I did warn you this was a tough bunny's story! A little explanation. I really hope they never do this whole 'miraculous return of his sight thing'. It is a little out there, I know. I am only using it as a device for my story.
I don't put genres or pairings on my story description, because the bunnies don't like the limitations. Nothing should be implied otherwise. But those who have read my other work, know where my heart lies here.
I just think Auggie is much tougher then we sometimes see. This story explores that Auggie. I will try to put him back in good condition.
DISCLAIMER: If I really had him, he would be in great condition….heh heh
CHAMELEON – Chapter 2
"So, if there is nothing further, I am going to stop into Tech Support and finally see everyone, and clear out my desk in that office."
He got to the door before Annie's voice stopped him.
"Nothing further? So, that's it? You disappear from my life, breeze back in with the most amazing story of a miracle and oh yeah, you'll see me around the water cooler?"
Her voice started soft and sad, but quickly shifted gear to angry and hurt. Only hearing her, he knew every nuance of that voice. He turned briefly to answer her. It was a mistake. Now that he could see, he could read the hurt and anger on her face. He knew she had suffered. He knew this was another desertion from a man she had let past her guard.
"For now, that's as much as you need to know. Even what I told you is classified. My cover is that a freak accident restored my sight and I decided to finish out my reserve hitch. I'm sure we will have a chance to chat soon."
"Chat soon?"
But she was speaking to an open door. She swung around to face Jai and Joan. She knew Arthur would hand her the company line even on his death bed. Jai looked angry, but not shocked. Joan's control was back in place, but Annie could see a measure of sympathy flash briefly.
"Annie, I know you just got back. I want you to be ready for a briefing after lunch. A new situation has arisen coming out of Hungary. It is probable that we will need you there."
Only by the barest flicker of an eye did Joan communicate with Arthur. Annie was to be kept even busier. This was going to be another big change for this young woman. She would not be kept idle brooding over those changes. The steady look in return told her Arthur understood. They communicated silently often in world where walls had ears.
Joan was giving her nothing either. Annie's eyes narrowed. If they all wanted to play it this way, she would publicly. Privately, she planned a long talk with one August Anderson. She nodded and left the office, her heels beating a staccato drum of anger on the tile floor.
As Jai turned to follow her, he was halted by Joan's hand on his arm.
"Jai, don't let her do this. She will only get hurt."
"Yeah, Joan. Because being hurt by this agency would be a new experience for Annie. I get it. I always did. But you better keep Anderson out of here too. They are like those magnets that attract each other. If they are in this building together, you know what will happen."
He tried to keep the anger and bitterness out of his voice. Annie had been a friend in a hellish time for him. He wanted more, but knew the better part of her was still Anderson's. The next few weeks were going to be hard on her. He would take that pain for her if he could. The best he could do would be to be the clean up man. It was not a job he wanted.
"Sometimes, I wonder if it would be easier if the Agency were all men. "
"Because they are so much more rational, Arthur?"
"No. Because women are too much of a distraction for us mere men."
Arthur said this with a slight twist of his lips that told Joan exactly how much of a distraction he found her. She allowed him the smallest of smiles.
"Men are distracted by all shiny objects. It doesn't matter if curves are attached."
With that dismissal of an entire gender and her husband in particular, Joan turned back to her desk. She was going to need to find a lot of overseas work for Annie in the next few weeks.
After the sixth mission in 8 weeks, Annie felt like her whole life had been narrowed down to planes and airports. She spoke so many other languages that American English began to feel foreign to her. She had always found new places wonderful and interesting. Now it was beginning to feel like each new country was another day at the office. She was cranky and wanted a drink. But the closer on this last op needed to be on Joan's desk in the morning. She dreaded what new adventure Joan would have for her next. She had a feeling some of this was international busy work. Joan didn't want her around Langley. What Joan didn't understand was all that time traveling alone gave her time to think and brood.
