Hurt
Bruce is working on Matt.
Clint sits on the bench of the helicopter, watching as the scientist attaches IVs and monitors to the Devil’s limp body. He places an oxygen mask over Matt’s mouth. Clint is glad when he sees Bruce connect a heart monitor, because that means he’s able to watch Matt’s heartbeat.
Bruce is silent as he works. He unzips Matt’s suit, barely taking a moment to glance at the array of scars on the man before turning him so he can place a dressing onto the bleeding wound. He rolls Matt back and begins working on his other visible injuries. He places a brace onto a clearly broken arm before moving on. He starts to unfasten Matt’s trousers, but Clint speaks up before he could finish.
“He’s pregnant.”
Bruce glances towards him, his brow furrowed. “Excuse me?”
“Matt. He’s pregnant.”
Nodding in acknowledgement, Bruce continues removing Daredevil’s suit. One of Matt’s knees is dislocated, and Bruce pops it back into place and wraps it up. He grabs a machine and scans up and down Matt’s body. Clint has seen him use it before – it’s some kind of body scanner that Tony and he have been working on.
“My scanner is detecting a foetal heartbeat,” Bruce says, gesturing for Clint to come and see. Clint staggers over, peering over at the small screen. “You can see here. That blob is the baby.”
Clint is nearly about to cry from relief.
“This doesn’t mean he’s out of the woods. I’m not a specialist in obstetrics, but hopefully one of the team Tony has called has experience.”
Clint nods, and he reaches out to touch his hand to the back of Matt’s. There’s no reaction.
…
A group of the finest surgeons has been assembled in the MedBay by Tony Stark. They whisk Matt away to surgery as soon as they set foot on Stark Tower’s helipad. Clint watches as they wheel him away, while Bruce chases along behind them, shouting words and phrases that Clint doesn’t quite understand.
Numb, he starts making his way down to the conference room. It’s empty at the moment; all the other Avengers are dealing with the mess at the safehouse. He sits in one of the chairs and waits for the onslaught to come.
Just over half an hour later, Steve comes barrelling into the room. He grabs Clint by his shirt and hauls him to his feet, pushing him against the wall. Tony is following, and he doesn’t even bother telling Steve to calm down.
“What were you thinking, Barton?” Steve asks. “Doing a rogue mission with vigilantes. Fighting Hydra by yourselves? Getting involved with an assassin like Elektra Natchios?”
Clint doesn’t know what to say. He knows Steve isn’t bothered about any of that – he cares that he wasn’t included, that Clint and Nat went off without the rest of the team and fucked it up.
“Elektra asked for help. We didn’t realise there would have been that many people there!” responds Clint truthfully. “I would have got backup if I’d known.”
“You trusted the intel of Elektra, and she let you down,” Tony says as Steve lets go of him. Clint rubs the spot on his chest and sheepishly nods at Tony’s assessment of the situation. “And now Matt is fighting for his life.”
“He wanted to fight,” Clint responds defensively. “I didn’t – but I went so I could keep an eye on him.”
“So you’re saying Matt led you astray? That your friendship with him is clouding your judgement?” Steve asks Clint.
“I was going to ask him to join the Avengers,” Tony says suddenly, and Clint’s eyes widen in disbelief. “Pepper was drawing up the contracts. But…with how reckless he is, I truly don’t think he’d be a good fit. Especially if you lose all sense when he’s around.”
“I didn’t lose sense - I was protecting him. Yes, I could have brought the full force of the Avengers with me, but we were trying to work quietly tonight. We were misguided, but I don’t want either of you to stand in front of me and tell me you’ve never made a mistake.”
Steve crosses his arms, sighing. “I hear you, Clint, but I just don’t understand why you were so reckless.”
Suddenly JARVIS speaks, “Apologies for interrupting, but Bruce is asking to be connected to Clint regarding Mr Murdock’s health.”
“Patch him through,” Tony responds.
Bruce’s face appears on the screen in the room. He’s pale and his hair is sticking up. There’s blood smeared on his glasses.
“Clint, the surgeons are currently getting the bullet out,” Bruce says, and he shoots a wary glance at Tony and Steve. He pauses slightly, choosing his words carefully. “None of the surgeons are experts in the field we were discussing earlier, so I would recommend that Tony makes some calls.”
Tony frowns, glancing at the screen and to Clint. “Another expert? Those surgeons are all the best trauma specialists!”
“We need a specialist in obstetrics,” Clint says with a sigh, pinching the bridge of his nose. “Matt’s pregnant, and we thought it would be best if someone checked on the baby.”
“Matt’s…pregnant?” Steve repeats, disbelief in his voice.
“Yeah,” Clint says sharply. “He’s pregnant. Do you have an issue with that?”
Steve looks like he’s going to say something, but clearly decides against it and closes his mouth. Tony is staring blankly, obviously processing the situation, and Clint shakes hi shoulder.
“Earth to Tony! Can you find a good baby surgeon for Matt?”
Tony blinks. “Yes, of course. I’ll call someone now.”
This shocking news causes Steve and Tony to forget about their outrage, and they both hurry away. Clint is left alone.
He puts his head in his hands and cries.