Summary:Daisy and Kara had made it through the other side of the war against Cadmus, rescuing Kara's father, and dealing with the Luthor family. Just when they think they can have some rest with the major threats taken care of, Daisy and Kara are accosted on the road by a new powerful figure. But is this figure an ally, an enemy, or is he just a chaos gremlin looking to toss both Kara and Daisy back into the start of the MCU and Supergirl Tv Show?
...Probably that last one.
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An alternative Part 2 to 'Retirement Ended Up Super' by RhinoMouse where Daisy and Kara time travel back to the start of Phase 1 of the MCU.
Notes:For Rhino (RhinoMouse).Inspired by Retirement Ended Up Super by Rhino (RhinoMouse)Obligatory disclaimer: I don't own Marvel, DC, or any characters that come from other works.
I also want to thank everyone for their support and encouragement, and RhinoMouse for the inspiration their world of "Retirement Ended Up Super" provided.
Chapter 1: Imps and InceptionNotes:(See the end of the chapter for notes.)
Chapter TextApril 01, 2016, DC Arrowverse
Daisy Johnson, Downtown National City
After a long week of recovering from her injuries from her fight with Henshaw and getting back into hero work, at the end of the day both Daisy and her girlfriend Kara had civilian lives that needed their focus as well. Ever since coming to this reality Daisy has felt as though she has finally been able to breathe in contrast to her time with Shield, and she is finding her time with Kara becoming more and more addicting. While this universe certainly has its quirks *cough cough* abandoning Supergirl over the Red-K incident *cough cough* it also has not been one world ending threat after the last. Even the one world ending threat she has been a part of, Myriad, was over and done quickly, and all without her being expected to make the sacrifice play.
On this day instead of dealing with the fallout of the President signing the Alien Amnesty Act, or even flirting with Kara in front of the media while both in their 'Super' personas, they are instead packing all of their… questionable… personal belongings into Daisy's car in the early morning gray light to avoid wandering eyes.
Along with their recently acquired cat, Bucky, who seems less than pleased at being moved so early.
Their building has suffered the worst nightmare of any metropolitan apartment complex… bedbugs! The landlord has ordered the place fumigated, which means the possibility of civilian strangers walking through both of their apartments is quite high.
"When did my life get like this? Even with Alex I never had to load C4 into her car at five in the morning!" Kara grumbled with a yawn as she helped to load up the last of the weapons into the new hidden compartment in the trunk of Robbie/ her car.
"With the benefits of having me as a girlfriend, come the responsibilities too. Such as loading up an illegal mortar before dawn. Besides, I am up here making sure your incriminating red and blue outfit is hidden, so it's not just my contraband we are having to do this to." Daisy quipped back with a smirk on her lips from the backseat, where she was packing away the bags with both of their super suits, and Daisy's alien enhanced laptop.
"I was wondering how things changed so quickly, not complaining by any means, I'll have you know." Kara responded while snuggling into her side once they both had finished, letting her eyes close, seeming to nearly nod off even while standing.
"I know the early morning is hard for my alien plant to be awake for, but come on, we have to drive everything over to the safehouse I have set up on the other side of town before we have a chance to get caught with it. Once it's loaded inside, we can take a nap before your shift at L-Corp starts."
Kara stood up and got into the passenger seat without protest, although there was something that sounded like a comment along the lines of 'part-alien cats shouldn't like the morning either', but Daisy decided not to respond aside from a quiet chuckle. Soon enough, they were off and driving across town, with Daisy making sure to pay extra attention to her driving as it is never a good idea to break the law while having a car full of incriminating evidence and illegal weapons.
While Kara lightly snoring off to the side would normally have drawn her attention, Daisy just couldn't help her nerves that seemed to be rising as she continued to drive through the suspiciously empty streets, even for this time of day. Just as she was about to wake Kara up in case something truly was wrong, her powers screamed at her as the space down the street in front of her twisted, popped, and exploded out in a way that was clearly magical in nature.
As she slammed on the brakes, with Kara suddenly waking up to full alertness beside her, a figure appeared in a flash of purple just a few yards ahead of where the car was able to screech to a stop at. Not wasting a second, they both exited the car and got into a battle ready stance, with Daisy making sure to put herself just a bit in front of Kara.
Daisy was incredibly taught with stress as using her power to get information on the situation revealed two very startling details. One, there was not another person within a mile radius of where they were. Not a single building, or car, or anything had any occupants in them. And two, the figure floating in front of them didn't register at all to her powers. Even worse than simply being immune to vibrations like vibranium, where she would at least feel the absence of air where they should exist, she instead still felt the air occupying the space that it should be… she was completely blind to this new threat and the possibility of them being immune to her powers was real.
Having now expected a deadly fight is why Daisy was so caught off guard when the figure suddenly shouted "There you are! I finally found your stupid vibrating butt so I can help those multi-verse damn rock gods with their demands so they will finally shut up and let me have my fun!" ending the whole spiel with a dramatic near faint. The figure was floating in the air, with blue skin, white hair, and a god awful mix of vibrant orange and purple robes. No taller than just two and a half feet, with pointed elven ears.
