fortunately it was a luxury penthouse owned by Howard, but it was still a gilded cage and even less opportunity to end her life.
As time went on, something surprising happened; Amanda found herself wanting to stay. Already fond of both mortals, as she spent more time with them Amanda came to genuinely care for them. Peggy was fierce, strong, and very intelligent. Howard was also intelligent, funny, and charming.
Sure, SHIELD was a little too noble and like a government agency for her liking, but it was a secure and safe place to stay out of the Game for a while. On top of that, she couldn’t fault Howard’s generosity; as well as the rent-free accommodation, he constantly wined and dined Amanda, lavishing her with everything she could possibly desire.
He asked for nothing in return; he told Amanda that despite his playboy image, he would much rather be friends with her and Peggy. She occasionally did feel a little bad for taking his gifts, especially as Peggy never accepted any, but if it made both her and Howard happy, then who was she to refuse?
So it came to pass that Amanda settled into her new life and had all but forgotten her plans to kill herself and escape. Peggy eventually decreed that she had served enough penance in the archive and promoted her to Howard’s lab assistant, with the promise of a move to the field if she performed well.
“Watch that dial. If it goes into the red we could lose the whole building,” Howard instructed, somewhat melodramatically.
They were working with Vita-rays on a project that Howard insisted was Top Secret. Amanda suspected that he was trying to recreate the experiment that had given Steve Rogers his powers. Mainly because every time he got frustrated Howard would mutter ‘Steve… Erskine… formula’. He still wasn’t very good at keeping secrets.
Dutifully Amanda watched the dial on the panel in front of her. It stayed resolutely in the green zone.
“Everything’s normal.” she reported.
Just as she finished speaking, an alarm began to wail. Howard darted between controls, a look of panic on his face as he frantically pushed buttons and twiddled knobs.
“No, no, no! This isn’t possible… everything's in the green!”
“What’s wrong, Howard?” Peggy asked from behind them, startling Howard. He obviously hadn't realised she was watching them.
“The power source is overloading!” he replied
“Get out of there, now!” Peggy commanded. Howard shook his head.
“Can’t. If this explodes it will take the building and most of the surrounding neighbourhood with it.”
“What can I do?” Amanda asked.
Howard looked at her briefly, clearly about to tell her to go.
“Two of us stand a better chance of stopping this,” she said to forestall any argument. Howard considered this for a second before nodding.
“That lever across the room. It needs to be pulled to the up position.”
Amanda followed his gaze to the panel in question and quickly moved over to grab the lever.
“Wait! You need gloves; that panel will be coursing with thousands of…”
Too late, Amanda grabbed the lever and realised he was trying to warn her that the panel was electrified. Electricity coursed through every fibre of her body, causing her to jerk and flail about. It was nothing she hadn’t endured during a Quickening, although it was far more painful and not at all enjoyable. Thankfully she was able to retain enough motor function to throw the lever, cutting the power and releasing her. As she collapsed to the floor, she heard a hissing and Howard shout,
“The fire suppression, Peggy get out!”
*-*
Amanda had no idea how long she was out - she'd never been electrocuted before- but it couldn’t have been very long as it appeared she still lay where she had fallen. She cautiously opened her eyes and confirmed that was true, and that the room appeared to be empty.
This was it, her opportunity to get away from SHIELD. Sure, her body’s disappearance would raise questions, but she’d just need to find a remote part of the world to hide out in until a sufficient amount of time had passed.
She sat up, already plotting her escape route. There was a handy hat on one of the consoles that would be enough disguise to allow her to slip out unnoticed in the inevitable ensuing chaos triggered by the accident.
“Amanda?” Howard’s voice, crackly but unmistakably incredulous, through a nearby speaker. Amanda cursed herself for forgetting about the observation room.
“What happened?” Amanda asked, feigning ignorance. She coughed weakly for effect.
“This is incredible! The electricity in that panel should have killed you! And if that didn’t, the fire suppression system sucked out all the oxygen and pumped in a combination of chemicals that is deadly,” Howard explained, his voice animated. “The room should be clear now, stay there and we'll come to you.”
A few moments passed before Howard and Peggy entered the room. Howard looked like all his Christmases had come at once. Peggy looked suspicious, although that was how she often looked.
