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imaginetonyandbucky · 7 years

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Imagine,that when Strange separated the Winter Soldier programming from Bucky,it physically manifested in a form of a two-year old boy. So, everybody is freaking out, except Tony,who just takes it in stride,while mumbling about fudging magic,picks the kid up,wraps him in a blanket and calms him down. After that, Tony is the one constantly taking care of the kid, while Bucky is shyly warming up to the idea of basically having a younger brother and joining Tony in parenting the wee Winter Soldier.

Magic Works In Mysterious Ways - Part 1 (of 3)

A/N: Since this fic takes place after Civil War, Tony will probably come across as a little rude towards Steve, but I assure you it’s temporary and that both Tony and I still love Steve very much. Also, to those of you who have read my sci-fi epic Autonomy: I think you’re going to like this one.

---

Tony couldn'tsay why he did it. He had no experience with children. They were small, innocent,and breakable — all terrifying things — and, out of everyone at the Avengers headquarters,he was quite possibly the least suitable person to be looking after a toddler. Itwas just that everyone else seemed to have forgotten about the child inquestion.

The littleboy was just standing there, wide, blue eyes staring at the adults towering abovehim, clearly not knowing where he was, how he had gotten there, or why everyonewas shouting.

Tony felt thetug of a memory — of sharp, disappointed words and whiskey-laced breath — butquickly shoved it down. He recognized the look on the boy's face; the barelyconcealed fear hidden being a mask far too blank to be on a face so young. Tonyknew it was only a matter of time before those small shoulders began to tremblefrom suppressed sobs, and he wasn't sure if he would be able to just stand byand watch that happen.

He wasmoving before he could think better of it.

He grabbedthe blanket from the nearby couch and elbowed his way past Wilson and Strange to reach the kid. As hecrouched down, those big, innocent eyes snapped to meet his and Tony had toswallow when he saw the dread on the boy's face.

"Sssh,it's okay," he whispered, hoping to comfort the poor thing. "Comehere." Tony gently reached out and wrapped the blanket around the kid'snaked shoulders, relieved when he didn't fight or start screaming.

The kid hadan intense stare, and there was an almost shocking level of intelligence in hisgaze — but also vulnerability. His eyes were filling with tears and Tony wasn'tsure if he was the right person to handle what came next, but he seemed to bethe only one willing to try. The shouted conversation around them had stopped,but Tony ignored that in favor of the little boy. He looked to be two yearsold, at most.

"It'sokay," Tony said softly, settling down on his knees. He tucked the blankettighter around those narrow, trembling shoulders, trying not to let his nervesshow. The way the kid was staring at him, quiet and miserable, wasn't helping.

Then,without further ado, the kid broke.

(Mobile readers, watch out for the break!)

His littleface scrunched up, lip wobbling, and Tony quickly scooped up the child into hisarms, blanket and all. Tony was the first to admit that he had no idea whathe's doing, but the kid didn't seem to care. He curled up in Tony's embrace, asif trying to make himself as small as possible, and hid his face against Tony'sneck. Tony felt a pang when the kid started shaking from choked sobs, and he hesitantlystroked the boy's hair, hushing him gently.

Neverbefore had Tony held something that felt both so incredibly precious andterrifyingly fragile.

When Tonylooked up, everyone was staring at him. The surprise on their faces was farfrom flattering, but Tony couldn't exactly blame them; he wasn't the naturalchoice when it came to comforting a child.

Steve had aconcerned frown on his face and was still half-turned towards Strange,obviously having stopped in the middle of their heated discussion. Natashastood a discreet couple of feet away, arms crossed over her chest, but she somehowmanaged to look less judgmental than Wilson.He seemed to be debating whether or not to liberate the toddler fromTony's arms.

Barneswasn't looking at them at all, apparently too fascinated by the floor.

A flare ofanger made Tony rise to his feet, still cradling the boy. If Steve, Barnes, andStrange hadn't decided that experimenting with fucking magic was a good idea, none of this would have happened. Granted,Barnes had been looking dazed and vaguely nauseated ever since the little boy hadsuddenly materialized in their living room, but he'd done nothing to comfortthe disoriented child.

Steve facedTony, his expression firm yet placating. Tony could tell that the good captainwas about to say something — probably something stupid, knowing Steve — so Tonyspoke first.

