Timeless

4|| 1945

"Are you sure it's fixed?"

Daisy looked over her friend's shoulder impatiently and skeptically as he made some tweaks to the quantum drive.

Fitz turned to her, pinching the bridge of his nose as he reassured her for the umpteenth time. "Yes, Daisy," he sighed. "Yes, I'm sure your quantum drive is fixed. Yes, I'm sure your time boyfriend is right where you left him. Yes, I'm sure your printer is fixed and stocked so you'll be rich whenever you go. Yes, I'm sure no one will question a young Chinese-American woman buying anything with a suspicious abundance of cash in her purse. Yes, I'm sure he still loves you."

Daisy stared at him, unimpressed.

She and her father had finally stopped after a few weeks of jumping from time to time to stop in 2016, where their family were. Daisy and Phil had a tearful reunion with her mother, unofficially adopted siblings from over the years, and actual family, like her mother's parents.

"Oh, don't patronize her, Fitz," Simmons chided, coming over from the cockpit to where the quantum drive was. "Daisy knows all of that. I reminded her last night."

Fitz rolled his eyes, taking his wife's hand. "With the amount of asking she does, you'd think that no one's ever answered them, ever." He looked at Daisy. "You'll be fine then? You sure you don't need us there with you? A technician?"

"You just said that you were sure that it was fixed," Daisy said wryly.

Fitz frowned. "Yeah, but it's liable to break again. Plus, I've put the whole drive on a much smaller plane. We've got to take that into account."

It was true. He'd put the quantum drive on a plane a little bigger than a Quinjet, since Daisy would be travelling alone, now. It still had her basic amenities like a hot plate, a fridge, a washroom, things like that, but it was much smaller than the Zephyr that she and her father used to take.

"I'm just grateful I don't have to lug around the whole plane," Daisy said honestly. "It's definitely not inconspicuous. And it's such a hassle to hide it." She peeked behind Fitz. "You did include the countdown clock?"

"Yep."

"And the instruction manual?"

"Yep." He handed it to her. "Full colour, step-by-step instructions, plus a diagnostic program on the plane itself."

Daisy sighed, hugging him tightly, turning to hug Simmons as well. "Thank you guys," she mumbled. "I hope it works out."

"Us too." Simmons patted Daisy's back gently. "Come on. Let's have you say goodbye to everyone else."

They walked down the ramp, where Phil and Melinda were waiting.

Daisy fidgeted with her ring for a moment before hugging her parents tightly. "I'll be back soon," she said, her voice muffled as she spoke into her mother's shoulder. "I promise."

Melinda pulled away, smoothing the baby hairs away from her daughter's face. She studied Daisy's eyes critically for a second. Finally, she spoke. "Don't do anything stupid," she warned amusedly. "We can't back you up from here."

"Yeah." Daisy kissed her father on the cheek. "I'll be seeing you guys."

She stepped back onto the ramp and sat in the cockpit, feeling the sunlight disappear as the door closed. She settled into her seat and surveyed the new quantum drive operation board on the armrest of the chair. It had dates and coordinates, something that Daisy had inputted before she said goodbye. She started the plane and flew back to Idaho, 1945.

A moment later, Daisy landed the jet in the park, careful to keep the reflective shields up. She hurried down the ramp and went to see the ice cream shop turn on the lights in the darkness just before sunrise.