Unbreakable
Chapter 1 – Disassembled
Off of a main highway, 13 miles down a twisted road and tucked beyond a hidden dirt path shrouded in a forest of dense trees laid a tiny quiet beach. It couldn't have been a 10 foot walk from the forest's edge to the ocean water, and perhaps an entire 30 feet in length from side to side. On either end, jagged rocks curved into the sand and abruptly jutted upwards and out over the ocean, guiding the forest beyond the water's edge.
The beach was a well-kept secret to most, and perhaps only a handful of people had ever stumbled across it by mistake while exploring the forest. One would even call the beach deserted, if it were not for the two people who stood there in the sand in silence, staring out into the horizon.
Once known as Director Nick Fury and the Black Widow, they now stood side by side in regular clothes, their former identities a thing of the past.
Fury lifted a hand across his brow, to shade himself from the sunlight. Beside him, Natasha brushed back her fiery red hair as it blew in the wind and narrowed her eyes at something that glistened out in the distance.
"I see them."
Fury nodded his head, peering through a pair of military-grade binoculars. "I can see the outline of the jet a few miles out." He answered. "I advised Agent Hill against getting too close, though. Don't want any locals to catch sight of them… they'll have to take a boat in the rest of the way."
Another silence settled between them as Natasha cast her eyes down to the sand.
"Romanoff, I trust you are also prepared to remove yourself from the public eye for the time being?" he asked her, noting her silence.
Natasha sighed inwardly and nodded to her former commanding officer. After what had transpired over the past few weeks, she knew it would be for the best.
Her fellow Avengers- once her friends- had split onto two opposing sides to fight against each other, which drove a rift between them so deep she wondered if it could ever be repaired. She had tried to play both sides, to try to mend their bond by helping both Tony and then Steve, but had only managed to alienate herself from Stark and once again become an enemy in the eyes of the US government, for conspiring with "criminals." Steve had disappeared as well, after his standoff at the prison, forcefully arranging the release of Wanda, Sam, Scott, and Clint.
At the thought of her friend, she could feel her pulse quicken and her heart twinge with guilt.
Clint…
Her dear friend had been caught up in this mess, and had paid a heavy price for it. He had been thrown into a secluded, high-security prison, along with the Witch, Falcon, and Ant Man to suffer for their actions in defending Steve.
Luckily, Fury and Maria Hill had assisted Steve in freeing the four, and granted them safe passage from the prison in one of Shield's jets. Fury had briefly filled Natasha in on the events that played out at the prison while they stood on the beach; although Steve had muscled his way inside the doors of the prison, they knew they would have to more carefully execute their escape. Instead of breaking out and living as fugitives (and technically enemies of the United States of America), Wanda had used her "abilities" to manipulate the Secretary of Defense's recollection of the most recent events, as well as the majority of the soldiers on guard there.
Although she still had a long way to go in controlling her abilities, Wanda had suggestively rearranged a few of their memories, making them "remember" coming to an agreement to allow the former Avengers to go free. Of course, this was still a risky operation, as the Secretary remained very much against the idea of the Avengers. That was something Wanda could not manipulate. Although free, they all had been strictly cautioned by Fury to fly under the radar for the foreseeable future.
Fury and Agent Hill had then split everyone into small groups once they had exited the prison in an attempt to quickly distance them from one another. Everyone had received folders with instructions on how to contact Fury or Agent Hill, should the need arise in an emergency. Sam, Wanda, and Natasha's folders also contained coordinates to separate, undisclosed locations, which would lead them each to a safe house since they did not have families or homes to return to.
This deserted stretch of beach was the planned drop-off location for Clint and Scott. Fury and Hill would then drop off Wanda and Sam somewhere remote, and eventually they would all part ways. It was all for the best; the world needed to forget about the Avengers for now.
The gentle rush of the tide brushed against the toe of her shoe, stirring Natasha from her deep thoughts. She looked out over the cerulean waters and caught sight of a small sleek motorized boat making its way towards them over the surf.
She watched as the boat drifted up to the shore until it drove itself into the sand, getting wedged in the shallow surf. Scott was first to climb from the boat, clumsily splashing the water onto his pant legs and shirt, almost falling in the process.
Fury sighed at the sight of Scott fumbling around and looked to Natasha. "Looks like my work is done here. I'm heading back with Agent Hill for the time being." He held out a manila folder and handed it to her. "Until next time, Ms. Romanoff. You and Barton better take care of yourselves."
