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“I did?” Fitz finally managed to say.

Mack and Simmons nodded enthusiastically, huge smiles on their faces.

“Yes, Fitz. You did.” Simmons said, her joy infusing her words.

“And if you stutter every now and then, don’t worry about it. You’re making great progress.” Mack added.

Fitz blushed and fumbled for words. “I…I don’t know what to say…”

“How about further explaining why you thought Ward was telling the truth?” Simmons said gently. “Something about feelings for Skye?”

“Yes, and um…” Fitz pinched the bridge of his nose. “Ward had some feelings for Skye. I’m honestly surprised you didn’t notice Jemma, the way he was looking at her. So, when Garrett had the machine talk about Skye dying, it would have…pushed a button for Ward. No orders necessary.”

“Garrett used Ward just as much as he used us.” Simmons said quietly. Fitz nodded.

“Do you think Ward knows that now?” Mack asked.

“Perhaps…”

“At least he would be figuring it out. I think he and Palamas were sort of like…therapists for each other. Only there was real empathy between them, not just sympathy.” Fitz explained. “And now that he’s with Skye, and Palamas is here with us, they have different people to bounce their thoughts off. And it’s probably better off that way. Ward being here instead of Palamas would end up with him back in Vault D. Whereas Skye…barely knows Palamas, so on her own with her wouldn’t inspire the greatest of confidences.”

“Because Ward and Palamas have a lot more in common.” Simmons added. “And it was a life or death situation, so I suppose that would bring even Ward and I to a mutual understanding, at least.” She continued, thinking about herself in the same situation.

Mack smiled to himself, pleased at how well the two scientists were getting along.

“There would be a difference, though.” Fitz wondered out loud.

“With how they open up? Ward loves Skye, and she loves him, they’ve made that pretty clear. So talking won’t be a problem.” Simmons was enjoying the increasing lack of restriction between herself and Fitz, so kept trying to fully analyse every angle of Ward’s actions.

“Depends on your definition of ‘talking’.” Mack said quietly, not intending for her to hear, but failing as she gave him a look of Really?

“And Palamas…”

“Palamas only came here for Skye. Or so she told us. I don’t think she would have appreciated being a third wheel.” Fitz finished her trail of thought, overlapping a little, but their faces lit up as they tried to fit back together, both of them finally on the same page.

“Oh! Do you think Palamas would be more willing to tell us what she went through if we found a way to get the broken mask off of her face?” Simmons babbled on, euphoric.

Fitz smiled widely. “Yeah…yeah that might work.” He glanced at Mack, who smiled and nodded encouragingly.

“Well, if you could find out the calibrations for the mask, I could decipher the difference between what attached with her skin and what is her skin.”

“That way we could calculate the recalibrations we need to release the hold the electrical surge made to the mask.”

“And perhaps you could figure out what the voltage of the electricity was when she was fighting May. That way I can see where the frayed edges of the mask are and where her skin is actually burned. Perhaps I can create something using my knowledge of GH325 to help that part of her heal.”

“Brilliant deduction, Dr. Watson.”

Simmons laughed in delight at the newfound chemistry between them. They knew they could never go back to who they were, but they were starting to reconnect. That was something.

“Well, why don’t you go ask her about it?” Mack encouraged.

“Right.” Simmons said brightly, beaming at both the men in front of her. “Shall we?”

“We shall.” Fitz replied, leading her down the Bus’ ramp.

Mack watched them babble on and waited until they were out of the hangar before punching the air in triumph.

“Were you trying to set that up from the beginning?” Hunter asked, moving out of the doorway from the main living area of the Bus.

“No. But I wasn’t going to stop them. They need that dynamic.”

Hunter raised his hands. “Don’t get me wrong, I completely agree with you. But you know, out of all people, that letting go of anger and hate towards others is the first step to moving forward.”

Mack chuckled. “And that’s why I brought up the subject.”

Hunter inclined his head pointedly. “I heard Fitz say something about brainwashing.”

