Summary request: Skye finds out what happened to her as a baby in China. You help her through it.
Bad news: I am taking a break from this book for a while. I start a very intense internship tomorrow, which means I almost won't have time to write. And since my other book is very time consuming, I want to put my focus on that one. I still have two requested chapters for this one (two sequels to previous chapters) that I'll upload somewhere next week I think, but after that, it will be silent for a while.
This isn't the end! I'll come back when I have more time, but that's not anywhere soon. Stay safe and enjoy these last three chapters ;)
You walked next to Skye through the Bus. There was an awkward silence between the two of you and Coulson. Ever since he had left the Academy with May to go follow up on some lead and came back only a couple hours ago, he hadn't been able to look at either of you.
After the long, but fun day at the Academy, showing Skye around, showing her your old living quarters, the training rooms et cetera, this was a frustrating ending. Something was wrong and you had a gut feeling what it was.
Skye had been quiet about it. She didn't want to overstep or ask too many questions, but she was fed up with being ignored, which you understood. ''Ever since you got back from who knows where, you won't even look at me,'' she finally started. ''And I know things have been heavy right now, but... did I do something wrong?''
Coulson stopped and you swore he sighed. ''No, I did.'' He turned around and stepped closer to her. Unconsciously, you did too.
''Ian Quinn's not the only one who manipulates people, Skye. We do it all the time. Actually teach it at the Academy. It's our trade,'' he continued vaguely. He liked speaking in riddles, which was really frustrating sometimes.
Skye glanced at you, but you just shrugged, not knowing where this was going or what he meant to say. ''What are you talking about?'' She furrowed her eyebrows and crossed her arms. You felt like this was a personal conversation so you stepped away, but her hand grabbed yours, silently forcing you to stay.
''I've been keeping something from you,'' Coulson admitted. He was hesitating on whether to say it. ''But recently, I realized I had no right to do that.''
''You lied to me,'' Skye stated, realization dawning on her.
Coulson nodded and you saw he felt guilty. ''Agent May and I went down to Mexico City to talk to somebody. Somebody who knows where you came from.''
Skye froze and absorbed that information. It was difficult to read her face, but she was ready for whatever he would tell her. ''Tell me.''
''When we started this, I warned you that you might not like what you learn,'' Coulson subtly warned, giving her a way out while she still could. But you saw she wouldn't back out now.
''And I told you that it can't be worse than what I have imagined.''
You still felt like an intruder, but the death grip on your hand got stronger and stronger. She needed you here, so you stayed and ran your thumb over her skin.
Coulson had a hard time throwing the words out. ''It is. The agent who dropped you at St. Agnes was not your mother, but she was killed trying to protect you. Twenty-four years ago, an entire S.H.I.E.L.D. team in a small village was massacred in attempt to secure you.''
Tears started filling your eyes, but you were way more focused on the woman next to you and if she was okay, which she wasn't. But she never once looked away or turned away from Coulson. She needed the information she had been so desperately looking for her whole life.
''They were headed into the Hunan province of China. A senior agent had called in an 0-8-4.'' He stopped, making sure you understood what he was saying. Skye was the 0-8-4. ''An object of unknown origin.''
''China,'' she muttered under her breath. At least she now knew where she came from.
''The five surviving Agents helicoptered the baby off, headed home. After they landed, they started getting crossed off. Tortured, heads bashed in.'' He really wasn't hiding anything now. ''They realized the only way to keep their people and the kid from being hunted, was to erase her from existence. The woman who found you, set up a nearly invisible protocol. The foster system was ordered to move you around every few months. But they still got to her.''
So that's why Skye never stayed in one house long enough to settle. It wasn't because of her, it was because of a system tricked into protecting her.
Tears ran down her cheeks now, while you were trying to keep them in. You needed to be strong for her, be there for her. You couldn't do that if you were a mess too.
''What was her name?'' she whispered. Her hand trembled in yours.
''Linda Avery,'' he answered her after a short silence. It hurt him to tell her this was all he had. ''I'm really sorry, Skye. I know this is not what you had hoped for. Your search, your story, it ends here.''
But she shook her head, lifting her eyes from the ground and back to his. ''No. My story started here.'' When he stared back confused, she explained. ''My whole life, I thought I wasn't wanted, that I didn't belong, that every family that took me in didn't want me to stay, didn't care about me. But all that time, it was SHIELD protecting me, looking after me.''
That's when the tears really started, making her unable to speak. ''I'm sorry, I-'' Your hand was released and she turned around, quickly walking the other way. This left you with Coulson, who watched her go with a pained expression.
You took a small step closer to him. The movement caught his attention. ''Don't feel guilty. You thought you were protecting her, but she's strong.''
He smiled sadly. ''Yeah, she is.''
