New Chapter! Whew this took forever to get out. I'm sorry I just haven't been very motivated to write lately. I'm still not entirely happy with how this chapter came out, this is probably the twelfth re-write and the best way that I could decide to get out of the RAFT without writing three more chapters. I will fill in more details as the story progresses and there is a place I am heading with this.

As always please review :)

Kate winced as the scalding water stung her abused skin; she had scrubbed her body raw, and she still could feel the blood sticking to her. Back safe at the compound, she slid down the wall of her shower and pulled her legs up to her chest as the water rained down on her head.

She held up her hands, looking at them through the steam for a moment before she balled them into fist, dropping them to hit through ground beneath her as she slammed her head back against the wall.

…

~ Kate's vision blurred slightly as the back of her head connected against the wall following her body's impact. She felt the immediate constriction of her airway as the forearm pressed against her throat. The large frame of her attacker effectively pinning her into submission though she tried to struggle.

"I knew if I watched the guard long enough, I'd find you."

Her eyes shot up to see the owner of the voice. "Barney?" She said as the pressure on her airway lessened.

"Hey Katie." Her eldest brother said with a smirk.

Of all the ones that could have found her, this was probably the best option to hope for.

Barney looked at her seriously. "I'll let you go on one condition, you can't run." He said firmly.

"What about bodily harm to you?" She questioned.

"You could try." He replied. She glared at him, and he sighed. "Baby sister, if I wanted to kill you, I could have crushed your throat and it would have been done. Work with me here."

She glared at him for another moment before she reluctantly nodded. He immediately let her go as promised. She took some steps away, putting distance between them but honoring her word not to run as she eyed him warily. Reaching up to touch her ear, she realized that her earpiece was gone, her connection to Clint was gone.

"I'm not going to hurt you." Barney said carefully, watching her.

"You'll forgive me that I don't immediately believe you." Kate replied glaring at him. "What was it you told me to remember right after they put you in here?"

Barney swallowed. "I don't expect you to trust me." He said with an expression that almost seemed like regret. She took another step away from him. "Look, Katie, I've done a lot of things I'm not proud of. It's a waste of time for me to tell you that I'm sorry, I know you won't believe me."

"So…what?" Kate asked. "I'm supposed to believe your time in a cell has given you space to think and that you realize the error of your ways. Is that what this is?"

"Nothing quite so Hollywood." Barney replied blandly. "You know most of what I have heard since your last visit was what these animals would do to you if they had the chance." Kate paused, her mind going back to the chilling jeers that they were directing at her before the cells were opened. "I know that I helped DuQuesne and the circus hunt you, I know they would have killed you…but this…" Barney shook his head. "What they want to do…I can't let that happen to you."

She had to know something while they had a moment. "Answer me this…why did you call me?" She finally asked, not quite looking up yet though she knew Barney was staring at her. "Was it a warning?" She looked up. "Was it to gloat?"

She watched Barney stare back at her for a long time. "Does it really matter why?" He asked after a moment.

In the long run, no it didn't. Barney was never going to be allowed out of the RAFT, but Kate wanted to know if there was really any part of Barney left that was redeemable or not.

However, there was a rare honesty in his eyes that she had not seen in a very long time. Whether it was against the better judgements that Clint and Natasha instilled in her or not, she believed him that he wanted to help her now. .

She swallowed thickly, trying to find her voice. "Alright…" He looked up at her as she spoke. "What's your plan then?" ~

…

Blinking her blurry vision away, Kate took a deep breath and waited a moment before she stood up slowly. Turning the shower off, she grabbed her towel and wrapped it around herself before grabbed another towel for her hair. Carefully, she touched the towel to the back of her head where she had smacked in, expecting blood but thankfully not finding any. Scrunching her curls with the towel, she looked at her reflection in the mirror above the sink, focusing on the bruise that went across her neck just above her clavicles where Barney's forearm had been; letting go of the towel with one hand, she rested her open palm against the bruise gently.

