CHAPTER 3 - War Ain't S.H.I.E.L.D
Clint had no idea where they were. No one said anything about anything. And traveling in 1943 was so much more different than in his time. There were fields were houses were. Towns where cities should be. He was lost. Not that it seemed to matter much. Everyone seemed a little lost. Likely, most of these men hadn't traveled outside of the US. Never mind to wherever they currently where.
"Looks like we're camping under the stars again boys," Dugan announced suddenly. Clint perked up, surprised. Really? He hadn't expected that. He'd expected that they'd make it to at least one of the various camps spread about the area. Well, serves him right for assuming. Apparently there weren't as many as he had expected. But even after Dugan called that out, they still kept walking. Where was the camping point?
"Again? When we gonna get any action?" Zach muttered, a little sick of all the walking. There were a few sounds of protest and agreement that spread around the area. None of them had seriously thought that war seemed to be more walking than anything. "We need a battle soon."
"You seriously complaining that we haven't seen battle yet? I for one am thankful for that," Cole grumbled. A few people let out a 'here, here' to the man's statement. Clint snorted. For men who had seemed so excited to fight before, a lot of them seemed to have changed their minds. Not that Clint blamed them. He didn't wanna see battle either but no war was won without a battle or two.
"Without a battle, the war can't be won," the archer pointed out. The others hummed their own agreements. "But, that's not saying I'm wanting one this soon."
"Ah, fuck off Barton," Zach snorted. Clint rolled his eyes with a smile even as the other man came over and attempted to elbow him. He jumped out of the way accidentally bumping into Bucky as he did so. The Sergeant stumbled half a step before Clint was able to right both of them.
"Guys, can we just not," Danny muttered. "I just wanna lay down for a bit and rest, ain't cool to be still walking."
"Personally, I just wanna make sure where we camp is well protected," Mike retorted before they all watched as suddenly the group in front of them seemingly vanished. The group paused before they realized the group in front of them had just went down into something. Moving forward a bit more, Clint noticed it was a trench. Well, that made more sense. "Okay. That's protected."
"Alright boys, head down in and find a spot," Bucky ordered, waiting for everyone to head down. Dugan and Clint also stayed behind, making sure everyone else was protected in case they were snuck up upon. Once in the trench, Clint looked around. It was larger than he had expected it to be. While the entire regiment couldn't fit in this one trench, at least five or more platoons could comfortably hang out together. Smiling, Clint followed his group through the trench, trying to find a place to rest. Ironically enough, this trench was already full. So Bucky led them out of it and into another one nearby. That one had enough room for them, but not all that comfortably. "Okay, we can take here or keep looking."
"Here," Jason stated.
"Keep looking," Aaron snapped. He had never liked sleeping uncomfortable. In fact, most of the time that the group had been together, Aaron was typically the first one to complain about something. If he wasn't complaining, he was arguing or fighting someone, in their platoon or not. Clint had had to break him out of a few fights already and the archer was tempted to just let him get his ass handed to him next time it happened.
"I think keep looking. There has to be another place," Matt added. "Don't want us all trapped together if something happens."
"I was gonna choose stay, but Matt has a good point. We should keep going," Eric said.
"Keep looking," Peter agreed. Hugh, who hardly spoke, nodded his head in agreement as well.
"Yeah, let's go," Evans called. Bucky looked to the remaining group. Slowly, everyone began to agree. Then the Sergeant stopped at Dugan and Clint.
"Not like it matters much, but lets go," Dugan grumbled. Clint huffed but nodded. Sadly, Jason had been the only one to state that they should stay but it was clear that after Matt pointed out their issue, he had changed his mind. Agreeing himself, Bucky led them out of the trench and off to find another one. Clint was the one who found this one. Only two other platoons where in this one.
"Good thing we moved," Oscar chuckled before spotting a nice spot to lay down. Slowly, everyone else followed in his footsteps until it was just Bucky and Clint still standing.
"You gonna find a spot?" Bucky questioned as the others settled and turned to look at them. Clint shook his head no.
"Gonna be on the look out. Can't trust that we'll hear from the other trenches if we get attacked. At least someone should be up and watching," the archer replied. Bucky frowned and went to speak but Clint just shook his head no again. "You need a clear head. Rest."
"If you're sure," the Sergeant grumbled but headed off to settle himself. Apparently one of the other platoons agreed with Clint cause after everyone started to sleep, another man got up and looked out over the edge. Clint nodded and smiled at the man who simply nodded and smiled back. The two of them stayed up for nearly two hours before someone from another platoon came over to relieve one of them. Clint made sure it was the other guy. The archer knew he could last a good long while without sleep.
The night ended up getting hindered an hour or so later by a cloud of fog rolling in. Noticing it, the other watcher gave Clint a thankful nod. With the fog there wasn't a high likely hood of getting an enemy warning out in time. It was on the verge of Clint's ability to stay awake when there was a call echoing around the area. The enemy had found them. Cussing, Clint spun and began waking the others in the trench. The other spotter turned and started to do the same.
"Whaz goin on?" Dugan slurred when Clint woke him. Hearing the noise, Clint clamped a hand over the Corporal's mouth. That woke the man up faster. Clint held a finger to his lips. Who knew how far away the enemy was. Keeping silent was their best option at the moment. Slowly, everyone woke up and prepared themselves for battle. Muttering the protection spell quickly under his breath, Clint shifted himself to look back out across the trench, ignoring the dizziness that almost had him drop. Bucky was heading down the trench, making sure everyone was awake and prepared to fight. A minute later, just as Bucky was returning, Clint spotted something.
"GET DOWN!" Clint screamed as a grenade got lobbed toward the trench they had found themselves in. The group ducked and covered themselves as dirt and rocks rained down on them seconds later. Bucky looked up at Clint with a surprised look that quickly turned curious. Clint gritted his teeth, really not wanting wanting to get into how good his eyesight was at the moment. They needed to concentrate on the battle that was rapidly coming too them. So, instead, he jumped up to look over the lip and start shooting through the dust and fog, distantly noticing some shapes of what had to be people. He could only pray that they were enemies and not some of his guys. Bucky soon jumped up a bit beside him but didn't look over the lip.
"Ain't worried about killin' someone who shouldn't be killed?" the Sergeant whispered finally curious after the archer had already killed a bunch of guys. Then again, they hadn't honestly found themselves alone enough to talk about future stuff and this was the first actual battle they had gotten into since arriving. Clint huffed, having already mentally prepared himself for the likely possibility that he wasn't on his timeline. If he was on his timeline, even if he never told Bucky and Steve what was coming to them here, he was going to make them understand that he was pissed. They could have given him some sort of hint, like he was. Not that he wanted too.
"Ya want me to sit down and do shit?" Clint countered, his eyes twitching to look at Bucky before focusing out onto the field. Bucky snorted before turning and shooting out of the trench as well. As they shot, the others around them began getting up and following their example. Problem was, not many of them could see through the cloud of smoke, fog and flying dirt to hit the correct people like Clint and Bucky could. They just shot willy nilly. "This is ridiculous. We need to do something to change the damn tide here."
"Like what? Go running out into no man's land?" one of the soldiers nearby snapped. It was the man who had first gotten on duty with the archer. Bucky turned to him, upset but then turned back and kept firing. "Go ahead, go get yourself killed."
"I just might," the archer growled, looking briefly to figure out the best way to jump to the next trench. With his protection spell active... And maybe using Izril, Clint could make it. That'd certainly change the tide of this battle... But how long was this supposed to have happened? How many enemy men do they kill? Before he could even attempt anything, Bucky grabbed him by the shoulder and dragged him down, stepping deeper into the trench.
