7490/Tell Me How You Feel

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Tell Me How You Feel
Date of Scene: 15 May 2019
Location: Unknown
Synopsis: Summary needed
Cast of Characters: Winter Soldier, Rowan Saunders




Winter Soldier has posed:
So it's morning in the Triskelion. And Buck's got Lili off her leash, on the sparse grounds of the island, letting her do her sniffing and then her business. EVen special service dogs have needs. The Soldier looks, quite frankly, awful. He's pale to the point of greenness, hair lank and loose, and there's what can only be sand on his jeans. What happened to him? He's standing a little slouched, just watching Lili inspect things.

Rowan Saunders has posed:
Great minds think alike. Rowan is out there, too, a bith further away, and he's got his dog Sonny off the leash. Sonny is a middle-aged, fat yellow lab. He's like a barrel with legs. The dog is waddling about, sniffing this and that. He hikes a leg to leave a message on a clump of grass. Rowan calls to him, "You're supposed to be running around." Sonny wags his tail and continues to waddle about.

Rowan just shakes his head, and then he notices Bucky and Lili. He waves over at them and says, "Hey, how's it going? I followed your advice and brought Sonny in." Sonny, hearing his name, waddles over to Rowan and flops down at his feet.

Winter Soldier has posed:
"Little under the weather," he replies, with a sickly little grin. Surely he's not hungover? How can he be? Lili turns from her own inspection to come bouncing hopefully around Sonny, tail wagging. Come, ambulatory pillow, let us play. "How's Sonny doing? Your other clients like him?"

Rowan Saunders has posed:
Sonny wags and hauls himself to his spindly legs. He sniffs at Lili to make proper introductions, and then he actually bursts into motion. It's not a fast, sleek motion, but he bounds about as he tries to initiate play. Rowan perks up. "There's a good boy, Sonny." His battle to undo all the snacks his parents give the dog continues to rage. To Bucky, Rowan says, "I'm sorry to hear that." Then he grins. "Sonny's a hit. He's such a friendly loaf. I finally got my parents to give him carrot sticks instead of french fries, too. Poor dog."

Winter Soldier has posed:
Lili is delighted...and Buck's smile gains wattage. "If you keep bringing him, we should do this on the regular," he suggests. "I try to take her to the dog parks in town, but I can't do it every day. And this is an island, they can't really get away even though they're loose." Yet another way in which this dog is g ood for Buck. IT really is as if Steve managed to stuff some of his affection for the soldier into that fuzzy body...and with her vest off, she's happy to play. "I bet he is. Who doesn't love dogs?"

Rowan Saunders has posed:
Rowan nods amiably. "Yeah, we should. It'll be good for him. I haven't given up on him yet. There's a playful, energetic dog under there somewhere." Indeed, Sonny is happy to bounce around with Lili, though he's panting pretty quickly. "He's technically my parents' dog, but I take him every day. Otherwise he'll lay on the couch, and they'll feed him scraps. I can't make them stop." Rowan watches Sonny scampering about with satisfaction. "Dogs are great. Cats are cool in their own way, but dogs are a universal."

Winter Soldier has posed:
Lili's trying to entice Sonny to wrestle, rolling over, showing her belly. "Yeah. Kind of a butterball, aintcha," he says to the big good natured thing. Then his expression goes rueful. "It's like he's a fat, furry version of Steve." Rogers the eternally sweet-tempered.

Rowan Saunders has posed:
Sonny moves in for the wrestle, growling playfully. He's a waddler, and he's isn't much of a threat as he rolls around with her, but it's all in good fun. The dog's tail is going a mile a minute the whole time. Rowan laughs brightly at Bucky's assessment. "Steve's great," he says. "We actually met when Sonny tried to steal his elephant ear at Coney Island. No pastry is safe."

Winter Soldier has posed:
"That's right," Buck says, sheepishly. The last trip to Coney didn't end so well....but Buck doesn't explain that one. That's a private embarrassment, for now. Lili is making a great deal of cheerful dog drama, pretending to enormous ferocity, even as her own tail wags furiously. "Sounds like you've got a nemesis there, Lili Marlene," he says, teasingly. At the soundof her name, she looks back, laughing the way dogs do with eyes and dropped jaw.

Rowan Saunders has posed:
Rowan grins as he watches the dog. Sonny's all about that dramatic life, and he growls and wuffs, taking great effort to roll over, and he huffs and puffs, but he's into it. "This will be good for him," Rowan says. "Lili's great. I'm glad she's helping you." He slips into therapist mode for just a moment as he glances to Bucky, taking him in. "It's a good thing you have her."

Winter Soldier has posed:
He's still pale and wan looking. "Yeah, it is," he says. "Nice to have someone who never takes it personal." A little ruefulness in his voice again. "That's it, girl, wear 'im out. You both need it." As an aside to Rowan, he says, "Shepherds are pretty high energy - I mean, I'm fit and I make a point of having her with me whenever I can, especially for running, but....sheesh."

