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“Uh, what is that?” Clint sighed a little heavily. “Wait is that- ?”
“Yes.” Natasha confirmed, her eyes not lifting off the tablet she was reading off of, a frown across her lips as more words seemed to appear across a white screen.
Clint cautiously worked his way around the outer edge of the room, careful to leave a large vacant berth between him and the small figure currently facedown on the floor. When he was standing next to the couch and found it didn’t trigger any sort of reaction from their not-so-new guest, Clint frowned. “What happened? I just touched down twenty minutes ago.”
He knew Natasha knew he had no interest in reading Avengers messages when communications were open again, and if he really was needed, they knew how to get his attention.
“Stephen’s going with magic, but Bruce wants to double check they aren’t just dealing with some kind of sciencey ray.”
“Sciencey ray?”
Natasha only hummed in response.
Clint tilted his head and craned his neck to angle it for a better view. “What is he doing?”
“Sulking.”
Tony Stark: genius, billionaire, playboy, philanthropist. Was currently face down on the middle of his floor at approximately two years old, give or take a few months, by God knew what, amid an explosion of Mega Bloks, crayons and paper. He hadn’t even raised his head to investigate Clint’s presence, his eyes screwed shut and nose pushed uncomfortably into the floor. Lucky lay next to him like he was supporting Tony’s cause to be upset, one pudgy hand buried in fur.
“Can he suffocate like that?” Clint asked in wary concern. He didn’t need the paps knocking on his door asking how he managed to kill Tony Stark because he was sulking.
“Of course not.” Natasha said, finally lifting her head to catch Clint’s eye so he knew she meant it. “He’s been holding his breath on and off whenever he wasn’t getting his way. He almost passed out at one point his face was so red, but no. He turns his head to get air from time to time.”
A rumbling noise of disdain came from the toddler.
Clint held his own breath, but Tony didn’t move and Natasha only went back to her tablet, more words appearing across it. She must have been getting live updates from the others. He assumed that somehow the team agreed to leave Tony with her, which made sense, she liked him like he was her brother. He was family.
“I’m surprised Thor isn’t up here trying to cuddle the hell out of him right now.” Clint muttered, finally allowing himself to drop down on the middle of the couch, Natasha moved her legs when he did, draping her feet into his lap and Clint’s hands immediately began to rub them for her. Lucky lifted his head up to peer their way before going back to his sympathy protest, a small snort of a noise escaping before he was still again.
“He hasn’t touched down on earth yet, he will when he finds out I’m sure.” She remarked, wiggling delicately painted toes as she languidly stretched her body out. She was wearing one of his sweaters, despite swimming in it, her belly button exposed itself when her arms went over her head, it was cute.
“Want!” Tony cried out, lifting himself onto his knees and that was when Clint saw a picture of a catalogue page pressed under his body. Tony picked up the page and gave Natasha the most deathly of toddler level death glares he could muster, holding the paper over his head as if he was readying up to give her such a beating with it, only to see it flung barely a foot away. Natasha raised a challenging brow his way and Tony slapped at the page in frustration.
Clint blinked, pressing his lips painfully tight so the laughter aiming to bubble up and out of him didn’t come through. “What is he trying to get?”
“He wants to build his own workshop, he saw the Black & Decker Junior Power Tool Workshop and demanded I buy it for him. When I told him he could with his own money, he was face first on your lovely wood floor.”
Clint’s brows felt like they went into his hairline at that. “I take it he's not aware he could buy and sell us on sight?”
“You maybe.”
That was valid, Clint would be willing to be sold for pizza.
Tony made another sound of frustration, vibrating like he was powering up in a Dragon Ball Z episode and Natasha only blew him a kiss to add insult to injury. “I think it’s someone’s naptime.”
“No!” Tony argued, tucking his body behind Lucky.
Clint could finally see the outfit he was wearing; age appropriate clothing of cheeseburgers on sweatpants and a t-shirt with an orange cat smiling on his chest. It was extremely cute. Closeby were Iron Man socks, but they were probably thrown in a fit of anger too.
“Yes!” She said, mimicking his childish wail to the letter.
They both watched Tony’s bottom lip wobble but he didn’t cry, instead turning his back on them and sitting to face the windows as he began sorting his crayons. Lucky seated himself down beside him and it was a little touching watching him lean against fur, finding comfort there.
