Archive of Our Own

Chapter Text

Bucky stared out the window at the city of New York.

The city gleamed in the twilight, cloaked in thousands upon thousands of glittering lights. Strings of light ran through her veins down below, the life and heartbeat of the city laid out for him to see. Behind him, he could hear Natasha and Clint moving around the kitchen, Clint teasing her about her taste in coffee. A smile twitched his lips. Clint would be singing a different  tune soon enough, Bucky’s nose said that Clint was burning the coffee. He just hadn't realized it yet.

He took a deep breath and went back to looking out at the city.

Tasha had set all of this up. Steve and the Avengers had had to go on a string of short but hard and exhausting missions lately, and various agencies had inevitably shown up while they were away from the tower, demanding that the Winter Soldier be turned over to them. Jarvis always hid Bucky away in a suit and allowed them to search. The searches were becoming fewer and farther between, and no one had found anything.

But Natasha had had enough.

She'd made several calls to tell the heads of the various agencies what she thought of their ‘stalker shit’. She'd also told Shield that the Avengers were taking a night off, and anyone who put out the call to assemble for anything less than the world ending would answer to her. Given the reputation she’d worked hard to cultivate in Shield, she was confident that her warning would be heeded.

Bucky smirked. If they were smart they'd let her alone for a few days before asking her for anything else. Because she'd apparently gone to a lot of effort to set this up. And he'd be damned if he didn't like the sound of what she'd outlined for the evening.

She wanted to dance.

Natasha had always loved to dance. And she said she'd really enjoyed swing dancing with him and Steve, and would like to do it again.  When Clint told her that Thor had expressed an interest in learning, that had sealed the deal. Natasha had cajoled, threatened and pulled strings to ensure everyone was here tonight.

Everyone .

Tasha had even invited Thor’s scientist dame and her assistant, Bucky couldn't recall their names at the moment and that irritated him. Any lapse of memory irritated him really. He was fairly sure Thor mentioned one or both of them at least every other day, and there wasn’t any excuse for this.

They'd both accepted, and Thor had left with Tony’s chauffeur Happy to pick the ladies up from the airport. They were due back any minute, and Bucky was more nervous than a long tailed cat in a room full of rocking chairs. These would be the first new people he'd met since Steve had introduced him to the Avengers. The first people to be introduced not to an ally or to the Winter Soldier,  but to James ‘Bucky’ Barnes. And they were both special to Thor. One the love of the Asgardian’s life and the other a deeply treasured friend. Bucky had genuinely taken a liking to the jovial Asgardian, and he wanted to make a good impression on them.

“Jarvis said that Happy just returned with Thor and the girls.”

He stiffened, all of his anxieties rushing to the forefront.

Natasha stepped up beside him, eyes focused out the window but all of her attention focused on him.

She was beautiful tonight, just as she always was. She had decided to go all out for the evening, and had dressed herself in the fashion of the era he and Steve had come from. She’d forgone her usual red and black attire for a blue swing dancing dress that hugged the curves of her bodice and flared out around her hips, a sweetheart neckline plunging down tastefully to reveal pale skin but nothing more. Her red hair had been pulled back at the sides and left to hang loose in the back, and even her makeup matched the era.

About the only modern thing on her was a fine silver chain around her neck, a little silver arrow in the middle.

His lips twitched at the sight of it. It hadn't escaped his notice that she wore it almost constantly. He could hear Clint swearing over the burned coffee in the kitchen, so he spoke candidly. “The necklace. A token of his esteem?” She cast him a surprised look and his smile softened. “You could do worse than a valued member of the Avengers little one.”

She smiled and shook her head. “I could. But I bought the necklace. He has self confidence issues at times, and I won’t allow it. So I wear the necklace to remind the blockhead how much he means to me. I owe him my life, he’s the one who gave me a chance at all of this, and I can never repay him for that. He’s my friend, and my closest confidant. I won’t let him think he’s worthless when he’s the one who showed me how very much my life could mean to the world. He's the one who showed me how beautiful life can be.”

Bucky smiled. “Then it seems I’ll have to thank him for looking after you when I couldn’t.”

That earned him a sharp look, and she turned to face him. “I can look after myself Yasha.”

“You can.” He agreed. “I made sure of that. There are a great many things I wish I'd never had to teach you.”

“But they were useful. I never would've survived if you hadn’t.”

“There's more to life than survival little one. The more I remember, the more it becomes true… I told you once that love was for children. That it was a weakness and that it could be exploited. Do you remember that?”

She hugged herself, and the sadness in her eyes made his heart ache. “Yes. I've guarded my heart jealousy over the years, as you told me to, and it has kept me alive.”

Bucky cradled her cheek in his metallic hand, just as he used to do when she was a child. She had always had such faith in him. It had been the main reason the asset became attached to his pupil again and again at Red Room, even when they wiped him after a mission and introduced him to the little red head all over again.

Her faith never failed to boggle his mind.

He stroked his thumb over her cheek and she leaned into the contact.