"Umm… What can we do for you… sir? Is something wrong?" Kara asked in a weird mix of her Supergirl confidence and helpful attitude, and the awkwardness of civilian Kara Danvers who doesn't know what the hell is going on.
"Well I am so glad you asked, cheerleader!" without giving Kara time to decide whether or not to be offended at the blonde stereotype, the imp continued "I was enjoying my time, causing fun and weird situations across the multiverse, as is my right and duty as the God of Chaos, when a couple months ago I suddenly have incessant demands being whispered in my ears constantly from the all powerful rock gods that make up the fabric of reality for the universe that dark and angsty over there comes from! I tried ignoring them, but they were all ' with our destruction our timeline is unraveling, and we need the help of the one who left it to go back and stop our destruction, blah blah blah' day in and day out. Then I needed the past month tracking down who they were even talking about!"
Tired of being flat-footed and talked over Daisy tried to take back the conversation from there, "Some gods from my universe have been bugging you to get me to help them? While I'm honored that I rank so highly, I have found the gods to just be aliens that live for too long with a bit too much power. So I'm going to have to say 'fuck no' to going back to my universe, I quite like it here thank you!" While her powers may not be able to feel whatever this god of chaos, she can certainly feel Kara's face fight a smile while her heart seems to flutter a bit.
"And I'm not just going to let you take her either, so you can just tell those other gods that you've passed along their message but it's not going to happen Mr. -uhh… Whatever your name is!" Kara shouts from behind her.
"Oh how terribly rude of me! Coming in and making demands without even introducing myself, I'm making the worst first impression and I hate it!" He obviously does not give a shit, if you ask Daisy. "My name is Mr. Mxyzptlk!" Somehow the words spell out in big bold letters behind him, still without registering to her powers.
Bullshit bad guy powers are bullshit.
"While I'll take on a variety of roles, whatever is the most fun at the moment, this is just business that I am trying to get out of the way. So I am someone that travels the collection of multiverse timelines that I have access to, having as much fun as I can along the way. Somehow, when you, Quake, traveled here you managed to break through the barrier that keeps collections of timelines contained. Something that even I, in all my power and glory, can't do."
"So Daisy was able to travel a bit further than most travelers like Barry can, why is that such a big deal?" Thank you Kara for all but confirming that she is Quake, although pretending to have a secret identity with this being was probably useless.
"It normally wouldn't be!" Mr. Mxyzptlk confirmed with a shrug "But the rock gods from her universe have followed her trail here, to contact me to get the help they need. Supposedly she dodged the fight with some alien warlord Thanos over the Infinity Stones that those gods use to help anchor the fabric of their universe together, by going into another timeline. But in the original timeline she originates from, the purple thumb used those stones to destroy half of all intelligent life, and then used the stones to destroy themselves. While your Revengers or whatever were able to restore everyone back to life eventually, without the universe's native stones to help anchor the fabric of reality together it has been falling apart. Again, I wouldn't care, timelines collapse all the time, but with you being the only one outside of that collection of multiverses but still originating from them you're the only one who can be called upon to fix the situation!"
"Hold up your tiny butt for a second!" Daisy interrupted. "The way you're talking about these gods it sounds like they control actual aspects of reality, rather than just having powers associated with them, like Thor and lightning?" Are these gods more …'real' than what she's encountered before?
"Bingo you bisexual disaster! While our collection of multiverse timelines here don't have a physical manifestation for the anchors like yours did, the tradeoff is that it leaves those forces much more open to manipulation by beings such as myself… or even those less magnificent than moi. So you're needed to make sure that the time, space, soul, power, reality, and mind stones make it past the threat of Thanos. So ready to go yet?! Both myself and your stone gods are graceful enough we'll even let you take your pet blonde with you to give you both a second chance!"
While Daisy had heard the name for the object in Vision's forehead as being called the "Mind Stone" in a Shield report, she had no clue about any of the others, and had no intention of abandoning what she and Kara have here just to solve the future for another branch timeline. So she pulled her powers in, and felt the tension echo in her muscles in preparation for a fight, with Kara mimicking her as well.
"While we appreciate the generosity, I am still going to have to give it a hell no. Who knows how long that will take to solve the problems of yet another timeline, with Kara being missing from this one the whole time. And don't think I am ignoring the fact that everybody within at least a mile from here has seemingly disappeared. So return them to their place, and leave us the hell alone." Daisy's powers began to cause the light itself to distort around her hands, while Kara's eyes began to glow red.
