Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

When Anthony Stark was four years old, his father taught him the meaning of disappointment. The man had clearly explained the word, before claiming that if someone were to look it up in the dictionary; Anthony would be used as an example.

At the age of six, Anthony had learned that Stark men were made of iron after he fell and broke his arm during a press conference. In front of the press, Howard Stark had acted as a parent should. Concerned, he’d lifted the child and all but disappeared from the stage with Maria Stark at his heels. Off camera, his gentle grip had tightened and he had blown up on the child.

At the age of eight, Anthony Stark relied solely on his butler as family. The man that had provided his seed to give him life was no longer referred to as his father, only by first name. His mother did what she could, but had always stepped back in light of the rich man that the public adored.

At the age of fourteen, Anthony began his studies at MIT. And while Howard wasn’t impressed, he’d made his first friend in James Rupert Rhodes. It was also the first time someone other than Jarvis had called him Tony.

At sixteen, he graduated.

At seventeen, Howard and Maria Stark died in a car accident.

At eighteen, Tony was asked to represent Stark Industries on the presentation of the Jericho missile in Afghanistan. James had accompanied him as liaison for the army, and had been helpless to stop the kidnapping of the young CEO.

Three months later, Tony flew out of a cave with a light in his chest and a new perspective on the world. Stark Industries stopped producing weapons, and Pepper Potts, a previously unknown employee of the company, took over PR events.

At twenty, Tony Stark almost completely disappeared from the spotlight. And while it was common knowledge that he was the creator of all Stark Technology, the young man was no longer interesting to the public. He didn’t party, he didn’t drink, and he rarely did anything of interest. While he had made some public appearances for fundraisers, he was always quiet and observant.

At twenty-two, people realized that the hero that had appeared several times, only known as Iron Man, was Tony Stark. His persona outside of the uniform did not change.

At twenty-five, Steve Rogers was no longer a lost icon in history. And the Avengers Initiative had begun. Tony refused to get involved, but when the world had been endangered, used the suit to fly a missile into the sky. The team had tried to thank him, but his AI, adequately named Jarvis, had flown him from the scene.

And thus, Iron Man started to fly on severe missions with the team. Tony was never truly in the suit, operating from afar, and only interacting when he needed to. Thus, they wrote the man off as arrogant, a young billionaire whom had no business fighting beside them. None of the team ever having seen his face.

At twenty-seven, Tony Stark watched as the group of heroes turned against the government. He watched as they teamed up with a man formally known as James Buchanan Barnes, and destroyed the system. Steve Rogers had come to the conclusion that if the world he’d woken up in was no longer running as his original team had intended, then they would force it to run as they wanted.

Systematically, the group started to take over government by government, country by country, until the last remaining hope was America itself. On the persistence of Rhodey, Pepper, and his friend Happy, Anthony Stark had gone into hiding. Of course, he’d brought them along.

And soon, the group of vengeful heroes basically ran the planet. Rules and regulations were set, harsh punishments were set forth. Anyone with powers was required to step forward and work with the team of former heroes, or risk dying.

One vigilante, whom had been running from the group, was young. Too young.

Tony had been watching the happenings and had refused to roll over when it came to the young man. Using technology in the underground bunker developed to keep them set for several years, the genius figured out the kid’s identity.

At twenty-eight, Iron Man had flown again.

Ironically, Tony had flown out in the dead of night on his birthday. With the help of Rhodey, he had safely secured Peter and May Parker a ride to his bunker. They had not expected company.

Rhodey had reluctantly taken the two family members away while Iron Man fought against the group of former heroes. JARVIS had deployed another suit when the one he wore started to get too damaged, started to stagger under the attacks. But he was still holding his own.

There was a pause in the fight, as Hawkeye and Black Widow stepped back almost as if they were given orders. Tony had taken it as a moment to stumble from his breaking suit into the new one, freezing when he stepped out to come face to face with Steve Rogers himself.

“Stark, I’ve been looking for you,” the man’s grin was anything but kind. Feral.

With a curse that would have made his mother blush, Tony threw himself into the suit behind him, barely having the armor close around him when a metal arm tore a piece right off the suit. He threw himself to the right, swinging a fist at his assailant and watching as the Winter Soldier ducked deftly out of the way, holding the armor of his left arm.

“There’s no use fighting us, come on Stark.” Steve tilted his head as he stared at the face plate that had slid over Tony’s face. “Do you know, you’re just as pretty as your dad was, and even smarter.”

He knew better than to reply. Instead, Tony threw himself back and watched as they all moved to grab him. His battered suit, powered by JARVIS, threw itself forward and blew, causing enough diversion to let Iron Man take to the sky.

From the corner of his eye, the man could make out Falcon swooping from a nearby building, what looked like tranquilizer guns in his hands. Fortunately, they hadn’t expected the upgraded suit and what would have shot through his old armor bounced off.

Iron Man threw a shot at the man, and watched as it diverted his path long enough for the suit to swoop down and safely deposit Tony on the ground. With JARVIS as the operator, it flew further into the city, sending the group off after an empty machine.

He paid a homeless man for his hoodie, a good fortune, and used it to disappear into the night. Six people now lived in his underground bunker, and Tony could only pray as he lost another suit to an explosion, that he wouldn’t have to rescue anyone else.

At twenty-eight, Anthony Stark became one of the most wanted men on the planet.

Chapter Text

“Are you fucking kidding me?” Rhodey hissed, his fist banging on the table, eyes glued to the screen in front of him.

A quiet whistle sounded beside the focused man, causing him to jump and glance over the kitchen counter where the light of the fridge illuminated the hunched form of Peter Parker. The teenager slowly stood straight, a piece of cold pizza hanging from his mouth. He’d quickly grown on everyone, and had even started to reference them as family. “Don’t let Mr. Stark hear you talk like that Uncle Rhodey, he may have a conniption.”

The man snorted, knowing that Tony was far from the curse word Nazi, the kid’s aunt, however…

“I may have a conniption if you keep calling me Mr. Stark. Come on kid, it’s Tony.” Another voice interrupted from the hallway, the brunette stepping towards the living room with his eyes glued on the Stark Pad in his hands.

Peter grinned wide, like he knew that the name bothered the man but used it anyway. The two were like siblings, bickering constantly.

“Okay, Mr. Stark.” Peter replied with half the pizza still in his mouth.

“Eat with your mouth closed, I don’t want to see your half-digested food,” Tony said as he didn’t bother looking up, padding over to sit down on the sofa in front of where Rhodey now stood. “What’s up Platypus?”

“It’s Rogers, again.”

Finally looking up from the blueprints of his latest invention (they were underground, not dead) Tony turned his attention to the press conference televised by the news. He vaguely registered Peter throwing himself onto the sofa on the left, but chose to stare into the cruel blue eyes of a man that had once been a symbol of freedom.

“Jarvis, turn up the sound.” He smiled.

Rhodey began to pace behind the sofa, hands curled into fists as he did his best not to scream. He was glad that Tony had thought to build a gym into the rather large underground facility; he’d have to punch something later.

“Ladies and Gentlemen,” Rogers stopped for a moment, looking directly at the camera. “Tony,” the following grin was positively wicked.

“As you know, we have undergone several changes in the past few years. And while some of these changes have come at a price, they have been for the betterment of humanity. Crime rates have virtually disappeared, and we have kept you safe from all attacks.” The man took a moment to take in the applause of the group in front of them; the world had slowly started to warp into the thought that the Avengers were exactly where they belonged. In charge.

“And while we have apprehended several dangerous criminals, such as Miss Wanda Maximoff, we will continue to look for others who threaten our peace.” The room turned quiet, Tony found himself leaning forward alongside Peter. The man failed to mention that the woman’s brother had been killed when they had captured her.

“Six months ago, Tony Stark, former CEO of Stark Industries, disappeared with a mutant on the streets of New York. And while we don’t believe Tony to be dangerous, we are worried for his safety near this mutant.” With those words, James Barnes stepped forward, looking cleaner than Tony had ever seen him.

The entire group looked clean, too clean for what they were doing to the world.

“As some of you may know, the Captain and I worked closely with Tony’s father when we first started out in the army. We made a vow that we would protect Howard with our lives, and while we couldn’t keep our promise to Howard, we will uphold it to Tony.” He stepped back, letting Rogers take the reigns once again.

“Tony, if you’re hearing this, we’re coming for you. We’ll make sure you’re safe.” Rogers was speaking to a room full of people, but his voice still sent a chill down Tony’s spine as if the man were in the same room. “I don’t know what that mutant has done to you, but we’ll keep you safe.”

“Jarvis, turn it off.” He ignored the waiver in his voice as the screen turned blank to show his own, pale reflection.

Peter, whom hadn’t made a sound, suddenly scoffed at the black screen. “And he’ll never tell the public that this so called mutant is only fifteen!” He waved an exasperated hand in the air, still too young to fully comprehend that the words had been a threat against Tony.

“It doesn’t matter that you’re just a kid, the man has no qualms about using you to get to Tony,” a new voice broke the tension in the room.

Turning in his seat, Tony raised a brow as Happy Hogan uncrossed his arms and ambled into the room. He mirrored the genius’ expression, taking a seat on the wooden coffee table in front of Tony.

“No one leaves the compound, no one. We’re set for years, and they can’t find this place. You said it yourself Tony, the only people who even know this place exists are already living here.” Happy shrugged.

It was true; in a true state of paranoia Tony had the land purchased by his AI, and had his machines create the structure. He hadn’t wanted builders involved, or anyone human that could talk about his secrets.

He’d built rooms that would mirror the outside world, so that if someone had to survive in the bunker, they wouldn’t feel trapped as he had in the dark cave at eighteen. And he had invented technology to catch the outside world’s streams, so that they could see what was truly happening on the outside.

Jarvis had been his most brilliant creation. The AI had turned off all traces, and constantly worked to make sure that no one discovered any information on where they were.

The bunker was too far underground to be registered by heat trackers. There was only one entrance, but several emergency exits. The only way to access the entrance was to find the secret door located in the subway. The person then had to follow a long tunnel and find the right door. They’d have to pass several coded doors, several metal contraptions, before they could even make it to the vibranium enforced door.

“We should avoid looking into Rogers for a while,” Tony finally spoke up.

When he received confused looks from the men and teenager around him, the genius shrugged. “I can almost guarantee they’re going to track any data related to this press conference. It’ll be like a homing beacon, he’s waiting for us to look it up.”

Tony shook his head, running a hand over his chin. At one point in time, he’d had facial hair. When he’d been compared to his father by Rogers, the neat trim was gone and left behind only the slightest attractive stubble.

“I’m working on a robot to cook us food, so we don’t waste anything.” He changed the subject, forcing a grin on his face to look at Peter. “Want to join me in the lab?”

The teenager nodded before Tony could even finish the sentence, jumping to his feet. “Let’s do this old man!”

Tony squawked at the insult, stomping after Peter as the smaller brunette cackled and all but skipped out of the room in the direction of the lab.

“I am not old!” His voice shrieked from down the hallway.

The laughter echoed behind the two, leaving Rhodey and Happy with bittersweet smiles on their faces. They hadn’t been sure about rescuing the Parker’s at first, but in the end neither had regretted the decision. Tony was more energetic around the kid, and his aunt had been a godsend for Pepper who was no longer the only female in the bunker.

“I won’t let them get him.” Rhodey spoke softly. “I will not let that man touch him.”

“I know,” Happy added. “And I’ll be right beside you.”

-------------------

Tony didn’t tell anyone, but he had nightmares. When he was younger they centered on his father, and then they had morphed into Afghanistan. He could still remember the darkness of the cave; how a place that was meant to be hotter than hell was so cold he could at times see his breath. After fighting Rogers, they had morphed into something worse.

He’d gotten Jarvis to silence his room so that the group wouldn’t hear him scream. They didn’t know that he’d often fight invisible hands, picturing all the horrible things he imagined they wanted to do to him.

So finding himself waking up at two in the morning was no surprise, the sweat running down his face in rivulets. Tony threw a hand over the soft blue light of the Arc Reactor, trying to catch his breath so that he didn’t fall into a full blown panic attack.

It took several tries, but the genius finally calmed himself enough to breathe.

Shaking, Tony ambled into his private bathroom, shedding his clothing on the floor as he moved. The lights in the room were dim, comforting as he stepped into the warm water of the shower. Closing his eyes, Tony let the spray wash away an evidence of the nightmares.

“Sir, would you like me to inform someone of your distress?” Jarvis asked gently.

“Thank you, but I’m okay Jarvis,” he murmured. “Can you-can you check to make sure no one’s found anything out about the bunker?”

“Yes sir, the scan will take five minutes.”

Tony was proud of his creation, considering the A.I. was more intelligent than most people. The emotions that Jarvis had started to show upon his creation had never startled Tony, only bringing him the comfort he had sought after the loss of a man he’d loved.

Stepping out of the shower, the brunette grabbed the towel and dried himself off. The tiled floor was created to be warm upon touch, and Tony found the tension melting from his shoulders when it ran up his body. He sighed, wrapping himself in the large towel as he gathered a new pair of pajamas.

“Sir, scan complete.” Jarvis spoke gently when he was sure he wouldn’t startle Tony from his relaxed state.

“While there are still several attempts to find you, they have not found any data related to the bunker. I have not scanned databases for today’s conference as I did not want to raise a red flag on their radar. You have nothing to worry about sir,” the A.I. finished.

“Thank you Jarvis,” Tony sighed, looking around the room.

“I’m going to go to one of the outside rooms, would you mind setting it to the beach setting?” He was already quietly moving from his room and down the hall as Jarvis confirmed the request.

Stepping into the sound, smell, and sight of the outside world in the room he’d create specifically for relaxation, Tony smiled. Maria Carbonell had loved the beach, and the memory was one that he had held fondly of his mother.

Tony didn’t complain that the room was warmer than the beach, knowing that his A.I. had done it on purpose to keep him comfortable. Laying on the thick carpet, it didn’t take long before Tony sunk into a dreamless sleep. The lullaby of the ocean swaying him into the land of nod.

-------------------------

“I guess you were right Stevie, he really is smarter than his dad.” Bucky Barnes drawled, gaze focused on the wall of screens in front of them. Several people sat at computer monitors, trying desperately to find some sort of trace of the Stark genius.

The Captain did not look amused, his arms crossed as he glared at the back of the technicians. They were the best of the best, but none could find a single way to track down Tony Stark’s whereabouts.

When he had first been told of the man’s lack of interest in joining the Avengers, he had taken on the assumption of the rest of the group. Tony was lazy, arrogant, selfish.

When Iron Man had flown a missile into the sky and almost died saving the world, he had started to look into the man. A few years younger than Steve, Tony had quite a reputation. His company donated a lot of money to charities around the world, and a lot of his inventions had helped poor communities start to prosper.

He’d shut down the creation of weapons that Howard Stark had started. It was disappointing to see that his old friend had turned to money in his own genius. The fact that Howard’s son had turned into what Steve had hoped his father would have been, was another story.

When he’d found Bucky, it was like everything was meant to be. When he’d seen Tony in person for the first time, he’d been sold. The two men had agreed upon one thing, they would find the genius and keep him away from the rest of the world, protected.

“He’ll slip up, they always do.” Natasha conceded nearby, also glancing at the screens. “It’s only a matter of time. And when he does, we’ll be there.”

Chapter Text

Tony’s eyes were glazed over, staring blankly ahead as he tried to find a way back to himself. His hair was in disarray, having dried as he slept and sticking in every which direction. Jarvis had woken him before the rest of the bunker occupants and had directed him into the lab. Despite the sleep he’d gotten, the one cup of coffee wasn’t enough to fully wake the man.

A mug sat empty on the workbench in front of him, white with slight coffee stains on the brim. Tony would never admit that it took several minutes to process when someone refilled the cup with his elixir of life.

His hand unconsciously reached forward, wrapping gingerly around the cup and dragging it like a zombie back to his mouth. After taking a sip, his tired brown eyes lifted to meet those of Pepper Potts.

“You’re thinking too much,” she observed lightly.

Tony released a snort of amusement at the words. "I'm always thinking too much."

The redhead smiled gently, grabbing a stool from nearby and moving it so that she could sit directly next to Tony at the workbench. Once upon a time there was speculation that the two of them were an item, and while neither had fought the rumors, it was never true. Pepper was too focused on making the business work, and Tony didn’t exactly swing in her direction.

His friend hadn’t felt a loss about it, like Rhodey she had absolutely fallen for taking care of the tired genius beside her.

“What are you thinking Tony?” She inquired.

A half smile lifted the corner of his lips before the brunette turned back to his coffee mug, cradling it like the warmth would transfer all over his body. He was glad that the grip on the ceramic hid the fact that his hands were trembling.

“I’m figuring out where you’ll escape to if we’re found,” he admitted. Tony had already come to terms with the idea that their safety wouldn’t last forever. Rogers was determined. Eventually, someone was going to mess up.

“You mean where we will escape to,” she corrected.

The smile that was already half formed turned bitter, the mug moved up to hide the expression on his face. Leave it to Pepper to catch the phrasing. “I’ve run the numbers all morning with Jarvis. The possibility that you can all get away without me is a lot higher than if you take me with you. Almost eighty-seven percent, if they found the bunker.”

“I’ll take the thirteen percent,” Pepper didn’t even hesitate.

Tony swiveled in his seat, so that the two were facing each other rather than the workbench. He set down the half-drunk cup of coffee and leveled a serious expression on his face. Pepper’s mouth was pursed, as if she knew that she wasn’t going to like whatever came out of the man’s mouth.

“If something does happen,” Tony raised a hand to stop the protest. “If something happens, you have to promise me you’re going to keep the kid safe.”

Without the mug the tremors in his hands didn’t go unnoticed, but he soldiered on, knowing that if he didn’t get the words out he may never do it. “You take the kid, you take Rhodey, May, and Happy, and you keep them safe. I…. I’m almost positive that if they get their hands on any of you, they’ll use you against me.”

Tony hated that he could feel his eyes watering, but used every ounce of willpower he could muster to keep the tears from falling. “I can’t… I won’t stand a chance against them. If they have one of you Pep, I wouldn’t even fight them, to keep you safe.”

She paused for a moment, hesitant to agree. But the woman could count on a single hand how many times she had seen Tony Stark so close to crying, and reached out so that she could grab onto his trembling limb. “I promise.”

Tense shoulders dropped, Tony releasing a sigh as he let his head fall forward in relief, knowing that no matter how hard things got Pepper would keep her promise. Tony had always carried too much weight on his shoulders, the whole world, and only his close friends could see how hard his life had been on the billionaire.

“So what is the plan?” Pepper asked, apt at changing the subject.

Tony grinned, hands pulling away from the hold to wave in the air. “I found the one place on the planet that not even Roger’s people know exist! Well, not really anyway.”

Sitting up straight, he turned the chair back so that he was facing the empty space in front of them. Pepper turned to face the same direction, glad to see Tony looking more awake than he had been that entire morning.

“Jarvis, please pull up the schematics for the Wakanda plan!”

Immediately, several holograms floated before them in different shades of color. Tony used swiping motions until all that was left was a large map of Africa, an overview of the land. He used a pinching motion and watched as the hologram zoomed in to show a satellite view of the area.

“Right here! You’re going here!” Tony clapped his hand like he had just found the most brilliant secret to have ever been discovered.

Suddenly Pepper wondered if the stress was finally getting to Tony, and he was slowly becoming unhinged. She raised a brow with a frown on her lips, “you want to send us to barren lands?”

Tony’s instant grin was huge. "Not barren."

He spun the projection until a virtual, 3D map appeared before them of the land. The image making it feel as if they truly had just stepped foot on the terrain. Unlike his claim, the only thing beside the barren fields and sparse trees that Pepper could see, were two large boulders.

“It looks barren, but that’s just a barrier. Step through here with the right permission, and…” He motioned between the boulders and the projection moved as if they were walking, stepping through the land and through the stones.

“Welcome to Wakanda,” Tony laughed.

A high tech city appeared before them, lights shining in the distance. Pepper could make out technology that they had only dreamt of creating at Stark Industries. She threw a glance back at the smiling Tony, but found she couldn’t tear her eyes away from the city.

Tony Stark truly was a genius.

He outright laughed. “The only place in the world where the former heroes have no ruling. They think it’s barren, like you did.”

“You said with the right permission,” Pepper finally looked away to look at Tony, the projection fading into nothing. “How are we getting there? How are we getting permission? And honestly, if they don’t know it’s there, why couldn’t you come with us?”

Tony picked up his mug, another sip of the coffee that was steadily growing cold. “The emergency escape vehicles are programmed with special nanotech that will allow it to camouflage when it takes you into the air, you won’t be spotted. It’s already routed to go directly to Wakanda if something were to happen.”

Pepper nodded, “and you can’t come with us because?”

Tony flinched, “Roger’s is obsessed, taking me in as a refugee would mean spotlighting their existence to the world. They don’t want to put their people in danger, not for me, and I don’t want that to happen either.”

Before she could argue, he grinned and spoke gently. “Going to those charity galas was actually a benefit for us, I made connections with a young man at the time called T’Challa. He’s the king now. I’ve already confirmed the plan, and to expect you if something were to happen.”

He motioned to the area where the hologram had once been. “How do you think I even got the picture of Wakanda up on the projection? Permission.”

Pepper sighed, standing when they heard May’s faint voice call that pancakes were ready. “Promise me one thing Tony,” she turned to face him.

“Promise me that you’ll at least try to get away, if something happens. That you’ll try to come with us.”

The man looked down at his lap with an exhale, hands fiddling in his lap. “I’ll try,” came the words, and despite how sharp Pepper was, the relief blinded her to the fact that Tony never promised.

-------------------

“I still don’t understand what the point of this is,” his voice was flat as he stood at the end of the mat, staring blankly between Peter and Rhodey.

“Just because you have a suit, doesn’t mean you shouldn’t learn how to defend yourself,” Rhodey explained for what felt like the hundredth time to the annoyed genius.

Tony rolled his eyes, “I can send the suit to protect and fight without having to be in it. And I don’t know if either of you recall, but on our last game night I’m pretty sure I kicked both your asses at Mortal Kombat.”

Peter guffawed, “you cheated! You had cheat codes!”

“Still won,” the genius shrugged.

Distracted by the two, Tony didn’t have enough time to dodge the solid body that ran right into him and threw him over a shoulder and into the mat with a thump. The laughter, however, told him it wasn’t a real threat.

“You have to practice because of that, boss.” Happy held out a hand, looking all too pleased at having thrown Tony down.

“I hate you,” the words were monotone.

“Sure,” Happy rolled his own eyes as he helped the brunette get to his feet, actually smiling at the disgruntled look he received.

“Fine, who am I fighting?” Tony dusted his pants, the smile on his face too compliant when compared to the man that was refusing to participate only moments before.

“A punching bag, we’re working on form first,” Rhodey explained. He ignored the fact that the smile dropped from his friend’s face when whatever he was planning was quickly foiled.

A half hour later, Tony had strewn himself onto the ground of the gym and refused to move. He claimed that they were actually trying to kill him with the amount of exercises they’d pushed him through, and inwardly cursed that he was the only one sweating. The man was fit, but hours upon hours in the lab and his body was no longer used to keeping up with physical exertion.

Peter, whom enjoying teasing the man, had climbed onto the ceiling and used some of the webbing to cling upside down above the unmoving genius.

“Hey Tones, you still think you can kick my ass at video games right now?” He giggled when Tony groaned and used his foot to push Peter until the teenager was gently swaying above him.

“You know, give it like, thirteen years and you’re going to be in the same place kid. I’m old,” he murmured.

Peter laughed and went back to training with the other two men, leaving Tony on the ground to catch his breath. Despite the exhaustion, this was an almost daily routine for them all, it helped keep the focus away from the fact that they were hiding in a bunker.

------------------------

A hand flew into the air, catching the screwdriver before it could make contact with the down turned head.

“Just because I have good reflexes, doesn’t mean you have to toss things at me when you’re bored,” Peter grumbled, placing the tool down as he looked over the equations on the Stark Pad on his lap. He ignored the muffled giggle from the genius across the room.

“I swear, I’ll find a way to set Dum-E on you,” Peter threatened. “I hear he can do some damage with a fire extinguisher.”

Another muffled giggle, followed by the claim that the robot would never attack his own creator. Tony left out the part where the machine was constantly adding things to his coffee that would kill him if he actually was dumb enough to drink it.

“Come on, kid. You’re too quiet; don’t you feel like blowing something up?” Tony grinned.

The teenagers head instantly popped up, looking too excited at the prospect of causing a little mayhem with the genius. “I know it’s childish, but I hear when you mix a few chemicals together, you can make this sort of crazy foam…”

Peter grinned, “yes. Let’s do it, right now.”

And with that the two proceeded to cover the lab with blue foam that took several hours to clean. Not that any of the other bunk mates helped, instead choosing to laugh and walk away.

------------------

“I think I get to pick the film tonight,” May grinned.

Both Tony and Peter groaned, throwing themselves onto their shared sofa at the thought of whatever romantic film they’d have to suffer through that night. Pepper rolled her eyes from where she sat, and Rhodey and Happy knew better than to show any sort of disagreement. May was sweet, but it was scary to get on her dark side.

“How about a romantic,” she didn’t pause at the unison groans the words evoked, “comedy.”

Peter seemed to perk up at that, while Tony still looked skeptical about the whole thing. They’d had a dinner of a basic pasta alfredo, and had jabbered on about video games for most of the night, until Pepper had reminded everyone that she was actually the best at the old fighting game.

Jarvis had an extensive library of films, and as long as it had been created before they went down, the A.I. could access it. So it was rare they had to watch a film more than once. Of course, that didn’t mean that there weren’t days where he and Peter would curl up and have movie marathons. Where an old movie brought comfort to the hideaways.

Halfway through the movie found both Peter and Tony passed out, one with his head tilted back and the other curled in his lap.

“I’ll take Tony, you can take the kid,” Rhodey admonished, already moving to pick up his friend as Happy lifted the teenager.

May smiled gently, thanking them as she and Pepper wanted to finish the film. It was just another night in the bunker, one where the news didn’t send any of them into a full blown panic. One where Tony and the rest of their little makeshift family enjoyed whatever time they had left. Because no matter how far they were from being found, they all had the feeling that it wouldn’t last.

Chapter Text

It was two in the morning when Jarvis’ voice startled Tony awake.

The genius had passed out from a long day of attempting to distract Peter from the fact that they were stuck underground on his birthday. May and Rhodey had done their best at creating a cake, but the recipe was bland as they had to substitute ingredients that hadn’t been kept in the bunker due to their expiration date.

Tony had built Peter a communicator that resembled something out of a futuristic film. It could be used both to communicate and as a video feed, in case they were too lazy to leave a certain room but wanted to reach out. Peter had thanked him profusely and said it was amazing despite how lame the billionaire felt about it. He’d even run to one side of the compound with the thing in his ear to test it.

The video part of the thing was a hologram that displayed so that whomever was on the other end looked to be standing in the room with whomever they were talking to. Peter had jumped up and down when Tony appeared on his end.

They’d trained again, this time even May had joined to learn how to throw a punch properly. And then the group had watched films, thrown a small party, and done whatever seemed to make Peter happy. However, Tony hadn’t missed the look on the kid’s face as if something were missing.

Inwardly, the genius had cursed the Avengers as he did his best to keep Peter distracted. So, unlike most days, he’d gone to sleep without worrying about nightmares, exhausted.

It had been three months since the broadcast claiming a search for Tony Stark, but things had died down substantially when there had been rebels spotted in Russia. The Avengers had to put the search on hold, and things had gone quiet above ground while they dealt with the situation. It put everyone in the bunker at ease.

Rubbing at his face, Tony groaned as he sat up. The alarm that sounded was only in his room, he’d become familiar with it. Generally, it meant something had broken down and Tony was the only one that could fix it. He wasn’t alarmed by the sound, it wasn’t the attack bell.

“Sir, I must inform you that Mr. Parker has left the bunker.” Jarvis’ sounded panicked, as if the A.I. had his own concerns about the news he was sharing.

Tony jolted out of the bed faster than he could process, feet already moving before he’d even hit the ground.

“What!” He didn’t bother trying not to scream. Stumbling towards the communicator that he’d rested on his dresser, Tony immediately threw the thing into his ear.

“Mr. Parker has been gone for approximately ten minutes, sir. He jammed my system so that I could not inform you of the revelation until now.” Jarvis explained.

The teenager was intelligent, sometimes too much for his own good. He had definitively been determined enough if he had risked taking Jarvis offline to get wherever he was going. “Wake the others, have them meet me in the living room.” Tony commanded, forgoing his shoes to sprint down the hallway. He needed to activate the suits, he needed to bring the kid back.

“Would you like me to patch you through to his communicator sir?” Jarvis asked, “he hasn’t removed it since this afternoon.”

“Yes,” Tony was panting, out of breath as he reached the living room. All the lights in the bunker had turned on, and he could hear echoing footsteps as the others hurried to join him.

Tony knew that they had started to go a little stir crazy, but he had never expected Peter to step foot outside the bunker. At least, not without speaking to them first. He wondered if it had something to do with his birthday, had Tony done something wrong?

“Tony?” The voice didn’t sound panicked, gentle and relaxed.

His knees gave out, and Tony found himself falling to the ground in his relief. The room spun for a moment as he tried to focus on the fact that the kid was okay, that nothing had happened to Peter. Not yet.

“Kid?” He had to pause for a moment, hide the panic in his voice. “What the hell are you doing out there? Get back to the bunker, please.” The tremors were back, his entire body shaking as he tried to push away the worry that was threatening to overwhelm him.

“Don’t worry Tones!” Peter hadn’t caught the worry. “They’re not even in the country right now, remember?” The teenager had been watching the news of the Avengers with Tony, he was quite aware of what was happening in the world above.

“Besides, it’s two in the morning, no one will be out looking for a teenager.” His explanation sounded almost rational, like Peter had been thinking about his actions for a while. “I’m not swinging from the buildings or anything, I’m just… I needed to do this. I couldn’t break a promise.” The kid explained.

Tony barely registered that May was now crouching next to him, Rhodey rubbing circles on his back.

“Where’s Peter?” She asked, seeing how pale the genius had become.

“Is that Aunt May? Does this thing have speaker?” Peter asked from the other end.
“Jarvis, speaker.” Tony commanded, too wired to be polite as Rhodey helped him move so that he was seated on the sofa rather than crouched on the ground.

Seconds passed before Peter’s voice filtered from the speakers in the room. Unlike Tony, his aunt immediately started to lay into the teenager, imploring he turn and make his way back to the bunker.

“I’m sorry Aunt May,” he finally broke through her ranting. “I have to see him.”

“See who, kid?” Tony asked. “Who could be so important that you’d risk going out there, without saying anything?”

Peter went quiet for a moment. Tony panicked, reaching for his watch to send several suits to go fetch the kid when the barely whispered reply echoed into the silent room. “Uncle Ben.”
----------------

Steve Rogers grinned as he stretched, panting only slightly as he watched his long-time partner do the same beside him. They had returned from their travels only hours earlier and had decided to spar a bit in the gym that had been specifically created for them ages ago.

The revolt had been easy to overthrow, especially when the Russian’s had seen Thor show up with an equally pleased Loki beside him. After some negotiation, they had brought the God back with the promise that he would rule over several Midgardians in exchange of not being completely in power.

Loki had been pleased with the development and had been waiting for such an opportunity of revolt to take over. The rebellion had quickly died down with the two God’s present, and both had been left in charge of cleaning up the mess and ruling the area with an iron fist to make sure it didn’t happen again.

Turning to grab a shirt, Steve threw it on just in time to catch the small beep that one of their rules had been broken. He grinned at Bucky as both men quickly turned and made their way to the control room.

They had enforcers to keep people in line, but sometimes it was fun to go out and take care of the problem themselves.

“What’s happened?” He inquired, walking in to see a squad of men already getting the information.

Immediately he received a few salutes before one of the technicians (slightly shaking in his boots) held out a report to the blond super soldier.

“A civilian has broken curfew, sir.” Steve glanced down at the surveillance that they had taken of the figure. It was a teenager by the looks of things. The kid was dressed in dark clothing, but other than breaking curfew, nothing seemed too suspicious about the situation.

“Why don’t we just go scare him a bit?” Bucky suggested from over his shoulder. “Seems like a little punk, no jail time needed, just some good fear.”

He threw a look over his shoulder at the man, grinning. “You sound like you’re looking forward to scaring him.”

Bucky shrugged, a smirk already lifting the corner of his mouth. “Sounds like a good way to burn off some energy. Besides, when was the last time we had a little fun with a civilian?”

Steve grinned. The curfew had been put in place the day after the press conference. They hadn’t broadcast the new hours as they weren’t sure if Tony could see anything other than what was televised. So, they had put up fliers, posters, and had people announce it the old-fashioned way.

For a civilian to break that curfew, fear sounded like a good enough punishment.

“Let’s go,” Steve nodded, dismissing the enforcers as he and Bucky turned to walk out of the building. They didn’t even need to put on more than their dark jeans and shirts, the world feared them enough without a mask.

From beside the blond, Bucky looked like a kid about to open a Christmas present. “This is going to be fun.”
--------------

Before Tony could send a suit to grab the kid, Pepper had pointed out that chances were no one had noticed Peter on the street. In fact, the less attention they brought to the kid, the better. Not that the genius didn’t put every single one on standby, in case he needed to get Peter out quickly.

Refusing to hang up the phone, Rhodey had explained that they wanted a play by play of everything that was happening around Peter. Just to hear the kids voice was comforting for all the adults in the room.

Once they had understood why Peter had left, the protest had died down. Although May had started to cry and taken comfort in a rare Happy embrace. Every year on his birthday, since his uncle had died, Peter would go to the graveyard to spend some time with the deceased family member. The kid liked to talk to the man, tell him what was happening. He couldn’t break the tradition.

Peter knew that the moment he stepped foot in the bunker, he’d be getting an earful from all of them. He could only hope that Tony wouldn’t look too disappointed at his decision.

The genius had seemed the most understanding out of all of them.

“The gate’s closed,” Peter frowned, informing the group as he finally made it to the graveyard. “Should I just jump over the fence, or scale it like a normal person?”

“Scale it,” Tony replied, his panic had subsided to pure focus to get the kid through his little trip and back to the bunker as safely as possible. He’d had Jarvis open a virtual map, tracking each of Peter’s steps so they could see where the kid was going. With his communicator on, the action wasn’t too difficult.

Nodding, despite the fact that they couldn’t see it, Peter looked at the wall in front of him. It took a moment, but when he spotted a tree nearby the kid instantly started to climb up. It wasn’t until Peter had stopped right at the brim of the wall that the hair on the back of his neck stood.

He immediately looked around, trying to spot why his Spidey sense had suddenly flared. But there was no one nearby, nothing that he could see. Maybe he was just psyching himself out? Shaking his head, he jumped the fence and landed steadily on his feet on the other side.

No one was looking for him. They knew that Tony was with a mutant (genetically enhanced, but Peter didn’t have to explain that to anyone), but not what he looked like. Hell, even the picture they had broadcast of Tony was old. The billionaire’s hair had grown to fall in styled waves to his ears, the goatee replaced with stubble. No one was after Peter.

Peter took a second to breathe, trying to reassure himself that he hadn’t made the biggest mistake of his life. “No one’s here,” he explained gently. “I’m okay, I’m in the graveyard.”

He heard a collective sigh of relief from the other end of the communicator and huffed out a quiet laugh as he started towards the headstone he’d visited too many times.

When Peter got to it, he relaxed. His shoulders fell as he crouched down to dust at the stone. “Do you… do you guys mind if I turn this off for a minute?” He heard Tony’s voice protesting before he continued. “Just for five minutes, no longer. I just… I want to talk to him alone. Please Tony?” Peter pleaded softly.

“Five minutes,” Tony relented. “But not a second later, okay kiddo?”

“Okay.” And then the com went silent.
----------------

“Well, he is determined,” Bucky observed, watching the figure disappear over the graveyard wall. “Isn’t it bad luck to enter the place of the dead at night?”

The Captain withheld an amused laugh at the question. Whomever the civilian was, they had some nerve breaking curfew. But technically, they were now trespassing on city property.

Through the gate the two watched as what could have only been a teenager wandered through the stones as if they’d been there several times. There was a quite murmuring from the figure, and Steve held up a hand as he tried to hear what was being said.

“Do you hear that, is he talking to himself?” Definitively a teenager.

“Please Tony?” The words were spoken quietly, but they had good hearing. Both men froze, and the silence allowed them to hear a muffled voice reply.

Blue eyes clashes with each other, widening in shock before the smiles on their faces widened as if they were looking at their own reflections. There was absolutely no way that Tony Stark had let the kid wander off on his own, they couldn’t have gotten that lucky.

But if they were right, if this was who they thought, then they wouldn’t let the opportunity slip.

Without so much as a single word, the men split up, one would come up from the front, the other from the back.
----------------

“They’re my family now, I think.” Peter had taken a seat at the grave. He spoke as if he were having a conversation, smiling at the stone gently.

“I know that I promised you that I’d take care of Aunt May, and I’ve really done my best. Did you know that she even knows my secret now? I mean, that was inevitable. I hope I haven’t disappointed you about the power thing, but the world is a lot different now Uncle Ben. The Avengers, they turned on everyone.

They tried to get me to join them too, but I refused. I don’t want people to fear me. I still want to be like Iron Man, you know? He’s the best. He rescued me when I was little, and now he rescued me and Aunt May again. Did you know he’s been mentoring me? Tony takes care of me, he’s the best. I wish you could have met him Uncle Ben. He lets me work with him in the lab, we’re even working on a robot that can cook.” The kid paused to let out a watery laugh at the confession. “Everyone frankly sucks at making food, so we’re trying to make sure we don’t waste food anymore.”

There were a few tears that escaped, to trail down his face. “I love him so much Uncle Ben, he’s family. I wish… I wish you were here. I miss you…”

With a hiccupping sob, Peter reached forward and gingerly touched the stone as if it would break under the pressure of his hand. “I don’t know when I’ll be able to visit you again, but I have to go now. Tony gave me five minutes. I just… I just wanted to see you. Hopefully, I can come back on the next birthday.”

Peter heard the chirp in his ear as the communicator demanded his attention, his five minutes were up. Wiping at his face the teenager pressed the button and grinned when he heard the multiple voices asking if he was alright.

“I’m still okay, I’m heading back right now you guys.” He stood, brushing the grass stains from his jeans. “I told him about you guys, he would have wanted to meet you.”

“Kid,” Tony didn’t finish, not sure what else to say.

Peter smiled, even though he knew that the man couldn’t see it. “I know.” Pivoting to go back towards the gate, Peter froze in place. He was face to chest with a stranger, whom was not moving and standing too close.

With horror creeping up his throat, Peter couldn’t withhold the whimper as his eyes met the icy blues of the Winter Soldier. Only with the reflexes that came with training, the teenager threw himself back, sprawling against the headstone behind him.

Tony, having heard the sound, was on his feet, screaming. “Kid? Peter? Peter, what the hell is happening?”

His senses warned Peter just in time to throw himself to the right, rolling on the ground as Rogers almost snatched his sweater. Using the momentum of the roll, Peter staggered to his feet and started to sprint like the hounds of hell were nipping at his heels. Not that the comparison was far from the truth.

“Barnes and Rogers!” He managed to shriek in his panicked breath, hearing the men gaining on him as he sprinted towards the wall. “They’re here Tony! What do I do! They’re gaining!” The teen was panicking, his training falling to the back of his mind as he desperately tried to get away from the super soldiers.

“Tony!” He screamed as he was tackled from behind, the com dislodging and falling to the ground as Peter rolled to remove his attacker.

They could hear struggling, punches being thrown and screams. Tony started to yell the kid’s name over and over, wanting it to be a nightmare and nothing more.

However, everything went quiet when Peter released a cry of pure agony before no sounds followed. Tony was panting, like he’d run a marathon, body trembling as he tried desperately to catch some sort of affirmation that Peter had gotten away. That he’d left the communicator behind and run.

The sound of footsteps echoed over the speaker, and the rustle of the com being lifted raised Tony’s heart to his throat.

“Kid?” He all but whispered.

“The itsy-bitsy spider went up the waterspout,” a very familiar voice sung eerily into the com. “Down came the rain and washed the spider out.” And the com went dead.

The genius looked wide eyed at everyone in the room, unwilling to process what they had heard. And then, his chest hurt, and the room spun. Tony couldn’t remember what happened after that, sinking into the darkness with Peter’s screams still echoing in his ears.

Chapter Text

The first thing Tony heard as he started to wake was the steady beeping of a heart monitor. The smell of disinfectant strong, causing his nose to scrunch as he tried to get used to the smell. It was obvious he was in the medical wing, but why? What had happened?

The memories were swimming in the forefront of his mind, but whatever drugs he had been put on kept them just out of reach. He could hear someone furiously typing nearby and wondered what the hell had pissed them off that they were hitting the keys so hard.

With a barely suppressed groan, Tony forced his eyes to slowly blink open. The lights had been dimmed so that they wouldn’t hurt his vision, and he was grateful for the forethought as the room spun in circles around him. There was a tightness to his chest he didn’t remember, and for a moment he thought someone was trying to take the Arc Reactor out again.

He quickly glanced down at his chest, seeing that everything was in working order. The blue light glowed brightly beneath the hospital gown he’d been put in.

“Tony!” Suddenly Pepper’s face was right above him, looking pale and uncertain.

He opened his mouth to ask her what had happened but couldn’t stop the coughs that shook his body and sent shocking pain down chest.

A straw was suddenly in his face, a worried Rhodey holding the cup of water up with slightly trembling hands. Tony didn’t question it, taking the water and sighing in relief when it smoothed the ache in his throat.

However, the relief only lasted a second as he truly took in the two people in the room. What had happened?

“Why am I in medical?” It was still the bunker, he’d known because he put it together himself.

Tony watched as the looks played over Rhodey’s face, contemplating on whether to tell him the truth or to lie. Instead, the man pressed a button so that the brunette’s bed tilted him into a seated position. “Tones… you… you had a heart attack.”

Tired, disoriented, hooked up to several machines. Sounded about right, but what had caused it?

Brows furrowed, Tony looked at the two again, seemingly realizing for the first time that Happy, May, and Peter were missing. “What-” He cut himself off, eyes widening as the memories finally flashed before his eyes.

Peter. The cemetery. Rogers.

“Peter!” It was only because Pepper and Rhodey were ready for him, that Tony was quickly prevented from throwing himself from the bed. It was a good thing too, he was too weak to stand on his own.

“Get me the communicator, now!” He all but screamed.

“Tony, maybe you should take a minute-” Pepper argued gently.
“Now! If you don’t grab it, I will.” He was panting, breaths coming in short as Pepper disappeared from the room. Rhodey was telling him to calm himself down, to not work himself up, that he was making himself worse. They couldn’t help Peter if Tony was out for the count.

“How long have I been out?” He asked.

“Two days, we kept you under… just in case.”

Tony growled, literally let out the sound as he imagined all the things that had happened to Peter in the time he was under. How could he have allowed this to happen? This was his fault, they were after the kid because of him.

“Jarvis, any updates?” The A.I. had remained quite until that point, quickly replying that the Avengers had not announced their capture of Peter, and that no one had seen or heard of the child.

When Pepper came into the room, Tony threw the communicator on the bed, barely keeping the IV from ripping out of his arm. He was still panting as he ordered Jarvis to make the video call.

It rang twice before it picked up, and this time the brunette had the projection thrown onto the wall rather than the 3D hologram it was designed to make.

Rogers was leaning casually up against a wall, his arms crossed in front of him like he hadn’t had a care in the world. Bucky Barnes sat on the ground beside him, flicking a knife up and down as if it were a ball. Just to the left, in front of them, Peter Parker was bound to a metal chair. His leg clearly broken, cheeks bruised, and tears streaming down his face as the gag in his mouth didn’t allow for the kid to talk. He kept his eyes squeezed tightly shut, as if the motion would prevent the reality of his situation from continuing. Natasha stood just to his side, smiling at the camera. She had been the one to answer the call.

The smug look on their faces died almost instantly when they finally got a good look at Tony. The man was sitting up in the hospital bed, as pale as a sheet of paper and hardly managing to catch his breath. Rhodey stood over him, rubbing comforting circles down his back as he tried to prevent another disaster from happening.

“Pe…Peter?” Tony finally managed to stutter.

Immediately the kid’s eyes flew open, panicked as he saw Tony in front of him. He tried to scream, to move forward, but couldn’t do more than make pained sounds at the screen.

“What happened to you Tony?” Rogers had stepped towards the camera, his blue eyes wide as he took in the medical equipment attached to the genius.

“He had a heart attack, thanks to your little stunt.” Rhodey hissed, wanting to do nothing more than gauge the man’s eyes out with a rusty spoon. How could Rogers even start to sound concerned?

“What?” The blond seemed surprised, his eyes scanning Tony as if looking for some sort of injury that may have caused the attack. Even Peter had frozen, looking like the world had just fallen on his shoulders as he took in the state of his mentor.

“Look, let’s not talk about that right now.” Tony finally managed, wheezing only slightly. “What do I have to do to get Peter back you son of a bitch?”

He was angry, the emotion was evident on his face as he stared the group of former heroes down. The genius felt like vomiting, the room still threatening to spin around him.

“Tones,” Rogers almost whined, “you know what we want. We just want to keep you safe. Come to me, come home, and we’ll let the kid go.”

The heart monitor was beeping faster, the sound grating on Tony’s nerves until he ripped it from his arm. There was a gasp from his left, but he ignored it in favor of meeting Roger’s eyes. The hand previously rubbing his back started to brace against his chest, the huffs of Tony’s breath audible.

“I’ll make you a deal. I’ll send you coordinates, we’ll do the trade tonight. I’ll come alone, in the suit, and switch places with Peter.”

Rogers raised a brow, as if he couldn’t imagine why Tony would so easily agree to the deal. “You can fight in the suit Tony, I don’t want a battle, I just want this to be over. I don’t want to hurt you.”

“Don’t touch another hair on my kid’s head then,” Tony countered. “The only three people who know how to run the suit are me, Rhodey, and Peter. I’ll get out of it, he’ll get in it and leave. That simple. I’m not exactly in a state to fight, if you can’t tell. I won’t bring any people with me.”

The smile that lit Roger’s face was cruel. “At eight then, tonight. I’ll only bring the original team. Send the coordinates.” He turned his back to the camera, making his way over to the teenager and grinning from behind the kid. “And Tony, any tricks, and I’ll kill him.”

Tony nodded, and the camera shut off.

There was an explosion of sound as Rhodey and Pepper started to protest. They didn’t notice how the brunettes shoulder straightened, how the weak glint in his eye disappeared to something extremely determined as he stared straight ahead.

It took several minutes before James noticed the look on his friends face and held up a hand to stop Pepper from her ranting.

The redhead glanced down, frowning as she noticed the look her friend got only when his brain was working ten times the normal speed.

“Tony, what are you thinking?” Pepper asked after a pause.

“Rogers has had us trapped here for months. What did he think we were doing that entire time?” He looked up, the expression on his face frightening. “Does he actually think that I was twiddling my thumbs, with nothing to do?”

His grin turned feral.

“It’s about time I introduce the world to Jarvis.”

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

It was raining, and the field that they had arranged to meet on was quickly turning into a mud pit. Tony couldn’t help but think it was interesting, that the sky was crying for him. He could still hardly catch his breath and had had help from Rhodey to even get around the bunker. But he was determined.

True to his word, Rogers had only brought along the original team and no one else. True to his word, Tony appeared in the suit, alone.

When he landed across from the group, he immediately caught wind of the archer in a tree nearby, waiting to shoot down anyone who tried to stop the trade. Bruce wasn’t anywhere to be seen, but the man had always been passive except for in his other form and wouldn’t have wanted to be involved anyway.

Bucky held Peter up by a set of bands on his hands, cutting them when Tony arrived. Rogers looked like the cat that had finally gotten the mouse.

“I want to hug him, before he goes.” Tony commanded, filtered voice echoing despite the rain.

“If you’re out of the suit,” Rogers nodded.

With that, the genius did as he was told. He stumbled, truly still weak and disoriented, but resolute. Peter was already walking quickly towards him, limping slightly as the injuries he’d sustained had already started to heal. The kid reached the genius fast, wrapping his arms around the man as if it were their last embrace.

“Peter,” Tony sighed in relief, slumping into the kid’s hold. From the side of his eye he could see Rogers take a concerned step forward, realizing that Tony was truly not doing well.

“Tones!” Their hug was brief. Tony using their embrace to turn Peter so that he could push him into the suit.

Peter cried, but the genius merely watched as the faceplate flew down and trapped the teenager within. He turned back towards the other side of the field, watching as Rogers started to move forward with the Winter Soldier at his side.

Tony groaned, falling to his knees and retching onto the ground. Both men started to move faster, but he held up a hand in a motion that startled them both to a stop. There was a bit of coughing, and Tony had to use the suit as a means to stand up, but when he got on shaking legs he spoke.

“Now Mr. Rogers.” He grinned, the look causing a moment of hesitation to run through the blond’s face.

“Our deal was that I wouldn’t bring any people with me. However, that doesn’t include Jarvis, does it?” He watched as confusion started to form on the Captain’s face, as he tried to understand exactly what Tony was referring to.

“Peter, care to tell them about Jarvis?” He would explain, but the truth was that he wouldn’t get through it without coughing. The rain was freezing, and not helping at all in trying to look strong in front of the group. Had his body always been shaking?

Peter, albeit confused, nodded and started to speak. “Jarvis is Tony’s Artificial Intelligence system. He’s….” It was obvious the boy caught on, an abnormal gasp sounding from the machine. “You’re brilliant!” The kid exclaimed.

There was a sort of panic on Steve Rogers face as he started to run, sprinting at Tony to stop whatever was coming from happening.

“Phrasing is everything, don’t you think?” Tony tilted his head, and with those words an army of Iron Man suits descended on the field.

Before they could reach the two injured men, the suits had engulfed them in a sea of red and yellow chaos, going after the original team like ants. They had descended so quickly and without warning that the Avengers lost sight of which one had taken Peter and which one had taken Tony.

The machines were attacking them without mercy, trying to tear them apart while others flew overhead to add to the confusion. “Hello, my name is Jarvis. Please desist from going after Mr. Stark.” The machines had repeated several times, even as one by one they were taken down.

There was a moment where Steve had to rip the arms from two as they tried to play a game of tug-a-war with his limbs. The tap on the shoulder had him pivoting with the metal in his hands, unable to stop the fist that connected squarely to his face.

“Don’t fuck with my kid!” Tony’s voice was loud as he watched the super soldier fly down, taken by surprise at the strength of the Iron Man suit the genius had built for himself.

Before Steve could attempt to grab him, stop him from getting away, the suit fell back into the others, disappearing again.

He let out a scream of frustration, ordering the team to find Tony, that he was in a suit.

Suddenly, the suits started to blow up. Flying into the sky and causing explosions as the rain helped to thicken the confusion. In the panic of finding the two injured men, the Avengers let them get away without knowing it. Two bland suits that simply disappeared into the night.

The machines were slowly clearing up, revealing a massacre of broken parts. The Avengers were almost out of breath, completely taken by surprise at the stunt that had been pulled. They had expected Tony to fight, but to manage something so insane…

Bucky, a cut dripping blood down his temple, let out a laugh into the silence of the field. “Smarter than Howard alright. And damn beautiful.”

They had to regroup. Rogers could even begin to admit that seeing what Tony had pulled off had only strengthened his want for the genius. He agreed with Buck, not that he had to say it out loud.

Clint, looking like he had his own fair share of suits he’d had to fight off, jumped down beside Natasha with an impressed whistle. “I knew he could make some cool stuff, but that was impressive.”

“Hello, my name is Jarvis. Please desist from going after Mr. Stark, thank you.”

They all pivoted, weapons at ready, when the now familiar sound of the A.I. spoke up from behind the group.

Only one suit remained, standing at the other end of the field, facing the team. The power to the machine was slowly turning off, as if it had served its final function. The middle finger delicately held up in their direction.

Chapter Text

Tony didn’t bother to withhold the groan at hearing the same familiar beeping of a heart monitor nearby. Was he in medical again?

Using every ounce of willpower he could muster up, the genius blinked his eyes open to find the same dim lighting in the medical ward as before. He turned to his right to find Rhodey once again sitting at the computer monitor, although the typing was less furious as he scrolled through what was obviously news feeds. To his left, Pepper sat reading one of the books from the facilities library, her brow only slightly furrowed as she looked up to meet his gaze.

Had it all been a dream? Was Peter still with the Avengers? Why was his chest still so tight?

“Peter…” It was the only thing that he managed to say before the coughing ran up and down his body, sending shocks of pain up his spine.

“Peter’s in the kitchen helping May with dinner,” Pepper assured. She had the look on her face that Tony instantly knew meant he’d be getting some sort of scolding. At least being in medical meant she couldn’t smack him.

“You, on the other hand, got worse. The rain didn’t help with the state you were in, and you caught a cold on top of the attack.” She reached forward, running a hand through his hair. “You’re on bedrest for at least a week.”

Tony groaned, rolling his eyes and looking at Rhodey for back up. What he received in return was an amused smile and a subtle shake of the head.

“Come on guys, we should celebrate!” He paused, realizing that even talking was leaving him breathless.

“We’ll celebrate when you’re on your feet, in a week.” Pepper’s voice was dry, no room for arguments or negotiations.

Before the genius could attempt to reply, a shriek drifted from down the hall into the open door of the medical room. It would have made them all start running if it hadn’t been followed by May yelling at Peter for burning the dessert.

Laughter bubbled from the man on the bed, and soon enough the entire room was following in his footsteps. They finally relaxed, glad to be amongst each other. Tony, knowing that his family was safe in the bunker, finally allowed himself to drift under with the help of whatever drugs they were pumping through his system.

Sure, he woke up worse than before. On top of the weakness of the attack (he didn’t want to face the idea that his heart had tried to give out on him), he was now coughing, shaking, and had a fever that was dangerously high. But, he had his family.

--------------------------------

Two days passed before they had let him sit up in a wheelchair to get around the bunker. It wasn’t ideal, but Tony knew that it was already a stretch as he had barely won the argument to get off the bed. They had all grown protective over Tony and Peter.

The genius knew that the kid wouldn’t be returning to the surface anytime soon. When Peter had finally grown enough courage to show his face around Tony, it had been to burst into tears and beg for forgiveness.

He had stated that he hadn’t revealed a single thing while in captivity, and that they had tortured him in hopes that he would speak, but Peter hadn’t cracked. Peter had also explained that he had truly thought there was no danger, that the group of former heroes were supposed to have been in Russia. Had it been their enforcement squad going after the teen, he would have easily gotten away.

