Hey guys! Sorry for another long update, but it's finally here! It's the last chapter guys! I'm sad to see it end, but it's been a fun journey. Thank you for reading, and without further ado, on to chapter Eleven!

Chapter Eleven

Natasha's POV

I stare at the man in front of me, momentarily caught off guard by his sudden appearance, and he gazes back. After a few seconds I regain my composure and take a step back, glancing away from the soldier. Steve looks behind me where Sam is standing, bloody nose and all, and his brows furrow.

"Natasha, what happened?" For a moment I don't answer, I just avert my gaze to the infirmary doors that stand between me and my partner. Captain Rogers immediately recognizes my defeated stance and sighs, his shoulders slumping.

"What did he do?" Steve doesn't have to tell me which "he" the man is referring to, it's written clear across my face just who's waiting behind those closed doors. I shake my head before launching into an explanation.

"He's taking it really hard, I tried to talk to him but he just blows me off. He stopped eating, hasn't drank anything besides alcohol since we got back, he's not sleeping..." I run a hand through my thick red curls in exasperation. "Clint's killing himself and I don't know what to do, there's nothing I can do. He just doesn't care anymore." Sam moves to stand next to me, careful not to make any physical contact in fear that I'll slug him again. I should probably apologize for that later, but it can wait. Rogers closes his eyes for a moment, taking a deep breath. When he reopens them, there's clear evidence of the guilt that's eating away at him in them. I shake my head and immediately start to speak.

"Don't you dare blame yourself for this. This isn't your fault, none of this is your fault." Steve meets my eyes and frowns.

"How is this not my fault? The only reason they were in that position in the first place is because they were protecting me! Everything that happens now is just an after effect of that." I'm about to respond, when the infirmary doors open and a S.H.I.E.L.D doctor walks out. The man is in his early thirties with dark hair and an athletic build, he almost reminds me of the man lying in the hospital behind him. He immediately spots our trio in the waiting room and walks briskly towards. The man spares no time on formalities, instead going for the direct approach.

"Clint Barton is awake."

My muscles twitch as I stand stock-still next to my partner's bed, desperately trying not to strangle the man in front of me. Said man hasn't even glanced at me since I'd walked through his door, he settles his gaze on just about anything that isn't me. Rage boils beneath my skin as I stare down at my friend in his hospital bed, the hospital bed that he has no business being in. The bed that he WOULDN'T be in if he wasn't such an idiot. Finally I can't handle the silence any longer.

"Barton, look at me." My voice reverberates through the small room as a low growl, an almost animalistic sound. Much to my dismay, Clint continues to stare at the wall that has suddenly caught his attention. The action only heightens my already frayed nerves and I snap.

"Barton, LOOK...AT...ME, or I swear to god I'll throw you out that window." Venom drips from my voice as the archer slowly turns to face me, whether out of fear or respect I don't know. Nevertheless I launch into my tirade.

"What the HELL were you thinking?! Letting yourself just waste away until you're nothing but skin and bones, until you're dead? What is this going to accomplish other than getting you killed? Huh?" I motion towards his malnourished body with I frown. "I told you after we rescued you we'd find a way out of this but this, killing yourself, is NOT what meant. For as long as I've known you you've always told me to keep fighting, that when you're going through Hell to keep going, and now you're just going to throw in the towel? After everything that we've been through you're just gonna roll over and let yourself die?" He doesn't respond and I throw my hands up in exasperation.

"So that's it, you're just gonna give up? You've lived through explosions, gunshots, Hell even the god of Mischief himself, and you're just gonna let some jackass General take your life away? You're gonna let one man ruin your life?!" Clint immediately lashes out.

"It's not just my life! It's Lila's and Cooper's and Nathaniel's and Laura's! What that son of a bitch did doesn't just effect my life, it turns theirs upside down. They're going to spend the rest of their lives being ridiculed and cast out because their dad, and husband, is a damn fugitive! They have to live with that now, and it's because of me. I decided to join in on this stupid war and now I never get to see them again!"

"Well maybe that's not such a bad thing!" The sentence leaves my mouth before I can stop myself and I watch as hurt flashes across my friend's face, but I've already gotten this far so I can't stop now. "Those kids look up to you, they see you as this perfect, larger than life figure but that's not you! Not anymore. You haven't been that man for a long time now. The Clint I knew would never just accept defeat, he wouldn't just give up when things got bad. He would keep fighting tooth and nail until he completed the mission, he would always find another way." I take a step towards him, the anger inside me building.

