Unusual Avenger: Aftermath

by Zarra_Rous

Summary:

Jason Walsh, AKA Clint Barton, has to deal not only with the consequences of his two lives colliding, but also the birth of his daughters, the loss of his hearing, and the emergence of a old threat.

Chapter 1

Unusual Avenger: Aftermath

Playlist can be found at UA2

X Unusual X

I'm unashamed of my mistakes
I walked the path I had to take
It's made me who I am today
This reign of hate is done
We're gonna take this over now
And we've only just begun

- Here I Am – Asking Alexandria –

X Unusual X

Second Precinct, please be advised, our friends at the FBI have donated donuts to us again. Make sure to grab one before they realize that we have them.

X Unusual X

- November 2013 -

The fact that Thor came back to Earth and immediately left with one of his twin daughters’ godmothers, somehow did not surprise Jason Walsh in the slightest. The fact that she had been missing for five hours beforehand did. Although he really didn’t know why it should have. Thor had spoken often enough of his beloved Lady Jane, for him to know that the Ǽsir would do anything for her. It was one of the only reasons he was not in London right now. The other reason was because Darcy had assured him that she could handle Selvig and his current fascination with going pantsless. After what they had both been through, it was no wonder the scientist had had a bit of a break from reality.

Now a couple of days later, he was ready to panic, and it was only due to his SHIELD and police training that he didn’t. It wasn’t every day that an alien space craft appeared out of nowhere and attacked Greenwich, England, while giant portals to other worlds floated overhead. It didn’t help that every time he tried to call Darcy, her phone sent him straight to voicemail.

“This is the intern extraordinaire, leave a message after the beep and I’ll get back to you whenever.”

“Darcy call me when you get this, I’m really hoping that you’re not in Greenwich right now. It’s all over the news here in New York. Please call me back Lewis, I need to know you’re okay.” A light hand on his arm drew his attention away from the dark screen of his Stark phone. Looking to his right he met the concerned eyes of his partner. He tried to smile, but he caught sight of another explosion on the bull pen’s tv screen. “I’m really hoping Darcy’s not in the middle of all that.”

Casey’s voice was quiet as she replied to his statement. “Knowing her, she probably is.” The two women had become good friends since they had met last year. Jason’s police partner had even received the honor of becoming one of his daughters’ godmothers, right along side Jane, Natasha, and Pepper. It actually amazed him, when he wasn’t stressed out that is, that the four women who played major roles in his and Darcy’s lives got along as well as they did. Turning to look more closely at his partner, he was surprised to see just how tired and stressed she looked. “Are you okay?”

“I will be.” She tried to smile, but it came across as more of a grimace. “I just haven’t heard from Nat in a while and now with the stuff going on in Greenwich today…” She shook her head. “I guess I’m just really feeling the stress today.”

A quiet curse drew their attention back to the TV that everyone was watching. Instead of a view of the alien ship, the entire screen was now dominated by a dark grey and black cloud that shimmered with flashes of red and blue.

Jason felt his heart drop into his stomach. “Thor protect us.” Lifting his phone, he unlocked it with shaking hands, redialing his wife again.

“Little busy here babe.” Darcy’s voice was breathless as she finally answered.

“Thank Odin.” Jason let out a breath that was nearly a sob at the sound of her voice. “D please tell me that you’re okay?”

There was the sound of a crash, followed by Darcy letting out a hysterical laugh. “I’m okay. The intern just saved my life. Gah. Dark elves suck. So, I’m guessing you’re gonna want a fill in.” She paused before letting out a sound of confusion. “Hang on.”

He let out a disbelieving laugh as he watched the cloud and alien ship vanish into thin air. “It’s gone.”

“It’s so totally gone.” She let out a cheer. “Go Janie!”

“Jane did that?” He could see that his coworkers that were in earshot were starting to take an interest in his conversation. With a smile and a thumbs up, he reassured them that everything was good. “Thor beat the bad guys, it’s all good.” Turning his attention back to his phone he felt his smile soften as he listened to his wife’s explanation.

“Well, sort of. Eric made the gravity sensor things that made things go poof. Jane’s the one who was playing with mystical shit that got her an in with Asgard and she helped Eric figure out how to use the sensors to make things go poof. Only works today though, because of the Convergence thing that made things all weird. Anyways, she brought Thor back with her, so go Janie. But you know, go crazy Eric, too.”

He laughed. “I hope you don’t plan on reporting on it that way.”

“Nah, I’ll be good in my report. Use grownup language and everything.” She paused and he could hear her suck in a surprised breath. “Oh, sweet Mew-Mew. Thor got knocked out. Wow. That guy Malekith was one nasty piece of work.”

“Are Jane and Selvig alright?”

“Looks like it, but Thor’s down for the count.” She huffed in exasperation. “Looks like we’ve either gotta wait for the big guy to wake up or drag his heavy ass to the car.” There was the sound of sirens in the background. “And there’s the cops. I do not want to get arrested over this.”

Jason laughed, amused at his wife’s griping, before he pointed out something that he figured she had probably forgotten due to the stress of the day. “Darcy you are an agent of SHIELD. As the highest ranking agent there at the moment, you have the authority to keep them away from Thor, Jane, and Selvig. Just flash your badge and act official. As long as it seems like you know what you’re doing, they will treat you like you do.”

“And that is why you are still my SO, because you know this shit and I just babysit scientists.”

“I love you.”

“I love you too Mister Lewis. I’ll see you as soon as I can convince Jane to come back to New York with me.”

After she ended the call, he looked up to see the expectant faces of the rest of his squad he reassured them again. “She’s fine. Thor took care of it.”

Casey sighed and placed her forehead on his shoulder. “Thank God for that. I am so glad Darcy is okay.”

Wrapping an arm around her shoulders, he gave her a quick squeeze. “I need to call Pepper and talk to Brown. I’m going to be useless the rest of the day.”

Almost as if Jason’s words had conjured the man, Sargent Brown walked into the bullpen and headed straight for the detective. “Walsh, you’re out for the day. Your other boss called and got it cleared with HR.” At the younger man’s nod, he continued. “Go home and hugs your kids. The wife call you already?”

He couldn’t help the proud smile that spread across his lips. “Yeah, she’s fine. Right in the middle of everything.” He let out a chuckle. “But she came out without damage. Thor on the other hand, got his overly happy ass handed to him. But aside from a bump on the head he should be fine when he wakes up.”

Brown let out a bark of laughter at that. “Well damn. I guess your head really is harder than his.” He clapped a hand on the archer’s shoulder. “Get outta here before HR calls to yell at me some more. Shraeger, you take him home and then get back here. You have paperwork to do. And Walsh, I don’t want to hear from you until Friday.”

X Unusual X

New Year’s Day 2013

Looking across their desks, Casey blinked at her partner a few times in surprise, before taking a deep breath, “So, twin girls. You’re screwed.”

He nodded as he took a sip of his coffee, before grimacing at the taste. If it weren’t for the fact that it was New Year’s Day and most all of the coffee shops were closed, he wouldn’t be drinking the swill that the rookies referred to as paint thinner. “Yeah, identical twins. Gets better.”

She let out a snort of disbelief, “Really?”

Jason got a wicked gleam in his eyes. “We want you and Nat to be two of the girls’ godmothers.”

Taking a moment, his partner considered the request. They both knew that she would say yes, but the real question was if Natasha would. She was always somehow softer around children. So, she supposed the answer really wasn’t that hard. Knowing that the other woman was still on assignment and unable to be reached for some time yet, meant that it was up to Casey to decided for them both. “We’d be honored. Does that mean that I get to take them to synagogue with me sometimes?”

Smiling brightly, he nodded as he placed his coffee cup back down on his desk. “Absolutely. Darcy will be taking them herself when she’s home, and I’m sure she’ll be happy to know that someone can take them when she’s not. As it is, she’s not going anywhere any time soon. Boss’ orders. He’s even quietly arranged for her friend Doctor Foster to work upstate for the next six months or so, before she goes back to Europe.”

“Doctor Foster?” Casey tipped her head to the side, vaguely recognizing the name.

“Darcy’s her intern slash friend slash keeper. She’s an astrophysicist.” He shrugged, as he explained. “Darcy ended up with her because no one else applied for the internship. She figured that it would look good on applications, even if her major was Poli-Sci.”

“Makes sense.” Taking a sip of her own coffee, she shuddered in disgust while glaring at her mug. “Ew.” Placing it back on her desk, she shrugged at his amused look. “It’s caffeine. So, I’m guessing Darcy’s graduated by now.” At his nod, she continued. “Why’s she still interning then?”

His smile widened as he watched his partner, scratching his cheek while he thought about how to answer her. “You do remember what my other job is right?” When she mock glared at him, he nearly laughed. “Because Darcy and I both work for them. Mind you, she’s only a level two handler and I’m… well… classified.”

Rolling her eyes, Casey grabbed a blank report and crumpled it up before throwing it at him. “Yeah well, we all can’t be superheroes.”

The sound of a throat clearing drew their attention to a nearby desk, where their coworker Henry Cole sat doing his own reports. “Speaking of superheroes. Did you see the news conference this morning, Jason?”

Sharing a brief look with his partner he said that he hadn’t.

“Looks like Mister Stark is out of the hospital. Miss Potts was holding a press conference giving updates about what happened last week in Florida.”

“That’s good.” He shrugged watching as Cole’s worried expression melted away into a soft, pleased smile. He might never fully trust the other man, but at least he knew that his heart was in the right place. “I know Pepper was worried about him.”

Beaumont glared at him from her side of the desks she shared with Cole, as she let out a snort. “So, you’re on a first name basis with a lot of billionaires now? That other job of yours must be real tough if it puts you in Stark’s crowd. Or is that classified too?”

Jason looked at his dark-haired ex-girlfriend with concern. Even though they had broken up before he had gone to New Mexico, nearly two years prior, she had resented his other work for a long time before that and still did even now. Unfortunately, he knew that reacting to her barbs would only make it worse, but he just couldn’t let this continue. He voice was filled with ice and his face was blank when he finally spoke. “You really don’t want to know, because you really wouldn’t like the answer.”

None of the other detectives spoke for several minutes and when they did it was a hushed murmur. Allison couldn’t find it within herself to resume her attack on Jason. All of his secrets had felt like an impenetrable wall between them while they had dated, and she hated it. Even after she had broken up with him, she couldn’t seem to let it go and the resentment just got worst after he got married to a woman that none of them had even met yet. He had come back from a short vacation with a platinum ring on his finger and a glow that she wished that she had been the cause of. She knew herself well enough to know that the only reason she still held a grudge was because she was jealous. Jealous of how happy he was and how he was able to move on and get married while she was still single. This Jason that she had just witnessed was not one that she had ever seen before and frankly he scared her. This must be who he was when he was called away by his other work. This man who had ice in his veins and eyes, was not their friend, he was someone else. “Who are you?” Her words were barely loud enough to be called a whisper, but everyone seemed to hear them none the less.

“Hawkeye.” The single word and accompanying grin said it all. He was who he always was when he was there, but so much more that they had never known.

X Unusual X

Chapter 2

X Unusual X

What part of “Nothing further” did you not understand?

X Unusual X

- November 2013 -

It wasn’t until the day after the Convergence that Darcy was able to go check in with SHIELD. She had even dressed in her actual uniform with its prim and proper pencil skirt and jacket and was carrying her SHIELD issue tablet with her teams’ statements on it. Darcy was all ready to get in, give her report to the highest ranking agent, and get out so that she could call up Jason on her own tablet’s video chat. She was missing him badly and her arms ached with the absence of her girls. Her first trip since they had been born four months earlier and it was just her luck that Jane had found a magic space rock thing.

Of course, it was also her luck that the agent checking ID’s would have no idea what her clearances actually were and had the brain of a newt. ‘Honestly,’ she thought, ‘how hard is it to check?’ “Look here Box of Rocks, I need to see the agent in charge. I need to get these statements to him or her, so that I can go back to my scientist wrangling duties.”

