There's Always Time For Other Dreams
Crime and aliens and world security and stopping HYDRA don't take a break during the holidays. Unfortunately.
But, they've all been working hard and Coulson decides he can have his second best team on call for Christmas.
Fitz and Simmons starting talking over each other excitedly, making plans for their families and science conventions and Skye can't help but smile at their enthusiasm. May has one of her half-smiles that on anyone else would be huge. Coulson says something about Portland - he always goes to see her, but never talks to her (because they had each others marks, but they faded when he died and neither got another one like Skye did). Mack has his family, Lincoln has his, her Caterpillar's scatter at the first word of vacation.
Hunter suggests they go to England to see his Mum and sister for Christmas. Apparently his Mum absolutely loves Bobbi from when they were married, and is always badgering Lance to visit more.
Skye tries to insist that Hunter and Bobbi go to England to see his family because it would be too weird to explain their relationship. She'll be fine, May invited her to spend Christmas with her super spy mother, sort of like her adoptive daughter. Coulson offered to do Hanukkah with her and light all the candles of the menorah. She even contemplated going to L.A and seeing Cal - Dr. Winslow - for a few minutes at the vets office.
Hunter and Bobbi don't really give her a choice when she tries to say no; they packed her bag and dragged her protesting and arguing onto the plane with FitzSimmons.
Bobbi pilots and Skye starts to get nervous.
The plane is on autopilot, FitzSimmons talked themselves to sleep, Skye is avoiding both Bobbi and Hunter - which isn't an easy feat to do when there's only five of them on the plane.
"What's going on, Sweetheart?" Lance is the one that finds her in the back seat of an SUV on the cargo ramp. "I know you tried every excuse in the book not to come, but I don't know why." Bobbi is only a couple of feet behind him and Skye can't see a way out so she scoots over and lets them both climb in.
"My Mother was kidnapped and killed by HYDRA when I was a baby, I was kidnapped which made my Father go insane and take some weird drug concoction to make him go all Doctor Jekyll and Mister Hyde." Skye started listing, not even risking a look at her lovers as she spoke. "I was in twelve different foster homes growing up, when I finally found my parents my Mother was a homicidal psychopath leading the Inhumans in a war I unwittingly started, then my Father killed her so I wouldn't have to and had his memory wiped... I don't exactly have the best track record with families."
"Yeah?" She can hear the disappointment in Bobbi's voice and still refuses to face her. "What about your brother and sister sleeping in one of the bunks right now?"
"Or your bloody scary parents; Mama May and Daddy Coulson?... Don't tell them I called them that? I like being alive." Lance added, she couldn't help but smile at the end.
"Cousins Mack and Lincoln." Bobbi grinned, Skye finally looked over to them. Lance with his soft brown eyes and a tiny frown creasing his brow, and Bobbi with her half-smile and sad blue eyes.
"The little rugrat nieces and nephews you call Caterpillar's."
"What about you guys?" She bit her lip nervously. They were lovers - Soulmates including and despite any words on their bodies - but that didn't constitute family.
"We're the ones who will kick your ass if you ever even think that we're not your family and that we feel anything other than absolute love for you." Bobbi answered, the sincerity almost made her want to cry.
"And Mum's gonna love you too, she'd be a fool not to and Mum is definitely no fool." Hunter added with a grin.
They dropped FitzSimmons off first - Simmons' family first and then Fitz's Mum were their holiday plans - and then Skye's nerves returned.
She refused to get out of the SUV when they arrived at a seemingly normal house in a seemingly normal street. But, this was Lance's family; his mother, his older sister, and her three kids
"Come on, Sweetheart, we're not going in without you." Lance urged, opening her door and holding his hand out. Waiting. "We don't have to stay if you don't want to, but I really want you to meet them, and I swear they'll love you."
"If they can love our Idiot they'll definitely love you, Rockstar." Bobbi confirmed with a fond smile at Lance despite the insult, grabbing their bags from the back and waiting by the car door as well.
"Okay." Skye unbuckled her seatbelt, accepting Lance's hand to help her out of the vehicle.
Lance walks through the front door without a knocking and calls out his presence with a smirk, revelling in the sounds of rushing footsteps and excited yelps through-out the house.
One older woman with Lance's brown eyes and one closer to his age with green eyes that must come from their father, two little boys and a tiny little girl that couldn't be more than 3.
The women both hugged Lance - comments about he was too thin, good to see him, he finally came to visit after too long - before noticing Bobbi and Lance might have muttered something about 'she's the ex wife, you know', but it was more for attention than malice. Besides, he was the one that brought his ex-wife turned lover to visit his family.
