On the seventh day of Christmas, my true love gave to me ... seven swans-a-swimming ...

December 19th

That morning at breakfast at the Tower, Jane and Pepper had been surprised with gift cards for a day of pampering at a fancy spa - both at the same spa. The two had giggled, wondering if their Secret Santas had planned this. Neither noticed a nervous look exchanged between two of the others. Jane and Pepper then started trying to coordinate when their day at the spa should take place. Then Pepper suggested maybe after the spa day, some retail therapy may be nice. Jane then threw out the idea of dinner somewhere after that.

Tony looked up from his phone, eyes narrowed. He sighed. "Well, Thor, buddy, I think this spa 'present' that those two just got just turned into a night out for us, too."

Thor nodded, taking a large sip from his large mug of coffee. "Indeed."

Pepper turned her head towards Tony, a smirk playing on her lips. "Oh, you just assumed we were including you boys in the potential dinner plans?" Jane brought up a hand to cover a quiet giggle escaping from her mouth.

Tony quirked a brow. "I don't assume, Pep. I know." He winked, pushing his chair back from the table and standing up. He reached for a piece of toast and took a decent-sized bite. "You'll spend all day prettying yourselves up, then buying something to make yourselves even more beautiful," he began, not worrying about having food in his mouth while he was speaking, "and then not want us there? Please." He took another bite of the toast and walked over to the elevator, turning to look over his shoulder at Pepper. She shook her head, smiling softly. Jane's shoulders were shaking as she laughed silently, and Thor simply grinned.


Bucky was waiting out in front of Steve's apartment at exactly 10 a.m., just as he told Steve he would be, and as he'd promised Darcy. He pulled his coat in a little tighter as a gust of wind hit him. Sure, it may not have been Russian winter temperatures, but it was chilly and the clouds in the sky were threatening rain.

Steve walked out the door a few minutes later, smiling. He pulled his baseball cap tighter on his head and walked over to where Bucky was standing. Bucky greeted him by handing him a white envelope.

"Well hello to you, too," Steve said, pulling out the letter. "On the seventh day of Christmas, Steve's tru wuv gave to him … a day at the zoo to find seven swans-a-swimming, and maybe lions and tigers and Bucky, oh my!"

Bucky snorted and rolled his eyes at the last bit. "Really. Your Santa had to go there."

Steve clapped him on the back. "Looks like we're going to the Central Park Zoo pal!" He showed him the tickets attached to the letter.

"Don't think we ever got to do that as kids, did we?" Bucky stepped up to the curb, hailing a cab. One quickly pulled over and he and Steve got in. Soon they were zooming through the streets of New York.

"No, and I don't think it was 'cause of the money," Steve finally replied. Both were busy watching as the buildings rushed by them.

"Probably because any time you got within a block of something that woofed or meowed, you started sneezin' and wheezin' like it was going out of style," Bucky teased, smacking Steve's arm.

"If I remember right, you weren't too fond of cats, not after your run-in with Mrs. Rosetti's in the alleyway that one time." He smiled slyly.

They reached their destination, paid their fare, and started walking towards the main entrance. The park itself wasn't overly full of people, but that wasn't surprising given the weather.

"There's a difference between liking an animal and not being able to tolerate being around them on account of allergies," Bucky retorted with a grin. Reaching the entrance, Steve handed over the tickets and the two entered the zoo. Bucky looked at the map and figured out where the swans likely were. "You'd think swans would be at the bridge by the swan pond, right?"

Steve shrugged. "Sounds about right." They walked for a few moments in comfortable silence. Steve's mind wandered to the day before and Darcy. He thought about how she'd enjoy coming to the zoo, as she was always showing him videos of cute animals from the internet. One time, she'd even gotten him to watch this show on some channel called Animal Planet that was all about cute puppies and kittens. He loved watching the way her face would light up when she would watch these cute things, and how she always wanted to make sure that everyone else was enjoying them as much as she was. He'd teased her a bit about watching these things, but she said with all of the crazy and scary stuff she learned at work, watching the cute puppies helped balance things out.

He didn't realized they'd stopped walking until Bucky elbowed him. "Hey there Steve-o. Still with us?" Steve blushed.

"Sorry. Just was thinking about something."

Bucky leaned forward on what Steve now realized was a railing for a bridge, turning his head towards him. "Something, or someone?"

Steve leaned forward, joining him. He stared ahead and noticed the swans. "Here they are. A-swimming." He started counting in his head.

"You didn't answer the question, buddy." He paused. "I promise to keep the majority of my witty comments to myself because if the thoughts are about who I think they are, well, if she caught wind of some of them …" He didn't finish the sentence, but turned his head to see Steve smiling.

"She has tased a god you know," Steve said, raising an eyebrow slightly.

"That may have come up in conversation a time or two, but always good to be reminded of it." The corner of Bucky's mouth turned upwards in a smile. He chose his next words carefully. "She a good kisser?"

Steve's ears reddened and he clenched his jaw. He wanted to be completely offended, but remembered having similar conversations with Bucky years ago on Sunday mornings following date night. He unclenched his jaw and grinned. "Well, you know how I always was with the ladies before," he began, and Bucky nodded slowly, "but Darcy is an excellent teacher."

Both of Bucky's eyebrows shot to his hairline at this before he started laughing. "Good for you, Steve. Seriously." He patted Steve on the shoulder as he said this. "She's a lucky gal, and you're a lucky guy."

"To be honest Buck, I have no idea what I'm doing, and for the first time in my life, I'm okay with that." He chuckled.

"You? No plan? Inconceivable!" Bucky smirked.

"I know, I know. But seriously, I could see myself with her long-term." He smiled.

Bucky's face grew serious. "Have you told her this?"

Steve shook his head. "I don't want to scare her away. I'm still just happy with this new development in our friendship or relationship, the kissing. She's been the one constant in my life since I woke up."

"You've never been one to be overly cautious before. Running into things headfirst, doing what's right, that's sort of your M.O. pal." Bucky turned around so his back faced the swans, crossing his arms across his chest. Steve did the same.

"And you've always had my back," Steve replied.

Bucky nodded. "Always have and always will. Now with the added bonus of knowing who you're up against, so that may tip the odds in your favor even more."

A small smile spread across Steve's face. "Well, the swans seem all a-swum out. Should we check out some of the other animals I'm no longer allergic to?"


Author's Note: Another late one, I'm sorry. I've been rushing to finish up some last minute Christmas errands before the end of the week, which has pushed by my writing time to later at night. Hoping to get a head of the game in the next couple of days! Hope you enjoy this installment, and thanks everyone for reading, reviewing and just generally liking this story!