Though not exactly bustling, the base isn't as quiet as it had been in previous weeks, if you ask Skye. Agents slowly continue to filter in—from all ends of the Earth, it would seem. Still, of everyone that's shown up on their doorstep, there's one group in particular that's shaken the place up more than anyone else. Admittedly, Skye hadn't been all that sure about Coulson Jr. and the two Avengers, but here they are.
For better or for worse.
"Visiting again?"
She hears the voice from her left and, turning her head, greets the owner with a friendly smile. The slight, redheaded woman is—as she's come to learn—Phil's ex-wife and Andy's mother. Molly Pendergraph is one of the many people Skye is coming to find that have played a large role in their new Director's life, whether he remembers them or not.
"Well, I was taking a break from the gym and I figured I may as well," Skye answers. She watches the older woman for the length of a heartbeat before asking, "You holding up okay?"
"Oh, well enough," Molly answers, almost too lightly. "I'm just hoping we can get all of this wrapped up soon."
"Yeah, it's…" Skye says, her sentence trailing off. She shrugs a shoulder helplessly. "Jemma's doing her best."
"I'm sure of that. Andy and Jasper spoke very highly of her and Phil hasn't stopped singing her praises," Molly says with a nod. She holds a water bottle out to Skye and, seeing that she was only carrying one, Skye has to wonder if it was mere coincidence or if Molly had somehow known she'd be coming here. "I was just on my way back myself."
"Thanks," Skye says, accepting the bottle and falling in step with her fellow agent. "How'd the meeting go?"
"It was certainly interesting," Molly answers, shaking her head in something like amusement. "I have to admit, I never thought I'd see the day where Phil became the Director of SHIELD. Then again, I think most of us never thought we'd see the day when SHIELD fell either. But he seems to have an idea of where he wants to go and for now, any heading is better than none."
"You don't sound all that confident in him," Skye points out, twisting off the cap of her water bottle.
Molly frowns at that, her nose scrunching up and shifting the freckles on her face. "I wouldn't say that, exactly. Phil's got an aptitude for getting people to work together; always has. But this whole thing's got all of us turned on our heads as it is, so I suppose I'm just… concerned."
"Yeah. I get that," Skye murmurs with a nod of her head.
Skye's concerned, too. She's concerned about a lot of things. She's concerned about the two ex-HYDRA agents currently under evaluation in their medical wing. She's concerned about Jemma, who had been dating one of those ex-HYDRA agents and is currently in charge of evaluating them. And that's just the tip of the iceberg. There's so much more going on since this group had arrived, she hardly knows where to start, and things had been complicated to begin with.
Arriving in medical, they're greeted by the sight of Jemma pouring over charts with a tall, dark-haired man. Molly's husband Niles is—luckily for them—a very talented neurosurgeon who had decided to throw his lot in with them. In that, Skye's thankful that Jemma hasn't had to undertake this task alone. Having to carry the weight of that responsibility alone, on top of everything she's going through right now, would have been unbearable. If it weren't for the fact that she's currently the most qualified person for the task, Skye would call her mere involvement a cruel joke.
Noticing they're no longer alone, biochemist and doctor look up from their work to offer friendly, if tired, smiles.
"I was wondering when you'd be stopping by," Jemma says.
The comment had been directed at Molly and yet Skye can't help but feel it was somehow meant for her as well. Sure, she'd been stopping by every day, but it's not like that's excessive or anything. It gives her a chance to check up on Jemma and see how things are progressing, that's all.
"Meeting just got out," Molly answers, pausing to plant a quick kiss on Niles's cheek. "How's it going today?"
"We've made some significant progress," Niles says, nodding in time with Jemma. "I think so long as we stay on this course, Andrea and Jasper should be good to go by the end of the week."
"So long as we can actually clear them," Jemma tacks on.
"Right, that," Niles agrees.
"And do you guys think that you will? Clear them, I mean," Skye prods.
The biochemist and neurosurgeon look to one another as though to engage in a conversation that no one else is privy to. Despite the fact that they don't say anything, Skye gets the feeling that a conversation was had all the same.
"I'll tentatively say that we will, in all likelihood, clear them," Niles says.
"We're simply taking every precaution we can think of," Jemma says, folding her arms over her tablet and clutching it to her chest. There's a flicker of emotion—like discomfort—over her features. "We can't afford to give anyone the benefit of the doubt, no matter who they are, unfortunately."
