Hawkeye's Revenge

Hello everyone. Thank you for all the wonderful comments. Here is a chapter to say thank you.

"I have to admit I kind of like this guy," Tony announced with a laugh as he examined a photo of several unfortunate agents that had been sent to retrieve Hawkeye several years ago.

"Me, too," Bruce seconded chuckling over his own picture which depicted an agent that had had his hair literally cut into a mohawk by a series of arrows as he had been pinned to a wall by another arrow.

Tony barked a laugh as Bruce handed him the photo complete with caption.

"God, did you guys send the junior agents on these missions as punishment," Tony asked still shaking with laughter.

"Never the junior agents. They were sent to gain experience but the senior agents... well, if they pissed off the right person it was a foregone conclusion that they would be sent on a special retrieval mission," Coulson told them flatly but Tony could see the laughter in the man's eyes.

"But in fifteen years Hawkeye never hurt a single agent seriously enough to require more than a day in medical. Now we have nearly a whole strike team that has been slaughtered. We have to figure out what happened on that mission to change the man's attitude so much," Coulson continued the laughter dying in his eyes as he spread the photos of the dead strike team members on the table. Rumlow's face was absent as the man was still fighting for his life at SHIELD medical.

"These attacks, they served no real purpose. The team weren't tortured for information, they didn't know anything damaging to Hawkeye except that he had killed the three previous agents and killing the remainder of the strike team in such an obvious way would have negated that information. So we are left with Hawkeye holding a grudge for something but what would have made him go this far," Natasha asked studing them as they studied each of the photos in turn.

"Maybe he just got tired of being followed around by SHIELD all the time," Tony mused as he studied the kill shots. Every shot had been through the heart killing the target nearly instantly, Rumlow had survived only because his heart was offset slightly to the center of his chest due to a developmental abnormality.

"He has been on SHIELD's radar for over fifteen years. If he minded this much you would think he would have snapped before this plus all the other encounters were almost playful. In some of the encounters he actually helped the more promising junior agents develop tracking skills. No this feels personal," Natasha mused as she studied the pictures her hand lying lightly against the table top.

A tentative knock on the door leading to the front part of the plane broke the thoughtful silence that had descended over the cabin and Coulson called for the co-pilot to enter.

"Agent Coulson, you asked to know when we were about to land," the man said nervously then added as Coulson looked up "we will be landing at SHIELD's base right outside of Venice in approximately fifteen minutes, sir."

"Thank you, Agent Gladstock, please tell us when we have landed and can depart."

"Of course, sir," the man said quickly before moving back into the cockpit.

"Until we have further intelligence I believe we should put any speculation about Hawkeye's motives on the backburner," Coulson told them then flicked his eyes to Natasha and Steve as he said "Captain, it is my understanding that you speak some italian. Is that correct?"

"Yes, sir but it is pretty rusty. I only ever used it around our old neighborhood and during a brief mission along the Italian border during the war," Steve told Coulson earnestly who nodded.

"Captain, I would like you to accompany Agent Romanov on this mission. I believe that your presence might be useful," Coulson requested calmly but Tony didn't miss the way that Coulson's eyes slid to Bucky who was clutching the table like a life line.

Tony realized with a jolt that this would be the furthest apart Bucky had been from Steve since Steve had managed to rescue him from Hydra. Coulson apparently had realized how nervous the idea of Steve leaving made him for the man added easily "Sergenant Barnes, if you will stay with me so we can act as backup for Agent Romanov and Captain Rogers? We will be parked in a van three blocks away from the building where the strike team confronted Hawkeye."

Bucky looked at him a little wide eyed but relaxed and nodded after Steve set a hand on his shoulder and leaned over to whisper something in his ear.

"Very good. Doctor Banner if you would stay at the SHIELD base and monitor the audio and visual feeds."

Bruce nodded smiling wryly understanding clearly that Coulson wanted him out of the way of any potential fire fight. They did not need the Hulk running lose in Venice. Tony didn't even think SHIELD could keep it under wraps if that happened.

