Heeeeeeeeeeeeeey... so uh... am I the worst updater ever or what? I am so sorry for taking so long to get you this chapter, guys. I've been incredibly busy with school and also I was experiencing some pretty major writers block on this chapter, so I'm sorry if it's not the greatest! But! School is finally over and I have a couple weeks until my summer class starts so hopefully I'll have the time to write the next chapter and to update soon!

You guys might actually be the best followers ever. Thank you so much to anyone who's reading this right now. You're awesome!

ALSO. I saw Infinity War last weekend and I CRIED. It was so good! Don't worry, I won't spoil anything, but I will say this- bring tissues.

Alright, I won't make you wait any longer than I already have. I hope you guys enjoy!

Chapter 6

"Daddy! Daddy!" The crying six-year-old ran through the grey halls shouting for her father. Unfamiliar faces turned their heads as she ran by them, some shaking their heads disapprovingly and others dawning looks of confusion. The shouting continued to emerge from the child's lips as she raced through the unknown building. Her heart was pounding and tears were running down her cheeks. She came to a crossing in the hall, and with a moment's hesitation, she chose to turn left. The tears were streaming down her face now, and as she brought her hands up to whip her eyes she rammed into someones back. She stopped running and looked up at the man who was talking to a woman but was now turning around to see who had just hit him. His face held a hint of annoyance, but as soon as she looked up at him with tears running down her eyes it melted away.

"Well hi there, little one." He said gently, "What's wrong?" He kneeled down so he was the same height as her. At first, she was nervous to speak to this stranger, but before the words 'don't talk to strangers' could be echoed in her mind she burst into tears and fell into the man's arms.

"I can't find my daddy." She sobbed into his jacket.

"Oh, it's okay." He grabbed her shoulders and softly pushed her away so he could see her eyes. "How about I help you find him?" His smile was genuine and kind, and she responded with a short nod. "Alright," He lifted the young girl into his arms, "What's your daddy's name?"

"Phil." She told him, resting her head against his shoulder. The man turned around to face the woman he'd been talking to before his encounter with the girl. The woman understood his silent question.

"Agent Phil Coulson, sir. He should be in briefing room two."

"Let's go find your daddy, okay little one?" He started walking down the halls with her held carefully in his arms. It was a short walk to briefing room two, and when he got there people were just starting to leave. The little girl perked her head up when she saw a familiar face.

"Daddy!" She shouted. Multiple people turned around to see who the voice was coming from, but only one gave the voice his full attention.

"Emily?" he rushed over and took the girl out of the other man's arms and she buried her face in his shoulder, clutching his neck. His eyes became wide when he realized who the man was. "Oh my...Mr. Pierce, please accept my apology. I put her down for a nap and left her with an agent, I didn't think she'd wake up so soon."

"No apologies needed." Pierce put his hand out in a dismissive way, signaling that it was of no worry, and smiled. "I have a daughter of my own. She's older than this little one here, but I remember times like these well. Now, if you excuse me, I should be getting back to work."

"Yes, of course. Thank you, sir."

"It was really no Problem, Agent Coulson." Pierce turned and walked in the direction he came from. Phil turned away, letting out a sigh of relief. He could only hope that Fury wouldn't get wind of this occurrence. After all, Pierce was there to look into how SHIELD was being run, and Phil bet that having a young child running loose around the halls may not bode well. Especially under the already strained circumstances that Emily was here under. A small sniffle suddenly caught his attention.

"Emily, what's wrong?" He asked quietly as she put one of his hands under her chin.

"I couldn't find you, Daddy. You were gone." A tear ran down her cheek and he whipped it away.

"Oh, I'm sorry sweety, I'm sorry. I won't leave you like that again."

"Promise?"

"Promise."

OOOOO

Dead.

Her head started spinning and she barely registered a voice.

Gone.

"Coulson... he was your... father?" She didn't really comprehend who asked, but the voice was laced with confusion. She decided the comment didn't need a response.