"Don't you fucking dare," the Sergeant hissed. Clint huffed and looked back out. If he could save everyone here, he was gonna do it. History be damned.
"I can do it," he argued, turning to look at Bucky again. Bucky shook his head, determined to keep another blonde idiot safe.
"We need ya here, not getting yourself killed," Bucky pointed out. Clint snarled. He was not going to be told what to do. Bucky wasn't his handler and while the man was a Sergeant, Clint was technically a Second Lieutenant in the future but he couldn't say that now.
"I can do it, Buck," Clint pressed. Bucky pushed Clint harshly against the wall of the trench.
"You ain't doin' it," he ordered. Clint growled, moving to push Bucky off of him. Suddenly, one of the younger guys (that Clint had shared sentry duty with) from another other unit shifted past the duo and stupidly perked up too high. And before either man could pull him back down a bullet ripped through his head and both Clint and Bucky got splattered with the man's skull and brain tissues. Bucky blanched as Clint stilled. It was here that Clint was struck as to what was happening around him. He was seriously in a fucking war. This wasn't anything like his missions for S.H.I.E.L.D, or even the missions with the Avengers. Yes, Clint had seen people die in S.H.I.E.L.D missions, but they were missions. One battle and then they'd head back to base, not having to worry about a sneak attack. Things were different here. There wasn't going to be a safe place or a return home waiting for him. Things were much worse than Steve or Bucky had ever let on. How were they not fucking insane?
"Get over here!" Zach shouted to them. Bucky and Clint nodded, moving closer to the larger man. Both of them tried to wipe everything off their heads and faces. Zach took a look at them before nodding his head and turning back. "How the hell we gonna get out of this?"
"No idea," Bucky called back. The trio shifted down the trench, trying to find out if Captain Banks was anywhere nearby. As they went, Clint stopped, staring at one of the bodies who had dropped. It was Mike. The kid moaned, looking up to Bucky and Clint. The archer growled, shifting down to look and see what happened. Mike had gotten a decent sized hit to his right shoulder. A quick check of his back had Clint note that it wasn't a through and through. The archer cussed. Apparently his protection spell didn't work like it was supposed to. This sight was at least something he was slightly used to. S.H.I.E.L.D missions didn't always go a hundred percent well and there had been many times that Clint had to help an injured comrade. But seeing it here now, had a different sort of feeling that passed through him. Maybe it was simply because Clint knew he had casted the spell that didn't work.
"Jesus," he whispered, trying to shake the idea of being in a war away. Mike let out another small moan as Clint glanced around the area trying to see if there was anything he could push against Mike in order to stop the flow of blood. He was used to this shit. But now he wondered if he should yet again reinforce the protection spell. Damn magic. Did he somehow cast the spell wrong? Bucky turned back and saw what Clint saw. He gritted his teeth.
"Barton, we gotta move," Bucky softly informed. Clint winced before looking and spotting a guy nearby that clearly looked like he was freaking the fuck out. The archer grabbed the guy and shoved him near Mike.
"Put pressure on this. We'll send some medics to help when we find them," Clint ordered. The guy nodded, more than willing to help Mike if it meant he didn't have to get up and shoot. Pleased that Mike was going to be cared for until a medic came by, Clint got up and headed after Bucky when the Sergeant moved away. "Where the hell is Captain Banks?"
"Dead," a strange voice cried back. Clint and Bucky stilled. It was their first battle. How had the idiot gotten himself killed?
"Think the highest rank we got nearby is a Sergeant," someone else added. Clint frowned, glancing to Bucky who had now gone a bit paler than before.
"Bullshit," the archer snapped. There had to be a Lieutenant somewhere. Or two. "There has to be someone else."
"Not here there ain't," Cole stated in a harsh tone as he came up behind them. Evans, Peter and Danny were behind him. Where was Eric, Aaron, Zach, and Oscar? Hell, where the fuck was Dugan? Bucky huffed, looked around the trench. While the trench was rather large it was possible that Bucky and a few others were the highest rank as the others could be elsewhere in the trenches. But damn it sucked.
"Sergeant Barnes, what are we doin'?" Danny demanded. Bucky frowned, glancing to Clint who just shrugged. He knew the 107th had to have survived here but he never knew how. No one had really gone into detail about it. And Clint also had no idea who made it through. God, what about Mike? Will he live through this first fucking battle?
"Alright! Lets move out!" Bucky informed, pointing to the next trench angled away from them. The troops winced but got ready to follow Bucky's lead. As they ran, Clint and Bucky shot any moving thing they could as the troops ran to safety, helping those injured. It didn't take long before a few other men began following their example. All the remaining living troops, and a good chunk of injured men, made it to the next trench. Here there were a few medics willing to check over the injured. It was also here that Bucky, Clint and now the returned Dugan heard that Mike was going to have to be sent home. The damage to his shoulder was too bad to stay fighting. What none of them knew was Mike was never destined to make it home. He would die of infection in route to the transport.
The next two battles found that Bucky wasn't always leading the group on his own but there were many times that he was left in charge as the Lieutenants were busy with someone else. And if it wasn't Bucky, Dugan and Clint easily stepped up. Clint was honestly surprised that Bucky never raised in rank considering all he did for the 107th. It was kinda unfair really. But, then again, with all the hazing that Clint had seen with others gaining the attention from the higher ups, Clint was kinda glad that Bucky didn't.
Course, the more battles they were involved in, the more people noticed the competency of Bucky, Dugan and Clint. It wasn't all that long before people started to petition taking the spot that Mike had left open. But with the added attention from everyone Clint couldn't help but wonder why more people didn't know about him in the future? Though, it could be that his name was mentioned in the future of a completely different future than he came from. He could only hope that wasn't the case. He wanted to return to his family. His friends. If this was a different future, he might not have those things.
"LET'S MOVE OUT!" someone shouted after spending only one night at the newest camp. Didn't sound like any Captain they had meet before but everyone in the 107th listened. This guy also didn't tell anyone anything else. So, they were moving without knowing where to.
"Jesus, where we going now?" Aaron complained. "This guy gonna tell us anything?"
"They technically don't have to tell us shit. Banks and Hutcherson had been nice enough to do it for us," Clint informed with a deep sense of foreboding. Bucky huffed angrily. Eric simply grabbed a bunch of their things and headed off. Zach was right behind him. Rolling his eyes, Clint headed out too with Bucky, Dugan and Aaron following next. Cole had gotten injured in their last battle and was stuck in the medical tent at this camp. He wasn't well enough to follow them but also not hurt enough to have been sent home. Evans, Peter and Danny were quick to follow the group but Oscar took a moment to get ready. He had been stupid enough to not fully pack back up after they stopped for the night.
"Still don't mean this guy's not an asshole," Dugan snipped. Everyone hummed in agreement.
The next camp they got to was overwhelmed with people. There was hardly room for any of the regiments that were stopped. As officers, Bucky and Dugan were given cots to rest on for their designated tent but the rest of them had to sleep on the ground.
"This is bullshit," Aaron whined as he tried to get comfortable, moving this way and that. The others tried to ignore him. He'd been going on it for a good long while and they were getting a bit sick of the complaining. Hell, Danny had nearly taken the guy out a few nights ago. "Why the fuck would we get sent here if there weren't enough room?"
"Dude, shut up!" someone from a nearby tent shouted. Aaron growled, sitting up.
