Trick or treat :D

The pumpkin patch was Darcy’s idea. Good publicity, she’d called it. Pepper, upon filling out the insurance forms later, had had a different name: acquisition of new property. But the blast from the attacking alien ship hadn’t fried all of the pumpkins (though some were a little blackened and the texture forever altered), so Natasha and Clint took off from the SHIELD infirmary with only twelve new bandages and two slightly lopsided, slightly charred pumpkins.

“I thought Fury banned jack-o-lanterns after that incident with R&D,” Clint said as he tried to balance the two pumpkins and make it up the steps to their brownstone. “I seem to recall a memo.”

Natasha used her good arm to disengage the locks and the booby traps (which weren’t effective anyway, as the person they usually caught was Clint when he stumbled in drunk after nights at the bar with Sam and the guys). “That was the old SHIELD.”

“And the new SHIELD is a-okay with la Romanoff carving out her scariest scenes on the face of this poor, defenseless pumpkin?”

Natasha turned to raise her eyebrow at him, just waiting.

“Your mind is a terrifying place, is all I’m saying,” Clint said. He set the pumpkins down just inside the door and turned to greet Lucky. “Think of the children, Natasha.”

“I have planned ahead, you idjit.” Natasha disappeared into the front closet, emerging a moment later with a glossy, brightly colored book, which she presented without any fanfare whatsoever to Clint.

He took it, scratching the back of his head. “You…bought a Disney coloring book?”

“Children like cartoons,” Natasha said. “Instead of trying to scare them—”

“With decapitation scenes, lest we forget last year’s screams of horror,” Clint said.

“—I figured this year we should go more kid-friendly. There is a fox that is also an archer, and you can follow the pattern set on page twenty.”

Clint pointed at her, accusingly. “You researched this.”

“Of course I did.”

“Did you also plan the alien attack on the pumpkin field?”

“Sadly I lacked the foresight.”

“Which one are you going to do?” Clint paged through the book. Some of the characters he recognized, vaguely, but like Natasha, he hadn’t had much of a childhood. And why wasn’t the fox archer wearing pants?

“I have ideas.” And with that said, she walked away to strip out of the charred jacket that the aliens had crisped a little during the attack. Clint sighed and hauled the pumpkins to the table to get started. No time like the present, though he remained curious about Natasha’s project (she wouldn’t let him peek) the entire time they carved their masterpieces.

Several hours later, he peered at the pumpkin presented to him. It was a woman, he could gather that much, but she wore old Chinese armor and had a little dragon next to her. He was completely baffled. “I thought we were picking Disney characters,” he said.

“She’s Mulan, you dolt.” But Natasha’s voice was affectionate.

“Why her?”

“I don’t know, I guess she reminds me of someone.” And she set the jack-o-lantern, with its candle, on the front porch.

Two days later, Melinda May came over to dinner and kept giving Natasha narrow-eyed looks the entire time. Clint had no idea why.

Aww yiss! Thanks so much, what an awesome treat! Band-aids, pumpkins, Disney's Robin Hood - perfect :D *showers you in candy*

Why doesn't he wear pants???? :) very welcome!

The better to show his ... tail!

<3

I'm grinning from ear to ear!

*takes a bow*

This is is awesome, I love it!

Why, thank you!

Hahaha! Beautiful! :D

I love that icon. :)

There is a fox that is also an archer, and you can follow the pattern set on page twenty.”

Clint pointed at her, accusingly. “You researched this.”

“Of course I did.”

Haha! She knows the page number offhand, even after an alien battle. Love it.

And the fox archer took me a second, but it's such a great detail that neither of them is familiar with all the Disney movies. Spot on.

Natasha would totally be a research nerd about things that she needs, but I can't really see too much justification of her needing to know about Disney movies. ;) Thank you!