AN: This was written in less than 24 hours and so I apologize for any grammar mistakes. As always, I do not own Agents of Shield.

Warning: mentions of child abuse

Chapter 1

Ward stands in the Asian food aisle, trying to decide on the brand of rice while the tiny midget known as Skye walks a few feet ahead of him.

It was only yesterday that they had gone out on another mission where Skye had of course broken protocol and touched the 0-8-4, despite Fitz' high pitched squeal of warning.

Having been too quick, the analyst had immediately shrunk to what Coulson referred to as a small human. Luckily, the scientists had managed to secure the device and the team had made it out with only minimal damage to the BUS.

It was only when Simmons had completed her exam on the toddler version of Skye did they find out that Skye's memories and knowledge were intact, but her hormone levels were that of a three year old.

Although, to Ward, she looked no older than two at her whopping height of 32 inches.

With having flown the BUS out of the danger zone, FitzSimmons had hooked up the artifact to their machines, attempting to analyze some sort of sequence in order to undo the shrinking of his rookie. Unable to do anything in regards to Skye's size till the computer ran the diagnostics and with the BUS' current condition, Coulson had decided that it was great timing to take the plane in while the whole team went and stocked up on supplies.

Ward wished they had simply gone on leave instead of having this forced team interaction, but the SHIELD crew had assured Coulson that the repairs weren't going to take too long.

Which is how he found himself stuck with his miniature rookie as everyone had split up in pairs once they had made it to the store. It's not that he didn't like Skye. He just had quickly discovered that the toddler version got bored of things a lot faster than the adult one. And that, in of its self, was saying a lot.

His thoughts return to the present when he hears the hacker.

"Why are you looking at her butt?" Skye's little voice is directed at him. He looks down to the girl, confused as his gaze had been solely focused on the boxes.

Then it hits him. This is Skye. His rookie. Just embodied in an innocent looking child.

He looks up from Skye only to see the woman to his right now openly staring at him.

"Daddy, is this what mommy was talking about when she called you a cheater?" the demon child continued, eyes innocently looking up at him.

Ward chances a glance in the woman's direction and is met with a glare before she shakes her head in disgust and walks off.

Grant in turn glares at Skye. "That wasn't funny," he growls out.

Skye doesn't agree as she chuckles before skipping down the aisle. Literally. Skipping. Because she can get away with it. Because she is a damned cute kid…not that he would ever admit that to her smug smiling face. He grumbles under his breath before following at a slower pace and attempting to hide the glare.

It wouldn't look good if people caught a grown man shooting death stares at a kid who looked to be no older than three, no matter how resistant the said kid was to his glares.

"Can we get ice cream?" Skye asks, slowing down just enough to let him catch up.

"No," he easily responds, enjoying the fact that he has a little bit of power when he is reminded that she can't shop, or be out on her own.

Skye immediately stops, her hands moving to her hips in annoyance.

Ward turns, but resists rolling his eyes. He raises an eyebrow in a, what are you going to do about it?, fashion.

He can see the wheels inside her brain turning, her teeth grinding in frustration at her dependence on him and the rest of the team. It's adorable, really.

She finally drops her hands and silently walks past him. He doesn't allow it show, but her reaction makes him nervous. He's wise enough to know that he hasn't won.

"I'll just ask Fitz," she finally says her voice almost sounding defeated, but she makes no move to walk away from him.

Ward almost breaks, watching the pouting little girl follow him around, her expression sad as if someone had kicked her puppy. But then he remembers the cheater comment and his sympathy is pushed aside.

"We have to get milk," he states, more for the sake of conversation. He walks past an elderly couple and into the dairy section. Just as he is about to grab a carton of milk, "Daddy, what's porn?"

Innocent, like hell, he thinks.

The elderly couple looks on in surprise.

"Mommy says your…your adidication to it is ruining the marriage," she perfectly and believably butchers the word.

Their surprise turns to full on glares.

Ward doesn't react. He's a specialist. He tries not to react. He feels his teeth grinding against each other. Grabbing the milk, Ward turns around and walks away.

"What did I say?" Skye states in a sad little voice, her tone, oh so confused. The couple falls for it as they tell her what a good girl she is.

