#agents of shield fic
Chapter two
I was sad that there wasn’t a new episode, so somehow that turned into a 5k chapter for this story, still may only be a two shot, or more, depending on how my time goes, but I have a bit of an outline for a 3rd chapter already, so that is pretty likely.
Are we all doing okay? Did we survive the first week?
I am so grateful for all the amazing feedback I go on the first chapter, I appreciate it so much and definitely encourages me to keep writing, so thanks!
As usual, written out pretty quickly and on no sleep with no proof reading, so you could be in for anything.
Read below at ff.net or at AO3
They were onto the third movie before any further interruptions, bar the occasional question here and there from Kora, who seemed just as awed by the improvements made to movie making as Daniel. May had surprised Daisy by being able to answer more questions than she could, and she quickly decided that May was a fan of Disney movies, and somehow, she had never found out about this particular fact until now.
“Alright, at least go pretend to be getting some rest,” Coulson told the group as he entered the darkened room, grinning at the scene ahead of him and not quite sure which part was his favourite.
“But Dad,” Daisy jokingly complained, gently waking Daniel up nonetheless, the latter blinking away the confusion for a moment, gaining more confusion at the added guests since he was last awake.
Rising up, she could feel the soreness to her muscles, both from her fight and from sitting still for so long; from doing too much and too little, but at least it was a feeling. She caught Coulson’s eye, and knew he was holding back some sort of comment or question, but clearly deciding it wasn’t the time or place, so she made no move to draw it out, passing by him instead with a soft smile as Daniel followed close behind silently.
“May, a word,” Coulson stated as the others were nearly out, evidently wanting to speak to the other agent alone, something that seemed normal enough to everyone accept Kora, who stilled in the hallway, worried the conversation was regarding her.
“Regardless of what they or you decide, they won’t kick you out and they won’t hand you over to someone else, they don’t give up on people,” Daisy paused for a moment to ease her sisters concerns, getting a weak smile in return, “I should know that better than anyone here.”
Her sister nodded in response, continuing on her way to wherever May had set her up in or just somewhere to clear her head, Daisy wasn’t quite sure on the answer, but it didn’t seem pressing to know right now, she knew she would be safe and that was all that she needed to know. A hand came to her back, guiding her forward, as she realised that they were still standing in the empty hallway.
Heading back to her room, she felt his hesitation as they neared,
Quiet took over the room quick enough, Daniel falling back asleep easy enough; knowing she was alive and well next to him and that they were safe in the base, making it infinitely easier. A part of her was jealous that he could sleep, the part of her begging for more sleep that was, but mostly, she was just glad that he was able to finally rest, and that maybe it was her turn to watch out over him.
Sitting hunched over reading her tablet, she couldn’t help but keep checking that the man asleep next to her was alive and breathing, that he wasn’t just a figment of her imagination. She had debated trying to go back to sleep as the time dragged on, but the constant running around in her mind, told her that she wouldn’t stand a chance at sleeping.
The humming in her veins and the crawling feeling on her skin, became all too much, she had wanted to clean up for a while, but she knew a shower would wake her body up fully, and while she wasn’t sleeping, she still felt like she was resting. Checking her phone, and realising that it was nearly an acceptable time around the base to be up, she decided that she couldn’t wait any longer and headed for the shower.
Slipping back into her bunk, she felt as if she had managed to scrub a layer of skin off, but still hadn’t quite managed to scrub off the entire feeling of death. Glancing around, she realised that Daniel must have woken and gotten a similar plan as herself, or he had gone looking for her, either way,
“Morning,” he greeted warmly as he re-entered the room, looking cleaned and refreshed, telling her he had had the same idea.
“Hmm,” she responded absentmindedly, immediately leaning onto his side as he sat beside her.
She didn’t quite understand the part of her seeking the contact, seeking his warmth, she had after all, spent most of life pushed aside, without anyone that she trusted would be around long enough for her to reach out for that comfort. But right now, it was about the only thing that made her feel fully alive, that made her forget that she had had died the day prior.
Facing him, she traced her hand along the side of his face, she felt him still slightly at the touch, she could feel his heart beating, she could feel hers beating, reminding her they were alive, reminding her they had won, and that they were here; together. Bringing her lips to his, she started slow, savouring the moment, the calmness to the room that had started her pace, quickly diminishing as she felt a heat rising deep inside, a heat that was working well to chase away the cold memory of space.
Shifting herself so that she was straddling him, she hummed in approval as his hands made there way under her top and started exploring across her skin. She pushed him back down onto the bed, chasing the feeling of alive that their contact seemed to bring, right now she felt so far from death, so far from the feeling of loneliness and disappear that clouded her few memories of floating through space.
A knock at her door broke them apart instantly, him dropping his hands and freezing silently in his position on the bed, as she sat up straight, leaning on her thighs either side of him, waiting to establish who and why the interruption. The annoyance fading as she smirked at his worry about being caught out, but she could see under the worry that he was annoyed at the interruption just as much as she was.
“Sousa, get decent and come give me a hand,” Mack’s voice rattled through the door, his sure tone holding a hint of amusement as well.
“He’ll just be a minute,” Daisy responded, grinning the moment that she stopped talking, trying not to laugh, standing up to let the man in question right himself.
Sitting at the bench next to Alya, Daisy listened as the little girl rambled on to her father about the night before, as he listened as if it was the most interesting story he had ever been told. She grinned at her friend, at how good a father he was, he was the type of father that she would have given anything to have had growing up, not that it surprised her, she always knew her friends would make amazing parents one day.
“You cook now?” she asked as he placed a plate of waffles in front of her that actually looked pretty edible.
