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She knew the risk, going out every day into the wilderness. But she had no choice - her child's illlness needed a particular herb that only grew in remote areas as untouched by humans as possible. She, being a renowned botanist of her time before the apocalypse, had tried all she could, but was never able to regrow that herb.

Knowing the dangers of going out, she tried to gather as many of the herb as she could every time she left the settlement. Eventually, she had enough stock to last at least several years. With that in mind, she decided to go out for one last time, to a valley where she had noticed an abundance of the herb growing, to hopefully gather enough for the rest of her child's lifespan.

But, as was always with fate, she was infected on that last trip. She made it back to the settlement, the infection creeping slowly across her body. She gave the herb into the safekeeping of her best friend, another botanist. Calmly, she requested for the rites she had arranged beforehand to be observed.

Water was brought to her, for a last bath. Her friend brought her seeds of flowers, which she swallowed with no hesitation. Then, adorning herself with an abundance of flowers, she walked out of the gates of the settlement and sat down to wait.

As the shadows lengthened, the black tendrils of infection grew and moved over her body. Her consciousness wavered, shook, and eventually faded. Those in the settlement watched as the husk of the best botanist in the settlement stopped all movements, then suddenly with a shudder, stood up.

Those at the gates readied their weapons, but to their surprise, the corpse just stood there docilely. Eventually, her best friend came out of the settlement, holding on to a bunch of flowers.

It was her guess that it may be the flowers that resulted in such surprising effects. Her guess was right. The zombie indeed followed her, or rather the scent of the flowers. With the help of several others, her best friend quickly set a flower circle around the zombie before returning to the settlement to discuss what to do next. While expected, it was still a shock when the zombie quietly stood in the circle of the flowers.

After several days of discussion, it was finally agreed to test the theory that flowers would calm down zombies. With a huge bundle of flowers, the best friend and several of the settlement's best fighters went back out to the flower circle where the zombie still waited.

To the surprise of everyone, more flowers are now blooming from the zombie's body. Apparently some of the seeds had burrowed into the zombie's body and sprouted. Still, there's not time to lose. They quickly remove the flower circle, and using the bundle of flowers, carefully herded the zombie towards one of the larger known horde.

It was with elated shock when they realised all the zombies they met on their way stopped their mad rush and instead stopped, for all appearance enjoying the scent of flowers. They stopped when they finally saw the horde.

The zombie, unaware and mindless, continued forward. In front of their eyes, the restless horde visibly calmed down as the flowering zombie walked amidst them.

Those from the settlement looked at each other in exhilaration. Finally! Five years after the zombie apocalypse, there's a potential way to curb the zombie apocalypse!

Zombie setting where the undead are drawn towards unhygienic scents, so survivors constantly bathe to avoid being eaten.

Zombies are docile when adorned with flowers.

Settlements overgrown with herbs and flora.

Barely any banditry; everyone is focused on farming and gathering.

Different human factions and towns named after flowers like Lilies, Orchids, Roses, etc.

Instead of immediately killing an infected survivor, they’re given special funeral rites - the zombie is covered with flowers to keep them calm, and  allowed to walk out from the settlement to join the hordes.

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Coffin..... whose?????

Avengers: Endgame

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This needs more notes

Steve: *Sneezes*

Cint: God bless America

Steve: You’re not going to stop anytime soon, are you?

Clint: Not until I get tired of it 

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Nanowrimo Grumble

Day 9 of Nanowrimo 2018 and I am running out of steam and prompts. Not sure whether making myself write one short story per day is easier or more difficult than the previous years where I conspicuously DID NOT finish because I lost inspiration and motivation.

Coming up with new ideas everyday is TIRING.

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Am I But Second Best - Part 3

Fandom: Marvel Cinematic Universe

Pariring: Clint Barton/Phil Coulson

Characters: Clint Barton, Phil Coulson, Steve Rogers, Jasper Sitwell, Natasha Romanoff, Nicholas Fury

Summary: (Prompt from @purpleli93) Established Clint/Phil, before captain America was found. Then they find captain America, Clint thinks he is gonna loose Phil (even though Phil is madly in love with Clint, he considers him “the one”) to captain so tries to enjoy the time they have left and looks at Steve wishing he could be him so Phil could love him forever, but Phil catches those glimpses Clint gives captain America and thinks Clint is falling in love with Steve. Phil thinks it makes sense, since Steve is younger, handsome, kind, etc. So both wait until the other wants to break up until one can’t take the wait anymore and explodes in angst then they talk and happy ending!

(The third part.)

(Part One, Part Two)

Clint was in a bad mood when he returned from the mission, not that Phil had seen the man yet. He had, however, heard the gossip and the rumours flying thick and fast in the corridors, cafeteria, wherever agents tend to group up. For secret agents, they sure were a chatty, gossipy bunch. Apparently Clint had gotten into a fight with the handler early into the mission (verbal) when the man refused to even consider his request to change his perch, and then again later when the mission went tits up and the man tried to pin the blame on him, on the supporting agents, the tech support team, anyone he could.

Then he had apparently snapped at Agent Sitwell when he try to debrief them. In front of Director Fury. To say Phil was surprised and concerned was to put it lightly. Clint had always been in control of his emotions. No matter how bad the mission or the handler was (and this mission was bad on both accounts), he had never overreacted in this manner. This made Phil worried enough that he put aside his paperwork for the day when he got news that Clint was in medical getting checked over some injuries he had apparently failed to mention after the mission or during the debrief.

Phil made a beeline for Ward Four when he reached Medical being that there was where Clint always end up. Only the doctor in charge of Ward Four, Doctor Hundi, would actually treat Clint. The others refused, traumatized by his tendency to get bored and signing himself AMA, or when he can’t, play pranks on them. For some reason, Doctor Hundi was spared from all his antics. Of course Phil knew the reason: Doctor Hundi was the only one who had treated Clint without discrimination. The other doctors had, at one time or another, been dismissive of Clint as an asset, especially in his early days in an agent.

However, Clint was not in Ward Four when Phil pushed open the double doors leading to the ward. Immediately Phil’s heart leapt into his mouth. The very few times Clint was not housed in Ward Four was when Clint was too seriously injured for the basic care Ward Four can give. “Doctor Hundi,” Phil went straight to where the handsome Indian lady was standing at the nurse station.

“Agent Coulson. What can I do for you today?” she half-turned in apparent surprise. “I was told that Agent Barton was to report to medical for hidden injuries?” Phil phrased it as a question although both of the knew that he had not received misinformation. A nice perk when you are both handler and and next of kin of your significant other. “Oh! It was nothing serious, just a couple of scratches and a bruised rib. After being cleaned up and bandaged Agent Barton left.” “He left? How long?” Phil knew his tone was too sharp; Doctor Hundi gave him a glance bordering on the sharp edge of a glare.  But she replied, and that was all Phil cared at this moment.

“Agent Barton left around half an hour ago. Now, if you will excuse me, I have other patients to see to.” For all that Phil was Level Seven and therefore outranked Doctor Hundi in all things that matters, she was impressively unimpressed by him. Phil found himself liking her a lot. Now, if he can figure out where Clint had gone that would be perfect. Half an hour would be more than ample time for Clint to have gone to his office.

One of the nurses caught his attention. “Sir, I was the one attending to Agent Barton earlier. He was saying something about visiting a man out of time?” he looked a bit bemused and Phil couldn’t blame him. Captain America was still need-to-know as far as SHIELD was concerned. Which means that all the Level Six and above knew about it. But the nurse was only a Level 2 and so would not know. “Thank you, Nurse,” Phil sneaked a glance at his name tag. “- Brown. I believe I know where Agent Barton was heading to.” He turned on his heels and walked towards where he was quite certain Clint had gone.

