Chapter 18: The Other Cat
Tony used to resent his father's work. As a kid, he wanted a fireman for a father, or a police officer, or even a stereotypical cubicle office worker, just anybody who would actually have the time to spend with his son. In hindsight, Howard's career probably wouldn't have affected his parenting strategies all that much, and now Tony could reap the full benefits of his father's worldwide reputation; namely, getting him in contact with Princess Shuri of Wakanda.
Natasha had helped him come to terms with his unwarranted guilt over Steve's death, but now that the most intense phases of his VAD project were over—in fact, all he had left to do was go to his monthly check-ups so they could get data on how the device affected his physiology and deal with the paperwork to get it patented—he needed something new. And he could think of nothing more worthwhile than kickstarting research into new ways to help people like Steve. Shuri had helped him occasionally with the VAD project after Howard helped him figure out how to contact her, but that was mostly offering advice over the phone at ungodly hours (New York time). This time, she'd be taking point.
When he called her this time, he could practically hear her smile over the phone. "Stark, I've been waiting for an excuse to get you out here since we started working together," she said.
"Wait, you want me to come to Wakanda?"
"Of course! How else would I show you what we have to work with?"
The next thing Tony knew, he was being formally escorted to Wakanda by one of their crazy space-ship things. He FaceTimed Parker during the flight to show him all the cool tech. "Carol May, Lanyon, this is why your Uncle Tony is the coolest," he told the babies. "Most people aren't even allowed to know Wakanda exists, much less visit."
"That's not true; they're taking full credit for all their medical tech. The only people who don't know they exist are the ones who don't know Switzerland exists. Which is surprisingly many Americans," he added.
"Don't worry, I've already got these two looking at maps and globes," Parker said. "Lanyon even put his finger on Brazil when I asked, but I think it was a coincidence. The results have yet to be replicated."
"He'll get there soon enough. I'm sure Bruce reads him the latest from Science and Nature journals as bedtime stories." Tony glanced out the window at the African countryside passing below. This flight took less than half the time that the average commercial airplane would have. "I think we're gonna be landing soon," he said.
"Already?"
"Yep. This Wakandan tech is nuts. Hopefully they'll be just as fast with new research."
"Yeah, for sure. Tony?"
"Yeah?"
"Thank you for doing this. It means a lot, to me, and all of us. And I'm sure Steve is grateful too."
Tony bit his lip to keep from crying. "Yeah, I hope so. Thanks, Parker. Bye!"
"Bye! Say bye, Carol May!"
She looked at the camera and grinned. Tony thought that was the cutest goodbye he'd ever get. Sure enough, they breached the invisible barrier and landed in the city within five minutes. Shuri was there to greet him as soon as he stepped onto solid ground.
"Stark! It's so good to see you."
"You too. Thank you for having me."
"How is the device?"
Tony rapped his knuckles on his sternum. "As good as ever. Working on patenting the tech and getting it approved for non-trial usage."
"Excellent. You know, you might get a Nobel for this."
"I don't think so. With all the amazing work going on in the medical field right now? This might as well be a rebranding of Tylenol for all the attention it's going to get."
"Bullshit. I am always following the latest in international science news and your device has caused more of a stir than anything I've seen in a long time. The organ shortage is one of the most difficult to address crises in all of medicine. We can't exactly go around killing people to harvest their healthy organs," she remarked.
"That's…true."
She took his hand and practically dragged him after her. They walked through the compound towards her lab, going far too fast for Tony's liking. He wanted to stop and look at the gorgeous Wakandan architecture and play with every little piece of tech that they passed, but Shuri wasn't having it. She was too excited to show him the heart of her operation. Finally, they entered an elevator and stepped out into a lab that put Tony's billion-dollar operation to shame. He froze, overwhelmed by the sheer amount of cool surrounding him.
When he finally broke free of his tech-induced trance, it was to find Shuri staring at him with a grin on her face. "I thought I broke you for a second there."
"Yeah?"
"You wouldn't be the first white boy I broke just by showing him this place."
