Ruthless and Mockingbird

At breakfast, Bobbi was nowhere to be seen. Everyone tried not to notice that Clint was late to the table and clearly hadn't slept well, the bags under his eyes evidence of that. He didn't speak to
anyone as he ate, but he listened to the noise their conversations provided.

Tony mentioned that he was expecting Thor at the mansion within the next few days. Fury paid him a visit and explained to him the nature of the god of thunder's arrival. Tony said that, from now on, all of them would be spending more time in the Combat Room to ready themselves in case Thanos did bring an army to Earth.

Steve and Ruth were talking happily about something, her body turned toward his to give him her full attention. It was obvious by the way Steve was looking at her that he was falling in love, and Ruth, though she might not admit it, was definitely heading the same way. Clint couldn't stop the envy that gripped him as he stared across the table at them. He missed that so much.

Right now, Steve and Ruth were just happy to be with each other with no complications or any bad experiences between them. They could just ride that feeling for a while and enjoy it, but not Clint.
He had long since passed that stage in his relationship with Bobbi, and while on a normal day he could just move on and look toward his future with her, he couldn't pretend that everything was completely okay. Not today. Not on October 12th.

Breakfast passed quickly, but the rest of the day did not. Clint practiced in the archery range, but his heart wasn't in it so he ended up watching bad TV until lunchtime. Again, Bobbi was absent. Clint wasn't surprised, but the others were. Concern seemed to go around the table.

"Where's Bobbi?" asked Ruth. "I haven't seen her all day."

"Neither have I," said Tony. "We were supposed to work on your cochlear implants today after my meeting, but I haven't heard from her. She's not in the lab either, I checked."

"That's not like her," said Bruce.

"Maybe she's not feeling well," shrugged Steve.

"Well she better start feeling well soon because I have another meeting to go to tonight and I won't be able to work in the lab later," said Tony. "I'll go get her out of bed as soon as I'm done with my-"

"No." Clint interrupted Tony in a much harsher voice than he'd intended. Everyone was looking at him strangely, so he cleared his throat. "I just mean.. she's been having a bad couple of days. I'll talk to her." Clint stood up and started to leave before turning around and grabbing a plate. He piled it with sandwiches and fruit and snagged a water bottle as he left.

The journey to Bobbi's room was a long one. Clint knew what was bothering her, but he thought she'd need her space, so he kept his distance. If she wanted him, she would seek him out. Now, he was regretting that decision. He should've been by her side every second.

He stood outside the door and balanced the food in one arm so he could knock. "It's me," he said. "Open up." When the door opened, what he saw broke his heart.

Bobbi was dressed in a pair of pajama bottoms and one of his old t-shirts, her hair messy and her eyes red and puffy from crying and lack of sleep. He could see a half-empty bottle of whisky on the table behind her. When she saw him, he could see that she was trying not to start crying again. She sniffed and wiped her eyes, trying for a brave face, but Clint always saw through it so she gave up.

"I brought you some food. You need to eat," said Clint, and he placed everything on the table. He took a seat on one of the chairs and turned to face her.

"I'm not hungry," she said, and grabbed the bottle of whiskey. Clint stood up and reached for her hand, taking the alcohol from her.

"You can't do this to yourself, Birdie," he whispered, too afraid that if he spoke at a normal volume his voice would break. She let go of the bottle with tears in her eyes and Clint stepped forward and wrapped his arms around her, both of them shaking with the force of her sobs. "It wasn't your fault. It wasn't your fault," he repeated it softly in her ear like a mantra and held her close. His own tears began to fall, and his voice was choked with grief. Listening to her anguished cries tore at his heartstrings like nothing else and the memories of why this was even happening was almost too much to bear.

Her knees gave out from under her and she collapsed onto his chest. Clint supported her and moved them so they were sitting on the edge of the bed. Her sobs began to calm after a while, but she didn't move away from him, her face still buried in the juncture between his neck and shoulder.

"Yes, it was," she said, her voice hoarse. "It was my fault. I should've gone to more doctors, should've stayed off my feet like I was supposed to."

"We've been through this, Bobbi," Clint said, pulling back to look at her. "You did nothing wrong. Remember what the doctor said? There was nothing either of us could've done. The miscarriage wasn't your fault."

