Loki Misses the Asgardian Prison System

Chapter 90

"Damn, tough break," Tony says. "You seem to be doing fine, though."

"I don't let people punch me in the face," she says with a small shrug. "Is Barton around?"

Tony gestures vaguely, sending the cat flying after the laser pointer he so carelessly aimed all over the room. "Yeah, somewhere. His room, I think."

"Cool, thanks." She'd assumed as much, but this felt like an easy way to end the conversation. She heads to the doorway, but Tony's voice stops her.

"Oh, and Nat?"

She glances over her shoulder. "Yeah?"

"You might want to stay offline for a few weeks," Tony says. "It's not looking pretty."

Natasha freezes.

So he's seen it.

He's seen them talking about her; who she was, what she did. He knows.

That's what she was afraid of.

Everyone's going to know. The Avengers are all going to know. Tony; Bruce, Steve. All her dirty laundry is out there for the world — for her friends — to see.

Everybody knows her every misdeed.

Shit.

Tony must notice her discomfort, her genuine fear, because he adds, "Just ignore 'em. Bad press is part of the job. If you let it get to you, they win."

Natasha forces a smile. "Yeah, I know."

Tony smiles back, then returns his attention to this ridiculous (but kind of cute) game he's playing with Snowflake.

Natasha heads out of the room, her sights set on one room in particular; a room she could find with her eyes closed, she's been there so many times. She knows she can just walk right in — she usually does — but this time, she finds herself knocking first. She's not sure why. She just... she wants to know that she's welcome. She will be, but she wants the assurance that she is.

"I just fell asleep," Clint whines.

"Oh, sorry," Natasha mumbles.

"Nat?" He immediately sounds more alert. "What are you doing? Get your ass in here."

Natasha opens the door warily. "Hey."

Clint sits up, swinging his legs over the edge of the bed. "I have been calling you nonstop!"

"I know, I'm sorry," she says. "It's just been..." She can feel her voice threatening to break, and she shakes her head helplessly. "It's been a really bad day."

Clint sighs. "I know, I'm sorry." He pushes himself to his feet and holds his arms out. "C'mere."

Natasha feels tears prickling her eyes, and she crosses the room, launching herself into his arms. He hugs her tight, and she buries her face in the crook of his neck.

"Are you okay?" he asks quietly.

"Mm-mm," she hums. No, she's not okay. She's really, really not, and she's tired of pretending she is.

"You wanna talk about it?" he asks.

"Mm-mm."

"Okay." He presses a kiss to the side of her head. "What do you want to do?"

"I don't know," she admits. "Cry."

Clint huffs a quiet laugh. "You can do that."

"I'm not gonna start crying," she mumbles.

"Hey, you do you," Clint says. Just the ridiculousness of that statement in this kind of situation puts a small smile on her lips. "You wanna sit down?"

"No."

"You wanna just stand here for the rest of time?"

"Yes."

Clint's shoulders shake with silent laughter. "Okay," he says. "Let's just stand here for the rest of time."

"Thank you," she murmurs.

Clint gently rubs her back, a nice, soothing motion. "You know, I don't know what happened or why," he says quietly, "but I know that whatever you did, you did the right thing. And I'm sorry it had to end like that, but I know it'll be worth it in the end."

"I know," she says softly. "It just really doesn't feel like it right now."

A/N disclaimer that I'm not setting Clint and Nat up I just think they should get to hug and kiss each other's hair you know as a treat (and Laura Barton would agree)