Wow, it's been almost a week since I've updated! Sorry about that :/ This is by far the longest chapter I've ever written for this story, so hopefully that will make up for it. There are a lot of things going on in this chapter that will make a lot of people very, very happy! Also, LOTS of drama in this chapter, and when I say LOTS I mean LLLLOOOOOOTTTTTSSSS! That's part of the reason why it took so long. Also had a real busy week. Two projects, club meetings, one really big test. Oh, and I need glasses so I had to get that taken care of! Now I'll officially get to be a nerdy girl with glasses who writes fanfictions about her favorite movie, the Avengers! Everything is falling into place! Anyways, back to the story! If I could say one thing about this chapter, I'd say it's probably one of, if not the, most important chapter of the story. Read on to find out why! Enjoy
Chapter 8: You're Invited
**Tony**
Tony and Pepper returned to the tower with smiles on their faces. They were both admiring the sonogram of their son that they'd had printed to show their friends. This had to be one of the happiest days of Tony's life.
"I guess this means we need to start thinking about boy names." Pepper said, tucking the sonogram into her bag.
"Oh, yea. We did only discuss girl names on our way over didn't we?" Tony realized. They walked into the lobby and headed for the elevators.
"What do you think about Evan?" Pepper asked as they neared the front desk. Tony made a face. "Okay then, how about Daniel?" That had a better ring to it.
"Put that one on the list." He told her.
"Um, excuse me, Mr. Stark?" The young receptionist said as they passed her desk.
"Yea?" Tony answered. She held up a white envelope.
"A man came by earlier and told me to give this to you. He said you would know what to do with it." She said handing it to him. There was a name written elegantly across the top of it: Natalia. Tony narrowed his eyes.
"Did you happen to get this guy's name?" He asked her. She shook her head.
"He was gone before I could ask."
"Alright then, thank you Kelly." Tony said politely before joining Pepper by the elevators.
"What was that about?" She asked. He wordlessly handed her the envelope. "Natalia?"
"It's Natasha's Russian name. Her real name." Pepper gasped.
"You don't think this is from…" She trailed off as Tony nodded. He didn't just think, he knew.
**Natasha**
Natasha allowed the steaming hot water to calm her down as she tried to process what had almost happened in the gym. Clint had almost kissed her! What was he thinking? But more importantly, what was she thinking? She should have stopped him, but she didn't. Could there be a part of her that didn't want to stop him? Was there something somewhere inside her that wished Steve hadn't walked in when he did? Had she wanted Clint to kiss her?
Natasha shook her head as though it would help clear her mind. Why was she even thinking about this still? She needed to get her thoughts under control and start focusing on Mara. That was why she was here after all. Nothing had happened between her and Clint and nothing was going to happen. Ever. She just needed to forget about the whole thing and direct all her attention to finding her daughter.
Finally feeling as though she had calmed down enough, Natasha shut the water off and stepped out of the shower. She wrapped a towel around herself and began drying her body rigorously. As soon as she was dry she put on a tank-top and a pair of skinny jeans she'd laid out for herself and slid into a dark leather jacket. Natasha decided that she should find out how Bruce was coming with Varkov's location.
"Hey, JARVIS?" She called, wondering if the AI would even respond.
"Yes, Ms. Romanoff?" The British voice responded.
"Could you tell me where Bruce is?" She asked.
"Certainly. He's in the kitchen on the top floor." JARVIS replied. Natasha nodded to herself.
"Okay, thanks." She said, and exited the room. Once in the elevator she clicked the button for the top floor, which had become the main gathering place for all the Avengers when they'd all stayed there. The elevator dinged, the doors opened, and Natasha stepped out. She glanced around nervously, checking to see if Clint was there. When she saw that he was nowhere to be found, Natasha noticed Bruce sitting alone at the kitchen table. He looked up when he heard the elevator and smiled.
"Good morning." He said, glancing at his watch. "Or should I say afternoon. It's almost 1:00 already." Huh. It was that late already?
"Well, good afternoon then." She said, settling into the chair next to him. Bruce smiled at her and looked into his mug of tea he had in front of him.
