Title: Are They or Aren't They?
Rating: PG-13/T
Originally posted: 5th March 2024
Originally written for: alphaflyer – 'Five times the Avengers think they've figured out whether Hawkeye and the Black Widow are dating, and one time there's no doubt.'
Characters/Pairings: Clint/Nat
Notes: for Be_Compromised Promptathon: 2012 Re-Edition.

"Oh, come on! Nobody has that much sexual tension without releasing it at some point or other!"

Steve visibly winced on hearing the word sex mentioned out loud, which might have been funny on any other occasion. Happy as Tony was to see the guy squirm, he didn't have much time to dwell on it. He was in full flow, prognosticating as to the true nature of the Barton-Romanov relationship. It was one of those riddles that he really wanted the answer to. Not having it was driving him crazy!

"They're spies. They lie for a living," Pepper noted, sitting back in her seat and crossing her legs just so. "Plus, they work together. The complications are just... I can't imagine they're in a real relationship."

"Not that I don't entirely respect your opinion, because you know that I do," said Tony, pointing in her general direction with his glass, "but on this one, I think you're wrong. They lie to others for a living, but folks like that have to share the truth with someone. All I'm saying is, I think they share a lot more than that."

"You suspect Natasha and Clint of sharing a bed," Thor realised aloud, then seemed to be considering. "It may be so, but fellow warriors, be they male or female, are quite able to fight battles together but take their carnal pleasure elsewhere."

"Either way, I really don't think it's any of our business," said Steve, shifting awkwardly in his seat.

"I second that," Bruce agreed, clearly trying to change the subject to anything else, perhaps believing he was on a surefire thing when he asked Tony about the results of the tests they had done on the sceptre before SHIELD took it away.

Unfortunately for him, Tony would not be swayed from his chosen topic.

"How is nobody else as intrigued about this as I am?" he asked desperately. "A part of me wants to just march up to them and ask, but honestly? I'm genuinely afraid they might make a fun sex game out of torturing me for my insolence."

At that one, everybody groaned in apparent disgust, well, except for Thor. He laughed.

"You cannot be afraid of the Spider Woman and the Arrow Man," he declared loudly. "They are strong, and I have great respect for their bravery, but they are so tiny!"

"Uh, maybe not right now," said Bruce pointedly, making cutting motions across his throat with his free hand.

Tony looked up with everybody else to see the two Agents of SHIELD walking into the room together, both looking like they just had a serious workout. Of course, they had been in the gym, Tony already knew that, thanks to JARVIS, but he wasn't gross enough to spy on exactly what they had been doing in there. That said, he had his theories.

"Any chance of a beer?" asked Clint, as he sat down with the rest of the team. "What?"

"Nothing." Steve shook his head. "We were, uh... There was a lull in conversation."

"Pretty sure we can do something about that," Nat considered, moving as if to join him in the armchair. "Any chance you have room for one more there, Cap?" she asked, wearing a look that Tony had seen before.

Steve cleared his throat very loudly as Natasha laid herself across the wide arm of his seat, inches from landing in his lap.

"Oh, please, take it," he said fast, getting up and allowing her the whole chair.

She slid gracefully into place, one hand out ready to receive the beer Tony offered her the second she landed. "Thanks," she told him as well as the Captain, who had already found a new perch on the couch with Thor and Bruce.

Not that Tony's focus was really on Steve. He looked from Natasha to Clint and back three times and saw absolutely nothing. She had just flirted pretty hard in the direction of another guy right in front of Barton and he hadn't so much as flinched.

"Okay, maybe for the first time in my life, I got it wrong," he muttered, downing the rest of his scotch.

When it came to the rest of his team, Steve was pretty sure he knew all that he needed to, at this point. He trusted they had his back in a fight, that they would listen when he gave orders, and that he liked them, more or less. He had his reservations when it came to Stark, but as to the rest, he was confident they were all good people at heart, maybe even Tony too, when he really tried.

