Savage

by awalkerlifeforme

She was everything people feared. She wanted to defend the world but also wanted revenge on those who wrecked hers. The ones who forced her to leave Steve Rogers and Bucky Barnes. Now she's back and while Steve attempts to get back the woman he's always considered his sister, Bucky hopes to thaw the ice that has formed around her heart. A heart that he had always believed was his.

33. Chapter 32

Even though the window coverings kept most of the light out of Bucky's room, I could see the faint glow of the sun outside of the building. That meant that it was almost time to wake up for the both of us. Not because there was any work to be done. There always was, but we were getting a pass for a few days. Just because I had to get back before people saw me stumbling out of Bucky's room first thing in the morning. We didn't have much to do today, so I would have much rather slept in. But I did still have to buy presents. We were a mere five days out from Christmas here in London. It was the first Christmas that I would spend with Steve and Bucky together in a long time.

In fact, it would be the first Christmas that the three of us would have together since I was fourteen. I yawned softly and rolled slightly in the bed. It still surprised me when I saw that Bucky was awake before me. I had turned to tuck myself into his chest and smile up at him as his blurry eyes were focused on me. His arms wound tightly around my waist as his fingers dug into the material of the robe. I had become rather attached to it in the few weeks that Bucky had been letting me use it. He pushed the hair back off of my face as his fingers wrapped around the back of my neck, pulling me into a searing kiss that I never wanted to break.

But eventually we had to come up for air. "What do you think about getting lunch today?" I asked, threading my fingers through his own.

Bucky looked a little bit awkward. "Actually I have plans," he muttered.

Sitting upright slightly, I raised my brows at him. The two of us always had things to do during the day, even if there was nothing to do with work. "Better offer?" I asked, only half-teasingly.

"Steve and I are going out, actually," he said.

Feeling very stupid for thinking the worst, I smiled at him. "Oh..." It was nice for the two of them to get some time together. I wanted them to have a good time together. They didn't get much of a chance to have their boy time. Whatever that meant. "Well if it's you and Steve, I suppose I'll have to let it go. Just remember to keep your hands at a respectable distance and have him home by ten," I teased.

Bucky laughed and shoved me slightly, nearly knocking me out of the bed. "You're an ass," he snapped.

But I could hear that he wasn't serious about it. Of course not. He knew that I was just messing with him. He knew that I loved him more than anything. "And you love me anyways," I shot back.

A small smile appeared on his face. "I do," he said softly.

The two of us smiled at each other and pressed his hand back behind my neck. I smiled at him as he pulled me in and pressed a long kiss against my lips. I was pushed back against the bed as he leaned over me. A small smile fell over my face as I ran my hand up over his bare chest, gently running my nails over his muscles. The top of Bucky's robe that I was wearing was loosened slightly from the movement and I knew that he would be able to look down and see the underwear that I was wearing if he really wanted to. It would have been easy to see. But it seemed that he wasn't going to do that. He was respectful enough to not do that. As Bucky broke the kiss, I leaned in and pressed a small kiss against his neck.

On top of me, I could feel him give a small shudder at the movement. I smiled into his neck and laughed as he pressed a kiss against my jaw. "I should go," I muttered under my breath, steeling myself to leave, as much as I really didn't want to.

"Why's that?" Bucky asked.

Smiling softly, I leaned into Bucky and gently nudged him. "Because I have a date," I teased him.

Bucky's eyes flashed slightly. I knew that he would be jealous if there was ever anyone else. "Funny," he snapped.

But I would never do that. There was only one person that I wanted. And that person was laying right next to me. "I know that you think that I'm funny," I teased, allowing my eyes to briefly flash white.

"Stop doing that."

"Why?"

"It's creepy."

Rolling my eyes at him, allowing them to go back to their normal yellow, I shoved him into the wall. It wasn't that bad. Okay, maybe the white eyes was a little bad. They even creeped me out when I did it. But that didn't mean that I wouldn't tease him. "Honestly you're such a baby. How did you ever make it through the Hydra infiltration?" I asked.

Bucky laughed at me and leaned forward, pressing a kiss against my temple. "Because you had my back the entire time. Speaking of which, my back still hurts from you jumping on it," he added.

"I don't weigh that much!" I barked.

Although I was sure that I had managed to surprise him with that. Maybe I should have given him a fair warning. "That is not what I meant. I just wasn't expecting you to do that," he said, probably worried that he would insult me.

But he hadn't. I knew that it probably had hurt him when I'd jumped off of him. "Well maybe if you would have acted first..." I trailed off.

"You didn't let me. You just went for it and strangled that guy. I didn't even know that I had the string in there," he said.

"Garrote," I interrupted his thought process. His head snapped over to me. I could imagine that he hadn't been expecting me to say that. "That's the word you're looking for."

Bucky snorted under his breath. "Romantic... Talking about killing Hydra soldiers," he said.

"Gets you going, huh?" I asked brightly.

"As long as it's you that's talking."

A rather large and embarrassing blush popped up on my face. That was definitely not what I was expecting him to say. Not that I hadn't known that he felt that way about me. We were both getting sick of waiting. But we would, because I'd already made it clear that I wanted to wait. Damn me. Bucky leaned down towards me and pressed a small kiss against my lips. My arms wrapped up and around Bucky's shoulders so that I could pull him against me so that I could collapse in the bed with him. His hands were knotted in my hair, keeping my head with his. We stayed together for a few minutes before I gently pushed Bucky away from me and sat up slightly.

He was laying back in bed with his arms crossed behind his head. My eyes briefly darted down to his bare chest before looking back to his face. "So what are you getting me for Christmas?" I asked.

"Don't you dare read my mind," he snapped.

He must have had something that he wanted to keep a secret. "You are so mistrusting. I'm not going to read your mind. You can surprise me with your gift and I'll surprise you with mine," I said.

"You have a gift in mind?"

No. "Of course I have a gift in mind. Do you?" I asked, hoping that he didn't.

Bucky smiled at me as he sat up himself. "I actually have a wonderful gift in mind. I think that you're really going to like it." I smiled at him as he placed a hand on the back of my neck and pulled me into another kiss. I hummed against his mouth as Bucky pushed me back onto the bed, laying himself over me. "Or we could just stay here all day," he suggested.

That was all that I wanted to do. "I'd like that. But if you keep me here, I don't think that I'm ever going to leave," I said.

"I don't want you to leave."

Smiling softly as he leaned in to give me another peck against my lips, I kept pressed against him as I spoke. "I won't ever leave," I told him softly. And I meant it. I was never going to leave him. "But I probably should leave soon. I have things to do today and I'm thinking that you do too."

"Stay. For a few more minutes," Bucky mumbled against my lips.

"And what should we do?" I asked.

"How about this?"

Bucky smirked at me as he pressed me back into the bed once more. Our lips tangled together in a heated kiss as his hands wound up to my hair, knotting into it and keeping me against him. Our kiss gradually became more and more heated as my hands fell to the waistband of his pants. My stomach gave a little jolt as Bucky's hand fell to the knot on the robe that I was wearing. I had been in a dress last night and I'd had nothing else to wear so I had been forced to borrow one of Peggy's things. I did have a slip on underneath the robe, but it wasn't much. It was extremely short and dipped lower on my chest than anything else that I owned.

Despite knowing that I should have stopped him, I allowed his hands to linger at the knot as Bucky leaned forward and laid himself in between my legs. My legs were on either side of his torso as his hands dipped back down to the knot on the robe. I smiled at him through the kiss and nodded, motioning so that he could untie the knot. My heart was hammering in his chest as he pulled the knot undone. I leaned upwards through the kiss and allowed Bucky to slip the robe off of my shoulders. Bucky broke the kiss for a moment to look at my bare arms, legs, and the excess skin on my chest. I blushed deeply as I heard his thoughts about me.

"See something you like?" I asked.

It was pretty obvious that he did like what he had seen. And he knew that I knew. "I do," Bucky said, running his hands over my bare arms.

One of his hands wound its way to my shoulder and the strap gently fell off. I knew that it wouldn't be long before we couldn't stop ourselves. "I should go. Before..." I trailed off awkwardly.

"Yeah," Bucky muttered.

"One day this won't be so awkward."

We both laughed as Bucky leaned in for another kiss. His arm was around my back as he pulled me to sit upright. "Have a good day. I'll see you tonight?" he asked, and I nodded my head.

"Have fun with whatever you and Steve are doing today. I'll see you both a little later," I said.

Bucky nodded at me, sitting up in bed. "I love you."

"I love you too."

We both jumped out of the bed as I moved forward and kissed Bucky. He was laughing at me as he turned back and pressed me into the wall. I could feel the slip shifting under our movements and for a brief moment I swore that Bucky shifted it upwards slightly. But I wasn't going to say anything. After a few minutes we finally broke apart and I gave him one last peck on the lips before grabbing the robe, slipping it back over my shoulders, grabbing the dress from the floor, and darting from the room.

Heading straight back to my own room, I darted inside and shut the door before anyone could tell that I hadn't slept in my own room. And I hadn't for weeks. I tossed the dress into the laundry before dropping Bucky's robe onto the back of my chair and letting the slip fall off of my shoulders. Peggy was sitting on the bed in normal clothes and I glanced over and smiled at her. We weren't working much over the coming days since the holidays were right around the corner. She glanced up at me and grinned as I began to change.

"I need your help," I told her.

"With what?"

"I haven't bought Bucky a Christmas present yet. I've gotten everyone a present with the exception of him," I said honestly. The pile of presents was under the bed so I could wrap them with Peggy on Christmas Eve. "What the hell do I get him?"

It seemed like there was nothing that I could do that would compare to what Bucky would do for me. "You're so cute," Peggy snorted.

"I'm serious, Peggy! What do I get him?"

She rolled her eyes at me but glanced upwards, probably trying to figure out what I could do for him. Finally something sparked in her eyes. "Is he afraid of heights?" she asked me.

That wasn't what I was expecting. "I - I don't think so. Why?" I asked.

Peggy smiled and hopped up from the bed, dragging me with her as I just barely managed to pull on my shoes. "I have an idea. There's a place not far from here that I think the two of you will really love. Come with me. I want to show you what I'm talking about. Do you have plans with Bucky today?" she asked.

Not that it would have mattered. She probably would have brought me with her anyways. "No. He was saying that he's going to go out with Steve. It's nice. The two of them haven't gotten out that much together since everything happened," I said.

"Oh. That's nice."

She gave me a funny look that I was sure meant that she was hiding something from me. I had a feeling that they were all hiding something from me. "Why does everyone keep looking at me like that?" I asked.

"No reason. Come on, girl's day!"

Both of us laughed as Peggy grabbed me by the arms and dragged me from the building. I was laughing as I barely managed to grab my hair and tie it back up. I really did want to know what was going on. I could tell that Bucky was going to do something special for me. It was obvious enough by the way that everyone was speaking to me. But as much as I wanted to know, I wasn't going to go into his mind and figure out what he was doing. I knew that he wanted it to be a surprise.

Bucky's P.O.V.

As Bucky headed over to Steve's apartment, just a few places over from his own, he found himself nervously wringing his hands back and forth. It was something that he found himself extremely nervous for. There was a wad of cash in his pocket that he was fidgeting with the entire time that he walked. He had been hiding it from Vika over the past few days. He didn't want her to get suspicious of what he was doing. He didn't want her to realize that he'd pooled together all of his savings to buy the ring.

