Chapter 31: Archery competition

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Sorry for the long wait but my birthday and Cosplay ideas took away a lot of time again.

Check out my latest wip and finished BuckyNat drawings. The ballet stuff is more romantic, but I also have some family fluff. If you read the AO3 version of this chapter you can see the pictures directly.

summary:

Natasha proves to Clint that she's not a damsel in distress when it comes to dealing with the Winter Soldier in bed. Laura and Nat make a plan so Clint and Bucky can fight without getting hurt. The kids have some challenging questions for James.

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The kids had already finished, now playing outside in the garden while the adults turned breakfast into a brunch. The two assassins tried not to appear too starved but they couldn't avoid emptying everything Laura continued to put on the table. The topics were casual and light, actually quite enjoyable James noticed. But the longer the conversations went on one thing became clear. Hawkeye was angry.

Natasha spread more cream cheese on her bread yet put the piece back onto her table. When Clint's stare got too uncomfortable she had to voice her annoyance. "Barton, spit it out."

The archer growled and looked at the Soldier. "I know it's not my call, but I'm not fine with what you did to Nat."

"I don't need your protection." Natasha seethed.

Laura intervened. "She is fine with it. The glow in her eyes very much outweighs the negative aspects. Don't you dare criticise the way they indulge in their bedtime activities." None of the others had expected her to notice. Mrs Barton certainly had some sharp senses. "But still, you need to keep yourself in check, Barnes."

Before James could get any more distressed Natasha spoke up again. Her annoyance underlined by the tone of her voice and the selection of her words. "We can fuck as roughly as we want. I was the one who encouraged it. I know how much I can take and that…" she tipped the napkin into her glass of water and wiped away the make up with it. "... is merely a scratch that'll heal in a few hours." She locked eyes with her lover. "If he would follow my command to the letter I would be much more bruised but James restrains himself. Once we know each other more we'll fuck properly and then… you can look at the broken bones and voice your concern. But for now… stay out of my private life."

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"Clint has always been protective over you." Laura stated as she and Natasha took care of the dishes. Both of them occasionally glanced to the table to check if the two man had already started a fight.

"He is the big brother I always slash/never wanted." Natasha sighed as she put a glass into the cupboard.

"They need to get it out. In the least lethal way we can find. Clint would lose to Bucky in a fair fight and get hurt. Not that it would stop him from trying." Laura appeared rational but the undertone showed that she was afraid.

Natasha polished the silverware and mused. "Maybe I could stage a show fight with James, so Clint knows I can stand my ground?"

Laura merely shook her head, a thought blossoming in her mind. "That's not the answer. No, I was thinking about an archery contest."

"So they let it out on some liveless target? Good idea." Natasha dried off the last plate and put it away.

Laura took it upon herself to set their plan in motion. "Hey, kiddos, what do you think about Clint showing you the shooting range? Maybe Bucky would like to fire a few arrows himself."

Cooper jumped up and down. "Woah, that would be awesome!"

"Like a tournament. Cool." Lilly had a dreamy expression on her face.

Alexei remained quiet, yet nodded with a wide smile.

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Clint had grudgingly said yes to the little contest they had set up. Not that he wasn't sure he'd win. But simply because he was certain that this wouldn't fulfill his need to kick Bucky's ass.

James was waiting calmly for the archer to set everything up. The less explosive arrows were now in a line in front of them, targets arranged, the kids safely behind them.

Clint handed him the weapon. "Don't break my bow with that arm of yours. No idea how many pounds you can draw but…"

"Barton, I have training in almost every kind of weapon. I know how to use a compound bow." James sighed and tried to remain neutral instead of engaging in a verbal fight. If Clint's tongue now slipped the kids would notice something. And the Soldier didn't want Alexei to worry about his mother and neither lose the trust he had built up with the children.

The archer watched with a sideway glance how James drew the bow and released the arrow. It burried itself right into the bullseye.

"Your turn." Bucky had to grin as he handed him the weapon.

Lilly who had until now held her breath now clutched Alexei tightly who looked a bit confused and overwhelmed. "This is soooo cool," the girl whispered.

