9022/Sole Bearing

Sole Bearing
Date of Scene:	09 December 2021
Location:	102 20th St - Jessica Drew's Building
Synopsis:	An understanding within a couple is reached.
Cast of Characters:	Michael Erickson, Jessica Drew

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Michael Erickson has posed:
    He doesn't say much on the way home. Equal parts embarassed, angry at himself, and confused about what happened, Michael just stares out the window as the car goes back, and says not much else other than brief responses as the two of them go into her apartment - he stands back, letting her unlock the door, all that sort of thing, until they go inside and he hangs up the uniform jacket. Though, honestly, he really doesn't do much in the way of respect it now.

Jessica Drew has posed:
Neither of them talks very much. Jess drives efficiently and without railing at asshat drivers rampant in New York City. He likely thinks she is angrier than she is. Setting limits like she did in the meeting was necessary but unpleasant for her. She must never forget that neither of them has the same points of reference. Most people don' have them in her estimation.

Jessica gives him space to come to terms with the day.

Jessica Drew has posed:
Neither of them talks very much. Jess drives efficiently and without railing at asshat drivers rampant in New York City. He likely thinks she is angrier than she is. Setting limits like she did in the meeting was necessary but unpleasant for her. She must never forget that neither of them has the same points of reference. Most people don' have them in her estimation.

Jessica gives him time to come to terms with the day.

"It wasn't our best day, was it? I'm sorry I didn't talk to you about your uniform before going into the office. I knew it was Shi'ar but Peggy probably didn't." All said conversationally while she hung her coat next to his and then goes to the kitchen, touching him briefly on the arm as she passes him.

Michael Erickson has posed:
    "It's fine." His voice has that accent again. The not-Slavic tones of his people. He's upset, clearly. It never happens without emotion, not unless he /really/ wants it to. Michael shakes his head, and he goes into the kitchenette; there's a clattering of metal and crockery, and he's busy getting into sole that he bought a few days ago, getting out lemons and and clarified butter. Parsley. Sole meuniere, apparently, is his aim.

Jessica Drew has posed:
Jess comes into the kitchen to lean on the counter, arm to either side of her. "What are you fixing?"

Before he answers, "Part of being in a couple is checking. Part of being my partner at Shield is checking. If I agree to this, I would really like you to check with me even overdo it. Communicate. It will take time, but it won't take your power away."

Michael Erickson has posed:
    "I am cooking sole." He grunts, nodding at the pan as he puts it on heat, clarified butter going in. "You enjoy it muniere, I think."

    There's silence for a moment as he takes a moment to chop up some parsley, then attend to the fish fillets. "It was not my intention to become her handler," Michael replies with a strong shake of his head. "I am not an agent - I sought permission to call her in as an asset on missions that you and I would be involved in. I feel so stupid not to be clear - it has made you upset, and then you...had to upbraid me, in front of the comman--the Chief." His expression darkens as he gets out flour and pours it into a dish, taking the fillets of sole and dredging them through while the pan and clarified butter heat. "It was never what I wanted, making you look bad. I feel like...I feel like such an idiot. And such a bad partner."

Jessica Drew has posed:
Shaking her head, Jess leaves her station at the counter to stand shoulder to shoulder with him. "Not to me, you're not. If you were bad, I would never have agreed to be your handler or partner. So don't waste your energy on self-flagellation; take whatever lesson there is in this if there is one and move forward in your beautiful, inimitable way."

She touches his arm briefly, "I don't worry about looking bad. If that makes sense, I worry about not doing my job well and not serving SHIELD well. Now, I would like to talk about how you imagine using Dottie in an op. Also, concretely what can we do to ensure that neither of us surprises the other when it comes to work. What would you like to do?"

Michael Erickson has posed:
    He glances at her as she tries to assure him; Michael heaves a sigh, sagging a little as he goes about turning to put the fillets into the pan. "I want to use her as an infiltrator," he replies. "Sabotage. She is a very skilled operative, like a chameleon. She would do extremely well in reconnoitering, gathering information, and even stealing or otherwise liberating mission material ahead of something more overt. She wants to kill people, but giving her the means to deal with people without killing them but satisfying her need for just a small bit of cruelty, that would be the means of keeping her within tolerances."

Jessica Drew has posed:
Jess nods along complacently at his ideas until the very last. "What? Seriously, what do you consider to be a small bit of cruelty, Michael? It...this...explain, please."

Michael Erickson has posed:
    "Mmm." Michael's attention is on the sole as it bubbles and hisses in the butter, keeping an eye on how it browns. "A man tries to harm you, you do not kill him but you knock him out - perhaps you kick him an extra time once he's down, just so he remembers the mistake. That sort of thing."

Jessica Drew has posed:
"Bad cops. Just as long as that extra kick doesn't break any necks." Grimacing, she shakes her head more emphatically. "It rubs me the wrong way, I get what you are saying. It's okay to torture the bad folk a little bit to keep our psychotic killer in line...but if any of the 'bad' guys did that to us, we would scream bloody murder.

Michael Erickson has posed:
    "And yet they do it all the time." Michael flips the fillets over with a skillet, revealing golden-brown flesh, crisped skin. "It is within sufficient operational tolerances. I guarantee you that ICER rounds do worse than a few additional bruises, mmm?"

Jessica Drew has posed:
Jess smiles without humor and shoulder bumps him. "Try a venom blast on for size sometime. Morris told me the only reason she staid conscious was because of her super powers. Hmmmm....that looks good." She dabs a finger at the sole then sucks her finger.

"Are we clear about keeping in touch with one another with new ideas, operations and extra special touches including things that keep Dottie happy?"

Michael Erickson has posed:
    "We are clear," Michael says, nodding as he probes at the fish with the spatula. "Get some bread and butter out, won't you, halan?"

Jessica Drew has posed:
Paper crackles as she pulls a baguette from a shelf, fresh from the morning breakfast run. Then pulls out a bar of Irish butter to put in a ceramic dish. "What else? An arugula salad with garlic-infused oil and balsamic would be nice. We have some microgreens in the fridge. You are turning me into a yuppie, Michael."