Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Daisy’s powers jolted under her control as soon as the spaceship came into view. Within it lie Fitz and Enoch, unaware to the changes wrought to the timeline. Her heart pounded hard in her chest, stomach twisting. All her emotions pushed and shoved against each other in her mind, as she sat silently in the periphery of the room. She was overwhelmingly conflicted. Excitement flooded her at the thought of seeing Fitz well and alive again, yet there was a twinge of fear, and that fear begat guilt. Desperately, she tried to push down the thought,  “ What if he hurt her again?”  She had struggled to overcome her newfound fear and lack of trust ever since “the incident”. Everyone else seemed to have moved on, pushing her to do the same. It was over and done. That Fitz was gone, and so everything she had experienced should just be washed away.

Despite everything, Daisy couldn’t find it within herself to not forgive him. He had been like her brother for so many years, one of her closest friends. She understood the feeling of hurting those she cared about because she thought it was just. The memory of HIVE still creeped in the back of her thoughts constantly, almost a year later, and the guilt overwhelmed her sometimes. The team had told her over and over that it wasn’t her fault, that she hadn’t been in control, but the doubt still lingered. She would have been happy to kill any one of them; she hurt Fitz and Mack with a smile on her face. Fitz had cemented that fear when he brought it back up by mentioning her betrayal of team. She had done so much worse than he had, but despite forgiving him eventually, she hadn't been able to forget. The nightmare still haunted her day and night. Except it wasn’t a nightmare, it had been reality. Her trust in him disappeared that day, and she hadn’t been able to bring it back.

Daisy watched everyone hustling to prepare to board. Her powers buzzed and pushed against her control as the intensity of her emotions skyrocketed. Jemma anxiously bustled around on the other side of the room, trying to be useful. She obsessively attempted to make sure everything was perfect. When it got to the point where she started berating Davis for his clothing choice, May stepped in and gently tugged her somewhere private, talking her down quietly.  

“You alright there Tremors?” a voice suddenly spoke. Daisy jumped, not having noticed Mack lean up against the wall beside her.

“I’m fine. I’m not the one having a nervous breakdown,” she replied jokingly, “You should be asking Jemma.” Daisy turned away from him, struggling to keep a lid on her powers once more. No one should be focused on her, not now; it was Jemma’s big day. Daisy wouldn’t let anything she did ruin it for her friend. That’s why she was staying out of everyone’s way.

“ Jemma is not my partner. Just because Fitz is her husband, doesn’t mean that your feelings don’t matter.” Mack gave her a piercing stare for a few moments, before the corner of his lips twitched up, “Besides, May’s already got that mess covered.”

She couldn’t help her tart reply, “I’m not your partner anymore either, Director.”

“Daisy,” Mack said, nudging her shoulder with a comforting smile, “you’ll always be my partner.”

He sat, as a pillar of support, beside her as she thought about her response. She opened her mouth, and - Davis announced, “The connection was successful, we can now board safely.”

Standing up to head out, she felt almost relieved to have an excuse to remove herself from the conversation. She nodded her head towards the bay, “Come on, can’t keep Simmons waiting now can we.”

“Daisy-,” Mack implored.

She ignored his disappointment, and turned and walked away. There were no footsteps behind her, so she glanced back after a moment, shocked to see the exhaustion that filled his face. Guilt found its way as reigning champ over her warring emotions and her shoulders slumped, but she continued on her path despite it.

When she walked into the bay area, she found May walking stoically beside a somewhat calmer Jemma.  When May turned her eyes on her though, she saw the battle of emotions within her as well.

Daisy smiled somewhat hesitantly, “This is it.”

Jemma jittered, “Months of searching have all lead up to this. I’m finally going to see him again! You don’t think that something malfunctioned in the cryo chamber do you? What if he suffered hypoxia?!”

Daisy pulled Jemma into a hug, and told her softly, “You already know he didn’t. He arrived in the future the picture of health didn’t he? Plus you and Fitz have made it through everything the universe has thrown at you. You won’t let it stop you now.” She pulled away, squeezing Jemma’s shoulders reassuringly before letting go completely, “ Now stop worrying and go get your man!”

Jemma’s head went up, a smile playing on her lips. She nodded before continuing forward at a hurried pace, Daisy and May trailing behind her. Daisy glanced back once again, thoughts drawn to Mack. He would show up, but his delay said plenty. As the three of them made their way into and through the strangely large ship that only housed two people, they passed near a broken container. They didn’t think to much of it because there was plenty of clutter throughout, but when they got close enough to actually see into it, Daisy saw another monolith. “ HOLY- ”

Before any of them could so much as react, it melted, its blue gunk encapsulated them instantly.

“... I was trying to find out what was happening with Ward and Fitz!” Skye stated exasperatedly.

“That’s a classified operation,” Coulson replied sternly.

Skye blinked. Ward and Fitz? Her brain struggled to comprehend the situation, her thoughts jumbled. Right! She had been worried about Fitz being out on the field, and shocked there was no extraction. But… no wait. They had found Fitz. Daisy had just been reassuring Jemma about her husband. She was sure of it.  

“Skye?”

Coulson looked at her confusedly. Coulson. Daisy’s eyes welled with tears, and she hugged him tightly. After a moment he patted her on the back awkwardly, reminding her of the confusing situation at hand. She had just been in the middle of a conversation with him. Yet she also remembered vividly the moment when May returned to them, brokenly relaying the news of his death. She remembered the devastation, and seeing the newfound determination in Jemma to find Fitz.

“Skye, what’s going on? What caused that reaction? Coulson questioned, concerned.

