A new assistant
Words : 380
Walter has a new assistant in New York City. He spends so much time at Massive Dynamic that Broyles considered it would be more suitable for Astrid to stay in Boston. Some of the company's projects, or more precisely Dr Bishop's personal research, should not take too much of the FBI's resources, and she's an FBI agent. Not a baby-sitter.
Good.
She is still around Walter when he is in Harvard, but every time he is away, she is given tasks more suitable to her status. That's not really a promotion. She helps Peter and Olivia, she handles files, does some research, gathers information. Not really worth calling the parents to tell them the big piece of news.
Walter has a new assistant in New York whom she has already met, whom she sometimes sees when she is shuttling from one city to another to drop files of the highest importance. She is a very professional scientist who knows her job well, who helps Walter perfectly. For all that is technical, that is.
She is rigorous, sometimes a bit cold, Astrid thinks. She knows how to anticipate Walter's needs and requests as long as it is about science.
But when it is about going to the supermarket to get him some strawberry ice-cream or some licorice, she lets him know that she is not being paid for that. All the while looking, speaking and acting cold.
When it comes to get Walter back down to earth, she backs off and waits, sometimes for hours, without flickering, for him to get back on his tracks.
When it comes to supporting Walter at a human level, she is an ice queen.
Walter has a new assistant in New York and her name is Stella. But Astrid calls her Fastrid. Fake-Astrid. Their jobs look the same, their statuses seem to be the same, they are both Walter's right hand but they could not be any more unlike.
"Starlight!" Walter cries, distorting her name.
Astrid is watching the scene and Peter is watching her.
"What?"
"You could at least look like you don't think that's funny".
And he walks away, laughing.
Astrid can't figure out why Peter and Olivia seem to think that she is jealous of Star… Stella. She really can't see why.
End