A/N: Final chapter! Thanks for the reviews, guys! This has some more fluffier moments, but should hopefully still be dynamic. Thanks! Also, I haven't actually seen The Winter Soldier, so I hope my research is accurate. I own nothing!
Clint/Laura. Ship it? I sail!
"This is the most boring bachelorette party, ever!" Lila declared loudly.
Laura shrugged. She'd been fine with whatever, with the only rules being no strippers and no alcohol. Lila had found a way to smuggle in some booze, and was getting uproariously drunk and complaining about the lack of dudes.
So she'd called her ex-boyfriend over.
Derek, or Drake, or whatever his name was, was an asshole. Laura really didn't like him, but Lila seemed to perk up once he was there. She rolled her eyes and continued chatting with her coworkers and casual friends. Natasha stood silently in a corner, watching the proceedings.
Eventually, D-asshole made his way over to her, leering obnoxiously. "Oh, this is going to be good," Laura murmured, interrupting the conversation. Everyone turned to where he stood in front of Nat, who coolly looked up at him.
"You're just leaning against a corner this whole time; you some kinda hooker?" he slurred. Laura covered her mouth with her hand.
A moment later and D-asshole was flat on his back, unmoving. Natasha casually stepped over him and went to go refill her drink.
"All hail the Queen of Kung-Fu!" Laura shouted, clapping her hands. Everyone else cheered and Nat allowed a small smirk to cross her face before steeling it back into bad-ass mode. D-asshole was dumped on the couch and forgotten.
Laura caught Natasha in the kitchen as the party's life resumed. "Seriously, Nat," she murmured lowly. "Thanks for that."
She shrugged. "You're welcome."
Laura looked at her and winked. "You can borrow one of my dresses anytime."
A look of distaste flashed across the redhead's face. "I'd rather not." Laura laughed.
She did manage to get Natasha into at least a skirt for the wedding.
The actual wedding was a small thing that took place in a, quote "easily securable" church. Clint seemed mildly paranoid that some bad guy would burst in and crash the wedding, and Laura was convinced that most of the guests were armed SHIELD agents (and only the trustworthy ones). Fortunately, the worst thing that happened was Laura's mother showing up at the last minute in a white suit and cigarette harping about being the mother of the damn bride. The irascible lady made her own way down the aisle and sat in a pew still smoking her cigarette.
It was the happiest day of Laura's life.
Nat was the only armed bridesmaid, and kept a sharp eye on Lila (who just looked more excited to be the maid of honor than anything). Laura didn't recognize most of the groomsmen, but spotted Phil Coulson as best man. Beyond that, her attention was focused solely on Clint.
It was a short, sweet ceremony, and a quick reception. It went smoothly, aside from Laura's mother suddenly announcing "I don't believe in monogamy, so what the hell am I doing here?" before walking out. Laura didn't care. She was starting a new chapter in her life.
They honeymooned in a little cabin in the Midwest, and it was so peaceful she wished it could last forever.
She deduced that Clint pretty much lived in SHIELD facilities, so they agreed to just move into her apartment. Laura continued to teach at the high school. Clint continued to work for SHIELD. They kept that routine for four years.
The changes started coming when Laura figured out she was pregnant.
Clint was ecstatic. They both started making preparations around the apartment for a baby. It was too soon to tell if it was a boy or girl yet. They didn't care which it would be.
One night, however, a sound awoke Laura. She shifted in their bed the same time Clint sat bolt upright, a gun at the ready. Still sleepy, she frowned at him. Why not the bow and arrow?
A sound came again from the apartment.
Clint motioned her to stay quiet as he silently slid out of bed and to the bedroom door. She watched him ease it open and look into the main room. Heart pounding, she realized this was the first time she'd ever really seen Clint in 'spy mode'.
It was oddly relaxing.
He slipped into the main room. A moment later there were a few grunts and thuds. Then a dragging sound. The front door opened and closed. A few moments later and he returned to the bedroom.
"What was it?" she asked.
