Hunter and Asia shared a glance as Leo slammed a suitcase onto a stack of other supplies, running a hand through his shortly cropped hair. Asia could see the skin on his neck starting to turn red and he grew more and more frustrated. She looked back at Hunter and shook her head, sighing. She knew how this must feel for Leo. But that didn't change the position they were in. And she knew on some level, that Leo knew that as well. She also knew he needed to get his frustration out, rather than keep it bottled up again. But the interior of the Quinnjet could only take so much anger.
As he slammed another metal case down, she couldn't take it anymore, and she stepped forward, placing a hand gently on his shoulder, sending a wave of cool spreading out from her fingertips. He stopped, looking down at her pale hand, then up at her wide eyes. "It sucks, I know," she said softly. "I don't like it either. But breaking our equipment also isn't the answer." She squeezed his shoulder gently, biting her lower lip, hoping that he would see her reason and not let the emotion overwhelm him.
He looked back and forth between her and Hunter. "You guys can't think this is a good idea, can you? W...we all want to find Skye but...we're...we're...." he trailed off, fumbling for words as the stress overcame him.
"Teaming up with the literal devil?" Hunter suggested an end to the sentence, to which Leo nodded vehemently. "Well, mate, it's shitty, there's no doubt there. But it is an unfortunate part of our job from time to time," Hunter shook his head, taking a seat on one of the chairs on the wall of the Quinnjet.
"Would you team up with Bobbi again?" Leo asked in response, raising his eyebrows in question, daring Hunter to say yes. All three parties in the room knew he wouldn't. He had been back to referring to her as a Hellbeast ever since their little band had gotten together.
Hunter sighed, running his hands over his knees, looking off to the side, frustrated. "Okay, point made. No, I would not ever do that again...." he trailed off, looking at Asia for help.
The brunette sighed, flopping into one of the seats as well, patting the one next to her for Leo to sit on. He did, and she leaned over, wresting her head on his shoulder. "We don't have a lot of options at the moment. We need to get into Hydra. They, unfortunately, are going to be our key to finding Skye. And, once we have an in, it'll be a lot easier to take them out." As she said the words, she believed them. If they were able to infiltrate Hydra, they could pull them apart from the inside.
"He might be a psychopath, but for the time being, he's our psychopath, as unfortunate as that is," Hunter said dryly, crossing his arms over his chest, picking at something on his nails. Leo didn't like either of their answers, but, for the time being, they seemed to suffice. For now, they had work to do. They had to prep for that evening, when they would be meeting with the devil himself.
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Asia stood at the foot of the ramp to the Quinnjet, the cool night breeze brushing her hair around her shoulders. Her hands were clasped behind her back as she stared out into the night, waiting for the figures to emerge from the blackness, as she knew they would. Coulson, Mike, leading Ward, Kara, and....Sunil Bakshi? Asia stepped forward, blocking the entrance.
"Sir," she greeted Coulson with a nod, not bothering to look at the three not-so-welcome members of the party. "I was only expecting two people to join us. Not sure we'll have space for everyone." She kept her tone neutral, her gaze flat.
"That's perfectly fine," Coulson replied with a nod. "Agent Peterson will be escorting Mr. Bakshi to a meeting he arranged with some Hydra members. The rest of us will remain in the Quinnjet and watch through Mike's camera." Mike grinned and tapped at the side of his head with a small shake of his head.
"Understood," Asia replied with a nod. "I'll ready the jet to get us airborne," her eyes flicked to Ward for only a moment, and he was staring right back at her. She gave him a look of utter pity, before turning on the heel of her black combat boots and stalking off back towards the plane. She did actually have to get them ready to go, if Mike wasn't going to be joining.
Hunter and Leo looked at her expectantly as she climbed up the ramp, fists balled up to avoid her from accidentally icing the entire area. "Brace for impact," she murmured as she passed by, sliding into the Captain's chair and flicking a couple switches to get the bird warmed up and ready to go. Moments later, Leo was sliding into the First Officer's seat beside her.
"Hey," she said, giving him a small smile, before resuming her preflight checklist of getting the Quinnjet up and running.
"Hey," he replied, watching her fingers move quickly over switches and buttons, flipping and toggling different ones, as she muttered something memorized beneath her breath. Always in her element, out here in the field, whereas he felt as if he were at the bottom of the ocean all over again. He could hear the others start to board the jet and he sunk lower in his seat.
Her finger paused over a switch and her head swiveled to look at him, concern laced in her eyes. "Everything alright?" She whispered, then thought for a moment. "Besides the obvious," she gave a sharp nod towards the back of the plane.
"Yea, just feels safer up here, you know?" He muttered back. "Not that I can't defend myself. I know damn well I can, but Asia, you're amazing, and I know you'd blow him to bits if he tried anything on me again," he smirked at her, his hand reaching over and resting on her thigh. "But I'd do the same thing, if he tried to go at you, you know?"
Asia smiled, her cheeks turning just ever so pink. "Yea, I know," she said, flicking the last switch and completing the checklist. They were ready to take off, once Coulson said the word.
And it didn't take long for him to do so. Once everyone in back had their belts on, Asia had the plane in the air and zooming through the night sky. She felt a bit more at comfort, up here at the yoke, with Leo by her side. She could fly them anywhere in the world right now, if she wanted. No one would be any the wiser. But she had orders, so she would follow them.
Once they were at cruising altitude, high up above the clouds, the night sky wrapped around the plane like a blanket and the stars were splayed out before them. Asia leaned back in her seat, looking out the window, momentarily content. "It's beautiful, isn't it?" She said, nodding towards the cosmos in front of it.
"Yea," Leo said, looking only at her in that moment, in their bubble of safety. "Beautiful doesn't do justice." He reached over and wrapped his large hand around her smaller one and gave it a quick squeeze. He could see the stars reflecting, little orbs of silver, in her eyes as she smiled out at the black blanket. "How long do you think we have before Coulson wants us back there with the rest?" He asked her quietly, thumb rubbing small circles around the back of her hand. He would want to brief everyone on the plan, surely. And Mike would be in place soon, ready for them to watch the meeting go down (hopefully, with success).
"Not long, I'm sure," Asia replied with a frown, a sad sigh escaping her lips, as she glanced over at Leo, her boyfriend, the man she loved. "Let's stay up here, just for a while longer, though," she suggested, turning back to look at the stars. Leo had no objections to that.
YOU ARE READING
Renegade Rising || Leo Fitz Book Two
Fanfiction**this is a sequel to Birds of a Feather** Following the acts of Birds of a Feather, we find ourselves amidst the story of SHIELD after their fall. Phil Coulson has become the new Director of SHIELD and is working on assembling those still loyal to...
