meadowlarklogs | we lie for a living

[ she's promised to bring take-out and so she does, some kind of noodles with veggies and sauce that she's had before, no identifiable insect parts contained in the dish (though that doesn't mean there are no insects in it, but she'd rather not know).

she's not nervous when she knocks on their door and shoots off a quick mental message that she's there —after letting connor know she's on his way like markus asked her to. she's not nervous, but there's some tension in her stomach. for once, she doesn't try to hide it, doesn't keep it out of the set of her shoulders.

she's here to tell them the truth. might as well start with her body language. ]

(connor's growing fond of the insects. there's a satisfying crunch to them and the earthy taste isn't bad. he just has to work past the exoskeletons.

the door opens a few short moments after katelin's time of arrival, leveraging it wider with his foot to hold the automatic swing-shut mechanism ajar. it's in his nature to rush before markus to see what's on the other side before him, much like a dog sensing visitors. at least he doesn't bark at her.)

Hello, Katelin, come on in. (... and now he's hungry, gesturing to her.) That smells good...

Edited (edits are my life) 2019-01-15 22:18 (UTC)

[Markus has no love of insects in his food, even if the array of protein choices are rather slim without them. Blame it on the fact that his own experiences of making meals, in the years that he had tended to Carl, were decidedly without many-legged creatures garnishing the side of each plate. An ingrained bias, to be sure, but he hasn’t turned his nose up completely to them before — and he won’t start now, not when someone has been so kind enough to bring them take-out.

Thankfully, Katelin’s foresight regarding no-insects-in-the-noodles will spare him from having to bother.

It’s the scent that catches in his nose first; if Connor’s eager dash to the door wasn’t enough to herald her arrival, then it’s the enticing smell (reminding him of his slight hunger) that would give it away just as quickly.

He stands whenever she makes her way into the living room — what an eerily clean and tidy apartment this place seems to be! — offering her a smile and a greeting.]

Hey. Thanks for bringing us something to eat; you didn’t have to.

[But it’s appreciated all the same. Markus, with one hand in his jeans pocket, gestures at the L-shaped couch arrangement nearby.]

Make yourself at home.

[ bobbi has no love of insects in her food, either, though she'll eat them if necessary —but she prefers them invisible. no satisfying crunch for her, thank you.

connor opens the door and bobbi smiles at the hint of excitement in his gestures. ] Hope it smells good, too.

[ the living room is eerily clean and tidy, bobbi can't help but notice. did markus actually clean up or has it been this way forever and will remain as clean and tidy forevermore? she wonders. but that's not what she's here for. ]

Hi, you two.

[ she deposits the takeout on the couch table and makes herself comfortable on the couch itself, curling one leg beneath her body. it's a vulnerable position, in some small ways, making it harder for her to be on her feet quickly, to attack. ] I know I didn't. But there are some conversations that shouldn't be had on an empty stomach, and there's something I've got to tell you.

[ she gestures to the food. ] Let's dig in?

(brushes his hand across the small of markus back with a pat as if to greet him as he passes by, trailing after katelin into the living room.)

We'll help you with all of this, then. I think I'll start with — (settling onto the wing of the couch that juts from its main section, spine ramrod straight, balancing a box of noodles between his thighs.) — this one. I wonder what this is about, to cause all of this follow-up.

(and connor, ever the sharp one, makes his first guess.)

I hope no one's been keeping secrets about Morningstar, or how best to get home. I might lose my appetite.

(no, he doesn't have an off-switch, but at least he's pretty damn far off. for the time being.)

[Connor’s straight to the point, wholly circumventing Markus’ tendency to ease into conversations as they naturally arise. And while he doesn’t think it’s anything so egregious (he certainly hopes), he has to raise a brow at them while he claims one of the containers for himself, but not without offering the the cheap eating utensils that always come part and parcel with takeout to both.

Markus situates himself on the part of the couch that forms the corner, for ease of dividing his attentions evenly. His own body language is somewhere between the two, sitting at attention, but harboring a casual air.]

Probably nothing that serious. [rIGHT?] Right, Katelin?

No, it's got nothing to do with Morningstar or getting back home.

[ for a moment, her lips press together before her expression softens a little and she gives markus a nod of thanks when he distributes the eating utensils. ]

It's got to do with me.

[ no one is really eating, though, and so she leaves her own container of food untouched. anything else would only raise tensions now, she figures. ]

I'll tell you —but please let me explain, too, once the cat's out of the bag.

