Montana
The Moon shined through the opening in the clouds, the white light touched the snow, making the night seem to glow. Snow was falling gently, and the light from the cottage was dim. The man was lying in his bed, he was covered in sweat and he groaned slightly "Sir?" he mumbled. He stirred and his head shot to the right "Jacob?" He inhaled deeply in shock "How?"
He groaned and the pain hit the back of his head "NO!" he yelled as he shot upward and was wide awake. He was breathing heavily and he was alone. The silence of the room made it have weight from his breathing, the fact of no one he knew, everyone he knew was gone. He pulled the covers off of him, he moved to the edge of the bed and he put his feet onto the floor, he took a deep breath and sniffed. Standing, he felt his back crack a little, he glanced outside his window. He saw that the snow was falling less now, a peaceful light fall, not the blizzard it was before. He walked to the door and pulled it open, he walked toward his underground room below the cottage. He walked down the steps and entered, he saw his rifle again, he ran his hand along the rifle and he moved on. He stared at the wall that was full of pictures and long red lines. He turned his head toward another door, he walked toward it and unlocked it. He pulled the heavy metal door open, he walked in and there was a man sitting in a chair and his hands were bound to the side of it.
He knocked his hand against the metal door and the man's head shot up and he was awake. He looked at him and he increased his breathing and he tried to get out of his binds. The man chuckled "You're not getting out of this doc"
The man stopped moving and he sighed, his left eye was swollen and his nose was broken, his lip looked half torn off. He had a strap of cloth over his mouth, the man removed the cloth. The man breathed deep breaths. "Sean?"
"No, Sean Richardson is dead. Noah"
Noah swallowed "I've been here for…"
"A while"
Noah coughed and he inhaled deeply, his throat hurt from the fact of being parched.
"And you will be my guest for just a little longer"
"What have I done to you? Sean?"
"Sean is dead, you and your boss killed him, and you've done a lot"
"Jim? Where is he?"
"Dead, long time now. You've been here a long time doc, you've only been awake for very little, and you might have suppressed most of it"
"I can't feel my legs" Noah said alarmed
"That would be because of what happened in the facility"
"Facility?"
"Yes, you don't remember much do you doc? That head injury, nasty"
"What do you want from me?"
The man walked forward "So much Noah" he ran his hand along his face "So much"
Noah held his breath and the man smirked "I want your life"
Noah's heart rate increased at the words and he struggled to get free again. The man put his hand on his shoulder and it made him freeze and not want to move. "Easy Noah, don't hurt yourself"
Noah looked around "Where am I?"
"Montana"
"I demand you…"
The man rushed him and grabbed him by the throat "Oh you demand? Demand what?"
He felt his fingers around his throat and he felt them slowly increasing in pressure "I'm sorry"
The man sighed "No you're not" he grabbed his arm and squeezed and crushed his bone. Noah exclaimed in pain as his left arm was shattered from his grip. The man chuckled "You've done so much worse" he jabbed his ribs with his fingers and two of them snapped. Noah gasped in pain as his ribs broke and he yelled in pain as one stabbed his lung. He coughed and blood flowed out of his mouth and splattered the floor.
"Punctured lung" he jabbed the other side and the ribs broke and the rib stabbed his lung again. Noah coughed again and more blood ejected from his mouth. "Please" he begged
The man smiled "What was it you said about me? Oh yeah he's just an asset"
Noah breathed and blood ran out of his broken nose. The man chuckled "Goodbye Noah"
He went to yell as he grabbed his throat and crushed his neck. Noah gagged and his eyes darkened and closed and his head hung low as he died. The man took his hand off of his throat and he took a deep breath "Say hello to Jim for me"
The man walked away and went back up the stairs to the normal part of the cottage. Leaving Noah sitting limp in the chair, blood slowly leaking out of his mouth.
He got to the top of the stairs and he sighed, he turned back and looked down the stairs. He went back down, his feet softly padding the stairs as he did. He walked back into the familiar room, he looked at the rifle and he ran his hand along it. He hovered over the barrel. He inhaled deeply and sighed, he felt depressed just looking at it. He ran his hand back along the rifle and came to the trigger, he lightly placed his hand on the metal. He could see the dried blood that was sprayed out over the metal and the stock. He remembered when this happened, the day that he truly died. Sean Richardson died, and nothing but a broken man and a scared blistering wound remains, the night it happened was like any other.
Nine years ago…
The roaring wind was not being caused by the storm, but by the newly developed vehicle, ONI had gotten their hands on it from S.H.I.E.L.D. The Quinjet banked and went through the rain with bullet like precision. Sean was standing the entire time, he had his hand on the handle bars on the roof of the compartment. Jackson was going over his rifle, Boyd was sitting calmly and his eyes were closed. Jacob stood and he grabbed the handle bars and walked toward Sean. He looked at his new look, even though it's been a few years since he became Captain America, the look was still new to him. "Ever feel like this is still new?" he asked
Sean looked at him, his face covered by the helmet, he smiled "I'm used to it by now, what you aren't?"
