You spent the entire afternoon sparring with Bucky, and enjoyed yourself thoroughly. He started anticipating when you were going to kick him, so he would grab your leg and pull you close to him so you were almost face to face when you looked up at him. Once he would let go of your leg you would either jump up on his shoulders and have to turn so you could put your knee in his back, or you would jump back and hit him with a light punch in the stomach or chest. It was almost like he was dancing with you in a way, he had a smirk almost the entire time. You knew Clint was telling you to go rougher on Bucky but you didn't have it in you. You liked when you were both in close quarters, even if you were sparring. It almost felt like you were flirting with each other the way you both moved. The touches were light, and sometimes when it was against your skin, it felt like a caress.
"Alright, you're sweating all over my matt, go hit the showers. Both of you" Clint chuckled. Bucky held the ropes open for you to get out and you gave him a smile. Nat handed you a bottle of water and you drank from it gratefully. You looked over to see Billy was watching Melody and Cloud practicing on the dummy together. You finished your bottle, and Bucky pulled out another one from the cooler and handed it to you with a smirk.
"Thank you" you smiled shyly and took it drinking it down. He chuckled as he drank his one bottle.
"You fought pretty well" he stooped down a little to say a little closer to your ear.
"You too Sarge" you turned to look at him with a smile.
"We should work on getting you out of that hold I put you in the last few days, next week" he gave a half smile.
"Nat said its possible to get out of it" you blushed a little.
"I'll help teach you" he stood back up to his full height and smiled again.
You saw Steve was instructing Melody and Cloud and walked over.
"How are they doing?" you asked, and felt Bucky stop close behind you.
"Melody is going to suits next week. She's as good as Cloud on the dummy. She's been working pretty hard all week. I'm impressed" he smiled at you and then grinned looking over his shoulder to see Bucky standing close by.
"So, this is what your companions do Pup? Learn to fight men?" Billy asked as you started walking past Cloud and Melody's ring.
"Yes, they do very well. You should see Cloud in the field. You would be proud of him" you spoke internally to him.
"What is this human you were fighting with in the ring, with the metal arm?" he asked curiously. "The one standing close to you"
"His name is Bucky" you blushed.
"Is he a boyfriend?" he asked outright.
"Just a friend" you blushed even more.
"He seems strong" he spoke the obvious.
"He is, and he's very trustworthy. He protects me a lot, even when I'm sleeping" you admitted.
"We want him to be her mate" Melody jumped out of the ring. "Humans move slowly in these matters"
"You'll learn Pup, that sometimes slower is better. She needs a mate that's reliable, and will stay. Unlike her father" he told Melody. "He just walked out one day, and that was the last time. My companion cried for a long time over him, and mourned her loss. He had chosen another, after even having a child" he sounded bitter still.
"Is that why she worries so much for Y/N?" Melody asked curiously.
"One of the reasons she would rather she was closer, and doing something safer. Having a second companion is a dangerous job, you know this?" he asked expectantly.
"I know all the risks, I chose my companion" Melody barked. "I'll share her, but I choose her and I choose this life"
"You look happy Pup" Billy looked back to you. "It's a relief to see after hearing the news" he went towards the door. Bucky looked at you curiously but opened the door for Billy to walk out. Melody went and jumped back in the ring and you went out the door that Bucky still had opened.
"What was that conversation about?" he asked you gently as you watched Billy head towards the stairs to the upper floors.
"Me, my choices, and Melody's choices" you gave him a shy smile. "Billy worries, he was there the whole time I was growing up. He said I seem happy"
"Are you?" he asked gently.
"I am, I'm happy here. I know moving to the compound wasn't in my control, but I'll admit, I'm glad it happened" you smiled at him shyly. "Just like other things I'm glad about"
"Like what?" he walked beside you towards your bedrooms.
"We became friends, after all that senseless fighting" you smiled fully at him. "No more secrets, that feels really nice"
"I like those things too" he smiled at you, and brushed some of your hair out of your face as you stopped at your door. "I'll see you at supper" he smiled and headed to his room.
