The large yellow envelope stared at Bucky all the way home from the post office where he pulled it out of their mailbox. With a return address of a lawyer in North Lake Tahoe he wanted to open it on the spot but he knew Julia would also want to see the contents at the same time he did. It sat there on the passenger seat along with their regular mail and he resisted every inclination to pull over and open it. He knew what it was but having the actual physical proof was different than receiving the phone call to say everything went through. Even the arrival of the moving van the previous week before to load up almost 80 years of Johnson acquired furniture and possessions didn't have the official stamp that the contents of the yellow envelope had. Bucky opened the garage door with the remote opener, pulled in and parked his truck. Then he grabbed the mail and headed towards the house, closing the garage with the wall control.

"Hey, I have the mail," he yelled as he stepped inside. "There's one from the real estate lawyer."

Julia came to the door to kiss him and she took the mail out of his hands while he kicked his boots off. Together they went to the kitchen where she dumped the mail on the counter and grabbed the large yellow envelope. Looking at Bucky in anticipation he nodded and she tore it open pulling out the documents. They both leaned over the counter to read they were the official owners of #279, Rubicon Bay Lane, Tahoma, California. The house keys were to be couriered to them by the official possession date in 4 days.

"It's ours babe," said Bucky, putting his arm around her and kissing the side of her head. "All bought and paid for. I can start the tear down next week. Sam said he'll come to help, so have a couple of other Avengers."

"It's really happening," replied Julia. "We'll make that house just the way we want it. Then we'll fill it with kids."

"You haven't had your period yet," he said gently. "I noticed. Do you think we should get one of those pregnancy tests?"

"I have two in the bathroom," she smiled. "I was waiting for the possession date but we can do it now, if you want. I'm pretty sure I am this time."

Bucky picked Julia up effortlessly and sat her on the counter. Spreading her knees apart he stepped in between them and pulled her close to him before sensuously kissing her. His hand was on her breast and he caressed it as he kissed her bringing out some satisfied sounds from her as he made her nipple erect.

"Someone's responsive," he noted.

She returned the sensuous kiss and Bucky picked her up, carrying her up the stairs. Jasper followed them but Bucky closed the door leaving the cat outside in the hallway complaining. Eventually the cat settled down and he sat patiently waiting for the door to open again. When it did he went inside and settled on the bed. Bucky and Julia were lying under the covers with a pregnancy test resting on the duvet. Patiently they waited for Bucky's phone to count down the minutes. When it went off he muted it and looked at Julia.

"Go ahead," he said.

She picked it up, looked at it and showed it to him. With a smile he kissed her, then hugged her hard. "We're going to be parents," she said, her voice choking a little. "First the house, and now this. We'll have a baby before Christmas, before our first anniversary."

"Perfect," he responded. "Now I know how long I have to get our house ready. I'll submit the plans next week for approval and start breaking down walls." He ran his hand through her hair. "I'm so excited to make our forever home, just like the home improvement shows say."

Over the weeks that followed Julia began experiencing severe morning sickness, prompting a visit to an obstetrician that her family doctor referred her to. Based out of South Lake Tahoe, Dr. Rudzinski was a vibrant woman of similar age to Julia. They clicked on that first visit and she made herself available for Julia to phone outside of office hours, considering the anxiety she could feel due to her Asperger's.

Mason's trial was scheduled several weeks later at the local court house. After being arrested he was released after posting bail under the condition of no contact with Julia. Julia, Bucky, and Greg were called as witnesses while Sam was permitted to give testimony via video conferencing. Just a day before the trial was to begin Mason changed his plea to guilty. He was sentenced to probation, and a continuation of the restraining order. He officially lost his job with the San Francisco Police Department. Rick Garcia told them the last he heard Mason was working at a grocery store.

