T’was the night before Christmas, the fourth one James Buchanan Barnes was going to spend with his girlfriend – and the one where he decided he was going to give her the gift of a ring and a proposal.
He was collaborating with Tony Stark, the resident billionaire-genius-playboy-philanthropist and his pre-war best friend/American saviour; Steve Rogers. He wanted it to be perfect, and it would have been; had he actually told Ela that he had made plans for them.
He had done everything he had needed to – met the parents and had the terrifying prospect of asking for their permission (the traditional way), even put through her very interrogative sister who worked as a lawyer through one very awkward lunch that Ela had set up in hopes of Bucky getting to know her family better.
T’was the day before the proposal and Bucky hadn’t even told his (hopefully) future-fiancée to keep the schedule cleared for the next day.
So when it came down to it, it took a little more than persuasion than anticipated.
She was lay on her apartment couch – which Tony had so nicely knocked down the walls to and redesigned so she and James could share – snuggled within layers of blankets and fluffy knitted jumpers with a suspicious looking reindeer and evil snowmen – watching Grandma Got Run Over By a Reindeer.
She had long ditched the now cold hot chocolate and half melted marshmallows on the floor besides her, her eyes drooping as she gave in to the fuzzy, Christmas warmth. Bucky walked over to her cosy self, kneeling down and picking up the half-empty mug and set it on the glass table. He faced her at eye-level and spoke softly.
“Hey, doll?”
She replied with a half-hearted murmur, pushing herself deeper within her warm, knitted igloo.
“C’mon, doll. I need to speak to you.”
Her eyes forced their way open. “Stop calling me that ugly-ass name.”
Bucky shrugged. “No, I will not. I think it’s great.”
“I think you’re annoying.” She stated whilst wincing as the cold air hit her neck as she sat up, blood rushing to her head. He sat on the other side of her, and she unwillingly opened up the comfortable blanket for him to join her. His frame almost took up most of the couch, so it barely covered his left arm, but he joined her for sentimentality instead.
“What’s up?” She asked, still watching the animated film displayed in front of her.
He knew it was going to take a lot of persuasion for her to agree to clear up whatever she had planned for tomorrow; so he wrapped his arms around her. She shuddered at his cool touch and the subzero temperature of his freaking metal arm, so she practically leapt off the sofa and onto the table, blankets half wrapped around her shoulders like a cape.
Bucky looked startled before he gave her a questioning look.
“You are the absolute zero in human form.” She complained, wrapping her thin pyjama’ed legs in the fleece.
He sighed. “I have no idea what that means.”
She spoke monotonously, as if reciting from a textbook. “0 Kelvin. Minus two-hundred and seventy-three point one five degrees Celsius. Four-hundred and minus fifty-nine point six seven degrees Farenheit.”
Bucky shot her a blank look. “I still don’t know what that means, doll.”
She rolled her eyes, jumping back onto the couch and curling up against his flesh shoulder. “It means you are freezing, James.”
His face dropped. “Why do you still call me James?” he had been meaning to ask, but she skilfully managed to doge the question every time he even thought to bring it up. She just didn't like Bucky.
The name, that is.
Plus, how awkward would it have been to introduce him to her family as Bucky?
Bucky?!
Nuh-uh.
Her expression was bemused. “Isn’t that your name?”
He gritted his teeth. “You know what I mean.”
Her eyebrows raised, and she finally pressed the button to pause the film. “No, I don’t. Enlighten me, James.” She placed emphasis on his name, which she felt was normal to refer to people by.
She was confused as to what he wanted to be referred to as. She wasn’t into the whole, ‘baby’, or ‘honey’ or ‘sweetheart’ and even ‘doll’ but he seemed so adamant to call her that she just ignored it most of the time or let it slide.
“I mean, everyone else calls me Bucky – so why don’t you?” He was quiet to which Ela felt a sudden surge of guilt, because he sounded hurt. She wrapped her arm around his torso, leaning her face into his arm to appease him, only to realise his flesh arm was just as solid as his metal one so she felt like she had just faceplanted concrete.
