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suitofvibraniumarmor · 4 years

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The American Initiative

Part Ten

Summary: Grace Cleveland and Eleanor Baker both thought their lives were over, until they became part of something much bigger – the Avengers. Pairing(s): Clint Barton x OFC, Steve Rogers x OFC Word Count: 1897 Blanket Warnings: Death, mentioned a couple of different ways, but not detailed; canon divergence; more based on Marvel movies. In the infamous word of Steve Rogers, “Language.”

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Without Grace to keep her busy in her downtime, Ellie had more time to think – about a lot of things. She found out more about herself in the first couple of days that Grace was gone than she had in a while. Furthermore, she discovered that she wasn’t the kind of person to bottle up her feelings; she could be in control and not let on to them, but she wasn’t going to hide them from herself, either.

This realization prompted her to cautiously broach the subject of relationships with Steve.

“I don’t mean to make things awkward, for either of us,” Ellie assured, “I just — I’m trying to figure out how to handle it now, I suppose.”

Steve nodded. “That’s perfectly understandable, Elle. Even if you remembered things from before, being an Avenger is a whole new can of worms.”

Ellie smiled at his analogy. “Something like that.”

“I don’t know much about relationships overall, to be honest. Before the injections, I was a scrawny Brooklyn kid with asthma and zero allure. After the injections, there was Captain America — but there was also a woman. Her name was Peggy; she was part of the initiative, I suppose. Smart and tough and kind – not a lot unlike you, actually. She had faith in me when no one else did. I suppose there was something between us, but then I had to put that airplane in the ice and everything else happened …”

Steve trailed off, a nostalgic sheen glazing his eyes. Ellie bit her lip and looked away, giving him a moment of privacy with his memories.

“Did you ever think about finding her, you know, when you woke up?”

Returning from his trip down memory lane, Steve chuckled, albeit sadly. “I thought about it, sure, but life went on without me, Elle. Peggy would be an old woman by now.”

“Oh, right …”

The two of them had lingered in silence for a few moments after that, before Ellie showed him some mercy and changed the subject. The thought occurred to her that, old woman or not, Steve was still in love with this Peggy woman – perhaps he would always be. For that reason, though she had accepted her feelings, Ellie decided it was best to keep them to herself.

Grace shouldered the one bag she had with her, pulled the hood of her jacket up over her head, and walked down the streets of Boston towards the last place she had known Joel to live. Thanks to S.H.I.E.L.D intel, she knew he wasn’t there anymore, but she figured it looked less conspicuous if she didn’t go to a place Joel assumed she didn’t know about.

Taking a deep breath, Grace hurried up the steps of the apartment complex, heading straight for the place she had called home, for a while. Another deep breath before knocking, and then there was no turning back.

A familiar man opened the door. “Gracie?”

“Heya, Frank. I’m lookin’ for Joel.”

Frank smiled and hugged her tight. “I told the ole boy you’d be back before we knew it. Joel don’t stay here anymore, though.”

Grace frowned. “Where’d he go?”

“C’mon in here,” Frank said, pulling her out of the hallway. “I’ll call him. He’s in hiding, ya know.”

“Yeah, I figured.”

She sat on the couch – the one she and Joel had picked out together for the apartment – dropped her bag on the floor and pulled her knees up to her chest. Frank spoke in a hushed voice in the kitchen not far away, and Grace could hear every word. When he disconnected the call, he came back around.

“Gimme ten minutes, Gracie. I’ll take you to Joel.”

Grace nodded, focusing on the TV while Frank went in the other room to change and get ready to leave. Her heart was racing, and she was hypervigilant of her situation. Though she knew how secure S.H.I.E.L.D was, there was part of her that feared he knew what she had been up to the last few months.

“All right, let’s go.”

Frank hit the power button on the remote; the cessation of sound broke Grace’s train of thought. She shouldered her bag again and followed her old friend out the door.

Amidst her routine of getting up to date with intel, a regular training schedule, and otherwise occupying herself, Ellie did her best not to think about her feelings for Steve. His heart was taken, that was clear. Ellie could only hope that, in time, her feelings would wane and she could move on.

She was sitting in a conference room on her own when Natasha came to meet her. Ellie smiled a greeting at the other woman and put her hand on the brown file folder in front of her.

“Thanks for meeting me. I think I’m about ready to do this, but I didn’t want to do it alone.”

“What is that?” Natasha inquired.

Ellie took a deep breath. “My entire life, up to the point that Fury came to claim me at the hospital. I haven’t looked at it before, and I only know a few things from what I’ve been told about how I came to be part of The American Initiative. Something someone said to me recently – I’ve been thinking about life after we’re gone. I’ve been wondering how my family is getting on, and who all is left. I want to know the things I don’t remember.”

Natasha pursed her lips together and picked at her nails. She re-directed her focus to Ellie, but couldn’t make herself ask the question.

“You think this is a bad idea?”

Natasha shook her head.. “No. Not if it’s something you feel the conviction to do, Ella. I just – are you going to be able to handle all of the things in this folder? You don’t know what’s in there, and – you make the decision for yourself, I’m here if you decide to go ahead. Sometimes though, I think it’s best to remember that the things left in the past, are left there for good reason.”

Natasha’s advice was good advice. Ellie took it all into consideration, and finally decided to open the file. The first page was all about her.

“I was a teacher,” Ellie smiled. “US history, for a high school.”

Natasha smiled, too, and continued to do so as Ellie went through all the things in her background. She listened as Ellie talked about her parents and her sister, about family pets she didn’t remember she ever had.

