It was almost a magic trick to get May out. Daisy figured out quickly that the resonance of May's robot duplicate was slightly different to the others. It was tricky, but if she concentrated she could feel it.

Finding May was hard. Seeing her in that forced nightmare state was hard, but they got her out. She was safe. Home.

But Daisy still had a promise to keep.

In the hours after they took Radcliffe in and rescued May, Daisy hacked into his network, downloading the plans for May's robotic double. She needed to make sure there was no sleeper protocol buried in her software. For everyone's safety.

Daisy had sweet talked Fitz into not immediately dismantling her, but she was still deactivated. Daisy crept down into the storage room where they had locked up the android. She'd promised she wouldn't let anyone hurt her, and she intended to keep that promise.

It was dark in the room, but Daisy knew what to do. The blueprints she'd hacked weren't exactly unclear. It was still weird to be feeling around the back of May's neck for the telltale bump that would start a system reboot though. It wasn't hard to disable the camera that Aida and Radcliffe had inserted.

Still, it wasn't technically May. It was just a robot. Which happened to look exactly like May, think exactly like May, and had all of May's memories.

Hell, maybe robot May knew where Aida might have run off to. She was useful, and she didn't deserve to just be shut down.

Daisy felt the slight buzzing as she finally managed to cause the system reboot, and took a step back, hoping that it was okay.

The robot blinked, coming back to life. She looked around, and sighed in relief when she saw who it was. "Daisy."

Daisy smiled. "Well yeah." She kept her distance. "You gonna go all T-1000 on me?"

She rolled her eyes. "I'll let you know." She said, then hesitated. "Thank you. You didn't have to come back for me."

Daisy smiled softly. "I know I didn't, but... I kind of did. I promised, and, well, you're new. There's nothing like you we know about, and when that was me, May helped." She was getting better at separating the two. "Even if that wasn't you, I know you remember it, so I know you understand."

The android shrugged. "I- she didn't do that because you had powers." She muttered. "She just did it because she cares about you."

Daisy couldn't help the shy grin. She liked when the others admitted that they cared about her. Especially May and Coulson. "Still." She murmured, then gestured to the door. "Come on, we can run a proper systems check in the lab. Cameras are off and no one's around."

Daisy could see the nervousness, but May's duplicate nodded anyway. "Okay."

Daisy wished she wasn't so distracted. She could forgive the Maybot, she'd just rebooted, maybe her hearing wasn't quite back online yet. She wished that she wasn't so tired and strung out and worried, because then she might have heard the third pair of footsteps approaching from down the corridor.

"Daisy!" The voice made her heart freeze in fear, and Daisy stopped dead.

May. The real May. Crap.

Daisy saw her go for her gun and before May could fire, sent a brief wave at it, making the pieces pop apart in her hand. She moved in front of the robot. "May, it's not what you think." Daisy tried to placate her, but only succeeded in holding May back from tearing her duplicate apart. Daisy was gratified that the robot took a few steps back, holding up her hands peacefully.

"What the hell is that thing doing walking around?!" May growled, trying to get past Daisy to no avail. She was still weak from her captivity.

"Just- stop, let me explain!" Daisy grunted, "Trust me, okay? You know I'm me. Robots- don't have superpowers." She gave May a shove backwards. "Please."

May stumbled back a couple of steps. She made no move forwards, but her stance remained tense, and she glared daggers at the figure behind Daisy's back. "You'd better have an explanation for this."

Daisy held up her hands, glancing from the May behind her to the one in front of her. "Look, I lied when I said my powers found the robot, okay? I didn't figure out anything. She did."

Melinda glared and the robot looked away. Daisy continued. "She didn't do anything wrong May. They made her to just be a copy of you, anything else was buried so deep she didn't even know about it." Daisy swallowed. "She told me. That's the only way we knew you were in trouble."

Melinda set her jaw. "And how did you know?" She asked coldly.

The robot took a step forwards. "Got hurt on a mission." She supplied. "My shoulder. When I looked at it..."

Daisy's eyes were pleading with her. "She needs help." Daisy murmured.

May glared. "Daisy, it's not even human."