"Who the fuck said that?" he demanded. Clint then sat up. He was done with this bullshit. There was no way he'd let Aaron continue on like this. Bucky sat up as well, looking to Clint in confusion. He really didn't want to see the archer fight with one of the other men.
"Just stop man. We're all tired. Nearly all of us are sleepin' on the ground. Just make the best of it and fucking try to sleep," the archer snarled. Aaron hissed at him, moving closer.
"Then let me have your area. Must be nice and comfy over there," the man snapped. Clint rolled his eyes but got up to show that the archer had been laying on some very sharp rocks that clearly was digging harshly into his back. Aaron blanched. Even the others sat up to look at the sight when they noticed Aaron's reaction. Bucky swung his feet off his cot, staring down at the spot in surprise.
"Jesus Barton," Dugan muttered. Clint shrugged, uncaring.
"You want my space, go ahead and take it," Clint dared, ignoring Dugan. Aaron looked up at him in fear. Would Clint force him to take the spot? Aaron mentally swore he'd never complain about sleeping arrangements again if Barton thought he could sleep on those rocks just fine.
"Don't think anyone wants your damn spot Barton. How the fuck can you sleep on that?" Oscar wondered.
"I've slept on worse," the archer mumbled, glancing over to the man. While Clint had never seriously wanted to talk about it, he had mentioned more of his history than he meant too. In return, they had done the same thing to him. Only Bucky really understood the impact of what Clint was saying to all of them.
"How the fuck have you slept on worse than that?" Zach questioned, shaking his head. Clint sighed, wondering what exactly he should say to that.
"Dude, and I thought I had a shitty childhood. If sharp rocks ain't the worst you've slept on-" Danny started to say when Clint rolled his eyes, choice made. He could tell them a story, just which one? Bed of nails? Uneven floor boards that could pinch him every time he moved? An actual bed of springs with not cover? The bathtub that was like three sizes too small? No, he had a good one.
"Was forced onto some burning coals once. Try sleeping on that," Clint snipped. While he had been forced to 'sleep' on burning coals, it had been during a torture session, not some a-hole parent tossing him into the fireplace to sleep. Getting a bit lost in memory and anger, the archer headed toward the front of the tent. "Fuck this. I'm gonna head somewhere else."
"Clint," Bucky called but the archer ignored him. He wasn't gonna lay there and deal with any of this. Hell, he needed to calm down. No... What he needed was to fucking shoot. Growling, Clint headed off and out of camp, intent on finding somewhere nice and private. It took maybe five minutes before he found a space. He was near enough to camp to hear the warning calls and signs of enemy attacks while also putting himself out of view from the sentries. Sighing, Clint called upon Izril. Even just holding the bow felt like such a relief. But it wasn't enough.
"God damn it," the archer growled to himself before raising it and whispering the spell Loki had taught him. The arrow appeared and before the image could settle, Clint released it into a nearby tree. A smaller range than Clint really cared for but if he went somewhere else, he risked the idea of being spotted by either side of this war. He was maybe fifteen arrows deep when he heard the gasp of surprise. Clint spun, aiming the bow dead at Bucky of all people. Behind him stood Dugan, Evans, Zach, Eric and Peter. "Fuck."
"Barton?" Dugan wondered, staring at the sight before him. Clint lowered his bow with a deep sigh. This was seriously fucking messed up. Could he maybe play this off as a group dream or something? Maybe that he stole the bow off of someone else in camp? "What the fuck is this?"
Clint ended up not saying any thing. Just looked back at the tree completely filled with arrows. There was a choked noise from someone in the group. Slowly, Clint looked back, his eyes pained. It was clear that Clint had no quiver and there was no pile of arrows beside him. They also knew he hadn't left the tent with a bow. Eric headed off toward the tree with Peter right behind him. Dugan, Zach and Evans were frozen. Bucky stepped forward, looking down at the bow in curiosity. Clint took a step back. "Buck."
"Dude," Eric stated from down the range. Clint glanced over and noticed that Eric had taken one of the arrows down. He winced. Not only was it bad enough that they found him with the bow and magic arrows but, there was no way he could play it off that those arrows had been designed in this time period. He had based the arrows off of the Stark Tech ones he was typically used to use. He should have made them vanish as he shot. "What the fuck?"
"Clint," Bucky suddenly said from beside the archer. Clint jumped, shifting himself backwards a bit, afraid of what the Sergeant was going to do. Bucky didn't mind his magic in the future. Hell, he seemed to enjoy watching Clint train and practice. But that was the future when Bucky had already been exposed to a lot of unexplained or strange events/things. "What is this?"
"Nothing? You're all dreaming the same dream?" the archer tried, giving in to try and convince them of something else. Bucky's responding look showed that even if any of the others believed him, the Sergeant would not. Figured.
"Yeah... I don't dream of some dude with a fucking bow, shooting a tree without a god damn set of arrows," Zach finally snapped. Eric returned, holding an arrow. Beside him, Peter held a few more. Clint once again winced. He was totally fucked. There was no way to rightly explain this.
"This have anything to do with-" Bucky started, trailing off as he raised an eyebrow, knowing that the archer knew what he was talking about. Clint shook his head before the Sergeant could continue or hint at anything else that would be hard to explain.
"To do with what?" Evans questioned. Clint sighed and looked away. Finally he softly muttered the vanishing spell and then dropped Izril into the pocket dimension. The noise the group made had Clint nearly run for the damn hill. But the twitch of his muscles had Bucky's hand snapping out and grabbing him.
"Buck," Clint whined, his eyes snapping to the man in sadness. He just wanted to run away. Fuck staying here any longer. Fuck watching over Bucky and Dugan. They'd be fine without him. There was no way he'd be able to keep his presence here a secret if the 107th knew about his magic.
"You know magic?" Eric asked, breaking the spell of surprise that everyone had fallen under. Heads snapped to look at the man. It took a moment before Eric realized everyone was staring at him. "What? I grew up in Louisiana before moving to New York. Magic and voodoo and shit is pretty well known down there."
"Ever see anything like that?" Zach snipped, pointing to Clint as if the archer had suddenly turned into a demon. Clint winced. They were gonna kill him. His trip to the past ends here.
"Guys, why don't we let Barton explain what the fuck we're seeing," Dugan ordered making the area descend into silence. Clint focused on the ground. He wasn't gonna say shit. Bucky's grip on his arm tightened for a moment. Clint looked up to him and noticed that Bucky was giving him a sympathetic look.
"Okay... You guys can't let anyone else know about this," the archer demanded. Everyone nodded their heads even as Bucky let the archer go. "I... I do have magic. I don't know a lot of spells. Most of what you saw is what I can do."
"But you can do some more?" Peter inquired. Clint nodded. "Like what?"
"A... A protection spell."
"A what now?" Dugan repeated.
"A protection spell," Clint answered, looking up at everyone. "I... Every morning I've been casting a spell that will... Well, should protect all of us from harm."
"Didn't work well for Mike or Cole," Evans whispered. Clint nodded.
"Fuck off," Zach snapped, looking to Evans. "You know how close Mike got to dying? Another few inches down and the guy'd be dead."
"What about Cole?" Evans hissed.
"Cole got hit by some debris from a damn cannon that hit a tree a few feet from him," Eric pointed out. "If that other dude hadn't a bumped into Cole, then he'd have been right there."
"I'm trying my best here," Clint argued finally. He didn't want to actually think about what could have happened to the men if he hadn't been casting the spells. Would Mike and Cole have died? Did it change anything so that now Steve would never wake? Or, Loki won and had to hand over the Tesseract to Thanos? "I can't guarantee shit. Hell, these are some of the first battles I been in since learning the damn spell."
