FitzSimmons

"The one thing I've known without a doubt–the whole time–is you and Fitz belong together."

- Daisy to Jemma; Self- Control

FitzSimmons is the het ship between Leopold Fitz and Jemma Simmons from the Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. fandom.

Pre-Series
Leo Fitz and Jemma Simmons met at the S.H.I.E.L.D. Academy of Science and Technology, both having genius-level intellects. This led to initial animosity as they were both the smartest in their class and would constantly compete with each other. They never really spoke to one another until they were paired together in chem lab, where they first realized they were smarter as a team.

Working Together
One night, the two planned to meet in Fitz's dorm room but Simmons was held up in a conversation with Professor Weaver which caused her to be twenty-four minutes late. This worried Fitz as he assumed she had blown him off but was relieved when she finally showed up. Fitz explained the reason he invited her to his room was because she seemed like a good Sounding Board which Simmons interpreted as him seeing her as a "thick wall". Fitz awkwardly tried to correct himself and explained that he meant they were good at bouncing ideas off each other and Simmons was great at clarifying them and mapping out their consequential results.

According to Fitz, this was the night he went from being totally nervous in her presence to being completely at ease. Simmons revealed that this was the night she put him in the friend zone.

Around this time, Simmons got into a relationship with Milton, to Fitz's dismay. It did not work out between them because according to Simmons, Milton always agreed with whatever she said which turned her off.

After they both graduated from the Academy three years early, it was around this time that Simmons convinced Fitz to apply for a field assignment with her, even against the advice of Professor Vaughn. She wanted to see more than the inside of a lab, remarking that it would be the perfect opportunity to see the world. This led them to be recruited by Phil Coulson to join his team. "I said there would come a moment when we would regret the decision to go in the field. I didn't think that would happen in week one."

- Leo Fitz to Jemma Simmons, The 0-8-4, 1x02 After every horrible thing they eventually had to endure, Fitz remarked that this was the moment- their decision to join the field- that started it all for them, causing all their pain throughout the years.

Field Work
Their first foray into field work involved them looking for a way to stabilize the Centipede serum in Mike Peterson. They then had to overcome an armed takeover of The Bus from the Peruvian armed forces after the discovery of an 0-8-4, along with Skye (later, Daisy Johnson), Melinda May and Grant Ward. After discovering Gravitonium as the cause of an attack, their third mission involved them helping Skye and the rest of their team infiltrate Ian Quinn's compound in Malta to rescue their mentor, Dr. Franklin Hall. Fitz, Simmons and Melinda May observed and helped Skye from The Bus. It was later revealed that Hall orchestrated his capture in order to destroy Quinn's compound and with it, the Gravitonium, taking innocent lives in the process. Next, Fitz and Simmons were tasked with disarming the explosive in Akela Amador's eye, saving her life in the process. When it was revealed Skye had betrayed them by helping her boyfriend who worked for the Rising Tide and was involved in leaking information which caused the capture and death of Chan Ho Yin, Fitz and Simmons were deeply hurt. Fitz was a lot more affected as he seemed to have developed a crush on Skye.

Psychically Linked
Fitz and Skye were hanging out in the lab with Ward testing out the new Night Night Gun Fitz designed when Ward deemed it to be an ounce off. This leads Fitz to make fun of Ward by imitating him when he leaves the room, eliciting a laugh from Skye, to Fitz's delight. He comments that they think the same way while Skye assumes he is talking about himself and Simmons and remarks that its like they are "psychically linked." Fitz immediately denies this. However, when Simmons enters the room and is told of Ward's fussiness, she too makes fun of him the exact way Fitz did, indicating that they do indeed think the same way and share the same mind.

Alien Virus
"Pasty? Oh, really? Well since when did you become so sun-kissed? Because I'm pretty sure that every minute of every day, you've been stuck in a lab right beside me. At the Academy, at Sci-Ops, this plane! You've been beside me the whole damn time."

- Leo Fitz to Jemma Simmons, FZZT 1X06 The team was called in to investigate mysterious floating dead bodies. It was discovered that the cause was an alien virus passed along from a Chitauri Helmet left behind after the Battle of New York. While explaining the propagating properties of the virus to Coulson, he realized that Simmons was infected after she displayed symptoms of the virus, causing metal objects to float. She would be killed in three hours, causing an electric pulse to be emitted, bringing down their plane and everyone in it. During this time, Fitz tried his best to encourage her but the overwhelming pressure and dread took over which caused them both to lash out at each other. However, through their arguing, Simmons managed to figure something out which could possibly lead to creating an antiserum. This caused Fitz to run into Simmons' containment area with the Chitauri Helmet, risking contamination and death in order to help her with the cure, saying they were going to fix this together.

Unfortunately, their tests failed and it seemed that all hope was lost. Fitz, not wanting to give up, continued to work but Simmons, who had given up hope knocked him out to prevent him from stopping her plan of jumping out of the plane in order to save everybody before she released the pulse. Unbeknownst to her the cure worked and only had a delayed reaction on the final test. This caused her to jump off the plane, leaving Fitz tragically screaming after her. Fitz prepared the cure and was going to jump out after her but he was unable to get the straps of his parachute on in time. Instead, Ward jumped out after her, giving her the cure and saving her life. Later in his bunk, Fitz was trying to explain to Simmons why he wasn't the one who jumped out and saved her but Simmons reassures him and says that he was the real hero as he was by her side, helping her and giving her hope the whole time. She kisses Fitz on the cheek as a thank you before leaving his bunk. It is implied that Fitz may have deeper feelings than friendship towards her as he sits there in silence.

This marked the first of many dangers they had to overcome together.

The Famous Sandwich
Fitz and Ward were assigned by Victoria Hand to infiltrate the border of South Ossetia to disable a deadly device called Overkill. Fitz was the only one with the skills to disable it and Ward was the only one with specific contacts to get them over the border. Simmons was visibly worried about Fitz and kept fussing over him, giving him an anti-venom pack, in case of spider bites. Fitz being clearly annoyed, reminded her not to do anything stupid while he was gone. like jumping out of a plane. Simmons also gave him his favorite sandwich (prosciutto and buffalo mozzarella with a hint of her homemade pesto aioli), which she made for him to take on his mission. "You don't have anything to prove. What you said about me always needing to swoop in- I know you would have jumped out of the plane to save Simmons, and she knows that too"

- Grant Ward to Leo Fitz, The Hub 1x07 Despite his inexperience, Fitz was vital in the success of the mission and proved he was every bit the S.H.I.E.L.D agent Ward was, having his back the entire time.

