Take A Chance On Me

Chapter 8

It was morning when Clint landed the jet in a forest by the so called 'safe house', the walk to the house was a couple of KMs, but it was best the jet have some cover from sight. Clint had his arm around Natasha. Out of the entire team, she and Banner had taken the hardest beatings, none of them, but Tony and Clint had said a single word since the Witch.

It was a large, white two story house in the middle of a massive paddock that had an old-rustic vibe to it. The porch creaked under the weight of the team.
"Honey. I'm home." Clint called out, a auburn haired woman appeared and softly kissed him on the lips, "Guys this is Laura." She smiled and offered a little wave.
"I know all of your names." She says almost nervously. Stark not believing his eyes just called her an agent.

Thumping upstairs could be heard as two small children came running in, "Did you bring Aunty Nat?!" The youngest of the two asked, Nat stepped forward.
"Why don't you hug her and find out?" She says as the girl throws her arms around the ex-assassin smiling.
"These are smaller agents." Stark said as Thor stepped on Lego and ashamed kicked the broken Legos under the couch.

***

Steve stood outside by a pile of firewood, Tony joined him soon after.
"She got inside my head." Steve mumbled, "Tony? Be careful."
"You know what she showed you isn't true." Tony said, compassion clear in voice.
"It felt so real though." Tears filled the soldiers eyes, Tony moved towards him, wrapping him in his arms and wiping his tears away with his thumbs.

"You did that for me, now I'm doing it for you." Tony smiled.
"I'm sorry, is this a bad time?" The sound of a new voice made the two apart quickly. "Clint said you're good with engines and our tractor doesn't seem to want to start."
"Yeah I'll take a look at it." Tony said, not breaking eye contact with Steve.

***

"Alright dear, tell me everything. What heals ya?" Tony fiddled with the valves on the tractor in the Barton's shed.
"Do me a favour and try not to bring it to life." Nick Fury said from behind a cupboard in the shed.
"Laura Barton. That little minx." Tony cursed, "I get it, Maria Hill called you. Was she ever not working for you?

"Artificial Intelligence." Nick interrupted, "You never even hesitated."
"Look its been a really long day, like Eugene O'Neill long. So hows about we skip to the part where your useful."
"Look me in the eye and tell me you're going to shut him down."
"You're not the director of me."

"I'm not the director of anybody." Nick sighs and sits down on a bale of hay. "I'm just an old man who cares very much about you."
Tears flooded Tony's eyes for the second time today. "And I'm the man that killed the Avengers. I saw it. And I couldn't tell the team, I saw them all dead and then Steve..."