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It had now been several months since the final battle with Thanos. Everyone in the Avengers or with connections to them had been spending the intervening time processing everything that had happened, from the casualties to the sudden return of billions of people who had been gone for 5 years. Thankfully, nothing major had threatened the world since then.
Steve Rogers and Bucky Barnes, now in a romantic relationship with one another, had used the time to get to know themselves and each other better. They’d discussed the past at length and seemed to be caught up. That left the present, and at least the near future.
The two were cuddling on the couch in their shared living space at the Avengers compound when Bucky said, “If the Avengers regroup, I… think I’d like to be part of them.”
Steve’s interest had been piqued. “Is there any particular reason why?”
“Well, I’m enhanced with supersoldier serum and a vibranium arm,” Bucky pointed out. “I think there’s some good I could do with that in terms of being a hero.”
“Are you sure it’s not just because you feel a need to make up for everything Hydra forced you to do?” Steve asked earnestly.
“No,” Bucky answered. “At least I’m pretty sure. And to tell the truth, I’m not sure what else I’d want to do with my life now. I think I want to help people just because that’s the right thing to do. I have advanced abilities that most people don’t have. I should use that for something good. It’d be wrong if I didn’t, or at least I wouldn’t feel great about it.”
Steve nodded. “I get it, Bucky. You deserve to do something that feels fulfilling for you.”
“The thing is, if I’m going to be an Avenger, I need an alias, and… I don’t think I like the idea of still being known as the Winter Soldier,” Bucky admitted. “That name is connected to a part of my life that I’d prefer to leave behind.”
“That’s completely understandable,” Steve assured him. “I’m sure we can come up with something new. What was it that Shuri called you? ‘White Wolf’?”
“I thought about that, and I like how the ‘wolf’ part brings up memories of our time in the Howling Commandos.” He smiled at the recollection, and Steve did the same. “But I want it to be a name that I choose for myself. Or that someone helps me choose.”
“Any ideas?” Steve asked.
“Nothing specific, but I think I’d like one that represents how I’ve overcome the worst parts of my past, you know?”
“Hmm. You were the Winter Soldier, but you’ve moved past that. After winter comes springtime.”
“Springtime?” Bucky chuckled. “Are you serious? What kind of a superhero name is that? Or Spring Soldier?”
“I’m just brainstorming!” Steve asserted.
“I know,” said Bucky. “The sentiment is nice, but I don’t think I really like the soldier part either. A soldier follows orders. I did that for long enough. I want to communicate that I’m in control of my own destiny now.”
“Okay,” said Steve. “There are plenty of words for finding inner strength. Integrity, resilience, fortitude, resolution—”
“Maybe something shorter?” Bucky suggested. “Like, one or two syllables?”
“Plenty of those too,” said Steve. “Prevail, steadfast, strive, resolve…”
“I think I like that last one,” Bucky interjected. “Resolve.”
“What do you like about it?”
“I like that it’s a noun and a verb, so it has more than one meaning,” Bucky explained. “To resolve means to make things better, and to have resolve means to have inner strength, like you said.”
“That is a good name for you, Buck.” Steve seemed pleased. “Though I still like ‘springtime.’ I might still call you that, if that’s all right with you.”
“It’s all right with me.” Bucky was smiling again.
After a moment, Steve’s expression turned serious. “This conversation reminded me, I’m not sure how I feel about being Captain America any longer.”
“You want to change your name too?” Bucky asked.
“No, it’s more like… I don’t know that the role is right for me anymore.”
“Because of what the country became after you went into the ice?”
“It wasn’t just then,” said Steve. “This country was doing a lot of bad things back in the ‘40s, too. Segregation, eugenics, Indian residential schools…”
“Even if America represents those things, that doesn’t necessarily mean that Captain America has to,” Bucky offered.
“I guess so,” Steve concurred. “But even though I’ve adapted to the present since waking up here, I still lived most of my life in the past. I think the role should go to someone who knows this present version of America better. Someone who was raised in it.”
“Is there anyone you have in mind?” Bucky asked.
“Yeah, actually,” said Steve. “I was thinking Sam.”
“Well, he is from this time period.”
“Not just that, he’s a Black man. He and his people have just as much of a place in this country as people who look like us,” Steve elaborated. “I think if I passed the shield on to him and he accepted it, that would be a good way of reminding the world of that fact.”
“I definitely support that idea,” said Bucky. “Do you think there’s any chance that he wouldn’t accept it?”
“Well, he already has his identity as Falcon. And like you said, it’s important to have a title that you’ve chosen for yourself.”
“Who says he can’t have the shield and the wings at the same time?”
“He could paint the wings red, white and blue,” said Steve. “Might be more fitting if he’d chosen the name Eagle.”
Steve and Bucky were both smiling again. “Talk it over with him, Steve,” Bucky encouraged. “I’m sure he’ll be on board with it. That said, if you’re not going to be Captain America anymore, what else are you going to do?”
“I think I’ll figure that out as I go along,” said Steve. “There are lots of ways that superhuman strength can come in handy besides what I’ve been doing. And everyone already knew Captain America was Steve Rogers. I can use my name and notoriety to support causes I believe in.”
“That’s true,” said Bucky. “It’s not just Captain America who’s a hero, Steve Rogers is, too.”
“So are you, Springtime,” Steve teased.
Then they leaned in and kissed. Bucky could understand how Steve liked the nickname for him. Spring was a season of regrowth and renewal, which Bucky had experienced plenty of ever since his permanent reunion with Steve.