As Ellie came to the end of the section on her family, her jaw dropped and her eyes filled with tears. She shoved the file away and stood, fleeing the room and eventually the building.

Natasha pulled the file in front of her, her jaw going just as slack as Ellie’s had as she took in the information in front of her.

“This is some shady shit, Frankie,” Grace muttered as they walked down a concrete staircase. “What the hell is going on?”

Frank glanced at her, but said nothing before turning forward again. A single light bulb dangled from a wired fixture at the bottom of the staircase. Grace watched it swing back and forth a couple of times before Frank got the heavy door unlocked and motioned for her to enter.

Her jaw went slack as she entered the makeshift laboratory; it wasn’t entirely unlike the S.H.I.E.L.D lab where she had been enhanced. This place, however, lacked the technology to be up to par with the agency’s facilities.

“Gracie?”

The voice broke through the silence, causing Grace to turn and face the man she knew so well. He was bigger now, taller and more muscular — she wondered what else had changed about him.

“Joel,” she said, letting his name out on a breath of feigned relief.

He opened his arms and Grace dropped her bag, running to him. The couple embraced, and Joel lifted her face to his, kissing her roughly.

“I missed you — how did you get out?”

Grace swallowed hard. “They cleared me, put me in witness protection. I got the drop on my guards.”

“Always a runner,” Joel smirked, pushing the hood away from her. “Your hair got longer.”

“Yeah … Joel, what is all of this?” Grace gestured to the machines and computers around them.

He stepped away from her, took a deep breath, and sighed. “After I was dropped from the enhancement program, I couldn’t let it go. I found someone within the agency to sneak me the serum — I have to take it via IV, which is apparently changing the way the serum works. It’s better in some ways, but taking time in others. But — it’s happening. I’m becoming the man I was always meant to be.”

Grace smiled as she stepped up to him again. “I always said you had great potential.”

Joel chuckled and kissed her again. “C’mon, I’ll show you the rest of the place.”

As soon as Natasha showed him the file, Steve took off in a full run to find Ellie. A mix of emotions swelled in his chest; pride that she had the courage to open the file was churning with heartache at what she had just discovered she left behind.

He found her near the archery range. She was standing but with her head in her hands, her shoulders shaking. Steve slowed and reached out a hand to her shoulder.

“Ellie …”

Her head lifted and she sniffled as she turned to look at him. Stepping right up to him, Ellie bit her lip as she took Steve’s face in her hands and pressed her lips to his.

He knew he shouldn’t respond, but he couldn’t stop himself from returning the gesture. The saltiness of her tears combined with her own sweet taste; the scent of her invaded his nose. Steve never wanted to let her go.

Ellie was the first to pull away, stepping back and out of his reach. “I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have just done that out of the blue. But, Steve, don’t you think that if I had a — a husband, who died in the same wreck I was in, and a little girl left behind, I should have felt some sort of guilt in kissing another man? It should have sparked something about my former life. But it doesn’t! I read this file of this person who has my name and my face but I don’t know her. It’s like — it’s like I ruined everything!”

She dissolved into sobs again, but this time, not alone. Steve stepped towards her again, pulling her against his chest and promising her that everything was going to be all right.

#TAImarathon #avengers #fanfiction #steve rogers #clint barton #ofc #steve rogers x ofc #captain america x ofc #clint barton x ofc #hawkeye x ofc #queue ... assemble

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suitofvibraniumarmor · 4 years

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The American Initiative

Part Nine

Summary: Grace Cleveland and Eleanor Baker both thought their lives were over, until they became part of something much bigger – the Avengers. Pairing(s): Clint Barton x OFC, Steve Rogers x OFC Word Count: 1290 Blanket Warnings: Death, mentioned a couple of different ways, but not detailed; canon divergence; more based on Marvel movies. In the infamous word of Steve Rogers, “Language.”

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“She isn’t ready, Fury, not to be on her own,” Clint told his director through clenched teeth.

Nick took a good look at the angry man. “She’s either ready, or she isn’t, Barton.”

“She still won’t talk about him and you want to send her right back to him? Undercover?”

“We have to know what he’s up to, and there’s no one that man trusted like he trusted Grace.”

“I don’t like it.”

“You don’t have to — this isn’t your call.”

Fury made the statement with such finality, Clint knew the conversation was over. Fine; if he couldn’t get through to Nick Fury, he would convince Grace what a horrible idea this was.

She was packing her bag in her room when he found her. He knocked on the door frame; Grace looked up and gave him a nervous smile.

“Time for me to fly the nest, I guess,” she said.

“Don’t go,” Clint replied.

Grace sat on the edge of her bed. “Clint, did I ever tell you why I joined this initiative?”

“Fury told us – because you witnessed the murder of a senator while on a job and wanted more protection than the FBI could offer.”

“That’s partially right.” She got up to pull a classified folder from her nightstand drawer, and held it out to Clint. “I was going to give this to you before I left – just in case – so that you would know everything.”

Clint took the folder, but tucked it under his arm. “I want to hear it from you.”

“Fine. Joel Rockley, the man I’m going undercover to find information on, was my boyfriend. We started the bounty hunting business together back home, but he got mixed up in some bad stuff. I bailed him out, put him on a bond with my name. He cleaned up his act, came back to work.” She took a moment to compose herself before delving into the harder details. “S.H.I.E.L.D approached him about The American Initiative before they even found Ellie. They started out with a series of injections, to make sure that it would work. The Senator that Joel killed was heavily involved in the project. He believed that S.H.I.E.L.D makes our country a safer place. Anyway, Joel’s record had been sealed, so they didn’t find it right away when they took him for the program. The senator found out and threatened to out him to Director Fury if Joel didn’t come clean on his own.”

