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thetrickyshotBio
Charles Bernard Barton, known as Barney to everyone with a pulse, was born on August 4th in Waverly, Iowa, to Harold and Edith Barton. His childhood was spent doing two things: avoiding his drunken father’s fists and watching out for his younger brother Clint. Not much changed when both his parents were killed in a drunken driving accident. At least now he didn’t have to worry about the bruises anymore. Sent to an orphanage, the brothers stayed there year after year. No one wanted damaged goods when they could get something whole and unbroken from the start.
Taking the initiative, Barney convinced Clint to run away and join the circus. Barney became a roustabout. Clint got picked by the Swordsman to join his act, and then later was trained by Trick Shot, a master archer. It started a seed of jealousy in his heart that he took care not to give into too often. When Clint got hurt discovering the Swordsman embezzling money, Barney turned his back on him, feeling like his little brother had betrayed the only family they had. Things weren’t the same after that. Tired of the circus life, he left to join the Army, offering Clint a chance to join. Saddened when his brother didn’t show at the bus stop, he left and never looked back. Literally, for if he had, he might have seen Clint trying to catch up, too late as the bus pulled away.
Barney said he was going to make something of himself. But that didn’t work out too well. Following a dishonorable discharge from the Army, Barney went to go work for the local mob as a bodyguard. It took a while, but he worked his way straight up to the very top, in charge of his own small outfit. He became a known name among the gangsters, the type of guy who could get things done. In his own terminology, he wasn't just a low-down rat, he was a super-rat.
What no one realized is that Barney Barton was one of the good guys. Recruited by the FBI straight out of the Army for his extraordinary skills with a gun, he was turned into one of the best undercover agents they had. Working his way up through the criminal underground of New York, he started dismantling it piece by piece from the inside out. No one ever suspected a thing. But by the time he was done, New York’s finest mafiosos were beginning to get suspicious. Rather than blow his cover and lose their ace in the hole, the FBI arranged for him to have an altogether believable fake death.
His next assignment was to infiltrate a group that had begun to gain footholds on U.S. soil despite being inactive for decades. Barney thought big deal. After dealing with the mob, how hard could a little group called HYDRA be? It really was an easy assignment. Then Barney got sloppy. In an effort to sabotage one of their projects, his cover was blown. Rather than execute someone who had taken down eighteen HYDRA mooks without breaking a sweat, they decided to get....creative. Taking him down to the lab, Barney started undergoing what they liked to call a reevaluation program. Torture was just too nasty a word.
He outlasted them longer than anyone thought. Then one day, Barney finally broke. A few choice bits of brainwashing to the confused and vulnerable man, accentuating all his negative traits and feelings, and then he was theirs. Barney would never lie and say they made the final decision for him. For all his good intentions, he decided to do what was easy instead of what was right. He was tired. Tired of playing the good guy and never getting any rewards for it. Tired of risking his neck and almost getting it chopped off every time. It was easier to let them whisper honeyed words in his ears, even knowing that they were poisoned. It wasn’t that much, the things they wanted from him. Play the double agent, be their attack dog, and generally cause havoc.
Barney knew, to be the best he could, he was going to need an edge. Tracking down Trick Shot, now an old man dying of cancer, he learned everything Buck knew under a promise of getting him care. He lied, watching the cancer fester and kill him instead. Taking on his name, he became Trickshot, the other side of the coin that made up his brother. Then back he went to HYDRA, well-trained and full of vengeance. For while they wanted a weapon, Barney hadn't forgotten all those long months of torture. He picked up his bow and took aim, firing until every agent in the place was dead. Finally, he was free of any obligations to either side.
Now, his life is easy. All he has to does is play by his own rules. He’s on nobody’s side but his own anymore and that’s the way he likes it. But every once in a while, Barney can’t help but get to thinking about his time playing the good guy, wondering what it would be like to do it again....
Random Headcanon Facts
* He gets occasional migraines triggered by intense and repetitive high-pitched noises. These have been exacerbated since HYDRA's torture.
* He’s only ever broken his cover once, when he inadvertently found out his brother had been injured. The FBI intercepted him before he could get too far.
* Dislikes elephants thanks to a majority of his teenage years spent picking up their crap.
* A closeted Disney fan. He has every movie on Blu-Ray. His favorite is The Fox and The Hound.
* He had one bullet left in his gun when the HYDRA mooks overwhelmed him. He’d planned to use it on himself.
OOC Notes
Barney Barton, for a character with not that many appearances in the 616 universe, has quite the confusing history. I’ve attempted to meld it as seamlessly as possible into the cinematic universe, but obviously, things like him dying and coming back to life weren’t plausible. HYDRA was added in as an explanation in the absence of Egghead and Baron Zemo in regards to his change in personality. Most of this won't be played hard and fast as a rule. I'm still feeling out the character in regards to what works and what doesn't in his background.
Also, for any Clints playing with him: If anything about the above blatantly contradicts any headcanon you may have regarding the brothers, feel free to let me know and we’ll work something out. I figure a canon character takes precedent over a semi-canon one.
