A/N: Hello! How is everyone doing? I hope you're all doing better than me who spent all day thinking it was Wednesday when it was actually Sunday...

(Hey, psst. Did you read my new fic about Mama Nat? You totes should.)

Enjoy the chapter!

"Wait." Blake said gruffly, and Skye closed her mouth. He pulled something out of his pocket.

Blake was sat really far forward in his seat, leaning over Principal Weaver's desk. He pushed some of the head teacher's things to one side roughly and some pencils toppled off the edge of the desk. He had a little box in his hand that he pressed a couple of buttons on and placed close to Skye on the table.

"Now talk." He said.

Skye looked at the box a little warily. She wasn't really sure what it was. "What's that?" She directed the question at Bobbi rather than Blake.

"It's going to record what you say." Blake said. "So talk, now, Skye. Tell me what happened in the car accident."

Skye looked up to Bobbi who gave her a little reassuring nod and rubbed her arm. Skye swallowed and turned back to Blake. The man had both elbows resting on the desk, his fingers laced together.

Blake lifted his chin. "Anytime before Christmas, kid."

Bobbi tightened her grip around Skye. Skye didn't like Blake so much.

"Go ahead, honey." Bobbi said quietly. She kissed the top of her head.

"Mommy and Daddy were in the car with me." Skye began. She closed her eyes and tried her best to remember the crash exactly as it had happened. It wasn't hard. As soon as she allowed herself to dwell on it, memories from that night came flooding back with frightening clarity. She flexed the fingers poking out from her cast. "I was in the back, and they were in the front."

"Who was driving?" Blake asked.

"Mommy. She was driving and Daddy was in the passenger seat." Skye tightened her grip on Bobbi's arms. "They were in a fight."

"They were fighting?"

"Yeah." Skye said. She opened her eyes. Blake was leaning forward again. "I don't know what about, but they were mad at each other."

Blake tapped his fingers on the desk. "How mad?"

"Um…"

"Were they talking-fighting, shouting-fighting, physical-fighting?"

Skye frowned and breathed out heavily through her nose. "Talking. Maybe louder than normal talking, but not shouting. Not really." Eight years of living in between the orphanage and foster parents had given Skye a trove of experience with what she considered to be 'real' fighting and 'real' shouting. What her mommy and daddy had been doing in the car that night had been bad, she hadn't liked seeing it, but it had tame on the grand spectrum of things.

Blake nodded once. "Were they distracted?"

"Yes." Skye said. "They didn't see."

"Didn't see what?"

"The lights were on red, are the car was still moving." She recollected. "Mommy and Daddy didn't know the car was still moving."

"So," Blake said, "the lights changed and your car kept going?"

Skye shook her head quickly. She moved forward on Bobbi's lap. "No, not our car."

"What?" Blake frowned.

"Not our car." Skye repeated. She looked up to her sister to find the same expression of confusion on her face, as reflected in Blake and the other police officer's faces. "Mommy and Daddy were fighting." Skye tried to explain again. "Mommy was driving, and they were fighting. The lights went red and at first we didn't stop. But then Mommy stopped the car. They were still fighting, though."

Skye looked between the people in the room. Bobbi still had her arms around her waist. Her lips were pressed together tightly. The policeman by the door had his eyes on Blake, and Blake himself was lounging in Principal Weaver's chair, his hands laced behind his head. He had a little smile on his face.

"Are you telling me the truth, kid?" He asked.

She tried to be brave, puffed out her chest. "I am."

He narrowed his eyes at her, tilting his head to one side. "What happened after your car stopped?"

"There was another car." Skye said. She could see it all happening in her head. The images from the crash whipping around in her mind. She pressed her thumb to her lips and had to try really hard to resist sucking it. "It was silver. It was coming from the side and it didn't stop." She shuddered. "And then it hit the front of our car." Skye took a stuttering breath and tried not to cry. Bobbi kissed her hair.

Blake cleared his throat. "Your car was stopped when the silver car hit?"

"Yes."

"And you're very sure about that?"

Skye nodded and stared him down. She moved her thumb away from her face. "Mommy and Daddy didn't see it. But I know what I saw. We stopped and the other car hit us. It happened too fast to get out of the way."

He looked above her to Bobbi. "You believe her?"

"Of course." Bobbi said immediately. "Skye wouldn't lie."

"I wouldn't." Skye clarified. "Not about this, anyway."

Blake sniffed and stood up out of his seat. He reached over the desk and took back the little recording box, putting it in his pocket. Skye watched as he grabbed a couple of pens from the desk, pocketing them, too.