“That’s why Joel killed him,” Clint surmised.

Grace nodded. “Yes. He missed a check-in with his probation officer, so I went after him. I was on the job, since I could lose out if he went back to jail. Tracked him to the Senator’s office – I had my suspicions of what he was going to do, but I didn’t warn anyone. I didn’t want to believe that Joel was capable of murder. So, after I witnessed it, I went to the police. The FBI put me in protective custody, but I had to do something to reconcile what happened to the Senator.”

“Gracie, that wasn’t your fault.”

“Maybe I didn’t put him on his knees or put the gun to his head, but I could have stopped it. I could have gone to the police before it happened.” She got up, zipped her bag, and pulled the strap onto her shoulder. “That’s why I joined, Clint. So that I could have the chance to make this right – to save somebody else. Maybe I can’t bring the senator back, but I can stop Joel from hurting anyone else.”

Clint shook his head. “No. I don’t like it.”

“It’s not up to you.”

“I trained you!” Clint argued. “You’ve known this was coming and you didn’t say anything! I’m going to talk to Fury again – if I have to pull you from the team, so be it!”

Grace caught him by the arm. “You. Don’t. Get. A. Say. I appreciate everything you’ve done for me, I really do. But just because – just because you kissed me, that doesn’t make you anything other than a teammate. I’m going.”

She pushed past him out of the room and out to the front of the facility. Clint cursed and slapped the folder against the wall before storming out of the room as well.

“Have a good time, kid. Give ‘em hell,” Tony was saying to her when Clint caught up. “Oh, and — something to remember me by.”

He clasped a delicate gold bracelet around her wrist; there was a small opal, Grace’s favorite, centered on the chain. She smiled up at him.

“Thanks, Tony. I’ll see you.”

Grace kissed the older man on the cheek, then she was gone. Clint made himself known only after Grace was out of earshot.

“You got something going with her?” Clint asked suspiciously.

“Yeah, I do,” Tony answered, stopping when he was shoulder to shoulder with the archer. “Faith. You should try it, Barton.”

Ellie was reading a book in a quiet, secluded area she had found in the facility. She wasn’t used to people finding her here, so when Steve showed up, Ellie was more than a little surprised.

“Thought I was pretty well isolated here,” she said, smiling shyly.

“Didn’t mean to interrupt.”

“You’re not,” Ellie promised, shaking her head for emphasis. “I’ve been reading a lot. Figured out I like it — love it, actually. Mostly fiction.”

Steve shrugged. “Nothing wrong with that.”

Ellie nodded. “True. Did you need something?”

“I wanted to check on you after Grace left. You two have a connection you’ll never have with anyone else.”

“True,” Ellie ceded, “but Grace is doing what she came here to do. How can I be upset about that? I’ll be lonely probably, and I’ll miss her, but I also know she’ll come back.”

Steve smiled. “You’re right. She will be back. In the meantime, you don’t have to be lonely, Ella. You have Natasha — and you have me.”

Ellie couldn’t help but grin at that; having Natasha as a stand-in for Grace was far more than okay, but having Steve fill in for her friend — that was a different kind of comfort.

“Jarvis, initiate the OTS,” Tony said, walking into his lab and waking up all the systems.

“Osprey Tracking System initiated, Mr. Stark.”

Tony stood back and waited, arms crossed over his chest, while the computer locked on to Grace’s coordinates. It took a couple of minutes, what with her being in the air somewhere between LaGuardia and Logan, but soon enough, Jarvis alerted Tony that Grace had been found.

“Right where she’s supposed to be,” Tony smiled. “Jarvis, keep the tracker open on the back burner. I wanna be able to find her at a moment’s notice.”

“Will do, sir.”

Grace was watching the clouds as the plane sped by them when the opal on the bracelet Tony had given her vibrated. She glanced down at the bracelet and whispered, “Hello, Jarvis.”

She had no earpiece to hear anything Jarvis might say in return, but if she was in trouble, all she had to do was call Jarvis via the bracelet, and the team would be on their way. Much like the repulsors and wings that were part of her Osprey suit, this bracelet was her fall-safe in case the undercover case went south.

Settling back in her chair as the captain announced the plane was beginning its descent, Grace smiled to herself. She would have to act far more lost once they touched down in Boston, but, for now, she could revel in the fact that Joel had no idea what was in store for him.

#TAImarathon #avengers #fanfiction #steve rogers #clint barton #ofc #steve rogers x ofc #captain america x ofc #clint barton x ofc #hawkeye x ofc #queue ... assemble

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suitofvibraniumarmor · 4 years

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The American Initiative

Part Five

Summary: Grace Cleveland and Eleanor Baker both thought their lives were over, until they became part of something much bigger – the Avengers. Pairing(s): Clint Barton x OFC, Steve Rogers x OFC Word Count: 1198 Blanket Warnings: Death, mentioned a couple of different ways, but not detailed; canon divergence; more based on Marvel movies. In the infamous word of Steve Rogers, “Language.”

Masterlist Wanna be tagged?

After the party, Steve decided it was time to really get to work with Ellie’s training. She was a perfectly capable being, but her confidence was wavering. Despite all of the strides she had made since they began working together, she hadn’t been able to handle being at Tony’s party on her own.

Not that Steve was complaining at all. Having Ellie on his arm in front of all of those elite – well, he wasn’t sure that the pride he felt was entirely appropriate.

“No training room today?” Ellie asked, meeting him outside like they had the first time they met together.

Steve clapped his hands together. “No – not yet, anyway. I want to talk to you about Tony’s party.”

