A/N: So… This idea distracted me to a point where I was unable to type another project. (chuckles) This is my very own, quite painful version of what may end the Civil War. I, of course, hope from the bottom of my heart that it doesn't go to this! But I'm preparing myself for everything. It'll be painful to see our beloved team fighting against each other!
WARNINGS: MAJOR CHARACTER DEATH, some language (sorry Steve…!), blood, violence… Oh boy, what a list…!
DISCLAIMER: YEAH RIGHT! If I did own anything I wouldn't have the heart to make the team fight against each other. But my bank account seriously isn't fat enough…!
Awkay, the clock is ticking mercilessly. So let's go! I REALLY hope that you'll enjoy the ride.
TISSUE ALERT…?
And the Battle Ends
This is the second time they're in this exact same situation. Only the previous time their positions were reversed. On that day Clint Barton made the call to forget about his mission and save a life instead. He looked into those troubled eyes and saw a shimmer of hope. There wasn't a second afterwards when he would've regretted his decision. He feels no regret even now, as Natasha Romanoff towers above him with a grim, unreadable expression on her face. He feels no fear, either, even if she's frozen less than an inch from killing him. Time seems to have stopped as they stare at each other, breathing hard.
"Shit", Natasha spits out at last. The most accurate word to sum up the whole situation at hand, actually. She's exhausted, frustrated, furious and sad all at once, Clint can tell although she conceals all emotions to near perfection.
"Yeah", Clint murmurs back, sharing her feelings from the bottom of his hammering, aching heart.
And then, as though things hadn't already been twisted enough, he hears Bucky's voice through his ear comm. "Cap, I've got a clear shot to Widow. Do I have the permission to fire?"
Clint's heart seems to still at those words. He shivers and locks eyes with Natasha who is frowning, obviously unable to catch what he just did. Suspicious yet unaware of the danger.
"Cap, I need your answer now, the situation is critical!"
Clint hears a lot of fighting. Which is followed by a few endless moments of suffocating silence. And then comes Steve's verdict, choked and quiet. "Permission granted."
Clint's head spins as he considers his options, only to realize that he has none. Natasha emits a cry of surprise when his leg sweeps with skill expected of a former circus acrobat, rendering her harmless. He then flips them so that she's on the ground and places himself above her, shielding her.
Clint still doesn't regret even if he knows that this is the last thing he'll ever do.
The bullet hits with the force of a truck, or so it feels to Clint. He gasps barely audibly and blinks once, twice. He hears a lot of commotion through his ear comm but can't bring himself to focus on any of it. It feels like the whole world is slipping away from him and knows what it means. It doesn't scare him, not with how often he's come so very close to that edge.
A new frown finds its way to Natasha's face as she begins to realize that he didn't move to kill her. She searches his eyes. "Clint?"
Clint tries to smile. He isn't sure if it comes out right. "Promised… to have your back… didn't I?" Then he's falling and knows that he won't be getting up again.
How long had the insane, heart wrenching war been going on again? Weeks? Months? It feels like years to them. It's bitterly amusing that it takes only three words from Bucky, followed by a cry of surprise from Natasha, to bring a halt to it all.
"Hawkeye's down."
Steve and Tony are so consumed by their battle that it takes longer than it should've before the horrific news register to them. When it happens they freeze, badly battered and bruised, staring at each other with wide eyes. Everything stops. The battle ground becomes deadly quiet.
Just like at the end of every war since the dawn of time the only things left behind were blood and silence.
Natasha catches Clint as he falls. Instinctively, without a second of hesitation. She almost lays him down until she finally sees where the wound is. Logically she knows that the bullet hole on his back is bleeding too heavily but that doesn't stop her. She presses hard against it, trying to ignore how he shudders from pain.
"What did you do?" she snaps. Her voice sounds oddly hoarse. She doesn't care. "That bullet was for me, you idiot."
Clint emits a strange, wheezing noise. It's impossible to tell if it's a chuckle or a moan of agony. Perhaps both. When he speaks his quiet voice doesn't sound bitter but immensely sad. "I guess I was… the only one who… didn't choose a side." He's not trembling anymore.
Natasha feels like someone had plunged a knife through her heart. She tightens her hold on him, presses more firmly against the wound even though her fingers are already slick with his blood. Even though she knows, deep down, that it's already too late. He's bleeding too heavily. "You and your hero complex", she murmurs because the words she really wants to say refuse to come out. She tries to hold on to him although she feels, with every fiber of her being, that he's slipping away. Her eyes narrow against the hellish stinging sensation filling them.
Clint holds back, the best as he still can. Stubborn to the last. He keeps slumping more and more heavily against her. "Laura… The kids…"
He just made a different call for her for the second time. He always gambled big. This time he lost. There was still so much red on her ledger. This time his blood is literally on her hands. How is she supposed to even begin to try and repay it? How is she ever going to make this up to his family?