Of course, Romanov and Barton had their secrets, and the biggest was perhaps whether they were closer than just working partners would be. Tony had been so insistent that they had to be more than friends, but that was a very narrow-minded way of thinking to Steve. Just because two people worked closely together, it didn't mean they had to also be romantically linked. All he saw when he looked at Strike Team Delta were two people who had each other's backs, no matter what. That was how it should be in battle. It was no different to what Steve had with Bucky or the Howling Commandoes back in the war.

There was no way that Natasha and Clint were actually a couple, that would be far too messy. Steve was absolutely sure he was right... until the moment when he wasn't. Coming into the communal sitting room one morning, he saw them close together by the window, Clint's arm around Natasha's shoulders as they whispered together. Sure, it could be mission talk, SHIELD secrets, that was perfectly plausible. At the same time, as much as Steve was far from an expert on body language, they did seem very close. Intimate in a way that made him feel as if he was intruding.

Turning around, he decided to go elsewhere to relax. Maybe go get coffee from the shop on the corner and spend a little time there. He also decided he was never going to let Tony know what he saw that morning. If he did, he would have to admit that Stark might be right. That was something Steve never wanted to do, at any cost.


Maybe Tony had a point. Bruce couldn't say that he spent a lot of time wondering about the relationships between his fellow Avengers, but with so much talk about Natasha and Clint in the last while, it seemed impossible to ignore them. They certainly were close, there was no denying that, but they all heard Natasha on the helicarrier, telling Loki that love was for children. That her closeness to Clint was purely professional, because she owed him a debt.

Looking purely at the data, as scientists were wont to do, it seemed pretty clear that all that existed between Barton and Romanov was a professional working partnership. Of course, love wasn't a science, and neither was sexual attraction. The hypothesis that there was more to the relationship between the two SHIELD agents than met the eye was by no means a crazy one, something that was reinforced to Bruce when he stepped off the elevator on the wrong floor, the doors opening across from one of the work-out rooms.

The noises emanating from beyond the door didn't exactly sound inconsistent with sexual activity. That being said, Bruce was also aware that people fighting or partaking in sports could make similar sounds. He refused to be curious. Even though, as a scientist he was almost always searching for answers to previously unanswerable questions.

Shaking his head, Bruce reached out to the button to close the elevator doors, his finger never quite making contact as a particularly loud thud almost made the floor shake. The yell that came with it didn't exactly sound like the fun kind either. Moving out into the hall, he hesitated a moment, when suddenly the door he had been staring at opened and Thor stepped out, startling Bruce more than a little.

"What happened?" he asked, looking to the demi-god and then beyond him, directly into the work-out room.

"For one built into so svelte a form, Agent Romanov is indeed a mighty warrior. Not that I should be surprised, knowing the Lady Sif as I do," he considered, shaking his head as he too looked back into the room. "I fear Agent Barton will be suffering for some time," he noted, slapping his team-mate on the back a little too hard as he walked away.

Bruce watched Natasha reach to help Clint up from the floor, his other arm cradling his ribs as he winced painfully. The last thing Bruce saw before the door closed itself was pain etched on the other man's face.

Maybe he was wrong. Maybe Tony was actually wrong for once too. For all that people had a tendency to hurt the ones they loved sometimes, he couldn't imagine a couple in love being willing to really do each other that kind of damage in a sparring match.


"I tell you plainly, Stark, had you seen the last of these sparring sessions, as I did, you would not think those two are any more than battle partners," Thor told Tony, rolling his eyes at what he saw to be the thinnest of human arguments. "You base their passion upon your own, because you and the Lady Potts argued your way to love. It is not the same for all people."

"Hey, we didn't argue our way to... Okay, so maybe, a little," Tony was forced to admit, "but I still say those two are doing more than judo practice in that gym. Come on, all up close and personal like that, and remember, I have experience of that kind of thing with Romanov. She had on an alias, but I know what she's capable of. I know how she looks in much less than the cat suit too. If Barton's not making the most of that, the man's crazy."