Once they returned, when Simmons asked if he enjoyed the sandwich, Fitz replied that it was delicious as he cared about her feelings, despite Ward previously throwing it away to prevent them from being tracked by dogs.

Remaining Missions Before the Fall of S.H.I.E.L.D.
Fitz and Simmons assisted in the cleanup of the Battle of Greenwich, following the aftermath of Thor; The Dark World. They, along with Coulson visited Elliot Randolph who provided key information in locating The Berserker Staff which would assist in defeating a group of extremists who had stolen the staff and had gained enhanced strength and rage. Randolph turned out to be an Asgardian whom the staff belonged to. May and Ward managed to defeat the insurgents while Fitz, Simmons and Coulson successfully saved the life of a severely wounded Randolph. He remarked that Simmons might possibly be the most beautiful thing he had seen in a thousand years.

Fitz and Simmons were also tasked with gathering information about an explosion which may have caused the woman in charge, Hannah Hutchins to developed telekinetic powers. There they reminisced on their time at S.H.I.E.L.D academy and together decided to prank Skye. This indicated the playful nature of their relationship. In the end, it was realized that it was actually one of the victims of the explosion, Tobias Ford who was trapped between two dimensions. He accidentally caused the explosion and was the cause of the supposedly 'telekinetic' occurrences to protect Hannah as he was in love with her.

Mike Peterson was sent to work with the team and Fitz and Simmons were thrilled when they realized they were the ones responsible for stabilizing the Centipede serum in him. Simmons was seemingly admiring Peterson's well-built physique and commented that he was nice and symmetrical to Fitz's annoyance.

When Coulson went missing, Fitz and Simmons assisted in finding him by helping Skye track down certain money trails associated with Raina and Project Centipede. The team managed to find and bring back Coulson safely.

Following an attack at the S.H.I.E.L.D. Academy of Science and Technology, Fitz and Simmons were invited to give a talk. There, they managed to save a young cadet named Donnie Gill who seemed to have been hurt with a freezing device. It was discovered that Donnie had been working with another cadet named Seth Dormer to bring Fitz to the academy to solve their power problem. They intended to power a bigger device to sell to Ian Quinn. Unfortunately, the device caused a massive storm which led to the death of Seth. Fitz attempted to comfort Donnie but was pushed away. It was revealed that Donnie developed ice powers after being exposed to the machine.

Fitz and Simmons were forced out of their niche into undercover field work with the rest of the team in Italy. Simmons was paired up with Coulson while Fitz was paired up with Skye. It was discovered that they were made and were now being chased. Simmons ran to warn Fitz and Skye but was hit with an enhanced version of dendrotoxin causing her to fall unconscious. Out of concern for her, Fitz placed her in a safer and more comfortable position, arming her with a weapon as he and Skye went on to infiltrate Quinn's mansion. This caused Skye to get shot twice in the stomach by Quinn and Fitz blamed himself for letting her go in alone. Simmons frantically tried to save Skye and managed to stabilize her for the time being. Once she was alone, while trying to clean the blood from her hands, Fitz finds her and embraces her as she breaks down in his arms, finding comfort with him. Coulson then gives both Fitz and Simmons Level 10 access to his .T.A.H.I.T.I files to find something that can cure Skye. Simmons manages to find a drug called GH.325 while Fitz successfully decripts a code for the location of this drug. Fitz, Coulson, Ward and Agent John Garrett manages to infiltrate the base housing the drug and retrieve it. Agent Antoine "Trip" Tripplet, May and Simmons worked to keep Skye stable. Simmons manages to inject Skye with the drug in time, saving her life, causing Agents Tripplet's admiration towards her.

The team also worked with Lady Sif of Asgard to defeat Lorelai who had the power to enthrall men to do her bidding. Fitz was one of her victims and worked with Ward who was also under her spell to keep Lady Sif away from her. He was knocked out by Coulson after being distracted by Simmons away from the containment module holding Lady Sif. Fitz managed to successfully repair a collar which Lady Sif used to negate Lorelai's powers and contain her.

Simmons was called to the Hub to be a consultant on Deathlok and was happily surprised that Trip would be her escort as she was seemingly attracted to him. This annoyed Fitz, harboring some animosity towards Trip as he was jealous of the attention Simmons was paying him.

The Hydra Reveal
Fitz, Coulson, Skye and Agent Garrett discovered the secret coded message that went out, revealing that Hydra had infiltrated S.H.I.E.L.D at the deepest and highest levels. Fitz and the rest of the team decided to go back to The Hub to rescue Simmons who they believed was in danger. Back at The Hub, Simmons and Trip managed to pass the test that Victoria Hand developed to root out Hydra moles. It proved that Hand was not the Clairvoyant whose identity still remained a mystery. Coulson and the team managed to infiltrate The Hub and it was discovered that Garrett was The Clairvoyant and a Hydra agent all along. Coulson and May managed to fight Garrett and other Hydra soldiers, with Fitz saving May's life by shooting a Hydra soldier. Victoria Hand then stepped in and arrested Garrett. Fitz and Simmons are reunited and the two embrace.The team then make their way to Providence base where they had to take lie detector tests to prove they were not Hydra agents. When asked what would be in a box when he was trapped in a deserted island, Fitz replied; "Simmons". Fitz also continued to notice Simmons' attraction towards Trip especially when she vouched for him to join their team which Coulson agreed to if she'd take full responsibility for him. This further enhanced Fitz's animosity and distrust towards Trip. Ward notices this and advises Fitz to tell Simmons how he truly feels about her but Fitz dismisses it, still in denial about his own feelings and afraid it might change things between him and Simmons. Coulson, Trip, Fitz and Simmons then travel to Portland to stop Blackout who was constantly stalking Audrey Nathan. Simmons confronts Fitz about his behavior towards Trip who believed he may have offended him in some way. Fitz lies to reassure her that he was just being his grumpy self as per usual.

