Okay, this is starting to pick up steam for me a little bit on writing. No promises on how long it lasts.
As always, please review :)
Clint was a master assassin, expert marksman, one of the best agents S.H.I.E.L.D. had, and a damn good Avenger. But to his sister, he was nothing if not predictable.
When Kate went looking for him, she knew where she would find him, and it wasn't at the shooting range with his bow. If you knew where to look at the complex, once you climbed out the right window, there was a narrow path that you could climb up to one of the highest points of the building where you had an excellent 360 degree view of the surrounding area. It would be a perfect sniper nest, or just a great place to think.
Clint was staring out over the still darkened area, waiting for sunrise to begin, the faintest glow of light just beginning. He looked up as Kate appeared, dropping down beside him without a word.
"Did you sleep?" Clint asked.
"Not much." She replied pulling the sleeves of her hoodie down over her hands. "You?"
He shrugged.
They sat in silence for a long time just watching the glow on the horizon get brighter and brighter but not quite break yet.
"I really like the school." Kate said into the silence.
"I know you do." Clint said. "That's why I finished the rest of the paperwork while you and Nat went to the car."
She looked at him in surprise. "Really?" She asked.
He nodded. "You're gonna start Monday. Pepper already has your books being shipped to the tower and Nat is going to take you into the city in a few hours to get all the supplies you need and new clothes." He said.
Kate wrapped her arms around Clint tightly. "Thank you." She said.
"I want you to promise me something though." Clint said seriously as she sat back. "You know the rules. Keep your head down, always be alert and keep your guard up. Don't get lazy just because the school is full of kids."
She nodded somberly. "I promise."
…
New York was crazy; it was loud, it was crowded, and drivers did not really care if you were already in the crosswalk or not. Kate loved it.
She and Nat had left the compound at around 8am and they had been shopping for hours. Both had arms full of bags from various clothing stores. Originally, Kate had just wanted to get supplies for school, but Natasha had insisted on a new wardrobe considering her clothes were functional, either for globe trotting missions or farm life in Iowa. They still needed the actual school supplies.
"I'm hungry." Kate finally said around 2pm.
"Okay, let's drop these at the car." Natasha said.
They shoved everything in the back of the SUV and were about to get in when Kate heard someone say her name. Granted it was New York City and there could have been twenty Kate's walking by at that moment, but she still looked.
Peter, along with a boy that she had seen yesterday at school, was walking up smiling brightly.
…
Peter and Ned hadn't gotten a lot of chances to hang out lately what with Peter's patrolling schedule, so days like today were rare. They had spent most of the day together hanging out and they had gotten a new LEGO set to put together and were on their way to get lunch when he saw her.
She was dressed simply in a black tank top with blue jean shorts and red converse sneakers, her curly brown hair pulled up in a messy ponytail but he instantly recognized Kate.
Without letting his brain catch up to what his mouth was doing, he called her name. When she looked around, seeming surprised to hear her name, she spotted him. He smiled to cover his sudden confusion about what to do.
She smiled at him, eyes lighting up. "Hey…" She said being careful because Ned was there. "Peter, right? Midtown's best student."
Peter blushed. "Well…" he rubbed the back of his head. "I wouldn't say their best…"
Kate giggled but she looked at Ned.
"This is Ned." Peter introduced. "Ned, this is Kate. She's thinking of coming to Midtown."
"Nice to meet you." Kate said politely.
Ned blushed when her smile was directed at him and greeted her back politely.
Kate glanced back, hearing a phone ring. When Peter followed her gaze, he was shocked to recognize the Black Widow sitting in the driver's seat talking on a cell phone. She was talking in Russian and not looking at them, but he recognized her. Thankfully, Ned hadn't.
"So, what did you think of Midtown?" Ned asked.
Kate looked at him. "It was great. I actually am going to be starting there on Monday." She said.
Peter's pulse leapt at the news.
…
Kate smiled as she spoke with Peter and Ned while waiting for Nat to get off the phone. It was weird, but nice to have a conversation about normal teenage things like starting school for a change. Besides, Peter she knew she liked, and Ned seemed really sweet too.
"Hey kiddo, change of plans." Nat's voice said behind her.
Kate turned to the open passenger window to see Natasha was now off the phone.
Nat frowned apologetically. "I gotta go to work." She said seriously. "We'll have to get the rest of the school supplies later."
"Okay…" Kate replied actually feeling the disappointment more than usual.
"Well, we could help you get the supplies." Kate turned to look at Peter in surprise at his sudden offer.
Peter blushed slightly at their eyes turning to him but continued. "We were gonna grab lunch. You could join us, and we could help you find the rest of what you need." He offered.
"Yeah." Ned added. "The place that we get our stuff from isn't far from here."
"Umm…" Kate turned to look at Natasha, who didn't look convinced. She leaned into the open window and spoke quietly in Russian. "Please Nat? You said to have normal experiences. Isn't having friends and doing stuff like this part of that?"
Natasha didn't reply for a long time but finally sighed and pulled out Kate's cell phone from the center console. "You check in every hour or count on the majority of the Avengers showing up to make sure you're okay. And you are back by 6pm, no later." She instructed in Russian.
Kate grinned. "Thanks Nat!" She said back in English, taking her phone and the credit card Natasha passed over as well. "I'll see you back at the apartment."
"Have fun!" Natasha said but in a much quieter voice said. "She gets hurt little spider and I'm coming after you."
Kate paused. Ned was blissfully unaware of the exchange but seeing Peter swallow nervously confirmed that he had indeed heard her.
…
Peter thanked whoever he could think of that he and the Black Widow had been on the same side in Berlin. She was scary, even when making whispered threats from a car.
However, it didn't take long for that to be pushed from his mind as Peter and Ned led Kate to their favorite pizza place for lunch. It became apparent that Kate was every bit the nerd that they were so the three instantly bonded.
"Is that a LEGO Star Destroyer?" Kate asked looking at the bag that Ned had while they waited on their pizza.
"Yeah." Ned replied but kinda braced for the ridicule that they normally received.
Kate smiled. "When I was little, I kept taking apart the appliances at home when I was bored. When I took apart the coffee pot one morning my brother went and bought me one of the giant sets, like 75,000+ pieces. I still put them together when I have the time and when we aren't moving." She said, a fond look in her eyes.
"So, it's just you and your brother?" Ned asked.
"And his wife." She replied.
"Is your brother in the military?" Ned asked. "Is that why you moved so much?"
Kate smiled faintly. "Something like that…." She replied taking a sip of her soda.
After lunch and stopping to get the last things on her list, Ned had to say goodbye so he could go home. Peter offered to walk her back to her 'apartment', so they saw Ned to his train and started in the general direction of the Tower.
"This was fun." Kate said smiling as they walked together. "Thank you for inviting me."
Peter found himself grinning ear to ear. "Of course." He said. "I'm really glad we ran into each other—not in the literal sense this time though."
Kate giggled and Peter found that he wanted to make her laugh again. Any response he could have come up with was cut off by the sound of shouting coming from a convenience store across the street. Looking over he saw masked robbers with guns pointed at the clerk and customers. He looked at Kate and she was looking at them too.
She turned to see his imploring expression and nodded with a smile. "Go get 'em Spider-Man."