Chapter 3
When it came time for Steve to leave, Bucky wasn't happy. He knew Steve was leaving before he woke up, so he woke up when daddy did. Daddy wasn't happy about it and got him to sleep for ten minutes. Bucky woke up growling and hitting Steve, but clinging to him whenever he stepped away. Steve knew he was upset, but he didn't understand why he was so clingy.
Then there was a knock.
"I have arrived, Captain." Said Thor, knocking politely. Steve opened the door, despite Bucky yelling in the background.
"Is he not happy to see me?"
"He's not supposed to be awake in the first place. Come in. Bucky, quiet down." Said Steve. Bucky stopped for a while to chew on his necklace.
"Okay, I made rice and eggs last night, it should be enough for dinner too. Um, there are four bottles of milk in here. Do you know how to operate a microwave?"
"I do."
"Okay, a minute just to warm it up. Since he's up and not supposed to be, give him one at nine." Then Bucky came to him and made grabby hands at him.
"Bucky, I have to go in ten minutes." Said Steve. Bucky whined and grabbed his suit sleeve. Steve groaned and hoisted him on his hip, Bucky put his head on his shoulder while sucking on his paci.
"You are trying everything you can to not make me leave." Steve kissed his head and put on a movie.
"By the time this is over, he should be hungry and Harley will be ready for a walk." Steve tripled checked everything was set to go. He knew Bucky would be in a mood today and probably would be worse since he would seeing him leave. But Steve didn't have time to address his behavior.
"Alright Buck, I have to go."
"No." Steve tried to sit him on the couch, but he started kicking.
"I don't have time for this Bucky, Thor will take good care of you and you will have so much fun with him."
"Daddy, stay please." Steve hated when he begged him like that, it was breaking his heart more. Steve let out a deep sigh and sat him on the couch, Bucky immediately tried to get up.
"Sit down." Said Steve in his captain voice. Bucky froze and sat down but immediately started to cry.
"Behave for him. I love you." Steve kissed his head and left the apartment. Bucky stared at the door for a while then turned to Thor. He didn't want to be with him. Bucky chewed on his arm and cried.
"Hey, don't harm yourself. Where is your coping necklace?" Asked Thor. Bucky tilted his head then pointed to kitchen counter. Thor went to the kitchen to retrieve the chewy necklace. When he arrived back, Bucky wasn't chewing on his arm as hard and was watching the movie.
"Here you go. Would you like anything else?"
"Blankie." Bucky's blanket was cruelly left on the ground along with the lamb. Thor handed Bucky the lamb and covered him his blanket. Bucky settled down enough for Thor to settle in the couch.
Twenty minutes into the movie, Bucky was fighting sleep as hard as he could. Harley wasn't helping his situation by being a warm body and blankie and Lamby wasn't helping but pushing them away would be mean. Bucky looked at Thor, he was still awake and looked very interested in the movie. Bucky's seen the movie hundreds of times and still forgets certain scenes.
"I must say seeing these toys come to life when the owner steps out is odd." Said Thor to himself. Bucky knew they would, he just didn't know what was coming up next. Frankly, he was too tired to figure out.
Bucky woke up because his stomach was hurting. Thor was still watching the TV. He had been watching other movies. Bucky sat up and yawned.
"Ah, good morning, little one. You slept well?" Said Thor. Bucky nodded.
"Excellent, now I must change you and we will take Harley for her morning walk." Bucky stood up and walked with him to the bedroom. Bucky laid on the bed, Thor cleaned him and got a fresh diaper.
"Okay, the print goes on front." Said Thor. Bucky didn't like that he was taking so long, so he kicked at him.
"Bucky, please do not kick." Thor got the diaper on him and tried to change him out of his onesie but Bucky was refusing the shorts.
"Why do you not want to wear the shorts?" Bucky said nothing, Thor made another attempt to get the onesie off, Bucky growled. Steve said he could wear the onesie if they weren't going anywhere, but he didn't say anything about letting him out wearing his onesie.
"Okay, I'll let you wear the onesie when we go out, just don't tell Steve." Bucky nodded. Thor zipped up his onesie and got him to wear shoes without a fight. Now the harness seemed easy.
Harley went into hers easy, Bucky just didn't want to wear his, so he started chewing on the lead. Something deep down told him not to, but he was frustrated right now and he wasn't listening. They went outside a few people looked at Bucky. Thor only smiled and waved to them. While Harley did her business, Bucky noticed that Thor wasn't watching him, so he chewed on the lead more. It was close to tearing then Thor saw him.
"Why would you do this?" Bucky smiled and pulled against the lead. It broke. Bucky ran off, he was fast but he wasn't suspecting Thor to super jump in front of him. He ran into him and fell backwards.
"I believe we are done here." Thor, effortlessly, picked up Bucky. He didn't like that and started screaming all the way home. When they arrived home, Bucky wouldn't sit at the table. Thor warmed up the rice and eggs and put the bowl on the table. He warmed up the milk as well, Bucky would move to get the milk from him, but Thor was so tall.
