So sorry for the bit of a hiatus; I feel like I'm going crazy from two weeks without Daisy! XD

Anyways enjoy this kinda-fluffy chapter!

Mack, May, Simmons, and Daisy made their way to the top of the submarine, just in case it was about to start sinking. Not knowing what else to do (their minds and bodies were still exhausted from everything that happened), they sat on the floor of the narrow hallway, their backs pressed against the side so they could rest. Daisy had begun to stir in Mack's arms, May was staring off into the distance and coming to terms with everything, and Jemma had already curled herself into a ball again.

Phil rushed into the corridor, heaving a sigh of relief when he saw that his agents were alright. "Did you find a way out of here?" he asked. "Escape pod, anything?"

"Those only exist in the movies," May said, darkness and defeat laced into her voice.

Coulson let out a sigh, feeling extra winded, and sat down at a distance from May. He knew Davis had a good chance of tracking them from the VLF phone he'd called him with, but he knew it was going to be hard to find a submarine. For all he knew, they were very deeply submerged.

He also noticed the spirits of his team. All of them looked done, defeated. Daisy, physically, everyone else, mentally. Jemma was in a horrible state, she was trembling more by the minute. May was in a rare state of defeat, and Mack was depressed from losing Mace. They all were.

I have to do something, Phil told himself. I'm team leader. I have to get them out of this. They deserve that much.

Not notifying anyone beforehand, Coulson climbed a ladder he found in another room and went through a hatch, finding himself on another higher floor.

"What?" he whispered to himself. "I thought that was the end of the submarine."

Soon he found that they weren't on a submarine, just an underwater base. That meant the surface was probably accessible.

"May!" he yelled as he stumbled down the ladder, running into the hallway they'd been waiting in. May barely perked up when she saw him. "I..." He panted. bending over and putting his hands on his knees. He pointed behind him and coughed. "...I found a way to the surface. We're on a base, not a submarine."

May's face lit up a little, and she wordlessly stood, bending down to help Simmons up. Mack stood as well, gently shifting his hold on Daisy to be more comfortable for him. She'd been stirring earlier but that quickly stopped. She was just too tired and weak to care anymore.

The interesting group of people followed their Director to the ladder. Sighing, Mack gently shook Daisy to wake her. He knew he couldn't climb a ladder with an adult (In)human in his arms.

The girl's eyelids fluttered open and she groaned. "What is it?" she mumbled.

Mack gently planted her feet on the floor, his grip still tight around her waist. "You need to go up the ladder on your own," he whispered. Jemma and Coulson had already climbed up.

Daisy sighed, taking her weak hands and grabbing onto the sides of the ladder and lifting a weak foot to the first rail. She shakily tried to pull herself up, but she didn't seem so confident.

"Hey," Mack reassured her quietly. "May and I are right behind you and we can catch you if you fall. Coulson is at the top waiting to help you up."

Daisy nodded to show she'd heard him and continued, her hands clammy and shaky. Miraculously, she made it to the top, well almost. Phil had to grab her from under her arms right before she was about to fall down. He pulled her all the way through the hatch and gently set her on the floor. She muttered "thank you" to him but doubted it was even audible.

The agents found their way to an elevator that brought them to the top of the base. To everyone's surprise, an Inhuman containment pod was already waiting for them, the Zephyr high in the sky above. Coulson smiled. Davis had done it. He'd found them. Phil made a mental note to promote the junior agent as soon as he got the chance.

The five crammed themselves into the pod and the sliding doors shut behind them. The pod rose, its thrusters shooting smoke and fire from the bottom, and made its way into the large plane. Once the pod had safely clicked in-place, the doors opened and Piper beamed when her eyes met her superior agents'.

"I'm so glad you all are okay," she remarked as they stepped out of the pod.

Mack swallowed as he looked down at his feet. "Not all of us," he said quietly.

"Jeffrey Mace died in the Framework saving a lot of good people," Coulson explained a moment later. "He will not be forgotten."

"Fitz is gone," Jemma mumbled, eliciting concerned looks from everyone.

Nodding somberly, Piper sighed. "We're working on finding him." She motioned to everyone and escorted the agents to the bunking area, knowing they all probably wanted to change and/or get some sleep in.

