Jemma's Pregnant
Disclaimer: none of the characters are mine, but belong to their respective owners.
Once upon a time, when Leo Fitz (genius engineer extraordinary) was planning over his new invention (it was a lazy week at S.H.I.E.L.D., no emergencies – Hydra or otherwise), his best friend, lab partner, and lately – full-time-proper girlfriend, Jemma Simmons, walked over and said:
"I'm pregnant."
"Congratulations," Fitz answered on autopilot, before his brain, which did not want to be located in a skull that is being kept on a nightstand next to a lamp, pointed out the obvious. "Um, say what?"
"Leo," Jemma's gaze was carefully controlled, "I'm honestly happy that you're happy, but this time? I can say with even more honesty that I couldn't have done it without you."
This time, Leo thought hard before replying. "I'm the father," he spoke up, before catching himself. "No, this isn't what I wanted to ask you. Jemma, when did this happen?"
"When we had sex the first time around," Jemma replied a trifle peevishly before softening and actually blushing. "And it was wonderful too – you were very gentle and had hit just the right spot... in more than just one meaning." She paused. "So, uh, now what?"
"Isn't this my question?" Fitz replied, sounding just as unsure – and for a good reason: for once, neither of the FitzSimmons had much of an idea as to what to do. Make no mistake, they liked each other as friends, lab partners, significant others – but parents? They actually planned to become that when they were older – closer to, say, director Coulson's current age than theirs (i.e. mid-twenties).
Fate had other plans, however, and the young scientists appeared to have become parents now, instead.
"You want to talk to someone else about this?" Fitz quietly asked Simmons.
"Yes, but not Cavalry. Maybe it would be the right thing, but it just feels weird. She and Andrew – they are not us. I actually think of asking Ward – he is the only one of us who has any idea as to what to expect from children. Leo, what do you think?"
It was probably a testament to the rather unusual and unexpected predicament that the FitzSimmons had found themselves in that Leo agreed with Jemma's suggestion without arguing.
/
...Since today was actually a lovely sunny day – not too hot, not too windy, not too cloudy – the FitzSimmons found Ward outside, watching over Mason (son of Bobbi Morse) and Suzy Therese (daughter of Kara Lynn Palomas), playing with each other. Not surprisingly, Skye, or Daisy Johnson, a fellow agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. was also nearby, trying to be unobtrusive. Since Ward had been an S.H.I.E.L.D. agent himself for a much longer time than Skye had been, he was not really fooled. (Nor was anyone else, for that matter.)
"Leo, Jemma," Grant nodded politely to the new arrivals. "How're things?"
"I'm pregnant," Jemma answered promptly.
Grant nodded. "Is Leo the father?"
"Yes, I am," Leo shook his head vigorously, before giving Jemma a look. "I am, right?"
"Yes," Jemma shot the father of her child (the gender was too early to be identified) a look. "Who do you think I am?"
"A beautiful sexy woman?"
"...Oh. Well, thanks, but yes. You're the father, Leo."
There was a pause as the adults of the little group tried to figure out a less awkward topic. The children had no such compulsion.
"So, you're pregnant? Cool!" Suzy Therese said suddenly, startling everyone (though it was hard to tell with Ward). "Dibs on being the flower girl in the wedding. Mason will be the ring-bearer!"
"Will not!" Mason (who was usually following Suzy Therese around, rather than vice versa) spoke up.
"Will too!"
"Will not!" Mason said firmly and ran off, followed by Suzy Therese and her "Will too!'
"...This is actually rather adorable," Jemma admitted after a pause. "Maybe parenthood won't be bad?"
"It all depends on the parents," Grant said firmly. "My biological parents were radioactive wastes of space."
"Oh, and John Garrett was that great?" Skye finally spoke up for real, causing the other three people to stare.
"No, Skye," Ward, oddly, does not argue with her as he once would have done, before Puerto Rico. "He wasn't that great either. Happy?"
Skye said nothing, but she did not look really happy either.
"Anyways," Ward firmly turned back to FitzSimmons, "are the children going to be a part of your wedding?"
"Not sure if there's going to be a wedding," Jemma admitted. "I mean, Fitz is Protestant, while I'm Jewish."
"You're British-"
"My family are British Jews, Skye, and not Christians, unlike Fitz's. I think I would like a more civil ceremony – similar to what Melinda and Andrew had when they renewed their vows." She paused. "I am – I mean, we are – going to invite them, once all the kinks are hammered out..."
"Jemma, are you going to be a bridezilla?" Skye asked with a smile, trying to break the tension.
"Who's going to be a bridezilla and what are the children talking about?" Kara Lynn Palomas (Suzy Therese's biological mother) and Lance Hunter (the father) joined the conversation, trailed by Suzy Therese. Mason opted for a different path, and was currently located behind Ward instead – a logical choice, of course, since Ward had been John Garrett's last protégé, and Mason was the man's biological son. Consequently, Ward treated the boy as a nephew and that...was enough, really – probation or not, no one wanted to face Ward in a direct face-off.
"Jemma Simmons. She's pregnant," Grant explained patiently to his sort of ex (i.e. Kara Lynn rather than Lance).
"And I'm the father," Fitz added belatedly, remembering the Palomas-Morse-Hunter-Garrett baby drama.
"Shouldn't you get married first?" Lance asked with a touch of his old light-hearted humour.
