The Legends are True (Clint/Darcy)

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Title: The Legends are True

Characters: Darcy/Clint, Clint Barton, Darcy Lewis, and Jane Foster

Summary: Darcy decides to swear off SHIELD Agents, but she hasn't planned for Clint Barton.

Verse: Thor (Movie) / Avengers (movie verse)

Rating: Teen for language and adult concepts.

Spoilers: Absolutely none.

Warnings: None. 

Disclaimer: They are mine, all of them! Gimmmeeee. Please? Pretty please? With an awesome superhero custom on top.

Big thanks again to shanachie_quill, who as always, helps save my comma-happy ass.

This is the second of my "Texts From Last Night" mini-table stories. 

The mini-table information is here.

And the AO3 link here. 

The Legends are True

“We need to talk about your night,” Jane said and Darcy could feel her eyes on her.

“What about it?”

“The text you sent me.”

“Oh, God, I don’t want to talk about it. The only reason I sent you that text was because I’d had too much to drink. I assure you I regret saying anything at all.”

“Darcy, Daniel didn’t really say that, did he?” Jane winced, clearly knowing the answer before she asked.

“Oh, yes.”

“Tell me again and tell me exactly what he said.”

Darcy sighed and gave in. “I should have realized things were going to go badly when he asked me if I wanted to see his gun, but I told myself maybe he just knows about me tasering Thor and thinks I’m interested in weapons.”

“Oh, Darcy,” Jane said sympathetically, “I’m so sorry I talked you into going out with Daniel. He seemed like an okay guy when he asked you out.”

“I thought he might be, too.” The truth was Darcy had been hoping to erase a certain other SHIELD agent from her mind. “We had so very, very much to drink at the bar so I know I wasn’t thinking clearly.” Translation, she’d been determined to wipe someone else out of her thoughts. “So we went back to his place which I only did because I didn’t want him at my place but that was a mistake because he like attacked my face. Ugh, and then he’s pulling off my shirt. Anyway, he must have seen the piercing through fabric of my bra because he says, and I kid you not, ‘Oh My God, the legends are true.’ The Hell, Jane!? There are legends about my breasts?! It’s not like I’ve slept with a ton of these people. One agent, one! And they all know about my piercing?”

Darcy realized she was talking with her hands, which she was supposed to be using to make notes of the outcome of whatever test it was that Jane was about to run. Thankfully she didn’t have to understand the results to record them. “Jane, I swear, I’m not dating a SHIELD agent ever again. Not one more.” There was a newborn mantra to say every time she thought of the agent-who-must-not-be-thought-of.

“Well, there are plenty of dogs in the park, darlin’,” she paused for a moment looking thoughtful, “but I’m not sure you should rule out German Shepherds just because a couple of them weren’t very well socialized.”

“How many times do I have to get bitten in the ass before I can safely say that the SHIELD dog park is not for me?”

It was then that Agent Barton came down from the roof where he seemed to camp out. If he had heard any of their conversation, his face was mercifully blank and Darcy let herself believe he’d heard nothing.

While there were a few other agents who came by to give him leave for a few days or cover him when he had other assignments, it was him that watched out for them most often. She wondered if he slept since he seemed to have all the rotations, but maybe since there didn’t seem to be any immediate threat he was allowed to sleep on the job.

There had been a lot of talk of moving Jane to New York where the Tower was being built or D.C. where the base of SHIELD was currently, but Jane had insisted that New Mexico was the place to be for her to be. There was a reason she’d chosen to study there and she thought the fact that Thor had landed there and that Mjolnir had followed was enough evidence to prove she should stay in New Mexico. Evidentially, SHEILD was either convinced or just decided to pick a different battle, because they had stayed in New Mexico. Darcy had finished school and SHEILD was now paying Jane more than enough to hire four assistants most of which she gave to Darcy. “SHEILD wouldn’t trust anyone I picked,” Jane had said. “And I wouldn’t trust anyone they picked. So please, please stay.” But Jane hadn’t needed to beg. Where else was Darcy going to get such an awesome job, with great pay, sweet benefits, access to top secret findings and a fantastic boss fresh out of college with a degree in Political Science and a minor in Anthropology?

