" Although the world is full of suffering, it is also full of the overcoming of it."

- Helen Keller

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The walk continued for a while, into the early hours of morning as the sun slowly rose into the sky. Hazel watched as the sky turned from dark black and blues to oranges, yellows and reds, making the clouds appear and a dark blue turn light, the stars slowly twinkling away. Birds fluttered every so often, crickets continued to chirp next to lakes and swamps and within trees, and the air slowly became warmer. They were quiet moving across the land as Hazel's thoughts wandered. Here they were early on the morning of June 6th, the sun slowly making an appearance on the horizon and the sky like a painting from God saying that they've survived another day.

Hazel stopped, the hot, sticky air of the early morning hitting her, as she glanced towards the slowly rising sun which painted a golden hue across the entirety of Normandy, and the green trees and bushes and marshes. Hazel slowly held up a hand against the sun, watching as the light moved across it, darkening her hand, like it were a shadow. Hazel then moved her hand to the side and looked towards the yellow sun. She moved her hand back, and the light pushed bright around her hand. She smiled. Hazel dropped her hand in wonder, eyes curious and gentle as she bit her lip.

Her weary mind went to Catherine and Lizzie first, her worry for both of the strong women, overwhelming. Hazel turned away from the sun and glanced towards the group of men she'd managed to meet up with slowly moving past her. Hazel sighed to herself and turned moving again beside Joe Toye.

" You ok, kid?" Joe asked her as she glanced up at him from under the brim of her helmet. He reached forward to push it up from her eyes and she smiled softly.

" I hope everyone's ok." Hazel said with a nod. Joe watched her and a soft smile spread on his face.

Joe Toye had always loved the tiny sniper, just like many of the other guys because, for him at least, she brought a level of war that he felt no one else could bring. And that was the emotional human aspect. She kept the feeling alive in a way, so that no one would fall into a dark, deep hole, shut off from everyone. She kept the emotional aspect, which war tended to push away, alive. And she cared about everyone, no matter who they were; many men wished they could be the same way.

" Me too," Joe said, " but it's Toccoa guys and 2 Viragos. I'd say they're in good hands." Hazel smiled wide and nodded. They definitely would be in good hands.

" How was your jump?" Joe asked her, as they moved through the slushy marsh, which seemingly, the Germans had flooded, anticipating some sort of invasion.

" Ok," Hazel said, " after I landed, I was on the run for a bit before I found anyone else."

" Yeah, that was me before I found Malark wandering around." Joe said, " Could hear him a mile away." Hazel snickered and glanced back towards the red-head who walked beside Popeye, the two talking quietly together.

" Bill ok?" Hazel asked softly. Joe glanced at her and then towards Bill who was walking in front of the two 82nd boys in front of them.

" He'll be fine," Joe said, " he just got some news from his family. I'm sure if you talk to him, he'll tell you." Hazel nodded, glancing up towards Bill again, biting her lip.

As they walked, Joe began humming the tune to I'll Be Seeing You by Billie Holiday, and it made Hazel smile a bit, as the two moved through the marsh together. Hazel glanced up towards Winters and Lip who spoke quietly to each other showing each other the map every so often.

Hazel bit her lip again, it was growing sore. She brought up her hand and then pulled it down. She did it too often now when the worry was too overwhelming to do anything else. The sun was beginning to peak up again through the Normandy landscape, and it was growing warmer, Hazel could feel it. The gear she wore was heavy and the sniper was sweaty in her grip again. She thought back to the railroad and the horses. She hadn't shot a single bullet, but hours earlier she had murdered a man at her own hand, with a knife. She shut her eyes, pushing that thought from her mind.

The blood on her hands, even when washed away, would remain there for much longer than a war.

" Did you see him? He just sat there." Hazel heard Bill said from a little in front of her. Joe had begun walking along side the unnaturally quiet and reserved man, who had gone against WInters' orders.

" He didn't have a weapon." Joe answered. " What's he gonna do, shout at 'em?"

" Shouts at me for killing Krauts." Bill muttered, brushing a bug from his face.

" He just wanted you to wait for his command." Joe argued back gently.

" Joe, he don't even drink." Bill argued back. Hazel wanted to talk to Bill, like Joe had suggested, but trauma, even from whatever had gotten Bill so upset and irate, took time to heal from. Hazel would talk to him when he calmed down, she didn't want to possibly anger him more. Hazel sighed and looked toward the new guy, John Hall. She smiled at him as she stopped and let him walk up beside her. Hall liked her smile.

" Are you the sniper that everyone talks about?" he asked her and she nodded with a tiny smile.