“Picked up a few things over the years,” Fitz explained, head tilted towards the reason with a large smile.
“It’s so crazy that it was barely any time for us but years for you’s,” she mused back, toying with her food for a moment, debating if she could eat or not, the smell winning out and she took a small bite.
“At least it was more than a few hours for you,” Flint spoke up as he entered the kitchen, making his way over to join with a hungry look on his face, “got any spare?”
“It went quick, especially once we had this little monkey,” Fitz responded to the younger boy, putting a plate together from him as well, twice the size of the other twos.
“I bet,” Daisy agreed, managing a couple more mouthfuls of food that her body seemed to accept better than the first, almost as if it needed to be reminded that it did in fact still need nourishment.
“We have so many stories to tell you all, and so many videos to share,” Fitz told her, he knew that the team had missed out on so much of his daughters life so far, and that they would all want to know everything, it was something that Jemma had been saddened by, not getting to share it with the rest of their weird family, almost more than their actual blood family.
“How are you settling in?” Daisy asked her sister, dropping down to sit next to her in Zephyr One’s cockpit, it had taken her a while to find her, and she realised now, that the plane probably felt like simultaneously like her best bet to escape, and her link to staying, much like she had felt about the Bus.
“So far so good, May has been very helpful,” Kora smiled warmly, relaxing slightly at her sister’s caring tone, “surprisingly.”
“She’s good like that, regardless of what she says,” Daisy told her, staring out into the base, almost as if searching for the person in question.
“I hope, I hope you don’t mind that I’m still here,” Kora fidgeted over her words, worried that she had blown her shot, worried that her last link to anyone might be too damaged.
“I don’t, honestly,” Daisy tried to make her believe her, knowing how much the feeling of being unwanted could eat you up inside.
“I just want the chance to get to know you, to make up for everything I did,” her sister explained, not meeting her eye, and she wanted to tell her that she understood, that she had been in similar situations, seeking forgiveness and seeking connection, even when she didn’t realise that it was what she was looking at the time.
“You brought me back to life, that’s a good start,” she told her, choosing to go a simpler route for now, not entirely sure she was up for going to deep into her past just yet, not when she was only really keeping herself together enough to keep moving forward at the moment, “I’m glad you’re here.”
“Me too, I want to get to know you, really,” Kora smiled shyly, although technically the older sister, everything about her showed that in life and in actual years lived, she was the younger of the two, “I never knew any family outside of our mother.”
“I never had any family to know,” Daisy commented offhandedly, a sadness clouding her tone, and as hard as it had been, she wasn’t sure if it was something she would give up her current family for.
“I-I, I wish that you knew the Jiaying that I did,” Kora was silent for a moment, not quite sure how to take remark, choosing to stick with honesty if she wanted to get anywhere.
“I got to a little bit, that’s more than I thought I would,” Daisy told her kindly, she was even more grateful that Daniel had pushed her to talk to her mother, with how things turned out, “but no, I was meaning that I’m happy to get the chance to get to know my sister too.”
“Daisy, a minute?” Jemma interrupted as they approached control.
“Sorry, probably more tests,” Daisy smiled at her sister apologetically, catching her friends desire to talk alone.
“Is everything okay?” Kora asked, concerned that she had done something wrong when bringing her back to life.
“Yes, yes, everything’s fine,” Jemma pushed aside the younger woman’s concern with a bright smile, practically dragging the other into a nearby empty room.
“What’s up?” Daisy questioned her friend, her eyebrows furrowing in confusion over the actions.
“I just wanted to talk to you, about everything, well, mainly about one little, big thing in particular. It’s hard, but ultimately it’s the right decision, and I just wanted talk it over with you first, I think you’ll agree but,” Jemma rambled on, skirting around the topic she had cornered her for, clearly not sure how to start.
“Your leaving, aren’t you? You, Fitz and Alya are going to your happy ever after, right?” Daisy spoke quietly, saving her friend from herself, she had been expecting it, and truthfully, she got it, but it still stung deep inside.
“Yeah, yeah, how did you guess? Did Fitz say something already?” Jemma paused, surprised, and worried that she had found out some other way.
“You have your serious, sad face on, it was either that or I was dying again, and I was hoping that wasn’t it,” Daisy explained, smirking to hide the rising emotion that she was trying her hardest to keep down, as much as it hurt, her friends did deserve this more than anything.
“Oh, right, yes, well, we just want Alya to have as normal a life as she can, we don’t want to leave, but-,” Jemma stated back on the speech that she had prepared earlier, only to be cut off by her friend pulling her in for a tight hug.
“It’s the right thing to do for her,” Daisy agreed as she pulled back, wiping a stray tear away, “when?”
“That’s the thing,” Jemma toyed with her words again, and Daisy knew she wouldn’t be ready for whatever the answer, “tomorrow.”
“But that’s, that’s so soon?” Daisy stated, she definitely wasn’t ready for that.
“We will still help out on things from afar, but we just, we can’t keep doing it anymore, and we don’t want her at risk more than she already has been,” Jemma brushed aside her own tear, knowing that it was right and that her friend would understand, but still upset about the whole thing.
“Hey, no one has seen you in a while,” Daniel broke the silence of her bunk, taking her in as he closed the door behind him.
“I just needed some quiet,” Daisy stared straight ahead, paying him no attention as he sat next to her on the bed, taking her hand in silent comfort.
“I know it won’t be the same, but they’ll still be in your life,” he told her gently, guessing the reason for her hiding away correctly.
