Steve and Clint took the elevator to their apartment without a word. While Clint had mostly overcome his shock at finding out about the Tesseract and Red Skull's mind-controlling abilities, he knew Steve would have a much harder time. It was this knowledge that made him quietly follow Steve when he went into his room and picked up a picture of him and Bucky before sinking slowly onto the bed, tears in his eyes.
"Steve," Clint said softly, leaning against the doorjamb.
The Captain's head snapped up, startled. He hadn't heard the archer follow him, but that didn't really surprise him. The man could and did move like a cat. "He killed my best friend, an' destroyed everything I knew. I thought he was dead - an' now I find out he's tryin' to do it all over again! What if he succeeds? What if he kills you an' Tash an' everybody else I care about? What then? A life like that would be a hundred times worse than death! I can't do this again, Clint!" Steve choked out bitterly.
In an instant Clint had crossed the room and in a rare display of affection slipped his arm around the other man. "He won't, Cap. We're the Avengers, remember? You actually have a chance now to make this man pay for his crimes against humanity - avenge everyone whose lives he destroyed. He's not gonna win, Cap, for the simple reason that good's always going to triumph over evil. That's what you taught me in the past year, Steve! Or was it all a lie?" At a slow shake of Steve's head, Clint plowed on relentlessly. "Even if we lose, which we won't, because we're the best there is, someone's gonna stop him. An' remember, this time, you don't have to go it alone. You promised me once you'd watch my back - well, this time it's my turn to watch yours an' you better believe I'll do jus' that."
Steve turned his head to stare at Clint for a long minute in astonishment. Even his and Bucky's friendship hadn't been this strong. Never had he known such loyalty and even as he realized the fact, he also realized it applied to the entire team. They'd gladly follow him to the devil's stronghold and bring him back if he asked them. With tears in his eyes, Steve asked softly, "What did I ever do to deserve friends like this?"
Clint's mouth quirked in a tiny smile. "You were you, Cap. You care, an' you earned our trust an' love an' respect. Takes quite a man for a bunch of misfits like us to follow you an' actually trust you."
No words seemed really appropriate after a statement like that, so Steve simply pulled the archer into a tight hug for a moment. Hawkeye, though not one for any display of affection unless under dire circumstances, nonetheless returned the hug willingly for a long moment before gently pulling away. "Sleep, Cap. You're gonna need it."
He saw Steve's face pale just slightly as they both knew the nightmares would be hitting hard tonight. Clint grinned a little. "I'm not goin' anywhere. The dreams aren't gonna be nice to either of us tonight."
Steve couldn't help but grin a little as well as he scooted over. Ever since the battle of New York and their subsequent discussion, they'd found that their nightmares eased with the presence of the other for the simple reason that they could understand exactly how the other felt. Since then, on the occasion that one had a nightmare, the other "pulled guard duty," as they called it, and kept watch. The nightmares always seemed to diminish somehow with a strong shoulder pressed against another.
The nightmares came for both of them that night, but they were able to comfort one another and when they woke at six the following morning, they actually felt rested. Steve prepared a massive breakfast, knowing they'd need the energy, before they headed down to the armory in Tony's basement to gather their equipment and join the others.