| Welcome to X-Men: Dark Horizons. We hope you enjoy your visit. You're currently viewing our forum as a guest. This means you are limited to certain areas of the board and there are some features you can't use. If you join our community, you'll be able to access member-only sections, and use many member-only features such as customizing your profile, sending personal messages, and voting in polls. Registration is simple, fast, and completely free. Join our community! If you're already a member please log in to your account to access all of our features: |
| What the Future Will Bring (Ready Or Not); 05/24-early afternoon- (Bobbi, Clint) | |
|---|---|
| Tweet Topic Started: Sep 21 2014, 05:53 PM (835 Views) | |
| Hawkeye | Jan 9 2015, 10:05 PM Post #46 |
|
I retire for what, like, five minutes and it all goes to shit.
![]()
|
So far Clint’s attempts to reassure Bobbi seemed to be having the opposite effect on her. There was no question in his mind of how good a mom she’d be, but she really was worried about following in her mother’s footsteps. Calling their relationship complicated was an understatement, but he didn’t remember any of this coming out yesterday. How could he have missed this? Bobbi was not her mom. He could tell her that much. Having a baby wasn’t going to turn her into that woman, either. She didn’t say anything to that, but her throat constricted as she swallowed heavily, a sure sign that she was still troubled. There had to be something he could say to put her mind at ease. She wanted to do better. That alone should tell her how hard she was willing to work to make it happen. That was what she did. It was just a matter of working that out and then start doing it. Something that almost counted as a smile flitted across Bobbi’s face, but it was a tense expression. Not the kind that said she was reassured. God, she wasn’t having second thoughts about doing this, was she? Maybe a little humor would help. Not that he felt all that much like laughing as he mused on the odds of them ever being able to rely on her mom for emergency babysitting. He had to say something, though, just to break the tension. And now she was staring at him like he’d lost his mind. Which was different, he guessed. "I let her think I was dead, then I let her find out I wasn't by becoming a wanted terrorist," she said, giving her head a firm shake, still eying him directly. "I don't think even showing up on her doorstep with a baby can fix that, Babe." Clint’s brows drew down and he gave her a semi apologetic expression. He remembered them talking about that shortly after they ended up on the national Most Wanted list. Just like he remembered her admitting that she hadn’t been entirely honest when she’d told him her mother was dead. There was a lotta untrue stories about being dead there. Clint hadn’t pried too deeply, though. It never seemed like something his wife wanted to talk all that much about. The hand she had on his shoulder tightened, digging her fingers slightly into the fabric of the stealth suit Clint was still wearing. She frowned and exhaled a long breath, full of frustration. "You're wrong, though," she said, looking back at Clint and shaking her head again. "I am my mom and I know it. I'm just like her, always have been. Right now that scares the hell out of me, Clint. I don't want that kind of relationship with our kids." Clint reached down with both arms and circled them around her, giving her a little squeeze. This had to be so hard for her, and even though she seemed annoyed at Clint for what he’d said, he was betting most of it was directed at herself. ‘Scared’ wasn’t a word that applied to Bobbi, and somehow it kept coming up. And she wasn’t alone. There was so much about this that terrified him. Things he hadn’t even considered when they’d worked through his anxieties yesterday. There was at least one that her words had banished, however. Kids. She’d said kids. Which meant she wasn’t getting cold feet. In spite of all her panic and all her worry, she was already thinking about more than the one they were having. Unless there was something she wasn’t telling him yet, but could they even know that this early? “I know, Babe,” he told her in a quiet voice. He rocked back and forth slightly, almost unconsciously, his arms still wrapped around Bobbi and carrying her along with the motion. “You can’t be sure any of our kids will be you, though,” he pointed out. Something like that had to go both ways. Even if he had said he was hoping for a bunch of little Bobbis. He still did. Was that why she’d accused him of not wanting boys? He tilted his head down, bringing it closer to Bobbi’s. Nearly close enough to brush his forehead against her. “How would you like things to be different with our kids?” he asked. “What kind of relationship do you want with them?” There were no guarantees. He knew that, but it might help if she put it into words. |
![]() |
|
| Mockingbird | Jan 15 2015, 12:57 AM Post #47 |
|
This isn't a catfight. It's me kicking your ass.
![]()
|
If it was emergency babysitting Clint was thinking of, he probably shouldn't count on her mom for that. Not after she let her and Ben think she was dead for years. Killed in action with SHIELD. It'd been her idea of trying to keep them outta the line of fire when what she did spilled over to the other parts of her life. They wouldn't see it that way, though. God knew they wouldn't ever be able to see she'd just been trying to protect them both, and Bobbi was pretty sure showing up on her mom's doorstep with a baby wouldn't magically change that. Not for Susan Morse, not for her brother, Ben. Not when the way they'd probably found out she was alive was when she'd hit her former employer's Most Wanted Terrorist list. Yeah, he was trying to lighten things up, but she was having a hard time being 'light' right now. It was like a damned roller coaster, all of a sudden. Feeling almost fine one minute, then taking a sudden plunge that left her stomach somewhere up in her throat the next and not a damned thing she could seem to do about it but hold on, white knuckled, until the ride finally came to a damned stop. Clint was halfway frowning at her now, and looking something close to apologetic. He knew the meat of the story, if not all the details. They hadn't seemed important, back then. It'd never been something she felt like talking about, even with Hawk. Now, though... Goddammit, now