So... This was sort of requested on Tumblr. And then it just felt like a challenge to make it happen.
Henry was sitting in his usual early morning meeting with Braithwaite in the DCS office.
"I think you are letting Anderson off too easy. He knows more than he is telling you."
"He passed the polygraphs, and seems completely cooperative in his new position in the basement." Braithwaite responded.
"Doesn't that seem odd to you?" Henry responded.
Braithwaite didn't respond, thinking about the possibilities.
"Anderson was in a sexual relationship with Operative Walker. They declared their love in front of all of us, just before she was killed. Yet other than one outburst in the hallway he has been a good little soldier."
"Anderson's background shows that other than his little outbursts, he is a good little soldier. One of the CIA's best."
Henry scoffed at the assessment. "I think you should be looking at him closer."
"What do you think I should be looking for?"
"You never know." Henry replied with a shrug.
"I still have the tap on his personal phone, nothing there has raised any flags."
"He's too smart to use his phone for anything he doesn't want to see. You need to be more aggressive in figuring out what he has going on. I assure you, he is up to something. He was too close to the Campbells and Walker."
"What do you suggest?" Braithwaite asked.
"I suggest you have somebody get close to him. Perhaps somebody like Mister Michaels. Get him to open up a little. See what he learns."
That afternoon, Calder walked up to Auggie's desk in the crowded I.T. department in the basement of Langley. "Anderson, we need to talk."
Auggie pulled his headphones down and turned toward the voice. "I have nothing to say to you."
"That doesn't matter. The DCS wants us to talk. I spoke to your boss, and your shift is done."
Auggie rolled his eyes and pressed a few buttons on his computer, powering it down. He took off his headphones and pulled out his red and white cane. "Yes, sir," he sneered as he stood up.
Auggie followed Calder, but did not touch his elbow. As the men walked through the hallways Auggie asked where they were headed.
"Allen's Tavern." Calder responded.
"Why in the hell do you think I would want to go there with you?"
"Because in this building, trust is important. You never know when we might need to work together again, so we need to work out our differences now."
"There are hundreds of other people working in this building. I can go my whole career without ever needing to work out our differences."
Calder stepped toward Auggie and quietly spoke close to his ear. "The DCS wants us to be able to work together in the future. I know that this is something you are not accustomed to, but I do what my superiors tell me. We don't have to go to Allen's. We can talk right here. I thought you might prefer a beer, though."
Auggie rolled his eyes and followed Calder without saying another word.
Once in Calder's car and off of CIA property, Auggie turned toward the other man. "What the hell is really going on?"
"Henry told Braithwaite that somebody needs to get close to you, and for some stupid reason, he chose me."
"Interesting."
"So we are going to go to Allen's, where other CIA agents can see me making an effort to pull information out of you, and we are going to stay long enough to convince the DCS that I actually did."
"Okay. Fine by me."
Calder and Auggie settled at Auggie's usual table in the middle of Allen's. "You buying?" Auggie asked.
"If I recall, you owe me a round or two."
"If I recall, you killed my girlfriend." Auggie snapped back.
"Maybe we should just go Dutch."
The two men were quiet until they got their beers. Auggie drank half of his almost immediately.
"Maybe we should have gotten a pitcher." Calder observed.
"What do you want, Calder?" Auggie asked, playing on the idea that they hadn't had the discussion in the car.
"I want to know you better, Anderson."
Auggie rolled his eyes. "What is there to know?"
"Lots of things, I'm sure."
Auggie drank more beer. "You've seen my file."
"Oh, but there is so much more to a person than what's in their file." Calder signaled the waitress.
"Let's go ahead and get a pitcher." He said when she walked closer.
"If your goal is to get me drunk so I let my guard down, you should know that I have a very high tolerance these days." Auggie said.
"So you are an alcoholic?" Calder inquired.
"Oh, I wouldn't say that. Alcoholics go to meetings." Auggie replied with a grin.
"You could hang out with Joan." Calder responded.
Auggie's face changed quickly to one of anger. "That's low."
"It's the truth. Joan is an addict, she goes to meetings. As I've learned, there are meetings right within Langley for all kinds of addicts."
"So is this an intervention? Is my mom in town, too? Perhaps at a table across the room?"
"No." Calder responded. "How are you enjoying the I.T. Department?"
"It's a job."
"Better than the Australia desk?"
"l have always had an irrational fear of kangarooos." Auggie raised one eyebrow. "Is that what you were wanting to know?"
"The hopping gets to you, doesn't it? I have the same problem with frogs."
"The great Calder Michaels has a fear of frogs?" Auggie asked.
"No comment." Calder responded as the waitress brought the pitcher of beer.
"Good to see you again, Auggie." She said after sitting the pitcher on the center of the table.
"Sorry that it's been so long, Michelle."
"Is there anything else I can get for you?" She asked.
"I'd like two shots of Patron, please." He said, looking up toward the woman.
"You know that we aren't allowed to serve you more than one shot at a time now, Auggie."
"They aren't both for me. I plan to share with this gentleman here." Auggie motioned toward Calder.
"I don't do tequila." Calder interjected.
"You want to have fun tonight, right? Michelle, get the shots. I promise not to cause trouble."
The waitress took a close look at her favorite customer and thought for a moment. "Okay, but you better be good."
Auggie drew an imaginary halo with his finger over his head.
As the pitcher drained, Auggie and Calder kept up their combative banter.
"You want another?" Calder asked when Auggie discovered they were out of beer.
"No, the last thing I need is for you to rat me out to the DCS as having a problem."
