InsaneJournal

Being back on this planet was familiar, but completely different. She'd flown down to where she had last seen Maria (and Fury) and found that neither one was there. Carol wasn't totally surprised by it. She had hoped, a little but realized that she was pretty much alone here. She only knew Fury now. It wasn't a bad thing of course, it was just something to get used to. It had been a while since she'd stayed on one planet for very long. She went from planet to planet, trying to help out where she could. Like the Guardians, except that she was just by herself. It was extremely lonely.

As soon as Fury text her the address, she flew there. It didn't take very long, though she tried to give him enough time to get his place together if necessary before she knocked on the door. Yes, she was still in her uniform and no, she still hadn't bought any real clothes to wear. She was definitely not blending in at all. Once she knocked on the door, she waited impatiently.

"Hey it's me, Carol.."

---

Fury wiped his hands on his apron as he took it off. In his own way, he was feeling ...well </i> feelings </i> about Carol being back. She knew him when he was younger, less cynical, and essentially a better person. The years had weighed heavy, along with the decisions and secrets and everything that came with being a part of SHIELD.

Even Goose was hard to keep after, knowing everything he knew.

So he'd cut people out, let Goose go, became his own one-man army. Sure, he'd let the shields down, so to speak, with Nat and Clint but this? This was Carol. She deserved the red carpet, which is why he had cooked an exquisite meal: beef wellington, pan-broiled potatoes, a fresh arugula salad and homemade bread. A bottle of wine was already corked and waiting, and when he opened the door, he couldn't help the smile that crossed his face.

"Carol. You look exactly the same."

---

There were a lot of new people here. Actually everyone was new, except for Fury. The thing they all had in common, was that they knew Fury. It didn't take a genius to figure out that they were all like her, more or less. Some more than others, but that didn't really matter. The thing was that it had been a long time for him, since they'd seen each other. More time than she had really wanted to spend apart, but that didn't mean she didn't feel regret. She felt a lot of it, that she'd stay away. From him, and Maria and everyone else.

The man in front of her was different, she could tell just by how he carried himself. She didn't think he'd be washing dishes with her, singing Mr. Postman and being adorable at her any time soon. Still that didn't prevent her from smiling at him as she came inside. It was good to see him, even if it had been that long.

"So do you," she teased slightly. "Except for the hair anyway. Thanks for inviting me over. I haven't had real food in years, I think."

---

Nick couldn't begin to imagine how complicated everything must feel for Carol. Thinking it'd been only a few years, and nope, 25 years or so instead. "Come in then," he said, moving away from the door and motioning her to the kitchen. "And didn't you know? I'm going to live forever, up there with Cher and cockroaches. I'm not allowed to age. The hair was the price I had to pay for immortality."

Already, he felt relaxed. Normally, he only joked with Bobbi, but that was because months of working together, working ONLY together, had loosened him up to the younger agent. This was nice. "You settling in yet? It's hard, getting used to the lay of the land when the land is just slightly different enough to make you feel unbalanced. When I first got here, it took me a while to find my place, get used to the people here. My agents who were not really my agents. People who weren't really my people." He cleared his throat. "Takes me long enough to open up, and now to do it all over again?" Nick shook his head.

"Not easy."

---

Deep down she knew that time moved differently the further you were from other planets. Logically, she got it. The fact that she was back here, and twenty five years had passed and he looked so different, that was a little harder to digest. She had missed so much stuff. If Monica had been here, she would have been the same age as Carol. That was a frightening though.She closed the door behind her and stepped in. "If anyone's going to live forever, it's definitely you. You look exactly the same, for the record." He did more or less. Maybe his wardrobe had changed a little bit. "I heard you moved up in the world, got put in charge." Carol smiled. "That makes me happy."

She couldn't help but laugh a little, shrugging out of her jacket which left her in the same outfit that he left her in. "I'm trying. Everyone is very.. I don't know the word for it. They all have big personalities. It's not the worst thing in the world, and so far everyone's been nice." More or less. She shrugged her shoulders. "Maria and Monica aren't here, so it's just me. I guess that's a blessing. I hear that people come and go and every time someone shows up, they're different. Didn't seem like I'd been here before though."

Carol nodded in agreement, "I guess I've got an upper hand. With not knowing anyone before. And y'know.. never staying in one place for too long."

---

Big personalities. Nick would have to agree with that. Even though he had personally recruited several of them, it was still a bit ...much. Like Tony. Tony was overwhelming. Thankfully, he'd toned down a bit over the years....that, or Nick had built up a tolerance finally. "Yeah well. Took over the world. Watched it burn. Starting again." He gave a shrug and a smile. "You know how it goes." He hesitated a bit before continuing. "And A Maria and Monica are probably here. I don't know if they'd remember ..you, or a past you. That's the only problem."