" It's not really a sniper, traditionally, more of a rifle with a scope, but that's how my position is classified." she said with a smile.

" That's so cool." he said and then looked at her weapon.

" What type is it?" he asked her.

" Remington, with a Redfield scope." she explained to him. He smiled, fascinated. The two continued talking quietly as the members of Easy and their new arrivals walked slowly through the swamp toward their objective, the sun rising, and bringing the morning, more sweat, and a new day upon them.

They moved into the covers of trees, the temperature slightly cooler now, out and away from the blistering June sun. The forest was eerie in a way. It wasn't super thick, but there were many times when Hazel glanced around that she thought she saw someone standing by a tree, in a German uniform, with bright green eyes. She forced herself to look away and keep moving, as she would shake her head a bit.

The memory was antagonizing and persistent.

The group came upon an older looking farm house in a tiny clearing, which looked thoroughly destroyed as well as some dead bodies from either side, and a few dead cows as well. Winters and Lip halted the group from continuing their move forward and Hazel slowly bent down on the ground, holding the rifle close to herself in her arms.

" Lipton, Wynn." Winters said turning back and looking towards the group, moving his hand forward to send the two ahead. The two hurried forward, crouched and cautious as they approached the site. Hazel couldn't help but let her eyes stay on the sight of the paratrooper who had not made it to the ground and had felt his last touches of the Earth before getting on the C-47 back in England. He probably thought he was going to do something great, but he died before he could. He didn't even get a chance to feel what France was like as that tree caught him and tangled him up.

Lipton and Wynn turned and waved over the group of soldiers that waited. Winters turned and glanced back at the group and moved them forward slowly toward the rest of the barn. As they neared, Hazel glanced at the dead paratrooper before continuing to walk forward closer to Popeye. She couldn't dwell on it any longer. They were going to lose people and that was the harsh reality of war. So, Hazel walled up that part of her mind and shoved it away. It was quiet as they all moved around, looking for supplies and trying to ignore the sight of the dead bodies.

" Anybody need supplies or ammo, now's the time to get it." Lip said looking out toward the group. Lip watched as Hazel slowly sat down on a barrel and seemed to stop, taking everything in for the time being. It was an odd sight. But he didn't go to say a thing to the girl. He let her be.

" Hey, I promised my kid brother I'd fetch him back a Luger." Hazel heard Malarkey say bringing her out of the trance she felt she were caught in for a moment.

" So I got first dibs, ok?" Malarkey said as he yanked off his helmet and began moving through the dead German's supplies. " Check that one." Malarkey pointed Hall in the direction of another. Then all the sudden, the world shook fiercely and the sound of planes soaring quickly and loudly overhead filled their ears, making everyone hold their head and drop quickly like a sack of potatoes to the ground. Plane after plane was heard as Hazel peered up towards the sky.

It was the Navy, it had to be, making the landings.

" It's the Navy." Lip said, standing up and placing his helmet on his head quickly, as a signal for everyone else to do the same.

" The landings have started, let's go." Winters said, his eyes still focusing on the group.

" Let's move it out." Lip called.

" Right on time." Hall said glancing at his watch as Hazel made her way over to Joe's side.

" Yeah, tell that to him, cowboy." Bill said smartly, pointing to the dead Kraut.

" My name's Hall." Hall said back, in a sense of completely giving up at this point.

" That so?" Bill said and Hazel watched earnestly.

" Let's move out." Winters said, hearing the escalating tension growing.

" You just gotta learn to return his fire is all." Malarkey said turning to Hall, as Winters watched from afar.

" You just gotta realize it ain't about you." Joe said walking past the group, seemingly knowing exactly why Bill was acting the way he was.

" He just heard his brother-"

" Malarkey, shut your yap." spat Bill moving past Hall and Malarkey as Hazel moved to Hall's other side and watched sympathetically as Bill moved quickly behind Lip.

" His brother got it at Cassino. Found out before we jumped." Malarkey said to Hall and Hazel's eyes widened.

" Monte Cassino?" she managed out. Malarkey nodded sadly, and she glanced back in time to see Winters watching the trio with listening ears. That's why when she'd been crying he had looked upset as well. Her heart sank to a pit inside her chest suddenly and she had to force the tears that wanted to well in her eyes back down again.

She admired Bill a lot. He'd been suffering, but he had made sure she was okay first.

That was true strength.

The sky became cloudy, the sun hiding yet again, as a slightly cool breeze washed over them, coming from the sea. Hazel welcomed it. The group eventually made it's way towards the assembly area. They could tell it was the assembly area for it was filled with people along the road, that was muddy and showed footprints of people having walked all over it and captured Germans on either side.