"Uh huh, uh huh… I see your points, and say too bad! They aren't going to take no for an answer from me, so I have no choice but to force you to accept as well, but I know how to sweeten the pot so you don't fight your task as well! You're forgetting that these are the gods of your multiverse's fabric of reality, not just some powerful being, and they will be helping me to send you back. This isn't a branch timeline, but will truly and really reverse the timeline and all branches to the moment of your soul's arrival once your world truly started getting super. So any changes, any feats, will be the new true history of your life. Or more likely to appeal to you… anyone you save will truly have been saved and not just a new version of them. Although you will have to use the Infinity Stones to save those in the past like Sousa or your sister Kora."
Those last couple sentences threw Daisy off so badly and deeply, that her powers even misfired, gouging out the street to her side. Luckily avoiding both Robbie's car and Kara. "You mean… Wh-" Her mom. Trip. Lincoln. Coulson. And so many more… But the floating headache was moving on before she could process and collect herself.
"As for people missing little Kara over here, her timeline will also be rewound, if differently. As long as you use the obelisk and car to travel back to this universe in the same way, by the time that Thanos originally destroyed the stones, no one will notice her missing. I'm told the date is the end of June 2018, so keep that in mind! As long as you come back by the deadline, this timeline will truly be rewound to the day that she became the Girl of Steel with the plane. Letting you save anyone you have lost since then."
It broke Daisy's heart a little to hear the soft whimper come from behind her. "My… My aunt?" Turning around to give comfort to Kara was Daisy's highest lapse in judgment, or her best chance of not standing in her own way if you were to ask her later.
"Well it's decided! So have fun, and cause a little bit of chaos for others, for me will you?! I'll see you once you're back! Kisses!" Mr. Mxyzptlk's blown kiss causes a cloud of red, orange, purple, red, blue, and most of all green smoke, to quickly envelope both Kara and Daisy and the space around them. Fearing that this was all a lie to get their guard down, Daisy used her powers and super strength to grab hold of Kara as quickly as possible. Kara was frozen in place, her fighting instincts not nearly as developed as Daisy's, leading to those split second hesitations that matter in life and death fights.
"Daisy! What do we-" Kara's cry of concern is drowned out, as a wind so strong kicks up and somehow blows them both downwards, sinking into what should be solid concrete as if it was quicksand. Just as Daisy begins to call her powers to try and escape their new situation, the green smoke fills her lungs, and she falls into an immediate dreamless sleep.
Unseen by either of them, in the streets of National City, Mr. Mxyzptlk gives a sigh of relief, as he massages away a headache that has finally abated. All around him, the world has stopped moving forward as even birds are frozen in mid flight. As he relaxes, reclining in the air, spots begin to appear in the frozen world around him. Starting small, soon enough they appear to be small burn marks as if the world is an old film that is slowly burning away around him revealing a white void behind it.
"Ahhhh… Well, I better get out of here before this timeline is erased, just to be replaced once those little girls return back to it. Hopefully those stone gods are correct that they'll be able to overwrite the 'scared timeline' for their universe, otherwise those annoying agents of anti-chaos from the TVA may give them problems…. Oh well, not my problem anymore! Should I go see if I can convince Batman that Superman is actually a Viltrimite, sent to conquer Earth? It will take a lot of planning and false evidence but I bet I could do it, all I need to do is-" Mr. Mxyzptlk trails off into a spiel of chaotic mutters, as the burns become almost all encompassing around him, only to disappear in a bright pop of blue smoke. Leaving behind a dead timeline.
Consciousness returns quickly to Daisy all at once, as she sits up from her position in the seat. Wait, seat? She was just standing in the road, wasn't she? How long ago was that? As she looks around, it seems as if no time has passed as the light outside is just as gray in the morning before dawn as it was when confronting that stupid blue imp. Finding herself in the driver's seat of Robbie's car, she may even be able to convince herself it was all a dream, until she looks over to the passenger seat.
There, in the passenger's seat of Robbie's Charger, is a young girl. If it wasn't for the blonde hair, the same colorful sweaters but sized to her new form, obvious context clues for the situation, and Daisy's power telling her this figure was Kryptonian; she may not have believed the person next to her was Kara. But as she stares open-mouthed at a Kara Danvers that must be 13-16 years old, Kara wakes up and looks over Daisy with just as much shock as must be on her own face.
"WHY ARE YOU TINY?!" Kara nearly shrieks in a voice so soft and young, causing Daisy to look over herself and let out a deep suffering groan at what she finds. She must be about 12 goddamn years old, and honestly she may have preferred if the multiverse being had just killed her instead of inflicting whatever fresh hell this bullshit is. She's not even 5 feet tall for crying out loud!!
?? ??, ????, ?
Kara Danvers, Unknown Location
After stopping Daisy from groaning, and muttering about being turned 'chibi', whatever that means, they were able to actually start having a productive conversation and figuring out their situation. Keeping their minds on the task at hand, is the only thing stopping Kara from bursting into tears or a full panic attack. She didn't know where she was, she didn't know if they had been lied to or not, she didn't know if she would ever see her sister agai- No! Stay positive, and keep moving forward .