Jacob sighed "It still gets me"
Sean looked down at the large white star on his chest, he inhaled deeply. The Quinjet banked to the right, he accustomed himself to the exchange of weight and he didn't move. Jacob took a slight step. He looked around, the pilot signaled him "Ok" he looked at everyone "Men let's move"
Boyd stood up and he was awake, Jackson cocked his rifle and stood as well. Sean heard the ramp descend and the roaring wind got louder. "Ok activate comms"
They all activated their comms "Comms check"
"Jackson, copy"
"I'm hungry" Boyd said
"Copy Boyd"
"Hot guy talking" Jacob said
They all chuckled "Ok we're good, now this is supposed to be a quick and clean operation"
"So all hell is going to break loose" Boyd said
"Probably" Jacob confirmed
Sean got a signal from the pilot "In two"
Boyd took a deep breath "So who's buying when we get back?"
"You asked" Jackson said
Boyd stooped his shoulders "really I always buy"
"You always ask" Sean said
Sean saw the signal to go, "Light is green"
They all ran out of the Quinjet and jumped out into the rain. They began their descent toward the base that housed three known terrorists. Sean angled himself and he shot past Boyd, he hung back and slowed himself so he didn't hit Jackson who was slightly ahead of him. Jacob was in the lead and he saw that it was time, he pulled his chute and shot up backwards. Jackson went next, and then Boyd. Sean kept going, he opened his arms and slowed down, he saw the ground getting closer, he pulled his chute and he shot up and he unhooked himself and he fell to the ground. He landed softly and he slowly stood, he had his rifle up and he scanned the area. There was no enemy contact. Jacob and the other landed a few seconds later. They moved forward once the chutes were gone. They moved in an arrow like formation, Sean was in the lead. "Keep it tight"
"Copy" Jacob said
Their boots sloshed through the wet mud, Sean saw a checkpoint, he put his hand into a fist and they stopped and knelt down. "I see three hostiles" Jacob said
Sean saw another on the tower to the right of the checkpoint "make that four"
Jacob watched them closely "I got the tower"
"Copy, go"
Jacob stayed in a crouched walk and he made his way toward the tower. They kept an eye on the others at the checkpoint as Jacob began to climb the ladder at the back of the tower. He got to the top, he saw the man was standing with his back to him. He slowly climbed up and he snuck up behind him. He pulled out his knife and grabbed the man by the mouth and sliced through the man's neck. He slowly put the body down "He's not getting back up" he looked at the checkpoint "I have eyes on, well better eyes than you girls"
"See an opening?" Boyd asked
"Copy, two are inside watching a movie, one's outside for a smoke, I can see him you can't I guess he's mine"
"Ok, make it clean" Sean ordered.
"Copy that"
They all moved to new positions, Jacob stayed in the tower and kept his eyes on his target. He had him in his sights, he just needed to wait for the signal. They got closer and Sean saw that everyone was in position "Execute"
Jacob shot his target in the head and Boyd opened the door to the small building, the two men looked at the door in confusion and Sean shot both of them. "Ok keep moving"
They moved on, Jacob slid down the ladder and he moved quickly to catch up. Sean saw Jacob come back to formation "Ok the compound should be up ahead"
"You'd think these Ten Rings guys would be better" Jackson said
"There not trained like we are" Boyd said
They kept moving forward, Sean saw a way in "Jacob, get in there, stay out of sight"
"Got it" Jacob said and he quickly moved toward the opening and he got into the compound. He saw a man standing by a truck, he grabbed him and snapped his neck and rolled him under the truck. He saw another walking in and he quickly rolled under the truck, out of sight. The man looked around confused and asked something in Arabic. Jacob shot him twice to the chest and he rolled out from under the truck and walked forward. He grabbed him by the collar and dragged him quickly to another truck and rolled him under it. He kept moving and he came to a good position and he had eyes on the three men they were after. They were torturing someone. "Hey Seal?"
"Yeah?"
"Did Intel say that they had hostages?"
"No"
"Well they have one"
"Is he one of ours?"
"No, its woman" Jacob said softly and he saw her get smacked across the face, she was covered in their clothes "Looks like a local"
"They're the priority, not some whore they're beating"
"Copy"
Jacob watched closely and he saw the woman get hit again, she slowly looked at the one who hit her. Jacob had to admit, she could take a hit.
Sean and the others moved and they got into the compound, they split up and they each got a position around the three men and the hostage. Sean aimed and he had one in his sights "I'm good"
"Me to"
"Copy that"
They were all ready, Sean took a deep breath "Execute"
They all fired and they killed the three terrorists. They fell to the ground and blood moved over the wet mud. The hostage wasn't surprised and she broke her binding and searched one of them and pulled something out of his clothes and stuffed them into hers and she ran off and gave Jacob a little wave. "What the fuck?" Boyd said
"Let her go, we got what we wanted" Sean said
Jacob sighed and he saw a flare get shot up into the sky "Shit, guys, flare!"