Daisy set her jaw. "Yeah, well people say that about me too." She said firmly. She could hear them both recoil at the thought. Good. "Look, I've gone over her software, I've checked everything, there's no sleeper protocols, nothing. We're just going to the lab to run some more tests, if you wanna make sure, you can come."

"You're damn right I will." May muttered, waiting for the two to move so that she could follow from behind.

Daisy hesitated at the stairs, "Wait..." She pointed at the android. "You're the robot, right?"

The hint of a grin tugged at her lips. "Yes."

"Okay, good." Daisy sighed. "I mean, you're wearing different clothes, but..."

The android rolled her eyes. "You could always stab me to make sure."

"I'm tempted." Melinda muttered.

Daisy smiled a little. "Look, I know a May on May fight would be awesome, maybe not right now."

They walked in silence for a minute before the robot spoke up. "That mission, in Madrid." She said softly. "When Phil let you drive... was that real?"

Daisy glanced back and realised she was addressing May.

Melinda looked startled. "Yes." She said shortly.

Daisy grinned. "Was the moustache real too?"

May frowned and Daisy's grin faded. "Oh, uh- she told me." She said, nodding to the android.

May grimaced and said nothing. Daisy kept quiet for the rest of the walk to the lab.

The Maybot sat on a stool stiffly, watching Daisy pull cables from drawers. She knew that the real May was guarding the door. It was what she would do.

Daisy straightened, wires in hand. "Uh, we need to plug these in..." She said, trailing off.

The android pulled her hair around. "Base of the skull, right?"

Daisy hesitated. "Yeah, but..."

She nodded. "Just do it. Might as well have some way of knowing which of us is which."

Daisy glanced at May, who only raised her eyebrows. Right. Basically a photo copy. Daisy bit her lip. "Hold still then." She murmured, taking one of Jemma's scalpels.

Melinda was surprised to see her robotic duplicate wince as Daisy cut into her neck. She didn't know it could feel pain. If that was what this was. It could just be a trick to make them feel sorry for it. That said, it did look a little unsettling to see her clone sitting in the lab while Daisy plugged in cords to her head.

Daisy squinted at the screen, tapping at the keyboard. "Okay." She sighed after a few minutes. "I think we're good." She hesitated. "Just... wait here," She said to the Maybot, "I'll be back in a little while, there's just one more thing to test."

She nodded, watching as Daisy left. May followed her into the hallway, closing the door, but able to see through the glass. "Daisy, what they hell is this?" May hissed. "You can't trust it."

Daisy sighed. "Look, I get why you're worried, I am too, but she hasn't hurt anyone. If it wasn't for her, you wouldn't be standing here." She swallowed. "Think about it. Imagine if it was you. You get hurt on a mission and figure out that you're not even you. She knew that we could have shut her down for good, but she told me anyway. Just like you would have." Daisy swallowed. "She'd risk her life, because she cares about us, our team. Just like you would." She hesitated. "She's not... replacing you, or anything like that."

May rolled her eyes. "Didn't she already do that?"

Daisy groaned. "Okay, yes, but not anymore." She looked away, then before May could stop her, gave her a quick hug. "I'm glad you're back." Daisy murmured. "I'm glad you're okay."

Melinda rolled her eyes again. "Sucking up won't get you anywhere."

Daisy grinned. "Keep telling yourself that." She said. "Gimme five minutes, then we'll know if Radcliffe's programming stuck."

May looked back in at the android. "I'm going to keep an eye on her."

Daisy nodded. She hadn't expected any differently, but at least now May had progressed from 'it' to 'her'. It was a start.

May watched Daisy walk away and ducked back into the lab. If the robot had anyone's mind but hers, she would doubt she had heard her. As it was, she shifted in her seat, the cords moving slightly as she turned her head. "Sorry I drank your Haig." She said.

May frowned. That was the worst she did? "I can deal with it."

The android swallowed. "I- is it real?"

Melinda raised an eyebrow, walking around to sit across from her double. "What?"

She looked uncertain. "Phil. How I- feel about him." She bit her lip. "Is that real?"