The man ignored Skye speaking only to Bobbi. "I'm the best, Mrs Hunter."

"Morse-Coulson." Bobbi said and he arched an eyebrow. "It's Mrs Morse-Coulson. I, um, I didn't change my name when I got married. At least not yet."

"I see." Blake said. "Well, anyway, I'm the best in the business. I can sniff out the liars." Only then did he even glance at Skye. "As it happens, I believe every word your sister has told me."

"I told you I was telling the truth." Skye mumbled, a little mad he hadn't believed her in the first place.

Blake put his hand in his pocket and pulled out what Skye thought was some sort of band-aid. She watched as he lifted his sleeve and stuck the little patch on his arm. Blake looked at Bobbi. "Trying to quit." He said, and then pulled a packet of cigarettes out of the other pocket.

Bobbi shook her head. "I think you're doing it wrong."

He smirked. "One step at a time, Mrs Morse-Coulson." Blake walked over to the office door and glanced over his shoulder. "Skye, it was nice to meet you, I guess."

Skye opened her mouth to comment on the fact that his tone made it sound the furthest thing from the truth, but Blake cut her off before she got the chance.

"We'll get all this crap sorted, kid. I do my job, you do yours, and you'll be back to your mom and dad pretty soon."

"Really?" Skye said hopefully.

"Sure. You just do your job, okay?"

Skye nodded, then frowned. "What's my job?"

Blake ran his tongue over his teeth and flicked the carton of cigarettes in his hand. "Keep doing what you're doing. Tell the truth. You do your job, it makes everyone else's a lot easier."

"Okay." Skye said confidently. She could do that, she could be good and tell the truth.

"And, a word of advice, Mrs Morse-Coulson," Blake said, "if you do decide to change your last name, maybe stick with 'Hunter'. I think triple-barrelled may be a little to much."

Bobbi glared at him. "You're a bit of an ass, sir."

Blake grinned. "Not the first one to tell me that, sweetheart." He left the room, motioning for the policeman to follow. "I'll be in touch." He called. The uniformed officer shrugged in a silent apology, and the two men left.

Skye looked up to her big sister. "That was weird." Bobbi nodded and Skye looked back at the desk. "He was a police officer?"

"Yeah."

"Did-did he steal some of Principal Weavers' pens?" Skye eyed the now messy desk.

Bobbi lifted her down from the chair and stood up. "Stealing is wrong. Smoking is wrong. Being mean is wrong. Even if you're a police officer, it's still wrong."

"Huh?" Skye was a little confused.

Her sister took her hand. "I'm just trying to cover all moral bases. I don't want to take you back to mom and dad and have to be like 'I tried, but I think I corrupted your kid by exposing her to a shady cop.'"

"I won't steal or smoke or be mean." Skye promised. She hugged Bobbi. "You haven't corrupted me."

Bobbi hugged her back, laughing. "Do you even know what 'corrupted' means?"

"Nope."

"Okay, then." Bobbi chuckled. "You want to come home with me, or go back to class until the end of the day?"

"I wanna stay at school." Skye said. "I was colouring. We were drawing giraffes."

"Oh, well I wouldn't want you to miss out on that."

Skye leaned up on her tiptoes and motioned for Bobbi to lean down so that she could kiss her goodbye. "I'll be okay in class. I promise."

Bobbi kissed her, too. "In that case, I will see you later, little sis."

Skye pulled away and began skipping back down the corridor to her class. She turned around to throw a wave in Bobbi's direction. Her big sister waved back.

Blake was a strange cop. He was mean and he took things that weren't his, Bobbi had even called him an 'ass' which Skye found hilarious, but he had said he was the best. Skye trusted he was the best. She trusted his word, and she trusted that she was going to be back with her mommy and daddy soon.

Optimistic.

The class were still working on their projects when she re-entered the room, so no one seemed to pay her much attention except for Miss Potts and Grant, both of whom were sitting at the teacher's desk. Grant jumped up and greeted her at the door.

"Are you okay?" He asked, looking her up and down.

Skye nodded. "Fine. I'm fine. It was nothing bad." She assured him as they walked over to the desk together. "Not really."

"What happened?"

"Some police guy asked me about the crash." Skye told Grant as the two sat down next to Miss Potts. Her teacher smiled at her and went back to her work. Skye was sure she was still listening to them, though. "I had to tell him what I remembered. Bobbi stayed with me."