“I don’t call you Bucky because I’m not everyone.” She matched his quiet voice and his expression softened. To bring up her defence even further, she asked him: “Why do you not call me Ela instead of your term of damn endearment?”
He immediately replied, smirking. “Because I’m from the fourties, doll.”
She was now really pissed off.
Bucky laughed. “I don’t hate ‘my damn terms of endearments' to you; I think that it’s a nice name. I call you ‘doll’ because you call me ‘Snowflake’.”
She sniffled.
“You called me ‘doll’ before I called you ‘Snowflake’.”
“You referred to me as ‘Metal-Arm’ for two years. I think you can deal with ‘doll’.”
“’Snowflake’ is cute.” She harrumphed, edging her face away from him and taking her outstretched arm across the middle of his body. In response he pulled her close, resulting in her sitting on his lap, trapped between his metal arm and his equally sturdy flesh one.
“Let me go! You’re freezing!”
He shrugged, grinning. “You’re the one that called me ‘Snowflake’.”
“I take it back!” she shrieked, crossing her arms in attempt to retain her body heat.
“All two years of it?” he asked, still smirking. She wanted to wipe it off his face with a punch.
“No.”
He shrugged again, tightening his grip. “Guess you’re stuck here. And since the point I’ve been trying to make has not been made yet, I guess we’ve got some time.”
She growled.
He laughed.
“Anyway, it’s Christmas tomorrow.”
She rolled her eyes, turning back to look at his bright eyes smile. She bit back her sarcastic retort.
“And?” she enquired, pleased as she realised she wasn’t as cold, even though the blanket was now discarded on the floor alongside the TV remote.
“What are your plans?” he tried to sound nonchalant, but Ela knew there was only one reason why he would ever ask that, and it was because he had made plans and not told anyone about them until last minute.
“I’m visiting Asgard with Cat. They don’t celebrate the ‘mass of Christ’ over there, so it’s just a big feast really.”
Bucky frowned.
“You can’t go!” he exclaimed, loosening his grip to accentuate his point. He seemed genuinely disheartened.
“Why?” She asked, smirking at his tendency for last minute plans.
He struggled for a moment. “…Because-“
She looked back at him expectantly. “Because… I have to give you your Christmas present.”
He seemed pleased with his impromptu response.
She quirked a brow. “And how long will that take? I’m setting off about noon after the presents. Natasha said she got me something real good this year.”
Bucky nodded, not really caring. “You’re not going.” He stated it firmly and she scoffed.
“Under whose authority, Barnes?”
He was taken aback by the use of his surname, but he tightened his grip.
“Under mine.”
“Uh.” She laughed. “Okay.”
“I’m being serious.” He said, as seriously as he could muster.
“Uh huh. Sure you are.”
“You’re not going, and that is final.”
She glared at him, elbowing his under the ribs and taking the chance to be released from his hold.
“I’m going wherever the fuck I want to.” She said whilst picking up the mug and taking it with her, blanket in tow.
“Stark, you gotta help me!” Bucky spoke with more than a hint of desperation.
Tony flipped the spanner that was in his hand, a thoughtful look on his face.
“You pissed her off, you make up for it. I learnt the hard way with Pep.”
It was the in house AI that backed Tony up. “I agree, Sergeant Barnes. Miss Kale doesn’t appreciate her freedom being breached.”
Bucky snarled at the ceiling. “You were listening to our private conversation?”
“But of course, Sergeant. I am present in every single room within the private towers.”
Bucky sighed, asking again. “Please, Stark?”
Tony just shook his head, taking a sip of his eggnog. “Sorry dude. I have to finish Pepper’s present.”
Bucky turned to leave Tony’s workshop when he heard JARVIS speak again. “I believe Agent Romanov is free. She is currently situated within her quarters.”
Bucky made his way to the elevator, praying that Natasha wouldn’t kill him for upsetting Ela.
