Stories of the Too Young Universe

by Assemble-the-Avengers

Hanging On, Save, New Addition, Not the Last Goodbye, Once in a Lifetime One-shot Series. For those of you who were sad when I took this series down...

2. Hanging On

HANGING ON

1 - "Why are your cities so tiny?" Thor boomed, stuffing a box of pop tarts, cardboard an all, into Tony's toaster. "On Asgard…" he continued.

"Because we have more of them!" Tony snapped, rubbing his temples with his thumbs, trying to alleviate some of the pain from his hangover. "PEPPER!" he yelled through the tower.

"Shall I find Mrs. Stark, sir?" Jarvis offered dutifully.

"No need Jarvis, thank you." Pepper responded, walking into the kitchen. "Yes Tony?" she asked irritably, turning to her boss and husband. His face was buried in the arm that was resting on the granite counter top. Pepper raised her eyebrows in annoyance when the millionaire pointed behind her. She turned around, laughing at Thor, as he stared in confusion at the destroyed toaster. She walked over to him, the fast 'click, click' of her heels, mercilessly aggravating Tony's headache. Pepper ignored the man's groan, removing the smashed pop tarts and cardboard pieces from the toaster. She showed Thor how to take the pop tart out of the silver package, watched him try it on his own until she was sure he wouldn't burn down the Tower. She then filled a glass with water, grabbed the whole bottle of aspirin before leading Tony to the couch. He gratefully swallowed the aspirin, obediently gulping down the rest of the water when his temperamental wife ordered him to.

"We really overdid it last night. Even Thor got a little tipsy and we all drank the same amount." He moaned with his head in Pepper's lap as she rubbed his head.

"Tony, you really should've warned Clint. He's never had that much to drink in his life." Pepper sighed, sympathetic for the archer.

Upstairs, Natasha was taking care of Clint. Whatever fancy drinks Tony had gotten into the assassin had actually gotten her partner sick. Clint had been slumped over on the cool tile floor of the bathroom, with his head between his knees all night. His body shook with the effort of not throwing up for the twelfth time that morning. Natasha sat on the edge of the bath tub, one hand on her fiancée's back and the other on his shoulder, cursing Stark in every language she knew. Once Natasha was convinced he could move without making himself sick again, she helped him to his feet, leading him to the bed they shared more often than not. She pulled the sheets up around him, cursing when he started shivering. Her suspicion was confirmed when she touched her hand to his hot forehead. She waited until he had fallen asleep before stalking from the room to find the man who was responsible for her partner getting sick.

"What did you do?" Natasha yelled at Tony.

"Please keep your voice down Natasha." Tony begged.

"What did you do?" Jane echoed quieter, coming into the room.

"Oh Jane, when did you get here?" Pepper asked pleasantly, keeping her eyes trained on her feverish husband.

"An hour ago. Thor's sick." She explained.

"So is Clint." Natasha included. Pepper nodded to Tony, confirming the knowledge that he was as well. "Has anyone seen the Cap?" Natasha asked, taking action seen as she was the only one seemingly not worried.

"Would you like to know the whereabouts of Captain Rogers, Agent Romanov?" the AI offered.

"I'm assuming he is in his room." She countered. Jarvis confirmed her assumption. "Call Dr. Banner." She ordered. Bruce had left a couple days before the other men had gone to the bar. He was tending to a virus outbreak in Guatemala.

"Dr. Banner," Natasha greeted.

"Yes, hello Natasha." He replied, his well known voice reverberating through the living room..

"It seems Barton, Stark, Rogers, and Thor have all been, for lack of better word, poisoned." Natasha could feel the two women behind her stop breathing at the terminology she had used. "Either that or they are all allergic to something in one of the many drinks they had. They went a bit over board with the alcohol last night so Jane, Pepper, and I assumed it was a hangover. But they have fevers, if I had to guess, Clint's was about 104." This plan was too perfect. Their assailant had managed to get four out of five of the men in one night and get through Rogers' immune system. The only person, who they trusted to treat the men, was countries away. This was a plan Natasha and Clint could've come up with.

"Steve too?" Bruce asked in disbelief.

"Yes. When can you be back?" Natasha asked, masking her anxiousness with her emotionless expression perfectly.

"There are very few sick people left. I'm sure they can manage without me. I'll be on the next plane out. Move them all to the same floor and keep them in separate rooms. You and Jane stay and watch them. I'll be there in the morning. But Romanov, you've got to get Pepper out of there." He ordered. Pepper's head shot up and her eyes widened.

"Excuse me Doctor, but why?" Natasha asked.

"Because she's pregnant." Natasha raised her eyebrows slightly, but said nothing.

"Ok. Thank you." She said and then ordered Jarvis to hang up.

"I was going to tell you all, I swear." Pepper rambled defensively.

"Pepper, you have to leave." Natasha said, allowing sympathy leak into her tone. Pepper watched Tony, tears welling in her eyes.

"I agree with Natasha, Pepper. " Jane said, anxiously shifting her weight from one foot to the other.

"We'll update you on the hour and I'll have him call you when he wakes up.

"The jet is waiting on the roof Mrs. Stark." Jarvis announced.

"Thank you, Jarvis." Pepper whispered. Pepper kissed Tony's forehead before sliding out from under him. Once Pepper had boarded her husband's jet and it had taken off, the two remaining women went one floor down to set up what was going to become a medical bay.

With the help of Tony's robots, all four sick men were in their own room on the same floor within three hours. Steve and Tony hadn't woken up yet but Clint and Thor were suffering the pain consciously. Natasha sat by Clint's bed, watching helplessly as he writhed in pain while his body fought whatever was attacking his system.

"What's going on Nat…?" Clint gasped before his question was cut off with a groan as his body arched again.

"I don't know yet Clint. But Jarvis is running tests and Bruce will be here in the morning." She said calmly, hiding her panic and desperation well. Clint whimpered as another wave of pain made its way through his body. Natasha laid her hand gently on his chest, directly over his heartbeat. She moved her hand up to his face, brushing her thumb across his cheek. She touched her hand to his sweaty forehead, growling a Russian swear word under her breath.

"Jarvis, what are their temperatures running at now?" she asked grimly.

"Mr. Stark is running a temperature of 104.7 and Agent Barton's is now 105.6. Thor has risen to 103.9. Captain Roger's will continue to rise because…"

"Jarvis, what's it at?" Natasha asked impatiently, gently rubbing circles on the back of Clint's hand that tensed every time pain coursed through his abused body.

"Captain Rogers is running a temperature of 107.5." Natasha cursed loudly. His body was fighting itself and his temperature would continue to rise because it couldn't kill him. It would eventually, but not for a while. It was physically impossible for their temperatures to be raising this quickly.

"Thank you Jarvis." She called, ignoring his polite reply, turning her attention back to Clint. His eyes started to close as she watched. "No, I need you to stay awake for a couple more minutes." He didn't respond. "Barton, look at me." She ordered. He forced his eyes open.

"It hurts, Tasha." He mumbled in a pained voice. She bit down on her bottom lip hard.

"I know, but you need to drink something first." He blanched.

"It won't stay down, Nat." he whispered. She shrugged, helping him sit up and then tipping water down his throat. Clint was right. It didn't stay down. He threw up anything Natasha had coaxed into him over the last hour and resumed shaking harder than ever.

"Agent Romanov, it seems both Thor and Jane have fallen asleep." Jarvis announced.

"That's good. Let them sleep." She mumbled, helping Clint lie back down as the shaking continued.

"Also, Agent Romanov, it seems Captain Rogers and Mr. Stark have woken up. Mr. Stark will go into cardiac arrest if the arc reactor's core is not replaced soon. And Mrs. Stark is calling as well." She cussed in Russian.

"Drink this. Slowly. I'll be back." She promised Clint, putting the water on the table next to him. He caught her wrist just as she spun around.

"You're doing great Tash. Don't stress yourself out." He told her, almost inaudibly.

"I'm responsible for four dying men. One of which has a metal heart that I can't even begin to understand. Another of which is an invincible, immortal, super soldier. The third is a God of Thunder whose body may or may not function the same way as ours. And the fourth is you. What in god's name am I supposed to do if you die on my watch?" she ranted.

"You're ok Tash. We trust you to try your… your hardest." He gasped as his body felt as if it was being doused in flames. "Go Nat." She knew she had no choice but to leave him.

"Tell Pepper I'll call her as soon as I switch out Tony's arc reactor." She growled at the AI as he announced, once again, that 'Mrs. Stark was calling'. Natasha pushed Tony's door open to find him better off than Clint, seemingly not in as much pain. Tony fed her instructions through a comm. link while Natasha searched through her teammate's workshop for the hidden box of replacement cores for the arc reactor. Once the core had been switched out for a new one, Tony's breathing became slightly lighter.

"Where's Pepper?" he panted quietly.

"She had to leave for reasons I'm sure she would rather tell you." Natasha explained vaguely, and then requested that Jarvis call Pepper.

"NATASHA ALIANOVA ROMANOFF, IF MY HUSBAND IS DEAD AND THAT'S WHY YOU DIDN'T CALL ME I WILL HIRE SOMEONE TO MURDER YOU!" Pepper screamed into the phone, tears evident in her voice.

"Pepper, calm down. He's right here. Breathing and wondering why you aren't here." Natasha stated calmly.

"Hey Pep." He called reducing to a fit of coughing as his shivering started up again. Pepper's sobs could be heard through the speaker.

"Hey, Pepper, it's ok. Really. I'm not going to die or anything."

"You better not Tony Stark!" she yelled in between sobs. "Because I am not raising our child on my own." She cried. Tony sputtered incoherent syllables for a few minutes before calming down.

