"Lily? Lily can you hear me? Lily?" Jemma's concerned voice filled Lily's ears as the vision released her to her reality. Lily's eyes were wide as the sight of the open closet and the face of Jemma appeared before her as clear as the outdoor landscape. Jemma's hands were on Lily's shoulders and she was shaking her, trying to snap her out of whatever state she was in. She's been around Lily when she got her visions, but this one seemed different. Lily was panicking, she was distressed at what she just saw. The young girl's death had shocked her more than thought.

"Hey, hey, hey. It's okay. You're back. It's okay. You're okay. I'm here," Jemma said again after about a minute of silence from Lily except for her ragged breathing. "Lily, what did you see?" Jemma approached the subject with caution, afraid to send the woman back into another fit of panic.

"I...I saw...I saw a girl," Lily began as she tried to stand. Jemma grabbed on her hands and helped her steady herself. Once she was up off the floor, Jemma pushed her to sit on the bed. Jemma sat beside her and took her hand. Lily stared into the open closet, a far-off look in her eyes. She was trying to see back into the vision. "I saw a girl. She was young, younger than you. We were alone outside in some...unknown location. She was afraid."

"Did you know her?"

"I didn't know her, and she didn't know me. I don't know if she saw me. She was looking right at me, but I don't know if she saw me." Lily recounted the vision. The girl was clear in her mind.

"What did this girl look like?"

"She had long brown hair and these eyes that were green but had a mix of grey in them. She was dressed in red and black. I don't know why she was there, but there was so much fear in her eyes."

"What was she doing?"

"She wasn't doing anything. We were just standing staring at each other, and then a building collapsed. I didn't see her after that," Lily shut her eyes as flashes of the falling building resurfaced. She didn't want to see the young scared girl die again. It was too painful. Knowing that she couldn't save her. "I have a bad feeling about this mission, Jemma. There's an intense feeling of dread in the pit of my stomach. Something doesn't feel right about any of this."

"What?"
"This mission, this vision. It doesn't sit well with me." Jemma moved Lily's head down until it was resting in her lap. Lily moved her legs to stretch out in the bed, trying to get comfortable in the sudden change of position. Jemma ran a hand through Lily's short black hair, trying to calm her down. Lily closed her eyes at the touch, breathing deeply.

"Honestly honey, I think it's just nerves. Everything is going to be okay. You're going to be okay, and that girl is going to be okay." Jemma said, for once trying to be positive and look on the bright side.

"But I saw her die."

"You know as well as I do that the future is not written in stone. It can always be changed. You don't like how this future ends, change it. Save the girl if you can, and if you can't don't beat yourself up about it," Jemma leaned down and planted a kiss on Lily's temple. "Come on, you've got to finish getting ready."
Lily sat back up, still staring at the inside of the closet. As Lily regained her normal composition, she glanced over to the other side of the room to where Jemma was standing. Jemma was changing into her pajamas and didn't catch Lily looking at her. Picking up her phone from the foot of the bed from where she tossed it, she looked at the time. 1:30am. She felt bad; usually Jemma was asleep by now, but here she was, awake and comforting Lily before a mission. Lily grabbed her black uniform and took it into the bathroom to change.

Jemma returned to her spot in the bed and pulled the covers over her legs. Griffon too returned, though Jemma was sure that he didn't really leave, and instead of laying on Jemma, he took to curling up against Jemma's right thigh. Jemma picked up the TV remote from her bedside table and turned the TV back on. A big yawn escaped her lips, and while she was tired and was usually asleep at this time, she didn't want to sleep.

She would never admit this to Lily for fear of it causing her to cancel on the Avengers, but that same feeling of dread that she felt enveloped Jemma too. She couldn't deny the fear that she felt. And that fear was eating her alive, and would keep her up all night, and invade her mind until Lily came home safe and sound. She opened Netflix and continued an old episode of The Office. Lily hated The Office, but Jemma wasn't even thinking about what she was clicking on. In fact, she wasn't even watching it. Instead her mind reeled with endless possibilities of literally all worst-case scenarios. You're such a pessimist. She knew Lily would agree with her if she could hear her thoughts, which she could, but only when she was touching her, and most importantly only with Jemma's consent.

The sound of the bathroom door opening snapped Jemma from her thoughts and allowed her to slightly focus on the show in front of her. She watched the workers of Dunder Mifflin run around the office thinking it was on fire.

"The fire's shooting at us!" screamed Andy Bernard as the office exploded into pandemonium. Lily too was watching the fiasco on the TV and laughed.

"I thought you didn't like this show." Jemma said teasing her wife.

"I don't, but I'll admit this episode is my favorite. And it's by far the funniest one." Jemma only nodded in agreement at Lily's words. Like before, her mind was elsewhere. And one look at her told that. Jemma did not have a poker face. She was an open book, and during the first few months of them dating, Jemma often accused Lily of reading her mind without permission when really she knew how to read people's facial expressions and understand what they meant. And after spending so much time with Jemma, it was easy to learn what her facial expressions meant.

