Fandom One Shots

Stucky(No Romance)-Woof

Steve POV

"Remind me why we're here again?" Bucky muttered as I dragged him into the Humane Society building.

"We're volunteering, remember."

"Exactly. Why are we here if we aren't even going to get a dog?"

"Because volunteering is nice, Bucky."

He continued to grumble as I walked up to the front desk. "Steve Rogers, I called about volunteering?"

The woman behind the counter smiled up at me. "Yes, I remember. Just go through there and tell Diane that you're helping out. She'll send you where you need to go."

I smiled at her. "Thank you. C'mon, Buck."

I heard some distinctly rude words from his mouth as he trailed behind me.

"Let's go, Barnes." I told him, turning to make sure he was following.

"I'm coming, I'm coming." He snapped.

We walked through the double doors and immediately the sound of barking filled the air. I went over to the woman standing to the side with a clipboard in hand. 

"Hello, do you know where I can find Diane?"

"Well you're talkin' to her, honey. Whaddaya need?" She had a Southern drawl that was rarely found here in New York.

"I'm Steve Rogers and this is my friend Bucky Barnes. We're here to volunteer for a few hours."

Diane smiled at me. "Well ain't that sweet. I know just where to start you. Come on."

She walked over to a floor to ceiling cupboard and opened it, pulling out several bags of food.

"I want y'all to go around and fill the dog's bowls. They'll be setting outside the rooms, see?" She pointed to one such bowl, tucked out of sight of the dog who it belonged to. 

"Once you've done that, come find me, alright?"

Turning to Bucky, she smiled just as sweetly. "You, come with me. I've got a different job for you." Her gaze flicked to his hand, the only part of his fake arm that could be seen, and he self-consciously tucked it into his pocket.

"See you in a little bit, Bucky." I told him as he walked away.

He discreetly flipped me off and I chuckled.

Turning to the bags of food, I hoisted one of the closed ones over my shoulder and grabbed the partially empty one by the top so I wouldn't spill it, then moved to the end of the hallway and began. The dogs watched me, wagging their tails and barking happily. 

I laughed as one particularly excited Pitt Bull braced his front legs on the window and jumped up and down, his tail whipping back and forth wildly.

As I kept going, I noticed a few older dogs on their beds that couldn't get up very well. Catching a nearby employee by the sleeve, I pointed to one. "What happens if they don't get adopted?"

The man smiled sadly. "If it becomes apparent that they aren't going to be adopted, one of us workers will take them home and keep them comfortable until it's time to put them down. I'm hoping I get Digger if no one adopts him." He gestured to an old Doberman with a greying muzzle who was watching the two with dark eyes.

"So there's no euthanization unless it's absolutely necessary?" I asked.

"Correct." He smiled. "We love the dogs and cats that come in here, we want them to be in the least amount of pain possible."

"Thank you." I said.

"You're Captain America, aren't you?" He asked. I nodded.

Turning to face me fully, he crisply saluted. "It's a pleasure to meet you, sir. I was an army man myself until a few years ago."

I smiled and saluted back. "Injured on the job?"

He shook his head. "Not physically, no. Got a few mental bugs, if you know what I mean. Working here helps them, the dogs calm me down."

I clapped him on the shoulder. "Well, God's blessings to you," I checked his name tag quickly, "Daniel."

"Thank you, sir." He smiled at me and walked away. I picked the dog food bags up again and finished the hall.

Seeing Diane standing a little ways away, I walked over to her. "Dog bowls filled, what's next, ma'am?"

"I think you should see what I just did." She smiled at me. 

Following her down the hall, I rounded a corner to see something amazing.

Through a set of glass doors, I could see Bucky sitting on the ground. There were dogs all around him, mostly puppies. 

Snuggled up to his side was a full grown golden retriever missing a leg. Bucky's arm rested on her side as he pet her, smiling down at the pups around him. 

My words from the car rang through my head again. 

'We're not getting a dog today.'

Watching Bucky, I knew I couldn't go through with that statement.

"She up for adoption?"