Sean stood "regroup at the house"
"Copy"
Sean ran toward the house and he pushed the door open and he shot four men that were in there. Jacob came in after him and shot another man who was coming down the stairs from the second floor. Boyd and Jackson joined them. Sean looked around "Secure the house, Boyd, Jackson, get set up upstairs"
They nodded and moved up the stairs and they heard a few more gunshots "Clear" Jackson said over the comms. Sean looked at Jacob "Get set up"
Jacob nodded and he dragged a few bodies a good distance from the door. Sean moved a large table in front of the only door into the house. He looked around and he saw another table, he flipped it over "Cover for if it gets bad"
"Copy that"
"I'm contacting Westbrook" Sean said
Jacob nodded and saw that the compound was becoming surrounded by hostiles. Sean got Westbrook on the line. "What is the problem?" he asked
"We have a situation" Sean said
"What kind of situation"
"We are stuck in the compound and the Ten Rings are surrounding us. The three terrorists have been dealt with, we just need a little support"
"May I remind you Captain that we are not sanctioned to be there?"
"Yes sir, I know, but"
"Hold out, we will come get you"
"Yes sir, um…sir?"
"Yes?"
"We didn't walk in on another operation did we?"
"No, why?"
"Well there was a hostage that wasn't a hostage and she got away with something on one of the Terrorist's person"
A long sigh came from Westbrook "Apparently S.H.I.E.L.D. was there, Black Widow"
"Well it looks like both our missions are accomplished"
"Yeah, but now we have another one"
"And that is?"
"Getting you the hell out of there"
"Get here as fast as possible sir, we can hold out"
"I'm counting on it, Westbrook out"
Sean sighed, Jacob looked at him "So" he urged
"We need to hold out"
Jacob sighed and smiled, he was nodding sarcastically "Perfect"
"Hey, we're going home, you'll be home to have some of you mom's famous Lasagna"
"I hope" Jacob said and he looked out of the window and the men fired at them. Jacob got out of the way as bullets went through the window and hit the wall. Sean dove to cover and he sighed "Keep them out of the house boys"
"Copy" Boyd said and gunfire came from the second floor and then hostiles outside fell to the ground. The men surrounded the house and fired at it, the windows were the most heavily fired upon. Sean was stuck behind the wall and he couldn't get a shot, Jacob was lying against the wall and he was crunched up as bullets hit the floor and wall. Boyd fired at a line of enemies and they hit the mud, the rain made it hard to see them, but he did his best. Jackson pulled the pin out of a grenade and tossed it out the window and into a group of hostiles. A loud thud came and smoke and blood splattered outward.
Sean saw an opening and he aimed and fired, he took out four and he shot a man with an RPG and he fired it into the air. He went back behind the cover and reloaded his rifle "Keep an eye out for the RPGs"
"Roger" Jacob said and shot another one.
Sean saw one and he aimed, but bullets made him got back behind cover "Incoming!" he yelled
The RPG fired and the projectile hit the wall and dust and fire erupted on the side of the house. Sean hit the floor and dust covered him and he coughed as he got back up. Jacob walked backwards and fired as he did, Sean got to his feet, and they both dove over the table as bullets flew toward them. They both got as close as possible and they glanced at each other "Boyd" Sean said
"Got it" Boyd responded and gunfire came after and more dead hostiles followed.
"We've got the whole damn compound coming here" Jackson said
"Yeah and then some" Boyd added and he fired again, killing a small group running at the house
Jackson aimed and he saw a helicopter "Shit"
"What?" Sean asked
"Enemy Helo!"
Sean looked and he saw the helicopter hover and fired at the house. Sean saw the top of the table fly away in chunks of wood as the large caliber bullets tore through the house. Jackson dove down the stairs and he hit the bottom, Boyd was lying on the floor and he couldn't hear anything, nothing but ringing in his ears. Jackson came back up the stairs and he saw Boyd lying on the floor "Oh shit"
Boyd glanced at him and wondered why he was shocked, he looked down and he had a large hole in his chest, he saw blood pooling around him. Jackson looked at him and Boyd's vision darkened and everything faded into black abyss and he felt his lungs extinguish all the air he had left. Jackson closed Boyd's eyes, he gritted his teeth and cursed "Boyd's gone"
"FUCK!" Jacob yelled loudly
Sean looked at Jacob "Keep it together!" he ordered
More hostiles swarmed the building and Sean fired at three and they back off a little then advanced again. Jacob killed three and he saw that they were going to get into the house "Incoming"
Sean saw them swarm into the house, he fired and killed three and he ran out of bullets, he threw the rifle like a spear and hit one in the chest and speared him to the wall. He pulled a shield off his back and rolled over the table and he came up and kicked one out of the house. He blocked a barrage of gunfire and he threw the shield, it hit two and came back, he caught it and he saw another behind him, he swung the shield back and hit the man in the neck with the shield. Jacob tackled one to the floor and pulled out a knife and stabbed him in the eye. He looked and threw the knife into another's neck. He came up and punched on in the face and kicked him back. Jackson kept firing out the window at the constant advancing enemies. His breathing was frantic "DIE YOU FUCKERS!" he yelled
Sean punched on and he hit the floor hard and he threw the shield and it hit one in the neck. He ran and caught the shield and blocked bullets as they flew toward him, he ran at the man and smashed him into the wall, crushing his chest. Jacob flipped one and stomped on his throat, eh came back and a knife sliced his arm, he grunted and grabbed him by the throat and threw him to the floor and choked him to death. Jacob came up and rolled out of the way of a charging hostile and he pulled out his sidearm and shit him with three quick taps to the chest. Jackson came down the stairs and fired at the one running at Jacob, he reloaded and cocked the rifle and shot a few more. The enemy helicopter aimed to fire and a rocket came and hit the side. It swayed and exploded, Sean saw a Quinjet fly across the sky and fired at the hostiles outside of the house.