"I had to talk to the police after they took me away from my mom." Grant said. He frowned at his paper on the desk. "I didn't really like it."

"It wasn't so bad. Bobbi was there."

"Well, that's good, I guess."

Skye took the pencil Grant offered her and began colouring in a section of grass on his page. "He said as long as I tell the truth, then I can go back to my mommy and daddy."

Grant raised his eyebrows. "Really? That's great! When?"

"He just said 'soon'. Skye twisted her face. "I'm not sure what that means."

"Soon sounds good."

"Yeah?" Skye asked. 'Soon' sounded pretty great to her, too, but it was nice to hear it solidified by her best friend.

"I think so." Grant went back to copying something down, and Skye returned to colouring in the grass, so neither spoke for a few minutes.

Skye was so intently trying to stay in the lines for Grant's picture, that when he spoke again, she almost missed it.

"Hey, Skye." He said quietly without looking up.

"Yeah?"

"I hope you get you mom and dad back." He glanced over and smiled a little, then looked back at his paper.

"Thanks." She rubbed her thumb over the smiling family on her cast. "I hope so, too."

…

Nick Fury was getting too old for this crap. He was not above letting everyone around him know this fact.

"I am getting too old for this crap."

"I know." Maria Hill groaned from her place sprawled over his office couch. "You have told me literally seven times in the last three days."

He huffed. "It's been a trying three days."

"Yeah, it has." She agreed. "Anyway, listen, I need to go back to work. Are we done here?"

Fury looked down at the papers in front of him. He'd known Maria for years, having worked with her father when they were younger and they'd both been teachers at the same high school. Maria had been a sarcastic little teenager with too much nerve and not enough respect for her elders when Fury had first met her. She had told him to 'fuck off' within the first sixty seconds of their first meeting, and that's when Nick Fury had decided he really liked Maria Hill.

Fury had lost touch with her father a little over the years, the man having moved to Canada after marrying his second wife, but he had always made a bit more of an effort to keep in touch with Maria. They didn't get to meet up as much as he would have liked, but he frequently made the effort to call her on the phone and send regular emails. Her relationship with her dad was less than ideal, and Nick had found himself with a paternal love for the bratty teen-turned-marine-turned-personal trainer.

Nick shuffled through his papers. Maria had filled them in without error, answering every question with a loving heart and precise detail. He'd needed some 'personal' referees for Melinda and Phil Coulson who were willing to vouch for their characters, and while looking for willing participants down at Coulson's gym, he had ran straight into Maria.

"How in the hell did I have no idea your bestie was Melinda Coulson?" Fury asked, casting the papers aside to file later.

Maria cocked an eyebrow at him. "Did you just say 'bestie'?"

"Shut your mouth, sunshine." He glared at her and she smirked back. "Seriously. Melinda Coulson is your boss, your best friend and it just bypassed me completely."

She shrugged and picked at some polish on her nails. "To be fair, when we talk I don't really talk about my friends by name. Or at least not their full name. I'm sure I've mentioned 'my friend Mel with the kids' before."

Nick tried to recall any mention of the Coulsons before his involvement with Skye's case, but came up blank.

"Maybe you just don't listen to me." Maria teased. "At least you knew where I worked."

"Hm." Nick hummed. He had been fully aware that Maria had worked at the gym owned by Phil and Melinda, but the chain was large and the gym Maria worked in was massive in itself. Nick had kind of just assumed she had no contact with the owners. "I didn't realise how much time Melinda and Phil spent in the gym. They're certainly dedicated."

"Sure are." Maria said. "Honestly, they're successful enough that they'd never have to work another day in their life if they didn't want to, and yet they practically spend as much time working as they do at home."

Fury blinked at her.

"That being said," Maria said quickly, "their dedication to their children is admirable."

He snorted. "I wasn't going to reprimand them for working."

"I was just making sure."

"Hill, Don't worry. I'm getting that little girl back to her parents." Fury said. He glanced over at the papers on his desk. "That kid Steven Rogers seems like a good guy." Nick commented, picking up Steven's referee for the Coulsons. The handwriting was frighteningly neat, nothing like Maria's, and the man had ended practically every point he made with the phrase 'I give you my word'. For some reason, Fury trusted his word.

"Steve." Maria said. "Not 'Steven'. He prefers 'Steve.'"

"I see."

Maria continued to pick at her cuticles. Nick attempted to catch her eye, but the woman appeared determined to look away from him.

"Are you and Steve close, then?" He tried to ask conversationally.

