A/N: Thanks again to Dr. D for the science help! We are nearing the end, only the epilogue left to go...! I have lofty hopes of having this all finished before the S2 premier. Wish me luck!
Hopefully this chapter doesn't get lost among all the FitzSimmons gifs from the DVD. haha
CHAPTER 9: NEXT TO YOU
There are no bars to his cell but if the light streams through the window at a particular angle, Leo can make out the invisible wall that keeps him trapped. The technology is newer for S.H.I.E.L.D and he finds it vaguely ironic that he was a part of the team that had helped develop it.
His entire wing is empty, just one cell among a hallway of cots and bookshelves. It is rare for any Academy student to be detained, much less two, and he wonders if there's a separate women's wing where they are housing Katie. He secretly hopes that S.H.I.E.L.D is ensuring her quarters are worse than his own.
He's admittedly thankful for the solitude; he finds the silence and loneliness refreshing even when it's occasionally broken by a meddling trespasser. The future incarnation of Jemma purposefully sits beside him, rambling about her latest scientific discoveries. She mostly talks aloud to herself, in part because Leo refuses to answer her questions or to engage. His silence never deters her and he can feel his anger and frustration bubbling below the surface with each passing minute that she sits there unconcerned by his plight; her sunny disposition an indication of her ignorance toward the punishment he faces.
Irritated, he wonders why security hasn't had her removed; surely there are cameras covering every square inch of the facility. It's become increasingly obvious that they are effectively allowing her to trespass in his cell.
"-And you should've seen it, there was this force field that just magnified itself across the interstate! It-"
"Stop! Enough!" He cries angrily, jumping to his feet. "Does nobody care tha' she's in here?" He screams out, begging for security or anyone to hear him.
"They won't care," she says interrupting his fit, her voice calm, yet tentative.
He turns to her, glaring. "Why? They should!"
She shrugs. "They sent me."
His voice barrels from deep within him. "How d'ya mean? Who's they?"
Jemma smiles sheepishly and with a turn of the Infinity Ring she disappears.
Leo curls his hand into a fist and brings it in contact with the electric wall; the current from the strike startles him to the core. He can feel the shock into his fingertips and he winces through clenched teeth as sirens sound in the distance. He backs away from the wall and slumps onto his cot, defeated, exhausted and miserable, his head in his hands.
An imposing figure in a black S.H.I.E.L.D uniform lumbers down the hall toward him. The approaching shadow casts a darkness over the invisible cell wall and Leo can make out the sheen of electricity. As the thunderous footsteps grow closer, he can't help but calculate the modifications to the oxidation levels. He wonders absently if there's a chemist at S.H.I.E.L.D that would be able to properly mix the correct compound needed to correct the error.
"What's your problem kid?" The guard growls, smacking a baton into the air. A spark flies sideways indicating contact with the electrical wall. "You lookin' to get yourself killed?"
Leo doesn't reply and allows his eyes to fall to the floor, choosing to remain silent. The guard tisks and shakes his head before he leans down and hooks his key into the lock tower that sits at the exterior corner of the invisible cell.
"What are ye doin'?" Leo asks, scrambling to his feet. He thinks it can only mean that it's time for his tribunal, that they're ready to make a decision as to his fate. He hadn't realized it would be so soon, he'd thought he had at least another week.
There's a strange silence when the almost inaudible buzz dissipates and the guard reaches for him. His large hand practically envelops Leo's arm, forcing Leo to walk alongside him. "Someone here to see ya."
The guard's steps are quick and Leo has to practically jog to keep up.
"Who is it?" He asks, panting. Confusion and panic mixed in his features. "My mum?"
The guard smiles tightly but says nothing, dragging him toward a marked doorway where he's pushed inside. The grey-black walls make the room feel dark and the titles that decorate it make it seem like square pillows are covering every inch. He wonders vaguely if they're meant to cushion blows from angry interactions. At the center of the room is a single table with a bar attached to its surface. When the guard closes the door behind him he's surprised they decided against handcuffing him to it. He figures he must not be considered a dangerous or physical threat.