“I was wrong. Guard your heart little one, but don't lock it so tightly away that it withers and dies.” He gestured at their surroundings with his other hand. “Without love, none of this would be possible. If Steve wasn’t so stubborn , didn't care for me half as much as he did, I would be dead or still with Hydra. If Clint didn’t give a damn about people in general, you never would've had a chance at Shield. And if you didn't care very strongly about the moron burning his coffee in the kitchen, I highly doubt he would've left the helicarrier in anything less than a body bag after Loki rolled his mind. Love takes many forms little one, and though it can be exploited, too much good comes from people unafraid to love for it not to be worth the risk.”

“But what if they aren't worthy of my trust Yasha? What then? What if it all goes wrong?”

“But what if it goes right?” He responded.

Clint had gone silent in the kitchen some time ago. Bucky was almost certain the archer was listening, unable to leave the kitchen without drawing their attention to him. If he was smart, he'd take the time to dump the burned coffee and start over on a new pot. Tasha would kill him if she wasn't provided with her coffee in a timely manner.

He brushed a lock of hair off her shoulder. “Are you happy here Natalia?”

She was thinking her answer over carefully, he could tell from the slant of her eyes, the set of her jaw. She had grown up so much since he had trained her for the Red Room, and yet she was still so much the same.

“I am.” She finally admitted. “I'm happier here than I have ever been in my life.” A blush stole across her cheeks. “When I first started working with Clint and our handler Coulson on missions for Shield, I thought my life couldn't get any better. But over the years, through the good and the bad, they stayed with me. And they kept proving me wrong. In the Red Room, you only looked as far forward as you needed to complete the mission. To look any farther was presumptuous. Now I find myself looking to the future, and a part of me can't wait to see what the years will bring… But what of you Yasha? Are you happy?”

He clasped her hands. “I have a long way to go yet, before I can honestly say that I am happy. I don't think I ever could be while the threat of being found out hangs over you and the others. But I am content Natalia. And for now, that is enough.”

“I'm happy for you though.” He added. “I'm sorry it took me so long to realize you were the little spider I trained all those years ago.”

She smirked. “Is that all you see?”

He matched her smirk and gave her a playful push. “I see you as you are Natalia, but a part of me will always see my little spider.”

The elevator dinged, signalling the arrival of Thor and the ladies. Bucky’s anxiety came flooding back at the sight of the two women, one on either of the Asgardian’s arms. Tasha had convinced Thor to dress for the period, and he now wore dark pants and vest over a deep burgundy shirt.

At Bucky’s side, Natasha looped an arm around to rub his back. She seemed pleased with how the Asgardian looked.

“Take a deep breath Yasha.” She whispered, lips barely moving from her artful smile. “They’re just as nervous as you are, they know how important you are to Steve. They want to make a good impression too.”

“Friend James! Lady Natasha!” Thor boomed his greeting, effectively cutting off any response Bucky might have made. “May I introduce you to my Lady Jane, the conqueror of my heart. And this is my lightning sister, the Lady Darcy.”

Bucky had already shook hands with Jane, but he faltered at Darcy’s epithet. “Lightning sister?”

The cheeky little brunet grinned and stuck out her hand. “I tasered Thor when he first showed up in New Mexico. But Jane hit him with her truck.”

“It was an accident!” The scientist protested.

Darcy popped her gum. “Twice.”

“It was an accident .” Dr. Foster insisted.

“Darcy!”

The brunet whirled around and gave an excited squeal. “Clint!” She rushed the blonde archer and threw herself into his arms for a proper bear hug.

Clint didn't seemed to mind at all, and spun her around for good measure. “Hey Sparky, long time no see. How have you been?”

“Great with a capital G now that my boss isn't fighting space elves and disappearing through rifts in space.”

“That was one time Darcey!”

Darcy blithely ignored her boss in favor of pulling the archer back to the group and chattering away, one arm looped through his elbow. “Her extraterrestrial norse god boyfriend still swings by, but I haven't had to save the world from anything more dangerous than a three day science binge lately. Why didn't you tell me you were here though? I would've brought that thing I promised you if I'd known!”

“Awe Darce no, you didn't have to actually go and get one!”

The elevator dinged again, releasing Tony, Pepper, and Bruce into the common area. No one seemed to notice.

Jane waved her hands. “Wait! Wait! Wait! How do you already know an Avenger besides Thor?”

Darcy gave Clint a startled look. “You're an Avenger? When did that happen?!”

“I've been an Avenger since the Battle for New York. Didn't I tell you?”

“No! Oh my gosh Clint, congratulations!” Darcy leaned in for another hug.

Giving the archer’s black pants and flamboyant purple button up an overt once over she declared that her friend looked ‘Finer than fine china’, then went on to explain to her boss at a mile a minute.

“Clint was one of Agent Ipod Thief’s jack booted thugs. We hit it off and now we're best texting buddies. Remember? You were yelling at thugs A,B, and C because they weren't being careful with your machines? You left your coffee on one of them and they didn't notice and carried it away. He's the one who rescued your coffee and brought it back because he said ‘only savages would steal a person’s coffee’. We agreed later that he was nice for a jack booted thug.”

