Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.
SHIELD's Little Surprise
Chapter 11 – The Sneakiest Little Agent
This is a fanfic based upon the incredible television series, Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. This is the 11th in a series of stories that takes place not long after the Season 2 finale. These stories are meant to be fun, sweet, thought-provoking and heart-warming. They may or may not contain scenes of corporal discipline (spanking), often of a (fictional) minor child. This is *not* a 'condonement' of spanking children in any way, and any such scene will be depicted in a very loving, non-abusive manner. If this may still be a trigger for you, I encourage you not to read this series.
Every character referred to is directly from the show/Marvel Universe, and I hold NO claim to the characters or the plotlines of the show that many of my stories are based on. I *highly* recommend watching the first two seasons of episodes before reading these stories, as many references to events in the episodes will be made, and therefore, better understood. WARNING: These stories will contain spoilers from the show, up until the Season 2 finale. (Minus what happened to Jemma Simmons there, because I refused to accept that! ;) ) This particular story also references other films in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, most notably, Avengers, Age of Ultron. Enjoy!
Note from author: I am SO, SO sorry that it has taken this long to update. Good news though... the next chapter, the finale, will be uploaded soon! Thank you all for sticking with me. :)
Continued from Chapter 10 – Driving Miss Daisy…
Chapter 11 – The Sneakiest Little Agent
…
The morning after Natasha Romanov's arrival at the SHIELD base, the Avenger attempts once again to make peace with the youngest inhabitant of the base. After offers to color with the youngster, to read her a story and to play tag are all rejected by a still suspicious and sullen Skye, Natasha decides to take a different approach.
Kneeling down, she says softly, "all right, zvyozdochka… I have apologized, sincerely, to both you and your mom." The superspy turns and nods to acknowledge May, who is sitting nearby watching with some amusement. "I really want to make this right. So, you tell me. What do I need to do for you to forgive me?"
Skye looks carefully at Natasha. She is tempted to be swayed by the woman's genuine look of regret and her soft voice. But the stubbornness is strong in this one.
The youngster crosses her arms and keeps her glare firmly in place. She scowls as she thinks hard, then states. "You were mean and scary… and you hurted Mommy. You should be punished!"
Natasha blinks. "I should be… punished?"
Skye nods seriously, while Melinda hides a smirk.
"I see… okay. Fair enough. What do you have in mind, zvyozdochka?"
"What?" Skye asks irritably.
"What, what? Oh… zvyozdochka?"
Skye nods, allowing a bit of curiosity through.
Natasha smiles. "It's Russian. It means, 'little star'. I thought it appropriate for such a bright young lady named Skye."
The youngster considers this for a moment, then slowly nods her acceptance.
"But… I digress. We were talking about my punishment," Tasha admits, also feeling amused.
It's Skye's turn to blink. "Y-yeah." She glances back at her mother, then returns her gaze to Natasha and squares her little shoulders. "Yeah… you were mean and hurted Mommy… you should get a spanking!" she announces.
Agent May can hardly contain her amusement any longer and she just manages to stifle a laugh. "Skye…" she begins…
Romanov however slowly nods, then stands. "All right." She turns and walks confidently over to Melinda. "Well, you heard the kid."
May scoffs and shakes her head. "Tasha, you don't have to…"
"Yes, I do," Natasha retorts. She gives May an ironic smile and a shrug. "It will make things right… and, I imagine, not just between me and Skye."
Melinda stares at her in disbelief, then lets out a smirk. "Well, that may be true. And, it's not like it's the first time."
Eyebrows lift almost to a red hairline. "You only disciplined me once as my S.O. After that first time, you were unable to catch me, if I recall…"
May shoots her former ward a playful glare in response. "Oh? I suppose I have much to make up for then. I may even enjoy this a little…" she admits in a daunting whisper.
And so, May wastes no strength helping Natasha earn Skye's forgiveness. Romanov, who has endured inordinate amounts of pain throughout her life of espionage, soon finds herself surprised at just how much Melinda's hand stings as it falls repeatedly against her backside…
…
By the end of this 'punishment', Skye has forgiven the superspy, and over the next few days the child comes to greatly enjoy playing with her. Natasha genuinely loves children and regularly 'borrows' Skye in her downtime. For obvious reasons, Black Widow is an expert at avoiding detection, and has been able to offer the youngster many useful tips. She also assigns fun little spy missions, hiding an object somewhere in the base, and requiring Skye to follow clues and remain undetected in finding it. If Skye is spotted, the object is relocated and the youngster must start over.
The two only become true 'partners in crime' though when Natasha learns that the youngster's access to sweet treats is seriously limited. She tries to argue with Coulson on Skye's behalf, ('c'mon, you're only a kid once… usually'), but before the indulgent father can be swayed to shower Skye in candy, Melinda busts up the manipulative little operation.
"If my daughter shows any signs of a sugar high while you are within this base Natasha, you *will* be held accountable," the warrior mom warns the Avenger.
Rather than conceding defeat however, this seems only to challenge the skilled superspy, who merely shrugs and walks out with an ominously mischievous grin…
…
The very next morning, Natasha and Mack bring Skye home from a trip to the park. The moment they enter the base, they are greeted by a smiling Bobbi as she exits the training room… the bright smile quickly fades from her face, however.
"Oh no…"
Taking in the trio, Morse notices immediately that there is trouble afoot. The infamous Black Widow is looking rather smug and Mack is fidgeting sheepishly. Bobbi stares at a bouncy Skye for a moment in disbelief, and a million questions run through her mind. Instead of asking them though, she simply presses the comm in her ear and says, "Agent May. Special delivery. Training room."
Upon hearing these words, Natasha grins and shrugs. "Well, I'm off to meet Coulson," she states nonchalantly.
Morse considers the possibly suicidal act of attempting to prevent Romanov's escape, but much to her relief she doesn't have to. Skye has just peered into the training room…
"It's empty, yay!" she squeals, then grabs Natasha's hand and drags her over. "C'mon, come play wif me!"
Bobbi watches with great amusement as Romanov glances around quickly. "Oh… um, Skye, zvyozdochka… I need to go help your father with something…"
"Oh no, you don't," comes a voice from the doorway. Melinda appears there and crosses her arms across her chest with the hint of a dangerous smile. "Coulson's not even here. Nice try."
Natasha immediately regains her bravado and casually shrugs.
May sighs and shakes her head. "So… who wants to explain to me why my child's mouth is blue? And why she is bouncing off the walls?"
And Skye is bouncing off the walls… literally. She runs toward the wall, jumps when close to it, then pushes off of it with her foot, giggling the entire time.
"Mommy! Can you teach me how to do a flip off the wall?"
"No," May deadpans, continuing to stare at Natasha and Mack. "So… what did you give her?" she asks, ignoring Skye's disappointed whine.
Mack continues to look anywhere but at his superior, while Romanov sighs and rolls her eyes. "We passed a 7-11 on the way back from the park. She asked for a Slurpee…"
May grits her teeth, throws her hands up, then mutters a string of expletives in Mandarin. She then turns her pissed off gaze back to Natasha, and stares at her for a long moment. Finally, she decides on the toughest punishment she can come up with.
"Mack," she starts, turning to him, much to his dismay. "Why don't you tell Ms. Romanov here what happens to agents who turn my daughter into a hyper little gremlin?"
Skye misses this slight jab as she's still jumping off the walls with loud whoops.
Mack groans and turns to Natasha with a very distinct look of 'I told you so'. "Um, yeah… you, me, and the pleasure of *trying* to wear that," he points to the little blur that is Skye, "out".
Romanov shrugs. "No problem." She catches up Skye as the youngster runs past and flips her upside down. "Let's go, zvyozdochka. A new mission awaits!"