"I'm guessing you want to know how it's coming with Varkov." He said knowingly. She smiled sheepishly. Her smile, however, vanished when she saw Bruce's reaction. "I'm not going to lie to you. We've got nothing. We checked all his previous locations, did a face-trace, tracked cell phones, credit cards, checks, you name it. It's always a dead end. He's hiding and he obviously knows what he's doing." Natasha sighed heavily, disappointed that there were no leads as to where this bastard was. She opened her mouth to say something but was interrupted by the ding of the elevator. They both turned around to see Clint walk out.
"Hey uh, Natasha, could we talk for a moment?" He asked uncomfortably when he saw her sitting at the table. She nodded wordlessly and shoved away from the table. He led her into the bathroom down the hall and closed the door. "Look," he began, "about what happened earlier…"
"Almost happened." She said, cutting him off. "I know what you're going to say. You have a girlfriend and what almost happened didn't happen, shouldn't happen, and can't happen. So, why don't we just forget about it." Natasha said knowingly. "How'd I do?"
"Pretty spot on, actually." He said trying to hide his surprise. She gave him a small apologetic smile and turned to leave the bathroom when Clint caught her arm. "Wait," he said, pulling her back. "How did you know I had a girlfriend?" Natasha rolled her eyes.
"Oh, please. The blonde receptionist at the station? The second I said your name she went on the defensive. Plus, you always had a thing for blondes." Clint smiled slightly.
"You're good." He said causing her to smile in satisfaction.
"Haven't I always been?" She said cockily.
"Yea, you've always been full of it too." He laughed.
"How long have you known me?" Natasha asked sarcastically, glad that what had almost happened in the gym earlier wasn't making things awkward. Clint smirked as she walked past him and opened the door. They both left the bathroom and went back to the living area. Thor and Steve had both come up and were sitting on the couch watching television. Steve glanced up when they entered the room, giving Natasha a curious look. She smiled at him and he returned his attention to the screen.
Just then, the familiar ding of the elevator sounded and everyone's attention turned to Tony and Pepper as they stepped out. Natasha suddenly remembered something about Pepper having an ultrasound this week.
"Oh, great. You're all here." Tony said, barely containing his excitement. "We have something to tell you." The billionaire was practically jumping out of his pants.
"Well?" Clint asked.
"Tell us before you explode, Stark." Steve said from the couch.
"Pepper and I are going to have a son!" Tony exclaimed. Natasha grinned and ran over to hug Pepper.
"That's great! I'm so happy for you!" She said enthusiastically. The other Avengers chimed in with their 'congratulations'.
"Thank you." The pregnant woman said appreciatively. "But, let's not celebrate quite yet." She glanced at Tony.
"Natasha," he said while moving towards her. "Kelly said a man came by and dropped this off. I'm assuming it's for you." Tony handed her a white envelope. She flipped it over to see Natalia written neatly across the top.
**Clint**
Clint saw every muscle in Natasha's body go tense.
"What is that?" He asked. "Is it from Varkov?"
"I think so." She answered quietly before tearing the envelope open and pulling out two pieces of paper. She read over them. "It's an invitation." All the Avengers had gathered near Natasha to see the papers.
"An invitation to what?" Clint asked.
"A party." She answered. "It's an invite to a formal party in… Paris, France."
"Paris, France?" Everyone said in unison. Natasha nodded.
"That's what it says." She passed it around for everyone to see.
"Why would he invite you to a party all the way in France?" He asked when he read over the invite. She shrugged.
"All I know is that he tends to pick locations that give him an advantage." The others nodded.
"Give me the invitation. I'll check out the address to see if there's anything there that could catch us off guard." Said Tony. Natasha folded the paper in half and handed it to him.
"What does the other paper say?" Bruce asked, pointing to the piece of folded notebook paper in her hand. She opened it and began to read it out loud.
