The Prince of the Tower

Chapter 12: Barney Looks Out for the Women in His Life

"Are you excited to see your brother give Miranda away?" K asked Clint quietly.

Clint shrugged. He hadn't really been giving the wedding as much thought when he'd been counting down the weeks until Barney got to live at the school with them, but now that he was wearing the nicest tux he'd ever even owned, he supposed he should think about that...

"I dunno," he said. "I think it's pretty cool... but I think he's more happy about it than me." He grinned up at K. "Ana said she'd be his dance."

"Yeah? Are you going to dance too?" She pulled him over to straighten out his hair a little better — a total change from the usual — and then she started to tie his bowtie for him. "You'll have to figure out how to do this."

Clint made a face. "I don't like 'em. It feels like being strangled."

"Yeah, Logan said he hates them too, but he still wears them when he needs to," she said. "Not going to complain at all that girls get the pretty dresses and heels."

Clint shook his head. "Kitty says heels can be painful though. So she said a suit's nothing to complain about."

"She just doesn't know how to walk right in them," K said. "Or she's wearing the wrong size. Heels are easy."

"Well, she's not much older than Barney, so maybe she just hasn't learned that yet,"Clint offered.

"That's what I'm getting at," K said. "But there's nothing wrong with heels. I'm just as fast in them than I am out of them."

"Yeah, but you're good at everything," Clint pointed out.

"Only because I've practiced," she said, booping his nose.

Clint grinned and then kissed her cheek. "I'm more excited about Barney living with us for a while," he admitted. "I like having my family together."

"I hope he likes it there," K said.

"Well, he's got kids his age there," Clint said. "I asked Jubilee and Kitty if they'd help him meet some of the new kids, because I think they need friends too."

"Oh, then he'll know half the school before lunchtime on the first day he's here," K said. She leaned back and gave Clint one final once-over. "You, my darling boy, are as perfect as you can be."

"You say silly things, Mom," Clint said, batting her hand away.

"I say things that are right — and you don't know how to just smile and say thanks when it's about how handsome you are. Yet."

"That's because you just like my duck fluff," Clint said, shaking his head at her, though she did catch him shooting a glance at the mirror to see how he looked too.

She shook her head at him and put on a swipe of lipstick. "Lets go. I'm sure we'll need to find a good spot to watch Barney grin."

Clint grinned and nodded, offering her his arm the way Jean had showed him before they left. He was almost as tall as K anyway, and he wanted to be a good escort. "Will you dance with me? Storm showed me some stuff."

"I'd love to," K said as she took his arm and smiled. "And I'll show you a few things, too."

"'Cause you know everything," he agreed, nodding seriously.

"Because I am old and have been around forever," she argued.

Clint giggled. "You're really bad at hearing nice things too, Mom."

"I am. Guess it's something we share," she said.

"Family trait," he agreed, kissing her cheek as they headed off to sit together.