"We intended to do so...eventually," Jemma replied, sounding completely serious. "We... I... we did not plan for this – not now. I mean, yes, we would be parents some day and all...just not now..."
"No?" Kara Lynn raised one eyebrow (during her travels with Ward she did get her face fixed, though neither she nor Ward told the others how, and the others did not push).
"No," Jemma blushed. "It all seems... so terribly common... Fitz asked me out, I accepted, we went out few times, had sex..."
"Filled the entire Playground with your screeches," Skye added dryly: Simmons had been particularly shrill on that day, and her "Fiiiittttzzz!" had been rather hard on the ears.
"Yes, well, all the same, I stand on my point," Jemma flushed. "I guess I kind of expected something more strangely-"
"Well, we got a people-eating rock downstairs," Ward said dryly. "Is that strange enough for you?"
"It doesn't eat just anyone – just those, who'd been involved with the aliens and their technology, such as Mack," Jemma snapped, as she closed her hands protectively over her abdomen (which currently still looked as it always did). "I'm not going near it with our baby-"
"Exactly," Kara Lynn said smugly, as if Jemma had just proved a point (and maybe she did). "And don't worry – you're going to be a great mother."
"Almost as great as mine!" Suzy Therese said brightly as she gave the elder Palomas woman a hug.
"Oh baby," Kara Lynn returned the hug in question, and for the moment she looked very much like a typical mom rather than a typical secret agent.
"Mine's very good too," Mason said, but much more quietly – Bobbi Morse still was not very popular around the agency.
"Yes she is," Grant spoke before anyone else could and ruffled the boy's hair. "Why don't you go and give her a hug too?" he jabbed his thumb at the entrance of the Playground, where Bobbi Morse was currently hovering. (Though she did not have it as bad as Ward had it himself, she was still currently very unpopular in the agency after all of the fallout).
"Mama!" Mason quickly ran to the woman in question and gave her own hug, which was fully reciprocated: Bobbi Morse had her faults, but she did love her son, much more so than Lance Hunter ever had.
Kara Lynn glared at Ward, who stared stubbornly back, and the two began to argue in Spanish, and although the other people present were agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. themselves, they were not really very fluent in Spanish – except for one other person.
"Mama, Ward is right – sorry, daddy," Suzy Therese jointed the discussion, switching to English in mid-sentence giving Lance an apologetic look. "But..."
"I get it, kid," Hunter muttered, before yelling to his ex-wife:
"If you're already lurking out there, you might as well get your ass in line and get over here!"
"How nice of you," came the reply clearly not from Bobbi, and Coulson (trailed by mother and son, let us be fair), joined the circle. "So what is the big event today?"
"The FitzSimmons are pregnant," Skye dutifully replied. "They're planning their wedding – sort of."
"Both of them?"
"No, just me – I mean Jemma, sir, Jemma! I'm not pregnant!" Fitz babbled.
Coulson blinked.
"I'm the one who's pregnant, sir – by Fitz," Jemma explained to the director. "If Fitz is pregnant, then it isn't my doing, and he knows me an explanation-"
"Jemma!" Fitz squeaked, as he turned red. "You know that I would never cheat on you-"
"In other words, he isn't pregnant by anyone," Ward took pity on the shorter man and cut him off before Fitz could dig in himself deeper. "Are you two inviting Coulson to the wedding?"
"Of course," Jemma nodded calmly. "We're inviting everybody – well, not so much inviting as having them participate...maybe..."
"Everybody?" Ward asked quietly, a pointed question.
"Yes," Jemma exchanged looks for Leo. "Look," she turned around and faced both Bobbi and Kara Lynn – or at least tried to. "We're all aware of what had happened between the two of you and... the other people, and," she took a deep breath, "was this how it looked to you? What happened between us and Ward?"
"Yes," Bobbi said quietly, playing with her son's hair.
Lance looked away. "Maybe a bit," he admitted eventually.
"Can't really say – I wasn't around here back then," Kara Lynn said quietly. "Is the Cavalry coming to your wedding?"
"Yes! ..I mean, we're going to call her in the evening, to see if she wants to come, her and Andrew," Jemma replied, looking apologetically at Coulson: his (professional) break-up with May had not been particularly bad, but it was still final. "We'll give an invite to Mack and Lincoln too."
"You had it all thought out, hadn't you?" Skye asked sourly.
"Pretty much – ever since I found out that I was pregnant, I was making plans," Jemma nodded. "You're a bridesmaid, Skye, Grant's the best man, May – the matron-of-honor, Coulson will give away the bride-"
"Wait, what?" Coulson blinked.
"Hunter and Morse can make the stag night parties for Fitz and I – gently," Jemma continued. "And the rest shall be the audience, the witnesses, etc." She paused and added. "Look, since I discovered that I'm pregnant, I couldn't sleep, so I began to make plans – and here they are!"
"Jemma Simmons – you're one of a kind!" Lance Hunter said with feeling. "At least until your daughter arrives."
"Or son," Leo pointed out. "It could be a son."
There was a chorus of supportive, (but doubting) noises and all was calm once more. The day was slowly turning towards the evening. The 'core team of S.H.I.E.L.D.', plus 'extras', plus a couple of children were busy planning the wedding of FitzSimmons.
(Several days later Hydra launched an attack, utilizing some sort of a wedding machine. Jemma went into a full bridezilla mode and obliterated them.)
End