Note: Yay for canon divergence! That is all. Oh, and title was supposed to refer to something, but I've forgotten what. Author's bad habit of coming up with obscure titles? And the location of Wade's soulmark was inspired by one of ozhawk's 'Soulmate Shorts'.

"Bad Habits"

Phil sighed as he heard cello music. It evoked such wonderful memories for him. He knew there'd never be another like Audrey for him. Her words were still stamped on his skin, branded in black which had never wavered. She'd probably received a new soulmark after he died – her heart and soul were too big not to be shared with someone, and they'd never taken that chance – so there was no point in trying to contact her. He stayed away, to keep her safe and give her a chance at the life she could never have had with him.

Raina had been toying with him, he knew. But it made him acknowledge that Audrey had loved him just as much as he'd loved her, brought it home that he chose SHIELD over her and the family they could've built together. He'd chosen an organisation which now turned out to have been semi-corrupted the whole time.

"Sir?"

He looked up at Simmons. "Come in."

His platonic soulmate stepped into his office, wringing her hands.

"I felt I should tell you," she said.

"That Audrey's your other platonic soulmate?"

She breathed out slowly. "Yes. How did you know?"

"I know your writing, and I've seen her mark."

"Is… that why you sent me?"

"No," he said. "It's because we're low on people. But I think she'll need your help. Just… don't tell her I'm alive yet."

"I asked if she'd found her non-platonic soulmate, and she told me it was you. She said that she loved you so much that the mark was still as black as though you were alive, even though it had turned grey for a few days."

"It's… still there?"

Simmons smiled gently. "A love for the ages, sir? Please tell her yourself. If she found out I was keeping such a big secret from her, she'd never forgive me."

"I can't, Jemma."

"Sir—"

"If she ever finds out – any way – I'll make it clear that I gave you a direct order."

She frowned in disapproval. He could practically feel it coming from her.

"Is that all, Simmons?"

"I have her phone number. When you want it, you only need ask."

He snorted. "I could get it anyway. But… thanks for the offer. It means more."

"You're welcome, sir."

He'd been director for two days, and already he was encountering staffing problems. It gave him a headache of epic proportions, but he pushed on through, even when they all found themselves in the middle of a fight they could never hope to win. Fitz was still under, they were all still reeling from Ward's betrayal, and Phil was trying to sort through the administrative mess Fury had left behind after destroying his papers, and after Skye had taken their information off the web. The World Security Council – the remaining quarter – had also gone dark for the time being, which meant – hoorah – no funding.

Basically, he was having a terrible day. His migraine was getting worse, there were gunshots every which way, and even he was having trouble keeping track of where his team was, and who was fighting whom.

"May, is there any backup we can call in?" he asked, loading another cartridge. "Damn it, Nick, I swear to Odin…"

"I did a sweep of the area," Skye said, interrupting him. "Checked out any known supers. I only found one guy who's supposed to be around, and sent a message to his phone. I don't know whether he—"

There was a shriek from someone – Phil had no idea who – and then the sound of clanging. Someone jumped over crates and landed beside him. He stared as the guy sheathed two swords over his back, opened up a satchel, and pulled out a grenade. He pulled out the pin and threw it over the barrier. Phil peeked through and was relieved to see that none of his team were hurt. He glared at the stranger, though he had an unfortunate idea who it might be.

"Excuse me," he began.

"Why, what'd you do?" the man asked, now pulling a large gun out of his bag. "Here, do you know how to use one of these? I found it yesterday. It's easy."

"Uh, yeah." Phil studied it, then set it up. The magazine was full, and he rested the butt on his shoulder. "Are you…?"

"Deadpool. Wade Wilson, depending on the writer."

"What?"

"Try not to shoot me. If you do, aim for the head. Quicker to heal."

Phil stared as Wilson jumped back over the crates and began to slash bullets out of the air. He busied himself with firing at the enemy, calling for his team to bring them his way. With Wilson's help, it was soon over, and he reached full awareness when he was shaking the man's hand and thanking him.

"Hey, it's no problem," Wilson said, waving a hand. "You know I love a good fight. Or a bad one. I can make a bad one good, because I'm awesome. Say, have you seen The Lego Movie? I haven't, but I watched the Oscars and they sang that song and now I want it as my theme tune, but I only heard it the once and it's hard to find as a ring-tone. It's not like I could get it to play on cue each time I walk into a room. But wouldn't that be cool?"

"Thank you again, Mr. Wilson," Phil said, managing to extract his hand. "You really did save us back there."

Wilson brightened. "I know! I'm trying to get on the side of the good guys, but no one really wants an ex-mercenary on their side. Well, the bad guys do, but then they get tired of me real quick, and… well, everyone does, to be honest, but if you're willing to take me on I can promise a really reasonable fee. I'm thinking shelter, food, someone to stick my head back on if someone else cuts it off. I've got rhythm and I've got music – and an excellent array of hardware, if you know what I mean – but I'm thinking it'll be easier to find my soulmate with you guys anyway—"

"It's good of you to offer," Phil said. "And God knows we need more hands."

"I've got the rest of the package, too."

"And someone with your skills would be great. But… you're not exactly known for working well in a team."

"Really? I thought people liked me."

"I'm sure that's true," Phil hurriedly said. "But none of us are enhanced. Are you sure you wouldn't get bored?"

He saw May signing behind Wilson 'Are you really this desperate?' He nodded subtly, and her expression turned resigned.

"Nah, I can go find trouble anytime," Wilson said. "Just take my number in case you need me while I'm out, and give me a call when things get bad. As long as I have somewhere to return each night, and a reason to stay, you can bet I'm willing to stick around."

"Well." He really hoped he wouldn't regret this. "You got yourself a deal."

As Wade walked off, already chatting to a bewildered Skye – and it was her own fault – May stood beside Phil.

"What about the lie detector?"

"Honestly? I don't think he knows truth from fiction."

"Or maybe he can differentiate too well."

"And you don't think that might come in handy?"

She sighed. "I hope you know what you're doing."

"Now that he's met us, he'd probably butt in anyway. At least this way we have some control over his movements. Don't tell me you don't think it's useful to have someone like Deadpool at our side."

"Like him, yes. Actually him?"

"Be careful he doesn't hang out with you. We all know what a big talker you are."

She elbowed him, but he could see the amusement in her eyes, and the way her lips turned up at the corners.

Jemma looked up as Skye brought the man known as Wade Wilson into the lab. No one had been injured – ostensibly due to Deadpool – and Skye confirmed that.

"He saved our asses back there," she said.

"I haven't even checked out any of your asses," he said. "I'm so proud of myself." Then he looked Jemma over, and she waited for him to continue talking. Skye's text had warned her, and she was waiting for the big monologue. Perhaps if she averted it she could return to her work?

