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Daisy looked down at the index card May had passed her before she all but told Daisy to break out of containment. It had directions to a flower market in Philadelphia the next day at 9am. It told her to shop for daisies and to trust the person who said they were looking to shake things up.
Getting out was easy. They still hadn’t changed the protocols since the last time she’d broken out. Getting to Philadelphia was only a little harder; there was an overnight bus headed that way.
"Those fresh?" came an accented voice from behind as Daisy browsed the flower shop, looking at her namesake blooms.
"Uh," Daisy said, glancing up and looking down. The face didn't look familiar. "Yeah. I guess."
The person started to inspect the daisies. "My boss is hosting a dinner party for some new friends of his. He wanted some daisies for the table."
"Daisies are good for dinner parties," Daisy said, reciting her line on the index card. She remembered the daisies on her parents dinner table, the one dinner she'd been able to have with them. Then she shoved the thought aside. She needed to focus.
"Maybe daisies are the wrong move," the woman said. "We're looking to shake things up."
Daisy looked up in shock. "May…” she breathed, then shook herself. “Maybe you’re right. Can… can I help you look?”
“Sure. Can I ask why the daisies interest you?” the woman queried.
“It’s my name," Daisy admitted quietly.
"I thought it might be. I am Nakia. Come on, Daisy," Nakia whispered. "We will get you to safety. You just have to trust us. Keep your hood up and your eyes open and we will go."
“I trust the person who sent me here,” Daisy responded sotto voce. “She said you could be trusted, too.”
“I’m glad.” Nakia looked around at the other flowers, then said in a louder voice, “If we’re going to find different flowers, let’s try another shop.”
“Sure,” Daisy agreed. The two women left the shop side by side and headed up the block. They were both on the lookout for anyone tailing them, and Daisy noticed that Nakia was at least as good as she was at spotting people. Maybe better.
When they were sure they were clear, they ducked down an alley, crossed a public park, and got into an SUV. Daisy noted with amusement that it was not the standard SHIELD black SUV. It was a dark burgundy that Daisy actually rather liked. Not a hot-rod red that would attract attention from the cops, but it looked more like a family car than anything. Daisy had always thought the all-black fleet of SHIELD SUVs was more than a little conspicuous.
Nakia sat beside Daisy in the back seat and they kept quiet while the driver pulled out into traffic. After a few moments, the woman spoke. “Everything go well?”
Daisy blinked; though the driver had dark hair and gold-toned skin, she sounded like the clips Daisy had heard of Natasha Romanov.
“So far,” Nakia responded. “Let’s just get to the jet and go home, yeah?”
“Where are we going?” Daisy finally asked.
“Someplace safe,” Nakia promised. “We’ll explain more once we’re in the air.”
A short time later, they parked at a private airstrip. They left the SUV in a space marked “reserved” and boarded a sleek jet, similar in style and yet also somewhat different than the quinjets Daisy was used to.
Once they were in the air and the autopilot was engaged, Natasha turned in her seat to face Daisy. She pulled the wig off, confirming that despite the makeup she still wore one of Daisy’s rescuers was, in fact, The Black Widow.
“I’m sure you have a lot of questions,” Natasha began, and Daisy nodded. “Let me explain a bit and then we’ll answer whatever’s left.”
“Sure,” Daisy said with a sigh.
“In the wake of the Sokovia Accords and the falling out between the Avengers, several of us were offered a safe haven by the ruler of a country who realized the Accords were not what they’d initially seemed,” Natasha explained. “When SHIELD received orders to start ID tagging all Inhumans they encountered, and to specifically continue to seek them out, their leadership knew it was wrong but that they would rather work for change from the inside than the outside.”
Nakia broke in to add, “And at least if they knew who was supposed to be where, the governments could not simply make those people disappear.”
Daisy nodded, accepting that rationale even if she didn’t like it. “Okay. So where do you come in?”
“May and I are old friends,” Natasha said. “Coulson used to be my handler, and he and May go way back. So she and I got in touch, and we decided that it would be better for the Inhumans to simply… slip the net before they were officially found.”
“So you’ve created an Underground Railroad for Inhumans?” Daisy asked incredulously.
“More or less,” Nakia agreed. “You are already being targeted by the US military, and you have a record within SHIELD. But Agent May has assured us that you are not a true threat and would likely also be able to help us find others like you.”
“But… but I wasn’t the only Inhuman with SHIELD,” Daisy protested.
“No, but you’re the highest profile,” Natasha responded calmly. “There are already plans in motion to relocate your old teammates, if they want to disappear as well.”
“Oh… oh, good,” Daisy breathed in relief. “I don’t... “ Her voice cracked but she managed to continue, “I don’t want anyone else at risk while I’m kept safe. I do… I do want to help.”
“And you will,” Nakia assured her.
“May says you’re a first class hacker. We’re betting that you can help us locate Inhumans before Ross can,” Natasha added.
“I’ll certainly give it my best,” Daisy promised.
“You look tired,” Nakia observed after a few moments of quiet.
“I… I suppose. I spent last night on a bus. And… I haven’t been sleeping well anyway.”
“Why not?”
“Nightmares. Insomnia. Bit of everything, I guess,” Daisy admitted quietly. These women were trying to help her, and May had said she could trust them. So she was trying.
Nakia frowned. “Would you be willing to visit a doctor when we land? I assure you, our medical science is better than anything in the US.”
Daisy shrugged. “I’ve never been fond of doctors or hospitals. But I suppose it’s probably a good idea, after everything…”
“We’ll arrange it,” Natasha said briskly. “In the meantime, why don’t you try to rest. The flight’s a good few hours.”