Agent Rocks for Brains just glared at her, shaking his head.

“Is there a problem here?” A firm male voice pulled their attention away from the rapidly developing glaring contest. The tall dark-haired man’s equally dark eyes were already narrowing in annoyance.

“No, sir.”

Darcy rolled her eyes as she waved her tablet at the new guy. ”Look Agent…”

“Ward.”

“Ward. I need to get these statements to the top guy here and Agent Rocks for Brains here is not letting me past and he won’t check my clearances either.”

Ward turned his attention to the other man. “And why is that agent?”

“Jones, sir. She’s a level two. She’s not authorized to be in the containment area, sir.”

“Says who? If you’d check my clearances, you would see that I am authorized for full access to any site where Thor is involved. I’m kinda SHIELD’s expert on him. You don’t believe me, fine. You get to explain to my SO why I’m calling him in the middle of an op. I’m sure that will go over real well with the Director.”

That statement really caught their attention. Ward looked her over again before asking who her SO was.

Her answering grin was smug. “Hawkeye.”

With a quick motion of his hand, Ward took her badge from Jones and pulled out his mobile. After a moment of indecision, he ended up putting it away and calling Fitz on his comms rather than trying to call command. “Hey Fitz, I need you to check out an agent’s clearances for me. You can do that right?”

“Of course I can.” The Scot sounded offended at Ward’s question. After getting Darcy’s information, he made a few muttered comments before he spoke again. “Agent Lewis, Darcy. Joined SHIELD after the events in Puente Antiguo, New Mexico, as an expert on Thor and is assigned as Doctor Foster’s handler. She has special clearance for everything having to do with Thor.”

“Thanks Fitz.” After turning his comm back off, Ward motioned for Jones to go back to his station. “Well, Agent Lewis, you check out. Coulson’s this way.”

Darcy gave a full body flinch at the name, but obediently followed that higher ranking agent. The only coherent thought she was able to put together was, “Fury lied.”

“Excuse me?” Ward looked over his shoulder at her startled by the venom dripping from her muttered words.

“Fury is a lying liar of liar-town. Bastard.” She was about to continue her verbal tirade when the other man she was mad at came around the corner in front of them. “And YOU! Don’t think you’re off the hook mister.” She stomped up to the gawking man. Her chest heaving, she slapped him as hard as she could right across his left cheek.

Hearing May and Ward let out surprised squawks at Darcy’s action, pulled Phil out of his startled stupor. Holding up a hand, he waved the two back. “Don’t. It’s my fault.” Using the same hand, he reached out to his overwrought friend and pulled her into a tight hug. “I am so sorry D.” He whispered into her hair, just quiet enough that he knew the other agents wouldn’t be able to hear. “If it wasn’t for Fury’s orders… I missed you so much.” Letting out a relieved sigh, he tightened his grip as Darcy sagged against him and hugged him back. “I should have found a way to tell you, but Fury is having me watched. I couldn’t endanger you or Clint. I won’t.”

Her voice was muffled by his shirt when she answered. “You make it hard to stay mad at you.”

Pulling back, he was happy to see her give him a watery smile. “Okay?” At her nod, he gave her his own smile. “So, Agent Lewis, I hear that you have something for me?”

Holding up the hand still clutching her tablet, she showed it to him. “Statements from Jane, Eric, Thor, and my intern Ian. Figured I'd just debrief in person.”

He nodded, looking to Melinda he asked if there was a private room he and Darcy could use.

“There should be one inside.” She motioned for them to follow her.

As they walked behind May, Coulson leaned over and complimented Darcy's wedding band.

“Thanks. J gave it to me last year for our six month anniversary, just before his birthday party.”

“I'm sorry I missed it. I was undergoing physical therapy at the time. Fury controlled everything, so I had no idea what was going on. I wish I could have been there.”

X Unusual X

Phil didn't look happy when he sat back down at the café table where he and Darcy were sharing lunch later that day. “I got a call. We're going to be leaving tonight.”

“But you just got here.”

“We're the closest team of specialists.” He shrugged. He didn't want to leave anymore than Darcy wanted him to.

“Where are they sending you?” She rolled her eyes. “If you can tell me that is.”

“Norway. Want to come?” Just as he expected, she shook her head.

“Nah. Think I’ll stay here with Janie.” She paused, giving him a considering look. “You know, we’re gonna be in London for a while yet, so when you’re done with this Norway thing, promise me you’ll come by.”

He looked down at his plate. With the way things had been lately… “I don’t know if I can manage to.”

“He’ll come by.” Melinda spoke as she stepped into the café behind Darcy, just after the younger woman’s plea to Phil. With an arched eyebrow, she smirked at her friend, enjoying his discomfort. “I think we can manage without you for a day or two after this assignment. It’ll be good for you.”

“Are you sure?”

“I’ll make it work.” She said with a shrug. “I’m an administrator. I know the loopholes.”

Phil let out a relieved sigh. He was grateful Melinda was willing to do that for him, but honestly, he was nervous too about the now upcoming meeting with Doctor Foster and Thor.

“So, what now?”

“Now, we get to finish our lunch and then I get to spend the rest of the afternoon deciding who gets to take over as lead here.”

Darcy snorted. “As long as whoever it is, is not Jones.”

“Why not?”

“He’s an idiot.”

Catching Melinda’s agreeing nod, he arched an eyebrow at her in inquiry.

“Agent Lewis is right. Jones is an idiot. I recommend Cavendish.” Pulling out the third chair at their table, she sat down while waving over the waiter. After placing her order, she continued. “I looked them over on my way here. Cavendish is efficient and very detail oriented. This would be his first command, but I think he can handle it.”

Giving it a moment of thought, he realized that he couldn’t really argue with Melinda’s recommendation. He hadn’t really had a chance to go over anyone’s qualifications, but he had made sure to meet most of the onsite crew when they had arrived the prior night. Cavendish had struck him as being very much like one of Melinda’s preferred minions from the Admin office. “Alright. We’ll give him a try.”

The three agents spent the rest of their lunch chatting, with Melinda coming to understand just why Phil had reacted they way he had when he saw the younger woman. She could see that her friend treated the other woman almost as a favored younger sister. Turned out that Darcy made Phil smile in a way she hadn’t seen since before the Battle of Manhattan.

When they separated from Darcy after lunch, Melinda stopped Phil with a hand on his arm. “I like her.”

Phil’s smile was bright as he thanked her. “I’ll tell you later how we met. It’s a good story.”

X Unusual X

Chapter 3

X Unusual X

Okay, whoever took the last French Vanilla K-cup is now officially on my bad dog list. I will find you and when I do you are so buying me a new box.

X Unusual X

- November 2013 -

Standing in front of Jane Foster’s door was probably one of the harder things Phil had done in recent memory, and that list included confronting Loki and apologizing to Natasha for accidentally eating the cupcake her partner had gotten for her. He was hoping that Darcy had already told them, but really, he wasn’t expecting her to have. She may have forgiven him, but he was well aware of her temperament and knew that she could hold a grudge for a long time. Although to be honest, this meeting was not the one he dreaded the most, that distinction was reserved for Tony and Pepper. Given how long he had known Jason and Natasha, he had a fairly good idea of how they were going to react. Banner would probably not react much, since they weren’t well acquainted, but Captain Rogers was the wild card. Even though Captain Rogers barely knew him, Phil knew the man could go one of two directions, he would either understand (orders) or he would not be happy with it and would distrust SHIELD and Nick even more than Phil was sure he already did thanks to his finding out about the Phase Two weapons.

Steeling himself, he knocked before her could talk himself into changing his mind. Fairly quickly the door was wrenched open by a rather frazzled looking Darcy. Seeing that it was Phil, Darcy let out a relieved sigh. Eric, Jane, Ian, and Thor were driving her nuts. It was like having Jason’s entire shift crew over, while hyped up on caffeine after they had all had a double shift. She swore that it was worse than wrangling a pack of toddlers. “Thank Thor’s one-eyed dad you’re here. They are worse than children and I’d know. I’ve got two at home.”

“Do I want to know?”

There was the sudden sound of a thud and Jane letting out a startled squeak.

Darcy growled over her shoulder at the occupants of the flat. “Eric, I told you not to touch the kettle.” She grabbed Phil’s arm and pulled him in.

“I didn’t Darcy.” The older man said over his own shoulder as he helped Thor right Jane’s white board, just as her intern disappeared into the kitchen. “Ian tripped and knocked over the board.”

The look of shock on his face and Thor’s, when they turned and saw Phil was nearly worth all the stress, they had been giving her since the Convergence. Her smile was overly sweet and more than a little malicious when she turned it on the ageing astrophysicist and Norse god. “Look who’s here to visit. It’s Agent iPod thief.”

While Thor’s eyes grew wide in bewilderment, Eric merely looked at Phil in confusion as his own initial shock faded. “Didn’t Loki kill you?”

The SHIELD agent’s reply was dry. “Technically.” He smiled his polite fake smile. “I got better.”

Eric nodded in comprehension. “I’m sure Fury had something to do with that.”

“Of course, he did.” Phil’s smile turned rueful. “Nick has a bad habit of interfering in my life. Fortunately for my sanity I have some secrets even he doesn’t know about. Isn’t that right Mrs. Walsh?”

Darcy’s eyes narrowed as her lips drew tight into a pout. “Shut up you. I haven’t had a chance to tell them yet.”

“Son of Coul.” Thor spoke quietly interrupting whatever Phil was going to say in response. “I am pleased to see that you have survived, but I would know by what sorcery you have. That was a mortal wound. Do not tell me that it was not, for I have seen a multitude of such.”

Taking a deep breath, Phil shrugged. “Your guess is as good as mine. All I know is what they told me. And given how some of the people closest to me have reacted, it’s a lie. But until I find out the truth, the best guess I have is that they were able to keep me alive long enough to replace my heart and repair my lung.”

“Why does it not surprise me that Fury lied to you.” Eric rolled his eyes as he bent down to pick up the papers that had scattered over the floor when the white board fell. Shouting over his shoulder called for Ian to make coffee. “Smart student, shit intern.” Waving a paper filled hand, he shrugged. “Oh well, at least he’s decent at making coffee.”

“An important skill.” Looking around the room, Phil noted both Doctor Foster and the intern’s absence. “Where is Doctor Foster?”

“My Jane has taken young Ian to the store to obtain food for dinner.” Thor answered as he moved to stand directly in front of Phil. Reaching out, he gently placed his hands on his friend’s shoulders. “I am sure you will discover the truth in time my friend. And I am exceedingly glad that you have been returned to us, both hale and hearty.”

Darcy aw’ed at them. “You guys are so sweet.” She shrugged when all three of the men turned to look at her with disbelief on their faces. “What? It’s true. You guys are being sweet.” She waved at Eric. “Except for Eric. Because, really? It’s not nice to call the intern names.”

Eric rolled his eyes at the young woman. “It’s not name calling if it’s true. Now I think it’s time for you to explain your secret.”

“It’s not a secret.” At his disbelieving look, she threw her hands up in the air. “It’s not! Not exactly. Jane knows.”

“Knows what Darcy?”

She looked at Phil in agitation. She wasn’t sure why telling these two was so hard. It’s not like it was hard to tell the rest of the Avengers or Second Precinct. But then again, she supposed she was a whole lot more invested in these two than the others. “I’m married.”

“Married?” Eric’s eyes narrowed as he studied the young woman, he had met two years earlier, when Jane had called him to New Mexico. Now that he really looked at her, there really did seem to be something different about her, a certain look about her. “When did that happen? Is there anything else we need to know? How did Jane find out?”