“Will they though? I mean we’ll still talk now and then, probably text and email each other for a while, but that will fade and eventually, we’ll just be the people who occasionally catch up and barley know who each other is anymore,” she responded sadly, a part of her knowing that they would still be in her life, that he was right, but that part was far from the loudest in her mind right now.
“What you have been through together, all of you, that bonds people in ways that even if you don’t talk as much as you do now, you will always be close, no matter the physical distance,” he tried a different approach, his hand reaching for hers as he watched her closely.
“Ugh, I hate that I’m even mad about it, I know it’s the best thing for Alya, but it’s,” she blinked away a tear as she looked down, almost ashamedly.
“It’s bringing up some things,” he finished for her, squeezing her hand softly, Mack had warned him that she had been hurt, but he had guessed that she had probably been hurt more than either had even realised.
“I should be used to it by now, everyone always ends up leaving, walking away, dying,” she gave him a sad smile, not wanting to drop all the thoughts running through her head on him, but something about his presence, made it hard to stop talking, “this team, they’re the only people that have suck by me, and for so long, I guess I got used to it, which is something I’ve told myself not to do since I was a kid.”
“You still have them,” his words sure, he mightn’t know a lot about the world he lived in now, but one thing he knew for certain was that this team had her back.
“For how long, they’re all slowly going to go off to do their own things, live their own lives,” she knew she had them, but for how long, how long until it was back to her by herself, trying to pretend she was okay with being lonely, even if she wasn’t sure she could even pretend that these days, “hell, even you and Kora, it’s only a matter of time before even you two decide there’s bigger and better things, less complicated things, out there.”
“Kora wants to be in your life, she clearly wants to be just like her big sister, or little sister? Not sure how that works?” he told her honestly, focusing on the easier part of her sentence, before turning more serious, “and me, Daisy, you have me, I’m not going anywhere.”
“You can’t say that, you were just offering yourself up to stay in a different timeline like yesterday,” she fired up, not accepting his words, not when she was terrified both that they were true, and that she might just want to believe them.
“So that you would live,” he gave her hand a light squeeze, glad when she didn’t pull away, because he had no other answer to give.
“That’s not fair,” she growled in response, he had been ready to say goodbye to her, to leave her, and even though deep down, she got it, she was still angry at him for it.
“Neither is you killing yourself to save us all, but we would both do it again and we both know it,” he reasoned, a little too well for her liking, “I know better to promise that I won’t die, though, technically I am already dead, but you’ve got me, if that’s what you want.”
“You can’t say that, you can’t promise that, not when you barely know me, you don’t know the horrible things I’ve done, a lot of which that hasn’t been for the greater good,” she responded dryly, she wasn’t sure she had forgiven herself for a lot of the things she’s done, and she was definitely not sure how someone like him would take them.
“You’re right, I don’t know all of what you’ve done, but I know –” he started, his voice even and honest.
“-My type?” she guessed, a conversation from a long-ago time loop popping into her mind.
“I know you, or at least the parts you have been prepared to show me,” he told her, pausing before gaining the words to continue, needing to make her listen and understand, to believe him, “I know the you that has had my back this whole time, the part that listened to me complain about Hydra and being pulled out of my timeline, the part that joked around with me, the part that managed to put a shard of glass under your skin to get us out of that barn, the part that was prepared to do a Hail Mary into space to save her friends, and the part that even though you’ve been hurt countless times before, you’re still prepared to let me in, if only a little.”
Watching him closely, she knew he was giving her a chance to take his words in, letting her decide on her next move, her next issue to raise. Choosing to decide that tomorrow was another issue, that maybe she was setting herself up for more pain, but that maybe, just maybe, that she was actually in for more pain if she pushed him away completely, she kissed him, her tongue slipping into his mouth and deepening the kiss before he had fully caught her decision, pulling herself into his embrace as much as she could once he did.
Responding with the same favour, trying to convey his words now in touch, trying to convince her that he was here for her, that he wasn’t going anywhere and that for him, she was enough. He pushed her backwards onto the pillow, his shirt being dragged back over his shoulders before he had even realised that she had undone his buttons.
“Is this when you get all gentleman-y and stop to make sure this is allowed?” she smirked at him as he pulled back, both taking the chance to catch their breath for a moment.
“I was just going to ask if the door locks,” he responded, huskier than usual, glancing towards the door for a moment.
“Oh, everyone around here knocks,” she told him, not wanting him to get up and lock the door, pulling him back in for another quick kiss, “and if they don’t, it’s really their own fault.”
“But,” he started, resting his forehead on hers for a moment, “you are okay with this?”
“Definitely,” she flipped them over, both to prove her point and speed up the slow pace that he seemed to be setting, he was relishing in the fact she was alive, whereas she needed to feel alive.
By the time they had redressed and headed to find the others, they had only just made it in time for the last team dinner, a going away of sorts for the Fitzsimmons family. Joining them all quietly at the table, Daisy made especially sure to avoid the smirk she had caught May sending her as they entered, choosing instead to make small talk with Piper, who was more than used to not being caught up on everything.
Midway through a conversation with Jemma and Alya, she realised that Daniel and Fitz were fast becoming friends, as she paused to smile at their animated conversation, she caught the attention of Jemma, the both grinning at the sight. The happiness quickly clouded in sadness as she remembered that the new friendship would be short lived, in this form anyway.
By the end of the dinner, no one was quite ready to leave, quite ready for it to be over, not only because that meant it was closer to Fitz and Jemma leaving, but also because they all knew it was just the start, that soon enough others would start leaving until they all had. This was the start of the end for the team, and no one was quite ready to admit that.
