Dousy

"Some of my favorite people are people like you. Focused on the greater good, even at your own expense. You want people to think you like being on your own even though you always end up back with friends."

- Daniel Sousa to Daisy Johnson, As I Have Always Been, 7x09 Sousy is the het ship between Daniel Sousa and Daisy Johnson from the Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. fandom.

First Meeting in Area 51
While in the year 1955, Daisy Johnson was sent to rescue Phil Coulson and Jemma Simmons who had been arrested after infiltrating the S.H.I.E.L.D. base in Area 51 in order to stop Helius. There, she sneaks into Daniel Sousa's office and upon meeting him, pretends to be a C.I.A. Agent and confirms his suspicion that there were "sleepers" posted within S.H.I.E.L.D. post World War II - referring to Hydra. Daisy convinces Sousa that Coulson and Simmons are the key to proving this, causing him to trust her and lead her to them.

Once they reach the cells, Sousa warns Daisy to stand back as the prisoners may get "jumpy", seemingly concerned for her safety. Coulson and Simmons are let out and Daisy requests alone time with them but Sousa refuses to leave them alone. At that moment, an alarm goes off and Coulson throws Sousa into the cell and locks him in. Coulson, Simmons and Daisy run off to investigate the source of the alarm as Daisy swears to him that they are the good guys.

Rewriting History
After Coulson was arrested by Sousa again, due to an E.M.P. Generator causing him to shut down, he managed to contact the team and inform them that this was the day Daniel Sousa was supposed to die, thus becoming the first fallen agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. Sousa was meant to deliver an important device which would be the building block of all future S.H.I.E.L.D. technology and make sure it ends up in the hands of Howard Stark. Unfortunately, after successfully completing his mission, Sousa would be murdered by Hydra to prevent him from revealing that they had infiltrated S.H.I.E.L.D. at the highest level.

While on the train, in the midst of awaiting the team to bring him the package to be delivered, Coulson is quietly confronted by the Chronicom Luke who threatens to kill Sousa early if Coulson and his team don't back down. At that moment, Hydra agents surround Sousa in a train compartment and he is attacked, almost getting choked to death. Fortunately, Daisy and Mack appear right on time, rescuing Sousa and bringing him back to the Zephyr to keep him safe.

Once on the Quinjet, Sousa is awed by the unfamiliar technology and demands to know which group they are with but Daisy tells him that they are "off the books" and who they are is classified. Sousa seemingly accepts this for the time being and tells them about Hydra but they inform him that they already know, and he responds with shock at their nonchalance.

Later, Daisy and Sousa sit together in the hangar while Sousa tries to take in the horrible news that Hydra has been burrowed deep in S.H.I.E.L.D. this whole time, while his superior, Wilfred "Freddy" Malick is the head. Daisy confirms this and Sousa expresses his anger that she and the team are involved in all this secrecy and he is unable to act on what he has learnt. Daisy tries to tell him that Wilfred Malick is only a piece of it and if he is exposed, he would only go deeper underground, making it all the more difficult to stop him. At this, Sousa exclaims that he would follow them until he exposes them, as Hydra has taken a lot of good people away from him. He continues by saying he would give his life for this fight. Daisy quietly sympathizes with him as she understands what he's going through and seems saddened as she knows his ultimate fate.

Daisy is then called by Mack as he lets her in on their decision to save Sousa and prevent his death, which makes her happy. However, Sousa gets agitated as he is supposed to deliver the package at 9 pm, not knowing about their plan of making the delivery for him. Through her newly formed empath abilities, May discovers that Sousa has an overwhelming urge to run. Before anyone could stop him, he takes a motorcycle from the hangar and rides away.

Fortunately, after safely delivering the package, Sousa is intercepted by Coulson and iced as he is safely brought back to the Zephyr. Coulson being an L.M.D, manages to disguise himself as Sousa, allowing the hired Hydra agent to shoot him instead. Daisy and Simmons disguise themselves as EMTs and collect Coulson's "body", their plan of faking Sousa's death a success.

Sousa wakes up disoriented on the Zephyr as Coulson tries to ease his transition. He finally tells Sousa the truth and what they're up against, as well as them being S.H.I.E.L.D. from the future. Sousa takes this news better than expected and tells Coulson that he should have led with that. They then regroup with the team as Sousa asks which time period they are in. Through Deke's hijacking of the radio, it is determined that they are in the year 1973 based on the song "No More Mister Nice Guy" playing on the station.