And so, a few guard dogs had been sent to protect them, though Darcy was still not convinced that they weren’t there to keep Jane’s research from leaving just as much as they were there to make sure no one from the outside tried to steal or damage the progress.

“How are my favorite Mad Doctor and Evil Sidekick doing today?” Agent Barton’s voice broke through her thoughts.

“I wouldn’t know, but we’re doing quite well, in case you were interested,” Darcy said, even more tersely than usual, but really, sidekick?

“Coffee?” he asked, unfazed as usual.

“In the pot, should be ready,” Jane said and pointed toward the brew she’d put on a little while earlier. Then she lowered her voice so that only Darcy could hear, “You can’t tell me he’s not a very cute puppy.”

Darcy couldn’t help it – she snorted. Clint looked over at them, one eyebrow quirking up and Darcy thought perhaps he had heard every word of the morning’s conversation and Jane’s puppy comment. Oh shit. He caught her eye and she felt her face heat up as his lips moved to make his nearly perpetual smirk more pronounced. Damn cocky son of bitch. She quickly went back to studying the results ignoring the blush she was feeling all the way down to her toes.

“This could be good,” Jane said suddenly, “This could be progress. I’m going to go try this on the one in the back, see if it gets similar readings.” With that, Jane left the room. Darcy eyed her suspiciously, thinking it was a little too convenient Jane leaving her alone in the room with Lieutenant Bull’s-eye, but Jane’s back was to her and there was absolutely no telling if the reason given was actually legitimate.

While she was successful in not watching him move away from the coffee pot and migrate back towards her, she was utterly unsuccessful at keeping the rest of her senses from straining to follow his progress. As such, she was painfully aware of him - the heat from his body, the smell of leather and spice and something she thought was just him, the even pace of his boots on the floor until they stopped only a few inches from her own feet. He was peering over her shoulder. Her shoulder was screaming at her as the feel of his breath lit over skin.

She had to step away.

“Do you need something?” she asked, turning to face him. She’d hoped that moving away from the feel of him would help but unfortunately the memory of her body’s reaction to him had her feeling flushed. Facing him with those thoughts swirling in her head just managed to make her feel more embarrassed. Get it together, she told herself.

“Just curious. What is Jane having you measure?”

“I’m sure she’d be happy to explain it to you.”

“Yes, she would, and I’d understand exactly none of it,” he said. Darcy really wanted to know how it was that he said something so self-depreciating while still looking so confident with his utterly self-satisfied smirk.

It really just wasn’t fair. Darcy sighed. “Honestly, I don’t know that I fully understand it either. Though I think Jane found that the weather readings predicted the gate opening so I believe she’s studying their effect on one another to see if manipulating the weather might manipulate the first. What I haven’t figured out is even if manipulating the weather will affect the bridge, how it is we’re going to manipulate the weather. But one problem at a time, I guess. It may be that she’s just trying to understand as much as she possibly can about it so that she can move forward from there.”

He titled his head, seeming to study her. She did her very best not to squirm. “I was under the impression that you recently graduated with a degree in science,” he said, seeming to be genuinely curious which made her flush harder.

“Political science,” she replied. He studied her another moment. She suspected that he thought she was kidding and he was still waiting for her real answer. After a few more seconds, he seemed to realize she wasn’t kidding and she wasn’t going to offer any further comment. He really smiled then, though it still managed to have an element of smirk to it. She realized it was a smile she’d never seen on him before and it made her feel a little bit giddy that he’d given it to her alone.

His expression changed to one of curiosity again. “So how did you end up here?”

“Jane says I was the only one that applied.”

“Why do you say it like that?” he asked. She felt like he was studying her. His interest made her feel special and airy, but also shy and a little embarrassed. Good lord, she wasn’t thirteen any more so why did she feel so ridiculous about a little attention from a guy. It took her a moment to process what he’d asked her.

“Say it like what?” It was her turn to be surprised though she tried to hide it by sounding like she had absolutely no idea what he was talking about. She couldn’t imagine that she’d answered him any differently than she had answered anyone else.

“Like,” he paused as if trying to choose his words carefully, “like you know that isn’t the truth.”

