Chapter 3: Katniss and Gale at Berfi's

Verona, Italy – Berfi's Club

Natasha sat at the bar of the extravagant club, dressed in a sleeveless silver blouse, black skinny jeans and silver glittery platform pumps. She threw a shot of tequila down her throat as the song "Blue Monday" played from the DJ booth, trying to make sense of the last few hours. Helen deemed Natasha to be in perfect physical health aside from the injuries she sustained during her mission, but despite the exam, something felt slightly off.

"Barista," Natasha said, flagging the bartender down.

"Sí, signorina," the bartender said, approaching her.

Natasha held up her empty shot glass. "Un altro, per favore."

The bartender smiled. "Of course, signorina," he exclaimed. "All Avengers drink free!" He quickly poured another shot and handed it to her.

Natasha raised her glass as a toast. "Salud."

The moment she tilted her head to swallow the liquor, she could see Clint coming behind her, donning a black leather jacket, a flannel shirt and jeans. Natasha was amazed, considering that she never turned around to actually look at him. The second Clint sat down, he knocked over an empty champagne flute that was sitting on the bar nearby. Before she could put her shot glass down, Natasha quickly grabbed the glass mid fall and casually sat it back down on the bar. She turned her shot glass upside down and faced Clint. He stared at her, completely befuddled.

"That was pretty impressive," Clint said. "Even by your standards."

"What happened with the other boys?" Natasha asked, trying to keep the subject off her.

"Stark's drunk off his ass-"

"Of course," Natasha cut in.

"Steve's whining about the music-who in their right mind doesn't like 80's music?"

Natasha chuckled. "A 98 year old man whose favorite music was played four decades earlier."

"Well, Thor's older than him, and he's not complaining. But then again, he's not doing too much of anything tonight."

Natasha shrugged. "Maybe he's more inclined to harpsichords and lutes." She and Clint began to laugh.

"What about Bruce?" Natasha asked.

"He's too busy trying to keep Stark out of trouble."

"I guess you're just stuck with me tonight, then."

Clint gave her a grin. "That's not too bad."

Natasha looked at him for a second and quickly turned away once she felt her cheeks turn red. "So what are you drinkin'?" she asked.

"Whatever you were having," Clint answered.

Natasha flagged the bartender down again. "Altri due tequila, per favore."

"Yes, of course!" the bartender exclaimed, pouring the shots. "All Avengers drink free!"

Once the bartender finished dispensing the liquor, Clint and Natasha gulped down their shots. Natasha laughed the minute she saw Clint grimacing from the tequila. "Damn, that's some strong stuff!"

"Patrón," a female voice said behind them. "It's the best."

Clint turned around and saw a pretty brunette standing behind him, smiling. "Laura!" he exclaimed, giving her a hug and a soft kiss on the lips. "Brand New Lover" began to blast from the speakers.

"Hey, Nat!" Laura said once she noticed Natasha.

Natasha smiled. "Hi, Laura. How are you?"

"I'm great!"

"What are you doing here?" Clint asked.

"Well, we had an assignment here in Verona," Laura told him. "After all, this is the hometown of Romeo and Juliet. We all decided to have a drink here at Berfi's after work since everyone kept raving about it. Were you on a mission?"

"That's classified," Clint said. Laura giggled and wrapped her arms around him again, this time laying a longer, deeper kiss on his lips.

Natasha simply turned away from them during their exchange and played with one of her empty shot glasses. Laura was a photojournalist that Clint started dating about a month or so ago. Natasha liked Laura, she really did. Laura was sweet. Laura was giving. Laura was genuine. Laura was loyal.

Laura needed to take a hike.

As nice as she was, Laura was completely wrong for Clint. She'd never understand what he did for a living. He could get called away at a moment's notice, without hesitating to put his life on the line. Natasha could take one look at Laura and see that she wasn't the type of woman that could really handle having a husband-or even a serious boyfriend-with that type of occupation. And speaking of a serious boyfriend, whenever the subject of Laura did come up, Clint would make it known that they were "just having fun." Laura on the other hand, always seemed like she was ready to pick out china patterns and name their future children.

"Let me introduce you to the guys," Clint said, taking Laura by the hand.

"Really?" Laura asked. "Iron Man, Captain America and Thor are here?"

