this work will follow our fave assassins from childhood to SHIELD, completely AU. warnings will be updated with the fic as it progresses. (this fic can also be found on ao3)

(and yes this is the third time i've tried writing this fic leave me alone)

hope you enjoy x

Iowa, 1999

August

If there was one thing the circus had taught Clint, it was that not everything was what it seemed.

He didn't remember much about his life under the big top. Shooting arrows was more muscle memory than anything, and he was only good because he had kept practising. Now that they had a house, things were easier. His mum liked the yard with the clothesline. Clint went to school and his brother Barney had a part-time job and their dad came and went as he pleased, not that Clint cared.

It was as close to normal as ex-carnies could get. Clint didn't remember the accident that had caused his hearing loss, but it had been bad enough for the circus to just throw them out and disappear. They didn't want trouble, and his dad had done something to cause a lot of trouble. Clint didn't like to think about it much. That part of his life was in the past, even if he sometimes found himself missing the smell of sawdust beneath the Big Top.

But the circus had been good for one thing, at least. He had learnt to see things differently, to assume nothing until he had all the answers. Sometimes something came along that was exactly what Clint would expect, but mostly, there was always something else, an edge to things that most people missed.

Which is why, when Clint came home from school to find a small girl climbing out of the kitchen window, he didn't immediately call for help or chase her down. Instead, he watched her drop to the ground and pull from her pocket a single chocolate chip cookie. It was only as she was raising it to her mouth that she spotted him.

"Uh, hi," Clint said. "Are you new here?"

The girl was frozen, green eyes wide and body tense. Clint thought she might take off at any second, but she was pretty small so he would probably be able to catch her. He took a step forward and watched as her hands curled into fists, the cookie still clutched in one tightly.

"Who are you?" he asked, frowning now.

The girl seemed to be weighing her options. She was thinner than Clint too, but he couldn't really tell how old she would be. Her knees were freshly scraped.

"Who are you?" she finally echoed to him. Her voice was husky, like there was something caught in her throat, and her accent was thick and unfamiliar.

Clint couldn't help but smirk at her. "I asked you first."

She paused again, though Clint could tell that she was getting a little annoyed. A small crease appeared on her brow as she scowled at him. "Natalia" she muttered eventually, and stood a little straighter. The cookie was mere crumbs now, and she unclenched her fist to let the pieces fall onto the gravel road.

"I'm Clint. I'm ten" Clint said. "What're you, like six?"

"Nine" Natalia snapped, though she looked disappointed. Clint couldn't tell if it was about the cookie or being younger than him. "What you do here?"

"I live here" Clint said. "So that was definitely my cookie."

Natalia narrowed her eyes, then shrugged. "Is on ground if you want."

Clint's smirk turned into a full-blown grin. There was something about this girl that he really liked. He could almost forget that she had been climbing out of his house moments earlier. "I can just get my own. Cause I live here. Where are you from?"

"Russia" Natalia said automatically.

"No, like, do you live here now or something?"

"Down road," Natalia said. She pointed behind her, down the gravel road to where Clint could see the only other house in this area. The gravel road was long, surrounded by paddocks and a small expanse of forest that Clint liked to practise his archery in. No one liked to live this far away from town, and the houses were pretty rundown. It was why Clint's family had been moved there. No one was around if they caused more trouble.

"Oh," Clint said. "That makes us neighbours."

Natalia didn't say anything. She kind of looked like she wanted to leave again, so Clint hitched his backup higher on his shoulder and moved towards her again. "You gonna go to school here?

"Da. Yes" Natalia said. "Is good?"

"S'alright" Clint shrugged. "You got any brothers or sisters?"

Natalia shook her head. "Is just me and uncle." Then she looked down, biting her lip as though she wasn't supposed to say anything.

Clint wasn't great at reading social cues. In the circus, the only kids had been him and Barney, and even then, Barney didn't always like to hang out with Clint. At school the kids thought he was weird because of the bulky hearing aids he had to wear, so Clint didn't have many friends. Or any, really.