Darcy was unnerved; no one had ever questioned the answer Jane had given or Darcy’s acceptance of it. After considering for a moment whether or not to tell him the truth, she finally decided there was no reason to lie and he’d probably call her on any lies anyway. “I saw the other applications and her little notes scribbled in the corners about their interviews.” Clint’s eyebrows rose at her answer and he sort of rocked back ever so slightly.

“And you don’t think they got other positions they decided they’d rather have.” He said it like a statement and not a question, but it hit that nerve, stroked that little wiggling feeling that said she wasn’t smart enough for this and that she was letting Jane down somehow. It was a feeling that Darcy could never quite shake.

“Screw you.” And she shoved him awkwardly with her tablet in one hand and her pen in the other, just to punctuate her words. Not that the wall of his chest budged, much to her annoyance. “Jane has never complained about the work I do.” She shoved him again a little harder even though it was just as useless. “Just because you don’t get why I’m here doesn’t mean I don’t belong here.” She wanted more than anything to storm away and slam a door, any door, but she couldn’t; she had to stay there and take whatever came from him, so the she could record the next set of results that would be coming through shortly. She went to shove him again, attempting to put more force behind it, but he caught her wrists and held them gently but with enough pressure to prevent her from shoving him or running away.

“I know what its like,” he said barely above a whisper even though there was no one else around to hear him, “to wonder why you were chosen and if you’ll ever manage to live up to that reason.” His response startled her and she found she was staring at him in spite of his unreadable expression. “But for the record,” he continued, “I’m glad we were.”

Before she could filter through her surprise to ask him what the hell that meant he was gone again through the roof and the machine was spitting more numbers at her that she had write down in flurry.

It was a few days later and Darcy still hadn’t gotten the nerve or the chance (so she told herself) to ask Clint what he’d meant. She wasn’t sure which part pulled at her more; wanting to know how it was he knew how she was feeling, why it was he was he felt the same, or what he meant by being glad they were both chosen. She bustled in, five minutes late as usual, but Jane was nowhere in sight.

She did find a note on the coffee pot (Jane knew Darcy too well) which read:

Gone to set up some field equipment. Lost my phone again. Have the day off! See you tomorrow.

Jane hadn’t bothered to sign it, but there really was no need. Darcy smiled happily. An extra day off was a rare gift and one she wasn’t sure yet what she’d do with. If Jane had called her, she’d probably have just stayed in bed and turned off the alarm clock, but she was up and dressed and it was a pretty day so she was kind of glad for Jane’s missing phone. She wandered over to her desk, looking for the list to-do list she had going so that she could ignore it.
Soft footsteps met her ears and she jumped, surprised to hear anyone else there.

“Clint!” she squeaked. “I mean Agent Barton,” she corrected in a more normal voice. “I thought you’d be out with Jane, in the field,” she continued. “What are you doing here?”

“Burbank is out with Jane, he’s actually got experience with that sort of thing, so his services were volunteered for the afternoon,” Clint said, the hint of a smile playing at the corners of his lips.

“Volunteered?” she asked, curious at his wording.

“More like,” he paused, “volun-told,” Clint said, eyes bright with mirth. Darcy couldn’t help but laugh. She noticed then that he was standing in a strange way. Not like he was in pain, just almost like he was at attention which was unusual. Most of the time, this agent was too confident and too independent to even look like he was waiting for orders. He had a job and he would do it, she was certain of that, but he was going to do it his way. It didn’t seem like disrespect. It seemed like he knew what he was doing and no one else was going to tell him how to do it better. It was terribly annoying how confident he was, also ridiculously appealing. So what was he doing with his hands behind his back?

“What are you holding?” she asked. The look of near shock on his face was a great reward on its own. She thought he might actually be blushing.

“Jane said something happened to your Taser?” he asked, though she wasn’t sure why that had anything to do with her question. She might have called him on the change of subject had she not been so confused by the response.

“Yeah, she ran over it.” She supposed she’d expected him to laugh or at the very least smile at that, but he didn’t. Instead, he seemed to shift nervously. That was new. She titled her head unconsciously and viewed him with fresh curiosity. “Why?”

He brushed her question aside and asked another one of his own. “Do you have your iPod?”

“Are you kidding? Of course I do.”

