13393/Now That's Just Plain Weird

Now That's Just Plain Weird
Date of Scene:	28 May 2021
Location:	Rec/Res Area, The Triskelion
Synopsis:	Several SHIELD agents get together to discuss the Kellogg Case.
Cast of Characters:	Phobos, Black Widow (Romanoff), Winter Soldier, Captain America

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Phobos has posed:
    There are many rec areas in the Basement. A lot of offices aligned in groups of four all have their own small separate area that the doors open out onto and where a snack machine might well be. Some of the best ones have an LCD television displaying some information on a wall or a news ticker complete with the occasional data display to show when a story or information is being tracked by the intel division. They're decent areas to pass the time during breaks, or when one is working a double and needs to kill the hour of time between shifts that is legally required.
    It's in one such a break area that Alexander Aaron finds himself settled in one of the low seated brown and tan stuffed chairs that look as if they were purchased in the 70s. Or perhaps in the 80s at a yard sale. Slouched in the seat with a manila folder in his lap, the young Incognito Olympian is perusing a piece of paper... some photos... and combining it with the occasional web search on the open laptop nearby.
    A sneakered foot rests on his knee as he leans back in the chair, no longer wearing the uniform of a level 1 agent and more the civilian gear he's usually seen in. Jeans, grey t-shirt tucked into the waist of his pants with a black belt situated through the loops. All that's left for him is a burgundy overshirt that hangs open and looks a bit breezy as he sprawls there.

Black Widow (Romanoff) has posed:
It was one of those days. Filled with too many meetings and too many jobs needing to be assigned or dealt with. There were at least a half dozen items and she went through two different meetings covering them all and getting all her info.

By the time she was out, her arms were filled with folders full of information. She glanced at a clock on the wall and opted to stop by her office to drop off most of it. One was taken out of the pile and a paperback book grabbed off her desk to take with her.

SHe headed down for the Basement where she had agreed to meet with Agent Aaron. She was in her SHIELD uniform, sans holsters. She didn't always wear the guns when she was in the office at least.

Plopping down on the seat by Alex, she set her stuff on her lap. "Sorry I'm late. Meeting ran over a bit."

Phobos has posed:
    Straightening up, Agent Aaron lifted his eyes first to Natasha, then up toward the display on the wall with the ticker. "Oh hey." A hand lifts to give a wave of a greeting as he closes the folder in his lap. "S'alright, I was just..."
    'Reading', he was likely to say, though the word doesn't come from him. The monitor on the laptop displays a few open windows mainly about Pennsylvania and a few cross-sections of living areas dating back from the 80s. But other than that the computer's information is rather unremarkable. Alex waves a hand at the computer, then turns to the side. "Things crazy today?"
    A glance is given toward the bank of office doors nearby, the hour being semi-late enough that there aren't too many other people within. Yet shift change was still in the offing.
    "There feels like there's... I dunno, tension." And when Phobos declares such there might well be reason for it.

Winter Soldier has posed:
    Informal meetings, Bucky much prefers those to the scheduled things with ALL THE PEOPLE. Especially when the informal meetings include at least two people that are squarely in the 'Bucky' zone and one that might be, some day soon, as long as his crazy ass family doesn't zap them off to some crazy ass other place again. That sucked. "So, Captain America and a monkey walk into a bar," he's saying to Steve as they walk in. No, he's never going to let it go, like ever. EVER.
    He's actually dressed all spiffy in a white shirt and gray slacks with nice shiny black dress shoes. His hair is pulled back a the nape of his neck. Bucky would look even more spiffy had he not tossed his sport coat in the trash. Damned pigeons.

Captain America has posed:
Officially, Captain America was a member of S.H.I.E.L.D. with level 7 clearance. He may have even been considered a retroactive founder. Such honors were normal for him. But he never really considered himself to be a member. He hadn't gone through their training. He wasn't familiar with their procedures. He was treated as an institution, but he felt like a guest, and so, whenever he was around, he was on his best behavior. Having been invited, he would show up with Bucky. Not knowing the nature of the meeting, he came in uniform, shield strapped to his back. It was in clear contrast to Bucky's casual attire. And it helped that he had been in uniform for the unveiling of the Tony Stark Historical Hall of Heroes. Someday, Steve would be able to teach Tony that discretion was the better part of valor. But not today.

