Up

“Oh my god, it’s been ages since I’ve slept in a double bed!” Skye exclaimed as she flopped onto the said piece of furniture on her back.

Grant just smirked, looking over at Skye as she closed her eyes and sighed contentedly. “When was the last time?”

“Um…” the woman frowned and pushed herself up to lean back on her elbows, opening her eyes again. “Dublin? Yeah, Dublin.”

Grant nodded and focused on the takeout menu in his hand.

“What are you doing?” Skye asked as she let her back hit the bed again.

“Ordering takeout.”

Skye sat up so quickly, the bed squeaked beneath her.

“Don’t.”

“Don’t what?” she said innocently.

He looked back over at her with an unimpressed expression. “You know what.”

The corners of her mouth curved up mischievously, getting Grant’s attention. Skye, noticing her advantage with his distraction, rose and walked over seductively.

Grant’s breath hitched. “Skye…” he almost growled.

“Yes, Agent Ward?”

“What are you doing? We need to eat.” His reasons seemed to slip away and lose all semblance of logic as she got closer.

“And does Mr. Health Nut consider consuming deep fried junk to be eating?” Skye said huskily, never breaking eye contact as she wrapped her arms around his neck. He hummed in reply as his arms wound their way around her waist, dropping the menu onto the floor.

“Answer me, Grant.” Her low voice was almost sing-song-like and she ghosted her lips across his.

“If it’s the best we can get right now.” Grant reached for a kiss, but only managed to get a peck.

“Spoken like a true specialist.” She murmured before granting Grant the kiss he desired and melted into his embrace. Back and forth they pushed against each other, relishing at the opportunity to finally succumb to their intense desires. When they finally parted for breath, it wasn’t long before another type of hunger made itself known. They both looked down as Grant’s stomach rumbled loudly.

“When was the last time you ate, Grant?” Skye asked disapprovingly as she looked back up.

“Ahhmm…yesterday morning?” he grimaced at the look of shock on her face.

“What.”

“I was trying to save what little money we had until I reached my next drop box.”

“You went to a bar, Grant! Didn’t you think to eat beforehand?”

“They serve food there! It’s karaoke!” Grant tried to weasel his way out of Skye’s dog box.

She just shook her head and stepped back, swiping the menu off of the floor.

“How much money do you have now?”

“About twenty thousand.”

Skye froze and looked up. “Twenty thousand. Dollars. In cash?”

“Yes.”

Skye sighed and looked back at the menu. “Fried rice. Burger?” she looked back up to catch a look of disgust. “It’s got meat and rabbit food. Suck it up.”

Grant let out a long, dramatic sigh. Skye looked up at him in a weirded-out surprise.

“Fine. Just this once.”

“Really? Are we going to go grocery shopping while we’re, technically, on the run?”

“Are you gonna get the food or not?”

“Gimme twenty minutes.” Skye was out the door with a peck on the lips and a handful of cash.

“What…where did she…? Oh.” He checked his pocket. “She’s good.” He said with admiration.

Skye whistled happily as she walked into the takeout store. “Hi, I’d like to order some fried rice and a couple of burgers, please.” She smiled at the boy behind the counter.

“Sure. What kind of fried rice would you like? Egg, steak, chicken, pork?”

“Egg’ll be fine.”

“And the burgers?”

“Uhh…the biggest you got.”

“Thank you.” He punched in some keys on the old cash register and the total came up on the dash facing Skye. “That’ll be thirteen dollars.”

Even though Skye had never paid so much money for such cheap food, she smiled as she handed over a twenty.

“That will take ten minutes.” The boy said as he gave her back her change.

“Thank you.” Skye smiled again and walked out for some much needed fresh air. “Yeesh, it’s sweltering in there.” She muttered to herself. On trained instinct, she glanced around at the almost deserted street and wandered towards the left.

After a few minutes, she developed the creepy, prickly feeling on the back of her neck. Slowing to a halt, she leaned against the lamppost, the light flickering ominously. Through her peripheral vision, she saw two darkly dressed men walking her way.

“Not the usual Hydra suits.” She said quietly to herself, then bolted down the side street. Pushing her speed to the limits, she rounded the corner behind the line of shops before jumping the fence of the resident’s property behind that. Weaving her way across the darkened lawn, she rolled behind the outdoor set of table and chairs and remained absolutely still.

The sound of racing footsteps slowed as they too rounded the back of the shop. They walked a little further than the property Skye was on and stopped.

“Skye…” one of them sang, sickening Skye’s stomach. But she didn’t move, hoping they’d walk away. “We know you’re here, darling girl.”

Do they have to pick the ones with obvious perversion? Skye wondered.

“So come out, come out, wherever you are.” Their voices lowered as they discussed between themselves where she could have gone.

“If you’re in the ground, you bitch, we have a proposition for you.” The other man spoke this time, his voice deeper.

Why would they think I was in the ground? Shit. They know what I can do. Skye started to panic before an idea came to her.

“So listen up, you mutant freak. I will give you to the count of ten to show yourself, or I will start blowing up the pretty houses around here. I bet some of them have pretty little children in them, too. One.” He counted two seconds in between each number. “Two.”

