Clint's POV

Clint sat in the medical room. If Couslon had not been sitting there he would likely have tried to escape. Doctors made him nervous and ready to defend himself.

The doctor came back in. Thomas was his name. He was an older man with black greying hair and grey eyes.

The man had slow movements as if nearing a skittish animal. Gentle hands probed at the wound when he didn't lash out.

The man said in a soft tone," It was through and through. No permanent damage done to the leg. He should be fine in a few weeks."

Coulson said calmly," Stitch him up. The director wants to speak to him."

Director? Did he want to know? He was lost in his thoughts. So much so that he didn't notice as the doctor stitched his leg.

Footsteps drew his attention. Cold grey eyes watched an african American make walked in. He was wearing a long black trench coat. A single cold blue eye watched him.

Coulson said standing," Director this is Clint Barton better known as Hawkeye. Barton this is Nick Fury the director of SHIELD."

Fury huh? Only one eye. There had to be a story behind that. It was hard to get a read on the man. Reminded him of the Monk.

Clint shuddered at the thought. Just what he needed a second Monk. That man was a pain in his ass in Medusa. Now it would be a pain in his ass here in SHIELD.

Still he said," You remind me of an old friend of mine. Well sort of a friend. You a hard ass too?"

There wasn't even a twitch of the facial muscles. Yep this guy was a hard ass. For a long moment they stared at each other.

Then Fury said," He can stay. Indefinite probation. Until he proves himself."

With that he was gone. The hell?

He asked curious," Is he always like that?"

Instead of Couslon it was the doctor who answered," Hard ass yes. He doesn't usually visit new assets. You are an interesting one Barton. Try not to end up back here."

Even if he was hurt he wouldn't end up here. The only time he ended up in medical was for life threatening injuries. Which even for their dangerous work it didn't happen often.

Coulson looked at him. He must have been trying to say something to him. Damn his hearing aids must be messing up again. Couslon turned his head to the side in a curious manner.

Clint asked trying very hard not to bare his teeth," What?"

"How long have you been deaf?"

That drew the doctor's attention as well. Now he did bare his teeth. His loss of hearing was a weakness. SHIELD wouldn't someone with such a heavy weakness.

Couslon said after a moment," Hearing aids. How well do they work?"

He snarled," Well enough."

Couslon said leaning forward," No. I want the truth. Barton if you want to be an asset we need you in top form. Otherwise you will end up dead. And that won't be of use to anyone."

Clint asked coldly," Why do you care?"

Couslon looked exasperated as he replied," Because we take care of our assets. This isn't like being a hired assassin. We won't throw you out because of a failed job. Or if you get put in the hospital. You get paid regardless and we will help you through recovery."

His shoulders slumped as he said," Seventy percent. My hearing aids have been on the fritz."

The doctor made a note on his clipboard. After a moment the doctor said," Two weeks before you start training. You need to let that leg heal. Otherwise he's good to go. I'll get the research team on the hearing aids."

Couslon helped him up to his feet and led him down the hallways. It took little prompting for him to leave medical. He hated the area more than anything else.

He listened silently as Coulson showed him around. Many of the agents they passed gave them astounded looks. They reminded Clint a lot like fish out of water. Another reminder of a time he would do anything to put behind him.

SHIELD thought they knew everything about him. In truth they barely knew anything at all. They thought Hawkeye was the killer inside him. In truth Hawkeye was a byproduct of another time. A time where he was only known by his callsign. Delta.

Couslon's POV

If you have been a SHIELD agent long enough you learn to spot the signs. Eyes darting every where. Taking in everyone that walks by. Never leaving ones back to a door or window. Some would just chalk this up to a person being paranoid. Not him.

While he wasn't a psychiatrist he knew the signs. Had seen it many times in his own agents. Post traumatic stress disorder. That would certainly make things more complicated. The psych evaluation would likely prove it. Would Fury keep him knowing that?

It wasn't like SHIELD hadn't taken those in with it. In fact many of their best agents were former soldiers. Yet Clint didn't have a record for the military. They had checked. So either he went by another name or PTSD came from somewhere else. His money was on military.

He inquired with cautious curiosity," When were you in the military?"

