Renegade Rising || Leo Fitz Book Two

Chapter SixtyThree

Asia woke with a small yawn, Leo's arm still wrapped securely around her waist in a comforting manner. She felt safe. Good. Content. She wished she could just close her eyes and fall back asleep beside him. While she knew she was definitely completely awake. Plus, there was work to do. Checking her phone, she had several alerts. It sounded like, while they had been asleep, the Teleporter and Raina had made an appearance, on Gonzalez's boat. Everyone, of course, was losing their minds. She needed to find Skye. Figure out what the plan was, before they weren't even allowed to have a plan anymore.

Slipping out of bed, she donned her usual Shield attire. Zipping part of her jacket up, she pulled her hair up into a ponytail and made her way out into the hall. Skye would probably be in the Lab, watching over Lincoln again. She had barely left his side all week. It was starting to bother some of the other agents, but Asia got it. She saw the way Skye looked at the blonde. There was more there than just a friendship, and Asia knew it. Maybe everyone else didn't see, but Asia spent a lot of time studying her friends.

As Asia was about to enter the Lab, Skye nearly barreled into her, headed in the same direction. Neither had seen the other until they had collided and become a big mess on the floor. "Hey," Asia said, standing up and dusting herself off, then extending a hand to help Skye up from the ground. "Everything okay? I was just coming to find you. I saw the report. What's going on?"

"I really don't know," Skye said, taking her hand and standing up. "But everyone is losing their fucking minds, and I don't feel safe having Lincoln here anymore. Who knows what they're going to do. They've already Indexed him." She looked flustered, nervous as hell, and yet nothing around them was shaking. She really did have control on her powers now, and it was pretty damn impressive.

"Skye," Asia shook her head with a small laugh, "They Indexed us. It's not that weird. It's part of the job, you know that." The Index, the worldwide compilation of all things "other," specifically people, had always been a reality for them. Asia knew it, she understood it. Frankly, she didn't even really mind. Maybe the people reading through the Index would be able to give her a clue on what the hell was going on with her body, cause she sure didn't know.

"What if..." Skye whispered with a drawn out sigh, "What if it's not a part of the job I'm comfortable with? What if it's something that would make me quit?" Skye had been worried about saying those words outloud to Asia. Asia Monroe had always been the most SHIELD-y person she had ever known, aside from Coulson. She didn't imagine Asia would take too kindly to the idea of Skye questioning her loyalty.

Asia blinked, as if she was trying to compute what had actually just occurred. She couldn't speak, she didn't even know what someone was supposed to say to that. Skye wanted to...leave? She was like family. Asia couldn't understand how she would want to give that up. "Don't he rash." She said finally, after what felt like an hours long pause. "Think before you make decisions like that. Rarely do people who leave Shield get to come back."

"I know, I know. I don't know what I want right now. All I know is my family, my real family, lives there," Skye said, speaking of Afterlife. She immediately winced after the words left her mouth, realizing how poor in taste they were. Obviously, her Shield team was like family, too. But her mom...her blood, was in Afterlife. "But I still want you to come. You don't have to stay. I just want you to see what it's like. And from what Coulson has been telling me, Shield plans on sending people there anyways. So we might as well go first. Bring the welcoming party before things get too stressful."

"I want that, I do," Asia replied with a nod. "But what's to say they really won't bring me home afterwords? What if I get there and....I'm just stuck," Asia studied Skye for her response. If there was even the slightest falter, the slightest moment of doubt, Asia would back out. She wasn't risking everything to go with Skye. She had learned to control her powers pretty well on her own, thanks to the mindful meditation of her mentor, of Nat. She would be just fine to continue on her own.

"That would never happen," Skye replied without hesitation. "Gordon, the Teleporter, he would bring you back. Or get you close enough you could get back on your own. I promise, I would never, ever try and. Try and take you away from Fitz," Skye said with a shake of her head. "Never. Seriously Asia, I promise. There's nothing to worry about. Just let me work out the finer details with Coulson first, and when it's time, I'll let you know."