“He was talking about Ward.” Mack moved back to the SUV, sliding into the driver’s seat.

“Do you think the guy was brainwashed?” Hunter pressed, leaning against the frame of the open window.

Mack sighed and let his hand hang over the edge of the wheel. “To some extent. Enough to make him remain loyal to Garrett, but I think that mad bastard knew that Ward needed to be able to make his own decisions in certain situations.”

“He followed orders without thinking twice, but…” he trailed off as Mack shook his head.

“Nah, he definitely thought twice. But it seems to me that Ward is the type of guy who believes in the goodness of people. He probably thought that Garrett had something decent up his sleeve once he was sure that he wasn’t gonna die.”

“Ah.”

“You should probably talk to Bobbi about this. I gotta put this back.” Mack patted the steering wheel and drove out of the cargo hold, Hunter left standing there, confused.

“Phil, I know that as Director, you’re entitled to keeping things secret–”

“Oh, good.”

“But I need to know what you and Agent Palamas talked to Fitz about.” May continued, balling her fists at Coulson’s calmness towards the subject.

“May, we’ve talked about this.” Coulson replied, turning to face her as they reached a crossroads in the maze of corridors snaking around the base. “What Agent Palamas had to discuss was between her and Fitz. She requested that I remain for Fitz’s benefit.”

“And you’re certain that nothing she said could have harmed him in any way?”

Coulson opened his mouth to answer when the sound of babbling accents interrupted.

“…if we could figure out the voltage of the light in that hotel room–” said the Scottish voice.

“–we could figure out how much damage was done to the mask, and consequently, Agent Palamas’ face.” The English accent finished for him.

“Do you think we could get an escort to go back there to check?”

“I doubt it, Fitz. Hydra knows the location, and knows we know it. We could ask May, she was hit with the voltage repeatedly…oh hello May, Sir.” she added brightly as the pair caught sight of the Director and his Deputy.

“What were you just talking about?” Coulson queried.

FitzSimmons glanced at each other before Simmons spoke.

“Well, we were thinking that perhaps for Agent Palamas to feel like she can trust us–”

“–we could find way to remove the…mask.” Fitz was suddenly unsure about talking so freely.

Coulson and May looked at each other, shocked and delighted.

“That’d be great, guys.” Coulson said, facing the scientists again.

“What do you need?” May asked, a smile sneaking its way onto her face.

“Firstly we’d need Agent Palamas’ permission.” Simmons started.

“Then we’d need to know the…voltage of the light that you used to fuse the mask onto her face.” Fitz continued, gaining more confidence as neither of the senior agents discouraged him.

“And also, the calibrations of the mask itself, to determine the difference between it and her skin.”

“The voltage wasn’t very high. Probably just standard. It did more damage to Palamas because of the current already in the mask acting as a booster.” May said.

“A catalyst.”

“It’s an excellent idea, FitzSimmons. You should find Agent Palamas before you do anything about it, make sure she’s on board.” Coulson encouraged. “Off you go.”

“Yes, Sir.” they chorused and hurried away, whispering excitedly.

May watched them go, and turned back to Coulson, tears in her eyes and a joyous smile gracing her face. “What did Palamas say to him? He’s almost the same old Fitz.”

“I’m not sure it’s entirely Palamas.” Hunter joined in as he walked over. “They were talking to Mack about Ward.”

“How would that help?!” May’s happiness was cut short at the mere mention of Ward’s name. “He’s the one who damaged Fitz!”

“You’d be surprised, Agent May, at how much positive progress can be made when you let go of negative emotions.” He continued casually, moving past before he got into too much trouble.

Grant had only just returned to his self-designated station outside the dressing room that Skye had occupied when she flung another garment over the door and hit him square in the face.

“Skye.” He growled out, pulling the knee length lilac dress off of his head.

“Grant.” She mocked, using the same gruff tone. “It’s for the ‘keep’ pile.” She added in her normal voice.