And there it was. The thing that had been eating at Bobbi not just for the last few days, but the past year of her life. The loss of their child was devastating, and another example of how much of a failure she was when it came to marriage. She could kill a man a hundred different ways and was one of the best agents S.H.I.E.L.D. had ever trained, but she couldn't do the one thing every woman was capable of. There was a small part of her, but a part nonetheless, that thought that was one of the reasons Clint left. They could've been so happy, a smiling baby boy or girl lighting up their lives, but the miscarriage destroyed that. And today, October 12th, would've been that child's birthday.
Logically, Bobbi knew that what Clint was saying was true, but she couldn't control how she felt. For once, rational thought was giving way to emotion for Bobbi Morse.

Bobbi started crying again, and it took about a half an hour for her to calm down completely. Clint's back was stiff from holding her in that position for so long, but he was afraid that if he moved, he'd upset her calm.

"Why didn't you come to me last night?" asked Clint. "You needed this," he squeezed his arms around her tighter for a second to emphasize what he meant, "not that shit." He kicked the bottle across the floor. Luckily, it didn't break.

"I don't know," she whispered. "I guess I was afraid."

"How?" Clint scoffed and disentangled himself from her so he could see her clearly, though he still held her hands in his. The hurt showed clearly on his face. "It's me. How could you be afraid of me? I love you, Bobbi."

"I know you do," she said. "I love you, too."

"Then why would you be afraid to come to my room when you needed comfort?"

"I was..." she sighed, "I was afraid that you wouldn't want me to."

"Bobbi, that's insane. You know I love you and I'm here for you if and when you need me. I always will be," Clint said, and the next thing he knew, Bobbi was kissing him.

Her hands were in his hair as she kissed him with every ounce of love and passion she had in her body. In a matter of seconds, she was in his lap, pushing him back backward onto the bed and trying to get his shirt off at the same time. She was done playing games. They both knew how they felt about each other and it was stupid to pretend otherwise.

"Wait," said Clint, gasping for air, his hands firmly holding her hips. "What about us just being friends?"

"Fuck it," said Bobbi, almost angrily. "I don't want to be your friend. I want to be your wife."

Clint smiled widely and reached up to move her hair behind her ear. He looked at her face a moment, thinking how beautiful she was even after crying so hard. "That's my girl," he said, and lifted himself up to kiss her before he flipped her onto her back, his hand already making its way up underneath her shirt.

**

Ruth crouched low, throwing her right leg out in a low roundhouse kick. Although quick and efficient, the Super Soldier easily jumped over her calf. Steve then countered with a kick of his own.
Ruth caught his foot in mid-air, twisting it, and sent him flying, face-first on the floor.

"Are you ok-" before Ruth could get the sentence out, Steve punched her right in the gut. Ruth immediately doubled over, cough a little.

"Ruthie!" Steve said, standing up. "Are you okay? I'm so sorry! I thought you were going to wear padding!"

"Does... it look like... I'm wearing... PADDING?!" Ruth wheezed in between coughs. Once she caught her breath, she said, "This is pay back, isn't it?"

Steve walked her over to a bench and sat her down. Immediately he pulled up her shirt and began to check every little detail of her bruising. It took Ruth flinching as his fingers grazed over a particularly ticklish area for the Captain to finally realize what the hell he was actually doing.

"It doesn't look too bad, but we should call a doctor to check it out," Steve spoke with guilt of the pain he caused her, and embarrassment for just lifting up her shirt without permission.

Ruth, feeling Steve's nervous behavior, pulled his hands away from her stomach, only to rest them at her heart. "Don't beat yourself up over it," she said with a smile. "We're supposed to be training for an alien attack. I'm not gonna be wearing padding during something like that."

"Still I should've never-"

"Never what?" she interrupted him. "Hit me? I'm going to get hit, Steve. My job kinda promises such. I need to be used to it, in case of an attack."

Steve still wasn't completely alright to that, but what he thought didn't seem to matter as Ruth let his hands go and stood back up. "Ready for another round?"

Steve smiled at her ambition, but shook his head 'no'. "We've been at it since lunch. It's already well past dinner. Why not call it a night?"

"Someone doesn't want to get his ass kicked by a girl," Ruth joked.

"After all this sparring, I think you would realize by now that you can't win against m-"

"Oh... Captain America is finally acting like a man," Ruth teased a bit. "His manhood is threatened, so his ego finally makes an appearance."

"Against me, yet," Steve said with a pointed look. "You are too rash with your attacks. You need to stop and plan ahead. And you need to wait until I finish my sentences before you jump to conclusions." Ruth shrugged him off. She already had Fury on her back about her rash behavior, she didn't need Steve on her ass too.

