Work Text:
Propositions
Ward prided himself on his reserve to never get into an SUV with a complete stranger. 33 probably didn’t like it either but she didn’t voice her concerns.
The old man sat silently, his eyes roaming over the specialists’ bodies in a trained manner Ward recognized as physical assessment. The old man wanted them for something.
Gonzales, Ward’s memory corrected him. Knowing the man’s name didn’t alleviate the non-existent knowledge Ward had of the man. If 33 knew anything, she again didn’t speak about it.
“So I don’t suppose you’re going to tell us who you are by any chance?” Ward broke the uncomfortable silence.
“I am Robert Gonzales. You, I believe are Grant Ward, and the infamous Kara Palamas.” The man spoke in a knowing tone.
Ward saw 33’s eyes widen slightly in shock after hearing her supposed name. It proved that the name was correct. Ward knew brainwashing didn’t always mean they would wipe the memories of an individual.
It wasn’t practical.
“And what exactly do you want from us?” Ward asked.
“You are two of the best and brightest field operatives that have ever graced S.H.I.E.L.D.’s presence. Unlike Coulson, I am interested in giving you a chance to fight for us again.” Gonzales answered.
“So you don’t work with the man?” Ward pried.
“Let’s say we have a, difference of opinion when it comes to running S.H.I.E.L.D.” Gonzales offered as an answer.
Ward didn’t ask any other questions when he felt the SUV stop. Gonzales got out and started walking down a tarmac.
Ward saw the airport upon exiting the vehicle. Kara hung close to him and Ward could see her hands twitching. Without thinking he grasped one in his.
Kara didn’t react visibly aside from her other hand coming up to grasp his wrist. She was scared. That much Ward could tell. The brainwashing was forcing its way further into her subconscious, making her fear S.H.I.E.L.D. personnel and engaging her fight or flight instincts. That, or she had other reasons to be wary of Gonzales. Either way, she needed treatment soon, or the brainwashing was going to have some repercussions that Ward knew he didn’t know how to handle.
--
Skye woke up with a feeling of déjà vu. It ran across her mind that maybe she should ask Simmons if there were any side effects from being ICEd multiple times in a week.
Sitting up in the bed, Skye felt a small pull on her arm. She looked down and saw an IV drip in the crook of her elbow. Skye turned her gaze around the room and saw the different machines reading her bios and felt a lump building in her throat.
They found out. She couldn’t keep it under wraps and they found out. Skye felt the bed jolt slightly as her breathing picked up. She focused on it and made the shaking stop in tune with her heart.
Skye’s eyes searched the room frantically. She was back in the quarantine chamber but the lab was otherwise empty. The technicians weren’t even there.
They were probably told to clear out so I wouldn’t hurt them. Skye’s mind conjured.
She swung her legs over the edge of the bed and pulled the IV out of her arm. The needle stung but Skye pushed the pain back in her mind. Skye walked over to the glass and looked around the lab trying to find someone in the lab.
Skye let out a huff and turned around. That was when she heard someone clear their throat and she nearly jumped out of her skin.
May materialized out of seemingly nowhere. She watched Skye start fidgeting with the hem of her shirt while her mouth opened and closed waiting for words to form.
“What happened?” Skye finally spoke but kept her gaze focused on a fixed point that was anything but May’s eyes.
“You had another panic attack. It also appears that you’re the one who made the earthquakes. Care to explain?” May didn’t hide any information from her. Skye might have appreciated the sentiment if she wasn’t currently worried about the repercussions of lying.
“I don’t know how it keeps happening. I get nervous, or upset, and then the ground starts shaking, and then I can’t make it stop.” Skye started rambling.
“Calm down,” May ordered shortly. It occurred to Skye that she must be pissed that she didn’t think to tell May about what really happened in the tunnels.
“What’s going to happen to me?” Skye asked timidly after taking a moment to compose her thoughts.
“What do you think is going to happen?” May didn’t like playing Skye. The girl was scared enough as it was. She was still dangerous though, and May needed to make sure Skye could still think objectively regardless of the situation.
Skye didn’t respond for a few moments. She knew the protocol on gifteds. Granted, not many of them were actually in S.H.I.E.L.D. before they got powers, but that didn’t mean the protocol changed.
“I should be in the cage.” Skye muttered.
