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outerspacesteve · 3 years

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headcanon #11: peter and bucky stress bake together

Bucky picked up baking as a coping mechanism and often when he has nightmares, he’ll wake up and go downstairs to the compound’s kitchen and just bake until his heart has stopped racing and his head is quiet.

Peter’s a night owl who’s just always up at odd hours, whether that’s completing the homework he left until last minute, watching a film, playing video games, or completing his mission to explore every single room in the compound.

On one of his late night walks around the compound, Peter smells cupcakes baking, which is weird because it’s 3AM and which of the Avengers bake during the day, let alone in the middle of the night? He goes to check it out, and lo and behold it’s Bucky Barnes barefoot, in sweatpants and a grey long sleeve t-shirt, just silently baking. There’s a tray of cupcakes in the oven, another cooling on the counter, and he’s currently spooning more batter into empty cupcake cases.

Peter justs stands in the doorway, watching. He doesn’t want to disturb him because he looks so at peace, but it’s fascinating watching the notorious Winter Soldier going through the motions of baking with such practised ease.

Bucky has his back to him, but he know’s Peter’s there, because of course he does - he has super soldier serum, and he can see him in the reflection of the over door. He doesn’t say anything or acknowledge him, though. If the kid’s not going to say anything, then neither will he. And, to be honest, he hasn’t quite acclimated to talking to any of the other Avengers yet, except for Steve and occasionally Sam and Nat, if he’s feeling up to it.

This happens a few times - Bucky will be baking in the middle of the night, and Peter will just watch from the doorway. Every night where Peter finds himself awake at ungodly hours, he checks to see if Bucky’s baking in the kitchen again. Sometimes he is, sometimes he isn’t. If he is, Peter will watch, otherwise he’ll just go back to whatever he was originally.

After a few weeks of Peter watching him, Bucky starts to leave a little plate of whatever he has baked in the fridge, wrapped in clingfilm and labelled ‘Peter,’ because he wants the kid to have some, but the rest of the team normally eat all of what he’s made before Peter even gets up. It absolutely thrills Peter that Bucky is thinking of him and that he gets to try the baked goods.

(Peter’s favourite thing that Bucky has made has got to be the apple and cinnamon cupcakes - not because he liked the flavour, because who the hell puts fruit in a cupcake? No, Bucky had decorated the cupcake with two little lightsabers, knowing that Peter absolutely loved Star Wars.

Unbeknownst to Peter, Bucky had seen him find the cupcake and had seen him smile unabashedly to himself. So, after that, whenever Bucky made cupcakes or sugar cookies or anything he could decorate with icing, he always made sure to decorate one specially for Peter.)

After the Star Wars cupcake, Peter stopped standing in the doorway. Yes, okay, he sat on the barstool that was all of a metre from the door, but that’s not the point - at least he wasn’t stuck standing for however long Bucky baked for, anymore.

Sometimes, when Bucky would hear the sound of the barstool scraping against the tiles, signifying Peter’s arrival, he would glance at Peter and give him a small and quick smile, before going back to his baking. Other nights, when the nightmares were worse, he wouldn’t. But, regardless, Peter’s presence was nice, it was calming.

Weeks go by, and Peter gets caught up in studying for mid-terms, so he doesn’t get to watch Bucky bake as much as he’d like to. One night, when he’d been staring at the same page of his American History textbook for the past hour without taking anything in, he decided to take a walk to the kitchen, to see if Bucky’s there, figuring he deserves a break.

And he is. Except this time, in the space beside Bucky’s workstation, which is normally left empty and spotless, there’s a bag of flour, sugar, 3 eggs, some other ingredients that Peter can’t identify from this far away, measuring equipment, bowls, and a— a piece of paper? He walks over to see what it is, and it’s a piece of lined paper, torn out from a notebook, covered in what he presumes to be Bucky’s handwriting.

A recipe, his mind supplies.

It’s for him, he realises. Peter’s never been the best at baking - he’s too impatient - but right now, baking seems like the best thing he could do. So, he reads the first instruction on the recipe, following it as precisely as he can.

Peter and Bucky don’t talk that night, instead baking in silence. Peter’s cookies come out a bit crispy around the edges, but it’s fine, it was relaxing anyways, and that was what both of them needed.

Now every time Bucky finds himself in the kitchen, baking in the middle of the night, he leaves out ingredients and a recipe for Peter. Sometimes he’s there, sometimes he isn’t.

They still don’t talk much, save for the occasional, “Can you pass me the measuring spoons, please?” or “Can I have the butter, please?” or “Do you mind if I borrow some of your sugar?”

On the nights they bake together, Peter starts to leave post-it notes with film titles on them that he thinks Bucky will enjoy.

