6472/About Your Father...

About Your Father...
Date of Scene:	12 February 2019
Location:	New York City
Synopsis:	Skye and May have a come to god moment. Skye admits she was wrong, learns trust goes both ways.. and drops some info into May's lap about Zola, Bucky, and the Birds.
Cast of Characters:	Quake, Melinda May

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Quake has posed:
Skye was used to Director Fury not summoning her. In fact, she was a regular fixture at his office by virtue of the fact that she just sort of showed up to have 'chats' with him about what she was doing, and 'I can explain that..'.

However, what Skye wasn't used to was Fury off and out and about, and Acting Deputy Director May calling Skye to her office. Oh, Skye was used to May sitting her down and having discussions. Skye just wasn't used to being summoned so formally. And even though she knew she and May were going to have to sit and have a little talk about things, that didn't mean Skye wasn't just the tiniest bit nervous about the whole matter.

So it is that Skye arrives at May's office, and when shown in, blurts, "I can explain!" even before Agent May has had time to bring up why (dearly beloved) we are all gathered here today..

Melinda May has posed:
May looks up as the door opens and merely quirks one eyebrow very slightly at the outburst. And then she just sits there and waits for Skye to either explain herself, or close the door and sit down. Whichever she ends up doing.

Either way, May knows she doesn't have to wait long.

Quake has posed:
Skye starts by closing the door. She's not sure how May does these formal talks, but most of the ones she has had with Fury were under the cover of static and an alarming lack of official records. However, in this case, there really wasn't all that much classified information.. well, unless you counted Zola's name, the missing lynchpin in their whole hunt for Leviathian. However..

Skye takes a seat, and looks uncomfortable. Certainly not her whole usual breezy self. "I'm guessing this is about my dad? Not everything else?"

With Skye, there was always an 'everything else'. The girl was a walking secret collector. Things just fell into her lap with an alarming regularity.

Melinda May has posed:
"Good guess. Care to begin at the beginning, or explain with disjointed piecemeal rants?" The 'like usual' is left unsaid, but it's definitely there. She locks the computer there on this desk that she hates so much and leans forward, cleaning giving the younger agent her complete attention.

Quake has posed:
Skye's nose crinkles as she'd really like to protest, but somehow her discussions with May really did run disjointed piecemeal rants - unlike her discussions with Fury. It was one of the oddities of the different relationships she had, though both were equally valid, and equally needed.

There's a heavy sigh from the younger agent. "He'd have freaked out if we went in according to the plan," she begins, starting mid-story without meaning to. "I didn't lie to anyone. I said I'd set up the meeting and arrange for the teams. I did exactly that."

She'd just not actually followed the plan.

"You don't know him like I do. You know part of him. The worst part. I never got to tell anyone about the meeting I had - when I got kidnapped. I got to talk to him then. And the more I got thinking about things the more I knew if we went in according to plan people were going to get hurt, and we wouldn't get the help we need."

It's dirty pool, and Skye knows it, but she adds, "The help *I* need."

Melinda May has posed:
May just stares at Skye as she does exactly as predicted. And yet, she allows the mid-story jump. "Why didn't you bother to inform anyone that you'd be going off script?" Because really, if she'd just sent a text or made a thirty second phone call to that effect, this conversation wouldn't be happening. Granted, it wouldn't have spared Skye the proverbial mountain of paperwork incurred, but at least she wouldn't have to explain herself again some more.

Quake has posed:
"To be honest?" Skye gives a shrug, and continues to look miserable. "I expected everyone would stop me. I didn't even know for sure he'd come. I mean, I figured he would? But I didn't know. And I thought if you didn't stop me, someone would tail me and he'd find out and we'd be back to him freaking out."

She gives May a look, wearing a wry expression. "I'm a good Agent, May. A /good/ agent. I never thought I'd be able to say that. I kinda always thought I'd be mostly what people thought I was, the girl who sat in the break room and did computer work. That half the people here thought was just another IT girl. But I'm good at this. I know I don't always follow the rules, but it's not without thinking about it first. I don't just decide to do shit on a whim."

