Gracie S. Barnes // Oneshots and Drabbles

Finding Gracie // Pt. 2

A/N: Hi there lovelies! Happy Valentines Day!!!! I totally did not expect this story to be so long but here we are, probably going to make a part three just to get all the ground work of the story of how him and Steve ended up adopting her.

Word Count: 1500 ish

Natasha had done everything to keep the little girl stable while they were on the jet, but Banner would have to do a lot of tests to see what was going on with her. When they landed, Bucky and Natasha ran to Banner's lab, luckily he was there and wasn't busy. He got to work right away, and sent Bucky and the others to do their debriefing with Tony, since Steve had been called away on a reconnaissance mission. With all his tests he determined that the girl was 12 years old, but because of the abuse she faced she was extremely small for her age. He also found a genetic mutation, similar to the one he found in Bucky when he was studying the super soldier serum Hydra had injected in him.

Bruce was able to stabilize the little girl, he found her a room in the compound and he had Nat and Wanda decorate the room to make it more homey. They decorated it with fairy lights and some calming paintings, Bucky supervised the whole ordeal, giving them tips on how to make it not look like a Hydra cell.

"She needs more blankets," Bucky was running around the compound gathering everything he could to make this little girl feel safe, "OH! And stuffed animals!"

"Bucky, I think we have enough." Wanda sighed, a touch of adoration in her voice. She was amazed that this little girl hadn't even woke up yet and Bucky was already acting like he had known her for years.

"I don't want her to wake up and think she is still being held by Hydra."

By this point he had completely taken over the decorating, Nat and Wanda were just there to help now. Everyone who was still in the compound and wasn't out on a mission, knew of the mystery child by this point. Bucky had finished decorating and decided to sit by the bed and wait for her to wake up. He figured it would be best for him to be there when she woke up, and to tell her what was happening without the entire team surrounding her. She looked so much smaller laying in the giant queen sized bed. As Bucky sat waiting for her to wake up, he felt the same surge of unexplainable emotion that he felt when he found her. He noticed her stirring and a few moments later her eyes were blinking open, he sat up in his chair and began to speak,

"Hey there," he spoke in a calm and hushed tone, trying not to scare her, "you're safe now, they can't hurt you anymore."

"Who are you? Where am I? What's going on?" she stumbled over her words, fear evident in her voice.

"My name is Bucky, you are in a room at the avengers compound in New York, you're safe here, Hydra abandoned you at the base they were holding you in, in Romania, we rescued you, and now you're being treated for you injuries and malnutrition caused by being left alone for three weeks. Do you believe me?"

"Yes." The fear and confusion in her face was still there, but she felt a sense of calm wash over her.

Just then, Bruce walked through the door with Tony following close behind him. Bucky could sense that she was scared, so he put his hand on top of hers and gave her a reassuring nod. Banner was looking at her charts and checking her vitals, while Tony pulled up a chair and greeted her,

"Well hello there, little one!" Tony smiled at her, "How are you feeling?"

"Okay, I guess" she mumbled, not used to being talked to with such care and gentleness.

Bruce sat down and opened up his notebook, "Is it okay if we ask you some questions?"

She looked at Bucky to make sure that this wasn't a trap, he squeezed her hand and gave her a small nod, encouraging her on. She took in a shaky breath and nodded her head.