Natasha gripped the folder in her arms. In this folder were the coordinates of her temporary new home.
"Thank you, sir, for everything you have done." She said gratefully. "Adjusting will be tough, but it's nice to know we have allies we can trust."
Fury nodded in response and turned to walk back towards the boat. From behind him, Natasha could see the familiar form of Clint rise up from inside the boat. He shook hands with Fury and exchanged a few words. He then jumped from the boat effortlessly (almost gracefully compared to Scott, she noted) and started his way towards the shore.
Scott had made it over to Natasha first, and stopped in front of her at the edge of the water, squinting in the sunlight.
"So… we're cool now, right?" he asked, with a hint of uncertainty. "Because it would really suck to have to fight you again… plus I'm really tired from our super daring and dramatic prison break."
Natasha felt the corner of her mouth tug into a slight smirk. The Ant Man sure did have a sense of humor. "You'd already be on your ass if I was going to fight you again." she answered, walking towards him into the surf. Scott moved out of her way quickly, splashing more water on himself, not sure if she would take a swing at him or not.
Natasha continued past Scott and stopped when she reached Clint. He stood there in front of her, the sunlight shining from behind him, peeking around his body and landing in the tips of his hair, causing them to glow in the light.
He sighed visibly and looked down at her; his light blue eyes seemed a clouded over and his handsome features seemed mixed with emotion as he stared into hers. It felt like forever since she had shared a quiet moment with him. Would he be angry with her? After everything that had happened, would things be different now?
"Hey, Nat."
A stir of emotion rustled in her upon hearing his greeting, making her pulse quicken slightly. Somehow Clint would say her name in that way that he did, and in that moment all of her worries would melt away. It was a pure and honest kind of happiness she felt; an effect very few people had on her. The corner of her mouth drew up into a tiny sideways smile, and she felt a warm glow rise to her cheeks.
"It's good to have my best friend back." She said quietly. As soon as she spoke the end of her sentence, she realized how timid she felt about the topic. "At least, I hope we are still friends after everything." She added cautiously.
Clint narrowed his eyes in what seemed like either concern or some other unknown reason that she couldn't quite put a finger on.
"Is there a reason we shouldn't be?" he challenged, still impossibly hard to read.
Natasha frowned, and was about to answer back when the sound of Scott loudly clearing his throat interrupted her.
"Sorry, um… hello, hi… I didn't mean to interrupt, but I'm going to get going now." he interjected somewhat nervously, stepping backwards towards the forest and holding up a folder of his own. "I've got a lot of explaining to do to a certain little girl of mine once I get back. I believe I've missed a bunch of tea parties I was supposed to attend."
Clint nodded to him fondly and lifted his hand up in a wave. "Take care of yourself."
Natasha turned to face Scott as well, watching as the chipper man flashed them a cheesy grin and hopped off into the woods.
"I'm assuming that means he has a family to go back to?" Natasha questioned.
"A daughter" Clint answered. "Apparently she lives with his ex-wife and her husband. Scott's staying with Hank Pym, the one who created that suit of his. He'll be safe there."
Natasha nodded, recognizing the inventor's name.
"I suppose we should be leaving as well." Clint added suddenly, walking past Natasha, towards the forest. "It's probably best if we put some distance between ourselves and this place."
She frowned slightly. Maybe it was just her imagination, but it seemed like there was something else bothering the archer, other than the obvious. He seemed tired and distant which was of course to be expected but… there was something else there too.
Natasha hesitated only for a moment before following Clint as he retreated into the woods, feeling the sand fade out from under her boots, until she was once again walking on grass. The shade of the dense trees overhead soon blocked out the majority of the warm sunlight, and the beach could no longer be seen.
Author's Note:
Hey guys! Thanks for reading! This is my first Avengers/Marvel themed fan fic but definitely not my first fan fiction I've ever written. I don't really have a set vision for this story as of now, so I'm not really sure how long it will be. I'm just letting inspiration kinda' guide me on this one. I'd love to hear from you, so please feel free to send me reviews! This story is definitely going to be based around Clint and Natasha, and will definitely have some chapters that get graphic, in terms of violence and sexual content- just a heads up!
That's all for now, I'll start working on chapter 2. Thanks again for reading! :3
xo Jennie
