[ loki. lie-smith, jim had called him. a god. the very thought makes her hackles rise, but she tries not to let her disbelief worm its way into the heart of the problem. whatever he is, she can take jim's good word that he's trouble. ]
Aha. [ she sets the pins aside. vanity can wait. peggy studies the attached image. ] And I take it he's not here to play friendly?
[ A long pause, and a text document comes through — everything he's gotten from SHIELD on Asgardians. There's only three subjects named: Thor, Loki, and Sif. ]
The last time we saw him, he was trying to conquer Earth.
[ great. homework. except there's a tiny knot in her stomach feeling rather thrilled at the prospect of having something to do -- something to read, and learn, and ultimately interact with. she doesn't share this thrill with jim. it would demean his concern. ]
[ He'd have told her about this eventually, but he lists, ]
Thor, Iron Man — that's Tony Stark — Agents Barton and Romanoff, Dr. Banner, and myself. Our ranks have expanded to include the Vision and Wanda Maximoff and I think a few more, but they're not official members when I'm from.
[ she holds silent while she processes this information. thor -- the name she saw briefly in the files he shared only moments earlier. and stark, who claimed to be howard's son before disappearing. peggy's met romanoff.
vision she's heard of. and maximoff? well, they share a billet. peggy can't decide whether she feels comforted by these connections, or more than a little uneasy. ]
A whole bloody team to take down one man. [ no, not a man: a god. ]
I never wanted to entertain it might be true, but -- [ she twists sharply in the wake of his words. ] Stories about visitors from other planets dogged my steps in Europe after...[ steve fell. ]
The Commandos and I were smoking out the last of HYDRA's bunkers and strongholds. We found things that defied understanding. Old wives' tales and scare-mongering, I'd thought.
We met -- down on the planet. [ her words remain stilted. as though her mind is working through additional problems in the background. security; defense; offense. ] Quite the friend you've made in her.
[ He doesn't know what this word means to Peggy, or the depth of what he's admitting. If Sam was the fresh breath after drowning, Natasha was a quiet snowfall, a buildup of presence until he could no longer ignore it. ]
[ ever so slightly breathless. whether peggy reads more into the word than intended, well...that's for her to know and never to betray. but she can at least respect the depth of feeling behind that word. partner: it has a magical ring to it. not lease of all because she's spent so little of her own career as something of a lone cannon. who is left who could be called a partner now?
and for the first time since arriving in this odd situation, she feels a mighty pang for the people back home. mister jarvis, especially. ]
Well, whatever the pair of you have in mind for this Loki? Count me involved.
[ just containment. she rankles -- both because she feels the scale is too small if the threat is truly so significant, and because she's not certain whether jim intends it as some manner of command. order.
it isn't that he doesn't deserve the lead, but rather that she isn't easily led. and it shows in how quick she is to question his decision. ] You called him a god, Ja--Jim. Of mischief, no less.
Don't think I don't know what he's capable of, [ he fires back. Of course he knows. Else he'd just take on the threat himself and spare anyone else the trouble. ] we should know more before we act decisively.
[ tentative. not because she doubted the sanity in the suggestion -- to be honest, it sounds far more sensible than her own brash instincts. but her hesitation is found in how suddenly he sounds like someone else. someone with a different head on his shoulders.
peggy pushes thoughts of steve out of her head before she (ultimately) submits: ] Containment and reconnaissance are well and good, but I can still help. Anything you need -- [ and this takes dignity to say, but, ] -- no matter how mundane.
[ mind like a rocket, she doesn't even hesitate on the edge of propriety when she asks: ] You're worried he might find himself especially vulnerable to someone you so illustratively named a lie-smith, aren't you?
[ she knows that's the first thing she'd be worried about, were she wearing jim's boots. ]
[ she wets her lips. now she sits back and lets decorum prance briefly about her thoughts. the winter soldier is him, all the same -- perhaps even the him that's nearer what she's known from her own home and time. it isn't apparent on the surface, but should she just scratch a little deeper... ]
How did he take to your warning? [ she wonders if he obeys 'himself'. ]
Hmm. Exerting one manner of influence in order to circumvent another.
[ she pinpoints the paradox precisely -- but not so viciously as to imply hypocrisy. in the end, she understands the weight behind that decision. she can hear it in his voice. ]
Ah, well. You know the saying: the lesser of two what-have-yous and all that.
[ she won't say evils. none of what she's seen of either barnes is evil, though her words betray a lurking worry in the depth of her mind. like she's spotted a darkness she can't yet qualify. ]
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Aha. [ she sets the pins aside. vanity can wait. peggy studies the attached image. ] And I take it he's not here to play friendly?
