Secret Santa: Sighting the Target
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A Gift From: spyforaday
Type Of Gift: Fic
Title: Sighting the Target
A Gift For: i_llbedammned
Rating: PG13
Warnings: Gun references, gun/canon-typical violence, a few four-letter words
Summary/Prompt Used: I combined two prompts: Clint and Natasha have to team up to save the day as assassins try to get them; Natasha and Clint go on a double date with Tony and Pepper
Author's Note: This takes place not long after The Avengers and only involves Clint, Nat, Tony, and Pepper. I hope this hits the high points of my giftee's "yes's".
CHAPTER 1
Schick Schick
Pop pop pop pop pop pop pop pop pop pop
Pepper Potts calmly released the magazine, checked the chamber to confirm it was empty, and set the .22 caliber handgun on the shelf in front of her. As she removed her earmuffs, she turned to Natasha Romanoff and offered her a huge grin.
“I don’t think he’s walking away from that,” said Pepper.
Natasha returned her grin and replied, “Nope, he’s not. Well, unless he’s some kind of superhuman or being of unknown origin - but let’s stick to human bad guys for the moment.”
Pepper removed her safety glasses and pushed the button that brought the target of a human silhouette to her from 20 feet away. The grouping blew a large hole through what would’ve been a forehead on a six-foot human.
“Does this mean you’re ready to put away the toy .22 and move up to something with a little more punch?” Natasha asked while motioning to her own 9mm sitting on the shelf.
Pepper shook her head. “I beg your pardon, Miss World-Renowned Assassin. My pistol is hardly a toy. And as long as I feel comfortable with it - and consistently manage groupings like this,” she shook the target for emphasis, “then I’ll thank you to keep your Glock talk to yourself.”
“But if you’re ever in a situation where…” Natasha began and got quickly cut off.
“I’m not an Avenger. I’m the CEO of Stark Industries. Personal protection. That’s all I’m interested in. I leave the big guns to the big guns, like you and the rest of the team,” Pepper simply stated.
Natasha was not giving up. “I get it, I do. But because of who you are and who we are, you’re a target. You need to be prepared,” Natasha explained.
“Why do you think I asked you to train me? I carved out two hours a week -- that I really didn’t have -- to get over my fear of guns and learn from the best. And, dammit, I think I’ve done ok!” The CEO all but stomped her foot to make her point.
She tried not to smile, but Natasha couldn’t hold back. Pepper had done ok. More than ok, actually. She was a fast learner, had tremendous hand-eye coordination, and more determination than expected. Which was why she was pushing Pepper to move forward. Not just a bigger caliber, but broaden her knowledge of other firearms. Natasha knew better than anyone that you don’t always end a firefight with the same weapon you started it with. But Natasha was patient and would pick her battle.
“Ok, ok, you’re right. A headshot with a .22 is still a headshot. This is me backing off,” she chuckled. But added ominously, “for now.”
“Thank you,” Pepper sighed and released the target from the clip. She wrote the date on it, folded it up, and added it her stash of targets in her range bag before securing and packing up her pistol.
Natasha began packing up her own equipment, but left her target on the range.
“So, I’ve been meaning to ask you,” Pepper began. “Why do you leave your target up?”
“Oh, I leave it up for Barton. He likes to fire through my groupings to a target beyond. He thinks it earns him showmanship points,” Natasha said as she rolled her eyes.
“Ah, Clint, of course. I should’ve known,” Pepper said.
Natasha turned to look at her with a puzzled look. She titled her head slightly to the left and asked, “What’s that supposed to mean?”
To anyone else Natasha’s tone would’ve been reason for concern, but Pepper was unfazed and continued to pack her bag. “It just means: Clint. Everything you two do somehow revolves around each other.”
Pepper paused to look up at Natasha. “You don’t even realize it, do you?” Pepper asked.
Natasha was not sure she wanted to continue this line of conversation, but, like a train wreck, she couldn’t look away. “I have no idea what you’re getting at, Pepper.”
Pepper offered her a smile that could’ve been worn by a wise, old grandmother. “Natasha, we’ve been spending at least two hours a week together for the past two months. I see it. How do you, after so many years together, not?”
Natasha felt a pang of fear begin to rise. How had Pepper easily, effortlessly, peeled back countless layers of defensive protection and unceremoniously just spoken aloud her deepest, darkest secret?
Before she had a chance to implement damage control, things got worse.
