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You smiled as you watched people pass you by. A child holding her mother’s hand as she held an ice cream cone from the ice cream shop nestled between a Journey’s and a Claire’s. Teenagers laughing as they strolled past, spending their afternoon at the mall. You had just sat down with a pretzel from Auntie Anne’s, complete with dipping sauce. You were on a mission. Not a formal mission, but a mission nonetheless.
It was growing colder and you wanted new pajamas for the season. You’d been to J.C. Penney. Went through Macy’s and Boscov’s. You found a few plain pajamas to round out your wardrobe, and some cute tops and new jeans. But you had yet to find exactly what you were looking for.
You sighed as you finished off your pretzel and your drink, ready to toss in the towel, at least where the mall was concerned, and head to a Kohl’s instead, when a little boutique caught your eye. You’d never seen it there before, and it looked like it wasn’t busy at all. The sign read Wicked Comforts and it appeared to be a clothing store. You tossed your trash as you walked toward the store.
Entering the store, you were greeted with a scent that you could only describe as purely autumn. It brought a smile to your face as you found your way to a display of pajamas. There was an array of Avengers themed pajamas, but that wasn’t what you were focused on. No. You’d found a range of pajamas that were up your alley for the Halloween season and it seemed they had your size along with Sam and Bucky’s sizes. You could see it now, cold autumn nights cuddling with them in your new pajamas, cups of Bucky’s famous hot chocolate, extra whipped cream, and maybe a splash of Baileys for good measure. A plate of Sam’s homemade chocolate chip cookies, which were the best you’d ever had. You could see it so clearly.
You headed to the counter, your arms laden with Halloween themed pajamas. You had Nightmare Before Christmas themed pjs, along with some onesies that you were excited to have. There was something so nice and cozy about them. In a pinch, they could be a lazy Halloween costume, but you knew it wasn’t going to come to that, no. You’d been planning your Halloween costumes since June. You also had the typical pajamas with images of cartoon ghosts, Jack O'Lanterns, witches, and bats on them. You had big plans for the night.
On your drive home, you stopped by Ashton’s, a local ice cream shop. You had an order to place for the next week: their pumpkin ice cream that tasted just like pumpkin pie. While you were there, you picked up some ice cream to bring home for Bucky and Sam. Chocolate Chunk for Bucky and the new test flavor for Sam, who always insisted on trying the flavor of the month when the calendar changed and Ashton’s introduced a new flavor into the rotation beyond the seasonal staples. You settled for your favorite flavor, eyeing the flavor of the month suspiciously.
The house was quiet when you walked in, your arms laden with bags from your day out. You were suspicious until you looked in the living room. Bucky and Sam were asleep on the giant sofa the three of you had, with Bucky using Sam’s lap as a pillow. What caught you off guard were the outfits the two had. Bucky wore a pair of pajama pants decorated with wolves howling at the moon, while Sam’s had cartoon bats on them. You knew they had been planning a lazy day but you had no idea they had bought Halloween themed loungewear.
You quietly put the ice cream away before bringing the rest of the bags to your bedroom. Laid out on the bed was a pajama set just for you. The pants had witches on them, with a shirt that said ‘Something wicked this way comes’. They were a mismatched set, but so perfect. You put the bags in the closet before changing. You noticed the slippers too. They had little half moons and stars on them. You slipped them on your feet and headed to check on your boys.
You snapped a photo before heading to start on dinner. You couldn’t bring yourself to wake them up. Whatever they had spent the day doing, they were clearly exhausted.
Bucky was the first to wake up, smelling the food you were making. He got up as gently as he could, as to not wake Sam, before heading into the kitchen. He smiled when he saw you in the pajamas he and Sam had ordered. He knew you probably had a stockpile ready for the three of you, but he and Sam had found some online that they couldn’t help but buy, knowing your love of all things holiday. They had a set stashed away for Christmas. He knew you’d love them, even if they were mismatched.
“Evening doll, how was your day?” Bucky asked, his voice laced with sleep. You smiled at him.
“Good, good. I placed that order at Ashton’s for Wednesday. I swear we’ll be sick of pumpkin spice by the end of it all,” you said with a light laugh.
“You, tired of pumpkin spice? Who are you and what have you done with our girlfriend?” you heard Sam ask before he yawned as he placed a kiss to Bucky’s cheek before doing the same to you as he entered the kitchen to grab a glass of water.
“With how much of it we’ll be consuming? Even I have my limits,” you said. Bucky and Sam shared a look, before choosing not to comment.
“How do you like your new pajamas?” Sam asked.
“They’re comfortable. Thank you,” you said.
“Did you buy those slippers?” Bucky asked. You looked at him in confusion.
“No...I thought you did? They were with the pajamas,” you said, your brow furrowed. The three of you shared a look of alarm. A check of the security system showed nothing. You had no cameras in the bedroom, but all the access points had cameras trained on them.
When you returned to your room, you found a piece of what appeared to be parchment, with the words ‘enjoy your gift - L.L..’ written on it.
“Do we report this or?” Sam asked trailing off.
“It seems safe enough. These are the most comfortable slippers I’ve ever had. I swear it’s like I’m walking on air,” you said. The three of you agreed not to report it, at least not yet. After all, there had to be some kind of reasonable explanation.
“Maybe they fell out of your bag? You said a woman owned the store you were at, maybe she gave you a gift as a first time customer,” Bucky said.
“Yeah, maybe,” you said. The three of you were uneasy, but you knew you were as safe as you could be. A check of the house turned up nothing and Friday hadn’t sensed any presence from another entity at all.
Across town, Luna Lovegood smiled to herself as she closed shop for the day. She really would have to thank Hermione for her help with the enchantments on the shop that allowed muggles and wizardkind alike to find it when they needed it most.
“Oh I do hope she likes my gift,” Luna said as she headed home, a soft smile on her face. If anyone deserved a small comfort, it was an Avenger, she thought to herself.