She thanks them and Ward hears it all but refuses to look back. Skye skips to his side. "So Ward, about that ice cream…"

"You just couldn't go with FitzSimmons… or Coulson and May," he grumbles loud enough for her to hear.

"Nah," she easily replies and he can hear the smirk on her face. "It would not be nearly as fun as this!" She giggles, skipping past him once again.

He inhales and with no one around, he allows a small groan to escape before he starts heading to the next aisle, where he hears, "Mary. Sue. Poots? Is that you?"

He turns the corner to see that Skye is already towards the end of the aisle where a man had just turned, catching his rookie off guard.

Skye shuffles back but the man reaches out and grabs her arm. Ward immediately drops the basket and rushes towards his rookie.

"No! Let me go!" Skye cries out, fear echoing in her voice.

"Mary, it's ok," the man replies, still holding on as he attempts to pull her to him.

"Grant!" she desperately calls out as she fights to get away, unknown to the hacker that he is right behind her.

With one hand protectively on Skye, Ward grabs the man's forearm, tightly gripping a pressure point. "Get your hand off of her," he growls out low, menacingly.

The man cries out in pain, releasing the young girl just as Coulson and May arrive to the scene. They immediately take their place in between the stranger and Ward who is crouched with a frightened analyst burying her head into his chest.

"You don't understand," the man starts.

But Ward ignores him, his attention on the crying kid whose begging him. "Please. Please don't give me to him. Don't make me go back! I'll be good!"

Grant wraps his arms tightly around her and can feel her entire body shaking in fear. His chest tightens at her distress. "You are not going anywhere Skye. You'll stay right here with me, ok?" He picks her up and she rests her head on his shoulders, her tiny fingers clutching onto his shirt.

"Mary!" the man calls out past Coulson and May.

Skye whimpers against Grant's neck, trying so hard to bury her head even farther.

Ward wants to kill him. He doesn't care about the story. All he knows is his rookie was happy and skipping and this man caused this reaction from her.

"Coulson," Grant calls out.

The leader turns his head, studying the analyst. "Get her out of here."

Ward immediately makes his way to the front door. "I gotcha rookie," he gently reassures, as she tucks her head under his chin. "No one is going to hurt you," he states, desperate for her to understand that she is safe.

Ward feels the panic subside, her grip loosening and tremors easing up, as he walks to the SUV and away from the store. Unlocking the doors, he opens the trunk and sets Skye down before texting Coulson their location. He joins his rookie as they wait for their team to make their way out.

He doesn't ask her about who it was, though he's tempted. The specialist simply assumes that it was one of the foster care parents in which she had had to live with, aware that she had been bounced from home to home.

He finally understands what FitzSimmons meant when they explained that she retained her adult memories but her emotions were going to be a little harder to control. Losing a couple feet of height and being unable to defend yourself didn't help the matter.

So he patiently waits for her to talk in his attempt at giving her some semblance of control.

He feels the toddlers weight against his arm and to his own surprise, he lifts it without a second thought. Skye nuzzles her little body against him, burying her head into his side.

Her eyes move to the store's entryways, nervously watching, waiting.

She finally looks away from the store and slowly turns her head, her eyes scanning the parking lot before he feels her entire being freeze.

Ward alarmingly glances up, but spots no immediate or potential danger. His attention returns to the frightened girl whose skin has gotten pale. She draws up her knees to her chest and Grant can feel her pushing against him, trying to get closer than she already is. He protectively tightens his grip around her.

"What's wrong Skye?" he gently asks.

His rookie hesitates, eyes slowly rising to meet his. "It's his car," she states miserably, quietly. She nods her head in the direction and Grant follows her line of sight.

It's a black four door Honda civic parked in the aisle right across from them. There isn't much that's special about it as he spots at least ten other similar makes within his line of sight. He can't help but to wonder how old she was when she was thrown into that man's 'care'. With the way he easily recognized her, she couldn't have been much older than the guesstimated age of three that FitzSimmons had come up with. Could a kid that young really remember in precision what someone's car looked like? And yet, she hadn't pointed to any of the others.

As if hearing his thoughts, "See…see that small crack in the right tail light?"

Her soft voice caught him off guard. She sounds so small. Frightened.

He hates it.