"Burglar," he answered. "Left him outside in the hall for the police to pick up." He started to crawl back into bed.
"Don't we need to be there for the police to take our statements?" she prodded him.
He sighed and opened his eyes. "Yeah. We do."
They had hot cocoa on the couch as they waited for the cops to come.
...
Afterwards, Clint was tense. He repaired the broken window easily enough, but he remained restless in the apartment. If Laura didn't know better, she would say that the incident shook him up.
She finally cornered him and he admitted that he didn't like how exposed they were. "This time it was just a burglar," he said. "But what if it's someone more dangerous next time? I have enemies, Laura, skilled ones, too. What if they come while I'm gone?"
"You've taught me self-defense," she pointed out reassuringly.
His face softened. "I know, and I trust you." He took her hands. "But what about the baby? Soon he'll be here, and I don't want to risk-" he struggled with his words.
"Okay," Laura said. "We'll move." His shoulders dropped in relief. "After the baby gets here," she clarified. She was much too pregnant to go around packing and lifting boxes.
He grinned. "Yes, ma'am."
I should be happier than this, she thought to herself. I should be more joyful.
Cooper Lucas Barton was born and was a gurgling, happy baby. Clint, for all of his occupational requirements, slid into fatherhood surprisingly easily. He fed and played with the baby, and was even a husband who changed diapers. Laura was glad for that, but wondered why she didn't feel much more than that.
I have a wonderful husband and a healthy baby- I should be ecstatic right now.
She didn't feel that way.
She caught herself staring out the window more and more. They were still in the apartment. The move was put on hold for a couple months so that Cooper could grow up some and basically not be a newborn as they moved objects all over the place. The kid didn't seem to mind. He just enjoyed kicking his legs into the air and grasping at the rattle attached over his crib. Laura smiled, but it didn't reach her eyes.
Once she was out on the balcony for a long time. She wasn't doing anything. Finally, she realized that Cooper was crying. Clint was training at the SHIELD range for the day. Panic encased her when she realized she had no idea how long Cooper had been crying.
She ran back and tended to him, robotically changing his diaper and tucking him in.
Then she went back to the balcony.
What kind of a mother am I? I should care more than this.
But she didn't.
It was the first time Clint proved to her, without a doubt, that she came first.
"You what?" she repeated, hardly believing it.
"I turned down the mission," he said again. "It was a bad time for them to recommend it, anyway. My wife just had a baby, after all. Phil wasn't happy, arguing 'it's been two months' but he talked to Fury and we're good. I can be here, solidly, for sure, no surprises, for the next month and a half."
No, this couldn't be happening. She didn't want to do this to him. "How could you?" she whispered. "I can't hold you back, Clint. They need you at SHIELD, you're the best, I can't- I can't be the one to sabotage your career…" she started shaking with unshed tears.
Clint gripped her shoulders. "Laura," he said sternly. "I want to be here."
This was too much. She burst into tears- happy, sad- and sobbed into his shoulder.
Two days later, he gently took her to a doctor and she was diagnosed with postpartum depression.
They finally moved. Clint pulled some strings and they bought the cabin where they honeymooned. It was a lot quieter than the city. For better or for worse it reminded Laura of home.
It was pretty remote, and Laura transferred her teaching to online. She taught a variety of foreign language classes, and a geography class. She also found more time to paint again, which relaxed her and made her happy.
Clint eventually worked on turning the cabin into a mini-farm. It was just enough to be self-sufficient "should the apocalypse happen at any time". She swatted at him for being paranoid, but helped him build the barn none the same.
The farm brought back another aspect she didn't know she had missed: physical work. Laura liked being busy and enjoyed the labor the house's upkeep (and child) required. She enjoyed the fresh air from on top of their tractor as she kept the field plowed.
And she enjoyed the challenges a two-year-old and infinitely curious Cooper brought.
Her depression subsided with the positive change, and she could tell she was back to being spunky, surprising, busy Laura. She hadn't felt this good in years.
Apparently neither had Clint, and they both saw their happiness personified through another baby.
...
