Right firstly, let me apologise for the appalling length of time between updates. I've been busy, but I feel so bad that I've left it so long. SO my plan is to upload the next chapter after this within the next two days!

He paced footsteps at a slower rate than normal, savouring every noise made as his feet connected with the hard grey surface. Although he hadn't been in the room yet, he had a pretty good idea what he was about to be faced with. He had expected to be in this position for a while, ever since the battle against Hydra a couple of days ago. Sighing a little, he took a deep breath, pushing out his chest as it inflated, and strode through the automatic door.

"Ahh, Agent Barton, so good of you to finally join us. Please take a seat."

The words were phrased in a polite manner but the delivery was just clinging onto the edge of being civil. The strain in Fury's voice, alongside the bulging eye that was staring at him, told Clint not to take his time anymore. Hurrying to a seat, he found himself next to Tony, who gave him a small wink, and tapped a finger on his watch as he sat in the chair.

'Typical Tony, can't take anything seriously'

Normally the playboy's actions would have received an eye-roll from him, but this time Clint smirked to himself, making sure that his smirk was not visible on his face. If Fury was aiming for a target to home in on, Tony Stark was playing up to the part spectacularly.

"It has come to my attention that previous orders are being ignored. Specific orders, that were given for good reason!"

Clint shifted slightly in his seat, uncomfortable at where he knew this little lecture was heading.

"Now would any of you care to explain to me exactly why the Avengers spent their time, and my resources hunting after the Black Widow, when I expressively told you not to?!" Fury's glare bore straight into Clint's skull, as he raged.

'Damn. Knew it."

Before Clint could clear his throat to reply in some form of protest, Steve answered, directing Fury's attention away from the archer.

"Sir the mission was to battle Hydra, and protect the civilians in the nearby area. Hydra were our target, not the Black Widow."

The calmness with which the Captain responded to Fury's anger, seemed to momentarily confused the director; mainly because he was expecting Barton to answer him, but he quickly composed himself back to his manic state.

"And just how did you manage to track down Hydra and give yourselves this self-assigned mission?"

"Ay, we followed the maiden who does Baron Strucker's bidding, as you insinuate; but thy Avengers and I believed this to be vital to saving the lives of many Midgardians…."

"So you admit you clearly violated my order then!"

"But the lives of Midgardians were saved in the process….."

Clint had to supress another chortle as Fury's eye continued to bulge even more. Thor was genuinely perplexed at the issue, and it was only aggravating SHIELD director further.

"Saved? Saved?!" Fury let out a manic chuckle, which gave Clint the shivers, "Our intelligence on the inside told us that Strucker was not planning to attack for a few weeks. I've been working my ass off, organising a counter attack to take out Strucker, and you!" Spittle flew from his mouth, as he angrily jabbed a finger in the direction of each of the men in turn, "You ruined weeks of strategy, by rushing in and causing an all-out shoot out in the middle of New York City!"

Fury turned back to Thor, his face centimetres from the God's,

"You talk about saving lives. Your impatience caused more casualties than there should have been!"

Clint swore he could hear a distant rumble of thunder, and decided enough was enough. Standing from his seat, he cleared his throat.

"It was my impatience. I was the one who wanted to find her.."

Clint wasn't sure exactly how he was going to continue, but Fury didn't give him the chance. Striding over towards him, head cocked to one side, the Director looked dangerously violent as he closed in on Clint.

"You think I don't already know that?!"

"Actually we all agreed to the plan."

Fury whipped his head round to see the smallest of the men standing, and took a moment before deciding it was probably not the best idea to rant at Bruce Banner.

"No. It was my idea. I was the one who pushed it." Clint refused to let any of his team mates take the blame, besides it was pretty clear that Fury already knew it had been due to Clint.

"And then, here is my favourite part. Instead of capturing Strucker, as you so insistently plead was your task behind this fiasco, you captured the Black Widow!"

Clint froze for a moment, he should have realised that S.H.I.E.L.D would already know about Natasha being in the basement, but for some reason he hadn't. Before he could speak a word, the last voice in the room made it's appearance.

"Why do you presume that we have the Black Widow?"

Tony Stark was leaning back in his chair, one arm resting on the back of Clint's. His right leg was crossed, so his ankle rested on his left thigh, and he was still wearing those infernal sunglasses of his.

'Only you, Stark, could look so casual, when asking one of the stupidest questions in history, to one of the most powerful men I've met…'

"Because, Stark, I have seen the evidence myself. I have seen the damn images of the whole thing with my own eyes!" Turning back to face Clint he continued his rant, "What the hell are you playing at here Barton?! Not only did you show complete disregard for my orders, by targeting the Black Widow, don't argue with me that Strucker was the target, but you captured her as well?!"

Clint had been half paying attention to Fury's rant; because out of the corner of his eye, while the man had been rambling on, Clint had noticed a frowning grin appear on Tony's face, a look Clint had seen many times before.

'No, no, no! Stark! Don't even thi….'

"Eyes?"

'..nk about it. Shit.'