Clint held eye contact with him as he drew the weapon and shot at the target, splitting Barnes' arrow in half. "Think you can beat this?"

They went on for a quiver of arrows. The mess on and below the target now a pile of broken arrows.

James drew the bow one last time as he felt arms encircling him. The warmth she gave him, the love, calmed his heart. She was a strength he could draw from, his safe haven. Natalia would always be at his side. Even if it was just some stupid archery competition.

"Want to help me cheat?" Clint voiced in annoyance.

Natasha watched as he let the arrow fly, hitting the bullseye again. "He isn't that easily distracted."

Clint went once more, clearly becoming more angry, desperate. Despite his hands shaking, another perfect hit.

When Bucky took the bow from Clint he smiled broadly. This was such fun. He only wished Steve could see him right now. His heart would proparbly stop by the emotions now shining in James' eyes. This was just perfect. His beloved was with him, caressing him in the least obvious way yet still promising so much more with it…, Alexei was seeing his father as a skilled man capable of control, as… The Soldier glanced to the side. Where was the boy? Natasha didn't seem to worry so he maybe had gone to the bathroom or fetched something to drink.

"We don't have all day." Clint chided him.

"I can go all day." Bucky couldn't stop himself from making the joke as he released the arrow. It flew and then… a sudden spark and sound, as if metal hit metal. Then James had to watch how the arrow buried itself a few inches beside the target. What…?

"Guess your luck ran out." Clint said with a wide smirk.

"Let me have a go." Natasha took the bow and smiled at James. She didn't have to look at the target when she let it fly. The arrow went straight through the bullseye, the straw and pierced the tree a few feet behind it.

"Wow, Natasha is totally awesome. She's better than both of you." Lilly explained in delight. "And all without even looking!"

Clint leaned in and whispered. "I taught you that, Tash."

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A few minutes later while Natasha taught Lilly the stance in which to hold a bow, Alexei appeared from behind the wall walking towards his father. "Sorry. I just had to. I didn't want to see Lilly sad because her father didn't win. And also maybe to avoid something worse."

"So that was… how?" They had never showed him anything related to combat.

"I'm a good observer and a quick learner. Also, Barton has more than one bow." Alexei voiced calmed as he walked back to his mother who embraced him tightly.

Totally baffled James sorted this under 'Worry about it some other time.' before he joined his little family.

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Natasha was good at hiding it from the kids while she played with them, but for James, the sniper he was, it seemed obvious that sitting hurt.

A few minutes later she excused herself for the bathroom. The Soldier was hot on her heels, grinning widely as he saw how she passed the downstairs one and went directly to the spare room they shared. She dug into her duffel bag while he leaned against the doorframe, still that grin on his face. "Sore?" He asked with a chuckle.

"Yeah, no thanks to you. Also, I think I saw you holding your back more than once today. I warned you that I'm more flexible."

He stretched his neck audibly. "I thought I did a better job at hiding it."

"Well, it's good training." She threw him a glance before she finally found what she was looking for. "Also," she pulled a clean slip from the bag and stood up again to change. Natasha knew he was teasing her, so she, the master of this art, would make him blush in all shades of red now with her wording. "I might need a refill."

He gave her a puzzled look, clearly not understanding.

"Well, you men just shoot and then it's out of sight, out of mind. But this is my third set of underwear today even though we've showered." She held up the soiled piece of cloth for him to see and tried to hold back her laughter at his expression.

"I…" He gulped. "I never thought about it this way."

"Yeah, well. Now you know. At least I get something out of it as well." She slipped down her trousers and underwear.

That made him curious. "How so?"

"Your seed has potent traces of your serum in it. It's like a Super-Soldier powershot for me. I almost broke the kids' toys because my strength increased due to last night. You saw how far I pulled the bow. It wasn't only because you too had weakened the target." She turned around to give him a full display of her body and the marks he had left on her hips last night.

James didn't know if he should laugh or shake his head, so he did both. At least her bruises were fading as well with the increasing healing ability.

