Bucky snorted softly.

"Not so fun when you're on the other side of it, is it punk?"

"Jerk," Steve said, though he relaxed and grinned. "You only had me to put up with before, and you were at least eighty pounds heavier than me."

Bucky snickered a bit and settled back on the couch.

"'Bout time you got to see it from the other side," he said.

Steve flicked an M&M at him with a grumble but settled down after that.

Gemma slept for several more hours before she stirred again. The feeling of not quite fitting into her own skin had diminished some, but it was still pretty strong. It wasn't enough to stop her from trying to get out of bed, though.

Steve hurried into her room as soon as Jarvis told him Gemma was awake.

"Feeling better?" he asked, moving to help her up. He wasn't going to tell her to stay in bed, not until he knew she actually had to.

"A little," Gemma replied. She took his hand carefully, as though she wasn't sure of her grip anymore. "How long was I asleep?"

"A little while. Not so bad this time, it's still the same day." Steve smiled a bit. "We've got food, if you're hungry."

Gemma considered that for a moment.

"Maybe a little bit?" she requested. "Not a lot, I... don't know if I can hold down anything heavy. But a little bit sounds good."

"A little is perfect," Steve agreed. "And we've got crackers and bread, too, if you want something really bland."

Gemma thought about that for a moment and then nodded.

"Maybe toast with a little cream cheese?" she asked tentatively.

"I can do that." Steve smiled. "You want to stay in here or come eat in the other room?" Because either way worked for him, really.

Gemma seemed to curl in on herself a little.

"In here?" she asked, a bit timid. She didn't want to face anyone else just yet.

"Sure. Just gimme a few minutes, I'll be back." Steve smiled at her before he slipped out to make the toast for her. He also got her another glass of water.

Gemma just nodded and sat down on the bed. The quiet was nice, and she appreciated that Steve was being so nice to her.

Steve felt better with a task at hand. He always did better when he had something to do or someone to fight. So he was more settled as he worked on her food and brought it back to her.

Gemma was still sitting on the bed when he came back, just examining her hands. Something about them was different, even though they looked the same as always. But she knew something was different.

"You alright?" Steve asked, looking at her. He crouched down in front of her, trying to catch her eye.

"I don't know," Gemma admitted. "I don't look any different, do I?" She looked at him, expression a bit troubled.

"No," Steve said. "You look just the same." He reached over to brush a bit of her hair back behind her ear.

"Okay," Gemma said. She was quiet for a second. "I don't know why, but I don't feel the same. Like I don't match quite right anymore."

Steve nodded. "I talked to Doc Strange, right after I found you," he said. "He said something about a ritual and you absorbing magic?"

"Is that what happened?" Gemma murmured. That seemed right, from what she could remember. At least, what little she could remember. "There was a magic circle, and I think there was a ritual... But I don't remember anything after that."

Steve nodded. "That's what Strange thinks happened," he said with a shrug. "And he's an expert, so I'm just trusting that he's right."

"Must have been a lot of magic," Gemma murmured. She flexed her fingers a bit. Absorbing a lot of magic explained why she felt the way she did.