"Itold you magic was a bad idea," he snapped, glaring at the three menresponsible. Barnes was the only one who looked uncomfortable, and Tony had togrit his teeth against another surge of anger.

Steveobviously meant well. Tony knew by then that there was nothing Steve wouldn'tdo for his best friend — which still stung, thank you very much — but Tony didn'ttrust Strange as far as he could throw him. And he certainly didn't trust magic.

"We didn'tknow this would happen," Steve said, taking a step towards Tony and theboy.

Bizarrely,Tony felt a wave of protectiveness that instinctively made him hug the childtighter. Steve wasn't the enemy — Tony had known that all along, even in Siberia — but that didn't mean he wasn't a threat. Small,chubby fingers were clenched desperately around the fabric of Tony's rattyt-shirt, his collar wet from tears, and Tony knew he wasn't going to hand theboy over. Not even if Steve asked.

Tony waswell aware of how preposterous that was — he had no claim on this child. Ifanything, the boy belonged with Barnes and, by extension, Steve, but theyhadn't exactly proven themselves trustworthy.

"Heshould have known," Tony replied, nodding towards Strange, who regardedTony and the child with an unreadable look on his face.

"Everythingcan be fixed," Strange began, "we only—"

"Don'tbother," Tony interrupted, carefully hoisting the boy higher to secure hisgrip. He looked at Barnes, but he was still staring at the floor with frankly impressivevigor, so Tony's gaze settled on Steve instead. "Once you've stoppedshouting at each other, you can come find us in the workshop."

Stevelooked like he might have wanted to protest, but Tony didn't give him thechance. Without another word, Tony turned on his heel and left the room withthe tiny, two-year-old version of James Barnes in his arms.

---

In allhonesty, Tony couldn't blame Steve and Barnes for trying everything imaginableto help with Barnes' recovery. The idea of magically separating Barnes from hisWinter Soldier programming sounded wonderful in theory, but any kind ofinstantaneous fix to something that complicated was almost always too good tobe true.

Tony hadbeen against it from the beginning. He'd offered BARF as a more reasonable,scientific alternative but, unfortunately, Steve and Barnes had no reason tolisten to him. Tony had very little to do with the subject of Barnes' recovery,mainly because he had so very little contact with Barnes in general.

After Siberia, it had just seemed like the wiser choice.

To behonest, the hostility had fizzled out rather quickly in Tony's case, only to bereplaced by a deep feeling of betrayal — though Barnes was not the oneresponsible for it. In the end, Tony was more upset by what Steve had done —hiding the truth from him for years, telling himself it was for Tony's sakewhen, clearly, it was all about Steve wanting to protect himself and Barnes.

Regardlessof Steve's betrayal, Tony knew perfectly well that Barnes couldn't be heldresponsible for what he had done all those years ago. The man had beentortured, brainwashed, and forced to commit crimes he now seemed to regretenough that he withdrew from practically everyone around him, except Steve and,surprisingly, Natasha. On his good days, Barnes also enjoyed bickering withWilson but, on the whole, he was a sad, lonely man, weighed down by enoughguilt that Tony didn't feel like he should add more.

He, if anyone, understood what it was like to have a past you desperatelywanted to rewrite.

Despitehaving forgiven Barnes months ago, Tony had never said the words out loud. He pretendedthat the delay was because he'd been busy rewriting the Accords into somethingSteve could accept, then fighting through legal battles and red tape to get therogue Avengers — and Barnes — acquitted. But, truth be told, he was just toomuch of a coward. Forgiving Barnes meant that he should probably forgive Steve,too, and he wasn't sure if he could do that just yet.

Thebetrayal was still a festering wound, deep and aching.

Still, Tonyhad nothing against Barnes as a person, even if their interactions ranged fromstilted to non-existent. Tony only really fit into Barnes' everyday life in thecapacity of his mechanic. Even before Steve and his gang of rogue superheroeshad been allowed back into the US,Tony had started designing a new arm for Barnes. He'd done it mostly out ofguilt — he was still ashamed of how he had reacted back in Siberia— but Tony wasn't sure if Barnes had ever taken the new and improved arm forthe unspoken apology that it was.

