A/N: Again, many thanks to everyone who has been so supportive during the writing of this story. Ozhawk pointed out to me yesterday that this is the longest continuation of a Soulmates Short to date. It may not stay that way, but for the moment it is!

Anyway, as promised, here's the epilogue.

Epilogue

The next morning, Skye managed to get up when the guys left for their run. After throwing on some clothes and making herself a cup of coffee, she wandered through the three unused bedrooms in the guys' apartment. She hadn't really paid much attention to them previously, since no one ever went in them. She decided that the one she liked the best was the large room at the end of the hall.

On a corner, the room had two walls of large windows. She'd have to get heavy curtains if she ever actually meant to sleep in there, but that wasn't the plan immediately. The closet was a large walk-in; way too big for the grand total of three dresses she owned, but she suspected that Pepper would fill it up for her given half a chance and a hint of permission.

It had its own private bathroom as well, though one with a combined tub and shower of the more usual type. The sink had a large counter with a mirror running the length of the counter, so she would have plenty of room to make a mess with makeup and whatever else. She wasn't overly into a lot of the girly nonsense, but seeing her soulmates' reactions would probably make it worth the effort. She figured she could always ask Tasha or Pepper for help.

Stepping back into the bedroom itself, she decided that the queen-size bed could stay, though she wasn't a fan of the generic neutral sheets and quilt. It was fine for a guest room, but she wanted something with a little more personality. The dresser could be removed, though; there was already empty space in the large dressers in the master bedroom; she had a few things in one drawer, and most of her everyday clothes would be better in there. If she ever got enough clothes to make more space necessary, she could always keep some of it in this closet.

Skye thought maybe she'd like to add an armchair or maybe a loveseat and a couple of bookshelves. She considered using the shelves to make herself a little alcove to be a place to hide away when she just missed her van. And she could always escape there to have a girl chat with Jemma or a call with AC.

Her mind was still mulling over possibilities when she decided to go upstairs for breakfast. She stepped off the elevator and waved hello in the general direction of the table, not really paying attention to who was there. She helped herself to eggs, bacon and a large waffle topped with sliced berries and bananas. Andre winked at her as he handed her a small bowl of fresh whipped cream, and she grinned back in thanks. Coffee was next on her agenda, and she collected a cup before heading to the table.

"Earth to Skye," Clint teased, amused at her distraction. Fitz nearly choked, laughing at the comment and its connotations.

"Hmm?" Skye asked, finally looking around the table. Clint and Natasha sat across from Fitz, Jemma and Bruce. Pepper sat a few seats down from Jemma, with Coulson and May across from her. Skye guessed that the space wasn't intentional; probably someone else had already been and gone. "Oh, sorry," Skye said sheepishly. "Good morning everyone." She settled into the empty seat beside Coulson, filling the gap between the 'adults' and the 'kids' – mostly because she wanted to enjoy having Coulson around while he was there.

A chorus of 'hello' and 'good morning' replies sounded along the table. Then Natasha leaned over to snag a strawberry from Skye's plate, even as she said teasingly, "So where's your mind this morning, hmm? I thought your soulmates would be at the park by now."

"Oh, they are," Skye answered. "I got up when they did, though; I had some things to figure out." She turned to Coulson. "Would it be alright if I come down to your guest apartment after breakfast, AC?" she asked.

"Sure," he replied. "Any particular reason why?"

"Um, well," she answered, blushing a little. "I think I'm going to pack up my things and…"

"You're finally moving in with Steve and Bucky?" Clint asked, his tone a little surprised.

"Oh, Skye, that's so exciting!" Jemma gushed when Skye nodded. "Do you need any help?"

"Well, I don't have much more down there than I came with, so moving it isn't really going to be tough. But I'm going to be redoing one of the bedrooms in the guys' apartment to be my own private space for when I need it," Skye explained.

"I'm sure we can arrange for whatever furniture you want, Skye," Pepper said warmly. "And we have plenty of storage if there are things there that you don't need."

Skye nodded, smiling a little shyly. "I thought you might say that, Pepper. I'm planning to put my dresses into my room, and probably most of my makeup will go in its bathroom."

"Of course, so you can have your own space to get ready if you're going out," Natasha said with a smile, following the thought process. "And so we don't have to kick the guys out of the big bathroom if we just want a little girl time; I'd love to come help you experiment sometime."