Jacob grabbed his rifle that was lying on the floor and he caught a magazine that Jackson tossed to him, eh slapped it into the rifle and cocked it back and shot four more. Jackson stepped aside and a bullet hit him in the chest and then the neck. He staggered and he groaned as blood leaked out of his mouth, Jacob stared at him and Jackson looked at him and he grabbed a grenade and pulled the pin and he ran at the advancing hostiles and exploded. Jacob fell to the floor and he watched as Jackson and the one he took with him were nothing but smoke and flame. Jacob saw Sean snapped another's neck and he turned around and he pulled out his sidearm and shot three more men and he fired and ran out of bullets, he threw the pistol and hit a man in the throat. Jacob stood and he shot three more, The Quinjet flew over and fired at the remaining hostiles outside. Sean and Jacob stood in the middle of the room and bodied covered the floor. Sean took a few deep breaths "You good?"
"Yeah"
Sean saw the Quinjet hovering outside, he put his hand to his ear "Westbrook?"
"Copy that Captain, you boys ok?"
"We lost Boyd and Jackson, me and Jacob are good"
There was silence on the line "Good"
Sean and Jacob walked out of the house and they looked up at the Quinjet as it hovered over them and its search lights shined on them. "Listen boys there's a problem"
"What is it sir?"
"Well see this wasn't a sanctioned Op and well it went sideways and uh, well it was an honor"
Jacob and Sean looked at each other "Sir?"
A bullet fired out of the Quinjet and hit Jacob in the chest, blood sprayed out and hit Sean in the face he looked at Jacob as he looked down at his chest and blood poured out of the wound. He looked at Sean "Sean?" he buckled backwards and Sean rushed forward and caught him in his arms. He knelt down "Jacob, no, no"
Jacob coughed and blood leaked out the side of his mouth "Sea…Se…" Jacob exhaled and his closed his eyes. Sean put his fingers to his throat and there was now pulse, he felt his heart beat faster, he looked up at the Quinjet "Why?"
"There's always room for another Captain America, you were expendable Richardson, we've made copied of the device, and we don't need you"
Sean gritted his teeth in anger "I'm going to kill you"
Westbrook chuckled "Good luck with that"
Sean stood up and left Jacob on the ground and rain sprayed into his face "You hear me? I'LL KILL YOU! ALL OF YOU!"
"Clean this mess up" Westbrook ordered
Sean saw all the weapons on the Quinjet activate and all the missiles fired at him.
Sean opened his eyes and stared at the rifle in front of him, he looked at the wall and he had Jacob's dog tags hanging on a knife stuck into the wall. He took a deep breath "Merry Christmas Jacob" Sean said and he clenched his jaw and swallowed, he turned toward another room and he saw his gear placed on the wall and his shield lay next to it on the floor, he took a deep breath and he knew it was time.
Steve
Morning…
The steady clicking of the watch on the nightstand filled Steve's ears, he stirred slightly and he felt movement in his arms, he slowly opened his eyes, Natasha was awake and she was looking at the time. The covers were wrapped around them both, he swallowed. Natasha looked back at him and smiled "Morning Soldier" she kissed him lightly on the lips.
"Morning" he said to her and he smirked
Natasha laid her head back down on the pillow "We should get going" she said
Steve inhaled "We can skip breakfast"
"You, skip breakfast, good luck with that"
Steve chuckled and he sighed "Yeah, well we can be late to it at least" he pulled her closer and kissed her and he moved his hand down her back and grabbed her perfect ass, she smiled through a kiss as he did "Control soldier" she whispered into his ear. Steve smiled and he kissed her neck and he pulled her closer. Natasha giggled and she lightly kissed his cheek "Come on" she said getting up and tossing the covers away.