"You're not what?" he asked, in desperate need of clarification.

"Not raising our baby alone." She repeated, quieter. "That's why I had to leave. I didn't want to Tony, I swear!" she defended.

"No, no. I'm glad you got out of here. If you got sick…" he trailed off as he clutched his head, letting out a low whimper. "Uh, Pep, I got to go. Love you!" he called before Jarvis hung up. The moment the call was disconnected, he let out a painful moan before collapsing back against the pillow. Natasha handed him a glass of water, ordering him to drink it, before turning to leave.

"Thanks Spidey." He called, smirking, but Natasha could tell it was s hbincere. She nodded before leaving to check on Steve. She opened the door to see Steve on his knees on the floor, holding onto the metal cabinet, hyperventilating, and shivering. In between gasps for breath, he whimpered unintelligible words. He collapsed back against the wall, clutching his head and groaning. She made her way to the Captain and crouched down next to him, putting a gentle hand on his shoulder. Once he noticed her, she moved the hand to his forehead. She squeezed her eyes shut and shook her head.

"Jarvis, what is Captain Rogers' temperature?" Natasha demanded.

"107.9, Miss Romanov." He announced.

"Thank you." She muttered. "Ok, Steve, hey…" she said waiting for his attention. He looked at her, hands still resting against his sweaty forehead. "Ok. I'm going to help you as best as I can but we need to get you back on the bed. Tell me when you're ready." She stated patiently. He took an unsteady breath and nodded. Miraculously, with Natasha's help, Steve managed to haul himself back on the bed, collapsing on the bed against the wall. Pain racked through his body and he clenched his teeth together. She gripped his arm hard with one hand, holding a glass of water out to him with the other.

"No thanks." He whispered hoarsely. She smiled apologetically.

"You don't have a choice, Cap. We don't want to add dehydration to the list of problems." She said, calm as ever. He choked the whole glass down, gagging, but keeping it down. He collapsed backwards and turned to Natasha before he passed out again.

"The others…" he asked.

"All sick. You and Barton are the worst off but Thor and Stark are pretty bad too. Banner will be here in the morning. Get some sleep, Cap, you're gonna need it." She instructed coolly. She left, dropping by Tony's room again. The man was asleep with a pained look on his face. She closed the door. At least he was asleep. She stopped by Thor's room to check on both Jane and the Thunder God. Thor was awake, sweating and breathing heavier, but he seemed the best off out of the four.

"Get some water into him. Some food if you can." Natasha recommended before heading back to Clint's room.

"Hey Hawk," Natasha greeted quietly. He smiled weakly at her in return. She smiled pathetically at him before dropping into the chair beside his bed, burying her face in her hands.

"What's wrong Nat?" he asked concerned, reaching an unnaturally hot hand out to her, laying it on her forearm.

"I can't do this." She whispered in a broken voice. The calm, collected side of her had disappeared in the presence of her partner.

"You can. You are." He assured her.

"Thanks Barton." She said. He didn't buy the act, but he didn't have time to call her out on it before his few short minutes of reprieve were over.

The pain hit him harder than any other time before that, forcing a groan from his chest. It wasn't as pained sounding as Steve's had been, but it was even more heartbreaking because this was Clint. He had always been her constant. The one to laugh off an injury and to patch up Natasha when she over did it in the training room on a night when her sleep was plagued by nightmares. The one who had let her live all those years ago when he was sent to kill her. But no matter how many times she denied it, she knew the truth and so did Clint; it was no longer a debt. It hadn't been her 'owing him a debt' for years now. She loved him and he loved her. So he needed to live; to hang on. If not for himself, he needed to make it for Natasha.

His hand involuntarily curled around Natasha's arm, cutting off the blood circulation. The pain died out, gasping, whimpering and shaking left in its' place. She sat down on the side of the bed, positioning herself so that her thigh was up against the length of his torso. Hoping the contact would help him calm down. She unraveled his clenched hand placing it against her chest.

"Count my heartbeats." She instructed. Slowly, his hand relaxed as the initial pain died down to a harsh ache. When his breathing was perfectly in sync with hers, he dropped his hand from her grip. She made a move to get up. Clint put his weak hand down on her leg, shaking his head infinitesimally.

"I'm not leaving." She promised, getting off the bed. She grabbed a towel out of the corner of the room, refilling the untouched glass of water in the sink. He watched her every move with wary, faded blue-grey eyes. Watching the way her scarlet curls shielded her face from view every time she bent over. Watching the way her eyes reflected the disappointment she felt in herself. Watching the way her movements weren't as fluid as always, and noticing the way her footsteps were becoming slightly audible, her personal tell she was beyond exhausted. She came back over to him, resuming her previous position with the outside of her leg gently pushed up against his right side. Natasha pushed back his short hair that had matted to his forehead with sweat. His eyes started to close at her touch, resulting in him having to constantly force them open.

"You're not going to make me drink that again, are you?" he asked warily, looking at the glass of water.

"Clint, you have no choice. Dehydration will just make everything worse." She coaxed. He sighed, knowing she was right.

"Fine." He relented.

"Slowly." She reminded him, pulling him up into a sitting position. She wrapped his weak hand around the glass of water, watching and hoping as he swallowed an ounce at a time. His strength gave out at that moment and Natasha pulled the cup out of his hand, placing it on the table. "Good?" she checked. He nodded.

"Think so." Eventually, the miserable assassin passed out again, repeatedly mumbling Natasha's name over and over in his pain disturbed sleep. She watched him sleep until she couldn't procrastinate checking up on the other men any longer. The moment she was past the threshold, Jarvis' electronic voice rang through the hallway.

"Incoming call from Pepper Stark, Agent Romanoff." Natasha groaned.

"Natasha!" Pepper screamed.

"Yes, Pepper?" she replied patiently.

"How is he? Is he ok? How bad is it? Has Jarv-" she rambled.

"No Pepper. We don't know anything new." She answered. "I'll go see if he's awake, ok?" she offered, walking towards Tony's room. She pushed the door open.

"Pepper's on the phone." She announced to the sick and now awake man. He nodded.

"Thanks." He said sincerely to Natasha, before being forced by Pepper to answer a million questions at once. She walked past two doors, stopping in front of the Captain's. Just as before, he wasn't in his bed. Steve's hands were white as he clung to the edge of the sink for dear life, coughing at a force that would've broken a normal person's ribs.

"Steve…" she called quietly, putting her hand on his back. "Stop." She ordered, a rare note of compassion weaving its way into her tone. The coughing died down and he looked at her with clouded eyes. His body jerked and he fell back against the wall, collapsing to the floor. Natasha got down in front of him, touching his forehead. "Jarvis?" she asked.

"108.2 degrees, Miss Romanoff." She stiffened considerably.

"Ok, come on Rogers." She said forcefully. She threw his limp arm over her shoulder, pushing off from the wall.

"Thank you Agent Romanoff." He said in a low, polite voice. She nodded at him.

"Cap, you haven't eaten in two days." She said, matter-of-factly. "And I'm betting you threw up the water at some point." he would've blushed had his face not been so flushed already. She stood at the foot of the bed, staring him down until he finished the cup of water. He dropped the cup on the bed, groaning when the shivering started again. As she carried the cup to the sink, his low, agonized voice reached her ears.

"I practically killed him you know." He muttered quietly.

"Excuse me?" she asked, turning to face him with a quizzical look on her face.

"I could've saved him. Or if I hadn't blocked that blast he wouldn't have died." He continued in a sad voice. "He was my best friend. And I killed him… let him die, at the very least." Suddenly, Natasha understood. She placed the glass on the counter and walked back over to his bed. "And I do it again and again. Every night." He whispered.

"Listen, Cap. Your friend, Bucky right?" he nodded. "Your friend sounds like a very brave man from what I've heard. He knew the risks when he signed up for the army and he took them anyway. He died in one of the most honorable ways possible. You couldn't have done anything and it wasn't your fault. He wouldn't want you to be beating yourself up for this. It's been almost 75 years, Cap. It's time to forgive yourself and move on." She said in a rare kind voice.

"I'm scared I'll forget them. All of them." He admitted sadly. She shook her head, red curls bouncing around her face.

"You won't. All of them; Peggy, Bucky, Howard, Dr. Erskine… They'll never leave you. People like that… they make an irreversible impression in your life. People like Peggy and Bucky; they make an impression in your heart." She said, a little uncomfortable with the truth of the deep things she was admitting to the Captain. She tapped his heart with her finger. "Right there." She said.

"People like Clint?" he asked nervously, wondering if he'd crossed a line. She hesitated and then nodded.

"Yes. People like Clint. People like Peggy. People like Bucky. This was all beyond your control, Captain. So don't hold it against yourself." She turned around towards the door to leave.

"Natasha…" he called quietly after her. "Thank you." She nodded; a simple gesture that meant 'Anytime.' Because she was starting to really trust her dysfunctional family.

She made her way to the billionaire's room to force some water into Tony. Once she had, she walked to the end of the hall to Thor's room.

A rapidly tiring Jane Foster sat by Thor's bedside, holding his hot hand or tracing random patterns on his muscled arm.

"Thor…" Jane started tentatively, knowing what she was about to bring up was a tender subject for the lovable god.

"Yes, Lady Jane?" he replied, waiting for her to continue while ignoring the throbbing in his head, becoming mercifully distracted when she wouldn't look him in the eyes.

"Do you think… do you think Loki could've poisoned you four?" she questioned. He stiffened. "Truthfully Thor. Family issues aside." She added. He hesitated.

"Yes. I think it's possible." He answered. He even thought it might be probable. His brother had committed the ultimate form of betrayal. He had attempted to destroy two Realms. Jane knew this saddened her boyfriend.

