Disclaimer: Everything belongs to their rightful owner(s).
Timeline: Set after Captain America: The Winter Soldier, when (or if) Steve finds Bucky.
Posted on: June 25th 2014
Anonymous asked: "I take it back, this is a terrible idea."
"I take it back, this is a terrible idea."
Steve gave Tony an unimpressive look while the billionaire stared back, shrugging his shoulders as if in a way to say what, it's true, sometimes I can't help it while Clint, from Tony's other side, pushed his sunglasses up to his nose. "Don't worry, if anything goes wrong, we could just put the blame on Hill."
Maria Hill, who had been leaning against their motorcycles, glared back, snapping: "I'll poison all of you."
Steve had a momentary moment to think that she might not be kidding while Clint and Tony roared up laughing, amused, and watched as Hill rolled her eyes, excused herself as she drew a pack of cigarettes from her back pocket to smoke elsewhere, knowing neither Steve nor Bucky, who currently was being the subject of all of their attention (or simply the Avenger's new experiment), could take the intoxicated smoke.
Steve returned his attention back at Bucky, who stood there in the middle of the large playground, surrounded by parents and children everywhere; his posture looked stiff, eyes very much aware of his surroundings, but he did not attack, he was not triggered.
"Okay, I admit." Tony declared again, "Maybe we should have had this run by Bruce before―"
"You― what," Clint gasped, eyes bulging out from behind his dark shades. Honestly, Steve thought, as his fingers began to curl into a fist, punching Tony right now would have been immensely satisfying and very-much-so tempting. He glared at the (older? younger?) other man.
"That's it," Steve decided, "We'll take Bucky home right―"
"Woah, stand down there, Spangles. Look." Tony interjected, humming under his breath and eyes now zeroed in towards Bucky, who was now joined by a familiar red head; Natasha approached, face beautiful and gentle, shoulders relaxed and posture cool. Bucky looked even more tensed, and Steve held his breath for his long-lost best friend.
"James," Steve (using his super-hearing) heard she said when she stood close to him, bright eyes fluttering calmly.
"Natalia," he called back in a foreign tone, not quite unwelcome, but not entirely friendly either, and something deep in Steve's stomach coiled up, knowing that Natasha had been the cause of his triggers numerous times before. He was getting better, yes, but still.
"Come on," she said instead, and daringly fit her hand down his palm, fingers locked in between the spaces of his. "There's a lake," she told, eyes glinting and mouth curling softly into the smallest of smiles, "we could feed the ducks."
She tugged on his hand again, and Steve might have heard Bucky mumbled okay under his breath, stumbling a bit as he followed her lead steadily. Tony exhaled while Clint shrugged his shoulders, "I guess they're going down the lake. I mean, he hasn't gone all Bucko, so that's good right?"
"I-I guess," Steve shrugged, then rolled his shoulders.
"You know what, Boy Scout?" Tony prided himself, "I think it will go extremely well. I'm sure Bruce would be just delighted to hear this very-much good news of our Soldier friend's progress."
He wasn't.
But Bucky did smile that day, just as Natasha would guide his hand to feed the ducks, hesitantly and a little small, but a smile nevertheless. One Steve hadn't seen for a long time and made his chest ached in a way he couldn't accurately describe. But it was good. Because when Bucky smiled, it's a little for himself, for Steve, for Natasha, and for everyone else. And Steve knew this when he caught the other man's eyes, the smile still lingering at the corner of his chapped lips, hand tucked gently under the Widow's.
It was a good day, Steve thought.
They still blamed Hill anyway.