they felt important, because the relationship she'd had with her mom wasn't the one she wanted with their kids. Hers and Clint's, and she knew damned well he was wrong about that one thing. Fingers curling into the fabric of his stealth suit as she looked him in the face and admitted that. She was her mother and she knew it. They were just alike, her mom and her. Always had been and now? Now that just scared the hell out of her. Because she wanted this. Them, their kids, the whole damned package that she'd never given much thought to these last five years. Until that damned off hand comment in Utah. Maybe she'd wanted a little more warning than this, but she still wanted it and she didn't want to screw it up and, Jesus. If she couldn't even deal with this and keep herself together, how the hell was she going to manage the rest? Facing down a whole damned troop of Sentinels on her own scared her a hell of a lot less. Then Hawk just wrapped those two strong, solid arms around her, tightening his hold a little. It left her caught somewhere between annoyed as hell for needing that and wanting to hang onto him until all this somehow sorted itself out. Since she didn't know where to start and she was more annoyed with that, and with herself, than anything else. Helpless. That's what this felt like and, god, she hated that more than anything. Always had, always would. She wasn't made for helpless and damned if she knew what to do with it. “I know, Babe,” he told her in a quiet voice and...what was he doing? Was he actually rocking her? Oh god, was she so far damned gone that he thought she needed rocking like a little kid? “You can’t be sure any of our kids will be you, though,” he pointed out and what was that supposed to mean? Would that be so damned bad, them being at least a little like her? Or was he trying to say he really didn't think she could do this if they were? "What's wrong with them being like me?" she asked, frowning again and halfway to annoyed before she realized it. Bobbi was still trying to work that out, and decide whether she actually wanted to be annoyed, when Clint lowered his head til it was nearly touching hers. “How would you like things to be different with our kids?” he asked. “What kind of relationship do you want with them?” Forehead creasing a little more, Bobbi blinked and blurted out, "How the hell am I supposed to know, Clint?" as the first thing that popped into her head, letting some've the frustration and worry and...god, all the other shit she couldn't figure out but that she was still feeling pour itself into the words a little. "I just know I want it to be...better, she added in continued frustration. With herself, the situation, with not being able to figure out her own crap right now. "It doesn't have to be perfect, I don't expect a damned storybook, but god. I just don't want our kids to have to have this damned conversation with somebody one day because..." Because, what? Because they'd done the best they could, and it hadn't been enough? Because their parents didn't know what the hell they were doing? "Because I can't figure out how to be what I should be for them," Barbara Morse Barton settled on, fingers curling into a fist around the fabric of her husband's stealth suit. "God, I hate this," she added, practically gritting her teeth in frustration. She needed something to hit. Too bad they'd already took Karla down to the brig. |
![]() |
|
| Hawkeye | Jan 15 2015, 09:01 PM Post #48 |
|
I retire for what, like, five minutes and it all goes to shit.
![]()
|
Swing and a miss. Twice over, in fact. Clint meant well, but that wasn’t going to get him far when talking to the resident expert on All Things Bobbi’s Mom. Seeing Bobbi like this had him at a loss for how to reassure her, or hell, just not make things worse. He couldn’t remember the last time she’d been this anxious, this scared, this outright helpless about anything. It just wasn’t her, and considering how frustrated she sounded, nobody knew that better than she did. That could only be making things worse. Floundering for something that might help, Clint tried pointing out that even though she might be just like her mom, that didn’t necessarily mean their kids would be just like her. Maybe their relationship had come from them just being too similar to each other. These kinds of things worked both ways, didn’t they? One look at the frown on Bobbi’s face and Clint knew he’d hit strike three. What now? "What's wrong with them being like me?" What the heck? First she gets upset when he says he wants a bunch of little Bobbi’s, now she’s annoyed at him for saying they won’t be? There was just no winning that one. “Nothing,” Clint said hastily. “Absolutely nothing.” That probably wouldn’t be enough to satisfy her, so he moved down a different track. Instead of focusing on what she didn’t want, what did she want with their kids? What would she like her relationship with them to be? Her forehead creased, lines growing slightly deeper, and she blinked at him like he’d asked her to backflip out of her entire stealth suit from where she was sitting. "How the hell am I supposed to know, Clint?" she blurted, the sounds of frustration growing. "I just know I want it to be...better," she continued helplessly. "It doesn't have to be perfect, I don't expect a damned storybook, but god. I just don't want our kids to have to have this damned conversation with somebody one day because..." Clint waited, growing still. God, had he been rocking her? When had that started? Perfect. No, he understood that. Wouldn’t have expected for a moment that Bobbi had some unrealistic fantasy ideal in mind. "Because I can't figure out how to be what I should be for them," she finally said, completing her through by clutching his suit into a fist. "God, I hate this," “I know, Birdie,” Clint said gently. “How about we talk about something else?” He suggested, briefly skirting his eyes around the room as if a new subject would magically present itself. “Or do something else.” It didn’t matter which. “Like you said, we have nine whole months to figure that out.” And there was no point obsessing over this one thing if it was only going to turn Bobbi in circles. There was only so much of that even she could take and god only knows what she’d do if he pushed her over the line. |
![]() |
|
| Mockingbird | Jan 17 2015, 10:42 PM Post #49 |
|
This isn't a catfight. It's me kicking your ass.