…

~ Though it was an easier trip back than she expected the return to the control room had the reception that Kate predicted. Once they were in, Clint had Barney up against the wall and the remaining guards had their weapons leveled at him as well.

"Clint, wait!" She called pulling on his arm. "Please, let him go."

"You better be joking." Clint growled. "Look at your neck. He did that…again."

Kate subconsciously touched her throat but didn't peel her gaze away from her brothers to check. "Never mind that right now." She pleaded. "He helped me get back here. He could have killed me, but he didn't."

Barney smirked. "Might want to listen to her little brother." He commented in a taunting tone. "You really don't have the balls to kill me now. Being an Avenger has made you soft."

"Barney, shut the fuck up." Kate snapped. She gripped Clint's arm. "Clint, please let him go."

Clint hesitated for a long moment before releasing Barney with a shove. Kate squeezed his arm gently and he wrapped her in a one arm hug. She wrapped her arms tightly around his torso.

"I'm okay." She whispered so softly only he would hear.

Clint's mouth set in a grim line, and he glared at Barney who was watching them with an impassive gaze. "Sit there—" He gestured to a chair. "—and don't move."

Kate gave her oldest brother a pleading look, hoping he wouldn't cause trouble. To her surprise, after a deep sigh, Barney went to do as he was told. The guards were still watching him warily, but Clint turned away and went back to the control board. Kate followed Clint, realizing what his distraction was. The Avengers were here. ~

…

Shaking her head, Kate dressed quickly in soft pink, purple, and black plaid pajama bottoms, and a dark pink long-sleeved Henley. Picking up an extra trash bag from the trashcan, she gathered the bloodied clothes off the floor, including Clint's hoodie, and stuffed them into the bag, tying it quickly as she left the bathroom.

Pulling on the hoodie on that Peter had given her (she had never given back) at the library after the Widow attack and grabbing her phone, she stepped into her Ugg boots as she called to Lucky who was waiting on the bed for her. She tossed the trash bag on the way to let Lucky out. Pulling the hood up as she stepped outside, she let out a breath that immediately froze in front of her eyes as she waited in the freezing mid-winter northern New York night. Lucky, for his part, wanted back in the warm compound as much as she did so he was quick to do his business and run back to her.

Kate followed the golden fluff ball as he happily trotted ahead of her as they heading to the common area to get some dinner. It was late, most everyone would be in bed, but Kate had skipped it earlier and was now starting to feel it. As she walked down the hall, she wasn't paying attention as one of the doorways opened and she collided with the one exiting. Familiar, strong hands gripped her upper arms to keep her from falling on her butt.

"Kate, are you okay?"

She looked up into Peter's soft, worried brown eyes. She swallowed back an immediate ball of panic and smiled tiredly. "Yeah, I'm fine." She replied easily. "Sorry, I was lost in a daze I guess."

Peter let go of her as she steadied, and she could see the question swirling in his brain, though he was far too polite to ask them. She gave a small, hopeful smile and timidly held out her hand. "Wanna come with me to the common area? I'm starving." She offered.

Peter took her hand smoothly, without hesitation. "Sure." He smiled gently as he let her pull him towards her destination.

Once in the kitchen area, Kate let go of his hand and went to pull the leftover pizza from the fridge. She took the plate that Peter handed her. "It's okay to ask." She said after a moment as she picked out which slices she wanted. "I know Tony probably didn't tell you much."

…

Peter watched her ponder her pizza choice in silence, studying her profile. Her wet curls hung around her shoulders, lacking their normal chaos from when they are dry, now visible since she had put his hoodie over one of the barstool chairs on the other side of the island. It seemed like any other moment of their time here.

"It's okay to ask." Kate said after a moment, startling him. "I know Tony probably didn't tell you much."

It was true, Tony hadn't told him hardly anything other than the RAFT had been secured. However, Tony wouldn't let Peter go see Kate, even when they got off the jet, Clint had ushered her away quickly from everyone else.

