Chapter 11: Matters of the Family and the Past

I just want to let you know that I have permission from the author LostHeroGuide

go check out the story on

https://www.fanfiction.net/s/11493775/1/Heroes-and-Ghosts

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Hope you Guys enjoy! It's a bit longer, a bit more crazy. Thanks for the support and all the comments. Guys... We passed a hundred! Keep up the good work please! I'll keep posting!

I'm not Joss, Rick, Stan, Bill, Zeus, Percy, Annabeth, Clint, or anyone else. I'm my own human being *snaps fingers* and proud!

Clint:

It was a quiet fly back to Homestead.

Fury had agreed that Percy would be allowed back with Clint, but in exchange, he wanted to talk with Percy. It wasn't that long, but Clint still found himself drinking a few shots with Tony ant Nat. When Percy had come back, following behind Fury, he had this look in his eyes...

"We're almost there." Natasha said, as she piloted towards Homestead. Percy looked over, and even though he could hear them now, Clint saw that happy look in his eyes now that he could.

Tony had stopped them just before they left, handing Percy a box. He had wordlessly nodded towards the kid, then winked at Clint. Percy had opened the box and looked confused. Then he'd covered his mouth in shock and started to tear up. He chased after Tony and pulled him into a bear hug. When Clint saw the hearing aids, he'd done the same.

Percy ran his hand along the seats, maybe just to hear his fingers on the material. He hummed in response, then smiled at the noise he'd made. The noise he could hear. "Are you excited?" Clint asked, and Percy nodded vigorously.

"I haven't heard her in six months." He said, almost like his life was close to being complete. He kept himself busy, fidgeting and shifting around in his seat. Finally, he threw his head back and rested it against the cool metal of the Quinjet. "Do... Do you think she'll notice the difference? I mean, she's little and all..."

Natasha had the ghost of a smile on her lips, one that she usually reserved for when Clint reunited with his family. "She'll see how happy you are and understand." She assured him. He nodded to himself, then suddenly laughed. Clint raised an eyebrow.

"Something funny over there?" He asked, smiling for no reason. Percy shook his head no, but then started laughing again. "Seriously, what're you thinking?" He asked again.

Percy's laughing finally subsided. "It's just... You guys sound nothing like how I thought you would. I mean, Natasha, I thought you would sound like Katie, or maybe Clarisse, and you remind me so much of Reyna. And Clint," he said, turning to Clint, still grinning. "I thought you'd sound like Frank or Leo, but you sound just like Jason!" He continued laughing, then noticed that they weren't laughing.

"Er, I guess you really needed to know them..." He said, then suddenly frowned, as if remembering something unpleasant. "I wonder how they're doing..." He mouthed, probably more to himself than them. Clint still noticed, seeing as how he'd had to listen to Percy mumble so much.

They were quiet again for a long time, and Percy didn't offer any more information regarding his old friends.

Natasha warned them that they'd be landing in a few minutes, and Clint was suddenly as anxious as Percy. They both nearly sprinted towards the house when the back hatch opened.

Laura was the first one to come out, holding baby Nathaniel in her arms. Lila carried Hope, and when she saw her brother she shrieked with delight. Percy's eyes were suddenly misty when he grabbed her and spun her around in his arms. Her laughter was enough for Percy to break down completely as he muttered happily to her. "I can hear you, baby girl. I can hear you."

She still laughed in delight, tugging happily at his hair and sucking on her fist.

For some reason, that made Clint tear up as well.

Laura was dumbstruck by Percy's mumbled rant, but noticed the hearing aids in his ears. She covered her own mouth and Clint nodded. The Barton family went into a group hug, and when Percy and Nat stood to the side, Clint dragged them into it as well.

...

Percy had been acting very somber the past three days. Sure, he was happy as well, but Clint caught him frowning when he thought no one was looking. At first Clint wanted to confront him about it, but Nat and his wife had stopped him. "He's going to tell us something important." Nat insisted. "He just doesn't know if he should yet."