“That’s your call. When you feel up to it, Coulson wants a word with you in his office.” May finished explaining. She got what she needed.
“How long am I going to be in here?” Skye spoke up before May could walk out.
“Coulson has orders that you’re to be released once Simmons gives the all clear. After that, you’ll be wherever you think you need to be.” May elaborated.
May left after that. Skye slumped back down onto the bed and released a pent up breath. She ran a hand through her hair trying to organize her thoughts.
Skye looked up and caught Fitz standing in the corner by the wall. His lips were trimmed into a thin line.
“Fitz?” Skye spoke up.
“I guess the cat’s out of the bag isn’t it?” He spoke calmly. Fitz’s eyes scanned the lab looking for the cameras.
He may not have been a spy but he wasn’t an idiot. He knew Coulson would want to keep an eye on her.
“I’m sorry. I tried to keep it under control but we went into the field and then there was a crash and-“
“Stop.” Fitz spoke firmly. Skye cut her rambling short.
“You have nothing to apologize for. You tried your best and we misunderstood the parameters. This isn’t your fault.” Fitz stressed the last sentence.
“Can you get me out of here?” Skye pleaded.
“I’ll get Simmons to let you out soon.” Fitz answered.
He left.
--
Ward walked along the top deck of the carrier, taking inventory of the Quinjets and personnel present. Kara still had a death grip on his hand. Gonzales was walking in front of them, albeit at a slower pace to contend with the cane.
The lower decks of the ship were rife with activity. Agents at every corner going over files and data entries while soldiers stood at attention with their rifles at the ready.
Gonzales walked Ward and Kara to a conference six decks below the landing strip. Inside Ward saw higher ups that he swore died when S.H.I.E.L.D. fell.
“Agent Ward, interesting to see you again.” Weaver was the first one Ward recognized.
Gonzales moved from the doorway to the seat at the farthest end of the table while Ward and Kara remained standing.
“I would prefer Agent Palamas to wait outside while we discuss our dealings.” Gonzales requested.
“Ward?” Kara spoke up from behind him.
“One minute.” Ward smiled smugly and stepped out of the doorway to the hall with Kara behind him.
“I should only be a few minutes. Here,” Ward pulled his sidearm from the waistband of his pants and presented it to Kara grip first.
“What do you want me to do?” Kara spoke calmly.
“If I’m not out of this room in ten minutes or someone here starts asking questions, get to a Quinjet and leave. Don’t wait for me.” Ward dug a piece of paper out of his jacket pocket. “Fly to these coordinates. Tell the people there that I kidnapped you and held you hostage. They’re suckers for being heroes.”
“Ward I don-“
“Do you understand?” Ward spoke harsher than he intended but it was important that she follow.
“Yes, Sir.” Kara spoke automatically.
Ward didn’t correct her.
Ward went back into the room and hoped that now wouldn’t be the time that Kara would start questioning her orders.
“So Agent Ward, take a seat.” Weaver semi-offered.
Ward sat down and leaned his elbows against the table. The other agents at the table stared him down and waited for Gonzales to speak. The older man didn’t have the same hatred in his eyes that Ward saw carried through the other agents.
“As I’m sure you can understand, we found out you were HYDRA after the Fall.” Gonzales attempted to diffuse the situation.
“Well that explains the tension.” Ward sassed.
“Yes, but also understand that we don’t care about your past affiliations. You’re skill set is too valuable to care about such petty concerns such as previous loyalty. Especially given that both Coulson and HYDRA burned you once you outlived your usefulness.” Gonzales assured.
“Not all my usefulness apparently.” Ward said under his breath.
“No.” Gonzales agreed.
“We need someone who has knowledge of how HYDRA operates. Whitehall may be dead but there are plenty others who would gladly take his place.” Weaver spoke methodically.
“And how do you know I’m not one of them?” Ward pressed. He prided himself on being hard to find, and yet he was found. He wanted to know how they did it.
“I find it hard to believe that you want to run HYDRA after butchering one of their R&D facilities, Agent Ward.” Gonzales reasoned.
“Fair point,” Ward relented.
“I understand that you had a work-release type deal with Coulson before you left. We saw security camera footage placing you in the vicinity with an unknown marksmen during an execution of a HYDRA operative. Care to tell us about that?” Gonzales asked.
