#programming?

The team had found B lying in their cell with glassy and unfocused eyes gazing at the ceiling. Nobody could get them to respond until A tried to move them, earning a small groan at the pain of being shifted around.

The thing is, once they got B back, it was like they'd never left. Yes, there was an adjustment period, but of just a few days, not the several months the team's medic thought it would take for someone who had been missing for 12 weeks.

The team leader, A, could distinctly remember their conversation with B their second night back. They told B they were happy to have them back and would be there if they needed anything. That they couldn't wait until B could join them on missions again, and how different everything had been.

Since then, B had been making a rapid recovery. Their super healing had kicked in and they stopped jumping at loud noises by the end of the first week. They were even working out to stay in shape for future trainings.

It was the third week before A realized something was off. They had been walking through the halls and saw that the lights in the kitchen had been left on. "Who left the lights on? The electricity isn't free!" A shouted, flicking them off.

B was sitting in the adjacent living room, and made eye contact with A. "S- Sorry. That was me. I shouldn't have left them on." They paused for a moment, as though contemplating something, as though their mind needed a second to process. "But uh- yeah! Me. Deal with it!" And B made a nervous laugh and looked back at their phone.

And that was when A realized, B hadn't been up to their usual antics. None of the little things that annoyed them were happening. The dishes were clean, the lights were always shut off in empty rooms, and that was the first sarcastic comment B had made since their return. It was as though the B that A had always imagined they wanted had returned, but not the real B.

"B? Are you feeling alright?"

"Tiptop shape A. Need some help with anything"

B never asked if they needed anything like that. A 'what's on your mind?' or 'a need anything?' but B never asked to help.

A went in search of their tech lead.

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The team's tech lead found the files detailing B's "programming."

It had been painfully made clear to B that they at all times needed to act ideally for a situation, and never be themselves. This was the core of the program- predict how people want you to be.

Apparently they were planning to use B as one of their agents undercover, and behaving appropriately both within their organization and without was paramount.

So B was just acting how they thought the team wanted them to act.

That's why they had been acting like an angel, the lights must have been an accidental slip up, but did that mean they were healing?

"A, we have video of the... sessions." The team's tech said, glancing at A.

"Get medic in here."

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The videos helped medic know what they were dealing with when it came to B.

But A would never forget what they saw.

B, being ruthlessly beaten for acting incorrectly.

B, being tazed for speaking out of line.

B, learning to shift behaviors on a moments notice, at the penalty of breaking a bone.

B, spending time staring blankly at the roof of their cell, letting themselves retreat from the pain and the pressure.

A would never call B the weakest again.

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That night, A went to talk to B.

"B, we found the videos from when you were gone."

A watched as B's eyes flashed, the expression matching the one's they'd make in the videos when they had to guess what they were supposed to say.

"You watched them?"

"Yeah."

"I didn't know they were filmed."

"B," A reached out to grab their arm gently, but B pulled back.

"Oh- uh sorry. Just jittery."

"If you don't want me to touch you, just tell me."

"I-" B hesitated. What did A want them to do? Why couldn't they figure it out? They had been so good recently. They'd been making a swift recovery, helping the team, the only slipup had been the lights and that was bad but everything else should have been fine and what was happening what did A want them to say they didn't know they didn't know-

"B, uh. Doc told me to tell you that we have no expectations for you. We don't expect you to act a certain way. Or not act a certain way. You don't need to predict what you think we want you to do. But you can if you want, that's waht Doc said. They said it's your choice, but just know that we're here, but you don't have to come to us and we won't be disappointed or happy if you don't, and-"

B couldn't stop the tears from escaping their eyes. No. They can't be crying. No, did A want them to cry? Did A not want them to cry? What were they supposed to do and this is all too much-

"B, we love you. Okay?"

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It had been six months since B had been rescued. They weren't quite back to themselves. If A was being honest, they weren't sure if B ever would be. But to be fair, A maybe didn't know what B was actually like. Maybe B was finally showing their true colors. Maybe they were experimenting. But they were going to therapy and had moved out of the compound to avoid any outside pressure from the team. They helped with missions and came over for dinners.