“It’s a miracle!” Amanda exclaimed.
“A miracle of science, maybe. I clearly haven’t replicated Erskine’s original experiment, but the only logical conclusion is that the Vita-rays somehow protected you from harm,” Howard said and started to look around at the damaged lab. “Just think. If it protected you… if Vita-rays have this power, then there’s a chance that Steve..”
“Let’s not be hasty,” Amanda interrupted “I wasn’t exactly exposed to the Vita-rays, was I? There must be another explanation. Perhaps the electricity stopped my breathing for long enough that the gases didn’t affect me.”
“I don’t think that’s it. And I don’t think that Howard is right, either,” Peggy said, picking up a scalpel from a nearby table. Before Amanda could react, Peggy slashed Amanda's arm with the blade, drawing blood. Within seconds the wound healed.
Howard gasped, but Peggy wasn’t fazed at all.
“You’re like Duncan MacLeod.”
There was no point trying to bluff her way out, and if Amanda went with Howard’s theory she’d go from lab assistant to lab rat. Once again Peggy had cornered her into telling the truth. Amanda sometimes wondered if Peggy was telepathic. She considered herself a world class liar, but there were times when Carter could read her like a book.
“I am,” Amanda admitted. “Duncan and I have been friends for … some time. How do you know him?”
“Steve.”
Amanda chuckled. Of course, she knew that Duncan had known Steve, but she didn’t know he’d revealed his Immortality to him.
“Would someone like to fill me in?” Howard asked.
Amanda sighed, but it was Peggy that answered.
“I’m sorry, Howard, but the Vita-rays had nothing to do with Amanda surviving. The exact nature of that survival is something that should stay between me and her.” She laid a comforting hand on his shoulder. “Let’s say no more about it. Now, who would like some tea?”
Amanda just nodded, stunned that Peggy was going to keep her secret.
*-*
Amanda cursed as a bullet zinged past her head and she turned and ducked down an alleyway. It was a dead end. She looked around for a means of escape or somewhere to hide, but no opportunity presented itself.
“Damn. Peggy, I could really use that extraction team right about now,” she said into her cuff. The radio concealed there crackled.
“Five minutes out,” came the reply.
“Then they may be retrieving my corpse. I knew I shouldn’t have let you talk me into this,” she said.
Fifteen years had passed since the lab accident. Once Peggy had realised the situation she had released Amanda from SHIELD and erased all record of her, but the two had stayed in contact and become firm friends. Peggy had asked Amanda for help retrieving an item that they believed might have had alien origins. It had seemed like a simple heist, the kind of thing Amanda could do in her sleep.
Amanda had broken into the property and located the artefact. It looked like a black opal, but it glowed with an unnatural light and was warm to the touch. She slipped it into her knapsack and began to make her exit, when the worst possible thing that could happen occurred.
She felt the presence of another Immortal.
Seconds later, alarms were sounding, dogs were barking, and Amanda was running as fast as her legs could carry her towards the extraction point. Guards were hot on her heels and that was how she’d wound up in this alley.
Amanda was contemplating trying to climb the thirty foot wall in front of her when she felt the Immortal approaching. With an exhausted sigh she drew her sword from its hidden sheath and turned to face her opponent.
“Amanda!?”
Amanda let out a sigh of relief as she realised that it was Matthew of Nottingham, although she didn’t put her sword away just yet; after all, she had just robbed either him or his employer.
“Matthew, this is a pleasant surprise,” she said with a smile.
“Did you just steal the Phoenix Opal from the museum?” he demanded.
“What, no foreplay? No witty repartee? You disappoint me,” she replied. “I’m completely innocent, officer, I was just in the neighbourhood and these men started shooting at me.”
“In the neighbourhood. In the middle of the night. Dressed in black and carrying a knapsack and a length of rope. That’s one heck of a coincidence, Amanda,” Matthew replied. He pulled a radio from his belt and spoke into it. “Call off the search, I have detained the suspect. Regroup at the museum.”
Amanda pouted.
”Amanda, what’s happening?” Peggy asked over the comms. Amanda fingered the button on her cuff so that the mic was open.
“So, are you planning on arresting me, Matthew? What name are you going by? Just so I know who to file the police harassment report against,” she said.
“It’s North. Agent Matthew North, FBI.”