A remarkable three hours later, Skye has finally played off enough energy to be put down for her nap. The world's greatest superspy/heroic Avenger collapses on the rec room couch next to Mack and, avoiding his knowing gaze, mutters, "yeah. All right, fine. Never again." She yawns and curls up cozily on her side. "Wake me in about an hour?"
…
"Phil, have you lost your damn mind? Since when are we running a damn daycare here? What, you didn't have enough on your plate? Being the Director of SHIELD doesn't keep you busy enough?"
Perched on the edge of Coulson's office desk, Ex-SHIELD Director Nick Fury folds his arms across his chest. His uncovered eye pierces Phil deeply with an authority that, by all accounts, he should no longer possess.
Out of sheer habit and genuine lingering respect, Director Coulson remains standing at attention. He nods his acknowledgement that the situation is anything but conventional, but otherwise stays quiet, knowing that his former boss is not finished.
"Look Phil… I get it. She was an agent. An agent whom you recruited. You feel responsible."
"It's more than that."
Fury pauses, still staring hard at Coulson. There is another long moment of silence. Then finally…
"Oh?"
Coulson sighs, trying to figure out how best to explain. "Look… Skye's childhood was a nightmare. And even if we kept her alive, it was SHIELD's actions that made it so awful."
Nick Fury's eyebrows furrow, but he awaits further explanation.
"The protocol that was set in place, to move her around every few months… it meant that she grew up with no stability, no home and no family. That's on SHIELD."
"So… you decided you wanted to be a daddy," Fury states, matter-of-factly. His eyebrows raise. "Midlife crisis?"
Phil smiles in response. "I won't lie. Deep down, it was always a dream of mine."
"And before all this happened, she was the closest thing to a daughter that you'd ever known." This isn't a question.
Phil nods.
Nick sighs. "Coulson… we are the job. Earth's line of defense. And that job is complicated enough. We don't invite people to join SHIELD who *need* constant supervision and defense, we recruit those who can provide it. The girl… is a liability."
"Mm-hmm." Phil nods again. He can't argue this.
Another sigh. "And yet…?"
"And yet… I won't abandon her, sir. She needs me. She needs us, and our protection."
Fury stands up suddenly, clearly agitated. He shakes his head. "Well then… that's part of why I'm here. You've got a choice to make. SHIELD needs a director."
"I have been fulfilling my duties, sir…"
"Oh, really?" Fury asks harshly. "Then do you want to tell me why your other previous recruit is still at large and more and more in charge everyday?"
"I assume you're referring to Grant Ward?"
"Yes! Coulson! I am referring to Grant Ward! How long is that bastard going to be a thorn in our side?!"
With a touch of indignance, Phil prepares to launch into the extensive list of measures being taken by the team to once again find and thwart Ward, (or maybe even ask if Fury can't help him enlist the aid of a few more Avengers for the cause, if he's so concerned) but there is a sudden knock on the door. Coulson takes the opportunity to call out, "come in".
The door opens, and Natasha's signature fiery red hair seems to precede her into the room. "Evening, gentlemen. I thought I heard your dulcet tones," she quips, nodding toward Fury.
"Romanov," Nick nods toward her. He then scoffs and shakes his head at Coulson. "So much for keeping your continued existence from the Avengers…" he mutters.
Natasha shrugs. "Well, Bruce and Cap don't know. Unless Tony has already blabbed."
"And Barton?" Fury asks.
"Oh, he knows." Natasha grins at Coulson. "He wants to invite Skye over for a playdate with Cooper and Lila, by the way."
While Coulson smiles softly at the thought, Fury looks like his head is about to explode. He starts muttering even more. "Mighty superheroes… playdates… SHIELD agents… damn daycare… changing diapers…"
Romanov gives him a funny look. "Diapers? No one's in… oh well, I guess little Nathaniel is…"
"Damn it, Romanov! I had seriously hoped that you could help me talk some sense into 'Agent Dad' over here! Encourage him to…"
"To what, exactly, sir?" Natasha interrupts. Clearly some habits are hard for her to break as well. "To sacrifice yet another person that he loves with all his heart to a cause that, technically, doesn't even exist anymore? You stepped aside!"
"Yes, and if that's what Coulson needs to do now, he should! We all make choices, we all make sacrifices…"
"And yet they don't necessarily make us better agents!" Natasha's voice rises, and it becomes uncharacteristically clear that this has touched upon a personal nerve. "Would you like to call up Barton and let him know how 'useless' he is because he has a family? Because he has a home and a wife and three beautiful children, who remind him of just what he is fighting for?!"
Romanov slaps the desk, turns suddenly to Phil and looks straight into his eyes. "You have the priceless privilege of being a father to a smart, beautiful, spirited, caring little girl who adores you. 'Heroes' come and go, and may be labeled traitors or terrorists or villains by the public or even the government at any moment, but you will forever be a mighty hero to that precious little girl living in this base. Don't you dare trade that for anything, Phil. Some of us were biologically stripped of that right. I have done so much that I am not proud of; I have endless red in my ledger, but that remains the greatest regret of my life. That I cannot have what you now have. Don't let anyone convince you to give it up."
Coulson listens carefully, with deepest empathy for the strong, incredible woman who so rarely wears her heart on her sleeve. At her final words, he sits up a bit straighter with a subtle nod, and looks back to Fury.
The jaw of the legendary ex-Director unclenches slightly. He shakes off his shock after a moment and sighs. His voice a bit softer now, Fury chooses his next words a bit more carefully. "Look… no one is saying that you should just give up Skye or send her to a group home or anything like that. I'm not completely insensitive," he insists, raising his hands to indicate peace. "But… have you at least considered other options? Maybe… have her live with a retired SHIELD agent who can protect her, but give her a stable life in the suburbs and all that, and *not* in a SHIELD base with active agents who are constantly surrounded by danger… who are often tasked with saving the world?"
Phil nods slowly, looking down in thought. "I have considered other options. Many of them, in fact. And in the end, I can basically only fathom two. Either Skye lives here with us and we carry on as usual, or… I leave SHIELD and raise her as a full-time dad, in the… suburbs, as you said." He shrugs, though he dies a little on the inside as he imagines trading Lola in for a minivan. "Oh," a thought occurs to him. "And that would include May and quite possibly a few of my other agents as well," he points out.
Nick Fury runs a hand down his face.
"Sir," Phil states respectfully. "I am well-aware that this little set-up may someday become unsustainable. That it may become too dangerous for Skye to be here, or even just too distracting. Until then, I do hope that you can accept that this is now a 'family affair'. However, if you can't…" Coulson reaches into his coat pocket and then holds out what seems to be a black leather wallet.
Fury glances at it, then sighs heavily and shakes his head. "Put your badge away… Director."
Coulson lets out a small smile and catches a grin and a wink from Natasha.
Nick Fury stands and paces a couple times across the office. "Look… just tell me that she's in training to *someday* be useful to the organization?"
Coulson only just manages to hide his irritation at this, though Romanov looks daggers at Fury. "Well, in addition to her general schooling, Skye is learning about engineering from Mack, science from Jemma, Mandarin and basic defense training from May, mathematics and computer science from Fitz… she could very well become the most well-rounded asset this organization has ever known. But in the end, it will be Skye's decision whether she wants to be an agent or not. We will not force her to do anything."
Fury puts his hands up, knowing now that he can't expect anymore than this. "Fair enough."
"So… maybe you should meet her," Natasha suggests, watching Fury carefully.
Nick is just about to vehemently refuse, but at the hopeful expressions on both Phil and Natasha's faces, he groans quietly. "Fine." Without another word he rises, shaking his head, and heads out of the room.
