Stranger Who Knows All My Secrets [A Marvel FanFic]

Chapter 49: Strange New World

Sam looked a lot like someone who had given up on life when Bucky passed through the lounge into the kitchen with Magdalena at seven the next morning. The tall chocolate-skinned boy just sat there on the couch completely miserable as the repetitive cartoons flashed across the screen without sound. Bucky offered him a glass of orange juice after pouring the curly-haired mumble monster some milk and Sam accepted, dragging himself onto the barstool while Magdalena pointed to his bandaged hand and said something that sounded like a genuine apology.

"It's okay, my sister's done worse." Sam admitted to her but she just stared at him confusedly.

"You have no idea what I'm saying." He sighed as he turned back to Bucky who was sorting through the takeout containers for something resembling breakfast.

"I have no idea what she's eating." Bucky shuddered as he sniffed a completely unidentifiable heap of...

Well, he had no idea how to describe it other than a lumpy heap and he was honestly amazed at how little of the specialty food was, left wondering how the little girl had managed to eat through a meal suited to a family of five, by herself. Bucky held the container to her to see if she was still interested in it and she leaned in and sniffed the food like he had before shaking her head.

"Nu vreau asta," Magdalena said with a frown.

"It must have gone bad." Bucky concluded as he set it aside.

"This looks like polenta," Sam noted as he opened up another container and took a whiff.

"Smells fine." He added, holding out the dish to Magdalena who just nodded with a big smile.

"I've got salami, I think, and sausages." Bucky informed him, sliding the flimsy tin across the counter toward her.

Magdalena just nodded again before saying something that went over both their heads and the three of them stared at each other for a few seconds before the little girl rolled her eyes in annoyance. Bucky was sure the language barrier was becoming more than a little frustrating for her and she pointed to the cornmeal dish while pressing her fist into the palm of her other hand before picking up her empty glass and pretending to pour the contents into the same container as the thick bread-like mass.

"You want us to make it into a drink?" Bucky guessed.

"You want us to put it in a blender?" Sam tried.

"You want us to make it soupy like grits?" Bucky offered.

"You want us to beat the food up?" Sam questioned and Bucky gave him the most incredulous look.

"I suck at charades!" Sam whined as he dropped his head in his hands.

"You want... You want me to... Put milk in it?" Bucky wondered when Magdalena huffed lapte which she had said earlier when he opened up the fridge so she could point at what she wanted.

"Lapte?" He repeated, and she nodded waving the cup at him.

"Okay, lapte." He said retrieving the milk and placing it in front of her and she nodded quickly, again repeating the smashing gesture.

"Oh, oh, I got it!" Sam declared, jumping off the barstool and rounding the counter to get a bowl from the cabinet.

Bucky watched as Sam scooped the cornmeal from the container into the bowl before breaking it up with the domed side of the spoon, pouring in a decent amount of milk on top of it, and reheating. It was lucky he knew how to work the microwave because Bucky sure as hell didn't and it still amazed him that the machine built into the cabinets was capable of making food pipping hot in a matter of seconds. Then again, this was the future and he was sure he'd see stranger and more fascinating things the longer he lived in it.