"Who else has been here?"
"Hawking, Fauci, pretty much everyone from MSK and Gravesen."
"Impressive."
"Would you like a tour?"
Tony restrained himself from exclaiming, "Fuck yes," and settled for, "Yes please."
Shuri bounded around the place with the eagerness of a Labradoodle. Tony followed hot on her heels with even more excitement, if possible. She was working on things Tony could only dream of, from new methods of limb salvage to nanobot imaging. He could spend two weeks here and not learn everything he wanted to know about all they had going on here. Hopefully, they had the resources and brainpower to divert to what he was about to propose.
"I need your help," he announced when they concluded the tour.
"Sure."
"You remember Steve, right?"
A wistful smile broke out on her face. "Of course. I'm so sorry to hear that he passed."
"Thank you. Anyway, his number one goal was always to help others. I've done my part in helping those with heart failure, but now I want to help people like him, with CF. The only thing is, I know I can't do this one by myself. This one was more machinery," he tapped the watch connected to his VAD, "But working towards a cure is much more biology-oriented than I'm currently equipped to work on."
"You want me to work on a cure for CF?" she asked.
"Yeah."
"Absolutely."
"Really?"
"For sure. Technically, with gene editing tech that already exists, it's possible to completely eliminate CF mutations, but people are hesitant to accept that kind of intervention. So, the next best thing is genetic modulators. There's already one that works for some of the most common mutations, but there's such a wide variety in mutations that it's nearly impossible for one drug to fix them all."
"How long would it take you to develop a new genetic modulator?"
"Here?" She pulled up a holo display that looked vaguely like a calendar. "Maybe two years."
"Are you serious?"
She crossed her arms. "Sorry, I'm not a miracle worker."
Tony shook his head. "No, I meant the opposite. Only two years? That's so fast."
"Oh." She shrugged. "There's a lot of existing research out there. I just have to build off of that."
"You're amazing. Seriously, I don't know how to thank you for even being willing to try."
"Don't mention it. You don't have to convince me to do research to help other people. I can't wait to inform my brother of this new project."
"If you ever need anyone to bounce ideas off of. Bruce is more of the biochem guy, but he's admittedly a bit busier than I am. I'll take your calls at any hour of the day."
"I might take you up on that."
"Please do. I'd love to hear all about your progress."
"I'll keep you updated."
~0~
Natasha fell in love with Alpine. Every time she visited Bucky, she had to remind herself to actually pay attention to him and not just the adorable little cotton ball of a cat that rubbed against her leg and purred when she petted him. Carol May and Lanyon didn't give her baby fever like she'd feared—well, not a case that she couldn't manage—but Alpine gave her the cat equivalent. She dreamed of coming home from a long shift and looking forward to more than just getting off her feet for longer than fifteen minutes. A cat would provide companionship, would halt the loneliness that tended to descend when she didn't see any Avengers for weeks at a time.
When she went too long without visiting them, her thoughts drifted to Clint. She thought of him often, especially at work when so many of the oncology kids reminded her of him. But those were usually fond thoughts. These were sad thoughts. About how much she wished she could call him. Or FaceTime so they could converse in ASL instead. Clint always got excited when she wanted to practice the language with him.
Nat often talked to Kate, but more times than not she only made her miss Clint more. They never would have met if not for Clint, and Natasha would always be grateful for that, but sometimes she didn't like being reminded of the people cancer spared. "Why us, and not him?" she'd find herself asking.
The company of a cat would carry none of that baggage.
She decided to go about it the same way Bucky did, by browsing the local shelter. However, she did lots of research on cat ownership and bought some supplies first in the hopes that she brought one home the same day she visited, as Bucky had. Natasha asked them to show her only the cats that needed a home most. The woman smiled warmly and took her to a back room.
"This little guy's been here for nearly a year," she explained. "Black cats are hardest to adopt out, and he has the added disadvantage of being deaf."
Natasha peered into the crate at the beautiful black cat staring back at her, its eyes so deep blue they were almost purple. "He's gorgeous." The beauty and grace of this cat rendered her speechless beyond that.
