Thank you for your reviews, they are very much appreciated!

"Okay. That was awesome!" Skye points somewhere into the sky as she helps May fold the parachutes.

"Glad you think so." May replies dryly and keeps folding the fabric with swift efficiency.

"I mean seriously! I had no idea jumping out of a plane would be so much fun!" Skye can't help herself.

May stands up and hands the folded parachute to Skye to put in her backpack. "Are you finished?"

"Yes." Skye says with a roll of her eyes. "For now." She shoulders her backpack and takes a good look around her. They are standing on a clearing in the middle of what looks like a thick forest. Skye can't make out any path, let alone any indicator to where they were supposed to go. "Where are we?" She wonders aloud.

May finishes loading her own backpack and comes to stand next to Skye. "The Jianmen Mountains in the Qinghai province." She turns around and takes a good look at her surroundings before she determinedly pulls Skye towards the trees ahead of them.

"And were are we going?" Skye wants to know as she lets herself be pulled into the dense underbrush.

May just takes a deep breath and marches forward.

"Hey." Skye calls after her. "You might as well answer me now, because I have a million questions and I'm not going to stop asking."

Her S.O. turns around at that, her patience obviously wearing thin. "We are going to the Langyashan Monastery. Their gate closes at nightfall so we have to get moving."

"And how long until we get there?"

"Nightfall." May simply says, turns and keeps walking.

::

May keeps walking ahead at a steady pace, always focusing on a tree in the distance so she doesn't lose her direction. They stop at a small stream to drink and fill up their bottles, but May can't allow long breaks. She knows there is a path somewhere in the forest, but so far she hasn't found it. Instead they are making their way over untouched ground, having to find a way through all the trees and roots.

She thinks the unaffected nature is beautiful.

Skye doesn't.

She tries to ignore the younger woman's muttering and cursing whenever a tree branch hits her face and is secretly glad that she is walking in front of her. It wouldn't help her reputation much if Skye saw her smiling at her little ramblings that she was a "city-brat" and not some "Ranger Joe".

"You know if you guys didn't want me anymore, you could have just told me." Skye rants, her eyes never leaving the uneven ground. "No need to drag me into the wilderness. So what's the plan? You leave me here alone and I'll starve to death? Get killed by a panther?"

"Panthers don't exist." May points out only to shake her head a moment later. She was spending too much time with Coulson. But Skye either doesn't listen or doesn't care.

"You could've just dropped me off anywhere. In a city! Definitely in a city. I was getting by just fine before I met you and A.C. and all the little SHIELDlings. And I can so do it again."

May turns around on the ledge she just climbed and looks down at Skye. "You were living in a van."

"So?" Skye just glares up at May before she starts climbing herself. "It was a nice van." She mutters under her breath.

May takes a deep breath and reaches down to help her. This was more Andrews department. Coulson's even for all he loved to talk. She pulls Skye up but doesn't let go of her arm, instead she looks at her insistently.

"I know you can manage on your own. But we both know you don't really want to. And you don't have to."

She lets go of her and leaves the young agent looking after her as she keeps walking.

Skye doesn't say another word.

It's two hours later when they finally reach the small path and walking becomes a little easier. It's more of a widening between tress than anything else, but some sections even allow them to walk side by side. May looks over and sees Skye fidgeting with the cast on her left hand.

"Something wrong with your hand?"

Skye shakes her head. "No. Just itching."

May tries to shoot her a comforting smile. "Try to ignore it and it'll pass."

The younger woman huffs in response. "What else am I supposed to think about? We've been walking for hours, I'm tired and I'm hungry."

Not to mention irritable May thinks as she takes a deep breath and keeps walking.

"I'm sorry." Skye says a few minutes later. "I shouldn't have snapped at you. You didn't ask for any of this."

The small smile May sends her is enough to let her know that she is forgiven.

"So are you going to tell me what we're actually doing once we reach this Langyashan monastery? Because right now it feels very much like Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon here. Only without the swords. Oh! Are there going to be swords there? Is this like Kung Fu Panda?"

Now May just shakes her head and sighs. "No, Skye."

Skye takes a fortifying breath. "So who was the old lady at the market?"

"My mother." May says without hesitation.

Skye stops dead in her tracks and can't help staring at May. When May just keeps walking she runs the few feet to catch up.

"Your mother?"

May just nods, trying to hide a smile.

"Holy-" Skye can't stop herself from laughing out loud. "I can't believe I got to meet your husband and your mother in one week!"

May turns her head enough to give her a hard look. "Ex-husband."

"Why didn't you tell me she was your Mom? And what was with the language?" She adds as an afterthought. "Because I know that wasn't Mandarin." She had ordered enough Chinese take out in her life after all.

"It's called Hapan. A dialect only spoken by about 500 people in the world." May pauses for a moment and Skye seems to sense her reluctance to share because for once she doesn't interrupt. "My mother taught it to me when I was a child. It keeps people from eavesdropping."

Skye contemplates that for a moment, but in the end she can't help herself and keeps asking. "Was your Mom S.H.I.E.L.D., too?"