The next morning, they had all managed to stagger their goodbyes with the three, Daisy having waited purposely near the vehicle bay, to ensure that she would get her goodbye, but also, in an attempt to delay it as much as possible. Watching them approach for the last time in an unknown amount of time, she tried to stay as positive to them as possible, knowing that it was the best think for their child and them.
After saying their goodbyes, Fitz took Alya off to the car, leaving the two best friends a moment to each other, whether Jemma had requested it or not, Daisy was thankful for the chance. Hugging each other tightly, they both let the tears run freely, after everything that they had been through together, after every mission, every death, and every memory since they had gotten on that bus as near kids, now they were parting as sisters and they both knew that they would try like anything to keep in as constant contact as they possibly could.
Entering the kitchen after the goodbyes with Flint in tow and ready for her distraction plan, Daisy was glad to see that the two she had requested to meet her there, were sitting waiting, talking politely with each other. She smiled to herself, glad that they were getting along regardless of what had gone down, both trying to make an effort with another person they saw as important in her life.
“I’ve set these up super basic for you both, I’ve put my number in as the emergency contact, and I’ve put everyone’s details in too,” Daisy informed them, hand an iPhone to the of them both, as Flint placed a box with various needed cords next to them both.
“So, we can call each other wherever we are?” Kora asked, gathering from her limited knowledge, turning the phone over in her hand a few times, as if trying to work out how they work exactly.
“And take photos,” Daniel told her, remembering a moment in an alley that brought a smile to his face, regardless of what had come next.
“Really? With this?” Kora asked, the confusion clear, as she worked out at the very least how to make the screen light up, showing Daniel too.
“Oh man, this is worse than I thought it would be,” Flint groaned, he had taken to the technology in this time like a fish to water, probably helped by the fact he had come from the future, not the past, and had thought it might be entertaining when Daisy had asked him to help her, but now he wasn’t so sure.
“Yes, you can call, video chat, or text from it,” Daisy started out simple, grinning at the blank looks she got in response.
“Text?” Kora asked, trying to slide the screen up to get into it, having between the two found the message on the screen telling them too.
“Like an email but quicker and easier,” Flint explained further, realising his mistake when neither seemed to understand any better.
“Email?” Daniel sounded more confused than ever, turning his phone asking for a passcode to Daisy.
“Your passwords are your birthyear,” she told them with a grin, she had debated letting them choose their own, but then decided that this option was more amusing, and by the chuckle he gave her in response, he understood her reasoning.
“An instant letter to your phone?” Flint tried once again, sitting down in defeat after it didn’t help them much more.
“I’ll just show you,” Daisy stepped in, pulling out her own phone and sending them both a message separately, and then decided to take a photo and send it to them both, creating a group message she was pretty sure she would end up regretting.
“Wow!” Daniel exclaimed, tapping on the notification, and managing to bring up the message screen.
“That’s so cool,” Kora agreed, playing around for a moment until she worked out how to respond back, the other’s phones buzzing with the new message and Daisy knew that she was definitely going to regret that group message.
“Okay, so do you both think you have enough of an idea to at least call one of us?” Daisy questioned the group after a while, receiving apprehensive nods in response.
“Now we move onto social media,” Flint stated, receiving a grin from May as she entered the room and caught the end of the sentence.
“No, no we don’t,” Daisy told him, that was not something the two in training were ready for, and probably not something the world was ready for yet either.
“What’s that?” Kora asked, intrigued, as she swiped across the screens looking for something she had missed.
“Facebook, Instagram, snapchat, twitter, TicToc, the question is which one first?” Flint mused, pretending to think hard on the subject.
“None, none first,” Daisy shook her head, smirking at May who joined them at the table without a word.
“I could see Kora getting behind TicToc, and you Daniel, I think you’re more of an Instagram, or maybe twitter,” Flint decided after a moment, grinning at them trying to find an app on their phones matching anything close to what he had mentioned.
“Is that good or bad?” Daniel asked the group, placing his phone down in front of him.
“What’s TicToc?” Kora questioned too.
“That is a lesson for another day,” Daisy stated, trying to get them to drop it.
“Where’s the fun in that,” Flint protested, deciding on a middle ground, “can we at least teach them about YouTube?”
“I don’t think it is safe to set them loose on the internet with strangers just yet,” Daisy laughed, sharing a grin with May on the thought.
“You just don’t want them finding out about online shopping and judging your problem,” Flint countered, smirking at her as he spoke.
“Online is safer for us,” Daisy glared at the teenager, explaining her reasoning.
“Online shopping sounds pretty self-explanatory, and something I could get behind,” Kora grinned, enjoying the ease that the afternoon had held with her sister.
“Free shipping is everything,” Daisy agreed for a moment, before continuing, “but there’s a lot to learn before we get you to that point.”
“Yeah, like clickbait, and viruses, scams, oh, can’t forget about trolls,” Flint added on, accepting that the phone lesson was over for the day and the internet was another day issue.
“Firewalls?” Daniel questioned the word he had heard Daisy say numerous times now while on her computer.
“They’re only an issue if you want to do less than legal things,” Flint stated, receiving another glare from the only one at the table that really did anything with them.
“And not something you need to know about for a long time,” Daisy pointed out after a moment, reaching down into the bag she had brought and placing a tablet in front of them now instead, “anyway, we have these next.”
“Why do we need another phone?” Daniel asked honestly, he had yet to see or hear about something that the phone he had couldn’t do.
“It’s not a phone,” Daisy smiled, enjoying this little lesson in technology more than she thought she would.
“It looks just like a bigger phone,” Kora stated, turning it over to investigate as she did with the phone.
