AN: This is my first attempt at an A-Team fic, and I'll be honest, I've only seen the movie so there may be many errors! Takes place pretty much right after the movie, ignoring the obvious "There will be a sequel that will involve THIS" ending. Enjoy!
Clearly I own none of this.
Chapter 1
The interior of the San Francisco Veteran's Association mental ward was painted pastel yellow and robin's egg blue, a palette scientifically proven to induce a calming effect. But science was failing Templeton Peck. He strode through the hospital halls in scrubs, wearing a face mask and gloves, and growing more anxious with each step. This fear was unfamiliar to him; he was a natural conman and tricking a few pretty nurses into letting him take one of their patients away for a considerable amount of time should be a snap, especially with a smile as charming as his.
But it was the first time the team had attempted a break-out through trickery, last time's van-through-wall approach being much more straightforward. And there was something about the other patients in the ward that unnerved Face as he walked briskly by them, their eyes empty and staring, or else filled with a fear of some distant or imagined trauma. It creeped him out. He wondered how the doctors and nurses hadn't noticed the difference between these obvious nut jobs and Murdock, who was wacky yeah, but who definitely hadn't checked out.
Face composed himself as he reached the reception desk, where a rather unwelcome hitch in his plan presented itself. The nurse working the desk was a man. Swallowing hard, Face strode up with purpose, replacing what originally was going to be a sexy grin with a business-like expression. He removed his mask and wrapped on the desk twice to get the nurse's attention.
"Excuse me sir," he said, deepening his voice unnecessarily. "I have a rather urgent matter to bring to this hospital's attention pertaining to one particular patient in this ward."
The nurse looked up from his computer, uninterested. "And what would that be Mister…?"
"Doctor, actually," Face said smoothly. "Doctor Bradley DeWitt. The issue is concerning one," he looked at the paper in his file folder as if searching for the name, "H.M. Murdock, who I believe is patient number 35129 in this hospital. Is that correct?"
The nurse typed something into the computer, which made a pinging confirmation noise. "That's correct yes," he sounded more convinced now. "What's the matter?"
"It's come to the attention of the Army Medical Unit that several soldiers stationed in a specific base in Afghanistan may have been exposed to a highly contagious and potentially fatal strain of the H1N1 virus, otherwise known as Swine Flu," the nurse's eyes were wide and Face had to suppress a grin; he was really very good at what he did.
"Obviously we aren't going to take any risks, and have prepared a quarantine ward for the exposed soldiers while the vaccinations are being developed. I have here," he pulled out some entirely fake forms which Hannibal had masterfully crafted, "some release forms requesting the immediate discharge of Mr. Murdock from this hospital for a period of two weeks." He handed the forms to the nurse, who quickly set about filling them out.
"This virus, it's highly contagious you said?" The nurse asked as he worked through the papers.
"HIGHLY," Face replied ominously.
The nurse looked up nervously. "So if I've…been in contact with the patient, could I-?"
"Oh yes, it's very likely," Face nodded matter-of-factly. "I'd get yourself checked out as soon as possible. In fact I'd say this whole ward ought to be seen to by a doctor. I would do it but, you know, haven't the time right now." He shrugged.
The nurse filled out a release pass for a two-week period assigned to Mr. H.M. Murdock, and handed it to Face, looking slightly green.
"Thank you sir, have a great day!" Face said cheerily, replacing his facemask and giving a single wave of his gloved hand as he strolled on towards Murdock's room.
Well that went much better than expected, Face thought happily, ignoring an old vet who was staring at him with those hollow eyes. I didn't even have to show ID, what a cakewalk.
He stopped just outside of room 409, which had been home to his friend and team member for just over two weeks. It had been hard admitting Murdock back into the hospital, but even the pilot himself admitted he ought to stay there, albeit his reasoning was that the pudding was delicious.
Face knocked twice before walking in. The room was fairly small, about the size of a freshman college dorm room, and was furnished with cheap-looking essentials: a bed, a dresser, a side table. But Murdock had made the place his own in the time he'd been there; there were posters on the walls for movies such as Ghostbusters, Star Wars and Jurassic Park. His bedding had Scooby-Doo characters on it, and hung from the ceiling were various model airplanes and helicopters, as well as one dirigible. Murdock himself was sitting with his back against the wall, wearing He-Man boxer shorts and a Back to the Future shirt, playing on an old Gameboy from the 90s. He looked up with surprise as Face walked in and shut the door behind him.
"Hey Dr. Faceman!" Murdock said with a loopy grin. "Time for more shots already?"
"Let's hope not," Face said, removing his mask again and smiling triumphantly. "I already got you shot once, I think that's enough for a while."
Murdock sprang to his feet, tossing the bleeping gameboy onto his bed. "We got a job?"
"Yep, and it'll be an interesting one I think," Face said, politely turning away as Murdock began changing into more appropriate clothing, "in Seattle of all places."
"Oh yeah? Is it vampires?" Murdock asked, hopping around on one foot while he struggled to get a sock on. "Or Bigfoot?"
Face laughed, turning to face the disheveled pilot. "What is it exactly that you think we do, Murdock?"
Murdock shrugged, his sweater on backwards. "I dunno, whatever needs to be done?"
Face frowned in surprise. "Well, I guess yeah."
