Sam wasn't supposed to have such a huge presence in this chapter, but let's just call this a fluff chapter. It does have a few important details. I just didn't want to cut the scene down because I thought this was too fun to write just to have to erase it. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

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The elevator doors shut before her and she waited until she arrived at the Shed, eager to return to her new home. For once, she used 'home' to describe her quarters. Maybe it was just a matter of sticking it to Tony. On the subject of his many silent apologies, he'd footed the bill to create a living quarters for the Avengers. Steve had been hoping more for a simple set up or something, maybe minor decoration just to reward their efforts. Instead, they had something like a luxury apartment, full of gadgets even Sam had to take a few hours to figure out. Sam and Rhodey definitely got a kick out of discovering all of the features in their new home.

Natasha had to struggle to get Steve to stop rolling his eyes every time he found something. That first night, they really all spent most of their time musing on their new home. It was certainly fun, compared to a sleepover by Steve who thought of the times he and Bucky bunked over at each other's houses. Of course, calling it a sleepover only got him laughed at. It was a night of laughs for them, and they grew a bit close. She saw how Wanda had to hide her excitement when Sam explained to her how to play one of the few video games Tony had left them. It was nice to see her amused, especially with how much of a struggle it was to get her to pay attention.

Things weren't going so well for Wanda lately. Losing Pietro had really changed something in her. Natasha couldn't imagine losing a twin, she could hardly even imagine losing family the way Wanda did. Still, things only seemed to get even more hopeless when they had the body taken from them. It was only hours after Clint had left Pietro's body, having followed him from the helicarrier to the attending doctors who were to pronounce him dead. Somewhere in the time he was away, Pietro's body had been taken. They were sure he hadn't walked away. There were signs of a struggle and a nurse was shot on-site, along with evidence of the enhanced man's body being dragged away.

There were no leads on who took the fallen one-day Avenger, but it wasn't a case that would be dropped very soon. Not on Clint's watch. Natasha promised to check up on that case whenever she could, and it was hard not to look at Wanda a little differently each time she did. The more she learned, the more she saw that Pietro and his sister had been very close. To lose someone and then be robbed of a last good bye, robbed of any closure-

The Avengers came to mind. Fury too. Maria. Thoughts of Coulson's passing. Natasha couldn't bear the thought of losing anyone else like that. She would need the peace of a final goodbye to keep from going rabid.

Not liking the dark turn of her thoughts as she arrived at the Shed, she exited the small space and leaned against the wall in the hall, trying to calm herself down. An "Avengers Mansion" sign labeling the floor was covered with a piece of paper written on in black marker.

"THE SHED"

Natasha smiled. She and Rhodey named it that when Tony showed them the apartment. He had clearly gone out of his way to make the place as lavish as he could, but he had yet to say the words 'I'm sorry' so she and his best friend went out of their way to ruin his fun. They called the place a shed, making comments as if it was small, unaccommodating and cheap. It certainly got a few pouts out of the grown man so she knew she certainly appreciated the gimmick. The name stuck, even with Steve (though in his case, it was more in an effort to avoid calling the home a mansion).

Taking a deep breath, she turned to the wall and typed in a few settings on the panel. One of her favorite features in the house had to be the stereo. She hadn't always been one for music, but ever since the battle in Seoul, she needed a way to de-stress. Her thoughts raced too much sometimes now, especially when she was alone. Looking into a classical selection that tended to keep her distracted, Natasha clicked "Variations on Dark Eyes" and put it to play in the kitchen. She didn't know if she was alone, so she tried to keep the volume fair. She went and started pulling food out of the fridge, instantly entertained by the song.

Just when she found herself wondering what she could do with the food she had pulled out, she heard the new blasting sound and a few words she had to make out through the music, trying to understand the sudden switch.

"Just because it's the middle of the night-" Pharrell Williams.

"SAM!" she called out to the jokester shedmate of hers, knowing he was behind this. He entered the kitchen snickering before trying to force down his smile as the song continued to blare.

"Hey, Natasha," he greeted her casually, a slight smirk on his face.

"I was listening to that," she complained.

"Oh, the really depressing violin sob story going on? You were listening to that?"

"Yes," she answered him, still amused.

"Oh, you're welcome then. I am enlightening your musical tastes." She chuckled. He nodded to the food on the counter behind her. "I thought you couldn't cook."

"Still can't. I was hoping if I just throw everything in a pan, I might make something," she admitted. In all honesty, she was ready to eat something uncooked. She was never really picky about food.

"Alright, enough of that." He said, leaving his side of the counter and joining her at her side. "Step aside, Black Widow." He pointed at her with a wooden spoon. "Tonight, the master becomes the student. I am going to teach you how to make-" He looked at the ingredients on the counter. There really was no combination of this food that would make something edible. "You aren't kidding, you can't cook." He pulled out a few eggs and decided he'd make do with teaching her how to make an omelette. While she tried to crack her first egg, he noticed that she was bobbing her head and laughed. "Are you dancing?"