"'Dear Natalia. I have found myself in a rare mood of generosity lately. I understand that the mission I tasked you with, even with the help of Tony Stark, is quite challenging and the punishment for its incompletion is quite severe. I'm willing to renegotiate our terms in person. I will also allow you to visit with your daughter, just to remind you what you're trying to save. I expect to see you at my party in two days. If you do not come, I will not hesitate to kill you daughter before the night's end. P.S. Do bring your friends. It's going to be a marvelous night! Yours truly, Sergei Varkov.'" Natasha finished reading the letter and handed it to Clint, who read over it again.
"I don't like it." He said once he'd finished rereading it. "It's got to be a trap." She nodded in agreement.
"I know. But we have to go." Everyone stared at her.
"If we know it's a trap, why the hell would we go?" Tony asked exasperated.
"Because," Natasha said angrily, "he said if we aren't there, he'll kill Mara. We're going. End of story." She snatched the letter out of Clint's hands and turned to leave the room, but he caught her arm.
"No one ever said we weren't going." Clint said reassuringly.
"I'm sure if he tries to harm any of us we shall be able to handle him." Thor chimed in. Natasha sighed and nodded.
"We're probably going to need something to wear, though." Clint said, realizing that he didn't have a suit. Tony grinned and pulled out his wallet.
"Leave that to the billionaire." He said waving the piece of leather in front of everyone's faces.
"Great! I know the greatest little boutique on 5th Avenue. It has the most gorgeous dresses and some of the loveliest suits I've ever seen!" Pepper exclaimed. Tony immediately raised his hand.
"All in favor of wherever it is Pepper is talking about." Everyone raised their hand just to simplify things. Pepper squealed with excitement.
"Yay! I'll go get my bag!" She said as she hurriedly headed down the hall. Natasha rushed after her.
"I'll come with you." She called after the pregnant woman.
"Well, it looks like we're going shopping." Clint sighed. "This is gonna be fun."
**Natasha**
"Hey, Pepper? Do you see my phone over there?" Natasha called to Pepper from the opposite side of her room. They had gone down to get some of Natasha's things after Pepper had gotten her bag. She had set her phone down for one second but now it was gone.
"Seriously, Natasha, you are the only person I have ever met who takes longer than me to get ready to go somewhere." Pepper said impatiently. Natasha rolled her eyes.
"Could you just help me look for it? The guys are waiting." She heard Pepper sigh and walk over to the bed. "Here it is." She called when she checked the bedside table.
"Thanks," Natasha said quickly glancing over her shoulder to see Pepper looking at her iPhone. "Let me just grab a few more things."
"Is this you and Mara?" Pepper asked as Natasha shoved a few more things into her bag. She froze. The background on her phone. She'd forgotten to change the background on her phone! "Wow," Pepper breathed. "She looks… just… like…" She trailed off and Natasha spun around to see her staring at her phone in complete shock. It was too late. She knew. "Oh my God." Pepper gasped.
"Pepper…" Natasha began, but she wasn't sure what to say. Where was she supposed to go from here? Silence fell over them for a few moments, only to be broken by Pepper's disbelieving voice.
"How could you not say anything?" She asked, completely dumbfounded. Natasha was at a loss for words.
"I… uh…" She stuttered as she attempted to form a sentence. How was she supposed to explain this?
"This is unbelievable." Pepper had begun pacing the room.
"Look, don't go making assumptions about anything until you know the whole story." Natasha said as forcefully as she could, although her voice was still shaky.
"I'm not assuming anything. I just wish you'd been up front about this from the beginning." Pepper tried reasoning. Natasha scoffed.
"He doesn't even know, so how the hell was I supposed to tell any of you?" She shot back angrily. Pepper stopped pacing and stared at her in utter amazement.
"He doesn't know?" She asked placing her hand on her chest. Whoops. "Natasha, how could you not tell him something like this?" Natasha opened her mouth to answer but was cut off by a sudden knock on the door.
"Are you two almost ready? We really should get a move on!" Tony called from the hallway.
"We're coming." Pepper replied before glancing at Natasha. She gave her a pleading look.
"Please don't say anything." She practically begged. Pepper gave her an incredulous look.