He sighed and draped it over his arm, adding it to three more outfits she chosen. “How many more?”

“A couple.” At Grant’s loud groan of disappointment, Skye pursed her lips. “You were the one who suggested shopping.”

“For a few outfits! I thought we’d take ten minutes each, but you’ve used up half an hour and only chosen four sets!”

“You have obviously never gone shopping with a woman who loves the luxury of spending sprees.”

“Well, you’ve got that right.” He grumbled, but she heard him.

Opening the door to the changing room, Skye stepped out, wearing a tight fitting bright pink dress. Grant’s blinked rapidly as he caught sight of her. Then he shook his head.

“No. You’d draw too much attention.”

“Why’s that?”

“One, its bright pink. Anyone could spot it from a mile off.”

Skye scoffed, but Grant wasn’t finished.

“And two, you’d catch the eye of everyone in that.”

She was silent for a while, just looking at him. “Grant, I have never gone shopping like this. I only got my clothes from op shops, or when I stole them. I just want to feel like a normal woman, the kind they portray everywhere. The kind that doesn’t have the problems that I have, like Hydra and S.H.I.E.L.D.”

“The ones that have spoilt kids and cheating husbands.”

“I would never have spoilt kids. And the cheating is entirely on the husband’s shoulders, if that’s the case.”

Grant smirked, gazing at Skye with an adoring expression. “I understand. There’s a lot we missed out on. But we gotta get moving.”

“Fine.” She replied sullenly, turning back to the dressing room. “I don’t think I want that last outfit anyway.”

Dancing on the inside, Grant said in a spur of the moment decision, “We can get a couple of pairs of shoes as well.”

“Love you!” came the reply from the stall, clearly happier. He just smiled.

“Again!” the women chorused, facing down each other as they sparred on the mats in the training centre. They grinned, then attacked.

Opening the door, Hunter witnessed Bobbi and Kara execute perfect hand-to-hand combat skills, countering each other’s attempts with moves of their own. Leaning against a suspended punching bag, he waited for Bobbi to be available and admired the resilience and technique of both women’s fighting styles.

After seven and a half minutes of flying hair and skin hitting skin, Kara managed to pin down Bobbi by placing one hand on her throat and the other pressed into her diaphragm. Panting slightly, Bobbi nodded once and Kara got up slowly. Hunter started applauding, gaining the attention of both agents.

“I have never seen anyone take down Bobbi like that. Bravo.”

“Not even May?” Kara asked, curious.

“Not like that.” Hunter replied, his ‘impressed’ smile accompanied by a glint in his eye.

“It doesn’t give you license to start anything like what you’re thinking of, Hunter.” Bobbi said firmly, rolling to her feet and standing to face him.

He barely had enough time to give her a look of shocked hurt at how she could possibly think that of him when the door to the training centre flew open and FitzSimmons rushed in, excitement rolling off them in waves.

“Agent Palamas, we need to ask you an important question.” Simmons blurted out before she’d even gotten her breath back.

“How badly do you want that mask off?” Fitz followed up, just as quickly.

Kara blinked. “Ah…pretty badly.”

“Oh, good!” Simmons beamed.

“We think we know how to remove it.” Fitz said, grinning proudly from ear to ear.

Kara readjusted her footing on the mat she was standing on as she gazed at the scientists, hope and disbelief sparkling in her eyes.

“We’d like to measure the calibrations of the mask, to get it to unattach itself from your skin, if possible.” Simmons continued when several moments went by with Kara not making a sound. “Kara?” she asked tentatively.

“Ah, thank you.” Kara managed to say, starting a little at Simmons calling her by her first name. “I-”

“No need to thank us ‘til we’ve managed to do it.” Fitz cut across her stammering.

Kara’s eyes started to well up with tears and she looked towards Hunter. Smiling, he gestured towards FitzSimmons as an indication for her to go with them. Swallowing, she nodded and strode forward, following the pair who led her out of the room.

