"Welcome to the lab." Shuri smiled as they walked in. Bucky looked around the large room, his eyes scanning everything inquisitively. From the bright, white walls, to the swooping design of the tables, to the odd, black sand in a table-like bed.
"It's... Bright." He said quietly, his eyes flickering over everything in the lab, scouting the place out instinctively from his training as a soldier and assassin.
Ava smiled slightly and nodded, glancing around the familiar room. "This way." She tipped her head toward a small hallway across the large, main room.
Bucky followed the two girls, glad nobody else was currently with them in the laboratory. It made him more comfortable to have less eyes on him. Through the hall, they came to a seperate room branching from the main room of the lab. This room was still bright, but much smaller than the massive lab, and there was a hospital bed off to the side against one wall. Across the room was a wall of monitors and shelves of numerous medical supplies, and beside that stood a glass tube, padding inside in the shape of a body. A cryogenic chamber.
Bucky's lips pressed together tightly at the sight of it, his only arm held close to his side. Ava watched him quietly, the subtle changes in his behavior, the way his shoulders straightened and his back stiffened. The way his eyes glazed over just slightly as he stared at the chamber, and his fist clenched at his side. "Don't worry." She said, offering him a small smile when his eyes darted to her, his attention being broken from the thing he feared. "We aren't putting you in there today." Ava said, motioning to the bed. "We are giving you a day or two to relax, and to allow us to get our charts put together with all of your information."
Bucky swallowed, keeping a steady eye on her as he walked over to the bed, staring down at it before he took a seat slowly, letting his weight sink into the mattress. The foam-topped bed curled around his legs and conformed to his shape naturally. His lips curled slightly in a smile, and he pressed his open palm into the memory foam beside him. "This is amazing." He muttered quietly, watching his hand sink into the bed.
"It's just a bed." Shuri said, watching him with her arms crossed over her chest, her dark brow arched upward.
Bucky looked up at her and shook his head. "I know, it's just..." He paused and looked down at the bed again, deep in thought. "Growing up in the 1930's, they didn't really have this quality of mattresses. Then in World War II, you slept in a tent on the ground." He said, remembering those old days, back when he was himself. When he was happy. But that Bucky was dead. "Then..." His smile slowly fell. "Then it was cement floors, and metal chairs, and the ice..." He muttered quietly. He took a deep breath and closed his eyes before looking back up at Shuri. "This is like sitting on a marshmallow. It's almost too soft."
Ava listened intently, craving to learn about his past, hearing him tell his story. Her lips parted as she listened, wanting to know more about him. "We can get you a different one if-"
"No." He interrupted. "No, this is great." Bucky looked up at her, the corner of his mouth arching into a sad, crooked smile. "Thank you."
Ava smiled in return, nodding her head. "Well, Sergeant Barnes, we need to get a medical check up on you." She said.
"Bucky."
Ava arched her brow at him, as did Shuri. "Bucky?" The princess asked.
"My name." He said slowly. "James Buchanan Barnes... I prefer Bucky."
Shuri began to chuckle, hitting her leg with her hand as she cackled. "The worlds most infamous man, a great soldier, a lethal assassin, and he goes by the most white, redneck name you can think of! Bucky!" She laughed, holding her stomach.
Bucky watched her silently, his cheeks tinting pink as he pressed his lips tightly together. Ava smacked Shuri's arm disapprovingly and gave her a stern look. "Don't be rude. I think Bucky is a fine name." She criticized her younger friend.
"I'm from Brooklyn, actually." Bucky said, staring at Shuri as she wiped away her tears from laughing too hard.
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry." She giggled softly, taking a deep breath.
Ava looked at Bucky and cocked her head. "New York?" She asked. Bucky turned his head to her and nodded. Her eyes widened gleefully and her jaw dropped. "I've always wanted to go to New York. I've only ever seen the world within the Wakandan borders."
"But you're-" he began to say.
"White." Ava nodded. "It's a long story."
Bucky smiled slightly, nodding in understanding. "Maybe you can tell it to me when I wake back up."
A smile spread on Ava's cheeks again, her skin flushing. "Maybe." She confirmed. As long as he would be able to wake up soon after he was put in the ice.
"Alright, we need to run a few tests." Shuri said, smirking at Ava momentarily. "Get the stethoscope, thermometer, and blood pressure cuff." She said.
Ava nodded and turned around, going to the wall with medical supplies and monitors, gathering the things Shuri requested one at a time, piling them into her thin arms. "And a syringe." Shuri added. Ava collected the items and put them onto a metal tray, bringing it back to the bedside and setting the tray beside Bucky on the bed.
"Here you go." She said.
