"Say, I wonder where they got another you, and whether you two are like, exactly alike or not. That would be so weird but also soooo cool. They mentioned the multiverse didn't they? I don't really know what that means, but I wonder how many universes are out there…"

May listened silently while Daisy rambled on and aired out all her thoughts, as they walked towards the plane. Ahead of them, they saw Skye and the other May stop at the hangar door, then turn around and wait for them as they approached.

"Thank you so, so much for helping us out," Skye gushed, automatically launching herself at them and giving them both a huge hug. May stiffened, and awkwardly patted her on the back. Daisy wrapped one arm around the other woman and squeezed lightly. "Oh my gosh, your Fitz and Simmons are just as brilliant as ours and I'm so glad you have them with you, I don't think my dad would have survived without their help. Oh and of course, all your agents are marvellous, I can't believe we actually managed to take out all the monsters. And wow, you guys have Inhumans! We don't have them on our universe, actually very few universes we came across actually do…"

"What she means is," the other May said, a slight smile tugging at the corners of her mouth. "Thank you, we owe you all. Big time. And we'll sit with you all as long as you like and answer all the questions I'm sure you have."

Simmons then emerged from what seemed like the ship's medical room and smiled. "Skye, your father is awake now. Still very drowsy and tired, but awake enough to want to see you."

"Oh thank you, thank you," Skye gushed again, now enveloping Simmons in a big hug as well. "Come on mom, let's go."

It took a while for May to realize that she was addressing the other May. The surprises keep coming, she thought, and she was shocked that any version of herself in any universe would be a mother.

Daisy, however, didn't hide her surprise. Her mouth dropped straight open. "Wow, May is like an actual mom? I mean," she quickly shot a look at May. "Not that it would be weird, you're like, the team's mom, but wow something like this is just…Wow. That's so cool."

Skye and the other May were already walking away; whether they heard their comments or not, they didn't show. The other May put her hand comfortingly on Skye's back as they walked and chatted, a sweet motherly gesture that made a lot more sense, now that they knew they were mother and daughter. And May noticed that as she suspected earlier, the other May was wearing a ring. Actually, two: a beautiful diamond engagement ring, and a simple but elegant gold wedding band. So the three were a family of universe jumping agents. May had to admit that she was curious to hear the full story, but she'll let the three of them have their reunion first.

May was so deep in her thoughts that she didn't realize Fitz had also joined them, and all the younger agents were still conversing. She didn't snap back into their conversation until she heard Coulson's name.

"What was that?" May asked.

Simmons gave her a huge smile. "Skye's father is Coulson! Well, their version of Coulson I assume."

"Yeah, both arms are real, but he also has the sceptre stab scar," Fitz supplied.

"And we were so shocked when we first went in there and saw him," Simmons continued.

"But it felt nice in a way, to help out Coulson, even if he's not our Coulson," Fitz finished. "And of course he literally just woke up, so we don't really know if his personality is the same as our Coulson's."

"But we felt a lot better after seeing him, because I don't think there's any universe out there where Coulson would be evil," Simmons concluded.

"Oh my GOSH that is SO cute!" Daisy squealed. "So Coulson is Skye's father, and May is Skye's mother, and oh my gosh they are the cutest family ever! Wait are May and Coulson married?"

Simmons and Fitz smiled at each other. "Yes, I think they are," Simmons replied. "And it really is quite adorable. Look."

The group went over to the med bay windows, and the sight made May's heart fill with a feeling she never had before. It was warm, but also of longing. Seeing a version of herself as part of a family, with Coulson and a daughter no less…as if she could see what could have been…she pushed those thoughts away as quickly as they came, but couldn't help but wonder… what would it be like?

Amidst Daisy's suppressed squeals and her exclamations of "that is SO cute", May observed the scene. Skye had thrown herself almost on top of her father in a huge hug, and he was trying to hug her back with one arm. The other May had such a warm smile, though it looked like tears of relief were leaking out of her eyes. She saw her let out a chuckle, probably at something Coulson said, and Coulson's face also spread into a wider smile. He lifted his other hand to cup the other May's cheek, and May saw a matching gold wedding band on his finger.

As the 'Bus kids' continued to chatter excitedly, May felt lost in thought. They had a family of course; her and Coulson talked about the 'Bus kids' as if they were their own, and they in return have often expressed how her and Coulson were the mom and dad of the team. But to have a family like what she saw in front of her…Despite the imminent danger they had been in, the little family seemed happy and at ease, just because they were in each other's company. Skye was gesturing wildly with her arms, obviously recounting the battle to her father, while Coulson grinned and the other May rolled her eyes and seemed to interject with a short statement every now and then, as if trying to tone down Skye's exaggerations. Something pinched at May's heart again, a deep longing, something she hadn't let herself think about in a long time. But seeing the family together, she wondered if this was what her and Coulson would look like now, saving the world together as a family, if maybe she had followed her heart way back during their Academy days…But she shook her head. It had been difficult with Bahrain, and TAHITI, and she wasn't sure if a possible relationship between them would have survived that. Besides, what mattered was that she was here with him now. Well, even if he was away most of the time. And the unshakeable longing filled her heart again.

"May?" May was shaken out of her reverie by Daisy, who had gently placed her hand on her shoulder. Daisy smiled as if she could tell what she was thinking about, and May might have been mortified if it was anyone other than Daisy. Thankfully, Fitz and Simmons had headed back to the base at some point during May's reverie. "Maybe we should invite them in. Their plane obviously isn't going anywhere for a while, and I think everyone's curious to talk with them anyways. And their Coulson might benefit from a fully equipped med bay."

"Sure," May said, nodding. "I'll let them know. You can head back to base and tell the team to prepare for their arrival."

"Copy that," Daisy said, and headed out of the ship after casting one last glance at the family.

May took a deep breath, then knocked on the med bay door and let herself in. All three pairs of eyes landed on her, and May felt slightly apologetic at having interrupted their family time. May tried to avoid the eyes that reminded her so much of their own Coulson. "You're all welcome to come into our base, spend as much time as you need until you're ready to get going again," May said. "We have a fully equipped med bay, and we can also get a team to look over your ship and see what needs to be done with it."

"We would appreciate that so much," Coulson said, and it surprised May how his voice was exactly the same. "Thank you to you and your team again, Agent May," and he gave his signature smile, the one that May had grown to love over all these years. May averted her gaze, and turned around swiftly to lead them to the base. She heard some cranks and a grunt, and the sound of wheels as presumably they took the stretcher with Coulson on it with them.