Being a SHIELD agent wasn't that bad. Director Mace was okay. Fitz-Simmons did their best to help her feel welcome on the Playground. Even May had become less unfriendly after finding out Ana had been busy sticking out her neck for Daisy in DC. Coulson was still upset about Steve Rogers becoming a fugitive, but he was barely on the base these days anyway.

In the meantime, as expected, she had received countless apology e-mails from her dad. And two days ago, she had received blueprints for a nanotech-suit, with a note begging her to use them. So, she had. They had been working on it before, but Wakanda sharing their knowledge with the rest of the world must have sped things up for her dad. This morning, she wanted to call him and let him know she had built the suit. She had only fifteen minutes left before her shift started, so she tried not to waste too much time vacillating and pressed the call button.

"K—kid?"

Ana smiled. He had caught him unprepared. "Hey, Dad."

"Hey… It's… it's great to hear your voice."

"I called to thank for the blueprints. I used them. In fact, Mark L is on my chest right now."

A deep breath of relief came from the other end of the line. "It feels good, right? To have a self-repairing suit with you at all times?"

"Absolutely."

"Ana?"

"Yeah?"

"Come home."

"I can't."

"Look, I think you misunderstood me. You're my baby girl, no matter what you do. And I hate to put it this way, but… What happened to making the most of the time we have?"

"I'm trying to make sure you won't waste that time trying to fix me. I want you to be happy with Pepper."

"I can't be happy, knowing I led you to think you need to redeem yourself by doing who knows what."

"I'm not doing anything dangerous, I swear. I know you can't afford to lose me, Dad. I'd never do that to you."

"You're looking for the four remaining Infinity Stones, aren't you? You want to complete the Nexus? That's your idea of redemption?"

"I'm not actively looking for them. But if I got a lead on another one, yeah, I'd chase it." She wasn't very hopeful, though. The Nexus wasn't what she was here for anyway. She had got what she had come for, now she was just trying to make amends.

"And SHIELD is your best bet?"

"What?" Did he already know where she was?

"Their 'secret' base is not too far from DC. That's where you went when you left the hotel. Come on, honey. You think you can outsmart me?"

"Dad…"

"I'm not going to come over there and make a scene, don't worry. I want to do this the right way."

"Thanks, Dad. But I gotta go now." Tears were pooling in her eyes. She was going to need time to calm down.

"Okay."

"Take care."

"Or, you can come home and take good care of me yourself," he suggested casually. "No pressure, though. Whenever you're ready."

"Bye, Dad. I love you."

"I love you more."

…

Ana liked the job here as an engineer. The other engineers would mind their own business, and the machines wouldn't give a shit about her puffy red eyes, or paler than usual face. Today, it was different, though. Something was going on in LA, Daisy was involved, so Coulson and Mack had gone to investigate, but Zephyr One was back in the hangar by the time Ana went there to start her daily rounds. It was more crowded than usual.

"Hey, Stark!" someone said. "They need you in the lab."

"Do you know why?"

She shrugged. "They've brought some piece of tech from LA. Fitz-Simmons want you to take a look."

Ana went to the lab. She spotted some kind of box on Fitz's desk, but his eyes were fixated on her chest. "What kind of an Arc Reactor is that?" he asked.

"The nanotech kind."

"So, that's why you were burning the midnight oil."

"Yep." She took the housing unit off and tossed it at him, so that he and Jemma could take a better look. "How's Radcliffe doing?"

Dr. Holden Radcliffe and SHIELD had had a rough start. He had been kidnapped by Hive and forced to recreate the original Kree experiment to turn humans into Inhumans. He had failed, and there had been a hearing, but all charges against him had been dropped. He was also associated with a group of people that called themselves Transhumanists. They were basically a cult, but a cult that sought to improve the human body through cybernetic enhancements. When Fitz-Simmons had introduced Ana to Radcliffe, he had said Ana Stark was like an idol to the Transhumanists, mostly because of her relationship with JARVIS. They all genuinely hoped she would get him back one day. It had felt great at first, to know that they actually had fans out there. Validating. But soon, the conversation had taken a weird turn, when Radcliffe had implied that what the Transhumanists were really looking forward to was a human-android hybrid baby Ana would give birth to. Ana had simply reminded him that because the Accords had forbidden any experiments on AIs and androids, there was no way for her to get JARVIS back, let alone give him a body, and left it at that. She had been trying to avoid Radcliffe since then. Validation was nice and all, but she didn't want JARVIS' memory to be tainted by nosy people either.