"You're doing fine," Bucky soothed, dropping a hand on the archer's stressed out shoulder. Both of them ignored the fact that Clint winced, hard. Sighing, the Sergeant looked to the others. "We're gonna keep this quiet."
"Like hell!" Zach and Evans cried. Bucky glared at them as Clint tried to shift away from him. Dugan stepped forward, almost as if making sides, so that he had was near Bucky and Clint. Eric moved and did the same thing. Peter also shifted himself closer. Zach and Evans just stared at them all.
"We're gonna keep this quiet. No one can know," the Sergeant pressed. "We're lucky enough as it is to find out."
"Lucky..." Clint mumbled mostly to himself in a scoffing way. This wasn't lucky. This was Clint being an idiot. Didn't matter what the hell he was doing, outside of a mission, Clint was always an idiot. Bucky's grip tightened a bit, his gaze flicking to Clint before focusing on Zach and Evans. Dugan crossed his arms over his chest, waiting.
"No one needs to know."
"Good on me," Dugan agreed with a nod and a soft smile to Clint. The archer winced. Shit... It hadn't even occurred to him that Dugan would be lasting after the war. The man was the most likely to spread the truth around. Bucky looked around at the others with a critical eye. Slowly, they all agreed. "Well. That's enough excitement for me. Let's head back and get some damn shut eye."
As Dugan led Zach, Evans, Peter and Eric back to their tent, Clint refused to move. And since Clint refused to move, so Bucky stayed. Once the others had vanished into the night, Bucky twisted himself to look straight at the archer, without releasing the archer. Clint looked away.
"You gonna be okay?" the Sergeant asked. Clint huffed. He was in a war that already happened, standing here with a man he knows in the future, allowing people to see his magic, hell, making a mark on those who could survive... How could any of this be okay for him?
"Not really. But, I don't go much choice now do I?" Clint retorted before walking off. Bucky shifted to walk at his side.
"We always have a choice." Clint stopped and turned to stare at Bucky.
"What choice do I have? I was sent back in time. Against my will. Sent to people who I know. Then sent off to a war that I know... Forget it," Clint growled, pausing at the end before shaking his head. Bucky grabbed his arm when the archer turned away once again. Clint froze.
"Clint, I'm not asking you to be okay with any of this. Hell, I'm not okay with what is going on around us. What I'm asking is if you can handle the others knowing about you? I can talk to them. Tell them to forget the whole thing happened," Bucky suggested. Clint snorted. There was no way that any of them would be willing to keep this secret. If he could protect their small platoon, why couldn't he protect everyone in the regiment. Or everyone on the American side? Clint wouldn't be able to handle that. Loki might have. But he couldn't.
"But it did happen, Buck. Nothing is gonna change that. I fucked up... Again. Story of my god damn life, but... God, what am I doing?" Clint bemoaned, curling his arms over his chest and wishing he could once again turn around and go shoot some more. Bucky just stood there, watching. "Who knows what I've changed. What I've messed up even more. I... I shouldn't have agreed to do any of this."
"Clint," Bucky started but Clint shook his head. There were no words that would make this situation any better. Clint could only kick himself for never studying the war (outside of Steve and Bucky) and for getting caught.
"Just, forget it," the archer mumbled before walking off again. Bucky sighed and slowly followed behind. Silently they headed back to their tent, catching up with the others on the outskirts of camp. At the tent, the group found that Danny and Oscar were still awake, waiting on them. Mean while, Aaron was pointedly sleeping on the mat that Eric had set for himself. Said man snarled but said nothing about it and instead just settled himself where Aaron had first been on. Clint headed back to his spot on the rocks but when he went to lay down, Peter pushed the archer over a bit. The movement made Clint frown.
"There's room over here," the man whispered. Clint gave a soft huff but shifted himself to where Peter pointed and settled in. Slowly, they all drifted off into a light sleep, thankful that no one tried to keep them awake by asking anything else about what had just happened.
"Jesus!" Zach shouted, dodging right into Clint's side in order to avoid rapid gunfire where he had first been standing. Clint shifted a bit more, giving the guy more room to move around in the battle. They hadn't found cover yet so they all pretty much stood back to back defending each other. But, that also meant they were nearly too close to be able to dodge things well. Then a cannon ball struck the ground right in front of Aaron. He cried out in shock.
"Fuck this!" the man informed before turning and rushing off. Bucky looked after him.
"AARON!" he screamed but Aaron disappeared into the surrounding area. "Shit!"
"Forget him! Fucking coward," Dugan snapped, shooting into the distance. Eric moved to cover Aaron's position a bit better. It was just five of them back to back now. Evans, Peter, Danny and Oscar were nearby, also set up in a similar situation.
"Move! We gotta find the rest of us," Clint ordered, too used to working with the Avengers and instructing the others after Steve had given them their main orders. Not that anyone tried to fight listening to Bucky, Dugan and Clint separately. Slowly, the five of them started moving, shifting Eric and Zach more toward the back, away from most of the gun fire while Bucky stayed toward the left, Dugan in the middle and Clint on the right. Noticing the others moving, Evans, Peter, Danny and Oscar took their lead and soon it was pretty much a straight like of Peter, Bucky, Dugan, Danny and Clint in the front with Eric, Zach, and Oscar leading the back end. They made it a good distance back before Clint saw movement, he turned to aim at them before noticing they were wearing familiar outfits. "Right!"
Without answering, the group began heading left, making sure they wouldn't accidentally mistake a friendly in the whole hell of a situation. At this movement, Eric and Zach turned a bit more to cover their left side while Oscar joined the front end. The other group must have noticed them cause suddenly the new group of nearly eleven people joined the nine of them.
"What are we doing? We can't find anyone else!" one of the new troops asked.
"We need to keep moving, others may have gotten behind us," Bucky replied. Clint snarled, looking in the gloom before them. It was starting to get dark and enemy troops were beginning to try and sneak behind them again. His eyes caught the sight of a shadow moving.
"Run!" Clint screamed. A bunch of the guys (Oscar, Peter and Danny included) spun and took off. The others hesitated a moment before following, Eric, Evans and Zach included. Bucky, Dugan and Clint made sure to stay behind, covering their flank. It wasn't long before they found a large collection of American troops. The group quickly integrated themselves into it.
"RETREAT!" a Captain's voice carried over the field. A lot of men dropped what they were doing and took off. Clint refused to move until a lot of the men had taken off. He was gonna cover their retreat. Bucky and Dugan noticed, staying behind as well. Eric and Peter joined them a moment later and they all watched the regiment's flank. While they didn't stop at the back, Oscar and Danny at least slowed to cover one side of the middle while Evans and Zach covered the other side. Everyone noticed that Bucky and Dugan's platoon stayed behind making themselves targets of danger while protecting the rest of them. No one joined them but they would be quick to spread word of the brave platoon.
The return to the nearest camp was faster than Clint expected it to be. Which was good cause everyone was running out of ammo. Not for the first time did Clint think about the idea of bringing out Izril and just shooting everyone with endless arrows. Thankfully, since learning about his magic, none of the others pressured Clint into doing anything. They all understood the risk Clint had taken just letting them see what he could have done before (not that that had been his choice). No one was gonna break that promise.
