Day 12 – Lantern
"Why do they send the people who hate the cold on missions to the coldest spots on earth?" Clint whined, shivering as the lantern he was carrying swung back and forth, lighting the trail.
"It's a conspiracy," Bucky groaned as he trudged behind Clint, keeping an eye on their surroundings. "Plus, I can't think of any warm place HYDRA stayed. Guessing they hibernated during the summer. Course, I was in cryo a lot, so what did I know?" Bucky heard a thud and saw the dim light emanating from the lantern disappear. "Barton?"
"I'm fine." Bucky heard Clint's voice coming from – the ground?
"You fell, didn't you?" Bucky rolled his eyes.
"Tripped over a snowbank, if you must know. But look? Found the safe house!" Bucky heard another thud which was followed by a creaking sound. "And we're in." Clint moved the lantern around, lighting the way to the closet where the fuse box was located. There was a sizzle followed by an overhead light fixture with a single bulb flickering. Clint returned to the living room, stomping to get the circulation moving in his feet.
Bucky looked down and saw Clint's shoes. "Clint! Get your ass on the couch and take off what's left of your shoes. Hell, take off your pants, too."
"Aw, Bucky, never knew you were interested," Clint grinned as he toed off his shoes, then removed his socks and pants.
Thankfully, the dim lighting hid the blush that suddenly appeared on Bucky's face. This was not how he wanted to let Clint know he was interested in him. "I'll get you some blankets from the bedroom." Bucky took off to the bedroom, returning shortly with a pile of quilts and blankets he found, tossing them to Clint. Without saying another word, he went to the kitchen to heat some water.
"There better be some good coffee in there!"
"Leave it to him to think about nothing but coffee," Bucky mumbled. He filled up a roasting pan with warm water, using the rest to make instant coffee, figuring that was better than nothing. "Here," he said, handing the mug to Clint. "All I could find was instant." Bucky sat down, took Clint's feet, then put them in the pan."
"Yuck, but I'll take it," Clint said, inhaling the coffee. He started giggling. "Stop tickling my feet."
"At least you can feel them, so no frostbite." Bucky lifted his metal arm and handed Clint another cup of coffee. After several minutes, Clint stopped making noise. Bucky looked up to see his head drooped to the side, sound asleep. Figuring Clint wouldn't lose any toes to frostbite, he took the pan back into the kitchen and emptied the water. He returned to the living room, gently dried Clint's feet, and sat on the couch. Bucky maneuvered Clint's feet into his lap and covered him up, finally falling asleep until the rescue team picked them up the next morning.