Annie had seen Auggie in passing a few times. His hair was growing in, but was much more tamed. He dressed better, that was for sure. Those horrible sweaters had been replaced by sharp, well fitted suits and beautiful ties. He never seemed to wear black and grey anymore. When he saw her, he would wave or nod, but only as if she were someone he vaguely knew. He didn't pal with the geeks anymore. No, now he shot darts with the up and comers with deadly accuracy. Allusions and jokes to his blindness were met with a raised eyebrow and a faint smirk. That self deprecating humor was gone. He was still charming and charismatic. Men wanted to hang out with him and women threw themselves at him even more.
All of this was seen from a distance. Annie, on the few occasions she was in Langley, would see him from a corner table with Jai. Jai had been her rock again. Annie knew he wanted more from this relationship. She knew she wasn't really being fair to him. She tried to tell him this, but he refused to let her finish the thought each time. So, she sat in the shadows and watched a different Auggie ignore her existence.
Auggie was very aware of Annie. He knew each time she was sent out on a mission. He knew when she got back. He knew that she was being shuttled around the world to keep her from him. He knew he wanted to rip Jai Wilcox's head off. The only thing that was saving Jai was the office gossip swearing he hadn't gotten anywhere yet. But, it was generally considered that it was only a matter of time. She didn't spend time with anyone else.
Annie avoided discussing Auggie with Jai. They had never really liked each other. Oh, Jai would pretend to be correct and polite. Auggie usually shot him down every chance he could. Annie had heard this went back to when they both came up as agents together. She was thrust into the middle of that.
The only benefit to coming in late to finish paperwork was the relative quiet in the DPD. It was never completely silent. And there were nights when due to the time differences, the place was hopping. But tonight was one of those blessedly quieter nights. Annie wasn't sure if she planned to reward herself with a drink or ice cream after this. She had just finished up and was making that important decision when she heard voices coming from the stairwell.
It wasn't unusual for people to go there for a quiet word. Having a private word in the staircase away from walls with ears was discouraged, but still happened. The voices were raised, which was unusual. Annie tried to ignore them until she heard her name. It took a moment, but she recognized the voices.
It was Jai and Auggie, and they were having it out. She opened the stairway door quietly, but she needn't have worried. They wouldn't have heard if she slammed it open. Calm, in control Jai was blasting Auggie.
"You stupid son of a bitch! You are so happy being super secret agent man that you are willing to throw Annie and that relationship away? You are a bigger ass than Mercer. At least when he came back she could see what and who he was. And she was still willing to believe in him. He had the grace to die in her arms so she could put an end to it. But no, not you."
"You don't understand anything, Jai, you never did. All this concern is crap. You just want me out of the way so you have a clear shot. I haven't contacted her. You know what I am doing and why. She has to be a big girl about this. "
That was it. Annie had been literally shuffled around the world to avoid all this. Auggie was right. She had to be a big girl. That meant she had to face all this and make a decision. She pushed the door all the way open and walked down to the landing where the two men were almost nose to nose.
"If you are going to talk about me behind my back, you might want to make sure I am not in the building and oh yeah, not yell my name. What the hell am I missing here? Don't tell me its need to know. Clearly this has to do with me, so I'm thinking I need to know."
The two men jumped apart, and looked abashed at being caught fighting so openly. Auggie pulled himself under control quicker and composed his face into that smirk she had begun to hate.
"Just letting off some steam. I am off to do something really important. The staircase is all yours, Wilcox. See ya around Annie."
He walked down the stairs quickly, leaving a curious Annie and furious Jai behind on the landing. Annie made a move to go after him, but Jai anticipated her move and blocked her.
"No, don't. Just don't do this to yourself. "
"OK, that's it. I have avoided discussing this whole thing with you. I know what you want from me. I know I haven't been fair or really honest. But I know I need to know what the hell is going on. I can't move forward. I'm tired of being tossed to all ends of the earth to avoid this. I want to stand still and hear the truth. What the hell is going on with Auggie?"
There it was, the big question. She was right. They had been keeping her everywhere but here to avoid it and him. Jai cursed Anderson yet again silently. Sonofabitch was making him the clean up man. Jai knew he wanted her to move forward, hopefully toward him. Jai knew he should ask Joan on this. Jai looked at her tired face and made his own decision. He motioned her to sit on the steps. She deserved the truth.
