Disclaimer: An idea that has been in my mind for too long and I decided to write it down, thanks so much 'Kitten' for brainstorming with me and also supporting me over this fic, I couldn't ask for a better co-author!

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"Only those who will risk going too far can possibly find out how far one can go." T.S. Eliot

Skye Abigail Turner was called to the Director's office that night, it's not like she was surprise at all. Since she had left her old team being at the Hub or any other SHIELD facility was like being at home. Skye leaves the cozy apartment at 22:40 pm wearing a dress suit, dark black pantyhose, high heeled boots and a white long overcoat, her hair is falling down in waves as it has always been. Alicia, her daughter, insisted she should never cut it otherwise she would be just like Aunt Hill or Aunt Tasha and clearly that wasn't an option. Truth be told, Skye preferred her hair just like that, it kept her connected to her old self, the smart-ass hacktivist, now a full level 9 agent.

The SUV engines created life and she turned the car's computer up, knowing her cellphone would ring any moment now. She pressed the dial number as she drove out of the apartments garage and said:

"Director Fury's office."

A second later the call was taken "Agent Turner, forgive me if we woke you, but we could use your expertise."

"Hello Director, I wasn't really sleeping to be honest, you're lucky Allie is not home today, otherwise I would have to take her with me to the… where are you right now, sir?"

"At the Hub." He states his voice strong and urgent.

"Are you kidding me?" She brakes the car and responses "Sir, but I'm in New York!"

"Well, teleport then agent Turner. I need you here, pronto!" He's demanding and whenever he was like that all Skye really did was embrace it. She knows she's not essential, has not been since she became a mother. She might be an Avengers handler and their best CS and operational girl but she can do her job anywhere. Besides since she actually figured out the extent of her powers her life became so much easier.

Skye parks her SUV in one of the many Starbucks in the city, climbs out of it, closes the door and walks out, her boots leaving footprints in the snow. As she walks she embraces the cold air, bringing her overcoat closer to her body, the footstep marks on the street would make another person doubt their mind, as they are lost in an alley of tick snow taking a road to nowhere. Now she is inside the Hub, the silence takes her by surprise since there's always someone there, Skye walks carefully her boots clicking loudly in the empty garage, she takes the elevator knowing that if she simply popped out on the Director's office he would have a fit.

The Hub - 21:39 pm

"I've decided to take upon an advice from one of our agents, that's why you are all here." Stated Director Fury passing in front of the five agents.

"Director, don't get me wrong, we are all pleased to see you and also happy to know that is not a crisis we came to avoid, but…" Coulson was cut of by a mere look of Fury's in his direction.

"You are here because agent Turner has brought to my acknowledge that I wasn't conducting my teams perfectly." He stopped his passing, but there's a slight grin in his face.

"I hate to agree with this agent, sir, but he or she might be actually right."

"Yes Melinda, impressively she is just as bad as her parents."

"Sir, if we are here to meet this Turner person, maybe you should have just informed us."

"Agent Ward, believe me, this is not the reason. I called the Avengers as well. I think it has been more than enough time for them to know about agent Coulson."

"They are here, already?" Asks a dumbstruck Coulson.

"We are waiting for Thor and his humans, most likely known as Jane Foster, Darcy Lewis and Dr. Selvig. Don't ask me why I agreed with this because I swear Lewis and Turner together are like freaking hurricanes of techno-babble stuff and CS things, most of the time I have no idea of what they are discussing."

"We have that same problem with FitzSimmons. Well Skye could get them well enough, go figure how, but us?" Answered a bemused Ward.

The director looked straight at him, gave the most unusual smile and sighed. A knock was heard and agent Hill entered the conference room. "They arrived sir."

"Good, I'll deal with it. Can you check out the lockout I programmed for tonight? Impressively we do not have a mission."

"Have you already called her?"

"Don't worry, it's not like she really needs to get here earlier."

