Chapter 1
When Steve read fairy tales to Bucky, he always told him they weren't real. He would always say there was no such things as dragons or fairies but then again. Steve did fight against aliens with a Norse God he thought was fake. He could only imagine Bucky's reaction to seeing Thor. Thor was always loud and excitable, something Bucky didn't like.
When they went to dog park the other day, a big husky mix kept jumping and barking at Bucky. Steve tried constantly to get the dog away. But the dog wouldn't leave. Harley kept nipping the dog's back to stop it. Finally, the dog's owner came and grabbed the dog away. Steve asked why she didn't come over sooner and she replied that she thought the dog was playing. Other dog owners were furious with the woman. Now Bucky had reason to hate loud and excitable things.
Today was Natasha's birthday. She didn't want anything big or anything at all. But she decided to have a small party so Bucky could understand what a birthday party was. Everyone was there. Tony, Pepper, Clint , Sam , Bruce and Rumlow (surprisingly).
Bucky was surprised and actually a little overwhelmed that everyone was here. Harley was constantly trying to ground him. So he stayed close to Steve and Rumlow. During the middle of the party, Bucky was napping on Rumlow and Rumlow was drinking a beer even though Steve told him not to drink around Bucky. And all Rumlow could say to that was he's my kid.
Then it was getting dark fast. Everyone knew what was happening expect Rumlow. Then there was a rumble, Bucky startled awake then started at the window.
"Sky cry?" Bucky was shaking, Steve noticed. Harley started to lick his hand and put her paws on his lap.
"Rumlow give him to me." Rumlow reluctantly gave Bucky to him. Bucky kept staring at the window, Harley licked his hand.
"Daddy?"
"We're going to be okay. I promise." The rumbling got louder then there was a flash. Bucky started to panic and tried to get away from Steve. Nat sat in front of Bucky and rubbed his flesh hand.
"Look at me, sweet boy." Said Nat. Bucky's focus was locked on whatever was going on outside. Then there was a loud flash, Bucky screamed and fought against Steve's hold. Steve wouldn't let go, Bucky bit him hard. Steve let him go, Bucky was gone.
"FRIENDS!" Yelled the God of thunder, Thor. If looks could kill, Thor would be dead three times over.
"Jarvis, where's Bucky?"
"Master Barnes is hiding under a spare bed. Third door to your left." Said Jarvis. Steve and Natasha and Harley went to the bedroom. They could hear Bucky crying. Steve lifted the bed cover, Bucky was trembling.
"Bucky, it's okay, baby." Said Steve. Bucky looked at him.
"Scary."
"I know. I'm sorry."
"Chair?"
"No, that wasn't the chair. It was Thor. He controls thunder and he likes to make a grand entrance." Said Natasha.
"Thor?" Bucky, hesitantly, crawled out from under the bed.
"Yeah, he's really nice but he's really loud sometimes. I'll go tell him to bring it down. You might want change him and get that bite looked at." Said Natasha getting up.
"Can you bring his bag?" Asked Steve. Natasha nodded and went to the common area.
"You can't just show up unannounced like that. Especially around war veterans." Said Sam.
"Forgive me. I did not know he was a veteran."
"Cut him some slack, guys. Bucky hasn't seen anything like this before so he's reasonably scared. Just lower your voice and don't show off your powers unless he asks. Bucky has bad history with electricity." Said Natasha getting Bucky's book bag.
"Is Steve okay? Bucky bit him pretty hard." Asked Sam.
"Yeah, give them a minute." She went back to the room, Bucky was a bit calmer and petting Harley while Steve was scratching his head. She handed him his bag. Steve changed Bucky and cleaned his hand and wrapped it.
"Sowwy." Said Bucky looking at his arm.
"It's alright, sweetheart, you were scared. You want to go meet Thor?" Surprisingly, Bucky said yes. Steve kissed his head and carried him to the common area. Bucky stared at Thor.
"I am dearly sorry, Bucky; soldier of winter. My intentions were never to frighten you. Am I forgiven?" Said Thor. Bucky, honestly, didn't understand half of what he was saying. So he looked to Steve.
"He is sorry for scaring you. Can you forgive him?" Said Steve. Bucky nodded.
"Now, so you guys can meet normally. Thor, this is James Buchanan Barnes. But we just call him Bucky. And don't address him as the soldier, please. Bucky, this is Thor, God of thunder." Said Steve. Bucky waved to him but hid his face in Steve's shoulder.
"It is an honor to meet you, Bucky."
"Now, that everyone knows everyone. How about we get this party but not a party started?" Said Tony.
"Sure, would you like something to eat Bucky and could you go ask papa if he's hungry?" Asked Steve. Bucky nodded and Steve let him down.
"Papa, daddy ask papa hungry too?" Said Bucky bouncing.
"Yeah, I could eat. And a beer too." Said Rumlow smiling at Bucky. Steve frowned and got himself a drink. Thor saw this and nodded in approval.
"Captain Rogers, I am proud of you."
