Imagine If You Assembled the Avengers: Volume 1

Circus Freak (Clint Barton x reader)

Clint gathered his gear and jumped down anxiously from his perch. He stood in place for a moment, considering how this might go, scouring his mind for whom you might be and how you thought he knew you before today. He began to move towards you, cursing the name Fury under his breath, knowing full well that you had the upper hand in this situation.

You took a seat on a bench a few feet from the building, away from any windows or views of you from the nearby parking lot and streets. You had worked very hard to keep yourself from capture for all of these years, and you weren't about to change your ways now. Getting away from Barton would be easy if necessary; he didn't really seem much smarter than when you knew him years ago. You had always been the brains of your duo, though it would seem that he had blocked that memory completely.

"Sit," you said as he approached, opening your hand and waving to the seat next to you. "I'll behave as long as you do."

Clint sat down slowly and tentatively with a firm grasp on his bow. "How do you know me? What's your name?"

"(Y/N). I could show you if you'd like," you pointed at your temple, to offer the memories to him, but he shook his head rapidly and put his hands up defensively.

"No no no, stay out. Not a fan."

"Alright then, I'll wait. I think I've given you a big enough clue to get that brain working. Even for you."

After several minutes of waiting, the silence becoming almost maddening, your patience began to wear thin. "You know, if you want to just stay here, we can pick this up tomorrow. I did have some things that I wanted to get done today..."

You stood to leave but he reached out and grabbed your hand; you instinctively pulled away at his touch, not familiar with the sensation of another person in contact with you. Too many people had been hurt by touching you before you were in control of your powers the way you are now, but even to this day you resisted allowing it for their own safety and for your sanity in the absence of the guilt.

"Hey, hey, I'm sorry," he said as he jumped up to stand next to you. "I didn't mean to do that, it's just...it's just that I can't believe I didn't remember you, (Y/N). You're right, I am an idiot." Clint lowered himself back down onto the bench and tapped the place that you had been moments ago. "Please, don't go."

"So you're not scared of me anymore? Just because you remember me?" You took a step towards him but didn't take his invitation. "How does that change your idea of who...or what I am, Barton? I'm going to bet that you don't have the first idea of who I am now."

He sighed and hung his head slightly, beginning to feel ashamed that you were right. "Okay, so tell me. Start with what you're doing here."

"I help people die."

"Pardon?"

You cautiously took the seat next to him again, keeping your distance but relaxing your posture as you spoke. "Think about that moment. Lying in a hospital bed, afraid, anxious, not knowing what was going to happen or what it would be like. Think about if you were alone. How terrible that would be, and how sad. Would you fill your mind with regrets about how your life was lived? Would you look back on the good? Would the fear in those moments even let you?"

"I've never given it much thought," he whispered.

"No one has, Clint. But I can use my powers to help. I can slow moments down so that families can make it there before that last breath. I can get into their minds and show them the all of good in their lives and make their final moments happy. I can make death a beautiful moment rather than something terrible."

Clint was struck with remorse as you spoke, unaware of what you were doing and his determination to kill you because he was ordered to do so. He was ashamed of the job he was doing and filled with doubt about jobs that had long since been done. "I was told you were dangerous, (Y/N). I had no idea."

"Yeah, SHILED isn't the first group to tell me that, but you are the first to listen."

"You're gonna say Hydra, aren't you?"

You nodded your head, "is there anyone else? Barton, I only kill when I'm protecting myself or if I see something happening that will hurt someone. I've been labeled dangerous because that's all you people see. You don't even ask about anything good that I've done, and then you wonder why I have trust issues."

"Try to not recruit this one." Clint scoffed as he heard Fury's voice in his head, knowing that he would be ridiculed for what he was about to say. "Come with me."

"Why, because SHIELD is so much better than Hydra? Are you gonna give me some 'greater good' speech thick with self-righteousness now?" You stood again, ready to take your leave while the mood was still civil. "Been there, done that."

He stood quickly at your side, still cautious to not get too close and risk your sudden disappearance. "Just come with me and hear us out. No pressure, no coercion. If you don't like what you hear...then...zap yourself away or whatever it is that you do. If I finally remember correctly, we used to work well together, and I think we could again."

"Living in a circus and entertaining a bunch of drunken spectators is a bit different than this, Clint."

"You'd be surprised how similar it actually is."

~~~

The team sat around the conference table at the tower, silently watching as you read file after file of their work and personality profiles. They were on full display for you, and you could feel how uncomfortable they were with it; you had bargained that the only way you would consider this was to have full transparency with them. Once you had given them a demonstration of your powers, and they realized how useful they could be, they agreed to your terms.

"You don't listen to a damn thing I say, do you?"

"Sorry, sir," Clint snickered, "I kinda thought this one might change your mind."

Nick shook his head, leaning against the window and watching you from the other side as you spoke with the team about what your role would be. "Just tell me one thing," he said, turning to look at Clint as he entered the conference room, "tell me that you didn't give her that 'you're an Avenger' speech."

Clint threw his hands in the air, exasperated and shocked as he followed. "Dammit, it's a good speech!"