Coulson's team is confused enough, to FitzSimmons and Ward they were in the Hub to retrieve a new hacker, to May and Coulson it was another boring meeting or perhaps the end of the world as we know it.

"Come on you five, this is gonna be interesting." Says Fury leading the way.

Truth be told they aren't comfortable, FitzSimmons are whispering theories about this 'girl' they keep mentioning, Ward is quiet, while May and Coulson look straight ahead of them, their minds lost in old memories.

Meanwhile Barton, Romanoff, Banner, Stark and Rogers are sipping drinks and snacking on cookies bored out of their minds. Thor enters a minute later distracting them, Lewis, Foster and Selvig find seats. Somehow they end up sitting across the assassins Avengers and their billionaire extraordinaire.

"What seems to be the problem, Stark?" Questions Thor looking for a place to hang his Mjölnir.

"That's a wonderful question. We have no idea." Romanoff supplies.

"Well, surely it must be something dangerous, otherwise we wouldn't all be gathered here, right?" Lewis arches an eyebrow, analyzing the members in the room.

"Indeed." Mumbles Thor as he sits, his armor chinking on the chair.

Conference Room - 23:39 pm

Several minutes passed before again the door is opened, by then all the occupants had found themselves busy with chit-chatting or Flappy bird games, Lewis and Stark had bet which would get a higher score and so far, Lewis was winning.

Romanoff and Barton are discussing if they should spend the next day on their handler/best friends house, she surely seemed to be needing the sleep, even if they were only separated by floors, also Allie was a handful, not that the hacker minded at all. Skye's house was a home, not just a place to crash and rest, it was a place they had gotten used to visit and spend time with the kid. Yes, Skye was thirty two now, but they saw her as the child they would never have a chance to have. They knew Pepper and Stark saw her like that too. Sometimes they wonder if the Director saw Skye as family too.

Rogers is the first to notice because he is also the only one that has been passing around the room after not understanding half of the babble between Foster and Selvig, Thor is the second to see because like Rogers he has been staring at the door for quite awhile. The Director, followed by FitzSimmons, Ward and May entered the room first, making everyone else stop whatever they were doing. Whatever they might be thinking; the silence could be cut with a knife if necessary, it was like each and every person on the room was breathless. Than Phil entered closing the door behind him.

In five seconds all hell broke loose. Natasha jumped from her place exclaiming in complete disbelief the agent's name "Coulson?!"

"Hello." The blue eyed man attempts a smile but the looks he is receiving are severe enough to be more than a slight grin.

"But we saw you die in the New York's battle." Said Rogers, his eyes glimmering with unshed tears.

"Is this some sort of sick joke? He was dead! What in the hell did you do, Fury?!" Clint had moved fast enough to hold Romanoff's waist keeping her closer to his body as she grew angrier by the second, Stark move to hold her left arm, while Thor held her right, she was screaming in Russian now "Did you just lied to us for practically nine years? Are you insane? He was part of our team! He was a beloved member! How could you?!"

"Tasha, calm down!" Clint tries to reason with her, but she is struggling in his arms and even Thor was inclined to set her free because the Director sure needs to have his face smashed, as Hulk would put it.

"Can we please calm down!?" Asks Fury, but his voice is lost because everyone is speaking at the same time and now Romanoff's voice is even louder "Is this the team our girl talks about? You made her lie to us! Clint, let me go, I swear it I'm going to kill him!"

"Kill who?" Her voice was low, calm and gentle but stopped Romanoff's screaming, she looked at the three men holding the russian assassin and tilted her head, without a question Natasha was released, the woman moved until she was staring at the brunette in front of her and launched in a hug. Skye enveloped Natasha using her power to calm everyone in the room, being an empath, a 'jumper' and a mind 'whatever' that she was, clearly she need to name that power because inserting and taking people's memories had to have some kind of twisted name. Skye let her hand slide in a caress over Romanoff's right arm, she gave the older woman a half smile, before tipping-over to Director Fury. The small woman held so much fury in her eyes, that before Nick Fury had time to say anything she exclaimed, her voice pausing the words "What in the hell were you thinking?" By each word she stepped closer to him her voice sounding impassive and dangerous.

