A/N: I'm Back! :D early in the morning, too. . You see, I'm updating 3 hours earlier than normal because I am about to take a nap and I can almost guarantee I'll be asleep until dinner. Hence, the timing of this chapter.

Showdowns and Disappointments:

Excessive Curse Warning.

~Phil~

"He's a good man, mom."

"I'd love to know your definition of 'good,' Phillip." I viciously stab the food in front of me with my fork. "I only want the best for you, sweetheart. I wouldn't be telling you no if I didn't think it was in your best interest." I shake my head lightly. "Don't argue with me. I know what's best for you and he isn't it." My grip on my fork tightens.

"You don't know what's best for me. You never knew what's best for me." She glares at me.

"You're speaking out of turn, Phillip." My hands clench into fists and I can feel my jaw tighten.

"I love him, mom. I can't just give up on him."

"He's just like your father, Phillip!" Her voice raises and I think this is the closest she's ever come to yelling at me. "Your father who abandoned us when he needed him most! He was never fit to be a king, Phillip, and neither is this crush of yours."

"Dad left because of you, mom. You think I don't remember hearing your conversation?" I stare at her and she doesn't even have the decency to look guilty. "You told him to leave. You told him to leave and never come back, mom. You broke our family up and you think you can pass it off as him messing it up because of his criminal past?" I shake my head. "You can't blame all of our problems on dad."

"You watch your tone, young man! I don't appreciate what you're insinuating." She's actually yelling at me now and I don't know what to do. I've never had to stand up to her for anything before…

"I don't appreciate you dictating my love life!"

"I am your mother, Phillip!" Nick glances at us curiously, along with Thor. Both appear to be ready to intervene if it becomes necessary.

"Just let him go, mom."

"I'm not an idiot, Phillip. I know you're going to run off with him once he's out."

"I'll do what I feel needs to be done. I feel he and his friends need to be released." She sighs.

"Pick. Him or his friends."

"What?"

"We let Mr. Barton out or we let his friends out. The choice is yours."

"Clint. It will always be Clint."

~Clint~

I kick my bed. "It's so fucking stupid!" Loki looks to me, amused. "How can they do that?" My head falls into my hands. "They can't let the fucking bastard go! It's obvious he's the damn culprit. Fucking assholes…" Loki nods in agreement. "The damn idiot put a fucking bullet in my damn shoulder and they're just gonna let the bastard go?" I flail my arms around. "The son of a bitch deserves to be put behind bars! What the fuck did he do that's so damn great they have to let him go?"

"Calm down, Clint. You're going to draw attention to us."

"Trust me; I've already drawn everyone's damn attention to us. And you know what? I. Don't. Fucking. Care. What's the point of caring if that bastard's getting off easy, huh?" I fall onto my bed. "Do you know how much fucking work I put into finding that bastard? A hell of a lot, Loki!" He sighs. "And now he's just gonna get off the fucking hook like he didn't do a damn thing wrong. Why does Nat have to be such a good goddamn lawyer?"

"Relax, Clint. This isn't going to get you anywhere."

"I don't fucking care!" I fall on my back. "I don't want to live on this fucking planet anymore if this is how bastards get treated."

"Clint…you do realize you did the same thing as he did for years, right?" Damn it. Damn it. Damn it. I'm only hurting myself here!

"I'm a fucking idiot." Loki laughs and I look up to see Steve standing at our door. "Oh, hey Steve. Come to visit?"

"You're leaving, Barton. Come on." He opens the cell and I slowly slip out. "Come with me." I nod and follow, leaving a hurt Loki behind. I follow Steve to his office, where Tony's waiting for us.

"It's about damn time the two of you got here. What took you so long?" Steve looks down.

"Clint had a, uh… fit." I chuckle.

"To put it nicely, yeah. I had a fit. How can you let that bastard Barnes off the hook like that?" Tony shakes his head.

"We aren't here to talk about that. You're being released." I… I'm what?

"What'd Nat tell you?"

"Nothing. This was all Phil." I break out into a smile. "We just want to make sure you know. He's a good friend to both of us. I don't care who you are; if you hurt him, you answer to us." Tony nods.

"That's right. You hurt him, you get hit with the big guns. Basically: don't hurt him and you'll be fine." I nod.

"Can I go, now? I have a prince to go catch up with." They both smile and nod.

A/N: … I was working off of sleep deprivation and coffee. Hence the excessive cursing on Clint's part. I apologize.