I didn't get to say goodbye.

Emily had dealt with a lot of death in her life, it came with the job. Both jobs. No matter what you do or how hard you try, sometimes you just lose people. You lose partners, friends, family. She knew how it felt and how to deal with it, how to make herself understand what had happened and why, but somehow this one was different. She couldn't understand what she just heard, her mind wouldn't let her.

Denials a bitch.

What was the last thing I even said to him? She thought back to the last time they'd talked. She tried so hard to remember what he'd said to her. All at once it came rushing back to her, and she did the one thing no one thought she would. She laughed. But it wasn't out of joy, it was laced with darkness and morbidness.

"Emily...?" Clint's tone was laced with worry. She let go of the bar top and swiveled around to face him.

"The last time-" She tried to get her sentence out over her laughter, "the last time we spoke he told me- he told me to be careful and not- not get myself killed... and then he was- he was the one who went off and- and died!?" Her laughter finally stopped. "He went off and died..." Silence encapsulated the room and she leaned back against the bar, needing some sort of support.

"If it's any consolation, he died a hero." Rogers who spoke. She snapped her gaze towards him.

"How in the hell is that consolation? I already knew he was a hero. He didn't need to die for me to know that." She didn't mean to lash out at him. Deep down she knew he was just trying to take some of the grief away, but right now she couldn't deal with any sort of comfort.

"Em I," Clint started. "I'm so sor-"

"Stop." She cut him off. "Don't, just don't." She squeezed her eyes shut, painfully aware of the all the eyes that were currently trained on her. "I just- I need some air." Abruptly, she pushed herself away from the bar, walked through the group, and crossed the large room. She silently found herself thanking Stark for making this tower so large, as on the other side of the room she found herself out of earshot from where the other seven people were already mumbling to each other. Finally, she couldn't hold back any longer. A tear trailed down her cheek, quickly followed by a second. She pressed her forehead against the cool glass window and let her eyelids fall closed.

OOOOO

Clint felt his heart collapse in on itself as Emily made a beeline away from the group and to the other side of the room. He started to walk after her but was stopped by Rogers putting his hand out.

"Barton, give her a minute." His voice came out completely calm, and it annoyed the hell out of Clint. How could he be so calm right now?

On the outside, Clint was completely composed, but inside he was fighting to keep himself under control. Emily was alive, she was alive. And for a moment, it was almost like the eight years they spent apart, thinking the other was dead had disappeared. But then it all fell apart again. Phil was dead. Emily's dad was dead and it was Clint fault. It was all his fault.

"Stop doing that to yourself." Nat suddenly appeared at his side, speaking quietly so the others, who were currently mumbling amongst themselves couldn't hear. Without looking at her, he responded.

"Doing what?"

"Oh please. I know how your head works. Hell, I can practically see those guilt-stricken gears turning around in that skull of yours. It wasn't your fault, Clint. You weren't yourself and everyone knows it."

"I don't think she does." His eyes were fixed on Emily's position across the room where she was leaning against the floor to ceiling window. Nat didn't speak again for a few minutes.

"Phil never said he had a daughter." She looked up at Clint. "You never told me he had a daughter either."

"Natasha..." He rubbed the back of his neck, "it...it was a sore topic and...we just..." He let out a long sigh before trying to continue, but before he could, Rogers spoke to him.

"Barton, I think you need to tell us more about what's going on here."

"Cap, I've already told you everything we know. We were partners, I thought she was dead, obviously she isn't, and now here we are."

"And she's Agent Coulson's daughter?" he questioned further. Clint clenched his jaw together.

"Yes."

"Well, what's she doing here in New York?"

"Did you miss the part where I told you that for the last eight years I thought she was dead?" He spit out. "Why don't you ask her friend?" All eyes pointed to Emily's partner Aaron.

"Oh no, don't look at me. I have no idea what's happening."

"Why are you in New York?"