“Well, well, well! If it isn’t both of my dates for tonight,” came the booming voice of Clint Barton.
Oh, hell no, not now. Wait… Dates? What?
“What?” Natasha surprised herself by asking out loud.
“Well, hello Clint. We were just …”
“…getting ready to leave,” interrupted Natasha.
“I would hope so. Don’t want to be late for our reservation,” he said casually, as he lightly punched her shoulder.
“Are you really joining Tony and I at Gilt tonight?” asked Pepper hopefully.
“We are. Stark invited us along and, I hope you don’t mind, Tash, but I said we’d both be there,” Clint said with a tight smile and eyes that pleaded with her to play along.
Well now. THAT made more sense. Clearly there’s something going on behind the scenes. Mystery and intrigue she could handle. Talking about feelings, not so much.
“Well, if you confirmed with Stark, who am I to say no,” she replied breezily.
Pepper seemed too caught up in the latest turn of events to notice any private communication between the two seasoned spies. She just nodded to Clint and gave Natasha’s hand a quick squeeze. “What a wonderful surprise. I will see you both later then. And, Natasha, thank you, again. As always, these are my favorite two hours every week.” And with that, Pepper confidently strode out of the range.
As soon as the door closed and they were alone, Natasha unleashed her pent-up energy at Clint.
“What the hell was that? A date? The fuck, Barton?” she growled.
“Whoa, Widow, simmer down,” purred Clint as he held up his hands in mock surrender. “It’s less of a date and more of a mission. Though, as venues go, maybe we can enjoy a really nice meal before the shit hits the fan.”
“Don’t make me ask you again…” she said through gritted teeth.
“Stark ‘fessed up and showed me some threats he’d been getting from a small-time outfit out of Sokovia. At least he thought it was small-time. I had Hill run it through some SHIELD connections. The origin is sketchy, but overall they’re legit. And they’re targeting Pepper,” he said.
“You found out they’re planning to act tonight?” she deduced.
“Yep. SHIELD asked if we wanted to be the agents on scene. I told them yes.”
“Agreed.” It was one word, but it sounded shaky. She was sure Barton picked up on it.
“It’s ok, Nat. We’ll be there. She’ll be fine. And we get to dress up,” he joked as he bumped her shoulder with his.
“And go on a date,” she added, though she wasn’t really sure she meant to say it out loud. She was too busy remembering an op in Dubai where he’d worn a silver-gray suit that still managed to show off his arms and allowed full range of motion in the hand-to-hand combat they’d been involved in. She hoped he chose to wear that one. It was always good to have range of motion, she reasoned.
“Yeah, a date,” he repeated. For a split second a memory flashed in his mind. It was a mission in Paris where Natasha had worn a short, silver sequined dress with spaghetti straps that fit all her curves, and hid more weaponry than he could carry in his suit. He hoped she chose to wear that one. It was always good to have extra weapons, he reasoned.
CHAPTER 2
After memorizing the layout of the restaurant, Natasha was able to turn her attention to getting ready. She chose a short, silver sequined cocktail dress that, surprisingly, she’d been able to add many inside pockets for securing small weapons. The cut of the dress allowed for additional weapons to be strategically placed while showing off her figure. She applied minimal makeup and allowed her hair to air dry to enhance her natural curls.
Any time her mind started to wander, she went over the layout of the restaurant to make sure she knew every possible exit, hiding place, and potential trouble spot. Plus, it meant she didn’t have to consider her earlier conversation with Pepper. But the more she thought about her friend - when did that happen? - being in the line of fire, she couldn’t stop the questions.
How had she let this happen? How had she let someone get so close to her that they saw through her defenses where Clint was concerned? Pepper was good, but Natasha was trained to hide her true self. Hell, Natasha wasn’t even sure who she was sometimes, so how could somebody else figure it out? How was she going to convince Pepper to keep her secret? Well, first things first. Keep Pepper safe, do away with this cartel, and then worry about annoying personal feelings.
As if on cue, JARVIS announced the arrival of Agent Barton. “Agent Romanoff, your date for the evening is here.” Were those butterflies in her stomach? Get a grip, Widow, she chastised herself. This is a mission, nothing more. Oh, and fuck you, JARVIS, she added.
She patted herself down one final time to make sure she had everything she needed, grabbed her purse, and opened the door.
