Operation Go
Quinn experimentally rotated her shoulder once more. It was still stiff, but the feeling of being sling-free was wonderful. She had been given some physical therapy exercises to do on her own time, but was cleared to go back to work as soon as she was given a psychological exam as well; her superior was worried about her working in the same place she had been attacked. She was eager to get back to the hospital, having never taken a day off she was rapidly getting anxious. The past two days in a row she had been at Avengers Tower while Peter began training. The things his body was now capable of were unbelievable and the challenge of monitoring it all took up most of her days. Bucky was usually there as well, like a shadow on her peripheral she was never quite able to shake.
“You know you’d look pretty great in a dress now that that sling’s off.” Tony entered the small office space Quinn had claimed as her own.
“Excuse me?” She looked up in shock.
The engineer stuffed a handful of sunflower seeds in his mouth, he was a perpetual snacker. “Sorry, old habits and all that. What I mean is we have a gala tonight and you should come.”
Images of debutante balls and charity events flashed through Quinn’s mind. She could barely stomach the taffeta and tulle fueled affairs growing up. “I’ll pass, thanks.”
“It’s for a good cause. Money is going to the new cancer wing at the Children’t Hospital.” Tony implored more.
Quinn shook her head. “That is a good cause, but galas are just not my thing. Besides, I need to rest up for starting back at the hospital next week.”
“Want to see something cool?” Tony’s shift of conversation gave Quinn a reason to pause. It wasn’t like him to give up a fight so quickly. “Follow me.”
Quinn followed Tony through the maze that was Avengers Tower. They came to a floor on the lower level that consisted of a balcony looking down to the floor below. Quinn could hear a series of grunts, shouts, and hits coming from below. Natasha and Agent Maria Hill, who Quinn just met that day, were looking on.
“I got ten on Barnes.” Natasha nudged Tony playfully as he approached.
“I’ll take that bet, Romanoff.” Tony leaned over the railing. “My man’s not in a generous mood today so he won’t be pulling any punches.”
“What about you, doc?” Natasha nodded to Quinn. “Barnes or Rogers?”
Quinn looked down and saw what they were talking about. Steve and Tony were locked in the middle of an intense sparring session. Both were in sweatpants with their shirts off. Steve was currently using his shield to deflect a series of blows from Bucky.
“I’m at an unfair advantage. I don’t know how to tell which one is stronger.” Quinn looked on in wonder at the sheer power of the two men. “Who are you rooting for, Agent?”
Hill smiled and shook her head. “I’m not a betting woman, I just come for the show.”
Quinn felt eyes on her and turned to see Natasha studying her as she watched the mock battle below. “It's not always about who's stronger. What do you notice about them?” The red head tilted her head in the direction of Steve and Bucky.
As Quinn watched, Steve lowered his shield and reached out to grab Bucky’s shoulder and twist him so their positions were reversed. He then used Bucky’s moment of distraction to kick near his chest, but was thrown on his back by Bucky’s metal arm. “Bucky fights more defensively.” Quinn said slowly, she had never so much as watched a boxing match, much less something like this. “He uses his prosthetic as a shield. Steve, on the other hand, if offensive. Ironically, he uses his shield more as a weapon.”
As if on cue Steve sent his shield soaring towards Bucky. Quinn couldn’t help the small shout of warning that escaped her throat when she saw the vibranium disc heading straight for his head. Unfortunately, the sound distracted Bucky and rather than duck like he normally would the shield hit its target and knocked him over.
“Bucky!” Steve shouted and ran over to his friend. Blood was starting to trickle from the wound on his temple. “I’m so sorry, I thought you could deflect that.”
“Get off of me Rogers! Your frisbee just scratched me is all.” Bucky shrugged off Steve and glared up at the balcony.
“Looks like I win.” Tony grinned over to Nat and blew a kiss down to his husband.
“You brought her over here on purpose.” Natasha grumbled and begrudgingly handed a bill to Tony.
“Next time you’ll have to see Steve and Tony spar.” Agent Hill nudged Quinn. “That’s when it gets real fun. Although nothing beats Thor versus the Hulk.”
Bucky looked sufficiently cowed at his defeat when he and Steve appeared on the balcony. A trickle of blood was falling from the cut on his forehead.
“Good job, babe.” Tony waved the bill in front of Steve. “You made Nat pay for our next ice cream outing.”
Steve gave Tony an indulgent smile but turned to Quinn. “Would you mind looking at Bucky’s head?”