***********

Steve Rogers was awake when the man came into his room. SHIELD had been kind enough to provide him with a small room usually reserved for their own agents on the helicarrier. At least he thought it was his. The man dropping into his room via the vent made him a bit suspicious. He watched warily from his seat by the window as the brown-haired man dust himself off perfunctorily before straightening and fixing him with a half-glare. "You are Captain America," he stated bluntly. "Steve, actually," Steve replied, feeling quite annoyed with the whole Captain America thing. It wasn't that long ago that the moniker was a dancing monkey. Although he had been told that Captain America had become a national hero and had actually been there for the start of his missions as Captain America, Steve could not help but be annoyed whenever he was introduced as Captain America rather than Captain Steven Rogers as though he was only Captain America, the national hero and nothing else.

"Steve-Captain-America-Rogers. I know your name," the man grunted. Why was he so antagonistic, Steve wondered. He was quite sure that he had never met the man before. "And who are you?" he asked. "Clint Barton," was all that was offered. As though it make any sense! Silence fell between them, heavy and tense. Until the man finally sighed and stretched again. "Okay, fine. I am sorry, I shouldn't have said that. Phil would have my head. Anyway, heard that you have been spending time with Phil and I wanted to meet you also."

"Phil? Spending time- Oh, you mean Agent Coulson. Yeah, I did spend most of my time with him. I think he is my, what do you guys called it? Handler? He is my handler, I think." Steve was surprised that this man, Barton, had sought him out because he spent time with Agent Coulson. "I was told that Agent Coulson is in charge of my re-training and re-integration into society."

"Is that so." Barton didn't seem convinced. "Well, that and," Steve felt his ears heating up as he remembered the way Agent Coulson had stuttered his way into asking for autographs on his card collection (in near-mint condition!). "I was told that he was a fan?" To his surprised, Barton huffed a laugh. "A fan? Man, he is the biggest fan of Captain America I know! He is probably giddy that he got to meet Captain America in flesh." Steve flushed in mortification, "I am only human, Barton. Nothing special." "Except for the serum and the heroics, no, you aren't anything special," Barton agreed sardonically.

Time to change tactics, Steve decided. "Do you have a reason to come into my room? I am given to understand that this is my personal room." "Changing the subject, Cap?" Barton grinned. "Well, if you need a reason, I just want to take a look at who Phil has been spending time with. Anyway, nice talk, I better scram. See you around Cap!" And with that, Barton was up in the vents in a flash, replacing the grate with practiced ease, leaving Steve to gape after him. Steve's reflexes weren't slow by any measure but he was still caught off guard.

Barton had barely left the room when a knock came. Steve took a deep breathe composing himself before opening to the door... only to find Agent Coulson standing outside. "Agent Coulson! Did I miss an appointment?" he asked, surprised. "No Captain, there is no appointment. I am sorry to intrude but I am here to look for Agent Barton. I am told that he was coming to see you." Agent Coulson replied, his face giving nothing away. "Agent Barton? So he is working for SHIELD. Do come in, Agent Coulson," said Steve, stepping back to let Agent Coulson in.

Agent Coulson froze minutely at the mention of Agent Barton. It wasn't obvious, just a small pause in his stride, then he continued on as though nothing happened. Steve only saw because he was looking closely in the first place. He thought that Agent Coulson would ask him what Agent Barton and he talked about but Agent Coulson surprised him again. "Do you have any doubt about who he was in the first place, Captain? Why didn't you sound an alarm?" Steve knew what he was asking, why he didn't trigger the silent alarm set on his phone to call for reinforcements when he suspected that someone who wasn't SHIELD was on the 'carrier.

"I was a bit suspicious but I can take him in a fight if it comes to that. Anyway, we are on a helicarrier and I don't think that anyone not working for SHIELD will be able to get in," Steve answered, a tad defensive. Agent Coulson looked unconvinced but did not argue on that point. "Agent Barton is a Specialist; he is a SHIELD sniper but he is excellent at hand-to-hand as well. I think that he would have give you a run for your money, Captain." Is that a smile he saw on Agent Coulson's face? It is, a very small smile, just a small quirking of his lips, but a smile nonetheless. "Well," Steve started, then stopped, not sure what to say to that. Sure he had his superhuman strength and reflexes and the basic training they gave him as a soldier but that was that. If Agent Barton was a specialist as Agent Coulson said, then it is more than probable that his hand-to-hand was better than Steve's and would definitely gave him a challenge in that field.

"Captain, how long ago Agent Barton left?" Agent Coulson prompted when it became apparent that Steve was lost for words. "Uh, not long. In fact, he left just before your knock," Steve was sheepish for reasons that he himself was unsure of. "I see. Very well then, Captain. I shall take my leave of you. Please remind Agent Barton if you see him again to not use the vents. He is not authorized to enter the vents." With that, Agent Coulson stood, gave a nod, and left, closing the door gently behind him. Steve simply shook his head and went back to the book he was reading before all the interruptions. Agents.

***********

Phil decided to return to his office when his trip to Captain America's room did not yield an archer. If Clint had left before he came in, then it is more than likely that he will end up in his office sooner or later. Clint did not much like the helicarrier and he did not have a office, only a small cubicle that offered no privacy. Sure enough, Phil opened his office door to a certain archer stretched out over his couch like a feline. "Barton, nice to see you here," he spoke as he went to his chair behind his desk which was overflowing with paperwork. Clint simply grinned, saying, "Aw, Phil. You missed me. I am so touched."

Phil definitely did not crack but was absolutely serious when he replied, "You have only be gone for a month, of course I have not missed you." He pretend to be engrossed with the paperwork, ignoring the grinning archer. "Come on, Phil, I know you and you have been reading the same line 3 times in the last five minutes." Clint did not even pretend to be fooled, calling Phil out on his pretense.

"Speaking of, I went to see a certain Man Out of Time," Clint said nonchalantly. Or was it? Phil could not help but think that he heard some undercurrent in Clint's tone of ice. "I know. I went to find you in the Medical Bay." "Well? Aren't you going to ask me how it went?" Clint asked teasingly. "How did it went?" Phil played along. "He is a national hero and he is nice. He asked me to call him Steve. I like him," Clint replied, distracted by an after action report he spotted on Phil's desk. "Hey, what is this? You took on new agents while I was away? I thought I was the only one to submit after action reports to you?"

"Fury assigned Captain America to me and he had his first mission three days ago." Phil tried not to think too much on the fact that Captain Rogers asked Clint to call him by his first name or that Clint seemed inclined to do so. "Is that so? How'd Steve do?" Clint asked curiously, sneaking the after action report off the desk. Phil snatched it back and gave him a half-hearted glare. "You know full well that all missions are confidential and need-to-know only, Clint." "Oh come off it! I will bet that it is a mere milk run and I can get information on it from the watercooler gossip around here." Clint grinned, unrepentant.

Well, that's true. There's no way that Captain America's first mission in the 21st century would be anything too urgent and important and it was likely news had already been passed around, gossiped and analysed by the other agents. But it still did not mean that he was going to break confidentiality. Nope, he was not going to cave under Clint's infectious grin. No, no, no- oh what the hell. It would not make any difference; Clint would have known one way or the other. At least that was what Phil told himself as he begun to tell Clint what happened on that milk run.

Clint just grinned even wider and settled in. At the end of the story, he stretched and commented, "Steve is certainly a good guy. I guess all those hero worship is justified eh, Phil?" Laughing, he dodged the pen Phil lobbed at him.

