9918/A touch of Winter

A touch of Winter
Date of Scene:	05 November 2019
Location:	Food Court, The Triskelion
Synopsis:	The Winter Soldier and the Child Soldier talk, co-starring Lilli who is A Very Good Dog.
Cast of Characters:	Winter Soldier, Samuel Morgan

---

Winter Soldier has posed:
The Triskelion's got a food court....and it's just past the dinner rush. Most of those who work here during the day but live in the city have gone home....but there are those who dwell here on the island, too. And one among those is erstwhile Winter Soldier.

He's waiting for his appointed meeting at one of the tables, a book propped open before him: a worn copy of 'Treasure Island'. He certainly doesn't *look* like he should be numbered among the deadliest of HYDRA's agents - to all outward appearances, he's just a man in his middle twenties, with long brown hair bound back in a neat tail, clad in SHIELD fatigues. The metal hand is covered by a black glove, no betraying gleam of alloy.....and lying at his feet, there's a big German Shepherd, her glossy coat honey gold and black, mumbling on some kind of chewbone.

Samuel Morgan has posed:
    There was a moment of panic when they came. The unmarked car, the people in suits, walking into the school's foyer, asking for a very, very specific student by name... Sam Morgan, Bean to his friends, Techno to his team, had been dreading the day. It meant either something had gone horrendously wrong, or he'd made a fatal mistake somewhere and was going to spend the rest of his life behind a series of locked doors. In the end there was no struggle when they took him, and even surprise when the expected handcuffs didn't get put on.

    It was time, it seemed, for a meeting.

    And so a rather bemused Bean is being escorted through the Triskelion by an agent, led through security door after security door as if everyone had forgotten just how dangerous he was. But then it was easy to underestimate the teenager in the cargo slacks, the combat boots and the nondescript grey hoodie. You could meet a dozen like him on any street you cared to name.

    That had, after all, been the whole point.

    The agent points him in the right direction, and Sam approaches the table with caution. He's still expecting a trap, or some kind of loyalty test. But there's nothing for it than to advance and hope for the best. Time to put all that social training to the test.

    "Hi, I'm...-"

    And that's as far as he gets. He's only now spotted the dog, and is crouched down almost instantly, beaming her a bright smile. "Hi there! What's your name then? Whossa good dog? You're a good dog. Yes you are..."

Winter Soldier has posed:
From above, there's a rasping voice....but amused, rather than annoyed. "She's my service dog," it explains. "Her name is Lili. But she doesn't have her vest on, so I guess technically, she's off-duty and it's okay."

Lili herself seems to believe it's more than okay. If anything, she's ecstatic, having gotten up to a sitting position, beaming a big doggy grin and thumping her tail. Yes, yes, I am a good dog.

It seems that Sam's even deemed safe enough to be left alone with James. At least, there's no overt security presence. But then, they are in the heart of the Triskelion.

Samuel Morgan has posed:
    "I... don't know what that means." Sam admits as he straightens back up, well aware that he must have cut a very strange figure up to this point. He moves a chair to sit, but close enough so he can reach out and scratch Lili behind the ears. Kids and dogs...

    He's astute enough to know that just because you can't see security it doesn't mean it's not there. And he can sense enough nearby to know that any kind of nonsense here would probably go over incredibly poorly. "Let's try this again. Hi. I'm Sam Morgan. And unless I miss my guess, we used to work for the same organisation. They used to call me Scorpio."

Winter Soldier has posed:
He's risen, presumably in greeting, but as Sam sits, he settles back down, himself. "Lili isn't a guard or attack dog. She's trained to help me with some of the problems I have from what HYDRA did to me - PTSD flashbacks, nightmares, social problems." His tone is matter of fact, even, not censorious. "Which means that she's not generally a dog you should pet. You haven't seen service dogs in public before? They generally wear a little vest or jacket."

James stretches out lazily, slouching down in his chair, a little, and grins. "I'm James Barnes," he says. "Formerly known as the Winter Soldier. And I seem to recall having heard that name before. We might even have met, but I'll be honest, my memory isn't what it used to be."

Samuel Morgan has posed:
    "My apologies, I didn't know." And though he says that, Sam also doesn't pull his hand away. There's a comforting presence about that dog, one he's reluctant to let go of. "I don't go out much, and the place I'm staying has a very strict policy on pets. Although I suppose that wouldn't apply to... let's just say that no, I've never come across them before." A glance at Lilli, a smile, and then he feels he can continue. "I... have a lot of the same problems. For similar reasons, I suspect. That's sort of what I was hoping to talk to you about."

