Thanks to everyone who reviewed, faved or followed! Tony spends the day with Clint in this one. Glad everyone liked the phone call!
Determined to make up for their misunderstanding Tony devoted himself to Making amends. The next day he volunteered to stay behind to watch Clint while the others went out on patrol. He actually cooked breakfast himself, something he normally never did.
When the boy entered the kitchen, still in his pajamas he looked startled but not scared. "Eggs are ready." Tony said, scraping them onto Clint's plate.
"Where is everyone?" Clint asked.
"Thor's across town helping with a collapsed building, Steves' with Natasha doing some business and Bruce had to go out and see Hank Pym. You don't know him but they've got science stuff to talk about." He chuckled at his joke.
Clint was mostly silent through breakfast but he seemed attentive and even laughed once or twice. "Okay, go get dressed and meet me back here. I wanna introduce you to someone." Tony said. He watched Clint scurry off and messaged Pepper. After telling her about the accident she had asked him frequently for updates and Tony had an idea that it might be good for Clint to meet someone who wasn't a crime-fighter.
She arrived not long before Clint returned and Settled at the kitchen table. "I took the day off." She said. "I thought you might want some company."
Tony nodded over coffee and she reached out a hand and touched his arm. "Did he say anything about the other day?"
"No, I think we worked through that last night. God, I hope we did."
She frowned. "It's not really your fault. You don't have any experience around kids."
Tony sighed. "Neither do the others but Steve and Thor seem to have a good thing going with him."
She smiled understandingly. "He's young and kids bounce back. They're tougher than you think and if this boy grows into the man we know then he's gonna be fine."
Tony grinned a little. "Are you sure we're talking about the same Hawkeye?"
She laughed and a small noise alerted them to Clint's presence. "Are you guys talking about MASH?" He asked.
"Sure thing, kiddo. I was just saying how Pepper here reminds me of Hot Lips." Pepper gave him a dramatically indignant look that made Clint smile. "Clint, this is my very best friend and special lady friend, Pepper Potts. I wanted you to meet her."
Pepper smiled warmly. "It's nice to meet you Clint." She said.
He smiled back shyly. "Hi."
Pepper laughed. "Tony showed me the drawling you made for him. It's very good."
Clint looked surprised but pleased. "I can make you one if you want." He offered.
"You know, I think I'd like that. I could hang it in my office."
The kid's eyes were wide now, no one had ever taken much of an interest in something he had made before. He took an immediate liking to Pepper who had a much more accessible aura about her than Natasha. He felt bad thinking that, he liked Natasha but Pepper just came across as warmer.
He smiled and sat more comfortably in his seat. "Are you Tony's girlfriend?" He asked.
She beamed and gave Tony a flirting look. "Only when he behaves."
Tony opened his mouth to object but was silenced by a small kiss. He contented himself to sit and pretend to look miffed. Clint made a face.
"You think kissings' gross, do you kid?" Tony teased.
Clint shrugged but smiled again.
They kept him entertained for a little while longer before sending him off to play looking happy. "He likes you." Tony said, looking relieved.
Pepper folded her hands on the table. "I'm glad. You know he's so much quieter than when he's grown up. It's almost like he's two different people."
"Yeah. We've talked about that. Guess a lot of stuff happened to him between now and then."
"Still, he seems sweet."
"Yeah, he's a pretty good kid." The talked some more before moving into the living room. Clint had occupied himself in his room, disappearing for most of the morning. After a while he returned and presented Pepper with a drawing of herself. He smiled hopefully, watching her examine it.
"What do you think?" He asked.
She raised an eyebrow and smiled. "I think I'm going to frame it before I put it in my office."
He beamed.
Tony cleared his throat. "I like mine better."
Clint laughed and stood in front of them, shifting from foot to foot. "Come and join us, we were just about to watch some TV." Pepper said, motioning to the seat beside her. Clint scrambled onto the couch and they spent the rest of the morning watching a movie.
Around lunch, Pepper made macaroni and Tony fidgeted with a small robot he was working on. "What's that?" Clint asked in some excitement.
"Robot." Tony said.
"Like on the Jetsons?"