Embracing the 1970s
After jumping to 1973 New York, Daisy and Sousa accompany May and Coulson on a mission to locate Enoch at The Krazy Kanoe which was still in use as a S.H.I.E.L.D. safe house. Before going to the speakeasy, however, they split up to find period appropriate clothing, May with Coulson and Daisy with Sousa. Daisy and Sousa go together to a clothing store to find new outfits. When May and Coulson return from their own shopping, Daisy is waiting outside after already changing into 70s style clothing while Sousa is still inside picking his outfit. When May asks how Sousa is handling his unexpected time travel, Daisy admires Sousa's fortitude by remarking that it's miraculous that he isn't "projectile vomiting."

Sousa then emerges from the clothing store still in his original 50s suit, having not changed at all. When Daisy questions his choice of not blending in, he remarks that he doesn't understand the functionality of "elephant pants," meaning bell bottoms. When he wonders how people from Daisy's time manages with the extra pant leg fabric, Coulson reveals that the 70s is not actually their period either. Daisy remarks that there's "unfashionable squares in every decade" so Sousa should be fine in what he's wearing.

The group proceeds to the Krazy Kanoe and Sousa begins to question the time travel mechanics at play and the implications of them rescuing him from his death. Daisy tells him not to think too much about it or his "brains will spill out." Coulson suggests that Sousa talk to Simmons and possibly stay on the Zephyr but Sousa resolutely states that he prefers to dive in and embrace being in the 70s. At that moment a man in short-shorts with long hair and a boom box on his shoulder roller skates through the group and shocks Sousa. After a second, Sousa turns to the bar and mentions that he'll embrace the 70s starting from then on, instead. The others don't comment on the awkward moment and follow him to the bar's door.

The team enters the Krazy Kanoe after Daisy interrupts Coulson from peppering Sousa with questions about his memories of the speakeasy from his time and his memories of Chief Dooley from Sousa's S.S.R. days. Inside, the four find that the bar is in the middle of hosting a party.

Her Fiancé
While investigating the disappearance of Enoch and the celebration, Daisy and the others discover that not only has Wilfred Malick survived 3 years past his historical death date but that Project Insight has been moved up from 2014 to launch in 1976.

The four split up to learn more and Daisy finds herself meeting a young Gideon Malick, Freddy's oldest son, who interrupts her watching his younger brother named Nathaniel. Gideon attempts to pick Daisy up romantically by handing her a new drink as he sits at her table even though she already has a drink in her hand. Daisy smoothly transitions into covertly pumping Gideon for information while he attempts to flirt. She learns a potential location of Wilfred's secret Hydra office. However, when she tries to end the conversation to continue investigating, he becomes more aggressive in his efforts to pick her up, making her pause.

Sousa spots Daisy's predicament from across the room and calls out to her with a quick "sweetheart" while stepping into her side, wrapping his arm around her, and rubbing her back. Daisy immediately understands his ploy and plays along as if they are a couple. She introduces Gideon to Sousa and when she's about to introduce Sousa in return, he interrupts by calling himself her fiancé while giving Gideon a pointed look. Daisy hesitates, seemingly not expecting the fiancé part, but ultimately reinforces the label before Gideon notices her hesitation. Sousa suggests to Daisy that they need to leave and they excuse themselves from the conversation. Sousa takes a moment as he walks by to give Gideon a scathing glance while Gideon, in annoyance, tells Daisy she's welcome for the drink he gave her. Daisy replies under her breath that she'll repay him later, referencing when she kills his older self in her own past while under Hive's sway. Sousa asks after the strange encounter but she only tells him it's a long story.

Daisy informs Sousa that she's learned that Nathaniel Malick has also survived his historical death date 3 years before and Sousa remarks that even more timeline changes have happened. He asks if Daisy got any useful information and she's mentions that she may have found a place where they can find some. The two proceed on their mission together.

More than Just a Trout in the Milk
Daisy and Sousa enter the back office in the Krazy Kanoe. Daisy locates the lever to the secret door and Sousa asks her if she's been there before. Daisy answers that she was there a few days before, back in 1931. The two discover the office has been filled with 70s era computers and other tech. Sousa is impressed by the "high tech" machines while Daisy remarks that it must be Wilfred's new base of operations for Hydra.

