They don't go on undercover missions anymore, either of them, because anyone who's anyone knows Nick Fury on sight; it's a little hard even in the cloak-and-dagger set to disguise a six-foot black man with an eye patch and a matching scar. Maria's harder to spot, having cultivated the attractive but unassuming look that SHIELD agents pride themselves upon. It's just her luck that the second she gets to the top of her game, Fury plucks her out of the field and relegates her solely to admin. It's bullshit, and she's pretty sure everyone who's paying attention knows it.
It's possible she's a little resentful of this fact; so far, she's mostly redirected her anger at the field agents, grilling them whenever she can, designing training schedules that are sometimes- she will admit this- almost impossible. If they're going to replace her, they're going to do as good as and better than she ever did, or they're going to be desk jockeys until the end of their days.
It's also possible that she's gone a little too far this time. Russell's scheduled to start a deep cover operation, a big one, one that could be make-or-break for their foothold in Belém. She's just not ready for it, so Maria's rescheduled it for her. Simple enough, it would seem, though more than likely a bridge too far; it's just that Maria doesn't care very much.
Russell, as it turns out, cares a lot, and she comes storming onto the bridge, her hands balled into fists. "Agent Hill," she says tightly.
"Agent Russell," Maria says, not pretending she doesn't know what this is about.
"I'd like an explanation," she says.
"There's a full explanation in the schedule change memo," Maria tells her.
Russell's jaw clenches. "If you'll permit me to speak freely for a moment-"
"I won't," Maria snaps.
She is not dissuaded. "You're not my fucking handler, and if you were, I'd ask for a transfer."
"Exactly what the fuck is going on here?" Director Fury asks, and it says something that Maria was so engrossed in this conversation that she didn't register his approach.
"Director," Russell all but whines, and Maria rolls her eyes. "Agent Hill won't stop trying to run my operations for me."
"This doesn't happen on my watch," Fury says. "And when it does happen, it doesn't happen on my bridge."
"Sir, it's this kind of amateur behavior that can't be tolerated," Maria tells him, crossing her arms over her chest. "If you're not going to monitor your agents-"
"Agent Hill, if I ever hear anything else like that come out of your mouth, I'll have you running the espresso machine in the commissary," Fury says. "Do I make myself clear?"
"With all due respect, sir," Maria says, "you can get your own damn coffee."
There's a long, tense moment, and then Fury laughs, loud and unembarrassed and slightly jarring. "Walk with me, Agent Hill."
He sets off, and she follows, despite the fact that she's fairly confident he's going to push her into the ocean. They walk silently for a moment, turning down the corridor to the living quarters, abandoned this time of day. He stops, and she pulls up short, a little startled. Fury looks her hard in the face, and it's very hard not to squirm under his scrutiny. "I only have one good eye," he tells her seriously. "I need my right hand. But if she keeps acting like an insubordinate asshole, I'm going to consider a transplant."
She doesn't point out that if he stretches that metaphor any further it'll snap. "Yes, sir."
"Are you right, or is Russell right?" Fury asks.
Maria frowns unhappily, knowing he'll pick up on a lie in an instant. "My assessment is correct, but it should've been Carvalho's call. She's heading up Belém."
"Then talk to Carvalho, and don't bring this shit into my house," Fury says.
"Yes, sir," she says, reasonably chagrined.
"Back to work," he says, turning and walking away, his coat swirling behind him.
Maria doesn't bang her head against the bulkhead, as much as she wants to; she just gets on the comm and calls Carvalho. As much as it bothers her, she'll do the right thing. She believes in SHIELD and she believes in Fury, and that's what matters.
She just didn't know Fury still believed in her.