“That’s basically all it is,” May shrugged, not helping the situation at hand.
“Just better because it’s bigger?” Kora asked, her head tilted like a dog trying to work something out.
“It’s not about the size,” Daisy told them, the question reminding her of the time Daniel suggested using a bigger computer to hack, complaining her laptop was tiny.
“It’s always about the size,” Kora grinned in response, gaining a chuckle from May.
“Is that why, you know what, never mind, I don’t want to know the answer,” Daisy was thrown for a moment at the inuendo from her sister, choosing, finally, just to get back to the topic, “it’s a tablet, it’s kind of a cross between a phone and a computer.”
“What does it do that a phone doesn’t?” Kora smiled at her sisters stammering, feeling like it was an actual normal sister moment.
“Nothing really,” May piped up, once again not helping the situation, but evidently holding some annoyance to the amount of technology she was forced to use.
“Anyway, these are linked to the S.H.I.E.L.D network, so you can access files, search things or follow current missions, not that there’s much on there at the moment,” Daisy explained, focusing the group back to the task, “I’ve programmed it so that you can’t accidently delete or change things at all as well.”
“So, you put them on read-only mode?” May nodded in approval, “that’s a good idea.”
“To search is very similar to the phone, just press the little magnifying glass,” Daisy started teaching, half the reason she had wanted them to learn to use it was so that she could leave them to their own devices to learn about S.H.I.E.L.D. since their times, and her, if she was being honest, “yep, like that and then type in something, just type my name for now.”
“Why does he have more come up than me?” Kora questioned, trying to work out where she had gone wrong.
“His is set to a higher level than yours,” Daisy answered nonchalantly.
“Oh,” her sister responded, obviously dismayed at the reason, but accepted it, nonetheless.
“Not because we don’t trust you or anything, just you’ve never actually been in S.H.I.E.L.D. or had any training or anything with us, whereas Daniel was the chief at area 51,” Daisy explained further realising how she took it, “I figured that gave him a bit higher clearance.”
“Does that mean I have higher clearance than you?” Daniel piped up, grinning at her statement.
“Well, she was the fill in director once,” May pointed out, shrugging at the information that was old news to her.
“Really?” Daniel asked, initially surprised at the comment, but as he thought about it, it did make sense.
“Not for very long, and it didn’t go the best,” Daisy laughed, brushing the information aside quickly.
“So, you outrank us all?” Kora questioned, smiling at her sister.
“Don’t forget it,” Coulson responded for her as he joined them, clearly having come looking for them, “we need to do a supply run.”
“Daniel and I’ll go in the morning,” Daisy offered, jumping at the idea of getting out of the Lighthouse, and getting the chance to introduce Daniel to her time period.
“Can I come too?” Kora asked reservedly, worried for the rejection she might get, “I wouldn’t mind getting out of here for a bit, seeing what the world is like now.”
“Of course,” Daisy agreed instantly, nodded assuredly to her sister.
“I’m coming too,” Flint stated, he was always down for a chance to explore, and he figured with two tagalongs from the past, it could make quite the interesting trip.
This was supposed to be 2-3k and already over 4k, so at this stage is most likely a twoshot, but may turn into more, or might also just be a oneshot, depends how I go writing more.
Post series, pre 1 year later.
Her mind ignited like a flame on a match, as if she was all at once alive again, and her eyes flew open to the sight of her family hovering over her carefully. Daisy felt her sister pull away before she saw it, as she took a few slow breaths, reminding her body that it wasn’t dead, and closed her eyes for a moment to get used to the pain, the pain of dying didn’t seem to go away with the death either.
Opening her eyes once again, she glanced around the concerned faces but made no move to sit up, unsure if she was able to just yet, even though she felt the urge jump up, to move. She felt simultaneously like she would never again feel this alive, but she also couldn’t shake the feeling of death away, both feelings so deep in her bones that it was almost all too much.
The ice cold feeling from freezing in space would have made her shiver, had it not been from the warmth that flowed through her veins, something she wasn’t quite sure if it was residual warmth from Kora’s powers, or from her body waking back up. Placing her hands flat beside her, she steadily pulled herself into a sitting position, ignoring the protests from the others at her moving, turning to face the exist, readying herself for whatever came next.
There was something humming under her skin, in her bones, something only she could feel, something left over from using her powers in such a way that she knew she would never be able to repeat, not without the same outcome of death. It was so strong and powerful, a high of such, that she almost felt like she could spend the rest of her life chasing and never quite reach, but also that it was a feeling that she wasn’t sure she ever wanted to feel again.
Her mind felt slower, delayed, as if it was still trying to catch up on everything, but her powers allowed her to feel what was happening around her before her mind could tell her. She felt the change in the plane as it started its decent, she felt Coulson and Kora leave her side to take a more secure seat and she felt the water rushing over the edge of the lighthouse’s hanger door as the past through.
Staying in her sitting position, she watched the hanger doors start to open, knowing the team would be ready and waiting for them on the other side, feeling as if she was about to see her family and loose her family all in one. She felt as Mack and May, came to join Coulson and Kora in the hanger bay, standing close by her side, eagerly awaiting the others as the door dropped and the air cleared to show the rest of their team.
Scanning the faces of the people she had wondered if she would ever see again, her gaze caught one in particular, the man that had kissed her only hours earlier, his concern for her quickly replaced by relief at seeing her alive. She felt him move to her, just as she felt Mack rush to greet Yo-Yo and May step towards Kora, who seemed unsure what to do now that the battle was done, directing her off of the plane.
