dollymixtures | It's all coming back to me now (Spot and Bucky)

When the Hydra facility had been raided, the last thing anybody expected to find was a 16 year old kid on ice, and yet there he'd been. Steve had been the one to stop the Hydra scientist from shutting down the life support, but they hadn't got there in time to prevent the destruction of a good half the facility's records - including the ones about who the kid was or why he was there.

So what choice did they have but to wake him up and find out?

He was uncooperative at first, refused to give them any details other than the name 'Spot' and kept threatening to fight anybody that came close, though they managed to work out pretty easily that he was from Brooklyn and he'd been on the ice almost as long as Steve had. It's when he overhears a comment about Bucky that he seems to change his tune.

"Bucky Barnes?" he asks, and while he still seems wary, for the first time since he woke up he says something actually helpful "I'll talk to him. Tell him the name's Sean Conlon."

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From:

brooklynishere

"You love him, dad, that's a compliment." Spot points out, though he's glad Bucky showed up because after getting clean he was just kind of sitting on his bed staring at nothing, trying desperately to wrack his brains for any kind of hint of a memory he might have forgotten. He can't shake the feeling there is something, but he doesn't know if that's because the conversation has just made him paranoid or because there actually is.

He follows Bucky back downstairs to get some ice for his face and spends the rest of the evening sticking close to him and Steve. He feels guilty for getting in a fight and getting grounded - even if still doesn't regret the fight itself - but he still doesn't want to be on his own right now.

He goes to bed early, asleep almost as soon as his head hits the pillow after the day he's had, but after a couple of hours he starts mumbling in his sleep, shifting around in his bed until he's tangled up in his sheets. The mumbling gets louder as he struggles to get free, the incoherent noises forming words - mostly distressed pleas to stop and let him go, but in between them there are a few shouted words of desperate, badly accented Russian.

From:

not_a_commie

Bucky looks at Steve and the share a look like this was bound to happen, after the fight, the talk, and months of pretending to be okay.

He slips out of bed, pulls on a shirt heading to Sean's bedroom, he cracks the door and sees that the kids in a full-blown night terror.

Buck moves over and sits on the edge of the bed "Pyatno, Shon, prosnis', eto prosto plokhoy son." Bucky says pushing his hand down on Sean's shoulder. "Vse khorosho, ya zdes', u menya yest' ty." Bucky lets out a slow breath.

(Spot, Sean, wake up it's just a dream, it's fine, I'm here, I've got you.)

From:

brooklynishere

"Nyet," Spot snarls on instinct, shoving against the hand on his shoulder - the thrashing movement bringing his head round until he put a little too much pressure on his injured face and the pain snaps him awake with a jolt.

He can feel his heart still racing wildly and it takes a second for the panic to subside, his breathing slowly steadying. Wide, worried eyes seek out Bucky.

"Dad...?"

From:

not_a_commie

"Yeah." He nods smoothing the kid's hair away from his forehead. "Just a nightmare." He says voice low, "Talk about where you are, it'll help." He says like he's been just where the kid is. "When you're settled enough we'll go downstairs for a bit."

From:

brooklynishere

"I'm-" the concrete floor is cold against bare feet, there's someone barking orders at him in Russian but he doesn't know what they're saying. "-in bed. I'm in bed, at home."

he's fighting against an opponent much bigger and older than he is. In the corner a man in uniform watches impassively, making notes in a book.

"I'm in Brooklyn." he says firmly, forcing the uncertainty from his voice and shaking away the lingering images of the nightmare.

From:

not_a_commie

“Good.” Bucky nods squeezing spots shoulder, “come on, shouldn’t go right back to sleep.” He says standing, “give your brain a hot minute, to relax.” He leads Spot down to the living room and goes to get him a glass of water.

He hands the glass to Sean and sits on the couch turning on the TV and lowering the volume, finding something soothing landing on the Ken Burns documentary about the circus because the voice is low and. Relaxed.

He doesn’t press Spot to talk he just sits there with him.

