Sister
"There was something familiar about her," Allie shrugged as she finished telling everyone at the dinner table about Annika.
"And you don't know where you've seen her before?" Wanda asked with a raised brow.
"No," Allie shook her head.
Heads turned to face one another as they shrugged at Allie's assessment. Dress shopping had been a success and Sharon had found her wedding dress. Having dropped Allie back off at the house, Sharon and Steve had gone out for dinner while Bucky and Allie had Sam, Wanda, and Peter over for dinner.
"Well, that's not super strange," Peter shrugged. "I mean, that sort of thing happens all the time, right?"
"Well, yes, I suppose," Allie shrugged. "But we're getting sidetracked from what I actually meant to say."
"And what did you really mean to say?" Sam smirked.
"That Sharon found the dress," Allie smiled. "It was a resounding yes from everyone."
"You, Sharon, and Annika?" Wanda laughed.
"God, I said she looked familiar one time," Allie rolled her eyes. "But yes."
"Was it awkward waiting for Sharon since you two didn't really know each other?" Peter asked.
"Not really," Allie shrugged. "She's nice enough and we just talked about the dresses Sharon had tried."
"I want a dress," Sarah complained at the end of the table.
"Yeah, when do you guys go for your dresses?" Bucky took a drink of his beer that Sam had brought with him.
"Not this weekend but the next," Allie shrugged.
"So I get a dress?" Sarah smiled.
"Yes, you're getting a dress," Allie grinned.
"I want a bow tie," Steven frowned.
"You're getting a bow tie," Bucky looked over at him.
"Good. I want to look like you," Steven nodded and took a large bite of his food.
Bucky and Allie looked at each other with amused expressions before simply shaking their heads and continuing to eat. Across the table from Allie, Peter was fiddling with one of his web shooters despite being told to put it away. As he looked up and reached for a beer of his own, Allie glared at him.
"Don't give me that look," he frowned.
"No beer," she continued glaring.
"I'm twenty-three," he said deadpan. "I'm legal."
"You're working on that damn thing at the table when I told you to put it up," Allie pointed at the shooter in Peter's hands.
"I've gotta get it working again. Who knows if I'll need it tonight," Peter narrowed his eyes back at her.
"I said, put it away," Allie continued.
"You are not my mother," Peter shot.
"With as often as you've come over unannounced since you were seventeen? I might as well be," she shot back.
The others at the table sat in amusement as Allie and Peter went back-and-forth. In the past five years, Allie and Bucky had begun to expect Peter to show up out of nowhere more than anybody else. His favorite way to arrive was when the kids were outside and he'd swing from his webs. Allie would constantly scold him that while it might seem fine to do that in the city, they lived around neighbors who valued their privacy.
"I just want a beer," Peter frowned.
"No," she shook her head.
"Please," he whined.
"Why do you even want a beer? They're not even good," Allie said and Bucky and Sam turned and looked at her as if she had just insulted God himself.
"How do you know?" Peter narrowed his eyes. "You don't drink."
"I drank in the forties, remember?" Allie rolled her eyes. "I had a beer in Italy."
"She almost spat it on me," Bucky grinned.
"Says the man who took the bottle out of my hand and took a swig," Allie rolled her eyes.
"You gave it back to me," Bucky pointed out.
"Whatever, the point is, Peter, if you're going to be working on tech at the dinner table, you don't get to drink a beer while doing so," Allie turned back to Peter. "Besides, unlike these guys, you can actually get drunk."
"I can get drunk, too," Sam interjected.
"You, shh," Allie hissed. "You're missing my point. He has tech at the dinner table and wants to drink. It's a bad idea."
"Fine," Peter rolled his eyes. Putting the web shooter to the side, he nodded towards the bottle of beer in front of him. "Now can I drink?"
"No, you're too young," Allie said without missing a beat and taking a bite of food.
"That's not fair," Peter whined.
"Life's not fair," Allie shrugged.
"Are you sure you're not his mother?" Sam grinned.
"Kid, have the beer," Bucky reached over and handed the bottle to Peter.