Daisy went to tell him she didn’t know, when a terrifying possibility stopped her in her tracks. She had never experienced it fully herself, but this situation was reminding her all too much of her entrance to the framework. At that thought, she stepped away from him, glancing around for the first time. Her Skye memories were telling her that she was in the Hub, a thought confirmed by the spacious, light filled, and busy area she found herself in.

“Crap.”

Chapter Text

Shouts tore through the air, ”No! No. Nonononononono no! Curse you universe!”

Simmons, no… Jemma, rounded the corner behind them, a ball of rage and frustration. She visibly started when she noticed them, eyes widening remarkably far at the sight of Coulson. Daisy shook herself out of the stupor that had fallen over her, striding over to Jemma.

“Je- Simmons! Please calm down, we can’t draw attention,” her eyes darted to Coulson, “because… the lack of extraction is classified remember?”

“You told her?” came his bemused question. He messaged his temple. “No, of course you did. What else would you do.”

She grasped at a way to escape the possibly fake Coulson. “Right.” Dragging Jemma away, she said, ”Well, Simmons here is obviously freaking out about it, so I’m going to go comfort her. Cool? Ok bye!”

Everything felt muted as she pulled Jemma along; numb. That’s not important right now. Pushing the feeling to the side, she turned towards her companion as soon as they walked out of sight, “Please tell me you’re actually my Jemma Simmons. Quick, what’s my name?”

“Daisy.”

Relief flooded her. “Phew, good. So we need to –“

“Daisy”

“- find May, and figure out what on earth happened. Or technically off earth I guess. And- ”

“Daisy.” Jemma just broke at the last repetition of her name. “I lost him. I lost him again.” She sagged to the ground, her eternal hope absent from her eyes.

 Oh.

Daisy quickly caught her, leaning Jemma against her to keep her upright. They needed to get somewhere private before Jemma completely melted down. If her mixed memories served, the Bus wasn’t too far away. She hurriedly led the apathetic woman to the Bus common area. Settling them both on the couch, she pulled her into a tight hug. Jemma buried her head into her shoulder and shook with sobs, her hands grasping Daisy’s shirt tightly. Daisy knew that no words could possibly help the woman right then. Her heart ached for her friend, and despite any hesitance she felt out in space, the disappointment and sorrow at their loss of Fitz, once again, overwhelmed her as well. It took little time before tears leaked out of her own eyes. They’d been through too much for it all to be ripped from their hands again, over and over.

Please let this be the framework.

The framework brought plenty of trauma, but the alternative brought panic when she considered it. So she didn’t.

Taking in a ragged breath, she gently spoke up, “Jemma, we need to figure out what’s happened, and fix it. We need to find May, she’s here somewhere.”

“No need.”

The quiet voice shocked them both upright. Daisy’s heart pounded hard, she hadn’t even sensed her standing there. Stop. Don’t think about it. That doesn’t matter.

“May!”

She sat down next to them, her voice despondent, “That monolith sent us to the past this time.”

Daisy wouldn’t believe that. “Wait, why are we in our younger avatars then? That’s not how traveling to the future worked.”

“Avatars?” Jemma interjected, her face paling, “You surely don’t believe this is the Framework do you?” She narrowed her eyes in thought. “That doesn’t make sense. Monoliths transport people through space and time, not into virtual worlds!”

“We don’t know that! We don’t know anything about them!”

“Jemma’s right, Daisy. This situation is nothing like the framework, and we destroyed it anyway. But that is something we have to consider. We don’t know the situation, and we can’t trust anyone yet.” May was the voice of reason to cut through all their chaotic thoughts. She paused, her posture tense. “I assume Coulson is alive here, wherever or whenever here is?”

Daisy’s heart fell to her feet. Here was her family, struggling with the loss of their other halves, and she had the audacity to be in denial about the situation because she didn’t want to deal with it? She couldn’t bring herself to say it, so she just nodded. May took a shuddery breath.

Jemma was the first to break the suffocating silence “What’s our set course of action?”

“I guess, first thing is just figure out the situation, then we make a plan to fix it.”

The arrival of Coulson cut off further discussion. Jemma and May noticed the man far earlier than Daisy. It took their abrupt shift in attention before she looked over and saw him walking into the room. The numbness pulled for her attention, but she held it back once again.

He stopped and took in their wide eyed looks. May appeared as stoic as ever, but out of sight, her hand crushed Daisy’s fingers. The sudden grip startled her, but she quickly returned the pressure. I’m right here. I know.

Glancing between them, he seemed to come to a conclusion, “Well, we better get a move on if we want to make it in time.”

“What?”

His face was soft and apologetic, and she got lost in the eyes of a father dearly missed, before it was shattered by his mischievous reply, “Ward and Fitz aren’t going to save themselves now are they.”

“Oh.”

That wasn’t the response he’d obviously been expecting, but Daisy didn’t care at the moment. There was so much to process and no time in which to do it. Ward. Possibly the real one. This was too much, and the idea of leaving behind the co-dependent support of May filled her with anguish, so she suggested they both go to the cockpit for takeoff. Jemma would need some time alone to process another version of Fitz. They weren’t even sure if he was the real one.  

Instead of replying to her suggestion, May got up and left, leaving Daisy to hurry and catch up. They couldn’t reveal their different relationship to Coulson yet. Yet. Daisy internally scoffed at the fact that she already assumed they would eventually tell him. What version of Coulson isn’t trustworthy? The pain of bullets piercing her leg and shoulder flashed through her mind, causing her to stumble. Right. That one. Shaking off the memories was a well-practiced skill, and she swiftly righted herself.  