Slowly but surely, Peter’s baking improves. He doesn’t know it, but Steve taste-tests everything he bakes. Each night, after they’ve finished baking, after Peter has left and Bucky has cleaned up, Bucky always brings a plate of Peter’s latest creations back to Steve for him to try, all excited about “Look what the kid made this time!” and “He’s improved so much already, don’t you think?”

Over the months that they bake together, it eventually becomes Peter’s coping mechanism, too.

Some nights, even, when Bucky wakes up from a nightmare and trudges to the kitchen, the light will already be on, and Peter’s there in the middle of baking something. Bucky will usually find unopened ingredients already in the space where he normally works, and a whacky recipe waiting for him that Peter has found online and printed off, wanting him to try it out.

Some nights, they don’t even bake. They’ll just mix together a massive bowl full of the ingredients for cookies or a cake, and then just eat raw cookie dough or cake batter together, straight out of the mixing bowl.

Neither of them tell Steve or Tony about their secret guilty pleasure, because they both know that they would have their necks if they found out Peter and Bucky were consuming large amounts of raw egg on a semi-regular basis.

Those are their favourite nights, though.

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outerspacesteve · 3 years

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headcanon #10: steve and bucky’s notebook

[TFATWS EP. 3 SPOILERS]

So... Bucky is using Steve’s notebook, leave me alone to cry, please :’)

Imagine Steve giving him the notebook after Endgame, because there’s finally some peace and quiet, so he suggests to Bucky that he catch up on some of the things he missed since WW2.

And later, when Bucky is flicking through the pages, he stumbles across a note:

“Buck,

If you ever need grounding, if you ever need reminding of who you are, just come here. I know this is an awful thing to think, and that everything you went through was horrific, and I can’t even begin to imagine what it was like, but I’m glad we got to see each other again.

When I woke from the ice and ran into Times Square, I remember the first thing I thought. It wasn’t confusion, it wasn’t shock or anything like that, no, it was “Bucky would’ve loved this.” It was like something straight out of those sci-fi books you used to read. So, in that sense, I’m happy that you get to see it, that you now have the time, and the peace, to explore.

It’s bittersweet in a sense - they got rid of the old laundromat that was down the road from your ma’s, and the grocery, where you used to sneak some extra food from when Mrs Smith wasn’t looking, that’s gone, too. They replaced it with some modern hipster café thing, I don’t really know, I only went there once. I wouldn’t recommend it though, the coffee wasn’t great.

But he parks are still fairly similar. I never did find out whether our old apartment was still standing. I didn’t really want to know; felt like finding out they’d replaced it would be like cutting one of the last threads tying me to you, and our old life.

But I got you back. Can you believe that? You were sent to hell and back, countless times, and yet we still found out way back to each other. That’s some next-level destiny shit, Buck.

You were the one person who always knew me. The real me, not the Captain America bullshit. Just plain old Steve Rogers, the little scrawny kid who you had to constantly check back alleys for, any time you were somewhere without me. You never did care for the whole stars-and-stripes façade, and for that I’m thankful.

I could write pages and pages of things I’m grateful for, or memories that I treasure, but bottom line is, you were everything to me, Bucky, you are everything to me. I’m not sure what I would’ve done without you. You’re worth so much more than you give yourself credit for. You managed to save my sorry ass more times than I can count. And no matter how many times I told you that I could get by on my own, or that I had them on the ropes, you said you knew, but you stayed anyway.

Remember in ‘37, and winter had just begun, and I had come down with another bout of pneumonia? It was the first time I was bedridden for weeks on end since my ma died. I remember you doing everything you possibly could to help. Of course I was the most uncooperative son of a bitch on the planet.

I must have been a pain in the ass; coughing all night so you hardly slept a wink and would be dead on your feet the next day at work, being too stubborn to let you help me cool down or warm up, refusing any of the soup you would make me. But none of that ever made you leave my side.

I remember, whenever you weren’t fussing over me, or telling me, “Steve, I swear to god, drink this soup or I’m going to force-feed it to you,” you would be telling me about this new book you’d seen in the shop window on your way to the docks.

You said it was called The Hobbit. You said it was an adventure book, about a group of dwarves searching for some dragon-guarded treasure. You practically had the blurb memorised! You couldn’t afford to buy it, what with me out of a job, and you spending all your money on food and medicine, but you went to the bookshop every day, just to look at it. You said you tried to read a few pages each time you went, but that Mr Robinson soon caught on and threatened to ban you from the store the next time you left without buying anything. You even checked the library, but it was a new book and they didn’t have it there, either.