"Thank you," Peter smirked and looked directly at Allie as he took a swig of the alcohol.
"James!" Allie glared. "You can't do that."
"I just did," he grinned.
"Our kids are going to the think that if I say 'no' that you'll say 'yes'," Allie hissed at him.
"No they won't," Bucky shook his head. "I won't say 'yes' to them. United front and all that."
"Gee, we really feel like a united front," Allie rolled her eyes.
"You two done fighting?" Sam grinned.
Allie and Bucky simply gave Sam a look to be quiet as the group finished their dinner. Wanda helped Allie pass out dessert while Bucky cleaned up Sarah and T.J. who'd managed to fling his food around hard enough that he'd gotten in his hair and all over his sister's face.
As they began to eat the cake that Allie had made, Peter excitedly told Allie about a project he'd been recruited to take photos for. In the years that had passed, he'd become quite talented at photography. At every family gathering, he'd taken pictures and taken them to be framed for everyone. Allie was proud of him.
"The best part of this entire thing is I'm making a commission," he grinned.
"That's great!" Allie smiled.
"What's a commission?" Steven asked as he took a bite of cake that was far too big, earning a scolding look from Allie, telling him that he knew better.
"It means I'm getting money," Peter grinned. "Which means, I can finally make good on my promise to take you to the movies."
"Yes!" Sarah and Steven both shouted with mouthfuls of cake.
"And I can get you-know-what for you-know-who," he said in Allie and Bucky's direction.
All Sarah had been asking for was a LEGO set like her Uncle Peter. She liked seeing the pictures of the creations that he would make with his best friend. Peter had talked with Allie and Bucky and made a promise that he would get her LEGOs in some form for her birthday, but he of course knew that they weren't the cheapest toy out there.
"Sounds like a plan," Bucky took a swig of beer.
"Speaking of you-know-who," Wanda started. "What time do you want me here to help set everything up on Saturday?"
"Around lunch time?" Allie suggested.
Sarah's birthday was finally upon the Barnes household. For her birthday, Allie and Bucky had planned a cookout out in the backyard with their friends, family, and a few neighbors whose kids would often play with Sarah at the playground. Sarah was excited because Allie and Bucky had agreed that she could dress up like a miniature version of her dad for the party. Steven wanted to look like Uncle Steve. And so it was decided that the kids could dress as anything they wanted, but Allie and Bucky were both aware that kids would be dressing like their friends.
"Speaking of that," Peter grinned. "Are you sure I can't make a special swing or trampoline or something out of webbing for the kids?"
"We're sure," Allie narrowed her eyes and Bucky nodded beside her.
"I'd be careful," he insisted.
"I trust you when it's just our kids. Not strangers," Allie pointed out.
Peter rolled his eyes with a sigh before going back to eating his own slice of cake. Finishing his before the others, Peter excused himself and took the kids to play in the living room while the others stayed and talked at the table. Bucky watched as Allie looked over to the living room with a smile. Seeing the growing grin on her face that was a normal sight to see, Bucky was happy to simply see his wife happy.
"You know, he's going to make a good dad one day," Allie whispered to Bucky.
"You think?" Bucky smirked as he placed his arm around her shoulders and planted a soft kiss on the top of her head.
"I know so," Allie grinned.
"You two were just arguing like five minutes ago," Sam's nose scrunched. "Now you're getting touchy."
"Your point?" Bucky asked.
"It's weird," Sam narrowed his eyes and Wanda rolled hers at him.
"Sam," Allie sighed and rubbed her temples. "You've known us as a couple for what, six years? All four of us were on the same team in Leipzig. If I remember correctly, you told us that you thought people from our time were supposed to be prudes."
"Yes, thank you for making me relive that moment when I thought you two were about to blind me by doing unholy things beside me while Cyborg here and I were trapped underneath your beer-drinking son's webs," Sam folded his arms across his chest.
"Sam," Wanda sighed.
"Yes?" Sam turned to her.
"Sometimes you need to shut up," she smirked.
"Hey! Woah, woah. That was uncalled for," Sam's lips parted in shock.
