December 2013, Washington DC

In an ideal world, Clint would have surprised Natasha the same way she had surprised him last Thanksgiving.

Clint had learned a long time ago not to surprise Natasha.

There was no answer at the apartment she was using in DC, but, unlike Steve's, it was one of Natasha's safe-houses, and one he had been to before, so he let himself in and disengaged the security.

Then he texted her to let her know he was there.

Nothing romantic about getting shot, after all.

The second after he sent the text, his phone rang.

"Are you serious?" She asked, as soon as he answered. "Where's Kate?"

"With Peggy," Clint answered. "You've got me until tomorrow evening."

Natasha hung up.

For a moment, he thought the entire situation had been horribly misjudged, but then his phone buzzed again with a text from Steve.

She's smiling. Don't listen to her.

Clint grinned, wandering into the bedroom. All of Natasha's safe-houses were impeccably decorated, and this one was no exception.

She was probably the only person he knew who routinely made her bed with hospital corners.

That was probably left over from the Red Room - the number of throw pillows almost certainly wasn't, although he wouldn't be surprised if at least one of them housed a weapon.

Then again, there was nothing personal here, so maybe this safe-house belonged to one of her aliases.

She did that sometimes, when she didn't feel completely safe; immerse herself entirely in another person.

The apartment door opened and closed.

"Clint?"

"In here," he called.

Natasha appeared in the bedroom doorway. Her hair had grown out, but she was wearing it straight rather than in its natural curls, and when she saw him, she smiled.

"Hey gorgeous."

"You shouldn't be here," she said, stepping into his arms.

Clint hummed in agreement, kissing her. "The other two women in my life ganged up on me."

Natasha sniggered. "Well, I am glad to see you. You will be with Kate for Christmas though, right?"

Clint sighed. "Yes, of course. I'm flying back tomorrow night, and then Peggy's flying out."

Natasha nodded, toying with the front of his shirt. "In that case, we'd better make the most of it."

"Don't you want your present?" Clint asked.

Natasha raised an eyebrow. "Aren't you my present?"

Clint grinned. "Well, obviously. But I couldn't turn up empty-handed."

"I have," Natasha said.

"Yeah, well, you didn't know I was coming," Clint said. "And, to be fair, I have one thing that I have no idea if you're going to even want, let alone like, and the other thing isn't exactly a present, more of an IOU, because we've got no idea when you'll be back in New York." He pulled two small boxes out of his pocket and handed one of them over. "But I know you will like that one, so open it first."

Natasha opened the box, and burst out laughing at the slip of paper, just as he knew she would.

I promise you one night at a ballet of your choice without complaining.

"Does that include a suit?" She asked.

Clint sighed. "Yes, monkey suit included. I will get the tickets once we know when you're going to be there."

Natasha grinned. "Thank you."

Clint shook his head. "The things I do for you, Nat; seriously."

"Do you think Kate would enjoy the ballet?" Natasha asked.

Clint thought about that. "Honestly … no. Thank you for thinking of her, but it's really not her thing."

"Fair enough," Natasha said, setting the box to one side. "Thank you," she repeated. "I know it's not your thing either. And I didn't get you anything."

She was going to let him off on the other gift, the one he was nervous about.

Clint held up the other box. "I've been carrying this around for a while."

Natasha gave him a slightly worried look. "It's not an engagement ring, is it?"

Clint laughed. "No, Nat, don't worry. I just saw it, and … You might hate it. And that's okay, if you do. I won't be offended."

It did not surprise him that Natasha did not want to get married, and that didn't bother him right now.

He had been married before, after all, and it had ended that relationship.

That wasn't to say that he and Bobbi would have lasted forever, but he got the feeling that they probably would have lasted longer if they hadn't eloped.

Natasha smiled and plucked the other box out of his hand. "I'm sure I'll like it."

"I won't be offended if you don't," Clint repeated. "It just makes more sense to give it to you and confirm one way or another than to carry it around until I die."

"At which point I would find it in your pocket and weep over it," Natasha said dryly.

"Exactly," Clint said, just as sardonically.

Natasha shook her head and opened the box, sucking in a breath. "Oh …"

"It's okay if you hate it."

"Do you want me to hate it?" Natasha asked, lifting out the necklace. "It's beautiful." She gently touched the tiny arrow. "I have no idea when I'm going to wear it."

