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When Ward wakes up it's still dark outside.
He can hear Kara breathing softly on the bed closest to him. He sits up soundlessly and looks over to where Skye is sleeping.
No, not sleeping.
Skye's lying in the bed, yes, but even in the darkness Ward can see her tightened fists and how her whole body is tense.
Without consciously thinking about it, he stands up and walks over to her. "Skye?"
Her eyes fly open immediately, then they meet his.
She lets out a small, shaky breath, but it doesn't fool him.
Ward sits down at the edge of her bed and slowly reaches for her.
He's giving her enough time to move away, but she doesn't. Which he takes as a good sign.
His fingers brush softly against hers, untangling her tense fingers and stretching them softly.
Skye lets him and Ward can feel her eyes on his face.
After what feels like an eternity he musters up the courage to meet her heavy gaze.
Ward slips his fingers between hers and squeezes them.
A small smile forms on her lips and this time when she exhales it's much calmer.
"Thank you." She whispers huskily.
"Don't." Ward replies, shaking his head softly.
The urge to move closer overwhelms him and maybe she can read his mind now, because she shifts and tugs on his hand.
He lets her guide him towards her and when Skye lets her head fall on his chest, he wraps an arm around her.
She places her free hand on his chest, right above his heart and spreads her fingers, digging ever so softly into the fabric of his shirt.
He isn't sure if he's imagining it, but it feels like his ribcage is vibrating softly.
Maybe it's just his own heartbeat speeding up under her touch.
Either way, it feels nice.
Ward closes his eyes and pulls Skye closer.
She sighs and slowly her body relaxes against his.
-
Kara smiles as she rolls out of her bed and her eyes land on the one next to hers.
Ward and Skye are curled up together, her cheek pressed against his chest and his arms wrapped tightly around her.
But then Skye blinks and Kara's attention focuses solely on the dark circles under her eyes.
"Have you slept at all?" She asks, not bothering to whisper. It's already 8 am and Ward needs to wake up anyway.
And he does.
Skye slips out of his embrace, before he's fully aware of his surroundings, and gives Kara an apologetic smile. "A little bit."
Kara replies the only way she thinks is appropriate. By snorting in disbelief.
They get ready in record time.
While one showers, the other two take care of everything that needs to be taken care of: cleaning up their room, packing their things, checking the internet for the closest gun shops and brewing crappy motel coffee.
By the time they are back on the highway, Skye has finished her third cup.
Not that Kara is counting.
Or staring at her from the backseat.
She's got her feet propped up against the dashboard and her hair is pulled up in a high ponytail.
From back here, Skye almost looks relaxed, but if Kara adds the unnatural paleness of her face and the bruise like circles under her eyes, she looks beyond exhausted.
It makes her feel all the more anxious about what Skye's going to do in a few hours time.
It feels weird to feel worry for someone that isn't him.
Even though Kara hasn't been under his control for long, everything that came before feels like lifetimes ago.
It might be why she's grateful to have Skye and Ward around.
It might also be why she wants to keep Skye safe.
-
They find a gun shop, both Kara and Ward approve of, by noon.
The shop is empty, save for the extremely bored looking teenage boy, who's sitting behind the counter.
When the three of them walk in, he sits up a little straighter and takes them in with one raised eyebrow.
Skye doesn't pay attention to the exchange between him, Ward and Kara, instead choosing to take a look around the shop.
Her head is pounding, like Thor decided to repeatedly smash his hammer against her skull... from all sides.
She wants to scream, which wouldn't help at all.
Her fingers stopped shaking, though.
It feels as if her powers have decided to move from her finger tips into her whole body.
Which pretty much makes her feel like she's being constantly electrocuted.
Also, the lack of sleep is making her extra sensitive.
"Skye?"
She turns and finds Kara with two handguns in her hand.
Skye reaches for the bigger one, which is roughly the size of an ICER.
She wraps her fingers around it and holds it up, testing it's weight and feel in her hands.
With a small nod, Skye hands the gun back to Kara. "Better than nothing."
The corner of Kara's mouth quirks up.
Skye follows her back to the counter.
Something feels off. Skye can't really pinpoint what catches her attention, but suddenly her headache is forgotten and Skye stands a little straighter.
She lets her eyes wander through the room, taking in everything. They come to a halt on the teenage boy.
While he'd been lounging comfortably earlier, he's standing now, his shoulders squared, his eyes on Ward.
Skye can almost see Ward face in her mind, when she recalls his words.