“Okay.” Daisy tilted her seat back and closed her eyes. She didn’t expect to really sleep, but she figured it couldn’t hurt to try. If nothing else, it removed her from the chance of more questions about her health.
She’d have to deal with that soon enough.
Wakanda was nothing at all like Daisy expected.
Instead of being a third world country with a largely tribal population, it was, well… tribal population, yes. Third world, not in the slightest. The natural world still existed in large swaths of countryside, but their capital city of Birnin Zana was probably the most high-tech industrial zone she’d ever seen.
And they’d barely even let her investigate their tech yet.
Even so, the medical center had equipment Daisy couldn’t begin to identify. And after three years of working with Fitz and Simmons, that was saying something. She still hadn’t slept since leaving SHIELD, and god only knows how long before that, but she didn’t think she was loopy enough to be misunderstanding basic medical science.
She sat alone in a treatment room, waiting for the doctors to come back with the results of myriad tests she didn’t recognize and wasn’t sure she understood. Blood tests, at least, made sense to her. She had no idea what they were looking for, or if they’d be able to make any sense of her Inhuman DNA, but at least she knew what to expect from those.
As tired as she was, Daisy quickly lost track of the time. It felt like forever since she’d seen anyone come in. But the person sitting in the chair next to her when she blinked was absolutely not who she expected to see.
“Hello Daisy,” Ward said in that too-smooth voice of his. The same one Hive used, while the parasites in her brain made his every request seem eminently reasonable.
“No,” she said softly. “You can’t be here. You’re dead. ”
“I’m dead. You killed me. You and Coulson,” Ward agreed. “But I promised I’d come back for you. That I’ll always be back. You’re mine, Daisy.”
“No!” she denied loudly. Tears began to blur her vision.
“Of course you are,” he disagreed.
Daisy jumped to her feet, backing away when he stood up and slowly approached her. “No,” she argued again. “I don’t belong to you. I won’t !”
“But you already do. I promised that I’d wake something up inside of you. That I’d make you mine until that’s all you ever wanted,” Ward rumbled, his voice low and threatening.
Her back hit the wall abruptly and Daisy flung out her hands. Her power shoved the bed halfway across the room, smashed chairs into the walls, and still Ward stood in place. Like it hadn’t ever even touched him.
“No!” she screamed. “Leave me alone!”
“You’re mine, Daisy. You’ve always been mine. From the moment we met on the Bus. You and I were destined to end up together.”
“I’m not yours !” Daisy screamed as loud as she could. Why wasn’t anyone coming to help her? “I have a soulmate!” Ward grabbed her tightly and Daisy fought as hard as she could. He’d somehow managed to grip her palms together and they stuck that way while simultaneously holding her biceps. She sobbed wordlessly, until she felt a sharp pinch to her shoulder.
“Daisy. Daisy!” another voice broke into her awareness. She blinked her eyes open to find Ward gone. She had her back to the wall, but a doctor was in the process of putting away a syringe and Nakia knelt in front of her, holding her arms tightly.
“Na...Nakia?” Daisy whispered. “Where did Ward go?”
“There was no one here,” the doctor said in a low voice. “But your tests show signs of severe sleep deprivation.”
“No one here?” Daisy repeated numbly.
“What did you see?” Nakia asked, her tone gentle and soothing.
“Ward. He was once a teammate, and then an enemy. He’s… he’s supposed to be dead,” Daisy explained in a rush, everything spilling out as the drug did its job of relaxing and calming her. “But he wants me. He’s always wanted me, and he didn’t care that I have a soulmark. He promised that he’d always come back for me, and I just want him to leave me alone!” Daisy’s knees buckled and she collapsed into Nakia’s arms, the tears starting up again.
“Ward. You mean Grant Ward?” Natasha asked, approaching slowly. Daisy nodded, unable to speak through her sobbing. “Former SHIELD turned HYDRA, then. I saw the reports. Also a first class manipulator.”
“But why would she be seeing him here?” Nakia demanded.
“Aside from sleep deprivation, she has serious imbalances in her brain chemistry and hormones,” the doctor explained. “Her results are well outside the range of human normal, and based on her DNA typing I would assume being Inhuman is the reason. But the way her numbers are so extremely inconsistent, well…” he hesitated before continuing. “My best estimate of the situation is that it looks a lot like acute withdrawal syndrome, except that there are no signs of drugs in her system at all. She’s most likely hallucinating, and her brain is conjuring a situation she fears on a deep level.”
“Is she dangerous?” Natasha asked.
The doctor snorted, losing his composure for a moment. “She’s dangerous when fully coherent, given her power set. Is it any worse now?” He shrugged. “Only accidentally, I would think. She’s not fighting against us when she’s lucid.”
“Don’ wanna hurt anybody,” Daisy slurred through her tears. Her eyes were losing focus, but the doctor was quickly reassessing her responses to the drug he’d given her. She’d need another dose in order to sleep.
“You won’t. I won’t let you,” Nakia soothed her. Then her focus shifted. “We must get her to Shuri,” she said firmly. “We need her balanced and stable again, especially if she is to help us reach out to other Inhumans. And at least Shuri is used to dealing with test results that fall outside the normal range.”
The doctor nodded agreement and Natasha sighed before saying, “I’ll take the steps necessary to put our plans on hold until she’s better. I’ll trust your judgement on how to handle her. May was concerned anyway.”
“Can we put her to sleep?” Nakia asked the doctor.
“I think so,” the doctor answered. “I’ll have to go get something different, though. Our usual sedatives will not work well with what I’ve already given her.”