In general,Barnes seemed uncomfortable in Tony's presence. Because of that, Tony haddecided to keep his distance unless it had to do with maintenance on Bucky'sarm.

So Tonyunderstood if Steve and Barnes didn't take his advice to heart — he had verylittle insight into the situation. The fact that most of Tony's arguments hadstarted with 'since magic doesn't exist' probably didn't help, either.

Frustratinglyenough, magic was real, and the proofwas currently sitting on Tony's workbench, curiously examining one of Tony'sscrewdrivers. The tool was far from a safe toy for a kid, but even after justten minutes with the boy, Tony could already tell he wasn't quite like otherchildren. Tony supposed that made sense. The kid was — if Strange's spell hadworked correctly — essentially the Winter Soldier, separated from Barnes and,curiously, made into its own person. And while the Winter Soldier could becalled many things, average was not one of them.

A part ofTony was waiting for the moment when the boy would try to stab the screwdriverthrough Tony's hand or something equally violent, but it hadn't happened so far.The boy just sat there, quiet, eyes wandering over the wonders of Tony'sworkshop, but without reaching for any of it. He was a serious child and, nowthat he had stopped crying, looked almost eerily expressionless — only madeworse by the fact that he hadn't said a word. The blanket was still wrappedaround his tiny shoulders, trailing down over the edge of the workbench.

"FRIDAY,"Tony said, catching the attention of both his AI and the boy. "Find himsome clothes, will you?"

"Willdo, boss," FRIDAY replied.

The boytilted his head back, looking up at the ceiling, as if trying to figure outwhere the voice was coming from. He didn't look afraid, merely curious.

"That'sFRIDAY," Tony explained, smiling when the boy looked his way. "She'san AI. A computer system I designed." Tony had no idea how much atwo-year-old might understand, so he kept it simple. He only had his own experiencesto draw from and he'd been told that he had been a rather extraordinary child.

Then again,so was a miniature Winter Soldier, he supposed.

Not thatthe kid looked much like the Winter Soldier. He had both of his arms, for one,and while he had a less expressive face than the average child, he didn't lookthe least bit dangerous with his wide, blue eyes and mop of brown hair. He was,in fact, absolutely adorable.

Tony leanedhis hip against the workbench, studying the tiny human he had somehow managedto claim responsibility over. He really hadn't thought this through. What didhe know about taking care of a child?

"Areyou hungry?" Tony asked. Kids had to eat, right?

The littleboy shook his head, already back to his inspection of the screwdriver. Tonywasn't sure if he was supposed to feel insulted that he was obviously lessinteresting than an inanimate object, but he had been the same as a kid — hewas hardly the one to judge.

"You'lltell me if you get hungry, right?"

This time,Tony got a nod. Would it be irresponsible of him to leave it at that? The kiddidn't seem in desperate need of anything, content to play with Tony's tools.Was Tony supposed to play with him? Talk to him?

How did youtake care of a small child?

Tony broughtup a screen with a flick of his wrist. While FRIDAY was already arrangingclothes for the little tyke, they would need lots of other things in order totake care of a toddler. Tony had no idea what— his area of expertise lay elsewhere — but that was what internet searcheswere for.

"Okay,FRIDAY," Tony said, duplicating the screen, "let's make a list. No,two lists. Things to buy and what changes we need to make around here."

"Changes,boss?" FRIDAY asked.

"Babyproofing, FRIDAY. Judging by little Winter's fascination with screwdrivers, webetter make sure he doesn't try to stick them into any sockets." Tony wasalready typing, bringing up site after site promising to tell him exactly whathis child needed for a healthy, happy upbringing.

"Onit," FRIDAY replied.

Tonysmiled, throwing a quick glance at the kid before returning to his screens."Let's start with the essentials..."

---

It tookover four hours before Steve deigned to visit Tony's workshop. In that time,Winter had had a little nap, a snack from Tony's mini-fridge, and was now wearingone of Tony's t-shirts in wait for some actual clothes. Express delivery to theAvengers headquarters was difficult to arrange, apparently, due to all thesecurity checks.

Not thatWinter seemed to mind that he wore a garment big enough to be considered adress. Tony had tried to find the smallest of his t-shirts, but Winter stilldisappeared inside it, the collar wide enough to almost slip off one of hisshoulders.

On the plusside, Winter in a gigantic AC/DC t-shirt was beyond cute.

