hey everyone I have a new one shot for you! BIG thanks to nonyvole and RedBessRackham at the Beta Branch for editing this for me.
Rating: T for violence and semi-graphic medical procedures
Characters: Steve and Clint mainly but features everyone
Pairings: none really but slight hints of Clintasha
Disclaimer: don't own anything, don't claim to.
Reviews are magical and please ENJOY! Ps I am kind of pushing it on some of the medical facts but nothing too unrealistic. you may just need to suspend belief a bit. Anyway enough of my babbling, on with the story!
"Cap, behind you!" Clint yelled. The captain whirled around just in time to take out the guy who was sneaking up on him.
"Thanks for the heads up. Now how do you suppose we get out of this mess?" Steve asked as he went back-to-back with the archer for a stronger defense.
"I have no idea. Figures the first mission I get in two weeks would turn out to be a trap." Clint huffed as he launched another arrow.
"Not to mention we're in the middle of the Canadian wilderness during the height of winter. It's snowing so much I can hardly see a thing!" The captain added as he slammed his shield into another man's face. Clint suddenly remembered that he had one flash arrow head left. He quickly pulled it out of his quiver and loaded it into his bow.
"Cap, close your eyes!" the archer commanded. He let the arrow fly into the direction the men were coming from then quickly shielded his eyes from the blinding light that followed.
"That won't keep them down for long. We need to get out of here." Steve said. Clint nodded then the two Avengers began running deep into the forest.
"You know, I'm really starting to get tired of all these trap missions the Avengers are getting sent on." Clint groaned as they moved quickly through the snow.
"I know. If I didn't know better, I would say that Fury's trying to get rid of us." The captain replied with a slight chuckle.
"Who knows, he probably-" the archer was cut off by the heavy rain of gunfire that suddenly came upon them. The pair split up and each took cover behind a tree. The captain whipped out his gun and began shooting aimlessly into the gunfire. Clint loaded an arrow into his bow and was about to shoot it when a bullet flew into his right leg. He screamed in pain as he fell to the ground.
"Clint!" Steve yelled as he started to run towards his friend.
"Cap, get down now!" Clint ordered with pain evident in his voice. When he saw that the captain had reluctantly obeyed, he took out a grenade from his pocket, pulled the pin, and then threw it into the forest. A large explosion sounded a second later and the gunfire stopped. Once the coast was clear, Steve didn't hesitate to rush over to his fallen teammate.
"How bad is it?" He asked.
"Bullet went through upper thigh. I think it nicked the bone." The archer replied painfully.
"It's bleeding pretty badly." The captain observed. He took off the top of his Captain America uniform and removed his undershirt before putting back on.
"Cap, it's like ten degrees below zero out here." Clint argued.
"I spent seventy years buried in solid ice. This is nothing." Steve said with a reassuring smile. He wrapped the shirt around Clint's leg and tied it as tightly as he could.
"Thanks, now we need to get moving."
"I don't think you'll get very far on that leg." Steve argued.
"What choice do we have? The explosion won't keep them away forever, and they've obviously been given the green light to kill us now." The archer pointed out. Steve sighed.
"Alright, you can put your arm around my shoulder and I'll help you along." The captain said as he slung his shield over his back. He grabbed Clint's hands and slowly helped him up. The archer let out an anguished cry when he put the slightest weight on his leg and would have collapsed if Steve hadn't been holding him up.
"Are you sure you can do this?" the captain asked.
"I don't have a choice. Now come on." Clint said through gritted teeth. The two then began staggering through the dark Canadian forest.
Clint was obviously trying to hide his pain, but Steve could easily tell his friend was suffering. He was breathing as if he had just run a marathon, and he was sweating despite the immensely cold weather. The captain was also worried about the amount of blood the archer was losing. His makeshift bandage did little to staunch the wound, and his once blue shirt was already dyed a deep crimson-purple.
"Clint, you can't go on like this." Steve stated.
"I'll be fine. We can't stop now, Cap. They'll catch us." The archer replied stubbornly wiping snow off of his face.
"Not in this weather they won't." the captain pointed out. The weather had escalated into an all-out blizzard now, which was making it hard to see even a foot in front of them. They stumbled aimlessly though the woods, desperate to find any kind of shelter. Suddenly, by the grace of some higher being (maybe Thor's dad), they came across a cave.
