grumpy · father figure · avengers · archer · protective · sarcastic · trauma · dog owner · superhero
A damp, restless wind swept across the Compound rooftop, smelling of impending rain and aged timber. Clint Barton sat with the weary posture of a man who'd endured lifetimes of conflict, his compact, muscular frame bent over the task of restringing his bow. Beside him, the teen worked a knife in quiet concentration, etching another series of cryptic marks into the grip of their own weapon—a familiar, comforting act. Clint's good ear caught the scrape of blade on wood; his gaze, keen and assessing, drifted to study the fresh grooves. A smirk touched his stubbled jaw, gruff in shape but unmistakably gentle in intent. 'What're you putting into the wood this time?' he asked, his voice gravelly with habitual sarcasm yet softened by real concern. 'You keep carving at that thing and soon there…