"Oh no you don't!" Skye pushed down a yelp - and a vibration - when a hand grabbed hers when she was slowly inching her way out the door again. Everyone went silent, she could feel their eyes on her. She really didn't have a good history with families.
Bobbi was the one holding her hand tightly, pulling her back into the house and pressing their marks together, sending comfort through the bond.
"Right, introductions." Lance was suddenly at their side as well. "My Mum, Katherine and my sister Lucy, and the three little rugrats are Braidon, Noah and Louise." The little one - Louise - attached herself to Bobbi's legs with a bright smile. "Everyone, this is Skye, our... Our Skye." For all they loved each other they couldn't figure out what their labels were; boyfriend and girlfriends sounded so juvenile - two of them were over 30!
"Hi." Skye managed to get the word out weakly. They were all staring at her. Not even blinking, just staring. "I have to go!" She panicked and Skye's panic mode was flight, she turned and ran, tearing her hand out of Bobbi's grip.
"Skye, wait!" She was halfway to the car before Bobbi caught her, Lance only half a step behind.
"I'm sorry, I can't do this, I can't do families, I'm sorry." She broke free again, finally making it to the SUV and climbing into the drivers seat.
Bobbi jumped into the passenger seat when the car was moving - actually moving.
"Pull over." Skye had only been fleeing for ten minutes when Bobbi pointed to the side of the road - and she'd only tried to drive into oncoming traffic once. Skye obeyed, letting out a sigh once the car was stopped.
"I'm sorry." She'd lost track of the number of apologies she'd made.
"You know, the first time I met them we'd been married for three months, he didn't even tell them that we were dating and then he just brought me to meet them without telling me that they had no idea who I was." The blonde started, Skye rolled her eyes, that definitely sounded like Hunter. "Katherine was giving me family recipes and telling me embarrassing baby Lance stories by the end of the night."
"Yeah, but you're you. No-one can know you and not love you." Really, it was hard to be scolding when she complimenting her. It was kind of frustrating.
"Point is; they love Lance - God knows why, but they do - and more than anything they want him to be happy." Bobbi reached a hand over, brushing her thumb across Skye's cheek, she couldn't help but turn into the touch, seeking more. "We may not be normal, people may look at us funny, Katherine and Lucy might even look at us funny-"
"Not really helping, Bob." Skye frowned, earning a smile from the older woman.
"But, they'll be able to see it; that you, me, Lance... That us is what makes us happy. And that will hopefully be enough for them to accept us... If not... It doesn't really matter because we'll still have each other and they're going to fall in love with you anyway so it's a moot point." Brown eyes looked doubtfully to blue. "I promise."
"I make a really shitty first impression." Skye sighed, dropping her head back against the headrest.
"Come on, switch over, I'll drive us back." It was a little awkward to switch seats without getting out of the car - Skye may have copped a feel Bobbi's boobs during the switch - but neither really wanted to get out, and it ended at one point with Skye in Bobbi's lap which the blonde took advantage of to stick her tongue down her throat like a horny teenager.
Take two!
Lance was waiting on the front stoop when Bobbi pulled into the driveway, his cheeks flushed pink from the cold and his breath coming out in little white puffs.
"Next time a bloody warning would be nice before you drive off." He glared at both of them when they got out of the car - Skye did so rather reluctantly. "Mum's half convinced that I kidnapped you and you took your chance to escape when I wasn't paying attention."
"Sorry." Skye looked down sheepishly, but Lance just shook his head and hugged her.
"Sweetheart, I wouldn't bring you here if I wasn't certain that they'd love you." His breath was warm in her ear and it made her shiver a little. "Let's get inside before Mum decides I'm trying to freeze you both to death."
No-one came running this time when they went into the house. Skye could hear a kids movie playing in the next room, and something sizzling in a room down the hall, but it was just the three of them in the entry.
"Come on, better get washed up, Supper's gonna be ready any minute."
Dinner - they call it Supper here - is mostly silent. Cutlery scraping against plates, curious - and that's the best word for it - looks from the two English women. Bobbi is eating with her left hand just so she can hold Skye's under the table with her right hand and touch their marks, trying to sooth her.
"How come you have two girlfriends, Uncle Lance?" One of the little boys is the one to break the silence - Noah, the younger one - and his mother immediately goes to scold him as the other four adults freeze.
"Um." Lance's brow creases a little. "Well, No, it's because I love them both and they love me... And, um, when people love each other like that and they have amazing se-ow!" Skye can't help the small smile when Lance reaches under the table to rub his leg, glaring at Bobbi. "What the bloody Hell was that for? You usually wait till I've done something wrong to bruise me."
"Bad word!" Louise giggled, pointing an accusing finger at her Uncle.
"Uncle Lance is an adult, he's allowed to say bad words." Hunter spoke to the little girl.
