Iron-Hawk Short Stories

Thoughts On Clint Barton

AN: Thought it be cute if I sort of just wrote two chapters on how Tony and Clint see each other. So for this chap is the way Tony sort of sees Clint, what he thinks and etc. Next chapter will be the same except vise versa.

Before they had started dating, Tony realised how little he knew about his lover. It was whilst they were dating that Stark had picked up things that he never knew (or things he couldn't read about in Clint Barton's files).

What not many people realise, or many people underestimated was Clint Barton was incredibly intelligent. He wasn't a genius such as Stark himself but more than what the average human would know. Barton had never finished his schooling, he was barely a 9nth grader before he ran away and left his schooling.

After he had joined SHIELD however, he continued to study in his spare time. He wasn't forced to but he personally wanted to learn what he had missed out on. He studied to the equivalent of an undergraduate degree of a civil engineer. Atop of that, he was a skilled tactician (a skill that would soon earn him a job as Director of SHIELD).

No one was quite sure why, not even himself as to how he learnt these skills. It was a skill he learnt that he did quite well during his times as a trainee at SHIELD. He had the ability to think into the future and accurately predict the outcome of his missions depending on his choices. Many (even Fury) himself went to him to ask for advice on mission planning.

It was something Stark had grown to admire more than ever. He didn't mind if Clint Barton never had a higher intellect than he anticipated but it was a bonus. It also made Clint impossible to beat in games such as chess; a game Clint did not know how to play and learnt in a span of ten minutes.

Tony Stark swore to himself that one day he would win a game of chess against Clint Barton.

His lover was also an amazing fighter. He was as talented as the Black Widow. Over the years Stark and many others placed bets to see who would win in a one on one fight. Those bets could never be settled, Clint Barton and Natasha Romanoff would both be gravely injured before either of them won. Tony could only hope that one day they could go a spar without almost murdering each other.

What many other people underestimates is how incredibly handsome Clint Barton is. Since he was in the shadow and away from public eye, nobody paid attention. Recently however, he's been more exposed to the public since he started dating Tony Stark.

Many articles online came up and commented on the man's rugged good looks. As an experiment Stark opened Barton's Instagram accounts to the public. He gained 2.2 million followers in a span of half an hour. Barton didn't question It and decided to leave his account to the public to follow. During this period of fame, Barton was also offered modelling jobs.

Tony's lover was too shy to take up these photo-ops and kindly declined most them. The few he took was because Stark had owned the companies. Those magazines and photoshoots quickly became viral and only brought in more adoring fans.

Tony Stark was convinced that if he made merchandise, they would sell out almost immediately.

One thing that he didn't know was Clint Barton wore glasses. Big framed glasses that made him look like a hipster. Stark caught him wearing them as his partner was working at home. They suited the man but Clint was shy about it. He said that he didn't enjoy wearing his glasses but Tony always thought that he looked good regardless.

Barton was also kind and gentle despite his occupation. Stark couldn't deny the fact he was intimidated by the man's job. Clint Barton was an assassin, his job was to kill people. He was sent to exterminate anyone that was asked. However, Barton always did a good job of separating his job from his personal life.

He had seen Clint help more people than he can count. His heart was always in the right place and this quality made him an amazing Dad in the future. Tony questioned how an assassin could always be so gentle and patient.

His lover also had a large love for coffee and dogs. He would drink around four cups a day, and that was if Tony didn't limit him. At this point coffee had become more a life sustenance than a caffeinated drink. His love for dogs...? That was unmatched to anything that Stark had ever seen.

Above all, Clint Barton was loyal to the people he cared about. He would risk his life for the people he loved. When it came down to others, Barton heeded no attention to his own wellbeing. Stark had seen him tortured to the point of death but even then, the man did not let on. Clint always managed a snarky comment that would only make his situation worst.

But not once did he ever sell out who he worked for and who he cared for.

Tony Stark adored him. Barton was a simple man and balanced out Stark's hectic life. His lover did not care that Stark was some sort of celebrity, he treated him like an equal human being.

"Stark can you grab me my drink?" Barton asked as he pointed towards the general direction of the counter. The man was on his laptop, scrolling idly.

"Get it yourself. Who do you think I am?" Stark scoffed as he was about to walk pass the counter. Clint snapped his fingers and continued to point. Tony rolled his eyes and handed him the drink.

At the end of the day, Barton was always there when Stark needed him. He made Tony laugh on the days that didn't seem so bright. He made memories more cheerful than it should be.

Most importantly Clint loved him just as much as he did and that was all that would ever matter to Tony.