Natasha had plenty of experiences with Marines, but she knew better than to think he'd gotten all of his skills from that particular branch of the military. His kind of wariness came from fighting a war that seemed like it would never end, likely entirely on his own. She hadn't had to fight on her own in a very long time, but she still remembered what it was like to live surrounded by enemies 24/7. That was what the Red Room had been, and it would always be a part of her past.
She liked that he followed her into the cafe. It meant he was interested in what she had to say, and he was willing to play along to get more of a feel for her. Natasha was still working on being herself, but she was starting to get the hang of it. Mostly. Sliding into her seat, she pushed a menu toward him and folded her hands over her's, only glancing at Mutt when he put a paw up on the seat. He whined and tucked himself in just beneath the table, so that he'd be out of the way of the waitress. Nat gave the pup a smile, pleased that he responded so well to her. It was another point in favor of her adopting a dog. Unconditional love. That was something she never thought she'd get from anyone, let alone an animal.
"Ah yes. Jack, Jose, and Jim. They're friends of many," Nat replied, arching an eyebrow at the slip about his boys. Children, more than one, both male, likely his only kids. Something had happened between him and those kids, possibly with the mother that wasn't mentioned. It wasn't her job to pry, just recon. There was a look in his eyes that said this was one professional to another, so she got down to business.
"No one ever really deserves a second chance. It's just a lie we tell ourselves to help balance the books." That was as honest and personal as she was going to get with him about that.
"You'd be right about knowing the manager. He and I used to work together. Recruited me for the alphabet soup, actually." More like saved her ass, but John Winchester didn't need to know that. "Far as we can tell, there's something pulling the strings to this place but we don't know what. Shit happens, clues randomly start popping up. We've got an astrophysicist and a genius going through the data, but it's a lot to process and they're only two people. Sometimes weird dangerous shit happens, like bloodthirsty, rampaging monsters. Other times, it's harmless shit, like people randomly singing whatever song aptly describes how they're feeling at that moment."
The waitress came over to take their orders, burger and fries for the pair of them and just a burger for Mutt. Natasha stayed quiet until the woman was out of earshot.
"Not everyone was brought here the way we were. Some people here think this is their whole life, but this place is too new. It hasn't been lived in nearly long enough for all the generations that are supposedly buried out in the cemetery. There are roughly 90 people here like us, brought here from different points in time and from different realities. A pocket universe is the working theory, at the moment. You're going to want to stay on the Sheriff's good side; he used to be a private contractor, near as I can tell. Other than that? Not allowed to kill. Kind of a basic rule, you'd think, but we've got vampires and witches and vampire hunters all living in this place. Kinda needs to be said." Nat was unapologetic about that part.