Ward's Betrayal
It was revealed that Ward was an undercover Hydra agent the whole time, working for Garrett. Fitz and Simmons simultaneously discover Skye's message about Ward being Hydra and Agent Sam Koenig's murdered body respectively. Fitz was still in denial about Ward's betrayal, believing that he was being forced to do those things and holding out hope for his friend. In his anger and hurt, he lashes out and Simmons tries to comfort him. After rescuing Skye, the team settles in a hotel for the night and Fitz asks Simmons to tell him that she's not Hydra as he wouldn't know what to do if she was. Simmons reassures him that he will never have to find out because she is not Hydra.

The team managed to locate Ward and Garrett in Cuba and Fitz and Simmons locates the hijacked Bus. They planted a tracking device and were about to leave when they were captured by Ward. Garrett ordered Ward to "put down" Fitz and Simmons but they managed to lock themselves in a medical pod before Ward could shoot them. Instead, despite their pleading and reminding him about their friendship, Ward ejects them into the ocean. Fitz manages to strap himself and Simmons down before they hit the water, breaking his arm in the process while Simmons is rendered unconscious.

Best Friends Forever
When Simmons regained consciousness, she realized that they were indeed trapped at the bottom of the ocean with no means of escape. Accepting their fate, Fitz and Simmons proceed to have a beautiful conversation about death where Simmons explains that she believes death isn't so bad as their energy would be conserved in other beings throughout the universe following the First Law of Thermodynamics. Fitz seems enthralled by her words and it is implied that he was about to tell her how he truly felt about her. However, at that moment, Simmons discovers a possible means of escape and the two excitedly try to solve the problem together.

With the detonation ready, Fitz handed Simmons an air-supply which could only be used once by one of them. He rationalized that she was a better swimmer than him and it would be better if she took the oxygen instead. Simmons completely refused to take the oxygen demanding why he would make her do such a thing as he was her best friend. In a particularly heart-wrenching moment, Fitz finally confesses his feelings for Jemma saying that she was more than a friend to him and he didn't have the courage to tell her before this and pleaded with her to let him show her how he felt. Jemma, overcome with tears and grief, peppers his face with kisses. She heartbreakingly screams as Fitz presses down on the detonator, allowing the water to explode in. With the last vestiges of her strength, she manages to pull Fitz along with her as she swims up to the surface and screams for help. They are ultimately rescued by Nick Fury who managed to locate them from the EKG signal they rigged.

Jemma reunites with the team, sadly informing them that Fitz was alive but his brain was without oxygen for a long period of time and he was in a coma for nine days. He would never be the same again.

This major incident was the start of their constant separations and their tragic love story.

Estrangement
Fitz and Simmons' relationship was never the same again as they had grown apart due to Fitz's brain injury and Simmons' undercover work in Hydra."Fitz said he could engineer cloaking, but... I'm afraid he can't do anything. The damage to his temporal lobe was too extensive. He's not the same"

- Phil Coulson, Shadows 2x01 Fitz was not told about Simmons going undercover and assumed she left because she did not feel the same way about him after he confessed his feelings. Her leaving broke him and he began to have hallucinations of her, acting as his conscience. He was constantly talking to himself, trying to get by. He felt useless as everyone around him was treating him as if he was fragile glass. The only person who treated him normally was Agent Alphonso "Mack" Mackenzie. The two quickly become close friends. Coulson eventually tells Fitz about Simmons' true mission and Fitz asks if it was her choice to be sent on the mission but Coulson gives him a vague answer, telling him that the work she was doing was extremely important.

Meanwhile, Simmons faced the ever-looming threat of being exposed and killed while undercover in Hydra. However, she managed to gain their trust and was made privy to high-level projects within Hydra which allowed her to pass on valuable Intel to Coulson. When it was too dangerous for her to remain in Hydra anymore, Coulson entrusted Agent Bobbi Morse to extract Simmons upon her cover being blown, narrowly escaping with her life.

Reunited
Fitz and Simmons finally reunite but things are awkward between them and they don't play the same by bouncing off ideas and are unable to interact as usual with each other anymore. Finally, Fitz confronts Simmons on why she left and hurtfully accuses her of thinking he was useless. He tells her he was worried about her being killed while in Hydra. Simmons tearfully tells him she didn't leave because she thought he was useless but doesn't elaborate and leaves the room. She eventually tells Mack the reason she left was because her presence only made Fitz's condition worsen and she was trying to help him get better.

Simmons reveals to Bobbi what happened between her and Fitz at the bottom of the ocean and admits she didn't even have time to process Fitz's declaration towards her before everything was happening at once. She never thought of Fitz as being anything more than a friend and yet she could never imagine a life without him which leaves her confused.

Tensions between Fitz and Simmons continue to worsen as they avoid each other completely. Finally, Fitz tells Simmons he can't work with her anymore and instead will work for her as she is more capable. He plans to work with Mack in the garage, which leaves Simmons heartbroken. They do, however, briefly forget their issues and embrace each other when the Kree City they enter begins to shake, triggered by Skye's newly formed inhuman powers.

No Longer Friends
After the death of Trip, Simmons became increasingly afraid of anything alien and strongly advised killing Raina who was also an inhuman transformed by the Terrigen Mist. Fitz who recently discovered Skye's drastically different DNA kept this a secret from Simmons to protect Skye from everyone's fear and judgement. When the truth finally came out about Skye, Simmons felt hurt and betrayed by Fitz's lie while Fitz accuses Simmons of being the one who has drastically changed into someone who is more close-minded and afraid. The two stop speaking to each other.Simmons constructs special gauntlets for Skye and constantly checks up on her when she is sent to an isolated cabin to better control her powers. Fitz accuses Simmons for not accepting Skye for who she truly is and leaves the room.

They did have a brief moment where they seemed to be back to their old friendly selves when they started gossiping about the ever-serious Melinda May and a sweet moment she shared with her ex-husband, Andrew Garner. This was the first step in repairing their friendship.