***********

Phil tried not to notice that Clint had been spending quite a lot of time with Captain Rogers. It wasn't to say that Clint had not been spending time with him, but Clint was actually cutting short his range time to spar with Captain Rogers. When they fell into bed at the end of long days at work, more often than not Clint would have some story or other to tell about the Captain. Sometimes it was something the Captain did, sometimes it was something the Captain told him, like the fact that he and Sergeant Barnes were something a bit more than friends. Phil cannot decide whether he was jealous of Steve or envious of Clint.

He himself had been spending quite a bit of time with Captain Rogers as well, being his handler and direct superior for the time being though he had no delusions that it would only be for a short time while the Captain was being re-integrated into society and brought up to speed. They had went on a few more missions together, nothing as mundane as the first mission, but also nothing too critical. He found the Captain to be quite a strategic thinker and quick learner, making him a true pleasure to work with.

Phil was actually quite surprised to realize that Captain Rogers' combat skills was not up to par with the average agents and that he won most of his fights through sheer strength and speed. However he was also noting that the Captain's skills were improving quickly and made a point to ask one day after a mission debrief. "Captain Rogers, your combat skills have improve a lot in these past 6 months. I estimate them to be around the average level of any SHIELD agent though I must suggest that you continue to improve. You will likely be sent on more critical missions soon and having better than average combat skills will be advantageous."

"Oh, thank you. I knew that my combat skills are not as good as others so I have been practicing with Clint. He had been showing me new moves and practicing with me. Agent Coulson, you are correct when you told me that I would have found him a challenge that day I met him," Captain Rogers answered with his usual bright smile. Although Phil did not show it, he was quite surprised as Clint had always declined to teach the baby agents combat skills when asked. Phil didn't know what to do with this new information.

"Well, keep up the good work, Captain. I will see you at the gym tomorrow to assess your current level." When in doubt, Phil turned back to his paperwork. Boring, mundane paperwork always help to put things into perspective. He barely heard Captain Rogers' "Sir!" as he let himself out, engrossed in the after action report of a disastrous mission in Latveria.

It was seven in the evening when he raised his head from the pile of paperwork on his desk. The towering pile of papers had been reduced to a mere 5 inch thick stack. Phil paused and decided that the rest can keep for the next day and reached for his jacket. That was when he remembered that Clint had said that he would be late tonight because he had a sparring session scheduled with Captain Rogers. Phil leaned back in his chair, no longer in any hurry to return to a dark empty house.

As he sat alone in the quiet of his office, doubts crept into his mind. Did Clint enjoyed the company of Captain Rogers more than his company? They were much more similar in character after all, both of them being men of action while he preferred to think things through. A paperpusher, he thought to himself. In fact, he couldn't remember the last time he and Clint had sparred. Ever since he was promoted to Level 8, he had less and less time to spend on the gym or the range (where he used to go and watch Clint shoot). He wondered, as he often did at the beginning of their relationship, what Clint had seen in a balding paperpusher.

He knew that Clint loved him, never doubted it for a second. But was Clint happier with Captain Rogers? Was Phil holding him back when he would rather spar or train with a younger, fitter man who preferred action over paper? He didn't think so, but he was no longer sure. Not with how much time Clint had been spending with Captain Rogers, almost more than he spent with Phil. Not that he was counting of course. Phil didn't know and for the first time in his life, unsure on how to proceed. He decided that he would not say anything and savour all his time with Clint just in case this thing they had was winding up to an end. Not for the first time, he wished that he was younger, more active. Not for the first time, that wish would be in vain. Phil was a thinker through and through. He would never be comfortable jumping into action without a plan. And if Clint wanted Captain Rogers because of that, then there's that and the only comfort Phil have would be that Captain Rogers was a good man and Clint could hardly do better.

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reblogging this so I don’t lose this later

An All Phlint Rec List!

One guess which pairing I fell head-first into this time…

Need more time? No problem, I’ll give you a hint. It involves SHEILD’s #1 eye in the sky and his long-suffering, slightly anal-retentive handler. The purple Avenger and the dead-not-dead agent. You know them, and if you don’t already love them, these fics will fix that for you. Sorry in advance for how long this is, but there are so many fics and I have too many feelings.

Some of them even feature Pizza Dog, because we are a blessed fandom.

Most of these are rated Explicit, but not all! I even mention a G-rated fic, and I’m proud of me for branching out my recs. I don’t read non-con/dub-con, and I’m not usually into ABO stuff, so you won’t find any of that here, if it’s a concern. Just in case, read the tags! I also don’t read unhappy endings, becasue I’m not about that life.  

Click the bold titles (sometimes the little lines indicating a link aren’t there, but the link still is) and don’t forget to leave kudos/comments on the ones you love, to spread that love to the authors! And as always, there will always be more fics that I love/bookmark/scream about in my bookmarks page on my ao3 account: megamazing

Keep reading

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Am I But Second Best - Part 2

Fandom: Marvel Cinematic Universe

Pariring: Clint Barton/Phil Coulson

Characters: Clint Barton, Phil Coulson, Steve Rogers, Jasper Sitwell, Natasha Romanoff, Nicholas Fury

Summary: (Prompt from @purpleli93) Established Clint/Phil, before captain America was found. Then they find captain America, Clint thinks he is gonna loose Phil (even though Phil is madly in love with Clint, he considers him “the one”) to captain so tries to enjoy the time they have left and looks at Steve wishing he could be him so Phil could love him forever, but Phil catches those glimpses Clint gives captain America and thinks Clint is falling in love with Steve. Phil thinks it makes sense, since Steve is younger, handsome, kind, etc. So both wait until the other wants to break up until one can’t take the wait anymore and explodes in angst then they talk and happy ending!

(The second part. I am sorry it took so long, please don’t kill me.)

(Part One)

The washing machine trilled, signifying the end of the wash cycle. Clint was looked over and decided the laundry could keep a bit while he finished the dishes. He was drying the last of the dishes when he heard the sound of a key turning in the lock. Instantly alert, he quickly reached for one of the many guns hidden around their home.

It might seemed paranoid, but one thing Clint learnt as a secret agent for a secret agency was that you can never be too paranoid when you make enemies of smart, resourceful,evil people all around the world. ‘Constant vigilance!” were the name of the game (yeah well, Harry Potter was a good read and the movies not half bad), and both he and Phil knew it. There were weapons hidden in every room for just this reason. 

Clint was alert and on the defensive because as far as he knew, there had been no expected visitors for today and Phil had went to SHIELD. Usually he would not be back so early, even more so now they found Captain America. As far as Clint was concerned, there was good cause to worry.

The key turned, the door opening, Clint had reached the gun and brought it up to face ……Phil, standing bemused in the doorway. “Clint?” he asked. “Is everything alright? I bought us brunch from the bodega down the street.” So saying, Phil hefted the bag he was holding and smiled at Clint. As though he had not nearly given Clint a bloody heart attack.

“Jesus, Phil. Give a man some warning next time okay? I thought it was our past catching up!” Clint exhaled explosively, turning to put away the gun into its own hidey hole. He wasn’t avoiding Phil (no, really, the gun must be put away). But his heart clenched a bit. Brunch from the bodega. That’s what Phil had gotten them the morning after the first time they spent the night together.

“So, Captain America huh?” Clint pasted a mask of wry affection as he turned back. “I thought you say you have to go in?” The silent ‘why are you back already’ not spoken but heard the same. “Captain America,” Phil confirmed wryly, acknowledging his fanaticsm with said Captain. “And I did went in. Medical told me that he would still be out for a few more weeks. There’s nothing that will not keep so I came back.” To spend time with you, Phil added silently. 

