I don't own Agents of SHIELD and never will. No copyright infringement intended.
Sometimes Jemma wished they hadn't walked in on that fertility ritual that had changed the course of their lives but most of the time, she was glad she had. And to have her friends to bitch to because they were all in the same boat was fantastic. "I can't wait until I can see my feet again," she complained.
"I can't even wear shoes anymore," Skye whined. At least Grant massaged her feet every night and took care of her as much as he could (and she'd allow because he got a little too annoying sometimes). And being stuck on base was not something she appreciated because she was bored out of her mind. But she couldn't wait to have this baby and spoil him or her rotten (she knew her husband also looked forward to it).
"I should be in menopause right now but damn magic got right through it." Surprisingly, Melinda was having the easiest pregnancy out of all them but she was still going to kill the man she loved once this was over and she wasn't exhausted all the time (which probably wouldn't happen for another year or so).
Bobbi snorted. "Hey, I'm the one having twins over here. Two babies! Don't know what you're all complaining about with your single babies," she pouted. At least Lance was attentive and catered to her every whim (which would most likely never happen again so she was going to take advantage of it for as long as possible).
"I love driving the boys mad." Jemma giggled as she thought of Fitz, Grant, Coulson, Lance, Trip, and Mack's panic every time one of them (or all) so much as entered the same room they were in. They jumped to attention and tried their best (didn't always help them, of course, but at least they tried).
"I miss being horny. Those were some fun times." Grant had stopped treating her like she was a delicate flower at that point but those days were long gone because he worried about her every minute of the day. It was both adorable and annoying.
"I hate you," Bobbi groaned. Sex hadn't been a possibility in months but Lance hadn't complained so that was good. She was proud of him since he liked to whine about a lot.
"I'm starving." Melinda slowly got up out of the chair (a task proving to be more and more difficult as the days passed and she grew) and headed towards the fridge to see what she could find.
"We need to keep this up after the babies are born, which is going to be hard, but I'm sure we can do it." Skye loved bonding with her family over their shared pregnancies. Stupid fertility ritual they just had to stop (they finally had but not until after each of them conceived. They didn't plan on returning to that small Montana town ever again, thank you very much). She yawned and then groaned because she was sick of napping.
Grant walked in and eyed them all warily, wondering if it was safe. His face lit up when he saw his wife and he rushed to her side. "You need anything?" When Skye shook his head, he turned to the others. "Do I need to help?"
All of them denied needing anything and he was content with that answer. "Two more months of this and I'm not sure I can take it." Jemma rolled her eyes when Grant and Skye started making out, not even giving a shit that they were all in the room. "This is why you're pregnant in the first place, because you can't keep your hands off each other."
"You're one to talk," Bobbi shot back, laughing when her friend glared at her.
A few seconds later, upon deeming it was safe, the others walked into the room. Phil placed his hand on Melinda's stomach and beamed when the baby earnestly started to kick. Aside from Skye, he was the only one allowed to do so. "How are you two feeling today?"
"Well, you woke her up so she's great. Me? Not so much." His excitement about the pregnancy was what got her excited about the baby. Melinda actually couldn't wait to raise a child with the man and was still in shock they were even together sometimes. There had been a rough couple of years after Hydra came out of the woodwork but that situation was mostly taken care of now.
Phil kissed her. "Sorry." He never thought this would happen for him, especially at Melinda's age (despite the fertility ritual, both had been shocked when the pregnancy test came up positive), but he didn't mind becoming an older father. Melinda's mother planned to come visit for a while to meet her grandchild(ren) and he knew that she wasn't surprised about this, despite her daughter being in her fifties. She claimed it was because of the magical world they lived in but he wasn't so sure that was the case.
Jemma patted Fitz's shoulder. "You hungry? I can get you something."
"No, Jemma, let me get you something. You're the pregnant one so that's my … my job." Fitz was adamant about taking care of her even though he knew it drove her up the wall.
"You are the sweetest." She pecked him on the lips and they went to find something to eat together.
"We should go watch a movie since that's not going to happen again for a while." Lance looked forward to their movie nights and they weren't going to happen as often in a few months.
"Sounds like a great plan." Bobbi's back constantly ached now and she winced when she stood up but thanked her ex-husband when he started massaging her shoulders.
Skye hugged Grant. "I love you."
"Love you too, Skye." Fatherhood scared the shit out of him but Grant was having a baby with the woman he loved. He was excited beyond belief too and right now that was winning out over the overwhelming fear.
The fertility ritual had changed everything for the team but none of them ever once regretted finding that case in the first place.
Six months later, even with screaming babies, the team wouldn't change going to that Montana town for anything. Melinda whispered soothing words to Xia Margaret, but the baby refused to stop crying. "Come on, baby. Your mommy just wants some sleep." She and Phil doted on Xia (and their grandchildren) but their daughter loved keeping them up all night. She couldn't wait to get back into the field but right now, even with their newborn demanding attention, Melinda didn't regret one minute of this whole crazy journey.
Phil swooped in and gently took Xia off Melinda's hands. She stared at her father for a minute or so before the wailing tapered off. "She just wanted Daddy. You're a daddy's girl, just like Skye aren't you?" Although Melinda hadn't given birth to Skye, she was still their daughter – their first one – in every way that mattered. They adored the fuck out of their kids.
Melinda scowled. Motherhood had been an easier adjustment than anticipated but she couldn't wait until Xia was older and past this stage (other days, she literally wept at the thought of her little girl growing up). "You're in charge of her for the rest of the night because I want to crash." At least she had pumped earlier so Phil could feed Xia.