Steve watched her stand and grab her clothes that he tore off her the night before. He blinked and he got out of the bed himself, he saw her bra hanging on the edge of the dresser, one of the straps hooked around one of the knobs. He walked over and he saw her scanning the room for it. He grabbed it and hung it off his finger toward her, she smirked and took it from him and put it on and clicked the back. Steve turned toward her and he put his arms around her and she couldn't get away, she smiled as he rested his chin on her shoulder. She looked back at him, she could feel him pressing against her "You just can't help yourself" she said and laughed and it turned into a soft moan as he kissed the nape of her neck and it made a shiver go down her spine. Steve smiled "I know"
Natasha turned around in his arms and kissed him hard and she broke away. She looked at him and she placed her hand on his chest "Hey, later I'll make it worth our while"
Steve looked at her lovingly "I'm going to hold you to that"
The next few minutes were full of chaos, at least for Steve, he was holding most of the presents. They were ready to get to the house for breakfast, Steve felt his stomach ache from the lack of food. He followed Natasha with the large quantity of presents in his arms. Steve remembered that one of the presents were not there, he looked back "Nat, we forgot one"
Natasha smirked "That's not for them"
Steve kept following in confusion "Then who is it for?"
"You" she said looking back and smiled seductively at him. Steve gulped as he wondered what it could be. They moved on and they passed the barn, a reef was hanging above the large wooden door, which needed repainted. They got closer to the house and they were at the porch. First it was quiet then soft thudding made them both stop and the front door swung wide open. Cooper and Lila ran out to meet them. "Auntie Nat" Lila said as she jumped into Natasha's arms.
Cooper ran into Steve and gave him a hug, he would have hugged back but he had his arms full of presents. Natasha smiled at the sight, she looked at Lila "Mom and Dad inside?"
Lila nodded "They just got up"
Cooper went to the door and held it open as they walked in. Steve was last before Cooper and they walked into the living room. Clint and Laura saw them, Clint smiled "You made it, and the presents, that's a lot"
"We had a week to buy things, and we just kind of went with it" Natasha said with Lila still in her arms.
Clint chuckled "You can set them down on the floor by the tree Steve…need help?"
"No, I got'em"
"Ok, well Laura was starting to get breakfast ready"
Natasha walked into the kitchen and Laura gave her a hug, Lila was now back on the floor and she ran up to Steve after he put the presents down. She looked up at him "I've been practicing my drawing"
"You have, good I would like to see them"
Lila smiled up at him, and she rushed him and hugged him around the waist. Steve smiled and patted her on the back and she rushed off to go get her drawings. "Uncle Steve?" Cooper asked
Steve was motionless for a second then he realized that he was Uncle Steve. "Yeah?"
"Did you bring your shield?"
"Yeah, never really go anywhere without it"
"That's true it's like his phone" Natasha said from the kitchen.
"I was wondering if I could you know, hold it."
"Sure thing"
Cooper put his hand into a fist of triumph and ran off. Steve chuckled and Laura looked at him "You are his favorite"
"I am?" Steve asked
"Yeah, you and Stark take all the fans" Clint said walking forward.
Steve and Clint exchanged a hug and Natasha and Laura stayed in the kitchen to talk. Natasha looked back at the boys as they continued to talk in the living room. She looked at Laura "So have an idea what it is?"
Laura smiled "I think it's a boy"
Natasha nodded "He thinks it's a girl?"
"Yeah"
"So any strange cravings?"
Laura thought for a moment "I did want hot dogs at eleven o'clock at night once, smothered in ketchup"
"Did you get Clint to go get them?"
"Of course" Laura said smiling "Then he brought them back and we didn't have any hot dog buns so I threw a fit"
"No other bread?"
"Oh we had plenty, I just wanted hot dog buns" she chuckled
Natasha smirked "Well thanks for inviting us"
"No problem, you're family, he may be new, but he's still family" she said inclining Steve
"I heard, Uncle Steve, how long has that been going on?"
"Ever since you guys left"
Natasha nodded "So any plans for today, other than dinner?"
"Cookies"
"Cookies" Natasha said smiling
"Yeah, Lila wanted to make more cookies, so we're making more cookies" Laura said chuckling.
Natasha stayed quiet for a minute or two before she spoke again. She put her hands together and lightly moved her ring on her finger, no one had noticed. She smiled softly to herself and spoke. "Well you guys better like Steve"
Laura looked from the kitchen sink "Of course we like Steve" she said confused
"Well you're going to have to get used to him being around for a lot"
Laura still looked at Natasha with confusion then Natasha raised up her left hand and she saw the diamond that was sitting on it. She dropped the dishes she had and they clattered into the sink. Clint and Steve looked over from the living room. "Everything ok hon?" he asked
"Yeah, just get over here" Laura said not looking at him and waving him over. Clint moved and he was behind Natasha and he looked at both of them "What?"
Laura looked at him "For being Hawkeye, you sure missed this"
Clint chuckled "What…" his smile disappeared when he saw the ring on Natasha's finger. He looked back at Steve and he seemed to be holding in a laugh. Clint looked at Natasha "Wait you two…" he said stammering and pointing at both of them.
Natasha smiled and Steve became red and he chuckled. Clint blinked a few times "Oh my GOD!" he said loudly
Natasha chuckled "You seem upset" she said holding back a burst of laughter
"No, just, holy shit"
"What does that mean?" Lila asked
"Nothing" Clint quickly said
He looked at Natasha, he smiled "Well congratulations"
He gave Natasha a hug, and he looked at Steve "I guess you really are going to be Uncle Steve"
Steve smiled and walked into the kitchen, Clint laughed slightly and Laura looked at him "Clint, are you crying?"
