A/N: hello again my lovelies! Here is another chapter for you! Thank you to those of you who reviewed! You give me confidence to continue writing! Thank you! Any and all spelling/grammatical errors are mine!

Trigger warning for rape/abuse and torture, though nothing heavy.

I don't own these character

Enjoy! Review!

Hurt, chapter 3

Clint sat in the living room, staring out the window. It was snowing outside. He and Natasha were staying at one of his safe-houses in the Adirondack Mountains. They needed a break from S.H.I.E.L.D. So they took off on a two week leave, claiming they needed time to heal. Sure, they had been injured on the last mission, but it was more of a need for emotional healing.

Clint had to watch Natasha get tortured for hours before back up finally came to get them out. He couldn't help her as they cut her skin with knives and beat her to a bloody pulp. He hadn't been able to get them out until the extraction team arrived. Then he went into a rage, killing any enemy with no remorse. He had carried Natasha's limp body out of the compound where they were being held.

She was still recovering, both physically and emotionally. She had nightmares every night. Of not only this mission, but of her past. Nightmares of the things the Red Room put her through. Every night he held her through these dreams. He comforted her until she was able to fall back asleep.

As he stood, watching the snow fall, he recalled the previous night.

Natasha thrashed around on the bed. It was clear she was still asleep and was trapped in her own Hell.

"No, please," she whimpered. She kicked her legs at an invisible attacker.

"NO!" she screamed, thrashing more violently. Clint came running into the room.

"Nat! Natasha wake up!" he called to her, not daring to get within reach. Assassins were dangerous. The Black Widow, even more so. The Black Widow terrified and trapped? You didn't dare cross her.

"Natasha it's me! Clint! Wake up, baby!" He called to her, slowly inching closer.

She bolted upright with her gun aimed at Clint's forehead. He froze and slowly raised his hands, palms out.

"Hey, it's just me, Nat. I'm unarmed. It's okay."

"Clint?" her clouded eyes cleared as she fully woke up.

"Hey," when he knew it was safe, after he relaxed her hold on her gun, he slowly went over to the bed.

She buried her head in his chest. Her entire body shook, but she didn't cry. She never cried. He held her and soothed her.

Pulling her against him, he laid back on the bed. Stroking her hair and whispering nonsense in her ears. Things like how he would take her for some hot chocolate in town and they could watch the locals. Go grocery shopping like a normal couple. Go to a pet store and buy a dinosaur, because why not?

That got her to smile a little and she relaxed more fully against him. He kept talking about random things they could do in their time off until she fell asleep. He soon drifted off, too, knowing she was safe in his arms.

"Hey," her voice brought him out of his reverie. She walked up behind him and wrapped her arms around him.

"Hey, baby. How are you feeling?" He asked.

She smiled at the pet name. Normally, she would kill anyone for using a pet name on her, but hearing Clint call her 'Baby' made her feel loved and cherished, so she let him. She knew if she asked him or made a big deal about it he would stop. All the more reason for her to let him have his fun.

"I'm fine," she answered. Truthfully, she wasn't. Her nightmares had been keeping her from sleeping at all. She felt worn out and tired.

"Liar," he whispered, smirking.

"Hmm, you caught me."

"Not hard to do. I know your tells," he winked playfully.

"Yeah, you do," she smiled softly.

He turned around all the way and pulled her against him. She nuzzled into his chest. He kissed the top of her head and continued to watch the snow fall. They stayed like this for a while. Even though there were clouds and snow, the day got brighter as the sun rose in the sky.

"Wanna do something today?" Clint asked.

Natasha looked up at him, a curious glint in her eye. "Like what?"

"Nothing special. Maybe walking through town? A little shopping? Some lunch at the cute little cafe in town. It looked like a nice place." Clint offered.

"Sure," Nat smiled. "I'll go get ready. Be back in a few minutes."

She kissed him lightly then sauntered off toward the bedroom.

An hour later, the two assassins were strolling down the main street of the small town nearest to their cabin. There were plenty of people out walking in the snow. Mothers with the children, teenagers enjoying the day off from school and other couples for a day out. The shops lined the street on both sides. In the center of town was a small park. An ice skating rink was set up and people could be seen gliding across the ice and, in some cases, falling on their butts.

Natasha and Clint walked to the small cafe, close to the park. Nobody was seated outside due to the light snowfall. Inside was getting slightly more crowded as it got closer to lunchtime. They were seated at a table in the back, away from the crowd where it was slightly less noisy.

"I want a burger," Clint said as soon as they sat down.

Natasha just snorted.

"Seriously, I need a burger. And coffee. Coffee would be fantastic."

"Yeah well, I just want soup. They have baked potato soup. It sounds delicious." she says, flipping through the menu.