"Ha." May actually laughs at that. "No. And she hates the fact that I joined S.H.I.E.L.D."

"Then why did she help you?" Skye asks.

May just throws her an inscrutable look. "Because I asked her to."

"Does she know about me? I mean does she know about…" She trails of and holds up her casts instead. "This."

"She knows about you. She doesn't know about… that." May says for a lack of a better word.

Skye just nods in understanding. Then her head snaps up and she stops May with a hand on her arm. "Wait." She looks at May with what Coulson calls her 'Bambi eyes'. "You told your Mom about me?"

May just rolls her eyes and keeps walking but even she can't help the small smile when she hears Skye speaking softly to herself.

"You told your Mom about me."

She had brushed Andrew off when he told her that Skye thought the world of her. But the feelings the young girl seemed to hold for her were not entirely unrequited.

Not that she will ever admit that.

She suddenly spots something through the branches ahead and gestures with her head. "We're almost there."

::

::

The stone floor is cold beneath her as Skye sits on the steps outside what appears to be the main building and waits for May. The monastery is set on a mountainside only accessible through a steep hike. She was tired. She was beyond tired. And no matter what May said, this felt completely like Kung Fu Panda. Even the small monk who had greeted them upon their arrival reminded her of Master Shifu. And May could totally pull off Tigress. No doubt about that.

Wait.

Does that mean she is the fat panda?

She shakes her head and picks up a small twig from the floor. She just managed to work it under her cast and reach just the right spot when dark boots stop right next to her.

May.

"So? What did Shifu have to say?"

"His name is not Shifu." May points out. "And he said we are welcome to stay."

Skye gets to her feet. Her thighs are already burning from today's exertion. A bell sounds somewhere in the compound and Skye can see the gate they walked through half an hour ago closing.

"Sunset." May explains and starts walking.

"So what now?" Skye asks as she follows her through the courtyard.

"Dinner."

May seems to know where she is going as she leads Skye into another building and down the corridor. They stop in front of an open door to take off their shoes and put them next to the leather sandals already waiting there.

Skye follows her mentor into a sparsely finished room where about ten men in orange robes already sit on the floor and eat. Two bowls with steaming rice sit there unattended, apparently meant for them as May signals her to sit down.

Skye does as she is told and lets her curious gaze wander over the others. They don't pay the two newcomers any attention.

"Should we just…" She is lost for words.

"Skye." May's tone is warm and when Skye can finally tear her eyes away and look at her, she is smiling. "Eat."

::

Realization dawns on Skye as May shows her to her room after dinner.

"You've been here before." It's more a statement than a question.

May nods. "Once."

"And?" Skye wants to know as she peeks into her room. A mattress on the floor. Good thing May had told her to pack a sleeping bag.

"It was an instructive time." Is all May says.

"I mean what were you doing here?"

"Training."

"What kind of-"

"Skye." May interrupts her. "Not now."

She takes courage that that might mean later and falls to her mattress after May bids her goodnight. After a few moments she blows out the candle - no electricity means to lights after all, and no running water meant no toilets as she had learnt - but she knows she probably won't sleep anytime soon. Will not dare to.

She doesn't know how much time passes as she sits on her mattress, her back resting against the cool wall, but her door opens just as her eyes threaten to close.

"Skye." May's voice is gentle, her silhouette so familiar to Skye that she recognizes it even in the wan moonlight peaking in from outside. "You should sleep."

Skye slowly shakes her head. "It's okay."

She has to be a better actress than she thought when May leaves her alone again and Skye's heart sinks unexpectedly.

It doesn't last long. May comes back a minute later, her mattress and her sleeping bag under her arm. She wordlessly deposits it on the other side of Skye's room, the space so small there is not more than a few feet between them.

"Go to sleep." She says softly as she settles herself down. "I'll wake you in case anything happens."

::

::

Skye must have been more exhausted than she realized because the next thing she knows a bell is ringing somewhere and May is calling her name. It's dawn.

Breakfast consists of another rice dish and hot tea that has no discernible taste and Skye wonders how May can drink it without batting an eye.

"Can I talk to the monks?" Skye asks as they make their way out of the compound. The sun must have risen by now but the overcast sky barely allows any warmth to build.

"Do you speak Cantonese?" May asks with raised eyebrows.

"No." Skye says. "But I can try, right? I know it's not your thing but people can communicate without speaking the same language."

May barely refrains from rolling her eyes. She leads Skye to a well-worn trail between the trees that leads further up the mountain. "You can try. But some of them have taken a vow of silence so don't get your hopes too high."

"I'll take what I can get." May is glad to see a smile back in her student's face.

Together they walk for an hour and climb higher than the tree line. Up here the clouds slowly dissipate and Skye actually starts to enjoy the environment around her. May stops when they reach a high plateau hundreds of square feet wide.

"Wow." Skye turns around herself and can barely believe the view she is getting from up here. The woods are a seemingly endless sea of green around them, spanning over mountains and valleys. When she squints her eyes she thinks she can make out the city Bobbi had dropped them at just at the furthest edge of the forest.

Hard to believe that had only been 24 hours ago.

