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A few hours passed in near silence as Clint continued to pet Tony’s hair whilst murmuring nothings at the shivering form. It was possible that the Omega had managed to fall into some form of catatonic sleep? That was certainly what the pair of Alphas were hoping. All were sleep deprived, and it appeared that they were being mostly left alone that night. The … organiser of this event did seem quite keen that they try to bring Tony back to some semblance of life. Eventually, Clint too slipped into sleep, his exhaustion winning out over the guilt and concern that were wreaking his mind. Only Natasha stayed awake. Watching. Waiting. The night was cold, and she could feel the shivers playing up and down her skin, little trails of bumps which she could still see through the dirt that felt like a second layer. She visualised those slight ripples as a very visceral image of her hatred. Her concern. Her fears. Each shiver was another bubble of emotion fleeing her frame to leave her with only an icy cold calm.

She needed that calm.

She couldn’t allow concern for Tony to rule over her right now; this was their chance at escape. She’d planned her position very carefully as soon as the walking-talking dead man had said they could sleep together this night. The fool. By allowing them to hug Tony in the centre the way they were as they were re-chained to the tree, she’d been provided with plenty of slack. All she needed to do was have Clint move slightly so that he was closer to Tony then the chains would slacken slightly. Not a huge amount, some wiggling would be needed, and Tony would have to be squashed slightly, but it was the best chance they’d had in weeks. Quite why the mistake had been made was unclear, but Natasha didn’t think it was a trap. The Zombie had seemed…frustrated. Tony obviously hadn’t been giving up the answers he’d expected, and neither had Natasha or Clint. This creature had gambled…and lost. Frustrated people, even clever ones, made mistakes. This was hopefully one. It just had to be.

So Natasha watched. Not in a challenging way. She didn’t try to stare down their captors, or make it seem that she was in any way anything other than exhausted and hopeless. Instead, she rested her head gently on Tony’s, reluctant to put any extra weight on the broken body encased within her protective circle, (could she even call it such? She hadn’t precisely provided much in the way of any protection). She let her eyes slip closed until only the slightest of slits was visible, just enough for her to allow them to not lose any night-vision she could maintain and keep an eye on what was happening around them.

Just enough to observe.

Eventually, the guards moved to sit next to one of the other trees and chatted quietly between themselves as the soporific feeling of nightfall swept over the clearing. They clearly believed the mirage before them of three sleeping individuals and had been ordered to not disturb them this night and were feeling the effect of the lateness themselves. Natasha had noted that there were only four guards plus the main Alpha. That was not enough to keep adequate guards alert and so these two had been landed with the entire night shift. Against her will, Natasha’s lip curled upwards in a movement that even she wasn’t sure whether it was a snarl or a smile.
Fools.

She flicked Clint’s ear softly prompting him to open his own eyes. He equally had been pretending to sleep, it was obvious that he had concocted out the same plan as she. The only communication that was needed between the two was the barest hint of a nod. Clint snuggled his way in closer to Tony, his body lax and uncoordinated as though he were moving in his sleep towards the closest heat source, and Natasha slowly began tightening and loosening her muscles. Testing the chains laxity, just waiting for the moment when she could slip free silently – the starvation diet had at least done her some favours! The manacles encircling her wrists were equally made easier by her lack of sufficient nutrients. They didn’t even require her to dislocate her thumbs to remove them! She had known from the beginning that they wouldn’t cause too much trouble, but the chain tying her to her own tree had been too strong for her to manage to escape from.

Once Clint was in position, she began her own squirming movements, sending a silent apology towards the comatose, make that sleeping, Tony. If he were conscious then the pair of them would have been hurting him with these motions, but that was a thought best ignored. The two guards who had been left watching them paid the trio not the slightest bit of notice. How had they managed to capture and keep hold of three of the Avengers? They were… incompetent. The thought almost made the whole captivity sting more.

Shortly, she was able to push herself to her feet in a move so feline and graceful in nature that it completely belayed the idea she’d been tied to a tree for the past few weeks allowed up only to go and relieve herself and for a short walk at gun point once a day. She immediately stepped out of the chains and crouched down again, allowing her form to blend back into the shadows of the tree. It would be hard to spot the fact that she was no longer tied up as the shadows and night aided her deception.

The slight rustle of leaves betrayed that Clint was mimicking her actions; his stockier frame making it harder to complete the action quite so silently as her. The slight baring of teeth she offered him, a glint of white in the darkness that shadowed them, displayed her readiness for the slaughter to begin.

Without further ado, the pair crept silently from their tree, shifting in and out of shadows with the ease of the great felines that some believed they had descended from.

The two guards were dispatched so easily it was almost anticlimactic. Two quick movements from each Agent and both their necks were broken and the dead bodies lay slumped against the tree they’d been leaning against previously.

Clint couldn’t find it within him to feel even an iota of guilt. After what these things had done to Tony? They’d deserved so much worse, but unfortunately neither his nor Natasha’s stamina were up to much, and silence was definitely needed.

“What’s the plan?” he whispered, barely allowing the sounds past his teeth. “Hoof it now? Or kill the others. It wasn’t as cut and dry a decision as he would have liked. Tony wasn’t able to move under his own steam, and certainly couldn’t handle a run through the forest, so they didn’t really want to have to deal with any pursuers. But equally he really didn’t want to risk an injury to either himself or Tasha. If either of them got hurt then it would make their traipse back to civilisation that much harder. If only one of the others just magically could turn up…

Later, Clint would try to convince the rest of his team that he clearly had some form of prophetic power.

A vaguely familiar humming sound suddenly became audible through the otherwise quiet forest, and a glowing orange circle suddenly materialised…

Clint didn’t even try to restrain the slightly hysterical laugh that emitted from his lips. Nor the fist he threw to the air.