Holding his gaze until he stopped in front of her, Daisy gave him a weak smile, cutting off his question for her wellbeing before he could ask. Daniel watched her closely for a moment, before extending out his hand towards her. Taking it slowly, she tentively pulled herself up, his other hand moving to her elbow in further assistance as she did, feeling as Coulson followed the rest in exiting the plane, everyone seeming to know she would be taken care of.
Standing fully, she kept a hold of his hand and felt as he moved his other to her back to steady her, she shifted slightly as she let herself lean on him, knowing he would happily share her weight. He pulled her closer into him, needing to feel her heartbeat, to know she was breathing and alive, and she understood, she needed to know the same thing, for herself and for him.
“You good?” he broke his silence, half whispering into her hair.
“Yeah,” she breathed out her second word since dying, her voice sounding surer than she felt as she kept most of her weight on him as they started down the hanger door.
She forgot about it all for a moment she saw her best friend round the corner with the family she could finally remember, the wide smile coming across her face, pushing aside the feeling of death and clinging to the feeling of life. The man at her side felt the change in her and looked up at the new arrivals, a smile gracing his features as he got them off the plane quicker.
“Alya, this is Aunty Daisy, she saved us all,” Jemma told the blonde child cheerfully, bringing her up close to introduce them properly.
“Hi,” Daisy felt the tears start to swell as she carefully reached a hand forward to greet the child that it turned out they were all fighting for, Alya grabbing her hand as she did and holding tightly, she hadn’t quite believed it when Fitz had told them, but seeing the little girl cemented the truth, “it’s so nice to finally meet you.”
“Hi,” the little girl beamed at her, excited to finally meet the person she had undoubtedly heard countless stories about, stretching her arms in request to held by her new friend instead.
“Sorry Alya , Aunty Daisy is a little sore,” her mother told her, a smile breaking through at the child’s pout in response, “how are you feeling?”
“Weird? I’m not too sure, it’s hard to explain,” Daisy answered honestly, her whole body felt in contradiction of itself, but dying and living were opposites after all.
“Yeah, that will pass,” Coulson spoke up, high fiving Alya as he came closer to inform them of his plans, “Mack, Yo-Yo and I are going to go finish up dealing with our new friends.”
“I would like to run a few tests if that’s okay? I know it’s probably the last thing you want, but I think you’ll like my new helper,” Jemma told her, her doctor tone mixing with her mum tone, as if it was always meant to be.
“Figured as much,” Daisy sighed, she had fully expected it, but she was well and truly over being the patient, “just let me change first, this suit feels too spacey, too death like.”
“Of course, take your time, Fitz is going over everything in control, so I’ll check in on him and then meet you in the med bay,” Jemma instructed, turning and leaving as quickly as she had come.
“You right to walk?” Daniel spoke up, not wanting to push her too quickly, while she had seemed to be managing okay so far, he was very aware that she had died not long ago.
“With help,” Daisy answered quietly, admitting it was easier than she had expected.
Nodding in response, he followed the pace she set as they made their way to her bunk, the dimly lit hallways lighting the way to the room that was both different and basically the same since the last time she had seen it, depending on the timeline. Helping her to sit on the edge of her bed, he stilled, suddenly unsure on if she needed help, and with the likely answer being yes, if he was crossing boundaries to help.
“Can you grab me a top and just some leggings?” she broke his train of thought, pointing to her duffle bag that someone had placed on a chair in the rooms corner, a thin smile at his obvious discomfort.
“Leggings?” he asked, the term unfamiliar as he set to his job, nonetheless.
“Like tights, but thicker, there should be a black pair near the top,” she explained, slowly undoing her gauntlets with a practised ease.
Collecting the items requested, he sat them beside her gaining a small smile in thanks as he watched her movements, he knew he should leave, that it wasn’t proper, but a larger part of him didn’t want to leave her side. She paused his concerns for a moment as she handed him the first gauntlet, a near domestic action that made him feel slightly more at ease.
“Did you want me to leave?” he voiced the question that he had been toying with, taking the second gauntlet from her, placing them both on the nearby dresser.
“It’s okay,” she started on undoing her belt, “I might, I might need some help.”
“Did you want me to get May or Simmons?” he asked politely, collecting the belt from her, and placing it with the rest, as if he had done it a million times before.
“I’m not bothered,” truthfully she wasn’t, she knew they were barely a thing, at least not something they had had a proper conversation over, but at the same time, she felt like they had been together for years, decades, or maybe just timelines, but they felt solid, real, realer than most things to her right now.
“Are you sure?” he pushed once more, he had gathered that her time was more open than his, but he needed to make sure she was thinking straight, that she was fully okay with him staying.
“I mean, it’s nothing you won’t see soon enough,” she grinned at him, chuckling at the stunned look on his face, a memory from the loops flickered to the forefront of her mind; things do faze him.
“I-I… It… If, okay,” he stumered over his words at her statement, sidestepping over it to accept her answer, as he leant down to take her boots off.
Going back to her task, she flinched as she went to pull the pants down, his hands reaching to help as he set aside any of his previous reservations to help with the issue at hand. Helping her into the clean pair of leggings, she held back a smirk at the way he tried not to stare and focus on only what he was doing, only what was proper.
She unzipped the top, letting him take over pushing it off her shoulders, he paused for a moment once it was off, at first she thought it was at the sight of her in only a bra, and from the fleeting desire in his eyes, she guessed that had been the start of it, but the concern overtook quick enough and she realised that he was noticing some of the newest injuries she had received.
“A part of me hoped that the injuries before dying would go with the whole dying part,” she told him, watching him trace a hand gently across her ribs, doing his own checks that she was okay.