"Thank you so much for saving my friends," she said, offering her hand. He seemed to freeze, and then shake himself out of it. He took her hand, and pressed the mouth of his mask to the back of it. She nearly melted at the gentlemanly gesture she hadn't seen in years, and never experienced personally.

"I'd do anything for you, dear, anything," he declared.

"…I need to sit down."

"Why?" Skye said. Jemma could almost feel herself turning pale – paler than usual, that is – and Deadpool helped her into a seat. Or perhaps she should call him Wade?

"Please do," he said.

"Do what?" she asked.

"Call me Wade. I wanna hear you say it in that cute little English accent of yours."

"Oh, alright. Hello, Wade. Lovely to meet you."

"That's one I haven't heard before," he said, tilting his head. "No one's ever thought it was lovely to meet me."

"Well, you are my soulmate. I wasn't sure when to find you. I wasn't sure I had a soulmate until a few years ago."

"What? You would've been born with your soulmark!"

"He's your soulmate?" Skye said. She grinned. "Excuse me, I have to go tell everyone."

"Skye!"

"They'll find out anyway! Stay. Talk. Get to know each other. Let me be the bearer of… really weird news."

"Great idea!" Wade said, shooing her out. As soon as they were alone he sat cross-legged on the floor in front of her. "So how come you didn't know that you had a soulmark? Really awkward position?"

"…You could say that. That's… a terribly accurate description."

"But no one else ever saw it?"

"I was waiting!" she snapped. She couldn't tell whether he'd raised his eyebrows – he hadn't removed his mask yet – but he tipped his head again. It reminded her of a bird. "It… wasn't until I was asked to develop a means of scanning someone for their non-platonic soulmark in case it was being concealed, and to tell whether or not it was fake. There have been people taken in by gold-diggers – or worse – and I was supposed to solve the problem."

"I'll bet you did, honeybun," he said, stroking her knees. She placed her hands on top of his, stilling them, and entwined their fingers. Her stomach fluttered with nerves. What she was about to reveal was highly embarrassing.

"I scribbled on my arm with ink – just nonsense, really – and then did the full-body scan. It proved that the ink was false… and revealed the location of my soulmark."

Wade shifted in place. "I'm starting to get an idea."

"Where's yours?"

"Can't you guess?"

Jemma blushed furiously. "To bond, we'd have to—"

"Go all the way. Yeah."

She exhaled, rubbing her hands over his. "I would want to, anyway. All my other soulmates are platonic. You were the only one I hadn't met so far, which means that you're my non-platonic soulmate. And the writing is darker."

"Who are your platonic ones?"

She rolled up her sleeve, the blue writing – her favourite colour – showing her other marks.

"This one's Coulson," she said. "This one is Fitz. This is Skye. This one is May. This here is Trip. I… did have Ward, but he turned out to be HYDRA. And this one is the person I met most recently, aside from you. Her name is Audrey, and her non-platonic soulmate is Director Coulson."

"Am I gonna meet all these people?"

"I honestly don't know," she said, frowning slightly. "You've already saved Coulson, Skye, May, and Trip. Fitz is still in recovery. Audrey… she doesn't know that Coulson is alive, which is a horrible secret to keep from her, but he insists. It's so terribly unfair. She still has his mark, and he still has hers." Her frown faded into a smile as she cupped the side of Wade's face. "But I've got you now."

"Of course you've got me," he said. "I'm working with you now. Well, not you specifically, but with the whole team, at least when I'm needed, and I'll be living here most of the time, except when I'm out."

"Do you think we could get rooms next to each other. Or… or share a room? Eventually?"

He hesitated. "Not a good idea. I'm a few crates short of a load, and I can't see us sharing a bed or anything."

"Why not?" she asked, hurt.

"Not that I don't want to, God, look at you, I'd make you scream for days given the chance. Good kind of screaming, not bad kind of screaming. I wouldn't torture you, unless you asked for it, and you look like a nice girl so you probably wouldn't, or at least I hope you wouldn't because I'm not into that in a sexy way. In a getting information way? That's different. But wow, not exactly the best conversation topic to have with your soulmate, huh?"

"You don't want to sleep with me?"

"Didn't you hear what I just said? Of course I do. But we shouldn't. We can't. You're too good for me."

"No, I'm not! You're my soulmate, Wade—"

"And that's another thing, Skye didn't introduce us. You know who I am, but I didn't catch your name, doc."

"Jemma," she said. "Last name Simmons."

"Last name is an odd middle name for someone."

"My name is Jemma Simmons! Simmons is my last name. That's what I meant."

"Oh," he chirped. He looked her up and down. "I would love to take you right now, but then I'd wanna kiss you, and that's not gonna happen."

"I'd like you to."

"If you saw my face, you wouldn't, sweetheart." He squeezed her knees, then stood up. "Let's just say it's platonic, and you can find someone else."

"But your words on me are black! Or they were the last time I checked. It's… difficult to get pictures. I could get Skye to help me, I suppose. Or perhaps May. That might be marginally less awkward."

"Sorry, Jemma," Wade said softly, stroking her hair. "But I'm not the one for you. I'll still be around, though!"

"But, Wade—"

"Ask around. I'm not the idea of anyone's soulmate."

"Clearly Fate thinks otherwise, since I was born after you," she said, trying to stop him from leaving. "Take off your mask."

"The phantom of the opera's got nothing on me. Ever seen pictures of the Red Skull?" She nodded. "I'm the flesh-coloured, more scarred version. Not good."

"Wade—"

"I don't want to drive you away, which I will," he said, holding up his hands. "Please, just leave it alone."

Jemma was baffled – and disheartened – when he teleported away. She didn't know that he could do that. It seemed there was a great deal she didn't know about Wade Wilson; and if she was to continue to coax him out, she would have to do her research.

Audrey was being chased. She was glad not to be hampered by her cello, but she'd had to drop her groceries. Her only hope right now was to get home, lock herself inside, and call the police. Or, if not the police, call Jemma and ask for her help.

There was a scream, and she looked around. A man was on the ground, clutching his leg, and a woman – girlfriend? Wife? Sister? – was kneeling over him.

"Stop running, Ms. Nathan, or they both die," someone said. She slowed to a stop, unable to squash the feeling of utter helplessness, and turned around to confront her pursuer. He was tall and scarred. "That's right. My boss wants to see you. He thinks you're valuable to the head of SHIELD."

"What value could I be to Nick Fury?" she asked.

"Not Nick Fury. Phil Coulson is the new director of SHIELD."

She shook her head. "Phil's dead. He… he's dead."

But she still had her soulmark. It faded for awhile, then came back. What if…? The man smirked.

"He still hasn't told you," he said. "How sweet. He didn't die for long."