Clint was gone again when the phone rang. Very few people had the new number, so Laura was cautious when she picked it up. It did not bear good news.
She kept up a late-night vigil until Clint came home. She took note of his sling and mentally told herself to check up on it. Outwardly, she didn't move.
"What's wrong?" he asked.
She sighed softly. "Lila's dead," she answered. "There was a car accident."
He didn't say anything, but wrapped her up in his arms and guided her upstairs.
Later, deep in the quiet night, she found herself murmuring. "I want to name our baby girl after her."
There was a comforting arm around her. "Whatever you say, Laura," he agreed.
'Auntie Nat' finally got to meet the kids in person.
Laura personally didn't quite know why the Black Widow was in the neighborhood, but she was pleased to see her all the same. Whether she knew it or not, Nat's presence helped her out of another bout of Baby Blues.
"And this is Cooper, oh, he's getting so big!" Laura gushed, like any other mother. Cooper just adored Nat and thought she was the coolest thing ever- especially when she beat Dad at arm wrestling (though Clint still maintained she cheated with pressure points). Natasha was engaging enough to satisfy a three-year-old, yet aloof enough to remain 'awesome'.
"And the newest member of the family is Lila Rose Barton," Laura introduced, rocking the tiny baby.
Nat froze, and looked up at Clint. "Lila Rose?" she said.
"Ah," Clint shifted sheepishly. "I might have forgotten to mention a certain aunt's wishes on the subject of… names."
"Can we change it?" Laura asked. Natasha looked like she was going to gut Clint alive.
"The birth certificate's already been confirmed." He spread his hands.
"That's okay," Nat amended smoothly. "You can just name the next one 'Natasha'."
Clint spluttered. "Next one? What makes you think there's going to be a next one?"
Nat shared her smug, all-knowing grin with Laura, who returned it. Denying to answer, she turned to see what toy Cooper was showing her now.
It was a new routine. Clint was still called away on missions for SHIELD. Laura taught her online classes, painted, worked the farm, raised her kids, and eventually taught them, too (a scare in which Cooper nearly gave away government secrets made the family realize that homeschooling was the best way to go). She loved remaining busy. She loved the peaceful atmosphere. She loved the independence she somehow still had.
Laura watched the news avidly, and then would confer with Clint on what the facts were whenever he got back. They had a game on 'what was right and what was covered up'. She was getting pretty good at it.
The world rocked when Tony Stark revealed himself to be Iron Man. A couple years later she would get a call from Nat complaining about how egotistical the man was. The world rocked again when something huge and green rampaged through Harlem. Clint had actually seen that news report with her, on the couch. Not long after that he was called away to New Mexico.
But the world got its biggest shakedown when aliens attacked New York. Laura watched the proceedings seriously, and even did something she'd never done before.
She called Clint.
He was out in the field and no doubt in the thick of it, but she called him anyway. In some ways she was relieved to get his voicemail. In others, it just worried her more.
A few days later he returned her call. He sounded shaken. Said he would be home soon. The next day she walked downstairs in the morning to find him sitting on the couch, staring at the wall.
She got Nat to open up about Loki and the scepter. And Coulson's death. No wonder his nightmares were worse.
He moved around in a daze, often going to the barn and shooting arrow after arrow at the targets. It broke Laura's heart.
So she drew Cooper and Lila close and whispered "Go surprise Daddy in the barn. If you can tackle him to the ground, I'll make a cake."
The kids shot to the barn. Laura smiled, and started making the cake anyway.
When the three finally came back to the house, Clint was smiling and laughing as the screaming, giggling children ran circles around him and squirmed out of his holds. He met Laura's eyes as they entered the kitchen and settle down. "Thank you," he said, low enough for just her to hear.
She hugged him. "We're going to be okay."
He talked over the decision to join the Avengers extensively with her. She was very pleased he shared it so openly. SHIELD operated on a 'top secret, classified, above-your-security-clearance' level such that he could rarely speak of what he was doing. Laura worried for him, but wasn't stupid. She understood it was necessary.
