So here we have a new chapter- this focuses on mainly the relationship between Arlie, Clint, and Phil, but we do get to see Arlie meet Fury (I laughed- actually, I cackled- during that bit) and the last line...well, I'll let you see for yourself!
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July 4th, 2006 (Clint)
"She's not safe," I said to Phil at the end of the party as we cleaned up, watching my sister type away on her computer, no doubt hacking into SHIELD to ensure they were treating me right. In the years we'd lost she'd become quite the warrior, willing to go to battle for me. Of all people: me. But she always was so stubborn and you couldn't talk Arlie out of something once she got her mind set on it, so I guess I shouldn't be so surprised.
"There's no records connecting to two of you, and whenever you meet we're very careful to hide any evidence that you two ever met."
"Yes, but suppose all that goes wrong. Someone could catch her and then she'd have no way to stop them. I could fail her- I could let her down again- I could," Phil cut me off before I could have a full-blown panic attack.
"You never failed her. You never let her down. Do you know what she did the entire time I was talking to her when we first met? She bragged about you. I got a whole ten minutes of The Greatest Hits of Clint Barton, from the time you learned to braid so you could do her hair for her to how you made sure to check her entire apartment complex for anyone unsavory and double checked she had vegetables in her fridge. The girl adores you. So calm down."
"But still- what happens? I mean- there are bad things that happen to ordinary people all the time! Girls in New York get mugged, or raped, or murdered, and she's strong, yeah, and I made sure she has pepper spray, but still- she's not safe."
"Well, what do you want to do?"
"Train her."
Phil was silent for one beat. Two.
"What?"
"I don't ever want to fail her again, but if I do, she'll only have herself to depend on. I'm going to make sure that no one could hurt her. Do you know what happens in some of those Foster Homes?" Not to mention what that Richard guy did to her.
Phil said, almost on a whisper, "Yeah."
"I'm not going to ever let her get bruised like that again, and that means making sure she can take care of herself. Because I might not always be here."
"Alright, Big Brother, sounds like you've got a work out regime to plan." Phil sighed the sentence, but I could tell by the glint in his eyes that he was proud of me. Between the two of us, Arlie would always be safe.
August 6th, 2006
Arlie was surprisingly willing to take some self-defense classes from me. She looked at them with an attitude that was serious when discussing the reasoning behind the lessons, but once we'd get going she'd be playful and giggling with each kick and punch.
She was tiny which I taught her to use to her advantage- she could slip out of my or Phil's grasp easily and the more she practiced the better she got.
It probably helped that her teachers were two fully trained Agents of SHIELD who were both active fighters and completely wrapped around her finger.
She would be fine, I told myself as I watched her softly tap Phil's knee to show she could've taken him down to the ground.
Yeah- if she were got go up against someone on my or Phil's level she'd only last a few minutes. But I told her she just needed to last long enough to get away and call me or Phil.
She nodded and then grinned as she kicked my legs out from under me and dashed over to Phil yelling his name and giggling.
Always said she was a spitfire.
October 7th, 2006
Arlie's birthday party was small- her, me, and Phil and she told me she'd be celebrating with some girlfriends by going out to lunch the next day. I was relieved to notice that the ex-army guy had moved out. Of course, it might have been because I dropped a few hints at the building manager.
But who can say for sure?
The new tenant was a sweet little old lady who Arlie had helped move in. In her usual chattering she had managed to completely enchant the dear while also amusing her.
Arlie sometimes has a bit of a brain to mouth malfunction. In which there is not filter between the two.
You can always guarantee she's being honest, at least.
My little sister was hugging Phil goodbye and thanking him again for the presents- Phil had gotten quite attached to Arlie (who wouldn't?) and was really beginning to spoil her. I would be jealous if it wasn't one of the greatest things I'd ever seen and they didn't include me in practically everything they did.
I stood up after Phil had left and lightly pulled on my sister's braid.
"You ready to spar?" she rolled her eyes and agreed to another lesson. We didn't bother moving her furniture ("Why do that? If I'm getting into a fight I won't have time to move stuff around for a clear space. Best to learn to work around things. Or use them.") and began to fight.
My sister is safe, I thought, as she managed to take me down and knock the air out of me for a good two minutes.
She was better than most trainee SHIELD agents at this point. And in only three months.
She wouldn't be able to win 100% of the time against me or Phil, and she'd never take down someone like Fury or Agent Hill whose fighting style she wasn't as familiar with, but she could take down an average mugger without breaking a sweat and anyone coming after my sister would be sure to underestimate her.
She was great at taking advantage of that, I thought as she slipped through my grip and kicked out my knee before I even noticed she was gone.
Damn, is this how Phil felt when I finally managed to beat him sparring?
No wonder he grinned for the rest of the day.