"That… that bastard!"

"Please, let me call an ambulance!" the woman cried. "My husband…"

"Commander."

There was another man behind Audrey. She whirled around and stared. This one was unkempt, wearing a hoodie, and… was that a metal hand?

"Soldier, stand down," the first one said.

"Not gonna happen, Rumlow. Miss, could you stand aside?"

Audrey backed up against the fence. Then Metal Hand took a run at the first guy – did he say 'Rumlow'? – and they began to fight. The woman across the street was still crying, and there were people gathering at the sides, not sure what to do. Audrey ran across the road.

"Call an ambulance!" she ordered. One of the bystanders pulled out their cell phone and began to dial. Audrey dropped to her knees beside the woman, and saw the man's eyelids fluttering. She glanced to the side and saw, to her horror, that the woman was pregnant.

"Don't leave me," she said, tears streaming down her cheeks. "Please, Mark, don't leave me. Don't leave us."

Audrey pulled his shirt apart, ripping from the bullet hole outwards. It'd hit his stomach. A fatal wound.

"I'm so sorry," she whispered. The woman beside her, Mark's wife, continued to sob, one hand over her baby bump and the other clutching her husband's left hand. Their wedding rings sparkled together in the light.

Phil was alive, Rumlow said. It wasn't right for Audrey to find out that her soulmate was fine only for this woman to lose hers.

Anger built up inside. Anger, and fear for the woman and her child. The man's eyelids began to close, his breaths sounding more like death rattles. Audrey's hands began to glow where they were spread either side of the wound.

"What… what're you doing?" the woman said, staring at her. Audrey had no idea, shaking her head.

"I don't know," she said. "Oh… oh my God."

The skin began to stitch back together. It was soon closed over. But… but what about the stomach acids? What about the blood probably building up in his throat?

With a huge, gurgling gasp, the man turned to his side and spewed out a mass of blood. Audrey patted his back absently, grunts still audible from where Metal Hand and Rumlow were fighting. She pulled up the back of Mark's jacket and shirt, and saw no sign of any shot wound there. On the ground was the slug. He must have had an exit wound, judging by the puddle of red liquid there, but that had sealed as well.

"Ambulance is on its way," the bystander with a phone said. They were all staring at Audrey, whose hands had lost the glow. She looked up at Mark's wife, who was so pale that Audrey worried she was about to pass out. Mark sat up, and he must have noticed this as well, because he pulled her into his arms.

"I'm fine," he said. There were traces of blood around his mouth, but he was moving without a flinch. "I'm okay."

"Ger her checked out at the hospital at the same time," Audrey said. "Just in case the stress has caused… anything."

"Thank you," the woman whimpered. "I don't know what you did, but… thank you."

Audrey got to her feet to rounds of applause, and smiled uncertainly. She crossed the road again, and watched as the men reached a stalemate.

"I'm gonna call SHIELD," she said loudly. Rumlow glared at her. Metal Hand broke his neck, and let him fall to the ground. "I'm sure as hell not helping him."

"I must go," Metal Hand said.

"Wait! Uh, thanks. For saving me. And, I guess, for saving everyone else here. I don't know what he would've done."

"Bad things."

"What's your name?"

He wouldn't meet her eyes, and shuffled in place. "James."

"Do you want cocoa or something?"

"Just do your shopping during the day."

"I have a feeling my life plans might change very soon," she said. "Why did you save me?"

James shrugged. "I wanted to kill him. He threatened innocent people. He was with HYDRA. Stood by while they wiped my memory."

"Oh." She chewed her bottom lip for a moment. "I'm still going to call them. One of my platonic soulmates said she'd help me if I needed it. I'm sure they'd all help you."

"I'll find them one day, or let them find me. I can't stay in one place for too long. But he's down." He nodded to Rumlow. "That's one down." He began to walk off.

"Thanks again!" Audrey called.

He didn't reply. Just glanced over his shoulder once, and then continued on his way. With a sigh, Audrey entered her apartment, letting the ambulance officers do their work without a fuss, and went to the middle of her apartment. Then she pulled out her phone and dialled a familiar number.

"Jemma? I need your help. Something weird just happened, and I'm pretty sure you're supposed to examine people like me."

Jemma promised to come pick her up. While she was waiting, Audrey took out one of her sharp kitchen knives. She had to know whether what happened was just a one-off, just brought on by stress, or whether she could do it again. She pulled up the left leg of her track-pants and ran the blade of the knife along the skin just above the knee. A red line formed, and blood began to trickle. She put the knife down, placed her hands either side of the cut, and concentrated.

Nothing happened.

"C'mon, use the mind," she told herself. "Like all those self-help books say."

She gathered what she figured must be energy and directed it along her arms, her skin prickling where her mind was activating the nerves, and her hands began to glow again. There was a weird kind of pull, and the light faded. When she ran her thumb along the line of blood, shifting it out of the way, she was amazed to see that there was no cut at all. Nothing. Not a raised edge, no evidence at all that she'd been bleeding. Only the smear of red around the site. She dealt with that quickly enough, then created another wound.

By the time someone was knocking at the door, she'd gotten the hang of healing small wounds. Whether she could save someone from a bullet again was another matter. But she smiled in relief when she saw Jemma standing there.

"Thank God," she said. Jemma stared down at her leg, where Audrey hadn't wiped away all of the blood.

"What on Earth happened?" she exclaimed, and she pushed Audrey into the apartment. A tall, dark man followed them, closing the door on the way.

"I cut myself," Audrey said. "On purpose."

"What? Why would you do a thing like that?"

"Look."

Audrey slashed along her leg again, and Jemma shrieked. Then Audrey formed the glowing light, now easy to draw on her energy to heal the cut. When it was done, she wiped away the blood with the tea towel she'd been using. Jemma calmed down, and studied the area.

"Not a scratch," she said. "How did you do it?"

"I don't know," Audrey said. "But I think you'll need to run some tests."

"You must be Gifted. Have you ever done this before?"

"Not until tonight. A strong surge of emotion brought it on."

"Perhaps you have latent powers," Jemma mused. "Well—"

"Some guy tried to attack me tonight, and he said that Phil's alive. Did you know?"

Jemma cleared her throat. "He gave me orders. I'm sorry. I kept pestering him to tell you, but he's—"

"So stubborn, I know." Audrey rubbed her hands on her face, and then realised she'd probably left tracks of blood on her cheeks. "Damn it. I need to clean up."

"Then I think you should come with us."

"I'm bringing the cello."

"We should have enough room."

"You'd better."

It wasn't much warning. Phil walked out to meet the car. Trip lifted the cello out of the trunk, and Audrey – beautiful, gentle Audrey – got out of the car, walked right up to him, and stared at him, fuming, for five seconds.