Peter paused for a moment as he considered his first question. He had seen her just briefly as she walked off the jet, she was speaking to Clint in a quiet but clearly urgent tone. She was wearing Clint's hoodie, which could be for several reasons, however, when she glanced over in his direction, her expression was stricken. Something bad had happened in the RAFT. Kate could handle so many difficult and terrifying situations with a cool detachment, but whatever was bothering her was something personal.

Kate looked up at him curiously as he decided on his most important first question. "Are you okay?" He asked gently.

…

The pureness of his question hurt a lot. Especially considering she couldn't really give him a complete answer. She settled for as good as she could give. "Not really." She whispered. "Barney…he died." Peter blinked in surprise. "He died saving me."

Looking down at her plate, Kate was suddenly not hungry anymore. With a sigh, she pushed it back and rested her elbows on the counter, putting her face in her hands. She was so tired.

She felt Peter's gentle hand on her back. "Let's go sit down, okay?" He suggested carefully.

Nodding, Kate took a deep breath and straightened up, removing her hands from her face. She went to walk towards the sofa but noticed the Peter didn't immediately follow. Looking back, she watched him pull a bottle of sprite from the fridge and picked up the plate of pizza before following.

Opening her mouth to decline the food, she paused shutting her mouth as she realized the hypocrisy if she did that; she had been begging him to eat for weeks now.

Dropping down on the sofa, she accepted the food and drink but set them on the coffee table. Peter sat down close, facing her; she angled herself to face him, her knee brushing again his.

"Do you want to tell me what happened?" Peter asked, brown eyes concerned.

Where to even start? "It all happened so fast." Kate said quietly. Her brain was working quickly to find a way to tell him what happened without having to go into too much detail; she was trying to keep her lie to a minimum. "The team got there, and the cleanup went quick, you know how good they are." Peter smiled faintly. "We were in one of the main holding cell areas, Barney was going to go back into his cell but one of the criminals that had been unaccounted for had a gun and he fired on us." Kate shook her head. "I didn't see it. I just suddenly felt Barney shove me to the ground, and then I saw him fall."

Her stomach churned but she had too many years of practice to let it show on her face.

"I'm sorry, Kate." Peter said sincerely.

She shook her head, sniffing slightly. "Don't be." She replied. "I'm fine." She repeated quickly seeing his expression of disbelief. "Really, I am. I'm just exhausted."

"Despite everything that happened, he was your brother." Peter said reaching out and brushing a stray curl off her cheek. "You did say once you always hoped he would turn things around."

Kate had said that, once upon a time. Maybe he did.

Closing her eyes, she rested her cheek against his hand. The back of her eyes burned with unshed tears that she was struggling to prevent from falling.

"How can I help?" Peter asked.

Opening her eyes, she met his soft brown eyes that she loved so much. His open, concerned, expression gripped at her very soul and made her open her mouth to tell him the truth, however, movement out of the corner of her eye caught her attention. Turning her head slightly, she froze. "Clint." She said in surprise.

Peter looked back, following her gaze to the archer standing in the doorway.

"It's late, you should both be in your beds." Clint said, expression impassive as he crossed his arms, leaning against the door frame.

"He was just keeping me company while I ate dinner." Kate replied having turned away quickly, quickly rubbing her eyes and picking up her plate and drink. She knew Peter was watching her, knew she was acting weird, but she had to leave before she broke. She put the soda and plate back in the fridge.

"I'll walk you back." Clint said simply, straightening. He looked back at Peter. "You should get some sleep too. It's been a long day."

Peter nodded, watching the two of them curiously. "Good night." He offered to the siblings.

Kate smiled. "Night." She replied and followed her brother out.

Clint walked with her back to her room in silence. Lucky walked alongside her, practically glued to the side of her leg, looking up at her.

Opening her door, she motioned for Lucky to go in first before she followed. "I didn't tell him anything if that's what you're worried about." She spoke quietly before Clint could ask.

Clint leaned back against the edge of her desk as she sat on her bed, pulling her boots off. "You know why you can't say anything Kate." He stated simply.

"I already said, I didn't tell him anything." Kate said with a glare at her brother. Her expression softened after a second. "How are you doing?"

