It was surprising, he reflected, that he was the last one left. It was against common sense. He should've died first. He was the lone human among them, not enhanced by super serums or aided by a suit.
Yet, here he was. Left behind. It had always been a fear of his, that he would fail those who depended on him.
He had always hoped it wouldn't come true.
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Steve had gone first. He had run back into a building to rescue a child that hadn't been found by the firemen. He had saved the child. A bystander told him that there was another child inside, and like the self-sacrificing hero that he was, he gave no thought to the fiery beams collapsing around him.
There hadn't been a child. There had, however, been a bomb.
The bystander was an old acquaintance of Clint's. It was someone from his darker days, whom he had apparently betrayed at one point or another. The man knew that nothing he could do would hurt Clint as much as taking one of his family from him.
No one said it, so Clint said it for them. It was his fault.
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Natasha was next. They were on a mission. Clint had been captured, but Natasha would never leave him, even when ordered to do otherwise. She got him out, but both were shot. Clint took a bullet to the leg.
Natasha took one to the heart.
It was instantaneous. Clint never got to say goodbye.
He was silent at her burial. A faceless Shield agent spoke of her work. Clint remembered her dreams of retiring one day and raising a family.
It would never happen now.
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Tony's was both unexpected and expected. He had been poisoned. The antidote was rare, and was in a facility that was highly guarded.
Clint broke in, got the antidote, and got out. He was determined not to fail another member of his family. He made it back to the tower, but he had been too slow.
Pepper was in tears, but didn't say anything. She didn't have to.
Clint knew it was his fault.
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Thor's happened suddenly.
They were fighting Loki. Bruce was on the helicarrier helping the scientists there with an experiment. The alien seemed more unhinged than normal. He ambushed Clint, and threatened the archer. He used the staff. Clint froze, trying to fight the influence taking over his mind. Thor came, challenging his once-brother. He threw lighting at Loki, who didn't dodge in time. It would be the last time Loki bothered them.
Clint felt the influence fading from his mind in time to see his blond teammate drop to his knees.
Loki might not have dodged, but neither had Thor.
Blood spilled out over the street. Too much blood. Clint scrambled over to the alien and felt for a pulse frantically.
There was nothing. The hammer was taken back to Asgard, along with Thor's body. Clint wasn't invited to the funeral.
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Bruce's left him alone.
Ross caught up with the doctor. Ever since Tony's death, he had been pushing for a more permanent solution for the Hulk. With his fellow scientist, along with most of his team, gone, Bruce had almost no one to defend him. Clint was on a mission. He later suspected that Shield did it on purpose so that he couldn't defend his last remaining friend.
They sedated Bruce, put him on a space shuttle, and shot him into space.
Clint came back to empty faces and empty explanations.
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When he was on a mission, a familiar red head was missing from his peripheral.
There was no shield, no green giant to save him from the ambush.
No flying teammates to soar to his rescue.
Shield didn't make it in time.
His last thought was that at least he would be with the rest of his team.
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Rather depressing, but I've had a bit of a tough time going on with my personal life, and that came out into the characters. My apologies.
Reviews are much appreciated.