TW: Glad to hear it.

Traveling Guest: Spoilers. Glad to hear it. Thank you. Demons run when a good man goes to war. Yeah, but I think we all know nothing is ever that easy.

Ellie Bishop: Glad to hear it. Yep. Yeah, they actually have a pretty decent relationship in this version. Nope, this was a declaration of war as far as Clint was concerned.

Guest: I'm not the best at writing romance, but trying to do a slow burn between Peter/Gwen. Glad to hear it. Oh yeah, Clint was basically Punisher dialed up to 11. Ben was excluded for one reason: Tony Stark. They couldn't do the Peter idolizing Tony thing if Uncle Ben had a presence in his life, so they basically replaced Tony with Ben until the backlash from fans caused them to have to do damage control in NWH.

Avengers Compound

Mid afternoon

"How did Ross even find out about the farm?" Tony asked in disbelief as Steve and Natasha filled the others in on Fury's call.

"It doesn't matter now. He knows about it, and Clint's family," Steve said grimly.

"Any word from Clint?" Sam asked and got two shakes of the head.

"I called him, but his phone is turned off. Which means he knows they're coming and doesn't want to give away his position," Natasha explained.

"Well, good luck to whoever Ross sent after them," Rhodey muttered, remembering what Clint had been capable of in the recordings after Thanos had killed his family.

He suppressed a shudder at the thought of what Clint might do to whoever had dared to come after his family.

"Clint and Wanda will be able to handle themselves," Vision said in a matter of fact voice.

"It's not them we're worried about," Natasha said, thinking of Laura and he kids fearfully.

Before the conversation could continue, Natasha's phone rang. Quickly pulling it out, she answered upon seeing it was Fury.

"What happened?" Natasha demanded.

"Well, it could have been worse, a lot worse. Barton took out most of Ross's team before I got there, Laura and the kids are all safe and Rumlow is in my custody. Maximoff got hit with some kind of energy EMP; she's been out for hours. I have a few medics looking after her," Fury explained and, while Natasha was worried about Wanda, she was relieved to hear Laura and the kids were safe.

"Where are you?" Natasha demanded.

"Not safe to say. They're watching you," Fury said and Natasha froze. "Ross been watching any calls or transmissions that come out of the Compound, it's how he found out about the farm. Get out of there. I'll be in touch soon."

Unspecified location

Same time

Fury hung up his phone before turning back to Clint, who was staring at the Hyberbaric chamber that housed Wanda, who was still out cold.

"Good thing you had one of these," Clint mentioned.

"Have a few stored in case of a rainy day. Last time I had to use one was after SHIELD fell, saved a few of Coulson's agents, although one was a little worse for wear," Fury said, thinking of Leo Fitz for a moment before moving on. "Some of my technicians are looking at that package that arrived on your door step. They're still running tests, but best they can, it's a more advanced version of what Ross had his men use on the Hulk at Harvard."

"And where does that leave Wanda?" Clint demanded as he looked back at the unconscious young woman.

"She'll be out for a few days. From what you told me, her power absorbed most of the blast but she still got a nasty hit. My medics will want to run some tests but we think she'll be all right," Fury assured her and Clint let out a breath. "You care about her."

"Yeah," Clint said, seeing no point in denying it. "Thanks, for coming to help."

"A long time ago, I promised to protect your family. It's a promise I plan to keep," Fury said and Clint looked over at him. "There are a few places I can send them, places Ross won't find them. Places they'll be safe until we can deal with Ross."

"Anything on that end?" Clint asked.

"I have a few leads, but nothing I can prove yet. I'm working it," Fury promised and Clint sighed.

"Well work faster. I need to go talk to my wife," Clint said, looking at Wanda one last time before leaving the room.

Avengers Compound

Not long after

"Ross is monitoring our calls?" Tony asked as the Avengers all looked at Natasha in shock.

"And the old SHIELD frequencies Clint and I use to keep in touch," Natasha said grimly.

"He is like Heimdall, he is watching you always," Sif said uncomfortably.

"Either way, the Compound has been compromised. There's only one thing we can do now," Steve said and they all understood where was going.

"What, split up?" Rhodey asked in disbelief.

"It's probably the best move with Ross around. Ross monitored Betty until she led him to me. If Ross is willing to use his own daughter…" Bruce trailed off but they all understood what he was saying.

"It has to be complete radio silence until we have something on Ross. For the safety of those we care about as well as ourselves," Natasha explained.

"She's right. Sif, back to Asgard," Steve said, surprising Sif. " Tell Thor what's been going on. Rhodey, Sam, retired. Bruce, still missing."

"Steve Rogers?" Tony asked and it was silent for a moment.

"Gone," Steve said finally. "At least until we can find a way to deal with Ross. Pack only what you can carry, we won't be coming back."

Unknown location

Not long after

For a few moments, Clint and Laura simply watched their children. Lila was asleep, her head in Cooper's lap while Nate was in the makeshift playpen, playing a few toys with the curiosity of a one year old.

"You're not coming with us, are you?" Laura said and Clint sighed.

"I can't. Not until Ross isn't a threat to you anymore. I know I promised I was out, and I meant it…but this is different. Ross is coming after all of us now," Clint said.

"I understand. Just take him down and come back to us soon," Laura said before she leaned up, kissing him softly.

Rumlow was held in a dark room, his arms and legs chained to the floor. The door to his room opened up and Rumlow looked up to see Fury.

"Hey, Fury. Heard you were dead," Rumlow noted.

"The reports of my demise have been greater exaggerated. But I'm much more interested in your activities. So, you work for Ross now?" Fury questioned.

"I don't work for anyone. Ross just gave me an opportunity for payback and I took it," Rumlow said before pausing. "Ow. What….gah!"