"The Hulk, too. But he's not green right now."

"Ooh, I can't wait!" Laura squealed.

Clint walked off from the bar with Laura in tow. "I'll be back later, Nat!" he said as he headed towards the restaurant section.

"Nice seeing you again, Nat!" Laura said, waving.

Natasha waved back and turned to face the bartender, all while releasing a deep sigh. "Barista, dove é ll bagno?"

"The restroom is on the opposite end of the club, signorina,"

"Grazzi."

Natasha rose from the bar and headed towards the back of the club. As she made her way to the bathroom, she saw Clint introducing Laura to the other men, with his arm wrapped around her waist. She looked away, with her stomach tied in knots as she continued walking. What the hell is wrong with you tonight?

Some time later, Natasha emerged from the bathroom and saw Laura sitting on Clint's lap, still chit-chatting with Steve, Bruce and Tony. Thor, on the other hand, was sitting at a table by himself, deep in thought. Natasha watched him for a second and walked over to his table as "Broken Wings" played. The minute he saw her he stood up.

Natasha smiled and held up her hand. "Please, don't get up. You want some company?"

"Yes, of course," Thor said as he walked over to the opposite end of the table and pulled out her chair.

Natasha sat down, visibly impressed. "Thank you. Most men here could learn something from you."

Thor sat back in his seat, his good mood seemingly gone. "I highly doubt it."

"Are you okay? You look as bad as I feel."

Thor's eyes narrowed. "Are you alright?"

Dammit, Natasha thought to herself. "I'm fine," she lied. "Just tired from the mission. What's going on with you?"

"Why do you think something's going on with me?"

Natasha grinned and motioned to the food and drink on the table. "First of all, you haven't touched your dinner or your wine."

"Perhaps I'm not as hungry as I thought."

Natasha playfully scoffed. "Thor, I know you. You're always hungry. And you're not even talking to the fellas."

"The metal man is grating my nerves with his drunken idiocy."

"That, I totally understand. But you never have any problems with Bruce, Clint or Steve-Steve, especially. What's wrong?"

Thor let out a sigh before sigh before answering. "We still haven't located the scepter. I don't understand how we can celebrate and take time to ourselves when it's still out there."

"It's not like your brother's coming back to use it."

"Yes, but someone else that's just as deranged may stumble upon it. And then where would we be?"

"Don't worry," Natasha said, placing her hand on his. "We'll find it. It's just gonna take a little more time than we thought."

"In the meantime, we've uncovered something that's equally dangerous."

Natasha's body became slightly rigid, but she quickly recovered so Thor wouldn't notice. "The gem's in the right hands now. You don't have to worry about someone using it for planetary domination on our watch."

Thor sighed again. "Perhaps you're right."

Natasha crossed her arms and grinned. "I have a feeling there's something else bothering you."

Thor gave a slight nod. "I miss her."

Natasha's smile widened. "I can't wait to meet the lady that managed to steal the heart of a god."

Thor smiled. "You'd like her. I believe you'd like my friend Sif, as well. You remind me of her."

"Colson told me about her. I consider the comparison a compliment."

"As you should." He paused and his smiled faded as he continued. "I just feel as if I've spent all this time away from her for nothing."

"We've got some time off for a while. Use this time to talk meet up with her, or least give her a call."

"Jane had to leave London soon after I did. She was in Paris for a while, but she had to leave and go to another country. I'm not exactly sure where she is right now."

Natasha grinned. "That's not a problem."

Thor looked at her, puzzled. Before he could ask her what she meant, a female voice from a few feet away called out, "Hey, you two!"

Thor and Natasha looked over to see Maria and Helen coming over, both wearing sexy black vinyl dresses. Thor stood up once the ladies came up to the table.

"Wow, what a gentleman," Helen gushed. Maria raised her eyebrows and smiled, obviously impressed.

"The two of you look beautiful tonight, as usual," Maria complemented.

"As do you ladies," Natasha replied.

Though the light in the club was dim, Thor's reddening face was painfully obvious. "Thank you for the compliment."

"So what brings you two out tonight?" Natasha asked.

"We heard you were enjoying Berfi's infamous 80's night, and we figured that we'd join you," Maria answered. "You're not the only ones that can have a good time."