That didn't surprise him either - Natasha wasn't exactly the kind of person to wear her heart on her sleeve.

"That's okay," Clint said. "I just feel like it would suit you more than me."

Natasha laughed. "Well, that's a given." She put the jewellery box down next to the ballet 'tickets'. "It's very pretty; thank you. And I didn't get you anything."

"I don't need anything," Clint said honestly. "I get to see you. That's enough."

"Are you sure?" Natasha asked, starting to unbutton her shirt.

A flash of purple lace caught his attention. "Well, I never complain," he said, settling his hands on her waist. "We're on the clock though."

"I do my best work on the clock," Natasha purred, urging him back towards the bed.

His back hit the mattress, her shirt hit the floor, and his higher thought processes shorted out.

December 2013, Manhattan

Peggy had obviously met Kate more than once since that first dinner, and she knew that the teenager was completely on board with her plan of getting Clint and Natasha some time alone, but it wasn't until breakfast that she realised that she hadn't actually spent any time with Kate alone.

As such, things were a little awkward to start with; she could sense Kate's hidden nerves at not having Clint there as some kind of safety net.

It reminded her of Clint actually, the way he was when she first met him, and that made her heart ache a little.

So she pressed on, putting breakfast together, and letting Kate slowly get used to her presence.

"Is there anything you want to do today?" Peggy asked.

"I could do with some help finding Dad a Christmas present," Kate said, a little hesitantly. "He just says he doesn't want anything."

Peggy rolled her eyes. "Well, that's helpful, isn't it?"

Kate giggled. "I know what he's trying to say, but … I want to."

"We can go and have a wander," Peggy said. "I'll be honest; I find buying for your dad difficult as well, so maybe we can help each other."

"It's not bad I still haven't got one then?" Kate asked.

"Of course not," Peggy said. "You're not still panicking on Christmas morning yet. I've been there, and it's not fun."

"Dad says you're his mom," Kate said.

Peggy smiled. "I've always said he's the son I didn't give birth to but should have."

"Why doesn't he call you Mom?" Kate asked.

"Sometimes he does," Peggy said. "Very rarely. The serum is a secret, so he probably doesn't want to risk calling me that at work."

"I never told my dad how much I wanted him to be my dad," Kate admitted. "I was always scared that he didn't actually think of me like that."

"Clint knows how I feel," Peggy said, but made a mental note to talk to Clint when he got back.

"Do I need to call you something else outside the Tower?" Kate asked.

"Sharon," Peggy said, "but it's not a huge deal if you slip up, I promise. No one's going to be paying any attention, and they won't know any different.

Kate didn't look convinced, and Peggy remembered that this was the girl who had figured out Clint's profession, and apparently acted as a vigilante for over a year, and kept both of those secrets perfectly.

Sure enough, as soon as they left the Tower, Kate never once slipped.

Manhattan was - unsurprisingly - heaving with shoppers, and Peggy found herself automatically holding on to Kate through the crowds so they didn't get separated.

Another teenager might have become irritated, but Kate seemed grateful for it.

Peggy had only been partially telling the truth about Clint's Christmas present; she knew his shooting glove was wearing down, so had bought him a new one.

She had bought Kate one as well, in purple.

But she always liked getting Clint something fun and whimsical as well as something practical, because he never got anything like that as a child.

She bet Kate hadn't either, but she didn't feel she knew Kate well enough yet to know what kind of gift she would appreciate and what might feel patronising.

One of the stores - and Peggy had lost track as to which one - sold all number of miscellaneous items, which looked to be a good place to find what she was looking for.

One small gum-ball machine later, she found Kate looking at coffee mugs.

"He does like his coffee," she commented.

"It feels a bit impersonal," Kate said, a little hesitantly.

Peggy wrinkled her nose, then spotted something in the corner of the store. "They do personalised mugs while you wait. Do you have a digital copy of that photo of your first meeting?"

Kate's eyes lit up. "Yeah, I do! Do you think he'd like it?"

"My godson gave me a mug like that when he was five," Peggy said. "I still cherish it."

The personalisation had been impressive for the time, but she couldn't have cared less if Tony had just taped a picture to the front.

That seemed to make Kate's mind up, and she headed over to the guy manning the stall. "How long does it take?"

"We can get it done in an hour for you," he said. "What do you want?"

Kate pulled up the photo on her phone. "This on a purple mug."