The silence in the cockpit was deafening, even the roaring of the airplane barely reached the edges of her senses. She heard it, but she couldn’t feel it. It was distant, just like everything else. She couldn’t handle it, so despite knowing May needed silence, she rambled, “This is crazy. We might be in the literal past. We could change things, make them better! … Or we could make them ten times worse, and get someone killed.”

May’s exhaustion was palpable, at least to Daisy, as she said, “We just need to focus on a way to fix this, not mess with time.” She clenched her fists, “It’s not him. We can’t think of him like he is.”

“Yeah. I know,” Daisy sighed, staring out the window absently, “I know."

They were coming up on the extraction point, so Daisy got up to go find Jemma. She’d need all the support she could get. She found her in Fitz’s bunk, her face in her hands.

Knocking softly, she asks, “Is it ok if I come in?”

She waits until Jemma minutely nods before sitting down next to her.

She almost startles Daisy when she murmurs, “He’s right there, I going to see him for the first time in months, and it’s not really going to be my husband. I don’t know whether to be elated or devastated. Daisy, I just miss him so much.”

“Neither was the Fitz out in space! He wouldn't have had memories of your marriage either, but he was still your Fitz. And I think, maybe this one will be too. Maybe you’re right, and we are in the past, then he’s just missing a few extra memories.” Daisy knew telling her the opposite of what May said probably wasn’t the best decision, but she didn’t know how else to comfort her. And it wasn’t like she was lying, they didn’t know which was true. Plus, Fitz wasn’t dead, not like Coulson. Not like Coulson.

Instinctively, she tried to calm Jemma using what the team called her “purr”, but just felt the numbness expand within her. Tension grew alongside it, a need for a release that had suddenly become unavailable. Frantically attempting to find a replacement, she started humming. It came nowhere close to the full feeling, but it appeased just a little of her desperation. She found herself replicating the song her father hummed to her when they met, and gently rubbed Jemma’s back. The pressure helped her internalize the fact that Jemma was actually there, despite not sensing her.

The plane shifted directions, warning them of the imminent boarding. Standing up, she offered a hand to Jemma, “You ready?”

“No, but let’s go. The future awaits, literally.”

Chapter Text

Jemma didn’t make it past the lab door. Despite Daisy’s attempted assurances, Jemma froze as soon as Daisy started to turn the handle. “Nope. I can’t do it. Not yet. I just need a little more time to face him.”

Daisy watched sympathetically as Jemma turned tail and fled. She understood how overwhelming this all was. The idea of seeing Him again caused abrupt nausea to swell up. The men hadn’t even boarded yet, but she could feel her hands shaking, her heart pounding in her ears. She was going to have to act… concerned for Him . She hid the incoming grimace the thought provoked. As complicated as her feelings for Fitz were at the moment, she was going to have to rely on her concern and relief over seeing him to fake her way past Him . Otherwise, she couldn’t be sure she wouldn’t just attack on sight.

She took a step back from the door, where her hand had still rested. She had thought she was prepared enough, when Jemma was here beside her, but it seemed that she had taken Daisy’s courage with her when she left. Daisy’s breath started coming in fast, shaky gasps as she stumbled back into the wall behind her.  

What had she been thinking?! She couldn’t do this. Not again.

It was too much at once. She never wanted to see Him again. Why did fate keep bringing her back to Him, again and again? A dark thought floated through her head, Two monsters, death always following behind. Fits perfectly doesn’t it. It’s always been your fault. Lincoln, Trip, your mother, Ben, Agent Avery, the village… the list goes on and on.

A hand came to rest on her shoulder out of nowhere, disrupting her spiralling thoughts, and causing her to jump away, immediately on the defensive. She stared at the image of May before her. She hadn’t noticed her approach, again.

May’s hand returned to her shoulder, squeezing it in comfort. “ He is dead, remember. Both of him are.”

Daisy clenched and unclenched her hands. May was right. She’d needed that reminder. Whoever she was about to see, Ward or Him ; both versions were long gone in the present and never coming back.

She ran a ran through her hair. “You’re right. I just - this is all just-”

“Too much. I know.”May’s eyes held nothing but empathy, and a deep sadness. “But we always make it through.”

Daisy let out a shaky laugh. “And we’ve made it through way worse things than a blast to the past. This is nothing.” At least, Daisy wished it were, but all three of them knew this would be the hardest thing they’d ever experienced.

The rumbling of the ramp opening signalled the end of their time to stall. They were boarding. She could do this. Ward was just a jerkface guy. He wasn’t Him. May withdrew her hand. They couldn’t seem too close. But her steadying presence beside her was enough for Daisy to gather her courage back up, and finally open the door all the way.

Jemma had yet to reappear, and Daisy was becoming increasingly concerned she wouldn’t. That would make both Ward and Fitz suspicious. As the two women walked into the cargo hold, she finally saw him; the object in many of her nightmares, Grant Ward’s face. Her steps stuttered for half of second, but she continued onward, hoping he hadn’t noticed.

She tore her gaze away from him, instead focusing on the person they had been searching for for months, albeit a different version. The relief at seeing him was absolutely real, because no matter how complicated their relationship might have been at the end, she still loved him, and having a family member be dead for months was hard. She’d missed him so much.

Tears pricked at her eyes, but before anyone said anything, the cry of “Fitz!” echoed, as Jemma Simmons unexpectedly rushed in, quickly pulling him into a tight hug. When they finally pulled apart, Daisy saw the tears in her eyes, but it was a testament of Jemma’s self control that the true intensity of her emotions weren’t apparent. “You’re alright!”