December 15th, 2006
"So we'll be missing Christmas this year. Off to Central America. Not sure if Santa visits there," I tell my sister from my seat on her couch as she passes me the chips. She smacks the back of my head and answers me.
"Well, I'm sad you won't be here on the actual day, but you'll come back in time for New Year's," she turns and gives me a fierce glare as she adds, "and you'd better come back. So we can just celebrate Christmas with New Year's this year and have one gargantuan party!"
"I thought you usually spent New Year's with your friends."
"I do, but I can give them some excuse and celebrate Christmas this year with them instead. Relax, bird brain, you'll still get your present."
"You gonna tell me what it is?"
"Not a word."
"Come on, munchkin- I'm a trained spy- I could just figure it out by snooping."
"You go ahead and try- it's not here."
"Where is it, then?'
"Not. A. Word." And then she actually stuck her tongue out at me.
Well two can play at that game.
April 5th, 2007
"So how's it feel to be twenty eight?" asks my sister after I've blown out the candles on the quadruple chocolate cake she's made me (my eyes might have teared up a bit when she first said "quadruple chocolate").
"Much better than turning twenty four," I joke and elbow Phil who's sitting on my other side.
"Is this one of the SHIELD jokes I don't get?" Arlie asks.
"I'd be happy to tell you all about it," chuckles Phil.
"NO! Let's not tell that story and say we did."
"So we were in Romania and it was pouring rain," Phil begins anyways.
"You're cruel," I mutter to Phil under my breath while Arlie laughs at me. But she gives me a big slice of cake so I don't complain.
Quadruple chocolate cake, I discover, makes everything better.
September 5th, 2007
We're in the middle of Ghostbusters when there is a knock on her door. Arlie kicks me in the shin which is my cue to go answer it for her. She's wrapped up in about thirty blankets and sniffling from her cold so I don't say anything, just moving the mug full of chicken noodle soup closer to her. She gives me a pathetic sniffle as I move towards the door.
Director Fury is on the other side of it.
Shit.
He raises an eyebrow and says in the driest voice I've ever heard (even drier than Phil's- which says something), "Aren't you going to invite me in, Agent Barton?"
Double shit.
I open the door wider and let the leader of SHIELD in, just as my phone starts ringing. I recognize the number as Phil's and answer.
"Too late," I sigh and hang up before Phil has a chance to respond.
"Arlie- this is Director Fury. Director, my sister." Arlie's eyebrows have almost skyrocketed and she is shifting in embarrassment- she's in her pajamas, covered in blankets, and clearly sick. This was not how she would want to meet anyone, let alone Fury.
Unfortunately, I can also tell she's not really intimidated by the large man in the black leather trench coat with an eye patch.
Oh I am so screwed.
"I have a mission for you, Agent Barton, and it's of the utmost importance and highest security." He has yet to look away from Arlie. I've never been so damn nervous in my life.
"Sir?"
"Is there something I can do for you?" Never mind- the award for driest voice I've ever heard goes to my sister. I find enough room in my nervousness to also feel a swell of pride- Director of SHIELD and general bad ass? My sister- still not cowed.
"This is your apartment?" asks the Director. Arlie stiffens.
"Yes."
"Is it secure?"
"As Clint could make it," is her reply.
I'm ready for something to just swallow me up and take me from this nightmare and, like an angel of better-late-than-never, Phil appears at the door and opens it. I hadn't locked it behind Fury.
Well, crap, so much for secure as I could make it.
"Ah- Director."
"I presume you knew about this, Agent Coulson."
"Well, sir," begins Phil but my sister, without having changed her tone once since she began speaking to the Director of SHIELD, interrupts.
"This?" she pauses while the Director offers no comment, "I presume we're talking about my existence? You'll find I'm perfectly legal, I have a social security number, birth certificate and everything. I'm even registered to vote. Isn't that nice?"
Please save me please save me Phil do something good god Arlie is back talking and snarking Director Fury holy crap can this get worse? What's she going to do next? Stick her tongue out at him?
"Agent Barton why is your sister not on any of our information of you?"
"Well, Director," I say, now finding my own version of Arlie's dry voice coming out of my mouth without any sort of planning from me, "Because I didn't want you to know about her. I should think that was obvious."
"I just wanted verbal confirmation."
"Director Fury, sir," Phil cuts in, ready to do damage control, "Miss Barton is not of use to SHIELD and, by Agent Barton's omission of her from our records, he's making it much more difficult for enemies of SHIELD to potentially compromise him. Keeping Miss Barton out of general knowledge is as beneficial to SHIELD as it is to Agent Barton."
"I'm sure."
There's silence in the apartment for several heartbeats I don't want to count. Eleven.
"Very well then, I still have a mission for you Agent Barton. It's in the Czech Republic. We have intelligence of an assassination conspiracy with one of the most notorious hit men worldwide. We want you to stop her. You're to take out the Black Widow."