"So what now?" Skye asks, still catching her breath.

May walks a few feet further and turns to her. "Now we practice Tai Chi."

"Seriously?"

May's look doesn't allow any arguments.

Skye shakes her head. "You flew me halfway around the world and made me climb a freaking mountain for Tai Chi?"

Her nostrils flare but whatever she wants to say next is lost when she looks down at her trembling hands. "Oh my God."

May is at her side instantly.

"May, it's starting again." Her voice shakes, whereas May's is calm and comforting.

"Skye." She gently takes her by her shoulders until Skye finally looks up at her, however fleeting. "Take a deep breath. And let it go."

"No. No, I can't, I-" Skye's breath is becoming erratic and her eyes dart everywhere in her panic.

"There's no one here, Skye." May is like a rock. "No one will be hurt. Just let go of it."

Skye is still not looking at her, but her breathing calms as May feels the ground beneath her shaking. It's like a rumble, not enough to make her lose her footing or her hold of Skye.

She lets go of her shoulders as soon as it stops.

"Good." She says curtly.

Skye's eyes are wide and brimming with tears as she finally meets her gaze.

"Let's get started with Tai Chi."

Skye just heaves a deep breath and seems to accept her fate as she comes to stand slightly behind May and follows her movements. If May hears her sniffing occasionally, she ignores it.

The routine is longer and more intricate than the one May usually practices with her but it helps to calm Skye down and keep her mind off what just happened.

May turns around at a more challenging part so Skye can mirror her fluid movements.

"Why are we doing this?" Skye asks eventually, her arms languidly moving to her left.

"We follow the Dao." May's voice is calm, her stance relaxed. She elaborates at Skye's confused look. "The Dao is the way of the universe. It remains unchanged while everything else flows around it."

She changes her pose and waits for Skye to follow before she continues.

"Tai Chi allows the 'qi' to flow through us. That way Yin and Yang can be in balance and we achieve harmony to accept the Dao's path."

"You mean go with the flow?" Skye quips.

"Yes." May indulges her with a smile. "You have to detach yourself from material concerns and disruptive emotions."

Skye drops her arms and gives May a long look. "You mean anger."

May waits until Skye sighs and takes up the pose again.

"Yes. Anger. And fear. And rage." She patiently explains.

"Is that how you handle the Berserker staff?"

May doesn't answer as she brings their routine to an end but Skye doesn't miss her lips thinning. She just shakes her head and crosses her arms over her body. "I can't just meditate my emotions away. And I appreciate what you're trying to do here, but I won't be able to meditate my 'powers' away either."

May just gives her a long look. "I don't want you to." She says, willing Skye to understand. "I want you to take a hold of them. Learn them. Allow them to be a part of you. And ultimately, control them."

"It doesn't work like that."

"You don't know that." It's the first time May's tone becomes sharper.

"What and you do?" Skye is feeling cold, despite the sun shining down on them.

"No. But I know you." May's voice is as determined as Skye has ever heard it. "And you have to let go of all the fear and doubt you have in yourself."

Skye shakes her head again. "So that's your great plan. Let me unleash my powers."

"Control them." May amends.

"I can't." Skye insists.

"Well right now you won't because you are too afraid." May gestures around them. "There is no one here for hundreds of miles. You can't hurt anyone. Just try."

"No." Skye remains stubborn.

"You have to." May becomes oddly calm. "Otherwise you can't be in the field, you can't even be an Agent. And you can't be a part of S.H.I.E.L.D."

Skye shakes her head and May can see tears starting to build in her eyes at that prospect. "No. I know what you're trying to do."

May takes a step closer to her, her gaze unwavering. "I'm just saying what everyone else is thinking." She takes a deep breath and hopes Skye will forgive her for this one day. "You know the others are afraid of you. And if you don't learn to control this, they have every right to be. You are dangerous."

"No." Skye sobs. "no."

"Yes." May says with cold precision. "Look at what happened since you got these powers."

"NO!"

This time it's different. Birds fly off from the trees below as a violent quake grabs a hold of the plateau they're standing on. Skye's eyes, so full of anger a moment ago, start to widen in fear.

May's wide stance gives her stability as she looks at Skye with a steady gaze. Her calm tone is a stark contrast to the shaking ground beneath them. "That's it. Feel it. Learn it."

Skye's breath is becoming erratic as she frantically looks between her hands and the ground.

"Allow these feelings. And then let go of them." May's voice is like a lifeline.

She tries to concentrate and closes her eyes. Takes deep breaths and tries to call on the calm feeling of Tai Chi. The feeling of safety when she trains with May. And the feeling of familiarity. Awareness is slowly returning to her as May's steady voice trickles through the blood rushing through her ears.

It takes what feels like a lifetime to her, but the tremors slowly subside.

When she opens her eyes again, May is waiting for her. A smile on her lips.

"You did it."

Skye takes a fortifying breath. "I can't control this."

May steps in front of her, right at the edge of her personal space and places warm hands on her upper arms. "You can't. But that doesn't mean you won't be able to." She takes a step back and nods a her.

"Let's get started."