"We can camp out here for a while. Face it, Clint, we're not getting anywhere in this snow storm, and you look you're going to pass out any second." Steve said. Clint sighed, knowing the captain was right. After making sure there were no wild animals already occupying the cave, Steve led Clint inside and gently laid him down against the wall.
"I'm going to go see if I can scavenge anything from outside to help build a fire." The captain announced.
"Good luck with that." Clint snorted.
"Just try to stay awake, soldier, because I refuse to be the one to tell the Black Widow that her partner died on my watch." Steve ordered.
"Aye, aye, Captain." The archer replied giving a mock salute. Steve saluted back then made his way out of the cave and into the dark woods. After what seemed like forever, he was finally able to find some twigs and brush that would hopefully be enough to get a fire started. He also picked up a few logs that weren't totally saturated in snow then returned to the cave.
"Alright, now any ideas as to how we're supposed to get this fire started?" Steve asked as he used his hands to scrape away some of the dirt on the floor to form a crater. Clint painfully shifted to where he was facing the fire pit Steve had made then took an arrow out of his quiver.
"Place some of the twigs and brush in the center. Put a log in there too." He instructed. When he was done, Clint motioned for the captain to get back. Once Steve was out of the way, the archer flipped a little switch on the arrow head and put it in the pit then quickly scooted back. A couple of seconds later the arrow burst into flames and caught the wood on fire.
"Nice work. Now I probably should get a better look at that leg." Steve said as he moved beside the archer. He carefully began to untie the shirt but almost stopped because of the frightening amount of blood coming out of the wound.
"I'm no doctor, but I'm guessing that's not healthy." Clint said with a pained sigh.
"No, it's not." Steve replied. He now began to notice how pale the archer was getting. He knew he needed to do something, but his options were limited considering they were inside a cave in the middle of a dark forest during a huge blizzard. "Okay, so what kind of tools do you have on you?" The captain asked, knowing the assassin always carried more instruments than should be possible on his body. Clint took out several knives of various shapes and sizes (including a giant Swiss Army knife) along with four hand grenades, three pistols, two tasers, and a can of pepper spray.
"I doubt any of this stuff will help keep me from bleeding out. Any other ideas?" Clint inquired lightly. Steve bit his lip.
"There is one thing I learned how to do back in the forties, but it's kinda risky."
"What is it?"
"It's called cauterizing." The captain said, causing Clint's eyes to widen a bit. "I take it you know what that is?"
"More than I'd like to. I've never needed it, but I saw Natasha get cauterized once." The archer explained with a slight shiver.
"It's definitely not the most pleasant experience, but it's not like we have a ton of options." Steve pointed out gently. Clint sighed.
"I know. Just do what you gotta do, Cap." He relented.
"Okay, I'm going to need one of your arrows. Preferably one that won't explode in my face." The captain said with a small smirk. Clint nodded and handed Steve a normal arrow from his quiver.
"So how did you learn how to cauterize?" The archer asked as he watched the super soldier put the arrow head into the burning fire.
"Well, during the war, Colonel Philips thought it would be a good idea for me to learn first aid. Not so much for me, of course, but for the rest of my team."
"Did you ever have to do it?"
"No, but I've practiced enough to where I know what I'm doing. I won't burn your leg off or anything."
"Good to know." Clint said with forced calmness. The cave remained silent for a minute, then Steve suddenly paled.
"Crap."
"What's wrong?" Clint asked urgently.
"The bullet didn't go straight through, did it?"
"No, it didn't." Clint cursed under his breath, "I think it got stuck near the bone."
The captain scrubbed his hand over his face. "The bullet has to be removed before I can cauterize the wound."
"Perfect," Clint muttered. He had to call on all of his years of being a top agent to avoid freaking out.
"Okay, don't panic. We'll figure this out." Steve said, more to himself than to the archer. He took a deep breath and went into full Captain America mode. He picked up his shield and stood up.
"Where are you going?" Clint questioned.
"I'll be right back. I'm going to put this blizzard to good use." The captain replied as he exited the cave. He came back a minute later with his shield filled with snow.
"Now what?" The archer asked as Steve kneeled beside him.