"Understandably," Molly says, a sympathetic smile making its way to her face. She pats Jemma on the arm consolingly, knowing just as well as anyone else that this is a very personal matter for the young woman. "Is it alright if I sit with Andy for a bit?"
"Of course," Jemma says, mustering up a brighter expression. "We've concluded our tests for the time being, so take all the time you need."
Skye watches Niles and the ways his eyes track his wife's movement towards the containment unit on the other side of the room, knowing that in some ways this is all as personal for him as it is for Jemma. After a moment, his gaze returns to them and he clear his throat, holding his own tablet aloft.
"Jemma, I'm going to run these results down to the lab to add them to our database," he says. "Why don't you take a break? You and Skye could have lunch, since I know you haven't eaten."
Skye chokes back a laugh as Jemma huffs. "It's bad enough that I have to keep Director Coulson off my back, but now I have to contend with you and your wife as well? That's truly unfair."
"Well, someone's gotta keep you kids in line," Niles says with a slight grin. "And I've had a lot of practice. But seriously, take a break. We've got all day to handle this and Molly's gonna take her time anyway."
"We'll make sure to get something to eat, then," Jemma says. She checks her watch. "Shall we meet back in… an hour?"
"Better make it an hour and a half," Niles suggests.
"An hour and a half it is," Jemma agrees.
"Alright then. See you girls later," Niles says, waving his tablet at them as he disappears through the door.
"You two seem to be getting along well," Skye says, watching Jemma rest her tablet on the nearby countertop.
"It's nice, you know, having someone who seems to know what they're doing," Jemma says. She tucks a few stray whisps of hair behind her ear. "Really, I suppose it's just nice just having anyone. I can't imagine how I would've done this alone."
"Speaking of which," Skye says, her voice dropping in volume as they walk, "how are you holding up with all of this?"
"I'm… fine," Jemma says haltingly.
Fine isn't really fine, Skye knows. Fine is just a way of saying you're constantly teetering on the edge of having a complete meltdown, but since so is everyone else and you're not having one right now, you're… fine. Skye doesn't push her for details, doesn't needle her to open up. She knows what that feels like when you don't want to have to explain just what 'fine' is for you right now. If Jemma wants to talk to her, she will. And after a minute or two of silence, she does.
"He doesn't really speak to me," Jemma says suddenly. She stares down at her feet as they walk. "And as terrible as it sounds, for now, I think that might be for the best. I'm not sure what he could say that would…"
She makes a vague hand gesture, unsure of how to continue her train of thought or perhaps just unwilling to do so. Skye nods. That much, at least, doesn't need to be explained.
"Do you ever try talking to him?" Skye asks.
Jemma shakes her head. "Dr. Pendergraph has primarily been responsible for overseeing him. Likewise, I've been primarily responsible for Andy. We've done so under the mindset that it removes some level of bias from our results, but I think it's just easier this way. There's just… It's all so personal. All of it. The intake evaluations for the others were much simpler. It was easier to clear them. With these two, with their ties to HYDRA, it's a much more delicate process."
"For what it's worth, neither of them seem to mind if you take your time," Skye informs her. She frowns, glancing up as she recalls trying to speak with the two ex-HYDRA agents. "Well, that's what I gathered from Coulson Jr., anyway. Sitwell's… not exactly chatty."
"You're not the first to say as much," Jemma says, sighing heavily. "Apparently, outside of his time with Dr. Pendergraph or visits from Coulson, he doesn't speak."
"Did Coulson pass anything on to you? Anything about what he might be saying?" Skye wonders.
"You know he wouldn't do that," Jemma replies. "Coulson views their conversations as confidential. Though I trust if anything needed to be related to the rest of us, it would be."
"I figured," Skye says with a shrug.
"At this point, I'm just hoping that we can get a definitive answer soon," Jemma sighs.
Seeing the tired slope of her friend's shoulders, seeing the dark circles beneath her eyes, Skye can only hope the same.
In the end, that definitive answer comes four days later. Strangely, though, as the small group of them sits gathered in their meeting room, very few of them seem all that thrilled with this. It's an odd mixture of the old guard and the new, and Skye can't help but feel there is a clear division in the room.