Clint very nearly frowned. Did Phil meant that he only came back because Captain America was not awake or did Phil meant that he just went in to check up on the good Captain? Either way, Clint decided that he might just as well enjoy the time he had with Phil. Putting on a grin, he reached for the bag Phil was still holding. “Brunch? Did you remember to grab a couple of those great hash browns they have? Because I gotta tell you, those are the best things on their menu.”

“Don’t be silly, Clint. Their best is definitely the bacon ham muffins,” Phil deadpanned. He laughed when Clint clutched at his chest dramatically, crying, “NO!! You have betrayed the Hash Browns! The Hash Browns shall reigned forever!“ Phil noted with relief that whatever strange mood Clint was in seemed to have passed.

For a while, their lives returned to normalcy. Well, as normal as their lives could be as agents of a covert government agency. Their leave ended with the two of them satisfied (and sated). Clint was almost immediately sent onto a mission that required his special skillset.Clint was not too happy but it was a short mission to terminate some unsavoury character that SHIELD would prefer to be out of the game. Three weeks and he would be back. Not the longest mission he had, but the mission required communication black out, which he did not like, especially when his relationship with Phil was being threatened (by Captain America no less!). But an order’s an order. Clnt had no choice but to go on the mission, hoping (praying) that he would still have a relationship when he came back.

But no, he chided himself. Phil’s a good man and would not do that to anyone. If he wanted to end a relationship, he would tell Clint straight (not that it would hurt any less), not during a mission with a communication blackout requirement. No, the way Phil looked at him, the hashbrowns he had bought for Clint eventhough he wasn’t a fan, all those, they don’t add up to someone trying to dump their boyfriend. Therefore, you should stop being silly, Clint told his head harshly, tightening the straps of his gear on the Quinjet heading towards their destination in a corrupt little state in Western Europe.

Phil, on the other hand, returned to a thin file on his desk with a Post-It note tacked to the front. ‘Be grateful and deal with the soldier’ it read in Fury’s messy scrawl. He smiled to himself blandly. As he predicted then. Captain America is now his problem to deal with. 

Phil decided that as he would be missing Clint as badly from their apartment (damn communication black out), he might as well take advantage of the time and try to clear some of the never-ending paperwork to decrease the backlog somewhat.

A week and a half later, an email from Medical popped up. The Captain was waking up ahead of their estimate, did Agent Coulson want to come down? Of course he did. Phil put on his blandest face before heading out. Giddy and excited was not part of Agent Coulson after all. To see him otherwise then quietly competent may lose him some of those carefully cultivated repectful fear among the junior agents. (Okay, yes. Phil wanted to make a good first impression on his childhood hero, sue him.)

All said and done, within half an hour from the time Phil received the email, he was in Medical, watching through the observation room as Captain America gradually come back to life. He was not the only one there; almost all the on site Level 6 and above senior agents were standing in the observatory. But Phil noted with secret glee that he would be the only one allowed to talk to Captain America for now.

He saw when the Captain became aware of his surroundings; he suddenly went painfully still. Phil decided that it was time he make an appearance. Silently, he withdrew from the observatory. Only a few agents noticed his departure, a fact he noted with displeasure. As senior agents they should have been much more aware of their surroundings.

Phil filed that away as something to deal with after. Now, he should attend to Captain America. A quiet word to one of the orderly, a few seconds later the windows of the observatory went dark. Captain America had his privacy violated quite thoroughly already. Besides, Phil wanted to talk to Captain America without nearly 30 pairs of eyes on him.

Reaching the door, he gave a perfunctory knock and entered. “Good afternoon, Captain Rogers. I am Agent Phil Coulson and you are currently in the custody of SHIELD.” The man gave up pretense of still being unconscious, sitting up slowly, as though he was still stiff (of course he was stiiff; he had slept for 70 years damnnit!). “SHIELD? What is SHIELD?” the Captain’s voice was deeper than Phil had imagined.

“At ease, Captain, you are among friends. SHIELD stands for Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement and Logistic Division. It is the successor to the SSR, if you like.” “Successor of the SSR? What happened?” “Captain, you have slept for 70 years. SSR is no longer in active duty.” Phil hated himself a little at that point, seeing Captain America went blank in shock.

“But, how? The war? Peg- I mean, Agent Carter and Colonel Phillips?” The Captain sounded so lost and young at the moment that Phil was forcefully reminded how young Captain America was, barely passing his 22nd birthday when the plane went down and time (for him) stood still.

“The war is over, Captain. As for the rest, you shall be given the information after you rest and eat.” Doctors and nurses started coming in; they had promised Phil only 5 minutes. After all, Captain America had just woken up after a very long time under the ice. They need to keep him under strict observation. A nurse started to measure the Captain’s blood pressure and pulse. “I will be back later to answer any questions you have for us,” Phil promised.

The Captain’s eyes were still wary, but no longer hostile. He nodded in agreement with Phil’s plan. Phil counted that as a win. He retreated to his office, decidiing that he can go back to Medical in a few hours’ time. How he wished that Clint was back stateside. Then he could go to him for support and to calm himself down before the second meeting with Captain America.

[fictionalfriction]

This one makes me want to take all my favourite characters and hit them with tragedies

via @extramadness

[fictionalfriction]

Am I But Second Best

Fandom: Marvel Cinematic Universe

Pariring: Clint Barton/Phil Coulson

Characters: Clint Barton, Phil Coulson, Steve Rogers, Jasper Sitwell, Natasha Romanoff, Nicholas Fury

Summary: (Prompt from @purpleli93) Established Clint/Phil, before captain America was found. Then they find captain America, Clint thinks he is gonna loose Phil (even though Phil is madly in love with Clint, he considers him “the one”) to captain so tries to enjoy the time they have left and looks at Steve wishing he could be him so Phil could love him forever, but Phil catches those glimpses Clint gives captain America and thinks Clint is falling in love with Steve. Phil thinks it makes sense, since Steve is younger, handsome, kind, etc. So both wait until the other wants to break up until one can’t take the wait anymore and explodes in angst then they talk and happy ending!

(I saw this prompt and couldn’t help myself from hijacking it :P.)

(PS: It kinda ran away from me .It was supposed to be a short fic but now it seems to want to expand itself into a long fic. I am going to post it in parts as I finish writing them. )

It was barely four when the muted beep-beep of an incoming message on the phone jolted both men awake. While Clint blearily stumbled towards the attached bathroom, Phil took the phone and swiped it open to glare at the too-bright message. 

It had been a good night. They had been able to get away from SHIELD for once (Phil filed away all those tasks which did not required immediate attention for later), spending a lazy day in each other’s company. A dinner at Tanto’s where they had their first date, appropriate for their fourth anniversary. Then a movie (which they did not spent kissing; they weren’t teenagers, thank you very much).They had tumbled into bed when they came home, passion for once not deadened by fatigue.

Then they had gotten less than an hour’s sleep when Phil’s phone woke them up. This better be an urgent matter that couldn’t be handled by anyone else, Phil thought furiously. He had specifically asked for two days off: anniversary and the day after, with instructions that he was unreachable unless something urgent and essential came up.

He pulled up the message and very nearly dropped the phone. “Holy shit!” he not-yelped. Clint stuck his head out of the bathroom, toothbrush sticking out the corner of his mouth. “Mmrrhmrrm?”

“They found Captain America!” Just like that, Phil was wide awake. So was Clint, by the way his eyes got comically big. Phil was staring at his phone in amazement but Clint knew it wasn’t going to last long. Phil Coulson was a man of action and this occasion would not be any difference.

Sure enough, half an hour later Phil was already on his way to SHIELD. On a day off with plans made months ahead. Clint did not offer to join; no point, he thought. He knew how big a fanboy Phil was over Captain America. And now, with news that they found Captain America alive though frozen (he was still trying to wrap his head around the alive part), Clint would be surprised if they were able to drag Phil away from Medical short of a crisis.

