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There was a list of things Skye had made in her head that could have gone wrong that day. Being shoved down a laundry chute was not on it. All things considered, it could have been way worse. But still, a small two by three metal chute thirty feet long is not a comfortable place to chill. Not that she was chilling, it was boiling in there, however still, not fun.

"Coulson! What the heck are we doing?" Skye tried to sound as harsh as she could while keeping her voice low. She and Trip had been ordered to apprehend a "dangerous" object, which, much to Skye's vexation, had turned out to be a dead end. Something in Coulson's voice when he directed them back to base made Skye think he'd know all along. Next thing they knew, the assignment went from a dead end to "almost-two-dead-agents". Hydra, or someone affiliated with Hyrda, had crashed the party, sending Skye and Triplett barreling down a three story metal tube in order to escape. Now they were kneeling awkwardly behind a metal vending machine in the laundry room of the Hampton In.

"Stay clear of assailant, keep your heads down. I want you back immediately." Coulson's firm yet calm voice boomed over the comm systems, giving them their next moves.

"Sir, we don't know where he went. Should we proceed to extraction site?" Trip asked quietly, hand pressing his comm. further into his ear.

"Yes, but you guys are getting yourselves out of there. I can't spare another agent to pick you up." Skye looked over at Trip and they both silently agreed on one thing. Coulson was keeping something from them. It was blatantly obvious. The fact that May, who was less then ten minutes away, and had flown them there, suddenly couldn't pick them up was enough of a red light.

"Sir, what about agent May?"

"May can handle herself." And thus the director ended the conversation. Unemotional, unconnected, his brain absorbed in more important things for a director to worry about.

"What is going on with him?" Skye grumbled standing up and stretching her sore legs. Trip joined her and they both began to cautiously make there way down the hall, towards the exit, guns ready at their sides.

"He's director now, got a lot of big things to worry about." Trip trusted Coulson's decisions 100 percent. Of course, so did Skye, but she didn't like Coulson's answers. He was constantly dismissing her comments about his health and emotional state. Skye had been like a daughter to him before Hydra. She didn't know what she was now. An asset? Again? A child? No. She was not a child. But she was often treated like one, or so it felt like, being handed the easy opps, being given the old "take it easy" order. She could handle herself. But Coulson wouldn't let her. What had happened to the man who'd given her a chance when no one else would? Who'd found the secret about her lost parents? He was still there, she hoped. Becoming the director made him distance himself from them. At least her. May, he told her everything. Ward, he had uses. And, he was a traitor, so he didn't get a say in the matter anyway. Simmons, gone. Fitz, as good as gone. It felt like she was the only remaining member of the team. Sure the newbie's were great, but she missed what they had before.

"Skye? You ok?" Triplett's tone snapped her from her deliberation, and she nodded.

"Yeah, sorry. Just mulling things over." She smiled and left it at that. Trip nodded.

"I know this is hard. You guys were close. I think you still are. Coulson isn't distancing himself from you because he doesn't believe in you, Skye. He doesn't want to see you get hurt," Trip paused and thought for a moment. "I think, he just doesn't want to have to be forced to send you on a suicide mission. If he distant himself from you, maybe, he feels like you're safer from him." He watched her closely out of the corner of his eye, watching her reaction. Skye simply snorted.

"What? He's not gonna shot me or something." She replied.

"No, but he's director. He has to make the tough decisions. The ones that decide who goes where, and all that. I'm sure he feels very responsible for anything that happens to anyone on his watch. And his watch happens to be ticking 24/7 now. Imagine how he'd feel if something happened to you." His answer just frustrated the girl more.

"I don't care if he's director, I can take care of myself. He doesn't need to feel like he has to 'protect' me." She spat angrily.

"I know that. And I think he probably does too. But it's still hard for him." He responded as they exited the building, making their way towards the open field behind the hotel where one of their planes was parked and shielded, invisible to the naked eye. They climbed quickly into the front seats and prepared the plane for take-off, checking in with Coulson once more giving him their status. The plane lifted, heading into the clear blue sky, and the girl herself found her mind contemplating the earlier conversation. Maybe Triplett was right, he did feel responsible for the whole team's lives. But still, she reserved the right to miss the old Coulson. The old team. The one before Hydra. Because really, post Hydra team sucked.