He wouldn't have much money left over afterwards, but that was okay. The only thing that he wanted was to be married to her. They could figure everything else out later. She was the only thing that mattered. Money wasn't a big deal. She had Colonel Phillips to help support her and the Army was still paying the both of them. All that mattered was that he knew that she was going to say yes to him. There wasn't a chance that she wouldn't. She had to say yes. He had never been so sure of something in his entire life. And there were lots of things that he'd been sure of before.

Bucky walked up to Steve's door and knocked quickly. It opened a moment later with Steve tightening his tie. "Ready to go?" Bucky asked.

"Let's go," Steve said as they walked out of the apartments and headed towards the shopping center. "You know where we're going?"

Bucky nodded at his best friend. "Yeah. There's a jewelry store not far from here. It's just a few blocks over. I saw that they sell engagement rings," he said. He'd seen the store a few weeks ago when he had gone to that fancy restaurant with Vika. "I'm sure that I can find something for her."

He was hoping that he could find something. Steve smiled and patted Bucky on the back. "You'll get something. Still planning on doing it on Christmas?" he asked.

Once more, Bucky nodded. Five days... It was only five days away from the biggest moment of his life. "It's always been one of her favorite days and she hasn't had a real one - with everyone that she loves - in so long," Bucky said. He'd always known that she loved Christmas more than any other day of the year. Even more than her birthday. "Yeah. I think that's when I'm gonna do it."

"Any idea what you're going to say to Colonel Phillips?" Steve asked.

He let out a deep breath and shook his head. "If I can get it out, I'm going to ask him if I can marry his daughter," Bucky said.

They both laughed softly. Bucky was just hoping that he wouldn't pass out before he could finish speaking to Colonel Phillips. "And how do you think that's going to go?" Steve asked.

Bucky was just hoping that he would be able to make it out of Colonel Phillips's office alive. "Probably not well. I can't imagine that Colonel Phillips is going to take it too well that someone wants to marry his daughter. They might not have been around each other for that long, but they've become family," Bucky said softly.

Steve smiled at his best friend and patted him on the back. "And you've always been family. We all have," Steve said. They both smiled at the thought. "Colonel Phillips might not love you asking to marry her, but he knows that you're going to treat her right."

"Always."

They walked together for a while towards the town center. Big Ben chimed off in the distance and Bucky smiled. He knew that Vika loved hearing it chime. "So what are you going to do? To propose to her?" Steve asked, breaking his train of thoughts.

"I kind of have a plan, but I need some help with it."

"I'll do whatever you need."

"From everyone. You, the rest of the team, Stark, and Peggy, too."

He had the perfect plan for the perfect night, but he wanted to make sure that he had the help to put it all together. "We're all in. But you know that you're going to have to tell them that you're going to propose to her?" Steve asked.

Bucky turned towards his best friend and nodded. He was already prepared to tell everyone that he was planning to propose to her. "They've known that I wanted to propose to her. I just haven't told them that I'm actually finally going to do it. I've been nervous about telling them. She can read minds. What if she finds out?" Bucky asked, feeling nervous once more.

The last thing that he wanted was for her to find out that he was planning on proposing to her. "Mind-reader or not, she's a smart girl. She'll probably figure it out," Steve said honestly.

"I hope not. This is one thing that I want to surprise her with."

"Somehow I think that she'll still be surprised."

Both men laughed at the thought that so many years after Vika had stumbled into their apartment, dirty and tired and barely speaking, Bucky was now preparing to ask her to marry him. "It's still a few days away and I'm already so nervous for it," he said.

And he was. He had found himself barely able to face her without getting nervous. He couldn't believe that she wasn't getting suspicious of his stumbles. "Nervous for what, Buck?" Steve asked. Bucky groaned but otherwise stayed silent. "She's gonna say yes. And don't worry about making an idiot out of yourself, everyone's already expecting you to do that. And so is she."

Bucky laughed and shoved him roughly to the side. "You're a punk," he said.

Steve laughed as well as the two men turned onto a side street. There was a jewelry store that rose above the rest of the small shops on the street. "Is this the place?" Steve asked.

"Yeah. This is it."

There was a collection of rings in the window that made Bucky's palms start to sweat. "You ready?" Steve asked.

"Yeah. Let's do this."

Steeling himself with the knowledge that when he walked out of the building, he would have a ring in his hand, he walked inside with Steve. He was almost immediately blinded by the sparkling of the jewelry in the display cases. Bucky's feet froze in their spot as Steve placed his hand on Bucky's shoulder and shoved him forward. There were price tags on the rings and Bucky's eyes widened. The prices were a lot more than he was expecting. But he would be able to afford one. Although it would take him forever to find a ring that would work for her. It seemed like there were thousands in the little store. They'd be here all day.

A woman appeared from behind the counter. She appeared to be in her early forties and had curled red hair. She was gazing at the two of them from over the cases. "Gentlemen," she greeted, sporting a thick British accent. "May I help you?"

There was a very awkward look on her face. Bucky stepped forward and smiled at her. "Y-Yes. My name is James - uh - Bucky. Everyone calls me Bucky. This is Steve. He's my best friend," Bucky introduced, Steve taking a step forward to shake her hand. The woman looked a little less bothered by the knowledge that Bucky and Steve were only friends. "He's here to help."

"I see. You know the potential fiancé, then?" she asked Steve.

"We actually all grew up together. She left and found her way back into our lives a few years ago. She's one of my best friends," Steve said.

The woman smiled. "Very sweet. She is like a sister to you?" she asked.

"Yes."

Once more the woman smiled. She glanced at Bucky for a moment before her eyes were drawn back to Steve. Her brows knitted together as she stared at him. "Have I seen you somewhere before?" she asked.

"No," Steve said quickly.

The woman nodded and looked between them. "Strange. Familiar face you have. My name is Charlotte. I'd be more than happy to help you gentlemen today." Her gaze shifted towards Bucky. "Tell me a little bit about your - hopefully - fiancé," Charlotte said.

It was obvious that by now she was excited. This must have been her favorite part of the job. "Her name is Victoria. She's a Sergeant in the United States Army. We're all here on deployment. She's the smartest and strongest person that I know. We were best friends growing up and I think that I knew from the moment that I met her that I wanted to marry her one day." Charlotte smiled. "She's not a typical woman. She can't sew, she really can't cook, and I don't think she's ever spent a day around a kid in her life. But she's perfect for me," Bucky said.

He had been slightly afraid that Charlotte would cringe or roll her eyes at them, but she merely shook her head and smiled fondly. "She sounds like a very different woman," Charlotte said.

"She is. But she's the best person that I know. I've known for years that I wanted to marry her. I'm glad that I'm finally getting the chance," Bucky said.

Charlotte smiled at him and nodded. "And so am I. My job is only to help along the process. I always hope that each engagement I contribute to will succeed," she said. The boys both nodded as she motioned along to a case near the back wall. "So, tell me about the kind of clothing that she likes."

Bucky and Steve exchanged a look. "She's kind of got a simple style," Bucky said.

"Dark colors -" Steve added.

"Mostly a little loose on her frame but she does have some tighter things -"

"She doesn't really wear dresses -"

"She never dresses up -"

"She's casual," Steve finished.

Charlotte was watching the boys speak back and forth with a small smile. Bucky turned towards her and nodded his confirmation. "That's probably the best way to put it," he said.

"So something simple?" Charlotte clarified.

That was always the best way to put Vika. She was simple. Despite everything that she thought about herself, she was a rather simple person. "I think that's for the best. Something simple with maybe just a tiny hint of something... special?" Bucky asked awkwardly.

It seemed that his poor explanation for what he wanted was enough for Charlotte. She smiled and walked out from behind the case, motioning Bucky and Steve with her. "With me, gentlemen. I'll get you out a few rings that I think might be appropriate for her," she said. She walked behind a case and pointed Bucky and Steve towards the rings. "What color is her hair?"

"Blonde. But it's really light, it's almost white," Bucky said.

Charlotte smiled as she moved away from one section of the case. "Sounds pretty," she said.

Bucky smiled at her words. "It is."

"And what color are her eyes?" Charlotte asked.

Bucky and Steve exchanged a look before Bucky finally glanced back at Charlotte. "Yellow," he said slowly.

Charlotte merely nodded at him as she continued to look through the rings. "Like a light amber?" she asked.

"No. Yellow. Like the sun."

That was all that it took for Charlotte's gaze to snap upwards towards Bucky. Steve stepped in almost immediately. "It's not a joke. She really does have yellow eyes," Steve said. The three of them merely stared at each other. "It's always been a soft spot with her but we love them. It's just something that makes her different from anyone else."

To their surprise, Charlotte merely smiled and nodded, moving down another two cases. "Then she'll need a different ring. Let me see what I have." She looked through the rings for a moment before smiling. "Ah! How about this one?" she asked. Charlotte picked up a large ring with a large green gem in the middle and three square-shaped diamonds on each side. "Brand new. Natural emerald."

Bucky grabbed it but found himself very hesitant to take it. He merely stared at the ring with a hopeless feeling. He was convinced that she wouldn't like something like that. "What do you think?" Bucky asked Steve.

"You really think that Vic would like something like that?" Steve asked.

Bucky nodded and handed the ring back to Charlotte. "No. No, sorry," he told her.

Charlotte placed the ring back in the case before going through them once more. "How about this one?" she asked. She pulled out a ring even larger than the first. There was a circular blue gem in the center surrounded by innumerable smaller diamonds. "Natural sapphire and diamond. Very large. Everyone will know that she's off of the market."

"Way too big," Bucky said.

"How about this?" It was a smaller ring with a gray diamond in the middle. It was the right size, but something didn't sit well. "A little more demure. Gray diamond. Very special and not that common. Much like your girl," Charlotte said.

Bucky shook his head once more. "Pretty, but -"

"No," Steve interrupted.

It didn't really look like an engagement ring. "Well we aren't letting you out of here without finding anything. We'll go through and find something for her. Come now," Charlotte said, motioning the boys with her towards another case. "There are over a thousand rings in this store."

There were so many rings in the store and an hour after they'd gotten to the store, Bucky was sure that they'd looked at all of them. They had shopped for well over an hour and he could see the irritation in both of their faces every time that they looked down at the reflections of the cases. They were weakly leaning back against the door and glancing at the cases up front. Charlotte seemed to be irritated as well, but she did seem to enjoy the prospect of having a difficult client.

Bucky began to pace through the store as he glanced down into the cases. And finally one caught his eye. "That one. What about that one?" he called out to Charlotte.

She walked over towards him and smiled, looking a little surprised at his choice. "That one is a little older. It used to be a best seller. There aren't many people who are wearing rings like that. Color is the big deal right now. But... It's quite the beautiful ring. Platinum with seven white diamonds. Any woman would love it," she said, handing the ring over to Bucky.

Bucky showed the ring to Steve. "What do you think?" he asked.

Steve smiled at Bucky, briefly taking the ring. "It's gorgeous. She'll love it," he said, handing it back to Bucky.

But a sudden thought hit him. "Can I afford it?" Bucky asked Charlotte.

Charlotte smiled weakly at him. "It's almost in your range. Just one hundred more," she said.

He knew that it was only a hundred dollars, but it was a hundred dollars that he couldn't spare. He shifted on his feet for a moment before shaking his head. He knew that he wouldn't be able to buy the ring for her. "Um... I can't do that. There'll be another one," he said, handing the ring back to Charlotte.