There was no side arm though. He hadn't regularly carried one since before he went into the ice. His physics defying shield was his ranged and melee weapon. He didn't need the gun except for special assignments. Polite to a fault, he would go in the front door, being told where to go. At the reception desk, Steve would joke "Oh, you won't break anything too expensive now, will you Buck?" Then in a gentler voice, "we'll be on our best behavior, ma'am."

He remembered the layout, but was still told where it would be, how to get there. Arriving at the meeting, a younger agent would open the door for them, not bothering to warn them. Standing orders were that Captain America could go where he wanted and when he wanted. It was something that he had never quite gotten used to, and didn't expect to ever fully embrace it. He said "thank you," to the agent, and then walked in, not yet taking a seat. Bucky seemed far more casual, in attitude and attire. Deciding to nip this talk of the monkey in the butt, Steve would remind Bucky of a story that he might not want heard with, "Paters Vaetje, Antwerp, 1943." No doubt, someone was probably listening in and already investigating.

Black Widow (Romanoff) has posed:
"Lots of big cases going on. Had to sit through two meetings with multiple case briefings, on top of the stuff we got in our Alpha Team meet the other day," Natasha admitted as she put the paperwork on the table but retained the paperback.

Which might seem a rude thing to do as she opened it, flipping toward the middle pages. It was one of those true-crime books, where it outlined the story and the middle was where the pictures they included would be. She was looking for one picture in particular. To those just arriving, it might not look like she's really giving a damn about a case discussion.

Hearing the arrivals, she glanced up. "Bucky, Steve. Welcome. This Agent Alexander Aaron. He's on Alpha Response Team, tactical."

There was no monitoring going on in the room. It was actually private. Nat had made sure of that.

Phobos has posed:
    It might be old hat for Bucky and for Natasha. For them to be casually around the man known as Captain America. And perhaps it's a facet that even the elder hero has gotten used to. The subtle moments when recognition dawns.
    In the moment before, Alexander chats amiably with Natasha, leaning over to close the lid of the laptop with a faint plastic click and places the manila folder on top of it. "Yeah," There were some big cases going on, "I was reading on the Kellogg thing, though m'sure you and Agent Johnson have already covered the same ground." He gestures with a nod. Then his eyebrows raise as he murmurs, "It's interesting, though."
    Of course that's the moment when Captain America and Agent Barnes arrive, the door opening and causing Natasha's gaze to leave his, drifting over his shoulder. It naturally leads Alexander's attention to them. At the sight of Bucky, the Olympian youth smiles a bit, but then when Natasha casually makes the introduction...
    It is rare for something to break the facade Alexander holds. He is unphased by fear, terror holds no sway over him, and in most other ways he has a casual mellow manner. But upon seeing Steve, the youth actually starts to rise out of his chair. Pauses once he's done so as his eyes widen marginally. Lips part. No words initially for a bare split second. Then they close. He clears his throat and then gives a nod as is proper for SHIELD agents as there are no salutes to be given in such a situation. It all happens in a single breath of a moment. But enough for perceptive individuals to read the signs as he then says simply.
    "Sir."

Winter Soldier has posed:
    "That was low," Bucky mutters at Steve, but it's all good fun ribbing, really. "Nat, Alex," he greets cheerfully enough although his voice drops just a bit with the 'Alex'. He's getting over it, honest, but he's still not ENTIRELY over it. Again, that sucked and it was WAY above his pay grade.
    Natasha's book draws Bucky's attention and he asks, "Is this about the change-y face serial killer guy? Yeah, Kellogg." He puts himself in a position to look over Nat's shoulder as she pages through the book.
    "He puts his pants on one leg at a time, Alex," Bucky offers matter of fact like without taking his eyes off Nat's book.
    "So, there's this serial killer, guy's been dead for awhile but there's been what looks to be some copycat cases lately. Well, now all the guy's pictures that used to not be smiling are smiling. All of'm, on the internet, in books, all of them. Weird huh?" he short explains to Steve. He's pretty sure someone else will add to his over simplified synopsis. "...so WAND is asking for our help."

Captain America has posed:
"Is that why they call them the Low Countries?" Steve asked Bucky, making a joke that Antwerp, which was in Belgium, along with the Netherlands and Luxembourg, were collectively known as the Low Countries. Though, his tone, inflection, even the timing didn't suggest it was a joke, more just, conversation, and that's part of what made it funnier between the old friends. They knew each other's rhythms. He knew and understood Alex's reaction, but gave it no comment, not wanting to embarrass the seemingly young man about it.