Reconciliation
During the Real S.H.I.E.L.D. takeover, while they were detained in their lab, Simmons quietly held Fitz's hand and he reciprocated by holding hers as well, needing no words to express all their regret and how much they ultimately cared for each other. The two finally reconcile.

Fitz decided to quit S.H.I.E.L.D during the takeover as he was loyal to Coulson. Agent Robert Gonzales wanted access to Fury's Toolbox which only Coulson had the means to open. This allowed Simmons to come up with a plan where she duplicated the Toolbox and smuggled the real one in Fitz's backpack as he left so he could pass it along to Coulson. She also packed him his favorite prosciutto and buffalo mozzarella sandwich with a hint of her pesto aioli for him to eat on the road along with a sweet message, reminding him to be safe. This brought a smile on Fitz's face as he made his way to find Coulson.

More than Friends
After witnessing the heartbreaking exchange between the severely injured Bobbi Morse and her ex-husband, Lance Hunter, Simmons realized that she definitely had deeper feelings for Fitz and went to confront him about what he said to her at the bottom of the ocean. Fitz who was bound for war with the inhumans, was incredulous that she wanted to talk about this at such a bad time and told her there was nothing much to discuss. Simmons not wanting to let him go without telling him how she felt, stopped him from walking out the door and told him that maybe there was something to discuss. Before he could reply, they were interrupted by Coulson and Fitz leaves her by herself, crying silently.

The Monolith
After everything settles, while Simmons works on a recovered Monolith related to the Kree and inhumans, Fitz awkwardly asks her out to dinner which at first, she doesn't realize was him asking her out on a date. After Fitz makes himself clear, she shyly smiles at him and nods in agreement as he walks out the room. Still smiling, she notices the containment for the Monolith was open as Fitz had accidentally unlocked it while talking to her before. She proceeds to try and lock it back when suddenly, in the most shocking moment of the season, the Monolith, without warning, morphs into liquid form, causing Jemma to lose her balance, letting out a scream, cut chillingly short as she was sucked into the rock. The Monolith then returns to its original solid form as if nothing had happened, leaving Jemma's fate unknown and up in the air.

As Fitz and Simmons take one step forward in their relationship, they are forcibly pushed two steps back, being tragically ripped apart from each other once again.

The Search for Simmons
For six months, Fitz tirelessly dedicated all his time in studying the Monolith, never giving up hope that he would be able to find Simmons. He constantly came up with new theories such as Simmons being lost in the Quantum Realm, transported to another dimension or even being stuck inside the rock, but unfortunately, to no fruition. He constantly took time off from S.H.I.E.L.D and instead put Bobbi Morse in charge of the Science Division as she was still in rehab after being tortured by Ward. She covered for him with Coulson so he could continue his search. Eventually, Fitz learnt of a scroll casing which holds the answer to the Monolith's power. It was stolen by the extremist criminal Yusef Hadad, who Fitz tracked to Morocco. Fitz was captured by Hadad and his men but he managed to escape with the scroll by tricking them. Fitz confesses that he was in love with Simmons and proved that he would do anything to get her back, even at the cost of his own life.

Finally, back at the base, Fitz examines the scroll with Coulson. He discovers there is only one word written on the scroll; "Death." He drops the paper and looks around in despair. Coulson immediately tries to comfort him, telling him that it was time he made the trip to Sheffield to inform Jemma's family of what happened. Coulson tells Fitz that he admires his heart and determination of never giving up on Jemma but it was time they moved on as it would be what she wanted. Fitz tearfully says okay as Coulson leaves the room. Unable to accept that Simmons is gone forever, in a fit of rage and frustration he grabs a shotgun and storms his way into the room holding the Monolith. He blasts open the containment and in a particularly raw and heartbreaking sequence, starts pounding and screaming at the Monolith to "do something."

Lance Hunter and Bobbi Morse charge into the room, followed by Daisy Johnson (previously Skye), Alphonso "Mack" Mackenzie and finally Phil Coulson, pulling Fitz away and closing the containment door mere moments before the Monolith morphed into liquid form again. Coulson admonishes Fitz for being so reckless, telling him he could not cope with losing him too. Bobbi comforts Fitz as he says he would never give up on Simmons. At that moment, he notices strange sand on his fingers which finally leads to his breakthrough. The sand turned out to be from a different planet as its composition predates the Earth by a billion years, proving that the Monolith was indeed a black hole that carried Simmons away to that planet. Coulson tells Fitz that Simmons could be long gone or dead by now which Fitz agrees to but Coulson assures him that they were going to find out and he along with Bobbi Morse resolves to help Fitz find Simmons.

They enlist the Asgardian, Elliot Randolph who reluctantly agrees to help them. He recognized the Hebrew word on the scroll; "Maveth." which he saw etched in one of the castles in England long ago. Once they arrive at the castle, Coulson discovers a secret room built to hold the Monolith and gets Mack and Daisy to bring the Monolith to the castle. Fitz sets up the ancient equipment built into the castle which causes the Monolith to change form, allowing Fitz to shoot in a flare. The deafening vibrations causes Daisy to collapse as she unwittingly tunes into them with her new inhuman vibrational abilities. Since the equipment is too ancient, they break down, leaving the team back on square one.

Fortunately, Fitz discovers that they don't need the equipment and Daisy herself can open the portal using her Quake powers, to which she agrees. They intend to send a probe into the portal as Daisy tunes into the vibrations and liquefies the Monolith. However, with everyone preoccupied with the portal, Fitz straps himself to the harness and without a second thought, plunges into the unknown, only thinking about saving Jemma.

He lands hard on the ground in a foreign world and immediately starts calling out Jemma's name. Finally he hears her screaming, calling out for him. He catches sight of her and they manage to grasp on to each other's hands, holding on as the sandstorm on the planet rages around them, threatening to pull Jemma away from him. On the other side, Daisy was starting to lose consciousness as she couldn't hold the portal open much longer. Not knowing that Fitz managed to find Jemma, Coulson pulls him back which causes Fitz to lose hold of Jemma. In the most anxiety-inducing moment, Jemma manages to claw her way to Fitz and hold on to him as they are finally pulled back to the other side, destroying the Monolith in the process. As Fitz holds the rescued Jemma in his arms, he finally smiles up at the team.