Once safe inside the camp, the 107th broke away from each other. Oscar and Danny had taken some minor cuts from debris and some close shots so they headed off to the medical tent. Evans, their actual medic on staff went with them, intent on filling up his pack with supplies. Eric and Zach decided they should go find some supplies for the next day while Peter headed off to find a way to get food for all of them. Bucky and Dugan left Clint alone so they could go get their place to rest in. This camp was lightly filled with men so they all got cots to sleep on. After getting their selection, Bucky headed off to inform the others. Clint used the time to wander around camp, wondering if he'd see Aaron's face somewhere in the crowd. Nearing an hour later, Clint returned to the tent, dropping onto one of the free cots. It hurt, not knowing if Aaron was safe or not. No matter how angry and annoying the guy was, he was still a 'friend.'
"Anyone seen Aaron?" Bucky wondered, slipping into the tent that Dugan had commandeered for the team. Clint grimaced. "I asked around and no one's seen him."
"MIA?" Dugan asked, looking at Bucky. The Sergeant paled. There was no way that Aaron was MIA. He was likely KIA. After seeing Bucky's reaction, Clint stood, no way in hell would he leave Bucky like that. It was bad enough having left Mike and Cole behind. To now loose Aaron would be hell on the man.
"Come on, let's go look. People might not know what Aaron looks like," the archer encouraged, making sure that none of the others would see the possibility of him breaking down. Bucky nodded and the two headed out. They searched the camp nearly five times before Bucky had to admit Dugan was right. While they had all seen Aaron run off, they had hoped that the man would have been lucky enough to catch sight of a friendly and come back to camp.
"Damn it," the man hissed. Clint sighed. It wasn't the best thing to have happened. Who knew if Aaron had gotten killed, or captured, or was still running around in the woods trying to find help. It wasn't a nice feeling. "I gotta go report this."
"Want me to come?" Clint questioned. Bucky shook his head.
"You're a Private. Be an issue if you came with me," the Sergeant pointed out. Clint huffed. He didn't care about that but Bucky was always worrying about his safety. Now Clint knew how bad Bucky's mother-henning could get. He couldn't blame Steve for not liking anyone doing it to him anymore. Nearly half an hour later, Bucky re-arrived at the tent. His face was grim.
"What happened?" Dugan inquired. Bucky made a face.
"We lost sixty people." Clint winced at the news. He knew people died. It was war and the monuments set up for those who lost their lives in the war were filled with thousands of names. But every bit of evidence or reminder of death struck Clint in the heart.
"Holy shit," Zach called. Bucky nodded.
"They're gonna merge the 107th with the 95th. They're only down to a hundred guys or so," Bucky added.
"We gonna have to get more people?" Clint huffed. Bucky shook his head no. They were thankfully large enough still that no one was gonna force shit on them. Then again, while they didn't need to get more people, Bucky and Dugan had already decided that if needed, they'd take three men.
"Shit," Eric cussed, tossing himself down onto a cot. Evans sat down near him and placed his head in his hands.
"Aaron?" Peter questioned. Bucky shrugged making the others sigh.
"For now, get some sleep. We ain't leaving for a few days so we can talk later," Bucky ordered. The group nodded before shifting themselves onto their cots and drifting off to sleep. Next morning, Bucky and Dugan headed off to check on possibly getting more people. Apparently the eleven men they had merged with on the battlefield had mentioned how Bucky and his team just easily took over and kept them safe. So, a lot of people wanted to join them. Bucky ended up actually taking on three new guys. Jason Todd, Matt Perry and Hugh Gaiman.
It had been nearly one and a half months or so since the 107th headed off to the war. Without actual dates being shared, it took Bucky a few days afterwards to realize that they had missing celebrating Steve's birthday. Hell, they had actually been in battle that day. Clint calmed him by saying all of America celebrated his birthday each year. That just made the Sergeant laugh and had him reminiscing about the fact that he had had Steve believe that for years. When Clint returned, he was totally going to mention that and laugh at the Captain.
"Never knew war would be so much walking place to place," Eric bemoaned one night at like the sixth or seventh camp they had stopped at. He had taken off his boots and was harshly rubbing them to massage them. Evans and Danny were doing the same thing. Peter and Jason had headed off to the showers/buckets of water getting dumped over them. Hugh, Matt and Oscar still had yet to return from the mess tent. Zach, Dugan, Bucky and Clint were all sitting off in a corner, just watching.
"We've spent more time marching than fighting," Evans agreed.
"You'd rather spend more time fighting than marching?" Clint wondered. Evans and Eric winced. "Cause, I bet you anything we can find a place to sit you guys with ammo and food so you can hide in a hole and fight whoever comes near."
"Oh fuck off," Danny hissed. "Let us just moan."
"I've allowed it for too long," Bucky replied with a shake of his head. "We need to deal. The enemy is on the constant move and the more we move with them, the tighter we pull their ranks."
"Or they're doing that to us," Dugan muttered. Bucky and Clint turned to glare at him. Seeing their looks, Dugan raised his hands in defense.
"Look, I don't care bout that shit, I just wanna a minute to rest," Eric added. Clint pointedly looked around the tent. Eric growled and flipped him off, but he at least had a small smile on his face, this time. "You know what I meant."
"The more 'breaks' we take, the longer this war is gonna be," Bucky snorted. Eric rolled his eyes and pushed himself back against the cot, preparing himself to go to sleep. Peter than came into the tent and noticed the tension between everyone. He stilled, looking around. Shaking his head at the man, Clint once again focused on Evans, Eric and Danny.
"Might wanna put your boots back on. Don't wanna have to spend the time getting those on when you should already be shooting or running," Clint sharply suggested. Eric again flipped Clint off but did get up and put his boots back on. Evans rolled his eyes but also complied. As did Danny.
Later, the trio had to be really thankful that Clint told them to put their boots back on as the camp was attacked. Enough people were awake to send out the alarm and everyone popped up pretty quick. The battle was a bit gruesome but they won. When it was all over, Bucky, Dugan and Clint could not find a lot of the group. They broke apart, intent on finding everyone.
"Damn it," Bucky cried, walking around the camp praying that he'd find his missing teammates. Peter had gotten shot through his shoulder and so had gone to the medical tent and was soon destined for home, just like Mike had been. The way Peter had gotten hit made him lose all ability to move his arm. After looking around a while, Clint found Eric was also there, a gun graze on his right leg. The archer paused, looking at Eric with a small smirk. Eric looked to him before realizing why Clint was smiling.
"Go fuck yourself," the man snarled but using a very joking tone. Clint just chuckled before moving on. He still needed to find the others.
"Barton!" Danny's familiar voice called as the archer moved away from the medical tent. He paused, smiling to the man. Beside him was Hugh, the man was being mostly supported by Danny. It was clear that Hugh had gotten hit but Clint couldn't see how bad it was.
"Hey, good ta see you. Sergeant Barnes has been looking for ya," Clint told the guy even as he moved to help bring Hugh into the medical tent. Danny and Hugh nodded.
"Saw him earlier. Looking for Evans," Danny responded. Clint frowned and looked back toward the medical tent.
"Ain't in there," the archer stated. Danny winced and the duo continued to bring Hugh inside. Once there, Danny decided to stay and watch over their injured men. Oscar, Jason, Matt, Zach and Evans were still missing. But then Bucky headed over to them, grim faced. Clint whined. He did not have a pleased face. "Please."
"Evans was found dead near the wall. Zach got shot through the chest so someone did the end tap. And we still can't find Oscar, Jason or Matt," Bucky listed. Clint moaned before sighing.
"Peter, Hugh and Eric are in medical with Danny. Peter's going home. Can't move his arm," Clint added. Bucky nodded and Clint couldn't help but close his eyes and try not to scream to the heavens. It was then that Dugan came up to them. He looked as upset as Bucky and Clint looked. "No."