"Now, I'm going to use this snow to clean the wound the best I can." The captain replied then used one of Clint's knives to cut away the fabric around the wound. He then scooped up some of the snow and slathered it on Clint's leg. The archer tensed up immediately, but soon the cold of the snow began to numb the injury, so he allowed himself to relax a bit.
"What's next, Dr. Rogers?" Clint inquired when he had finished.
"I need your Swiss Army knife and your small boot knife." Steve said. The archer handed them over, and the captain cleaned them with some of the remaining snow. He opened the Swiss Army knife to the pliers and rubbed them with snow as well.
"Alright, Clint, now take off your belt and get ready to bite down on it." Steve instructed. As Clint obeyed, he tried to hide his nervousness. The captain put a comforting hand on his shoulder. "You're going to be okay, Clint. I'll make sure of it." He promised.
"I trust ya, Cap. Don't make me regret that." The archer said then put his belt between his teeth. Steve took off his gloves and washed his hands in snow. He picked up the Swiss Army pliers and boot knife then positioned himself over Clint. He gave the archer an assuring, yet apologetic glance then got straight to work. He first used the boot knife to cut the wound open a little more and used his free hand to hold it open. As he searched for the bullet, Steve did his best to tune out Clint's muffled screams. He hated causing one of his closest friends so much pain, but he knew it needed to be done. After what seemed like hours, he found the bullet and used the pliers to extract it. Once the bullet was out, he put some more snow on the wound and retrieved the now extremely hot arrow from the fire.
"Hang in there, Clint. Almost done." Steve encouraged, pretending for the archer's sake he didn't notice the hot tears streaming down his face. The wound was bleeding heavier than ever, so Steve wasted no more time. He pressed the burning arrow onto Clint's leg and held it there for two seconds before lifting it up. He repeated the process several times until blood was no longer pouring out of the wound. By then, Clint had passed out from a combination of the overwhelming pain and blood loss.
Steve sighed as he leaned against the cave wall. After what he had just gone through, the captain was glad he wasn't a doctor. How did Bruce do it? He thought of the many times the doctor tended to the team's wounds after a battle and decided that if they ever made it home, he was going to give him a medal or something. But for now, Steve had other things he needed to do. First, he covered Clint's leg with snow and did his best to clean the bloody tools. He then put another log into the fire before taking his blood-drenched undershirt and his shield outside. It was still snowing heavily, but not as much as it had been before. He dumped the rest of the snow out of his shield then knelt down near some rocks. He used them along with the ample amount of snow to clean the shirt up a bit. The amount of blood that he wrung out of it was repulsing, which made the captain glad he didn't have a weak stomach. Once the shirt was as clean as it was going to get, he grabbed his shield and returned to the cave. He spread the shirt out on his shield then put it near the fire to dry. Now that everything was finally taken care of, Steve sat down next to the blissfully unconscious Clint and allowed sleep to take him.
Steve woke up the next morning stiff as a board. He stood up on his wobbly legs then went outside to stretch. It was still snowing lightly, but the sun had at least come out. When the captain returned to the cave, he saw that the fire had gone out. He contemplated restarting it, but figured that he and Clint needed to get moving again.
"Time to wake up, Clint." Steve announced as he moved to check the archer's leg. The wound had stopped bleeding, but it was really red and was starting to swell. There was even a foul, yellowish-white discharge coming out of it. The captain looked up and saw that the archer still hadn't woken up. He felt his forehead and his heart dropped even more when he felt how hot Clint was. Infection. He shouldn't be surprised, really. After all, the procedure he did wasn't exactly sterile, and he could do very little to clean the wound. He retrieved his now dry undershirt and retied it around the archer's leg.
"Clint, you have to wake up. We need to get you out of here." Steve said almost pleadingly, giving the archer's shoulder a good shake. For a frightening second, nothing happened. Then, Clint stirred and a moan escaped his lips.
"St've?" He slurred.
"Yeah, buddy, it's me. We need to get going."
"Leg hurts."
"I'm sure it does, but we can't stay here. You need real medical attention." Steve pressed.
"Don't think I can move." The archer groaned.