After your shower you went with a yellow summer dress to wear and put on some light makeup again, a black sweater that you could put your phone in and your book in the other pocket. You were looking forward to sitting on the couch and relaxing. You flushed and wondered if Bucky would like the summer dress, forgetting that your mom would be with you as well. When you got to the dining room, Bucky was in the spot across from where you normally sat, and your mom was beside Tony with Pepper and Happy sitting on her other side. You saw they looked a little squished. You saw the boys were back from school and were holding their tests. You snuck around the table and saw Bucky look up and smile at you as you got to the boys.
"Let me see" you whispered to them, and saw they both aced their tests. You gave them both a kiss on top of the head and took the tests and handed them down to Wanda without her asking and she squealed.
"They are genius', I swear it" she showed them to Tony who got up and proudly put them on the fridge.
"Mama, this is Pietro and Peter" you smiled down to her. "They go to school all day, do Avenger work, and also volunteer some time in the city to help keep crime down" you said proudly. "They are both very smart"
"What are you taking in school?" she asked them curiously.
"A variety of things, we are trying to decide what we want to do after the Avengers are no longer needed" Pietro answered easily.
"We have a lot of science, chemistry, biology, physics, math classes. It helps out with stuff around here too" Peter added.
"Don't you feel like your taking too much on?" your mom asked.
"No, they only let us go on missions on our time off. They want us to focus on school" Pietro shrugged. "Y/N likes to spoil us" Peter added. "She used to come bring us supper all the time when she wasn't on missions. We always get a treat if we do well on our tests"
"We have pie tonight" Pepper smiled. "Made by Y/N yesterday, so its still fresh" she added.
"Your grandma's pie?" your mom looked over.
"Apple and Peach" you smiled proudly. "Bucky and Steve seem to like the apple best"
"The Plum pie she makes is really good too" Bucky quickly added.
"You've only had one Tinman, don't get cocky" Sam teased him.
"Two" Bucky corrected him with a grin.
"Where's my pie?" Sam looked at you with a smile.
"I made peach too didn't I?" you giggled.
"I'll let it pass this time" Sam winked at you and Clint chuckled from beside you.
"Scott already leave to see Cassie?" you looked over and saw he was missing.
"He barely made it to supper, he's pretty excited to show her all the pictures he took of the wolves" Clint grinned. "I'm headed out after until Sunday. You have some mission material to go over this weekend since we have some info on the bases this time" he warned you.
"I'll give it to you after" Bruce gave a small smile. Vision was bottle feeding Pup, and Wanda gazed at him lovingly while she ate.
"There's a documentary on tonight, on a possible Goldilocks planet" Steve spoke up, and you looked over with a smile.
"Well, we can't miss out on that" you giggled.
"At least your love of space and documentaries hasn't changed" your mom smiled.
"Its just so fascinating" you sighed happily.
"I brought you a few new books" she smiled serenely. "I know how much you love your books"
"Shawn ruined all the books that I had. Tony bought me a bunch of new ones though" you admitted softly.
"Not all your first additions? You must be devastated. You took so long to get them all, especially the Harry Potter ones" she looked heart broken for you.
"All of them are gone" you nodded, and felt a few tears welling up but tried to hide it. Clint put his arm around you for a second and pat your back.
"We will find some new ones for you" Tony promised. "Harry Potter though? Really?" he seemed surprised.
"All first editions. Some of them were even signed" you nodded sadly. "First editions of the Hobbit and Lord of the Rings too"
"I remember how proud you were when you finally got all those. You sent me pictures" your mom smiled. "I'm so sorry you've lost them all" she shook her head.
"It's okay, I'll just have to save up and try looking again once this mess is over with" you gave a sad smile.
"What about your jewelry? You had some wonderful antique pieces you collected from your adventures" she asked gently. You had to blink several times to hold back tears.
"Those are gone too" you finally said gently. "I really loved those rose earrings, and necklace. I think that's one of the sets I'm most upset about. But, I'll eventually go on my adventures again, and find some new things" you wiped a stray tear. "Mama, I don't want to talk too much about what was lost. Its still too fresh. I still have some of my cookbooks" you tried to smile.