"I agree with her," Bucky nodded.
"Well, that isn't news," Sam rolled his eyes. "Allie? You think that, too?"
"You know how you're my honorary brother?" Allie asked and Sam nodded. "Yeah, sometimes I want to strangle you."
"And they put us on missions together," Sam scoffed.
"Not my fault everyone always pairs me together with Captain America," Allie smirked.
"Every Cap needs their nurse," Bucky grinned.
"Well, if she's gonna be like that, I want a new nurse," Sam frowned.
"No, you don't," Allie smirked.
Sam narrowed his eyes at Allie and continued to have his arms folded against his chest. Locked in a staring contest for just a moment, Sam sighed and rolled his eyes before shrugging.
"You're right, but I don't like it."
Wanda looked between Sam, Bucky, and Allie and tilted her head to the side just a tad. Looking directly at Allie, she gave a smile as she placed both hands on the table and leaned forward.
"So back to this subject of Annika," she started. "Are you sure you don't know why she seemed familiar?"
"If I knew, I'd say," Allie shrugged.
Wanda didn't press too heavily when bringing the conversation back, and she didn't tell the others, but something didn't sit right with her that Allie wasn't sure what was familiar about Annika. There was a small part of Wanda that was worried, and while she wanted to get to the bottom of it, she knew that it wasn't the right time.
But she promised herself that she'd find the reason that she felt uneasy about it.
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Allie and Sharon had only met the one time before both had to flee.
Allie remembered being happy that her brother had met someone. She remembered how he had been with Peggy all those years ago. It was nice to see him with that look in his eyes once again.
When everyone, including Sharon, had been pardoned, Bucky had invited her to a dinner at his and Allie's apartment in Brooklyn to reunite her with Steve. If it hadn't been for the fact that it was their apartment, Allie and Bucky would have taken a newborn Steven and left Sharon and Steve to have a night alone.
Allie made a point of it to become friends with Sharon. She remembered how Sharon had helped her get to Bucky that day at the Terrorist Centre, even if she was then choked by the Winter Soldier and had to burn her husband's arm to get him to let go. She remembered Sharon being the reason they had their suits back and were able to fight that day at Leipzig. She found that she felt that she owed Sharon a great deal.
"What was he like before the serum?" Sharon asked Allie one day as she helped clean the apartment while Allie fed Steven.
"A pain in my ass," Allie laughed.
"Isn't he still? That's what brothers are, right?" Sharon cracked a smile.
"Well, yes," Allie nodded her head. "He was always getting into some kind of fight. He'd come home, blood trickling from his nose and I'd have to take care of him. But he was a good brother."
"Did you guys ever fight?" Sharon smirked.
"I locked him in a cabinet once when we were pretty young," Allie laughed. "He'd taken one of my toys, but with me always having been bigger than him, I found a cabinet, shoved him in, and placed one of our mom's boxes of sewing supplies in front of it."
"What did your mom do?"
"Well, she asked me how it happened. I pretended that I didn't know," Allie shrugged. "And Steven," she looked down at the milk drunk baby in her arms. "This is not for you to get any ideas with your little siblings when you're older."
Many afternoons were spent that way. Sharon would help out around the apartment, Allie would take care of Steven, and then Bucky and Steve would arrive in time to eat dinner with the two women.
As time passed and Allie became pregnant with Sarah, she found that life was beginning to feel much closer to how it would have when she was in her twenties. When Steve and Sharon began dating, Allie found she had to resist the temptation to tease her brother like he and Bucky's siblings had teased her.
The first time that they took Sharon along with them to Sunday dinner at the Barnes family home in Brooklyn, Ruth and Thomas had been amazed at the idea of Steve having a girlfriend. Grace had taken a turn to hold Steven as Allie rested with a hand on her belly.
"I'm still getting used to you having muscles, let alone a pretty girlfriend," Ruth quipped.
"Believe me," Allie grinned. "It's been eighty years and I am still not used to seeing him taller than me."
"You were never taller than me," Steve defended.
