[ Okay, he's still not running. That's good. So long as she does this right, maybe they can avoid that whole hassle. That would be really nice. She might have appreciated the very welcome distraction of a mission but she is still on vacation so she'd like to avoid the paperwork that a public spectacle would result in. ]
My name's Daisy. [ Still keeping one hand up at her side, she carefully reaches into her jacket to pull out the leather bifold that holds her SHIELD badge and ID. ] I'm with SHIELD and I'm here to get some answers about some weird stuff that happened a few weeks ago. We just want to know if there's anything we need to help with, that's all.
[ Help with, because that sounds a lot less scary than take care of. She's really hoping that he's not someone they'd need to take care of, that he's just caught up in something. If she's really lucky, everything will already be resolved and she can submit her report and that'll be the end of it.
She isn't usually that lucky. Thoughts frantically turning over a dozen ways to proceed, she goes with an offer. ]
Look, can I buy you a cup of coffee? Or tea, Brits usually prefer tea, right? You pick the place.
[ Steven tenses when Daisy reaches into her jacket, hands flying up protectively in front of his chest. He puts them down after a moment though, feeling ridiculous. It's not like she's about to pull a gun in a public place, right? Except that's what you see in the movies all the time from these authority-types, and she is an American...
But the hand emerges holding a bifold, which Steven inches closer to take a look at, glancing warily at her face before squinting at the ID badge. ] SHIELD? Never heard of SHIELD. That like some kind of American police, or...?
[ They're not police, Steven.. Oh bollocks, Steven thinks: Marc's here, his reflection in a store window looking hard at Daisy. You need to get away from her. Don't talk to her, don't tell her anything. They can't be trusted. ]
Yeah, all right. It's just tea. [ Steven says it to Marc, hoping to get him to calm down, hoping at the same time that Daisy will take it as an answer and he doesn't sound like a crazy person talking to himself. ] Um, there's a little place just up here...
[ Nervously, he leads her over to a cafe he knows in the square, with outdoor seating and dozens of tourists all around. ]
[ It doesn't surprise her that he hasn't heard of SHIELD. Ever since the whole thing with HYDRA over a decade ago, they've kept a pretty low profile. Hell, there were more than a few years where they worked in the shadows, completely under the radar of every major government organization in the world. They've gone public again since, of course, but they still keep their presence low-key, stepping in when needed but keeping most of their attention on the stars. (SWORD was doing much the same thing but their leadership has left something to be desired of late.)
Tucking away her badge and phone, she follows Steven, making sure to appear as non-threatening as possible and keeping her movements smooth so he hopefully wouldn't spook. She stays close enough that she could grab him but she doesn't want him thinking she's going to grab him. It's a fine line to balance, and if he really is anything like the Fitz of old, the slightest thing could push him into action.
When they reach the cafe, Daisy reaches into another pocket and pulls out a credit card that she offers him. ]
Here. I'll grab a table while you order for us. I'm not picky.
[ It's another olive branch and possibly a very stupid move on her part, but she needs to earn his trust if she's going to get him to talk to her. He could very easily slip out a back entrance and make a run for it, or he could call the police and report her for harassment or something. But she's trusting him not to, so maybe that'll win her a few points — enough to at least cash in for an honest conversation. ]
[ As they reach the cafe, Steven gets another look at Marc in the reflection from the door, looking at him with raised eyebrows and a pointed shake of his head. Steven makes a placating gesture, the bell ringing as he opens the door and holds it for Daisy to step through. It’s nice that he’s not having to listen to Marc badger him in his head right now, even if he obviously doesn’t want Steven talking to her. Things aren’t perfect between them, but they are more settled. They don’t fight as much as they used to. Most of all, Steven trusts that Marc can get them out of a tight spot if it comes down to it, which is what’s keeping him marginally calm about the entire situation. ]
Oh—that’s all right, I’ve got it. [ Steven hurries away from Daisy and the offer of her credit card. Call him old-fashioned, but he just can’t let her buy, especially as they’re still virtually strangers. Good, Marc tells him. Don’t accept anything from her. Don’t agree to go anywhere with her. I’m here if you need me.