As for Fitz-Simmons, they had almost been adopted by Radcliffe. Fitz had visited him again last night. Ana and Jemma had been invited as well, but the former had used the new suit project as an excuse, and the latter had been busy with the Director's usual errands.

"Still working on the Framework," Fitz replied. "You know how he is."

"Show-off…" Mack joined the conversation, snatching the housing unit from Fitz.

Ana laughed. "Don't get jealous now, Mack. It's a gift… kind of."

"From your dad? So, you guys talk now?" He was beaming at her. For some reason, Mack really wanted Ana to make peace with her father and go home, even though he obviously liked having her around. Alphonso Mackenzie wasn't a member of Coulson's original team, he had joined much later, but Daisy had always said Mack was like a big brother to her, and Ana was starting to see why. He really cared about his teammates.

"I called him this morning."

He gave the housing unit back to her, and patted on her shoulder. "It was about damn time."

Ana turned back to Fitz. "So, I heard you brought a souvenir from LA…"

Fitz nodded. "Yeah, yeah… Take a look at this, and tell me what you see."

Ana looked at the box again. "Is this the part where I'm supposed to make a Schrodinger's cat joke?"

"I already did that," Jemma said.

"You know, it's nice to have an American genius around here for a change," Mack teased.

"Hate to break it to you, but I'm half-British… unofficially. My mother was British, and I was born in London, so…" She had come to terms with her maternal background enough to joke about it.

To her amusement, Fitz-Simmons high-fived upon hearing that. "Now, take a look at this," Fitz said. Using a special light outside the visible spectrum, he reversed the phase and revealed the quantum mechanics within the box.

Ana gasped. This could be the most sophisticated piece of technology she had ever seen. And considering she was someone who had access to both Stark Industries and SHIELD tech, that was saying something. "So, the local gangs were after this? Do they even know what this is? Do we?"

"We think it was designed to contain something."

"What?"

"A ghost," Mack replied.

"Okay…" She returned to the couple for a more scientific explanation.

"Let's just show her," Jemma said, giving her a tablet.

She played the footage. At first, it just looked like some gang members doing business. Nothing unusual. But when the box was opened, Jemma paused the video and zoomed in on something behind the gang leader. A woman with an incorporeal form, and a familiar face.

Can it be possible, she wondered. Could she be this lucky, to find hope, when she was in such a dark place? Or would this be yet another dead end?

"See?" Mack asked. "Ghost."

"Well, I don't know about ghosts, but I know this woman!"

"You do?"

"Her name's Lucy Bauer. I used to be her intern."

"Where?"

"Momentum Labs, Pasadena."

"Pasadena?" Mack snatched the tablet to look at something. "The family that checked into the ER? They live in Pasadena."

"What family?" Ana asked, confused.

"Your former boss is haunting people… I'll requisition a Quinjet for us."

"Yeah, I'm coming, too," Fitz said. "Simmons can't."

"I'm stuck here with an assignment for the Director."

"Seriously?" Mack asked in disbelief.

"Oh, you know… 'A team that trusts is a team that triumphs,'" she quoted mockingly. Jeffrey Mace wasn't exactly everyone's favorite director.

"What is it he got you doing?"

"Oh, that's the best bit: My expertise is needed here for a tour."

"I'll come," Ana offered, still trying to process the information on Dr. Bauer. "It's been a while, but I know my way around the facility. I can help."

Mack grinned. "Maybe we even see that fancy suit in action."

"Gosh, I hope not…"

"You don't have to come," Fitz said. "I know you're not very comfortable about being on the field."

"That's not an issue anymore. My dad knows I work here."

"Does he? Since when?"

"I think he knew it from the start. But he doesn't have a problem with it. He and Rhodey saved President Ellis' life once, you know. So, he owes them a favor. If Dad didn't want me to be here, he would've just called the President, the President would've called Director Mace, and Mace would've kicked me out. I'd have no choice but to go home."

"Man, royalty sounds exhausting…" Mack shook his head, and left to get a Quinjet.

…

By the time they got to the Momentum Lab, the power was down. Something had overloaded the grid, and whatever it was, they had to find it to get the power back on. Mack told her to suit up. She was reluctant, because once she did that, she would be responsible for their lives. But then, if something went wrong, and she failed to protect them because she hadn't activated the suit, that would be on her, too. If you had a gift, you had to do something with it eventually. So, she tapped on the Arc Reactor, and the nanites formed another blue-and-bronze suit around her body.