Natasha smiles at Coulson and moves to follow Fury, but Phil keeps her back with a touch to her arm. "Natasha, listen… I didn't exactly become a father the 'old-fashioned' way. Parenthood isn't out of the question for you. You still have plenty of time," he states softly.
This receives a kind smile in response, then the Black Widow walks out before more emotion can be shown…
…
Much against his better judgment, Fury agrees to stay the night at the base. As uncomfortable as he is with the liability associated with a child living on a SHIELD base, he secretly wants to see for himself just how much of a distraction she is to the team.
Coulson is a bit nervous as he goes to introduce Fury to Skye. He finds her in the dining room, waiting for a snack from Hunter after the two have played a 'Dance Dance Revolution' game on the Wii. Hunter is still sweating.
"That's not quite how I remember it, cutie," they approach to hear Hunter say, as he cuts up a cantaloupe.
"Yuh-huh!" Skye insists. "I winned five dances, you just winned 'free'!"
Fury leans over to Coulson and mutters, unimpressed, "sooo, she's a skilled dancer".
Phil nods. "Among other things. Hey… it's an elective at the Academy." (2x04)
Hunter turns to take the cantaloupe rinds to the compost bin. "I'm pretty sure that I beat you four ti…" he begins, but then spots Coulson, Natasha and Fury in the doorway. The rinds slip from his hands as he stares at the tall man with the eye patch. He has never met Fury before, but there is no mistaking the renowned man before him.
Skye looks around when Hunter abruptly stops talking, and follows his gaze to the doorway. "Daddy! Tasha!" she shrieks happily, and starts to run around the table to them. She skids to a halt when she takes in Fury's presence though. "Whoaaa… are you a pirate?" she asks with excitement.
Coulson groans inwardly.
Fury's eyebrows raise. "Hmm… original," he mutters sardonically, crossing his arms. "No, child, I'm not a pirate. Pirates are bad guys. I'm a good guy… one who fights the bad guys. Just like your… uh… 'family' here does."
Skye takes this all in stride as she looks him up and down. "Oh. I fight bad guys, too!" she says proudly. "Watch!" With that she strikes out at the air… a jab, then a punch, followed by a roundhouse kick.
Fury's eyebrows raise again. "Now, that's more like it."
Natasha Romanov grins and sees an opportunity. "Show him what you can do, zvyozdochka."
Skye beams and runs over to the Black Widow. They both bow to each other, then Skye sinks into a defensive stance her mother taught her. Natasha then carefully throws a few punches toward Skye, at about half speed. The child focuses on Natasha's face, and is able to block each one successfully.
"Excellent, Skye!" Tasha praises, then jogs several steps away. "Ready? Now!"
Romanov suddenly bends her knees and drops to the ground. Skye immediately runs forward, steps onto Natasha's back, then jumps into a flawless aerial side kick.
"Whoa!" both Hunter and Coulson exclaim, neither having seen the child perform this before.
Skye giggles in proud delight.
"Yeah, I've been working with her in the training room," Tasha says nonchalantly. "Though it's hardly work. She's a natural."
Fury smirks. He knows what the elite Russian spy is doing. He is impressed though, whether he'll admit it or not.
"Sweetie," Coulson starts, and smiles as Skye runs into his arms. "I'd like you to meet someone very special. This is Mr. Fury. He used to be my boss. Nick… this is Skye."
Skye blinks, looking at Fury curiously again. "But… Daddy, I thought you were the 'bossiest boss' there is!"
Both Hunter and Natasha nearly choke at this, as they try to stifle their laughter. Even Fury can't hide a quick grin.
"Ah, well…" Coulson is momentarily stymied by this.
"Your father is the big boss now," Fury confirms.
"But I wouldn't be without this man, in more ways than one. He taught me so much," Coulson recovers.
May enters the room, and looks around. "Well… don't let me interrupt this mushy stuff…"
The rest of the evening is quite fun for SHIELD's littlest agent, and enlightening for its former director. The whole team jumps on the 'let's-help-Skye-impress-Fury' bandwagon. Bobbi instigates a game of hide-and-seek and motivates Skye to do her best. "Listen up munchkin… if you are found quickly, then you will owe me 10 jumping jacks. But if it takes a while to find you, then I'll set you up an obstacle course tomorrow," she bribes, as this is one of Skye's new favorite activities. "But if you are never found, I'll give you my dessert tonight!" Bobbi promises in a whisper. She then says in a louder voice, "Mr. Fury will count to 25, then come find you." Then, before Fury can object, she shouts, "okay, go!"
Skye very cleverly hides in the saferoom she's most comfortable in, and happily looks at a Frozen book. As Nick doesn't know about the newly added saferooms, she is never found. He gives up after 10 minutes of active searching. Skye is alerted to her win through the room's security intercom, and returns to the team triumphantly. Bobbi does indeed sneak Skye her own slice of strawberry shortcake that evening.
During dinner, Coulson strikes up a conversation about geographical features, and Skye happily joins in. He tries to trick her, but Skye corrects him every time, giggling. "Daddyyy… the Sahara isn't a forest, it's a desert!" and "there isn't elephants in Antarctica… it's all glace-all (glacial)!"
After dinner, everyone returns to their various tasks, except for Jemma, who stays with Skye. The youngster requests to show Fury 'the Universe' projection, and thus is able to wow the man with her knowledge of astronomy.
An hour later, May returns for Skye and informs her, in Mandarin, that it is time for bed. The little girl automatically switches to the Chinese language as well to whine mildly at her mother and try to bargain for five more minutes. May wins, of course… but Fury gets to witness yet another of Skye's many skills.
The next morning, as Fury says good-bye and is about to take his leave, Skye runs up to him waving a piece of paper. "Wait!" she cries, holding it up to him. "This is for you!"
Nick accepts it and looks it over. It is a drawing done and colored by Skye, of Fury with a hook hand, a peg leg and a parrot on his shoulder. He is standing on a beach with a ship in the background.
Fury gives Skye a look. "So… are you calling me a bad guy?"
Skye, completely unabashed, shakes her head. "No, cause look… you're smiling!" she points out, pointing to the grin on her drawing's face. "That means you're a nice pirate!"
The tall, skeptical man can't help it… and allows a small smile to break through his stony façade.
"See?" Skye says happily, then lifts her arms up to Bobbi, who has come up behind her.
Morse picks her up and hugs her close, kissing the top of her head when she lays it on her shoulder. She smiles to Fury and shakes his hand. "It's been an honor meeting you, sir. We are always thrilled to find that you're not dead," she says with a twinkle in her eyes. "Safe travels."
"Glad to meet you too, and don't go telling anyone" Fury offers with a smirk, then turns his attention to Skye. "And listen up, you… you be good, and you keep things running smoothly here. They need someone with your skills and smarts, kid."
Skye grins and nods proudly, then salutes. Everyone around chuckles fondly, including Fury.
"Until next time," Bobbi states. With that she walks Skye out, the little girl waving merrily over her shoulder.
Fury sighs at the sight. He has long since accepted that changing Coulson's mind is a lost cause. Still… "well… I'll admit that this doesn't seem as terrible an idea as it sounded. The girl obviously has a lot of potential. But tell me Coulson… if something were to happen to Skye… if she was hurt, or worse… could you really live with yourself? Because from what I've heard, there have already been a few 'incidents'."
Phil looks down and seriously considers this, yet again. "I know. And frankly, no, I couldn't. I would never forgive myself. Which is why we are constantly updating our security, and we do our best to keep Skye far from any missions. I know it's still not ideal. And I know that I may need to make some serious changes sooner rather than later. But for now sir, as you've pointed out, we have other pressing matters to focus on. We're all right."