Natasha grinned. "Right."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Maria asked.

"The guys you really wanna hang out with are over there," Natasha said, pointing in Steve and Bruce's direction.

Helen feigned offense. "How desperate do you think we are? You think we'd get dressed up and come all the way out here just to see Steve and Bruce?"

Now Natasha was the one to raise her eyebrows. "I never said you came here to see Steve and Bruce."

Helen was about to retort, when she realized she said too much, leaving her mouth O-shaped. "I can't believe I fell into that."

"I can't, either," Maria mumbled.

"Fellas, look who's here!" Natasha shouted, motioning for the other men to join them.

"Really, Natasha?" Maria groaned as the men walked over. Natasha just grinned mischievously at her.

"Check it out. More hens joining the roosters," Tony slurred before taking another drink.

Bruce shook his head in shame as Laura and Clint laughed, holding each other. Natasha found herself quickly turning her head away from them.

"Ignore him," Bruce advised. "It's nice to see you lovely ladies out tonight."

"Thank you," Maria said. Helen simply blushed, giving Bruce another shy smile. Maria turned to Clint and Laura, beaming.

"You must be Laura," she said. "We've heard a lot about you. I'm Maria Hill, and this is Dr. Helen Cho."

Laura shook Maria and Helen's hands. "It's nice to meet you both. I've heard a lot about you, too. I still can't believe I finally get to meet the Earth's Mightiest Heroes."

Maria shook her head. "No, they're the Earth's Mightiest Heroes. Helen and I are just the backup."

"No," Steve cut in. "You're equally as important to the team as the rest of us." The comment made him and Maria exchange a smoldering look as the others looked on smiling at the exchange, namely Natasha.

"So what brings you ladies out here tonight?" Bruce asked.

Helen shrugged. "Hey, it's 80's night."

Steve sneered. "I don't see how anybody could listen to this god awful noise."

"Spoken like a true old man," Tony said before taking another gulp of his drink.

"Personally, I find the melodies quite enjoyable," Thor added.

"See!" Tony exclaimed. "Even Thor likes it!"

Maria took Steve's hand as "Melt With You" began to play. "Maybe you'll feel differently about it when you actually dance to it."

Natasha had to hold in her amusement as Steve's cheeks flushed bright red and he began to stiffen. "Uh…I don't dance."

Maria led him out to the dance floor. "No better time to learn." Steve took one last nervous glance at the others as Maria pulled him away, causing them all to laugh.

Laura followed Maria lead by guiding Clint in the same direction. "Dance with me, Hawkeye."

Clint grinned as she towed him to the dance area. "No problem." Natasha watched them, feeling her stomach twist again.

"Well, I don't dance either," Bruce said to Helen, "but, uh…I'd love it you'd have a drink with me."

Helen flashed a dazzling smile at him. "Thank you. I'd like that too."

Tony raised his hand. "I can I have one with you guys?"

Bruce chuckled. "Do you mind if the third wheel joins us? I'm scared he'll get us all kicked out of here if I leave him alone."

Helen laughed with him. "Of course he can. Tony, what are drinking?"

"Nothing," Bruce responded. "He's had enough."

"Jack," Tony said, ignoring Bruce's comment as he walked off with them. "Or Smirnoff, if they have it."

"It looks like it's just you and me, Big Guy number two," Natasha said once she and Thor were alone.

Thor shook his head. "I've had enough merriment for tonight. I shall retire back at the rendezvous point." He then looked down at his untouched meal. "But I'll take this food back with me. I'm sure I'll require sustenance later."

Natasha chuckled and nodded. "Now you sound like you."

Thor smiled back at her. "I thank you for your words of encouragement, my lady."

Natasha rose from the table. "It was my pleasure, your Highness." She walked off as Thor flagged down the waiter.

Twenty minutes later, Natasha was in the parking lot, leaning against the silver Acura MDX she the others rode in on, her mind racing. Thor had already left, opting to walk back to the rendezvous in attempt to clear his mind. The rest of the team members were still inside, still enjoying their first night of freedom. Natasha still couldn't shake what had happened to her earlier that day. Something within her had definitely changed since she touched the infinity stone. Then there was the delusion she had when she grabbed it. Who exactly was she supposed to be marrying?

