Rating: Teen

Warnings: spoilers for Marvel Agents of SHIELD's most recent episodes as of February 12, 2014.

Pairings: Fitz/Ward and Clint/Coulson

Author's Note: Unbeta'd. All mistakes are mine. This is also posted on my Tumblr ( .com) My drabbles are usually written stream on consciousness, meaning there isn't a plot when I start. I'd prefer working with a co-author for any major undertakings. Plot bunnies abound and an extra wrangler would be much appreciated. If you're interested email me at .

With Skye at Death's door, the team seemed deflated, without morale and about at their wits end. Agent May stayed in the cockpit ensuring that their route to the next SHIELD facility never wavered. She'd had a few choice words for Coulson before she'd closed the cockpit door. Nobody had been close enough to hear them, but they'd made Agent Coulson's already grim expression turn even more so.

Simmons' let out a shaky breath and held even more tightly to Fitz's hands as they sat on the couch. Neither of them could do more than they had done. Ward was currently transfixed by the still body of their teammate in the stasis tube. He couldn't help but think how much this situation reminded him of that popular fairy tale Snow White. Unfortunately, True Love's Kiss wasn't a viable cure even if they'd had someone on board who loved Skye in that fashion. Still, he hoped the science-magic held long enough for them to get her somewhere that could treat her with the chance of keeping her alive. SHIELD headquarters Europe had only been able to stabilize her. Which base they were taking her to now was above Ward's clearance level, given Coulson hadn't yet told them exactly where it was they were headed. No warnings. No debrief. No rules but for the ground rules that ever remained in place.

"We'll be there in less than an hour," Phil said softly. Ward hadn't – not surprisingly – even heard him approach. "May is pulling out all the stops to make sure of it. She's called ahead to request an infirmary team be on standby to take her."

"We'll be grounded until this resolves?" he couldn't help but ask. He hoped he knew Phil Coulson well enough to be able to guess he wouldn't want to let Skye wake up to find she'd been left behind.

Coulson sighed softly through his nose and cyptically murmured, "I doubt we'll be able to leave."

With that he left and Ward turned to face the couch. "Simmons, why don't you go take a quick shower." Keeping his voice gentle, the Special Agent moved forward and gave her shoulder a gentle squeeze. After a quick, teary look at Fitz who pursed his lips and nodded encouragingly, she let out another of those shaky sighs and slowly stood only releasing Fitz's hands once she could no longer comfortably keep them.

"I'll just…go clean up then, shall I?" With a slight nod, she left as well, leaving Ward and Fitz alone.

Slowly, Grant lowered himself to the couch in Simmons' place. Leo's eyes were fixed on the stasis tube and he startled a little when their shoulders brushed. This thing between them was still so new and seemed so fragile. "Hey," Grant softly murmured and pressed his shoulder more firmly into Leo's. The slender engineer turned into the contact and pressed his temple into the front of Grant's shoulder. "You okay?"

Leo's response was a soft, choked sound. "It's all mah fault. Ah let her go in there. Ah even gave her the Night Night Gun. Ah should have made her wait. Ah should have insisted we stick together."

The thickening of the younger agent's accent twisted Grant's heart. "They might have just outright killed you. I think they were sending a message, leaving Skye to die slowly." Leo's slender fingers came up to grasp at Grant's shirt, shaking and weak. Without further hesitation, Grant shifted and wrapped Leo up in a tight embrace. "At least we still have you both. Trust me, you couldn't have stopped her."

"Ah know." At least it was resigned and less tortured. Grant would count that as a point in the favor of comfort and pressed his nose into soft brown curls. Leo burrowed closer and tangled the fingers of his other hand into Grant's shirt as well. For a long moment the two of them just clung to each other as tightly as they could. Leo sniffled a little here and there. Grant dropped a few soft kisses to the engineer's temple. It was a balming moment to their bruised sense of family.

They released each other at the same time and Leo looked up into Grant's eyes. "Thank you."

Grant smirked as Leo sniffled and wiped a little self-consciously at his eyes. "Tea?"

"God yes!" Standing, the two made their way to the Bus' kitchenette. Leo started the pot while Grant pulled the tea tin down from its place in the topmost cabinet. Sorting through the various individual packets, he selected two Earl Grey and replaced the tin. When he laid them on the counter top next to the pot on the little electric range requisitioned just for this purpose, Leo was staring hard at the orange flowing coils. The pensive look had Grant moving before he'd seriously considered what to do. Leo relaxed back immediately into the specialist's chest as powerful arms settled around his waist from behind. In silence, they waited for the whistle of a ready teapot.