Ellie frowned. “Did I do something wrong? Maybe I shouldn’t have said as much as I did.”

“No, no,” Steve said, offering a reassuring smile. “You did just fine. My concern, Elle, is that you couldn’t be on your own. I am more than happy to be there with you, but it won’t always be that way. We need to work on your confidence.”

He hadn’t planned on getting right to the point, but maybe that was the best way to go with the subject. He observed her expression; she was certainly surprised. Her outburst that came next, however, he wasn’t expecting at all.

“Do you know what it’s like? To have your life change in a single second? I was perfectly normal – I think, but that’s not the point. My life ended. Do you get that? It was over. I was brain-dead. My family mourned for me, I know that much. Maybe they still do. But I woke up one day, this completely different being. I have these powers, these abilities, and all of these people telling me what I can do, what I’m supposed to do, but I don’t even know who I am!”

“Okay, all right,” Steve said, pulling the crying woman into a tight hug. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have bombarded you with this. I’m sorry.”

Ellie shook her head, wiping away her tears. “No, I’m sorry for the outburst.”

“That was good, I think,” Steve said. “And for the record, yes, I do know, somewhat, what that’s like. I went into the ice and when I woke up, it was seventy years later. I shouldn’t be alive right now, either. I know who I am, but I don’t know how to be that person in this day and age, sometimes. We just – we have to figure out who you are.” He thought for a second. “I have a great idea of where to start. Something to take the edge off.”

Steve took her hand and led her back into the facility. Before they got too far, Fury stood in their path.

“Sorry, kids, gonna have to interrupt. Steve, we’ve got a mission.”

Steve looked at Ellie, then back at Fury. “A mission …?”

“No offense, Agent Baker, but you and Agent Cleveland won’t be going on this one.”

Ellie nodded. “Understood, sir.”

Fury left then, no doubt to inform the rest of the team. Steve turned to Ellie, who was smiling excitedly.

“You’re excited?” Steve asked.

Ellie shrugged. “Someday, it is going to be me, going with you guys. And that’s exciting. You go save the world, I’m going to start figuring out who I am.”

Steve had to stop himself from kissing her, but at the same time, he scolded himself for even thinking that.

The Glock in Grace’s hand was a welcome familiarity while she and Clint worked on target practice on the gun range. She emptied the magazine with expert precision, reloaded, and did it again. After a fifth magazine, she ejected the magazine, locked the chamber, and set the gun on the counter in front of her.

“I could do this all day, Clint,” Grace huffed. “You’ve taught me focus, I’m zeroed in. I used a gun before, it’s nothing new. Give me something new.”

Clint smirked. His charge was nothing if not determined, and he liked that about her. Since their dance at Tony’s party, Grace had been slightly distant from him, but he figured it was mostly because of the increase in intensity of their training.

“All right, champ. We’ll hit the archery range.”

Grace clapped excitedly, following Clint out of the facility and down to the archery range. She waited patiently while he got things set up, taking in a deep breath when he handed her a bow, and slung a quiver over her back. He took out one arrow, helped her with her stance, then showed her how to hold the arrow in the bow.

“Clint.”

“What?”

Grace rolled her eyes. “This arrow has a suction cup at the end of it.”

Clint nodded. “Good observation. Ever shot a bow before?”

“No,” Grace sighed.

“Exactly. We’re starting with the basics, here. Learn your weapon, then I’ll give you the real thing.”

“But that doesn’t –”

“Just – will you please just go with this?”

Taking a deep breath before exhaling, Grace took up her shooting stance and focused in on the bullseye. She let the arrow go – and missed the target.

“What the hell!” she exclaimed. “I was so focused!”

Clint chuckled, and pulled another arrow from the quiver for her. “You’ve got the focus, you’ve got the accuracy, but like I said, you’ve got to learn your weapon.”

“Maybe I should stick to guns.”

“No, c’mon, now. You can do this.”

He stood behind her, showing her how to change things up just enough to get the shot she wanted.

“Deep breath in, out … just like with a gun, shoot between the heartbeats.”

“How’s that gonna work when I’m firing one after the other?” Grace asked.

“Basics, Grace,” Clint smiled. “You’ll get there, I have faith.”

She turned to give him a grateful smile at the same time Clint turned his head to face her as well. They were centimeters apart, and Grace’s heart quickened. She lowered the bow and arrow; Clint’s smile softened and he placed one hand at her waist.

The distance between them was closing when Clint’s phone rang. The two of them separated. Clint answered his phone, and Grace squared up. The suction-cup arrow sailed down the range before sticking smack in the middle of the target. Clint smiled proudly as he disconnected the call.

“There you go,” he congratulated. “So, that was Fury. There’s a mission.”

Grace’s eyes grew wide. “Already?”

Clint winced. “Sorry, I should have clarified. It’s the six of us – you and Ellie aren’t ready.”

“No, I get it, that’s – that’s good. You should go. I’ll work out here.”

Clint nodded, resisted the urge to kiss her forehead, and headed back up to the facility. “Wait, Clint!”

He turned around, walking backwards. “Yeah?”

Grace pursed her lips together. “Be careful.”

He smiled. “I will.”

Grace and Ellie stood together, watching the quinjet take off, the wind and the exhaust blowing their hair back from their faces.

“That’s gonna be us, sooner rather than later,” Grace yelled over the sound.

Ellie nodded. “Think we can do it?”

Grace grabbed her friend’s hand and squeezed. “I know we can.”