You didn’t let me get a new job that winter, said it was better not to risk getting ill again, and that we would be able to figure anything else out. Obviously, I put up a fight, but eventually, you managed to convince me. I did take up a few art commissions, though. And I managed to scrape together enough money to buy you the book for Christmas.

I remember the way your face lit up. Even though our apartment was freezing, and our Christmas tree was tiny, and dying, and all kinds of pathetic, none of that mattered. I was just glad to see you so happy after all the stress that I’d put you through over the last few months. You said you didn’t mind, and you gave me the tightest hug, and said that your present looked kind of meagre compared to the book. It wasn’t, but even if it was, I would have loved it anyway, because it was from you.

You devoured that book within days. I don’t think I ever saw it more than a few feet away from you. The pages yellowed, became worn and thin, the cover faded and creased, but you still carried it around as though it was your prize possession. I was secretly so happy that it was me who had put that smile on your face.

And then the following spring, when I was once again ill and bed-ridden, you would sit by my bedside, and read The Hobbit to me. Even through my fever-induced haze, I could tell how much you loved the book - it shone through into your voice, into the small smile you’d wear when we got to your favourite parts. I don’t remember much of the storyline, but I do remember you. I think I paid more attention to you than to the book itself.

They wrote sequels, you know? And there’s movies now, too. I never did get around to reading or watching them, though. I couldn’t bring myself to do it without you. Felt like that was something I should be doing with you. You should watch them, sometime. Sam says they’re good.

Anyway, I love you, Bucky. Never forget that. None of it was ever your fault, it wasn’t you. But you’re free now, free to do whatever you want, free to be whoever you want to be. And if you don’t believe that, then believe me, at least until you can believe it for yourself.

Thank you, Bucky. Truly. For everything.

Love, Steve”

And on every few pages, randomly spread throughout the notebook, there’s a little drawing or doodle that Steve has done. Sometimes they’re drawings of memories shared between him and Bucky, sometimes they’re things Steve thinks Bucky would like, and sometimes they’re just completely random things that he felt like drawing. There’s even a cartoon drawing of Sam doing something stupid, and Natasha just stood off to the side, rolling her eyes.

Bucky loves all of them. But the one he likes best is the drawing of him and Steve on the bench at Coney Island, sat shoulder to shoulder, mouths covered in ice cream, and massive grins on both of their faces.

On the bad days, when his head is too loud and he can’t seem to quiet it, he’ll open the notebook. Sometimes he reads the letter, sometimes he just looks at the pictures. Usually, though, Bucky will open the notebook to one of the lists Steve had written when he came out of the ice, and he’ll watch something that Steve had already crossed out, signifying that he had watched it.

He would imagine what Steve’s reaction to the film or show may be, and what Steve might have thought of it. And sometimes, it really does feel like Steve is right there watching with him.

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outerspacesteve · 3 years

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The Falcon and the Winter Soldier Wishlist:

In honour of tfatws coming out, here’s a list of things I want to see in the show, except they are all unrealistic, random, almost certainly won’t happen, and would serve no purpose to the plot:

[minor spoilers for tfatws ep. 1]

Sam looking for the shield, only to walk into the kitchen to see Bucky eating cereal out of it

Sam and Bucky play frisbee with the shield

“Let’s hear it for Captain America!” (but this time Bucky says it in reference to Sam)

Bucky detaching his arm when Sam is tugging on it and annoying him, so that Sam is just left standing there, holding Bucky’s metal arm, while Bucky just walks away

Bucky keeping his metal arm in the fridge until it is freezing to the touch, so that he can shock Sam by touching the back of his neck with his freezing fingers

“Don’t think I’ve forgotten about when you pulled me out of the sky in DC. Watch your back, Buck. Watch. Your. Back.”

Bucky taking the piss out of Sam for not being able to throw the shield perfectly on his first attempt (see here for a whole drabble I wrote for this headcanon😼)

Bucky not being able to figure out how to use a mobile phone, and either Sam refusing to help him, or Bucky refusing help from Sam (I was going to add that Sam films him struggling, and sends it to Nat so they can all laugh at him but then I remembered she’s dead IM SORRY)

Bucky smiling.

