[AU] these are not the parts and poems of the body only, but of the soul

[from_the_outside]

They've all entered a kind of tense détente after the ill-advised dinner party. Tony throws himself into work, Sharon and Pepper mostly avoid each other, and Steve, Vision, and Nat continue with oversight duties.

And the thing is... Tony's working it out. 

Not a removal, exactly, but he's getting close, he'd told them, to at least blocking the commands. It's not perfect and it's not a permanent solution, but it's a step in the right direction. It's also a step in the direction of Tony needing to test the words on Bucky himself, and so Sharon and Steve are on extra high alert, keeping an eye out for any indication that Bucky's retreating into himself again. Sharon's mostly moved into the room they share in Steve's apartment for that very reason, though she still isn't wholly comfortable with being in Steve's space all the time.

He's away today, working with Sam and Rhodey on a veteran's outreach program, so it's Sharon who walks with Bucky through the halls of the compound towards Tony's rooms. "It's you and Vision with Tony today," she tells him, and glances across the distance they're careful to maintain when not alone behind closed doors.

"How are you feeling about everything?"

Comments

[nerves_of_ice]

“Hey, figured I should check,” Bucky drawls. “There could have been some secret trick to it.”

[from_the_outside]

Vision drifts over to the oven and turns off the timer, then opens the door and reaches in to pull the steaming pie out, juices bubbling through the slits Bucky had cut into the top crust.

Even knowing it can't hurt him, Sharon can't help but wince a little, and he gives her a small, understanding smile. "Vibranium skin," he says, by way of explanation.

"Handy," she agrees, and sets out a cooling rack for him to set the pie on.

[nerves_of_ice]

“Okay, that looks much better,” Bucky observes. Wanda smiles at him. “You just needed a little practice.”

“And help,” he counters.

[from_the_outside]

"Well, we tried," Sharon says. "That's got to be worth something."

And she maintains it was worth it for the fun of the attempt, even if the end result was a disaster.

[nerves_of_ice]

“It is,” he says instantly, hoping to reassure without being too obvious about it.

“And hey, nothing burned down, right?”

[from_the_outside]

"That seems like a low bar, but I'll take it," she says, amused, and leans on the counter to stare at the pie. Those rolls feel like a lifetime ago and she's getting hungry.

"I guess we should probably wait for the temperature to drop a little from 'molten lava' before we dig in, huh?"

[nerves_of_ice]

“Yes,” says Wanda, firmly, and Bucky laughs. “I’ll dig out some plates,” he says. “And forks and a knife.”

He goes back to a cabinet he’d checked previously and takes down four plates.

[from_the_outside]

"Y'all," says a voice from the door, "something smells good. Who's baking and what is it and most importantly, can we have some?"

Sharon glances over to see Sam, Steve, and Colonel Rhodes coming into the room, all of them with smiles varying from interested to lightly confused. "We picked up some cherries from the farmer's market in town," Sharon tells them. "Wanda taught us how to make them into pie."

[nerves_of_ice]

He takes down three more plates and glances at Steve, knowing that his best friend will be able to read the ruefulness in his expression plain as print.

"Don't worry about the kitchen," he says. "I'll clean it up."

Steve eyes him. "What happened?"

Mildly, Bucky says, "First attempt didn't go well. This is pie number two."

[from_the_outside]

"There's really not much to clean up," she points out. "Just one pan."

[nerves_of_ice]

Bucky shrugs. "I'll clean up one pan."

Meanwhile, Sam drifts over to look more closely at the pie in question as it cools on its rack. "Looks good," he approves. "As good as any Sarah's made. Not that anyone better tell her I said that."

"Why not?" Rhodey asks. "It's not like she's making you pie on the regular right now anyway."

Sam puts a hand dramatically to his heart and staggers backward. "Direct hit! That was cruel, my man. True, but cruel."

[from_the_outside]

"Who's Sarah?" Sharon asks, leaning back against the counter, her arms crossed.

"My sister," Sam tells her. "She runs the family business back in Louisiana."

[nerves_of_ice]

"Wilson Family Seafood," Steve adds, drawing a quick grin from Sam. "There's a restaurant and a fishing boat."

"Not just any fishing boat," Sam protests. Steve laughs. "Okay, a great fishing boat."

"That's better," Sam says, mollified. "It was our parents' first, then came down to us. It'll go to the boys next. Sarah's kids. They're pretty great, too."