"Jemma likes the color scheme," Fitz said.

"Go Ravenclaw, yay…" She scanned the area. This would be easier if she had FRIDAY with her, but FRIDAY would report everything that would happen here to her dad, so it wasn't an option. She had to manage without a user interface. "Guys, I detect a huge electric field."

"Where?" Mack asked.

Ana decided to take the lead. "Upstairs. Follow my lead."

"Any idea what it might be?" Fitz asked.

"No. I don't even know where that alloy they used for the box came from. As far as I know, no one worked on anything like that while I was here." But they were looking for a magic book of infinite knowledge…

"Creepy," Fitz commented.

"Ever noticed we were never get to check upon a brightly lit place, filled with nice, friendly people?"

As she neared the center of the electric field, the tablet in Fitz's hand beeped. "Mack," he whispered. "Looks like a short electrical transient set off a quick current spike, other side of that door."

"Yeah, I'm picking up similar readings, too," Ana confirmed.

Mack readied his shotgun ax, but it was easier for Ana to break the lock with a single punch. The two men entered after her. There was some kind of reactor in the room. The HUD scanned it automatically, but was unable to identify its purpose, or even most of the components.

"I guess you didn't know about this either, did you?" Fitz mumbled in awe.

It was true. The Bauers and their employees were smart, but not exceptionally smart. Fury had once said the Darkhold couldn't show you something you couldn't comprehend. And if it had shown the Bauers this, Ana couldn't help but wonder what it was going to show her.

"Oh, boy… Guys, we have a big problem. The reactor terminal is—" Another "ghost" appeared out of nowhere. Mack shot at him, and he disappeared.

"Great… This guy disappears. I hate these guys."

Fitz pulled out a gun, too. "Where did he go? You think you scared him off?"

"I don't think the weapons will work on him. Maybe we can talk to him," Ana suggested.

Both looked at her in utter disbelief.

"Fitz, the reactor is overloading. You shut it down, I'll talk to him."

Fitz returned to the computers. "You know that one?" Mack asked.

"No, but I think he worked here, too."

The ghost appeared again. Mack tried to hit him, but all he was able to hit was one of the pipes instead.

"He must have set the reactor to blow," Fitz said.

"What are we talking about, blowing up the building?"

"No, it could be a couple of city blocks."

"Then what are you talking to me for, man! Shut it down!"

"You're the one who keeps asking me questions! I would've shut it down—"

While they were busy arguing, the man appeared for the third time, pushed Mack into the reactor, and locked the door.

"Ana, don't touch him!" Fitz reminded when Ana attempted to intervene, and she decided to keep her distance. Whatever it was the "ghosts" infected people with, it might permeate the suit.

"We can help you," Fitz told him.

"You can't," he said, and disappeared again.

Fitz returned to shutting down the reactor, Ana freed Mack. The door was jammed, but it was nothing she couldn't handle.

"Thanks, Ana," he said, stepping out.

"You shouldn't have attacked that guy. Now he's pissed."

"You think you can reason with him?"

"Yeah."

"Well, by all means…"

She looked around, and the helmet retracted back into the suit. "Hello," she started gingerly. She had to take a calculated risk. "My name is Ana Stark. I used to be an intern here. You're right; my friends here can't help you. But I can. I know a lot about this place. I might even know why you want to destroy it. This is about the book, right?"

Mack gave her a questioning look, but she shrugged. She was going to have to explain later.

The man appeared right before her. He seemed intrigued. "Did Lucy tell you about the book?"

"Of course," she lied. "She trusted me. She wanted me to be a part of her plan, but I didn't believe her at first. I do now. If you just tell me what went wrong—"

But contrary to what she had expected, this only enraged him. "Lucy sent me to Hell! Maybe I should send you!"

Instinctively, she shot at him, but it did nothing. Ducking, pirouetting, side-stepping, she was dodging him, but there was nowhere to run.

Suddenly, someone else grabbed him from behind and pulled him away. He seemed equally confounded by the fact that he couldn't escape this new guy's grasp.

"What are you?" Ana gasped.

The new one's eyes blazed, and he looked at Ana just for a split second, but it was more than enough for her to realize that they had a connection. Then his head turned into a flaming skull as he bellowed in what seemed like rage, and he burned the ghost to ashes.

