Tricky Surprise
Reader POV
Soft giggling drifted down the hall into my room, drawing me back to consciousness. I laid still for a few moments, trying to focus on what all the giggling was about. Grunting was heard from Clint’s room next door, along with the sound of creaking bedsprings. Muffled sounds and voices seeped from the room before the giggling returned to the hallway. Releasing my knife from my hand that was under my pillow, I anticipated the kids waking me up like they did their parents.
“Aunt (Y/N)!!” squealed a voice as it ran into my room and jumped on my bed.
“It’s time to wake up!!!” shouted another as it also hopped onto the bed. As they laughed and jumped, I opened my eyes, gazing at the pajama clad kids. Smirking softly, I quickly sat up and wrapped them in my arms, pulling them down onto the mattress with a squeal. After tickling them a bit, I let them go run downstairs where Laura, Clint, and Nathaniel were now waiting. Sitting up, I pondered on the issue getting dressed now or later, and decided now was the better option. Walking over to my suitcase, I pulled out some jeans, a (f/c) long sleeve shirt, and fuzzy socks. Taming my hair and sticking a knife in my waistband, I made my way downstairs. Clint was coming inside when I reached the bottom of the steps, basket of eggs in hand. I quietly followed him to the kitchen, pausing at the sight of the happy family in front of me.
“Morning (Y/N),” said Laura, who was making pancakes while Clint washed the eggs he collected.
I walked over and stood next to Laura. Good morning. What can I do to help? Laura just shook her head and went back to tending the pancakes.
“You aren’t helping with nothing Swan,” Clint commented. “Might as well join the kids at the table and wait.” I huffed and went to the table, taking the same spot I had the night before. The kids were doodling on their place mats. Interested, I leaned in, taking in the pictures on them. The markers were washable ones and the place mats were fabric. The two mats had characters from Paw Patrol, a show I became familiar with after leaving HYDRA. Cooper was actively coloring Chase’s blue uniform, and I smiled as he tried his best to keep in the lines. Lila was focused on coloring Marshal’s spots in different colors, not caring about if she went out the lines.
“Alright Kiddo’s,” Clint announced. “Time to put the markers away ‘cause its chow time.” The kids grinned and scrambled to put the markers back into the cup on the table. I sat back in my chair, twiddling my thumbs in my lap. It felt odd not doing things for myself, since I had gotten so used to it after HYDRA. Clint set my plate in front of me and kissed my temple, which instantly prompted a smile. He knew what he just did and just continued what he was doing. I waited till Laura and Clint were seated before I started eating. The spread of pancakes, eggs, and bacon made for a good meal, definitely beating my normal breakfast of Poptarts. Breakfast was quiet as everyone stuffed their faces. Afterwards, I helped Clint clean up and do dishes, a bubble war ensuing as our inner child was unleashed. We were all sitting in the living room, watching the news as the kids played with whatever toy had their attention for the time being.
Clint, I signed, waving my hand to get his attention. Does Barney know about…all this? All he did was nod, and I took that as a good enough answer. The next several hours were spent in the same fashion, but the television was eventually changed to children’s shows. Clint, Laura and I would occasionally sign random tidbits to each other, mainly about how much the shows had changed since we were little. Clint was amused by my knowledge about Paw Patrol while the kids were absolutely thrilled that an adult such as myself knew so much about it. Right as we were getting ready for lunch, a knock came to the door. Clint abruptly got to his feet, grabbing a gun from under the side table.
“Get to the kitchen, now.” He started walking to the door as me and Laura quietly and quickly got the kids to the kitchen. Clint opened the door, gun raised. We waited for any signs of conflict, and was only greeted with the moving of feet.
“False alarm!” Clint yelled out as he closed the door. He and whoever the guest was made their way to the kitchen. “It was just this annoying bloke,” Clint said as he and the guest walked in. The guest stopped in the doorway, prompting me to look up from where I was setting the table.
“You’re alive?!” Barney snapped. “How long have you been here? When were you gonna tell me? How long has Clint known? Why didn’t anyone tel—.” I placed my hand over his mouth, making him shut up. When it felt like he wouldn’t open his mouth, I removed my hand.
I reunited with Clint on his birthday. Came here to meet the family and to spend time with him. I was going to ask him how to contact you once the weekend was over. So really, the only reason you haven’t been told yet was because I was waiting till after the weekend. But now there’s no need for that. We can talk about this later, let’s eat some lunch. Walking away, I went back to helping Laura with getting lunch ready. Clint moved Nathaniel’s high chair so it was at the corner of the table between his seat and Laura’s before replacing the chair that would typically be in that spot.
