Memories on the Farm - August 14
Title: Memories on the Farm
Author: LadyWinterlight (songs_of_winter)
Fandoms: Buffy the Vampire Slayer and The Avengers/MCU
Rating: PG-13
Word Count: 582
Notes: I'm having a rough day, so have some mildly angsty fluff. In the same 'verse as the rest of my challenge submissions so far.
I still do not own Buffy the Vampire Slayer, The Avengers or anything to do with the MCU.
Laura Barton was an amazing whirlwind of kindness and good cheer.
The old farmhouse felt more like a home ten minutes after Buffy’s arrival than London had after their first year of working to rebuild the Council into something worthwhile and useful.
“Another stray, Clint?” Laura asked quietly while Buffy introduced herself to the kids. Buffy didn’t respond, because a normal woman wouldn’t have been able to hear it anyway.
“Yes. We kinda got to talking over Nat’s grave and… she gets it, you know? Pain, loss, sacrifice. She has done it all, basically. It’s her story to tell, so I won’t get into it,” Clint replied lowly. Laura nodded acceptance. “But I thought she could use a quiet night in a place where she doesn’t have to be anything more than herself.”
“Well, Buffy, I hope you like chicken,” Laura said pleasantly. “Dinner will be ready in about half an hour.”
Time passed with Buffy telling Lila and Cooper about all the exotic places in the world she’d been to, with Clint adding commentary when their travel history crosses over. She doesn’t talk about the fights and the demons; she does tell them about the people, the cultures, the sights… and the shopping.
“Sorry, guys, I’m still a California girl at heart,” she said when Cooper groaned over her explanation of the things she found in an open-air market in Thailand.
Dinner was amazing; the kind of things her mom used to make, and that Buffy and Dawn had attempted to duplicate a few times before accepting their lack of skill in the culinary arts. The past decade, Buffy had mostly lived in Slayer sanctuaries; while they were all well-fed, it was more akin to cafeteria food than this farm-fresh spread.
“Thank you,” Buffy breathed in contentment after finishing the third helping foisted on her by Laura when the woman realized Buffy ate like a superhero - or a Slayer. “That was amazing.”
“You’re very welcome,” Laura replied with a smile.
“My organization makes sure we all eat well, but I haven’t had a homemade meal like this in… far too long,” Buffy commented idly. “My sister and I apparently failed to inherit mom’s skill in the kitchen.”
“I have a degree in nutrition and I own a farm,” Laura laughed. “I couldn’t let those benefits go to waste by not knowing what to do with the food I have available.”
“True enough,” Buffy agreed. She picked up her dishes and took them to the sink; the kids had cleared their own places and been excused a little while ago, but Clint and Laura had stayed with her.
“If you plan to visit on a regular basis, I could teach you,” Laura offered. “Assuming you have time, at least.”
“More at some times than others,” Buffy responded with a shrug. “I don’t know if I can make it a regular thing, but I think I’d like a few cooking lessons. At the very least, you can put me to work helping with dinner if I’m here. I’m pretty good with a knife.”
“You’re not the first person to tell me something like that,” Laura chuckled, though there was a wistful expression in her eyes.
“No, I suppose it comes with the territory of knowing fighter types,” Buffy responded softly.
“It’s good to remember the fun times,” Laura added. “It doesn’t matter who we’ve lost or haven’t lost; we need to keep those memories close. You know?”
“Yeah,” Buffy agreed. “Yeah, we do.”