#TAImarathon #avengers #fanfiction #steve rogers #clint barton #ofc #steve rogers x ofc #clint barton x ofc #captain america x ofc #hawkeye x ofc #queue ... assemble

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suitofvibraniumarmor · 4 years

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The American Initiative

Part Eight

Summary: Grace Cleveland and Eleanor Baker both thought their lives were over, until they became part of something much bigger – the Avengers. Pairing(s): Clint Barton x OFC, Steve Rogers x OFC Word Count: 1428 Blanket Warnings: Death, mentioned a couple of different ways, but not detailed; canon divergence; more based on Marvel movies. In the infamous word of Steve Rogers, “Language.”

Masterlist Wanna be tagged?

For a couple weeks after that rooftop kiss, Grace and Clint both acted as though nothing happened. The kiss had been electric, and it was a lot to take in for both of them. They went back to training and bantering as usual, when Grace wasn’t in Tony’s lab, putting the finishing touches on hers and Ellie’s suit.

“I think you’ve done about all you can do here,” Tony finally told her. “Barton’s got somewhere to take you — go meet up with him.”

Grace nodded, knowing that meant her time as an official Avenger was close. She kissed Tony on the cheek before practically skipping out of the lab. She took the car Tony had ordered for her back to the facility, excited for her outing with Clint. She knew it wasn’t a date, and that was okay — especially considering she was pretty sure this was the day she was going to be told her codename.

She dressed casually, grateful for a day to be out of training clothes. Clint was waiting for her in a cab in front of the facility. She was anxious to know where they were going, and Clint was kind enough not to keep her in suspense.

“Alley Pond Park,” he informed her. “Hopefully we’ll see what I wanna show you.”

Grace clapped her hands excitedly, watching out the window for most of the ride. Before The American Initiative, she had never been to New York, and she loved taking in the scenery when she could.

The drive wasn’t awful; soon enough, the pair was getting out of the cab and venturing into the park. They made their donation at the vistor’s center, then picked a walking trail. They made small talk until coming to a wetland area with a pond. It was quiet and peaceful; Grace took a seat on the grass, Clint followed suit. They wowed over the animals they did get to see, darting back and forth in front of them.

“Whoa! Did you see that hawk? Came down so quick, back up just as quick, and still caught itself a fish!” Grace exclaimed.

Clint nodded. “That’s what I wanted you to see — an osprey. They come down quick and catch their prey. They’re stealthy and quick, as you can tell. They can live anywhere. They have these unique characteristics and behavior that helps them hunt and catch their prey — so unique, in fact, they have their own genus and family. So, even though it is a hawk, it’s still —”

“It’s own bird,” Grace smiled.

“Exactly,” Clint smiled back. “That’s why you’re Osprey. You and I have a lot of similarities, but you’re still your own.”

As another osprey came down over the water to catch its prey, Grace took in a deep breath; she felt an overwhelming sense of pride and only hoped that she would live up to the codename she had been given.

Ellie checked that the duffel bag Natasha had dropped off to make sure she had everything she would need for an overnight trip. They weren’t going far, just a trip into the city, but Steve was adamant that they also stay out for the night.

“You’ve never been anywhere but the facility and Tony’s place, as far as you can remember. We’re going to expand your horizons a little,” Steve explained.

Ellie simply shrugged; she trusted Steve with her life and then some. If he said she needed time away from the facility, he was probably right.

In the couple of weeks since discovering her ability to control a mind enough to make someone see her where she was not, they had discovered another of Ellie’s new abilities: she could take that mind Control and channel it to her hands. She could use it as a shield, or divert weapons and bullets and whatever object was thrown her direction. This was something that would aid her when reading a mind or controlling it wasn’t an option, but it also helped Steve pick a codename for her.

After checking into the hotel — which Ellie was grateful to see had two beds — Steve took them out on a tour of the city. They saw Central Park, including the zoo, Times Square, and took a ferry out to see the Statue of Liberty.

“She stands for the place our country is supposed to be — a place of freedom and comfort and strength. In the last few months, you’ve found yourself. You found your strength, your abilities, who you are.” He leaned on the rail of the ferry. “You, Eleanor Baker, are a force to be reckoned with, whether you realize it or not.”

In a moment of excitement, Ellie read Steve’s thoughts. “Liberty Force?”

Steve nodded, chuckling at her anticipation. “Liberty Force. That is, if you don’t mind being teamed up with ole Cap.”

Ellie shook her head. “Not one bit.”

The sound of running water woke Ellie the next morning. The hotel bed compared to her bed at the facility was infinitely more comfortable, and she had slept all the more better for it. She rubbed the sleep from her eyes, and looked up to see Steve coming from the bathroom, drying his hands with a towel.

A half-smile tugged at her lips at the sight of him in jeans and an undershirt, muscles clearly defined. He was a man if there ever was one – Ellie knew in that moment, when all she wanted was to close her eyes and not see him, but feel him close to her, that she had fallen for Steve Rogers.

“Hey, good morning,” he greeted, noticing that she was awake. “Hungry? I’ve got room service bringing up the best breakfast in Manhattan.”

Ellie nodded, sitting up fully. “Good morning. Breakfast sounds great.”

Steve tossed the hand towel back to the bathroom counter, then went to his bag and pulled on a t-shirt. “What would you like to do after breakfast?”

“Oh, um … I don’t know. I don’t really know what the options are, I guess.”

Steve nodded, sitting on the edge of his bed. “Well, there’s a few more sights we could see, or we could go to –”

“Tony’s,” Ellie said, reading his thoughts again. “I want to see Liberty Force’s suit!”

There was a knock at the door. “After breakfast?”

She nodded. “After breakfast.”

“Liberty Force,” Tony said, “you, my dear, we went roundabouts on a shield for you – that is, until we found out you have a shield of your own.”

