Author's Note: Thank you so much for the favorites and follows and reviews I've been getting! I'm just getting so many great ideas to continue this series and to work on challenging the characters and pushing them further. So I sat down and planned out where I want to go with my Avengers series. Not just this one but what other projects I want to take on. I do have a title for the third in my series which I will be telling you a little further along. (I even photoshopped the cover photo already like an overzealous dweeb). Look for that one to happen this winter (or possibly sooner because I can't ever seem to stop writing these stories). In the mean time I'm going to be writing a collection of shorts that just kind of go through some of the things that happen between this story and the next. I might have already said all this before. I forget. I'll try to finish up my 1940s story soon. Like I said, it's turning out way longer than I meant it to, but that can happen. And it's not really a bad thing. I've also been dying to write a Loki fan fiction. The chemistry between him and Aspen is undeniable (I think anyway) but I obviously want this to be a Steve story. But I think Loki needs his own story. I'm not sure yet if I'll tie his story into this universe. I'd like to, but I'm not sure how that would work. We'll see. I also have an idea for more in the future dealing with Steve and an OC who is an assassin. Totally unrelated to this story. I was just thinking, what would be the oddest pair up for him and how could I make that work. Steve and Aspen get along so well (although I have plans to stir that up a little). I want to see some conflict and frustration and breakthroughs. So yeah. Wow. And somewhere in there I'm going to finish my books.

I got so busy this summer working that I never had enough time to really sit down and focus on my books which require a lot more plotting. And though I do edit and rewrite my fanfics, I definitely pour a lot more time and effort into my books. So that's going to be a fall project, and I am going to try to cut back a little on my fanfic writing, but I don't want to stop. I can't stop. Especially once The Winter Soldier comes out on DVD. I get this undeniable need to write in my Avengers series.

I am done writing Part Three of this story, so I'll post the rest more quickly. Then onto Part Four! Exciting things are afoot! It's turning out way longer than A Game of Trust even. I didn't expect that. I love when the story just sort of unfolds as you write.

Alright, I need to stop writing and go to sleep. How did it get to be past midnight already? Enjoy!

23 – Trickshot – May 25, 2012

When Aspen woke up, she forgot for a moment where she was, starting at the warm body next to her. Steve was still asleep, his blonde hair messy, face peaceful. She relaxed, watching as his thick lashes fluttered ever so slightly in sleep. She'd been so tired that she'd slept through the night and couldn't remember any dreams if she'd had any. In that moment she realized that no one was trying to kill her right now. No one was after the formula. They were safe for the moment, and she could finally relax. It felt wrong to feel so happy, but she knew he father would be glad that she could finally live without fear of their mistakes catching up to her. She promised herself she was going to have a normal morning because she couldn't remember the last time she'd had one.

Getting up carefully so as not to wake Steve, Aspen went into the kitchen and started the coffee pot, measuring out the water and coffee grounds. Soon the aroma filled the kitchen. She set two mugs on the counter. The floor creaked, and she turned to find Steve entering the room, brushing his hair down flat. His blue eyes were bright when he saw her. Aspen suddenly didn't know how to act. Then it occurred to her that this was the same Steve. She had no reason to act shy around him. He seemed to be feeling the same way though because he hovered awkwardly a few feet away. Aspen motioned to the coffee.

"I made coffee," she said unnecessarily. She inwardly winced. If she commented on the weather next, they really were doomed. They watched each other almost cautiously for a moment, and then both began to speak at the same time.

Aspen laughed nervously. "I think we need some practice at this," she said.

Steve winced. "I have to confess, I have basically no experience with relationships."

"Me neither. I never really dated in high school. Maybe we're overthinking this. How did people date in the 30s and 40s?"

"Well, usually the guy asked the girl out for a picture or a dance."

"A picture? Like a movie?" Aspen asked with a grin. She loved it when Steve spoke like he was still from the 40s.

He blushed, looking bashful. "Yeah. Sometimes, if the date went really well, they'd go to get sodas."

"'They'? Not 'you'?"

"Not me… Girls tended to overlook me. Last double date I went on was with Bucky. That was the night I met Doctor Erskine. I went off to try to enlist…again, and Bucky went dancing with the girls."