Bucky was well into the tear down on the inside of the former Johnson house. It revealed some more issues that they were expecting but not to the extent they found. Fortunately, it was still covered within the scope of the current plans so they didn't have to wait for new approvals. Starting in the basement Bucky and Greg added some more structural support so they could add several large beams in to enlarge the living, dining, kitchen and family room areas, now integrated into one huge great room. Having already witnessed Bucky's strength on other job sites Greg still got a big kick out of him holding up one end of the beams himself while it took several men to hold up the other ends as they put them into place. Once the beams were in place they were able to redo the floor plan for the upper bedroom level, the main level and the lower level. All the windows facing the lake received a major upgrade fully exposing the great view that impressed Bucky the first day he stayed in the house. The master bedroom was enlarged with the addition of a dormer that included a large bathroom ensuite. They added another bedroom, making four bedrooms total in the upper level and a large bathroom to be shared amongst three of the bedrooms.

When Bucky went on missions he hired Greg's crew to continue the work in his absence. Being a man of detail the crew never had an issue with his instructions or intentions. Greg, who helped with the plans always stopped in as well to make sure Bucky's vision was honoured. As winter turned into spring the work on the house progressed. Julia would come over at least once a week to see the changes. She and Bucky already chose their finishings and as the tile went down in the bathrooms and kitchen it started to look more like a home. By the time the painters were in as fall started the house was almost ready to live in. They walked through it after Bucky's return from a mission during mid-September.

"We just have the baseboards and window trim left for most of the house," said Bucky. "Once I get the window coverings up we can actually move in if you want. The bathrooms are ready."

He opened the door to their ensuite and Julia ran her hand over the large claw foot bathtub that Bucky found in an architectural restoration store in Reno. It cost a bit to have the finish restored but it looked beautiful in their modern bathroom. The double shower was also something and the shower heads were up high enough that Bucky wouldn't have to stoop.

"What about the nursery?" she asked.

He smiled and led her into the room by her hand. Unlike the other bedrooms this one was complete. The crib was already assembled and the changing area had a shelf unit next to it with places for diapers, lotions, clothing and anything else needed close at hand. Pulling the room darkening shades down Julia smiled as stars appeared on the ceiling. She could imagine nursing the baby in a rocking chair while they both looked at the stars.

"It's beautiful," she said, getting emotional. "Where did you get the ideas for all of this?"

"I checked out some magazines and Greg said to look at Pinterest," replied Bucky. "I just wanted it to be perfect for you and the baby."

He patted her abdomen and hugged her. Although Julia knew they were having a daughter Bucky insisted he didn't want to know so she kept it secret. The nursery was gender neutral but it was still beautiful and organized well. Suddenly, she felt the baby move and she called out to Bucky. Placing his hands on her he smiled as he felt the movement. Then he took Julia by the hand and they went down to the kitchen. The appliances were all in, as were the counters and cabinets. The plumbing still had to be finished for the sink and dishwasher but that was pretty much it. In the living and family rooms the finishing carpenter was putting the baseboards and window trim on. He stood up when Bucky and Julia came into the family room.

"Buck, it's looking good," he said. "You had a good vision for this house. Plus you kept an original house from being torn down. It's been a pleasure working for you."

"Thanks, Ben," he said. "Have you ever met my wife, Julia?"

"We have mutual friends," he replied, shaking her hand. "I think you'll like living here."

"It's like a dream," replied Julia. "My grandpa built his cabin next door in 1944, which is the garage now. Greg's grandpa built the rest of the house with financing from the Vet's bill. I don't think Grandpa ever envisioned the growth here. Don't get me wrong, I hate those multimillion dollar houses that see occupancy only a couple of times per year. But it is still a community and it's my community, and Bucky's and soon the baby's. This is home."

"Amen," stated Ben. "Can I just say again it's been good working for you as general contractor. You've paid your subs on time and have really let us do our jobs without always looking over our shoulders, unlike another individual."

"Edwards?" asked Bucky sympathetically. "I don't know what his deal is."

"I still haven't been paid for a house I finished for him two months ago," said the carpenter. "I've billed him twice and heard crickets."

"You okay for cash flow?" asked Bucky, concerned. "I could tide you over."

"No, no, I'm good," he said, "but thanks for offering. You're a good man. Anyway, I better get back to it. It was awfully nice meeting you Mrs. Barnes. Everyone says you're a real sweetheart and I have to agree."