"What's the matter, Jem?" Lily asked as Jemma had moved to start biting the nail on her thumb, a move she only did when she was either really nervous or deep in thought, though in some instances, like this one, when she was both. Jemma's head snapped towards Lily who was now fully dressed in her uniform, her silver staff strapped to her waist in its little holster. The staff had been a gift from Thor, made specially for Lily. To Jemma's understanding it worked much like Thor's hammer and helped Lily control and channel her powers. Lily's hair was pinned in a little braid to keep from getting in her face. On the opposite side of Lily's belt where her staff was holstered, was another holster containing a gun. She didn't like the idea of guns and she definitely didn't like the idea of her wife having a gun or even being near a gun.

"Nothing's the matter." Jemma turned her attention back to the TV. Lily walked over to Jemma's side of the bed, knelt down on the floor and took her hand into hers, causing the young woman to look her wife in the eyes, the fear and dread still there.

"Come on, Jemma Bean," Jemma smiled at the nickname, reminiscing on one of the first few dates when Lily meant to ask if her date wanted some jellybeans, but accidently said Jemma Beans, and then proceeded to order a bag of "Jemma Beans" from the clerk of the candy store. At first, Lily had been grossly embarrassed, but through their time together, she found the hilarity of it and chose to nickname her wife that. "I know there's something bothering you. You're like an open book, remember."

Jemma sighed, knowing that it was no use not telling Lily what was wrong. Yet, even knowing this, the stubborn young woman sat, still not saying a word on the subject.

"Jemma," Lily said sternly, as if she was dealing with a child, and sometimes she was. "If you don't tell me what's wrong in thirty seconds I'm gonna find out for myself." Lily held up her free hand and wiggled her fingers, indicating that she was willing to break the promise she made to Jemma about not using her powers on her if it meant that she could comfort her wife. Jemma looked at her wife, shock replacing the fear in her eyes, as she genuinely believed that Lily would use her powers on her without her consent. Now, Lily would never do this, but oftentimes, in order to combat Jemma's stubborn nature, Lily had to bluff, and every time, Jemma never knew. No, she would not be good in a card game.

"Fine," Jemma said in defeat. Lily smiled, knowing that her trick once again worked. Unlike Lily, Jemma was not very good at reading people. "I'm just worried. After you had that vision, I started to feel that same dread that you did. I just want you to come back to me." Lily stood up and sat at the edge of the bed and brought her love into her arms, rubbing her back.

"I'm gonna come back, love," Lily pulled Jemma out of the embrace and stared into her honey brown eyes that glistened with tears. Lily smiled to hide her own fear, not wanting to add to Jemma's stress. "I promise you, I will. And you know me, I never break a promise. Not to you. Never to you. I love you." Tears of her own formed in Lily's eyes as Jemma leaned forward and reengaged them in another hug. Lily let her tears fall onto Jemma's shirt as she felt her lover's tears absorb into the breathable fabric of her uniform.

"I love you, too, Lily. Please come back to me." Jemma's soft and sad voice was muffled by Lily's uniform, but Lily heard her clearly. A loud ping coming from Lily's side of the room caused the two women to break apart from each other. Standing from Jemma's side of the bed, Lily walked to grab her phone, turning the screen on and seeing a one-word text from Clint Barton that sent her heart into the pit of her stomach.

"Here."

Before she knew it, their time was up and it was time for Lily to go. Her feet felt like lead as she walked back over to Jemma's side of the bed.

"Clint's here. I've got to go," She planted a soft "goodbye" kiss on her forehead. "Goodnight, my love. Please try to get some sleep tonight. I love you."

"I love you, too," Jemma sat up in bed, sitting on her knees. She reached up and pulled Lily's head down to kiss her on the lips. If she was going to leave, she was gonna give me a real fucking kiss. When they pulled away, Jemma grasped onto her hand, loosely trying to keep her there. "Please be safe. Call me when you're done. Don't you dare worry about what time it is here, I want you to call me. Okay? Promise me."

"I promise. Now let go, please. I have to go." Lily planted one more kiss on Jemma's lips and forehead before pulling away. Making sure she had everything, she stood in the doorway of their bedroom and took one more look around the room. She noticed Griffon also looking at her with tired and maybe even irritated green eyes. Lily looked deep into those green cat eyes and pointed a finger at her lover's beloved pet.

"You," she said talking to the cat who responded with a swing of his tail. "Watch over Jemma, okay? I'll be back soon, but in the meantime, she's gonna need someone to comfort her. I need you to be that person, okay, cat?" Lily stared at the annoying feline with seriousness. The cat purred loudly and let out a little "Meow" before putting his head back down and going to sleep.

