The Rogue Assassin | Kate Bishop x Reader

chapter 28 - new kind of days

Y/N's POV -

"Why archery?" I ask, rolling over toward Kate. The two of us opted to have a picnic lunch. We brought a blanket and a basket full of sandwiches and fruits.

"What do you mean?" Kate asks, looking down at me and brushing her fingers through my hair.

"You said you were like a state champion in fencing, right? So why not use a sword or something?" I ask, staring up at my beautiful girlfriend.

Kate chuckles, "It's actually a funny story. When the Chitauri attacked in 2012, I was young and scared. Then, I saw Clint, a human, jumping off a rooftop while simultaneously killing the aliens. He was out there fighting alongside Thor and the Hulk with a bow and arrow. After that, I asked my mom to sign me up for archery lessons. I stuck with it and now here we are."

"So you chose archery because you had a superhero crush?" I tease.

She rolls her eyes, "More like admiration. Not a crush."

I raise my eyebrows, "sure."

"Shut up" Kate says, playfully punching me.

I move so that my head is resting on her thighs. I let my eyes close, enjoying the moment. I can't it, less than a year ago, I was a brainwashed Hydra assassin. Now, I'm living with the Avengers. I have a wonderful girlfriend who understands when I need space and is always patient. I can't help but feel undeserving. "Kate..."

I feel Kate lean forward to look at me, "Yeah?"

"Thank you"

"What?" she sounds confused.

I try to hide the fact that I'm on the verge of tears, "I don't deserve you. You're too good for me. I'm a disaster, I can't even handle my own emotions sometimes." I chuckle, "You put up with all my shit."

Kate pulls me up, her hands cupping my face, "You are not a disaster, you are amazing. Despite all the bad shit that you've gone through, you are an incredible person. You care so deeply for others even though they haven't always returned it. You are adventurous and smart. You are patient and strong. I had just found out that my mom was working for Kingpin when I met you. I felt betrayed and furious. Then I met you. Unlike my mom, in the face of adversity, you chose to fight."

She moves her hand to the back of my head, pulling me into a hug. Our bodies mold together. I bury my face into the crook of her neck. "Maybe in some weird way, we helped each other" I whisper.

Kate chuckles, "I guess that's what happens when you get wrapped in this world."

**********

I cling to the cold wall, staying in the shadows. In the dim lighting, it is hard to make out the four figures. A man in all leather and strangely a fur neckline seems to be the boss. A smaller, plump man is sitting behind a desk, pieces of equipment splayed out in front of him. I recognize the two other figures from Spider-Man's suit camera.

There is no other noise in the abandoned warehouses, so comms isn't an option at the moment. Instead, I squint, trying to find Kate on the adjacent wall. We make eye contact and give each other a nod. For now, we hold. The man in charge, presumably 'The Vulture' is smart, he managed to hide his underground alien-weapon dealing for years.

The Vulture is annoyed, "How many times have I told you not to fire them out in the open!"

The pale-skinned weapon dealer steps forward, clearly feeling confident, "You said, move the merchandise."

"Under the radar. Under the radar!" Vulture lashes out, "That's how we survive. If you bring Damage Control or the Avengers down here, we're through. You're out there wearing that goofy thing, lighting up cars, calling yourself the Shocker. I'm the Shocker. I shock people. What is this, pro wrestling?"

Little do they know, they've already caught the Avengers' attention. They must think highly of themselves though, if they think that Iron Man or Captain America would waste their time with them.

The 'Shocker' shrugs, "Ah, whatever, old man. Come on." He moves toward the table taking off his gloves.

The Vulture reluctantly follows, "Look. I know you don't give a crap about anything. But I do. I built this whole place because I got people I have to look after."

This is the first time we've seen him without his mask on, but the dim lighting prevents Stark's facial ID software from getting a good read. At least we know he has some sort of family. A strong motive.

The Shocker chooses to mock his boss, "Yeah, yeah, yeah." Man, this dude is screwing himself over. Sure enough, the Vulture has had enough.

After a long argument, the two decide that the Shocker's knowledge of the operation is too dangerous. The Vulture turns around and picks up some kind of weapon from the science guy's table, Without hesitating, he fires it.

The blast hit the Shocker in the middle of his chest. His body turns to ash, falling to the ground.

I look to Kate who is ready to jump in, but I motion for her to hold, waiting for the man to put down the weapon. I try to motion for her to use one of those trick arrows to get that weapon out of the way. She nods, I can only hope that she gets what I mean.

Without the Vulture suit, the two of us easily take down the three men. Once tied up, Kate uses one of Stark's devices to identify the men. I make my way over to the computers. My fingers work quickly across the keyboard. I begin downloading the files onto a flash drive. However, If I'm waiting, I might as well do some digging on my own. I search all communications, there's no way these four idiots have been running their underground dealings by themselves.

My stomach feels like it's filled with lead, weighing down on my body. My heart feels like it's stopped and my breath catches. My breaths become heavier.

Kate notices, and she comes to my side. Her eyes glance over to the screen, freezing for a second. Her eyes widen with worry, before wrapping her arms around me. "We got what we came for, SHIELD is on their way to clean up. Let's get out of here."