"You know, I don't think I wanna play with you anymore," Steve chuckled at her revelation.

"Alright, lets go eat."

"How can I eat!" Ruth said, throwing up her arms. "My stomach is a war zone!" Steve winced.

"I'm sorry," he said again.

Ruth shrugged like it was no big deal, "Come on, Old Glory, let's get dinner."

"Old Glory?" Steve scoffed. "Couldn't think of anything better?"

"Are you giving me permission to make fun of you, Captain?" Ruth gave him a sweet smile. They were soon in the elevator making their way up to the ground floors.

"Only if you can come up with something creative enough," Steve replied.

"Star Spangled Banner," Ruth offered as another name.

"Not good enough."

"Uncle Sam?"

"Heard that one at least a hundred times."

"Major Pain in My Ass," Ruth said sticking out her tongue.

"If we were coming up with names for you," Steve pulled her in close and began tickling her sides,
"that'd be the one I pick." Ruth was laughing herself to tears by the time the doors opened to reveal the ground level.

"St-e-e-v-v-ve!" Ruth cried out. "St-o-p i-it!"

"Are you gonna stop teasing me?" Steve said as his fingers danced up her sides. Ruth was laughed to tears as she tried to choke out a yes. She settled for a nod and Steve let her go. "That's what I thought."

"You're mean," Ruth gave him a pout as they exited the lift.

Steve playfully pushed her, "Says the girl who has been trying to come up with a name to make fun of me with."

"Says the guy who just pushed-Seriously!" Ruth exclaimed stopping in the middle of the hall.

"What?" Steve suddenly became serious. "What's wrong?"

Ruth pulled up her shirt to show the bruise, which was now yellow and brown as if on the last stages of healing. "I noticed that about my hand. Now, I know I heal fast already, but ever since being injected-"

"It's supposed to do that," Steve replied, gently taking Ruth shirt out of her hands and allowed the fabric to fall back in place. He turned and began walking to the kitchens. "If the doctor who injected you with his version of the serum would want anything from it, it would be to make sure you have regenerative factors. Have you tried getting drunk?"

"What would that prove?" asked Ruth as she followed closely behind.

"If you can't get drunk, then it'll prove that your metabolism is higher than the average human,"

Steve explained. "Which could mean that your body also has other defense mechanisms that will cause you to heal faster."

"When did you become a medical professional?" Ruth teased as they entered the kitchen.

Before Steve could retort, another voice boomed with delight, saying, "Captain! How great it is too see you again, old friend!" Steve turned to find a tall, strong man with arms laden down with and assortment of food. "And who is your lady friend?"

"Ruth," the woman spoke for herself. "You must be Thor!"

Thor placed his food down on the counter before him. The god held out his hand to the young woman, who graciously accepted. However, Ruth was pleasantly surprised when instead of shaking her hand, Thor brought it to his lips, brushing them against her knuckles.

"Ruth, I have not had the pleasure," he said, giving Ruth an award winning smile.

Much to Steve's annoyance, she giggled and said, "Well it's nice to finally meet you! Although I did hear you were not as awesome as Tony." Thor gave her a confused look. "But with looks like yours, who would care!"

"I don't follow-"

"She's calling you hot," The three turned around to see Tony stroll in. He turned to Thor (who still looked a bit confused) and asked, "When did you get here? No, wait, it doesn't matter. You three, follow me. JARVIS, call Banner, Barton and Morse down to the training room."

**

"That was... unexpected," spoke Clint as he awoke to find Bobbi running her fingers through his hair. One of his arms snaked around the blonde, pulling her in.

"Mmm," she sleepily agreed, pressing a kiss to his neck before resting her head on his chest. "Fun though."

Clint gently ran his finger across her bare skin. Neither of them spoke for a moment, then, "What have you been doing this past year, Birdie?"

"What do you mean?" Bobbi put her hand on his chest and rested her chin on it so she could look at him.

"What do you mean, 'What do you mean'?" he said in mocked frustration. "It's a simple question, Bobbi. What have you been doing? Pick up any hobbies? Fight any bad guys?"

"I've been doing freelance work, like I was when we met," she said. "Only recently did I officially join up with S.H.I.E.L.D. again. As for hobbies, took up paintballing for a little while. It was a fun way to keep up with training."

