#chapter segment

Green fields. Grasses that came up to your waist, that were so soft and pliable walking through them was wading through a sea of softness. It moved in waves too, delicate and welcoming, promising none of the dark dangers lurking beneath even the shallowest of seas. Oh, there were other threats, but not in these grasses, not that you could sense. There was nothing but delicate brushes against your sides as you stepped towards- the empty kitchen rooms. Suddenly brought to your senses by a now familiar scent. Angela Zielger smelled of soap and antiseptic. So strongly that you could smell her around a corner or know that she had been in a room. It wasn’t a harsh smell, just a notable one, and whenever you crossed her path you were snapped back to the present. It wasn’t unpleasant it was just, strange. You rarely came back to yourself so quickly. The present didn’t hold any more glamour than the past. But Dr. Ziegler crossed your path and, there you were. Here and now.

It was weird.

“Oh, you’re back! Angela said you weren’t in here.” Brigette grinned, shoving in another cart of paint. 

“I was looking for…” You paused and tried to catch the thought. Brigette kept her eyes on you, nodding encouragingly. 

“Hm. Oh, did I order the stoves yet?” You walked to the plastic table you were working off of and grabbed your tablet. They weren’t in the hangar when you went to look for them. And then you got distracted remembering the mid-afternoon walks you used to take when you lived out in the prairies. It was so quiet out there. You have spent so much time alone. It used to be much easier, when they were fewer people, and fewer eyes to keep you from wandering into the wilds. Nature was never opposed to hosting myths in its presence.

“Yeah, you and Reinhardt were trying to figure out whether or not we needed a flat top. We were having sandwiches at the cliffside?” As she spoke the memory floated through your mind. The bread had been freshly baked, and Reinhardt was so tall his shadow kept the sun off of you. You nodded and checked the tracking numbers.

“Tomorrow, right. Thank you Brigette.”

“Anytime, we’re painting now though right? Unless these are for the bathrooms.” Brigette popped open a can and you shook your head.

“There are so many bathrooms… No, yes, we’re painting here. Now. Thank you. ” You picked up a roller and headed to prime a wall, preparing it for bright colors that were easy to clean. You didn’t think that Overwatch was going to be filled with mercenaries who threw their leftovers at the walls but there were always incidents and you didn’t want anything that couldn’t just be wiped up. You couldn’t count the number of times you’d abandoned a property because of messy walls and you weren’t ever going to try. And it was far less practical to abandon an entire military base than it was to abandon multiple farmhouses. And one apartment in France. But in your defense there was also a war going on. Lots of people left France because of wars and forgot to come back to collect their things. A visit to France would be nice, come to think of it. There wouldn’t be anything left but that wouldn’t stop you from seeing it anyway.

“Was Dr. Ziegler looking for me?” The thought came to you suddenly, with the stripe of fresh new color against the white primer. Crisp. Brilliant.

“She didn’t mention it, but you could always go visit,” Brigette smiled, a glint in her eyes. It would be nice. The doctor was good company in most cases. But the longer you spent with her the more you would risk both revealing your secret and embarrassing yourself. Actually if you thought about it, that was really the same thing. Dr. Ziegler didn’t strike you as the type of person to believe in legends even if you made her clipboard float around her head. She wouldn’t laugh at you but certainly wouldn’t believe you. You were willing to be many things to many people but no one would call you a liar.