“I’m sorry,” Daisy whispered in the few moments she and Nakia were alone. “Hope I… didn’ hurt anyone.”
“Hush, now. No one was hurt,” Nakia promised. “We will get you better.”
Daisy nodded and closed her eyes. She didn’t usually trust people so quickly, but there was something about Nakia that was just so genuine. Plus, May had told her to trust the woman who rescued her. That helped too.
When the doctor returned, Daisy didn’t protest the new injection. A cool lassitude spread over her body and she drifted peacefully until at last, she finally slept.
The last thing Shuri expected to complicate her afternoon was a message from Nakia. She was, of course, always pleased and proud to help others with her innovations to Wakandan technology. Nor would she turn down a request for assistance from her brother’s beloved unless extreme circumstances were involved. It was just inconvenient timing for an interruption, in the middle of her project. At least she’d already stopped for lunch.
Even so, she was startled when Nakia arrived with a pair of nurses from the medical center, towing a gurney occupied by a fair-skinned young woman. “Another colonizer for me to fix up?” she asked, half-sarcastically.
Nakia shook her head, expression tolerant. “Not quite,” she replied. “She does need your help, yes, but she is Inhuman. Your experience with those of modified DNA exceeds that of even our best doctors.”
Unable to argue with that assessment, Shuri nodded. “Best bring her in, then.” She examined the woman visually as the nurses transferred her to the scanning bed. Rather than being truly pale, the woman had a golden cast to her skin and a tilt to her eyes that suggested part Asian ancestry; possibly Chinese, if Shuri was identifying the traits correctly. “What has happened to her?”
Nakia quickly summarized both the reports from SHIELD regarding what Daisy had been through and the test results from their own medical center. Shuri frowned and quickly started the scan. While it ran, she took the data chip with the test results from Nakia and reviewed them.
“This will not be a simple thing to correct,” Shuri finally stated.
“I expected as much,” Nakia agreed. “But she is important, both to the Inhumans and our efforts to shelter them here. Please, sister, do your best for her.”
“I will,” Shuri promised, giving Nakia a tight smile. “Please let my brother know that I should not be disturbed for a while.”
“Of course,” Nakia said. The two women exchanged a quick hug, and then Shuri was left alone with her newest patient.
As she worked to heal Daisy, Shuri’s attention kept straying to the young woman’s face. She found herself wondering if Daisy’s eyes matched her hair, and caught herself contemplating the lines of pain around those closed eyes. She shook herself abruptly, telling herself quietly to focus. She had only been working an hour or so past her normal schedule; she shouldn’t yet be tired enough to be out of sorts.
Never before had she been this distracted by a patient. Daisy’s Inhuman DNA and rather peculiar chemical problems was just another puzzle to solve. And while she was at it, she’d do something about the myriad microfractures she was detecting all over Daisy’s body. How strange that there didn’t appear to be any other signs of trauma to go with the fractures; usually that kind of concussion would have left bruises and other damage.
Curious, she went back to the doctors’ reports and perused what little they knew about Daisy’s power. It didn’t take long for her to realize that the fractures were most likely due to Daisy’s own power; the ability to manipulate vibrations in literally any matter was astonishingly powerful and potentially extremely useful. Shuri began to wonder if Daisy’s injuries were self-inflicted or a result of improper harnessing of her own capabilities.
“You’re going to be either as troublesome as my brother, or as broken as Barnes,” she murmured to the results on her screen. “I’m not sure which one I prefer.”
An unfamiliar voice nearby roused Daisy to awareness. Everything around her felt peculiar or downright bizarre, and she didn’t recognize any of it. By the time the words spoken registered enough for her to respond, Daisy had also managed to find her voice. “Think I prefer trouble over broken,” she said in a low, shaky voice. “Though I don’t think I’d want you mad at me.”
Shuri froze as the words of her soulmark echoed in her ears. It hadn’t even occurred to her to check Daisy’s surface scans for a soulmark, and now she didn’t have the time. She had to respond, to say something. So she crossed over to the scanning bed and tried to summon a smile for the woman who was most likely her soulmate. “Perhaps we can be trouble together?” she suggested, doing her best to keep her voice even.
Even in her current state of semi-lucidity, Daisy recognized those words as they slowly percolated through her brain. A smile quirked the corners of her mouth. “I’d like that,” she replied.
“Good,” Shuri said, relaxing as the truth settled in. Her brother was going to be shocked, let alone Nakia and Okoye. Still, Shuri couldn’t find it within herself to deny her soul’s mate. They would just have to accept it. “Try to rest for now. I’m doing my best to heal you.”
“Can’t sleep. Head’s messed up,” Daisy murmured, though she closed her eyes obediently.
“Don’t worry,” Shuri soothed, brushing a stray wisp of hair away from Daisy’s eyes. “I haven’t yet encountered a problem I cannot solve.”
Daisy snorted, but didn’t argue. She was tired and her body ached, but her soulmate’s presence was a soothing balm to both. Maybe she could rest. For a little while.
Shuri returned to her equipment, more determined than ever to solve the medical problems Daisy’s case presented. After all, it had just become personal. She couldn’t fail her soulmate at their first meeting. She would not fail.
It was very late - or very early, depending on perspective - when the healing devices finished their work and began to cycle off, one by one. Shuri checked the readouts one last time, then sank into a chair she’d placed by her soulmate’s side. While she didn’t doubt there would be mental or emotional complications, at least Daisy’s physical traumas were healed.
“Shuri?”
She blinked and looked up as the sound of her name interrupted her musing. “I am here, brother,” she replied quietly, hoping not to disturb Daisy.
