Chapter Text
Bucky hadn’t had a heat in nearly 70 years. So it’s to be expected that his first one in nearly seven decades would be rough. They couldn’t even wean Bucky off his suppressants, because no one knew what kind of military grade stuff HYDRA used on him. Bucky’s heat hit him like a freight train. He spent the better part of two weeks curled up in bed, cramping, sore, and hot. None of that hot and heavy sex that people expect from a heat. Bucky couldn’t stand the idea of Steve touching him, one to many stimuli already crossing through his body. But during the last few days of his heat, Bucky became too fed up with the ache, and brought Steve into his nest. They spent the next 72 hours together in Bucky’s nest, reuniting their mating bonds.
It came as no surprise to anyone then, that a month after his heat, Bucky found out he was pregnant. When he told Steve, Steve was petrified and overjoyed. While Bucky was more terrified.
Whenever he got pregnant inside HYDRA, the fetuses never lasted long. Bucky would either miscarry or throw himself around his cell until the life inside his womb died out. Bucky refused to subject an innocent child to the horrors of HYDRA. Even if it destroyed him to kill what was inside him.
But this wasn’t HYDRA’s baby. It’s not the offspring of some agent that raped Bucky. This is Steve’s baby. The offspring of his mate. The product of love, not suffering.
The last few months have been anything but easy. Not only is Bucky still recovering from his time as the Winter Soldier, he’s now pregnant, and on top of that the remnants of HYDRA gathered together and started causing trouble.
Bucky had wanted to help, he’s a soldier, he knows HYDRA better than anyone, but Steve had refused. Using his big alpha voice to get Bucky to stay put. Steve said he needs to nest, relax, and get ready for the pup’s imminent arrival.
Bucky is checking the baby’s nursery for the hundredth time. Making sure everything is perfect. Bucky had gone down a rabbit hole when he first learned he was expecting. The internet was a weird and incredible resource. Bucky spent days online researching everything from cribs, to enrichment, health foods, all trying to prepare himself to be the mother he could be. Steve later found Bucky on his computer at 1am having a panic attack over all the way he or the pup could die he just learned from the internet. Steve made Bucky stop researching after that.
Now 8 months later, Bucky is about ready to pop.
“Oof,” Bucky groans as the pup shifts around in his stomach, giving a nice kick to his rib cage.
“You okay?” Natasha asks from the kitchen, she’s helping Bucky out today because Steve is out on a mission. Natasha has been the most supportive of anyone during Bucky’s pregnancy. She has been helping him and Steve get ready and learn about infinite care in this new century. Bucky knows Natasha does all this because she wants a family more than anything, but the Red Room made sure she’d never be able to, and being Anty Nat is the closest thing she’s going to get to being a mother.
“Yes, I’m okay. Just this one being a little acrobat,” Bucky laughs. Today is a good day. Bucky doesn’t have a lot of good days. Most days he is too haunted by the shadows of his past, the fear and anxiety paralyzing him until Bucky can’t get out of bed. But today is a good day.
Bucky leaves the baby’s room and moves into the living room. Bucky’s right arm comes to rest under his stomach as he moves. Bucky is still terrified by his Vibranium arm. Despite all Steve’s encouragement, Bucky still refuses to touch his baby with that arm.
The whole apartment is filled with the scent of home. A mix of Steve’s alpha scent and Bucky’s pregnant omega scent, and underneath all that Bucky can smell the team’s scents. Their pack, who have all been in the apartment to help Steve and Bucky prepare for the pup.
Bucky had never had a pack before. Neither had Steve until the Avengers team was created. Bucky didn’t think the team would welcome him into their pack, especially after everything he did. But to his surprise, he was enveloped into the pack, with everyone saying their pack alpha’s omega is immediately part of their pack.
JARVIS announces from the ceiling that Bucky’s prenatal doctor has arrived for his check up. This one is probably the last one Bucky will have before he gives birth. The doctor walks into the room with a wide smile. At first doctors or anything medical had been hard for Bucky, but Dr. Sugaar told him and Steve he is great friends with Bruce and would be highly recommended. Knowing one of his pack members endorsed this doctor had greatly helped to calm Bucky.
Dr. Sugaar has been the best physician Bucky and Steve could have asked for.