They were close now, especially since Natasha was romantically linked with Banner, and Banner spent most of his time in the labs with Ela. They had found a mutual respect and comradeship, enjoying each other’s company and both of them learning a new language – Ela taught Nat some basic Hindi after Bruce said he wanted to improve; and the born-and-raised Russian was teaching Ela her mother tongue.
Most of the time it was just them bitching about their love lives in a foreign language.
Bucky understood that girls had this thing where they understood each other’s feelings in a manner that no guy would ever get. With Cat spending most of her time in Asgard becoming familiarised with her husband’s home and working non-stop between that, you could tell that Ela missed her best friend and so enjoyed new company.
He reached the Widow’s Web, as Stark unofficially named the living quarters in which the spy lived. Natasha opened the door in her training clothes, beads of sweat gathering on her forehead.
“Что вы хотите?” (What do you want?)
He refrained from rolling his eyes at her blunt speech.
“Мне нужна помощь.” (I need help.) He stated, matching her tone of voice.
The redhead quirked a brow.
“Я предлагаю завтра, и она не будет чистить ее график.” (I’m proposing tomorrow and she won’t clear her schedule.)
Natasha shot him a look filled with amusement.
“Вы обозленный ее покинуть?” (You pissed her off?)
He nodded.
She sighed.
“You never fail to surprise me with your stupidity.” She spoke, her American accent unsettling after her perfect Russian intonation.
“She’s stubborn.”
“…And you’re a moron.” She completed the sentence for him, inviting him in.
And about half an hour later of persuading Natasha why this was the way forward, him proposing and then a dubious reassurance on her part to tell him that she would most likely say yes; Natasha went to convince her friend that Bucky had the best Christmas present ever, and it required her to stay on the planet.
Natasha used this opportunity to catch up with her new found language skills with both Bruce and Ela.
“Mera galti nahi hai, ke wo igdam ek bewakuf hai.” (It’s not my fault he’s a complete moron.)
Bruce sighed, understanding the girls point – but not empathising with her.
“Uske pas ek acha karan hoga, na?” (He’s got to have a good reason, no?)
Natasha processed this, helping Bruce out to persuade the adamant girl who was trying to prove that her free will was not to be messed with.
Accented, she made her point. “Aese dheko.” (Look at it this way.) Ela stopped her work and looked at Natasha trying to explain the other perspective.
“Tum kabhi bhi Asgard ja sak ti ho, likin ye daan ekhi baar mil sakta hai.” (You can go to Asgard any time, but you can only get this gift once.)
Ela spoke in irritation. “Tum ko pata hai kya hai? Aur hum ko bataayi nahi?” (You know what it is? And you didn’t tell me?)
Natasha shrugged; now returning to the western language seeing as her skill in the South Asian language wasn’t as evolved as she had hoped it would be. “Maybe I do, maybe I don’t. That’s not the point.”
“Then what is?” Ela asked, tapping on the screen in front of her with a little too much force and causing the circuitry to break and a blue spot to appear.
“I know Barnes is frustratingly stubborn, almost as stubborn as you – but you should trust me on this.”
Ela sulked, knowing that Natasha was right.
“Plus, maybe you could use the gift I got you sooner than I would have thought.” Natasha offered a knowing smirk on her face whilst Bruce blushed adorably.
Suspicious, she walked past them to go find her butthead of a boyfriend.
“James.”
He turned around mid-spar as he heard his name, scowling as Sam nearly punched him in the nose.
“What’s up?”
He tried to pretend like they hadn’t almost had an argument before.
It took all of her pride and then some to give up. “What are the plans for tomorrow?” Wrapping her arms around herself, she grasped her shoulders.
He grinned and pulled her in for a bone crushing hug.
“You won’t regret this, doll.”
“This better be worth missing out on Thor getting smashed.”
Bucky grinned into her hair, a slight chuckle escaping his lips.
“It will be.”