Steve stepped forward before she could put it back in the case. "No. I've got a hundred," he said.

He went digging through his pockets as Bucky moved forward. "Steve -"

Steve shook his head and placed his hand on Bucky's shoulder. He made a lot more than his best friend, being Captain America. "Bucky, don't worry about it. Vic is like my sister. It's not just about you. I want the two of you to have everything that you want. This ring is what you both want. So take it," he said, grabbing the one hundred dollar bill and handing it over to Bucky.

"I'll pay you back," Bucky promised.

He would never let Steve just give him a hundred dollars. "Just make her happy," Steve said.

"Thanks, Steve," Bucky said, hugging him.

"So it's a yes?" Charlotte asked, smiling at them.

"It's a yes. Hopefully she says yes," Bucky said.

"She will," Charlotte and Steve said together.

They all laughed as Bucky took the ring and brought it over to the desk that Charlotte was pointing them to. Bucky found the nerves floating away as they went into sizing and purchasing the ring. It was very expensive but that was something that he had already known going into this. He knew that this was all going to be well worth it once he asked her. The only thing that mattered was that she said yes. As terrified as he was to actually get down on one knee and propose, he knew that she would say yes.

Victoria's P.O.V.

The day had passed without too much happening. I'd made sure that Peggy had helped me get something that Bucky would love. We had ended up not actually buying anything, but I had a feeling that what I was going to do for Bucky for Christmas would be much better than anything that he could buy. I knew that he would like it. Of course, he tended to like anything that I got him or did for him.

Currently I was down in the Army training room while Peggy was upstairs and getting some paperwork done. Like most of our friends, she had already gotten her Christmas shopping done. I was placed in front of a punching bag that was hanging up from the ceiling. I was kicking the bag over and over again, trying to get rid of my pent-up energy. I was back in my training uniform with bare feet. I'd already broken through two of the bags and it was pretty obvious that the third was about to join them.

The door to the training room flew open as I reared back and went into a twirl, sending a roundhouse kick straight at the bag. It was unsurprising when the bag broke and went swinging off of the chain. It dropped from the ceiling and split, the sand inside of it going everywhere. I cringed and moved forward to pick up the remnants of the bag and try to clean up the mess. I turned back to tell Bucky that I was sorry for the mess - considering that he was normally the person that cleaned up the messes in the training room - but I was surprised to see that it was Steve.

He was watching me with an amused smile. "I thought that you would be Bucky. Not that I'm not happy to see you," I said as Steve walked towards me. "How was your day?"

"It was good. How was yours?"

"Went sight-seeing for a little while. We've been in London for so long that I kind of forgot that this isn't my home. There are so many places that I really wanted to see," I told him.

Steve smiled as the two of us took seats on the pads near the punching bags. "Name them. You know that we can always go out and see anything that you want to see," he said.

"Maybe once the war is over. You excited for Christmas?"

Steve smiled and nodded at me, wrapping his arm over my shoulder. "It's going to be the first Christmas in a long time that we've all been together. It'll be a nice time. Presents and everything," he said brightly.

"Did you get me something?" I asked teasingly.

Steve smiled at me and nodded. "Of course. Did you get me something?" he shot back.

I'd already gone out shopping for everyone. Peggy and I had gone together, only stepping away when we were getting each other our presents. "I actually got all of you somethings. Bucky, Howard, Peggy, Chester, all of the men, and even you," I said, nudging him gently.

"I was special enough to get on your list?" Steve asked, sounding shocked.

"You were. You should feel honored."

"I do."

The two of us sat in silence for a moment as I leaned against Steve. "So did you have a good time today?" I asked after a few minutes of silence, startling Steve slightly. "Bucky mentioned that you two were going out today. It's nice. I don't think that I've seen the two of you just have a day together since we were kids."

Steve smiled at me as the two of us laid back against the mats. "It's so rare that we actually get a chance for the two of us to be together. He's my best friend, my brother, and I know that he's always going to be there. Now I have to share," he teased, poking at me.

We both laughed at the thought. It was almost like we had shared custody of Bucky. Of course, we all did like being together, too. "We can take turns. Make a list on who gets to see each other when," I said.

"Exactly. We all have to share."

"I'm glad that I have you both back. I love you, Steve."

"I love you, too, Vic," Steve said, pulling me into a hug.

The two of us were together for a few seconds before the door to the training room opened once more. Steve and I both glanced back to see Bucky walking in. He was smiling fondly at us. "Isn't this a sweet sight?" he asked teasingly.

"Get out, Bucky, we're having a moment," I snapped at him.

He merely rolled his eyes at me as he headed back towards us. We were all smiling at each other as Bucky walked over towards me. "Ah. What if I want to be involved in the moment?" he asked.

"Come on. Let's all have a moment together!" I shouted at him.

Falling right into my trap, Bucky walked over towards where Steve and I were sitting. He was such a fool sometimes, but that was what made me love him even more. He walked over to me and I reached up, yanking out Bucky's knee. He gave a little groan as he collapsed to the floor with the two of us. We all laughed as I jumped onto the boys and shoved them both underneath me in a reverse dog-pile. It was easy enough to keep them under me. But I had almost forgotten how strong Steve was now. He grabbed me and tossed me to the floor, holding me down, as Bucky jumped onto me and began to ruffle my hair.

"I hate you both!" I shouted. I electrocuted them softly and they were both thrown back from me. Their faces were charred and their hair was standing on end. "The difference between now and when we were kids. I can actually do that to you."

They didn't look very amused, but I thought that it was rather funny. "Damn that hurt," Bucky groaned, brushing back his hair as he got back to his feet.

"I really wish that you wouldn't do that," Steve added.

Once more we all laughed. It was rather funny with everything that had happened in the past few years. We'd come back together and become the best of friends again. Life was back to normal and better than ever. We all collapsed on the floor together and sat, chatting about the first Christmas that we would have in a long time. It wasn't long before we all passed out together. My head was on Steve's chest and Bucky's head was on my stomach. It felt just like it had when we were kids. But things were far better than they used to be. And I had a feeling that they would keep getting better.

Bucky's P.O.V.

December 24th, 1943

Just a few days after Bucky had bought the engagement ring for Vika - that was safely tucked away in one of his jacket pockets in the bottom of his dresser - the two of them were in bed together. It wasn't long before they went about their own business; of course, it was only after they had done a little bonding. Vika would be working for a few hours today at the base. It was at Steve's request after Bucky had asked him to keep Vika away from Colonel Phillips and the others for today. He had to make sure that he had time to do everything that he had to do tonight before the big day.

After getting changed and heading out into the lobby of the building, Bucky realized that Steve was also on his way to the base. He glanced over at Bucky and smiled. "You ready?" he asked.

Bucky's heart skipped a beat. Was there a chance that Vika was with Colonel Phillips? That would definitely ruin his plans. "Aren't you supposed to be with Vika right now? Please don't tell me that she's with Colonel Phillips. I only have another day to ask him before I run out of time," Bucky said, all in one breath and rather desperately.

Steve laughed and patted Bucky on the back. "Calm down. I've never seen you so nervous. I can't imagine what you'll be like tomorrow," he said.

"Like you used to be before having to run the mile at school," Bucky said.

They both laughed as Steve shoved into Bucky. He really had used to try to do the mile, but he was almost hopeless with it. Now he had a faster mile than anyone else. "She's already on her way to the base. Don't worry about it. I'll keep her away from Colonel Phillips for the day. I'll keep her away from everyone. Just do what you need to do," Steve said.

"I'm working on it."

"Do you know what you're going to say?" Steve asked.

The color drained from Bucky's face. He really hadn't made a speech or anything of the likes yet. He had just been hoping that he wouldn't make an utter fool of himself. "I'm hoping that it will come to me when I get there," Bucky muttered.

If he had thought that Steve might call him a moron for not making a plan, he was wrong. Steve merely smiled and nodded. "You'll figure it out. In the meantime, just don't panic. You love her, she loves you, and everyone knows that. Take a breath before you go in there, by the way. You look like you're about to pass out," Steve said, patting Bucky again on the back.

Bucky merely laughed and shook his head. "I feel like it," he said.

"Oh and stay away from Colonel Phillips's bottle of scotch," Steve suggested.

Drinking something would probably only make things a little bit worse. Not that they weren't already terrible. "Yeah that's a good suggestion," Bucky laughed.

Steve patted Bucky on the back as they walked into the building. "Good luck, buddy. Let me know how it goes," he said.

"I will. Thanks for keeping her busy."

"When it comes to the two of you, I'll do anything that I can," Steve said, making them both smile softly. "See you later. Remember, take a deep breath before going in there."

"Right."

As both men headed towards the places that they needed to be, Bucky found his hands shaking slightly. He had managed to be calm for the past few days, but now that he was about to ask Colonel Phillips for Vika's hand, he found himself incredibly nervous once more. Bucky headed straight back for Colonel Phillips's office while Steve headed towards one of the planning rooms that Vika was already in. She had been told that they were already planning the next Hydra attack. Bucky walked towards Colonel Phillips's office, took a deep breath as Steve had suggested, and knocked on the door. There was a call to come in and Bucky made his way inside.

There were two men standing in the office with Colonel Phillips, who was sitting behind the desk and reading his paperwork. Even though he didn't look up, he seemed to know that it was Bucky. "Sergeant Barnes," Colonel Phillips greeted.

Bucky saluted the the older man and stepped forward. "Colonel Phillips. Might I have a word with you?" Bucky asked.

"Speak, son."

But there were still the two men that were in the room. Bucky awkwardly shifted and added, "In private."

That was all that it took for Colonel Phillips to glance up from his paperwork. The even look on his face faded as he merely stared at Bucky. He nodded before glancing over at the other men in the room. "Go get a cup of coffee, Corporal," he said. The two men that were in the room nodded and saluted Colonel Phillips as they turned to leave the room, leaving the two of them alone. Bucky found himself extremely nervous as the two men faced off with each other. "Take a seat."

Colonel Phillips was motioning towards the chair in front of his desk. Bucky nodded and walked over towards the chair, taking a seat and fidgeting for a moment. "Thank you, Sir," Bucky said.

"What can I do for you, Sergeant Barnes?" Colonel Phillips asked.

He glanced over the edge of his desk to look at Bucky sharply. Bucky felt a little jolt in his stomach from nerves. Just spit it out, you moron. "There was something that I wanted to ask you, actually, Sir," he started weakly.

Colonel Phillips nodded for Bucky to continue. "Go on then, I don't have all day," he prompted.

The comment should have relaxed Bucky and made him feel like he could say it, but for whatever reason, it made him only even more nervous. Maybe it was the way that the Colonel leaned back in his chair and crossed his legs, letting Bucky know that he was not a patient man. Either way, Bucky knew that he had to get on with it. So he cleared his throat and leaned forward.

"Well there was actually something that I wanted to talk to you about," he said.

Maybe this was just something that he had to take one step at a time. Colonel Phillips cleared his throat and leaned forward on the desk. "I'm not a telepath, but I know what you want, Sergeant Barnes. Calm down and get on with it," he ordered.

That took some of the pressure off of Bucky. At least now he didn't have to admit what he wanted. Colonel Phillips already knew what he wanted. That would make things easier. Now he moved onto the next step. What the hell is the next step? Bucky nervously shifted in his seat for a moment before remembering what it was that he wanted to say. He had to tell him everything that he thought about Vika. It almost made him laugh thinking about how long they would be here if he told Colonel Phillips everything that he thought about his daughter.