“Good morning Mr. Barnes,” The good doctor greets.
“Good morning to you too, Dr. Sugaar,” Bucky offers his hand, which the doctor shakes, “Thank you for coming.”
“Morning doc,” Natasha chimes in.
“Of course Mr. Barnes. Now let's get you on the couch and check on how your pup is doing.”
Bucky waddles over to the couch and slowly descends himself down. Sitting and standing have become very hard in his late stage of pregnancy. Natasha steps out of the room to let Bucky and Dr. Sugaar have some privacy.
Once he’s settled, Dr. Sugaar pulls up a chair and reaches for his stethoscope. The doctor checks Bucky’s heart rate and then the baby’s. The whole time Bucky has to keep reminding himself this is not HYDRA, despite how familiar it might feel.
“Well, both your heart rates sound good, but the baby’s is beating a little fast,” Dr. Sugaar tells Bucky, putting away his stethoscope.
A flare of panic makes Bucky sit up quickly, “What does that mean?!”
“It’s nothing,” He assures, “But I do want to give you an injection of a light sedative to calm both your heart rates,” He reaches in his medical bag and produces a needle filled with a clear liquid. He flicks the end a couple of times. A gesture Bucky is all too familiar with, but this is for his baby, it’s fine. Right?
“O-Okay.” Before Bucky could even finish the word, Dr. Sugaar had slipped the needle under his skin and was pushing the liquid into his veins. The medication is cold, and Bucky can feel it traveling up through his veins, being distributed inside his body.
“There you go! Well done Mr. Barnes,” Dr. Sugaar turns away from Bucky to pack up the last of his medical equipment, “You might feel a little bit drowsy and weak throughout the day, that’s perfectly normal.”
Bucky zones out half way through what the doctor is saying. When he refocuses, Dr. Sugaar is smiling down at him, but it’s not his usual smile. Bucky forces himself up, it’s harder than before, damn pregnancy belly, he thinks.
“Thank you for seeing me doc, both Steve and I appreciate you keeping an eye on me throughout this whole thing,” Bucky tells the doctor as he walks him to the door.
“It was my pleasure to watch you grow throughout this pregnancy Mr. Barnes.”
“Well, I guess this is it. I won’t be needing any more prenatal check ups, just natal,” Bucky jokes.
“Oh, don’t worry Mr. Barnes, I’ll be seeing you again real soon,” Dr. Sugaar smiles one more time at Bucky before walking out the door.
Once the doctor leaves, Bucky goes to sit back down on the couch. These appointments always take a lot out of him, with the worry and anxiety, but for some reason he’s more tired than usual. Bucky closes his eyes, choosing to just rest a little bit.
Someone is shaking Bucky’s shoulder, hard, and calling his name. Bucky groans and blinks his eyes open. Everything is blurry at first, but then his eyes refocus on the head of red hair looking down at him.
“N- Nat..?” Bucky’s throat is dry and scratchy. Wait… What’s going on? Bucky asks himself. Bucky’s scent is off, not quite the pregnant omega scent he’s used to producing.
“Oh thank god! You were sleeping like the dead,” She says, “I thought you were just resting, but then you weren’t getting up.”
“I guess I’m just really tired…” Bucky throws his legs over the edge of the couch, sitting up, only to immediately be hit with a wave of dizziness and nausea. There is a terrible ache in Bucky’s torso, the deep soreness of stretched muscles.
“Bucky!” Natasha shouts at Bucky’s sudden sway. Bucky lifts his head and looks around, outside the windows it’s dusk. Shit how long was he sleeping?
“Oh shit, Nat. I don’t feel too good…” Bucky groans, his limbs feel too heavy, and his head feels cloudy. It’s like how he felt when he was drugged at HYDRA.
“I’m going to call Bruce, and then I’m going to call Steve,” Bucky opens his mouth to protest, saying Steve’s out on a mission, “No. I am calling Steve. He’ll kill me if you're not feeling well and I didn’t call him.” Bucky resigns, knowing Natasha is right.
Natasha steps out into the hall to call Bruce and Steve. As she does so, Bucky tries to stand up. He sways on his feet and has to hold onto the couch for support. Then all his muscles seem to clench and push downwards. There is the feeling of something breaking and the sploosh of water.