She bit her lip as she looked up at Eric. “Yes, I am married. Jane found out when we were in Tromsø. As for when…” She turned away, looking at Thor instead. “Hawkeye and I got married a month before Loki kidnapped him and Eric.” Shrugging, Darcy waved a hand at Phil. “We didn’t tell anybody until almost October, after we had been married for six months. Only Phil and Pepper Potts knew and that’s because Phil helped arrange it and Pepper is his best friend. Plus, Pepper is Jason’s handler now.” She snapped her fingers and pointed at Thor. “She’s yours too actually, so we should probably call her and let her know that you are here in London.” Turning to Phil, one of her fingers ended up poking him repeatedly in the chest. “And no, we will not tell her for you. Telling people is your job.”

“I know. I’m not looking forward to that particular conversation.” He shrugged. “To be honest, Pepper kind of scares me.”

“To be fair, she does have to deal with Tony on a daily basis.”

“True.” Tilting his head, he looked over at a very quiet Asgardian. “You’re being awfully quiet Mr. Odinson.”

Nodding, the Æsir prince sighed as he looked at the girl he liked to call his ‘Lightning Sister’. “Does friend Hawkeye make you happy?”

Moving so that she stood only an arm’s length from him, she looked up and met his eyes so that he could see how serious she was. “More than about anything. The only thing that makes me happier than him are the two precious little girls he gave me.”

With a wide grin he pulled her off her feet into a hug. “Then you both have my blessing for long happy lives filled with the joys of many children.”

X Unusual X

July 12, 2012

Even though it had been two months since the Battle of Manhattan, Stark Tower was still undergoing renovations. From what Pepper had told him, they were looking to be quite extensive, as the top ten floors needed to be repaired or were being repurposed. Not to mention the ten floors below those were being repaired as well. The astonishing part for Jason was not that Tony’s penthouse was being redone, but instead that Pepper had wanted to meet with him there.

So, he was more than a little surprised when JARVIS let him out on a floor that very much looked like an airplane hangar. “This isn’t the penthouse.”

“No Detective Walsh, it is not,” the AI replied. “Miss Potts asked me to bring you to the flight deck. I do believe she wants your opinion on it since you are the Avengers resident pilot.”

Rather than JARVIS continuing, Pepper did as she came out of the office next to the elevator. “Tony decided that it would be a good idea for the Avengers to have their own Quinjet.”

“Really?” He thought about it for a second. “Actually, that makes sense. Is it odd that I think that that is weird?”

“Not really, it’s Tony. He’s made this one of his projects.” She waved for him to follow her deeper into the half complete hanger. “After we’re done talking, let me know what you think should be added, or changed. In this you are the expert, not Tony. He knows cars and his suits, but I think planes need to be left to someone who actually flies them.”

Jason laughed at that, noticing that she was smirking. “Well, I live to disappoint Tony.” Taking a look around, he took quick note of at least two things that would need to be reworked. “Anyways, you wanted to talk to me?”

She nodded. “Your sergeant called me yesterday.”

“Did he?” He only barely prevented himself from rolling his eyes. “Is this about the psychologist thing again?”

“Actually, no.” She stopped walking and turned to face him, the hangar stretching out around them empty guaranteeing their privacy. “He feels, and I agree, that you need a vacation to recuperate mentally.”

That brought him up short. “But I was cleared by SHIELD and the NYPD to go back to work.”

“I know, but Sergeant Brown has known you for a long time and he is concerned. That is why he brought this to me.” Pepper could see that he was starting to close off from her and would very quickly shut down the conversation if she pushed. Pulling an envelope out of her blazer pocket, she held it out to him. “These are tickets for a two week trip to Tromsø for the last week of July and the first week of August. Consider it a belated honeymoon.”

Eyes widening Jason stared at Pepper in disbelief. He hadn’t expected that. A honeymoon was something he and Darcy hadn’t planned on until after she graduated her doctoral program in a few years. “Thank you.” He took the envelope and opened it to see not only first-class plane tickets, but also a black credit card with his name on it. “A black card?”

“Consider that Tony’s wedding present to you, even if he knows nothing about it.” She laughed as she started walking towards the hangar door. “Now tell me, what do you think of the flight deck so far?”

X Unusual X

Chapter 4

X Unusual X

Dispatch to all units… try marking yourselves on duty when you go on duty and that means you Alverez.

X Unusual X

March 2014 - Las Vegas, Nevada – Agents of SHIELD “Yes Men”

If there was one word Darcy could come up with for Caesar’s Palace, it was opulent. Why Jason had decided to bring her here was beyond her. She would have been perfectly happy with having their anniversary vacation at a slightly less posh hotel, like the Hard Rock. Although, the fact that they were even getting a weekend off was a miracle. Between the twins and their jobs, they rarely got any free time. But Pepper, Jane, and Casey had all claimed the girls and had shoved them off. “So, Caesar’s Palace. Why?”

Jason looked at her out of the corner of his eye as they walked past the fountain in the massive lobby. “Tony. He decided to give us this trip as an anniversary present, even if it is a month early. Frankly it’s a miracle he remembered at all.”

Rolling her eyes, she turned to look at him with an unimpressed expression. Their friend had a bad tendency to go overboard when giving presents. “If it weren’t all expense paid, I would never stay here.”

He agreed with a grimace. “I was planning on Hard Rock, since that’s where we stayed last time, but Tony insisted we use the penthouse he stays in here. He made it very hard to say no.”

“He’s good at that.” Catching sight of someone she hadn’t expected to see she stopped, turning to get a better look. “Who the hell is that with Ward?”

Jason turned his head just enough to see Ward and his companion where they stood near the main entrance. “She’s not anyone I recognize.” His eyes widened in surprise at what he saw next. “Well, she’s definitely not one of ours. She just put the whammy on a concierge. He’s taking them to the reception desk. Can you watch them? You’ve got the better view.”

She started to laugh like he had told her a joke. “They just totally bypassed the female receptionist and she just put the whammy on the guy receptionist.” She considered what she saw for a moment. “Best guess is vocal mind control that only works on guys.”

Taking in the information, he nodded before an idea came to him. “Well, if that’s the case, if I can’t hear her…”

“… she can’t control you.” She laughed again as she pulled out her phone. Pressing the icon that would connect her directly to Jarvis, she bounced on her heels a couple of times.

“Good afternoon, Mrs. Walsh.”

“Hey J. Need a favor. Can you turn off Clint’s hearing aids, but stay connected to his comms?”

“Of course, Agent Lewis. Do you wish for me to connect to your comms as well?”

“Might as well, but they’re in my bag. So, if you could stay connected to my phone for now, that would be fabulous.”

“Acknowledged. Agent Barton, whenever you are ready.”

Jason shrugged as he attempted a smile for his wife. He hated turning off his hearing aids. “Ready when you are.”

“Switching off in three… two… one… now.”

Darcy watched as Jason blinked once, before he swayed and shook his head. [Okay?]

He nodded. [I hate how this feels. Everything is muffled, like being underwater.]

[I’m sorry.] Darcy motioned for him to follow her to the check-in desk.

When they came even with Ward, Jason turned to the other man while Darcy distracted the female receptionist. “Fancy meeting you here. Did they finally give you a day off?” When Ward gave him an arched eyebrow, he realized that he was probably being a bit too loud. He smiled as he shrugged.

“Not exactly.” He motioned to the woman next to him. “This is Lorelai.”

“Who is this?” She smiled with a false sweetness that set Jason’s teeth on edge.

“Hawkeye. He’s the best marksman in the world.”

“Well then,” she glided forward until she was nearly nose to nose with the sniper. “Maybe we should get to know each other better.”

He smiled brightly at her, sure that she was trying to use her mojo on him. “I’m sorry. I don’t want any butter, but thanks anyways.” A tap on the back of his shoulder caused him to startle. Looking over his shoulder, he breathed a sigh of relief when he saw that it was just Darcy. [Done?]

She nodded. [Everything okay with you?]

“What’s going on?” Ward asked as Lorelai moved back to his side, a disgruntled look on her face.

Darcy answered both in sign and out loud. “Sorry about that, but Agent Barton can’t really hear you. His hearing was damaged in an explosion about…” She looked to Jason. “Was it five or six months ago?”

“Six.”

She turned back to Ward and Lorelai. “Six months ago. Unfortunately, right now we’re waiting on his new hearing aids, so milk runs for us.”

Lorelai gave another false smile as she pulled Ward away. “Come along. My magic won’t work on him if he can’t hear me.”

[Fucking bitch.] Darcy signed after they left, startling a laugh out of her husband.

“I agree.”

X Unusual X

Somehow it did not surprise Phil to find the room Ward and Lorelai had used vacant. Ward knew how they worked and was one of the best SHIELD had. It was one of the reasons he had been chosen for their team. Letting out a frustrated sigh, he pulled out his phone intending to call the Bus. That plan changed however, when he spotted an agent that he hadn’t called for, approaching the room from down the hall. Waving, he opened his mouth to call out, when the other man shook his head and tapped his ear. [Alright. It’s good to see you.] He signed back, supposing that other man wanted privacy to yell at him.

Jason glared at him before signing at him in a way that was obviously meant to be the expected yelling. [Where the hell have you been and why the hell did they tell us you were dead? And where the hell were you when this happened to me?]

It sunk in at that moment that Jason wasn’t signing to keep from being overheard. “Oh my god,” he breathed out as his face paled. “They didn’t tell me.” [Nick didn’t tell me.]

The younger man’s expression softened at Phil’s obvious distress. [Nick doesn’t say a lot of things.]

He nodded. [He classified me, and I don’t know why.] The sound of Melinda clearing her throat drew their attention to the other agent. “Did you find anything?”

“No.” She looked at Jason with an arched eyebrow, before turning to Phil with a pointed look. “What’s Barton doing here?”

“I don’t know.” He turned back to Jason. [What are you doing here?]

Melinda looked startled when the archer replied back just as silently.

[Vacation. Tony gave us the weekend as an anniversary gift.] He shrugged. [Saw the weird bitch. Thought I’d take a look.]

Phil translated for the female operative. “Mister Stark gave him a vacation as a gift.” He saw Jason roll his eyes. “It’s just a coincidence that he’s here at all. Barton spotted us and came to see if he could help out.”

“And the sign language?”

Phil looked to the other man with an arched eyebrow.

Jason shrugged before answering, his voice just a bit too loud. “I’m almost completely deaf Agent May.”

Her eyes widened in shock. That was the sort of thing that earned an agent an early retirement. “How?”

He mimicked an explosion with his hands. [Six months ago. Tony made me hearing aids with help from Doctor Cho from South Korea. Top of the line.]

[Why aren’t you using them?] Phil asked in reply.

With a tilt of his head, Jason’s eyes tracked to the side. [D found Ward. He’s at your plane with the woman.] Focusing back on his former handler, he answered his question. [She controls minds with her voice. If you can’t hear her, she can’t control you.] He tapped his ear again. [Turned off, but they double as a comm.]

Nodding, Phil relayed the information about the Bus to Melinda. “It seems he’s had Agent Lewis follow Ward.”

“Smart move.” She turned to the younger agent so that he could better see her speak. “Are you her SO?”

“Yes.” He rolled his eyes, frustrated with not being able to hear them right, but Jarvis was under orders from Darcy to not turn on his hearing aids until Lorelai was contained. [This sucks.]

Placing a hand on Jason’s shoulder, Phil smiled softly. “I’m sorry I wasn’t there.” He looked to Melinda. “Let’s go get our Bus back.” He let his hand fall. [Coming?]

[Hell yes.]

After relaying orders to the team they had brought with them, the three senior agents started towards the plane in a plain black SHIELD SUV. Phil chose to sit in the back so that he might be able to translate for Jason, since Melinda not only did not know sign language, but was driving. Unfortunately for the trio, due to the traffic in the city, it took them the better part of an hour to get to the airfield where the Bus was currently parked. The time was tense, but it did give Jason time to grill his former handler on what had been going on since they had last seen each other in New Mexico nearly a year earlier. What Phil told him, did not make him happy in the slightest and they both agreed that the information that Phil had on his survival was horribly incomplete.