Ellie smiled sheepishly, stamping down her pride over the uniform in front of her. She could see that it was derived from Steve’s suit, but was going to be more fitting. She loved the fingerless gloves and the Avengers patch on the shoulder.

“What’s this?” she asked, pointing to the weapon on a stand beside the suit.

“That was my idea,” Natasha spoke up. “Similar to my Bite, yours will land a harsh electroshock to your opponent. We changed up the color, of course, so that Liberty Force also has a Torch.”

Ellie couldn’t hide her excitement anymore. She let out a full on grin and approached the suit, checking it out up close and admiring the suit she would get to proudly don when she was deemed ready for a mission.

“Gracie,” Tony beamed, putting his arm around her and bringing her to a suit not far off from Clint’s. “With the coloring of the osprey, we went with grey instead of Barton’s very manly purple.”

Clint rolled his eyes.

“You’ve got your bow, your arrows, all same as Barton – but I have upgraded you a bit, as requested.” Tony pressed a button on bow, and wings expanded out from the quiver. “The osprey is able to dive down to hunt and catch its prey, and now, so can you. The boots are complete with repulsors, not unlike mine, the wings are aerodynamic, and the quiver has a repulsor as well.”

“Fall-safe,” Grace smiled, winking at Clint.

“A fall-safe,” Tony repeated. “Is there champagne in this facility? I think we need a toast to the two newest Avengers – Liberty Force and Osprey.”

There was applause all around, the sound growing louder as Nick Fury entered the room. The six original Avengers took their chance to view the suits up close, and Fury approached Grace subtly.

“Agent Cleveland, may I speak with you in private?”

Grace looked to the tall man beside her; she didn’t have Ellie’s mind reading capabilities, but somehow, she knew what this was about.

#TAImarathon #avengers #fanfiction #steve rogers #clint barton #ofc #steve rogers x ofc #captain america x ofc #clint barton x ofc #hawkeye x ofc #queue ... assemble

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suitofvibraniumarmor · 4 years

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The American Initiative

Part Seven

Summary: Grace Cleveland and Eleanor Baker both thought their lives were over, until they became part of something much bigger – the Avengers. Pairing(s): Clint Barton x OFC, Steve Rogers x OFC Word Count: 1367 Blanket Warnings: Death, mentioned a couple of different ways, but not detailed; canon divergence; more based on Marvel movies. In the infamous word of Steve Rogers, “Language.”

Masterlist Wanna be tagged?

When Steve returned to the facility and finished his debriefing on the success of the mission, Ellie couldn’t wait to see him. She was so excited to tell him all of the things she had figured out about herself, and Steve was anxious to hear.

“I’m very proud of you,” he beamed.

“Thank you,” Ellie grinned back.

The two of them just smiled and stared at each other for a moment, until Ellie realized that she was once again becoming overwhelmed by the blue of his eyes. Clearing her throat, she broke the gaze and shrugged.

“So, I’m figuring out who I am, I’m working on my confidence. What’s next?”

Steve clasped his hands behind his back, also reeling a little from the moment. “Next, I think it’s time to see exactly what you’re capable of, Agent Baker. Let’s head for the training room.”

Contemplating Steve’s next move as they sparred was easy; Ellie could just read his mind, dodge the hit, and respond accordingly. She knew, though, that she wasn’t always going to be able to read the mind of her attacker – she needed another advantage.

Just as she thought it, a realization came to her. It was almost muscle memory, allowing Steve to think that she was still in front of him while she was actually behind him. When he struck forward, she tackled him from behind, taking him down to the ground and landing with her hand at his throat.

Steve tapped out and raised his brow. “Where did that come from?”

“I have no idea,” Ellie said, smiling. “I just knew that I needed to be able to do something different than reading minds. Although, if I can’t read the mind of whoever I’m fighting, I’m not sure that trick will work either.”

Steve wiped the sweat from his brow and nodded, getting back into his fighting stance. “Let’s go with it. Again.”

Grace took in a deep breath, sucked in her bottom lip, and nodded. She was liking what she was seeing on Tony’s displays in the lab. For the last couple of weeks, they had started work on suits for both Ellie and herself. Without “hero names” yet, it was a little difficult to nail down the details, but there were some things they could start on now.

“You’ll be ready soon enough,” Tony assured, nodding at the work he was seeing. “This is good. This is very good.”

“Thanks,” Grace said, smiling quietly before going back to the displays. “I need to talk with Ellie, see what she wants to see in her suit, too.”

Tony nodded. “She’s been figuring out a lot about herself lately, I’m sure she’s got some ideas.”

Grace nodded, pulling the display from a standing screen to one she could walk with; she found her favorite place on the counter and frowned over the new specs she was studying. Tony rolled his eyes and took the display from her.

“Hey!” Grace protested.

Tony stood in front of her. “You’ve been here a lot lately, Gracie. More than usual. What gives?”

“Nothing. I like working here. Working with Barton stretches and trains my muscles, working here with you stretches and trains my brain. I just wanted more time to do that.”

“Barton?” Tony frowned, backing away as she slid off the counter. “Since when do you call him Barton?”

“Since always,” Grace shrugged. “How about you skip the small talk and tell me what you’re getting at?”

Tony crossed his arms over his chest, matching her stance. “My point is, I saw you dancing with him the night of the party. I’ve seen you training with him, talking with him. I know where your head is at.”

“Yeah, and where is that?” Grace snapped.

Tony held his hands up in surrender, aware that Grace had never spoken to him like that – and also aware that her defensiveness meant he was absolutely right.