“Nat!” Bucky screams and she comes rushing back through the door to see exactly what has just happened, “I’m in labor!”
“Bruce, get your ass down here right now!” Natasha is yelling into her phone, hangs up on Bruce and calls Steve. Less than a minute later Bruce is skidding through the door of their apartment, looking frazzled. His eyes lock into Bucky and the puddle of amniotic fluid on the floor and kicks into overdrive.
“Okay, let’s get you laying down first,” Bruce helps Bucky back to the couch and lays him down. Bruce puts on his glasses and starts to examine Bucky. “Bucky, how long have you been in labor?”
“I don’t know!” He shouts as another contraction hits, “I just woke up and my water broke.”
A considered look comes over Bruce’s face, “There is no way you could have slept through this stage of labor. You’re already 7 centimeters dilated, and your muscles are far too loose. Did anything out of the ordinary happen today?”
“No- Oh yes! Dr. Sugaar gave me something to calm the baby’s heart,” Bucky tells Bruce, who seems to get more confused.
“Who?” Bruce asks.
“Dr. Sugaar, y’know? The prenatal doctor you recommended.”
“Bucky, I never recommended any prenatal doctor,” Bruce says grimly. The whole world seems to stop for a second as Bucky processes what Bruce just said. He never recommended a prenatal doctor? Then who has been treating Bucky these past eight months? Who has he been letting near his pup?
The one to break the silence is Natasha, “Oh shit…” Bucky’s chest starts to move rapidly as his breathing increases. Bucky knows he is starting to have a panic attack, but hell, if there is any time to have a panic attack it’s now. He’s in labor, his mate isn’t there, a man who was not the prenatal doctor his packmate recommended has been seeing him for months, and he was drugged. So yeah, Bucky deserves this panic attack.
As if shit couldn’t get any worse, the lights go out and the tower alarm starts to go off. A loud searching alarm echos through the tower and a red flashing light is the only light source. The three of them look around in confusion.
“JARVIS what’s going on?” Natasha asks the A.I.
“It seems there has been a security breach on the 30th floor. Several unidentified individuals have entered the building and are traveling upwards.”
Bucky’s heart sinks, “It’s HYDRA, they’re coming for me,” Bucky whispers, “Nat! Nat please,” Bucky reaches out and takes one of Natasha’s hands, “Please protect my pup. I don’t care what happens to me, they just need to be safe. It’s HYDRA, they’re coming for me.”
“No, Bucky, no. You are both going to be okay. I’m sure Tony is on it, and Steve is on his way back. Steve will be here any minute now,” Natasha tries to reassure Bucky, but she’s not even sure herself. Bucky screams and holds into her hand tighter as another contraction comes.
The more energy Bucky’s body is used for the contractions, the more fatigued he feels. Soon Bucky can barely manage to squeeze Natasha's hand. He feels so weak, and tired. Is this how Steve used to feel when he was sick?
Bruce is panicking next to Bucky, worried at the slight blue tinge to his lips, “The drug must affect muscle movement. Bucky I need you to take deep breaths. You’re not taking in enough oxygen.”
Bucky would do as Bruce says, if he could manage, but everything hurts. It’s so loud and dark. Nothing makes sense. Where is Steve?
“He’ll be here soon Buck, we promise,” Natasha responds. Oh, Bucky must have said that last part out loud.
“You shouldn’t be talking, Bucky, just focus on your breathing,” Bruce jumps in.
There is a grinding sound and a scream, Bucky opens his eyes to see Natasha lowering the gun that just a second ago was pointed at Steve’s head.
Steve! Bucky starts to cry at the sight of his mate. Steve is sweaty and panting, not even in uniform, just clutching his shield. Steve must have gotten in through the emergency exit that is hidden in the bedroom. The whole apartment is filled with the scent of a distressed omega, which only worries Steve more.
“Steve!” Bucky cries, just as Steve says, “Bucky!”
Steve rushes over to his mate. Finding him covered in blood, lightly breathing, weak, and in labor, he looks to Bruce, “Why haven’t you gotten him out of here yet?! The tower is under attack!”
“You don’t think we know that?!” Natasha snaps.