She was met with a bouquet of flowers to the face. “Um, it’s been a while since I did the whole date thing, but I think it’s still accepted practice to bring flowers, right?” Clint rambled.
“Um, sure, yeah. Thank you. But, it’s not a date, it’s a mission, right?” she stammered.
“Well, I figure we gotta make it look legit,” he answered sheepishly.
“Oh, absolutely. Ah, let me put these in here and we can get going,” she said, as she couldn’t decide if she was stepping out of the door or back into the suite. After a few side steps, she motioned for him to come in while she put the flowers in the kitchen.
He followed her in and when she finally decided to just set the bundle down on the kitchen counter, she turned to face him.
“Wow,” she let slip. “Ah, wow, it’s been a while since I’ve seen that suit on you. Gray is definitely your color,” she cringed inwardly. Just stop talking.
Now that she was facing him without the floral obstruction, he got to the full effect of her beauty - from her fiery red curls to the shiny tip of her white pumps. “You look beautiful… ah, and if I remember correctly, you’re armed to the hilt in that dress, right?” he quickly added.
She smiled. “Yes, I am. Now let’s go rid the world of some scum,” she said as she motioned for his arm.
He gladly offered it and they made their way to the waiting limo… and an absolutely beaming Pepper Potts.
CHAPTER 3
The first thing Natasha noticed when she entered Gilt was the number of civilians in the restaurant. If someone was making a move in here, they were either very bold or had some big plan to keep it quiet. A quick glance up at Clint confirmed he was thinking the same thing.
As Pepper continued giving them the history of their location, Tony pulled her tighter. “You are very quiet this evening, Tony. Is everything ok?” she asked the billionaire.
“Everything’s fine, Pep. I’m just regretting having these tag-alongs here tonight. I should’ve kept it a quiet evening for the just two of us,” he said as he tossed his head in the direction of his teammates, though his eyes were wide and scanning the room.
“Nonsense! I’m so happy you both could be here tonight,” she exclaimed as she broke free from Tony and grabbed Natasha’s arm. “Let’s get to our table - we have so much to talk about,” she fake whispered as a devious grin decorated her face.
They were shown to their usual table, though tonight it was partially curtained off from the rest of the seating area. Clint and Natasha assumed this was Tony’s request. He assumed it was theirs.
When the first of the wait staff appeared, Natasha heard a click in her right ear. She noticed Clint reached for his left ear -- the ear that held his hearing aid and his communication device. His quick glance to her confirmed that they’d lost communication, but she figured he could still hear when Pepper mentioned going to the ladies room.
“Already?” he exclaimed.
Pepper laughed and Natasha just shook her head. Tony was the one who didn’t seem to hear her. He kept glancing at the opening in the curtain.
“Agent Barton, you’re lucky to have a partner who never needs to check her flawless hair and makeup. The rest of us mere mortals have noses to powder, lipstick to reapply, and dresses to adjust. So, if you’ll excuse me…”
“I’ll join you, Pepper. There’s always something that needs adjusting,” Natasha offered reassurance to the two men and their wide eyes. The fear of Pepper being out of their sight slightly eased as Natasha moved next to her and out into the restaurant.
As they walked to the restroom, Pepper asked, “So Clint cleans up nicely, wouldn’t you say?”
“Hmmm? I suppose. He doesn’t wear a suit that often, so it is a striking contract to his tac equipment,” she answered in as conversational a tone as she could muster. That suit definitely turned some heads, especially hers.
Pepper just smiled and continued walking. She wasn’t fooled, but she wasn’t going to push, either. Best to let Nat work this out in her own way. That wasn’t to say, though, that she wouldn’t softly prod. They’d wasted too much time already, in Pepper’s opinion.
Natasha worked her way in front of Pepper and entered the ladies room first. It was empty. As Pepper went through the motions of primping and chatting about the menu, Natasha mentally reviewed the ways out if the doors got blocked or an attack came from above. It was all for naught as they soon left and made their way back to the table.
An empty table.
“Do you think they went to the bar?” asked Pepper.
“No, I don’t,” absently replied Natasha as her sharp eyes took in every detail of the area. The tablecloth no longer hung evenly on the table. It was pulled slightly to the right where Clint had been sitting. There were a few drops of water sprinkled on the table indicating a sharp impact to the top of the table - like heads hitting it - as opposed to a bump that would’ve caused water glasses to slosh over. And there were two distinctive lines in the carpet that Natasha was very familiar with. When you drag a limp body over plush carpet, it leaves a trail.