[Darcy says that there has been little movement outside since she got there. She’s keeping her distance.]

[Good.] to be honest Phil was worried about Darcy being in the field at all, since she wasn’t an active ops agent. [She holding up okay?]

Jason smiled and huffed a quiet laugh. [Bored.]

“Phil?”

He looked away to where Melinda was driving. “Agent Lewis is bored. It seems that keeping up surveillance on an unmoving plane is too dull for her.”

“If Barton is her SO, shouldn’t she be a field agent?”

“Technically Darcy is.” He shared a smile with Jason, translating even as he spoke so that the other man wouldn’t feel left out. “She works with Doctor Foster as her aide, so her job is more admin work than active bodyguard work. Darcy is trained in small arms and basic combat, but nothing more. Barton recruited her because of her hacking skills.” Lie. “He’s in charge of her and makes sure she keeps up with her training.” Truth. He rolled his eyes when Jason made a comment about Darcy’s love of her Taser. “After all, we can’t have the girl who took out Thor with a Taser get rusty.”

X Unusual X

September 2013

It wasn’t so much the ache of his injuries that woke him, as it was the ringing in his ears. It was so loud that he figured it was at least part of why his head hurt so badly. He let out what he thought was a quiet groan, but it turned out he was loud enough to draw the attention of the person he spotted from the corner of his barely opening left eye. Jason could just make out dark hair as the person bent down by his head and spoke into his ear.

“I’m totally happy you’re alive J, but please don’t do that to me again.”

“Darcy.” He could barely widen his eyes, but he was able to open them enough to see his wife’s pale face. “What happened?” His voice sounded wrong, like it was muffled, or his ears were full of cotton wool. He tried to reach up to touch his ear, but he could barely even lift his arm an inch. “Why am I hurt?”

Darcy brushed her hand down her husband’s arm to try to soothe his agitation. It was killing her to see him this way and now she had to be the one to tell him the bad news. It had hurt so much earlier when the doctor had pulled her aside to explain that he was lucky to be alive at all. Captain America might be able to survive an explosion relatively unscathed, but Hawkeye was a mere mortal who was badly injured.

Jason had six cracked ribs, a broken leg and wrist, and then there was the potential hearing loss. The doctor estimated anywhere from seventy-five to ninety percent loss, given that he was responding to some auditory stimulus, just not most.

Leaning down again, she spoke directly into his ear again. “There was an explosion during the mission you were on. Some AIM lab or something. You and your guys got in, but then things went totally tits up. You got hurt. The only reason they found you at all was that beacon thing Tony gave you. He sends his love by the way.” At his snort she laughed a little. “I know, right? But he’s gonna help with this. He promised.” She paused to take a few deep breaths. “You got a concussion, cracked ribs, and your right wrist and lower leg are broken.”

He caught her eye and gave her a look that clearly conveyed his belief that she hadn’t told all.

“I know and I’m sorry, but both of your inner ears got damaged. The doctor thinks it’s permanent.”

Jason started to shake as that sunk in. Mostly deaf because of a mission gone wrong. “How am I supposed to…”

Her heart breaking for her husband, Darcy buried her head in his shoulder and cried along with him.

X Unusual X

Notes:

I am not a medical person, so please forgive any major mistakes when it comes to medical practices. I have tried my best to research this, but as we all know the internet is not always the best resource.

Chapter 5

X Unusual X

Can someone please remind Detective Jones not to punch street signs anymore. City maintenance is getting on our asses about it.

X Unusual X

April 4, 2014

There was a reason Jason hated watching the news. He saw enough crap in his life as a cop, and more as an agent of SHIELD, that he did not want to see it on TV too. Unfortunately for him, some members of his division in the Second Precinct still insisted on having it on during the day. This practice of his coworkers meant that he got to walk into the bullpen just in time for the anchor to announce that there had been an explosion on a bridge in DC.

“Hey Eddie, turn that up.”

His dark-haired coworker looked at him surprised. “I thought you hated the news?”

Seeing a long shot of a bridge and Natasha’s bright auburn hair flashing up on the screen, Jason yelled, “Just do it Alverez.”

“Fine.” He picked up the remote from his desk and turned the sound up louder than he normally kept it. “No need to shout.”

“It seems that the explosion may be tied to the armed group that Black Widow and Captain America are reportedly fighting.” The screen shifted to a shot of the visibly shaken anchor. “From social media reports, it appears that Black Widow may have been shot and there have been two explosions so far. We will be going live to our DC affiliate.”

The video changed from the New York station to the DC anchor, who was looking even paler than her counter part had. “There is speculation that the currently developing situation may be connected to the assassination of SHIELD director Colonel Nicholas Fury two days ago, but that had not yet been confirmed.” She looked off to her left and nodded. “It looks like our chopper has just arrived on scene. Jonny can you tell me what you can see?”

The feed switched to a scene of destruction. There were multiple cars crashed and on the ground below the bridge there was a bus on its side. Near it there were figures in black surrounding three figures, one of whom Jason know on sight.

“I’m not sure what’s going on, but it looks like Captain America is being arrested.”

“Turn it off.” Several heads turned at his hoarse command. When no one moved, he tried again, loud enough that even he could hear the note of hysteria in his own voice. “Turn it off.” Everyone turned to face him this time, with the exception of his partner.

In a very calm manner, much as she would for a volatile suspect, Casey moved over to the TV and reached up and turned it off. “Jason are you okay?” she asked so quietly that if the room weren’t silent, no one would have heard her.

He shook his head, his blue eyes wide and frightened. She watched quietly as he reached up to double tap a certain spot behind his right ear. “J, what’s the word?”

“I’m afraid that SHIELD has been compromised, Detective Walsh.”

“Mein Gott in Himmel.” He caught Casey’s eye as she sat down across from him at her desk. “Nick?”

“According to Assistant Director Hill, it was an inside job.”

“Scheiβe.”

“Indeed.”

“Does Tony know?”

“I am keeping Sir informed of any updates and per his instructions I have removed all of the Avengers’ files from the SHIELD servers. He also instructed Agent 13 to do the same with the physical files at the Triskelion.”

“What about Phil?”

“Currently unavailable. However, Doctor Simmons is, and she has agreed to do the same at the Hub.”

He sighed in relief. It wasn’t so much his files that he was worried about, Phil had hidden those years before and had encrypted them so they were ‘his eyes only’. The only problem was that Steve’s and Natasha’s weren’t protected that way. “Jarvis would it be possible to eliminate Nat’s SI cover from all of the SHIELD files? I would like it if she were able to come out of this with at least one cover intact.”

“Of course, Detective. I will see what I can do.”

“Thanks J.” Json reached up and tapped the tiny pressure sensitive button behind his ear to end his conversation with the AI. Having a direct line to the AI was not something he had ever anticipated needing, but after everything that had happened recently, he was glad to have it. He supposed he should just be grateful that Tony hadn’t gotten any more fancy than he had. Prototype subcutaneous hearing aids that ran off his own body’s energy were more than enough as far as he was concerned, but Tony had added a locator beacon and a direct line to Jarvis. Turning his attention back to his partner, he tried to smile, but could tell from the look on her face that it hadn’t reassured her any.

She arched an eyebrow at him. “So?”

“SHIELD’s been compromised. Stark’s got people on it already, but it’ll probably get much worse once civilians figure out what’ s going on.” He shook his head as if to get the cobwebs out. “I need to clear the New York office. I don’t think Nick or Phil kept anything there, but I need to check.”

“Want me to go with?”

“You’ll have to wait outside, but I could use the company.” Jason gave her a small smile as he stood. With a nod to their other coworkers, he led her towards the locker room so that he could change into his SHIELD gear. “You’re a good friend Casey. If things go bad…”

“I’ll call for backup.”

“Why would you need backup?”

They both turned to look at where Leo stood in the entrance to the locker room in surprise, before Casey answered. “Jason is going to infiltrate SHIELD’s Time’s Square office.”

Leo nodded thoughtfully, his dark eyes considering his two friends. “I’m in.” He looked over his shoulder to where his partner was hovering in the hallway. “You in Eddie?”

The dark-haired detective shrugged as he entered the locker room to stand next to Leo. “Let’s go. Though we might want to let the Time’s Square guys know that we are coming and to be on alert for any potential trouble.”

Moving over to them, Jason smiled and clapped Alverez on the shoulder. “Good idea. How’s about you go do that while I get changed. Just let them know that you got a tip that there may be some trouble at SHIELD sometime this week.” After nodding, the other man rushed off to do that. Turning to his darker skinned friend, he smiled. “Leo, we need a ride. Think you can find us one?”

Leo nodded with a bright smile, one that Jason was very happy to see. “Denise down in motor pool owes me a favor. I think I can convince her to give us the new unmarked.” With that said, he bounded away.

“I’m glad he’s smiling again.” The archer murmured. He well knew the pain of losing a partner, not only in his life here as a cop, but also as a SHIELD agent. With a jerk of his head, he moved deeper into the locker room to where his locker sat. There was something about the whole situation that was tugging on his memories of the mission where he lost most of his hearing. “Casey I’ve got something, but I don’t know what yet. I need to talk it out.” He started to fiddle with the lock on his locker.

“Okay.” She straddled a bench a few lockers down from where he was standing. “So, talk. I’ll listen.”

He started peeling off his suit, his tie getting flung at his partner. “Nick was assassinated, supposedly. Steve winds up fighting ‘terrorists’ on a bridge and then got arrested by the guys we both work for. Plus, I got a really cryptic text last night from Tasha. Now, I’m having to break into an office I work at, to check for my own files, all because Tony’s AI butler told me that SHIELD had been compromised.” He paused before frowning and shaking his head. “And the only thing I can think of is the day that I lost most of my hearing. There’s something…” he pulled on the black and purple tac vest that Tony had made for him recently, running his fingers over the supple Kevlar like material. It looked very similar to his old one, only this one did not have the SHIELD logo and was several pounds lighter.

“You got a weird text.” Casey spoke quietly, so that she wouldn’t interrupt his train of thought. “What did it say?”

“Zima prishla.” He shrugged, as he pulled his uniform jacket out of his locker. “Winter’s here. Doesn’t make sense. It’s April.” Even as he said it, he came to a horrible realization. “Zimney Soldat. Scheiβe.” He sunk down onto the bench next to Casey, one hand coming up to cover his mouth. Jason turned horrified eyes to his partner, his face paling in shock.

“Zimney Soldat?”

He nodded, “Winter Soldier.” Seeing her confusion, he worked past his own fear to gather his scattered thoughts. “Think boogey man for people in my profession. He’s the one guy that guy’s like me are scared of. He scares Tasha and nothing scares her.” He took a deep breath as he ran both hands through his short hair. “He has been credited with over two dozen kills in the last fifty years and that’s just the obvious ones that we know about. He’s probably the only person in the world who is as good a shot as me. But in a fight, one on one, I’d lose. He’s better than Tasha.”

“How do you know so much about him? If he’s that good, shouldn’t he be a ghost?”

“He is.” He shook his head as he laced his fingers together, hanging them between his knees. “He taught Tasha and she taught me. Or rather, she retaught me.”

“Okay. Scary boogey man assassin aside, think about what’s bugging you about that assignment. There is some common factor between all of these things that you know but haven’t processed yet. You’re an archer. What do you do best, other than shoot?”

“See from a distance.” Then there was a feeling like a light bulb turning on as his mind finally caught up to what his instincts had already seen. “Director Pierce.”

“So, what about him?” she prompted.

“Last September, seven months ago, the orders came from Pierce.” He stood and slammed his hand flat on the locker next to his own. “Jarvis said that SHIELD was compromised. Pierce is trying to get rid of anyone loyal to Nick. Nick, me, Steve and Tasha, and who knows else.”

Leaning over, she began digging into the abandoned pile of clothes on the floor. Coming up with his badge, she handed it to him. “So, what are we going to do about it?”

