So here's part 2. Sorry it took so long to get up. I've been a bit busy lately, although I did write during my spring break week. That was a while ago, and I've been struggling since then to find the time to type this up.
I've gotten a lot of response for this, and it makes me so so so happy! Thank you to all of you! And now I must ask, would you like a series of one-shots chronicling the family's adventures? Because if you do, then let me know/send me ideas. I've got some, but would love some more.
Part 2
An hour had passed since Jemma had locked herself in her room. She'd gone through a series of emotions and reactions during that time. First, there was the crying over the entire revelation. This was followed by the catatonic silence as she processed that her biological parents were Bobbi and Hunter. After that had come anger. She'd thrown her belongings at the walls or thrown a pillow at them. Now Jemma sat at the foot of her bed, sniffling as she clutched the pillow close to her chest. At her feet was a picture frame with a long crack running through the center. It separated her from Bobbi in the photo, which had been taken shortly after they'd escaped Hydra together. Back when things had been normal and happy and innocent.
Reaching down beside her, Jemma picked up a photo album, her photo album. Flipping to the first page, she studied a picture of herself as a baby. She was wrapped in a soft pink baby blanket with her name embroidered on the side. The people who became her adoptive parents found her wrapped in that blanket, all alone in a field. Even though she was a grown woman, she still had that blanket with her, tucked away in her dresser. She held onto it to remind herself that her biological parents were out there somewhere, and that she would find them.
Standing up, Jemma walked over to her dresser and took the blanket. It was a patchwork of squares of pink that varied in shade, with the only variation being the red letters that spelled out her name one the side. As she sat down, Jemma studied the blanket, wondering how old it was really supposed to be. It might have been twenty eight for her, but maybe it should have only been four or five instead. How old was she even supposed to be?
Someone knocked on her door, and Jemma dropped the blanket, startled slightly.
"Go away!" she cried out, her voice trembling as tears began to slip out of her eyes again.
"Jemma, it's me," Skye's voice was slightly muffled through the door. "Please let me in. I want to talk to you."
Wiping her eyes, Jemma rose to her feet and made her way over to the door. Her fingers shook as she worked to unlock the door as quickly as she could and let Skye in. Once the other girl had come into the room, she slammed the door shut and locked it again before turning around to face Skye.
"How are you doing?" Skye asked softly. Her voice didn't sound judgmental or disturbed, two reactions that Jemma expected someone to show for this situation.
Jemma swallowed and opened her mouth. "I'm…I…"
She started to cry again as the events of what she had learned hit her once again. Skye stepped forward and wrapped her in a hug as she broke down sobbing on her shoulder. Despite all the frustrations and difficulties that they'd had recently, Jemma had never felt closer to Skye. She knew that Skye had grown up bouncing around a string of foster homes and only got to meet her real father recently under less than pleasant circumstances. Now, after finding out who her parents really were, Jemma wondered if Skye had felt this same way after learning about her family.
"Shh, it's okay," Skye soothes, sitting the two of them down on her bed. "Just get it all out, Jemma."
Jemma didn't know how long she cried for. Skye stayed with her the entire time though, even as her sobs slowly faded into sniffles. As she sat up and wiped her eyes, she turned to look at Skye. "Wh…what happened after I ran?"
"Hunter tried to run after you, but Mack stopped him," Skye explained, passing her a tissue. "Bobbi looked pretty shattered. Fitz and I didn't stick around much longer. We ended up running for the Bus and hid in my bunk there to digest it all. Kind of weird that you're supposed to actually be a little kid."
Jemma tried to laugh at Skye's attempt at humor, but it ended up coming out as a strangled, pathetic whine. The other girl looked guilty and murmured an apology to her.
"How could this happen?" whispered Jemma, spare tears trickling down her cheeks. "Why, of all people, did they have to be my parents?"
"Your family situation is a lot better than mine," Skye mumbled, tracing a pattern on Jemma's comforter. "At least Bobbi and Hunter didn't send a creepy psycho ex kidnap you so you could all finally met."
