Summary: The four times the team saw something was wrong with Clint but couldn't fix it and the time they finally managed to get through to him. Or how the Avengers became more than a team.

Pairings: slight Clint/Natasha

Warnings: Just general spoilers for the movie… but everyone should've seen it already by now so no worries!

Disclaimer: If I owned anything having to with the Avengers I would be a rich, happy woman. Instead I am a broke, happy woman. One out of two isn't that bad. I also don't own 30 Seconds to Mars or their wonderfully awesome song, Savior. Or Linkin Park (despite trying). So basically I own nothing but my bitter 20 year old cat.

Author's Note: Wow! Thanks so much for all the reviews and alerts. Guess there was interest. To answer Second Squad since I can't PM. When I say that I was writing out of my comfort zone, I meant different category. I've been writing for the Glee section for the past year or so. So writing the Avengers is kind of different but I'm slowly getting used to it. And really enjoying it. Now on with the chapter. Hope you enjoy!

When did I lose my sense of purpose?

Can I regain what's lost inside?

Why do I feel like I deserve this?

Why does my pain look like my pride?

-No Roads Left, Linkin Park

Midgardians were amusing. Or it was more precise to say that they had amusing habits and things. Thor was the most impressed by the soft pillows in the shape of animals. He saw them one evening shortly after returning from Asgard on the magic box that Stark called a television and was immediately in love with them. Tony also seemed to impressed as he ordered several of them for the thunder god the next morning. Like a true future leader, he tried to share his treasure with his comrades. Natasha also seemed pleased though she turned it down. He swore he saw tears of happiness welling in her eyes as she tried to hide a smile. Steve seemed confused by his offering but smiled and patted him on the arm before muttering about the people of today and too much free time and retreating to his room. Bruce and Tony had the oddest reaction of the bunch. They initially seemed to be laughing at him but after Thor expressed his confusion, and not a little hurt, with their reaction, they babbled apologies. He found the Playful Penguin pillow he was missing from his collection sitting on his bed later that afternoon. All was forgiven.

Though he delighted in offering his teammates the plushy pillows that surely were made by the gods, he knew he was hesitating to approach one in particular. He really knew nothing about the agent known as Hawkeye but he was worried about approaching him. If only because of all of the team, it was their archer that suffered the most at Loki's hands. He felt guilty enough for the role he blindly played in Loki's slow corruption. But knowing what his once beloved brother did to a person he considered to be a brother in arms, was almost too much for the thunder god. But he was Thor Odinson. He was destined to be King of Asgard one day. He knew he couldn't continue to avoid Clint. So with a few of the pet shaped pillows (so he had a choice) clutched tightly in his arms, Thor went in search of the SHIELD agent.

After a rather lengthy search (with a few pillow pets lost along the way) that was aided by the non-corporeal demonic, yet strangely helpful, entity that Tony referred to as JARVIS, Thor found his friend sitting on the railing on one of the many terraces. His legs were dangling over the side of the building almost carelessly as if he were unaware of the very significant distance between him and the ground.

"Agent Barton?" he asked, careful to use the inside voice that he practiced with Bruce and Steve the previous day. He didn't want to startle Clint. He was trying to forge a friendship with the man, not send him hurtling to his death. Despite his codename, Thor severely doubted that Clint could fly and he did not want to tempt fate (or Natasha's wrath… or Bruce and Tony's for that matter) to find out. Fortunately, his fears were unfounded. The archer's head tilted in silent acknowledgment of his presence.

"I wish to speak with you."

Clint slumped forward slightly (not doing wonders for Thor's heart) before pushing himself up on the rail. He gracefully swung his legs up and over so that he was landing beside Thor. "How can I be of service?"

Now that he was face to face with him, Thor found it harder to speak than he previously thought but it had nothing to do with the lingering traces of guilt. Although this was the closest he'd been to the other man, he was surprised to see that the few weeks downtime they had after Loki's attack on Manhattan in the effort of "building a healthier team" were not as good to Clint as it was for the others. The archer looked pale. His eyes were almost bruised by exhaustion. Deep purple marks stood out clearly on the pale flesh of his face. Thor couldn't recall when the archer looked this ill. Even when he was being controlled by Loik's scepter he hadn't appeared this run down. In the back of Thor's mind he recalled Tony and Natasha discussing Clint's sleeping habits but he pushed the conversation away at the time. Now he wished he paid more attention. Because clearly there was something to be concerned about here.