"Hey," Clint's voice sounded, breaking her from her thoughts. Natasha coolly diverted her eyes in his direction, not the least bit startled. She had sensed him entering the parking lot before he even got there.

Clint walked over to her and stood beside her. "Nat, I don't know if you realize it, but there's a party going on downstairs in the club."

Natasha nodded. "I noticed."

"So what's wrong?"

Natasha shrugged, feigning ignorance. "I just came out here for some air."

Clint wasn't about to give up so easily. "Are you sure you're okay? Ever since we came back from that mission, you've been acting weird."

"Weird, how?"

"Distant…I mean more than usual."

"I'm fine, Clint."

Clint gave her a deadly serious look. "Nat, it's me."

"Clint-"

"Nat, you know you can talk to me. What's goin' on?"

Natasha took a deep breath. "Fine. I'll tell you. But you can't repeat this to anyone."

Clint nodded. "Got it."

"I mean it. No one," Natasha warned.

Clint placed his hand on Natasha's shoulder. "I won't tell anybody."

She took another deep breath before speaking. "Ever since I touched that stone…I've been able to sense things."

Clint narrowed his eyes. "You sense things?"

"It's like all five of my senses have been turned up to 100. I could taste the actual agave nectar in the tequila. I can smell the uncooked yeast bread dough sitting in that bakery down the street. I could hear the women whispering and giggling about Steve and Thor in the club. And I can see people approaching me before they even approach me."

"Like Helen back at the rendezvous?" Clint remembered.

Natasha nodded. "Yeah. And just a few seconds ago, I saw you coming up here before you actually came here. And then…" her voice trailed off, reluctant to mention what else she experienced.

"And then?" Clint asked.

Natasha sighed. "When I touched the stone, I had a hallucination."

"What kind of hallucination?"

Natasha hesitated before speaking again. "I…I was getting married."

Clint smiled, clearly amused. "Really?"

"Yeah. And everyone was there, except…"

She then looked over at Clint, realization washing over her like a rainstorm. "You."

Clint raised his eyebrows. "I wasn't at your wedding?"

"No, you weren't."

He scoffed. "That really was a hallucination. But everyone else was there?"

"Yeah. Tony, Bruce, Thor, Nick…Steve gave me away."

"Oh, yeah. That was some kind of weird fantasy. There's no way in hell I'd let my best friend get married and not give her away, no less not show up to the wedding."

Natasha smiled. "I know you'd be there." She paused for a moment. "Clint, if anyone finds out about this, they're gonna throw me in the psych ward or put me on some type of evaluation."

"Nat, I'm not gonna say anything. But to be honest, do you really think SHEILD's gonna label you a nut job because of this? I mean, think about it. I saw you grab that stone and stop a man's heart. We all saw you make Bruce change. And shit, look at our team. We have a guy who has an electromagnet in his chest-or he used to have it, I guess; another guy that turns green and grows about nine feet tall when he's angry, and a dude from another planet that can manipulate the weather. And you think you're weird?"

Natasha started to laugh. "When you put it like that, it puts things in perspective."

Clint put his arm over her shoulder. "Everything's gonna be okay, Nat. If things do start to get a little too weird, I'll be there for you. I'm your wingman, remember?"

Natasha took hold of Clint's hand. "I remember."

Clint embraced her and held onto her for a moment, lightly stroking her back. "By the way, you never did tell me."

Natasha looked up at him. "What?"

"Who was the lucky guy? Thor?"

Natasha couldn't help but laugh. "Thor? Really?"

Clint shrugged. "I saw you two having dinner tonight. Besides, gorgeous people usually run together."

Natasha broke free from Clint's embrace and laughed even harder. "Clint, you really are an idiot."

"What's idiotic about that?"

"First of all, I was sitting with Thor tonight because he needed cheering up. You said yourself that he was gloomy the entire time he was here."

"Yeah. Now that you mention it, where did he go?"

"He walked home."

Clint was stunned. "He walked all the way back there?"

"I seriously doubt if that fifteen mile stroll will bother him."

"I really need him to break out of this 'life sucks' phase."

"Which brings me to point number two: part of the reason he's so down in the dumps is because he's madly in love…with someone else. And he can't be with her right now."