While Daisy searches the completely unprotected computer database, Sousa finds a gun in a drawer and takes it. Daisy finds the kill list for the 70s Project Insight and discovers it's a list of S.H.I.E.L.D. asset names with some being children who grow up to be important to the spy organization in her own time period. Sousa follows the logic behind the Chronicoms picking off young S.H.I.E.L.D. assets and wonders if Daisy's team made the timeline worse with their meddling. Daisy cautions him about speculating but Sousa calls the situation more than just a "trout in the milk," reusing a phrase he used earlier with Coulson that means circumstantial evidence. When Daisy gives him a confused look, not understanding the outdated phrase, Sousa explains that the list is concrete evidence that the Chronicoms are deliberately changing the timeline because they are the only ones who could've given Hydra names from the future.

Back in the main part of the bar, Daisy and Sousa find May and Coulson being cornered by Wilfred and the Chronicoms. When Sousa asks her what should they do, Daisy comes up with a plan to hold Nathaniel hostage as leverage using the gun Sousa stole to allow the four of them to escape. The plan works when Wilfred is unwilling to allow his son to be harmed. Sousa disapproves of the move but goes along with it. However, when the Chronicoms follow Daisy and Sousa out of the bar and are about to shoot them, Daisy uses her quake powers to throw the robots into the wall. Sousa is shocked at the sudden reveal of Daisy's super powers but Daisy deflects his questions again, saying she'll explain later. They hurry to the others and escape when Enoch appears with a getaway car.

Partnered Up
After returning to the Zephyr to regroup, Daisy and Sousa update the team on what they found in Wilfred's office. Sousa notices that the time window clock starts to malfunction and Z1 suddenly jumps 3 more years because the Chronicoms' plan changes. Sousa demands answers from Daisy about why they jumped to 1976 while chasing her through a hallway but she again cannot give him any sufficient information. The team gathers to come up with a plan to stop Project Insight from launching the next day.

When dividing up duties, Sousa volunteers to go with Daisy and be her back up while she hacks into the Lighthouse. He says he prefers to be working the problem out with her than on the Zephyr where they could jump unexpectedly again. Neither Daisy or Mack object to Sousa being Daisy's partner for the mission and the two leave for the Lighthouse.

Sousa's Last Stop
In the alley behind the Lighthouse, Daisy begins to work on hacking the base's security feed. Sousa tells her to do her thing since he will have her back. He remarks that she must not carry a gun since she has super serum powers. Daisy just says that it's not quite a super serum thing but offers no real explanation. Sousa remarks that he should know better than to get straight answers out of Daisy, given all the times she'd been cryptic with him since they'd met.

When Daisy voices frustration over finding a firewall in place unlike 3 years before, Sousa moves closer to her while keeping his gun trained on the mouth of the alley. He says that things seem to get worse the later they jump in time. He then says that 1976 may be his last stop, implying he wants to leave Z1 once they finish the current mission. Daisy tries to reassure him that the firewall is no issue and that her software will just need a minute to crack it.

Sousa remarks that maybe the problem is that her computer is too small. Daisy laughs lightly and when he asks her what's funny, she pulls out her cell phone and takes a picture of him. She shows him the picture and how to zoom in while Sousa is wowed by the "advanced technology" of the 21st century. Daisy tells him that he looks "okay for a guy who just aged 20 years."

The comment makes Sousa reflect on how much he's missed having jumped forward in time. Daisy recognizes his sadness and tries to comfort him by apologizing for how messed up things became for him and explaining that the team has to follow the Chronicoms when they jump or things would be much worse for history. Sousa says that he understands but laments that he couldn't say some goodbyes, presumably to his friends, family, and colleagues.

Later, when trying to hack a new checkpoint for May and Coulson, Daisy asks Sousa for his help with unlocking a panel. While Sousa is opening the panel and Daisy is distracted with her hacking, Nathaniel Malick gets the drop on them and shoots them with a Chronicom rifle, stunning them. Nathaniel thanks them for coming back into his life before kidnapping them. Daisy and Sousa are later seen tied up and unconscious in the back of Nathaniel's van.

Kidnapped Together
After being kidnapped, Daisy wakes up heavily drugged and chained in a barn tack room with Sousa sitting beside her, also drugged. Sousa says he's glad she's awake and when she groans over her drugged state, he mentions that he has not been as messed up since the field hospital, presumably after his injury during World War II. Daisy expresses interest in hearing his story at a later time when she can remember it.