Fury nods slowly, then extends his hand to Coulson. "In that case, I'll be on my way." He heads toward the hangar door, but then pauses. "You know, Phil… I have never questioned appointing you as my successor." He pauses for somewhat of a dramatic effect, then, "and I still don't. Keep up the good work."
Knowing that this is high praise indeed, Coulson smiles and nods. "For as long as I am able, sir."
…
Four days later, Natasha is still hanging around the base, because, as she puts it, "well, we're basically grounded by the Sokovia Accords until the U.N. says otherwise". But she's not fooling anyone. She has taken a great liking to Skye, and with the lack of another mission to focus on, she is happy to entertain the youngster and aid the SHIELD team with their research on Ward's whereabouts and plans.
By this time too, thanks to her great many 'driving instructors', Skye has mastered the basics of driving her little Lola. She still must seek permission before using it (mostly so that other agents can be warned to be on the lookout) but all in all Stark's small technological wonder contains so many safety features that there haven't been any major mishaps. This is also no doubt due to the fact that Little Lola has had its ascension capabilities capped at zero, so that while Skye has pushed every button and fiddled with every dial in the car, she has still not yet discovered that it can fly. The child is rather bothered by the button in the center of the dash that doesn't seem to do anything, but whenever she asks about it an agent responds with a shrug, or with, "I don't know", or, "maybe it's just for decoration."
Skye has figured out other very cool features, however. She has learned how to raise and lower the roof. She knows which button engages the cloaking panels, rendering the car invisible so long as the windows are rolled up. She has also figured out how to play Radio Disney and KidzBop (because yes, the small car even has a working stereo that perfectly resembles that of Coulson's Lola.) It is rather amusing to the agents when Skye drives the car by in invisible mode, and they can just hear Disney tunes or Dove Cameron or Taylor Swift or some other unidentifiable kid's song crooning from apparent thin air.
Much to her dismay, the youngster has been given a list of rules rather like a contract pertaining to her 'play' with the car:
Rules For Driving Little Lola
You must get permission from a grown-up to drive.
Little Lola may not be taken into the hangar or up to the roof without adult supervision.
Little Lola is not to be driven in the lab, ever.
Little Lola is not to be driven in Daddy's office, ever.
The remote control is for grown-up use only. Skye may not touch it.
Lola's radio cannot be played too loudly inside the base.
NO exceptions!
Underneath these rules is the following statement:
'Should any of these rules be broken, Little Lola will be put in time-out and Skye will be in big trouble.'
The little girl was initially made to read this page out loud, then sign her name at the bottom. Then, upon May's insistence, Skye must read this page aloud every time she gets permission to drive her car. Thus, the rules are clearly understood, and so far so good.
Until that fateful Saturday…
…
Melinda glances up from a tablet as Skye comes skidding into Coulson's office, slightly out of breath.
"Mommy, can you come wif me to drive on the roof?"
May turns her gaze to Coulson, who is leaning over a list of Grant Ward's old safe boxes, Natasha studying a map by his side. They had come across a shot of someone that resembles an associate of Ward's via a surveillance camera from a downtown café, though the image is painfully blurry. Coulson meets her gaze and sighs. "This is kind of pressing," he points out quietly, hating to disappoint his little girl.
May nods in agreement. "Not right now bǎo bèi. Maybe Fitz or Hunter can take you."
Skye sighs, but still has several agents to ask. "Okay," she states dejectedly, then heads down the stairs from her father's office. She hears voices and jogs over to the training room. Careful not to put a toe over the threshold she peeks in and sees Bobbi and Mack sparring. With a whine, the child calls out, "almost done?"
The two agents pause their sparring match to look over. Bobbi raises her eyebrows at the little girl, displeased by the ill-advised interruption. Mack however smiles her way before checking his watch. "We've got about 20 minutes left, princess. But hey… after I grab a shower we'll play that new game on the Wii, okay?" he promises, ever the big softie with the cute youngster.
Skye sighs again… she loves to play the Wii with Mack, and they had just gotten a new game having to do with rescuing and caring for pets. She's been looking forward to playing it, but like any typical youngster, she has a bit of a one-track mind. She really wants to go drive her car up in the sunshine and fresh air.
After scuffing her toe for a minute, she nods with a dejected, "kay", and heads off again.
She wanders down the hall until she comes to the kitchen/dining room. There she finds Fitz and Hunter kneeling down against the far left wall and she knows immediately what they are up to. Having installed secret safe rooms in the base in both the rec room and May's bedroom, they are now building a third here in the dining room.
Skye stands in the doorway and watches the two men carefully measure out the parameters for the hidden door. When Hunter turns to grab the power drill, he spots her and grins. "Hey cutie. You just gonna stand there, or are you going to come help?" he offers, holding up a pair of safety goggles.
The little girl makes a face and shakes her head. "Maybe later," she calls back, then hurries from the room before she gets stuck 'working'. Both Fitz and Hunter chuckle at this.
Well, this leaves only Jemma. Skye checks the biochemist's room as she passes it, but Jemma isn't there. The next most logical choice is the lab of course, so the youngster heads there next.
Skye peeks into the lab and scans Jemma's workspace, but doesn't see the young woman. Frowning deeply now she calls out to another doctor she's grown fond of. "Hi, Marcy."
The kindly Hispanic woman turns and smiles at Skye. She's been fond of the youngster since she was recruited to the lab and introduced to her about a month ago. She had found it cute and endearing that the little girl was unable to pronounce her name, Maricela, correctly. After several attempts that included, 'Maria', 'Mari-ella', 'Marcy-la', she had simply encouraged Skye to call her 'Marcy'.
"Hello there, mija. What are you up to, wandering around by yourself?"
"I wanna drive my Lola… but no one can take me up to the roof. Can you come wif me?" the youngster asks hopefully.
Maricela shakes her head sadly. "Oh, I'm sorry mijita, I can't. I'm training some new assistants today." The kind scientist looks genuinely remorseful. She seeks a way to cheer the child up. "You remember your numbers? Have you been practicing?"
Skye grins and nods proudly. "Uno, dos, tres…"
Marcy beams as Skye counts up to ten in Spanish, and applauds when she's done. "You see that, mija… so clever, and learning different languages. This is why you are our junior agent." Marcy walks over to the doorway to give Skye a hug, which the youngster happily returns.
"Marcy, I can't find Jemma. Where is her?"
"Where is *she*, mija. Let's see… I haven't seen her for a bit. I'm not sure. Maybe check Command?"
"Okay. Bye. I mean, adios!"
Marcy chuckles. "Adios!"
Feeling proud at the praise, but a bit despondent that no one is available to play with her, Skye wanders over to Command. A few level six agents whose names Skye doesn't know are standing at the holotable, watching a news report on the Sokovia Accords.
One of the men, who is apparently brand new, blinks when he spots Skye in the doorway. "What the…" he nudges the man next to him and nods toward the youngster. "Jefferson, there's a kid here."
Agent Jefferson looks up and smirks. "Oh yeah, she lives here. An orphan that the Director and Agent May took in." At the other man's look of surprise, he adds, "I know, right? The Cavalry… is a mom. So surreal."
While Skye doesn't quite understand what he's talking about, her eyebrows furrow. 'I don't like his tone,' she thinks, sounding remarkably like May, even in her own head. Focusing on her mission though, she ignores it and asks, "where's Jemma?"
"Who?"
"Jemma. My big sister." Skye sighs, as if the man is being dense. "The British doctor-scientist lady!"
Jefferson thinks for a moment, then says, "oh, Simmons. I think she's out in the hangar, kid, taking inventory of a new delivery of medical… stuff."