Clint chewed at his lip in thought and grabbed his laptop from off the coffee table, logging in. Dog Cops sat on the streaming site he used and he loaded the first episode. “Hey Tony, come here a moment. You like doggies, right?”
Tony slowly turned to eye him suspiciously and Clint forgot that he hadn’t even introduced himself.
“I’m Natasha’s friend, well boyfriend, partner in crime, partner to fight crime, best friend extraordinaire and pizza- “ He stopped when Tony began to frown harder at him. “Right. Well there’s a show, if you want to watch it. It’s called Dog Cops, there’s one that even looks like Lucky in it.”
Once the boy decided that being Natasha’s friend was not a character flaw, he pushed himself to his feet and slightly waddled over to the couch. “Move please.” He ordered and insistently shoved at Clint’s thigh.
Clint shook his head and scooted over while Natasha moved to sit herself up, Lucky hopping on the couch to fit at Tony’s opposite side. With some determined wiggling, Tony got himself onto the furniture without any assistance, it was a tight fit with a toddler that didn’t agree to being told no but they made it work. Natasha tugged the throw blanket off the backrest of the couch to throw over their laps, and Clint settled half the weight of the laptop on Tony’s so he could properly see.
It may have been a thinly veiled excuse to keep Tony settled down for a nap, but Clint’s idea was a good one. Tony’s tiny arms were wrapped tight around Lucky’s neck as he intently stared at the screen, instantly glued to Dog Cops.
It wasn’t very long before the toddler was slowly leaning over more and more into Clint, his head tilting awkwardly in between trying to keep awake and wanting to take that rest. Clint continued to run the episodes until Tony tipped over completely, fast asleep.
Clint looked towards Natasha for support, ready for Tony to be retrieved before drool started but she was too busy taking pictures with her phone. Clint frowned as she proceeded to take a few more, but there was no way he was going to argue about it.
“Come on, Nat. He’s heavier than he looks.” Tony was sprawled across his lap now, his head pillowed on Clint’s thigh, a thumb found itself parked in his mouth and he was out like a light.
“Don’t be so dramatic, Clint.” She mused, taking one last photo. “Just one more for Peter.”
Clint swore under his breath.
Finally Natasha put her phone on the coffee table and carefully scooped Tony up. “I’ve been waiting for the chance to cuddle him.” She admitted with a soft smile, cradling his head against her shoulder. “He’s just so small now and despite his tantrums, he’s just adorable.”
“Imagine putting him in a suit and drawing on the trademark beard, huh? Also if he gets mad about all this when he’s normal again, I wasn’t here.” Clint pulled himself off the couch and started picking up the mess on the floor. There were crayons under the couch and under his bookshelf, and he stepped on a stray few, pocketing them for the trash so Tony wouldn’t find out. Some had clearly been gnawed on at the end when Tony was obviously thinking too hard about his pictures. He glanced up at the sight Natasha made with Tony sprawled on his back in her arms and looked away, clearing his throat. “Stop mooning over him and put him in bed, if he wakes up it’s your problem since I gotta take Lucky out for a walk.”
Lucky barked in agreement and he gave the dog finger guns.
“I can’t help it, he’s just so tiny.” Natasha murmured, stroking Tony’s soft hair and dropping a feather-light kiss on his bare forehead. Tony didn’t stir and Clint refused to make a short joke. “He smells so nice.”
Considering it was Tony, that was normal, he always smelled nice. But he understood completely, getting up to rest a hand on Natasha’s arm and pressing a kiss to her forehead. “Both of you should go take a nap, I’ll bring home dinner.”
They shared a look, a deeper meaning to all of that, but she didn’t say anything. She didn’t need to. Clint loved her all the same and unconditionally, she knew that and he knew what she was thinking at that second. They had dreams and goals that were oddly parallel, it was another of their millions of common similarities.
Maybe one day they could play house full time; while right now he loved life as was, he could see a farm in his future, away from noise pollution and cramped spaces. Natasha at his side and maybe it wouldn’t be Tony in her arms negotiating for better toys but it could be a baby they adopt and retiring would be just fine.
He watched her carry Tony off, one bare foot hanging listlessly off her arm while Lucky followed alongside. It was a pretty picture alright, and Clint took out his own phone to keep that moment all for himself.