Staying unnaturally still to keep from fidgeting.
Maintaining eye contact to give the impression of confidence.
What's wrong?
It's feels as though Skye can feel the nervousness of the boy in her own body.
"Do we have everything we need?" She asks, her voice sharper than she intended.
Ward and Kara pick up on her sudden change and Ward looks at her questioningly.
"C'mon, superspy. We haven't got all day." She says, her voice considerably softer and a smile tugging at her lips but her eyes try to communicate something else.
His eyes narrow for a fraction of a second and when he looks back at the boy, Skye knows he understood.
"Yes, we're ready to go." Ward simply says, shoving one of the guns into his belt.
"But you said you wanted extra ammunition." The boy protests. "I have some in the backroom. If you'd just wait until I get it."
"No, that won't be necessary." Skye tells him, grabbing another the gun from the counter. "Thanks and have a nice day."
Once they are in the car, Skye gets comfortable in the backseat and reaches for the laptop, getting to work immediately.
"Specialists." Skye mutters, almost to herself but loud enough for the people in question to hear. "Hand them a few fancy guns and they ignore everything around them."
"Who did he alert?" Kara asks, twisting around in her seat to look at Skye. "Please say it was the police."
Skye hacks into the boy's phone, finds the last number he contacted and traces the number. "Holy crap."
"Not the police, then?" Ward asks calmly as he speeds down the highway.
"Hydra." Is all Skye says.
"Just what we needed." He sighs.
"How did he know?" Kara asks and their eyes meet.
Skye bites her lip, feeling uncomfortable. "You two are on Hydra's most wanted list, which somehow landed in that boys email account. Give me a few minutes and I'll figure out why."
And it doesn't take her more than four minutes to realize that the owner of the gun shop is affiliated with Hydra and that the boy behind the counter is his son.
"A bit of good news, though." Skye adds, after explaining the connection to the others. "No Hydra agent has responded. Yet.“
Neither of the two replies.
-
Ward has this irrational urge to drive non-stop for the next 48 hours to get as far away from the gun shop as possible.
It won't be long before Hydra reacts to the notification and then their agents will search the area for him and Kara.
But he also knows with absolute certainty, that Skye won't leave without meeting the person that is following them.
He sighs. Sighs, and keeps driving towards the meeting place.
All the while he tries to come up with an argument to convince Skye to let him stay with her.
They have no idea, who wants to meet with Skye and considering her newfound abilities, they could want to use her.
Or worse.
He can't, no, won't let that happen.
"I found a motel not far from where I am meeting our mystery person." Skye announces, after almost an hour of total silence. "I think, you two should wait there for me."
"Skye-" Ward starts, but Skye cuts him off. "No, Ward. I know what you want to say, but I've made up my mind. I'll drop you off at the motel and then.."
She trails off and Ward's sure she was about to tell him she'll come back afterwards. "What if they try to attack you? What if whoever wants to meet you doesn't come alone?"
Skye sighs. She's wearing that indignant expression, he has seen so often and it reminds him of the old Skye.
The old Skye, who looked so incredibly young and was so vulnerable but volunteered, no insisted on infiltrating Ian Quinn's estate.
And then he remembers seeing her, completely drenched and wearing an expression of absolute terror, running into his arms and holding onto him for dear life.
He knows, she isn't that girl anymore. Knows, that she is more than capable of protecting herself, but she's still only one person.
And the image of her bleeding to death in Coulson's arms, keeps flashing in his mind.
"Skye, I'm not letting you go in there alone." Ward says, with an air of finality in his voice.
Their eyes meet in the rearview mirror and Skye's eyes soften.
"Fine." She huffs and looks away.
Ward realizes that Kara has been uncharacteristically silent throughout this whole exchange.
When he looks over to her, she turns to Skye. "If he is coming, I am, too." She tells the other woman decidedly.
Skye shrugs, a small smile tugging at her lips. "Go big or go home, am I right?"
Kara chuckles and Ward feels considerably calmer.
At least he won't have to sit around and wait while Skye meets someone potentially dangerous.
-
Skye pulls up the tiny satellite image of the cabin in which she is supposed to meet the mystery person.
It's pixelated and she can't really see details.
But it's in a little forrest, and there are more cabins in the area. However they are spread far enough apart, so that your closest neighbors wouldn't hear you being murdered brutally.
Maybe, she thinks, that's actually a good thing, since they are running from both Hydra and S.H.I.E.L.D. and a neighbor calling the police on them wouldn't be beneficial, at all.
