Title: Bored Games
Author: tempered_rose
A Gift For: chrisfaithalin
Rating: PG
Warnings: team fluff?
Words: 1,834
Characters: Natasha/Clint; mentions other Avengers, Coulson, Fury
Summary: Clint & Natasha have to adapt to living with several of the Avengers in the Tower; but what happens when Tony says something he shouldn’t have?
Author’s Notes: written for the Secret Santa. I hope you like it; I had a hard time choosing between the prompts you gave me because they were all wonderful! I hope you enjoy it, and Happy Holidays <3 :D


Banner by frea_o



Once she saw the newly designed modern-architecture building, Natasha knew exactly where she would find Clint. When she made her way up as far as the elevators would allow, and the stairs the rest, she assumed correct. At the very top of the building, just below the steeple on the new building, Clint perched himself and looked across the city.

The cold air whipped past her face as she watched him. She let herself lean against the building, as far from the edge as she could get. She did not have a fear of heights per se, she just would not be interesting in a moment of dizziness that would lead her to take a sudden swan dive from the concrete.

Hawkeye, for that was the persona mode he was in, felt her presence but did not react immediately. Natasha was patient enough to await his return to Clint, the only man she would ever consider a friend.

It seemed to take hours, and it probably did, before Natasha saw the man Hawkeye blink and return to himself as the charming, albeit reserved, man known as Clint Barton. He turned and gave her a lopsided smile that only was a small amount of sheepish.

“Hey, Nat. What are you doing up here?” He asked and moved closer to her carefully; he was definitely not stupid enough to make sudden movements around her.

“Waiting for you.” She replied plainly and shifted off the wall and stepped back to the door that led to the inner stairwell. “Do you mind?”

Clint shook his head and followed her back inside, sealing the door behind themselves. The wind could still be heard, an eerie whistle just outside the door, but he did not mind. Little things like that didn’t bother him, no matter how creepy the sound was.

“Did you need something?” He asked, watching her. “Do we have an assignment?”

Natasha heard the slight edge of eagerness in his tone. She would hate to disappoint him, but they were all still on leave after the battle in New York. ‘Bonding Time’, Fury had called it.

“Yes, actually we do.” Natasha replied and started down the stairs. She didn’t wait for Clint to follow; he was already behind her once she had confirmed his hope of something for them to do.

“What is it?” He asked when she did not provide more than an affirmative. “Where are we going?”

Natasha remained silent until she had reached the last set of stairs just before the main building of Stark—now, Avengers—Tower. She turned to face Clint and answered his questions.

“To the lounge, Stark insists we participate in what he calls,” she hesitated to remember the term before her expression cleared, “bored games.”

With that, she opened the door to the elevator and waited for Clint to recover from his disappointment enough to proceed inside the steel box. “Has Cap gotten over his fear of these things?”

“I think so,” Natasha said as she pushed a button. “Doesn’t consider them ‘death boxes’ anymore since Bruce explained the mechanics of them.” She shrugged and waited for the doors to open again.

Clint followed her out and looked at the lounge to see if anything else had been added in his absence.

It was comfort living at its finest; plush furniture with equally comfortable cushions made up the seating arrangement that was focused on a very high-definition flat-screen made up an entire section of wall in floor-to-ceiling graphics. Thor had been very impressed by the quality while Cap had been stunned a feat was possible. There was a mini-bar fully stocked with every kind of liquor imaginable; a small kitchenette hosted a microwave, fridge, and cook top for those nights when Tony wanted fondue and Bruce wanted popcorn. There was a pretzel maker machine that Clint had decidedly chosen as his favorite, especially with the gourmet mustard that Tony had somehow gotten delivered. New to the room was the addition of a pool table, air-hockey set-up, and a foosball table.

Clint raised his eyebrow. The entire room was a home-theater with bar-style comforts.

As he looked around the room now, the coffee table had been cleared of the few magazines it had had on it apart from one (strangely enough, the one with a large photograph of Tony on the front had remained). A game board had been set up as well as several different colored pieces place in different sections of the board.

Upon hearing the elevator, Tony looked up. “Ah, there the lovebirds are. We can get started now.”

Steve looked over and smiled warmly at both of them while stepping away from the fridge. Natasha nodded her greeting and then made her way over to a chair, placed herself gently in it and awaited the beginning of these ‘bored games’. Clint looked over when he heard the flush from the bathroom on the hallway and a moment later Bruce came out, lowered his eyes at the attention, and then moved over to join Natasha.

Tony urged Clint and Steve forward and seated himself.

“I’m Mr. Green. I always have been, and always will be.” Tony declared and moved to sit in the place nearest the green piece on the game board.

