[ semi-closed ]

[revlon]

Who: Peggy Carter (revlon) & Various
What: Catch-all log and general overflow post
When: Feb
Where: Olympia and the surrounding area, Thesa, etc
Warning(s): N/A

[ Quest Pt. 2, Important Talks with Important Folks, Valentine's Day, and all in between. Starters to follow!

Hit me up in PMs or plurk (dossier) if you'd like to do something! ]

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john watson;

[revlon]

[ A few days after Peggy and John had discussed getting together to examine the sketches she'd uncovered on a mission at the Institute, she sets off in the evening to do just that. He'd said to visit him at work where they wouldn't be disturbed and as she weaves her way through Olympia's theatre district towards the red light district and Shades Darker, she finds that he's quite right in that regard. She's rarely in this part of town because her patrol route with the Guard takes her to the outskirts of the city and there is a lot to see; it's lively, it's busy, and more importantly: people are far too occupied with themselves and those nearest to them to focus on much else.

The music and merriment give way to the neighbourhood adjacent and it's like a filter's been dropped over everything. The lights dim, the voices grow hushed. But she's no stranger to being a little out of place (she rather thrives on fitting in anywhere) and she's covered herself up in the flowing local garb against the winter chill and as an extra precaution. It's nearing midnight by the time she reaches the brothel where she asks after the in-house doctor and is pointed towards his office. She is assured he isn't busy with a patient. ]

John? [ She knocks on the open door before entering and once she's in, she shrugs out of her wool cloak (which is where the Olympian fashion ends; she's in her usual trousers and blouse). There's snow melting in her dark curls, her cheeks pink with cold and wind. As she's hanging it up, rather unnecessarily: ] It's started snowing.

[enarms]

[ oh, bloody hell. snow? Christ. if John looks vaguely put-out, it's probably because he's not come prepared for that, despite warnings. it's also likely because it's been upwards of an hour since his last warm, caffeinated beverage, and the night so far has been a slow dragging bore not worth staying awake for. ]

Evening, Peggy.

[ but here comes Peggy Carter, to the rescue, and that's enough to assuage some of his frustration. catch him off guard a bit, too - they don't see each other as often in person as the speedy development of their friendship might imply, and on occasion, he forgets that she's a very striking woman.

it can be overlooked. she's more friend now than she ever had the time to be seen as anything else, and John shakes off his surprise at the way melting specks of snow complement the dark of her hair against her skin in favour of standing from his desk and crossing to pull the door to behind her - not before switching the sign outside to read "The doctor is OUT" - always read to mean Busy. ]

Heavily? [ oh, actually, before he closes them in for the foreseeable, ] — Did you want something to drink?

[revlon]

Not too badly. And please. Tea, or something stronger if you have it? [ She flashes a smile at him, white teeth against impeccably red lipstick. ] I know we're here to work but I wouldn't mind warming up.

[ To anyone else, especially here, it might sound like a line. But their friendship is such that it very much is precisely what she means it to be — she doesn't mind the cold, it's far more tolerable now than it was during the war even if the memories associated with it are unpleasant, but chasing it off with a cuppa or a dram would be just the thing. Peggy peels off her gloves and tucks them into the hidden pocket on the inside of her cloak then rubs her hands briskly together to get the blood flowing as she takes a step further into the office, taking a look around. ]

This is nice. [ Sincerely meant. ] I hope I've not interrupted anything. You did say any time this week.

[enarms]

You interrupted a night full of nothing is what you interrupted.

[ insinuation being that he's very grateful for the distraction, thanks very much.

his office follows a mish-mash of themes, but tries its best to relfect the general ambience of the rest of the place - in amongst the stark metal cabinets and examination table that make up the medical quota of the room. there's an oxblood leather sofa to one side, chairs of the same material. the wooden desk is of the same finish as the tables out front, as are the bookcases that line the wall behind him.

it's nice. it is. odd, but nice enough. certainly a decent incentive to stay, alongside the pay and open bar, despite the pitfalls of more than a few nights with next to nothing to do. ]

I've got whatever the bar's got. Preference?