Charles Bernard Barton, known as Barney to everyone with a pulse, was born on August 4th in Waverly, Iowa, to Harold and Edith Barton. His childhood was spent doing two things: avoiding his drunken father’s fists and watching out for his younger brother Clint. Not much changed when both his parents were killed in a drunken driving accident. At least now he didn’t have to worry about the bruises anymore. Sent to an orphanage, the brothers stayed there year after year. No one wanted damaged goods when they could get something whole and unbroken from the start.
Taking the initiative, Barney convinced Clint to run away and join the circus. Barney became a roustabout. Clint got picked by the Swordsman to join his act, and then later was trained by Trick Shot, a master archer. It started a seed of jealousy in his heart that he took care not to give into too often. When Clint got hurt discovering the Swordsman embezzling money, Barney turned his back on him, feeling like his little brother had betrayed the only family they had. Things weren’t the same after that. Tired of the circus life, he left to join the Army, offering Clint a chance to join. Saddened when his brother didn’t show at the bus stop, he left and never looked back. Literally, for if he had, he might have seen Clint trying to catch up, too late as the bus pulled away.
Barney said he was going to make something of himself. But that didn’t work out too well. Following a dishonorable discharge from the Army, Barney went to go work for the local mob as a bodyguard. It took a while, but he worked his way straight up to the very top, in charge of his own small outfit. He became a known name among the gangsters, the type of guy who could get things done. In his own terminology, he wasn't just a low-down rat, he was a super-rat.
What no one realized is that Barney Barton was one of the good guys. Recruited by the FBI straight out of the Army for his extraordinary skills with a gun, he was turned into one of the best undercover agents they had. Working his way up through the criminal underground of New York, he started dismantling it piece by piece from the inside out. No one ever suspected a thing. But by the time he was done, New York’s finest mafiosos were beginning to get suspicious. Rather than blow his cover and lose their ace in the hole, the FBI arranged for him to have an altogether believable fake death.
His next assignment was to infiltrate a group that had begun to gain footholds on U.S. soil despite being inactive for decades. Barney thought big deal. After dealing with the mob, how hard could a little group called HYDRA be? It really was an easy assignment. Then Barney got sloppy. In an effort to sabotage one of their projects, his cover was blown. Rather than execute someone who had taken down eighteen HYDRA mooks without breaking a sweat, they decided to get....creative. Taking him down to the lab, Barney started undergoing what they liked to call a reevaluation program. Torture was just too nasty a word.
He outlasted them longer than anyone thought. Then one day, Barney finally broke. A few choice bits of brainwashing to the confused and vulnerable man, accentuating all his negative traits and feelings, and then he was theirs. Barney would never lie and say they made the final decision for him. For all his good intentions, he decided to do what was easy instead of what was right. He was tired. Tired of playing the good guy and never getting any rewards for it. Tired of risking his neck and almost getting it chopped off every time. It was easier to let them whisper honeyed words in his ears, even knowing that they were poisoned. It wasn’t that much, the things they wanted from him. Play the double agent, be their attack dog, and generally cause havoc.
Barney knew, to be the best he could, he was going to need an edge. Tracking down Trick Shot, now an old man dying of cancer, he learned everything Buck knew under a promise of getting him care. He lied, watching the cancer fester and kill him instead. Taking on his name, he became Trickshot, the other side of the coin that made up his brother. Then back he went to HYDRA, well-trained and full of vengeance. For while they wanted a weapon, Barney hadn't forgotten all those long months of torture. He picked up his bow and took aim, firing until every agent in the place was dead. Finally, he was free of any obligations to either side.
Now, his life is easy. All he has to does is play by his own rules. He’s on nobody’s side but his own anymore and that’s the way he likes it. But every once in a while, Barney can’t help but get to thinking about his time playing the good guy, wondering what it would be like to do it again....
Random Headcanon Facts
* He gets occasional migraines triggered by intense and repetitive high-pitched noises. These have been exacerbated since HYDRA's torture.
* He’s only ever broken his cover once, when he inadvertently found out his brother had been injured. The FBI intercepted him before he could get too far.
* Dislikes elephants thanks to a majority of his teenage years spent picking up their crap.
* A closeted Disney fan. He has every movie on Blu-Ray. His favorite is The Fox and The Hound.
* He had one bullet left in his gun when the HYDRA mooks overwhelmed him. He’d planned to use it on himself.
OOC Notes
Barney Barton, for a character with not that many appearances in the 616 universe, has quite the confusing history. I’ve attempted to meld it as seamlessly as possible into the cinematic universe, but obviously, things like him dying and coming back to life weren’t plausible. HYDRA was added in as an explanation in the absence of Egghead and Baron Zemo in regards to his change in personality. Most of this won't be played hard and fast as a rule. I'm still feeling out the character in regards to what works and what doesn't in his background.
Also, for any Clints playing with him: If anything about the above blatantly contradicts any headcanon you may have regarding the brothers, feel free to let me know and we’ll work something out. I figure a canon character takes precedent over a semi-canon one.