Tony had let him rant, and then gently explained that he didn’t blame the kid for anything. He’d even wanted to hear more about Peter’s uncle. The two had bonded further, keeping the other company so that the rest of the team could run around and fret over them like mother hens.

“I’m taking a shower,” Tony declared on the third night. “By myself, I’ll even sit on the floor so you don’t have to worry about me falling over, but I’m doing it.”

He could see that they wanted to protest. No one missed how the genius would wince when he tried to walk, or that he hadn’t tried to build anything because his hands would shake terribly. But Tony was stubborn, and soon enough he was left alone to shower, with a promise that his clothes would be right outside the door.

“I’ll be fine Pepper, I’m not an invalid,” he’d rolled his eyes as the redhead had hovered by the door.

“I know,” she smiled. “But it’s also kind of fun to get to boss you around and have you listening.”

Tony returned the smile with a fond expression before he wheeled himself into the bathroom, watching as Jarvis slid the door closed behind him. He couldn’t hide the fact that he felt warm from their attention and care, it wasn’t something he’d had growing up.

Looking between the shower and the chair, Tony steeled himself and used the counter to stand. His legs threatened to give out beneath him, and the room spun for a moment, but he managed to get himself into the shower.

It was only when the spray of the water came down, Tony sitting on a stool someone had put in the room before he’d gotten there, that he spoke.

“J, please prevent sound from leaving this room.” He waited until the A.I. confirmed the order before continuing, knowing that now the occupants of the bunker couldn’t hear the conversation.

“How many suits do we have left after the whole fiasco?” Tony inquired, picking up the shampoo and throwing it on as he listened to Jarvis respond.

“Five functioning suits sir, although two have sustained some damage from the fight.”

“Run protocol S398. If anyone asks what you’re doing, tell them you’re sorting through provisions and taking stock.” Tony was expecting questions from the group if they saw the suits suddenly moving their things into the escape ship, but he hadn’t expected it from Jarvis.

“Sir, if I may, would you like me to move your things as well? We still have time, as they have not managed to trace our exact location.”

Tony sighed, letting the water wash out the shampoo before following it with the conditioner, liking the smell of soft amber that was left behind. He hadn’t realized the situation at first, having been in the medical wing trying to get his brain to function. However, soon enough Tony had realized that they had a large problem that wasn’t going to be easily solved.

It would take a week, but he knew that Rogers and his team were going to come for them. And this time, they would find them.

“No, Jarvis. I don’t want to put more lives in danger. Besides, not like I’m exactly fit at the moment to be making any getaways.” He waved a hand over himself. He hadn’t gotten much better since leaving medical, only improving on his breathing a bit and some of his strength. Beyond that, the fever was still prevalent, he still shook like a newborn, and he couldn’t stop coughing.

“Run the protocol,” he repeated.

“Right away sir,” the A.I. responded, even if it sounded reluctant. Tony smiled, one thing off the list, now all he had to do was speak to Peter alone.
---------------------------

It wasn’t until two days later that he finally managed to get Peter alone. The group had fallen for the A.I.’s lie about taking stock, and had stopped questioning why the five suits were slowly moving everything into the escape ship. Only Rhodey had thrown suspicious looks Tony’s way but hadn’t verbalized his thoughts… yet.

Tony, still in the chair, asked if Peter would help him get to the lab on the other side of the compound so he could grab some manuals for a few things. He wouldn’t take the kid all the way to the lab, didn’t want the teenager to notice that Dum-E and U had both been moved into the escape ship.

When they were far enough away that the rest of the crew wouldn’t hear their conversation, Tony held up a hand and gestured towards a door that led to their living room. “I left a part in here that I need to grab real quick,” was his speedy explanation.

Not questioning it, Peter simply pushed the man into the room, although he was confused when instead of looking for a part Tony turned his chair to face the kid instead.

“Peter,” he started, getting his attention. “I need you to promise me something.”

The smaller brunette met his eyes, brows furrowed as he tried understanding exactly what was going on with the genius.

“From here on out, anything that happens, is not your fault. Promise me that you won’t blame yourself for anything that happens.” The teen’s face went from confused to concerned in seconds, trying to comprehend why they were suddenly having such a conversation.

“What are you talking about Tony?” Peter asked.

“I just want you to promise me. Because what is going to pass would have happened sooner or later, and I want to make sure that you know it’s not your fault.” Tony reiterated.

“What’s not my fault?” Peter tried again.

“Just promise me kid. You’re too much like me, and I know you’ll blame yourself. Promise me, if there’s one thing that you can do for me, promise me!” Tony had actually gotten out of the chair, shaking terribly but looking at Peter like the words he wanted were a lifeline.

Not wanting to see his friend and mentor hurting, Peter immediately nodded his head, not quite sure what he was promising. “I promise, I won’t blame myself, but-“

He was instantly cut off from continuing as arms wrapped around him, and Tony buried his face in the kids shoulder, looking as if he were going to break down crying at any moment. Peter frowned, hugging the man back as he tried to understand why things had gone so emotional so quickly.

As he raised his eyes to pull back and look at Tony, he froze as he spotted something on the counter. The communicator sat innocently on the countertop. The one that they had used to contact the Avengers, the one that had set off all the events, the one that was likely being traced back to the bunker as they spoke.

Suddenly, everything made sense. The promise, the desperation, the items being moved for stock. It all made sense, and Peter wasn’t happy with it.

He pulled back, tearing himself away from Tony as he hurled across the room and crushed the communicator in one hand. Desperate brown eyes lifted to meet the genius’ face, who looked more forlorn as he stared at the horror written on the teen’s expression.

“They’re coming… they traced the communicator.”

Tony smiled softly, “they’re tracing the bunker using the other communicator, yes.”

The kid, not needing to hear anymore, ran forward and threw Tony over his shoulder using his super strength. He didn’t heed any protests, sprinting down the hall to the room where the rest of their team was.

“We have to get to the escape vehicle, now!” He shrieked, watching as they all jumped to their feet from where they had been seated around the dining room table.

“Peter, what’s going on?” May inquired gently, watching as Rhodey stepped forward and took Tony from the teenager to set the wheezing man on a nearby chair.

“The Avengers, they traced the bunker. They know where we are! Tony wasn’t getting stock, he was moving everything out so that we could make a quick get-a-way!” Peter was still shouting, jumping from foot to foot in nervous energy.

“I knew Jarvis wasn’t taking stock!” Rhodey shouted, already starting towards the door that led to the escape ship.

“We’ll leave right now then, let’s get out of here.” The man turned back, moving to pick up Tony when a metal arm grabbed his own. The five suits that had been working around the clock to pack their things were in the room, restraining everyone minus Tony.

“I’m not… I’m not going with you.” Tony admitted, breaking the news as gently as he could.

He watched as they all struggled to understand, Pepper the only one who already knew where the escape plan was going. “I’m a liability, and I can’t put you in more danger.” He explained.

With that, the suits began to drag the group towards the ship, Rhodey and Peter struggled the most, but couldn’t stop themselves from being thrown into the awaiting transport. Slowly, the door closed behind them, leaving only a large viewing window that was flanked by two iron man suits that had remained on the ship to keep the group from doing anything stupid.

“Jarvis, turn on the sound,” Tony asked, watching as five desperate faces peered at him through the glass. They were crying, all of them, and Tony felt his heart break.

He didn’t resist as tears of his own started to fall down his face. “You’re my family. You’re the only people in this world that give me a reason to live. I can’t sit by and know that you’re in danger because of me, when I could have prevented it. I love you so much,” Tony laughed, finally raising a hand to wipe away at the tears on his face. “Thank you for showing me that men of iron can bend.”

There were protests, Peter’s fists were banging on the window as he cried.

“Jarvis, Protocol Panther, now.” Tony couldn’t begin to figure out how he’d managed to say the words, barely hearing the affirmation as the ship started to rise, the occupants trying desperately to get to him.

“Goodbye,” the genius spoke just as the ship moved forward and away, a last glimpse of tear streaked faces as they disappeared into the night.

------------------------------------------------
Tony didn’t know how long he stayed sitting on the ground where the ship had been. His mind had gone blank, and his body felt twice as heavy as before. It was only when Jarvis had insisted that he get somewhere more comfortable that the genius allowed himself to stand.

The man used the wheelchair to push himself to his own room, pouring himself a drink despite the protest that came from the A.I. that his health was in jeopardy. It was too late to worry about himself.

It was at eight that night when the lights flickered, before the power went out. Jarvis was still up, and began to explain that someone was trying to hack into the system to open the bunker doors. The A.I. sounded panicked, telling the genius that it wasn’t too late for the man to escape, even if he had erased all information on Wakanda from the database.

“Jarvis, your mission now is to make sure Peter and Rhodey don’t try to come back and do something foolish.” He explained, leaning against the bar as he took a sip of his scotch.

“You’re part of my family too J, and I can’t have you disappear because some crooks think it’s okay to hack you and tear you apart.” He explained, a part of the plan he’d kept secret from the machine. After speaking to the young princess of Wakanda, she had gotten several servers ready to transfer Jarvis.

“Sir?” The A.I. questioned softly.

“Make me proud, J,” Tony lifted his glass, removing a small remote with a single button he’d always kept on his person. “Thank you for being there for me.”

“Sir!” The A.I. protested, but his voice faltered as Tony pressed the button.

In seconds, the transfer was complete and the remote in Tony’s hand crumbled. For the first time since he had entered the bunker, it was silent of happy voices or remarks from the A.I.

The backup generator finally turned on, the red lights installed to indicate that something was wrong giving the air a creepy glow.

Throwing back the drink and taking a few gulps from the bottle itself, Tony managed to get himself to his feet and stumble across the room to the bed. He was feverish, the shaking had started up again as he found that the lack of friendly voices in his ears were haunting.

He crawled over to his pillows, barely managing to throw the covers over his shivering body before he collapsed and could no longer get up.

Explosions sounded from down the hall, people breaking into the facility for the first time since it had been built. There were a few reprimands, they didn’t want the building falling down on their heads, but beyond that no one spoke.

Doors were being kicked open, cleared.

Tony barely registered as the sound of splintering wood filled his room, the door flying from its hinges onto the carpeted floor. He barely made out the footsteps that walked towards the bed, or the hand that ran tentatively through his hair.

Someone called his name. Tony let out a whimper, and then promptly gave into the darkness beckoning him with a crooked finger.

Chapter Text

If Tony had to listen to the heart monitor beeping in his ear one more time, he was going to have the conniption Peter had been threatened with. The sound of furious typing at a computer to his right made him realize that he’d have to teach Rhodey a thing or two about using machinery without breaking it.

“If you break another one of my things, I’m not replacing it Honeybear,” he grumbled, not bothering to open his eyes.

The typing stopped instantly. Tony’s brows furrowed slightly as he realized that his friend wasn’t making the snide comments he usually did when on the receiving end of Tony’s sass. With a sigh, hoping that he hadn’t pushed the man too far again, the billionaire finally cracked his eyes open.

As the last two times, lights had been dimmed so that he wouldn’t hurt his vision the second he was awake. Unlike the last two times, he was most definitively not laying in medical.

Blinking several times to clear his vision, Tony found himself in a dark room, the bed quite comfortable beneath him. The sheets were a dark navy blue, matching the paint on the walls almost perfectly. It was a huge bed, and he had been placed right in the middle so there was no chance of him rolling off in his sleep.

Immediately, everything that had happened came back to him. There was no stopping the panic attack that followed.

Tony ripped at any IV attached to him, not bothered as they spewed a mixture of his blood with whatever drugs they were pumping into his system. The room spun before him, hands were grabbing at his arms, trying to stop him from moving off the mattress.

With a scream, the genius managed to rip one of his arms free from someone’s hold, wrapping it around his chest as the air completely disappeared from his lungs. The struggle abruptly ceased as he tried to breathe, his eyes squeezing shut.

Someone was speaking, saying something. Everything hurt.

The arm that hadn’t been ripped from whomever had grasped it was moved so that it was held out straight, a needle inserted before Tony felt a complete sense of calm fall over him. He made a sound akin to a wounded animal, although the air started to return as the world started to fade.

A hand was softly rubbing his back as if to reassure him.

“Go to sleep,” came a soft command. Tony found that he couldn’t resist the words and quickly sunk into the darkness.

When he blinked tired eyes open again, the heart monitor was gone, as were most of the needles in his arm. Only a few remained, with substances he couldn’t begin to identify.

Whomever had dealt with him when he had his panic attack had learned their lesson, as he found that his entire body was strapped to the mattress. Several soft restraints had been thrown over the bed to keep him settled down. One over each ankle, two over each arm, and one over his waist.

Taking a moment, he started to assess the damage on his body. The fever was present, but mild in consideration to what it had been when he’d been in the bunker. The breathing was still tough, but it was a lot easier with the mask someone had strapped over his mouth and connected to the oxygen tank by the bed.

A bit fuzzy from whatever was coming through the IV, Tony let his head fall to the left. Through his half-lidded gaze, he made out a person in a chair, slouched over with their head in their hands as if they were sleeping. Without making a sound Tony forced his gaze to the right, finding a large wardrobe and two separate doors leading to what he could only assume was a bathroom and a closet, or a hallway.

Trying to be as quiet as possible, Tony started to shimmy his left arm so that it would slip free from the restraint.

He came to a startled pause when someone put a hand on his arm, stopping the actions immediately. Tony frowned, trying but failing to throw his heavy head to face the other side of the bed where the figure had obviously stood up.

“I’ll take the restraints off, but you have to promise you won’t rip anything out. It’s for your own good,” the gentle voice drifted through his brain, a fog still keeping the genius confused.

It took a moment, but Tony nodded, knowing that fighting was useless while restrained. If he could get free, there was a chance he could bolt out of the room. Of course, that was if the man leaning over him wasn’t one of the scary super soldiers.

The hands gently started to remove all the restraints, reluctant only for a moment before they made sure all the cords were gone and wound up away from the bed. The figure then gently took a seat on the bed and ran a hand through his hair, the affection unmistakable.

“How am I not surprised that you’d be a tough patient? Even Helen suggested it after she finished fixing you up,” the voice was male, recognizable.

Tony squinted, and finally the swimming pool in his brain settled so that he could see through the waves into familiar brown eyes.

“Bruce?” He asked.

“Hey,” the man held up a hand to stop Tony from talking. “Take it easy, the oxygen mask was a necessity and I don’t want you to have another attack so soon. We’ve kept you under for a good three days.”

The man was running his hand through Tony’s hair affectionately, explaining everything that had happened to the genius without having to be prompted. For the moment, the genius could relax. He had liked Bruce Banner after all, even if he was another intelligent person that had fallen under the wrong influence.

“Your fever finally broke, why were you drinking Tony?” The man seemed genuinely confused as to why the billionaire would have been in a state of panic when they went after him, like they were the sane ones and the person they had been virtually kidnapping was in the wrong.

Raising a weak hand, sure to keep the IV’s from pulling out, Tony removed the mask so he could talk to the calm man. “I need to use the bathroom,” he claimed through a smile.

“Oh,” Bruce looked surprised for a moment before nodding. “That’s fine, it makes sense, actually.” He reached down and started to undo some of the needles.

“I may have to reinsert some of these, but you’re mostly in the clear.” He pointed towards Tony’s wrist, making sure the man could see it before explaining. “We had to wrap this up, you tore it up and we had to stitch it closed. It’ll get better soon enough, but you can’t move it too much.”

After making sure Tony was no longer hooked up, Bruce helped the man get to the edge of the bed and to his feet. He didn’t hesitate to wrap his arm around Tony’s waist and walk him towards the bathroom, but instead of leaving him at the door the man continued into the room.

Tony frowned, throwing a look at Bruce as he was set down on the toilet lid.

“I can’t leave you alone Tony, you might hurt yourself,” Bruce explained.

The genius seemed to contemplate it for a moment before he nodded, shaking as stood up and pointed towards the toilet seat. “Can-can you open-open it?” He stuttered.

There was an affectionate smile thrown Tony’s way at the nervous words, but Bruce didn’t hesitate to step forward and do as he was bid. As he was leaning down he didn’t see Tony slip the rod from the towel rack behind him, didn’t see as the genius lifted the thing up like a bat and swung with all his might at the scientist.

Bruce went down like a rock… for a moment.

Already, Tony could see the color of the man’s skin turning an alarming green hue. With a yelp he turned on his heel and sprinted from the bathroom, tripping over his own feet. He’d barely made it into the room when there was a roar behind him, and then he was running faster than he could ever remember going.

Ripping the first door open, Tony was glad to find that it wasn’t a closet, but the corridor. Without hesitating, he threw himself into the hall to the startled sound of two armed guards. “Big green monster!” Tony screamed, already sprinting down the hall in the first direction his legs carried him.

There was no hiding the yelp of surprise as gunshots rang out from behind him, hitting too close to home. A blinding pain shot through the back of his leg, but the adrenaline spike that came from hearing a familiar roar kept him from even feeling it for long.

What sounded like a bull crashed from the room, making Tony curse at the fact that he could barely breathe with the activity he had going. Another round of bullets started, this time not just directed at him.

What had he done?!

He had to find an exit, maybe a vent to escape through. But this was the Avengers’ home, they had people everywhere. The man turned a corner, looking back to catch a glimpse of green before he ran right into the very people he was trying to avoid.

With an unflattering squeak, Tony ripped away just in time to avoid getting wrapped in Roger’s arms, but not fast enough to avoid a hand grabbing onto his wrist to stop him from running. “Big green giant!” He finally managed to wheeze out in warning, tugging at the appendage to continue running.

The roar seemed to set them all into motion, Natasha blurring as she ran straight down the hall, Rogers holding his shield at the ready alongside the Falcon and Hawkeye. Without prompting, Roger’s used his free hand to grab at the panicking genius and tug him into his side, safe behind the shield as bullets continued to ring in the corridor.

A few grunts later, and what sounded like Natasha saying something, and the noise died down substantially.

Tony found that he could barely catch his breath, now at least knowing that there wasn’t a giant being trying to crush him for his cheap shot in the bathroom. The arm wrapped around his waist didn’t let up, although the blond man did straighten to look down at the panting billionaire.

“What did you do?” The question was innocent enough, but the underlying threat sent a shiver down Tony’s spine.

Before he could think to answer, the pain that hadn’t quite registered earlier finally caught up to him. With another squeak that he would never admit to having made, Tony’s entire body weight fell onto the Captain.

The man was quick to respond, throwing the shield onto its holster on his back and lifting Tony with a single arm to look him over for injuries. The mild fever alongside the run had left his skin pink and flushed; his lungs were desperately trying to get air and wouldn’t allow a word to pass as Tony stared at the soldier in fear. His calf on his lower leg, however, was a bloody red mess from where a bullet had obviously gone through it.

If Tony thought the blond was frightening before, it was nothing compared to the look of complete calm that fell over Roger’s face at seeing the injury.

Without saying a word, he looked up and had a silent conversation with someone just over Tony’s shoulder. In seconds, the man was transferred to another person on the team. Judging by the arm made of metal that wrapped around his waist, it was easy to tell who it was.

“You sure make an entrance, doll. Looks like me and Stevie are going to have to take real good care of you, since you won’t be able to use that leg and all.” The man drawled almost directly into his ear. It would have bugged him more were it not for the pain that was quickly becoming blinding from his leg.

Still facing the hall in which he’d made his mad escape, Tony didn’t miss as the enforcement guards slowly approached the group, followed by a smiling Natasha and a frowning Bruce Banner.

“Who shot him?” Three words, but the sudden tension in the corridor could have been cut with a knife.

“Step forward now, or let the entire team face the consequences,” Rogers commanded.

Tony watched in confusion and half curiosity as a man finally stepped forward, his head hung slightly, shoulders hunched. The man looked like he was walking towards his funeral, which was simply ridiculous. At the end of the day, Tony would have reprimanded the man on his aim but given him a thank you for actually doing his job.

“The gun?” Rogers held out a hand, taking the weapon from the man’s shaking limb.

Slowly, Tony realized what was going to happen. His mouth opened, and despite the pain and the fact that the room was spinning, made a sound of protest.

“Buck,” he heard the blond say just before Barnes, holding him, turned so that Tony could no longer look at the scene unfolding just behind them. But he knew what happened, recognized the sounds of the gun going off and that of a body falling lifelessly to the floor.

The shock started to set in, from the situation, from the blood loss, and for once Tony was grateful to find himself passing out.

When he next opened his eyes, it was to find that he wasn’t alone in the bed. Instead of restraints, one large arm had wrapped around his waist to hold him securely down onto the mattress. He didn’t have any IV’s in his arms, but the oxygen mask was placed firmly on his face. His leg had been bandaged, and although he could feel a slight twinge of pain, they must have pumped him with some sort of drugs to keep the area numb.

It wasn’t until his pillow moved under him that Tony realized that the soft mattress underneath him was actually a person. He couldn’t withhold a squeak of surprise, the person immediately chuckling at his reaction.

The person nuzzled his neck, humming in satisfaction before he pulled Tony off so that the genius was on the bed.

Without hesitation, Tony immediately turned his gaze to look at the bright blue eyes of a smiling Steve Rogers. The man who hadn’t even bothered to wipe away the blood splatters of the life he had taken before.

Shaking, Tony pushed himself as far as his body allowed. He intended to get off the bed, but found that while one leg was in a cast, the other had a thin chain secured around the ankle to the bedpost. He’d be able to move away from the bed, but only so far.

“You killed him,” was the first thing he managed to say, ignoring the look sent his way when he threw the oxygen mask off of his face.

“You’re crazier than I thought!” He started again.

Rogers got a gentle smile on his face, the same expression an adult wore when they were tired of explaining a subject to a child. It was quite demeaning and Tony had to stop himself from huffing in outrage at being on the receiving end of such a look.

“He shot you, my men follow orders. You’re supposed to be safe. He disobeyed, he pays the price.” The man shrugged like it was the most logical thing in the world.

Tony, snarling and without thought, grabbed the lamp on the nightstand and swung it to hit the man, hoping to somehow just get out of the nightmare he’d found himself in. Instead of making contact, he found the item being used for the momentum the swing had produced.

Still on his knees on the bed as he swung, Tony was pulled forward and the lamp continued its trajectory across the room to hit the wall. He was easily thrown to lie underneath the blond, practically restrained as he glared at amused blue eyes.

He jumped a bit when the oxygen mask was placed over his nose and mouth again, the blond looking like he was having the time of his life.

“Tony, Tony, Tony…” Steve grinned, both hands moving so they held the struggling genius’ arms down amongst the pillows.

“You’ve still got a fever, and aren’t fully recovered from any of your current attacks.” Moving ever so slowly, the blond captured Tony’s wrists in one hand over his head, his other hand now free to move down and gently caress against the man’s face.

“Don’t make me strap you down for your own good, Tony.” It was spoken so softly, like a lover speaking to someone they’d been with for years. But underneath it, the steel of a threat that wouldn’t be missed by someone like Tony Stark.

“Get the fuck off me,” Tony retorted.

Steve raised a brow, “and that language!” The hand holding his wrists tightened, sending a spark of pain through Tony’s arm as his bandaged wrist ached in warning. “You shouldn’t be talking like that Tones, you’re my sweet, little, innocent genius.”

“Don’t you fucking call me that,” Tony seethed, ignoring the warning and any sense of self-preservation. “Only my friends get to call me that, and you’re not my friend asshole. I’m not fucking sweet nor am I am yours, you psychopathic elephant. Now get the fuck off me!”

Tony tried to get out of the hold, flinging his head to the side so quickly that the mask once again became dislodged from where it had been placed, falling to the side uselessly.

The blond reared back like he’d been struck, but it lasted for only a moment before the hand tightened again. Tony refused to cry out, glaring daggers at the man above him even as he felt the dampness of blood on his wrist, the stitches likely undone.

“Language Tony,” Steve all but whispered.

“Fuck you Goldie-locks,” was the reply followed by Tony spitting at the man.

The captain looked almost pleased at the words, his eyes glinting with the insanity that Tony accused him of as he used the free hand to wipe off the spit on his cheek.

“You’re going to regret that.”

And Tony suddenly felt an overwhelming sense of fear, eyes widening and unable to hold a whimper as the hands on his wrists tightened.

Chapter Text

Rogers had left the room.

Before he’d gone, the man had called in a doctor to have his wrist looked at and re-bandaged, the stitches salvable despite the blood. The blond had then put a wide restraint on both of his wrists and left only his damaged leg free to move. Tony wouldn’t be able to get off the bed.

He’d also gotten the doctor to retrieve an oxygen mask that had stronger straps, one that would require both hands to remove with its wrap around buckle. When he was sure that Tony wasn’t going to further injure himself or move, Rogers had asked the doctor to leave.

The man had then proceeded to run a hand down Tony’s face gently, “remember, you forced me to do this to you. This was your choice,” he added.

When the genius had expected to get slapped or worse, the blond had simply stood up with his maniac of a grin and left the room. The door closing gently behind him, the audible click of a lock echoing through the air.

So, Tony was confused.

Is this what they thought would be sufficient punishment? Is this what they would do each time he didn’t act the way they wanted? If so, Tony was fine with it. He’d much rather be alone than to have to converse with any of the former heroes. Besides, he had suffered through so much more in Afghanistan.

Brown eyes flick to the ceiling, secretly glad for the oxygen mask as he’s finally able to catch his breath. He started to think on what he’d seen when he’d been in the corridor. Obviously, they had some sort of security to watch over him. Now whether they’d be shooting at him again or not was another question entirely, and that meant escape was a bit tricky if his guards were trigger happy.

He also noticed that the hall he’d ran through had had no windows, as if they were somehow still underground. Was this another bunker? It wouldn’t make sense as they had their own compound he’d provided for them ages before everything started. After all, Tony Stark could afford to spend money on something the government should have been paying for…

So, he could only venture that he was in some sort of area that was meant for prisoners or a safeguard. An area that had been created solely to keep people’s prying eyes out, or someone locked in.

Tony was so lost in his thoughts he didn’t notice as time flew by. How long he remained on the bed was hard to determine without a watch or natural light, but he could easily venture a few hours had passed.

Some of his muscles had started to cramp, but there was absolutely no way the genius was going to start complaining about it. Instead, he started to inwardly sing the lyrics of his favorite tunes, knowing that they would only pass the time for a while before he’d have to find something else to do. And Tony already knew he’d start doing equations in his head to not go stir crazy. He didn’t have the use of his hands at the moment, but his brain was still running just fine.

Fortunately, or not depending on one’s point of view, everything that had happened was quite exhausting and he was finding himself coming in and out of consciousness. Tony was so caught up in his thoughts he didn’t notice as the bedroom door creaked open, eyes half-lidded.

“Really, out of all the music you’d listen to, that’s what you choose?” The voice was snarky and a bit friendly, as if trying to gauge just what kind of mood Tony was in.

“My music is my business birdbrain,” he growled.

Clint grinned, moving into the room with ease now that the genius was aware of his presence. He made himself right at home, sprawling almost on top of the genius as he got on the bed, head resting on Tony’s stomach.

“I heard you were cute, I didn’t realize you’d be this cute,” the man pointed out. “And the way you rescued that kid!” It was obvious the archer at least respected Tony’s intellect, even if he was on the wrong side of the genius’ problem.

“What do you want?” Tony finally grumbled. There was no reason to call Barton by any other names; the man was impervious to it.

If Tony remembered correctly, Sam and Clint were the goofs of the whole gang. They’d laugh and crack jokes at anyone’s expense, and things hadn’t changed. However, they were also dangerous in the sense that like Rogers, they could flip without warning.

“I’m just the errand boy, come to retrieve the wayward child for the adults.” The man sighed, sitting up and starting to undo the restraints that had kept Tony on the bed. Unlike Bruce, this man knew how to fight and wouldn’t be taken out so easily.

“I’m not a child, I’m a prisoner.” Tony deadpanned.

Clint immediately snorted, hand moving down to finish the last restraint on Tony’s leg. “If you were a prisoner you wouldn’t be laying on these lovely Egyptian sheets.” Standing up the man ran to the hall door and came back seconds later with a wheelchair.

“Time to get you to your appointment,” he grinned, holding up his arms as if to lift Tony from the bed.

“I’d rather be late,” Tony raised a brow. “Or just miss it completely.”

Clint laughed, moving forward anyway as he lifted the tired genius from the bed and into the chair. The oxygen tank was mobile, and quickly attached to the wheelchair as if it had been created specifically for that reason.

“Should I make vroom noises while we ride?” Clint teased, already starting forward.

Tony wanted to scoff. How could they act like nothing was wrong? Like he had a friendship he’d never accumulated with each one. They either were truly delusional, or up to something. And Tony wasn’t sure which one to lean towards.

“Don’t be an asshole,” he growled, crossing his arms and scowling at anyone that looked in their direction. His eyes taking in every detail he could possibly memorize as they moved.

“Ouch, that’s a far cry from calling me Honeybear,” Barton spoke, although he didn’t stop the vroom sounds as he continued to push Tony down the hall.

There were several metal doors throughout the corridor, each flanked by a pair of armed guards that didn’t dare look at the duo. They kept their gazes straight, and Tony didn’t withhold the comments that they all looked like they were constipated with their attempts to look mean. It didn’t go so well, but at least no one reacted by shooting him.

When he and Clint finally came to a stop in front of one of the doors, there were no guards standing by. The archer unlocked the door and stepped inside, bracing it open so that he could get Tony’s chair through.

“You like Shawarma, right?” Clint is babbling as he moves the chair towards the back wall of the room. “After this, I’ll get you some food. Well, we’ll order out.” He leaned down and puts the brakes on the chair, jumping in front of the genius whom upon observing the new room has turned a few shades paler.

“See you soon,” the archer places a kiss on his forehead as one would do a child, before all but skipping out of the room, the door closing quietly behind him.

Tony doesn’t notice any of it.

His eyes wander the area, the concrete walls and tile floor, the single drain installed right in the middle. He knows what the room is for, what it was created to do. Generally, if someone was in such a place with another person, one of them was not coming out alive.

He looked around, trying to find the hose that someone had inevitably used to clean up the blood that had surely already been spilled. It was pristine, whomever had cleaned the room last had done an excellent job at hiding what exactly had gone on inside it.

Was this how he was going to regret what he had done? Were they finally going to kill him?

Tony feels a panic attack starting to come on, the oxygen mask substantially helping keep it under control as he cranks his neck back and forth looking for an exit. Instead, he finds the door opening and the last people he wants to see entering the room.

There’s no hiding the whimper of complete fear that overcomes him. Roger’s is holding a very familiar looking weapon in his hand, one that Tony hadn’t seen in years. He tries to push himself back further against the wall, ignoring the looks of confusion the two men throw at each other before Barnes is crossing the room in realization.

He leans down so he’s eye level with Tony, taking the man’s face in both hands so that brown eyes can no longer look at the blond across the room.

“Breathe,” he commands softly. “Breathe doll,” his voice is soft, almost nurturing if it weren’t for the fact that they’re about to hurt him irreversibly.

“It’s not for you,” Bucky repeats over and over, only stopping when it seems to finally get through to Tony that they have no intention of using it on him. But then, why were they carrying it?

The question seems to go through his eyes, as Barnes pulls back with a nod towards Rogers to explain what the genius is witnessing. “This was your design,” is all he says.

Tony doesn’t deny or confirm the statement, staying quiet although his body is still trembling from the fear that they might be lying to him. He knows what the weapon can do, he’d created it.

Catching on that their genius doesn’t seem to be calming down, Barnes lifts him from the chair and sits back on the ground, bringing Tony to rest on his lap. He uses one hand to bring Tony’s head to his chest, forcing the genius to listen to his heartbeat so that he can calm down.

The fear, adrenaline, and confusion are making him more tired, and Tony only wishes to go back to bed.

Across the room, Rogers also takes a seat on the floor, setting the weapon next to him so that it points away from the duo and towards the door. There is no struggle as they settle down, only the sound of Tony’s oxygen mask makes noise as it works overtime to help the panicked man.

“You designed this,” Rogers waves a hand over the thing. “When you were thirteen years old, you designed most of your weapons at that age.” The man had a look on his face that was a cross between admiration and anger.

“Thirteen years old and Howard was already exploiting you.” He scowled. “You made all those designs without realizing that they’d actually be put into production. That was the first time he really tried to run your name through the mud.”

Tony, for the most part, stayed quite as he listened to Steve speak. He wanted to protest the position against Bucky but found that it would take too much energy that he didn’t want to waste if he needed it to get away from the thing lying innocently on the floor.

“And then you went overseas, and you were almost killed.” Bucky sneered, tightening his arms where they had wrapped around Tony’s waist. “The man you trusted hurt you.”

One of Barnes’ hands slipped up so that it rested over the softly glowing arc reactor, and the genius was quickly starting to catch on that they knew more than most. He shook his head, trying not to relive a moment that only his closest friends should have known about.

“He ripped this right out of your chest, and you almost died if it wasn’t for your own genius creation,” Bucky didn’t fight the hand that came to weakly push away his own, instead letting it happen as the vulnerable genius tried to curl into himself. It didn’t work, as the soldier wouldn’t allow it, but Tony did try.

“After he sold your life to the Ten Rings, after he wanted to make sure you were dead.” Rogers scowled, continuing where his lover had left off. “You were in a dark cave for weeks, with nothing but a car battery keeping you alive! It was cold, in that cave, wasn’t it?”

How did they know? It was confidential, not even the press had gotten wind of what he’d really experienced under his time with the terrorist group.

“Your fear of water didn’t start until after that too… the torture must have been terrible,” Steve’s voice was gentle; almost caring in the way he spoke. The concern in his eyes didn’t make Tony feel better, especially as something else was in the mix.

“We hunted down the ones that were left,” Steve admitted. “Every single one.”

“But despite all of this, you still didn’t want people getting hurt,” the blond looked impressed. “Tony, you left that desert hell and came back to change things for the better. When you were betrayed, you just burned brighter. You stopped weapons production; you donated so much money and helped technology develop all over the world. You put an end to the horrible things your father started and refused to take credit. Even as Iron Man, you wouldn’t do press releases or even take photos for the press, you just did what you had to do because it was the right thing to do!”

“Everything I saw, everything I watched, you’re nothing like your father,” Steve marveled. “Bucky and I, we truly did have a relationship with him. He wasn’t the best of people, but I would have thought he’d grown out of that.”

“When I first met you, I thought you were exactly as I was worried he’d turn out to be. But you’re not, you’re so much better.”

Bucky buried his face into the crook of Tony’s neck, not bothering to ask for permission. “We always wanted a third to take care of, but it was so hard. Your dad was good, but he had so many bad qualities. We promised we’d protect him, but obviously, that didn’t happen. He was little, but he didn’t have the heart we were looking for.”

The man tightened his hold on Tony’s waist when the genius tried to squirm away, continuing like nothing had happened, like they weren’t in a room meant for murder, and sitting on the ground chatting like reminiscent old friends.

“When I saw you, I just knew we had to have you. We want to keep the promise we made, but we’re keeping it for you.” Rogers grinned. “You’re exactly what we need Tony, it’s why we’re keeping you. It might take a while to get you to see that we’re the only option, but we’ll take good care of you. When we learned that you’re not only kind and sweet but have a tendency to not take care of yourself, we knew we’d have to keep you.”

Tony scowled, wanting nothing more than to suddenly throw the oxygen tank at one of them.

“Which brings me to the reason we’re here, your punishment.” Steve grinned.

Something in the atmosphere changed very quickly. One moment Barnes was holding him in comfort, the next the arms started to become constricting. Whatever was coming, Tony wasn’t going to like it. He didn’t even attempt to hide the panic when Rogers stood, bringing the weapon with him. He had created the design for the weapon as a joke, to test himself to see if he could really do it.

It had been after watching an old animated cartoon about a rabbit and a detective, where they were using a chemical to melt away the cartoons from the world. Tony would have never wanted it to go into production, the terror of something like it in the world had been a horror he hadn’t been ready to face.

His father, of course, had seen profit.

Using his own body strength, Barnes stood so that he carried the genius with him, holding Tony in a way that allowed them both to be upright although his feet didn’t touch the ground. The metal arm was wrapped around his waist, easily holding Tony up while the other caressed his neck in what could have only been interpreted as a warning.

“You see, I don’t want to hurt you Tony, neither of us do.” Steve started up again. “But we still need to show you that there are consequences to your childish actions. If you don’t let us take care of you, then how are we going to keep our promise?”

He motioned towards the door, pressing a small button in a device in his ear that seemed to indicate a message to someone outside of the room.

“So, we figured, every time you act out, we’re just going to have to test the weapons you wanted to take off the market. Until you behave.”

Tony felt his heart rate speed up, eyes widening as the door opened to reveal two guards and a struggling man between them. The man was blindfolded, begging in a language of Middle Eastern origin that Tony was quick to pinpoint. He vaguely recognized the man as one of the surviving Ten Rings terrorists.

However, that didn’t matter. No one should have to feel their skin and organs melting from their bodies. It was a horrible way to die, being turned into human soup. It was a slow way to die. Agonizing.

Without hesitation he met the smiling blue eyes from across the room, now understanding Barnes’ hold on him as he struggled to run forward and snatch the old Stark weapon from the Captain.

“No, you can’t…” He pleaded, watching as the guards pinned the man’s hands to the ground in chains before leaving and closing the door.

Stepping forward, Rogers ripped off the blindfold from the man’s eyes, watching unfazed as the man begged and begged. “He was one of the men that trapped you, did you know that Tony?”

The billionaire froze, looking back at the struggling prisoner in shock. There had been such a huge blast, none of them should have gotten out alive. But it had been a quick death, not what was being suggested in the room.

“Then I forgive him!” Tony started quickly. “I forgive him! Please just let me him go!”

Rogers looked up, something soft in his expression as he stared at Tony. “You’re too good for this world, they really don’t deserve you. To give forgiveness to someone who did something so horrible to you.”

The blond stepped around the prisoner, moving forward to run a gentle hand down Tony’s face. Barnes all but hugging him against his own chest so that he was trapped between the two men.

Tony almost sagged in relief, Rogers was no longer paying attention to the struggling prisoner, it meant perhaps that they would just let it go. He looked up to meet the blue eyes of the insane leader of the team, unable to hide the tears that were quickly surfacing from the high emotions of the tense room.

“I can’t hurt you Tony, I can’t,” Rogers murmured.

With no warning, the blond pivoted on the spot and fired the weapon. A burst of green light filled the room before the worst screams Tony had ever heard started up. Just over Roger’s shoulder, he could see the man start to melt. It was meant to be slow, first his hands, then his legs, and slowly his torso. The screaming didn’t stop, and Tony couldn’t move, didn’t dare move.

It took ten minutes. Ten minutes of agonizing sounds, before all that was left was a puddle of human parts. It was fortunate that Tony didn’t have anything in his stomach, he would have thrown up long ago.

Instead, he was trembling, body shaking so hard that even in Barnes’ unrelenting grip, he continued to shake. Tears silently streamed down his face, staring wide eyed at where a man had once stood.

“Tony?” Roger’s voice broke the now silent room.

Brown eyes, almost glowing amber in hatred and fury, raised to meet those of the man in front of him. Anger so dark that Tony couldn’t even begin to name it was roaring in the back of his head, telling him to attack the Captain so he couldn’t harm another human again.

“Fuck you,” he growled. “I will never, ever agree to be with either of you. You disgust me.”

In response, Steve merely frowned, shook his head, and started towards the door. He opened it after swiping at the button again, calling out into the hallway to bring in the next one.

Tony’s trembling worsened.

Chapter Text

The second victim had been a man caught trying to rob a convenience store, and while he hadn’t been an international terrorist, nothing would stop him from following in the prior man’s footsteps. When he had screamed Tony didn’t bother trying to hold back the tears streaming down his face. He figured that someone should cry for the poor victim.

When they had finished, Steve had looked at him, waited, and received a glare. The heat from the look would have been enough to melt metal if it had had the power, unfortunately it only caused the super soldier to call out again.

The third victim didn’t make a sound until the weapon had been used. Tony had shaken so terribly that Bucky had to bring them both back against the wall. He slouched so that they were seated, both facing the direction of the pile of goo that was slowly disappearing down the drain. But the genius hadn’t conceded, tried to struggle from the winter soldier’s grasp.

By the fourth victim, an older man, Tony had started to beg. The man had been convicted of arson, and his crime had left a few victims burnt, but alive. However, in the regime of the soldiers, that didn’t mean anything. Like the men before him, the arson got to feel the savagery of a weapon that was never meant to be on the market. The only sound beyond his screams were those of Tony begging for them to stop.

The fifth and final victim seemed to be the turning point for the genius. Unlike the first four, it was a younger woman. She walked in with her head held high and had the same fire that Tony had seen in Peter’s eyes, in his own eyes. Her face was dirty, her clothes slightly torn, but the cuffs seemed to be the only things keeping her from running forward and attacking Rogers.

Her solid green eyes met Tony’s, a moment of understanding passed between the two. Tony could see that she would not bend to these men, and that she would have the same ending as the men before her. Instantly, seeing someone else in her eyes, the genius twisted so he was facing Rogers. He started to beg, plead.

It was the voice of the woman that interrupted him before either of the soldiers could do it.

“I would rather die than spend another moment on a planet run by such despicable excuses for heroes,” she looked directly at Tony. “Whatever they do to you, remember that they cannot take your soul. They cannot break your spirit. My mother told me about the great things you did Tony Stark.” Startled at hearing that the woman knew him, Tony reeled back.

The fire that had been slowly dampening started to light up again, something akin to hope starting to shine in the trembling genius’ body.

“Start a spark, and let it blaze like a wildfire!” Whomever the woman was, it seemed she wasn’t going down easily. As she spoke she started to struggle against the chains, her words frantic as the weapon slowly lifted in Roger’s hand.

Her beautiful green eyes turned to face the blond, determination ready. “You will burn in hell for your crimes.” She spat.

Moments later, the green light lit the room. Unlike the people before her, the woman did not scream. It was evident that it took all her willpower to hold it in. Tony did not look away, holding her desperate gaze with his own.

However, five minutes in the woman lost her battle. Unable to do so any longer, Tony whimpered and started to openly sob, body shaking so badly that it wasn’t hard to convince Bucky to turn him away from the sight. The genius buried his face in the crook of the man’s neck, curling into himself as much as he could to look away from the terrible loss of what had obviously been a wonderful human being.

Cradling a palm over the back of Tony’s head, the soldier rocked him gently as his voice tried to shush him as the noise in the room died down. The sound of running water instantly sent Tony from sobbing to hysterical.

His whole body stiffened for a moment before the panicked struggling started. Anything to get away from what the water meant. Were they truly going to go so far as to waterboard him? Had they not tortured him enough?

Tony’s eyes became glazed in his panic, only seeing Afghanistan as he ran out of air again and again, unable to die.

Bucky only held on tighter, keeping him cradled as he desperately tried to pry himself away, unaware that he was not in the cave of his nightmares. The one that had caused the PTSD.

The sound of the water finally stopped, and when Tony settled in the man’s arms from his exhaustion Bucky finally stood. He easily lifted Tony bridal style in his arms, throwing a look at the oxygen tank still attached to the wheelchair as he had a silent conversation with Rogers.

Without speaking a word, the soldiers worked in sync to get the genius’ tank, leaving the chair behind as they stepped from the room. Rogers left the weapon behind, barking orders at a soldier nearby before the two men started down the corridor.

One of them took Tony’s hand, running a thumb gently over the back in circles in a manner that was oddly comforting. “You’re okay, you’re not in there anymore,” Steve reassured softly.

“You’re safe Tony, you’re going to be okay baby.” There was no reaction to the words, the genius starting to drift in and out of consciousness as he tried to process everything that had happened. He missed the small smile that lifted the corner of the men’s lips when he did not protest the pet name.

Tony didn’t even complete the trip down the hallway, the exhaustion, fear, and stress finally overriding his already spent system and sending him under. He had never been more grateful to pass out into the darkness.

-------------------

There was no hiding the groan as his eyes blinked open. His body felt heavy, his head pounding with a terrible migraine from the crying. He felt feverish again and wanted nothing more than to close his eyes and possibly never open them again.

It didn’t take long for the trembling to start. The scenes from the room of torture (there was no way it could have been called anything else) replayed over and over in his mind. Tony whimpered, finding that he still had more tears to shed as they began to silently slide down his face.

He jumped when a hand ran through his sweaty hair, a voice gently cooing at him that he was alright.

Tony didn’t know who it was, but now any form of human contact was welcome to chase away his nightmares. Grateful that he wasn’t alone to deal with the memories, Tony did his best to scoot closer to the warmth of what he now recognized as a body cradling him from behind. The person took his slow movements as open invitation, wrapping an arm around his waist and lifting his shirt so that warm fingers could gently rub his abdomen in a comforting gesture.

Glad for the relief, Tony squeezed his eyes shut as he curled a bit into himself, further pressing against the person behind him who had begun to hum a tuneless song. However, the sound stopped when his tears became audible, the sound of his sobs filling the room.

Instantly, Roger’s voice filled his ears as the arm around his waist tightened in a gesture meant to be comforting.

“Oh baby,” he murmured. “I’m so sorry. I’m so, so sorry.” The words were repeated, a gentle lullaby that slowly lulled Tony into a state of ease. The man sinking underneath the darkness again.

When Tony awoke for the second time, he found that they hadn’t left him alone.

While his body is still heavy, head still stuffy and eyes half lidded, he is more aware of the man in the bed with him.

Rogers has changed their positions so that the genius is now completely on top of him. The blond is sitting up in the bed, his legs splayed open so that Tony’s body can rest peacefully between them, with his head resting on the blonde’s lower abdomen. A hand is absently running through Tony’s hair, the other holding a book up to the gentle light of a lamp Tony didn’t notice before. It’s obvious that Steve is caught up in whatever book he’s reading, a custom cover hiding the title from prying eyes.

Tony wants to make a snarky comment, ask if the latest romance novel is doing the blond any good. But he doesn’t want to give him an opening.

They remain in the same position for a good ten minutes, Tony blinking wearily at the man above him in his confusion. Brain trying to run at a hundred miles per minute but failing as it keeps hitting the brick wall of exhaustion caused by the trauma he’d experienced.

He must make some sort of noise, as one moment the blond is reading, and the next bright blue eyes are staring down at him with something akin to compassion and worry.

“Tony, you’re awake,” Roger’s observes.

The man smiles gently, setting the book on a side table that Tony again doesn’t remember seeing. He then lifts an old Stark phone model and presses a few buttons, before setting it on top of the now abandoned book. Not once does he move Tony and seems a bit relieved that the genius hasn’t tried to move either.

Seeing Tony’s eyes staring at him blankly, without a true expression on his face, Rogers explains. “Buck wanted to know when you woke up, he’s on his way.” The man points to the phone.

“You’re looking too pale Tony, we’re going to have Helen check on you soon, okay?” The man seems oblivious to the fact that he is the reason the genius is in his current condition. However, when Tony lets out a whimper as the memories start to flood him again, he is shushed and cradled.

“I want to talk to you about what happened, okay?” Steve prods.

He doesn’t wait for consent from Tony, instead he reaches down and slowly lifts the genius so that he’s completely resting against Steve. Instead of laying mostly on the bed, Tony is partially sitting up with his head tilted lazily on the man’s collarbone. He has no energy to fight it, and in a sick way is comforted by the body heat the man that seems to be a human furnace is omitting.

“The first man, he was the terrorist. He killed hundreds of people Tony, hundreds.” It was as if he wanted to give the genius a reason not to shake. “The second, the one who robbed the store, he also murdered several people. In fact, he killed the nephew of the older couple whom owned the store. They relied on the kid’s help, and that man shot him point blank in the head.”

Tony was shaking again, unable to stop the whimpers. He raised a tired hand and tried to paw away at the oxygen mask still tightly clasped over his mouth.

Seeing the movement, Steve gently batted away the hand and reached behind the genius’ head to unclasp the thing. While it helped Tony breathe, now it might cause the man to hyperventilate as he listened.

The hand from earlier sneaked under his shirt once more, but the human contact was the comfort Tony needed as he allowed the man’s fingers to gently brush over his skin in a reassuring pattern. He explained that the other two men had committed similar crimes in which people had ended up dying, even if the information hadn’t gotten out to the press. One had been a child molester that had gotten away with his crimes for years.

And while the sights and sounds of the men dying still haunted and scared him, Tony found a weird, small sense of relief that they were gone. Had Roger’s done something terrible, but committed a favor for the world?

No, he had killed an innocent woman.

The sound of the door creaking open interrupted his thoughts, and slowly Tony tilted his tired eyes to look as Bucky Barnes walked into the room. The brunette looked just as happy to see him awake as Rogers, his eyes shining as he carried a small platter in his flesh hand.

“Told him about their crimes?” He asked upon seeing that Tony didn’t seem as shaken as they expected. When Steve nodded his head in acknowledgement, the soldier closed the door behind him and ambled to the bed, sitting in the corner.

He set the tray down on top of Tony’s lap, slowly moving so that he could rest his now free hand on the genius’ leg. “I brought some medicine for what I can only assume is a killer headache,” Bucky opened his metallic fingers, revealing two white pills. “You can have these once we get something in your stomach.”

Tony looked between the two, and instead of focusing on the medicine or the tray that was still covered, releasing a gentle warmth into his lap that he appreciated, he asked. “The girl?”

His voice was dry, and it was hard not to start coughing as the question came out. “Let’s eat some soup and then we can talk about her,” Rogers was quick to reply.

Bucky seemed only slightly upset that his food reveal had been ruined by the words and reached forward to gently lift the top of the tray to reveal a bowl of chicken soup. It looked homemade, like whomever made it had taken a considerate amount of time to create the meal.

“I made it from scratch,” Bucky explained. “I wanted to make sure that it wasn’t too heavy, so you should be able to keep it down.”

Tony sluggishly stared at the meal on his lap, too out of it to attempt to process the fact that the two men whom had basically tortured him were treating him like the world’s most precious diamond. He tried to lift a hand to grab the spoon, but the weight was back, and he grunted when he found that he could only lean back on Rogers.

“I’ll take care of you,” Bucky was quick to jump up, taking the spoon and filling it with soup. He blew on it for a moment to cool it down, and then began to feed Tony like it was an everyday thing. When the man noticed that the genius still held the question of the girl in his eyes, Bucky looked over his shoulder at Steve.

The blonds gaze went up for only a moment, sensing the look, before he turned back to smile fondly at the man in his lap. Steve spoke, letting Bucky concentrate on getting food into the genius.

“She was part of the rebellion, the one that started up when we began. While she never told us the names of the people she worked with, the woman wasn’t as innocent as she claimed. In fact, one of her moves was to set off a bomb in protest to our rule. She went to the middle of times square and set several up.

We managed to deactivate two of them, one went off. There was a family standing nearby… the mother survived with horrible scarring, everyone else perished.” Rogers paused, seeing the hesitation in Bucky as the man fed the genius.

“However, mom didn’t last long. She committed suicide five days later in the hospital.” He paused for only a moment, “Sometimes, people will do horrible things in the belief that they’re doing the right thing.”

And the words were so true, and extremely ironic.

Tony couldn’t stop the laugh that suddenly bubbled up, startling the men. And once it started, he couldn’t stop. Bucky wasn’t quick enough to pull the remaining bowl of soup from his lap as it tilted and poured over the bed. Tony’s body sitting up without the soldier as the hysterical laughter slowly turned into sobs.

And while the two soldiers looked on, trying to understand the reaction, Tony could only wonder if all the good people in the world were gone.

As he laughed and cried, his body slowly curled forward and there was no warning as the soup that had barely reached his stomach came flying back out. Bucky was quick to jump out of the way, but Steve, whom was still holding Tony in his lap, hadn’t been so lucky.

The man didn’t stop until he was gagging, nothing but stomach acid left to spew as he whimpered. His stomach sending shooting pains of protest as he thought about the people he’d witnessed dying only hours before. About how the world was slowly turning into something he wanted no part of.

Despite being covered, like Tony, Rogers lifted a hand and rubbed his back in a comforting manner, waiting for the gagging noises to subside. It took only moments, but Tony instantly fell back against his chest, body giving out completely.

“Oh Tony,” Rogers ran a hand through his hair.

Without being prompted, Bucky reached forward and gently lifted the sick man from the bed. There was no hesitation as he carried Tony bridal style towards an open door, Roger’s trailing behind only moments later after he had made the call to have the room cleaned. The two worked in tandem to undress the shivering genius. In Tony’s state of exhaustion, the man allowed them to treat him like a ragdoll without protest.

Bucky undressing so that he was left in his boxers, and then holding Tony so that the blond could get into the same state. The brunette had then moved off to fill a tub that was obviously meant for more than one person, while Steve carried the trembling genius to a large shower stall across from the toilet.

“Let’s rinse you off,” Steve murmured gently to the trembling mess in his arms.

The water was instantly warm, and Tony couldn’t stop himself from burying his face into the soldier’s collarbone again as the water sprayed over them. However, when he noticed that Steve was turning off the shower and moving them both towards the tub, he panicked.

He was too weak to struggle, but his voice instantly started. “No! Please, please no!” He looked as if the tub was going to jump up and drown him.

Instantly, Bucky stepped into the water and held out his arms, taking the now slightly struggling man into his hold. He didn’t lower Tony into the water immediately, waiting until Steve was in before the two moved together. They only let the water hit up to Tony’s lower chest, speaking gentle reassurances to the man as they washed him.

Everything was done quickly and efficiently, trying to keep the groggy Tony from freaking out more than he already was in the water. They even moved him out rapidly, drying the shivering man and making sure the oxygen mask was back in place.

Bucky, having disappeared for a moment into the room, returned with a pile of clothes. The two quickly dressing Tony in a pair of boxers, sweatpants, and an old AC/DC t-shirt that Tony would have recognized as his own if he hadn’t been completely out of it.

The two, donning similar comfortable clothing with plain shirts, carried the genius into the room where the bed had been completely changed. While they had been in the bathroom, someone had put in a new mattress, new covers, sheets, and even pillows.

With practiced ease, the two men rebandaged Tony’s wrist and leg, the movements quick and precise. In the span of two minutes Tony was placed back into the middle of the bed, the covers enveloping him in warmth.

Tony vaguely makes out promises from the two men, told that he’ll be protected. Told that he won’t suffer again. But he tunes it out, curling into the warmth that is suddenly around him as he delves into the darkness with an open embrace.

Chapter Text

Tony spends most of the day going in and out of consciousness. At one point he wakes to find Helen Cho examining him, a stethoscope hanging from her ears as she presses the cool metal against his chest. He recognizes that she turns to speak to Rogers, whom is sitting on his other side and again running his hand through the genius’ hair. A habit that is becoming entirely too familiar to the man.

He sees the blue eyes look down at him, a gentle smile lifting the corner of Steve’s lips. The warmth slowly sends him back into oblivion.