Her cheeks began to take on a pinkish hue. "We're just friends."

Nick smirked at her. "Maria, you're a grown woman, if you and Rogers are seeing each other I'm not going to be mad about it."

She looked up at him a little sheepishly. "What if we've been secretly living together for six months?"

He coughed a little. "That would be surprising."

She smiled. "But you wouldn't be mad?"

"Not mad, per se." Nick muttered. "Might have to give Rogers the 'dad' talk. Maybe threaten his life."

Maria stood up and folded her arms across her chest. "Please don't kill my boyfriend."

"I said 'threaten' his life. Not 'take' his life." Nick stood from his chair and placed a hand on Maria's shoulder, ducking his head slightly. "He good to you, sunshine?"

She smiled brightly at him, expression glowing in a way that reflected his favourite nickname for her. "He does, Nick. He really does." Maria hugged him quickly. "Steve's the best thing that's ever happened to me. I love him."

Fury kissed her head as she pulled away. "If he hurts you, you tell me and I'll make him disappear."

She laughed. "Will do, sir."

"Now get outta here. Get back to work, slacker."

Maria laughed and left his office with a salute.

…

There was some commotion going on in the hall just around the corner from Fury's office when Maria was walking back to her car. She had been to Nick's office a few times before to visit him on various occasions, and more than once she had witnessed an outburst from a client.

Nick worked in social care, particularly with kids who had been removed from parental care, so apparently eruptions like that were not uncommon when angry parents were involved. This commotion, however, Maria realised, was not coming from a furious parent, but from a little girl.

Maria stood to the side of the hallway and watched as a blonde little girl sat sobbing in the centre of the walkway. Two women in smart dress stood over the crying child, speaking in what Maria thought was supposed to be a soothing manner, although judging from the little girl's weeping, it wasn't working. One of the women put a hand on the child's shoulder and the little girl pushed her away.

"Leave me alone!" She shouted, wrapping her arms around her legs and dropping her head to hide in her knees.

The two women exchanged glances, then stood up and left the little girl alone in the hall. They walked past Maria and she caught the arm of the closest one. Both women stopped and she eyed their identification badges.

"Is she okay?" Maria asked, nodding over to the kid.

"Not really." One of the women answered, and the other nodded her agreement. "But we're just receptionists. We're not qualified. The kid's waiting on Fury. Don't know what happened. One of the nuns came and dropped her off. She's been like that the whole time."

The two receptionists left, chatting quietly to each other. They seemed rather unconcerned for the little girl, but Maria couldn't stand to walk past the kid on the way to her car without at least attempting to comfort her.

As it happened, as soon as Maria sat herself down next to the child, she realised that the girl really didn't want comforting. She glanced over at Maria and shuffled away from her. She muttered something Maria didn't catch.

"Erm, so," Maria tried, "you know Nick Fury?"

The little girl sniffled and looked up, but didn't say anything.

"He and I go way back." Maria told her. She took a tissue from her pocket and held it out in the girl's direction. "I've known him since I was fifteen."

The girl took the tissue. "That's a long time." She said quietly.

"Are you saying I look old?"

The child smiled a tiny bit and Maria felt herself smiling, too. She stretched her legs out in front of her. "You seem a little sad, kid."

The girl scoffed and tore the tissue a little. "Yeah. Kinda."

"Any particular reason, or just a bad day?"

"They brought me here." She said. "And whenever I come here, it's because of something bad. I try to be optimistic, but it's really hard when I'm here."

Maria nodded. "You're expecting bad news?"

"Yes." The girl kept her eyes in her hands. "My aunt's in the Air Force. My dad was, too, and when he died they brought me here to tell me. I get worried that Nicky is going to tell me she's gone, too."

Her heart bled for the little girl. Maria herself had been on the receiving end of bad news at the hands of the armed forces. She had been an adult, yes, but it had been one of her best friends killed in action. It had been the beginning of the end for her career in the forces. She hadn't been able to cope.

The fact that this little girl had already been through so much, well, it made Maria angry at things she couldn't control.

"I'm sure your aunt is okay." She said. It was a lie, and at the disbelieving look on the girl's face Maria regretted it. "I mean, I'm sure she'll do her best to come home to you."

The girl nodded, but didn't smile.

"What's your name?" Maria asked.

The girl swallowed. "I'm Shannon." She said.

"Maria." She introduced, holding out her hand for the girl. She took it and they shook.

"I'm sorry I haven't been giving a very good first impression." Shannon sighed. "I try to be happy most of the time. All of the time."