“We missed you at dinner, sister,” T’Challa informed her gently as he crossed the lab to her side. “And when I woke this morning, I was informed you’d never left the lab last night.”
“Nakia brought this woman for my help,” Shuri said with a roll of her eyes. “Surely she informed you of this.”
“She did,” T’Challa allowed. “But we did not expect you to be here all night.”
“She is my soulmate.” Shuri sighed at the admission; she didn’t expect her brother to have problems with it, exactly, as soulmates were respected and near-revered in Wakandan culture. Evidence of the Gods’ hand in their lives. But this woman wasn’t what either of them had expected, most likely.
T’Challa’s eyes went wide, but then he nodded slowly. “I see. She has awoken, then?”
Shuri nodded. “Once, briefly. I… I am not entirely sure she will remember, when she wakes again. Oh, brother, she was so badly hurt and I do not even know how it happened. I am afraid she will need more healing than just of the body.”
“She shall have what help we can give, of course,” T’Challa reassured her immediately. “She is the mate of your soul; there is little she will be denied, has she the need. As for what has happened to her, well, I would imagine there will be much for you to discuss. There always is, when meeting someone new.”
“You are right. I just… even now, I just want her to be happy,” Shuri whispered. “I can feel the bond’s pull.”
“Nakia stated that Daisy has not slept in many days. She must rest, I believe, and you must also. You are no good to your soulmate if she awakens and you are the one in need of aid.”
“I’ll not leave her here alone,” she objected.
T’Challa gave his sister a look , then gently scooped her soulmate into his arms. “Come, sister. To rest.”
Bemused, Shuri followed him out of the labs and towards the family wing where they lived. She supposed he was right, but that didn’t mean she had to tell him so.
Hours later, when Shuri woke up, she swiftly checked the family wing for Daisy, only to find her mother sitting with her soulmate. “T’Challa informed me you met your mate,” Queen Ramonda said. “Do not worry overso, she still sleeps.”
Daisy stirred slightly, sighed, and then settled. Shuri absentmindedly brushed her fingertips against her soulmate’s cheek, then settled in beside her mother. “She may yet sleep for a while,” Shuri agreed after a moment’s thought. “I am told she had not slept in some days, and given the way her brain chemistry was disturbed I expect it was part of her problem. Hopefully with that corrected, she will catch up on her rest. But I cannot help worrying for her.”
“Why is that, my child?” Ramonda asked lightly.
“She feels… fragile, to me,” Shuri murmured.
“She may for some time yet,” her mother advised. “From what the doctors say, she’s very ill. Even if you did cure her, they suspect she has not eaten regularly for some weeks yet. Getting her to eat again may prove to be a problem in and of itself. Give it time, my love.”
“Yes, mama,” Shuri answered. Her mother was likely right, but surely Fate had brought them together now for a reason. Her soulmate needed her.
They let Daisy sleep for another hour; Shuri took up the vigil at her soulmate’s side while Ramonda worked quietly a little further away. Shuri wouldn’t be moved if she could help it, so lunch was requested to be brought to them.
“We should wake her,” Shuri mused quietly. “See if she can perhaps eat?” She looked to her mother for confirmation; Ramonda nodded. She picked up Daisy’s hand, stroking the fingers softly, while she called to her mate. “Daisy. My Daisy, please wake.”
A gentle voice penetrated the haze of sleep and Daisy sighed softly as she blinked her eyes open. What she saw, however, was not what she expected. Instead of a hospital room, she was in a luxuriously furnished and lavishly decorated suite. Reds and oranges and golds surrounded her, making Daisy feel warm and cozy. A young woman, perhaps around her own age, sat holding her hand. A sense of peace descended on her spirit for the first time she could remember and, for some reason she didn’t quite understand, Daisy went with it. “Hello,” she murmured quietly.
“Hello, Daisy,” Shuri responded with a smile. “I am sorry to wake you, as I’m sure you are still tired, but you should also eat. Will you join my mother and I?”
Daisy tilted her head on the pillow, looking up at Shuri with deep, dark eyes. “Am I still dreaming?” she asked in a fuzzy tone. “I don’t… don’t think I know you.”
“Do you recall last night?” Shuri asked patiently; given the circumstances, it wouldn’t surprise her if Daisy didn’t remember.
Frowning, Daisy considered for a long moment. “Hospital. Threats from Ward. And then a dream… my soulmate…” Her voice faded away uncertainly.
“No one shall threaten you and get away with it,” Shuri spoke firmly, with great conviction. “But it was not a dream, meeting your soulmate. Unless this is not your writing?” Shuri tugged the hem of her skirt away from her left hipbone, showing her soul words in pale script.
Daisy peered closely at the writing, showing starkly against dark skin. “Yes, that looks like mine. I’m sorry… our meeting… it’s a little blurry.”
“That is understandable,” Shuri assured her mate. “My name is Shuri, and you are safe here with my family.” She decided not to overwhelm her mate with the full details of her identity all at once. “Now, are you hungry? You have been ill, for some time I think.”
“I could eat something,” Daisy replied hesitantly. She wasn’t entirely sure if she was hungry, but that often happened when she’d been busy. She’d remember her hunger when food was in front of her.
“Good,” Shuri said with a smile. She helped Daisy into a sitting position, propping her up on several plush pillows. Lunch arrived just at that moment, and a table was moved to the bedside so Shuri and Ramonda could eat properly. A lap tray appeared and Daisy’s lunch was served to her there. “This is my mother, Ramonda.”