Sam saying “I’m not perfect but I never was that person. I’m Samuel Wilson, raised by Paul and Darlene Wilson to fight people like you for a better world. And like it or not, n*zi — I am Captain America.” like he says in the comics

Sam asking Bucky to pay for the damage he caused to his car on the bridge in The Winter Soldier, even though the insurance company paid for it, and he’s already gotten a new car since

Sam trying to make Bucky wear some of the most outrageously horrendous clothing by attempting to convince him that this is just what the fashion is nowadays

Honestly just Sam lying to Bucky about the 21st century. Like trying to make him believe that certain things exist in the 21st century, or that the 21st century has certain things you couldn’t even dream of in the 40s

Sam sending Bucky to the supermarket, asking him to buy a product that doesn’t actually exist

Sam signing Bucky up for bingo night at the local bingo hall with all the old people, except it backfires, because Bucky loves it, and begins to drag Sam along (Sam hates it)

Sam tries to convince Bucky that he did a bunch of increasingly crazy/strange/questionable stuff over the decades as the Winter Soldier, and Bucky just has to go with it because he doesn’t have any knowledge suggesting otherwise (+“Buck, I can’t believe it was you who killed JFK🙄. Do you remember that one?” “Oh, yeah, no I actually remember that one.” “Wait, what— you— WHAT?”)

The set of dog tags that Bucky wears has one of his tags on it, and the other belonged to Steve. They exchanged tags during the war, after Azzano so that they’d ‘never be too far from one another.’ Bucky lost his set while he was with HYDRA, but Steve went into the ice wearing his, so they came to the future with him. He wears them religiously, refusing to take them off - it’s all he has left of Steve (presuming he’s dead, which obviously he isn’t - he’s just on the moon), and all he has left of himself from before HYDRA

PUNS. Sam says awful puns all the time, and each time Bucky is just like 🙄🙄

I can’t decide if I want “Buck” to be a sacred/exclusively Steve-and-Bucky thing, where Sam repeatedly tries to let Bucky call him “Buck,” but each time he does it, perhaps after a mission where he feels like they’ve bonded or something, Bucky is always like “Nope.”/“Is your name Steven Grant Rogers?”/“Did you grow up in depression era Brooklyn?”/*murderous glare until Sam backtracks and corrects himself*/“Absolutely not. Try again,” or if I want Bucky to eventually let Sam refer to him as “Buck.” I don’t know

Sam making fun of Bucky for owning a flip phone

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outerspacesteve · 3 years

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headcanon #9: bucky retires

So I keep seeing the rumour that Bucky will die in a second season of TFATWS, and realistically, it’s plausible because of how long Seb has been in the MCU. Except, I’m refusing to believe it because I can’t handle that, so pair it with my refusal to believe that Steve is dead even after being included in Midtown High’s memorial video, and voila:

Sam and Bucky spend two seasons of The Falcon and The Winter Soldier, doing whatever they do, saving the world, whatever. Obviously I don’t know what will happen will happen in tfatws, but for the sake of the headcanon, I’m just going to say that they remain canon compliant for the most part.

But picture this, Sam and Bucky spend the two seasons together, being The Falcon and The Winter Soldier, saving the world, you know the drill. Partway through the second season something big happens, and Bucky begins to realise he can’t do this anymore. It’s taking more of a toll on his mental health than he cares to admit. He never wanted any of this - he never wanted to join the army, to leave little Stevie in Brooklyn, to fight in the war, to be captured and experimented on by HYDRA. He never wanted to be the Winter Soldier, but that was never his decision to make.

And after coming out of cryophase at the end of Black Panther, things began to look up: he had Steve visiting as often as he could, he lived in peace, and his goats needed him. Then comes Infinity War. He’s tired of war, but the entire world is at stake and Bucky believes he needs to recompense for all the chaos he ensued as the Winter Soldier.

At the end of Endgame, Steve still goes back in time. He doesn’t hate his friend - he, above anyone, deserves to be happy, to be able to rest. Sure, he’s upset, he’s worried that it’ll change things between them, but he’s happy for him.

Cap still gives Sam the shield. It’s the right choice, Bucky thinks, he didn’t want it anyway. But this gives him a sense of duty again: he’ll team up with Sam, he was one of Steve’s closest friends after all - it’s the least he could do. And he still believes he has something to make up for.

Cue The Falcon and The Winter Soldier.

And, as I said, something happens partway through the second season that really impacts Bucky mentally. He doesn’t do anything about it though, because they’re in the middle of a big mission; he can’t just suddenly back out. Sam notices something is up with Bucky, too, but they’re on a mission, they’re stressed, they’re busy, so he doesn’t bring it up, intending to ask him about it when things hopefully calm down.

After they’ve saved the world and their lives are fairly quiet, Bucky begins to unpack it all - his PTSD, his need to make up for past actions he had no control over, his mental health issues, etc. Sam recommends him a therapist and so Bucky goes to therapy.

It’s gruelling. It’s painful some days, but it’s necessary. And he’s healing - it’s slow, but he’s getting better nonetheless.

Until Nick Fury, or whoever is in charge at this point, calls Sam and Bucky with a mission, informing them that the Quinjet will be collecting them in 3 days.