Before his mind could get carried away, Ward glances at the car, studying the taillights closely. He is not surprised to find a crack. A part of him dreads knowing why she shuddered at the sight of the vehicle. He shuts his thoughts down, unwilling to imagine all of the possibilities. Not when she needs him. Needs his full attention.

"Yeah," he finally replies, keeping his tone gentle and quiet.

"I did that," she tells him.

He's again not surprised and had assumed as much. He looks at Skye, but her attention is solely focused on the car.

"I broke a plate once and…and he locked me in the trunk for two days," she whispers in confession. "It was an accident," she quickly adds, as if scared that he would take her abusers side. "The plate," Skye interjects his thoughts. "The plate was an accident. The light wasn't… I…It was so dark and it got cold. I called for help, but he lived out in the woods and no one could hear me, no matter how hard I tried," her voice cracks and she gasps for air as she fights to get the words out. She looks up at him, her eyes welled up with tears, "it was an accident! I swear Grant, it was an accident! I didn't mean to break the plate," she shakes her head, her face begging him to understand.

Grant's chest aches for the young girl. For knowing that his rookie ever had to face that kind of helplessness at such a young age. The man had abused an innocent kid who had no voice. Who was broken and just craved to be wanted.

It's at that moment that Ward decides that the guy who owns that car is dead. His mind already begins to plan the self-assigned mission as he maps out and lists places that he can stash the car where no one will discover it or hear the bastard's cries from the trunk. He easily memorizes the license plate as he feels the anger consume him.

He fights the rage when he hears the small gasps. She's having a panic attack and he needs to make it stop.

He doesn't do this, doesn't do 'kids', let alone comforting them. But he can't stand watching the fear that takes over her as she fights to breath. He needs to make her feel safe because. Although he knows its Skye in there, she currently has the emotions of a toddler whose facing their nightmare.

Getting out of the trunk, Grant kneels in front of the girl and reaches a hand to cup her face. Her attention shifts away from the car and towards him, but only for a second.

"I can't breath!"

Her SO can feel the panic start to get to him. Grant Ward is a specialist whose social skills are compared to that of a brick. He doesn't do team player.

Ward pauses.

He used to not do team player. This is his rookie.

"Hey, hey, look at me," he gently requests. Skye complies, tearing her eyes away from the other car.

"No one is going to hurt you, Skye. Not while I'm around. While we're around," he corrects.

Her tear filled eyes study him. "Promise," she says in between gasps as she attempts to wipe the tears away.

He doesn't even think about it. "I promise," he replies. "Come here," he offers, opening his arms in invitation.

She wastes no time in scooting towards him.

Picking the girl up and shutting the trunk, he walks away from the cars and her panic trigger, all the while words of reassurance instinctively leave his lips. Slowly her breathing evens, her body stops shaking, though she is still tense. He finds a patch of grass and settles down against a tree with Skye in his lap.

He watches her as she frustratingly wipes off the tears. "Sorry, I can't control it."

Grant lightly chuckles. "You have the hormones of a toddler, I think I can let it go."

Skye defensively crosses her arms before she realizes what she's done and lets them drop to her side. Her eyes move back to the store. "He won't hurt them, will he?" she nervously asks, worried about the team.

Grant knows it's a bit illogical, considering the Calvary is in there along with Coulson to protect the scientists if need be. But then again, he hasn't seen first hand what the man is capable of. "May's in there," he reminds her.

She seems to process the words as she relaxes against him.

Wanting distract her, Ward stands up, "Come on, I got an idea."

His rookie doesn't ask as she quietly looks to their surroundings. He can't help but to notice how tired she looks.

"Grant," she shyly calls out.

"Yeah," he replies gently, not a tone he uses often.

"I'm sorry about what I did in there," she nods back to the store, looking ashamed with her downcast eyes that study his chest.

He hates how defeated she looks. He moves his arm in a small quick motion, jolting the young girl enough to get her attention. "It was kind of funny," he says with a small smirk.

It's all it takes for a tiny smile to start forming on her face. "It was?" she asks, nothing like his rookie who would have taken the comment and ran with it. But then again, he had never seen his rookie in such a vulnerable state.

"Just a little," he replies.

Her body relaxes as the smile grows. She rests her head against his shoulder. He feels her breath ghost against his neck when she lets out a sigh, sounding content.

