Disclaimer: I do not own, nor am I associated with Marvel in any way even though I desperately wish I was.

Note: Takes place several years after Captain America: Winter Soldier though it doesn't contain spoilers.

He stood a short ways back, watching the women on the park bench. He had been tracking her down for a while now, which had been surprisingly more difficult than he expected. Though, he trained her so he supposed he shouldn't have been surprised.

He slowly walked over and sat down next to her.

"Nice day," he said.

The women next to him turned and stared, eyes wide in surprise.

"Director Fury," Maria Hill said, "What are you doing here? I thought you were going dark? Has something happened?"

"Nothing's happened, and I did, for a while. Can only stay out of the game for so long though before you gotta bite the bullet and get back in," he said.

"I think you did more than bite the bullet, Director," she said, "You took quite a few in the chest. And I wouldn't have thought you going dark meant you were out of the game, just watching from the sidelines."

"Nick," he said.

"What?"

"I'm not the Director of anything anymore, it's just Nick," he told her.

"Well... Nick, you didn't answer my question, what are you doing here?" she asked.

"You were right, I was never out of the game, I've always kept my eye on things," he admitted, "But it seemed like you had got out and I wanted to see what you were doing instead."

"You came to see me?" she said disbelievingly.

"That so hard to believe Maria?" he asked, quirking his eyebrow and she narrowed her eyes at the use of her first name.

"So tell me," he persisted, "How have you been? What have you been up to? Are you back with Coulson at the reformed SHIELD?"

Before Hill had a chance to respond, they were interrupted by a high voice.

"Mommy!"

Hill and Fury both turned as a little girl with wavy brown hair and big eyes came running over.

"Mommy, I'm hot," the girl complained.

"Alright, let's get your sweater off," Hill said, helping the girl remove it and brushing some hair out of her face.

"And who is this?" Fury asked and Hill couldn't help but smirk. There were few things that could surprise the former director of SHIELD, and Hill had always prided herself on being one of the few who had been able to pull that off. She was pleased to see she still had that ability.

"This is Maisie," Hill told him. "Maisie, this is my friend, Nick. We used to work together."

"Hello Maisie," Fury said softly.

"Hi," Maisie said, looking at him shyly for a moment before turning back to her mother. "Can I go back and play now?"

"Yes go on," Hill smiled as the little girl ran back to the playground.

Fury turned to Hill with his eyebrows raised.

"Yeah," Hill laughed, "I've been pretty good."

"Pretty good?" Fury said, laughing, "You've got a kid."

Hill laughed again and nodded.

"Yeah," she repeated, "I, uh, I adopted her last year. Her parents were killed in an explosion set off during a confrontation with the Avengers. She didn't have any other family and I got kind of attached."

Fury stared at the woman in front of him, a small smile still on his face.

"What?" she said, after he stared just a moment too long, "That hard to believe I could be a mom?"

"No, not at all," Fury said, "I imagine you'd be a great mom. I'm glad you're getting the chance to do that."

"Thanks," she murmured softly. "And to answer your other question, no I'm not back at SHIELD, though I help Coulson out when I can. I mostly work with the Avengers, liaising between them and Coulson's team to make sure everyone's on the same page; getting them where they need to go; and dealing with all the political leaders who, for some reason, would rather speak to me than, say, Banner or Stark."

Fury chuckled softly, "Can't imagine why that would be. She seems like a good kid."

Hill smiled, following his gaze to where he was watching her daughter and she made her way across the monkey bars, climbing and swinging much faster than an average six-year-old.

"She's wonderful," Hill said, "She's really smart, and clever. She loves to read and colour, and she enjoys sports too. Trying to stay off the radar a bit so I can't exactly sign her up for any team sports right now, but she's not complaining since she gets to play soccer and baseball with the Avengers."

Fury laughed at the mental imagine he got from that.

"I've been teaching her self-defense too, which she enjoys. And when we do see Coulson and his team, May works with her as well. She encompasses the whole 'small but mighty' thing pretty well," Hill told him.

"Like her mother then," Fury said. "I've always known to watch myself around Hill women, you're a force to be reckoned with."

Hill smiled at him, feeling something she hadn't in a while.

"Would, um," she hesitated, before taking a deep breath and continuing. She was a Hill woman after all. "Would you like to join Maisie and I for dinner tonight?"

Fury smiled back, "I would like that very much."

I hope you liked it! Thanks for reading! Let me know what you think!