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[ A long pause, and a text document comes through — everything he's gotten from SHIELD on Asgardians. There's only three subjects named: Thor, Loki, and Sif. ]
The last time we saw him, he was trying to conquer Earth.
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But you stopped him. [ it isn't a question. ]
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[ He'd have told her about this eventually, but he lists, ]
Thor, Iron Man — that's Tony Stark — Agents Barton and Romanoff, Dr. Banner, and myself. Our ranks have expanded to include the Vision and Wanda Maximoff and I think a few more, but they're not official members when I'm from.
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vision she's heard of. and maximoff? well, they share a billet. peggy can't decide whether she feels comforted by these connections, or more than a little uneasy. ]
A whole bloody team to take down one man. [ no, not a man: a god. ]
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One man and his massive alien army.
[ She'll see it in the file anyway: the portal, the sheer level of technology the Chitauri had. Earth barely measured up. ]
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Aliens. [ she breathes out. ] It would be hard to believe, except -- [ she glances at the ship around her. ] Except for present circumstances.
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It was simple when it was us against them.
[ That, across time, never changes, and when their War was supposed to be the one that ended all Wars, what does that say? ]
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The Commandos and I were smoking out the last of HYDRA's bunkers and strongholds. We found things that defied understanding. Old wives' tales and scare-mongering, I'd thought.
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[ Because he and her, they deal in real things: bullets in corpses, blood on snow. Things they can see and touch and understand. (And kill). ]
Even now, we don't know that much. We have to learn fast if we want to keep up.
[ He exhales, sharply. ]
If anyone can handle a mischief-maker, it's you and Romanoff.
[ Natasha's already done it once. Peggy is made of the same stern stuff. ]
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[ grudging admiration. ]
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She's my partner.
[ He doesn't know what this word means to Peggy, or the depth of what he's admitting. If Sam was the fresh breath after drowning, Natasha was a quiet snowfall, a buildup of presence until he could no longer ignore it. ]
[ She is part of him. ]
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[ ever so slightly breathless. whether peggy reads more into the word than intended, well...that's for her to know and never to betray. but she can at least respect the depth of feeling behind that word. partner: it has a magical ring to it. not lease of all because she's spent so little of her own career as something of a lone cannon. who is left who could be called a partner now?
and for the first time since arriving in this odd situation, she feels a mighty pang for the people back home. mister jarvis, especially. ]
Well, whatever the pair of you have in mind for this Loki? Count me involved.
[ as if there would ever be any question of it. ]
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Just containment for the moment. He's got no army here and no power.
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[ just containment. she rankles -- both because she feels the scale is too small if the threat is truly so significant, and because she's not certain whether jim intends it as some manner of command. order.
it isn't that he doesn't deserve the lead, but rather that she isn't easily led. and it shows in how quick she is to question his decision. ] You called him a god, Ja--Jim. Of mischief, no less.
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[ tentative. not because she doubted the sanity in the suggestion -- to be honest, it sounds far more sensible than her own brash instincts. but her hesitation is found in how suddenly he sounds like someone else. someone with a different head on his shoulders.
peggy pushes thoughts of steve out of her head before she (ultimately) submits: ] Containment and reconnaissance are well and good, but I can still help. Anything you need -- [ and this takes dignity to say, but, ] -- no matter how mundane.
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Read the files, and tell me what you think.
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[ that is, who else can she approach knowing full well they're involved? ]
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[ He's taken this leaf from Fury's book. The fewer people know the secrets, the fewer can tell it. ]
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[ she knows that's the first thing she'd be worried about, were she wearing jim's boots. ]
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Don't you think he's suffered enough?
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[ she wets her lips. now she sits back and lets decorum prance briefly about her thoughts. the winter soldier is him, all the same -- perhaps even the him that's nearer what she's known from her own home and time. it isn't apparent on the surface, but should she just scratch a little deeper... ]
How did he take to your warning? [ she wonders if he obeys 'himself'. ]
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He'll do anything I ask.
[ He doesn't justify: it was the only way. It's an unpleasant thing, and he regrets its necessity. But he'd do it again to help the man. ]
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[ she pinpoints the paradox precisely -- but not so viciously as to imply hypocrisy. in the end, she understands the weight behind that decision. she can hear it in his voice. ]
Ah, well. You know the saying: the lesser of two what-have-yous and all that.
[ she won't say evils. none of what she's seen of either barnes is evil, though her words betray a lurking worry in the depth of her mind. like she's spotted a darkness she can't yet qualify. ]
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