1: Intruder: But Wait- She’s Hot!
Content warnings: depression, 'home invasion'
"And you're sure you have enough food and cash to keep you going?"
Kate Bishop felt herself getting slightly exasperated as she laughed, throwing her arms around Clint in a hug. "Clint, for the last time, I'll be fine!" The man huffed a sigh and held her tightly, patting her back before letting go.
"Okay kiddo, if you're sure. I just know that it gets cold and if you're ever lonely you can-"
"Come visit your family any time I want, I know," Kate finished for him, grinning softly.
He pursed his lips and nodded, looking down at his feet and around Kate's rather interesting apartment. Clint shook his head and coughed slightly, sucking in a breath before looking back up to her. "You're gonna do great."
"Aw, are you gonna miss me?"
"Nah, kid, just the dust and dog fur."
"You're crying, Clint!"
The Avenger let a short laugh out, clearing his throat as the sound turned tearful. "Men can cry," he muttered, a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth.
Kate pouted and opened her arms again, and Clint took only a moment before shuffling into them and giving her another tight hug. They stayed like that for a moment, hesitant father and ecstatic daughter.
Kate squeezed him one more time, willing the tears to stay back. "Thanks for giving me a good Christmas, Clint. The best, really," she choked out.
The past couple of weeks had completely turned Kate's life upside down. Understandably so, of course, seeing as she met her idol, almost died several times, and turned her mother in to the police. (That's the short version, anyway.) Now, after finally returning home from spending Christmas and New Year's with the wonderful Barton family, Kate wasn't sure she could go back to any semblance of normal.
"You deserve the best of anything, Katie," Clint said softly, patting her cheek. "I'll miss you kiddo."
The two eventually parted ways after several more similar exchanges, and once Clint was safely back on his way to the airport, Kate sighed heavily through her nose. Lucky perked up from where he lay sprawled out on the kitchen floor, likely waiting to be fed, and gave a little whine.
"Awwww- poor puppy needs to eat, huh?" Kate muttered softly, turning to look at her canine friend and doing her best to ignore the pit forming in her stomach. Lucky's eye brightened as he sat and up thumped his tail eagerly, licking his chops as if to say, 'yes absolutely he does need to eat, thank you for noticing.'
The archer dug out the last of the leftover airport pizza from the fridge and tossed it up in the air for Lucky to catch, giggling and crumpling up the old box as he barked excitedly for the treat. Not a drop even touched the floor.
Kate whistled and sat against a cabinet, arms open for Lucky to snuggle into. "You're getting good there, Pizza Dog," she whispered, burying her face into his ridiculously soft golden fur. He huffed a breath and wiggled around until he could lick her face.
"I love you too, silly puppy."
They stayed on the kitchen floor longer than Kate cared to remember, but eventually the cold of the tiles bit through her pants and into her butt and she forced herself to her feet. After the chaos and perpetually constant noise she had grown accustomed to recently, her apartment was almost alien in its strange quietness.
She looked down to Lucky, who stared up at her adoringly with a little doggy grin. "What now, huh?"
He just continued to look at her. Kate nodded in agreement. "Shower. Cleaning. Probably sorting groceries and getting more, seeing as Clint's idea of groceries is extremely limited. Good idea."
They took a nap instead, both passing out on the couch as soon as they sat down. A jet lagged dog is no joke.
Kate jolted awake to a sharp sound from outside, her head spinning and body uncomfortably warm. Lucky's weight stayed heavy on her stomach, his tongue lolling as he snored softly and kicked at the armrest. Whatever had woken Kate clearly did not bother him.
Another thump, and Kate groggily pushed herself up onto her elbows, eyes squinting against the dark. Her chest squeezed tightly. "Hello?" she called out, speech thick with sleep. Lucky did not wake up.
There was a slow creak, and Kate could vaguely make out the shine of moonlight on a moving windowpane as a dark figure pushed its way into her apartment.
Ah hell no. Kate jolted up, suddenly wide awake as adrenaline shot down her spine. Lucky tumbled from her lap and flopped around on the couch for a confused moment, still not even bothered to be alarmed that his home was quite literally being broken into. Kate ignored the part of her mind that whispered about the familiarity of that window being opened and instead opted to hop over the couch and rush for her bow and the light switch on the far wall.
The lightbulbs had barely warmed enough to brighten the space by the time Kate had a net trick arrow strained in the direction of the intruder, and to her shock and horror, the figure was already so close that she could make out the details of her chunky silver rings.
Wait...
Kate's mind finally caught up to her racing heartbeat, and her dinky kitchen lights flickered fully to life to reveal none other than Yelena Belova, the assassin who had tried to kill Clint just a few short weeks ago. The woman was so much closer than Kate expected to be humanly possible with the distance she had to travel from the window to here, but she showed no signs of exertion and almost had a rather pleasant look on her face.
Kate, in turn, could only stare with wide eyes as she kept her arrow notched and pointed directly between Yelena's hazel eyes, chest heaving.
The blonde tilted her head softly, shifting into a more relaxed position as she looked Kate up and down. Stands of golden hair fell over one shoulder. She even had the gall to pop a hip and almost smile at the woman in front of her as if she hadn't just invaded the archer's home.
"Kate Bishop," Yelena said, her lips twitching. "You're back."
"...What the hell!?"
Translations: none