Rubbing his thumb over the shiny shield, he smirked. He was grateful for the gentle reminder that their division would stand with him. “What we do best… fuck them over.”

X Unusual X

September 2013

Staying in Medical was one of the most boring things Jason had ever had to do, and that even included the time he had had to play a filing clerk while on an assignment. The one bright spot this time was that Darcy was allowed to stay, because he was listed as her SO. This meant that he was able to watch the near daily arguments between her and his doctor. Honestly though, he thought that Darcy had the right of things. She was currently arguing with the doctor about bringing Tony in on his treatment. It was like watching a very loud tennis match that he could barely hear, but it was entertaining none the less.

“I don’t care what you think, you hack. Tony Stark is coming whether you like it or not. Agent Barton’s handler herself approved it, so you need to shut up and butt out.”

“Now see here young lady…” the white-haired doctor started, only to be interrupted when Stark pushed past him.

“Hey Barton.” It was obvious from the forced smile on his face that Tony was not happy with what he had seen of the doctor’s attitude. “Heard you need some help in the hearing department. I brought you a present.” He tossed a small box to his teammate and turned to great Darcy quietly. Only for Jason to realize that the inventor had been practically yelling when he had come in and was now talking to his wife at a normal volume.

Turning his attention to the box, he opened it to see a set of comms. The left one was an earbud and the right was a larger one with a mic, connected to each other by a thin cord. Picking them up, he laughed when he noticed that there was a purple arrow etched into the casing of the right earpiece. Leave it to Tony to personalize comms for a teammate. Seeing Tony wiggling a finger at his own ears, Jason arched an eyebrow before putting the comms in.

The billionaire pulled out his phone and tapped at it for a moment. “Let me know when you can hear the tone.” He spoke slowly, carefully enunciating his words.

After a moment Jason heard a whisper soft tone in his left ear. “Left.” Tony nodded and tapped at his phone again, before motioning for him to keep listening. A moment later, he heard the same sort of tone in his right ear. “Right.”

“Okay. Well that is our baseline. Now we get to turn them up.” He turned to Darcy and motioned for her to start talking.

After a few minutes of the volume gradually increasing Jason motioned for her to stop reciting her dissertation. “That’s good.” Reaching out, he pulled her to his side after she took his hand. “Thank you, Tony. These are…”

“Temporary.” Tony interjected, cutting him off. “Doctor Cho is going to be making permanent ones. I’m helping of course. Her theories of bioengineering are absolutely fascinating.”

“Thank you anyways Tony.” Darcy laughed as she planted a kiss on Jason’s temple. “Tell Pepper that we’ll be seeing you both for dinner as soon as this one is discharged.”

“Will do.” With hazel eyes sparkling, Tony tossed a jaunty wave over his shoulder as he sauntered out of the room.

“He is such an ass.” Jason laughed as the door closed behind their friend. “We should do something nice for him.”

X Unusual X

Chapter 6

X Unusual X

 

If anyone is over by the preschool on 10th, please remind Mister Gyer that there is nobody watching the school from the bookstore across the street. It's a cardboard cutout of Harry Potter.

 

X Unusual X

 

April 2014

 

It ended up being amazingly easy to get in and out of the Times Square SHIELD office. Of course, the fact that most everyone was already out of the office for the day helped, as did the distraction the evening news provided. After all it wasn’t every day that Captain America got arrested for allegedly committing treason. It was a whole bunch of horse shit, but it did make for a good distraction. It was obvious to him that whoever Pierce was working with had made up the trumped-up charges. The thing that was really worrisome though was that Zimney Soldat was active. The implications of that were staggering. Red Room, KGB, someone unknown, whoever it was, was out for blood.

That night, he curled around Darcy listening to her breathe as he kept turning everything over in his mind. Nick was dead because he got too close to something Pierce didn’t want him to see, and now Steve and Tasha could be dead too. Thank Gott, Pierce’s minions weren’t that good, or Jason would be dead rather than deaf. He had already spoken to Tony about it, but unfortunately, there wasn’t much the inventor could do other than lay the groundwork to protect those whom they knew were loyal.

A quiet buzz drew him from his thoughts, just before Jarvis sent him a nearly silent beep through his hearing aids. “Yeah J?” He answered with a whisper, not wanting to disturb his wife.

“You have received a text. I took the liberty of trying to determine who sent it to you Detective Walsh, but unfortunately the sender used a burner phone.”

Pulling away from Darcy, he tucked the covers tighter around her before he reached for his phone. Unlocking it, he let out a relieved lung full of air after reading the waiting message. <Bibere a me, parva accipiter.> “It’s cool J. It’s just Tasha checking in. Reply ‘Möchtest du etwas Wein, kleine Spinne?’ She’ll understand.”

“Of course. Will there be anything else you need Detective Walsh?”

“No thanks. Goodnight J.” Placing his phone back on the night stand he turned to lie back down only to start when he was greeted by Darcy’s pale eyes and an arched eyebrow. “Tasha just checking in. After everything going on earlier, I was worried.”

With a soft smile she ran a hand up his bare arm. “I’m glad she’s okay.” She tugged on his arm. “Come on. Lie down, I need my personal space heater.”

With a soft laugh, he did just as she asked, and this time he did fall asleep. He didn’t get more than a few hours, because as soon as soon as the sun peeked over the horizon a pair of little girls woke up and sleep became a dream for Jason and Darcy. He loved his baby girls, even though he had never imagined himself as a dad before they were born.

A pair of smiles greeted him when he entered their room. Grabbing a diaper, he proceeded to change the younger of the twins as Darcy took care of the elder. Her bright blue eyes watched him as he got her ready for the day. Little Philippa was a calm baby unlike her sister Philyse, who was very active.

As soon as he was done changing Philippa, he carried the one year old out to the kitchen, where Darcy had already set Philyse up in a highchair. “Time for breakfast baby girl.” At her coo, he grinned. “You are going to be Daddy’s girl aren’t you?” after securing her into her chair and putting her little bowl of Cheerio’s in front of her, he turned on the tablet sized flat screen that they had allowed Tony to install in the kitchen. Setting it to the news station, he prepped his and Darcy’s meal. Nothing too hard, just turkey bacon and eggs covered in garlic and cheddar cheese. Jason did sometimes miss being able to add creative ingredients, but he had agreed with Darcy that their girls needed to not be introduced to that much ‘creativity’ until they were old enough to cook for themselves.

“And in other news… There was a break in at the Smithsonian last night. Officials have revealed that the only item taken was Captain America’s WWII uniform. They have also revealed that they do have a lead that they are looking in to but have released no further details. …”

“Why in the name of Thor’s dad would anyone steal Steve’s old uniform?” Darcy mused as she caught Philyse’s bowl just before the toddler could fling it at her sister.

“Any number of reasons,” he answered with a shrug. “Most likely culprit is Steve. The cops weren’t panicking, or it would have been a bigger news story. Means they have a good idea who did it. Besides, it is Steve’s personal property. So, the worst they can charge him with is B&E.”

Darcy laughed brightly. “Wow, that totally makes me like Steve even more.” She nibbled on one of her turkey bacon slices. “Boy Scout’s got a naughty streak. Who would’ve known? Color me impressed.”

Jason snorted. He had known Steve long enough at this point to know that he was anything but sweet and innocent. He had been a soldier after all, and he had toured with the USO before that. According to Steve, some of the USO girls made Natasha look like a prude.

 

X Unusual X

 

October 2013

 

Turns out that when Tony had said the new comms were temporary, he had meant less than a month. Jason had honestly thought that it would take longer for his friend to come up with something permanent, but once again the billionaire had surprised him.  Turns out Tony’s friend Doctor Cho was the leading biotechnology researcher in South Korea, and she specialized in integrating nanotechnology and tissue. Stuff way over his head as far as he was concerned, but her and Tony had been able to come up with a miniature hearing aid that was not only mostly subcutaneous, but also somehow ran off the energy produced by his own body. Their whole explanation had mostly gone over his head. One basic university level biology class did not an expert make.

Jason however, had ended up really liking Doctor ‘Please call me Helen’ Cho. She had a sweet temperament that he rarely saw in his line of work, with a steely determination that reminded him a bit of his late handler. He did have to admit that he enjoyed watching her deflate Tony’s ego, the rare times he caught her snarking back at the other genius. “So, this is it?” he asked, looking at the tiny pair of devices resting in the small clear plastic box that Cho had given him. The two implants were far smaller and more delicate looking than he had been expecting. “Tiny.”

“Yes, they are. It’s for a reason though.” She took the box back from him and started to explain the different features. “These long hair-like filaments are what go into your inner ear. They deliver sound, which is captured by this piece here, to the nerves as electrical signals.” She moves her finger from a tiny donut shaped bit to point to a larger curved flat piece with what looked like golden circuitry imprinted on it. “Now, this power adapter is a major part of what makes your implants experimental.”

“How so?”

“Modern hearing aids all have a large external component, even the implants. What makes this particular set so revolutionary is that it doesn’t.” The petite scientist’s eyes were bright as she practically vibrated talking about the device Tony and she had worked on. “The amplifier is a little piece that is fitted into the middle ear, using the outer ear’s natural sound capturing ability. The power adapter and transformer, this flat piece, is going to be fitted under the skin behind your ears and will run off your own body’s natural electrical charge. It is completely flexible and is made using nano-circuitry and hypoallergenic metals and silicone. Tony and I will continue working on the design of course, and we’re hoping to be able to add a wireless component that will allow you a direct connection to his AI Jarvis. That part should take us about another five or six months. Right now, it’s set up to work with an app on your Stark phone. In the meantime, you will be the first person to get this particular model, which if it works out, will go into mass use in the next five years.”

“So, I get to be your guinea pig?”

“I prefer the term, test subject.” She replied, a tiny mischievous smile on her lips. When he failed to laugh at her little joke, she blushed and hurried to continue explaining. “It’s just… Tony was insistent that you get the first one. He said that it absolutely had to be you. We even consulted with the world’s top neurosurgeon just to make sure that we were going to do things right. He was actually kind of eager to help, once we told him who it was for.”

That came as a surprise to him. “Didn’t know I knew any neurosurgeons.”

“Well Doctor Strange seemed to know you.”

When she said the other doctor’s name, a light bulb clicked on in his mind. He had known that Stephen was a doctor before the accident that damaged his hands, but he hadn’t known that the other man was a well-known neurosurgeon. “Well, you learn something new every day.” He let out a short laugh. “Stephen and I have known each other for years. If he says that it’ll work, then I’ll trust him. He hasn’t steered me wrong yet.” He plucked the little box out of Helen’s hands so that he could look at the tiny device again. Sometimes it was hard to believe that technology had come so far, but given that he knew Tony Stark, he didn’t know why it would surprise him that hybrid cochlear implants were getting an upgrade. To be honest, it was nice to see, even if he really didn’t think it necessary, but Tony will be Tony. Showering his friends with gifts and upgrades was just how the billionaire showed affection, even if it wasn’t the healthiest way to go about it. Howard Stark and Obadiah Stane really had done a number on Tony. The poor man barely had any self-esteem, and in his profession, Jason had rarely seen situations like that end well. But Howard and Stane were both dead, so there wasn’t much he could do beyond supporting his friend any way he could. “I’ll be sure to thank Tony for helping you with these. Coolest thing I’ve ever seen.”

Helen’s answering smile just about lit up the room. “They are pretty neat, aren’t they?”

 

X Unusual X

Notes:

Translation:
Bibere a me, parva accipiter. - Latin - Get a drink with me, small hawk.
Möchtest du etwas Wein, kleine Spinne? - German - Would you like some wine, little spider?