Cold grey eyes met his hazel ones as he shot back," What makes you think I was in the military?"

So no trust gained. Not that he was surprised. It would take time for Barton to trust anyone. The boy had been on his own for so long he didn't know how to trust yet. Phil was determined to earn it.

Before he could answer Maria Hill a level 4 agent came up to him. She held out a file to him only glancing at Barton. There wasn't any surprise in her gaze. No doubt it had already gotten around that Hawkeye was on base.

He took the file with a polite nod. Talking with Hill gave him a headache most days. She was very straight this is how it had to be done. Leaving now room for improvise. Maybe it would get better with time.

Looking at the file he recognized it. It was more information on the communication that they had been monitoring. So far it had said the same thing. It was in a code he didn't recognize. None of their code breakers had been able to make heads or tails of it.

Barton said sounding impressed," That's a Medusan code."

Medusan? What in the God's name was a Medusan code?

Sensing the question Barton held out his hand. Obviously wanting the file. The file was for level three's and higher. If Fury knew that he had read it. The one eyed man would kill him.

Barton crossed his arms and asked," I can't tell you which code or how to decrypt it if I can't see it. Every code has a different symbol given when they are sent out. Without it and my knowledge you will never break it."

There was more to this than what Barton was saying. He knew a code. Recognized it with only the barest glance at it. He would have to get Fury's permission to allow the young man to see it. He pulled out his phone and dialed Fury's number.

The man answered on the first ring," This had better be important."

Phil said looking at the trainee," That code you have me working on. A certain new trainee knows it."

A grumble came over the line. No doubt Fury hated it. Honestly he didn't want to trust Barton with it. If they didn't though they could lose valuable intel. Possibly save the world intel.

Finally Fury said," Give it to him but you supervise everything he does with the intel. Report anything of interest."

Then the line clicked. Fury as usual hung up on him. This was something he was used to. Nick wasn't one for useless pleasantries.

He turned back to Barton who was watching with an expectant look. Phil said," Come with me."

They went down the hallway and down a set of stairs. It took them a few minutes to reach a little used classroom. They took their seats in the little used chairs. Like the rest of the room it was covered in dust.

Phil handed the file over to the boy. When the other took it he said," You will be able to read this when I'm here. Not alone however."

The other didn't seem surprised by his statement. Instead he opened the file a frown marred his face.

Clint's POV

Clint had been expecting a basic Medusan code. Someone asking for work. Or asking for a help on a job. There were several Medusan codes that were used in the world. Most were easy to break. If SHIELD couldn't break it then it was one of the few interict codes.

Looking it over he frowned. The code felt familiar. More familiar than any of the others he had come across. Looking it over he knew there were a few things he needed to break the code.

He said," I need some paper and a pen. I also need the exact dates of when these codes went out. A map with latitude and longitude and some string and pins as well."

While Coulson went to get his required items he scanned the folder. The code wasn't just familiar it was one of the ones he created. If he was correct it was the revolving code.

A revolving code changed with every day. They could send out the same message with a different meaning depending on the day. Slightest change to the code could have a big impact. It was a time consuming code to break. One that required a map with latitude and longitude.

When Couslon came back with the items he got to work. There were only a few people that knew this code. He hoped he was wrong but deep inside he knew he wasn't. The first line of the code broke in a familiarity of before.

Clint's heart almost stopped at the familiar callsigns. Almanac. Gordon Webb's callsign. His adoptive brother. It read.

Almanac to Delta. Come in Delta.

Then there was a series of numbers. It gave the location of where the transmission was sent. With a practiced hand he found the numbers on the map and marked the area. It was the jungles of Brazil. Difficult to pinpoint exact locations. Though like in Tam Quan there was a few bases out there that Gordon could hide in

Clint continued with each of the sets of codes. Right down their words and numbers. The pattern was simple. Every day at 10 in the morning Gordon would put out a distress signal with his current coordinates. Then he would continue North- North East. It seemed he could treck ten miles give or take in a day. Given that it was sense forests he wasn't surprised.

Looking up he saw that it was two in the afternoon now. They had missed that days signal. Worry filled him. Why use such a little known code? Unless he was being hunted. Then that left the question hunted by who?