“Friend Barton, you accompanied the Son of Cole in the province of New Mexico? I do not recall your presence.” Thor looked between Darcy and Clint, searching for an answer.

“You probably wouldn't.” Clint rubbed his neck, seeming almost embarrassed. “When you came to get your hammer back, do you remember a crane with a box hanging from it?” He waited for Thor’s nod. “Yeah...I um...I was perched up there with my bow. You tore through half the agents Phil brought with him, and I told him he'd better call it soon ‘cause I was starting to root for that guy.”

Jane looked livid. “You’re a sniper?! You had Thor in your sights ?!”

Clint shrugged. “I didn’t know him at the time, he was just some guy breaking into our base. It’s my job to be a sniper. And I never had to take the shot, Coulson called me off.”

“Verily.” Thor agreed. “I had yet to learn my lesson, and Mjolnir rejected me. I would have done the same, were I in the Son of Cole’s place. Do not hold a grudge against Clinton, Jane. He is the finest of friends, and his heart is truer than his aim.”

Jane eyed Clint warily, not entirely ready to forgive.

Darcy giggled. “Jane, you hit your boyfriend with your car twice , and your intern tased him. I think we can all forgive Clint for pointing but not firing a weapon at him. Now come on ! You’re raining on tonight’s parade! So smile damnit! Or Clint and I’ll make stupid faces at you until you do! And Clint and I have been texting since New Mexico, so I know he’s got some good ones.”

Jane smiled, finally giving in. “Well, if Thor doesn’t hold a grudge, I guess I shouldn’t either. Sorry for snapping at you Clint.”

He waved it off. “Not a problem. You two met James right?” The girls and Bucky nodded. “Ok, cool. Next to James is Natasha, and behind you are Tony, Pepper, and Bruce.”

Tony grinned and stepped to the side, striking a ‘Vanna’ pose and gesturing at Pepper and then Bruce as Clint introduced them. Pepper rolled her eyes and came forward to greet the two girls. Like Natasha, she had dressed to the era, and had traded in her usual business attire for a rich green swing dress trimmed in gold. Tony had, predictably, gone for an iron man red suit. Bruce had stuck to dark blues and blacks, a pair of suspenders completing the look.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you two ladies. I believe Natasha talked to you about dress sizes?” Both women nodded and Pepper ushered them back towards the elevator. “Excellent. In that case there should be something in your size waiting on Thor’s floor. You two can freshen up and then we can come back up here for dinner and the main event. Natasha and I can help with makeup and hair while the men wait up here and try to stay out of trouble.”

Darcy giggled. “Oh, I like her! Come on Janey! Let’s go see what Miss Potts and the Black Widow picked for us to wear to this super heroes version of ‘Dancing With the Stars’!”

Natasha patted Bucky’s shoulder as she passed, following the others to the elevator. He wasn't sure whether to feel comforted or not. They all watched the ladies leave, and only once they were well and truly gone did anyone break the silence.

“Did you really set your sights on Thor, Clint?”

Clint shrugged. “Some unknown  really buff dude had broken through our perimeter and was tearing through our agents. If all else failed, Phil knew I wouldn't. So he set me up were I couldn't be reached and could see everything. I hate the idea now that I'm friends with Thor, but it was a solid plan tactically no matter how you slice it.”

Thor nodded. “I dealt most harshly with you and the good captain when I first returned to Midgard after Loki, friend Tony. It accomplishes nothing to dwell upon the mistakes of our past. We can only hope to do better in the future.”

Hearing Thor mention Steve, Tony made a show of looking around. “Speaking of the star spangled man with a plan, anyone know when he plans on showing up? I would've thought the Captain would be the first to say that you shouldn't ever keep a lady waiting.”

Clint gave a helpless shrug. “Last I saw him was a couple hours ago. He got a call and jacknifed up out of his seat. Stuttered out a quick ‘I'll be right there’ and bolted out of here faster than Tony when he's late for date night with Pepper.” Tony huffed at the analogy and Clint shot him a shit eating grin. “Anyway, he said on his way out that he'd be back as soon as he could, but that this was something extremely important. I asked if he needed backup and he just said that you can't take backup to meetings with this guy, it looks bad. The way he said it, I got the impression he's not meeting anyone dangerous, just someone you can't bring Iron Man, a norse god, or an ex-assassin with you to meet.”

Tony huffed. “Would it kill spangles to give a bit more info than that?”

“A bit more info than what?” Sam stepped off the elevator. Like everyone else he had dressed as close to 40s fashion as his wardrobe permitted, and he looked quite dapper in shades of dark gold and tan.

“It seems Steve was called into a last minute meeting, but no one knows where or with who. And if Nat finds out who it is she's going to give them an earful.” Clint summarized.

Sam looked puzzled. “That's not usually like Steve… Unless this is the meeting he was telling me about a few months back.”

“Spill.” Tony ordered.

Sam grimaced. “Not much to spill, it was an in passing sort of deal. He'd been trying to get a meeting with a gentleman since April, and apparently getting schedules to match up was a nightmare. He was grumbling, and said that if his luck kept running the way it was it’d be Christmas of next year before he managed to get five minutes with the dude.”