Again Skye doesn't quite get what he means, but she does understand that Jemma is currently off-limits, as Skye is not allowed in the hangar. She growls and stomps in frustration before turning on her heel and stalking off. As she does so, she hears the new guy snicker and say, "wow, she's got the Cavalry's temper, doesn't she?"
Still puzzling over this, Skye scowls and mutters to herself. "No one will play wif me… not allowed in the training room… not allowed in the lab or the hangar or on the roof by myself…"
As Skye wanders around lost in thought she comes upon a corridor that she rarely has reason to walk down. Deciding to explore a bit, she pushes open the first unmarked door she comes across, discovering a closet full of cleaning supplies. She sighs with disappointment and moves on.
After poking her head into a few more unexciting rooms, including a dusty old workshop and two currently empty conference rooms, Skye turns down another corridor and spots a door that says Vault D. Pausing for just a moment to glance up and down the empty corridor, she pushes open the door.
Right away, Skye doesn't like this room. It's dark and enclosed, with no windows. A staircase to her right leads down to a lower level, and she can just see a simple bed in the far corner. A chill runs up the little girl's back, though she doesn't know why. Just as she decides to leave a motion-sensor light flickers on, and Skye sees something that catches her eye. Placed on a chair on the lower level is a remote control that looks awfully familiar.
Taking a deep, shaky breath Skye summons all her courage and begins down the stairs. She tip-toes over to the chair and picks up the remote… yes! This is it! Beaming radiantly, Skye slides the remote up under her sparkly 'Rock Star' shirt and quickly runs back out of the room.
Apparently deciding that finding the remote was a sign, the little girl doesn't hesitate to head straight for her car. She knows that the car's controls are locked when she is not driving it with permission, so she pushes the master button on the remote to unlock them. Little does the child know that pressing that button unlocks *all* optional safety features…
Unfortunately for all the agents, Skye has now become remarkably skilled at being 'sneaky'. Growing up in an orphanage and foster homes had provided some experience in stealth. Being raised now by secret agents like May and Bobbi Morse, and even play-learning from Romanov, the world's greatest superspy, has improved the child's skill beyond belief.
Thus, Skye makes it from the vault to a small workshop where Little Lola is stored without attracting any attention. That done, she climbs in and engages the cloaking panels with a mischievous giggle. At this point it's a piece of cake to get the little car into the nearby elevator and ride on up to the roof….
…
Meanwhile…
"All right… looks like I've got it all. Thank you."
Jemma Simmons smiles gratefully at an assistant as she closes her notebook. She stretches as she gazes around the enormous hangar. She doesn't spend much time out here, and it really is impressive… the sheer expansive size is mind-boggling.
As Simmons turns to leave she spots a red and white travel bag and a light green backpack next to a file box. She racks her brain momentarily before she remembers what they are. Her heart gives a light twinge, and she heads over to them slowly.
Months ago, shortly after Skye was de-aged, the team packed up adult Skye's belongings and brought them out here. It was deemed prudent to keep them somewhere that the little girl wouldn't go looking. Jemma sits herself on the ground and opens the travel bag first.
She feels a heaviness in her chest as she sees 25 year-old Skye's old clothes. There were several training outfits, some jeans and plain black tops, a cute red dress… she actually chuckles when she comes across the black, leather jacket that Skye had once purchased in order to impersonate May on a mission.(01x11)
Shaking her head in amusement, she zips up the bag. Jemma doesn't bother looking into the file box; she knows what it contains. It is full of the information on Skye's first childhood that Coulson and May managed to gather from the orphanage. This includes school records and childhood drawings, along with some personal journals.
Simmons finally opens the backpack. This contains other personal items that had belonged to adult Skye… some toiletries, a few framed photos… Simmons chokes up a bit when she finds one of Skye and herself, each with an arm around the other and smiling brightly. She briefly considers taking the photo for herself, but she knows it would be difficult to explain to little Skye who her adult counterpart is, were she to see it.
The next item she comes across however, she does take, planning to give it to little Skye. It is a small hula dancer toy, which rocks side to side as if dancing. This had been one of very few possessions that the adult Skye had initially brought with her onto the plane (01x02), so it must have meant something to her. Jemma can't see any harm in passing it along to the youngster.
Finally, Jemma spots something that she hasn't examined previously. There, in the bottom of the backpack, is what looks like a diary. Simmons bites her lip and stares at the cover for several long moments, considering. She certainly doesn't want to invade Skye's privacy… but technically, the Skye who wrote in this journal no longer exists. Would it really do any harm to take a peek? Perhaps it would even help honor that Skye's memory, to get to know her even better.
Jemma bites her lip and quickly opens the diary before she can talk herself out of it. According to the date on the first page, Skye began writing in this journal on the day she joined the SHIELD team. She turns to a random page near the front, and reads a bit about Skye's first impressions of the team.
"I'm getting to know Fitz, Simmons and Coulson a bit better. Ward is okay… though he's such a robot, and he's pushing me really hard. I'm so sore from our workouts; I didn't even know some of these muscles existed. Agent May remains as mysterious but badass as ever. It blows my mind since they work for such a shady organization, but they seem like genuinely good people. Fitz-Simmons are like, crazy smart… I don't understand half of what they talk about. But they've been so friendly and welcoming…"
Jemma pauses there, smiling. She then skips a section and lands on a page discussing Skye's crush on Ward. Disgusted at the thought of Grant Ward, she skips further into the book. She comes across the same problem when she lands on a page with shaky writing, detailing Ward's betrayal of the team.
"I can't believe this happened. He was my S.O., how did I not see that something was wrong about him? Never mind me, how did Coulson and May not realize? This guy who has been training me for months, whom I admired and trusted and even had feelings for… he murdered Koenig. This is probably the worst I've ever felt…"
Swallowing hard, Jemma skips a larger section. The next page she comes to she has a bookmark in it… a bronze Chinese pendant on a red string. The pendant seems to be three circular 'coins' connected in a triangle shape. Moving it aside, Jemma sees the name Jiaying written, and she gasps quietly. Skye had been so mysterious in regards to her time in Afterlife… maybe some insight can now finally be gained.
Jemma reads quickly, about Skye meeting Gordon and Lincoln, and beginning training with Jiaying. She smiles softly when she detects excitement and pride in Skye's writings as she made progress in controlling her powers.
A few pages later, Jemma's eyes go wide. She closes them and thinks hard for a moment, then gasps as she confirms something from memory. Quickly zipping up the backpack and putting it back in its place, she runs out of the hangar and straight for Coulson's office. As she passes the dining room and the gym, she pauses and calls out to the agents inside, "I have news! You may want to hear this…"
Meanwhile…
Up on the roof, a happy, seemingly carefree little girl is zooming around in a sparkly blue car. Without any caps on speed she has now sped up to the maximum 25 mph, and without the automatic collision prevention she may have driven straight into the 3-foot wall along the rim of the roof more than once. Fortunately, the collision prevention is not an optional safety feature and still works perfectly, bringing the small car to a quick but smooth stop when she gets too close.
After about ten minutes of driving, Skye pushes the mysterious button on the dash out of curious habit. For the first time, the car reacts. The wheels turn sideways, thrusters engage, and little Lola rises three feet off the ground. At the same time, the steering wheel extends a few more inches toward Skye.
The little girl gasps with elated disbelief. She pokes her head through the window and stares down at the roof, her heart starting to race with excitement. Having never seen even Coulson's Lola fly, this ability comes as a total surprise to her.