"Yeah, what are you?" Fitz repeated the question.

"Fitz, the reactor!" she remembered. It still hadn't been shut down. The computers were giving a critical core warning. If it exploded, Ana wouldn't be able to get everyone out in time.

As he turned the reactor off, someone else entered the room. Daisy. But she didn't seem surprised to see a guy with a fiery skull. It was more like she had followed him here.

The reactor died. "It's done," Fitz announced.

The skull guy didn't speak to any of them. He just snatched a picture from the wall, and walked away. Ana went after him.

"Hey!"

He stopped, and turned to face her. This could be the creepiest experience she had ever had, to make eye contact with someone who had no eyes. Nevertheless, curiosity prevailed. Besides, if he wanted her dead, she would probably be dead by now. Even in Mark L. "You know me… How?"

He walked up to Ana, and said, "Stay. Away." It was definitely not the voice of a human being. There was something protective about it, but it still sent shivers down her spine. She was proud of herself for keeping the determined eye contact, though.

"I asked you a question!"

Without another word, he stormed off. Ana had felt the heat from the flames around the skull on her face for a moment, when they had come so close to licking the skin as he had turned around.

"Ana, don't," Daisy stopped her from going after him. "You don't want to piss this one off, believe me."

In an awkward silence, they returned to the Quinjet. Daisy's arm was fractured, so Mack offered to help her with that. Daisy didn't resist, meaning she was in a lot of pain.

"There. Is that too tight?" Macked asked her softly once he was done

Daisy said nothing.

"So, that fire-headed Inhuman…"

"He's not an Inhuman. I'm not sure what he is."

"I am. He is a killer. That truck heist in LA, three people were brutally murdered."

"What if they deserved it?"

"Deserved it? Is that what it is now? You're running with a vigilante who decided who lives and who dies?"

"I'm not running with anyone. But he can't be all bad. He came here tonight, he saved Ana's life."

"Yeah, but from what? What was that thing?"

"I have no idea."

"I bet she does," Fitz said sharply, looking at Ana.

"I'll explain everything later," Ana promised them. "It's a long story."

"Daisy, come home with us. So we can properly take care of that arm. Now we have a drug that can help those bones to heal faster. Our supply keeps running low, but we're about to…" He paused. "But you already have it, don't you?"

Again, no reply from Daisy.

"It's Yo-Yo… She's stealing it, and you two had been in touch this whole time."

Damn. Yo-Yo and Mack had a thing, everybody knew that. And if she had been in contact with Daisy this whole time, it was bad. Even Ana felt a bit betrayed. She and Daisy were supposed to be friends, but Daisy had chosen to trust someone else.

"We've been out there looking for you," Mack went on. "Trying to protect you and put the pieces back together, and you… Why? Why are you doing this?"

"Because she's turned her back on us, Mack!" Fitz snapped. "Because something terrible happened, and she didn't want our help to get through it!"

"Slow down, Turbo."

"We've all been through terrible things! All of us! And we never turned our back!"

"I'm doing what I need to do."

"And it still affects us, like it or not," Mack said.

"Thank you, for the splint."

She stood up.

"Daisy!" Ana said.

Daisy paused.

"You think this is what you need to do, but it's not."

"Oh, really? Says the girl who joined SHIELD because she was too embarrassed to go back to her daddy after one failure! Do you really expect me to believe you want to be an agent? To risk your own life for others? SHIELD is a company retreat for you, something to—"

"Well, your obduracy just made me see how stupid that was," she said, and it was somewhat the truth. Seeing how much Daisy was hurting the team had made Ana realize how much she was hurting her father. He didn't deserve it. But she couldn't give up on the Darkhold either, not while she was suddenly, unexpectedly so close to it. She was here to do some good, but it was as if the universe didn't let her be a decent person. If she kept walking the morally right path, she would have to return home empty-handed. Again.

For once, she wanted to go home with the kind of gift her dad deserved. Like, infinite knowledge... Not to mention the whatever apocalypse that awaited the whole world.

"You guys are my only friends, and I care about all of you, but after this Momentum Labs case, I'm out. I'll be a Consultant if the Director lets me, and I'll try to be there if you ever need me again, but that's all. I have a family that needs me more."

"Yeah. You belong here even less than I do." With these words, Daisy walked out of the Quinjet.