PTSD
Jemma wakes up on high alert from a nightmare and notices Fitz asleep, sitting on the floor next to her. She goes over to him and rests her head on his knee, falling asleep and seeking comfort with him. Over the next few days, Jemma felt extremely disoriented as she tried to adjust to Earth's lower gravity and louder sounds. Fitz was there with her every step of the way, holding her hand and comforting her. He seeks advice from Bobbi Morse, saying that Jemma was being distant and Bobbi advises him to be patient and try to remind her of her time before she was swept away. Fitz made a call and brought Jemma out to dinner. He kept the reservation for months, even when she was lost, booking out the entire restaurant to make her feel more comfortable. Jemma was extremely touched and thanked him for finding her. However, when Fitz proposes a toast, the sight of the wine triggers a painful memory for Jemma and she breaks down as Fitz holds her, allowing her to weep in his arms.

As the days passed, Jemma grew more distant, worrying Fitz but he still respected her space. Coulson tasks Andrew Garner, a trained psychiatrist to talk to Jemma and work through her problems but she is still closed off. Daisy Johnson even visits her and brings her a vase of daisies to remind Jemma of her. Daisy then tells Jemma that she would always be there for her and she could always talk to her.

One day, Bobbi discovers Jemma obsessing over the broken Monolith shards and reassures her that it would never open again. However, it is finally revealed that Jemma intends to open the portal again. She keeps this from Fitz but when he discovers her notes on the Monolith and asks her about it, she snaps at him and tells him to keep away from her things, closing herself off in her room. Later, Fitz visits her in her room, bringing her a cup of tea and asks her straight up why she wants to go back. Jemma, resigned, finally decides it was time to tell him the whole truth about what happened to her on the other side.

A Tale of Survival
"There has to be a sunrise, eventually."

- Jemma Simmons, 4722 Hours, 3x05 When Simmons is transported to the desert planet Maveth, she was initially shocked and dismayed but her scientific curiosity took over. She determined the strength of the pull of gravity on the planet and recorded her findings, taking pictures of the place. The planet had two moons and no sunlight, enveloping the planet in a strange bluish glow. She decided to wait for extraction, following her S.H.I.E.L.D survival training and went to sleep, wishing Fitz a good night as she stared at his picture on her phone.

She awoke with a start after 22 hours and noticed there was still no sunlight. This caused her to panic and made her delirious especially with the lack of water and food. After 79 hours, she decided to move and find water as a human being could only survive without water for 100 hours. She kept talking to Fitz on her own to keep herself sane, thinking what it would be like when they went for dinner. She fondly hoped Fitz would not pull out a chair for her-or do- if he wanted. She smiles as she wonders if she should wear a dress or if that would be too weird. After braving a sand storm. she finally discovers a pond of stagnant water with unknown floating substances in it. She weakly makes her way towards it, stumbling and picking herself up until she reaches the water, having no choice but to drink it. She then decides to cool off in the pond, finding a little happiness in this small victory. "You'd be so proud of me, Fitz. I killed the monster plant, then I made a fire, cooked him and ate him. And then I burped. Really loud."

- Jemma Simmons, 4722 Hours, 3x05 As she was swimming, she was pulled into the depths by an unknown creature. Fortunately, she managed to kill it and it provided her with a source of food. She narrated this to Fitz, recording it on her phone, supremely happy with her achievement and was convinced Fitz would be so proud of her. She then looks at her phone and tells the image of Fitz to please read her mind and come and rescue her since everyone says they are psychically linked. She knew he would never give up on her so she promises to never give up either, believing in him.

She continues to survive on her own when she suddenly hears a noise and goes to investigate. Unfortunately, she falls into a hole, loses consciousness and is trapped by an unknown man who locks her in a cage. She manages to trick him and escape, but he catches up to her and pulls her back underground where he is living, seemingly afraid of the sandstorm above ground.

Jemma realizes that he was trying to save her and asks him what happened to him. He tells her his name is Will Daniels and he was an astronaut sent by NASA who came here with a few scientists to map the terrain and collect samples. However, he recounts that everyone slowly went crazy, forcing him to put them down. He then tells her this was caused by an evil creature on the planet which he refers to as "It". At first Jemma dismisses this and instead asks him how long he's been here, to which she discovers he has been trapped there for 14 years. The two continued to learn more about each other, with Jemma telling Will that she misses Fitz and her friends the most. She shows him a video on her phone where Phil Coulson, Melinda May and Daisy Johnson presents her with a TARDIS cake on her birthday, telling her to make a wish as they blow out the candle for her, while Fitz records the video to send to her since she was unable to be there. This was possibly during the time she was undercover in Hydra. Fitz then wishes her a happy birthday, saying it wasn't the same without her there, speaking quite well despite his problems with his words and brain damage at the time. Will notices that Fitz's name is her favorite word.

Jemma and Will decide to keep each other safe and in check as she tries to figure out a way to get them out of this planet. She tells Will she wants to go to the no-fly zone. A place where Will forbids her from going as "It" was most likely going to be there. Jemma doesn't listen to him and visits the place where she discovers certain objects from past victims. Suddenly, a sandstorm occurs and she sees the mysterious creature that Will was talking about and narrowly escapes with her life, finally believing him. When she informs Will of what she finds, at first he was angry at her for risking her life but then she tells him that she knows how to get them home; by mapping the stars. "I have never been able to resist doing something when I'm told the odds are impossible..."

- Will Daniels, 4722 Hours, 3x05 They immediately get to work. Jemma decides to use her phone battery which Fitz engineered to last a long time, to power the ancient equipment NASA sent along with Will. She says a final goodbye to Fitz, promising him she'll see him soon. She works tirelessly and finally manages to discover a location where the portal would open. At first, Will was not hopeful they could make it but Jemma reminds him of what he said to her about doing something even though it seemed impossible, to which he smiles fondly and agrees to devise a way to get them to the portal.

