Bucky's gaze drops back to the photos, and the kind of fond, helpless smile he gets when he looks at the people he loves tugs at his lips. He might be turning into a sappy old man, but he can’t stop beaming as he looks at his little family, the way his mom captured them just right.

They had just come back from a grocery run - a date, practically, considering how rare it is to have any time to themselves nowadays, with two small kids at home. Flushed and happy, they stepped through the door bearing several bags of food, only to be instantly swarmed by Abby and Matty as if they had been gone for weeks. They barely made it to the couch before being roped into watching a dance routine the kids had apparently practiced while they were gone.

But it didn’t take long before Matty decided he'd had enough of performing and not nearly enough cuddles from Gale, and next thing Bucky knew, both of their children were climbing on their laps. Then, his mom started taking these photos.

"You’re taking up three quarters of the bed." Gale grumbles, but there’s no real edge to it, it’s more like a familiar routine as he braces his hands on Bucky’s legs and climbs over them to his side, the one closer to the wall.

Bucky just hums and lifts his arm for Gale to curl into his embrace. His mom switched out his old bed for a bigger one years ago, but they still sleep pressed close whenever they're here. As he feels the weight of Gale's head on his chest, a wave of tenderness ripples through him, and he sighs from the sweet nostalgia of it. God, how many times have they held each other like this over the years, in this very room in his mom's house?

Looking around his childhood bedroom, his heart feels heavy and full as he remembers it all. Their first night together, their first 'I love you's, the first time he saw Gale naked, their prom night. Every sweet visit home during college, their first time here as husbands, then baby Abby's first trip to Milwaukee. Twenty-six years of love, and now they're here, with a six-year-old princess and a three-year-old velcro baby.

Although he gets the same feeling every year, he can’t help but think that life couldn’t be more perfect, and that this is the best Christmas he has ever had.

Gale’s hand settles on his chest, moving in slow, lazy circles down to Bucky’s stomach and back up. He doesn’t ask what's on Bucky’s mind. Doesn’t need to. He knows when to leave it to Bucky to fill the quiet if he wants to and when to push.

Stroking a path down Gale’s back over his waist, Bucky adds one of the photos to his favourites. It’s the only one where Matty's looking at his grandma and not at Gale - and, of course, it’s the only one where nobody else focuses in the right direction. He loves it, and he’s grateful to his mom for capturing it. He’s going to frame it and put it on his desk at work.

"We could frame that." Gale mumbles sleepily, his deep voice rumbling against Bucky's chest.

Bucky chuckles and drops his phone on the bedside table. Drowsiness makes his eyelids heavy, every blink longer than the last. His hand strays down over the dip of Gale's back to his ass, stroking the curve of it absently. "How do you always know what I'm thinking?"

Humming, Gale shifts away from him, onto his side, facing the wall. When the light clicks off and Bucky rolls after him a moment later, fitting himself against Gale's back, Gale murmurs, "You’re not that hard to figure out."

Bucky presses a kiss to the back of Gale's neck and smiles. He closes his eyes, and as sleep starts to pull him under, for a fleeting moment he’s seventeen again, young and eager to find out how much joy the future might hold for him. Now he knows: it has given him more than he could have ever imagined.

What is it?

This is a whole week dedicated to the incredible variety, depth and creativity behind AU fan works.

Who can take part?

Absolutely everyone who wants to. Whether you create fan works, or want to recommend your fave AUs, or simply want to like and reblog and comment during the event, we'd love to have you.

How do you take part?

You can either create something original or rec an already published work (self-rec is accepted too). Use of AI is not allowed.

All kinds of fan works are accepted: fanfiction, edits, gifs, art, moodboards and more. Any ships or no ships at all, it doesn't matter so long as the characters are from Masters of the Air.

Simply post your fan works during A.U.gust week (25-31 August) with the #MOTA A.U.gust 2025 tag, and tag @mota-collab in the post so we can reblog it.

We've created a prompt list for anyone looking for a little inspiration - there are literally universes worth of AUs out there to choose from! You can take as many of the prompts as you like, and create as many fan works as you like. You can even combine prompts if you're feeling particularly adventurous...

Prompt list

Big thanks to this list of Alternate Universes and this AU A-Z list which inspired our own.

You can also recommend your favourite AU fan works. You can send us a DM or an ask via the Mota Collab page, and just tell us:

The title of the fan work or what it is

The link to the fan work

And what it is you like about it.

If you don't want to send it to us, you can post recs on your own blog of course, again using the MOTA A.U.gust 2025 tag, and tag @mota-collab in the post so we can see it!

And of course, you can show creators and recs alike some love, by liking, commenting and reblogging posts 🥰

How do you see all the great fan works created or recommended for A.U.gust?

Simply follow the tag MOTA A.U.gust 2025. We'll also do a masterpost at the end of the event, and there will be an AO3 Collection for any fics posted or recommended on that platform.