The next morning, the Avengers were in high spirits and low patience. Like every year, JARVIS was programmed to wake them all up at dawn with a Christmas medley of old and new, and their birdcall was a chorus of grumbles and moans and complains of sleep deprivation. As they all somewhat freshened up and trudged to the communal Christmas tree that soared 20 feet tall, the mountain of presents seemed more of a chore than fun.
They stopped doing Secret Santa after they realised it was fixed and they all had the same person – Tony.
It was at least a memorable Christmas.
They all chattered amongst each other as they got presents throws down from Tony and his Mark 62, flying around in tinsel and a scarf in the name of Christmas.
Cat was in Asgard with Loki, as was Thor and his beloved Jane. Jane's assistant however, was not a willing contender to third wheel the two couples and decided to hang with the 'cool kids' as she so fondly phrased them.
Ela had gotten Bucky the Godfather trilogy (seeing as he had never seen it); she had made Tony a mash up of his most played ‘lab songs’, seeing as he already had everything; she had gotten Natasha Kill Bill Vol. 1 & 2 so they could laugh together at the unrealistic fight scenes; she had gotten Bruce a selfie of her and the Hulk whilst on a mission and framed it; she had gotten Cat some clothes that didn’t comprise of hoodies and her Asgardian wardrobe (which totally looked like cosplay) and a pair of heels that she was tempted to buy for herself; she had gotten Sam some books that he wanted to read, Pepper a spa giftcard and Clint a new set of arrows she had designed herself; and she got Steve a book about popular film culture.
Her gifts to everyone were the most imaginative yet, and she even bought Rhodey a gift box of donuts with WAR MACHINE ROX on them, for the banter and Darcy a banana phone after that YouTube video they watched together..
As she opened her own presents and grinned the entire time, she found her presents mailed from her parents and sister, reminding herself to phone home and ask if they got the presents she mailed them.
Lost in thought, that’s when Natasha walked over and dropped a medium sized box in her lap. “Enjoy.” She said, and curiously Ela opened the box, her face dropping in horror and finding herself shutting the lid as quickly as she had opened it.
“Nat!” She exclaimed, noticing that everyone had gone quiet at her sudden outburst.
Natasha laughed wickedly, and Bruce looked embarrassed for his partner.
Bucky leaned over to see what was in the box, but she slammed it shut. “Nope.”
“What is it?” Tony asked, grinning.
“Pandora’s Box.” She replied, her sarcasm masking the quick darkening of her cheeks. She turned to her spy friend, one question on her mind. Lowering her voice she whispered. “How the hell did you know the si-?”
Pepper looked at her curiously before glancing at Natasha’s smug face.
“Oh.”
She seemed abashed. “I told you that in confidence!”
Darcy Lewis glanced curiously between them, sneakily pushing herself backwards and behind Ela.
Pepper rose to their defence, Ela not forgetting the graciousness of Pepper buying her a pair of those Louboutins she’d wanted for the past season. “We thought it would be appropriate. Plus we think it totally suits your body typ-”
Ela shook her head wildly, shutting the women up. “No. Definitely not. Nope. Never appropriate.”
And that was where the topic ended, the rest of them remembering to ask the Russian spy or the bubbly CEO later. As Ela sighed, Darcy snatched the box out of Ela's hands, her eyes widening as she peered inside. She let out a half laugh, half snort.
"Curiosity definitely didn't kill the cat, it made it get a bone-"
That's when Ela smacked her hand over the brunette's mouth and took the box to her apartment with the intention of storing it away forever.
“Where are we going?” she asked Bucky, wrapping up warm as per his request.
“You’ll see.”
She wore her thickest pair of woolly tights and a maroon dress she had been saving for a nice occasion, topping off with a cardigan and a thick coat.
She threw a scarf around her neck and a beanie in her bag for good measure before she set outside with Bucky. It was the late afternoon, and New York was quiet in the streets and warm in the buildings, the corporate offices deadly silent and at peace. They walked through Manhattan; reaching Central Park as they entered into an ice-rink that Ela was pretty sure was closed.
