The Mimic - One-Shots

Birthdays

Overview: The team always made an effort, no matter whose birthday it was. It's something that a certain person misses.

Word count: 1,437

Warnings: Bittersweet pain, I apologise in advance

*****

A birthday.

A singular day where you celebrate yet another year around the sun.

The birthday person could decide what they wanted to do with their day, whether it be a giant celebration or nothing at all. They had free will, and nobody on the team could argue it. They were a messed up bunch, it wasn't fair to force them to celebrate a day that most of them wanted to forget.

Tony, unsurprisingly, loved to throw grand parties for his birthday. It was one of the only days where Pepper would allow him to open up the 'party room' in the compound, of course he was going to exploit it. Drinks, music, and terrible renditions of karaoke songs. Chaos, but the team wouldn't have it any other way.

Natasha's birthday was something she typically kept under wraps. She still liked to enjoy it with a movie and pizza, but she didn't go 'all-out' like Tony did. It was always an odd day for her - like many of the team. Maybe it was because she wasn't even sure that it was her actual birthday, or it was just those typical birthday blues. Another year getting older. Another year with red dripping from her ledger.

Scott's birthday was always one to remember. He always had Cassie with him, so the excitement he already had was multiplied by a thousand. Always desperate to impress his little girl. Even if it meant shrinking the entire team and allowing Cassie to host a dollhouse birthday party for them all. God, that was a stupidly fun day.

Wanda was similar to Natasha in keeping things quiet. She adored the traditional birthday things - like opening presents, having the compound decorated, et cetera - but what she adored the most were the wind-downs in the evenings. All sat on the couch, enjoying sitcoms of her choice. Just like her family used to.

Sam usually isn't seen until the day is almost over. He has a big family barbecue at his sister's place. All the neighbours, all the locals, everyone. He invites the team, obviously, but they usually don't stay for long. Y/n, Bucky, Steve, and Nat stay, but that's about it. So, Sam always makes sure to take all the leftovers back to the compound for everyone to enjoy.

Bucky and Steve both go to similar levels of quiet when it's their birthdays. Bucky prefers to spend the bulk - if not all - of the day with y/n. They typically take the quinjet to somewhere like Wakanda and just enjoy the peace and quiet. A day of reminiscing and appreciating. Hell, Nat had even caught Steve in the midst of a 'small cry'. It was bittersweet, but days like these were always going to feel weird.

Everyone can pick if they want to celebrate the day or not. They can even ask for no presents or cards if they really just want to ignore the day, but there is always a singular tradition. No matter the birthday person's requests, no matter if they have to push it to another day because of a mission. Just one tradition.

Singing happy birthday and blowing out the candles.

Natasha was the one to create the tradition after she found Steve having his 'small cry' for the second year in a row. She wanted to be able to create even the slightest atmosphere of family, especially for a day as rough as a birthday.