"But why would he do that? You may be his enemy, but family trumps grudges." She murmured, frustrated.

"We stripped him of his powers. Cast him off on his own in Realm unfamiliar to him. Humiliated him in front of all of Asgard, and his Midgardian enemies. He has valid reasons to desire to harm…" he grunted, hand moving to his head. "us." He finished. Jane wanted to know why they didn't put Loki in prison, instead of only taking away his power and exiling him, but the question would have to wait.

"Are you feeling worse again?" she asked, concerned when he shivered, coughing for a minute or two afterwards. Thor's coughs sounded like miniature explosions, resulting in Jane wincing minimally.

"Yes. It seems so. The temperature of this room is rising." He noted, the volume of his voice dying down with his energy. This concerned Jane even more since she had been recently considering putting on her jacket. The room was rather cold in reality. She watched him speculatively. The color of his cheeks had changed with his fever. The new shade of red they had taken on more resembled the same shade as his cape rather than their usual hue. She ran her thumb across his cheek, watching with concerned eyes. She was just about to suggest he get some sleep when Natasha walked in.

"Hello, Jane." Natasha greeted, the yawning scientist nodded her assent. "Why don't you go get some sleep?" Natasha offered, noticing how tired the girl was. The offer was laced with tone of demand that had Jane nodding before she had finished her sentence.

"Thanks. You're sure you don't want to get some sleep? I can stay up." She offered courteously. Natasha smiled a forced angelic smile.

"No need Jane. Thank you though." The brunette leaned down, kissing her boyfriend's hot forehead before leaving, yawning again. "How are you feeling Thor?" Natasha asked the sick and miserable looking Asgardian King.

"I've felt better Lady Natasha," Thor answered regretfully. Natasha smiled at him. She asked meaningless questions about the Bilgesnipe he found so repulsive while he drank the water given to him. Soon, Natasha could tell he was drifting off, so excusing herself she left him to fall asleep.

She coaxed some water into Clint before his exhaustion pulled him under like a drug. So to keep herself awake, she made the rounds, repeatedly checking on four of the men in the family.

Jarvis reported that all four of their temperatures had gotten higher; Tony's had reached 105. Thor's had risen to 104.1, confirming Natasha's suspicion that his body most likely didn't function the same way, given his body temperature was rising relatively slower than the others'. Clint's was running at 106.3. And Steve's temperature was still climbing. It had reached 108.5. Tony and Clint would last until they hit 111. Natasha assumed Steve's body would tolerate higher. She couldn't guess with Thor.

` More than once, she prayed she was dreaming. She prayed she would wake up, with Clint lying next to her, healthy. And he would hold her in his arms, against his chest until she fell asleep again. But as another one of his muffled moans echoed through the hallway, she knew she wasn't dreaming.

Her facade was crumbling, even she could tell. She was beyond exhausted and even if she was too Russian to admit it, she knew, deep down, that she was scared. So while all the men were asleep, she chose to make a quick trip to the training room to rebuild some of her usual veneer; the wall that only one person had the strength to break through.

Natasha leaned against the punching bag, gasping for breath as if she were drowning. She stumbled to the wall and sunk down against it. Putting her head in her hands, she cried, silent, tearless sobs. She hadn't even been this tired, or scared, in Budapest. Budapest had been bad, but this was worse. She needed food, she needed sleep, and she needed Clint to be ok. She looked at the small black watch on her wrist. She had been down in the basement, pushing herself beyond her limits for the better part of an hour and a half. Ignoring every protest in her body, she somersaulted, jumping to her feet with the agility only she possessed. She flexed her aching hand, hissing a curse as pain that accompanied a break reverberated through her hand and up her arm. She rolled her eyes, regarding it only as an inconvenience.

"Miss Romanov, I have detected a new virus running through their systems." Her head snapped towards the ceiling at Jarvis' voice.

"What?" she growled.

"I have detec-" he began again.

"I heard you." She snapped. She cursed, hitting the wall with her good hand.

"Come on Banner." She hissed pleadingly. "How?" she asked the AI.

"It seems it was transferred to their bodies through a fluid." He explained. The only thing those men had drank since they got sick was water.

"Jarvis, you would tell me if someone had been on the property right?" she checked.

"Yes Agent Romanoff, but it seems that-" Natasha shook her head.

"Jarvis, I won't be able to understand any of this. Save it for Banner." She instructed, making her way to the elevator.

"Of course." He concluded. She hit the button with the men's floor on it, cradling her hand against her chest. Before making the rounds, she stopped by the bathroom in the hallway, tearing it apart, searching for the first aid kit. She found it and unzipped it with her good hand. Ripping open the package of gauze rap with her teeth, she started winding it tightly around her fractured hand. Once she finished, she dropped her hand to her side.

She worked backwards this time, checking on Thor first. The thunder god was still asleep, taking labored unsteady breaths. Next, she stopped by Tony's room. The philanthropist was hunched over the sink, head in his hands and elbows on either side of the sink.

"You ok?" she called quietly from the doorway. He nodded. Tony turned to face her, revealing his sick looking pallor and blood shot eyes. "Get back in bed Stark." She ordered. He stumbled across the room, sitting down on the edge of the makeshift hospital bed.

"What if I die and leave Pepper all alone with the baby?" he muttered sadly, staring down at his hands.

"You're not going to die. You wouldn't leave them without a fight. That much I'm positive of about you." She said with a tone of finality. He nodded at her.

"Never seen this side of you Widow." He smirked. "You're pretty good at it." He admitted. "You're actually… nice." He mocked.

"Don't get too used to it." She replied. "You good?"

"Yeah. Thanks. Again." She closed the door behind her, leaving the millionaire with his thoughts.

Third she checked on Steve. Looking into the room, she first saw him writhing in the bed, and then noted he was asleep. The poor man was drenched in sweat, his whole body tensed. Unable to watch it any longer, she shut the door and moved on to Clint's room. His eyes were clenched shut and his white knuckled fists were cradling his head. Low whimpers floated across the room to where Natasha was standing in the doorway. She walked up to him, brushing her hand across his forehead.

"Hey." she said softly. His eyes flew open at her voice.

"Hey Nat." he coughed. She reached out and took his hands in hers. Natasha ignored the pain in her hand, she'd had worse, but there was nothing she could do about the inevitable, infinitesimal flinch the pressure caused. He glanced at her, assessing her for the first time. "What'd you do Natasha?" he asked angrily.

"Probably just sprained it." She lied. "Fractured at the worst." She amended. He shook his head.

"Aw c'mon Tash. Can't you just…" He started. Her eyes flashed. She got off the bed and began pacing.

"Can't I just what Clint? What is it you want me to do? Did you know Pepper's pregnant? No, you didn't. Did you know that I will be responsible if that baby grows up without a father? No, you didn't. Did you know that Steve's temperature is up to 108.5 and climbing? No, you didn't know that either. And you, you idiot, engaged a month, and I'm losing you!" she yelled, hating the tears streaming down her face with a passion.

"Come here Tasha." He sighed. She rubbed a hand across her face, wiping away the salt water on her face. She moved over and stood by the bed. He took a deep breath, misery and agony flashing in his eyes as he forced himself into a sitting position. He placed one burning hand on either side of her face. "Natasha," he whispered, brushing a thumb across her pale cheek. "You can't lose me." He promised. She pulled his hands away, pushing him back down. "You need sleep Tasha." He whispered hoarsely. He fingered the dark, and darkening, purple bruises under her eyes. She turned her head away from him, getting her lifeless curls tangled in his fingers."When's the last time you slept, Nat?" he asked warily. She could feel his hand tense in her grasp.

"Hush, its ok…" she murmured, rubbing circles on the back of his hand with her thumb. She waited to answer his question until the pain had subsided. "A few hours before the mission." She answered vaguely.

"Which mission Natasha?" She bit her lip.

"Shanghai." He locked his fingers on her chin, forcing her to look at him. She easily could've resisted, or broken his fingers with her teeth in twenty different ways, but she let him. Searching her eyes, and hating what he saw, he let out a shaky sigh.

"Please get some sleep Tasha." He begged. She shook her head.

"I can't." she shrugged. "But you can. Banner will be here in the morning." She informed him. "Sleep Clint." She ordered.

"The waves of excruciating pain make sleep sort of difficult." He joked but she could tell he was serious.

"Try." She leaned down and kissed his forehead, forcing herself to leave the room. But she'd be back. She always came back to him.

2 - "Natasha…" a familiar voice called from behind her. The dish towel fell from Jane's hands to the floor and Natasha broke into a full blown grin. The girls had been washing the drinking glasses with bleach, terminating any possibility of the wretched virus multiplying.

"Oh, Bruce!" Jane shouted, launching herself at the doctor. She locked her arms around his neck as the socially challenged doctor patted her back awkwardly.

"Uh, yeah. Hi Jane." He muttered. Jane pulled away, blushing, and retreated to pick up her towel. Natasha looked at him as though, had she been anyone but herself, she would've reacted the same way Jane had.

"Dr. Banner," Natasha acknowledged.

"Romanov," he nodded.

"You better get started Bruce." She suggested, involuntarily cradling her hand against her stomach. He gestured questioningly at the obvious injury. She scowled at the unwelcome action.

"Nothing. Fractured it." She explained quickly. He took in the purple shadows under her eyes, raising his eyebrows in disapproval. She narrowed her gaze at him, crushing his idea to say something. "It's bad doctor." She noted as he followed her to the elevator.

"I bet I've seen worse." Natasha kept her face expressionless.

"Who would you like to see first?" she asked.

"I probably need to get them all in the lab…" he said contemplatively. Natasha winced internally. She didn't want to think about how miserable it would make the men to move them.