When Tony finally wakes up enough to register that he’s in a completely different room, its to feeling better than he has in a while. His stomach hurts from hunger, but his fever seems to finally be breaking and he’s encompassed in warmth.

He blearily looks around, realizing that they had left him to sleep it off alone. The soft sound of the oxygen machine the only noise in the quiet room.

Expecting to be chained to the bed, it comes as a surprise when his sluggish arm raises to touch the mask on his face. Slowly, so as not to aggravate anything further, Tony manages to sit up and glance around the new room.

This one has a large flat screen across the bed, the latest technology. He inwardly snorts, knowing he could have always made something better than what’s sitting in front of him. Turning to the side slowly (he refuses to risk getting dizzy) he notes that unlike the prior rooms, this one has a floor to ceiling window. The curtains are mostly closed, but if he squints his eyes and looks at the small opening in the middle he can make out city lights.

The bed is covered in a soft cream duvet, and there are plenty of soft pillows to prop himself up with. The color scheme seems to be a cross between pastels and a darker blue, someone clearly had made the room with the intention of making it feel homey.

An old trunk sits at the end of the bed, and Tony can only guess that it holds more covers and pillows, if not clothing. Below the flat screen are two small vintage bookshelves, the wood worn from the years of use. Several books (well read from the state of the spines) are put neatly in alphabetical order on the shelves.

Tony slowly turns to face the right side of the room, noticing the bedside table that was moved so that they could fit the oxygen machine right against the mattress. It has a little lamp, and two remote controls that obviously control the television. Like the other room, there are three separate doors to his right. One by the television (he thinks it leads to the hall), another directly to the right which either leads to a bathroom or a closet, and the final one right next to it. All three doors are a dark navy blue.

There are several feet between the bed and all the doors. Someone placed a cozy looking loveseat against the wall. It looks comfortable, covered in almost as many cushions as the bed. A framed photo of an old Van Gogh painting hangs above it.

He’s so caught in trying to figure out what the name of the painting is that he doesn’t see the door by the television open, doesn’t notice as the two men step into the room. Not until one of them clears his throat to alert him of their presence.

Tony doesn’t jump, he doesn’t! Well, he would never admit to it as his head whips to face the newcomers. The movement is too fast, and the genius immediately sinks into the pillows with a groan, his hand flying to his temple and eyes slamming shut to stop the wave of dizziness that hits.

He isn’t surprised when another hand reaches forward and moves his away, pressing firmly against the skin as if checking for a temperature. Wearily, Tony blinks his eyes open and finds Steve Rogers looking pleased.

“Your fever is almost gone,” he grins.

“So, does that mean you’re going to let him join us?” A new voice asks, one that hasn’t been hovering over Tony.

With a frown Tony tilts his head enough so that he can just see past Roger’s broad shoulders, spotting Clint Barton standing with his arms crossed. A wheelchair sits idly by the former hero, cushioned so that whomever sits in it can be comfortable as they’re transported.

“It’s movie night,” Steve explains without being prompted. “And you haven’t eaten. We figured you could join the team and eat with us. Want to join us? Or would you prefer to stay here sweetheart?”

Tony ignores the endearment

Does he want to join them? No. He doesn’t want to sit with a group of people who are okay with torturing people. Tony’s tired but he hasn’t forgotten that they hurt people. But the alternative was sitting in the empty room, alone. Sure, he could turn on the television, but it could only keep his attention away from the memories for so long.

At least if he was engaged in conversation with someone, he could be distracted.

He slowly nods his head, watching as a smile brighter than the fourth of July lights up on Steve’s face. The man stands from where he took a seat by Tony’s side, reaching over and turning off the oxygen, he then takes a moment to take the mask off the genius’ face.

“Dr. Cho explained that we don’t have to use it too much, we can put it on at night to facilitate your breathing, but we don’t want you too dependent on it either.”

The blond then proceeds to remove the covers that have kept Tony warm and snug while sleeping in the large bed. It’s the first time Tony realizes that he’s been changed, and vaguely he remembers the bathroom adventure from hours before. He can’t stop the soft blush that lights his cheeks as he stares down at the dark sweats and the soft band shirt adorning his chest. The glow of the Arc Reactor perfectly falling on the band’s drum set.

Someone put fuzzy socks on his feet while he was sleeping, and while normally he’d complain about it, they’re warm and cozy and he secretly wants to get several pairs.

However, the thoughts are torn when he starts to shiver from the lack of warmth. It seems the discomfort is known, as Steve is leaning over him with his hands moving to tuck under his armpits. “I’m going to lift you, close your eyes so you don’t get discombobulated.”
Knowing that keeping his eyes open will only cause discomfort and possibly nausea, Tony closes his eyes and lets himself get lifted from the bed and into the chair. Immediately, a heavy blanket is thrown over him, whomever does it tucking the edges over his shoulders and feet, so he is completely covered.

When he opens his eyes, they’re moving down the hallway. He knows because Clint is once again pushing the chair, the soft noises he’s making under his breath reminding Tony of the first time the archer pushed him.

“Asshole,” he mumbles without thinking.

When he throws a worried look at Steve, whose walking beside the chair, the tension in his shoulders ease at the amused look on the man’s face. Amused means the blond will likely let it go.

As he’s looking at the blond he doesn’t miss a large metal door that slowly creaks open as they pass. He catches a glimpse of a windowless corridor and suddenly Tony’s brain is on high alert. He is no longer passive on the chair, his breathing hitching as he tries to launch himself away from the men.

A hand catches his shoulder and keeps him down, but he only yelps and keeps fighting, wanting to get away. Had they tricked him? Were they taking him back to test more weapons on people?

Someone is calling his name, but all Tony can hear are the screams of the victims of his cartoon gun. Fingers are stroking his face, a hand has grabbed his and set it against a chest, reminding him to breathe. When he finally starts to calm down, the first thing Tony sees are the worried blue eyes of Steve Rogers as the man crouches down in front of the wheelchair.

“Please, I don’t want to hurt anyone,” Tony pleads.

Immediately he is shushed, “you’re not hurting anyone.” Steve reassures him. “You’re okay honey, you’re okay.”

The blond moves quickly, lifting Tony into his arms and cradling the man to his chest. He uses one hand to grab the blanket and throws it over the shivering genius, tucking the brunette’s head under his chin as he rocks like a mother would a child. “You’re okay,” he repeats.

Tony knows that it’s wrong. He knows that, rationally, the man holding him is the reason he’s even in such a state. But he can’t stop himself, he can’t help it. A hand locks onto the blonde’s shirt and Tony finds himself curling further into the warmth the man provides. Eyes closing.

He closes his eyes tightly and just takes comfort in being completely covered by the body mass that is Captain America.

The rocking motion stops, but Tony can feel the soft sway as Steve starts to carry him to their destination rather than putting him back into the chair. He’s a bit relieved, not sure that he can handle being put back into the thing without falling back into his state of panic.

He doesn’t notice when there are more people besides the three of them, doesn’t see the looks thrown the Captain’s way as he’s carried into the room. He does, however, notice a scent that he hasn’t smelled in years.

With a bit of confusion, Tony blinks his eyes open and moves so that he can peer over his shoulder in the direction he thinks the smell is coming from. Someone has set a table in a buffet style, lining the top with a variety of Italian dishes. Unlike the movie nights the billionaire is used to, the food doesn’t look like take out, it looks homemade.

The variety of choices on display are things that Jarvis’ wife used to make him. Things that he used to eat as a kid when he felt ill, or when he needed the comfort that only food could provide. Well, comfort his immediate family would never provide.

Being under the weather must affect him more than usual, because he can feel his eyes getting slightly wet. He refuses to cry. Fortunately, the roar his stomach makes quickly turns the feeling into mortification and Tony turns to hide in the blonde’s chest.

“Why don’t I set you down on the sofa, and I’ll fill you up a plate?” Rogers offers, not waiting for confirmation as he turns from the table and towards a sitting area.

Tony is gently placed on a very soft cushion, the blanket following to curl up around him as pillows are propped to keep him sitting up. He’d be offended at being treated like a child, if he weren’t grateful for the fact that the props are helping him stay up.

Slowly, as to not aggravate his already fragile brain, he looks around the room.

The sofa he’s on seems to be the one placed directly in front of a huge screen, it’s bigger than the one in his room. There are two other sofas tilted slightly towards the television on either side of where he sits. A wooden coffee table in the middle. There’s a bean bag chair on the ground, along with a few blankets and pillows. It looks like the perfect place for a huge family to sit… and several of the former heroes are staring at him from the different perches.

No one’s spoken, seemingly taking him in as he observes the surroundings. Natasha sits on a sofa, splayed out as if she doesn’t intend to share her space with anyone. Thor and Bruce share a sofa, both already have full plates on their laps. Sam’s taken the bean bag chair, and soon enough Clint’s joining the group as he sprawls on the floor with his own plate of food.

“What are we watching?” Clint immediately breaks the silence of the room.

Tony can’t hide the flinch, reminded of the movie marathons he used to have with Peter in the bunker. His heart sinks, thinking about the group that had been sent to the unknown city. Had they made it? Were they doing alright? Were they mad at him? Would they ever forgive him?

“Star Wars?” Sam suggests from where he’s perched.

“Batman?” Bruce chips in from the sofa.

“No.” Tony doesn’t regret speaking up, even if it sends all five pairs of eyes on his hunched form. “No,” he repeats. No, because it will remind him of Peter. No, because it will remind him of his family. No, because Tony won’t be able to handle watching films that used to be special nights.

The protests quickly start up, and Tony doesn’t speak as the team begins to bicker amongst each other on the film choices.

He jumps when a plate is set gently on his lap, two bodies falling into the sofa on either side of him. Bucky, who looks more casual than Tony has ever seen him, and Rogers. They both have their own plates of food and have loaded his with every dish that had been on the table.

“I think Tony gets to pick the movie,” Steve suddenly speaks up, his gaze falling to the man next to him.

The man startles, not expecting to be the one making the choice. His brain quickly starts to run over titles, trying to find something that he can watch without thinking of home. It’s almost impossible, but he clings to the first film he can think of that wouldn’t ruin a happy memory.

“The Conjuring,” Tony all but whispers.

Peter, while extremely brave, couldn’t handle horror films. Tony would always poke fun at the fear, but never made the kid watch anything he didn’t want to watch. Of course, it helped that Peter didn’t know that Tony was also just as much of a chicken when it came to certain horror films. The Conjuring had been one they had avoided.

In an underground bunker, where darkness was around every corner until Jarvis turned on lights, it meant that ghost stories were strictly out of the question.

Clint’s smile grew, “excellent.”

Unlike having the A.I. to turn on the film, Sam snatched a remote and started to type in the choice. It took several minutes, but soon enough the ominous music filled the room through the surround sound speaker.

Leaning over, Bucky gently took the blanket and untucked it from Tony so that it was pooled in his lap, hands free to use the fork provided to eat the meal.

Shaking slightly, Tony manages to snag a bite from the plate. The lights around them are slowly dimming so he misses the way that the winter soldier smiles at the look of utter surprise on the genius’ face. While simple, the food tastes just like he remembered.

“I studied how to make it from some old journals… I hope I did it justice,” Bucky murmurs, breaking through the man’s shock.

Tony glances at him with wide eyes, realizing that the brunette won’t look away without some form of affirmation. He nods only once, but it’s enough to earn him a smile just as bright as Steve’s before the soldier digs into his own plate. Instead of focusing on the film, Tony is enamored with the food on his plate.

It’s only when the family starts to really experience what Tony can only guess is a demon that he starts to pay attention to the screen. The plate is gently lifted away from his lap, and Bucky disappears for a moment before he’s back, casually wrapping an arm around the back of the sofa. Steve puts the blanket back to its original position.
He’s grateful for the blanket, it makes it easier to hide the fact that his heart is pounding. He’s so caught up in the film he doesn’t protest when Steve reaches forward and maneuvers him so that he’s leaning comfortably against the man’s chest. He doesn’t protest when Bucky tucks his feet into his lap.

“Why don’t they just leave the house?” Sam chirps up as one of the children is attacked by a crazy looking older woman.

“Shit like that follows you!” Tony replies without thinking.

“Yeah, but at least they’d get the hell out of Spook-ville!” Sam counters.

“Follows you bird, follows you! That means they can’t just leave the damn place without having it follow the-“ He stops talking, eyes focused on the screen again as a failed exorcism is performed on a different man.

Tony doesn’t realize that he curled closer into the warm bodies on the sofa, that as the movie progresses he’s bickering with the team like he would Peter. By the end of the film, they decide they need to follow the film up with Annabelle. Tony doesn’t protest, he also doesn’t admit that throughout the film he hides behind his blanket.

Still sick, the genius passes out halfway through the film.

Tony doesn’t see the pleased smiles of the group around him.

Chapter Text

One week.
Seven days.
One-hundred and sixty-eight hours.
Ten-thousand and eighty minutes.
Six-hundred and four thousand, eight hundred seconds.

It was amazing how such little time could be used so efficiently. Not that Tony had kept count, he’d lost track on the third day.

The first night hadn’t been terrible. He’d already fallen asleep from the film and had barely budged when someone had pulled him into their arms once the film was over. In fact, Tony had curled into the warmth with a hum, ignoring all the warning signs as he took comfort in the person carrying him.

It had been Steve.

The blond had settled Tony into the bedroom, making sure he was tucked in and truly asleep before joining him in bed. The genius had woken long enough to give a slight grumble of protest, trying to escape the solid arm that had wrapped around his waist. However, there was no fighting it as Steve’s body spooned him close from behind, holding him protectively.

Steve had shushed him gently and had started to hum quietly. One hand had lifted and placed the breathing mask on his face, causing the genius to slump in relaxation even further. The sound was soothing, and soon enough Tony was sinking under, allowing himself to be cuddled by the large man.

On the second day, Tony learned quickly that trips outside of the room would be rare. He had been kept in bed, a breakfast tray set on his lap with Steve helping him sit up.

Both Bruce and Helen had come into the room to check him over, claiming that they were extremely worried that he would work himself up into another heart attack if they weren’t careful. Tony let them do as they pleased, although he kept a sharp eye out to make sure that they weren’t trying to put any strange drugs into his system. Not that he could do much, still finding himself exhausted.

The two became a constant throughout the week, checking up on him. Bruce would often bring by science magazines that he thought Tony hadn’t read yet, to keep him from ruining his genius on the television screen. Helen had been advising Bucky on what he could and couldn’t eat, raising his frustration level when he was denied red meat.

Clint and Sam also started to come into his room, and Tony quickly realized that if Bucky or Steve weren’t with him, one or two of the other team members would take their place. He was never quite alone and had barely convinced the group to at least let him use the restroom without them. Unfortunately, Steve and Bucky still supervised showers, although they weren’t as involved as they had been the first time.

The archer had come up with the idea of setting up a gaming system in the room and had failed on multiple occasions to get the genius to play along with them. He’d tried every kind of game he could think of, but Tony refused claiming he’d never been into the thing. Again, he wouldn’t admit that it reminded him of Peter.

On the second night, when he’d been brought a meal, Steve had made a comment about how Tony was adorable. He’d compared the genius to a kitten.

Temper finally rising, Tony had given him a tongue lashing. The food tray having gone flying across the room as the man attempted to get off the bed and away from the super soldier. He hadn’t been prepared for Steve to lunge.

With an undignified squeal, Tony was lifted by the collar of his shirt and dragged into the bathroom. Bucky didn’t follow, turning to clean the mess that Tony had made with the dinner.

Steve had moved them both so quickly that there was no protest as the genius tried to get his baring’s. However, when the room came into focus and he heard running water, the panic was inevitable. Tony tried to claw at the man, tried to fight as the blond super soldier didn’t hesitate to sink him into the tub, clothes and all.

Tony had opened his mouth to scream, when Rogers shoved something inside. Moving faster than the genius could follow, the blond wrapped a restraint around his lower torso, keeping his arms and hands trapped to his sides.

Using his tongue, Tony finally managed to spit out the offending object in his mouth into the water, glaring daggers at the blond that had sat back.

In return, Steve had reached forward and grabbed at it, bringing Tony to look at what had left such a disgusting taste on his tongue. A bar of soap.

Without hesitation the super soldier had shoved the thing back into his mouth, lips in a straight line as he glared at Tony. “If you spit it out, it’s going to stay in there longer. Thirty minutes, and we’ll see if you want to continue using that kind of language.”

The genius knew a cuss word he wanted to say at that moment, but instead narrowed his eyes and tried to stay still. However, as the silence in the room grew louder, Tony started to become aware of elements in the bathroom that he hadn’t thought about. The water in the tub was up to his waist, and while it wasn’t rising, it wasn’t comforting.

Slowly his body started to tremble, and the panic started to claw at his throat. He didn’t hear his name getting yelled as the soap began to choke him, and all he could think was that he could no longer breathe. He didn’t see the bathroom, but the dark caves as he was dunked into cold water over and over.

Tony barely felt as the restraints were ripped from his body, fingers sneaking into his mouth to get the soap out that he had unconsciously bitten in half. Didn’t feel the water drain from the tub.

He didn’t process anything until he was naked, wrapped in a large towel, curled into a rocking super soldiers’ chest as the man repeatedly promised that the punishment wouldn’t be recurring. Tony blinked tired eyes, met the blue worried gaze, and had broken into sobs.

Bucky had appeared, taking Tony away to dry him and make sure he was in warm clothing. He got very little help from the man, who was clearly in a state of shock, but managed to get Tony curled under the covers quickly.

On the second night, Bucky took Steve’s place. The man had sung some sort of Russian lullaby to the genius and continued the motions throughout the night as Tony woke several times from nightmares.

Steve had returned on the third day to spend time with him, not talking about the incident from the night before. He had moved a desk into the room and worked on several papers while Tony watched whatever documentary Natasha had put into the system for him. Not that he processed most of it.

Tony had stopped cussing.

On the third night, both soldiers had appeared. The genius had complained, not wanting to have to be around the two men at the same time in such an intimate position. Steve had logically explained that while he was in a relationship with Bucky, they had every intention of taking Tony too. The genius had quickly begun to panic and had to be reassured that nothing would happen to him… yet.

Tony could hear the unsaid word as the sentence had been spoken but was at least relieved they weren’t going to try anything immediately.

He’d learned quickly that both men were like furnaces, and that there was no way he would dream of the dark cave in Afghanistan when the warmth chased his nightmares away.

It was such a revelation, that Tony didn’t protest on the fourth night to the sleeping arrangement. Even after having received a new ‘punishment’ from Bucky earlier on in the day, he found himself taking comfort in the presence of the two men.

Bucky had quickly started to use a different method than Steve and wasn’t afraid to somewhat hurt the genius. Although it could be argued that his punishment had wounded Tony’s pride more than physically hurt him.

The soldier had caught the man trying to sneak out of the room, taking advantage that Bucky was in the restroom to inspect the door. Quickly, he’d been thrown over the man’s lap like a disobedient child and gotten a rather harsh spanking. And while it was humiliating enough, Bucky hadn’t stopped when the door had opened to admit Natasha.

The punishment had only stopped when she had left, and Tony was a blundering mess. Like Steve, the brunette had curled the genius to his chest with sweet promises of good things for better behavior.

By the fifth day, Tony quickly learned that the two men seemed to enjoy themselves a bit in his punishments. Bucky had repeated the spanking when Tony had refused to eat breakfast, and Steve had made him watch a snuff film of one of the weapon’s being used on another victim.

He started to attempt to behave in the manner they wanted, feeling traumatized, humiliated, and scared of what was to come. He could also feel himself wanting to do nothing but curl up to the men, a contradicting feeling that had sent him into a state of complete confusion.

The sixth day had brought another movie night. Tony had been awarded that night for behaving throughout the day. He was handed a hamburger with fries, and a milkshake on the side. After practically inhaling the meal with a muttered ‘thank you,’ Tony had curled up on the couch against Steve.

Horror movies won that night again. And soon enough the genius couldn’t bare to watch more as he stuck his face into the soldier’s chest and tried to hide away from the images flashing on the screen.

Slowly, the walls to protect himself were breaking, and he was getting used to the group. He was becoming docile, wanting the warmth that came from the two men that kept his nightmares at bay. Not that they weren’t the cause of them. There had been no protest when he was lifted and carried into the bedroom.

On the seventh day, Tony was allowed to walk himself to the dining room to join breakfast with the team. Steve had gotten him a pair of crutches, and their trek had been slow. The blond had made it a point to stand as large as he could make himself to hide the metal door from Tony’s view, and the man was grateful for it.

That morning, Tony had taken his coffee with a smile and spoken politely to the team. He had hummed when he’d tasted his drink and curled up to Bucky when the man had thrown an arm over the back of his chair.

The whole team had been surprised and elated.

It was Tony’s willing participation that had them feeling comfortable leaving him alone in his room that day. There was news of another uprising, and the entire team was required to help handle the group of rowdy citizens.

Removing anything that the genius could use to potentially harm himself or others, the two soldiers had sat beside Tony and explained that they would be returning soon. Bucky had kissed him on the cheek, Steve on the head, and the two had disappeared with the audible click of the door lock.

Tony had remained on the bed for quite some time, fighting over the idea that the kisses hadn’t bothered him. In fact, he had to fight the feeling in his chest that was suddenly longing for the two men.

Trying to snap out of it, Tony leaned against the headboard and turned on the television screen. It took five minutes before his eyes fell to the door, hoping that someone would come inside. It was frightening, how being alone for the first time in days left such a heavy feeling in the pit of his stomach.

What if they didn’t come back? What if they left him all alone? His parents had done it. Jarvis had eventually gone. Even his chosen family was gone.

Tony didn’t realize he was starting to hyperventilate until it was too late. He put a hand up to his chest and hunched forward, the confusing thoughts swirling over his mind. They had taken him to their home by force, but they only wanted to take care of him. They had shared meals, light conversations, and held him through his nightmares. Tony couldn’t remember a time when someone had done that for him.

Right?

He threw his hands over his ears, trying to smack the memories back into the correct order. He hated the soldiers, he wasn’t supposed to be there. But they loved him, took care of him, made sure he was well fed and healthy. They watched movies with him, played games, and let him ramble about the bad mechanics of the television.

Tony looked up again, eyes running to the door in hopes of having his thoughts interrupted. His wish was granted, but not in the way that he expected.

Narrowing his eyes, the genius noticed a red hue was quickly enveloping the wood, looking like a gentle waterfall of fog.

There was no warning as the door was suddenly blown off its hinges, wood splintering and flying everywhere. A few pieces hit Tony, embedded in his skin even as he threw his still bandaged wrist up to deflect the blows.

When he lowered his arm, it was to a sight that he hadn’t been expecting.

A girl stood in the doorway, her eyes glowing red. Her hands had the same glow, and she wore a dirty hospital gown and no shoes. Her hair whipped as if caught in a nonexistent wind. Her full attention was on him.

With a yelp Tony flung himself off the bed, ignoring how the splinters dug into his good foot while his leg threatened to collapse from underneath him. The pain was shocking, and he started to tumble forward when the red light stopped it from happening.

Was this a punishment? He hadn’t done anything wrong, had he?

The red hue slowly lifted Tony so that the genius floated towards the girl, setting him gently to attention in front of her. His eyes wide in horror at whatever this stranger wanted.

“Tony Stark,” she practically purred, an accent he couldn’t quite trace falling from her lips. “I’ve been looking for you.”

As she spoke, he tried to take in the details. Her hair was a spectacular mix of soft gold and brown, even if it was tangled beyond belief. Like someone hadn’t taken a brush to it in months. Her arms were littered with small, healing cuts that obviously hadn’t come from the door.

She tilted her head, the soft raise of the side of her lips as she gazed unblinking at the frozen man. “You have forgotten, but I will show you.”

Without warning, the girl raised her hand towards his face, ignoring that Tony struggled desperately to get away from the approaching touch. The moment their skin made contact, the room washed away from Tony’s sight. He couldn’t scream, couldn’t struggle, as the scene began to play out in front of his eyes.

Peter, giggling as he tried to use Tony as a human shield. Rhodey stood to their right looking bemused, May standing akimbo across the room as she glared daggers at the two geniuses that had burnt her dinner.

The scene changes and Tony is on the ground, staring up as Peter swings back and forth above him. He holds Tony’s Stark Pad just out of reach so that the billionaire can’t grab it.

He suddenly finds himself standing next to Pepper, whose eyes are gleaming with happy tears as she punches him in the arm, claiming that she was worried.

Tony blinks and sees Happy coming out of the kitchen with a platter of breakfast, trying and failing to avoid Peter as the kid steals some of the meal for himself.

He sees Peter, staring at him in surprise completely covered in blue foam. He sees Rhodey walk into the lab, pivot in place, and pretend that he hasn’t seen the mess.

Blinks again and finds himself with Rhodey, getting hugged in his living room as he cries for the loss of his mother (and a little bit for his father).

Blinks again and he find’s himself in the kitchen of his old mansion. He hasn’t stepped foot in the place in ages and is completely thrown off. He turns to look at his surroundings and freezes when he sees he’s not alone.

Standing by the kitchen counter is none other than Jarvis. The man is smiling at him, eyes sparkling as he looks at Tony proudly. The man speaks gently, “whatever they do to you, they cannot take your soul. They will never break the spirit of the boy I raised. Start a spark Tony, and let it blaze like a wildfire.”

Tony opens his mouth to speak, to call out for the man who raised him, but cannot as the sight starts to fade. He hears himself scream, wanting to remain with the man who cared for him, raised him, loved him.

When the room comes back into focus, he finds himself staring into compassionate green eyes. Similar eyes to the girl whom Steve had murdered when he’d first been taken.

Tony’s body is trembling, he can’t stop the motion as he looks the stranger in the face. She’s young, maybe only a few years older than Peter.

“Wh-wh-who are you?” He stutters, glad the red hue is still holding him up, as otherwise he’d have collapsed on the floor.

She tilts her head and smiles, a genuine, kind smile. “My name is Wanda Maximoff, and I was told to find you.” She pauses, “we don’t have much time.”

Wanda throws a glance over her shoulder, as if she senses something. Instantly, the red hue envelops the whole doorway, a barrier to keep anyone from entering the room. A tendril of light sneaks over Tony’s shoulder and wraps around his neck, as if she is ready to strangle him at any moment. He feels a slight tingle, a burn on the skin, but otherwise his breathing is fine.

“I will not hurt you, Tony.” She reassures when she notices that he’s stiff from the new tendril. “But I must look like I want to, so they think I will.”

Subtly, Wanda tilts her head in a gesture for Tony to look over her shoulder. When he does, the genius notices that the team has returned, and are trying desperately to break into the room. His eyes widen a fraction as he looks back at the girl. She won’t make it out alive if she pretends to be hurting him.

“I was sent to pass on a message,” she draws his attention back. “You need to hold on Tony, to escape. You need to see what they’re doing and figure out how we’re going to put an end to it. But you can’t break, you can’t give into them.”

Wanda is crying, he realizes with a start.

She reminds him of Peter, trying to be strong despite how young she was. The world is on her shoulders and she’s barely had a chance to live.

He finally finds his voice, speaking gently so that he cannot be heard by the team still trying to break through the girl’s strange red barrier. “Please, use me as a human shield and escape. You’re strong enough.”

She smiles, but there is no real joy, just sadness that he’s too familiar with. He’s seen the look before, it’s of someone whose been defeated.

“It’s too late to save me, Tony. But thank you for your kindness. When the barrier drops, I will end it.” She ignores that he opens his mouth to protest, speaking gently. “Don’t let them suspect that you are not on their side. This is your time to act, to learn what you can, while you can.”

Her free hand, the one that isn’t held up to create the barrier, flicks over his palm. Tony can’t stop the small shriek of pain as it burns before the red hue seems to sink into his skin and disappear.

Wanda looks intently into his eyes, “whenever you start to forget, when they start to really get into your brain….” She reached forward and touches his fingers, pressing his hand into a fist so that the tips of the fingers touch his palm. “Press down three times on your palm, I’ve embedded your memories there. So, you can always remember.”

Her smile breaks his heart as she speaks, “I hope you don’t mind, but I put myself and Pietro in there too. Someone good can remember us that way.”

Tony frowns, wanting to protest when he finds the red hue is thrown over his mouth. He can’t struggle even as he tries to desperately be set free, watching as the girl lowers her hands.

“Bye,” she mumbles gently, just as she spins in place and lashes out at the group trying to get in. Tony is sent flying across the room in what looks like a violent attack, but only slams into the bed and headboard. It hurts, but it doesn’t become any lasting injury.

He watches the fight in front of him, as Wanda struggles to take on the more experienced fighters. She looks just like Peter, before he learned how to fight. Tony sit ups, opening his mouth to protest when he meets her eyes.

Wanda smiles, and the bullet paints the room in her blood as she collapses to the floor.

Tony can’t scream. He can’t move. He’s helpless as he stares down at the specks of blood covering his body.

Bucky stands just behind where the girl had been, a smoking gun lowered and holstered as he shoots her a passing glance.

Tony is shaking, so hard the bed trembles with the movements. He doesn’t hear the two super soldiers, trying to reassure him as Clint lifts the dead body from the floor and leaves the room, Natasha trailing behind him.

He only realizes that he’s crying when a hand gently lifts his chin, examining his neck where bruise marks have appeared from Wanda’s fake attack. Not that they know.

Instead, the two men think that Tony is afraid of what he experienced and promise to not leave him alone. Promise to protect him.

“Did she hurt you sweetheart?” Steve asks, gently, trying to coax Tony to look at him so he can get a closer inspection of the man’s neck.

Tony whimpers. Both men frowning at the bruise forming around the genius’ skin.

“Sweet baby doll,” Bucky croons.

Chapter Text

He doesn’t know how long it takes them to clean up the mess of having a dead person in the room, but Tony knows that by the time he’s taken back any evidence of Wanda will be gone. Fortunately, the group hadn’t heard what she had done, and therefore hadn’t tried to do something crazy, like removing his hand.

Instead, they believe that he’s in shock. Not that they’re far off.

Without saying a word, Bucky lifts Tony from the bed and out of the room, going in the opposite direction that Clint and Natasha disappeared to. He tucks the genius’ head into his chin, throwing Steve a look that speaks volumes as the blond catches up to the pair.

The only sound in the hallway is that of their echoing footsteps, Bucky occasionally cooing as he presses the genius closer to his chest.

Tony is glad that neither men are looking at his horrified face, as he tries desperately to throw up the mask he spent years perfecting as a child. With such a tragic childhood and having to socialize with other rich people he didn’t like, Tony had learned how to be a phenomenal actor.

There was a distinct change in the color of the hallway that finally caught the genius’ gaze. Without being too obvious about his interest, Tony lifted his gaze from where it had rested on Bucky’s collarbone to see that they had entered a different area. It was warmer, lived in.

Unlike the cold of the other hallway, this one had been painted a soft blue. There were several pieces of art hung from the walls, making the area feel cozier. The doors were painted an off white, one that indicated that wherever they were, it was meant to be the exact opposite of Tony’s prior location.

Inwardly, the genius cursed for not having been paying attention to where they were walking.

Stopping in front of a set of double doors, Tony lifted his head to meet that of a softly smiling Steve. A shiver ran down his spine, and he immediately curled closer to the soldier holding him to hide the reaction. It was wrong, for someone so cruel to be able to look so kind.

“You’ll be okay,” Bucky murmured. “You’ve been so well-behaved Tony,” he praised.

The genius wanted to bristle at the words, but merely blinked watery eyes at Steve as he was in his line of sight. It didn’t take long for the unasked question to get answered, where were they?

“We can protect you better if you’re with us sweetheart,” Steve added. One hand rested on the golden door handle of the double doors behind him. “This is the Avengers living area. We don’t want to keep you in the vault anymore, not after today.”

The vault, he’d have to remember it.

What was it with them and the need for protection? Tony wanted to scoff, scream, but Wanda’s eyes flashed through his mind and instantly the urge disappeared as he let the very real tears slide out of his eyes. The shaking starting up again as he thought of Peter standing in front of him, a bullet through his skull.

Finally, Steve turned the handle and opened the doors, leading the way into one of the largest rooms Tony had seen since his own penthouse suite. The room featured floor to ceiling windows, displaying all of New York. They were high up, and if Tony squinted he could barely make out that this was no longer the city he remembered.

The plush carpeting of the room was a soft beige, complimented by a large sapphire rug that covered a huge part of the floor. A bed that could easily fit six people had been set in the middle of the wall to his left, the duvet an off white with patterned silver and azure pillows. Mahogany bed posts that had been obviously carved by hand stretched almost to the ceiling, only hidden by a soft canopy that swayed softly from the air conditioning.

The furniture had been created out of old wood, the words vintage screaming through Tony’s mind as he peered at the well-worn chair to the right of the bed, leading to two separate doors. Obviously, one would be a closet, and the other a bathroom. A large screen had been set up on the wall in front of the bed, a projector attached to the ceiling obviously meant to make the experience be more like a theater.

A trunk that had been repurposed as a bench sat at the foot of the bed, a beige cushion making it more comfortable to perch on.

How many times were they going to move him?

“Punk, you grab some of his clothes from the closet and I’ll get him cleaned up.” Bucky startled Tony from his observation.

Both himself and the deadly assassin were still covered in blood. The thought made Tony blanche and immediately he was moved through the room and to the furthest door. Like before, the bathroom was luxurious in a mix of gold and white, but he didn’t have time to look around as Bucky leaned him over the toilet.

“If you need to puke, doll, go ahead.” The man spoke gently, metal arm rubbing Tony’s back.

After a moment, Tony shook his head slowly and groaned when the room spun. Of course, he’d be caught in some weird version of a panic attack as soon as he remembered that the man trying to comfort him had also killed an innocent kid.

Without waiting for Tony’s agreement, Bucky reached forward and gingerly removed the genius’ shirt. It was quickly followed up by the rest of his garments until the man was left in only his boxers, the soldier moving across the room to start the large shower nearby.

Bucky was quick to get out of his own clothing, stooping to pick up the shaking genius that didn’t protest as they stepped under the water. His boxers kicked off and to a corner of the stall. Tony refused to look down, knowing that the water going down the drain was an off red from Wanda’s blood.

The shower was quick, and soon enough Tony (whom had been lost in his own thoughts) was dressed in soft sweatpants and a shirt, curled under the duvet of the bed. Steve had taken their time in the bathroom to retrieve some cream for the bruise around Tony’s neck, and had gently applied it to the tired man’s skin.

For several hours Tony drifted in and out of sleep. He always felt someone nearby, but it seemed that the shock of what he’d witnessed had truly exhausted him.

When his eyes fluttered open three hours later, it was to hear Bruce speaking gently. A hand that had been brushing through his hair paused for a moment, but when Tony quickly pretended to fall back under it started the movements again.

“I think we need to start letting him do some of the things he used to do. He may not be able to make a suit, but give him something to do with his hands.” Bruce was suggesting, speaking almost like he was a professional psychiatrist. Would they really risk letting Tony get his hands on machines? He had to withhold a snort at the idea.

“The simulation battle bots need work, and maybe he could make them a little tougher for you to beat? I could supervise him, and that way he’d start seeing that we trust him.” Bruce added.

Tony wanted to laugh, if they wanted him to help program fighter bots for simulated battles, they’d better be ready to face an army.

“You have to give trust to get it,” Bucky’s voice was right above him. Tony hadn’t expected the man to be the one running his hand through his hair, and startled.

Pretending that he had simply been jolted awake, the genius threw open his eyes and looked in feigned confusion around him. First, he noticed that Steve had taken a seat on the worn chair, what looked like a sketchpad sitting idly in his lap.

The man quickly realized that the pillow under his head was a leg, and that Bucky hadn’t bothered to stop the motion that Tony had associated with the blond man across from them.

Bruce was standing by the bed, looking non-threatening as he smiled softly at Tony.

“What’s happening?” He wanted an award for his acting skills.

“Hey sweetheart, how would you feel about helping us with some machines?” Steve leaned forward, setting the sketch pad on the nightstand as he smiled gently.

“What machines?” Tony sat up slowly, allowing Bucky to help him with a steady arm on his back. He gave Bruce a confused look, using a hand to wipe at his eyes to brush away any reminiscence of sleep.

“We have the bots that you created a long while back, that help us simulate real fights. We’ve broken several of them, and figured maybe you could help us program them to be a little tougher, fix them up?” Steve inquired.

Tony acted stunned, letting it show on his face even as he tried to calculate exactly what he could do to make the bots actually kill the people in front of him. “You’d… you would let me actually use machinery?”

Bucky chuckled from behind him, rubbing his metal hand up and down his back in a familiar motion. “Doll, you’re precious. It’s your passion! One of us will be with you, but yeah, you get to fix the bots if you want to.”

“Okay…” Tony lets his shoulders drop as if he had been holding tension in them. His only true fear being that they would see through his act.

“I’d love to, when can I start?” The man tried to pretend that the smiles on the men’s faces didn’t send a strange flutter through his heart. His hand going into a fist as he pressed his fingers into is palm. Three squeezes, three and he’d see his real family.

“Let’s get you something to snack on, and Bruce will take you,” Bucky all but cooed as he moved away from Tony to grab whatever dish they’d made for him.

------------------------------------

Not having Bucky and Steve coddling him makes breathing a little easier. Of course, being under a machine covered in oil and grease also relaxes Tony unlike anything else. Even if the other scientist is supervising, Bruce seems to trust him enough to let him do as he pleases.

He keeps an eye out to make sure that Tony isn’t trying to build a suit or stealing pieces to use in the room, but otherwise, he sits at a table and looks over paperwork.

The battle bots have been worn down, but it won’t take him longer than a few hours to get them all up to speed. It isn’t hard to convince Bruce that in order to make the bots actual worthwhile adversaries, he’s going to have to recode their programing.

What he doesn’t tell the man is that he’s making the things specifically target the team so that when they try to shut down the system, the bots will override the code and continue attacking. The only way anyone will be able to stop the attack will be to completely destroy each bot systematically.

“Lunch time!” Bucky calls into the room, walking in carrying two plates. He sets one in front of Bruce before walking over to settle next to Tony, the man not emerging from under the bot.

“Tony,” he murmurs, trying to get the genius’ attention.

“Just leave it on the floor; I’ll grab it when I’m done!” He calls out to him, eyes focused on an open panel where he’s fixing wires that have come undone.

“Take a break doll, you need to eat,” Bucky puts a hand on Tony’s leg, a threat that he’ll pull the man out if he doesn’t appear on his own.

With a sigh Tony sets down his tools and rolls out, unable to hide the annoyed look on his face. He’s glad that Bucky only seems to find it endearing, smiling from ear to ear as he holds out a huge sandwich he’s made for the brunette.

Removing the gloves that Bruce had insisted he wear, Tony doesn’t bother cleaning the smudges on his hands as he reached forward and snatches one half of the sandwich, stuffing it in his mouth. Bucky laughs, ruffling Tony’s hair fondly.

Bucky takes a seat next to him, settling down to simply watch Tony eat. He snatches a few of the chips for himself, grinning when he gets another annoyed look from the genius. They had heard of Tony’s habits of disappearing for hours into the labs, and both he and Steve wanted to make sure that the genius was taking his health into consideration.

If that meant forcing Tony to eat, they would do it. Fortunately, it appeared as if the genius had no qualms about eating whatever Bucky cooked, if judging by the begrudged looks he’d get anytime he stole a homemade chip.

When Tony finishes his meal, Bucky doesn’t leave right away. Choosing to watch as the man scoots back under the machine and starts working. He doesn’t make a comment about the fact that Tony doesn’t bother putting on the gloves.

“How long until these are done?” Bucky asks, glancing around at the room where three fourths of the bots are already fixed.

“An hour, two if you keep talking,” Tony replies.

His sass is amusing, and Bucky doesn’t hide his affectionate laugh as he moves to stand and leave Tony to his work. “Alright, I’ll get the team ready to try them out.”

He doesn’t see the dark smile that lifts the corner of Tony’s lips, one hand clenched in a fist.

---------------------------------------------------------

“So you don’t participate? Don’t you have to train your giant green monster?” Tony raises a brow, sitting in his wheelchair as he peers into the large room beyond the glass window.

“The Hulk doesn’t need to train, if he’s out, then its destruction,” Bruce explains, his hands flying over a control board pressing a variety of buttons as he sets the battle simulation for the team.

Tony nods, using his good leg to stand so that he can lean forward and get a clear view of the large training room.

The entire team has assembled; full gear ready to fight the bots that the genius has enhanced. He doesn’t want to admit that the Captain looks good in his tight uniform, doesn’t miss the smile thrown up at their booth when Bucky sees him looking.

Clint, grinning like a loon, waves up at Tony as he moves to climb up a faux building. Ready to take his perch as the large clock in the room starts a countdown.

“Well, let’s see what your programing has done,” Bruce comments, sitting back as the control board sinks so that the two of them can practically press against the window to watch the action.

Tony hides his nerves well, eyes zeroing in on the countdown as it reaches zero. Chaos ensues.

Immediately, the bots are moving, going after each avenger with skills that they had never had before. The Black Widow barely dodges a sharp jab to her leg, and the team is shouting as they work to fight the machines that are slowly getting out of control. Beams shoot at the Falcon, the man taking to the air to dodge the deadly fire.

“Turn them off!” Steve shouts when Clint lets out a pained cry as one of the bots flings him to the ground.

Immediately, Bruce grabs the wheelchair and pushes Tony back so that the control board can come up, hands flying as he attempts to abort the mission. And while the projections that make the room look like the city disappear, the bots continue to attack.

“Tony! How do I turn them off?” He shouts, looking at the genius who hides his grin with a shocked expression.

“It should be as simple as-“ he’s immediately cut off when the window explodes in front of them. The bots have been programmed to go after the Avengers, and there’s one in the booth.

With a shout Tony throws himself back, falling to the ground as Bruce flings himself forward, falling into the training room below as he slowly changes into the green monster he’s known for.

The genius only has one moment to breathe before two bots appear in the broken window, scanning the booth for an enemy. Tony releases a breath, but freezes when the machines zero in on him, guns revving up as they’re suddenly swinging forward.

Tony barely dodges, and with a startled yelp, he realizes that he’s made a grave mistake. He set the bots to go after the original team, and he’s Iron Man.

Rolling to dodge a beam that would have surely gone through him, Tony thanks his lucky stars that it goes through the door of the booth and allows him to slam it open. He staggers into the hallway, the bots on his tail as he ignores the shooting pain in his leg again as he runs.

He dodges several times, yelping as he hears the bots getting closer. He can also hear the team, chasing behind them in an attempt to stop the things from killing him.

“Tony!” Bucky screams, just in time to watch the genius trip and fall, barely dodging another shot from one of the bots.

The man lands on the ground hard, reaching forward and using whatever is within reach to try to raise himself up to his feet.

It takes him a moment to realize that he’s not holding onto a wall, but a solid black boot has stepped into his vision. With a frown Tony throws his head up, amused emerald eyes glittering down at him with familiarity.

“Reindeer games!” He can’t help but squeak out in surprise.

“It appears as if you are the most troublesome, still.” The man sounds a bit fond as he speaks, looking up and throwing a dagger from his belt. The thing goes straight through one of the oncoming threats, the bot staggering for a moment before it starts forward again.

Tony turns only slightly to see a hammer suddenly smashing through the machines, completely taking out their control systems so that they fall to the ground, broken.

“I guess I made them a little too strong?” Tony concedes when the rest of the team appears, looking out of breath. His leg is bleeding and he knows that he won’t be able to stand without help. “Whoops?”

Loki throws his head back and laughs.

Chapter Text

The accident was exactly that, an accident.

At least, that’s what the group believed as Steve lifted Tony into a chair that one of their cronies had retrieved. There was a huge hole on the top left of the chair where the bot had managed to hit the back, showing just how close the thing had been to actually hurting the genius.

There was no way to hide that his face went a little pale at the sight, but beyond that Tony didn’t react as he was set down so that he could face the god he had once defeated in some semblance of dignity. Not that he had much left.

Loki still wore a look of amusement as he observed the scene, although he didn’t speak as he watched both Bucky and Steve fuss over Tony to check his injuries. Bruce, whom had shown up last as he returned back to being a little guy, scoffed when he saw the slight red hue on Tony’s bandages.

“You opened your stitches… again.” Bruce threw a hand on his forehead, shaking his head. “Sam, you and Clint hold onto each other and follow me. Nat, I think you’re good to walk on your own?”

For the first time Tony took a second to look beyond the two super soldiers still hovering nearby and towards the rest of the team. He’s shocked to find that despite everyone being alive, the bots did some major damage.

Clint looks like he’s nursing a rather nasty cut on his own leg, Sam’s holding his arm close to his chest, his wrist looks like it’s facing the wrong way. Natasha has a straight cut near the vein on her neck that bleeds lightly and a large gash on the side of her stomach where her hands are pressed.

Everyone else looks fine, just ruffled from what they had faced. It appears as if Tony got off easy if he only reopened a wound.

“I got Tony,” Bucky volunteers, gesturing that Steve talk to the newcomers as the rest of the team starts to move.

“When you’re free,” Loki’s voice makes the whole team take pause; even Tony looks up to glance at the other in the face. “I would love to speak to you Tony. After all, we haven’t seen each other in…. a while.”

There was something in the smile that set Tony on edge, but the man nodded his head after a moment of hesitation before Bucky started to push the chair after the group. It was a slow pace, as most of them were hobbling down the hall, but eventually they made it into the medical bay.

Tony didn’t protest as he was lifted into a bed and made to lay against Bucky’s chest as Bruce unwraps the leg, whistling when he sees the wreck it’s become. Without waiting, the genius buries his face as far back as he can so that he’s practically hidden in Bucky’s bicep that’s wrapped around his torso.

The soldier hums, as if to comfort him, as Bruce starts the process of removing the broken stitches and fixing it up again. Tony doesn’t mind the needles considering how many injuries he’s had to deal with but looking at them seems to make it worse.

Bruce, having worked with Helen for so long outside of being the Hulk, had picked up several good skills. In moments he had finished stitching Tony up and turned to help the nurse they’d called in to take care of the other team members.

The arms around Tony flexed for a moment, causing the genius to release a squeak as he finally looked up to glance at his rebandaged leg.

Bucky hummed again, “I just want to wrap you up in bubble wrap doll, you’re prone to danger.”

“I’m not prone to danger,” Tony scoffs quietly, hoping that the conversation isn’t heard by the rest of the team. Unfortunately, Clint snorts from a medical table over.

“I finally understand why you wanted a metal suit around you at all times, you attract danger honeybee.” Clint teased, wincing slightly as the nurse pressed too hard on his injury.

Moving up as much as Bucky would let him, Tony turned to the archer with a brow raised. He would never admit that he was pouting. “Did you just call me honeybee?”

Clint laughed, “New nickname.”

“No, I am not a honeybee. You are not nicknaming me honeybee.” Tony admonished. “I swear if you call me that, I will find a way to make you regret it.”

Clint shrugged, not once looking up at Tony but the smirk on his face was evident. “I’d like to see you catch up to me with that leg, cripple.”

The genius let out a fake gasp of offense, throwing himself back against Bucky and ignoring the chuckling that was coming from the soldier above him. However, his expression quickly morphed from pouting to shocked when the soldier leaned down and planted a kiss on his lips.

It was quick, unexpected, and caught the man so off guard that he could only stare ahead blankly in shock.

Bucky pretended as if nothing had happened, arms wrapping further around the genius. They sat in silence for a while, listening to the sounds of the other’s getting fixed up and Sam complaining that his wrist was sprained.

“I’ll fix the bots,” Tony broke the silence between himself and the soldier. “Obviously, a little less tough this time.”

Bucky chuckled, leaning so that he could meet Tony’s eyes from above him. “Maybe you can program those bots to help us out in battle, make some new ones for the training session?”

The reminder of the group having supreme power of the outside world hit him like a brick to the face. It was scary, how quickly he could forget. He squeezed his palm once but didn’t dare do it again in case Bucky noticed that something was off.

“Yeah,” he agreed weakly. “I can do that.”
---------------------------------------------------------------------

Thor and Loki were invited to stay with the team, although the rooms were separated from the area in which the team had revealed to be their normal living quarters. They had been put in an area of guest rooms, so that they could easily gain access to the main rooms.

The genius had insisted that he could change out of his sweaty clothing on his own but was quickly ignored when Steve took over. Bucky disappeared to start dinner while the blond tried to convince Tony that the Captain America shield shirt was not tacky.

“I’m not wearing your shield on my chest, Steve. I’ll never hear the end of it from Clint,” he growled.

“Clint won’t say a word, I’ll make sure of it.” The blond reassured, holding the shirt higher as if that would convince the genius to take it. “Besides, the colors will look really good on you.”

Tony rolled his eyes, arms crossed over his bare chest as he glared daggers at the man. “No, I refuse. Pick something else.”

The blond frowned for only a moment before speaking, “okay, but whatever I pick next you have to wear.”

“Okay Golden Boy, whatever you choose next,” as the words left Tony’s mouth he instantly regretted them. A gleam in Steve’s blue eyes told him that it had all been a set-up, and he nearly rolled his eyes clearly out of his head when he saw the shirt.

Instead of the new shield shirt, the next choice was old. It had obviously been held onto for a while judging by how the logo on the front was fading. However, it was still easy to make out the shining words, “whose strong and brave, here to save the American way?” And on the back, “the Star-Spangled Man with a Plan.”

Clint was going to bury him alive.

“Come on!” Tony whined, “no!”

Steve laughed, and leaned forward. Just as Bucky had done so, the blond stole a laughing kiss from Tony before turning away to rummage through the dresser.

The genius was sitting in his shock when he found a Black Sabbath shirt thrown over his head to sit gently over his torso. Why wasn’t he protesting the physical contact he’d had with the two men? Was he that afraid to lash out?

Tony squeezed his hand into a fist, reminded of Wanda and her warning that he should try to grow closer to the group. To find their weakness. He was their last hope? Tony glanced up at Steve who was retrieving a wheelchair from the corner of the room.

They were screwed.

--------------------------------------------

Like they’ve been doing for the past days, dinner is served with everyone present. No one is absent for a mission or to deal with any uprising, and Thor and Loki have also been invited to the meal. And while Bucky and Steve have both taken a seat on either side of him, Tony can’t shake the amused looks that the trickster god continues to throw at him.

He has a feeling that the man suspects, if he doesn’t already know, that Tony isn’t as compliant as he’s put out to the rest of the team. Despite having defeated Loki, the genius could admit that the man was attentive about the important details, especially those that could mean his downfall.

Loki had probably taken one look at Tony’s “mistake” and realized that as an engineering genius, the bots wouldn’t have been so strong without some sort of purpose. Sure, he could have passed it off as Tony overestimating the strength of the Avengers, but that would have been hard to do for a man that had fought alongside them.

“Son-of-Stark!” Thor booms, his attention finally free from a rather loud conversation about weapons with Clint.

Tony, whom is trying to look sharply at his meal and not at Loki, startles at the sound. He catches glittering green eyes before meeting Thor’s grinning face. He wants to tell the god not to call him that, not to reference him to a man who didn’t care about him, instead he raises a brow.

“Will you be joining us in the suit of armor, comrade?” Thor asks.

There’s no hiding the small slump of his shoulders at the question, thinking about how he used to be able to fly in the armor. How it was a piece of technology that had both freed him, and ultimately imprisoned him.

“Tony’s got a nasty leg wound,” Steve answered for him. “It’ll need to heal before we even start talking about going outside the building.”

“And at the rate he’s going, that’ll take a few months,” Bruce added with a sigh.

“But you do have a lab, yes?” Loki spoke for the first time, raising his own brow at the genius. “You’re brilliant, to not put that to use would be an absolute waste of a soul.”

Again, he was taken by surprise. Tony hadn’t expected any sort of praise from a man whom he’d once helped imprison.

“Well, it was supposed to be a surprise,” Bucky drawled, catching Tony’s attention. “But yeah, he’s got a lab now. Bruce will work with him, or one of us, but he’s going to work on some of the gear for us.” The brunette looks down to meet Tony’s wide eyes, grinning lightly. “Surprise doll.”

Tony doesn’t know how to react. Would it be suspicious to get too excited? Would they take away the lab? We’re they so trusting that they would let him have access to something potentially deadly?

“Gear?” He finally settled on the one word.

Bucky grinned from ear to ear, and Tony wondered if the flip in his stomach was good or bad.
-------------------------------------------------

The lab wasn’t exactly up to par with what Tony was used to, but they had also explained that as time passed they would let him build it up to what he wanted. There were several metal tables set throughout the room, with a variety of tools on each.

Tony could easily pinpoint Bruce’s area, as it held more chemicals than he had any interest in playing with. His area, however, had different metals and equipment that would allow him to build whatever he needed to. Tony wondered if they were going to ask him to create weapons, because that would be a rude awakening.

Somethings, the man would refuse to do.

Pushing the wheelchair closer to one area where the table was adjustable to Tony’s chair height, Steve pointed towards several household items that looked a bit out of commission. “We figured start light, fix some of the broken stuff, maybe make it better?”

Tony could make out a toaster, a microwave, and a few other appliances sitting in the pile. It would take him less than a day to fix everything. He didn’t voice it, though. Perhaps, he could take small pieces and hide them away to create his own means of escape.

“I want to fix the coffee machine,” Tony finally spoke up.

“There’s nothing wrong with the coffee machine,” Bucky retorted, leaning against one of the tables.

“Steve just said I can make things better, that’s the first thing I want to work on. It can be right after breakfast, but I want to fix it.” Tony continued as if he hadn’t heard the actual protest in the man’s voice.

“Fix it how?” Steve asked, arms crossed as he looked down at the man in front of him.

“Advance it. Less buttons, better coffee.” Tony shrugged.

“Okay, after breakfast, I’ll bring the coffee machine to the lab.” Steve was smiling, the look a little too fond as he watched Tony’s observance of the rest of the lab. They would be updating it more as they continued to trust him, let him have more freedom. However, the incident in the training room had been a little suspicious, but the fact that the bots had attacked Tony had settled Steve a bit.

They wouldn’t have done that if he had been attempting to get away.

“It’s time for bed,” Bucky grumbled. “You can start fixing the coffee machine tomorrow morning punk.” The brunette sauntered away from the two towards the door, Steve quickly grabbing a hold of Tony’s chair and following behind.

--------------------------------------------------------------

It’s the usual silence, the two soldiers on either side of Tony as they face the quiet film they’ve selected for the night. He’s expected to sleep first, especially since the two men claim that they don’t need as much rest as a regular person due to the serum.

Tony can’t bring himself to close his eyes, and although he doesn’t sit up like the two around him, it’s easy to tell that he’s not even attempting to sleep. His brain racing a mile a minute, trying to figure out his reaction from the unexpected affection he’d received throughout the day.

He had fully expected to be free or in a jail cell, so his current predicament wasn’t something he’d even thought out. He also had a bad feeling that Loki would be doing something against him, that he would tell the group of Tony’s true intentions in the training room.