Skye shrugged but nodded as Coulson chuckled to himself. "Yeah. I picked the room because I love the windows. I'm keeping the bed, in case I ever get sick or something, but sleeping in there is going to require dark curtains or blinds. And I'm thinking about making myself a little alcove with bookshelves."

Fitz, Coulson and May all nodded their understanding as soon as she mentioned making a small space. Pepper looked a little confused, but accepted it without any awkward questions. "We've got some large wooden bookshelves downstairs in one of the unused offices. Would that work, at least for now?"

"I'm sure they'll be great, Pepper," Skye said honestly. "Thank you."

"Of course," Pepper answered with a smile. "All the windows already have light-blocking shades; they hide in the walls and are controlled by JARVIS."

Skye blinked. "Even unused rooms?"

Pepper's expression turned wry. "It's Tony. On the other hand, that means you can put in whatever kind of decorative curtains you'd like without having to worry about how heavy they are."

Skye's eyes lit up. "True!"

"Can I help you decorate, Skye?" Jemma asked.

"I'll help too!" Fitz chimed in.

"Of course," Skye agreed. "But I get veto rights!"

"Well, of course!" Fitz agreed. "It's your room."

Skye packed up the things in the guest apartment quickly. She'd acquired a few pictures and some of Steve's sketches in addition to the very few things she'd brought with her. Coulson helped her take them upstairs. "I'm happy for you, Skye," he said to her quietly as they set her suitcase and one small box down in the living area.

"I know, AC. Thanks." She smiled at him and he reached out to give her a hug.

"So, can I see your new room before everyone else does?" he asked with a smile.

"You bet!" Skye led him down the hall to the room she'd chosen. He looked around and nodded.

"It looks nice. You've got a great view."

"Yeah. And I think once the dresser is gone, I'm going to shove the bed into that corner," she pointed, "and use this one to make my bookshelf-hideaway."

Coulson shook his head, but couldn't help smiling. "I'm sure it'll be perfect for you. Maybe you can get Stark to get you the back seat of an old van instead of a couch."

"Do you think he could?" she asked, her tone serious. She laughed at him when he looked startled by her agreement. "It's okay. I think I'll be fine with a big chair or a small loveseat."

They were just headed back up the hall when the elevator opened. "Skye!" Fitz called out cheerfully. "We're here to help and we brought the muscle!" Following Fitz out of the elevator were Clint, Natasha, Sam, Steve, Bucky and Mack. The next elevator load brought Jemma, May, Pepper, Hunter and Bobbi.

Skye giggled at Fitz's comment. "Well, there are a few things that need to be moved out or around the room before other stuff comes up. But with all this help, maybe a couple of people could go with Pepper for bookshelves. Oh, and I'd like to find a big armchair or a small loveseat, maybe..."

"Shouldn't be a problem," Pepper answered.

"How big are the shelves?" Mack asked.

"About six feet high; maybe four wide," Pepper said after a moment. "Skye, how many do you want?"

"Um… that size, maybe three?"

"Do you even have that many books, luv?" Hunter asked, eyebrow raised sceptically.

"Not yet, but I wanna use them to close off a corner of the room…"

Steve smiled at the banter before interrupting. "Why don't Mack, Bucky and I go get the shelves?"

"Take Hunter and Sam with you," Natasha suggested. "I'm pretty sure the rest of us can shift around what needs to be moved in here. But shelves that size are awkward even if they're not heavy."

"They're solid hardwood," Pepper interjected. "They're heavy. Well, maybe not as much for super soldiers, but still."

"Go on," May said with a shooing gesture. "We'll be fine up here."

As the group split up, Skye led the way back to her new room. "Okay, dresser can go into one of the other two spare rooms for now. I want the bed up against that wall," she said, pointing. "Jemma, would you do me a favour and grab the bath bag out of my suitcase? There's a ton of little drawers if you wouldn't mind putting stuff away..."

"Of course," Jemma agreed, grinning. She knew Skye would never keep things organized for long, but it wouldn't hurt to start out that way. She disappeared back up the hall.

May and Bobbi each took an end of the dresser and moved it out of the room. Once it was gone, Skye and Natasha moved the bed to where Skye wanted it.