"It is you that is crazy, Stark, if you believe anything more is between them that what there seems." Thor shook his head, watching with interest for a moment as Tony worked on his car engine. "You say this has the power of many hundred horses, but tell me, are these the horses with eight legs or only four?"

"Are they...?" Stark began to ask, before stopping and shaking his head, muttering so Thor almost didn't hear. "I don't know why I'm surprised by anything anymore. Hey, how about you head upstairs?" he suggested then, louder than before. "See if you can't find us some refreshments maybe? Getting a little dry down here."

Thor was not used to being dispatched like a serving wench, but it was clear even to him that his presence was aggravating Stark. He was quite on-edge, ever since the Battle of New York, but then, he was merely a mortal man and had faced things such people should never have to see. This was why Thor was willing to acquiesce to the request and go in search of something to quench their thirst.

The elevator took him up several floors, depositing him near to the communal kitchen that the Avengers often used. He was not surprised to find it occupied by two of his team-mates, but was intrigued to see who it was and what they were doing. Romanov and Barton moved as if of one mind, almost perhaps even one body, as they put together warm drinks for themselves, handing off a spoon here, a bottle of milk there.

Of course, they were partners and likely to know each other's next move in battle, but domestically? He had not bargained on that. Watching from just outside of the door, he saw them then move to sit at the table, with food to accompany their drinks and a newspaper to read. The reading matter was expertly parted by the two of them, each taking their preferred sections, and then, they sat comfortably, her feet propped on the corner of his chair while he leaned to the other side, his elbow on the table. They sensed no other presence, or perhaps just did not care if anyone saw them.

"Are you coming in...?" asked Natasha, without looking up from her reading or her food.

"Or just standing there all day?" Clint added, as if he were made only to finish such sentences for her.

The God of Thunder did not know what to say, but he knew what he thought. Perhaps these two really were more than simply partners after all.


"Something amusing you, Hill?"

Maria forced her face into neutral as she faced her boss. "No, sir. Not exactly amusing. I was actually hoping to talk to you about sending a memo to Stark?"

"A memo?" asked Fury, head tilting as he crossed his arms over his chest. "What does the billionaire playboy want now?"

"Oh, he didn't request anything," she confirmed. "I just had a message from Ms Potts and... well, to put it bluntly, sir, Stark is driving her crazy. You know how he is when he gets a hold of something and won't let go."

"I do." Fury nodded once. "And I'm sure Ms Potts has my sympathy, dealing with Stark's latest obsession, but I really don't see what any of it has to do with me?"

"I, uh... She was wondering if you could send confirmation on the status of the... the nature of the relationship between Barton and Romanov?"

She regretted asking long before the last of those words left her lips. Bad enough that the two agents in question would skin her alive if they ever found out she had been discussing their private lives with anyone, but Fury himself looked just about ready to blow at the sound of the request.

"She wants me to what?!" he asked, the vein in his temple beginning to throb terribly. "Why does Stark even care what those two are to each other? What damn business is it of his anyway?!"

"I don't know, sir." Maria shook her head. "But just to save us having an incident of the Potts killing Stark kind on our hands, I could just send a memo..."

"And say what exactly?" he checked, staring intently into her face. "You have insight into Strike Team Delta that I'm lacking, Hill? 'Cause as far as I know - and don't you dare tell them I ever said it - Barton and Romanov are two of the greatest agents that SHIELD has ever had. You think they would jeopardise that partnership they spent so long building for flowers and candy and leaping into bed together? Not a chance. My agents have better sense than that!"

On that note, he swept back out of the office, the draught his coat made causing papers to flutter on Maria's desk. Thankfully, she was ready for it and caught them all before anything fell. She sighed then and turned back to her computer. Fury hadn't actually said she couldn't send Stark a memo about Barton and Romanov, but she hardly knew what to tell him.