Victoria Hand sits straight-backed and intent, not a hair out of place as their meeting progresses. Her arrival had perhaps been the most surprising at all, what with how the last Skye had heard, Ward had put two rounds in her skull and left her for dead. Apparently, as she's come to find out, HYDRA wasn't the only one with access to LMD technology. They knew that if SHIELD had it, then HYDRA did as well, yet they'd failed to consider that reverse might also be true. In any case, Felix Blake's intuition had been enough to convince her to mobilize her LMD unit—for the better.
Speaking of Felix Blake, the man in question currently occupying the space right next to Victoria hardly looks like he's thrilled to be here. Skye has to wonder just why he'd decided to return to SHIELD at all. Following his encounter with Mike Peterson, permanent nerve damage had him relying on a cane for mobility on good days and a wheelchair on bad days. Looking across the table tells Skye that today is a bad day.
Molly and Niles sit side by side, the flirtatious banter than Skye's come to expect from them completely absent from the conversation. Like the others, their countenance is serious, engrossed entirely in the topic at hand.
"Our findings conclude there's no remaining trace of HYDRA's influence in either Agent Sitwell or Agent Coulson," Niles says, gesturing to the several charts and scans blown up on the screen before them. "However, while they have been cleared by myself and Agent Simmons, there will be a probationary period before either of them are permitted to return to work."
"And how long would this probationary period be?" Victoria asks, her gaze focusing on Phil.
"I've tentatively set it at two months," Phil answers. "However that can be extended or shortened as we see fit. There are still some questions in regards to physical and mental fitness on both parties."
"Additionally, Dr. Pendergraph and I will be conducting a series of tests in an attempt to document the exact ways in which Agent Coulson has been affected by the Centipede implant," Jemma adds on.
"What about removing it?" Molly asks. She looks to her husband for an answer, "Wouldn't it just be easier to find some way to get it off of her?"
Skye frowns as she watches Niles hesitate. His hands, previously folded on the table before him, begin to unfurl like a blooming flower until at last they lay nearly flat, skyward facing palms depicting his helplessness.
"From my preliminary examinations… I don't believe safely removing the implant is possible," Niles says slowly. "Because of its location along her spine and due to the way it was surgically attached, it doesn't appear there's a way to remove it without risking paralysis from the neck down. Hopefully that may change once I begin to study the implant further, but at this point it can't be done."
As silence hovers over the room, Skye is reminded of the fact that while she doesn't know Andy very much at all, many of the people in this room had been around for the majority of her life. Many of the people in this room have ties to each other that have been around nearly as long as Skye's been alive. Yet, despite that, the ripple of unease among them is unmissable. Phil clears his throat to break the silence, though it sounds distinctly uncomfortable. Skye wonders exactly what it is he's thinking, but he seems eager to press on and his expression doesn't so much as give her a hint.
"I expect you'll keep me updated on the matter as your tests progress," Phil says, eyeballing Jemma and Niles both. At their nod, he moves on. "Now, I want to discuss just what this clearance and probationary period entails."
Skye glances sidelong at Trip and Jemma. Like her, the statement has them leaning forward in their seats, unsure of what they should anticipate from Phil. For his part, the director seems to be considering the matter very seriously as he frowns down at his hands in thought. After a slight pause, he looks up, making sure to hold each of their gazes in turn as he speaks.
"I want to make it clear that while they are both on a probationary period and will be monitored closely, that does not mean these two agents should be treated as though they were turncoats," Phil says firmly. "I've listened to what both of them have had to say—and I believe them. Files given to me by Director Fury back up Agent Sitwell's story entirely which, in turn, backs up that of Agent Coulson. I understand that their actions may have hurt some of you, either directly or indirectly, and however you choose to conduct your personal relationship with them is your business. Professionally, however, I expect them to be treated the same as any other agent."
"And we're absolutely positive about these results?" Felix asks, apparently unconvinced. "I have no doubt that Agent Simmons and Dr. Pendergraph are both very good at what they do, but they're hardly experts on brainwashing."
"Not experts, no, but Agent Simmons and I were lucky enough to have access to one of the devices HYDRA used to brainwash your agents," Niles reports. "From what I understand, it was salvaged from the remains of the Triskelion and from there came to us. Once we understood how it worked, we knew what to look for." He gestures to the screen at one end of the room. "If you look at the scans, the outlined areas are where you would expect to find certain markers if the subject were suffering from any lingering effects. The absence of those markers means they're free of any outside influence."
"And Ward?" Melinda says, speaking for the first time since the meeting had begun. "I know you've conducted tests on him as well."