Natasha pulled away and she saw that Clint's eyes were watery, he shook his head "No, I just have something in my eyes"
"Yeah, tears" Natasha said
Clint chuckled "I'm not crying" he protested
"Sure" Laura said and looked at Steve "When did you ask?"
"About a week ago and a couple days"
Laura nodded "So when is the big day happening?"
"Not sure" Steve said
"It isn't going to be easy exactly, he's Captain America and I'm Black Widow" Natasha said
"Well that shouldn't matter" Laura said
"Well it would, Steve is America's poster boy, the guy who stands for honor, courage, sacrifice, and morality. He's marrying Black Widow, the notorious assassin who used to be in the KGB and has no morality. Not exactly a favorite choice of couple" Natasha said bluntly
Clint sighed "As annoyed as we are by that, it's true"
Laura looked at them "Well then, a secret and private wedding, I'm sure Tony could do that"
"Yeah, we should probably do that for Bucky and Hill to, that pairing isn't exactly high on the rocks either"
"Well then I don't see it as a problem, and shame on anyone who thinks it is"
Clint laughed "That is why I love you" he kissed her and wrapped his arms around her. Laura looked at him and smirked "You guys may want to leave" she said teasingly
Steve and Natasha turned around and Clint spoke "She's joking"
Steve and Natasha stopped and turned back toward them "So I think Lila wants me to see her drawings"
"And I am going to go see Nathaniel" Natasha said
They both left Clint and Laura in the kitchen and Clint whispered in her ear "You weren't kidding right?"
Laura looked at him "Hell no, just patience young one"
"Star Wars" Clint said smirking
Steve walked into the living room and Lila was sitting on the couch and she looked like she was about to explode off of it. "Hey, you want me to see your drawings?" Steve asked
"This way" Lila said and she jumped off the couch and made her way to the stairway. Steve followed and he walked up the steps and followed her to her room. She opened the door and she looked at him "Come on Uncle Steve"
Steve entered her room and it was colored in a mixture of light green and some purple accents. He saw a wall that had paper upon paper stuck to the wall. "Wow, you certainly have been busy"
"Well I like it, so" Lila said and she turned on the closet light and the wall lit up from the light being shined on it.
Steve looked at them and he saw a picture of him and Natasha, there were words under them: My Auntie Nat and Uncle Steve.
He smiled "I like this one" he said pointing at it.
Lila smiled "You can have it, I drew it after you guys left"
Steve looked back at her "Really?"
"Yeah, so…" she said innocently "I heard that you really are going to be my Uncle"
"Nothing gets past you does it?"
Lila shook her head, Steve chuckled "Yes, I asked Auntie Nat to marry me"
"Well she said yes" Lila said
Steve nodded "Yes she did" he smiled
Lila walked up to him and she stared at the wall with him, she grabbed his hand in hers and held it tight. Steve glanced down and he smiled and he suddenly felt sad. He looked at the picture again and pointed out a very good picture of the Fox and the Hound.
Clint took a seat at the dining room table. Laura walked over and took a seat as well, Cooper was sitting in the living room watching TV. Clint smiled "Well Lila will be pleased"
"Yes, she will" Laura said with a smile
Clint took a deep breath "We forgot to tell them again"
"I know, tell them tonight at dinner"
"I will, if I remember"
"You'll remember" Laura said
Clint sighed "I'm happy that Natasha finally found someone"
"Well remember she did try to be with you when you guys first met"
"Yeah, but I have a family, that stopped her"
"Unless she was a whore and just seduced you" Laura said
Clint nodded "I learned quickly that Natasha wasn't like how they described her in briefings. Cold and ruthless. She can be those things, but otherwise she is smart, funny, and caring"
Laura smiled "Theirs always two sides to every coin"
"Make a three sided coin then we'll talk about Natasha"
Laura shrugged "So, how many cookies should I make?"
"A lot" he said looking at her "Captain America may look toned and delicious, but believe me the guy can eat"
Laura chuckled "Ok, well come on, we need to cook breakfast"
Clint stood and joined her.
Steve was sitting on Lila's bed when she handed him a very new picture. He looked at it, it was a picture of a group of trees, it was good, it needed some more practice, but otherwise, she was good. Steve smiled, Lila watched him patiently. She got an idea in her head and spoke "Can you draw everyone?"
Steve looked up from the paper "What?"
"Can you draw everyone, like us, me, Cooper, Dad, Mom, Nathaniel, and you and Auntie Nat?"
"Yeah, I could"
"Can I have a late Christmas present?" she asked innocently
Steve chuckled "Yes, I can have it done tomorrow"
Lila's eyes lit up and she jumped up and down slightly in pure joy "Ok, I will go get a piece of paper, a big piece."
"I'm going to go see Nathaniel first" Steve said
"Ok, Just don't take forever" Lila said squinting at him
"No ma'am" Steve said
Lila nodded "Good" and she disappeared.