"I'll help you. Now let's get moving." The captain gathered the rest of Clint's weapons while the archer retrieved his bow and quiver. Steve then slung his shield over his back and got ready to help the injured Avenger. "Ready?"
"As I'll ever be." Clint replied. He was slightly more alert now, but his speech was still slurred a bit. Steve grabbed his hands and hoisted him up. Clint nearly screamed in pain, and it was discovered that the archer could not hold any of his weight. In fact, the best he could do was try not to resist as Steve held him up.
"Okay, let's try a different approach." Steve decided. He then gently scooped Clint up as if he weighed no more than a puppy and carried him bridal style out of the cave. "Alright, Clint, which way should we go?"
"I'd suggest the direction away from the people trying to kill us." The archer replied flatly. Steve gave a small chuckle then followed the suggestion. Even as they walked, the captain could feel the heat radiating from Clint's body and for the first time, he was afraid the archer may die. He immediately pushed the thought away. There was no way on earth he was losing another friend.
"Look, Cap, don't blame yourself if I don't-"
"I'll have none of that, soldier. You're going to make it out of this. I didn't dig that bullet out of your leg for nothing." Steve said determinedly.
"How can you be sure?"
"Because I refuse to let you leave us." The captain replied, being careful to avoid saying the word "die."
"You can't fix everything by sheer will, Cap. And deep down, we both know that there's a possibility that I won't make it home. It sucks, but that's life." Clint said with a pained sigh.
"Well, it's not our lives. You just hang in there, Clint. I'm going to find a way to get us out of this mess." Steve said confidently.
"How, Steve? How are we supposed to get out of this? Our comms are down, so there's no calling for help. We're stranded out here in the middle of nowhere!" the archer exclaimed weakly. It was obvious that he was still in a lot of pain even though he tried his best to hide it.
"I can't just sit and watch you die, Clint. Besides, I'm sure the others are trying to find us as we speak." The captain pointed out. Clint sighed.
"You know, sometimes your boundless optimism really bugs me." he muttered. Steve smiled triumphantly and continued to hike through the snowy forest. They walked in silence for a few minutes before Clint spoke up.
"Steve?"
"Yes?"
"If worse comes to worst and I don't live through this, will you tell Natasha that I love her?" the archer asked, making Steve almost stop dead in his tracks. He always knew the two assassins were quite close, and Tony had always pegged them as a couple, but the captain himself never knew the pair was in love.
"You can tell her yourself when we get home."
"Just promise me you will." Clint pressed. Steve met his feverish eyes for a moment and saw how serious he was.
"Okay, I promise. Gosh, Clint, I didn't know you and the Black Widow were a thing." Steve teased to lighten the mood. Clint's pale cheeks blushed.
"We're not. At least, I don't think we are. It's complicated." The archer explained.
"I see. Well if you ask me, I think you two would make an adorable couple." The captain grinned.
"Oh please, don't go all teenage girl on me." Clint rolled his eyes.
"Alright, I'm done. Is there any other heartfelt messages you wish for me to pass on?"
"Nope, that just about covers it. Thanks, Cap."
"No need to thank me. Besides, now that I know you're in love with Natasha, I'm going to work extra hard to make sure you get home to her."
"Oh, goody."
The two kept going on for another two and a half hours before Steve decided to sit down and take a break on a large rock that Clint had spotted in a clearing. They didn't have any food or water with them, so they ate some snow in attempt to get some moisture into their bodies. Steve could tell that Clint was getting worse. The archer barely said a word anymore, and his fever was escalating.
"I'm going to look at your leg." The captain said. He untied the shirt and widened his eyes at what he saw. Not only was the wound still producing pus, but there were angry red lines webbing out from the edges of the injury.
"It's bad, isn't it?" Clint inquired weakly, his eyes barely open.
"It's definitely not good. I'm going to rinse it out with snow again before we get going." Steve announced. He scooped up some snow off of the ground and spread it over Clint's leg. He then put the undershirt bandage back on and stood to pick the archer up.
"Steve, I'm not feeling too good." Clint slurred.
"Just hang on, Clint, there has to be a way out of this." Steve pleaded desperately. The archer's eyes were dangerously close to closing now.
"Steve, just stop." Clint ordered, his voice barely above a whisper. Steve swallowed a large lump in his throat.
