Trust

Disclaimer: I don't own anything from the television series Marvel: Agents of Shield and I'm not making any money from this fic

Summary: Coulson and Skye deal with the trust issues between them

Warning(s): Spanking; spoilers up to and including episode five of season one of the series; some violence

Skye scratched at the bracelet yet again, wishing it was just large enough for her to get her finger under and scratch at the irritation on her skin. Of course, if there was enough give in it for that, then there'd probably be enough give for her to slip the bracelet off. Coulson wasn't likely to take any chances.

Although Skye knew that the rest of the team was probably aware of the whole bracelet thing now, they were all acting mostly normal around her. Well, Ward was acting distant - but that was probably normal for him.

If Skye was honest, the biggest problem was with Coulson. He wasn't acting very differently, but Skye still felt that things were strained between them. She couldn't really blame him for that, but there was still a part of her that felt guilty. However, as she sat on her bed, something else was beginning to occur to her - something that she hadn't thought of during the emotionally charged confrontation.

Skye was on her feet and moving through the plane without conscious thought. Assuming that Coulson was in his office, that was where she headed, exchanging a brief word or two with Jemma and Fitz when she passed them.

Standing outside the door, Skye knocked.

"Come in."

Skye opened the door and stepped into the office, closing the door behind her.

Coulson looked up at her, his face a careful, expressionless mask. He was seated at his desk and it looked like he was working on his computer. "Is there something you need?" His voice matched his face. It was impossible to tell what he was thinking.

"You knew."

Coulson didn't ask what Skye was talking about. "It wasn't about whether I knew or not."

"Then what was it about?"

Coulson held eye contact with her. "If you want to be a part of this team, it's important I be able to trust you. You should have told me of your own accord, not waited for me to push you into telling me."

"You were testing me?" Skye shook her head. "I thought you wanted me on this team. You pushed me into becoming a part of this."

"If you hadn't wanted to be a part of this team, you would never have allowed me to talk you into it," Coulson pointed out.

Skye knew he was right, so she didn't even try to argue. Instead, she held up her hand. "This isn't necessary. Maybe I failed your stupid test, but I've proved myself in other ways. I'm not going to run. Or give away trade secrets."

"Trust is a high commodity here, Skye. Until I'm sure I can trust you, that bracelet will be staying on."

Skye hesitated, but if she was honest, she wasn't all that surprised. She wasn't angry with Coulson. But she was concerned about his feelings towards her. "Are you still angry with me?"

"I expected better from you."

Skye winced at the disappointed note in Coulson's voice, surprised at how deep it cut. "Trust goes both ways."

"I never gave you a reason not to trust me."

"I'm wearing the bracelet. Did you want me to write lines? Or ground me? Though it's not like we go anywhere anyway," Skye muttered.

"You're talking about children's punishments."

Skye shrugged. "I guess I'm talking about punishments that might make you feel better about me. You need to help me out here."

"Why do you care?"

The question seemed sincere. If it hadn't been, Skye might have just given all this up as a lost cause. She liked to think she was fairly good at reading people. And maybe it was just wishful thinking, but she thought she could see that Coulson was prepared to give her a second chance. A tiny sliver of hope opened up where she'd thought there wouldn't be any. "I'd like things to go back to normal."

Coulson studied Skye's face for several moments, as if trying to see how sincere she was. Then, at last, he nodded. "Come here."

Skye stepped slowly over to Coulson's desk, moving round the edge so that she was standing in front of his chair. She jerked when he reached out and grasped her wrist, too firmly for her to pull away - but not tight enough to hurt. "What are you doing?"

"You mentioned punishment."

Skye swallowed. "I was thinking more about being forbidden from going on the next mission."

Coulson made no reply and simply used his grip on Skye's wrist to tug her forward. Skye stumbled and her free hand shot out to catch her balance as she all but fell across Coulson's lap. The hand that Coulson held was now twisted up and behind her back, so she grabbed onto his leg with her free hand and tried to brace herself.

The first swat, as it landed, made Skye jump - though more from surprise than pain. The second swat landed at about the same force and Skye shifted slightly, deciding that, if the spanking continued at this force, she could probably take it.

When Coulson reached her thighs, Skye couldn't help jerking a bit. Although she didn't think he was swatting any harder, they stung a bit more on the more sensitive places.

When Coulson started over from the top, the swats stung a bit more. Skye realised that the first circuit of swats had succeeded in making her backside and thighs tender enough for the subsequent circuits to sting more.

After a couple more circuits, Skye felt tears beginning to fill her eyes. The swats weren't too painful on their own, but as they built in force, the effect built up. It didn't help that Coulson was staying quiet. If he'd been speaking, it would have given Skye something else to focus on other than the pain of the swats. And her feelings of guilt.

Skye didn't realise the first sob had escaped her until she realised that Coulson had stopped. His hand was resting on her back and she dimly realised that he was rubbing her back. That was surprising in itself, but what was even more so was the fact that Skye found it comforting.

Of course, she was still embarrassed.

Wiping at her eyes, Skye slowly pushed herself up, looking anywhere but at Coulson's face. "I didn't expect that."

"I think it was the best way here."

Skye shrugged, unable to bring herself to agree, even though she didn't particularly want to argue. "What now?"

"I believe Ward wanted to see you for another lesson."

"O-kay." Skye walked over to the door.

"Skye?"

Skye paused and turned round to face Coulson. "Yeah?"

Coulson smiled slightly at her. "We're good."

The End