"Whatever you believe is best, doctor." She said, instead of protesting. He rubbed his hands together, somewhat resembling a super villain. He nodded. The plan was made; he and Jane would set up beds in the lab while Natasha got the four very sick men downstairs. "Jarvis, what are their temperatures at?" she called, just as the elevator was about to let Bruce out on the lab floor.

"Mr. Stark is running at-" Jarvis started.

"Names and numbers only please." She sighed.

"Mr. Stark, 105.4. Thor, 104.5. Mr. Barton, 106.3. Mr. Rogers, 108.7." Jarvis declared. Natasha pushed her palms against her eyes, ignoring Banner's wide eyed stares.

"Wha-" he stuttered, just as the elevator dinged.

"That's your floor. Jarvis, tell Jane to meet Doctor Banner down in the lab." The female assassin ordered. Bruce, who had previously looked relatively confidant for once, now looked more nervous than usual.

Natasha was strong. She was stronger than most men you'd ever meet. But she still wasn't sure she'd be strong enough to support most of a very large demigod's weight. So as she stood beside Thor's bed, shaking him awake, she wondered how it would be possible for her to help him to the elevator.

"Oh, hello, Lady Natasha." He greeted, coughing between words.

"Good Morning Thor. Doctor Banner has arrived and he would like you all in his lab." She explained. He paled.

"Ok." He said. The simple wording made her worry a little more about him.

"Ready?" she checked. He nodded. She held onto his forearm with most of her strength, hauling him to his feet. He slumped forward against her and Natasha buckled a little under the weight. "I'm going to need you to help me out a little Thor…" she gasped. Some of the weight was removed, allowing her to stand up and help the large god to the elevator. He stood in the elevator, panting. When the elevator dinged, he leaned against her again. The doors opened, revealing the metal lab that now resembled a miniature hospital. Jane inhaled sharply, running towards her boyfriend. Jane got under his right arm, balancing out his weight. Together Jane and Natasha practically carried Thor to one of the beds. Natasha left Jane to care for him while she brought the others down.

The tired red head wasn't exactly looking forward to waking up Tony Stark. She wasn't sure if being sick would make this easier or harder. Taking a deep breath, she began to shake him awake. He waved his hand blindly, no doubt an attempt to slap her.

"Stark, get out of this bed." She ordered frustrated. He mumbled something under his breath and turned over to face her.

"Not sure that's possible Arachne." he muttered in condescending, snarky, and also somehow pained voice.

"Let's go. I'll help you but Bruce wants you all in the lab." She held her hand out to him. He blinked at her. "Get over it. Let's go." He rolled his eyes and dropped his hand on top of hers. She pulled his arm around her shoulders, helping him stumble to the elevator.

"Brucey-boy to the rescue!" he shouted drunkenly when the doors dinged open. Natasha dropped him gracelessly on the bed beside Thor's.

The 'cold hearted' assassin was, for once, feeling guilty for what she was about to do. She stared at the relatively calm features of Steve Rogers. This was the most relaxed she'd seen him since he'd gotten sick. He still wasn't relaxed by definition, but it was the closest he'd come to it in three days.

"Steve…" she called, shaking him gently. "Steve, you've gotta wake up."

"Yes ma'am." He mumbled weakly, forcing his eyes open. She pulled him into a sitting position, hooked an arm around his waist, pulling him to his feet. His eyes rolled back a little bit. He snapped them shut, putting his unoccupied hand to his head. "Hey, you're ok." She said quietly. He nodded, swallowed hard, and opened his eyes again. She helped him to the next bed before, once again, turning on her heel and leaving.

"Hey…" she whispered, running her, for once, shaky hand down the side of Clint's face. "Did you get any sleep last night?" she groaned.

"Did you?" Clint countered. She scowled.

"Banner wants all of you in the lab." She explicated.

The dropping sensation of the elevator hadn't bothered the others so the thought hadn't occurred to her until the elevator started and Clint collapsed against the wall, palms pressed against the cool surface, gagging. She pulled him back against her, looking at him eye to eye until he relaxed against her.

"Bruce," Clint slurred in greeting. Banner stared wide eyed at the pale, sweating, shaking, all over sick looking assassin.

"Clint…" he stammered. Natasha helped him onto the bed, not bothering with the covers.

"Have they been drinking any water?" Bruce asked Natasha, turning back to his computer screens. The addressed killer would've laughed had she been anyone but her 'cold' self.

"Plenty." She replied. The doctor nodded.

"Good. Food?"

"They could barely keep the water down Bruce." She sighed. It was getting painfully difficult to keep her usual front up. He put one hand up in surrender while the other flew seamlessly across the computer keys.

"Tasha?" Clint called weakly as he struggled to sit up. She walked quickly to his side, putting her hand lightly against his chest. He fell back against the pillows.

"What?" She replied.

"Get some sleep now. Banner's here. Just… just a couple hours." He mumbled pathetically, trying hard to disguise the pain behind his voice. Natasha had started shaking her head at 'some'.

"I can't. I need to debrief Bruce. And he's going to need help with you children." She explained, smirking slightly. Bruce waved his hand in dismissal, keeping his focused eyes trained on the screen.

"It'll take me a while to read all of this data Jarvis collected. Go ahead Natasha." Bruce declared distractedly.

"I'm with Robin Hood on this one Miss Assassin." Tony chimed in.

"As am I, Lady Natasha." Thor called, still in a rather loud voice, though it had quieted considerably.

"Miss Romanoff," Steve nodded his agreement.

"Sorry Natasha." Jane shrugged, signaling her consent. Natasha fought the childish urge to huff like a little girl. Clint smiled sheepishly.

"Happy bird-brain?" she whispered so only he could hear.

"Very. Sweet dreams Tash." He called after her. Natasha disappeared up the staircase and went up the stairs to her bedroom.

Two hours later, she was awake, exhausted as she was before, changing into black skinny jeans and a black v-neck tee shirt in front of her mirror. Out of habit, she slipped her handgun into the small holster on her belt. Sighing, she removed it, placing it in the locked drawer with her engagement band. Biting her lip, she pulled the ring out of the drawer, holding the thin chain between her thumb and forefinger. She pulled the gold chain over her head. Wearing it on a necklace so that she wouldn't lose it had started on a month long solo mission to Italy. Clint wasn't coming and it was the first month of their engagement so she brought it with her. She was captured and her captor discovered her ring. He taunted her about the Black Widow going soft. It didn't faze her because it wasn't true. But since that mission, she didn't wear it on assignments.

Natasha tucked it safely behind her shirt as she fought off the dark thoughts invading her brain. Thoughts of the possibilities that she may never switch it out for a wedding band, forced her from her suffocating room and down to the lab. Halfway down the stairs, she heard Clint's groans echo through the tower. Throw Steve's agonized whimper into the mix and Natasha was practically sobbing as she raced down the stairs. This was her consequence for allowing herself to love someone, and trust seven other people. It internally compromised her. Still, she wouldn't trade it for the world. Plus, it didn't affect her field work so what did it matter. She knew what it mattered; she had many enemies. And shall those enemies find out that she is attached to seven people, like her Italian captor, they could use those that she cared about against her.

"Everything ok, down here?" she asked professionally. Clint could see right through the tinted, now fragile, glass known as her cold-hearted self. He could see that she was still exhausted. He could see that she was scared. He could see she was worried. He could see a lot of emotions that were hidden to the others.

"Nat…" he whined. "What was that? Like, two hours?" he panted. She glared at him.

"Shut up, I'm fine." He translated. He sent her a look translated into,

"You most definitely are not fine Tasha." A slight, condescending tilt of her head said,

"You shouldn't be talking." Her gaze saddened and momentarily flickered to the ground. "Nightmares." That meant. He waited a millisecond until she looked up again.

"Aw Tash. I'm right here, you know that. I'm not going anywhere." She shrugged imperceptibly.

That whole conversation occurred over a period of three seconds, by each partner reading the other's body language.

"That's none of your concern Agent Barton." She joked aloud, smirking for good measure, referring to the spoken conversation.

"Listen up, flirts. We need to figure this out. Our star spangled man with a plan isn't going to be able to hold on much longer." Tony muttered sadly, glancing at their writhing, sweaty, coughing, gagging, pale, whimpering leader. His breathing was coming shallower by the hour.

"What've you got for us Bruce?" Natasha asked, once again professionally.

"They were definitely poisoned." He concluded. He tapped the keyboard a couple times until the information on what Natasha recognized as a poison came up. Everything from what the horrid toxin was made of, to possible origins of the venom glowed bright and haunting on the Stark Industry computer. "I was hoping you'd be able to match this with a name. If I have a name, it'd be easier to find a cure." Natasha stared unbelieving at the screen. She knew this poison. "If not we could-"

"Morte Lente." She mumbled.

"What?" he asked, his fingers slowing to an annoying tap on the luminescent keyboard.

"It's name. The poison, it's called Morte Lente." She repeated. "It's an Italian toxin used on prisoners. I know because… because they used this on me." She spoke breathlessly. She turned to face the wide-eyes of those conscious in the room. "They used it to get us to talk." She shrugged. "They had the cure so once you talked, they…" her striking green eyes glowed. "They have the cure." She said forcefully.

"Natasha, no!" Clint ordered weakly. Even Tony opened his mouth to protest.

"Not a good idea, Red." He said seriously. "What'd you do to get the Italian mafia after you anyway?" he asked curiously.

"Oh, nothing much." She responded sardonically. "Just stole thirteen years worth of research." She sighed. She cursed, aiming a perfectly positioned kick to the wall. At the resounding boom, Steve jerked awake. "I should've realized it sooner." She hissed.