"No problem," he tapped the number on the front of the desk. "Text it here; I always delete all numbers immediately after I'm done. It won't wrap around the whole mug without being distorted, so I can put the picture on twice, or I can put something on the other side."

Kate thought for a moment, then she grinned. "I'll send you two pictures."

Peggy considered asking what the other picture was going to be, but decided that Kate would tell her if she wanted to.

They wandered around a few other shops while they waited, and Peggy couldn't help secretly getting a few of the things that Kate obviously wanted, but wasn't going to ask for or buy herself.

After they picked up the mug, Peggy treated Kate to lunch at one of her favourite cafes.

It was busy and loud, but the inevitable delay in service was worth it, if they could speak freely.

"Thanks for your help," Kate said.

"Don't mention it," Peggy said. "It's nice to have the company."

"I've never been able to do this," Kate admitted. "Joanna never wanted to spend time with me."

"So I gather," Peggy said. "Her loss."

Kate smiled a little. "If you're Dad's mom, does that make you my grandma?"

Peggy was flattered, but grimaced. "I suppose so, but … No offence, Kate, because you're a lovely, lovely girl and I am so happy you're part of the family, but I am nowhere near ready to be called Grandma."

It was almost silly, given that she knew that she was in her nineties, but she didn't feel that old.

She was a little concerned that Kate would take that as discouragement, but that didn't seem to be the case.

"No," Kate said thoughtfully, "you don't look like you should be called that either. How about aunt?"

"If you would like to call me that, I would be honoured," Peggy said. "I was thinking we drop our shopping off home after lunch rather than carry it around with us. What would you like to do this afternoon?"

Now Kate faltered, giving a little shrug. "Oh, I don't know."

Peggy smiled at her over her teacup. "Come on. I've done everything in New York a hundred times. As long as it's nothing we needed tickets for six months ago."

Kate chuckled. "Fair enough. I've always wanted to go to the Museum of Natural History."

"I love that museum," Peggy said. "We can absolutely do that."

They spent a very pleasant afternoon in the museum; it was one of Peggy's favourite in New York, probably because it reminded her a bit of her trips to the Natural History Museum in London with her mother as a child.

Kate was like Peggy, it turned out, in that she actually liked to read the exhibits, and not just look at them and move on, which made the whole experience that much more enjoyable.

"Did your dad have anything particular planned for dinner tonight?" Peggy asked, as they let themselves into the apartment that evening.

"I don't think so," Kate said.

"Pizza it is then," Peggy said. "JARVIS, put in the order please?"

"Right away, Agent Carter."

Kate had vanished, but reappeared quickly, with an armful of wrapping paper. "I'd better wrap Dad's present before he gets back."

"Good point," Peggy said. "I might need to borrow some of that."

"Help yourself," Kate said, staking out at the kitchen table.

Most of the things Peggy had bought that day were for Kate, but she wrapped Clint's second gift and put it under the tree.

Pizza arrived just as they finished and they set up on the couch.

"Did you live in England for long?" Kate asked over a double pepperoni.

"Until I was 22," Peggy answered. "That's when I got transferred from MI5 to the SSR, and I moved to Camp Leigh. Steve always said during the War that the New York skyline was the most beautiful view in the world. When it was all over, I came back to Brooklyn and decided he was right. The asshole."

Kate giggled. "Do you miss England?"

"Sometimes," Peggy admitted. "But the wonderful thing about modern technology is that I don't have to. When I moved here, there were commercial flights, but they took a lot longer and it was very expensive. The most common option was boat, and that took even longer. Nowadays I can be there in less than a day. And, honestly, I've lived in Brooklyn far longer than I've lived in London, so this is my home now." She picked off a piece of mushroom. "So I hear you did a bit of vigilante work for a while."

Kate froze a little beside her. "Um, maybe?"

"What made you stop?" Peggy asked curiously.

"Dad became my guardian," Kate answered. "Can't exactly sneak out of here."

Peggy chuckled. "Fair enough. Did you think I'd disapprove?"

"I mean, Dad's right," Kate said. "It's not exactly legal."

Peggy shrugged. "Neither's Lady Liberty. Half of what I do is vigilanteism. I had the ability to help people; I couldn't just sit back and do nothing."

"Yeah," Kate said softly.

"Don't get me wrong," Peggy said hastily. "I'm not encouraging you to start again. You're still underage. But it takes guts to do what you did, and talent to do it as well as you did."