![]()
|
What? What was wrong with their kids being like her? What was Clint trying to say, exactly? That maybe she was right? That maybe all this 'you'll be the greatest mom ever' was what it was starting to sound like? Something he was saying to convince himself as much as her, because he didn't really believe that either? Was that it? He kept saying it and, even if she didn't have a damned clue what else she wanted or needed him to say, it was starting to make her wonder. Who was he trying to convince? “Nothing,” Clint said hastily. Maybe too hastily. Or maybe that was her imagination, projecting all the mess in her head somewhere else. Onto him, when she knew Hawk didn't deserve that. Damned if she could tell anymore. “Absolutely nothing.” He sounded confused as hell. She felt exactly that way. Confused and annoyed and scared. Frustrated at not being able to sort her own thoughts out into words. Not even to tell him what she did want, or need. Not right now, or for their kids. How the hell was she supposed to know? All she knew was she wanted...different. Better. Somehow, some way. Not for it to be perfect. Not the storybook ending, she'd never believed in those to begin with. Too damned practical. Or too damned realistic. But then she'd never believed in a man that could sweep her off her feet the way Clint had, either, had she? That she'd be sitting here with, having kids with. That'd make her even think about this and worry about this and want... To do better for their kids than their parents had done for them, so they wouldn't have to have a conversation like this one day. Worry about making the same mistakes because they didn't know any better, or how to do it the way it should be. God, she hated this. Feeling like this, not being able to reason it out in her head like anything should be able to be reasoned out. Confusing herself to the point she barely knew what she was even talking about anymore, so how the hell could she expect him to know? Maybe it was still just the nerves talking, Bobbi didn't know, but wished to god there was something she could take it out on besides her husband. Something she could hit until things made sense again. Too bad Karla was already in the brig, waiting to be shipped out to where ever she'd end up. Somewhere in there, Clint had stopped rocking, going still instead. She didn't know if that was good or bad and didn't think she could figure that out either right now. “I know, Birdie,” Clint said gently and that irritated her, too, despite knowing it shouldn't. Handling her with kid gloves. She hated that, too. “How about we talk about something else?” He suggested, briefly skirting his eyes around the room like a new subject might pop up for him to latch onto. “Or do something else.” It didn’t matter which. “Like you said, we have nine whole months to figure that out.” Suddenly, that didn't seem like nearly long enough, but Bobbi swallowed down the words that were on the tip of her tongue. The ones that'd point that out. Instead, she managed to pry her fingers out of the death grip she had on her husband's stealth suit (when the hell had she done that?), reaching up to push her hair back off her face again instead. "Yeah," she agreed, expression halfway to a frown. "Yeah," Bobbi said again, looking back up to Clint's blue eyes. "I think I'm just running myself in circles." Half admission, half apology, maybe, as she tried to think of something else to focus on. Anything else right now. "Tell me about Fort Knox or something, Babe?" she settled on. That seemed safe enough. Something she could focus on to get her head back in order, maybe. "What was it like, taking that place on?" One've the most secure places on earth. She'd have loved to have had a crack at that, too. See if she could help outsmart it, but she'd never doubted for a second that Clint and Jess and Remy and the others wouldn't do what they went there to do, and she'd been right. |
![]() |
|
| Hawkeye | Jan 20 2015, 01:34 AM Post #50 |
|
I retire for what, like, five minutes and it all goes to shit.
![]()
|
Well that sure hadn't worked, either. Bobbi could come up with all kinds of reasons Clint was wrong, she could talk all about what she was afraid would happen, but she couldn't seem to put what she did want into words. It was just making her more frustrated. She looked ready to smack something, and Clint wasn't completely sure she'd wait until there was something other than him around to hit. How much worse would he make things if he kept trying to push her? He was afraid to find out, so he backed off. She wouldn't like that either. Being treated like she was suddenly made of glass. If she raked him over the coals for that, he probably had it coming. And it would be something else for her to focus on. Something different sounded like a good idea, actually. Just until things settled down some. Until then, he'd just be confident enough for both of them in how great a mom she was going to be. That wouldn't be a problem. He had plenty of confidence already, and it was only going to grow over the next nine months, the eighteen years after, and beyond. If she thought she could say anything to make him believe otherwise, whether it had to do with her mom or anything else, she couldn't be more wrong. Bobbi didn't say anything, just swallowed and unclenched her fist where she'd been clutching at Clint's stealth suit. Her hair had fallen down in front of her face again, and Clint unlatched his arms from around her, meaning to brush some of it away, but she beat him to it. "Yeah," she said eventually, not really sounding like her heart was into it. Not looking it, either. "Yeah," she looked up, meeting Clint's eyes. "I think I'm just running myself in circles." Clint moved a hand to her back and slowly stroked it. "Don't worry about it," he said in a gentle, but solid voice. Certain rather than placating. She was running herself in circles, but so was he. It was just that kind of day, and that kind of news. "Tell me about Fort Knox or something, Babe?" she said after a moment's consideration. "What was it like, taking that place on?" Yeah, that could work. Something he'd been itching to tell her about anyway, before it was overshadowed by much bigger, more important things. Clint let out a little breath, almost a chuckle, corners of his lips rising just a little. "I wish you could have been there," he said, before that caught up with him and he stopped a little short. "Ah, well," he continued with a flush and an apologetic look, "Except- you know." Because no. So much no. If anything had gone the slightest bit wrong with that mission... Just knowing that, even with how things had gone, Clint would have probably been a basket case soon after finding out Bobbi had a baby inside her. God, even the thought of going to Limbo gave him the shivers. Magik said she had control of the demons, but they went after babies, didn't they? Probably didn't care if the babies weren't born yet. But they were trying not to think about those kinds of things, weren't they? So moving on. "John and the rest of the crowd burning the midnight oil after the party picked out a great team, though. Couldn't have done it if any one of them hadn't been there." Clint's nose crinkled a bit, then. "Magik sort of forgot to mention she doesn't know how to drive stick, so there was a bit of confusion when she and Jess went to steal a jeep, but we worked through it." |
![]() |
|
| Mockingbird | Jan 20 2015, 08:55 PM Post #51 |
|
This isn't a catfight. It's me kicking your ass.