"Thank goodness for that" she smiled. "You have lot of family recipes. I'll send you some of the ones that you lost"
"Thank you mama" you smiled back, and went back to your food. "I'm grateful I still have my Cloud, and now I have my Melody and Pup as well" you sighed. "That's what's most important"
You finished eating quickly and when you went to grab your plate, you also grabbed the boys and Clint's plate on your way to the kitchen. You grabbed some of the pies and started bringing them out, and made a few trips. You made sure to put apple in front of Bucky and Steve, and peach in front of Sam. When you sat back down, you waited for everyone to take their own slices, before taking half a slice of apple and half a slice of peach so you could have both. You saw your mom had done the same thing, and smiled to yourself. You knew she was checking to make sure you still followed the recipe. She took a bite of each and smiled to you, and you knew you did well. Between Steve and Bucky, they ate the entire apple pie that you put in front of them, and you swelled a bit with pride.
"I love your pies" Clint sighed. "Laura and the kids are looking forward to getting the pies when I get home"
"She always does well with baking" your mom smiled at you. "You should hear her sing"
"No mama, I'm not singing" you flushed a deep red.
"Why not, I heard you sing yesterday. It was pretty, but sad" Bucky smiled at you leaning forward.
"Its not happening" you shook your head. "You don't know what you heard" you flushed.
"Dinner was delicious, I got to get going home" Clint ruffled your hair and got up. "Mam, it was a pleasure to meet you" he went over and shook your mom's hand. "Your daughter has been such a great addition" he added before leaving.
After cleaning off the table and getting everything put away Peter and Pietro left as well. You grabbed Pup and headed to the living room. Your mom took one of the chairs with Billy beside her. Steve came in and took one of the couches with Sam while Bucky sat down on the same couch as you. Melody jumped up between Steve and Sam while Cloud jumped up between you and Bucky.
"How long has Melody been a companion?" your mom asked.
"About a week and a half, almost two weeks" you smiled proudly.
"She's getting used to domestication quickly" she smirked.
"Cloud talks to her all the time of what to do and not to do. He's been training her easily. She loves to learn" you ran your hand through Cloud's fur, while holding Pup close to you. Cloud huffed a bit and snuggled into you for a moment.
"Here it is" Steve turned on the documentary.
"I like the dress" Billy spoke up.
"She did go out of her way to look pretty" your mom responded out loud and pet Billy. "She always looks pretty"
"Your biased mama" you called over. "Thank you, Billy,"
"What was that?" Bucky whispered over.
"You didn't notice the dress, you should notice these things about girls Bucky" Melody spoke up and you saw your mom look over quickly and you blushed.
"Billy complimented my dress" you admitted softly.
"It does look nice, I like the yellow" Sam spoke up after a moment's silence.
"It suits you" Bucky nodded and looked back at the tv quickly with a bit of a flush. You smiled softly to yourself and held Pup a little tighter. He let out a small bark and Bucky jumped up and went to get some bottles for you and Steve paused the show immediately. Cloud moved over to Bucky's spot and looked at you as though he was smiling to himself. Bucky came back in with paper towels and sat beside you quickly, handing you one of the three bottles. Without thinking, you put your legs up over his lap and he leaned in while you fed Pup, and Bucky would wipe his face. Steve turned the documentary back on again and you looked up and tried to watch it, but kept finding yourself looking into Bucky's eyes shyly. He gave you a grin, and kept your gaze. He looked over once in a while to make sure to wipe off Pup's face to make sure no milk got on your clothes.
"Are we sure this is not a boyfriend?" Billy finally asked, and you felt your face burning.
"He's a friend, for now" Cloud answered wisely. "Y/N doesn't want to ruin their friendship, but she likes him" he answered easily and you gave a soft kick at Cloud who acted like he didn't do anything.
"I think he makes the perfect mate" Melody sighed jumping up on Steve's lap and looking over the side of the couch.
"They seem cozy" Billy observed.