“Not particularly.” Ward winced at being reminded about Skye. The wounds were healing but the pain was still there.
“Who was the shooter?” Weaver pressed.
“Pinocchio.” Ward spoke deadpanned.
“Who was the target?” The agent Ward didn’t recognize pushed.
“The Fairy Godmother.” Ward explained. “Coulson got wind she was selling her fairy dust to HYDRA and he wanted me and Pinocchio to take her out.”
“Joking aside, Agent Ward, we need to assess your ability to work against people that you were obviously close to before the Fall. Bear with us and we’ll try to make this as painless as possible.” Gonzales attempted to arbitrate the conversation.
“Too late. Listen, you guys want me here for a job, right? How about we make a deal?” Ward attempted to steer the conversation away from his time with Skye before he left S.H.I.E.L.D.
“What kind of deal?” No name agent asked.
“I will run three missions, no questions asked. Provided, Kara gets treatment.” Ward spoke calmly.
“Treatment for what? She seemed healthy enough when we picked you two up.” Weaver pressed.
“She was brainwashed by Whitehall. I understand that the standard protocol would be a bullet to the brain but I know S.H.I.E.L.D. has a way to remove imperatives from the subconscious without harming the patient. It was mostly reserved for high level HVTs.” Ward recalled information he heard over the course of a few missions with a strike team five or so years ago.
“What kind of reassurance do we have that you won’t leave as soon as she’s treated before filling your end of the bargain?” Weaver pushed.
“My word.” Ward replied with all seriousness.
The agent Ward didn’t know dissolved into laughter at that. If Ward wasn’t certain that Weaver and Gonzales would shoot him with his back turned, Ward would’ve snapped the prick’s neck.
“You’re word? I’m sorry, I didn’t know we were in kindergarten.” The agent continued to dig his own grave.
“Say we agree to this, you would trust us to dig into your friend’s mind and remove the incentives without placing any of our own?” Gonzales wasn’t stupid.
“I can trust that you’ll do whatever is necessary to keep yourselves alive. The evidence being this carrier that hasn’t been seen in almost a year.” Ward focused on Gonzales, the seeming only voice of reason.
“And if we renege on our end of the deal?” Gonzales asked.
“I’ll kill everyone on this boat.” Ward answered plainly.
“There’s over three hundred personnel on this vessel. All armed.” Weaver attempted to deter Ward.
“I’ve got time.” Ward snarked.
“Sir, you cannot be serious.” The no name agent spoke to Gonzales.
“That’s enough.” Gonzales spoke firmly.
No name agent and Weaver fell silent with their protests. Ward kept his attention on Gonzales.
“We agree to your terms. Our medical personnel will take a look at her.” Gonzales promised.
“Thank you.” Ward replied before standing. He needed to check in.
“There’s more to discuss, Agent Ward.” Gonzales called.
“No there isn’t. Three missions, she gets treatment. Brief me later.” Ward called over his shoulder as he walked out of the room.
Kara was leaning against the wall watching the soldiers move methodically around the ship. Ward followed her gaze and saw it land on the plethora of automatics that were being wheeled to and fro the ship.
“Did you have a nice chat?” Kara spoke up drawing Ward away from his reverie.
“Yeah, I want to talk to you about that.” Ward grabbed Kara’s attention. He ushered her over to an unoccupied corner of the hall away from listening ears.
“I’ve got a couple jobs to work for a little while. Do you still have the paper?” Ward asked.
Kara pulled the sheet from her pocket.
“Ok, I’ve arranged for you to get treatment. When you get a look at the doctor whose going to be performing the procedure, grab ‘em and get out. Take a Quinjet and go to those coordinates. Anyone gets in your way, put a bullet in them.” Ward explained his plan.
“Yes, Sir. What about you?” Kara asked timidly.
“Like I said, I have work to do here. We’ll meet up soon.” Ward placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder.
“You promise?” Ward saw the doubt swimming in Kara’s eyes.
“I promise.” Ward didn’t like making promises he didn’t know he’d be able to keep or not.
--
Simmons let Skye out of the infirmary but not before taking three vials of blood.
“For testing, Skye. We need to know if your DNA has continued to change or not.” Simmons assured with her sugar-sweet smile as she pulled the needle from Skye’s vein.
