𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐒𝐄𝐕𝐄𝐍 || 𝘞𝘦 𝘊𝘢𝘯 𝘉𝘦 𝘔𝘰𝘳𝘦
"YOU SHOULD SLEEP." Clint looked to his co-pilot who had been quiet for most of the flight. While most of the team had slept, trying to shake the illusions Wanda had inflicted on them, Carter had stayed awake–even when it was against his better judgment and sanity.
Shimmying further into the seat, Carter looked at the radar and weather detector. "Isn't going to do me any good. Need to keep frontside focus."
Flicking the switch causing his chair to slide back from its position fixed to the secondary controls, he sighed. "How far are we from your safe house?"
Clint scoffed, glancing at the man. "I don't know if we were ever close in your universe, but I don't take stubbornness very nicely," he commented. "So, either say what you saw or just go grab me a drink."
The response wasn't what Carter expected, truthfully. But he simply glanced at the man before getting up and moving toward the back of the Quinjet. Passing a shaking Bruce Banner, an abnormally quiet Steve Rogers, and a resting Thor Odinson. Going straight to the minifridge and grabbing two pops before quicking the door shut. Glancing at Natasha who stared into the open space, unresponsive to even the faintest sounds.
It seems that after Wanda placed her illusions in his Limbo, she managed to escape and take out the team one by one, besides Tony and Clint. And the outcome was most of the team sitting silently, processing the images of their past brought into the present. A traumatic and disheartening event that Carter couldn't say he was unaffected by.
He'd been on the brunt side of Wanda's powers on many occasions. Most weren't of malicious intent, but the feeling of her invading his mind wasn't new at all. It was distinct. Like experiencing your first time for something. But this was the first time she'd used her powers in his Limbo. And it was the first time he was seeing the after-effects of the powers used on others who had no understanding of her capabilities.
Giving Clint his drink, Carter made his way to Tony. Cracking the tab off the can and holding the drink out for the man. It took a moment, Tony's attention fixated on the holographic table, but after Carter nudged him the man hummed and took the drink.
Exhaling heavily, Jaxon braced his hands along the edge of the table, looking at the video feed of his fight with Ultron. "Anything we can work off of with your fight?"
Tony pursed his lips, shaking his head. "As cryptic and annoyingly smart as I should've expected. Kid's got my humor and it is frustrating."
That pulled a laugh from Carter's lips as he grabbed a crate and dragged it over. "Yeah. Now you know how we all feel."
Taking a seat, Carter placed his weight on his left hand that rested on his knee. Glancing at the rest of the team, Carter shook his head. "We need to mock up a plan, fast. After what happened with Bruce, I'd imagine Ultron is hoping we'll tear each other apart from the inside," he explained. "I think that's why he infected Nova's chip."
Tony peeked up at him. "Is that what you think?"
"As much as I would like to place the blame entirely on you, I know you wouldn't intentionally try to hurt Nova. You're her mentor." His words stuck deep into Tony, who licked his lips, looking down at the table.
But Carter tilted his head, following the man's gaze. "She also is the only one who understands what happened when the Chiatauri invaded. You two carried that nuke into the portal. You care about her more than yourself."
Pursing his lips, Tony glided his finger across the screen, discarding the helmet footage. "Don't think I've sided with you or anything, but I have been trying to fix Nova's biochip." That made Carter's eyes widen. But Tony continued before he could say anything. "The virus came into contact with her central nervous system and has put her into a coma. I have only the best possible people working on finding a solution."
"Is Martin working it as well?" Carter inquired.
"I wouldn't have him do anything else," Tony commented. "At least then it guarantees we have tried everything we can to help her."
Tony wasn't a bad guy, Carter knew and understood that. But the man didn't make it easy for others to see it. He's done countless things for humanity and has the right intentions. After he stopped his weapon development, he'd been trying to make up for his wrongdoings. But the way he carried himself and acted made it very hard for someone like Carter to get along with.
But this was a step in the right direction.
"Have you told Nat?" Carter asked.
Tony sighed. "As good as she is at keeping her emotions at a simmer, I think we both know what this will do to her," he suggested, earning a nod in return from Carter. "For right now, this stays between us. If there is any progress made for her condition, I'll let you know."