“Any idea who it was?” Clint tossed out hopefully, but Sam was already shaking his head.

“No. We were grabbing a meal and that's when our food got to the table. I was going to ask afterwards, but a call to assemble came right as we were leaving. It was those wild tiger things, remember?” The other Avengers grimaced, they knew exactly what critters he was talking about. “I guess it just slipped my mind.”

Clint heaved a sigh and pinched the bridge of his nose. “I hope this meeting or whatever was worth it, ‘cause Nat’s going to have kittens when she finds out.”

The women returned half an hour later.

Jane and Darcy were resplendent in the dresses Pepper and Natasha had picked out for them. For Jane, they had gone the more sensible cut with a squared off neckline. They had picked a deep butter yellow dress trimmed with black lace. Pepper had pulled Jane’s hair back into a french twist accented with a barrett.

For Darcy, they had gone a little more flamboyant. Her dress had large multicolored flowers printed on a black background, the flowers a riot of reds, oranges, and purples. Small green leaves peeked out here and there. She had also added a black tulle petticoat to give it a little more poof. Her hair had been curled and left loose, only the sides pinned back to keep it out of her face.

Thor beamed when he saw them. “My Lady! You look beautiful!”

Jane blushed, but her smile said volumes about how pleased she was.

Darcy giggled and poked her boss in the side, earning herself a swat for her efforts.

Thor hugged both women close, dropping a kiss to his girlfriend’s brow as he addressed Darcy. “And you look beautiful as well little sister. The ladies Pepper and Natasha know their art, and ply their craft well.”

“They definitely do!” Darcy agreed, and gave the two women a pair of exuberant thumbs up.

Natasha inclined her head at the praise, but her sharp eyes hadn’t missed the absence in their midst. The ex-assassin folded her arms and leveled a dangerous look at the men. “Where is Captain Rogers?”

The other Avengers flinched. Tasha had whipped out the formal name. He was in trouble now. They would do what they could to help him, but if it was him or them facing down the wrath of Natasha Romanoff, then they were going to let the good Captain face it on his own. No one was stepping into the path of the train that was Natasha.

Hoping to minimize the damage, Clint spoke up. “He got a call about five hours ago. I guess he’d been trying to set up some sort of meeting with a guy for, like six months or something. Looked like the guy just all of a sudden called him out of the blue and asked him if he was free. He bolted for the door, said he’d do his damndest to get back here in time...guess that didn’t pan out.”

Natasha’s lips thinned into a narrow line. “Seems like.” She tonelessly agreed.

Shit. Steve was definitely in the dog house.

She retrieved a phone from somewhere, none of them were quite sure where, and hit a speed dial. They all waited, the team praying that Steve would pick up, for his own sake if nothing else. He didn’t. The phone went straight to the voice mail that Tony had set up for him when he’d first gotten a phone.

“Hey, you’ve reached the phone of the star spangled man with a plan! Don’t know where he is, but as soon as spangles figures out how to work this new fangled technology called answering machines, I’m sure he’ll get right back to you. Everyone but the Capsicle knows how answering machines work, so go ahead and talk away! Ciao!”

The redhead arched an eyebrow at Tony, but didn’t say a word. She ended the call and tried again. When the third attempt yielded the same result, she left a short, terse message.

“Captain. This is Natasha Romanoff. I suggest you call me back as soon as is convenient for you. Our guests are waiting on you.” She snapped her phone shut and tucked it away wherever she had stashed it before. “You had better hope this meeting is worth it Rogers.” She growled, glaring out the window at the city. “Or you’re going to regret it.”

Tony leaned over to whisper in Clint’s ear. “Remind me to never get in the way of the Black Widow and her night off.”

“You really need reminding?”

Steve trudged tiredly up the steps of the tower.

Six hours of arguing his point to a man he had never met, and whose advisors seemed to be completely hell bent on keeping him from agreeing with anything Steve said. It had taken everything he had not to clock one or two of them for their asinine behavior. He’d held back more swear words in those long six hours than he’d felt the urge to say in a long long time. And on top of everything else, they’d made him late for the party. Natasha was going to have his hide.

“The communal floor Jarvis.” He mumbled as he stepped into the elevator.

“Very good sir.” The AI agreed. “I feel it my duty to note that you are over an hour and a half late for the evening's festivities. All other guests are present and accounted for.

Steve let his head fall back against the elevator wall with a thud. “Is Natasha mad?”

“Given the way the others seem wary of approaching Miss Romanoff, I would say indubitably sir. However, I would also hazard a guess that she and the others are worried about you. They were all highly concerned when you left no clue as to where you had gone.”

The elevator stopped moving, and Steve straightened up. “Might as well face the music and get it over with.”

The doors slid open.

The entire team, along with Pepper and two women he’d never met before were waiting expectantly for him. Jarvis must have told them he’d come home. Given that the woman in the yellow dress was cuddled up against  Thor on the couch, he assumed that had to be Dr. Foster. That meant the other young lady in the flamboyant floral one was probably her assistant Miss Lewis.

Natasha arched an eyebrow at him.

He sighed. “I’m sorry Tasha. It couldn’t be helped.”

