Think of this as the post-credits scene…

When the door to Vault D opened, Grant Ward tried to keep his pulse steady. It wasn't easy to do when just the thought of seeing Skye again could send both his pulse and his breathing into overdrive. Still, he wanted to be composed when she saw him, so he focused on calming his heartrate first.

But …

Something was wrong. The tread on the stairs was too heavy to be hers. Grant stood, moved to the edge of the cell to get a better view of his visitor. Combat boots, too large for most women, and camo fatigues over them.

"I only talk to Skye," Grant declared and turned away from whoever approached to emphasize the point.

"Then you'll be quiet a long time," a rough male voice answered, one that Grant found familiar but couldn't quite place.

Grant waited for the speaker to continue, but whoever it was understood that tactic as well as he did, because he stayed silent. Finally, it was as much curiosity as to who else Coulson would let into the Vault as it was Grant's desire to know more about Skye that made him turn around.

He recognized his visitor immediately, though they'd never worked together. "Rumlow."

"Ward." Brock Rumlow, former commander of SHIELD's STRIKE team, nodded a greeting.

Grant studied the other man in silence. They were both Hydra - how in the hell had Rumlow gotten into the Playground, much less the Vault? More to the point, would talking to Rumlow be good for him or not?

Rumlow strolled over to the control panel, tapped in a few commands. "It's just us now, all alone, no prying eyes."

Grant couldn't help snorting. "You're not my type."

"Makes us even." Rumlow studied him in turn.

Finally, not knowing became too much. "Why'd you say I'm going to be quiet for a while? Has -" he swallowed once, twice, before starting again. "Has something happened to Skye?"

"She's on TAD," Rumlow answered.

"Temporary duty?" Grant frowned. "What kind of temporary duty?"

"Trade you an answer for an answer," Rumlow said.

Grant scowled at him, then nodded once. He'd heard about STRIKE team, and Rumlow in particular. Probably best to have the conversation, and keep it as civil as possible.

"I've already given you one, so your turn." Rumlow rested a foot on the chair beside the control panel. "Do you know anything about an 084 referred to as the Obelisk?"

"Yes. Your turn. What kind of temporary duty?"

"Avengers liaison. Do you know where it is?"

"No. Why is she on TAD?"

"Something to do with her soulmate."

Grant's snarl escaped before Rumlow could ask his next question. "I'll kill him."

Rumlow laughed. "Good luck with that."

Grant glared at him through the inertial confinement laser barrier. "You don't think I'll be in here forever, do you?"

"Question out of turn, but I'll give you that one. It doesn't matter. Even if you get out, you can't kill him."

Rumlow's certainty surprised him. "What makes you say that?"

"I couldn't. The entire STRIKE team couldn't. You're good, Ward, but you're not our level of good."

That it wasn't a boast, just a statement of fact, didn't make the assessment any less annoying. It did, however, raise a very important question.

"Who's her soulmate?"

"Two questions down, but I'll save those for later. I doubt you'll be in the mood to talk after I answer that one."

Ward slammed his fist against the barrier, not caring when his hand stung with the contact. "Who's her soulmate?"

"Captain Steven Grant Rogers. Also known as Captain America."