From:

brooklynishere

Spot follows him downstairs, settling on the couch and taking the water with a vague nod, sipping at it. Once Bucky sits down he hesitates for a moment, before giving in to the urge and leaning slighty against him, needing the solid reassurance of his presence at the moment.

For a little while, he's silent, until finally he starts talking, voice low, not looking up at Bucky.

"I dreamed I was... training. Well, fightin' really, but they was watchin' and takin' notes. There was a lot of shouting..." he trails off, adding a muttered "I don' even speak Russian.."

But he'd known what they were saying. He'd been able to reply to some of it, in the dream. He was dimly aware of his father's voice breaking into the dream and he knew what Bucky had been saying.

He just doesn't want to believe it. He wants to pretend it was all just a bad dream, brought on by their conversation, not a memory.

From:

not_a_commie

Bucky puts an arm around the kid when he leans against Bucky.

He listens to Sean talk not interrupting him letting him quietly spill the beans.

“We’ll it was either a dream or a memory.” Bucky says after a long but peaceful silence. “Either on is okay, you’re not alone in the nightmare department in this house.” He’s honest about it. “You were with them for awhile makes sense that you would understand some Russian.” He adds. “Might have been seeing if they wanted to train you.”

From:

brooklynishere

"They had me a long time but they didn't do anything, I was under-"

polozhit' mal'chika obratno, my vozobnovim pozzhe

The words echo in his mind and he repeats them, slowly. His Russian isn't great but it's close enough that Bucky should be able to understand it.

Put the boy back under, we'll resume later.

"How do I know that?" he asks nervously "It... it's gotta be a memory, ain't it?"

From:

not_a_commie

Bucky thinks for a minute, “Might be a memory, if it is it’s okay.” He squeezes Sean’s shoulder. “It’s what they do train people, or test them to see if they want them.” His voice is calm and kind, “We’ll get the blood work from earlier back, the scans from before they pulled you.” He lets out a slow breath. “You’re going to be ok.” His voice has that kind seriousness to it.

From:

brooklynishere

For a moment, Spot doesn't say anything, digesting the information. Then he looks up at Bucky and for a moment he lets all his vulnerability and fear show in his face, he trusts Bucky enough to be open about it.

"You promise?" he asks quietly.

From:

not_a_commie

“I can say I’m pretty sure, I can’t promise they didn’t change you, but I can tell it doesn’t matter if they did, we’ll figure it out, and you’ll still be my and Steve’s kid.” He shrugs. “But yeah but whatever it is you’ll be okay.” He smiles and it’s an honest one.

“You ready to get back to sleep, our you need more time?”

From:

brooklynishere

"Thanks dad."

He considers it for a few moments, but when his thought process is interrupted by a yawn he realises the decision is already made.

"Yea, I'm good. Sorry for waking you." he stands, stretching, and starts to head back to bed. Just before he leaves the room he pauses, glances back over his shoulder and says "...you's a really good dad. You know that, right?"

From:

not_a_commie

“I’m trying.” He yawns a little, “you’re still grounded.” He says moving into the kitchen to get himself some water before heading upstairs to get back in bed with Steve.

Bucky wakes up early the next morning it’s Thursday, he makes breakfast for the three of them he’s staying home with Spot. He didn’t have any training to run through with the newer Avengers. Peter had gotten booted for the next few months because of the whole Mysterio debacle.

He slides Steve a cup of coffee and some toast while he makes a pile of eggs for them. With some sausage.

From:

brooklynishere

"I know," Spot rolls his eyes, but there's no attitude to it, and heads up to bed. He doesn't have any more nightmares that night.

At breakfast the next morning he's got his phone back on the understanding that he was texting Peter about schoolwork, which he had been, only the half smile on his face and his totally abandoned breakfast would probably give away that the conversation has moved on from that.

From:

not_a_commie

“Does he looks like he’s texting about school work Steve? I don’t think he looks like he’s texting about school work.” Bucky’s says not looking up from the tablet with the A engraved on the back.

“Sure doesn’t.” Steve replies not looking up from the actual paper newspaper he’s reading.

“Well he has to give it back before dinner anyway.” Bucky shrugs fighting a laugh as he looks at Spot out of the corner of his eye.