“And the other part?” he asked, catching on to what she left out, as he reached beside her for the grey knit cardigan that he had gotten her earlier.
“It makes me know I’m alive,” she responded, slipping her arms through the top and pulling it on, the fresh clothes making her feel further away from death.
Sweeping her hair out from under her cardigan, in a way that felt so domestic to her that it brought a smile to her face, Daniel came to kneel in front of her, just taking her in for a moment before going to stand. Catching his hand as he did, she pulled him back towards her, staring at him for a moment, her turn to take him in, before tugging him closer, kissing him the moment he was in reach, a hand threading through his hair to pull him in deeper, she needed to feel alive, and the quick kisses from earlier just weren’t going to be enough for her right now.
“I’m glad you’re alive,” he whispered as they parted, his eyes on her as he grinned at her.
“I’m glad we both are,” she smirked back, playing with his collar, her hands dropping to his as she rose off the bed.
“Shoes?” he asked, chuckling at her shrug as he helped her walk back out into the hallway.
==========================
Entering the med bay, Daisy made her way to the stretcher, shifting her weight from Daniel to the bed, wanting to get the doctoring over and done with as quick as possible. The later getting side tackled by the mini Fitzsimmons, bringing a smile to her face that she realised was clocked by her best friend watching the whole scene.
“You said you were feeling weird? How so exactly?” Jemma asked, switching to doctor mode in an instant as she started tending to the wounds from too many battles ago and running her tests.
“I don’t know, I feel like I could run a marathon, but that I could barely walk to the kitchen, like I could sleep for a week but that I could never sleep again, that, that I’m alive but I’m not,” Daisy tried to explain, trying not to flinch.
“Although it is something that we have dealt with more than most, it is still pretty uncharted territory when dealing with,” Jemma paused, glancing across to her daughter spinning on the chair next to her, “with what we are dealing with.”
“But she’s okay?” Daniel asked, wanting confirmation from the only one in the room with a doctorate.
“So far everything is coming back within normal range, and your powers, any issues there that you’ve noticed?” Jemma continued on after scanning through some of the results on her tablet.
“I haven’t, I, I can feel them, they feel normal, I just, I’m not sure I’m ready to use them,” Daisy stated, placing her hands under her thighs to stop herself from fidgeting further.
“That’s not surprising,” Jemma gave her a tight smile, “there doesn’t seem to be any significant damage, aside from some bruising that will no doubt take a while to go down, but other than that, you should be healed soon enough, which is a miracle in itself.”
“It’s really over? We really won?” Daisy whispered, her voice nearly breaking at words, at the thought they might actually be true.
Her friend nodded, a tear escaping as they pulled each other in for a hug, holding tight the woman she considered her sister. Parting, the two wiped their tears away, grinning at the fact they had won and were alive, and for the most part, actually happy with the outcome, all of which, none of them had really been sure they would get.
“Ugh, I told myself no more tears today,” Jemma laughed, placing her used supplies in a biohazard bin as she started to clean up after herself.
“We saved the world, and met your daughter, it’s been a big day,” the other woman joked back, watching the girl in question with a fondness that made her feel even more alive than before.
“Speaking of Alya ,” Jemma turned to the child, “I promised you a Disney marathon tonight for being such a brave girl, now didn’t I?”
“Yes, that is exactly what we need,” Daisy responded enthusiastically nodding along with the little girl, “did you know Daniel hasn’t seen any of them?”
“Really?!” the girl shrieked, jumping up in surprise, eagerly waiting for her mother to finish.
“That’s not true, I’ve seen a couple,” Daniel fired back with a grin, moving to Daisy’s side to be ready when she decided to leave, his hand coming to her back in support.
“Really? Well, you haven’t seen most of them,” Daisy asked, honestly surprised that he had seen any of the very limited Disney movies that would have been out before they took him from his time.
“Frozen?” Alya asked her mother hopefully, the excitement on her face bringing them all a sense of joy.
“No, he wouldn’t have seen that one,” Jemma told her daughter, turning to the other adults with an apologetic look, “sorry, it’s her favourite, I could probably recite it word for word these days.”
“Frozen it is,” Daisy agreed, gaining her an excited squeal at her agreement, stepping down off the bed as they all headed towards the common room to set up the movie.
Daniel helped Daisy drop down on to the couch, before sitting down next to her, taking in the significantly more advanced TV across from them. She smiled at his look of awe as the movie started, tucking her legs up under herself, she settled into his side, ignoring the look she was sure her friend was sending her and focusing on the feeling of safe that she felt when she was with him.
“I’m going to give Fitz a hand and then make Alya some dinner, I’ll bring you two some too,” Jemma told the group after she placed the remote down and instructing her daughter to stay on the couch with her friends.
“God, you’re such a mum,” Daisy laughed, shaking her head, “but I couldn’t eat.”
“You need to build your strength back up,” Daniel bent his head slightly to tell her, concern edging his tone as he wrapped his arm around her carefully, more than happy to abide the new closeness that she seemed to be seeking.
“The thought of food makes me feel sick,” she wasn’t entirely sure she could keep anything down, even though she knew deep down she was hungry, even thinking about it made her feel worse.
“Honestly, that doesn’t surprise me with everything your bodies gone through but let me know tomorrow if you still feel sick,” Jemma stated sternly.
“Yes, mum,” Daisy joked in response, grinning at her friend.
“Just yell out if you have any issues with her,” Jemma told them as she left.