"And what about me," Tony asked cockily but inside his stomach twisted at the idea that Coulson might leave him out of this mission because he thought his tech was compromised. A protest was already forming on his lips as Coulson opened his mouth "I want you to be hacking the various security cameras around the area where the strike team encountered Hawkeye and make sure to get all possible video of the encounter."

Tony snapped his mouth shut on the snippy comment he was about to make about being just as useful without the suit then tried to come up with a witty remark that refused to come because of the relief flooding his system. 'He wasn't being excluded from the team,' he thought relieved.

"Got it. You want me to make a video montage," Tony snipped finally trying for bored indignantion at being made to do something so easy but even he could hear the relief in his voice.

"Make sure to add a suitable musical score in the background," Coulson snarked right back and Tony was immensely grateful that the man hadn't called him out for his momentary slip.

"Is everyone in position," Steve asked over the comms putting what he obviously thought was a descrete hand up to his ear to activate the tiny comm located behind his ear. The comm blended well with Steve's tanned skin and was undetectable unless one knew what to look for. Natasha looked over the Captain discreetly as they walked through the streets of Venice. He was dressed in jeans, a white pull over shirt, and a leather jacket. A baseball cap pulled low over his head hid most of his face but nothing could hide the musculature of his body or the way he moved with an easy confidence that frankly screamed leashed power.

Most people would have assumed that Steve had adopted that walk after he had undergone Project Rebirth or at least after his stint at basic and Natasha might have thought that once herself but as soon as she had been told that SHIELD was thinking of putting her on a team with their resident super soilder she had begun digging for information about him in the SHIELD archives and happened to stumble upon a video of Steve that had been taken at the world fair right after Dr. Erskine had picked him personally to try for a place in the project. Even then Steve had moved in a way, with an energy that just screamed here was a man that would not give up, who would fight against the world if he thought what he was fighting for was right.

Even at ninety pounds sopping wet Steve Rogers would have been someone Natasha would have been wary of in a fight. She could have taken him, she knew that, he had too many health issues back then for it to have ever been in doubt but people who fought with all their heart for a purpose other than themselves never went down easily or without doing some damage to their opponent.

She brought her complete focus back to the present, she never allowed all of her focus to wander, and to the task at hand as she studied Steve again. While he was dressed to blend in with the crowd there was no way around the fact that Steve Rogers just was not made to blend in. His every movement drew the eye and Natasha had no doubt that even if Steve were not 6' 2" and 240 pounds he would still draw the eye. Natasha suddenly had a great amount of sympathy for Bucky back in the 1940s as he tried, and failed, to keep Steve from attracting the attention of every bully in New York City. Steve's natural walk, the aura of confidence he projected would have drawn every low life and bully for miles around. Really it was amazing that Steve had survived as long as he had, she knew from experience he had the self-preservation instinct of a concussed lemming when he was fighting the good fight.

'Well at least this is not actually an undercover operation,' she thought ruefully as they finally reached the building where the SHIELD team had come into contact with Hawkeye. Subtle and Steve Rogers had never met, any infiltration missions the man had successfully pulled off during WW2 must have been because of luck and the stupidity of Hydra.

Steve was looking around at the surrounding buildings a frown on his face and she realized that he had noticed the bullet holes riddling the sides of some of the shops and the few panes of glass that had been shot out.

"I thought SHIELD agents were to hold their fire if it would endanger civilian targets," Steve said a worried frown creasing his brow and disapproval clear in his eyes. Until now the strike team had been the clear victims but Natasha could see the evidence as clear as Steve. A fire fight had occured here, in a highly civilian populated area, and it was obvious that the strike team had not taken any care in who they hurt in their quest to bring in Hawkeye.

"It is," she told him grimly. They shared a look before Steve gave a slight sad nod and walked up the steps of the apartment building Hawkeye had been found in. Politely Steve rang the bell for the landlord.

Natasha trialed behind him surveying the area for any signs of danger and for clues as to what had happened here. Down the street she was able to make out signs of further bullet damage which seemed to indicate that some type of chase had occurred.

'This isn't adding up," Natasha mused to herself as Steve rung the bell once more 'I can't believe that these were made by Hawkeye. The man is well known for his marksmenship with any weapon. If he had been firing he wouldn't have needed this bullet spray to have taken out his targets. Are these all from the strike team?'