Clint shrugged. "Not the worst situation I've ever been in." He replied.

"That's…not what I meant." Kate said quietly.

"I know." Clint said after a second. "But I don't know what you want me to say. How are you feeling about it?"

Kate chewed on her lip. "He was our brother." She said with a shrug. She looked up at him with sad eyes. "But I don't have many happy memories with him. You have years' worth though."

Clint sighed after a moment. "Like you said, he was our brother." He stepped forward and placed a kiss on the top of her head. "Get some sleep Kate."

She watched Clint go, watching as her door shut, leaving her in darkness.

…

~ Kate stood in the center of the room, looking around at the holding cells, once again filled with prisoners. Nothing about this was sitting well with her; all the trouble that they had been through, the clean-up was just going too well.

There were still three prisoners and the assassin that were unaccounted for, but it was controlled enough that they could move around without worry of a swarm.

Most of the Avengers were still moving through the prison looking for the last ones on the list, but Bucky and Clint were in the room with her.

"Two of the missing prisoners were located." Bucky relayed to her and Clint. "Or rather their bodies were."

"Any sign of the assassin?" Kate asked.

Bucky shook his head.

"You still haven't asked the most important question yet." Barney said quietly, standing nearby.

"Quiet prisoner." One of the guards snapped.

Kate frowned and turned to her oldest brother. "What do you mean?" She asked.

Barney glanced at the guards before looking at her. "Haven't you been wondering how the assassin even got into the most secure prison in the world?" He asked.

Kate frowned. The thought had crossed her mind, but she had been too preoccupied with not dying to really focus on the issue. "Barney, what do you know?" She questioned.

"Think it through." Barney said, eyes darting to the guards briefly. "The only way would be for him to have help."

Watching Barney continue to glance at the guards, she felt her stomach drop. "They would need someone on the inside." Kate said in horror, eyes going to the guards.

"Just couldn't keep your mouth shut." One of the guards pulled his gun.

Barney shoved her out of the way, but before the guard could pull the trigger, Barney had disarmed him and knocked the man back.

Kate pushed herself slightly from the floor, thinking maybe it had been that simple, until her ears registered the bang of the gun, delayed to her senses but echoing when it hit, and she watched her eldest brother fall.

Suddenly, there was an arm wrapped around her, pulling her back under cover. The vibranium arm gripped her tight, not letting her struggle out. The assassin was firing from the rafters high above them.

Kate screamed out as she looked at Barney's body, blood pooling around him. ~

…

Waking up, Kate thrashed in bed, pulling herself from the nightmare with a scream barely contained in her throat.

Her disorientated brain registered hands touch her arms and she struck out on instinct, but those hands firmly but carefully held her in place. A voice filtered through her fog, and she realized Peter was holding her, talking calmly and gently, reassuring her that she was safe.

She broke into a sob and wrapped her arms around him, pressing herself as close to his body and his warmth as she could. His arms wrapped tightly around her, holding her.

…

Peter waited until he knew that the compound would be silent before he went to Kate's room. He was worried about her; she had seemed so shaken during the few minutes they had been able to talk.

When he had reached her door, he heard Lucky whine and heard movement like there was a struggle happening inside the room. Fearing the worst, Peter flung open the door ready to fight, but what he saw caused a different cold fear to move through his veins.

Kate was locked in a nightmare, one of the worst ones he had witnessed with her. She tossed and turned in the bed, body going ridged at times as she fought with something that he couldn't see.

Moving to her quickly, he stroked his hands over her arms, over her curls, talking to her gently, using tricks he had learned to pull her from nightmares before. It took a painfully long time, he was almost ready to go get Clint or Natasha, when she finally started to come out of it.

The reaction as she woke was instinctual, but his spidey sense told him the hit was coming before it happened. Catching her hands, he carefully pinned her arms as he talked to her calmly until she realized where she was. When she wrapped her arms around him and started crying into his chest, Peter could only hold her, pressing kisses to her hair and talking soothingly as his mind raced. What happened in that prison?