"Official bureau business. We're working on a case."

"What kind of case?" Clint questioned.

"That's confidential. I can't discuss an open investigation, I'm sure you understand."

"And I'm sure you can make an exception."

"I really can't." Aaron's voice was firm.

"I can always just hack the FBI database." Stark cut in. A bewildered expression made its way onto Aaron's face.

"That is incredibly illegal." Aaron's shifted his glare to Stark.

"Nothing I haven't done before."

"If that's you admitting to hacking the FBI's server, I could arrest you right here and now. Probably all of you."

"I'd like to see you try." This time it was Natasha who stepped in.

"Is that a threat?"

"Does it need to be one?" She stepped threateningly closer to Aaron, who didn't back down.

"Aaron." It was Emily's voice that broke into the conversation next and everyone's attention shifted to her. Her eyes were puffy, and she suddenly looked exhausted. Clint could tell it was taking everything she had to keep herself together. She gave her partner a look that seemed to say 'stand down.' After just a moments hesitation, he listened and backed away from Natasha. Emily breathed out a long breath and spoke again,

"Look... we aren't achieving anything from this and honestly, I think we've all had a long day." She turned her gaze toward Clint for a moment before quickly looking away again. "It's getting late. Maybe we should all take a step back, think, and figure this out...later. I'm sure everyone has some questions."

"I agree." Bruce suddenly cut in, "Everyone should probably be checked out by some sort of doctor."

"You checked all our injuries," Stark responded.

"Tony, I'm really not that kind of doctor. For all I know I could have missed something."

"We're all still standing, aren't we? I say we're fine." He turned back to the rest of the group. "I say we all take the night off, resume this tomorrow."

"We aren't finished here," Rogers spoke just before Thor stepped forward,

"I need to get my brother and the cube back to Asgard immediately.

"Relax. Spangles, we just saved the world I think we deserve a break. And Rapunzel, your brother is currently locked away down in the subbasement in the strongest holding cell Stark Industries has. As long as no one lets him out, and no one's going to, he'll be fine in there for one night. And that cube is safely tucked away in the basement too, placed inside a locked case that can be opened by only yours truly. And hey, there's plenty of rooms here at the tower you guys can stay in." He looked around at his fellow Avengers and found the comment was received by skeptic looks. "Hey, it may look like a disaster on the outside, but I can assure you the inside and the structure of this tower are still completely fine. Trust me, I'm the one who designed it."

Everyone was silent until finally, Rogers spoke up.

"Fine, I suppose it would be a good thing if we all got some rest." He turned to Emily and Aaron, "But you two are staying here as well. First thing tomorrow we are clearing all this up, agreed?" There was a couple of murmurs of agreement, but mostly just nods. Stark clapped his hands together.

"Hotel Stark is open for business. Right this way ladies and gentlemen."

OOOOO

Sitting on the edge of the king-sized bed, Emily stared at the wall across the room. Who knew how long she'd been sitting there, not moving, not making any sound, barely even breathing. For the first time since she sat down, she moved as she fished her phone out of her pocket. The screen lit up and she instantly regretted not checking it sooner as she swiped through the dozens of missed calls.

"Shit." She breathed out as she tapped the call back button and brought the phone up to her ear. She pleaded that there was an answer. She sighed in relief as the line clicked on.

"Em?" the voice on the other end was desperate and Emily could tell she had been crying.

"Cait, I'm so sorry I didn't pick up or call sooner." She rushed out her apology.

"Just tell me you're ok."

"I'm ok. Don't worry, I'm ok. It was just so hectic and I didn't even think to look at my phone. I'm so sorry Caity."

"It's...It's ok. I'm just glad you're ok. I thought-" She choked on her words.

"I know. But I'm ok, really."

"Are you coming home soon?"

Emily didn't answer immediately. She thought about what she wanted to say.