Bucky cleared his throat and moved forward on the chair. "Yes, Sir. I've known Victoria since we were kids. I can still see her wandering into my apartment in the dead of the night, terrified and starving. I knew right then that there was something about her. She's my best friend. She always has been and she always be here. I love her more than anything else in the world. She's everything that I want in life. She's everything that I hope that I can live up to. She's smart and funny and so much more than just the average person.

"I know that it terrifies her. Everything that she can do. But it doesn't terrify me. The things that she can do put her apart from anyone else. She's not an average woman. Not by a long shot. And I love that about her. She's not what I ever thought that I would want, and I've never been so grateful to be wrong. She means the world to me. She's done things for me that no one else would have ever done. Who would be brave enough to defy direct orders and walk right into a war-zone without knowing that the person that they're trying to rescue is even alive? She told me that she went after me even if it was just to bring my body back. There's not a single woman that would do that. But she did.

"I want to spend the rest of my life doing things for her that no one else would ever do. I love her. I've loved her since I laid eyes on her fifteen years ago. It's too bad that it took me this long to realize it and this long to admit it. I've lost so much time with her already. I don't want to lose anymore. So I suppose that's what my entire monologue was leading to. I want to marry her. I know what that means. I know that she's never going to age. I know that she'll look like that forever. I know that she might not want to have a family or really ever settle down. But that's okay with me.

"It was the life that I thought that I wanted for a long time. But now I know that it's not the life that I need. Because the only thing that I want is to be with her until the day that I die. No one needs to take care of her. I know her well enough to know that she's always going to be able to take care of herself. That's the kind of person that she is. But I want to be there for her. I want to be the person that can be there to protect her, whether or not she wants it. Your opinion of me is very important to both Victoria and me. I want to marry her. But I would really like your permission before I move forward and ask her," Bucky finished.

He'd said everything in practically one breath to spit it all out before he could forget anything, and now he was panting slightly, trying to catch his breath. There was something shining in Colonel Phillips's eyes as he leaned back into the chair and let out a long breath. His fingers knitted together as he pressed against the files in front of him. Bucky steeled himself to hear that he would not give his consent.

But he was very surprised to hear that it wasn't the case. "I figured that this would be coming sometime soon. Do you have a date set that you'd like to ask her?" Colonel Phillips asked.

Bucky nodded at him, dumbfounded. "Tomorrow. Christmas is one of her favorite days of the year," he said.

"You've known Victoria for a long time, right?" Colonel Phillips asked. Bucky wasn't sure whether or not it was a trick question, so he nodded. "Then like you said; you know that I'm not her real father. There's no need for you to be here and asking my permission," he said.

"There is."

Colonel Phillips raised a brow. "And why's that?" he asked.

Because you are her father. Bucky cleared his throat. "Her real father was not her father. No man can treat his daughter that way and still be able to call himself a parent. That's not what he is. You may not have known Victoria for very long, but you are her father. I see the way that she looks at you. Whatever you think of her, she cares about that. And I care about her. Your opinion of this will mean something to her. And I'm still an old-fashioned man. I want to have your blessing," Bucky explained.

It surprised Bucky slightly when Colonel Phillips rose from the chair and walked in front of the desk. Bucky rose from his spot too. "No man will ever be good enough for someone's little girl..." he started, making Bucky's stomach clench, "Until the day comes that one is." A relieved breath escaped Bucky's throat. "She loves you more than any woman I've ever seen love any man. You're good for her."

"I'll spend the rest of my life trying to be as good for her as I can," Bucky promised him.

There was something that looked a little bit like a smile on Colonel Phillips's face. "You already are. I've only known Victoria for a few years but I love her like she's a daughter. She is my daughter. And the only thing that I want is to see her happy. She's happy with you. Happier than I've ever seen her. That's all that a father wants. For his girl to be happy," he said.

"That's all that I want for her," Bucky said.

Colonel Phillips nodded at him and let out a breath even deeper than the one that Bucky had. "Then you have my permission. Make it something that you'll both remember," he advised Bucky.

"Thank you, Sir."

The two of them moved forward and shook hands. Bucky wasn't really a part of his family yet, and he had a feeling that he might never be his family, but at least they were in agreement. They both knew that Bucky wouldn't have given up on it anyways. He was determined to propose to Vika at some point or another. He was just thrilled that it was going to be tomorrow. It took a huge weight off of his chest. He was going to be able to do what he wanted to do in twenty-four hours. He would hopefully be engaged to Vika.

"You have the ring, then?" Colonel Phillips asked, breaking Bucky's thoughts.

"Yes, Sir."

"May I see it?"

"Of course," Bucky said.

He had a feeling that Colonel Phillips might have asked for it. He reached into his pocket and grabbed the box that the ring was in. He took it out of his pocket and handed it over to Colonel Phillips. His lips twitched upwards before handing the box back. "That's a pretty ring. She'll like it. Either way, it's not the ring that means anything to her. It's the person holding it," he said.

Bucky smiled at the Colonel. "Thank you, Sir," he said.

They shook hands once more as Bucky and Colonel Phillips departed for the day. He would be there tomorrow. Bucky turned to leave the room but he was called back to Colonel Phillips before he could leave. "Sergeant Barnes. You hurt my girl... There is nowhere that you can hide," he warned.

"I'd rather die than hurt her," Bucky said fiercely.

Colonel Phillips nodded as he took a seat back behind his desk. "I know. Keep it that way," he said.

Knowing that he needed to take that warning to heart, he nodded at the Colonel and turned to leave. He was dead set on finding Peggy. He had known that she would be the first person that he would have to find once he had told both Steve and Colonel Phillips about his plan. He wanted to show her the ring and tell her that he was going to propose to Vika tomorrow. She wouldn't be too far from here and Bucky knew that if anyone was more excited for the two of them to get married than he was, it was Peggy. He managed to find her in one of the offices in the back of the building, working on plans to destroy the Hydra bases.

"Peggy," Bucky greeted as he walked inside.

The door shut behind him and Peggy turned back with a smile, motioning him over to stand with her. "Bucky. How are you? Need help finding something to do for Victoria for Christmas?" she asked.

Bucky smiled at her and shook his head. "Actually I already know what I'm going to get her," he admitted.

"Oh?"

That was the first time that Peggy had really looked up from what she'd been doing. "I wanted your opinion on something. I got her a present but I want to make sure that it's something that she'll like," he said.

She nodded for him to show her. "I'm sure that she will. But show me anyways." Bucky slipped the box out of his pocket and handed it over to Peggy. She popped it open and very nearly dropped it. "Oh. Oh... A ring! You're going to propose to her!" Peggy chirped excitedly. Bucky nodded and laughed as Peggy grabbed him for a hug. "Bucky, I'm so happy for you! When? When?" she prompted.

"Tomorrow night. You think that she'll like it?" he asked.

Peggy smiled at him and nodded, handing the box back to him. "She's going to love it! It's gorgeous," she said as he snapped the box closed.

The last thing that he needed was for something to happen to the ring. "Good. I'm glad that you think it's nice. Listen... I need your help with something. Can you keep her away from everything tomorrow morning?" Bucky asked.

Peggy smiled and nodded. Bucky was sure that it was the happiest that he had ever seen her. "Sure thing. Oh congratulations!" she chirped.

Bucky laughed and shook his head, brushing the hair back off of his forehead. "She hasn't said yes yet," he pointed out.

"She will," Peggy said confidently.

The two of them stood together as they leaned against the desk and Bucky explained to Peggy what his plans were for tomorrow night and how he was intending to go about everything. He had a plan but he did need help to make sure that everything went just the way that he wanted it to. Peggy listened to his plans before agreeing that she would help put everything together. He knew that it would be good to have a woman's touch with his plan. They promised to meet up again tomorrow before Bucky headed off once more. The next person on his list was Howard Stark. He knew that he didn't have to ask Stark, but he did want to at least let him know ahead of time.

He was one of the closest people to Vika. He walked off towards the labs before slipping inside and walking over to the platform that Stark was standing on. "Mr. Stark. Might I have a word?" Bucky called over the loud electrical noises.

Stark stopped working with a strange-looking machine and glanced up at Bucky. He nodded and jumped off of the platform, motioning for his workers to continue. "Certainly Sergeant Barnes. Let's take a walk," he said.

Bucky nodded and tucked his hands in his pocket, walking off with Stark. "I got Victoria a present for Christmas already. It seems like everyone really likes it so far but I wanted to get your opinion on it. After all, you know her pretty well," he said awkwardly.

"That I do. What did you get her?" Stark asked.

"This."

Reaching down into his pocket, Bucky grabbed the ring box and pulled it out, showing it to Stark. He saw a bright sparkle flood into Stark's eyes as he opened the box and glanced down at the ring. He looked at it for a few moments before handing it back. "That's beautiful. She's going to love it. When are you going to do it?" he asked.

"Tomorrow night. I've got everything together but I need to keep her away. I don't want her to see anything that I'm getting prepared for her. Being a telepath or not, I want everything to be a surprise," Bucky said.

Stark merely laughed and gently placed a hand on Bucky's shoulder. "She'll be surprised. She's too thick to realize that you're planning on doing this," Stark said.

Despite the fact that it was an insult, both of the men laughed. Vika was the smartest person that he'd ever met, but she could be a little bit thick about things. "You mean a lot to her. Are you alright with this?" Bucky asked.

Almost slamming into him, Bucky had to quickly halt his movements as Stark stopped dead in his tracks and turned back towards him. "Takes a good man to go to a woman's father and ask his permission. Takes a pretty great one to go to a man that is not that woman's father, but close enough to her to be one, and still ask his permission. You've done that and gone beyond by also asking my permission. Of course. I want her to be happy. And that's what you make her. Propose to her tomorrow night. She deserves a good man in her life," he said.

It was something a little bit nicer than Bucky had been expecting from Howard Stark. "Thank you, Mr. Stark," Bucky said.

"Just Howard, Sergeant Barnes."

Bucky raised a brow but smiled anyways. "Just Bucky," he said. If Howard was going to make the attempt, so could he. "Can you do me a favor and keep her busy for a few hours?"

"Easily. Best of luck tomorrow. Make her happy," Howard said.

"I intend to."

And he would spend the rest of his life trying to make her happy. It was his ultimate goal in life. It was the only thing that he wanted; for her to be happy. The two men shook hands before Bucky turned back and headed off towards the tavern. He let out a deep breath as he stepped out of the base and headed towards the tavern. He had taken care of everyone with the exception of the men. And that was what he was doing now. He wanted to go speak to them before he actually proposed to her. He wanted everyone to know what was happening. Howard was keeping Vika busy while he went to speak to them. Bucky wondered if she was starting to get a little suspicious.

Just as expected, the men were sitting at their usual table and seemed to already be a few drinks deep. Bucky walked up to the table and smiled, taking a seat next to Steve. "Evening, gentlemen," Bucky greeted.

"Bucky, man! Where have you been all day?" Dum Dum asked.

As usual, he had drank the most out of anyone. At least he could hold his liquor. Bucky ordered himself a beer and it was quickly handed over to him. "Getting some things done. Come on over here. I've got something that I wanted to tell you all," he called to the rest of them.

A few of the men had been standing around the table but they all came to sit at his words. "What's going on?" Gabe asked.

Once everyone was seated, Bucky took a deep breath and crossed his hands on top of the table. Steve was the only one that was smiling. "I've been thinking for a long time about what I should get Victoria for Christmas. It took me a while but I finally figured out what I'm going to get her. I already got it, actually," Bucky told them.