![]()
|
Running herself around in circles in her her own head. Her and Hawk both in what ended up coming outta her mouth. When was the last time she'd felt like this? Frustrated, confused, scared - a million and one things at once. The answer to that made Bobbi shy away from it when it popped into her head. Not anything like that time. Not even close and she wasn't gonna let herself associate the way that'd felt, all the shame and confusion and anger, with this. Not in a million years. This was something she wanted. This baby that was hers and Clint's. Nothing to do with that belonged anywhere near it and it just drove home exactly how out of hand she was letting this all get. Still shook up over Colorado, more than she'd maybe ever been shook up by anything else. At least pretty damned close. Yeah, not just about her anymore. That was definitely starting to sink in in a big way. Maybe it needed time to do that, without her thinking it all over and over to death. Coming up with all the things she wasn't sure she'd have any idea how to do. Something else to talk about. Right now, that sounded good. Something to focus on besides winding them both up tighter and tighter. So Mockingbird reached up, brushed the hair back out of her face. Concentrated on the feel of Clint's hand moving over her back. Better. That was better. Running them both around in circles wasn't gonna do anyone any good, she knew that. Pry her fingers off Clint's stealth suit when she hadn't even realized she had that kind of death grip on it to start with. Just went to prove how far she'd gotten mired up in it all. "Don't worry about it," Hawk told her, still sounding too gentle, like he might be afraid she'd explode all over him, even if the words were steady. Hell, she couldn't blame him. Bobbi wasn't sure herself that she wouldn't. God she hated that, though. Feeling like she was being handled with kid gloves. That was something she pushed aside, too, or at least tried to. Something else to concentrate on. Fort Knox, maybe. One've the most secure places on earth. Where they'd been keeping Cap. They'd went there and taken that on today. Defeated it, got Steve out, and got back out of it again. What had that been like? God, she really wished she could've been on that one, too. Just for the challenge. Probably good that she hadn't been, though, all things considered. A breath from Hawk. Something close to a laugh. He'd have been proud of that mission, wouldn't he? And she'd just dumped this all over him instead. Yeah, there it was. Something that was almost a smile tugging at his lips. "I wish you could have been there," he said, then stopped short on that. "Ah, well," he continued with a flush and an apologetic look, "Except- you know." Bobbi couldn't keep from rolling her eyes a little, even if she'd been thinking the same thing a few seconds ago, apologetic look or no. "I know," she told him a little wryly. Couldn't help that, either, but there wasn't any real ire there that she could muster. There was something going through his head. Bobbi had could tell. Call it a side effect of being married for going on a decade now. Whatever it was, he kept it to himself, though. "John and the rest of the crowd burning the midnight oil after the party picked out a great team, though. Couldn't have done it if any one of them hadn't been there." John Wraith might be the overly paranoid, play it all close to the vest type, but he knew his stuff. She couldn't imagine that the input of a professional thief, a former terrorist, and a crazy scientist or two, along with whoever else, couldn't have helped get the job done. "Magik sort of forgot to mention she doesn't know how to drive stick, so there was a bit of confusion when she and Jess went to steal a jeep, but we worked through it." Brows going up a little bit at that, the former operative slipped off her husband's lap in a bid to get her head back on straight and feel a little less like everyone expected her to suddenly break into pieces. Including her. "By 'worked through it', do you mean Jess or the Rasputin girl blew up a jeep?" she couldn't help but ask, since it was Jess they were talking about. Stranger things had happened and since she could fly and Magik could teleport, everyone would've probably made it out alive easy enough. "Or did they just teleport it into a tree or something?" Didn't really know that much about Magik, but Bobbi wasn't sure the former X-Man would've been her personal choice for that mission. Had to admit her powers sounded useful, though, but didn't sound like she was so much on thinking things through. |
![]() |
|
| Hawkeye | Jan 21 2015, 09:46 PM Post #52 |
|
I retire for what, like, five minutes and it all goes to shit.
![]()
|
Something else to do or talk about. Just to take their minds off of their worries a little, until they relaxed a bit. Finally, that they could both agree on. And Fort Knox was a pretty good choice for a subject, in Clint's not-so-humble opinion. He was sorry Bobbi'd missed out. This was exactly the kind of crazy, impossible-odds caper they thrived on. Except no. Noooooo. Not after what they both knew now. Clint could barely stand just imagining what he'd have been like after a scenario like that. Bobbi'd lived through it. All things considered, it was amazing she was holding up so well. But then, she was an amazing woman. Solid and durable. Strong enough to put Clint's ass in its place when he needed it. He might have just bought himself another of those with that faux pas, even after trying to make amends. Bobbi rolled her eyes at him, but in a wry voice, she said, "I know[.]" At least when it came to the risks of Fort Knox, Clint mused. He wasn't going to even mention Limbo and all its demons who possibly wanted to eat any babies they found. So focusing on how the mission had gone, then. That Clint could do. Under different circumstances, he'd have been bursting to get her alone and tell her all about it. Then regale the rest of the team until they were probably sick of hearing the story, but come on. They busted their way into Fort Knox and came out with something infinitely more valuable than all the gold in the world. Clint would have been just as eager to hear all about Bobbi's mission. He knew how much Bobbi had been looking forward to putting Karla where she belonged. That wasn't going to be a story he expected Bobbi wanted to tell now, any more than he'd be comfortable hearing. Had to give kudos for John and Remy and the rest who'd spent all night getting the bare bones of the plan together. Picking out Clint's team, coaching Blowfly so she had the hang of shrinking down. There were some brilliant, devious minds at work there, and even though it had practically made his own role ridiculously simple, he knew he couldn't have pulled it off if even one person or one part of the plan had been absent. Not that it was completely smooth sailing. There'd been that slight issue with Magik forgetting to mention she couldn't drive stick. Or was it drive at all? Clint didn't entirely remember, just the way her and Jess had been going on about it when they met back up. That got a slight eyebrow lift from Bobbi as she emptied herself from Clint's lap. God, she was gorgeous. Was she glowing? Had she been pregnant long enough to glow yet? "By 'worked through it', do you mean Jess or the Rasputin girl blew up a jeep?" she asked, and this time Clint was the one to roll his eyes. Or almost, as he managed to stop just short of making them vanish. It was a good thing Jess wasn't around to hear that. He could practically see her giving him a 'told you so' look. Possibly followed by slight indignation at Bobbi suggesting she could have been to blow it up. At least that would have been more likely than an explosion from crashing into a tree. "Or did they just teleport it into a tree or something?" "No, nothing like that," Clint said ruefully. "Nobody exploded anything, even though Jess sounded like she expected the jeep to go up if it drove over a rock too hard. Magik was just nervous, so I talked her through it. It wasn't like we had far to drive." Clint shrugged as he watched his wife. She knew how that went. They'd both seen enough rookies to know what to expect. Heck, Bobbi'd gone to bat for Firebird harder than anyone. And they'd both been rookies themselves, even if that seemed like a lifetime ago. "First mission jitters," Clint said. "Kind of looked like Blowfly had a case of that too, while we waited for her big debut." Clint raised a finger in front of him. "Which she totally nailed, by the way. We got to talking about my old carney days, just to help take her mind off it, you, know? Then Gambit went and asked me to punch him in the face." |
![]() |
|
| Mockingbird | Jan 22 2015, 08:30 PM Post #53 |
|
This isn't a catfight. It's me kicking your ass.