    And then the formal introduction is made. Sam doesn't seem surprised at all, simply nodding and leaning back in his seat. "We've met. Was my... second? Yeah, second kill mission. Commander said that if I didn't follow orders exactly, you'd probably shoot me. And you know, I never doubted it. Back then it didn't even seem too strange. Looking back on it..." A deep sigh, and he has to look away.

Winter Soldier has posed:
She's well-trained....and has apparently decided that Sam requires her talents. For she edges over and lays her long jaw on his leg and looks up at him, ears pinned. Delighted to be petted....and James doesn't seem inclined to second-guess her.

At the mention of the mission, he gets a momentarily abstracted look, as if consulting damaged memory files, and then nods. "He was right," he confirms. Oh, that's reassuring. "I did have that as a secondary directive." Then he pulls a face. "God, those people. Kid, I'm with you. It messes you up, what they did."

Samuel Morgan has posed:
    There's no power on the planet that could stop Sam from petting Lilli when she lays her head on his leg, giving her a look that is half delight and half desperation, like a drowning man suddenly seeing a life buoy. For a few moments he has eyes only for the German Shepherd. It makes answering a lot easier.

    "When I saw you, I wanted to be like you." Sam admits, in a slightly distant voice. "And for a while, I was. But I was eleven years old man, I couldn't... it just... too much. It was too much. I went nuts, literally." He looks over to James, with eyes that don't quite focus. His fingers stroke through Lilli's fur, keeping him in the present. "I just wanted to know how you do it. How you managed to live with it in the end, because... because I still don't know if I can. I've got friends, people who support me all the way and still it... just... they're still in my head."

Winter Soldier has posed:
Lili can sense her master's distress, it seems, for she flicks one ear back, as if listening to what James is saying. Or not saying. But she doesn't move from where she is, only edges in closer, as if she's seriously considering climbing into his lap.

For Sam's answer has James going very still, indeed, as he listens. It takes him a little while to reply. "I....have it a lot easier, because I was a grown man when HYDRA got me. They tried to erase that life, those ties, those memories, and they did a good job. But not good enough." He swallows, lips thinned out. "Mostly....I have to rest on the good things I have. My best friend from childhood lived through the war and kind of....got shot forward through time to here, too. So I still have him. But I've also got friends I've made in the present day. People who decided to go to bat for me." He drops his gaze. "I don't try to pretend I wasn't broken, that I'm still not...whole. I do therapy. I meditate. I've got Lili there. And right now, I've got someone blocking the programming. It's not gone, but it's neutralized. None of my code words work, now. But that's....not really what you're asking, is it?"

Samuel Morgan has posed:
    As only response, Sam shakes his head. No... that wasn't what he was asking. He makes an odd spectacle, at the same time looking full of youthful energy but with the eyes of a melancholy veteran. And he's devoting more and more of his time to Lilli. It's not who he came to meet, though. So eventually, reluctantly, he looks over to James again, jaw tight. "There's a thing I figured out, not sure if it helps, but... it's the only thing that makes sense to me. It's the programming. They taught us suspicion and duplicity, how to never even consider defecting. But the only way to break the programming is together, with someone else, because we all have bits that didn't quite take. Together it's possible to think the unthinkable. That's why they teach us not to trust each other."

    Everything gets a glance now. The area, the tables, the food, the book, the pattern of the tiles... everything suddenly becomes important. So many stimuli, so much to process. "I remember things I wish I could forget. Meditation helps sometimes. The medication helps too, so does the therapy, but... well... I'm sure you know what I mean."

Winter Soldier has posed:
He's a *kid*. That's the thing that keeps getting to James, in raw little shocks. Someone who didn't get to have a life *before* HYDRA. It's the ones like that, like Natasha and Svetlana.....he had someone he was, try as they might've to raze that away. This kid didn't even have that. "That's a lot of it," he says, softly. "They want devotion to only flow upwards. To the superiors, to the ones giving the orders. But you're right. Natasha.....I trained her and she *wanted* to trust me. To look to me with loyalty. But they had me do things so she'd never forget what I was."

"Mostly, now, I try to....to live. To remember or learn what I like, what I want. To be able to relax. Lili's a big help, 'cause they never had me working with dogs. Maybe you could get one, too. I got her from Steve, I have the information about the organization that trained her. See, she sees the signs in you, and she's responding to them."