Curiosity sparked in their eyes. "What'd you get her?" Jim asked.

"This."

Leaning back in the chair, Bucky dug through his things and grabbed the box that was sitting in his pocket. He grabbed the box and placed it on the table. Looks were exchanged back and forth as some of the men began to laugh. It was easy enough to tell that there was a ring in the box. Bucky popped it open and that was all that it took. The men began to cheer and laugh as they all took their turns grabbing the ring and passing it among them. Bucky laughed as he was passed back and forth between everyone so that they could congratulate him. Everyone had known that this was coming, but it was almost funny to see that the time had finally arrived.

"C'est manifique!" Jacques cried. Bucky couldn't speak French but he did know enough to know that he had called the ring magnificent.

Bucky laughed as the ring was passed over to James. He looked at it and smiled. There was a chance that James might have even known the store that Bucky had gotten it from. After all, he was from London. "Beautiful ring you've got there. She's going to love it," he said.

The ring was then passed down to Jim. Bucky knew that Jim was already married. He didn't get to see his wife much, but they wrote back and forth and he was able to call from time to time. "Good for you, Bucky! Finally gonna grow a pair and do it," he said.

Everyone laughed as Bucky punched Jim, allowing him to pass the ring to Gabe. "She's gonna love it," Gabe said, smiling down at the ring.

It was finally passed over to Dum Dum, who whistled brightly. "That's a hell of a rock," he said.

The ring was passed to Steve who passed it back to Bucky. He closed the box and tucked it back into his pocket. "You definitely set the bar pretty high, Buck," Steve said.

"So you're ready for this?" Dum Dum asked.

Bucky sighed and nodded, taking a long drink from his glass. "I don't think that I've ever been so ready for anything. God I'm terrified for everything that's going to happen," he said, running his hands back over his forehead.

"She's going to say yes," Steve said.

And that was all that Bucky wanted. He just wanted to make sure that Vika said yes. He glanced upwards and smiled when Peggy moved forward with a glass of red wine in his hands. "Trust me when I say that this is the only thing that she's ever wanted. She's been waiting for this for a long time and she's going to say yes. Just make sure that you get through the proposal," Peggy teased.

They all knew that Bucky was so nervous that there was a chance that he might pass out before he actually asked her. "You've got enough people to step in and finish the proposal if something does happen to you," Steve added.

Bucky groaned and dropped his head onto the table. "Great. Everyone else gets to actually remember my proposal to her when I won't even remember it," he muttered.

"At least it'll make a funny story," Gabe said, patting him on the back.

They all laughed as they ordered another round of drinks, moving about the bar and cheering happily for everything that was going to happen in the next twenty-four hours. The plan was definitely falling into place. Everything seemed to be working out just the way that Bucky had always wanted it to go. The only thing that was left was for her to say yes. It was a few hours later that Vika and Howard made their way into the tavern to sit with the rest of them, the former completely oblivious to the life change that was heading her way.

Victoria's P.O.V.

The sun was streaming in through the window and I yawned, rolling slightly and peeling my eyes open. It had been well into the night when Bucky and I had finally fallen asleep. The two of us had been having far too much fun lying in bed together. It was probably why I had almost found myself unable to sleep in the same bed as him. We still hadn't done what I so desperately wanted, and it only made me even more desperate for it. My eyes fully opened and I glanced over to see that Bucky was already awake. He was smiling down at me and looking very excited. I almost laughed. He looked like every little kid on Christmas morning.

There must have been something incredible that he was planning for today. I hadn't seen him this excited about anything in a long time. "Merry Christmas," I said softly.

Bucky leaned down and pressed a long kiss against my mouth. The last Christmas that we'd had together we had just been little kids. We'd jumped on Bucky's parents and forced them to open presents with us. This time Bucky and I were in bed together, wearing much less than what was appropriate. "Merry Christmas. First one together in a long time," Bucky said.

My hand wound its way up his chest to press against the side of his throat. "I really did miss you for all of those years. For most of those times, I didn't even know when it was Christmas. They would just tell me when the New Year had passed," I said.

As I spoke I felt Bucky's jaw clench. I pressed a kiss against the side of his throat, hoping that he would relax. "This is going to be the best Christmas that you've ever had. I promise," Bucky promised.

"I believe you. I need to go get ready."

"Ready?"

Smiling softly at him, I sat upright and gave him a gentle nudge. "Yeah. I've got a special surprise planned for you." Bucky raised his brows as I leaned under the bed and grabbed a folded-up piece of paper, handing it to him. "Open this in half an hour and do what it says," I said.

Bucky looked like he was about to open it so I slapped his hand away. He dropped the paper and laughed at me, placing it on his bedside dresser. "Nothing is going to jump out and kill me, right?" he asked.

I smiled at him and shook my head. "Right," I said. He was not going to have anything jump out and kill him. But that would have been funny if I had done something like that. We shared a quick kiss as I leaned against Bucky and pressed another kiss on his chest. "Get ready."

The two of us smiled at each other as Bucky pressed a hand behind my neck and gave me another long kiss. We lingered against each other for a few moments before we broke apart and headed back to my bedroom. I easily changed into some clothes that I could wear for a long day out. They were somewhere in between formal and casual. I had on a pair of white slacks and a black silk long-sleeved shirt that was tucked in. My hair was down around my shoulders as I finished off my look with a small touch of makeup. Peggy had still been in bed as I'd been getting ready, but as I was pulling on my shoes, Peggy woke up and sat upright in the bed.

"Merry Christmas, Peggy!" I chirped at her.

She almost immediately brightened as she realized that I was in the room with her. She jumped from the bed and ran over towards me, wrapping me in a hug. "Merry Christmas, Vicky!" Peggy cried. We both laughed as we stayed together in the hug. "You heading out?"

There was only person already knew what I was doing for Bucky for Christmas. And it was mostly because she was the one that had helped me with the idea. "Yes. I'll meet you all for our get-together a little while later, I have a man to impress in the meantime," I told her.

She chuckled as I walked back towards the door. "He'll love it," Peggy said.

"Thanks for helping me with it."

The two of us hugged each other once more as I kicked the presents slightly under the bed. Peggy had already told me that she would have the men help her bring all of the presents out to the tavern. That was where we would be exchanging the presents. I headed up towards the roof of the building and soaked in the slight chill in the air and the sun high in the sky. I let the flames sink over the ends of my hair as I went to stand near the edge of the roof and look off over the side. There was a content smile resting on my face as I looked over London. Today felt different. I wasn't sure what it was, but there was something about the day that felt odd.

But it was a good kind of odd. It wasn't long before the door opened and Bucky walked out to join me. "Not planning on throwing me off of the edge, are you?" he asked, coming to stand at my side.

Not bothering to turn back to him, I smiled down at the ground. "Not unless you do something to piss me off," I said.

Bucky laughed as he came to stand with me. "Not while we're up on the roof. Or ever," he said.

His arm went around my waist and I smiled, letting myself tuck into his side. He pressed a hand underneath my chin and lifted it up to give him a small kiss. "Want your present?" I asked softly.

"Now?" Bucky asked, obviously surprised. "I thought that we were doing everything later."

"It really isn't something that I can give you with everyone else," I said.

There was a hint of shock on his face. "Oh?" he asked teasingly, placing his hands on my waist and pulling me into him.

Laughing at him, I shoved him off to the side. "Stop it. Come here," I said, pulling him up onto the edge of the building. I could tell that he was nervous. "Do you trust me?"

"Yes."

There wasn't a hint of hesitation in his voice. I held out my hand and allowed Bucky to grab it. I began to softly whip the wind up around the two of us. Bucky laughed as he grabbed me and kept us pressed together. I wrapped an arm around Bucky's waist as his went up around my shoulders. It only took a few seconds before we began to float up in the air. Bucky's grip on me tightened with nerves as I began pushing us higher and higher into the air. He was obviously very terrified as he began to laugh hysterically. We were almost two thousand feet in the air as we got up into the clouds. I could still feel Bucky shaking from fear of falling to the ground.

That was when I realized that maybe it was a mistake bringing him up here. Just because I liked the height didn't mean that he did. "We can go back down if you'd like," I offered, feeling a little dumb.

"No. No. I've just... It's a little creepy without anything beneath you," he said.

Obviously he was scared to be up here, but there was something that looked like amazement in his eyes as he looked back down towards the ground. "I won't drop you. I promise," I said softly.

Bucky was still looking towards the ground. "Everything is so small up here," he whispered.

That was partially the reason that I liked being up here. Everything was completely insignificant. "I've seen the world the way that you see it. And I like it. It's nice down there. So I wanted to show you the way that I see the world. This is the place that I really like. I love being up here. Everything seems so small and insignificant. Like there are no problems up here. No war, no problems, no nothing. Just yourself and the breeze," I told him, rushing us through the clouds to our destination.

"Do you do this a lot?" Bucky asked me.

It would have been nice to be able to fly more often. But it wasn't something that I could do in a place that was as populated as London. "No. Can't risk getting caught," I said.

"It's beautiful."

Awkwardly I began to shift towards the north. Maybe this wasn't the nicest thing that I could have done. "I know that it's not much -"

"It's perfect," Bucky interrupted reassuringly.

The last thing that I wanted was for Bucky to think that I wasn't taking this Christmas seriously. It meant the world to me that we were finally able to have a real Christmas together. Money wasn't something that meant much to me. But this - such a huge part of my life and a deep part of my soul - meant so much more. Bucky leaned in to give me a long kiss as I whipped the winds a little sharper to the north. It was a good thing that I was always so good with directions, considering Peggy had only told me them the once. We stayed together for a while, my focus pulled back and forth between making sure that we didn't fall and enjoying the kiss.

A few minutes had passed when I finally pulled back from him and smiled. His hair was extremely wind-blown, and I was sure that mine was too. "Hold on, alright?" I asked him.

There was a lingering thought in the back of my mind that told me that Bucky probably wouldn't enjoy this part. "What are we doing?" he asked.

"Don't ask."

Knowing that it was better to just get it over with, I dropped the columns of wind from around the two of us. We went plummeting to the ground together as I kept the winds high enough to keep us from falling at terminal velocity. We were going slowly enough so that I could stop us before we became human pancakes. Bucky screamed slightly and I smiled as we began the descent back towards the ground. I could tell that he was terrified as we approached the gardens that I'd been planning on taking him to. I slowed down about fifty feet from the ground and let the two of us softly hit the ground. Despite the fact that he could let go of me now that we were back on solid ground, Bucky's grip was tighter than ever.

Glancing over towards his face, I noticed that it had drained of all color. Although it seemed to be starting to turn a little bit green now that we were still. "You alright?" I asked worriedly.

He let his grip loosen on me slightly. "Now I know how Steve felt on the Cyclone," he told me. I smiled as he released me and we wrapped our hands around each other. He glanced around and cocked an eyebrow. "Where are we?"

"Kensington Palace," I answered.

"Are we allowed to be here?" Bucky asked.

In all honesty, I wasn't sure. I had a feeling that the gardens were opened to the public but it wasn't something that I knew. "I don't know. But no one will bother us here," I said. My eyes briefly flashed a brilliant white, letting him know that I could control anyone to stay away from us. He merely smiled at me. "Come here. I wanted to show you something."

Placing my hands around Bucky's wrist, I pulled him along with me. "Where are we going?" Bucky asked.