Clint saw Phil off (how domestic they had become), then return to tidy up their apartment. Phil’s apartment, he thought with a pang. Even though they have been together for four years, they still kept separate lodgings. Phil had never mention moving in together and Clint had not wanted to rock the boat, treasuring the relationship over any tangible proof. But now he wondered whether he made a mistake, whether the newly returned Captain would cause him to not have a boyfriend any longer. No, he thought firmly to himself. Captain America had always been portrayed to be honourable. He would not steal another’s treasure.

But what if Phil left? A small poisonous voice piped in the dark recesses of his mind. What if he saw Captain America and realized that he can do so much better than a carnie? What then? Clint slammed the washing machine close over the load of laundry he just pushed in. He wondered whether he would be able to let Phil leave if he wanted to. No, he strengthened his resolve. If Phil wanted to leave, he must let him leave. After all, he had always known that there was no forever for them. Phil was so refined, smooth and competent; while he was a rough carnie who could barely read and had relied on Phil to teach him the letters when he first joined SHIELD. Phil was way outta his league and he was still surprised that Phil had asked him for a date in the first place.

Phil strode into SHIELD with his usual calm confidence. He kept his face expressionless as junior agents scurried out of his way while the senior agents nodded as greetings. He nodded back at the senior agents while noting the reactions of the junior agents. He gave an internal sigh; he will have to organize training again for the junior agents. They just cannot maintain the blank facade so essential to their secrecy.

The lift dinged then, opening onto the fourth floor. Medical. Unlike other areas of SHIELD, Medical was always orderly and clean. Until some mission or other went FUBAR and then Medical would be worked to its maximum capacity. Today was clearly not one of those days.

Medical was mostly empty, the few agents seeking medical attention due to training mishaps rather than mission based injuries. Only the furthest ward was bustling with people and that’s where Phil was heading.

“Sitrep!” He barked, as a way to gain their attention and some information. “Sir!” A junior agent disentangled herself from the crowd. He looked at her. Agent Brown, a good agent from what he saw and heard, but horrible with first aid. Why in the world was she here?

“Sir, my team was assigned to Project: Rebirth for this month. On the 5th, one of the researchers said he think he found something up north so we all swung up to where he thought he detected something. It was up near north pole and so damn cold. Then, two days ago, on the 17th, one of the patrols found a wing sticking up through the ice. It took the team a day and a half to cut through the ice and identify the air craft. Then Orwell and Jones went in. They found him, sir! It is really him! Captain America!” Brown started off professional enough but at the end of her report, the tiniest hitch and a slight change in tone alerted Phil that she was not as calm as she would like him to believe. Not a bad attempt for a Level 3.

Of course she wasn’t calm. He was not calm and he was a Level 8. Captain America by gods. The symbol of all that was good and worth protecting, the symbol that the little guy can do something and deck a bully as well as anyone. Phil took a breath and stepped forward, the crowd parting in front of him. It was an ability he cultivated, enabling him to slip through crowds quickly and without fuss which had proven useful in more than a few missions.

A few quick steps, and he was standing in front of Captain America. S teven G. Rogers, his mind whispered. He certainly did not look like he can deck anyone right now. For one, his chest was barely moving. For another, he was hooked up to a lot of machines and from what Phil can understand from the monitors were not good. His vitals were too low, That would explain the crush of medical personnel around him.

Phil silently withdrew. He can do nothing for now. It would be more useful to go back to his office and start the paperwork to get Captain America declared alive again. He knew that this case will almost certainly be assigned to him; Fury knew of his obsession with Captain America and had a weird sense of humour.

Speaking of humour, Phil couldn’t help but be reminded of Clint. An expert marksman, the quiet young man he brought into SHIELD had blossomed into a confident and playful young man. Mischiveous and lively, Clint made a hobby of scaring the baby agents out of their skin. “To train them for constant vigilance!” he would protest whenever anyone try to tell him off.

Phil couldn’t help the small smile at the thought of Clint. Gods, he loved him so much that it scared him sometimes. Clint had seemed a bit off however. Perhaps it would be better if he returned to Clint. After all, the paperwork wasn’t urgent. One of the doctors had given him an estimate of two weeks before the good Captain would even be lucid to answer questions.

His mind made up, Phil quickly grabbed his stuff and prepare to return. Perhaps they can still salvage something of their leave.

A/N: This will be a multi-chaptered story I think. Shouldn’t be too long though, maximum is around 4 to 5 installments. (Sorry, @purpleli93. Do you want me to tag you in the other chapters?)

[fictionalfriction]

ME! Rediscover the joys of writing fan fiction at 24 ;)

Reblog if you’re over 20 and still read/write fan fiction.

I’m curious!

[fictionalfriction]

The Doctor

Fandom: Marvel Universe Characters: Bruce Banner|The Hulk, Natasha Romanov|Black Widow, Clint Barton|Hawkeye,  Phil Coulson

Summary: Bruce Banner Hulked out in Mauritania and met Agent Phil Coulson for the first time. The Agent was so very different from other government agents he had met.

(There is some reference to the Ironman movies but not much.)

The first time Bruce Banner saw Agent Phil Coulson was after a Hulk out in Mauritania. He had fled to sparsely populated areas after the disaster in Manhattan in an effort to avoid the military and the world at large. He left Betty behind, no matter how much the Other Guy wanted to bring her along.

On that fateful day, he had Hulked out after a sandstorm threatened to overwhelm the tiny shelter he had built for himself just outside a city of Mauritania. Thankfully, from the bits and pieces he remembered, the Other Guy had rampaged away from the city, turning to the arid desert instead.

Which still did not explain why he was looking at a man in a suit in the middle of what looked to be a small outpost hastily built. He was also dressed while unconscious, which is a first after one of his ‘transformations’. Previously people had been too intimidated by the Other Guy to approach even after the dust had settled.

Interesting. It would seem that these people, whoever they are, had come prepared for the Other Guy and were none too impressed by him. At the very least, they were not scared enough to leave him alone after he shrunk down.

“Good afternoon, Dr Banner. Welcome back,” the suit said. “W-what? W-where am I? Who are you people?” Bruce asked, trying to get his bearings straight. It didn’t look like he had left Mauritania so whoever these guys were, they had been powerful to pursuade the government of Mauritania to allow a set up of an outpost not too far from their city. Or stealthy enough to do it without consent. Both of which did not spell good news for Bruce as usually any organizations able to any of the two would be at the very least para-military. The Other Guy was not fond of the military-type.

“I am Agent Phil Coulson, of SHIELD. You are still in Mauritania, Dr Banner, all we wanted to is to talk to you,” the man, no, Agent, said. “SHIELD?” Bruce asked, just because it was the easiest question and also because he was curious. Agent Coulson gave an almost imperceptible heave and spoke as though he had to said this too many times in the past, “Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement and Logistic Division.”

Bruce stared at him. He had heard rumours of the agency when he was still attached to the agency, but they were only just that, rumours. A top secret agency that operated worldwide? Impossible. Or so he had always believed until today.

“Okay. What does SHIELD wants from me?” He finally looked away, fiddling with the blanket on his lap. “We knows of your abilities, Dr Banner. We wish to recuit you to our agency. “ Agent Coulson said, almost gently. His arms were clasped in front of him, unthreatening but able to move in a split second if nececessary. He looked calm and unruffled.

By contrast, Bruce was not as lucky. “Y-you know about the Other Guy?” When Agent Coulson nodded, he went on. “Then you know that he is uncontrollable. He just mindlessly smash his way when he is triggered. How can you hope to use him?” Bruce was aware he was panicky at this point but he just cannot stop.

