Bucky had seen dogs in the past. He had actually worked along side them in missions. However, these dog were vicious. Trained to kill and maul, they were not the kind you would necessarily want to be around. Bucky knew the sting of their teeth all to well. Once when he had failed a mission, his handler had entered the room flanked by two dogs with sharp muzzles and thick bodies. The Winter Solider had been beat by his handler and restrained as the dogs watched icily from the doorway. He then was subjected to an hour of pain at the fangs of the dogs, them being sicked on him on and off by his handler. Yes, Bucky knew those dogs. And he was careful not to fail any other missions the dogs accompanied him on.

Now, as he slept, the dogs returned from the depths of his mind to torment him in the darkness. He tried to escape them, but found himself bound. Their growls seemed to come from every direction and he looked around wildly, writhing as he desperately tried to free himself. In the pale light, one of the dogs appeared, body low and swaying. It was preparing to pounce on the solider. It sprang and sailed through the air, a terrible roar ripping from its throat. He flinched, expecting to feel the animals sharp teeth tear into his cheek.

So you can only imagine his surprise he was awoken by a tiny tongue lapping across his face. His eyes snapped open, and sitting on his chest with her head tilted was the little yellow puppy. For a moment he didn't remember where he was or who this dog was, and he tensed up, ready to fight. Then everything hit him and he instantly relaxed and took a deep soothing breath. She whimpered softly and nudged the back of his hand with her cold wet nose. Bucky patted her head with his right hand and smiled faintly at her as she scrambled off of him and onto the floor. Now Bucky untangled himself from the linen sheets and decided to start the day.

When Steve exited his bedroom he was shocked to find Bucky lying on the floor in the living room with one of the puppies toy in his hand. He was playing with the yellow puppy, right arm holding one end of the to while she had the other end between her tiny jaws. When Bucky saw him, he sat up quickly.

"Good morning." he greeted him.

"Good morning," Steve replied, eyeing him with a mixture of suspicion and hope. He walked into the kitchen, careful not to step on the puppy dancing around his feet, and opened the fridge. As he peered sleepily inside he said as casually as he could, "You sure are up early. Whats the occasion?" He grabbed the orange juice, shut the door and turned, jolting as he saw Bucky standing inches away from him. Damn, he was going to have to get used to that.

"Nothing...I, uh...I," Bucky stammered, looking down at the floor. The words he wanted would simply not come to him, and he felt the urge building within him to lash out in a rage. He clinched his hands in frustration, and the movement did not go unnoticed by Cap. Steve reached out and gently placed a reassuring hand on the mans shoulder. Bucky tensed under his touch, but did not flinch away. Steve gave a soft squeeze before dropping his hand to his side again.

"Do I smell coffee?" Steve asked, deliberately changing the subject.

"Yes, I tried to make coffee in the coffee pot and," he glanced up at Steve's face before dropping his gaze again, this time focusing on the dog. "And I broke...everything." He expected Steve to be upset, furious, maybe even to hit him. He was shocked though, when the blond man busted out laughing.

"You are not...upset?" he asked, dazed.

"No, Buck." Steve forced out between giggles. "You never could cook anything."

Bucky smiled an uncertain, crooked smile. When Steve looked at his friend, with that lopsided grin on his face, he smiled wider. He didn't want to get to hopeful, but it seemed Bucky was actually making an effort.

The puppy yapped loudly, not liking the attention averted from her.

"I thought of a name, so we can train her." Bucky smiled and stooped over to pick her up.

"Oh yeah?" Steve asked, pouring the orange juice into a glass. "What is it?"

"Asha." Bucky replied, trying to balance the wiggly puppy in the crook of his arm.

"That's...different..." Steve offered as he took another sip of juice.

"I heard it on a mission once," Bucky continued as he very delicately stroked the puppy with his left hand. "I cannot remember what it means..." Bucky spoke softly and his features contorted with thought. "I remember I liked it though."

Steve cleared his throat. "I like it." he announced. "Asha it is."

Steve drove back to Pets Smart later that morning with Bucky and bought a small purple collar that Bucky chose. Asha rode in the cart and seemed to enjoy it. They picked a dog tag out together (it was silver and in the shape of a dog bone) and inscribed one side with her new name and the back side with Steve's phone number. He also purchased a matching purple leash and several other toys that Asha herself picked out.

"Should we purchase a dog bed?" Steve asked as he scanned the various array of beds.

If Bucky tried to reply, Steve didn't hear it. He did hear, however, Asha's shrill bark and the sound of the her frantically scrambling around in the cart. When he looked over, he saw the puppy mid-leap as she sailed out of the cart. She landed hard, but was up in a flash, tearing after another large dog who ripped the lead from its elderly owners hand.

Steve ran after her, yelling her name, Bucky on his heels. This was the day both men discovered Asha's missing hind-leg didn't slow her down at all. She raced after the other dog, whose massive body rammed into stands, knocking them over with a loud clatter. Objects flew everywhere, causing a massive scene. They chased both dogs around the store with the help of employees before Bucky managed to catch Asha and Steve cornered the other dog and returned it to its owner after apologizing repeatedly. The store was a wreck, and the manager and employees were not happy.

A phone call from Tony and his promise of paying for all the damage done seemed to smooth things over, however Asha was banned from the store.

On the ride home Asha sat on Bucky's lap with her pink tongue lolling out of her mouth.

"Look at how proud she is!" Steve exclaimed, glancing between the road and Asha.

Bucky tilted his head and looked at his pup. "Well she should be." Bucky murmured quietly.

Steve glanced at him. "Why is that?"

"I do not think even I could have caused that much damage in two minutes."

Steve snorted. "Did you see the kitchen this morning? How on earth did you get coffee on the ceiling?"

Bucky rolled his eyes and scratched behind Asha's ears.

Little did they know this was only the beginning of what they had gotten themselves into.