Stevelooked slightly wary as he approached the workbench Winter was perched on. Thekid was drawing on the Stark tablet Tony had given him once he realized hedidn't have any actual paper in his workshop. That — together with crayons —was now one of the many items on the rather extensive list of things to buythat he and FRIDAY had managed to compose.

"Howis he?" Steve asked, voice hushed as he stopped next to Tony. His eyeswere on the boy, though, something soft yet pained in his gaze.

Tony raisedan eyebrow. "Ask him yourself."

Stevedidn't. Instead he studied the boy, as if trying to find similarities betweenhim and the adult Barnes he knew so well. There were some — the eyes, the haircolor, the slope of his nose — but a lot of it probably wouldn't show foranother couple of years. Overall, Winter looked like a normal child, even ifthere was no telling what was going on inside his head.

"Helooks so... innocent," Steve said. He might have been talking to himself,but Tony couldn't help replying.

"That'sbecause he is." Tony didn't know that for sure — the kid was a condensedversion of the Winter Soldier, after all, squeezed into a tiny, adorablepackage — but he'd be damned if he let Steve treat Winter like a threat.

Steve tooka deep breath, as if to gather strength. "Dr. Strange has examined Bucky.The spell was successful. The programming has been removed, but he can't besure why, well..." Both of them looked at the boy blissfully focused onhis drawing, his tiny index finger making swooping lines on the tablet's screen."This was an unexpected side-effect."

Tony pursedhis lips. "Well, there's not much to do about that now."

The loaded silencethat settled over the workshop made something dark and ugly twist in Tony'schest — a fear so strong he could taste it at the back of his tongue.

"What?"he demanded, not trying to hide the sharpness in his voice.

Steve'sshoulders were tense, his jaw clenched tight. "Strange can undo—"

"No,absolutely not," Tony protested, horrified. "Are you serious? He's a just a kid! You can't—"

"Tony,"Steve said sternly — with a hint of a warning. Tony fell silent, but keptglaring. Steve, as always, didn't even flinch. "Strange said he could, but I didn't say I approved ofthe idea." Steve's gaze strayed to Winter yet again. "Ultimately,it's Bucky's choice."

As much asit pained Tony to admit it, Steve was probably right. Winter was essentially apart of Barnes, manifested in the shape of a child bearing his face. If anyonehad the right to decide what happened to the kid, it was Barnes.

"Andwhat does Barnes say about this?" Tony asked, crossing his arms over hischest. He knew he was being unnecessarily confrontational, but he couldn't helpit. The thought of Winter being unmade left Tony feeling nauseous.

Stevesighed, a flicker of concern in his gaze. "He hasn't said anything yet —not about the boy, at least. I think he's still in shock. Or denial."

Tony heldback the scathing comment he wanted to voice, knowing it would only lead to unnecessaryarguing. His and Steve's relationship was undeniably rocky — which was mostlythanks to Tony's temper and inability to forgive — but he didn't want to makeit worse if he could help it.

"Well,I'll take care of Winter in the meantime," Tony offered, knowing someonehad to. He wasn't an active member of the team at the moment, so he certainlyhad more time than the others.

Stevefrowned. "Winter?"

"Yeah,"Tony replied easily. "That's his name."

"You'venamed him." It wasn't a question, and Tony had a hard time figuring out ifthat was disapproval or surprise in Steve's voice.

"Someonehad to." Tony shrugged before turning back to his screens. "I figuredwe didn't need one more James, and Bucky Jr. is just laughable."

A silencesettled between them and Tony carefully avoided looking at Steve. The wound wasstill raw and aching, and being around Steve was more difficult than Tony likedto admit. Far too often he felt the urge to demand to know why his friendshipwas worth less than Barnes'. Or how Steve could leave Tony behind in Siberia without a second glance.

Tony knewhe wouldn't like the answers, though, so he never asked.

He knew hehad to forgive Steve eventually — it was inevitable, really — but he certainlywasn't there yet.

"Areyou sure about this, Tony?" Steve asked, in that calm, careful voice heused when he thought that whatever he said was going to upset Tony and lead toanother argument.

Even on hisgood days, Tony found that tone incredibly grating.

