Captain America Bucky Barnes Winter Soldier Steve Rogers Fan Fic - The Constant

Chapter Nine: The Patient.

Part One

The Nurse - The Patient.

In the morning you dress in your new uniform. It is not like any of your previous nursing uniforms. They have issued you with three of them so that one can be worn whilst one is cleaned, leaving one spare. It is light khaki in colour, styled like a dress coat: buttons all the way down the front, short sleeves, an elastic belt around the middle, a small top pocket, and two pockets lower down. It is to be worn with stockings. There is no hat, but you are told to keep your plait bound up tightly or you will need to cut it off.

At least the two pairs of shoes you have been issued are comfortable.

For when you are not on duty, you are to wear one of your three khaki coloured blouses with a black skirt.

Someone shows you a store cupboard in the dormitory where you can get clean bed linen and towels. They issue you with a set of toiletries. When you have used them up you are to see one of the store masters and swap the old bottles for a new set. They warn you, no old container - no swaps.

Although there is a place to wash clothes yourself, you are also told about the laundry services that run on the camp and how to send your clothes, bedding and anything else in to there. You are told where the canteen is. All food and drinks are free and the canteen is open 24 hours to cover all shifts, it is for everyone, nursing staff, guards, doctors alike. You are then instructed where to put any garbage you want to dispose of.

All of this is restricted to those working in this part of the complex only - in other words those underground.

There are more rules here than you can take in.

You are then handed over to a guard. He hands you a pass and tells you that you must have it with you at all times. It has your photograph on it, which amazes you - where did they get that from?

You clip it to the outside of your top pocket.

The rules get more serious at this point.

He runs over security issues with you. You are not allowed to contact anyone above ground, or use any of the external communication posts. If you feel you have a need to contact someone then you must talk to your supervisor. You ask who that is, but the question is ignored. You will find out later that you do not really have one. The work here is secret, and you are only allowed to discuss any issues concerning the patient with the doctors, or - if need be - fellow staff, or the guards directly working with you.

Do you understand?

He then instructs you of where you can go. Where your pass with allow you. The floor you are on is the second floor down and contains your dormitory, the canteen, and other services. Your work will be done mostly on the third floor and this is a totally restricted area.

Do not expect to ever go to either the first floor or the surface.

Do you understand?

You are never to talk to the patient unless the doctor asks you to, or in the rare case of an emergency. You are here to translate and provide nursing care. All procedures are decided on by the doctors. They are your first port of call if there is a problem.

Do you understand?

If he asks you one more time you may scream.

If the patient asks you to do something or contact someone for him, you are to tell one of the doctors immediately. You will never do anything that the patients asks.

Failure to obey any of these rules means death. Do you understand?

You nod, then stutter "Yes." You ask if the patient has a name but the guard looks at you blankly, then looks away. "He has no name and you will not address him by one. He is no one. It is important you understand this," he says, and that is the end of the conversation.