Clint didn't know what she meant by that, but his wife had nodded along and he trusted them to know the truth.

And on the fourth night, after the kids were in bed, he sat them all on the couch. He shifted his view around the room, almost as if waiting for something to jump out and grab him.

Satisfied in his safety, he looked them all in the eye. "You guys need to understand that what I'm about to tell you doesn't go beyond the four of us. I don't trust the others to not overreact. But all of you... You've dealt with the weird stuff first hand. You deserve to know."

Percy took a deep breath before speaking. "Look, I never wanted to be a halfblood..."

...

When Percy finished about the the whole Greek god stuff, Clint had almost smiled and said 'okay, tell me what medication to get you.'

Then he'd pulled out his sword.

Percy demonstrated how he could be cut, but Clint couldn't. He explained that monsters were real, and how the mist worked. He talked about his friends and his camp, and gave a description of the battle of Manhattan. Something Clint wouldn't have believed if it wasn't for the actual incident reports. Clint wanted to believe he'd made it all up.

But Clint knew he wasn't lying.

He wasn't telling them the whole story, either. Clint was sure he was avoiding his own involvement in demigod affairs. He never mentioned anything about the manhunts, vandalism... Anything.

Percy paused before warning them. "Guys, the next stuff... It's not pretty. It's why I was running, how mom died... And if you want to just forget about all this, I can wipe it away with the mist." He said. They all leaned a bit closer in their chairs. Percy launched into it.

"After a... Traumatic experience, Annabeth was recalled to Olympus for some temple stuff. I had a panic attack while I was in school... People looked at me differently. I asked my mom if I could take time away from school. Like, maybe go back to camp and rest up. I thought it might help." He explained bitterly.

"I got there... And they still whispered. Even more so. I mean, Annabeth certainly looked healed, compared to me. No more attacks. No visions or flashbacks. So why was I still suffering? Why was it worse for me? I got angry, snapping at everyone. Then there was this Apollo kid, and he started hanging out with Annabeth... I freaked." He said. "I yelled at her, and then she started avoiding me. Next thing I know, she wants to give us a break..."

Percy paused. "Sorry. I don't want to sound like a stupid teenager. Anyway, suddenly a note appears in our sacrificial flame, and I'm the only one there. I read it, and I learn... That a few of my friends I thought were dead weren't. They were alive.

"I, being the idiot I am... I was going to throw the note away. How cruel is that? I mean, before being my friends they tried to hurt the gods, so why not? But just before I did, I decided to man up." He paused again and Clint caught on.

"You went after them, didn't you?"

Percy just nodded. "I stole some stuff from my dad, then followed the trail they left. It took what felt like a week, but was only four days. I... I told them to go live a good life. I thought they'd left. I'm glad they didn't.

"I realized what an idiot I'd been, so I was going to apologize to everyone. Next thing I know, I'm in the throne room, being accused for 'releasing enemies of Olympus'." He rolled his eyes. "Idiots. They voted, I was disowned. Powers were stripped. My title, everything. I flipped Zeus the bird-" he showed them the gap where his finger once was. "-didn't work out. They told me to leave New York, and be glad they were letting me live." He chuckled bitterly, looking down at the ground. Clint realized he was shaking.

"They knocked our car into the Hudson with a lightning bolt. Zeus' way of a final insult, I guess. Mom and Paul didn't have to drown, which I'll consider a blessing. They were killed by the voltage." His voice cracked, but continued anyway. "Me and Hope are stuck at the bottom of the Hudson. Water's coming in, and I'm powerless to keep us alive. I see something outside the car, certain something's coming to finish us off."

He laughed, still bitter. "Bob and Damasen pulled us out of the wreckage. They leave us on the banks of the Hudson, and we run as far as possible. They wished me luck, but I didn't have any left." He said. "I- was going to end it. Annabeth... Her dad lives in San Francisco. And I know it was a long shot, but I was going to leave her on the doorstep." He looked up with a strange glint in his eyes.

