This chapter was written by me, and betaed by Awkward Hawk!

Chapter 11

Clint couldn't help but melt at Tony's eyes; they held so much love and determination. He wasn't used to it, he had been alone for so long and never let anyone get close. Until now that is. He was the kind of guy that preferred to suffer alone, and not burden anyone with his problems. It was what he was used to; he had very few people that actually wanted to care for him. His father had, once upon a time, Barney had for a while, then it was the ringmaster, and now it was Tony, the man he fell for. Now here was Tony, declaring that would protect him, and it left a warm, comfortable feeling in his chest.

Clint smiled softly, and placed a soft kiss on Tony's lips. He pulled away and buried his face in his boyfriend's neck. "I know you will."

Tony sighed happily, wrapping his arms tighter around Clint. "Good, now are you up for some food? Bruce should be here soon to make sure you're okay."

Clint smiled again. "Yeah, I'm kinda hungry."

Tony grinned and stood up, pulling Clint with him. "Well let's go!"

Clint laughed. "Tony, I'm still in my boxers, I need some clothes."

"You can borrow some of mine!" Tony declared, before adding softly, "Besides, I don't want you to be alone until we get this guy. Who knows when he can attack and I don't want you to deal with it alone."

Clint was touched by Tony's words. He pulled Tony against and kissed him passionately. Tony was surprised but responded eagerly. They reluctantly separated, and Tony braced his forehead against Clint's. He took in the slightly swollen lips, the disheveled appearance and could only think, even dead tired, he still looks beautiful. He placed a quick kiss to the swollen lips, God he could kiss those lips all day. "Not that I'm complaining, but what was that for?" He asked.

Clint just smiled. "It was for caring about me. It's for looking out for me."

Tony smiled back. "You deserve someone to look after you. You shouldn't have to be alone anymore."

Clint had tears in his eyes. It had been a long time since he had cried. The last time had been when he was tortured by his brother. It had taken him months to get over the fact that his brother, the only family he had left hated him, wanted him dead, and even took pleasure in torturing him. He had been depressed for weeks and didn't fully snap out of it until a few months later. It was the hardest thing for him to do, to move on. But he did, and now he is glad he did. He would never have met Tony.

Tony gently wiped away the tears. "What's wrong baby? Did I say something wrong?"

Clint shook his head, and buried his face once again in Tony's neck; it was his favorite position at the moment. "No," He whispered, voice full of emotion, "It's that… I've wanted to hear that for so long, and I had lost hope. I've always wanted someone that would just love me…"

Tony understood what he meant. He had wanted the same thing, and it felt so good to be loved. He held Clint even tighter. "I love you."

"I love you too." Was the muffled reply.

The moment was ended by JARVIS. "Sir, Mr. Banner is waiting outside your apartment."

"Talk about a mood killer." Clint muttered, and Tony snorted.

"Now you know how I feel." Tony replied and quickly made his way to the front door, and opened it.

Bruce had a black bag in one hand and was slightly breathless. "I came as soon as I could. What happened?"

Tony sighed, "Come in. we need to talk."

Bruce looked concerned, "Did something happen?" he asked as he followed Tony. He followed the billionaire into the kitchen where it Clint was at the stove. He was confused, why would Tony call him if everything seemed fine? He sat down at the table and Tony sat opposite of him. "Thanks for getting here fast Bruce."

"No problem, what's going on Tony? JARVIS said it was an emergency." Bruce hedged.

Tony sighed and rubbed the back of his neck. "DO you remember the experiment we, well I, did?"

"Yes, what does that have to do with anything?" Bruce asked again.

"Well, we found out that Clint's dreams aren't really dreams per se, it's a psychological attack. Someone is attacking him through his dreams." Tony answered gravely.

Bruce frowned. "How could that be possible?"

"Fury sent over Garrett Mikhail's dossier, he's the guy that is attacking." Tony said and handed Bruce a file that had classified stamped on it.

Clint cocked an eyebrow from where he was at the stove, "When were you planning on telling me that he had a file?"

Tony shifted in his seat. "Um… when… he was caught?"

Clint's eyes narrowed. "Convenient, I wonder if I should go back to my room."

Tony immediately jumped up. "No! I'm sorry, please don't go." He begged, and clasped his boyfriend's in his.

Clint's eyes hardened, and Tony gulped. "So why should I stay? You're obviously keeping things from me."