"Are you well, my friend?"

Clint arched an eyebrow, shrugging lightly. "I'm fine, big guy. Was that what you wanted to talk about?"

"No," Thor replied, feeling oddly unnerved by the archer. He didn't feel threatened… just concerned and slightly on edge. There was something off about the shorter man. But Thor pushed those concerns to the side to continue what he set out to do. "I wished to apologize to you."

The left eyebrow joined its friend as Clint stared in surprise. "Why are you apologizing to me?"

The god shifted on his feet nervously. "I was remiss in my duties as an older brother to Loki. I failed to see that he was suffering. Because of that he took his pain and anger out on the people of the world I hold dear. Most importantly, he used you to carry out of these malicious deeds. For that, I am truly sorry. I ask that you accept a pillowed pet as a token of my esteem."

Clint continued to stare at him. After a few moments of awkward silence, and more than a few rapid eye blinks, he finally appeared to regain his ability to speak. "Uh, thanks, I guess? But it's cool. You have nothing to apologize for, Thor. Only Loki is responsible for what Loki did. He tried to subjugate an entire race. That's more than just a temper tantrum and you have nothing to feel guilty about."

Though it would take more than just the words of his teammate to heal the wounds Loki left behind, Thor felt somewhat lighter hearing that Agent Barton didn't blame him or hold Loki against him. It helped to lessen the burden of guilt that was weighing him down since his decision to return to Earth.

"My friend," Thor beamed, his good humor returning once more. "This calls for a celebration! Let us drink to the bonds of friendship and brotherhood forged through battle!"

Clint gave a ghost of a smile before shaking his head. "I'm going to pass, big guy. Have fun though. Make sure Stark doesn't hide the good stuff at the back of his liquor cabinet. Again."

"You will not join us?"

"Trust me, you don't want me there. 'm really not a good person to have around," Clint mumbled, almost as if he were talking to himself. He shook his head and smiled again in Thor's direction. But the god could see the strain around it now. "Have a good time with the others."

Thor didn't move though. He came to realization that he almost made the same mistake again. He was ignoring what was in front of him. The overheard conversation about Clint's sleeping habits came back to him as he studied the agent. He was thinner as well. He no longer looked healthy. He wondered if Loki looked this obvious before the madness settled in or if he was just getting better at recognizing when the people he cared about were falling apart. And that was a revelation all of its own. He truly did care about Clint Barton. He cared enough that the other man's struggling was hurting him.

"Why do you not feel that you are a good person to have around? You are a good man and an excellent warrior."

Clint's expression darkened further. "Yeah, I know just how good a warrior I am. That's part of the reason you definitely don't want me as a friend, Thor. I'm not a good friend. Just ask Phil."

"The Son of Coul?" Thor repeated. "Agent Barton, you know that you are not responsible for the attack on the Son of Coul. That was Loki and Loki alone."

"But it was my arrow that let him escape," Clint hissed. He growled, wiping a hand over his face roughly. He let out a deep breath. "I shot the arrow at the helicarrier. I caused the distraction that let Loki get free. He stabbed Phil…. he almost killed him and it was my fault."

"Agent…."

"Forget it," Clint ordered harshly, shaking his head again. He started to walk away when their communicators went off simultaneously. Clint pushed the button for his, moving closer to Thor so that he could hear as well. "Barton."

"You seen Thor?" Tony's voice sounded as clear as it would if he were standing beside them. Thor resisted the urge to poke the tiny device hidden in Clint's ear. He trusted both Stark and Dr. Banner. They assured him that they were in fact not trapped electronic device. Tony went on further to point out that if they were in fact trapped they would be significantly less calm about it. Thor admitted that they had a point.

"You called me to ask where Thor is?" Clint asked, not sounding the least bit annoyed.

"Well no," Tony drawled and Thor could almost hear the grin on his face. He saw it a moment later as Tony in his full Ironman suit appeared on the balcony. He hovered behind the railing, smirking at his teammates from behind the open visor. "I was calling to see you if you needed any time to suit up. Agent Nanny called. We got work to do."