He nods a little, feeling bolstered by that, and then steps up to order. Earl grey and soy milk for him, a plain black coffee with milk on the side for her, Steven feeling too nervous to try to guess at any kind of fancy lattes or whatever Daisy might like. He asks for a couple of scones for them too, though, since it seems only polite, and then goes to find Daisy at the table she’s picked, since the servers will bring things out to them. ]
Coffee’s on the way. I’ve had it here, it’s—well, it’s strong.
[ Under different circumstances, Daisy would have insisted on paying. This was basically a business meeting, after all, but either way, women are just as capable of paying for men as men are for women. But, since they're still walking a tightrope at the moment, she lets it slide and focuses on choosing a good seat. The cafe is fairly busy, it's clearly a popular place, and the conversations floating around them are in a handful of languages she doesn't understand a word of. She can definitely see why he picked it.
The few minutes that pass feel like hours while she waits for him to join her. She tries to keep an eye on him without staring or craning her neck to see around other people, but it's a relief when he finally reaches the table. ]
Thanks, and strong is good. I've been in this time zone for a week and I still feel jetlagged. [ She smiles, easy and casual, no ulterior motives in sight. ] I'm usually based in upstate New York but I've been visiting my best friends and their daughter. They're retired from SHIELD so I don't get to see them as much as I'd like.
[ She fishes her phone out again and takes a second to pull up a photo to show him. It's her and a little girl probably around eight or nine years old, pale with white-blonde hair. The girl is reading to her Aunt Daisy from a very worn copy of Carl Sagan's Cosmos. ]
She's a science nerd just like her parents. [ There's a warmth to her voice, affection in every syllable. The little girl means the world to her. ]
[ Steven perches on the edge of a chair rather than quite occupying one, as though ready to spring up again at a moment's notice. Still, Daisy seems to be doing her best to put him at ease, nothing like his previous (though admittedly limited) experiences of interrogation. It's just that he's...still trying to get over the shock of being cornered on the street by a woman who has his address, and then the shock after that of finding out she's not police investigating the vandalism of the museum loo but some sort of agent or whatever in an international counter-terrorism organization.
And he still doesn't know what she wants with him.
Steven's got a soft spot for kids, though, so he's quite willing to look at the photo of the little girl reading Carl Sagan to Daisy. His wary expression even softens into a smile as he does, taking the phone for a moment so he can zoom in a bit. ] Wow, yeah, look at that. Proper scientist in the making, in't she?
[ The smile lingers as he hands the phone back. Nice to have family, friends to visit. It's something missing in their lives, his and Marc's. Steven doesn't even have—well, it's not as though he ever really was talking to his mother all those times, was it? But he doesn't even have her to call anymore.
The smile fades and he fidgets with his hands on the table, looking around briefly to see if their drinks are on the way. ] So. You, ah, said you wanted to talk yeah?
[ A proper scientist in the making, indeed. Growing up in space with two genius parents didn't really give her much choice in the matter, though Daisy knows her friends will support their daughter in whatever path she chooses in life. Everyone is just so grateful that Alya even exists — there were so many times over the years when their lives were at risk. End of the world and all that.
Daisy pockets her phone again after one last look at the photo; it served its purpose, getting a smile out of her new unwitting acquaintance. ]
I did, yeah. I also said I wasn't here to arrest you or haul you off to some lab or whatever it is you're so scared of. I'm here because SHIELD noticed—
[ She catches sight of one of the servers headed their way and pauses her explanation, putting on a pleasant smile as the man arrives to set their drinks and scones on the table. There's an exchange of pleasantries and then off he goes again. ]
These scones look amazing, they're different here from what we have in the States. [ She busies her hands adding milk to her coffee while she continues. ] Anyway, SHIELD noticed some really weird stuff going on in Egypt a few weeks ago, but our investigations there didn't really pan out into anything solid, so we started looking at other events that happened everywhere else around the same time.
