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Bucky’s eyes snapped open at the slight creak of the door. He didn’t move, head still pillowed on his arms as he listened. The apartment was silent except for one tiny footstep, and he relaxed, the gathering tension in his shoulders flowing away.
His bedroom door opened softly and he sat up, turning on the bedside lamp. Natasha stood in the doorway in her pale blue pyjamas, bottom lip stuck out uncertainly, watching him with an expression too serious for a child’s face.
“What’s up, Talia?”
She didn’t move. “I...had a dream.”
Bucky patted the mattress beside him. “Come here.”
She still looked unsure, but she was used to following orders. The little redhead padded over, climbing in under the blankets. Bucky slid his arm around her and she leaned into his chest, running her fingers over the metal plates of his hand.
“You wanna tell me about it?”
“I don’t remember much. I’m sorry.” she added, like confessing a mistake to a handler.
“That’s okay. My memory’s not great either.” he joked.
Natasha stifled a snuffly giggle. “Because you are so old?”
Bucky laughed, tickling her neck just enough to make her squirm. “What happened to respecting your elders, huh?”
She smiled, fingers still tracing his in spidery circles. “I am learning from the American children.”
“Well there’s only room for one wise-ass in this household.”
She giggled again, and he gently squeezed her shoulder. Bucky waited a moment to let her calm down, idly playing with a stray red curl. He glanced down at her face and found it still troubled despite their joking. He knew better than anyone how bad a dream could be, and he hated to imagine what the Red Room looked like in her nightmares.
“Would you like me to tell you a story, Natalia?”
She nodded, and he bit his lip trying to think of something appropriate.
“Once upon a time, two guys lived in the kingdom of...Brooklyn. The older of the two was a devastatingly handsome young man named James,” he paused to let her giggle, “And the other was a skinny little guy called Steven. Steven was always sick, but he didn’t like anyone to see it, or letting people help him – basically he was an idiot. But James wasn’t having that. He got a job at a garage to pay for Steven’s medicine, and he didn’t listen when Steven tried to talk him out of it. James was good at ignoring Steven when he was ranting on, and maybe that’s why they were friends. Steven’s big mouth got him into trouble a lot, but James didn’t mind.”
He kept going, spinning some stupid story he’d half-forgotten about bailing Steve out of yet another fight. Natasha didn’t say anything, leaning into his chest, her heartbeat slowing until he looked down and realised she was asleep.
Bucky carefully lifted her, sliding over until he could stand. He tiptoed across the dark apartment, opening her bedroom as quietly as possible, and gently lowered her back into bed. She murmured, curling up in the blankets as he tucked them around her.
“Goodnight, Papa.”
He kissed her brow.“Night, Talia.”