The infirmary team had come and gone, collecting Skye in the stasis tube and hustling away amidst shouts of numbers and medical jargan. Simmons had gone to lie down, feeling an intense amount of relief now that Skye was in the capable hands of SHIELD HQ New York's medical team. May had immediately disembarked on a mission to requisition more necessities for the Bus. Fitz was busying himself with his tech. Agent Ward was busying himself at the punching bag. Phil Coulson stood beside Lola with his back to the other two team members present at the hangar bay of the Bus and waited. It wouldn't be long now.

It wasn't a SHIELD issue vehicle that pulled up. The different cadence of the engine caught Agent Ward's attention, bringing him away from the punching bag and over to stand beside his commanding officer.

"Who's this then?" Ward murmured curiosity and suspicion an even balance in his words.

"We'll see," Phil murmured, barely able to hear himself over the thrum of his own heart and the rush of adrenaline in his veins.

The man that slid out of the driver's side of the candy apple Carrera GT was the picture of wealth, fame and arrogance. The designer sungalsses were whipped from the bridge of his nose and he left the car door wide open without a thought as he stormed up the ramp. Ward tensed but made no move to intercede.

"You!" Those sunglasses stopped a centimeter from Phil's nose. "You have got to fucking be kidding me with this bullshit."

"Mr. Stark," Phil said coolly in greeting. "Please take all complaints to Director Fury."

Tony Stark stared, then glowered, then sighed. "Life Model Decoy?"

"Thankfully, no." A small smirk lifted the corner of Phil's mouth. He didn't have the heart to play tough with this man. "Unfortunately, I wish."

"Agent Coulson," Ward said softly. Sympathy heavy in his tone. Stark flicked a glance at him and then he was off like they had seen each other just yesterday, babbling and rambling away his questions, discarding each theory on Phil's miraculous return from the dead in turn as outlandish, crazy, ludicrous, impossible…any number of improbabilities until he wound himself down. At which point, Phil shook his head.

"It doesn't matter. I'll share the gory details some other time. For now," Phil hesitated then firmed his resolve to not let his resurrection ruin anything more than it already had. "Who else knows?"

Tony scratched the side of his neck and then pointed the sunglasses at Phil again for emphasis. "I want the whole story. It'll be a fantastic change to go from catching Cap up on classic cinema to tales of miraculously not dead men named Agent for Team Bonding Night and, yes, that's a thing now." At Phil's nod, Tony answered, "JARVIS alerted me to the distress call and the incoming Bus while I was Sciencing with Bruce. Team Bonding Night had to be cancelled when I had JARVIS blow up the photos and identified you. You probably have another minute before the rest of the team…"

He trailed off as a sleek, black Ferrari squealed into the empty space beside the still running Carrera. "Huh, I thought they'd be a little longer. Wait, that's just…Clint. Oh. Ooooh. Cellist. My ass. You sly dog," Stark patted Coulson's shoulder then winked and slipped his glasses back on before starting down the ramp. Clint was already out of the car and they met halfway on the ramp. Clint looked…shell-shocked even from this distance. Tony murmured something to him and then proceeded on his way back to his Carrera. Clint watched him until Tony was about thirty seconds into a phone call and leaning casually back against the expensive custom paint job before slowly turning and moving in Phil's direction.

Neither spoke until Clint was standing just two feet from the two special agents. Blue eyes flicked briefly to Ward, glanced down and then back up and then dismissively turned back to Phil. "How long?"

"If it were up to Fury, you never would have known."

"This shit isn't entirely up to Fury any more, boss."

Phil felt his heart clench. "No. Not any more. I'm done."

The confusion was pouring off Agent Ward. He recognized Hawkeye, certainly, but the undertones to the conversation, even if Phil had worked closely with Agent Barton for years before the Avengers Initiative was enacted, were deep. "Agent Coulson…what are you saying?"

Phil couldn't bring himself to take his eyes off Clint just yet. "Could you excuse us, Agent Ward?"