Son of a bitch. Creeping around the back of the table, she was careful to move slowly so as to not set off the motion sensor lights and to avoid detection by the Hydra goons on the driveway in front of her. Once she was clear of the patio, Skye sprawled out over the ground, lying flat on her belly.

“Six.”

I feel like a lizard. She thought as she crept her way across the lawn to get a good look at the men. While her right arm was stretched out in front of her, she checked the time. My food should be ready by now. I need to hurry this up. She crawled to the fence line and checked the men weren’t looking her way before standing up and channelling her ability. The ground around the men started to shake.

“And ten. I wondered if you thought we were bluffing.”

“And I wondered how you thought I was in the ground.” Skye finally made her presence known and as the goons spun around to face her, she placed a crack in the ground. Right beneath their feet. The looks of sudden fear on their faces was satisfactory, until they aimed their guns at her. “Ah, ah, ah. None of that.” She scolded and opened the crack.

The pair screamed in terror as they fell into the hole but stopped short of their heads, their arms waving above them, almost like they were surrendering. Jumping down onto the driveway, Skye marched straight over to them and snatched the guns out of their hands like they were children’s toys.

“I might need these, thanks.” Skye smiled brightly as she walked away, letting the men drop into the ground completely.

“Honey, I’m home!” Skye said sarcastically as she waltzed into the motel room and dumped the food on the small table.

Grant laughed. “It’s nice to see you like this.” He said walking over and gave her a hug, kissing her sweetly as he did so.

“It’s nice to be like this.” Skye replied, hoping Grant wouldn’t notice the guns stashed in the back of her jeans. No such luck though.

Grant let his hands trail down Skye’s back and froze when he reached the handles of two pistols tucked into her waist line. He pulled them out and looked at Skye, demanding answers.

“Hydra showed up as I was waiting for the takeout. I ran and hid, but they knew I wasn’t far.”

“Did they hurt you?” Grant asked, trying to keep his worry at a minimum as he checked her body for injuries.

“No, no. The only time they got close enough to touch me was when I took their guns off of them.” She shrugged. “They were kind of buried in the ground somewhat.”

Grant just looked at her confused.

“San Juan. Long story.”

He nodded. “Right…anything else?”

“They know what I can do.” She whispered fearfully.

“Well, unless you are trying to be annoying with your cryptic statements, I suggest you tell me everything.”

Skye sighed. “Okay, turbo. But after we’ve eaten, alright?”

“No, we can’t stay that long. As soon as we’ve eaten, we’re leaving. Hydra will be searching the area now that they know we’re here.”

“I’m not sure that they know you’re here.”

“Come again?”

“They only saw me. And I…kind of buried them.”

Grant looked completely confused, and a little angry. “You’re really going to have to explain what the hell’s going on.”

The van pulled to a stop in the garage of The Playground, and the first thing the occupants noticed was that the Director and his Deputy were waiting for them with blank stares.

“What did I say about Coulson being pleased?” Hunter cut through the silence that settled upon the vehicle.

“Just because he’s Director, doesn’t mean his every whim has to be seen to.” Kara said roughly.

Hunter and Bobbi shared a look.

“I think I might just be looking forward to this confrontation.” He said thoughtfully.

“Let’s just get it over with.” Bobbi muttered, and made shooing motions at Hunter while Kara slid out the other side.

“Agent Morse! Would you care to explain why you just let Skye walk away with Grant Ward of all people?” Coulson demanded as strode forward.

May followed suit. “Were you forced to?”

“No, Agent May. It was Skye’s choice.” Bobbi replied, standing to attention.

The shock on their faces almost made Bobbi crack a smile. Almost.

“Care to explain that?”

“I would, but perhaps somewhere more private?”

Coulson studied her soldier’s expression carefully before nodding. “Where’s the target?”

“Back of the van.” Hunter interjected, not wanting to be left out. He cringed as May turned her glare onto him.

Coulson finally took obvious notice of the fifth member of the party, something which didn’t go unnoticed by the former S.H.I.E.L.D. specialist.

“Agent 33. It’ nice to finally see you again, even with–”

“Don’t bother with the pleasantries, Director Coulson.” Kara interrupted. “I’m only here for Skye.”

Hunter smirked and Bobbi shot him a warning look.

May stepped forward menacingly. “Careful how you speak to him. He’s in charge of everyone in this base.”

“Well, everyone except me. Or did you think I hadn’t considered what I was walking into, Agent May?” Kara crossed her arms defiantly. Like hell she was backing down from this.

“Enough.” Coulson said tiredly, and beckoned them along before turning and heading to his office.

“Okay, well, um.” Skye stumbled over her words as she tried to explain, in the best way, ‘what the hell’s going on’.

“Shall we start eating first?” Grant offered, sitting down and pulling out one of the burgers. He pulled a face at the dripping sauce.

Skye sat down across from him. “I got the biggest that they had, so be a little more grateful, Mr. Health Nut.” She said as she pulled out the other burger and used its paper bag as a plate.

“This is so unhealthy.” Grant muttered and bit into the stack. He moaned at how good it tasted.