"What's going on?" he asked breathlessly, taking in Clint's horrified expression, and Natasha's of guilt. Tony quickly explained how Natasha knew the poison and wanted to head to Italy to find the cure.

"Help us out here Spangles. Tell her it's a bad idea." Tony grumbled. Steve looked at the red head's face. He knew that expression first hand; the 'it's-my-fault-and-I-need-to-do-this' look that he had worn more times than he cared to count.

"Be careful." Steve whispered to her. Clint gaped at him.

"No, Nat. Please don't." Clint begged. Natasha walked up to Steve, ignoring Clint for the moment.

"I will. Thank you." She muttered, kissing his overly hot cheek. "Hang on until I get back ok?" his laugh turned into a grimace as it aggravated… everything.

"Sure, sure." He replied absently. She moved onto Tony. She didn't know whether she was saying goodbye in case she didn't make it back, or in case they didn't make it until she got back.

"None of that goodbye crap Peter Parker. I'm gonna need help with Pepper. Get you and your skin tight suit back to this country ASAP." He ordered seriously.

"Tony." She sighed. "I expect you and your gaudy suit in Naples when I call for backup." She joked, and then she put a hand on his forehead. "Kidding. Get out of this bed and I will send all of your suits to the middle of nowhere in Australia." She growled.

"What are kangaroos going to do with an arc reactor?" he muttered. Natasha smirked at him. He shot her a brief, genuine smile.

"May Hlin be with you, Lady Natasha." Thor offered. Natasha hadn't known Thor was awake.

"Thank you, Thor." She replied. Although she had no clue who 'Hlin' was. Finally, she took a deep breath and turned to Clint. The look of worry, hurt, pain, and horror on his face was almost enough to make her stay. He was the only person who knew all of what her 'friends' in Italy did to her. But she needed to do this. They were trying to get at her and her family was dying because of it. She went closer to him so she could speak to him without the others hearing.

"Don't Tasha. Don't go. They'll… they'll… well, you remember what they did to you!" he yelled quietly. She shook her head.

"I don't have a choice Clint. This is my fault." She murmured, running her hand through his short hair.

"Bruce will figure something out." He countered. She shook her head.

"He won't. And by the time he does," her gaze flickered to the Cap, then down to Clint. "It'll be too late." She sighed. "Promise me you'll hang on until I get home?"

"Promise me you'll come home?" he countered. She nodded. "I'll be waiting." She moved back so that she could remove the chain around her neck. She held his open hand in hers, dropping the chain, ring and all, into his hand, closing it around the jewelry.

"Keep it safe until I get back." He opened his hand and looked down at the engagement ring with a pained expression. "Love you Clint." She whispered, pressing her lips down on his. She knew she could get sick, but if she got the cure, which she would, it wouldn't matter.

"Love you Tasha." He choked in reply. "See you soon." She nodded and turned to Banner. She sent him a look that universally meant 'take care of them'. He nodded, sifting through a bunch of papers for something. He turned to her, tossing something small and black through the air. She caught it easily, and rolled it in her hand.

"It's hooked up to Jarvis." He explained. She nodded her thanks and left the lab. She bolted up the stairs to her room to change into her cat suit. In her room, she slipped the absurdly tight suit up her body, zipping it up before she loaded every weapon in her possession into every holster in her black outfit. Clasping her Widow's bite bracelets around her thin wrists, she turned the voltage down so it would only disable. She fitted the earpiece Banner had given her into her ear.

"Widow to Banner. Do you copy?" she tested.

"Copy." He replied.

"Mr. Stark has asked me to inform you that his jet is waiting for you on the roof." Jarvis announced. Natasha secretly wondered how many jets the millionaire owned, but she ignored the question.

"Thank you Jarvis." She headed for the roof, praying she could get in and out in time to save the team.

Downstairs in the lab, all but Tony had been knocked out by their exhaustion once again. He dialed Pepper's number on his transparent cell phone.

"Tell Natasha that when I get back, I'm going to kill her." Pepper growled into the phone. "She was supposed to c-"

"The Italians might beat you to it Pep." He interrupted.

"What?" she asked, stopping her rant. Tony explained how she had taken off for Italy to find the cure. Pepper's horrified protests rang loud and clear through the phone as Tony held it away from his ear.

Across the room, Banner's quick fingers flew across the odd shaped keyboard. He murmured random words of frustration as he glared at the impossibly complex poison make-up. The watch he still wore out of precaution was emanating an annoying quick paced beeping sound as he struggled to control his breathing. Jane put a hand on his arm and he backed away from the computer. He sat down in the swivel chair a few feet back with his head in his hands.

"If I could figure this out, Natasha wouldn't have to go back." He muttered to himself as Jane walked away.

"Just take care of them as best you can. Keep them alive until she gets back. That's the best you can do Bruce." She called to him. He sighed; time to play babysitter.

Natasha deployed her parachute as she free fell from the plane. She detached her knife from one of the holsters on her right hip. The moment her foot touched Italian soil, she cut the strings on her chute and ran, leaving the Stark Industry parachute on the ground behind her. She ran for an alley, stopping once she was safely hidden in the shadows.

"Banner, do you copy?" she called into the comm.

"Copy, Agent Romanoff." He replied.

"I'm close to their headquarters. I'm moving in." she notified. She ignored his reply and moved into the over-sized 'storage shed' behind the restaurant she was hiding behind. She drew her gun and slipped through the window. The dark room was empty. She moved towards the center of the room, turning in circles with her handgun drawn and aimed into the dark. "Banner, there's no one-"

"Oh, but I'm here." A nauseatingly familiar voice called through the dark. Natasha turned around slowly, hiding the look of disbelief on her face. She held her gun tighter, pointing it in the general direction of the speaker. "You actually fell for it." He cackled. "You actually believed it was your little friends in Italy." She narrowed her gaze at him through the dark. He sighed. "Looking for this?" he held up a little glass bottle. She had to hold herself back from lunging at him.

"Why'd you do it? What do you have against them?" she demanded.

"Oh, everything my dear." Loki snarled.

"I thought you were in prison." She hissed.

"As did everyone else, Black Widow." He mocked. "Why do you need this little antidote? Your doctor couldn't come up with one?" he paused. "You won't make it back in time Miss Romanoff." He chastised.

"I don't have time for this." She muttered to herself.

She shot Loki's right arm, dodging a stream of blue light. Sliding forward as he dropped the glass vial, she was forced to dodge the scepter itself. She caught the vial in her hand, flipping to her feet. The God of Mischief stumbled away from her, clutching his arm. Before the god could recover she fired a Widow's bite at him. The shot buried itself in his shoulder, sending an electric wave through his body.

Under normal circumstances, she would've liked to stay and find out why he was back and why he targeted the men. But the men's clocks were ticking and she had to get home before it was too late.

"Antidote secured. Loki disabled." She recited into the comm.

"Loki?" Banner spluttered into the phone.

"Yeah. Contact SHIELD and have them send a retrieval team for Loki, he'll be out for a while. I'm on my way to the extraction site. See you in a few hours." She glanced at the small container of blue liquid before slipping it into a pocket on the inside of her suit.

Steve had fallen asleep after Natasha left for Italy two days ago and hadn't woken up since. He still had a pulse but the rest of the team wondered how much longer he would last. Clint wasn't far behind him. Tony hadn't said a word to anyone but Pepper since his comment about kangaroos and arc reactors and neither had Thor except the occasional whispered word of assurance to Jane. Banner was on the phone with Director Fury, relaying what Natasha had told him to the one-eyed man who was currently living up to his name. The man was furious that Odin hadn't kept his promise of keeping his adoptive son in custody. He was equally as furious that no one had told him about the poisoning issue. In the middle of a long string of curses on Fury's behalf, Bruce heard the hum of one of Stark's jets. He glared at the blue phone, before punching the end call button.

The usually respectful man's eyes widened. Once he realized he had just hung up on authority, he began wringing his hands together like a nervous old woman. A few minutes later, Natasha ran through the double doors of the lab, footsteps as quiet as ever.

"He must've been only trying to delay me. It was too easy." She murmured to Bruce as she fitted the cure in his hand and turned to face the guys. Bruce muttered something behind her.

"Bruce?" she asked for clarification. His worried eyes scanned over the screen.

"It won't work for Rogers." He muttered loudly, pounding a fist on the table. Natasha walked over to him, laying a hand on his shoulder.

"You can make it work." She assured him. He swallowed, nodding. She didn't tell him to hurry, she didn't yell at him for not working on it sooner when he couldn't have known, she did it kindly for once in her life. She waited to walk away until he was engrossed in his work, once he was, she moved over to Clint.

"How you holding up?" she asked, half-heartedly. He coughed in response. "I know. I'm sorry." He looked her up and down, searching for hidden injuries. She shrugged. "Nope. Loki didn't even put up a fight." His eyes widened with worry. "Yeah, Loki." She confirmed. To anyone else, it would've seemed like she was talking to herself. He uncurled his hand, revealing the small mound made up of gold chain and an engagement ring. Natasha reached forward, taking it in her hand, before slipping it over her head. Watching as the ring settled against her sternum, she leaned forward, placing a kiss on his forehead then moving away from the bed.

"Could you call Pepper? If she hears my voice she'll freak." Tony whispered hoarsely. Natasha nodded.

"Sure." She pulled her Stark Industries phone out of another hidden pocket on her tight SHIELD uniform. She clicked on Pepper's contact, listening to the annoying ringing sound through the speaker.

"How'd your mission in Italy go?" Pepper asked bitterly after the first few rings.

"It ended up being Loki." Natasha replied nonchalantly. She could hear the other redhead's spit take on the other end.

"WHO?" she screeched.