You smiled back. The way he looked at you was a bit confusing. ''If you'll excuse me, I have to go comfort my girlfriend.''
But before you could take more than a few steps, he called you back around. ''Y/N?''
''Yes?''
He hesitated for a bit before speaking. ''I'm glad she has you.''
You didn't know what to react, so you smiled, nodded once and turned back in the direction Skye had disappeared to.
She wasn't in her bunk, which wasn't surprising. It was too easily assessable and it wasn't private enough. It was in the middle of the Bus and everyone would be able to hear what was being said inside because the top and bottom were open. For a second you thought she might have gone outside, but as you passed a branching hallway, you stopped dead in your tracks.
If you wanted privacy, the containment room would be perfect.
The door was closed, so you knocked a couple times before pushing it open. Skye sat on the floor, with her back against the wall and her knees pulled up to her chest. She wasn't crying anymore, just staring into the empty space in front of her.
She didn't acknowledge your presence when you stepped in and closed the door behind you, bathing the room in a half-dark. Without saying anything, you sat next to her in exactly the same position. You looked at her instead of the floor.
It was hard to say if she was sad, relieved, or happy. Maybe she didn't know it herself.
You sat there in silence for a while, until her head dropped onto your shoulder and her gentle hands wrapped around your arm.
''Talk to me,'' you nudged her softly, desperate to know what she was thinking and feeling.
She sighed but didn't look up. She felt too comfortable in this position. You made her feel safe. ''I don't know what to say. It's more than I could have wished for, knowing where I come from and how I got here.''
Her fingers played with your sleeve as you waited on the rest, sensing there was a but. ''But...''
''But I can't help but wonder what happened there.'' She lifted her head so she could look into your eyes. They were always kind, always soft. ''I didn't kill all those people, did I? I mean, I don't have any powers, any gift.''
You took your free arm and brushed some hair out of her face, pushing it over her shoulder so you could see her face better. ''You were a baby. I don't think anything that happened was your fault,'' you responded calmly.
She watched as your eyes jumped over her face. You stared at her as if she was the most beautiful person on the planet. ''Still, Coulson said I was reported as an 0-8-4, what does that mean?''
''I have no idea.'' You exhaled deeply in frustration. ''I wish I could give you the answers, but I don't have them either.''
''I know. I'll have to live with the answers I got.'' She looked up from her hands to your eyes, giving your arm a squeeze. ''Thank you for being here though.''
A wide smile formed on your lips. She was adorable. ''Always. You know you can talk to me, right?''
She nodded, settling into your shoulder again. She had grabbed your hand and played with it, tracing the lines on your palm and lacing her fingers through yours. ''I know,'' she breathed in the silence.
You laid your head on hers and stared at her hands. She must know it was sending tinglings up your arms. Maybe that's why she did it. Suddenly, she stood, leaving an empty and cold space behind. Confused and slightly startled, you looked up only to see her hand in front of your face. Laughing, you took it and pulled yourself up. She didn't let it go when you stood, instead she pulled you out of the room and the Bus.
''Where are we going?''
''There is something I have to see.''
Students stared at you a bit weirdly as you walked through the school. At first you had no clue where she was leading you, but then the main building came into view and you saw a familiar memorial through the glass windows.
The warmth of the building hit your face as Skye pulled the door open. You dropped her hand a good distance away from the wall. This was something you felt she had to do on her own.
You watched her step closer to the names. They were the fallen agents of SHIELD. Sacrificed in the line of duty. They were heroes and one day, hopefully your name would end up on it as well. It was the biggest honor you could receive.
With her finger, Skye traced over the engraved names, until eventually she found the one she was looking for: L. Every.
You couldn't help but be a bit proud of her. She wasn't crumbling down, she wasn't crying or yelling that she didn't know more. That all the ties she had to her past were a dead end, literally. Instead she was smiling at the name on the wall, the woman who saved her, brought her to America and gave her a second chance.
Who protected her from the dangers by making the difficult decision to send her into the foster system. Knowing the girl would grow up alone and miserable, but alive. And wasn't that the greatest gift of all?
With tears in her eyes, but a smile on her lips, Skye walked back to you. She had closed this chapter. She pulled you into a sudden hug. It startled you a bit, here in the middle of a busy building, but you wrapped your arms around her body and let her bury her face in your hair.
She wasn't crying, she just needed this. ''Thank you,'' she whispered in your ear.
''You're welcome,'' you answered, ignoring all the weird stares people were sending you.
This time, it was you who tugged her out of the building. She looked over her shoulder, glancing at the wall one last time. She had found more in this organization than she had in the first twenty-three years of her life.
She had found a family, a purpose, and love. In the most unexpected places, you found the most beautiful things. And when your hand squeezed hers lightly, she knew she'd never let go again.