Pepper sat back down to the table. “Typical,” she sighed. “I’m sorry if Tony gets Clint caught up in some sort of trouble. It seems to follow him everywhere and he does nothing to help his case, most of the time.”
Natasha’s mind was racing with possible scenarios. She weighed her options and made a decision she didn’t want to make. But, her gut told her it was the right call under the circumstances. Her gut was all she had at the moment.
“Hey, Pep,” she began as she kneeled next to Pepper’s chair. “I’ve got a bad feeling about this, ok? I need you to stay calm and listen to me. Can you do that?”
She could see the fear rising in the other woman’s face, but it was tempered by her cool professionalism. And, Natasha would like to think that a little bit of her training was shining through, too.
“Do think something’s happened to Tony?”
“I don’t know. But I’m guessing he and Clint are together and I need to find them before something does happen. I need you stay here and take care of yourself. I don’t know if there’s anyone here you can trust. I need you to call Happy and get out of here as soon as you can. Do you understand? Can you do that?”
“Of course. You go. Find Tony and Clint. Don’t let anything happen to them. Please,” Pepper begged.
“I’m only leaving once I know you’re in control of your situation. Are we good?” Natasha insisted on knowing.
“I’m fine. Go, Natasha,” pleaded Pepper.
With that, Natasha grabbed her purse, walked behind the curtain, and started her search.
CHAPTER 4
Based on the layout of the restaurant, there was only one place the assailants could possibly have dragged two limp bodies without being noticed. Natasha continued down the dark hallway and started lightly tapping on the wall to find where the utility access to the restaurant’s office area would be. After a few raps, she found the spot, removed the panel, and entered the area.
Since this space was not open to the public, it was not detailed on any of the plans she and Barton reviewed. Surprisingly well lit, she wound her way around cubicles until she heard voices. She slowed her pace, checked her weapons, and began to formulate an attack plan as she listened for her opening.
“…not going to touch Pepper.”
That was Tony’s voice.
“Haven’t you figured it out yet, Stark? They don’t want Pepper. They want Nat and me. This is a personal vendetta…”
That was Clint. Personal vendetta?
“… for taking out their eastern European drug ring, like, what, three maybe four years ago? Let it go, man. Get over it.”
That earned him a fist to the jaw. But, it gave Natasha intel. This wasn’t amateur hour from Sokovia. She remembered the op Clint mentioned. This was a highly organized, if lower tier, drug cartel. These guys knew what they were doing. They were dirty and dangerous and didn’t mind a body count. She needed to know how many hostiles she was dealing with. Keep ‘em talking, Barton.
“Not everything is about you, Barton. C;mon guys. What will it take to make this go away? Who’s in charge here, huh? You, buddy? You look like you could run the show. How much to let us go and keep the ladies safe?” inquired Tony as if he were in the boardroom and not being held a gun point.
There was laughter throughout the room. Natasha could make out three distinct voices. “Him?” said one of the captors. “He’s no more the brains of this operation than the archer is the brains of yours.”
More laughter.
“Hey, I bet I still have a higher IQ than any of the three of you,” spat Clint. That earned him another fist - this time to the gut. But it told Natasha what she needed to know.
Based on voices, Tony was on the right side of the room and Clint was on the left. It sounded like two were near Tony, possibly very close to the door. So, that was the plan. Take the guy closest to the door with the element of surprise and reevaluate from there. Oh, and hope there’s no trip wire or bomb involved.
With a final glance at her spotless pumps, she hammered the door with a solid kick. The door smashed into the face of the goon just inside. Before he had a chance to recover and fire at Natasha, she put a single shot through his chest. He dropped instantly.
The other two reacted by pointing their guns to the temple of each of their hostages.
“Sorry about dinner, Tash,” wheezed Clint. “Not the first date I was hoping to give you.”
“Zip it, Barton,” she instructed.
“Well, Ms. Romanoff, we meet again. Since your partner remembers me, I’m sure you do, too. Although,” he paused as he rubbed the barrel of the pistol against Clint’s temple, “I have to admit that I’m more pleased to see you than him.”
“Who could blame you? I mean look at her,” chirped Tony. That earned him a barrel pushed into his temple, as well.
“I’m pissed off that my fancy dinner got ruined and somebody’s gonna pay. And I don’t mean Stark,” was her nonchalant response. She hoped nobody could see her pulse points. She felt like her fear was written all over her face. She knew what was coming and she was terrified.