Skye watches as Jemma's expression hardens into something she's never seen on the biochemist's face before. It's full of such cold, utter loathing, that Skye could almost say she's nearly unrecognizable. Not that she can blame her. The mention of their former teammate sends fire coursing through her veins, reigniting the ache in her knuckles as she longs for another private session with the gym's punching bag.
"Our results show that Grant Ward was never subjected to that machine," Jemma says coolly. "Whatever decisions he made were his own."
Although she'd been fairly certain of this already, hearing it causes something in Skye to flare up. Glancing down at the band on her wrist tells her that her heartrate is skyrocketing. Willing herself to calm down, she rubs her wrist self-consciously. This is why she started wearing it in the first place. She has to learn how to be in control. She can't let emotion get the best of her. If she's going to be even a passable agent, she needs to be able to put herself on lockdown.
"Which is why," Phil says, bringing her out of her thoughts, "he's staying right where he is. Now, before we conclude this meeting, is there anything anyone wants to say? Any points to be brought up that weren't covered?"
She watches him look up and down the table, waiting for someone to say something. Yeah, she thinks, there are a lot of things all of them would like to say. But perhaps this isn't the right time because no one says a word. With a sharp nod, Phil begins to rise from his seat.
"Alright then," he declares. "Meeting adjourned."
They're slow to gather their things and filter out, perhaps because they're all looking to corner the director for a private word. Luckily for Skye, Phil actually seems to be seeking her out. As he passes by, he briefly touches her shoulder and as she looks up, he nods towards the door; a quiet hint that he'd like a word. She follows without question, curious as to what he feels he needs to say to her alone. However, as they leave the room, he remains curiously silent. They walk slowly down the hall—slowly because she matches his pace and he seems to be in no hurry.
"Has Jemma spoken to you at all?"
The question comes abruptly, as though he's finally gathered the threads he'd been searching for.
"Yeah?" Skye says slowly, arching an eyebrow as she turns to look him in the face. "We're… kind of friends?"
Phil offers her a flat expression in return, one that says he's trying very hard not to roll his eyes right now.
"I'm aware," he says. "I mean about this whole thing. About Jasper."
Skye shrugs one shoulder. "I mean, a little."
"Is she okay?" Phil asks.
"As okay as she can be," Skye answers honestly. "He's not talking to her or they're not talking to each other or… I dunno. I know what you said about them being in the clear and treating them like any other agent, but I don't know if that's gonna be all that easy for her."
"I don't expect it to be easy," Phil admits. "But I do expect both of them to make an effort."
Skye hums, a noncommittal little noise. They can stand here and say that, but in reality, it's not so simple. Keeping working relationships and personal relationships separate sounds good on paper, but it's not so easily done in practice. Perhaps before SHIELD had collapsed it would have been easier, but none of them exactly have the opportunity to transfer out if they're not getting along. This is it. It's all of them in this single base, living and working together.
"So… speaking of making an effort, how are things going with your kid?" Skye wonders aloud.
"We've been talking," Phil says simply.
"Right," Skye says, nodding.
"Does that not meet with your approval?" Phil asks, arching an eyebrow at her response.
"No, it's just… weird," Skye admits. "She seems nice. Molly and Niles are nice. Almost too nice."
"Now you're just being paranoid."
"And whose fault is that Mr. Head Spy?"
Again, he seems to be fighting the urge to roll his eyes. "I know things are a bit strange right now. I know it's hard. But I'm confident we'll all come together in time. In the meantime… just do your best."
"Yeah, alright," Skye answers as they stop at the stairway that leads to his office.
"And Skye?"
"Yeah?"
His voice pitches low to that soft, gentle timbre that only comes when he says something he truly needs her to hear. "I was watching you when May brought up Ward. Go easy on yourself, please. Maybe give the punching bag a break for a day."
She wonders when she became so easy for all of them to predict. Though it's difficult to do so, she nods in agreement. He touches her shoulder with a brief smile before he disappears into his office. Her eyes follow him up the stairs and until the door closes behind him. It was a conversation they'd had before. He's told her—more than once—that what happened with Ward wasn't her fault. That she can't hold herself responsible. That she can't blame herself. She understands all these things in principle, but bringing herself to believe them isn't something she finds herself able to do just yet.