Still, with the Avengers right there in the open, it was certainly refreshing.
"I think you should go," she said. He stopped what he was doing and looked at her.
"They need you." She wasn't blind. Did she want her all-too human (mortal) husband hanging around with a bunch of self-made superheroes? They had Tony Stark in his super-suit. They had a man who morphed into an unstoppable, raging Hulk. They had an enhanced superhuman (super soldier). They had a god-like being. They had Natasha's lithe skill.
Laura could always see the big picture. It was why she painted. They needed Clint's humanity.
"Are you sure?" he broached cautiously. He still wasn't sure what he could actually offer the team.
She smiled, and nodded. "I'm sure." She straightened and sighed. "Besides, somebody's going to have to stop Nat from killing them all."
He grinned and chuckled. "Yeah. I suppose there's that."
They made plans for his shift in jobs. He might be away for longer stretches, because it was never certain when the Avengers would be needed, and so he would essentially be 'on call'. On the upside, he could actually call home. He packed two bags for Stark's Avengers Tower.
Or whatever it was called.
This was good for him. It was a team; he could start trusting more people. And by George, she fully supported that.
Laura walked down the stairs and was surprised to see Natasha sitting on the couch. "Nat?" she questioned. "Everything okay?"
Natasha turned to her and fumed. Laura had rarely seen such emotion displayed from her before.
"Men," she snapped. She uttered no further words.
Laura nodded. It'd been about six months since the Avengers Initiative was enacted. She could imagine getting fed up living with Stark, Banner, and the others.
She set about preparing breakfast, accepting Natasha's presence like it was any other day. As they cleaned the dishes and sent Cooper and Lila frolicking outside, the phone rang.
Only Nat, Fury, and Clint had that number.
Laura picked it up. "Hello?"
"Hi, honey," came Clint's voice. "Um, is 'Tasha with you? The guys are kind of freaking out here."
Nat rolled her eyes at Laura's glance and grabbed the phone. "Barton, listen up, I think that-"
Laura cringed, aware that the conversation would turn hostile and unproductive. Nat needed a break. She was going assure that.
Before Nat could say anything else, Laura grabbed the phone. "Nat can't be with you guys right now, she's pulled her vagina!"
Dead silence on the other end.
"Okay, bye, sweetie, I love you too!" she chirped sweetly into the void. She hung up the phone and sent a sly, satisfied grin at Natasha.
"Stay as long as you need to."
...
Barton walked back into the main room, a slightly freaked look on his face.
"Any word on our missing Mata Hari?" Stark called from the couch.
Clint stopped. "Uhhhh, she's... yeah. Don't ask." He walked away with a horrified/nauseous look on his face, and for once, Stark did the smart thing and took his advice.
Clint was home early.
Clint was never home early.
And he was tense.
"Clint, is everything alright?" She trailed after him as he moved from room to room, double checking computers, the phone line, and the windows for good measure. "Are you okay?" She knew he never let anyone do something like follow him.
He finished his obsessive security walk of the house and then kissed her hard. She frowned and pulled away. "Clint, you're really worrying me, now," she warned him.
"Sorry, ma'am," he apologized. He was still tense.
"What happened?" she coaxed gently.
His shoulders stiffened. "HYDRA."
She… was somewhat familiar with the rival organization. "And?"
"It was all over SHIELD. The entire time."
Her face paled. "And?"
He sighed. "The infiltration went all the way to the top- so Steve and Nat flushed out the other moles by releasing everyone's file. Everyone's."
Laura stilled. "It's all just, out in the public?" she whispered.
"On the Internet, in the news… hell, it's a mess." He dragged a hand across his face.
"And SHIELD?" she pressed.
"Disbanded, for the time being. Torn apart." He dropped his quiver at last. "Nat might need to stay here a few days. Or weeks."
She nodded, fully aware of the massive implications that were rippling through the outside world. "Are we, are we expecting anyone else?"