“Actually, Black Widow, it’s you who are going to pay. I would’ve preferred to use Ms. Potts as my other bargaining chip, but you’ve gotten soft since you joined SHIELD, so I’m not worried. Either way, you’ll experience loss and failure,” crooned the abductor.
“You think that’s something new to me? Welcome to my world, asshole.”
“Well, then, let’s just get down to business then. My colleague and I are quite prepared to die for our cause. Which of these noble men will you sacrifice for yours?”
Yep, that’s what she thought. She really hated being right sometimes.
“Nat, don’t even think about it,“ warned Clint.
Her eyes met his and she hoped he could see everything she wanted to say. All the snarky comebacks, all the innuendo over the years, all the deflections, all the feelings - they knew it would probably come down to this. That didn’t make it any easier. Plus, she always feared that it would be Clint left to make this choice. It made her sick to think of him living with that for the rest of his life. And now it was going to be her. The universe had a really sick sense of humor.
He offered her a goofy smile and blew her a kiss.
“You’ll forgive me for not dragging this out like some melodramatic
Bond villain. So, Widow, 3 - 2 - 1…”
Natasha didn’t have time to think. She turned to her right.
‘BANG’ ‘POP’
She instantly turned to her left.
‘BANG’
Her round fired through the far wall.
She saw Tony and Clint running toward her. Natasha didn’t know how that was even possible, until she heard a voice behind her say, “A headshot with a .22 is still a headshot.”
Tony ran past her and enveloped Pepper in his arms. Natasha reached over and pulled the pistol from her hand so she could return the embrace. She was going to need his support.
Natasha tossed Pepper’s pistol to Clint and went into a defensive position in front of Tony and Pepper. Clint came up beside her. “Wanna check the perimeter?”
Natasha could only nod in agreement.
As soon as they stepped out of the room, they canvassed the office area. There were no other hostiles, or anyone else. Being so far removed from the hustle and bustle of the restaurant, the sound didn’t carry. The staff could continue to serve the clueless patrons. Life went on just a few steps away.
“Looks like Pepper was a star student,” Clint said quietly.
“She’s gonna need help to get over this,” said Natasha sadly. “She should never have been in that position.”
“She’s a strong woman, Nat. Just like you. She’ll have all the support she needs. She’ll get through this,” he replied. “Honestly, I’m a little more concerned about you at the moment…”
“Me?” she squeaked. She cleared her throat and tried again. “Me? Why?”
He didn’t reply, just tilted his head and gave her a knowing stare.
“Look, we always knew it could go down like that and…” she stopped mid sentence and looked into his eyes. What would she have done if Pepper hadn’t totally disregarded her instructions? Clint would be dead.
Without any further thought, she launched herself at him and began to kiss him. He caught her easily and deepened the kiss.
They weren’t anywhere near done with their first official kiss, but duty called. A very loud cough broke them apart as Natasha slid down Clint’s gray suit trousers to stand on her, albeit shaky, own two feet.
Pepper ran over and wrapped her arms around Natasha. They just stood there and held each other. There were no tears and no words. Just the comfort of each other understanding the gravity of what they had both experienced.
“I’m not sorry. And I’m not sure if I feel bad. That’s what disturbs me, Natasha,” Pepper whispered so that only the other woman could hear.
Natasha gave her a sad smile. “It’s ok. You need time to process everything. We’ll get you in with SHIELD’s best immediately. For now, just be with Tony, ok?”
Pepper nodded and started to pull away, but Nat kept her close. “How did you know I would shoot Tony’s guy and not Clint’s?” she asked.
It was Pepper’s turn to give Natasha a sad smile. “Even though you don’t seem to see it, you are a good person. You put the needs of others above your own. I just knew you’d save Tony. Just like I knew I had to save Clint.”
“Thank you,” was all Natasha could think to say.
Pepper just smiled and walked back into Tony’s arms.
“I got in touch with Hill. Clean up team is on its way. We should probably head over to HQ and get the debrief process started,” stated Clint.
“Did you just suggest we get into debrief?” asked Nat.
“Well, I want to get Pepper taken care of,” he said. “I also want to get that over with so we can request our time off.”
“Oh, really? Have plans?” she asked with raised eyebrows.
“You better believe WE do,” he responded as he lowered his head and began kissing her.