Soon, Skye is ready to experiment. She soon discovers that pushing up with the steering wheel causes little Lola to gain altitude, while pulling down makes it descend. Within minutes, the six year-old is having the thrill of her life, enjoying Iron Man's incredible gift to its full extent at last…
…
Jemma bursts into Coulson's office, rather out of breath. Despite her alarm, May stifles a grin at this reminder of Skye's entrance about half an hour previously. Many agents start speaking at once.
"Simmons?" Coulson stands and stares at her.
"What's going on?" Fitz asks, entering the office quickly, followed by Hunter, Bobbi and Mack.
"Is something wrong?" Bobbi asks, with a look of concern at her ward.
"What's the meaning of this?" adds May.
Panting for breath, Jemma holds up Skye's diary. "Found this… birthday! Makes sense now…" she stammers in her excitement.
Several of the agents blink at each other.
"Um… what?" Mack asks, amused.
Fitz comes forward and guides Jemma into a chair. "Er, Jemma… slow down. *You're* not making sense," he states, noting the irony that is him speaking clearly and informing another that they're talking nonsense.
"S-sorry," Simmons chuckles sheepishly and gathers both her breath and her thoughts. She sighs, then explains. "I was in the hangar, taking inventory. I came across Skye's old things… her grown-up things… ugh… grown-up Skye's old things." She pauses and shakes her head, willing her words to catch up with her thoughts. "And, and I came across this. It's a journal… a diary."
Everyone looks at the book Simmons is holding up.
"You read Skye's diary." May asks in a deadpan voice… one that neither asks for confirmation nor sounds impressed.
"Oh… well," Simmons begins, clearly a bit uncomfortable at the veiled accusation. "I… I poked through it. I figured that since technically that Skye is gone now, forever, that it wasn't exactly an invasion of privacy, at this point?"
Everyone glances around at each other, with varying degrees of uncertainty. May just sighs however and continues to stare at Jemma.
Finally, Coulson reveals his impatience. "Did you find out something important?" he prompts. "Something relevant to little Skye now?"
Simmons nods quickly, gratitude crossing her features. "Yes, sir! Yes. Please, listen…"
Jemma opens the diary to a page now saved with the Chinese pendant bookmark, and begins to read excitedly…
The last few days have been some of the hardest I can ever remember. Two days ago, AC was taken by Centipede, who we thought wanted Mike Peterson. We were able to save Mike's son, but Mike was killed in the process. It was so awful… and because Coulson was taken, we still haven't even been able to inform Mike's family. We do know that his son, Ace, is safe with his aunt now. But as far as they know, Mike is missing. I wish I could still believe that too, but I saw the blast. No one could have survived that. (1x10)
Since then: Ward was shot, we tried desperately to track down Coulson, I was kicked off the plane by Agent Hand, (thanks largely to May, which sucked, though I get why she did it now), had to figure out a way to trace Centipede's financials without access to technology (UGH!), purposely plowed a stolen car into a water barrier, went undercover as May (okay, that was kind of fun!), then rejoined the team to help rescue Coulson from a nightmare machine in the creepiest little 'town' I've ever seen. Ever. (1x10, 1x11)
Jemma pauses. "Um… well, then Skye wrote a few choice words to express her feelings, so… anyway…" Her fair skin turning slightly pink, Simmons moves on.
Seeing Coulson strapped down to that table. Hearing him begging to die. (1x11) I actually decked Raina. I've never felt that way before. I was relieved to find him alive, but at the same time I've never been so scared, so angry, so hurt in my life. When I found him and tried to get through to him… I had the sudden crazy urge to call him 'Dad'. I've never called anyone that before. But I also don't think I have ever cared about anyone like I care about Coulson. He has changed my life, given me a home and a family. I finally feel like I belong somewhere in the world, all thanks to him.
Simmons pauses briefly again to glance up at Phil. Everyone else does as well. The Director masks his discomfort well, turning and walking to the window so that his team can't see the emotion cross his face.
God, why couldn't AC have found me as a kid? I always wished for nothing more than to have a chance at a family like this. A family with siblings like Ward, Jemma and Fitz, heck even a super strict mom-type, like May, would have been amazing. Why couldn't he have taken me on 20 years ago?
One of my earliest memories is from when I was about 4… or 5 I guess… being brought back to the orphanage from my 3rd foster home. I was so miserable. I wish I could just go back in time to when that happened, and start over. I would have a few lousy memories to help me better appreciate Coulson and the team, but be young enough to get to grow up in a loving family, one that would keep me, teach me and protect me… one that is willing to die for each other.
Jemma pauses again here and looks up. A pensive silence fills the room as everyone processes what they've just heard.
"4… or 5 years-old…" Fitz mutters, looking intently at Jemma.
As Simmons nods, Coulson quietly says, "so, her wish… was to go back to a time that she could remember some of her troubled past, but get a second chance to grow up in a family. To grow up safe and loved."
To a certain extent, everyone already knew of Skye's wish… but to read of it in Skye's own writing was quite illuminating.
After nodding slowly, several of the team look back expectantly at Simmons.
Hiding her emotions as only she can do, May asks clearly, "so, is that all? I thought you said something about a birthday?"
Jemma nods eagerly. "Yes! That part is next." She turns to the end of the journal now, to a page she has marked with a finger…
Today has been so surreal. I learned that my mother isn't dead as I've been told… she's the leader of these Inhumans in Afterlife… the woman who's been training me. The moment I met her, I felt some weird connection that I couldn't explain. I think that somehow, deep down, I knew. I. have. A. mother. One who apparently always wanted me after all, and never stopped looking for me. It is such a dream come true!
Jiaying talked me into having dinner with Cal tonight. At first, it was crazy awkward… I didn't want to. I didn't want to be on the same continent with him, let alone sitting at a table sharing a meal. But he gave me a bouquet of daisies and told me about my birth.
It turns out… I'm 26. Frigging 26! It's not everyday that you meet your mother and find out that you're not the age you believed you were your whole life. Stupid nuns were apparently way off when I arrived at St. Agnes. I was born in '88, not '89, and I am 26.
I have a birthday… well, I mean, of course I have a birthday, but I finally know what it is! My parents… (again, so surreal, right?) informed me today that I was born on July 2nd, 1988."
Jemma closes the book with a snap and looks around excitedly.
"So… we now know Skye's birthday," Coulson states, with the hint of a smile.
After a quiet moment, Natasha asks, "no one knew? Not even Skye?"
May shakes her head.
"Skye was left at the orphanage as an infant," Coulson explains. "The agent who took her there for her safety had no way of knowing, and was killed not long after."
Jemma suddenly sighs and waves her hand impatiently. "Anyway… you're all missing much of the point! July 2nd. Think about that date for a moment."
Several people ponder this and Fitz screws up his face in thought. The rest all look puzzled until he straightens up excitedly. "July 2nd! Th-that was the day we went down into the tunnels, for the 0-8-4! It's the day that Skye was de-aged last year!"
Bobbi and Mack both gasp. Coulson wears a look of utter disbelief.
"Wait. So you're saying… that the day that we celebrated Skye's 6th birthday… was *actually* her birthday?"
"Yes!" Simmons responds eagerly.
Everyone looks astonished by this for a long moment. Then…
"Okay, wow. So… was it actually her 6th birthday?" Hunter asks.
Jemma looks pensive for a moment. "Well… if Skye truly got her wish as she wrote it in her diary, then I suppose that it must have been her 5th birthday. That would much better explain her physicality as well. Even for a five year-old, she's on the small side in terms of height and weight, and still shows no signs of her six year molars."
"Huh," Bobbi exclaims quietly, in an amused tone. When everyone turns to look at her, she states, "think of how excited Skye will be when she hears that she gets to be six again, for a whole additional year."
Several agents chuckle at this…
May suddenly looks up in alarm. "Wait. If we're all here… where is Skye?!"