From:

brooklynishere

Spot's head shot up at the teasing and he glares at the two of them, though it's definitely the glare of a teenager who's been caught doing something he shouldn't.

The smile quickly returns when he looks back down at his phone though, and if they're not going to take it off him right now he's going to take advantage of it. After a few moments, though, he looks up again.

"...When am I done being grounded?" he asks innocently

From:

not_a_commie

"Monday, so you can start going out again next weekend." He says flipping the keyboard out on his iPad working on an email. "Petro is trying to go on the Moscow opp." He says to Steve shaking his head.

"Kid's still too angry to handle that if it's who we think it is, Wanda maybe, but twins." He shrugs, "Is it stealth or muscle?" Steve asks.

"Looking like a bit of both." Bucky says musing."Bruce and Clint would work well, or Clint and Stephen." He hums

"All three," Steve suggests.

He turns his attention to Spot, "Why are you asking?" He smirks putting his chin in his hand.

From:

brooklynishere

Spot goes back to tapping away, letting the conversation wash over him, his smile getting a little wider - until he's being asked why and he looks up, for a moment his expression is almost guilty.

Then that overly innocent expression is back and he says

"Can I go to the movies with Peter next Friday?"

From:

not_a_commie

Bucky is trying not to laugh and Steve has more of the dad look now, looking at Bucky raising his eyebrows.

"Yeah, you can." He nods taking a sip of his coffee Bucky says easily.

"But you have to get all your homework done, and no calls from the school," Steve adds quickly, causing Bucky to give him an amused look, trying to laugh. But he's not gonna step on Steve's toes, they are doing this together.

"What Steve said." Bucky snorts sending the email and closing up his tablet.

From:

brooklynishere

"I will, I will," Spot doesn't even protest the conditions - they're reasonable enough, Bucky and Steve are pretty insistent on making sure his homework is done anyway, and he doesn't want to get any more calls from school once he gets back.

There's practically a grin on his face as he taps back confirmation that he can go.

From:

not_a_commie

Bucky manages to keep his expression neutral, trying not to laugh, he has a feeling he knows what's going on, and he's pretty sure Steve is on the same page. He just hopes it's not Spot attaching to the first person that was nice to him. "What are you going to go see?" Bucky asks, opening his wallet for a moment.

"Also before I forget, was going to give it to you yesterday but then the fistfight happened." He hands Spot a plastic card, "Homework, chores, being home on time, and 30 bucks a week goes into the account." He says easily. Already put some in there to kick start the account, I'll put the app on your phone, so you can check how much you have before you use it."

From:

brooklynishere

"I don't know, I told Peter he can pick," movies were something Spot hadn't really gotten into yet, he has too many other things occupying his time, but he has fond memories of sneaking into the pictures back in the past so he's happy to relive that with Peter. Only this time they can actually pay - he can actually pay, he realises, when Bucky hands him the card.

He thanks Bucky, tucking the card into his pocket and then finally putting his phone down and finishes breakfast.

By the time Friday rolls around, he's managed to keep out of trouble and his nose is looking a lot better (at least, most of the swelling and bruising has gone down), he arrives back at home and barely stops to shout a greeting at Bucky and Steve before he's heading upstairs to start getting ready.

From:

not_a_commie

"Hi... Bye..." Bucky says not looking away from his book, Steve sitting on the couch sketching something in his book of fancy paper, fingers coated in charcoal.

"Odds of him putting on too much cologne?" Steve asks not looking up.

"80, no 90 percent," Bucky smirks. "What if we're wrong, and it's not a date?"

"Pretty sure it's a date," Steve says using his thumb to do something to one of his lines, Bucky's never sure what it does, but if things had been different Steve's work would be in the MET he's sure of it. Maybe he would have been a press photographer. He wondered where all the photos he took before the war ended up.

From:

brooklynishere

"Dad!" Spot's voice comes echoing down the stairs half an hour or so later (once he's showered and had a chance to to dig through his entire wardrobe) "Where's my dark blue shirt?"

There's an edge of urgency to it, like it's very important that he finds that specific shirt.