Bucky’s in a state of uncertainty: he’s finally beginning to heal from everything he has gone through and he’s enjoyed these few peaceful months, and going back out on a mission could potentially undo everything he’s been working so hard on recently. But, at the same time, the mission. He can’t just quit, right?

He talks to Sam about it, who reassures him that he’ll survive without him, and urges him to be selfish for once, to make his own choice with himself in mind, to do what he wants.

So Bucky retires.

He calls Nick Fury, tells him that he can’t go on the mission and that he’s retiring.

Yeah, it turns out “Steve is getting weaker, some of his old ailments from before the serum are beginning to show signs of return - you know, because of the whole old-age thing - and I should probably take care of him. And technically, I’m also beyond retirement age.” Steve’s perfectly fine and health, but Fury doesn’t need to know the truth, because Bucky isn’t comfortable enough yet to be opening up to anyone other than Steve, Sam and his therapist.

But, just because Steve is old, doesn’t mean he’s weak and frail. So, instead of Steve lying in bed while Bucky takes care of him, as per what Nick thinks is happening, they literally go wild.

It’s Steve and Bucky watching all of the sit-coms they missed while being in the ice. It’s Steve and Bucky going all of town to claim as many senior discounts as possible. It’s Steve and Bucky gorging themselves on trying quintessential 21st century foods, like those classically American sweets that pretty much taste like chemicals. It’s Steve and Bucky pranking Sam as often as possible (“Sam, it’s Steve! He fell down the stairs and is in a wheelchair now.”), they even sent him a fake invitation to Steve’s funeral once. What can they say? Sam gives good sympathy gifts.

It’s good. Sure, things are different now, but still, overall, it’s good. Some days it feels like living with Steve again in their Brooklyn apartment in the early 40s, again. Some days it’s better. Some days it’s bad. But that’s alright - at least he’s getting better.

Steve takes Bucky to see the Grand Canyon.

Bucky manages to recover their dog tags from the museum. (They both wore one of each other’s during the war, so Bucky’s set of his and Steve’s dog tags were lost forever, but that was something he chose not to dwell on. At least they had the dog tags the Steve wore.)

Maybe Steve and Bucky find out that there was once a time where they both liked each other, romantically. Maybe it’s something they laugh about, or maybe it’s something they reminisce sadly about - a missed opportunity that now they may never know.

Bucky no longer has a strict purpose in life. He doesn’t feel like he needs to make up for everything he did before, he doesn’t have missions he needs to be on, and he no longer feels trapped by the clutches of war, or as though he has no control. He’s just existing. He’s alive. He finally has the chance to live his life, to actually live it, so that’s what he’s doing.

Most of the time, he’s happy. And that’s what matters.

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outerspacesteve · 3 years

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headcanon #8: bucky bullying sam bucky teaches sam how to throw the shield

If I don’t get Bucky teasing Sam for not being able to immediately throw the shield perfectly in TFATWS, then I don’t want it. Just imagine it:

Sam’s practicing throwing the shield in his garden - he’s not great at it, considering it’s not something he has ever done before. It doesn’t go in the direction he wants, it doesn’t go as far as he wants, it doesn’t go as high as he wants. Nevertheless, he keeps practicing, because he’s grateful for Steve choosing so hand him his legacy, and really, Sam just wants to honour Steve’s wishes.

And then Bucky comes out of the house, just in time to see another one of Sam’s failed attempts at hitting the target that he has pinned to one of the trees, with the shield. He doesn’t say anything, he just snickers, which is when Sam notices his presence. Sam turns around, rolling his eyes and giving him a disgruntled and disapproving look, before doing a walk of shame to collect the shield from where it had landed on the ground (because it hadn’t returned to him in the move he’d seen Cap execute countless times).

Bucky just stays standing on the bottom step of the porch, watching Sam practice, and failing miserably, not improving much each time he throws it. Sam tries to ignore Bucky’s barely concealed laughter, but it gets tired very quickly.

“You want something?”

“Nope,” Bucky replies, with a teasing lilt to his voice.

Sam sighs and goes back to trying to hits his target with the shield. After a particularly poor attempt, Bucky lets out a sharp bark of laughter and walks over to where Sam is standing, preparing to throw the shield again.

“No, dumbass, give it here. You have to throw it like this,” and then Bucky proceeds to execute a perfect throw, with the shield hitting the target, and bouncing back to where it started, on his arm. He has experience with the shield - what can he say? He’s used it a few times over the years, and he’s also been pining over Steve for just as long, so he’s picked up a few tricks from watching him all the time and he’s always had to keep an eye on Steve during fights, because god knows when Steve will next do something stupid, so he managed to learn a few tips and tricks from that. Bucky grins wickedly at Sam, who just glares back at him. He passes the shield back, stepping away, watching as Sam tries and misses again.

