A/N: Chapter 3! Sorry for the late update, I had a scope done and got blood drawn with some adverse side-effects.
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Disclaimer: I don't own Marvel or any of its characters.
"Skye's an agent."
Time seemed to have frozen. Hand stood across from them, the wheels cranking inside her head, a look of bewilderment appearing on her face that was impossible to conceal. Beside him, he felt Coulson and May stiffen, their bodies growing tense as they held their breaths, hoping that by some miracle their plan worked.
"What?" She couldn't manage to form another word.
"Skye's an agent." His palms pressed off the table and he stood up straight, leaning away from the table as he assessed her expression carefully.
The silence that followed the statement was absolutely deafening. Clint knew that once Hand confirmed what she heard she would begin searching for proof of his admission. Knowing her she already did her own research on Skye, but he doubted she dug deep enough to find the connection. No one beyond those closest to their daughter were able to uncover the secret. Now, he only hoped when she did find the proof, she didn't question his relation to her.
"I've looked at her file, Agent Barton, she's a consultant. She hasn't even attended the academy." Her tone was sharp, and criticizing. Nothing short of exception.
"Neither have I."
Coulson interfered before another battle began and told her where to look. If she wanted to resolve this she would take Skye's birth name, type into the system and pull up her file. As her birth name rolled off his tongue, Phil realized just how many names Skye had gone through over the course of her life, she had been three before she even reached one.
Hand typed the name into S.H.I.E.L.D's database. It was easier to prove them wrong if she went along with their game. A file filled the screen with a picture of an infant. The first words in bold caps caught her attention: MISSING. She scrolled down past the photo and read the information.
Miranda Xiahe Barton
June 7, 1994
The farther she scrolled down the more details were added. It had every detail you could possibly want to knows out her from her parents names to what toy calmed her down when she woke up in the middle of the night crying. Included in the file were the mission details for the mission she took part in and her status within S.H.I.E.L.D. She had the same clearance level as her parent's. There was something equally sick and cute about it.
Hand looked up her jaw clenched, she realized it was a quickly losing battle. Her defense was running out and she didn't have any backup.
Natasha frowned as she assessed the scene before her. Everyone was there, Stark, Banner, Rogers–she wasn't expecting to see Thor, he came and went, but the one person she was looking for was absent. He could be in the vents, or on the roof, but she was back and dinner was served. He wasn't the type to miss a free meal. If Stark was here on time, he certainly would be. Something was wrong.
She searched the group for Stark and found him talking science with Banner. She didn't hesitate to interrupt. "Where's Clint?"
If it wasn't for the menacing look and voice, he probably would've made a smart remark. He still tried to, but she made it clear she wasn't in the mood for games.
"He said he was going out."
"Where?"
Stark shrugged and took a sip of his drink. She knew Barton hadn't ordered him to lie for him; he wasn't that stupid. "He didn't tell me, he had to meet someone; a woman."
Natasha frowned. A woman? She knew all of his flings, none of which lasted long except for one. But he wouldn't chase her down, and she would never get in contact with him. He must've been called away on a solo mission, but why wouldn't he tell her that? They told each other everything.
"JARVIS?"
The British voice replied almost instantly, "Agent Barton was on the phone with one Melinda May."
Of course. She was the only one who could make him pack up and leave without a second thought, but why. She knew Melinda wanted to tell him, but that was hours after learning the truth. When they last spoke May told her she couldn't, and the unspoken wouldn't was elucidated. Something must've changed. It had to in order to get her to change her mind.
Whatever it was, it had to be worse than their coping methods.
They'd won. There was nothing else to discuss, so why were they still there? Hand didn't need to take part in their discussion about visiting arrangements or telling Skye which seemed to be the only thing remaining. Still, Hand continued to drag it out; she refused to give up the already lost fight. So she slept with her SO, it wasn't like half the people in the room hadn't done it already.
"She's still in violation of code 106." Agent Hand didn't have to explain for them to know what rule she was talking about. Everyone with a badge and gun knew what code 106 was. It was one of the many fraternization rules, but compared to the others in the rulebook, it was one of the lesser evils.
"But Skye won't be penalized for actions," May said.
"You can't have agents who are romantically involved on the same team." It was a stupid rule, but created with good intentions. Missions got compromised when agents were involved with one another; they knew that first hand.
"Who said anything about romance?" His remark earned him a glare.
They knew there was only one way around the rule. If you split up the pair professional, they'd be able to stay together in their personal life. The only problem was since they lived on a plane together, it was next to impossible to come up with a solution without removing a member from the BUS. However that didn't stop Coulson from trying. He was still insistent to find a compromise that satisfied all involved parties.
If he couldn't, and it came down to it, he would do whatever it took to save Skye.