"You ass!" she shouted, flinging herself at him. She thumped her fists on his chest and shoulders, calling him names while he smiled and pulled her close.

"I know, I know," he said. "I'm sorry. I was trying to keep you safe."

"Didn't work, Phil! Some man named Rumlow came after me tonight, and if James hadn't fought him off I don't know what might've happened!"

"Who's James?" he asked. She'd stopped hitting him now, which was just as well, considering that he'd taken a cut to the shoulder during training. It was his own fault for not paying attention; his soulmark had itched, and it threw him.

"I don't know," she said, wiping a tear off her face. "Some guy who helped me. It looked like he had a metal hand. He said he was going after HYDRA agents, and he killed Rumlow."

"…Uh-huh?"

"What? What do you mean, 'Uh-huh'? What do you know that I don't, Phil Coulson?"

"I'll tell you later." He cupped her cheeks and brought her face close. "My God, you're a sight for sore eyes."

"I'm a sight for sore anything."

"Good, because I think you've opened the stitches on my shoulder."

"Show me," she said, trying to push off his jacket. Well, if that didn't take him back…

He obliged, shrugging off his upper layers until she could see the reddening bandage. Audrey touched it lightly.

"How did it happen?" she asked softly.

"Distracted while sparring. Your words on me… they sort of flared. I was just glad they didn't disappear."

"I can probably guess when it happened."

"What brings you here? Simmons said you were in trouble."

"This brought me here," she said. Then she ripped off the dressing and rested her hands either side of Phil's injury. He opened his mouth to ask her what the hell she was doing, when her hands seemed to light up. He stared – and so did everyone around them – while the stitches slithered out and the flesh knitted itself back together seamlessly.

"What…?"

"She could have an x-gene which only manifested itself tonight," Simmons said brightly.

"Tonight? What happened?"

"A pregnant woman's husband took a bullet to the gut, and I healed it before he could die," Audrey said. "Don't ask me how. I need Jemma to run some tests on me."

He looked her up and down. As gorgeous as ever. "Not just yet."

"Oh?"

Phil discovered that she tasted the same as ever, too.

The next time Jemma saw Audrey was when the woman came to the lab to give blood samples.

"Would a recent bonding have any effect on it?" she asked sheepishly.

"Considering the state of your hair and neck, I'm not in the least bit surprised," Jemma said, raising an eyebrow. "If I thought that would be the case, I would have at least tried to stop the two of you first."

"Okay." Audrey winced slightly as she sat down. "It's been a few years. Last time was only a week before New York, and Phil…" She trailed off.

"Did he explain how he was brought back to life?" Jemma asked.

"Yes. It's horrible. I wish I could've been there for him."

"But you don't regret the procedure taking place."

Audrey bowed her head. "That makes me a terrible person, doesn't it?"

"No, of course not! You get a second chance with your true love. I wish I had that chance at all."

"Still haven't found him?" Audrey asked as Jemma wiped her shoulder with antiseptic.

"Oh no, he's here," Jemma said. "Most of the time. His name is Wade Wilson, and he goes by the sobriquet of Deadpool."

"That sounds ominous."

"We've talked to each other, although he does most of the talking. He's nicknamed the Merc with a Mouth for a reason."

"Not the good kind of reason, I'm guessing?" Audrey said as Jemma drew a few samples of her blood.

"He hasn't given me the chance to find out."

"Why not? You're smart, kind, pretty. He should at least be interested in a date."

Jemma snorted delicately. "The closest we get is if it's just the two of us having a meal without any of the others around."

"Do you have anything in common?"

She shrugged. "Not really. If we do, it has yet to show itself. But I don't mind. I like him being the opposite of me. I've always been around people I share interests with, and not had many opportunities to explore others. Is it too much to ask for one kiss?"

"It shouldn't be," Audrey said. She drank the juice Jemma handed to her. "Do you think he's attracted to you?"

Jemma perched on the bed beside Audrey. "He says that he is, but that he doesn't want to drive me off with the scars on his face. Doesn't he realise that I don't care about how he looks? My heart doesn't have eyes, nor does my soul."

"Didn't it occur to you that the thought might make him uncomfortable?" Audrey pointed out. "When I first met Phil, it took awhile to get him to see that I wanted him. He was sure I'd be better off without him, kept trying to dissuade me."

"How did you convince him to give it a try?"

"Me? I jumped him. But he doesn't wear a mask."

"Damn," Jemma sighed. "Wade's mask completely covers his head, and he wears gloves. I haven't seen an inch of skin, at all. He heals quickly, so there's never a reason for me to examine him for injuries."

"Sudden-kissing him doesn't sound like it'd work, then."

"No." Her shoulders slumped. "I should introduce you to everyone else, you know. Maybe you have some soulmates among the rest of the team?"

"Phil was planning to do that." They looked over at the door, where he was hovering, his own hair untidy and neck pink in several places. "He wanted me to heal the love-bites, but I refused."

"Well, I'll let you know when I have the results," Jemma said. "Can you stand?"

"Absolutely." Audrey got to her feet carefully. "Thanks for the talk. And the snacks."

"Thank you for listening," she said, watching anxiously as Audrey made it to Phil's side. He slid an arm around her waist, and Jemma couldn't help the stab of jealousy that Wade never touched her like that.

Sure enough, Audrey had the x-gene.

No one had discovered it before because no one had been looking for it. Jemma had studied the biology of mutants – or Gifted people, to use the politically correct term – and cross-checked with her notes from the academy. As she suspected, the x-gene was present in Audrey's blood stream. As far as they knew, her gift extended to healing surface injuries within a matter of seconds. Jemma sneaked her into her a morgue and inflicted wounds on the bodies. Audrey could heal them, but she couldn't raise a newly-killed rat from the dead.

"I don't want you to push yourself to try," Jemma said. "You can bring people back from the brink of death by healing their injuries. That's more than enough. That first man should have died, and he didn't, thanks to you. If he had, his wife could have lost their child, and she didn't."

Audrey had taken a sabbatical from the orchestra, although she continued to practise on base. They all enjoyed listening to her at the end of the hard day. Nothing like a bit of Saint-Saëns or Elgar to heal the soul. Her days became a blur of physical training so she wouldn't get caught off-guard again, strengthening her healing powers, and playing the cello to keep her skills fresh. And at night, she and Phil renewed their bond.

Fitz and Mack reinforced the sound-proofing on the doors. And Jemma continued to wish that she had a reason to activate the sound-proofing on her own door.

"Hey, doc, how's it going?"

"Hello, Wade," she said, keeping her eyes on the computer screen. "I'm fine. Just working."

"Sounds boring. Wanna see a movie?"

She paused, and then turned her head, trying not to get her hopes up. "A movie?"