"Shannon, you don't have to be happy all of the time."

The girl smiled sadly. "You do when you're trying to find a family."

Maria's heart broke. She opened to mouth to say…what? She didn't know. It didn't matter anyway, because Fury appeared from round the corner, stopping at the sight of the two people on the ground. His expression softened. Shannon sat up straighter at the sight of him.

"Everything's okay." He said, holding up his hands. "Your aunt's fine. Everything's fine."

Shannon stood and rushed over to him, hugging Nick quickly then stepping back with a smile that Maria thought brightened the whole building.

"She's okay? She's not hurt? It's not bad news?"

"No. No bad news." Fury said gently. "I'm sorry they let you believe that."

"Sister Margaret wouldn't tell me what this was about." Shannon admitted.

Something dark crossed Fury's face but Maria watched as he blinked it away.

"They should have told you. This is just a general meeting about everything. About how you're doing, how you're feeling." Nick put a hand on her shoulder. "Just the usual. I was going to come to you but I've been really busy."

"Oh." Shannon said. She wiped her eyes and nodded. Her posture changed and she smiled brightly, the only evidence of her previous trauma in the red rims of her eyes. "Can we go to your office now, please?" She asked Nick.

"Sure. Let's go, kiddo."

Shannon nodded and turned to skip away. At the last moment she took the few steps back to Maria and wrapped her arms around her waist. It caught Maria off guard and she found herself awkwardly patting the girl's back.

"Thank you, Maria." Shannon said, pulling away. She took a step back and looked at the ground. "Thanks for making me feel better when I was sad. It was nice to meet you."

"And you." Maria said dumbly. She looked over to Nick who was smiling at the two. "Um, I hope to see you soon, Shannon." She said, and the child's eyes lit up when she looked up.

"Really? You'd like to see me again."

Maria didn't hesitate when she said, "I really would."

"Okay." Shannon blushed and gave Maria another hug. This one she returned. "Bye, Maria."

Fury smirked. "Yeah, bye, Maria." He ushered Shannon towards his office and gave Maria a little wave. "I'll call you, sunshine. Looks like you made a new friend."

Maria watched them retreat into the office. "Yeah." She said to no one. "I guess I did."

…

When Bobbi got home from leaving Skye at school, Hunter was packing a suitcase.

She walked into the bedroom with the story of Officer Blake and Skye's interview fresh on her tongue, but the words died when Lance looked up at her from his place by the case on the floor. He sighed and held out his hand to her.

"Bobbi…" He wrapped both arms around her when she sat down and settled herself against him. "I've got to go."

"I know." Bobbi murmured into his chest. He was wearing one of the shirts she usually wore to bed, and the soft worn fabric made her nose tingle when she brushed against it.

Lance held her for a little longer, the two of them sitting quietly on the bedroom floor. He nudged the suitcase with his foot. "I got a flight for tomorrow morning." He said.

She had known he would have to leave. She had told him, ordered him, to go back to London herself. His little sister didn't just mean a lot to Lance, Bobbi loved Jemma a lot, too, and it wasn't fair that the little girl could be taken away from the people who truly loved her because her parents were selfish.

"I'll miss you." Bobbi told him.

Hunter kissed her. Kissed her again. "When I bring Jemma home, we'll be a family. A proper one."

She curled her fingers around his ear. "Is there such a thing as a 'proper' family?"

"Course there is." Lance smiled. He tugged lightly on the ends of her hair and kissed her lips. "There's no such thing as a 'normal' family. I know that. But we can be a proper one."

"Proper?"

"One that loves each other." He said. "A family that wants to be together. A family that tries for each other."

Bobbi nodded. "We can be that."

"We can." He leaned over and pressed his nose into her shoulder, holding her tightly to him. "Why does it have to be so hard, Bob?"

She kissed his hair. Tears burned at the backs of her eyes. "I don't know."

"Did I do something wrong? Is that why?" Lance's breath caught. "I must have been pretty shitty at some point to deserve this."

Bobbi pushed him off her shoulder and held his face between her hands. "Sometimes life deals a crap hand, and it's no one's fault."

Hunter watched her with apt attention.

"Do you think that I've deserved what I've been through? Nat? Clint? Do they deserve it?"

"No, of course not-,"

"Skye certainly hasn't." Bobbi continued. "Or Jemma. We don't deserve the bad things that have happened to us, none of us do, but we can make it better."

He blinked and a tear dropped down his cheek. "It's just not fair."

