InsaneJournal

Tweak says, "Art brought forth the candle."

Melinda May (larynx_crusher) wrote in madisonvalley,
@ 2017-07-01 19:44:00

Entry tags:

!closed, !log, ~2017 july, ~25 points, ~~daisy johnson (tremors084), ~~~melinda may (larynx_crusher)

Who: Melinda May and Daisy Johnson
What: Discussing the Framework
When: Saturday
Where: Daisy and Coulson's place
Warning: AoS s4 spoilers, probably
Status: Closed/Ongoing

Melinda had a lot of things to think about since she'd been home. First was the potential adoption of Lucas. She hadn't talked much about it with anyone other than Cameron for now. She had an idea of what she would decide, but she still needed to talk to Lucas about it first. That would be very soon.

Today, she decided to visit Daisy. That was because things from her trip home were still unsettling, and Daisy was the only one here who understood why. They were the only S.H.I.E.L.D. teammates in Madison Valley who'd gone through the Framework. Perhaps that was why she was waiting to make any big decisions. It was also why she'd waited until now to find Daisy. At least, since going home, she found it much easier to refer to her teammate as Daisy now.

She knocked on the door, waiting for someone to answer, knowing Daisy didn't live here alone.

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tremors084
2017-07-01 11:58 pm UTC (link)

Daisy was starting to settle into something of a routine. She had a few things she was working on; she had some friends - some new, who didn't know any version of her, and some old-new who were helping her adjust. Fury, the puppy version, was tired out from their morning run, laying at Daisy's feet while she typed away, brainstorming on ideas to go over with Thor later.

Fury half-heartedly barked at the knock, and Daisy chided about what a guard dog he was. She opened the door to see May, which was a surprise - but a welcome one, always.

"Hey, come in," she opened the door and ushered May inside. She was looking a lot more like herself, decidedly less tense. Some of the stress was still there - a lot of things still hung in the balance that she had to sort out, but she was getting there. "Coulson's at the office. Fury and I just got done with tai chi and a run."

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	larynx_crusher 2017-07-02 01:33 am UTC (link)
	"I'm not here to see Coulson." She was vaguely recalling that she'd been here to talk to Daisy right before she'd been sent home. It had been two years ago to Melinda. She remembered the dog as well. Fury. Perfectly named Melinda had told Daisy. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	tremors084 2017-07-02 02:04 am UTC (link)
	"Oh, okay." Something was off. "Everything okay?" (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	larynx_crusher 2017-07-02 11:57 pm UTC (link)
	"You probably know by now I got sent home recently," Melinda began. She was sure at least Coulson would have mentioned it. "I think I'm caught up to you." That was really the best way to describe it. "I was in the Framework." (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

tremors084
2017-07-03 12:56 am UTC (link)

She should know. Recently she and Coulson were running on opposite schedules. Either way, she knew now.

"Jesus, May. I'm sorry." She wanted to hug May, but that wasn't always welcome. She had all the sympathy ready and waiting. "The Framework was... bad. What happened in there wasn't your fault. You were trapped there longer than the rest of us, and you somehow believed in me enough to trust me. I would've died in there without you."

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larynx_crusher
2017-07-03 02:07 am UTC (link)

Melinda had been in there so long, she couldn't stand up when she got back to the real world. Not right away.

She wasn't sure this was a hugging situation, though. She wasn't sure she wanted any sympathy for this, but that was more because she didn't think she deserved it so much. She'd done horrific things in that Framework. Now that she was back here in Madison Valley away from the action of home, it was quieter and her thoughts were louder.

"I know on some level it wasn't my fault," she said simply.

But she still ordered the strike that lead to Director Mace's death. There was no denying it happened.

"I might not have realized it right away in there, but you were a teammate. I trust my teammates. I trust you."

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tremors084
2017-07-03 02:20 am UTC (link)

"I just wish we had gotten you out sooner. We never gave up looking."

If she was honest, Daisy wasn't sure when she would be over what happened in there. Especially with Fitz. She had yet to see him here, but she was nervous. She knew it was Framework Fitz who tortured her to the point of near death, but it was.... his face, his voice. It was hard to shake that.

Maybe that's why she understood so well why it was hard for people like Steve and Molly to look at her. She wasn't their Skye. She got it, too well. She had been in the Framework where she wasn't their Skye either. Where everyone was a different version of themselves. It messed with her head, but somehow, it prepared her for this place.

"You'll get through this," she said quietly, but certainly. "I know it's a lot to deal with. It's an extra set of memories that don't make sense, and it sucks. But I'm here for whatever you need."

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larynx_crusher
2017-07-04 12:07 am UTC (link)

Melinda wasn't even a little surprised to hear they never stopped looking for her. She wasn't one to express emotions, but it was nice knowing her teammates hadn't given up on her.

"We'll all get through it," she said, nodding slightly. "It might take awhile, but we'll get there. I'm telling you, too, so you're not alone in this."

She, too, was here for Daisy if she needed anything. Even to talk about it, something Melinda didn't easily offer.

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tremors084
2017-07-04 12:38 am UTC (link)

"Fitz almost killed me. And he shot Jemma," she said quietly, like she was worried somehow Jemma would hear her. Logically she knew it wasn't possible, but still. She never wanted her best friend to find out about what happened in the Framework. Not if they could help it. "I know he wasn't himself. It wasn't his fault. I've seen Jemma here and their baby. I need to see Fitz - I want to, you know? But some part of me is scared about how I'll react. They're so happy and safe here. I can't let them know what happened in there."

That was the sad irony of this place. Everyone was so busy trying to fill Daisy in on this life and memories she didn't have while she was working overtime to keep an alternate reality secret. Go figure.

"I told Coulson about the soap," she managed a laugh. "I think when you're ready, he'd listen about the Framework, whatever you need to tell him. I just hope he never goes through it."

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larynx_crusher
2017-07-04 02:28 am UTC (link)

"Oh, the soap." Melinda almost chuckled, or what passed for chuckling from her. "Ridiculous."

It was a moment of levity before she starting thinking about everything else Daisy was saying.

She looked down momentarily as a little wave of guilt came over her. She gave Daisy over to the evil Fitz in that world, let him hurt her. In the real world, she always did what she could to protect her team. It was the opposite in the Framework.

"Might be best not to tell them. They wouldn't be able to do anything about it, anyway," she said quietly. "They wouldn't remember being here back home, so they couldn't prepare for it."

She didn't want them to worry about it, especially Fitz. Melinda was one of those who was glad for how those two ended up here, married with a baby. The happiest life they could have.

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tremors084
2017-07-04 03:13 pm UTC (link)

She didn't blame May for it. No. May gave her the terrigen that saved her life. They were good as far as she was concerned.

"This place loves to mess with your head, huh?" She sighed. "We won't tell them, unless one of them goes and comes back. Then we'll have to sit the other half down. But otherwise? They can't know."

She had mentioned the robots and Framework to Jemma, but she left the gruesome details out. She wouldn't bring it up anymore.

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larynx_crusher
2017-07-05 12:57 am UTC (link)

"It messes with your head almost as much as the Framework." That wasn't all that true, though. The Framework was much worse at messing with people.

"If anyone else goes through it and returns here, people will be there for them," she said, thoughtfully. "Just like we always are."

The team was a family. Even Melinda thought of them that way.

"In the meantime, we rely on those we have here. Sometimes it's good to talk about things with people who aren't from our world. The people you become close to here, you can count on them, too."

She was talking from her own experience of having Cameron's support.

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