She flashed him a beaming smile which he returned before he bent back down to his baseboards. As they left the house Julia looked distressed. Bucky noticed and stopped on the deck.

"What's wrong?" he asked. "The house is good, right?"

"The house is great," she replied. "I heard a rumour that Terry Edwards is on the brink of bankruptcy. I don't think Ben will get paid. Edwards has three houses being built, none of them finished, and some of the sub trades are refusing to work for him until they get paid."

Bucky shook his head angrily. "You really had that guy pegged," he said to her as they walked up the steps to her parent's house. "I'm guessing Greg and the other contractors will have to take on those houses. It's not right that guys like Edwards can cheat people out of their money."

A week later everything was done and the moving company brought the pod of Julia's furniture from her condo. Her parents and siblings came to unpack boxes while Bucky assumed the role of The Muscle, taking heavy things up or down stairs. Shaun and Katy also showed up, making a fuss over how big Julia was. She sat in an office chair with casters and directed everyone to where things were to go. They previously ordered some new furniture as well and when that arrived they had a new sofa and oversized armchairs in the living room, a king sized bedroom suite in their room, and office furniture for Julia's office on the lower floor. While the last piece of furniture was brought in Julia took delivery of several extra large pizzas, one of them loaded for her, while Bucky handed out beers to everyone.

"I can't believe the changes in this house," said Lydia. "You completely transformed it, Bucky."

"We're pretty happy with how it turned out," he said. "I acted as general contractor on this. Greg said he might get me to do it on some other houses as well. Of course, if I have a mission I have to go."

"Mom, you should go up and see the nursery," said Julia. "There are stars everywhere. It's so beautiful. And Bucky found a real claw foot bathtub at an architectural restoration store. Got it refinished and carried it up there himself. I can't wait to have a bath in it."

"I'd like to see that," said Katy. "May I?"

"Go ahead," said Julia. "2nd door on the right."

Katy went upstairs followed by Janey and Lydia. They didn't hear anything at first then they heard laughter. That piqued the curiosity of Julia's brothers, her dad, and Shaun, and they all went up. There was more laughter.

"I think they like it," said Julia.

Then they heard the group move into the nursery. Katy came back down first, her eyes animated.

"That is a gorgeous tub," she said to Bucky. "The stars in the nursery are so beautiful. They totally act like a night light so you can see what you're doing in the dark."

The others came down with much the same sentiment. Bill, Julia's father, looked thoughtfully at Bucky.

"Well, Bucky," he pronounced. "You've convinced me that before I retire I need to update our house. What you've done here is nothing short of amazing. This house is good for the next 70, 80 years easily. I don't want to spend my retirement fixing everything that goes wrong in our house. Do you think you can help us come up with a renovation plan for our house?"

"Are you serious?" asked Bucky. Bill and Lydia both nodded enthusiastically. "Yeah, we can sit down and talk before you go back. I'll need an idea of your budget, obviously. What we did here was a major upgrade and we completely changed the layout on the main floor. We can do the same to your place or just focus on the areas that need it the most. Whatever you want."

Julia looked proudly at Bucky, pleased that her parents thought so highly of his construction skills. He emailed Bill a copy of their floor plans, as the houses were almost identical in layout before the renovation and told them to have a look at whether they wanted the same or just concentrate on certain areas. Stifling a yawn that got the attention of the others everyone stood and said it was time to go. Shaun and Katy asked if they could crash on a sofa on the first level and Julia told them they could stay in the guest room, asking if there wasn't a karaoke event they wanted to check out first. That brought laughs from everyone. Julia's family returned to their place with the promise of breakfast for everyone.

After locking up, Bucky and Julia left the other two watching a movie on TV and went upstairs to their new room. Lydia made their bed before she left which they both appreciated and they settled in with Julia spooning behind Bucky while she had a pillow between her legs. She started using it after experiencing some back pain. As she lay there the baby started kicking and Bucky chuckled as he felt the kicks on his back.

"The baby's trying to kick me out of bed," he said. "Why does it always get active when we go to bed?"

