Landing back at base was all a bit of a blur as people rushed in and took Sam to The Cradle. Bruce was waiting at the unloading dock for them despite the hour and was happy to see the rest of the team walking even if some of them looked like they could use a little help and Wanda was actively being supported by Steve. Natasha came off the jet last smiling at him and making the vice around his heart loosen.
"Wanda threw up a barrier to protect herself from the blast, but it took a lot out of her, Sam is bad, but nothing Dr. Cho can't fix in an hour or so. Cap's fine and Rhodey's suit is messed up and he's got a bit of a stiff hip from landing on it hard, but he'll live. I'm not quite sure what's up with Vision, he's a little disoriented, I was hoping you might take a look at him." Natasha summarized, but Bruce was only half listening.
"Her left cheek bone was starting to bruise and her lower lip was a little split. There was dried blood in her hair and dripping down the right side of her face not to mention all of Sam's blood on her hands and suit. Bruce grazed his fingers over her cheek and lip lightly and picked through her hair gently until he found the cut already clotted, "Anything else?" He asked her.
Natasha just smiled softly back at him, "A couple of bruised ribs I bet; they bruise easy."
Bruce just nodded and kissed her forehead leading her into the building after her team. "Go take care of Sam, I'll take Vision to the lab. Once the team is fixed up I'll take a look at that cut in your hairline and clean it up a bit and take a look at those ribs just to make sure they're not broken." He said hugging her gently before letting her go to find Vision.
Vision followed him to his lab unsteadily and Bruce started with a modified version of a field sobriety test asking him to walk a straight line, step from one spot to another four feet away, only he added flight patterns to the mix as well. If Bruce didn't know any better he would say that Vision was in fact drunk.
Steve and Natasha came down the the labs after seeing that Wanda was happily asleep and Sam was almost fully recovered in The Cradle to fund Vision trying to fly straight with his head tilted to the right and making odd drifting loops. "So what's the diagnosis Doc?" Steve asked.
Bruce looked up from his notepad his expression half confused half amused, "Best I can tell he got his bell rung... literally. I think the Vibranium around his cells are literally hitting into each other and causing vibrations that are disturbing the electrical cognitive pathways in certain parts of his brain."
"So how do we... unring him?" Steve asked.
"Hasn't anyone ever told you that a bell can't be unrung Cap?" Natasha asked.
"So I am stuck in this state forever over one simple explosion?" Vision asked a note of incredulity in his tone.
"No it should go away on its own over time, although given the high density of his cells it's hard to tell how long. Brain tissue is much more dense then say muscle tissue so I'm not surprised the cognitive aspects are the only that remain." Bruce explained.
"That was no small explosion Vision, I'm not sure any of the rest of us could have survived it, myself included." Cap said with a small shudder.
"Can we speed it up?" Natasha asked.
"In theory if we were to slow the vibration it would lessen the time it would take to stop." Bruce said scratching his head.
"How do we do that?" Vision asked.
"With some extensive research we might be able to create a chamber that could create opposing oscillation patterns..."
"English Doc." Natasha reminded him.
"I might be able to build a machine that could do it instantly, but for now how about an ice bath?" Bruce suggested.
"I understand." Vision said, "By cooling the particles in my body it will lower metabolic rates and lower the energy of the particles thus slowing down their vibrations."
"Exactly." Bruce said with a smile.
"Hey Cap think you could figure out how to put this man on ice?" Natasha teased.
"Ya ya I got him." Steve said with a glare leading Vision out of the room.
Natasha sighed and leaned back against the desk and smiled at Bruce, "We did it." She said, "I was worried. They really weren't ready Cap was right, but they're not going to get ready unless they have something real to train for.
"I'm sorry Tasha, I know it would have gone better if I had been there." Bruce said taking her hand and tugging off one of her blood stained gloves so he could hold it between both of his.
"Bruce, never be sorry for things like that. You don't know what would have happened; for example if you had come the recruits wouldn't have, and between you me and Cap who do you think we would have sent to infiltrate the tower?" Natasha asked and Bruce's eyes grew wide, "Exactly; me. I would have figured it out faster than Vision but the whole floor was loaded with explosives that went off seconds after he touched down. I still would have been blown sky high. This is change, and it's different, but it's not bad. It will have it's ups and its downs, but it will level out in the end." She explained soothing him.
Bruce nodded and held her to him for a second before saying, "Come on Tasha, let's go get you cleaned up and led her up to her room. He pulled the first aid kit out from under her sink where he knew she kept it while she changed out of her suit into shorts and a tank top. Once she opened the door and joined him in the bathroom she sat on the edge of the tub and let him examine the wound on the top of her head.
Taking a handful of warm water Bruce carefully wet her hair on the right side massaging some of the blood out as he separated it to look at the cut. It was shallow and only about an inch and a half long, but it could use a good cleaning none the less so he washed it out and put an antiseptic on it. "Can I see the ribs?" He asked touching the side of her tank top. She lifted it and he saw that her side was in fact turning purple. Touching it gingerly he felt for the telltale give of broken ribs and was pleased when they held. "Not broken, you should be good." He said smiling at her.
"Well don't stop now Doc, it was just getting good." She flirted and he blushed.
"You need a shower, get cleaned up, I'll wait for you." He said standing to leave.
"Another time then." She purred.
"Another time." He promised with a small smile closing the door to the bathroom behind him and settling himself at her desk as the shower turned on.
It wasn't long before the door to the bathroom opened and Natasha wearing nothing but a towel wrapped around her followed a plume of steam out into the room where Bruce sat. Bruce held his breath as she grinned at him playfully before letting herself into the walk in closet and shutting the door behind her. Suddenly Bruce could breath again, but his reprieve was short lived as she came out in a black silk nighty that barley came mid thigh. She glided over to her bed and slid under the covers looking up at Bruce through hooded eyes.
Bruce took that as his cue and came to kneel by the edge of her bed. He brushed her hair off of her cheek and said, "Sleep well Tasha."
"Bruce Banner you are not my damn father get under the covers." She demanded.
"Yes Ma'am." He said attempting to bolt under the covers as fast as he could only to be stopped by the woman who had demanded him there.
"Undress."
"But..."
"Now."
"Ok" He said blushing scarlet as his button up hit the ground and tripping out of his jeans. He crawled under the covers stiff as a board only to be seized by warmth. Her skin was still warm from the shower and her hair was slightly damp as she settled herself under his arm, her head pillowed on his chest and her arm flung over him. Her body was pressed against his all the way down to her soft creamy leg which was tangling itself with his. "Tasha" He whispered a little nervous his heat-rate picking up.
"Easy big guy." She said tracing patterns in the thick hair on his chest. "Just relax, we're just going to sleep."
"Easy for you to say." he grumbled.
"Maybe if you pretended like you actually wanted to be close to me it would be easier." She teased.
"I do want to be near you that's the problem." He grumbled but relaxed into her hold wrapping an arm around her waist and settled in for a deep sleep none the less.