"This is new, glowing amber eyes. When did it start?" Fury is so surprise he doesn't control the fear in his voice.

Skye blinks angrily before answering "What did you expected? I have everyone's feelings inside me right now! You should be hilariously happy they aren't glowing green!" She throws her arms up, exasperated, she passes, shaking her head for a single moment before again attacking him with words.

"Do tell me Director, what were you expecting to accomplish in this meeting? Did you thought they would react well? Or that they would accept all this insanity? That they aren't tired? Look at poor Captain over there! Or Stark? Do I have to mention how much Coulson's death affect them differently?!" She sighs, breaths in and then out and stares straight in his good eye again. "I'm waiting..."

"I thought it was time to take up on your advice."

Skye laughs, but there's no humor in it, it's almost as if a dark witch is laughing in her place.

"My advice? Which one of them was putting all of my teams inside a conference room and light up the fire?"

Fury is at loss of words for a minute, how did she managed that was beyond them. Skye was a tiny figure most of the time, but when you put your hand where her affections lay, well she was a lioness - no scratch that - she was a tiger.

"Three weeks ago, when we had that problem with the giant lizard and the computer virus-"

"Oh, you mean the week after I hadn't sleep properly for almost a month? Then I had to work with your damn stupid engineers and that guy on Bio that was supposed to figure out how to fix the problem with the damn lizard's venom wasn't good enough, then my daughter was infected and I was existing on coffee more than anything else? That's the week you decided to listen to me? Oh, and if I'm not mistaken, two of these guys…" She points behind her where Barton and Stark are. "Were almost dying too and I had to used a computer voice to speak with my best friend because you couldn't fix the damn problem!"

"Well, you screamed loudly that day about how I was doing everything wrong, and that Coulson's team needed a damn good hacker and no I couldn't send Lewis, you also managed to say that the Avengers felt guilty - and honestly how did they even told you that?"

"Ugh, that doesn't even come to the point, sir! Look the circus you've created!" She says gesturing around with her hands.

"I'm trusting you to fix it. I'll see you all later." Without her noticing he had backed away closer and closer to the door and before anyone could stop him he was shutting it loudly.

"What the hell!" Said Fitz astonished.

"This is going to be a long night." Murmurs Lewis. Skye snorts and closes her eyes for a minute breathing in, after a second she demands in a too quiet and too gently voice "Bruce sit down, I really need you to calm yours spirits. Clint, Steve and Tony move away from Tasha she is dying to punch something and Thor, just please, stay where you are."

"Hello Fitz." She tried a smile but the cold glance she received by the engineer stopped any of her attempts.

"So this is it? He leaves you to clean up his messes?" Fitz's voice is clear but collected, and Skye knows how much her favorite gadget guy has changed. He is not the same happy engineer, full of smiles ready to sit and share popcorn with her while chit-chatting over some rubbish. She also noticed Simmons careful touch on his arm, she reminds herself not to smile, she always knew those two would be end-game.

"So, alive than, are we? That's nice. No phone calls, no card, I'm wounded to be honest." Said Stark, why, oh, why wasn't Skye or Romanoff surprise by it. "Also kid, don't look at She-Coulson as if you're trying to fry her with your eyes, you're not gonna accomplish anything with that."

Fitz frowns, She-Coulson? Okay they would go back to that slip later, perhaps he could eventually ask Skye.

"So, where have you been?" Asks Rogers, because someone had to ask.

Skye rolls her eyes and says. "It's going to be a long night and to be fair I don't like staring to dull grey walls. I was wondering Agent May if you would mind giving us all a ride? I could teleport us, but with all the feelings my mind is ready to explode. It doesn't sound like the best of the ideas. Anyone disagrees?"

She meets silence and acceptance, okay, she could work with that.