"No one else knows about this place," he said sharply, and she felt her knees weaken in relief. Clint's paranoia had paid off- they stayed out of the files, and out of the fallout. He never breathed a word of her or kids outside of the house- heck, they had their wedding rings framed above the fire place (because she was not going to have him swallow that like all their pictures; learned from a sword-swallower or no).
And now- with a shock, Laura realized that their home was one of the few safe-houses left.
And still, Clint worried.
"I just have to make sure," he muttered, still pacing around the house. She didn't stop him as he walked outside and patrolled the outer regions of their land.
It wasn't even dawn.
...
Nat did show up at their place, and stayed for the longest time yet- two weeks. She informed them that Fury was still alive, and reassured them that he was the only other person who knew about their house. They were it.
It didn't stop Clint's patrolling for another month.
They waited for the media frenzy to die down.
And late at night, Laura looked at the laptop. It was so tempting. It was right out on the Internet.
She could actually know…
The laptop sat on the table in front of her, like the one ring of power. She stared at it. Such a simple search…
His file was somewhere out there.
She let out a shuddering sigh, reached out a hand, and closed the laptop.
She didn't see Natasha watching her from the shadows.
The world died down, and the Avengers carefully started returning to the tower. SHIELD was trying to regroup, but it would be years, and it would never be the same. Laura reflected that it was fortunate that Clint was an Avenger- they had his secure bank holdings to get them through the shift, but it was still reassuring that he had a second job.
Laura actually paused and laughed out loud, startling a barn cat. Her husband, the assassin, lost his job at the government agency, but that was okay because he still had his second one as an avenging superhero.
How was this her life? When did that happen?
Laura chuckled at how grand her plans had seemed when she was in college. She was going to be a college professor, and maybe win an award for painting. Well, she was still painting, and still teaching, but she was also raising two beautiful children, working a farm in the sunshine, and had a loving, loyal husband, who gave her her independence.
Well, she mused to herself, rubbing her belly. A slight correction would have to be made to the two children part.
"Honey? I'm home."
It was the first time he'd ever brought the team with him.
She'd seen the footage from South Africa. She knew it was bad. But it was worse when she saw Nat's haunted eyes and the scarred looks of team.
Laura was a smart host. She asked no questions, and began making room to fit the superheroes in their humble house. Thor left early on, which was a minor relief, as it cut down the numbers.
Which went up again when Fury showed up.
Juggling Tony Stark, Captain America, Fury, Banner, the kids, and everyone else was a fun challenge. Laura noticed the silent communication between Banner and Nat right away, and was excited that the femme fatale was finally opening up.
Of course, she had to break the news about 'Natasha's' gender change.
Nathaniel wasn't too far off, was it?
They saved the world once again, yet Clint returned home morose. He stopped in front of Laura, and gently placed his hands on her belly.
"His middle name's Pietro," he said quietly, and that was all of the matter.
Laura never thought she'd have it all.
Here she was, in her newly completed workplace, watching the sun stream through the open window onto her easel. Her laptop for work was on the desk behind her, along with her other textbooks and papers. Her paints were on this end of the room, though. It was quiet and warm outside. Clint was in the barn, teaching Cooper and Lila how to shoot. Nathaniel was sleeping in his crib- and she felt no depression or blues at all this time.
Here she was, average Laura, who had only wanted to break out of her home. Now she was a mother of three, a wife of a spy/assassin, and living in a comfortable house in the country. She taught her favorite subjects the way she wanted, and still painted in her free time (and a few actually made their way into some shows, all submitted anonymously, of course).
She stayed busy, between being a mom, a teacher, a farmer, and a wife, and she was fine with that. She still had her independence; a gift from Clint's job. They were apart for long periods of time, so that neither grated on the other's nerves, and the saying was true: absence makes the heart grow fonder. Her husband was intelligent enough to not pressure her or order her around, and she was smart enough to not cling to him or make a big deal out of small, uncontrollable problems.
They worked.
Come to think of it, Laura mused, she was right all those years ago. She would never be tied down.
And she wasn't.
Hawks were born free.
There it is! Hope you liked it! Let me know in the comments! :)