"I'm not saying anything. You are, and soon." And with that, she walked out of the room and joined the others in the hall. Natasha just stood there, trying to understand what had just happened. She had to remember to change the background on her phone before someone else saw it. She couldn't risk anyone else finding out like that, especially if they had a big mouth. This was something she was going to need to tell everyone in person, but not yet. Natasha wasn't ready. Suddenly, Clint stuck his head through the door, causing her to jump.
"Are you coming?" He asked. She nodded and exited the room, joining the others by the elevator.
"Well it's about time!" Tony exclaimed as he tapped the button.
"Sorry," she said annoyed. "I was trying to find my phone." The elevator dinged and they all filed in as Tony clicked the button for the lobby. Natasha could feel Pepper's gaze boring into the back of her head. All she could do is hope that the pregnant woman would follow through on her promise and not say anything to the guys. Not yet.
Pepper had been right. The little boutique was absolutely perfect for the type of party they would be attending. Natasha browsed through multiple gowns that would suit her with Pepper making a few suggestions here and there.
"What about this one?" Pepper pointed out a long red ball gown that was hanging in the window. Natasha cocked her head.
"It's a little ostentatious, don't you think? Besides, I would barely be able to move in that dress, much less fight if that's what it comes to." She said thoughtfully. Pepper nodded and turned around to look at some of the other dresses.
"Oh, what about this one?" She asked again after only looking at a few dresses on one of the racks. Natasha looked the dress from top to bottom. It was a spaghetti strap black maxi dress with a slit along the left side that went all the way up to the red band of fabric that was draped around the hip. "I think it's perfect. Not too ostentatious, but not too discrete. Also the slit in the side will allow you to move more freely. What do you think?"
"It'll be perfect." Natasha agreed as she took the dress from Pepper's hands and held it up to herself while looking in one of the store's many mirrors. "This will definitely work."
"Wow, that looks amazing." Clint said as he walked up behind her. A small smiled tugged at the corners of her lips.
"Thank you." She replied. He gave her a small smile in return before turning his attention to Pepper.
"Hey, Tony says he needs your help." He told her, pointing his thumb towards the men's section. Pepper rolled her eyes.
"Of course he does. That man couldn't tie his shoes without me." She huffed as she strode off in the direction Clint was pointing. They both stared after her.
"Is she alright?" He asked suddenly. Natasha shrugged.
"I think so. Why do you ask?"
"I don't know, she just seems a little off is all." Clint told her, still looking in the direction Pepper had gone in. Natasha scoffed.
"There are about a million different things that can make a pregnant woman seem 'off'. It's probably just hormones." He raised an eyebrow at her.
"Yeah, I guess." She nodded and glanced at the register towards the front of the store.
"Um, I'm going to go pay for this real quick." Natasha turned and began walking towards the register.
"Alright." Clint said as she left him behind. Once she was sure he could no longer hear her, Natasha quietly cursed to herself. He knew there was something going on.
"Damn him and his stupid attention to detail." She whispered. When Clint thought something was up, he usually wasn't wrong, and he knew it. He would just keep digging and digging until he found out what was going on. Natasha silently prayed that, for just this once, he decided to let it go.
**Clint**
There was something going on with Pepper and Natasha, and Clint just couldn't let it go. He had noticed the odd looks Pepper had given Natasha on the ride to the boutique and how she had avoided looking anyone in the eye. At first he'd just thought they were mad at each other for some reason, but then he noticed how uncomfortable Natasha seemed when she was around the others. They were hiding something, but what?
Suddenly, the bell on the front door rang and a little blonde girl walked in. Clint's eyes went wide when he recognized the girl to be none other than Clara. What the hell was she doing here? He couldn't let her see him on a shopping spree with the Avengers!
"Shit!" He whispered and ducked behind one of the sales racks. He peeked around the corner to see his girlfriend talking to the clerk at the front of the store. She turned and looked in Clint's direction and he ducked back behind the rack. Too late.
"Clint?" Clara called out as she walked towards him. He stood up.
"Clara, uh… hey." He stuttered. She raised an eyebrow.
"What are you doing here?" Clint held up the suit he had bought and showed it to her.