When the teenager in the film speaks, Tony let’s himself reminisce about the kid that he would never see again. How was Peter? How were the others? He was sure that by this point the princess and spider-kid had probably made a fearsome team. In a way, he pitied the country for having to deal with two super geniuses who hadn’t quite developed a sense of what not to say yet… not that Tony could judge.

He couldn’t withhold a small chuckle at the thought of T’Challa attempting to stop the two from some crazy experiment.

The sound caught Steve’s attention, who frowned despite the genius’ good humor. He sighed and reached to his side, grabbing a small device from the nightstand.

“Hey, you should be going to sleep. Can’t work in the lab tired, it’s too dangerous.” Steve gently scolded, holding what looked to be like a small phone in his hand. “I was going to give this to you tomorrow, but I figured you may have something soothing in here that’ll help you sleep.”

Tony, finally focusing on the device, felt himself freeze. The expression was washed from his face quickly, the shock at seeing Peter’s music player held gently by the very man that had separated them. Did they know that this was something he’d created for the kid? Probably not, or they wouldn’t be handing it to him.

“We found it among your things at the bunker, figured it might be good to have. If I remember reading correctly, you like to play music while you create, right?” Bucky added.

With a nod, Tony reached forward and snagged the small device. He easily stuck the earphones into his ears and turned the sound on, searching quickly through the various playlists that Peter had created. He couldn’t stop the happy tears that were filling the corner of his eyes, the laugh at seeing playlists he’d forgotten existed.

“Don’t Change This Old Man.”

“Not for Tony.”

“Peter’s Super Secret Awesome Mix.”

“Lab Music.”

“Tony’s Old Man Music.”

“Rhodey’s Terrible Taste.”

Bucky raised a brow, a hand running through Tony’s hair as he watched the reaction. Again, the fond look Tony had seen in both the super soldier’s eyes. “Everything okay?”

Tony nodded, choosing Peter’s playlist that was filled with a mixture of rock, pop, and old classics. He turned to his side, curling so that he was facing Bucky with his back against Steve’s side.

He started to drift, only stirring when the sound was gone and the lights dimmed. Someone removed the earbuds, taking away the music player and setting it to charge nearby. Tony felt two sets of lips kiss his head, but didn’t protest as he burrowed into the warmth behind him.

In his exhaustion he spoke, “I want to build a room for Bruce…. It’ll help him.”

“Uh-huh,” a voice humored him gently.

“A Hulk room, so he can be all green and not destroy anyone… a hulk room…a green room.” He couldn’t stop the delirious chuckle, ignoring how someone chuckled above him.

“Go to sleep babe, we’ll talk tomorrow.” A voice gently encouraged him.

Tony’s brows furrowed, and he couldn’t help himself as tears started to stream out of his eyes, even if they were closed. “I miss Peter,” he admitted. “I miss my kid. I want my kid.”

Arms pulled him closer to the warmth, and he felt safer than he had in a long time. Tony finally drifted off as the voice promised gently, “we’ll get him for you.”

Chapter Text

Unlike what he had quickly grown used to, Tony realized that for the first time he was waking up alone. No Bucky wrapping an arm around his waist, no Steve to keep him warm with his bizarre furnace-like heat. It was a weird feeling that he couldn’t begin to acknowledge, but it grew even worse when he realized that he was the only person in the room.

There was a small part of him that would never admit that he missed the feeling of being completely enclosed in the men’s embrace. A sick, small part that wanted to preen at the attention and care they had started to give him, without the maltreatment.

Was Tony so deprived of attention that he craved Steve and Bucky already?

Shaking his head to tumble the thoughts from his brain, the genius glanced around the room with a frown. It was almost noon, so they hadn’t bothered waking him up early. Both men were absent, the room completely silent despite its downtown location.

Sure, Steve went for a morning run every day, but he always came back before waking Tony. And Bucky usually got up and woke him with a cup of freshly brewed coffee.

Where were they?

With a frown, Tony threw off the covers from his body and stumbled to his feet, rubbing at his eyes as he tried to shake away the sleep. He vaguely remembered the music player from the night before, but it was no longer where Steve had placed it on the nightstand.

Gazing around the genius decided he would just wear his pajamas, feet bare as he padded to the hall door to see if they had left it unlocked.

To his surprise, the door slid open without struggle. It took a moment to process that he didn’t have to fight to get out of the room, and Tony took a quick moment to look for guards outside the door.

He took a tentative step out onto the carpeted hallway, finding himself completely alone. Should he run? No, it was likely a test.

With a sigh he used the wall to support his bad leg and moved slowly in the direction of where he had mapped out the dining room and kitchen. Maybe he could get into the lab and start to work on some upgrades of the machines, steal a few pieces for his own devices.

Walking into the kitchen, Tony almost jumped a foot in the air at the sight of Natasha sitting casually at the counter, a sandwich sitting in front of her.

Another plate had been put beside the woman, covered up to keep in the heat but obviously freshly made, just waiting to be eaten. Before Tony could make his own presence known, the assassin glanced up and nodded her head towards the plate.

“Grilled cheese and tomato soup, it’s lunch time. I was going to go wake you after I finished eating, but obviously, you’re set.” She turned away, getting back to her meal like having Tony show up halfway through her lunch was routine.

With a grimace, he didn’t want to sit next to the human lie detector; Tony ambled to the seat and glanced down at the homemade meal.

It looked like someone had taken the time to make it just for him, and there was no way the genius could ignore the grumble in his stomach as he reached forward and started to practically inhale the food.

It wasn’t until he remembered Natasha sitting next to him that Tony sat straight and pulled the rest of what was left of the bowl of soup to his chest, sipping on it as he stared at her. She looked exactly like he remembered; nothing had changed other than the seat of power.

“Where’s Steve and Bucky?” He questioned lightly.

Natasha raised a brow, a characteristic that Tony wanted to smack right off her face. The tilt on the side of her mouth in amusement shot a sinking filling in the pit of his stomach.

“They went to go fetch something for you, they’ll be back soon.” She shrugged. “Steve had me put the coffee machine down in your lab, said you can tinker on it until they get back.”

Fetch something? What could they possibly be getting for Tony?

With a sigh the man set down his empty bowl of soup and leaned back in the chair. “Can you show me how to get down to the lab again? I don’t think I can figure it out on my own at the moment… didn’t pay as much attention as I should have yesterday.”

The redhead laughed before standing, taking both their empty dishes and throwing them in the sink. It was weird, seeing her in civilian clothing when she moved like a predator stalking their prey.

“Let’s go,” she held out a hand, not complaining when Tony didn’t take it, but stood up on his own. “Loki is in the tower, but he’s banned from your lab. We don’t know if he held a grudge against you and don’t want to risk anything. If you see him, you scream, got it?”

Tony snorted, “I’m not a damsel in distress ‘Tasha.”

“No, you’re a genius in distress. Scream.” She admonished, moving at a slower pace so that Tony could keep up as they made their way towards the lab that he had been gifted.

Tony rolled his eyes, unable to suppress the urge. “Fine, I’ll scream, happy?”

Natasha paused to look back at him, “positively ecstatic.”

-----------------------------

They had left him the coffee machine, alongside it the music player that Steve had given him the night before.

Banner was surprisingly absent, but the assassin had warned him that they had other ways of watching his actions. Thus, Tony was to behave if he wanted to return to the lab. He figured, he had to start slow and continue to gain their trust if he wanted to actually build something to defeat the insane group of former heroes.

The first thing the man did was rig an old speaker to the music player, blasting the music as soon as Natasha left. After that, it hadn’t taken very long for the man to get lost in the appliances they’d left behind for him.

Some of it was updated, others had new upgrades that were completely unnecessary but would likely be deemed “cool” by Clint.

Tony got so lost in his work, that he didn’t notice the presence that had entered the lab until a hand had gently rested on his shoulder.

With a scream Tony would never admit to, he threw the screwdriver in his hand at the stranger, watching in stunned shock as it stopped seconds from smacking Loki in the face.

The god looked just as amused as he had at the dinner the night before, green eyes sparkling as he lifted a hand to grab the tool. Without a word, he released his hand from Tony’s shoulder and put the tool on the counter. He walked around the genius and leaned against the table, so that he was closer to eye level with Tony’s sitting posture.

A green fog enveloped them both, muting the blasting music and showing Tony just how quiet the room was without the sound blasting.

He murmured gently, eyes never breaking from Loki’s gaze. “What are you doing in here?”

The god laughed, running a hand through his hair as he shook his head. “Tony, Tony, Tony… as if I wouldn’t find some alone time to speak with you. The Avengers believe that I’m still in the library, and they still see you tinkering away at your….toys…”

He waved a hand towards the fixed appliances, never looking away from Tony. “Now, I want to speak to you about what you’re doing here. Did you really think I’d be fooled by your accidental bots?”

Tony frowned, “what do you want?”

“Me? Nothing. I have possibly everything I could have asked for, and more. But you, I find you so amusing.” Loki crossed his arms in front of his chest, smile wicked as he stared at Tony.

“I just want to see what’s going to happen. Who will come out on top. Will you end up defeating the former Avengers? Or are they going to find your friends and defeat your spirit?” Loki asked.

Immediately defensive, Tony glared at the man. “They’re not getting near my family. They don’t even know where to look.”

“Wakanda,” Loki replied, laughing when all the color left Tony’s face.

“Don’t worry, I won’t be saying anything. I just want you to know that I’m quite aware of what you’re doing. I only want to stand by and watch, see the outcome, watch the show.”

“Why?” Tony questioned. “Why aren’t you telling them? Aren’t you on their side?”

Loki sneered, “I’m not on anyone’s side but my own. I’ll help you Tony, but only when the time comes that you may need it desperately. I have to go, or they’ll suspect something. Keep it up genius boy, you’re making my life a lot more amusing.”

Within the blink of an eye, Loki was gone and Tony was alone in the workshop. The fog had cleared and the music continued to play as if nothing had ever happened.

How had he known where Tony’s family was?
------------------------

It was dinnertime and the soldiers had yet to return from where they’d disappeared to. Without the two of them, Tony had pitched the idea of a Hulk room to Banner, and the other scientist had actually agreed that it could be a great idea.

For the life of him, Tony could not begin to figure out what the two men had gone looking for. No matter how much he tried to dig into his own memories, he couldn’t remember a conversation that spoke of them leaving.

He went to sleep alone that night, and the cold of the room haunted Tony. Curled up under the covers of the huge bed, he felt the emptiness that the absence of the two men left behind. It was strange, feeling a small pang of hurt in his chest at the idea that he’d be sleeping alone. He’d grown so used to their warmth.

Sleep didn’t come easy that night for Tony, he found himself having rolled into different positions every few minutes attempting to get comfortable. When he’d find himself relaxed, thoughts of where the men were would plague his mind, along with guilt at worrying over their wellbeing.

What would his family say if they saw him? What would Rhodey say?

By the time morning came around Tony was more than happy to stumble out of the bed and into the dining room, finding that Bruce and Sam had taken the liberty of making him breakfast. He convinced the two of them that he needed to test out his coffee machine, and got away with drinking three separate cups before they caught on and restricted his access to the machine for his own health.

Bruce escorted him to the lab and spent several hours in his own corner as Tony tinkered with a microwave that Thor had managed to break. The man created settings for all kinds of foods, trying to keep his mind off the fact that there was a piece of him that could only linger in despair at the absence of the two soldiers.

When the whole day passed without sign of either Steve or Bucky, Tony found himself pacing in their room. He had a slight limp, but that didn’t deter the movements as he tried to piece where they could have possibly gone.

Three days later, and he was sure that he was going crazy. He’d tried the palm trick, and while memories of his family had flashed before his eyes, the loneliness only seemed to grow. He hid the fact that he wasn’t sleeping rather easily from the rest of the team.

They didn’t speak much, and if he did talk to Clint it was a lot of provoking. The group, while they spent time with him, hadn’t made Tony their sole focus. He was often left alone to tinker with the appliances, or to hang out alone in the bedroom.

One week later and Tony was more compliant than they’d ever seen him.

The bags under his eyes had turned a dark shade of purple that looked almost painful. His movements were sluggish, and Bruce had at one point banned him from his lab when he’d accidently blown up a hair dryer he’d been working on for Natasha.

Tony hadn’t argued, only curled into the bed and tried desperately to set his mind at ease to allow sleep to come. It didn’t.

He was drowning, unable to stop the feeling. It was wrong, to miss two people that had thoroughly messed up his life. They had taken away his family and tortured people in front of him, even taken things to a mildly physical level. But they were also affectionate. They listened to his rants, and adored that he was so into science. He couldn’t ever remember being around people who seemed to really want to take care of him.

Half of him wanted to scream. Scream like Natasha had insisted he do when he needed help. He was sure that the occasion called for it. To scream until the feelings bled away. He was sinking in quick sand, and there was nothing he could do.

Tony started to watch movies, mad at himself for carrying about the soldiers and missing them, but unable to stop the strange surge of feelings.

He was alone.

The team was there, but they had each other. And he was alone, like always.

It was almost two weeks later that Tony, whom had finally taken a shower and eaten some soup due to threats from both Sam and Natasha, lay curled up in the newly cleaned sheets of the bed that the worst happened.

The man had settled absentmindedly on an action film, and had been paying half attention when the main character was suddenly being tortured for information in the desert.

A hand seemed to move forward and squeeze his heart, and as Tony tried to veer his attention away from the screen there was no stopping the whimper as the room started to spin, closing in on him. He found himself unable to catch his breath, and soon enough the room was gone and nothing but the sounds of the group that had tortured him in the desert surrounded him.

Hands tried to tear away at his own, in which he’d thrown up against his chest to keep the arc reactor safe.

He knew that he was screaming, somehow it processed in his brain, but there was nothing he could do to stop the reaction as the hands kept prying away at his body. With another scream, Tony threw himself backwards, only to find he’d landed on another one of his torturers.

One of them was telling him to breathe. Tony looked up with every intention of telling the person to go to hell when brown eyes clashed with concerned blue. He recognized the eyes immediately, and didn’t stop the knee jerk reaction as he lurched forward and latched onto the man’s shirt.

“Steve!” He all but whimpered, sobbing in broken cries as he tried to breathe.

A hand rubbed up and down his back, reassuring and reminding him that he was not alone. But he needed to be sure; he needed to make sure that Steve was real and not a figment of his imagination.

Without warning, Tony threw himself forward again and planted his lips against the blonds. He received an instant reaction when warm arms wrapped around him, the heat of the very real body slowly making way into his overtired brain and processing as reality.

Steve pulled back after a moment, concern and adoration shining in his blue eyes. “You’re okay sweetheart, you’re okay.”

Tony merely whimpered, burying his face at Steve’s collarbone as he tried to process what he had gone through. Steve was back, when had that happened?

“I brought some soup and a sleeping pill,” Bucky spoke gently from over Steve’s shoulder.

With a frown, the genius glanced up to see a smiling brunette staring down at the two of them on the bed. He finally managed to pull enough away to look at the two, processing what he was seeing.

“You don’t look so good, doll.” Bucky all but whispered. “Haven’t been sleeping or eating much, I hear.” The man set down the platter he had in his hand onto the side table, raising a brow at the ruffled looking Tony.

“You’re back,” Tony replied after a moment of silence.

“Yeah, we weren’t supposed to be gone so long, but things kind of turned out a little different.” Bucky shrugged, leaning forward to run a hand through Tony’s hair.

He grimaced, “you’ve been sweating from your attack. Stevie’s gonna put you in the shower and then we’re going to get you into bed, okay?”

Tony merely tightened his hold on Steve’s shirt, as if he were afraid the soldier would simply disappear and leave him alone again.

Instead, the blond stood and scooped the genius into his arms without hesitation. He nodded at Bucky as he carried the man to the bathroom, knowing the other soldier would be changing the bed sheets and getting everything ready for a good night’s rest for their former billionaire.

Steve found himself pleased when the genius gave a whimper at being put down, but it didn’t last long as Tony curled closer to the man under the spray of the shower.

Quick and proficient, they’d both noticed the dark circles under Tony’s eyes, the blond got the man cleaned up and dressed. Bucky had then taken Tony and put him in his lap, the new bed covers curling around them.

He was spoon fed soup and made to lay down between them, two arms covering his body to keep him warm.

Tony lay on his side, his back to Bucky as his front faced Steve, both men watching him with concern in their eyes.

“I… I didn’t think you were coming back,” Tony confessed quietly.

Steve smiled softly, “sweetheart, we wouldn’t ever let you go.” He brushed a stray hair from Tony’s face, looking enamored.

“But, people always leave.” Tony argued.

Bucky buried his face in the crook between Tony’s neck and shoulder, looking comfortable as he spoke just loud enough that the two occupants could hear him. “We will never leave you Tony, you’re ours doll.”

The arm around Tony’s waist tightened.

“Then where did you go?” Tony questioned, eyes meeting Steve’s light blue gaze.

A grin formed on the soldiers face, and he seemed to glow as he answered. “We went looking for something for you, we found it.”

And suddenly, the feeling of dread Tony had forgotten existed filled the bottom of his stomach. “Something for me? What?”

He could feel Bucky’s grin against his skin. “Not something, doll; someone.”

Chapter Text

Tony had frozen at the confession from the brunette, unable to process what had been said. Had they gone out and found his family? Had Jarvis truly allowed someone to get captured when it had been his creators last request to prevent it from happening?

“Who?” The word came out strangled, his hand fiddling with the covers beneath them to hide just how nervous he was becoming.

It didn’t work, as Bucky pulled back and moved them so that Tony was laying flat on his back, staring up at the two men that had identical grins on their faces. The dread was starting to outweigh the warmth the smiles sent down his spine, trying desperately to figure out what had happened in their time away.

“Well, it wasn’t exactly what we were hoping for, but we figured it was the next best solution.” Bucky explained after a quiet moment. “And we know that you miss your kid, and you’re still a little nervous about telling us where he is, so we tried to find him.”

Tony felt the air get trapped in his body, unable to breathe for a moment as he processed what he had been told. They had gone after Peter! They had gone after the child that had ultimately brought a light to his days in the bunker.

“We couldn’t find him though,” Steve continued.

Without any control of his actions, Tony sagged into the bed in relief. He couldn’t begin to imagine what would happen to the kid if he had been brought in. But that still begged the question, if they had been gone for so long, whom had they found that they thought Tony would be excited to see?

“But we wanted to see if we could find at least someone that you could… mentor? Raise?” Steve’s smile lit up his entire face as he spoke. Like whomever they had brought in would appease Tony’s need for Peter.

Although, what would they do to the individual if Tony said no?

“She was a little bit of a spitfire when we brought her in, older than your kid. But we had some help from Loki and now she’s about thirteen. Still a spitfire, but she’ll be able to work with you.” Steve explained, reaching over to grab the sleeping pill that Bucky had brought with him earlier.

They’d taken a person and de-aged them? Tony knew it was possible with the strange magic that Loki possessed… but did they seriously think just anyone could keep up with his genius? Not that it mattered, he’d protect the kid from whatever crazy antics the two men had planned.

“Here, take this and you can meet her in the morning when you wake up,” Steve held out the pill and a bottle of water.

He didn’t protest as Bucky helped him sit up, conceding to the pill and finding himself still relieved that Peter was not the person they had captured. The idea helped wash away some of the feelings he’d started having for the two men, helped to remind him that maybe the loneliness was better.

“Go to sleep doll, we’ll be here when you wake up.” Bucky planted a chaste kiss on Tony’s lips before leaning back and curling around him, the television turning on so that a movie played quietly in the background.

It didn’t take long for the genius to sink into oblivion.

---------------------------------------------

Her arms were crossed over her chest, eyes narrowed as she stood with her legs parted in front of Tony. Despite having been de-aged, she still had her wits with her, the intelligence shining in her too bright eyes told the genius all he needed to know.

“I did not sign up for this,” she reiterates for the hundredth time. “I do not want to be here.”

Tony shoots her a smile, sitting idly in the lab chair as Bruce lingers nearby, in case the genius needs help. Not that he would considering she’s almost half his size.

The young woman had been rendered powerless, likely in the same way they had obtained Wanda. However, Tony figured that it was only a matter of time before whatever device or injection they used would wear off, and she’d be free to run.

The girl had refused to help Tony since the moment they had left the two of them to their own devices several hours back.

As promised, Bucky had woken him with coffee that morning, and Steve had been sitting nearby reading through some reports. The two had fussed and helped him get ready for the day, before wheeling him to breakfast with the team. He had been more talkative with the group, even laughing at a few of Clint’s jokes. No one remarked that the spark Tony had been missing was suddenly back.

The girl hadn’t been present until they’d taken him down to the lab after the meal. They had explained that some scientists were working on making sure she was safe to be around Tony, and that Bruce had gone to fetch her. They had also promised that they would not be leaving the building anytime soon before leaving Tony to work on Clint’s arrows, the first weapon they’d let him touch.

“You’re really intelligent,” Tony finally spoke, making the observation with a raised brow as he shot a look at the girl over his shoulder. “I know you don’t want to be here,” and it seemed the words seemed to settle something in the teenager. She heard the unspoken words, that he had no choice in the matter either, they were both stuck.

Taking a moment, she raised her hands and threw her hair into a ponytail. They’d put her in the same sports and baggy clothing that they’d been giving Tony. No jeans or anywhere they could really store things. Just sweats, socks, and a t-shirt.

She held out her hand for him to shake, “Carol Danvers.”

Tony grinned, putting down the wrench he’d had in his hand to engulf her tiny hand with his own. “Tony Stark, it’s nice to meet you.”

“I’m not a child, you know that right?” She inquired.

He couldn’t stop the laugh, Loki was one tricky bastard. The god had easily conceded to the soldier’s request, but he had not completely changed the girl, no, woman in front of him.

“How old were you?” Tony asks.

“You never ask a lady her age, Mr. Stark,” she conceded. With a grin the blond stepped forward and pulled one of the rolling chairs to Tony’s table, plopping herself down and seeming to relax for the first time since Tony met her. “But let’s just say…. Mid-twenties?”

He nodded, not at all bothered by the lack of information. She was obviously being held against her will but had been smart enough to figure out that he was in the same situation.

Carol had also observed enough to know that he was likely her only chance at survival in the crazy situation and would make an easy ally.

“Never ask a lady her age,” he repeated. “Pepper used to say that to me all the time followed by telling me that I had no tact.”

Carol smirked, reaching forward and picking up one of the arrows. “So, Mr. Stark, how long have you been here?” Her words were quiet, not that Bruce was trying to pick up on the conversation. The other scientist had turned his sole focus to the chemicals on his table the moment he’d realized that Carol wouldn’t try to hurt Tony.

“Too long,” he admitted softly, his words softening the amused look in her eyes.

The silence stretched for too long, because Bruce finally looked up with something akin to concern. Tony knew that they would be reporting whatever happened between him and the now child, so he forced a smile and broke the silence with a harsh laugh.

“Alright kid, let’s set you up so you can help me fix these arrows, yeah?”

And Carol was smart enough to catch on that they were being watched, because she smiled just as brightly back and nodded her head.

-------------------------------------------

The conversation had flowed between the two of them like they’d known each other their whole life. They even bantered playfully like Tony had often done with Peter, although his kid was truly the age and not a product of magic.

“So not a mutant, but not completely human?” Tony had been left alone with Carol when Bruce had gone to fetch everyone lunch, and the scientist hadn’t returned yet. Their conversation was held over the sound of a hammer and a drill machine, keeping it mostly private if they were being recorded.

“I was born human,” she explained. “But there was an…” she paused, looking for the right word. “Accident… and let’s just say I’m not a mutant, but I’m not entirely human either.”

“I get that,” Tony shrugged at her incredulous look, smiling as he spoke. “My kid isn’t a mutant, but a radioactive spider bit him, and now he’s the cutest spider there ever was. And trust me, he’s the only spider I like,” he added.

“So, what can you do?”

Carol frowned, shrugging as she started the drill again. “I’ve had a lot of jobs, so developed some skills from that.” She pointed towards her arm, where Tony finally spotted a small red dot that looked irritated. So, he realized, they had inserted something into her.

“Usually, I can take to the sky, fire some pretty powerful blasts from my hands, and I’m pretty on level with Captain America’s abilities too.” She laughed, “I’d say they should give me a similar moniker, but he’s tarnished it.”

“And whatever they put in you, it’s blocked those abilities?” He raised a brow, a look quickly becoming commonplace on his face.

She shrugged, slightly raising a hand to show that the tips of her fingers glowed. Tony was quick to slap it down, hiding it from whatever camera might have been aimed at them.

“Temporarily blocked it, at least,” she grinned. “But when they come back, I’m getting out of here.”

Tony believed it, and right then and there decided he’d do whatever he could to make sure she got out of the building alive.

“Keep it under wraps, don’t fight them. When the time comes for you to get out of here, I’ll help.” He put down the hammer, taking a seat to put the pressure off his bandaged leg.

“Don’t you want to come with me?” She asked.

A bitter smile lifted the corner of his lips. “Even if I did, your chances of getting out without me are a lot better.”

Carol frowned, setting down her own tools and sitting down beside the genius. “You’ve been in here too long, if you’re thinking that way.”

Before Tony could form a response, Bruce and Bucky entered the room carrying two plates each. Bruce placed one plate in front of Carol while Bucky moved a chair, so he was sitting side by side with Tony. He grinned at the two, looking back and forth like an expectant child.

“So, Carol? You’re being nice to Mr. Tony, aren’t you?” Bucky asked, placing the plate of what looked like spaghetti and meatballs on Tony’s lap.

The blond scowled, looking like she wanted nothing more than to punch the living daylights out of the soldier. Instead, she nodded and started eating her own food, glaring daggers at Bucky as she ate.

-----------------------------------------------

While Tony had protested being separated from Carol, he had stopped begging rather quickly when he realized the looks he’d gotten from the two soldiers. Despite everything, he needed to behave if he wanted to give the girl a chance at getting away.

He’d given her the advice to act like an unknowing child, and then had explained to Bucky that she had been distressed because she couldn’t remember where she was and thought she had been kidnapped. It was easy to convince the men that she was truly a child, and not for the first or last time, he’d question what Loki was up to.

Tony had even managed to get a promise out of Steve that the girl wouldn’t undergo any sort of torture. That she would be simply kept in her room and fed regularly, like she deserved.

He curled up that night in bed and tried to keep his mind off of where they were keeping Carol for the night.

--------------------------------

Several days passed with the same routine.

Tony would eat breakfast with the team, then get put in the lab with Carol, and finally get whisked off to “hang out” with the two super soldiers until dinner. They’d sleep together, and share kisses that Tony was growing less and less resistant against.

In fact, he’d initiated some of these affections.

After one morning where he’d reached forward and planted a kiss first on Steve and then Bucky before they left the lab, Tony had had a moment of pure panic. It was on this day that he and Carol really bonded.

Clenching the crutches he was finally allowed to use as they were no longer worried that the stitches wouldn’t hold, Tony wobbled as quickly as he could to his area of the lab. Carol was already there, moving to throw a chair directly across from him as if she sensed his unease.

Glancing up to catch her eye, the genius took a moment to observe the small dot on her arm where her skin was consistently irritated. They injected her daily so that her powers wouldn’t return, and Tony had taken to keeping a close eye on her health to monitor any negative affects the injection could have.

Carol never looked sick, just more and more pissed as the days continued to pass.

What the group didn’t know was that her body had also started to build an immunity to the injection. Like Wanda, she was slowly gaining her powers back. At one point during their time together, Tony had had to throw a rag on top of her hands to hide that her fingers were glowing like embers.

Taking a moment to catch his breath, he plopped himself into the chair across from Carol and leaned forward. His eyes were panicked, thinking on how he was absolutely growing dependent on the two men, and how the affection only left him feeling warm and not sick.

“Remind me,” he asked softly. “Remind me that we’re not here of our own free will, that we’re captives.” His voice wavered at the end, a clear sign that Tony was truly panicking.

Glad that they were alone, Carol inched herself forward and grabbed both of his hands into her own, a warmth from her fingers settling the genius as he slouched a bit.

The group had started to leave them alone after realizing that with her size and lack of powers, there was no way she could harm Tony. And with the genius being so compliant of everyone’s demands and his new life, no one questioned that he would try anything funny. Not anymore.

“Your name is Tony Stark.” Carol started, making sure they had eye contact as her words came out clearly. “You were taken by two super dicks a few months ago. They tortured people in front of you, and they hurt you. They hurt your kid, your family, and took everything you loved away.

They keep you locked up so that you grow dependent on them. They have a sick twisted idea that they’re in love with you, and because you’re only having this interaction all the time, you’re starting to believe it. You’re starting to believe that you love them too.

But you’re not Tony. You’re strong. And you will get away from them.

My name is Carol Danvers. I was brought here against my will. I was de-aged by a monster god. I’m forced to get an injection each day to curb my powers, so that neither of us can escape.”

She squeezed their hands, leaning so that their foreheads were almost touching. “You are Tony Stark, and you and I will get out of here, together.”

Carol continued to repeat the mantra until Tony’s shoulder slouched, his poster relaxing as her words cleared his head. He didn’t touch his palm, having a real person grounding him to reality helped. A part of his brain still argued that what the soldiers were doing was affectionate… was love. A part him still wanted to believe that he’d never have to worry with the two men by his side.

Carol, like Pepper, brought him back to earth.

A sad smile lifted the corner of his lips, “since you’re so adamant that we’re both getting away… You need a nickname.”

Carol didn’t comment on the change of subject, knowing that the man needed to focus on something other than his distress. It would only send him into a panic attack which would lead the soldiers into coddling Tony and possibly throwing his mentality further into the recess of confusion.

He glanced down at the faded letters on her shirt, making out only two visible letters. C.M.

“How about I call you my cuddly minion?”

Carol frowned, leaning back although she didn’t loosen her grip on Tony’s hands. “What?”

“Everyone I consider to be one of my people, my… family, get’s a nickname. Rhodey is Platypus or Honeybear, Peter is Kid, so I can’t call you that even if it would fit.” Tony deftly dodged a pencil thrown at his head as Carol whisked her hand to the counter beside them.

“So how about cuddly minion? Or cuddly monster?” He nodded towards the two letters on her shirt.

From the glare he received, Tony shrugged. “Help me out here Carol. I need a good name for you, and I’m working with those two letters. It can’t be Carol Minion…. It’s needs to be something fantastic, amazing!”

“Marvelous?” She cut in sarcastically, brow raised, hands now free as they crossed over her chest in a defiant stance. Completely unamused.

Tony clapped his hands, laughing when she jumped a little at his excitement. “Yes! That’s perfect! You’re marvelous! You’ve saved me from myself a few times already! You’re my cuddly marvel!”

“If you’re going to use a c-word to describe me, that’s not the one I’d use,” she drawled.

Both of them paused for a moment before bursting out into laughter, thinking the same thing. Carol, now grinning, shrugged and added, “I used to be a captain in the Air Force… if that helps?”

Tony’s smile was bright. “Alright, Captain Marvel then.”

Carol returned the smile.

Chapter Text

There was no surprise that the nickname Tony had given Carol was quickly discovered by the rest of the team. Bucky had been the one to step forward and ask about its origin, wanting to make sure that nothing was amiss amongst their genius and the newly de-aged super-powered girl.

Tony, ever so quick on his feet, had slipped an easy smile and explained that he had “adopted” Carol as one of his own. That when he had taken in Peter, the boy’s nickname had quickly turned into a simple “kid,” and it had been the factor that had truly bonded them. Well, a small part of the reason anyway.

The team had believed it, although Bruce was a consistent presence in the lab. If he was unavailable, someone would hang around to ask questions, or simply to observe and make sure things were going alright.

It had been almost a month, and Tony had had only one other panic attack where Carol had to remind him of the reality of their situation. With this in mind, he’d convinced the group to bring Carol into their trainings, claiming that she could help them considering she was also a super human who cared for the genius.

And while Tony still wasn’t allowed to create an Iron Man suit (Steve claimed that he didn’t want him to put himself in any kind of danger), he was given better tech to work on.

It was only because of his history with the press that Tony managed to hide the fact that he was slowly stealing pieces of tech that he was given. Rationing them to create a carefully constructed suit to aid Carol in her eventual escape.

Affection between the two super soldiers and himself had grown. They hadn’t quite moved passed kissing, but the genius was growing more comfortable with their attention. He’d even convinced Steve to give him an old watch that he would update as a gift for his “new kid” by giving the man a rather passionate lip lock.

He’d used the watch to hide the suit, nano-technology that would completely eliminate the chance of Carol’s escape plans being discovered.

Tony’s growing fondness for Captain Marvel both warmed and worried him. Warmed him, because he knew that her affection did not come with a cost, and she truly did have traits that reminded him of his family. And worried, because even he could admit that life had turned extremely confusing since her arrival.

While the reality was still that he was a prisoner, there were things that had started to become skewed in his brain. No one had ever taken care of Tony like the two men, doting on him and making sure his health was up to par. He rarely worked through a meal, and had a sleeping schedule that he’d never taken on before. His body, while having lost some of the muscle, had grown healthy and content with the new regime.

He didn’t have to worry about being in danger, as they would never leave him alone when something potentially harmful was in the area.

Without his helmet to block him from the rest of the team, Tony had even started to joke with Sam at dinner. He’d pulled a prank or two with Clint (although the punishment hadn’t been harsh, as the two super soldiers had been pleased he’d started to fit in). He’d even spared with Natasha when she’d claimed to the two soldiers that he had to at least have the means to protect himself if something happened. It was one of the reasons he still had some muscle left.

At night, he’d started to enjoy the warmth and the cuddles from the two bodies surrounding him. They’d often flip him depending on who wanted to spoon him that night, but no matter the choice, he was always warm and cozy. The nightmares from his time in Afghanistan all but gone in the presence of the two walls of solid muscle.

Life was, in a sense, right where it needed to be for Tony.

He’d watched the affection between the two men, and had found himself aching to have it too. It was one of the reasons that they had started to openly show that Tony was quickly becoming a part of their relationship. Hell, he’d nearly taken it a step further when the two men had started to sleep in only boxers when he’d grown comfortable.

Tony didn’t mind that Carol (now fondly called Captain Marvel by the entire team) had started to disappear in the afternoons to train. He was a little jealous that he couldn’t do the same, but knew that it was a good way for her to find her escape. Tony understood he was a captive, and he missed his family terribly, but in the end… was he really that miserable?

If Carol escaped, truth was, Tony had no idea if he would be compelled to follow. His family hadn’t really tried to save him, so maybe everything was better that way?

---------------------------------------------------

One afternoon, when he and Carol had finally been trusted to work on things alone, he handed her the finished watch. At first she had been puzzled, glancing at the colors similar to Steve’s own uniform, before raising her brows at the grinning genius.

“A watch? Are you okay?” Carol slipped it on her wrist, watching as it tightened so that it wouldn’t fall off.

“It’s not just a watch,” Tony admitted quietly, leaning forward so that their words wouldn’t catch on any surveillance. “It’s a suit.”

At the look of confusion that hadn’t melted from her face, he held up her wrist and pointed towards the small round button on the side, the gold shining in the lights of the lab. “Recognize that?”

“Well, yeah. It’s so I can adjust time. I have used a watch before old man,” she replied sarcastically.

Tony rolled his eyes, “if I make a watch, it adjusts itself. Don’t insult me with thinking you’d have to do it on your own. No, that button is to release a suit. Your suit, Captain Marvel.”

Her eyes narrowed for a moment before observing the watch, and then grinning and stepping back so that the camera’s would catch the action.

“I absolutely love it Tony!” She moved forward, catching him in a hug that practically engulfed the man as they were about the same size.

“I’m assuming we have to trust it’s just going to work?” Tony smiled softly, nodding his head at her question. Carol pulled back from the embrace and beamed, staring at the watch in wonder.

“Did you, or are you making one for yourself?” Their voices were still quite, a habit that they’d picked up so that the team wouldn’t know that they were talking about subjects that weren’t acceptable to the super soldiers.

Tony paused, not sure how she would like the answer to her question. He trusted her to escape on her own, to get out of the building with the power and trust she was slowly gaining from the team. He didn’t know if he’d be able to go with her, or if she’d even have time go grab him before she disappeared into the sunrise.

“No,” he admitted softly. “You can’t come to save me, you have to leave when you have the chance.”

She frowned, “but they’ll know that you built this suit. There’s no way that they won’t realize that you’ve helped me get out of this situation.”

Tony shrugged, settling down in the nearby chair to look up at the astonished girl in front of him. “But they won’t hurt me, and if they get their hands on you if your escape fails… they’ll hurt you.”

Acting like the idea of getting punished for something like escape didn’t seem to faze the blond, as she all but swung herself into the seat next to Tony. Both staring quietly at the grey slab of the work area in front of them in thoughtful silence.

“Tony? Why do you think I’d leave you behind?” She finally breaks the silence.

The genius grins, smile weary and tired as he looks her in the eye. “I’m not worried about myself here. I’m worried about you. I know that you want out, but you can’t do it with someone like me trailing behind you. What if you were coming to the lab to free me, and got caught?” He shakes his head, thinking of all the things they’d both see if she didn’t get away successfully.

“I don’t want you to be alone.” He admitted.

Tony only hoped he’d get to see what the suit would look like before she disappeared from his life forever.

After a bit of quiet, Carol looking as if she were deeply considering something, the girl turned to Tony with a very serious expression on her face. He tilted his head, trying to gauge what was about to come out of her mouth.

“Alone?” She inquired softly.

“Well, yeah,” he repeated.

“Tony, what in the world makes you think I’m alone in escaping from here?” She raised a brow.

The genius frowned, realizing that she still didn’t understand that he was a danger to her escape, and that she needed to leave him behind. “I can’t be there for you Carol, you have to do it alone. But at least with a little he-“ He was cut off when she raised a hand to his lips and shook her head.

“I’m not talking about you. I’m not alone Tony, neither are you.” She grinned, expression absolutely enthused. “I’m strong, and I’ve got basically the same powers as your super soldiers. I could have walked away when they tried to capture me, but I didn’t…. not that the de-aging thing was planned.”

Tony’s brows furrow, trying to understand exactly what the blond is implying. “You were… captured on purpose? Why?”

“Because I was given a mission, and I intend on following through.” She stands, still smiling as Sam shows up in the doorway, telling her it’s time for a training session.

“What?” Tony want’s to ask what the mission is, but cuts himself off when he sees the man standing nearby. But Carol seems to catch it anyway, as she twirls as if she and Tony were having a silly conversation and replies with a single word that confuses him to the core.

“You.”

----------------------------------------------------

Carol was gone again.

Tony was alone.

Per usual, on nights when they all trained, he was left in the apartments to do as he pleased. They had placed a bracelet on his wrist that was created from a heavy metal, a tracker.

Loki and Thor had been called away to deal with their own uprisings, to keep their territories in line, and that meant Tony was trusted to wander the apartment alone. He’d been told that the bracelet was a means to keep him safe, so that if he were to be kidnapped from the building Steve and Bucky could easily find him.

For a mille-second, he’d even believed it.

Normally, while Carol was gone, he’d started to work on her suit, but now he found himself without something to invent. He could create weapons, but she didn’t really need one. And he couldn’t start making his own Iron Man suit without first taking more rations of pieces he was given.

With nothing left to do, Tony decided to wander into the apartment for a bit. The thought of his conversation with Carol had been pushed to the back of his mind, as he’d only torment himself on trying to figure out who had sent her, and why.

It didn’t take long to find the living room with plush couches and a huge television. He’d easily gotten to the kitchen, and after some careful searching made himself an extra-large bowl of popcorn.

Tony figured that if he had to wait for the team to come back from the side of the building in which he didn’t have any access, then he’d at least enjoy himself. He set the bowl on the table in front of one of the sofas and flipped on the television.

With a quick thought he ran to the bedroom and grabbed the covers from the bed, deciding that he’d make himself into a human burrito to watch whatever he wanted.

He flipped the light switch off so that the room went dark, and curled up on the sofa, bowl of popcorn in his lap. With a grin Tony started looking through several different choices before settling on a playlist of films that Clint had titled “for a rainy day.”

Throwing the remote on the table, he made himself comfortable. Ready to watch some bad, but likely soothing films.

--------------------------

Tony didn’t know how long he’d been watching the screen, eyes wide and body trembling, unable to move to grab the remote.

Unlike a normal human being, Clint’s idea of rainy day films included every sort of horror film in existence. Bad films, good films, and all the films in between. He’d wanted to change the channel, but the screen had featured people being tortured and had thrown Tony right into a panic attack.

His muscles had locked, and all he could do was helplessly watch the screen from the confinement of his blanket.

So when two arms suddenly lifted him before two bodies slid underneath him, there was no hiding the hysterical scream that bubbled out of his throat. He tried to struggle, but the blanket was only sending him into a further panic as it contained his arms from breaking free.

The room was closing in, and he could barely make out the voices above him as he found it impossible to breathe. He tried to reach for his chest, but his hands were constricted and Tony could only struggle desperately.

It became too much, and soon enough all Tony saw was an explosion of light before everything turned dark.

When he opened his eyes again, it was to a completely different room. He’d been put into the bedroom, curled between the two super soldiers who were obviously wide awake.

The images from the films started to merge with those he’d seen in his real life, and Tony couldn’t withhold the whimper as he scooted into whomever was curled behind him.

Big hands lifted his face to look into worried blue eyes, Bucky cooing gently as he placed several kisses along Tony’s face. “You’re okay doll,” he reassured the trembling genius.

It took several minutes before things started to fade from his vision, and Tony managed to relax in Steve’s arms. When he tapped the hand on his waist gently, he was moved into a sitting position, although Steve merely moved him into his lap rather than letting him go.

“Why were you watching those movies?” Bucky inquired gently after several minutes of silence.

“I didn’t…” Tony paused, horrified to find that his eyes were tearing up. “I didn’t know… I-I thought they’d be dramas…” He was crying, there was no denying it. The emotional turmoil was overwhelming and Tony was grateful when he was moved to curl his face into the blond’s chest.

Hands rubbed his back, voices soothed him. But even as the tears stopped Tony found that he couldn’t calm down.

But what could ground him?

Without thinking, Tony reached forward and slammed his mouth against Steve’s, hoping that it would bring him down to reality. It helped, but when he backed away all the fears and anxiety of his current situation and what he’d witnessed rang in his head.

With desperation he reached towards Bucky and followed with another kiss of the same intensity. “Make me forget,” he finally begged. “Please…”

“Tony, we can’t just…” Steve started to argue, cut off by another kiss.

Pulling back, Tony stared him directly in the eyes, mind half gone. “Please, please help me forget.” He curled a hand around Steve’s shirt. “I trust you.”

Steve looked grim, silent for a moment before he finally nodded in agreement. Tony’s shoulders fell, and the two men were quick to follow the request.

That night, everything begun to rearrange itself.

Chapter Text

“I’ve figured it out,” Carol’s voice broke the silence of the lab.

Startled, Tony jumped up from where he sat hunched over Natasha’s widow bites, yelping when he almost torched his hand.

A few weeks had passed, and he hadn’t had the courage to tell Carol exactly what had happened that night. They had also stopped bringing up the subject of escape.

Tony, because he didn’t know where he stood.

Carol, because she didn’t want to see the genius withdraw when she brought up the idea.

However, it became inevitable.

Throwing the safety googles onto the top of his head, Tony raised a brow and tilted his head slightly, silently asking the question without actually speaking. What had she figured out?

“How to get out of here, I have a plan.” She smiled. “A fool proof one, with my powers and the suit you made.”

Tony held up a hand, shaking his head quickly in an attempt to get the girl to stop talking. “Don’t,” he cut her off.

The blond frowned, tilting her head in confusion as she stared at him. “Don’t what?”

“Don’t tell me,” he murmured.

The lab was no longer monitored. Ever since that night, in which Tony had forgotten himself, the soldiers had stopped worrying that Tony was going to try to get away. His tracking bracelet had been removed, and he’d practically gained complete freedom in the building. They’d even given him their actual weapons to work on.

He knew that the teenager had noticed something had changed, but he refused to admit it. And while Tony still knew in the back of his mind that everything wasn’t right, a large part of him no longer cared.

Because at the end of the day, he didn’t have to fight anymore.

Tony had two men that absolutely adored him, and a team that was slowly becoming family and took care of him. He had a lab, and he was allowed to create (to a point) while the group made sure he never forgot to take care of himself. His wounds had healed to scars, and all horror films had virtually disappeared from the television.

But he knew that Carol needed to get away. He just wasn’t quite sure he wanted to go with her.

“Don’t tell me your plan. Don’t tell me the day, or the time, or how… just… don’t.” Turning so he was completely facing the blond, Tony gave her his trademark smile. The one that was absolutely bittersweet.

“If they ask me, I don’t trust myself not to reveal it. If they try to figure out what you’re doing, I might talk. Please, Carol, just…. don’t. Just take care of yourself and forget about me.”

Without pausing to see her reaction, Tony made to spin back around, so he didn’t see how quickly Carol traversed to where he sat. Her hands pulled the chair back so that Tony was looking directly into angry blue eyes. The electricity of the expression made him want to look away, but Carol had already predicted the move and put both hands on his face so that he couldn’t do anything but meet her gaze.

“You listen to me Anthony Stark. I’m leaving, and I’m taking you with me. I don’t have the details, but I can figure out exactly what’s confusing your mind.” She growled.

“No matter what’s happened, no matter what you did, what these people have done is wrong. You are not a part of their group, and I’ll do my damnest to break whatever programing they’ve put into you.”

She reached down and pulled his palm up, ripping the glove off his hand roughly as she held it eye level.

With one hand she curled his own into a fist; with the other she gently cupped Tony’s cheek. Her expression going from hard to soft in seconds.

“I want you to use this tonight,” she ignored how his eyes widened, realizing that she somehow knew about what Wanda had done.

“I want you to dig deep into your memories, and tell me you still want me to leave you behind. If you still say that tomorrow, then I’ll respect your wishes. But Tony, if you do this and you change your mind, we will get away.”

Tony met her eyes, quiet as he looked between his palm and her face.

The room silent as they gazed at each other, looking like they had just made up after a small argument, instead of something so monumental.

A throat cleared, sending two faces flying in the direction of the door. Sam grinned, waving an awkward hand at the two of them. “It’s practice time Marvel, let’s go.”

The team had started to call her by the nickname that Tony had given, and Carol hadn’t argued.

Pulling back, she grinned and planted a quick kiss on Tony’s forehead before he could protest and all but bounced towards Sam, looking completely like the teenager they’d made her. Reaching Sam, the blond turned to glance at the quiet genius.

“I’m telling you Tony, I can absolutely make better food than Bucky, maybe I’ll make you some sometime!” The make believe argument was believable enough, because Sam snorted and raised a brow.

“I doubt that, his cooking is divine,” Sam started.

Both of them sauntering from the room, the banter about food trailing behind them as Tony continued to stare blankly ahead.

His fist was trembling, the gift he’d been given unused for so long, he’d almost forgotten about it. Clenching down, he brought it down to his lap and stared ahead for a moment. If using the talent for one night meant getting Carol to go to safety without him, then he’d do it. After all, it wasn’t like he was scared of his own memories… right?

-----------------------------

It was rare that the two men actually slept, but tonight was an exception.

With the skin on skin contact, Tony had been placed in the middle and kept nice and warm as the two fell asleep. An hour in, and both had stopped snuggling to take to their own sides of the bed. Usually, Bucky or Steve would stay awake until Tony fell asleep, but they had tired each other out. Tony had passed out for a little bit, but had woken just in time to watch Steve fall under.

Carefully lifting his hand away from where it was nudged between Bucky’s stomach and his own side, Tony blushed brightly, brushing against bare skin.

He jumped when the soldier chuckled, wrapping his arm around Tony and bringing the genius to curl closer to his chest. “Go to sleep, you need rest after all that.”

Tony buried his face between the man’s shoulder and neck, hiding his red face. He was aching, but that didn’t mean he could sleep with his brain going so quickly with what Carol had requested.

It took another hour before the soldier actually sank under, allowing Tony to quietly do as was requested and squeeze his hand twice tightly.

He expected to be thrown into a memory, to see Peter, Rhodey, Pepper, or one of them. So when he found himself in an empty field he’d never seen in his life, Tony was very confused. This wasn’t a memory… not his memory anyway.

After a moment of hesitation he found that he had complete control of his body and took a step forward, trying to figure out where he was. As he moved, a single tree came into view.

Two figures were near the tree, one stood leaning, the other sat and threw what looked like an apple up and down. They were both relaxed, and as Tony came nearer he realized that he vaguely recognized one of them.

“Tony!” One of the figures cried in excitement, before pushing from the tree and starting forward. The gold in her hair almost sparkling amongst the brown, hazel eyes bright and happy, all hints of red gone for the moment.

Two thin arms wrapped around his neck, and he found himself instantly returning the hug. “You made it! I didn’t think you’d ever get here!”

The genius pulled back, looking pale as he stared at the girl in the face. “How is this possible? I… I saw you die.”

Wanda smiled a genuine, content smile as she gazed at him. “Because you did.”

A voice right next to the two caused Tony to jump, breaking completely away from Wanda as he faced the white haired male that held a half-eaten apple in hand. “Stop being so cryptic sis, and tell him what’s going on.”

He man smiled, his face was kind. “I’m Pietro, nice to finally meet you Tony.”

Recognizing the name, Tony found himself looking between the two quickly. They were dead, had been for a while. How were they possibly talking to Tony? If it had been a memory, he wouldn’t have been able to interact with them.

“When I gave you that gift,” Wanda explained. “It wasn’t just memories; it was a bit more than that. There are some… stones. And one of them needed to be safeguarded more than the others. When you saw me die, it was the sacrifice of another soul you’d lose.” She shrugged, “and now, you yield some of its powers.”

She grabbed his palm and tapped it once, watching as the skin shown orange for a moment. “You are the protector of those of us who were lost. So yes, you saw me die, but I’ve never really left.”

Wanda let go of his hand, stepping back to join her brother. “And if you’re here, that means Carol sent you.”

Turning on her heel, Wanda started back towards the tree, Pietro disappearing for a moment before he reappeared in the distance. “Come on, I have someone I want you to meet.”

Tony hesitated for only a moment before following, figuring that nothing weirder could happen to him at that point.

----------

They had walked for a long time, coming upon an old farm house that had been placed in the middle of a few trees. A big, wide porch wrapped around the entire two story structure, painted a soft white. It was exactly what someone would picture as a lovely, quiet escape house.

“Where are we?” He asked, Pietro having run ahead of them.

“Home,” Wanda shrugged, leading the way up to the white painted door and not bothering to knock.

Tony followed her through the house, past a staircase and a worn rug, warm pictures of happy people smiling on the wall. He even spotted the siblings in a few of the photos, but there were so many people that he didn’t attempt to keep count or pay close attention.

They walked into a large kitchen, where Pietro and an older man sat around a tall island. The counter had freshly cut fruit, and it looked like someone was baking bread in the oven.

Standing immediately, the older man smiled and held out a hand for Tony to shake. He was a little shorter than Tony, with round glasses and graying hair. He wore a button up shirt and pressed pants, a red tie adorning his neck, looking like a man from the past rather than the present.

“Mr. Stark,” his voice instantly giving away his German accent. “It’s a pleasure to meet you. I have been waiting for you. We all have, actually.”

The genius immediately pulled back, frowning as he gazed at the three people in the kitchen. “All of you?”

The German man smiled, nodding as he pointed towards the doorway behind Tony. “All of us.”

For some reason, dread built in his stomach. Something told Tony not to turn around and face whomever had stepped into the room. But he wasn’t a coward, and with a swift intake of breath to brace himself, he spun in place.

The world spun, and for a moment Tony was afraid of coming out of the vision. But he remained in the warm kitchen, remained with the group that sat around him, remained in front of a man he hadn’t seen in years.

Pietro grabbed him from behind when his knees failed, stopping the fall as he lifted Tony into a nearby chair. But Tony didn’t notice, eyes focused on the figure still standing in the doorway.

“Hey kiddo,” Edwin Jarvis greeted gently.

And Tony broke down into gut wrenching sobs.

Without hesitation the man all but glided forward and folded the genius into his arms. There was no protest as Tony all but buried himself into his shirt, tears drenching Edwin’s clothes as he held what he still considered a boy to his body. One hand rose to gently run through the man’s hair, soothing him until the sobs quieted, until Tony could think again.

“Jarvis,” he marveled, refusing to let the man go, even if the German cleared his throat nearby.

“We don’t have long kiddo, and I need you to listen.” Edwin spoke softly.

“I’ve done something terrible, I’ve…” He stopped, watching the man he considered his father shake his head.

“You’ve done nothing wrong Tony. You’re making the best of your circumstances… we just… needed to help you a bit.” Jarvis turned them so that Tony was still wrapped against his side, but so they were both facing the older man across the counter.

“Help me?” His voice was so quiet, a whimper that he couldn’t stop.

“Help you.” Jarvis affirmed, nodding at the other man to speak.

“When I chose Steve Rogers to be a part of Project Rebirth, I chose him because he was supposed to be a good man. He was supposed to make a positive future. But Tony, what he has done is awful. He’s become someone I can’t remember. But what is frightening is not what he’s doing, but that he believes it’s the right thing to do. That… that gives him power.”

“Project Rebirth?” Tony frowned, the name ringed a bell.

“Oh, yes. Excuse me, I got straight to the subject as we are on limited time. My name is Abraham Eskrine, and I invented the super soldier serum.”

The brunette froze, his body stiffening despite being around a man that he absolutely loved. Abraham Eskrine was the reason Steve still existed. Why Howard had someone to worship as a hero, why Tony was currently in his situation.

“Why?” He spat out.

Dr. Eskrine leaned back, unable to hide his surprise at the sudden hostility. However, after a moment he slumped and sighed, leaning forward as he spoke. “I thought what I was doing was right… I was wrong.” He looked at his clasped hands as he spoke, Wanda and Pietro having taken a seat on the other side of the island. “We all do things we think is right, even if we’re wrong. It’s part of being human. And you, son, are about to do the same thing.”

Tony frowned, hearing the remorse in the doctor’s voice. “What are you talking about?”

Edwin took over. “You’re only here because you need to be,” he paused. “You’re about to sacrifice everything, because you think it’s the right thing to do. And while we can’t deprogram you from what you’ve already suffered, we can try to convince you.”

The man pulled back and ran a hand through Tony’s hair, an old habit that they used to share consistently. “Tony, would you listen to me with an open mind?”

After a moment, Tony nodded. He’d always trust Edwin; the man had raised him into someone that hadn’t become a robot to Howard Stark.

“You have people who love you, rely on you, to be okay. Your current time spent with the two super soldiers isn’t real. They think they love you, and in a weird way, maybe they do. But Tony, love doesn’t mean trapping someone. Love isn’t making someone hurt. Just ask yourself, did I hurt you?”