Daisy tries to use her powers to unchain her feet only to find that she can't quake. She calls Nathaniel "Malick's little psycho" just as he walks in with a couple of men. He taunts both Sousa and Daisy about capturing them while also denying that he did so for Hydra, claiming that he is not working for the organization but for his own ends. Sousa and Daisy wonder why he took them and Nathaniel reveals that after he was held hostage briefly by Daisy in 1973 and witnessed her abilities first hand, he became interested in people with powers after years of not really caring about his family's Hydra business.

He also reveals that he believes Sousa is an Inhuman because he has not aged since the 50s. When Daisy starts to say Sousa is not an Inhuman in an attempt to protect him, Nathaniel says "he better hope he is" in an ominous tone. Daisy stops talking to prevent Nathaniel from killing or harming Sousa immediately.

Daisy protests that her powers can't be obtained like the super serum because they are genetic. Nathaniel reveals that he's used his money and family connections in Hydra to contact Dr. Werner Reinhardt, aka Daniel Whitehall, to get his notes and theoretical research on transferring powered abilities. Sousa recognizes the name Reinhardt as someone that was caught during the war, referencing the events of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. 2x01 where Peggy Carter arrested Reinhardt in 1945.

Daisy threatens to crush Nathaniel, understanding what he plans to do to them because of her mother's encounter with Whitehall. Nathaniel tauntingly dares her to try and when she still can't use her powers, he tells his goon that they will start the experiments with Daisy and she is taken from the room.

We Are Going Home
Some time later, Sousa peers helplessly through a crack in the wall as Daisy is experimented on in the next room by Nathaniel. Nathaniel tells his men to take Daisy away so they don't "kill the golden goose" and a crash his heard. Nathaniel tells off his men and Sousa scrambles to hide the fact that he was peeking through the wall.

The men drag a semi-unconscious Daisy into the room and chain her to the wall again. Daisy's wounds are sloppily bandaged and her shirt and shoes have been removed, leaving her in only a bloody undershirt and jeans. Nathaniel is following after them, also covered in Daisy's blood. Sousa angrily asks what Nathaniel did to Daisy and Nathaniel explains that he drained Daisy of some of her blood, spinal fluid, and removed a couple of her glands. He says he will synthesize them and transfuse them to himself, despite the risk to himself, because he wants to try something new. Nathaniel then threatens that if it doesn't work, he'll switch to knives for more invasive experimentation. He and his men leave the room.

Sousa calls out "Daisy," the first time he uses her given name, and crawls over to her in worry. She is only partially awake and is mumbling that this has happened before while mentioning her mother's name, referencing the fact that Jiaying was cut up by Whitehall for the same purpose of stealing powers. Sousa, not understanding what she's saying, lifts Daisy and moves to rest her head on his thigh.

He begins to tell her the story of how he lost his leg in the war, mentioning her earlier interest. He tells her that he doesn't remember the initial hit but when he woke up, his leg was a "pulpy mess" and he was alone. Then his unit mate, Mike Stephens, appeared and though the man was an ass usually he helped Sousa by staying with him until they could return home from the front line, ultimately revealing that Mike did not survive although the man saved Sousa's life.

While Sousa tells his story, he checks Daisy's pulse and is relieved to find her heart is still beating. He strokes her hair as she lets out the occasional pained groan and woozily noses into his leg. When she begins to fully lose consciousness, Sousa leans down to tap her on the back and wake her up. He says that he's telling her the story of his leg and Mike to pay it forward. He leans over her and holds her head in his hands to speak more directly into her ear, repeating the words that Mike Stephens said to him: "We are going home."

He tells Daisy that she has to fight, calling her "Agent Johnson." After his impassioned words, Daisy lifts up her closed fist and Sousa opens her bloody hand to find that she has secretly hidden a shard of glass beneath the skin of her palm. He removes the glass as she cries out in pain. With surprise and admiration at her ability to procure them a weapon, he acknowledges that Daisy still has plenty of fight left in her after all. Sousa grabs hold of the glass and looks to the door, formulating a plan on how to use the weapon Daisy gave him to help them escape.

Quotes
"We're the good guys, I swear!"

- Daisy Johnson to Daniel Sousa, Alien Commies from the Future!, 7x03

"Well, it's easier to let a bad man live, than to let a good man die."

- Alphonso Mackenzie to Phil Coulson about Daniel Sousa, Out of the Past, 7x04

"This is a fight I'll wage alone if I have to. I'd give my life for it."

- Daniel Sousa to Daisy Johnson, Out of the Past, 7x04

"Cool. Writing some new history. Copy that."