We all settled down to eat, me and the kids eating quietly as Laura fed Nathaniel and Clint talked to Barney about his recent activities. They eventually got talking about their bows and who would win in a marksmanship contest. I could tell that Clint was debating about using the bow he got from Thor and Loki. I waved my hand over the table, getting their attention.
Can I join? Barney started laughing and received funny looks from both me and Clint. What’s so funny?
“We’re talking about a marksmanship competition,” Barney laughed. “You can’t participate in a contest with your silly swords, that is, if you still use them.” Deciding it would be best to keep my hands to myself, I huffed and rose from the table, grabbing dirty plates as I did and returned to the kitchen. I was cleaning dishes alone, a little too angry to have anyone near me to help. After dishes, I went upstairs and pulled on my boots and a jacket. I slung my swords over my shoulders and placed my knives in my boots. Once everything was together, I went outside to where Barney and Clint were having their contest. I smirked to myself as I snuck up behind them and pulled out the knives. Luckily for me, they were shooting simultaneously, making what I had in mind a possibility. Just as they shot their arrows, I threw my knives and smiled as they split the arrows in half right down the middle, and still managed to hit the bullseye on their respective targets. The two of them spun around, bows at the ready to see me standing there with a shit-eating grin on my face.
What was that about me not being able to participate in a marksman competition Barney? I signed to him as he gaped at me in surprise. Clint set his bow down and came over, wrapping me in a hug.
“That’s my Swan!” he cheered. He pulled away, but kept an arm slung over my shoulders. We started walking over to Barney, who now had his arms crossed over his chest, trying to hide a pout. When we were in front of him, a thought struck me.
Why don’t we show Barney my new skill? I asked Clint. He looked between me and Barney and thought about it before nodding. Smiling, I closed my eyes and focused on opening the doorway into Barney’s mind. He was giving the two of us a funny look, unsure what we were talking about. Lifting my head I turned to him and opened my eyes, taking in his bewildered expression.
“Like my new trick, Barney?” I sent to him. He took a couple of steps away from me, trying to figure out what the hell just happened. I kept my thoughts to myself for the time being, waiting for him to register everything. I could tell he was probably trying to respond mentally, but was getting frustrated without a reply.
“She can’t hear your thoughts,” Clint commented. “She can only project her thoughts into your mind. You can call it one-way telepathy.” Barney looked over to Clint, then looked back to me.
“How long have you been able to do this?” he asked.
“Just over a year,” I replied. Barney shook his head, reaching a hand up to his temple. I noticed a slight expression of pain on his face, so I carefully withdrew from his mind. He grunted at the sensation, but quickly recovered.
“Is that all you can do? Just send thoughts and stuff?” He looked at me, eyes scanning for something.
Thoughts and images really. Information. I can withhold the information in my mind and only send the things I want to, but it takes a lot of concentration. And if I try to enter or leave a person’s mind too abruptly, it can be damaging to both parties.
Barney nodded silently and picked his bow up and returned to shooting arrows into the target. I sighed and walked a couple yards away. Looking around, I found a couple of hay bales and stacked them on top of each other. I started off with basic combat, throwing hits and kicks at the stacks, replacing them when they fell over. I trained like that for an hour then took a thirty-minute break. Clint and Barney seemed to copy my idea and started training against each other. When my break was finished, I withdrew my katanas and did a couple of basic moves, gradually advancing into those of a greater skill level. It would’ve been better if I had an actual target to attack, like a robot or something. I felt the presence of someone behind me and turned, my sword stopping right in front of their throat.
“Just got a call from the team. Gotta leave,” Clint said, unfazed by the sword. I nodded and sheathed my katanas. I cleaned up my area before going into the house, heading straight for my room. I took a quick shower than packed the couple of things that weren’t in my bag. My swords returned to their carrying case and the knives stayed in my boots. I grabbed my things and went downstairs where Clint was waiting. He took my bags to the car so I could say my goodbyes to Laura, Barney, and the kids. The kids were sad to see me go, but the promise that I would visit again as soon as could satisfied them. Laura gave me a quick hug and told me to take care of Clint. Barney hugged me as well and handed me a piece of paper with his phone number on it, saying he was always up to talk to me and that if his number ever changed due to the job that me and Clint would be the firsts to know. Clint said his goodbyes as well, not happy that the weekend had to be cut short. I hadn’t been paying attention during the drive home, because the next thing I know, we were pulling into the garage. I went straight to my room, not ready to talk to those who weren’t on the mission. This coming week was going to be a busy one, especially for me, and I wasn’t prepared.