Fury's face darkened, if that was even possible at this moment in time. As tempting as it was to leave Tony to face what he had been deserving for probably quite a long time, Clint quickly stepped in, blurting out the first thing that came into his head,

"We figured she was the next best thing. That Strucker would want to get her back."

Clint stiffened as the lie spilled from his mouth, knowing Fury would cut through it in a second, and sure enough, a delusional smile formed on Fury's face, as though he couldn't believe the ludicrous statement.

"Cut the crap Barton! You knew he wouldn't come for her! This wasn't about Strucker at all! This was about settling a score, a score I told you to forget about!"

With this last exertion Fury's energy seemed to fade away, anger melting into tired frustration. Placing on hand on his hip, and the other across his forehead, he let out a deep sigh before quietly muttering,

"Widow didn't betray you like you think."

Although he could sense a ripple of confusion and shock among the room, Clint kept his steely gaze on the S.H.I.E.L.D director.

"What exactly is that supposed to mean?"

His voice came out with more of a growly tone than he had intended, but his voice kept steady. More steady than he felt inside. Fury removed his hand from his forehead and lifted his head to stare at Clint.

"Black Widow isn't your enemy…"

"She betrayed me! She double crossed me and left me to rot in a cell! How exactly is she not my enemy?!"

Clint regretted it as soon as the words had left his mouth. Not what he had said. He'd meant every word, but the fact that he had displayed his raw emotion to his teammates, in probably the most uncontrolled outburst they had ever witnessed from him. He was always the level headed one, calm against all the odds.

"If you let me continue Barton...Widow is working for S.H.I.E.L.D. Undercover, to infiltrate Strucker's base..." ignoring the bewildered looks from the men in the room, the operative continued, "Yes, the Widow 'betrayed' you in a manner of sorts, but only to protect her cover…."

Clint's eyes narrowed at this. All this time, Fury had known exactly what was going on, he'd known about Natasha framing him, and he had still arrested him.

"You locked me up! You were in on this whole thing!"

"In on it? I arranged it!"

"And you didn't think to tell me, when I started chasing after her, that she was secretly on our side?!" Clint noticed he was edging closer towards the Director with each sentence, and not in a friendly way, but he couldn't stop himself.

"I thought you'd be useful to begin with. After all Strucker doesn't just let anybody into his inner circle, especially not a former S. .L.D agent. I decided that Widow would be a much more convincing if she had an old partner she'd turned against hunting her down!" Fury paused as he took another heavy sigh, "Until now."

Clint could feel his hands trembling slightly, but was unsure as to whether this was because of anger, or whether he was starting to believe Fury.

'If he's telling the truth, then I've just destroyed a master operation…But he can't be telling the truth….?'

Eyes still narrowed in Fury's direction, he muttered his second lie of the meeting,

"Natasha's good, but she's not that good. I…."

"You what? You would have seen through her act? You know she's that good. Better even."

Clint continue to stare at the man in front of him, on the outside seeming angry, but composed, on the inside, falling apart. For almost a year now he'd been hunting the Black Widow down, revenge almost turning into obsession, and now it had all been for nothing. Clint thought about his run-ins with Natasha, her cold calculating green eyes, the lack of emotion in her voice. Could she have really been acting this whole time?

'What about the way she bruised your ribs and gave you a concussion? That didn't seem too pretend-like."

But Clint knew it was just self-defence, both in the fact that he had been trying to kill her, and that she had been protecting her undercover role. Besides, he knew that Natasha could deliver a lot worse, more fatal blows if she wished.

A murmur of noise from the surrounding men, withdrew Clint from his thinking. Each of the men in the room conveyed a different expression; Thor had a look of confusion on his face, that made Clint have to wonder if Thor actually understood about undercover assignments. Captain America held a look of horror, as Clint had been expecting; Bruce Banner looked slightly…disappointed? Clint couldn't quite make it out, but he was sure he could sense disappointment on the man's face. And Tony, well Stark had a dreamy look in his eyes, accompanied it a Cheshire like grin. Clint rolled his eyes at the billionaire.

'The damn fool is impressed with Widow. Not the time Stark.'

Steve was the first one to actually speak, rising from his seat as he did,

"We have to release her. Right away, if what you say is true Sir then we can't afford to lose more time."

It was Fury's turn to roll his eye this time, and nodded at Cap'. As Steve went to walk out of the room, Thor spoke up,

"I don't understand. The Widow maiden, she is not on our side of the battle, but alas she fights beside us?"

Steve opened his mouth to offer more explanation, but Fury patted him on the shoulder and nodded at the Asguardian.

"How the maiden could live such a double life, and not give herself away?"

'She couldn't.'

Clint flashbacked to one of their big showdowns with Hydra; when everyone else had been busy in the heat of battle, and how he'd chased Natasha. How things had backfired for him, and he'd ended up trapped in Strucker's grasp, the life being sucked from him. He had thought that was the end. Only to be saved by Natasha, who had smacked Strucker over the head, rendering him unconscious. At the time he had been confused, believing the only reason she could have done that was so she could have the satisfaction of killing him herself. But instead she had carried Strucker's limp form away and left Clint sitting on the floor. It all made sense now.