" Morning, sir." said the paratrooper holding the Germans and seeing Winters, " Battalion sure will be happy to see you guys."

" Where?" Winters asked.

" At the farm, sir." the paratrooper said and Winters nodded, exhaustedly. Hazel walked more to the side as she heard the group of men begin calling out to the group of Germans on the side of the road. She couldn't fathom a thing like that right now so she kept walking. Plus exhaustion was slowly setting in on her and all she wanted was to sit down for a minute or two.

Hazel slowly unclipped the bottom of her helmet and let the strap swing from side to side as she walked. She was annoyed, exhausted and completely brain-fried. The group began to move towards the mass of the 101st, that lay scattered around the large farm and the multiple barns. Her feet were caked in mud and as she walked, she slammed the boot to the ground a few times to rid them of the dry, crusted mud on them. The Germans had most definitely flooded the marshes, causing mud to build up and feet to be covered in it.

" Oh, Easy Company!" the group heard. The group turned and faces were filled with relief to see more members of Easy sitting on the edge with bright smiles on their faces. A smile blossomed on Hazel's face as she recognized Joe Liebgott immediately.

" Joe!" she said excitedly as he neared her. A smile lit up his features as he immediately came upon the girl and wrapped his arms around her. She immediately wrapped her arms around him and hugged him so tight, she wasn't sure if he was still breathing or not. A hug, something so protective, was exactly what she needed. She had never wanted to hug someone as much as she did now, just to have someone's arms around her, holding her and securing her. She never knew what security a hug could provide.

" We're lucky we found you guys." she said quietly, as the two pulled back with smiles on their faces. Hazel watched his eyes, they were so gentle right now and welcoming, she couldn't help the smile that grew on her face.

" We're glad you guys did find us." Liebgott said. Hazel smiled at him gently just as Popeye came over with Hall.

" Good to see you, Pop." Lieb said as he hugged the man and turned to Hall.

" And this here's Hall, Able Company." Popeye said.

" Known as Cowboy." someone else called over.

" You from Texas?" Liebgott asked him as he shook his hand slightly confused.

" Manhattan." Hall said. Lieb smiled. Suddenly an explosion shuttered off in the distance toward the general area of Utah beach and Hazel glanced towards it. That was where the objective Easy would be, what Easy would end up having to take over. It would the garrison.

" How was your jump?" Liebgott asked her as he helped her take off some of the heavy gear that weighed her down and was drenched in sweat.

" Fine, I guess." she said pulling her helmet form her head and sweat immediately pouring down her face and her hair which was in braids falling down onto her shoulders. They were tiny braids, since Lieb had cut her hair, but they kept it out of her face. Lieb reached up and gently brushed a strand of sweaty hair from her forehead. She glanced up at Lieb and sighed.

" What's bothering you?" he asked her. Hazel bit her lip and glanced up at him.

" Is this your blood?" Joe asked, picking up her hand to look at it and hold it.

" No, um, actually that's what's bothering me." Hazel whispered. Joe's eyes turned serious as he watched her. Hazel glanced at the other guys, all patting each other on the back and talking. Hazel looked away to her left and shut her eyes.

" Right after my jump, I had to kill someone." she whispered, her voice soft. Joe looked at her.

" I've never felt more selfish, like I've had more guilt piled up inside my chest." she whispered, like it were a blow to her stomach. It hurt physically to think about it. Joe watched the woman, her complex mind, trying to make sense of it all. Visions rushed through her brain, and it made her heart race.

" Hey, hey, hey, it's ok," Joe said placing his hands on her shoulders, as she looked up shyly towards him, " don't worry about it all right now, ok? You needed to survive, you did what you had to. Alright? It's war." Hazel nodded, attempting to reassure herself that she had done that to live.

It was war, Joe was right.

And war was bloody, unforgiving and gruesome.

Death was inevitable for many.

But Hazel was also a human being.

And a human killing another human was sad, she couldn't ignore that. Hazel had emotions and even if war was brutal with them, she wouldn't let them be pushed away because the war said so. A human was allowed to feel pain and feel grief and feel emotions.

Joe watched emotion swell in Hazel's eyes. He had always viewed Hazel as someone who portrayed the innocence that the war couldn't take from anyone. But standing here now, it seemed that innocence was all but washed away. He hoped some of it was still there. Hazel looked at him, looking so sad, like a puppy who had just gotten her bone taken away. Joe offered a small smile.

