"Why me?" Darcy Lewis frowned at her now-silent phone. She began to mutter under her breath as she shut down her computer.

"Problem?"

The sudden voice caused her to jump. She spun around, eyes wide, and then frowned as she spotted Phil Coulson standing in the doorway. "Look, Agent Zombie, not that I'm not thrilled you've risen from the grave, but I don't need you sneaking up on me. I get enough of the heart attack inducing antics from the mad science contingent of this insane asylum. Got it?"

Coulson tilted his head in acceptance of her remarks, but raised an eyebrow towards her phone. "The question stands, however," he told her. "Is there a problem?"

She groaned and slumped back in her chair. "I was planning on avoiding the Halloween party downstairs," she grumbled, "and now I can't." Crossing her arms over her chests, she directed a pout at him. "Jane's cheating."

"Oh?"

"Yes, 'oh'," she sassed back. "Instead of calling me and trying to guilt trip me herself – which, for your information, she cannot do – she got Thor to call me all excited about exploring a 'Midgard tradition'. Now I have to go or I'll disappoint the big lug, and have you ever disappointed him?" Coulson opened his mouth, but she steamrolled right along. "It's like disappointing Steve, but where Steve gives you that sad Captain America look, Thor pulls out these sorrowful eyes that just kill you." Her breath flowed out in a low sigh. "I don't even have a costume."

Coulson pulled a chair over and sat down. "Do you know what the others are wearing?"

"Only the girls," she shrugged. "Jane is going as Anna Pavlova while Betty plans to be Hypatia." A small frown furrowed her brow. "Umm, Pepper…decided on Boadicea while Maria chose Laura Bassi."

"And Natasha?"

Darcy laughed, "Tasha decided on Anne Bonny."

Phil's lips twitched. "An interesting collection," he replied, voice steady despite the amusement in his gaze.

"Yeah, and now I have to pick someone." A frown began to darken her countenance again. "And at last minute."

"Any ideas of what type of character?" he asked. "Real or fiction? Famous or infamous? Male or female?"

She blinked and then considered. "Real…hmm…female and infamous."

"Modern or historical?"

"Not necessarily totally modern," she answered, relaxing into the topic, "but not way back when either." Her lips curved into a fond smile. Coulson somehow managed to take difficult snarls and pull them into something manageable every single time. He wouldn't solve the maze for you, but he kept the maze from changing as you walked it.

"So," he drew out, "maybe someone during the early twentieth century?"

Darcy nodded. "That would be good," she said. "It would be easier to put an outfit together too."

Something moved in his gaze, a blend of emotions winding around one another until it became difficult to read – even in his standard stoic expression. His voice grew cautious. "Would you…would you have a problem being part of a set?"

"A set?" She asked the question, her mouth on automatic even as her mind tried to unknot the tangle of hints in his eyes. "What kind of set?"

"I was hoping you might accompany me, as I have also been 'commanded' to attend, however reluctantly." He fell silent, watching as she gaped at him.

"Together?"

"Yes."

Her mouth opened and then closed a couple of times before she managed to speak. "And when people start talking? You know there are going to be a lot of agents there, right? Not even counting the team?"

"I am aware." He sat back, fingers interwoven in front of him. Warmth stole into his face with an edge of something deeper, something hotter sparking a glint in his eyes.

She stared at him, trying to ignore the sudden flutter in her stomach. "And who do you think we should be?"

"How do you feel about sweater dresses?" His question brought a confused look to her eyes, but he waited.

"Okay, non sequitur, but…I…think…I'll have to claim neutrality," Darcy shrugged. "I've never worn one. Who are you thinking I should be?"

Now Phil's smile finally deepened. "Bonnie Parker."

"With you as Clyde Barrow?" Laughter spilled out of her after a moment. "I love it!" she crowed. "We can go in all full of attitude and they can't say anything because it's in character!"

"Shall we?" he tilted his head towards the door as he rose to his feet.

"Oh, we shall," she agreed, standing up and walking around the desk to his side, "we very definitely shall." Darcy's eyes glittered in amusement and he gave her a curious look. Mischief filled her smile. "I think I'll see if I can get JARVIS to record everyone's reactions when we walk in together."

"It should prove…amusing," Phil agreed, that blend of dark heat and bright affection sliding through his eyes once more.

That fluttering feeling shot through her once more, but she managed to keep her voice steady. "And I don't want to miss a moment."