"You know, just um, buying a suit." Clara laughed.
"Since when can you afford anything in here?" He smiled at her nervously.
"I could ask you the same question."
"I'm not buying anything," she told him. "It's my sister's wedding next month. She's buying her dress from here and has a fitting today. Me and a couple of her friends are stopping by to see it." Clint nodded in approval.
"Well, that's nice." He said as he watched Clara's eyes travel back to the suit in his hands.
"Wait, why do you need a suit?" She asked. Clint swallowed hard.
"It's for a… uh… funeral!" He blurted out the first thing that came to his mind. Her eyes became sympathetic and she placed a hand over her chest.
"Oh my God, I'm so sorry. Who died?" Clara asked. Clint ran his hand through his hair.
"An old friend." He said, making things up as he went along. "Yeah, a really old friend. I never talked about him much so you probably wouldn't recognize his name. Me and a couple of friends are here getting things to wear." Shit! Why did he say something about friends?
"Hey, Clint!" Tony called as he walked towards him. Clara's eyes went wide with shock. Fuck you, Stark. Clint thought as he pinched the bridge of his nose.
"Is that Tony Stark?" Clara whispered as Tony approached them.
"Yes. Yes it is." He said, not even trying to think of a lie to tell her.
"And you know him?" All Clint could do was nod.
"Clint, I need your opinion." Tony said when he finally reached them. "Which tie looks better with the buttons on this suit, the red or the blue?" He asked as he held up two different ties to his chest.
"Not a good time, Stark." Clint growled. Tony threw his hands up dramatically.
"Sorry, it's just that I need to look good for this party! Natasha told me that I'm going to be a distraction since I am a genius, billionaire, playboy… Oh, who's this?" He asked when he noticed Clara standing there. She had narrowed her eyes and was staring straight at Clint.
"Tony, this is my girlfriend, Clara." He told him. She turned away from Clint and held out her hand for Tony to shake.
"Hello, Mr. Stark. It's lovely to meet you." She said sweetly. "Clint? Can I talk to you for a second?" Without waiting for a response from either of the men, Clara swiftly withdrew her hand from Tony's grasp and grabbed Clint's arm, pulling him towards the front of the store.
"You're friends with Tony Stark?" She asked angrily. Clint nodded shamefully. "Why didn't you tell me?"
"Because, I didn't think it was that important." He said defending himself.
"Yeah, being friends with one of the richest men in the world isn't important at all." She said sarcastically. "Oh, and one more thing. Why did he say you were going to a party? Because I thought you distinctly said that you were going to a funeral!" Clara was fuming.
"Look, Clara, you need to calm down. You're getting worked up over nothing…"
"Can I assume you're attending this party with Natasha? Your friend?" Clint stared at her in shock. Was she suggesting that he was cheating on her? With Natasha?
"Okay, slow down. You don't even know the whole story." He said evenly. Clara calmed down some.
"You're right." She said in a controlled voice. "So how about I give you thirty seconds to start explaining?"
"I... can't…" Clint stuttered as he tried to form a sentence. What was he supposed to say?
"I'm waiting." Clara said impatiently.
"I can't tell you." He finally managed to say. She laughed sarcastically.
"Right. You can't tell me. You quit your job, can't tell me why. You're friends with a billionaire, can't tell me how. You know, it's starting to look like there's a really long list of things you can't tell me. It's like there's a whole other side of you that I've never even known about." She said in a disbelieving tone. Clint wasn't sure what to say to her, since she was right, so he just remained silent. "You want to know what I can't do? I can't be with a man who isn't honest about who he is." Clara said looking him right in the eye.
"What are you saying?" Clint asked, even though he knew exactly what she was saying.
"I'm saying that we're done." And with that she stormed off towards the bridal department. Clint just stood there, completely shocked. It looks like he could add that on to the list of things that were totally screwed up in his life. First his job, now his love life. He hoped and prayed that he wouldn't have to add anything else to that list this week.
"Clint?" Natasha called as she came up to him. "Are you alright?"