“Pleased to meet you, ma’am,” Daisy greeted the older woman with some hesitation. The kind smile that answered her helped Daisy to relax somewhat.
“I am pleased to meet the soulmate of my daughter,” Ramonda responded in accented English. “If you wish, you may call me mother also.”
Daisy bit her lip. She nodded slowly, and Ramonda’s smile brightened. “Thank you,” Daisy whispered.
Lunch was quiet, with Daisy listening to the light conversation between Shuri and her mother. Shuri spoke about her latest experiments over the meal, with Ramonda asking astute questions from time to time and offering praise at others. It felt a lot like her first meal at a new foster home, before the family decided she was more trouble than she was worth.
Trouble. The word itself was written on her right hip, suggesting that she and her soulmate could be trouble together. Daisy’s hand dropped to cover the words she knew every curve of by heart; it gave her hope that perhaps her soulmate wouldn’t be like everyone else in her life.
When Shuri paused in her description of modifications to a device Daisy had never heard of, Daisy spoke up. “How do you manage the data compression in a device like that? Even with advanced coding methods, there’s some small delay in decoding the compression.”
Shuri beamed at her soulmate, pleased with the idea that they might have some common interests or capabilities. “We’ve managed to minimize the delay, but you are correct that one still exists. I would be happy to show you the specifications when you are feeling up to it.”
“I’d like that,” Daisy agreed, unable to help herself as she smiled back. The warmth of her soulmate’s regard was almost physical, and Daisy found herself wanting to bask in it.
Ramonda excused herself after the meal, citing work to be done. The two young women paused in their discussion to bid her a good afternoon, but returned quickly to their conversation. Daisy was definitely no engineer, though she’d picked up some of the concepts from Fitz over the years, but that didn’t deter either of them for long. Shuri patiently explained when Daisy didn’t understand something, and was pleased to note that her soulmate may not have experience with creating technology but she certainly learned quickly.
Daisy’s energy flagged after a while, of course. She felt better than she had in a long time, and had even managed to eat almost half of her meal, but she was still very tired.
“Of course, you must rest,” Shuri brushed off Daisy’s attempts to apologize for her third yawn in as many minutes. “I promise, I will not be far away when you wake again.”
Inexplicably soothed by her soulmate’s gentle concern, Daisy allowed herself to snuggle down into the pillow and sleep. If some part of her was surprised to be capable of sleep so easily, the thought was lost to peaceful dreams.
It took two more full nights of sleep, with her days mostly spent being woken occasionally for a meal and for her soulmate to check her over, before Daisy began to get restless. After breakfast on her third day in Wakanda, she smiled at Shuri and asked, “I don’t think I’m going back to sleep anytime soon. Do you think I could get up for a while? Maybe have a shower?”
“You really are much like my brother,” Shuri said, her tone loaded with fond exasperation. “I’m not sure you’re really as ready to jump out of bed as you think.”
“I’d like to at least try. And I feel kinda disgusting, despite everyone’s attempts to keep me comfortable,” she added that last bit quickly, not wanting to fault the care she’d been given.
Shuri studied her soulmate for several long minutes. “How about a bath?” she finally offered. “Though I don’t think you should be left alone for long, I can understand wanting to be clean.”
“I don’t mind if you want to keep me company,” Daisy offered in a quiet voice. “You’re my soulmate; unless you plan on kicking me out when I’m healed up, I’d imagine you’ll be seeing all of me at some point anyway.” She tried to keep her tone light, but her usual flippancy failed her and left Daisy sounding more vulnerable than she really wanted.
“I would never ‘kick you out’ at all,” Shuri protested. Anger lit her eyes, bringing a sheen of topaz to dark brown irises. “I do not know who has hurt you in the past, my Daisy, but I promise you I would never do the same.” She ran gentle fingers through Daisy’s admittedly rather lank hair, trying to rein in her temper. “You are safe here. Trust me,” she whispered.
“I want to,” Daisy whispered back. “I really do.”
Shuri accepted those words with a nod. “But only time will prove the truth. I wish it were easier for you, but I will try to be patient. I expect we have a great deal to talk about, now that you’re feeling better.”
“Yeah,” Daisy agreed. “I’ll try to tell you more about… well, me, I suppose.”
“Let’s get you into the bath,” Shuri offered. “And then I will listen to whatever you wish to share.”
Daisy managed to reach the bathroom on shaky legs, but with only a little help. She leaned back against the bathroom wall while Shuri filled the tub with steaming water and mineral salts. “Gotta say, this isn’t exactly how I pictured being undressed by my soulmate for the first time,” Daisy joked as Shuri helped her out of the loose hospital-wear she’d been kept in while she was healing.
“It isn’t what I imagined either,” Shuri agreed readily. “But… I think I like taking care of you.”
Daisy blushed lightly as she stepped into the tub and sank gratefully into the water. She closed her eyes and leaned back against the edge and closed her eyes for a moment as her body relaxed. She blinked them open when Shuri’s hand found hers under the water, and she offered a small smile to her soulmate.
“I don’t know if I’ve said it yet,” Daisy ventured in a low tone, “but thank you for taking care of me. Even before you knew who I would be to you.”
“You are welcome. I never could say no to a person in need of my help, and I believe you need it more than most,” Shuri told her quietly.
“More than you know,” Daisy replied.
“So tell me.”
And Daisy did. She told the whole sad story about the village in China, her time in the US foster system, the homes she’d hoped to stay in and the ones she was glad to be taken out of. Once she started, the words kept coming and Daisy found herself describing her time in SHIELD for her soulmate. How Coulson accepted her, went out of his way to help her, but was still never able to really make her a priority. She was just an agent, part of the team, and she did understand… but it meant she had suffered again and again among people she trusted. While she listened, Shuri took great care in very gently washing her soulmate’s hair, taking advantage of the occasional pause to rinse away the soap.
