Notes: I don't even know where this came from. This is the first thing I've written in a long time. I'm trying to ease my way back in to fic writing, so this is probably not the best thing I've ever written, and I apologize. I guess you could call this a character study. It turned a little angsty on me. Also, in my headcanon, Clint feels inferior, but I feel like he's much more intelligent than he gives himself credit for. Unbeta'd.
Steve Rogers can empathize with Dorothy Gale. She's a little bit lost, a little bit scared. All she wants is to be able to go home. Dorothy just has to click her heels three times, reciting "There's no place like home," and there she is, back in Kansas with her family. Steve can't do that. Steve is stuck here, and no matter how many times he wishes he could go back, he can't.
Clint Barton feels like the Scarecrow at times. When he talks to Bruce or Tony, he feels like an idiot. Not all the time, of course, but whenever Bruce talks about gamma rays or Tony starts up about repulsor beams, it's like Clint's brain just checks out. Sometimes he feels like the stupidest member of the team.
Tony Stark sometimes wishes he didn't have a heart. The Tinman didn't know how good he had it before going to see the Wizard. Without a heart, you don't have to worry about feelings. You don't care about other people. You can't feel rejection or pain. You don't get hurt when you can't feel.
Bruce Banner understands where the Cowardly Lion is coming from. Sometimes he is afraid of himself, of what he can do. It's not cowardice exactly; if you asked anyone on the team, they would tell you that Bruce is as brave as the rest of them. But Bruce is not like the rest of them. Bruce has a monster inside of him, and sometimes, that terrifies him.