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“So, goats,” Steve said. Bucky chuckled as he lifted more hay into the large feeder in the middle of the pasture. Steve glanced down at one goat that was munching on Steve’s uniform.
“Shuri told me I needed space to recover,” Bucky said as the goats flocked to the feeder. “This was the only spot away from the city, but close enough for Shuri to check up on me regularly. So I started helping out on the farm, and the goats kind of grew on me.” Bucky got the goat away from Steve and to the feeder. “Don’t mind them. They’re just curious.”
“So, have you named any of them?”
Bucky laughed. “Well, since most of them already had names when I got here, no. But they let me name the newborn kid.” He pointed to the kid that was struggling to rip at the hay.
“Oh?” Steve asked, eyebrows raised, moving closer to Bucky. “What did you call it?”
“Sam.”
“What?” Steve asked, his mouth agape, “you named it after him?”
“Because when he was born, the kid wouldn’t shut up and it was really annoying. So naturally, Sam was perfect.”
Steve laughed. One hand went to cover his mouth, the other went over his stomach as he doubled over. “Maybe,” he finally managed to get out, “we don’t tell Sam that.”
Bucky smirked. “There’s a lot I don’t want to tell Sam, so we can add that to the list.”
* * *
Bucky felt the warmth of Steve’s arm against his back. Bucky grinned and turned back to the other man.
“Steve? What are you doing here so soon?” Bucky asked. Steve smiled as he leaned in to kiss Bucky.
When the pulled apart, Steve said, “What? I can’t drop by and see you when I want to?”
“I mean I’m not complaining,” Bucky said, “but after last week, I’m surprised you’d want to come out here.”
“Maybe I wanted to see how she and her kid were doing.”
Bucky raised an eyebrow at Steve. “And I have nothing to do with you coming out here?”
“Nope,” Steve said. He walked towards the small flock and asked, “So, where are they?”
Bucky sighed, and went after Steve two bring him over to the two goats Steve had mentioned. A new mother and her healthy, if a bit small, kid who was born a week ago. Who Steve had to help with the birthing, as only he and Bucky were on the farm when she went into labor. It definitely wasn’t the most romantic weekend for Steve and Bucky, but one they would never forget.
Steve crouched down and held out a hand. Soon, the kid stumbled over to Steve’s hand, and let Steve pet its head.
“So, have you thought of a name for him?” Steve asked, a smile on his face.
“Yes,” Bucky said, “her name is Natasha.”
Steve sighed, but smiled at the kid and kept petting her. “Now I know how Natasha feels about Clint’s youngest.”
“Besides,” Bucky said, crouching down next to Steve, “she may look calm, but has the fiercest temper I’ve ever seen in a goat.”
Steve sighed. “Well, it’s a better fit than Sam over there.” He twisted his head to point at Sam the goat.
“Says you.”
* * *
As Steve walked to the farm, the words from his and Bucky’s last Skype call played through his head. “I have a surprise for you,” Bucky had told him. Considering that Bucky spent most of his time on the farm now, Steve wondered just what kind of surprise he would have for him.
He discovered that when he saw a bunch of goats he didn’t recognize running around the farm. “Please tell me this isn’t the surprise you had in mind,” he said to Bucky.
“It’s the first part,” Bucky said with a chuckle. They walked up to each other, Steve pulling them into a kiss.
“I’ve missed you,” Steve said, a little breathless.
“I’ve missed you too. Now come on, I need to show you the surprise.” Bucky took Steve’s hand and led him through the pasture. Steve kept his eyes on the new kids, wondering just which one Bucky had finally decided to give the name Steve to.
“There he is,” Bucky said coming to a stop. “Steve.”
Steve had to admit that he wasn’t too surprised to see his namesake with the goats Sam and Natasha. But what surprised him more was that Steve wasn’t one of the kids. In fact, the goat named after him looked fairly old.
“Really Buck?”
Bucky laughed. “Oh don’t act surprised. What are you now, a hundred?”
“Very funny. Did you just decide to name him Steve because Sam and Natasha follow after him?”
“That’s one part of it,” Bucky said. He pulled his hand away from Steve, then went to pet the older goat on the head. “When they bought the new flock, some of the new goats didn’t want to get along with the ones we already had. And a few of them decided to bully Sam and Natasha.
“But Steve here, he stood up for them. He got here, saw them, and didn’t hesitate to stop the bullying.” Bucky snorted. “He stopped the bullying billies, I can’t believe I just realized that.”
Steve joined in the laughter, which only made Bucky laugh even harder. They both had ended up on the ground before they calmed down enough to stop.
“Well,” Steve said, “I’m honored that you found the perfect goat to name after me.”
Bucky nodded, then glanced over Steve’s shoulder. He snorted and said, “Well, there’s another reason I decided to name him Steve.”
Steve raised an eyebrow, and Bucky pointed behind him. When Steve turned, he saw Steve the goat facing down another goat twice his size.