A/N thanks for your reviews and support everyone. This is the final chapter of this fic. I will see everyone for the sequel Fades into Darkness I hope!
Natasha's POV
Somethings never seemed to change with the passage of time. One thing she thought would survive the passage of time was her friendship with the Hawk. They had known each other for years both in and out of SHIELD.
Everything had changed almost a year ago, however. Loki an Asgardian had come to Earth in an attempt to take their planet over. Clint had been one of the first to fall to the God. Using that damned staff Loki had pushed Clint to the back of his own mind and brought forth a terrifying version of Delta.
The Delta she had know would not strike out against allies unless they were traitors. The one she fought was as if all that made him human were stripped away. She knew that the Hawk was fighting in there trying to regain control from Loki. If he wasnt Fury and herself would have died in their fights against him.
After the Battle of New York Clint was forced to have more sessions with Panov. He was practically on house arrest by order of the council for six months. Most of his time was spent at his apartment away from everyone.
The newly dubbed Avengers team was still on rocky grounds with each other. Tony had Clint had a working relationship before. With the younger man hiding away it was becoming strained.
For his part, Tony was battling his demons. The Battle of New York affected them all differently. Tony had gone through the wormhole expecting to die. Surviving had not been in his game plan that day yet there he was.
She could see the haunted look hidden behind sarcasm and humor. He was better at hiding it than Clint but it was still there. She knew that he like Clint blamed himself for Coulson's death. Coulson's death was the one thing they all agreed on it. If they had been able to come together faster then he would still be alive.
Dwelling on death would not help anyone though. It would only cost more lives while they tried to get their acts together. They had to accept what was in the past and push forward. Something that was easier said than done.
Natasha was able to work with most of the team without a problem. It was her job to keep them in line. There were times she hated it but she understood why. The group had all been given a second chance at one point. Whether it was a chance at a new life or just a life in general they all had taken it. Strings attached and all.
Natasha had to admit she was surprised when Clint showed up at the Tower after six months. There was still a lingering haunted look in his eyes but he was there. She could keep an eye on him just as she promised Coulson before he died.
To her surprise and hurt Clint continued to keep mostly to himself. The once bright blue eyes had dulled back to the grey they had been before SHIELD. While Clint was in control it was a near thing. It wouldn't take much to send him spiraling.
Every member of the team tried to get through to him. They wanted Clint to feel like he could talk to them. Their efforts were rewarded with half-smiles and false humor.
Nine months after the Battle of New York Clint was sent on his first mission with Sitwell as his handler. It went as well as could be expected. The two men were friends in a sense but they didnt have the teamwork that Clint and Coulson had. And it showed. Still, the mission was a success and he was returned to the Tower without injury.
In the last three months since he first returned to active duty things hadn't changed for the better. If anything Clint seemed more closed off than ever. The only one he willingly spent time with was his dog Lucky.
This particular day she had woke up with her instincts screaming at her. Something was going to happen and it wasnt a good something.
Her fears proved to be justified when Tony announced, "Fury wants us to meet him at the helicarrier. All of us are required to be there. Said he had something to show us."
She frowned as his hands shook ever so slightly as he held a cup of coffee. Memories of the attack were likely playing through his mind again. Or nightmares plague Tony the night before. Both were as likely as the other.
Clint was the first to head out of the room at the declaration. He was already changed for the day. Natasha doubted he slept the night before. Dark bags were under his eyes spoke of not sleeping in a few days.
She wasnt far behind in leaving. No one really had anything to say. It had been quiet for the last few weeks. The only thing that was happening was the hunt for Carlos the Jackal in Europe. SHIELD wasnt even apart of that hunt much less the Avengers. Still, a new kill was being talked about almost weekly now. She suspected it wouldn't be long before Clint or her were asked to take the case.
Within the hour they were on the helicarrier following Fury. Panov was at Clint's side talking to him in low tones just behind Fury. The doctor had met them on the flight deck and had immediately glued himself to Clint's side. Not that the archer seemed to mind any.
She sighed. Panov didnt just do his job when it came to his patients. He went above and beyond to help them with whatever problem they had. With Clint though he had something that couldn't be fixed so easily.
She wasnt stupid. When it came to her partner she saw the signs. Clint had a crush on Coulson before his death. Right now he was suffering from a broken heart. Something only time could fix if it could be fixed at all.
Clint suddenly stopping pulled her from her thoughts. His shoulders were tense and his hands clenched and unclenched at his sides. Panov too had paused his jaw becoming unhinged as he stared at something she couldn't see.
Before she could react he made a broken sound in the back of his throat. In a flash, he had turned around and taken off the way they had come. Without Clint in the way she could see why he reacted the way he had.
Coulson stood in the way hallway with a shocked look on his face and a file barely held within his loose grip. His eyes weren't looking at them instead of following the direction that Clint had run off in. He didnt look a bit worse for wear for having made them believe that he was dead for a year.
Tony was the next to react. The inventor went up to Fury and without hesitation or a word punched the man right across the jaw. For his part, the director barely staggered from the force of the punch.
Tony snarled, "You didnt think to inform us that he was alive you manipulative bastard. What did you think you were doing hiding that from us?"
