"Honestly, it's mostly the serum," Steve said with a little shrug. "I was rubbish at this before, the few times I tried."

Alissa's grip tightened when she slid a little on the ice but she didn't immediately demand to get off again, which she counted as a plus.

"You also had seventy years to practice," Taylor pointed out. She kept her death grip on his hand.

Bucky grinned and pulled her a bit further onto the ice.

"Come on," he said. "Think of the skates like an extension of your legs."

"Had 'em, yes, but did I actually practice? Not much. Buck and I go skating once in a while, but not very often." Steve didn't mind her grip, just letting her take her time.

"Dunno if that's going to help." Alissa let him lead her along. "I did warn you I suck at this."

Taylor just made a face at him briefly and tried to let go of his hand. When she nearly fell, she grabbed on tighter.

"Oh this isn't going to end well," she breathed.

"That's okay," Bucky said, grinning. "That's why I'm here, to help you."

"Relax," Steve said, gently pulling her a little closer to him. "Tensing up just makes it worse. Try to relax a bit, and give yourself some time. You don't have to let go right away."

"You're lucky you're cute," Alissa grumbled, mostly for the sake of grumbling.

"This is really, really unsettling," Taylor said as she let him pull her closer. "I'm not moving, but I'm not staying in place, and that just feels wrong."

Bucky just grinned and held her there until he felt her start to relax a little bit.

"Move your feet a little," Steve instructed. "At least then you'll be making yourself move forward rather than just sliding."

Alissa slowly relaxed, although she was unsettled that she never really stopped moving the whole time.

"Okay, what now?"

Taylor cautiously moved one of her feet, and squeaked when her other foot slid in the opposite direction.

"I'm so terrible at this," she said.

"Just hold on to me," Bucky said, moving a bit so he was skating backwards and pulling her with him.

"You're learning," Steve corrected. "I was worse than you when I started." He grinned a bit.

Alissa squeaked and clung to his hands, wobbling a little bit but managing to stay upright anyway.

"Somehow, I doubt that's possible," Taylor said as she held on to his hands tightly.

Bucky grinned.

"It's alright, I've got you," he said. He skated back a bit more.

"Stepped onto the ice and fell flat on my face," Steve told her. "Got up to try again and got a few feet before I wobbled and fell. According to Buck, I looked like I'd gone five rounds with a professional boxer by the time we got home."

"How are you comfortable with this?" Alissa asked incredulously.

Taylor couldn't smother a giggle.

"Really?" she asked.

"Practice," Bucky admitted with an easy grin. "I've had a while to learn how to skate."

"Really," Steve agreed with a grin. "Took Buck down with me once, too. He never let me forget it."

"True," Alissa agreed. "But still. Unfair." She stuck out her tongue at him.

Taylor grinned.

"I'll bet he didn't," she said.

Bucky grinned and kissed her cheek.

"It's alright," he said. "You'll learn quick enough."

Steve grinned. "See? Not so infallible as you think." He kissed her cheek.

"We'll see." Alissa still sounded doubtful but she was a little more relaxed.

Taylor turned a bit pink at that, but grinned a little.

"Careful little kids don't hear that," she teased. "Heaven forbid Captain America not be perfect."

Bucky just grinned and pulled her around the rink with him, letting her take her time and get used to gliding.

Steve snorted. "Kids sometimes are better than the parents," he said, shaking his head. "I have seen more misbehaving parents over the years..."

Taylor snorted.

"No kidding," she said. "I've seen so many badly-behaved people..." She made a face. "Imagine retail around the holidays."

Steve nodded. "It didn't used to be so bad, but then people got pushier, and things got worse." He shook his head, rather amused now. "Still, being big is helpful."

Taylor just grinned, and then yelped when she suddenly slipped a bit on the ice. She couldn't help but giggle a bit once she got her footing back.

Outside, there was an ominous sounding rumble, and the lights in the rink flickered.

Steve made sure she was stable before he tensed, glancing around. Flickering lights was rarely a good thing.

Alissa came to the same conclusion, tugging a bit on Bucky's hands to get him to hold still as she looked around for the source of the disturbance.

"That can't be good," Taylor said, glancing around as she held on to him. "What do you think that was?"

Bucky stopped pulling her around and just held her steady until the rumbling stopped. He glanced over at Steve, eyes narrowed a bit.

"Not sure," Steve said. "But I think I should find out." He nodded to Bucky and pulled Taylor with him to the edge of the ice, stepping off easily.

"I take it that's your signal to go investigate," Alissa said, attempting humor. "Not quite a Bat-signal but it'll do."

"Be careful," Taylor said, stepping carefully off the ice as well.

"Sorry we have to cut this short," Bucky said as he pulled her to the edge of the ice. He kissed her cheek. "We'll look into it and I'll be right back."

"I will." Steve smiled and pressed a quick kiss to her cheek before he took off the skates and headed for the door.

"Don't worry about it, I'll find somewhere safe to sit out of the way," Alissa said with a little grin. "Go save the skate rink, Sarge."