"You will get this milk once you have sat down properly and start eating." Bucky needed that milk and he was really hungry. So he complied. He sat down and ate his breakfast. Thor gave him his milk, Bucky almost finished then tried to tear at the waist belt.
"You can let me know that you are finished your meal." Said Thor. Bucky signed done and Thor let him go. Bucky went to the couch and got his tablet. Thor sighed, he thought he was doing good with Bucky. Then he heard a whine from the kitchen. Harley was sitting in front of her bowl waiting patiently.
"Forgive me, Harley. Your owner is a handful." He fed Harley and watched Bucky for a while. It was nearing nap time and he had a feeling Bucky wouldn't go down without a fight. He texted Steve about the lead situation, Steve replied he would deal with Bucky when he got home and he would have to hold Bucky's hand when he walked him during the afternoon.
Time was nearing for nap time and Bucky knew what was coming. He wasn't tired (he really was) yet.
"Alright Bucky, it is rest time. Hand over your device, please." Bucky threw the tablet on the ground and smiled.
"Please pick that up and hand it over politely." Bucky did pick up the tablet but he tossed it onto the couch. Thor sighed.
"Let's go rest."
"No."
"You must."
"NO!" Bucky yelled.
"No need to shout. Is there something you rather be doing?"
"Daddy, here."
"He cannot be with you until the end of the day. Do you want to hear a story about my ancestors?" As much as Bucky would rather be tearing at things and making Thor angry, he wanted to know about this guy so he laid on the couch. Thor mentally patted himself on the back for getting Bucky to settle, but he would be in trouble if he couldn't get Bucky to sleep.
"Alright, where do I begin?" Thor started out from the very beginning. Bucky was actually interested in what he had to say and sleeping wasn't an option right now. That wasn't how Thor was hoping this would plan out. So he moved to telling a story that his mother used tell him and Loki so they would sleep.
After telling a story about the cosmos and conquering worlds, Thor was tired. Bucky was still full of energy. The time frame for nap time had closed and he didn't know what to do with Bucky. He didn't have a choice so he called Steve. Bucky started to become destructive.
"Hello, Captain I have a situation."
"What did he do now?"
"He has missed his resting time and has now become destructive." Bucky threw the couch cushions and pillows on the floor and was scratching to get the cotton out.
"Thor, put me on speaker."
"Okay, you are on speaker."
"James Buchanan Barnes, stop what you're doing now and listen to me." Bucky froze and stared at the phone. He was in trouble.
"You know better than what you are doing. And I am very disappointed in you right now. You will listen to Thor for the rest of the day and you will not give him anymore problems, are we clear?"
"Yes daddy."
"Now, you've missed nap time, so you're going to take it now. Go to the bedroom and sleep. Thor will come get you in an hour. I do not want anymore calls that you are misbehaving Bucky, this is completely unacceptable and I do not want to hear your excuses. I will see you tonight." Bucky got his Lamby and blankie and walked slowly to the bedroom. That was probably the most serious daddy has ever got with him and he didn't even understand why he was upset. That really only got Bucky more upset.
"Thank you, Captain. I do not know why he is behaving so oddly."
"He is trying to find a way to get me home early so that you would leave. I don't like being commanding with him but he has to learn how to interact with people. If he starts to misbehave again, text me and I'll call Rumlow to come get him. Rumlow will discipline him. I have to go." Steve hung up. Thor put the couch cushions and pillows back in their place and sat on the couch. He wanted to spend time with Bucky and get to know him. He had to figure out how to get on Bucky's good side.
A silent hour later, Thor got up and checked on Bucky. He was asleep but woke up immediately to the door opening.
"Good evening, did you enjoy your rest?" Bucky didn't answer him. He sat up and put his arm in his mouth. Thor offered him his chewing necklace, Bucky threw it on the ground. They went in the living room and watched TV for a while. Thor flipped through the channels for a while then stopped on a movie. It seemed violent, but interesting. Thor saw that Bucky looked interested.
Everything seemed fine, until someone fell off a train.
Bucky was shaking violently. Harley was yapping at him, Thor didn't know what was going on. Bucky stopped shaking then looked at Thor. Something was different, his eyes were darker. He stood up, more tense than before. This must have been the winter soldier Steve was talking about.
"Bucky, please do not fight me." The soldier didn't listen to him, he went to Thor and landed a punch. Thor was stunned for a second, the soldier was surprisingly strong and fast.
"I do not intend to harm you." The soldier did not speak, he became more violent with each swing. Steve said to knock him out, but Thor couldn't bring himself to hurt him. But the soldier didn't care what he wanted. The soldier was about to hit him again, Thor grabbed his metal arm and spun him around and hit the back of his head. The soldier fell to the floor, Thor caught his breath and looked around. Nothing was badly damaged, Harley was laying under the kitchen table but seemed fine. Thor got his phone but hesitated to call Steve. He didn't want Steve to be upset with Bucky again, but he didn't know what to do. He had to call Steve.