Carter stood, adjusting his tac vest, eyes carefully scanning Tony's face. "You know, this is the Tony that I became friends with."
Tony frowned. "What do you mean?"
The man shrugged, a tiny smile hidden beneath his balaclava. "The man who isn't afraid to show he cares." He stared at the man for a moment before stepping away, leaving the billionaire to ponder his words.
THE SO-CALLED "SAFE HOUSE" HAD BEEN NOTHING MORE THAN A FARMHOUSE IN A STATE CARTER COULDN'T CARE TO FIND OUT. Applying his attention instead to helping Bruce to his feet and Natasha to walk forward as they approached the farmhouse.
As they moved up the steps leading to the porch, Thor inquired, "What is this place?
"Safehouse." Tony's reply was simple, yet, somehow this place didn't seem like a safe house. For what it was, it was far more remote than anything Carter could think of. But he was basing his expectations on Jason Bourne or OO7. So, perhaps his imagination didn't prove to be as reliable as he'd like.
"Let's hope," Clint commented with a smile, pushing open the door for both Carter and Nat to step through first before the rest of the team followed.
Carter took note of the vastly different comparisons he had in mind for a safe house to the one Clint had brought them to. Here, there were photos of kids. Toys even scattered across the living room floor. A piano just tucked in the corner of the front patio with a wooden car sat on top along with a tiny globe of the Earth and more pictures. And the longer he took these details in, the faster the realization slowly settled in.
What might've been the dead giveaway was Clint calling out, "Honey? I'm home."
That alone had Carter slightly leaning to his right toward Tony. "Am I the only one that heard that?"
"It must be some sort of codeword. Like a password..."
The man's words drifted as a woman came around the corner from the kitchen. The curve of her stomach made Carter's head twist in shock as he quickly looked between Tony and the woman.
Clint smiled awkwardly, glancing back at the team with a wave of his hand. "Hi. Company. Sorry, didn't call ahead."
Nonetheless, the woman smiled. "Hey." The two kissed and that only made Carter's eye twitch.
"This is an agent of some kind," Tony muttered to Carter.
"Why do I feel suddenly so irritated?" Carter muttered to himself, staring at Clint like daggers would be manifested and kill the man.
Despite the pair's comments, Clint said, "Gentlemen, this is Laura."
Laura, smiled as she looked around the group. "I know all your names," she turned her gaze to Carter. "But I haven't heard about you."
"Probably best you haven't."
The sound of rapid footsteps interrupted the introductions as two children came rounding the corner from the hallway. And that alone had Carter's eyebrow twitch, eyes flickering between the two children Clint embraced and the archer himself.
Yet it didn't seem like he was the only one shocked as even Steve frowned at the sight of the children. "These are smaller agents."
"I just suddenly feel the need to break something."
"Did you bring Auntie Nat and Auntie Nova?" The little girl asked, looking up at her father.
At the mention of her name, Natasha had been able to swallow down exhaustion in her body and smile at the little girl. "Why don't you hug her and find out?" Natasha lifted the little girl into her arms. "And your Aunt hasn't been feeling so well for the past few days. But I'll be sure to bring you guys to her workshop and show you guys around. That sound good?" The little girl nodded widely.
"Sorry for barging in on you," Steve told Laura curiously.
"Yeah, we would have called ahead, but we were busy having no idea you existed," Tony pointed out in a tone that had earned a soft jab in the side by Carter's elbow.
"Yeah, well, Fury helped me set this up when I joined. He kept it off S.H.I.E.L.D.'s files," Clint explained in short. "I'd like to keep it that way. I figured it'd be a good place to lay low."
As Natasha began to catch up with Laura, a crunching of toys drew Steve, Tony, and Carter's attention. Looking down at the Lego house the children had built under the God of Thunder's foot. He looked up at the men and quickly swept the pieces under the rug.
At the suddenness of toast popping and Thor marching out of the house with Steve in tow, Carter had taken notice of the little girl's gaze unwavering from his.
It'd been a long time since he'd seen a kid not look at him in fear. Based on his appearance, it was warranted. No one outside the Avengers can look at him and not feel at least a little intimidated by the golden skull. Yet, this child's curious eyes, unwilted by the anchoring of her neck to meet his gaze, held no sense of fear.
