Ad Astra Per Aspera [2] - Band of Brothers

42 | little world

" 'There's too much risk in loving.' the young boy said.

'No.'

Said the old man.

' There's too much risk in not.'"

- Unknown

✰✰✰

Austria truly was an alpine paradise.

Everyone felt it was, just everything that encompassed Austria was so vastly different from any of the other places Easy Company had been. Aldbourne, Normandy, Holland, Mourmelon, Bastogne, Germany - Austria by far was the most beautiful.

Speirs' PT training was keeping up and keeping people fit, focused in on the fact there was a war on, that soldiers in the Pacific were still inevitably fighting the war that the world had been involved in.

Catherine got daily briefings from Speirs and then was transferred to Battalion for meetings with Dick and Nixon and then sometimes even Sink.

And each meeting went the same - Pacific this, Pacific that, make sure the men and women are ready.

But as promised, Hazel's birthday, July 22nd was a date no one were to miss.

When Hazel open her eyes, she was greeted to an empty barrack. No one from 2nd platoon was there, but their beds had been messily discarded, things strewn everywhere. Hazel looked around, slowly sitting up from her warm bed.

Had she missed wake up call? She swung her feet over the edge and instead of touching the ground she touch a box. Hazel's feet jerked upwards and she peered down, seeing a box with her name on top in Lizzie's handwriting. Hazel quirked her head to the side before leaning over to pick up the box and pull it up into her lap. Hazel looked at it and then gently lifted the box open. Hazel softly lent her hand into the box and slowly pulled out 3 picture frames. Hazel curiously unwrapped the wrapping around them and had to force down the tears at the first picture.

It was of her, Catherine and Lizzie, all in their Virago uniforms back in 1943, in April it seemed when they were in Europe together. They looked so much younger, so bright, so happy. Hazel let a smile cross her face as happy tears filled her eyes just looking at the photo.

Slowly placing it down, the next picture made her let out a laugh. It was of a group of them before D-Day, on one of their last nights before the jump - most of the guys from 2nd platoon, as they were getting ready for bed that night, some with wet hair, toothbrushes hanging out of their mouths, others with smirks as wide as the Grand Canyon. Hazel teared up seeing Bill and Joe Toye. She missed them.

Slowly placing down the frame she picked up the final photo and a tiny smile crossed her face. It was her and Lieb, back in 1943, on one of the visits to Swindon in late November. They both looked so young, but by that time, they were the best of friends already, annoying each other endlessly - now look at them. She felt nostalgic with the 3 photos. She'd grown so much, they all had. Her heart gave a soft, dull ache, but at the same time, she felt a sense of calm with those 3 photos.