"So where are we Daisy? We're in your charger with all of our things here, so we aren't starting from scratch, but we are both tweens again!" The only thing stopping Kara from picking at her nails, is Daisy reaching out and entwining their hands together, and suddenly the mountain in front of them feels more like a mole-hill as her mate's comforting vibrations ripple through her.
"Well, looking around this looks vaguely familiar to me, but most telling is the skyline in the distance, which is certainly New York. What you would call Metropolis anyways. Let me get a feel for the area-" Daisy suddenly cuts herself off and looks at her own hand in confusion as the vibrations going through Kara kick up in intensity ever so little. Just as Kara is about to ask, Daisy starts back up again. "Why? Why do I still have my powers? Not only that, I can still feel that ever present thrum of power from the centipede serum in my blood. If I'm 12 again then both of those should be gone."
Kara shifts slightly awkwardly in response. "I didn't want to say it as it would distract us, but a few other things don't make sense. My powers are under control instead of wanting to burst out at any moment like they were when I first arrived. While some of that was mental, some of that was also physical conditioning and muscle memory. Most telling though, uh, not that I'm looking over your 12 year old body at all," Kara could just feel her face heating up, as there was no not-weird way to bring this up "but when I checked you over for injuries with x-ray vision all of your scars were still there, including from your fight with Henshaw."
Daisy blinks a couple times rapidly as the words process and then lifts up her shirt, to look at her bullet wound scars and jagged cuts along her arm from Henshaw breaking the bones to confirm that what Kara said is completely right. After poking and prodding them to ensure they are in fact there and not just an illusion, Daisy lets out another long whiney groan. Which Kara finds pretty adorable if she is being honest, but she also knows Daisy will give her a very withering glare if she shares just how adorable Kara finds her right now.
"When I was an adult at least I could give a believable backstory for my scars with military work, but how the hell am I going to sell the story of a black ops specialist vet that wears a My Little Pony Backpack? You know what? Nope, not going to deal with that yet. So we were made younger, not that our bodies have been rewound, I can work with that being the case. Back to the issue at hand, finding out where we are, and I can worry about explaining combat scars later." Quieter than any human could perceive, Kara barely hears the slight vibration waves go out from the car in all directions. Only for Daisy's head to snap up, and look down the road, squinting at the end of the street.
"Well, I found out where we are. At the end of the road there is Saint Agnes Orphanage, the most common home for a girl named Mary Sue Poots until she ran away at age 16. I'm still bitter the nuns gave me that stupid name though." The chances that they had been told the truth about their situation is rising with each moment, and that fills Kara's gut with equal parts dread and hope.
"So what do we do, Dais- I mean, Mary Sue Poots?" Kara's teasing voice resulting in Daisy's face scrunching and sticking her tongue out at Kara tells her this little bit of levity is needed by both of them.
"You're hilarious, really. Maybe go for comedy this time instead of a P.A. or a scientist this time." Daisy's deadpan face can't fully hide the good humor in her voice. "Okay, current plan; We will drive up and park in front of the orphanage. While you wait in the car, I'll go inside to see if there is another version of myself here. If there isn't then I'll arrange my room to make it look like I ran away… which I guess I am. If there is another version of me… well we can burn that bridge when we get to it."
With that Daisy starts up the car's engine, only to pause at the wheel. "Uh… Daisy, what is wrong?"
In the quietest mumble under her breath, only heard because of super hearing, Kara can hear her reply, "You're going to have to drive… I can't reach the goddamn pedals."
The giggles that quickly spill out from Kara's mouth soon develop into full-on belly-hurting laughs that Kara can't stop, not helped by Daisy's puffed up cheeks having a healthy dose of red to them. Although she soon joins in with her own self-deprecating chuckles.
Not even half an hour later Daisy is hopping into the passenger seat while throwing a packed bright pink backpack into the backseat. "So some good news, more good news, and then the worst news you'll hear all day! There isn't another Daisy here, but there was evidence that the bed was slept in just an hour ago. So I think I body-snatched my younger self? Evidence that when we return to your world you won't be missed at all. Other good news, I found a newspaper and now know when we are and what is happening. We can go to a diner, and I know just the place, to discuss our next steps."
As Daisy pulls on her seatbelt, Kara does the same from the driver's seat. "And the worst news ever?" The tone that was said in though doesn't actually leave Kara nervous about what she is going to say.
Daisy turns to look Kara in the face, with the most serious and dark look she can put on a 12 year old's face and says the most dreadful words next. "It just fully hit me that with our bodies being young again, we're going to have years of puberty to go through all over again."
Kara was wrong. She was so wrong. That is the worst news she could hear at this point.
Notes:Author's Endnote: Hello readers! This is my first step into fanfiction, so I appreciate constructive criticism as we go, but not too much criticism as I will cry. Thank you for joining me on this journey! I have already written 13 chapters, so I am planning on releasing chapters weekly for the most part (subject to change)
And thank you to RhinoMouse for the world of "Retirement Ended Up Super" that this fic diverges from after their Part 1 ends. Without their work I may not have actually gone through with writing anything.