[revlon]

Whiskey, same as always, [ comes the absent reply as she goes to peruse those bookcases. ] Or the closest thing to it.

[ A hot toddy would be nice, but that's for if they were meeting at someone's home; and in any case, she's moved on from that. She'd spoken with someone (Dirk Gently, as it happens) at the gala about looking into the local literature to understand the culture here. She's been too caught up in work to get into it, but the curiosity remains, which is why she's browsing the shelves while she waits.

Quite cushy, really, this whole set up. Far more accommodating than what she's got, but that's Guard life for you, especially on the outskirts. A little more lonely out there and a little more tense given the trouble brewing between this place and the city in the south. And given what she'd found while snooping through the Institute's archives, there's no chance of that headache going away any time soon. ]

Feels like it's been a bit, hasn't it? [ This when he returns and she's still standing in the middle of the room. ] It's either depressing or unsurprising that it takes a bit of nasty business behind closed doors to get us meeting in person.

[enarms]

[ John comes back with whiskey for her, coffee for him. possibly shouldn't have another yet, but there we go. he's got company now, some things are necessary. a scoff of a laugh at the offered options, and John's quick and easy to reply— ] Why not both?

[ and, quick on the tails, of that, ] Peggy, for God's sake, make yourself comfortable.

[ he's reaching out to her with the whiskey, and without a spill-risk-free hand with which to gesture to her seating options, the best he can do is nod at the sofa along the wall or the plush chair facing his desk, opposite the one he got up out of to greet her.

the pick's hers - depends whether she thinks they need the structure of a desk for this meeting or the comfort of a couch. ]

[revlon]

[ She takes the offered whiskey with a murmured thanks, although that coffee smells equally good. (Maybe later, if she's still here.) His comment earns a huff of breath, almost amused, and she turns and chooses the chair by the desk — this is business, after all. At least in part. She settles back and takes a sip before digging her device out of her handbag and navigating the screen one-handed. ]

Both depressing and unsurprising seems to be the order of the day, [ she says as she flicks through folders to locate the photographs she'd hidden away. The sketches are incriminating enough, she didn't dare have them copied out onto paper. ] What I found straddles the two, weaponising scientific experiments in secret. Some things never change.

[ Photos of said sketches located, she glances up at John and holds out the device. ]

Did you want to enjoy that cup of coffee first or get on with it?

[enarms]

Might as well get on with it.

[ he's about as ready for this as he's been for anything - depressing and unsurprising it may be, but it's the closest thing he's had to investigation or intrigue in weeks. being included in something feels good too, having expertise worth asking after. so he takes the device he's offered and moves around the desk to land himself in his chair and his coffee on a coaster, reading as he goes.

he's quiet then for as long as it takes him to look through, read what's there to offer. his frown grows deeper by the moment. ]

- Jesus.

[revlon]

That about sums it up, yes.

[ It's mildly said, but that doesn't mean she isn't aware how serious it looks. Drug tests are nothing to sneeze at, doubly so when they're conducted on alien creatures with results that seem to favour the violent; in her experience, that's usually an undesirable side effect, but not so here. Whatever they're cooking up in the Institute, they want to heighten aggression in these creatures, amongst other things.

If they want them immune to pain, then that doesn't sit well, either. All of the fight with little to stop them. ]

There was so much in there, John. I don't know if we saw even a quarter of what they had, but — [ a gesture with her free hand ] — that's the most concerning. I've seen my fair share of chemical testing gone wrong with similar results. [ She thinks back to her first year in New York and grimaces, taking another sip of her drink. ] Worse, actually.

steve rogers;

[revlon]

[ It's been a little over a week since she carried out the assignment at the Institute. Nearly three total since she'd accepted it to begin with and a little longer since she met the man who asked it of her in the first place — Cree, who'd made it clear that no favour goes without something in return after the first one had been free. Peggy Carter, it seems, is finally doing what she's good at: a touch of espionage, flirting with the idea of trouble, keeping both a secret from those closest to her to keep them safe.

