I literally have to have like almost every chapter open when writing a new one to remember what the hell's happened because I wait so long in between each time writing this oh my god I apologize -E

The trio made their way slowly and cautiously down the dark hallway. Clint in the middle, with Tony and Bruce on either side of him. They kept their eyes peeled for any miniscule sign of movement, listening for the smallest sound. At one point, Bruce even flinched when Tony sniffled a little too loudly. Clint shushed both of them, waving his hand dismissively for them to be quiet as they got to another corner. Very slowly, Clint tip-toed over to the wall and peeked his head around the corner, shining his flashlight down the new hallway. Eyes darting in every small nook and cranny of the empty hallway he could see, he exhaled slowly and motioned for the others to follow him.

"S'all clear," he glanced back at them.

"So, how exactly is this supposed to help us get to Nat?" Tony realized finally as he and Bruce followed Clint down the hall. "If we just walk in circles on one floor, we're obviously not getting any closer to her."

"Clearly the elevator is a bad idea," Clint nodded.

"We could try the other set of stairs?" Bruce asked, shrugging slightly. Clint chewed on his lip.

"I guess… I mean, we haven't exactly had the best luck with stairs tonight. But we can still try," he swallowed hard, not wanting to lose Tony and Bruce, too. "As long as we stick together. Actually stick together. Like. Holding hands so we don't get separated in some freak incident together."

"Agreed," Bruce nodded quickly, glancing at Clint. "Tony?"

"It's ridiculous that we even have to be afraid about it, but…"

"It's better to be safe than sorry."

"Exactly."
"Okay," Clint glanced behind them in case they missed the stairs. "Does… Anyone know where the other stairs are?"

"We didn't pass them already, did we?"

"I don't think so," Tony also glanced behind them. "I think that'd be too close to the stairs we were on before. They'd be the exact opposite end of the building, right?"

"So probably down the next hall?"
"Probably," Clint shrugged. Repeating what he did to look around the new corner in the hallway, Clint quickly went around the corner into a new hallway. "C'mon! Stairs are right here!" Bruce and Tony quickly followed in suit and the three stopped in front of the doorway leading to the stairwell.

"Alright. Tony. Clint. Take my hand." Bruce stuffed his phone in his pocket and held out his hands for the two of them as he stared unblinking at the door.

"Brucie, you're so romantic," Tony snorted as he took Bruce's hand, causing Bruce to roll his eyes. Clint slowly opened the door and took Bruce's hand, leading them into the dark stairwell. Shining his flashlight up the one set of stairs, he looked for anything out of the ordinary. Tony made sure the door didn't slam behind him and pointed his flashlight down the other set of stairs. "Looks all clear. What about up?"

"All clear," Clint nodded, also pointing his flashlight down the stairs. "Alright… Fingers crossed. Whatever happens, don't let go," he glanced at the boys as they slowly made their way down the stairs shoulder to shoulder. As they turned and went down the second flight of stairs, Bruce quickly looked behind them, as if expecting to see the creature standing there.

"Holy shit, it worked," Tony breathed as they got to the bottom of the stairs, shining his flashlight on a big "G" above the door. Clint stopped, forcing the others to stop with him. "What? It worked! We're on the ground floor!" Tony gave him a look.

"There's no more stairs," Clint was just staring at the wall where another set of stairs would have gone down.

"That's… Because we're on the ground floor."

"The basement. Tasha said she was in the basement," Clint reminded them, shooting a glare at Tony. "How are we supposed to get to the basement if there are no more stairs?"

"They could be in a different location?" Bruce shrugged slightly, trying to think. "Some buildings do that. They make the basement stairs in a different spot. Kind of like a 'management only' thing."

"Great," Tony shook his head, glancing back up the stairs. "Great! Now, not only do we have to get down to the basement to god knows what will be waiting for us… I mean, really! Do we even have a plan for what we'll do when we get down there? What if the thing is down there waiting for us? We'd be dead in seconds! We've nothing to defend ourselves. Nothing to k- can we even kill it? Can it die? We don't even know! We're completely uninformed! But now! On top of that! We have to find the god damned basement!" Tony flailed an arm in frustration.

"Alright, alright! Just calm down!" Clint glanced around, trying to keep him quiet.

"We can think of a plan while looking for the basement, okay?" Bruce assured him.

"God," Tony laughed bitterly, shaking his head. "We're going to die. We are all. Going to die. What time is it. I have a phone in my hand. Why am I asking." He scoffed softly at himself, turning the screen of his phone on. "Well! Good news, I think. It's 5:42. Sun should be coming up eventually. Then maybe we'll be able to see something."

"Okay, let's just." Clint sighed, shaking his head, angry that it had been an hour since he found Natasha's phone in her apartment. "Let's just come up with a plan. Find this fucking basement. Find Natasha. Find Steve-"

"Hopefully."

"-Find Thor-"

"Again, hopefully."

"-And get the fuck out of this god damned building. Call the cops. Call the FBI. Swat teams. Army. National Guard. Whatever the fuck. To kill that fucking. Whatever it is. And-" Clint stopped short, suddenly remembering earlier. "Wait. I did call the police. Hours ago. When Tasha first stopped replying." he looked between Tony and Bruce, eyebrows furrowed in confusion at the obvious lack of officers in the building.

"D'you… Think they ever showed up?"

"I have no idea," he responded gravely, turning his head to look at the exit of the stairwell. "But there's one way to find out."

Abohrition: I'm intrigued. I feel like Tasha is the one pulling the prank. I mean, she is the most diabolical of the avengers. Haha.

Prank? People still think it's a prank, huh? ;)

WhoPotterAvenge-X Kate: OH MY GOD YOU ARE ACTUALLY TERRIFYING ME WHAT IS GOING ON HELP

Alyxx: Oh My God i read everything and i knew what happened but when Clint went through it it sent shivers down my spine! Please update SOON!

(in reply to both) Ahhh, yes. It's my sole desire in life to terrify the masses 3

randomblueboots: AHHHH! More, please! Me and my sister are reading it and it's awesome!

Eeeeeeee yes good share with people share with everyone that's amazing thank you!

RoxasGuyXIII: You monster… I'm actually really excited to see a new chapter on this story, even if it did take me a few days to get to read it. I can't wait to see what you're building up to. You're doing a good job of building the suspense.

hahahaha i have no idea what i'm doing