[from_the_outside]

"Sounds nice," Sharon says.

At least, that seems like the right thing to say. Going on a fishing boat doesn't sound terribly appealing to her, but she doesn't have much of a frame of reference. "And yes, you can have some pie. There's plenty."

[nerves_of_ice]

"Once Wanda lets us," Bucky drawls, clearly teasing. "She's the expert here on when it's cool enough to eat. You guys timed it right. Everything go okay with your outreach program?"

Steve chuckles and comes to lean against the counter by him. "I think so," he says. "Rhodey? Sam?"

[from_the_outside]

For all the time she's spent here, she really hasn't been around the other Avengers all that much, and she hasn't let herself think too hard about Bucky's idea, the one that would have her act as JTTF liaison to the Avengers on a more permanent basis.

She hasn't even really talked to him about it, or to Colonel Rhodes, who would likely be the best source of information if it's something she decides to pursue, and it's getting to the point where she has to admit to herself that she's putting it off. Even knowing that Rhodes is likely to ask why she's even interested isn't a good enough reason to hold off, and now that the block's in place...

"I never say no to pie," the colonel says, leaning against the table and looking around at all of them. "What's the occasion?"

[nerves_of_ice]

"Mostly that the cherries were ripe," Bucky starts, and out of the corner of his eye sees Vision startle with visible surprise. With a silent mental apology to Steve, he continues,

"And, uh, Tony had kind of a breakthrough this morning on figuring out a block for the Winter Soldier activation protocol. He put it in place and we tested it. It works. So. Celebratory pie."

He can feel Steve freeze beside him, and looks over to see his best friend's eyes shining with hope and stunned disbelief. "What?" Steve breathes. "He-- you--"

[from_the_outside]

There's a moment of startled surprise from the three newcomers, and then they all pretty much start talking at once.

Sam's face lights up, delighted, and he comes over to clap a hand on Bucky's shoulder. "Congratulations, man," he says. "That's huge. That's some real good news."

"Really good," Rhodes says, and Sharon thinks he looks relieved as well as pleased and surprised as he comes to shake Bucky's hand. He's Tony's good friend, she knows – this has to be good news for him on more than one level. "Happy for you, Sergeant."

[nerves_of_ice]

"It is," he agrees. "I--"

That's as far as he gets, before Steve crushes him in a hug. "I didn't know Tony was so close. You should have said you were testing it today," he scolds, mildly.

"I didn't either," Bucky says. "It all kind of came together at once."

"He did not wish to raise anyone's hopes until he was certain," Vision offers, and Rhodes huffs out an amused breath. "Yeah, that's Tony for you."

[from_the_outside]

"Where is Tony?" Rhodes asks, and Sharon shakes her head.

"I think Pepper dragged him out of the compound," she says. "Haven't seen hide nor hair of him."

Sam comes to lean against the counter next to her, grinning. "Gonna be a pretty good report for your boss today, huh?" he says. "That must feel good."

She smiles back at him and tries not to think about Ross's likely reaction to the news that they've thwarted the Winter Soldier programming and Bucky's further along the path to no longer requiring Task Force oversight. "Pretty damn good, yeah."

[nerves_of_ice]

"It really works?" Steve asks him. "You're sure?" Bucky nods. "Completely sure," he reports. "There's some other stuff Tony wants to do to make it better, but it works. All clear, Cap."

Steve's smile could light up the entire sky, and in this moment, Bucky feels quietly at peace.

[from_the_outside]

"Thus: pie," Sharon says, nodding to the pie cooling on the counter. Wanda and Vision are at a remove; she suddenly wants to make sure their two gentle personalities aren't overshadowed by the boisterous boys who have arrived.

"You can thank Wanda for showing us how to make it right."

[nerves_of_ice]

Wanda looks more than a little startled by the sudden smiling attention she's faced with. "It's just pie," she says, a little shyly.

"Homemade pie," Sam counters, warm and easy. "The best kind."

[from_the_outside]

"It smells good," Steve says, hopefully, and Sharon glances at Wanda.

"What do you think? Is it cool enough to let the vultures descend?"

[nerves_of_ice]

Wanda looks back at her - then smiles, suddenly, and raises her chin as she faces the others.

"Go sit down," she tells them, imperiously. "Vision, set the table. Agent Carter, will you help me with the pie?"