"Oscar supposedly ran for it. Jason was killed outside the gates. Matt... I can't find Matt at all," Dugan informed. Bucky winced.
"What the hell happened?" he wondered, looking about the camp. How had things gotten this bad? It had seemed like they had been all prepared for an attack. Yet they just lost seven of their members. There was only five of them left. Clint looked away with a dark grimace. This was his fault. He should have done better.
"I lost focus," the archer whispered. The duo looked to him in surprise. Clint miserably shook his head, getting more and more upset with himself. "The spell... I... I need to keep focus on it. When I sleep, the focus and spell goes away. If... If I had only casted it again."
"No, this isn't your fault Clint," Bucky tried to sooth but Clint just shook his head and took a step back. Guilt began to consume the archer. It had to have been his fault. What if they had been meant to survive but his presence here through things off?
"We are down seven people. Seven people that should have been safe thanks to the damn fucking spell! It is my fault," Clint insisted, his pain and anger leaking into his voice. Bucky and Dugan traded looks. They could tell there wasn't much they could do to make Clint understand he wasn't at fault. Clint was far too determined to blame himself. That wasn't going to happen easily. "I..."
"You say you gotta leave, I'm gonna shoot you here," Dugan snapped. Clint looked up to him surprised. "Do you know how many other platoons nearly lost everyone a few battles in? We're in pretty damn good shape considering!"
"N-" Clint started but Dugan shook his head.
"This ain't your fault. It ain't gonna be your fault. So cut it out," the man growled at the archer. Clint grimaced. "Neither one of us blame you."
"Yup," Bucky agreed as soon as Clint looked at him. Clint looked away. He couldn't do this. Figuring they needed a change of subject, Dugan sighed.
"Heard rumor that the attack scared the higher ups. We're gonna be heading out tomorrow," Dugan informed. The other two groaned, even if they were both okay with the sudden topic shift.
"Seriously?" Bucky whined. Dugan shrugged. That was just what he had heard. And indeed, the 107th headed out the next day. The injured were loaded up onto some transport jeeps and trucks, most being set to go home. Including Hugh. Matt still hadn't been found. In the next camp, Bucky, Dugan, Clint, Eric and Danny wished Peter and Hugh goodbye and luck on the rest of their life. Apparently Hugh's wound got his left knee and pretty much shattered it. He'd likely never be able to walk again, but Clint knew that at some point there would be a way to return his mobility. Peter, once again, promised to not mention anything about Clint before being sent away and Hugh... Well, Hugh hadn't really ever spoke so they just assumed he wouldn't either. So the troop continued moving on.
At the next camp (where they were set to hold out for for a few days), Clint noticed that Agent Peggy Carter and Colonel Chester Phillips had arrived and looked to have no intention of leaving. Actually, apparently, Colonel Phillips was set to be the new leader of the 107th. With dread filling his gut, Clint found himself trying his hardest to avoid either of them seeing him. He really didn't want the future Director of S.H.I.E.L.D to notice the archer wandering around. This whole thing sucked so bad. Especially seeing as Peggy loved to wander through the camp, randomly stopping to talk with the soldiers. When she made it near to their tent, Clint made sure to make himself scarce.
It took Bucky and Dugan two hours to find Clint after they realized he 'ran' for it. They found him a good distance away from camp, practicing with his bow once again. This time Clint was trying to keep the spell to active them up while simultaneously using the spell to make them vanish once they hit the mark. Would do well to be able to use that in battle one day. Not that he had ever asked Loki for help trying while on the Milano. Thankfully the clashing spells seemed to be doing fine.
"You don't like chicks?" Dugan asked in lieu of greeting when the two caught up to him. Clint hardly stuttered in his shooting. Just kept at it. Bucky leaned himself against a nearby tree, watching. Dugan rolled his eyes and plopped himself down on a rock. They'd wait with him as long as he'd let them.
"Nah, not that. Just her," Clint stated after a moment. Bucky snorted.
"What's wrong with her?" the Sergeant wondered. Clint grimaced, dropping his bow to aim at the ground and then Bucky knew. Peggy had to have been someone he'd likely meet in the future as well. Not worth having her see him either. The man nodded. He would totally help. No more questions needed. "Alright, we'll help ya stay hidden from her."
"Thanks," Clint sighed out, glad he didn't have to come up with some sort of lie. Dugan chuckled but nodded his head, figuring it was best to follow Bucky's example. If Bucky said that Clint needed to be kept safe from something, Dugan'd do anything within his power to help. Even if that meant 'distracting' a very nice dame. After being with Bucky and Clint for so long at this point, it was obvious the two were sharing some sort of secret. Dugan just figured it was like the magic and so he should never ask. So, he never did. Bucky and Dugan stayed with Clint as the archer took another ten minutes or so of practice before giving in. "Lets head back to camp."
When they returned to their tent, Bucky announced that they needed to keep Clint away from Peggy. Eric laughed for a moment He had taken Peter's return home pretty hard and started to get into deep trouble. Such deep trouble that Eric was once again healing from a dislocated shoulder with a warning that his next one might send him home. Totally a good incentive to 'not' get hurt again. Danny, who Bucky had to visit after, had almost lost his left leg by a buried bomb that nearly everyone in front of them missed and so he was spending this time in medical getting checked over for debris injury. They all (except Danny) knew that if Clint hadn't been casting protection spells on them that they would have likely died during those incidents.
"This whole thing is bullshit," Eric muttered later that day when they were eating. He had gotten stuck the most with distracting Carter. While it would have been nice to stay around a dame, Carter wasn't like any dame Eric had met before. And he certainly had no interest in talking to her anymore. "Why is she even here?"
"What, don't like women of power?" Clint wondered, forgetting that he was currently the main one trying to avoid Carter and it seemed more likely that he would be than Eric. Bucky lowered his plate, watching. Dugan rolled his eyes as Eric huffed.
"Do you? You're the one avoidin' her like the plague," Eric snapped. Clint frowned. Yeah, he was avoiding her. But how should he explain to Dugan and Eric why. Bucky already knew. And Clint was damn sure that it would be a horrible idea to let anyone else know he came from the future. Was still bad enough that Steve and Bucky knew.
"I ain't got a problem with her being a chick. I got a problem that she reminds me of a girl I like at home. Not gonna be good to pop a stiffy in front of her," Clint lied. The others with him laughed loudly. And of course that was when his luck turned into the way it always went for him. The woman was walking by and heard their laughter. Noticing a soldier she hadn't yet met, Peggy turned and headed over.
"Shit man. Here she comes," Eric warned. Clint stiffened before dropping his bowl onto Bucky's lap and getting up. He needed to run, fast. Too bad Eric hadn't given him enough of a warning.
"Hello," Peggy called to them before Clint could get too far away. He froze, unwilling to turn around. "I heard you are the boys that have been together since getting shipped over here."
"We ain't the only ones ma'am," Bucky replied as if that made a difference. Peggy nodded and looked up to Clint who still had yet to turn around. Dugan frowned, looking between the woman and Clint. Eric even seemed a bit uncomfortable. Something about this meeting felt different than the times he spoke with her before. Bucky sighed, placing Clint's bowl down onto the ground beside him. "Is there anything we can help you with?"
"Not at the moment. Just, wanted to see how you all were doing. I've been speaking with many of the others around," Peggy mentioned, her eyes still having not left Clint's back. Clint forced himself not to move when a chill ran up his back. Dugan stood up, intent on blocking her view of the archer. Eric frowned, looking back and forth between Peggy and Clint.
