"I’d like to file a formal complaint!” Steve announced a few days later, stomping into the kitchen and leveling one of those patented All American scowls in Tony’s direction. “Why would you give Bucky a kitten? The damn thing is like a hairball of knives! PLUS he named it Steve! Bucky named that piece of fuzz Steve cos he said it acts like me before the serum!"
"You before the serum.” Tony had to work very VERY hard to keep his face calm. “Why– why ever would that be?"
"Because its tiny and scrappy and it’s mouth is too gotdang big for its size!” Steve yelled. “Bucky gave it a bath and then took a picture and sent it to me! He said Kitten Steve looked like a drowned rat just like Human Steve used to!"
“Uh yes, good morning?” Clint also stuck his head into the kitchen. “I’m here to file a formal complaint? Bucky is teaching Kitten Steve to hunt birds and if that mangy cat takes out any more of my hair, I will be billing Stark Industries to pay for a toupee, alright?"
"Oh good I’m so glad Kitten Steve is catching on.” Steve muttered.
(Or: Tony gets Bucky a kitten and shenanigans and falling in love ensue)
In which officially Bucky and Iron Man are dating, unofficially Bucky knows Tony is Iron Man, officially no one else knows Tony is Iron Man, and unofficially Tony and Bucky are trolls.
Or, Steve and Natasha learn never to assume they know what's going on in Tony and Bucky's relationship.
There was a tight smile to go with the tea, along with metallic fingers brushing against his own as he took hold of the mug. There was a stubborn child within his heart that resented the kindness of the gesture. He’d been working on disciplining his inner child though, because Bucky wasn’t going to stop doing nice things for him anytime soon, not by a long shot. Tony didn’t really want him to, anyway.
Bucky has lived with the Avengers for a while now, and he's mostly settled in. During the process, he fell for Tony Stark - hard - but he can't quite bring himself to admit it to the brilliant engineer. So he just does what he can to take care of and protect him, hoping that maybe the other man will fall just as hard for him... and be the one to take their relationship to the next level. In the meantime, he's noticed that there's one member of the team that Tony seems afraid of, and he is definitely not pleased by the notion.
Once he finds out what Wanda did to cause that fear, she might wish she'd never left Hydra.