“You didn’t look surprised.” Bobbi commented, looking cautiously at Hunter.

He shrugged. “I overheard them in the Bus discussing the possibilities for helping her.” He pushed off the punching bag and walked slowly towards Bobbi. “It seems Ward presented them with an opportunity to work together like they used to. Indirectly, I suppose.”

“Solving a problem? Or letting go of anger?” she asked knowingly.

“Both. They’ve grown from who they were. Their dynamic should be stronger than ever once they realise that they haven’t lost everything between them.”

Bobbi nodded.

“You ever notice a similarity?” Hunter asked out of the blue.

“Between who?”

“Ward and Bakshi.” He came to a stop in front of her.

Bobbi gave him a weird look. “How so?”

“In their relationships with their leaders.”

“As in Bakshi and Whitehall, and Ward and Garrett?” She gave a non-committal shrug. “What’s your point?”

“Come on, Bobbi. You have Bakshi pegged.” Hunter wandered over to the bench and sat down. “Go over what you know about him.”

“Why?”

“Humour me.”

Bobbi huffed. “Fine.” Turning away, she started pacing. “He grew up on the street, parents weren’t around, did petty crime, went into the military, washed out, refined his accent, still struggles on the t’s.” She stopped and looked at him. “Where’s the similarities? Aside from the military.”

“The crime part. Bakshi did petty, Ward went all out with GTA and attempted arson and murder. It wasn’t the part I was referring to, though.”

“Then what were you referring to?”

“How they saw the guys who led them. What happened between Bakshi and Whitehall?”

Bobbi crossed her arms and looked upward vaguely as she thought back to what she’d figured out about the man still imprisoned in Vault D. “Bakshi didn’t trust him at first, but Whitehall had the upper hand. Gave him a chance…a way out of the situation he’d found himself in, I guess.” She looked back at Hunter, understanding and realisation sparking in her eyes.

“Now you’re getting it.” he observed smugly. “Carry on.”

“Whitehall become his saviour, sort of. Showed some belief in him. Bakshi had never had that before…and neither did Ward. You know, I’m impressed with how good of person Ward is. His only downfall was a trait that’s only negative in certain circumstances. He’s unbelievably loyal.”

Hunter just smiled. Sowing the seeds. I miss that kick-ass agent.

“And well, with both Garrett and Whitehall being Hydra…”

“I don’t think Garrett was loyal to Hydra.”

“Then who was he loyal to? Himself?” she scoffed. He didn’t answer. “How do you know this?”

“Through Mack. He talked to Mike Peterson. Ward was talking to Garrett about the coup they were planning once Garrett was saved, and he kept glancing over at Mike.”

“Making sure that he was prepared for whatever was gonna happen.” She continued, seeing where he was going.

“Or warning the team. He knew Skye would have hacked the system once they found the computer in the barbershop basement, finding Mike’s handler’s line would’ve been a piece of cake.”

“And they would’ve had more than just Hydra to worry about.” Bobbi sighed, slightly impressed at how far Ward actually went to bring down a man who was spiralling into insanity.

“Anyway, back to Bakshi.” Hunter urged.

“What else is there to say? I mean, we know the guy had some rough deals in life, and didn’t handle them all too well.”

“There was something Bakshi said when you mentioned brainwashing for the first time.”

“He said, ‘I’m not one of those fanatics Hydra controls.’” Bobbi strode over to sit next to her ex-husband. “I think that’s somewhat stretching the limits of logic there, Hunter.”

He shrugged. “Well, maybe.”

Bobbi studied him for several moments. “You miss her, don’t you?”

“Who?”

She gave him a look that meant she knew that he knew exactly who he was talking about.

“Skye?” he received a nod. “Yeah, I do. And I thought–”

“–that if you could convince Coulson to give Ward a second chance, she’d come back.” Bobbi finished knowingly.

“Yeah.”

Hunter started a little when Bobbi laid her head on his shoulder.

“I miss her too.” she said softly.