Take Flight ↬ L. Fitz [1]

Chapter Six

"He said it was off by an ounce," Fitz said, seizing the opportunity and turning away from Skye and Aurora to look at Simmons.

"Of course he did," Simmons scoffed, then, just as Fitz had, the woman preceded to mock the combat agent. "I'm Agent Grant Ward, and I could rupture your spleen with my left pinky-- blindfolded."

"That is dead-on," Skye laughed, and Aurora sent a pointed look to Fitz. The look he responded with clearly said Shut Up, and she stifled a smile.

"Hey, hustle up and grab your gear," Ward said, striding back into the lab. "We're on a mission." Unlike Aurora, Fitz and Skye were unable to prevent amused smiles from forming on their lips. "Something funny?"

"Poor, silly Fitz," Simmons said, redirecting Ward's attention to her. "He mistakenly left a dummy round in the pistol. Should be proper now." The man took the pistol from her, quickly raising it to his eyes and aiming it at nothing. He glanced at Simmons then at Aurora. Again she found herself in tune with Ward as the two locked eyes. They both knew he could still feel the extra ounce in the gun.

"Great. Thanks," he said, surprising her.  Then he turned, walking back through the door he came through. 

Aurora watched the three non-combat agents laugh with each other, and she shook her head. Sliding off the table, she walked off with the intent of doing as Ward said: gearing up for the mission. Right before she made her way up the stairs, she heard Fitz call her name. She turned to face him, her eyebrows rising once again at the man. 

"Just, yeah know, for the sake of curiosity, Skye's curiosity obviously," he paused, rubbing the back of his neck, "are you, uh, 'speaking the same language with someone'?"

Something about how he asked it made an unfamiliar warmth fill Aurora's chest. "No, Fitz, you can tell Skye that I am not 'speaking the same language' with anyone.'"

"Good," Fitz said, then embarrassment flooded his face, and he immediately started backtracking. "Well, not good, good, I just mean--"

"Fitz," she said, her lips curled upward. "Gear up."

"Right. Will do," he said, then he shot her two thumbs up and darted back into the lab. Aurora shook her head.  

⊗⊗⊗

"Troop leader's name was Adam Cross," Coulson explained to the team made their way up to the campsite in the woods of Pennsylvania. "Apparently, he said he heard something in the woods, went to check it out. That's where the electrostatic anomaly occurred." 

"What I don't understand is, usually, they're caused by a massive electrical storm," Fitz said.

"But there wasn't a storm within a thousand miles of here last night," Simmons added.

"This anomaly's different," Coulson said. "It has a side effect we've never seen before." 

Aurora walked behind the two scientists as they made their way up a small hill, following a path of scorch marks embedded into the trees. When they reached the top, Aurora blinked. A man was floating horizontally in the air-- a dead man. Aurora watched as Fitz and Simmons pulled out their tech, analyzing the floating body.  

"So sad a man died this way," Simmons said, as the rest of the team joined them, "and yet, so amazing."

"Fitz-Simmons," Coulson said, "any idea what could cause an effect like this?" Then both scientists were off, talking a mile a minute and using words far above the rest of their understanding. Aurora shared a look with Ward. "Time. Let's try that again. Any idea what could cause an effect like this?"