"Well, lead the way Agent Turner, if you may." Says May, Skye opens the door, feeling dread coursing through her body. Long night her ass, this was going to be her longest and darkest fears summed up in one place.

She walks in silence and is barely aware of the others sideline conversations behind her when May is on her side and seems to be trying to bring her out of whatever stupor she is "I don't like it, but part of me, understands it. Surely if you had another possible course of action, you would have taken it, am I right?"

May is surprise by the sadness on the younger woman eyes, but Skye conceals a small smile and murmurs "I would. But, I was protecting the one I love." They don't exchange another word until they reach the airstrip, circulating other planes until they reach the Bus. Of course Coulson and his team enter first, followed by the Avengers and Foster's team, Skye takes all the time she can before entering what she still thought as her first 'home'.

"Wheels up in three, find a place to sit and buckle up." Says May through the comms of the cockpit.

Ward, FitzSimmons and Coulson fit easily in one of the many sits of the lounge, the same thing goes for Foster and her teammates with Thor on their side, Barton, Romanoff, Stark and Banner sit in another corner, Skye following in a daze. No one spoke as the plane took off, and for at least 15 minutes no one even moved, it was like each person was lost in their daze, not really believing that after so long they were together in the same place, one person connecting them all.

A cellphone tune is heard, no one moves or says anything until Stark questions "Hey kid, aren't you going to pick that up?"

Skye searches her overcoat and answers the cellphone almost urgently. "Allie? Is it something wrong?"

"You're not here yet. Auntie Pepper doesn't tell the stories the same way as you do." And now everyone was concentrated in the conversation, because accidentally Skye had hit the speaker bottom.

"I'm sorry, Love, but I got stuck."

"You shouldn't work so much mommy." The little girl yawns on the other side of the call and Stark smiles at the hacker in front of him. "Say hello from me to everyone. Love ya."

"I love you too, sleep tight pumpkin, don't let the big bugs bite." Her voice is softer, sounding almost melodious to the people surrounding her and impressively it seems that an unspoken agreement fell between the teams because no one comments about it at all.

Buckles were unseated and it's like the Bus takes life in front of her, everyone is talking among each other again and Skye is currently thinking the best course of action. Should she start with the Avengers and Coulson? Maybe try to explain why she left?

"Can we see the lab?" Lewis asks a smile on her face, Jane rolls her eyes, because yep trust Darcy to save the day. Selvig is already up and ready to be around, FitzSimmons smile and guide them down, while Ward gets a drink, Romanoff and Barton raising to join him at the bar. Banner is talking about an old case with Thor and Stark just like Skye, is waiting for May and Coulson to appear.

"Tell me, seriously kid, what in the hell happened? How is he alive?" Skye opens her overcoat a little, feeling too warm and wanting to feel more comfortable, the hacker sighed.

"Technically they told him he died for 8 seconds, he than convince himself it was more like 40, and well, it was days to be precise. They played with his brain, gave him memories of Tahiti… It's so fucked up Tony, you have no idea." Her voice broke and she swallow the feelings that wished to break the surface.

Coulson and May entered the room, FitzSimmons coming up from the lab a second later.

"We are all here. Who wants to go first?" Coulson asks his voice impassive.

"Well, hacker-girl here told me that you thought you died for 8 seconds?" He asks doing a flourish with his wrist. Skye just manners her head slightly - trust Stark to be tactful. Can she pull a Jemma and jump out of the plane? She, could of course, it wouldn't even hurt, but how much of a coward would she be?

"That's all she said?" Coulson questions searching for Skye with his blue eyes, his, no, their hacker was chit-chatting in a corner with Romanoff now who clearly had a Scotch in her hands.

"Yes, that's all she told me." Stark replies an arched eyebrow at him.

"Brief like that. Are you sure that's Skye?" Cousin questions surprise in his voice.

"If you feel like you cannot explain everything that happen I can take that place over for you Agent Coulson." Skye says calmly walking a bit closer to him.

