Author's Note: This was actually the hardest chapter to write yet, I have no idea way.

Also just a reminder that this a Ward story so there are going to be some time jumps, deal with it.

PLEASE REVIEW

Chapter 36 – Isolation

After seeing Skye in Rome Ward spent the next few days wondering what to do with his life. Before seeing Skye, before hearing her news, he had a clear purpose and that was to protect her, even if it was from a distance. Only now Ward didn't want to keep his distance, ever since Skye told him she was pregnant he wanted nothing more than to be with her and their child. Grant Ward had never thought of himself as a father, he wasn't lying when he told Skye that the kid would be better off not knowing him. Every part of him was screaming to run away, to save the kid from his own inner demons.

After the team's night out they had returned to the Bus and Ward hadn't had a chance to see Skye again before the team had left Rome. Once again only May and Coulson left the plane when they stopped in Athens and Bern and Ward used this time to think. He honestly had no idea what to do, Skye was offering him the future he wanted, and she was actually offering to let him be a part of their child's life. She wasn't running and she wasn't hiding. Skye actually believed he could be a good influence, the only problem was that Ward didn't believe he could be.

Ward was still contemplating his future with Skye when he lost track of the team. It took him almost three days to realize they were no longer in Europe. It took another two days and half a dozen communications with Fury to track them to the other side of the world.

Three plane trips and a stolen car later Ward arrived in a small Australian town near where Coulson was now based. Staying in the town was not an option, despite being the closest town to the base it was still too far away for Ward to keep an eye on the team. More importantly it was too far away for him to keep an eye on Skye.

The base Coulson had chosen was in the middle of nowhere, to the outside observer it was just another farm. From the outside there was one single story building, a farm house. However from Fury's reports Ward knew that it contained an underground facility more than capable of helping Coulson rebuild SHIELD. Instead of basing himself in the town Ward chose to base himself closer to the team, however the base's isolation meant he wouldn't be staying inside. The base was surrounded by fields, almost a kilometre behind the house lay a river, and the river was surrounded by trees that allowed Ward to set up camp unseen by the team but still able to keep an eye on them. There were several trees that when Ward climbed her could see the base, unfortunately that was as close as he could get. The fields surrounding the base only had low lying shrubs and plants, nowhere near enough cover for Ward to approach the base unseen.

From his hidden position Ward watched the team, more importantly he watched Skye. Ward wanted to be there for her, especially when he saw the effect the pregnancy was having on the hacker. Ward assumed that Skye was yet to tell the team about her condition because every day Skye would sneak off the base and head out of sight of the house just in time to be sick. It was obvious from the effort she was putting into hiding her morning sickness that she still hadn't told the team.

Sometimes Simmons, Skye and Fitz would leave the house and explore the surrounding fields. Mostly it was Fitz and Simmons together, Ward tended not to follow them when they went off on their own, he knew exactly what those two were doing although he wished he didn't. When it was Skye and Simmons that went exploring the tone was very different, although Ward couldn't hear what the two women were saying he could tell that the two of them were arguing and it didn't take Ward long to figure out what it was about. It was after one of these arguments that Ward watched Skye storm off. Skye ventured further from the house then she ever had and it didn't take Ward long to realize Skye was heading straight for his location. Untying himself from his fixed position in the trees Ward repelled down to the ground, untangling himself from his equipment the specialist hurried back to his camp, barely making it back before Skye literally stumbled into it.

Catching the hacker before she hit the ground, Ward smiled when she wrapped her arms around him, "Nice to see you too Skye."

Skye smiled against his chest, "I've missed you Robot."

Ward's smile widened at the old nickname, he hadn't realized he had missed it until then, "I've missed you too," He dropped his arms and took a step back so he could see Skye, "But I think it's time we talked."