House Calls

[clint_barton]

 

"I'm sorry, sir, but Mr. Stark is currently unavailable and unannounced house calls are highly discouraged. Please contact Ms. Potts to make an appointment."

Standing at the doorway of Stark's Malibu home, Clint gives the interface on the wall a mildly annoyed glance. The well-mannered rejection isn't unexpected, but Clint would stake his life on the fact that Stark's computer knows exactly who he means by "Mr. Stark". Only Stark would give his AI an attitude problem on purpose.

"No, not your Mr. Stark. I'm here for Stark Senior. I just need to speak with him, don't even need to step inside. Just patch me through."

"I'm sorry, sir, but I am not authorized to allow-"

“Stark, I know you're listening. S.H.I.E.L.D. has some questions for your dad, I'm here to relieve you of babysitting duty. Let me speak to him and we'll both be out of your hair within the hour."

The buzz and click of the door lock releasing comes almost before he's finished the sentence. The smooth English accent follows a short second later, all polite efficiency. "Mr. Stark is in the second guest bedroom on the first floor."

 

Comments

[fatherofinnovention]

"I should have known." Howard sighs with a shrug. "All the signs were there right from the start. You walked right into Anthony's house without batting so much as an eyelash, you're on your way to pick up Robert Louis Stevenson's famous little fairytale and you fight high risk military targets with a bow and arrow."

"You're officially crazy."

[clint_barton]

"You're probably not wrong." It's not the first time Clint's been called crazy for bringing a bow and arrow to a fight, but most people usually change their tune after he starts shooting. Actually, they probably still think he's crazy, they just keep quiet about it.

"But then I'd say anyone with a job that involves Norse gods and time travel is probably a bit crazy."

[fatherofinnovention]

"Hmph." He snorts, more a laugh than anything else.

"Well pal, I sure am glad you're a friendly. Just promise me you won't go off and join Hydra or anything. For the record, they like the bad kind of crazy. And the bad kind of Norse nonsense. Mostly they're just bad."

"Not that you kids even remember what Hydra even is anymore, do you?"

[clint_barton]

"I may have read a few things. Nazis, red guy, wacky occult theories that ended up not just being theories. You and your contemporaries are in a few of our history books."

He pauses a moment for thought, giving a slight shrug. "Well, top secret history books anyway."

[fatherofinnovention]

Howard nods his head, looking more than a little impressed. Sure, most people know the basics, but the way Clint spits out his short little quips tells Howard the guy's done his homework. And that? Well, that earns him a little respect, because feeling like the world's forgotten what you've done for it is a pretty bitter pill to swallow.

"Agent, you're all right in my book."