Captain America wore the helmet, but as they were in a meeting, he would take it off, placing it on the desk beside an empty chair. Reaching around his back, he would pull out his shield and place it against the table. It was big enough that it could sit on the carpeted floor, while the upper rim brushed the table. He would then take his seat. Had he tried to sit with the shield in this chair, it would have been awkward, as the design didn't easily allow for it.

"Agent Romanoff," he said, though professional, the tone in his voice was softer, similar to how he spoke when addressing Bucky. He would then nod to Agent Aaron, who was across the desk, "Steve Rogers, pleased to meet you." He would have shaken hands, but that would require getting up and walking around the room. It didn't seem appropriate. They could shake later.

Black Widow (Romanoff) has posed:
"I wanted to see it for myself," Natasha admits as she finally finds the page with the picture on it. But that has to wait a she watches Alexander pop up to his feet.

Being one to read body language, and knowing Alex well on top of that, this was quite the surprise for her. Perhaps being with the Avengers as she had it had kind of dulled her to the fact of who the people she worked with actually were. She was seeing a reminder of that, in the blond haired flesh as Alex reacted strongly to that presence of a living legend.

She bit the inside of her lip, not going to make anything of it. Though Bucky made his statement and there it was.

She offered the book to Bucky, holding it open at the page. "Just like they said. Even in the books the picture has changed. It can't be natural or normal. My guess is something magic related. Thus WAND being involved. But I've been trying to read everything out there on this guy."

Phobos has posed:
    Likely Natasha had never seen Alexander anything akin to tongue tied, but she was seeing it now. There was a quick glance spared toward Bucky, and to the young Agent's credit he replied quickly enough. "Yes, sir."
    Then his pale hazel eyes slipped back toward Natasha, perhaps widening ever so slightly, before he then returned to his seat and settled into it once again, approaching the attempt needed to affect a normal manner. Settling back he clears his throat and then once again it's all professionalism as he rests his hands on his thighs and looks between the trio of other agents.
    "Some of the thoughts I've heard being bandied about were primarily suggesting something about string theory, how the photo might be linked to all of its replications, how manipulating the original might affect the others? But nobody wants to risk damaging the initial photo."
    There. That was a contribution.

Winter Soldier has posed:
    "I wonder if the pictures really changed or if... something is changing the collective consciousness of everyone that's looking at the pictures." Bucky seems to be more talking to himself than actually asking a question. How would they know the difference? What's real and what isn't? He suddenly decides that he really doesn't like that idea AT ALL and says, "Nah, that's impossible," if only because that makes him more uncomfortable than the idea of something actually changing all the pictures.
    He points at Alex and adds, "What he said, yeah, that makes more sense." ...because it's somehow less disturbing. Bucky takes the book and squints at the picture as if maybe that'll make him see the original image.
    "This is weirder shit than monkey marriage proposals, huh Steve?" Maybe if they were in a formal meeting with ALL the people, it would be Captain Rogers and Agent Romanoff, but damn it, these are his FRIENDS and precious few of them he has. So, in private? They're Nat and Steve... and Alex by proxy and maybe someday just because.

Captain America has posed:
A lot of this was beyond Steve Rogers' pay grade. String Theory and WAND were more Tony, Bruce, Thor, and Wanda's specialties. But despite a lack of knowledge on the subject matter, Steve was quite intelligent. He listened, and during a lull, he asked, "are we sure that this isn't the Mandela Effect, false memories that can be shared by multiple people." He had heard of it, though he had been in the ice for all the major situations described by the term. Nodding his head to Bucky, "not exactly what they trained us for in boot camp, is it Buck?"

Black Widow (Romanoff) has posed:
Natasha had to agree with Bucky. His suggestion was far worse than something changing the images. "But if someone is changing the original, which is in police lockup...or was. Have they moved it here?" she asked, not sure of the answer on that one. "But either way, if it is is in a secure location, how could someone effect it without it being something like magic?"

She glances to Cap. "Mandela effect I thought was more memory based. SO you think we all might just have been remembering it was one thing but it's always been smiling? That's an interesting theory."