May swallowed. "I don't know how you feel."

"Stop it." Her duplicate demanded. "You know what I mean, I know you do." She felt like she was going to cry. "I mean- it doesn't matter anyway. I'm not- well, I'm not you. I just- I want it to be real. I don't want someone to have made me feel this way."

Melinda didn't realise how easy it was to tell when she was upset. Until now. She glanced at the floor. "Yeah." She said softly. "It's real. I feel it too."

"You should tell him." The robot said stuffily. "He feels the same."

May said nothing, crossing her arms, and the android sighed. "I know you're scared." She said. "But- I also know you love him." Melinda looked up sharply. She never used that word. It was too hard to admit. "I know you do, because I do, but he doesn't want me." It hurt to admit, but she knew it was true. "And- having that choice taken away... it's so much worse than those thirty years of pining."

Melinda bristled. "I was not pining."

The robot rolled her eyes. "Please. You can't lie to me." Her lips twitched into a smile. "Though I guess we've always been good at lying to ourselves."

Before May could respond, Daisy returned, holding a satchel. "I think we've got it." She said, holding up the bag. "Just one more thing."

She typed a few rapid keystrokes and the robot looked down as Daisy unplugged the cords from her. "You disabled my legs."

Daisy grimaced. "Temporarily. Just to be safe."

"I understand." Before Daisy could do anything else, the android took her hand. "Even if this doesn't work- thank you." She said softly. "And if it doesn't, I want you to shut me down permanently, got it?" She infused her tone with that little bit of authority. Daisy always did as she said.

Daisy glanced back between May and the robot, begging for one of them to tell her 'no'. When neither did, she looked down. "Okay." Daisy murmured. "I promise."

"Hey," The android freed her hand to gently tip Daisy's chin up. "It'll be okay. You don't need me. I'm not real."

Daisy sniffled. "You don't deserve this."

She shrugged. "Well, you didn't deserve any of the crap you've been through either." She said with a weak smile. "You've got the real May back. You'll be fine." She looked to her clone and then back to Daisy. "Okay, let's do this."

"Okay." Daisy nodded, handing her the satchel and stepping back. "Look in the bag."

The android opened it and recoiled. The Darkhold. "Daisy, what the hell are you doing? I can't have this!"

"Easy!" Daisy cried, "Calm down, okay, just... hang onto it for a sec."

She could feel the panic climbing her throat, but did as Daisy said. At least Daisy had disabled her legs, and there were no weapons in sight. The two of them could definitely take her down.

May looked between her robot duplicate and Daisy, waiting for one of them to explain. Daisy spoke up after a minute. "How do you feel?"

The android swallowed. "Scared." She admitted.

Daisy took half a step closer. "What do you wanna do with the book?"

Her hands clenched. "I wanna put it down." She said firmly.

"Okay." Daisy said softly, "I'm gonna reactivate your legs now. Try to stay calm."

May couldn't help but appreciate how well Daisy was handling this situation. Even after everything she had been through, she was still trying to save every wretched creature she came across. Daisy indicated for her to stand back, away from the door, and she did so, watching Daisy turn her copy's legs back on.

The android remained seated, hands on the satchel. She shivered. "I can feel it." She murmured. "Like- an itch in the back of my mind."

"That's okay." Daisy said, "If you can ignore it then you're good. I couldn't delete it all the way, it was too integrated. All I could do was..."

"Give me a choice?" The robot asked, and when Daisy nodded, she stood, putting the bag down. "Thank you." She said, pulling Daisy into a gentle hug.

Daisy smiled, returning the hug. "You're welcome." She said. "It's what us heroes do."

Both May's scoffed and Daisy pulled away with a grin. "I've gotta say, it's pretty fun having two of you." They rolled their eyes in tandem and Daisy snorted. "We should probably work out a name for you." She said, poking the android, "To make things easier."

Both looked to the original May. "Any ideas?" Daisy asked. "I mean- people don't use your first name that much. We could use that."

The two shook their heads. "Phil- sometimes does." May murmured, eyes fixed on the ground.

Daisy smiled a little but chose not to comment. "Okay, do you guys have any ideas? Maybe a nickname or something?"