Skye couldn't look at Simmons. The biochemist was trying to comfort her and make the best of a bad situation, but Skye knew she was worried, and so was she. They were in this room because of her. If she ended up back in a lab it would be her fault. Or if Jemma didn't get to see Coulson again, it would be on her–just like if she never got to see A.C again. Then there was May, the thought of never seeing her again disquieted her. While the woman was hard on her, Skye admired her and looked up to her. The thought of not seeing her or anyone on the team felt like an unbearable fate, but one that seemed to have become more and more realistic.
Her hands tangled around her necklace. She would never be able to finish her conversation with Fitz about its origin. He could never explain what he meant by his words. This would mark the end of her search. She would never find anything else beyond what she had on her parents right now. She would never know her origin.
Her story started with S.H.I.E.L.D and it only seemed fit they would be the ones to end her story.
The door flew open and Skye knew it was time. She twisted her head towards the awaiting Hand and Coulson. May was notably absent from the group. She took a breath to steel her features and stood up tall, looking Hand straight in the eye. Simmons rounded the table clutched onto her hand for support. But who was giving who support was debatable.
Her body stilled; she held her breath and braced for impact which never came. Her eyes flickered and she glanced over at Coulson, she had expected an order to pack her bags and get out of their hair, but it never came. Why didn't it?
"A.C.?"
"You have a choice," Phil said slowly.
"A choice?"
"Either you leave S.H.I.E.L.D," Skye could tell Hand liked the first option best, which wasn't surprising since Skye knew she wanted her gone. She prayed for a better second option as Hand went on to tell her her other choice. "Or you go live with your parents."
Skye sputtered. "My parents?" If she wasn't holding onto Simmons, Skye was sure she would've fallen over.
"We had the lab pull your DNA to confirm the match."
"From where? Where's my parents? Are they here? Do I get to meet them?"
Hand pursued her lips and listened to her questions, but didn't answer any of them. She explained to the young hacker exactly what her choices entitled. She wanted to make sure Skye knew that the first option wasn't as bad as she thought it was.
Ward's punishment would be minimal, Fitzsimmons would remain in the field, and it would be as if she never joined the team. She would never be able to come in contact with S.H.I.E.L.D again, or any of its members again; she would be arrested for any hacking into their servers.
But she wouldn't meet her parents, or see any of the members of the team again, Skye realized.
The second one was like a dream, except for the last part. She would meet her parents and be able to live with them, but the team would be disassembled and she could never come in contact with Ward again. However, she never said anything about seeing Fitzsimmons, or Coulson and she did mention her becoming a S.H.I.E.L.D agent.
Skye's grip loosened on Simmons and she sat back down. Her head was spinning and she couldn't think. She knew what the two options were–Hand's words continued to repeat in her head–and she knew what she wanted to do, but she also knew what she had to do.
She was fighting a war inside her head, she felt as though she was trying to convince herself what to choose, and it was all Hand'sfaultst. Leave it to her to take her lifelong hope and crush it into a million pieces in less than a minute.
Skye turned to Jemma and then looked over at Coulson, desperately needing someone to help her. His face didn't betray any opinion, but she could tell from his expression he was trying to comfort her, even from a distant. Skye tested around in the room, her eyes searching for the missing women.
Where was May? If she was here she would tell her flat out what she thought was the best move.
The tension in the room was growing by the second. Neither party had said a word since they were left alone. There was too much to be said, and it was nearly impossible to figure out where to start. Between Skye, Coulson and the aftermath of New York, they were better off not saying anything. When they finally did strike a conversation, May certainly wasn't the one to begin.
"You should've told me." His words cut through the thickening silence, his voice holding more anger than any words could ever posses.
May's eyes drifted over to his and she rose an eyebrow. He would have to be a bit more specific about what exactly; there was a lot of things she should've told him.
Clint crossed his arms. "About either. How long have you known about Skye?" Their daughter, the concept still seemed foreign. Just yesterday he didn't think he would ever see her again–he still hadn't–but now he was fighting to see her again. He knew there was at least a chance.
"Five weeks."
He banged his fist on the table with enough force to create a loud bang, but only enough to make Melinda's eyes focus back on his. The glare he graced minutes previous was nothing compared to the look he wore now.
"Damn it, Mels! How could you not think to tell me? Her?" She had. She nearly did, but she never could. At least till now when Skye's life was on the line and in the exact same position she and Clint were just two decades ago.
"I was trying to protect her."
"You mean you were trying to protect you."
Her breath caught in her throat and his eyes bore into her soul. It took all her training to not squirm under his gaze. Silence filled the room and their eyes locked onto each other, staring into the others eyes without so much as a word being spoken.
Finally he spoke, breaking the tension, the sound of his voice cutting throw the silence like knives. "Was after New York a lie too?" She didn't have to ask to know what he was referring to. It's why she ignored him for so many months.
