14 14. A MAN OUT OF TIME.

Sitwell returned a few days later for an interview to set up Harry's SHIELD profile and official paperwork. They planned a medical examination for a later date.

Harry managed to retrieve his watch from Sitwell, saying he had dropped it during the meeting.

SHIELD's request came swiftly, catching Harry off guard.

One chilly morning, Harry discovered Nick Fury in his bathroom, sipping coffee. Processing it slowly, he returned to the kitchen to find Fury at his table, tapping a smartphone and sipping coffee.

"Um...hello?" Harry greeted, slightly puzzled.

"Potter. I have a job for you."

"I'm practically in my underwear. Give me a sec."

Harry returned to his room, dressed quickly, and brewed coffee for Domino, who was still asleep. Using magic, he made himself tea by heating the water.

"I need to set up some protective spells. So, what's up, Director?"

"I need you to debrief a soldier we recovered—missing in action."

"Must be big if you're here instead of sending Sitwell," Harry remarked. "But why me? This isn't my usual thing."

Domino strolled into the kitchen in just a t-shirt and panties, noticed their guest, shrugged, poured herself coffee, and sat down.

Fury looked at Harry questioningly.

Harry just shrugged.

"You two have a lot in common," Fury explained, sliding a folder over to Harry.

The folder was labeled: Steve Rogers.

Harry sat in an uncomfortable chair in a plain hospital room, waiting for the man in the bed to wake up. The doctors had said it would happen soon.

When Harry agreed to work with SHIELD, he didn't expect to debrief a long-missing soldier. He thought it might involve identifying magical things or doing investigations. But here he was, facing Steve Rogers, also known as Captain America, lying in the older-styled hospital bed.

Outside the window, the sounds of New York filled the air, but they were artificial, just like the room itself—a recreation of how things were in 1945, the year Rogers had crashed into the icy ocean.

Rogers shifted, subtly looking around for restraints.

"Good morning, Captain Rogers," Harry said gently.

The man's eyes opened, alert and wary.

"Who are you? Where am I?" he asked.

"I'm Harry Potter, and you're in a temporary medical facility in New York."

The man cautiously sat up in bed, looking around the room, clearly puzzled.

"You have a British accent," he observed.

"Yeah, lived most of my life in England and Scotland. Been in New York for less than a year. Can I ask you a few questions? The doctors want to make sure there aren't any issues from your time in the icy water."

The man's expression turned serious.

"Don't worry, nothing secretive. Just your name, rank, serial number, date of birth, and the current year. General stuff, to check your memory."

"Steven Grant Rogers, Captain, 54985870, born July 4, 1918, and the current year is 1945."

Harry tried not to show his shock at realizing the man had been frozen in time for 66 years, but Rogers noticed his reaction and grew more guarded.

"So, I've answered your questions. Care to answer mine?" Rogers asked.

"Ask, and I'll try to help," Harry replied.

"Where am I really, and who do you work for?" Rogers inquired, subtly moving his hand toward the tray on his bedside table.

"I've been honest. You're in New York, in a secure location. The doctors were concerned about potential brain damage, so they placed you here. As for my affiliation, I consult for SHIELD, an organization that evolved from the SSR."

"Evolved from the SSR?" Rogers seemed bewildered. "How long have I been out?"

Harry shifted uncomfortably before sighing deeply. "It's been around 66 years. It's December 5th, 2011."

Suddenly, the soldier sprang into action, moving faster than Harry expected. Harry barely managed to block a punch aimed at his head, but even deflected, the blow was powerful enough to send him to the floor.

Rogers rushed forward, easily breaking through the sturdy door.

"Clear the way! Domino! Where's he headed?" Harry asked, activating his wristwatch to its mirrored side.

Sounds of fighting echoed in the distance, followed by a loud crash.

"He's heading to the roof. All the fire doors are sealed," Domino responded.

"Tell Fury to keep his men hidden. I'll meet the captain on the roof."

Harry stumbled out of the room, apparated past a fire door, then out of a window. A few 'Alarte Ascendare' spells helped him swiftly climb the building in a series of jumps.

Rogers burst through the door, surprised to find Harry waiting there with raised hands. "What? What?!"

"I took a shortcut," Harry explained calmly. "I'm not here to harm you, Captain. You're not a prisoner. Come with me and see the city."

Harry gestured for the super soldier to follow him around a corner.

Captain Rogers gasped as they saw, in the distance, the Statue of Liberty framed by the modern New York skyline.

Overwhelmed, Rogers sat down, taking in the view.

"I know this is a lot to process. Just take some deep breaths. It won't help to panic," Harry said calmly, trying not to trigger a fight-or-flight response.

"66 years?"

"Yeah. SHIELD took a long time to find you. Are we okay?" Harry asked, sitting down nearby.

"Not really."

Harry noticed Rogers tensing, and shortly after, SHIELD soldiers appeared around the corner.

"It's fine! You guys can leave," Harry called out. "SHIELD security forces," he explained to the soldiers.

"Security detail?" Rogers asked.

"If you had brain damage and became violent—well, you're a dangerous soldier. Having a super soldier rampaging through New York would have been pretty bad."

"What now?"

