fuck protocol
Yelena doesn’t understand what’s wrong. One moment she’s getting a confession from the woman and the next moment Bobbi is hauling her up and away from the woman like a sack of potatoes while Natalia sends a firm punch across the woman's face.
“What are you doing?” Yelena demanded, wiggling in Bobbi’s hold. Bobbi’s arms are wrapped firmly around her torso as she half-carries Yelena out of the room. “I was just fine! What are you doing?”
Bobbi doesn’t let her go until they’re out in the hallway. Maria and two agents rush past them into the room as well and Yelena’s head is grabbed by Bobbi to pull her gaze up to her. “Look at me.”
Yelena peers up at Bobbi in confusion.
Bobbi’s thumb rubs a smudge of lipstick off of Yelena’s lips. “You should have said that woman hurt you.”
“She didn’t hurt me…” Yelena comments with a small frown.
Bobbi lets out a soft sigh and her hands shift to settle on Yelena’s shoulders. “Do you remember when we talked about consent and rape?”
Yelena nods her head. Maria and Bobbi had made a big deal about it. “Yes.”
“What is the age of consent, Yelena?” Bobbi prompts and Yelena frowns.
“Eighteen.” She answers quietly.
“And what is it called when someone has sex or does sexual acts with someone who is under the age of content?” Bobbi asked her, giving her shoulders a small squeeze.
“Rape.” Yelena mumbles. “Because people under the age of consent are considered children.”
“That’s right,” Bobbi nods her head and she hesitates before taking a sharp breath in. “Yelena, did that woman rape you?”
Yelena never thought of it as that. By Bobbi’s definition, yes. But the woman was only teaching her to seduce and all the places to touch and kiss to make them so overwhelmed with pleasure that they don’t even realize there’s a knife until it’s too late. She must be quiet a little too long as she debates her answer because Bobbi sags slightly.
“Oh, kiddo,” Bobbi whispers, her hands cupping Yelena’s face.
“Did I do something wrong?” Yelena whispers quietly, her eyes finally falling to stare down at Bobbi’s shoes. “Did I make a mistake?”
Everybody was having an aggressive reaction to her interrogation. Yelena was just doing it the way she had been taught.
Whatever Bobbi was going to say is interrupted by Maria hauling Natalia out of the room, whispering harshly into her ear before Maria points a finger at Yelena.
Natalia’s gaze lands on Yelena and the fight seems to leave her. “Lenochka…” She murmurs the name softly and Yelena pulls away from Bobbi to move toward her.
Natalia seems to throw their rule about no public affection out the window as she pulls Yelena against her, wrapping the teenager up in her arms. Bobbi moves toward Maria, leaning over to murmur something in her ear.
Maria gives a curt nod and then approaches the sisters. “Go pack a bag.” She addressed Yelena.
Yelena’s heart drops into her stomach. “What?” Bobbi never told her if she did something wrong. She doesn’t want to be sent away.
Natalia’s grip on Yelena tightens protectively and Yelena burrows into her.
“Go pack a bag. In fact, find Skye and tell her to do the same,” Maria orders Yelena before looking at Natalia. “You too. Pack what you need for the mission and enough supplies for two nights. Go.”
Yelena doesn’t want to make her mad and Natalia takes the dismissal for what it is. She tugs Yelena down the hallway and toward their bunks.
Yelena worries she’s fucked everything up for everyone. What if they were not only kicking Yelena out but Skye and Natalia as well?
Yelena promised Skye.
Skye was in her room and hadn’t even unpacked yet. She simply grabs her bag and follows Yelena with confusion.
Yelena packs her clothes and the stuffed cat that Carol gave her into her bag. Natalia grabs what she needs and takes a moment to press her forehead against Yelena’s.
“I won’t let them take you from me,” Natalia promised. “Okay, Lenochka?”
The nickname soothes Yelena, reassuring her and bringing her comfort. She can’t help but believe Natalia. “Okay.” She whispers.
Natalia leads the two teenagers back just in time to see Maria and Fury having a very public argument in the halls. They were lucky the halls were empty, or rather all the agents were too scared to watch and fled.
“--so what? You’re just going to leave?” Fury demands harshly and Maria tilts her chin up stubbornly.
“Yes.” Maria has a small duffel bag swung over her shoulder. “I have weeks of sick leave and paid time off I can use.”
