-3844 Days : -02 Hours : - 57 Minutes
"Everybody up! First day back and I refuse to be late!" I shouted down the upstairs corridor of bedrooms. Only hearing shuffling from one, Harlowe my little angel, still young enough to be excited for the first day of school and smart enough to get her hands on the bathroom first.
Making my way back down the stairs and into the kitchen, I plant a very appreciative kiss to my husband's cheek as he hands me waffles with a side of fruit and syrup and tops up my coffee.
"Big day," James says as he lets Agent, the scruffy white dog with brown spots, out the back door for the bathroom. He certainly softened the blow when we lost Max just a few years ago. Clint was crushed at the loss of his best friend but found great amusement in naming his new doggy friend, the mutt is now fully trained as a therapy dog for any one of us, including the avengers if necessary, and I must admit he certainly loves to cuddle.
"Very. Wanna bet how long it'll take for Clint to ask Tony to rehire me?" I ask smugly as James tries to hold back his laughter at our son's soon to be distress.
"I say he'll be texting me by break and calling Tony by lunch and Wade will be beating me up to stay over tonight and protect his birdy from more heartbreak on this day of thunderous woe!" James exaggerates, hands on his chest, sinking to his knees before I see Harlowe barreling towards him, jumping and clinging for a piggy back.
"Dad! Waffles gimme pleeeease…" Harlowe whines as James stands and twirls around, acting as though he's trying to whip her off.
"Oh my! Phillip there's a bug on me! Quick get it off before it eats me whole!" James screams with a womanly, British tone and runs around the island a few times before Nathaniel shuffles his way into the kitchen, heading straight for the coffee machine. I huff to myself, leaving half my breakfast to detach our daughter from her father as he redirects Nate towards the orange juice. I swear I blame Tony for introducing our ten year old to caffeine; although Nathaniel is most like me out of the three of our kids, quiet, intelligent and tough as nails apart from when it comes to early mornings. The only reason he's downstairs before Clint is because the seventeen year old has taken to primping himself every morning right until the final moment we have to leave where he grabs the leftovers from the counter for him and Wade.
"Don' wanna go t'school…" Nate groans as his head hits the table.
"Yes y'do, you wouldn't miss out on the first day, y'just hate havin' to open your eyes this early in the day. You'll get over it, now eat." James, ruffles the boy's hair carefully, taking his own seat between the two kids.
"Clint! You've got five minutes!" I yell in the direction of the stairs, putting my plates in the dish washer before making sure I have everything.
"I know!" Was the very succinct reply I received.
"Are you just gonna let him take the bus?" James asks as he ensures Nate and Harlowe have their lunches and back packs.
"Might sweeten the surprise even further I suppose. Are you with Steve and Tasha this morning?"
"From noon, I have a meeting with Tony about security and the kids this morning. With Phoenix and Grace finally here for more than a quarter of the year and Dax starting in elementary but that's been mostly covered since he's going to the same school as Nate and Harley so we just increase the body count. Don't forget that it's family dinner tonight and everyone's actually home for once, the new recruits are on-call for the night just in case. I'm doing pick up duty and have a great first day, babe," James notifies me of our schedule like he does every morning for the past ten years of our lives and I love him more every day, if that's possible. He drags me in to a kiss that has a little too much tongue to be appropriate, considering the loud grossed-out sounds from our children, but I'll blame that on my glasses and the navy, tight jumper I'm wearing.
"Okay! Time to go! Everybody in the jeep… Clint-" I'm stopped in my tracks when I open the door to our eldest child's very loud, very familiar and very abnormal boyfriend on our front doorstep.
"Hi Phil! How're you on this fine day, the husband treating you right? The kids as well behaved as ever, speaking of kids…" Wade spoke as though on a morning talk show, Nate and Harley not covering their giggles very well at my unamused face, he just kept waving at all of us.
"Clint's on his way out now Wade, why don't I leave him in your trusting hands. Try to be on time this morning, I'd hate to have to give you a detention on the first day," I smiled menacingly but after ten years of friendship with Clint and two years of a more romantic relationship, it worked about as well as it does on James. And Wade, of course, as Wade does, blanked out everyone else when Clint was in his sightlines, so he missed the last part of my sentence.
"Hey Wade," I could feel the glittering smile Clint was sending his boyfriend through my back. I shuffled the kids out the door towards the jeep, leaving Clint and Wade to greet eachother before rushing off to the bus or wandering around until they had no choice but to dash to the high school. Clint was a great kid with A and B grades, working his way towards an archery scholarship of all things, but him and organisation did not go together at all; especially when his "handsome as hell" boyfriend was involved, in Clint's own words.
The rest of my morning was rather calm, getting acquainted with the new people, new office and new goals. Working with the Avengers until my retirement from SHIELD, more than two years ago now, was a job with many dangers and negative points but they are my family and we all stayed together as long as we could. Then, with Tony and Bruce juggling Avengers, eachother, SI, charities and a toddler then Steve and Natasha scouting for new recruits, Bucky and myself having three kids and Thor spending at least half his time off planet as King of Asgard with two children and Jane, it wasn't going to work forever.
Now, after working on SI and Avenger's security for two years, I'm back where I belong, teaching and in control and surrounded by children, literally this time. Mid-Town High's new principal, a big step but I never turned down a challenge. Leaving the battle-field was tough but I know James has good people on his back, he's rarely out in the field now himself, choosing to stick to training and leaving the leading to Steve and Natasha. The new recruits are family as much as the original team are. Scott Lang, Ant-Man, his daughter Cassie is a few months older than Bruce and Tony's son Dax so they get on like an ingenius house on fire. King T'Challa, Black Panther, is a trusted colleague and enjoys his gymnastic routines with Clint and Tasha. Tony's most wonderous creation, Vision, when he, Dax and Nathaniel put their minds togther, no one can stop them and, of course Rhodey, War Machine, steps in for Tony from time to time.