Her eyebrow only crept higher. “Was it worth it?”

Remembering the absolute elation he’d felt when the man had completely ignored the protests of his advisors and agreed to do as the captain asked, Steve let a tired smile curl his lips. “It was.”

She nodded, though she didn’t seem pleased. The assassin folded her arms, a dangerous glint still in her eye. “Whoever it was, they will regret interrupting our evening. Who will I be calling in the morning?”

Steve sighed. “No one Tasha. I actually owe him for what he did tonight.”

At the back of the group, Bucky’s head snapped up, alarm written all across his face. Favors were very bad things, he knew that. Some of the very worst things the Winter Soldier had ever had to do were the result of a favor to one person of another. Steve shouldn’t owe a favor to anyone !

Steve must have been able to see his worry.

The super soldier slid past the rest of his friends, murmuring a polite ‘excuse me’ to Pepper as he passed, making a beeline for his best friend. Bucky watched him, uncertain of what Steve was up to, but instinct said that it had something to do with him. And that made him uneasy. He almost took a step back from the man, only sheer stubbornness and the fact that the window wall was right behind him kept his feet nailed to the floor.

Steve unzipped his coat and pulled out a paper envelope to offer him.

For a long minute, the Soldier didn’t take it. What would the stranger want Steve to do for the favor he owed? Would it be bad? If it was, would Steve be able to get out of that? Could he? And what about the envelope? Could that be the favor? But why would anyone waste a favor getting Steve to play messenger boy, it didn’t make any sense. So the envelope had to be the reason that Steve owed someone a favor. The soldier was inclined to hate it on sight for putting Steve into a dangerous position like that.

Bucky muscled his way back up past the Soldier.

This wasn’t Hydra, favors weren’t bad things here. Steve wouldn’t have to do anything he didn’t want to. Staring at his best friend, he couldn’t see any sign of worry in those expressive blue eyes. Blue eyes that he had learned to read like a book almost a century ago. All he saw there was weariness, and concern for him. And was that...excitement? He really looked at the envelope for the first time.

What could possibly be in there to get Steve this excited?

Bucky cautiously took it, curiosity finally getting the better of him. He upended the contents into his metal hand, just to be safe. Inside the envelope were several sheets of stationary. Each one was marked with the crest of the United States government.

Official paperwork then.

He scanned the first page, and had already flipped to the second before what he had read fully registered. His eyes widened and he flipped back to the first page, gaze flying over the words. He was vaguely aware that his mouth was hanging open, that Steve was smiling at him, that his own eyes had to be the size of softballs by now. But he couldn’t muscle himself away from one singular train of thought. Upon seeing the signature at the bottom, his eyes snapped up to Steve, and his mouth blurted out what his mind was chanting in a loop.

“This isn’t possible…!” He shook his head. “It… it can’t be…”

Steve cradled his trembling hands in his own, steadying them so that he didn’t drop anything. “It is.” Steve reassured. “I promise it is! It took six hours of explaining my case while his advisors argued over the top of me, but it happened. He never said a word through the whole thing. I’m not sure who was more surprised when he signed those papers, me or his advisors! He’d like to meet you, speak to you at some point.” Bucky’s face paled, and Steve sternly added. “But only when you’re ready. Not one minute before. Understood?”

“Yes.”

Steve patted him fondly on the shoulder. “It’s done Buck. We did it.”

Choking out a sob, Bucky dropped the papers and threw his arms around his best friend’s neck, hugging him as tightly as he dared. Steve hugged back just as fiercely, and Bucky tightened his grip. Steve wasn’t nearly as frail as he used to be after all. He clung to him, tears slipping down his cheeks for the first time in he didn’t remember how long. He was vaguely aware of Natasha gathering up the scattered papers.

He didn’t care.

“Thank you.” He mumbled into Steve’s neck. “You stupid punk, I don’t… I don’t even know what to say… ”

“You’ve already said it.”

Bucky snorted and took a step back, swiping at his teary eyes. “God, you are such a punk.”

“Better a punk than a jerk like you.”

The ex-assassin playfully cuffed his friend. “Watch your mouth.”

Clint set his foot on the coffee table, propping an elbow on his knee. He leaned out to lightly poke his partner in the side, a smile quirking his lips. Natasha ignored him, intent on the papers in her hands. Clint’s grin widened and he poked her again.

“What is it Tash?”

Tony chimed in. “Yeah, what did the star spangled man with a plan get for his bestie? It must be something really special to warrant a thank you like that! So spill Spidey, and tell us what Capsicle brought!”

Natasha didn’t answer.

His voice trailed off, and his smile faded.

Natasha was staring at the papers, seemingly at a loss for words. It took a lot to make the Black Widow hesitate even a little bit, let alone render her completely speechless like this. Whatever Steve had done, it was something big!

Bucky wiped at watery eyes, his voice choking his throat. “It…” He swallowed and tried again. “It’s a pardon...It’s a presidential pardon. I… I’ve been pardoned .” He felt Steve squeeze his shoulder, and he felt as though he would burst with the emotion coursing through him. “It’s over. I’m free .”