"Annie, I need for you to listen to me carefully. You didn't know Auggie before he was blind. I did. We came up together. I hated him. Auggie Anderson was well on his way to legend status around here. He was that rare mix of brave, daring, brilliant, fast on his feet, lethal, irreverent and charming. He pulled off ops that would have killed most people. And he always came out smelling like a rose with a girl on each arm. Hell, everyone loved him and those of trying to be like him, hated him. I was supposed to be the crown prince of the CIA, and he was an upstart from the fucking Midwest. He upstaged me at every turn. But I admired him too."
Annie nodded. This explained a lot of the animosity between the two men. Auggie was always pulling at Jai, needling him.
"Then like something from a God-damned Greek tragedy, the super-agent fell for the wrong girl. Mr. CIA fell for a Russian anarchist of all things. And he fell hard. He asked, just like a good agent to stay with her. They said no, he broke her heart and the FBI swooped in. To get away from the heartache, he ran away from home to Iraq and promptly became a bona fide war hero. When he came back, and I will give him this, he fought like a mother to get this job. Before he left, he had an encyclopedic knowledge of this agency and where the bones were all buried."
Annie nodded again. His knowledge had saved her life and job more than once, she knew. He used his power sparingly, but it was there.
When he came back, he couldn't be super spy anymore. So, he used what he had. You know how when we are out in the field, we are told to blend?"
"I remember they spent so much time on what they called chameleon training. They said it might save your life one day. Once I got out there, I knew what they meant."
"Right. So, Auggie, being the good agent, was a chameleon."
"What?"
"When he came back blind, super-agent wasn't going to work. He couldn't. It drove him nuts, but he had to adapt to his new life. He was always a little techno-wizard. He used that and became sweet, lovable Auggie, tech op guru"
"No. That's ridiculous. You're telling me he completely changed who he was for over 2 years?"
"Not change, completely, more like morph into that version of himself. You think before he was blind he dressed like Mr. Rogers? No. That was all part of it. Think back Annie. There were times you saw that agent beneath."
There had been flashes of that toughness, sure, but that was the strength it took to handle this job blind, to fight back from it. Liza Hearn. He worked her like an asset and then dumped her without thought. There had been times when sweet Auggie would get mad, and she did wonder about the change.
"I buy some of this, but I don't really believe some of the Auggie I knew and well, knew was not real. No way does anyone blend for that long. Especially if they all knew him before."
"Annie, he was really well liked before. They were so happy to have him back they took any version. And once you showed up…"
"What about me?"
"He became the best version of himself. He liked himself, because you genuinely did. The two of you were instantaneous and real. There was nothing he wouldn't do for you. That story about the Smithsonian Tour? Those of us who remember him before were stunned. He wouldn't have done that for his own family."
"OK, so if I buy this whole chameleon thing, what's the deal with now?"
"Now? Now he has to be super-agent again. To be seen as a real agent here, he can't be sweet techno-geek Auggie anymore. Can you see that Auggie in the field handling all that? He's changed back. I think he's gone overboard, but the kind of assignments he gets, he needs to be seen as James Bond again. I think he's a little afraid of how he will want to be around you."
"So, they are sending me to far corners of the world for crap assignments so they can have secret agent man back again? Unbelievable. I am I really so potentially hurtful to him? A chameleon? You know what; chameleons are lizard with great wardrobe options. Cold blooded? I get it."
She stood and brushed off the seat of her pants. She put her hand on his arm and gave it a squeeze.
"Thanks Jai. You have become a real friend. I know you didn't like him, so this was not an easy conversation. I appreciate the honesty. I am headed home to a pint of ice-cream and my own bed. You can tell Arthur and Joan that I am fine. I guess I have to change to the Annie who can handle all this."
She was very proud of herself that she managed to get all the way home before she burst into tears.
Whew! This was a lot to absorb, I know. Stay with me, and tell me you are still here?