Cate woke some time later amidst the blinding light of the singular bulb hanging above her head, a low groan escaping before she instinctively rolled to her side, and vomited the meager contents of her stomach over the edge of the cot she laid upon. Her entire world was frayed around the edges, and a searing pain had come to spear its way through her skull with every move she made. But what she noticed even beyond all of that, was an almost electric scent that still lingered in the air, her stomach heaving once again as she felt bile rising to the back of her throat, and was forced to remain poised over the edge of her cot while a pair of dark leather shoes strode into view.

"How is she?"

"Experiencing the expected side effects," A low, accented voice replied, coming from somewhere behind where she was situated, though in spite of the prickle of apprehension that the thought of someone outside of her line of vision provoked, Cate found she did not have even the slightest capability of rectifying the situation at the present time, "I have not had the opportunity to determine the impact to her mental faculties."

"Why not?"

"Because, sir. She has only just awoken."

"Question her now, Blanchard. We are wasting time."

"Yes, sir," The accented man-Blanchard-replied, his voice trembling just a bit as Cate registered softer footsteps moving around until they stood before her, one finger reaching out to tuck beneath her chin, bringing her gaze to his rather mousy features before he addressed her, instead, "Do you feel up to answering some questions?"

"She will answer them whether she feels up to it or not, Blanchard."

"I understand, sir. But offering a patient what they might believe is an ability to choose what happens to them often goes a long way to getting them to tell you what you want to know."

When the reply seemed to earn him nothing but silence from the man in charge of this entire operation, Blanchard once again returned his attention to the young woman half bent over the cot, his eyes lingering on the sweat beading upon her brow before she swallowed stiffly, and dropped back against the thin pillow that had been placed beneath her head. This was not the first time he had witnessed the girl's discomfort, as he had been with her from the very beginning, since the man sharing the room with them had recruited them both for a greater purpose than they could ever understand. But something about this particular occurrence seemed different. More dangerous. As though the both of them had been thrown over the edge of a cliff, and all that remained to be seen was who would be able to claw their way to the top once again.

"Do you know who you are?" He asked, then, watching as the young woman's eyes slid towards him, their ordinarily vibrant blue dimmed, and glassed over, as though everything that had made her a person had been systematically stripped away, "Your name? Anything before this very moment?"

Groaning as her first attempt at opening her mouth for a reply only intensified the pain ricocheting through her skull, Cate rolled back to dangle over the edge of the cot, her fingers holding the edge in a white-knuckled grip as she waited for her stomach to retaliate once again. When nothing was forthcoming, she allowed her head to sag, a shaky breath escaping before she flexed her aching fingers, and replied in a voice that was more a whisper than anything else.

"Cate. Cate-damn-"

"It's alright. You're doing well," Blanchard assured, glancing at the shadow of the other man as he came to stand at his left, and gritting his teeth against the utter fascination that was so apparent in his pale blue gaze. It was as though the girl's pain was something to be marveled at. Repeated and twisted until the perfect end result was achieved. But no matter how much that thought may sicken him, Blanchard knew he could do nothing about it, now, his attention once again straying towards his patient as he prepared to question her again.

"Do you know where you are?"

"I-I don't know. I-"

"You what?"

"I hurt," Cate groaned, flinching away as the other man moved to crouch beside her cot, her hand moving to shield her eyes as the movement caused her to be nearly blinded by the light hanging overhead for the second time since she had woken up, "I-why do I hurt?"

"You were treated with something to make you better, Miss Beckett. More efficient. You should be grateful for this pain."

"G-grateful?"

"Yes. Grateful. Without this organization, you would still be that homeless child, wandering the streets and fighting for your life with little purpose," The older man replied, standing to his full height once again, and placing both hands in the pockets of his obviously expensive suit before going on, "You are more than you ever would have been. Pain brought you here. Pain will make you stronger."

In spite of the fog that ebbed around the edges of her consciousness, Cate did what she could to allow the words to sink in, her breath whistling out of her nose as she hauled herself to a seated position after swinging her legs over the edge of the cot. The room was still spinning, and her vision occasionally narrowed to pinpricks, causing her stomach to clench, despite the fact that whatever had been remaining there was long gone. But no matter how her arms trembled as she tried to hold herself upright, Cate was suddenly determined to avoid allowing either of the men that were observing her so intently to pick up on that, her tongue darting out to wet her lips for a moment before attempting to speak once again.