[ The way she relays the steps that brought her to the moment is very professional like they're discussing a business deal and she's explaining the particulars of her proposal. There's nothing accusatory in her tone and the next part comes out friendlier like she's just telling a coworker about her day. ]
The thing with the museum didn't really ping our radar, at first. It was a bit extreme but it could have been nothing, you know? But then we found footage of an incident in the street that was filmed by a few tourists on a bus — footage of a guy in a white suit who looks a whole lot like you. So, here I am.
Steven listens half to Daisy's explanation and half to Marc in his head telling him not to give anything away, stirring soy milk into his tea. He gets Marc's concern, really he does, but it'd be nice of him to let Steven handle things on his own for a change. He hasn't bungled it spectacularly so far, has he? Hasn't even agreed he is Steven Grant, much less anything about what went on in Cairo. He knows to be wary.
You think she's friendly because she showed you a picture of her friend's daughter? Marc gives him an exasperated look through the reflection in his tea. All kinds of people have nieces, Steven. Doesn't make them nice.
Steven sighs inwardly and clears his throat, fidgeting with a piece of scone. ] Sorry, I'd like to help you and all, but isn't SHIELD kind of a dodgy org? I mean, didn't we all find out just a few years ago you were infiltrated by HYDRA? [ He tries to sound like someone who isn't literally just learning this information as their alter relays it to them. ] Pretty bad people, aren't they?
[ Looking down at her coffee cup, Daisy grows quiet and serious. It's a conversation she's had dozens of times over the years, having to convince all sorts of people that things are different now, but it's never gotten any easier. Remembering those days in the aftermath of HYDRA's reveal still hurts, Ward's betrayal stinging like a fresh wound despite his being long gone now. Her team had spent years hunting down the remnants of HYDRA, rooting out every last cell they could find and remaining vigilant for any sign of another emerging. Things have been quiet for a while now, thankfully, but she'll be first in line if anything turns up again. ]
We rebuilt SHIELD from the ground up and made it what it was always supposed to be. We're not funded by any government, we don't answer to anyone's special interests. We just protect people — we protect the world.
[ She picks up her cup, cradling it between her hands, and visibly struggles with a decision for a moment before finally asking: ] What would help you to trust me? Not completely, I know that takes a lot more time, but just a little. Is there anything I could do or say?
[ It seems to hit home, what he says about SHIELD. What Marc told him—and Marc still isn't any more open to trusting Daisy, but Steven can see she's deeply affected by it, turning quieter as she answers. And he'd like to believe her, for his part, because she does seem like a nice person, but Steven does not want to be on the radar of any organization, dodgy or world-protecting or anything else. It was bad enough chasing the cultists and being chased by them, with Khonshu looming over their lives. Things are finally quieting down. He doesn't even have superpowers anymore. ]
Oh. Um. I dunno. [ He feels a little sorry for her, wishing that there was something easy he could agree to that would build trust between them. But what Steven really wants is simply to be left alone. ]
Look, everything's good over in old Egypt now, yeah? And that—that bloke in the white suit won't be showing up in anybody's YouTube videos anymore, I can tell you that. [ Steven ignores Marc doing the equivalent of throwing up his hands in his head. It seems to him like the best thing to offer is a little bit of the truth, as a reassurance. ] You can tell your bosses or whoever. I mean, unless you're the boss. Then you could just—put it in a memo or something.
[ Daisy smirks behind her coffee cup as she raises it to finally take a sip. It's definitely strong but that's just how she likes it. ]
I was the boss for a little while. It wasn't really for me. [ She's never once regretted her decision to give up the position; Mack has been an incredible director. ] The director is basically my big brother, though, so he'll listen if I tell him things are good here. That it turns out it was just a normal guy who got mixed up in something a little above his paygrade.
[ Setting down her cup, she removes a business card from her back pocket. The corners are a bit dinged up but the SHIELD logo is still intact, printed in black on the crisp white card. On the back, she's written a phone number and the initials DJ. ]
This is in case things don't stay good. We have to cover a lot of ground, so we don't always notice things right away, but if you need backup...