A slow smirk grew on the androids face and May glared at her. "No."

Daisy looked between them. "What?"

The android shrugged. "She did say a nickname."

"No." May said, "You know she'll never let it go."

Daisy brightened, realising that it was potential dirt. "What? Tell me, come on."

"No." May growled, crossing her arms. Her duplicate only smirked. God, was she really that insufferable?

Daisy caught the android's eye and she winked. Daisy grinned. "Did someone try calling you 'Mel' one time?"

A fond smile tugged at both their faces, and Daisy realised that maybe someone had. "Was it Coulson?" She asked teasingly. "Do you two have cute nicknames for each other on top of everything else?"

May looked down. Daisy could see the embarrassment in how she held herself. It was kind of cute. Then she noticed the android mouthing a word at her, and Daisy's jaw dropped. "Who the hell can get away with calling you Mellie?!"

May's head shot up, glare fixing Daisy for a moment before turning to her duplicate.

Of course she wasn't cowed. "Dad."

Daisy laughed delightedly. "Aww, that's so sweet!"

May scowled, hating the world.

Daisy smiled. "What's he like?"

The android smiled. "You'd like him. I think he'd like you too."

May rolled her eyes. "He would love her." She corrected, softening a little.

"He would." She agreed.

Daisy looked between them. It was nice to see that May could get on with herself. She hesitated. "Sooo... should we call you Mellie?" She asked the android, snorting when May glared.

"I don't think it matters." The android said softly, looking between them. "I-I don't want to stay here."

"What?!" Daisy turned, eyes hurt. "Why?"

She crossed one arm across her waist. "I- appreciate everything you've done Daisy, more than anything. And- I'm glad you've been my friend, but..."

Daisy put a hand on her shoulder. "But what?"

She wiped her eye, surprised to find herself capable of tears. "I care about you as much as she does." She nodded to the real May. "And... I know you don't care about me like you do about her." She blinked heavily. "That's okay, I understand, but... I don't want to see it every day, with you and Jemma and Fitz... Phil." She sighed shakily. "I need to be somewhere else."

Daisy stared, trying to mask her pain. "Wh-" She coughed. "Where would you go?"

She shrugged. "I don't know. Some other base, maybe. I'm sure I could help. Besides," Now she looked tired more than anything. "I wasn't built to last." When she saw the thunderstruck look on Daisy's face, she looked down. "That's what Radcliffe said."

May stepped forwards as Daisy sank into one of the lab stools, devastated. "How long?"

She shrugged again. "I don't know. But if I can save some lives... well. I'd like that."

May took a breath, then took her duplicate's hand. "I'm sorry that this happened."

The android smiled sadly. "So am I." She murmured. "But it did." She hesitated and bit the inside of her lip. "Can I talk to Phil? I- I want to apologise."

May drew her hand back. "What did you do?"

She smiled ruefully. "He didn't tell you." Why was that not surprising?

May tried not to look irritated. "I'm not asking him, I'm asking you."

But the android shook her head. "You should ask him. You should talk to him."

Melinda looked away, thankful that Daisy wasn't questioning their conversation. "I'll try."

"Good." She looked down momentarily. "I- I'm glad I got the chance to be you." The android said. "You're a good person, Melinda May. I hope you know that."

May heard Daisy stand. "So are you." She said.

The android shook her head. "I'm not a person. I'm just a copy."

Daisy approached the both of them. "A copy wouldn't have told me the truth." She said, "Helped us save May, let themself get shut down and trust that I'd wake them back up."

She sighed. "She trusts you." She nodded to May. "So I do too."

Daisy shook her head. "No, it's more than that now and you know it. I-I understand why you need to leave, but you're not just a copy of May. You're a person too. Even if you did get all May's bullheadedness." The tiniest of grins touched the androids face, and Daisy flung her arms around her. "I'll miss you." She mumbled.

"I'm not leaving yet." She reminded. "Ph- Coulson needs to give the okay for me to be transferred. I'd understand if he didn't."

Daisy scoffed. "Please. He can't even say no to one of you."