eswareinmal | (no subject)

Characters: Clint Barton & Whoever else wants in on the madness.!
Open? Open to whomever
Where: On the road South of town
When: Day 9 mid-morning
What: A very confused Hawkeye is seeking some answers about just where the hell he is.
Warnings: Potential naughty language and grumpiness.

The sandy haired man who was riding up the road towards south gate had a watchful look on his face. His seat was excellent and obviously knew his way around the horse judging by the loose, one-handed grip he had on the reins as the black steed loped towards the town. In his other hand, he held the bow with an arrow notched and held at the ready just to be safe. Clint wasn’t the type to shoot first and ask questions later but after the morning he had had, he definitely felt like taking the ‘better safe than sorry’ approach.

Tugging lightly on the reins, Hawkeye pulled the stallion to a stop and surveyed the bridge ahead carefully. “Well, boy, should we see if they’re friendly?” Clint asked, musing out loud more than anything else. One of the horse’s ears flicked back at him before prickling one again.

“Right, well, let’s hope they don’t shoot us full of holes.” Not wanting to be viewed as hostile, he dropped the reins long enough to slip the arrow from the bow-string and into the quiver tied to the side of his saddle. Nudging his mount forward once again, they set out at a measured walk towards the city gates.

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Clint was approaching the city with all the due wariness it deserved. Not wanting to come across as too aggressive, he'd loosened the bowstring reluctantly and stowed it behind him. It made him feel damned naked despite the fact that he had a perfectly good sword bumping against his side or the throwing knives he'd between the chainmail and leather undergarments.

The very last thing Hawkeye had expected as he approached the strange looking town was to hear his own name being called out by a very familiar sounding voice. Turning towards the voice, Clint stared incomprehensibly at Steve for a moment as though he couldn't believe his own eyes.

"Cap?" As though sensing Clint's sudden tension, the high-strung black stallion tossed its head restlessly and started to prance nervously.

When Clint answered, Steve started cutting through the crowd as best he could when surrounded by people who seemed to think knights were celebrities. He managed to make his way to Clint with minimal fuss, relying mostly on the polite smile and greetings that had kept him from being overwhelmed after the USO shows.

Why was Clint here? First, both Steve and Tony were brought here, now Clint. Had one of his first theories that this was a training exercise been true or was whoever brought them here targeting people connected to SHIELD?

"Yeah," he answered, grinning up at Clint, keeping what he hoped was a safe distance from the horse. "It's me. They got you too?"

When Steve approached, Clint dismounted and slid down to the ground so he could meet the other on even ground. He was surprised to see the super soldier here and it filled him with a deep-set feeling of dread. If Cap was here then just how powerful were these people?

Clint's smile was a little strained as his hand stretched out in greetings towards Steve. "Well, ain't this a kick in the head? Heh, how many of us did they manage to get, Cap?"

Holding the horse's reins with one hand, Hawkeye was certain to keep himself between Steve and the restless animal. He hadn't missed the almost wary look Steve had given the horse. "I don't suppose you happen to know just why these people have kidnapped us, do you?"

Shaking Clint's hand, he made sure not to let his unease show. Coincidence was sometimes just that, but other times it led to something that usually came back to attack later. "They nabbed me and Tony Stark yesterday. I'm not sure if they got anyone else." Yet.

He glanced over at the horse, keeping an eye on the stallion. Motorcycles, jeeps, even the SUV things that SHIELD had fleets of he took to easily, but horses would take time to get used to.

"I've been told that we were brought here to stop some thorns from overrunning the place." There was a hint of skepticism in his voice. "I figure there's more to it than that, but it's the only story I've been able to dig up."

"Stark too? This couldn't be some elaborate kidnapping scheme or something? Someone wanting to ransom his rich ass back for some ridiculous sum of money?" Hawkeye asked hopefully, brow creased in a frown. After shaking Cap's hand, Clint's fell to his side and automatically fell on the pommel of the sword strapped at his side.

"Don't suppose you happen to know what's up with the RenFair reject outfits do you? I mean, this is kinda....much, yanno?" Indicates the armor he and the black horse were wearing. As though sensing Clint was speaking about him, the animal butted his armored head against the human's shoulder with rough affection. Out of habit more than anything, Clint reached up and stroked the animal on the nose soothingly. It had been more than a decade since he'd worked with a horse regularly but some habits were just rote.

"Thorns? We got kidnapped to deal with the freaking thorns from Sleeping Beauty?" Clint's skepticism and disbelief was right there in the open. "No offence, Cap, but that sounds like a load of horseshit."

"Yeah, I know, but it's the only story that's consistent." Rubbing the back of his neck, he shrugged his shoulders slightly, reassured by familiar tug of his shield at his back. "This is pretty elaborate for a kidnapping. Why go to the trouble of the - " He paused, his thoughts stumbling over the unfamiliar term. "RenFair or with kidnapping us if all they want is to ransom Stark?"

Automatically he scanned the crowd, not finding any sign of danger or that this was a trick of some kind. This probably would be easier if it was.

"Every time I try to dig up more intel, I get the same facts over and over. Everyone blames a book for bringing us here and we can't go back until someone stops the thorns." He grimaced, frustrated by the lack of information. "And no one seems to know how to stop them."