Steve chuckled and stood, he walked out of Lila's room and walked down the hall. He saw Nathaniel's door was slightly cracked open. He walked to it and peered inside, he saw Natasha holding Nathaniel in her arms and he was smiling at her. She was saying something to him, it might have been baby talk. Steve opened the door, and Nathaniel saw the new person and he smiled at him. Steve gave him a little wave, Natasha turned and saw Steve standing in the doorway. She smiled at him, she lightly bounced Nathaniel in her arms and he giggled. Steve walked forward, he put his hand on Nathaniel's back "Hey little guy"
Nathaniel put his arms out toward him, Natasha knew what he wanted, and she handed him to Steve. Steve was a little shy about it, but he took him. He was uneasy as he held Nathaniel in his huge hands. He slowly brought him closer, Nathaniel buried his face into Steve's shoulder and made a loud giggle. Steve smiled and he looked at Natasha, she was staring at them. She was smiling, and it was a sad smile. She wished that she could have this, she wished he could have it, to be able to hold his own son or daughter. She tried not to think about it too much, she didn't want to become the focus of the attention with her freaking out. She smiled and she put both her hands on Steve's shoulders. Steve glanced at her "Silly face?"
Natasha looked at him "I thought you'd never ask"
Steve and Natasha smiled and they both gave Nathaniel a silly face and he burst into laughter and he put both his hands onto Steve's face. Natasha giggled at that, Nathaniel placed his small palms over Steve's eyes. "Well, I'm blind now" Steve said
Nathaniel took his hands away from Steve's eyes and he giggled and slightly blew spit bubbles. Steve chuckled "You are very cute" Nathaniel looked at Natasha, he reached out and grabbed her hair. Natasha felt him pull hard and she sighed "Ugh, the hair" she sighed
Steve got Nathaniel to let go of her hair and he gripped his finger tightly. Steve chuckled as Nathaniel gave him a huge smile. Natasha kissed Steve on the cheek and smiled at Nathaniel. Steve glanced at her "Nat?"
"Yeah?"
"I hate Red Room"
Natasha nodded and rested her chin on Steve's shoulder and looked at Nathaniel "Me to"
Tony
Papers riddled the floor of the lab when Pepper walked into it early in the morning. She saw Tony standing at his large table and he was working on the arm for Peter's suit. "Tony"
"Yeah"
"Breakfast is ready"
Tony looked back and he sighed "Good, I'm starving"
"Happy's here to by the way"
Tony nodded and continued to weld the arm "I'll be out in a minute"
Pepper nodded and began to walk out of the lab "Sixty seconds"
Tony smirked as he continued to work on the arm. He finished welding the last bit he was on and he turned it off and he pulled his mask off and walked toward the exit of the lab. He walked down the steps to see Happy standing next to the counter, where there was a plate of food. Tony walked forward and checked his watch "Fifty-six seconds"
Pepper gave a sarcastic chuckle, as he got to his plate. "How's it going man?" Tony asked taking a bite of toast. Happy smirked "It's going just fine"
Tony nodded and grabbed the glass of orange juice and took a sip. "Well how is it protecting her?"
"All the flights and nice hotels? It's about the same as it was with you…just no girls or racing to the airport."
Tony chuckled "Ah good times"
Pepper looked at him from the kitchen, Tony became alarmed "The racing to the airport part"
Happy chuckled "How has it been working with Gods?"
Tony looked at him and took another bite of toast "Not so bad, I will admit I miss Point Break"
"Point Break?" Happy asked
"Thor" Pepper said from the kitchen
Happy nodded then chuckled at the name. Tony smiled and moved on to his bacon. Happy looked at him "How about Miss Rushman?"
Tony scoffed slightly "Her name is Romanoff, and she's taken"
Happy looked at him with confusion "Really?"
"Yeah" Tony took the plate to the sink "Now Dr. Banner, he's still off in the wind"
"How about the Living Legend?"
"The Old Man?" Tony came back holding the half glass of orange juice "He's alright, slowly breaking him into Modern World"
"Really? How's that going?" Happy asked with a small chuckle
"All of Tony's attempts have failed" Pepper said
Tony glanced back at her "Who knew he didn't like my parties and all the models"
Happy chuckled "I could have told you that" he walked forward "I grew up learning about him, it even says in his bio that he is old fashioned, and that means not a partier or a player"
Pepper chuckled "I think Tony slept through History class"
Tony looked at her "Maybe"
Happy walked up to Pepper "Miss Potts, do you need anything?"
"No Happy, you can talk to Tony for free now"
Happy turned "Ok, sir, I have to talk to you about the game"
Tony's eyes widened "Lab, now"
Pepper watched Happy and Tony almost run up the stairs, she shook her head slightly. She walked into the living area and took a seat on the couch. She opened up a large binder that had a large stack of papers about Stark Industries' newest deal.
Tony locked the lab doors and he turned around to see Happy staring at the new suit. "You work with him to?"
"Yeah"
"Did you hear about the armor car he took down a week ago?"