[ no point in beating around the bush... ]

My name's not really Katelin Philips and I'm not a civilian. I'm a SHIELD agent, like Fitz and Daisy. [ only, y'know, she's more of a spy than anything else. more of a covert operative. ]

I've assumed a civilian identity on the off-chance that whoever brought us here didn't choose us deliberately and doesn't already know that about me. To have the element of surprise on my side when the time comes.

So, then is it just you three? You, Fitz, and... Daisy, I imagine?

(for connor, this sort of reveal isn't something grandiose or even all that concerning. they were mere acquaintances before this, him and "katelin", so his connection with her hasn't been strong enough to warrant any knee-jerk anger — instead, he bobs his head and twirls his fork into his takeout noodles.

no, his mild irritation is reserved for a friend.)

I'd like to hear that that's the only thing your team's been hiding from Markus and I, but Fitz has been lying to me for some time now. Not that I blame either of you for being cautious. (the birthday invitation was the last straw that really gave him his proof, a collaboration between the two women for their friend from home... no one can forge a bond that strong in such a short amount of time. with this off the radar, connor has to ask himself now "what else is there to discuss?"

he wonders, as he slurps up the mouthful of takeout food and sits back into the couch cushions with a slow sink of his shoulders. deflating. tired, with how stressful and pointless this week's been.)

But I'd speak up now, if there's anything else. Because I will ferret out what's being hidden from me, given time to do so.

[Markus, at least, can afford to be more surprised than Connor. Take-out box balanced comically in his lap, plastic fork in hand, he looks at her with a deeply considering expression that works in contrast to the scene itself.

A SHIELD agent. News that isn’t earth-shaking, certainly not enough to completely dissolve his trust — because, practically, he can see why she would keep that kind of information on a need-to-know basis. It provided advantages, by way of deceit, created wrong impressions and a different set of expectations. The element of surprise, as she had said. Even so, hot off the heels of a difficult week, it isn’t particularly welcome news, either. Simply… news. The truth, in however he chooses to digest it.

But Connor speaks first, the irritation behind the tiredness clear. And Markus wonders at what he means by “lying”, brow cinching, a quiet part of him hoping this doesn’t turn into another instance of mediation.]

We should take into account that her telling us this is a show of trust. [This is worth pointing out, maybe tossing some water on the embers in case they start to burn too hot.] I assume that’s correct?

[The question is clear, directed at “Katelin”: why decide to tell them this, when the secret could be well-kept? Have they earned that level of trust?]

[ bobbi watches them both. notes the irritation and exhaustion in connor's tone and posture, the considering nature of markus' stillness.

she turns to markus first. ]

It is. [ to some extent, it's calculation. she thinks she's got good enough an understanding of who they are that she can predict they won't blow her cover immediately or on purpose. of course, that doesn't mean this isn't still a risk —even if they agree to keep the secret, even if they understand why she's done it, the more people know, the more likely it is that someone will slip up.

but it isn't the displaced bobbi needs to keep secrets from, and murdergate showed how easily they can be divided, turned against one another. she doesn't want her secrets to be used that way.

to both of them, but more to connor than to markus: ] My real name is Bobbi Morse. Short for Barbara. [ it's a quiet comment, not really an answer to his question (or his remark, really) at all —but at the same time, it is. there are a million things he doesn't know, that are hidden from him still.

shield is not lying to him, to them about anything (unless it's with good reason). bobbi isn't anymore, now. ]

(that silence is enough for him.

connor's jaw sets, mind elsewhere. markus means to correct him — again — and it adds to the feeling he's had all week. if he's going to be treated like a child, well, then he should probably act like one.)

It's nice to finally meet you, then, Bobbi. Now that we're sharing secrets about ourselves, I also have something to confess: (maybe he's being a bit petty, he'll regret it later, but right now all he's concerned with are the lies — how many? in what frequency are they told? how much digging will he have to do?) Resnik isn't actually my surname, I don't have one.

(chews a moment, before leaning back in a more casual sit against the cushions.)

This takeout's delicious.

[A real name, a sign of affirmed trust, even if Markus is not so naive to think it makes any of this simpler. But he chooses — as always, skewing towards the silver lining, wanting to give others the benefit of the doubt — to view this not as proof of lies having been tossed their way for months, but a step in the right direction. That they might eventually hem away all their differences, all the distrust, and become closer knit as a group when guided by trust and honesty.

And then Connor has to go and be childish about it.

It’s so purposeful, so petulant, so very petty, that Markus doesn’t know how to immediately salvage the moment that lies at their feet afterwards. He knows Connor has been agitated; he’s seen it in body language, heard it simmering beneath select wording. But if he’s tired of being lied to, tired of the discord (which is what Markus can only assume it must be), then why act this way when Bobbi only offers them the truth?