"Loki. I got the cure from him." She answered, watching Banner as he recited commands to Jarvis.

"How're all the guys?" Pepper sighed. Natasha scanned her eyes across the room at her dying teammates.

"Hanging in there." Natasha heard the faint sound of an ocean in the background. "Where are you?"

"Malibu Beach House." She exhaled. "First place I thought of."

"How're-" the assassin started.

"I think I got it!" Banner shouted from deep in his nest of papers, calculators, pencils, test tubes, and files.

"I'll have to call you back." She murmured to the confused woman in California, smashing her finger into the terminate call button. She leaned against the metal table, looking over Bruce's right shoulder. The computer mouse hovered over a 3D diagram of a DNA strand.

"Loki modified the poison so that it would blend with Rogers' serum altered DNA and attack those tougher cells from the inside out. Once the chemical fought through the stronger cells, it flew through the unchanged cells, which were Steve's body's last defense. So, if I rework the antidote so that it-"

"Bruce, if it will work, don't explain, do!" she interrupted. He nodded frantically as he took the small vial of blue liquid, poured a fourth of it into its own test tube, pounded a few more computer keys, and yelled a few commands at Jarvis. The unusually frenetic scientist claimed something from one of Stark's robots and poured it into the same container as the solution set aside for Steve. As both fluids combined, he shoved it into another machine Natasha had no name for. He loaded three syringes with the unchanged antidote, setting them gently on a towel beside him. He motioned towards them with a seemingly careless hand.

"I still have to finish Steve's. You do the other three men. Directly into their blood stream," he instructed, hurrying across the room. With careful hands, she picked up one needle from the towel, walking to the bed farthest to the right. Distantly she wondered if startling a very large, un-alert, strong god with a needle was the best option, but as he shivered again, she plunged the needle into Thor's wrist without a second thought. Jane sat useless on the opposite side of the bed, not moving until Natasha glared at her. Then she jumped up, ran towards the table, then running over to Tony Stark, syringe in hand. The billionaire jerked awake, a couple angry mumbled words tumbled from his mouth until he realized what Jane was doing. Natasha, gracefully as always, even in a situation such as this, switched out the empty needle for a fresh one, elegantly hurrying over to Clint's bedside. Gingerly picking up his hand, she clamped her fingers tightly around his wrist, palm up, and took a deep breath before forcing the needle into the sensitive skin. His eyes snapped open, and Natasha thanked God he was too weak to put any force into pulling his wrist away. Suddenly, a beeping noise sounded over the intercom.

"Jarvis, what's that?" Jane called worriedly.

"Captain Rogers' heart rate, Miss Foster." The AI answered gravely. Natasha's head spun in Steve's direction. She quickly emptied the rest of the syringe's contents into Clint's blood stream before going over to where Banner stood over a few scientific tools. A robotic TV screen rolled over to where the two healthy Avengers' stood, a heart rate monitor appearing on the display.

"It's done! It's done!" he yelled frantically, his own watch emitting a quick beeping noise. She grabbed the syringe from his grasp, glancing at his watch. He understood and slipped from the lab momentarily. Natasha sprinted over to the Cap and buried the needle in his serum-enhanced skin, just as the monitor flat-lined.

Natasha cursed, continuing to depress the syringe. Once it had been emptied, she tossed it thoughtlessly over her shoulder. Then she climbed on the bed, hovering over Steve on her knees. She didn't flinch when a very green and very sad Bruce Banner smashed through the wall. He bounded quietly over to where Natasha was forcibly pushing air into their leader's lungs. She worked quietly, ignoring a potentially dangerous Hulk behind her. A loud roar sounded from behind her. It didn't work as it had for Tony.

"Let me try." Bruce's voice sounded, minutes later. Natasha climbed off the bed and stood against the wall, perfectly calm as always on the outside. Bruce stood over the Captain for a good five-six minutes before he stood back, shaking his head. He leaned against the wall with his head in his hands. "I was too late." He muttered repeatedly. The realization was just starting to sink in for Natasha when their beloved Captain gasped, sucking in deep breath after deep breath. She fought the urge to walk up and slap the man. Because no matter how much she hated to admit it, she really did like her team, and if one of them died, their family would be one short and then it wouldn't be a family any more. And that was unacceptable. So instead, she listened to Jarvis tell the people in the overly hot room that Thor, Iron Man, Hawkeye, and even Captain America, who was dead for almost ten minutes a little while ago, were improving.

Natasha backed away from Steve and returned to Clint's side. She ran her hand down his arm, smiling as she observed his first peaceful sleep in days. Picking up his hand, she leaned back in her chair, drifting off to sleep while the men recovered.

"When can Pepper come home?" Tony whined for the hundredth time as he sat at the dining table with the rest of the team. Steve and Clint coughed to answer his question.

"Not until Rogers and Barton are completely better." Bruce answered patiently.

"Where'd our favorite hammer god go?" Tony wondered aloud. Natasha growled inaudibly. If that man hadn't almost died a week ago, Natasha would've slapped him. He hadn't shut up since he woke up yesterday. As Clint coughed again, groaning as it worsened his headache, Natasha moved closer to him leaning lightly against him. He wrapped an arm around her shoulders, pressing his forehead against her fiery red hair.

"Jane took him to her place." Banner answered. He started again, loudly so that Tony couldn't cut him off. "Since Thor was better, she took him home to get some clothes and whatever else he needed. They'll be back by dinner." He finished, looking back down at his newspaper. Steve prodded his small breakfast with his fork, watching it distractedly. Steve and Clint would recover completely within the week, according to Banner. And Tony never failed to complain that they were prolonging their recovery to torment him, to which Steve gaped, Clint scoffed, and Natasha glared. The idea that the two didn't want the headaches, the coughing, the nausea, the misery to end was almost comical. The four tried to be sympathetic to the knowledge that he just missed Pepper, but Tony Stark made sympathy very difficult. Steve excused himself, dropping his half eaten plate in the sink.

"Ma'am," Tony called condescendingly, holding his plate out to Natasha as she rose from her seat with Clint's plate. She smiled sweetly, a terrifying tell that she was annoyed. Tony's smirk faltered momentarily. She took his plate, turning to walk away before spinning on her heel and smacking the snarky scientist upside the head.

"Bed. Now." She ordered.

"You can't give me orders, my eight-legged friend." He grinned. The only girl in the room looked expectantly at Bruce.

"Doctor's orders along with an assassin's." Bruce muttered contemptuously. Tony huffed, leaving for his room. Barton sat patiently while Natasha did the dishes. After fifteen minutes, when Clint was practically passed out on the table, Bruce took pity on the man. "Take him to bed. He cannot get sick again." He murmured to Natasha. She dropped the plate she was currently holding into the metal sink before doing as Banner said, and taking Clint upstairs.

A week and three days later, the completely healthy Avengers' family stood on the roof of the Tower, waiting for the Stark's helicopter to land with Pepper in it. Tony was practically jumping up and down as the roar of the aircraft could be heard. The seven people shielded their eyes as the plane landed on the helipad. The moment it touched the ground, a flustered looking Pepper Stark raced towards Tony, throwing herself into his arms. He stumbled back a bit before placing her on the floor. The other's backed inside as the married couple just stood there looking at each other. The six smiled, turning around as he kissed her. Clint squeezed Natasha's hand as they walked into the elevator.

3- Natasha smirked as she looked at herself in the mirror. Pepper finished pinning the rest of the Agent's curly bright red hair up before pulling back and clapping her hands together. The engaged SHIELD agents had agreed that white dresses and tuxedos were not their thing unless it was necessary for a mission. So instead, the two were getting married in their uniforms. Natasha in her cat suit and Clint in his archery attire.

"You nervous?" Pepper chirped excitedly to Natasha.

"I don't get nervous." She responded confidently. "Especially when it comes to Agent Barton." She grinned.

Natasha, flanked by Pepper and Jane, walked from the changing room and stopped at the aisle. She stared at it speculatively for a moment realizing that, over a decade ago, had anyone told her that she would be marrying a SHIELD agent she would've been more than happy to demonstrate her signature thigh-choke. But as she caught sight of Hawkeye standing at the altar in his trademark uniform, she banished all nostalgic thoughts and continued down the aisle. As the three girls reached the altar, Pepper and Tony smirked at each other before tapping the bride and groom's shoulder. The maid-of-honor and best-man held out their hands and both of the engaged emptied their weapons into their friend's hands. First the Widow's Bites, multiple handguns, a few miniature smoke bombs, and more than a few knives were emptied into wide-eyed Pepper's hands. Then a handgun, a broken arrow, and his wrist guards were placed in an amused Tony's hands. Both dumped the weapons, unceremoniously, in the corner of the room. Fury's low chuckle could be heard from somewhere in the small crowd.

The small group of spectators was made up of Director Fury, Agent Hill, Happy, Dr. Selvigg, Darcy, and one or two other Agents the nearly married couple knew. The other people who would've been in the crowd were in the wedding; Captain America, as the unanimously agreed leader of the group, was the officiator. Dr. Banner was holding the wedding rings. Iron Man was the best man as voted by everyone but Clint. (The other team members wanted to see Clint's reaction to Tony's idea of a bachelor party.) Pepper was Natasha's maid-of-honor. Jane made up the brides maids, and Thor made up Clint's groomsmen.

"Who gives this woman to this man in marriage?" Steve began.

"That would be me." Fury called from his slouching position in the crowd. Clint chuckled.

"Dear friends, family, and agents, we are gathered here today to witness and celebrate the union of Natasha Romanoff (the Black Widow) and Clint Barton (Hawkeye) in marriage. In the years they have been together, their love and understanding of each other has grown and matured, and now they have decided to live their lives, and fight their enemies together as husband and wife." Steve proclaimed loudly.