But a promise is a promise. No hitting the bag today. But there are two ex-HYDRA agents being moved into their quarters today, so maybe she'll just check on them instead.
Skye knows where Andy and Jasper will be. Everyone does. As she nears the two rooms, side by side, she's almost surprised that there isn't anyone lingering about the area. Surprised and thankful—she can't imagine it would be fun for either of them being watched like they're in a fish bowl. Granted, that's likely what it's been like since they'd arrived… but they're in the clear now. Right?
The first room she reaches is empty, a rucksack sitting abandoned on the bed and a few stray belongings lying beside it. But she can hear voices and so continues on to the second. The door is open and she knocks to announce her presence as she comes to stand in the doorway. Andy and Jasper, sitting side by side on the bed, look up at the sound as though they've just been interrupted in the middle of a deep conversation.
"Hey," Skye greets. She hikes a thumb over her shoulder. "Just wanted to check in, but I can come back if now's a bad time."
Andy perks up. "No, definitely not. Come on in."
Skye does so, despite the fact that the look on Jasper's face says he clearly disagrees with the younger Coulson's sentiment. She's found Andy to be a warm, welcoming personality on the whole; a stark contrast to the cool, closed-lipped front that Jasper puts up.
"So," Skye says, sitting herself in the chair facing the bed. "You guys must be psyched to be out of medical."
"For the time being. Gotta go back in the morning for some tests," Andy says, raising her wrist. Like Skye's, it bears a monitoring bracelet.
"We match," Skye says with a lopsided smile, raising hers in kind.
"How cute. They're like friendship bracelets," Andy says, smirking. She nods towards Skye. "Why do they have you wearing one?"
"Actually, it was my choice," Skye says with a shrug. "I didn't go to the academy or anything like the rest of you. And now it looks like that's not going to happen. So I'm trying to learn how to keep myself level so something like Ward doesn't happen again."
"That wasn't your fault."
Skye's surprised to hear from Jasper. It had seemed like he was prepared to remain silent for the duration of her visit. Although she didn't know Andy all that well, they'd had a handful of conversations where she at least felt she knew something about the woman. Jasper, on the other hand, not so much. Not anything more than what she'd heard second-hand from Jemma, in any case.
"Being tricked by Ward had nothing to do with your inexperience as an agent," Jasper corrects her. "Wanting to be a better agent is fine, but don't think it'll make you immune to this kind of thing."
"Maybe it won't, but I can still be better," Skye says. She leans forward in her seat. "So did you know? About Ward and Garrett?"
"I knew," Jasper replies.
"When we were looking for the Clairvoyant?" Skye presses further.
"I knew," Jasper repeats.
"So what you're saying is, you let us all knowingly walk into a trap," Skye says.
"Hey," Andy snaps.
"The brainwashing I can understand," Skye says before the other woman can get another word in. "But all this happened before that. All that stuff with Jemma, all the lies, all the ways you knowingly lead her on, that was all you, wasn't it, buddy?"
"It was," Jasper says. He doesn't seem particularly bothered by her accusations—in fact he looks kind of bored—and that draws out Skye's temper once again, teases it until it burns like a hot, angry coal. "You got something you need to say?"
"Yeah, I got something I need to say," Skye says, rising from her seat.
"If you came here to pick a fight, then I'm gonna have to ask you to leave," Andy says, rising at nearly the same time that she does. Surprisingly, she then turns her attention to Jasper. "And you need to stop egging people on. Seriously, we've been out of lockdown for, what… an hour? I'm not getting my ass locked up again just because you're not playing nice."
"I'm just making myself available for conversation, as per the agreement of our release," Jasper says innocently.
"Then perhaps you'd best make yourself available."
Skye isn't the only one who jumps at the sound of Jemma's voice. The three of them look to the door in unison to find the biochemist hovering just within the perimeter of the room, her chin held high despite the uncertainty in her eyes. Skye turns her head and looks back to Jasper, awaiting his reaction. He hasn't exactly been receptive, but perhaps that will change with Jemma.
"Alright," he says simply, rising from where he sits.
Skye stands by, watching as the bespectacled agent passes her without so much as a glance. There's a tension between the two—former?—lovers, so strong that Skye imagines for a moment that she feels it crackling in the air. She finds Jemma's gaze, concerned about leaving the two of them alone, but Jemma merely shakes her head and offers a reassuring, if tight lipped, little smile in return. It's enough so that when the two of them depart, Skye doesn't try to follow.