"I...I don't think so, Cait..." She sighed and rubbed her eyes with her free hand. "Things are... insane here and I..." She trailed off. "I just think the bureau is going to need all hands on deck." oh and my ex who I thought was dead is actually alive and my dad's... She couldn't even finish the thought without tears pooling in her eyes. "I'll let you know when I know more, but for now I have to be here." It was met with a long sigh on the other end of the phone.

"Just...promise you'll call me, ok? Every night."

"I promise. I'm gonna try and get some rest. I have a feeling it's gonna be a long day tomorrow."

"Ok...don't forget to call."

"I won't, don't worry."

"Not worrying is definitely not an option at this point." She let out a chuckle and somehow, simply the sweet sound brought a small smile to Emily's cold face. "I love you."

"I love you too. I'll talk to you tomorrow."

"Goodnight." The phone call was ended and Emily gently tossed it onto the nightstand before falling back onto the bed. She didn't even bother getting under the covers as she laid on her side and situated her head on her pillow so she could see out the window. Apparently, every room in this building had one. Slowly, as she looked out onto the city that, in the dark, looked almost undamaged, her eyes began to fall closed and sleep overtook her.

OOOOO

Everything was so dark. Unnaturally dark. There was nothing that even produced the slightest amount of light. But through the darkness, she could hear something. Whispers. They were unclear, but she knew they were calling to her. She moved toward them, through the darkness. The whispers became louder, but still indistinguishable. It wasn't until she'd been traveling for minutes when finally something broke through the darkness. A blue light. The whispers grew louder, now sounding like nails on a chalkboard, but still, she had to keep moving. She had to get to the blue light and away from the darkness. She was getting closer, the light was getting brighter, and the whispers were getting louder. Closer. Brighter. Louder. Finally, she could make out the single phrase that the whispers contained: open it.

OOOOO

Emily woke suddenly. It took her a moment to realize that she wasn't in bed anymore. She wasn't laying down. In fact, she wasn't even in the room Stark had given her for the night.

"The hell...?" She was overtaken by confusion as she studied her new whereabouts. Behind her, there was a dimly lit hall that led to an elevator. In front of her was a steel door with multiple locks and a keypad. However, upon her second inspection, she realized that the door was already unlocked and just barely opened. That couldn't be a good sign. I should really find my way back to my room... I must have sleepwalked here... She meant to turn and leave, but she found herself drawn to the other side of the metal door as if something was calling to her.

Pulled by some kind of invisible force, she pushed the door open enough so she could slip through. She found herself surrounded by darkness at first, but suddenly a dim light flickered to life a few yards to her left, illuminating a small case.

"Oooookay... " she spoke to herself. "I should...go...back..." She spoke these words as she slowly walked to where the case was, almost as though something inside of her was drawn to it. When she reached the case's spot in the room, she gently brushed her fingers against the sides of it. When she did, a single thought popped into her mind, and suddenly it was all that encompassed her thoughts.

Open it.

She hesitated, but the thought stayed.

Open it.

She brought her other hand up and placed it on the other side of the case. As she did so, the case abruptly clicked and the two edges that had just been tightly looked shut were now ever so slightly separated. Blue light seeped out of the now open crack.

Open it.

Gripping the top of the case, she lifted it off of the bottom and it swung open. The sudden amount of light made her squint and for a moment her vision was unclear, but as her eyes adjusted she saw something beautiful. A cube that radiated a profound blue light. A light that seemed to illuminate most of the room. Somehow she could feel the power that radiated off of the cube too. It seemed to be hitting her in waves, and with every wave, she felt as though it was calling to her. All the wanted to do was reach out and touch it. To feel its power. Carefully, she began to reach her hand out to it, stretching her fingers towards the beautiful light and immense power that was reaching back to her. As she grew closer, its pull seemed to have more of an effect, and the calling she felt to it grew larger and more urgent. She was so close. So...Close... Before she could come in contact with the cube, a voice spoke out against the silence of the room.

"I really wouldn't do that if I were you."