For the most part reading RhinoMouse's fic is required for this fic so I would encourage you to go do so! Also, this is obviously the Mr. Mxyzptlk from My Adventures with Superman and not Supergirl, as he is a bit of a fuckboy instead of a chaos gremlin.
Chapter 2: Brunch and BrainstormsSummary:Kara and Daisy discuss their next steps to take in the MCU, before heading off. But a sudden blast from the past shows the younger bodies have more drawbacks than originally thought.
Notes:Second chapter a little bit earlier than I originally planned, but I got my schedule decided for this now. The third chapter will release either Wednesday or Thursday this week, and then I will be releasing weekly on Sunday nights.
Obligatory disclaimer: I don't own Marvel, DC, or any characters that come from other works.
I also want to thank everyone for their support and encouragement, and RhinoMouse for the inspiration their world of "Retirement Ended Up Super" provided.
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter TextFebruary 6th, 2008, MCU
Daisy Johnson, Bridgeview Diner
Dear Thor this was all real, she was back in her timeline ( trapped ), back in her young body ( weak), with the weight of the future on her shoulders ( as always ), with Kara with her ( dragged along into her crazy life ). But that selfish part of her knows that having Kara here is what is keeping her from just breaking down and is overjoyed to have her here.
So the only way forward was through, and she would get Kara back to her sister and those that will miss her, no matter what. Even if it will take over ten years to get there.
But first they are both sitting in this diner eating their way through plates on plates of food. Time and dimension travel make one famished, who knew? They were even drawing a few stares to their corner booth from the few other patrons that are also eating their breakfast at a little after 6:30 am on a Wednesday.
As they finally both finish their last plate of pancakes, Daisy takes out a couple of notebooks for both of them to take notes on as they can finally get to planning. A small but constant use of her powers will act to scramble any words that could be overheard past their booth. Although before we leave I am definitely getting a slice or two of the Captain America Pie. Why go to Coulson's secret favorite diner if I'm NOT going to honor it also being Steve Roger's favorite diner? She thinks with a slight chuckle to herself.
"So we're here, in my universe, for the next ten years or so, and we have to fight an evil alien overlord that I only heard of in passing that apparently doomed my original timeline. So, no big deal and something every hero encounters sooner or later." Daisy tries to project as much apology in her gaze as she can. Kara shouldn't have been dragged into her world of a 'ton of weird crap' and instead just had the normal superhero villain of the day.
With a slight kick to Daisy's shin below the table, Kara gives her a bit of a reprimanding glare. "I signed up for this when I put on the cape, so don't act like this is something you owe me an apology for. We can do a lot of good here, a whole universe of lives to save, and we both have people we can save now that we couldn't before! So what do we do now? You've always had a plan, usually step by step also. Are we here to get in contact with your Coulson so we can join up with Shield?"
Honest, not a bad guess. But she just needed the comfort of a familiar place. Shield is… "If we had arrived a couple years ago, or if I had arrived alone, then that would be the plan. But we arrived too late, and I won't let Shield treat you the way the DEO did or the way Shield treated me, I just won't."
At Kara's question gaze she continued her deep dive into the troubles of Shield at this time.
"Look at the newspaper. Tony Stark went missing just over two days ago accounting for the time zone difference. If we change nothing about his situation, then Shield will start moving out of the shadows in order to get Stark under their thumb. While the leaked Shield files never explicitly said it, as a trained agent reading between the lines it was obvious what they were doing. Shield knew that his business partner Obadiah Stane was behind the weapons sales and his abduction, but waited to intervene until they could look like the heroes to him. A couple years later Shield knew he was spiraling due to poisoning from his power core and that the answer was in his father's files that should belong to Tony anyways, but waited to help him until he was at his lowest so they could gain as much control over him as they could. Then after that they pitted Captain America and Iron Man against each other, so failures were blamed on them and not on Shield. Even after the fall of Shield he was used for his money, blamed for all failures, and betrayed by his fellow Avengers."
The look of horror on Kara's face told her that she was understanding the lengths Shield would go to, and all Daisy could do was release a sigh at the reality of the situation.
"Shield… Shield was founded on something good but they have spent far too much time with Hydra at their core. The differences between the two are not nearly as large as they should be. Especially the current head of Shield, Nick Fury, was mentored for the position by the current head of Hydra, Alexander Pierce. Why would he do that? Why not promote someone from Hydra to lead Shield?"
Kara gave it a thought, and based on everything Daisy has said both before and now, she seems to have a couple guesses. "You've talked about Fury's need for control over everything, and he must be very good at it too, I'm guessing better than everyone if he got the top job. So while he isn't Hydra himself, his methods serve them even better than someone not as skilled, but loyal."