Fitz’s blush was subtle, “Yeah. We were fine. I had Ward’s back the whole time. Pretty much save him from a gang of Russian Mobsters and kicked a few guy’s heads in.”

Daisy, carefully avoiding Ward but trying not to make it obvious, followed right behind them as they headed into the lab.

Fitz continued, in a false attempt at humility, “But enough mission talk already. Um, anything exciting happen at the Hub?”

Jemma’s eyes went wide as she attempted to find the answer to what should have been a simple question, “Uh…”

“She shot Sitwell in the chest!” Daisy quickly interjected. The moment was still clear in her memory; the fear, shock, but also unexpected pride and solidarity that had accompanied the turn of events had strengthened their relationship permanently. She’d developed new respect for the little British woman.

Fitz scoffed, “You’re joking.”

“Actually she’s not,” Jemma nervously tittered.

“Sounds like you two had almost as much action as us,” came Ward’s amused voice from behind her.

Daisy contained her reaction. When her fight or flight instinct went off, it was normally set to the fight dial. She needed to get used to not being able to sense people anymore, fast, or else it might cause an issue soon.

Jemma faked a laugh, “Nothing as exciting as kicking Russian mobsters in the face, I assure you.”

“We’ve mostly just been trying to find a way to get you back safe,” Daisy added. It wasn’t really a lie, for Fitz. “But yeah, it’s been a long day, hiding the body and all. Now that everyone is back together and ok, I think I’m gonna go lay down and relax in my bunk.” Anything to avoid Ward.

Jemma looked between them concernedly. “You do look really tired D-Skye.” Jemma hid her flinch well, but they both felt it. “Rest is really important after a lot of action.”

“Right, I’m just gonna go.”

Hiding from the world sounded like a pretty great idea at the moment, so she did head straight for her bunk. But shortly after laying down, Coulson knocked on her door.

“Oh, hey… AC. Sorry about earlier and all.”

He smiled hesitantly at her. “I just wanted to let you know I didn’t forget about what you asked me back at the Hub.”

“Uh, what do you mean?”

“The un-redacted file about your past. I found it.”

“Oh.” The search for her parents. The file on Agent Avery. “What, did it say?”

He looked so worried about telling her, so worried about hurting her with the truth about her history, though this was far behind her now. Her heart swelled with love for him. He went on to explain what happened with Avery, and Daisy knew she had thought the agent might have been her mother, so she asked. The memory of her true mother felt heavy in her chest.

When his explanation ended with an apology, she didn’t understand. He had done so much to help her in her search, but also to protect her from it. “Sorry? Thank you. Thank you so much.” For everything.

A couple hours later, a soft knocking came to her door again. “Skye, you in there? It’s Jemma.”

“Yeah, come on in.” Daisy’s voice was hoarse from crying.

As soon as the door closed behind her, Jemma collapsed on the bed beside her, and broke down in sobs. “He’s so young. So innocent. Daisy, he’s changed so much.”

Daisy gave her a side hug.  “We all have, but he’s still Fitz.”

“I want to be back with my Fitz. We were so close. So close.”

Daisy simply pulled her closer as Jemma rested her head on her shoulder and they processed in silence.

Chapter Text

They’d been stuck in the past for a little over a week without any incident. Jemma seemed stuck in a never ending loop of wanting to be with Fitz as much as possible, but also avoiding him. Daisy knew it was giving Fitz a bit of a headache and a lot of confusion, as she’d be following him around one minute, then be nowhere to be found another.

Daisy’s days had just involved avoidance, of all the guys. She couldn’t let herself get attached to Coulson only to lose him all over again. She couldn’t think of him like he was alive. But watching Fitz ramble on innocently was just too much. She’d tried, right at the beginning, to talk with him, but he’d gone on a happy little rant about something technology related and Daisy couldn’t stop the well of emotion that had come over her. He might not have had Jemma back then, but they had had each other. Every time they’d tried taking the next step in their relationship something had separated them. At this time he was so happy, so good and sincere. And she missed him so much. But this Fitz was almost as lost to her as Coulson.

She hadn’t noticed how weirdly attached to her Ward had been the first time around. But now, when she was doing her utmost to spend as little time in the same room as him as possible, she found him extraordinary hard to escape.The realization of what was happening made her want to gag and she couldn’t help the shudder that passed through her.

Daisy found little time during the day to spend with May or Jemma, so her nights had been spent split between sneaking into the cockpit with May, or staying in her bunk with Jemma. The never seemed to find the opportunity to all come together at once, in secret. But the time they did find was absolutely vital, because Daisy knew that none of them could have made it without the support of the others. As normal and steady as they seemed during the day, in view of the guys, the truth was that this was tearing all of their hearts to pieces.  

As much as Daisy didn’t want to admit it, the longer they were there, the less she could deny that they were in the actual past and not some sort of simulation. A simulation would have made it all so much easier to deal with, because once they escaped it would be over and done. They wouldn’t have to deal with things the same way, since nothing about it would be real. But if it was real, she’d have to relive all her traumas once again, while also knowing that some small change could bring people back to life, or kill them. It was beyond terrifying.

She wished she could distract herself with training, but she wouldn’t be able to explain the sudden jump in skill. She found quiet moments here and there to do some, but nothing like she wanted. So instead she put everything she could into the search. But progress in that department was extremely slow.