"Clint, don't do this. Don't give up."
"It's no use, Cap. Even if we do keep going, there aren't any towns within a hundred miles. We'd only be getting ourselves more lost."
"Okay, Clint, we'll stay here." Steve relented, knowing that it was a losing battle. He sat down next to the archer.
"You know, this whole experience has been hell." Clint said.
"I agree. I never want to have to operate on anyone again."
"You didn't do too badly. I mean, I didn't bleed to death."
"No, but now you're dying from an infection."
"That isn't your fault. You can't win every battle, Cap, no matter how much you try to."
"This isn't some battle, Clint. This is your life."
"Well, if being a spy has taught me anything, it's that life is a battle, and a hell of a one too." The archer said, his eyelids drooping lower and lower. The captain opened his mouth to say something, but suddenly he heard a whirring noise coming from above. He stood up to look and saw a small figure of light shooting towards them. As it got closer, Steve recognized it as none other than Iron Man himself.
"Clint, they found us!" the captain exclaimed as he flagged down the billionaire. However when he turned around, he saw that the archer was unconscious. "Oh no, Clint, not now! Come on, wake up!" Steve pleaded, receiving no response from the archer. He checked for a pulse and although there was one, it was faint and slow.
"Didn't your mother ever tell you to stay put if you ever get lost? You guys have been moving so much it's been hard to get a lock on your location." Tony complained as he landed.
"No time, Stark. Hawkeye needs medical now!" The captain ordered. Tony hesitated no longer. He grabbed the unconscious Clint and shot back up in the air. Steve stood alone for a few minutes before he heard another sound. He looked up and this time saw his favorite Asgardian coming down in front of him.
"Captain, I am so glad to see you well!" Thor boomed and gave Steve a bone crushing hug.
"Glad to see you too, Thor. Where are Clint and Tony?"
"The Man of Iron has taken the archer to the helicarrier. I am to take you there as well." The god of thunder explained. He grabbed Steve around the waist then flew up to the sky. Thirty seconds later, Steve saw the helicarrier. Thor landed them on the roof and Steve raced inside, eager to get news on his friend. When he arrived in the med bay, he saw Bruce and Tony (who was no longer in his Iron Man suit) sitting down.
"How is he?" he asked. Bruce stood up and walked over to him.
"He's in surgery right now to fix some of the damage. The doctor said he has a really bad infection. Although, he also said that you saved his life by removing the bullet and cauterizing the wound."
"I just hope it was enough." Steve muttered.
"You did your best, Cap. It's all on Katniss now." Tony sighed. By now Thor had joined them and put a comforting hand on the captain's shoulder.
"Barton will indeed make it through this. He is very strong for a mortal, you know." The Asgardian encouraged.
"So where's Natasha?"
"She's with Fury. They want you to meet them in the conference room so they can debrief you." Bruce replied.
"Alright, let me know as soon as you get any news." He instructed then reluctantly made his way into the conference room where he found the director and the Black Widow waiting for him.
"Welcome back, Cap." Natasha said unenthusiastically. She was obviously worried about Clint, but she tried to hide it. Fury motioned for Steve to sit down.
"Would you mind filling us in on what the hell happened down there?" the director asked, obviously livid at the condition of one of his best agents.
"The mission was a trap, sir. We don't know who set it, but the only weapons there were the ones in the hands of the people trying to kill us." Steve returned. He then explained every painful detail of the events of the past eighteen hours.
"Don't worry, Captain, we'll find out who the culprit is. But for now, the only thing I want you to worry about is Agent Barton. That goes for you too, Romanoff." Fury instructed then exited the conference room. Steve's eyes traveled to Natasha.
"He'll make it through this." He said reassuringly to himself as much as to her.
"I know. He's too stubborn not too. Thanks for taking care of him though." She replied quietly. Steve put a comforting hand on her shoulder.
"Hey, that's what family is for." He smiled. Without warning, Natasha pulled him into a hug. She held him for a few seconds then left the room without further word. The captain stood in shock for a moment. The Black Widow definitely wasn't one for physical affection, so it caught him off guard. However, he wasn't about to complain. Instead, he made his way back into the med bay where all four of the remaining Avengers sat awaiting news of Clint's condition. They remained in a comfortable silence for an hour before the doctor came in to speak with them.