[ Smiling to herself, she takes her phone out again and pulls up a video, letting it play as she places it on the table in front of him. It's a compilation of clips of "Quake" fighting and using her powers, the videos pulled from news footage and shaky phone cameras from around the world. There are dozens of them on the internet and she's given up being embarrassed by the fact that people write fanfiction and have posters of her on their walls. She's not Avengers-level famous, at least, otherwise, there's no way she'd be able to do her job like this. ]
If you need backup, I have a pretty unique skill set.
Oh? [ Steven chuckles. ] Look who called it. Me. Guess you seem like the type.
[ Confident and in charge. Steel resolve behind the friendly smile. Steven can't help the bit of admiration he feels towards Daisy: must be a big job to be the boss of an organization like SHIELD, even if she eventually gave it up. He doesn't mind the way she characterizes his own past—a normal guy mixed up in something a little above his paygrade—because it felt that way often enough for Steven until he came to realize that he was needed, he had strength of his own, he could be good at this whole superhero-ing thing.
And he thinks he's doing a fine job handling this conversation, thank you very much, Marc Spector. Daisy's not trying to arrest him or anything, just passing him her phone number and offering her help.
Then her phone again, on which Steven now sees a video of Daisy, compiled from dozens of phone clips and news sources. ] Wow...
[ He picks the phone up and brings it closer so he can see the video better. That is, indeed, quite a unique skill set. He hasn't seen many different kinds of superhuman abilities in person, just his and Marc's and Layla's. Things tend to be more quiet on this side of the pond. Not that he's seeing hers in person, exactly, but it leaves an impression nonetheless. ]
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
no subject
My name's Daisy. [ Still keeping one hand up at her side, she carefully reaches into her jacket to pull out the leather bifold that holds her SHIELD badge and ID. ] I'm with SHIELD and I'm here to get some answers about some weird stuff that happened a few weeks ago. We just want to know if there's anything we need to help with, that's all.
[ Help with, because that sounds a lot less scary than take care of. She's really hoping that he's not someone they'd need to take care of, that he's just caught up in something. If she's really lucky, everything will already be resolved and she can submit her report and that'll be the end of it.
She isn't usually that lucky. Thoughts frantically turning over a dozen ways to proceed, she goes with an offer. ]
Look, can I buy you a cup of coffee? Or tea, Brits usually prefer tea, right? You pick the place.
no subject
But the hand emerges holding a bifold, which Steven inches closer to take a look at, glancing warily at her face before squinting at the ID badge. ] SHIELD? Never heard of SHIELD. That like some kind of American police, or...?
[ They're not police, Steven.. Oh bollocks, Steven thinks: Marc's here, his reflection in a store window looking hard at Daisy. You need to get away from her. Don't talk to her, don't tell her anything. They can't be trusted. ]
Yeah, all right. It's just tea. [ Steven says it to Marc, hoping to get him to calm down, hoping at the same time that Daisy will take it as an answer and he doesn't sound like a crazy person talking to himself. ] Um, there's a little place just up here...
[ Nervously, he leads her over to a cafe he knows in the square, with outdoor seating and dozens of tourists all around. ]
no subject
Tucking away her badge and phone, she follows Steven, making sure to appear as non-threatening as possible and keeping her movements smooth so he hopefully wouldn't spook. She stays close enough that she could grab him but she doesn't want him thinking she's going to grab him. It's a fine line to balance, and if he really is anything like the Fitz of old, the slightest thing could push him into action.
When they reach the cafe, Daisy reaches into another pocket and pulls out a credit card that she offers him. ]
Here. I'll grab a table while you order for us. I'm not picky.
[ It's another olive branch and possibly a very stupid move on her part, but she needs to earn his trust if she's going to get him to talk to her. He could very easily slip out a back entrance and make a run for it, or he could call the police and report her for harassment or something. But she's trusting him not to, so maybe that'll win her a few points — enough to at least cash in for an honest conversation. ]
no subject
Oh—that’s all right, I’ve got it. [ Steven hurries away from Daisy and the offer of her credit card. Call him old-fashioned, but he just can’t let her buy, especially as they’re still virtually strangers. Good, Marc tells him. Don’t accept anything from her. Don’t agree to go anywhere with her. I’m here if you need me.
