Summary: A year after the Civil War, the team go to visit the Circus of Crime while unaware of how it links into Clint's dark past. Clint is trying to keep his past a secret, when he sees two sisters who he thought died six years ago. Clint/OC, Bucky/OC. Co - Written with Lannister418. Rated M for graphic violence, language and eventual sexual scenes.
Echoes Of The Past
Chapter 1
Today's weather appeared to be sunny with a light breeze in the air, as Clint Barton went for his regular morning run with Steve, Sam, Bucky and Rhodey, and Scott Lang who had joined the Avengers as a result of the Avengers Civil War. Right now, he was going to have a shower and then have something to eat before going to meet Fury and the rest of the team about their latest mission. The Sokovian Accords were still in effect, but Bucky had been found innocent of all charges and no longer had any trigger words thanks to Wanda Maximoff and King T'Challa.
He stepped into the shower quietly and hummed a song in Romanian to himself, while he washed under the soothing hot water. He'd had a rough night's sleep, and had ended up being at the shooting range up until 3: AM, this morning.
Still, at least he hadn't had any nightmares.
"I have never loved myself." Clint sang quietly, he rinsed his face free of the soap and started washing his body with none of the girly body wash and his mind drifted to the face of a beautiful redhead with a happy smile.
"But you, oh god." The man continued to sing, his eyes straying to the tattoo that was on his upper right arm of a black hawk with its wings spread out in flight. He'd had that tattoo for over six years, and had gotten it after a job in Budapest.
"I loved you so much." He sang quietly, his eyes stinging slightly and he gripped the shower head tightly in his hands, before releasing it. He continued the song and didn't care if anyone heard him, this was his way of remembering the two women.
"I forgot how lonely, and unfair life could be." He finished and started washing his short, dark blonde hair and rinsing it with the hot water. He missed them so much, it hurt and he wondered if they were happy wherever they were.
Clint was agonistic about religion, but the two sisters were devoted Catholics and he had respected that about them.
Half an hour later, after putting on clean clothes and underwear; he grabbed his bow and went to join the rest of the team in the conference room for a debriefing on their latest mission which seemed to be important to Fury. Clint walked into the room and sat down beside Natasha, she was sitting next to Steve, and Bucky sat beside him. The three offered him smiles, and he smiled back, before seeing Wanda smile at him from where she sat next to Pietro and Vision.
"So, what's the mission?" Steve asked curiously, Fury glanced at him and nodded at Maria Hill who pulled up a file of a circus.
"There have been reports by an unknown source, that the Circus of Crime is suspected of using unregistered Gifteds to carry out crimes. We have no idea who they are, but the source has stated that the two sisters are artistic Gymnasts who perform in the Circus of Crime." Fury said gravely, and Clint stiffened at the mention of the circus where he'd spent half of his childhood at.
"So you want us to go search for these two Gifteds, who work at the circus?" Natasha asked finally, Fury nodded and handed them all tickets to the circus and paused before looking at the team.
"They're also immensely skilled in pick - pocketing and conning people, these siblings are highly dangerous. Which makes them valuable to SHIELD and unfortunately to HYDRA as well, and we do not want the Home Secretary or Agent Robert Gonzales getting their hands on these two." The director said seriously.
Knowing Thaddeus Ross and his opinion on Enhanced, Inhumans, and Gifteds due to seeing the destruction that the Abomination had caused in Harlem seven years ago. Clint knew that if Vivian and Viktoriia were the Gifteds, and caught by either Ross or Gonzales, it wouldn't end well for the twin sisters.
"Do we have any recent photos of the twins, know what they look like?" Steve asked finally, Fury nodded and Maria uploaded two photos of the twin sisters who had red hair and bright, mesmerising green eyes.
"Their names are Vivian Lavinia Novikov Iordache and Viktoriia Larisa Novikov Iordache, they lived in Constanţa, Constanţa County, and Dobruja, Romania up until they were thirteen years old. Their parents were Adrian Iordache a man who worked as a carpenter and a member of the Romani, while his wife Marianna was Sokovian Romani and worked as a midwife." Maria read quickly from her Stark tablet, that Tony had given each member of the team.
"Where are they now?" Bucky asked finally, he was feeling more like himself now that T'Challa and his scientists with help from Wanda had removed the HYDRA trigger words from his mind.
"Adrian died in a fire when the sisters were ten years old, their mother remarried a man called Viktor Fyodorov who was a Russian soldier and they lived in Moscow, Oblast. Their mother went missing in Romania, Transylvania while doing mid - wife aid work after flooding affected the area." Maria finished and the team exchanged looks, while Pietro and Wanda looked at each other silently.
Pietro nodded at her silently, and they both hoped that this information wasn't false. And judging from the look on Clint's face, these two twin sisters seemed to mean a lot to him deeply.