“We can’t move Bucky right now, he’s far too weak for that, and the baby is almost crowning,” Bruce supplies his reasons to the very worried alpha.
“Weak? What’s wrong?” Steve looks between Bucky and Bruce.
“It seems that Bucky has been drugged with some sort of paralyzer. It’s making his muscles unable to move and making the birth more difficult. It’s best we don’t move him.”
“But they’re almost here!” Steve yells at Bruce.
“Steve please…” Bucky’s voice is strained, but nevertheless, Steve hears it and is instantly at his mate’s side.
“What is it baby? Are you okay? What hurts? Is the pup okay,” A rush of words and concerns fly from Steve’s mouth.
“Steve, alpha, I’m okay…”
There is a loud bang in the hallway, right outside the door to the apartment. Then another, and another. Natasha cocks her guns, Steve raises his shield, Bruce takes off his glasses, and Bucky grits his teeth through another contraction.
The door flies off its hinges and a dozen HYDRA agents step into the apartment, gun drawn. The Avengers recognize a few as former SHIELD agents. Like Brock Rumlow and Jack Rollins. At the front, in full tactical gear is Dr. Sugaar, well that’s probably not his real name.
“Dr. Sugaar?” Steve asks, confused, glancing between the ‘doctor’ and Bucky.
“He’s not really a doctor,” Barely gets out through his strained teeth.
“I told you I’d be seeing you real soon, Soldat,” The former Dr. Sugaar smiles. Not the friendly smile Bucky was used to. The one he saw today, more sinister of a smile.
It hits Bucky then that Dr. Sugar is one of the doctors that treated him inside HYDRA. He remembers that same sinister smile being flashed at him as he screamed in pain. He recognizes the smile from when HYDRA would operate on him without anesthesia. How could he be so stupid as to not recognize him?!
A chill runs down Bucky’s spine as he hears Sugaar call him that name. Somewhere deep inside of Bucky, he knows he’s not getting out of this.
“You are not taking him away from us again,” Steve says in his alpha voice, as he raises his shield in defence.
“Are you even sure that pup is yours, Rogers?” Laughs Rumlow, “I mean, he’s quite the slut. I wouldn’t be surprised if the pup is one of ours. You really gonna die over an omega whore?”
Bucky curls in on himself at Rumlow’s crude comments about him, but just as he does so a harder contraction hits and Bucky whimpers in pain, despite how hard he tried to hide his vulnerability.
“Ah, I’m glad to see the dose I gave you was enough to induce labor, Soldat. I was worried I might have to give you more,” Sugaar comments.
“You! You did this?!” Bucky asks incredulously. He’s only eight months. His pup isn’t supposed to be born yet, the baby could have health issues, or come out premature.
“Bucky, please calm down,” Bruce says, and immediately gets a death glare, “You’re almost there. Just a few more pushes,” Bruce was trying his best to remain calm in this high stress situation. He keeps glancing between Bucky, and the HYDRA agents, worried about what they want with the baby.
Bucky screams with the next contraction, which provides the perfect distraction, as Steve takes his eyes off Rumlow for just an instant to look at his mate. It is in that instant that Rumlow lunges at Steve. Then all hell breaks loose.
Steve and Natasha are fighting with over a dozen HYDRA agents, trying their best to keep them away from Bucky and Bruce. While Bruce is trying to successfully deliver a pup to a very stressed Bucky. Jesus, Bruce isn’t even a medical doctor, he just has his doctorate!
Steve shoves Rumlow to the floor with a push of his shield. Then he raises it defensively to block some knife attacks from another agent. Natasha fires her guns, taking down several agents. She swings around and fights off some more attackers.
“Ahh!” Bucky cries out in pain, and suddenly he isn’t the only one crying. There is a shape wail, as the pup slips from inside him. Bruce catches the pup and wraps them up in one of the couch’s blankets. Quickly passing the pup to Bucky to hold close to his chest.
Bucky stares down at his pup, and for one amazing, glorious second, everything is perfect. There is no fighting. There is no pain. Only happiness, only Steve and Bucky’s love, and the love for their pup. Then that second ends.