"I'll tell you everything." Tony replied immediately. Clint stared at him for a few seconds, before he pulled one of his hands free and patted Tony on the head. "Good boy." He said and took Tony's previous spot at the table.

Tony stood there speechless, his mouth opening and closing. Bruce couldn't hold back the snort. "I think you broke him. I've never seen him speechless."

Clint just smirked. "Give it a few minutes; his mouth will catch up with his brain."

Tony spun around. "That was not nice."

"I have to train you somehow." Clint replied unrepentantly.

Tony scowled but sat down next to Clint and put an arm around him. "When will dinner be ready?"

Clint just rolled his eyes. "You have about twenty minutes."

Bruce just watched in amusement as the two men interacted. Clint had leaned into Tony's body and he could see the love shining in both sets of eyes. It was refreshing and nice to see such pure love and adoration. He had only known Clint for a short time but he liked to think he was good at reading people. When he first met Clint he could automatically see that Clint felt alone, felt unworthy of being with someone. It was all in his eyes, he may look you square in the eye but you could see the loneliness hidden in the steely depths. It was also in his posture, he never faced anyone. His body was one way and he turned his head to talk. It was also in his attitude, he was distant with people, and was always seeking quiet places. It was a big contrast to Tony. Tony loved life. He was an upbeat person, he energetic, he was annoying, he was happy, and he was a big kid. Even though he was happy, there was a still a sense of loneliness. Bruce was happy to see them both smiling, it was long past time for both of them to be happy.

"Bruce?" A curious voice interrupted his thoughts.

"Hmm?" Bruce snapped out of his daze.

"You were in your own little world." Clint informed him, "Dinner is ready."

The three men ate, joking and having a good time. Once the dishes were cleared the three teammates continued their discussion.

"I guess I was. Anyways, what were you saying Tony?" Bruce redirected.

Tony perked up, "We were talking about Garrett Mikhail."

Bruce remembered and picked up the file that had gone forgotten. "Garrett Mikhail, age twenty seven, green eyes, blond hair. Hmm, apparently he was recently affiliated with HYDRA. That could be where he got his powers, mutant experiments, technological advancements, he may have even had the powers to begin with. What's your connection to him?"

Clint sighed. "You know I lived in the circus right?" he asked and continued at Bruce's nod, "There was a man there by the name Trickshot. He and another man called the Swordsman were the two top dogs. Most of the underlings, or the acts that were just fillers, followed them around like lost puppies. There was one kid that followed Trickshot around, just like he was God walking Earth. It was disturbing; he seemed to hang on every single word he said. If anyone even looked at Trickshot wrong he would go off and almost beat you to death."

"Interesting, why would he even want revenge after all these years?" Bruce asked.

"Hell if I know. I had forgotten about the little stalker when I became Hawkeye." Clint replied truthfully.

"Clint…" Tony hesitated, "What happened between you and your brother?"

Clint stiffened. "Why?"

"Because one of his last known accomplices was Barney Barton." Tony replied softly.

Clint's shoulders slumped, looking completely defeated. Tony held him tighter, hating himself for causing his boyfriend's pain. "That explains everything." He whispered.

"Why is that Clint?" Bruce asked softly.

"A few years ago, Barney resurfaced. This time, he was worse than I remember. He was working his way through the small gangs and uniting them. He was cautious and SHIELD couldn't get him… they eventually sent me in." Clint began in a monotone voice, "That was what he was waiting for. It was a trap and I fell right in it. For six months… I was tortured. By my own brother." He whispered brokenly.

Tony gasped, he didn't know how his own brother could torture him. He pulled Clint even closer and wrapped his other arm around him. Clint had silent tears streaming down his face, but his voice was calm and even, "Maria finally found me, but I was a mess. I was in the med bay for three weeks, and that was with cutting edge medical technology."

Tony felt like he was going to be ill. Clint, his Hawk, had been hurt. "Oh God, baby, I'm so sorry."

Clint just continued. "I haven't seen or heard from him since. Why now?"

Tony just held him tighter. "I don't know, baby, I don't know."

Bruce felt his heart ache for the agent. To have his brother turn on him like that… it was horrible. "Clint, is that why Garrett is attacking you?"

Clint's eyes were blank, glazed over with memories and pain. "Yeah, Barney's up to his old tricks again."