AN: I know it's been a while, but I assure you that I am still working on this and the two following stories. I know that there have been a couple of long pauses, but first I needed some time after Endgame to grieve and then I needed time to work out where the story was going to go from where I am in writing this. I came to the horrid realization that while there were some characters that I can save, there are also others that I cannot.
Also, over the last year or two, real life has had me all over the place; stress at work, homeschooling, and other things, including misplacing this story's binder for six months. Turns out it was buried in the bottom of one of my fabric bins. I still don't know how it ended up there. But I assure you that now that I have found it again, I am working to get this all typed up and posted, since it is completely handwritten.
Thank you all for continuing reading and may you all have a beautiful day.

Chapter 7

Summary:

Things are getting a little Strange in New York.

 

X Unusual X

 

Kamar-taj, April 6, 2014

 

Meditation was not coming easily to Stephen and it was causing him to fidget. There was a growing sense of unease deep within his chest, but he was uncertain of its source. With a deep sigh, he opened his eye as his shoulders slumped. There was no way he was going to be successful at this today. Uncurling his fingers, he grimaced at the stiffness. He knew that he could use his magic to take away the pain, but it was a good reminder of why he was here at Kamar-taj. Opening a small portal to his room, he pulled through a large earthenware bowl. The blue and green bowl had been a gift from Mordo after Everest for just this reason. Placing the bowl in his lap, he filled the vessel with warm water and submerged his hands. Leaning back against the lone tree in the small secluded courtyard he preferred to rest in, he let out a sigh of relief as the warmth started to soak into his hands.

“You are troubled.” The Ancient One’s voice was as serene as always, as she entered the courtyard, a look of gentle concern gracing her ageless features. “But not I think by something here.”

He didn’t even bother pretending to smile, since he knew she would just see through it. She was right though. “No, it’s not anything here. Just a sense that something is wrong.”

“Ah.” She moved forward until she stood only a foot or two in front of him as she contemplated his plight. Strange was such an unusual student, that she could not help but think on him often, as there were many things about him that she could not quite grasp. At first, she had not thought he would make a good student due to his narrowmindedness and ego, but then after she had stranded him on Everest, it was as though a dam had burst. His thirst for knowledge was nearly unquenchable, but it was his leaps of insight and intuition that truly fascinated her. By his own admission he had defeated a curse placed upon one of his friends by an Asgardian demigod with little more than beginner’s luck and a desire to help. To think that he might have a touch of precognition merely added to her fascination. “Perhaps, one of your friends outside of Kamar-taj is facing a peril that you might be able to aid them in?”

Stephen let out a bitter laugh. “I don’t really have any friends outside Kamar-taj. I burned a lot of those bridges after the accident. I even managed to alienate my best friend and she had put up with my shit for years before I chased her away. She didn’t even answer either of the emails I sent her.”

“Surely there must be someone?” She flicked her fan open and fanned herself as she thought. “What about the one who called for your aid a year and a half ago? Hawkeye, I believe you called him.”

“Agent Barton. He’s a good man.” He looked down at where his hands rested in the water. “You’re right. He is a friend.”

“Then perhaps he is the one you are feeling anxiety about.”

“Maybe. I suppose I could give him a call.”

“Why don’t you go visit him, to put your mind at ease.” When he looked like he was going to protest, she held up a hand to stop him. “We can certainly spare you the rest of today and tomorrow. Just be back tomorrow night. That is all I ask.”

“I…” He wasn’t sure how to reply to her generosity, but he was happy that she was giving him a chance to check up on his friends. “Thank you. I’ll make sure to be back by tomorrow night.”

 

X Unusual X

 

I don’t even want to know.

 

X Unusual X

 

177A Bleeker Street, Greenwich Village, New York City

 

Stephen’s first impression of the New York Sanctum was that it reminded him of a high-end art gallery, the kind he had spent many a night in before the accident. The only difference was that the glass cases and the walls were filled with magical weapons and armor, as well as odd objects that he couldn’t identify. The one item that really caught his eye was a floating red cloak. However, he was here in New York for a reason and exploring the items in the Sanctum was not it.

After thanking the Master of the Sanctum for his hospitality, Stephen followed the other man to the foyer, where he was given instructions about how to access the building. The instructions weren’t overly complicated, just mostly common-sense things, as long as you knew magic that was. The one rule the Master was absolutely firm on though was the rule about not portaling in or out except in case of an emergency. From a security standpoint, he felt that that was a fair enough rule and so he readily agreed to abide by the rules that the Master had laid out.

Visiting New York again after so many years abroad ended up being a bit of a culture shock. It wasn’t like Katmandu was a small city, because it wasn’t, it was just very different from anything in America. He had gotten so used to the quiet, almost scholarly atmosphere of Kamar-taj, that the hustle and bustle of downtown Manhattan was just a little unsettling. He was sure the feeling would go away soon enough, given how long he had previously lived in this city, or ones like it.

As he got closer to Times Square, he noticed an unusually large number of police milling around the north end of the square. Most of the ones who he walked past seemed to care little for the fact that he was dressed in his brick red training uniform, other than one or two raised eyebrows or shrugs. Stephen supposed that in a world with the Avengers, his clothing was relatively tame in comparison.

“Excuse me.” The voice of a little girl plus the tug of small hands on his arm drew his attention away from the police down to a dark haired little girl.

“Can I help you?”

“Are you a superhero?” She tilted her head to the side, her hazel eyes filled with curiosity.

Her question threw him for a loop. He had never been asked if he was a superhero before. “Why do you ask?”

Her answer was so unusual, that he smiled. “Mommy says that superheroes dress funny, kinda like you.”

He bit the inside of his cheek to keep himself from laughing. “I suppose some of them do.” He glanced around to see if he could spot the little girl’s parents. Not spotting anyone immediately, he decided to get a bit more information from her so that he could give her over to one of the many police officers who were patrolling the square. “Are you here with your mom and dad?”

She pointed back behind her. “Mommy’s here. Daddy’s in San Quentin. Mommy said that he did a good thing in a bad way and now he had to be there.” Tipping her head to the side, she stared at him for a moment before poking him in the stomach. “What’s your superhero name?”

“My superhero name?” He hummed as he glanced around the crowd again. Making eye contact with a frantic looking blond, he motioned her over. When the woman was close enough to hear him, he replied to the girl’s question. “My name is Doctor Strange, and I was a neurosurgeon.”

“A what?” The little brunette was confused by the big word and was so focused on the doctor that she hadn’t noticed that her mother was now standing next to her looking very relieved.

“He fixes people’s brains Cassie.” The blond woman looked embarrassed as she pulled her daughter to her side. “Thank you so much for keeping her safe Doctor Strange. I really, really mean that. Thank you so much.”

Putting on a soft smile for a concerned family member was old hat for him, but this was definitely the first time his skills as a surgeon hadn’t been involved. “It was no problem. Miss Cassie is a very smart little girl.”

“Doctor Strange is a superhero Mommy, just like Ironman.”

“Cassie, I don’t think he’s …” she trailed off obviously unsure what to say.

Stephen did have an idea of what to say though. “Not quite like Ironman, but there really isn’t anyone quite like Tony Stark. Now that said, every hero is different. Some have super strength, and some can fly. There is a hero I know who’s deaf and another I’ve heard of who is blind.”

“But what about you?”

Cassie’s mother put a hand on her daughter’s shoulder to both try to stop the questions and to steer her away, but Stephen shook his head and said that it was alright. Crouching down, he held out his hands, palms down, for Cassie to see. “I used to be able to fix people’s brains before my hands were broken, but now…” He allowed a little bit of the mystical energy running under his skin to appear as he flipped his hands over. “I use magic to help people.” He smiled at the awestruck expressions on their faces as they stared at the miniature glowing mandalas that floated just above his palms.

The sound of popping from the building behind him drew his attention away from the two women. “I think it would be a good idea if you two went into the store across the street. I need to go help a friend of mine who seems to have gotten in trouble.”

At the sound of breaking glass, all the police in the square, started rushing the civilians away including Cassie and her mom. A female detective tried to pull Stephen away, but he stood firm and summoned his mystical shields. At the sight, her eyebrows went up.

“Oh! Jason called you.” She motioned for him to follow her closer to the building, before readying her sidearm. “I’d ask your name, but we met once about seven or eight years ago at one of my dad’s parties. In case you don’t remember, I’m Casey Shraeger. Sorry to hear about the accident.”

It was kind of her to say so, but really, he didn’t feel as if he were worthy of the sympathy. The sound of another window shattering from several stories above them prompted him to pull the startled detective into his arms and under the shield that he held over his head. As soon as the rain of glass stopped, he released her and looked up at the source. One of the fifth story windows had been blown out and a figure in black and purple was dangling from a rope about two stories above the ground. “Do you need help? It seems your rope’s come up a bit short.”

“Ha, ha, you’re a real riot Strange.” Barton snarked back at him. “Do you mind figuring out how to get me down, I don’t feel like having Hydra take potshots at me just because I’m a sitting duck.”

Casey snickered, before calling up to her friend/partner. “That’s funny you don’t look like you’re sitting on anything.”

“Shut up Casey.” He shouted back at her as the sound of more gunfire erupted from within the building. “I’d like to see you try this just once and see how you like it. Now get me the hell down from here.”

A uniformed Sergeant came up just behind Stephen and let them know in a low tone that a parameter had been set up. He also asked what he should do with anyone exiting the building. Casey replied that they should just detain all of the SHIELD agents and they would sort them all out later.

Meanwhile Stephen was running through his options, which were rather limited. He didn’t know all that many spells yet for rescuing someone from two stories up and the only thing he could think of was using his shield spell like a steppingstone. Deciding that it was worth a shot, Stephen focused on summoning a shield under Hawkeye’s feet. Once it had fully formed, he let his friend know that he could let go.

After his feet were on the ground, the archer clapped a hand on the doctor’s shoulder, a grin on his face. “That was the wildest thing I have ever seen. Was that some sort of levitation spell?”

“No, it was actually a shield.” At Barton’s arched eyebrow, he continued to explain. “I’m not exactly an expert at this yet. I’m only about halfway through my training. I had to improvise.”

The other man laughed, “Well that was pretty good improv.”

 

X Unusual X

Chapter 8

Notes:

I do apologize for the delay getting this chapter out, but it's a bit longer than usual as recompense. I had meant to get this out a month ago, but unfortunately there was an accident at work and I broke a finger. I am finally able to type again, so here you go, please enjoy.

X Unusual X

 

Seriously people? What… the… HELL?!

 

X Unusual X

 

A commotion drew Stephen and Jason’s attention to the SHIELD building’s front doors, where a tall, uniformed woman had just emerged, arm wrapped around the neck of a smaller woman in a business suit. Jason swore under his breath as Agent Haley dragged poor little Janice from accounting around, using the girl as a human shield. Her chocolate eyes were wide and panicked as she searched the gathered police for someone to save her from the security team leader. Upon catching sight of him however, she calmed, and some color returned to her dark cheeks.

“Janice, just stay calm.” He spoke firmly to reassure the twenty-one-year-old administrative assistant. “Haley, you need to let her go. You know as well as I do that this is a no win for you. From the corner of his eye, he saw Casey pull his duty weapon from behind her back. Turning slightly so that he was facing Haley and Janice with his right side, he used his body to block Haley from seeing Casey give him his sidearm. “You know how good of a shot I am.”

The HYDRA agent let out a bitter laugh. “I can shoot her faster than you can draw your bow.”

She had a point, he thought as he clicked off his gun’s safety with his thumb, too bad for her he was using his Glock. “You do that, and you’ll be dead before she hits the ground, because every single one of these officers will put a bullet in you.” Bringing his arm up, Jason smirked. “Including me. Agent Elizabeth Haley, you are under arrest. You have the right to remain silent, anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law.” He paused in his recitation of the Miranda rights as she growled at him. Arching an eyebrow, he continued speaking as he watched for an opening to disable Haley. He hated standoffs, but his best bet right now was just to distract the HYDRA agent. “You have the right to an attorney, if you cannot afford one, one will be provided for you.”

