𝐒𝐎𝐋𝐀𝐑 𝐄𝐂𝐋𝐈𝐏𝐒𝐄 ➳ 𝙥𝙟𝙤 // 𝙖𝙫𝙚𝙣𝙜𝙚𝙧𝙨

xxi

"Bruce!" Steve raced to his side as Bruce lay on the floor, unmoving.

"Don't move him!" Tony yelled sharply.

The metal blast doors surrounding the compound opened, revealing sunshine and the clear sound of... birds chirping?

Bruce's eyes fluttered open. "Did it work?" he mumbled. His arm was charred, completely burnt by the surge of the Stones' power.

Tony exhaled the breath he had been holding. 

Clint's eyes darted to his phone on the side table, which coincidentally, started to ring immediately.

Clint approached it, looking at the caller ID.

Laura.

He'd waited for her call for so long, to see her profile picture light up just one more time.

He stared at it, half-laughing and half-crying, before answering the phone and pressing it to his ear. His eyes glistened with joy.

"Honey?" he said softly.

— — — name the time skip :))) — — —

After getting off the phone with Laura and his kids — he would go meet them later — Clint immediately boarded the Quinjet and took off for Long Island without so much as a goodbye to the rest of the team (he sent a text but that was fifteen minutes after he left).

His heart still ached with the loss of Nico, but he could only imagine how happy Annabeth would be to have Percy back, and how he hadn't seen Will, Kayla, and Austin in so long. Deep down he knew that Nico made the choice he thought was right, for the good of everyone else. Gods knew that boy cared more about others than his own well-being.

Cared.

Clint's eyes darkened. 

Past tense. Not even twenty-four hours and he was already referring to Nico in past tense.

As he landed on the outskirts of the Delphi Strawberry Farm, he couldn't help but dread Will's reaction to Nico's death. 

It had taken Clint hours to recover from the sobbing alone — getting over Nico's death itself was a different story. He might not ever recover from that.

All those years, Nico had searched for a way to bring Will back, to get justice — and now that he finally had, now that Will was back — Nico was gone. 

Clint carefully concealed the Quinjet with reflective panels, and then walked right up to Thalia's tree.

From what he could see, the fields were deserted. And the camp was quiet — too quiet.

Clint faltered, but continued walking anyway, up the hill and into camp.

He passed the rock climbing wall, the dining pavilion, the garden, not noticing everyone staring.

All eyes were on him. More silence.

Then Clint's heart burst as he was attacked by hugs. Campers he remembered, even some of his siblings. Kayla, Austin, even little Gracie. Not so little anymore, but not the teenager he expected.

She must have snapped.

Then came Will's face, Clint's vision blurring with tears as he embraced his younger brother.

"Oh my gods," Will whispered, eyes wide. He trembled beneath Clint's grip. "Clint. You're here. You're alive."

Clint pulled away, wiping back tears. "Me? You're back!" 

Will grinned broadly. "Yeah, can you believe it's been five years?"

Clint scowled at him. "You idiot! I came and looked for you and you were fucking dust!"