He nods a little, feeling bolstered by that, and then steps up to order. Earl grey and soy milk for him, a plain black coffee with milk on the side for her, Steven feeling too nervous to try to guess at any kind of fancy lattes or whatever Daisy might like. He asks for a couple of scones for them too, though, since it seems only polite, and then goes to find Daisy at the table she’s picked, since the servers will bring things out to them. ]
Coffee’s on the way. I’ve had it here, it’s—well, it’s strong.
no subject
The few minutes that pass feel like hours while she waits for him to join her. She tries to keep an eye on him without staring or craning her neck to see around other people, but it's a relief when he finally reaches the table. ]
Thanks, and strong is good. I've been in this time zone for a week and I still feel jetlagged. [ She smiles, easy and casual, no ulterior motives in sight. ] I'm usually based in upstate New York but I've been visiting my best friends and their daughter. They're retired from SHIELD so I don't get to see them as much as I'd like.
[ She fishes her phone out again and takes a second to pull up a photo to show him. It's her and a little girl probably around eight or nine years old, pale with white-blonde hair. The girl is reading to her Aunt Daisy from a very worn copy of Carl Sagan's Cosmos. ]
She's a science nerd just like her parents. [ There's a warmth to her voice, affection in every syllable. The little girl means the world to her. ]
no subject
And he still doesn't know what she wants with him.
Steven's got a soft spot for kids, though, so he's quite willing to look at the photo of the little girl reading Carl Sagan to Daisy. His wary expression even softens into a smile as he does, taking the phone for a moment so he can zoom in a bit. ] Wow, yeah, look at that. Proper scientist in the making, in't she?
[ The smile lingers as he hands the phone back. Nice to have family, friends to visit. It's something missing in their lives, his and Marc's. Steven doesn't even have—well, it's not as though he ever really was talking to his mother all those times, was it? But he doesn't even have her to call anymore.
The smile fades and he fidgets with his hands on the table, looking around briefly to see if their drinks are on the way. ] So. You, ah, said you wanted to talk yeah?
no subject
Daisy pockets her phone again after one last look at the photo; it served its purpose, getting a smile out of her new unwitting acquaintance. ]
I did, yeah. I also said I wasn't here to arrest you or haul you off to some lab or whatever it is you're so scared of. I'm here because SHIELD noticed—
[ She catches sight of one of the servers headed their way and pauses her explanation, putting on a pleasant smile as the man arrives to set their drinks and scones on the table. There's an exchange of pleasantries and then off he goes again. ]
These scones look amazing, they're different here from what we have in the States. [ She busies her hands adding milk to her coffee while she continues. ] Anyway, SHIELD noticed some really weird stuff going on in Egypt a few weeks ago, but our investigations there didn't really pan out into anything solid, so we started looking at other events that happened everywhere else around the same time.
[ The way she relays the steps that brought her to the moment is very professional like they're discussing a business deal and she's explaining the particulars of her proposal. There's nothing accusatory in her tone and the next part comes out friendlier like she's just telling a coworker about her day. ]
The thing with the museum didn't really ping our radar, at first. It was a bit extreme but it could have been nothing, you know? But then we found footage of an incident in the street that was filmed by a few tourists on a bus — footage of a guy in a white suit who looks a whole lot like you. So, here I am.
no subject
Steven listens half to Daisy's explanation and half to Marc in his head telling him not to give anything away, stirring soy milk into his tea. He gets Marc's concern, really he does, but it'd be nice of him to let Steven handle things on his own for a change. He hasn't bungled it spectacularly so far, has he? Hasn't even agreed he is Steven Grant, much less anything about what went on in Cairo. He knows to be wary.
You think she's friendly because she showed you a picture of her friend's daughter? Marc gives him an exasperated look through the reflection in his tea. All kinds of people have nieces, Steven. Doesn't make them nice.