“Can I see it?” Darcy wasn’t quite certain what to make of the request, but she dug in her purse till she could produce her iPod. She held it out to him, then pulled it back, this was the replacement for the one SHIELD had lifted and returned partially melted. While the details of that had never been explained to her, they had given her money to replace (and upgrade) the iPod and provided a few gift cards for new music as a peace offering. She’d still been a little upset about her missing playlist and there had been sentimental attachment to the old one (it had gotten her through a lot, dammit), but she hadn’t been able to continue to be angry when Agent Coulson had even sent a note that might be considered an apology.

“Will you give it back?” she asked, eyes narrowed at him.

“Yes.” She started to hand it to him again, but had another thought.

“Unmelted?”

“Uh? What?” Clint gave her a confused look.

“Just promise you won’t hurt Zorya.”

Clint looked at her blankly before asking, “I’m sorry, don’t hurt who?”

“Zorya, my iPod.” She waved the iPod in the air slightly while she said it.

“You named your iPod Zorya?” he asked.

“Yes. Now promise.”

“Why?”

“Why promise not to break my iPod?” She raised an eyebrow at him.

“No. Why did you name your iPod Zorya?”

“After mythology involving kick ass goddesses who sort of represented the morning and evening stars and protected Ursa Minor from getting eaten which would be the end of the world. Especially Zorya Utrennyaya, though I can’t say it right, cause she was like a warrior goddess and dudes used to pray to her before battle.”

Clint seemed to consider her words carefully before continuing, although he didn’t comment further on them. Instead, he said, seriously, “I promise no harm will come to Zorya and you will shortly have her returned to you.”

She placed the iPod in the hand he was holding palm up in front of her and enjoyed brushing her fingers along hers as she did so.

“Close your eyes.”

“Are you serious?” she asked, folding her arms over her chest. But instead of answering her, he just gave her a persistently almost pleading look she found herself unable to resist. She shut her eyes.

After a long moment and what sounded like a soft “snap” which she found almost concerning enough to open her eyes for, Clint finally said she could open them. She cracked one eye at a time, concerned for what she might find.

A cord had been attached to her iPod using the charging slash USB port. She could feel he eyebrows come together when she couldn’t understand what she was seeing. “What is that?”

“Well, it’s a Taser. You charge it separately, though it can use power from your iPod in an emergency, but you use the iPod with the app I’ve installed on here to control the strength of the current and to release the charge.”

“You got me a Taser accessory for my iPod?”

“The best part is, it looks like and can act as the cord you use to sync your iPod with, so you can take it virtually anywhere and no one will know what you’re about to do to them.”

“You got me a Taser?”

“I’m rather hoping you won’t use it on me.”

“I… I don’t know what to say.”

“Say you will use it for good and not for evil,” he said eyes alight with mischief. She smacked him soundly on the arm for all the good it seemed to do to hit him.

“I am not evil!” She said, laughing as she took the cord and the iPod from him, tucking them gently into her bag.

Driven by the feeling of protection the gift gave her, along with the sense of comfort and belonging behind something so personal, Darcy went with her impulse and hugged him. She was startled to find herself on her tiptoes with her arms around his neck, practically pressed up against him. She was about to jerk back, when his arms came around her, hands splayed, holding her to him. Her shoulders and waist fizzed where they were touched by his arms and hands and she couldn’t help sinking into him.

“Make a final exception for me,” he whispered in her ear and she blushed as she was sure he could feel her shiver at the sensation.

“An exception?” she asked bewildered.

“Go on a date with me. A real one – no bars, no Jane, no threatening to tase me.”

“Are you asking me because you’ve heard the legends, too?”

“I’m asking you because you’re bright and wonderful and I can’t get you out of my head and I’ll be damned if I let any other punks ruin any chance I’ve got with you,” he said, moving one hand to cup her face as his thumb skated along her lower lip.

The last of the pressure in her chest, the last pain of uncertainty lifted and she smiled. “Okay, but you’re my final exception.” Not to mention, she thought, the only one I ever really wanted. He smiled, a genuine smile free of the smirk or the ego she was so accustomed to seeing on him and it was so disarming she forgot to be nervous.

“Good,” he said, and then he kissed her, gently pressing his lips to hers, and her day’s to-do list was completely forgotten.