Morning After: A/B/O AU

[cfbhawkeye]

It's nearly a week before either Clint or Steve regain some sanity and sobriety. The archer is up and about, cleaning away what remains of the water and snacks. He hits the shower for a hot soak before finally heading for the kitchen.

He's positive that Steve will be ravenous. He starts in on mi\aking some pancake batter and frying bacon and eggs while the coffee brews in the machine.

He calls in to SHIELD to let them know the situation, then checks in with the team. Natasha's kind enough to take over handling the explanations to everyone else in the Tower and Clint promises her a dinner of her favorite pasta and garlic bread in return for the help.

He fills a mug of coffee and then pours the first puddles of batter onto the griddle to cook.

Comments

[cfbhawkeye]

"Poor, small kid food." Clint gave a little nod. "Did fine by us I figure. We're here. Too bad our mommas couldn't see us now..."

Clint quieted a bit. He fidgeted then reached out and laid a hand on Steve's shoulder. He gave a squeeze. Rumbling softly.

[doesntrunaway]

He made a quiet, lowthroated sound of his own in response, somehow both an agreement and a sort of sympathetic commiseration. The reminder didn't bother him, not really, though at the same time he felt like it probably should.

[cfbhawkeye]

Clint squeezed gently then rumbled softly back. He reluctantly dragged his hand back. He gave the super soldier a gentle... possibly playful nudge... if he thought that Steve might go for it he'd try and coax him into a romp...

Maybe the next time they went running in Central Park together...

Clint flushed a little. "... yanno... this is my first try at something like this... relationship and all... I feel stupid but I want to do all that ridiculous stuff that puppy love teenages do."

[doesntrunaway]

Steve's smile could only be described as 'beaming', open and bright as he nudged Clint's shoulder back. He probably wouldn't agree to a romp where anyone could hear him, not yet anyway, though he wouldn't turn it down flat.

"Not like I've got a whole lot of practice at it either, Clint." He replied, amused, "Not many people were interested in a 98 pound weakling. And after that..." He shook his head, "There was a lot else going on, things got busy, and there hasn't been a lot of time since I came off the ice."

[cfbhawkeye]

Clint caught his arm and tugged him around. His face suddenly serious. "Steve. You weren't weak. You were never weak, got it? Hell the fact that you lived... you being sick makes you about as weak as me being deaf and you yourself called that bullshit plenty of times. ..."

Clint squeezed his arm tightly. The offered a lopsided smile.

"...besides you know how many people out there would kill to be 98 pounds. KILL for it."

[doesntrunaway]

He was surprised by the sudden, almost-aggressive pep talk, but he smiled about halfway through, catching Clint's arms in turn, just above his elbows, giving a squeeze in return, "I know. I didn't mean anything by it. It was just a descriptor."

His brow creased just a little at the follow-up, looking briefly concerned, "It wasn't a healthy thing. Wouldn't be healthy for someone else, either."

[cfbhawkeye]

Clint relaxed a little and smiled. "You and me know that but people can be stupid. Its hard for people to understand what they pretend doesn't exist... c'mon. You want to go back to your apartment or the Tower?"

He hadn't let go. Not just yet. He hung on. Far to reluctant to let go for his own good really.

[doesntrunaway]

"I want to go back home, but we should probably go to the tower, speaking of pretending things don't exist. Might as well get it over with as soon as possible, right?"

He knew there were going to be questions, probably mostly from Tony, and as usual he wasn't going to humor him on any of it.

[cfbhawkeye]

"Personally? I say we do what we want. Doesn't always work out, just ask Loki... but sometimes you gotta go with the gut." Clint shrugged.

[doesntrunaway]

There was a small smile, "Avoiding it won't make it any easier when we do go in." He replied, starting walking again, "If anything it'll make it worse. Tower first. Then home." He gave an easy shrug, "The earlier we shut Tony up on threat of Natasha the better."

He knew who Clint would have turned to to field the news, after all, and he knew that she was one of the few people Tony might actually be afraid of. The other was Pepper, and he knew that they wouldn't even have to appeal to her, she'd step in to redirect Tony if necessary. It was one of the things Steve liked about her.

[cfbhawkeye]

Clint gave a little nod and motioned towards the far side of the Dodge Challenger before climbing in behind the wheel. "Kinda nice having a super spy femme fatal for a go to gal idn't? Are ya glad you go on her good side so quick?"

Clint turned over the engine and pulled out of the spot and started to weave through the parking garage and out onto the street. "Straight truth best way to go I think. Less chance for anyone to get the wrong idea about stuff."

[doesntrunaway]

"I'm fully aware that I'm incredibly lucky that she likes me." He replied with a small smile as he buckled himself in, "Her and Pepper both." He'd never been scared of either of them, they were both competent in their own fields, and that was something that Steve respected.

His smile tilted, "I also know Natasha would probably pop you one if she heard you call her that." Though if anyone could get away with it, it would probably be Clint. His brow furrowed slightly as the thought occurred to him, "Is she going to be alright with this? Us, I mean." He'd always pegged her as an Alpha as well, but he'd always figured she and Clint had some kind of arrangement.

[cfbhawkeye]

"You're asking that because of the whole 'Barton and Romanov sittin' in a tree', thing aren't you?" Clint asked bluntly, turning his head a bit towards Steve.