But despite all that, the biggest struggle had been pushing down the growing ache and desperation within her, created by the loss of her powers. This wasn’t the first time she’d lost her powers, but it’d never been as complete as this, nor for as long. There had also been other things to focus on, constant danger and urgent missions. Now she was left with her mind, and time to waste. Despite their situation, there wasn’t actually any imminent danger and they couldn’t seclude themselves away in search for a solution. So Daisy was left with time for the feeling to fester and grow until she found she couldn’t keep pushing away the numbness.   

Despite her best efforts, she still found herself easily startled, unable to get over the instinct to rely on her sense of vibrations. She could no longer sense people long before they reached her. The world was dull and still. She couldn’t feel it like she should and it ate at her constantly.

It was late, sometime after midnight, and Daisy couldn’t sleep. She’d laid in bed for as long as she could, trying to ignore it, but even Jemma’s comforting presence couldn’t ground her the way she needed. So she’d headed to the kitchen area and prepared a cup of tea, from May’s hidden stash. She sat down at the counter and attempted some meditation to relax.

But, the world felt empty, numb. Daisy gripped the mug tight, rubbing her thumb back and forth across the smooth ceramic. How strange. Is this really what the world had felt like for over two decades of her life? She was holding the mug, could feel the texture under her fingertips.  And yet, there was nothing beyond that, just empty space, void nothingness where she saw the mug was.

At times she felt like she was floating, with nothing to ground her.

The beautiful harmony of the world had been silenced. The constant vibrations left far from her reach and suddenly nothing made sense. She couldn’t hear, couldn’t feel. How could people possibly live like this? It was almost suffocating, being confined to her physical body like this, unable to sense anything beyond the cage that was her skin.

A band tightened around her chest. Was she getting any air? She couldn’t feel it. She took deep gasping breaths. Why couldn’t she feel anything? She needed to feel something. Anything.

Please.

She staggered to her feet, the mug slipping from her grasp and shattering on the ground unnoticed. The silence of the night was the only witness to her panicked stumble to the cargo hold, where the exercise equipment lay. An older stereo sat in the corner. Her fingers clumsily shuffled through the CDs beside it to find something with lots of heavy base. She put it in, turning up the volume as loud as possible. The thumping music sent vibrations through the metal beneath her feet and the air. It traveled all the way to her lungs and breathing finally became a little easier. But it wasn’t enough.

She grabbed the boombox and brought it over to the punching bag. Setting it down next to her, so as the feel as much of the vibrations as possible, she started pounding on the bag. Each punch sent shock-waves through her arm, and through the bag. It felt good. Her knuckles scraped the rough leather over and over. Daisy failed to slow down or even notice when blood started dripping.Normally, when working with a punching bag, she’d wrap her hands, but right then, the idea of any padding between her and the vibrations made her sick. She needed every iota of feeling.

She kept at it for what must have been hours. She couldn’t stop. If she did, the numbness would return. But eventually exhaustion overcame fear, and the rapid strikes slowed until Daisy was left weakly leaning on the bag, tapping it with bruised and bloodied hands in a never ending rhythm. Her eyes ached to close, but every time they did, the dark nothingness of the world shot them right back open again.

That’s how May found her, bloodshot eyes staring at nothing, slipping down the bag to the ground, unable to hold up her own weight. She said nothing, gentle hands pulling Daisy away from the battered bag. Warm arms wrapped around her and picked her up. A quiet heartbeat thumped in her ear, and Daisy felt some small portion of her soul relax. Exhaustion tugged harder, but still she fought it.

As she felt herself being lowered into a soft bed, she ached at the incoming loss of warmth. But it didn’t pull away. Instead she heard a confused groan from Jemma, and felt May shuffle them all around until Daisy found herself leaning against May, Jemma tucked against her other side, their arms wrapped around her. And then, a vibration sounded through May’s chest, where Daisy’s head rested, a lullaby, at first hummed, then sung softly but beautifully.

Something within Daisy released, and finally her eyes slipped closed, succumbing to the draw of sleep.

Chapter Text

They all woke up the next morning later than they’d like. Coulson would probably notice May not up and practicing Tai Chi by the usual time. Daisy couldn’t help joking, “Oh no May, you slept in so late, it’s almost 6:30!” despite the fact that it was a genuine concern.

May just gave her one of her “mom looks”, but Jemma sleepily giggled before getting up and stretching.  She groaned, “That was not an appropriate long term sleeping position.” Jemma blinked as if just remembering what had happened that left them in that position, and turned to Daisy, concernedly looking her over. She gasped, “Oh your hands,” and snatched them before Daisy could pull away. She turned them over, examining the damage.

Daisy tugged her hands out of Jemma’s grasp. “I’m fine, just a few scrapes. The blood makes it look worse than it is.”

Jemma looked like she wanted to say more, but instead she sighed, “I suppose you’ve dealt with far worse on your own. But, make sure to properly clean and wrap them please?”

Relief flooded her when she realized neither of them were going to bring up the elephant in the room, why her hands were bloody and raw. Instead, May merely nodded her agreement, before getting down to business, “Jemma, you better return to your own bunk and get some more rest before anyone notices. Daisy, meet me in the common room in ten.”

May turned and left. Jemma waited a few moments before following her out. As soon as they were out of sight, Daisy fell back against the wall, rubbing her eyes, hoping to stave off the stress headache threatening to grow. She was grateful for the lack of questions. She didn’t know if she could explain her breakdown the night before. Something had just snapped and she couldn’t handle the emptiness anymore. The feeling hadn’t disappeared, but the comfort of her family had lessened it back into a manageable state for now. Daisy knew both of them understood on some level. They were all dealing with their own issues stemming from the situation.