“It’s over.” Steve agreed. He blushed under the stunned scrutiny of his teammates. “Now you understand why I said I owed him a favor...Why do you think it took me so long to set up this meeting? If I’m not out of country on a mission, the President is out of country on a diplomatic one.”

Clint grin, passing Natasha the envelope for the papers so she could put them away. “Just when I thought I’d seen every trick you had up your sleeve… How long have you been toying with this idea?”

Steve’s blush only got stronger. “Since I found out he was alive. I knew that I only had one shot at convincing the President that Bucky deserved a second chance. So I had to bide my time. Bucky remembered. He didn’t hurt anyone else. He got better. I could tell the Commander in Chief that I had absolute faith in my friend. I told him that he could do the same with absolute certainty. He decided to trust us.”

“Well, we didn’t let the last one down. No sense breaking our streak with this one.” Bucky commented.

Steve flashed him a grateful smile.

“Wow, you two geriatric super soldiers definitely know how to turn a phrase.” Tony looped an arm around Pepper’s waist. “You do realize there’s been a president or two in between the one you knew in the forties and this one, right?”

Darcy gave him an affronted look. “Excuse you! Not counting the current president, there were ten or eleven presidents in between! I say ten or eleven because I don’t know which one they’re talking about for certain, but still! Come on Stark!”

The genius snorted. “How could you possibly know how many presidents there were between the 40’s and now? Most people can’t even remember the names, let alone the order.”

Darcy was doing her very best unimpressed face. “Must be a novel experience then, you getting to be lumped in with ‘most people’ for once. And I know it because I’m not ‘most people’, I’m a poli-sci major for crying out loud! I’m supposed to know the names and order and years of service of the United States Presidents!”

“But…” Tony pointed at Darcy, then whirled and pointed at Jane. “But you’re an astrophysicist! Why do you have a political science major interning with you! She’s not even in the same field!”

Jane shrugged. “Why not? I needed an intern. She’s got a good head on her shoulders, and even though she doesn’t know much about my field of expertise she picks things up quickly. Plus, she was the only one to apply. At that time pretty much everyone thought my research was a joke.”

Tony made a helpless gesture at Darcy. “And you just thought you’d take an internship in a completely different field just for laughs?”

The brunet shrugged. “What? I needed six college credits and all the other internships were taken or run by creepy misogynistic assholes.”

Clint’s shoulders were shaking. “Creepy… Oh god, you...you tasered one of them, didn’t you.”

“Yes I did.” She sounded far too proud of herself.

Tony snorted. “What did he do, call you ‘little princess’?

Darcy targeted him with her severely unimpressed face again. “He did actually. He couldn’t keep his eyes off my girls either. And he made a pass at me!”

“So you tasered him for leering and making a pass at you?” Sam asked.

“Oh no, I sprinkled two or three powdered laxatives in his coffee and all over the inside of his sandwich for that! No, I tasered him when he pinned me against a wall and suggested that I might get the internship if I provided certain extra services. So I tasered him right in the family jewels and told him he could stick his internship where the sun didn’t shine.”

Jane looked furious. “Did you report him for his behavior?”

“You bet I did boss lady! The best part was that his secretary was at her desk right outside the door and heard the whole thing. She already had the authorities on the phone! I didn’t want anything to do with that internship after that, even though the lady that replaced him was nice enough, so I hopped back on my computer and found you. The rest, as they say, is history!” She clapped her hands together and rubbed them eagerly. “Now! Since we finally have everyone here, can we please get started? I’ve been looking forward to this all week!”

Bucky laughed and lightly grabbed Steve by the scruff. “You heard the lady Steve, go get changed and hurry back up here! We’ve kept our guests waiting long enough!”

Laughing good naturedly, the tall blond trotted back to the elevator. “Alright! Alright! I’m going! Go ahead and get them started Buck, I’ll be up in a minute to help.”

“Just don’t be all night about it!’ Bucky turned back to face the others and found Darcy planted squarely in front of him with an eager grin.

“So! What do we do first? And do we need partners? Because I don’t think there’s going to be enough ladies to go around.”

“First, we cover the basics. And yes, you do need partners. Seeing as there are more gentlemen than dames, we’re going to have to share partners.” He could see the argument brewing already and raised his voice a little to nip it in the bud. “This isn’t a date, and it’s not one of your modern clubs. Men are ridiculously possessive out on the dance floor these days. Get over it now ! Everyone knows who’s dating who, and everyone knows that’s not about to change. No one’s here to steal your best girl, and given the spunk these ladies have, I doubt they’d let anyone get away with it. The whole point of dancing is to have fun. Dancing is different with each partner, and different partners help you strengthen your skills. Besides, clinging to each other when someone asks to cut in is considered rude, I’m warning you now. If you’re going to turn someone down I suggest you sit the rest of the night out. Any questions?”

The others were smiling, and it took him a minute to realize it was because that little speech was the most he’d said to the lot of them at one time since he came here.