"I'm afraid the infection in Agent Barton's leg is quite severe. He has also lost a lot of blood, but thankfully not a fatal amount because of Captain Rogers' actions. Anyway, he is now in a coma. We have put him on antibiotics to fight the infection, but at this point we're not sure he's going to make it. It's all up to him. He's in room 1A if you would like to see him." He explained. As soon as he was gone, the Avengers raced to Clint's room. When they opened the door, they saw their archer unconscious in the bed with a breathing tube down his throat and his leg wrapped heavily with gauze.
"Gosh, he looks terrible." Tony said to break the silence. The others glared at him even though they were all thinking the same thing.
"I'm sorry, guys." Steve apologized.
"What do you have to be sorry for? It's because of you that he's alive, Steve." Bruce returned.
"I just wish I could've done more."
"You dug a bullet out of his leg with a Swiss Army knife then used one of his own arrows to burn it shut. I doubt he would have wanted you to do more." Natasha spoke up with a ghost of a smirk on her face.
"Yeah, I mean since when did you become Rambo?" Tony inquired. Steve raised a questioning eyebrow at him. "Oh, right, you were still napping in ice when those movies came out. Alright, Cap, when we get home you and me are going to sit down and have a Sylvester Stallone marathon. I'm talking all the Rambo's, all the Rocky Balboa's, the whole Stallone experience."
"I shall also partake in this marathon of motion pictures, but it will have to wait until our archer is feeling better." Thor added.
"Of course it will. I'm sure Legolas here loves Rambo." Tony nodded.
"He's actually more of a Rocky fan." Natasha corrected.
"Is that so? I guess I can see that. Who knows, maybe he played 'Eye of the Tiger' while practicing his little bow and arrow back in his circus days." The billionaire smirked.
"I hope you guys know I have no idea what you're talking about." Steve spoke up.
"Neither do I, although that is not an unusual occurrence. Midgardian customs are quite strange sometimes." Thor put in.
"Let's just change the subject." Bruce suggested.
For the next week and a half, the Avengers remained by Clint's side. They had agreed to take turns watching him to give each other a chance to eat and sleep, but the archer was never alone. On the tenth day during Steve and Natasha's shift, the doctor came in and announced that Clint's breathing tube could be taken out. He also informed them that the antibiotics were working very well and that the archer could wake up at any time. The two passed the news on to the other Avengers, and naturally they all came running in. They watched anxiously for the next two and a half hours, desperate to see the archer make the slightest movement. Finally, their wish was granted. It started as a twitch of his finger, and then his eyebrows scrunched together slightly.
"Come on, Katniss, don't be lazy. Open your eyes already." Tony groaned impatiently. Clint slowly obeyed, his eyes opening and shutting several times as they adjusted to the light.
"Ah, the hawk has awakened!" Thor boomed loudly causing Clint to wince. Bruce quickly shushed him.
"How are you feeling?" he asked.
"Like I got hit by a truck. How long was I out?"
"Ten and a half days. The infection caused you to go into a coma." Steve explained with a hint of guilt in his voice.
"I swear, Cap, if you're trying to blame yourself for this mess I will have someone bring me my bow so I can shoot you in the knee." The archer threatened.
"Okay, okay, I'm done." The captain replied putting his hands up in surrender.
"Good, so ten and a half days? I haven't been out that long since Budapest." Clint said smirking at Natasha.
"For Christ's sake, what happened in Budapest!?" Tony exclaimed.
"That's classified." Natasha answered simply.
"But you guys reference it all the time! It's almost more annoying than when Captain America talks about 'the War'."
"Hey!" Steve protested.
"Okay, that's enough. Tony, why don't we go and get something to eat?" Bruce suggested.
"Stop talking to me like I'm a two-year-old, Bruce." Tony complained.
"Stop acting like one, and I'll think about it." The doctor returned. "Now come on."
"I shall accompany you as well. I also require sustenance!" Thor declared. Once the two scientists and the demigod were gone, Steve and Natasha pulled chairs up to Clint's bed and sat down.
"See? I told you that we were going to make it." The captain said with a smile.
"Yeah, we did," Clint said with a relaxed sigh. "We made it through hell."