"For what?" Asked Steve.
"How long have you and Agent Rumlow been copulating?" Nat and Pepper spit out their drink while Steve choked on his. Tony, Sam and Clint couldn't hold back their laughter. Rumlow was frozen. Bucky didn't understand what was going on.
"Why would you say that?"
"Well, Bucky seems to be very attached to you both as father figures. And as I recall a child who has two parental figures is a family. Am I wrong?"
"No but Rumlow and I aren't a couple. We just love Bucky. Everyone here has developed a bond with Bucky."
"You two act like a married couple." Said Sam.
"Not helping. We are not a couple, we just love Bucky."
"Papa loves daddy." Said Bucky.
"Do not." Said Rumlow. Bucky nodded and smiled.
"Papa loves daddy." He said again.
Alright, you asked for it." Rumlow tickled his stomach.
"For everyone's information, Rumlow and I are not a couple. So please stop calling us a couple." Said Steve. Everyone nodded, but Steve was certain that everyone still thought they were. Steve gave Rumlow his food and drink. Bucky immediately tried to go for his plate.
"Stop, you can't have this."
"Please?"
"No." Rumlow said firmly. Bucky looked to Steve then whined. Steve got a yogurt cup from the fridge and fed Bucky.
"Sorry, I forgot that he's not good on solids." Said Pepper. Everyone chatted for a while, Bucky would look at Thor every once in a while when he mentioned stuff he's never heard of. Bucky walked over to Thor and sat in front of him.
"What can I do for you, little one?" Bucky took a really long look at this weird man. He was taller and bulkier than daddy, he didn't think that was possible. His hair was longer than his and blond. But how could this weird man fall from the sky and wear human clothes? The fairies in his bedtime books all wore different clothes.
"Come from?"
"I come from Asgard. A wonderful place in the galaxy." He didn't know what or where that was.
"What that?" He pointed to his hammer.
"My mighty hammer, Mjolnir. Only those who are worthy can wield its power. Do you want to try to lift it?" Said Thor. Bucky hit the handle a few times trying to get to tip, but it wouldn't budge. Bucky thought it was glued to the floor until Thor, effortlessly, picked it up.
"Daddy do it?" Said Bucky looking at Steve.
"Oh pal, I don't know about all that." Said Steve taking a drink. Bucky looked at the hammer again, this was a weird thing. Then again, this man did just fall from the sky.
"Alright, everyone birthday cake time." Said Tony. Everyone gathered at the table. Bucky didn't know what was going, then Clint put a circular thing in front of Natasha.
"What that?" Asked Bucky.
"So curious today. This is an ice cream cake. We thought this might be a little easier on your tummy than a regular cake." Said Natasha poking his stomach.
"Alright, happy birthday song in 3...2..1." Said Tony. Everyone sang. Expect Bucky, who still didn't know what was going on. Everyone finished then they clapped.
"And for the sake of our veterans, we will not light any candles." Said Tony. Steve mouthed a thank you. They didn't know how Bucky was around open flames and now wasn't the time to figure that out. Everyone got a slice of the ice cream cake. Clint was even considerate enough to get doggy ice cream for Harley. But nobody gave Bucky a slice of the dessert. Steve was hesitant about giving him this stuff. So he figured if he just gave him the ice cream part, since it is technically milk, he should be okay.
"Okay small bite." Bucky took a small bite, it was cold but it was actually good. It was just frozen milk.
"More, please?"
"Good asking." Steve fed Bucky the ice cream part for a while then stopped him to eat the rest for himself.
"You know I'm kind of curious on how he is with sugar." Said Sam.
"What?"
"Dude, toddlers and sugar are a disaster waiting to happen. They get all hyper on a sugar high."
"Bucky wouldn't be like that, he can control himself." Bucky was already bouncing on his legs. Steve looked to Sam with a panicked look.
"Don't worry. If his metabolism is anything like yours, he wouldn't be in it for too much longer." Said Sam. Bucky looked at everyone else's plate, they didn't have any left.
"I must say this is delicious. Excellent choice of evening desert. Another." Said Thor throwing down the plastic plate. Bucky looked at him, why was he getting more?
"More, please?"
"No one is getting more. It's my cake." Said Natasha kissing Bucky's cheek. Bucky groaned and went to Rumlow. Rumlow stroked his hair, Bucky was getting a little irritable on not getting what he wanted. Just like toddlers do.
"Okay, present time." Said Tony.
"I shall present the gift of the birthday first, as I am the strongest avenger." Said Thor.
"No besties first." Said Clint handing Natasha his present. She opened it, a friendship bracelet. Simple, but it had 'Clint & Tasha BFF'.
"Thanks Clint."
"There's also one from Laura and the kids." She smiled. Thor stepped up next. She opened the box.
"What is this?" She said holding up a bottle.
"A wine aged over thousands of years. When the warriors of my planet celebrate a day of birth, they are given this fine wine to celebrate."
