Moments in Time

Jack-o'-lanterns

"Do we have to?" Bucky whined, flipping onto the couch. "It's cold out today, Steve!"

"Oh, shush!" Steve rolled his eyes. "You used to live in Siberia. You can definitely survive the 50° weather outside!"

Bucky huffed, but obediently laced his boots up and grabbed a hat and mittens. The wind was bad, and coming straight off the docks, which meant that it was freezing, and Bucky didn't like his ears to get cold.

Once outside, the couple set out for the pumpkin patch. Steve opted for a Taxi since the roads were busy and Bucky nearly decapitated him when he suggested taking his motorcycle. The two felt a little squished since the seats didn't give their long legs enough room, but they had long since gotten used to that little fact of life.

When the taxi stopped, they paid their fair and then headed off to find a pumpkin.

"I want a small, cute pumpkin that we can put on the side table in the foyer," Steve commented.

"Well, too bad! I want a huge one for the front porch!" Bucky imperiously declared.

Steve looked at Bucky, his eyebrows raised. Bucky ignored him, heading off to find that special pumpkin that would look perfect all carved up. Steve shrugged, heading toward some of the smaller ones. The littlest ones could rest in the palm of a normal man's hand, and weighed next to nothing. He spotted a couple of toddlers picking some of those out and he had to say it was super adorable.

Bucky and Steve met up after about fifteen minutes. Steve had a medium sized pumpkin that could sit on the side table without any problems. Bucky had a huge pumpkin that weighed close to thirty five pounds. Of course, being a Super Soldier, the pumpkin felt like nothing to Bucky, but Steve was feeling a bit apprehensive.

"Are you sure that's the one you want?" Steve asked.

"Actually, there were a couple of bigger ones, but I thought this would be easier for you to hack," Bucky shrugged. "But if you don't mind - "

"That is perfect," Steve hurriedly said.

Bucky shrugged, trying to hide his slight disappointment. After paying, the two headed for home, using the same method of transportation as they had earlier.

~

Steve surveyed his handy work, grimacing as he saw the jagged, crumbled mess. He had used a marker, just like the youtube videos had suggested, but he had failed epically when it came to the actual carving.

"How's it looking?" Bucky sauntered into the room.

"Uh, well..." Steve scratched his ear.

Bucky's smile slipped as he absorbed the damage. It looked like the pumpkin had gone toe to toe with a weed eater and lost. The eyes sagged into the nose, which then merged with the teeth. It looked almost like a lopsided 'T'.

"It's okay, Stevie," Bucky sighed. "I'll get another one. Maybe Nat will know how? She does like knives, you know."

"Maybe that would be a better bet," Steve agreed.

~

Bucky got a slightly larger pumpkin, and plopped it down on Nat's counter expectantly. He had already asked Steve to draw the face on, so Nat could carve it up the way he wanted.

"Are you sure about this?" Nat asked skeptically. "I've never done this before."

"Yeah, but you've carved people up, which is waaay harder!" Bucky pointed out. "I know you can do it."

Nat took a deep breath, narrowing her eyes as she tried to figure out the best way to cut up the pumpkin.

Forty five minutes later, Bucky was sadly looking at a decimated orange globe. Nat had done well until she realized one triangular eye was larger than the other. But when she went to fix it, the knife slipped, slashing across the entire face and nearly slicing it in half.

~

Bucky frowned. He had come to the conclusion that none of the Avengers could carve pumpkins. His own attempts were pitiful. Tony had decided to try unconventional methods (otherwise known as a blowtorch), which ended up with a gloopy, cooked mess. Bruce had gotten so frustrated he had to have a time out before he turned big and green, Sam had almost cut himself (that knife is too sharp to cut a pumpkin, Bucky!), and Hawkeye had gotten lost in youtube cat videos (he had decided to research pumpkins and somehow ended up with kittens...?).

Now, Bucky didn't know who else to ask. Maybe he could just walk to a nice neighborhood and switch his pumpkin with someone else's? But that would be stealing, and what if a kid had helped his mom carve it, and then the mom died, and that was their last ever jack-o'-lantern together? No, he couldn't risk it.

He gently patted the pumpkin, waiting for Tony to finish up with the upgrades to his metal arm. Lately, he'd been bringing his pumpkin with him everywhere just in case he met someone who could carve it for him.

"Hey, Bucky!" Pepper smiled, noticing his dark figure on one of her favorite cream couches. "How are you?"

"I'm good," Bucky said, lounging languidly. "Just waiting on Tony. How are you?"

"Oh, I see. He gets lost in his workshop sometimes," Pepper nodded. "I'm doing good though. I'm excited for Halloween. Have you and Steve decided what you're doing yet?"

"No. I'm just trying to find someone who can help me carve a pumpkin," Bucky admitted. "You'd think a team of people who regularly save the world could at least make a jack-o'-lantern. Turns out everyone really sucks at it though."

Pepper laughed, patting his shoulder.

"Looks like you've just been asking the wrong person! Come with me," Pepper ordered, heading toward the kitchen.

In five minutes flat she'd scooped the insides into the trash. She didn't bother with a marker, and simply grabbed her favorite knife and got to work.

Tony was annoyed that Bucky didn't seem to care about his arm which took six hours to upgrade, just because Pepper carved him a pumpkin. But, then again, Pepper was pretty amazing at whatever she did.

~

"Bucky!" Steve excitedly called him. "Guess what? I've been working so hard to carve a pumpkin for you, and I finally did! I can't wait until you get home!"

Bucky looked down at the newly carved pumpkin Pepper had made for him, before wildly looking around for a dumpster. He'd text her later and make sure she didn't mention it to Steve.

Steve's would be better anyway.

Bucky would be happy even if Pepper's was better simply because Steve had worked so hard for the past couple of weeks to do this simple little thing for him.

Surprisingly, Steve's pumpkin was a true masterpiece. He'd even made holes in the back so they could put a string of lights inside that were controlled by a little switch.

Bucky was over the moon.

He vowed never to ask anyone else to carve pumpkins for him. They simply couldn't do better than Stevie.