"Yeah. I'm getting everyone together so we can go see whatever's on. I was thinking an action film with science, so there's something for all of us to mock! Or something we'd all find boring. Or a comedy. There isn't much we're all gonna be able to agree on, so it's about finding something we'll all hate equally…"

As he continued to chatter, Jemma lowered her eyes and returned to comparing Coulson's before and after blood samples, to see whether bonding with a Gifted person had changed his blood. Nothing so far.

"This is quite time-sensitive," she said, interrupting the flow.

"We can wait. We don't even have to go right now—"

"No, no, it's fine," she said. "Don't let me spoil the evening. I'm sure I'll be safe on base. Is anyone else staying behind?"

"Bobbi and Hunter have their own plans, so they'll probably be back before us, but that'd just be to have sex. I've sounded out pretty much everyone else, but I could ask—"

"Please go," Jemma said. "I need to concentrate on this."

"…Okay. I'll give you a review later."

"I look forward to it," she said, closing her eyes as he left the lab. Fortunately like a normal person, i.e. through the door. She steadied herself against the bench, frustrated and pissed beyond belief that she'd even contemplated the idea that Wade was finally showing interest in her. He was full of wild anecdotes, had super healing, was effectively immortal, a skilled fight… she must have seemed quite dull by comparison. And he had no reason to like or trust a scientist, even his soulmate, considering his history.

With a heavy heart, she returned to studying the samples and cursing Wade Wilson in the privacy of her own head.

Audrey was resting on Phil's chest, tracing circles around the scar, when her finger began to glow. Her eyebrows drew together.

"What's the oldest injury I've healed so far?" she asked.

"I don't know," Phil said drowsily. "Maybe an hour or two old? Why?"

She leant up beside him and placed her hand over the scar. He peered at her.

"Audrey?"

"Shh." Her whole hand shone, and Phil gasped. He grabbed onto her arms, neither pulling them close nor pushing them away. When the light faded, Audrey raised her hand. The flesh was perfect. "Roll onto your side." Phil obeyed, and there was no trace of a scar there, either. "Oh my God."

"Audrey, do you realise what this means?" he said.

"Hey!" Someone hammered at the door. It was Skye. "Got an alert. Mostly muscle needed, but that includes you, DC. May said we don't need Audrey for this."

"Except as a healer," Audrey muttered.

"Don't jinx us," Phil said, standing on unsteady legs. There was a certain brief euphoria that came with Audrey's healing. He opened the ice box and pulled out a sports drink, always good to have on hand if she'd been using her powers. She was getting better at drawing on her ever-regenerating energy, but a little boost never hurt.

"C'mon, you guys, May's starting up the van. FitzSimmons are staying behind, but the rest of us are heading out."

"Coming!" Phil called, struggling into clothes. He was still trying to take in the fact that Audrey could cure old wounds. At least ones on the outside. They hadn't tried out internal injuries yet, and weren't eager to inflict any for the purposes of testing. Even though, as Simmons pointed out, it would probably work. That was the thing; he didn't like that 'probably'.

"I love you," Audrey said, and she kissed him before he walked off to join the others.

"I love you, too," Phil said. He waved, and Audrey retreated to the lab to see if Fitz and Jemma needed any help.

They were arguing. She hated to see that, and frowned as Fitz tried to find the words he wanted. His hands shook, and Jemma attempted to hold them still. He yanked them away from her and stalked to the other side of the lab.

"Mind on the mission," Audrey reminded them. Fitz ignored her as his face crumpled, and Jemma turned back to Skye's laptop. Skye was also yelling at them to be helpful by doing what she told them to. Jemma and Audrey had to do most of the manual work, because Fitz was so frustrated that he was undermining himself.

"I can't do this," he kept muttering. Even after the others declared the mission finished without injury – except Wade, who healed quickly enough – he continued to talk to himself. Jemma looked about ready to explode, and Audrey strode to his side.

"Here, let me try something," she said, placing her hands either side of his head. "Just close your eyes."

He stared at her for a moment, and then let his eyes flutter shut. Audrey was careful, sending her power to seek before automatically healing. Something seemed to happen, and she kept an eye on Fitz's reactions. When the glow faded again – as it always did when her work was done – she lifted her hands away and stepped back.

"How do you feel, Leo?" she asked. His eyes snapped open, and he glanced from her to Jemma and back again.

"Give me something to do," he said. "Something fiddly."

"Can you remember any poems or Shakespearean speeches?" Audrey asked as Jemma searched for something suitably difficult. "Do you know Much Ado About Nothing?"

"Uh, no, I don't," he said.

"Never mind," Jemma said. "You'll be tested soon enough. You can give the debrief about our side of the mission."

He looked nervous, but nodded.

Wade was sharpening a katana when Jemma entered his room.

"How are you?" she asked.

"I'm good," he said, holding the blade up to the light to inspect it. "Yep, this one's good as well. Nice and sharp. You know what makes these special? Sometimes blood drips off them, and sometimes I can stab someone – or behead them or slice them or generally maim them in some way – and no blood is left on the blade at all. Weird, isn't it? Of course, it could just be lazy film or picture editing, but it's much more effective when there's actually some evidence of injury, you know? Except when you've got some random healing power because the author figured that a character needed it to justify pairing them with someone who works with enhanced people—"

"Wade, do you like me?" Jemma said, cutting off his confusing ramble. He cocked his head in one of the few ways he could show expression.

"Of course I do. You're very likeable. You're a gem, Jem. Heh. Also, you're my soulmate, so it'd be weird if I didn't like you, but then I've got a few screws loose anyway, thanks so much, people at Marvel, really feeling the love there—"

"You won't let me see you at all? Not one part?"

His voice turned serious. "Not even my soulmark, babe. No one's ever prepared for it."

"Why not? I am a bio-scientist, and I've seen some truly horrible things. You can't be that bad."

"I'm not gonna challenge you on that point, sweet-thing."

"Show me. Please." She stepped closer, and he moved his katana away.

"…Promise to let it go if I show you one of my hands?"

"Wade—"

"Promise."

She sighed. "It won't change my mind. You're my soulmate, and I like you. Very much. The more I get to know you, the more I want to help you."

"Ah, so this is pity?"

"No! This is me trying to connect with my non-platonic soulmate who's being incredibly stubborn."

He sighed, and pulled off one of his gloves. Jemma sucked in a shocked breath, and touched the wrinkled, pock-marked, reddened skin.

"Is it all like this?" she asked.

"Yeah."

"Who did this to you?"

"People who are dead now."

"Pity," she muttered. "I would've liked to eviscerate them myself."

"Good luck with that. It was before your time."

"Oh, Wade."

"Now you've seen it," he said, snapping the glove back on.

"Does it hurt?"

