Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

The toy store was enormous, spanning three levels, and so full of people that it made the hair on the back of Bucky’s neck prickle with discomfort. He kept his breathing calm with effort, sweeping his eyes over the crowds. It was 10am on a Tuesday morning, so the store really shouldn’t have been this full. Apparently Laura hadn’t been kidding when she’d said that this was the most popular toy store in New York.

Someone touched his arm; Bucky stiffened, but only until he realized that it was Tony. Then his instincts kicked into gear and he pulled Tony into a tight hug, burying his face in Tony’s hair for a moment and taking slow, deep breaths. Tony’s scent was always comforting, whether it was that sweet, babyish smell or the cologne Tony favored when he was big. Right now, notes of vanilla and sandalwood filled his nose and helped to calm him.

“Are you okay?” Tony asked quietly, the words meant for Bucky’s ears alone. He hugged Bucky back, obligingly tucking his head beneath Bucky’s chin. They fit together so well that it never failed to send a little thrill down Bucky’s spine. He breathed out and breathed in more of Tony’s scent, feeling the last of his unease momentarily dissipating. He’d never been so grateful for that press conference where Tony had announced to the world that they were dating, because it meant that things like this hug could happen in public and it wouldn’t draw undue attention.

It made the weeks of intense scrutiny they’d suffered through worth it, especially now that, as Tony had promised, more interesting things had happened that had drawn the media’s and public’s attention away from them. Pictures of Iron Man and the Winter Soldier hugging or holding hands were still going for high money, but they were no longer plastered across the front page. Bucky would take what he could get.

“I’m better,” he replied finally, not releasing Tony from the hug just yet. He couldn’t say he was fine – that wouldn’t happen until they were back in the tower, comfortably enclosed in the finest security there was – but he was getting better. Knowing that Tony was close, and that Bucky could protect him if something went wrong, helped.

“Did you want to cancel the trip?” Tony asked, voice slightly muffled. “We can. I don’t mind.”

“No,” Bucky said immediately.

“But –”

“Tony, no.” He released Tony from the hug, only to cup Tony’s face in his hands so he could look into those adorable brown eyes. “I appreciate the thought, but this is for you. I would do anything for you.”

Some of the lines in Tony’s handsome face smoothed out. Bucky hadn’t even realized they were there until they were gone. He gently stroked the sides of Tony’s face, realizing that this trip was stressing Tony out more than he’d let on. Tony might have agreed to it because Laura and Natasha and Bruce had urged him to, but that didn’t mean Tony’s nerves weren’t out in full force.

It had been Natasha’s idea. She thought it was a crime – her exact word – that Tony had never been to a toy store so that he could pick out some toys. Apparently shopping on the internet wasn’t good enough. Bucky couldn’t blame her for that. He got where she was coming from. It really wasn’t fair that all of Tony’s things needed to be purchased in complete secrecy. Tony deserved, like any other Little, to be able to walk into a store and pick out a teddy bear or a toy.

But when you were Tony Stark, life wasn’t always fair. Tony believed that keeping his classification secret would be best for Stark Industries, and Bucky wasn’t really in a position to tell him otherwise. All of the Avengers had sworn to keep Tony’s secret, but Natasha was still determined to make a toy store trip happen for Tony. After much consulting with Laura, this was the plan they’d cooked up: Tony would go shopping with Laura, Natasha and Nathaniel, and Laura would buy the toys under the premise that they were for her children or Natasha when in reality the toys would be for Tony.

Tony was reluctant, but from the moment the plan was suggested Bucky could see how much he wanted it and he’d encouraged Tony to go along with it. What they hadn’t anticipated was that Clint, Lila, Steve and Wanda would join them. Tony was visibly uncomfortable with Steve and Wanda being there, but hadn’t said anything about it. Probably because he didn’t feel that he could.

Now, Tony sighed. “I know you would. Thank you.” He leaned into Bucky’s hands for a few moments before, looking regretful, he pulled away. “I’m going to slip if you don’t stop that.”

“Maybe we can spend some time together when we get home.” Bucky stayed close, sliding an arm around Tony’s shoulders after checking to make sure it was okay. He thought that Tony probably needed Bucky’s support right now as much as Bucky needed Tony’s.

“I’d like that,” Tony said shyly. He looked up, as though sensing attention. So did Bucky. He was just in time to catch the sad look on Steve’s face and, beyond him, the way Wanda was glaring at them. Bucky frowned back at her and started moving, pulling Tony over to where Natasha and Laura were standing.

Things were still very tense with Wanda and Steve. It had been about two months since Tony’s secret came out. Wanda rarely spoke to either of them, and Steve was trying hard to pretend that nothing had changed. It was uncomfortable for everyone, but Bucky refused to bend. He wasn’t going to go back to pretending that he didn’t care about Tony. Not even for Steve.

“Okay,” Natasha said, clapping her hands together. Her eyes gleamed with excitement. “Are you ready? Come on, Tony!” She seized his hand without waiting for a response and dragged him over to a several shelves that were full of stuffed toys.