It was an instant shake of the head, there was no way that Edwin had ever raised a hand to him. Howard, however, was a different story. “You’d never lay a hand on me.”

“And why is that?” Edwin asked.

“Because you love me.”

“Yes,” the man smiled. “And when someone loves you, they don’t hurt you. They don’t imprison you. If they loved you, they’d let you go.” Edwin reiterated.

“What are you saying?” Tony was a genius, but his brain couldn’t understand why they would want him to leave the two men when he’d already gotten so far. He was safe, wasn’t he? “They keep me safe, I don’t have to fight anymore.”

“Ah, yes,” Edwin smiled, sitting up after he planted a gentle kiss on the genius’ temple. “Safe. But let me ask you this, if life was safe, would you have accomplished all you have done?”

“I’ve made weapons… I’m responsible for so much death.” Tony instantly replied.

“You stopped making weapons. You came up with clean solutions for energy. You helped people, and in return their hope touched you. Safety is just an illusion, safety keeps us from growing.”

Tony frowned, weighing the options in his head. The words rang true in his mind. A life that was completely safe meant that he’d never take risks. That he’d never created some of the spectacular inventions that he had made.

“Jarvis… what if I… what if I do the wrong thing and people get hurt?” He asked.

“Then they get hurt, and life moves on. You’re never going to do anything that would take away my love for you Tony.” Edwin brought the genius into his arms, squeezing tight. “I will always love you kid.”

“Go back to your real family. Give them a chance.” He spoke gently.

“Go home.”

Tony swallowed, pulling back and looking at the man’s warm eyes to see his own reflection. A broken, confused, sad human being that had been pushing his limit. A man who had given into the easy solution instead of continuing to fight so he wouldn’t get hurt. And love, real and unchanged despite the passage of time. Yes, he could listen to Edwin’s request.

“Tony,” Edwin smiled. “Tony…”

“Tony!”

Startled, Tony sat up with a shriek. His head only saved from colliding with Steve’s because of the man’s quick reflexes. He found himself still lying between the two men, sweating profusely like he’d just jogged a marathon.

“Tony? Are you okay?” It was Steve, looking concerned as he cupped the man’s face.

It took a moment, looking into the blue eyes and seeing his own reflection, before Tony nodded. “Yeah… yeah… I’m fine.”

Tony could see himself, and saw a small glint of determination he’d lost reflect back at him. He was more than fine, laying back down and claiming he wanted to go back to sleep despite the sweat.

Tony wasn’t just fine.

He was getting out of there.

Chapter Text

“I knew you’d change your mind!” Carol all but shrieked, smile almost as wide as her face as she looked at the startled genius.

Immediately, he threw a finger to his lips and shushed her, not wanting the others to get even a hint of the new situation. After going back to sleep, he’d woken to find himself curled into Steve. The super soldier had no doubt been extremely worried when he couldn’t wake the genius from his dreams and had taken to clinging to Tony.

The morning had been a little easier, with Tony awake and chattering as he had begun to do so around the group. Of course, it lacked his usual cursing.

“And I’ll change it again if you do something stupid,” he rolled his eyes.

“Nothing stupid, there won’t even be enough time.” The blond was still grinning, picking up a little screw and twisting it at the tip of her fingers. “Tonight, or tomorrow… you pick.”

Tony froze, completely unprepared to be given a choice. He hadn’t really been given one since coming into the compound, but that didn’t mean much. “Tomorrow, I have a feeling that they’re going to be a little clingy today. I didn’t exactly have the easiest time waking up yesterday.”

Instead of looking concerned, the teenager merely shrugged and turned on her heel, making her way to where they had started to lay out the different weapons they had been working on for the Avengers.

“So, does this mean I get to meet the real Tony Stark?” Her finger stroked the tip of one of the archer’s arrows as she turned and raised a brow at the man.

Tony raised a brow in return, but it didn’t take him long to catch onto what she was saying. “Well, we should probably have a clear path, don’t you think?”

Rather loud, in case someone was listening into their conversation, he continued. “We’re going to work on seeing about a weapon for you tomorrow Carol, you’ve already changed my mind on that. But today we have to finish the last touches on the rest of the team’s stuff. Make sure that nothing gets in their way.”

With a wicked grin on the blond’s face, she snatched up the widow bites and the bow and arrows, carrying everything over to the table in front of Tony. Without speaking a word, she immediately turned back and grabbed the rest of the gear, from Falcon’s wings to Bucky’s guns.

By the time Carol finally made her last trip to the table, Tony had already finished changing the widow bites so that instead of electricity, they would release puffs of harmless air. If she tried to launch anything, the bites would send the volt meant for someone else, into Natasha.

“You better have a good plan,” he grumbled to the girl softly so that they couldn’t be overheard. “Because if this doesn’t work out, I’m not coming out of this with my sanity.”

Carol let out a very unladylike snort, “it’s not a good plan. It’s a plan that’s ninety-nine percent guaranteed to work.”

Tony let out his own sound, concentrating as he started to work on what exactly he wanted Clint’s arrows to do. “Good odds.”

The girl nodded and started on gently putting away the finished weapons, feeling relieved for the first time since being taken into the home of the former heroes. They were getting out, and Tony Stark was leaving with her.

--------------------------------------

For the first time in a while, Tony glanced up at his reflection and saw a light in his eyes that had been missing for some time. Sure, another one had replaced it when he’d started to immerse himself into the new environment. Now it was gone again, and the little glint of determination that had almost faded to nothing but ash was quickly burning into a wildfire.

To get away from the former Avengers meant that he’d see his family again. He hoped that Peter wouldn’t be disappointed in how he handled himself. He hoped the kid would see that Tony had only given into the demands of his captors when he realized that his options were quite dim.

But now, with Carol on his side, he’d found the small ball of sass that made up Tony Stark. If the two super soldiers truly loved him, they wouldn’t have tried to quell the part of him that had made up so much of his personality. Would they?

The brunette released a sigh, hands curled on the sink as he glanced down at the running water. He’d gone into the bathroom to brush his teeth but had let the faucet run so he could spend a few moments lost in his own thoughts.

A small part of Tony didn’t want to leave, didn’t want to see what would happen once he no longer had the arms of the two men to hold him.

“Whatcha’ thinking about doll?” Bucky startled him, having used his training to sneak in quietly behind the focused genius.

Glad that he hadn’t jumped at the sudden appearance, Tony let himself fall back so that he was leaning back onto Bucky. The soldier wrapping his flesh arm around the man’s waist as the metal arm reached forward and turn the water off.

“I’m just tired, that’s all.” He met Bucky’s eyes in the mirror, the blue filled with concern even when Tony’s lips lifted fractionally in a smile.

“Whatever happened when I passed out yesterday must have taken a toll,” he admitted.

With a tilt of his head Tony allowed the other to plant his lips between the apex of his neck and shoulder, humming in approval as his entire bodyweight settled on the soldier.

“You should come to bed, let me and Stevie take care of you.” Bucky drawled, already lifted Tony into a bridal carry so that he could traverse the small space into the next room.

There was no hiding that Tony enjoyed the warmth radiating from the man. Both soldiers were like furnaces, and he couldn’t stop the feelings he’d begun to feel in that instance. Tony curled further into the hold, letting himself enjoy the warmth of the man he would soon leave behind.

His eyes drifted half shut, only opening when he heard a murmured conversation between Bucky and Steve, whom wore nothing but a pair of sweatpants as he lounged in their large bed. One hand held a remote, the other looked at the pair with what Tony could only pinpoint as concern.

“Tony,” Steve spoke after a moment. “Come here babe,” he held out his arms, glad that the male didn’t protest but instead crawled into them the moment Bucky had set him on the bed.

He really was going to miss the warmth.

“What are you watching?” Tony inquired, turning in the hold so that he was resting with Steve’s arm serving as a pillow, half his body on the other man.

“It’s a mildly scary show, is there something you’d like to watch? I know you don’t really enjoy this kind of stuff.” Steve grinned, remote already up as he paused the show to glance down at Tony. When all he got was a shake of the head and the genius curling closer into the super soldier, Steve pressed play and dropped his hand.

“Bucky?” Tony spoke after a moment; the brunette having only sat on the edge of the bed. “Do you mind if we eat in here today? I’m just… tired?”

The brunette grinned, leaning forward and planting a kiss on Tony’s temple as he nodded. “Of course, doll. I’m making tomato soup, so I’ll just bring you a big bowl and a grilled cheese.” The soldier looked beyond pleased at even the idea of spending a night with just the two men and turned on his heel without another word.

With Bucky gone, the other two settled onto each other. The television providing a bit of white noise that Tony didn’t bother paying attention to as his mind traveled to his situation on hand.

Tony couldn’t deny that the idea of leaving the soldiers was difficult. He was ready to leave, to go back to a semi-freedom that came without someone hovering over his shoulder. But there was a feeling in the pit of his stomach that also told him what was happening was wrong. Despite everything, a small part wanted nothing more than to cling to Steve and Bucky, and never leave. To be taken care of and never worry about anything.

But it wouldn’t happen, it couldn’t continue.

However, for one night, he would stay. For one night, he’d pretend that everything was fine, and he wasn’t thinking about leaving the duo behind. There was no denying in a small, twisted sense, he loved them.

“Steve?” Tony murmured softly.

The blond man turned slightly and glanced at the male in his arms, smiling lightly. “What’s up sweetheart? Do you want me to put on something else?”
With a shake of his head the genius leaned forward and planted a kiss on the man’s lips, glad for the quick response. At first, the kiss was innocent enough, but the second Tony whined it turned into something more.

Steve leaned forward so that he was partially covering the genius with his body, tongue seeking out Tony’s as he completely took over the action.

One hand covertly started to move down, stopping long enough to stroke Tony’s thigh as the sensitive man moaned, before it turned into a startled jump when the blond’s hand cupped him gently through his pants.

For once, Tony was grateful for the attire that they consistently put him in.

Pulling back for a moment, the hurricane that was Steve Rogers didn’t hesitate to take the opportunity to peel the genius’ shirt over his head. Their skin on skin contact setting his body on fire as the natural heat from the super soldiers body melted into his skin.

“Steve,” Tony whispered reverently, hands clutching onto the man as if he were the only thing keeping Tony tied to the earth.

“You’re so beautiful sweetheart,” he got in reply, the blond kissing his way down Tony’s chest.

There was absolutely no warning when the man used both hands to rip the pants right off of the genius’ body, mouth wrapping around Tony so quickly that there was no way the genius could withhold his shout.

Both hands wandered down to grab a hold of the head between his legs, body unable to stop the twitches as he rocked up towards the warm mouth.

“Steve,” he groaned, already finding himself close to the edge. “Steve, I’m going…”

A grumble from the man was all it took, the vibrations shooting Tony over the wall as he shouted the super soldiers name. The blond never pulling away until every last drop ran down his throat.

When the blond finally sat up to look at Tony, the smug expression in the blue eyes did nothing to quell the hunger that was already rising in his stomach.

“You’re beautiful sweetheart.” Steve acknowledged, leaning forward so that Tony could taste himself on the man’s tongue.

“You punks started without me?” The voice sounded more amused than upset.

Turning from where he lay, Tony spotted a grinning Bucky in the doorway, one hand holding the platter while the other swung the door firmly shut.

“I was just getting him warmed up,” Steve drawled back. “Come on over Buck, I think we should show Tony just how much we worship his beautiful little body.”

The genius instantly pouted, unable to stop himself, at the words. “I am not little.”

Bucky laughed, but already he started to remove his own clothing as he set the platter aside, heading straight for the bed. Two pairs of blue eyes looking at Tony with a determination he wasn’t sure he was ready to handle.

“I’m coming, doll.”

Tony gulped.

------------------------------------

“Please tell me you didn’t change your mind!” Carol groaned, already noticing the love bites across his neck that the two soldiers didn’t want covered up.

Tony shook his head, smiling softly at the petulant expression thrown his way. “Of course not, I was just… making the most of my last night with two men with great stamina.”

The girl made a gagging sound, pretending to throw up in the corner at the thought of what the genius had done. However, instead of taking the time to comment on the action, she pivoted and started forward towards the workbench.

One hand moved forward and flicked the switch on the music player, wincing only slightly as the blasting sound pounded through the lab. The soldiers had given Tony the ability to play his music again.

With a sigh she lifted the wrist where her watch rested gently on her skin, holding it out so that Tony could look at it. “Is this going to work?”

Snorting, Tony pushed the wrist away from his face and leaned down to work on the tech in front of him. “My stuff always works, brat.”

Carol laughed, traversing the room and heading towards the door that was already starting to open to reveal Sam, coming to fetch her again for training. “That’s Captain Marvel to you, Tony!”

She giggled, taking Sam’s hand and disappearing into the hall as both Steve and Clint appeared, a little startled from where the other two had gone.

“I came for some more bows,” Clint explained, grinning as he examined the marks on Tony’s neck. “And I can see that you came, last night.” Before the blushing man could reply Steve took a hand and smacked the back of Clint’s head, hard.

“Jesus! Take a joke!” The archer yelped as he ran forward to perch on top of a table, eyes running across the newly updated weapons with glee. He was excited to try the inventions that came from someone who was so intelligent.

Steve sauntered across the room, smiling as he wrapped an arm around the hunch genius and nuzzled his neck. “Care to turn the music down?” He grumbled softly.

With a laugh, Tony reached forward and turned the volume down, gently pushing away the arm from his waist. He was concentrated and wanted to make sure that his creation didn’t blow up in his face, even if it was just a piece to make the oven heat up faster.

“This will get hot and burn if you’re not careful,” he grumbled to Steve’s pout.

“I know something else I can get hot,” Steve whispered back, causing the archer to make a gag sound while red blossomed throughout the genius’ body.

The group quickly grew comfortable in the room, silent as they relaxed. The music was a bit quieter, Tony explaining he’d like to figure out what type of arrow Clint was looking for before he just allowed the man to take one to test.

Just as Tony moved to the wall of weapons to grab an arrow, the music malfunctioned, and Black Sabbath started to blast through the speakers, the pounding of the music so loud that even the walls started to shake with each hit of the beat.

“Oh my God! Turn it down!” Clint howled, hands thrown over his ears.

Already, Steve had reached over and flipped the switch of the music player. It was what gave them pause, as the sound didn’t stop.

It was only then that Tony suddenly realized that the pounding of the music wasn’t just lightly causing tremors but shaking the walls rather harshly. He frowned, looking up in a pause. He recognized the song, of course he did.

The beginning of the song kept restarting, the music never quite starting. When the pounding caused dust to start sprinkling from the ceiling, Tony froze in realization. Finally, with the three men frozen, the song screamed out the words Tony recognized above all else.

“I am Iron Man.”

Tony couldn’t help the laughter that bubbled from him in hysteria, gaze going between the speaker and the computer monitors that had suddenly started to light up.

“I am Iron Man!”

The music started to repeat again, this time Tony having to step away from a hand as it reached for him. He easily slipped forward, the blond captain not going after him, thinking that Tony meant to check out exactly what was happening.

Instead, Tony jumped back as numbers upon numbers started to slide across the screen.

“I am Iron Man!” Repeated as the building itself shook as if someone were attacking it.

“Tony, what is going on!?” Steve screamed over the music, looking worried.

Across the monitor the words scrawled out. “Hello Sir.”

Tony laughed, jumping only slightly when the wall furthest from the trio burst to reveal a suit. But not just any suit, this one was made of vibranium. A very familiar voice rang out into the room from the suit.

“Hello, I am Jarvis.”

Steve growled, shield appearing as if seemingly from nowhere as the music played. The banging on the wall continuing as more suits attacked the building.

“But for this mission, Master Peter has given me a codename.” Jarvis explained.

Before anyone could move, pieces of the suit dismantled and flew so that Tony was suddenly covered in the vibranium. Steve and Clint already grabbing weapons to fire at the technology that was quickly lighting up and attacking them.

“Skynet.” And the chorus for the music dropped, just like Tony would have liked. One last echoing “I am Iron Man,” screaming through the compound as the Iron Legion, reconstructed, began to attack

Chapter Text

Dodging to the left, Tony ignored how the suit tore right into the computer monitors on the wall. He wasn’t used to the power that the new suit harnessed, but there was no way he wasn’t excited to be in it again.

“Jarvis, activate protocol save daddy!” Tony hollered, laughing as he watched the toaster, he’d been making digital attack Clint. The cord just long enough to allow it to toss a piece of its mechanics right at the archer’s face.

With another shake to the foundation, the door to the lab burst open as the Winter Soldier appeared, looking very much like the murderous man Hydra had originally made him to be. Gone was the spark of joy that Tony had quickly grown to like, replaced by a glint of something so dark that Tony knew he had to get out or he would regret his decision to attempt escaping.

Natasha burst through the door behind the soldier, her gaze set directly on Tony as she rushed at the suit. Without thinking Tony threw up his hand, panicking only slightly when the blaster didn’t react.

“Jarvis! What’s going on?”

“The suit was made for you to escape, there was no plan for you to engage, sir.” The AI explained, using one of the small robots Tony had made for fun to attack the assassin and steer her off course.

“Okay buddy, I need a little fire power to escape!” Tony yelped, relieved when a light finally beamed from his hand and tossed the woman several feet in the air.

However, that didn’t stop him from noticing the blond and brunette that hadn’t stop their sudden trek directly at him.

With a scream that he wasn’t exactly proud of, Tony backpedaled away from the computer monitors directly towards the hole in the wall.

“Jarvis, I think escape would be good right about now!” He yelled out in a panic, the repulsors on his feet lighting up quickly as they threw him and the suit back.

Right before Tony could toss himself from the side of the building, however, a hand grabbed onto his arm and refused to let go. And unlike most grips, this one was so tight that the armor groaned in warning as it started to bend in the hold.

“You’re not going anywhere,” Steve hissed, using all his strength to start pulling the suit back into the building.

Bucky was moving forward, dodging wild machinery as he tried to reach the two, so he could help Steve pull the genius back inside. His metal arm was easily deflecting attacks from the computers hunting him, only slowing his trek enough that he hadn’t quite caught up to the two struggling men.

Tugging at the armor, Tony whimpered slightly, remembering feeling helpless for the two men before. It was also what spurred the memory of Edwin, of being told about truly loving someone. He paused, glancing into the blue eyes of the man whom had held him captive for so long.

“Let go Steve,” he spoke calmly.

“No,” the man replied through gritted teeth.

“Please, let go,” Tony didn’t like that his voice wobbled as he spoke. Bucky was closer, almost at the two, one hand stretched out to grab onto the suit. If he got a hold of the genius, his escape was out the window, no matter how strong the suit was. Two super soldiers would most definitively managed to pull him back into the building.

“Jarvis,” he murmured to his AI gently.

In the span of seconds, the repulsors on his feet blasted so much power that both Steve and Tony went toppling from the hole blasted into the building, Bucky’s fingers skimming the vibranium but never grasping as the two men lifted into the air.

Steve’s weight wasn’t a burden on the suit, and Tony quickly adjusted so that the two were hovering several feet over the air, but close to the top of a building so that the man could let go with a safe landing. After all, the feelings couldn’t just disappear overnight.

“Please,” he implored again. “Please let go.”

The blond quickly shakes his head in disagreement, trying to swing so that he can wrap his arms around the suit. He fails each time as Tony maneuvers in a way that keeps him hanging in the air. The blood going to Tony’s head as he dangles upside down.

The sound of an engine starting gets Tony’s attention, and he looks up in time to see Bucky and Sam jumping from the side of a tall building and flying in their direction. The intent was clear, Tony was not meant to escape by any means.

“Let go!” He shook his arm, eyes focusing on Steve as he tried desperately to get free.

“No!” Steve growls out. “You’re not leaving us Tony!”

From the corner of his eye, Tony sees a blur shoot past where he hovers towards the ongoing men. In seconds Carol has appeared, using abilities he didn’t know about as she punched Bucky off the machinery and to the ground. One hand snatching a mechanical wing and throwing Sam onto the top of a nearby building.

Obviously, she wasn’t going to leave Tony behind.

He looked back down, armor flying to reveal his face, so he can look at the blue eyes directly. “Please, please let go.”

Steve remained quiet for a moment, taking in Tony above him. “You can’t say you don’t love us, Tony. You can’t say this isn’t real.”

The blond notices that the man’s eyes are watering, that he looks torn about what’s happening. He takes full advantage and continues talking. “Stop trying to run baby. Stay here, please. We’ll forget any of this happened. Please Tony, sweetheart, I love you.”

Tony could feel the tears starting to slide from his eyes, unable to stop them as he gaged the sincerity in the man below him.

“Tony! We gotta go!” Carol, screaming as she flew into the air and started towards the two of them. “Drop him! We gotta go!”

She was right, the rest of the ex-Avengers were appearing from the building, looking ready to fight with weapons Tony had not worked on. Obviously, they’d discovered that he’d messed with the upgrades.

“Please, baby, stay.” Steve tried again, never letting his gaze drop from Tony’s brown eyes.

Looking at the suit and knowing that the captain wouldn’t be releasing his grip anytime soon. Tony shook his head and spoke so softly that only the blond could hear the words.

“I’m so sorry, Steve. I did… I do love you, both of you. But it’s not right. It’s not real, it’s too much and I can’t… I can’t do this anymore!” He lifted his other hand and aimed the blaster from his palm at the arm that Steve was holding.

“Goodbye Steve.”

The grip tightened so much on his arm that Tony let out a scream when the vibranium started to dig into his skin underneath it. However, it wasn’t enough to stop the blast from aiming straight and hitting Steve’s hand and throwing him directly off the suit.

He watched for a moment as Steve, along with a piece of vibranium now drenched in Tony’s blood, tumble onto the rooftop. He doesn’t have the time to continue watching the former hero, as Carol grabs his other arm and pulls with more strength than Tony expects. It was strength that she had kept secret under whatever drugs the Avengers had placed her on.

His arm is bleeding, and Tony can barely register that Jarvis has taken over the suit and started to shoot him up into the sky.

All Tony can process is Steve’s anguished and angry scream, watching as both Bucky and Steve try desperately to catch up to the two of them even as they shot towards the clouds, out of sight. Not a single one of the chasing group would be able to keep up, as the only two that might be able to catch the genius were still out of the country.

No Thor, no Loki, the two of them had gotten extremely lucky during their breakout.

“Jarvis,” Carol called, encased in the very armor that Tony had created for her.

It was beautiful and looked like something that only the genius would come up with. It had fit the escape wonderfully, the same colors as Cap’s own uniform, a mockery to the soldiers.

“Set the flight course to the meeting point, you know where we’re going.”

The order was well received, as immediately they turned to the right and started flying straight into a direction that Tony couldn’t even begin to name. The sound of his kidnappers, the men he still couldn’t believe he was leaving behind, fading into nothing as the wind flew past them.

It seemed Carol knew that Tony needed time to process exactly what had happened and chose not to speak. After all, he had just escaped what had been months of psychological torture. It would take more than a few hours to heal.

-------------------------------------------

They flew for at least four hours before landing, the silence almost peaceful as Carol concentrated on contacting whomever had rigged Jarvis into helping them escape.

When they landed, it was on the outskirts of a large city that Tony hadn’t visited before. The buildings weren’t skyscrapers, but it still had an equal amount of people walking around so that it would be easier to get lost in the crowd. Carol, after Tony had stepped out of the suit clutching his wounded arm, grabbed onto his shoulder and all but steered him into what looked like an abandoned subway.

Her armor shrunk back into the watch, the suit folding into itself until it formed what looked like a frumpy backpack, that she quickly threw over her own shoulder instead of handing it over to Tony.

No one sparred a second glance in their direction, both in sweatpants and t-shirts looking more like the homeless population than two runaways.

Tony had to withhold a laugh at the idea that their hiding place was underground, so much like when he had first taken his family into hiding.

“So, where exactly are we going?” Maybe if he started a conversation with the girl, his mind wouldn’t keep retracting back to the two men they’d left behind.

“We’re going to meet the man whose been behind all of this. The one who sent me, the… semi-leader of our group, you could say.” Carol shrugged, waiting until the passengers had boarded a train before she grabbed a hold of Tony and tore down the tracks. No one present to spare them a second glance.

“And what’s the name of your group?” Tony had a feeling he knew, but he had to ask.

“We don’t have an official name, but we’re known as the rebellion.” Carol grinned over her shoulder, opening a door to the right just as the lights of another train started to light up the area.

Just barely missing being flattened by the thing, the two of them entered a dimly lit hallway that had obviously had better days. There were cobwebs between the lights and walls, what looked like small puddles of water randomly scattered throughout the hall. Someone had painted it black, making it ominous and very uninviting.

“You’re not going to murder me, are you Captain Marvel?” Tony raised a brow, glad that he could walk steadily behind her without being pulled or pushed, now that they only had one way to go.

“Maybe, depends on how much you annoy me,” she said it so flippantly that for a moment Tony’s heart skipped a beat, believing the lie.

He let out a nervous laugh, reaching forward and ruffling her hair. The teen growled and shoved his hand away, but otherwise did nothing more as she led him further into the bowels of the subway.

It was strange, how it seemed to get brighter rather than darker as they moved. Not that Tony wasn’t ungrateful, if it remained enclosed and dark, he may have had a flashback to Afghanistan, and he knew that Carol and whomever they were meeting were likely not ready for it.

After several minutes of walking, he finally rolled his eyes. “If I had known we’d be walking a marathon, I would have kept the suit on.” He complained, wounded arm hugged to his chest.

“You’re too out of shape, you need the exercise.” She quipped in return.

“Did you just call me fat?” Tony mock gasped, a bit of the humor he had lost finally returning.

“You’re complaining about walking and we’ve barely gone a mile at most,” she teased.

“You are calling me fat!” He pointed a finger at the girl, “And you know that I’m not out of shape, I’m just squishy and loveable at the moment.”

Carol didn’t respond, choosing to walk forward and open another doorway in the maze that they had taken down. However, unlike before, they walked into a brick room.

It took Tony a whole minute to convince himself to enter, as it resembled the room that he’d watched Steve and Bucky torture and kill several people. However, it wasn’t as clean, and someone had set a couch on one end, and a coffee table that hid the drain rather poorly. Another loveseat stood closer to the door, surprisingly new for what they had seen as they trekked down.

Sitting on the corner of the couch, was a man that Tony hadn’t seen in years, the man that had helped him keep his family safe. The man raised a hand in greeting, although he did not stand seeing as the two hadn’t moved from the doorway.

Carol, deciding that she no longer was going to wait for Tony, ambled into the room and settled onto the other end of the sofa.

Taking a few steps into the room, hand grasping a hold of the loveseat, so he wouldn’t fall, Tony never took his eyes off the other man. Finally, catching the lungful of air he hadn’t realized he’d lost, Tony spoke.

“T’Challa,” he greeted rather breathlessly, moving into the room and finding his knees weak, letting himself collapse onto the loveseat.

“Tony, it’s been too long, my friend.”

And now, Tony realized that he hadn’t just sent his family to safety, he’d sent them directly to the heart of the rebellion. And that, just maybe, had saved his life.

“I’m glad to see that you are safe,” T’Challa continued. “Although wounded, we will get that looked at soon.”

The cut, although deep, had stopped bleeding. And while serious, it was obvious that he could hold off on getting it treated until they had at least a small conversation.

“You helped me escape?” Tony questioned.

“Of course, you are the one that can change the tide. Not only with your brain, but by using their own ideas against them. You, Tony, are the hope that we need.”

T’Challa leaned forward on the sofa, looking very much like the king he had been raised to be. “When your family arrived, I knew what had happened. However, we couldn’t act immediately, as the suspicion would have been too great. My sister and your son, they helped figure out how to replicate your suit.”

“My son?” Tony couldn’t focus on anything other than those words.

“I’m sorry, I know that he isn’t your child by blood. But that boy threatened a king several times, and only someone who truly loves another would do this.” T’Challa even managed to shrug regally as he continued. “We made a plan, and now you’re here. When night falls, we will take my jet to Wakanda.”

His heart sped up, thinking about the fact that in only a few hours, he’d get to see his family again. His son, as T’Challa had put it, had fought tooth and nail to get him back. Tony couldn’t have been more touched if he tried.

“Do they know that you saved me?” He inquired softly, gaze now on the wound so as not to show his raw emotions to T’Challa.

The king grinned, waving a hand in the air.

Before Tony can open his mouth to ask what the gesture meant, another door to the left that he hadn’t noticed opened, and a voice he hadn’t heard in what felt like years greeted him.

“Tony?” The voice quivered, on the verge of tears.

Whipping towards the door, Tony found tears in his own eyes, taking in the figure in the doorway.

“Underoos?”

Chapter Text

The room was silent.

Carol and T’Challa both seemed to be holding their breath, staring between the two men in the room that both appraised the other with looks of awe and anguish.

Peter’s gaze slowly traveled over his mentor, taking in the disheveled appearance, the arm wound, the shabby outfit that he’d been made to wear, everything. Tony, on the other hand, couldn’t look away from the kid’s face. He was memorizing every detail, taking in how Peter had already grown up so much since he had last seen him. It had been months, but it felt like they had been apart for years.

“Dad,” the word came out as a whisper.

It was almost as if Peter hadn’t meant to speak it, his eyes widening a fraction in the realization. He didn’t move from where he had frozen in the doorway, but the tears that had started to well on the side of his eyes didn’t freeze.

In a flash, Peter was across the room, arms lifting Tony from the sofa and into his embrace. The genius cringed slightly when his bones protested the kid’s strength, but he didn’t verbalize it. Instead, he lifted his once again bleeding arm and wrapped himself in Peter’s hold.

His forehead rested gently on the kid’s collarbone, and with a start Tony realized that Peter was finally taller than him.

Everything he had likely missed started to run through his mind. Had Peter started shaving yet? Had Rhodey or Happy taught him the proper way to do it? Had the kid created some sort of invention in the lab with the king’s sister that Tony hadn’t gotten to see? He’d missed movie nights, game nights, even sparring in the gym.

His fingers started to squeeze into Peter’s clothing, surprised when the teen pulled back to meet his gaze. The brown eyes that reflected Tony’s so beautifully stared right back at him, a mixture of relief and anger crossing the kid’s expression.

Before Tony could process exactly what was going on, Peter had pulled back completely with only his hands holding onto the genius. He started to shake the man, his anger overpowering any feeling of relief.

“Never,” Peter paused, letting the word sink in as he took a deep breath. “Never do that to me again.” There was another pause, like the kid was composing himself even as tears slipped free from his eyes. “Please.”

Tony noted that despite the rage, Peter still controlled his strength. He could have chosen to squeeze his fingers into the genius’ flesh. He could have cut him open and hurt him, to teach him a lesson. Like the soldiers had done…

His gaze lifted to Peter’s anguished face. He had grown up, looking more and more like an adult. He’d filled out, and there was more muscle mass under his baggy sweater. He opened his mouth to promise the kid that he’d never leave him again… but then he realized that he couldn’t. The soldiers wouldn’t ever let him go, and something in his gut told him that unless the rebellion group managed to kill them off, nothing could be done to ultimately save him.

Tony was vaguely aware that his body started to shake, Peter lowering them both to their knees when his legs started to give out beneath him. He didn’t ever want to leave his kid again… his kid… that had called him dad. But what if he didn’t have a choice? What if they found him again?

“Tony?” Peter was scared, the tone was obvious as he tried to understand what was running through his mentor’s mind.

The kid’s voice caught his attention, and his gaze fell back on Peter.

“Dad?” The kid whispered again.

Every wall, every ounce of strength that had pulled Tony through the last few months, every haunting feeling that raised self-doubt and killed his spirit, everything disappeared and grew at the same time. There was a tight feeling in his chest that he hadn’t felt in a long time, a ball that was spiraling round and round.

Howard Stark’s voice echoed over and over in his thoughts, a haunting echo of the past.

Stark men are made of iron.

Stark men are made of iron.

Stark men are made of iron.

Tony Stark wasn’t made of iron.

Tony crumbled completely, ugly sobs filling the room as the ball that he had so tightly put together burst into jagged little pieces. He wrapped himself so tightly around Peter that the kid could feel every single motion, body shaking terribly in the shock of everything that had happened.

The man barely registered when fingers pried his hands away from the kid and a solid body lifted him onto their lap on the sofa. Fingers gently making circular motions on his back in a useless effort to calm the hysterical genius down.

“You’re safe now,” the voice was deeper than Peter’s. “You’re safe now.”

With his energy depleted, Tony continued to cry, the sound slowly dissipating into nothing as he curled further into the person’s body. He used the last of his strength to lift his head, to meet the loving gaze of his best friend.

“Platypus?”

“I got you Tones,” the man reassured, a soft (albeit sad) smile on his face. Peter was sitting beside Rhodey, having lifted the genius’ legs onto his lap so that he was still close. The other two had left the room, giving Tony the dignity of having his breakdown in the privacy of his family.
Tony leaned his head back on Rhodey’s chest, eyes fluttering even as he tried desperately to stay awake. If it was a dream, if he wasn’t really holding onto his best friend and kid…. Tony wasn’t sure he’d make it.

“I’ve got you,” Rhodey’s voice repeated, a hand gently running through his hair. Tony sunk into an exhausted sleep.
--------------------------------

“Care to explain what the hell that was?” Bucky’s enraged voice sounded throughout the entire floor, echoing ominously off the walls to batter at the hunched bodies of the shivering men.

After the escape, they had gathered the heads of their security teams, as well as their two lead technicians, and put them all in one room. In order to keep their own lives, the rest of the security detail had eagerly volunteered to stand guard in the corners of the room. No one making a sound, as if standing like a statue would save them from a fate worse than they could begin to imagine.

“The system…” The voice was quiet, the lead technician not daring to make eye contact as he spoke. “That… Jarvis… He created actual artificial intelligence. We didn’t have the capability, we weren’t prepared to-”

“You weren’t prepared!?” Bucky exploded.

“I mean… we didn’t expect… we didn’t think anyone could…” The man was trying desperately to backtrack, to get out of the hole he had dug himself into.

A hand settled on the brunette’s shoulder before he could explode again, eyes burning with unadulterated hatred.

Steve stepped forward, standing next to the soldier as he let his gaze fall on the quivering figure in front of them. “You failed,” it was a statement. “You claimed to be the best at your job, and you failed.”

The man had the nerve to look indignant, not enjoying the poke at his ego. “I am the best at this job, the only person that can beat me was Stark. He’s the reason this all happened, it’s his fault, not mine.”

It was the wrong thing to say.

Without warning Natasha had taken silent steps and put a bullet straight through the man’s temple. She didn’t even flinch as blood sprayed her body, the other technician letting out a shriek of fear at seeing his coworkers’ body fall to the ground.

Steve, unblinking, turned his gaze to the man and raised a brow. “And what about you?”

“I can track him down!” The man wanted to save his own neck, and if begging meant saving it, he’d do it on his hands and knees. “I can do whatever you want, please! I’ll find him, I’ll make sure he never gets out again! Please!”

Captain America narrowed his eyes, before he finally gave a terse nod. “Find him, and soon. If you don’t… well…” He didn’t finish, smiling darkly when the man gave a scared shriek when Natasha’s hand landed on his shoulder.

She pushed the man to his feet, leading him out of the room with the same gun that had killed his coworker sitting snuggly against his back.

The team was furious.

When the attack had occurred, Carol had managed to overpower the team by collapsing the ceiling in the training room on top of them. Never mind that the thing had been reinforced with steel, but that her powers had returned without any of them knowing. She had blasted a hole straight into the side of the building and flown out in a suit that had appeared from her wrist like magic.

Bucky, upon seeing it, had known immediately that Tony had been involved and panicked, having thrown the beam from the top of his body away and sprinted towards the lab. There was no way Carol would have gotten the suit without the genius’ help.

But he hadn’t arrived in time.

When Sam had offered a ride so that he could help restrain the genius, neither expected Carol to appear. She had managed to get the upper hand on both men, and Bucky still wanted to ring her neck. He had watched as the woman had turned Tony against them, as he had blasted Steve from his suit and disappeared into the clouds.

Natasha had been the one retrieving the Quinjet, and everyone had boarded quickly with the intent of getting the man back. Unfortunately, it took off in the opposite direction of the two escapees and taken them towards the middle of nowhere. Natasha had desperately tried to hack the system, but Jarvis had easily bypassed all her attempts and flown the jet right into a forest. The system shutting down when they were right above the larger trees.

They had barely made it out of the aircraft before it crashed and was destroyed in the dense brush. Jarvis once again claiming that they had no business with his creator before the thing had shut down completely and lost all power.

Jarvis. Another person standing in the way of them getting Tony back. The AI had managed to hack their systems and destroy every trace of Tony Stark or the rebellion. The technicians hadn’t been able to do anything to stop it.

“As for the rest of you,” Steve’s voice brought him back to the present. Bucky glanced around, noticing that the leaders of their security teams were frightened, even if they didn’t look as cowed as the technicians had. Someone had dragged the body away.

“You’re going to help us, in a training exercise.” He laughed when protests immediately lifted, begging and denial. “Room 3, I think.”

One voice broke out amongst the men, a man that had worked very closely with the former head of security at Stark Industries. He’d quietly joined the new regime in order to keep his life, although he now stood with his back ramrod straight.

“You’re not going to win this fight. We didn’t fail, you did. Tony Stark is the best in the business, and he’s going to take you out. You’re never getting him back. Never.”

There was no holding back the Winter Soldier, the man blurring in his speed, appearing with his hand wrapped tightly around the security guard. Immediately hands were clawing at the grip, choking sounds filling the sudden quiet room.

“Вот где вы ошибаетесь,” came the hissed voice.

The terrible sound of something crunching resounded in an echo, chilling the other men to the bone as Bucky easily crushed the man’s wind pipe. Throwing the body to the side, the Winter Soldier pointed towards the door.

“Room 3, now.”

Without hesitation, the security detail began to escort the group out of the room. Amidst protests and fear, the former Avengers watched as the men disappeared down the hall.

“Tony has been kidnapped, I want it on every news channel.” Steve tossed his gaze towards Bruce, whom had been sitting quietly at the table behind him. “Tony and the kid, they’ve both been taken by the tyrant group of rebels and need to be returned, unharmed. Advertise a cash reward.”

“You know that they’re going to get away from any civilians… they’re good.” Bruce added, already standing up to trail to the tech room where Natasha and the technician had disappeared.

“Yes, but this will show them that we’re not going to stop until we’ve got them. This will make it harder for them to move around undetected.”

Bruce nodded, not speaking as he ambled away and disappeared into the hall.

“I’m going to prep our weapons for our training session,” Clint piped up. He motioned for the rest of the team to follow, leaving only Bucky and Steve behind. “I’ll call Thor and Loki to come back, we may need them,” he threw over his shoulder.

Waiting until everyone was out of the room, Steve finally spoke up. “Tony loves us Buck, I’m not letting him get away.” He turned so that he was facing his lover, the brunette still looking murderous where he stood. “He told me he loves us, and she took him.”

Bucky nodded, moving forward to wrap his metal arm around the blonde’s waist. He leaned forward and pressed a firm kiss to Steve’s neck, “we’re not stopping Stevie. And this time, we’re getting the kid too.”

Backing up enough so that the blond could look directly at his face, the Winter Soldier grinned. “We’re going to be a family. We’ll have Tony, and a kid that we’re going to help him raise.”

Steve returned the grin and planted a solid kiss on his lovers’ mouth. “Two husbands and a son? I want it official.”

When he received a nod in return, the blond grinned and kissed Bucky again before turning away. “Let’s go to the training room, I don’t want them to start without us.”
---------------------

When Tony had fallen asleep both Peter and Rhodey agreed that he couldn’t continue to bleed from his wrist, and sent for the doctor to help him heal. They had refused to leave Tony when the other man had been summoned, but agreed to set him down so that the genius could be looked over without the bodies to block the path.

It wasn’t until after he’d been stitched up, when the doctor was wrapping it up, that Tony finally came awake. He jumped immediately upon realizing that the man above him was neither Peter or Rhodey.

With a shout he pulled his wrist back, the sight a bit ridiculous as the man held half the gauze in his hand and Tony’s arm stuck out from where he collapsed on the sofa.

“Tony!” Rhodey was suddenly there, leaning over the back of the sofa and putting a gentle hand on the man’s shoulder. He needed him to stay calm, so that the stitches wouldn’t pop off and make the wound bleed again. He’d lost enough blood.

“Platypus?” Tony’s voice sounded unsure, disbelieving that his best friend was so close. Had it not been a dream?

“Yeah,” the warm smile that greeted him was familiar. “It’s me and Pete, you’re okay man. Let Strange finish you up.”

“Strange?” Tony’s brows furrowed, his gaze falling to the doctor who looked completely done with the whole situation, although he hadn’t dropped his hold on the gauze.

“Dr. Strange!” Peter’s face popped out from behind the sofa, looking excited as he rambled. “But you can also call him Mr. Wizard, or Wizard dude… he does magic and stuff.”

The man in question made a sound in the back of his throat, as if he didn’t enjoy that the conversation was happening about him, whilst he stood right above the chatty group.

“Stephen Strange,” he introduced himself, reaching forward and gently pulling Tony’s arm back to its original position so he could finish wrapping the wound. “Now hold still so I can finish this, it won’t do you any good to bleed out.”

With so many months in captivity, listening to orders was almost second nature to Tony. It didn’t pass by his friend’s observations that the man instantly quieted and stilled, allowing the doctor to finish his work on the arm.

When Stephen finished, he simply nodded at the three, turned on his heel, and was out the door without speaking a single sentence to the men.

“So-“ Before Rhodey could speak, the door opened again admitting T’Challa back into the room. While the king looked composed, Tony could sense that there was also an urgency to his attitude.

“We need to leave.”

Chapter Text

Peter was having a hard time keeping a straight face as the craft descended, one of his hands tightly clutching Tony’s as they tried to get a glance at the hallway that led to the cockpit.

After T’Challa had come into the room and spoken, they had all witnessed firsthand just how negatively Tony had been affected from his stay with the soldiers.

Instead of the quick-witted quip the man would usually make, followed by an inappropriate suggestion, Tony had dissolved into a quivering mess faster than any of the other men could move to stop it. Fortunately, he had already been sitting down or he would have collapsed onto the ground.

Tony had started to hyperventilate, a bumbling mess of fear as his eyes met the floor, refusing to make eye contact with anyone in the room.

Trying desperately to dissipate the panic, T’Challa had dropped to one knee in front of the genius and laid a reassuring hand on his knee. It had clearly been the wrong action as Tony had all but whined and pulled himself into a ball on the cushion, shivering terribly and mumbling that he was “sorry” for everything. That he didn’t want to go back.

“Dad,” Peter whispered, using his stealth to settle gently next to Tony. “Please… you’re okay.”

Very slowly, as to not alarm the panicking man, Peter lifted Tony’s hand and placed it on his own chest. He took deep breaths, urging the genius to follow along.

It took several intense, quiet moments before Tony returned to himself, blushing lightly in embarrassment at having been seen in such a vulnerable state. Despite the feeling, he still reaching forward and curled around Peter, as if knowing the kid was safe meant the world was alright.

“I didn’t mean to frighten you,” T’Challa all but whispered. “I meant to say that we have an agenda that we must keep. In order to accomplish all our goals, we have to stay one step ahead of the group, which means heading out.”

It was clear the king was apologetic for accidentally having sent Tony into a panic attack.

“Can we take another minute, I don’t think he can really stand right now… after that.” Rhodes wasn’t afraid to speak his mind, even if the man he was speaking to was the king of his own country.

Of course, it wasn’t as if he had disrespected T’Challa, for the other understood that Tony, while physically strong, was in a very delicate mental state. Whether the man agreed or not to the statement, would be an entirely different matter.

“If we need to go now, then we should go.” Tony all but groaned out, releasing his hold on Peter so that he could slowly uncurl himself. The panic had subsided, and what remained was a mixture of rage and disbelief that he had let things get that far.

However, if Afghanistan hadn’t kept him down, neither would the soldiers.

“But Tony, Strange said you lost a lot of blood. You should rest, just a little bit.” Rhodey insisted.

Tony scoffed, “I’m not out of it platypus, he didn’t say much at all, if that.” The genius grinned, the atmosphere of the room easing as he started to try to forget the episode he’d had only moments before. “Why don’t we at least head towards our transport? Seriously, what’s the worst that can happen?”

Peter groaned, lifting a hand to his temple like Tony had committed the world’s worst crime. “You can’t say stuff like that!”

The genius laughed, looking to the side to face the kid. “How about, I have a good feeling about this?”

Again, Peter rolled his eyes and stood, holding out a hand to help Tony from the sofa. “That’s not the right line, its bad feeling. And, he was usually right.”

The confusion written across T’Challa’s face would have been hilarious if Tony’s sole attention weren’t focused on Peter. How the kid’s face lit up as he tried to badly quote their favorite film, how the scene was so familiar to the two of them. Tony felt warm again, the feeling chasing away the fear that had temporarily sent him into a panic.

“So a bad feeling then?” Tony quipped, grabbing Peter’s hand to stand. “Okay, then that’s what I have?”

Before the kid could reply Tony hoisted himself to his feet using the hand as leverage. And promptly, the world spun and Peter’s entire body became the only thing holding him up. With a groan he heard an alarmed cry, and felt two arms wrap around his waist and lift him up. He would have panicked, but he recognized Rhodey’s voice coming from the chest where he lay his head.

“Blood loss,” the man explained. “He’ll be fine. Let’s get to the craft and we can set you two up in the back with medical while we get out of here.”

Tony faintly heard Peter reply, and even recognized Carol’s voice, before the world faded to black.

Not quite sure how long he’d fallen asleep, Tony peeked open an eye, trying to figure out why his bed was lightly rumbling underneath him. There was no panic, as he’d woken to find Peter holding his hand despite having fallen asleep sitting upright near what was obviously a medical bed.

A small window to his left confirmed that they were in the air, clouds whisking past.

They’d put an IV into his good arm, and he could feel the difference. He didn’t feel as lightheaded, the world was spinning less and his thoughts were focused. Taking a moment to look around, Tony realized that another medical bed had been set up nearby, and it looked ready for a second person. Whatever they were going to do, it was obvious that there was room for someone to get hurt.

With a groan he couldn’t suppress, Tony sat up gingerly and was glad to find he had the strength to do it. However, the action also woke Peter who sat up with his fist raised, ready to battle whatever foe was waking him.

“If you’re going to be a ninja, you could at least let go of my hand so that I don’t fall off this bed,” Tony deadpanned, although the smile on his face told Peter he was teasing.

“Tony!” The kid let out his name in one breath, looking absolutely relieved to see the genius sitting up.

“Hey kid,” Tony nodded. “Where are we?”

Knowing that he had the strength and mind to get up if needed, Tony allowed himself to relax and fall back into the pillows, turning on his side so he could face Peter with minimum effort.

“Oh, I don’t know if I’m allowed to say yet,” he admitted gently. “It’s supposed to be a surprise.” The kid tried and failed to waggle his brows, looking ridiculous and causing a laugh to pour of Tony’s throat.

“Come on kiddo, one clue.”

“How about…” He paused, for dramatic effect or not, and then grinned in a sing song voice, “you’re in trouble.”

Tony frowned, brows furrowing as he tried to figure out why Peter seemed so pleased about the information. Before he could ask, a scoff from the hallway interrupted their chat to reveal Carol standing with her arms crossed.

“James and T’Challa said we’re landing in five minutes. I may not know them that well, Tones, but I think the kids right, you’re in trouble.” She grinned, turning on her heel and leaving.

The genius turned his attention to the kid, who looked as if he were trying not to laugh as he didn’t dare make eye contact with the man. It was clear that they weren’t worried about Tony panicking again, not when everyone looked almost amused at whatever was going on.

“What did I do?” Tony questioned for the tenth time, ignored again by Peter whose grin grew as the obvious shifting of the craft meant that they had landed.

The sound of gears shifting and the sunlight that suddenly hit the hallway was enough to tell the man that they were getting off the plane. Rhodey, whom had been absent for the ride, was suddenly heading down the hall with a grimace.

“Hey, you’re up!” The man grinned, stepping forward to unstrap the medical bed and move Tony into the hall.

“I think I can stand,” Tony admonished, but was completely ignored as Rhodey pushed the bed into the hall and towards a ramp.

“I think you may want to play sick for a minute,” was the only warning he got before Tony caught a glimpse of red stomping in his direction.

Immediately, he turned and found that he couldn’t figure out the emotion swirling in his chest. Was it fear? Joy? A weird mixture of both fought for dominance as the woman approached, her face almost as red as her hair in her rage.

Taking Rhodey’s advice, Tony immediately fell back onto the bed and pretended to be hurt more than he was. It did nothing, as she paused by his groaning form and smacked his shoulder with the force of someone who wanted to leave a bruise.

“Anthony Stark, if you ever do something that stupid again, I will find you and kill you myself!” Pepper Potts shrieked, her eyes watering as she glared at the stunned man.

“Hey… Hey Pep,” Tony managed.

“Hey Pep? Hey Pep? Is that all you can say to me?” She countered, arms crossing over her chest as she glared daggers at him. Everyone had taken a step back, not wanting to be in the war path of one of Tony’s oldest friends.

“It’s not the worst thing you’ve seen me do?” He tried. A moment of silence, followed by a half sob half laugh as she launched forward to give him a tight hug.

“I’ve missed you, you idiot.” She murmured, gently running her hand through his hair as she stood back up.

“I’ve missed you too,” he admitted, unable to hide the tears in his own brown eyes as he looked at another member of his family he had missed dearly.

Tony was so enthralled with Pepper, he didn’t notice when someone grabbed the bed at his feet to help Rhodey move him down the ramp so that they could get to wherever their final destination was. He let out a surprised yelp and looked down to meet the shining eyes of one Happy Hogan.

“Next time you decide to get all self-sacrificial on us, can you at least wait until you’re good to stand boss?” The man grinned, “I want to know that you can at least have some semblance of a fight left in you.”

Peter, whom had started to walk alongside the bed with Pepper, jumped in shock and before Tony could reply screamed out. “Mr. Stark! He’s smiling! Happy is smiling! You’ve ended us all with your bad quoting!”

Tony groaned, not sure if it was from the fact that Peter was back to calling him by the dreaded title, or that the bed had hit the ground and he’d unwittingly smacked the wounded arm down on the mattress when he’d turned to look at Peter.

“Tony or dad, you can’t call me anything else kiddo,” he groaned.

It took a second, but suddenly Rhodey was laughing at how pink Peter turned, and Happy had slapped the kid on the back as if to tell him that he were proud that the boy had finally called Tony by his real title.

“You almost gave Peter his own heart attack, don’t do it again.” The voice was soft, spoken from the porch of a house Tony had only seen in his dreams.

May Parker smiled, an apron tide around her waist, a glass filled with some amber liquid in one hand, a kitchen towel in the other.

At that moment, Tony took in exactly where they had landed. It was familiar, too familiar. It had been the same farmhouse in which Jarvis had come to him with Wanda and her brother. It was the same place where he had broken down and remembered what family meant.

He didn’t understand why he had seen the house already; when this was the first time he’d visited. But at that moment, with the three males nearby cracking jokes at each other, with Pepper and May smiling gently at him, Tony was home.

----------------------

“Sir, a super has been reported in Caldecott County, should we set up a strike team?”

Steve looked up from where he had been going through files about the rebellion. At first, the group had been annoying, but they hadn’t been a threat. However, they had taken Tony, and that meant that they were no longer going to remain unharmed.

If they could retrieve someone from the rebellion, it was likely they could garner where the group was keeping Tony. Well, at least that was one of their choices when it came to finding the genius.

“No, we’re going to go.” He waved a hand, “get the quinjet ready, I want to make sure we don’t miss our opportunity.”

The head of security nodded, saluting before deftly leaving the office he had entered.

In seconds, Bucky entered with their new head of tech, looking rather pleased. He smiled as Steve looked up, hope in his eyes.

“The system will be up and running in five days,” Bucky drawled.

“Yes sir, we will inform you the moment it’s up.” The technician nodded, having been escorted into the room to tell the leader the news.

“Five days?” Steve stood, tilting his head. “I think if we get someone on the rebellion we can do it faster.”

His smile turned positively wicked as he looked at the shivering man before him, Bucky acting as a wall against the man’s escape from the room. “If we get to him before you do, in five days, I think we need a new head of tech.”

The man panicked, “I…. I’ll aim for sooner sir!”

Steve grinned, “see that you do, dismissed.”

Bucky barely stepped aside, both watching the man scramble down the hall in an attempt to get out of range from whatever the super soldiers planned on doing. They could wait five days, but why not aim for earlier?

“So, where we headed?” Bucky asked, already sensing that Steve had a plot.

“Mississippi,” the blond answered, heading out of the room to their weapons depot, the one’s Tony hadn’t had access to. “We’ve got another superhuman to catch.”

Bucky grinned, “And a ticket to Tony.”

-----------------

Everything was exactly as he had dreamt it.

The house was warm and inviting, with the smell of sweet baked goods filling the air. With help from both Rhodey and Happy, the genius had managed to clamber out of the bed and to the sofa. He had felt a lot better, but hadn’t trusted his body to completely move on its own.

The living room had been set up to accommodate several people, although Tony wasn’t surprised to find himself squished between Rhodey and Pepper. Peter had made himself at home sitting on the floor between the genius’ legs, and Happy and May sat on the sofa nearby, but close enough that either could easily reach Tony.

Carol had come in, sipping a cup of coffee and looking comfortable with her hair up and sweats. When she’d been thrown a look of surprise from Rhodey, her glare had quickly beat the man’s expression back into something neutral.

Doctor Strange had disappeared, and Peter had claimed it was because the man had other people to tend to, and was constantly on the move as his magical trace could be found by Loki if he wasn’t careful.

T’Challa had settled himself on an armchair, looking less like a king and more like an exhausted twenty-something year old that had the world thrust upon his shoulders. Tony understood the feeling too well.

“We have to talk about our next course of action,” T’Challa spoke softly, breaking the comfortable silence of the room.

Throwing a look at Carol, the genius nodded. “I’ll be happy to sit and talk, but I’m a little exhausted and wouldn’t mind having some coffee too. Life blood, and all.”

There was a collective groan from the room, before Pepper stood and disappeared into the kitchen without another word. Tony was a bit surprised, knowing that she was trying desperately to curb his caffeine addiction before all the events had taken place.

In minutes, she returned brandishing a steaming cup.

Instead of handing it to Tony right away, she took her seat beside him and held it out so that Tony could use both hands to grab a hold of the hot mug.

“Will that be all Mr. Stark?” Pepper asked, brow raised and lip slightly curved.

“That will be all, Miss Potts,” he returned.

Containing a moan as he sipped on the fresh liquid, Tony finally turned his attention back to T’Challa. The king looked weary, like he didn’t want to share the information, but knew it was better to not withhold what he had to say.

