A Very Merry Marvel Thanksgiving

[wasafreak]

Thanksgiving hadn't been something Teddy anticipated celebrating, and even now that he's here, it feels odd. Not just the fact that his jaw is wired shut and he's got a brace on his leg, but the fact that he was invited to Captain America's house and arrived to find the original Cap and Bucky and alternate universe Peggy Carter setting up a pretty impressive Thanksgiving buffet is just so surreal. Steve greets them at the door with a genuine smile and pats Billy on the shoulder and ushers them in to get drinks, and Teddy tells himself he's paranoid and Bucky isn't shooting him and Billy a sideways look warning them off of getting caught making out in any more closets, and then reminds himself that this is real life.

Kind of.

Instead of agonizing over what an appropriate tropical island equivalent of 'nice Holiday sweater' was, he let Billy dress him (also literally, see again: brace) and thinks they made the right call- the house is all warm wood craftsman, and the three heroes already there are dressed casually but nicely, and there are old photos and some pretty incredible drawings hanging up, which distract Teddy and Billy to the point of rudeness, except Steve seems all too glad to tell them stories and answer questions. Bucky chimes in to remind him of details and it's... it's maybe the coolest thing that has ever happened, other than discovering his connection to the Avengers.

It relaxes him, and Teddy types up short phrases and sentences on his iPad when he feels really compelled to contribute, keeps "Happy Thanksgiving" on his clipboard to copy and paste it when new people arrive. It doesn't take more than an hour for a pretty respectable number of people to show up, the chatter growing in volume, and even though it's been a pretty crappy couple of months, and a pretty rough couple of years, Teddy finds himself feeling pretty good.

Comments

[havenoplans]

"There is a time for solemnity," Thor agrees. He has spent much of these past few months lost in thought, his mortal body too weak to allow him time for much else, though he has flown in the face of the healers' suggestion for bed rest. He hunts even now.

"But time still to enjoy the company of those friends we have left."

[shieldsupernanny]

"Very true and a good way to look at things. Guess I'm just not the type." And he didn't mind that, he was happy with his life and his service. Little lonely sometimes, but everyone made their sacrifices.

"I don't normally get invited to these things."

[havenoplans]

"No?" says Thor with raised eyebrows, seeming almost offended by the information. "And why is that? You are worthy of such company, Son of Coul."

[shieldsupernanny]

"You're one of the few people who think so. My job doesn't always make me a popular man, you can probably ask Stark." He followed the rules, except for the ones he knew he could break from time to time, he was a company man, in just about every sense of the word. It made him, well, boring. At least to those that knew him from work.

His personal life was another matter, but he kept that low-key and as personal as possible so it wouldn't interfere with work.