- Daisy Johnson about Daniel Sousa, Out of the Past, 7x04

Behind the Scenes
"But then it just works, and it also, again, mirrors life and what often happens. It’s finally when you work on yourself and when you’re not looking for something… You know the old saying, you get stuck in a time loop and fall in love! Classic, old-time story! I thought they did it in a really clever way....It’s taken me watching [the season] to go, ‘Oh my god, I really loved it for her.’ I thought it was actually — in a weird, sci-fi, nerdy way — totally romantic and totally makes sense. Of course, it would be him! And I actually really find both Sousa and Enver to be incredibly complementing to the storyline and to that character. And to feel her growth. Someone who loves strong women, it’s really fun to watch. So I’m a total shipper!"

- Chloe Bennet on her character's pairing with Daniel Sousa in an interview with Fandom

"I knew the producers had been trying to find a love interest for Chloe for a long time. Watching it with a bit of distance, I can actually see why it works so well. We felt like there was something happening, but then you see it on the screen... There’s something about it that I don’t know how, but it just works."

- Enver Gjokaj on his character's pairing with Daisy Johnson in an interview with Men's Health

"I full-blown have been fangirling about them on screen, which I haven't done for any of the other people that I- that Daisy was with. It's so sweet. I actually really think it's really, really cute. I don't know, I just think that they're so opposite and they balance each other out so well. And the chemistry worked, like, on camera.[....]But yeah, it's really, really nice to see Daisy finally happy and with the right one. I hope fans like it."

- Chloe Bennet to Entertainment Weekly

"I think just like in real life, [they work because of] how absolutely improbably the whole thing is. It's just something that doesn't work until somebody comes along and breaks all the rules, you know? Chloe and I had great chemistry. It just felt pretty easy."

- Enver Gjokaj to Entertainment Weekly

"We were hopeful that [Daisy and Sousa] would have chemistry, and we felt like we could write Sousa into a place, and her into a place, that felt like it would be organic to them....Seeing them on-screen and seeing them play, we were pretty confident that it would work."

- Jed Whedon on pairing Daisy Johnson with Daniel Sousa in an interview with TVLine

"The chemistry was something that was a hope. It was a hope, but we weren't for sure. But fortunately, because TV is made on the fly, you can react to what you see, and we felt like the chemistry was there right from the start. Once we found the angle, it actually came from Chloe laughing at something Enver said and just laughing at it, like 'This goof', and that was like a light bulb of, 'Oh, she thinks he's a dork.'"

- Jed Whedon on pairing Daisy Johnson with Daniel Sousa in an interview with ComicBook.com

"Right. They're such an unlikely pair. And we liked the idea of Daisy, this strong, powerful woman who's been through a slew of failed relationships, doesn't even realize that she's finding him charming. She's just finding him goofy. So she can't quite put her finger on it until it's right there, until she has to go through a time loop over and over and over again, that same moment where she realizes, 'My God, this guy is so solid.'"

- Maurissa Tancharoen on pairing Daisy Johnson with Daniel Sousa in an interview with ComicBook.com

Fanon
Even though the Sousy pairing was introduced midway through the final season, it has been met with positive acclaim. Fans have been frustrated with Daisy Johnson's bad luck when it comes to her romantic relationships as all her previous love interests have either ended up dead or evil.

Daniel Sousa on the other hand has also experienced heartbreak through his failed relationship with Peggy Carter who ultimately ends up with her lost love; Steve Rogers. While many fans of Agent Carter are PeggySous shippers, most agree that Sousa has been a nice foil to all of Daisy's seemingly "bad boy" pairings, seeing as he is more chivalrous and straight-laced.

Their relationship was somewhat foreshadowed back in season 6 when Daisy tells Simmons that what she really wanted was her own "Fitz", referring to their devotion to each other. Since Daisy is often attracted to the selfless and heroic types similar to Lincoln Campbell, fans agree that Sousa would provide a more stable and mature relationship as they balance each other out through their strengths.

Fandom
FAN FICTION

TUMBLR

REVIEWS
 * Agents of SHIELD's New Relationship Is Actually GOOD by Nicholas Raymond, ScreenRant.com
 * Daisy Johnson and Daniel Sousa: the Most Surprising TV Romance of the Year by Amber Topping, The Silver Petticoat Review

Trivia

 * Elizabeth Henstridge, who plays Jemma Simmons, directed the episode featuring Daisy and Sousa's first kiss.
 * Enver Gjokaj, who plays Daniel Sousa, came up with their ship name; "Dousy".

Videos
Official Videos/Clips