“Alright then. Starting with basics. Natalia, you’re with Clint. You already have a fair idea of what you’re doing, and you know his learning style best. Miss Potts, you’re with Tony. Dr. Foster, you’ll dance with Thor for now. And Miss Lewis…” He thought for a moment, eyeing the two remaining men.

Bruce held up his hands. “Go ahead and pair her with Sam, I’ll ride the bench for now. I’m more of a visual learner anyway. I’ll watch this time around and jump in next go.”

Buck nodded. “Alright. Miss Lewis with Sam then.” To Bruce he added, “Don’t think you’re getting out of it so easy as that Banner. You can dance solo just as easily as you can with a partner. God knows Steve and I have often enough. Whether one of the fellas are ready to trade out or not, you’re dancing next round, so pay attention now.”

He positioned the pairs on their makeshift dance floor, careful to make sure that they had plenty of space between them to start with until they’d gotten the gist of what was going on. Then he held out a hand to Natasha.

“ Potantsuy so mnoy?”(1)

She laughed and joined him in the center of the floor.

Bucky glanced up at the ceiling, and the smile fell off his face. “Damn.”

“What? What’s wrong Yasha?”

He ignored her, addressing the AI. “Jarvis? Could you ask Steve for a song to play? I remember the music, but I can’t remember the titles.”

“Certainly Sergeant Barnes.” The AI replied warmly. “Captain Rogers asks me to inform you that he will return to the communal floor in five minutes. In the meantime, he suggests ‘Bei Mir Bist Du Shein’ by the Andrew Sisters. It has a slower tempo, and he believes it would be ideal to introduce them to the steps.”

“Do you have that one?”

“Of course sir.”

The sound of trumpets poured gently from the speakers, and Bucky took a moment to listen to the music. As the women began to sing, Bucky felt warmth spread through his chest at the memories the song kindled.

He caught Natasha’s hand and pulled her into the basic steps he had taught her months ago on that ill fated night at the club. He explained as they went, then passed Natasha back to Clint and instructed them to try it. He watched the Avengers try to replicate the moves, stepping in here and there to correct them, or offer advice on how to perform the move more easily.

They had a couple tussles, most notably when Thor and Sam backed up into each other and Sam went sprawling. The two just laughed with the rest, Thor helped Sam up, and they went right back to trying to do as Bucky told them.

When Steve returned, ‘Bei Mir Bist Du Shein’ had finished and been replaced by ‘Rum and Coca Cola’. Seeing that Bucky had the others well in hand, Steve zeroed in on Bruce. The tall blond pulled the scientist out onto a corner of the floor and coached him through the steps one on one. Bruce had a quick eye, and he learned from watching Steve doing the steps beside him. What he lacked in physical skill, he made up for in enjoyment of the dance. As long as Bruce was having fun, Steve and Bucky were satisfied.

“Hey Buck, think they’re ready to kick it up a notch? Steve asked as ‘Rum And Coca Cola’ wound down.

“Why not?”

Steve beamed. “Jarvis, play Glen Miller’s ‘In The Mood’.”

There was a good deal of stumbling over feet, their own and their partner’s. Not that anyone really minded. After all, it was all in good fun. And laughter rang off the walls when Darcy, who had switched with Natasha because Clint was getting the hang of it and Sam needed a little more coaching, somehow managed to crack her forehead off of Clint’s.

He responded with a resounding “Awe, Darcy, no…!”

‘In The Mood’ gave way to ‘Six Jerks In A Jeep’, and from there to ‘American Patrol’ and ‘It Don’t Mean A Thing If It Ain’t Got That Swing’. They still stumbled here and there, some more than others, but everyone beamed anyway.

“Alright everyone!” Steve yelled as ‘It Don’t Mean A Thing’ ended. “Trade partners. Find someone you haven’t danced with yet!” The two instructors waited patiently while the others scrambled for new partners.

Jane snared Bruce almost immediately. She didn’t know Clint or Sam as well, and she wasn’t really interested in putting up with Tony’s shenanigans. She’d skyped with Bruce once or twice to cooperate on a project, so for her he was the obvious choice. Pepper accepted Sam’s invitation, while Darcy fairly skipped over to Thor. Leaving Tony with Natasha, as she had already danced with Clint. The billionaire made a show of pouting very loudly and obviously, but they could all tell he didn’t mean it.

Steve and Bucky shared a grin.

“Jarvis?”

“Play ‘Ain’t Nobody Here But Us Chickens’. Let’s really get their blood pumping.”

The two sat back and watched their friends scramble as they tried to adapt to what sounded like a slightly faster tempo.

“You two are evil evil men.” Darcy announced when the song had ended.

“Trade off!” Bucky yelled in answer. Pepper claimed Thor this time, while Jane continued to avoid the headache that was Tony and opted for Sam. Natasha snared Bruce, and Darcy bounced over to Tony, just in time for Steve to ask Jarvis to play ‘Gimme Some Skin My Friend’.

“Don’t get handsy Stark.” She warned him as the music began to play.

“Or what, you’ll tase me?”

She smirked. “I’ve tasered the norse god of thunder for less, and this dress has pockets. Do you really want to push your luck?”

Tony huffed. “Point taken.”