It was late afternoon when the team arrived at the park where the Circus of Crime was performing for three days, before they would move on. Clint looked around at the tents, game arcade and the rides that the civilians were riding on excitedly, unaware of the circus's dark history.
"There's the tent where the twins are going to perform, seems that this is their last performance before they leave the circus on Saturday." Natasha said quietly, Tony had already won some prizes and Pepper now had a stuffed dark brown teddy bear. Wanda had gotten a black teddy bear, which Pietro had won her while Sam was indulging on some cotton candy with Scott, Sharon, Cassie and Hope, Rhodey was taking photos of the scenery.
Bucky and Steve seemed to be enjoying themselves, no one had seen them this happy since being reunited at Tony's welcome back party.
"Alright, let's go in and find these women." Steve said calmly, they all nodded and entered the tent before sitting down in the back of the stage and Clint surveyed the scene silently.
What if Viv and Vika were alive? What if they weren't happy to find out that he no longer worked as a mercenary, but as an Avenger? Clint knew Viv and Vika were nomads, they didn't live in one area for long unless they had to. He knew that they were powerful.
"The show's starting!" Pietro said excitedly, they all saw two young women with dark red hair coming onto the stage. They were both dressed in sequinned leotards, but were different colours.
"Ladies and gentlemen! We warmly present Valentina and Valeriya the Floating Princesses of the Air!" The ringmaster shouted pleased, and the crowd went wild for them next to Clint who had gone into a state of shock.
Viv and Vika were alive...they weren't dead.
"Pietro! Is it them? It can't be, can it?" Wanda asked shocked, but also hopeful as they watched the twin redhead perform on the uneven bars as the crowd cheered loudly in the tent.
"It's them, little sister. It's them and they're alive," Pietro said shocked, but also deeply delighted as they clapped loudly in the stands.
Once the performance had finished for the night, which included the two sisters using their powers which consisted of creating a flurry of stars in the centre of the stage. Then they had showed off their dance routines, which had deeply pleased Natasha and caused Bucky to cheer in Romanian, when he'd heard them singing in Romanian.
Clint was completely fixated on Viv, it was like he was seeing her for the first time again. Only this time they were in New York, and not in Budapest. God, it had been that long since he had last seen her and now she was here along with Viv.
"Let's follow them, and then we'll question them without scaring either of them." Steve said seriously, and the team nodded as they found the two sisters taking off their stage make - up.
"Didn't think I'd see you two here, Viv and Vika." Clint said quietly, causing the two of them to stiffen before Vika looked up at him.
"Clint!" She said overjoyed and before Viv could stop her younger twin sister, the young woman had enveloped Clint into a tight, warm hug.
"Fratele meu, Clint." Vika whispered softly.
Republic of Sokovia. The City of Novi Grad. May 2007
"Vika! Quickly!" Viv pleaded.
Simeon cried and squirmed in her arms as she crouched under one of the stone arcades around Djeordjevic Square. Vika was still huddled beside the fountain in the centre of the square beside an overturned fruit barrow, unsure how long this lull in the bombardment would last.
On any other day, the square lay at the heart of the city's tourist industry; boutique shops and family-run restaurants surrounding an 'authentic Sokovian peasant market'. This afternoon, terrified locals crouched beneath the 18th century stone arches, seeking some shelter from the relentless shelling.
The Serbian army had crossed the border less than an hour ago; their fast, new, armoured vehicles quickly bringing them within range of the tiny republic's capital city.
Vika summoned up her courage and dashed across the square to join her sister as the shelling began again. One hit the fountain directly, sending the equestrian statue of Prince Goran crashing to the cobbles. On the far side of the square, one of the city's distinctive vintage blue and gold tram cars exploded into flames. The two sisters held each other tight, instinctively sheltering the screaming child from the smoke and the dust.
This was like some terrible nightmare. only a couple of hours before they'd been strolling down Drvo Trešnje Street, buying peaches and coffee and enjoying the late spring sunshine; wondering what to do with the bundle of Euros that the German businessman had been so careless as to drop into Vika's bag when they bumped into each other at the station.
"Viv, what are we going to do?" Vika's voice shook with fright. "It isn't safe here."
"St Sophia's." Viv said emphatically after a moment's thought. "They won't shell that."
The ancient cathedral had survived earthquake, war, invasion and revolution since the 12th Century; it was inconceivable it could not survive this terror. Hundreds had already crowded inside, some hoping for the protection of the ancient stone vaults, others seeking comfort in the presence of the Holy Mother and the saints. The dim interior was heave with the sweet smell of incense, icons glowing in the light of candles and oil lamps. Sobs and muttered prayers mingled with the rumble of the falling shells.