" C'mere." he said as he opened his arms again to bring her into a hug. Hazel wrapped her arms tightly around his chest and hugged him close, shutting her eyes and focusing on the soft pulse of his heart. Hazel ached for human touch, just the feeling of life, that she was still alive, because it reminded her that she was still living. Joe gently rubbed her back, soothing her trembling body as images flashed through her head like some cinematic movie. Except it was the tragedy of real life.

" Hey, any of you guys know where 'Easy Company' is?" a voice called out. Joe pulled back from Hazel and looked down at her with a small smile. She nodded.

" Thanks, Joe." she said softly, her eyes still having hints of evident sadness within them. Joe nodded, making a promise to himself, to keep that light of hope and innocence in her eyes. She felt mentally better, and for now, she felt ready for a fight.

" You seen Lieutenant Meehan?" he called out again moving through the crowd. Joe glanced sharply over his shoulder.

" No, not yet." Buck said as the man calling for Easy appeared.

" Well, Major Strayer wants Easy Company's CO up front." the man said coming up to Winters and Buck.

" Well, I guess that means you, Dick." Buck said with a nod.

" C'mon." the man said turning and Winters got up to follow.

" Sonofabitch." muttered Buck as another explosion rattled off towards the area of Utah Beach.

Hazel slowly had sat down against the cool ground of the French soil, under the shade of trees, feeling a bit light headed.

" You should drink some of this water." a voice said and Hazel looked up to see Bill crouching in front of her. She watched him and gently took the canteen from his hands.

" Thanks, Bill." Hazel whispered. Bill nodded to her and smiled. Bill glanced up at Liebgott who stood beside her and then back at her.

" You feeling ok?" Bill asked her.

" I should be asking you that." Hazel said softly and Bill watched her gently.

" I'm doing ok, but I'm more worried about you, kid." Bill said with a forced smile. They were both going through their own painful family related things and they knew that.

" You heard if Catherine or Lizzie has shown up?" Hazel asked him. Bill glanced at his boot and then her again.

" I haven't," Bill said, " but don't worry, they're both strong, and can beat those Kraut asses straight into the ground, both of 'em. You know that. They'll show up soon." Hazel softly smiled with a nod.

" Yeah," Hazel said with a nod; she believed him.

" Keep drinking," Bill said as he stood and then pointed to Joe, " you make sure she keeps drinking, Lieb."

" Yeah, yeah," Joe said with a lull of his head. Bill smiled and nodded to the two before turning and heading away back towards where Buck was currently sitting. Joe slid down beside her and glanced towards her.

" You feel sick?" Joe asked her. Bill had been one of the ones to arrive with Hazel, he figured the worst.

" Just dehydrated, but I'll be fine. I just need to drink." Hazel promised him as she continued taking small sips to soothe her softly pounding head. Joe nodded.

" You know, Joe." she said quietly, staring up at the blue sky and the fluffy clouds of June 6th.

" What?"

" The man I killed, on his coat, there was a tiny white flower upon his collar." Hazel said, " What do you suppose it means?" Joe glanced at her.

" Edelweiss." Joe said. Hazel glanced towards him.

" Marks of a true soldier, you get 'em high up in the German and Austrian Alps." Joe confirmed with a nod, " My dad told me that one." Hazel sighed softly. A true soldier. She figured that sort of thing meant a lot to a German soldier. The guilt crept up on her again and she hated it.

" I feel so guilty." Hazel whispered.

" Hey, " Joe said, placing a hand on her knee and gently rubbing it, " what happened, it, well, it happened." She smiled softly at him and nodded.

But she knew it would rest in the pit of her stomach for much longer than she intended. But she was just that way, it was something she had learned to accept when she cared so deeply about things.

Winters eventually found his way back to the group and got them up and moving, with orders from Battalion and from Strayer. Hazel adjusted her helmet on her head as the group headed over to the barn, as she gripped the sniper tightly in her hands.

The group encircled Winters, Hazel standing next to Toye and Liebgott, smaller than the both of them, and staring intensely at the map that Winters had out in front of them. Her face paint was beginning to get that sweaty itchy feeling everywhere and her eyes were beginning to feel the exhaustion, as Winters spoke.

She couldn't help but watch the Lieutenant from Dog, Speirs, slowly walk in, smoking a cigarette, and meeting her own eyes. She quickly looked down towards the map again focusing again on Winters' voice, yet noticing Speirs slowly walk over and stand a little behind the group. Speirs was mysterious, Hazel had always thought that, mainly because he didn't seem to care about the Virago women joining the 506th, if anything, Catherine had said he was the most compliant Lieutenant out of the 9 companies. Speirs stood with a sharp and fine-tuned eye upon the map, the helmet on his head covered his eyes a bit, and he moved the cigarette on and off his lip every so often. Hazel glanced back at the map WInters had out in front of them.