Skye decides that thinking about being murdered brutally isn't really what she should be doing right now. Instead, she should think about who wanted to meet her and more importantly what were they after.
She knows that having Kara and Ward with her will be an advantage but only if they are hidden. On the other hand, the message told her to come alone and she doesn't have a good feeling about ignoring that blatant threat.
"Hey, Skye?" Kara asks, pulling Skye out of her thoughts. "Is this the motel you referred to earlier?"
Skye looks up, and then out of the window to see a old, battered sign of a motel.
"Yeah, that's the one." She replies.
Somehow, the drumming in her veins is calming her.
Until now, it always had the opposite effect. Setting her on edge.
But right know, she feels strong, confident in her ability to handle anything that is coming her way.
Ward must pick up on the change in her, because his eyes keep watching her from the rearview mirror.
"Chill." Is the only thing Skye says and he doesn't reply.
-
Ward is forced to stop the car a few miles from the cabin.
The road is blocked by a huge tree that has been knocked over, most likely by a storm.
Skye is the first one out of the car and by the time Ward has caught up with the two women, Skye has already grabbed two guns and shoved them into her belt. Kara is in the process of stashing multiple knives and a small gun into her boots.
After Ward arms himself to the teeth, the three of them walk around the tree and set off towards the cabin.
The silence isn't what's bothering Ward, it's the weird vibe Skye is giving off.
Her shoulders are relaxed, her face carefully blank, but kind of... peaceful.
She doesn't look like she's walking into a battle, but more like she's meeting a friend for dinner.
It unnerves Ward. And seemingly Kara, too.
They arrive twenty minutes before they are supposed to.
Ward takes his time walking around the cabin, checking every nook and corner, before he nods to Kara and she opens the door.
"Clear." She announces, lowering her gun and stepping inside.
Ward lets Skye enter and then follows her, his gun still ready.
He kicks the door shut behind them.
They take a quick look around.
The cabin isn't really big. It has two stories and the ground floor has only three big rooms, the living room, a kitchen and a spacious bathroom.
"Maybe you two should split up, Kara into the kitchen and Ward into the bathroom. That way you can come from opposite sides." Skye says as she walks around the couch and picks up a sparkly vase.
"Good thinking." Kara says and Ward watches Skye as she puts the vase back down with a grim look in her eyes.
He thinks he can see it vibrate slightly.
Maybe she's not that calm after all.
-
Once Ward and Kara get into position, Skye starts to pace in the living room.
The clock above the fireplace keeps ticking and slowly Skye feels the anxiety flood back in.
The sleepless night is starting to take it's toll and every sound seems amplified.
She has just reached the hall that leads to the kitchen and is spinning around, when the front door flies open.
Skye whirls around, her hand going for the gun in her belt.
The doorway is empty and the cold air that blows through the door sends a chill down her spine.
"It's rude not to knock, you know?" Skye calls out, craning her neck.
"I've been told that many times." A cold voice replies.
She never heard that voice before, but something in it makes her spine tingle.
Or maybe it's just the wind.
"It's also rude not to introduce yourself." Skye presses further, still watching the dark, empty doorway.
"Now that can be remedied quickly." He says and finally Skye sees him.
He steps into the light cast by the chandelier and Skye realizes that he's just a middle-aged man, with nothing about his physique or stance looking like he's well-versed in combat. For a split second he reminds her of Coulson. She dismisses that thought quickly.
The only thing that feels off about him though, are the pair of dark-tinted glasses he's wearing and the unnerving smile that's playing on his lips.
"My name is Reader." He says and bows gallantly.
And just like that the comparison between him and Coulson vanishes. He looks, for lack of a better word, strange.
Skye's eyebrows shoot up. "What kind of crappy name is that? And why have you been following me?"
"One question at a time, Skye." Reader says as he steps into the cabin, sounding almost scolding. "And to make this fair, how about for every question of yours I answer, you'll answer one of mine?"
"How about you tell me who you are and how you know my name and I don't come over there and kick your ass?" Skye spits back.
Sarcasm and false bravado have always been her defense mechanism and with this guy unnerving her, it's natural that she falls back into that pattern.
"Tsk, tsk, little girl." Reader chuckles. "Who's being rude now?"
He takes a couple steps toward her and Skye's attention flickers to the bottom of the bathroom door, where she can make out Ward's shadow blocking the light.