Both women blinked away tears when Daisy spoke haltingly about losing Trip, about everything that happened in San Juan and afterwards. Gaining powers, learning about her parents, and losing them again. Trying to help the Inhumans as more and more of them began to change unexpectedly.
Shuri wept without shame as she listened to Daisy’s story, crying tears her soulmate held inside as she offered what she could to cleanse Daisy’s heart as well as her body. When Daisy finished the tale with the circumstances that had brought her to Wakanda, Shuri reached out with her free hand to cradle Daisy’s cheek. “My poor soulmate,” she whispered with sorrow but no pity. She knew instinctively that her soulmate would hate pity. “You have suffered so much to become who you were meant to be. I cannot regret the cause of our meeting, but I do hope I can provide the stability you need going forward.”
“I’m not sure I know what that means,” Daisy whispered. “I’m not sure I ever have. But… I think I’d like it if you could…”
“I will always be here for you,” Shuri promised again. “I will remind you every day, if I must. Though perhaps once we are able to Bond, you will feel it enough to believe it truly.”
Daisy’s eyes went wide. “You want us to Bond? In spite of everything?”
“I want us to Bond because you are my soulmate, my Daisy,” Shuri murmured. “Your past is part of you, and it always will be. I will love you because of who you are, not in spite of it.”
Before she could think twice about it, Daisy sat up quickly and pressed her lips to Shuri’s. It was a kiss of acceptance, of longing, and of hope. Shuri’s hand tangled in Daisy’s hair as they explored each other’s mouth for a brief eternity. When they finally parted for breath, Shuri’s smile was bright. “Soon,” she whispered.
“Soon,” Daisy agreed.
Shuri bit her lip, hesitating. “There’s one more thing, my mate…”
Daisy’s stomach turned, suddenly nervous. “What?”
Shuri took a deep breath. “How much do you know of Wakanda?”
Daisy shrugged. “I know that you guys are a lot more advanced than the rest of us, and your King was killed in the UN bombing that a HYDRA agent rigged in the attempt to force Bucky Barnes out of hiding.” Shuri was unable to stop the hitch in her breath at the reminder. Daisy could feel the deep anguish due to their close proximity. “Shuri…”
“My Baba,” Shuri explained, yet more tears slipping down her face. “My father.”
“Oh Shuri,” Daisy breathed, embracing her soulmate. “I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to…”
“I miss him,” Shuri admitted.
“I understand,” Daisy murmured. Something clicked in her mind. “So you’re a princess? My soulmate is a princess...”
Shuri tucked a strand of wet hair behind Daisy’s ear, tears still falling slowly. “I know it must seem overwhelming, my mate, but I promise it matters little except that you will want for nothing for the rest of your life. You will have to forgive me, I may spoil you some at first.” Daisy simply nodded. “Come now, out of the bath and back to bed.” Daisy found that she was actually pretty exhausted, and going back to bed sounded like an excellent idea. “Do you think you can stay up long enough to eat something?”
Daisy suddenly realized that she was absolutely starving. “Only if you will eat with me,” she replied. Shuri nodded in agreement.
Daisy knew not to expect burgers and fries, but she couldn’t identify any of the foods on the huge platter of food placed in front of her.
“It’s all good, I promise. You must eat because of your metabolism,” Shuri encouraged, digging into her own, much smaller platter. Shuri guided Daisy through eating her maize meal, steamed green vegetables, and meat. Once she’d eaten enough that she was no longer hungry, she started to droop, at which point Shuri cleared away the empty platter.
Six months later…
Daisy sat still in her chair as Nakia manipulated her hair into a traditional arrangement for her bonding ceremony. Daisy had no idea how the elaborate patterns were woven, but she accepted Nakia’s assurances that it would work.
She had been pleased and flattered when Nakia offered to stand-in as family for Daisy in preparing for the bonding. It wasn’t the soulbonding, of course; that had been accomplished not long after Daisy had physically recovered from HIVE. But the formal ceremony that announced their bond to all of Shuri’s people… that was a little intimidating, all on its own. Nakia’s obvious care, both personally and to help Daisy feel as much as she could like she belonged in Wakanda, soothed her nerves.
In a similar gesture, Bucky Barnes escorted her to the ceremony. Bondings or weddings in Wakanda didn’t involve a woman being ‘given away’ but parents or other family were called upon to include their own blessings for a couple. Daisy and Bucky had bonded over difficult childhoods and the struggle over being controlled by the will of another; they both also held tightly to the belief that family was what you made it, and blood wasn’t necessary. So he also had a place in the ceremony, and it made Daisy’s heart even happier.
The ceremony itself passed in a blur. She had eyes for no one and nothing but her beautiful mate and the joy flowing through their soulbond. She vaguely recalled the way their fingers twined together as their clasped hands were bound symbolically through the ritual, and then the intricately braided gold and silver wraps were turned into bonding bracelets for them each to wear. As soulmates had in Wakanda for thousands of years, or so she’d been told.
The Wakandan sun had tanned Daisy’s fair complexion into a deep golden hue, so she only looked slightly out of place beside her darker mate in their pictures. Shuri had thin, colored ribbons woven into her dark braids which mimicked the amber and mahogany highlights the sun burnt into Daisy’s hair. Daisy wore tribal markings inked onto her skin for the ceremony, slightly modified from Shuri’s for individuality and showing both that Daisy had embraced her mate’s culture and that her mate’s family had embraced her.
