Wow, I've been neglecting you guys for so long... I feel like a silly, horrible person. I still love you, I promise, and I know I haven't been the best as uploading, but... here? My sincerest apologies and many many cookies. :)

Chapter Two: Reminiscent

Fury was breathing, at least. Maybe not entirely clearly, but he was breathing. Andraste knew something had to be done about the Tesseract, but S.H.I.E.L.D. would fall without its Director. And if S.H.I.E.L.D. fell, the game was over. Loki would get what he wanted. Whatever he wanted.

"Fury," she asked in a warning tone, crouching down beside him, "Fury, are you –"

"Tess… get it…" he wheezed, appearing fine as he began to try and pull the bullet out of his bullet-proof vest. It made her very happy that he was wearing that.

She stood on shaky legs that she took muscle control of instantly, standing strong and tall. "Stop!" she yelled as she pulled out her handgun and aimed it at the back of Loki's head, and they did. Miraculous.

Loki turned around and looked at her, gazing at her tail and ears. "What do you want, feline?"

"That doesn't belong to you."

He raised an eyebrow. "And it does you?"

"It belongs to the world. It's an energy source," she explained. If he was thinking to use it as a weapon, he was going to be sorely mistaken. "It should be used for the good of everyone."

"And it will be," he promised with a wide smile, "I intend to use the Tesseract to free your people."

"My people are free, Asgardian. Are yours?"

He scowled for a moment. "Why do you fight me, Feline?"

Andra shook her head. "Because you're a threat. I eliminate threats."

"A threat to what? A corrupt world that fights amongst its own people; that murders its own kind?" he asked, and looked sympathetically at her. "You live in such destruction, and yet, you do not realize it. Is this how you would choose to live? Each day, spent in a world succumbed to chaos? Your world is ill; it needs to be healed."

"I won't say we're perfect," she admitted with a nod, "I'm not blind. I know we have problems, but you're not the solution," here she looked straight at him with a blank expression, "We've had people like you come through before. We fought against them, and we'll fight against you. And you will fall, just like they did."

"You seem blindly confident in your peoples' loyalty," he observed, and smiled at her, "Praytell, what is your name?"

"Agent Forsythe, of S.H.I.E.L.D. And I am confident. I know the American people. They'll take you down however they have to, to keep you away from their freedom."

Loki simply shook his head. "I am afraid I cannot stay, Agent, or I would continue our little debate. But as Barton said, we must go. I will you good health, Miss Forsythe, and I hope we meet again," he said with a gentlemanly bow, and with that, he left.

Andra shot Donovan in the arm as Loki and the other two walked off. Clint turned around and fired back at her, causing her to duck and roll behind a table. They exited the room and she came out from behind the table, running to Fury's side. He had almost pulled the bullet from his vest at this point and was connecting up to the com-links.

"Hill, do you copy? Barton is…" Fury trailed off, breathing heavily as he pulled the bullet from his chest.

Andra helped Fury to his feet, trying to get them out of the facility before it collapsed on top of them. They ducked underneath falling debris and exploding wiring for the base. He looked at her and waved her ahead as they exited the room, holding his injured side.

"He's got the Tesseract!" he yelled at her, "Track it down!"

Instantly, she nodded and continued down the steps. Her destination was the garage below the laboratory building. They would have wanted the quickest escape, and a vehicle was the quickest and most inconspicuous way out of the facility. She hit the floor and ran, running into the room as she caught sight of Hill driving down the tunnel in a Jeep. Andra stopped for only a moment. Hill was in pursuit of Loki and the others. This tunnel didn't come out until almost the edge of the facility property. There was no use in following now, she'd only be in the way. Her mind switched to ensuring the Director's safety.

She continued out the emergency exit on the other end of the room. It led to a set of stairs that, if she remembered correctly, would lead just outside the main foyer of the building. Her legs pounded on the metal steps and she could feel them begin to move faster. It was a blessing, her feline genes, as she could move herself at twice the speed of a normal human. Tasha often joked that her alternate career should be an Olympic level runner. When she reached the ground floor, she pushed through the door and ran down the tiled hall. There were men in the room, and she pushed past them. She left the front doors, almost literally running into Coulson on the stairs.

She skidded to a halt right beside him. "Fury. Have you seen him?"

"No. Wasn't he in the lab with you?"