![]()
|
Yeah, that would've been just what they needed. Her and Hawk both losing their marbles in the middle of Fort Knox. Might not've run into that there, since it'd been more of a stealth mission than a smash and grab, but it was one they sure as hell couldn't have afforded to take the chance on. Not with the stakes on that one. Moonstone, no matter how smart she always thought she was, never had been that much. Hell, even just half the team they'd taken out to Colorado could've probably dealt with her and those kids she'd been doing who the hell knew what with. Not that she hadn't kept up her end of that mission, managed to keep all the anxiety and being scared to death back behind a wall until they were done. Bobbi knew she'd done her part there, but would she have been able to manage that with Clint right there, too? Didn't know, probably better they hadn't found out, however much she'd have loved to have been on that mission. That didn't mean she wanted to hear Clint saying she'd probably been better off not going, too. Easy enough to let go of for now, though. At least partly because it wasn't worth arguing about. Instead, as he talked, Bobbi slid herself off his lap and back onto the bed. Not because she didn't like it right where she was but so she could get a start on feeling more like normal and less like both of them expected her to break into pieces any second. That got a little easier as one eyebrow inched upward at her husband. Jess and the mutant teleporter, Magik, and some kind of problem with not knowing how to drive a military jeep with straight drive that they'd 'worked out'. Was that a code for either Spider-Woman or the Rasptin girl blowing up a jeep? Or maybe teleporting it into a tree? Clint could roll his eyes, or almost roll them - yeah, she saw that, all he wanted, but she knew Jessica Drew, too, even if she didn't really know Magik (though she was guessing the girl wasn't exactly big on forethought if she forgot to mention she couldn't drive a stick shift). If anybody could manage to make it happen out of the clear blue, it'd be Jess. "No, nothing like that," Clint said ruefully. "Nobody exploded anything, even though Jess sounded like she expected the jeep to go up if it drove over a rock too hard. Magik was just nervous, so I talked her through it. It wasn't like we had far to drive." Yeah, she remembered those days, Mockingbird mused to herself as Clint lifted broad shoulders in 'you know how it goes' shrug, corners of her mouth inching upward a little. It'd been a long time since they'd worked with much in the way of rookies. Not for the first time, she thought of Bonita and wondered how she'd come through all this. Or if she had at all. Bobbi hoped so, but they hadn't seen or heard from her in years. Not since just before the WCA disbanded to come back to...all this. "First mission jitters," Clint said and her smile widened a little. Had they ever been that young? Some days, it didn't seem like it. Others, it felt like they still might be. Rookies. They were about to be rookies all over again, weren't they? And she damned well felt like it right now. "Kind of looked like Blowfly had a case of that too, while we waited for her big debut." Clint raised a finger in front of him. "Which she totally nailed, by the way. We got to talking about my old carney days, just to help take her mind off it, you, know? Then Gambit went and asked me to punch him in the face." Oh god. Bobbi let out a groan and sent a knowing look toward her husband. "You made that poor, nervous kid sit and listen to your carnival stories?" While she was waiting to get shot into Fort Knox and probably nervous as hell. Captive audience, how could he resist? Whatever else he might be, there'd always be a little of the kid who ran away to join the carnival in the grown Avenger. Rolling her eyes, since that's said as much about that as anything else she came up with, Bobbi found a full fledged smile for that. One as knowing as that look had been. "All that and punching Remy in the face, too? It's not even your birthday yet." Even if she suspected Gambit might've had Clint hit him just to stop the carnie stories, Bobbi wouldn't say it out loud. She suspected Clint had been waiting a few years, at least, to do that. |
![]() |
|
| Hawkeye | Jan 24 2015, 11:30 AM Post #54 |
|
I retire for what, like, five minutes and it all goes to shit.
![]()
|
It was hard not to completely roll his eyes, but Clint managed. Nothing had exploded. Especially no jeeps, in spite of what Jess' seemed to think about them catching on fire for no reason. Bobbi had good reason to ask, he had to admit. She knew Jess, and more importantly, she knew Clint. Most of the time it just wasn't a mission until something blew up. That really wasn't a option when it came to breaking into Fort Knox. At least Jess had stopped obsessing over her ass. That wasn't a part Clint was planning to include in the telling of his story, though. Magik just had a case of nerves. It would have been better if she'd let them know ahead of time that she was driving-challenged, but she still did fine. All part of going on a mission with rookies, even if the Rasputin girl had technically been doing this sort of thing since she was fifteen. Mock knew all about that. It made him think of Firebird, who Clint should have invited to join the Wackos, but had been too intent on recruiting the Thing to even notice. Bobbi had, though, and she'd been a great member of the team. Had to wonder if- no, had to hope she'd made it through. Clint had no idea, but they could look into it. If she had, he'd love to see her again. Talking about first-mission jitters brought a slightly wider smile to Bobbi's lips. They'd all been there, hadn't they? Even if it was hard to believe sometimes. Terrifying. Not sure what was going to happen. Worried you were going to screw it up, but determined to go through with it because of how much was depending on you. And because you wanted it. Yeah, they were having that all over again themselves, weren't they? Blowfly had done a fantastic job. Jan was going to be deliriously proud of her. She'd been nervous, too, but seemed to warm up to stories of his carney days. Then Gambit went and asked him to punch him in the face. Groaning, Bobbi gave Clint a knowing look. "You made that poor, nervous kid sit and listen to your carnival stories?" she asked. Clint quirked up one corner of his mouth. "Seemed like a good idea at the time," he said. It had been, too. Blowfly was really getting into the story, pirates or no pirates. At least until he got around to the end of the story. Hadn't really thought that one all the way through, but luckily Angel just gave him a bit of sass instead of freaking out on him. Bobbi rolled her eyes, but she was smiling now. A real, beautiful smile that said much the same thing as her eyes had earlier. "All that and punching Remy in the face, too? It's not even your birthday yet." Ha. She knew how many times Clint had grumbled about the way Gambit was leading the Resistance and promised to do exactly that. He had to admit, even though he'd considered suggesting that very thing, he hadn't expected it to come to him practically gift wrapped. Another thing that was practically gift wrapped was that opening he'd just given Bobbi. He could practically hear her itching to tease him about Gambit wanting to get away from the story, but for some unexpected reason she let it slide. "I'm wishing I'd brought a camera, now," Clint said with a smile, bracing the heels of his palms against the edge of the bed. "But you know how it is. Had to make it authentic." But damned if he hadn't found that satisfying. "And you shoulda heard Angel when that rocket arrow went off," Clint continued, chuckling slightly. "Guarantee, it was the ride of her life. Guards never had a clue. She caught a ride in with one of them while Gambit and I met up at the jeep." Pausing, Clint's expression turned more serious. "That collar we brought may have been fake, but real or not, I hope that's the last one that ever gets put around anyone's neck." Had to make it authentic, even if that part was one of the most unsavory things he'd done in his life. |
![]() |
|
| Mockingbird | Jan 24 2015, 10:11 PM Post #55 |
|
This isn't a catfight. It's me kicking your ass.