Fury returned calmly, "My job Stark. We didnt know if the procedure would work in the beginning. Then it was too dangerous to bring him back into the fold until now. Why do you think I brought all of you here now?"
"You bastard," continued Tony as she moved to stand by him, "Do you know what you did to Hawkeye with that? Why didnt you try to warn him first? Hawk... he wasnt in the right state to see Agent again."
Fury flinched ever so slightly. Not many people in SHIELD or The Avengers knew this but Fury had a soft spot for Clint. He let the younger man get away with a lot more than anyone else could.
A single ice blue eyes moved to over her shoulder before he sighed, "There was no other way. I had to catch Coulson off guard since he didnt want to disrupt the group."
That had all eyes on Coulson. Both men had a lot of explaining to do. For now, she was willing to hear them out. Then she would find Clint.
Clint's POV
Rushing through the halls as if hellhounds were on his heels was probably not his best way to escape SHIELD. Agents made room immediately recognizing him for good or for ill. Using it to his advantage he made it to his room in record time.
Once there he pushed open the vent so that he could his go-bag. Even if he hadn't needed one in SHIELD he kept his bag stocked and ready to go at a moment's notice. It held everything he would need to get away from SHIELD without ever needing to look back.
Pulling out a change of clothes he put on the nondescript tshirt and pants. They would allow him to blend in with the city better. SHIELD wouldn't be able to follow him with the new identity. He had paid handsomely for it to ensure such.
Once he left the helicarrier he would have to stop by his apartment. There was no way he would leave Lucky behind. The puppy had been his constant companion and a sense of comfort since New York. A shudder went through him. He would not allow his mind to go there. It wouldn't do him any good.
Where would he go through? Fury had contacts everywhere. As did Coulson if they knew he was still alive. That hurt in ways he thought he had hardened himself to long ago.
"If you ever need a place to go. Or a purpose beyond SHIELD come to Treadstone 71 in New York," his memory supplied from his last phone call with Gordon.
Treadstone 71 huh? He knew what they were doing and what they were preparing for. They wanted to make a killer equal to that of the Jackal in reputation draw him out. For that, they would need someone of considerable skill. It was why Gordon had come to him. Maybe that was the way to go. Finally, take Conklin up on his offer.
Yes, that was his plan for now. He would have to make it to New York and ditch the SHIELD tail that would no doubt try to follow him. A game of chase it was.
Coulson's POV
Three months that was how long Clint had been gone. Three months since the disaster meeting with the Avengers and his reassignment to be their handler. In that time he realized just how broken they had been both by his death and by the battle that followed.
Natasha no longer would look him in the eyes. When they were forced to interact she cold and standoffish. It was worse than when they first met. At least then he had Clint giving him some credibility.
Banner was aloof but not openly hostile towards him. If anything he seemed the most clinical of the group. He watched Phil to see what he would do or say but never willingly spoke with him.
Morris Panov had been a surprise in his not quite hostile but not friendly attitude. The doctor did not agree with his decision to hide his living status. He lectured Phil on what that would do to certain members of the team's psyche. Specifically one Clint Barton. It had not surprised the doctor to learn he had disappeared. There was a worry as if he knew something that they didnt.
Steve was the most open of the group. He tried to include Phil in things so that he wasn't as lonely at the Tower. There was only so much that he could do considering the owner of the Tower's temper.
Tony was the one who hurt the most besides Clint. Before the battle, he had been calling Phil, Coulson. That was a drastic improvement of the curt Agent that he had been returned to. Like most of the others, Tony wouldn't even look at him.
Unlike the others, the inventor was actively searching for Clint. He didn't realize how much the man cared about the archer. Not that he had any more luck than Fury or Natasha was having currently.
No one had seen hide or tail of Clint since he escaped the helicarrier. The archer had taken everything he learned and his natural talents and disappeared. They only knew that he returned briefly to his apartment because of Lucky wasnt there. Not that Phil expected him to leave the dog. He loved the dog and when he loved, he loved deeply.
Phil had hoped Clint would return if they just gave him time. Now it looked like that wasnt the case. They might have to chase him down and convince him to return.
Currently, Phil was sitting at the kitchen table in the Tower. Papers were strewn out over it as he tried to make sense of Carlos the Jackel. Many tried and failed to capture this killer for hire. Interpol finally had given in and asked SHIELD for help. In turn, Nick had turned to Phil who had the most experience in trapping killers for hire.
Phil knew by looking at the file it would not be an easy case. The Jackal was a killer who mastered the art of camouflage. Only Clint had seen him and lived. Though just barely.
There was a cough drawing his attention away from his papers. Natasha stood in the doorway. She was frowning at the file a few of the pages upturned so she could read them.
"A new Jackal kill?" He queried.
She shook her head and handed him the file. It was only then that he noticed how pale she was. What could possibly be wrong? If it wasn't the Jackal then it wasn't a priority.
At least that's what he thought until he read about the kills. A new killer had appeared in China. Already they were calling him a chameleon equal to the Jackal. A man that able to blend in with any surroundings. No description only a name. Jason Bourne.