Laughing, Laura followed them over. She was carrying Nate, who was looking around with wide eyes. “Calm down, Natasha,” she said gently. “We can’t buy everything.”

“Tony has lots of money,” Natasha said. Tony snorted.

“That may be, but we only have so much room,” Laura said, rolling her eyes. She didn’t look at Bucky, who had never appreciated her more. They’d had a private conversation earlier that morning, which Laura had walked away from with Bucky’s credit card. He was sick of Tony paying for his own stuff. Bucky was more than capable of paying for anything his own Little could want – money was no object when it came to Tony – but Tony wouldn’t see it that way. He’d get overwhelmed and flustered just being told that Bucky wanted to pay. It was easier to slip his credit card to Laura and tell Tony after the fact, when it was all said and done.

“But we have some room,” Natasha countered. She turned back to the wall and studied it, then frowned. “I don’t know what to pick! Tony, help me choose!”

Tony blinked rapidly. “What?”

“Help me choose!” Natasha grabbed his arm and hung off of it, staring at the shelves with a dramatic pout. “What do you think is cute?”

Tony stared at her like she’d just spoken in Japanese. His caught-off-guard expression was perfect for maintaining their cover story, yet kind of heartbreaking at the same time. No Little should look that shocked or bewildered over being told to pick out their own toys. He glanced at Laura and saw the same look of sadness flash across her face before she schooled her expression into a smile.

“Um,” Tony said, looking over the wall. Bucky found himself genuinely curious to know what he’d pick. He watched closely as Tony glanced between two stuffed animals: a big white teddy bear with dark brown eyes and grey-and-white wolf with blue eyes. Finally, Tony picked up the teddy bear and held it out to Natasha for inspection.

“That will do,” Natasha said, making a show of examining the teddy. “But I want the wolf too. And that one.” She pointed to a stuffed black and white panda.

“Okay,” Tony said. He picked up the three toys and set them in the cart Laura had brought. “What else do you want?”

That turned out to be a dangerous question, especially once Lila caught up to them and got in on the act. The two girls dragged Tony through the store, loudly exclaiming about how this was the first shopping trip ‘Uncle Tony’ had been available for and how they needed his help picking out everything. Bucky caught several people watching them with amused and tolerant looks.

Even Nate got in on it, pointing to some toys and looking at Tony expectantly. Privately, Bucky thought that was a good thing – Tony was a little younger than Nate when he was in his headspace, so Nate was well-positioned to pick out some toys. Tony obligingly picked up every toy Nate pointed to and put it into the cart. Within two hours, the poor cart was literally overflowing. Bucky had to grab a set of action figures to save them from the floor.

He’d stopped paying attention to Steve and Wanda, more preoccupied with sneaking the occasional picture of Tony and the kids on his phone, and that turned out to be a mistake that Bucky would regret for the rest of his life. He caught a familiar glimpse of red in his peripheral vision and turned to look automatically, not really expecting anything, the fleeting thought of why Wanda would be using her magic here flashing through his head.

Wanda’s face was painted with hatred, but the glow from her hands was already dying. Steve wasn’t even watching her: he was talking to Clint, both of them standing partially turned away from Wanda. Bucky started to move towards them. Wanda knew she wasn’t supposed to using her powers in public unless it was a in battle, and he had a strong, sinking feeling that she was not using them for anything good.

Then Tony let out a whimper, and Laura said, in a very tense voice, “Bucky. We have a problem.”

The red glow around Tony was slower to fade. Tony himself was standing in front of a collection of children’s books with Lila beside him, holding several books that Lila had picked out. The books fell from Tony’s hands a moment later, making a loud crash that drew the attention of several people, including Steve and Clint. A confused look crossed Tony’s face, but it was swiftly replaced by fear. His eyes filled with tears and he took a step back, half-lifting his arms as though warding off a blow.

Wanda’s reason for using her magic hit Bucky in a flash of understand: she’d sent Tony into his headspace. In public. Where anyone could see him.

Rage wasn’t really a strong enough word to describe what Bucky felt in that moment, but he didn’t have the time to pay attention to Wanda right now. He recognized the look on Tony’s face and knew that Tony was seconds away from either a panic attack or a meltdown, and either one was going to result in tears. As it was, they were damn lucky Tony hadn’t wet himself already.

He hustled forward, jamming the box he held into Laura’s arms, and wrapped an arm around Tony’s shoulders. “We’re going back to the tower,” he hissed at Laura. She nodded, looking almost as angry as Bucky felt.

In his headspace, Tony wasn’t all that steady on his feet. Bucky hurried him through the store as fast as possible, practically carrying him, mentally swearing at Wanda but outwardly whispering reassurances under his breath. Tony, to his immense credit and a remarkable show of strength, tried as hard as he could to hold back the tears until they were outside, but fat tears were already rolling down his cheeks by the time they hit the store’s exit.

Bucky had always been grateful for Tony’s wealth, but never as much as he was when they emerged from the store and the Stark Industries car was still parked at the curb where it had dropped them off. The driver leapt out the moment he saw Tony, opening the door for them. Bucky nodded in thanks and shuffled Tony inside, hastily putting the privacy screen up; the driver barely had the door shut before Tony began to wail.

