They Are the Hunters We Are the Foxes
Daisy sees red as she lifts both her hands up at Coulson, her powers bleeding into her, screaming for release. How dare he. She lets go, the image of Cal being in so much pain not once but twice fueling her. No one on the plane sees what's coming next. Faster than a bullet, before the first wave hits Coulson, Ward is there, and pushes him out of the way. Daisy doesn't have time to register what he's done until it's too late. There was hate and anger and pain in that strike, something black and dark that Ward never should experience, ever. She gets over the shock pretty quickly, screams his name, sprints to where he is crumpled to the ground.
Oh god oh god oh god oh god he has to be okay, he has to be how could she do that? Why would he be so stupid? ''Grant?'' She falls on her knees next to his head, his eyes are open and blinking, chest rising and falling with his breath. He's alive. ''Remind me the full extent of your powers next time I piss you off, okay?'' She pulls his head in her lap, runs her fingers through his scalp. She's crying, glad he's okay but also angry at herself for hurting him. ''Are you okay?'' ''I'm fine''. ''What the hell is wrong with you? Why would you do something so stupid?" Mack joins her and together they help him up.
He seems fine, will have bruises in the morning. But he's an expert on hiding things, secrets, injuries. Outwardly he looks perfecty normal, no limp, no expression of pain or discomfort. She's used her powers on him before, but never so severely. Coulson is standing in front of them shocked, mouth hanging open. As soon as Daisy rises Lincoln and Coulson both have ICERs trained on her, before either of them are prepared for it Grant pulls his gun out. They all know which shot will go off first. ''Put them down''. Lincoln is the first to crack, Coulson follows.
No one speaks as Mack and Daisy help Ward to her bunk, ignore his protests as he tries to tell them over and over that he's fine. ''Take off your shirt''. She demands as soon as Mack leaves the room. He's about to make a cocky remark but she cuts him off. ''Just shut up and do it''. He obeys, she observes his face for a wince at pain, but there is none. ''There's no way you can't be hurt, you were slammed into a steel wall''. ''I've had worse Skye. Really I'm fine'''. She runs her hands over his skin, his back is red, but otherwise he seems unharmed. She buries her face in between his spine and neck and cries.
''I'm so sorry''. ''Coulson deserved it''. ''Then why did you push him out of the way?'' ''I saw the look in your eyes, I told you a long time ago there's too much history between you and him. You couldn't kill him if you wanted to, tonight you were. And you'd hate yourself if you did, I didn't want you to suffer like that''. She pushes him back onto the bed gently until he's lying on his stomach and she's leaning over him. Kisses every single inch of skin on his broad back. No one on the plane sees them until the next morning.
''Skye''. No response. ''Skye, wake up''. ''No''. She turns away from Ward and throws the blanket over her head. He's already dressed and freshly showered, leaning over her, she can't see his playful smirk. He trails his hand slowly over her hip, cups the back of her neck. His other hand pulls the blanket off, he's met with her palm smacking his chest. ''If it's five in the morning I am going to kill you''. ''One of my contacts called me this morning, says he saw your Mom in California last week''. She's up in a rush, pulling clothes out of her bag and starting the shower.
''When did he call you?'' ''A few minutes ago''. ''Did you tell Coulson?'' ''Not yet''. ''Good''. She's brushing her teeth when he comes into the bathroom, slips his palm on her naked waist. ''Are you okay?'' She stayed up half the night worried that he's in pain, that he can't breathe or sleep because she hurt him. ''I told you last night I was fine''. She gets in the shower while he sits on the counter, she asks him who is contact was and the exact day he saw Jiaying. ''We need a plan not including Shield, I don't trust them anymore''. ''Agreed''. ''Coulson has never been this, this heartless before''.
Mack is the only one they can find on the plane, he's in the kitchen with a fresh cup of coffee when they leave the bunk. ''Morning''. ''Hey''. ''Where is everyone?'' ''Lincoln is still sleeping, May and Coulson are in his office''. ''Avoiding Ward''. ''Probably, you okay man? I've seen first hand what Daisy can do and that wasn't pretty''. ''I'm fine''. Ward gets him and Daisy coffee while she joins Mack at the table.
''Daisy I didn't know about Cal''. ''I know you didn't''. ''Because I would have told you the second I''- ''I know, thank you''. ''I can't believe Coulson did that. He went through hell in T.A.H.I.T.I. why would he want to inflict that on another person? Not once but twice''. ''Took the words right out of my mouth partner''. ''There's been talk around the Playground, whispers really that Coulson needs to step down''. ''Well I'd agree with them. How bad is it Mack?'' The man shakes his head. ''Bad. Bobbi and Hunter barely made it out of a mission a couple weeks ago, Coulson didn't send an extraction team. May and I had to go pick them up''. ''That happened to Fitz and Ward once''. At the mention of Fitz, Ward winces next to her.
''Fitz misses you, you know''. Mack tells Ward, watches the guilt and anger at himself spread out on his face. Daisy takes his hand under the table. ''You saved his life on the other planet, I think he forgave you for everything when that happend''. Daisy watches Ward absorb the information, his face is devoid of emotion. He doesn't comment and Daisy switches topics. ''Why didn't Coulson send a team to get them?'' ''Claimed it was too dangerous, but it seemed fine to me when I got them''. ''What did May say about it?'' ''Nothing, she'll follow Coulson to his grave you know that''.