"True marriage is more than joining the bonds of marriage of two persons; it is the union of two hearts. It lives on the love you give each other and never grows old, but thrives on the joy of each new day. Marriage is love. May you always be able to talk things over, to confide in each other, to laugh with each other, to enjoy life together, and to share moments of quiet and peace when missions are done. May you be blessed with a lifetime of happiness and a home of…"

"Your crazy dysfunctional family." Tony cut in. Cap glared at him annoyed, but broke down and laughed.

"Yeah, us." He said instead.

"Do you, Clinton Francis Barton, take Natalia Alianovna Romanova, to be your partner in life and sharing your path; equal in love, a mirror for your true self, promising to honor and cherish, through good times and bad, until death do you part?"

"I do." Clint replied, grinning.

"Do you, Natalia Alia-"

"I do." She cut him off. Clint laughed quietly. Steve motioned, with mock tiredness, to Bruce, who stepped forward and placed a ring in each assassin's hand. Clint held out his left hand for hers, locking his calloused fingers around her slim wrist.

"I give you this ring as a symbol of my love for you. Let it be a reminder that I am always by your side and that I will always be a faithful partner to you." He murmured as he slipped the ring on her finger, his grin going impossibly wider.

"I give you this ring because I love you. Let it be a reminder that I am always by your side and that I will always be a faithful partner to you." She responded, slipping the ring on his finger. They skipped all of the 'Wear this ring forever' stuff because they wouldn't be wearing their rings all the time. They would go in a safe in Nick Fury's office during missions.

"By the power vested in me by… well, Nick Fury, I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may now-" Steve sighed as Natasha launched herself at Clint, locking her arms around his neck and kissing him, successfully cutting him off again. "Kiss the bride" he mumbled, chuckling, stepping back. Tony, ever interrupting Tony, cleared his throat after a minute and a half.

"Yo, Hawkey-Boy…" He called in Clint's ear. Clint swatted at him blindly. When that didn't work, a blushing Steve Rogers cleared his throat. And Clint pulled away. She glared daggers at the Captain, sighing in amusement as he shrank away. She smiled and Cap came closer again.

"I present to you, Agents Natasha and Clint Barton." He smiled. Clint smiled at his wife, kissing her cheek before turning back to the quietly clapping crowd. Tony clapped Clint on the back actually smiling at him.

"Congrats Barton." Stark muttered. Clint went slightly wide-eyed

"So you do know I have a name?" Stark rolled his eyes. Clint turned around to see Natasha carefully hugging her six months pregnant best friend. Natasha pulled away, smirking like a mad man.

Pepper shook her head, mumbling 'Bad Idea' as Natasha glanced at her. Pepper handed one gun back to the new Agent Barton.

"Safety, love." Clint reminded her. She flicked the safety on and emptied it of all ammo.

"No bouquet." She explained before turning around and tossing it (to Jane) over her shoulder, where it 'coincidentally' landed in Jane's hands. Jane mouthed 'Thanks' to the female Avenger, laughing as a blushing Thor was suddenly very interested in a conversation two SHIELD agents were having.

Anyone who had seen Clint and Natasha spar knew what it was like to see them dance. Of course, no one had ever seen them dance exactly. But watching them fight was almost like watching a choreographed dance. Their movements were perfectly in sync.

So the people at their small wedding reception watched helplessly captivated as the couple flew seamlessly across the makeshift dance floor. Their first dance finished as Clint dipped Natasha to the floor, kissing her cheek and helping her upright again. Even Tony, the current DJ, blinked a few times before returning to his usual snarky self. Once their dance had ended, Tony gave his job over to Happy before pulling Pepper over to a corner on the dance floor. Thor practically picked Jane up and carried her into center of the 'festivities'. Steve walked up to Clint and put a hand on his shoulder before addressing Natasha.

"May I?" he asked nervously. Natasha glanced at Clint who nodded. She shrugged.

"Sure." After the wedding, Natasha had changed into a black halter top dress and Clint had changed into a silver suit. They were more dressed up for the reception then they had been for the wedding and they found that somewhat amusing. Clint wandered off to go talk to Bruce by the snack table. Steve eyed the unusual genuine smile on the newlywed's face.

"You're happy." He noted with a smile.

"I am." She admitted. The song ended and Bruce took Steve's place for the next song. She danced with him, even Tony for a half a song before she stalked away from him due to a sarcastic comment. Minutes later, she found her annoyance forgotten as she swayed in Clint's arms.

Everything was winding down, those that didn't live there had left, Thor was getting ready to fly Jane home, Clint and Tony were almost ready to take their girls upstairs, and Steve and Bruce were about to head to bed when someone walked through the double doors of the Avengers' Tower reception hall and crashed the party.

Tony slowly shifted Pepper behind him, Thor copied him. Pepper stood behind her husband, pressed up against his back with her arms wrapped protectively around her middle. Mischievous green eyes scanned the room before he opened his deceitful mouth.

"A party? And I wasn't invited?" Loki sighed. "Congratulations, by the way, Mrs. Barton." He drawled. Natasha's hand tensed in Clint's grasp.

"Why are you here, brother?" Thor called in a disappointed voice. The black-haired god scoffed.

"I am not your brother!" He yelled angrily. Thor winced at Loki's hurtful words. Jane poked her head around Thor's large body. "That wouldn't happen to be the famous Jane now would it?" Loki purred, making a move to walk towards her. Everyone in the room had the same thought running through their head, 'Uh oh.' Thor growled, shoving Jane gently in Tony's direction. He knew where Thor was coming from so Tony pushed Jane into the same corner as his wife, shielding them both with his body. Thor tackled his brother to the ground.

"Do not touch her." He spat in his adoptive brother's face. Loki hardly flinched and Thor climbed off of him.

"Lady Pepper and Lady Jane do not have anything to do with this. Let me take them away-"

"Silence." Loki barked. "Those women are the only thing keeping you from attacking me." Pepper whimpered into Tony's shoulder.

"Coward." Tony snapped, squeezing Pepper's hand in reassurance. He cackled evilly, shooting a stream of blue light at the angry billionaire. Tony's body smashed into the wall leaving both girls vulnerable.

"Well, if it isn't the lady that captured my 'brother's'" he spat the word in her face, "heart." She stood tall, hissing under her breath as he reached out to touch her.

If Natasha had blinked, she would've missed what happened next; Thor tackled Loki to the ground again, Loki blasted him into the opposite wall, aimed his scepter at the cowering women, Bruce hulked out, throwing his large green body between Loki and the girls. He scooped both Pepper and Jane into his arms, backing into the wall, leaving a crumbled mess in his wake as he took them out of harm's way.

"You would threaten two unarmed women?" Thor boomed angrily as he picked himself off the ground. Clint and Natasha were beyond furious. Natasha reached under the tulle skirt of her dress, pulling a small handgun from the holster on her upper thigh. She pointed the gun at Loki's head.

"Why are you here?" She asked acidly.

"I wanted to pay the newlyweds a visit." He answered innocently. She reloaded her gun. At the click he easily put his hands up.

"Why are you here?" she asked again. Natasha was the only armed one in the room and because of that, he laughed.

"I'd love to see one irate diminutive Russian girl try to take me on." He scoffed. Clint face palmed. Again, 'Uh oh.' That ignorant god, not only ruined the Black Widow's wedding day, he was now goading her on. Within thirty seconds, Loki was pinned to the ground with Natasha's knees pinning his arms to the ground, and her hand pressed down on his throat.

"Now, why are you here?" She growled in his face. He laughed, his eyes glinting mischievously. She pressed down harder on his throat.

"To take back what belongs to me." He coughed, shooting a fleeting glance at Clint. Hawkeye now looked completely frozen. She waited until her husband met her eyes before conveying to him that Loki was only trying to unhinge them. He nodded, stepping away. "And you're going to help me get it!" he shouted in her face before blasting her off of him.

Loki advanced on her with his scepter in hand. She rolled out of the way as he attempted to press the tip to her heart. She anticipated his next move and was up in the air before his weapon could knock her feet out from under her. The heel of her shoe made contact with his cheekbone, causing him to stumble back a bit. She approached him, ready to take him down while he cleared his head. But as his head snapped up, green eyes glittering with victory, she realized he'd tricked her. He knocked her on her back, spear pressed to her stomach.

Steve had run out after the Hulk to make sure he didn't hurt the women. Thor was frozen with betrayal. The auras from the weapon were messing with Clint's mind. His eyes were flickering back and forth between shades of blue. As far as she knew, Tony was still out cold. She was on her own. Loki slid the glowing scepter towards her heart, ready to reform her mind like so many others had done. Before Loki could go through with it though, Tony slammed into him, taking the god to the floor.

"You've got to stop doing that to people." Loki sighed in an authoritative tone.

Tony got up off the god, and backed into the flank of the teammates surrounding him; Natasha, Steve had rejoined them, and Thor. The Hulk was still with the women, wherever that may be, and Clint was still battling his mind. Natasha stood in the middle, gun pointed to his face.

"Urgent call from Director Fury, sir." Jarvis called.

"Thank you Jarvis." Natasha ignored Tony's reply of what was surely 'we're not home'.

"Agent Romanoff, we've got a situation. It seems-" he began in a professional tone.

"Loki has escaped and come after the Avengers, Agent Barton particularly." Natasha cut him off angrily. "The situation is under control. Send in a containment team." Then on second thought, she added, "Now." She didn't feel like being nice to her Director. That man's people had been responsible for the containment of Loki. And because they had gotten lazy, her wedding party had been crashed. She had no reason to be nice to these people.