"Practice?" She suggested. "Getting us ready for late night feedings."

He pulled her arm around his chest and put his hand on top of hers. "Sing it a song," he suggested. "It likes your voice. I like your voice."

After clearing her throat Julia began singing Blackbird by the Beatles. Ever since their wedding preparations Bucky had been exposed to all number of Beatles songs. Julia loved their music because the early tunes made her feel happy. The later, more psychedelic songs intrigued her as she tried to isolate what the instruments were. Bucky even created a separate playlist for them on his phone. As she sang in their bed he could feel the baby settle down to the sound of her voice. It even soothed him and by the time she finished the song both he and the baby slept.

A phone messaging alert woke Bucky up and he looked back at Julia to make sure she was still asleep as the sound of the alert was the one he assigned to the Avengers. Looking at the words he sighed. In ten days he was taking time off to be home for the baby but until then he was considered available for a mission. Still, the last few missions had all been over within a few days so he should be good for this one. He acknowledged receipt and after quickly showering he got dressed in the bathroom. His go bag was usually in the closet at the other house and he hoped it was successfully transferred to the closet here. Opening the door gingerly he smiled as he saw it on the floor of the large walk-in space. Quickly he checked to make sure he had everything he needed then he turned off the light and left the space, carrying his bag to the door and out to the hallway. The sounds of the shower reached his ears and he realized Shaun had also been activated.

Stepping down the stairs he went to their new kitchen and started up the coffee. Within minutes Shaun joined him.

"You got the alert as well?" he sleepily asked. "I'm glad Katy and I didn't go to karaoke. Getting up this early is brutal enough when you've had a good sleep. It would have been torture if we only had a couple of hours sleep."

Bucky pushed a mug of coffee over to him and checked his cell phone again to see if he had been sent an update on the mission. He clicked on the link and the file opened. He read it out loud so Shaun could hear.

"Building collapse in South Africa," he read. "Local rescue organizations have declared it too dangerous for them to conduct operations. They are asking for our help. That means you, me, and Thor for sure, possibly Scott and Hope as their suits give them extra strength. If anyone else is coming it will be as support. They need muscle for this. Have you ever done a collapsed building rescue before?"

"No," replied Shaun. "You mean we have to go into it and find people?"

Bucky nodded. "You have to go slow, make sure before you move anything that it's not holding up a bigger weight above it. I'm thinking that Scott and Hope can probably fly through the building locating survivors for us. That leaves the three of us to get to them and extract them. I wonder if they've asked the sorcerers to help? Sometimes they can open a portal into an inaccessible space that allows us in to extract the wounded and take them out through another portal."

As they talked they each received texts from Scott asking if they had been called in for this mission. Both men smiled wryly. Bucky read further on the encrypted file noting he was expected at the Air National Guard terminal. Shaun's said his pickup was at San Francisco Airport but he texted that he was in Lake Tahoe and his orders were updated to the Air National Guard terminal as well. They had to be there in two hours. Grimly Bucky said he had to tell Julia and he went back up to the room. Julia was still asleep, buried under the duvet. He sat on the edge of the bed and rubbed her back, knowing that soothed her. After about a minute she sighed and she rolled over to look at him.

"Before I was this pregnant that was an invitation to sex," she said drily. "Now, it seems to be a way to prepare me for bad news."

"Mission," he replied. "Rescue operation in South Africa. They need muscle on this. My leave starts in ten days so I'm out of there by then and I'll be home for a couple of months with you and the baby. The timing sucks sometimes."

She struggled to sit up so Bucky offered her his arm. Placing her arms around his neck she rested her head on his chest.

"When do you go?" she asked.

"Right away," he said. "Shaun and I have to catch a flight out of the Air National Guard base. It's a direct flight to New York, at least. We can probably talk every day because it's not a classified mission."

She smiled grimly then sighed. "Be careful," she said. "If anything were to happen to you ..."

"I know," he soothed her with his voice. "I'll always come home to you, Julia. I promise."