Rowan Saunders has posed:
"Yeah, they are," Rowan says. "Sonny will just lay on the couch if I don't bring him out. Labs are so easygoing. Once he's out, though..." He gestures to the rolling and wuffing dog, who's totally into this battle royale. Rowan glances at Bucky again and smiles softly, a little too friendly to be therapist mode. "Thank goodness for dogs, huh? I learned not to take things personally from a dog I had growing up. She had an unshakable spirit. And, you know, the teen years can be so rough, I just wanted to be like her, unruffled and happy."

Winter Soldier has posed:
By the way his gaze has gone vague, he's looking back at the past, not at the dogs tussling before him. "Yeah. Being a teenager was fuckin' awful," he says, with real fervor in his voice. "So goddamned hard. The army was a relief, by the time I got there."

Rowan Saunders has posed:
"I can't imagine what it was like back then," Rowan admits. "Life was hard all around." He's quiet a moment, then says, tentatively, "I had some unusual woes, but all in all I think I had it pretty good. Parents who love me, and even if they didn't understand, they wanted to do the right thing. At the time, my world was ending, but now I look back with an awful lot of gratitude, because I've seen those stories not end so well for others."

Winter Soldier has posed:
Buck shakes his head at those memories. "It was bad. WE never starved, but it was damn close. And Steve....Steve was a sickly little runt, and medicine wasn't like it is now. I used to be so sure he'd die before we graduated high school. When I shipped out the first time, he and I wrote back and forth. The second time was when they got him into the supersoldier program....and the censors stopped our letters, both ways, 'cause it was so secret. I was sure he was dead." Then he looks back to Rowan. "Yeah? What happened to you?" It's not meant asa challenge - deliberate curiosity.

Rowan Saunders has posed:
"That must have been rough," Rowan says, of Bucky thinking his friend was dead. He purses his lips and considers his answer. There's an internal pro-con discussion, and then he says, "Since our sessions require you to trust me, I'm going to trust you in turn. I'm a metahuman, maybe a mutant. I think probably a mutant, since the symptoms manifested in adolescence. I can make force fields."

Winter Soldier has posed:
Lili's settled for grooming Sonny now, bossily. Her human turns that pale gaze on Rowan. "Wow," he says. He sounds more envious than anything else. "You're not out, eh? Does SHIELD know that you are?"

Rowan Saunders has posed:
Sonny takes it. He's okay with being bossed around. Easygoing to a fault, this one. Yes, ma'am, he is bottom dog. Rowan shakes his head and says, "I don't really know how to bring it up. Mom and Dad offered to get me special education, but I just wanted to be a normal kid, so I ignored it mostly." He smiles wryly and adds, "That doesn't mean I don't go out some nights when I'm restless and break up any crime I see. Sometimes I think about how I should be helping people, so I do."

Winter Soldier has posed:
"You should talk to SHIELD," Buck's voice is earnest. "If you wanna do something more physical than therapy. I mean, mental health stuff is no joke, but what you can do....that's pretty rare. Do you think you'd be up for being a field agent?" Something odd in his eyes.

Rowan Saunders has posed:
Rowan tilts his head as he looks at Bucky. "Me? I mean, that would be really cool, but I'm just... I'm not military, and I'm not super strong like you guys. Would they really take it well? If I told them oh by the way, I have powers?" He doesn't seem worried about it, mind, but one does wonder. "I guess disclosing wouldn't do any harm."

Winter Soldier has posed:
There's a shrug from the Soldier. "You don't gotta be. Not everyone is. I bet they'd be at least happy to give you a try," he says. "And honesty's the best policy. Better you come out to them yourself, you know, than have it come up at random. I mean, I wouldn't tell 'em, but....it'd be better."

Rowan Saunders has posed:
Rowan nods as he says, "I'll think about it." His tone is serious and considering. Then, with a mirthless laugh, he says, "I hope I never have to find a job anywhere else though, once it gets out. People don't trust mutants, and in my line of work, trust is stock in trade."

Winter Soldier has posed:
Winter Soldier purses his lips. "I ....yeah," he says. "It's even harder, in this day and age, to keep any kind of personal thing secret. I hate it so much, this idea that no one gets privacy anymore. But SHIELD....we keep secrets. It'd probably never get beyond that circle."

Rowan Saunders has posed:
"You're right," Rowan says. "I'm worried over nothing. I know it will change things, but change is an essential part of life. I can't exactly ask people to embrace it and avoid it myself." He smiles at Bucky. "Thank you," he says. "I need to be challenged sometimes, I think." Sonny meanwhile is flat on his back, paws in the air, snoring away. Rowan gives him a patient look and just shakes his head.

Winter Soldier has posed:
"It's all good," Lili comes padding over to sit on Bucky's feet. "I mean, think about it. But if you've got a unique power like that, maybe you're meant for more than an office."

Rowan Saunders has posed:
Rowan says, "I don't know if it's a hugely impressive power, but to be honest, I'll do whatever they want me to do. I believe in the cause, and I want to help you guys do what you do." He nods a little to himself. "The moment I met Steve, to be honest, is when I knew I wanted to be there for you guys."