"It wasn't that great," Kate mumbled. "Anyway, I don't think I could do it and school at the same time anymore."

"You're a junior now, right?" Peggy asked.

Kate nodded. "Yeah, and I am not looking forward to senior year."

"Any plans for college?"

Kate hesitated. "I'm … not sure."

Peggy raised an eyebrow. "Not sure?"

"I don't know what I'd study," Kate said, "and I don't want to go just for the hell of it, and … Well, it's not like I've got a college fund."

Of course not.

Because her biological parents might have had one, purely so they could one day say that their daughter was at college, but they definitely would not have sent it on with her.

"Don't worry about that part," Peggy said. "Where there's a will, there's a way. I appreciate not wanting to go for the hell of it, but don't count it out because you're worried about the cost."

Kate nodded thoughtfully, yawning again.

Peggy smiled. "I think it might be bedtime."

It was something she used to say to Tony a lot when he was a child - and still said to Clint, when he was at her place.

"Probably," Kate agreed. "I want to wait for Dad though."

Peggy wasn't going to argue - not with a seventeen-year-old - so she let it go, picking up the remote. "Any requests?"

"I'm easy," Kate said.

Peggy wasn't the least bit surprised when she glanced over ten minutes later to see that Kate had fallen asleep.

She left the TV on, a Christmas movie she wasn't paying attention to providing soft background noise while she cleared away the leftover pizza and finished wrapping her presents.

Peggy was just about to carry Kate to bed, when Lucky's ears suddenly perked up and he ran to the door, making a little noise that sounded like he wanted to bark, but knew Kate was asleep and didn't want to wake her.

A second later, the door opened and Clint stooped to scratch his ears. "Hey Lucky." As he straightened up, his eyes fell on Kate and he smiled. "Good day?"

"Lovely day," Peggy said. "I'll let you move her."

Clint chuckled. "Thanks."

"I'm not going to ask about your visit," Peggy said. "There are some things I don't need to know."

Clint grinned without a hint of embarrassment. "I don't kiss and tell."

"I don't want you to," Peggy said. "Can you …?" She jerked her head towards the kitchen area so they didn't disturb Kate.

"What's wrong?" Clint asked. "Did she say something?"

"Not in so many words," Peggy said softly. "I just … Can I give you some advice?"

"Of course," Clint said, stepping a little closer to her. "You know I trust your instincts."

"I get the sense that she puts a lot of importance on your opinions," Peggy said. "Nothing wrong with that, but I feel like she would put that ahead of her own."

"I don't follow," Clint said.

Peggy sighed. "I've seen the police reports of her time as a freelancer. She prevented at least fifty major crimes, helped apprehend over twenty wanted men, and cut crime rates by twenty-five percent. If I hadn't known better, I'd have sworn it was you."

Clint's brow furrowed. "Please don't try and recruit her. I really don't want her working for SHIELD."

"Neither do I," Peggy agreed. "But, Clint, she has your skill - and, more importantly - she has your heart. I can see her wanting to do something to help others. Whether that's SHIELD or military or going back out at night, I don't know, but she will. But I get the feeling that she would sacrifice her own happiness rather than lose you."

"She's not going to lose me," Clint protested quietly.

"Of course she's not," Peggy said gently. "But I think you need to make that clear to her, especially when you're disagreeing."

Clint nodded. "Okay, thanks."

Peggy smiled. "It's my job to tell you things you don't want to hear."

"Yeah, I know," Clint grumbled.

Peggy squeezed his hands. "You know I love you, don't you?"

"Of course I do," Clint said. "I love you too."

Peggy smiled, going up on tiptoes to kiss his forehead. "Presents are under the tree."

"You didn't have to do that," Clint said.

"Who are you talking to?" Peggy asked rhetorically. She fetched her bag from the couch, automatically bending to kiss Kate's forehead as well. "Call me if you need anything."

Clint shook his head with a smile. "Just go, Mom. Merry Christmas."

The world has gotten scarier since I last posted, but it shouldn't have done. Not just because the atrocities in Ukraine should not be happening (it shouldn't), but because it is not the only war-zone in the world unfortunately. The day the air strikes started, there were also air strikes across the Middle East. My thoughts are with everyone affected, and I hope that some kind of resolution can be found in all cases.
Everyone should be able to live peacefully. And, in the words of Steve Rogers, "I don't like bullies, sir. No matter where they're from."