"Oh that sounds good. Maybe I'll have that instead!"

"Thought you wanted a burger," Nat smirked.

"I do. Maybe I'll get both," Clint grinned. "Yes I think I will."

They waiter came over and took there orders. Baked potato soups, a burger and coffee for Clint and a Hot Chocolate for Nat.

They ate their food in relative silence, neither of them saying much. Mostly they just watched each other and everyone else around them. They easily carried a conversation through looks and gestures and body language without needing to speak.

After lunch the two assassins walked around town for some shopping. Natasha pulled Clint into all the clothing stores and proceeded to try on everything in sight. At least that's what it felt like to Clint. In reality she only tried on a few different things at each store. By the time they were done, Tasha had purchased a new blouse and a matching scarf and a pair of heeled boots.

They got back to the cabin and Clint went to the kitchen to start cooking dinner. Natasha went to shower. Even though she had showered that morning, the cold and snow froze her to the bone. A shower would fix that right up.

Clint had made spaghetti and meatballs for dinner and they sat down to watch a movie while they ate. Clint got up to clear their plates halfway through Anastasia. When he came back, he saw Nat lying across the couch, fast asleep.

It wasn't late but seeing as she hadn't been sleeping well, he clicked of the television, scooped her into his arms and carried her to the bedroom. He laid her gently down on the bed and climbed up behind her, pulling her close to him. He fell asleep listening to the sound of her steady breathing.

Around midnight, Natasha started mumbling in her sleep.

"No, please," she cried. "No! Stop, please, stop!"

Clint was startled awake from her sudden cries. He looked over at his sleeping partner and frowned. Another nightmare.

"No!" Natasha screamed.

"Nat, wake up. Baby it's okay, wake up." He grabbed her wrists to keep her from lashing out at him.

Natasha jolted upright and whipped her head around, searching for any enemies. She was still clearly in a dreaming state because as soon as she saw Clint she scrambled backwards out of the bed. She backed into the corner of the room farthest away from Clint and slid down the wall, pulling her knees against her chest. She looked so much like a child in that moment.

"Don't hurt me, please," she pleaded. "Please."

"I'm not gonna hurt you Nat. It's me, Clint. I'm here to protect you, remember? No one can hurt you. You're safe," he spoke softly, soothingly. He could see her terrified expression and it broke his heart. He approached slowly, inch by excruciating inch. He didn't want to frighten her more. This wasn't the Natasha he knew, nor was it the Black Widow.

Now, he was dealing with the little girl who was taken from her family at too young an age and put through Hell. This was Natalia.

"Nat, baby, I'm going to come closer, okay? I won't hurt you. You can trust me. I won't let anything happen to you."

She whimpered in fear as he same closer and tried to curl further into herself. She didn't lash out at him though, which was all he needed to get close to her.

"Hey, shh, it's okay. You're safe." He whispered. He crouched down next to her, stroking her hair. "You're safe."

Natasha didn't speak. She was shaking and terrified. Slowly, she started realizing where she was. She started remembering who she was.

"Cl-clint?" She whispered.

"It's me, baby. You back with me?" He offered her a hand.

She nodded shakily, allowing him to help her up. As soon as she stood up, she collapsed against him. He scooped her into his arms and carried her back to the bed. She curled up against him, her head on his shoulder and her hand over her heart. She focused on the steady thump, thump, thump of his heartbeat.

"What was your dream about, Tasha?" Clint asked after a few minutes.

She stayed silent, thinking about what to say. He didn't think she would respond, but she finally spoke.

"I'm about five years old. One of the trainers takes me to a cold, dark room. He beats me until I can't stand anymore. He shackles me to a wall, facing the cold stones. I'm so little that me feet don't touch the ground. He takes out a whip and starts punishing me. When he is done he-," Natasha was shaking now. "He touches me." It comes out as barely a whisper. The only indication that Clint heard her at all was his body tensing up.

He cannot think of what to say. Nothing can make this better.

"I'll kill him," Clint says without thinking.

"Too late, I already did that." Natasha whispered, a small smile forming. "Before I left, I blew up one of the facilities. The man who appears in my nightmares was in the building when it blew. He's dead."

"That's my girl." Clint hugs her tightly to his chest. He is still enraged from everything that was done to Natasha. He knows that, if given the chance, he would take out every one of the sick fuckers who hurt her. He knows she knows this.

Natasha may still have nightmares from her past and of what could be in her future, but she knows that Clint will always be there to pull her out of her own mind. He will rescue her from her demons and her past. And she will always be grateful for it. Even when she refuses to admit to needing help, to needing protection, she will always accept it from Clint.

A/N: Not really sure if I like the ending. Let me know what you think please!