Not anymore at least.

"I know you're pissed, but it was the right call. If it had been someone else, I'd have sent that text, or that call."

Melinda May has posed:
May looks at Skye for a long moment. Several moments, honestly. "You are a good agent. And you should realize by now that if you feel you need to make a last moment change in plans, I will back your call if you tell me." Heaven knows, Clint has done far worse with barely more notice. But he gave notice.

"This time it worked out for the best. But you can't count on that being the case every time."

Quake has posed:
That one, Skye doesn't protest. "I know," she admits. "I promise, it was specific to this one. He.. listens to me. I mean, he might still freak, but I couldn't get him to listen if someone took exception to something he said or did and my dad lost control. I needed to just have one thing to worry about."

She remembers the talk she had with Fury, that this was what he'd brought her into SHIELD for, her outside the box thinking.

She also remembers, "I know it's not all.. I get it, okay? I'm learning when to use it. Clint would have freaked. And who would you have sent?"

She supposes this next is the harder admission, after her talk with Clint where she'd spoken to him about the very same thing, only then she'd been the one telling him he didn't trust her to know her job. "I guess I didn't trust you. I should have known better." But it was her father. And so may factors she couldn't have fall apart. Plus the hope she'd learn more about herself. In this one balancing her job as an agent had clashed with her personal involvement.

"I should have trusted my team. Maybe not the team I set up, but you. And Clint." The smaller circle of people she'd literally put her life into the hands of. "I'm sorry."

Melinda May has posed:
"I would have gone myself. You know that." And she would have stayed out of Cal's line of sight so Skye could approach him on her terms, but there would be bacup if things didn't go as expected.

"And yes, you should have trusted us." Here's hoping Skye will actually think of this next time. But May's not going to bet on it.

Quake has posed:
"He doesn't like you," Skye says, recalling how her father had mentioned 'that other lady' specifically, and in rather unflattering terms. "I hear you, though. I should have trusted you. I want you to trust me, I need to return the favour."

She truly did understand, just as she truly meant to remember this next time. However, Skye being Skye odds were even she'd forget.

"He told us who Karl is. The Benefactor? We have a name now. I know who I'm looking for in the back files of SHIELD." The classified things. Things that might not yet have been digitized - for reasons just such as this, the depth of security around them. "I might need to pull things from whatever vaults we put shit nobody should ever see again."

Melinda May has posed:
"Feeling's mutual. And I am trusting you. I'm letting him stay in this building. You're right, he has proven useful so far. But the moment he becomes more problematic than useful, you'll need to be prepared to handle him. Or I will." May sits back again.

Quake has posed:
Skye nods. "Told him he messes up, I'm not talking to him or seeing him again. So far.. it's been working. I mean, there are bursts of anger, but he's contolling them. Maybe we can help him with that. But he really does care about me. He protected me when Hydra kidnapped me. Took a barrage of bullets trying to stop them. Plus he gave us Arnim Zola's name. I'm guessing I've got clearance to go digging in the non-virtual files?"

Because there really weren't virtual files that she didn't have access to. It was the paper ones that were harder. However, Zola needed dealing with, and anything they could learn about him could make the difference.

Melinda May has posed:
May nods as Skye asks again. "You were given clearance for the hardcopy files fifteen minutes ago." In other words, shortly before she stepped into the office.

"Is there anything else, Skye?"

Quake has posed:
Skye rises up from her seat, shaking her head, then amends, "Actually, we need to talk about Bucky. Or, you need to talk to him. He's one of us - but he's feeling like maybe he isn't after everything that happened. He's why I stuck it out here. I'd appreciate it if you'd make things okay with him."

She moves to the door. "Oh, and we're gonna hunt down the guy who blew him up. I contacted our friends. They want in."

Now she's done, and given there really isn't a need for an answer, Skye takes her leave.