He can’t even say anything without potentially lighting a fire right beneath the powder keg, and maybe that’s purposeful, too. The thought makes him equal parts exasperated and frustrated; Markus pointedly stabs his plastic fork into the open box of his takeout, spearing noodles more fervently than necessary—]

…

[—and decides that his response to that will be no response at all, ignoring Connor’s remark, steamrolling right past it and looking at Bobbi the whole time.]

Thank you for telling us, Bobbi. Your trust isn’t misplaced, and maybe this means we’ll be able to work more closely with you and yours — without any false pretenses between us. I, for one, am glad for it.

[Apparently he can’t speak for other people in the room.]

[ the truth is that bobbi expected connor to take it better than he currently is, that she'd counted on his work as a police officer to make him understand the rationale behind what she's done. it only serves to highlight how little she really knows of most of the people here, how precarious it is to trust even just to this extent. she can't predict or control everything, that much she's always known.

so her gaze flickers to him, surprised, though all she says it: ] What made you choose Resnik?

[ but markus steamrolls right past connor's remark and after another brief moment of her eyes lingering on connor, bobbi turns to markus again with a small smile that's admittedly grateful. ]

Thank you. And I'd like that.

[ she lets out a soft breath. ] I hope you can believe me when I say that it was never the displaced I wanted to keep things from.

[ but secrets have a way of getting out and if she wants this to be an ace up her sleeve, their collective sleeve, she can't go around announcing it too clearly. ]

(it makes him feel better to be defiant, even if it's in a petty way. things have been piling up and up and it all seems to be teetering. having the illusion of control is better than having none at all — connor knows he chose this and the act of choosing to be irritated at all of this is comforting.

he'll feel the guilt later.)

We believe you. (and for everyone's benefit, he sincerely does.) I'll keep your secret for now, since you've been kind to Markus and I, but I'm not a spy; I don't lie to my friends.

[Markus has to take time to turn these replies over in his head. He believes her, as Connor had said, and the bit of lying to their friends— well. He’s certain a part of that retort is born from irritation, but he senses the earnestness embedded in the declaration, too.

Something of an impasse, then, wondering how to reconcile it. His eyes move to the other android, briefly, stiffly:]

That might be an issue moving forward, since keeping this information under wraps requires an on-going lie of omission.

[To feign ignorance. To not correct the oblivious whenever the name “Katelin” is used on the network or in-person. He glances sidelong at Bobbi again to confirm this, and to ask a second question.]

You mentioned trust. I want to know, out of curiosity, what we’ve done to earn it. Something like his isn’t merely handed out due to friendship alone.

[And Bobbi was closer to him than she was to Connor, making even that much a flimsy excuse.]

[ bobbi inclines her head to acknowledge that point. it does require an on-going lie of omission. ] I know I'm asking a lot. [ a beat. briefly, her lips twist into a small smile, not exactly humorous. ] And if you don't believe it's worth it, I'm listening.

[ she still thinks having a potential ace up their collective sleeve is worth the lie, but it's not an absolute. ]

As for the trust. [ she shrugs a little. ] It's not one thing you've done so much as me feeling like I have a decent sense of who you are. [ maybe that's revealing too much about herself in the process, but it's entirely honest for once ]

I respect those men. [ the ones she thinks they are. the ones she's reasonably sure still she is right about. ]

It's not a lot, but — and I mean this as respectfully as I can — I think it's pointless to hide your real name in this place, for many different reasons. (connor pushes his utensil deeper into his noodles and twists them idly, looking from markus to bobbi.) A name isn't where your abilities come from and no one will mind that you're a spy.

How do you think it'd come into use in the future? I'd like to hear everyone's opinion.

(she'd get gunned down with or without it, that's what he's sure of. it'd be better to have the trust of the entire collective and make strong allies of them all; that's the ace up the sleeve they should all be focusing on. bonding, becoming tight knit, strength in numbers.

not whatever this is.)

You're right to trust Markus and I, but this is a lie that has no basis.

[Markus isn’t certain, really, what his own opinion has to do with anything. When it’s Bobbi’s choice to have made, his own insight means little, one person's intentions and reasoning not exactly applying the same way in another’s mind.

But Connor, as always, seems concerned with the logic behind it. Likely a question put forth by lingering irritation, wanting to question and challenge the reasoning behind the lie to begin with — that's what Markus thinks, anyway.]

I assume to mislead people from her world that might arrive, especially those that would recognize her real name.