They held each other tightly for a long moment then Bucky released her, smoothing her bed head down and kissing her tenderly on the lips. Julia laid back down as he stood up and left the room. When she heard the front door close a few minutes later she rolled onto her side and cried.

Out in the truck both men buckled in and Bucky drove to Reno Airport, pulling into the designated parking for military after showing his ID at the gate. When they got inside Bucky nodded to the corporal at the check in desk and showed him his ID.

"Sergeant James Barnes, Reserves, and Xu Shang-Chi, Avengers," he said. "We're booked on a flight to New York."

"Yes, Sarge," replied the corporal. "Mr. Chi, may I see your driver's licence please?" Shaun pulled it out and the corporal nodded his acceptance. "Sorry, Mr. Xu. They're actually waiting for your arrival to take off. If you follow me please?"

He led them out to the tarmac and Bucky told Shaun to follow him. They went up the boarding ramp of the cargo jet and found two seats together as it wasn't a full flight. They were handed their noise cancelling headphones and strapped in.

"It's going to get loud," said Bucky in a loud voice. "You'll need these. Try to sleep while you can."

He put the headphones on and Shaun followed suit. Within minutes of the takeoff Bucky closed his eyes and slept. Shaun watched him for a moment, shrugged, reclined his seat and closed his eyes. In just a few minutes he also was asleep.

The crying lasted for about ten minutes then Julia took a deep breath and got up. She got dressed then went downstairs where she began making breakfast for herself and Katy. Putting Katy's food on a plate she kept it warm in the oven while she ate hers. Jasper, as if sensing she was hurting, kept rubbing against her legs and making that soft trilling sound deep in his throat. About half an hour after Julia ate Katy stumbled into the kitchen and Julia poured her a coffee.

"I got lots of sleep last night," said Katy. "That was such a comfortable bed. Did I imagine it or did Shaun and Bucky leave?"

"They were called out to a mission," replied Julia. "A collapsed building in South Africa. The local rescue organizations won't touch it because it's too dangerous. So a request was made to the Avengers."

"Bummer," said Katy, without thinking. "Sorry, I tend to get a little flippant about some things. Are you okay? It's close to your due date isn't it?"

"Three and a half weeks," replied Julia. "I had my cry. Bucky promised he would return in 10 days at the latest to start his paternity leave. I have to believe him."

"He will," said Katy reassuringly. "He's a man of his word. Do you want me to stay with you while he's gone?"

"Don't you have a job to go to?" asked Julia.

"Yeah, but maybe I want to support my girlfriend while she's feeling a little down," replied the other woman. "We are girlfriends, aren't we?"

Julia looked at the open book that was Katy. She had been easy to read from the start because of her easy going and good nature. "Yeah, we are girl friends. You can stay as long as it doesn't get you into trouble with your boss."

Katy gave her the "Me? Trouble?" look and made her laugh. They hugged and Julia actually felt better knowing that Katy would stay with her. Her parents were a little upset that Bucky had to leave so quickly but Julia informed them the mission required people of strength and he fit the bill. She convinced them that with Katy around they didn't have to stay then she promised to call them if the baby came. The others left for San Francisco and Julia went into holding mode; waiting for the baby to arrive and for Bucky to return. Over the next week she and Katy had a really good time. Katy drove her to her doctor's appointment, went grocery shopping, and even held her hand a few times when her emotions got the better of her. Bucky did video call every day and reiterated each time that he would be leaving on the 9th day to get back to her.

On the morning of the 9th day Julia's back was really bothering her and she had to ask Katy to rub it for her as she laid on her side while on the bed. Katy did her best and as Julia went into the bathroom she realized her feet were wet. As she looked down she saw a puddle forming on the floor.

"Katy!" she yelled. "My water broke!"

Katy ran into the bathroom and looked at the still growing puddle forming at Julia's feet. "Holy shit!" she said loudly. "What do I do?"

"Get my phone and bring it to me," said Julia calmly. "I have to phone my doctor and Bucky."

After speaking to her doctor the decision was made for her to go to the birthing centre as soon as she could. The back pain she had experienced was likely early labour. Julia placed the next call to Bucky but the video call wouldn't go through. She tried phoning and he picked it up on the second ring.

