It's Greek to Me: Put Them Somewhere Safe

[x-hawkeye.livejournal.com]

Clint and Molly hand the Lemurians over to SHIELD.


Clint had rigged up a tent-like sprinkler system and put it on a trailer to hold the green-skinned Lemurians, but Molly had been instrumental in getting things done quickly, for which he was very grateful. Also, her whole 'indestructible' thing, when combined with her ability to handle herself in a fight... well. Clint was pretty secure in the knowledge that he'd picked his travel companion for this drop-off well.

They'd arrived at the specified location and encountered no problems, so Clint parked the truck and leaned back against the seat. "So," he began. "You're gonna meet a friend of mine. Boss type person. Boss-friend. More friend now than boss. He works for SHIELD. If he asks questions, just be honest. But y'know, not... compromising to the mansion or anything." He thunked his head back against the headrest for a moment. "Sorry. I know we've gone over this already, but just."

Molly had changed into something that resembled as close to adult-type clothes than anything in a blue pantsuit with a white dress shirt underneath. She had had Mary-Angie to help with that, though Molly did leave a touch of her own style with a pair of red boots and a red Stetson Stratoliner hat with red, white, and blue trim.

"Be cool?" Molly said with a grin. "Got it. I am a Popsicle."

She tilted her head. "You okay, though? You uh, kinda look like you're gonna throw up."

"Nah, I'm alright. It's just one of those things where like. Worlds collide." Clint brought his closed fists slowly together, then opened his hands wide and made a little boom sound. "Anyway, Coulson is awesome." Cutting the engine and pulling the keys from the ignition, Clint opened his door and slid out of the truck so he could go around and start unhooking the trailer. "Thanks for helping out with this, by the way. I really appreciate it. Even restrained, I'm not sure I would've wanted to try and bring these dudes out here by myself."

"Oh yeah. They try anything I'll just punch 'em in the head," Molly said casually, shrugging as she moved to help him.

"And you're welcome! I totally feel like a secret agent now, y'know. Which is like...awesome. Hey, do you think they keep aliens here too?"

"Aliens?" Clint asked, laughing a little. "To be honest, I don't know. Considering they had Namor in a cryotube and didn't know it..." He shrugged. "I wouldn't necessarily put it past them, but that kind of thing is so far above my pay grade... and anyway, Thor counts as an alien, technically. So y'know."

Molly squinted thoughtfully. "Yeah, but I mean like green aliens! Like on the X-Files! Maybe Coulson knows! I bet he's talked to them and...." she said. She suddenly froze.

"He's right behind me isn't he?" She spun around, then coughed quickly. "Hi!"

"Hi." The greeting, like the man, was deceptively mild-mannered. Phil Coulson could make an art form out of being underestimated. At least by those who didn't know him very well, so he supposed the 'walk up all quiet and unobserved' lost a bit on Barton. But his companion... "This would be Miss Hayes, then?" Coulson's eyes tracked over her, businesslike rather than prurient. "I like your style," he told her with an understated smile. "You look like the sort of young woman who knows her value." He turned to Clint. "Barton, I swear, I'm going to name my ulcer after you." He paused. "You know, the one that you're giving me a bit more of every time you call me with these...interesting matters."

Clint tried for about half a second to suppress a smile but he gave that up as a lost cause and just shook his head. "Sorry. But I figured... I mean." He rubbed at the back of his neck. "At least there's only four of them?" His tone was almost hopeful.

"Thank heaven for small favors," Coulson quipped dryly. "So, business. What do you know about our extraterrestrial friends, and how tight do you have them locked down right now?" He raised a finger as Clint opened his mouth. "From Miss Hayes, if you please. You can turn what was supposed to be a one-page white paper into War and Peace, and I'd like to have this wrapped up in time to catch Supernanny."

Molly eyed the trailer. "Well...they're not really extraterrestrial more like....aquamen. They live underwater so we're keeping them under a sprinkler so they don't dry up and die. They're tied up with zip ties right now so they're okay for now but I probably wouldn't keep 'em that way for long. They're called Lemurians...I think. They said that much over and over again....Lemurians this...raaargh that," she said, making a light swipe with her fingers before shrugging.

"But I didn't get much more cause they don't speak English and they weren't really tryin' to talk, more like kill us horribly. They came through a portal from a device we found that looks like one that's at a museum in Athens except way more, y'know, intact." She paused thoughtfully.

"What's Supernanny?"

Clint was very obviously fighting both the urge to crack up and the urge to facepalm. He cleared his throat and said, "I had a couple people keeping an eye out for things that resembled the markings on that item of interest in the warehouse. They turned up this device and snagged it before it could disappear into any ridiculous private collections. We've disabled the one that allowed these guys to come through. And we're not entirely sure they live underwater but they're definitely at least amphibious, obviously - thus, the sprinkler rig there at the back." He paused for a moment, squinting just a little, before grinning and saying, "Look, ma - less than a five minute explanation for the four green dudes tied up in the back of the truck!"

"Yes, Clinton, we're very proud." Coulson's tone was dry enough to be at home in the Sahara. Then the explanation caught up and a pained expression crossed his face. "Wait, did you say they're actual little green men?" He shook his head wryly. "I'm never going to hear the end of this."

He looked at Molly. "And for your information, Miss Hayes, Supernanny is the finest offering of the reality television genre. And sometimes I learn techniques for handling problematic agents from it." He pointedly did not look at one Clinton Francis Barton.

Molly made a face. She didn't really trust anyone calling themselves a 'nanny' especially after the last one she met tried to kidnap her and make her their brainwashed child. Maybe this one was nice, though. "Oh," she said, adjusting her hat, then blinked as she got his joke. "They ARE little green men," she said, letting out a giggle. "But not from another planet though. So they still don't count. I've already met the ones from other realms...I wanna meet some actual aliens. That'd be so cool!" After a moment she shook her head. "So um, what now? We're gonna get our trailer back, right?" She'd retrofitted it with the sprinklers and everything. It could be useful...for what she had no idea but you never know.

After blinking just a little slowly, Clint quirked a smile and half-explained, "Molly knows some people who know our friend with the hammer. And the dudes aren't... exactly little. They're regular size. Ish." Right now, the sprinkler laden trailer was the least of his concerns.

"Ah." Coulson had definitely noticed the reference to 'other realms', it appeared that young Miss Hayes was rather well traveled. "To answer your question, yes, you may have your trailer back once the Lemurians are properly secured for transport to a holding facility." He tapped a finger against the point of his jaw as he thought and moved pieces around in his head. "As long as they stay hydrated, they should be fine, then?"

"From what we've been able to surmise, yes," Clint answered, nodding. "That's pretty much the gist of the situation. We've got enough water that you can probably just take our tank and the tubing. Unless you wanna pull a Free Willy and cover them all in we towels or something until you get where you're going?"

Coulson gave Clint a withering look. "Please, Barton, I'm a professional. I brought something a bit more upscale than a jury-rigged trailer." He paused, then sighed. "But yes, we could use the tubing and tank." He tapped the unobtrusive earbud he was wearing. "Negative on the towels," he murmured to whoever was on the other end.

Eyes sliding to the side a bit, Clint half-laughed and nudged Molly with his elbow though he addressed his former handler as he said, "I've missed that look, Coulson. That 'how are you so educated and good looking, yet so utterly ridiculous' look."

"Thank you for noticing my education and good looks, Barton," Coulson volleyed back. "They say if you self-compliment too much you'll go blind." He smirked. "Be seeing you, Barton," he said as he turned away to organize the transfer.