"I wouldn't have overlooked you," Aspen told him.

"I know you wouldn't. You have a way of seeing things no one else does. So how does it work today?"

"Honestly, a first date might be a movie and dinner, but most people take it much faster than that." At Steve's worried frown, she added, "But I'm not most people. I just want to spend time with you. Whatever feels right. We can go see a movie and get soda. We can go dancing."

Steve's lips turned up in a smile. "Let's just see what feels right, like you said."

Aspen took a step forward and then another before sliding her arms around him. He watched her with a careful expression on his face as she looked up at him. "If I'm making you uncomfortable-" she started.

"Aspen, being near you is the most comfortable thing I can think of," he cut her off, eyes sincere. He brushed a hand over her face. The bruises had healed over the last week, but she could still sense his hesitation around her. She leaned up and brushed her lips over his, waiting for a response. After a second he kissed her back, slowly and carefully, one hand cupping her face, the other lightly on her waist. Aspen kissed him harder, not wanting the moment to end. His grip on her waist tightened, and she twisted the back of his shirt in her fists. A second later she broke away, reminding herself that she needed to take this slowly. She didn't want to push him out of his comfort zone.

"Sorry," she said with an embarrassed smile.

"For what?" he asked a little breathlessly.

Aspen put a hand on his chest and could feel his heart beating quickly under his grey T-shirt. He brushed his hand down her neck, pushing her hair off her shoulder. "I'm not sure," she said, mind feeling numb. He leaned down and kissed her again, and she tanged her fingers in his hair at the nape of his neck. For how strong he was, he was exceedingly gentle as if he was afraid of breaking her. Aspen held herself back and kissed him softly. When they broke apart again, both their cheeks were flushed. Aspen gave a nervous laugh.

"Right, coffee. Did you want some?" she asked.

Steve chuckled. "Sure." He let go of her, and she regretfully moved away, her heart fluttering. She poured two mugs of coffee, and they sat down at the kitchen table, watching the traffic move on the streets down below.

"What do you think we'll be doing on missions?" Aspen asked.

"I'm not sure. I'm not saying it will be easy, but after New York…"

"I know what you mean," Aspen told him. "After an alien attack and a psychotic demi-god, what could be worse?" She winced at her description of Loki. "I'm kind of nervous," she admitted.

"Me too."

Aspen looked at him. "Really?"

"What, Captain America isn't allowed to get nervous?" he asked with a teasing grin.

"Well, of course you are, it's just…you're a Super Soldier. You are like the perfect human specimen with optimized agility and strength. You can take more of a beating than me." She winced, reminded of him beating her up while he was under the control of the Warlock's Eye. He seemed to be thinking of that too because he looked away. "I just mean, you're stronger. And you've already been through war before."

"So have you," he told her, looking her in the eye. "The battle for New York was as close to a war as I've seen in this lifetime. And you're strong too. Not all strength is physical."

"You do realize you are going to far exceed me in training? But I'll be trying my hardest to keep up."

"I'll slow down for you."

She realized he was joking. "Gee, thanks." He gave her a crooked smile. "When I was trained at ARTIFACT, I was basically pushed to my physical limit every day for a year. And my mental limit. They didn't put newbies in the field. We had to be ready. I hope some of those skills can transfer over and be used for good rather than smuggling operations."

"I have a feeling we're going to make a good team," Steve told her. "I hope Clint doesn't mind too much. Don't you usually do missions with him?"

"I used to before I lost my nerve and then got demoted after keeping a certain demi-god Trickster in my apartment for the better part of Christmas… So yeah… He'll just have to share. Speaking of which…" She glanced at the clock. "I'm meeting him at noon to talk. I should probably eat breakfast and get dressed."

"Back in Iceland…before we got on the quinjet… He saw something, didn't he?" Steve asked. "Something that unsettled him."

Aspen was silent for a moment. "He did…"

"But it's something between you and him." There was no jealousy in his tone, just acceptance.

"Let me get back to you on it, okay?" she asked. "He's taken a lot time to open up to me, but I think he's about to. I need to respect that trust. Not that I don't trust you, of course. He's just used to watching his back. He keeps his past to himself."

"I understand. Just be careful."