“Leave it with me,” Peggy reassured her.
Amanda put her sword away and raised her hands in surrender.
“Lead on Agent North.”
Twenty minutes later, Amanda was sitting at a desk in a small office in the museum, awaiting more feds to arrive and take her away. Matthew was sat opposite and the opal sat on the table in front of them.
“This is rather small fry for you, Amanda. The Crown Jewels, the Mona Lisa, those are far more your speed,” he said. Amanda smiled.
“I would never repeat myself, how unoriginal,” she replied.
A phone on the desk began to ring at that moment. Puzzled, Matthew picked up the receiver.
“Agent North… Mr Hoover, sir… well, yes…” he looked at Amanda, the look of mild puzzlement turning into one of shock and complete confusion. “Absolutely sir, right away… thank you sir, it’s an honour to serve.”
Matthew hung up the receiver and then stared at Amanda for a moment.
“You’re free to go. With the opal,” he said.
Amanda beamed and reached for the gem. As she did, Matthew grabbed her wrist.
“I don’t know who you know that got you out of this, but they won’t always be around. Be careful, Amanda. Our kind shouldn’t be in prison,” he warned, his voice low.
Amanda patted him on the cheek with her free hand.
“Matthew, darling, I told you I was innocent.”
*-*
Amanda stood under the shade of a tree and watched Peggy lay a flower on Howard’s coffin before she gave Edwin Jarvis a brief kiss on the cheek and hugged young Tony.
There weren’t many present that would recognise her; too many years had passed, but Amanda couldn’t take the chance. In that company the questions would be awkward, as she had discovered when Hank Pym had raised a few before he’d been distracted by Janet’s disappearance. That had been Amanda’s cue to separate herself from her SHIELD connections forever, but she couldn’t bear to part completely from Peggy.
She’d said her goodbyes to Howard some years ago; he’d changed so much that she hadn’t recognised her friend for a long time. That said, she still felt the need to properly mourn his untimely passing.
Almost seeming to sense her, Peggy looked in her direction at that moment. She made eye contact and nodded before returning her gaze to the service. Shortly after, the gathered mourners began to disperse and Peggy made her way over.
“It’s good to see you, despite the circumstance. Howard would be glad you came,” Peggy said once she was close enough. She leaned in and hugged Amanda. “How’s Duncan?”
“He’s good. I haven’t seen him for a while though, he’s living with a mortal woman, it’s a bit awkward. You look well, retirement suits you,” she answered.
“Retirement. You look the same as the day I met you and I have a granddaughter. How did I get so old, Amanda?”
“Don’t be ridiculous. You are as beautiful and brilliant as the day we met.”
“You’re sweet. A liar, but sweet,” Peggy said with a smile. She took Amanda by the arm. “Now, why don’t you buy an old woman a cup of tea and we’ll reminisce some more.”
*-*
It broke Amanda’s heart to see Peggy in a nursing home, and the coward in her wanted nothing more than to run away and never see her again. But she also knew that she was a familiar face and that talking about the old days helped keep Peggy present. It was the least she could do for a woman that had done so much for her.
She sat by Peggy’s bedside, held her hand and talked with her about the war, SHIELD, Howard and whatever else Peggy was able to remember that day.
"It's so nice to see so many old friends. Steve was here yesterday," Peggy said after a while.
"Was he? That's nice, Peggy," Amanda replied, a tug of sadness in her voice.
"Don't patronise me Amanda. I may be senile, but I'm not hallucinating. Yet. This wasn't an old memory, Steve was here, in this room," Peggy replied, her voice strong, defiant and so like the Peggy she used to know. That was somehow worse than the weak and confused version of moments earlier.
Amanda laid a gentle hand on Peggy arm.
"How can that be possible? Think about it, cookie. Steve's plane went down seventy years ago. Even if he somehow survived, he'd be an old man."
"You're possible."
“That is true, but I haven't heard anything about Steve miraculously coming back. I want it to be true, I really do, but if they had found him don't you think it would be in the news? Or Duncan would have heard and told me,” Amanda reasoned.
There was a cough from behind her. She turned to see a face she never thought she’d see again.
“Steve?!” she spluttered.
“I've been meaning to catch up with Duncan, do you have his number?”
*Fin*