"Do you have a problem?"
"No."
"Good. Then you can share some rum with me."
Auggie rolled his eyes.
"I drank tequila with you, you can drink some rum with me."
After drinking their rum and closing out the bar tab, Auggie and Calder stepped out of Allen's together.
"Well, Calder, you succeeded in getting me too drunk to drive." Auggie quipped.
"Likewise. Let's go for a walk."
"I'd prefer a cab."
Calder leaned close. "Nobody is watching. Let's go for a walk."
Auggie swallowed and reached for Calder's arm. He didn't know if he could trust the man to lead him, but he didn't have as high a tolerance as he pretended, and needed the extra guidance. He kept his cane extended, as well.
"Where are we going?" Auggie asked, a few blocks from the bar.
"Oh, I don't know. Just somewhere that we can be ourselves."
"I know I've had a few drinks, but I'm not making out with you on a park bench."
"I know. You're taken."
"Yes I am." Auggie replied with a smile that he had kept hidden for the past month.
"We have both been pretty wound up recently. What do you usually do to unwind, Anderson?"
"I used to just go to Allen's and have a few beers." He replied.
"And if that did not work?"
"Oh, trust me, a few beers at Allen's was usually all it took for me to find what I needed to unwind." Auggie replied with a wink.
"I see." Calder replied. "Do you want that tonight? We can go back to Allen's."
"I haven't used that method of relaxation for almost a year now."
"So we have to find a new way for you to relax, without having sex."
"I'm fine." Auggie replied. "What about you? You keep fishing for ways for me to unwind, yet you are here well lubricated with booze and unwilling to so much as speak with contractions."
"That is not true."
"My point exactly."
"I like to people watch. Particularly this time of night, when people are coming and going and not caring what is going on with the world. You can learn a lot from people when they let their guard down."
"Okay, then. Let's find a good spot and see what's going on. Maybe an area with lots of tourists."
Calder found a bench between two busy bars. One was full of college students, and the other had a slightly older crowd. Auggie was guessing things about people as they walked by, and Calder was verifying if they were correct. Both men found it entertaining.
Auggie talked Calder into going for another round of shots before returning to the bench. They were both solidly inebriated, but enjoying the chance to hang out publicly.
A group of several students walked by, and Auggie leaned toward Calder. "That has to be a twenty-first birthday celebration. I could smell her shirt falling off as she walked by."
Calder laughed. "Not quite. If anything, I'd say she's thirty and celebrating a breakup."
"Really? I'm never that wrong."
"Are you ever this drunk?"
Auggie nodded. "When I play this game, usually."
"Uh oh" Calder said as the familiar footsteps approached Auggie.
"What?" Auggie said, turning toward Calder.
"What did you say about me?" A loud female voice said in Auggie's direction.
Shocked, Auggie looked toward the voice, but didn't respond.
"I heard you talking about me as I walked by. What were you saying about me?"
The woman had a country accent, and was talking loud enough that everybody within a block could hear her.
"I have no idea what you are talking about." Auggie responded quietly.
"Don't give me that bullshit." Auggie could hear her shuffling around on shoes with large clunky heels. "I may not be one of you hoity-toity Washington Dee Cee Burrycats, but I know when I hear a man talking about my outfit."
Calder stood up as Auggie replied. "I assure you that I wasn't-"
"Don't you lay your hands on me!" She stated as she pushed Calder away, as if he had pulled a gun on her.
"I didn't-" Calder started to explain.
"I can't believe you! I'm just here trying to have a good time in our nation's capital, and you men are assaulting me."
Realizing that the situation was escalating, Auggie pulled out his cane and unfurled it before standing up. Seeing this, the woman screamed.
Auggie stood up, coming right in contact with her flailing arms.
"Police! Police! I need to Police!" She screamed, a couple of her friends gathering.
It didn't take long for two cops to arrive on the scene. "What is the problem, ma'am?"
"These men tried to assault me!"
Auggie kept his cane front and center, his eyes darting around without focus. "I have no idea what she's talking about."
"Don't listen to him! He and his friend were saying things about me. Then when I asked them to apologize, the black one tried to push me away, and then the other tried to grab my arm!"
"Sir, this is all a huge misunderstanding," Calder started to explain.
"I saw it, they were teaming up or something." One of the other women added.
Auggie rolled his eyes and threw one arm up in the air as he turned away from the conversation. By shear bad luck, the first swing of his cane hit one of the other women in the shin.
"Ow!" She shouted with unneeded drama.
"See!" the first woman shouted. "He just hit her!"
"In case you couldn't tell, my friend here is blind." Calder explained. "He didn't mean to hit anybody."
Calder's words went unheard as the origin of the complaint was screaming about justice and her safety. Auggie tried to walk further from the conversation, hoping he and Calder could sneak away, when one of the women reached out for his arm. Instinctively, he pulled away with a quick jerk. "Don't touch me."
A man that they hadn't noticed stepped in with Auggie's command and grabbed his arm with a firm grip. "The lady will do whatever she pleases."
"Auggie!" Calder warned as he saw the other man preparing to swing. Before the police were able to notice what was going on, Calder had jumped in to pull the larger man off of Auggie, throwing a few punches himself.
Within minutes, Calder and Auggie were handcuffed and in the back of a police car together. Auggie turned toward Calder. "It's kind of nice having somebody to share the experience with, this time."
"Should have known that hanging out with you would get me into trouble." Calder growled.
Auggie shrugged. "You wanted to see how I unwind."
TBC