"Yes Thor? What did he do this time?"
"I think he became the winter soldier."
"WHAT?" Steve yelled.
"We were watching a movie and a man fell off the train. I do not know how it affected him but after that moment, his whole demeanor changed. He became violent and was trying to fight me."
"Bucky fell off a train during a mission back in '45. It must have triggered a memory. Is he okay?"
"He is unconscious. I had to knock him out. I am sorry."
"Don't apologize, I was hoping you wouldn't have to encounter him like that. I'm on my way." Steve hung up again. Thor crouched down by Bucky and patted his back. He really hoped he didn't hit the kid too hard. He wouldn't be able to forgive himself if he caused further damage to Bucky's brain.
Two slow hours into the night, Bucky was still unconscious when Steve barged through the door.
"Has he woken up?" Steve went to Bucky.
"No, have I injured him?"
"I don't think so. Bucky, honey, wake up." Steve felt around Bucky's head, he had a bump but he should be awake.
"Come on, baby, wake up." Steve felt him move a little then he woke up.
"Hey, you're okay. I'm here. Do you know who I am?" Bucky stared at Steve. Steve was starting to become scared that Bucky had completely lost his memory then he said
"Daddy."
"Yeah, daddy's here. You switched over a while ago, how are you feeling?"
"Angry."
"Why are you angry?"
"Daddy always leave. Doesn't love me anymore." That was his breaking point. Now Steve felt guilty for yelling at him earlier.
"Baby, me leaving you does not mean I do not love you. I have missions that will pop up every now and then and I have no choice but to do them. If there was an option to stay with you instead, I would. But I can't do that all the time. I realized these missions were getting closer together and I requested that Fury give me a few weeks or months off. I doubt he'll give me that much time off. But trust me when I'm out there, all I think about is you. I want to be home snuggling with you. Don't think I don't love you, baby, I do. I really do love you." Steve kissed his head. Bucky was still a little fuzzy from the hit so half of that didn't stick to his head, but he could tell daddy really loved him and snuggled into him more.
"You're still in trouble for breaking that lead." Bucky whined but everything was getting better.
"Is there anything you want to say to Thor?"
"Sowwy, uncle Thor." Even Steve was shocked that he said uncle. Usually, Steve would have to coax him into calling a new avenger a family name. But Bucky must have been able to trust him.
"You must've like Thor then."
"Tells cool stories."
"At least someone finds my stories interesting. I am sorry for hurting you." Said Thor.
"It okay." Bucky yawned. Missed nap time was catching up with him and dinner time was approaching fast.
"You know, you've managed to have almost every avenger who've watched you tap out. What does that say about you?" Bucky shrugged.
"You're a brat, Bucky. A spoiled, adorable brat." Bucky smiled. Then he groaned. His head was still hurting a bit and Steve knew the soldier would take any opportunity to come out again.
"Alright, we're going to walk around a bit to relax everyone's nerves. Then I'll warm up dinner and then it is bed time. Go get your shoes." Bucky got up and got his shoes. Then Steve noticed something.
"Did you let him wear the onesie all day?"
"He would not let me change them." Steve sighed and tied his shoes. He put on Harley's and Bucky's harness on. Steve was still upset about the lead because that was really the only thing would keep Bucky from running off. He thought soon he would be able to stop wearing the harness but Bucky was just so unpredictable it was scary. Steve held onto his flesh hand, Bucky tried to bit him but Steve gave him "you'll get a time out" look. Bucky didn't need that tonight, he was probably going to get one in the morning anyway. They went outside and walked for a bit, Bucky didn't act out. Which was confusing Thor.
When they arrived back, Steve prepared his dinner and Harley's too. Steve had already ate before he came.
"Captain, I am binging to think I did something wrong to cause Bucky to behave abnormally for the day."
"Thor, if I said I was leaving, he would act up. Bucky is just extremely clingy to me and I can't blame him. He's been abused and hasn't known love, so I get that he would be upset when I leave. He is just going to require some time to get used to everyone. Trust me, Tony, Pepper, Sam and Bruce would tell you the same thing." Thor looked at Bucky who was happily eat his rice and eggs. He was a completely different person now that Steve was here. Steve was right, he just needed time.
"If it makes you feel better, he called you uncle faster than Tony." That did put a smile on his face.
"I am honored to hold the title of uncle of Bucky. Well, Captain, I must go. Your little one has wore me out. Good bye, little one." Bucky waved a bye. Thor gathered his hammer and departed. He really did not expected the day to go as it did, but he did learn a few things. Bucky was extremely attached to Steve, Bucky loved hearing anything about magic and science and Bucky would not go down without a fight.
Thor would happily say that a two year old had overpowered him today.