terra
in
marvel_fic
Legacies
I wrote a Young Avengers drabble for a friend and I'd thought I'd post it here. :)
Title: Legacies
Series: Young Avengers
Character(s)/Pairing: Kate, Eli, THE LASER-EYED GHOST OF CLINT BARTON
Rating: PGish, maybe PG-13?
Kate's walking home from school when she sees him, crouched in front of a Starbucks sign, hands full of dust, alive. At first she tells herself that it's only a trick of the light: she's only ever seen him in pictures. But he keeps showing up, at crosswalks, on parkway paths, keeps burning through the nameless sea of people like fireworks in the dark. Maybe it's just her imagination, maybe ghosts exist and Kate's are hungry, maybe Clint Barton is really stalking her. She still walks the same way to school: some things never change.
***
"So," she says when she's back safe in bed, mouthing into a telephone receiver. "Clint Barton's alive."
"Wait, what?" This isn't what Eli expected.
"Y'know Ronin? The guy who spends his time re-enacting stage-coach robberies on the Romantic Express? That's him."
"Isn't he supposed to be-"
"Hawkeye? Yeah." Kate stops for a moment, tries to think. "He's supposed to be Hawkeye."
"Well, screw him. You're Hawkeye now. Captain America said so."
"And I can't believe I listened to him." Kate makes a face. "What was I thinking? 'I totally have the right to give away his old codename, because I'm Captain America. I swear Clint's at least mostly dead.'"
"Really, I don't know why you're freaking out about this. It's not like he's your new stepmom or somethin'."
"Well, how would you feel of Jeff Mace or whoever showed up at your door all Night of the Living Dead?"
"Jeff Mace? I didn't even know he existed until Bucky told me. Besides, he's been dead for like, fifty years."
"Uh huh. Rewind that a bit, start with the part about Bucky."
"Okay fine, Kate. Real clever. You got me there. But that ain't the point and you know it." He's angry now; turns out calling him wasn't such a good idea. "Just-just think for a second. We didn't want you joining the Young Avengers. Hell, I don't even wanna be talking to you now." Maybe that came out wrong, but he doesn't bother trying to correct it.
"Gee, thanks. I'm so glad I turned to you in my moment of need."
"What I'm tryin' to say is that you make yourself who you are, y'know? And that I'm going back to sleep because I don't need your bullshit right now."
He hangs up.
***
When she sleeps there are strange shapes in her darkness, memories that run through her like a bolt through a door. There are hands that run all over her body, the dirt underneath his fingernails, gin on his breath as he takes her exactly as he likes. In her dreams there's nothing she can do to fight him; nothing but the crush of the grass and the last threads of daylight moving brightly through the leaves.
It's only when she wakes that Kate remembers who she is.
***
She goes to school the next morning, like always. The teachers ask her the same kinds of questions- What was the role of Congress during the American Revolution? Solve for x. Show your work. They're the kind of answers that come easy but Kate doesn't raise her hand. There are too many noises, too many distractions, too many things she doesn't want to remember. At lunch she sits alone, listens to the things the other girls say about her.
"Yeah, she thinks she's so much better than us 'cause her daddy's sooo rich. Like I give a damn about the size of her inheritance."
"Then it's a good thing I don't give a damn about the size of your ego, Stacey," Kate trills from across the table. "Because I have no problem telling you how small a person you really are."
***
At archery practice she hits the bullseye one, two, three times in a row. Maybe Eli's right, Kate thinks. Maybe none of them wanted her at first, maybe she should give Clint back his bow and arrows. But there are some things no one can take away.
Title: Legacies
Series: Young Avengers
Character(s)/Pairing: Kate, Eli, THE LASER-EYED GHOST OF CLINT BARTON
Rating: PGish, maybe PG-13?
Kate's walking home from school when she sees him, crouched in front of a Starbucks sign, hands full of dust, alive. At first she tells herself that it's only a trick of the light: she's only ever seen him in pictures. But he keeps showing up, at crosswalks, on parkway paths, keeps burning through the nameless sea of people like fireworks in the dark. Maybe it's just her imagination, maybe ghosts exist and Kate's are hungry, maybe Clint Barton is really stalking her. She still walks the same way to school: some things never change.
***
"So," she says when she's back safe in bed, mouthing into a telephone receiver. "Clint Barton's alive."
"Wait, what?" This isn't what Eli expected.
"Y'know Ronin? The guy who spends his time re-enacting stage-coach robberies on the Romantic Express? That's him."
"Isn't he supposed to be-"
"Hawkeye? Yeah." Kate stops for a moment, tries to think. "He's supposed to be Hawkeye."
"Well, screw him. You're Hawkeye now. Captain America said so."
"And I can't believe I listened to him." Kate makes a face. "What was I thinking? 'I totally have the right to give away his old codename, because I'm Captain America. I swear Clint's at least mostly dead.'"
"Really, I don't know why you're freaking out about this. It's not like he's your new stepmom or somethin'."
"Well, how would you feel of Jeff Mace or whoever showed up at your door all Night of the Living Dead?"
"Jeff Mace? I didn't even know he existed until Bucky told me. Besides, he's been dead for like, fifty years."
"Uh huh. Rewind that a bit, start with the part about Bucky."
"Okay fine, Kate. Real clever. You got me there. But that ain't the point and you know it." He's angry now; turns out calling him wasn't such a good idea. "Just-just think for a second. We didn't want you joining the Young Avengers. Hell, I don't even wanna be talking to you now." Maybe that came out wrong, but he doesn't bother trying to correct it.
"Gee, thanks. I'm so glad I turned to you in my moment of need."
"What I'm tryin' to say is that you make yourself who you are, y'know? And that I'm going back to sleep because I don't need your bullshit right now."
He hangs up.
***
When she sleeps there are strange shapes in her darkness, memories that run through her like a bolt through a door. There are hands that run all over her body, the dirt underneath his fingernails, gin on his breath as he takes her exactly as he likes. In her dreams there's nothing she can do to fight him; nothing but the crush of the grass and the last threads of daylight moving brightly through the leaves.
It's only when she wakes that Kate remembers who she is.
***
She goes to school the next morning, like always. The teachers ask her the same kinds of questions- What was the role of Congress during the American Revolution? Solve for x. Show your work. They're the kind of answers that come easy but Kate doesn't raise her hand. There are too many noises, too many distractions, too many things she doesn't want to remember. At lunch she sits alone, listens to the things the other girls say about her.
"Yeah, she thinks she's so much better than us 'cause her daddy's sooo rich. Like I give a damn about the size of her inheritance."
"Then it's a good thing I don't give a damn about the size of your ego, Stacey," Kate trills from across the table. "Because I have no problem telling you how small a person you really are."
***
At archery practice she hits the bullseye one, two, three times in a row. Maybe Eli's right, Kate thinks. Maybe none of them wanted her at first, maybe she should give Clint back his bow and arrows. But there are some things no one can take away.