Chapter 15: Skye's Aren't Always Blue
Notes- Fifteen chapters! Wow, that's kinda crazy considering this all started as a dream I had that ran away. I just wanted to say thank you to all my reviewers and followers. Your comments always make me smile and leave me happy all day.
I'm introducing a new character at the end of this chapter and I'm really excited to see what your responses will be. I kinda struggled with this chapter for some reason but here it is. A big thank you to EmmaJMcGhee for your patience and all your help getting this story this far, it's much appreciated :)
Grant's POV- Whereabouts: "on route"
The sky outside the car reflected the mood of the Skye inside it. Miserable, gloomy and untameable.
"Grraant, e'm hungy." Skye whined, her voice hitching in the back seat. "Wanna go back to our castle now!" She demanded, tears making their way down her cheeks.
"I know baby, but we're going on an adventure first. We'll be at the gas station in a minute and I'll get you some dinner, okay?" He sighed.
"Wanna go back to our castle. I don't wanna go on venture." She sobbed.
"I know, baby." Skye was way past tired and beyond hungry by now. He'd have to be patient with her; she was only three and had been stuck in her car seat for hours on end. He took a deep breath and blew it out, pulling up at the gas station.
With the car filled, he unbuckled Skye from her car seat, who was still in her Iron Man footy PJ's from the day before. She wound her arms around his neck, buried her face between the two and continued to cry. He walked into the gas station looking for sandwiches; all they had was prepared salad and meat combos. No way is Skye going to be happy with that. He thought tiredly, running a hand through his hair in frustration.
He looked around desperately, hoping to see some kind of something with jam in it. He spotted a woman making a roll in a sandwich bar. "Excuse me. You don't make jam sandwiches by any chance?" He inquired a little desperately.
The young women looked up at him, her eyes settling on Skye sniffling and hiccupping into his chest. "We don't, but go get a jar off the shelf in isle three and I'll make her something."
He didn't need to be told twice. He headed to isle three and selected strawberry jam from the top shelf, bringing it back to the woman.
"One or two?" She asked, spreading jam over a slice of bread.
"Skye, baby, one or two sandwiches?" He asked, pushing hair back from her face and wiping the tears away.
Skye held up two fingers. "Two sammies, pwease." She answered, resting her head back down on his shoulder.
The women behind the bar handed the two sandwiches to him.
"How much do I owe you?" He inquired, pulling out his wallet.
"Don't worry about it, just pay for the petrol at the front counter." She told him, pointing to the counter.
"Are you sure?"
"Yeah, it's fine. I know what it's like to have a fussy eater. Does she only like jam? My little boy only likes honey." She explained, giving him a knowing smile.
"Red jams to be exact. I can't get her to eat anything else, so thank you." He told her earnestly. He headed to pay for the petrol and his own salad sandwich that he grabbed off the shelf. Heading for the car he placed Skye back in her car seat handing over her dinner.
"Tah." She said, taking a bite.
After Coulson's call, there trip had been one big rush. Both he and Skye were exhausted. They'd only had MacDonald's for breakfast, much to his disgust, and lunch wasn't much better with a meat pie each.
Skye had slept for a majority of the trip, but there was still a long way to go. Gramsy had moved to Australia before he joined S.H.I.E.L.D., which he was grateful for. She was far away from his horrible family and any danger that could occur due to his job. Now he needed a safe place, there was no safer place than his Gramsy's. Gramsy's house was by no means Fort Knox, but it was in an open area, isolated for miles around.
He was struggling to fight his fatigue, not wanting to stop at a motel and risk HYDRA finding them. After driving all night last night, he was exhausted. Skye needed to sleep in a bed not a car seat, and eat something other than junk and jam sandwiches made at gas stations.
Pulling into the next motel he found, he got out and unbuckled Skye, holding her on his hip. Walking into the reception building, he approached the gangly teenager behind the desk. "Could I get a room for the night?" He inquired.
The teen only glanced up at him, eyes flicking to Skye before returning to the computer screen. "Do you want a cot for the little one?"
"Nah, just a queen will be fine. She won't sleep by herself." He explained, rubbing the back of his neck. Shut up Grant! He doesn't need to know that. He internally cursed. The teenager wasn't paying much attention anyway, giving them nothing more than a shrug.