Mack yawned, his back to the sleep pod door, as he pulled the afghan over his wide shoulders and tried to get some rest. He knew May and Coulson were talking things over and debriefing with Piper, Davis, and that other agent and so he figured he wasn't needed.

He groaned when someone knocked on the door, but in case it was Daisy or Jemma who might need him, he slid open the door. It was Yo-Yo.

"Yo-Yo, I...I didn't know you were on the ship. I'm so sorry, I would've said hi..."

Elena pressed her lips together and nodded reassuringly, putting a hand on his arm. "A few days ago, they said they needed mi ayuda, so of course I joined the crew."

Mack nodded, proud of her for taking on some leadership skills. "Thank you."

After a moment, Yo-Yo scratched her head. "So, how is everyone? Everyone here, I mean."

Mack let out a deep sigh. "May and Coulson are okay, I think. It's Simmons I'm worried about. She lost Fitz, and on top of all that, she is sorting through two full lives at the same time, like the rest of us are."

"And Daisy?"

"She's a fighter. She got us all out of there. If it weren't for her, we'd still be in there."

Yo-Yo kicked her foot gently against the doorframe. "I'd expect nothing less from her."

Mack yawned, scratching his bald head. "Am I needed in the control area or anything?"

Elena shook her head almost too aggressively. "No, no, I just wanted to check on you. Davis is getting closer to finding Fitz."

Mack nodded. "Good."

She motioned behind her at the other pods. "I, uh, I'll go check on the chicas. Sleep well, Turtle Man."

Mack smirked. He was happy to hear her call him that again. "Thanks, Elena."

Gosh. He'd called her by her real name. She beamed. "Denada." She gently slid his pod door shut for him, wondering how such a big man could fit into such a small room.

Approaching another bunk, Yo-Yo could've sworn she heard sobbing. She pressed her ear against the door, trying hard to hear who it was.

Daisy felt like she'd been run over by a semi, picked up by a giant monster and tossed into a ditch on the side of the road, dragged out by a hillbilly, thrown into a trunk of a pickup truck, and rolled out the back onto the expressway, only to be run over by another truck. Everything ached from disuse and she really hated moving so much.

As she sat in her pod with the door cracked open, she couldn't help but feel concern when she heard sobs. Grimacing at the movement, she left her own pod and found the one where the crying was stemming from. She slid open the door and felt a rush of pity when she found Jemma sobbing. She wasn't surprised, but she stepped inside, shutting the pod door behind her. She climbed onto the little bed, putting her sore legs into a criss-cross position. Simmons looked up briefly at her friend with a red and puffy face, as if to ask, What are you doing here? Nonetheless, the biochemist crawled toward Daisy and wrapped her arms around her, pulling her into a desperately-needed embrace. Jemma clung to her friend like she was the only thing preventing her from falling apart, which was very much true. She felt the warmth of Daisy's arms wrap around her, rubbing her back gently and reassuring her. She felt their hearts beat in unison and synced her own breathing with Daisy's, trying to calm down. She let a few warm tears escape her eyes and drip onto Daisy's shirt, but she didn't care. Neither girl cared. They were together and they were okay.

After a while, Jemma calmed down a little, and loosened her grip on Daisy. She slowly pulled away, trying desperately to rub her eyes, but she only succeeded in smudging the salty water all over her face. Daisy took her own shirt sleeve and gently wiped the tears from Jemma's face for her, smiling a tiny bit to soothe her.

"You okay?" the Inhuman asked her best friend.

Simmons swallowed, knowing her voice might betray her if she tried to speak. She decided to just nod instead.

Daisy bit her lip. It took everything she had not to pass out right then from exhaustion and malnutrition, but she tried not to show it. She didn't want to worry Jemma any more than she already was.

There were a few silent moments of sniffles. Outside the pod and unbeknownst to them, Yo-Yo had decided to walk away and leave them alone.

"Why did you lie to me about Fitz?" Jemma asked quietly a moment later.

Daisy sucked in a breath and pulled her knees to her chest. "I didn't think it was wise to tell you your boyfriend was a- " She didn't finish that sentence.