She'd told John Watson before Steve Rogers. That doesn't sit well with her, more so than not telling him at all. Because it isn't that she doesn't trust him — she does, of course she does — but rather that she doesn't want him to get into it with her if it all goes south. (Big "if." She's careful.) Silly of her, of course; she knows she and Steve are far too alike and if something were to happen, he'd jump right in after her just as she would for him.

So one evening as they're getting ready for bed, Peggy glances over from her little makeshift vanity mirror and waits for him to shut the bedroom door before speaking. ]

Darling, [ she begins softly, finishing off with her face lotion before turning fully to face him. ] Do you have a moment to talk?

[america]

Sure.

[ Steve had been about to settle into bed with one of the books he'd picked up while they were last on Thesa station on one of their get-away-from-everything dates, but the tone in Peggy's voice stops him short.

Well, her question, too.

And like any modern fella in a long-term relationship, he starts to mentally catalogue any possibility of him having done something wrong, something stupid, or forgotten an important date. ]

Should I be nervous? Nothing I did, is it?

[revlon]

No, [ she says quickly on the heels of his question, offering a reassuring smile. ] No, it's nothing you've done.

[ Peggy studies him for a moment, wondering how best to proceed. She's not nervous, necessarily; she knows by now what might set Steve on edge, what could upset him, what does. But that had been a different man in a different time. Her only guide is that they're more similar than they are different despite the distance and she knows how she might react if the situation were reversed.

Concern, she thinks, would overrule temper. Exasperation, too. But that's no guarantee. She takes a breath and pushes on steadily. ]

But it is something I've done. [ She lets that hang in the air for a moment. ] I haven't been entirely honest with you about what I've been doing under the Guard's nose — and yours too, I'm afraid.

[america]

Okay.

[ Steve's expression deepens, the crease between his brows echoing more concern - as she'd thought - than anything else.

He'd like to think of himself as a reasonable man nowadays -- well, for the most part. Gone are the days when he'd be quick to jump straight to conclusions, fists bared (metaphorically speaking), anyway.

He takes a breath. ]

Is this a mission you've taken on? Official or otherwise?

[revlon]

[ Bless him for knowing precisely what she's about to say. Her lips quirk, almost amused. ]

Have I become so obvious?

[ No, she knows she hasn't. But the mood suddenly feels so grave, she needs to inject a little more levity into it. The danger — if there ever was any — has passed, at least for now. The assignment she took is over. But she does still have her lot in with The Gilded Cage and she doesn't intend to pull out any time soon, not when there's a chance she can keep getting more information from it and what they ask of her.

Peggy exhales and stands, crossing the room to join him at the bed. She doesn't sit, instead choosing to stand in front of him and reaching up to smooth the pad of her thumb gently over the way his brows knit as if trying to soothe the frown. ]

Don't, [ she says, voice soft. Worry. Then: ] I broke into the Institute's archives last week to look for more information on the marketplace attack. Anything to do with the manufacturing of chemical weapons or whatever seemed suspicious, related — and there was a hell of a lot. [ Her gaze flickers over him, assessing, and then she adds, ] It wasn't under Ashti's orders. She doesn't know a thing about it and it needs to stay that way.

[america]

How long have you been involved in this?

[ He lifts a hand to fold over hers while she stands before him.

She could tell him not to worry, but it wouldn't stop him. Not because she couldn't handle herself, Steve knows she can pack a real punch, and she's damned good at her job, but because he can't help it. He'd lost her once; he doesn't want to know what it might be like to lose her again.

He thinks about their Commander, and shakes his head. How much do they really know about her anyway? Her intentions? This world and their place in it? Steve still has a hell of a lot of unanswered questions, things he'd been trying to figure out for himself too. ]

Well, something tells me there's a lot Ashti doesn't know about. And there's likely more she's not telling us.

[revlon]

[ His first question earns a shake of her head. Doesn't matter, it seems to say. Or: later. She moves on for now. ]

That's the problem, [ she agrees softly, tangling her fingers with his. ] Ever since she asked me to capture an enemy spy over the summer, I feel like none of us have ever been privy to the whole picture. That, the arrests after the bombing, never mind that people don't seem to trust the woman... [ Peggy shakes her head. ] When I was with the SSR, I'd run the interrogations of whoever I brought in. If I wasn't on that side of the glass, then I'd be on the other, watching and listening. That's not the case here.