"Okay, then," Lily said before she turned to leave, only to stop and turn to face the tabby cat. She walked back over to the bed and laid a gentle hand on Griffon's soft fur, petting him. He lifted his head and leaned into her hand, letting his enemy pet him this one time. "Be good, both of you." And with that, Lily left.

○○○

The ride in the Quinjet was quiet. It was only just Lily and Clint, and yet to Lily that seemed to make the silence worse; the silence couldn't dampen even if it wanted to. Because she was a part-time member of the Avengers, she wasn't as close to the team as she would've like to be. And the person she was least close to, of course had to be her driver. She knew enough about him like that he had a family (which she learned from Natasha and not from Clint) and because of his family he didn't live with the rest of the Avengers, so at least they had that in common, right? Was she even obligated to ask about his family? I mean he had no idea she knew about them, right, so was that a ...no? Lily shifted uncomfortably in her seat. The silence was driving her crazy. She didn't know why she hated silence. She couldn't remember much of her past except for the years that she spent in the foster system until she was taken in by S.H.I.E.L.D. when she was fifteen. Maybe it was because of the foster system that she hated silence.

The sound of Clint clearing his throat threw her from her mental rhythm. She blinked a couple of times before looking at him as he spoke.

"So...how's Jemma?" Lily looked at him in disbelief. They barely knew each other and he wanted to know about her personal life? Specifically, about Jemma? Clint didn't meet her gaze, continuing to stare out into the sky, watching where he was going and making sure they were on course. Wait, how did he know about Jemma? "Nat told me about her." Damn you, Natasha.

"She's good. At least she was until I told her about this mission." Lily decided to confide in the archer. It was either him or silence, and she figured that Clint would have a better understanding of this than the rest of the members of the team. Clint nodded his head and chuckled, but it didn't hold any humor.

"Yeah, I know what that's like. I guess I'm lucky that Laura is somewhat used to this by now. You and Jemma weren't together when New York happened, right?"

"Yeah. We actually met because of New York." Lily smiled at the memory.

"Yeah? No kidding. How? Did you save her life or something?" Clint glanced at Lily for only a moment, but in that moment, she saw the intrigue on his face. Natasha always said he was too nosey and too curious. Lily recounted the memory for the both of them.

"Well, it was after the battle, and I'm doing some filing up at S.H.I.E.L.D. when Maria walks in saying that I got a phone call, which I thought was a little weird—"

"Why'd you think it was weird?" Clint laughed.

"I'm honestly not sure," Lily laughed too. "Anyway, so I took the call, and it turned out to be Jemma. And she says, 'Hi, my name is Jemma Barnes, and I work with the newspaper, The New York Star. Would it be possible to arrange an interview with the one they call... "Soundwave"?' So, I agreed to the interview, and when I see her...I just knew. I knew deep down that she was the one I wanted to spend my forever with. And so, I took a chance, and after the interview was over, I asked her to dinner. I guess she was impressed with my bravery, so she said yes." Clint and Lily shared a laugh. Clint didn't even know her but hearing this story he felt that he had known her deeply this entire time.

"And how was your first date together?" he asked with some humor laced in his voice, as if he had already guessed that the date went poorly.

"Oh, it was awful," Clint burst out laughing, scaring Lily, but she soon joined in laughing as the memory resurfaced in her mind. "Since it was after the battle, there weren't a lot of businesses open in the city, except for this really fancy high-end Italian place. So, I decided to take her there, since it was really classy. Well, I guess every couple in all of New York had the same idea, because when we got there, there was a huge ass line and the wait time was over an hour!"
"Oh my God!" Clint's face had turned bright red from him laughing. Lily, still laughing, had settled down a bit. "What did you do?"

"I did what any good date would do! I took her out of the restaurant after refusing to wait at an hour to be seated and took her to the next best thing that was open."
"Which was...?"

"McDonald's." Lily threw her face into her hands as embarrassment fueled through her. Clint roared with laughter beside her. His face was now the shade of a tomato and tears were streaming down his face. He switched on the autopilot, and leaned back into his seat, still laughing loudly.

"Y-you...took her...t-to...MCDONALD'S! Oh my God, that's hilarious!" Clint yelled as he tried to catch his breath, only to end up in a coughing fit. Once he caught his breath and the coughing stopped, he started chuckling again.

"It's not funny, Clint! I'm lucky she still agreed to go out on a second date with me!"

"What did she do when you took her to Mickey D's?" Clint asked trying hard not to laugh again.

"She was...actually very understanding and gracious about it. And she too found it a little funny. She did feel bad for me however, that the night didn't go as planned. But she did insist that she plan the next date. That one went much better. But we had a good time in McDonald's. We got to know each other better, we laughed and joked around, and when I dropped her off at her parent's house, she gave me a kiss. So, all-in-all, I'd say it went really well, considering that she's my wife." And because of that "horrible" first date, Jemma and Lily started making it their own little tradition that on their anniversary, they both go out to dinner to McDonald's.