"We're fine," Dugan answered. But somehow Peggy still was focused on Clint. With a sigh, Clint finally turned to look at her and gave her a small smile before nodding a hello to her. There was no way he'd be able to avoid this forever. Might as well get the whole thing over with. Peggy smiled at him and went to open her mouth but was stopped by something else.
"CARTER!" a voice screamed from somewhere. Peggy sighed.
"For now, enjoy your meal gentlemen. I hope to follow your exploits even more," she told them before spinning on her heel and walking off. Clint gave off a small groan, dropping back down onto his seat as if his legs had given out. Bucky placed a reassuring hand on the archer's shoulder.
"I didn't see no spiffy, but I sure as hell nearly pissed myself. Jeez. She part devil?" Eric wondered, having never had seen Carter as determined on meeting Clint as she had been any of the times before. And they had had a few close calls. The group chuckled but before they could talk about it any further, a call echoed through the camp.
"107th! FALL IN LINE!" Lieutenant Colonel Joseph Carey screamed into the camp. The quartet groaned but got up and headed to line up with the man. Clint glanced around. What used to be a regiment of nearly a thousand men, was now maybe down to four hundred souls or something. Clint sighed. He hadn't tried to think about how many men from the 107th had been killed before Azzano. But it was getting too close for comfort. "WE'RE MOVING OUT!"
"Where we goin'?" someone muttered softly behind Clint and Bucky. Clint shrugged his shoulders. They weren't in the know either.
"What about Danny?" Eric whispered as he snagged the man's stuff before they left their tent after the announcement. Clint looked to Bucky, waiting on orders. But Bucky was distracted, looking off at Peggy who seemed to be arguing with Colonel Phillips and Lt. Colonel Carey. Dugan sighed, knowing Bucky wasn't going to answer.
"I'll go get him," the man informed, drawing the Sergeant's attention back to his group. Bucky nodded his thanks. Just before the regiment took off, Dugan and Danny arrived. Four hours later, the troop headed into what seemed to be a vacant town. The place looked like it had been bombed. Buildings crumbling, debris everywhere. While many didn't seem to mind, Clint looked around, tense. It felt like he was being watched. But he couldn't see any sign of anyone watching them. The feeling could just be from the men behind him but Clint highly doubted it as he hadn't felt like this for the entire time he traveled with the regiment.
"I don't really like this," the archer mumbled. Bucky stiffened, looking to Clint with concern. Clint didn't focus on him. Just kept looking into each building and focusing on each roof that still remained. No one else really seemed to be looking around. But they had all gotten really tired lately with the constant movement. They were getting slightly lazy.
"Somethin' happen here?" Bucky whispered suddenly really concerned. Clint shrugged his shoulders. As he had told Bucky a few times, he didn't know everything about every battle. Otherwise he likely wouldn't have gotten as close as he did with any of the other members. Bucky dropped the subject but started looking around with Clint. That got Dugan, Danny and Eric looking as well. A few steps later, Clint noticed what was giving him the bad feeling. In one of the buildings that they were about to pass, the sun glinted off of something on the roof. Surprised, Clint looked around more closely. That was what had been bothering him. They were surrounded.
"TRAP!" he screamed as loud as he could. Instantly the 107th and other regiments that had come with them shifted their ranks to aim at every building. And two seconds later, the enemy agents appeared and started shooting down at them. Lots of people started falling but there was a loud 'RETREAT' that sounded through the gun fire and many of the men just took off without even attempting to willing protect people or wait for protection for themselves. Bucky, Clint and Dugan all fell into rank around each other and Clint noted Eric had split himself away from them. Danny was missing, having been jostled away a bit in the original scurry to get in defense positions. "ERIC!"
Eric turned to look at the archer and made it two steps toward him before a shot went through his gut. Clint let out a choked sound of surprise. What the hell was going on with his spells? Was he saying it wrong? The guys just kept dropping like flies. For a moment, the archer wanted to go grab Eric but Clint knew neither one of them would be safe. While Eric wouldn't be dead right now, there was no way he'd survive long enough to get help. And it was highly doubtful that even if they got help that Eric would make it out alive. In 2019, Eric's injury would have been a close call of survival. That same survival rate had to be diminished in 1943. With a weak little moan, Clint aimed his gun at Eric, waited a beat until Eric nodded his head and made the other man's death quick.
Clint headed off away from everyone the second the remaining troops arrived at the new camp that they had been designated to get to. Dugan noticed and went to follow, but Bucky had seen what Clint did and just held the man back with a shake of his head. The older man frowned but did back off. They still needed to look around and see if they could find Danny. Meanwhile, Clint had shifted around the camp until he found what must have been one of the higher points. Especially seeing as it could see of the make shift walls and towers that had been created in an effort to protect the camp. He hadn't wanted to shoot Izril. Shooting would just make all this worse. With a huff the archer sat down, his legs lifted up so his knees were chest height and his arms laid on top of them.
During S.H.I.E.L.D missions, he had to put down fellow agents before. It wasn't anything he hadn't gotten used to or anything but... Eric's death was hitting him much harder than anyone had before. The archer hung his head. He should have known better. After Mike's original injury, he should have backed away from the group. Aaron, Matt, Oscar and Cole and now Danny as well... Clint could only hope they were alive somewhere. Zach, Evans and Jason had their bodies returned home. Supposedly, Peter and Hugh also made it home alive (a letter from Peter having told them such). But after all Clint had seen so far... It was highly likely those missing or unheard from had been killed.
Clint ended up spending over an hour up on the hill. It was long enough that other soldiers began noticing that he was sitting there, head hung low. Clint tried to ignore the few 'whispering' words about what he had had to do. Everyone had had a moment or two like this before. Most did it in the privacy of a tent or something, but Clint was never 'most people.' The few who had 'sulked' in public at least had someone at their side. Someone they could talk to if it got really bad. Clint though, he needed the quiet. Not someone's sympathetic noise about how Eric wanted it and it was going to be okay, this was war.
Ten minutes later, Bucky started up the hill after what Clint had noticed was at least the tenth time someone other than Dugan spoke with him. Clint huffed but didn't move even as Bucky sat on the grass beside him. No way could he even attempt to push the man away. He had gotten too close to the Sergeant. Thankfully both here and in the future/his past. Bucky was at least decent enough to turn and look out over the camp.
"Doin' alright?" the Sergeant asked two minutes later. Clint sighed and shook his head.
"I've... I've done that type of thing before. More times than I'd like," Clint mumbled. Bucky turned to watch him. Clint never tended to talk about the future outside of his childhood and stories from the circus. He had been tight lipped about his own experiences as an adult, which none of the men had been bothered by. "I don't know why this is bothering me more."
"Maybe cause you've gotten too close?" Bucky suggested. Clint sighed. That could be it. While he had seen other S.H.I.E.L.D agents drop, he never actually knew them personally. Not like he did with the guys in their platoon.
"I don't know. I had been close with a few," the archer whispered before looking up to the sky. Bucky sighed, turning back out to the camp. "Eric had a girl back home. Pregnant. Did you know that?"
"No. Eric never told me that," Bucky muttered glancing back at the archer even more worried than before. Clint sighed looking over to the Sergeant. But Clint made sure he didn't analyze the look he was receiving from Bucky.
"Yeah. Janet or something... She was gonna give birth... Hell, she already gave birth to a little girl based on how far Eric said she was along," Clint continued. Bucky winced, thinking of his three little sisters back home. He had only gotten real close with Rebecca, the youngest. The other two had had some sort of issue with Bucky soon after their dad died while their mother was pregnant with Rebecca.