Quinn saw a muscle in Bucky’s jaw twitch at the prospect. For most people, a direct hit to the head with Captain America’s shield would be a severe concussion at the very least. Bucky’s enhanced body probably protected him from severe injury but the doctor in her wouldn’t allow a head injury to go unchecked. She cautiously approached the ex-assassin like she was walking up to an injured animal.
“It doesn’t look too deep.” Quinn raised her hands to feel around the wound but Bucky instinctively pulled his head back at the last second. “It should be fine. Let me know if you get a bad headache, nauseous, or pass out.”
Quinn quickly said her goodbyes and left the building. Royal was waiting outside her apartment door when she arrived and holding a long rectangular package. “This showed up for you a couple of hours ago, I signed for it.”
He followed her into her and Andi’s apartment and took up his usual spot on the sofa. “You going to open that?”
Quinn pursed her lips at the package. There was no return address or indication of who had sent it. Years of dealing with her father made her suspicious of things like this. “What if it’s anthrax, or a bomb or something?” She tried to sound like she was joking, but if her father had decided to get rid of her...
“Nah,” Royal waved his hand dismissively. “Don’t they have dogs or some shit to sniff that stuff out?”
She lifted the white box and gave it an experimental shake. Something shifted inside, but she was no closer to learning the box’s contents. Royal snatched it away from her and popped open the lid. Yards of hunter green fabric tumbled out. Royal picked the item up and laid it out on the coffee table. Quinn frowned at the silky evening gown. “Maybe Andi ordered it in my name. We share an Amazon account.”
“I don’t think so.” Royal handed her a notecard.
‘Doc, we’ll see you tonight. Car will pick you up at 7. -Stark’
“Are you sleeping with Tony Stark?” Royal looked incredulously from the card to Quinn.
Quinn smacked the side of his head. “Oh ya, he totally left his gorgeous super soldier husband for me.” She rolled her eyes and picked up the dress. It was beautiful, and exactly the style she would have chosen, and in her size. There was no way she was going to wear it though, she was not going to go to that gala, not for all the pretty dresses in the world.
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“Do you think she’ll show up?” Peter excitedly asked Tony, distracting him from the robot he was currently working on.
“The old ‘dress in her size with a mysterious note’ routine works every time.” Tony threw his tool back in its box. When Peter was excited about something no work would get done. “At least it used to work for me every time.”
“Before you met Pops.” Peter grinned.
“Before I met Pops.” Tony smiled back and ran his hand through his hair. “Let me ask you something Pete. Why are you so committed to this scheme?”
Peter frowned as if deep in thought. “You and Pops have each other, Nat and Clint have each other. Bucky’s all alone.”
“You know that’s not true. We’re all a family, we have each other. Winter’s just the awkward goth kid of the family.” Tony crossed his arms, he knew there was more to his son’s matchmaking than he was being told.
“He’s spending more and more time away.” Peter slowly let out. “One day, he’s just not going to come back. And then everything Pops did...” The teenager shut his mouth quickly and looked up at Tony guiltily.
“If Bucky leaves it means Steve and I fought for nothing and Pops left us for no reason.” Tony finished Peter’s thought. He knew there was something deeper going on. They avoided Steve’s leaving as a topic of conversation at all costs. If Steve heard Peter saying this it would break his heart.
“I watch people, Dad.” Peter continued on, his voice sounded raw. “I know that Bucky is lonely, and he just looks different when Quinn is around. He would stick around for her.”
“You know this isn’t your job.” Tony put his arm on Peter’s shoulder. “Pops isn’t going anywhere, even if Bucky were to leave.”
“But Pops isn’t Pops when Bucky’s gone.”
“Ok, here’s the deal.” Tony tried to take charge of the situation. Leave it to his kid to turn something seemingly innocent into an all out angsty mess. “I’ll help you with this plan of yours, but you have to understand that Bucky’s going to do what he wants. No matter what you think you see in people, you can’t manipulate them to do what you want. Believe me, I’ve tried.”
Petter nodded and took in everything Tony said to him before looking up with a wide smile. “Ok, but for now, Operation Get Bucky Laid is a go?”
“We’re not calling it that.” Tony took up his tools again and laughed inwardly at his son’s joke.
“Operation Winter is Coming?” Peter playfully suggested.
“Dude, I don’t want to hear my kid talking like that. What about Operation Make Bucky Less of a Grumpy Asshole?”
“That’s too long.” Peter continued to make inappropriate suggestions until it was time to get ready for the gala.