An immediate tension fills the room as everyone looks around at one another in bewilderment…
…
The team quickly splits up to search the base. Skye's name is called throughout and every person passed is questioned regarding the child's whereabouts.
Romanov is asked to pour though the base's security footage, as she is the least familiar with the base. She quickly cycles through the footage of every camera and grows increasingly frustrated as Skye is nowhere to be seen. Finally however, she notices something strange. Footage from 30 minutes previous of an elevator opening and closing, seemingly on its own.
Tasha is not sure how this can have anything to do with Skye, and so decides to check it out before interrupting the team's search. Taking a tablet with her, Romanov programs the elevator to take her to the last floor it was ridden to. When it arrives on the roof, she takes a step outside and squints at the bright sunlight.
An incredibly strange sight meets her eyes. Zooming around in midair is a laughing Skye… but only some of her head and upper body at a time.
Completely befuddled by what she is seeing, Tasha shakes her head as the fraction of Skye suddenly turns and heads the opposite direction for the third time. She finally has the wherewithal to speak into the comm that has been lent to her. "Uh… guys? On the roof. I… think?"
Romanov continues to stare in confusion as Bobbi and Hunter, who were searching closest to the roof, arrive panting a minute later. They both sigh in relief when they too spot the strange sight.
As Lance steps over to explain lil Lola's cloaking capabilities to Romanov, Bobbi calls up to Skye. "Skye! You need to come down here right now!"
The youngster doesn't hear however, as her Kidsbop station is playing in the little car, and she is happily singing along as she flies.
One more minute later May has made it to the roof. A look of shock crosses her features, but she quickly reigns that in and grits her teeth in angry disbelief. "Skye. Daisy. Mayson!" she shouts.
This time, little Skye does hear and peers down from the open window of her small car with a gasp.
"You come down here this instant, young lady!"
Skye bites her lip and considers complying, but decides that her adoptive mom looks a bit too mad for her liking. "N-no!" she shouts back defiantly, zooming to the other side of the roof.
The rest of the team has made it to the roof now, and watches as May hurries after the path of the car. "Skye!" she scolds. "How did you even… ?!" Growling in frustration she turns to the others. "Someone go get the remote control!"
Mack quickly heads for the door, but when May looks up again, Skye is waving the remote in her hand.
"Damn it!" the agent-mother mutters under her breath.
"You hid this from me!" Skye accuses, looking cross. "You were sneaky, Mommy! And you fibbed about the red button! That's not nice."
Melinda's eyes narrow and she slowly, silently begins counting to 20.
Phil takes this chance to try to diffuse the situation a bit. "Skye?" he calls up to his wayward daughter. "You are already in big trouble, sweetie. If you don't do as we say right now, you'll be in even bigger trouble, and no one wants that," he points out honestly. "Come on down now."
Skye gulps, almost convinced, but the still angry look on May's face leads her to continue her rebellion. "No!"
With that, the little girl grabs the wheel and pushes it firmly up. In her haste however, the sudden lurch upward causes the remote control to fall from her hand.
Bobbi, being the tallest present with Mack still hovering near the door, catches it first and quickly passes it to May. Melinda's heart skips a beat as she hears a shriek from Skye, who is still rapidly ascending, seemingly out of control. She quickly uses the remote to stop Skye's climb, and guides the car back down safely onto the roof.
Skye again tries to escape her mother's wrath by quickly rolling the cars windows up. This does not help however, as the remote control overrides all commands. Soon enough the cloaking panels have been disengaged, the car has been locked in place, and an upset mother has extricated the child from the sparkly blue car.
"Skye Daisy Mayson, you are in so much trouble!" May scolds, immediately carrying the squirming youngster over to the bench and tugging her over her knees. She starts applying firm swats to her naughty daughter's backside as she lectures.
"You do NOT" swat! "take Lola out" swat! "by yourself" swat! "You also do not" swat! "drive your Lola" swat! "without permission!" swat "You know better!" swat! swat!
Skye yelps and squirms, really feeling these spanks even through her cotton pants. "Owww… okay Mommy, okay!"
May doesn't miss a beat however as she continues chastising her wayward child. "And…" swat! "when I tell you" swat! "to do something" swat! "you do it!" swat!
The littlest member of the agent family begins to cry, truly regretting her decisions for the first time. Her tiny hand flies back to protect her backside, but her determined mother simply pins it to her lower back and goes on.
"If I tell you" swat! "to land the car" swat! "you do it." Swat! "If I tell you" swat! "to give me the remote," swat! "you obey me," swat! "immediately!" Swat!
"Owww," Skye whines pitifully, squirming under the onslaught. "Okayyyy, Mommy! Stop it!"
"You don't tell me to stop, little one," May adds to her scolding with another firm spank. "I am the mommy. I am in charge, not you." Swat!
The little girl finally lets out a wail and ceases struggling, worn out. May can hear that Skye is now crying real tears and it breaks her heart. She swallows hard and curses mentally at the fact that she has to discipline her beloved child.
"Damn it, Skye," May mutters. "Do you have any idea what could have happened to you?" she asks, her voice cracking, giving away her emotions. "Didn't know where you were… flying a car by yourself. You could have been hurt or… or worse and… I don't know what I would do." As the truth in this hits her like a load of bricks, May shifts Skye further across her knee and lands three final, hard spanks on the little girl's sit spots.
Skye cries out again and begins to sob helplessly, continuing even as May stands her upright and scoops her into her arms. The agent mother squeezes her woeful daughter tight as a few tears sting her own eyes. She quickly blinks them away before anyone else can see, then whispers, "don't you ever disobey me… or scare me, like that again, bǎo bèi."
Skye's only response is a miserable sob as she clings to her mother for dear life.
Caught up in the strangely contagious emotions of the punished little girl, the rest of the agents file back to the elevator with glum faces. All except Coulson. He can just hear Hunter filling Natasha in on Skye's list of rules regarding driving Lola (and how many of them the child had just broken) as he slowly approaches the mother and daughter as they cling to each other.
Skye lifts her tear-streaked face at the sound of his approach and reaches out to him. Coulson spots the tears in May's eyes as well as he accepts the youngster into his arms, and realizes just how scared the normally fearless agent must have been.
"Hey, baby girl," he coos to her, rubbing her back as she cries into his shoulder. "You made some pretty bad decisions today, huh?"
May sighs and scoots away slightly on the bench. Coulson glances over at her and, though she isn't looking at him, he briefly thinks he recognizes something… maybe resentment? in her features. He catches her eye and waves her over, but the stoic mother just shakes her head. Coulson knows that they will have to have a chat later, whether it kills them both.
He turns his attention back to his daughter. "Skye… you know the rules about driving your Lola. Why did you break them? Why did you come up here, by yourself, without permission?"
Skye sniffles hard and rubs her tears away on Phil's jacket before moving a few inches back to respond. "Be… because no one would come wif me," she whines. "I asked everybody!"
May can't help herself. "So you think that means that you can break all the rules?" she asks, with a hint of anger. "That you can do something so dangerous, without a grown-up?" For about the 47th time, Melinda mentally curses Tony Stark and his ridiculously high-tech gift.
Coulson however maintains his patience and tries to remember what it was like to be so young. Not even six years-old, as they have thought for so long, but only five. "You know what, sweetie. It's the weekend, so we don't have a set schedule of who you're supposed to be with. And we were all so busy, that we all thought you'd be able to play with someone else. We all want to spend time with you, Skye… but sometimes we have to take care of business, too. At those times we'd like to be able to trust you to do something that won't get you in trouble. But, maybe we can't yet. We didn't make sure that someone was watching over you… and that is our fault. I am sorry for that, Skye."