"Now you ask me questions, I try to answer. Later, you'll probably debrief on your last mission, but it's waited this long, a few more days won't hurt. But first, we should probably get you dressed. Pyjama bottoms and a muscle shirt in the middle of winter probably aren't the most comfortable," Harry offered.

"It's warmer than I've been in a long time, apparently, but yeah," Rogers spoke softly.

Just then, Domino turned the corner carrying a duffle bag and a small cooler.

Rogers stared at the girl in surprise. Her partially shaved head with purple fringe, matching purple lipstick, piercings, and punk-style clothing seemingly shocked the man's conservative 1940s sensibilities.

"This is my friend and assistant, Domino. Domino, Captain Rogers."

"Hey," the girl greeted shyly.

She handed the man a duffle bag containing jeans, a t-shirt, socks, shoes, and a jacket.

Rogers pulled on the jeans over his pyjama bottoms, put on the socks and shirt, but hesitated at the shoes.

"Yeah, modern running shoes," Harry acknowledged.

"I, uh … I brought up some food and a couple of beers," Domino offered shyly before running off.

Harry shook his head at the girl's strange behavior.

"Do you want to stay out here or

 go inside?" Harry asked.

"I'd like to stay out here for a bit if you don't mind."

Harry nodded and started poking through the lunch Domino had brought.

"So, you have questions. I might have answers," Harry continued, opening one of the beers and handing it to the other man before opening one for himself.

"I guess we won?"

Harry took a sip of the beer, grimacing slightly, not being a fan of the drink.

"You'll be able to get more detail about that from a military briefing later, but yeah. The leader of HYDRA vanished, Hitler killed himself as allied forces made their way to him. The world has been in relative peace for the last 60 or so years. There was something in Cuba, and things between the US and the Russians were pretty tense; they called it the 'Cold War.' And there have been other wars like Korea, Afghanistan, and so on, but nothing like World War 2."

Rogers took a sip from his beer.

"What about my friends? The Howling Commandos? Howard Stark? … Peggy Carter?"

"They said you might ask, so they prepared me. The Commandos are all gone, I'm sorry. Howard Stark and his wife died in a car crash in 1991, I think. Peggy Carter is still alive. Her location is considered a government national secret."

"Howard got married?" Rogers asked in surprise. "Never would have thought."

"Yes. I've met his son. Brilliant but a bit of an arsehole," Harry offered. "Actually, I'm being a bit unfair. Apparently, he turned his life around over the last bit. See that huge tower being built over there? That's going to be a self-sufficient, non-polluting tower. He's moved the company from weapons development to clean energy and other fields."

"What about you? Why did they choose you for my orientation? You're young, not military, not a doctor."

Harry considered how to answer.

"I can … relate," Harry started hesitantly.

"You can relate to my situation?" Rogers replied with disbelief.

"A lot more than I think Fury, that's the director of SHIELD, even realizes. We have a lot in common, including your particular temporal displacement."

"Really?"

"I don't think you're ready for all the details… you need more than the 30 minutes you've had to come to grips with the reality of your new situation, but I lost 11 years and everyone I knew."

"How?"

"Trust me, you are not ready for this story, but just know that I can understand your situation. I woke up in the future sometime this summer. I found that my friends were gone, my girlfriend, my godson, my almost in-laws… everyone. I'll tell you my story once you've had time to come to grips with your situation. No need to overwhelm you."

"Fair enough."

They sat in silence for a bit longer, eating sub sandwiches and finishing off the last of their beer.

"This just doesn't feel real. It's like I'm in some horrible nightmare."

Harry could very well relate to the older man's state of mind, having gone through the same realization in the empty field where the Burrow should have been.

"It'll take a while to sink in. I still wake up sometimes thinking I am still at my boarding school in Scotland. Are you ready to head in? I think Director Fury is probably anxious to meet with you."

Harry guided the captain back into the building and into a simple conference room. The room was simple, and while the furniture was modern, the only modern technology in the room was the teleconference unit sitting in the center of the table.

Sitting at the table were Fury, Hill, and another balding agent Harry had never met, a Phillip Joseph Coulson.

"Captain Rogers, Director Fury, Agent Hill, and Agent Coulson."

Rogers hesitated for a moment, looking surprised.

"Is there a problem, Captain?"

Rogers hesitated for a moment.

"I don't mean to sound bigoted, Director Fury, but to me, yesterday, people of color were segregated. To find someone like you in charge of a vast military agency is a little bit of a shock."

"A lot has changed in the past 60 years, Captain. There is still some discrimination, but things have progressed a great deal over those past 6 decades. Who knows, we might even have a black president in the near future."

"I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: 'We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal.'" Harry quoted. "My friend Hermione was a big supporter of civil rights."

'Or rather elven civil rights' Harry thought to himself.

"I feel like I'll need to go back to school," Rogers ruefully explained as he reached out to shake the man's hand.

To Harry's utter shock, Fury gave the captain an authentic smile.

"Ok, Captain, I'll leave you in Director Fury's capable hands. I'm not sure I'm cleared for whatever you guys are going to talk about. Here is Domino's phone number. She's easier to reach on the phone than I am. Let me know if you want to talk and when you feel ready to hear the rest of my story."

Harry waved to everyone and closed the doors as he left. Picking up Domino, he apparated them back to their apartment.

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(edited chapter.)

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