Phobos has posed:
    "I was thinking if we could find out the exact timing..." Alexander says as he looks sidelong towards Natasha and then Bucky, perhaps avoiding looking straight at Steve since he totally doesn't want to come across as some weird gawker. Like Steve must get a lot of gawkers. So yes. No gawking.
    "I did a few searches on Social Media to try and find whatever early references there might have been when someone first noticed the change, but it... isn't exactly a prominent topic." Which might explain why there are so few citable references to be gained. "Roughly it changed around the time of the murders though, probably... something that simple. But data is data."
    A pause as he clears his throat again, then adds a qualifier. "I suppose."
    But when Cap offers his point of view, Alexander is quick to acknowledge. "Could be, though the documentation we have all declares in the descriptions of the photo that the individual is frowning. It could be..." A look toward Bucky is given as they both experienced extra-dimensional weirdness lately. "Though I was thinking maybe see how hard of a magic spell it might be to cast something like that from one of the WAND people? Maybe it's a..." He spreads his hands a little. "Just a cosmetic vanity thing? But yeah, they have the original down in WAND's..." He pauses, not sure exactly what they call their base of operations, "Coven? Wizard's Tower?" His lip twists up slightly.

Winter Soldier has posed:
    "Hogwarts?" Bucky suggests. "I bet they call it Hogwarts."
    To Steve he offers am emphatic, "Definitely not, but this isn't the weirdest thing that's happened to me or that I've seen in the past month."
    His brow furrows, but not in that scowling way it normally does. That's confusion right there. This is all making his brain hurt. James Barnes is by no means a 'stupid' man, but some shit just hurts to think about. "But... if it was memories that were changed, then why would people that are just seeing the image for the first time... hell, I dunno... I HAD no previous memories of the image and I see it smiling now." Just a beat and he adds, "One thing though, it seems like that mother... trucker," ain't that sweet, he toned it down for Steve, "...is HAPPY that people are dying the same way he killed his victims, wherever he is. Could KELLOGG have messed with the original from whatever hell he surely went to?"

Captain America has posed:
Steve was glad to be here; he enjoyed Bucky and Natasha's company. He didn't know Alex, but he seemed nice enough. But he wasn't entirely sure why he was here, or what he could contribute. He hadn't even been given the briefing report. He listened; he nodded, but kept quiet, until he had something to contribute. He was letting the spies, and whatever Alex's role was, handle this. He would then lean over to Bucky and ask one word, "Hogwarts?"

Black Widow (Romanoff) has posed:
Natasha couldn't hide her amusement at the nicknames for WAND's offices. It wasn't new. Around here, it was just one of those ongoing jokes that still seemed funny even after all these years.

"Whatever you opt to call them, don't let Agent Langston down there hear you say it. Last guy he heard call it something like that, he turned them into a toad. For a week. Keep them in a terrarium and everything. Agent Ryans hasn't been the same since."

It's hard to tell if she's sharing a true tale or a tall one for her personal amusement.

"We probably should start by going to the new crime scenes. Then go and hit all the old ones from Kellogg's murders." THen she paused as Steve asked that question of Bucky.

Phobos has posed:
    Perhaps realizing he spoke a good amount, Alexander falls quiet but he smiles at the mention of Hogwarts, pale eyes flitting between Cap and Bucky and for some reason letting the smile grow a little wider. He rests his hands now on the arms of the chair and causes the seat to creak slightly as he leans back. At the question from Bucky he lifts his hands and splays his fingers, not knowing the answer to it.
    When Natasha offers a possible course of action he nods at her and murmurs. "The only time I have spoken for is monitor duty a few shifts but that can easily be covered if you..." He looks toward the other heroes from World War II, then at the super spy next to him, and sort of gets a small smile when he says. "Need someone to get coffee. Or park the cars."
    Then he looks to Cap and says, "WAND has just requested aid with the case and Alpha group has manhours available, sir." Which might explain why someone with brass on their chest might well have pinged him.
    Then to Natasha he frowns and murmurs, "There's also the trafficking ring in Hungary." Which is another mission they could be investigating.

Winter Soldier has posed:
    "Yeah, Harry Potter. Hogwarts is this school for wizards," Bucky explains to Steve all serious as if that's Important Information. "Just finished reading them a few months ago. I still have the entire series if you want to borrow them." It might be a little known fact, but the Winter Soldier is really an avid reader, little bookworm really! Well, a little known fact to just about everyone but two people present in the room.
    This entire time, he's been squinting at that book or holding it further away or trying to look at the picture out of the corner of his eye or down his nose at it, hell at one point he even crossed his eyes to look at it. Nothing worked, still smiling.
    "Probably so, Nat. I'm gonna hate that I asked this, but did anyone exhume Kellogg's remains? Or was he cremated or something? Isn't burning a ghost's body supposed to..." Maybe Bucky reads TOO much fiction?
    "Really, a toad? Wasn't Ryan always a toad?"
    "This case hurts my brain," Bucky murmurs. "Human trafficking... hurts my soul, damages my calm and makes me want to break things. I think we should go with that."