Before he catches himself, Ward instinctively turns his head and gives the hacker a gentle kiss on the forehead. He tenses at his own actions, but she simply smiles, snuggling against him.

When they reach the building, Skye lifts her head up, studying their surroundings just as Ward grabs the door handle.

"What are we doing at a gas station?"

Ward shrugs in reply. Once they're inside, "Do you want to walk?" he offers, not wanting her to feel like he is babying her.

Skye nervously glances around at the people before turning her eyes back to him. She bites her lip and he knows that she's anxious about her response as she shakes her head, no.

"Ok," he simply replies, like it isn't a big deal that she wants to be held…like it isn't a big deal that he's happy with her response as he's not ready to let go of her yet when his protective instincts are kicking in full force.

He makes his way over to the small freezer and realization dawns across Skye's expression.

"Which one do you want?" he asks, readjusting his grip on the girl so she is leaning over the glass door that faces the ceiling.

"Ward, you really don't have to do this," she reassures him.

And with that, he wants to do it even more. Heck, he would buy her an entire freezer full if he could. But then again, Fitz would probably eat it all. "I think we have earned it," he replies, gently nudging his arm up. "So which one?"

Skye smiles at him. It's not one of those smiles that one sees on a child's face. This smile is much more… adult-ish. A smile that genuinely shows how much she appreciates this.

After contemplating her options, she finally points to the one she wants and Ward grabs two of them before heading to the counter.

"Oh my God, your little girl is absolutely adorable!" A younger lady coos from behind them.

Grant is surprised when Skye buries her head into his neck. "Yes she is," he simply replies before paying. He can feel his rookie smirk against his skin and he already knows it was the right answer.

Shooting Coulson a text, the specialist takes the hacker to a small picnic table where he finally sets her down. As soon as he sits, he feels Skye's little hand rest on his thigh. He doesn't comment regarding her need for contact, instead, he silently pulls out the ice cream cones. They eat them in a comfortable silence.

Half way through her cone, Skye gets up and tosses it in the garbage.

Ward can't help but chuckle at seeing that, like a true toddler, Skye has managed to get the ice cream on her face and hands.

"I have little hands and it was a big cone!" Skye defends herself.

The specialist simply shakes his head before lifting her up. "Come on, let's get you cleaned up."

It scares him how natural it feels to care for a little human…

He pushes the thoughts aside, focusing on lifting his rookie and setting her on the counter in order to be able to reach the sink. He hands her a napkin to dry off as he watches their reflection in the mirror.

Skye pulls the napkin down as she studies their image. "I really am adorable," she states, but he can hear her forcing herself to act as if everything is ok.

He rolls his eyes for the sake of keeping their interactions normal but doesn't deny it.

When their eyes meet in the mirror, his rookie turns to him shyly, "Thank you…for everything."

Ward wants to shrug. Wants to pretend that this all doesn't affect him. But he can't bring himself to. Not with those little brown eyes anxiously waiting on his response. "What are SO's for," he instead replies.

The hacker smiles, as she finishes drying her hands. "You know…I have been wondering that," she cheekily responds.

"That's it," Ward states in a warning voice before snagging the girl off of the counter.

She squeals in surprise, her hands desperately clutching onto him.

The fear he sees cross her features has him quickly straightening his hold on her. "You've been dropped," he states more than asks, her reaction being the only evidence he needs.

Skye shrugs, before her eyes meet his. "'I'm small and have no coordination,'" she quotes.

It only serves to annoy Ward. Someone had dropped a kid…dropped her and had actually blamed her for it. He represses another growl of frustration.

"I won't drop you," he promises as they make their way out. He doesn't understand why he's so desperate for her to trust him.

"I know," Skye replies before shrugging again. "It's just instinct."

They head outside to find the SUV waiting, Coulson's corvette close behind. Strapping Skye into the car seat, Grant easily convinces Simmons to take shotgun as he sits next to his rookie. She falls asleep within minutes, her fingers wrapped around his hand that rests lightly in her lap.

AN: So this is meant to be a short story. Maybe only another chapter if you guys like it. I couldn't sleep last night so I wrote this instead. Plus, I needed a small break from Tainted Perception.

I know Ward is off, but this is how I imagine he would act with a kid Skye. Hope you enjoyed! :)