"I'm fine." He snapped and pushed past her to join the others who were checking out at the register. She stared after him, confused. He felt a little bad for being rude to her, but he was too upset to apologize right now. "Hey, Tony." Clint called out as he approached the register. "Are we almost ready to go?"
"Yeah. It took a while to find a tux that would fit Gigantor over here." Tony answered pointing his thumb at Thor.
"Yes, most of the suits were quite constricting. Mortals are so tiny." The thunder god laughed to himself.
"Why don't you all go get in the car while I finish paying?" Tony said nodding towards the door. Everyone agreed and they all exited the shop with their newly bought formal ware, leaving the billionaire to settle the expenses. When they reached the curb they all filed into the limo Tony had described as a car and settled in for the ride home. Clint sat down between Steve and Natasha and fastened his seat belt. He stared down at the floor while Bruce, Thor, and Steve listened to a couple of ideas Natasha had as to how they should go about arriving at the party. When Tony finally climbed into the limo next to Pepper, the driver pulled out into traffic and they began the long drive back to Stark Tower.
**Natasha**
"Ugh! This thing just won't stay in place!" Natasha complained as she tried to get a gun holster to fit around the inside of her thigh. As soon as they had arrived back at the tower she had set to work preparing for the party in less than two days. Natasha had slid into her dress, which she was totally in love with, and had begun equipping it with hidden holsters and sheaths so she could inconspicuously carry weapons. She usually liked to have a gun be the most accessible so Natasha had decided to use a holster that went around her leg, but the damn thing kept sliding all over the place!
"Maybe you should try a smaller one." Pepper called from the bedroom.
"Yeah, I think that might work better." Natasha replied. "Could you bring one in here?" Pepper appeared at the bathroom door and handed her the new gun holster. She took it and examined it for a moment. "Uh, Pepper… thanks. For not saying anything to the guys." She said without looking up.
"I told you I wouldn't say anything. That's something that you need to tell them. All of them." Pepper told her, putting extra emphasis on the last part. Natasha nodded and began attempting to fit the holster around her thigh.
"You're right, I'm just not sure how I'm going to do that."
"Well, you'd better figure it out soon. If you don't tell them by the time you all leave tomorrow night, I will step in." Pepper said forcefully. "The last thing that needs to happen is for them to see Mara and get distracted. You guys aren't sure what Varkov is planning so there doesn't need to be any extra surprises." Natasha sighed.
"Is it really that obvious?" She asked. Pepper walked over to her and placed her hands on her shoulders.
"A blind man could see it." She said seriously.
"Excellent." Natasha said sarcastically as she removed the gun holster from her leg. "This one is too small." Pepper took the holster from her and checked the size of it.
"It's a small. The last one was a large, right?" She asked. Natasha nodded.
"Yeah, so I guess I just need a medium."
"Alright, I'll go ask Tony if we have one somewhere." Pepper said as she exited the bathroom. Once she'd left, Natasha sighed and sat down on the toilet seat. Pepper was right. She needed to tell the guys who Mara's father was. They had a right to know, but how would they react to something like this? The real question was, would the reveal distract them from the task at hand, or make them more determined than ever to help rescue her? There was only one way to find out. She would tell everyone after dinner that night. That way they would have time to process it before they left the next day. Everyone needed to have a clear head for this mission. There would be no room for mistakes.
**Clint**
Clint looked through the assorted holsters and sheaths Tony had given him to choose from that he could conceal in his new tux. He had already picked out a few and chosen where he'd wanted them to go, but now he needed to figure out how to attach them. When he had worked for S.H.I.E.L.D., Natasha had always been the one to prepare his suit for him if that was what the job had called for. He sighed, gathering his suit and holsters and walking out of his room. He walked down the hall towards Natasha's room, passing the living area where the rest of the Avengers had gathered.
"What are you all doing down here?" Clint asked, wondering why they weren't hanging out on the top floor like they usually did. Bruce looked at him and shrugged.
"This floor has an Xbox." He said simply. Clint glanced at the TV to see Steve and Tony playing Call of Duty. He rolled his eyes and continued down the hall. As he was passing the elevator the doors opened and Pepper stepped out nearly running right into him.