Clint thought for a moment. "Oh! The scientist! Erik's friend…Jane Foster!"

Natasha nodded. "That's her."

"Yeah, I forgot about her. I saw a picture of her once. She's pretty hot, which still proves my theory about gorgeous people being drawn to other gorgeous people."

Natasha shook her head, laughing again. "Anyway, you of all people should know that Thor's not my type."

Clint leaned in towards her, curious. "What is your type?"

"Well, it's not Thor. I mean, yeah, he's beautiful, but that's just the thing. He's too beautiful."

"Wow," Clint mused. "I never thought that could be an issue."

"It is for me. I like men that are a bit more…rugged."

"Rugged?"

"Rough and tough. Handsome, but not classically handsome. A man with calloused fingers and maybe a scar or two that he can brag about."

Clint subconsciously looked at the palm of his hand. "So you're saying that Steve's more your type, then?"

"Someone else has her eye on Steve."

Clint laughed. "Maria," they both said together.

"To be honest, Steve is a little closer to the mold, but I'd rather date a man that's a bit more contemporary. I don't know if you've noticed, but Steve still has the mindset of a man from the 1940's, and Thor is archaic as they come-although I love the fact that he still believes in chivalry."

"So basically, you want a man who's rough around the edges, modern, and chivalrous?"

Natasha smiled warmly. "That's what I want."

Clint smiled back at her, looking into her dark hazel eyes as "I Can't Fight This Feeling Anymore" could be heard playing from the club. "I hope you find him."

Natasha stared back into his grey eyes with no reply. They continued to gaze at each other in silence. The kiss they shared earlier that day flashed in Clint's mind for the millionth time. "Nat-" he began.

"Gale! Katniss!" Tony cried, cutting Clint off. The intoxicated billionaire staggered towards them as Bruce walked alongside him, trying his best to hold him up.

Natasha rolled her eyes and sighed as the two men drew near. "Where'd you guys go?" Tony managed to slur.

"We've been right here," Clint answered. "And isn't Gale a dude?"

Bruce replied in an exasperated voice, "Yeah, he is."

Tony stumbled over to Clint until they were face to face. "Well, Hot Pants can't be Katniss because she doesn't use a bow and arrow. That makes her Gale. Duh."

"Whatever," Clint muttered.

Tony shrugged. "It's a chick's name anyway."

"If I'm Gale, and he's Katniss, who's Peeta?" Natasha sneered.

Tony looked at her as if she were crazy. "Laura!"

Natasha rolled her eyes again and glanced at the guys, noticing that their dates were missing. "Speaking of which, did you fellas ditch the ladies?"

Clint shook his head in protest. "I told Laura I was coming up here to look for you before I left."

"Yeah," Bruce added. "You and Thor just disappeared, and then when the hawk didn't come back, we excused ourselves and went to see what was going on."

"So where's Steve?" Natasha asked.

Bruce and Tony started laughing. "We insisted he stay with the ladies," Bruce spat before guffawing. "You should've seen his face."

Natasha shook her head in disgust as Clint laughed along with them. "I hate I missed that," he said. "I'm sure Maria wasn't too upset, though."

Bruce scoffed. "Are you joking? She couldn't get rid of us fast enough."

"Hey…where's the other big guy?" Tony asked.

"He left." Natasha told him.

"Did he fly?"

"Walked."

Tony was stunned. "Holy shit."

"Apparently he had to walk off some stress," Clint said. A split second later, his eyes lit up. "You know what? I just thought of the perfect way we could spend part of our week off."

"How?" Tony queried.

"Let's hang out at my house for the weekend."

Natasha's eyes widened. "The farmhouse?"

"Yeah! You guys haven't been out there yet-well, Nat you have, but-."

Tony grinned, cutting him off. "Of course she has."

Clint continued, ignoring Tony's comment. "But it's gorgeous out there. It was my parent's place, but when they passed, the house was inherited to me. It's huge; there's plenty of room for everyone."

"And it's on a farm?" Tony inquired. "Where exactly is this place?"

"It's in a small town in Maryland called Harleyville. There's lakes nearby, caves and mountains, even a little bar where we can chill out and have some drinks. It can be a weekend with the fellas…and you too, Nat."