"I-I'm fine."

Seeming to take her reply as sufficient proof that whatever he had ordered done to her had not caused any long-lasting untoward effects, the older man turned towards the doctor, instead, his expression turning shrewd as he noted Blanchard's wary gaze and paid it little to no heed at all.

"Continue your questioning. I want to make sure that her cognitive function was not compromised at all."

"Sir, if we push too hard, too soon, we risk-"

"I'm aware of the risks, Blanchard. Do it anyway, or I'll find someone else who will."

As the older man turned and began to head towards the door, he did not miss the look that passed between the doctor, and the young woman in question, his expression never once indicating that he was already considering contingencies for the moment the doctor's apparent sympathy for her became more of a liability than anything else. If she was to become the perfect weapon, he could not afford anyone giving her a free pass.

In order for her to reach her full potential alongside the Winter Soldier, pushing her past the point of endurance would simply have to be part of the norm.

…

Over the ensuing days, Cate was able to come back to the world bit by bit, her strength seeping back into her bones as though eager to resume the place it had vacated for a reason she still could not entirely piece together. No one would tell her what had happened. It was as though every time she asked, whoever was around simply feigned deafness until she gave up and settled back into whatever cognitive testing they had desired her to complete, instead. And although she still burned with curiosity over what had happened, she soon realized that any attempt at asking would only earn her sidelong looks at best, and a deep glower at worst, better instinct prompting her to give up entirely in favor of simply focusing upon the task at hand.

Apparently, allowing herself to be like a rat in a cage was all that she was good for, now.

Still, Cate found she had little reason to complain, as the pain she had woken up with faded away bit by bit, the presence of the mousy-featured doctor at her side more often than not at least giving her someone to turn to for more productive attempts at conversation. He, too, would not tell her what had been done to render her so fuzzy around the edges, though he did comment that she was rebounding remarkably well, and that she would soon be ready for the next step in her recalibration, whatever the hell that meant. And so, she settled for the best alternative she could find to determining what had happened to her during a day that had become a mere wisp of fog in her memory, her attention instead turning towards learning more about the doctor himself, and fighting against the instinctive pull her mind seemed to have when it came to allowing his name to slip away.

Blanchard. Blanchard. It should not be that difficult to remember.

It was.

"Why-why can't I remember things?" She inquired, turning her gaze towards the doctor as he jotted down her heart rate and blood pressure in a leather bound notebook, alongside a list of her vital signs that had been compiled over the previous few days. If the flash of something not all that far from regret was any indication, Cate could see that her companion knew the precise answer to her question, though she could hardly tell whether he intended to give her any insight into that answer or not. But before she could make any attempt at shifting the topic of conversation to relieve herself of the inquisitive nature of his eyes upon her, Cate found the gesture rendered futile, the doctor's hand lifting to remove one of the leads attached to her skin while he spoke.

"You will. It will come back, and you will."

"When?"

"When you are ready."

"Ready for what?" Cate demanded, exasperation coloring her tone as she drove a hand through her hair, and leaned back against the chair she sat in after the doctor tapped twice at her right shoulder. She had been through enough of these tests by now to know what he wanted her to do without having to say a word. And so, she simply allowed the doctor to finish removing the rest of the leads while his brow furrowed in preparation for a reply, a sigh escaping as she directed her eyes to the ceiling, and focused upon the odd patterns of dots and lines that made up the pattern of the tiles.

"For the next step in your journey."

"And what is that?"

"That, my girl, is something that is beyond my pay grade."

"Can you at least tell me when the training wheels will come off?" Cate inquired, aware of the soft laugh that her companion gave in response, and furrowing her brow as she tilted her head to the side to regard him directly, "What?"

"You are remarkably stubborn for someone who is still in a bit of pain."

"I'm not-I'm not in any pain."

"You are. I can see it in your eyes," Blanchard pressed, removing the last of the leads from Cate's skin, and disposing of them while she pulled down the dark brown tank top she wore so that she was no longer so exposed, "These things take time."

"I've had time."

"Perhaps you need more."

"I don't think our mutual friend would approve of that," Cate mused, pushing herself up to sit on the edge of the chair, while her fingers curled around the edges of the seat beneath her thighs, "He doesn't strike me as the patient sort."

"You remember that about him."

"I don't-I'm not sure it's a memory, exactly. Just-"

"Instinct."

"Something like that."