Simmons sighed deeply and it was her turn to hug her knees to her chest, rocking back and forth. "I'm sorry about what he did to you, Daisy- "

"What he did to us. And, it, uh..."

"It wasn't real," Simmons finished for her.

"It was real to you, Jemma. You didn't know the difference. I did. I could distinguish real from fake, it...it wasn't fair for you to have to experience that without knowing."

"But Daisy, you..." She sighed, squeezing her own knees tighter. "...I can't imagine what it felt like to know Fitz was your friend only to have him tor- " She stopped herself. "Hurt you," she said, quieter.

"It was a fake world."

"But a real Fitz," Jemma insisted.

"You don't need to apologize for him, Jemma. It's okay. I'm okay."

Simmons swallowed and nodded, on the verge of tears again.

After a moment, Daisy tried to stand and open the door, but her legs betrayed her and she started to collapse. But before she could hit the ground, the pod door slid open fully and someone caught her. It was May.

Daisy looked up at her mother figure with grateful eyes as the older woman wrapped her arm around her shoulders and stood her up. "We've found Fitz," she told her and Jemma. "I came to tell you all and check on you."

Daisy gulped and nodded as May started to lead her back to her pod. But she started to shake violently, all the stimulation and talking getting to be too much for her weak self.

"Daisy," May said sternly, concern laced into her voice. She spun the girl around to face her, putting her hands on her shoulders for stabilization. Daisy's teeth were chattering and her eyes looked scared but blank at the same time. "Talk to me."

Still not making eye contact with May, Daisy swallowed. She didn't respond.

May brought a hand up to gently touch Daisy's cheek. "Have you gotten any sleep?" she asked the younger woman.

Daisy bit her lip and shook her head, still trembling. She was cold, she was hungry, and she was exhausted, mentally and physically.

"Come on," May whispered as she brought Daisy to her pod, laying her on the bed and pulling a blanket over her trembling body. The older woman seated herself on the edge of the little bed, stroking Daisy's head to calm her.

After a few moments, May's presence had calmed Daisy enough to stop trembling. Her eyes were open in slits and she looked over at her mentor, swallowing again from her dry throat.

"What's wrong, Daisy? You can tell me," May said.

Daisy shook her head and sat up, pushing away from May and pressing her back against the dividing wall behind her. "You need to go help with Fitz."

May glared at Daisy.

Daisy sighed, knowing May wouldn't leave until she explained herself. She started to fidget with the edge of the blanket. "I, uh..." She bit her lip. "It's been a while since I've been able to, you know, do my thing."

"Harm yourself?" May asked.

Daisy sighed and nodded, looking up at May with guilty eyes.

May took Daisy's hand and squeezed it. "Daisy, you saved all of us from the Framework. Don't you think you've made amends already? You've done so much good."

Daisy closed her eyes and shook her head again. "I got so used to doing it that it's part of my daily routine. I don't know what to do without it. And then Aida, she..." Her nostrils flared. "She kidnapped me and stopped everything and shoved me into a place I did not want to be and disrupted everything and now I'm here but nothing feels right!"

Daisy's heart pounded as she recovered from that angry rant. She was pissed at Aida and she wanted to kill her.

"If nothing feels right to you, then you're wrong," May said a moment later, touching Daisy's arm. "We're all here because of you, so of course it's right. Yeah, our base might be gone and we might have a lot of different obstacles to overcome in the future, but we're all alive and we're okay. That has to mean something to you."

Daisy turned away from May. "It does," she said quietly.

May sighed. "You need your meds, I know. I'm sure I could find some in the medicine cabinets, but I don't know how long they'll last you- "

"No," Daisy said.

"Hmm?"

"No," the girl repeated. She shook her head. "I want to get through this myself this time."

May nodded, understanding and respecting the young woman's response. She made a mental note to keep a close eye on her, in case she did end up giving in to her desires.

"I'll go get you something to eat. Does broth sound good?" she whispered as she stood, sliding the door open.

Daisy just nodded in reply.

That's all for now! Sorry if this chapter was sort of uneventful, I'm kind of running dry for ideas here. Don't expect me to update this particular story until at least after 7x08 airs, because seriously, I hate being this in the dark about Daisy :P