[It’s where the reasoning leads him, at any rate, but he sure isn't a spy or an agent. But all he can do is look to Bobbi for confirmation.]

[ it isn't anyone's choice but hers, but she's aware that her reasons for hiding her name and her abilities (the latter more than the former) are a long shot. she's betting on a possibility —one that she doesn't know how the likelihood of because there are so many things up in the air. ]

I don't think I know nearly enough about who or what brought us here and to what end to know for sure.

[ that's kind of the problem, isn't it? ] But if someone's responsible, chances are good they don't know who I am, what I can do. [ she's a spy, she lies for a living. her civilian aliases are out there for anyone to find; bobbi morse the shield agent is not a known entity outside of shield.

more than most shield agent, bobbi excels at undercover work and it's how she's been deployed most often. ] Say we have to fight them. Say they bring us back in.

[ her shoulders draw up for a moment, a shrug. ] The element of surprise could give us the edge we need to get out.

[ a long shot, like she'd said. far less certain than what markus is thinking. ]

[ fitz tells her they've been made.

it's a point in strange's favour that he figured it out, even though bobbi realises it wasn't that difficult. right now, the why and the how of it matter less than damage control, so that's what she's here to do.

which is why there's a bottle of decent wine in her hand when she knocks at strange's door. (she got the address from daisy.) ]

[ it's already been too long a day, and now this. not that he'd rather he wasn't having this conversation in particular, but the route he had to take to get there was a pain.

still, the Fitz conversation is over, and he's back. at least they're going to be doing this at his place. at least there's going to be wine.

Stephen's door opens as soon as she's made herself known, the man himself not quite there yet but making his way over from the open plan living room behind him. ]

Afternoon.

[ morning, evening? time's all over the place at the moment, but it also doesn't matter. ]

[ time is all over the place at the moment, but it's the stretch of day (night) after hours awake, so afternoon or evening works well enough.

the door opens and bobbi walks in, holding the bottle up when she spots him like the peace offering that it is. ]

Dr Strange. [ the greeting's calm. ]

I'd greet you in return, but I'm not convinced I know your name.

[ but his problem isn't with her, not really. she's an unfortunate catalyst of all sorts of things that have blown up in ways they didn't need to, but she's an agent doing her job. in the same way he'd have kept doing his, were he capable.

there's no venom in it, just a note of tiredness. ]

Come through, I'll get some glasses.

[ with a vague half-smile to show they're starting from a blank slate here, Stephen gestures behind himself to the lounge and veers off to the kitchen, the place open plan enough that they can continue to talk regardless. ]

You don't.

[ she's already been made, he already knows. no point in being coy about it now. it was never him or the other displaced she meant to lie to, only those who brought them here, those who'd mean them harm.

she walks into the lounge and settles herself on the couch there, one leg beneath her. body language open, the position more vulnerable than if she sat with both feet on the floor, ready to move. she busies herself with opening the bottle while he gets the glasses and doesn't speak again until he's in the lounge as well, until she can look him in the eyes when she offers: ]

Bobbi Morse. Short for Barbara, but I hate that name.

[ Bobbi Morse.

it doesn't ring any bells. then again, there's no reason why it should. even if he were aware of the ins and outs of SHIELD, she's clearly intent on keeping her identity off the record. Stephen stands there for a moment just holding her gaze, then sets the glasses down on the table to be filled. ]

Pleased to meet you.

[ he doesn't sit, just waits for the wine. whether or not he needs to maintain some professional distance here remains to be seen - he'll at least maintain some physical distance. ]

Eventually.

You've already met me, in most of the ways that matter.

[ he doesn't sit. bobbi stays seated, pouring the wine. it's as deliberate as it is genuine, maintaining the difference in their positions instead of getting up to put them on equal footing. ]

My status as a SHIELD agent and my skills in a fight. I've kept those things quiet. If who- or whatever brought us here doesn't already know those things about me, it might give us an advantage.

[ "us". deliberate and genuine, too. bobbi swore an oath to protect those who cannot protect themselves and she takes that oath very seriously. if having an ace up her sleeve can help her, it can help all the displaced. ]

[ with the wine poured, Stephen retreats to the armchair a few paces away. settles in and takes a sip, thinking that over.

perhaps it shouldn't come as a surprise that these are her reasons, but it does still leave his expression with the slightest traces of a wince. ]

And do you think that's likely?

[ it's a genuine question. given everything they already know, given who from their group of universes and even their individual world has been brought here so far, does she really still think there's a chance she's not known?

and that's without even considering the conspicuous company she keeps. ]

Likely? [ her lips press together for a moment. ] No, I don't think it's likely. But I think there's a chance.