She shook her head, hoping to clear of of the heavy thoughts, and quickly put herself back together before cleaning up and heading out to meet May. She heard voices as she walked closer. She stopped and stayed quietly out of sight when she recognized it to be Coulson talking to May.

“You’re getting started pretty late… I saw Skye with the punching bag last night.” Daisy winced. “She didn’t look good. What happened?”

He paused, but May stayed silent. Daisy could imagine her giving him one of her looks. She would have smiled at the thought, but the serious nature of the conversation dispelled any lightheartedness.

Coulson continued, “You carried her up to her bunk. Is she alright?”

May finally spoke, “She’s doing as well as can be expected.” Not a lie, but not really an answer either.

Coulson sounded frustrated as he replied, “May, what’s been going on? Everyone has been acting off since we rescued Ward and Fitz. Sure we had a bit of a scare, but even Simmon’s close call didn’t have this much of an impact. Something’s been up with you too, and I know it’s not worry. We both know they had it under control. What am I missing?”

Daisy was tense, unsure how May was going to answer. She contemplated interrupting, but decided to trust May to handle it. Her interjecting might just make the whole thing more complicated.

There was a moment of quiet as May thought through her answer. “It’s not my choice whether to tell you.”

Coulson let out a huff, before calmly saying, “Alright, I can accept that for now. But whose choice is it?”

Silence again.

This was probably as good a moment as any for Daisy to finally enter the room, acting as if she’d heard nothing. So she did. She turned the corner smiling, “Morning AC.”

May stood in the middle of a Tai Chi pose, a second mat beside her.  Daisy getting into Tai Chi again was a good idea. It was a way to calm the mind, something Daisy had desperately needed lately. It was also a good way to start building their relationship for everyone else.

Coulson’s body language went from tense, to purposefully relaxed as he turned towards her and greeted her. “Good morning Skye. How’d you sleep last night?” Well that was a pointed question.

She contemplated how honest she could be, since she knew he knew she hadn’t had a great night. “Didn’t have the best night. Bad dreams.” She shrugged. “A lot on my mind you know?”

She could see his scrutiny, and hesitance to leave it be. She must have been quite the sight the night before.

“I’m teaching her Tai Chi to help her control her thoughts and emotions. She can’t let them get the best of her on a mission,” May came in rather suddenly.

“Right. And it apparently has to happen astronomically early in the morning for unknown reasons,” Daisy groaned. Of course, Daisy was used to early mornings after years of training with May, but Coulson didn’t know that. She had enjoyed sleeping in during the previous week though. Skye had never been a morning person, so she’d taken advantage of that fact.

He looked at both of them, obviously having a silent conversation with May. May affirmed she knew what she was doing, and he conceded.

Giving them a small smile, he said, “I’m surprised she doesn’t have you up earlier. She’s usually rolling before the sun.”

“I thought I’d start her off easy.” May smirked. “Just this once.”

Daisy exaggerated her reaction, “This is easy!?”

Coulson chuckled quietly before leaving them to it. Daisy settled into her starting position, starting her breathing exercises, whispering, “He’s already suspicious.”

May nodded.

“What do you want to do? We are not going to be able to hide or deflect forever.”

“I think this is a discussion to have with Simmons included.”

“Ok,” Daisy sighed, somewhat reluctant to put it off.

They both relaxed into the motions and just breathed.

Chapter Text

Coulson didn’t know what to think. The whole team seemed to have been off ever since the rescue, but he couldn’t figure out why. Skye was avoiding him, but he would have assumed that had to do with the revelation about the agent who dropped her off at the orphanage, if it weren’t for the fact that Simmon’s seemed to be doing the same. Ward had come to him with concerns about Skye acting suspicious and flighty. That’s when he realized that she wasn’t avoiding just him. May was a longtime friend, someone he’d thought he could turn to, to work this strangeness out, but she was evasive, which could only mean she knew more than she said. And he couldn’t get that image of Skye’s bloodied hands out of his mind. That had scared him. A lot .

Phil pondered his dilemma as he sipped a cup of tea late at night. This was not the kind of issue he had been expecting with his team a couple weeks ago. There had been issues, but fairly straightforward ones. He decided sitting around avoiding sleep wasn’t helping anything, so he got up to head to his bunk. A strange noise echoed from behind May’s door as he passed beside it. 

What was that?

Stilling, and carefully edging closer, he caught the sound of voices through the door.

“I didn’t mean to. I’m sorry. Mack  nononono.. I’m sorry. I promise I never wanted to hurt anyone. No nononono” the voice trembled as it spoke, not quite sounding all there. A nightmare? But who..

“Daisy, it’s alright! Mack’s fine, you didn’t hurt anyone. It was just a dream.” The British accent was discernible. Simmons, but why did she call Skye Daisy? . “May, I don’t think I’m helping, she’s not calming down.”

“I promise I just wanted to help. I didn’t want to h-urt them. I didn’t mean to. I’m sorry. I’m the reason Andrew’s dead May. I killed them- Death follows wherever I go... --”

May’s voice softly replied, too quiet to understand, and Coulson stood frozen. Nothing was making sense. What had happened? What were the three of them doing together at this late at night? He trusted May enough to not barge in on what appeared to be a very bad time, but he wasn’t going to sit idly by forever. Someone was going to explain what on earth was happening on his plane and in his team, and soon .