"Don't talk. Walk," I ordered.

We both laughed as I dragged him with me. We were hand-in-hand as the two of us ran out of the palace and towards the gardens. Peggy had told me all about one particular place that I really wanted to show Bucky. It was the entire reason that I had brought him out here. Bucky was right behind me with one of his hands on my waist, laughing in my ear. There were a few other people that were walking around - mostly other Christmas couples - that were also laughing as we walked forward. I dragged him to the far end of the garden and into the area that I had been looking for. It was a large arch that guests could walk underneath with vines and lights covering it. It looked almost other-worldly.

The two of us were walking underneath the covered arch and I noticed a bright smile on Bucky's face as he looked up towards the vines. "What is this place?" he asked me softly.

We were the only people here and it almost felt like we had to be quiet or we'd shatter the moment. "It's called the Lover's Arch. Peggy told me about it. I thought that it would be a nice place for the two of us to go out for a bit before heading with everyone else. I just thought that you might like it," I said, walking into the center of the arch.

There was a small opening in the vine where a chunk of sunlight could come through. Bucky smiled and walked through the shade to come and meet me. "I love it. It's perfect," he told me.

"Come here," I called.

Watching him with dark eyes, Bucky slowly started walking towards me. He came up to me quickly and I laughed as his arms wrapped around my waist, pulling me into him. We both chuckled softly as Bucky's hands went up to my hair, pulling me in for a kiss. My own arms wrapped up around his shoulders to keep him pressed against me. He began to lean backwards and I laughed as he dipped me in the middle of the Lover's Arch. It would have been the perfect time for someone to capture a picture of the dramatic kiss. There was a silliness in the moment that made us laugh against each other's mouths as he tilted me back upwards.

We shared a few smaller kisses as I leaned into Bucky, placing my head down against his chest. It was about as high as I could reach on him. "It's the perfect day," I admitted softly.

"It'll get better," Bucky said.

"Oh yeah?"

"Yeah."

As per usual, I was sure that Bucky had planned something that would outdo what I had done. I couldn't wait to see it, even if it was something as small as a romantic walk. "Do you have something special planned for me?" I asked teasingly.

Bucky smiled and nudged me. "I've got a little something up my sleeve," he said.

"I can't wait to see it."

"You'll have to tell me how you like it."

Giving him a mischievous smile, I stepped forward and placed one of my legs in between his. Bucky raised his brows at the sudden boldness. "I could always show you," I said.

Bucky laughed and pulled me into a hug. "Now that I'd really like," he said.

A smile was dark over his face as he moved closer into me. We shared another long kiss with each other and I smiled through the kiss at him. He really did mean the world to me. It wasn't long before he walked me backwards and pressed me back into the vines of Lover's Arch. I laughed as his hands gripped almost crushingly at my waist, keeping us pressed together. Our mouths tangled together for a long time as I pushed out a thought to keep everyone away from the area. This was our time. And Bucky managed to prove that by keeping me pressed against the arch, not giving me a chance to move away from him or break the kiss.

We were together for a long time - our clothes ruffled and lips swollen - by the time that we were finally forced apart. There was an alarm on Bucky's wristwatch that began to beep. Breaking apart from Bucky, I glanced down at his wrist, panting slightly from the lack of air. We backed away from each other slightly as I tightened the loosened bow over my chest that now caused the shirt to dip far too low.

"What's that?" I asked him.

Bucky sighed softly and placed his hand behind my back, pulling me with him. "It means that it's time to go... As much as I would love to stay," he said, fixing the tie around his neck.

"We'll come back one day," I promised.

"We will."

The two of us walked back through the Lover's Arch and out through the gardens of Kensington Palace. "Hang on tight," I said.

We were out in the open air and both of us enjoyed the brief lapse of silence. The sun was beating down on us, baking us slightly in the cool air, as I wrapped my arm back around his shoulders and Bucky's hand went around my waist. I felt him tense up as I brought the wind whipping around us, spending a few seconds channeling the air before lifting us off of the ground. The first time I'd taken things a little easy on him. Now I wanted to show him the truth of what I could do. We went whipping through the air at nearly a hundred miles an hour, rocketing through the sky and making Bucky laugh loudly. As we approached the Army base once more I let the wind columns drop and let us plummet back to the ground.

Only letting the wind come back up to catch us at the very end, I allowed the two of us to hit the ground. Bucky stumbled slightly as I went into a tuck and roll, catching him at the end. He laughed at me as we headed through the city center and over towards the tavern. I knew that it was where we had all planned to have a good Christmas drink and dinner together. That was also where we would all be exchanging our presents with each other. Bucky had his arm around my waist as we walked through the tavern. Today the men were sitting in the back of the bar. I could see the massive pile of presents that surrounded them.

It was rather funny to see all of the men together and laughing loudly. They looked thrilled to be here and they looked extremely excited that they were going to have a Christmas together. I assumed that their last Christmas had been rather miserable. They had been deployed and eating pre-cooked meals. The food might not be any better this year, but at least they were off of the battlefield. Bucky and I shared a quick kiss as we walked back towards the table where everyone was passing the large plates of food back and forth.

But it quickly became obvious that we weren't going to be allowed to eat tonight. "Here they are!" Dum Dum cheered.

They seemed a little more chipper than usual. Maybe it was because it was a holiday. Steve smiled at us and stood from his spot, forcing Bucky and I into chairs next to him. "Come on!" Steve chirped.

"It's present time," Peggy added, from across the table.

"Merry Christmas, everyone!" I cheered.

While Bucky said hello to everyone, I went the reverse way of the table to say hello to everyone. It was rather cute to see how excitable everyone was. I said hello to the men first, laughing loudly as Dum Dum and Jim insisted on a picture together and Gabe insisted that we play a game of darts later. Of course we knew that he would lose. There were a few other people that were there too. Chester and I shared a quick hug as I moved past him. Howard and I exchanged quick kisses before sitting back together at the table. I gave Peggy a long hug and exchanged a quick kiss on the cheek with her. Steve was the last person that I said hello to, being forced almost half into his lap due to the overflow of people at the table.

We sat together for long enough to eat and have a quick drink. The music was playing softly in the background as I leaned forward towards the rest of the group. "So shall we get to opening everything?" I asked everyone.

There were some cheers from around the table. I knew that I wasn't the only person that was excited to get to open their presents. It was one of the most exciting parts of Christmas. "You just want to see what your presents are," Gabe said.

"Hell yeah, I do."

Everyone laughed once more as Peggy and Chester began getting out all of the presents. "You big brat," Steve said.

Turning back towards him, I whacked him over the head, earning laughter from all over the table. "Thanks, jerk," I snapped.

We began exchanging presents almost immediately after. I went through my presents quickly and exchanged with the others at the table. It was rather funny that Howard had gotten me a diamond-encrusted watch. I wasn't overly fond that he had spent so much money on my present, but even I had to admit that I loved it. He had teased me by telling me that it might help me to start being on time. I had shot back with a comment that I would never be on time. It was part of my charm. I had decided to pay Howard back by getting him a replica of the jacket that I had burned the day that we'd met. It was a good joke between friends that no one else had understood.

Once I had placed the watch on my wrist, I moved on to the next of the presents. Chester's was next and I smiled. We didn't usually get each other presents but I was happy to see that he had gotten me something. It was a pretty necklace that appeared to have been almost a hundred years old. It hung just around my collarbone and had a small heart-shaped locket on the end. Inside was the first picture that we'd taken together. It was the two of us out in the field by his house, tending to a broken pipe and laughing as I tried to stop the water from flooding the yard. Apparently it had been passed down through the women in his family, and he had given it to me as I was his family. It had nearly made me cry. It turned out that great minds think alike, seeing that I had given him the same picture in a frame that I had made myself.

Everyone had clearly thought that it was rather funny that we had gotten each other the same present. I'd moved on to Peggy's present next. She had gotten me a pretty blue lace dress. It hung at my knees, tight on the chest and loose around the skirt. The lace laid over the slightly revealing main dress that had a sweetheart neckline and I laughed. She had gotten me that with the intent for me to wear it around Bucky. I'd gotten her a red scarf that I thought would go perfectly with her hair.

As I placed my dress back in the box that it had come in, I looked over towards Peggy. She was wrapping the scarf around her throat and I smiled. It went nicely with the outfit that she was wearing. I picked up Dum Dum's package and smiled at it. It was the only present that came in the awkward boxy shape that it was. As I opened the present I got a good laugh from it. He had gotten me a bowler hat that was similar to the one that he wore. It was an inky black and had a circular shield emblem stitched into the front. As he opened my present, there was a round of laughter around the table. I had bought him another bowler hat, this one made for formal occasions.

It was obvious enough that he would never get over his love for the bowler hat, so I wanted him to at least have one for formal occasions. I was rather pleased to see him change out the one that he had been wearing with the one that I had bought him. I moved onto Gabe's present next and grinned when I opened it. He had bought me a box of my favorite chocolate from the small bakery down the street. I was thrilled to see the box of chocolate and had to have it taken by Steve to ensure that I didn't eat it all in one sitting. I'd bought Gabe a new tripod for his Browning. I knew that it got to be a little too much for him to carry sometimes and the Army wouldn't give him a new one.

Once we had both placed our presents away - myself begrudgingly - I moved towards the next of the presents. It was from James and I opened it excitedly. He had bought me a cute pillow that made me smile. Although I could tell that the rest of it had been handmade, it was adorable. It was a plain white but had been drawn on. As it seemed, James was a good artist. It was a little cartoon of us during the attack at the Hydra base last month. I was obviously the star of the cartoon as I was the largest of the cartoons. The men all seemed to be following my lead. I had bought him a new pair of loafers, as he constantly complained that I had ruined his during our training sessions.

He had laughed and almost immediately replaced them. I had snapped at him that I would not be buying him another pair next year. The two of us had laughed as I'd picked out the next of my presents. It was from Jacques and I smiled. I knew automatically what it would be. We were both readers. He had gotten me a few French novels that he'd grown up on, Madame Bovary and Les Miserables. I'd promised that I would read them as he looked at my present. They were two lesser-known classics that I had enjoyed. I'd bought him Locus Solus and The Monk.

It had taken a few punches from me to get the men to stop laughing at the present. It wasn't our fault that they didn't like reading. Taking care with placing them back in the package, I turned over to Jim's package. He had gotten me a whiskey glass with everyone's names carved into it, going down the side of the glass. It wasn't just their names; Howard, Peggy, and Chester all had their names on it, too. And on the spare side was written Savage, with three jagged lines underneath that were what I assumed were claw marks. It was perfect. More as a joke than anything else, I'd gotten him a flask that was shaped like a fish since I had once told him that he drank like a fish. Everyone had gotten a good laugh out of that.

And finally there were only two presents left. I didn't see any wrapping for the one that Bucky had gotten me, so I grabbed Steve's. When I opened it I nearly laughed. It was a handmade board that had Remember when... written across the top. It must have been Peggy that had done that. It was her writing. There were all sorts of memories that were written across the board in different colors and different fonts with a few little doodles done. There were a few memories from school like breaking into Mrs. Lester's office to dump glue on her chair or mixing up all of the Valentine's that kids made so that everyone would receive the wrong ones. There were also ones from more recent days like the memory of me spending hours beating him up and having faith in him to become Captain America.

I read over the board at least ten times to ensure that I didn't miss anything. I finally looked up at Steve and smiled, bringing him into a tight hug. "Oh... I love it. It's perfect," I told him happily.