The cold metal of a blade is pressed against Bucky’s throat. Bucky can see Rumlow standing behind him, a trickle of blood running down his face from where Steve hit him. Everything seems to stop. The fighting halts, HYDRA has the upper hand, one wrong move and Bucky is dead.
“Get. Up.” Rumlow orders through gritted teeth.
Bucky doesn’t know if it’s his programming or his fear that makes him stand up. His legs are shaky, he’s weak, and exhausted. A rush of blood splatters onto the floor as Bucky stands. He holds his pup close to his chest, hunching over the baby, almost as if to hide them.
Rumlow gabs onto Bucky’s waist to draw him closer, pressing the blade more into Bucky’s throat. Bucky swallows, and a cut appears on his Adam’s Apple and starts to drip blood.
“Now,” Sugaar starts, “I knew we were never going to get Soldat out of here, so we needed a matter of leverage. It’s your choice, Rogers, we take Soldat, or we kill the pup.”
Bucky’s heart leaps into his throat. Steve’s eyes go wide in panic. Natasha’s mouth drops open and it takes everything in her not to move. Bruce stares, clanches his fists, this is not the time nor the place to hulk out.
“Please, Steve, Please. Don’t let them hurt our pup. Please…” Bucky begs, staring right into Steve’s soul. As much as it hurts Steve, he knows it’s what Bucky wants. “Take me, just don’t hurt my baby.”
Sugaar seems satisfied with that answer, “Here’s what’s going to happen. We are going to walk out of here with Soldat. If you try to attack us or pull some sort of trick, they are both dead. Once we have Soldat, you can have your little pup back. Agreed?” Sugaar looks at Steve expectantly.
“Agreed…” Steve swears a little part of his heart dies as he utters the word.
They walk out of Avengers Tower, the HYDRA agents surrounding Bucky and the new born pup. Steve, Natasha, and Bruce are on either side of the agents, keeping a close eye on Bucky.
Bucky’s body moves on instinct, he’s too focused on his pup, who starts wailing as they leave the apartment. Bucky tries to settle the pup in fear of what the HYDRA will do if they get too annoyed with the baby’s crying. The high pitch wails make Bucky's chest start to leak, he wishes he could feed his pup, but he can’t.
When they reach the bottom floor of the tower and the exit, a reinforced car screeches up to meet them. They start to pull Bucky away and the pup starts to cry harder. Steve tries to rush to his mate’s side, as he watches rough hands grab onto Bucky, only to be stopped by a wall of HYDRA agents.
“Wait! Wait, please, just give me my pup,” Steve begs.
“A deal is a deal, Captain. A soldier for a pup,” Sugaar replies.
The pup is ripped from Bucky’s arms, who lets out a cry, and unceremoniously dropped into Steve’s arms. It’s the first time he’s holding his pup, it shouldn’t be under circumstances like this.
The agents slap a pair of restraints onto Bucky’s wrists and drag him to the door, forcing him inside the car. But right before Bucky is stolen away, he thrashes around a cranes neck to look back at his team.
“Wait! Bruce, you never told me, is the pup a boy or a girl?!” Bucky yells desperately. Desperate to know his baby’s gender before he is hauled off back to HYDRA.
“It’s a girl!” Bruce says quickly.
“A girl…” Bucky whispers, a look of fondness and love is the last thing Steve sees before Bucky is shoved into the car and it’s peeling out into the street.
Steve stares down at his daughter, the small pup coos at him. She looks just like Bucky, same dark brown hair, same pale skin, but she has Steve’s piercing blue eyes.
Tears start to travel down Steve’s as the adrenaline from the situation wears off. Steve is now looking at his new born pup, who’s mother, and his mate, was just kidnapped. And Steve just lets them. He lets them walk out with his mate. He knows it’s what Bucky wanted, that his mate would sacrifice himself a thousand times over for his pup, but that doesn’t make it any easier.
He should have fought harder. Steve could have done more. Protected Bucky better. Steve promised Bucky when he found him again he’d be safe, and wouldn’t need to worry about HYDRA anymore. What a fucking lie that was. Steve already lost Bucky once, he doesn’t think he’d survive losing him again.
The pup cries in his arms, clearly picking up on Steve's distressed scent. “Don’t worry, cub, we’ll get you mommy back, I promise." This is one promise Steve doesn’t intend on breaking.