Undercover

1. I told you it would come in handy someday

Clint's POV

It wasn't the first time I'd had to go undercover. Nat was better at it than I was, but that didn't make me useless. It just made it unexpected.

I'd been hoping I could sneak off to the farm for a bit. After the whole alien thing, Laura had been worried, but it had gotten even harder to find time to visit. I still called every Tuesday at five, but it wasn't enough.

(Nat had been the one to suggest Tuesdays at five. We didn't want anyone questioning what exactly was going on, so we had to choose a pretty random time, and Laura claimed she needed the kids' help and that it was a family thing. No one questioned it, especially considering how rarely I managed to get home and how little people saw me when I was there.)

And sure, it sucked to be going right back in when I'd barely had the time to unstring my bow and restock on arrows, but leaving Nat without protection would be worse.

Much, much worse.

So I told Laura I wouldn't be able to make it home. I wanted to tell her it was cleanup, or paperwork, or something equally dull and safe, but that wasn't what I'd promised her all those years ago. I hadn't promised I'd be there, but I'd promised to be thinking of her. I hadn't promised to tell her everything, but I had promised not to lie. I hadn't promised to be perfect; I'd promised to try.

Under most circumstances, I would've said I couldn't do it. The kids and Laura need me, and I need a break. The fight with literal aliens was bad enough, but Loki was far worse. I didn't know what was going on yet, but Nat had said that it had to be me. That was probably why she'd been the one to call, anyone else would've been blown off, and she knew that.

Which means whatever she's called me in for has to be really important.

*****

The first problem is that Hill is waiting with Nat. While we have completed some incredibly challenging missions together, there was a literal alien attack less than a week ago. She should not have the time to brief two people on a mission. "What are we dealing with?" I ask as soon as the door is shut. The soundproofing is good, but I doubt anyone's figured out how to soundproof the room with it open.

"Traffickers," Hill says sharply. "I know we have no right to ask you of this, but you're the only person we can get in to watch her back, and Natasha is the best for the role. Can you do it?"

It's an out. I could say no, leave, and see everyone.

"What do I need to do?"

Hill looks at Nat, "Unfortunately, I can't stay; we're too busy. I'll leave the two of you to talk."

Nat's eyes tighten, but she nods, sitting down at the table with me.

"What's wrong?" I grab her hand. It's a risk, but sometimes Nat needs the reminder that she's not alone.

And sometimes, she reminds me that she's always armed.

"It's bad," she whispers, "they aren't just trafficking kids for the regular reasons."

"Red room?"

She shakes her head. "Right now, the evidence is suggesting a new player. Most of the kids are following the usual paths," we both wince this time. Whatever new thing has been thought up is going to be horrific, but that doesn't make the other options better. "But the ones that fight back are disappearing."

"Disappearing where?"

She shrugs, "There's no set location. Hill managed to find out that if a kid fights back, they send in a report, and sometimes a special squad shows up, and the kid vanishes."

"How long has this been going on?" it's a good thing I got Nat's call before breakfast.

"We first heard of the gang two years ago, but the evidence goes back at least five years."

"What do they need us to do, and how long will this take?"

Nat goes still the way she does when she knows I'm not going to like what comes next. "The timeline is unclear, but most likely a couple of months."

"What's the plan?"

"A woman showed up out of the blue, offering to deage me," Nat whispers, "she'll turn me back to when I was eight or nine. Henry will be acting as my father. Will has agreed to pretend to be my older brother. We'll make it clear that Henry prefers him, and doesn't care about me. Once that's been set up they'll hopefully take me. You will follow me, and we'll figure out a way to save everyone."

"Why does it have to be me?"

Nat somehow goes stiller. "I...it...someone else could do it. It's just...I can't...I..."

"You need it to be me who's got your back." Sure, she'd known how to fight well at that point, so why she had to go made sense. But there are a lot of people who could follow her around. However, those people didn't have her trust. I wasn't the only person who could do the job, I was just the only person she trusted enough.

"When do we leave?"

The tension in her calves relaxes slightly. "This afternoon. I'm sorry."

I nod, "It's okay. I already told Laura that something important had come up. I'll call her before we go." despite my words, she's still worried, barely reacting as I shift to pull my arm around her. "What is it?"

Nat twists her hands together, "The spell will most likely mess with my memories. It's the other reason we need you. My emotions and short-term memory will remain, but I will most likely lose my long-term memory until I'm brought back."

"Does that mean you won't remember the mission after we're done?"

She shrugs, "I didn't ask. We have to do this, so worrying is pointless."

"Well, if you do, I promise I'll tell you everything afterward," I risk going for her hair, and this time there are no spiked hairpins, although I do feel a few lock picks.

However, she does shove me off, "Nonsense; you'd retell everything to make yourself sound better. If it comes to that, I'll read the mission reports." a glint comes back to her eyes, a very problematic glint. The last time I'd seen it led to me absolutely covered in whipped cream, edible glitter and shaving cream.

"What?"

"You'll be able to use your bow," she says with a small smirk.

I blink. "How on earth am I going to use a bow while undercover as a regular person right after everyone seeing me on TV shooting aliens with it?"

"Have you ever heard of LARP?"

A/N Hi everyone. I know I haven't been writing a lot lately, and that I have a ton of other stories to get back to. My personal life has gotten kinda crazy so I'm focusing on that a bit more. This story (should) will be simpler than most of my current unfinished stories, so it should be easier to write, which will hopefully mean I can get more done.