Note: I hate typing S.H.I.E.L.D.
He sits at the kitchen table, a steaming cup of coffee beside the laptop in front of him. The news sites are still shouting about S.H.I.E.L.D.'s secrets, the congressional hearing, and the whereabouts of Captain America. To them, it's a story. To him, it's missing friends, the loss of a job, fear for his family.
Nat intentionally hits the creaky board as she walks down the stairs, and he shakes his head fondly. "What time did you get in?"
She pours a cup of coffee and joins him at the table. "Late. Nice security system, by the way."
He grins. "It's new. Top of the line."
She grins back. "It's good. I'm better." She takes a sip of her coffee, sets the cup down. "I checked the files. Nothing about this place." For the first time in days, he feels the tension in his back release just a little.
"Have you heard from anyone else?'
"Yeah." She counts out the names on her fingers. "Rogers is sitting in a nursing home in D.C." He shoots her a puzzled look, and she beams with delight. "Remind me to fill you in later. Stark and Banner are in the lab, trying to pretend the whole thing never happened. Thor's in Asgard. You and I are here. And Fury's in Europe."
"I thought Fury was dead."
"We all did, for a while. Hill helped him fake his death. She's working for Stark Industries now"
"I don't know whether to feel sorry for her or for Stark."
"Both."
He laughs. "Did Cap's advanced age catch up with him? Who's in the nursing home?"
Nat leans forward, her eyes locked on his. "Peggy Carter."
His eyebrows shoot up. "Founder of S.H.I.E.L.D., Peggy Carter?"
She nods. "Founder of S.H.I.E.L.D., former girlfriend of Captain America, Peggy Carter. There was an assassination attempt two days ago. Steve is pretty upset."
"So he's appointed himself her security detail?"
"They're moving her to a more secure location later today. Until then, he's personally providing round-the-clock protection."
"What's he going to do after she's moved?"
"Remember the winter soldier? Russian assassin, shot me when he was trying to take out that engineer?"
The look he sends her shows that he hasn't forgotten.
"Turns out he's actually Bucky Barnes, boyhood friend of Captain America. Sounds like the Russians were trying to build their own super soldiers – ones they could control. He tried to kill Steve, and we think Steve managed to break his programming enough that he remembers something about who he is."
"So Cap's going to wait by his 1945 girlfriend's bed until she's safe, then go looking for his friend who died 70 years ago?"
"Uh huh."
Clint picks up his cup, takes a sip. "Well", he says, "At least I didn't miss much."