[A pause as his eyes flicker a moment, unsure. Dagger's more or less replaced Pierce in his head, he represents the same source of authority and also reinforcement, hence the instinct to not only try and kill him but seek validation from him. He's not used to being asked something like that. He's always just been appeased like a child when he becomes erratic.]
... An answer. [He wants and answer, he thinks. But there's still an unsure and guarded element to the response.]
[ This feels like parenting. All of Dagger's education on what
parents do have always sounded like particularly involved version of the
job he currently has, and he's not sure he wants more of it. Can he be a
parent? Technically he already is, because his whole team is a bunch of
whiny babies who need headpats and food 90% of the time. Barnes didn't seem
to be like that, though. ]
To make sure this crew succeeds. You do what I tell you, and you succeed at
that, we win. If you fail - if anyone in Red Team fails - then the whole
team fails.And then everybody fails and we all die.
You want a purpose, share mine - we keep the captain alive, and we keep the
crew intact. That's what Red is for. That means if someone screws up, we
get rid of them, or we make them stop screwing up. We root out the spies,
the double agents, the soon-to-be insubordinators, and we destroy them
before they make a mess. We make sure we don't become Almina.
Not on my watch. Which is yours, because . . . you know. Red Team. Stuff.
[He blinks and then glances down, seeming to take that in with a bit of effort, but his mind doesn't outright reject it. He'd always been a killing machine with a higher purpose to protect the world from itself by inciting chaos and manipulating the people to believe they couldn't have freedom. This was killing with the purpose to protect for a different reason that feels familiar in a way he only half places, but doesn't disagree with his instinct either.
There's a certain blankness that seems to start to flood over him. It's an answer that's only just good enough to keep him going forward with a direction and a reason to exist. But there's a hollowness to it, something that leaves him feeling more empty while simultaneously satisfied. Then he nods once in a detached way.]
[ Dagger's pretty sure there's something wrong with this situation,
but he doesn't know if it's his problem or someone else's. People's
feelings are dangerous things, and Dagger doesn't like to meddle with
those. ]
[Probably best not to dig too deep into things you don't yet understand.
He looks over at him, seeming a bit confused and then takes in the damage of the area and Dagger's exposed face like he's just realizing what he did in a detached daze. Then he looks down again, expression and body language shifting a bit like he's ready to take any kind of punishment he knows he deserves.]
[ Dagger pets Bucky's head (because his awareness of how to comfort humans is mixed with child education and pet care), and then gets back to his feet. ]
[His head jerks back slightly, startled but.. not as confused as he probably should be by that kind of gesture, though it's still unusual. He watches Dagger stand warily and-
He has no idea how to navigate something like this.]
[That's the best he can do. He has no idea how to gauge 'adequate comfort'.
So after a couple moments he slowly stands, steady on the outside, totally the opposite of that on the inside. A quick glance at Dagger and then a curt nod as he returns to avoiding looking at him.]
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... An answer. [He wants and answer, he thinks. But there's still an unsure and guarded element to the response.]
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[ This feels like parenting. All of Dagger's education on what parents do have always sounded like particularly involved version of the job he currently has, and he's not sure he wants more of it. Can he be a parent? Technically he already is, because his whole team is a bunch of whiny babies who need headpats and food 90% of the time. Barnes didn't seem to be like that, though. ]
To make sure this crew succeeds. You do what I tell you, and you succeed at that, we win. If you fail - if anyone in Red Team fails - then the whole team fails.And then everybody fails and we all die.
You want a purpose, share mine - we keep the captain alive, and we keep the crew intact. That's what Red is for. That means if someone screws up, we get rid of them, or we make them stop screwing up. We root out the spies, the double agents, the soon-to-be insubordinators, and we destroy them before they make a mess. We make sure we don't become Almina.
Not on my watch. Which is yours, because . . . you know. Red Team. Stuff.
no subject
There's a certain blankness that seems to start to flood over him. It's an answer that's only just good enough to keep him going forward with a direction and a reason to exist. But there's a hollowness to it, something that leaves him feeling more empty while simultaneously satisfied. Then he nods once in a detached way.]
I understand.
no subject
[ Dagger's pretty sure there's something wrong with this situation, but he doesn't know if it's his problem or someone else's. People's feelings are dangerous things, and Dagger doesn't like to meddle with those. ]
Are you still gonna hit me when you get up?
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He looks over at him, seeming a bit confused and then takes in the damage of the area and Dagger's exposed face like he's just realizing what he did in a detached daze. Then he looks down again, expression and body language shifting a bit like he's ready to take any kind of punishment he knows he deserves.]
No.
no subject
[ Dagger pets Bucky's head (because his awareness of how to comfort humans is mixed with child education and pet care), and then gets back to his feet. ]
So.
jfc dagger
He has no idea how to navigate something like this.]
Re: jfc dagger
[ Just relax. Or just try not to shoot anything. ]
Tell me when you're adequately comforted.
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So after a couple moments he slowly stands, steady on the outside, totally the opposite of that on the inside. A quick glance at Dagger and then a curt nod as he returns to avoiding looking at him.]
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So.
Let's never do that again.
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Yeah...]