![]()
|
Kid's first big mission and that's what she had to go in on? Clint's stories of carnival days past. Jesus. Hawk never could resist a captive audience, could he? Even he knew it, the proof was in the way one side of his mouth was twitching. "Seemed like a good idea at the time," he said and Bobbi let out a light, knowing, amused snort, looking into those big blue eyes of his. Of course it had. Swear to god, like a little kid sometimes. "Does it ever not, Babe?" she asked, already knowing the answer to that one, because she knew her husband. By now, she'd heard them all herself enough to know them by heart, so a little teasing was good for him. Right now, maybe good for both of them. It felt...better. steadier. Like it was easier to breathe again. There was more, too, and why the hell Gambit needed Clint to punch him in the face (other than try to put an end to the damned carnival tales), Bobbi couldn't guess. Or maybe she could. They'd planned on taking him in as a prisoner. Sometimes you needed a little more realism than you could get with just makeup and props. Whatever the reason, it'd probably made Clint's day. Carnie stories, breaking into Fort Knox, and punching Gambit, and it wasn't even his birthday yet. "I'm wishing I'd brought a camera, now," Clint said with a smile, bracing the heels of his palms against the edge of the bed. "But you know how it is. Had to make it authentic." That was Hawk's excuse and Bobbi was sure he'd stick to it, but her brows lifted up a little higher all the same as she gave her head a fond little shake. "Sure you did, Sport. Sure you did." Gambit and her big, strong, easy to sometimes wind up husband might be able to co-exist, but they'd always rub each other the wrong way. Remy was all right, though, even if Hawk would probably never really agree with that in a million years. [b"And you shoulda heard Angel when that rocket arrow went off," Clint continued, chuckling slightly[/b] as Bobbi leaned back, supporting herself on her arms and watching him. He really loved this. Not the war and the loss, but this. What he was talking about now. The adventure, the action. Running in and pulling off a miracle and saving the day. Hell, they both did, but Hawk...he'd always hung onto more of that idealism. Even now. "Guarantee, it was the ride of her life. Guards never had a clue. She caught a ride in with one of them while Gambit and I met up at the jeep." The one nobody exploded or teleported into a tree. Knowing Jess, she might've actually been a little disappointed by that. "After that, if that kid isn't hooked she never will be," Bobbi told him with a smile that came easier still, now. More natural and less like it was going to crack at the edges and her along with it. Clint, he was looking more grave, though, as he took a short pause. "That collar we brought may have been fake, but real or not, I hope that's the last one that ever gets put around anyone's neck." "Anyone that hasn't damned well earned it, at least," she agreed. It didn't bother her at all to remember one being snapped around Karla's neck. Or to think about the one Carol was wearing. Or that had Tony's name on it. Or Hank's. Not after what they'd dragged them all through the last five years. "Almost done, Babe," Bobbi continued, still looking at her husband and thanking god or whoever had got them both through all this in one piece. Not just today, but all the years of days before this. The future wasn't anything she wanted to imagine without him. "The future's looking a lot better than it did a week ago." |
![]() |
|
| Hawkeye | Jan 25 2015, 03:13 AM Post #56 |
|
I retire for what, like, five minutes and it all goes to shit.
![]()
|
Could Clint help it if spinning yarns was in his blood? He didn't think so. Bobbi kind of had a point, though. It really had almost been like an extra birthday, and getting to punch that smug, red-eyed swamp rat right in his smug face was like walking through the door and having everyone jump out from their hiding places and shout 'surprise!' Not that there weren't practical reasons for going through that. Pretending to capture the leader of the Resistance was the plan, and they had to make that look good. Plus, what was he going to do? Refuse an open invitation like that? Not on his life. "Sure you did, Sport. Sure you did." Bobbi had heard more of Clint's rants about Gambit than anyone. She knew exactly how often they'd clashed and just how quickly they could get on each other's nerves, even over a webcam conference. Heck, even over written messages. Sure, Bobbi thought he wasn't so bad. Probably the accent. Still, he'd helped pull off rescuing Steve. Even came up with some good tricks on the fly that made things go a little quicker than they'd hoped. Clint wouldn't be saying any of that out loud, though. The guy was already on a constant setting of overly impressed with himself. That couldn't be healthy, so really, holding back the praise was for his own good. That rocket arrow Nemesis whipped up, God rest his crazy ex-Nazi soul, had been a thing of beauty. And probably the biggest thrill Angel'd ever had, by the sounds of it. Sure beat Six Flags, that was for damn sure. "After that, if that kid isn't hooked she never will be," Bobbi said from her perch next to him. She'd leaned back while he was talking, arms behind her to brace her up. She was smiling like she usually did. Like there was nothing in the world bothering her and she was just enjoying being here with him and listening to his story. This felt more like themselves. Just sitting here. Talking to each other. Having a good time. Going over the good parts of the mission. The parts that worked the way they were supposed to. An adventure, even if this one had the greatest stakes of all. The fake collar much less so. They needed it for the mission, and Clint was often first in line to go a little dirty to get the job done. Lying, cheating, stacking the deck. He'd done it all. Some things just were too important to do out of a sense of playing fair. But those collars were something else. Something he would be glad to see the last of. "Anyone that hasn't damned well earned it, at least," Bobbi said more pragmatically. They weren't completely done with the things, much as Clint might wish otherwise. Maybe they'd find another way to put people like Carol, Tony and Hank where they belonged without needing that, but until then, they didn't have much choice, did they? "Almost done, Babe," Bobbi said then, eyes still on him. That was true, and much nicer to hear. The kind of promise that didn't make him feel mixed up inside. They'd made it. Clint nodded, smiling softly. Five years of watching the world go to hell. Of watching friends die while they tried to hold back the storm and put an end to the madness going on around them. Losing so much it sometimes felt like all they had was each other, scared to death that sometime even that would be taken away. And now, "The future's looking a lot better than it did a week ago." Or all the years before it. Clint's smile grew a bit wider. He turned slightly to face his wife better. "You said it, Babe," he told her, leaning forward, planting one arm on the other side of her as he moved in closer. Her deep blue eyes making his heart pound as hard now as they had the day he'd fallen in love with her. "I love the future I'm seeing, and I love you." Slipping his other arm around Bobbi's back, Clint pulled her toward him, pressed his lips against hers, and kissed her passionately. |
![]() |
|
| Mockingbird | Jan 26 2015, 04:14 PM Post #57 |
|
This isn't a catfight. It's me kicking your ass.