[ She doesn't need to tell him that it's not only frustrating but dangerous to be out of the loop. To be a pawn rather than playing the board. The tensions between Olympia and Wyver are brewing, there are heated discussions and orators on street corners, all very vocal about their distaste for the southern city and the 'truce' implemented. Surveys of public opinion circulating, people spoiling for a fight to prove who should come out on top.

Peggy believes keeping her ear to the ground can only do so much. Getting behind closed doors is the best way to keep those she cares about safe. ]

We've been here months and we still don't know much about how the Guard operates, we're kept on the outside and everything is need-to-know. And it seems the Institute functions the same way with the projects they're keeping locked away — unsurprising, really. [ Then she exhales and it's almost a laugh and she adds, teasing, ] Who knew I'd hate to be kept in the dark?

[america]

Yeah. Who knew. [ Steve echoes, equally teasing. His mouth quirks into something of a smile, exasperated but fondly so.

She has a point, in any case. Hell, she's got a lot of points. ] It's suspicious how little we know, how little it seems we're allowed to know.

[ Steve exhales. ]

It hits a little close to home.

[ The familiarity of feeling like a pawn in someone else's game is practically deja vu. Right before the Storm, he'd been branded a war criminal because he'd been a pawn in someone else's game, and the secrets had yet to unravel themselves into some form of public truth.

And maybe he'd been a pawn for a hell of a lot longer than he's been thinking for himself. All part and parcel of a soldier's life.

He's not sure he's on board with a life like that. Not anymore. ]

So, can you tell me about anything you've learned?

[quevalry]

[ she knows very well, seeing she's also a member of the royal guard, that she shouldn't bother someone when they're working. but, lena's also the curious type of woman that always has an itching to ask questions. when she see's a familiar face on a horse, she'll zip on over.

sort of. lena's smart enough to stop her blinking before she reaches peggy so she doesn't spook the horse. that wouldn't be ideal after all (but then again, shouldn't the horses be trained enough to handle the unknown? it's something she shouldn't test right now.) ]

Didn't think you knew how to ride one of these.

[revlon]

[ Peggy, of course, has seen her around the palace courtyard but with all of them being given varying patrol routes, it's difficult to keep tabs on who's who. And familiar faces aside, the uniform is unmistakable. Peggy had been on her way back into the city from the outskirts when Lena approaches and she slows to a stop, smiling. ]

I learned when I was a girl. Didn't have much of a need for riding as I got older, but I can't say I mind getting back into the saddle — literally.

[quevalry]

[ the corner of her lips curve into a rather semi-cheeky smile that's followed by a laugh. ]

Makes sense, being an adult is hard. [ even she had to give up some hobbies once she grew up. which is a shame, but there's nothing that she can do about that. ]

Is it easy to learn?

[revlon]

It can be a little daunting, [ she admits with a laugh. ] Especially when you're younger. You're much higher off the ground than you think you'll be.

[ Peggy considers for a moment then dismounts, extending a gloved hand to shake. ]

Peggy Carter. I've seen you around, haven't I?

[quevalry]

That's got to be scary if you're scared of heights.

[ clapping her hands together, she gives her a nod. ] Yeah! I work for the Guard, and I believe we talked over the network a while ago too -- I wanted to make some sort of hero club... thing.

[revlon]

Yes, that's right.

[ She smiles; it had been an illuminating conversation. What defines a hero, what one does with that mantle. ]

Have you pushed through?

[quevalry]

Not... really. Stuff kind of happened and, yeah, lost track. I do want to do it though! I just never had to be in charge before.

[ and the two people who have will reject the idea asap if she ever asked them about it. ]

[revlon]

Being in charge is a different beast, [ she agrees gently.

It took her some time to adjust to the idea, when she was new to espionage. She'd been a timid young woman then, someone who believed she wasn't capable of all the things her brother believed she was. ]

But some people find they have a knack for it, once they're willing to try.