The Snapshot {An Agents of Shield Fanficton} [1]

Jigsaw

I sat in the corner of the lounge room on the Bus, one leg out and the other bent. I set my elbow on my knee and rested my head on my hand, thinking.

I can't do this.

Why am I here anyway? This isn't my problem. It's not my responsibility to help anyone. They can do this in their own.

I rubbed my head. It was starting to ache. What is going on with me? I was so frustrated with myself and everything else, but I couldn't do anything about it. This whole thing...with Peter and the other people and Fields and that guy. It was messing with my head. I just can't figure it out. Which is weird. I always figure stuff out one way or another.

And Coulson. Oh my God he is driving me crazy. I can't deal with his rules and regulations and justifications and do this and don't do that and of course that's classified. I could never be a SHIELD agent.

I paused and took a deep breath, closing my eyes. I have to slow down. I have to block everything else out and look at the small details. There is something I'm missing. I don't need a big picture. I have a little picture.

I huffed in frustration. My mind was going too fast. I had too many questions. For example, what is going on with my power? I used to be able to read emotions, now I'm feeling them. I knew where his injection was. How? I keep getting that feeling when I try to read people. That vibe sense. That's it. That's the word. Vibe. I keep getting these glimpses and short lived feelings, like a vibe. And to be frank I don't know where the heck they come from.

I can think about that later. Right now I have something to finish. A time sensitive case. It's all connected. I just don't know how. I have to look at what I do know.

1. Peter. He's here, he's safe, and someone wants his powers.

2. Fields. She here, she's unhappy, and she sold Peter out to her boyfriend.

3. Fields' Boyfriend. At large, he works for whoever wants Peter.

4. Random Organization. We'll call it Spectre. Just cause it sounds cool. They want Peter and his powers, they have a guy working for them that is connected to Fields.

5. Peter's SHIELD supervisor. The guy who ordered his cooperation and hurt him if he didn't. What was it he said, that he could be useful?...

wait...useful. That's it. Useful. Peter is useful to Spectre and useful to Field's boyfriend and useful to his supervisor. Unless...

I straightened. They're the same person. Fields' alias that is connected to Spectre is inside SHIELD. He had full power over what happened to Peter. He couldn't make him do what he wanted inside SHIELD borders and within their regulations. But he could inside Spectre's. He could do anything he wanted to him. That's why he initiated the transfer. To give Spectre an open window to intercept and take him. But it went bad and Peter escaped. That's why he needed Fields. To give him the escape file to figure out where he went. So they could capture him again. But we got to him first.

I stood up and smiled. That's it. That's what I've been searching for. That connection that's been stumping me. But now what? My body tingled and I took a sharp breath. My heart rate was rising. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath to calm myself. It'll be fine. You're fine.

I took my burner phone out of my pocket to check the time. I had been sitting there for about half an hour. Where's Coulson?

I started off through the cot slot room. The Bus was eerily quiet and deserted. Everyone was in the Sandbox. I entered the kitchen and the small room with couches. On one couch where Ward was earlier sat Coulson. He looked up at me, not saying anything. I sighed and walked over to sit across from him.

He still sat there, not saying anything. I huffed and looked at him. I don't think he had forgotten the argument we'd had.

"Do you want me to say sorry?," I started.

"No, I just wanted to give you some space. Everyone needs time to cool down," he replied.

"I don't need to cool down. I'm not mad," I stated.

"You were earlier."

I sighed and rubbed the bridge of my nose. "I wasn't mad I was just..." I huffed. "Im just frustrated with it all."

"Talk to me," he said.

"It-it's complicated, really. Something is going on when I read people. It's gotten stronger, I guess you could say."

"Well you have been doing it more often. It makes sense."

"No, but it's not like it was before. I used to be able to tell what people are feeling. Now I feel it myself. And it's hard to tell which emotions are my own," I said.

Coulson paused. "I don't know what to tell you. I can have Fitzsimmons take a look at it if it's bothering you."

"No, no it's fine," I said. "It's not that bad. I'm just getting glimpses. Like short vibes."

Coulson nodded. Now might be a good time to tell him.

"Coulson?," I said.

He looked at me attentively.

"There's something I have to tell you."

A quick flash of worry crossed his face, but then he composed him self. "Okay?"

I took a deep breath. "What if I told you that Fields wasn't the only rouge agent?"

"Then I would tell you that you're wrong. Fields was a one time deal."

I shook my head. "Remember that alias? The person she was connected to that she gave the file to?"

He nodded. I leaned forward. "Remember how Peter was tortured? That was because he wouldn't cooperate. Now correct me if I'm wrong, but that's not SHIELD's protocol. It's Spectre's. His supervisor just got away with it because he labeled it as "tests.""

Coulson looked confused. "Spectre?"

I shook my head. Right. That was only in my head. "The people who are hunting Peter. His supervisor, the guy in charge of whatever happens to him as an Index Subject, is working for them. He gave the order to transfer, the organization failed to capture him, so he used Fields to get the file to track him down."

Coulson shook his head. "It's makes sense, but how can you be sure? It could be a misunderstanding?"

I raised my eyebrows. "Think about it. It's a jigsaw puzzle. Peter is one piece, Fields is another. Her boyfriend and Peter's supervisor, they're one piece. It all fits together into a situation that we have to fix. For Peter's sake."

Coulson stood up. "Then you better be sure those pieces match up."

I stood up too. "Why?"

Coulson began walking towards the exit.
"Because we're about to finish this puzzle."

~•~

We entered the Sandbox for the second time that day, crossing the landing pad and into the building. We headed across the corridor and to the same set of double doors where Coulson swiped his card.

I looked at him. "We're going back to Peter?"

He swung the door open and let me inside the wide hallway. "If you're part of this case, I need you to be sure of what you're doing."

I nodded and entered the hallway, where we entered the elevator once again and descended.

When the door opened and we stepped into the Containment floor, I felt something. It was faint, but it was there. The uneasiness. The anxiety.

We walked down the hallway. It grew a bit stronger. I almost felt like vomiting. We approached the door at the end.

It was very strong now. Every ounce of my being told me to run the other way. Coulson reached for his card.

"Stop," I managed to whisper.

Coulson looked at me curiously, but continued to reach his card toward the scanner. "What?"

I reached for his arm, stopping him from swiping his card. I looked at him straight in the eye.

"Don't open it."