Body and Soul: The Endgame Fix

Part 14: Palaver

Body & Soul: The Endgame Fix

Summary: Natasha and Bruce talk about his integration process, and they Skype with one of his physicians.

Note: It's still the afternoon of Monday, October 30, 2023.

Part 14: Palaver

Natasha and Bruce stood there on the driveway in front of the old mill building that he'd gutted and reworked into lab space a little over four and half years ago. Peter had just left after a productive afternoon of talking science with Bruce and looking at several legacy projects Tony had left in various stages of development that were stored in the next-door warehouse. Science Bros was still ongoing strong in spirit.

Natasha had just returned from her walk into Bridgewater with her hair dyed back to her natural bright auburn red and a new cut that Bruce was admiring. She held his injured hand and continued to wondered how the man in front of her had emerged from the two different personas she knew and loved.

"I'm not kidding, I like the new style. It's one I've not seen on you before," Bruce noted, and she turned around in a dance spin, still holding his hand, so he could get a complete view.

"Thank you! I enjoyed meeting people outside the usual bubble, too. I can see why you like it here."

"It's a slower pace, a smaller scale, but it grows on you if you'll let it," he said with one eyebrow cocked.

"Like moss?" Nat joked just to goad him.

"Like a lot of things once you get used to them." He really hoped that was true in his case as well as the town's.

She had to laugh. Here he was with that disarming sincerity she remembered. He was trying so hard and not attempting to hide how much he cared. Natasha looked up at his strong handsome face. She noted how his voice naturally hit lower and more resonant tones now, yet it was recognizably still his. "I need you to walk me through what I missed, Bruce. I want to get this. I want to be a part of it."

He'd taken off his glasses and he took a moment to use a cleaning cloth on them before placing them in his breast pocket. "Do you really want to open up that can of worms? I've already had to call Lee twice today." He was making light of it, but Natasha knew this was sensitive territory. She'd been half prepared for him to pivot into one of his rather prickly zingers as he sometimes did in the past, but he didn't seem to use that line of verbal defense so much now, despite her pushing him. She missed it a bit, but she couldn't let him playfully beg off either, not if she was going to reconcile some of her emotions over not being there for him.

"Humor me, Bruce. This was supposed to have been a process I helped you both through. I wanted to do that." She looked him steadily in his familiar brown eyes. "No judgments, Love. Share what you're comfortable with me knowing. I'll quit bugging you after that, but I really need to know what you went through and what you were thinking."

"It doesn't bother me to discuss it with you, Nat. Let's walk over by the river and sit down. Sirius will find us if he needs us." He led her around the building and down a gravel path that soon opened up with a beautiful view of a meadow on the opposite bank and the flowing water of the Hendrix River and the rocks below and between. The path paralleled the water and ran roughly south past the backside of the renovated buildings, but soon they came on another much smaller structure, which turned out to be an octagonal timber hut with a wooden shake roof and open sides.

"You did say you had a gazebo, right?" she asked, unsure what this was.

"We have a gazebo back in the garden. This is actually a palaver hut."