“Professor Plum for me.” Bruce said meekly.

“It’s obvious who Miss Scarlet should be,” Tony smirked at Natasha and then looked at Steve and Clint. “So you get to fight out between you the other two.”

Clint looked at the board and then at Steve; they both shrugged at one another.

“I like blue.” Steve said and that’s all Clint needed to hear.

“Then I’ll be Colonel Mustard and you can be Miss Peacock.” Clint grinned a little and moved over to sit near Natasha. Steve frowned a little at having chosen the girl piece but then shrugged, ignoring the jab that Tony had uttered.

Once a combination of Tony and Bruce had explained the rules to those that hadn’t played Clue before, they sat down and began playing the game. It was a quiet afternoon for the most part, spent joking and relaxing.

Natasha was the only one that really noticed Clint wasn’t teasing or laughing as much as he normally would have been. She made a note to ask him about it later, not having wanted to interrupt the flow of banter between Tony and the others.

“I’ve got it!” Tony said and looked up. “Colonel Mustard, in the conservatory with the rope!” Natasha checked the packet in the middle of the board and nodded agreement. Tony grinned in triumph and then looked at Clint with a faux scowl on his face. “Why did you do it, kid? What did ol’ Mr. Boddy do to you? Was he the one that made you join the circus?” Tony grinned in teasing, but he had pushed a button.

Clint rose with tense shoulders and his eyes flashed. “You know nothing about it, Stark.”

Not saying anything further, Clint walked out to the stairs, not bothering waiting on the elevator and let the door slam behind him. Natasha shook her head and rose gracefully, ignoring the sudden interest of Tony’s eyes on her person. She silently made her way to the stairs and followed Clint up them to return to the roof.

Once she arrived back outside, she couldn’t help the shiver that came. It was much colder now and much darker. The sun was setting, casting half of the building in a dim grayish-blue glow while the other was struck a brilliant bleeding orange. Natasha saw him leaning against the butt of the tower-spire. He could go further up if he climbed it, but that would be overly dangerous and Natasha would hate to have to follow him up there.

“Clint?” She asked softly and moved a step closer. He wasn’t crying or showing any sign or display of emotion. He was completely silent as he stared at the sunset, not giving any indication he had heard her at all.

“Clint?” She tried again and stopped at the base of the spire, several feet away from him. “You know he talks nonsense at times.”

“That doesn’t excuse him for being a dick.” Clint replied sharply.

Natasha held back the sigh she wanted to give and continued in the same soft voice. “He can’t know what offends people if he isn’t made aware of their circumstances.”

Clint remained silent, agreeing to her point but he didn’t bother to say so. He finally sighed and turned to face her, his eyes showing the depth of the memory in which he had found himself. Natasha moved closer then, resting one hand on his shoulder and the other on his arm. Her eyes and touch were both equally soft and she spoke kindly to him.

“Clint, I know how it feels. You know more than any other. Tony didn’t mean to be coarse, he just doesn’t think sometimes.” She squeezed his shoulder and his arm and leaned closer to brush a kiss against Clint’s cheek. “I know you don’t like being in their company all the time, but we were enjoying it until that point, right?”

She waited his answer, both pairs of eyes never leaving one another’s. They communicated silently until Clint finally eased his tense shoulders and pulled her against his body for a hug. Natasha went willingly enough and held him against her body. Gently, she rubbed his back until he was completely at ease once more and she smiled a little.

“Living with them isn’t so bad, I suppose.” Clint finally said. “As long as you are nearby.”

Natasha smiled and kissed Clint’s cheek again. “Always. We’re partners; I would never leave you behind.”

Clint smiled and squeezed her while pulling her back against his body. “You can stay right here, all night if you like.”

The suggestiveness of his tone caused Natasha to roll her eyes.

“You are just as bad as Tony in that regard!”

Clint grinned. “But I’m the only one who can do anything about it.”

Smirking, Clint leaned forward and closed the distance between his and Natasha’s mouths.

Clint smiled once the kiss ended and he let his fingers wander through the red curls that were flying around her face. Suddenly he frowned.

“We should get you down from here. You don’t like heights.” He moved from the base of the spire, holding Natasha against him. She did not willingly go, at first, and Clint looked back at her in confusion.

“Clint, I’m not that scared of them.”

“Just the same,” Clint offered her his hand and led her back to the stairwell door. “I’d never let anything happen to you, especially not something I could prevent.”

Natasha rolled her eyes at his protectiveness but let him fuss for now. She would make him pay for his lacking faith in the training room later. But for now, she acquiesced, content that everything would soon be all right in the Avenger’s Tower.