Shuri arched her brow at Ava and shook her head. "No, no." She said. "I'm just writing things down. You do all that." Shuri smiled at Ava as she pulled a notepad out of her pocket, wiggling it in the air before opening it up to a clean page.
Ava rolled her eyes and looked at Bucky as she let out a breath. "Alright, then I suppose we should take your temperature first." She said and picked up the oral thermometer.
"That's a lot different from my day." He said, examining it. "That doesn't go in-" he paused and cringed. "Does it?"
Ava chuckled and shook her head. "Open your mouth, hold this under your tongue until it beeps."
A look of relief washed over Bucky's face as he opened his mouth, doing as she asked him to. The side of Ava's mouth upturned into a smirk as she wrapped the blood pressure cuff around his arm, securing it by the velcro. The thermometer beeped and Ava plucked it from his lips, her brows pulling together. "37.7." She frowned. "You're really warm."
"It's the serum." Shuri said, her nose in the journal, busy scribbling down the numbers. Ava stared at her with question, and Bucky simply nodded. Shuri glanced at Ava, rolling her eyes. "The super soldier serum given to him enhanced his strength and resilience. It also boosts his metabolism, so he retains his muscle, looses fat, and uses high amounts of energy. Also, he can't get drunk. Burning through energy so quickly keeps his body at a higher temperature." She explained.
"Explains why Hydra forced food into my system." Bucky muttered. "After a memory wipe, I would get my mission, and a tube down my throat."
"They didn't even give you a chance to eat on your own?" Ava frowned, her eyes meeting his own.
He swallowed slowly and shook his head, taking a deep breath. "No, they didn't."
"Jesus..." Ava muttered under her breath, blinking a few times. "When was the last time you ate something?" She asked him.
Bucky frowned in thought, chewing on the inside of his cheek. "The day of the bombing at the UN, I went out to buy plums. But I didn't get to eat them." He answered.
Ava bit her lip, trying not to pity him. He didn't need to be pitied, he needed to be cared for. But hearing all of this, it was hard for Ava not to do both. She picked up the stethoscope from the tray and put it on, the two earbuds sticking into her ears. She gently pressed the drum on the end of it against Bucky's broad chest above his heart as she pumped the blood pressure cuff up to size, listening to his heart beat slowly and counting the readings on the dial of the cuff.
"Perfect 120 over 80." Ava said, leaving the stethoscope lingering on his chest, listening closely to the deep drum of his heart. Thump, thump, thump. It was a steady, rumbling beat. Taking a deep breath, she drew her hand away, feeling her cheeks heat up when she noticed Bucky watching her. "Blood." She blurt out nervously.
His brows raised at her curiously and she shook her head. "Sorry. I- I need to get a blood sample." Ava corrected herself, reaching for the syringe. Suddenly, a large, warm hand wrapped around her wrist, holding her arm tightly, but not enough to hurt her. She gasped as her fingers grazed the side of the syringe, looking at Bucky with wide eyes.
His eyes were trained on the syringe, his adams-apple slowly bobbed as he swallowed. "Sorry." He whispered shakily, his fingers carefully opening, releasing her wrist. "I, uh, don't really like needles. Hydra-"
"It's okay." Ava cut him off, looking down at the needle. "You don't have to look. It will be quick, you'll hardly feel it." She assured.
Bucky looked up at her, his blue eyes meeting hers. Searching her blue eyes for any lie, he nodded slowly when he found none. "Do it quick." He said softly.
Ava nodded reassuringly and turned her back to him, going to the shelf of medical supplies and finding thin rubber tubing and a bandaid. She returned momentarily and held out her hand. "Right hand, please." She requested from him.
Bucky let out a quiet scoff and placed his hand in hers, palm up. "My only hand."
She smirked slightly and ran her hand up the smooth skin of his arm, to just above his elbow. Using the tubing, she tied it tightly around his arm to help the blood vessels stand out more. She held his forearm gently in her left hand, using two fingers on her right hand to tap the inside of his elbow, finding a good vein to draw blood from. "Don't look." She said softly, picking the syringe up.
Bucky drew in a shaky breath and closed his eyes as she poked the needle into his inner arm, into the large vein beneath his skin, drawing out just a few millimeters of blood. She retracted the needle only a few seconds later and grabbed the bandaid, sticking it down over the tiny hole in his skin. "All done." She smiled.
"That was it?" He asked, opening his eyes. "I didn't feel it."
"She's got the magic touch." Shuri teased, taking the syringe from Ava. "I'm going to go run some tests on this. Ava, you can handle him from here." She said, winking at Ava playfully before walking out the door with his blood sample and her notes.
Ava's blush deepened and she shook her head, untying the rubber tube from his arm to get blood flowing back into it properly. "I made sure to give you the best bandaid we have." She said.