"No time to explain, I need –"

There was a large shaking in the ground. Phil and she grabbed onto each other to keep balance as they shook. Their eyes met and he turned to the guys in front of them, telling them to leave the heavy equipment they were carrying and leave the grounds. She heard him calling after her as she took off around the building. The ground crumbled and collapsed around her, causing her to jump from piece to piece. Left, right, left, right, left, right. Her focus remained solely on the movement of her feet. The ground became more solid as she continued, and she wondered if it was merely in a small area. Andra saw Fury's helicopter running on the side of the building, silent relief filling her for only a split second as she continued to sprint towards the landing pad.

The ground began to collapse around her again and Andra ran as fast as she possibly could, willing her feet to fly across the ground. A large chunk of the ground fell before her. She sped up, and ran towards it at full speed, pushing one foot into the ground then and launching towards the chopper. For a long moment, she flew through the air, weightless. Her hand outstretched and caught the handle on the side. She used her momentum to swing herself into the cabin of the helicopter, landing securely on her feet and hands. Andraste stood and leaned against the back metal wall, catching her breath. The ground began to collapse underneath the vehicle and the pilot looked back at her worriedly.

"Where's the Director?"

She turned her head and looked out of the side towards the building, seeing nothing. "He'll be here!"

Another few seconds passed. "If we don't lift off soon, we're going to lose the chopper!"

"Wait!"

"I have to lift off, we're going to sink!"

"Stay on the ground, pilot!"

"I can't!"

Andra saw the Director come out the doors and shouted back, "You stay on this ground, pilot, or I will personally kill you!"

"I stay here, the ground will kill us both!"

"Five seconds! Five seconds, damn it!"

Fury came running up to the chopper and she reached out her hand. He leapt to get on as they lifted off from the ground. She caught his hand and pulled him into the chopper safely, staggering back two steps as she pulled him in. He caught his breath for a moment and placed his hand on his side, the pain left from the bullet bothering him. His eyes looked at her as he breathed, rising an eyebrow.

"I thought I sent you after Loki."

She nodded. "You did. Lost him to Hill, decided to come after you."

He paused for a moment and stood up. "Forsythe – your arm."

She looked down at it and saw that it was bleeding heavily, running down the length of her arm and dripping onto the floor. This registered in her brain as a bad thing long before her mind released the pain it had been ignoring with the adrenaline and she hissed. It stung and ached, and she reached over to touch it. Her head pounded suddenly and her vision blurred momentarily. Andra stumbled with the rocking of the helicopter, straight into the wall, where she caught herself with her right arm. Her head was spinning and she found she couldn't see straight. Blood loss. She didn't get a chance to do much however, as Fury looked over and saw something, stepping to the edge of the chopper and shooting at it. Andra instantly drew her sidearm, aiming it at the same thing Fury was shooting at – Loki. He was riding in the back of another Jeep, and had just emerged from the tunnel, but Hill wasn't behind it. The ground had collapsed mostly behind them, and she wondered for a moment if Maria was even still alive. There was no way she could have survived that.

This thought was pushed to the back of her mind as she took aim and fired. To the left of him, and to the right of him, above him, and below him, but she couldn't hit him. Her aim was off. She couldn't even hit the Jeep. Her vision blurred and breathing became difficult. She panted as she held her handgun loosely in both hands. The world spun around her, full of darkness with bits of light and the smell of gas and smoke and blood. Bile rose in her throat and she couldn't think straight. Couldn't think straight, couldn't shoot straight, couldn't see straight… she was really crooked at that moment.

Loki noticed the shots around him and looked up at the aerial vehicle, observing it and its occupants for a moment. His eyes locked to hers and he nodded slightly at her with a concerned expression before shooting at the rotors above them. He hit them and the side of the metal, causing the helicopter to fall rapidly. It began to spin as it fell, causing Andra to reach out to grab the handle on the side of the framework. Her injured left arm caught it and she hung on as well as she could for dear life. The chopper tilted and she felt her feet begin to slip. They slid until they reached the edge of the metal floor… and then left it. She was caught in midair, dangling. But her injured arm could not support her weight and pain shot through her, weakening her fingers until they released the handle. She fell.

A feeling of weightlessness engulfed her. The world was muted somehow, she couldn't hear the sounds of the helicopter falling anymore. Briefly, she registered the sight of Fury reaching out towards her, then stopping to grab his own handle to keep himself from falling like her. He was yelling something, but she couldn't hear it. The world had slowed down, she could experience every moment. She was morbidly curious of what it must look like from his perspective, so she flipped. Her legs tucked in as her tail flicked to the side, turning her hips towards the ground. Then she stuck out her legs and pulled in her arms, turning her torso to match her hips. The sight before her was frightening. The ground was coming at her, and suddenly much faster than she'd been falling. She stuck out her hands and feet, preparing to catch herself.