"Well it's not gonna clean the house but yeah. Kinda."
"Did you make it?"
"Yeah. Petty simple really. As far as robotics go." Tony cracked a grin. "As far as MY robotics go that is." Clint looked amazed and Tony let the little robot loose. It was shaped like a tiny dog and barked when it sensed motion. "Do you want it?"
Clint looked up surprised. "Me?"
"Sure."
He waved his hand in front of the dog and it barked and lifted it's front paws. "I've never had anything this cool before! Barney is gonna be so jealous!"
Pepper and Tony shared an amused look. "He can live in a Lincoln log house." Tony suggested.
Clint's eyes sparked at the idea and after lunch he took the dog and raced off to go and make a house for the it.
"That was a great idea." Pepper said, kissing the top of Tony's head.
"Thought it up this morning. I don't want any real pets in here but a toy is fine. It's only the size of my fist so it's not like it can knock anything over."
"I think it was really sweet."
"Well, Barton seems like a dog person."
"He really liked it."
Tony grinned and piked up the dishes.
An hour later Bruce returned looking worn. "How was Pym? He gotten any father?"
"A little bit. He's working pretty hard. He's managed to recreate the particles but he's having difficulty stabilizing them."
"How long does he think it'll take?"
"Don't know. He says they're much more volatile than normal Pym Particles and he wants to test them before we use them of Clint. Honestly, I think he's having a field day."
Tony sighed. "I'm gonna give him a call and make sure he's not just playing around with them."
Bruce sank into a kitchen chair. "Has it occurred to you that he may have found the secret to eternal youth?"
Tony raised his eyebrows. "What good is eternal youth if you forget everything in the process?"
"Well, imagine if he could find a way around that. He'd be the most powerful man in the world."
"Has he thought of that?"
"I don't know. He briefly mentioned there could be some medical value to them but we didn't pursue the topic."
"Eternal youth. I hope Pym isn't stupid enough to try and market that. He'd do better to just fix Clint and then destroy what's left."
Bruce leaned forward over the table. "Is that what you would do?"
Tony fell silent and gave him a long look. "Probably not. I'd probably do just what you said."
There was a pause. "I agree with you though. It's dangerous."
That evening Pepper joined the Avengers for dinner and Clint showed everyone his new toy. Steve was particularly impressed. "That's really neat!" He said.
"Have you named it?" Natasha asked.
Clint shrugged. "Robot dog?"
"That's an awful name." Tony said. "Pick something cooler."
Clint puzzled over the dog with an almost comical expression. "I can't think of anything!"
"How about Spot?" Steve suggested.
"How generic and besides. There's not a spot on him." Tony said.
Steve rolled his eyes and waited for someone else to give an idea. "How about Arrow?" Tony teased.
"Why Arrow?" Clint asked. "He doesn't have an arrow on him either."
Tony broke into a grin. "Because I don't think Pepper would want me to name him Shaft." He broke out laughing and Pepper elbowed him sharply.
"Arrow is a cute name." She said, glaring at Tony who was still grinning.
"I agree." Natasha said. "And when two women say it's a good idea then they're probably right."
Clint laughed. "Okay!" He let the toy dog walk around on the table some more, smiling at it. "I've never had a dog before!" He said excitedly.
Steve laughed. "Well this is a pretty cool one."
"Uh-huh!" The boy agreed.
Natasha experimentally reached a hand and out and brushed it over his head. He stiffened and for a moment looked as though he was going to flinch away but then settled for just looking at her with a puzzled expression.
The others tensed up, waiting for a reaction. None came and for a moment the two of them locked eyes and stared at each other. Natasha didn't smile but Clint didn't look afraid. "I'm sorry if I bothered you, little one." She said in a soft voice.
He gazed with wide eyes and raised brows. "It's okay."
She gave him a long searching look and smiled. "Alright, little one."
After that Clint stayed quiet but he seemed to gravitate towards Natasha in a state of puzzlement. When he finally began to yawn and droop his head it was she who helped him off to bed.
The next chapter is between Clint and Natasha, I know some people have been waiting for that!
Thanks for reading.