She realizes that Reader's only know stepping in his line of fire.
Skye takes a step back and Reader follows immediately.
She doesn't risk throwing another glance in Ward's or even Kara's general direction because, tinted glasses or not, she feels Reader's eyes on her.
"I already told you that my name is Reader." He says, his voice now less belittling. "And I've been following you because the Diviner told me to."
Skye merely raises her eyebrows. "The Diviner is gone. I watched it as it broke into a million pieces."
Reader chuckles. "Oh, then let me rephrase my last statement: the Diviner, I own, has told me to find you."
"Wait." Skye frowns. "There is more than one?"
A surge of new questions form in Skye's mind and she wants to ask every single one of them.
But her gut is screaming danger and all she wants to do is to get as far away from Reader as possible.
"Evidently." Reader replies, his unnerving smile growing. "And now that I have answered your question, why don't you tell me what your gift is?"
"Yeah, no thanks." Skye huffs. "I'm not telling you a single thing."
She just barely keeps herself from shuffling and crossing her arms under her chest.
"That's too bad, Skye." Reader tilts his head, looking almost apologetic. "I thought we could handle this without using force."
The sound of a gun clattering to the floor and strangled gasps, reach Skye ears and she whips her head around to find Kara in a headlock. The bathroom door flies open and Ward is being shoved out with a gun pressed to his temple.
He looks furious.
"Answer my questions or I can not guarantee the safety of your companions." Reader says and this time his voice is once again ice cold.
Rage floods through Skye's body and she's so tempted to just let it all out.
She barely refrains, reminding herself that both Ward and Kara's lives in danger.
Skye can't loose them.
"Let them go." She grits through clenched teeth.
"Tell me about your gift and I will." Is the only reply she gets.
There's more struggling and Kara is being dragged passed her to where Reader and now Ward and his captor are standing.
"You wanna know what my gift is?" Skye asks, her voice almost calm even though her whole body is shaking.
Her eyes meet Kara's, then Ward's.
Even though their lives are in danger, they don't look too shaken up.
Both of them are specialists through and through and Skye can depend on them to take care of themselves.
So, she gives Reader the answer to his question.
All it takes for her to release her powers, is to take a shallow breath and push it out as she exhales.
The ground starts shaking and there are cracks forming, shooting towards Reader.
It all happens so fast and before any of them are really aware of what is happening, Kara has thrown off her captor and Skye has gripped his arm.
She feels a burst of energy flow from her into his body and for a moment, they are one.
And then she let's go.
He's dead before he hits the ground.
Skye's blood is singing and her breath comes out in quick, shallow pants.
Her eyes find Ward, who has twisted away from his captor.
That one is much smaller than Ward, but the gun he points into Ward's face makes Skye's hand move almost involuntarily.
For the first time, she manages to send out a surge of her powers in a controlled direction.
It moves passed Ward and hits it's intended target and he goes down immediately.
Confused for a split second, Ward turns and looks at her.
It looks like he might approach her and that thought alone makes a new wave of power rise inside of her.
Skye holds up her hands in defense and screams, "Get the hell out of here."
Now that both Kara and Ward are relatively safe, the grip on her powers is loosening and she feels like the walls are closing in on her.
It's almost like her body is forcing her powers out and no matter who might come at her is a target.
It's scary and Skye bites back a sob.
Reader starts laughing - a loud, cruel laugh - and when Skye looks at him, she sees that his glasses have fallen to the ground.
And where his eyes are supposed to be, there's... nothing.
"What the hell?" She cries out, watching in horror as his hands slide across his belt.
She tries to stop him but before she can, she feels white-hot pain spreading through her stomach.
Her knees buckle and the shaking of the world around her stops abruptly.
Everything stops. It feels like time has frozen and she's the only one who notices.
"You're not the only one with gifts, Skye." Reader says, his voice triumphant. "I could have taught you how to control them."
A new wave of power surges within her and this time it feels foreign.
It's not her own, it's brutal and cold and painful.
It runs through her and takes away her ability to remain standing.
She feels nauseous and cold and sweaty at the same time.
Everything around her is spinning and there's just so much pain.
Everything about this seems eerily familiar.
The words.
Someone telling her that they could have helped her.
The pain.
She falls to her knees, gripping her stomach and her fingers slick with her own blood.
The noise.
Everything blurs together and resembles the sound of waves clashing against a shore. A single agonized scream cuts through it all.
His voice, her name.
And then the world goes completely dark.