Carter crouched down in front of the girl and turned his palm upwards. With the faint tensing of his finger, Judge appeared, golden sparks flashing around the bird's frame. Judge poked his head out, scanning his surroundings more clearly now than from what he'd seen through Carter's eyes.
Extending his hand out to the child, Carter softly said, "There is nothing to fear. He doesn't bite."
The little girl swallowed thickly and took the man's hand as he softly turned her hand and lowered Judge to rest in the child's hand. It took a moment with a hesitant finger gently brushing against the bird's back to cause the little girl to smile in relief, giggling as she looked back at her mom, who smiled as well.
"His name is Judge. He's been my best friend for years," Carter introduced with a faint smile. "He'll play with you for as long as you like while we're here. He even talks."
"Really?" She asked, fascination beaming in her eyes.
"Sure does. Judge, say hi, bud."
The bird croaked, tilting his head at the little girl. "Hi," he chirped, rubbing his head against the girl's finger.
"What do you say, Lila?" Laura spoke up from behind.
Lila, the little girl, smiled at Carter. "Thank you, Mister."
He nodded, watching the girl walk away, already beginning to rave to the bird that listened and rubbed himself against her face. A tightening in the pit of his stomach as his lips pursed, blinking rapidly.
"Do you have any other animals?" Clint's son suddenly asked.
But before Carter could reply, Clint was already shaking his head. "Nope. No, no, no, no. Those dogs nearly ate me."
Completely ignoring his father's statement, the boy looked at Carter with a slack jaw. "You can summon dogs?" The boy exclaimed.
"Well, they're not exactly like dogs, but act like 'em. Wanna see?" Carter inquired, earning eager nods from the boy who followed the man outside. Both Clint and Laura hot on their tails and stopped at the edge of the steps of the front porch, watching Carter begin to twist his hands.
Laura seemed fine with it considering Lila's interaction with Judge. But Clint seemed to be putting up more of a fight, which in all actuality, he had a right. Rex had nearly bit his arm off during their first encounter. "Carter, I'll be coming for you if either of those dogs tries to eat my son."
Without so much as a warning, two puddles of black ink appeared with the golden-faced creatures emerging with echoing howls. They sniffed the air before turning their gaze toward the young boy. At first, they sniffed in his direction, becoming familiarized with his scent before approaching and sitting at his feet. Their wet gurgling hums made the boy frown, glancing up at Carter.
"Rex and Vash. They have the ideology of normal dogs and even wolves. They play fetch, chase one another, and hunt. And most importantly-" he raised his voice loud enough for Clint and Laura to hear, "-they won't hurt you unless I say so!"
"They better not!" Clint replied.
Carter patted the boy's back. "Don't be afraid. Even if you don't play with them, they'll hang around you."
As the boy ran off, laughing as the dogs chased after him, barking, Carter moved up the steps toward Clint. "I'll be able to see what they see at all times. No matter what happens, Judge and the Hounds will protect the kids at all costs even if it risks my safety."
Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out a familiar set of dog tags that Clint remembered Natasha wearing. Carter handed them to Laura, his hands clasping around hers. "These will make sure that whatever happens, you and Nathaniel will be safe. Think of it as a shield of sorts."
The offering was a lot. Way more than what Clint thought the man to be capable after so little time interacting with the man. But his judgement had also been based on his first encounter and what Carter did. Nearly having Rex and Vash tear Tony's arms apart or nearly having him eaten by the dogs. It all built an expectation of Carter that didn't seem to be the case this time around.
Offering a hidden smile, Carter brushed past Clint and began to enter. But was stopped by the archer. "Carter." The man turned halfway, looking at the man. "Thank you."
Carter sighed, rubbing his gloved hands together and shrugged. "Consider it thanks for letting us into your home. Even though I know Laura knows her way around a weapon or two." The insightfulness and rather unprecedented knowledge from the man shocked the couple. And they couldn't question him on it any further as he had already made his way into the kitchen to eat those two pieces of toast.
He just knew he could be more than what Wanda thought of him.
Even if it jeopardized his own life.