“Our analysts disagree with your assessment, Dr Banner. They are of the the opinion that the Hulk can be reasoned with and can be controlled. We hope that you will agree to join us. During the times when the Hulk is not needed, SHIELD will provide you with a lab for your projects.” Agent Coulson paused before adding the last part. “Your projects will not be in any way limited or controlled, by SHIELD. Instead, it will be like working with the university. Grants will be given, although more generous, and will not be limitless.”

“And if I refuse? What then?” Bruce laughed bitterly. “Have those agents you have stationed outside shoot me? If your analysts had forgotten to tell you, I Hulk out when I am shot at and the Other Guy is impervious to bullets. He will just go into a rampage and I really don’t want the blood on my hands. But I would rather blood than to go back to the military! So don’t say I haven’t WARNED YOU!”

Agent Coulson’s expression remained unchanged throughout Bruce’s mini-rant. It was very impressive, more so because at the end of it Bruce had been feeling a little ‘green’ and the words had come out with a growl.

“Agent, Dr Banner. But no, if you refused, then we will leave you alone. However, please be informed that if the Other Guy’s power is needed, SHIELD will be by again.” Agent Coulson stood up. He straightened his already immaculate suit. “Well, Dr Banner, SHIELD will leave you for now. Unless you want to come with us?” Bruce shook his head mutely. He could hardly believe it was so easy to get SHIELD to back off.

Bruce watched as the agent left the little outpost. He watched as another man joined him halfway to the curious flying machine they landed a small distance away, a strange intimacy in their interactions. Then he turned to return to the city of Mauritania.

He was not naive; although SHIELD had left him alone, and the two agents had climbed into the flying machine (Quinjet, he heard them calling it), he knew that it more than likely that SHIELD would keep an eye on him.

Bruce wondered where he can go next to escape the eyes. He had tried hiding in one of the least populated countries in the world, reasoning that the lack of people would make it hard for anyone looking for him to find anyone who know about him. But SHIELD had found him. He had to think who else may find him.

Well, hiding in a country with least population-density would make looking for him like looking for a needle in a haystack. Unfortunately, SHIELD had found the needle and he couldn’t help but wonder whether the other organizations also possess some magic tricks to find needles.

Therefore, Bruce decided to go into one of the most densely populated city in the world, Calcutta. If they can find the needle in the haystack, then he will have to hide the needle in a bunch of needles. Hopefully this time he can stay hidden longer. 

“So,” Clint began as he meet up with Coulson striding towards the Quinjet. “Mission’s a bust?” “Not quite. Dr Banner is skittish and has good reasons to be so. The mission objective is never to get him to come to work with us, but to float the possibility of it and to show that we can be trusted.” Coulson had put on his sunglasses. With the suit and tie, he looked as he always did - just like any G-man. Nondesript and forgettable

“Oh.” Clint was silent for a second. “Agents to track but not interact?” “Yes, Barton. You have gotten quite good at this,” Coulson seemed almost surpised (not that his expression say much, but there was that small twitch to his eye and the way his stride faltered for the tiniest bit. Hawkeye noticed things, okay.) Clint shrugged easily. “Been working with you for 7 years, sir. Knew your methods well.”

“You mean 7 years since I rescue the other handlers from your antics, Barton.” The Quinjet started up easily. Clint was at the controls as usual, with Coulson in the co-pilot seat. “Well, if you want to put it that way, sir. Remember to treat me like a grunt in the fields and to ignore my input. Then maybe someone will have to rescue you from me,” Clint grinned as he manipulated the Quinjet to go above the clouds, the banter calm and soothing.

It was an easy mission, but he was still tense. Who wouldn’t be when they see a quiet man turned into a big, green creature who roared and raged, seemingly impervious to all any weapons. Clint had stationed himself outside when Coulson was talking with Dr Banner, one of his arrows nocked and ready. It was not his normal arrows, rather one of those R&D had specially made for him which may be able to pierce the skin of the Hulk and tranquilize him. Even then, there is no guarantee that he would stay down.

But now, home. Clint chuckled suddenly. Coulson looked over at him, a question in his eyes. “Nat would be furious with you when we get back, sir. You sent her to assess Tony Stark.” Coulson’s mouth twitched, but he said calmly, “As an agent, I trust Agent Romanoff will be most professional. Besides, Stark is not too bad once you get past that shiny exterior created to confuse and confund. I believe Agent Romanoff will be able to see past that shield and give the truest assessment of the man.” (Coulson was quietly furious when he realized that Natasha had been fooled by the exterior and given the assessment of ‘not recommended’. Natasha had spent a month on training the baby agents in hand-to-hand.)

[fictionalfriction]

Wanna join

Clint/Coulson is a small but mighty ship, and we need to join together to celebrate this amazing ship!

This amazing idea was inspired by the incredible hemswcrth, and their Stucky Fic club.

Procedure:

Take this preferences survey!

You will be invited to the group when the sign-up period ends

Each week, or amount of time decided, we will vote on a fic to read based on recommendations made by members of the club

Each member has a set amount of time to read the fic, after which we will join together in a group chat and talk about the fic!

Reasons to join:

Not only will you get to read a large number of fics, you will also:

Make many friends who ship CC

Have a platform to discuss ideas/headcanons

Have an enjoyable time at least once a week talking with people about the best S.H.I.E.L.D. agent boyfriends!

Rules:

Reblog this, and fill out the survery so we know who to add

Be prepared to vote on a fic, and read a fic within the time window

(if for some reason, you cannot find the time to read it, that’s totally okay!  You can definitely still join)

Leave judgements of people’s fic preferences when you join.  You do not have to read anything you are not comfortable with, but do not shame others for reading, or not reading a certain thing.

Following anyone is not a requirement, but don’t be afraid to follow other members and make friends!

This will work similar to a network, but there will be more structure to what we are doing.

Thank you again to hemswcrth for allowing me to steal your idea for CC. <3

[fictionalfriction]

Gonna steal this idea!

Fic prompt

Can someone write a fic with a establish Clint/Phil, before captain America was found. Then they find captain America, Clint thinks he is gonna loose Phil (even though Phil is madly in love with Clint, he considers him “the one”) to captain so tries to enjoy the time they have left and looks at Steve wishing he could be him so Phil could love him forever, but Phil catches those glimpses Clint gives captain America and thinks Clint is falling in love with Steve. Phil thinks it makes sense, since Steve is younger, handsome, kind, etc. So both wait until the other wants to break up until one can’t take the wait anymore and explodes in angst then they talk and happy ending! So, tons of angst and insecurities. Thank you!!

[fictionalfriction]

Dilemma

In the privacy of her bedroom, she looked at the dresses and shoes online. They are beautiful and she loved them all. But. There is always a But.

Her tummy isn’t flat like just about,every model wearing those clothes. She is just not tall enough for most of those clothes to look good (153cm is short ). Her chin wobbles just enough to form a double chin.

She wants, but doesn’t click to buy. Not now, not yet. She hasn’t found that one dress to splurge on. Because she cannot afford more than one. Because she doesn’t have the body for them and it is a needless ‘waste’.

It sure doesn’t help when the ‘plus-sized’ clothes she looked at still have models who are average weight. She keeps on expecting ‘plus-sized’ to be for overweight people, or at least people not within the current trend of slim and lanky.

She always puts on weight around her middle but current hot fashion trend are body-con dresses that leave no unseemly bulge hidden. It is humiliating and annoying. It is the best she can do to layer with another jacket or cardigans to try to hide the ugly bulge around her waist. The 'spare tire’, they called it.

It is either those clothes that are tight and body-revealing or loose blouses and dresses that on her look as though she is pregnant. Which she isn’t planning to be now or in the future, thank you very much.

