The thing about Skye
She doesn't like crowds.
Honestly, she kind of forgot about it because, well, she was living alone for a while and never put herself in the middle of crowds.
When it does happen, it's nothing like the slight discomfort and anxiety she remembers of moving between so many people.
When it happens, Skye and the rest of the team are in hot pursuit of a centipede doctor. Skye doesn't hesitate when the doctor dives into the moving mass of Times Square- she dives right after in a single-minded pursuit, with May at her side and Ward finding a sniper perch at the top of some building somewhere.
Skye's concentration is snapped away with the first hit ramming into her shoulder, spinning her away. She catches herself. Tries to push forward again. And is hit from behind this time, turning her to face even more people surging around her like a crashing wave.
Skye loses all thoughts of the mission as the people around her press in, brush against her, shoulders and bags and irritable voices slamming into her.
The ground sways beneath Skye's feet. Her vision tunnels to the shifting faces in front of her. Skye is shoved hard from behind, and she falls face first into the pavement. She instinctively curls inward, arms rising to protect her head, and she can't breathe- Skye can't breathe!
Mary Sue Poots her pants! Is that why they keep bringing you back?
Why do you keep getting picked, if they're just going to keep bringing you back? Let someone who can actually be loved have a chance!
You're so stupid, Mary Sue!
Just die already!
"Skye- Skye! Skye, get up, what's going on? What's wrong?" A buzzing distorted voice talks directly into her ear.
Sister Gertrude says you were born with the devil, and that's why your mom got rid of you.
Skye can't breathe. She can only wheeze and squeeze her eyes shut and try to guard her soft spots as the stomping feet rain down on her, trying their hardest to get a reaction out of her. She won't react. She won't. She just has to wait for the nuns to call them in, and then she can slowly follow after (she will lose supper privileges for being so dirty, and for dragging her feet, but she doesn't care anymore).
"Skye!"
The voice is loud and startling, and a hand grips Skye's shoulder, shaking it. Skye curls even tighter into herself, panting, choking- can't breathe.
"Skye?" the voice says again, softer this time. The hands gentle on her shoulders, and slide up to brush some hair back out of Skye's sweaty face. "Skye, can you hear me?"
Are you stupid or something? No one wants you.
"Skye, can you look at me?"
No. No, Skye cannot, or a foot will catch her in the face again- always protect the face.
What, your shiny new foster dad not think you were pretty enough to keep you any longer? I hear he's the one that did that to your face.
"Breathe, Skye. Come'on."
Skye breathes. Shallowly, and with gasping inhales that get stuck in her chest, but Skye breathes.
"That's it. Come back to us. Come back."
The voice is familiar and foreign all at once, and Skye squints open blurry eyes to see the face attached to the gentle hands and calming tones. Skye sees people, so many people, moving and pulsing around them, not even paying Skye any attention. Ward and Coulson are there, keeping them at a slight distance.
Skye squeezes her eyes shut again as nausea climbs up her throat.
"May?" Skye croaks.
"I'm here," the voice soothes. "I'm here, Skye."
"The- the doctor?"
"Don't worry about that right now; just focus on breathing."
Which means he got away. Skye, probably, caused him to get away. She messed up. The air burns as Skye tries to inflate her lungs, and the dark world she's in feels like it's turning Skye in slow circles.
"Was it the crowd?" May asks softly.
"Yeah," Skye hisses out through clenched teeth. "Don't like being surrounded." Surrounded like that one group of older kids that would descend on her every time she got taken back to the orphanage- who would call her Mary Sue Poots her pants and deliver punches and kicks that hurt just as much as the words they'd fling.
"If you keep your eyes closed, can we get you back to the Bus?"
"Yeah," Skye says, even though she doesn't really know. She feels like she just took a beating. May helps her to her feet, and Skye stumbles blindly after.
Ward and Coulson must still be on guard duty, because hardly anyone runs into them. Every time someone does break through, and bumps into Skye, she flinches and May squeezes her waist reassuringly.
Skye is so exhausted, she doesn't even realize they are out of the crowds and back on the Bus until Simmons descends on her.
A/N: Please review!
~Silver~