"Cash or card?" The kid asked, not really interested.
Heading into their room, Grant put Skye and their bags down at the end of the bed. She'd been awfully quiet since dinner. "Do you want a shower, baby? You've been in your Iron Man PJ's since yesterday." He asked, hoping to get some kind of verbal response out of her.
Skye looked lost sitting on the end of the bed, looking at her feet. She slid off the end of the bed, and walked quietly into the bathroom without a word. He didn't like it when she was quiet.
The only thing he got out of her was that she didn't have any clean pyjamas. He usually just washed and dried them straight away because they were her favourite, so he gave her a t-shirt of his to wear to bed, and she curled up with her Iron Man toy going straight to sleep.
He got into bed and rolled over, facing her so he could kiss her forehead. "Night, snuggle bubby." He murmured, letting exhaustion take him.
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He woke to whimpering, Skye thrashing around on the bed. Damn, she was doing so well with the nightmares. He thought, sitting up. Skye hadn't had a nightmare since the day they arrived at the beach house but in this unfamiliar situation, she probably didn't feel safe. "It's ok, baby. I'm here. You need to wake up now." He murmured, rubbing her arm to coax her back to consciousness.
"S'not safe." Skye sobbed.
She thrashed more violently, and jerked awake, scampering onto her hands and knees. He gathered her close, holding her tight to his chest just letting her sob. "It's ok, baby. I've got you, you're safe." He assured, running his fingers through her curls to calm her down.
"B-but he was here, cause we not safe here wike our castle." She baby babbled, through her tears. "S'not safe wike our castle." She repeated, hiccupping.
"Baby, it might not be our castle but if you're with me then you're safe." He said firmly, leaving no room for doubt. He couldn't have her questioning her safety; it seemed to bring the nightmares back. "You don't need to worry. That bad man's not going to get you. Skye, say it to me." He told her, he needed her to believe that.
Skye lifted her still watery eyes to meet his. "I'm safe wif you, d'at bad man's not gunna get me." She repeated back to him. "Even though we're not at our castle?" She questioned, brows furrowed.
"It doesn't matter where we are, I'll keep you safe." He comforted her, wiping her tears away and laying them both down with her nestled on his chest.
Skye snuggled to him putting her thumb in her mouth and was out like a light. Brushing her hair back, he whispered. "I'll always keep you safe." It took him a little longer than before, but with the knowledge that Skye was safe in his arms, he drifted off again.
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"Skye spies with her little eyes, somefing beginning wif 'R'." Skye sung from the backseat.
I'm pretty sure, it's 'I spy with my little eye' not 'Skye spy'. He thought, amused. "Road?"
"Nope." She giggled.
"How about radio?" He watches her mouth drop open, and couldn't hold back a laugh.
"How'd ya know?" She asked incredulously.
"Baby, you've been asking to put the radio on for the last three towns." He explained, shaking his head. He glanced back in the mirror to see Skye smile sheepishly.
"The radio's fun." She told him, arms crossed defiantly.
"Fine." He sighed. There's only so much 'Skye spy' I can play anyway. He turned on the radio. They'd be there in ten minutes anyway, he could survive that long. I hope. He thought as he turned onto the dirt road leading to Gramsy's house.
He wasn't looking forward to all the explaining he was going to have to do, but he was excited to see Gramsy again. It's been years and she was going to kick his ass for that. He did call but he couldn't do it often or regularly.
"Gramsy's got a tiny ocean." Skye stated from the back.
He was confused for a minute, and then realised Skye's was looking at the dam in the front paddock of Gramsy's property.
He'd told Skye this morning that their adventure was to go visit his Gramsy and she'd been really excited. He was happy, he wanted her to meet Gramsy; he just thought that it would be as an adult, not a three year old. "It's a dam, baby. A different kind of water but still one you've got to have me with you to be around." He explained.
"O'tay." She said distractedly as they pulled up.
The house was as he remembered it. Two stories, gardens blossoming with roses, and the swing chair on the veranda. Opening Skye's door, he noticed she seemed a bit quiet. "It's ok, baby. She's going to love you." He assured, lifting her into his arms, placing Iron Man in his back pocket for safe keeping.