[doesntrunaway]

His brow furrowed, shaking his head, "I haven't heard anything about it, I just ..." He didn't really know how to explain, he'd seen how they were with each other, and how they were apart from each other. The differences weren't drastic enough that they seemed like completely different people away from each other than together, but they obviously cared about each other, would kill -and probably had killed- for each other.

He shook his head again, settling back in his seat, "I ask because I've got eyes, Barton, I see how you two are with each other." And maybe there wasn't anything more there than he already knew about, but he'd be surprised.

[cfbhawkeye]

Clint smiled. There was always that idea. That suggestion that he and Natasha were, or at least had been, together.

He usually didn't bother explaining their close friendship. He just let people think what they want and occasionally abused or manipulated their misconceptions.

But Steve was different. Steve deserved to hear about the reality, especially if they were going to try and make something of each other.

"She tried to tear my throat out with her teeth when I first met her. She reminded me of myself... she was alone, been through hell, everyone hated her, feared her. She had a look in her eyes like she was only hanging on by adrenaline and she was gonna crash. I remember seeing myself in the mirror looking like that. So I didn't take the shot, hell I wouldn't even go offensive, I just blocked. Blocked and ran her in a circle until we both dropped. She gave me this scar-"

Clint lifted a hand and touched a discoloring on his neck, close to his jugular.

"-She told me later that I was the first man to never try and lay a hand on her. It didn't mean she trusted me but it was a start. After that no matter what happened I gave her the benefit of the doubt, trusted her. Every time. Hell we had to go in front of Fury on charges against her more than once. I always backed her. It got us into a helluva lot of trouble. I guess one day it just clicked for her that I had her back, that if I could help it wasn't gonna let her down... I always had this idea of some perfect friend when I was a kid. Friend that was more like family, that took care of me when I needed it and let me take care of them back, that always believed me over everyone else. Best friend of best friends. I never did find that person but when I saw a chance to be that person for someone else, for Natasha, I jumped." He smiled wistfully. "Honestly didn't think that I would get that friendship back but damnit I did. She's family."

[doesntrunaway]

To his credit, Steve just listened, absorbing the story, storing the information away as he did with many things.

Finally he nodded, "Family you choose for yourself is always stronger than family you're born to." He agreed, adding: "Even if it's sometimes the same people." He didn't imagine he'd be any closer to a blood relation than he had been with Bucky, than he was with most of the team now.

He nodded again, more decisively, "Doesn't mean she won't give me the 'you hurt him and I kill you' talk later, but at least I know where it's coming from, now."

[cfbhawkeye]

"Oh she's gonna give you the Shovel Talk, no doubt. She reserved that right. She'll spring it on your ass too. When you least expect. Probably when you're working out in the gym and she's got you in a thigh lock."

Clint chuckled and smiled. "But she knows I'm a big kid. I can make good choices when I get the option. "

[doesntrunaway]

That got an actual smile, and a nod, "I was figuring she'd spring it on me, seems to be the way she does things." He didn't know her as well as Clint did, but he knew that much about her.

He also knew she was one of the few people who would actually spar with him instead of being somewhat starstruck, or flat-out refusing, so the fact that she might give him the talk while she had him pinned wasn't that much of a stretch.

[cfbhawkeye]

"It just means she respects ya, that's all. If she didn't she'd never say anything. Just give you scary looks and get all dominant and stuff. She might try and poison you a little bit but not kill you yanno."

Clint turned the car down the final stretch of road that lead into the Tower, steering into the garage, pausing for both of them to be recognized by Jarvis before being let through into the garage. He pulled up to his usual spot next to Steve's motorcycle and cut the engine. "Home sweet home."

[doesntrunaway]

"She actually tried that once." Steve replied, "Poisoning me, I mean." He shrugged, "It was an experiment, to see how quickly my cells regenerate, and we had Banner on hand to be able to flush it from my system if needed." Which indicated that it hadn't been a SHIELD-sanctioned test, but one they knew about now, because if nothing else it had helped them figure out just how long Steve would stay down if he'd been tranqed.

There was a twitch of a smile that followed, one brow arching over at Clint, "I'm almost afraid to ask if you want to do the talking or if I should."

[cfbhawkeye]

"I think I'm upset you guys didn't invite me to the poisoning party... I know I would have quoted the Princess Bride the whole time but only in a supportive way. Yaano. The best way."

Clint hummed softly and drummed his fingers on the steering wheel. "Since we're in this together. And we're going to try and keep doing the whole us and together thing then I think we should talk together. You and me both."

[doesntrunaway]

His brow creased just a little at the first, another reference he didn't understand, though he suspected Clint would educate him on it soon enough. He didn't ask, though he did make a mental note to do so later, there were more important things to worry about at the moment.

He nodded, "Okay. We can both field questions that Natasha hasn't already scared them out of asking." There was a wry amusement there, mostly because he knew that even if she'd tried, there were still going to be some questions, that was just how the team worked.

[cfbhawkeye]

"Its a deal, love."

The name dropped from his lips so easily it actually surprised Clint. His eyes went wide then his head dipped until his chin touched his chest. A blush crossed his cheeks. He rubbed the back of his neck roughly.

"Steve...sorry..."

[doesntrunaway]

Steve wasn't entirely used to pet names or terms of endearment like that. Granted, whenever Bucky had called him a punk it had been with affection, but that wasn't quite the same thing.

"It's okay." He replied, sounding more puzzled than anything, and a small smile followed, giving an easy shrug, "Maybe not in front of everyone, yet, but it's okay."