From the hallway, outside the closed door, nothing seemed amiss. Inside the drab beige office in the government building, a serious discussion had been going on. The meeting was important enough that Nick Fury had left his space post to attend in person. If he had thought that Alexandra Duchene would easily agree to his request, as Dr. Raynor had done, he was very wrong.

"Why me?"

"Why not you?" Fury's gruff voice countered.

"That doesn't answer the question," Duchene said calmly as Dr. Raynor stood by silently.

Alexandra, Alex to most people, was not a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent but a therapist. She had become a trusted colleague and friend to Fury since they first met and had readily agreed to meet him without asking for any details first. About five minutes after beginning a dialogue with Fury and Dr. Raynor she had regretted her quick decision.

"Can you give us a minute, Dr. Raynor?" Nick Fury asked the psychiatrist with an unusual politeness. Alex was familiar enough with him to know that as soon as the other woman left the room, the courtesy was likely to end.

"You know my feelings on them and you know the effect the snap back has had on our people. I deal with that first hand every day," she stated.

"Just to remind you, I'm dealing with the after effects myself. He's not an Avenger; more of a free agent," he said.

Fury then lowered his voice to keep it from carrying. "I need someone from my team on this, Alex. Someone I trust, not someone who will listen to a bureaucratic-appointed hero without clearing things first."

He sternly explained the current state of affairs and let her know that he did not need to hear of a super soldier going off on some personal vendetta. "If, by some chance he gets triggered I need to be able to call him back. As long as he has some sort of connection, we can get him back."

Alex considered the dichotomy of the situation. Nick Fury had made no secret that he planned to send the former Winter Soldier back out with Sam Wilson to track down Zemo. It also let her know that it could happen next week, next month, or tomorrow. But, while he wanted Bucky Barnes involved, Fury wasn't quite sure he could trust him.

"You want me to assess and work through his battle trauma to ensure he is able to be sent out to experience more trauma. And, you want me to become his friend…while being his therapist? What you're asking is unethical."

"I didn't come all this way to argue about moral codes. I'm telling you to disregard ethics in this circumstance. He doesn't exactly go by the book, and neither do you. That's why I brought you in."

"Therapy is based on trust," she argued.

"So is friendship. The two are not mutually exclusive, Alex. You talked to me after my accident and we became such good friends I gave you a job."

"You were much more open to getting some help when Maria suggested speaking to me. From what Dr. Raynor says he's a bit… reluctant."

"You think I was open?" he laughed. "Conventional methods aren't going to work with him. You're here because I know you can get through to him."

"I can't perform miracles. He has to want to deal with his demons."

It was clear that Fury had his mind made up regarding her participation and was not about to budge. Alex realized that by agreeing to talk with him she had somehow fixed her position. She exhaled and said, "I'm not a spy and I don't lie to the people I work with."

"I'm not asking you to spy or lie. If it bothers your conscience that much, don't think about it."

"And if I refuse the assignment outright?"

Appointment #1

Minutes after leaving Nick Fury, Alex walked in room with files and set them on the desk. The thud of the folders hitting the countertop was a louder than she had anticipated and echoed through the stillness of the room. From where he sat, Bucky Barnes shifted his gaze upwards from the floor. He was expecting to see Dr. Raynor as evidenced from the raised eyebrows and confused look on his face.

"Where's Dr. Raynor?"

"Dr. Raynor is moving into a supervisory role; I'll be working with you going forward," Alex replied. It was the answer the trio had agreed upon earlier.

"Who are you?"

"Alexandra Duchene. You can call me Alex. Nice to meet you, Sargeant Barnes." The greeting garnered a slight nod but didn't change the stony expression on his face. She moved from behind the large desk to sit in the chair across from him, notebook and pen in hand.

Alex then leaned forward and handed him her card, stating that he could call her at any time to talk. "Dr. Raynor gave me your phone number when we met this morning and I sent a text to your phone, in case you lose the card."

Her statement was met with silence although he did pull out his phone. He read the short message, nodded, and leaned back in his seat.

"I was just given your files and haven't had a chance to look at them. How was your week?" Alex said.

"Fine." The reply was short and deliberate and his attention never wavered from the wall behind her. It seemed Dr. Raynor's warnings were correct.

"That good? Sorry it sucked. Care to tell me anything more about it?"

"I said fine. It means it was fine," he said finally focusing. As she picked up her pen, he shook his head in frustration. "Do you really have to write that down?"

"I write because I can't remember everything we say."

He stared directly at her for a bit his eyes narrowing. Alex didn't shrink from his intense gaze. She stared back challenging him to say more. "What really happened to Dr. Raynor?"

"You know the government; piss off the wrong people and suddenly you find yourself reassigned," she said. Conventional by the book answers were never one of Alex's strong points. If working the with the Winter Soldier was now her only focus, she would jump in with both feet.

"Who'd you piss off?"

A small smile formed on Alex's lips as she stared silently. She hinted at a shrug before his eyes found their way back to the floor. "Are you having any misgivings now about breaking Baron Zemo out of prison?" Alex asked turning the conversation hoping to regain his attention.

"Technically, I didn't break him out."

"Technically, the Grinch didn't steal Christmas either, but guess what most people think," she countered.

"We needed information and he had it. I did what needed to be done or we'd still be chasing the Flag Smashers."

"I'm not here to argue with you or judge you. I'm here to see how you feel about it since he's still running around out there."

"I'm fine."