Her feet hit the ground before her hands, crumpling underneath her. She hit the ground, crumbling and falling hard onto her face. The chopper landed a ways away from her with a thundering, screeching crash. Andra wrapped her arms around herself and rolled over onto her back, breathing hard with the effort. Pain. That was all she could feel. Pain in her hands, her arms, her legs, her head… everywhere. Breathing came hard, and she could see dark dots in front of her vision. Her mind vaguely registered voices that were in her hearing, but they didn't stay. A part of her saw Fury above her, but the darkness creeping up on her vision pulled her in even as she fought it.

The ground beneath her shook violently, wobbling unsteadily. Only… it wasn't the ground. It was too soft to be the ground. There was a pillow under her head, and a blanket under her. It felt slightly scratchy, like it was made of wool. Something pricked her arm and she felt something being injected into her. The pain in her arm became more prevalent in her mind as the substance entered her bloodstream. She tried to protest, but all that came out was a moan. A gentle voice told her to go back to sleep and she tried to stop herself from complying, but her eyes wouldn't open themselves. Eventually she gave up trying and sleep engulfed her.

Andraste walked into the room, seeing Coulson speaking with Fury before four glass holographic screens. The Director turned to look at her and gestured for her to come closer. It was a beautiful room, in her opinion. The large glass walls were a great touch, and the glass platforms that covered the ground gave it a futuristic feel. It was still rather cold and clinical, lacking more of a color scheme than gray, dark gray, and blue, but it was very stylish for S.H.I.E.L.D. The designers had done an excellent job with their work. Most of the Helicarrier was this way, both designed for efficiency and aesthetics.

She came to stand at the makeshift podium with them. Fury touched one of the screens as Phil moved away, smiling at her. The files that appeared on the screen made her raise an eyebrow. She looked at Fury, who was looking at her.

"I want you, Coulson, and Romanoff to assemble these people."

She swallowed at the last file on the list. "I thought that was scrapped, sir."

"Yeah, well, we need a response team. And I think, given the right push, they can be exactly what we need to fight Loki."

Andra absently adjusted the bottom seam of her tank top. "Not all of them are exactly 'team material,'" she reminded him. "This could blow up in our faces pretty easy."

"I understand that, Forsythe," he said simply, "But seeing as we're not equipped for this kind of fight yet, I'd say we need to take a little risk."

"Understood."

"Can you put your personal feelings aside for this?"

Andra's head snapped to her superior. Fury was serious, dead serious, and she knew that. But the fact that he'd asked about her personal feelings… that no longer mattered. It had been a long time ago now, and she was certain there was no chance of there being a repeat. That was behind her. She'd moved on. Fury should have known that, but she knew why he'd asked. None of them trusted her anymore. After that mission, she was labeled a loose cannon – she couldn't handle it if things got personal. She was determined to prove them wrong. This couldn't get in her way forever, she'd never do another high-stakes mission again. She had to prove them wrong.

"What personal feelings, sir?"

"I thought you said you were ready for this."

Andra glanced up and caught sight of Phil. He leaned against the doorway, observing her where she sat in the middle of her bed. She looked back down to her necklace in her hands. It had been hanging from her fingers in front of her for the past ten minutes.

She swallowed. "I haven't taken it off." Her voice was quiet.

Phil pushed off the wall and pulled her chair from her desk across the room. "Three years," he reminded her, sitting in the chair and looking up at her.

"Three years," she confirmed, and sighed. "Is that weak?"

He shook his head. "You care. That's not weak; that's human."

"I shouldn't care. Caring gets you killed."

"Caring gets you love."

The room was silent for a moment. "Love gets you killed. Love makes you weak."

"Love can also make you strong," he contradicted, "Something to fight for."

Andra looked up at him, her face blank. "Do you love her?"

He smiled reminiscently. "Maybe."

"What does it feel like?"

Phil frowned and looked up into her eyes. "You should know that."

Her eyebrows furrowed and her gaze shifted to the bed in front of her. "I've forgotten."

"Maybe you need to remember," he pointed out, standing up and pushing in her chair. "Get your stuff; wheels up in ten."

She nodded curtly. "Yes, sir."

He stopped by the door. "And Andra?" She looked up at him. "Pack a mission bag."

"Why? What would I need it for?"

The corners of his mouth lifted barely. "Call it instinct."

I really am sorry. I'm a terrible uploader. Hopefully this summer will be better. *crosses fingers*

What do you think of this chapter? No big things to announce about it. Not really.

Any questions, comments, concerns? Wondering why she never took it off? Review or drop me a line!

- Emmy