Bobbi shrugged and hugged him. "It's not."

Hunter cried for his sister, he cried for his wife, he cried for his family, for the bad things that none of them deserved. He cried for himself, and throughout it, Bobbi held him and shared in his pain. He kissed his cheeks, and he kissed hers.

He caught her hand and brought it up to her lips. "We deserve to be happy, don't we?"

"Yes." She smiled. "And we will be. All of us. Skye will go back to my mom and dad,"

"And we'll get Jem back with us."

"And we'll be a proper family."

Lance swallowed. "I love you."

They kissed, and Bobbi squeezed his hand. "Don't you go getting upset when I'm not there to comfort you." She ordered with a smile. "You go back to London and you be strong for that little girl waiting on you. I'll be here for cuddles when you get back our girl. I'll be waiting."

"I love you, Bobo."

Bobbi narrowed her eyes at him. "What did you just call me?"

"Bobo?" Lance grimaced. "No? I was trying it out. Thought it was cute."

She frowned. He grinned.

"Come on, it's cuter than 'Hell Beast'." He tickled her sides and Bobbi couldn't help but squirm away. "Bobo. Bobo. Bobo." Lance teased.

"Urg. Has the ship sailed on the new pet name?"

"Sure has, Bobo."

Bobbi sighed exasperatedly and rolled her eyes. "Teacup, you better be grateful I love you too much to kill you in your sleep."

"Darlin', I count my blessings every day."

…

Spending her days with out a certain little girl to care for, reminded Melinda exactly why she and Phil had decided to foster another child in the first place. When it came to a life without a little one to take care of, something just didn't sit right. Sure, some couples went their entire lives without having children, and that was fine, great, if that's what worked for them, but for Phil and Melinda, they thrived on the love for their children.

Really, Mel just missed her Skye. The days were empty without her.

After Nat and Clint had moved out, Mel had had work to distract her. It had been hard, but doable, and eventually the days had become a little easier, that was until the emptiness returned with a vengeance and the decision to take on Skye had been solidified. Since Skye had been taken from then, neither Phil nor Mel had found they felt up to going to work, and their doctor's notes forbade it, anyway. It meant there was no distraction.

"I don't like how much daytime TV we've been watching." Phil commented from his position on the couch. He was frowning heavily at a soap opera on the screen. "I'm beginning to genuinely care about the welfare of this character and it's making me uncomfortable."

Melinda rolled her eyes and went back to fiddling with her phone. She had managed to kill a fair amount of 'Skyeless' time by deleting emails, sorting through her text messages, and was now skimming through her photographs, deleting any pointless ones.

For some reason she had thirty-seven photographs of what she thought were maybe Clint's shoes from different angles and decided it may be time to change her password. Beyond the shoe pictures however, most of the images were of her children, a high percentage of the most recent picture being of Skye.

Melinda swallowed thickly.

"Hey," Phil said, and she looked over to him, swiping at her eyes, "okay?"

"Yeah." She said. Mel glanced back down at the phone, a photograph of Skye, obviously taken by the little girl herself, was smiling back at her. "Just missing our Skye."

"Mm."

She chuckled at another photograph of Mr. Snow and Skye, faces pressed together to fit in the frame. "She's quite the photographer."

Phil shuffled further towards her side to peer over at the phone. He flicked past a few more photographs and stopped at one of Skye, Bobbi, and Nat, all huddled together on the couch in the playroom. One of the boys must have taken it, Mel thought, because it was the first time she had seen it.

"We have wonderful children." Phil said with a smile. "Look at them. We did that."

Melinda cuddled close to her husband and he wrapped an arm around her shoulders. She watched his face contort a little as he moved.

"You're hurting." She said.

He waved her off. "I'm fine."

She kissed him. "I'm so sorry."

"No." Phil cupped her cheek. "Stop it. This will be the end of me telling to stop apologising, Mel. Okay?"

She couldn't say no to him. Her guilt was crippling, but Phil's love and faith in her was overwhelming and she found herself collapsing into his arms and burying her face in his shoulder.

"I just need her back, Phil." Mel cried. Her hands caught in his t-shirt sleeve. "We can't lose her. We can't."

"We won't." He rubbed her back. "We won't."

The doorbell rang. Mel and Phil looked to each other.

"Are we expecting anyone?" Mel asked. "Where are Nat and Clint?"

Phil shook his head. "They're out. They've both got keys. It's not them." He kissed her head and got up from the couch to answer the door.