“We need your help,” he admitted.

Tony raised a brow, something in him excited to be able to do something for the greater good again. Even if he doubted that it would be in a suit, considering the state he was in.

“We have a female in need of extraction. She has powers, and while she’s gained control over them, she’s now come onto their radar.” T’Challa leaned forward, knowing that he didn’t have to explain whom he was speaking about.

“She won’t be forced to join us; she will be free to leave if she chooses. But if she stays where she currently is, we won’t be able to help her.”

“And you need my help with what, exactly?” Tony inquired.

“Surveillance.”

Chapter Text

They were given two nights and one day to recoup.

The moment Tony had agreed to take part in the rescue mission, protests had filled the room. No one wanted to see the genius put in harm’s way again, especially after having just gotten him back. But Tony was stubborn, and the particular trait hadn’t disappeared in the care of the soldiers. It took only minutes for people to realize that the man would not budge, he was helping.

Pepper had been the loudest to vocalize her disapproval, but stopped when Tony threw her a serious look. “I didn’t stay down after Afghanistan, Pep… I have to do this. I have to show them that I’m not afraid.”

The male looked at the sofa, frowning, “that I’m not submissive.” He spat the words.

The redhead nodded, wrapping her arm around Tony’s shoulder as she leaned back on the sofa. He was still drinking his coffee with both hands.

“If Tony is going on the mission, it’s only fair that I volunteer myself,” Rhodey spoke up. “I still have the suit he made me, so I can be of some help out there in case we encounter bogies.”

“Me too!” Peter chirped from the ground. “I’m going too!”

“You are not!” Tony protested before anyone could continue. “If they even catch a glimpse of you, then it’s over.”

In his fight to stop Peter, the man leaned forward and set the cup on the coffee table. He was shaking so terribly that the little coffee left would have spilled from the edges rather easily.

The thought of Peter getting taken was more frightening then being taken in by the men again. If he had to, Tony would easily throw himself in harm’s way if it meant protecting a kid that had officially referred to him as his father.

“I’m not leaving you!” Peter had pivoted from where he sat on the floor and glared at Tony. “I’m not going to let you go away again!”

Before a fight could start between the two, Happy held up a hand and spoke in a tone that broke no room for argument. There was a reason he was head of security at Stark Industries.

“Peter will be going on the mission, but he will not be in the field.” When the two brunettes turned to stare at him incredulously, he continued. “Tony, you might need help with the tech with that arm injury, and Peter is great with that stuff. The two of you can sit in the surveillance room and be the eyes. Plus, with Peter’s spidey senses you may be able to catch people on the monitor before Tony.”

Both brunettes deflated at the words, Tony still shaking terribly while Peter nodded in agreement. The teenager didn’t mention how shaken his mentor was, simply pushing the cup of coffee back into his hands and sprawling closer to the man so that he was practically sitting in Tony’s lap.

The kid didn’t want to leave his adopted father’s side, just the idea of never seeing Tony again filled him with anxiety. He loved his aunt, he loved the others, but the man had filled a hole in his heart that he had never expected anyone would be able to fill. One he hadn’t known existed until Tony had come along.

Happy, May, and Pepper would move ahead to Wakanda in a separate craft. It would be easier to keep the group that was on the mission smaller, in case anything went wrong and they were ambushed. The vehicle that would take them to Wakanda was smaller than the rescue craft, and the stealth mode was almost perfect.

Depending on how the mission went, the others would make a pit stop at one of the warehouses that stored some of the rebellions equipment, and then make their way to Wakanda.

Having taken the discussion between the rest of the group as a moment to recover from his almost panic attack at Peter’s words, one hand running through the boy’s curls, Tony leaned back on the sofa and watched the ragtag group of people before him.

When there was a lull, and most details had been discussed, the man spoke softly. “So, what city are we headed to? I’m assuming someone wanting to hide super powers is going to try their best to blend in, and you can disappear in a big city pretty easily.”

Would they be headed to Los Angeles? Chicago?

“Mississippi,” T’Challa shrugged at the look he got in return. “Small town, actually.”

Tony let out an impressed whistle, but after a moment realized that it could have been a smart move by the girl. Who would go looking for a person with powers in a small town?

But then again, people liked to gossip, and that usually meant that secrets weren’t a thing in small places. Wouldn’t they have outed the girl to the people who ruled the world?

As if hearing what Tony was thinking, the king smirked. “She either hides her powers well, or this town has some very loyal people in their community. Either way, it’ll be an interested extraction.”

With a sigh, T’Challa stood from the sofa and dusted invisible lint from his pants. The man looked tired, which made sense considering the sun had gone down in the time it had taken them to finish their conversation. “I’ll leave you to catch up with your family. Carol and I will get everything ready go to, so take this time to have some fun and relax. To recover.”

Tony nodded, passing his empty cup absentmindedly to Peter who placed it on the table in front of them.

Without another word, the king pivoted and disappeared into the hallway. Carol, grinning like a loon, threw a mock salute at Tony before she followed suit, stopping briefly in the kitchen to pour herself more coffee.

The room filled with a comfortable silence for only a moment, everyone enjoying just being in the company of the other, before the genius spoke.

“She may be de-aged, but she sure acts like a kid.” He grinned, receiving smiles in return for his quip.

“Pep, would you mind getting more coffee?” He asked, turning and giving the woman his sweetest smile that he could manage.

Pepper rolled her eyes, snatching the cup and moving towards the kitchen with a motion for Happy or May to follow her. Both did, looking rather comfortable and content.

“I’ll get you more coffee, Tones. But, I’m also going to make us some dinner so that you have something in your stomach. I wouldn’t be surprised if you didn’t eat today.”

Tony threw her a big grin, unable to deny the words.

“Can we have a movie night?” Peter asked, turning to glance at Tony with a large grin lighting up his face.

For a moment the genius froze, thinking about all the nights where he had to sit with the former group. All the horror movies that had made him cuddle closer to Steve and Bucky, and the odd feeling that it would be strange not having someone to curl him up in their arms during a film.

“Wha…What movie?” He tried to hide the stutter, clearing his throat as he shot a tight smile at Peter.

Recognizing the hesitation but knowing that the genius didn’t want to focus on it, the teenager smiled back. “How about Star Wars? It sounds like you’re getting rusty on the quotes.”

“Is there even a television here?” Tony raised a brow, looking at the room where everything pointed at a fireplace, no screen to be seen.

“It’s a projector! But yeah, there’s a few movies!” Peter quipped, jumping to his feet to get the white screen up, pulling his tablet out with all the films.

The genius snorted, “you can’t have movie night with anything healthy though… and knowing Pepper right now.”

“Excuse you?” Pepper returned, no coffee mug in sight but a tray stacked with oven pizza’s in her hands. The other two following behind with similar trays. “Just for that, I should make you a salad.”

Making grabby hands at the tray of pizza, Tony whined her name in hopes that she would take pity on him. He was relieved to find that she did, rolling her eyes but giving him a piece before putting the tray on the table so the rest could grab their own pieces.

Peter, whom had started the first film, grabbed a slice before curling into Tony’s legs. One hand clutching the man’s pants while the other held his meal. Rhodey threw his free arm around the back of the genius’ shoulders, relaxing into the sofa as Pepper nibbled on her own slice.

And Tony, relaxing into the warmth that the bodies surrounding him provided, felt safe. He ran his free hand through Peters hair, using the injured one for pizza.

“I love you all,” he murmured softly, tears welling in his eyes.

No one spoke, but no one had to say a word.

-------------------------------

The light from the window woke him, the sound of the birds singing gently outside a reminder that he was exactly where he needed to be.

A small form curled against his chest, and Tony didn’t even begin to think it was anyone but his kid. His warm, kind-hearted, loyal, wonderful kid.

He must have fallen asleep through the film, feeling exhausted from the events of the day and still recovering from the shock of his captivity. His family had kept him warm, safe. It was obvious that either Happy or Rhodey had taken it upon themselves to carry him to bed.

Blinking weary eyes open, Tony took in the smell of coffee and bacon wafting through the air. Peter’s messy brown locks the first thing in sight, resting gently on his chest as the boy in question breathed deeply in his sleep.

The room was warm, with floral patterned curtains and decorations of blue and yellow. The walls had been painted a soft white, looking stained and old, but well lived in. The bed had been covered in a handmade quilt, the floral pattern matching the curtain. Soft pillows cradling their heads. Tony would compare sleeping on the bed to sleeping on a cloud, but instead he settled for an overgrown marshmallow as he’d never really felt a cloud.

He was still in his clothes, they had respected his privacy and left him alone.

Running his good hand over his face, Tony tried to wake himself without rustling his kid. Unfortunately, Peter was sensitive to the movements and instantly shot awake, sitting up with a cry.

Tony couldn’t stop the laughter that bubbled out of him. The kid’s hair was hanging in every which direction, his eyes half closed as he tried desperately to figure out what was going on. Seems like he wasn’t the only one that fell asleep during the film.

“Good morning,” Tony chirped, sitting up slowly.

Turning in his spot, Peter blinked his eyes open and stared at Tony quietly for a good minute before launching forward. He knocked them both back onto the mattress, laughing as he held onto the man. “I thought it was a dream! You’re really here!”

Tony grinned, “yep, I’m really here.”

The genius returned the hug as best as he could, laughing when Peter hummed contently and pressed his face against the man’s chest.

“And finally awake,” came an amused voice from the door.

Both turned to face Pepper, leaning against the frame with a half-smile as she watched them. “Coffee and breakfast will be done in five minutes,” she added.

Wrinkling her nose, she pointed a finger at each of them. “But I can hold it off for fifteen minutes if both of you take a shower and change, you smell.”

Tony squawked in indignation while Peter laughed, the kid bouncing away and off the bed without trouble.

“I’ll take the bathroom in the hall!” He ran towards an aged dresser, pulling out clothing for himself and then reached into a basket nearby, throwing several pieces towards Tony. “There’s a clean towel already hanging up for you dad!”

The bundle of energy created from finding Tony nearby bounced from the room, disappearing into the hallway with a chirped ‘excuse me’ at Pepper.

Tony watched him go in bemusement, only looking down at the articles of clothing Peter had thrown his way once the kid had left the room. He was surprised to find science pun t-shirts that had been bought in his size, and comfortable black sweats or the choice of jeans. Underwear and socks with the clothing.

“I’m going to look like an adult Peter Parker,” he murmured, standing slowly from the bed with a languid stretch.

“You already do,” Pepper winked, hanging a hoodie on a hook near the door.

“We’re really happy your back Tony… really happy.” She smiled, before closing the door to give him some privacy.

Looking down at his bare feet, Tony sighed as he took in the worn carpet that felt a little rough under his toes. He had the scar from the leg wound, but fortunately it was healed enough that he could walk on it without trouble.

Leaving the clothes on the bed, he ambled to the only other door in the room. The bathroom was small, with a shower, toilet, and sink all squeezed into the space. He could probably hold his arms out and touch wall to wall. A hook with a clean towel hung on the back of the door, and the fluffy blue carpet kept his toes from teaching cold tile.

Flicking on the shower, Tony turned and faced himself in the small mirror above the sink for the first time.

His blue eyes were shining, filled with life and hope. He didn’t look sick, only a bit pale from having lost blood the day prior. There were a few new scars to add to the equation, but the arc reactor still glowed in his chest. He was still the same old Tony that he had thought he’d left behind in the bunker.

A smile lifted the corner of his lips, really and truly happy for the first time in ages.

Turning back to shower, he threw himself under the spray. The bottle of shampoo was flower scented, the soap lavender. The water and products helped to wash away all scents from his experience, and Tony knew that he was in the shower a lot longer than Pepper’s timeline.

When he got out, there was a lot of steam in the bathroom, and Tony absolutely loved it. He took his time getting dried and throwing on the clothing that made him match the teenager of the home. Looking down at the shirt, he laughed and shook his head. It boldly stated, “A hug without U is just toxic” with a large picture for the periodic table mercury element.

He really was home.

--------------------

The day ended up passing fairly quietly.

While the king and Carol had disappeared to get things prepared, Tony got to spend a wonderful day reconnecting with his family.

They avoided the subject of his captivity, knowing that the genius couldn’t afford to focus on the past without being thrown into a panic attack.

May and Pepper switched from coddling him, and throttling him for his decisions. Happy insisted he learn some new moves, and had used Rhodey to help set Tony through an exercise regime that wouldn’t put a strain on his injury. Peter had spent his entire day stuck to the man like glue, only letting Tony out of his sight when the man had to use the restroom.

There was no time to get immersed in the past when every second was a moment with his family.

Tony had thoroughly enjoyed eating a half-burnt lunch, laughing through the meal because no one had gotten better in the kitchen during his absence. Informed that his bots had all been safely guarded in Wakanda, he promised he’d teach one of them to cook.

Peter had also explained that Dum-E and U would be especially excited to see him. Apparently, they had been a nightmare without their creator, and even the princess of Wakanda hadn’t managed to completely tame them.

When the sun began to set and indicated that they were hours from being separated once again, T’Challa reappeared. He joined them for dinner alongside Carol.

While there was some tension in the room, it was broken when Peter accidentally let out a large belch and was promptly smacked upside the head by May. Tony had started laughing to the point that tears streamed down his face, and the rest of the room had found the situation hilarious too.

Everyone was laughing and the atmosphere turned into focusing on the moment.

After all, in a few hours they would be separated again.

Chapter Text

They had absolutely underestimated how small the town was going to be.

In fact, the minute they had started to fly over green pasture and crops, Tony had started to make quips about the children of the corn being the most worrisome thing they’d have to look out for. Of course, that had led to Peter making fun of him for watching old films.

They had both quieted down upon seeing the house in which resided their resident superhuman. Tony had let out a whistle, trying to figure out just how they were going to hide the craft in plain sight, when the only area that didn’t have some sort of tall plant was almost directly on the property.

Sure, the thing had a camouflage like he’d never seen in his lifetime, but that didn’t mean it wouldn’t leave an indentation wherever it landed.

He also vaguely wondered if there were even cameras to hack in the area, considering most small towns were rather behind on the technological aspects.

As the pilot decided to land the plane just to the front of the house, right before the crops started, Tony recognized that whomever they were rescuing was rather thorough about their security. They had set up several surveillance points around the entire property consisting of cameras, in order to be able to see if anyone was coming onto the farm unwelcome.

Easing Peter into the booth next to him, Tony instructed the kid on what to type, watching as his fingers deftly moved over the keyboard.

It took less than a minute for the two to hack into the cameras, giving them a clear view of the area. One camera focused on the back door, the other on the front porch. Several others had been positioned to watch the fields to make sure that no one was trying to make a surprise attack.

It would work in their favor.

Throwing two activators on his wrists, in case he had to call his suit, Rhodey gave a mock salute towards the two brunettes and started after T’Challa and the Dora Milaje.

They had arrived that morning on the craft that had taken the rest of the family to Wakanda.

Once the rescue group had exited the craft, the only people on board were Tony, the kid, and the pilot. Peter realized quickly that it made for a very quiet atmosphere, and opened his mouth to break it when Tony beat him to it, eyes never leaving the screens.

“Ever done a mission like this before kiddo?” Tony asked softly.

“Not like this, no.” Peter admitted, throwing a look at his adopted father and mentor before bringing his attention back to his half of the screens.

“I have,” Tony spoke softly, a smile gracing his lips. “My favorite was this one kid that I had to get out of Queens. I didn’t realize it at the time, but he’d basically become my son, you know?”

The sweet smile turned teasing as Tony slightly turned to face Peter for a moment. “He almost peed his pants when we rescued him, all freaked out.”

“I was not freaked out!” Peter turned, lightly shoving at the genius’ shoulder. Both brunettes missing the movement on the top right of the screen as two figures moved through the high crops.

“Ah,” Tony added, eyes flicking back to watch the area. “But you did pee yourself, then?”

The teenager sputtered, frowning as he tried to come up with a better comeback than simply exhaling at Tony for offending him. Instead, movement on the porch caught his eye and Peter zoomed into their group as the front door of the house opened.

“Hey! Look! That must be her!” He tilted his head, taking in the woman.

Wrapping his good arm around Peter, Tony tugged the boy so that he was pressed against his side so the two of them could look at the same screen together without being uncomfortable. He couldn’t deny the warmth that spread internally, feeling so in love with the child beside him.

Focusing on the screen, Tony frowned as he took in the woman that they had come to rescue.

She was young, probably a few years younger than the genius himself, mid-twenties. She wore a dark green jacket that sat a bit loosely on her frame, black leggings hugging down her waist that tucked into a pair of leather black boots. Her hair, while in a ponytail, was a dark brown that waved slightly in the updo. A strip of white hair made up bangs, falling to the side so one of her eyes was slightly obstructed. From the grainy texture of the camera, he couldn’t make out the color.

“What did T’Challa call her?” Peter asked softly.

“Rogue,” Tony supplied. He glanced down at her hands, seeing the black leather gloves that covered the skin. He had read the file, and knew that she held a power that came from touch, so it made sense that she was practically covered from head to toe.

“She’s really pretty!” Peter murmured, blushing when he realized that he’d said the comment aloud.

Throwing the kid an amused smile, Tony turned to glance back at the other screens and frowned when he caught a few of the crops looking like they were moving. That was definitively not the wind, but no person could be seen actually moving the things.

Knowing that caution had kept him alive in some situations, Tony pressed the com and spoke gently to Rhodey. “We have movement to the north of the house. Could be something, could be nothing, start moving faster Platypus.”

Peter’s head flung to the screen, the movement of the plants already stopping. Whether that was alarming or not was something that the teenager couldn’t decide.

On the screen that was focused on the porch, the group was starting to move quickly. T’Challa and Rogue had disappeared into the house together, probably gathering whatever they needed to leave the area.

Rhodey had turned and walked off of the steps, wrists out and ready to call his suit if someone were to show up. His eyes were focused solely on the crops, ready to take on anything or anyone.

Several tense minutes passed in silence before the king and woman reappeared at the front door, holding a bag each over their shoulders. Both looked ready to go, cautiously glancing around the area as they stepped among the women warriors.

As one, the group started towards the craft, the pilot already turning it on and lifting it so that the opening ramp was hovering only a few inches from the ground.

“Soldiers on the right! Soldiers on the right!” The words were screamed by Peter after he slammed his hand onto the com.

Tony felt his heart stop, head whipping from the opening ramp to face the monitors in front of them. What was once a very simple mission was turning on its head as two figures emerged on the opposite side of the house from the aircraft, looking ready for a fight.

Steve Rogers and Bucky Barnes were dressed in their battle gear. Both figures menacing as they took in each person that was hurrying towards the craft. However, unlike the rest of the group Rhodey turned and activated the suit.

“I’ll hold them off, run!”

Soon enough War Machine was off, going directly after Bucky who was closest to him. The soldier dodged to the right, trying and barely missing getting the man in a left hook.

With the ramp fully open, Tony didn’t hesitate. He threw himself from the seat and scrambled to get to the ramp. He needed to get Rhodey on the craft before it took off.

He had to.

As soon as he hit the slanted metal ramp, the oncoming group trampled past him. T’Challa stopping to grab his shoulder and stop Tony from running right into the fight without a weapon.

The genius moved to struggle, to be set free, but the movement jolted his wound and he let out a pained cry.

The sound froze the three men in the field, the soldiers looking shocked to see him.

Without even an ounce of hesitation Steve Rogers pivoted where he stood and ran at full speed towards the craft. The determination in his eyes was evident as he refused to take his gaze away from Tony, throwing his shield up blindly to dodge a blast from Rhodey as he ran.

Startled, Tony started to scramble backwards in fear when a blur of blue and red passed him and knocked right into the Captain.

The man flew backwards, Peter landing in a crouch just in front of the open ramp. The suit Tony had made for him in the bunker when they’d dreamed of saving the city hugging his body.

Standing slowly, he kept his attention on the man in front of him and hollered to the craft behind him, “go!” He screamed.

Instead of moving backward, Tony tried to move forward but was once again stopped by the hand on his shoulder. His cry of pain was followed by, “get in the craft!”

But the ramp was closing, and the plane was lifting from the grass and getting further away from his kid. The genius screamed, his hand coming down and slamming against the metal as he tried desperately to reach his family.

“No!” He screamed, “Open the door!”

Again and again, he slammed his fists against the metal. Tony didn’t even seem to notice that he was bloodying his hands, screaming in desperation that they turn around. Already, all the scenarios of what the men would do to his family were running through his head.

Two hands gripped his own, although it was hard to hold onto Tony when his hands were slippery with blood. He turned furious eyes to meet T’Challa’s gaze, “turn the fuck around, now!”

The king, looking as cool as a cucumber, spoke calmly. “You know I can’t do that Tony. You must calm yourself.”

“Like hell!” He stood up, running towards the closest window that showed they were high in the air. “Turn this fucking plane around, right now!”

One of the Dora Milaje stepped forward, held back only by a hand calmly placed out by the king. Rogue, whom hadn’t spoken a word, was watching the exchange with interest in her eyes. “They’ll be okay Tony.”

A pinch at the tip of his neck alerted Tony that not everything was alright, and the world slurred as the king launched forward and grabbed him before he could collapse on the ground. The man sat him on a seat, strapping Tony in as he tried to get the genius to meet his eyes.

“It’ll be okay, Tony.”

He tried, he really tried to focus on the king. But things were blurring together, and all the fight left him as he was pushed into a pit of despair. Tears started to run down his face, the cool wind of the air brushing them aw- wait.

Tony tried to blink his eyes, to make his surroundings focus. Was the ramp open? What?

A hand gently touched his face, but whatever they’d used to calm him down and prevent another heart attack was making the room swim. Or maybe delusional, he could have sworn he heard Peter chastising the king.

With one last, ugly sob, he sunk into darkness.

---------

Tony awoke with tears streaming down his face.

He didn’t have to take a moment to remember what had happened, hands aching where they lay bandaged beside him.

Tilting his head, the man took in where they had placed him after his hysteria.

He was laid out on a worn sofa, inside what looked like an office that obviously belonged in a warehouse. The walls were covered in graphs and lists, numbers and photos. A large desk sat nearby with an old computer humming softly.

Two large windows sat right above where he lay, and as Tony sat up he heard the voices floating from the room beyond. He quickly identified them as T’Challa and a female voice he didn’t quite know, although they sounded as if they were familiar with each other.

A rage lit up in the pit of his stomach, and Tony barely registered as he stood and slammed open the office door.

His gaze zeroed in on the king standing a few feet from the office, looking happy and relaxed as if the man hadn’t made the decision to leave a child behind.

The Dora Milaje were waved off as the enraged genius marched forward, “you left them! You fucking left them behind!”

One of his hands raised into a fist, the sharp pang of cuts reopening doing nothing to curb his anger. The hand grabbing his own, however, stopped the movement.

Tony spun, ready to give whoever had grabbed him a piece of his mind when his gaze fell on a frightened Peter Parker.

“Dad?” The teen murmured.

Shocked, the genius tried to take in the sight in front of him without denying that Peter wasn’t real. But just a few feet behind the kid stood Rhodey, looking concerned as he observed the interaction.

“Peter?” Tony questioned.

Without prompting the male reached forward and pulled Peter into his chest. His hands were tight as they wrapped around the kid, holding him so strongly that for a moment the kid wondered if he had super powers too.

Tears soaked through his shoulder, but Peter returned the hug, knowing that they had likely taken a few years off of the man’s life with the stunt that they had pulled.

“They’re strong, but they can’t fly.” He explained softly. “War Machine flew us up, we got on the plane just before it went into camo mode.”

Tony pulled back, still ignoring how badly his hands ached or the fact that they were quickly turning red from the reopened cuts. His clasped the teen’s shoulders tightly, the fear of the moment still pumping through his veins.

“Never do that again!” He bellowed.

“Don’t you ever put on that stupid suit, and run off and do something like that again!”

“But, I just wanted-” Peter tried to cut in, but Tony continued.

“I can’t lose you to them! If they got their hands on you, do you know what they’d do? What they can do? I will rip the suit to pieces, never do that again!”

“I can’t lose you!” Peter screamed back, suddenly unable to hold in his own emotions and fear. “Do you know what happened when you sent us away? Do you know what that did to me?” The kid had tears in the brim of his eyes as he spoke.

“I lost my parents; I lost my Uncle Ben…” He sniffled, looking more and more disturbed. “And for a minute… I lost you too.”

Tony seemed taken aback, as if he had never truly put together that the kid would feel just as heartbroken as he had been. With another cry the man pulled the suddenly sobbing teenager into his chest, holding him close.

The two held each other tightly, ignoring the rest of the room as they both cried. Lost in a moment that needed to happen.

“I’ll never leave you kid,” Tony promised quietly. “I love you.”

Chapter Text

His hand fiddled with the trigger, a look crossing his face between disinterest and annoyance. The only sound in the room, a frantic typing of keys as the techs desperately tried to get the system online.

Bruce had disappeared after an hour, claiming that he would cook them dinner in order to stay calm. He wasn’t happy that the only other person who understood his level of work was gone. Natasha and Clint had gone to the gym to get out some excess energy along with Sam. The three had been easy going since everything had happened but having heard of the failed capture had put a dent in their mood.

The gods had returned only hours prior, but Loki had explained that wherever the genius had disappeared to was untraceable. Someone, another spellcaster they hadn’t known existed, had blocked off the man’s presence.

Thor had quickly left the room upon hearing the news of the breakout, vowing to speak to his own people in order to track the man. Loki had followed slowly behind, claiming he wanted to witness if their friend could truly track someone that he could not.

Upon returning to the base, Steve had roared at the technicians to start moving.

He paced, back and forth like a caged lion as the terrified group had started to try to speed up a process that was already accelerated from the earlier threat of death.

“If you don’t stop pacing, they’re never going to get it done,” Bucky final drawled, holstering his gun to glance at the raging blond.

“He was so close!” Steve exploded, turning to glare at his partner. Of course, the Winter Soldier knew that the actual heat of the anger wasn’t directed at him, but he felt it nonetheless. “And that… that spider kid!”

Bringing himself to his feet, Bucky released a lazy grin that looked ever so frightening on his face. “That spider kid is going to be our kid, and he managed to shoot you pretty far.” The man tilted his head, “shouldn’t you be proud of him?”

The Captain huffed, although his glare started to soften. “He did hold his own in a fight… although if it wasn’t for that War Machine, we would have had him.”

Laughing, Bucky sauntered across the room and started to drag the blond away from the monitors and towards the door. “That just means his Pop’s going to have to teach him a trick or two when he’s here.”

“Or protect him,” Steve added, the anger dissipating. “He can stay in the lab, with Tones. He won’t need to fight when we got him.”

The soldier laughed, “no child of mine is going to be helpless. Plus, it’ll be some good quality time spent with the spider baby.”

Rogers grinned, nodding as he thought of all that was to come. “You’re right.”

His shoulders drooped as the tension left him. In a few hours, the system would be up and running, and they’d be ready to go. In a few hours, they’d have everything the rebellion had tried to take away, and more.

----------------------------

Tony had to get his hands rebandaged after the hug.

He had grimaced upon finding that both wrists had been badly damaged upon the metal ramp that he’d tried desperately to pry open. His fingers protesting any flexing as he was basically mummified from wrist down.

It would be a hinderance, as he was certainly more useful with the ability to use his hands.

With a disgruntled sigh, the genius sat back on another sofa that had been placed in the warehouse. He noticed that the place was filled with large shipping crates, although T’Challa claimed only a handful were full.

He was doing his best to eat a sandwich that Peter had whipped up for him, although the hard bandages made him look more like a five-year old, his coordination completely off. At one point, Peter had taken pity on him and wrapped up the bottom so that the insides of the thing would stop falling in his lap.

Rogue had decided that while she appreciated the rebellion and what it stood for, that she had no interest in joining the organization. She claimed that if the time came, she would be on their side, but until then, she wanted to roam.

Without hesitation, she had been given an older, inconspicuous vehicle, and money to travel around the states. She had been given several different cards to use as identification, and an old phone that was untraceable should she be captured.

While T’Challa and his group worked on getting Rogue on the road, the rest of the group took a moment to relax and catch their breath.

Someone had turned on an old television in the room, and Peter had easily plopped next to Tony. Rhodes had walked off to talk to someone about his tech, pointing out that the most the genius could do now was diagnose what was wrong with the suit, not fix it.

Tony had huffed, but otherwise hadn’t commented after he’d received a hug and a promise that the other man would be careful.

He was also teased that he wasn’t the only genius in the warehouse, and that he’d better get ready because the other person was bound to have him on his toes.

So, Tony did his best to stay curious, although most of his attention was focused on hugging the kid next to him. He shamelessly buried his nose in Peter’s brown curls, taking in the fact that the kid was solid in his arms. Rogers and Buchanan hadn’t been able to snag him from Tony, and that was more important than being beat by a different genius in the tech department.

Plus, he wasn’t truly worried, it’s not like the person was going to be smarter than him.

What the genius hadn’t expected was for the so-called tech that was smarter than him to dive bomb on top of Peter. He also hadn’t expected the kid to laugh and shove back, two teenagers play wrestling almost on top of him until Tony let out a yelp when his hand was lightly hit.

Immediately the two stopped, Peter apologizing profusely while a face Tony had only ever seen through a monitor blinked sheepishly at him.

“Princess Shuri?” Tony raised a brow.

“Mr. Stark, you’re finally back!” She grinned wide, a hand moving to a large metallic bracelet on one arm where she pressed a glowing blue button.

“He missed you, you know? Had to come back here to reconfigure after that escape,” she stood, watching as Tony did the same.

“Who missed me?”

“If I may sir, I’m glad that you have made it here safely,” the words rang throughout the warehouse, although no one seemed startled by the AI’s sudden reappearance.

“Jarvis!” Tony grinned, “it’s so great to hear from you! Are you doing okay after that attack?”

“My systems are at eighty percent, sir. I spaced myself out over too much data and am currently reconfiguring in this facility. I believe it is Princess Shuri’s intention to allow me back into the Wakanda network once I have recovered.”

Tony nodded, “well, you focus on recovering baby boy. It’s good to hear your voice.”

“You as well, sir. And do keep an eye on the princess and your son, they get along like a house on fire.” If it was possible for an AI to sound amused, then Jarvis’ intonation was definitively that.

Pivoting, the genius held out a hand before realizing the state they were in and pulled it back to his chest in embarrassment.

“So, you’re the one that’s going to put me out of business one day?” Tony grinned.

Shuri, with her Princess Leia buns and big smile, nodded enthusiastically. Not the least bit humble about her abilities with the technology she had created or worked with, and that was just the way Tony had been as a kid.

“Don’t worry, your white boy here will work for me and we’ll own the empire,” she winked.

Tony let out a laugh at the indignant squawk that Peter released, the teen looking slightly offended if not playing the part.

“That’s it, I’m not helping you make a lightsaber!” He declared, shaking his head. “You can do it on your own, your freaking royal highness!”

Shuri laughed, pivoting on her heel to bicker with the other. Soon, their attention had turned into ideas, and how Peter could have a shooter on his wrist like a lightsaber, so he never had to worry about losing it. Shuri began to suggest laser webs, although she thought that Spider-man would likely miss his enemies if he tried it.

Sighing, and realizing quickly that he finally understood why Pepper was rolling her eyes at him so many times in the past, Tony stepped forward.

“So, what’s the reason we’ve stopped in this warehouse in the first place?” He interrupted, hoping the train of thought from the two excitable teens would slow.

“Oh!” Shuri looked surprised, before shooting a look at T’Challa whom had returned from helping Rogue find the best place to head for on her map.

“This is one of our weapons depots, it holds some of our new tech. I was hoping you’d look at them see if there’s anything we can improve on.” She paused, seeing a look of complete terror take over the genius’ expression.

“I… I can’t,” Tony managed to squeeze out through the ball in his chest. He thought of the last ‘test’ he’d seen and how so many people had gruesomely died in front of him.

Sensing that a panic attack was close to the surface, Shuri threw up her hands and waved them as if the subject weren’t important. “That’s okay! How about overseeing Jarvis’ transfer back to the Wakanda database?”

The thought of working with his AI seemed to bring Tony back, unconsciously he had leaned towards Peter whom had made his way to stand beside him. “I can… I can do that.”

He hated the stutter, the primal fear that had been instilled in his very bones of seeing more people suffer at the hands of such horrible people.

The smile that beamed at him from the princess was blinding, but Tony only smiled back in hopes that he could hide some of his fear, some of his shame for becoming a bit more timid than he had ever been.

“Okay, follow me then.” She waved at the two of them. “Peter, you follow us, we need your hands.”

They left the large area of the warehouse into a more secluded hallway. It was well lit and posters maintaining that they were in nothing but a parts warehouse littered the walls. The area was clean, looking anything but dingy as they moved. It was also obvious that whomever was cleaning the place was on top of their game, the floors shining underneath their feet.

They walked for several minutes before stopping at two metal doors, which Shuri pushed open after swiping her bracelet against a security scanner in the hallway.

Inside was a data storage center, filled from floor to ceiling. A large metal table with a monitor and several different keys, including a keyboard, sat to the right of the room. Two chairs settled in front so that two people could work on whatever they needed together.

“Jarvis is currently at eighty percent in his processing, but as soon as he’s done, those…” Shuri pointed to a line at the top of the monitors, it was solid red at the moment. “Will turn blue.”

Tony nodded, already understanding what they were doing. “So, when that turns blue, we can transfer Jarvis to the Wakanda database as a whole, rather than in pieces and risk losing some of his data.”

The genius hummed, it made sense. Jarvis had been stretched very thin when he had been tasked with the rescue mission. The control of so many appliances at once had spread his data farther than Tony had ever done, and while he had been built to withstand almost anything, this mission had been a surprise.

It would be easy to shoot the data to Wakanda, it would only take minutes, really. In a couple hours, the processing would be complete, and a few buttons would make everyone he loved safe.

Tony smiled, “so we just have to wait a few hours.”

Shuri nodded, smiling in return. “Would you like to see my lab while we’re at it? Peter and I were working on a few things before he had to leave.”

Immediately the genius agreed, nudging his kid when he noticed the slight blush that had lit up his cheeks. He received a pout and a half glare before Peter started after the princess.

After all, a few hours messing in a lab with kid geniuses, what’s the worst that could happen?

--------------------------------

“Sir!” The man looked eager to please, his eyes shining with unshed tears at the idea that he had met the timeline set upon him. That he wouldn’t be dead upon morning.

“The system, it’s up!”

Rogers jumped to his feet from where he’d been lounging on the sofa, Bucky at his heels as the two men practically trampled over the tech to get to the monitor room.

The rest of the group had also gotten the message, as it appeared the only person out of breath was Bruce, although his eyes were searching the monitors with glee.

And right there, on the screen positioned just next to a dock in California, was a flashing light. But it was more than that, the plan that had ultimately been set in motion so long ago had worked.

A wicked smile lifted on the Captain’s face, unable to hide the pure excitement that he was finally going to get exactly what he wanted. The Quinjet would take only an hour or two to get them across the country, and in that time, there would be no time for anyone to sense that the system was online.

To turn it off.

“Avengers,” Steve turned on his heel, looking over the excited, blood hungry faces of the people who made up part of his family. “Assemble.”

--------------------

Tony groaned, throwing his head back as the two teenagers rambled to each other about the possibility of the Star Wars universe being a reality. Peter had pointed out that most of the universe consisted of technology and could therefore be recreated, while Shuri had argued that the force wasn’t a thing that existed.

Finally, after listening to the argument for another fifteen minutes, the genius sat up and spoke so that he was heard by the two teens.

“Are we doing anything with our brains here? Or are we just going to sit and chat about a non-existent world?”

Both the teens turned to face him, looking slightly surprised that Tony was even there before acknowledging that they had gotten lost in the talk. It was easy, to be so carefree when they were all together.

When no answer came for his question, Tony sighed and pointed towards the door using an entire hand. “How about I leave you two alone to argue, and I’ll go find Rhodey?”

Immediately, another dark blush washed over Peter’s face. Tony couldn’t stop the smug smile on his face as he stood and pivoted on the spot, moving towards the hallway. “Now, don’t do anything I wouldn’t do!”

He laughed when he heard a sputter from his kid, and laughter from Shuri who claimed she’d seen his life, there was nothing he wouldn’t do.

With the door closing softly behind him, Tony sauntered down the hallway until he’d found the large area of the warehouse again. T’Challa and Rhodey were nowhere in sight, but the Dora Milaje had stationed themselves around the open kitchen to snack on whatever food was in the warehouse.

Curious about the shipping containers, Tony made his way towards the large pile, grinning when he came across several open doors.

The first thing he noticed was that they didn’t just hold weapons (he refused to touch one, unless it came in his suit). One of the containers held a collection of vintage cars that made him ache inside for his own collection, back when he’d been free to do as he wanted.

Another unit contained identification cards, a way for someone to start a new life.

Tony was quickly learning that the rebellion truly wasn’t trying to hold anyone against their will. If a superhuman could be out in the open without getting noticed, the rebellion was definitively at the top of their game to help.

“We’ve released over thirty people into society,” a gentle voice made Tony jump as it spoke from behind where he was glancing at the ID of a Donald Blake that looked suspiciously like someone he knew.

The king leaned against one of the unopened containers, watching Tony explore their facility with a soft smile on his face.

“You help them,” Tony stated. “And you don’t expect anything in return.”

Crossing his arms over his chest, the genius stepped out of the container so that he was closer to the king. “I never got to say this, but thank you, for taking care of my family when we needed it. I’m sorry for attacking you ear-”

T’Challa waved his hand, dismissing Tony’s apology.

“I would have done the same, if I were in your position.”

A silent understanding rang between the two men at that moment. Both understood the struggle the new world had brought with it, and both had universes hanging on their shoulders.

“Once your transfer is complete, we’ll head home,” T’Challa spoke.

Tony nodded, turning as he heard Rhodey call for him.

He started to walk away from the king, taking a moment to glance over his shoulder and smile softly. “Thank you, for everything.”

Chapter Text

Tony was getting nervous.

He didn’t know why or when it had started, but every few minutes he kept glancing towards the hallway, hoping that Jarvis would finish his processing so that they could leave the warehouse.

The genius had settled next to Rhodey for an hour and a half, mindlessly reminiscing their college days while king T’Challa listened nearby. The Dora Milaje had excused themselves to a different room, claiming that there was a gym installed in the warehouse specifically to keep them up on their forms.

But there was something, a little thing in his gut that Tony would like to claim was a spidey sense, that told him that they needed to make haste.

Maybe it was the fact that he had gone so long without having something go wrong, that he just imagined there was no other way?

Would he ever be free? Would he ever be able to return to a world where he was just Tony Stark, billionaire who lived in his high tower, away from everyone and everything that wasn’t precious to him?

But he could do the math, the calculations. It was unlikely he’d ever be able to go back to those days.

For what felt like the hundredth time, Tony glanced towards the hallway, hoping that one of the teens would show up telling him that the A.I. was ready to be transferred, or was close to it. Tony understood that the amount of data it had taken to create Jarvis was colossal, and that gathering everything after he had spread so thin would take time.

Tony silently vowed to himself that when they arrived in Wakanda, the first thing he’d do when his hands healed would be to make sure that Jarvis had the ability to station himself in any network in the world. If Jarvis wasn’t in one location, nothing and no one could even attempt to harm the A.I.

“Mr. Stark,” a voice interrupted his thoughts.

While Tony had been thinking, Shuri had appeared in the hallway with a wide smile on her face. Peter was nowhere to be seen.

“We’re at ninety-eight percent, we can set the transfer to start automatically, if you’d follow me?” She was being polite, which meant that the two teens were likely eager to see his mind at work.

It wasn’t necessarily that Tony was vain, but he knew that there was a reason that he’d become a billionaire. And it wasn’t just from his father’s legacy.

Grinning widely, he leaned forward and pecked Rhodey on the cheek before jumping to his feet, glad for a distraction from his nerves.

T’Challa had explained that once Jarvis was transferred, the group would be boarding the craft to get back to his home country. There, it would be safer for the group to be off the radar from the Avengers. Their technology was beyond anything that Tony could imagine, at least that’s what his Platypus had assured him.

Sauntering behind Shuri, he listened as she rambled about how the system update had originally gone. How they had temporarily released Jarvis so that he could control and help Tony escape from the facility in which he was held.

She sounded just like Peter. Excited about the concept of science and the ability to participate in something so new. There was no hiding his fond smile, especially as it grew when he spotted his kid sitting at the board in the computer room, looking ready to do whatever was expected of him.

Shuri, knowing that it was a two-person job, sat in the second chair and both teens waited to be instructed. The genius had a feeling that both teenagers could likely figure out the process on their own and felt a warmth in his chest that they still leaned on him despite their own genius.

Through a series of letters, numbers, and sequences they took a good fifteen minutes before the application to transfer was complete. The collection of data had reached ninety-nine point five by the time the group had finished. It wasn’t an easy job, but with the trio at the keys it seemed like transferring Jarvis to Wakanda wouldn’t be an issue.

They calculated that it would take approximately thirty minutes for Jarvis to completely transfer to a new system.

The distraction of the task meant that Tony was no longer focused on the strange feeling he’d had earlier of imminent doom. Instead, he’d leaned over Peter’s chair and held out his hands with a pathetic pout.

“I can’t genius without my hands,” he murmured, seemingly upset even if he had thoroughly enjoyed allowing Peter and Shuri to do the task.

Nodding along, Peter swept under the arms and onto his feet, turning so he could face Tony whom was still leaning on the now empty chair. “And you can’t genius without a brain, too!”

Mock gasping, the brunette reached for the younger kid and laughed when Peter ducked but ended up sprawling on Shuri’s chair instead, sending both the teen and princess to the floor. He would have been able to keep up the expression too, if Peter hadn’t turned a particular shade of red as he stuttered and tried to disentangle himself from Shuri.

“What’s happening here?” A voice came from the doorway.

Spinning around, Tony guffawed as he met T’Challa’s raised brows. He could hear Peter scrambling even faster, stuttering as he only managed to get tangled in the girl’s limbs worse. Shuri looked nothing but amused.

“I fell… and she... I mean… what…” Peter couldn’t form a sentence, finally free from Shuri, he threw himself to his feet like he had been on lava. “We started the transfer process Mr. King T’Challa, sir.”

Tony had finally managed to get a hold of his laughter, but upon the look on everyone’s faces in the room, he immediately lost it again. Both hands wrapping around his stomach as he doubled over, hearing Shuri start to join in.

Apparently, his laughter was contagious. Soon enough everyone, even Peter, had joined.

It took several minutes for everyone to settle down, and Tony couldn’t remember the last time he had felt so at home around the people he loved. He let out a sigh, looking around at the faces of the people who he would treasure forever.

“Transferring data,” a voice interrupted the calm atmosphere.

A flash of light echoed throughout the room before the blue lights of Jarvis’ data processing turned green, blinking in a long light indicating that the transfer to the new server had begun.

Shuri blinked, her shoulders slumping though she wore a content smile on her face. “Well, that was a lot less dramatic then I had thought it would be.”

“Jarvis likes to leave the drama for Tony to pursue,” Rhodey piped in, having moved closer to the group from the hall.

“We should probably start getting things ready to go,” T’Challa nodded towards the hallway. “Would you all mind helping move some things into the craft? We can take off the moment that Jarvis has finished.”

A warm arm wrapped around Tony’s shoulder, and he didn’t even tense as he leaned against Rhodey’s warmth and started towards the hall. Peter and Shuri in the middle, T’Challa leading the way to the big room where the crates were stored.

Tony hadn’t seen the craft since he had awoken, so he was surprised when, after pressing a few buttons on the wall, the thing lifted from an underground storage area.

He’d have to find a time to pick the princess’ brain, surely, she had some amazing ideas that he could help come to light. Especially if it meant making the world better. Hell, as long as he steered the teens away from making real life lightsabers, they could likely conquer the world of technology in the blink of an eye.

Once they arrived in the warehouse, it was evident there was quite a bit of work to do. And while Tony couldn’t do much, he hung around and tried to provide support to the team by chatting and keeping them generally distracted from focusing too hard on their tasks.

Peter and Shuri were given the job of heaving some of the boxed crates that hadn’t been stored into the large metal transporting enclosures into the craft. Rhodes and T’Challa had taken to attaching large chains, made from a material Tony couldn’t identify, to the back of the craft and the metal containers. It looked as if they intended to empty out the warehouse.

It made sense, with the way the world was, they surely couldn’t stay in one place for too long.

“Hey, do you guys want to hear about the time I hacked into Rhodey’s work computer?” Tony chirped, sitting on a box crate that Peter had put at the bottom of the ramp.

He swore that he was getting amused smirks from the Dora Milaje, whom had shown up and started to help the teenagers with the boxes. There were several affirmations to his offer, and one resounding ‘no’ that Tony chose to wisely ignore.

“So, at the time, Rhodey was in the military. And I don’t know if you know this, but the military security system for their computers are a joke.” He paused, seeing an affirming nod from both Shuri and Peter that left him feeling a little proud and a little worried.

“I decided to see what was going on, because I knew they were using our weapons. Instead, I find out that Platypus was in charge of sending weekly newsletters to the different bases around the world about what was going on.” He snickered, remembering the scolding he’d received from his friend for what he’d done.

If he recalled everything correctly, Tony had been about Peter’s age, still a kid, when he had done it.

“I hacked into the letter and made it so that when it got sent out the next week, it was basically a proclamation of how much he loved me. With private photos that had never been released and everything!”

Rhodey groaned, stopping his task to throw a fond glare at Tony. “Yes, and they immediately said I would never be anything but your liaison, because no one else wanted to deal with you.”

Tony laughed, “but that’s not the end of the story!”

Jumping off the crate, the genius ambled towards the sofa and collapsed on it. He couldn’t help any of the group with his hands in bad shape, so he may as well amuse them while they worked in the silence of the warehouse.

“How did it end?” Peter asked, tilting his head as he paused after coming back from depositing another box into the craft.

“Rhodey tried to sneak into my mansion to throw pie in my face in the middle of the night,” Tony spoke with glee, ignoring the look he was receiving from his friend.

“Jarvis informed me, and I snuck up and scared him. He threw the pie up in the air and it ended up hitting him instead!” He was so relaxed, he hadn’t felt so content in what felt like years. In the end, Rhodey had managed to grab some of the dessert and smear it on Tony’s laughing face, but they had been teenagers whom had only laughed at each other and moved on.

A friendship to last a lifetime.

Peter, whom could easily imagine himself doing the same thing, had started to laugh softly along with the man he’d adopted as his father. He could only hope that if things ever got cleared up, Tony would let him continue calling him by the title. The man hadn’t complained yet, so that was a good sign!

“You know Tones, sooner or later I will get a pie to throw at y-” Rhodey’s words were cut off by a loud bang that made the whole room freeze. The sound echoed, but no one knew where it had come from or what had caused it.

“What was tha-” As Peter spoke, the bang sounded again.

This time, it was accompanied by the sound of metal screeching. The occupants went silent, all trying to find the source while the atmosphere grew tense. Something was wrong.

When the sound came again, the screeching of metal was closer than before, and they all turned as a unit to stare as the metal door that slide open into the warehouse bended slightly after the noise.

Someone was trying to get in.

The room broke into organized chaos, as if they had planned for such an attack.

T’Challa and Rhodey had quickly secured the chains to the craft before donning their fighting gear. And while Tony had obviously seen War Machine before, he’d never gotten a chance to peek at the feline based outfit that the king wore. It was amazing, seemingly glowing from an energy he couldn’t begin to identify.

Shuri had ducked into the craft along with Peter, both teenagers coming out in their own fighting gear alongside the Dora Milaje that had formed a protective circle both around the king and the princess. Not that the two of them couldn’t seem to hold their own.

With another bang the metal dented enough that the last rays of the dying sun flooded the warehouse floor. Tony sprung to his feet, unable to be of much use in or out of a suit with his hands in the condition they were in.

“Okoye, protect Tony!” The king demanded, and one of the women who seemed more in charge of the group broke off to step in front of the very terrified genius.

“Starting the self-destruct sequence!” Cried one of the women, her fingers running over a panel in the wall.

“But, Jarvis!” Tony cried, looking desperately at the princess.

Another bang sounded, this one bringing more light and getting the intruders even closer to breaking into the facility.

“He’ll have enough time to transfer before that room gets destroyed!” Shuri reassured him, even if her eyes never left the warehouse door.

Tony turned his own gaze back to where the sequence of sounds had come through, dread pooling his stomach as the pause between the noises had grown entirely too long. Someone spoke, the words undecipherable to the genius whom could only hear what sounded like rushing water. He recognized the voice, knew exactly who was breaking into the warehouse.

One more bang, and the heavy metal door that had been reinforced for the safety of the rebellion flew across the room. It landed with a resounding thud against the far wall, although no one noticed as figures rushed into the room.

Steve Rogers, clad in a darker colored version of his original uniform, smiled savagely as he rushed towards Tony. Bucky Barnes following close behind with the same wicked glint in his eyes that spoke of a victory not yet obtained.

Before either soldier could continue forward, War Machine and the Black Panther (a moniker Tony had only ever heard in passing but was spot on for the king) blurred into action. The men moved like they had been training for the fight their whole life, limbs and weapons flying, heads ducking.

The action seemed to spur on the rest of the room, and soon enough there wasn’t a corner of the warehouse that wasn’t in some sort of altercation.

Peter had jumped forward and immediately started after Sam, whom was using the height of the warehouse to attempt to stay out of range of the webs sent his way.

Shuri had turned her attention to protecting Spider-Man from oncoming arrows so he could focus his sole attention on the Falcon. It was obvious that both teenagers could handle defending themselves, but as a team they were doing wonders.

Several of the Dora Milaje had taken on fighting Thor, whom they had somehow managed to get on the ground even if the fight looked overwhelming and terrible.

Tony was so busy observing the room; he almost missed the foot coming towards his face. However, Okoye had taken the words of the king very seriously and blocked the limb only inches from Tony. With a cry she began going after Natasha, not relenting as she fought restlessly to stop the Black Widow from reaching the genius.

If all the original Avengers were there, where was Bruce?

Barely dodging to the right in time, Tony let out a yelp as he lost his footing and landed on his bad arm and hand. But the pain was nothing compared to the relief he felt as he watched the other scientist stumble forward in shock that Tony had managed to move so quickly.

Bruce turned, slightly green as he took in the sight of Tony on the ground.

“Stop fighting! Please!” He begged Tony, sounding so sincere that if the genius hadn’t known he was with the other group, he would have believed Bruce wanted what was best for him.

Jumping to his feet, Tony decided he could at least put his legs to good work. He moved to sprint away from the man when the building shook, a huge boom blasting through the warehouse to indicate that the self-destruct sequence had begun.

“Tony!” Bruce yelled, his skin a darker shade of green when the genius managed to move out of his oncoming attack.

“Dad, look out!” Peter appeared just in time, kicking what appeared to be a liquid filled needle out of the scientists hand and into a nearby wall. The thing shattered, the glass seeming to awaken something in the occupants of the warehouse.

“Get on the craft!” It sounded like Shuri, but in the chaos of the moment, Tony couldn’t be sure.

He felt Peter grab his arm, hear the roar as Bruce became the giant green monster and gave chase… or at least, that’s what he thought that the man would do.

Instead, the monster pivoted and started down the hall, as if searching for something more. And Tony froze, realizing exactly what was happening and bringing Peter to a halt beside him. There was a time when he had trusted the scientist. He had told the man all about Jarvis, proud of his baby and not one to keep a brag to himself with an invention he was proud of.

Bruce had to know that Jarvis’ data had been stretched thin. The man had to know that the A.I. would need a recovery period before the group could truly get him safely into a non-avengers server. Feeling his breath leave him, Tony sprinted after the monster.

He didn’t know what he could do, but he had to stop him.

The warehouse shook, walls were starting to collapse, the ceiling slowly starting to fall around them. But Tony’s focus was solely on the server room, where the precious computer was working on transferring his A.I.

The transfer was already at seventy-five percent, but that didn’t mean that the A.I. wouldn’t lose a part of him if something were to happen at that moment.

Slamming the door open, Tony froze on the threshold, eyes watching in horror as the green monster slowly lifted the main server to his chest.

“Put… put it down gently,” he held up his hands, trying to placate the Hulk. He wasn’t sure what would happen if the server got destroyed before Jarvis managed to completely transfer, but Tony was positive he didn’t want to find out.

“Please Brucie… please. We can talk about this, just put it down gently.” He moved forward, freezing when the creature lifted the server over his head.

Tony was so concentrated on what was happening in front of him, he didn’t notice that someone else had entered the room. The blond nodding behind the genius’ back to permit the Hulk to do exactly as he wanted.

“Hulk smash!” Was roared into the shaking building, just as the green creature slammed the server onto the ground with as much force as he could muster. The lights in the room went berserk, flashing in sparks . Tony screamed, a sound torn from his throat between despair and rage.

“Jarvis!” He’d made to move forward, but was stopped by a hand dropping on his shoulder. Before he could turn to face the owner, he heard Peter release what sounded like a battle cry before the kid had soundly kicked Steve across the room and into the green monster.

“We have to go!” Peter cried, not even waiting to see if his attack had done any damage or slowed the group down. He just grabbed Tony’s arm and started to run like hell, knowing that the only thing the craft was waiting on was the two of them.

The ceiling above the transportation dock was created to open, and had done so as the building started to collapse to give them a clean get-away.

The two of them cleared the hallway, deftly avoiding open areas in case one of the former heroes managed to attack them. Large pieces of concrete lay scattered across the floor, the sofa they had been laughing on only moments earlier completely destroyed.

The building shook again, and Tony took in the craft that had already lifted off the ground. Rhodey stood on the ramp, War Machine completely destroyed on the ground below. The man held out a hand, as if waiting for them to reach him so he could pull the two to safety.

There were footsteps behind them, catching up.

Tony pushed both of them to move, somehow managing to keep up with Peter as they ran. But movement to his left caused his concentration to fail and Tony’s foot got caught in one of the pieces of cement that had fallen from the ceiling.

He slammed hard against the floor, hitting his temple on the ground with a pained cry, the world spinning around him.

“Run Peter!” He made himself scream, watching through the fog as his kid turned to cast a look of horror over his shoulder.

Rhodey was screaming, trying desperately to get Peter to continue as the craft started to rise. The rebellion couldn’t afford for their leader to get caught, which meant if they had to leave Tony behind, they would. And the genius understood, but he prayed that they wouldn’t get Peter.

The warehouse shook again and he flinched when something hit the back of his head, a piece of the ceiling. Tony let out a cry of pain, blacking out for a moment.

When he looked up again, the craft was already in the sky, moving away. There was no sign of his family anywhere, which must have meant that Peter used his webs to attach to the craft. Tony was proud, his lips lifting in a smile at a small victory even as he felt a large hand touch his midback.

“I got you, sweetheart.” The voice was quiet, the arms pulling him up from the ground strong.