Samuel Morgan has posed:
    "And they never make you forget that, in the end, you're expendable." Sam agrees, both his hands scratching behind Lilli's ears now, just for the sensation. It's a repetitive, soothing stimulus, which makes it easier to just ignore the images that ambush him from the depths of his memory. That memory that rarely lets him forget anything, good or bad. "That's the key. Once you accept that you're not disposable, there's a chance. Papa... sorry, Doctor Eisen knew that. I think they never really had him, not fully."

    "I... would need to talk to a few people, but... I would very much like it if you would share the information. She's amazing..." and now he looks at Lilli again, smiling. "You're amazing. You are. You are. Good dog!"

    But despite that, he feels that he needs a change of topic. Forget that he's been trying to get this meeting for weeks, it's turning too melancholy. So he grasps the most obvious topic available. "Treasure Island... reading the classics? I'm reading the Hornblower series at the moment. There's something about the age of sail that's just... relaxing."

Winter Soldier has posed:
"Exactly," James says, with that quiet fervor, voice grating. "Who's Doctor Eisen?" It sounds like a code name, probably was, but....Papa? Voice gentle, as he asks. At the request, he's finding a scrap of paper in the pocket of his fatigues - takes it out, scribbles down the information, offers it over held between the first two fingers of his human hand. "I bet a dog would be really good for you. I was honestly kinna skeptical at first, when Steve brought her to me, but....now I'm a believer." His grin is rueful.

Melancholy, indeed. But he doesn't press, as Lili sighs contentedly, lets her ears pin back. "Yeah. I loved it when I was a kid. It's still good. I like those. I like Forester. You ever read a guy named O'Brian, writes about the same era? They even made a really good movie out of some of his books - Master and Commander."

Samuel Morgan has posed:
    "He... made me. That's to say, he was at the head of the team that built me from the ground up. Stolen DNA, genetic engineering, the works. For a few years he pretended to be my father. In the end, he acted like it." Sam can't look into James' eyes when he says that, opting instead to gaze into Lilli's. "They held him responsible for my mutation."

    He accepts the paper without a word, putting it in a pocket for safekeeping. It's something he'll have to talk to the Professor about. But he does know that he's going to ask. And happily, the topic turns to literature. "The Aubrey-Maturin series? I've read Master and Commander, Post Captain and HMS Surprise. In a way he's easier to read than Forester, because at least he has the vehicle of Doctor Maturin as a naval outsider to explain all the sailing jargon. Forester doesn't pull those kind of punches, he assumes everyone knows exactly what a fore t'gallant sail is."

Winter Soldier has posed:
Big soft brown eyes....and as if in thanks for the confidence, she solemnly licks his hand. Not a big slobberer, this one. James is quiet, head a little tilted. "That's....what makes real family, in the end, isn't it? The ones who step up for you, whether you have their DNA or not."

Then there's that grin, banishing the grim lines on that otherwise youthful face. "I like 'em. And yeah, you're right. Maturin's a neat character, and he gets more interesting as they go. You had dinner yet? You hungry? There's still plenty hot, if you are." He can at least play host, of a kind.

Samuel Morgan has posed:
    "Family... Sometimes you get to choose them." There's the ghost of a smile there, and Sam gives Lilli another grateful pat on the head.

    "I'm not going to say no to dinner. It's surprising how quickly you get used to regular meals that you don't have to inhale in half an hour, I'm worried I've gotten a little spoiled." Shannon's cooking was going to be hard to beat. "What's good here?"

Winter Soldier has posed:
"Right?" Buck says, laughing a little. "Ah, pizza's actually really good. There's pasta. I think....." He glances around. "Basic stuff like burgers. Dessert tonight is chocolate cake, which is really good here...I'm spoiled not having to cook so many nights a week. I used to have to do a lot of cooking. So, where've they got you, these days?"

Samuel Morgan has posed:
    "I'll give that pizza a try later on." Despite being rather hungry, Sam does know that there's going to be food waiting for him back at the Mansion. It's a luxury that he was getting used to. "I never minded kitchen duty, but the rest of the squad did. They sword I could burn water. Set the kitchen on fire once trying to boil eggs."

    The talk of mundane matters dispels the melancholy almost immediately, and his posture relaxes, although he never stops fussing Lilli. "I'm at Xavier's school, in Westchester. Agent Croft used to work there as a teacher for a while, figure she had a hand in getting me placed there. It's a good school, but we do get some strange visitors from time to time."