"Paintball?" Clint wore an amused smirk. "Dija hit any kids in the face?"

Bobbi looked guilty, "Not on purpose.."

Clint laughed, "You could not have done that by accident! Your aim is too good! What'd he do? Grab your ass?"

"Alright! It was this jerk teenager who thought he'd try and impress his friends by getting physical with me during a game," she said. "I got him right between the eyes."

Hawkeye laughed harder, "I knew I married you for a reason!"

"What have you been up to then?" she asked, smiling at his amusement.

He shrugged, "Nothing much, really. Been doing security work for S.H.I.E.L.D. mainly. As for hobbies, well I've got my archery." Once again it was silent. "Where the fuck are we now?"

"Isn't it obvious?" Mockingbird asked. "We're naked in my bed. Get with it, Clint."

This caused the man to chuckle, "Oh, I'm VERY aware of that." To prove his point, Clint moved his hand down the length of Bobbi's back to gently squeeze her ass. Pretending to be scandalized, Bobbi made a shocked expression and lightly smacked his chest. With a laugh, Clint moved his hand up to her lower back. "What I really meant though is where does this leave us?"

"Where do you want this to leave us?" asked Bobbi, her expression serious.

"Bobbi, I swear, if you keep answering my questions with questions, I'll-"

"Okay!" she cut him off. "Relax," she said softly, sitting up a little so her elbow was pressed into the pillow. She left her other hand on his chest and she could feel his heartbeat. "I already made myself clear earlier when I initiated this. I don't want to be your friend anymore. I want to be your wife. Is that something you want too?"

Clint closed his eyes and breathed deeply once before opening them again. "More than anything,"
he said sincerely.

Bobbi smiled, "Then it's settled."

"C'mere," Clint said, and he pulled her closer until she was on top of him. He kissed her slowly, in no rush to start anything yet. When he finally pulled back, he asked, "So does this mean we can have sex whenever we want?"

Bobbi chuckled seductively, "You bet it does." She pressed her lips to his for a short but passionate kiss. "You're going to have to move in here though. Your room is too much of a mess."

"I can deal with that," he said.

The two of them just stared at each other for a long moment, content smiled on their faces. Finally, finally, they were together again after everything they'd been through. It almost seemed like a dream, like it was too good to be true. Yes, they'd both been upset before, but now they had each other and everything was going to be okay.

"I don't want to lose you ever again," Bobbi said, running her finger through her husband's hair.
Clint closed his eyes at the pleasant sensation, and opened them to find her biting her lip.

"You won't, Bobbi. I promise," he said and he went to kiss her, but she pulled back and sat up on his stomach, one leg on either side of him. Clint's eyes started wandering, so she pulled the sheet up and wrapped it around herself.

"But what if I do?" she asked. "You know as well as I do how dangerous our line of work is." Clint knew she was right. In fact, Bobbi falling in the heat of battle was something right out of Clint's worst nightmares. Especially after he left, he'd spent many nights awake because when he closed his eyes he saw her lying bloodied in the rubble of a dilapidated building.

"We always come out of it okay, don't we?" he said, lightly moving his hand down her thigh. "Look, I'm not gonna lie to you. I'm scared too. Especially with this Thanos guy-"

"Who?"

"Do you remember me telling you about Thor?" Bobbi nodded. "Well, he came back to Earth the other day with news of this Thanos guy who decided that he needed to pick a fight with us. It must be bad if Thor has decided to come back to fight."

"See! This is exactly what I was talking about!" Bobbi yelled. "There's always someone out there that has it out for us."

Clint began feeling uncomfortable with the thought of losing his wife, so he turned the conversation around, "Which is why we should stop talking and get back to the fun we were having before. You never know when it'll be our last."

"I suppose you make a valid point," Bobbi sighed, and smiled down at him. She moved to kiss him, but right before their lips were about to touch, JARVIS' voice sounded in the room.

"Agent Morse, Mr. Stark is requesting your presence in the training room, urgently."

"Fuck," Bobbi groaned.

"I'll come with you," said Clint removing himself from the bed. "He probably needs your help with the implants. And knowing Stark, if you don't go he'll come up here and get you." Bobbi groaned, but followed her husband's lead nonetheless, hurrying to get down to Tony, see what he needed, and get back up to the room so she and Clint could finish what they started only moments before. Before they left, Bobbi grabbed one of the sandwiches Clint had brought her, finally realizing how hungry she really was.