Daisy takes a sip of her coffee, chokes when Mack tells her about Joey. ''Coulson sent him alone on a mission, guess he thought he could handle it. Got himself shot almost a dozen times''. Before Daisy can have a full blown melt down Mack quickly tells her that's how they found out he was bullet proof. ''My point is that maybe the other agents are right, maybe we need a new Director''. ''Coulson won't step down''. ''He might not have a choice''. Ward notices a shadow coming down the stairs and tells them to stop talking.
Phil takes one look at Ward and scowls. ''If you expect me to say thank you about yesterday, don't hold your breath''. ''I don't expect a thing from you Coulson''. ''Good''. The mug in Coulson's hand shatters, his fingers are bleeding. ''I will never forgive you for what you did to Cal''. ''Daisy''- She holds her palm up. ''When we land in California Ward and I are leaving, we'll find Jiaying on our own, we don't need Shield''. That's part of the plan her and Ward came up with this morning, she can't stay here if this is how Coulson is going to handle things.
''Daisy I didn't have to tell you about Jiaying, we could have found her eventually without you. I did it because she's your Mother and you deserve to know. And now you're going to abandon us again? I admit what I did to Cal was out of line, but I had no choice, I didn't want him to remember that day in Mexico. He should of continued on with his life unharmed, and now he is''. ''You put him in that machine without my consent! I asked you to do it the first time because he needed a fresh start, a new life where he didn't know that he murdered his wife and countless other people! There was no reason to put him through that a second time''.
''He remembered you''. Daisy's world stops turning. Her lungs cut off all the oxygen, her heart stops beating, blood stops flowing. ''What?'' She doesn't remember standing up or moving closer to Coulson but suddenly she is. ''When I went to see him after Ward dropped him off, he knew who I was. He demanded to see you, wanted to know if you were safe. He was suffering Daisy, in agony. Screaming for you, for Jiaying for his family''- ''Coulson that's enough''. Grant's voice is deadly calm and quiet, it stops Coulson instantly.
Daisy is shaking, tears on her face, her expression shocked and hurt. She says nothing as Ward turns her away and into his arms, she holds him tightly, he supports her weight as she cries into his shirt. Daisy doesn't remember ever being this emotional, maybe it's Shield and the way they seem to be destroying everything lately. Or maybe it's because she finally has a support system that's solid and real and unbreakable that she can finally express herself openly. Their days at Hydra were filled with revenge and blood, not a lot of time for tears unless it's late at night.
And having a year together, really together under their belts, just being themselves and with each other, he is her wall of strength and she is his. So he strokes her hair, whispers pointless things in her ear until the sobs subside. ''Daisy I'm sorry''. ''Just let me the hell off this plane''. That's all she says before leaving the room. No one bothers her for the next several hours as she takes out her emotions on the punching bag. ''I'm going with you''. Mack tells her when May lands, Ward is standing in the cargo bay behind her, bags strung over his shoulders.
''Mack I can't ask you to do that''. ''I volunteered, we're in this together partner, I'm not leaving you''. She hugs him because Mack has always been there for her. May comes down the stairs and hugs Daisy also. ''Be careful, call me if you need help''. ''Thank you''. She looks at Ward and says, ''Take care of her''. ''You know I will''. ''May can you tell Lincoln bye for me?'' ''Of course''. They're about to walk out when May calls out, ''I'm sorry about Cal. I didn't know''. Daisy believes her and winks at the Calvary before taking Ward's hand.
Grant's friend turns out to be an old Hydra agent still loyal to him, Daisy remembers him. His name is Albert and he meets them at a mexican restaurant a few hours after Coulson has dropped them off. Daisy is stuffing herself with chips guacamole and tequila, she'll regret it in the morning but right now she couldn't care. She needs a drink after everything that's happened the last few days. ''It's good to see you again Sir, you too Daisy''. ''Hey Albert''. Albert is a big burly man, brute strength and dark eyes. He used to jump through hoops for Ward.
Daisy pulls out a picture from her back pocket and shows it to him. ''So you've seen this woman?'' ''Last week like I told the Director. I was downtown and she passed by me, most beautiful woman I've ever seen, besides you Daisy''. Ward doesn't find the comment funny and Albert is quickly tripping over his words. ''Was she with anyone else?'' ''No''. ''Was she in a rush? Did she look stressed?'' ''No, looked normal to me''. Daisy writes down exactly where he was and makes a map on her phone for all the surrounding houses in the area.
Daisy is on her third margarita when Ward tells her she should take it easy, she responds by chugging it down and drinking the rest of Mack's. When the meeting is over and Grant is confident in the information Albert has provided, they leave. ''Ward give me a piggy back ride''. Daisy is good and drunk at this point, cheeks flushed, eyes glazed. He does, she plants her face in his neck and runs her lips over his skin.
When the reach the hotel Ward booked she's out, he lays her on the mattress and strips her of her jacket, shoes and socks. ''We'll find her Skye, I promise''. Her eyes flutter open long enough to tell him she loves him, and then she's snoring into her pillow. He turns off all the lights, closes the curtain and curls up next to her. He's out within minutes too. They will find her Mom, and he will get them both home in one piece. Failure is not an option, it's never even been in Grant Ward's vocabulary. And it never will.