Breakfast only brought further confusion, as the three women acted perfectly normal and distant with each other. There were no indications of Skye apparently sleeping in May’s room long enough to have a nightmare, in fact Coulson almost found himself doubting the whole incident. He would have, if it had been an isolated incident. As it was though, it fit perfectly in the strange puzzle he found himself struggling through. The picture was still incomprehensible, but the pieces were starting to fit. The strange happenings were centered on May, Skye, and Simmons, and it had started sometime at the Hub. 

He turned from the stove, to glance at the women in question, “Anyone up for another pancake?”

Skye grinned, “I’m always up for a Coulson Original Pancake.”

It was at that moment that Phil found himself witness to the strangest reaction he’d seen in response to Agent Ward walking into a room. Yet, he knew he would have missed the full extent of it if he hadn’t already been hyper aware of his team. Skye’s facial expression didn’t change in the slightest, but her face turned a few degrees lighter. Simmons’ face, in opposition, gained a hint of flush. The thing that caught and kept his attention however, was May’s reaction. It was expertly hidden, as only Melinda May could achieve, but Phil Coulson knew May better than he knew anyone. Her eyes glinted with anger sharp as steel. Her arm shifted slightly towards Skye, but the table hid the full action from view. Phil held her gaze for a full second before shifting his focus to Ward, trying to determine the origin of the tense emotions flowing under the surface. Ward remained oblivious, as he tiredly trudged to the counter to pick up a plate of food, without so much as a “Good Morning” to the room’s other occupants.

Simmons' chipper voice belied none of the calculating intent underneath as she spoke up, “Oh Skye! Fitz and I came up with the most brilliant idea last night! We were talking about your noise filtering program, and wanted to run some ideas by you. Want to head to the lab and get a head start on that?”

“Sure, sounds interesting, I think I'm actually done anyway. Sorry AC.” Their retreat was swift and surprisingly subtle.

May remained behind, and breakfast continued as if nothing had happened. 

Strange incident number three of the day happened late in the afternoon. The team had been tasked to help clean up after Thor, and the task proved rather simple, if time consuming. He’d only meant to step out to get the lay of the surrounding rooms when he heard Simmons’ choked up voice coming from around a corner. 

“Mom, you aren’t going to get me embarrassed by those kinds of jokes any more. I know that Fitz is the one for me, despite how stupidly oblivious I used to be. I guess I just had a breakthrough. I wish you could have seen some of the heroic things he’s capable of, He’d do anything for me. And I, for him. I Love Him. I just wish it was as easy as just telling h-” Her words were cut off by a quiet sob. Simmons’ parents' reply was impossible to hear through the phone, but it made the agent cry even harder. “I miss you both so much, you have no idea. So much has happened, and it feels like it’s been so much longer than a few months.” 

Phil Coulson backed away silently, recognizing a private moment, but something about the moment remained with him. He couldn’t put his finger on it, but her words and actions were somehow slightly off, different from what he would have expected. 

I wish you could have seen… the heroic things… he’d do anything… wish it was as easy as just telling him.

While Fitz had certainly shown great drive and courage in the last couple missions, saving both Simmons and Ward respectively, Simmons hadn’t actually been around for most of it. Also, what was holding her back from confessing her love? She certainly hadn’t been shy about how much Fitz cared for her. 

The puzzle only got more confusing, the more pieces he discovered.

Chapter Text

“I don’t suppose you could tell me why Agent Simmons is unwilling to tell Fitz her true feelings?”

May had known it was only a matter of time before Phil started pushing harder for answers. They’d slipped up a few too many times, and he wasn’t naive. His questions lately had gotten more suspicious and specific, but she couldn’t say she had expected him to start quite like this. He’d asked her to meet him privately in his office, before opening the interrogation cold with that.

“Why do you expect me to be able to answer that?” she inquired tonelessly, “What does that have to do with anything?”

“I figured out who on the team is involved in this secret, but nothing about the hows, whys, or whats are making any sense. The puzzle pieces fit together to create an incomprehensible hogwash, but they still fit! And somehow the relationships between every person on this plane are central to it. I could have sworn Skye was attracted to Ward, until just recently when that appears to have shifted into repulsion. I thought Simmons was entirely oblivious to the romantic tension with her best friend, but then I hear her blatantly discuss her undying love for him with the understanding that he feels the same way, without embarrassment.” May wondered when on earth that could have happened. “And you.” Her heart stopped. She couldn’t go through his distrust and feelings of betrayal once again. It didn’t matter that this might not be her Phil. She couldn’t. “I thought we were partners. I thought we trusted each other, but lately all I’ve gotten from you are excuses and avoidances.” His voice rose in pitch slowly as he unloaded all his confusion and frustrations. 

“The situation is more complicated that I can even fully understand, Phil. You aren’t wrong. Things have changed. I promise you that the three of us are just as loyal and willing to help as we’ve always been. We aren’t your enemies. Feelings just change sometimes.”

“That’s not an answer Melinda. That’s a walk around placebo.” His frustration was evident in his tense posture.

She had to think about how to word this. “It’s not as simple as deciding whether I trust Phil Coulson. We’ve had to be careful, and assess the risk before bringing you on board with the situation. We haven’t done anything to hinder this team, so let me go talk to the others. This is not my decision to make alone. Extend me a little trust, Phil.”

“You, are staying put. I will go grab the other two, and you will discuss this with me.” 

She sighed internally. “Fine.” It was better than after finding the line to Director Fury. At least he was willing to hear them out. 

He left, and returned a few minutes later with two confused and concerned looking women not far behind him. He held the door open for them. “Get in here, now.”