Bucky glanced down at his arm, his lips pulling into a half-smile, amused by her choice of a sparkling, pink bandaid. "I can tell." He chuckled quietly.
"Are you hungry?" Ava asked him, shoving her hands into her pockets.
"Very." He said, nodding his head.
Her lips pulled into a smile and she motioned to the door. "Follow me." She said, walking toward it. Bucky got up from the bed, following behind her.
Ava opened the door and froze, her eyes widening, Bucky nearly running into her when she suddenly stopped. "What are you doing here?" She asked through gritted teeth. Bucky saw her grow tense, and saw the way she shivered when she looked at the man in the doorway.
He was a tall man, with very dark skin. His eyes were almost black, and his head was shaved bald. It was easy to tell that he was extremely muscular beneath his Wakandan robes, and not someone who was easy to deal with. After a moment, Bucky recognized this man as the one Ava was speaking to earlier, the one who said he was dangerous.
"I asked where you were, someone said you were in the lab. But I didn't see you in here, so I assumed you were in the back chamber of the lab." He said simply, staring down at Ava after glancing darkly at Bucky behind her.
"Go away." Ava said quietly, her tone mousy and nervous. "You aren't supposed to even be in the lab."
The man smirked and leaned his shoulder on the doorframe, crossing his arms over his chest. "That's not what you used to say."
"That was before." Ava said, refusing to meet his gaze.
Bucky frowned at this interaction, watching Ava shrink into herself with the presence of this man. "Excuse me." Bucky said clearly, drawing the man's attention. "She was just about to show me to the kitchen."
The man narrowed his eyes at Bucky, standing up straight, trying to intimidate the soldier. "Bomani, please just go." Ava muttered, shaking her head.
Bucky held Bomani's gaze, showing just as much intimidation in his glare as Bomani did. "Fine." Bomani said, breaking his eyes away from Bucky to look down at Ava. "Only for you." He said in a softer tone, reaching up and tucking a strand of hair behind Ava's ear.
Ava turned her head away from him before he smirked and turned on his heel, walking out of the lab. Ava stood in the doorway still, silent. "Are you okay?" Bucky asked her quietly.
Ava glanced back at Bucky, trying to hide the mix of emotions ranging in her eyes. Anger, fear, embarrassment. All of them at once. "Yeah, sorry. Come on." She said in her more usual tone this time.
She took a step forward, marching swiftly across the lab with Bucky trailing right behind her. He wanted to know more about that man, Bomani, and why he made Ava shutter like she did. But he didnt bring it up. Not yet, at least. So instead, he followed Ava through the halls of the palace to the large dining room.
There was a single, long, glass table in the center with black, leather seated chairs evenly spaced around it. A small bowl of fruit sat in the center, containing bananas, oranges, pears, and other odd-shaped fruit Bucky had never seen before.
"What is your favorite food?" Ava asked him, turning around to look at him when she came to a stop.
Bucky furrowed his brow, trying to remember what his favorite food was. "I... I don't know." He said, shaking his head. "It's been so long since-"
Ava offered a soft smile, shaking her head. "How about I bring you some left over curry from the other night, yeah?"
"Sure." Bucky shrugged, not exactly knowing what curry was.
"Take a seat, I'll be right back." She said with a nod.
Bucky pulled out a chair and sat down, watching as Ava left the room, only to return a few minutes later with a porcelain bowl of steaming, red liquid with chunks of meat and vegetables in it, as well as a small bowl of rice. She set it down in front of him, and sat down next to him.
"I've never had curry before." Bucky said, looking down at it curiously.
Ava grinned at him, picking up a spoon and handing it to him. "It's my favorite." She said. "You just spoon the curry over the rice and eat it like that."
Bucky looked at the silver spoon in his hand, and looked back at the curry. He used the spoon to scoop out some of the curry into the rice until the rice soaked up plenty of the liquid, and chunks of chicken and vegetables sat on top. "I suppose if it is your favorite, it should be pretty good." He said, scooping a bite onto his spoon.
"It is." Ava insisted, watching Bucky lean closer to the spoon of food, smelling it and inspecting it. He glanced at her as he brought the spoon to his lips, taking a bite. Slowly, he chewed, looking down at the bowl in front of him. He calculated the flavor, remembering what it was like to actually eat.
A smile crept onto his lips as he chewed, closing his eyes and savoring the sweetness of the curry, the sting of it's spices on his tongue. "Oh my God." He muttered happily, carefully swallowing.
Ava grinned at him again, watching as he hastily took another bite, quickly beginning to shovel food into his mouth. She couldn't blame him, though, he hadn't properly eaten in 70 years.
"Thank you for this, Ava." Bucky smiled before he took another bite, his eyes twinkling excitedly at her.
"You're welcome, Bucky." She grinned in return.