"Nah. It's basically my skin now. I did get better for awhile, but then I got burned. Then the cure turned out to be temporary, so everything was that much worse. People have thrown up when they see the real me. I can't handle that from you. Not when you're supposed to be my soulmate."

"Am your soulmate," she said, kneeling in front of him. "Wade, please let me see your face." She reached up to lift his mask away. He slapped her hands back and sheathed the katana he'd been working on.

"You promised to leave it alone," he said.

"Wade, please let me see you!"

"What, so you can see me as a test subject?"

"No! Because I want to love you, but you make it so hard when you won't let me close, won't even show me your eyes. You won't take me out on dates, you don't hold my hand. You tell me stories about you and the people you've worked with, but not about the things you like. I don't even know your favourite colour!"

"Well, it used to be red, but now it's the colour of your eyes," he said. She nearly screamed.

"Then you go and say something like that, which makes me think that you like me, but you don't deliver on it," she said.

"You really want to see it, Christine? You want to see Erik's face?"

"The reference to Phantom of the Opera was unnecessary, but yes. I do." She lifted her chin, staring him down defiantly.

"Fine!" Then he pulled off the hood that served as a full head mask.

Jemma gasped, covering her mouth as she stared at her soulmate's face. It seemed even worse than the hand she'd seen. What kind of horrors had been inflicted to create such damage? Even without the apparent burns, he was still horribly scarred, some patches looking like a toe after it's been in the water too long, and it brought tears to her eyes. He was scrunching the mask in his hands, looking at her unflinchingly.

"There's the truth," he said.

She fled into his arms, burying her face in his chest and just holding on. His hands touched her waist and she turned her head to the side.

"I wish they were still alive so I could kill them myself," she whispered. He chuckled.

"They got what was coming to them," he said. "At least you haven't run screaming."

"I told you I wouldn't," she said, raising her head to look him in the eyes. They were a nice, light brown, set amongst such terrible injury. She stroked his cheek. "Does that hurt?"

"No."

"Then this shouldn't." She pulled him down by the neck and kissed him. He sort of had lips, but it hardly mattered, because he swiftly broke it.

"Don't," he said.

"Am I that repulsive?"

"Are you that…? Jemma, it's not you at all."

"Wade, please let me—"

"I can't. I want to, badly. Well, not badly, I want to well. But I definitely can't subject you to this. Your first time shouldn't be with a guy who looks like a failed experiment. Well, technically I am a failed experiment, and I have the appearance to go with it."

"We can't bond unless we have sex, Wade."

"You shouldn't even want to bond with me, Jem! You should be running as far away as you can from this."

"I see a brave man who's trying to make up for sins of the past," she said. "And looks aren't everything. If you'd seen pictures of me when I was at school…"

"Did you look anything like this?" He indicated his face. Slowly, she shook her head.

"No," she said. "I'll admit that I didn't."

"And that's the big difference, honey." He let her go and pulled the mask back on. She dropped her hands to her sides.

"I'm so sorry, Wade," she said. "I wish you could accept it so that you could accept me."

He stroked her hair. "I'm sorry, too, Jemma," he said.

She nodded, and left the room silently.

After half a day of seeing Jemma moping around, Wade gave in. He'd thought about it, thought about Audrey healing Coulson's scar and Fitz's brain damage. Armed with energy drinks and bars, he teleported into Coulson's quarters.

"Okay, I'll come back in five minutes, so you should probably be dressed by then."

"Get out, Deadpool!"

"Roger that, Coulson," he said, saluting, and teleported back out of the bedroom. Probably not a good idea to have zipped right in there, in hindsight.

He waited twenty minutes, and then Coulson emerged from the bedroom into his office. Wade perked up.

"Wow, I was expecting you sooner," he said.

"I had to make it up to Audrey for you interrupting us."

"Actually, it was Audrey I wanted to see. Well, not like that. Not that she isn't attractive and all, but she's your gal, and I want mine, and I need her help for that."

"What do you need help with?" Audrey asked, rubbing her tangled hair as she walked in.

In answer, Wade pulled off his mask, and they flinched.

"This," he said. "It's… all over my body. I brought sustenance! You know, if you wanted to see if you can… cure this?"

"Do you think it's possible?" Coulson asked, leaning against his desk and crossing his arms. "Would it be too much for you, Audrey?"

"I don't know," she said. "I can start with a hand—"

"This one," Wade said, holding up the one Jemma had touched. "These are extremely old injuries, injuries upon injuries. I don't want you to get hurt. It's just… Jemma kissed me. But I can't touch her like this, not like I want to. Not like I have to for us to bond. And I want to bond with her, sweet hell, of course I want to bond with her, she's my soulmate and I think I'm kinda in love with her, but who can blame me?"

"Alright, stop there," Audrey said. She took hold of Wade's hand and looked it over. Well, neither of them had vomited when they saw his face, so that was a start. "This might take awhile."

"And the healing might wear off, since my own super healing never fixed it. I know. But I can't say that I've tried everything until I've, y'know, tried everything. And you may be the last resort."

"No pressure, in other words," she said. "I'll start with a finger, and work from there."

"I could say something really inappropriate, but I won't."

"Good," Coulson said.

"Okay," Audrey said. "Hold your hand there."

Wade sat as still as he could, biting his tongue to fight the impulse to talk. Audrey's hands glowed, the light streaming down her arms and meeting his skin. It slowly turned pink and healthy. Wade stared, unable to believe that this could actually work.

Then there was a drop of blood and he looked up.

"Stop!" he shouted, yanking his hand away and grabbing her around the waist.

"I'm fine," she said weakly.

"No, you're not," he said, pushing her into Coulson's arms. He grabbed one of the energy drinks, opened it, and gave it to Coulson. He poured it down her throat, making her drink, while Wade grabbed tissues and cleaned the blood from her nose and his hand.

"Lemme try again," she slurred.

"Not until you're stronger," Coulson said.

"Not at all!" Wade said. "I'm sorry. It was selfish of me. I'll go now. We're never trying this again."

"Did it… fade?"

He looked down at his hand. She hadn't gone far, but it looked good as new. His ring finger.

"Nah, it didn't fade," he said, showing her. "See?"

"Then I'll keep working at it," she said, nodding. "Bit by bit. It just takes practise, like learning a concerto."

"Ha, I saw what you did there. Using a musical comparison, right? Well, it'd mean more if I knew more about music. But because the author has such a ginormous musical background that just had to be included."

Shut up, Wade.

"You shut up."

Everyone else uses sports references I don't understand.

"Use Wikipedia, then! Everyone else does!"

"What's going on?" Audrey asked.

"I have no idea," Coulson said, helping her to his desk chair. "Just go with it."

"It's not happening again," Wade said, pointing at Audrey. "Even though this chapter is going on way too long and is too ridiculously angsty."

