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"She didn't say anything because then no one would have tried getting the Soul Stone," Quill reasoned, looking around the room at the assembled people. And there were many people. A bit too many for Clint's liking. He wanted to talk to Steve and Bruce, but not the rest of the bunch. The ones who didn't know what he lost on Vormir. There was a talking Raccoon and a walking Tree next to Quill, trying to hide Nebula behind them and failing spectacularly.
"And what right did she have denying us to say goodbye?" Clint's voice wavered. The battle was over and they had to prepare for the aftermath. Pepper took care of Tony's funeral, Fury had been hiding since he heard of Nat's loss, and something was up with Steve as well. Decisions had to be made when they decided to take the time travelling route, they had to improvise and each of them new of the possibilities of them not coming back. But there was a huge difference between thinking of the eventuality and realizing they were their truth now.
"We didn't come together to put the blame on anyone. We need to talk about what will happen next. Bruce said the stones have to go back?"
Rhodey's words made Clint's hair stand on end. The stones had to go back. "Go back? Where?"
Shifting his arm in the sling, Bruce shifted on the chair they got him and hoped would hold him. "Back into their timelines. If we don't get them back to where we extracted them from another timeline will be formed."
"And what are we waiting for?" Immediately, Clint was on his feet, hands falling straight to his utility belt. He couldn't be the only one who saw the opportunity here, the possibility of getting at least one of them back. And he didn't miss the looks they shared either. Did they think he would go crazy again? Because that was what all of them thought of him. Clint turning to the dark side, loosing his mind over the loss of his kids, him being alone. After striking this deal with Ross, he focused even more on what he had built apart from the Avengers. It was never easy and he and Laura had more than one fight over him having more to live for than SHIELD and while he knew it was true, the divorce was already on the table. So when his family turned to dust, he didn't even have his second family. His first instinct was to turn to Nat. Telling her how they were gone and he and the rest of the Avengers were supposed to protect them. But when he picked his phone up, fingers finding the numbers blindly, he froze. What if she wouldn't pick up? What if she was gone as well?
Maybe it was selfish. Maybe having both his family and Nat wasn't an option, but he wanted to try.
"You know, Clint, there's a chance she won't be coming back? We don't know enough to be sure it'll change what already happened. We..."
Clint's face hurt, the smile shaky and tense but it was enough for Rhodey to stop and the rest of the people to head out. He saw from the corner of his eye Nebula rushing out before anyone else and while he knew it wasn't her fault, he wanted an aim for his anger.
"Rhodey is right, Clint, and you know it. We.."
"Why is everyone talking about we, Cap? We? There were you on Vormir. There was only Nat and I and this guy who looked a lot like your old friend from these old military files, who told us one of us had to die. When I say we, it's Nat and I. As it always have been. So don't tell me, Cap, what we do and don't know." Before any of them could keep preaching about caution and thinking things through, Clint did the only thing he knew might help.
"Bruce, look me in the eye and tell me you don't want her to be back with us. If the big green guy tells me to stick it I'll. But up until then, no one should tell me to think it through. We got people back we thought who were lost forever. Just five minutes ago I talked to my daughter on the phone. My daughter...," Clint felt his throat tightening. The mere thought of what he lost for so long, what he lost for it, it didn't seem fair.
A shadow fell on him and then a heavy hand rested on his shoulder. "Just don't do anything stupid on this planet, Clint. Don't bargain, don't sacrifice yourself. Think about what you've here. She wouldn't want you to risk all of it and what she did for us to bring her back."
No one had to tell Clint Bruce was the only one with him on this plan. As they discussed the details, Bruce laying it out for Clint as simple as possible, he told him how Steve wanted to be the one taking the stones back. By taking care of the Soul Stone, five more had to be taken care off and so they both would make the jump with the exception that Clint needed to prepare for the possibility of bringing someone else back with him.
They knew it needed to happen quickly, the risk of the stones being out of their timeline for too long was looming over them. So when the time came, Clint felt as if years had passed. He wondered if he was the only missing seeing Nat around here, feeling her absence with every passing second. She always had the eery gift of hiding in plain sight and yet he always felt her. He always knew where she was and what she was doing because she wanted him to. It was necessary in their line of work, but it was also about their trust for each other. She was a part of him and he was a part of her and being here without her, he felt as someone cut him in half.