That was probably the biggest surprise, Tony actually settling down and allowing himself to have a break. We have Bruce, and Natasha I suppose, to thank for that; Bruce for asking him out to dinner first and Natasha for shoving Bruce into it already. Then, after being together for almost five years, along comes Dax Lucas Stark "because Banner doesn't really suit". Dax is now a five year old with genius intellect and ironically a bit of a temper but Clint and Wade treat him like a little brother.
As I hear the bell go off signalling first period, I make my way to my first class. I decided to take some liberty in my new role, allowing myself a few junior and senior politics and history classes. My first being a junior politics class with a few familiar names. I smile to myself, thinking back to how Clint was so terrified of being a big brother only to have grown into the best sibling to his little brother and sister, just like he promised, as well as Dax, and Thor and Jane's daughters, Phoenix and Grace. Phoenix latches onto Clint like a limpet and Wade just carries her around like she weighs nothing, the brown haired rogue is a few months younger (Asgardian time is complicated) than them both but has made it into the same school year this year with Thor and Jane allowing the girls to be on Earth for at least the school months. Grace on the other hand is a far more subdued blonde eleven year old, her and Nathaniel are similar in mannerisms but she treats Harlowe like the twin she doesn't have, the nine year old just counteracts her quiet with loud and tactile moves. I try not to laugh as I finally enter the classroom on my right, not bothering to look up as the teenagers bundle into their seats; I wait for the noises of realisation…
*THUNK* Clint's head hits the desk in the back row in my peripheral view.
"Huh?!" Wade's head tilts in curiousity at us both.
"Yay!" Phoenix almost jumps out of her seat in excitement.
"Good morning class, I am your new politics teacher and your principal, Mr Barnes-Coulson. You may call me Coulson," silence greets me but I see the faces of Clint's friends, Peter Parker, Ororo Munroe and the Richard's twins lighting up with arrays of emotion.
"I would appreciate silence in my classroom and if you feel the rules aren't something you need to abide by, do me a favour and remove yourself to my office so we may discuss it further… Mr Barnes-Coulson, no talking please." I peer at his sandy head over my glasses then he reddens slightly at the surname, I can make out the hand gestures in Wade's direction.
"I wasn't talking… sir,"
"Yes you were," I warn him in both sign language and vocally, making sure he understands that talking with his hands still counts.
"Aw, Dad, no," whines to himself before his head hits the desk one more time and Wade pouts at me. Well, this'll certainly be interesting.
"I'm not late!" I warn James to say a word as I rush from the Stark elevator to take my seat at the table.
"Phillip, please, Clint and I are here before you…" Wade tuts before Clint smacks the back of his head giving him a warning glare better than I ever could.
"So, Phil, I'm to rehire you?" Tony asks, passing the potato salad in my direction, the table working like a conveyor belt with the adults on the right handside and the kids down the left end, passing salads, sauces and plates of burgers, steaks and sausages.
"Hm. What time did he call you at?" I smirk, watching James' reaction as he perks up.
"Eleven thirty, Phillip," FRIDAY answers in lewd of Tony, stuffing his face full of Thor's asgardian special.
"Dammit!"
"Language," reverberates around the table as at least four parental figures warn James, before we all burst out laughing in time for James to hand me a twenty.
"Please Dad! Come on! You know you hate being out of the action, school isn't a place for your skills!" Clint bargains, blue eyes pleading with me.
"I like it. You work that classroom like no other Phil, don't let anyone tell you otherwise…" Wade recieves another slap to the back of the head from Clint before they both make goo goo eyes at eachother.
"I'm there to watch over you and your friends, train you for your new jobs, if you want them and I always did love to crunch numbers," I smirk as the boys' faces drop, Phoenix laughs so hard tears are produced and the other adults just give Clint a look as though to say, 'you really didn't think your Father, the super spy, wouldn't know about your rag tag bunch of vigilante friends'.
"I'll brief you on training times later kids. I wouldn't laugh Phoenix, that means you too," James grins before swallowing down his potatoes and Phoenix quiets with a thunderous, forgive the pun, look to her Father who just smiles like the big puppy he is.
"Can we be superheroes too Dad?" Nate jumps in, joy written all over his face.
"We'll see, you'll have to form your own team, and do all your homework and clean the house and not fight with your siblings…" James listed on and on as Nate rolled his eyes at us, Clint's fighting a laugh and Harley's eyes light up gleefully, sharing looks with Grace who just look plain terrified.
Then, that's obviously the best time for Dax to jump in from next to Bruce and Clint;
"I'll be unique, I'm gonna be a supervillain, muhahahaha!" He raises his arms above his head as though to summon his dark powers. Bruce just shakes his head in his hands and Tony struggles to swallow his food. Clint, being the wonderful, loving boy we raised decides to defuse the 'Dax' moment by tickling him into roars of laughter before throwing him onto his shoulders and declaring his loyalty to the "most evil of all villains, Dax" and cohersing, with little issue, Wade to join him when Harlowe makes kissing noises and decides to create her own team, starting with a very bored looking Nathaniel and Grace jumps in as her sister leaps onto Wade's back in a show of support.
Looking around the room at the love in each parents' eyes, the fierce protective streaks running through each member of this team and the family that I have gained over the past years. Nothing could ever come between us; we may fight supervillains, or raise them apparently, but no amount of evil could disrupt the love and loyalty that lies in our family. My husband catches my eyes, his glinting with tears of laughter at the three beings we raised, and we both know that we've kept our pinkie promises, both to eachother and to our children.