"Oh, Clint. Are you going to Natasha's room?" She asked, glancing at his suit and holsters.
"Yeah, I need her help with my tux." He told her. The pregnant woman held up a gun holster she was holding.
"When you go, could you bring this to her? She needed one in a medium." He nodded and Pepper handed him the holster.
"Sure thing." Clint said as she turned in the opposite direction and headed towards the living area. A few moments later he was standing in front of Natasha's door. He knocked a few times and waited until she answered.
"Just a sec." Natasha called from inside. A minute later she answered the door wearing her dress with her hair in an up do. Clint gave a low whistle.
"Nice." He complimented her. She smiled.
"Do you need something?"
"I was wondering if you could help me out with my suit. You know how clueless I am when it comes to this stuff." He said and she stepped aside allowing him to enter. "Oh, and Pepper told me to give this to you." Natasha turned and saw him holding up the gun holster.
"Sweet!" She exclaimed, grabbing it from his free hand and rushing into the bathroom. "You can put your stuff on the bed. I'm just gonna make sure this fits." She called over her shoulder. Clint did as she said and began spreading everything out on her bed. While he did this he heard a small thump on the floor by his feet and looked down to see Natasha's iPhone lying on the ground. It must have been on the bed and he'd accidentally knocked it off. Clint bent over and picked up the phone, flipping it over to make sure it hadn't cracked. The top button must have gotten pressed when it hit the ground because the screen was illuminated with a picture of Natasha and a baby girl who he could only assume was Mara. Clint curiously studied the photo. Natasha was holding the baby girl in her arms, smiling affectionately. He stared at her for a moment, having never seen his former partner so happy, before shifting his gaze to Mara. That's when Clint noticed something.
It was obvious she was Natasha's daughter with her petite face, curly hair, and full lips, but other than that, Mara resembled a completely different person. His heart started to beat faster and his palms became sweaty as Clint realized he knew that other person. He recognized her sandy brown hair, her gray-blue eyes and the way they squinted when she smiled. He recognized them because it was his hair, his eyes… his baby. Mara was his baby.
"Oh my God." Clint managed to whisper. Just then, Natasha walked out of the bathroom, still wearing her dress.
"Okay, so I'm assuming you need help with everything." She said as she entered the room. Clint looked up and a loud gasp escaped her lips as she noticed her phone in his hands. "Clint…" Natasha said slowly while taking a few steps towards him. He stared at her, not a hint of emotion on his face. "You weren't supposed to see that."
Whoooooooa! And there you have it, my dedicated fans. Clint is Mara's father! Big shocker, right? Haha, JK. But seriously, tell me you didn't see that one coming? It was pretty funny to hear some of your speculations though. I got a lot of wild guesses like Fury and Coulson, which I nearly died laughing over, but most of you did guess Clint, so congrats to you all, cuz you were right! I'm glad I got you all guessing, though. That was what I'd wanted to do. Keep you guessing all the way up until the big reveal! Did it work? So, yea. My hands hurt super bad from writing this. Almost 5,700 words in this chapter! Crazy long chapter, so don't be expecting the next one to be nearly as extravagant! That doesn't mean I won't put as much effort into it, though ;) Here's a little sneak peek for what's coming next:
Clint has found out that he is Mara's father, and he isn't exactly happy that Natasha kept it from him. With these two at each other's necks, and the other Avengers trying to figure out what the hell is going on, will they all be able to regain focus before the leave for Paris?
In other words, Clint and Natasha have a huge fight, the others try and figure out what it's about, and as a bonus we'll get some hints as to what happened between Clint and Natasha three years prior! Well, that's all for now! Thanks for reading! PLEASE review! I need to know what you all thought! I didn't have many reviews last chapter which tells me people are losing interest (that doesn't mean I won't finish this story!). This chapter is how I'm hoping to get people excited about the future of the story and the only way I can know that is if you review, favorite, and follow this story, so please do so if you're excited for more! The action is yet to come, so stay tuned…