Disclaimer in chapter 1

Thanks to all that reviewd and followed the story! It's really encouraging and you guys make my day.

This is a lot of Clint and Bobbi with some Natasha at the end.

Enjoy!


Canadian airspace: 8 hours ago

Bobbi sat with her legs and arms crossed as the quinjet trembled with turbulence. She glared at Coulson who sat opposite her.

"Hey now, don't give me that look, Bobbi. He won't tell me where we're going either." He defended. Coulson was wearing his usual suit and tie get up, despite being out of the office.

Defeated, Bobbi looked annoyingly at the man in question piloting the jet. Clint had refused to disclose his knowledge and intentions to anyone until he confirmed his "theory".

"We'd better find out soon before I open up this compartment and chuck him out of the jet, Robinhood gear and all." Bobbi said as she felt the quinjet slowly make its descent.

Once on the ground, Clint gathered some supplies and walked past the two agents without acknowledgment. They followed him for about half and hour as they hiked down a small mountain and into a small town at the base, "Clint, where the hell are we going " Bobbi demanded, growing impatient with his persistent silence.

"Patience, Bobbi." Was all he said as they approached a small inn. Its outer walls were a warm brown shade. When they walked inside, the smell of burning firewood filled their nostrils. The inn was headed by a white haired elderly woman that sat behind a tall wooden desk, scribbling into an open book.

Her face lit up with recognition when she saw him, "Francis!" She said delightedly. The small woman leaped off her stool and practically ran towards him with all of her tiny might.

"Selma!" Clint returned, opening his arms to her. She was about half his size but she tried to lift him nonetheless.

"I thought I'd never see you again after you came through here." She looked up at him and motioned for them to sit at a nearby table. Glancing at Bobbi, Selma's smile faltered, "What happened to Natalia? What did you do, Francis?" She asked with humorous accusation.

"Well, Selma, that's why we're here. She's in danger."

Selma's face grew serious. Without another word, she went behind her desk and pulled open a drawer. Taking the lone key inside it, she handed it to Clint, "I have not seen her come through here, but knowing her, she would have found a way to get whatever she needed to leave inside." She placed a gentle hand on his shoulder, "Whatever it is, I hope it helps you find her. She's a good person, Francis." Selma eyed Bobbi in her peripheries, "And a good woman." Bobbi rolled her eyes. Selma faced Coulson and Bobbi, "Excuse me, I must get back to work.

Clint nodded in thanks and motioned to the others to leave.

"Are we going to get an explanation now, Francis?" Bobbi asked mockingly.

"Seven years ago, Natasha and I were sent on a mission together, except we couldn't have any direct contact. We knew Selma from previous missions. That inn she runs had been a refuge for us a couple of times." They walked back up the mountain to the quinjet, "Anyways, when we were sent on this particular mission, Selma allowed us to use an old cabin that used to belong to her husband. We'd leave messages for each other there. Coordinates, coded updates, but only when necessary. A few towns over, there's a small cafe. Natasha insisted on using arrows to signify a message at the cabin. Arrows crossed over each other facing down meant an urgent message." He paused as they kept climbing.

"So it's no coincidence that she ambushed us with those arrows a while back?" Bobbi asked.

"I saw the damage report," Coulson said, a smirk tugging at his lips, "I had my suspicions. I can't believe that's what you guys refused to tell me. A secret communication system? I thought it was something more complicated than that."

Clint chuckled at the memory of driving Coulson mad when Clint and Natasha had returned from the mission safely and refused to give up their secret to survival, "Sometimes simpler is better, Coulson."

"I don't mean to rain on your parade, but what if it's a trap? What if she knows it's the first place you'll look? She could be waiting there, or the place could be rigged." Bobbi said from behind.

Finally reaching the quinjet, they huffed in exertion, "We'll just have to wait and find out." Clint said and walked back into the jet and typed in the coordinates to the drop site.

No more than an hour later, they descended onto a flat mountain top still covered in snow from the most recent storm, "There," Clint said, pointing to a small structure about thirty meters below. Finding the easiest route, the trio descended onto the edge supporting the wooden cabin. Clint examined the cracked door frame as Bobbi and Coulson used SHIELD scanners to peek inside.

Clint looked at the bloody palm print that covered the door handle.

"Clean." Called Coulson from behind him. Clint slid the key into the lock and found it opened. Pushing the door, it creaked as it revealed the insides of the dimly lit cabin.

Coulson and Bobbi walked past him and immediately got to looking around. The first thing they saw was blood. Bloody white fabric littered the cabin floor, "You're a good shot, Bobbi." Clint deadpanned. As he searched for Natasha's hidden message. Bobbi just gave him an annoyed look.

"This looks like something," offered Coulson, who had busied himself spreading out the bloody white cloth. Digits written out in blood were visible on its bloody surface.

"Numbers," stated Bobbi.

"Coordinates. She's telling us where she's at. Looks like Europe." Clint immediately exited the cabin, "We need to move now."

Following behind him, they boarded the quinjet and headed to Sweden.

Coulson now piloted the jet after insisting it was his turn. Which left Clint sitting across from Bobbi. He eyed her curiously as she zoned out, lost in thought, "What's on your mind?" He finally asked.

She looked up at him, sighing, "It could still be a trap Clint and I know you don't want to hear this," she added, as he began to shake his head, "But one of us needs to remain objective here."

"More like pessimistic. Could you at least let me hold on to my hope until the moment I'm wrong?" He asked in frustration.

"Touch down in two." Coulson called from the cockpit.

"We'll find out soon enough." She said, throwing his words back at him.