Fury watched confused as Rumlow thrashed his head around before Rumlow's head seemed to explode, blood coating the walls. Fury was left staring at Rumlow's headless body, wondering what had just happened.

"He just blew up?" Clint asked in disbelief as Fury explained what had happened.

"Sound familiar?" Fury asked and got a blank look in return. "Back when Hydra was still in the shadows, they planted bombs in the heads of people they forced to work with them."

"So what, Ross took a leaf out of Hydra's playbook?" Clint asked in disbelief.

"Seems that way. It's not going to be easy to take him down. We'll have to work carefully, from the shadows. And you're a pretty public figure," Fury pointed out.

"Yeah, I know," Clint said, knowing where Fury was going with this.

Ross going after his family was a declaration of war as far as Clint was concerned. And it was time to answer said declaration.

The Playground

Not long after

In his office, Coulson sighed, messaging his temple. It had been a long few days.

In addition to the repairs to the Playground, which would take a while, and Talbot pressuring him to have SHIELD sign The Accords, Daisy had gone missing in the aftermath of Lincoln's death. It was not shaping up to be his best week.

His phone then rang, breaking Coulson out of his thoughts. Picking it up, he saw an unknown number and frowned before answering it.

"Hello?"

"We have a problem," Hill said on the other end of the line.

"What happened?" Coulson said, knowing from the tone of her voice that what had happened, it put his troubles to shame.

"This situation with The Accords has just become…untenable. Secretary Ross sent a team after Barton, at his home, where Wanda Maximoff was staying. Everyone's all right, but Ross knows about Clint's family," Hill told him and Coulson took a moment to process this.

"Oh…"

Avengers Compound

Not long after

Steve threw his bag over his shoulder, looking around the room that had been his home for the last year. But now, he had to leave because of Ross.

"You okay?" Natasha asked from where she stood in the doorway, watching him.

"Are you?" Steve asked and she smiled tightly.

"No. But it's only temporary Steve," Natasha pointed out.

"I hope so. I just wish there was something…" Steve trailed off but Natasha knew what he was going to say.

"There is," Natasha said and he looked at her curiously. "Us."

Steve smiled slightly before walking over, taking her hand in his before kissing her lightly.

"Come one. We have to go," Natasha said softly.

Steve nodded, turning off the lights before exiting his room, closing the door behind him.

The Playground

Talbot walked into Coulson's office, about to have a conversation about The Accords when he paused, seeing Coulson sitting at his desk, deep in thought.

"Phil? You all right?" Talbot asked and Coulson was silent for a long moment.

"Did you know, Glenn? Did you know what Ross was going to do?" Coulson asked as he got to his feet.

"Know what? Phil, what are you talking about? What did Ross do?" Talbot asked, feeling an unsettled feeling wash over him as Coulson sighed.

"It's not what he did, it's who he did it to," Coulson said, opening his draw and pulling out a glass of vodka and two glasses. "After a long day, I usually pour myself a glass of this. But trust me Glenn, you're gonna want to have a drink for this conversation."

Talbot watched silently as Coulson filled two glasses, sliding one across the desk until it was in front of him. Talbot picked it up as Coulson almost drowned his glass all in one shot. It was silent for a moment before Coulson spoke.

"Did anyone ever tell you how Barton got the codename 'Hawkeye'?" Coulson asked.

"Can't say they have," Talbot said and Coulson nodded, not looking surprised.

"He and his brother grew up in a circus. That's where he learned how to shoot. From a young age, Barton was good at archery and was trained by the circus archer. But that's not where he got the name from," Coulson said with a sigh. "When he turned seventeen, Barton decided he wanted more than to be in the circus, he wanted to help people. And he knew a guy with connections. So with those connections, he was able to enlist in the army. Over the next few years, he rose through the ranks, was probably the best sniper in American history. They even had a nickname for him."

"Hawkeye," Talbot noted and Coulson nodded.

"What put him on SHIELD's radar was a mission in Egypt. He had three targets, marked for death. Warlord's of the worst kind, killed children and laughed about it. He killed them all with one bullet from over 200 yards away. One shot and they were all dead," Coulson said and Talbot stared at him in disbelief,

"So what, Barton was Frank Castle before he went crazy?" Talbot asked.

"Not exactly. Let's put it this way, if Castle had been around before the Hydra uprising, Barton was the one Fury would have sent to kill Castle. And I would have bet my SHIELD badge back then that Castle wouldn't have been the one walking away," Coulson said and Talbot stared at him for a moment, waiting for Coulson to say he was joking but the moment never came. "The reason you've never heard of this? A few years after SHIELD recruited him, Barton met a woman. Barton was considering leaving, so Fury devised a compromise: Barton would continue to work for SHIELD, and in exchange, all digital record of Barton would be wiped while he'd set up a safe house big enough for children. They started a family while Barton was still working for SHIELD."

"Why are you telling me this if it's such a secret?" Talbot asked, that uneasy feeling returning to him as Coulson looked him dead in the eye.

"Because, earlier today, Secretary Ross sent out a team of men, led by Brock Rumlow, to capture all of them. I can only imagine what a man like Ross would do to them, why he might want them in his custody, but regardless, it failed. But now, Ross has just declared war on one of the most dangerous men I have ever met. And there is nothing any of us can do to stop it," Coulson said as Talbot stared at him, horrified. "Sooner or later, Clint will come for Ross. We're at war, Glenn. We all have to face the choice between either going along with these Accords or doing the right thing. I just hope when the time comes, you make the right choice."

Well, things are about to come to a head with Ross.

The Avengers have split up. It won't be long but they need to go off the grid for the time being, now that they now Ross is watching their movements.

Clint's backstory is something I've been wanting to do for the whole story, so hope you all enjoyed it.