[ she thinks about it for a moment before sighing. ] Admittedly less and less of one the more intel points toward this being some kind of organised operation rather than someone using a weird situation to their advantage.

[ and still, the math works out in her mind. the cost is outweighed by the potential benefits, for now. less and less, but that's why she's coming clean —not just to him, given that he made her, but to connor and markus. to peggy. ]

[ an acknowledgement in the expression on his face, information taken in and noted. it's good that she's not holding on to the chances too tightly. there is a chance, sure, too many mistakes made along the way by either side for it to yet be a sure thing that they picked up who they did on purpose, but no guarantees on either course.

but this brings them to the question of the hour. ]

So why are you here?

[ to tell all, obviously. but he's curious to know what read she's trying to get in return. her hands were tied to a degree, but she didn't have to head straight over. is she just going to opt to trust him for a lack of any better options, or is this a testing of waters? ]

[ her lips twist into a smile, briefly. ]

Believe it or not, I'd actually decided to tell some people before you figured it out. Markus and Connor, for now. [ and peggy, but indicating as much would reveal more about peggy than bobbi is willing to reveal, so that one stays quiet. she thinks of thor (naked), briefly, and it's as much a defense against stephen's powers despite the absence of blue glowing chests as it is a natural instinct because she'd like to tell thor, too.

but there's loki to consider, then. ]

The whole discussion surrounding the murder recently made me think. There's not much unity between us, exactly, and I don't want my lies to become the wedge that drives us apart.

[ a beat. ] But I also don't think I'm ready to give up on the possibility of being the ace up our collective sleeve.

[ Markus and Connor. they're in the good books of an awfully large group of people. he can't say he's surprised, they've both got good heads on their shoulders. one slightly more level than the other, but both good.

naked thor goes missed entirely. Stephen's not in the habit of breaking trust that way, not unless it's strictly necessary - it isn't here. she's talking fine. ]

I don't think you owe everyone your identity. I do think you made a tactical misstep in keeping it from me.

[ it's surprisingly free of judgement for a sentence that's essentially saying you should've told me. he's got no problem with bobbi, not really, though he does think it was misguided not to tell him sooner. his problem, if with anyone, is with Fitz. but even then, he can understand why he was kept in the dark. ]

As the only other person here from our world other than Peggy Carter fresh off the presses and Tony Stark off in the ether, and given that Fitz told you what my background was and trusts me to an extent, it seems like a waste of a potential early alliance. That, and you're living with SHIELD and everyone else from our collective universes is involved in world-saving or godship in one way or another. It was really only a matter of time before I asked the question.

[ sip. ]

[ bobbi inclines her head, accepting the point. it helps that his you should've told me comes without much reproach in tone, for all that the words are reproachful in themselves.

he's not wrong, but what's done is done. ]

For what it's worth, you weren't exactly an Avenger yet last I heard in my world.

[ did fitz tell him about the fact that she's from a much earlier point in time than fitz and daisy both? there's a mismatch there that bobbi hates, that makes her feel wrong-footed in ways she doesn't often feel. it's not something she frequently acknowledges. ]

I'm not and never will be an Avenger.

[ so it's not worth overly much.

temporal displacement is uncomfortable for all of them, but something about the combination of days leading up to this has robbed Stephen of what little sympathy for time-related problems he may have had left. or perhaps it's just in regards to business. it doesn't change anything: if Fitz was surprised to learn of what he is and what he does, he can only assume she wouldn't have been any the wiser to it if she were hailing from his point in the timeline.

maybe one day they'll be friendlier, and he'll be sympathetic. maybe even later in this conversation. for now, that sounds more like an excuse than an explanation, and it's a bad one. but she's acknowledged the point. deep breath, and moving on. ]

Anything we should discuss while there's wine and five minutes of peace? Thanks, by the way.

[ a raise of the glass in indication - for the wine. ]

[ bobbi tips her head to one side in acknowledgement of the point, even if she's not sure how true it'll hold. either way, he's right: she should have told him and it's not worth overly much now.

she doesn't need his sympathy. she'd like an alliance, in the long run. ]

We don't know each other very well. [ she lifts her shoulders in a slight shrug. ] Now might be a good time to change that, if you're willing.

[ if he's not —that's fair as well. but she knows him primarily from fitz's accounts and what she's seen on the network. he only knows katelin philips, and only barely. they haven't exactly chatted often before. ]

we lie for a living

» connor & markus

zooms in here

baseslides in

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i'm so sorry for him, he doesn't know how to act surprised

spray bottles him... chill

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» stephen strange

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