Captain America has posed:
"Sure, thanks Buck," Steve said, wholly unprepared for Harry Potter, which was last published 14 years before he was thawed, and the last film came out 10 years before he was thawed. The Fantastic Beats films hadn't been nearly as popular, not that he saw those either.

Somewhat out of his depth, not being an investigator or a spy, his ears did pique up at the human trafficking ring, if you can describe it as such. At least that was something he could do. "What intel do we have on this human trafficking ring? Do we have a location, names, authorization," since Hungary was another country, and that could be an issue. He didn't mind breaking the law to do good, but he usually liked to know if he was breaking the law to do good.

Black Widow (Romanoff) has posed:
Natasha slid the folder over to Steve, offering it to him. "I wanted to get your eyes on this too. Since you have insight sometimes. Like the Mandela Effect theory," she said to her friend, even though she hadn't prepared him properly ahead of time.

A glance over to Bucky's question. "BOdy was exhumed. He's definitely in the grave. Not sure if he has some powers from beyond it. He is believed to have committed suicide when the police had him surrounded in his home. Body had some chemical burns to it but it was definitel him by prints and blood type. This was pre DNA testing and there hadn't been a reason to type after the fact with the print matches."

She pulled another folder out of her stack. "Human trafficking in Hungary may be tied back to something we got intel on from an outside SHIELD source recently."

Phobos has posed:
    A brief glance is given to Natasha as Alexander then straightens up. His eyes focus evenly on Steve and he says in a steady tone while he conveys the information, "Recently we had some AIM noise in the general area, but also received intel from those outside assets." A glance is given to Nat and a nod as their information dovetails together.
    "Partially mutant focused I believe, partially non-mutant." He straightens up and takes a deep breath, "We had a raid there last month and hit an AIM facility. No links to trafficking but the operations seem big enough that they must've at least come into contact partially."
    He clears his throat. "There was some talk about sending a team in to gather intel." His lip curls a little as he murmurs, "Though my field is usually going in after we have that intel. I'm not as subtle as Agent Romanoff."

Winter Soldier has posed:
    "Nat, if someone can manage to change all the copies in existence of a single picture... ALL the copies? What's to say they can't change the fingerprints on a disfigured corpse?" Bucky's probably overthinking things, but this is the kind of case that makes his *brain hurt* because it forces him to think too much.
    "Well, let's go gather some intel?" The question is mostly aimed at Natasha, with a side glance at Steve too and then, "And you can get our coffee and park the cars," to Alex. But that last bit, it's tempered with a little tiny smile, just a little one. But coming from Bucky, that's a lot.

Captain America has posed:
Steve accepted the folder, "thanks," and would begin reading it. Although his eyes were on the contents of the folder, he would keep his hears open, multitasking as he tried to catch up on what the others seemed to be already versed in. While reading the file, he would ask, "the file doesn't seem to indicate how many written accounts there are describing it as frowning. Has it been ruled out that they could have been edited? And are there hard copies with visible signs of being dated, frayed edges, coffee stains, tears, et cetera?"

Phobos has posed:
    Alexander lowers his eyes, but his smile is still visible, then he raises them again and looks between the heroes as he murmurs. "That's my specialty, says so in my dossier." Cars and coffee.
    When Steve asks the question he says, "There have been roughly twenty-seven biographies written about Mr. Kellogg, and all of them feature the one photo in question. All of them also mention the frowning face in the photo. We have checked samples from across the publishing runs..." A look is given over to Natasha as if looking to her for more data.
    "I know Agent Johnson has dug in online to find incidences as well, though I don't have the numbers for that." Though at that moment, Alexander pushes himself to his feet. "I'll go dig that information up and get a copy."
    He starts to move off, then pauses. His brow furrows, then he looks to Cap and says. "Sir, my father, John Aaron, he rarely speaks positively of anyone. But he thinks well of you, sir." As if that would carry some weight. But for some reason he seems to feel the need to say it.
    That done he then turns and hustles off to quickly get that intel while the heroes continue to chat.