When Ward tells me that we're going to save Daisy, I follow him without hesitation.
I sit in the passenger seat while he drives. My stomach churns as I wonder what terrible things Hydra is doing to my friend. I wonder if Daisy is even still alive…
I can't think like that.
Daisy has to be alive! I'm not losing her now. Not after everything we've been through together. Not in a world that's not even real.
Mace is dead. That's real. He died as the hero he always wanted to be.
Daisy would also sacrifice herself to protect others.
Please, Daisy, don't die! Losing Fitz to Madame Hydra-
Madame Hydra! What a ridiculous name!
Losing Fitz to Aida, an android who's stolen his memories and twisted his beautiful mind, is already more than I can bear. I can't lose Daisy too.
The car is coming to a stop. We're in a poorly lit alley. "What are we doing here?" I ask Ward.
His eyes stay focused on the alley. "We're meeting someone."
"Another member of the Resistance?"
"You ask too many questions. Just wait a minute."
I remind myself that this Ward is not the Ward from the real world. This Ward is loyal to S.H.I.E.L.D. and seems genuinely in love with Daisy. He would do anything to help her. He's an ally. Isn't he? Or am I foolish to trust any version of Grant Ward?
We sit in silence as minute after minute pass by. Time has never moved more slowly.
"Maybe your contact isn't coming."
"He'll be here," says Ward, still avoiding any eye contact with me.
"How can you be so sure?"
"Because I have something he wants."
"I don't suppose you're going to tell me what that is."
Ward almost smiles. "You're right about that."
Another car comes our way. Two people get out, silhouetted by their headlights.
"Let's go," says Ward. We both leave the car.
I try to peer through the darkness, hoping to see the faces of the figures coming toward us. One appears to be a woman...
Oh God.
The figure on the right is Daisy! She's limping and her face is covered in bruises. Those Hydra bastards!
And the figure on the left…
It's Fitz!
No, Jemma, this isn't your Fitz. There's no warmth to his features. This is the "Doctor."
"What's happening?" I whisper to Ward. "Is the Doctor giving us Daisy? Why would he do that?"
"I told you," Ward replies. "I have something he wants." He turns to me. "Well, someone...Sorry."
Betrayed by Grant Ward. There's a surprise! I almost laugh.
The Doctor wants me only because Aida has told him I'm a threat. So what does he plan to do with me? Will he kill me like he killed Agnes?
Daisy looks at me and Ward. "What are you two doing here? What's going on?"
I give her a hug. "It's okay. You're going to go with Ward, and I'm going to go with Fitz."
Daisy pulls back to face me. "No no no. Listen to me. You can't go with him. He's a psychopath!"
"Maybe I can help him remember-"
"He doesn't remember anything! The Fitz we knew is gone!"
Ward takes Daisy's hand. "Let her go, Skye. It's what she wants."
"What she wants is irrelevant," the Doctor says as he grabs my arm, pulling me towards him. "She's coming with me to Hydra for a thorough interrogation." He stares at me, his face contorted in a sinister smile. "I do hope you're more cooperative than your friend. It'd be a shame to have to damage such a lovely face."
"I'm NOT letting you torture Simmons!" Daisy shouts.
"You're in no position to tell me what to do." As the Doctor pulls out a gun and points it at Daisy, Ward draws his own gun to aim at the Doctor.
"You kill her and I kill you," Ward says. I have no doubt he means it.
Tears roll down my face as I step in front of the Doctor's gun. "Fitz, please. No one has to die. Let Daisy go, and I'll come with you willingly. I'll tell you everything you want. I promise."
There's a loud bang and I feel a sharp pain in my back.
I fall to the ground, gasping for air.
I hear Daisy screaming."WARD! Why did you do that?!"
Ward is trying to aim his gun at the Doctor, but Daisy won't stop hitting him. "I had to do it, Skye. I couldn't let her tell him what she knows about the Resistance. Too many lives are at stake."
The Doctor's smile is gone. His mouth is open in horror and he's shaking. "Ward...he shot Jemma...Jemma Simmons...my...my Jemma. Oh God. Jemma!" He kneels beside me, frantically taking off his coat so he can press it against my wound. "Don't die on me, Jemma! Please don't die! I love you!"
"Love...you..."
He remembers. He finally remembers!
The Fitz I know and love is back. He'll help the others escape the Framework!
My friends will get out of this horrible place...I will not die in vain.
I smile as the world around me fades to black.
I wake up to bright lights and the sound of machines beeping. I guess I'm in a hospital room. I feel weak and my mind's in a fog, but at least I'm alive.
"Fitz..."
"I'm here," he says. He's holding one of my hands and Daisy holds the other.
"Thanks for not dying on us," Daisy says, squeezing my hand. "You lost a lot of blood, but I think your doctors worked extra hard to save you because they're scared of Fitz."
"I'm so sorry, Jemma," says Fitz. "Madame Hydra...Aida...she made me believe I was this other person. This horrible, horrible person. I thought I was protecting humanity by persecuting inhumans." His eyes fill with tears. "Daisy, I can't believe the things I did to you..."
"It wasn't you, Fitz," Daisy says. "Aida brainwashed you."
"I thought I loved her. I thought I was protecting her from people who wanted to hurt her...but when I saw Jemma bleeding on the street...something shattered inside me. All of the memories Aida stole from me came rushing back." Fitz buries his face in his hands, unable to continue for several moments. "I was terrified I was going to lose you just as I remembered how much I love you. If you had died...I...I don't know what I would have done."
"You would have found a way to defeat Aida," I say. Talking is painful, but I make the effort. "And you would have gotten our team out of the Framework. Which is exactly what we're going to do now. Agreed?"
"Agreed," echo Daisy and Fitz.
Daisy smiles. "That homicidal hell-bot is seriously going to regret the day she messed with FitzSimmons."
Thanks for reading! Any comments are appreciated.:)