"Do you want to hold him?"
She nodded. The woman opened the crate door. Natasha crouched by its entrance and waited for the cat to come to her. She considered whispering encouragement, but then she remembered the cat couldn't hear. So, she signed it instead. The cat's transfixing eyes followed her gestures in amazement. It was unlikely he understood anything she meant, but that didn't matter. After a few moments, he took a hesitant step forward.
Natasha reached out a hand and let the cat rub up against it. He tucked his head right under her palm, practically begging to be scratched behind the ears. She was more than happy to comply. A soft purring vibration emanated from his lithe body. Natasha smiled. "I want to take him home," she announced. The woman was beyond excited.
"He's been waiting so long for a loving home. I'm thrilled for both of you."
There was a lot of paperwork and several conversations and referrals to vets and such. The boredom and tediousness was well worth it, knowing she got to bring this beautiful cat home with her. He didn't have a name; just an initial: H. Natasha grinned when she heard that. The perfect name came to her immediately. Hawkeye. She spelled it out for him, and he batted at her thumb with a paw when she reached the letter Y.
The first place she took him was to the cemetery where Clint was buried. She didn't let him out of the carrier, but she explained why they were here and who this person was. Natasha knew the cat didn't care in the least, but it felt good. "Your name sort of connects you to him," she said. "He was deaf too. But even when he could hear me, sometimes he just didn't listen." She hadn't known him very long yet, but she sensed Hawkeye was the type of cat to do whatever he wanted regardless of training. "I miss him a lot, some days more than others. Having you around might help on those hard days."
Hawkeye meowed.
"Yeah, good boy." She snuck a treat through the door of the carrier. Hawkeye took it gently and licked her fingers a few times for good measure. His tongue was sandpaper rough yet calming all the same. Natasha couldn't wait to bring him home.
~0~
Bucky took a deep breath and sat down on the same barstool as last time. He and Mr. Nakajima had set up another lunch date, which Bucky reluctantly agreed to let him pay for. Expecting a man his age to be early, Bucky showed up on time instead of a little bit late like he usually did for get-togethers with friends his own age. Surprisingly, Mr. Nakajima wasn't there yet. He showed up about five minutes after Bucky sat down.
"Hello, Bucky."
"Hi Mr. Nakajima."
"Please, call me Yori."
"Okay." Bucky gulped, remembering what Dr. Raynor told him about getting it over with. He ran through three deep breaths to stave off an impending panic attack before saying, "Listen, there's something I ought to tell you."
Yori only stared at him and nodded to indicate he was listening.
"When you said your son had Ewing's sarcoma, that, uh…surprised me a bit. Because…I had it too, when I was fourteen. That's how this happened," he ducked his head towards his left side. "I just, thought you ought to know that."
The most cryptic expression Bucky had ever witnessed appeared on Yori's face. For a moment, he feared this was his worst anxieties coming true and Yori was about to unleash hellfire on him for surviving when his son did not, but the opposite happened. The man started laughing this adorable old-man chuckle. Bucky stared at him, utterly confused. How could any part of that confession be even remotely funny?
"I knew that," he said simply.
"You did?"
"I mentioned you in my support group, and someone informed me that Bucky Barnes is a world-famous soccer player with quite the comeback story. She sent me a few articles about you."
Bucky didn't know what to think. At least he knew Yori didn't hate him. But this was…definitely a surprise. "Okay," he managed to say. "I'm glad that's out of the way then."
Yori laid a hand on his good shoulder. "I am glad you survived."
Nobody had ever said that to him before. Of course it was implied from people like Steve, his parents, and his friends, but this near-stranger was here telling him that Bucky's continued existence made him happy. The emotion of it overwhelmed him. Bucky thought about all the incredible moments of life that came after cancer, the ones he would've missed had he lost that fight, and of all the moments still to come. Lately, he hadn't felt all that grateful for his victory over cancer, but Yori's comment changed that.
"You know what," Bucky whispered. "Me too."