In front of the gilded iconostasis before the altar, Orthodox priests in their richly embroidered robes swung censer while chanting a hymn of intercession to the Virgin Mary dating back to the days of old Byzantium
"To thee O Mother of God, victorious leader of triumphant hosts
We, thy people delivered from evil, sing our grateful thanks
But, since thou possesses invincible might, set us free from all disaster
That we may cry unto thee; Hail! O Bride without Bridegroom…"
Viv held Simeon close in her arms, rocking him gently, murmuring equally ancient Romani prayers and blessings against his head to keep him safe and peaceful. Beside her she could hear Vika, repeatedly crossing herself and bowing her head to the floor, whispering over and over again.
"Most Holy Mother of God, save us!"
The first shell to strike the cathedral hit the north-east tower, causing it to fall inwards against the great central dome; sending a shower of masonry and plaster onto the heads of those below. Viv and Vika scrambled to their feet as people began to stampede to the doors. The second made a direct hit on the great central dome, splitting it wide open. The chain of the great brass chandelier broke free and it crashed down into the panicking crowd.
Vika felt a hot blast of air on the back of her head and something cut her hand as the windows on the south side all exploded in at once. Viv grabbed her round the waist and held tight as the crowd carried them out into the dust-filled daylight, stumbling towards the relative safety of the Novi Grad Hilton on the far side of Cathedral Square.
Viv heard Vika's anguished cry.
"Viv… Oh God… Oh Holy Mother of God…"
Simeon lay in her arms, silent and unmoving, his head covered in blood.
New York, The Present Day:
"I thought you were dead." Clint's voice still shook with disbelief as he hugged the sisters. "I thought you were both dead."
"We thought you were dead too." Vivian said, taking his face in her hands and kissing him again. "We heard they shot you in Pakistan."
The other Avengers hung back a bit, not sure what to make of this strange encounter. An unusual mission had become ever weirder by what seemed like a very intriguing chapter of Hawkeye's past. The archer spoke little about himself normally, virtually nothing of what he had been or done before SHIELD, so this could prove very interesting.
Only Natasha knew what these two women meant to her friend; they were the reason he remembered Budapest very differently. Vivian and Viktoriia Iordache were the only people who could bring the light of human warmth and tenderness into the eyes of the man the Red Room called Grey Hunter and the rest of the intelligence community knew as Ronin.
Tony Stark observed them speculatively, recalling a pair of stunning redheads who had offered to show him the 'real Novi Grad', a cultural experience that somehow lost him $10,000 and a gold watch in the course of an afternoon.
As Clint continued to embrace Viv, Vika suddenly saw the two young Sokovians grinning eagerly at them.
"Pietro? Wanda?" She rushed over and threw her arms around them both.
"Wanda, you look beautiful! And Pietro…" She smiled winsomely at the handsome, muscular, young man he'd grown into. "…How many hearts have you broken today?"
"Not as many as you, Tetka Vika." He smiled, kissing her on both cheeks. "You are still the most beautiful."
"Your parents…?" Sokovians rarely had to finish these questions, the twins shook their heads sadly.
"Lord have mercy." Vika crossed herself. "They were good people."
Wanda grasped her hand eagerly
"Where is Simeon?" She asked. "He must be almost eight now."
Her face fell when she saw Vika's expression. The older woman slipped back into Sokovian, this was something Clint should only hear from Viv if she wanted to tell him.
"He died… when they shelled the cathedral."
Clint had felt Viv stiffen in his arms when Wanda mentioned the name Simeon. He looked her in the eye and saw the grief welling up there. He didn't know much Sokovian, technically it was a dialect of Serbian; but so full of Hungarian, Romanian and Turkish slang and loan words as to be virtually unintelligible to anyone but a native speaker. He did recognize 'umri', died, and 'Katadrala', cathedral.
"Viv… sweetheart?" He asked quietly. "What's the matter?"
Viv swallowed hard and took his hand.
"Come outside with me, my Hawk." She said quietly. "You must know something."
Bucky pulled up a chair for the clearly distressed Vika.
"Here, Madam Valeriya, please sit." He said gently. Natasha stepped forward for the first time.
"Vika, who was Simeon?" she asked. Vika looked up, recognizing Clint's old friend from Budapest.
"He was Vivian's son." Vika told her. "When the shelling started, we took refuge in the Cathedral… we thought we would be safe… that…"
She began to cry again, remembering the sudden horror and panic of that sunny spring afternoon. Tony couldn't meet the gaze of the others. Sokovia was his albatross, the constant reminder of the blood his fortune was soaked in. The indiscriminate shelling of Novi Grad had been a humanitarian disaster, a war crime. He might not have given the order, but it had been the shells and missiles he sold which pounded that lovely little city and the lives of its inhabitants into ruins.
"He was such a lovely little boy." Wanda said to Natasha as she sat with her arm around the weeping Vika. "Such bright beautiful grey eyes."
Natasha looked up at Steve, seeing her own shocked realisation reflected in his eyes.
"Oh God!" Tony moaned quietly as they heard Clint's animal-like howl of anguish.
We hope you enjoy the first chapter. Enjoy and review :)