Skye’s face lit up. “What was that, Grant? Do you like it?” she leaned forward eagerly.

Grant tried to look like he opposed that statement but couldn’t stop the smile from stretching across his face.

“You doooo.” Skye punched the air triumphantly. Grinning, she took a bite of her own.

Grant swallowed and felt like he had to make a point. “We won’t be having this often.”

Her mouth still full of food, Skye straightened her back and saluted him, a mock serious expression on her face. Grant just snorted and went back to his meal.

When they had finished their burgers and had moved onto the fried rice, Grant restarted the conversation about recent events.

Skye sighed. “Like I said, it’s a long story.”

“Well, I’ve got time. Try to start it from a point that I know about.”

“Okay. Well, you took me to that theatre because my father was there, and that was because of what he was trying to do for me.” She looked up at him briefly and Grant nodded encouragingly. “Then S.H.I.E.L.D. arrived and thankfully stopped Whitehall before he could do anything to me.”

“They follow Raina’s tracker?”

Skye frowned. “No. Bobbi had a contact in San Juan that sold out Hydra.” She blinked. “Were you supposed to remove Raina’s tracker?”

“Yes. And I told Whitehall that I had.”

Skye’s delighted smile made Grant’s breath hitch. “Anyway, um, after…what happened…I tried to find anyone from S.H.I.E.L.D. and/or stop Raina, if I could.” She stopped and took a deep breath, keeping her gaze downward. Grant stretched his arm out and placed his hand over hers comfortingly. “I found Whitehall’s body with Kara kneeling by him, so I looped around and found my dad beating up Coulson.”

“Not the best way to express your anger.”

Skye smiled. “Huh. You’ve learned.” she said.

“So I’m assuming you stopped said beating?”

Skye nodded. “Yeah, but he didn’t stop hitting Coulson’s face until I called him ‘dad’. Had to move him away at gunpoint.” She sounded so miserable Grant stood up and pulled her into a hug.

“Hey. He moved, yeah?” she nodded. “Then what happened?”

She sucked in a shaky breath. “He told me that I would change, and when I did, no one would look at me the same way. Except him.” She pulled back a little and looked into Grant’s eyes. “He said ‘Change is terrifying.’ And he was right.” Her voice broke near the end and Grant pulled her back into his arms more snugly.

“Bobbi didn’t seem that afraid of you.”

“Well, she’d been drinking.” Skye half-laughed. “And most of the time she pretends it never happened. I don’t know if it’s any better, though.”

Grant frowned. “She was drinking on a mission?”

Skye pulled back again. “Well, I was singing on a mission, so…not sure if I have any room for criticism.”

Grant chuckled, gazing at Skye adoringly. Skye couldn’t help feeling warm and fuzzy all over.

But she had to finish and tell Grant just what it was exactly he was getting himself into. “I followed Raina down into the tunnels, but the Obelisk activated as I got there. The walls closed in and Trip managed to squeeze in before they shut.”

“Trip?”

Skye nodded. “Yeah, he’d just un-detonated the bombs he’d laid in the tunnels to stop what we thought was an Armageddon. He saved so many lives that day.”

Grant just waited patiently, concern etched all over his face, and rubbed her back soothingly.

Skye spoke again, determined to get this off her chest. “The Obelisk opened and crystals grew out of it. Then some sort of mist blast came from it. Raina and I were cocooned in…I don’t know what it was. Some sort of liquid rock substance. Trip was untouched, and the last I saw of him, he was kicking the crystals. And when I…” she was holding back tears now. “When I burst from the shell, he was stone!” Tears now streamed down her cheeks and Grant hugged her tightly, feeling her trembling in his arms. “Then he crumbled…I killed him.” Her voice was muffled by his chest.

Grant thoughts were a jumbled mess, but he focused on the most important one.

“Skye, look at me.”

Sniffing, she raised her head.

“Why do you think you killed him?”

“Because I broke my cocoon with a seismic blast, and that hit his body.”

“Skye, the Obelisk doesn’t kill by turning people to dust. It just turns them to stone. You didn’t kill him.”

“But he followed me down there! He told me that he came to get me!”

“Sweetheart, switch the roles around. Would you have done the same thing he did? Knowing the exact same things he did?” Though it terrified him to even consider Skye dying, Grant knew that he had to put her mind at ease over the matter.

Skye’s gaze fluttered down as she considered the potential happenings. Slowly, she nodded. “Yeah, I probably would have…” she muttered.

“And so would I. Trip died a hero, as much of a hero as he was when he was alive. You said yourself, he saved many lives that day.”

Skye wiped away her tears and smiled a watery smile at him. “Thank you, Grant.”

The man’s brows furrowed. “Did no one else say this to you?”

“No, I, uh…didn’t tell them.” She whispered, half-hoping he couldn’t hear. As if.

“You kept this to yourself since San Juan? Skye, how are you supposed to move forward if you don’t talk about it?”

Skye looked up, faint amusement in her eyes. “Says the man who never talked about his childhood.” She teased.

Though it was a sensitive subject for him, Skye already seemed to be healing from her grief. So Grant just smiled and kissed her.