So Asia did just that. She let Skye figure out what was going to happen, when. She let her friend run logistics completely without aid, even though it just slightly stressed Asia out, the not knowing. But she had to let Skye handle things, had to let her know she really did trust in her friend. So she spent her time instead, keeping herself preoccupied. Training. Being with Leo. Not letting her thoughts run rampant and get the best of her.

And when it was time, Skye came for her. Just like she had promised.

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Leo wrapped Asia tightly in his arms, knocking her duffel bag off of her shoulder as they stood in the hall, embrace locking them together in this space and time. It was as if the world around them wasn't even moving, all that was left was just the two of them. He pulled away, pressing her forehead to hers and running his thumb over her cheek. "Don't you leave me behind, yea? You better come back," he said with a small laugh, part of his words catching in his throat. Scared. He was scared.

"Never," she replied back, shaking her head. "I'll always come back to you, Leo Fitz," she kissed his nose, then his lips, holding herself there in that moment, taking a mental picture of everything she could feel, smell, see. She didn't want to forget this, ever. "But I do have to go, love. I'll be home soon, I promise. You'll hardly even realize I'm gone." She tried to laugh but it caught in her throat, coming out as more of a cough, her eyes just ever so slightly filling with tears. "I promise."

"I'm holding you to that, Asia," he replied, tears mirrored in his own eyes, ones which he tried much less to hide than she did. "You better not decide to stay."

"Away from you?" She shook her head, "Never." The two held onto each other for a moment longer before Skye cleared her throat awkwardly. "Well, that's my queue I suppose." She bent down, picking her bag up from the ground, slinging it back over her shoulder. It was time, time to go to Afterlife. She looked back at Leo and smiled softly. "Soon, I promise." Then she looked over at Skye, who was standing with Lincoln and Coulson, waiting down the hall. She gave Leo one last glance, then walked to meet them. It was time. Destiny was waiting.

"So how does this work exactly?" Coulson was asking Skye as she walked up, looking down the seemingly empty hallway. "Click your heels and whisper 'there's no place like home.'?" He was partially joking, but Asia could practically feel the desire to know, to understand, rolling off of him in waves.

"Sort of," Skye looked over at Lincoln with a grin. "Little less black and white than that, though. Gordon can....sense us? I guess. With quantum entanglement. It's through that that he's able to find us, and the transportation part, well, I don't really get the science of that completely. Might want to ask Fitz about that one." Skye nodded down the hall where Leo was still standing, watching them, finger pressed lightly against his lips.

"Is that my queue to leave?" Coulson asked, raising an eyebrow. "Not much of a debrief prior to the ship off." He seemed almost on the verge of being hurt, but like he didn't really want it to be noticeable. Asia looked to Skye for the answer. She had no idea the specifics of their plan today.

"Yea," Skye sighed, "It is. Gordon won't come if you guys are around. It's a safety thing, for him and for everyone back...back there." The sentence fell awkwardly out of her mouth. Skye wasn't sure whether or not to call Afterlife "home," whether to call Shield "home," everything was so much more complicated now. She bit her lip, looking over her shoulder to deflect the awkwardness.

"Alright well. Be safe. Come back soon," Coulson said with a nod to Skye and to Asia. He fixed Lincoln with an even gaze before nodding, then he turned around and walked off down the hall. The two women looked at each other, then moved off slightly further down the hall, Lincoln following behind them.

"Alright, here goes nothing," Skye said with a small grin, grabbing Asia's hand.

On instinct, Asia closed her eyes. She felt a breeze envelope around them, cool and soft, almost like a breath on the back of her neck. She squeezed Skye's hand tightly and when she felt a shift, a shift in something, Asia opened her eyes, her eyes instantly widening as the sun hit their faces, a natural, cold breeze wrapped around them, the taste of pure, crisp air filling her lungs. When Asia opened her eyes, she sure wasn't in Kansas anymore.