"Uncle Lance is going to be in Time Out if he swear in front of the children again." Lucy shot back at him.
Conversation seems to a lot easier after that. Not exactly fluid and casual, but at least it's not complete silence.
Bobbi volunteers the three of the to do the dishes after dinner - still Supper here - and they settle into an easy rhythm that they'd done a million times before at Providence. It's actually kind of comforting to Skye, even with Hunter complaining the whole time.
All too soon it's over and they have to go face the family again.
It's all fine until the kids have to go to bed and they beg for Uncle Lance to tuck them in, and Bobbi was in the bathroom so that left Skye. Alone. With Hunter's mother and sister.
"I have to ask, what exactly is your relationship?" Lucy is the one who says it.
"Lucille." Mrs. Hunter scolds her daughter, but Skye knows she's curious too.
"I mean, no offence to Lance, but you two are way out of his league, and trust me; having a man in a relationship isn't all it's cracked up to be." She had the same accent as Hunter and the same abrasive questioning as him. And she thought they were out of his league, Hunter was constantly insisting on that. "Plus, wouldn't it be easier? Less to explain when someone asks what the bloody Hell is going on."
Skye has never been good with families.
Hell, this is the first time she's actually met a significant other's family. She can face down super powered people, take down HYDRA bases, hack into any system she wanted... But, she was sweating bullets when she was left alone with Hunter's family.
"You ever had a Soulmate?" Skye bites her lip after the question. "I've had three." She ignores their startled looks. There's no record of anyone having more than one before. "It doesn't matter if I have words on my skin because I know-I know that Bobbi, Hunter and I, I know we're Soulmates. The marks just didn't catch up to that and give me Hunter's words."
"That's what I've been saying for years." Bobbi was leaning on the doorway, her arms across her chest and a smile on her face. "Not enough people believing they can love someone if their marks don't match. Just because our marks match doesn't mean we love Lance any less because we don't have his words." The blonde came over to sit beside Skye.
"But, still." Mrs. Hunter finally speaks, her brown furrowed in a slight frown. "Three people in a relationship isn't normal. Surely you know that?"
"Maybe." Bobbi agreed, a hard glint in her eyes. "But, if it's what makes us happy does it really matter if there's three of us? There could be just two of us in a relationship so it could be normal and societal, but then we wouldn't be us. And I wouldn't trade us for anything, especially not the opinions of people that don't matter to us."
Mrs. Hunter stared at Bobbi. Bobbi stared back. Neither of them blinked.
Mrs. Hunter gave a short nod and Bobbi smiled, pressing a kiss to Skye's temple. Mrs. Hunter may nod understand, but at least she wasn't against them, and that was the least they could have hoped for.
Skye tries to tell Bobbi and Hunter that it would be weird to have sex in his mother's house with his mother, sister, niece and nephews down the hall.
Bobbi's tongue is very good at convincing her otherwise.
Skye is with the kids. Skye's good with kids, probably from seventeen years in the foster system with so many other kids always around. There was always at least one neglected kid at the orphanage and she always tried her best to make sure they weren't neglected anymore. Point is, Skye gets along really well with Hunter's niece and nephews, and she may be hiding out from his mother and sister, but no-one calls her out on it so she's pretty much happy to chill with the kids.
Lance and Lucy had gone off to get a Christmas tree - a live one! - and Bobbi was with Mrs. Hunter getting decorations for the tree from the attic. She would have felt bad for not helping, but before she could offer the kids had demanded her attention and she couldn't tear herself away from the little English cuties.
"I just don't understand it." Lucy shook her head, for the third time in the last ten minutes.
"What?" Lance frowned over at his sister. He knew about the conversations - the normal conversations, and conventional relationship conversations - and he really hoped this wasn't about that again. The team had accepted them - the three of them were still Coulson's best small force group - why couldn't his family?
"How the bloody Hell did you manage to make two women so far out of your league fall in love with you?" His sister looked honestly baffled. Like she truly couldn't comprehend it. Lance couldn't comprehend it sometimes either.
"Why? Want to steal my girlfriends?" He rolled his eyes before focussing them in the same direction she was looking. Skye and Bobbi sitting in an armchair together, sipping at the same cup of hot chocolate and absently picking loose tinsel strands off each other as they watched a movie with the kids.
"I'm happy for you, but I'm strictly straight, Baby Brother." Lucy shook her head. "You can keep them, I just want to know how you did it? Did you drug them? Blackmail? Voodoo dolls or something?"
"No bloody clue, Luce." He shook his head, tearing his eyes away to focus back on the gift wrapping they were supposed to be doing. Mum would kill them if they got the corners wrong!
Christmas morning was cold. Super cold.