“I understand. What happens now?” Skye pushed.
“Coulson wishes to speak with you. After that, I’m not sure. I’m sure everything will be fine though.” Simmons patted Skye on the shoulder.
The walk to Coulson’s office was filled with dread and anxiousness. Skye vaguely remembered walking to the principal’s office at one of the many schools she left after pulling a prank on a teacher with the same feelings in her chest.
What she wouldn’t give for the same circumstances.
--
Coulson didn’t speak. For fifteen minutes he didn’t speak. He just looked over several files with May by his side while Skye sat warily in the chair in front of his desk.
She focused on her breathing when she feels a buzzing in her head. Skye considered it to be a warning that her powers were trying to force their way out for their sick version of “play time.”
Clamping down on it stopped the buzzing, but also made her ribs hurt.
One thing at a time.
When Coulson finally did address her, Skye expected him to start yelling like a father would to a daughter that was caught smoking weed in the girl’s room at school.
“Why didn’t you tell us when this first happened?” Coulson’s voice had a vague sound of hurt to it.
“I was scared.” Skye replied with her eyes downcast.
“Scared of us?” May pressed.
“All of you haven’t exactly been in the most stable place since Trip’s death.” Skye winced at the memory as the familiar guilt tried to offset her powers. She clamped down on it as well.
Her hand was starting to cramp.
“We wouldn’t have hurt you Skye. We’re still not going to hurt you, but you should have told us about this. We wouldn’t have sent you into the field otherwise.” Coulson didn’t mean to make her sound like the guilty party but he didn’t know how else to articulate the severity of the situation. She could have gotten herself or someone killed.
“We didn’t, and still don’t, have enough agents to bench me. I can handle it.” Skye tried to sound confident but she knew she was failing.
“Really? You can handle it? Then please explain the earthquakes and the panic attacks on the last two missions?” May spoke harshly.
“I am trying!” The room shook violently as Skye yelled.
Coulson and May didn’t visibly react to the display but Skye was starting to shake herself. She suppressed the energy that so desperately wanted to leave her body.
Her ribs were starting to throb.
“Originally, we were just having him to address the panic attacks, but now, given the circumstances, having him on board might be even more necessary than it was.” Coulson spoke dejectedly.
“Who?” Skye asked.
“A therapist,” Coulson winced.
“A shrink? You want me to see a goddamn shrink?” Skye complained.
“It’s nothing personal.” May attempted to console her.
“The hell it’s not personal. It’s a freaking shrink!” Skye didn’t need to hear the specifics. She knew evaluating when she heard it.
“He’s not like other shrinks.” May spoke up.
“And how can you be so sure?” Skye demanded.
“Because I was married to him.” May answered irritated.
Skye stopped talking at that. Her brain stopped functioning when it tried to make the connection between “May” and “married.”
--
The doctors weren’t exactly talkative. It was hindering Kara’s work.
Kara didn’t like it.
“Who’s the one that’s going to be poking around my head?” Kara asked with as little tact as possible to elicit the appropriate reaction.
“That would be me. Dr. Jedidiah Holder. I assume you’re Agent Palamas?” The physician spoke friendly.
“Yes, Sir. That’s me. When exactly would we be getting started on this?” Kara went into character.
“Well I’ll need to do a pre-treatment evaluation. That can take some time, however, so if you’ll follow me into my office.” Holder ushered Kara to a small consultation room in the back of the lab.
The office was very small. A cubicle took up most of the space while a couple of chairs were strewn across the floor.
“Please, have a seat.” Holder offered as he sat down to begin skimming the file on his desktop screen.
“First off, I would like to thank you for helping me. Second, I’m sorry.” Kara spoke gravely.
“You’re welcome, but what are you’re sorry about?” Holder asked confused.
“This,” Kara sprung from her seat to wrap her arm around Holder’s neck, impeding his breathing. The room was set out of the way of the other lab technicians so Kara was sure that she wasn’t going to be heard.
Slinging the doctor over her shoulder, Kara grabbed her sidearm from the waistband of her pants. She flicked the safety off with her thumb and wrapped her nimble fingers around the doorknob.
This was going to be messy.
