[ a laserpen. oh, but that sounds intriguing! but by the beat of his answer, she suspects her curiosity won't be best placed in that quarter. instead, she's left weighing the advantages and disadvantages of refusing his offer a second time.
good god, though, he seems keen... ]
Nothing too wild. [ sharpish. awkward, as though she's not the best at settling for favours. ] As I said: water heated quickly. And don't you dare make it a priority.
[ they've only been semi-stalking her since her arrival. It was bound to come up eventually. ]
My project load is in a bit of a rut at the moment. As much as I'd like to install some reasonable security measures to tend to our lab's theft problem, I'm told that would infringe on some arbitrary creed about keeping knowledge accessible or some rubbish like that. [ his eyes roll. Civilians. ]
[ she may have procured this conversation with a particular mission in mind -- but peggy's not always intractable. if she sees a path worth following, she will damn well follow it.
she leans forward. ]
Someone's been stealing from your lab? [ it could be harmless, she supposes. or it could be the very opposite thereof. ] What's been taken?
It's been a common thread since my arrival here. The thieves have changed, but it's generally someone seeking arms of some kind. Presently, there's a young assassin who's been visiting in the middle of the night. One of the small sorts that the Russians like to use. But before that, we had a number of intruders asking services without being inclined to ask beforehand.
[ he shrugs one shoulder then. No need to bring up the HYDRA issue at the moment. ]
[ -- one of the small sorts that the russians like to use, he says, and peggy has to wonder whether they're still doing that. she has a coil of guilt lingering over one particular soviet asset left in the wind back home. ]
And there's been genuine blow-back over the possibility of you lot locking the place down? [ this surprises her. perhaps it shouldn't -- but it does. it alarms her, too. ]
Jemma's for it, of course. But we've been sharing the lab with a colleague who's concerned with leaving the space open to all. We ran into the same issue with Dr. Foster when she was here. They keep trying to make it into an ethics discussion instead of one about common sense.
Having seen first hand what happened when one of Howard Stark's vaults got hit about a year ago, I must say I agree that security is necessary.
[ if it's made into an ethics discussion, then surely it would make more sense to limit the kind of work done instead of limiting access to it -- but that's an even trickier conversation, and one that won't help her ultimate cause today. ]
We've had some similar incidents in our time, when Tony Stark's machines were reprogrammed. It's... tricky. The residents don't like to think that any of us might be working against one another. They're a little naive about the human condition.
Perhaps many of them can afford to be. [ naive. after all, not everyone gets a spy's initiation into doubting the human condition. and even then, peggy tries to see the best in another person. even if she doesn't vocalize it.
And who, specifically, would you label as a danger, Agent Fitz?
[ now, this is curious. there's no doubt in the way she watches him -- intent. and eager, almost, to hear his perspective on any possible villains hiding within the crowd. she's not about to start a witch-hunt, but it never hurts to gather a diversity of perspectives. ]
The vampires are caustic. Able to turn off the parts of them that makes them human. They seem to be adequate at self-policing, but they present a united front when challenged. The Hydra presence might be gone now, but there's no way to know if he was able to recruit anyone while he was here. We can be fairly dangerous when events drive us out of our minds. And then there's the trouble with the powered people...
[ excuse you. it seems that no one has seen fit to mention this to her before this very moment. fitz makes a great many points -- from the bizarre (vampires!) to the rational (event interference), and as much as she'd like to broach the topic of powered people...
peggy pushes her mug aside. ]
I didn't know HYDRA had anyone here. Was this before I arrived?
... I mentioned the mole to you a few times. He was here for at least a few weeks. He visited us all in turns. But he's either gone deep into hiding since then, or left entirely. We have no way to be sure.
[ Klaus verified. But things have been tense with Klaus lately. He keeps too many secrets for Fitz to be sure about anything. ]
Agent Fitz. [ now, her pretense sloughs away. what's left beneath is an expression with a sternness that's neither constructed nor schooled. what little she'd heard of the mole had troubled her deeply, and to think he was here?
could still be?
she finds her appetite abandons her. ]
I'd like his name. And any other information you might deem relevant to the situation. In case he has, indeed, gone into hiding.
Grant Ward. Six foot two, old Hollywood looks. I've never known him to go by an alias. His who is too bloody big to convince him that he needs one. I can prepare an extended report if you'd like a full dossier.
[ grant ward. six foot two. although peggy suspects that 'old hollywood looks' are likely nearer to 'current hollywood looks' when it comes to her own personal point of reference. and she's about to tell him so when he offers her a full dossier.
oh, fitz, you champion. ]
Yes. Please. I'd appreciate it. [ and peggy's not one to say please lightly. although-- ] Consider it a touch more pressing than the kettle.
I can work on one while taking breaks from the other. [ Breaks, ha. That's the joke. ]
I admit that I don't know as much as some from my team, but I know enough to give you a proper but bit of reading. Ward has become another one of the director's special projects in the weeks before I left. We've all had to do a bit of extra research into his biography.
[ and not just because of the trauma inflicted upon members of the team, some of it already described by fitz the last time they spoke. peggy tries to avoid treading too close to that topic; after all, they'd already voiced their intention to stay well clear of that discussion. ]
Your information will do just fine. If I need more, I'll come asking for it. [ and so... ] I should add that you shouldn't feel obligated. [ simply because of who she is, of what she might be, of a legacy unearned. ] I'm not interested in taking anything you're not willing to give.
[ it's an offer that doesn't hold true for just anyone in wonderland. rather, it's the approach she's chosen to take with those future shield agents -- a nod to their service, perhaps. ]
I'm a professional, ma'am. [ he gives her a knowing look at that. ] I'm quite aware of what belongs in a report of this sort.