"Around Clint?"

"Just in general."

"I will be," she promised him.

…

Clint was sitting with his head back, sunglasses shielding his eyes. Aspen sat next to him, waiting for him to speak first. His shoulders were tense under his T-shirt, and his short hair was sticking out in all directions as if he hadn't bothered to get it trimmed in the last few months.

"How are you holding up?" he asked her, taking off his sunglasses and looking at her with his keen blue eyes.

"I'm holding up. It gets a little easier every day to see that it's going to be alright. That life is going to keep going. I keep having to remind myself that I don't have to look over my shoulder constantly anymore."

"How's your mom?"

"Having trouble finding any hope for the future. I don't know how to make her see that there is always something to keep us going. I had hoped it would be me, but maybe I can't fill in that gap."

"That's not true, Pen. Don't slight your worth to her. She just doesn't know how to cope or how to be a mom to you now that you've grown up and learned how to take care of yourself."

"I hope you're right." They sat in silence for a minute until Aspen spoke again. "You wanted to tell me something. What's going on, Clint?"

Clint let out a long breath. "I want to tell you about my brother. The whole story if you'll hear it."

"Of course I will."

"When I was a kid, my dad drank a lot. My brother Barney and I ended up on the receiving end of his drunken rages pretty frequently. Eventually my dad's drinking got him and my mom killed in a car accident. Barney and I were sent to a children's home. That didn't seem to suit us so we, ah, ran away to the circus when I was thirteen."

"You joined a circus?" Aspen asked.

"Yeah. I trained with a man called Trickshot at the circus. He taught me archery. Another man called the Swordsman trained me with knives and blades. I became a sort of protégé for them. Barney didn't want any part of that. He said that they were using me, and I got mad. It was the first time I'd felt like I belonged, like I was good at something. I was always so eager to please them. Probably because it'd always been impossible to please my own dad. Barney tried to encourage me to go back to school, get an education, have something other than circus skills to rely on. He was tired of our life and wanted something normal. I was obsessed with improving my archery skills though. I refused, and he told me he had his own life to live. He decided to join the Army and asked me to join him. Like the thick-skulled kid I was, I refused. He asked me to meet him by the bus to say goodbye the day he left. I wasn't going to, but then I changed my mind. I missed the bus though. I didn't get the chance to say goodbye to him. Barney joined the Army, and I used my skills for a different purpose. I worked as a mercenary but after while I wanted to get out. I got on SHIELD's radar, and they recruited me. They turned my life around and showed me that I could use my skills for a good purpose.

"That was the last I saw of him until the year I turned twenty-three. I'd been with the circus for a long time by then and had been working jobs with Trickshot. Jobs that were not really on the up and up. We were working a job at this mansion owned by a man named Marko – just as shady as Trickshot. Trickshot needed something or at least the guy he was working for needed it. I never found out who he was working for, but someone else was calling the shots. I went with him. It was supposed to be an easy job. Get in, steal the object, get out. We didn't realize this guy had hired someone as a bodyguard. Trickshot told me to shoot him. The guy hadn't seen us yet, had his back to us. I shot just as he turned around. My arrow didn't hit his heart, but it was still damaging. He fell to the ground, and we went over to see if he was dead. That's when I recognized him." Clint shut his eyes, silent for a moment. Aspen didn't speak.

"It was my brother, Pen. I had shot my brother down working for Trickshot robbing some guy. Something clicked then, and I realized that I was ruining my life working for these people. I'd just shot my own brother. I confronted Trickshot then. Said I was tired of this life, tired of being his tool. Family came first, and I'd forgotten that rule for far too long. He left me with my brother while he went to finish the job. He gave me quite the bruise beforehand, trying to knock some sense in me. Until then I had looked up to him, but after that I realized he was just another bully like my dad. I knew I needed to get out. I tried to drag Barney with me. He was still alive. I'm not sure if he recognized me or not. Trickshot came back though and saw what I was doing. He beat me to a pulp. I tried to fight back, but I didn't stand a chance. He left both me and Barney for dead. When I woke up Barney was gone and the cops were coming. I could hear the sirens so I ran. Not long after SHIELD caught up to me and offered me a chance to turn my life around. I took it. I thought Barney was dead. I tried looking for him, but the trail ended. I had no idea he was still alive. I just left him…"

"It wasn't your fault. You didn't know."

