A/N: Let's pretend none of this Ward and HYDRA crap happened, shall we? A little SkyeWard fluff/angst therapy never hurt...
"No, not her. Let her go! Please... I'll take her place," Ward pleaded. Skye opened her eyes and found herself and Ward in a dingy cell. A man stood next to her, nameless and unknown. She never heard Ward beg, ever. She had never seen him cry. And she never had a gun pressed to her temple.
Ward was tied to a chair, bleeding. Bruises covered his jaw, and a cut ran from his temple to his cheekbone. Skye was also tied up, albeit she wasn't harmed. Not yet, anyway. The bullet clicked into place in the gun. Their captor loomed over them, tall and powerful.
"What? Ward, what's going on?" she asked, her voice quivering. What was happening?
"You don't have a lot of time, pretty boy," the man said. "Either you tell me the information I need, or your girlfriend dies." The man pressed the barrel even closer to her skin. Skye's heart beat rapidly, adrenaline coursing through her. She tried to free her wrists, but the ropes chafed her skin; they were too tight.
Ward inhaled. "I told you, I'm not telling you anything. I'll take her place. She's not even an agent."
Skye felt tears trickling down her face. "Ward, please! What are you doing?" she begged.
"So be it," the captor intoned. The man turned the gun from her to Ward. Ward tried to smile, to reassure her. He closed his eyes. The man pressed the trigger.
She opened her lips to scream.
Skye sat up in bed, jolted awake by the crack of the gun in her dream. Her mouth hung in an "O" shape. The scream coiled in her mouth, ready to strike. A breath rattled out. Skye shook with fear, and cried into her hands. Nightmares like this plagued her for a while now. One after the other, they showed a different team member. Killed. Executed. Tortured. Right in front of her, and she couldn't do anything but watch. She rocked back and forth, her blankets pooled around her ankles. She wrapped her arms around her knees.
This was ridiculous. They were just dreams. Not real, she told herself. Not real, not real, not real. She scrubbed away tears with the heel of her hand, and swung her legs off of her bunk. Her bare feet grazed the carpet. She decided to get a drink and clear her mind.
As she stepped out of her bunk, the Bus's engine purred in the air. Skye tiptoed to the kitchen to retrieve a bottle of water. She reached inside the fridge and clasped her hand around the cool plastic. She uncapped it, and took huge gulps. The water trickled down her dry tongue, quenching her thirst. In only a minute, she downed the entire container. She walked around the lounge area a couple of times, but it only let her thoughts fester and boil. She crumpled the bottle and threw it into the trash. She needed someone's help.
She thought of one person.
Skye shored up all of her nerve to walk down to Ward's bunk. Her palm skimmed the Bus walls, steadying her. At last, she reached his door. She balled her fist and raised it. Skye hesitated. What if she was bothering him? What if...
No. Ward was her SO. He was supposed to support her. She knocked gently, once, twice, three times. "Ward?" she said softly. She heard the rustle of blankets, and a yawn. Footsteps sounded closer and closer to the door. Slowly, Ward opened it. His eyes were still closed, drowsy.
"Skye?" he mumbled. He ran a hand into his mussed hair, his eyebrows arching. Skye felt a little guilty for waking him up so late.
"Ward, I'm sorry. But... can we have a talk? Its kind of important," she answered tentatively.
Ward's eyes opened wide at her request. "A talk?" he asked. Skye nodded slightly, looking down at the ground. She looked vulnerable and fragile.
"Okay, then." Ward clasped her hand in his, and led her into his room. He flicked on the bottom switch, the lowest light setting. Both of them sat on the edge of his bed. Ward traced circles on her knuckles with his thumb.
"What do you want to talk about?" he asked quietly.
Skye gulped. "Nightmares." She looked up at him. "Is that okay?" she asked. Ward nodded.
She took a deep breath. "Okay. I... I've had them for over a week now. And they always show one of you guys in front of me," she started. Ward's eyes seemed to urge her on, saying it was okay to continue.
"And..." she choked on a sob, "one of you always dies. One time, Fitzsimmons had to shoot each other. They had to." Tears started to fall. She angrily scrubbed them away, but they kept coming. Ward wrapped his arms around her, and they were a safe barrier from the outside world.
"Tonight...tonight I dreamed about you. We were captured and our captor tried to get intel out of us. The deal was that if you didn't give him what he wanted, I'd die. But... but you took my place and-"she broke off. Skye sobbed, and her fingers clenched around his forearm. He was her anchor. She let out a moan, let out all the built-up pain. She pressed her face into his cotton shirt, moistening it with her tears. Skye wished her hardest that none of them would ever leave in such a way. The couple rocked back and forth, and Ward placed his palm on the back of her head.
"I hope none of you ever leave," she hiccuped.
"Hey. It's over, it's over," he said with a shush. He lifted Skye's face and brushed off a tear. She released his arm and tried to compose herself.
"I'm sorry that I'm such a mess," she whimpered. Skye felt embarrassed. She was reduced to a crying heap over nightmares. Pathetic.
"It's all right. We all have nightmares. We all get scared," Ward said softly.
"Even you?" Skye asked. Ward nodded. She let out a small chuckle. "The Robot has feelings, then."
Ward rolled his eyes. He folded her back into his arms. "I was thinking, " he said into her hair, "that you should stay with me tonight. That way, if you have anymore bad dreams, I'll be here."
"Are you sure?" Skye said reluctantly. "I really don't want to trouble you or anything."
"No, not at all. Here," Ward said as he pushed the covers. He gestured for her to go in first. She climbed into the sheets, pressing her back into the wall. She tried to leave as much space for him. Ward laid down next to her. He wrapped an arm around her waist, drawing her closer. "I did say I would be here for you," he whispered.
Skye scooted closer to him. Ward had tucked his arm beneath her head, and his chin rested on top . She breathed in his scent; soap, sweat and a hint of his cologne. It smelled...safe. Skye knew she could depend on him. She snuggled closer to his chest, and curled her arms in the space between them.
"Thank you," she said as she drifted off to sleep.
Skye regretted waking up. It was a sweet, heavy sleep. Dreamless, too. Ward's body pressed against her, warming her legs and arms. One of her arms was wrapped around his shoulders, the other cupped his neck. Their legs tangled together. He stirred, and his brown eyes opened.
"Good morning," he said quietly.
"Good morning." She held up her palm to his face, stubble prickling her fingertips.
Ward covered her hand with his free one as he said, "Any bad dreams?"
Skye shook her head. "No, not at all. Thank you, Ward."
"You're welcome," he answered. Ward pulled her closer, tightening his grip.
They lay there for a long time, and Skye felt a little lighter because of Ward. Her protector.
A/N: Yeah, I know this sort of plot has been done before, but I wanted to take a shot at it. What do you think? Please review! Thank you for reading!-Roxanne