"I'm glad that you like it. I didn't have that much money this year," he gave a quick look over to Steve, "so I kind of had to make do."

"No. This is wonderful," I told him quickly.

The two of us hugged once more as Steve went back to the present that I had gotten him. He opened the package and smiled down at the present. It turned out that I had gotten something very similar to him. He smiled at the sight of it. I'd cut out an old map of Brooklyn and placed the exact spot that his apartment was in, putting it inside of a frame in the shape of a pin. It had Where it all began... written across the top with, Best friends, 1928 written across the bottom. There was even the small picture of Bucky, Steve, and I at Coney Island on the bottom of the frame.

Steve smiled at me and placed the present back on the floor. I was glad that he'd gotten just as mushy as I had. "And this is amazing, Vic. I love it. Thank you for this," he said.

Shrugging my shoulders, I shook my head. I had actually been running out of money so I figured to go for something a little more sentimental when it came to Steve. Just like I had with Bucky. "Not a problem. I've missed going out and getting presents for you guys. I miss the days like this. I miss Christmas with my boys," I said, wrapping my arm around Bucky and Steve.

"And now you've got more!" Gabe chirped, leaning over Steve to hug me.

"Lucky me," I groaned into his shoulder.

Everyone laughed as Dum Dum reached over the table and pressed a hand against my arm. I rolled my eyes at him but grabbed his hand anyways. "Come on, Victoria, you know that we love you," he told me.

"And I love you all, too," I said.

"Drinks all around!" Dum Dum called.

"On me!" Howard added.

The cheers around the tavern echoed as I laughed, grabbing Howard in another hug. If he was going to pay for drinks for all of us, I wouldn't fight that. Dum Dum laughed and patted Howard on the back. "Mr. Stark, I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship," he said.

They all laughed once more as the men launched into a conversation. But I was thrown from the conversation when Bucky leaned into me and spoke in my ear. "Come on a walk with me," he whispered.

"Okay."

Bucky grabbed my hand and I rolled my eyes at the little looks that everyone was giving me. Apparently they all thought that we were going to go out and have ourselves a little midnight rendezvous. But that was not going to happen. As much as I would have liked it to. We walked out of the building hand-in-hand, but not before I whacked Jim over the back of the head. Bucky laughed as we went out into the chill of the night air. I leaned back slightly, enjoying the peaceful quiet outside.

But it only lasted so long before I turned towards Bucky and playfully jammed my finger in his sternum. "I still haven't gotten my present from you," I teased.

Bucky smiled at me and released my hand, instead placing it around my waist. "It's coming. I promise." I nodded as we continued to walk towards the gardens. "Having a good Christmas?" he asked me.

"The best one that I've had in a long time. I'm so glad that you were here for it," I told him softly.

"I'll be here for all of the rest," he told me.

Would he really be able to be here for all of the rest of the Christmases? At least the ones that he could before nature would take him. "You're sure about that?" I asked softly.

"There's not a thing that would make me think otherwise," he said sharply.

Not wanting to bicker today, I turned towards Bucky and grabbed his hand. "I love you," I whispered to him.

A small smile fell over his face and I knew that it had just been a momentarily passing heated comment. Bucky grabbed my waist and pulled me into him. I laughed softly as I tripped slightly over my feet and stumbled into his chest. "I love you too." He gave me a quick peck on the lips. "Come on. I've got something to show you," he said.

"Okay." I laughed quietly as Bucky grabbed my hand and pulled me along the paths of the park. It was more peaceful than anything that I had ever seen before. "I don't think that I've ever been out this far in the parks. It's so nice out here. Peaceful and quiet," I said.

The two of us slowed down as I kicked my feet gently back and forth, gently scraping my heels against the stone pathway. "That's why I decided to put it out here. I knew that you would like it out here. As much as you love being around everyone that means something to you, you also like to be somewhere quiet," Bucky told me, walking just behind me.

His hand was on my hip as we walked, gently guiding me along the paths. "I used to like being alone. No one to intrude on my thoughts. Private time where I could do whatever I wanted to do. No one to interrupt me," I muttered softly.

"You said that you used to. What about now?" Bucky asked, pressing a small kiss against the side of my head.

For a moment I turned back to him and grabbed his hand. "Now there's always someone that I'd rather be with," I said softly.

Bucky smiled once more and pressed another kiss against my lips. "Close your eyes," he whispered.

For a moment I merely stared at him. Bucky smiled at me and nudged my hip gently. I laughed and nodded as I closed my eyes, feeling a little strange. I really didn't want to have to trust him. It made me a little nervous to have to walk with my eyes closed. "Don't you dare try to trip me. It won't work out well for you," I warned Bucky.

He merely laughed as his hands were on my arms. He kissed the back of my head and nudged me forward. "Be quiet. I'm not going to trip you," he chuckled.

I laughed as he pressed his front against my back. He put his hands over my eyes and kept the two of us pressed together as we started to walk forward. We walked in silence for a few minutes before Bucky finally stopped me and took his hands away from my eyes. But they were still closed underneath his eyes.

"Open them," he whispered in my ear.

By the time that we had stopped I'd been counting my steps. I knew that we were walking all the way out to the back of the gardens. They were in between the base and the tavern, but I never walked through them. I opened my eyes and laughed the moment that I saw it. Bucky had hung up lights off in the distance, in between the vines of the trees and the wrought-iron gates. There was a small blanket that was laid out almost like a picnic setting. It looked beautiful. Two champagne flutes were laid out and a bottle of champagne was next to it. There were also a few lit candles that were sitting around, adding to the romantic air of the gardens.

A small laugh escaped my throat as I turned back to Bucky. He was smiling at me, probably wondering what I thought about it. "Well way to outdo my present," I said, walking up to him.

Bucky laughed at me as he wrapped me into a small hug, turning the two of us back so that we could see the set up. "No. Yours was perfect. It was everything that I could have hoped for. I hope that mine lives up to it," Bucky told me.

"It will."

Mine was nothing compared to what he had done. "Drink?" Bucky asked.

He was motioning towards the champagne bottle and I nodded. "Please." Bucky leaned down and grabbed the bottle, pulling the cork out. We both laughed loudly as the cork shot off and across the field. Bucky began to pour the champagne after a little bit had showered us. "Thank you. Good aim, by the way," I said, as Bucky handed me the glass.

We cheered each other briefly as I took a small sip. "Says that one that used to tell me that I have terrible aim," Bucky teased.

"Worse than me," I said.

The two of us smiled at each other as Bucky grabbed me and pressed a gentle kiss against my lips. Bucky pulled away from me and leaned back slightly. "You're better than me at everything. You know that," he said.

"Not everything." He smiled at me as I nudged Bucky's leg. "Or maybe not," I teased.

He laughed at me once more as he raised his glass to me. "Cheers," he said.

"Cheers. To a very Merry Christmas."

"And many more." We both grabbed our glasses once more as I took a long drink from the champagne flutes. I was sure that it was the first time that I'd ever drank something like that. "Come here," Bucky told me.

Leaning down, I placed the champagne flute down against the blanket and so did Bucky. He wrapped his arms back around my waist as he pulled me flush against him. I smiled softly at him through the kiss as he kept me against himself. My arms went to wrap up around his shoulders so that he could lift me up slightly. The two of us laughed as he dipped me back slightly. My heart was fluttering in my chest at the moment. I was sure that it was the most intimidated that I'd ever felt around him. Something about tonight made me extremely nervous.

For a few minutes we remained locked together. Bucky finally released me and pushed my hair off of my face. "There's one other present that I got you," he said softly.

"You need to stop outshining me," I teased.

Bucky laughed at me as he motioned further through the gardens. "It's up there," he said.

He was motioning towards the slightly darker side of the gardens. "If something jumps out at me and scares me, I'll kill you," I warned him. We both laughed as Bucky untangled himself from me and I walked out towards the lights, him following me at a slight distance. I was dying to know if he had actually gotten me something materialistic. "Bucky, I don't see anything. If you have Steve out here waiting to jump on me, just remember, even surprised I can still beat the two of you up." He made no noise and I could no longer hear him following me. "Bucky, what are you -?"

Cutting myself off, I stopped dead in my tracks to see what had happened to him. He had stopped walking and I was wondering if I had done something. I turned back quickly to see where he had gone but I found myself stumbling backwards. Just a few feet behind me, Bucky was down on one knee. My heart literally skipped a beat as my knees buckled, and my hand slapped over my mouth. I'd known it was coming, but I had still thought that it was a ways off. Not tonight. He couldn't really be doing this. He was really about to propose to me. I knew that it was the only thing that he could possibly be doing.

"Victoria..." Bucky hesitated. "Should I say Davies, Rogers, or Phillips?" he asked.

I laughed breathlessly as he fumbled for a small black box in his pocket. "Anything works," I barely was able to say.

Bucky was looking straight up at me. "Vika... W-Will you marry me?" he stuttered.

My heart was pounding in my chest. "B-Bucky..." I whispered.

As much as I loved him, he had to know what he was doing when it came to me. I couldn't give him the life that he wanted. Bucky laughed awkwardly and placed down the box, running a hand through his hair. "That - uh - not the answer I was hoping for," he said.

Don't break his heart. This is what you want. It's what he wants. "N-No, I - I just... You - You need to know what you're getting yourself into," I told him weakly.

"Trust me when I say that I've already thought about it," Bucky told me, laughing softly.

"I love you more than anything," I said. My voice was breaking slightly as I spoke to him. "This is all that I've ever wanted."

"Then say yes," Bucky pleaded.

His voice was breaking the same way that my own was. "You - You need to know what's going to happen though," I stuttered.

"Tell me," he said desperately.

Surprising me slightly, Bucky stood up and wrapped my hands in his own. I was shaking slightly as he put the box away in my other hand. "I know you. I've known you since we were kids. You always wanted to get to grow old and have someone growing old with you. You wanted a family and the little white picket fence. A wife that'll be waiting for you with kids on her arms and dinner heated up. That's not me. That'll never be me," I told him.

As much as I loved him, he had to have the life that he'd always wanted, not just settle for someone that couldn't give him everything that he wanted. "You're the only person that I've ever wanted. You know that. Once upon a time I did want those things. Someone to grow old with and have a family with. But something changed that... You did. I don't care what a life with you means. I just want one," he said.

He placed his hand against the side of my face and pushed it back, keeping the two of us together. "I don't know if I can ever settle down," I said.

Bucky shook his head and smiled at me. "I love you just the way that you are. I don't want you to ever change," he told me.

And I honestly believed that. But I couldn't just let him forget a huge part. "A family... Bucky, I can't bring another mutant into this world. I don't know if I can even physically have them. I just... I don't know about that," I whispered, tears building in my eyes.

There was no way that I could let another person be treated the way that I was. Particularly not my own child. "It's okay. A family has always been Steve's thing. It would be nice to have kids or something like that. Maybe I still will. Maybe we will." There was something in the way that he said it that made me smile. He would do anything to be with me. "It's up to you. And it doesn't matter. I'll be happy as long as you're with me," he said.

"You'll be eighty years old and in a wheelchair and I'll still look like this," I argued.

My arguments were growing weaker and weaker. This was all that I wanted. Bucky smiled at me and shook his head. "That could be kind of fun. I'll be all old and wrinkly and I'll still have a smoking wife pushing me and my oxygen tank around." We both laughed as Bucky reached up and brushed away a tear. "Say yes," he said softly.