"Do you remember anything else?" Blanchard asked, the question obviously intended to be gentle, though he was well aware that the inquiry had caused his patient to go rigid, the squeak of leather indicating her hold upon the chair had only tightened in response. He of course was under no illusions when it came to the toll the chair would have taken on Cate's mind, and truthfully, he was more than a little surprised when it came to how much she had retained even in spite of it. And inasmuch as he knew that she would likely continue to suffer the consequences, mentally, with repeated use, Blanchard shoved that thought to the side in favor of turning his attention back to the young woman in question, his expression nothing short of concerned as he waited for her to reply.

"I-I remember him. Not his name, but his presence, if that makes any sense at all."

"The man who was here earlier?"

"He's in charge of all of this, isn't he?"

"You could say that."

"Are there others?"

"What do you mean?"

"Are there others working with him?" Cate clarified, aware of the shadow that passed over her companion's features, and frowning a bit before going on, "You're not going to tell me, are you?"

"I can't."

"You won't. There's a difference."

"Listen to me, child," Blanchard began, leaning forward almost conspiratorially, and placing a hand upon Cate's knee, despite how the gesture had her tensing momentarily as though she truly perceived a threat, "You are far better off not knowing. Knowledge is not always power."

"Power."

The word resonated in Cate's mind, a furrow forming between her brows as she tried to follow that word to whatever had prompted her suspicion that it was something she had heard before. She could practically sense the familiarity in the word, and she was startled to find that a flash of a darkened bedroom, and a man standing beside her in a robe, while flickering green light emanated from her palm brought itself to the forefront of her mind. But just as she made to grasp at what she could only surmise was a memory, it flitted away, a frustrated groan escaping as she squeezed her eyes shut, and tried as best she could to ignore the disappointment that knotted itself in her chest.

"You remember something else, don't you?"

"I-I'm not sure."

"Do you want to talk about it?"

"I don't-I don't really think I do," Cate murmured, her lips pursing together as she tried and failed to regain some idea of whatever it was that she had just recalled, "I'm sorry."

"Don't be," Blanchard assured, moving to stand, and gesturing for his patient to do the same, one arm extending to keep her upright as she wobbled a bit once she found her feet, "You are entitled to your own secrets, from time to time."

"Why are you doing this?"

"Doing what? I am your doctor, it is my duty to see to your medical care-"

"Why are you being so kind to me?" Cate elaborated, pulling away from the doctor's grasp, and frowning as she realized that, whether her strength had returned or not, there was still the lingering vertigo that had set her ears to ringing as soon as she stood on her own two feet. For a moment, she almost opted for resuming her position in the chair she had just vacated, her eyes squeezing shut as she attempted to reorient herself to her surroundings. But just as she had started to move towards the chair, not trusting anything other than muscle memory to find its location, Cate found herself stalled, the sound of her companion's voice forcing her eyes open once again as she registered his presence near her shoulder, and felt the weight of his hand coming to rest upon her elbow in the same motion.

"I am a man with many sins to atone for," The doctor replied, the lingering memory of a young girl's screams echoing in his ears as he recalled standing over her, and implanting a device beneath the skin of her temple "If I can make even a small attempt at doing so by caring for you now, then that is what I am going to do."

Although the careful manipulation of her recollections through the device he had implanted when she was nothing more than a child had rid her of any thought that they had been connected ever since she had come to reside under her current circumstances, Blanchard knew that he owed her far more recompense than he would likely ever be able to give.

If anyone ever learned of his change of heart regarding her situation, and the slow way in which he had changed from mindlessly following orders to attempting to help her, instead, he knew he would only be a dead man walking.

…

Hello, darlings! And welcome to another new chapter in Cate's tale! Honestly, I have literally NO idea where the idea for the direction of this chapter came from, because I had other plans when I first started writing. But apparently, the muses decided to go for her having a secret ally (maybe...only time will tell) behind the lines, even before she really starts to connect with everyone's favorite "staring machine" (I'm sorry, Sam kills me every time when he references that). Hopefully my sudden decision doesn't prove too disappointing, though, because I promise there really is a method to my madness! And I have even more exciting things to come (or at least I think they're exciting...hopefully you do, as well!)

Many thanks, as always, to everyone who has taken the time to give this little story a chance! I am so thrilled to see that it appears to be at least somewhat worthwhile as far as reading goes. And I really hope everyone enjoys this chapter as much as the last!

Until next time, my loves…

MOMM