Jemma Simmons

      Can we talk about something else, please.

      And what would you like to talk about then?

      I know, I just meant that she won’t sound like       it’s what it started as when they call her to       check in on things.             He, um… There’s not really anyone else on             that I could ask and when I explained what             was going on, he said he’d help.         …Now, I just have to explain the whole marrying a          a man to mum…. Haven’t even told her I’m bi.

I was always better with books than people.          [ there's an unspoken 'until you' in there somewhere ] I'm sure that by the time they get to interviewing my parents that they'll be very convincing. They've already told the story all over Sheffield, I'm sure.     That's very good of him to help you out. I'm glad you get  to stay as well.         I'm sure everything will be fine; your mum has always seemed very supportive of you.

It was the first time in a while someone had told him he didn’t have to apologize for his anxiety or the attacks that happened because of it. He nodded slowly and  turned his head so he could look at her. “Used to be able to tell what caused ‘em. PTSD induced or some shit like that. But sometimes… I just don’t know.”

Jemma nodded slightly. That wasn't uncommon. Sometimes anxiety was set off by things that not even the person experiencing it could explain. "That's fine too." She was no stranger to anxiety; though in her case it was mostly triggered by her PTSD. "Is there anything I can do to help when it happens? I can... I mean sometimes it's easier for me if I have something else to focus on instead."

    Stark can only do so much for us.     And you’re right, HYDRA has no     reason to care where their funds     come from, as long as they keep     coming. 

    He is doing a very good job acquiring what he     can, but some of it was specially designed, so     it's harder to get a hold of. Granted, we could     reproduce some of the equipment, if we had     the materials, and the manpower.

“Maybe not, but you still work for Shashlyk … he and I will never be on the same side of things. I’m guessing he made a deal with Danvers for parts — I’ll deal with her warped humour later - what part?”

"It's for a vintage aircraft restoration project, which is I believe why I'm here." As to why she had specifically been sent, she assumed it had something to do with her non-threatening demeanor and people skills. "I'm looking for a valvetrain replacement for the Menasco C-4 engine in a 1938 Rearwin 6000M Speedster."

    “It’s not like you forced me into this.”

        "You wouldn't be lying to the government          if someone hadn't asked you to."

“Good.” He couldn’t help the smile that formed as he looked around the apartment. “Let me know if you need anything at all while you’re settling in.”

"I think that I should be able to manage." Even after temporarily having her own apartment when she'd been undercover, Jemma really didn't have that many things to get settled anywhere. "Unless you're worried about me moving something that you'd rather not have moved?"

     Thanks, Jemma.

        You're very welcome. What is it that you're reading?         Anything interesting?

        “That’s a good sign. He’s not bored with it yet.”         Or he trusted Jemma and the team to take over         the project without his supervision. Either way, it         was a good thing that Tony wasn’t trying to restart         everything.             “Increasing the strength of the coffee won’t do             much for me, unfortunately. I’ve tried it. You,             my dear, just have to wait for the caffeine to              kick in.”

        "He might have forgotten about it entirely,         I guess we'll just have to wait and see."                 Though Jemma was hoping that it was that                 he believed them to be competent and not                 that he would be coming in any day now to                 start over entirely.         "Maybe we'll just have to find some other way         to wake you up in the morning then."

If you’re trying to convince me that you’re not as intelligent as I was told, you’re failing.

I never said I wasn't intelligent. I said that I wasn't impressive. There's a difference.

“No one is prepared to handle that sort of thing. Not even Stark and the Avengers. But at least we know just what we’re getting into and whom we’re working with. The same thing can’t be said about some of these governments. Or this new organisation calling itself SHIELD. I think DC showed us just how unprepared we are for this new world.”

“But SHIELD is different now; it's back to what it's supposed to be. And right now our main priorities are reacquiring the technologies and facilities that Hydra captured, and keeping the people of the world safe. And not with some deeply misleading concept of stopping threats before they happen but by trying to empower the people of earth so that when threats do happen, there is something other than you and the other Avengers to stop them. Ideally in the most safe and humane way possible."

Looking into the bag, it looked like he’d been given a pile of sheets. Reminding himself these ‘scrubs’ were necessary for the procedures, he figured he could make do. Nodding along, he dragged his gaze from the bag of laundry to the clinical room. “Very well… Where can I change?” Remembering how uncomfortable he once made Jemma with his nudity, though he thought little of it, he’d prefer not to cause her another incredibly awkward episode. 

"Right, of course." Jemma was used to dealing with people who knew her way around the facilities better than she did. So it hadn’t occurred to her that he wouldn’t know where to go. "There's actually a changing room right over there, across the hall. And you can just come back over here when you're done and I'll get all of the machines set up."