"I should have. He tried to warn me. Turns out his instincts were a lot better than mine."

"So why didn't he recognize you in Iceland? And why was he dressed kind of like you? Like an archer anyway."

"I've heard rumors that Trickshot is still out there, but other sources told me he died of some illness. He could have been replaced."

"You think they took Barney and turned him into the new Trickshot?"

Clint shrugged. "It sounds far-fetched."

"But in this job…"

"Anything is possible. His suit just reminded me of my old mentor. But I know that was Barney. I'd know him anywhere. He just looked at me like he didn't know me though. Looked straight through me."

"Like he'd been brainwashed maybe."

"It's possible. But why would they do that?"

"I don't know. To get back at you for leaving? Do people really get revenge like that?"

Clint laughed hollowly. "Some people do."

"So what do you want to do?" Aspen asked him.

"What can I do?"

"Keep looking. Look into Trickshot. Incidents relating to him going back to the original one. See if you can find any patterns, any changes that might indicate someone else took over his role. There's got to be something. Even I found a trail that led me to my parents when I thought everything was a dead end."

"Yeah… If Fury will let me off for awhile to look at this."

"You haven't told him any of this?"

"Only you."

Aspen felt a surge of gratitude that he'd confide in her first. "Thank you for telling me," she told him. "I'll do anything I can to help."

"You've got training," Clint reminded her.

"Yeah, but you're top priority here. Family first, right? Besides you're the one training me."

Clint smiled. "Sure you're going to have time for me now that you've got that Super Soldier?" Aspen blushed, and Clint's smile widened. "Something happened, didn't it?"

"What are we high school girls now?"

"I'm just curious. Looking out for my girl."

"Fine, we're together I guess. Whatever you want to call it."

"That's great, Pen. He's a lucky man."

"I'm a lucky girl. He's the most respectful, kind, just all around good person I know. I need more people in my life like that. I've had too many people abuse my trust. He would never do that."

"And if he does, I will personally-"

"Clint, do not threaten beat up Captain America. He is not going to hurt me. And I'm pretty sure you wouldn't stand a chance against him anyway."

"Oh yeah?" He pushed her playfully. "It feels good to joke around like this. I've been beating myself up ever since I saw Barney. I feel responsible for whatever happened to him."

"Don't play that blame game with yourself. I've done it far too many times, and it really doesn't help anything."

"Yeah, you're right."

"Where do we start? I assume SHIELD has access to all that information. I don't have access to it though."

"I can access it. Trace Trickshot. Trace my brother. His Army records, where he went afterwards."

"I'll help in any way I can."

"Thank you," Clint said, looking over at her. "I just want to find my brother. If he can forgive me for abandoning him…"

"Let's just start with finding him."

"I'll let you know what I find." Clint hesitated as if he wanted to say more. "I just keep thinking…what if he doesn't want to be found?"

"I know he'd want to find you again. We just don't know what's happened to him in all these years. Anything could have happened."

They fell silent for a moment. "I've got to go to headquarters. Fury's sending me on a short mission," Clint finally said.

"Let me know when you find anything out. I'll do some searching on my own and see if I can find anything. Maybe Steve would have some pull with the Army – I mean, if it's okay to involve him. I understand if you want to keep this between us."

"No, it's fine. Steve's a good guy. And you're right. He might have some pull. Just be careful, Pen. We don't know who we're dealing with. Someone could be pulling my brother's strings."

"You don't know who the original Trickshot was working for though?" Clint shook his head. "That can't be his real name. Do you know his real name?"

Clint shook his head. "He never went by his real name. But I can find out. Once I left that past behind, I never looked back." He stood, and Aspen stood as well.

"I'll see you in a week," Clint told her. "I'll be assessing both your skills to figure out your training. We can fill each other in on what we learn."

"Sounds good. Be careful on your mission," she told him with a frown.

"I always am." He gave her a smile before pushing his shades back over his eyes and getting in his car.

Aspen stood for awhile longer replaying what Clint had told her over in her mind before getting into her Audi and driving back to Steve's apartment.