"Are you insane?" The voice startles him from his reverie and he turns to find Jemma purposefully marching toward the center of the room. "Godkiller Armor? Really?"
He frowns and takes her in fully. Her hair is a little mussed and darker than before and it dawns on him that this is the Jemma from the present, the one who'd left him months earlier.
"What do you want?" Leo asks, making little attempt to hide his disdain.
She places a legal sized brown envelop onto the table. "I'm here to collect you." She points to the envelop. "Your things. I'm told that your other belongings are going to be shipped to SciOps in a few days."
Leo pulls a chair out from under the table and takes a seat. He crosses his arms against his chest and glares at her. "I'm not breaking out."
Jemma puffs her cheeks and lets out a short chuckle. "I'm not here to break you out. You've been released."
"How'dya mean?" He stares at her, incredulous.
She takes the seat across from him and he can tell by the way she avoids making eye contact that she's considering exactly what to say.
"It's a long story." Her eyes meet his at last. "Complicated, really."
"Well apparently we have all the time in the world," he says motioning toward the walls of the room they sit enclosed within.
She bites at her lip, the earlier confidence she'd had now gone. "We don't really." She shakes her head. "They're releasing you into my custody."
He frowns. "What? Why? No. Absolutely no'."
"If you refuse they'll go ahead with the tribunal," she says simply. "You can't win against S.H.I.E.L.D. you know that. You helped Katie build a weapon of destruction-"
"- I did it to expose her. Now they know her true allegiances."
Jemma sighs. "I know. I believe you. And so does S.H.I.E.L.D. But the evidence is stacked against you. You helped her and no matter your intentions they will mean very little at a tribunal." She shrugs. "You can't prove any of it."
He purses his lips and glares at her. "I don' need your advice."
"I know." She eyes the envelope that lays between them and impulsively reaches for it, upending it, sending its contents to the table. Among a set of keys, a few dollars and some coins, tumbles out a black silk bag. The Infinity Ring.
"You can trust me, you know." She raises her eyes to meet his. "Even after everything. You can trust me and know that S.H.I.E.L.D seems to as well."
"What gives you the idea that I'd leave with you now? You left me once, I'm sure you'd do it again. Besides, maybe I like it here." His hands gesture wildly. "Maybe I want them to charge me with all their crimes and send me to Crossmore."
"I had to leave, you know," she says at last. He watches her carefully, studying her. "It was getting… complicated."
"D'you think it's not complicated for me?" He spits out, leaning forward. "I've been to the future too, ye know. There are some things I'm not too keen on happening either." She nods slowly in response, drawing in every word. He hopes that she feels foolish for not considering that he may be similarly anxious about… everything. "Why you? Why ask you of all the people in S.H.I.E.L.D?"
"I suspect they think we're a good team. We were friends once." Her eyes fall to her fingers. "They've asked me to watch you."
He narrows his eyes. "What do you mean watch me?"
Jemma's voice is quiet and uncertain, her words hitching in her throat. "They want me to watch and report. Make sure that... that the A.I.M. stuff doesn't happen again. Make sure that-" She purses her lips and her eyes still study every mark upon the skin of her hands. "To make sure that you're okay. They want to know that you're safe. Happy, I suppose."
"Who's they?" It feels as though she's speaking in riddles and it's not unlike the version of herself that's been haunting him ever since her abrupt exit months earlier.
She shakes her head and looks up, meeting his gaze. "I'm not allowed to tell you. Not yet anyway. It was a condition of your release. A condition of allowing me to-"
"That's bollocks and you know it." Leo slumps back against his chair. "I'm not going anywhere with you."
Her face falls and she leans forward, swallowing hard and readying herself. "You have to, it's not the only reason they're releasing you."
The words tumble from her mouth, fraught and worried. She expects him to burst with emotion, to react in some way. Any way.
He doesn't.
Instead, he sits and stares at her as though evaluating what she's revealed to him. "I'm so sorry, Fitz. He was a good man."