"Miss Skye," JARVIS spoke up suddenly. "Miss Potts has sent some men up with a loveseat for you. Shall I admit them?"

"Yes please," Skye answered immediately. She skipped down the hall to the elevators and was there to hear it ding. Two men, janitorial staff from their appearance, hauled a dark green leather two-cushion loveseat out of the elevator. Skye clapped her hands. "Perfect. Thank you, gentlemen, we'll take it from here."

The men nodded to her and retreated back into the elevator. "Bobbi, Tasha! Come help me!" she called down the hall. The two named came to join her, as did Fitz.

"I'm sorry I'm not much help moving things," he apologized. "But I think I can guide you around the corners and make sure no one trips."

"That sounds great, Fitz," Tasha replied warmly and smiled when Fitz beamed. The three women maneuvered the small couch into the room, and Skye had them put it in the corner, under the windows.

"Oh, wait! I saw a-a thing. In the other room." Fitz darted off, then came back a moment later dragging a small end table. When May took it from him, he left again and came back with a small table lamp. "You should put these by your couch. So you can read without the ceiling light glare, if you want."

"That's a great idea," Skye agreed with a warm smile. "Thanks, Fitz."

"My pleasure."

Encouraged by Bucky, Steve and Skye did go out after lunch. They walked around Brooklyn for a while, with Steve pointing out changes from what he remembered and showing her places that still existed from when he and Bucky were kids. She smiled and listened, enjoying their quiet time together.

They stopped at a little place for ice cream cones – a double scoop for Skye, and a triple for Steve – before heading towards a park; not Central Park, but one of the smaller neighbourhood parks. They walked along the paths, hand-in-hand, laughing as their melting treat made a mess.

"Are you really alright, Skye?" Steve asked quietly; they walked close together, wrapped in warm evening sunlight.

"I could ask you the same question," she answered easily. "But yes, I really am. I have you and Bucky back, whole and healthy with minimal harm done. I'm torn between sadness about Ward's death and relief; he can't come after me again, so I'm much safer than I was." She bit her lip and looked up at Steve, sorrow in her eyes. "But there was something really wrong with him, and part of me wonders if we could have gotten him real help."

Pausing their walk, Steve pulled Skye into his arms. He pressed a kiss to the crown of her head as he held her. "We'll never know. It's possible that he could have been helped, but there's no way to know for sure. Hydra got to so many people in such different ways, and some of them could never be sorted out, Skye. No matter how hard we tried. Perhaps it's for the best that the risk Ward posed is gone. He may have eventually accepted that he had no claim on you, but what about the next girl or the one after that? Some may not have been as capable of protecting themselves. Abusive and manipulative relationships are, unfortunately, a pattern that's extremely hard to break."

Skye nodded slowly. "I still feel like maybe I could have tried harder."

"But if you'd tried to take on the baron and his men upstairs, you might never have gotten to Bucky and I. We could all have been trapped or killed there."

"I know," Skye said with a sigh. "And I would have done anything to insure your safety. I just have to live with this, I suppose."

"It's another kind of war, Skye. We all do things in war that we regret. But the other side doesn't play nicely, so we do what we must," Steve explained gently. "And you'll have the rest of our team and family to help you through it. You don't have to do this on your own."

Skye smiled up at him. "You're right. Thank you."

"Anytime," Steve promised. "I'm always here for you, whatever you need."

"And I'm here for you, too," Skye answered with a smile. "But I think I'm getting hungry. Should we head back?"

"Sure," Steve agreed. Together they retrieved Steve's bike and drove back to the Tower. They rode the elevator up to their floor, hand in hand.

Skye was a little startled to find the blinds drawn most of the way up the windows, when they returned. Though the ceiling was still bathed in golden sunlight, the dining area was dimly lit by candles. The table was set and something smelled amazing.

Bucky emerged from the kitchen with a smile for his soulmates. He walked over to them and took their hands. Steve and Bucky both watched Skye, whose eyes lit up as she took in the scene.

"Welcome home, Skye," Bucky said softly.

"Home," Skye whispered, her tone and expression full of joy. Bucky and Steve reeled her in, sharing a three-way embrace. "Thank you."

The End

A/N: I am going to mark this story complete at this point. There may be some follow-up one-shots or other such things, but I will post them separately. Thanks again for reading!