For all that Fury was determined there was nothing more to the relationship of Strike Team Delta than met the eye, she had other thoughts herself. Of course, she never dared to ask. Maybe it would get the better of Stark in the end and he would do it. Assuming he lived to tell the tale, the truth would probably filter through to SHIELD HQ eventually. In the meantime, Maria would just have to tell Pepper, 'Sorry, no dice with Fury,' and hope she didn't hear any explosions from Avengers Tower after that!


Steve was on his way down the corridor to Clint's apartment within Avengers Tower, a borrowed book in his hand that he wanted to return. As he neared his team-mate's door, he saw it was both unlocked and standing ajar. That couldn't be right.

"JARVIS?" he called in sotto, hoping the AI was sensitive enough to hear.

"Yes, Captain, how may I be of service?"

"What kind of security protocols do you have for this floor?"

"Very few, sir," the AI explained. "Access to any of the Avengers team floors, as you know, is at a very high level, but Mr Stark wanted the team to have their run of these specified floors without restriction. I do not have protocols regarding security or even monitoring regarding internal doors and no surveillance inside any of the rooms."

That wasn't altogether helpful, though Steve was sure he should appreciate the fact Stark wasn't spying on them all when they thought they were alone. Still, it bothered him to think somebody had somehow gained access to Clint's quarters without his knowledge.

"JARVIS, maybe let Stark and the others know we might have trouble on this floor, specifically Barton's quarters."

"Very good, sir," the AI agreed politely.

Steve made a careful approach towards the partially opened door, listening out for any suspicious sounds, treading carefully so nobody would know he was there. Pushing the door further open, he looked around at the living area and felt worse for the sight that met his eyes. The place had been ransacked, or so it seemed. This was looking worse all the time.

Glancing over his shoulder, he heard the elevator ping and was only slightly relieved to realise Tony, Thor, and Bruce were approaching to back him up.

"What's up, Cap?" asked Stark as they barged into the scene. "Wow, I didn't really think we had a break in, but it's either that or Barton really needs a housekeeper."

"He has enjoyed much revelry without us," Thor announced, reaching behind the couch he was stood behind and producing the last thing Steve had expected to see.

"Oh, okay," said Bruce, looking at the black lace bra with wide eyes. "So, probably not a break in," he decided, backing up towards the door.

Their voices must have been loud enough to disturb the activities in the next room, and before Steve could make any kind of escape, never mind encourage the rest of the team out, Barton emerged in only his boxers. Two seconds later, there was Natasha at his shoulder, seemingly wearing nothing at all, save for a necklace that glinted in the light - a silver arrow.

Of all the times to notice it, Steve wondered at his ability to do so now, but honestly, he was pretty sure he would be subject to a pretty severe beating at the hands of one agent or another if his eyes strayed anywhere below the neck.

"Team meeting?" asked Natasha, in all innocence. "Maybe we could reschedule. We're kind of busy right now, boys."

"You know, you're all free to head towards the door at any time," Clint told the guys with a look.

"We're going... and we're sorry to intrude," said Bruce, making a sharp exit.

"Next time maybe actually close the door and engage the locks?" Tony suggested, smirking terribly as he followed his science bro out.

"I wish you nothing but enjoyment, friends," Thor said, smiling too widely and going so far as to laugh as he left too.

"Cap?" Natasha prompted when he continued to stand there, not staring, he was ensuring he did not to do that, but still, he stayed in place a few seconds longer.

"Sorry," he apologised then, eyes only on the door as he headed that way. "I just have to say one thing," he told them, looking out into the hallway even as he spoke to them. "If you two are serious about each other, don't hide it, don't be ashamed of it, and please, whatever happens, don't waste a second of the time you have together. Take it from me, you'll regret it if you do."

With that he stepped out of the room and closed the door behind him with a click. He hoped Barton and Romanov took heed of what he said. He also hoped that finding out the truth about their relationship, which was now very plain, didn't make Tony any more obnoxious than he already was. Somehow, he doubted they were going to be that lucky.

Still, Steve was smiling as he walked back to the elevator to head back to his own place. Natasha and Clint, a couple. Who would've thought?

The End