" The 88s we've been hearing, have been spotted in a field, down the road aways." Winters said, pointing to a few spots on the map.

" Major Strayer wants us to take 'em out." Winters said and Hazel's eyes traveled down the length of the map again. Winters pulled a piece of paper in front of him, and then pulled out a pencil and began drawing, two lines that touched at the tip and ran North and East.

" There are two guns that we know, firing on Utah Beach," Winters said as he drew 2 x's at the places he initially indicated. " And plan on a third and a fourth, here and here." Winters looked up towards the group, Buck and Lip on each of his sides looking at the young group of soldiers in between, ready for the first battle of war that they'd ever be engaged in.

" The Germans are in the trenches, with access to the entire battery, and with machine-gun cover in the rear." Winters stated, drawing lines down North and East again, " We'll establish a base of fire and move under it hard and fast with two squads of three."

" How many Krauts they think we're facing?" Bill asked and Hazel looked over at him sharply. Winters glanced at him and then looked at Hazel.

" No idea." he said.

" No idea?" Bill said and then made a face, looking over at Toye.

" We'll take some TNT along with us, to spike the guns. Lipton," Winters glanced at the man to his left, " Your responsibility."

" Yes, sir." Lipton answered with a firm nod.

" Liebgott, you'll take the first machine-gun with Petty a gunner." Winters said. " Plesha, Hendrix, you take the other."

" Who does that leave?" Winters asked, as Hazel raised her hand slowly as well as a few others, and then met Speirs' eyes again seeing him again in the distant background listening in.

" Compton, Malarkey, Toye, Guarnere, Parker." Winters said, missing Hall raise his hand. Hazel sympathetically glanced at him.

" Ok." Winters said.

" Parker, I'm going to send you up into the trees for cover above, and sniping in the trees. Strayer said there's a bag of sniper equipment if you'd need it, as well as ammo. Toye will be there to assist you in making sure you are up and then down the tree. Whatever you can do, do it. You'll then move forward into the first gun once it is captured." Winters said and Toye nodded with a smile looking over at the girl who nodded with a smile.

" Yes, sir." the two said together.

" Everyone else, we'll be making the main assault." Winters stated, " Understood?"

" Yes, sir." the group answered.

" Alright, let's pack it up." Winters said giving a smile to Hazel and she smiled back from under the face paint and helmet. Everyone grabbed their stuff, and began heading out.

" Shouldn't he be outside with the other Able Company guys?" she heard Toye ask as she adjusted her helmet atop her head.

" See ya around, Hall." Bill said as the two left. Hazel turned and watched Joe and Bill leave. She could understand where they were coming through. They were two tough guys who loved the company with all their hearts and they didn't want change or other people interfering with their company. She sent a smile to Hall in comfort for him. Winters nodded to Hall simply and then turned and walked away.

" Lipton, when you've seen we've captured the first gun, I want you and your TNT as fast as possible." Winters said coming out, as Hazel quickly loaded her sniper up with her new ammo, and slipped on the dark layer of sniping equipment the army provided her with.

" Yes, sir." Lipton said.

" Okay, just weapons and ammo, drop everything else. Got any spare ammo in a pack or a musette bag, bring it along." Winters said walking away farther down the line. Hazel quickly applied the face paint to her face, without a mirror since one wasn't available, before trying to grab leaves and stuffing it on her dark green gear.

" Compton, second squad." Winters called moving past with his weapon fully loaded.

" Yes, sir." Buck called enthusiastically loading his own weapon.

" Alright, you heard the word, let's move, let's move." Lip called to the group, and Hazel nodded moving with her dark gear.

Covered in her dark gear, with her rifle in hand, her precise scope, zeroed in to its highest magnification, as well as the adrenaline that pumped through her veins, ready for the battle, heightened the want to finally put training to use.

Her emotions were put on the back burner, war was the only thing in front of her now.

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hey! i hope you enjoyed this chapter, i found it very pivotal as a turning point for hazel from dealing with her emotions to fighting this war. i feel when she first dropped in and she first approached the situation, she was naive, and she didn't know how to deal with such things as killing the german or trying to understand why certain things had initially happened. but i feel after talking with liebgott and she confronted her emotions and closed that door, she truly felt ready for the war, and i'm super excited for you to read it because you see that transition from hazel truly becoming one with the war.

thanks for all the love and support! :)