Over by Steve and Bucky, Clint twisted his face into a playful pout. “Awe, a wallflower twice in a row?” he whined.

Steve laughed. “Then dance with us. There’s nothing wrong with dancing alone.”

Song after song played, and time flew by. It was almost eleven-thirty at night before they decided to take a break. Jarvis had thoughtfully placed an order at a nearby chinese restaurant half an hour before, so the food arrived as close to the perfect moment as it was possible for anyone to be.

Darcy flopped down onto the couch with a tired but satisfied huff. She adopted a stern look and pointed a finger at the two super soldiers. “Oh no you don’t! You two do a little jig on the sidelines while you put us through our paces and think you can call it good? I don’t think so! I’ve heard all about your mad dance skills, and I want to see for myself. I think we all deserve an exhibition performance, don’t you guys?” She looked around at the rest of the Avengers, seeking support.

Smirks formed on the faces of her fellow dancers, and they nodded eagerly.

Darcy proudly pointed back at their makeshift dance floor. “You heard us gentlemen! Get your cute butts back out on that dance floor!”

Steve heaved a put upon sigh, but Bucky just shoved him back the way they’d come.

“You heard the lady punk! Get a move on. The sooner we show off, the sooner we eat.”

Steve wrinkled his nose. “Seeing as how we spent the whole evening teaching them, it doesn’t exactly seem fair.”

Bucky grabbed one of Steve’s elbows and Natasha grabbed the other. The sergeant cemented his hold by playfully grabbing Steve by the scruff as well.

“Ah, quit your gripin’ and dance.”

Darcy giggled. “For two cents, I’d make you two dance to ‘Shut Up And Dance With Me’.”

Clint flopped down on the sofa by Darcy and waggled a finger at her. “Nah ah ah, nothing doing. If you want them to show off, you have to let them sit smack in the middle of their comfort zone where they’re strongest. They get to pick the song. So sit back and enjoy the show.”

Out on the floor, the two soldiers shared matching grins.

“Jarvis, play ‘One Girl And Two Boys’.” He paused, then added. “Play ‘Sing, Sing, Sing’ back to back with it.”

The music ramped up and the two swept Natasha away across the dance floor, determined to put on a good show. Natasha was a bit farther along than the rest because of her previous lessons. If they had had to hazard a guess, the boys would’ve said that she had been looking at videos online, her moves were more polished than they would’ve expected after only two lessons. Long lessons, admittedly, but still only two.

That didn’t mean that they wouldn’t take advantage of it though. The two put her natural athleticism to good use, challenging her with new moves on the fly. They traded her back and forth, taking turns bending her around their sides, flipping her over their shoulders, tossing her up into the air, and whirling her under and between legs. She never once hesitated, tensed or faltered, and they pressed on. So long as that mile wide smile stayed on her lips, they knew that she was ok, and it was alright to keep going.

Bucky traded her off to Steve and danced back a couple steps to clap and catch his breath. Deep in his core, he could feel the stirrings of the man he used to be. He would never truly be that man again, he knew that. And that was ok. He wasn’t Bucky, and he wasn’t the Winter Soldier. He wasn’t entirely sure where one ended and the other began. And that was ok too.

He moved back in, guiding Natasha through another flip and working with Steve to toss her high up into the air. The cheeky little spider rolled in midair a few times before letting them catch her, just because she could. He pressed a proud kiss to her temple as he and Steve set her on her feet, and then they were off again.

He could hear the others laughing. Could hear them cheering the three dancers on. Could hear them hooting and hollering and clapping along to the beat. Across from him, Steve’s face was lit and open and carefree in a way he had never seen it before. In their arms, Natasha’s face was the same way. For this one second, there was nothing in the world to wear them down. Nothing to bring them low. No hunger or pain. No Red Room, no war, no great depression. There were no health problems, and no death threats. They were joyful, and completely carefree, for these few seconds at least.

And he felt privileged to have born witness to it.

As the song came to an end, and they left the makeshift dance floor to the applause and admiration of their friends, a thought occurred to him. A thought that zinged through him, and almost left him speechless in its audacity and absurdity. Almost.

Natasha laid a hand on his arm. “Yasha?”

He glanced down at her, stunned by what he had just learned, then leaned down to whisper in her ear. “YA schastliv…”(2)

A genuine joy lit her face, and she pulled his head down to plant a tender kiss on his brow. “Vy zasluzhivayete byt' schastlivym.”(3)

He smiled, and his eyes flicked to the rest of the team gathered ‘round the coffee table. His pardon was still sitting there, safe in it’s envelope, and the sight of it and them made his smile grow all the wider as his heart threatened to burst.

No, he wasn’t Bucky Barnes, the Winter Soldier, or anyone else he used to be. And that was alright. Because he didn’t have to be any of them anymore. And these people… These strange, dysfunctional, wonderfully kind, absurd people didn’t expect him to be anything more than what he was right now in this very second. This, and nothing more. They cared about him, and they accepted him.

Oh yes Natalia, he was happy.

It had crept up on him, and he hadn’t ever seen it coming. The Avengers had made him happy. And why shouldn’t they have? After all…

... that is what families are for...