They were quick to follow orders, watching him with wide eyed nerves. May remained outwardly stoic, as she exchanged quick glances with both of them. 

“I’m so sorry sir, did something happen? Why did you call us all here?” Simmons rambled nervously.

“Someone is going to tell me what is going on with you three, and I am no longer taking no for an answer, so help me-” Breathing deep, he tried to reign in his agitation. He looked lost, having no clue what to make of them. May couldn’t blame him. Their team may be desensitized to utter nonsense in the future, but she remembered what it felt like to experience chaotic whatzits for the first time. At the very least, this meant LMDs were not something that would occur to him as a concern yet. 

Skye was the first to react, her face a perfect picture of genuine bafflement. “What do you mean AC? Did something happen?”

“Look, I may not know exactly what is going on, but I know enough to know that you three are at the center of it.” He turned to her. “May, please.”

She nodded. “Alright.”

Daisy and Jemma’s heads whipped to look at her, eyes searching. They knew immediately what she was thinking. They spoke over each other. “Are you sure?” “Do you trust him?”

“As sure as I can be, considering everything.”

It was as if a switch had been flipped. Daisy and Jemma sobered up, appearing to gain decades of maturity within seconds. Gone was the nervous fidgeting, the confusion, and joking smiles, the masks of inexperience. In their place stood two hardened and weary soldiers who had seen far too much. Phil stood stunned into silence. Daisy sat down heavily beside her, Jemma quick to follow.  

“Ok.” Daisy sighed. “Ok, I trust Coulson too. I think he’s the real deal.”

Jemma nodded. “We’re not exactly who you think we are.”

Coulson took a quick step back.

Daisy groaned, “That was exactly the wrong way to start Jemma! Seriously?!” She held up a hand placatingly. “That isn’t what it sounded like. We are still Melinda May, Jemma Simmons, and me. We’re just not the Simmons, May, and I that you were talking to a couple weeks ago. Or, I guess we were. I mean, I remember talking to you back then? It’s just a little blurry, it’s been a few years for me.”

May cut straight to the point. “We’re from the future.”

Coulson blinked. “You’re… from the future.”

“Yep.” Daisy chirped. 

“How far exactly?”

Jemma rubbed her temples. “That is a good question actually. When do you guys think we were when the monolith grabbed us? 2018? I don’t even know how long our trip to the future took, minutes, months? Time travel is too confusing.”

Daisy shrugged. “Don’t look at me, I don’t even know when the last time I looked at a calendar was.”

“Over 5 years from now.” The technicalities didn’t matter at the moment. 

Phil sat down across from them, his eyes flickering between all three of them, seemingly unable to focus on one thing. He wanted to believe them, it was obvious, but he didn’t know how. 

“I’d ask you to prove you are really who you say you are, but I’ve already been putting May to the test this last week.” She’d noticed, but hadn’t commented. His gaze settled on Daisy. “You’re the same people, from the future.” He let out a choked laugh. “I suppose that explains the Fitzsimmons love drama.”

Jemma stiffened. “What?”

“He knows you know about Fitz’s feelings, and that you reciprocate them,” May tried to explain gently. The girl’s breathing stuttered anyway. She shifted to comfort her, but Daisy was faster, scooping her into a side hug. 

His gaze softened, recognizing the topic was sensitive for her. “But what did Ward do?”

They all went pale at that, but Daisy visibly jerked back, accidentally tugging Jemma with her. May could only watch as she started spiraling. 

“You noticed that? Were we that obvious??” Her voice was high and panicked. “What if he noticed too? This is bad, this is so bad. What if he figures it out? What if HE finds out?”

Jemma was squeezing her tight, murmuring quietly, trying to bring her back to the present.

“I’m a liability! I’m dangerous! I can’t-” she gasped for breath “I can’t-” Her words dissolved into incomprehensible mutterings and gasps.

May felt sick. She’d known that Daisy hadn’t been having the best time for a while now, but she hadn’t realized just how much everything, especially Hive, was still weighing on her. Nightmares were one thing. This level of panic about the mere idea of Ward having that information in his brain? A completely different beast. 

She instinctively turned to Phil for support, before catching sight of his pale expression of baffled horror. A feeling of static spread through her body. Right, he had no idea what was going on. They were all relying on her right now. She took the shaking agent from Jemma.

“Daisy. Even if he did somehow figure it out, I am going to kill him long before Hive is even a concern. Daisy, look at me.” She did. “Then we are going to nuke that stupid planet and kill him before he even steps foot on earth. You are never going to be used as a weapon by anyone ever again.” 

Daisy stared at her with tears in her eyes. May was reminded of how young this girl actually was. She never should have had to deal with any of the bull that they had been through in the first place. Daisy’s voice was quiet as she asked, “You promise?”

“I do.”

Daisy broke down crying this time; the hyperventilation making way for silent sobs. Even at this level of overwhelmed, Daisy was quiet in her pain. May was fairly certain Phil no longer had any doubts that they were telling the truth, but likely had a million more questions than he started with. He knew enough to know that it was no longer the time to ask them. May was so grateful for his empathetic nature. He remained quiet as Jemma and her held Daisy close, and let her fall apart. 

The girl may not have known it, but the youngest agent on the team had been the only one that had been holding the rest of them together this entire time. Daisy’s own breakdowns may have happened, but they had been few and far between comparatively. She had been the one to help May keep pressing forward, as she dealt with Coulson, and she knew that Jemma felt the same way with Fitz. She was a rock of support whenever either of them felt overwhelmed with their own trauma, even before the monolith. May was only relieved whenever Daisy allowed her to do the same in return.