Her cursor stops at one of the evening gowns she is browsing. One-shouldered, with lots of folds and pleats at the waist. Gorgeous. It could hide her belly, she supposed. But it was bare-backed. She thinks about the skin on her back. Not flawless or adorably mole-dotted, just red bumps and rough skin.

She went to the specialists before when she was a teenager. Was told that it was because of 'dry skin’ and that it will clear up when she was older. It still hasn’t.

She scrolls further down. Looking at the dresses. All beautiful, all designed for tall, slim, skin flawlessly smooth people. None for a slightly overweight, short woman with a skin condition.

She sighs. Going back to the filters, she adds sleeves, then as an afterthought, changed them to long sleeves. Well, might as well go for long sleeves. She knows for a fact that tight sleeves make her arms look slim and beautiful.

The new selection loads. She looks through them carefully and choose one. A pretty long-sleeved dress with.pleats for the bottom part. A mandarin collar sits on the neckline, carefully covering up her not-flawless skin. It has Oriental-style buttons down the front and will likely look good on her. Her belly shouldn’t be too noticeable; she chose to get a size larger than she needs.

She looks at the specifications and sighs. She will have to take it to the tailor to be hemmed. Or she may do it herself. As usual it is too long for her. She bookmarks the dress and turns off the computer. Her search for her wardrobe for her friend’s coming wedding can wait. She has work tomorrow. As she brushes her teeth, she thinks of the one-shouldered dress and thinks of the what-ifs and could-haves. It is still her personal favourite that she will not get for herself.

[fictionalfriction]

The Assasin

Fandom: Marvel Universe Characters: Natasha Romanov|Black Widow, Clint Barton|Hawkeye,  Phil   Coulson 

Summary: The Black Widow was brought in from the cold with some help from Clint Barton. Her Red Room training had her waiting for some dire punishment to befall Clint for disobeying orders. Cue Clint and Coulson showing her that the good guys do not kill or injure their agents over disobedience. (And perhaps they have just a closer relationship then coworkers.)

(I have decided to make it into a series.)

Natalia Romanova was not unobservant. She was an agent of the Red Room and her skills were best described as ‘deadly’. She had her charm and allure; like a spider, she lured targets into her web and annihilate them, sucking them dry of information or disposing of them if necessary. Thing is, she was resilient like a spider too. Observe any spider and you will realized that just hours after its webs were destroyed, it would have built itself a complete new onw.

Such was the Black Widow. She was an independent operator, only needing to return after a mission to receive another mission. If she was injured or compromised, she was expected to retreat and after that, to rebuilt her web. Failure was not within contemplation. Any hints of weakness was a death sentence in the Red Room and she did not want to die.

Still, she was very tired. So very tired. Although she looked and moved as though she was in her twenties, she was in fact much older. Much like the Winter Soldier, she had been put into cryo-freeze (storage) when her particular skill set was not needed. In recent years though, with the collapse of the Third Reich and the Soviet Union, her skills had become much more important. She had been thawed. She never knew what she exactly was nor who her masters were. She was but a gun they point at targets and shoot.

Perhaps this was why on that fateful mission she had deliberately slipped up. Natalia had let herself be photographed by an ATM camera (predictable, she could have avoided the camera with just a slight turning of the body). She knew full well that no one from the Red Room will come after her to collect her. It had always been the understanding that you pay for your mistake with your life. Or not.

She waited to see who will show up. Natalia Romanova was not a a fool. She knew her exploits as the Black Widow would have attracted the attention of interested forces around the world. Her next step depended on who found her. 

She did not have to wait long. Less than 24 hours later, Natalia found someone on her tail. She waited a bit, played a little mouse-and-cat with them, nearly got caught and found out they are SHIELD.

Natalia cocked her head, trying to puzzle out whether it was ok to go ahead with her plan using SHIELD. There had been two of them, a stocky man with muscular arms and a man so bland and boring that she had difficulty remembering him. Yes, she decide, SHIELD can do the job. They have ridiculously strict rules of ethics.

She left a very light trail, leading them to an old disused training bunker of the Red Room. The very bunker she had first trained in in fact. It had felt fitting, ending in the place she began.

But the stocky guy surprised her. She looked up at him (of course she knew where he was) and minutes later he was disarming his rifle and throwing away his comms. Then he was climbing down off the ‘nest’ and trying to convince her to go back with him to SHIELD.

No, she thinks. It is a trap. “Yes, I will go back with you, Clint Barton,” is what she said instead. She was drained. If he was not willing to kill her, then she will follow him back to his agency.

It was only later that she found out that his handler, the unassuming guy in the off-the-rack suit, was angry at Barton because he had not followed orders. He had ‘gone rogue’ in trying to bring her to SHIELD.

Natasha Romanov (the Anglicized version of her name she had chosen) then spent few tense weeks waiting for the punishment to be handed down. She wasn’t sure how bad it would be or how she could save Barton (Clint, her mind said), but she knew that it would be a harsh punishment. In the Red Room. operatives do not go off on their own jaunts as they liked and she couldn’t imagine SHIELD being any much different in that respect. They were militiarized as well.

She waited. And waited. Still there was no news of punishment. When one month had passed, she went to ask Barton. Even the most incompetent Red Room handler would have already handed down punishment due after one month. 

Natasha found Barton easily enough in the lounge room (why would SHIELD prepare such a room? It is so wasteful, neither useful for training or otherwise, only consisting of a television and soft couches). For once, he wasn’t on the range. For some inexplicable reason, he was banned from the range for more than two hours for three months. Enough time to practice but not so much to enjoy. She wondered at that.

“Barton,” she said once she sneaked up on him “EEEEK!” The man jumped three feet into the air. “Gods, Romanov! You scared the shit out of me. Call me Clint, I am only Barton when it is formal or when I am in deep shit,” he grinned, putting aside the stick and string that he had been trying to fashion a bow out of. “Clint. What is your punishment?” Natasha would not be deterred from her question.

“Punishment?” Clint looked bewildered. “Had I done something again? I am pretty sure I had not done anything recently?” “Don’t play ignorance, Clint. Your punishment for not obeying your handler,” Natasha said (she definitely did not growl). “Huh? What?” Clint looked honestly confused and now she was confused too. Had the rumours been wrong then?

“Have you been disobeying me again, Barton?” Natasha did not startled at the voice appearing behind them (okay, she might have had a small flinch). She whipped around and saw the man from the bunker. The unassuming man. Clint’s handler. Coulson.

Natasha did not speak, rather she observed Coulson. Same off-the-rack suit, same boring glasses, same boring hair cut, same unassuming air that made it so easy for the man to slip into places unnoticed.

“No sir, i don’t think so?” Natasha realized that both men were looking at her. “I was talking about Barton’s punishment when he went against orders to shoot me.” In for a penny in for a pound. Natasha took an imperceptible deep breath and continued, “I volunteer to take his place in lieu of the punishmen, sir.”

“Oh,” Clint appeared flabbergasted. “Oh indeed,” Coulson said, his eyes narrowed. “Agent Romanov, I must inform you that your concern, although justified, is unfounded. Barton has been punished and unfortunately that punishment is not something anyone can help him with.” 

“Barton had been punished?” she asked, feeling as though she was in a dream. “Yeah, Romanov! I had been suspended for a month and I have lost all range privileges for THREE months!”Clint moaned dramatically. “And that’s all?” she asked, incredulous. So light a punishment for so serious a breach!

“That’s all for this time. Next time, Barton will not be so lucky.” Coulson looked up at her and gave her a small smile as though he had guessed her thoughts. Perhaps he did; after all, he had her file. “If that’s all, Agent Romanov. I will be taking Barton with me. He has paperwork he had misfiled and mis-filled from at least 5 months ago.”