They started their journey to the portal, Jemma ever-hopeful of making it back and seeing Fitz again. They finally reached the location and were shocked to see that the canyon they had to cross was wider than they expected. They glimpsed the portal opening in the distance and realized they could never make it in time. Instead, they decided to shoot the message in the bottle Jemma prepared to let Fitz know how to get her back. Will shot the bottle, but in an extremely devastating moment, the bottle crashed to bits, mere seconds after the portal closes, leaving Jemma staring at the spot, defeated, all hope leaving her. They got back to the place they were staying where Jemma has a breakdown, weeping as Will comforts her. Will tells her he almost gave up until Jemma arrived, restoring his hope and saving him. They share a passionate kiss and it is implied that they sleep together.

After 4720 hours, Simmons and Will decide to go outside to watch the sunrise. This will be the first sunrise in eighteen years. In a romantic gesture Will presents Simmons with wine which he recovered from the no-fly zone. It unfortunately tasted like vinegar but they laugh it off, deciding to use it in their cooking. Simmons looks at Will and sadly tells him that her dad would have liked him. Suddenly, she sees the flare that Fitz had shot in the portal previously and excitedly exclaims they were going home. She and Will run towards the location of the flare but a sandstorm appears signalling the arrival of "It". They are separated as Simmons screams Will's name. Finally Will finds her and shouts at her that she can make it and to run to the portal. Simmons refuses to leave without him but Will runs towards the creature in the sandstorm and a gunshot is heard from the gun with the single bullet Will was saving if things got too bad on the planet. Will's fate is left unknown as Simmons screams for him. She hears Fitz calling her name on the other side and makes her way towards him, getting rescued in the process.

As Simmons tearfully recounts everything to Fitz, he stares at her seemingly disappointed. Instead he makes his way to the lab with Simmons following close behind him, begging him to talk to her. He then looks at her and promises her that he was going to get Will back, putting her happiness above his own.

Watching the Sunrise
Things were a little awkward between Fitz and Simmons as she felt guilty about Will. Fitz on the other hand, was busy trying to help the other team members with their missions as well as finding things related to the Monolith and Will. Simmons passes him her broken phone to see if he could recover the data and he agrees.

Fitz fixes Simmons' SIM card and discovers her pictures and recordings she took while on the planet. He was astounded at all the data collected. Suddenly, he comes across a picture of Simmons and Will and angrily prepares to storm out of the room, unable to look at them together. Before he could leave, however, a recording of Simmons plays where she talks to him while dehydrated, recounting the time they first met. She proceeds to tell him about a family holiday she went on once to Scotland where she saw a lovely cottage in Perthshire and admits she thought of settling down there with him, which brings tears to Fitz eyes. After this, a bored Lance Hunter, hanging out with Fitz in the lab catches site of Will's picture and hilariously states that Will is the competition and has a hog face. Fitz agrees. Fitz then proceeds to find Simmons standing and staring out one of the windows of the base and he correctly deduces that she couldn't sleep and wanted to watch the sunrise. He asks her about what she said in her videos, assuming she wasn't thinking clearly when she said it but Simmons looks at him and truthfully tells him that she meant every word. They then stand in silence, watching the sunrise.

The Long Awaited Kiss
"We're cursed! The bloody cosmos wants us to be apart!"

- Leo Fitz to Jemma Simmons, Many Heads, One Tail, 3x08 Fitz and Simmons continued working on the origin of the symbol, with Fitz bringing in every book he could find relating to it. He noticed that Simmons was procrastinating and didn't seem that keen on reading up on the symbol. Simmons tells Fitz that maybe it was a bad idea to bring Will back as they discover that he was actually sent through the portal as a blood sacrifice. Fitz disagrees with her, saying Will deserves their help and tensions continued to rise between them, culminating in an argument. Jemma snaps at Fitz and tells him to stop doing all the right things as it was becoming too much for her, leaving Fitz confused as she storms out of the room.

Fitz storms into the lab, angrily confronting Jemma's outburst. Jemma, equally furious, tells him that she was angry at herself for roping him into all this, even though she knew how he felt about her and it was driving her mad that he was so willing to help. He proceeds to let her know that he is indeed furious but not at her and instead at the universe as he believed they were cursed. They angrily air out their frustrations at each other when finally Fitz asks Jemma if she was in love with Will. After a moment, Simmons quietly replies; "yes." Fitz, heartbroken, looks at the floor and rationalizes that of course she would be in love with Will as he was a hero. Simmons then retaliates, saying that he crossed the universe to rescue her. In an angst-filled moment, Fitz kisses Jemma, much to her surprise. She then recovers and kisses him back, only for him to sadly tell her again that they were cursed.

Encountering Ward
Fitz and Simmons along with Luther Banks and a team of agents were sent by Coulson to an abandoned Project Distant Star Pathfinder facility in search of clues about the Monolith. Suddenly, the two heard shots and saw the gun Banks was holding turn around on itself and shoot him in the head, killing him. Fitz instinctively pushes Jemma behind him as they realize the Inhuman, Giyera, under the orders of Gideon Mallick, the remaining head of Hydra, was behind the ambush. Fitz and Simmons were then taken captive and led to Mallick and Grant Ward in the Hydra castle. There they realized Mallick and Ward intended to reopen the portal to bring the creature "It" back to this world. The creature was in fact the first Inhuman ever created with unspeakable power, worshiped by Hydra ancestors. While Hydra had the means to open the portal, they were clueless on how to bring someone back, which only Fitz and Simmons managed to achieve.

Fitz and Simmons outright refuse to cooperate and insult Mallick. At one point, Simmons even turns violent and dares them to come closer and find out how tough she really is, impressing Ward in a somewhat twisted way. Mallick then turns to Ward for advice on how to handle them and Ward despicably orders them to be split up, cementing him as completely irredeemable. "I'm curious which is worse for you. Those moments when Simmons screams or is it the long pauses when she doesn't?"