The DEO can go punch sand for underutilizing Kara Danvers, she would polish these skills before she ever had to face those leeches again. "Congrats, you just correctly analyzed the head of the world's most powerful spy agency while only knowing him by vague second hand accounts." And Daisy could not keep the proud grin off her face. "The other main reason is that Fury acts as a canary in a coal mine. If he knew Hydra existed, his behavior would very noticeably change due to that loss in control, something Alexander Pierce would notice right away. That's basically what happened in the original timeline, except Fury didn't even actually learn about Hydra, just started finally noticing the signs just barely before their big evil world domination plan was launched."
After a moment of silence between them Daisy continued. "If we were a couple years earlier, I could take the time to gain Fury's trust and help him take down Hydra and transform Shield into what it should be. If you weren't here I would take the risk to blackmail him into working with me, but I won't put you at risk like that. I-"
"I am not a little flower you need to protect, and I can hold my own thank you very much." Kara quickly retorts with a furious pout.
"Yes you can, but can you kill the teams of Shield/ Hydra agents sent after you? They won't be arrested if defeated. More importantly, I don't know what happened to Krypton here, and Fury is allied with some aliens that might. If he learns about Kryptonite being your weakness there is zero chance he wouldn't pour money into making an artificial version of it. Which would just be Red K, or something even worse, all over again. The best idea is to keep you as a daylight hero, where the public will help buffer you from Shield, while I have my shadow war with them behind the scenes."
It was obvious by her facial expressions that Kara hated the logic of it. She hated having to leave Daisy to do the dirty work to keep her safe, but she also knew Daisy wasn't wrong. She's killed in battle, but she has yet to execute defeated opponents, and that is a big jump for someone to make. "Shadow war? What are you going to do with Shield?"
"It's not a full plan, and I'll need to figure out the exact timeline but I plan to take on both Hydra and Shield and win." She even feels that the confident badass look that Daisy has perfected is actually able to come through a fair bit despite the baby face. "Like in mythology a Hydra's head can't grow back if you cauterize it at the stump. So I am going to take down Hydra, one head at a time, completely so it can't grow back. All while leaving the Hydra within Shield alone, make it seem like whomever is destroying Hydra doesn't know it is in Shield. Whomever I don't get from the other heads, will retreat to the 'safety' of Shield, letting the bureaucracy of Shield help me find every hidden member left. Then when I take down both, and reveal Hydra and their crimes to the world, Shield goes down with it from the political and media shit storm I'll be kicking up. I just have to have my own version of what Shield should be to pick up all of the good agents left over. Then I leave my spy company to a new Director, hopefully Coulson, when it is time for me and you to go back to your home."
"Our home" Kara reflexively corrects, but meanwhile Kara's eyebrows had steadily climbed up as Daisy laid out her plan to deal with this world's version of the DEO and Cadmus. "That's… a whole lot to do. Why, though? This is very different from how you handled Cadmus? And why not try to take over and change Shield instead of taking it down and making your own?"
"First off, Cadmus was smaller than even a single head of Hydra here, and they have experience with reforming after being defeated. Cadmus did lots of horrible things due to government support and super geniuses like Luthor backing them… but let's be honest, the only time they gave me trouble was when they held an entire children's hospital hostage while I fought their biggest super weapon. They lasted as long as they did because Superman was unwilling to stand against the government and kill them for decades." Is it kindof mean to call the organization of your girlfriend's nightmares a small fry? Kindof, but that doesn't mean it isn't true.
Kara takes a moment to chew on her lip while processing everything Daisy has shared. Luckily both the ease that Cadmus was taken down, and the trust Daisy has gained with her win out against her nightmares and fears about the organization. "And the rest?"
"I'll make a better version of Shield because I WILL be getting you home in time, which means we have just over 10 years to set this timeline on the right track. Being a founder of an organization gives my word a lot more weight, than just a temporary head. Shield would just go back to the way it was before me eventually if I left them. But I am not going to let the next scared empowered teenager be forced to fight on the front lines till it kills them like I was. I always wanted Shield to be better, but now I can just make a better Shield."
Daisy didn't deserve the soft affection coming from Kara. This would get some good Shield agents killed, probably a lot of good agents, but it was the best way to save both civilians and people like them. Kara took the opportunity to cross the table and into the booth bench with her. "WE will make a better Shield. Maybe I can't do too much spy work or violent hero work, but how can I help?"
Daisy leaned into the warmth her Kryptonian provided, maybe she was a cat like Kara said. "I want you to keep doing what you were doing before we left. It will take me a while to set up the false identities, and break into where I need to, but I'm not going to ask you to be anyone but yourself. You'll be Kara Zorel Danvers, recent orphan of immigrant parents, who earned her doctorate in mechanical engineering at the early age of 18 and is using her inheritance money to set up her own company. Whenever you meet others for the next few years your shoes will need lifts, you'll have to wear the face veil to look older, but we can make it work. I will be Daisy Skye Johnson, childhood friend who lost her parents in the same car accident, and works for you as your Chief Operations Officer to help explain my need to travel cross country. Thor knows I will have to avoid meeting anyone who we need to buy the story for years, even with a disguise I'll be clocked as a toddler in an instant."