![]()
|
Bobbi couldn't help but smile and, for maybe the first time since they got back in, it came pretty easily. Remembered being a rookie herself and it hadn't been nearly as long ago for her in this business as it had been for Clint. She'd done a lot in her time with SHIELD, but even time in the Savage Land, with Ka-zar hadn't prepared her for what day to day life was like with the Avengers. Costumes and powers and crazy damned fights. Side by side with people she'd only read about in the papers or SHIELD files or saw on TV. People like Natasha Romanova. Thor. Steve Rogers. He'd been, hell was, nothing short of a living legend and she must've seemed like not anything so damned much as a star struck novice back then. Funny how it hadn't really dawned on her what else came along with the package when she'd married Hawk. Hadn't always thought she was exactly cut out for the Avengers life, but it grew on her. Hooked her and reeled her in and, even if she'd sometimes felt like maybe she didn't quite mesh the same as some've the others. SHIELD's way of doing things had suited her more than the Avenger's way did sometimes; one day, she was gonna sit Sharon Carter down and ask her how the hell she managed to balance that when her significant other was Captain America. It'd gave her the best friends she'd ever had, though. A family. After Angel's first taste of playing around with Jan's powers and then riding a rocket arrow straight into Fort Knox, working that mission which might be one've the missions to end all missions, if that kid wasn't hooked now, too, she'd eat her staves. Sometimes it was good to be the rookie. As far as those damned inhibitor collars went, Clint was right about that. If they never got used again, it'd be too soon. At least when it came to the people that had earned one. There were some that had and she hadn't mind one bit seeing one snapped around Karla Soffen's neck. Carol. Tony. Hank. Even now, Bobbi wasn't sure how the hell this, and they, had all gone so damned wrong. So damned wrong. But they'd earned theirs, too. Along with whatever justice came outta all this. Didn't mean it was easy to think about, they'd been friends. Family. But they'd effectively put those collars around their own necks and it did mean one thing that made the future ahead of them look better than it had in a long time. Hell, better than it had a week ago. Almost done. They were almost to the point they could really start putting this behind them. Remember what life was supposed to be like, and Hawk nodded, smiled in profile, to that as Bobbi looked up at him from where she was leaned back, braced on her arms. Couldn't imagine what it would've been like to lose him in all this, too, and didn't want to. Her whole life would've gone with him, she knew that. He turned toward her a little, smile widening. Not looking so damned panicked and confused and like he was ready to fly around the room like a punctured balloon. "You said it, Babe," he told her, leaning forward, planting one arm on the other side of her as he moved in closer and she just watched him, eyes on his face, not really bothering to move. Just feeling that jump in her pulse, that little hitch in her breath, like always. What could she say? She had an amazingly hot husband. "I love the future I'm seeing, and I love you." And what the hell, she decided, as he slipped an arm around her and she moved one've her hands, and part've the general support system, to the back of his neck, meeting that kiss as her eyes slipped closed. Matching all the emotions and the sentiments and letting some more of that tension melt out of her muscles and her head. If they fell over, it wouldn't matter. Accustomed, comfortable, and a lot more than just those too tame words. They weren't close to adequate. Safe. Clint was her safety and, if what they had might never be exactly calm or easy, it was solid. They'd worked hard for solid and, god, she felt like she needed that right now. Maybe they both did. Pulling back a little, breaking the kiss, Bobbi opened her eyes to look back up into his. "Love you, too, Clint." Had since about the time they met, and ended up trying to beat the hell out of each other. Because he wasn't listening to her. That hadn't changed much over the years, either. "My head's still a little scattered all over the place, but I'll get it together. I like the looks of that future I'm seeing from here, too." |
![]() |
|
| Hawkeye | Jan 31 2015, 02:23 AM Post #58 |
|
I retire for what, like, five minutes and it all goes to shit.