Melinda wiped her eyes with her sleeve. She put her phone back in her pocket and stood in the centre of the room.

She had a clear view of the front door from her position in the living room, and so, saw the moment Phil opened up their front door to a large man she didn't recognise. Phil apparently didn't know him either, because he said, "Can I help you?"

The man in the leather jacket smiled, and Mel took a few more steps towards the door, she saw he also had an eye patch.

"Hello, Mr Coulson." The man said. "Mrs Coulson." He looked over Phil's shoulder at her.

"Hi." Mel said.

"Hello." Phil greeted. "Um, how can we help you?"

"My name is Nick Fury. I'm a head social worker, and I think I have some good news for you."

Phil blinked and glanced to Melinda. "Perhaps you should come inside."

…

Phil stared at the man sat in his kitchen.

Although Phil had invited him inside, Fury had taken it upon himself to sit down at the island in the kitchen and suggest they all have a drink together. Phil tried to be hospitable, and Melinda smiled and offered to take Fury's coat, but it was obvious that there was only one thing on their minds.

Skye.

Nick Fury drank his cup of coffee, glancing around at the pictures on their walls. For a long time he seemed to dwell on one of Bobbi's larger drawings, an art project from when she had been in high school and her teacher had asked the class to draw 'happiness'. Phil couldn't help but smile as he too looked at the drawing. Seventeen-year-old Bobbi's 'happiness' was a detailed pencil drawing of an eye with the iris reflecting depictions of her parents.

"Our eldest daughter drew that when she was in school." Phil said.

Fury nodded. "Bobbi. I've had the pleasure of meeting Bobbi. Next time I see her I'll have to compliment her artistic ability."

"She's good." Phil said.

Fury had a gentle smile on his face when he turned back to them. The man had been nothing but polite and kind to them, but Phil still felt as though he was being judged. It was an automatic anxiety that came with meeting any employees from the social care system. Phil sat down next to Melinda at the kitchen counter and took her hand. She squeezed it.

"Thank you for the coffee." Fury said, addressing them both. "But I'm sure you would like to get on with what I'm actually here for."

"Skye." Melinda said.

"Yes. Skye." Fury smiled. "She's quite the kid."

Phil heard Mel gasp beside him. "You've seen her? Is she okay? Please, tell me she's okay?"

"Skye is fine." Fury assured them. "Shaken, obviously, but she's hanging in there. Much better now she's staying with Bobbi and Hunter."

"Please," Phil said, "when can we get our little girl back?"

Fury looked between them. "I've spoken to the police." He said. "They've been conducting interviews all day with witnesses of the accident. Including an interview with Skye."

Phil felt cold all over. "They forced Skye into a police interview?"

"It was necessary." Fury said. "And I can assure you that Skye was well taken care of. The interview took place in her school, and Bobbi accompanied her the whole time. I made sure that Skye would be accompanied for the whole duration of her questioning."

Melinda leaned forward. "Is she okay?"

"I'm told Skye was very helpful." Fury looked proud. "She was able to give some very good and informative answers. The police were very happy with her answers."

"Happy with her answers?" Mel asked. "What do you mean?"

The social worker placed his coffee to one side. "Skye defended you both in her interview. The police have the right to believe that what she says is fact. Along with some personal testimonies I was able to get from some people who know you both well, I can confirm that we are happy to return Skye to your care."

Mel's grip on Phil's hand became crushing. "Are you serious?" She whispered. Phil wanted to ask the same question but he couldn't get his body to cooperate.

"I am very serious." Nick Fury said. "The accident has been deemed to be as such on your part." He leaned towards Mel. "You are not responsible for what happened, Melinda. You're not." He smiled at them both. "I've had the opportunity to speak with Skye at length, and I truly believe that she belongs with her family. That little girl needs her parents."

"We need her." Phil said. He voice caught. "When can we see her?"

Fury looked at his watch. "She'll be coming out of school soon?"

Melinda nodded. "Twenty minutes."

"Okay." Fury said. "This has all been rushed through because I like Skye. I also found that a close friend of mine is also a close friend of yours, and I've made the effort not to piss her off."

Phil frowned. "Who?"

"Maria Hill."

"Oh." Mel said. "She texted me today. Asked if I was alright. I never replied." Melinda looked down at the counter.

Fury nodded. "She assured me of your capability as parents, and I rushed this whole thing through. But even with the rush, you're not going to be able to see Skye from school."

Phil had anticipated that, but it didn't make the sting hurt any less. He sighed and his broken ribs twanged with the effort.