"Not that I don't appreciate the chance to do science, but my own company? I can do a lot, but running a company isn't one." Kara said with a bit of a shocked whine to her voice.
Researching Kara Danvers before they met led Daisy to understand that Kara probably knows a lot more than she thinks she does, just based on how much of the corporate world in National City AND across the country was waiting to steal Kara if she ever quit or was actually fired from Catco, and for roles far above a PA. "You'll be getting help soon, I have ideas on partnerships, but the main thing I need you to work on is getting my dendrotoxin ammo and weapons ready for production and then commercial sale. I'm going to need a ton of ammo, and Fitzsimmons won't be inventing them for over 4 years."
"Why commercial sales as well?"
"Because the dendrotoxin munitions will be our best way in with the second ally I'm hoping to make."
"Second ally?"
"Tony Stark. A partnership with Stark Industries will give us access to capital that would take a generation to get, and the best legal teams on the planet. The Tony Stark from my time was so changed by Shield's manipulations and his failures that I would never even consider it, and that goes for the Captain America of my time too honestly. But the Tony Stark who comes out of that cave, wanting to do better and make up for his life's sins? That man I can work with, and would beg to work with dendrotoxin, even if he will always be a bit of a rich diva." Daisy elaborates.
"I think I follow, but it seems you skipped over explaining who the first ally is."
"That's because I want to surprise you with who they are. I think you'll really enjoy meeting them, so why ruin the surprise? The biggest thing is we will have to drive across the country to get to them. After that it will probably take me a few hours of hacking to be sure we can get to them without setting off alarms, but if all goes well, and we figure out some stilts from a hardware store so I can share the long drive as well, then late tomorrow night we will have an ally to help us get sorted, a lab for you to begin work, and a home base for us to live for a few months."
Even without facing her, Daisy can just feel the slight eye roll coming from Kara over her dramatics. She likes to build suspense when she can, so sue her! "Oooh! I call dibs on making the road trip playlist, and we absolutely have to stop for snacks before heading off!"
"Yeah, yeah, I expected as much. Let me go get some Captain America Pie to go, and then once we're out of the city we can stop at a gas station for your snacks." Daisy reluctantly left the comfort of Kara's arms and made her way to the counter. She paid both their overall bill, as well as deciding to get a whole fresh pie pulled for them rather than just getting a slice. While waiting for the pie to get boxed up in box with matching Captain America designs, Daisy felt her vibrations register a familiar figure approaching the door to the diner.
It was a one in a thousand shot of running into him. It should not have happened, and yet with every footfall she grew more and more certain it is exactly who she expects and dreads it to be. Luckily she has enough time to school her features, and whisper under her breath for Kara to stay at the booth before the door opens.
The bell on the door dings open, as the waitress calls out a greeting to what must be one of her favorite regulars just as she finishes packing up her pie. She can feel him come to a stop right behind her, seemingly taken off guard that someone was in the booth he usually goes for this early in the morning. Of course they would choose the same booth, it is the perfect mix of view of the room and close to an alternative exit if needed. She learned those habits from him after all.
With the pie box in her hand, and the bill paid, she has no choice but to turn around and look at the face of the father figure she lost so long ago. It should be easy to see him again, with all of the other versions she has met since his death. But none of those were the real Coulson, and she knows that this is the real Coulson.
His eyes shift from the occupied booth, glancing over her quickly, before settling on the pie box that looks like America threw up on. "Nice choice there. Most kids your age don't go for the American classic, especially as the cartoons stopped airing a few years ago."
It takes all of her covert training to override her 12 year old body, not to gulp down the emotions that are very quickly swelling up in her. "Who could forget Steve Rogers or what his butt did for America? That's America's ass afterall." Okay maybe she wasn't completely centered. That was a bit much for a 12 year old to a stranger, maybe he'll think high schooler if she leans into it?
The shock on his face certainly tells her he is feeling at least a little bit off-guard, and keeping people off-guard is where she thrives. So, in for a penny, in for a pound. "What? I may be young but even I know what to take patriotic pride in!"
Doubling down seems to have worked, as his face goes from the slight shock, to an oh-so familiar look of exasperation. Yeah, that's the face she is most used to seeing from him. "I'm more of a trading card fan myself, so I can't say I've really paid attention there." He looks up to see Kara watching our interaction with a bit too much focus for just a friend. Getting at least intro spy training for Kara, seriously top of the list. "While I'm not such an old stickler that I'm going to call the truancy squad on you, but it is getting close to the time when schools around here start in the morning. Most of all I just want my regular booth back though, if you're done with it."
Daisy takes the opening to walk over to Kara and motion for her to begin collecting their things so they can head down the street to where they parked. Thank god they are not parked right in view of the windows here. "But you are getting old enough to not be with the times. Online schooling is just starting to catch on, meaning if I wanted to be a rebel teen we could plant ourselves in this booth for a few more hours and miss nothing." Kara's incredulous look at Daisy helps to sell the fact that they aren't going to do that, even if Daisy is trying to sell the idea that they aren't running away from him.