--
“The first mission we’re going to have you run deals with some Intel. Weaver believes was stolen after the attack on the Academy.” Gonzales spoke running his finger down a file in front of him.
Ward listened to the old man prattle on. He knew he had a few minutes at most before he needed to move so Ward thought it best to instigate a mission briefing to keep the heads busy.
He looked at the clock on the wall. The commotion should have started already.
The alarms went off.
The lights in the room shut off for a moment.
Ward ran from the room with his gun in hand and ready.
--
Kara stormed through the halls of the ship, careful to keep the scientist from jostling too much as she struggled to shoot her assailants.
Ward came up behind her and nailed Kara’s would-be-killer in the forehead with a well-placed bullet. He grabbed the body from Kara’s shoulders and slung the man across his own.
Kara shrugged off the burning in her shoulders from carrying the man for so long on her own. She gripped her gun in both hands started taking out the soldiers as they came in. Ward stayed behind her and took care of the occasional one that dodged one of Kara’s shots.
The top deck was almost vacant of personnel, something Ward was thankful for. He approximated only 6 bullets left in his magazine and maybe five in Kara’s.
Not enough to continue the fight, but enough to get to a Quinjet.
Kara hit the button underneath the loading ramp to open the way to the cockpit. Ward hid behind the landing gear while Kara took out the remaining three soldiers on the top deck.
Ward looked up at the top of the mast and saw a red dot.
“Kara, get down!” Ward yelled.
Kara dodged over to the other piece of landing gear before the sniper fired off their shot. Ward moved the scientist’s body closer against the landing gear to keep him out of the line of fire.
“Shots are 5 seconds apart!” Kara mentioned.
“You go first! Keep an eye on him.” Ward ordered.
Kara ran up the ramp in a serpentine pattern. The sniper nearly hit her with one shot before she crossed the threshold of the jet. She went straight to the cockpit and started firing up the engines.
Ward slung the scientist over his shoulder again before timing the shots again to verify the delay. Once he was certain the sniper was going to be reloading, Ward braced himself for the sprint.
The shot rang out and Ward felt the bullet slide along his forearm. He ignored the pain and ran up the ramp while the sniper reloaded his rifle.
Once Ward was inside the jet Kara pushed a button that made the loading ramp pull up. Ward laid the scientist across the seats and made his way up to the cockpit. Kara turned and saw the blood seeping from his forearm.
“You’re shot.” Kara acknowledged before turning on the autopilot.
“Just a grazing. Nothing serious.” Ward reminded her. A memory tried to make its way to the surface of Ward’s mind but he clamped it down.
He didn’t need to think about that.
He never needed to think about that.
--
Skye had moved into the cage on the BUS. She felt that this was a safer place to be if her powers started acting out.
Skye took a deep breath. She felt her lungs push against her ribs and fresh pain shot through her. Skye relished in it. It eased the buzzing in her ears.
The man across from her was Dr. Andrew Garner, May’s apparent ex-husband. Someone Skye was very interested in meeting.
“So how was the wedding? I’m thinking May could go either way, understated, or full on bridezilla.” Skye spoke excitedly, ignoring the pain in her ribs.
“Wrong on both accounts, but we’re not here to discuss that. We’re here to discuss you.” Garner tried to push the topic at hand.
“Yeah, but the big topic is the fact that you got May to settle down, even if it was only for a while.” Skye spoke sweetly.
“Do you always deflect the conversation from yourself?” Garner chuckled.
Skye’s face fell. “And we start with the psychobabble,” She muttered.
“Not psychobabble. It’s just a word that describes what you’re doing.” Garner explained.
“How exactly did May get you to agree to this? I checked your records when I went through all of the personnel files for Coulson. You left S.H.I.E.L.D. a long time ago.” Skye deflected again.
“May begged. Plain and simple. And I don’t believe that chivalry is dead.” Garner relented.
“Oh,” Skye shut down. She wasn’t going to give any more than she got. Garner was quick on the uptake and sighed in defeat.
“We eloped to Vegas. May’s never been one for the dramatics but when she saw an Elvis impersonator, she wasn’t about to pass it up.” Garner may have embellished the memory a little to perk Skye up, but Garner was asked to assess the girl, not give him his life story.
Skye took his memory in stride though and she twirled her fingers around a piece of the comforter underneath her. She bit her lip in anticipation of talking about the quakes.