---

With some of them, she didn't know how he put up with all of them. Of course she supposed that everyone here on Earth was a little overwhelming. "Then maybe one day, you'll have to tell me about it." It seemed like it hadn't gone very well, since she'd left. Carol couldn't be everywhere at once. She knew that. Now she was here. It was a little hard to figure out what to do with herself, now that she was here. "I went and looked," she said with a shake of her head. "If they're here, they don't live where they lived back there. Hell, I'm just glad you remember me. If no one did.. I'm not sure what I would do."

---

Nick nodded silently for a moment before doing something he never did. Crossing over to her, he gave her a big hug. Nick could count on one hand the amount of hugs he'd freely given over the last year, but this? This was needed. Maybe for both of them. "You're home, Carol. And I'll do what I need to do to make sure you feel that way. It might take some time, but you'll get there. You're the strongest person I know."

---

There was some look of relief when he came over and hugged her. She put her arms around him and hugged him tightly. Not too tightly, she didn't want to break him or anything. But she was glad that the guy she had known wasn't totally hardened over and was still okay with hugging. It made her feel better. A little less like all of the chaos wasn't going to consume her. That was the most important thing. She was just so glad to have one familiar face. "Thanks, Fury. I.. I'm going to try to get used to all of this. It's going to take some time. And you know, if there's anything I can do. I'm ready to help kick the asses of those who need it the most."

---

Fury smiled and motioned her to the chair. Dinner was getting cold and they had a lot to catch up on. "I haven't been here from the start of ...this universe," he began, "but I have a good idea of what's been happening. Did you read the pamphlet?"

~*~*~*

Several hours (and beers) later, they had moved to the living room, and Nick gave a satisfying sigh. Dessert was a cherry pavlova with a delicate mint cream, and he was feeling very content. "So I guess, in a nut shell, that's your new parallel universe." He lifted up his bottle and smiled. "I hope it meets your needs, because it's the only one you got." He paused. "Unless the universe suddenly decides to reclaim you. As I said, we've had multiple versions of the same people come and go, and we've had the same ones stay forever. There's no fucking reason to this place."

---

Heading over to the chair, Carol sat down so that they could finally eat. "Yeah, I read it. I mean.. it's not bad, I guess. But I guess then I've been missing just about everything, so this whole new universe thing isn't too much more to handle." And honestly she just tried to go with the punches.

After dinner, and having moved to the living room, she settled back into her chair. "I'm pretty impressed by your cooking too, even with or without a new parallel universe." She shrugged a little. "It's not as bad as it could be. There's still pizza and coffee. If this new universe didn't have that.. or tacos, then we'd be in trouble." She nodded slightly, not sure what to think about coming and going. "I can imagine getting close to people here is a little difficult."

---

"Well, I've never been very good at getting close to people." That was the understatement of the year. Funny, how being with Carol suddenly reminded him of that. "But I am damn good at making tacos. We could do that. Next time. If you wanted." He could also understand how awkward everything was for her here. "Don't feel rushed to make yourself fit in."

---

"What? You? No way!" Carol couldn't help but tease him slightly. Though honestly it was a little weird to see him so closed off. He hadn't been that way when they met. "You know I never turn down tacos." She shrugged a little, "What else am I supposed to do but that? I was out in space a little while ago, kicking ass and taking names and now I'm here. I don't really have anything else to do. It's not like I have a job. I don't even know if I could get one. What do I say? Oh I'm officially dead, but I'm not really."

---

"What? You? No way!" Carol couldn't help but tease him slightly. Though honestly it was a little weird to see him so closed off. He hadn't been that way when they met. "You know I never turn down tacos." She shrugged a little, "What else am I supposed to do but that? I was out in space a little while ago, kicking ass and taking names and now I'm here. I don't really have anything else to do. It's not like I have a job. I don't even know if I could get one. What do I say? Oh I'm officially dead, but I'm not really."

---

"Yeah? Philomena?" Carol couldn't help but laugh. "Whipple. Nice. Yeah sure, set that up for me. I'll see how long it takes me to answer by that name." Though she was joking about that part, it wouldn't be bad to have a new i.d. She would probably need some new name though. "All right then, you're on. You can get me an i.d with the worst possible name you can think of and if I can convince anyone that's my real name.. I owe you a very large drink."

---

Nick smiled widely, not a guarded one as before, but a genuine one, his eye crinkling in the corner. "I think I can take on that bet. And hey, come on down to SHIELD one of these days, see what I've got. You're welcome there."

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