She glanced at Clint who looked like he was losing the battle against the Tesseract. "Shut it down." She ordered angrily. Loki snapped his fingers and the light died down. Clint collapsed with the power.

"Oh, I was right Miss Barton. This is love." He laughed, looking at her ring.

"Great observation skills." She snapped, pointing the gun at his mouth.

The containment team arrived minutes later, cuffed and muzzled the god before taking him away. Natasha rushed over to Clint and helped him off the floor.

"Again. He did it again." Clint whispered to her.

"But you fought it this time." She replied, leaning her forehead against his.

"I must retrieve Lady Jane." Thor announced, taking off through the door for once. Thor returned later that night after flying Jane home. Soon after the others had cleaned up the apartment, Bruce walked through the door, Pepper cradled in his arms. Tony ran forward and took his now awake wife from the man who had saved her. He set her gently on the ground and pulled her into his arms. He buried his face in her neck while repeating 'I'm so sorry.' over and over.

Eventually, the debris from the fight had been cleared and everyone sat down on the couches. Tony sat down on one, one arm hooked around the back of the couch, the other tangling and disentangling itself in Pepper's strawberry blonde hair. Pepper lay asleep on the couch with her head in Tony's lap. Today would've been enough to make any pregnant woman sleep for months. But she was married to Anthony Stark. She'd had more stressful days.

Tony was in awe, in a-none conceited way, at how far he had come. Years ago, he was a narcissistic, egotistical, arrogant, playboy. He was still snarky, and sarcastic, but not because he was trying to be a pain, because that's who he was. But he sat, in his tower, with his family, and his wife in his lap who was carrying his child. And he liked it- No, he loved it. He loved his family, his wife, and his unborn child. He loved it all.

Thor still barely understood this planet, but he had the Avengers' to help and explain that of which was unclear. And he had Jane. It still hurt that Loki had betrayed his family, and his father had locked Loki in prison without a second thought; he had been deceived by his own family. His new friends helped him deal with that, Jane included. His relationship with his family would be mended eventually, but until then he still had his team.

Steve was sprawled out over the third couch, asleep. One leg hooked over the back, another dangling over the arm rest, one hand touching the floor and the other behind his head. Jane, Pepper, and Natasha made him miss Peggy. But he had a family whom he loved, and who loved him. He was going to have a nephew in three months. And he had married two members of his family today. And he'd see Peggy again eventually.

Bruce of course, was sitting up in the only chair in the circle of couches, reading a book with his glasses pushed halfway down his nose. He was only absently looking at the words though. Bruce was thinking about how years ago, he was alone, in a random country, in the middle of nowhere, researching new ways to destroy the Other Guy. Now, he had accepted the Hulk as part of him and he was part of a team and a family, in New York.

Clint and Natasha were curled up on another couch. Clint used his elbow to prop himself up against the arm rest, while Natasha leaned against him. His other arm was wrapped tightly around her shoulders. Natasha's head rested against her husband's chest while she spun the wedding ring around her finger. They had to admit, the day hadn't been completely ruined. Loki had dampened the mood considerably but at the end of the day, they were still married.

In the end, the Avengers would be ok. They had each other's backs. They cared about each other. And that was something some of them had never had growing up. The Avengers family was unbeatable. Before, they were strong, but they were scattered, hateful, independent- Unassembled. Then they were a team, and they were stronger. But now, they were a family, they worked together, they loved each other and they were dependent upon each other-

They were Assembled.

The End

Epilogue

Seven year old T.J. Stark had made the big mistake of attempting to hit on Clint and Natasha's six year old daughter. Again. Aleksandra sighed, gripped the doomed boy's arm and flipped him over onto his back, pinning him to the living room floor. You'd think Tony's son would've learned by now, messing with Aleks got him hurt. That girl was the daughter of two of the most feared assassins in the world. Clint had taught her marksmanship and Natasha had taught her… everything. Combine that with the standing death threat that anyone who hurt her would have six angry super-heroes to deal with and that girl was a weapon all by herself.

Pepper was a mixture between angry with her husband for being a bad influence, amused by the six year olds strength, and worried about her son.

"T.J. honey, you ok?" Pepper called, slipping her niece a high five. Aleks pushed her shoulder length black hair out of her face, revealing her dad's blue-grey eyes, grinning at her mom who also gave her a high five. Natasha pulled her daughter into her lap, running her fingers through the little girl's hair. T.J. groaned, but nodded at his mom who, once she had been convinced that her son was ok, hurried to the kitchen to check on dinner.

"At least I'll never have to worry about boys." Clint chuckled, kissing the top of his daughter's head.

"Your kid beat mine up. Again!" Tony whined from the couch, inspecting his son for injuries.

"T.J. instigated it, Tony." Bruce called fairly.

"And she did warn him to back off." Steve added. Tony huffed, lifting the seven year old up onto the couch next to him. Aleks slipped off her mom's lap, waving her favorite uncle over. Steve raised his eyebrows and moved over to his niece. She widened her eyes hopefully and he sighed.

"Sure, Leks, why not." He groaned. Sparring with that fierce little girl was almost like fighting her mom, except worse; she was smaller, and slipped past him easier. And it was hard for him, fighting a little girl. Plus, if he hurt her, Clint and Natasha would hang his head above the fire place in their room.

"Before dinner, honestly Steve?" Pepper sighed as the little Russian girl got into her fighting stance. "Please don't break the T.V. again. We only have so many replacements." She called from the stove. Aleks' eyes flashed in a way that was completely her mother's. She waved him on. The super-soldier took a deep breath and advanced on the child. Natasha leaned against Clint, smirking. He mirrored her expression, watching Aleks with amused eyes. She may look like him, but she was her mother all the way.

Aleks rolled through Cap's legs, as his arm shot out to 'punch' her. He could already tell before he let his arm fly that he'd miss. The moment she got behind him, both her parents knew the fight would be short. Aleks kicked Steve's knees from behind, causing him to fall to the ground. She came up behind him with her arm in a would-be death grip around his neck.

"Dead." She smirked triumphantly.

"That's my girl." Clint called from the couch.

"Good job Leksi." Natasha praised, kissing Aleksandra's forehead. The little girl climbed up on her mom's lap, leaning her head against Natasha's chest. The red head stroked her daughter's hair, mumbling Aleks' Russian lullaby. T.J. and Aleksandra had gotten up earlier than usual to make breakfast for their family. The kitchen had been a train wreck when the adults had joined the children. There was a layer of flour on every possible surface, including the kids' faces as they stood sheepishly in the middle of the mess. The men had excused themselves so that they wouldn't laugh, giving their impressionable children the illusion that what they did was ok. Pepper and Natasha stared down the seven and six year old until they confessed and apologized. The 'cousins' may've acted like they hated each other, but those two were best friends and partners in crime.

Because of all the energy they spent wrecking the Avengers' Tower Kitchen, the poor kids were tired. Aleks was fighting her exhaustion; Natasha blamed their child's sleeplessness on her husband. The Hawk never slept, influencing their child. T.J. on the other hand was out like a light; the thrum of his dad's arc reactor lulled the boy to sleep no matter what. Natasha stood up with Aleksandra in her arms, laying her in Clint's lap before heading off to help Pepper with dinner.

An hour later, Thor pounded on the front door, with Jane by his side. The couple had only returned from their honeymoon mere hours before. Pepper had demanded that they come home for dinner the night they got back. At the echoing boom, both children jerked awake, T.J. with a look of annoyance that was so stunningly like his mother's after Tony blows up the lab, and Aleks' poised for an attack. Clint patted his daughter's back reassuringly.

"Hello my friends!" he shouted through the tower. T.J. groaned banging his head against his dad's chest. The girls, including Aleks, smiled sweetly at the loud man. Aleksandra jumped off her dad's lap, rushing over to hug her uncle. He caught her in his arms, lifting his niece up in the air. "Hello defender of mankind." He greeted. The girl rolled her eyes.

"Uncle Thor…" she whined. He looked questioningly at the girl. "I've told you before. My name is Aleksandra. It means 'defender of mankind' in Russian." She repeated to the god in a calm manner, completely unlike that of a normal six year old.

"My apologies Miss Aleksandra." He apologized, again, kissing his niece's head before putting her down. "Hello Tony Jr." Thor grinned.

"It's T.J." the seven year old snapped. Thor blinked, giving up.

"Dinner!"Pepper called, rescuing the god. Thor led his new wife to the dining table, sitting down next to her. Aleks' sat quietly next to Thor, Clint next to her, Natasha beside him, Steve on her left, Bruce in between Rogers and Stark in case there was cause to break up the usual argument, T.J. sat between his parents, directly across from Aleks. Pepper set the final plate on the table before sitting beside her son and Jane.

The group had turned out ok, just like they had predicted. Thor and Jane were happily married. Thor had mended the relationship with his blood family. Jane had eventually become a well-known scientist. Steve had moved on from the death of his friends. Natasha had been right. He never forgot them and never would. Bruce had long since learned to appreciate the Hulk. It had save various members of his family on multiple occasions. Tony was beyond happy with his life. He had a large, supportive family. He had a son, a wife, a niece, and his team. Pepper continued to be the mother hen of the group; she kept them in line to the best of her ability. Clint and Natasha were happier then they'd ever been. Years ago, having a family was all but a myth to the pair. Now they had a beautiful daughter whom even Fury found himself proud of, even though he had no part in her upbringing. Fury was both children's godfather. He had protested for months but the parents had ignored it, they knew he was honored.

Fury and Coulson had brought together the strangest, craziest, most messed up family of the century. But they were also the closest family. They had withstood evil gods, aliens, super-villains and more, yet they remained closer than ever.

And as they looked in each other's eyes at that dinner table, they knew they always would be.