- Grant Ward to Leo Fitz, Closure 3x09 Fitz was tied to a chair in a separate room while Simmons was tied to a pole in another. Ward then enters the room and interrogates Simmons but she insults him and says that she would never tell him anything no matter how much he tortured her. Ward smiles at her and says that if she ever bothered to get to know him, she would know that he'd never hurt her. However, he informs her that he can't say the same for Giyera who he tasks with torturing her instead. Ward then goes over to the room holding Fitz and taunts him as Simmons is heard screaming in pain from the other room. Fitz pleads with Ward to stop this but he says only Fitz has the power to end it if he tell them how to get back from the planet. Ward leaves the room as Fitz stays silent, himself tortured by Jemma's screams.

Meanwhile, Coulson who was on a path of revenge against Ward for murdering Rosalind Price, kidnaps his brother, Thomas, as leverage. His true purpose was to track Ward's location while Thomas talks to Ward on the phone. Ward realizes this, and in a furious rage, barges into the room holding Simmons and tortures her as she screams and pleads. "I always thought Fitz would give up the world for you. Looks like now he finally has his chance."

- Grant Ward to Jemma Simmons, Closure 3x09 Fitz, unable to stand the pain Jemma was going through, finally gives in and agrees to help them with the portal. Simmons realizes what Fitz had done for her and begs him not to help them and just let them kill her. Fitz tells her that he would never let that happen as he was not strong enough to live in a world that she didn't exist in. Simmons tearfully rests her head on his shoulder and tells him to come back to her without bringing that inhuman creature with him. Fitz holds her and assures her that the only thing he's bringing back is Will. He then enters the portal, with Ward leading the mission.

Maveth
Once they entered Maveth, they began searching for the creature. Fitz tries to distract Ward in order to snatch his gun but Ward was faster than him and kicked him down a ridge, threatening that Simmons would die a very slow and painful death if Ward did not return and it would all be Fitz's fault. Fitz then walks on and realizes the particular area they were in looked familiar as it was near the home of Will Daniels. He finds the hatch and drops down, leaving Ward chasing after him. After frantically convincing Ward that they needed Will to leave the planet, Ward agrees to bring Will along. He then notices Will's bed was placed together with a second bed and put two and two together that Jemma and Will had slept together. Ward taunts Fitz about this, offering him a chance to shoot Will instead. Fitz looks away and tells him to grow up.

As they walk, Fitz tells Will about Ward's plan and the two devise a way to escape to the portal. Will then leads them into a sandstorm and he manages to subdue the guards watching him and Fitz and the two escape. As they make their way towards the portal, Will and Fitz have a heart to heart about Jemma and Will tells Fitz he can clearly see why Jemma loves him. They then enter the no-fly zone and Will stumbles as his leg is severely injured and they stop so Fitz can tend to it. Fitz notices ancient ruins and is in awe by it, wondering why Jemma never talked about them. Will says that Jemma never got to see them and proceeds to explain the history of the ruins. Fitz is confused and asks Will how he knows so much about them. He then peals away the bandage from Will's leg, suddenly revealing rotting flesh and bone. "Will" tells him that he was there, revealing himself to be the creature, telling Fitz that the real Will died saving Jemma.

The two then engage in a fight, ending with "It" almost crushing Fitz with a rock but Coulson who had jumped into the portal after Ward, rescues Fitz by shooting "It". The creature refuses to stay down and Fitz is forced to shoot Will's body with a flare gun, completely burning it up. Fitz shouts at Coulson that the portal is closing up and tells him to leave Ward there. Coulson stares at Fitz then proceeds to crush Ward's chest with his robot arm, finally killing him.

As the team reunites, Jemma looks hopefully into the containment pod for Will, but he isn't there. She looks up at Fitz who guiltily stares at her as she realizes that Will is dead. Grief-stricken, she pulls him into an embrace, breaking down in his arms.

Starting Over
After everything that happened on Maveth, things were awkward between Fitz and Simmons again, mainly because Fitz felt guilty about what he did to Will. Their relationship became only professional and matter-of-fact. Unable to stand the chasm between them after all that's happened, Simmons confronts Fitz and tells him that she misses him. Fitz apologizes for not doing more to save Will but Jemma reassures him that all he did was kill a thing as Will died saving her. She tells him he has been nothing short of extraordinary this entire time. She then asks if they could start over, back to where they began. Fitz agrees as the two introduce themselves again, giving each other a fist-bump, their friendship restored.

Fitz and Simmons worked together with Lincoln Campbell to try and find a potential vaccine against Terrigenesis. However, they yielded limited results as there was only a solution to prevent Inhumans from changing before they underwent the process. Things took a sad turn for the team when they were forced to say goodbye to two of their closest friends, Lance Hunter and Bobbi Morse after a mission went south in Russia. This leads to Hunter and Morse being disavowed, taking the blame for the team. They would not be seen for a very long time.

Around this time, tired of always having to be rescued causing the suffering of others, especially Fitz, Simmons began shooting practice with the help of Melinda May in order to better defend herself. Fitz goes on a mission with Daisy Johnson and Alphonso Mackenzie to combat the Watchdogs, a rising Inhuman hate group. There, he almost gets imploded but is saved with Daisy's help.

"Maybe some things are inevitable"

- Jemma Simmons, Spacetime 3x15 Their next mission involved the team trying to change the future after Daisy touches an Inhuman named Charles Hinton who could show someone a future death. This involves Fitz explaining that once you glimpse the future, it is fixed and there is no changing it. Unbeknownst to him, this theory would be proven wrong in one of the team's later adventures over the years. For now, the team refuses to believe Fitz's theory and they decide to change the future and rescue the Inhuman from Hive, the creature from Maveth, who they discover has come back to Earth, possessing the body of Grant Ward. Daisy describes the vision to the team, explaining what will happen. In one instance, she sees Fitz and Simmons holding hands in the snow. Coulson decides that Daisy would not go on the mission since she was in the epicenter of the visions and asks May to take her place. He also tells Fitz and Simmons to "stay out of the damn snow." Unfortunately, May's ex-husband, Andrew Garner who is in the final stages of transformation into the Inhuman monster, Lash, shows up to say goodbye. May is forced to stay behind and care for Andrew as Daisy goes on the mission instead. Everything happens exactly as what Daisy saw in her visions, ending with Charles Hinton's death. Daisy promises him that she would help look after his daughter, Robin. Fitz and Simmons stand together and hold hands, in what turns out to be ash from a destroyed billboard instead of snow. Simmons then tells Fitz that maybe some things are not meant to be changed.

