Title: Skeletons in the closet
Summary: Sydney faces her past at SD-6.
Disclaimer: I don't own anything Alias related, only the characters you don't know.
Spoiler: 3:17 'The frame' and before, AU after that.
Rating: PG-13
A/N: Sorry it's taken so long for me to update, but I've had loads of coursework to get through and I've been ill, I'll try and write a longer chapter soon.
When Sydney woke up it was still dark outside and it took her a few moments to realize where she was. When she felt Elliot stir behind her she froze. What the hell had she done? She tried hard to remember the previous night's events and then saw the litter of bottles around the hotel room. She looked at the bottle and empty tub that lay near the bed and sighed. Tequila and ice cream. Never a good mix for Sydney.
Her cell phone started ringing mercilessly and caused the pounding in Sydney's head to increase. She grabbed it and answered in a whispered hurry. She was far from ready to confront Elliot yet.
"Syd? Where are you? I've been worried sick..." Vaughn's raised voice was hurting her more than the cell phone had.
"Vaughn...talk quietly." She hissed as Elliot began to stir. "I have a...headache." Saying she had a hangover wouldn't go down too well with the frantic agent. "I didn't do the job yesterday. Sark interrupted me and Elliot never turned up."
"You're not arrested anymore." Sydney almost laughed at the tone of Vaughn's voice. Only in her line of work could her ex boyfriend say something like that in normal conversation. She felt a pang of guilt as she remembered Vaughn and then the woman she was lying beside.
"I'll be at work in a couple of hours, bye." She hung up and crept out of bed. After finding her clothes, all but one sock, she scribbled a note down for Elliot and left the hotel by the cover of the early morning darkness.
"Sydney!" Dixon was scowling as she entered the briefing room. She cringed as she suppressed the urge to vomit.
"I didn't do the mission okay"
"You disobeyed orders, escaped from custody and come in looking like you've had ten rounds with the world heavyweight boxing champ and you expect me to believe you did nothing?" The others in the briefing room sat silently as Dixon shouted at Sydney. Vaughn was close to backing her up, but his wife being beside him stopped him.
"Actually it was ten rounds with a tequila bottle." Sydney snapped. "So please Dixon, stop shouting at me. I feel bad enough without your shouting, or concern." She slumped into a chair and Dixon carried on with the briefing without argument.
"As I was saying, we have two new CIA agents transferring here today, I believe they're friends of Miss Reed's..." He stopped as Lauren smiled at the two people who had entered the room. Dixon, Jack and Marshall stared disbelievingly at the two people and when Sydney turned around she almost groaned.
"Director Dixon, these are agents Elliot and Zac. I believe you already know them."