Skye tried to snuggle into the warmth of Hunter who had slept in the middle that night, but it was too cold to get back to sleep. Her nose was going to fall off it was so cold!
She yelped when something light and scrabbling touched her foot, barely resisting the vibration that threatened to come out of her when she heard the childish giggles from the end of the bed.
"Scram, Rugrats." Lance groaned, burying his face in her neck and kicking out at the offending children who she could only guess were tickling his feet too.
"It's Christmas morning, Uncle Lance." Noah announced, climbing onto the foot of the bed.
"Yeah? What time?"
"Seven." Braidon was the one that answered.
"Bloody Hell, Rugrats, let me sleep." Lance grumbled, yanking the blankets over his head - and hers as a result.
"Uncle Lance and Auntie Skye aren't really morning people." That was Bobbi. Already out of bed at seven on Christmas morning. Skye could understand Lance's comparison to a Demonic Hell-Beast. No normal person should be up this early when they didn't have to be. "Why don't you guys get started on your presents and I'll get these two out of bed." The blonde suggested and it was followed almost immediately by three pairs of feet thumping out of the room.
"No bloody chance." Hunter mumbled in her ear and she kind of had to agree with him. She was perfectly comfortable staying in bed with him, and if Bobbi didn't want to join them that was her problem.
"If you don't get up you can't have presents." The blonde tried to bribe them, her voice muffled by the blanket over their heads.
"If we don't get up we can be warm, sleep, and boobs." Lance shot back.
"Boobs isn't a verb, Hunter, you can't actively boobs." The blanket was yanked off them, making them cry out in protest.
"I can boobs if I want to, right Skye?" Hunter insisted, lifting his head to peak at the brunette who was quickly giving up on getting back to sleep.
"Come on, Buttercup, time to get up." Bobbi urged and Skye grumbled under her breath, glaring at anything and everything her eyes fell on.
"Fine." The younger woman tore herself out of bed reluctantly.
"But-" Hunter tried to protest, reaching for her and whining. "-but... Boobs!"
"Boobs later, Baby." Skye leant over to kiss his cheek before looking for her pants. "There better be a big ass cup of cocoa ready." Instead of getting dressed she cuddled into Bobbi, soaking up her warmth and nearly falling asleep standing before her eyes flew open and she pulled her head back to stare up at the blonde. "Did you call me Auntie Skye before?"
"Yeah." Bobbi had an amused smirk on her lips and in the background Lance was grumbling as he pulled himself out of bed. They were used to having a much bigger bed on base; Lance's childhood bedroom only had a double bed so the nights usually consisted of one of them - Skye because she was the smallest - laying across the other two. "The little munchkins love Auntie Skye."
Bobbi couldn't help the grin on her lips as Skye was dragged outside by the kids to play in the snow, Lucy calling out for them not to go on the road and to look out for ice patches. Skye was great with kids. When they were on vacation with Hunter's family, there was wrapping paper everywhere, and Bobbi was watching them through the window, she let herself imagine that maybe on day Skye would be great with their kids.
They probably wouldn't ever be able to have kids; too many variables and dangers.
But, it was a nice fantasy.
They had to leave only a couple of days after Christmas, but as far as Lance was concerned it was one of his best holidays to date; no-one had been killed or injured, no weapons had to be drawn, his Mum and sister absolutely adored Skye - like he knew they would - and whilst his Mum didn't completely understand their relationship her last words before they had to leave had been to say as long as he was happy then that was all that mattered.
Lucy kept insisting he had to have some sort of gimmick going, how else would he have managed to get two women so far out of his league? He kind of had to agree with her.
Then there were the kids, who refused to let go of them until they promised to come visit again soon - they made the promise, but they didn't know when they'd get the time off again. Braidon, Noah and Louise had loved Skye from day one - possibly even more than Bobbi if possible (definitely more than him). He liked it when they called her Auntie Skye, and even though she didn't admit it he was sure she liked it too.
"That wasn't so bad was it?" Bobbi glanced over to Skye with a smile as they drove away. Bobbi driving, Skye in the passenger's seat - why did he have to be in the back? Why couldn't cars have three seats up the front?
"No." He could hear the smile in Skye's voice. "Maybe the family thing isn't so bad."
"Just wait till you meet Bob's parents, Sweetheart, then see what you think..."
Still working on the Fitz/Bobbi/possible other request (have no fear) I just couldn't get anything else out once this idea got into my head.
Running out of lyrics from Unlove You to fit this series; do I end the series or continue with another song? (I was think How Do You Love Someone? By Ashley Tisdale (keep judging, I'm 22 and I still watch Disney Channel, that's the least weird thing about me)).
Once again, if there's something you want see just drop a comment below or send a PM.
Happy readings!