"Right." Natasha muttered. "So what about Laura?"

"Laura has to work all this week. It'll just be us," Clint answered before turning to Bruce and Tony. "You guys in?"

Tony playfully hit Clint on the arm. "You have to ask?"

Clint grinned and turned back to his best friend. "Nat?"

Natasha beamed. "I'm in, and I have an idea that'll make this weekend really great."

Clint's smile faded slightly. "What are you up to?"

"You'll see," Natasha told him, raising her eyebrows.

Clint eyed Natasha for a second before asking Bruce, "What about you, Dr. Banner?"

Bruce shook his head. "It sounds great, but I'm spending my week in New York."

"Come on!" Clint protested while Tony also whined something unintelligible to his friend.

"Bruce please, come with us," Natasha said. "You have to relax sometime."

Bruce shook his head in disagreement. "Trust me, working in the lab is relaxing for me. Much more relaxing than going in the field and turning into the other guy."

"But I'm talking about a weekend of fishing and hiking," Clint protested.

"I've never cared for fishing or hiking. Besides, I'm intrigued by that stone. I wanna find out what caused Natasha's reaction to it."

"But Bruce-" Tony whined.

Bruce held up his hands in protest. "No buts. It'll be nice to be in my element for a while."

"Oh…" Clint said, his eyes lighting up once again. "And you'll get to spend more time with Dr. Cho."

Bruce began to turn red. "Uh…I didn't think about that…well, not really."

Tony laughed and gave Bruce a playful punch in the chest. "You old dog, you."

"You think Thor and Steve'll be up for it?" Clint asked Natasha.

Natasha nodded. "I wouldn't doubt it."

"Alright, then!" Clint exclaimed. "We're all goin' to my house for the weekend."

"Yeah, it'll be nice to do something besides be around you guys all the time," Tony slurred before comprehending what he just said. "Oops."

"That's our cue to get Steve and the ladies and go back to the rendezvous," Bruce said, leading Tony to the car.

Clint put his arm back around Natasha's shoulder. "Ready to call it a night?"

Natasha smiled at him. "Ready."

"Let me walk you to the car door."

"Shouldn't you get Laura first?"

"Laura would kill me if I wasn't gentlemanly enough to walk you to the car," Clint said, allowing Natasha to interlock her arm with his. "Consider it an act of chivalry."

Natasha laughed and allowed Clint to escort her three steps to the passenger side door, as Bruce did his best to sit a drunken and nearly passed out Tony Stark in the backseat.

I'm so sorry that it took me so long to post this chapter! So many things prolonged me from completing it: stress, fatigue, life in general, and just plain getting stuck (this chapter was difficult to write, for some reason). However, I've finally completed it, and I hope you all enjoy it. As a bonus (and since it took so long for this chapter to be posted), chapter 4 is already posted as well. Go check it out!

A bit of trivia for you all...Berfi's is a real club in Verona (whether or not they have an 80's night is unbeknownst to me, but I love 80's music, and they consider themselves to be a discotheque, so I figured what the hell). If you want to have an idea of where the Avengers spent their free night, or if you're just curious as to what it looks like in case you're in Italy, here's the website:

Another bit of trivia: you all may be wondering why I referred to Clint and Natasha as Katniss and Gale, aside from Tony's obvious answer. The reason is because I've personally always felt that Katniss and Gale were soulmates and belonged together, but certain circumstances (the writers) kept them apart. In Katniss and Gale's case, they were kept apart forever (which was one of the most maddening things about Mockingjay).

Lastly, I'm a BIG fan of 80's music, as I stated earlier, and I used a lot of it in this chapter not just as a plot device, but an underlying theme. If you're curious about any of the music I referenced, or wanna hear exactly what the Avengers were listening to as the night unfolded, here's some You Tube links to the songs played at the club:

"Blue Monday" by New Order ( watch?v=KSGWsmR4ipM)

"Brand New Lover" by Dead or Alive ( watch?v=ZWbj64Rwfvc)

"Broken Wings" by Mr. Mister ( watch?v=nKhN1t_7PEY)

"Melt with You" by Modern English ( watch?v=LuN6gs0AJls)

"I Can't Fight This Feeling Anymore" by REO Speedwagon ( watch?v=zpOULjyy-n8)