One year after the bonding…
Sitting on the edge of the hospital bed, Daisy held her weeping mate in her arms. She murmured soothing noises, despite her own tears, as they mourned together. It was the third time science had failed in the attempt to blend Shuri’s genetics with Daisy’s to give them a child. Daisy had miscarried once, and this was Shuri’s second miscarriage; they had held onto hope when the initial test results looked viable, only to be let down in the end.
A knock on the door made Daisy look up. “Who is it?” she called, knowing there were only a few people Shuri would allow to see her in such a state.
“It is T’Challa, bond-sister,” came the answer.
Daisy’s arms tightened around her soulmate in question, and Shuri nodded hesitantly in answer. “Come in,” Daisy invited. The door opened, revealing Shuri’s brother with a worried expression.
He said nothing as he approached, but he placed a warm hand on each of their shoulders in a gesture of comfort. “Our family grieves with you, my sisters,” he murmured lowly after several quiet moments.
“Thank you, bond-brother,” Daisy answered, mastering her tears for the moment. She tilted her head to rest her cheek against his hand; it had taken a bit for her to wrap her head around the odd mix of casual familiarity and comfortable formality common to the Wakandan royals. But under the current circumstances, she would take any comfort offered.
“Mama will be in to see you soon,” T’Challa told them.
“I’m surprised she wasn’t knocking ten minutes ago,” Shuri commented with a sniffle, making a small attempt at her usual humor. T’Challa huffed a quiet laugh.
“We’ll be glad of company, I think,” Daisy ventured. “She’s always so strong when we need her. Last time… last time she was right outside the door.”
“I asked her to give me a few moments to speak with you,” T’Challa replied. “Do you need more time, sister, or will you listen now?”
“What’s on your mind, brother?” Shuri asked, wiping her cheeks dry as she focused on his calm presence.
“I wish to help you resolve this… difficulty… you are having,” he said, his tone unusually tentative. “I am told the underlying problem seems to involve a lack of particular chromosomes, which neither of you can provide.”
Daisy sighed. “In part, yes. It’s also why we’d only have girls, should they ever be successful. Neither of us has a Y chromosome.” T’Challa nodded in agreement. “Wait, you mean… yours?”
“Your children will be no more or less family if the DNA comes from me rather than Shuri,” T’Challa’s voice was soft. “Our hearts all weep with yours when science has failed you. I am simply offering another way, one that may allow them to finally succeed.”
Daisy blinked. “Would that cause problems with inheritance customs?”
T’Challa shook his head. “I would not make it public knowledge. In either case, your children would be my heirs until Nakia and I have children of our own. What matters most is the family bloodline.”
Nodding slowly, Daisy recalled previous conversations over her nerves at the prospect of raising a child who could potentially inherit a whole kingdom. Fortunately, the rest of the family had plenty of experience with it - Ramonda in particular - and Daisy would not be alone.
“We… will discuss it, brother,” Shuri conceded as the silence stretched out.
“That is all I had hoped to hear today,” T’Challa assured her. He opened his mouth to say something else, but was interrupted by a knock at the door. “That will be Mother, I expect.”
“Come in, Mama,” Shuri called out.
“My baby,” Ramonda said gently as she settled on Shuri’s other side. Her arms folded around both young women, and Shuri began to cry softly again.
T’Challa started to move away, not wanting to interfere in the comfort he knew their mother could provide. He was startled when Daisy caught his wrist in one hand, and he looked at her curiously. “Stay,” she whispered.
“There is little I can do,” he began, but Daisy shook her head.
“There’s not much anyone can do,” Daisy countered. “Be here with us. Grieve with us. Love with us. It’s enough.”
Touched by Daisy’s sudden outreach, T’Challa nodded. He pulled a chair right up to the side of the bed and sat, offering his hands to his sisters. They each took one and held tight.
Seven months later…
The briefing with the Avengers and a handful of Inhumans had been short, but intense. But despite knowing she would be sidelined, Daisy sat in on it anyway. She needed to know as much as possible about what was going on to help keep her adopted home safe.
Daisy sat in the communications hub, listening to comms chatter from where the army clustered with the Avengers near the edge of the shield around the city. She couldn’t stand being sidelined during such a major conflict, but she was four months pregnant and stable; the family had expressly stated, on all sides, that her safety and that of her child took priority. She even had her own escort of Dora Milaje, ready to whisk her away into hiding with their allies should the palace be breached.
In a move that was quickly becoming habit, Daisy rested a hand against her lower belly; there was a small swell growing beneath her hand, and she took comfort in it. Rather than focus on the frustration of not being part of the battle, she focused her attention on her team in particular. The Underground had successfully relocated almost three dozen Inhumans from countries enforcing the Sokovia Accords, had been joined by several others who had vanished into the population when Lai Shi was abandoned, and currently had a small network of safe houses in other countries that rejected the Accords. Ironically enough, Sokovia was one of them.
Many of the rescued Inhumans were not fighters, and only a very few had powers able to be used in combat. Those few had trained intensively under Okoye and T’Challa, with Daisy helping as much as she was able, to work in tandem with the Wakandan warriors. But they weren’t part of any of the militia; instead, they were Daisy’s responsibility to lead and guide.
Damn, not helping curb her frustration. She should’ve been out there, but none of her team were any more willing to risk her and her unborn child than her soulmate and bond-family.
As reports came in about Thanos taking the field, many of the technicians around the room shot worried glances at Daisy. She gripped the edge of her console tightly, if only to prevent herself from jumping to her feet. It was going badly, and staying safe wouldn’t help her if Thanos destroyed the world.