It begins to become a regular occurence; Bucky will stand a few metres away from Sam as he practices with the shield, for the sole purpose of sniggering at his particularly bad attempts.

It even transfers into battles when they’re fighting the bad guys.

Bucky will be in hand to hand combat with one of the villains, when he sees Sam about to try and throw the shield at one of the other villains: “Sam! You need to angle it up a bit more!”

Or he’ll glance over to see Sam fighting only with his fists or guns, and the shield lying on the floor a few metres away: “Damn it, Sam! Use the shield!”

Or maybe the villain is advancing on them, but Sam has already missed twice, so Bucky calls out, “Ugh, Sam, quick! Pass me the shield!”

It starts to really annoy Sam, and a few days later, when Bucky is once again laughing at his poor attempts at throwing the shield, he reaches the end of his tether.

“If you’re so good with the shield, then why don’t I just give it to you? Here, have it. You use it, instead.” He extends his arm in Bucky’s direction, trying to pass him the shield. Bucky’s teasing smile immediately drops.

“No, it’s your’s, he gave it to you. ‘Sides, I don’t want it, anyway.” He pushes the shield back towards Sam.

“No, you have it. There’s no point in me having it if I can’t even throw it in the right direction. It’s useless to me. At least you know what you’re doing with it. Take it.”

“C’mon, it’s not that difficult, you just need to know how to do it properly. Here, I’ll show you,” and he helps Sam to position and angle his arm correctly, how to distribute his weight, how to throw the shield so that it comes back.

It takes a while, but Sam is slowly learning. He’s finally improving, and the shield is beginning to become more and more of a help, rather than a hindrance during fights.

Along the way, Sam learns that Bucky never had any ill intent when he used to laugh at Sam’s lack of shield-throwing skills, and Bucky learns that his lack of skill was something that genuinely upset Sam, since he felt like he was disappointing Steve and dishonouring his legacy.

Bucky continues to teach Sam how to use the shield, and they eventually develop a rapport where Sam uses the shield primarily and the majority of the time, but if a situation arises in a fight where Bucky needs the shield, Sam is able to throw it at another object, ensuring that it will bounce off of it and return to Bucky. They learn to fight as a team, using the shield to both of their advantages, always watching each other’s six.

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outerspacesteve · 3 years

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headcanon #7: peter’s first day at school after the blip

Something I think about a lot is Peter and Ned’s reunion at the end of Endgame.

Knowing that Peter is a literal ball of anxiety, I’m willing to bet he spent a lot of the time between the end of the Battle of Earth and going back to school, worrying about whether or not Ned had blipped too.

He probably wouldn’t have had contact with Ned before seeing him for the first time in corridor at school, because I can’t imagine he had his phone on him whilst on Titan or in the battle. He would have intended to text him, but instead he overthought it, procrastinated it, and just never ended up texting him until he saw him at school.

Imagine, though, not knowing whether your best friend got blipped, too, or if he’s now five years older than you.

Ned probably has a new number, now, anyway. He’s probably in college already, not even in the state anymore. He’s probably moved on, forgotten about me, has new friends now. He probably doesn’t want his old friend whom he hasn’t had contact with in five years, tagging along, following him around like an annoying baby brother. He has better things to do - schoolwork, a job, holy shit, Ned’s old enough to drink!

Peter gets up on his first day back at school at, like, 5:30 in the morning, because he can’t sleep, he’s too restless and stressed out, what’s the point? He’s hardly slept, too worried about the truth that he would find out at school that day - had Ned or hadn’t Ned blipped? He doesn’t eat breakfast - he can barely stomach a banana without feeling sick, he’s had a coffee to make up for his lack of sleep, but Peter and coffee don’t mix well, and now his senses have heightened tenfold, blood pumping relentlessly through his veins, he can hear it pounding in his ears. He would be ready for school and waiting by the front door by 6:30am, chin resting in his hands, elbows resting on his knees, knee bouncing incessantly, staring vacantly at a spot on the wall.

He walks into school, standing in the entrance, looking everywhere for Ned’s familiar face. He doesn’t spot him immediately, trying to quell the dread that is continuously rising within him.

And when Peter finally sees Ned, the relief that crashes through him is almost overwhelming. His heart beats almost painfully with joy. Everything will be okay. It’s going to okay. He’s alright. They’re alright. He has Ned.

Except little does Peter know, Ned’s been worrying too. The last time he saw his best friend, he was climbing out of the window of a school bus because there was a spaceship in New York.