Immediately, she straightened up. "I don't dance, I've never danced," she answered stiffly. He laughed but her thoughts started rushing. In her mind, she couldn't remember if that was a lie or true at all. There was a memory of ballet class, a room of mirrors, the memory sporadically interrupted by the sound of fists landing on flesh. The groans and grunts of hits caught, she gripped the table as she tried to separate the thoughts. She couldn't remember what was real or not and she closed her eyes and gripped the counter's edge when she felt herself losing her balance. Tossing her a long stare, Sam immediately reacted, raising his voice.

"Natasha?" Nothing, she stayed there trying to make her head stop spinning. "Natasha," he said louder, making her turn her head. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine."

"Well, you don't look it. Come on," he pulled out a seat for her and she resisted his help getting into it. He knew from Steve that she typically didn't like to accept help when she thought she was okay, so he knew to let it go. "Just sit tight. You can watch this time, and I'll let you try it next time. Okay?" She nodded, taking his offer. He obviously knew she wasn't even thinking about the cooking but he certainly wasn't pushing answers. "Cap told me the doctors told you to take it easy," he said after a minute. "You've got to get some rest. You've got a lot of injuries. I get that you guys are the Avengers but a spine injury is nothing to walk off."

Natasha tried to focus on his words and pull them to the forefront of her thoughts. He was referring to the one of many injuries she received in Seoul. It had been maybe a week now since it happened. He was right, she would have to rest it off. Maybe the injuries weren't exactly something she was worried about, but she could still feel the mental and physical exhaustion of having been in such a great battle. Resting was hard for her these days, though. Resting gave her so much time to think. There were too many things she couldn't keep thinking about.

"We're not all enhanced super soldiers," he continued. She resisted a face as he mentioned exactly what she was trying not to think of.

"Yeah," she answered with a forced chuckle, wanting to change the subject. "Where did you learn to cook?" Sam told her this sweet story about his mother, an amazing cook and baker who apparently made the best cookies on Earth.

"You know, when I told her I would be coming to training for the Avengers she wanted me to bring in cookies. She made them and packed them before they moved her. The decorations were all Avengers-themed. The box was even marked, as if I'd forget who they were for. She made me promise to bring them in." Natasha smiled and laughed with him.

"What did you do with them?"

"They are in the fridge. I've convinced everyone Rhodes bought them. I don't know how long until he gets back at me for that."

"Watch your back," she warned with a smile as the others arrived suddenly and together. They saw Rhodey, walking in front of Wanda and Vision who were following him and taking turns asking question. Rhodes didn't look pleased at all. Wanda was immediately silenced by the smell of food and she began to eat while Vision went to sit outside as he sometimes did to stare at the view. Rhodes started speaking with Natasha and Sam, which she was grateful for since it pulled attention away from her slip up earlier.

"Is it starting to feel like a dorm for you yet?" Rhodes asked Natasha. Sam agreed immediately, making some joke about a roommate he had or something. Romanoff, however, just stayed with a confused, questioning look on her face. They didn't understand what she was missing.

"Dorm?"

"A dorm? With roommates?" Rhodes tried before finally trying to explain in full. At some point, it finally clicked.

"Oh, so that's a college thing right?" she blurted out. Rhodes laughed and Sam just stared at her, baffled.

"Sometimes, I forget we've led very different lives," he told her.

"Careful, Sam, get any more serious and Rhodes might have to look for a new role on this team," she joked. "He already brought us homemade cookies." She sent Sam a wink while Rhodes immediately began defending himself, only to be interrupted when Steve entered.

"Do I smell omelettes?" he remarked, amused. "It's past dinner time. Why are you cooking breakfast?" Sam gave him a blank stare.

"You've never had breakfast for dinner?"

"Be nice, Wilson, we have to be easy on the old-timers," Natasha interjected just to ensured a disapproving glare for herself.

"Sit, Rogers," Sam ordered stiffly, immediately pulling out more food. The smile on his face made it clear that this was a dream of his. Schooling both of his trainers in one day. "And wait so that I may culturally educate you into the 21st century with one meal. Now, where is the pancake mix?" Natasha heard Wanda laugh and tried to resist turning to see her. It was nice to hear something good happening here. Wanting nothing more than for the happy moment to continue, she got out of her seat and helped Rhodey and Sam find their ingredients. It was Vision in the end, newly returned from his meditation outside, who finally found the elusive box, getting him a laugh from everyone and a pat on the back from the others and a smile from Steve to console his confusion.

I couldn't help the cartoon show reference there with Sam's mother. Hope you enjoyed this! Reviews are love and I really appreciate them. :)