After a less than pleasant landing, thanks to Coulson's piloting skills, Clint and Bobbi gathered their gear to head out, "Comms online?" Asked Coulson.

"Comms online." Confirmed Bobbi and Clint. Coulson leaned back on the co-pilots chair and held up one of the high tech tablets. Two small red dots signified the both Bobbi and Clint's location.

"Alright, be careful you two." They nodded and headed into the Swedish forest. The sky was oppressively cloudy as night began to descend onto their surroundings. The air grew humid as light drizzle fell from the clouds. Before long, their boots were covered in a thin layer of mud.

It took them a while to navigate but when they reached the spot they found nothing. Examining the surrounding trees, Clint saw two arrows carved onto the bark of an old tree. They pointed up.

"This is the right spot." He said over his shoulder.

"Well she's not here." Bobbi stated, putting her hands on her hips.

"Obviously." Clint turned on his heel and walked towards her, "You get that, Phil?" He asked through his comm.

"Copy. You guys can either hold your position and wait for her or fan out and search. I'd suggest against the former."

"You're right. If this is a trap we're sitting ducks here out in the open." She kicked up some fallen leaves with her boot.

Clint let out a sigh and looked around trying to figure out where Natasha would come from, "Okay, we'll search." He grinned at Bobbie, "Bird's eye view?"

She gave him a 'duh' look and marched off into the forest. It had become a habit of theirs. She would get up close and personal while he would hang back and "see better from a distance". It's like he used to do with Natasha, except she'd call it "bird's ass view" because often times, when she was sent in to seduce a mark, the moment she was a safe enough distance away, he'd start a one sided conversation he knew she couldn't reply to without compromising her position.

Refocusing, Clint began his search for higher ground. Bobbi snaked her way through the forest, being wary of not stepping in any large puddles on strange looking "mud". After an hour, she began to grow impatient. 'If they're going to ambush us, make it soon,' she thought to herself. She was about to double back when Clint's voice came through her comm, "H-hey Bo—bi I think—movem-nt—careful—!" his words came in broken syllables.

"What? Clint, you're cutting off. I can't hear you." She listened intently but all she heard was static. "Great." she said as she decided to go back, hoping the connection would fix itself once she was in range. It took her a while to register the new sound. It sounded like...panting? A dog, panting. She stilled as she tried to find the source. Bobbi quickly took cover behind a tree. In her haste, she missed the dry tree branch beneath her boot as it crunched under her weight. Cursing, she hoped they didn't notice.

Looking past the tree she was hiding behind, Bobbi saw a dog and a person whose face was covered by a dark hood. They both froze, the dog's ears moved trying to find the source of the sound. Improvising, Bobbi pulled out a tranq dart and fired it at the dog before quickly circling behind the person.

She found it odd that the person, which upon closer inspection she determined was a woman, didn't react normally. The woman groped around feeling for the dog's leash instead of just walking towards its position not ten feet in front of her. However, Bobbie didn't give it further thought as she tackled the woman to the ground. They rolled and tumbled until Bobbi's back met the hard surface of a tree and had the air knocked out of her. The woman's hood was pulled back during their fall and revealed her wavy red hair. Bobbi froze as the woman tried to feel around at the ground in an attempt to grab her bearings. Finding what she was looking for, the woman swung a police baton at Bobbi's head, who managed to duck just in time. It let out a dull crack as it met the wooden surface behind her.

It was then that Bobbi looked at the woman's face, 'Natasha.' she thought. She gazed into her frantic eyes, noting their deep red and green color.

Natasha grew frustrated with her own lack of coordination. One thing Matt failed to teach her fully was how to effectively fight in close combat without her sight. Her more than keen senses picked up on a feminine scent and approximate location in front of her, but other than generalities, she couldn't figure out exactly who was in front of her. She huffed in anger when her baton missed its target.

"Natasha," called the woman's voice. Natasha froze at the familiarity but couldn't place the voice, "Natasha, my name is Bobbi Morse. Do you remember me?" Bobbi asked hesitantly.

Natasha quickly recomposed herself before growling at the woman and launching herself once more. She knew that the rational thing to do was ask where Clint was, if he got her message. But the instinct inside of her, the animal that saved her when there was no time to think things through, overcame her. She was angry, to say the least. Angry that Clint had chosen to marry the woman Natasha had once quarreled with. Angry that this woman had easily claimed what Natasha herself denied. Angry that this woman was everything Natasha wasn't. So Natasha really couldn't say she was surprised when Bobbi reacted to her literal blind rage with full force. Years ago, there lived no man or woman that had ever bested the Black Widow in a fight. But she was not the Black Widow anymore, nor was she Natasha Romanoff, she was a shell of what used to be SHIELD's top agent and the world's deadliest assassin.

Bobbi managed to land hit after hit as Natasha tried and failed to defend herself and simultaneously attack. As she rolled back, she heard Gus's faint whimper behind her. Attacking her new dog? That's where Natasha drew the line. Before she could pin point Bobbi's approximate location, she heard a small high pitched whistle slice through the air and she knew what was coming. The only thing her hearing helped her with was reacting in time to avoid the arrow head that was aimed non fatally at her leg. She estimated that since the sound wasn't as shrill as it normally was, that it wasn't a sharp tip he'd launched at her.

Bobbi noted Natasha's moment of distraction and quickly tackled her to the ground and stuck her with a tranq she's used on the dog. Struggling, Natasha let out a frustrated growl as she lay on her stomach with Bobbi straddling her back. Her thoughts grew foggy and she could no longer stay aware. The last thing she remembered was picking up on Clint's familiar scent.


Shorter chapter, I know. I'll update first thing tomorrow but if I get a decent amount of reviews, I just might update twice today... :)