“James, we can’t be here.” She said carefully, watching the small specks of snow fall out of the sky.
“Sure we can.” He grinned as they stopped by the entrance booth and sat at a bench to put on the skates. The entire area was empty, and the park was a sight to see with no visitors and set in snow.
“How?”
“Tony bought the place out.”
“Central Park?” She asked, concerned.
“God no, the rink. But he would buy the park out if he could.”
The both laughed as Ela gripped onto the side of the rink whilst stepping on. “I have zero balance for this.”
“Good thing I do then.” He stated simply, reaching for her hand as he glided through the ice, his now pre-Winter Soldier phase hair ruffling against the chilly breeze of Christmas day.
As they conversed for an hour (or had it been two? Or three?) Bucky was starting to sound more and more nervous as the snow began to fall heavier and faster.
She would be enjoying herself more if Bucky didn’t sound like HYDRA were coming to steal him at every given moment. “Are you okay?”
Bucky actually jumped, out being startled. “Y-yeah. I’m alright, how about yourself?” he asked casually, not missing the hawk-like gaze she had set upon his stature.
“James…?” She asked, more of a warning than a question.
Before he could answer, James’ StarkWatch started beeping, as he had an incoming message.
It was Stark with: Set, go in 5
He gripped her hand a little tighter, and searched frantically around his pocket with the other hand, almost sighing in relief when he found the velvet box. They walked to the ledge around the rink, and picking her p, he sat her down upon it – cautiously wiping the snow beforehand.
She seemed a little scared.
“James? What’s going on?”
She heard rustling behind the tall trees, but only the rink was dimly lit and the rest was too dark to see.
When he didn’t answer, she was contemplating making a runner for it before she realised she was still wearing ice skates. The bitter winds of New York howled passed them, her face cold and her gloved fingers still a little numb. The snow had calmed down, but Ela felt her scarf billow with strength and crossed her arms to keep warmth.
“James?”
“Yeah?” He replied, sounding perfectly normal and not at all terrified like he was before.
She wondered who the fuck had replaced him with a robot within a matter of minutes.
“What the hell is going on?” she asked, and before she could – she suddenly heard the faint soundings of her favourite classical piece of Winter wafting into her ears, the winds now dulled by the sharp sounds of an… Orchestra?
“What the f-?” she was cut off by the bright lights that had appeared from underneath the ice, which stated her full name.
ELA KALE
She was so confused right now.
She looked around at the now brightly lit skating rink, seeing a full orchestra of people playing Vivaldi’s ‘Winter’ and she basked in the sharp tones.
“James-“
She was cut off once again by an elongated glance in her direction.
“Ela Kale.” He said; his voice soft.
The lights under the rink changed again to the dull ice it was before.
“I know that you hated me when we first met, and I didn’t like you too much, doll-“she laughed, but he continued as Vivaldi continued playing, the melodic layers of strings wandering through the enclosed area of park they were in. “-but it’s been four years since then since you got kidnapped and all of that shit happened to you, and I realised then that you were the girl for me-“
She was catching on.
“You didn’t have to put up with me, and I know I wasn’t exactly a gentleman, threatening you to pretend to go out with me – but look where that got us, huh?”
Ela couldn’t help but laugh again, distracting Bucky from the speech he had prepared.
“But I swear to God, doll, you’re one of the most amazing people I’ve ever met, and I’ll be damned if I don’t get to spend the rest of my ‘centurion’ life with you.”
Her jaw dropped.
“So Ela Kale-“
The lights underneath the rink lit up again, now the words taking the words out of her mouth and her scarf scattering halfway across Manhattan.
WILL YOU MARRY ME?
“Would you do the honour of becoming my-“this time he was interrupted as she literally leapt on him, arms around his neck and kissing him, their lips warming each others in the still, snowy winter of New York.
“Yes.”