“I’m not here to judge you – which, you should know, is new for me. I know how you’re feeling about him, and I can see why you’d want to not feel that way. I’m not gonna be the one to tell you one way or the other, but, for whatever it’s worth, I don’t think it has anything to do with the time you two have been spending together. I know that because I’ve seen how he looks at you, too.”

Grace slowly let her hands fall back to her sides, and Tony handed her back the portable display. She apologized for snapping at him, but Tony waved her apology away.

Nick Fury stood in front of the Avengers, his topic of interest again the two women joining the team. All six team members gave excellent progress reports on both Grace and Ellie.

“Perhaps we were reluctant in the beginning, but you’re right, sir – they’re going to be exactly what our team needs,” Thor posited.

Fury nodded. “Good. Then it’s time to finish out their suits and get them some names. Stark, get with S.H.I.E.L.D R&D on what you and Cleveland have been working on and let’s finish out the development. Rogers, Barton – they’ve been mostly in your charge. You tell me what we call them.”

Steve and Clint nodded, and Tony left to visit with R&D, already instructing Jarvis to send over the information he needed to get them up to speed.

Grace swallowed hard as she followed Clint up the stairs of one of New York City’s tallest buildings. With every flight up they went, she wasn’t winded, but she certainly feared what would happen once they reached the top – assuming that was their final destination.

Sure enough, once they reached the rooftop access, Clint motioned for her to follow him through the door. Grace stepped carefully through the door, taking in the sights of the city that surrounded her.

“You can see everything up here, it seems like.”

Clint nodded. “You can, but that’s not why we’re up here. C’mere.”

He was nearly at the edge of the building, extending his hand out to her. Grace let out a deep breath and walked over to him, wide-eyed and panic seizing every inch of her being.

“We’re going to step up to the ledge now – you ready?” Clint asked.

Grace shook her head adamantly. “Hell no. I hate heights.”

Clint winced. “Well, you’re going to have to get over that. We shoot from pretty high vantage points sometimes.”

He stepped onto the ledge, and held his hands out to help her up. Grace shook her head again after peering over the edge.

“I should mention that it’s really more the – the fall that scares me.”

Clint couldn’t help but chuckle; this woman was tough and badass and genius but she was also adorable. The thought had never occurred to him that he could fall for someone who was also part of the Avengers initiative – then again, he hadn’t ever fathomed it would be more than the six of them. Grace had taken him by surprise, in a lot of different ways.

“C’mon, Cleveland. I’m right here and I promise not to let you fall.”

“Remind me to talk to Stark about some kind of fall-safe in my suit,” Grace said, taking his hands.

“I think you mean fail-safe,” Clint corrected.

“No,” Grace said, shaking her head as she balanced on the ledge, facing him. “I meant fall-safe. You’re not gonna let go, right? Not yet?”

He dropped her hands only long enough to wrap his arms around her waist. “No, Grace. I’m not gonna let go.”

Grace looked up at him, and she knew that, barring any further complications, only one thing could come of the way he was looking at her.

“You can, um … you can call me Gracie.”

Clint smiled, pushing her hair behind her ear. “Gracie.”

With his arms still tight around her waist, Clint leaned down and kissed her. Grace let her hands travel up his arms and around his neck, her fingers playing with the hair at the nape of his neck. Her heart was still racing now, but it had nothing to do with a fear of heights.

#TAImarathon #avengers #fanfiction #steve rogers #clint barton #ofc #steve rogers x ofc #captain america x ofc #clint barton x ofc #hawkeye x ofc #queue ... assemble

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suitofvibraniumarmor · 4 years

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The American Initiative

Part Six

Summary: Grace Cleveland and Eleanor Baker both thought their lives were over, until they became part of something much bigger – the Avengers. Pairing(s): Clint Barton x OFC, Steve Rogers x OFC Word Count: 1429 Blanket Warnings: Death, mentioned a couple of different ways, but not detailed; canon divergence; more based on Marvel movies. In the infamous word of Steve Rogers, “Language.”

Masterlist Wanna be tagged?

Even with the team gone for a few days, Ellie and Grace didn’t stop their training. They worked out a routine between the two of them, training both together and separately, so that when the team returned, they wouldn’t be behind.

Ellie did a lot of reading, and a lot of writing. She thought about the things she wanted in life, about her likes and dislikes – she even considered reading the folder that Director Fury had given her, but quickly shoved it aside. She thought about Steve, too, about how she really felt about him. In the end, that was a thought she shoved aside as well.

Grace spent a lot of her free time on the archery range, hoping to impress Clint when he returned and cursing those stupid suction cup arrows every time she missed the target. She reminded herself that she needed to focus for her accuracy enhancement to be, well, accurate. The memory of Clint so close to her, his hand on her waist – it was a serious distraction.

“You’re thinking about him again,” Ellie sighed over dinner one night. “I’m sorry, I’m not trying to listen, but your thoughts are kind of … loud.”

“I’m sorry,” Grace groaned. “I just – the dance at Tony’s party, and what happened on the archery range – this wasn’t supposed to happen.”

“You weren’t supposed to fall for him?” Ellie asked, innocently enough.

Grace picked up her plate, scraped the picked-at contents into the trash, and dropped her plate into the sink. She leaned against the counter, trying to calm her breathing.

“I just thought that when I – once I was enhanced, especially with all the logic and intellect, that feelings would go away.”

Her voice was weak with the threat of tears; Ellie could sense her friend’s frustrations and hurt, but she had no idea what to say. Before the blonde woman could come up with something, Tony Stark came into the kitchen.

“You’re back,” Grace said, forcing a smile as she turned around, back against the counter now. “How was it? What did we miss?”