A moment of time passes wherein Leo studies her, silent and measuring and when it passes his hands reach for his belonging spread across the metal table. He pockets each item methodically, tucking the black silk bag into the pocket at his chest. With his lips a thin line, he breaks his silence with whispered words. "Don't pretend you know anythin' about him." He stands and moves for the door, his fist banging heavily against it, calling for the guards to release the lock. "Ri'," he says calmly turning toward her. "Let's go then."
...
"Here," Jemma says handing him the forged passcard. "You'll need to wear this in case anyone sees us. People without clearance aren't meant to be in the medical building."
"You mean people who have questionable criminal pasts?" He asks with a tight smile.
She shakes her head. "You don't have a criminal past. Not anymore anyway. Weaver just needs to send over the paperwork, but that could take weeks-"
"- and we don't have weeks." She nods. He fingers the passcard, eyeing it suspiciously. "This is a pretty good forgery. How'd ye get it? I don't remember posing for this photo."
She smiles faintly and shrugs. "You gave it to me."
"Oh," he says, understanding. "Of course. You were stalked as well, I reckon."
She nods, her face grows serious as they round the corner. "This is the room," she says swiping her passcard against the security lock and it clicks open, a green light flashes allowing them entrance. She turns the handle and opens the door to the morgue.
"He's in cabin two." Jemma motions to the wall of square doors, each marked with a number. Leo walks hesitantly toward the wall and Jemma does the only thing she knows how to do in uncomfortable situations: she relies on her science. "The autopsy revealed that the impact of the blast crushed his ribs and sternum, it sent bone fragments into the heart. I'm sure he didn't feel a thi-"
"Can you just… can you just give me a minute," he asks softly, interrupting. She nods, silenced and turns to leave the room. "No, stay," he adds quickly. "I just… need a minute. It'll only take a minute."
"Okay," she agrees gently, tucking herself against the wall to be as unobtrusive as possible.
Leo's hand grips the handle of the door, his knuckles white and fingers tense. He lifts and pulls the handle, opening it gingerly. She sees his chest rise heavily as though he's bracing himself for what is to come and he reaches for the tracked stretcher inside the body cabin and pulls it outward. A white cloth covers the length of the body and Leo takes a deep breath before he folds back the sheet.
She can't bare to watch and she turns her gaze downward where she studies a small spot embedded in the marbled floor. She hears him softly sniffle and with a shuddered breath, he asks, "Do you think he can hear us?"
Jemma looks up and shrugs her shoulders. "I'm not sure. I suppose it depends on whether you believe there's an afterlife or not."
He nods slightly and pulls the sheet back up, covering his father's face. With a shake of his head, he carefully replaces the stretcher into its cabin and closes the door. The latch clicks into place and he releases his fingers, letting his arm fall to his side. Jemma steps forward, practiced words of sympathy ready upon her lips, but she is instantly silenced when something in Leo's expression changes. His light eyes flash dark and he reaches for the door to the body cabin and opens it with shocking force.
She sucks in a surprised breath as he slams the door closed, forcing it heavily against the latch. The ferocity of his action shudders the other doors. Over and over he jerks his arm backward and forward, his strangled cries echoing against every surface of the room.
"You- left- us," he screams, his words spoken in rapid staccato matching each blow of the door against the latch. "For what?! For this?" Tears stream against his face, his voice distorted by grief. "Everything was a secret with you, wasn't it?"
Jemma's hands grab his shoulders, rooting him with all her strength. His arms drop to his sides and his shoulders slump forward, the door flapping limply open. She reaches past him and secures it. Leo turns to face her and she can see the strain upon every feature.
She's not sure who moves first, but suddenly she finds him in her arms sobbing against her shoulder. When her hand rubs a soothing pattern along his back, it's then she that she understands; there are parallels which run deeper than she can even begin to imagine.
As she holds him in her arms, tears stinging her own eyes, she thinks she understands a fraction of what everyone has been fighting for. Fury, Weaver and their future selves…
...to be continued...
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