"You're sure about this?" I asked.

Bucky nodded, pressing a hand behind my head. "I've never been so sure about something in my life," he told me.

"Yes." My voice was a soft whisper that had cracked halfway through the word. I was shaking desperately as Bucky's face turned upwards into a smile. He laughed as he kissed me happily, pulling me into a crushing hug. "Yes. Yes!" I cheered as he broke the kiss.

It was right then that I realized that I wasn't the only one that was shaking. Bucky was too. He looked extremely nervous as he took out the black box once more and popped it open. There was a small white-gold ring that had three smaller diamonds on each side of a larger, square-shaped diamond. My hand was shaking as Bucky slid the ring onto my ring finger. Once more I laughed breathlessly as I jumped into his arms, pressing a long kiss against his lips. His hands came up to my face, brushing away the happy tears.

When we finally broke apart, I laughed at him and grabbed the lapels of his jacket, keeping him pressed against me. "I still can't cook," I said.

Bucky smiled at me and pressed his hand into the small of my back. "That's alright. We'll eat out," he told me.

"Every night?" I asked.

"Yes."

"You'll weigh a thousand pounds."

Bucky shook his head at me and lifted me up into a large hug, making me laugh loudly. "I'll have you to keep me working hard," he said. We both laughed once more as he gave me another kiss.

Scaring the daylights out of me, Steve came sprinting out of the far end of the gardens. "Congratulations, Vic!" he yelled, lifting me up into a hug and sending me into a quick twirl. I laughed as he put me down and patted Bucky on the back, the two of them moving into a brotherly hug. "And Buck, man, finally!"

That was when I realized that it wasn't just Steve who had been listening. All of the men, Steve, Howard, Peggy, and Chester had come out of the far side of the gardens. I laughed and placed a hand over my mouth. "Oh my God. Were you all here? Were you all listening to that?" I asked. Before they could answer, I turned back to Steve. "Thank you!"

He grabbed my hand and glanced down at the ring. "It looks even better on you," he told me.

So he had been the one that had gone with Bucky to get the ring. He'd already seen it. "Were you with him when he got this? That's where you two went the other day," I interrupted him, realizing the truth quickly.

"Surprise!" Steve cheered playfully. I laughed and shoved him gently. "You'll make a beautiful bride."

"Thank you, Steve."

Yanking me away from Steve, Peggy practically jumped into my arms. She had been waiting for this moment since she had first met Bucky and I. "Congratulations! Oh it looks so beautiful!" she cheered.

"Did you know?" I asked her.

She rolled her eyes at me and nodded. They must have all known. "Of course I knew. He came to me the other day to show it to me before he asked you. Everyone knew. Except for you, of course," she told me. I laughed and gave her a gentle shove. "Oh I've been dying, having to keep this a secret. I was so worried that you'd find out!"

It was rather shocking that I hadn't learned the truth. But I was glad that I hadn't. "You know, I'm really glad that I didn't read anyone's mind. I'm glad that it was a surprise. It was perfect," I said.

Peggy smiled at me and pressed a kiss against my cheek. "I'll let you speak with everyone else. Congratulations!" she cheered one last time.

Laughing at her softly, I rolled my eyes and released her. But before she could get too far from me, I jumped after her and grabbed onto her arm. "Hang on! Maid of honor?" I asked her.

Her eyes lit up slightly. "I'd be honored," she said, making me laugh softly.

We hugged each other tightly once more before she finally released me. I saw that Bucky was laughing with the men as I turned and walked over to where Chester was standing. I walked over to him and crossed my arms over my chest. "You knew. I know that he's a traditional man in some ways, and that's one of them. He would have asked my father. So that means that he asked you, right?" I asked him.

Chester nodded at me. "He did," he said.

"And you said yes?" I asked curiously.

"I did."

A small smile fell over my face as I wrapped him in a hug. He hadn't needed to say yes, but I was thrilled that he did. "Thank you," I told him sincerely. It meant the world that he had agreed to the engagement.

Chester's lips turned upwards for a moment before he nodded at me. "I still don't like him," he snapped at me.

Laughing once more, I pressed my hand against the side of his arm. "I know," I said.

"Congratulations, brat."

"Thanks, old man."

Despite the fact that he wasn't going to say anything, I knew that Chester really was happy for me. That was all that he'd ever wanted. For me to have a life and be happy with someone. "I'll kill him if he ever does something to you," he told me.

And that was also something that I knew. "I appreciate that," I said.

"He makes you happy?"

My heart gave a little flutter as I turned back to see the men piling around Bucky, all laughing and hugging him. Bucky caught my eye for a moment and sent me a playful wink. I turned back and nodded at Chester. "Yes. He really does. Thank you for giving your blessing. You need to know that it means the world to me," I said honestly.

Chester nodded at me. "I know that it does. And that's why I said yes. Because I know that he's the one person that can always make you happy. Enjoy your life with him," he said.

"Thanks, Dad."

Chester's eyes sparkled slightly. It was one of the few times that I had ever called him that, despite the fact that he was my father. "You're welcome, kid," he said.

He placed a small kiss on my cheek as he moved off, allowing Howard to take his place. "Congratulations!" he cheered.

"Thank you!"

"Let me see the ring. Not that I haven't already seen it," he said haughtily.

So everyone had even seen the ring. I really was the last person left out of this. Of course, that was kind of the way that it was supposed to be. "Really? So everyone saw the ring except for me? Here," I said, giving him my hand.

"It's gorgeous. So is the woman wearing it," he said.

Glancing over at him, I smiled. "Aren't you a charmer?" I teased, gently grabbing his face. We both laughed as I released him. "So you're okay with this?"

Howard smiled at me and grabbed my hand. "You know that he came over to see me after he bought the ring?" I shook my head. I didn't know that he had come to him. "He came to make sure that I was alright with the two of you getting engaged. Of course I told him that I was more than happy for the two of you. Like I said before, he's your family, and you're mine," Howard said.

"All of this... It's surreal," I laughed, motioning around us.

"It won't be for long. Go over and be with your fiancé," he said.

A small smile settled over my face. I had never thought that I would hear that word in reference to myself. "Fiancé? It's gonna be a long time before I get used to hearing that," I laughed, pushing back my hair.

Howard grinned and nudged me slightly. "Imagine. Not long from now, it'll be wife," he said.

"Oh, God."

We both laughed at my teasing comment. As much as I did love Bucky, it was extremely strange to think that one day soon we were going to be husband and wife. As I walked back over towards everyone else, I was brought into the congratulatory celebrations. Obviously they had all been planning for this to happen. That was what I had been getting those looks for earlier. Not because they thought that we were going out to have private time, but because they knew that Bucky was going to propose. We all ended up having a wonderful time as I was passed along each of the men to chat and laugh. For once, I was thrilled to have the large audience around me.

Taking me away from a conversation with Gabe, Howard pulled me to the side slightly. "You know, I actually already have your wedding present," he said. I raised my brows as he fished through his pocket and grabbed a piece of paper. "Here you are."

He handed it over to me and I glanced down. It was a check. But there was nothing on it other than his name. "Howard. This check is blank. Your name is the only thing on it," I snapped. He merely smiled at me. That was when I realized that the check was blank because he was only going to fill it out when he knew the price... Of our wedding... "Oh... This is too much."

Weddings could get expensive. I didn't want him paying for something like that. Howard shook his head and forced me to keep the check. "It's not. I'm not getting married anytime soon. Neither one of you have the funds to make this a wedding that's more than a backyard barbecue. Colonel Phillips shouldn't have to pay for it when I could. Like I've said before, you're my family," he told me.

"You're sure about this?" I asked weakly.

It could be a lot of money that he would spend. Although if anyone had the money to blow, it was Howard. "Absolutely," he said.

Smiling at him, I put the check in my pocket and looked back up at Howard. "How can I ever repay this?" I asked.

"Don't you dare get a divorce," he snapped.

We both laughed as I shook my head. "I wasn't planning on it," I said.

The two of us smiled once more as I pulled him into a hug. I was thrilled to have a night like this. It felt like we would never actually get to this point. "Come on! We're celebrating with a Christmas round!" Gabe cheered, pulling us with him.

All of the men began to cheer at the thought as Bucky and I were dragged back to the bar. I laughed softly as Bucky came to stand next to me and wrapped an arm around my waist. My hand went over his and I noticed that he was running his fingers over the ring. I laughed softly and glanced up at him. I couldn't remember ever being as happy as I was right now. Everyone was chatting away happily as we made our way back to the tavern and ordered a few rounds. The men had taken the bottle of champagne with us and it didn't take long for us all to drain it. I laughed as I watched them all interact with each other. Those were my stupid boys.

We were sitting in silence for a while as Bucky leaned over to me. He pressed his lips up against my ear, making me smile as I leaned into him. "Good Christmas?" he asked me happily.

"The best."

"Merry Christmas," he said.

"Merry Christmas," I repeated.

Bucky smiled at me and I laughed softly as he leaned in to give me a quick peck on the lips. Nothing would ever beat this day. Not until the day that I took the walk down the aisle. "Fiancé. It's got a nice ring to it. Doesn't it?" he asked as we broke the kiss.

Laughing softly, I nodded at him. We were engaged. It was the perfect ending to the perfect Christmas. "Yes. I like the sound of it," I said softly.

We both smiled as he pulled me up onto the dance floor, the men ordering a dance for the newly-engaged couple. As we spun around the dance floor we pulled each other into a little kiss. Everyone that remained at the table began to laugh and cheer as we remained locked in the kiss. The only thing that I wanted was to stay with him forever. But we eventually separated as I smiled at him and laid my head down on his chest. His arms were tight around my back protectively. The music was a little faster paced but the two of us just stood together and swayed gently on the floor. He was finally my fiancé. And it wouldn't be long before he was my husband. It was officially the best Christmas I'd ever had.

A/N: Hurricane Irma has passed and there was no damage to anything of mine, so life moves on. Hopefully if any of you were in the path of the storm, you were unaffected as well. Isn't that sweet? Victoria and Bucky are engaged now and happier than ever! I hope that you guys liked this fluff-filled chapter. I was feeling in the mood to write something nice. Next chapter will get back into the action. Thanks so much for all of the follows and favorites! Please review! Until next time -A

rebelforcauses: College is going really well. We had to take off a week for the hurricane so that's put me behind in classes and that's annoying, but the professors will try to put everything back to normal. Glad that you liked this chapter! And I'm so happy that you love Victoria!

.2017: Thanks so much! Hope that you liked this one!

lovingvamp346: I'm so glad that you love this story! Unfortunately Bucky will still fall from the train because I love The Winter Soldier and Civil War and he's a vital character in those. Plus it will help Victoria's character development going into The Avengers. She won't fall from the train but the story will - after Steve's trip into the ice - move into modern day. I have big plans for Victoria! I hope that you like this one!

kuppcake: Thank you! The action bits are definitely some of my favorite pieces to write in the story. School is okay, we all managed to get behind with the days lost from the hurricane. Best of luck with grad schools!

A1m0st1sN3v3rEn0ugh: Thanks! I was perfectly safe during the storm.

SupernaturalSmiles: Thank you! I was safe during the storm.

Verona1700: I'm so glad that you love the story! Here's hoping that you're still enjoying as you catch up. I'm so glad that you liked that chapter. Abraham Erskine dying was really terrible so it definitely hurt to kill him. Hope that you liked these last few chapters!