Clint shrugged off his long sleeved t-shirt revealing the top portion of his uniform. He was already wearing the black pants that completed the ensemble. He smiled slightly at Tony. "You do know that Phil is going to kick your ass with something stupid like a bag of flour or a pack of donuts if he finds out that it was you that ran your big mouth about him watching Super Nanny around the office."

Tony cocked his head to the side. "So the flour thing actually did happen? Huh. Oh, wait! Are you implying that you're going to snitch on me? You know what historically happens to snitches, correct?"

Clint snorted. "I'm implying nothing. We're on an open comm line, genius. He can probably hear you already."

"Coulson listens to our missions? Since freaking when? Isn't he confined to a bed or something?"

"Since I was medically cleared by SHIELD to do so. I can easily listen to your babble from my bed, Mr. Stark."

Tony yelped, immediately ordering JARVIS to cut off all communications. Thor stifled a laugh even as he tracked Clint's movements across the balcony. He was currently hunched over checking his quiver, which was fully stocked. As it was the window closest to the nest he claimed for himself, it seemed that he had all the necessities for the mission right at hand. He knew that a true warrior was always ready to go at a minute's notice, but he was almost disturbed by how ready Clint was. Did the man ever rest?

"Where exactly are we going since you've cut communications with our handler?"

Tony snorted. "It's Coulson. He'll find a way to get it back online before too long. And to answer your question, we're going downtown. Where else do the psychotic, alien or otherwise megalomaniacal attack? We're traveling local so pick: big and blond, big and red or mean and green."

"Pretty sure the suit doesn't count in the height department. And I would think that the big, green rage monster would count as big," Clint countered, rising from his crouched position. It was only because Thor was watching him so closely that he saw the little bit of color drain out of the man's already too pale face before he swayed dangerously. Thor and Tony both reached out steadying hands in case he fully collapsed. They stayed like that for several long moments.

"What the hell was that?" Tony asked. His grip tightening on Clint's shoulder.

"I," Clint rasped, blinking rapidly. He swallowed, looking faintly green. Thor was certain that they would mention if Clint was also in danger of changing forms. But the green didn't seem to mean the same thing as Tony just grumbled under his breath about Clint not throwing up on his terrace. Clint straightened up somewhat and nodded. "I think got up too fast. I'm ok."

"No, you're not," Tony aruged. "When was the last time you slept? No, scratch that. When was the last time you actually slept for more than a half an hour or ate something more than just a piece of toast or some frruit?" Clint opened his mouth. "And before you say anything, I'm very aware of the complete irony and hypocrisy of me asking you those questions, so save it. It takes a person who regularly pushes themselves beyond their limit to recognize it in another person." Tony sighed, shaking his head. "But I also know it's a waste of time asking you about it and hoping you see reason. So just answer me this one question: can you do this?"

"Yes."

Tony sighed. "Clint, this isn't an ego thing. If you need to stay behind, Thor and I can cover for you."

Clint yanked his arm out of Tony's loose hold, glaring at the billionaire. "I'm a SHIELD agent. I've gone longer than a few days without sleep or food. I'm fine." He glanced down at something moving on the terrace below them. He glanced back at the pair still watching him with worried eyes and gave a ghost of a smirk. "Now if you'll excuse me, my ride is here."

Before either Tony or Thor could react, he was launching himself over the railing. Hulk let out a loud roar as the archer landed on his shoulder and took a running leap off the tenth floor terrace of the Avenger Tower. Clint's loud whoop echoed in their wake.

"Uh, you guys moving anytime soon?" Steve's voice sounded over the communicator. Looks like Coulson figured out how to get communications back online sooner than they thought. "I don't really think it's a good idea to allow Clint and Hulk to play unsupervised."

"It's a wonderfully bad idea actually," Natasha pointed out. "Move it, Stark. You're my ride."

Tony's visor snapped shut hiding his worried expression from Thor. But the god didn't need to see it because he knew it was matched on his own face. This was not going to end well.

*Thor is really hard to write but I think I got him down. Ciao for now!