[ It means he knows how to write around the messy parts. Fieldwork usually ends in something unflattering, or someone making an unpopular call. There's no need to acknowledge the questionable bits in a formal document. ]
[ there are things she doesn't need to know -- and as much as that riles her, peggy knows she'll break more ground focusing on the useful bits. the bits that pertain to the mole, that is, and not the ugly ways in which his betrayal must have played out for the rest of the team. ]
But it's not merely your professionalism to which I'm referring. [ oh, this is awkward. ] Agent Fitz, I'm not interested in benefiting from an undue...let's call it regard.
[ -- well, that deserves a snort of laughter. genuine, if brittle. peggy at long last reaches for her mug of tea once more and hides a smirk behind a sip.
after: ] Don't I know it. Sometimes, it behooves us all to colour outside bureaucracy's lines. But in this instance my intent is to work with you. And the others, if they'll have me. No bureaucracy necessary.
[ not for this, at any rate. ]
But on the subject of working together, it occurs to me we might revisit the subject of your earlier work. The portal that went awry.
[ and peggy, for her part, feels confident that this gentle fork in the conversational path is an organic one -- although she suspects it will still land with a sour note. she's prepared for it. ]
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good god, though, he seems keen... ]
Nothing too wild. [ sharpish. awkward, as though she's not the best at settling for favours. ] As I said: water heated quickly. And don't you dare make it a priority.
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You must be working on other projects. [ a beat. ] Aren't you?
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My project load is in a bit of a rut at the moment. As much as I'd like to install some reasonable security measures to tend to our lab's theft problem, I'm told that would infringe on some arbitrary creed about keeping knowledge accessible or some rubbish like that. [ his eyes roll. Civilians. ]
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she leans forward. ]
Someone's been stealing from your lab? [ it could be harmless, she supposes. or it could be the very opposite thereof. ] What's been taken?
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[ he shrugs one shoulder then. No need to bring up the HYDRA issue at the moment. ]
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And there's been genuine blow-back over the possibility of you lot locking the place down? [ this surprises her. perhaps it shouldn't -- but it does. it alarms her, too. ]
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[ if it's made into an ethics discussion, then surely it would make more sense to limit the kind of work done instead of limiting access to it -- but that's an even trickier conversation, and one that won't help her ultimate cause today. ]
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[ said the pot about the kettle. ]
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even if she doesn't trust it. ]
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[ now, this is curious. there's no doubt in the way she watches him -- intent. and eager, almost, to hear his perspective on any possible villains hiding within the crowd. she's not about to start a witch-hunt, but it never hurts to gather a diversity of perspectives. ]
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[ excuse you. it seems that no one has seen fit to mention this to her before this very moment. fitz makes a great many points -- from the bizarre (vampires!) to the rational (event interference), and as much as she'd like to broach the topic of powered people...
peggy pushes her mug aside. ]
I didn't know HYDRA had anyone here. Was this before I arrived?
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[ Klaus verified. But things have been tense with Klaus lately. He keeps too many secrets for Fitz to be sure about anything. ]
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could still be?
she finds her appetite abandons her. ]
I'd like his name. And any other information you might deem relevant to the situation. In case he has, indeed, gone into hiding.
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oh, fitz, you champion. ]
Yes. Please. I'd appreciate it. [ and peggy's not one to say please lightly. although-- ] Consider it a touch more pressing than the kettle.
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I admit that I don't know as much as some from my team, but I know enough to give you a proper but bit of reading. Ward has become another one of the director's special projects in the weeks before I left. We've all had to do a bit of extra research into his biography.
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[ and not just because of the trauma inflicted upon members of the team, some of it already described by fitz the last time they spoke. peggy tries to avoid treading too close to that topic; after all, they'd already voiced their intention to stay well clear of that discussion. ]
Your information will do just fine. If I need more, I'll come asking for it. [ and so... ] I should add that you shouldn't feel obligated. [ simply because of who she is, of what she might be, of a legacy unearned. ] I'm not interested in taking anything you're not willing to give.
[ it's an offer that doesn't hold true for just anyone in wonderland. rather, it's the approach she's chosen to take with those future shield agents -- a nod to their service, perhaps. ]
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[ It means he knows how to write around the messy parts. Fieldwork usually ends in something unflattering, or someone making an unpopular call. There's no need to acknowledge the questionable bits in a formal document. ]
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[ there are things she doesn't need to know -- and as much as that riles her, peggy knows she'll break more ground focusing on the useful bits. the bits that pertain to the mole, that is, and not the ugly ways in which his betrayal must have played out for the rest of the team. ]
But it's not merely your professionalism to which I'm referring. [ oh, this is awkward. ] Agent Fitz, I'm not interested in benefiting from an undue...let's call it regard.
[ but what she really means is obedience. ]
This is a request. Not an order.
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[ his eyebrows raise. Does she really think she's done nothing to earn th sorts of things he's offering? ]
Bureaucracy can move so slowly when staff is improperly motivated.
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after: ] Don't I know it. Sometimes, it behooves us all to colour outside bureaucracy's lines. But in this instance my intent is to work with you. And the others, if they'll have me. No bureaucracy necessary.
[ not for this, at any rate. ]
But on the subject of working together, it occurs to me we might revisit the subject of your earlier work. The portal that went awry.
[ and peggy, for her part, feels confident that this gentle fork in the conversational path is an organic one -- although she suspects it will still land with a sour note. she's prepared for it. ]
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