"Thank you, Thor." She said questioningly. Does Thor know that Asgardian bodies are different from human bodies?
"Much welcome." Bruce handed her a card. Tony and Pepper gave her a gift card and a few new weapons. Rumlow didn't have anything to give.
"Alright, Bucky can you give mommy your present?" Steve handed Bucky the red box. Bucky went to Nat and gave her the box. She opened it, it was a shirt.
"My son is natural born cuddler. Aw, Bucky this is so sweet. I love it." She hugged Bucky. Bucky smiled, he didn't pick the shirt, frankly, he didn't where the shirt came from.
"Daddy got.."
"Daddy helped picked out the shirt." Steve got his hand to make him quiet.
"Well I love it, it's my favorite present." Clint tried not to show jealousy. But it was a nice shirt that described her and Bucky's relationship, perfectly. Bucky was confused again, why was she getting presents?
"Why mommy get present?"
"It's mommy's birthday. It's a day that we celebrate that a person is alive."
"My birthday?"
"In March, you're going to have to wait a while." To Bucky, March sounded like tomorrow or next week. It would be a while before he found out March is another five months away.
"I get presents?"
"Oh buddy, just you wait. Your birthday is going to be the best ever." Said Tony. That didn't sound good. Tony was known for doing extremes, it took everything in him not to throw a gigantic party for Natasha.
"It'll be fun and not over the top."
"I shall also attend Bucky's birthday, I will bring another fine aged wine." Said Thor.
"Thor, we don't give wine to children here on their birthday. And Bucky is no exception. Bring a simple toy, please." Said Steve.
"But warriors are meant to drink for their birth."
"He's two. Look, his birthday is in March. Five months away, they can help you find something here on Earth that is reasonable for a child." Said Steve pointing to the Avengers.
"Speaking of age, will he be mentally three and biologically 103 or forever two?" asked Tony.
"I don't know. Was he always two when he was with Pierce?" Asked Steve to Rumlow.
"Yeah, they didn't let him age. Pierce had him for a couple of years and he's always told me he loved his two year old." Rumlow said disgusted.
"Well, pal, I think it's time you age. You can't stay two forever. And I don't think I can handle the terrible two's anymore."
"Three years old's aren't much better." Said Sam. Steve shot him a glare. Bucky was already stubborn and complained at almost everything. And with his vocabulary expanding steadily, Steve really couldn't think about the amount of times he would argue with him.
"Captain Rogers, I could see your worried. If I may be of help, I would take pleasure in taking Bucky off your hands." Said Thor. Steve felt internal protective instinct kick in.
"Oh no, Bucky has to stay on Earth. Maybe you could babysit him one day." Bucky's head shot up at the word babysitting. He was still a little traumatized from Tony and Pepper babysitting him.
"It's okay, it doesn't have to be tomorrow. Whenever you're ready, we can show him how to take care of you then maybe he can babysit you." Bucky still wasn't settled on this weird guy taking care of him. Bucky went to Rumlow and spread out over his lap with his head hanging upside down.
"He may take a while to trust you. But whenever he's ready, I'll show you what he goes through during a day." Said Steve.
"Sounds good."
"And as much as we want to stay, it's past someone's dinner time and very close to bed time. Come on, Bucky." Bucky just stared at Steve. He refused to move, but he was tired.
"Bucky, let's go." Bucky yawned, still not moving though.
"Hey, listen to him." Said Rumlow. Bucky groaned and rolled onto the floor. If this was preview of three year old behavior, Steve really didn't know what he was going to do with him. Natasha came and handed him a tuber ware bowl.
"That has ice cream cake for you and him." She whispered. Steve thanked her then got an idea.
"Hey, you can get a small piece of ice cream once we get home." Bucky stood up quickly and went to Steve. He tried to grab at the bowl, but Steve told him to stop.
"Please?" Bucky asked.
"When we get home, say goodbye to them."
"Bye." Bucky waved bye. They left. The rest of the party drank a bit of alcohol and talked.
"So Thor you really think you can handle Bucky?" Asked Natasha.
"I believe I have the capabilities to care for Bucky, he does not look like he would cause much trouble." Said Thor. Tony laughed.
"I remember saying something like that when I had him." Said Tony.
"Is he troubling at times?"
"Bucky has his days like most people. When Steve has missions, he gets upset like any child would. But if he's taken care of properly, he's a real sweetheart." Said Natasha.
"I see. When it is my turn to baby sit Bucky, I shall see that he is given the best of care." Said Thor.
"You say that now, just wait until he starts using the word no. The kid is so stubborn." Said Rumlow.
"I have handled my trickster of a brother for years, I can handle a two year old." Said Thor with confidence. Everyone chuckled at him, Bucky was nice and sweet when Steve, Nat or Rumlow was around. Anyone else, he'll test their patience for a while. Thor was a nice guy and probably could handle Bucky's biting, but Bucky always found a way to make people tick. Natasha could already see the God of thunder crumpling to a two year old temper tantrum.
That was something she wanted to see.