"Really?" Skye questioned shyly, clenching her little fist into his shirt nervously as he shut her door.
"Really, baby." He insisted, kissing her messy curls.
"Grant Douglas Ward! You've got some explaining to do." He felt Skye stiffen and shrink into him. Gramsy stood arms crossed on the veranda looking stern, and then she smiled, opening her arms and walking down the stairs. He smiled as he walked towards her. Some things never change. No matter how much trouble he was in, he still had to give her a hug in greeting.
Hugging Gramsy with Skye still in his arms was a little awkward. "I know, believe me." He said, squeezing her then stepping back.
"Are you going to introduce us, Grant, or have you forgotten your manners after all this time away?" She inquired with a raised eye brow, looking pointedly at Skye.
"Oh, right, sorry Gramsy." He said distractedly, lifting Skye higher on his hip. "This, Gramsy is Skye. Skye, this is Gramsy. Say hello, baby." He encouraged, giving her a squeeze.
Skye looked at Gramsy curiously then suddenly she grabbed her, squeezing her tight in a hug. "Hi." She said in a small voice.
Gramsy looked up at him in surprise over Skye's shoulder. She was confused to say the least. "Skye, baby, you wanna let Gramsy go so we can explain a few things to her?" He said softly.
Gramsy's POV
Looking through the window as she watched a car pull up, she did a double take as she watched her grandson get out of the driver's seat. Watching him move around to the back seat and pull a little girl out, she continued to be surprised. She had hoped that he'd want a family, but she wasn't sure after everything that happened.
Her heart skipped a beat as she watched them walk up to her. Grant seemed relaxed for the first time in his life, and he was actually smiling his genuine smile. The way he looked at this little girl was something special, but she couldn't put her finger on it.
So when they were seated in the spacious living room, she couldn't hold her question any longer. "Is she yours?" She had a feeling she knew his answer.
"Not in that way." He told her. He was always a cryptic little bugger.
Grant's POV
He couldn't help but smile at Gramsy's question. He really should have expected it; his grandmother's been wanting great-grandchildren for a long time, but it still caught him off guard. He'd answered with the truth. It would be strange if he loved her this way and she was biologically related, but Skye was his in other ways. He felt his answer was appropriate.
Gramsy raised an eye brow. "I think you better start at the beginning, Grant Douglas." She told him sternly.
He explained as much as he could about S.H.I.E.L.D, about the team, what had happened to Skye, the mission that got them into this mess and why they were here. It took him a while. He was thankful that Gramsy didn't interrupt until he was finished explaining.
Gramsy's POV
She looked at Skye playing on the rug in front of the fire place. She understood now. "You're in love with her." She said, knowing the answer. However, she was surprised when Grant nodded in agreement. She'd fully expected him to deny it, and call her crazy, but he didn't, and that alone had her interested in who Skye was and how she'd captured her grandson's guarded heart.
Grant's POV
There was no point denying it. Skye came running up to him and climbed into his lap waving her Iron Man in front of his face. "What are you doing, baby?" He asked, holding her around the waist so she didn't fall as she made her Iron Man fly around his head.
"He's on venture too, but he's not sure if this place is a castle too." She told him, cryptically.
I should have known Skye would want to double check if it was safe here. He thought. "This is a different kind of castle. Do you remember Little Red Riding Hood from when Simmons read to you?" He inquired. She nodded. "Well, this place is like that, except no big bad wolf. You and Iron Man are safe here." He assured.
"Are you the huntsman? Cause I thought you were a spy. Do I need an axe now, not abiators?" She inquired, confused.
"No, baby, axes aren't safe for little girls. And it's aviators." He corrected, shaking his head.
"She thinks that your house is a castle and that spies wear aviators." Gramsy stated, amused.
"That's about right." He told her with a smirk.
"She's a clever girl. How about some lunch?" She suggested.
He nodded, leading Skye into the kitchen after Gramsy. "I hope you've got jam." He said, placing Skye on the bar stool at the island bench.
"Grant, a grandmother's always prepared. It's not just spies, you know." Gramsy told him, smiling.