Her train of thought was interrupted by the sound of a cane striking stone as it echoed to them from a side alley beside the building they were standing in front of. She caught Steve's eye motioning to the alley and he nodded obviously having caught the sound already.

A small woman old enough to have been a contemporary of Steve's hobbled out of the alley a while later and gazed up at them from her stooped position.

"Michael told me some strangers were ringing the bell," the woman said in a strong voice in slightly accented Italian "I am Sarah. I own this building. How may I help you?"

"It is a pleasure to meet you ma'am," Steve greeted pleasantly as he stepped hurriedly down to the street in a effort, wasted, to not tower over the woman so. Natasha caught the movement of a curtain above them and knew that they were being watched from several windows around the street. It seemed that the residents were nervous of strangers after the recent violence and wisely keeping to their homes.

"My name is Steve Rogers and this is Natasha Romanov," Steve continued smiling in a way so honestly open that it always caught Natasha by surprise. Steve's belief that everyone was good and the sincerety he put into every word and action had a startling power.

Sarah looked up at Steve then at Natasha before quirking a slight smile and nodding to herself.

"And what can I do for you both," the woman asked curiously some of her wariness having left her.

"We are trying to find out what happened here a few days ago," Steve told the old woman earnestly.

The woman stared at them and seemed to find something in Steve's painfully earnest eyes for she turned to the alley and gestured for them to follow her.

"Why would you want to know this? You are not police," she stated over her shoulder as she hobbled through the alley. Natasha wished that Steve had not followed the woman quite so easily, this alley was the perfect place to spring a trap, however they quickly came out into a courtyard ringed in by the many buildings in the area. A fountain in the center of the courtyard tinkled merrily while a ragtag assortment of tables and chairs were scattered through the courtyard. Beautiful old tile lined the walls around the pebbled area and potted plants were scattered everywhere.

Natasha studied the area and quickly realized that this must have been where the strike team first encountered Barton. Tables and chairs were overturned and Natasha could see where one flower pot had been shattered by a bullet. Her uneasy deepened as she noted that the bullet angles indicated that several people had been shooting down into the courtyard from the roofs of the buildings, from those vantages this courtyard would have turned into a killing field quickly.

She allowed her eyes to flit over Steve as he pivoted to take in the carnage around the area. A slow look of horrified disbelief took over his face as he put the pieces together and realized that the bullets into this courtyard must have come from the strike team.

Sarah was gazing at them consideringly and her eyes lingered on Steve before she limped over to a table that had obviously been righted only recently. Natasha could see scuff marks along one edge of the wood table and a crack radiating out from one banged up corner. Despite the damage to the table a tea set had been placed on its surface and Sarah gestured to the seats in front of her asking "Would either of you like to sit and have something to drink while we talk?"

"Thank you, ma'am," Steve said hurrying to pull her chair out for her and hold her hand as she sat. Sarah gazed up at him with amusement but allowed the treatment without a word. Natasha considered giving Steve a hard time about his manners when they returned to the Tower as he held her own seat out for her but decided that she actually liked being pampered.

Steve offered to pour the tea for them but Sarah waved him away with a smile and easily poured the tea for each of them. Natasha pretended to sip at the strong brew wary of poisons but suppressed a sigh as Steve trustingly took a sip then licked his lips appreciatively before taking a larger drink.

"This is deliscious, ma'am," Steve told Sarah enthusiastically as he sipped again.

"Thank you. It is a blend sold at the store over there," Sarah told them gesturing at the back of a building three buildings away.

"We will have to stop by. I have a friend who loves teas," Steve told her smiling.

Sarah laughed brightly at this statement.

"My husband used to love tea and he was so excited to discover that shop after we bought our building 42 years ago," Sarah confided with a happy light in her eyes as she lost herself a bit in memories.

"You must have had quite a few experiences during those 42 years, running an apartment," Steve said with a smile which had Sarah smiling back.