"The Hawkeye that I knew always did what was right, he'd sacrifice everything for the greater good, he fought for what he believed in. That man could carry the weight of the world on his shoulders and still stand tall, he could face monsters and psychopaths and just about everything that's evil in this world and not even flinch. And he'd do it with that stupid grin on his face and you wanna know why? Because he was an Avenger, he was a hero and that's what heroes do. They stand up to the bad guys and protect the innocent, even if that meant losing theirs because it's the right thing to do!"

"You're upset about losing your family, I understand that, but that doesn't mean you can turn your back on everyone else who cares about you! These people," I say motion outside the doors."This team, cares about you! And they care whether you live or die, even if you don't. Damn it Clint, they're your family! That group of dysfunctional demigods, super soldiers, scientists...they're your family! And the Clint Barton I knew, the Clint Barton that his kids look up too, would NEVER turn his back on his family." The man in front of me stares at me, stunned into silence. Finally he regains his composure.

"Nat I..." The words catch in his throat, causing him to pause. "I never meant for this to happen, I never thought that.." I cut him off.

"Never thought that we would care? Never thought that this would effect the rest of us?" I run a hand through my hair. "That's the problem, Clint, you didn't think! You got caught up in feeling sorry for yourself and forgot that there are other people in your life!" I plop down into the chair next to his bed, exhausted from the events of the past month, and sigh. We sit in silence for a few minutes, neither one of us daring to break the fragile bond that's preventing another explosion. Eventually though, my partner speaks.

"I'm sorry." I scoff and glance over at him, not saying a word. He sighs before continuing. "It's just that Laura and the kids mean everything to me, having them taken away...it broke me. I just thought that things would be easier if I wasn't around anymore, that the pain would disappear. I never imagined that it would have this many repercussions, I never thought about what this would do to everyone, what it would do to you. It's just..." He lets out another sigh. "I'm sorry, Nat." I exhale slowly before turning to him.

"I know..." I pause, glancing at my friend, and release a slow breath. "Just make me a promise." He nods. "Promise me that, no matter what happens from now on, you'll never give up. That you'll never let yourself get caught up in what happened and forget that you're worth saving." For a minute he stays quiet, his jaw working tirelessly to utter the words. Finally he turns to me.

"I'll try." Those two words release every bit of anxiety and anger that's been building in me since Clint's arrest. It's as if that one sentence can solve everything, can bring everything back to normal.

I'll try. Two simple words have just changed everything, they mark the beginning. The beginning of healing, of normalcy, of the rebuilding of the relationship that was torn apart after the war. I'll try, it's not perfect but it's a start. That's all I can ask for. We once again lapse into silence, only this time it's comfortable. It's not filled with the tension that's been eating away at us for weeks, instead there's a calm that settles over the two of us. A calm that I haven't experienced in years, and it finally looks like things are going to be alright.

TWO MONTHS LATER

The atmosphere around the Avengers headquarters has changed, there's a certain feeling that's been hanging in the air ever since I talked with Clint. It's like everything completely turned around after that; Scott's almost one hundred percent thanks to some physical therapy, as is Sam. Wanda's finally left her room, she spends most of her time in the lobby with the team even if she still doesn't speak much. Clint has thankfully kept his promise and is now back on the healthy side, but he's still not quiet in top shape, not that I'm complaining. I'll take what I can get. Steve comes to visit more often now and little by little I've watched the haunted look leave his eyes, his spirit slowly returning. Of course no one's heard from Stark, not that we want to after what happened.

For the first time in months, things are starting to get to normal. We still can't be out in public for long, but hopefully that will change with time, and after some clever hacking with the help of Clint's friend Daisy we were able to release a few statements describing what happened. Let's just say General Ross wasn't too happy about those, they actually managed to get some of the public back on our side.

As for the Avengers, we've got a long hard road ahead of us. But that's the thing about us, we always seem to beat whatever stands against us, so I'm optimistic. We've overcome a lot in the last few months and we're finally starting to feel like a team again. Who knows, maybe we'll even be back in action soon. All I know is that we're on the mend, and that's all I can ask.

THE END

Well that's it for chapter Eleven, and Broken but not Defeated for that matter. I'm sad to see this story end but all good things must come to an end so... I also just want to thank everyone who's stuck through this story to the end, I appreciate you guys so much! I hope you enjoyed the story! As always reviews are welcome and appreciated. Bye guys!