He’d known he was alive. There was some shakey, low-quality footage of the Battle of Earth spreading around the internet in which he could just about make out a red figure swinging above everyone else for a brief second. The remaining Avengers had put out a statement, revealing the casualties of the battle against Thanos and his army: Iron Man and Black Widow - no mention of Spider-Man.

That was a relief. Ned felt guilty for thinking about that though, especially knowing how his friend saw Tony as a father-figure.

But, he still didn’t know if Peter had blipped or not.

He’d tried calling Peter’s old number, just on the off chance, but it was no longer in service. He’d even tried calling May’s phone, courtesy of his mum, but it wasn’t in service anymore, either.

He had asked to visit New York City’s Wall of the Vanished, but it was too crowded with people looking for lost loved ones, too many names, “A futile attempt,” his mum had called it, so he wasn’t allowed to go.

So, he, too, was worried about what his first day back at school would reveal. Had Peter blipped, too? Or had he moved on without him?

Is Peter in college now? Employed at Stark Industries? Is he working full-time as an Avenger now?

Neither have seen their best friend in five years, but for them, it was probably around five days. But that’s not the point. They both spent the days between being brought back, and going back to school, riddled with anxiety about whether the other had continued their life without them.

So when they see each other across the hall, it’s almost as if the whole world slots back into place - they can see a little bit clearer, see a little bit brighter, think a little bit easier. Their worries calmed for the moment - they have each other back, and for now, that’s all that matters.

Because Peter didn’t think he could live a life without Ned coming round after school to build his new Lego set, while they pretended to study. Ned didn’t think he could live a life without having Peter round to play video games, eating pizza from the store down the street, staying up until they completed the game in one sitting.

But it’s okay. That’s not something they ever have to find out.

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outerspacesteve · 3 years

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headcanon #6: stevebucky vs the historians

Why do I feel like if Steve and Bucky both survived the war and lived out their lives as normal, that they would be that couple that gets buried together and everything? And then years later, historians would dig up their bodies, and find out stuff like how their Brooklyn apartment only had one bed, and basically a bunch of signs pointing to Steve and Bucky being a couple. But then all the historians would be like, “Oh, yes, Steve and Bucky were just really close friends” idk

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outerspacesteve · 3 years

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headcanon #5: star spangled man

Tony would play Star Spangled Man on repeat in the Avengers Tower to take the piss out of Steve. One day, Bucky hears Tony playing it, when he’s visiting the tower. He’s never actually heard it before - what with being in the war when it first came out, and then being in and out of cryo for years.

Bucky genuinely likes the song because it reminds him of the 40s and all that. He listens to it unironically, all the time, to the point of obsession. And what can he say? It’s a good song.

Of course, the fact that Bucky finds it funny how much Steve hates it has absolutely nothing to do with it.

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outerspacesteve · 3 years

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headcanon #4: black widow end-credit scene

After the events of Black Widow, Natasha seeks out Sam and Steve, because the film is set between Civil War and Infinity War, and she wasn’t with them at the end of Civil War, but was with them at the beginning of Infinity War.

Sam and Steve return to their hotel room after completing a short mission, both in fairly high spirits. You can hear them both talking and laughing about meaningless things before they even show up on the screen.

As soon as they unlock the door, Steve notices something’s off - someone is in their room. So, he signals to Sam, and they walk further into the room and around the corner, slowly and quietly, guns at the ready.

And who’s there, sitting in the ancient, stained armchair in the opposite corner of their hotel room?

“Don’t shoot,” Natasha smirks at them, breaking out into a grin. Steve and Sam both immediately sigh in relief, dropping their weapons and smiling brightly at her.

“Welcome back,” says Steve.

And then the screen cuts to black; the scene is over.

Black Widow will return.

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outerspacesteve · 3 years

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headcanon #3: get help!

Peter would willingly do get help with Loki.

He’d even go as far as to say it’s enjoyable and he doesn’t mind being thrown across the room by Loki, especially if he manages to prank Tony in the process.

Loki’s skeptical at first because he’s only a kid, but he sees that Peter enjoys it, and he says it doesn’t hurt, so Loki indulges him just to make him happy.

peter only started asking to do get help with loki in the first place, because he saw thor and loki always doing it, and noticed how loki never got the chance to throw his brother at their opponents, and he felt bad and wanted to give him the opportunity to be the one shout ‘get help!’