"I was too! By two entire inches, and that was without heels!" Allie argued.
"No," Steve shook his head and Sharon cracked a grin.
"Steve, you had newspaper in your shoes to be taller than her," Bucky smirked. "And it never worked."
"Whatever," Steve rolled his eyes. "You wore that blue ribbon around your wrist for the longest time."
"That was her hair ribbon," Bucky argued. "And it was what we used when we got married."
"You didn't even have rings?" Sharon questioned.
"I used my engagement ring," Allie explained. "He dropped it though."
"I've never heard the word 'shit' said as many times at a wedding as I did at yours," Steve laughed.
"Says the man who tripped me while walking me to his best friend," Allie teased.
"In my defense, we were in a living room," Steve rolled his eyes again.
"I had a ring by that Christmas," Bucky explained. "I lost it in the fall."
"But now you have that ring," Grace nodded to his vibranium hand as she rocked Steven back and forth. "Is it hard to wear it on that hand?"
Bucky simply shrugged and looked down at his hand. Allie's gaze fell on it as well as his other hand rubbed her shoulder gently.
"No," he said. "I'm happy to have it there."
In the talking about Allie and Bucky's wedding and continuation of teasing Steve, many subtle looks were given in Steve and Sharon's direction. Small smiles found themselves on the faces in the living room. As Allie stood up and walked past Ruth, she found her hand being gripped softly by the wrinkled hand of her sister-in-law.
"I like her," Ruth whispered.
Allie looked back in the direction of her brother and his girlfriend. The two were silently chatting to one another as others broke off into small conversations. Steve had that same small, boyish grin plastered on his face that she had seen once before. He was completely in love with the woman in front of him.
"I do, too," Allie smiled.
"I've never seen him like that," Ruth continued.
"It's been a very long time since the last time I saw him smile like that," Allie confirmed. "I wouldn't mind having her as a sister."
And she meant every word. The day Steve came over to the apartment while Bucky and Allie were packing before the big move to their new house, Allie had almost dropped an entire box of books on her foot when he had blurted out that he was thinking of proposing. And when Allie and Bucky later went through one of the biggest trials they had been through in their marriage, Sharon was always at Allie's side.
As far as Allie was concerned, she was already her sister.
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Bucky had barely a moment to stretch his arms out when his phone began ringing early in the morning. Looking over at the screen, Sam's name was bright on the screen. He groaned, sat up, and answered the phone.
"What do you want, Sam?" he asked, voice dripping with annoyance.
"Tell your wife to answer her damn phone," Sam's voice sounded just as annoyed.
"She's asleep," Bucky rolled his eyes as he looked over at a still sleeping Allie.
"Well, wake her up," Sam urged. "This can't wait."
"Are you sure it can't wait for her to call back in the morning?"
"Bucky, I just got woken up by a call from a Senator. It's about those meetings."
"Shit, okay. You know you could have started by saying that that's what this was about," Bucky quickly sat up straight.
"Just, get Allie."
"Allie," Bucky whispered as he shook Allie's shoulder. Her brows her furrowed as she buried herself further into their comforter. "Allie, wake up."
Allie groaned and began to try and pull the comforter over her head. Bucky continued to shake her shoulder and pull at the comforter before she narrowed her eyes and looked at him.
"What the hell do you want, James?" she snipped.
"Well Allison, Sam's on the phone for you," he rolled his eyes.
"Why?"
"You know why."
Allie's glare quickly turned to widened eyes as she took the phone from him. Bucky could barely make out what Sam was saying through the phone, but Allie's facial expressions told him everything that he needed to know.
"Thank you, Sam," Allie sighed. "We'll meet in Washington tomorrow."
Bucky watched as Allie hung up the phone and looked at him. Taking a deep breath, she ran her hands over face, pushing her bed head of hair back. Bucky raised his brow at her, but she simply smoothed down the front of his t-shirt that she was wearing to bed. Bucky became impatient.
"Well?" he asked.
"Well," Allie nodded. "I have to go back to Washington."
"Meaning?"
"They're ready to get this son of a bitch."