There's a heavy silence hanging in the air as she stands across from Andy in the now empty room. The younger Coulson's eyes remain locked on the doorway where Jemma and Jasper had just been, her lips drawn into a thin, unhappy line. It's clear she's as worried about the outcome of that conversation as Skye is.
"So what did you come here for anyway?" Andy asks, not bothering to pull her gaze away from the doorway.
"I don't know. Answers, maybe," Skye admits. "Things have been…"
"Confusing?" Andy offers, looking to her at last.
"To say the least," Skye says, shrugging one shoulder. "I mean, it doesn't help when most of us don't really know what happened and Sitwell isn't in the mood for polite conversation."
"He's an ass. He always has been," Andy advises her. She folds her arms over her chest and shakes her head. "But in this case… Maybe it's asking a lot, but try to cut him a little slack. He's having a hard time with all of this."
"And everyone else isn't?" Skye asks, arching an eyebrow. "Okay, the brainwashing, I get it. It was horrible and I wouldn't wish it on anyone. But he's not the only one who was hurt by all this. I mean… look at Fitz."
Andy makes a soft noise, something like a hum and a grunt all at once, before she sits on the edge of the bed again. "And that's true but... How much do you know? About what Jasper was doing, I mean."
"Just that he was working undercover for Director Fury, got found out and got turned into a HYDRA toadie," Skye replies, looking to Andy expectantly.
She looks like Phil when she thinks, Skye decides. Something in the way she frowns. It's odd.
"He was working undercover for the past seven years. None of us knew about it. None of us. Director Fury approached him specifically with the task of infiltrating HYDRA and feeding him information," Andy tells her. She holds her hands between her knees, clasped so tightly that her knuckles turn white. "He accepted that assignment with the understanding that, regardless of the outcome, win or lose, he likely wouldn't live to see it. The way this all turned out… wasn't in his plans. He failed to prevent SHIELD's fall and lived to see HYDRA rise. Everything he worked for was, in his eyes, for nothing. All the sacrifices, all the years dedicated to that cause, and what does he have to show for it? I'm not trying to make excuses for him… well, no, maybe I am. It's just that I know he's being kind of a dick, but he's got his reasons, even if he won't say so himself."
Okay, well, that's quite a bit to chew on. It helps to shed some light on a situation that everyone has been surprisingly mum about so far, but Skye still has plenty of questions. Luckily, Andy seems to be in the mood to provide her with some answers. Careful not to crowd the other woman's personal space, Skye takes the spot on the bed that Jasper had vacated minutes prior.
"That doesn't really excuse how he's behaving," Skye points out. "Or how he's treated Jemma."
"No, it doesn't," Andy sighs. "I'll agree with you there."
"But you still cover for him," Skye says.
"He's my partner. He's been my best friend for ages," Andy says with a shrug. "I was the one who brought him to HYDRA, so on some level I'm responsible for some of his actions."
"You act like you're personally responsible for HYDRA taking down SHIELD," Skye says.
"Well maybe not that far, but I definitely didn't help the situation," Andy tells her. "The point is I hurt him. I hurt a lot of people."
"That wasn't your fault, though," Skye insists. "You were being controlled by HYDRA yourself. And it's not like you could've known what Garrett was up to."
"Just like you couldn't know what Grant was up to?" Andy asks.
"Shut up," Skye snorts.
But she understands the point the other woman's trying to make. You can have a hundred people tell you it's not your fault, but until you can convince yourself of that, it doesn't do you much good to hear. They'd all been fooled and they're all at different stages of accepting that fact. They're all at different stages of accepting a lot of things, when it comes right down to it.
"Hey."
Skye glances up.
"Thanks," Andy says.
"For…?" Skye fishes.
"Coming here to talk. Listening to what I have to say," Andy replies. "I know this is probably pretty weird for you guys. I know you didn't have to come here. So I appreciate that you did."
"Well, your mom's pretty chill and I guess your dad's okay, too," Skye says with a faint smirk, "so I figure you deserve a shot."
"And Jasper?" Andy asks, eyebrows lifted hopefully.
"We'll see."
"Fair enough."
Skye doesn't know the woman sitting beside her any more than she knows the man who had just left the room. But given the circumstances, given everything they've been through and everything still ahead of them, she doesn't see why she shouldn't try to change that. Now, more than ever, they need to learn to stand together.