“Aww paperwork, no!” Clint groaned but with a glance from Coulson, he rolled off the couch and made to follow him. Natasha watched them walking out of the room together, trying to make sense of the new world she was in.

Then she saw it, the way Clint’s eyes keep straying to Coulson and lighting up with delight; the way Coulson unconsciously turned towards Clint while walking. Do they know of it, she wondered. Unlikely, she thought to herself. Otherwise, it was unlikely that she would have seen any of the tells. Both men were jealously guarded of their privacy and would not have allowed their lovelife to become common knowledge.Of course, the fact that only the Black Widow would notice did not make any difference. Very well the, she shall keep her eyes peeled for the developments.

In Coulson’s office, Clint starfished out on the couch pushed to one side. “You gonna recommend her to our team, Coulson?” he asked languidly. He knew the answer before Coulson confirmed it for him. “Yes, her skill set would be highly beneficial to the team I want to set up,” Coulson replied, not even lifting his head from his paperwork. They have a familiarity cultivated from years of teamwork. In fact, they have worked together exclusively as handler and agent for almost three years, starting from the day that Coulson had picked him out of the probies’ training class.

At that time, Coulson had had a pretty good team and adding Clint had only increaseed their efficiency. They did so well that the members of the team were gradually tapped for other vital positions until it is just him and Coulson from their original team. Clint knew Coulson had wanted to put together a team again, only he want to pick them out himself this time ‘round. Still, he had been around the man long enough to known when an asset may attract or repulse the man.

Clint was broken from his musings when Coulson said, “I had just completed Form 101(B) to requisition another specialist. I am going up to meet Fury. You finish up your stack of paperwork before lunch. After that, you can use the range for 2 hours.” With that, Phil left the room to meet Director Fury to request a team member.

Clint stared after the man in dismay.Then he turned his attention onto the stack of the computer printouts. Resigned, Clint began to fill out the forms. However, he knew for sure that they will have a new team member by the end of the week. Coulson was just that good.

[fictionalfriction]

Haha! I always wondered when I write something whether I'm going canon or fanon

It’s gotten to the point in the Marvel/MCU fandom where I don’t even know what is entirely fanon and what has a basis in the movies/comics

has Thor ever eaten a pop tart?? did Steve really have his last rites done twice before he got the serum?? is Coulson really Clint and Natasha’s handler?? Does SHIELD even have a position called “handler”?? Did Bucky and Steve share an apartment before the war?? Did Bucky work “at the docks” while they shared an apartment?? Has Nick Fury ever said “motherfucker”?? did Steve have a job with the WPA?? does Coulson like SuperNanny?? Were ‘Bucky Bears’ ever a thing?? 

I don’t even know anymore

[fictionalfriction]

The Archer

Fandom: Marvel Universe Pairing: Clint Barton|Hawkeye,  Phil Coulson

Sumary: Story is set when Clint was just brought in (read: shot in the leg by Coulson and dragged in) and was being made to train with new recruits. He had been inadvertently taking Coulson’s ‘RESERVED’ sandwich for a few days now but no one told him. He only realized when Coulson turned up early for lunch and commented when he took the sandwich. Cue Clint Barton quietly panicking.

(So, my first fanfiction on Tumblr! One of my favourite pairings.)

“So this is why my lunch keeps disappearing.” His heart skipped a beat although he gave no outward reaction. Clint Barton was not used to someone sneaking up on him. In his line of work (former line of work), you are dead if you cannot smell someone coming up on you at least half a mile off. Still clutching the turkey sandwich, he turned around to come face to face with the agent who had brought him in (shot him in the leg). “Sir,” he began, then stopped. He was confused.

“That sandwich? It is my lunch,” Agent Coulson (that’s the name!) said blandly. “Your lunch, sir? But it was on the counter, and I put money to c-cover,” Clint stuttered to a stop. “Aye you did, boy, and the sandwich is yours,” came another voice behind the counter. Clint turn sideways to see the cafeteria lady leaning by against the counter and glowering at Agent Coulson.

“Mary-Jane,” Agent Coulson said evenly. He did not seem angry. “Agent Coulson,” Mary-Jane mocked him in a sing-song voice. “This man here works too hard, boy,” Mary-Jane turned her eyes to Clint. “I am Barton, ma’am,” Clint replied, feeling wrong-footed. He could feel the eyes of his new colleagues on him. They were, after all, in the cafeteria during the lunch hour where so many of the probies and agents were eating.

“Barton? Interesting name. Anyway, let me tell you boy, Agent Coulson here is always so busy that he never comes down when it is lunch time, always coming in around two, three o’clock looking for a quick bite. And because he is the Big Bad Agent, the others always leave one sandwich, which I never said is for you, Agent Coulson!” Mary-Jane gleefully informed Clint. “So, you are well within your rights to take the sandwich and eat ‘cause you paid for it and if Agent Coulson gets no lunch then p’raps he would come down earlier next time!” She ended that little speech with a cackle. Agent Coulson was still wearing that bland expression. 

Clint could feel the little plastic container containing the sandwich crinkle slightly in his hands. This sandwich was left for Agent Coulson? Why didn’t anyone say anything? There’s so many of them here, even some of the probationary agents he was training with! Why didn’t anyone give him a heads up when he took the last sandwich?!

But he knew. In the deepest of his heart, Clint knew that these agents distrust him, distrust the mercenary brought in from the cold. The older agents knew of his reputation and probably didn’t like the idea of a former hired gun working in SHIELD. Those probies, well, Clint had basically out-shot and out-fought just about every one of them, all of whom he was told was handpicked from the best from armed forces all over the country, even from CIA. No wonder he had not made any friends.

“Here sir. I did not know. I will not take the sandwich again.” He held the sandwich out (slightly dented container, it doesn’t matter does it?). He hoped whatever punishment coming would be quick and he won’t need to leave. Although he was initially reluctant and suspicious, he had to admit that having a safe place to stay was doing wonders for him. He had been able to sleep and rest properly without the hyper-vigilance of the hunted. He had not felt this rested in years.

Agent Coulson blinked down at the sandwich. “Keep the sandwich, Agent Barton, I am just joking with Mary-Jane. You paid for it, eat it. Mary-Jane will get me something else to it,” he said not unkindly. When Clint did not move, his mouth a stubborn line, Agent Coulson sighed and pushed the sandwich back towards Clint. “Eat. It will not digest itself.”

Clint was still suspicious, but he took the sandwich anyway, collected an orange juice (real orange juice, none of that orange syrup nonsense) and moved the tray to a table at the corner of the cafeteria after leaving the appropriate sum with Mary-Jane. He had his eyes averted, and absolutely did not stamp on the leg sticking out to trip him like they were in grade school. Idiots, the lot of them, he thought bitterly. He cannot wait until he can graduate from probationary status. At least the he can be more useful and not see these dumb fucks.

Clint took a bite of the sandwich. It was as good as it always was. (But he was still going to leave the sandwich alone tomorrow). Alternating between gulps of orange juice and large bites of sandwich, he quickly finished up his meal and left for the rooms he had been given. He did not see the curious eyes that followed him out of the cafeteria.

Agent Coulson ate his pasta and thought about what to do with the newest asset. He had out-fought and out-shot all the new recruits. Letting him train as a probie was definitely a waste of time. Maybe he can pull some strings… Coulson watched as Clint left te cafeteria alone, no friends calling out or acquaintances greeting him. He had a feeling that Clint Barton was going to surprise him in the days to come.

A/N: This might become a series, each of them standalone, or it may remain just a oneshot. Lets see how it plays out.

A/N 2: This will also be posted in AO3 under the name pilgrim_grey