"Yeah, how could I not, he's on the news all the time"
"So I guess I can start calling him a good guy"
"Yeah, ok info, now"
Happy nodded "The guys you hired have something, it could be nothing, but here" Happy brought up a picture on the computer. It was a picture of four broken trees and two large feet imprinted in the mud with a five feet crater around them. Tony looked at it and nodded "Where was this?"
"Brazil"
"He always liked South America"
Happy looked at him then back at the computer screen "You think Banner is in South America?"
"He could be. When was this?"
Happy paused for a second "Two days ago" he answered
Tony nodded "He could still be there"
"He's Hulk, two days ago? He could be anywhere now"
"Maybe, but Banner has never been the quickest traveler"
Happy frowned "You mean you've tracked him before?"
Tony nodded as he walked over to a large metal capsule "He's probably still there"
Happy walked forward "Are you going to look for him?"
Tony put his hand on his watch and the capsule opened and his suit was displayed. "Yeah, I can be there and out in a matter of hours"
"What about your dinner with Miss Potts?"
Tony pressed another button on his watch and the suit lit up and stepped out of the capsule and opened. Tony stepped into it "I'll be back in time for the dinner"
Happy sighed and rolled his eyes. He glanced at the door "Miss Potts is not going to like this"
Tony walked forward, the soft robotic movement came to his ears as he walked past him. Tony sighed "Its Banner, she'll understand" his face plate dropped down with a clank.
The ceiling opened, Happy looked up, taking a few steps back. Tony looked at him "See you soon"
Happy nodded and Tony ignited his thrusters and shot up into the ceiling and flew out of the roof into the morning New York air. Happy sighed glancing at the lab doors, he really hoped he wouldn't get fired for letting him go.
Steve
Breakfast was served, and Lila was not happy. It meant she had to wait on Steve to finish eating before he could draw the picture of them all. She had finished her plate and Steve was on his second as she sat on the couch with her arms crossed. Cooper was sitting next to her, he glanced at her "Calm down"
Lila glared at him "I'm impatient"
Cooper's eyes widened and he looked away from her "Yes you are"
Lila frowned at him "Ok, fine, but I just want to have the picture"
Cooper looked at her and shook his hands and shrugged his shoulders "You and pictures, drawings for that matter"
"I like them" she said bluntly
"I noticed"
"Well, while you like archery and yard work, I like art"
Cooper sighed, he hoped Uncle Steve would be done eating soon so he wouldn't have to deal with her.
Steve put another bite of eggs into his mouth and chewed happily as Natasha watched him. Laura had her eyes on him as well. Clint had the coffee mug in his hand at his mouth for the past five minutes. They were all staring at him as he was eating away. He looked at them "What?" he said after he swallowed his bite of eggs.
"Nothing" Laura said looking back at the sink. Clint took another sip of coffee and Natasha chuckled. Steve looked at them "What?" he said with a smile.
"It's just, do you want third plate?" Laura asked
Steve sighed "Yes I would like another plate"
Clint chuckled with Natasha, Steve still didn't know why they were laughing. Natasha smiled at him "You really like breakfast, you eat a lot with other meals, but breakfast really Steve…and average of five plates?"
Steve put his hands up in a defensive yet innocent way that made Natasha giggle. Clint slightly coughed "Yeah, um…Nat?" he asked looking at her
"Yeah"
"Have you two been…you know?"
Steve became bright red and Natasha smirked "When you put it like that Clinton…yes we have…a lot"
Clint nodded "I guess he has to keep the tank full" he said with a teasing smirk.
Steve frowned "I don't need the tank to be full, I have…"
"Ah, I don't want to know" Clint interrupted him
Natasha laughed softly "Maybe when you're older" she said patting his shoulder.
Clint turned his head slowly and glared at her "Why is whenever you guys are over, I'm treated like a child?"
Laura walked over and put both her hands on his shoulders "because it's what I do" she kissed his on the cheek and went back to the sink. Clint sighed "Ok, well I'm happy that it's all working for you two"
Steve was still blushing "Thanks Barton"
Clint slightly chuckled. Natasha looked at Laura "Need any help?" she asked
Laura looked back at her "No, I got it"
Natasha stood up, she glanced over at Lila and she seemed like she was about to run at them. She leaned down and whispered into Steve's ear "I think Lila wants you"
Steve saw her out of the corner of his eye "Yeah, I'm making her a Christmas present"
Natasha raised her eyebrows "What is this late Christmas present?"
"She wants me to keep it a secret" he smiled and put his finger to his lips. Natasha smiled "Well I look forward to seeing it tomorrow"
Steve held her hand till she got too far away to hold it. Clint saw his daughter and she looked like she was about to explode with energy. He looked at Steve "You might want to get over there"
Steve nodded "Well wish me luck with your little bird"
"Little bird?" Clint asked
Steve stood and began walking toward the living room "She knows everything about everything"
Clint chuckled and he agreed with him on that one, Lila did have an act for knowing what is going on around her, it made him proud as a father that she had that passed onto her from him. He looked back at Laura "So, cookies?"
Laura nodded and with a heavy sigh "Cookies"