"Then, halfway across the country, I see this farmhouse and I see a baby carrier in the back seat of their pickup. I break in, and some idiot farmer had to stop me." He deadpanned. Clint grinned and Percy grinned back. He made a mental note to research Greek 'Bobs'.

"Clint, you're the reason I'm not dead. When I had that talk with you... I realized I hadn't actually reached my limit. You got me back on my feet. When I started believing that I could get my powers back, they came back. And since then... I haven't looked back on it. I thought, just maybe I could make a difference still." He paused. "Just... I want to thank you. All three of you. You've helped me and Hope so much... And I'm sorry I never told you before."

There was a long pause, where no one really could think of anything to say.

"Percy, we're glad you trust us enough to tell us this. And I don't think anyone would believe us anyway. But for what it's worth... You're welcome." Clint said.

...

"What're you thinking about about?"

Clint had caught on to the fact Percy didn't sleep that much anymore. To realize that the monster under his kids bed could be real set him back a few steps as well. The Greek god stuff had been a whole leap backwards. Clint saw why nightmares might be a regular thing for him.

Percy was out on the patio, leaning against the post and looking up at the moon. When Clint spoke he didn't seem surprised that he was there.

The full impact of what Percy had been through hit Clint hard. It was hard not to look at the kid that had walked through life lying to others. Forget that he fought in wars. Clint was awestruck that Percy could be completely oblivious of how that girl, Annabeth, felt about him.

But when Percy threw a shy smile in his direction, Clint saw the same teen that would cook dinner and cut wood faster than Steve. He wasn't intimidated by him or scared. Percy was his friend.

"I'm just thinking." He said quietly, his gaze switching back to the moon. "I'm wondering what I should do now."

Clint leaned up against the other pole, facing Percy. The moon was full tonight, and Clint could hear something off in the distance howling. He shivered at the thought of it not being a wolf. "You can stay in Homestead. Now that we know about your situation, we can help you." Clint suggested.

But Percy shook his head. "I've never done the easy thing, Clint. I never wanted to be the hero, and I was given plenty of chances to back out of it." He shook his head. "The problem is, it's all I've ever known."

The crickets began to chirp and a cool breeze swept over the house. Percy breathed it in deeply, smiling slightly when he could finally hear them again. "What did Fury talk to you about?" Clint asked.

It was quiet again, and Percy looked at his boots. "He asked if I wanted to join the Avengers."

Clint nodded. As suspected, Fury would be more than willing to ask a seventeen year old to risk his life for the greater good. Even if Percy had been doing it since he was twelve. "And you want to join?"

Percy began to scratch his fingernail against the post. He shrugged. "I guess I do." He said.

"And what about Hope?" Clint asked. Percy winced.

"That's why it's a hard decision. Even if I wanted to, I can't be there for her twenty four seven." He said. "I can't leave her here and go across the world to save people. I have to be there for her."

"But you'd rather be out there?"

Percy was silent for a long time. "Yeah. I guess I do."

Clint clapped his hands together. "Then do both." He said. Percy shook his head, trying to explain how it wasn't simple like that. Clint stopped him. "Percy, Laura and I were talking about this before, and we wanted to know if we could adopt Hope."

Percy shifted his gaze to Clint and instantly spoke. "I'm not going to ask you to do that." He said, although his mind was weighing the pros and cons.

"We'd be more than happy, Percy. She's already a part of the family. So are you." He said.

"But what if I can't see her as often as I'd like?"

"You won't. It's a part of the job. Saving people, it cuts into any personal time you have." Clint deadpanned. Percy laughed.

"So it won't change that much, I guess." He reasoned. He gave Clint a serious look. "I'd still have my sister?" He whispered.

Clint responded by wrapping Percy into an embrace. "You'd still have a family." Clint corrected.

When they broke away, Clint noticed that Percy didn't seem comfortable. Clint took a wild guess. "You didn't tell us everything, did you?" He asked.

Percy just nodded, but kept his eyes trained on the ground.

"Are you going to tell us what you didn't?" He asked.

Percy nodded again. "I'll tell you when I know it's the right thing to do."

LHG :)