"For what it's worth. I'm sorry," Bucky informed. Clint huffed and turned to look up at the sky. That was the platitude that Clint wanted to avoid when he came up here. But somehow, hearing Bucky say it actually made Clint glad to have heard it. Still didn't bring Eric back or change what Clint had done but it was more like someone seriously understood and was forgiving him.
"I... I'm gonna have to get used to it soon. Only three of us left," the archer explained, closing his eyes when they began to sting. Bucky nodded knowing that Clint had seen his look. While Bucky hadn't officially said anything to him, Clint knew Danny was still missing. Hard not to notice when he watched Bucky and Dugan talk to nearly everyone at camp and become more and more upset.
"Gonna have to take some of the guys that lost their leaders," Bucky explained. Clint nodded. He figured that that would happen soon. Actually, he was surprised it hadn't already happened. His eyes flicked to the Captain's tent. Well, actually he should call it the Colonel's tent as Clint spotted Phillips entering it.
"God, how long we been out here?" the archer asked, frowning when he realized that Phillips had been put in charge of them not that long ago. The SSR were supposed to still be with Steve, making sure the serum worked. Right? It's what Coulson and the history books always said. Bucky huffed.
"Nearing three months, give or take." Clint sighed. While he hadn't been paying much attention to the actual passage, Clint knew Bucky was right. It should be only two more months before Azzano. Damn. Well... Then again, it might be a good thing to get some more people. More people that Clint would hopefully keep safer than the others. Or, it would be even more people he'd disappoint. "We're down to about four hundred men. A bunch of us not actually 107th. Most of those dead seemed to be higher officers oddly enough."
"Guess they should have promoted better people," the archer couldn't help but hiss. Bucky paused at that before snorting. The noise made Clint look to him before giving a soft sad smile.
"Yeah, maybe," the Sergeant replied. The duo sat together in silence for a few minutes. Both of them looking out over the camp. "Captain Henry wants to go back to that town and clear it out."
"They've likely moved on from there," Clint pointed out. Bucky nodded.
"Yeah. Doesn't mean that will stop him." Clint grunted. Captain Henry was quite nearly as stubborn as Steve. It was kinda ridiculous. "Think he's gonna get us all killed?"
"Buck," Clint warned, looking to the man. Bucky winced, having not realized what he had asked. It had been mostly a hypothetical but with Clint, no question like that could be.
"Sorry." Clint sighed. Bucky must have forgotten about him being from the future. Then again, it was sometimes for the best that Bucky didn't remember Clint was. That way Bucky wasn't looking to him for advice. Down below, Clint spotted some reddish brown hair. It was longer than any of the men could have. Clint growled a bit at the sight. While he had seen Phillips, Peggy hadn't been wandering around the camps lately. But now she was apparently back. Either that or she had respected Clint enough to stay away. Bucky looked down. "Her again?"
"She's gonna be around a lot more, sadly," Clint huffed, carefully watching Peggy. All he could do was mentally pray she didn't come anywhere near them. Bucky shook his head. It had been easy to avoid the woman when they marched and most times they had gotten into camp so late that the men simply ate, showered and slept.
"You may have to just deal with seeing her. Just don't get close with her like you did with me and Stevie," Bucky admitted, glancing at Clint quickly. Clint groaned, once again hanging his head. Bucky patted the archer, unable to say much else. "Sorry man."
"I know. Just... I don't wanna change history more than I've already likely changed it," the archer mumbled. Bucky sighed.
"I told ya before. I doubt anyone woulda send ya to your death," Bucky stated. Clint huffed. He wished he could believe that. But what if this was a separate timeline? What if... What if everything he knew could be wrong? Erskine had happened... Steve had been enlisted... Bucky was here... Dugan was here... But how long would that last? Could he have killed someone that would piss off another guy that then killed Bucky? Or Dugan? Or hell, Peggy? What if Steve didn't actually survive the serum in this timeline or whatever?
And it was in this moment that Peggy turned to look at the duo. Clint stiffened. There was no way this could be good. And indeed it wasn't as Peggy then turned herself toward them. Bucky stiffened now as well. Maybe they could get up and go somewhere else? Nah, she would be more than likely willingly to follow/chase them around. Best to just sit and let her come to them. And that's what she did. Once she was close enough, she stopped. "On lookout or something else?"
"Something else," Bucky answered. Peggy hummed, having heard a seen a decent amount of men hiding away in panic.
"Agent Peggy Carter," she finally was able introduce. Bucky nodded, getting to his feet. Clint didn't even attempt to move. He was gonna avoid speaking to her as much as possible. Let Bucky be the main point of contact that she had with the archer.
"Sergeant James Barnes, but call me Bucky," the man said having not had the pleasure of introducing himself. He looked to Clint briefly before focusing on Peggy. Clint wasn't going to introduce himself. So, Bucky took it upon himself. "Private Clint Barton."
"I heard a rumor that a Barton was being promoted to Corporal," Peggy informed. Clint looked up with a frown. "Yes, and Corporal Dugan was going to get upped to Sergeant."
"And there goes my team," Bucky snorted in disbelief. He hadn't wanted a whole new team. Dugan and Clint were great to work with. Clint even found himself frowning at the news. He didn't want to risk being separated from Bucky or Dugan. Peggy chuckled.
"With the way these troops are, doubt they'd separate you three," she soothed. Clint then got to his feet. That was intriguing. Why did the troops want the three of them to stay together? What was he missing?
"What do you mean, ma'am?" Clint wondered, making sure to be as respectful as possible. If she was ever gonna remember him, he wanted to make sure she remembered he could change from his arrogant, jackassery teenage years. Peggy snorted, a smile on her face.
"I mean, there is rumor that you three are some of the best out there. You all seem to notice what others miss," Peggy complimented. Clint's face turned red. Damn it. He wasn't trying to stand out. Maybe he should back down on all his warnings. Let Bucky do it all instead. Bucky chuckled, though it sounded slightly tense. Like Clint, the Sergeant knew that between the two of them they tended to call out more hidden enemies than anyone else.
"I doubt that, ma'am," he tried to argue. Peggy smiled.
"Nice, you're both so cute," she told them. That got Bucky to turn a bit red in the face. Clint nearly went pale. Cute? She thought he was cute? "I hope to continue to hear good things from you boys."
"Yes, ma'am," both of them replied. She turned and walked away, sending a wave over her shoulder as she did. Bucky waited till she was out of hearing range before looking back to Clint.
"Now I want to avoid her."
This may be the longest chapter of the entire story. This story has been rewritten quite a few times. In doing such, there are a lot of chapters longer than typical. Actually, I was half tempted to redo all the chapters just because this was so long. But... I really couldn't make myself do it.
Darius had a very disappointing weekend. We all expected his grandparents to come and get him for the weekend like they typically always do. Now, hubby and I are fine if they want/need a weekend off. Gigi had a migraine that lasted all weekend so it was understandable that she wouldn't come. Problem was, we had no idea until bed time that night. We still have yet to hear from Granddad as to why he hadn't com. If it happens again, I don't know how Darius is going to handle it. Other than that, we got a new couch which is technically four separate chairs that look like they fit together nicely. When we mentioned to Darius that our blue couch was going to be taken away, he pitched a gigantic crying fit. Took us a while to realize that Darius didn't want to lose the blue couch cause it reminded him of the times he played on it with his brother. Once hubby and I heard that, we then agreed to not remove it. So, it's now crowding up our office.