Steve's voice, strained and full emotions, comes from behind her. So unexpectedly that she tenses up and tightens her embrace on Clint even when it's hopelessly too late to protect him. How did the soldier make it so close to her without her noticing? "We'll keep them safe", the Captain swears. She doesn't need to see his face to know that he means those words from the bottom of his heart.
"We all will", Tony promises uncharacteristically quietly.
This is the first time in ages those two men reach an agreement. The realization fills Natasha with bitterness. So this was what it took…?
Clint relaxes in her arms. As though gaining peace already. His head falls against her shoulder. "Tasha…" She never finds out what he wanted to tell her. Because the feeble breath she'd felt against her neck fades away entirely and all will leaves his muscles. He fades away without making a sound. Disappears from her desperate grasp, leaving behind nothing but an empty shell. Still she can't make herself let go.
It starts to rain. Natasha is glad. She doesn't want the others to see the different kind of moisture on her cheeks.
Slowly and silently the others join the four of them. No one knows how long passes by before Nick Fury also appears. "Are you finally done?" The man doesn't even try to hide his anger and disappointment. "Is this enough?"
Laura Barton doesn't know all details of the Civil War. But Clint had told her enough to suggest that she shouldn't trust anyone.
When Natasha shows up at her door she tenses up and frowns. Prepares herself to protect her children if she must. Cold speeds through her veins. "Natasha?"
The redhead's eyes tell her everything long before a single word falls.
When Cooper stumbles upon the sight a few moments later he freezes, his eyes widening. In a few short moments his biggest fear, the one that had kept him awake on several nights, becomes reality. Tears start to fall without him noticing.
His mom's back is towards him and he can't quite see Natasha's face from where he stands. But he sees the way the redhead's hands tremble when she offers a much too familiar set of bow and arrows. And Cooper knows, far too clearly, that his dad is never coming home again.
Tony and Steve are horribly quiet as they stare at Clint's body on a slab. The archer appears calm and at peace. As though the man knew that the war was over.
"In the beginning… It wasn't only Loki's Scepter that created tension among the team." Fury's eyes are darker than usual as they look at his deceased agent. It seems like the man is grieving. "I'm pretty sure that Loki knew it. That's why he seemed so triumphant. You were no team and you were no match against his army as individuals. But then… Then something happened and it wasn't only Coulson." Fury sighs, bowing his head for a few seconds before glaring at both still living men. "Barton made your group a team. He was a daily reminder of what you're supposed to be fighting for."
Tony swallows thickly, his shoulders slumping. For a while the billionaire's eyes shimmer suspiciously. "He… He wasn't supposed to…"
"That's the problem with wars. Collateral damage happens every single time. Good people are lost." A sharp pair of eyes is darted at Steve. "You, of all people, should know."
Steve shudders like he was the one who got shot. The soldier's face blanch and tighten to a painful extend. After a few seconds the Captain rubs his face roughly with one hand. "So… Now what do we do?"
"We prove that he didn't die in vain", Tony murmurs, a single tear escaping. The inventor and Steve lock eyes. For the first time in what feels like ages there's no threat of violence. "We… We face the consequences of our actions. And then… Then we try to fix this hell of a mess. Together?"
Steve nods slowly. Unable to take his haunted, pained eyes off of their friend's body. "Together."
It wasn't forgiveness. Things would never, ever be the same again, not after everything the horrific war had damaged and stolen away. And they'd never, ever forgive themselves for this. But for Clint's sake they'd have to try and make this the start of something.
Two months crawl by. Two months of grief, sorrow, accusations, self-loathing, guilt and slow, incredibly painful recovery. One season changes to another.
Natasha, Steve and Tony stand at Clint's grave. None of them speaks. What good would words do, anyway?
Tomorrow, following weeks of therapy sessions and evaluations, they're supposed to start working together again. No proper missions yet, just training. They have no idea if they'll be able to handle it. But for Clint's sake they have to try. After his sacrifice they owe him at least that much.
They exchange looks. "So…" Steve sounds hoarse. "Ready?"
Tony and Natasha nod. Their eyes are once more glued on the tombstone. "Ready."
The Avengers as they started had been destroyed. But perhaps they now had a second chance. That was Clint's legacy and they'd be damned if they didn't cherish it.
Two pairs of eyes observe the display.
"Did you know they got matching arrow tattoos? Who am I kidding, of course you know." Maria Hill glances to side when Nick Fury begins to walk away. Her eyebrows furrow. "Are you alright?"
"I'm always alright." Fury's tone isn't exactly convincing. "But I need a vacation. Maybe Tahiti."
End of story.
A/N: Gosh! The poor team – poor, poor Barton family! (sighs)
Sooo… Was that any good, at all? Garbage material? Please, do leave a note to let me know! I'd LOVE to hear from you.
Awkay, I've REALLY gotta go. Thank you SO MUCH for reading! Maybe I'll see you again…?
Take care!