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Enjoy this next entry!

Entry #17: Manhattan [or, "An Official Avengers Barbecue Bash"]

Clint tried to compose himself before answering. Finally he took a deep breath, flipped the cell phone open, and held it up to his ear, saying with the utmost decorum: "DIRECTOR FURY HOW DARE YOU DO THIS TO ME MY ENTIRE LIFE IS IN SHAMBLES AND WHATEVER YOU WANT NOW THE ANSWER IS 'NO'!"

"Uh, is this Hawkeye?"

… "Yes."

"This is Steve. Steve Rodgers? Director Fury let me borrow his phone. I dropped mine on the pavement outside Walmart when I was talking to Agent Hill, and I think I broke it. Bear in mind that I was holding three bags of apples and four boxes of cheerios at the time, so I don't think it actually counted as a klutzy moment." He sounded slightly defensive.

Clint sank into one of the deck chairs and sighed, running a hand through his short brown hair. "Oh… hello, Steve."

"So I assume Dr. Banner already called you?"

Suspicion immediately crossed Clint's face. "Dr. Banner? What for?"

"I guess not. Apparently Tony left Stark Tower without telling anyone where he went. Bruce decided that he had probably gone to SHIELD headquarters for some emergency meeting. Obviously he was mistaken, because when he got here, I was the only Avenger in sight. So Nick Fury told him to try your house. I guess he never called to tell you he was coming, but he left headquarters about forty-five minutes ago."

"So, Dr. Banner is coming… here? Like, to my home?"

"Yeah. Who all is over there, anyway?"

Clint glared in the general direction of Loki. "A sadistic assassin, an egotistical inventor, and a completely insane extraterrestrial. And according to the aforementioned sadistic assassin, we're supposed to be having a barbecue on the back deck…"

"So it's Miss Romanoff, Mr. Stark, and Thor," Steve surmised.

"Not Thor. The other one."

"What?"

"You heard me."

"Oh for the love of… Do you need any help?"

Clint smirked. "No. Actually, he's, uh, eating some Fritos right now."

Loki glared from across the table.

"Listen," said Steve, "I'll be over in an hour."

"No, that's really not necess—"

"Please!" Steve's voice sank to a whisper. "Please. Please let me come over. I don't want to run any more errands for Miss Hill! I'll be the perfect guest! You won't even notice I'm there! Just help me out, Mr. Barton!"

Clint raised both eyebrows, wondering exactly what Steve had been doing all day, but then sighed, slumping down into the deck chair. "OK. Sure. Whatever. We'll have… an official Avengers barbecue bash," he said dryly.

"Thank you!"

There was a click, and then an empty buzzing sound. Clint flipped his cell phone shut and stared blankly at the still-unlit barbecue. Natasha waved a hand in front of his face. "Clint? What's going on?"

He just sat there, dazed and pale-faced.

"Clint?" She patted him on the shoulder. "Hello?"

"Dr. Banner and Cap'n Rodgers… are coming over… tonight!" he groaned, burying his face in his hands.

Loki munched on another morsel stolen from the newly-opened bag of Fritos and stared very apathetically at Clint Barton.

Stark shrugged. "The more the merrier," he said casually. "Maybe Dr. Banner will know how to light a barbecue."

"I know how to light a barbecue!" Clint mumbled.

"Then why isn't it lit?"

"Alright, boys." Natasha marched over to the barbecue. "Time to let the master show you how it's done."

While she fiddled with the lighter, Tony turned to smirk at Loki. "Did you hear that? Dr. Banner is going to pay us a visit."

"And why should I care?" Loki munched on another Frito and blinked lazily at Tony, drumming his fingers on the table.

"Because Dr. Banner and the Other Guy are going to pay us a visit." Tony waited for a reaction, but got none. "You know… the Hulk?"

Loki froze, a Frito half-way from the bag to his mouth.

Natasha and Clint both turned to look at the god of mischief. He appeared to be a very pale, very lifelike statue.

And then he bolted.

The chair went rocketing backwards, the table wobbled, and Stark's Dr. Pepper tipped over as Loki flew past Clint, Tony, Natasha, and the barbecue, and—with a tremendous crash—took out the silly, almost-invisible screen door he had forgotten was there.

There was a moment of stunned silence.

And that's when Clint started laughing.

Loudly.

Hysterically.

"Ahahahaha—sweet revenge!" exclaimed Clint, punching the air with a fist. "Tehe! Hahaha! Hehehehe! Haha—that was—hehehe—oh my—hehehehe! Hahaha!"

Natasha watched Clint with raised eyebrows as he almost fell out of the deck chair, rocked by tremendous spasms of laughter. Then, just as suddenly, he became dead silent and sat straight up. After a moment, he leaped to his feet and began running across the deck toward the door. "I can't let him destroy anything else in my house!" he shouted, sprinting through the now-decimated sliding door and accidentally ripping out what was left of the screen.

When Clint's footsteps had faded into the deeper recesses of the house, Natasha turned to look at Tony, who was refilling his glass with more Dr. Pepper.

Then she calmly went back to experimenting with the barbecue.

Well, we finally have all the Avengers beginning to converge on poor Clint's Manhattan home... Hooray!

Also, I'm trying to figure out a steady update schedule - possibly two entries a week, depending on how well things go. Let me know what you think. ;)

Review!

~Alassiel