Tony tried; he truly tried to not relax. But the adrenaline had left him and the warmth of the man against him was familiar. He knew it was Rogers just from the words.

He felt a small pinch on his neck, an indication that whatever Bruce had tried to put into him earlier hadn’t been the only batch. Whatever it was, they had finally managed to get the drugs into his system. He could already feel it working, the cocktail of whatever they’d put into it already encouraging him to fall asleep.

He groaned, hearing Rogers reassure him that he could sleep, that it would all be over soon and that Tony would be safe.

With a sigh, Tony finally decided to give in. Unable to fight as the adrenaline completely deserted his body, Tony’s form became a limp noodle.

His heart, however, had a different plan as it froze in an astounding amount of fear, panic, and hopelessness. Because at the tip of his consciousness, just before he lost his hold on reality, Tony heard a voice cry out in rage.

“Let go of my dad!”

And Tony sunk into nothing.

Chapter Text

Tony flexed his hands.

His brows furrowed, trying to understand exactly what had happened. His memory was fuzzy, but he could have sworn that his hands had been mummified in bandages. Even the deep cut he had been sporting from his escape from America’s former sweetheart had all but vanished. Not even a scar to show where it had been.

What confused the genius even more, despite all the wounds having disappeared, he still couldn’t recall the exact details of how he had come to be standing in the room.

Taking a deep breath, Tony decided to focus on the facts.

He had been taken from the bunker at some point, and made to live with his former colleagues. There had been horrible mind manipulation that he had never agreed to, but had no ability to change. Just as he had started to find himself feeling warm towards the two men that were obsessed with him, Jarvis had broken in with a… a blond and rescued him.

Something ached at the thought of his AI, and a feeling settled deep in his gut. It was the sudden dread that kept Tony from calling out, what if something bad had happened to Jarvis?

Focus.

He turned his brown eyes to glance at the bed in which he’d awoken, the sheets a mess in his quick scurry to get to his feet. He had been with his family after barely escaping. They had taken him to help someone he didn’t know evade the clutches of the very people whom terrified him.

Peter had been there. The kid had called him dad, and Tony had never corrected him because it left the man feeling absolutely loved. And honestly, he loved Peter as if he were his biological child.

They had gone to some sort of warehouse, Tony having injured himself before they got there. It had led to his hands being wrapped…. Right?

He glanced down again, at the unmarred skin. Sure, there were tiny scars from his life that he had carried, but nothing from the incident that had… how had he gotten injured? He had been injured, right?

Shaking his head, the male turned his gaze to the floor, hoping that the lack of stimulation would help him focus again and bring his fuzzy memory back.

They had been in a warehouse, and he had been joyfully speaking to… someone… when the whole place had gone into a panic. Tony remembered Peter grabbing his hand, the two of them running for the aircraft that was threatening to leave them behind. The genius had tripped, fallen to the ground and gotten hit on the head by debris falling from the building.

He’d told Peter to keep running… and then everything had just, gone black.

Taking a deep breath, Tony figured that the reason his memory was so fuzzy was due to the debris that had smacked him. But there was no cause to panic when the kid he absolutely adored had gotten away from the former Avengers.

Still confused as to how his injuries had healed without a trace, and why he wasn’t chained down after having already escaped once, Tony finally looked around the room.

It appeared to be constructed completely of wood, although he knows that it must be reinforced considering it would be too easy for him to get out. The floors are also wood, and heat seems to travel from underneath so that when he steps a foot outside of the shaggy carpet, he’s still pleasantly surprised. The bed looks handmade, with what looks like manmade branches intertwining high into the ceiling serving as the headboard.

The work is intricate, with little flowers and leaves carved into the wood, but sturdy enough that it would take a good amount of force to break. It was embedded into an opening in the wall, framing the placement of the piece of furniture as if whoever had built the room had done so with it in mind.

The bed itself was huge, easily one of the biggest he’d seen. However, the room was just as large and left plenty of room to get around. A door had been left open to reveal a huge walk-in closet filled with clothing. Hues of white, dark green, brown, and gold made up the décor of the room. Plush pillows had been set on the bed, some in disarray on the floor from where Tony had kicked them off.

A huge window to the left side of the bed revealed a large patio on the floor below. It was a place where you could have a lot of friends over, with what looked like a fenced off pool and a hot tub nearby. A green hill slopped gently down past the patio, leading to small lake with a dock and what appeared to be a row boat.

Tony figured he was in some sort of mansion, the place an obvious getaway from civilization. But he wasn’t tied down, and that didn’t make sense. He could find his way out of the forest, and the group allowing him free reign after escaping didn’t seem logical.

Turning his gaze to the right, he noticed a door near the headboard, a dark leather sofa pushed against the right wall, and another door beside it. A dresser and a large television had been placed in front of the bed, and he realized a note had been left scrawled on the dresser.

Slowly, still trying to understand what had happened, Tony ambled across the room with the sinking feeling getting worse in his chest.

The note was short, only telling him that clothing had been set in the bathroom for him, and to go downstairs after he’d woken and freshened up.

While a part of the genius wanted to crumble the thing and throw it viciously to the ground, something told him not to do it. A voice warning the man that there was more to the story than he could remember, and it was better to play nice and figure out a second escape then it was to get tied down.

Moving to the door by the bed, he stepped into a very modern looking bathroom. A huge bathtub sat to one end, while a huge shower sat to the other. Everything was in soft hues of gold and brown, the towels evergreen and clean.

Someone had left a pile of folded clothes on the sink, and Tony suddenly found himself wanting to do exactly as the note said. He wasn’t sure if it was conditioning, or simply the idea that getting clean might lead to learning more.

Quickly discarding his clothes and leaving them on the ground (had he been wearing those?) the genius stepped into the shower for the quickest wash of his life. He hadn’t planned on making it so quick, but after having washed his unusually long hair Tony had come to realize that the scar from his leg wound was gone. In fact, almost everything he had gotten since becoming Iron Man had vanished.

Jumping out of the shower, not bothering with the fact that he was dripping wet, Tony rushed to the sink and froze.

Staring back at him wasn’t the reflection of a man in his late twenties, but of a younger man. The man he had been before stepping into the suit, before flying into the sky with a nuclear bomb. This was the face of a man who had gone to galas, smiled prettily when he needed to. This was Tony Stark before the world had gone to hell.

What had they done?

The room blurred as Tony threw on the clean clothing, forcing the pants past the stickiness of his wet skin as he desperately put himself together. He didn’t bother to dry his hair, to see if he had even put on the shirt correctly. Instead, Tony flew to the door that was logically the hallway and slammed it open, stopping to listen to the sounds of the house.

As he had predicted, it was some sort of winter cabin, with huge hallways decorated in warm colors. However, the décor only caught his attention for a moment before the genius was turning towards a sound from what looked like an open area of the hall. When he reached it, not bothering to check where he had come from, Tony found himself at the top of a large staircase, the railing thick to prevent anyone from falling to the first floor.

He threw himself down the stairs, almost tripping but catching himself on the rail before he continued. The front door was all stained glass and wood, huge and inviting. Tony ignored it, turning to rush down the hallway behind the staircase, towards the sound of humming and clinking pots.

It wasn’t until the genius had made it into the doorway that he realized he could have run. If he were younger, it meant that the injuries that had slowed him down were gone.

Something clicks in his memory as he sees a figure standing in the kitchen, leaning over the stove top as the smell of bacon permeates the air. A feeling of dread he doesn’t begin to understand swallowing him up long enough for the soldier to notice him.

“Doll! You’re awake!” Bucky exclaims, taking in the huffing genius in the doorway. “And dripping wet, come ‘ere.”

He motions towards Tony, although he’s already moving forward to crowd the man into moving. Without hesitation, and before the genius can start to speak, Bucky grabs a clean kitchen towel and starts to dry off his hair. A thick blanket follows after a moment, and in the whirlwind that is the Winter Soldier, Tony finds himself sitting on a stool at the counter, hands wrapped around a hot chocolate, curled in a blanket.

He huffs, but takes a sip of the cocoa as he continues to glare daggers at the man before him. Tony doesn’t realize that to Bucky, he merely looks like an adorable angry kitten.

“What did you do to me?” He growls when a plate of bacon and eggs is placed before him.

The soldier leans against the counter, smile smug as he unabashedly stares at the genius. Bucky picks up a fork and gently scoots it closer to the man. “Eat, and I’ll tell you.”

As far as Tony can remember (his memory is still fuzzy) the men had never tried to drug him with food. In fact, Bucky had always taken a weird pride in the things he could cook and had always left his stomach satisfied. So, with a barely concealed grumble he reached forward and snagged the utensil, forcing a mouthful of eggs before looking at the brunette expectantly.

“We’ve been working on the serum… we wanted to make sure we didn’t lose you like we lost Howard.” The man explained, waiting for Tony to take another bite before he continued. “We started with the de-aging mechanism, did it on Carol first ‘cause we didn’t want to hurt you.”

Carol Danvers, he realized with a start. Captain Marvel, his companion. She had helped him escape with Jarvis, she had been the reason he got out. Was she alright? Had she been in the warehouse? No, she’d gone with the family… they’d… they’d split up.

Tony must have looked confused, because Bucky reached forward and gently brushed some hair behind his ear before encouraging him to take another bite.

“Once we figured that out, it was a matter of Bruce coming up with the chemicals we needed, and the process. We de-aged you so that some of those nasty scars would be gone, and gave you the formula. You’re not as strong as Stevie or me, but you’ve got the brain instead. Plus, you’ll age just like us now, too.”

There’s water rushing in his ears. Tony doesn’t hear the fork clatter as it falls from his hand, eyes wide as he stares straight ahead, unseeing. His body shakes, horror freezing every muscle in his body as the new information reveals the terrifying truth. He’ll never get away.

When a hand gently probes his own, Tony doesn’t think.

On instinct the genius turns and slams the half drained mug into Bucky’s chest, catching the soldier by surprise. The man slides back in shock, and watches as the genius jumps into the shards of broken glass and sprints past him and into the hallway.

In hot pursuit, Bucky dusts off the shards and starts after the genius, whom has reached the front doors and slammed them open. They didn’t bother to lock the doors.

“Tony, your feet!” He cries after the man he is chasing, watching as the genius leaves a trail of blood down the porch stairs.

Tony glances over his shoulder and is startled to find that Bucky stopped his pursuit. In fact, the soldier leans against the front door and watches him with a sad look in his eyes. The stain of chocolate dripping down the man’s shirt slowly dries in the cold of the outside air.

Why wasn’t he chasing him? Why was he letting him get away?

Just as he begins to question it, Tony slams into a wall. His body careens back into the grass of the front lawn, barely missing the pavement of a round driveway. Looking up to see what he ran into, Tony frowns when he notices that there is nothing in front of him.

With a snarl he lunges forward, ignoring the faint cry from Bucky when he slams into the wall again. He sees something shimmer, but it’s gone before his eyes can focus and all he can see is the trees of the forest beyond.

Reaching a tentative hand forward, Tony cringes when it meets an invisible barrier. He sprawls his hands then, desperately trying to find a way around whatever it is. Back on his feet, the genius stumbles and staggers across the property, Bucky quietly trailing behind him as he tries to find an end to the wall.

Despite the shards of glass on his feet, he moves quickly, tracing the thing around the side of the house, to the back. He walks past the lake he had spotted, around the whole thing, and back up the little hill until he can see the front drive again. Despair starts to claw its way into the pit of his stomach, and Tony scrambles forward to get to where he had started his search.

They hadn’t locked him up because they didn’t have to. He couldn’t get off the property.

The desperation and the realization knock Tony to his knees, a sob clawing its way out of his throat as he curls into himself. He barely registers when the soldier slides his metal arm under his legs, the other at his back to lift him into a bridal carry.

He has no escape. He won’t age, and he can’t run.

“Doll,” the voice is a mixture of sadness and love. It feels wrong.

“How do you always get yourself injured?” Bucky says fondly, carrying Tony back into the large cabin and to a living room that could easily hold a large number of people.

He sets Tony on the sofa and disappears for a moment, returning with a box. Sitting at Tony’s feet, the man reveals a pair of tweezers and bandages. “This is going to hurt a little doll, but you heal quicker so we have to get any glass out.”

Tony barely registers what is happening, his eyes focused past Bucky’s shoulder as he tries to come to terms with his new reality. What had happened? How had they found him? Why was there a sense of foreboding in his gut, like he had forgotten something important? How had they put up an invisible barrier around the house?

Trying to focus on the feeling, the genius tried desperately to recount exactly what the details had been of his second kidnapping.

Slowly, as if the concentration and sound of Bucky quietly working helped, he started to recall little facts. He had been rescued by the leader of the rebellion, and it had been the very king he had sent his family to. Peter had called him dad. They had met up with his family in an old farmhouse, one he recalled from a dream with Jarvis. The real Jarvis.

He and Rhodey had agreed to go on a mission together, even though Tony was useless without the power of his hands. He had yelled at Peter about being reckless. They had run into Steve and Bucky while rescuing Rogue, but had managed to get away. Peter had called him dad.

They’d gone to a warehouse where T’Challa had helped the mutant leave, and Tony had started to transfer Jarvis to Wakanda with the help of the princess and his kid. They had been cleaning up the warehouse when the former Avengers had attacked. Peter had called him dad.

It was there that things got fuzzy, the adrenaline along with the head injury had made everything seem like such a mess.

But Tony was positive that he was missing something important, even if it was at the edge of his memory.

“You’ll be able to walk in a few hours,” Bucky pulled back with a grin, facing the genius.

Knowing that at that point, he had nothing to lose, Tony turned towards the soldier and tilted his head. Would Bucky honestly tell him what had happened if he asked? Would the man lie or actually understand just how lost Tony was at the moment?

“Buck?” When the man looked up like an overeager puppy, he continued. “What happened? At the warehouse, I mean.” Tony inwardly cursed, he had never been someone to fumble or stutter over his words. He’d always been the easy going, smooth talker. But the fear in his gut was still present.

“We got you back,” the man ignored Tony’s flinch as he rested his hand on his face, cupping his cheek with a soft smile. “And Loki made sure that you can’t leave again.”

“And… my fam-the others? They escaped?” He tried to hide how desperate he was for the answer, the sudden knot in his stomach telling him that he was headed in the right direction. He would pursue Loki’s thing later, the barrier was obviously magic.

As Bucky opened his mouth to answer, they both heard the sound of a car moving up the drive. The soldier immediately stood up straight, a smile bursting on his face leaving an aura of foreboding for the genius. Every single fiber of his being telling him that something was very wrong.

“Stevie’s back!” The other exclaimed.

Without asking, Bucky scooped Tony up into his arms and twisted so that they were facing the door. The genius yelped, fighting the urge to vomit that had come from the sudden motion. He barely managed to focus before they were moving towards the front door, swinging open to reveal a smiling Bruce and Natasha.

The two grinned and nodded at Bucky before disappearing down the hallway.

Taking advantage of the open doorway, Bucky moved them forward so that Tony got a good look at the large vehicle that had pulled into the driveway. Slowly, the former avengers were moving out and walking into the house, each giving congratulations to the genius as if they hadn’t just kidnapped him. As if he had come of his own free will.

“And there’s Stevie with the baby!” Bucky chirped, removing Tony’s attention from a retreating Clint Barton to the car.

His heart plummeted to his feet, and had Bucky not been carrying him the genius was sure to fall to the ground. At that moment, watching as Steve Rogers stepped out of the car with a familiar faced six year old, tear streaks marked down a sleeping face, every single thing came back to Tony.

Jarvis, the Hulk, the craft lifting away. Peter had called him dad.

Peter had stayed behind.

Tony clutched his chest and screamed, and everything once again, went black.

Chapter Text

Tony blinked.

And then Tony blinked again.

However, the set of curls snuggled up right under his nose remained the same, and he came to the realization that he was settled on a soft mattress. Moving his head only slightly back so he could take in his surroundings, Tony recognized the soft cream and rich green that made up the covers of the large bed that had been set in the room he’d awoken in earlier.

The little body pressed against his chest released a small whimper, two tiny hands gripping his shirt in fists as if afraid Tony would disappear.

Looking down, the genius felt his heart stop. It was a little boy clad in what looked like Captain America pajamas. He had curly brown hair that was extremely soft to the touch, and a little button nose that scrunched up whenever Tony made the slightest of movements. His lashes were long, resting against rosy skin as he slept soundly beside him.

And the man easily recognized the soft pout of a teenager that kept him sane despite how crazy the world had become.

Frozen, trying to figure out whether to scream and risk waking the kid, or to simply faint again, Tony’s brain latched onto the first distraction it could.

Steve Rogers sat on an armchair near the bed, one that hadn’t originally been placed in the room. He wore grey sweats and a white shirt, white socks adorning his large feet. He had one leg bent up so that it was hugged closer to his body, the other resting half off the armchair so that he had somehow managed to get his entire large frame on the piece.

What appeared to be a sketchbook rested on the bent leg, using it as a makeshift table as his hand idly sketched across the paper. Steve’s blue eyes twinkled, shining with an emotion that Tony was hesitant to identify. There was absolutely no way that the only emotion the blond was feeling towards the escaped and now captured man was love.

For a moment Tony allowed himself to imagine it, what Steve Rogers could have been had he not sought his own form of justice against a world he had not understood.

A part of Tony panged. He had confessed that he had fallen in love with the man. That a part of him, a sick, tiny twisted part that had preened under their control, had never wanted him to leave. And it hurt, that a part of him still longed to pretend that nothing was wrong, and that he loved the man staring at him so fondly.

Opening his mouth to speak, the genius was startled quiet when the blue eyes moved past his shoulder and focused on something else.

The pencil stopped as Steve gave an affirming nod towards whatever he was looking at, and raised a finger to his mouth in the universal sign of silence. The man unfolded himself from the chair with a grace that would have made the genius envious if it weren’t for the fact that he’s moving forward towards the bed.

Something howls in his chest, and he immediately wraps his arm around the child as if to keep the soldier from touching him.

Tony’s brows furrow as he watched the blond move, nodding again to the person he can safely say was behind him, just out of view. However, knowing that someone was nearby did not stop the fact that he wanted to freak out the moment a hand settled on his shoulder. The only thing that kept the genius from having another panic attack was the small child whom curled closer as if sensing his distress.

“Tony, honey, let go,” it was Steve. It was also the gentlest he’d ever heard the soldier speak, which was partially the reason he so easily let his arm fall away from the child.

He didn’t bother to deny the sheer panic that filled his gut as the hand on his shoulder slowly peeled him back, Steve leaning over the bed to uncurl the kid’s fists from his shirt. There was a quiet whine from the back of the little boy’s throat, but he remained asleep as he was separated from Tony.

Bucky was just as gentle, easing the genius to the side and into his arms so that he didn’t jostle the bed and wake the little brunette from his sleep.

Unwilling to look away from the little boy, Tony turned from where he was being held bridal style in Bucky’s arms to try in understand what was happening. Shock ran through the genius as Steve lifted a large Iron Man stuffed toy, almost the same size as the child, and lay it so that the boy could wrap himself around it instead.

Breaking his gaze away from where he was held, Tony silently pointed to the ground in the hopes that Bucky would set him down. Instead, the soldier gave him an impish grin and pivoted on the spot, making for the door after a silent conversation with Steve that the genius couldn’t decipher.

He didn’t like leaving the child alone in the room with the other man, but without screaming and waking the boy, Tony had no choice but to go along silently.

Stopping just inside the hallway, Bucky smiled when the genius pointed to the floor again and quietly told the soldier to put him down. Without argument, he gently set Tony on his feet, although he kept a firm hand on his shoulder so that he wouldn’t attempt to go back towards the room.

Ambling into the hallway, Steve gently shut the door behind him and turned towards the two awaiting men. He didn’t speak, but nodded towards the staircase that Tony had scampered down his first escape attempt.

Tony followed in the wake that if it truly was his spider child in the other room, his hearing was phenomenal and he could easily awaken from their voices in the hallway. He also wanted to ask questions and not upset the poor boy.

He didn’t miss the fact that Steve held a baby monitor in one hand, just in case the toddler woke up while they were gone.

Silently telling himself not to panic, the genius reminded himself that the only way to get answers was to play by the rules of the other men. He had to be civil to the two psychopaths that loved him, even if it meant falling down the rabbit hole a little bit himself.

When they finally reached the living room at the bottom of the stairs (Tony realized his injuries from running were completely gone), Steve settled down at the end of one of the large sofas, patting the spot beside him. Bucky ventured towards an armchair near the entrance of the room, curling into it like he was absolutely comfortable with the situation.

Taking a second to release a breath that he hadn’t realized he was holding, Tony steeled himself with the age old mantra of being made of iron before sitting on the other end of Steve’s couch.

Both soldiers were quiet, as if waiting for him to gather his thoughts and ask whatever questions he may have on his mind.

“Was that Peter?” Tony didn’t know if he wanted the answer, wanted the confirmation that they had taken away his snarky teenager. But then again, he had his memories, Carol had retained hers, what’s to say that the child didn’t remember too?

Glancing at each other, Tony watched as the two men once again had a silent conversation using just their eyes. For a moment, he was convinced that they wouldn’t even begin to answer him, but then the quiet communication ended and Steve leaned back on the sofa. He threw an arm over the back, almost brushing his fingers against Tony in comfort.

It was strange, that they wanted to do so. It was their fault he was in distress in the first place.

“Yes,” he started, holding up a hand to effectively stop Tony from interrupting. “We didn’t want to do it at first, we wanted to keep him at the age in which you loved him, but he was proving… difficult.” The man winced, watching as Tony seemed to absolutely pale at the word.

“What the fuck is that supposed to mean?” The words came out raspy, the genius wanted to sound tougher but his heart had plummeted to his stomach.

A dark look ran over Steve’s face, “language, honey.”

As if taking pity on Tony’s pale and shaking demeanor, Bucky sat forward on his chair and spoke up. “We didn’t want to hurt him. Like you, he’s spirited and smart. He was hurting himself trying to get to you… we didn’t want to hurt him, but we didn’t want you to lose him again either.”

“We decided that the easiest way to keep Peter safe, was to de-age him.” Steve tagged on. “But truly de-age him. We’ve used Loki to help both times, but he also helped with memories in the serum, this time around.”

“What?” Tony slumped completely against the cushions, glad that he wasn’t standing as his legs would surely give out on him if he continued listening to the explanation that was horrifying him.

“He isn’t like you, or Carol. He’s a child, for all intents and purposes.” Steve shrugged, like they hadn’t just completely ripped away a person’s entire life. “Loki helped in the process, so that nothing went wrong.”

“You ripped away his life!” He couldn’t stop the scream, the sudden outrage giving him energy as he threw himself from the sofa.

Tony began to pace, clenching his hands into fists. “You took away everything that made him Peter!”

Leaning forward, looking completely unconcerned by the threat of the smaller man before him, Steve spoke gently.

“That’s not it, Tony. We want to raise him, with you, as a family.” The look on Steve’s face was one of a man who had just stated a solid plan, not one of a person completely deranged.

“I know that Buck explained this to you earlier, but he and I, we’ll be the protectors.” The man practically preened as he spoke, flexing his muscles as the side of his lips lifted in a smile. “You’ve got the brain, and I know the kid does too, you can teach him. Be his real dad. Bucky and I will teach him other stuff.”

His legs were weak, and he didn’t want to give the men an opportunity to grab him if he fell, so Tony moved and settled as far away from Steve on the sofa as he could.

“Other stuff?” He growled, “like what, murder?”

Bucky was the one to lean forward, “come on doll, don’t say that. Like cooking, and dancing.” He nodded towards the blond, “Stevie can show him how to swim, to fight.”

“And he’ll have his aunts and uncles to help out, it’ll be a real childhood.” The blond added, “and this time he can learn to use his powers properly, with all of us around.”

The room fell silent, as if Tony were truly contemplating what they had revealed. Bucky and Steve were just starting to look hopeful when the genius shook his head, “no.”

He stood, turning towards the hallway where they had all come from. “They’re not going near Peter, and neither are you.”

“Tony,” Bucky murmured, “you can’t deny us access to our own child.”

“He’s not your kid!” Tony howled, stopping in the door frame.

“You won’t touch a fucking hair on my child’s head, do you understand?” He glared, tensing as Steve stood from where he had lay relaxed on the sofa.

“You need to calm down,” the blond’s voice had the command in it that Tony hadn’t heard in a long time. But unlike the first time Tony had heard it, he scowled openly instead. Peter had been hurt, maybe not in the common sense, but that didn’t matter. The two men had stepped over a line, and what could only now be described as his child was the one suffering for it. It was on their shoulders.

“He’s not your kid, you fucking psychopath!” He repeated.

Bucky stood, also tense as he took a step towards the genius.

Tony felt his fists clench, his stance widening even as his breath started to pick up. He knew that if they both came at him at the same time, he’d go down, but he’d go down swinging.

“Easy Tones, we’re not gonna hurt you,” Bucky spoke, arms out as if he was suddenly facing a wild cornered animal.

“Come on Tony, let’s just calm down.” Steve added, taking a step closer and stopping as the smaller man took another back, closer to the hall and stairs.

“Don’t come near me!” Tony hissed, doing his best to keep the fact that his heart was threatening to spill from his throat, that his breath was getting harder to control. He was frightened, but the thought of Peter kept him on his feet.

“Tones,” Steve tried.

Tony lifted his fists, and the tension in the room thickened.

However, before anyone could make a move, before fists could start to fly, a small voice screamed from the second floor.

“Daddy!” It was desperate, terrified.

There was no hesitation as Tony turned and started to sprint up the stairs and down the hall, two super soldiers hot on his trail as he slammed the bedroom door open to find a screaming toddler sitting up in the huge bed.

As soon as he moved into the room, the child held up his arms directly towards Tony, not even looking at the other two men as he made hands for the genius to lift him. “Daddy!” The little boy cried again, big tears streaming down his face.

Immediately, Tony moved. He reached down and lifted Peter close, rocking the boy to calm him down.

When he saw the other two start to move forward, the child’s quite crying turned hysterical, and he buried his face into Tony’s chest. The genius glared, stopping the men in their tracks.

“It’s okay, baby. It’s okay,” he murmured, feeling his heart break as he realized that he had very likely lost the teenager he absolutely adored because of Loki. Inwardly, he vowed that he would kill the trickster the next time he saw him.

When Peter’s crying turned into soft whimpers, Tony turned to glare at the two men once again.

“Get out,” he hissed.

“Tony, we need to make sure he’s okay…” Steve actually seemed sincere, as if he cared about what Peter felt or thought.

The blond reached forward, as if he were going to touch the kid’s face but paused when Peter whimpered and tried to inch away from the oncoming touch.

The genius tried, even though he knew he failed, to hide the satisfaction from his facial expression. When Bucky went for the same movement, Peter did the same thing, and began to whimper until Tony had taken a step back from the men.

“It’s obvious he’s absolutely frightened of you,” he growled. “Leave.”

Both men didn’t seem happy with the words, but also looked at Peter as if they were resigned to the idea that the child was scared.

“We’re going to go finish his room across the hall,” Steve nodded. “Buck will make dinner, it’ll just be us tonight.”

The two men sauntered towards the hall, smiling over their shoulder as if it were a reassurance to the genius. When the door shut soundly behind them, Tony felt his shoulders droop.

“Pee pee,” the little boy in his arms demanded.

“Okay,” Tony sighed, trying for a soft smile and falling short in hopes of keeping the little boy calm.

Sauntering into the bathroom, he set the boy on his little feet and smiled when big brown eyes gazed up at him and his mouth fell into a pout.

“Door closed!” He commanded, and Tony couldn’t withhold the smile of amusement that the child was so demanding. Even if his heart was making a permanent home in his stomach.

He turned and closed the door slowly, nodding towards the toilet. “Do your business, I’ll turn around.”

As Tony spoke, he faced the door, making a point to show little Peter that he wasn’t going to be peeking as he did his business.

“I have never met such pompous people in my entire life,” the small voice of the child filled the room, intelligence gleaming from every word.

Tony spun, eyes wide as he stared at the demeanor that had completely morphed from helpless child to annoyed teenager. “Seriously,” the kid continued, looking up at him. “Do they really think I would just forget?” His voice had a very soft lisp, and it was obvious that Peter struggled with the words, but beyond that, it was entirely Tony’s teenager standing before him.

Back against the door, Tony felt his legs give out. He slid down to the floor, looking flabbergasted at Peter. He hadn’t lost him. He hadn’t lost him!

He could hear himself laughing, a watery sound that seemed to be coming from a place he had never heard.

“I think I deserve an award for that performance,” Peter continues, little arms crossed over his chest. However, he stops talking when he realizes that Tony looks like he’s in a cross between hysterical and a third heart attack.

Instead, the child steps forward and hugs Tony around the neck so that his arms can completely encircle him. “You’re not alone this time dad.”

And Tony laughs.

Chapter Text

Tony’s hysterical laughter lasted several minutes before he’d fallen into ugly sobs, arms reaching forward and pulling the little boy to his chest. The soft glow of the arc reactor shining through the shirt and illuminating Peter’s face.

Seeing the distress coming from the older man, Peter curled his little fists into Tony’s shirt and allowed himself to be hugged, relaxing when the man’s chin rested softly on the top of his head. He’d deny the tears that fell down his own face, sniffling softly against the adopted father he had believed to have lost for a second time.

“I… I told you to run,” Tony managed to say through his sobs, tight grip loosening ever so softly as the tears began to slow down.

“I couldn’t leave you ag-” Peter started to explain when a knock sounding gently from the door abruptly cut him off, both males freezing like statues at the sound.

“Tony?” Bucky’s voice rang from the other side. “Doll? Is everything alright? Can I come in?” He knocked a second time, as if the two hadn’t heart his voice from their lack of immediate reactions.

The same primal instinct that had overcome the genius in the living room when he’d first heard Peter crying seemed to fill him. Immediately, the slumped figure stiffened and he sat up, placing Peter on the floor and turning so that his body was physically between the child and the door. Without having to think, his hand flew towards the doorknob and checked the lock.

He threw a glance at Peter, opening his mouth to yell some sort of sassy retort before he was cut off by the child’s screeching voice.

“No daddy! I’m not ready!” Scurrying away from Tony, the little brunette quickly flushed the toilet.

Turning wide eyes between the door and the little boy, Tony raised his brows in complete and utter confusion. Almost laughing in the chaos when Peter’s little hands started to make a rolling motion as if urging Tony to speak up.

Taking the hint, Tony easily spoke, all hints of crying gone from his voice, unwavering. “My kid doesn’t want you in the bathroom!”

There was a pause from the bedroom, before he heard Bucky speak again with what sounded like real concern in his voice. “Are you okay? I thought I heard crying.”

With a snarl, Tony twisted to face the door. One fist slamming on the wall and sending a large thump through the room. “You took my kid, turned him into a toddler, and trapped us in this house! And you’re asking if I’m okay? Get the fuck out!”

“Tony, don’t cuss in front of Peter!” Bucky retorted.

Immediately Peter’s jaw dropped open, completely flabbergasted by the fact that the soldier had chosen to focus on the least important part of Tony’s words.

“Get out Barnes! Now!” Tony repeated.

What sounded like a heavy sigh from the bedroom indicated the only frustration that Bucky had left, the soldier speaking gently. “I’m going to go finish making dinner, Stevie’s going to help me and come to get you when it’s done. Why don’t the two of you watch a movie while we’re doing all that? Relax?”

Tony physically growled at the words, but before he could speak Peter once again started up.

“Movie daddy! We can watch a movie! I pick!” He ignored the look on Tony’s face of confusion, instead listening to the chuckle that came from the super soldier.

“Don’t stay mad too long babe,” Bucky called, his footsteps heavy as they faded from the room.

Tony sputtered at the words, trying to gauge just how insane the man was. He acted as if they had simply had a regular spousal argument, rather than an enraged man arguing over lack of consent and a kidnapping.

“I have a plan,” the little boy murmured after he was sure that the soldier had left the room. “I wasn’t going to let you face them alone, and it’s not like they really could have hurt me. They wouldn’t risk losing you.”

Tony felt his shoulders slump, bypassing the kid so he could take a seat on the toilet lid. He rested his head on his hands, quietly gazing at Peter as most of his remaining energy started to drain.

“I’ll humor you kid, what’s your plan?” He felt absolutely sapped, all the high emotions sending him on a plummet to simple exhaustion.

“Well, they may have the muscle, but we have the brains.” The little boy giggled, pointing a finger at his head. “So why don’t we play into their game?”

“I’ve tried that kiddo, I got lost.” Tony groaned.

“But you didn’t have me,” Peter grinned, “so we twist them. You and I, we act like the dream family they want, and we twist them. You nudge them, instead of hurting someone, why not… give them a jury? Instead of hunting down the rebellion, why not… reason with them instead?”

Tony frowned, trying to think about the proposition. What the kid was offering wouldn’t happen overnight, it would take time. It would mean that there was a chance that Tony would go right back to becoming lost in a relationship he had been coerced into. But what other choice did he have?

The barrier around the home was obviously magic, and last he had checked neither of them had the power to counter magic. If time was going to pass, why not use it to their advantage?

“And you’re going to act like a six year old child?” Tony raised a brow, room coming back into focus. He was startled to find Peter at face level, the kid having climbed to the top of the sink while he had been lost in his thoughts.

“Do you even know what a child acts like when they’re that old?” Tony teased, knowing for certain that he had absolutely no idea.

“I’ve seen enough online videos to figure it out. Besides, do you think any of them have actually been around a kid before?” Peter raised a brow in a mimic of Tony’s own face, the expression absolutely comical on his cherub face.

Tony shrugged after a moment had passed, realizing that the kid wasn’t wrong. And Peter had always been intelligent; they could brush off any abnormalities to his intellect.

“So instead of hurting you, they turned you into my tiny little pipsqueak,” he teased, a soft smile finally lifting the corner of his lips as the little boy openly scowled. While the personality of the kid was one hundred percent his teenager, the expression was one hundred percent toddler and it made Tony’s heart thump in warmth.

“They de-aged you too,” Peter observed. He tilted his head to take in the arc reactor, knowing that it was an indication that they hadn’t made Tony so young that he would have forgotten his PTSD from his horrible experience in Afghanistan.

“How old are you?” Peter asked.

“Really kid, this is why you’re still single as a teenager, you know?” Tony grinned, standing up so that he could look down at his semi-younger body. “I would say I’m about twenty-one or two at the moment.” As the words left the man’s mouth, they started to slow as if he were coming to a horrible realization.

With the quickest movements he could muster, Tony ripped off his shirt and staggered forward so he could face the mirror. Peter jumping to hold onto the wall with one hand so he was out of the way but still on eye level with the genius. If Tony had been paying attention, the mere sight of the little boy hanging freely from the wall may have scared him.

Instead, the genius was focused on the arc reactor now shining freely in the air. It was small and hard to notice at first, but there were purple lines starting to appear around the reactor, like outreaching veins. It was something that he’d had to fix once upon a time, in secret from the public, and it could get ugly fast.

“What is that?” Peter asked, leaning slightly forward to get a better look at the strange purple veins.

Cursing under his breath, Tony threw the shirt back on so that the kid could no longer look directly at the arc reactor. The soft light still shined, but as long as he hid everything, it would be easier to get it off of Peter’s mind.

“When I originally had to get the arc reactor put into my chest, there were elements inside that were slowly poisoning me. I figured out a cure, but it meant creating a whole new element to fix it.” Tony explained. “And I have no idea how the serum and de-aging process that they’ve done to me is going to effect the poisoning.”

Tony curled his hands into fists, glaring at the sink below his palms. “It could speed up the process, or slow it down.”

Peter looked as if he were starting to slightly panic at the new information, his brown eyes opening wide. “Dad… what are we… you have to tell them.”

Tony shook his head, “I can’t.” He looked up so that he was facing Peter. “Not yet, but I will. They won’t be able to fix this, but I can. I’ve done it once kid, I can do it again.”

“But what if the serum accelerates the process?” Peter panicked. “What if you get sick and you can’t fix it?”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa,” Tony threw up a hand. He reached forward, pulling Peter from the wall to hold him to his chest. The motion came naturally, father to adopted son.

“I’m an adult, kiddo. I promise that I won’t let it get too far.” He grinned at the look of disbelief he got for the words. “Okay, I’m kind of an adult?”

Peter had a look of pure exasperation on his face, but otherwise said nothing. Instead, the two decided that in order to put their plan into motion, a good start would be taking Bucky’s advice and relaxing with a film.

---------------------------------------------

Every single pillow minus two had been thrown to the floor, the covers thrown haphazardly over the two bodies on the bed. There had been absolutely no hesitation when they had gotten comfortable on the bed, used to each other’s company and the cuddles. Heck, the two were always cuddle bugs in their time in the bunker, nothing would have changed that.

Tony had succumbed to his exhaustion once they had settled on reruns of an old sitcom, feeling like he could finally relax with Peter settled safely in his arms. The kid had remained awake, vigilant even as the echoes of sleep tried desperately to summon him under.

What no one could have planned for was that de-aging Tony would have also made the man more susceptible to things that had happened in his early twenties.

When Peter realized that the man had fallen asleep, the kid had snatched the remote and started to channel surf until he found something he wanted to watch. It was an action film, one that he had watched with Tony before.

Unfortunately, he wasn’t prepared for the gunshot sounds to wake his dad. Peter jumped and climbed up the bedpost to avoid the fist that flew his way, Tony suddenly screaming like he was being flayed alive.

The kid panicked, too small to restrain Tony from hurting himself.

He had seen the man have mild panic attacks in the bunker; Peter had never witnessed a full attack before. Without knowing what else to do in his situation, he started to scream for help. The tears streaming down his face completely real, he didn’t have to fake anything. Even shaking terribly at the sight of the screaming man.

“Tony!”

The genius game awake with a start, eyes searching the room wildly in a glazed state, still caught in the throes of a nightmare. His screaming stopped, but the flailing limbs continued until two strong hands gripped his wrists to restrain him.

“Sweetheart,” the voice spoke, “look at me.”

Taking a moment, Tony slowly started to realize that Steve was sitting on the bed in front of him. The man had stopped him from hurting anyone or himself, and the thought immediately reminded the genius that Peter had been with him.

Frantically, he started to look for the child, only to find the crying little boy huddled in Bucky’s embrace.

“Peter,” he murmured, slowly peeling away from Steve’s grip and holding out his arms to take the child from the super soldier. To his relief, Bucky didn’t hesitate in handing over the distraught child so that the quivering brown eyes could bury themselves in Tony’s shirt.

“Daddy!” The wobbly, crying voice made Tony feel extremely guilty. It appeared the PTSD that had been subdued was back in full speed with the de-aging, and that meant he would need more therapy… joy.

“What happened?” Tony groaned, hugging Peter to his chest as he faced the blond soldier. A part of him wanted the man’s large arms to wrap around him, but another part recoiled at the thought of it.

The little boy buried his face in Tony’s chest, hiding his face as he took assurance that Tony was doing alright after his attack. Instead of having the toddler answer, Steve spoke gently as if afraid to scare them.

“We watched a show that’s a little too mature for the kiddo,” he reached forward and didn’t wait for permission, running a hand through Peter’s hair. “I don’t think we should be watching those kinds of shows just yet, right Peter?”

Instead of ignoring the man, the little boy nodded his head gently to the surprise of Tony.

“Cartoons, so you don’t scare your daddy, right?” Steve continued.

When the little boy nodded again, the blond soldier leaned back where he sat, Bucky leaning against the bedpost nearby. “Peter, did what happened to your daddy scare you?”

Once again, the kid responded, although Tony got a feeling that only part of the motion was an act.

“Can Papa give you a hug?” Steve opened his arms, ignoring the mild look of indignation that Tony managed to scrounge on his face.

Peter pulled back from where he was pressed against Tony, looking up at his dad. The silent communication was clear, they had to play nice, they had to pretend that everything was okay. It was only with the acknowledgement that Peter seemed to know what he was doing, that Tony allowed his arms to drop from around the child.

Easily, Peter turned and slowly moved towards Steve. It was obvious that the kid was hesitant, and his hug was so quick that Steve couldn’t even bring his arms down to hug him back before Peter was curled around Tony again.

“It’s not your fault kiddo,” Tony murmured softly.

He ignored the weird pang at the look of pure adoration on Steve and Bucky’s faces when the kid had jumped back to him. Tony had to pretend that he didn’t feel the warmth at being cared for by the two psychopaths. It was only the solid weight of Peter in his lap that reminded the genius of why he still needed to fight.

“Daddy loves you,” Tony planted a soft kiss on the curls below his nose.

“I love you too,” Peter returned quietly, curled as close to Tony as he could get.

“Why don’t you two take a nice nap, and we’ll come get you when dinner is done?” Steve suggested after a moment of silence.

While Tony would have enjoyed denying the men, if it meant being left alone with Peter again, he’d jump at it.

In what appeared to be a caring motion, Bucky reached forward and scooped both up without a second’s hesitation while Steve pulled back the covers to arrange them over the pair when they were set down.

They settled the two into the covers, throwing it up so that Peter’s little eyes barely peaked over the covers of the bed.

“I’ll leave it on the cartoon channel,” Steve murmured, placing a soft kiss on Tony’s forehead, followed by Bucky. Both men smiled at the slightly flabbergasted man before turning on their heels and quietly leaving the room.

After a few beats of silence, Peter spoke gently.

“That was…. Weird,” he murmured.

Tony laughed, tired from his panic attack. “You don’t know the half of it, kid.”

Chapter Text

Tony was warm.

He couldn’t remember falling asleep, but as he slowly started to gauge his surroundings, he realized that he was curled up on a mattress. Opening his eyes to look at the alarm clock, the man frowned when he was met with an obstruction instead. With a grumble he started to move back so that he could get a better look at the form in the dim lighting, only to be met with a wall and an arm wrapping around his waist.

When had that happened?

A little more awake, the genius frowned as he managed to push himself up just enough to make out the form of the two super soldiers on either side. Weren’t they supposed to wake him for dinner?

Quickly, he realized that the person whom he had been snuggling with earlier had disappeared, and a mild panic set in that Peter was gone. However, it took the genius only seconds to spot the little boy curled up on Bucky’s chest, drooling as his little cherub face disappeared into the man’s messy hair.

Stress that he hadn’t realized had started to tighten his shoulders disappeared, letting the man droop down onto the mattress. Peter hadn’t been taken away.

“Go to sleep Tones,” the arm around his waist tightened, bringing Tony towards the big chest in front of him with an undignified squeak. When he was settled against Steve, he let his eyes wander up to meet the amused blue hues with an indignant huff.

“It’s way past dinner time,” Tony grumbled.

A smirk lifted the corner of Steve’s lips, and it took every fiber in Tony’s body not to admit that his heart beat just a little faster at the sight.

“You’re really cute when you sleep,” Steve admitted in a gentle whisper. “And you needed the rest, now hush, you’re going to wake Peter.”

Tony was not pouting, he was not.

“He’s a child, he needs to eat.” He whispered the words, conscious that he didn’t want to cause the little boy to wake up.

“And he did,” Steve immediately retorted.

The soldier removed his arm and slowly sat up, looking down at Tony with a fond expression as he started moving towards the edge of the bed. “Are you hungry?”

Before the genius could deny the question, his stomach decided to complain rather loudly. The blush of embarrassment spread all the way from his cheeks to the tip of his toes, and Tony had to withhold a groan as the little boy whimpered from behind him.

Both men froze, waiting until Peter once again buried his face further into Bucky’s chest to snore quietly before moving.

Ignoring the blonde’s gentle chuckle, Tony watched as Steve moved so swiftly that the bed didn’t even wobble. He marveled at how someone the size of the soldier could move so smoothly, but found his thoughts broken when two arms lifted him off the bed.

Immediately, he had to withhold a yelp of surprise, instead choosing to give a silent protest by smacking Steve’s chest and glaring daggers as the man chuckled again and started towards the hallway. If Peter wasn’t in the room, Tony would have immediately voiced his opinion on the treatment.

However, the kid used to have nightmares as bad as Tony, and they both suffered from insomnia when they lived together in the bunker. If Peter was asleep, Tony had every intention of not waking him up.

Like Bucky, the blond didn’t set Tony down immediately. Instead, he quietly maneuvered to close the door behind them, and ambled down the hallway. When they reached the stairs, Tony finally spoke up figuring they were far enough away from the room that he wouldn’t wake Peter.

“For the love of… put me down Steve.” He glanced down the stairs. “You want me safe? Then let’s not tumble down the stairs, yeah?”

Outright laughing at the statement, the soldier proceeded to head down the staircase. He grinned when Tony grabbed onto his shirt and buried his face in the man’s chest, doing his best to avoid looking at what would surely be a terrible fall.

When the genius was sure that they had reached flat ground, Tony spoke up again. “Steve Rogers, you put me down right the fuck now or I’m going to scream loud enough to wake everyone in this ridiculously large house.”

Finally, after several minutes of chuckles, Steve set the genius on his feet, although he immediately followed the action by grabbing Tony’s hand and leading him down the hallway.

Walking into the kitchen, the blond flipped on the light and deftly pushed Tony so that the male would flop into one of the bar stools overlooking the room. Like Bucky had done earlier, Steve wrapped a large blanket around the male before he moved around the counter towards the fridge.

Leaning down, the blond started to pull out fresh ingredients from the fridge. Bacon, eggs, bread, cheese, mushrooms, and a variety of other vegetables. When he got a confused look thrown his way, Steve gave Tony a bright smile. “You can never go wrong with breakfast, no matter what time of the day.”

Tony raised a brow, crossing his arms. “If that’s true, I want coffee.”

“It’s breakfast food sweetheart, but we’re still going to sleep after this,” he grinned, ignoring the look of annoyance sent his way as he started to mix the eggs into a vegetable filled omelet. Despite Steve’s words, he casually flipped on the coffee machine when he was sure that Tony was distracted watching the omelet cook on the stove.

A comfortable silence fell over the two, Tony slumped against the counter with his head resting on his folded arms. The blanket forming a warm cocoon around his body.

After a few minutes had passed, Steve flipped two separate omelets onto two separate plates, sliding one across the counter to Tony with a fork. He continued to stand across from the man, smiling lightly as Tony startled at the taste of the meal. There was also no stopping the fond smile when Tony perked up when a cup of dark liquid was placed in front of his face, even if he didn’t realize it was decaffeinated.

“Look,” Steve speaks softly. “I want to call a truce with you.”

When he got a disbelieving look in return for the words, the blond took a moment to gather his thoughts, grabbing his own cup of coffee.

“I know that you’re not happy with us, with me and Buck.” He ignored the snort from the genius, pretending he didn’t hear the ‘you think’ grumbled under Tony’s breath. “But sweetheart, you can’t deny that we have something special. When you… left…” He winced. “You didn’t deny it Tony; you didn’t deny that you loved us.”

The genius frowned, looking down at his plate. He had two options, he could deny it and claim he was only trying to get the soldier to let go, or he could stay silent. Not necessarily deny it, but not accept that he had verbally told the man he was in love with him.

But then again, Tony couldn’t deny the small pang in his chest that still came from even glancing at the soldier.

“With Peter, I know that you’re not happy that he’s a little kid, but… the world is so cruel. We just wanted to give you the opportunity to be happy, away from all the worries and concerns of this world. The opportunity to raise him right.”

Tony crossed his arms and allowed the complete disbelief to show on his face. “You do realize that the state the world is in, is largely because of your choices. Because of what you and the merry band of psychos have done?”

“We made this world better,” Steve argued. “We got rid of terrorists, of Hydra.”

“And took away free will,” Tony was quick to point out.

“How?” Steve crossed his arms over his chest. “Yes, we’ve applied rules to bring order. But we didn’t take away true freedoms.” The soldier paused, taking a moment to put his empty plate in the sink.

“So, what? You’re saying that if someone does something that you don’t like that they can just… walk away?” Tony leaned back on the chair as he had already emptied out his cup of coffee, half the omelet still cooling on the plate.

“We don’t just kill people for no reason,” Steve argued, exasperation in his tone. “Everyone who we’ve gotten rid of has committed some sort of heinous act. We make sure that we lead by example and follow through with what we tell the people. We give them the ability to be free to a degree, but we want to make sure that they’re not doing something stupid.”

“Ha!” Tony didn’t hold back the sound, reaching forward and swiping Steve’s still full cup of coffee and dodging back. He took a large gulp before speaking, “so you did take away their freedom! You can’t deny it now!”

The blond soldier looked frustrated, although he didn’t make a move to swipe the cup back. “Look Tony, all I’m asking for here is a chance. You fell in love with us before, what’s stopping you from doing it now?”

“You’re a tyrannical ruler!” Tony threw up his hands in exasperation, the blanket puddling on the floor beside the chair. “You take what you want, without any regard for the other person! You don’t let society choose their governing class! How many people have died in order to create this perfect world you keep seeking? How many more have to die?” He didn’t realize that he was screaming, the anger getting the best of him.

“You fucking tortured me, so I’d comply!” Tony howled.

Immediately, Steve threw up his hands in a stop gesture. “Woah, we didn’t hurt you Tony.”

“You didn’t-” The genius sputtered, looking absolutely taken aback by the words. “You didn’t hurt me?”

In seconds Tony was on his feet, his hand bumping the mug and sending the rest of the coffee spilling onto the counter. Neither men seemed to notice, instead choosing to focus on each other.

“You used a weapon that I created as an innocent child on another human being. You made me watch as people died and told me it was because I didn’t behave for you!” He spat. “Barnes took it upon himself to try to spank me, and you showed me so many snuff films that even fake blood gives me nightmares! But you didn't hurt me?!”

Steve moved to speak, but Tony was on a roll and bulldozed right on over the words.

“You de-aged me, and my kid. You hunted us down Steve! Because as long as you got what you wanted in the end, you didn’t care! Hell, I had a goddamn heart attack because of you! I’ve lost my entire family, because of you!”

“We did it to protect you!” Steve finally hollered in return.

Tony snorted, “oh yeah?”

“Hear me out,” he spoke calmly. “Buck and I… we saw this entire world at war. We saw the worst that humanity could do. Human experiments, people attacking people for food or supplies. We saw a world without order, and when we tried to fix it by modern societies rules, it got worse. Now, we don’t have hungry children on the streets.”

“You have homeless people,” Tony growled.

“Yes, but no children. We’re trying to make it so that those who are homeless are sent to facilities, to learn skills to better society. Crime is at an all-time low, since the criminals now understand that there are dire consequences to their actions.”

“It takes time, but we just want to bring order and justice to the world. Like when you stopped making weapons, wasn’t that a similar move?”

Baring his teeth, Tony shook his head, “I didn’t kill people to stop the manufacturing.”

“No, but your weapons still hurt people in the wrong hands.”

“Obie did-” Tony cut himself off. He didn’t like to talk about the very man whom he had trusted. The man who had hurt the genius more than the two soldiers could possibly attempt to do.

“You tried to bring order, so you stopped making weapons. There were people that lost their jobs because of your decision, but other people that gained what would have been a lost life. That’s what this is, we’re bringing order, but it can’t just be a win-win for everyone.”

At that very moment, Tony realized just how pointless the argument was. Steve Rogers was a man whom believed in his own insanity, that everything he was doing was for the greater good. He didn’t see the people who were too scared to talk badly about the Avengers.

Didn’t see the supers who did their damn best to hide their powers, not wanting to become soldiers. How children were taken from parents when they showed signs of having powers. How families suffered, how the world suffered. The man only saw the end goal, not the things happening on the journey.

An overwhelming sadness overcame the genius, and Tony deftly ran a hand across his face. His shoulders hunching forward.

Peter had been right.

The only way to control the situation, would be to manipulate it from the inside. Changing the views of the former heroes would be nearly impossible.

He only prayed he wouldn’t get too lost along the way.

“Can we go to bed?” Tony spoke softly, his voice defeated.

Steve didn’t look happy, but he nodded his head and pivoted to grab a paper towel from the nearby counter. “Yeah, just give me a second sweetheart.”

Tony hid the flinch well and found himself slightly glad when Steve led the way out of the kitchen without picking him up. He left the blanket pooled by the bar stool, the only evidence beyond the dishes of their morning argument.

One solemn, dusky morning was all it took for the man to realize that he had no other choice.

It was time to start playing their game, and Tony was ashamed at how grateful he was that Peter would be along for the ride.

Chapter Text

“He’s not going to eat that,” Tony drawled for what felt like the hundredth time, watching as little Peter crossed his arms petulantly in the booster seat beside him. The little boy’s mouth quivered with the threat of a real tantrum, brown eyes glaring at the bowl of oatmeal set on the table before him.

Once again, Bucky ignored Tony’s warning and did the motion of an airplane with the spoon, watching as it stopped on tightly closed lips.

“Come on, doll!” The soldier implored, ignoring as Clint snickered from across the table as if he were witnessing the world’s most amusing spectacle. “It’s got cinnamon, and sugar, and it’s sweet!”

Immediately, Peter shook his head and turned his stubborn face away. Ignoring how some of the oatmeal smeared onto his cheek.

“I think it looks like vomit,” Clint stage whispered when Peter tried to turn his whole body away from the soldier and the offending meal, facing Tony whom had sat on his other side.

The soldier immediately threw a glare in the archer’s direction, huffing how he wasn’t getting any help from the rest of the table.

When morning had come, the group of former heroes had all appeared from the recesses of the mansion looking as if they hadn’t overheard any of the commotion that had happened between the two super soldiers and Tony.

The genius had taken a guess that either they had left the building completely or were smart enough to pretend that nothing significant had happened. He was leaning towards the latter.

When they’d woken up both Steve and Bucky had already been awake, one holding a cup of coffee while the other had rummaged through the nearby dresser to pull out an outfit for both Tony and the still sleepy Peter.

Realizing that the two men had no intention of letting them dress alone, Peter had asked for Tony (and only Tony) to help him go to the toilet. There had been no hesitation, and the genius had quickly swiped the clothing pile from Steve and disappeared into the restroom before anyone could protest.

He’d locked the door instantly, placing the clothing on the counter so that he could separate everything accordingly.

Without the two men there, he had left Peter to dress himself. The boy had donned soft gray pants, socks, and an Iron Man t-shirt that had his arc reactor printed on the front. Tony noted the wild blush on Peter’s face when faced with a small pair of Captain America undies that the genius couldn’t resist on putting at the top of the pile. He’d sent a cute glare at Tony.

“At least you’re getting real underwear and not diapers,” he’d murmured, shrugging as he threw on a pair of familiar sweats and a faded band shirt.

Releasing an indignant sound at the thought of diapers, Peter proceeded to climb up Tony using his powers and clinging to the man’s side like the little spider that he was.

Tony would have never thought his paternal instincts would be great with his childhood, but there was something so natural about having little Peter that his motions were automatic. One hand moved to hold the boy gently on the back, his hip cocking ever slightly to the side to accommodate the extra weight of the child as he turned and left the restroom, pajamas in hand.