“They scare me, the earthquakes.” Skye started. Garner acknowledged her but didn’t say anything.
“The first time it happened in the field I could feel my body shaking along with everything else. That only made things worse.” Skye finished.
“May mentioned, panic attacks. Have you been scared of anything lately?” Garner pushed.
“Myself. Hurting someone without meaning to.” Skye answered.
“I’ve read your history, Skye. I know that having all of this, must feel like a dream sometimes.” Garner spoke.
“Being a secret agent? Going around the world, having drinks with bad guys before dropkicking them? Yeah, I’m living the dream.” Skye joked.
Garner chuckled at her antics before schooling his features into a somber expression. “I meant the family you’ve built here. May and Coulson, the parents. You, Fitz, Simmons, the children. I imagine you’re more afraid of losing that than hurting them.”
Skye’s face fell at that. This was why she didn’t like shrinks. They made everything personal.
Skye didn’t like personal.
“I don’t like to think about it.” Skye lamented.
“People rarely do, but that doesn’t negate it. Do your powers make you feel like they won’t accept you?” Garner asked.
“The amount of times I’ve been shot with an ICER should be a good enough answer for you.” Skye spoke sadly.
“They don’t allow you a moment of composure? A chance to stop the shaking on your own?” Garner pried.
“We weren’t exactly in a safe place to do that.” Skye replied.
“You defend their actions? There’s no anger that they shot you?” Garner poked.
“They used ICER’s, not bullets.” Skye explained in a knowing tone.
“Still, it’s an aggressive move.” Garner noted.
“They did what was necessary to protect themselves.” Skye shot back.
“So you’re not angry that they shot you? That they didn’t even take the time to check if you were okay?” Garner continued his push.
“They’re not treating me like an animal.” Skye spoke quickly.
“These circumstances speak otherwise.” Garner looked around the cage.
“I did this to myself.” Skye could feel a pressure against her ribs.
“Why, are you afraid?” Garner leaned forward on his elbows.
“I’m afraid I’ll kill someone if I’m not careful!” Skye shot back.
Her ribs were really starting to hurt.
Garner took a moment before speaking. The small wait made Skye’s skin itch with anticipation. Of course, the itching also could have been the buzzing she felt around her nerves.
“Alright. Say you lose control again, what do you think they’ll do to you?” Garner proposed.
Skye was taken aback by the question. She opened and closed her mouth a few times before answering.
“They would ICE me.” Skye swallowed.
“And then what?” Garner pushed.
“I-I, I don’t know. Put me back in here? In quarantine? Bring you back in once they knew it was safe for you?” Skye was grasping at straws.
She could feel her ribs shaking in tune with the erratic beat of her heart.
“So you’re certain you’ll be sedated, but uncertain about what happens after that?” Garner pushed.
“I don’t know how their minds work dude!” Skye shot back offended.
Her back was throbbing.
“Skye, I’m going to ask you one last question, can you answer it?” Garner was going to catch hell for this.
“Yeah,” Skye forced out.
“What does the name Grant Ward mean to you?” Garner asked.
Skye’s face drained of color as she felt a sickening crack along her ribs and a drip in her nose. She couldn’t hear Garner as he started shouting at her.
Her vision around the room narrowed and the colors merged together. Her brain felt like a beehive.
Skye passed out.
--
//4 HOURS BEFORE SKYE’S SESSION//
“Ask her whatever you need to,” Coulson was briefing Garner on the patient.
“I plan to.” Garner replied.
“If the plane starts shaking, hit the intercom button and May will come in and sedate her.” Coulson informed.
“That won’t be necessary, Coulson.” Garner assured.
“You don’t know that Andrew.” May piped up from her corner.
“I’ve dealt with people like her before, Melinda. If you walk in there with a gun, start treating her like an animal, she’ll start acting like one. And if her powers are as volatile as you say, that may not be the smartest move on your part.” Garner shot back.
“There is one more condition,” Coulson broke the tension.
“Really, do tell.” Garner placated him.
“Never bring up Grant Ward. That’s a sore spot for her on a good day and we don’t know how her powers would react to it.” May warned.
“Alright,” Garner lied. “I’ll do it your way.”
--
//PRESENT//
He didn’t do it their way.