𝐛𝐮𝐜𝐤𝐲 𝐛𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐞𝐬 𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐬𝐡𝐨𝐭𝐬

keeping me warm

challenge: fallin' angel's 100 writing challenge by ​@adorkably

prompt: rivals taking a child they both love trick-or-treating and call someone "tater tot"

pairing: bucky barnes x reader

words: 3,446 words

warnings: post-endgame, small plot twist at the end, morgan is just a cutie, bucky being soft as hell, not a lot of language because there is a bAbY, happy ending, and F L U F F

summary: it's morgan's favorite night of the year, but things get a little heated when two avengers both want to take their favorite kid for trick-or-treating.

Straightening out the black skirt and hat to her witch costume, Y/N looked at herself in the mirror and smiled. Halloween had been her favorite holiday since she was little, and though she'd stopped trick-or-treating when she was twelve, she was excited to take little six year-old Morgan Stark out for the night to share the tradition. The girl had insisted they wear matching costumes and of course Y/N couldn't say no to those big, brown eyes, so she was ready to go out on the town dressed as a pretty witch at Morgan's insistence.

Y/N looked pretty cute if she did say so herself, double checking that she had her purse and a gun strapped to a thigh holster under her costume. Even though there hadn't been many threats since Thanos and Zemo returned, one could never be too safe when it came to going out, especially with Morgan. There was no way in hell the Avenger would let her get hurt. Anxiety pooled in her gut at the thought but she had to reassure herself that they were safe and trust that it would be a good night.

As she flew down the stairs at the compound, she thought of where she would take the small Stark girl. Maybe they could go around Upstate? Nah, that was too much area to cover in a few hours and they wouldn't get as much candy. Sunnyside Gardens in Queens was a relatively kid-friendly place, with lots of houses to visit, and they could visit Peter. New York was such a busy state with many places to go and Morgan had discovered little ever since Tony had died, so Y/N tried to make time to bring her to new places that she would enjoy.

The sounds of giggles and a deep baritone voice made her pause her thoughts. Morgan's laughter was undeniably distinct, the sound of sunshine-filled days and butterflies, but it was the man's voice that made Y/N's face contort into one of pure annoyance. "We better get going, Princess Morgan, before the ugly witch comes down here and-"

"Who were you calling ugly?" The witch called, leaning against the doorway with a smirk on her face. However, when she saw her favorite little human in a princess gown rather than a witch costume, the smirk fell in betrayal. "I thought we were going to match for Halloween, tater tot. What happened to that?"

The brown-haired girl rolled her eyes, showing sass she had clearly inherited from her father, and walked up to Y/N, plastic jack-o'-lantern in hand. "Auntie Y/N, I told you to stop calling me tater tot. I'm a big girl now, I can't have any nicknames."

The woman looked down at her with a small chuckle. Boy, she had grown up really fast. Had it already been two years? She still remembered the small girl sitting in a black dress at the lake house, but here she was now, a solid two inches taller and a whole lot more "mature". "I'm sorry, tater tot, you will always be my little baby girl to me." Y/N tickled the princess and picked her up, resting her small form on her hip when she finally decided to address the other presence in the room. "Barnes."

"Doll," Bucky retorted with a smile, "you look absolutely horrifying tonight."

She snorted at her teammate's words and looked down to his costume to dish out an insult or two. Normally she'd have some quick-witted reply ready at hand, but he actually looked good tonight. With the red pants hugging his thighs tightly and the gold shoulder pads accentuating his broad shoulders and chest, she would have climbed him like a tree. Not that she would let him know, no, his ego was already big enough as it was.