"You seem pretty comfortable with the subject."

"I am, I have gone over this in my mind countless times." She sighs, roams her eyes to the 'crowd' full of clueless people staring back at her.

Her voice is calm and clean as she speaks "Agent Phillip Coulson died in the battle of New York, not for 8 seconds, certainly not for 40, not even less 60 minutes, he was dead for days. The procedure that took place to bring him back was human-less, extremely painful and reckless. Although Director Fury wasn't thinking about the extremes, Phil was his best man and probably the most loyal friend he ever had, he would go to hell and back if that would bring his best operative back."

Out of the corner of her eye Skye could see Romanoff stand closer to Barton reclining her body to his, Barton's arm resting on the small of her back while his hand rested on her hip.

"It was mostly clinical, I think more than ten surgeries were done to keep Coulson alive, and than there's the serum they used, the same one inserted in my veins by Simmons when I was shot-"

"You were shot?" The question comes out as one from the six Avengers.

"Didn't I mention it?" Skye said smiling awkwardly.

"No, you did not." Their voices come out as one.

"Wow." And the way she said that made Ward and FitzSimmons watch her with more interest. "Way to make me feel uncomfortable guys. Can we talk about this later?" It's sarcasm pouring out her and Coulson's team is holding theirs smirks back because for just a moment they all forgot how angry, betrayed and disappointed they were with her. For just a moment she was their Skye again, not Agent Turner, just Skye.

"Yes we shall." Said Romanoff in a intimidating tone.

"Okay." It's like having May finding me half-dressed with Miles all over again, thinks Skye to herself as she smacks her lips in the end. "As I was saying, the serum was some sort of alien drug, well not really an alien drug is more like alien tissue cells."

"Sorry! You said alien tissue cells, right?" Asked Simmons.

"Yes, it's like part of their… umm… heart arteries, veins? Gosh, I'm terrible in alien bio." She complains, touching the pinch of her nose.

"Did it help the creature to be alive?" Of course Simmons would just jump for professionalism here.

"I guess not, I mean, since he was being kept 'alive' inside a chamber, if my readings don't fail me."

"Your readings?" Ward questions.

"Yes, there's not much you can do if you're stuck home with a toddler and have way too much time in your hands. I did some digging. Hacked some archives that the Director is certainly not aware of. What I discover is that the project TAHITI has been going on for years, that facility you found in Bethesda was just one of many others, this alien race mostly known as Kree is a peaceful kind, and since I discovered that, Thor has been in contact with them, and we have made an alliance."

"Not an easy one, we had to trait favors." Supplies Thor with a smile.

"Even though, we now have their aid, I'm always checking and talking with them." Skye voices.

"Are you some sort of alien communications girl?" Fitz questions, hiding his excitement over it.

Skye smirks before answering "You could say that, but I've got sidetracked here, back to how Coulson was brought back to life, the alien wasn't really alive, he was merely being preserved by chemical fluids for study. They discovered its cells have healing properties and that it helps our bodies heal faster and multiplies the chances of a patient surviving a fatal wound, that's how Coulson and me are standing here safe and sound."

"That still doesn't explain why we weren't informed." Complained Steve, and Skye rolled her eyes at him.

"Get inside Director Fury's head and you might get your reason." Barked Romanoff.

"I thought it was pretty clear. He was protecting all of you in his own twisted way." Replies Skye.

"That doesn't mean I don't wanna punch him repeatedly." Stark hissed, his eyes hardening as he focused on a spot behind her.

"Okay, this has been fun but I think we've reached our destination." Skye turned to face May. "Agent May, could you please check on the coordinates?" The older woman gives a small nod and disappears to do as asked. Tony is about to say something when Skye's phone rings, cutting him off. Looking at the caller ID she frowns a little, they had talked earlier today. Why was he calling so late? "Sorry, I have to get this one." She murmured and turned on her heels leaving the room. She never saw Ward sneaking behind her and following her down the corridor.