"No."
He'd be lying if he said he didn't feel some relief at her response. "How long?" He had to know, if she knew when they...he would never forgive her. It wouldn't be her ignoring his calls anymore, it would be the other way around.
"Fury confronted me the day I left."
"Why didn't you tell me?" She didn't miss the tinge of anger seeping into his voice.
"It's more complicated than you think."
There was something in her voice that made his anger lessen. It was still there, and he didn't know how long or if he could ver forgive her. was hiding something, but he could tell it wasn't an ordinary secret. Whatever happened between her and Fury involved something big. And classified.
"You're going to have to tell me eventually."
He would figure out what this secret was, even if it meant breaking into Fury's office.
She felt a panic attack coming on. Her breathing was tight as her eyes locked on the paper in front of her. The one she was scared to touch. Never in her life had she imagined a blank sheet of paper would be so menacing, but it was. This paper decided her life.
Either she would meet her parents for the first time and live happily ever after, or she would keep her team intact and they would. If she was asked months earlier, she would've chosen her parents without a second thought. S.H.I.E.L.D had been nothing more than scary people in black suits, she had no reason to save them. Her job to expose them and their secrets to the world, but she met Ward and she became friends with Fitzsimmons. She found the first person to ever believe in her, and someone who would push her to be the best.
This decision was life-changing, and how Hand could expect her to decide without much thought was nothing short of unbelievable. This choice would take her on two very different paths and once it was made she would never be able to change it. There would be no room for regrets.
"I-" She couldn't finish. Every time she conjured up an answer, it died on her lips. There was no right answer. Just two choices, one of which was going to become her life. She just had to decide how much fallout she could deal with and how much guilt she could live with without drowning.
How was she expected to decide? How could they give her an ultimatum? She knew what she did was against the rules, but saying she could never meet her parents was just flat out cruel. However, if she did choose to meet them, then she couldn't see her new friends. Was this what S.H.I.E.L.D did?
Skye's head swiveled to Simmons. She needed help, but there was nothing she could offer that would help her. There was no one here to help. She craved instruction. She wanted to see them. She needed the people she needed her whole life, the people who were mysteriously absent, and the ones who, no matter how many nights she cried never showed up to wrap their arms around her.
She needed her parents.
Skye steeled herself; she knew what she was going to ask was impossible, but she had to try. For herself, and for them. If she could talk to them–whoever they were–and explain, maybe they could help and offer guidance. She had to try at least. It wasn't like she had anything else to lose.
As she pushed herself to a standing position and walked over to Hand, she could feel Simmons' eyes follow her along with Coulson's.
Hand looked up at her when she stopped in front of her, standing up a little straighter. "Have you made your decision?"
"No. I-Can I have five minutes alone with my parents?" She decided to not beat around the bush. Honesty seemed to be the best approach, even if it meant she wouldn't sugarcoat her answer.
"So, you're going to live with them?" She assessed Skye, her eyes flickering to the sheet of paper she left on the table untouched.
Skye hesitated. "Uh...I don't know." She may be fooling herself, but she wasn't fooling Hand. The older women opened her mouth to object, but Coulson stepped forward. He glanced at Skye who looked torn. This wasn't what they wanted to have happen.
"Hand, let her. She needs this," Coulson said. And so do they, he thought.
"You have three minutes." Her voice left no room for negotiation, and Skye didn't try to. She was grateful to even get the opportunity to meet them even if it was only for a short period of time as very well could be her only chance.
She was barely three steps out of the room before the nerves kicked in. The relief she felt from leaving her 'cell' had disappeared in a flash and she swore her body began to shake. She wasn't scared of meeting them, but she would admit to staying glued to Coulson's side the whole trip. With her eyes focused on the door ahead and the future, she didn't notice Simmons was trailing behind the pack. Or that a sad look crossed her face as she disappeared without a goodbye.
Skye gripped Coulson tighter as they got closer. It wasn't that she was anxious more so that it was the first meeting with them since she was a baby. She didn't know what to say or what to ask. She had a set time, and there was no way she would get through her list of questions. Was she supposed to tell them about the ultimatum, or had they already been told?
She didn't have time to Coulson for their journey came to an end. They were parked outside a door; Conference room C, the bold letters read. This was it. Finally, she was going to be reunited with her parents.
She turned to Coulson, and he squeezed her hand. "They're inside," He told her, and left.
She was alone. There was only a door standing between her and her parents. Just one twist of the handle and she'd be with them. She stretched her arm out and her hand curved around the door handle causing the metal to rattle. Then in a split second of bravery, she twisted the handle and flung it open.
A/N: Who will Skye choose? Where did Simmons go? What happens after Skye opens that door? Review!
Thanks for reading, I'd love to hear what you think.
Word Count: 3360