A reply wason the tip of Tony's tongue — a biting, sarcastic comment meant to hurt — buthis gaze happened to land on Winter. The boy was staring at him, as if he hadsensed the shift in the air — the heaviness of Tony's frustration and hisongoing battle against his anger and wounded pride. Winter didn't do anything,but Tony could feel something within him settle all the same. As much as Tonywanted to snap an insult at Steve, he refused to do so in front of Winter.

The kidshouldn't have to see that.

"I'msure," Tony therefore replied, voice calm aside from a hint of sharpnesshe couldn't quite smooth out. He looked over his shoulder, meeting Steve'sgaze. "Barnes needs some time, right? To figure out what he wants todo." Tony shrugged. "If he doesn't want to see the kid, who better totake care of him than me? Barnes and I don't exactly have a habit of hangingout."

Steve hesitated,and Tony couldn't help wondering if it was a question of trust. Perhaps Stevedidn't think he could rely on Tony to take care of what was essentially a miniatureversion of his best friend?

The verysame best friend who had murdered Tony's parents.

"Iwon't hurt him," Tony said defensively, stomach twisting at the mereimplication. Did Steve really think him capable of harming an innocent child?

"What?"Steve blinked. "No, of course not. I didn't..." He closed his eyesand let out a deep sigh, his tense shoulders lowering. Steve suddenly lookedmore exhausted than he had in months. Tony couldn't even remember the last timeSteve had let his guard down around him like this. Perhaps sometime beforeUltron?

"Iknow you won't, Tony," Steve picked up, voice tired. "I'm moreworried about you."

"Me?"Tony couldn't help sounding surprised. There was also a flutter of delight atthe thought of Steve caring — and Tony felt suitably pathetic because of it.

Stevegestured towards Winter. "He's the physical embodiment of what killed yourparents. Is that... are you okay with that?"

To behonest, Tony hadn't even thought about it. He knew this was the Winter Soldier programming separated from JamesBarnes, but he hadn't realized that this little child — more so than Barnes —was actually responsible for the deaths of Tony's parents. It was simply impossibleto wrap his head around.

Winter wasstill looking at Tony with wide, innocent eyes and a solemn expression. There wasno malice in Winter's gaze — nothing that would suggest that this was aruthless assassin who had slaughtered countless people over the past seventyyears. He didn't look dangerous, and he certainly didn't look evil.

Tonystruggled to breathe, his throat tight and heart hammering in his chest.

PerhapsWinter was exactly what he looked to be — a curious child, new to the world andits numerous wonders. There was no telling what he remembered, or what he wouldgrow up to become. Perhaps, once removed from Barnes' mind, he ceased to be theWinter Soldier and became something else entirely — an entity of his own.

Without aword, the little boy pushed the tablet aside. Tony watched in silence as Winterpurposefully crawled across the workbench, stopping in front of Tony. There heraised his short arms, making grabby hands.

Tonyexhaled, ignoring the slight hitch in his breath, and lifted the boy off thebench, as requested. Winter clung to him, and it was difficult to tell if thatwas for Tony or Winter's benefit — though probably the former. Holding the kidwas surprisingly comforting, allowing Tony to finally swallow the painful lumpin his throat.

Steve remainedsilent, probably waiting for Tony's reply.

"Iforgave Barnes months ago," Tony said, voice raw. "And I'm not goingto hold this kid responsible for what happened. HYDRA were the ones who killedmy parents — not Barnes, not Winter." He swallowed, looking up at Steve."I'll be fine."

Steve seemedto want to reach out for Tony, but refrained for one reason or another. Hisgaze was softer, though, and a lot of the stiffness had bled out from hisshoulders.

"That'sgood," he said. Steve looked at Winter, whose face was yet again hiddenagainst Tony's neck, though without the accompanying tears this time. "Letme know if you need help, okay?"

Tonynodded, his hand stroking Winter's back, the movement far more instinctual thanhe thought it would be.

"Goodluck with Barnes." Tony smiled crookedly. "I think you're going toneed it."

Stevesighed, his responding smile faint enough to almost not qualify as a smile atall. "Yeah," he replied, "thanks."

_____________

- Amethystina

#winteriron #tony x bucky #tony stark #bucky barnes #kid!fic #fluff #magic #winter soldier #winter #prompts #amethystina #amaltiirtare

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