"You have no idea, young man, no idea at all," the old woman's smile dimmed though as she looked around at the destruction. "But we never had anything like this happen. This was a good neighborhood, poor but everyone helped each other and we always tried to scrape up enough for at least one gathering a month for all the neighbors. That is when this happened, during our monthly gathering, we didn't even know what was happening. Suddenly bullets were just raining down at us and people in dark clothes and with guns were blocking the exits."

Sarah paused considering then looked up at Steve.

"If I tell you what happened, what do you plan to do with the information."

"Find the people responsible for this and ensure that they can't hurt anyone again," Steve told her immediately his posture straightening and his voice ringing with his absolute conviction.

Sarah met him eye to eye and whatever she saw must have set her at ease.

"You seem like a good man Mr. Rogers and I trust that what I am about to tell you you will use to bring justice for what was done here. Justice for all," the woman said quietly but with emphasis on that last sentence.

"I know you two must be hunting young Clinton," the woman murmured after sipping on her tea and Steve blinked in surprise at her but Natasha kept her composure through years of practice. "I know he must have gone after those people that attacked us that night and upset a great many people. The boy was always rash but after what happened to...."

Sarah broke off before sighing sadly "I guess it is best to start from the beginning. Clinton has been living here for over three years. His apartement was on the top floor, corner overlooking the alley and courtyard. He never told anyone what he did but he would disappear for weeks on end and come back banged up so we suspected that he might be into something less than legal. Despite that I can't think of anyone who didn't adore Clint, though a few of his neighbors did want to strangle him on occassion."

At Steve's confused look she added with a chuckle "Clint is a natural prankster. Nothing mean but he would play a prank on anyone at anytime."

The woman smiled fondly as she remembered then looked to them her smile turning sad "Everything was fine that day. Clint was playing with the children, showing them some tricks he said he learned in the circus when without warning shots range out. My grandneice pushed me under a table but not before I saw Clint grab a stone and knock one of the gunmen off that building over there," she said indicating a building across the square. "Before I really knew what was going on Clint was herding the lot of us toward the nearest exit while throwing whatever he could at our attackers. We were making good progress when a man stepped out of the alley we had been heading for and leveled a machine gun at us. The man ordered us in English to stop and get down on the ground as he grabbed one of the girls who had been in the front. We had started to do as he said as he turned his attention to Clint and ordered him again in English to surrender or the girl would die. Clint had carefully put down the stones he had been throwing and moved over to the man. The man handcuffed Clint with some really strange cuffs and started to lead him out of the courtyard. As he was leading Clint out the man had held up a hand and before we knew what was going on bullets were exploding around us again. I heard Clint screaming and saw him struggling to try to get back but the man just knocked him over the head. We all probably would have died but as the man hit him Clint flipped backwards and...well he seemed to jump backwards through his own arms to get his hands in front of him. I really don't understand how he could have done that but that is what I saw."

The woman shrugged looking at them as though expecting to hear them call her a liar or senile. Steve gently squeezed her hand saying with a self deprecating twist to his lips "Don't worry that is far from the strangest thing we have seen happen."

"Well it was the most unusual thing I had ever seen," Sarah stated firmly but seemed relieved not to have to convince them of the truth "As soon as Clint's hands were in front of him he wrenched the gun from the man and snapped his leg up in a sharp kick to the man's chin that left the man unconscious. Then...then Clint shot the guns from those people and evacuated us from the courtyard. He got us all started toward the buildings when he realized that a group of the smaller children had fallen behind. One of the group attacking us had followed and the woman had raised her gun to shoot one of the children when he jumped in front of them. He took the bullet meant for that baby, my great granddaughter."

Sarah stopped as tears streaked down her face and she fought to contain her sobs.

"Clint took a shot meant for your great granddaughter," Natasha questioned in as gentle a voice as she could manage as she went over their previous encounter with Hawkeye. The man had not seemed injured in any way.

"No, no," Sarah said looking up at them with tears still tracking down her face "Matt did."

"Sarah who is Matt," Steve asked gently rubbing her trembling hand between his own larger ones.

"Matt was....is Clint's son," Sarah told them and seemed unaware as Steve stiffened in shock and Natasha blinked twice in surprise. No one had known that the legendary Hawkeye had a son.

The reveal! Clint is an awesome Dad and the strike team made a huge mistake going after his kid.