"Not a problem with either of us. You need to give Mommy a break, sweetheart. She needs some rest too," Phil cooed at her.
Xia squealed and proceeded to stick a hand in her mouth as Melinda sprawled out onto the bed. "Are you going to be able to handle her, Phil?" She trusted him but needed to make sure.
No answer from him so she figured he was quietly babbling to her daughter. "Melinda, look up at us," he nervously (and suddenly) told her.
Worried that something was wrong, she jumped up fast and glared when nothing appeared amiss. "Don't scare me like that," she scolded.
"We have something very important to ask you," Phil informed her seriously as he turned Xia around. Printed on her shirt were the words 'Will you marry my daddy?'
Melinda gasped. "Holy fuck, Phil."
"So what do you say? You don't want to upset Xia, do you?" What if she said no? Phil doubted that would happen but he still couldn't help but worry.
Tears welled up in her eyes and she furiously nodded. "Yes, I'll marry you, you sappy fucking idiot."
He laughed and gently deposited the baby in her playpen before whipping out a ring and sliding it up her finger. "It looks like it belongs there," Phil murmured.
S
She kissed him. "If I wasn't too tired for sex, I'd be rewarding you right now."
Phil just shook his head. "I'm marrying the woman I love and we have a baby. That's something I never thought I'd say. And don't worry about making love right now, Melinda."
He never thought he'd have this life and although it was unusual, he didn't mind the way it had gone. Neither did Melinda.
Skye tried to be quiet as she whipped her phone out to take a picture of a sleeping Grant and Josh. It was too perfect of a memory to lose and fortunately, the flash was off so she didn't wake them. "My guys," she murmured fondly.
Grant stirred and blinked open his eyes. When he saw Skye, he smiled. "Hey," he whispered.
"Hey."
"We fell asleep waiting for Mama but he really wanted to stay up for you."
She kicked off her shoes and joined them, careful not to jostle Josh. "Is that so? Well, I have missed you both all day." It wasn't easy being a superhero but she loved helping out as much as she could. It felt rewarding.
He gently pushed the hair out of her face. "I think we should spend tomorrow at the park."
"Sounds good to me," she agreed.
This was Skye's life now and although it was an unusual one, she wouldn't do it any differently. It had led her to here, after all.
Jemma handed Melody off to Fitz as they left the kitchen and headed towards the living room. The baby's sleep schedule was all fucked up and they were working to fix it so hopefully the TV would lure their daughter to sleep. "I'm so glad we have free childcare and don't have to worry about anything." She might be biased but she thought their daughter was the best out of all of the newborns at the Playground.
Fitz nodded his head in agreement. "It is nice." He was just glad Melody hadn't been colicky like one of the Morse-Hunter twins.
"Did you think we would have ended up here when we first met?" She had been wondering that for a while and wasn't exactly sure why. Nostalgia, maybe?
"I'm not sure but we met for a reason." He knew that for a fact.
"Fitz, that is so sweet." She turned the baby around in her lap so Melody could focus on the TV. The sight grabbed her attention and she was hooked immediately.
"I try. Hey, Melody, do you want to go visit Uncle Mack so Mommy and I can have sex?"
"Leopold Fitz!" she scolded. Jemma knew the baby didn't understand but that was beside the point. And they couldn't pawn their child off on Mack to have sex all the time, anyway. That wasn't fair to ask of him.
"What? I had to try!"
She snickered and watched as Melody started babbling, clearly happy about hanging out with her parents.
Jemma was thankful for the fertility ritual but she was sure they didn't need it with the way they were going. She was pretty sure she'd be pregnant again soon if they kept this up and wanted to science some more before they had another one.
And as she snuggled up to the two people she loved most in the world, she decided that she wouldn't mind Mack taking Melody off their hands for a little.
"Listen up, kiddo. Your mum and I would like to sleep through the night which means you have to do the same. Is that possible?" Lance stared at Lucas and waited for a response.
The baby stayed silent and Bobbi rolled her eyes after setting Theo down in his crib. "He's going to stay awake out of spite now, Lance," she teased.
"I hope not." He missed sleep and it seemed like an impossibility now that they had two babies in their lives. He didn't know how people who didn't have help (their team was there for them, even when they had their own babies) did it.
Lucas took one look at his younger brother (by seven minutes) and started screaming. "Nice going!"
"It wasn't my fault!" And unfortunately, Lucas set off Theo and they had two crying babies to try to calm down.
A frantic Bobbi picked up Lucas and set him down next to Theo, and both boys immediately shut up. "They just missed each other. It's so cute." They had shared womb space for nine months so it made sense they wanted to stick close to one another.
Bobbi and Lance leaned on each other for support. "I love you, Bob."
"Right back at you, Hunter. I don't know if I ever want another baby because two is more than enough but I'm glad we made them."
"Sounds good to me." He was exhausted and the thought of going through this a second time wasn't appealing (even though Lance did want a daughter someday soon).
Bobbi's reply was a snore – she had fallen asleep without warning right on his shoulder but he didn't mind all that much.
The fertility ritual could have gone badly for the team but they were grateful it turned out this way instead. Xia, Josh, Melody, Lucas, and Theo had built in best friends and although they drove their parents crazy most of the time, they loved their children too much to regret the case that led to their conceptions.
And the kids were in the wedding when Phil and Melinda married only three weeks later, neither wanting to wait anymore since they had done so long enough (to no one's surprise, Jemma and Fitz drunkenly conceived their second child that night).
The next time a strange fertility case popped up? Coulson handed it off to another team just in case.