"Is 'angsty' even a word?"

"No, which is why there's a red squiggly line under it in Microsoft Word, along with 'ginormous' and my name. Or there was until it was added to the dictionary, so yay! I'm in the dictionary on the author's computer."

"Good for you," Coulson said. "Wade, we'll continue to look for ways to help you."

"I can do it!" Audrey insisted.

"In bits. But the scars must run deep for it to take that much out of you with just that patch of skin."

"And I might be able to fix his memory."

"No!" Wade said. "My craziness is an integral part of my character. Take that away and what am I? And no fixing the cancer inside, either. It's keeping me alive. But if the surface could be cleared up… that'd be good. Just not if you're gonna spring a nosebleed every time. If Coulson wasn't so hung up on keeping his whole being-alive thing from the Avengers, you totally could've consulted Bruce Banner about this, since he's the go-to person when it comes to learning about control. But don't forget about the orchestra! An orchestra is nothing without its cellists. Just ask the author."

"Jemma helped me," Audrey said. "She saved my life and brought me back to Phil. She's one of my platonic soulmates. If I can do this, just a piece at a time, then I will. If you want, think of it as a way to strengthen my skills. I don't wanna start raising people from the dead, but I also can't rely on anger to heal someone who's been shot in the stomach. That first time was a fluke which kick-started my powers. That's it."

"Be a test subject for you?" Wade cocked his head. "Sounds like a sweeter deal than others I've had in the past."

"It's for the greater good," she said, raising an eyebrow.

"Well, okay then," he said. "If we're gonna throw in Harry Potter references, I'm there."

"Where's your soulmark?"

"On my penis."

Audrey's jaw dropped and Coulson covered his face.

"Why am I not surprised?" he muttered.

"Okay," Audrey said. "Well, I shouldn't have to… uh… if we leave that until I can do a larger patch of skin. Hopefully. And Phil will be with me, of course. He could even direct my hands and I can shut my eyes. Yes. We'll… figure something out."

"Save the best `til last," Wade said.

The first time Wade asked Jemma to have a private dinner with him, it ended up being in the hangar. He – or someone else – had set up a table with a candle, and Skye served the food while Audrey poured the wine. Jemma couldn't stop smiling. It had been two weeks since their only kiss, and she'd feared that he was avoiding her because… well, she still wasn't sure why, but most likely because of his insecurities. She understood – everyone had their issues – yet it was impossible for her to help him work through everything unless he opened up to her.

He didn't. Not on their first 'date'. And there weren't any kisses. She didn't see any more of his body at all, which was disappointing. However, she could acknowledge that he'd been terribly brave to give in to her prodding and expose a part of him he never wanted her to see, fearing her disgust. The only disgust she felt was towards the scientists who'd inflicted such cruelty on her soulmate.

It was a month before Wade let her hold his hand as they strolled around outside the base, just talking. Well, he talked as usual, and Jemma prompted the changes of topic.

"I've never been to Puerto Rico, but I saw West Side Story once. I liked the fighting. Sure, it was choreographed, but it's a musical, so of course stuff is choreographed. Do you like movies? What's your favourite kind of movie? You didn't go with us when we did our group outing, so I have no idea—"

"I thought you were asking me on a date," Jemma said quietly. "Then it turned out that you had asked everyone else first. It wasn't going to be just the two of us."

"Oh."

"Nothing else to say?"

"I figured it was gonna be a chance to hang out with you, without it looking like a date."

"So… it was supposed to be a date?"

"A non-date."

"Oh, well that clears everything up—"

"Time to go!" May called across to them. Jemma sighed. Wade slipped an arm around her waist as they strolled back.

"Won't you say something?" she said. "Please."

"What do you want me to say?"

"That everything's going to be alright."

"I don't wanna lie to you, honey."

"It's time to get going," Coulson said as they climbed the ramp.

"What if something terrible happens?" Jemma whispered.

"You always say that," Wade said. "Then something bad happens and we fix it."

"Wade—"

He pulled off his mask, only the second time she'd seen it. He looked the same as he had last time; the difference was that this time he kissed her without prompting. She jumped at the opportunity, throwing her arms around his neck and letting him take his time. Or as much time as Coulson would allow before he cleared his throat. Jemma couldn't help shooting him a dirty look for the interruption, especially when Wade swiftly slipped his hood back on. Jemma hugged him, and then joined the science team.

"Be careful, sweetness," Wade said loudly. She blew him a kiss, and he saluted her.

Everything was going to hell. Phil had disappeared down into the tunnels to find Skye.

Damned if Audrey wasn't going to go after her soulmate.

"Phil!" she shouted, running through the underground maze and hoping she didn't run into Mack. On the other hand, maybe she could fix him? But where was Phil? And where was Trip? "Guys, where are you?"

"Audrey?"

"Finally," she murmured, racing around the corner. Phil and Trip were at one end, trying to get past Mack, who was clearly still possessed. He turned and looked at her, and even from here she could see how dark his eyes were.

"Audrey, run!" Phil said. He and Trip tried to distract Mack. Audrey caught a glimpse of the girl in the flower dress and heard Skye's voice. "What're you—?"

She ran after them, pulling out her ICER, and found Raina putting the obelisk on a table.

"Audrey, what're you doing in here?" Skye said.

"We're trying to get you out!"

The wall slid shut behind them, and something weird began to happen. Audrey tried to find some means of opening the door, or whatever it was, but couldn't find a single gap.

"Oh, come on," she muttered while Raina was talking.

"Sorry," Skye said. "I don't buy into the whole 'this is your destiny' thing. We're taking the obelisk and we're leaving. There's too many lives at stake."

"You got it all wrong," Raina said coolly. "Whitehall, everyone has got it wrong. This doesn't destroy. It gives life, new life. We finally get to find out what we become."

Audrey glanced back and saw the obelisk rising above the table-altar thing. Recalling what it could do, she searched the nooks and crannies frantically for some kind of button or lever or anything.

"Make it stop," Skye said.

"I can't," Raina replied. "Neither of us can now."

Next thing Audrey knew, the obelisk was showering crystals on Raina and Skye, turning them to stone.

"No, no, no!" she shouted. She aimed the ICER and fired round after round, destroying it completely, she hoped. Instead, it exploded as they become rock, and Audrey clutched her stomach when she felt something hit it.

God no. Phil…

Something happened. Audrey could swear she'd stopped breathing. But she was on the floor, gasping for breath, her body glowing. The world around her was quaking. The wall scraped open and something – Raina? – flew past. Skye was still shaking off whatever rocks had formed on her.

"Audrey!" Phil sounded panicked, and he picked her off the floor. "Oh God, oh no, what happened to you?"