"What about your mum and dad?" he said.

"They are dead," Natalia said, meeting his gaze.

"That sucks" Clint said. "Hey, why'd you steal a cookie anyway?"

Natalia seemed to be debating on whether or not she would tell him the truth. She folded her arms across her chest, making herself look smaller. Then she simply shrugged and said, "hungry."

He knew what it was like to be hungry. He started off towards the house, hoping Natalia would either follow or at least wait for him. He fished the key out from under the mat and let himself in. He couldn't hear anyone else, but that didn't mean no one was home. He dumped his backpack by the door, ran into the kitchen, and grabbed as many cookies out of the jar that he could carry, before making his way back outside.

Natalia was still there. He was a little surprised to see her waiting at the bottom of the steps. The sun cast her shadow out over the road, long and dark. Her hair looked like fire in the light.

Clint held the cookies out to her. She stared at them for a long time, just blinking, as though she couldn't really believe what she was seeing. Then, she reached out and took one hesitantly. She held herself tightly, as though she was expecting to be hit. Clint could recognise that look, too. It made him feel bad.

"Spasibo" Natalia said softly, and nibbled on the edge of her cookie.

Clint didn't know what that meant, but could assume it was probably a thank you. He shrugged one shoulder and sat himself down on the bottom step so he could lay the cookies in his lap. He was hungry after school, and should probably be doing his homework instead of talking with some strange girl.

They ate in silence for a while, Natalia taking small bites while Clint shoved the cookies in whole. They were homemade, which meant his mum was in a good mood, which meant his dad was in a good mood. Clint hadn't seen his dad for a couple of days, but Edith always baked when he came back.

"Why you nice to me?" Natalia said eventually. She had finished her cookie and was sneaking glances at the last one on Clint's lap. "You not tell your mum I was in house."

Clint didn't want to tell her that he actually didn't know his mum was home. "I don't know, it's not like you were stealing our TV or something bad. Plus you seem pretty cool."

"Cool," Natalia said, testing the word out.

"So, what're doing here? In America, I mean?"

"Training" Natalia said casually, then slapped her hand over her mouth as though she could force the words back in. Clint frowned, watching the way her eyes widened and her fingertips went white from the pressure she was applying to her mouth. He didn't get it.

"Like for a sport?" he asked. He kicked the heel of his sneaker into the dirt and started to dig a hole.

"Nyet. No. Is – I am not –" Natalia stuttered. She moved her hand away and clenched it into a fist.

"Doesn't matter" Clint said easily. Even if he couldn't socialise well with most kids his age, he could recognise when someone was scared. He held the cookie out to her. "I should probably do my homework."

Natalia seemed to sag in on herself. She took the cookie from him and stood up slowly. Clint brushed off the back of his shorts and they stood awkwardly for a moment, neither sure of how to proceed.

"Guess I'll see you at school," Clint said. "I can show you around! Only if you want."

"That be nice," Natalia said, then firmer, "that would be nice."

She spat onto her palm and held her hand out to Clint. He stared at it, sure that he was missing some vital piece of information. Had she said something he hadn't heard? He glanced at her face but her eyes were steely.

"Is for friends," she said. "And for deal. We see each other at school."

Clint couldn't help but smile. He kind of wanted to be friends with the weird Russian girl he had only just met. She was different to most kids and even though she had broken into his house, Clint didn't think she was really bad or anything. Besides, he wasn't about to judge her when he didn't even really know her.

He spat into his own hand and they shook, Natalia almost smiling. Then he wiped his hand down his shirt and sighed. "I actually do have to do homework, else I'll get in trouble."

"Okay" Natalia said. "See you."

"Bye," Clint said. He bounded up the steps and stopped before he went inside, watching Natalia walk down the dirt road towards her house. She didn't look back, but Clint could see her eating the cookie.

He stayed by the door, watching her long after he couldn't see her, trying to figure out what he had gotten himself into.