Heroes Assemble!

Even When I Had Nothing

The best word to describe the group gathered in the small lounge area just off of the Avengers Tower landing pad was sombre.

As the news had begun filtering in, gathering in intensity by the hour, of what had happened at S.H.I.E.L.D. Headquarters, they had begun appearing at this spot. And while the main lounge several floors above would have been the better choice, especially considering its size, this was where they each decided to be. It was here that they would be on hand for when their friends, their de facto family, would return home to.

Clint had been the first to appear, falling into the lounge that faced the landing pad, his head resting on the top of it as his eyes alternated between the clear blue sky and the television in the corner with its continuous news broadcast.

He'd seen his team mates attacking the Triskelion. He's watched as Thor and the Hulk grounded two massive, brand-new helicarriers. He'd heard the recording that someone had made of Steve's speech to the S.H.I.E.L.D. personnel there decrying the HYDRA agents embedded within the organisation. He'd even watched, spellbound, as Thor, Harry and some guy with mechanical wings took on the third helicarrier as it was lifting off. He'd shot forward in his seat, eyes wide, as Harry poured molten lava onto one of its engines.

Tony and Nat, Clint knew, had been there as well, but they weren't seen in any of the footage. Their names were mentioned, of course, especially in conjunction with all of the classified data that was being dumped onto the web, so he knew that they were still alive.

Sometime during the broadcast, Jane, Darcy and Erik had arrived. Clint only really noticed them after the two women rushed across the room to hug a dazed-looking Pepper when she stepped out of the elevator.

Jarvis, of course, kept them updated on the team's status, and more importantly, the fact that all were alive and apparently even uninjured. The fact that all of them were wanted for questioning was also reported, not that it seemed, at least according to Jarvis, that any of them had acquiescenced to the request.

Sometime after that, Clint shifted from his seat, quickly scaling a convenient strut to perch on a small platform high above the room, as though it'd been designed especially with him in mind.

And really, it was a good thing that he had, the small lounge was quickly being overrun by the rest of the team. Matt and Jennifer arrived together, only a few minutes before Peter, Gwen and Doreen appeared.

Clint knew that, while there was some concern for their team-mates and friends, the big questions that had yet to be voiced revolved around S.H.I.E.L.D.'s fall itself. The Avengers and S.H.I.E.L.D. worked together – Clint, Nat and Steve were, in fact, Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. S.H.I.E.L.D. also had a lot of sensitive data about the team in their data banks and there was worry about what all that data being uploaded to the web meant for them.

At one point, Clint had even given in to the temptation and attempted to ring Bobbi – she was their S.H.I.E.L.D. handler, after all. The fact that he didn't get an answer was worrisome.

Matt and Peter's heads snapping towards the landing pad seconds before Jarvis spoke alerted them all to the fact that the quinjet was almost home.

As the group surged forward, Clint slid down the strut and slipped to one side. By the time that he'd done so, the quinjet's engines were cycling down and its wings were in the process of folding up and over so that the vehicle could be pulled into its proper place.

"I feel like I should be wearing a laurel wreath," Tony stated as he stepped from the quinjet's ramp, his eyes surveying the awaiting crowd.

"What are you talking about?" Pepper asked as she headed towards him to envelope him in a hug.