"What's up?" he asked. "The video call wouldn't work. I'm at the airport, about to board my flight to New York."

"How long is that flight?" she asked in return. "My water broke and I had back labour for some time this morning. Once I get dressed I'm heading to the birthing centre." She felt a contraction and breathed through it. "Just had a contraction."

"Alright, you go to the birthing centre," said Bucky firmly, "I'll get there, Julia. I promised. I love you, baby."

"I love you, too," she said. "Just get here."

Using towels Katy dried her off as best she could then she helped Julia change her bottoms. Katy took the travel bag that had the baby things in it and helped Julia out to the car where she reminded Katy to lock up the house. She had three more contractions on the 30 minute drive to the birthing centre. When they arrived Katy was ready to leave but Julia insisted that she had to stay until Bucky got there. Nervously Katy put scrubs on over her clothes, washed her hands and sat with Julia in the suite where she would go through labour, delivery, and recovery. There was a TV, fridge, rocking chair and Katy was able to access wi-fi for Julia's phone. As Julia's labour progressed over the day to where she was down to a few minutes between contractions she began to get nervous about Bucky not making it then she received a text from him.

It's all arranged. I'll be there in a couple of minutes. Love you.

They heard a strange sound outside then the sound of someone running down the hallway. Katy recognized the sound as a portal opening and closing. Bucky was able to get a sorcerer to send him directly to the hospital. He had to go and put scrubs on and wash his hands first before they would let him into the hospital suite but as soon as he did Julia started to cry.

"Please don't cry," he said softly as he took his place beside her. "I promised I would get here. Airport security weren't happy with me for not boarding the plane and detained me until we got Rhodey to intervene but they eventually let Wong open a portal for me to come here."

"I guess I'll go wait in the waiting room," said Katy, with a little smile.

"No, you're staying," said Bucky. "You've been with Julia this whole time like the good person you are. I want you to stay and see my daughter being born."

"How did you find out?" asked Julia incredulously. "You didn't want to know and I told no one."

"I know," he replied. "I called Dr. Rudzinski from South Africa. I changed my mind." He looked at Katy. "Will you stay?"

Through her tears Katy nodded wordlessly and went back to her position on the other side of Julia. At this point, after examining Julia, the nurse said she could start pushing as soon as Dr. Rudzinski got there in a couple of minutes. Ten minutes later their daughter slipped into their world and Bucky proudly cut the cord before touching his daughter for the first time. What hair she had was almost blond in colour but he saw features of both of them in her face and he kissed Julia tenderly. When the lactation consultant came in to guide Julia through nursing the baby he watched with pure love on his face for both his wife and daughter. Katy quietly took some photographs of the new family. Bucky leaned towards Julia's ear and said something to her which made her smile broadly.

"I think that's a good idea," she said to Bucky then turned to Katy. "We're going to name her Rebecca Kate. Are you okay with that?"

"Well, my Chinese name is Ruiwen but I would still be honoured by your decision," replied the other woman laughing a little. "I've always considered myself a Kate at heart which is why I chose Katy as my English name."

When Julia was finished feeding Rebecca the nurse told Bucky to take his shirt off.

"Why?" he asked.

"Because we've found that fathers who hold their newborns next to their skin have a better bond with them," said the nurse. "You can put a receiving blanket over your metal arm, Mr. Barnes, so that she doesn't feel the cold. I hear you run a few degrees hotter than normal. Trust me, babies are like cats in that they love the warmth. You won't regret it."

Bucky took his scrub top off, then his T-shirts and sat in the rocking chair. The nurse draped a receiving blanket over his metal arm. She brought Rebecca over to him and laid her so her head was on Bucky's chest, then she guided his metal hand to support her bottom and his flesh hand to cradle her back and head. Rebecca stretched out taking in Bucky's warmth. Both Julia and Katy watched with some amusement as he tried to hold her properly. He could have scowled at them but he was so taken by this soft skinned little baby girl that he helped create he just enjoyed the moment instead.