"I don't know," she said. "We have to get out of here. Skye, come on!"

"I'll help her," Trip said, moving past them. Audrey tensed, but Mack was holding the explosives and his eyes were normal.

"I'm me again," he said.

"Oh good," she said. "Phil, put me down. I can walk."

"Quarantine sucks," Skye declared.

"You don't have to tell me twice," Audrey said. "What happened to me… it was different from what happened to you."

"We shouldn't be alive." Skye paced the room, despite the monitor attached to her arm. Audrey had her own monitor, and they were waiting on their blood results.

"But we are, so we should be happy about that."

"I'm not! What if something is wrong?"

"Skye, calm down."

"I can't calm down. Raina said 'what we become'. What've we become?"

"I don't know," Audrey said. "I already had the x-gene. I don't know whether that's changed or gone or been amplified." She frowned, and picked up a scalpel. Skye stared.

"Don't do what I think you're about to do," she said.

"I have to." Then she slit across her arm. Skye leapt forward.

"Don't do that!"

Audrey's hand began to glow. Before she could even touch the cut on her skin, the light covered it, and then disappeared. No cut. Not even any blood.

"Hey, now I don't have to clean up after myself," Audrey said. "Or anyone else."

"That's impossible." Audrey gave Skye a withering look, and she corrected herself. "So what, now you don't have to touch to heal? And the blood goes bye-bye afterwards?"

"I didn't even have to consciously summon up my energy to do it. It was like my power knew what to do before I did, and just… healed me."

"Try me," Skye said. She grabbed another scalpel and slashed a long scratch down her arm. Audrey groaned.

"What if this skews the monitoring?" she asked.

"Just tell them what we were doing, and they can see what it does to your body," Skye said. "Don't leave me bleeding."

Audrey reached out her hand. Again, her power washed over the injury, curing and cleaning it.

"Explains why you were lit up like a light-bulb," Skye said. "But I don't have any powers to amplify. What… what does it mean?"

Before they could begin to speculate, Jemma bounced up to the window.

"Skye, Fitz is working on your results now that I've finished examining Audrey's blood," she said. "Audrey, the x-gene has strengthened. It hasn't doubled in number of cells, but it has tripled in intensity, from what I can tell. That's the only change I've been able to detect."

"Yeah, we figured out that much," Skye said. Audrey demonstrated by cutting her arm again and healing it without having to touch the surface. Jemma's jaw dropped.

"W-well, then that just confirms my hypothesis," she said. "Uh, you're free to go. Sorry, Skye, but you still have to stay—"

"I know, I know," Skye said, holding up her hands. Disappointment welled up inside.

"Everything will be fine," Audrey said. "Don't worry, Skye."

"Uh-huh. Now go find DC and tell him you're not dying or anything."

Audrey smiled and left, leaving Skye alone and worried. What had she become? And where was Raina?

"Hey, cute stuff!"

Jemma wasn't expecting the cuddle from behind, but she welcomed it, and turned around in her soulmate's arms. He was still wearing his mask, so there was no surprise kiss, but she supposed it would have to be baby steps.

"Hello, Wade," she said.

"How's it going with our favourite captives?"

"If you're referring to Skye and Audrey, Skye's still in quarantine. Audrey's out now; whatever the obelisk did, it amplified her healing power. That seems to be it. She's displaying no other signs of… where are you going?"

"I'll see you later, Jemma! Say, your room, about an hour?"

"Um… I'm supposed to be drowning the… temple." He was gone. She sighed. "Well, I suppose there isn't much to do. He can come and find me." She looked around. "And why am I talking to myself?"

When Raina – whatever she was – killed one and injured two of the men Jemma was in charge of, she finished the operation down there as quickly as possible. With Wade there to protect her, because as soon as he knew about the danger he teleported straight to her side. She was grateful, both for the company and the protection; and it was nice to lean into his side as they flooded the temple to kingdom come.

"I thought we were supposed to meet in your room in an hour," Wade said. Jemma checked her watch.

"It's actually been about fifty-seven minutes," she said. "So if you can—"

Then they were in her room, and she blinked to get her bearings.

"Get us here quickly, we'll be on time," she finished.

"We're early," Wade said.

"So I see."

"Which is great, because Fitz is still running the blood work, Coulson and Audrey are reaffirming their lives or something – again – and I have plans for you. I thought I'd have to wait longer, but then Audrey's powers got boosted, and we're done for the day, so now I can take you to bed and we can bond—"

"Really?" Jemma said, her eyes widening? "You want to? Finally?"

"Yeah." He rubbed the back of his neck. "Sorry, but I wanted to wait until…"

"Until?"

"You can't be mad at me because it was actually good practise for her, and I did this for you as well as for me, and we were able to finish it off tonight, with Coulson supervising of course, because that's something we all agreed on at the beginning—"

"Mad at you for what?" Jemma asked, crossing her arms. "I'm only mad that you've made me wait this long."

"Well," he said, yanking his mask off. "I knew you were something special, Jemma."

She gasped. If it wasn't for the voice and the eyes, she might have taken a few seconds to recognise him. Wade's skin was smooth, pink, and clear. He was grinning widely as he undressed, and Jemma remembered that it would be a good idea to close, lock, and soundproof the door. She couldn't stop staring at him as more unblemished skin appeared.

"You like?" he asked, kicking off his boots.

"Oh, Wade," she whispered, and she touched his flawless shoulder. "You did this? For me?"

"Well, Audrey did this for both of us, but I asked her to. It took a hell of a long time just to do my hands, because of the extent of the injuries. When you told me that she was more powerful now, I asked her to try again. This time, it only took about five minutes to repair all the scars and the burns."

"Did it hurt?" Jemma ran her hands over his chest and arms. "I know it's a peculiar sensation, and it must have—"

"Didn't hurt at all," he said, capturing one of her hands. He kissed it. "I had the thought of you to keep me going."

"You didn't have to do this," she said, trying to sound cross. He was dazzling now, of course, and it was wonderful that his confidence was boosted. But he shouldn't have felt it was necessary, just to make her happy.

"It was a long time coming," he said. "I wanted to do this, for us."

She kissed him. He returned it with more gusto, backing her up against the wall. She cupped his face, stroked his cheeks with her thumbs.

"So you'll bond with me now?" she asked.

"As much as you want, sweetheart."

Aw, yay! Finally finished this chapter.

I'd been mulling over the idea of Audrey being a latent mutant with healing powers, and throwing that into Deadpool/Jemma with scarred!Wade. Combine that with 'What They Become' (I took some of the dialogue from the episode's IMDb page) and I decided to do my own thing. Because that always works. *Rolls eyes*

Please review! Monster chapter is over. Re. companion piece: stick to chapters in order, or just post smutty bonding scenes as I write them?