May finally glances over again, her expression somewhat softened. In all her anger and frustration and fear, she had rather forgotten too just how young her daughter is, and how unreasonable it is to expect good judgment at all times. She sighs and slowly approaches the bench, taking a seat next to her little family.
Phil gives May a smile, then plants a kiss on his daughter's head. "What are some things you could have done by yourself, that wouldn't have gotten you in trouble?" he asks.
Skye's crying subsides, calmed a bit by her father's gentle tone. She starts absently fiddling with a button on his shirt as she thinks. Finally though she just shrugs.
May takes a deep breath to further calm herself, then suggests matter-of-factly, "You could have sat at the dining room table and colored. You could have played on your computer. You could have read some of your books. You could have asked someone to put on a video for you. You could have played with Trip or with your Heroes of New York toys, or done a puzzle. Right?"
Skye hiccoughs, then slowly nods. "Uh-huh. But…"
"But you just really wanted to drive your Lola. I know, bǎo bèi. But you need to learn, that we can't always have what we want, right when we want it. Even grown-ups."
At this, Skye looks up, surprised. "E-even you, Mommy?"
'Especially me', May thinks momentarily, but pushes it aside. "Even me. I don't always want to work hard, and have to go after bad guys, and fight people and get hurt. I don't always want to fill out tons of paperwork or do lots of research. Sometimes I wish that we could just go away, you and me and Daddy… and maybe some of the others…" she admits, "that we could have a vacation, relax, play games, take walks, maybe go for a swim. Just spend some time with you. That's what I want to do sometimes, bǎo bèi."
Coulson stares at the woman co-parenting with him, a bit stunned. He can't remember the last time May spoke of wanting a break or a quiet life… or even spoken this much period.
"But I have important responsibilities. I can't do whatever I want, whenever I want. Your responsibility right now is your schoolwork, your chores and anything we tell you to do. You're lucky that once those things are done, you have lots of free time to play. But… if you start abusing the privilege of your free time and breaking rules, you may find yourself with much less," the agent mom warns quietly.
Coulson nods slowly, though he isn't sure he agrees with this. He knows that the energetic youngster needs plenty of time to run around and play… that's how kids learn, after all. He chooses not to contradict May's authority at this moment though… they can chat about it later.
However… the dad knows that he needs to step up. "So, Skye. This shouldn't come as a surprise to you, but since you drove without permission, lil Lola is going in time-out."
As May blinks in surprise, the sniffly little girl gasps, and immediately starts to whine. "What? No, Daddy, noooo! I already got a spankin'… a big one! That's not fair!"
"That 'big' spanking was for disobeying me, young lady," May explains, pulling her phone out of her back pocket. She pulls up the driving 'contract' that Skye had signed and read aloud so many times. "Read this to us."
With new miserable tears running down her cheeks, the five year-old slowly begins to read. As she does, both Coulson and May have the revelation that while they had been previously concerned about Skye's reading skills, the youngster is actually rather advanced for her actual age.
Once Skye has read through the rules, Coulson pats her on the back. "Very good reading, sweetie."
May then points to the line underneath the rules. "Now… what does this say, Skye? I know you know."
With a renewed sob, Skye manages to squeak out the warning:
'Should any of these rules be broken, Little Lola will be put in time-out and Skye will be in big trouble.'
Both parents nod.
"Well, you got in big trouble," May points out, tapping the little girl's leg. "And Lola is going in time-out."
With another long, pronounced whine, Skye's tiny shoulders slump and she mutters, "for how long?"
May and Coulson share a look. Phil then nods to May to let her know that he will defer to her decision on this one.
May nods subtly and thinks hard. One week? Two? The child had royally screwed up, and been willfully defiant. But she had also received a spanking, and is so, so young.
Unable to decide on a specific length of time, she finally responds. "Well… until you earn back our trust, little one."
Skye's face scrunches up. "But… how can I do that?"
Coulson's phone chimes suddenly. He struggles for a moment to get it out of his jacket pocket, which Skye's leg is resting on. May scoops up the youngster and sets her gently in her own lap, wrapping her arms around the small, warm bundle. "Well… you can do that by doing what you're told… by helping out around the base… and you're also going to write me some lines, about following our driving rules. Besides that, just by being the little angel that we know you *can* be. How does that sound?"
Skye ponders this for a moment, then slumps back against May with a frown. "Like lotsa work," she admits.
May can't help it… she lets out a chuckle. "It does, huh?" She shakes her head, grinning, as she hugs her daughter close to her heart. Her long black hair falls in front of Skye's face and the little girl bats at it like a kitten. The warrior mom's heart seems to expand painfully in her chest as she chuckles and tickles the little girl.
"Coulson?" she says quietly. With a small smile and a shake of his head, he non-verbally lets her know that the alert isn't urgent.
"Good. Because I need to spend some quality time with my daughter," she announces, standing with Skye in her arms and heading straight for the elevator. "I'm thinking… a snack, a workout in the training room, then an outing to the grocery store, then she'll help me cook dinner. Sound good, bǎo bèi?"
As Skye nods, Phil blinks. "You're going to cook?" he asks incredulously, and a little nervously. Then he grasps the entirety of what she's saying. "Hey," the Director whines. "But what about…"
His complaint tapers off as mother and daughter disappear behind the elevator doors, each waving at him cheekily.
Once alone on the roof Coulson actually pouts and mutters, "…me. I wanna come too…"…
…
Later that night, after everyone has survived May and Skye's stir-fry chicken dinner and a dessert of lemon bars made by Fitz and Jemma, the whole team gathers for a movie night in the rec room. By the end of 'Maleficent', Skye's favorite movie that doesn't involve singing, the youngster has just fallen asleep. When May goes to pick up the child, Coulson steps in and offers to carry her.
The parents settle Skye down in her and May's bed and gaze lovingly at her for several moments. Coulson then moves to sit in the rocking chair, while May gently rubs the little girl's back.
Finally… "You put Lola in time-out. While Skye was already sad. I was impressed."
Remembering May's look of resentment when he swooped in to comfort the chastised child, Coulson sighs heavily. He knows that May often has to be 'the bad guy' when it comes to Skye. It is most often up to her to set the rules and boundaries, and to punish the youngster when she misbehaves.
He nods. "Well… I suppose I can't always be the one to offer up only hugs and comfort. Can't completely leave you with the crappier parts of being a parent."
May nods slightly. "I'm glad you finalize realize that. But, it's too late. She knows she has you wrapped around her little finger. She's such a Daddy's girl."
Coulson blinks. "What are you talking about, Mel? She worships you."
A smirk plays across May's lips. "Phil… she's been a 'Daddy's girl' since long before she touched the Asgardian artifact."
Coulson can't help but smile warmly at this. He certainly knows he can't argue it. He leans forward and rests his elbows on his knees with a sigh. Both high-level agents watch as the tiny girl squirms slightly and her thumb makes her way into her mouth while the other arm squeezes Trip closer.
"What are we going to do with this sneaky, sneaky little agent?"
…
To be cont.
Readers: I hope you enjoyed this latest installation of little Skye's adventures! The grand finale will be posted soon, to make up for the ridiculously long wait I've put you through. I apologize again for the very delays, and sincerely appreciate everyone who has stuck with me this long. Stay tuned!
Also: to those who have reviewed the story... I'm very sorry that I haven't responded to messages! I'm used to another site where reviews are posted right at the end of the story, easily accessible. It didn't dawn on me that here, reviews are sent as private messages. I still find it odd... but will try to get to responding soon! All messages detailing what you enjoy/appreciate about my work is greatly appreciated, and encourages me to keep writing. :)