Melinda sat up straighter. Phil thought she looked a little pale. He was about to ask her is she was feeling okay when she began speaking herself.

"What's the next step?" She asked Fury. "Tell me what to do to get my little girl back."

He looked between them and reached down to lift a hefty wad of papers from his bag onto the counter. "Get ready to complete more paperwork than you ever have before."

"And then we get to bring Skye home?"

"And then," Fury said, "I will supervise Skye's return to you home."

Melinda looked to Phil. She tiled her head and he nodded back.

"Give me a pen."

…

When Skye caught sight of Bobbi in the playground at the end of the school day, she was thrilled to see she wasn't alone. Aside from Bobbi, who appeared to be on the phone, Natasha and Clint were both waiting for her by the gates.

"There she is!" Clint grinned when she ran over.

Skye hugged him and Nat tightly. Bobbi patted her head and gave her a little wave, but whatever conversation she was having on the phone seemed to be important and Bobbi walked briskly ahead of them to the car.

"How was school?" Nat asked, taking her hand.

"Who is Bobbi talking to?" Skye asked.

Natasha and Clint exchanged a grown-up look with each other that Skye couldn't decipher.

"Don't worry about who she's talking to, okay?" Clint smiled. "Hey, did you play spies again today?"

Skye frowned. "You're doing that on purpose."

"What?"

"Not answering my questions." Skye said. "Natasha, who is Bobbi talking to?"

Nat sighed and stopped walking. She crouched down in front of Skye, putting her hands on her shoulders. "It could be good news." Nat said. "But I don't know. If it's not good news I don't want to give you false hope."

Clint nodded in agreement when Skye looked to him.

"You guys should be being optimistic." Skye said, and the two adults gave her amused looks. "It means being positive that good things will happen."

"I know what it means." Clint chuckled. "Maybe you're right."

"I am right. Good things will happen." Skye said confidently. She took Nat's hand again, also taking Clint's and led her siblings to the car after Bobbi. It was hard to hold Clint's hand with her cast on, but he gently held her fingers. "Bobbi said so and so did the police officer from today."

Nat swung their hands. "I hope it's good news, malyutka. You deserve good news."

"Everyone deserves good news." Skye shrugged. "I just want mine to be that I can go home to be with Mommy and Daddy."

When they got to the car, Bobbi was in the passenger seat, still talking on the phone in hushed tones. She was smiling a little, but when she caught sight of Skye, she turned away. Hunter was in the car, too. He got out to greet Skye and held out his arms for a hug. Skye was happy to oblige him.

"I needed cheering up, sweets." Hunter said, hugging Skye tightly. "Your cuddles do a good job of that."

Skye pulled away a little, keeping her arms around his neck. "Why do you need to be cheered up?"

He smiled at her, but it wasn't a proper smile and seeing the expression on his face made Skye's heart hurt. "I've had a day of it." He sighed. "Just one of those days, Skye."

She hugged him again and gave him a kiss, squeezing extra hard. "Am I making you feel better?"

"You are, lovely." Lance chuckled. It sounded like a real laugh. "I need to leave for a bit, and I'll miss you, but that was such a good hug that I think it'll keep me going until I get back."

Hunter stood up and tried to help Skye into the car, but she pulled back.

"Where are you going?" She asked. "I don't want you to leave."

He rubbed the back of his head and looked over to Natasha. Clint shrugged and climbed into the front of the car.

"Hunter has to go and see his family in England." Nat said. She tried to shepherd Skye into her car seat but the little girl resisted.

"But why?" She asked Lance.

"I need to go and see my sister."

"Jemma." Skye supplied. "Are you going to bring her here to be in our family?"

"Perceptive." He muttered, and Natasha laughed.

"Certainly is." She agreed. "Come on, Skye. Get in the car." Her sister peered into the car through the back. Bobbi wasn't talking on the phone anymore and she gave Nat a thumbs up. Natasha grinned. "In the car, Skye." She instructed. "We've got a lot to do."

"We have?" Skye asked, climbing into her seat.

Bobbi turned around to face her. "Hunter needs to finish packing, and you need to start."

"Huh?" Skye cocked her head to one side in confusion. Clint turned around in his seat, and Skye looked at all the people in the car smiling back at her. "Could one of you explain because you're kinda freaking me out. Why am I packing?"

Nat took her hand. "Why do you think?"

"Am I going somewhere?" Skye asked.

Bobbi nodded. "Skye, You're going home."

A/N: Sooooooooooo, what did we all think? :) xx