He didn't bother to wait for a response. Only turned, eyes holding Clint's until he couldn't and still walk forward, and moved toward the spiral stair. Clint stayed exactly two feet from him all the way back to his office. Once the door was closed, Phil turned and was unsurprised to find Clint mere inches away. "Part of me wants to gut you and Director Fury," the archer growled, rage burning brightly in his eyes. Then, just as suddenly, there were tears and shaking hands cradling his face. Chapped lips taking his and Phil leaned forward, arms wrapping tightly around the shoulders of the missing piece of his heart. Had he really thought he was ready to go? To give this up?

"Phil. Phil. Jesus fucking…Phil," Clint mumbled into Phil's mouth as they clung to each other. Phil offered up soft sounds of comfort and strong steady strokes to Clint's back, shoulders and hips. They kissed for a very long time, tears mingling on reddening lips. When the franticness finally abated, Clint pressed his forehead to Phil's and stared deep into his eyes. "I can't believe it's really you…"

"Love, I think the only reason I'm standing here today is because they found the one reason I had for coming home."

"Fury's a manipulative bastard." Venom but not as much as a few moments before. Phil smirked and kissed him again, slow and deep. That would change when Clint learned the details, but for now Phil was more concerned with this reunion than anything outside that office door. "Let me see."

It took very little time for them to divest Phil of his jacket, tie and shirt. Clint's fingers trembled as he ran them over the puckered flesh of The Scar. Things digressed from there, and Phil was very glad Clint had had the foresight to lock the door when they'd first come in.

Leopold Fitz watched through the lab glass as Coulson led a very dangerous looking man – Agent Hawkeye if he wasn't mistaken – up the stairs and out of sight. Curious eyes drifted back out into the hangar bay, finding Grant staring after the pair as well. It had been the movement past the lab windows that had caught his attention and now curiosity got the better of him. Leo slipped through the door and hurried over to his…well, Grant.

"What was that about?" he asked and Grant turned his far away gaze onto Leo with intense focus. "I think that's someone very important to Agent Coulson."

Leo nodded and fiddled with the little drone in his hands. Sleepy had needed a little upgrading and he'd been anxious. Doing something with his hands had helped. It wouldn't hurt to see about upgrading the rest of the little –

"Remote surveillance something you guys need often?"

Leo startled and peered past Grant to the man walking up the ramp. Tailored white suit, blue shirt open at the collar and no tie. Leo felt his whole world stop and yet his mouth opened. "Actually, they're more than just surveillance drones. They assess the entirety of place from chemicals present – better than bloodhounds really – to full scale three dimensional scanning."

"Hm." Tony Stark hummed thoughtfully. Leo swallowed hard and felt his fair complexion go nuclear red. "AI or remote?"

"Remote. I'm not sure AI is the best choice…M-mr. Stark." Leo swallowed and the sound was embarrassingly audible.

Tony Stark scoffed. "AI is always the best choice. Seriously though. Send a prototype to my office. Agent can give you a hand but you look smart enough to figure it out. I'd be interested in looking one over. All patents will remain yours, of course. But Agent has never missed the opportunity to work with the best." And then Tony STARK winked at Leo – and Leo felt his heart all but stop – before turning to Grant. "I'll be back later for the grand tour, the meet and greet, and I'll be bringing My Team. Word of advice: don't bother Agent while he and Hawkeye reacquaint themselves. Clint doesn't share. He's a vicious little shit and he will not hesitate in stabbing a bitch."

And then Leopold watched his idol stroll casually down the ramp again, calling over his shoulder, "Oh, and dress nice and non-Agenty. Dinner's on me tonight and we're dining in style. I've already bought out that new Italian restaurant so we'll have the place to ourselves."

Once Tony Stark was gone, Leo slowly turned his gaze to meet Grant's eyes. The man looked…tense, a slight frown pursing his lips. After a moment, Leo fidgeted and dropped his gaze. Grant looked displeased but was it something Leopold had done or the offhand way Tony Stark had just taken over the entire situation?

Gentle fingers carded through messy curls. "Let's go get some rest," Grant's voice was soothing and when Leo met his eyes again, he was relieved to see nothing but affection there now. "Sounds like we're going to have a very busy evening."

"Okay. Yeah. Let me… Lemme just put Sleepy away." Grinning, Leo turned and trotted to the lab. Grant met him at the base of the stairs when the little drone was safely tucked into its case and Leo felt the older man settle a warm hand at the small of his back. Together they made their way to Grant's nook. Tony Stark may be his idol, but even Tony Stark was no Grant Ward.

Fin