Before HYDRA, there was movie night on the Bus. Just on Sundays. It seemed to Coulson, and to the rest of the team, that the world seemed to take a breather on that day. As a result, they decided to take some time to themselves, as well.
Of course there were a few roadblocks. Each person wanted to do something different from the other on their free time. Ward wanted Skye to keep up with her training regimen. May decided to do Tai Chi in the lounge. Fitzsimmons wanted to have some time in the lab.
In other words, they wanted to do their daily routine.
Coulson had thought of their day off as "Team Bonding Day". He was a little frustrated that his team members wanted to go their separate ways. He decided to make his own plan.
He gathered all of his team members into the lounge. As he walked in, he held up a plastic box full of all kinds of movies: action, romance, even cartoon and Disney. The team regarded him with suspicious stares.
"Movie night," he had said simply.
It was Sunday night in the Playground. The team felt melancholy. All of them retired to their rooms after supper, and Coulson went to his new office. Coulson felt empty. Between Fury's appearance, his promotion to Director, and his orders to start SHIELD anew, it felt like he was starting all over again.
What he really needed now was a distraction. He realized that it was Sunday. He recalled all the movie nights and what the feature films were. The first one was "Aladdin". He remembered how the team bickered over which movie to watch…
"I want something with a badass plot," Skye had said that first night as she rifled through the box.
"I always like fairy tales," Simmons added. "How about you, Fitz?"
"Monkeys," he said with sarcasm. "Actually, I really don't care. Pick whatever you want."
Skye came up with a DVD case in her hands. "Aha! How about 'Mulan'?"
Ward rolled his eyes. "Isn't it a little, you know, too badass?"
"Of course! All this excitement in here is too much, right?" Skye said mockingly. Ward didn't reply.
Fitz decided to hunt down a movie as well. Ward knelt next to him, sorting out the chick flicks and the gory horror movies. May and Coulson looked on as the team dug through dozens of films.
"Didn't know you were a Disney fan," May remarked.
"Always. Best memories of my childhood," Coulson replied, looking at her.
"Then can you explain the chick flicks in there?" she said, nudging the discarded pile with her toes.
"Audrey's favorites. Before…" he trailed off. She nodded, understanding.
Fitz gasped as his hand clasped around a particular DVD. "Aladdin!" he squeaked. "Can we watch it, Jemma? Please, Skye?"
"Sure," Skye replied. "I think it fits all our criteria. If it's alright, Coulson?"
He shrugged. "Your choice. Go ahead." A faint smile played on his lips as Fitz pumped his fist in the air. He handed it off to Skye. Skye crawled over to the DVD player and put the disc in. They all settled in as the Disney theme played over the speakers.
Turned out that he was right. The team totally bonded over the movie. May even had went out of her way to make some "healthy" popcorn: unsalted air-popped popcorn, dark chocolate chunks, and dried cranberries.
"Hey, if it's popcorn, I'm cool with it," said Skye as she took a fistful of the snack.
During the movie, Fitzsimmons belted out "A Friend Like Me"; off-key and sometimes off-beat, but they all laughed. Turned out that Ward could actually carry a decent tune, and he and Skye had a duet during "A Whole New World".
It seemed as if they were all one happy family.
Coulson had the idea to bring it back. It wasn't too late at night to watch something. He got up from his chair in his office and made his way to the hangar. Coulson chuckled to himself as he went on his way to complete his "covert mission".The Bus gleamed in the fluorescent light. He opened up the main hatch to the cargo bay. His feet clanked on the spiral staircase as he went up to the lounge area.
He knelt in front of the modest entertainment system that held the TV and DVD player. He opened the small cabinet beneath it in search of the crate of movies. Thankfully, the previous tenants of the Bus didn't raid on the discs. HYDRA soldiers don't have time for Disney, Coulson thought. He hefted the box and set it near the doorway by the staircase. He decided to look for popcorn in the kitchen. Coulson strolled into the kitchen area and opened some of the cabinets. The hinges creaked loudly in the silence. Sadly, all their food supplies had been eaten . He shrugged. He decided to check in the Playground's kitchen for something.
He walked back to the stairs and carried the box carefully down the staircase. He almost slipped on the slanting ramp, emitting a "whoa!" that echoed through the hangar. It was eerily silent as he traipsed through the halls.
At last, he reached the common room. It was empty, and he was grateful. He set the box of movies on the coffee table in the center pf the room. There was a TV and DVD player set on the facing wall. He hunted around the sofas to find the remote. He found it wedged between some cushions. Coulson placed it on the table as well.
He walked the labyrinthine halls to get to the storage hangar. He scanned his lanyard, courtesy of the second "Koenig" they met. The shelves loomed tall over him. He glanced down several aisles. He came upon one that held all sorts of grain-type foods, and looked for what he needed. Surprisingly, they did have popcorn. He grabbed a bag of the unsalted kind and looked around for some dried cranberries or more importantly, chocolate. He didn't expect to find both, either.
With the supplies in hand, he made the trek past common room and to the kitchen and dining area. He settled for microwave-popping the popcorn. He poured out a big bowl of it, and set in the microwave. Minutes later, it dinged. Coulson took it out and added the fruit and chocolate to it. He took the bowl back to the common room. Coulson set it next to the remote. He surveyed his work, and deemed it satisfactory.
"Now for the fun part," he whispered. Finally, he made his way to the bunks, and knocked on Skye's door. She opened it, her laptop glowing behind her on the bed. She raised an eyebrow.
"Movie night," he said simply, just like long ago. "Go and get the others."
Her eyebrows shot up in joy. She smiled. "Thanks, Coulson," she said as she hugged him.
A/N: So this was originally done for a prompt sent by themultiroleplayer on tumblr. I think domestic!Coulson needs more fanfic based on the trope. There is poll on my profile asking if I write the characters in my stories OOC or not. Please send feedback! I hope you enjoyed! Please review!- Roxanne