“Shut up!” the blond shrieked as she swung the gun away from Janice and pointed it at Jason. “HYDRA will eliminate you, Barton.”

“Well then,” he said as he took his shot, putting a bullet into her hand, “it’s a good thing Clint Barton doesn’t exist.” As she shrieked again, this time in pain, Janice dropped to the ground and scrambled to get away. When she was far enough away, Stephen pulled her to her feet and escorted the terrified accountant behind the Police line, telling her quietly that he was a doctor and that everything would be fine. Jason on the other hand moved closer to the blond keeping his gun aimed at her.

“You ready to surrender now Haley? Because if you go for that gun, I will shoot your other hand.”

“Fuck you, Barton.” She spit at him, cradling her ruined hand to her chest.

“Casey could you please escort Agent Haley over to the medics and finish Mirandizing her.” He kept a close watch on her as his partner dragged the cursing woman over to the medics, where several uniformed officers waited next to the ambulance and a NYC paddy wagon. “Give the medics any trouble Haley and the next bullet goes through your skull.”

Stephen arched an eyebrow at him as he came back over to Jason’s side. “And here I thought you were SHIELD.”

Noticing that the uniformed officers behind his friend were listening, he smirked. “Loyalties tend to change after your own boss blows you up.”

Stephen’s face creased with shock and worry. “You got blown up? Is that how you lost most of your hearing?”

“Yup. Back in September." Jason answered absently as he unzipped the collar of his uniform just enough to be able to pull out the stainless-steel ball chain that his secondary badge was attached to. As the uniforms started shouting at the SHIELD employees that were now trickling out of the building, a thought occurred to him. “Hey Casey! You got my go bag?”

Distracted by the chaos around her, his partner’s response was throwing the car keys at his head. Grabbing Stephen’s arm, he pulled the doctor with him over to his and Casey’s unmarked unit. “Director Pierce ordered the mission that I went on in September.” Jason let out a pleased hum when he opened the trunk to see that not only had his partner grabbed his go bag, but also his bow case. “Good girl.” He glanced over his shoulder at Stephen as he started to pull off his Avengers gear. “That’s how we knew to be ready for today. Not the exact day, but enough to be on alert.” After stowing his bow and quiver, he pulled off his armoured vest that Tony had made him. Opening the go bag, he pulled out his police issue vest and windbreaker. “It wasn’t just me that he tried to get rid of.”

“Damn.”

He couldn’t have put it any better. He really hoped that someone managed to take out Pierce, preferably Nat, or this whole thing would be worthless. Tasha’s last text to him the previous night had mentioned going for the head of the snake and that his role was to contain any fall out in NY. He flinched when another window was blown out. Loading his tac belt and pockets full of spare mags, he smirked. If they wanted a war, he was not opposed to giving HYDRA one. Hefting his rifle, he slammed the trunk shut. “Stephen, I want you to stay back near the medics.”

“What are you going to be doing?”

Jason grinned, “My job.”

 

X Unusual X

 

One Week Later

It had started out as a really nice day as far as Jason was concerned. The sun was shining, his reports were done for once, and lockup was full of HYDRA agents waiting for their intake hearings… and then Cole just had to use the ‘q’ word. Everything had gone to hell about an hour later when Agent Asshat (Berger actually, but it wasn’t like Jason cared to remember his real name) and his partner had shown up and arrested him. The entire squad had been yelling at the idiots as they dragged him out of the Precinct. He could have gotten away easily enough, but he figured that he would save Sargent Brown some paperwork. He would also hate to deprive Pepper the opportunity to take the FBI down a peg or two. After making sure that Casey knew to call his handler, he let them place him in the back of their SUV for the trip to the NY FBI office.

The interrogation room was just as plain and boring as every single other one he had ever been in. the only difference this time was that he was the one in cuffs while Berger and his partner sat and glared at him. “You’re not still pissed at me for kicking you in the nuts, are you? I mean two hours cooling my heels in here is a little bit extreme don’t you think?”

“Shut it asshole.”

Leaning forward Jason smirked at Berger’s partner. “Make me fucktard.”

The agent started to lunge forward but was stopped when Berger placed a hand on his chest. “Sit down Smith.” Dark eyes narrowed, hiding none of the vindictiveness behind Berger’s attitude. “I’ve been looking forward to this for a long time Walsh.”

Snorting the assassin transferred his attention to the black-haired agent. “Wow, I had no idea that you were into kinky sex. But I think to be on the safe side we should call my wife for permission first.” He only just barely stopped himself from laughing when the other man actually growled at him. He and the head of the idiot squad had never gotten along, and Jason never had been sure what Berger’s problem with him was other than the fact that he used unorthodox methods to get the job done. “Although I don’t think your partner would like that too much. Poor Smithy here is looking a bit green.”

This time both of the agents lunged to their feet and were just reaching for him when the door behind him opened.

“What the hell is going on here?”

Jason sat back as the two agents tried to hurriedly explain to their superior. After a few minutes he started laughing softly to himself, bringing the attention of all three FBI agents to him. Looking over his shoulder at the man behind him, he stopped chucking and gave the other man a mildly playful glare. “Barney your guys are idiots. They think I’m HYDRA.” When his brother let out his own laugh, he rolled his eyes. “Not funny Barney.”

“Kinda is.” Pulling out a handcuff key, he motioned for Jason to lift his hands as much as he could. After removing the cuffs from his brother, he threw them at Berger. “Get out.”

While Smith scurried to do as he had been bid, Berger held his ground. “Sir, you can’t be serious. You can’t just let him go.”

Barney shared a look with his brother, before glaring at the junior agent. “What is your problem with Detective Walsh? It can’t be that he makes more than you, because I know for a fact that he doesn’t. Not to mention, he’s a city cop. So, what is it?”

“He’s a punk.” Berger pointed an accusing finger at Jason, who just kept staring at him. “He’s a no good dirty rotten punk who never should have been a cop to begin with. He can’t even be bothered to follow basic procedural rules.”

“Wow.” Jason snorted, catching his brother’s disbelieving look out of the corner of his eye. “You really are an idiot. If I couldn’t follow procedure, I wouldn’t have the highest security clearance in the room. Not only that, but I’m also friends that most of the Avengers.

“Bullshit. How the hell could someone like you know the Avengers?”

Jason couldn’t help the eyeroll as he held up a hand and started ticking things off. “Starting at the top. My partner’s father does business with Tony, my wife works for Thor’s girlfriend, and Pepper Potts is one of my daughter’s godmothers.  Her, I met while working a case at Stark Tower. Oh, and Black Widow has been friends with my partner since Stark Expo, through her I know Captain America and the Hulk. Not to mention my lawyer is friends with Daredevil and Spiderman hangs out at my café after school. Do I need to continue?”

The FBI agent’s jaw had dropped halfway through his recitation and when he stopped talking the other man scrambled for something to say. After a moment he came out with, “but what about Hawkeye?”

Barney laughed as he clapped a hand on his brother’s shoulder. “If you haven’t figured that one out yet then you are denser than I thought.”

Standing Jason met his brother’s eyes before letting his face fall into what his wife affectionately referred to as his ‘murder face’. At his brother’s nod, he turned his attention back to the other man, his pale eyes icy. “In this game ignorance will get you killed Agent Berger. I don’t feel like dying because of you, so I’m only going to say this once… if you want to live, leave me and the rest of the Avengers alone.” He smirked when he saw Berger’s eyes widen and a fine tremble start in his hands.

“Is that a threat Detective?”

This time it was Barney who answered. “My brother doesn’t make threats Berger.” He used the hand that rested on Jason’s shoulder to guide him out into the hallway, not speaking again until the door had closed behind them. “Always knew your words were as sharp as your arrows Little Brother.”

“Well in this job they have to be. I do, do undercover work periodically after all.”

Barney chuckled. “Seduce any rich guys lately?”

“Har dee har har. I don’t get honey pot missions very often.”

“Why?”

Pouting, Jason shrugged. “Tasha’s better at them.”

His brother’s laugh echoed through the grey corridors as they made their way toward the elevator to the lobby. “Your handler is here, and she did not look happy.”

“I wouldn’t be either. She probably got pulled from an important meeting because Berger did an unauthorized detention of a LEO with no evidence to back it up. He’ll be lucky to have a badge at the end of the week.” When they reached the end of the hall, he sighed. “She’ll probably call Murdock in to sue on my behalf.”

Barney’s face twisted in confusion. “Murdock?”

Nodding Jason pushed the down button to call the elevator. “My lawyer. Works mostly down in Hell’s Kitchen.”

A look of comprehension sparked to life on the elder’s face. “The blind one that took on Fisk?”

“Yeah.” He paused when the doors opened, only speaking again once they were both in and the car was moving down to the lobby. “He’s the guy that helped us out with Bullseye last year.”

Humming, Barney tried to recall what he knew of the man, laughing when it came to him. “Moonlights in red?”

“Yup.” The elevator dinged as they reached the ground floor, barney motioning him forward after the doors opened. “I’d ask Tony about recruiting him if I thought he’d say yes. But he likes keeping to his neighborhood, helping the residents. He’s a good guy.”

“Well, I don’t blame him for that. Somebody needs to take care of the little things that the Avengers can’t.” Pushing through a security door, he smiled when he saw his brother’s handler and her assistant laying into the receptionist. “Speaking of your handler…”

Jason snickered when he saw Pepper and AD Hill. “Hey boss, you want to give the poor guy a break. I’m fine.” He raised his hands and backed up a step when both women turned their glares on him. “Promise. Berger is an ass, but he knows better than to hit a suspect or a fellow LEO.”

The red-haired CEO sighed in exasperation as she rolled her eyes at him. “Sometimes I swear that you are just as much trouble as Tony.” She sighed again when he shrugged and grinned. “Care to tell me why Casey called me with the news that you had been arrested by the FBI.”

Taking in her pristine white suit and pumps, he grimaced. “Board meeting?”

“Yes. Lucky for you, they are used to me being called out for Tony related emergencies. Explain.”

“You know that Agent Berger and I have never gotten along.” He paused and looked at his brother, before clearing his throat. “Well, he decided to take advantage of the fall of SHIELD to try to get me out of his way, I guess. Barney’s gonna rip him a new one later.” He looked between his brother and the two women a couple of times as he realized that he hadn’t actually introduced any of them. “So… Pepper Potts, Assistant Director Maria Hill, this is my brother Special Agent Charles Bernard Barton. Or, you know, Barney the purple dinosaur.” Ducking to the side, Jason laughs as his brother only just missed the back of his head with the hand he had raised to smack him.

Pepper’s smile that she had put on for Barney widened as it shifted from polite indifference to genuine pleasure. “It’s so nice to finally put a face to the name. Jason’s told me so much about you.”

Barney smiled back as he shook her hand. “Nice to meet you, Miss Potts. It was all good things I hope?”

“Mostly.” Her smile softened as she looked between the brothers. “He’s been so much happier since he found out that you are alive.” Her expression was a bit mischievous when she glanced sidelong at her friend. “His counselor assures me that he’s made good progress regarding the incident involving the both of you and the operation that went wrong.”

Shrugging Jason moved past Pepper towards the front door of the field office. “Still have nightmares though,” he muttered.

“And that’s perfectly normal.” She said as she moved to follow him. Maria and Barney following as they stepped outside of the building. “Tony’s still having nightmares about Afghanistan and I’m still having them about Stane.”

“I know it’s normal.” He turned back to look at the others after he reached the Stark Industries SUV that Pepper and Maria had arrived in. Raising a hand, he forestalled any further comments. “Anyways, I am going to be stuck with paperwork for the rest of the day, so if you can drop me off at the Second Pepper, I’d appreciate it. Barney call me later, we’ll get dinner, and you can meet the family now that you’re back in New York.” At his brother’s nod, Jason got into the SUV and pulled out his phone so that he could text Casey. After a few more minutes the two women joined him, and they got underway. Pepper spent most of the trop to the Second reading Maria in on the details of his dual identity and past.