“A lot, actually,” Tony said, nodding to Ellie. “Gracie, can I talk to you for a minute?”

Ellie took her plate with her and left the room. “I’ll get out of your way.”

Tony gave her a grateful smile. “You and Ellie seem to have gotten along okay with us gone.”

Grace crossed her arms over her chest and approached him. “You’re stalling, Stark.”

“So I am,” Tony said, clearing his throat. “This mission – we fight a lot of bad people, all the time. Even with all of our abilities, sometimes, they get the jump on us. Barton was hurt.”

Her arms dropped to her sides. “How badly?”

“Natasha and I evac’d him back here. Steve and Bruce stayed behind to finish the mission. Natasha and I will be joining them again shortly to wrap things up. Fury – he wasn’t sure how you’d react, so he wanted me here to tell you.”

“He was evac’d – so it’s bad?”

Tony cleared his throat. “It’s not good.”

Grace rushed past him, out of the kitchen, and straight for the medical ward of the facility.

After Natasha filled Ellie in on the news about Clint so that she could be there for her friend, as Tony and Natasha weren’t staying behind, Ellie took some deep breaths. She didn’t want to ask the question that was in her head, but it came tumbling off her tongue before she could stop it.

“Is Steve – Captain Rogers – is he okay?”

Natasha tilted her head. “He’s a little worse for the wear, same as the rest of us. He’ll recuperate. We all will.”

Ellie nodded, relief flooding her expression. “Thank you, Agent Romanoff.”

“You know, you could call me Natasha. We could be friends. Doesn’t have to just be the agent thing.”

“Natasha. Thank you.”

“Something else going on, Ella? The reason why you’re so worried over Captain Rogers?”

“I don’t know,” Ellie whispered. “Honestly, there’s been – since the first time I worked with him, I get these flutters in my stomach whenever he’s around. My feelings seem to have grown, but everything is still so new. Grace said that the feeling would either go away, or it would grow. I don’t know what it means, since it seems to be growing.”

Natasha nodded. “I know what it’s like, to be unsure. To feel like you don’t even belong in your own head. Steve gets that, too. He’s a good man to discuss your frustrations with. As for the ‘feelings’ … you’re right. Everything is new to you. I won’t lie and tell you there hasn’t been talk between the team of what may be transpiring between you and Grace and your trainers, but maybe that’s just the way these things happen. People get close, there’s an attraction …”

She shrugged, and Ellie frowned. “So you’re saying I only feel this way because we’ve been training so closely the last few weeks?”

“That could be it,” Natasha said, “or the feelings could be real. It’s a tough decision to make, but I’m sure you’ll figure it out. If not, you have Grace to talk to about it – and you have me.”

She smiled at Ellie before venturing off to find Tony, ready to board the quinjet once more and help Steve and Bruce finish the job – after all, it seemed better that Steve returned to the facility sooner rather than later.

Grace stopped running when she reached the entrance to the medical ward, pausing for a moment to wonder what in the world she was doing, rushing down here like this. She realized she had probably negated everything she had told Tony the night of the party by running out of the kitchen the way she did, but she would find a way to explain it away later. Right now, all Grace wanted to do was see Clint and know that he was going to be okay.

She entered the code for the door to slide open, and stepped carefully inside. The doctor and his nurse and assistants weren’t rushing around the way she had expected, so she took that as a good sign.

“May I help you, Agent?” a nurse asked Grace.

She realized she probably looked a little lost. “Um, yes, Agent Barton – may I see him?”

The nurse nodded and motioned for Grace to follow her. They went down a hallway and entered the third room on the left.

“Agent Romanoff let us know that he was coming, and thanks to the technology on the quinjet, we were able to begin monitoring him before he even arrived.” She opened the door. “Has anyone given you the details?”

Grace took in the sight of Clint lying on the bed, hooked up to wires. She swallowed hard and shook her head.

“It was a gunshot – sniper. Fortunately, Agent Barton was able to dodge it, somewhat, and it missed any vital organs.”

Grace nodded and thanked the other woman before approaching Clint’s bedside. Until the moment that Tony had told her Clint had to be evacuated from the mission, she hadn’t realized just how in deep she was. She could try to fight it, she supposed, but something told her that wasn’t going to be easy to do.

“Hey,” Clint said, his voice hoarse. “How long you been here, staring at me like some creep?”

Grace couldn’t help but chuckle. “A minute or so. Tony and Nat brought you back, but they’re going to help Steve and Bruce finish the mission. I, uh, was worried, I guess.”

“I’m gonna be all right, Grace. Gimme a few days, I’ll be back up and at ‘em, and we’ll get back to your archery lessons.”

“With real arrows?” she asked, half-teasing, half-hopeful.

Clint chuckled, wincing at the pain it caused. “We’ll see how you’re doing with the kiddie arrows, first.”

“Agent Cleveland, the doctor needs to see him now.”

Grace turned to the door and nodded at the nurse. “Okay, just one more minute?”

The nurse smiled. “Of course.”

Grace thanked her and turned back to Clint. “Glad you’re gonna be okay, Agent. Can’t have anything happening to you – you know, not until I’m ready to replace you that is.”

“Shut up,” Clint said, allowing himself another short laugh. “Get outta here.”

Grace gave him a little wave before she turned to go, letting out a deep breath. Yes, getting past these feelings was going to be difficult, but maybe it was time to request training with someone other than Clint Barton.

#TAImarathon #avengers #fanfiction #steve rogers #clint barton #ofc #steve rogers x ofc #captain america x ofc #clint barton x ofc #hawkeye x ofc #queue ... assemble

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