The Second Born Curses- A Winterborn Series

Me and You, sis

Clint's POV

As everyone else was busy trying to fix the helicarrier, it was easy for the three of us to obtain a Quinjet. While Captain America and Natasha was busy preparing the Quinjet for departure, I sat down on one of the seats, making sure that I had every arrow in my quiver set to be used without any hiccups.

I felt turmoil in my gut, making me feel sick as well as angry at Loki. He had took everything from me, including my sister. I had no doubt that he was doing something horrible to her, which was even worse as I began worrying about her. My mind did the one thing it could do, which was take me back to when I made a vow to Katra on the night we had both been abandoned by our parents....

"Mummy? Where are we going?" I asked my mother who was sitting in the passenger seat. Edith Barton was a tall lady with dark red hair and beautiful blue eyes with a kind smile, which she gave me and Katra in the backseat.

"We're just going on a little night trip, Clinton, okay?" 

"Okay, mummy." Seven year old Clint Barton had answered, not knowing that something was amiss with his parents.

Katra slept soundly next to me, clutching her stuffed toy rabbit in her car seat. Katra's head slumped against the edge of her seat, her purple coat barely covered her tiny frail body. I smiled and tucked her rabbit closer to her  chest, looking around as far as I was able to see.

My father drove with a tight knuckled grip, his face was grim from what I could see, which was not much as I was seated right behind him. There was an air of rage that always seemed to be around him, more so when he was drunk and this was the first time that I had seen him without some adult drink of his that he was nursing before he drove.

Everyone always says that I looked more like Harold, my father, than my mother. They would always say that I was so cute and so much like him but everyone would always hope that I turned our nothing like him.

"Dad, where are we-"

"Shut up, you brat! Be like your freak of a sister and go to sleep!" My father snapped, my mother flinched and looked out of the window to avoid my father's gaze.

He was always so cruel to her, despite how wonderful she was and how patient she could be with Katra and her tantrums or with how slow I could be.
I hated my father. Even more so when he made comments like that about Katra. It was because of her hair and how quiet she could be. A strand of Katra's unique hair colour of red and blackish brown fell across her frail face, I tucked it in behind her ear, grateful that she didn't hear father's name calling.

Suddenly the car swerved, lurching all three of us who did not expect it into the doors, or in my case, into Katra's car seat. Pain wracked my head hard and Katra woke up with a scream.

Oh no. Katra please be quiet seven year old me pleaded into his head, knowing that this would not end well. Whenever Katra cried or screamed, father got angry and would hit her or slap me away when I try to protect her like the good older brother I was told to be.
The car screeched to a halt, making Katra go instantly silent in fear of what might happen. Her brown eyes, the colour of light chocolate, widened as father got out of the car with our mother. Silence wrapped around us like a veil waiting to be uncovered.

Their doors slammed shut, mother's door shut rather softly compared to father's, before our parents opened up mine and Katra's doors. Cold air wafted in from outside, you could tell that it was an autumn night with how chilly and how crisp the air felt on the exposed skin of our bodies, which was a lot given that we were only in our thin pyjamas and a coat with some worn out hand-me-down shoes.

Get out, you freak! I will not say it again!" Father yelled at Katra as she tried to crawl away from him after she was unclipped from her seat. Mother grabbed a hold of me, tugging me gently out of the car.

"Clint, don't fight your father on this." She whispered, frightened of her husband and for her children.

"But mum! Katra will get hurt!" I shouted, struggling with my little body against my mother's surprisingly strong grip, watching as our father grabbed my younger sister out by her feet and then settled her on the ground. I was surprised by how gentle he was when he did put her down.

Mother and father marched us to the other side of the car so that we were together before we all ambled towards the other side of an old abandoned car park. A lone street lamp illuminated a small section of the entire car park, withered leaves littered the sides of the parking bays nearest to a small woods that surrounded this eerie place.

"Stand over there and don't move!" Father ordered, mentioning to the middle of the light, a good distance away from the car.

"But daddy-"

"Do as I say!"

I huffed and did as I was told, Katra following suit. Mother kneeled down in front of us. Her eyes were a blood shot red, cheeks stained with tears. She smiled faintly.

"Katra. Clint. We're going to play a little game. It's called "hide and seek". Daddy and I  thought this up earlier; we think that you'll love this game. Now, you both go hide."

"Yes. We shall take a drive in the car for a while and count while you go hide." Father finished, smiling sardonically.

If only I had known what they had planned and not have been such a naive boy not to realise.

Me and Katra grinned. It had been a long time since we had all played a game like this.

"Okay!" We sang simultaneously. Mother hugged us both tightly, holding us longer than necessary. Her shoulders were shaking subtly, though I discarded any worries as excitement began to course through my veins.

Mother let go. Touching each of our face before standing up and starting to count, closing her eyes. Immediately me and Katra took off running towards the woods, hiding. Waiting for our parents to find us.

It was hours later that we realized that they had gotten into the car and weren't coming back. Grabbing a tight hold of Katra's hand, huddling together for warmth after finding each other a couple of hours earlier.

"Clint? Where's mummy and daddy?" Katra inquired nervously. Staggering hatred took over my small body; I fought to keep it in check. It was the first time I was able to do so without failing and bursting into a fit of rage.

"Katra. They're gone and they're not coming back. It's just you and me, sis."

Katra cuddled into my side, tears rolling down her cheeks as the oncoming winter wind began to howl its fury into our tiny bodies. Winter was coming in. And it was coming in fast.

"Me and you, sis." I repeated, this time more softly.

"Clint. Are you with us?" Natasha asked, pulling me out of my memories and into the present. Into the present with a present looming threat that has all life in the balance. A thousand lives hanging in the balance and only us to help stop it.

I could only hope that Katra had gotten away from Loki and was safe. Even if our shared past was about to be revealed to our teammates, I knew that I had to risk it all to save those thousands of lives. The only wish I could make was that they and Katra did not think too badly of me when it did come out.