Steven sighs inwardly and clears his throat, fidgeting with a piece of scone. ] Sorry, I'd like to help you and all, but isn't SHIELD kind of a dodgy org? I mean, didn't we all find out just a few years ago you were infiltrated by HYDRA? [ He tries to sound like someone who isn't literally just learning this information as their alter relays it to them. ] Pretty bad people, aren't they?
no subject
[ Looking down at her coffee cup, Daisy grows quiet and serious. It's a conversation she's had dozens of times over the years, having to convince all sorts of people that things are different now, but it's never gotten any easier. Remembering those days in the aftermath of HYDRA's reveal still hurts, Ward's betrayal stinging like a fresh wound despite his being long gone now. Her team had spent years hunting down the remnants of HYDRA, rooting out every last cell they could find and remaining vigilant for any sign of another emerging. Things have been quiet for a while now, thankfully, but she'll be first in line if anything turns up again. ]
We rebuilt SHIELD from the ground up and made it what it was always supposed to be. We're not funded by any government, we don't answer to anyone's special interests. We just protect people — we protect the world.
[ She picks up her cup, cradling it between her hands, and visibly struggles with a decision for a moment before finally asking: ] What would help you to trust me? Not completely, I know that takes a lot more time, but just a little. Is there anything I could do or say?
no subject
Oh. Um. I dunno. [ He feels a little sorry for her, wishing that there was something easy he could agree to that would build trust between them. But what Steven really wants is simply to be left alone. ]
Look, everything's good over in old Egypt now, yeah? And that—that bloke in the white suit won't be showing up in anybody's YouTube videos anymore, I can tell you that. [ Steven ignores Marc doing the equivalent of throwing up his hands in his head. It seems to him like the best thing to offer is a little bit of the truth, as a reassurance. ] You can tell your bosses or whoever. I mean, unless you're the boss. Then you could just—put it in a memo or something.
no subject
I was the boss for a little while. It wasn't really for me. [ She's never once regretted her decision to give up the position; Mack has been an incredible director. ] The director is basically my big brother, though, so he'll listen if I tell him things are good here. That it turns out it was just a normal guy who got mixed up in something a little above his paygrade.
[ Setting down her cup, she removes a business card from her back pocket. The corners are a bit dinged up but the SHIELD logo is still intact, printed in black on the crisp white card. On the back, she's written a phone number and the initials DJ. ]
This is in case things don't stay good. We have to cover a lot of ground, so we don't always notice things right away, but if you need backup...
[ Smiling to herself, she takes her phone out again and pulls up a video, letting it play as she places it on the table in front of him. It's a compilation of clips of "Quake" fighting and using her powers, the videos pulled from news footage and shaky phone cameras from around the world. There are dozens of them on the internet and she's given up being embarrassed by the fact that people write fanfiction and have posters of her on their walls. She's not Avengers-level famous, at least, otherwise, there's no way she'd be able to do her job like this. ]
If you need backup, I have a pretty unique skill set.
no subject
[ Confident and in charge. Steel resolve behind the friendly smile. Steven can't help the bit of admiration he feels towards Daisy: must be a big job to be the boss of an organization like SHIELD, even if she eventually gave it up. He doesn't mind the way she characterizes his own past—a normal guy mixed up in something a little above his paygrade—because it felt that way often enough for Steven until he came to realize that he was needed, he had strength of his own, he could be good at this whole superhero-ing thing.
And he thinks he's doing a fine job handling this conversation, thank you very much, Marc Spector. Daisy's not trying to arrest him or anything, just passing him her phone number and offering her help.
Then her phone again, on which Steven now sees a video of Daisy, compiled from dozens of phone clips and news sources. ] Wow...
[ He picks the phone up and brings it closer so he can see the video better. That is, indeed, quite a unique skill set. He hasn't seen many different kinds of superhuman abilities in person, just his and Marc's and Layla's. Things tend to be more quiet on this side of the pond. Not that he's seeing hers in person, exactly, but it leaves an impression nonetheless. ]