“You can’t just take the kids and fuck off. This isn’t a custody agreement,” Fury grunts out.
“I can and I will. Enough is enough, Nick,” Maria shakes her head tiredly. “Until we get the proper guidelines and protocols into place to keep the kids you insisted on safe and ensure that the same shit show doesn’t keep happening over and over, I’m taking the kids and I’m leaving.”
“That’s kidnapping, Hill,” Fury replies in a low voice.
“Not if I have their guardian's permission,” Maria glances over at where Natalia, Skye, and Yelena were standing. “Romanov, do I have your permission for your sister to stay with me off base for a few days?”
Natalia stares at her. It was asking a lot. Maria was asking Natalia to entrust her sister into her care. Natalia gives a curt nod after a few moments.
Maria then turns and addresses Coulson, who Yelena hadn’t even realized was in the room. “Phil? Do I have your permission to take Skye with me for the next few days?”
Coulson looked like he wanted to protest before he sags and lets out a soft sigh, shaking his head. “I trust you, Maria. If this is what you think is best.”
“This is against protocol, Hill,” Fury warns and Maria spins to stare at him right in the eye.
“Fuck protocol.” Maria replies before turning and looking at the pair of sisters and hacker. “Come on.”
Yelena isn’t sure what to think when Maria Hill breaks protocol for her. She glances over at Skye when the girl grabs the strap of her backpack to trail along after her. Natalia has one hand bracing the back of Yelena’s neck.
The three trail after Maria who walks the halls like she owns the place, striding right out to the tarmac.
Nobody dares speak anything. Yelena ends up sandwiched between Natalia and Skye in the jet they take despite the fact there was plenty of room. Natalia grips her knee, giving it reassuring squeezes. Skye stares out the window and acts like she wasn’t digging her fingers into her legs until Yelena has to grip her wrist to remind her to let go.
It’s not until they’re on the ground and Maria has their backs packed neatly in the trunk that she turns to look at them and pulls three bracelets from her bag. “Wrists out.”
Natalia obediently offers her wrist first and Maria fastens one of the bracelets around her wrist. Yelena realizes that it’s a tracker that can only be taken off with a key.
Maria glances at Yelena next and Yelena hesitantly holds out her wrist.
Unlike the first agent that strapped hers to her wrist when she first came to SHIELD, Maria is gentle and she doesn’t tighten it until it hurts.
Skye, following the actions of the sisters, holds out her wrist next. Maria fastens the last bracelet to her and then looks them over.
“Until further notice, you’re staying with me. Natalia, you’re still shipping out with Barton tomorrow,” Maria addressed the redhead. “As per our agreement, you’ll be allowed contact with your sister.”
“I called the deal off.” Natalia reminds Maria, not wanting to owe her something else in exchange.
Yelena jerks to look up at her sister. Why would she call the deal off? Yelena only went to see the woman because of the deal.
“We got the information we needed. She completed her end, it’s time for me to hold up mine,” Maria said before glancing at Skye. “Do you understand what’s going on?”
“Uh… we’re staying with you?” Skye rocks on her feet nervously. “Is Phil still my guardian or are you my guardian now?”
“Phil still is. Think of this like…” Maria searches for the right word. “A vacation.” She finished. “Come on, now. Load up. In the car.”
Natalia sits up front with Maria while Yelena joins Skye in the backseat. Yelena still doesn’t quite understand what went wrong or why Maria was taking them off base and hoped that when things calmed down she’d explain.
Nobody else asks any questions and the ride there is quiet. Yelena’s surprised when they pull up to what looks like an average apartment complex.
Once Maria parks, she turns in her seat to face the three of them. “You tell nobody where I live, do you understand?” She questioned seriously. The three of them nod and Maria exits the car.
Maria’s apartment is small for four people but perfect for one person who’s pretty much almost never there. Maria lets out a small sigh of relief when she drops her bag just inside the door. “Right. I’m ordering takeout for dinner and then we’ll go over the rules and sleeping arrangements.”
Yelena stays quiet, afraid to make a wrong move again. Natalia grips the back of her neck, giving it a soft squeeze to reassure her.
Yelena clings to the comfort now because tomorrow Natalia would leave and Yelena would be left alone someplace unfamiliar with the commander and Skye for an undetermined amount of time.
Yelena hated when she could predict the outcome because of too many wild variables.
She still doesn’t even know what she did wrong.