Crossing the Event Horizon
While on a mission to find Dr. Holden Radcliffe, Leo and Jemma discussed the future of their relationship. The mission went awry when Hive arrived to kidnap Radcliffe, and Jemma and Leo were separated. Jemma waited for him anxiously in their hotel room. She was relieved when he returned, and the two consummated their relationship.

After Hive was captured, Jemma planned a vacation for herself and Leo to the Seychelles. However their plans were interrupted when Hive escaped the Gel Matrix Box he had been trapped in.

Season 4
Six months later, Jeffrey Mace had replaced Coulson as the director of S.H.I.E.L.D. Jemma had become the head of the lab, working as the Special Adviser to the Director in Science and Technology. She and Leo barely had time to see other outside of work anymore. They were looking for an apartment to live together.

Upon discovering the existence of Aida, Radcliffe's Life Model Decoy, she grew angry at Leo for keeping Aida a secret from her. As part of Mace's deal with Senator Ellen Nadeer, Jemma was summoned to perform a mission for her. She was sent to a secret location while wearing a hood. Mace refused to disclose her location to anyone, worrying Leo. Jemma was eventually returned to the Playground and reunited with Leo, who had barely escaped Hell. The two hugged each other, making up from their argument earlier.

She later comforted him after Radcliffe's betrayal, giving him words of encouragement that helped him figure out how to access the brain of Radcliffe's LMD.

While on a mission to infiltrate Krasnoyark Krai's naval base, Leo, Coulson, and Alphonso Mackenzie were captured and replaced with LMDs. Aida, who had rebelled against Radcliffe, placed the three of them in the Framework, a simulated reality developed by Leo and Radcliffe. Each one had their greatest regret reversed. For Leo, this was his father Alistair abandoning him and his mother when he was a child. In the Framework, Alistair took him with him when he left and shaped him into a cold, cruel man. Leo was HYDRA's second-in-command and was known as the Doctor for his work on his lethal experimentation on Inhumans.

When Jemma and Daisy uploaded themselves into the Framework to rescue the three of them, Jemma refused to give up hope that Leo could be saved, insisting that he was still the man she loved. Leo had no memory of her, however, and was in a relationship with Madame Hydra, Aida's Framework version. Jemma was horrified when Leo murdered Agnes Kitsworth in cold blood. After learning that his father was the reason for his ruthlessness, Jemma went to Alistair's house to confront him and demand help. The confrontation resulted in a fight, and she had no choice but to shoot him. When Leo learned of his father's death, he swore revenge on Jemma.

Daisy and Jemma took Melinda May, Coulson, and Mack to the Framework's exit. Radcliffe told Leo where it was, and he took a HYDRA team to apprehend Jemma. He nearly killed her, but Radcliffe disarmed him, revealing that he'd planned to trick Leo into leaving the Framework.

Back in the real world, Leo was haunted by the terrible things his Framework version had done. Aida, who had built a real body for herself, confessed her love for him. When Leo told her he could only love Jemma, Aida became insane and enraged, and set out on a vendetta against him and S.H.I.E.L.D. Jemma comforted him afterwards, both traumatized but glad to be reunited.

Season 5
After defeating Aida, the entire team except for Leo was kidnapped and transported to the future. With the help of Lance Hunter and a Chronicom named Enoch, Leo learned where his friends had gone. He went into cryogenic stasis in order to awaken in the future to be reunited with his friends. He infiltrated the Lighthouse, posing as a Marauder named Boshtok. Seeing Jemma, who had been enslaved by the Kree Kasius, he went over to her and discreetly spoke with her, confessing his love and asking her to marry him. She had, however, been outfitted with a device that disabled her hearing, and did not hear him. Leo then demanded that Kasius disable the device, to which he complied.

As Daisy was forced to fight the Kree Sinara to demonstrate her powers to potential buyers, Leo and Jemma sprung into action, attacking Kasius and jumping into the arena with Daisy. Reunited with each other, the two shared a passionate kiss, and Jemma asked him to marry her, which he immediately agreed to. The three then made their escape. Meeting back up with Coulson, Mack, and May, they eventually found their way back to the present, along with Deke Shaw. They were transported to the Lighthouse as it was in their time, where they found three Monoliths in a storage room.

When a Kree Orb was brought into the storage room, it exploded, destroying the Monoliths. The destruction of the Monoliths tore a hole in space-time, opening a rift into another dimension that could manifest people's deepest fears. It caused a forest to instantly sprout on one of the Lighthouse's floors; this was one of Deke's fears. Coulson used a Gravity Containment Device powered by Deke's Gravity Puck to contain the rift. Afterwards, Jemma and Leo married each other in the newly-created forest.

The rift, however, had not been completely contained, and began manifesting people's fears again. The two began to work on another Gravity Containment Device. They were able to obtain raw gravitonium required for the device to work, but had no way of compressing it to fit inside the device. The immense stress of it caused Leo to suffer a mental break, and the Doctor's personality from the Framework manifested within him. Against Daisy's wishes, he removed the power inhibitor that she'd been outfitted with while in the future, allowing her to use her powers to compress the gravitonium into the device. He was then locked up.

Horrified by himself, and still believing his actions to be right, Leo questioned the future of his marriage with Jemma. She became overwhelmed by everything that had happened, and was comforted by Deke. He assured her that her future with Leo still existed, as he was their grandson.

Fanon
The FitzSimmons ship is most likely the most popular ship in the Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. fandom with SkyeWard as the second. Since the start of Season 1, many fans have followed this ship and have wanted them to get together.

In the events of Season 3, many fans were distraught of the introduction of JemmaWill, with many expressing their outrage in the Tumblr tags. However, many fans were overjoyed when they later kissed for the first time.

Fandom
FAN FICTION
 * Leo/Jemma tag on FanFiction.net
 * Leo/Jemma tag on FanFiction.net

TUMBLR