A/N: STUPID FREAKING INTERNET! *wail, then deep breath* Sorry you all had to see that. If you can't tell, my internet connection suuuuucks. But enough about that. You guys came for a story and I'm going to give you one. I'd like to do a little bit of happy stuff before getting into the dark, angsty sadness. So (after the first part) feel free to curl up on the couch or in a comfy chair and snuggle into a warm blanket and dream about your own memories of Christmas Day. In fact, send me your Christmas wishes in your reviews. I love to hear about my lovely fans' dreams! Enjoy!
Chapter Two
Clint and Natasha glanced at each other, the latter raising one eyebrow in an obvious question. Clint sighed silently and shook his head slightly. The redhead gestured minutely in the direction the distraught girl had gone. Clint nodded and slipped his tiny daughter into her mother's lap, kissing the assassin lightly on the forehead. The rest of the team watched the silent conversation, shrugging inwardly. They were used to the two agents having whole conversations without them by now.
Hawkeye knocked softly on the door to Alyssa's room. There was no answer, although Clint was pretty sure she had heard it. She didn't have the sharpest ears in all of S.H.I.E.L.D for nothing. He let himself in and saw her kneeling on the floor, hand resting limply on the zipper for her suitcase, body trembling ever so slightly and breathing shuddery and shallow. He walked closer, not allowing his feet to make any sound on the carpet, tensed for the probable reaction to an unknown person stepping so close to a vulnerable Agent Banner. She didn't move.
"'Lyss?" He said softly, using the pet name only a few could use and reaching out to touch her shoulder. "'Lyssa? Are you…" The expected reaction came and Clint caught her small, hard fist only a few inches from his jaw. Her expression caught him completely off guard, though and he dropped her hand without thinking. In the instant before her mask fell back into place, the look of absolute agony and hatred that bled from her delicate features caused even the hardened assassin to cringe. Then her other fist connected squarely with his nose and he snapped out of it.
"Ouch!" He yelped, leaping backwards and pulling his hand up to cover his bleeding nose. Alyssa jumped slightly but held her hands up defensively as she slid to her feet without a wasted movement.
"Who is it?" She said steadily, glancing in the direction of his panting and advancing a few steps. "Clint?"
"Yup." He muttered nasally, cupping his hand beneath the dripping blood and reaching for the Kleenex on the counter behind him. Wiping up the scarlet, he gently pushed the now-hovering Alyssa away.
"I deserved that. I let my guard down. So, what's up?" He said it casually, watching her face for anything like the suffering he'd seen a moment ago. Instead, all he saw was concern, but she brightened and moved to the suitcase.
"Just getting out the rest of the gifts. It's probably a good thing you came. I don't know if I can get all these gifts to the right people without being able to read these labels Agent Hill wrote up for me." Clint laughed softly at the image of stern Maria Hill giggling over the secret presents and helping Alyssa address the labels in her neat, swooping handwriting. He was also laughing at his own oversight. He sometimes forgot that Alyssa was blind. She just acted so sure and could find her way so easily that it seemed as if she was just the same as any young S.H.I.E.L.D agent. Not that he thought her answer was the truth. There was obviously something more going on. That pain in her eyes was so deep; it reminded him of another young woman, hopeless eyes framed by red hair…
"Here, you take this stack. I'll take these ones because I know which ones they are. But all those square ones always confuse me." Alyssa said, plopping a heavy pile of gifts into Clint's arms. He took them with a grunt, wincing slightly at the pull in his newly healed shoulder (he had popped it out of his socket on his last mission), and dropping his Kleenex. Luckily the bleeding had stopped. He headed towards the door after Alyssa. That bright smile was back on her face, as if her outburst had never happened.
Dropping the first four small packages with his family, he caught the bright green glance of his wife. Her eyebrow rose, a slight bit of concern flashing across her gaze at the blood on his face. He shrugged slightly, shaking his head and heading towards the Captain and Bruce on the couch across the room. He dropped a heavy rectangular gift on Bruce's lap and a smaller, squarer one on Cap's. Across the room, a plain brown box and a tall skinny one went to Tony and Pepper and a small envelope for Thor and Jane. Settling into the space between the two bachelors, she cleared her throat for everyone's attention. Immediately, conversation ceased.
"All right, now this is how things are going to work. Jane and Thor first, then Tony and Pepper, then Bruce, then the Bartons, and finally, Cap. Got it?" Everyone laughed and nodded, Bruce murmuring agreement on behalf of everyone. And without further ado, Jane neatly slit the envelope and pulled out three papers. One announced, in curly letters, a reservation at a prestigious restaurant. The second and third were two tickets to the Broadway show, The Lion King. Jane's eyes widened and a whispered explanation was soon offered to Thor. Both thanked her, and she smiled.