The harshness in Skye's last sentence surprised Jemma. "At least your dad actually looks like he's old enough to be your dad."
"You're missing my point," said Skye as she reached over and gave her hand a squeeze. "Yes, it's kind of messy and weird and you should actually be like a toddler or something. But you have your parents here, and they care about you. They aren't crazy or possessive or hell-bent on changing you. When I was coming over here, I snuck by them in the living room. Neither of them saw me, but I overheard them talking. I've never seen either of them that upset before. Bobbi kept on blaming herself, and Hunter was telling her that it was more his fault than hers. They love you, Jemma. I can see it. They love you as you are, and they'd never want to hurt them."
"So what should I do then?"
"Blow your nose and go talk to them," Skye supplied, handing her some more tissues. "Let them explain themselves. Don't shut them out. They may be only a few years older than you, but they're still your parents. It's like…like Amy and Rory and River, except you're not trying to kill anyone."
Jemma began to giggle. "That's the best example you can use for this!"
"It's the only one I could think of," Skye protested as she stood up. "You want me to come with you to see them?"
Jemma shook her head. As much as she appreciated Skye supporting her through this, this was something she needed to do on her own. "I'll be fine."
"Okay, but if you ever need anything, you've got me and Fitz."
After she left, Jemma rose to her feet and tidied up the mess she'd made earlier. Once that had been taken care of, she left her room and headed toward the living room. As she approached the room, she could hear her parents talking. A peek around the corner showed them sitting on the couch facing each other, talking in hushed voices. Sucking in a deep breath, Jemma stepped out into the doorframe. As she did so, Bobbi and Hunter turned toward her and stood up.
"Jemma," murmured Bobbi as she walked toward them. "Are you feeling better?"
She nodded, clasping her hands nervously in front of her. "I'm sorry about earlier," she murmured, her eyes flitting back and forth between her parents. "And I want to talk with you about…this."
Her parents smiled as she gestured vaguely to them all. Jemma blushed a little. "Um, where can we start?"
Bobbi smiled and sat back down on the couch, patting the cushion beside her for Jemma to sit. "How about the beginning?"
"As soon as they touched the stone, you vanished with them. As soon as it happened, I called Mack and told him everything. Since then, he's done all he can to help me try and figure out what happened. We couldn't exactly go to SHIELD for help or file a missing child report due to the circumstances of it all," Bobbi told her. "I've never stopped searching though, no matter how hopeless things looked. After I heard your name and saw you at Hydra, I started to get suspicious, especially after I found out the stone that took you from me could be used for time travel. Once we got back, I did a DNA test, and you were…you were my daughter."
Jemma blinked and took a deep breath. She was still getting used to seeing the two people sitting on either side of her as her parents, but Bobbi's explanation was helping her with the adjustment.
"How old am I supposed to be?" she asked, curious to know how old she was supposed to be.
"Four years old," replied Bobbi, both to Jemma and her father. "You were born on May 2, 2010."
"I'm supposed to be four?" Jemma bit her lip. "Wow."
Beside her, Hunter cleared his throat.
"I know that you're grown up now," he told her gently. "But if you want, we want to try to be a family. To try and be your parents."
Jemma smiled at him and nodded. "I think I'd like that."
Then, she leaned forward and wrapped her arms around him. He returned her embrace immediately. After a moment, her mother's arms circled around them both. Jemma sighed happily as she relaxed in the embrace of her parents. She now understood why Bobbi had been so concerned for her, and why Hunter asked so many questions about her. It was because her mother had lost her before, and her father had never gotten to know her.
Although it was definitely going to take a little time to get used to, Jemma knew it would work out in the end.
So that concludes YOU ALMOST SHOT OUR DAUGHTER. Now, do you guys want me to do a series of one-shots about this odd little family? Because I'm happy to. I just need prompts and a suggestion for the title. If you guys have anything for either of those, please do tell me/PM me!
Please review!