While Bucky had disappeared, Steve had remained in the room and wore a wide grin at the sight of the two of them together. “The team’s eating breakfast together,” Steve explained.

Knowing that he couldn’t fight it, Tony had merely nodded at the words and followed the former American hero down the hall. Everything was back to how it had been, where most, if not all, of the team made an effort for mealtimes together.

And that was how Tony and Peter found themselves sitting at the table with the former Avengers. Bacon, eggs, sausages, pancakes, fruits, and toast had been set out for the rest of the team. Oatmeal had been made for Peter and Bruce.

“Just one bite,” Bucky tried again.

Meeting the genius’ eyes, Tony instantly recognized that the light that glinted in Peter’s eyes spelled trouble. He had seen the look before, had worn it in his own expression several times before doing things that had generally led to explosions.

Before anyone could even think to tease Bucky again or to come up with a solution on getting the child to eat, Peter twisted in his chair and brought both fists down to smash into the oatmeal bowl. Having made the mistake of putting the plate directly in front of the child, Bucky took the brunt of the meal. With the superhuman strength still intact, the bowl immediately shattered as both oatmeal and plastic flew in every direction.

Tony, having seen the look and knowing something was happening, was quick to throw his plate up and use it as a shield. The sausages and eggs that had been put on the platter by Steve quickly falling to the floor and his lap. With Steve on his other side, the blond barely got a speck of food on him.

Natasha, having sat next to Clint, had moved the archer as a human shield, watching as the rest of the team was sprayed with bits and pieces of the little boy’s uneaten breakfast.

There was absolute silence for a moment, as if the entire table couldn’t believe that the little boy had done such a thing.

Before anyone could think of reprimanding Peter for his behavior, Tony couldn’t stop the snort of laughter that escaped his throat. The sound seemed to get to Clint from across the table, because as soon as the archer had wiped his face of the oatmeal, he started to chuckle.

Soon enough, both Tony and Clint were in full hysterics, Thor (whom had appeared without Loki) had started to release his own contagious laughs that had led to Bruce joining in. Natasha’s lip had curled up, an indication of her amusement. And soon enough the only person looking unamused was Bucky, watching as even Steve started to chuckle with the contagious laughter.

Using the moment to his advantage, Tony reached forward and plucked Peter out of his seat and into his lap, laughter cutting off at the sight of the little boy’s bloodied hands. Ignoring how the child was covered in dripping oatmeal, Tony held up the hands to inspect them in better light, and winced when he noticed that not only had the shards from the plate cut up the kid’s hands, but that some of the wounds had started to heal over the shards.

Reaching forward he carefully pulled three visible pieces out, cringing when Peter winced and tried to pull away although he didn’t use his full strength.

“Oh kiddo, are you okay?” Tony already knew the answer to his question, but that didn’t stop him from asking as he ran a thumb gently over the still open wounds, trying to make sure that there were no visible shards to pull.

With a quivering lip, the little boy suddenly burst into tears. “Daddy!” He wailed, scooting as close as possible to burrowing inside the genius’ chest.

Time seemed to start again, as everyone realized that Peter’s actions had gotten the little boy hurt.

“I’ll grab the first aid kit!” Steve was already on his feet, looking absolutely concerned for the boy as he all but sprinted from the table to grab the item.

Bruce, having seen the wounds close over at least two shards before Tony had pulled out what he could, was on his feet and moving forward in an instant. He froze, however, when on reflex the genius tightened his hold on the crying child and flinched away.

Bruce threw up both hands, as if approaching a wild animal protecting its young. “I just want to look at his hands, Tones. Make sure he’s okay.”

Taking every ounce of willpower that he could muster, Tony finally nodded his head and allowed Bruce to move Peter so that the child was sitting at the very edge of his lap. If not for the seriousness of the wounds, the fact that everyone was covered in oatmeal would have likely sent Tony into another set of inappropriate giggles.

“We’re going to have to cut into these two wounds to take these out,” Bruce whistled, taking a wet towel from Steve whom had returned with the kit. The doctor softly wiped away at the wounds, glad to see that Peter had only two shards embedded under his skin.

Moving quicker than he had before, Bruce made to pick up Peter when the child realized the action for what it was. With a scream, Peter threw himself back and wrapped his tiny hands into Tony’s shirt, ignoring the sharp pain the action elicited.

“No!” Peter cried, “Daddy! No!”

Tony felt his heart pick up in worry for the kid and was back to wrapping his arms around him and curling away from the men in front of his chair.

“Tony, please.” Steve spoke gently. “We have to get him healed up; he won’t even be awake for the cuts. No pain.”

Before Tony could open his mouth, Peter shook his head again. Not about to let his kid down, Tony stumbled to his feet by pushing his chair harshly back, almost falling before he’d caught his balance. He edged away from the group, shaking his head. There was absolutely no way they were just going to take Peter and cut him open. Over his dead body.

His rational thinking had disappeared, primal instincts to protect the scared child on the forefront.

“Tony,” it was Bucky. The man’s voice was firm, with no room for argument as he spoke. “Hand over Peter, now.”

For just a moment, he wanted to do exactly as he was ordered. But the trembling of the small body in his arms brought Tony back to why he had fought the men in the first place. He shook his head.

The sudden surprised shriek from Peter did nothing to calm the genius down, especially when he felt something pinch him right between his neck and shoulder. “Daddy!” The kid screamed, pulling back in horror as Tony realized someone had hit him with some sort of muscle relaxant, body slowly starting to fall apart.

Using his powers, Peter clung onto the man even as the genius’ arms dropped to his sides, legs failing to keep him upright.

Two arms caught Tony around the waist, another set grabbing Peter and trying to pull him away from the genius.

Heart in his throat, Tony could do nothing as he watched Bucky pull Peter hard enough that the kid managed to tear his shirt into pieces, getting pulled away from Tony with protest after protest.

All the genius could do was murmur quiet objections; his body pressed firmly against the super soldier behind him.

“Buck, take him and get cleaned up, I’ll take care of Tony.” Steve spoke calmly from behind the genius.

“We’ll get his wounds fixed too,” Bruce piped up. Turning to follow Bucky and the still screaming Peter from the room.

Steve was the only thing holding Tony up, all ability to control his motor skills gone. It was the only reason the genius wasn’t fighting tooth and nail to get to his kid. Screaming and howling at the top of his lungs.

The super soldier reached forward and pulled Tony into a bridal carry, ignoring the mild glare he received from the man. “Thanks Bruce, I’ll go get Tony cleaned up. We’ll see you at dinner, yeah?”

Tony rolled his head as best as he could where it rested against Steve’s chest, making out Bruce’s chin and upper chest. “I’ll cook tonight, something a little less healthy so the little one will eat.”

The blond holding Tony chuckled at the words, nodding before he bumped his arm up so that Tony’s head lolled back to resting against his chest.

“You’ll get function back in about an hour Tony,” Bruce reassured. “We just don’t want you to have another heart attack, not when you’ve finally got your health back.”

The genius wanted to retort about the poisoning in his chest, but could barely open his mouth, eyes half-lidded.

“See you soon,” Steve nodded.

With that, the man was carrying him out of the room and towards a bathroom separate from the one in their room. He figured Peter was likely getting the shards removed and then bathed by Bucky in the room, and they wanted to keep them apart.

Trying to voice a protest, Tony had to hide back a scowl at the whine that sounded from his throat instead.

“Hush baby,” Steve crooned. “You’re okay, we’re just going to get you cleaned up.”

Tony vaguely recalled a similar moment when he’d first been brought in and feared what would happen if his PTSD was worse than before. What kind of messed up reality had he landed in?

Setting him down on the carpet of the bathroom, Steve gently tugged down his pants. He finished ripping off the rest of the genius’ shirt and stripped Tony without any hesitation.

He disappeared after promising to return, and Tony felt his mind beginning to panic as he listened to the water run in the room. While he couldn’t get up or actually panic, he still could hear everything.

Tony was going to drown. He was going to die. Steve was going to stick him under the water, and he was going to die.

With the sedative still working, the blond didn’t notice the full-blown panic in Tony’s eyes. Instead, he focused on lifting the man’s body and settling him into the tub. The water covering them both, although Steve had the thought to place Tony right next to him so that he wasn’t pressed up against the completely naked soldier.

“Is the water okay?” He asked absentmindedly, already scrubbing away the little bit of oatmeal that had gotten on the man.

Tony finally managed to make a sound; it was a pathetic scared whimper.

“Peter’s okay, you know he is,” Steve cooed. “We just want him to get comfortable with us all.”

Tony whimpered again, the words not processing as all he could feel was the water going up to his chest. He could hear the screams, the anger. Finally, managing to work his muscles enough, “please.”

“Tony?” Steve finally looked at the man in the eyes and froze upon what he saw.

With a curse that the genius had never thought he’d hear from the man, Steve grabbed a hold of Tony and swung them both out of the tub. He snatched the nearest towel and dried him off quickly, wrapping him in the thing as quickly as possible while murmuring apologies over and over again.

Almost catatonic, lost to the memories of a cave, Tony didn’t respond to any of the words being repeated to him. It was almost as if the man had left his own body, and didn’t even register as he was lifted, dressed, and hurried into the bedroom.

“Take him to the living room, Buck.” Steve’s voice was faint as he spoke to the other soldier, Tony coming up for only a moment before sinking under the waves of turmoil again. “I don’t want the kid to see him like this.”

“What happened?” Came the other soldier’s reply, although he was already carrying a worried Peter out of the room.

“Warm!” Peter cried as they neared the door. Both soldiers frowned, stopping as Peter used his powers to quickly climb up and over Bucky’s shoulder. Caught when he made to jump to the ground by the metal arm. “Daddy needs warm!” The little boy explained, trying to get to the limp figure on the bed.

Without hesitating, and realizing that the kid was right, Steve once again asked Bucky to leave the room with the boy. There was a large level of protest, but Tony was so gone he didn’t hear the cries.

It was only several minutes later, after Steve had curled under the sheets behind the genius and used his own unnatural body heat to bring him back, that he even realized he’d had an attack.

Knowing it was wrong but seeing as it was his only source of comfort, the genius buried his face into the shirt in front of him and curled as close as humanly possible to the soldier. “Steve,” the name came out broken.

“I’ve got you Tones,” the blond reassured, “I’ve got you.”

Chapter Text

Little arms crossed over the tiny chest, brown eyes narrowed and focused, hiding a touch of anger behind the gaze. Peter would never admit that his bottom lip jutted out slightly, creating what was definitively an adorable pout on his cherubic face.

Trying to be quick, a hand moved into his view, reaching for one of the objects that had been settled right in front of the toddler in a large pile. It was moved back just as quickly as Peter threw his arms out and slapped at the limb.

His gaze flitted from the pile to the man beside him, looking exasperated by the child’s unwillingness to conform.

“Come on kiddo! All you have to do is stick the pieces together! We don’t need to follow instructions!” Clint exclaimed, sitting cross legged next to the little boy.

At first, Peter had been hesitant to play with any of them, but when Bucky had pulled out a large box with a ship design on the front, he’d gone starry eyed and excited.

Now, they sat in a small circle surrounding the pieces that Clint had poured out without any semblance of organization. Peter had immediately gotten everything into a pile with Natasha’s help, whom sat back and watched the interaction in amusement.

Bucky had taken a seat on Peter’s other side, carefully examining the box to make sure they hadn’t missed a stray piece. It had left the archer to start building with the child, whom had immediately gotten angry when he’d started to put random pieces together.

“No!” Peter cried, throwing himself on top of the pile when Clint made to reach for a piece again. “No! There’s a plan!” He openly glared at Clint, slapping at the man’s hand again.

“We can figure it out!” Clint argued, finally managing to steal two pieces from the toddler whom was slowly turning redder by the minute.

The action seemed to spur more of a tantrum in the boy, who stumbled from out of the pile and ambled towards the archer. His lack of coordination didn’t help, and instead of crawling up to grab the pieces, Peter fell face first into Clint’s lap.

“It’s just Lego pieces!” Clint tried again.

“No!” Peter argued, doing his best to coordinate his limbs to get to the stolen objects that were currently being held out of his reach.

Figuring that he should probably stop the situation before it escalated too far that they woke Tony, the soldier reached into the box and pulled out the instruction manual. The research team had gotten a lot of information on Peter Parker and had discovered that the child had been a genius since birth. They’d also discovered several of his hobbies before the world had turned upside down, and Lego’s and Star Wars happened to be some of the former teen’s favorite things.

“He’s right Clint. The instructions are specific on what piece goes where so that you can build the ship on the front of the box.” He spoke softly, trying to be the calm energy between the two turbulent ones beside him.

“See!” Peter cried out, his little hands moving to fumble him up and out of the archer’s lap. He only managed to get up a tiny bit before falling, barely catching himself as his little body sprawled completely over the archer’s legs.

With a laugh at just how clumsy the child was, Clint reached forward and gently flicked his nose. The action sent Peter flying forward, face colliding with the man’s thigh as he chuckled at the reaction. However, before anyone could process what was happening, Peter’s angry cries turned into wicked sobs. His mouth opening wide as he all but screamed at the top of his lungs.

“Jesus Barton!” Bucky growled, throwing aside the manual to pluck the hysterical toddler from the panicking man.

Immediately, the soldier got to his feet, bouncing Peter on his hip as if it was the most natural thing in the world. Praying silently that the cries wouldn’t reach down the hall to where Tony and Steve slept soundly after their disastrous breakfast.

“It’s okay doll!” Bucky lifted his metal hand and tried to rub soothing circles on Peter’s back. “It’s okay!” He was glad that there was no reason to throw dirty looks at the archer, Natasha had already punched him firmly in the arm.

While Bucky’s bouncing of the toddler had grown more frantic, he was a little relieved to find that the child had turned to stick his face at his collarbone. His little hands in fists around Bucky’s shirt as the hysterical screaming slowly turned into quiet sobs.

The brunette had never thought that a person’s tears would break his heart, but for the first time in a long time he felt a bit of remorse as the sniffling child clung heavily to him. The feeling was foreign, and Bucky was quick to push it away when words finally started to come from the boy in his arms.

“I..I…I want my daddy,” Peter hiccuped pathetically, whimpering.

“He’s resting kiddo,” Bucky explained gently. “But we’re going to see him at lunch, okay?” The last time he’d spoken so sweetly to someone was when Stevie was still tiny, again, something pinged in his stomach, but he pushed it away.

“Pwomise?” Peter pulled back; his now red rimmed eyes still wet as he held up his pinky with a very serious expression on his tiny face.

It took every ounce of will in Bucky’s body to keep the amused smile from lifting the corner of his lips, raising the metallic arm to wrap around the boy’s raised finger. He found himself unable to hide the smile when the little boy’s eyes widened drastically at the sight of the arm, as if it was one of the most fascinating things he’d ever seen.

“I promise,” he confirmed. “Now, if Uncle Clint listens to the instructions, can he help us build this…” he trailed off, glancing at the box. “Falcon?”

Pouting again, the little boy shook his head in denial. He quickly pulled forward again, burying his face in Bucky’s shirt to hide with a quiet whine.

“How about I help?” Natasha offered, “I’ll keep him by me and make sure he stays behaved.”

It took a good minute before Peter peeked his head out from where he had tucked it against Bucky, the room seemingly holding their breath as they waited for an answer from the child. His brown eyes danced away from Clint; chubby arms held out towards the redhead.

Natasha didn’t hesitate, pulling Peter into her arms and settling the boy in her lap as she sat cross-legged in front of the pile of Legos.

“Let’s follow these instructions then,” she looked towards Bucky, whom immediately took a seat across from them. Clint looking somewhat rejected as he pushed himself back to the floor where he’d gotten up in his panic, next to Bucky so he wasn’t beside Peter.

When they finally start to build, Bucky carefully reading the instructions and pausing to let Natasha hand Peter the pieces, the child completely ignored the archer nearby.

“Hey buddy, not going to look at me?” Clint spoke softly, ignoring the look of amusement the soldier throws at him. “Come on Pete… what’s it going to take?”

The child throws a glare the man’s way but continues building, as if nothing is happening beyond Natasha’s lap. His concentration causing him to look almost exactly like a miniature version of Tony when they’d let him work in the lab at the old facility.

“What if instead of whatever lunch Bruce is planning today, we do a barbecue? I’ll make you whatever you want on the grill, and we can have a picnic outside!” The man noticed the boy’s gaze slowly flit towards him before quickly moving back to the pieces in his hands.

“And we can get cake, so you can eat as much of it as you want!” He continued to attempt to bribe the small child.

“A whole chocolate cake,” Peter grumbled, still looking at the pieces.

“A whole chocolate cake just for you!” Clint nodded eagerly, moving away from the soldier nearby so that the man couldn’t punch him where his arm was already sore from Natasha’s earlier hit.

Peter finally lifted his big brown eyes to look at Clint, arms crossing over his chest. He looked like a little businessman whom was about to make the deal of his life with the archer. “Hot dogs. A whole cake, and hot dogs.”

When the archer immediately agreed to the terms, he found a weight lifted as Peter’s childish glare faded.

Like a light switch that had suddenly been flipped, the change in demeanor was almost immediate. Peter nodded eagerly with a huge grin on his face as his eyes twinkled brightly. Quietly, the child wondered what Tony would think when he explained what had happened, and how he was quickly getting them to eat out of the palm of his hands.

“’Cuse me Aunty Tasha,” the little boy fumbled, crawling out slowly from the redheads lap so that he could sit on the floor beside her. He moved a few of the pieces closer to Clint, smiling brightly as he turned towards Bucky eagerly for the next instruction.

Clint stayed true to his word, and intently helped Peter build per each instruction that came from the super soldier. He pretended that he couldn’t see Natasha’s amused eye watching him get cowed by a small child.

Watching Peter concentrate, the soldier came to the quiet realization that the child was most definitively a genius. But was he too smart for the age that they’d gotten him to? Every time he read an instruction, Peter would count how many pieces of Lego’s he had left, and of what color, measure them to the ship, and then nod to himself before continuing.

Was he too smart? Had Loki de-aged him correctly? Or had he retained his memories?

The soldier frowned, but then shook his head. He’d never dealt with a genius for a child, and rumor had it the kid was as smart as Tony if not smarter. Chances were that Peter was right where he needed to be, although he would ask Bruce later as the man might have more of an understanding of children’s development.

“Hey kiddo,” he spoke gently, not wanting to startle Peter from his concentration.

“Do you want to bake some cookies for your daddy? We can finish this right after?” He smiled, “they can be part of dinner, or we can put them in your cake.” The last part was said with a less amused tone, eyes narrowed on the grinning archer.

The little boy paused as he held up a large gray piece, looking torn between finishing the ship right away or doing something nice for Tony. “Daddy has to get the first piece,” he negotiated again.

“Of course, kiddo,” Bucky agreed, leaning forward to sweep Peter into his arms with a gentle kiss planted right atop of his brown curls. “And Uncle Clint will get the food prepped because he offered to make it.” It was an order, not a suggestion.

With one arm wrapped snugly around Peter’s waist, the soldier spun on his heel and carried the child away from the room towards the kitchen, intent on getting some of the cookies done before Tony woke. He figured having something from the kiddo would make the older genius a little happier when he found himself in bed with a super soldier.

-----------------------------

The water was coming, and there was nothing that Tony could do to stop it. He tried but failed to hold his breath on time, and immediately started to flail when he was dunked into the dark bucket.

Tony’s eyes flew open, his hand instantly grasping at the warm limb that curled softly around his waist. The nightmare was still close to the forefront of his mind, and he pulled the arm and therefore the large body attached to it closer so that he could hide in the warmth.

When Tony buried his face into the shirt of the frame before him, he was immediately flooded with a familiar smell. The pine and clean laundry mix brought his anxiety down, and the genius found himself settling down. It chased away the fear, the absolute fear.

Forcing his eyes open, Tony tried to figure out exactly what had happened since he’d passed out. He’d obviously gained some sort of comfort from one of the super soldiers, and he wasn’t about to reject it in fear that his nightmares would return.

Slowly he brought his gaze up, eyes meeting those of a smiling Steve Rogers.

The blue eyes were twinkling with a warmth that Tony hadn’t seen in quiet a while, and something in his stomach burned at the thought that the man next to him thought he was in love with Tony. Was obsession love?

“Hey sweetheart, feeling better?” Steve’s voice was gentle.

For the first time Tony pulled back slowly, although his hand didn’t release its death hold on the blonde’s shirt. He noticed a book had been settled right on Steve’s hip, as if the man had set it down when Tony had turned him to cuddle. Because that’s what they were doing, and there was no denying it.

Tony wasn’t sure how much he wanted to.

“I…” Should he admit that the fear was still there? Unconsciously he tightened his hand in Steve’s shirt, a silent answer to the softly posed question.

“It’s okay, you don’t have to say anything,” Steve all but cooed. Before the tone could get the genius’ heckles up, the male leaned down and planted a gentle kiss on his temple. “Why don’t we sit up sweetheart?”

The hesitant nod of agreement had Steve grinning, moving so that his arm was no longer wrapped around Tony’s waist. It was the movement that also brought the awareness that Steve’s other arm had been utilized as the genius’ pillow. Meaning Steve had to have been hugging him and reading over Tony’s shoulder while he slept.

He didn’t know how he felt about it.

The soldier quickly tucked him up so that he was leaning against several pillows, a heated blanket that had to have belonged to Bruce at one point curled around his body. How long had he been shivering?

Tony found himself having to restrain a pout when he found that Steve was no longer laying on the bed but setting aside his book to stand instead. The thought that he was even a little upset over losing the cuddles with the blond was startling to Tony.

“Comfy?” Steve inquired.

When he got another shy nod from the man, Steve grinned and leaned back, hands in his pockets. “I have a surprise for you, do you mind hanging out for just a second?” He didn’t wait for a reply, all but scurrying from the room and leaving the door open behind him.

Although still not completely awake or understanding of what exactly was happening, Tony took a moment to attempt to evaluate the strange feelings coursing through his veins.

There was some trepidation beating just behind the emotion that kept his eyes anchored to the door. He knew that he shouldn’t miss the other male as badly as he did, but there was such a moment of vulnerability that all the genius wanted was to curl in the arms of the captain and not move again.

Peter. He had to keep going for Peter.

He had to stop himself from jumping when he heard the door open, the blond stepping through the doorway with a large smile donning his full lips. He had a small plate with what looked like two cookies, although Tony wondered how it could possibly be a surprise since it was such a small amount.

Making his way to the bed, Steve grinned and placed the plate on his lap. “I had to argue for these, but I managed to steal two and run away before they could stop me.”

Tony raised a brow, silently asking what the man was talking about.

“Bucky and Pete made these for you. I didn’t tell the kid that I was getting it for you, ‘cause he’s waiting to see your reaction. But I figured it might cheer you up a little or give you some energy.”

Hearing that his kid who couldn’t possibly bake had made him something that looked edible was enough to get the male to reach forward.

Tony was quick to notice that one of the cookies looked a little raw, while the other appeared perfect. He immediately figured that the second one was from Bucky, the raw one had to be one of Peter’s creations.

Immediately he started to eat the raw cookie, glad that it wasn’t the first time he’d tried to ingest raw cookie dough.

He hands reached down quickly to slap the hand that had started to go for the second cookie. “Nope, these are mine.” He threw a sideways glance at the soldier and was relieved to find the male smiling in amusement.

“Peter didn’t let me take more than two, so I guess they’re all yours.” Steve was pouting!

Tony had to hide his smile, eating more of the raw cookie before he picked up the second one. The sugar settling nicely in his stomach and chasing away the remains of the nightmare.

“Then I guess you’re out of luck until he shares the rest,” Tony quipped. “Where is he anyway? I’m assuming the cooking disaster didn’t burn down the house since I’m still in it.”

“It was a close one, but Buck managed to stop him a few times. He’s in his room with Clint, they’re building a Lego ship of some sort.”

With a soft smile Steve pulled back and grabbed a cup that Tony hadn’t noticed him carrying when he’d walked in the door. It brought a warm feeling when he realized it was coffee made specifically for him.

Tony took a sip immediately when he was handed the cup, legs moving so they could curl up near his chest as he stared at Steve whom had taken a seat on the side of the bed. He grinned at the thought of Peter bossing around the archer. There was still worry for the kid’s health, but if he was building Lego’s there was no way that anyone was doing anything bad to him.

They wouldn’t risk Tony’s anger again, would they?

There was sparing moments in which the kid wouldn’t budge on his stubbornness and control, and that was when he was building his models. Of course, Tony couldn’t say much as he was basically the same. It was why he was picky with whom helped him with his creations.

“How about the glass?” He asked, a pang that he hadn’t thought of it first.

“He’s all healed, didn’t even feel a thing when they got them removed. We’re taking good care of our kid.” Steve added the last part, wondering if there would be any argument.

Tony didn’t want to fight, not now.

“Peter apparently got Clint to promise a barbecue today. Bruce is making the side dishes, but it may take another hour before we’re ready. I wanted to see if you wanted to help me.”

Tony raised a brow, sipping his coffee as he faced the soldier. “Clint wanted to build an archery area for Peter,” he held up a hand to stop the genius from interrupting. “I already vetoed that idea much to Clint and Peter’s chagrin. But I thought we could make a mini obstacle course and playground for the kid. Swing set, all that stuff. I got the supplies, figured you’d like to help me build it for Peter.”

Thinking about getting out of the house, of using his hands… His body wasn’t as achy as it had been because of the de-aging, Tony could build something interesting without suffering all the aches that came with the physical labor.

And maybe, he’d start to feel a little less helpless when he had power tools back in his hands. Nodding, the genius gulped down the rest of the coffee and handed the empty cup to Steve, taking his time to slide out from the covers and pull himself to his feet. He managed to stay up straight, even if he swayed for a moment.

“Want me to help you get dressed?” Steve asked, surprising the genius that he was even asking instead of inserting himself without warning.

Shaking his head, he moved towards the dresser that they had gotten the clothes out of earlier that morning, he didn’t need much, just a light sweater and a pair of socks. A pair of sneakers laid by the dresser neatly waiting for him.

Still somewhat dizzy from the tranquilizer, Tony was silently grateful when Steve caught him as he bent down to put on the socks and shoes.

“Sit on the bed, sweetheart.” Steve slowly led him to the mattress, setting him down and moving so that he can slip on the items. Once he’s done, he holds out a hand for Tony so that the genius doesn’t accidentally slip as they move towards the door.

Tony is just glad that the soldier is showing kindness rather than the commanding attitude he’d shown before everything. At least the captain was letting him do things on his own. His mind screamed that it was a ploy, a way to relax him in the situation, but he chose to push it back and follow the man down the stairs and to the backyard.

He noticed Bruce was standing by a huge brick grill, built so that there was a counter space where they could prepare or set ingredients down on the side.

The other scientist waved at them, before focusing back up on the sides that he had been chopping before the two had made an appearance.

Nodding towards a pile of materials thrown haphazardly on the ground, Steve waves his hand to indicate that the sad pile of materials are meant to be for the playground.

Tony felt his brows raising high, taking in what they had put together and trying desperately to understand how they were going to build anything with the pieces. He’s surprised to find Steve wearing a sheepish look, one hand clutching a tool bag that he picks up from the side of the materials.

He felt like the Captain America that Tony had gotten to know before everything went to hell. The one that Howard had been obsessed with, the one that had gained America’s trust and love. It was strange.

“We figured… you know? You’d have an idea on what to build?” Steve shrugged.

“I usually work with high tech stuff, not…. Wood.” Tony grimaced looking around the pile. Not that he couldn’t do it, but the material was rough and if not handled correctly it could warp.

Glancing at the beams of wood that someone had put on the grass, he made out what looked like pieces that could be made into a swing set. Normally he’d need a few people to get something so heavy up, but with Steve it would be almost too easy.

“Alright,” Tony couldn’t believe he was grinning, grabbing the tools from Steve and starting towards the material. “I think we can do this.”

He didn’t see the grin Bruce threw at Steve behind him, or the way the soldier smirked like he’d won the world’s greatest battle. For the first time, Tony decided to let himself enjoy the small moment for his son, even if it wouldn’t last.

Chapter Text

Approximately thirty minutes into building the swing set, Tony was reminded why he rarely let anyone into the lab while he was working.

The bots and Peter had been an exception, the first were creations he’d made specifically to help, and he considered sacred despite their mistakes. The latter was able to keep up with him in both mind and movement, at times doing things even faster than Tony could catch up to. He rarely had to even glance up before Peter would start to pass over whatever he was looking for with a cheshire grin on his face.

Steve, while not completely inept, was absolutely someone that was driving the genius towards the edge. The captain had tried valiantly to be helpful, running back and forth from the toolbox and Tony like a puppy retrieving for its owner.

The genius had almost snapped at the man to bring over the whole box but refrained as he wasn’t sure how the man would react to his growing annoyance.

While intelligent, Steve didn’t seem to know some of the tools that the genius requested. Of course, Tony couldn’t figure out if the ignorance was on purpose, or if the man truly didn’t know some of the basic tools.

He had been on the verge of snapping when Steve had lifted two of the large beams over each arm without so much as a struggle and moved them to where Tony needed. His smug smile when he caught Tony staring with his mouth slightly unhinged made the man want to test the strength of the hammer in his hand.

Could he hurl it fast enough that it may have the same effect as Mjolnir?

By the time they had finished setting up the swing-set and tested it to make sure it was functional, Tony had almost given in to the urge to hit the captain. The man had tripped and almost brought the whole thing crashing down but caught himself on Tony.

With narrowed eyes Tony opened his mouth to call the man out on his terrible, irritating acting, when he heard a very delighted shout.

Pulling away from Steve’s hand that had wrapped gently on his shoulder, Tony swung around in time to watch as a ball of energy hurdled at full speed into his legs.

With an indignant squawk and flailing arms, the genius watched the hammer that had been in his hand sail into the air and hit Steve square in the chest. The captain, completely unprepared for the tool, had dodged back and failed to catch Tony as he slammed into the grass.

He vaguely caught the sound of the two soldiers yelling his name, head pounding from its impact on the ground.

“Daddy!” The bundle of energy bounced.

He grunted in surprise as an elbow slammed against his crotch, limbs climbing up his body too fast for him to completely process the sharp little accidental jabs. Tony groaned when the little arms finally wrapped securely around his neck, little face buried in the crook of Tony’s neck.

“Daddy,” the word was spoken gently. “I made you cookies.”

It took a few minutes for Tony to gather himself, a hand held out to stop an obviously worried Bucky from lifting Peter off him, or the two of them off the ground.

Using his free hand, he wrapped his arm around the tiny little body, finally able to let out a breath as the little areas where Peter had jabbed faded into a dull throb. “I may be younger kiddo, but that doesn’t mean you can pummel me into the ground.”

He listened as a soft giggle shook the little boy. Using the hand that was free on his side, Tony leveraged himself so that he could sit up, the kid sticking to him like a koala bear. He vaguely wondered how Peter was managing to act so young, and a pang of fear struck him. Was Loki’s spell working? Was it slowly taking away the teenager he loved?

Knowing that he was healed but wanting to find an excuse to look at him in the face, Tony gently tugged at the kid.

“Can I see your hand?” He inquired softly.

When Peter leaned back, Tony let out a breath he didn’t realize he was holding. The intelligence was still gleaming brightly in the eyes of the child, recognition.

“I healed!” Peter cheerfully announced. “Daddy! I heal!” The kid started to jump in his lap, giggling when Tony let out an ‘oof’ at the weight and movement.

Without much hesitation, Bucky reached forward and whisked the kid up so that he was settled on his hip. Tony noted how natural the action had been. And made a mental note to get back at the kid for treating him like a human bouncy house.

Tony would not admit the yelp that escaped him when two hands tucked under his armpits and lifted him to his feet in one swift motion. Steve wrapping a solid arm around his waist, pulling the genius into his chest with a grin.

“Are you alright sweetheart?” His lips were close enough to Tony’s skin so that the man felt the lips softly brushing against his ear with each word.

Unable to stop the blush that bloomed all over his face and down his neck, the genius quickly nodded and tried to not so subtly throw himself forward and out of the man’s hold. Steve’s arm was solid, and he only grinned before tugging the genius towards the table where Bucky was placing Peter into a highchair.

Tony was glad when he was released so that he could sit right up against the chair, eyes focusing on Peter again to reassure himself that the kid was totally alright.

Catching a glimpse of the two soldiers, Tony frowned, “what?”

Bucky had a funny smile on his face, head tilted to the side as he watched the father and son combo settle at the table. Instead of answering Tony, the soldier pivoted on the spot and headed towards the grill where Bruce was starting to dish up hot dogs and hamburger patties.

“Hey kiddo,” Steve gently greeted Peter as he sat down on the opposite side of his chair, holding open both arms. “Can I get a hug?”

Instead of answering the question, Peter turned away from where he’d been watching the man and opened his arms to Tony. Instantly and without hesitation, the genius pulled him away from the highchair, setting the toddler on his lap instead.

“He’s mine, Rogers!” Tony grinned, glad when the captain only gave him a bemused look. Seeing as Peter would likely not be returning to his chair, Steve quickly removed it so that there was nothing between them.

The rest of the team slowly started to make an appearance, carrying several different dishes from inside the house. Clint carrying what looked like a chocolate cake to set down at the table. He grinned when Peter clapped his hands, setting the dessert just close enough that Peter would have to stand to pull it towards himself.

“Just like I promised,” the archer chirped, sitting across from the three.

Tony raised a brow, looking between the bundle of energy in his lap and the sugar bomb nearby. There was absolutely no way he was going to let the little boy eat the cake. Peter as a teenager was beyond energetic, he didn’t want to think what Peter as a toddler would be like with sugar in his system.

“You’re eating real food first,” he admonished, tightening his arms around the kid’s waist as everyone started to sit down. Bucky taking a seat on Tony’s other side so that they resembled a small family, not that the genius would acknowledge it.

Peter looked up; big brown eyes wide as he pouted softly. “Nope, Bambi. You’re eating real food first.”

“Cheeseburger or hot dog?” Steve inquired from the side, putting together a single plate for the two. The genius was quickly reminded how little the captain knew about him, about his true, tiny traits that only the people he loved would know.

“Cheeseburger for me, at least two hot dogs for Peter.” He didn’t bother in fighting to make his own plate, knowing that he would be denied.

When the food was placed in front of him, Tony waited until Peter had reached for his own part of the meal before eating above the boy, tucking the kid’s head under his chin so that he could eat relatively easily with the kid in his lap. His right arm held his burger while the left wrapped softly around Peter’s waist.

It was mildly uncomfortable, but not so much so that Tony would move the child away from his lap.

It didn’t take long for the two to finish the meal set in front of them. Clint, whom had been watching the two the entire meal, immediately pushed the cake towards the little boy. It seemed as if the man truly wanted to win the love of the child, even it was by means of bribery.

Peter didn’t hesitate, with little more than a jump so that Tony was pushed back with a grunt, the little boy grabbed fistfuls of the cake and very messily shoved the sugar into his mouth. It was as if the kid knew that he wouldn’t be allowed to eat the treat had he waited for permission.

“Peter!” Steve all but gasped the name.

Bucky looked halfway between shocked and amused.

Tony, after recovering from the kid’s spring to stand on his lap, wrapped both hands around the child’s waist and started to pull him from the dessert. Instead of easily grabbing him, however, the genius found resistance.

When he tilted his head to meet Peter’s mischievous smile, the man got a face full of cake. Before he could so much as squeak in surprise, the child had grabbed the plate and hopped onto Steve’s lap and off the bench, running from the table with a delighted scream.

“Peter!” It was Bucky, who had jumped on the spot and started to jog after the toddler. Soon enough Steve, Tony, and Sam had joined in on the chase.

The child was proving to be hard to catch, managing to quickly move from left to right to avoid the outreaching hands. When he started to run towards Tony, who had forgotten himself and was trying to stop laughing so he could get the little imp, the boy ran at him at full speed. He tossed the plate at Steve, who tried to stop running and started to stumble with his arms wind milling.

Peter then proceeded to skid right between Tony’s legs, dodging Sam with a shriek and running at full speed in the opposite direction.

Steve and Tony, who had both been on the projectile for the child, ended up colliding. The super soldier turning so that the genius ended on top of him on the grass.

Hearing hysterical laughter from the table, Tony turned to glare at the archer. “I swear to god Barton, sleep with one eye open!”

He wouldn’t admit that the tone was joking. That he was having an amazing time with the family. He would admit, however, that it was due to Peter’s presence.

“Peter!” Bucky’s voice completely broke through the joy and lighthearted air. It had lost all playfulness, filled with worry.

Tony whipped his head around, watching in horror as the little boy glanced back towards the group only to stumble in the grass and fall directly into the lake.

Did he know how to swim? Could he swim with the little body?

Absolute terror filled the genius. He couldn’t recall how he got to the lakeside, nor how he ended up with a shivering little boy curled into his chest. Tony could barely hear over the beating of his own heart as he hugged the shivering kid, Bucky lingering nearby with water dripping onto the small dock.

He was rocking, back and forth. Whether it was to calm the kid or himself, Tony didn’t know. Peter coughed, little fists holding tightly onto the genius’ shirt.

“Tony…” The man shook his head, curled closer to the boy. “Tones… lets go inside.” The words were spoken extremely softly, a suggestion over an order.

Bucky, still dripping with water beside them, settled his hand on Tony’s shoulder to gently nudge him from what could quickly turn into a panic attack.

“I can swim, daddy, I’m okay.” The little voice trying to join Bucky’s cause. “I’m okay.”

The man took a deep breath, before he finally nodded. “We need to get you warm.” He looked up at the soldier next to him, noticing that Steve and the others had all hovered at the tip of the tiny dock. “Peter can’t thermoregulate, we need to get him dry and warm, now.”

Bucky nodded, already standing from his crouch. He helped Tony to his feet so that the man didn’t have to release Peter. Bruce, whom apparently had been the only one to not simply run to the lake, held open a large towel he’d grabbed during the whole ordeal.

Without protest, the little boy allowed Tony to wrap him up like a burrito, realizing how much he’d frightened the other.

Tony sighed, holding the kid and moving towards the house. “I’m going to put him in the shower to warm up, can you get some warm clothing?” He asked Steve, glad that the group didn’t protest or try to fight him as he trudged up towards the room.

Heart still in his throat, Tony was glad to find that they didn’t so much as attempt to fight him on going into the bathroom alone with the child. They didn’t try to sit in, so that when the door closed and the teenager returned, the man no longer had to pretend.

“You scared the shit out of me,” Tony grumbled, watching as the tub filled with water.

“I can swim,” Peter shrugged, still wrapped up in the large towel.

There was a shared moment of silence, both lost in their thoughts. The two seemingly replaying the events that had just happened and what they meant. Despite their efforts, the former Avengers were breaking through both their walls, and both had forgotten their true status in the home during the adventures in the backyard.

“I hope she sends him soon,” Peter quietly interrupted the silence, not wanting to be heard outside.

Tony’s head snapped up, confused by the comment. “Who?”

The brunette shrugged, dropping the towel and starting towards the water. “Flerken.”

“Who’s Flerken?” Tony turned his head, letting Peter remove his own clothing before the kid climbed up and into the warm water.

“My cat,” Peter shrugged again, although the smile on his face told Tony he was holding onto information he didn’t want to share quiet yet. However, when the kid nodded towards the door, the genius turned.

A shadow was cast just at the bottom, someone clearly trying to listen into their conversation.

“I hope your cat finds you kid, I’ve heard animals are smart like that,” Tony quickly caught on.

“Flerken is the best cat daddy, you’ll see!” Peter said cheerfully, smiling brightly when the door opened to reveal a changed Bucky holding a pile of clothes.

“Finish your bath and we’ll go eat cookies,” the soldier suggested to the two, smiling gently as he placed the pile on the counter.

Tony nodded, watching as the little boy grinned in agreement, color slowly returning to his cheeks. With Bucky in the room, the genius was left wondering who in the hell Peter was speaking about.

A cat! Why would the kid be looking forward to a cat? After all, what could a cat do to help them in their situation?

And what kind of name was Flerken?

Chapter Text

Peter looked ridiculous, but absolutely adorable.

After the soldier had pulled the boy from the bath, the two men had decided that the kid needed to be completely covered so that he wouldn’t get sick after his dip. Peter was dressed in gray sweats, a plain shirt, and fuzzy colorful socks. Bucky had disappeared from the room only to return with a huge fluffy baby blue blanket that had obviously never been used.

Bucky had then proceeded to wrap the little boy in the blanket, making him look like a chunky blue burrito with only his little eyes peeking out from the top. There had been no hesitation in picking up the bundled child and carrying him from the room. Tony’s shirt having dried during the time in the bathroom, the genius merely threw aside his shoes so he could follow the two down the hall.

It looked like everyone had scattered, the food cleaned up so that by the time they reached the kitchen only Steve and Sam were in the room. They’d spent enough time in the bathroom that the sun was starting to set, casting the room into different shades of pink.

Settling Peter into one of the chairs at the counter, Bucky stepped forward to help clean up the dishes. Tony didn’t volunteer, taking the seat next to the little boy so he could look at the men in the kitchen.

Without a word, Steve placed a plate of wrapped cookies and two cups of milk in front of them.

“No one’s had them yet kiddo, you can share them with your dad.” He winked at Peter.

The scene was extremely domestic, and Tony weirdly found himself feeling relaxed. Glancing over at Peter he had to withhold a laugh when he noticed the kid struggling to get out of the blanket so he could reach out for the plate.

Missing the looks thrown their way from the three men in the kitchen, he leaned over and helped free Peter’s arms, so the blanket fell to the boy’s waist. He then proceeded to pull the plate forward so that it was directly between the two of them.

Using both hands, Peter gingerly picked up one of the wide brimmed cups and took a sip, smiling brightly at Tony and missing the milk mustache over his lip. Again, the billionaire had to withhold a laugh at the sight.

Plucking a cookie from the plate after taking off the plastic, Tony didn’t hesitate to dip the cookie into the liquid. He noticed that Peter’s big brown eyes were solely focused on his face, wanting to see if Tony liked the baked goods that he had helped make.

He quickly took a small bite, nodding as he ate it. “I can’t believe you actually didn’t burn down the kitchen, kiddo. I’m almost hurt that you managed to do this without burning down the house.”

Peter giggled, immediately reaching for his own cookie and smiling wide as he clumsily dipped the treat into his own milk before practically devouring the whole thing.

They shared two more cookies before Steve cleared his throat, standing on the opposite side of the counter with a soft smile on his lips.

“Hey, why don’t we move everything to the living room? We can watch a movie. Peter can pick.”
Tony groaned, looking at the kid who was grinning from ear to ear. “You’re going to pick Star Wars, aren’t you?”

He had to withhold a sigh as the little boy threw up his arms while nodding his head, making grabby hands at Tony to pick him up.

Resisting the urge to roll his eyes and trying hard to ignore the small nagging voice that told him he was too comfortable; Tony lifted the child onto his hip. It was quickly becoming habit to cock his body a bit to the side so that Peter fit perfectly against his side, and briefly the man wondered what it would have been like to truly raise the kid.

Following a smiling Steve from the room, the two quickly found themselves in a luxurious living room. Several pillows and blankets were strewn around the room, the sofa cushions inviting in their plushy goodness.

Swiftly plonking down, Tony didn’t withhold a laugh when Peter cheered and escaped the blanket. His little socked feet stumbling onto the couch before he took a leap to test the bounce factor. “Woah!”

Two hands plunked underneath the kid’s arms, throwing him into the air with an excited shriek before Bucky landed next to Tony, catching Peter as if he had been doing it his whole life. It was a little disconcerting, how someone so terrible could be so good at treating a child like he was precious.

“I want the blue blanket!” Peter shrieked, his little hands reaching out to snatch the requested object from Tony’s lap, who had moved the blanket to the sofa.

“Manners,” Bucky admonished, although he didn’t hesitate to wrap the little boy up again into a nice bundle.

“So what film are we watching?” Steve inquired, relaxing on Tony’s other side. It was the first time the man realized that instead of taking the other open areas, the two men had quickly taken the opportunity to crowd him and the little boy.

“Star Wars!” The cry was followed by two tiny fists pumping into the air, Peter seemingly very comfortable with his perch on Bucky’s lap.

“Star Wars,” Tony grumbled, rolling his eyes. “Why don’t we start on the first one? The Phantom Menace, right?”

The genius had to immediately throw himself at Steve to avoid the little hand that flailed to smack him. The former Captain didn’t seem to mind, his arm wrapped around the man’s shoulders as he grinned.

The soldiers had educated themselves with a few classic films, and he was glad that he knew a little bit of the hype that came with the flicks.

“A New Hope,” Steve lifted the controller, clicking through a few menu’s before getting to the correct film.

“Lame,” Tony grumbled, laughing again when Peter turned and stuck his tongue out at him. He hadn’t bothered to correct his position, allowing himself to almost completely lay against Steve.

“You hush and let the kid enjoy his movie,” Bucky grumbled, one hand wrapped around the bundle of blanket that was Peter, the other moving to rest on Tony’s hip. The man’s thumb absent mindedly rubbing back and forth on his hip as he stared at the screen.

Steve’s hand moved forward to stroke Tony’s hair, and it wasn’t long before the genius turned into a puddle of goo. He curled his legs up into the sofa, shifting so that the arc reactor sat as comfortable as it could get. He also ignored the little voice in his head that reminded him that what was happening was wrong, and that he needed to fix the poisoning.

It didn’t take very long for the stroking and the comfort of the room with Peter’s gasps and awes to lull the genius under. Drifting between awareness and sleep the male didn’t know how much time had passed between his blinks.

However, when Tony opened his eyes, he realized that they were on the second film and Peter also looked half asleep. Both Bucky and Steve weren’t aware of his waking, as they were sharing self-satisfied smiles between themselves.

“Guys!” Clint’s voice made the genius startle awake, eyes shooting completely open.

The archer ran into the room, looking a cross between excited and terrified with a struggling orange bundle in his arms.

“Peter was about to take a nap!” Steve snapped, watching as the little boy struggled to sit up and look at the archer.

“I found a cat!” Clint held up the animal, shrugging. “He seemed friendly, thought the kid would like him.”

“Goose!” The little boy cried joyfully, his hands once more lifting as if in celebration.

“No sweetie,” Steve corrected gently. “That’s a cat.”

“No!” Peter grumbled, “Goose!”

Sharing a look towards Bucky, the blond shrugged. “Goose the cat?”

Peter nodded, his hands once more doing the grab hand motion as he tried to desperately reach out for the animal in the archer’s arms. Tony seemed startled, shaking his head almost immediately. “How about… no? What if it has some sort of disease?”

Before anyone could react, Peter managed to squirm out of his blanket and onto the ground. He quickly moved across the room and raised his arms, demanding that the cat be handed to him. Clint looked ready to argue when the animal hissed and he dropped him in surprise.

Landing on his feet, the orange cat immediately started to purr and rub itself against the little boy. “I like him!” Peter declared, turning to glance at the startled men sitting on the sofa. “Can I keep him? Pwease!!!”

“How did he get past the barrier?” Bucky questioned.

“It’s supposed to keep…” Steve trailed off for a moment with a glance at the genius, as if searching for the right word. “People out, the animal is probably harmless.” Steve shrugged with logic.

“And us in,” Tony grumbled, welcoming the anger curling up in his chest again as he pushed himself to his feet and away from the two men. Approaching Peter, he crouched down and held out a hand to the orange creature, smiling when it rubbed against his offering.

“You can keep him, kiddo.” Tony affirmed.

Grinning wide Peter wrapped his arms around the animal, barely able to lift the creature as he was smaller than it. “Goose!”

Bucky stood, starting to walk towards them when the animal hissed at him. Tony laughed, “you can absolutely keep him.”

Standing, Tony rubbed off imaginary dirt off his pants. “We’re going to go get Goose settled in Peter’s room. You can get all the cat essentials.”

“Tony, I don’t think-” Steve started to speak but was cut off with a look from the genius.

“You’re right, you don’t. My son and I are going to get his new pet settled. The two of you are going to get the supplies we need to keep a cat happy, since you have access to actually leave this place.”

Without hesitation, Tony leaned down and lifted both Peter and Goose into his arms. “Besides, I’d like to spend some time alone with Peter.”

He started to turn on his heel, ignoring the grinning Clint nearby. The man’s smile turning even brighter when both Steve and Bucky made no move to stop the genius from leaving the room.

“Whipped,” the archer coughed into his hand. Tony didn’t bother turning when he heard a fist smack an arm, followed by a startled yelp. Instead, he focuses on going up the stairs and carrying his kid and new cat away from the men. How could he have forgotten, even for a second, that the two men were obsessive and not in love?

Arriving in Peter’s room, Tony used his foot to close the door behind them with a gentle click. He settled Peter on his feet only to watch as the child immediately runs around the room checking for bugs. With nothing better to do, Tony made himself useful and began to help, looking for cameras to make sure that they were not being watched.

While the soldiers are paranoid, it seems like it’s only about the two of them leaving the property. The only thing the men left in the room that would serve as a form of communication outside from normal speaking, is the baby monitor. And at the moment, Tony switches it off and plugs it in in case they question why he didn’t leave it turned on.

“Okay,” he turns to face the little boy who has sat and started to pet the cat that has strewn himself on the carpet. “Spill.”

Peter’s smile splits his entire face, clapping brightly. “This is Goose! He’s the Flerken we were talking about.”

“He’s a cat, Pete.” Tony glanced down at the orange creature, the sound of a purr filling the room as Peter’s hand stroked his fur.

“No, he’s Carol’s! He’s a Flerken!” Peter looked down at the animal.

The genius tries to withhold a sigh, “okay.”

He figures that if Carol is behind the cat coming to the mansion, there must be a reason. The woman was intelligent, so she wouldn’t have done something without reason, right?

“And how is Flerken supposed to help us?”

As if the animal understands his question, Goose stands and stretches. The feline turns to face the closed door before his jowls open in a yawn. At least, that’s what it looks like at first.

Tony yelps, grabbing Peter as he throws them both back as what looks like tentacles come flailing from his mouth. The monstrosity that has come out of Goose whip wickedly in the air for a moment before the cat wretches and a small radio set covered in a plastic bag falls to the floor.

The tentacles retreat right back into the tiny creature. Goose, almost as if daring Tony to question his value, turns to face the two. He sits on his rump and licks a paw, starting to clean himself as if nothing bizarre had happened.

Tony doesn’t move, mouth dropped open as he stares at the radio set in shock.

Peter scrambles out of his grip and ignores Tony’s immediate reaction as he reaches for the boy. The child ignores the spit and opens the bag, pulling out the radio with a grin as he turns it on.

“Spider to base, spider to base!” He calls into the radio.

It takes a few minutes, but the sound of a crackle from the other side and Carol’s amused voice sends Tony springing forward. “Wow, you actually sound your age kid!”

Ignoring the indignant ‘hey’ that comes from the child as he pulls the radio, the genius starts speaking frantically. “Carol? What the hell did you send us?”

He hears the end of a laugh as the radio starts again, “he won’t eat you Tones. Don’t worry.” Carol assures before her voice is replaced by Rhodey.

“Tony? Is everything okay?”

“Rhodes!” Tony breathes out, relaxing immediately. “We’re okay…”

Falling back, Tony leans against the little bed they’ve set up for Peter and finds himself calming as the child climbs into his lap. They both relax, Goose settling on the carpet at their feet. Peter doesn’t comment when the genius tucks his body a little ways from the creature.

“They’ve de-aged us,” Tony sighed. “Peter’s six, he’s a shrimp. Rhodey… how is everyone?”

“A few of us got a little roughed up,” his friend’s voice admits. “But we’re all okay. But… Jarvis… I’m so sorry Tony.”

The genius freezes, “what?” He goes to speak but Peter jumps up, pointing at the door in urgency.

“Shit, we have to go, I’ll contact you when we can.” Tony rushes out.

Immediately he turns off the radio, glad to see that Peter had already scouted the room as he opens a small vent at the bottom of the wall. It’s too small and low for Clint to climb through, so they won’t have the archer accidently finding the radio.

It takes a moment to shove the bag and radio into the little spot and to put the little grate that they’ve removed back. But just when the two turn away and Peter starts to pet Goose the door swings open to reveal Natasha carrying what looks like a cat bed and food.

“I was told to bring this, and to let you know that you should put Peter to bed and go back to your room.” She spoke without emotion.

Tony rolled his eyes, not bothering to hide the reaction. Nodding, both watch as Natasha set everything down before taking the unspoken message and leaving the room.

Immediately, Peter closes the door after her before setting up the stuff she left for the ca-Flerken. Tony shakes his head and pulls himself up, he settles on the little mattress they’ve set up for the kid and watches as Peter gets himself ready for bed.

“I lost myself today…” Tony admits quietly once Peter has settled beneath the blankets; Goose curled at the foot of the bed. “For a second, I… I forgot.”

“Me too,” the quiet reply. Lifting his eyes to meet the one’s that resemble his own, Tony frowned.

“I had a few childish urges today, and I gave into them. I didn’t even think about it… But they were… they were nice.” He admits. “Bucky made me feel… safe… despite everything.”

Tony leans forward, gently running a hand through the kid’s unruly curls. “Steve did the same for me…”

They both grow silent, taking the moment to analyze the repercussions of their words. It seems that the two soldiers are getting to them. “Dad… about Jarvis,” Peter starts.

Tony holds up a hand, stopping the words. “Not now… I can’t… focus on that right now.” His smile is a little stiff, but he leans forward and places a gentle kiss on the boy’s temple.

“As long as we have each other, we’ll be okay.” Peter smiles back.

“Yeah,” Tony agrees. “As long as we have each other.”

“Goodnight kiddo, feel free to come get me if you need me.” Tony stands, not sure how he feels about willingly returning to the other room.

Turning off the light, the genius takes note that they’ve added both stars and night lights in the room for Peter. It’s a nice touch.

Glad that the child is so close, Tony ambles back to the bedroom. He’s not surprised to find both Steve and Bucky inside, both already changed for bed. Bucky is resting on the bed, and Steve is flossing his teeth in the bathroom.

Tony doesn’t protest when the brunette points to a pile of clothes set on the bed, taking the set and changing without waiting for them to look away. He’s glad when they don’t oogle at his bare form. The only thing he bothers to cover up is his chest, not wanting them to catch a glimpse of the veins that have started to turn a darker shade of blue.

He shares the sink with Steve, brushing his teeth quickly before he saunters to the bed and settles next to Bucky. He doesn’t protest the soft kisses shared between the men, instead accepting the affection before curling up under the covers in exhaustion. A faint echo wonders about Jarvis, but Tony doesn’t want to think about it. Not now.

He curls into the warmth of the two super soldiers and sinks into a dreamless sleep. Hoping against hope that Peter will keep him grounded.