"You get connections when you save actresses and restaurant owners from bad guys." She said, shrugging off the expensive prices. "Not to mention, the contract pay for this job is pretty high."
Tony and Pepper were astonished at the beautiful statuette and stately vase Alyssa had hand-sculpted for them.
"Did you make them yourself?" Pepper asked incredulously. Alyssa nodded, wincing.
"Are they really that bad?" she asked. Pepper and Tony both laughed.
"No, they're amazing. How did you get this parrot so perfect?" Tony said, turning the small, clay bird over in his hands. Alyssa smiled and shrugged.
"On a mission in Brazil, they had some rather tame parrots that loved modeling for me in exchange for some nuts." Everyone laughed at the image. They all knew that 'modeling' for Alyssa meant allowing her to run her hands all over the subject to gain a tactile image of it. Something about the image of Alyssa carefully touching and feeling along every square inch of a colorful parrot was very funny. Even Alyssa laughed at the memory.
"Well, thank you very much." Pepper said, setting the tall, slim vase on a table.
"I guess it's my turn." Bruce said, tearing the paper and setting aside. Flipping over the book that was underneath it, he revealed the title: The Notes and Discoveries of Amadeus Cho: 2000-2010. Bruce's mouth fell open. He looked at the book and then at Alyssa, then back at the book.
"H-how? There's only…"
"One copy? Not true. There are a total of three, now that Mr. Cho has taken his early discoveries, typed them up, saved the resulting document and printed one copy especially for you. And how did I get it? Let's say that the Italian Mafia is missing a few members, Cho felt obliged to pay me back. This was my price. Do you like it?" Bruce nodded and gulped, allowing Steve to whisper the news of his silent gratitude into Alyssa's ear. She moved over to sit on his lap, kissing his cheek gently and accepting his one-armed hug.
"Our turns." Clint said, tearing the paper on his tiny package and pulling out a black yin on a silver chain. At the same time, Natasha extracted a jade yang on a gold chain from her package. Their eyes widened as they opened their children's parcels to reveal smaller chains with the yin and yang for the babies.
"The necklaces lock together and so do the bracelets; real jade and ebony, real gold and silver, handcrafted in China." Alyssa murmured distantly. Silently, Clint slid Natasha's gift out of her hand, locking the two halves together while the redhead did the same to the bracelets. They clicked together neatly, a comforting sound.
"Thank you." The Russian assassin whispered. Clint nodded, then remembering she couldn't hear him, he said, "Yeah, thanks Squirt." The Barton's fastened the bracelets around their children's wrists, yin on Anya and yang on Alek. The larger chains they settled on their own necks, helping each other with the clasps. Alyssa seemed to sense their soft smiles, and it made her very happy.
Steve waited patiently for his turn, knee bouncing with pent-up energy. When the period of admiration had passed, he neatly unsealed the tape on one side and opened the plain brown paper. The paper fell away to reveal…
Everyone else only saw a small stack of leather-bound notebooks, but what the Captain saw made his eyes widen and mist over with tears. He lifted the three volumes, slid them apart, and reverently opened the covers to read the names written within. The first read 'Steven Rogers 1993' in neat, old fashioned letters. A grin crooked one corner of the soldier's lips at the signature. He set it on his lap gently and lifted the second.
The writing in it was neat and trim, but with little flourishes that suggested grace. The name was 'Sarah Rogers'. Steve's tears were flowing freely now and no one in the room made a sound. Even the children were still.
The final volume was tear-stained and the cover cracked with disuse as Cap opened it. The name, curling on the page like a fine silk thread, was 'Peggy Carter'. Even the constant noise of the city seemed to pause and the air itself held it's breath as Steve whispered the name. Standing shakily and clutching the three notebooks to his chest as though they were more precious and delicate than snowflakes made of diamonds, he grabbed his jacket and left.
"I need some air." He muttered on his way out, the elevator doors shutting behind him with a ding. The world released its pent-up breath and all the Avengers looked at each other. Alyssa looked stunned and confused, unsure of what had happened, but guessing from the Captain's reaction.
"Well," Pepper said, breaking the silence and pretending not to be worried. "Anyone up for strawberry waffles?" Nobody answered.
A/N: Was it boring and monotonous and long? Did it end too abruptly? I'm sorry that after so long it ends up sucking. Forgive me? Let me know.