Curling into Daniel’s side even more, Daisy started the movie by watching his reactions to just how far movie making had come, until she got drawn into the movie itself. He had felt as her shift in focus turned into watching it half asleep, and then finally as she drifted off to sleep, and he pulled her closer. He wasn’t sure if she was still reeling from everything that had happened and still needed time to process before reassessing, but for now she seemed content with letting him help her, with letting him in, and he was happy to go along with her.
=====================
When Jemma returned, she smiled broadly at the sight in front of her, pulling out her phone to snap a quick photo of Sousa sitting in the middle of the couch, Daisy tucked into his side with his arm holding her close as she slept, and Alya on his other, watching the movie intently with him and explaining bit and pieces to him. The smell of the food in her hand exposed her actions as the last photo contained her daughter smiling straight at the camera.
“Here we go,” Jemma stated as she placed a plate on the coffee table and handed a second to the man on the couch, not wanting to disturb her friend.
“Thank-you,” Alya spoke politely to her mother, moving to sit on the edge of the couch so she could pick food off the plate on the coffee table.
“Thanks,” Daniel responded in kind as he took the plate from her.
“How long has she been out?” Jemma asked quietly, happy to see her friend resting.
“Since about 10 minutes into the movie,” he told her, knowingly watching as she turned to the movie to work out how far into it they were, “which by the way, is definitely a long way from what they used to be like.”
“Just wait until you see non kid movies,” she grinned at him, wondering if he understood fully what he might have signed up for, but also knowing that he would probably sign up for anything that kept him by Daisy’s side, “I’m sure Daisy will have a long list to show you.”
“Can we watch Frozen two after?” Alya questioned in a whisper, keeping as quiet as possible as not to wake Daisy.
“Only if Daniel doesn’t mind, I have to help your father with some things still for a little while,” Jemma informed her, turning to the man in question with an out, not waiting to force him into looking after her child, “I’ll just take her with me otherwise, but she seems to be enjoying herself.”
“It’s more than okay, it’s nice to be, to just be relaxed and not have to worry about the next attack,” he assured her, glancing at the woman asleep next to him, “though, guessing that feeling doesn’t last that long around here?”
“Normally, not so much, but it seems like we might have the choice now to choose that life instead,” Jemma answered absentmindedly, her mind trailing off at the topic, before giving them a quick goodbye and heading back to her husband.
==========================
The next time she returned, the second movie was nearly over and this time, her daughter was also asleep, curled into Daniel’s other side, as he watched the movie, looking more relaxed and content than she had ever seen him, although considering they had been in a mission the whole time she had known him, this didn’t surprise Jemma. Quickly taking another sneaky photo, she quietly made her way over to him, making sure to take the longer way so that she would enter his line of sight slowly as to not surprise him with her presence.
“Sorry I didn’t plan to be gone that long, Fitz told me another hour tops, but in hindsight, I should have guessed it would take longer,” she apologised, making her way towards her sleeping daughter.
“It’s fine, really,” he brushed her apology off with a smile, he would never have guessed a few weeks ago that this was how he would spend an evening, but he definitely wasn’t complaining.
Daisy woke with a jolt, gasping for breath as if she had forgotten how to breathe for a moment, like her body had forgotten it was still alive, the other two’s attention snapping to her instantly. Blinking rapidly to clear her surroundings as she dropped her legs and sat up fully, she felt as the man she had been half lying on rubbed his hand soothingly on her back.
“Are you okay?” Jemma’s level tone cut through her racing mind, as she felt her breathing start to even out.
“Yeah, yeah,” Daisy answered after a moment, focusing on the credits rolling on the TV in front of her.
“Do you need me to get you anything?” Jemma asked, gently picking up her daughter after receiving a shake of a head in response, before giving them both a quick goodnight as she left.
“More Disney movies?” Daisy questioned as she settled back into the couch with the remote in hand.
“You don’t want to sleep some more? Maybe in an actual bed?” Daniel turned slightly to take her in more fully, his worry rising when he saw she looked more tired than before.
“I’m good,” she responded, selecting a movie and placing the remote back on the coffee table.
“Daisy,” he said her name in a way that made her smile.
“Daniel,” she retorted, sighing before giving him a better answer, “I don’t think I could get back to sleep again.”
“Nightmare?” he asked, wrapping his arm back around her, drawing her close once again.
“No, actually,” she let out a humourless laugh, she actually would have probably preferred nightmares, “I, I felt like I couldn’t breathe, when I woke up, I felt like I wasn’t breathing. I think my body forgot that it was supposed to do that still.”
“Anything I can do to help?” he offered, choosing to not keep pushing the subject.
“Just this, just being, being here, with me,” she spoke quietly, as if admitting it scared her, not only because it was the truth, but also because a part of her was scared he wouldn’t stay, that he would leave her like everyone else, “it helps a lot.”
“Good, because I’m not going anywhere,” his words sounding like a promise that she wasn’t quite ready to comment on, instead she tilted her head up to give him a chaste kiss before turning her attention back to the TV.
It didn’t take long into the movie until she felt him start to drift off, his arm behind her slacking off and his head dipping against the back of the couch as he fell asleep. She was glad that he was finally getting some rest and not staying up worried about her, she had after all gotten some sleep earlier, whereas she was fairly certain he had not.
Just as the next movie in the queue started, she heard the footsteps of more people approaching, moving carefully to see who, she wasn’t surprised to find May and Kora coming to join her. The two newcomers moving to sit in the empty armchairs without any comment and Daisy was fairly certain that May had used her new talent to bring the three of them together, in a silent agreement to ignore that none could sleep. Glancing around the room, Daisy felt that for the first time in a while, that although this team was coming to an end, although they wouldn’t do another mission together, that maybe Mack was right, and it would be okay.