![]()
|
Anytime Angel wanted another turn on one of Hawkeye's arrows, she was more than welcome. She was a damn good kid, and she'd done Jess and Jan proud. You never forgot your first mission, and it didn't get more unforgettable than this one. Like Bobbi said, if the kid wasn't hooked after that, nothing would. This was more like it. Sitting here with Mock, the simple comfort of each other's presence and their natural back and forth as Clint warmed to his story. Both of them at ease almost before they noticed. Things got more serious when the fake inhibitor collar entered the picture. Bobbi understood, of course. How much those things filled him with distaste. He couldn't even feel satisfaction at the thought of them around the necks of Carol, Hank and Tony. Only the same anger and regret that had been there from the beginning. It was justice, what was coming to them, but Clint would always wonder how things had gone so horribly wrong. It was almost over, though. They'd fought and lasted all these years and now the madness was coming to an end. That was something he could think about with a smile, especially with Bobbi sitting right there, leaning back against the bed with her arms bracing her up. She'd been so much of what had kept him going. He'd have been worse than lost without her. He loved her so much. Loved everything about her, and as he turned and leaned in, he felt his pulse quicken as he drew close to her beautiful face. Those blue eyes that stole his breath every time. His future was with her, and it was a lot more real now than it had been yesterday. It was still scary to think about. New and more than it seemed like he could handle, but also the greatest gift he could imagine. Like a miracle. No matter what else, he loved the future he was seeing when he looked into those eyes, and when he kissed those lips. Bobbi sank into the kiss right along with him, one hand moving to slip around her neck. It was a bit precarious, but Clint's balance remained sure as he used one arm to support Bobbi and the other to hold them both in place. For a few moments, at least. A rush of emotion passed in that kiss, saying more, and more clearly, than any words Clint could think of. Whatever else, they had this, their core. Their foundation. Something they'd built together and worked hard to keep strong. Steady, and right now Clint could use that. Bobbi too, he was sure. He shifted slightly as he deepened the kiss, bending his arm slightly as he gently lowered both of them the short distance to the mattress. . The kiss ended with Bobbi pulling back a little, her eyes slipping open and looking up at the blonde man holding her. "Love you, too, Clint. My head's still a little scattered all over the place, but I'll get it together. I like the looks of that future I'm seeing from here, too." Clint nodded slowly. "I know you will, Babe," he said. "I'm going to be right along with you. All the way and more." They'd made that work for them from the start. This was their life, and their future. She'd always be able to count on him. Things might be a little crazy for both of them, but they'd get through it. |
![]() |
|
| Mockingbird | Feb 1 2015, 09:01 PM Post #59 |
|
This isn't a catfight. It's me kicking your ass.
![]()
|
So they didn't fall over, but somehow they ended up flat on the bed anyway. Clint's doing, Bobbi guessed, but she hadn't been paying much attention to where they were as that kiss depened and that familiar, expectant warmth eased a few more of those knots she'd managed to wind herself up in. The ones in her stomach and her chest and, hell, in her brain, too. Head over heels. That's how Clint had made her feel, right from the start. It was still how he made her feel. Even when she wanted to strangle him or when he wanted to strangle her. Maybe especially then. Pulling back slightly, Bobbi looked up at at him. Knew like she always knew that, no matter how crazy she got over all this because it scared the hell out of her, she loved him, too. And she wanted this. If she lost her mind and now and then, and especially now, for a little while, because it'd snuck up on them and then reality'd punched her right in the face on that damned mission, it didn't change either of those things. It'd get better, she'd get a handle on it. She wouldn't take no for an answer. The future she was seeing was something she liked the looks of as much as Hawk did. It might've been something she'd told herself for years they'd still had a chance at, but she was a realist. There was no way to know it'd work out that way, but it's what she'd told herself anyway and here it was. Clint nodded, a slow motion of his head as she breathed in, held that breath, then breathed out a little more of the tension and the worry and the going over and over what'd nearly happened on that mission. "I know you will, Babe," he said. "I'm going to be right along with you. All the way and more." Mouth quirking up along with one eyebrow, Mockingbird figured that was probably more true than he'd even meant. "So we'll both be losing our minds for the better part of the next year," she surmised, and it was good to be able to joke about it a little, too. "Simon'll love that." Then again, what was different about that than any other time. "If the team's even still together by then," Bobbi added after a thoughtful pause, brows pulling together. That didn't sound right, and it didn't feel right. Not after all this time, but she did know how this went, when the fight was over. "You know, I just realized I don't have a damned clue what the plan is after this. Or if there is one." One thing was certain, though. This was the end of one thing, and that meant a lot of other things would change. Hell, they'd already started. |
![]() |
|
| Hawkeye | Feb 3 2015, 03:31 AM Post #60 |
|
I retire for what, like, five minutes and it all goes to shit.
![]()
|
They could handle this. Clint and Bobbi had each other, and that meant they could handle anything. Especially something they both wanted as much as this. It was their future, and Clint liked the way it was looking. They were okay, and they'd figure it out and they weren't going to let anything, even themselves freaking out, get in the way of that. It was going to get better. Clint was going to be right there with Bobbi for all of it. Laying there, Mock smiled crookedly as she looked at her husband, quirking one eyebrow. "So we'll both be losing our minds for the better part of the next year," she said, proving that her sense of humor was alive and well. Clint quirked a smile in answer and said, "Looks like it, Birdie. With any luck, we'll spend most of it taking turns." Losing their minds simultaneously too much could be dangerous, after all. "Simon'll love that." Clint shrugged a little. "He's used to it," he said, which Bobbi already knew, of course. "Who knows if he'll even notice when Sparkle Barbie's hanging around." Assuming she checked out, of course. Otherwise they could have a whole different Simon problem on their hands. There was a slight pause, then, Bobbi's brows drawing in thoughtfully. "If the team's even still together by then," she said, and Clint's smile faded a little. God. That was hard to picture, after all this time. It felt kind of wrong. More than kind of. He'd been through more changing rosters than anyone, but ReAssemble was different. Bobbi still had a point, though. It was the way these things went, wasn't it? Didn't mean he had to like it, though. "You know, I just realized I don't have a damned clue what the plan is after this. Or if there is one." "If there is, I never got invited to the meeting," Clint said. He shifted the arm lying along the mattress and began idly toying with the end of a few strands of Bobbi's hair. "Back in DC, I gave the ol' rallying cry," he said, his voice settling into a thoughtful tone. That probably came as no surprise to her, since he did it every chance he got anyway. "It felt different than before. All those other times, it was like we were keeping the memory alive. This time, it was more like... something waking up after a long sleep." Not the kind of way Clint expected to put it, but it felt right. "The war's about over, but the Earth's still going to need its mightiest heroes, right?" |
![]() |
|
|
|
| Go to Next Page | |
| « Previous Topic · Private Quarters · Next Topic » |








3:32 AM Jul 11