It turned out to be a good thing she was sitting, though. What felt like a small eternity - and also like only a few heartbeats - later, Wanda screamed into comms as Vision was destroyed and Thanos gained the sixth Infinity Stone.
With a snap of the Titan’s fingers, the world as she knew it shattered.
Along with her soulbond.
If she hadn’t already been seated, Daisy would’ve fallen over with the intangible, and yet very real, shockwave of a broken soulbond. It wasn’t so much the feeling of Shuri dying, though she wasn’t sure that could be any worse; it was the sudden emptiness in her soul where the bond had simply ceased to exist.
She screamed.
Only seconds later, her guards were at her side. She looked up to her left, just in time to see Ayo’s body dissolve into floating ash. Daisy nearly choked, recoiling instinctively. T’Yana caught her, steadying the chair before helping Daisy to her feet. On the monitors, people were rapidly vanishing in much the same way. “Quickly, Princess,” she said briskly. “We must go.”
“Shuri,” Daisy whispered.
“I know, Semayi1 ,” T’Yana answered quietly. “But if Shuri and T’Challa are gone, it becomes even more important to protect you and the child.”
“Right,” Daisy took a deep breath and pulled herself together. The crisis had only just crested, and she couldn’t afford to fall apart now. “While the fighting has mostly stopped, call what warriors remain back to the capital. Best keep everyone together while we assess the situation.”
One of the few remaining technicians nodded and quickly turned to her equipment to obey Daisy’s order. No one in the room was about to question the woman who might be the sole survivor of their royal family.
The world was in chaos.
When an assessment of the missing could be completed, exactly half of the world’s population had simply vanished. The UN was a shambles. A few countries still had their leader or leaders. Many did not. There didn’t seem to be any rhyme or reason behind who had disappeared, either; just that the total number was halved.
Okoye, Daisy and the remaining active Avengers - Romanov, Rogers, Banner and Rhodes - worked together to stabilize what infrastructure was left. Stark quickly went off the grid, and Thor focused on New Asgard as well as trying to figure out where Thanos had vanished to.
The network of Inhuman safe-houses helped greatly in getting help to people in their areas. As everyone chipped in to the best of their abilities, powered or not, the survivors banded together and built bonds across race, ethnicity and powered status. There was no one who had not lost someone, and many families around the world had lost several people.
So she supposed there was some tiny amount of light shed in the aftermath of chaos. The human race had united for once, in the fallout of the worst cataclysm of the modern era.
“No,” Okoye said firmly.
“Why not?” Daisy demanded.
“Because we need you. The people need you.”
Daisy scoffed. “We both know that I know far less than you do about how to run a country. You are the best person for the job,” she argued.
“That is true, but it is also true that it is not my job,” Okoye stated. “You are the last of Golden Tribe rulers, no matter that you married into it. The people - our people - need you. They need an example to show them how to go on despite all they have lost. Few have lost more than you, majesty.” Okoye bowed her head.
Daisy took a slow, deep breath and let it out just as slowly. Okoye had a point, and the last thing she wanted was for Shuri’s people - her people, who had welcomed her as the soulmate of their beloved princess - to feel she had abandoned them.
When she opened her eyes again, Daisy nodded. “Very well. But I will keep the title of Princess for now. There may come a time when I must become Queen in truth, but I don’t want to take away the people’s hope that T’Challa may return somehow. If the Avengers are successful in hunting down Thanos…”
“Agreed.” Okoye’s demeanor softened slightly as Daisy accepted the responsibilities she had never truly wanted.
“I will need your help,” Daisy added in a quieter voice. “You know your people, their leaders, their capabilities, far better than I do. I will be the example we need to the best of my ability, but if I am to keep our country safe I will need your insights and your knowledge. And your friendship, if possible. I will keep it together, but I will need support as a person and not just as a ruler.”
“All that I can do to help is yours, Semayi,” Okoye promised. “Through shared joys and griefs, you have become a part of Wakanda. A part of us. And we will not let you down either.”
Daisy gave her a small but genuine smile. “I believe you.”
Five months later…
Exhausted, Daisy lay in her bed. She’d just been helped into a new nightgown and robe and bundled back beneath her light blankets. Okoye sat on one side of her, and Xiao - an orphaned Inhuman, also originally from China - on the other. They were her closest friends, and had just sat with her through her entire twenty six hour labor. Once she was settled, the nurse handed over the happy bundles.
“Congratulations, Semayi,” Xiao murmured. “You have two beautiful boys.”
“My boys,” Daisy smiled down at the twins she’d borne; it had been a surprise when the scans began to show a second baby, but not unwelcome. “T’Chanda and T’Shura.” Named in honor of her bond-brother and bondmate, of course.
Okoye and T’Yana highly approved.
Morale in Wakanda had dropped somewhat when the Avengers failed to recover the Infinity Stones and undo the Decimation Thanos had wrought. Being able to announce the healthy birth of twin princes in a few days would hopefully counter some of that.
“Shuri would be so proud,” Okoye agreed, reaching out to stroke a gentle finger against the babys’ cheeks. Their skin tone was considerably lighter than Okoye’s, though darker than Daisy’s. They seemed to be a perfect mix of their parents. “She will fill the spirit realm of our ancestors with song and dance for many days.”
Daisy nodded, too accustomed by now to the idea that her children might never know their other mother and uncle. She no longer cried over the thought as it came up. She still had her moments, of course; they all did. But Daisy had her sons to live for, as well as her friends and her people.
It wasn’t everything she wanted. But what she had was enough. It would have to be.