Maria was just pulling them into the parking lot of the Second when she asked, “So you’ve been handling two lives the entire time you’ve been with SHIELD and not just the hidden marriage that I knew about?”

“Pretty much.” He replied with a shrug. “Figure since SHIELD is mostly gone, I’ll only have to use my original identity for Avengers’ business.”

“We would like to keep the two identities as separate as possible Maria. Not just to protect Jason.” Pepper pulled out her phone and after a moment of searching handed it to the other woman after she parked the vehicle. “We’re also trying to protect his family.”

At Hill’s look of astonishment, Jason chuckled. He knew exactly which photo Pepper had pulled up. It was the only photo that either if them had with Phil in it of him off duty and happy. The photo had been taken just after his and Darcy’s wedding by the Elvis impersonator who had performed the ceremony. He was wearing his navy blue suit that he had worn to work the day before and she was wearing the purple dress she had picked out just for the wedding, as well as the purple and black leopard/skull print scarf that he had bought her as an anniversary present. Phil stood to Jason’s right in the photo in his usual grey suit, minus his tie, a big smile on his face, while Pepper stood to Darcy’s left. She was as poised as ever in her usual pantsuit. Jason well knew that the smile she had in the photo was more of confusion than anything else, since his former handler had dragged her into the wedding party at the last minute. Sometimes he wonders if Phil had been preparing Pepper to be his new handler even then.

“You’re married to Lewis?”

Jason nodded, “With kids.” He pointed at the phone that she still held. “That was taken when Darcy and I got married a year after Thor showed up. Just before my assignment to Project Pegasus.”

Hill’s dark eyes narrowed as she did the math. “So, you’ve been together for three years and married for two. I knew you were married, but how the hell did you hide having a full second identity?”

“By being very careful. Phil set it up with Nick. I’ve been Jason Walsh since I was seventeen.” A flare of irritation filled him as he thought about his former handler. His fingers started to fly as he emphasized his next words by speaking both verbally and in sign. “Clint Barton is a ghost and Jason Walsh is not SHIELD.”

 

X Unusual X

Chapter 9

X Unusual X

 

All units be on the look out for Sargent Bucky Barnes. He is described as… if you don’t know, Google him.

 

X Unusual X

 

May 2014 – Brooklyn

 

“Looks a bit different doesn’t it?” The softly spoken words would have startled the soldier, if he had not known that the man who had spoken was coming up behind him. The suit wearing agent had made no effort to conceal either his steps or his reflection in the windows of Goldman’s Deli. Looking the other man over from the corner of his eye, he noted not only the shape of two firearms and six knives, but also the badge clipped to the agent’s belt and oddly enough a pair of nearly invisible earpieces. “What kind of cop uses knives?”

Rather than be startled by the question, the cop smirked. “An Unusual.” Turning to fully face him, the blond held out his hand. “Detective Jason Walsh, NYPD.”

Reaching out slowly he tentatively took the other man’s hand, trying to be careful of his strength. “I’m…” The voice of the small fierce man in his mind (or memories?) echoed through his thoughts. “Bucky?”

“It’s nice to meet you Bucky.” Walsh looked him over with what he took to be concern. “Looks like you could use a bit of food. Dinner’s on me.” He waved a hand to indicate that Bucky should follow as he opened the door and stepped inside.

The pungent aroma of sauerkraut drew forth memories of a hundred times he had walked into this very deli, little BJ Goldman greeting him with a gap toothed smile while his sister Miriam showed off her pretty pinafores that their mother made her every year for her birthday. And then there was Stevie, always Stevie, looking up at him with a black eye and a busted lip from defending yet another girl from one of the neighborhood bullies.

“Hey Benny. Is Pops in?” The detective called out as he made his way over to a soda case. “I got someone here for him to see.”

Edging his way around the store, Bucky watched the burley brunette who manned the counter as he continued to slice meat with his back to the store. A photo above the man, ‘Benny’ as Walsh had called him, caught Bucky’s eye and arrested his movement as he stared at it in shock.

“Yeah he’s here. He just went out back to dump the trash. Keep telling him he shouldn’t, but you know how stubborn he is.” Benny looked over at Walsh after he stopped the slicer. “Two pastrami again today?”

“Yeah.” Walsh looked over at him as he finally started moving again so that he could keep a closer eye on the other man. “Would you like a sandwich or something else Bucky?” He waved a soda bottle filled hand towards Benny. “They make a pretty mean Pastrami on Rye or Corned Beef if you prefer that.”

Bucky nodded as he studied the photo that had caught his eye. His own face smiled out at him with an arm wrapped around the shoulders of his tiny grinning partner, three kids he barely remembered seated on a crate in front of them. “That’s me.”

“Huh?” Walsh followed his line of sight confused until he saw the photo. “Hey it is you! Is that Steve? Scheiβe. I forgot how tiny he was. I mean I’ve seen pictures, but he’s so big it’s easy to forget. Verdammt.”

“Language Junge.” An elderly man admonished the detective as he came out of the back room.

Walsh rubbed the back of his neck in a bashful manner as he ducked his head. “Sorry Pops. It’s just that we were looking at the picture you’ve got of Steve and Bucky it’s hard to believe he was ever that small, what with the way he is now and all.” Reaching out he carefully placed his free hand on Bucky’s arm, after having paused until he received a slow nod. “Anyways I wanted you to meet my new friend.”

The mustachioed, white haired man was tall and straight backed with a wide smile as he took Bucky in, causing something in the former assassin to quell in shame even as he felt a flutter of joy at seeing a somewhat familiar face. “No need for an introduction. I’d know Bucky Barnes anywhere.” He placed his elbows on the counter that separated them and leaned forward. “He saved Steve and me from getting our butts handed to us by Mike O’Shea many a time. Always prayed for you Buck, especially once Steve was found. Knew where he was, you wouldn’t be far behind, like always.” He pointed up at the photo. “Just like the old days.”

“Is that you Pops?” Walsh asked, a hint of awe in his voice.

“BJ.” Bucky let out a little laugh, probably the first one in nearly seventy years. “That’s me and Stevie, my sister Rebecca, and BJ and his sister Miriam. I remember,” he trailed off in confusion for a moment before he continued. “There was something for the store that day?”

BJ nodded in agreement. “My father hired the photographer to take a picture of the storefront for the records, but he decided to get a picture of all us kids too.” Grinning, he waved a hand toward the picture. “Rebecca and Miriam have always been good friends and damn good at what they do. So,” he shrugged, “we managed to keep the picture, even with the Smithsonian after it.” He pointed at Bucky. “Your sister is the best lawyer I know, next to my sister-in-law Alice that is. Between the two of them, they got that picture so tied up with the shop that there’s no way to sell it without selling the whole business right along with it.”

“And that ain’t neva gonna happen.” Benny added as he placed two wrapped sandwiches on the counter next to his grandfather, before he turned to address the soldier. “So, have you decided what you would like Sargent Barnes? Cause we still do your usual.”

His usual. The thought that he had something like that anywhere was a little overwhelming but oddly comforting at the same time. He couldn’t remember what it was, but… “I suppose.” He shrugged as he looked to the detective, who gave him an encouraging smile. “I don’t remember what it is though.”

Benny smiled brightly. “No worries. Pops remembers. Don’t cha Pops?”

“Sure do.” BJ grinned, just the same as he was in the photo. “Corned beef, extra sauerkraut, and a ton of mustard. All put together on dark rye. You always told me that it was enough to get you through a whole shift down at the docks. We always sent you home with a second one for Steve.” BJ scoffed as he shook his head fondly. “Twelve years older than me and still he weighed less than I did. He was a twig.” He waved his grandson off with an admonishment to make Bucky two of his corned beef sandwiches. “Turns out the Army did him good. None of us thought he would make it through Basic, but he surprised all of us.”

An image floated through the Soldier’s head of looking up at his Stevie’s face, along with the thought that the other man was a whole hell of a lot bigger than he should be. “Sure as hell surprised me, when he rescued me in Azzano.” He let out a short laugh, his second in as many minutes, catching sight of Walsh’s grin out of the corner of his eye. “I can’t believe I remember that.”

“It’s a good thing.” Walsh said as he laid a pair of twenties on the counter. “Enjoy the good memories. They’re what make the bad one’s worth it.”

“You sound like you know.” He said it as a statement rather than a question, but Walsh answered anyway.

“I do. I’ve had someone reach into my brain and tear apart my mind and remake it the way they wanted it.” Leaning back against the counter, Walsh let out a weary sigh. “I’m a sniper, just like you, with nearly as high a kill count. Sanctioned or not, by Hydra or SHIELD or whoever, it’s still red in our ledgers.” He pointed over his shoulder at BJ. “Pops gets it, he served too.” He shrugged with a self-depreciating smile. “Well, maybe not the way we did, but still. Friends help us. I can help you, if you let me. I have people I trust to know what I’ve done, who I am when I’m not Detective Jason Walsh. I think they can help you. Plus, my brother can get you a new identity and can keep you out of jail if you’re willing to turn State’s evidence.”

Bucky didn’t know if it was BJ’s encouraging smile or the unyielding honesty of the detective, but he wanted to believe. “Your brother?”

Walsh smiled and visibly relaxed upon hearing his question. “Senior Agent Charles Barton of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. He’s waiting outside in my unmarked while I get food. He borrowed me from my precinct to help investigate a multi-state car theft ring. Not my usual thing, but I’m not really allowed to say no when he asks.”

“Why not?”

The blush that spread across the other man’s cheeks was unexpected. “I might have accidentally shot him about twenty years ago, due to bad intel on an op. He may have forgiven me, but I haven’t. So, when he asks, I help.” He let out a laugh as he ran his fingers through his hair. “Plus, my handler thinks it’s the closest we’re going to get to quality time for the foreseeable future.” Walsh suddenly startled before tapping behind his right ear twice and holding up a finger to indicate that he needed a moment, as his eyes unfocused and tracked to the right. “Hawkeye here.” After a moment he let out an exasperated sounding sigh and rolled his eyes. “No Tony, I haven’t seen him and I’m not about to go on a wild goose chase through Brooklyn on the off chance that I do. I’m in the middle of a Joint Task Force stakeout with an FBI agent. I’m not available and won’t be until the case is resolved.” Clinching his fists, the detective really looked like he wanted to lay one on this Tony’s kisser. “Tony I can’t, I’ve got a day job. And before you ask again, no I’m not going to quit it just for you. Steve can look for his friend his way. If he wants my help, he can ask for himself. He’s a big boy Tony. He is almost thirty.” Another eyeroll showed just what he thought of Tony’s reply. “Goodbye Tony.” Reaching up, he tapped behind his ear again before sighing. Focusing once more on Bucky he shrugged. “Sometimes I think he forgets that I have a life outside the Avengers.”

BJ laughed, before reaching over the counter to lay a hand on Walsh’s shoulder. “He’ll get it eventually. He’s just got a lot going on in that big ol'head'a his. At least he’s a good friend. He made you those fancy hearing aids of yours, didn’t he?”

“That’s true.” Straightening, he grinned as Benny placed Bucky’s two sandwiches in a bag with the other two that Walsh had ordered. “Thanks Pops. We’ll see you later.” Grabbing the bag with the four sandwiches and three sodas, he hustled Bucky out of the deli and down the street towards a pale blue sedan. “Figured you didn’t want anyone else to know where you were just yet,” he stated, remarking on his conversation with Tony.

“It’s fine. Thank you.” Following the detective into the car, he looked over the FBI agent who was staring at him from the front passenger seat. The resemblance was obvious if you knew what to look for. “You must be Detective Walsh’s brother. I’m Bucky.”

After another moment of scrutiny, Agent Barton reached a hand back to shake Bucky’s offered one. “Barney Barton. Nice to meet you Bucky.”

 

X Unusual X

Series this work belongs to:

• Part 2 of Unusual Avengers