When it was time for him and Steve to suit up, his hands betrayed him. The one thing he always could count on wasn't working. He fumbled over checking his equipment, fingers shaking as he slipped into his gear. By the time they stood on the platform his whole body felt as if it didn't belong to him anymore and then he shot through time and found himself back right in front of the Stonekeeper.
"You've what you came for."
"I want a return. Wasn't what I expected."
"We rarely get what we expect."
"You got more of these? You probably have a lot of time to come up with tag lines like this." Clint's eyes darted past the Stonekeeper, right to the edge and he knew, he just knew what he would see if he looked over it."
"You won't get her back."
"And you know that because..."
The Stonekeeper kept silent, eyes boring into Clint's.
"No one tried before. Am I right?"
There was more silence and Clint dared taking a step further. And another one. Past the gate and bast the Stonekeeper and yet he didn't dare taking the last step, the one that showed him what he was here for. Instead he opened the little pouch on his belt and extracted the stone, holding it up for the Stonekeeper to see.
"Do I toss it down the edge? Do I just put it down here..."
"It won't bring her back. You shouldn't be here."
"But I am and I won't leave until you tell me what..."
"There is nothing you can do."
"...TO DO!" Clint's voice echoed from the mount over the wasteland he knew he would find if he went down the way again. He was panting, his heart racing so fast he felt dizzy. "Tell me what to do." His anger had turned to despair and he even went as far as begging. "Please."
Another moment passed and then another, Clint swaying on his feet, stumbling closer to the edge. What if the Stonekeeper was right? What if Rhodey and Cap were right? What if he would return alone?
His feet which were usually so sure, which allowed him to dance on more than one edge, betrayed him. Like his hands. The moment he let go of the stone was the moment he lost his footing. He knew he could push the button and he would be back in his time. There was time and no time at all. And yet he saw it all in absolute clarity: The sky opening up and taking the stone back in, the thunder lightening everything up, blinding him. He was still falling and he knew he had to act quickly. A voice kept repeating he needed to push the button and he promised he would do it when he opened his eyes again, but then he realized he stopped falling.
"What was that? About being a pain in your ass?"
Clint heard the smirk before he saw it and when he finally opened his eyes, when he finally felt his body again, he realized someone was holding onto him. And that someone was struggling holding them both.
"Would you mind helping just a little bit? Seems like you gained a bit weight." Nat was halfway dangling from the edge, clinging to the stone for their dear life. It still seemed impossible and now that he saw her, felt her, he realized he hadn't believed he could bring her back either.
And now she was here and trying to save both of their life.
His fingers moved just a fraction of an inch and yet it was all he needed to be reeled back to the situation at hand. "Hold on."
"What do you think I'm doing?" Sweat was running down Nat's temple and neck, teeth gritted as she tried pulling Clint up while he reached up and tried finding a crack to hold onto. All it took was another pull on Nat's part and they laid on their back next to each other, panting.
"The view is phenomenal if this place wasn't all about tossing and throwing people off cliffs," Nat breathed out and a moment later they were both laughing, Clint reaching out to take her hand.
All it took was another moment before they arrived on the platform, all eyes on Clint. Or rather the person next to him.
Bruce was the one breaking the ice as he pulled Nat down and into an embrace that nearly swallowed Nat whole. Clint wasn't mad about it and he gave them the moment they needed. They all needed. Steve was still wearing his Quantum Suit, apparently arrived just a moment before them, and Clint knew what he would do once Bruce let Nat go. And he didn't envy him being the harbinger of bad news.
Clint stepped down of the platform and past the three Avengers that were left. Thor had left the day before with the so called Guardians of the Galaxy, but he was sure they had a way telling him about this miracle.
And a miracle it was. Nat was back. Here with them. Clint saw her red hair peeking out between Bruce's fingers and while he wanted to talk to her, telling her all the things he never dared saying out loud, he knew they had time.