"They used to fight all the time" Cloud updated him. "Now he's overly protective of her"
"Wouldn't they make cute pups?" Melody chirped and you thought your face couldn't get much redder. You had a hard time looking Bucky in the face now that she had said that, and you knew your mother heard it. You concentrated more on Pup and decided to stay out of the conversation. Bucky reached up and touched your cheek for a moment looking at you worriedly, and you gave him a smile and a small nod. You knew he was silently asking if you were okay. He gave a slight nod and went back to wiping Pup's face. He brushed some hair behind your ear again as Pup finished, and took him from you to take him outside for you. You curled up on your spot again, and Cloud kept his spot on the end. Steve waited for Bucky to come back to un-pause the show again.
"Can I hold Pup for a bit?" your mom asked.
"Sure" Bucky brought him over and she smiled taking him. Bucky came back and sat beside you, and absentmindedly started petting Cloud.
By the time the show was fully over, it was getting late. Pup was whining for his bottle again, and you got up quickly to go get them mixed up. You made the three bottles, and your mom came in with a small smile on her face.
"Do you still wake up early?" she asked gently.
"Early enough to take the wolves for their walk before breakfast" you gave a small smile.
"I'll meet you in the morning, why not show me where your room is" she asked, and you gave a smile before leading the way.
"Tony really spoiled me, he replaced a lot of my things for me" you started as you walked along the hallway. "My room is huge" you added and saw Steve walking into his room and giving a small smile. You got to your room and opened the door and Cloud and Melody pushed by to go jump up on the bed. Billy seemed a bit more patient and waited for you and your mom to walk in.
"Wow, this is a large room" she marveled, looking around. She went to your bookshelves and inspected them. She saw the ruined photo albums you hadn't switched over yet, but the new ones waiting for the photographs.
"You used to have photos on your walls, why not here?" she asked gently.
"Tony said he's moving me in a couple months to a couple suite. Besides, I'd have to go print the photographs, and lets be honest, I can't really leave right now" you shrugged.
"He ruined all your teddy bears too?" she saw the three new ones sitting proudly on the bed.
"Except my first one, I put him on a book shelf" you pointed.
"You lost so much, why didn't you tell anyone?" she sat on the side of the bed.
"Because, I still had Cloud. Those other things can be replaced eventually. My shredded clothes got me new ones... He threatened all the people I thought were my friends and I lost them too. I kept thinking, as long as I had Cloud, I hadn't lost anything worthwhile. I was afraid if I told you, you would show up and it would put you in danger. Even now, its dangerous for you to be here" you admitted. "Don't be surprised if someone is watching your balcony door during the night" you smirked.
"There's police outside" she reminded you.
"Some of those cops are dirty" you spoke softly. You looked up to see Bucky come out and sit on your swing. You heard Steve's door close and him walking up a set of steps and you knew he was headed towards your moms room. She looked pointedly at Bucky, and you flushed as you smiled. "He likes to keep me safe" you whispered.
"He seems to be a good man, Billy likes him" she gave a smile.
"Billy has good taste" you whispered.
"I'd better get to bed, I love you, I'll see you in the morning" she gave you a kiss on the forehead and a hug before leaving. You waited a few minutes then went outside and sat beside Bucky on the swing and he gave you a grin.
"Hey Sarge, I thought this was over" you moved so you were sitting right next to him, and your shoulder was brushing against his.
"Technically the week isn't over until Sunday" he put his arm up on the back of the swing and grinned at you. You giggled and shook your head. "Stevie is watching your mom for the night" he added gently.
"I heard him come out, I figured as much" you nodded. "You are still the first line of defense for the balcony though, so be careful at least"
"Careful, someone hears that and might think you don't hate me" he repeated your own words back to you.
"I've never hated you" you looked at him with a smile. "Disliked your words and actions, but they make sense now" you shrugged. "Besides, I wouldn't keep making you pie if I didn't like you"
"Why aren't you making anyone else special pies?" he asked after a moment, licking his lips then biting the bottom one.
"Maybe you have my attention, and I want yours too" you blushed, trying hard to flirt with him.
"You already have my full attention" he chuckled.
"Read into it what you want" you stood up holding Pup close. "Good night Bucky, try to get some sleep" you reminded him. He gave you one of his flirty smiles and you slowly smiled back before biting your bottom lip and heading inside.