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outerspacesteve · 3 years

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headcanon #2: christmas at the avengers compound

Tony would definitely go all out when decorating the compound for Christmas. he hires a decorating team and the tree in the common room is the biggest, most expensive artificial Christmas tree, decorated to the nines with gaudy baubles, huge bows, and a strict colour scheme, all done by the decorating team. Quite frankly, it’s ugly and tacky and over-the-top - almost like the huge Christmas trees you see in Christmas films - but he did it because he thought that’s what everyone wanted, and because he knew they deserved the best Christmas he could give them.

When all the other Avengers see it, they all stare at it, unsure how to react, but they all go “wow” and go about their day. None of them really like it, but no one says anything because they don’t want to hurt him. But, after noticing too many people avoiding the common room, and too much tension, Tony confronts either Nat or Steve about it. They tell him that while everyone appreciates the effort, it’s not them - they all wanted to decorate the compound and the tree together as a family. They tell him not to worry about it though - everyone’s used to it now and maybe next year they can decorate together.

The next morning, everyone wakes up to see not a single Christmas decoration left in the compound - the Christmas tree, everything, gone without a trace. Tony walks into the common room, where everyone is staring around in confusion. He offers no explanation, just tells them that he’s “taking them somewhere, it’s a surprise, but dress warm. be ready in half an hour.”

An hour or so later, they end up at a Christmas tree farm. More confusion ensues. Tony explains that he had wanted to have cosy, familial Christmas with them, doing Christmassy things together, but he thought that the fancy, expensive Christmas was what people would have wanted, but that he realised he was wrong, and that they were going to spend the remaining days until Christmas with each other, doing all of the things everyone originally wanted to do.

Wanda knows how to pick out the perfect Christmas tree. She knows which one will last the longest, which one has the best needles, which one will fit in the common room, and most importantly, which one is right for them. Steve and Bucky chop the tree down and carry it to the area where they pay for it, and then they secure it to the roof of the car.

Back at the compound, Nat reveals that she knows the best sugar cookie recipe, and Sam makes an unmatched hot chocolate. Clint says he knows the secret to making a gingerbread house that doesn’t collapse every five seconds, but between Peter and Scott’s excitement, it does inevitably, anyway. The baking doesn’t end well - flour covers every surface, thanks to Sam and Bucky’s food fight. The cookies are mostly burnt because they forgot to set a timer, but the ones that were salvageable were delicious. It turns out that Doctor Strange is great at decorating cookies, but he doesn’t get very far, because Peter eats the icing straight out of the tub. The gingerbread lies collapsed in an unrecognisable pile on the counter, coated in all the icing and sweets that they could find. Either way, it’s perfect.

Scott knows the best Christmas movies and knows all the words when they do Christmas karaoke. Rhodey is surprisingly good at karaoke. Bruce knows how to make Christmas wreaths, which they all attempt, but give up on very quickly because it’s too complicated. Doctor Strange and Bruce, however, keep at it, and they end up with two brilliant Christmas wreaths for the compound.

Carol is the best any of them have ever seen at wrapping presents. Steve tries, bless him, but he’s not very good at it. He never had enough money before the war to buy presents, and even if he did, he’d just fold a sheet of newspaper around it, and no one taught him how to wrap presents properly after he came out of the ice and could afford gifts.

Thor and Vision don’t much understand what’s going on because they don’t celebrate Christmas in Asgard, but Thor does love the mulled wine and he’s heard that on Christmas day, there’ll be a huge roast turkey, so he’s looking forward to that.

The last thing they do is decorate the tree. Steve and Bucky insist on tinsel and multi-coloured lights, despite Nat’s claims that no one uses tinsel anymore, because they could never afford things like that growing up. “Don’t forget to decorate the back!” Wanda commands. The tree ends up covered in a mix-match of decorations, all of varying shapes, sizes and colours, some even of which were handmade. It’s crowded - some of the branches even droop at the weight of all the decorations. It’s messy but it’s perfect, and it’s them.

Tony stands back, watching his family all having fun with each other, all wearing joyous expressions on their faces. He watches Peter crouch down to Morgan’s height, sees him say something to her, but can’t hear it, sees him hand something to her, but he can’t see what. Then, Peter is turning around, and Morgan is climbing onto his back. Peter stands up and walks over to the wall by the Christmas tree, where he starts climbing up it, with Morgan clutching onto his shoulders and grinning brightly. Once he reaches the height of the tree, he stops. He keeps one hand on the wall, the other coming off to hold tightly onto Morgan’s back. Tony finally realises what’s in Morgan’s hand. She leans over Peter’s shoulder, towards the tree, biting her lip and furrowing her brow in concentration, and places the star on the top of the Christmas tree. Peter grins radiantly, telling her “well done,” as she beams and claps her hands together in front of his face.

Tony smiled. This was what Christmas was all about. And it was perfect.

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