Which they totally are.
"Looks like your friend isn't as much of a rebel as you are, so I think the chances are in my favor." Despite the slightly teasing tone, his face is still that bland middle aged white guy smile. Coulson really got lucky with his looks making you think vacuum salesman and not secret agent.
"I just wanted you to know you won by coincidence, not by our defeat." Sticking out her tongue really helps to sell the immature teen trying to be more mature. "Come on sunflower, we have our chores to get to if we want to stay on time." Thankfully Kara seems just a little bit lost, that she just nods yes and stands up with all of their belongings instead of saying her name like Daisy feared. No need to burn an identity before it even was forged. "We'll be sure to steal your booth all morning next time, Cap's Number 1 fan." She waves goodbye as she directs Kara out the main entrance.
Luckily her powers tell her that Coulson is talking with the waitress, as they clear the table, rather than keeping an eye on them as they leave. So it seems she was able to play the part of a kid enough not to draw attention. Heaven knows she will be seeing him again, in one identity or another, so the less memorable this interaction is the less likely he will be to make the connection in the future.
This whole situation has also let Daisy know that they aren't as mature as they should be for their internal age. No matter how many memories are in their brain, they still have the brain chemistry and hormones of teenagers to fight against. That interaction with Coulson should not have affected her so much, but it did. So that is something to take into account when she meets more people from her past going forward.
With that heart pounding interaction over, and one set of stilts from the hardware store later, they are off and out of the city heading west, for a long ass drive across the country. Boy does she miss being able to just fly there, but they need the car with everything in it to go with them, and it's not like they have the BUS where they can just fly with the car across the country either.
But as Kara lays her head down across Daisy's lap to get an extra nap in before her turn to drive, while Bucky in turn curls up purring on Kara's lap, she finds herself not really caring that they will be like this for a long while.
Being here with Kara feels more like home than either of their worlds ever has.
Phil Coulson, Bridgeview Diner
"Am I really getting that old, or are highschoolers just getting that small, Donna?" Agent Phil Coulson asks the waitress.
"Lord knows I don't want to think about it too much, Philly. The aches and pains in the morning are enough to let me know my age enough as it is. So the usual dear?" Replies his favorite waitress. He hates the nickname Philly with every fiber of his being, but it helps him blend in so he will put up with it. But only because Donna treats him so well whenever he has time to come in.
As the waitress leaves his newly cleaned booth to put in his order, he takes the opportunity to check his watch, and hit the switch that changes the face to a mirror. Technically speaking this model is 25 years out of date for a Shield agent, but he loves the classics too much to give it up until he is very specifically ordered to. As he does so, he is able to catch the two teens just as they round the corner of the intersection behind him and lose sight of them completely.
If he didn't know better, he would say they picked that direction to get out of his line of sight as quickly as possible. And yet… something is telling him that is exactly what they were doing.
He won't make an official file out of the interaction, because he has no discernable reason to be this on edge. Yet, some part of his instincts told him to keep those two in his line of sight for as long as possible. That turning his back on them was at his own risk. Yet when he did exactly that, with his muscles taut with tension, ready to react if something happened… nothing did.
His instincts have never been this far off, and that is what is sticking with him more than anything if he is being honest. He was taught to trust his gut, yet he had no evidence to actually give voice to what he is feeling.
Some subtle questions later, leave him with little more information than he had before. They paid with cash, not unusual for high schoolers. They didn't give their names to the waitress, but teens rarely do. They have never been seen here before, but they could be just now at that age when they are being trusted out on their own or came in when Donna was not on shift on the weekends.
The only things that stuck out were that the seemingly younger of the two, the one he had talked to, ordered for the both of them without even looking at the menu, which spoke of a familiarity with the place she shouldn't have as the menu is not online. The last thing to note was just how much food they both put away, the blonde more than the brunette. Although, teenagers going through puberty are known for eating parents out of house and home.
In the end, he has nothing, so he shrugs it off as much as he can but a part of him worries that he'll be seeing them both again. Even if it is just to steal his booth.
Notes:Author's Endnote: There is chapter 2! Most chapters will be more than one pov (and one small extra), but this turned out the way it did because of the planning going on, and having to justify decisions going forward. As well as getting some of my feelings (and AU theories) towards Shield out there, as well as the feelings of a Daisy who decided to change realities rather than continue with Shield would feel. This story is also supposed to span years and years, so I had to give a few reasons why Daisy doesn't try to go full nuke on Hydra first thing. So she is going to play it slow and thoroughly take down Hydra, to make it stick.
Also is a doctorate at 18 a bit young and would be a prodigy in the real world, making it impossible to forge? Hell yes. But this is the MCU, so I am playing it to be rare, but a somewhat regular thing. I'm also going with Tony Stark getting a couple doctorates at MIT at age 17, so Kara isn't even close there.
From my point of view, Daisy's first ally is obvious, but let me know your guesses! Until next time.