"Fuck me constantly for an entire month and I'll have enough power in my grip to dent your metal arm." She made a show of slipping on the flimsy little black cloth.

The view awoke his libido. "You don't need to have to dent it when your charm can melt my steel…"

"God, I'm not sure whether or not I can stand the sweet-talking Bucky Barnes all day…" She said a fake groan of annoyance. "Also, where have you been the last hour?"

"I accompanied Mrs Barton on her errands." Leaving out the important part wasn't lying.

"And?" The Black Widow asked with an arched eyebrow and paused as she was about to slip into her jeans.

"That's a secret." He said with a cat-got-cream grin.

"Can I seduce this secret out of you?" Her voice were like honey and sweets.

"You can try, but I'm not sure you'll succeed…" He started to open his trousers. They had gotten too tight the moment she'd undressed.

"Well, I give my best then…"

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When Natasha and James came back downstairs to the kids the lovers held hands. A casual, now comforting gesture for the pair but for the children it was a clear sign with their innocent minds. Just like the new hikeys on Barnes' neck were for the two other adults.

"When will you have the next child?" Cooper asked.

"What?" The lovers asked in unison while in the background Laura worked hard on suppressing a giggle.

"To have someone to play with once Alexei grows up." The boy exclaimed.

"They are surely working hard on getting the storch to deliver one." Alexei who was leaning against the wall responded. The boy didn't seem like a child anymore in this pose and with that rough attitude. Was he… becoming a teenager already? For James, the short time he had spent away from his son he had seemed to take a leap and the innocent, amourous interaction with the girl in the family might have kickstarted his hormones. Oh, if he turned out to be like his father during those years… Well, considering he was still as small as Cooper they might have a few more months until that time started. But that didn't mean his sharp mind couldn't grow up faster. Yet a second later the expression had faded and he became the child once more. "Will I really have a brother or sister?"

At that moment Natasha realized that they hadn't really considered how Alexei would feel about it. Yes, the nice and very traditional sounding idea of giving someone a sibling had been an abstract thought but a strong one since they had feared Alexei might never be able to have a normal childhood and interact with other kids. He had to be kept a secret until he was old enough to understand what he was and defend himself. The boy hadn't seemed to mind though and rejoiced in the time he had with the Barton brood. Flawlessly adapting to the new situation. But having to share his parents' attention? Natasha knew that some kids experienced great envy to that idea. "Would you like to have one?"

"I'd like to have a smaller sibling to play with." He voiced with a big grin. "Someone I can protect and teach."

James breathed a sigh of relief. But then he heard the boy murmur in the quietest of tones. Something along the lines of already too late to object. Did he know? What had he learned by himself with the help of Jarvis and the internet. God forbid… No, the AI wouldn't give such information to a child. But maybe soon, once he actually reached his teenage years,...

The boy walked over to his father and stood beside him while looking out through the window instead of at him. "I know what you and mother did. It's what two people who love each other do. And I know how the result comes to be. And don't you dare try any sex ed in the future. I know enough to be safe once I reach maturity." Then he lifted his head to look at his father and the innocent grin returned. "I wanna play outside and make a few snowmen. Can you help us?"

The other kids cheered behind them.

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Soon the creation of frosty people turned into the construction of ice walls as they prepared everything for a snowball fight. Clint had joined them as well.

Now it was all about 'Barton vs Romanoff-Barnes'.

James was surprised at how much more efficient the kids were at making snowballs. Even with Natasha's help they could barely keep up.

Half an hour later it ended in a tie with every single one of them drenched wet and cold.

"I've made some hot chocolate for you. Get in and dry your clothes in front of the fireplace." Laura announced from the front door.

As they all now sat next to the heat source, buried in blankets and drinking their milk, conversations went on. James started to tell stories of his time with the Howling Commando. Of course a rated down version, mostly about the pranks they had played on each other.

"You're such a hero." Lilly gasped and giggled.

Clint leaned in closer to Natasha. "I didn't know Steve could be such a…"

Before he could finish his sentence Cooper spoke up. "How did you survive falling from the train?"

Natasha watched as James froze.

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