“Shh, baby. You’re okay,” Bucky said, pulling Tony into his arms. He grimaced at the feeling of wet warmth soaking Tony’s jeans, but a little pee didn’t concern him too much. He was way more worried about the possible ramifications of this. What if someone had gotten a shot of Tony crying or peeing himself? That could be devastating for both Stark Industries and Tony.

He hugged Tony close, pressing kissing to the baby’s head and silently stewing. Steve Rogers and Wanda Maximoff were both in for it.

Chapter Text

“She didn’t mean to.”

The fact that those were the first words Steve said when Bucky walked into the room was not promising. Bucky didn’t say anything for a moment, just looked at him. He’d spent the past two hours trying to calm Tony down with limited success. Tony had been fighting his headspace with all of his might, frantically combing through his tablet to see if any pictures were going to emerge online and resisting any attempts on Bucky’s part to settle him. Finally, he’d kicked Bucky out.

“She didn’t mean to?” Bucky repeated slowly, once Steve had a few seconds to squirm. “From where I was standing, it looked like she definitely meant to.”

“She’s just a kid, Bucky,” Steve said defensively, crossing his arms.

“She’s a Little. That ain’t the same as a kid and you know it. Especially not for us. The Littles on our team spend more than enough time in their big headspaces to know right from wrong. That’s a requirement for someone being an Avenger. So, are you trying to tell me that Wanda doesn’t know right from wrong and therefore shouldn’t be on the team?” Bucky asked. He was so angry that he felt cold all over.

But more than that, he was disappointed. And that feeling wasn’t even about Wanda; it was all about in Steve. Bucky had only been at the tower for about a year and a half, but he’d noticed pretty quickly that Steve had changed . He couldn’t figure out when or why the changes had happened, but he did know that most of them weren’t for the better. Steve had always been stubborn, but he was taking it to new heights now.

Literally no one else on the team had a problem with Tony being a Little. Natasha, Laura and Bruce had adjusted the easiest, taking the news in stride – Natasha’s only problem was that she really wanted to play with little Tony. The others had been a bit slower in accepting it, and Bucky had caught all of them, particularly Clint, watching Tony speculatively before.

Only Steve, and by extension Wanda, continued to treat Tony with open disdain. Nothing had changed on the field. Iron Man and Captain America clashed as much as ever. Most of that attitude came from Steve’s side, though that wasn’t how Steve saw it. And Bucky had also noticed that Steve’s attitude towards Tony had become more aggressive off the field as well. It was like Tony being a Little didn’t mesh with Steve’s mental picture of him, so he felt the need to do everything he could to ignore that bit of information.

Then there was Wanda. She’d been a problem from day one as far as Bucky was concerned, but he’d never felt like he had the standing to do anything about her. It made him uneasy to live around someone who had worked for Hydra, even if – if Steve was to be believed – she had been tricked and hadn’t known her employer was Hydra. And it was chilling to know she could mess with anyone’s brain. But she’d behaved, at least where Bucky could see her, and Steve loved her so much that to say anything to the contrary would be potential suicide. At the very least, it would’ve left a rift in the Avengers that would upset Tony immensely.

But now Wanda had raised her hand and her powers against another Avenger, and Bucky was moving in for the kill.

“She says she didn’t know what she was doing and I believe her. Isn’t that right, Wanda?” Steve half-turned, looking at Wanda. She was sitting at the kitchen table with Laura and Natasha, looking as innocent as the day was long.

“Yes Daddy. I didn’t mean to. I was angry,” Wanda said. She sniffed loudly.

Steve immediately went over to her and crouched down so that he was on her level. “Angry about what?”

“Everyone pays more attention to Tony than me,” Wanda said tearfully. “He ruins everything. You were so happy that Bucky came back to the mansion, but now Bucky spends all his time with that stupid baby. If Tony weren’t here, things would be so much better. I just wanted to make him go away.”

Laura spoke up then, her voice carefully measured. “So what was your plan?”

“What?” Wanda said.

“You sent Tony into his headspace in public because you wanted to embarrass him, right?” Laura said. “Or maybe you wanted to discredit him. Make Tony so busy dealing with the fall-out that he wouldn’t have time for the Avengers.”

Wanda’s chin trembled. “I just wanted him to go away!” she wailed again. Dramatically, she threw herself into Steve’s arms and started to sob. Steve comforted her, looking at Bucky with an expression that clearly said he was waiting for Bucky to do the same – waiting for Bucky to tell her that everything was fine and that all was forgiven.

He was going to have a long wait.

“Steve,” Bucky began, then paused. Words were still hard for him sometimes. He wanted to say this properly.

“Look, Buck. Wanda didn’t mean to. She said she’s sorry. I’ll watch her more carefully –”

“She didn’t,” said Natasha.

Steve blinked. “What?”

“She didn’t say she was sorry,” Natasha said quietly. “Daddy says that when I do something bad, I have to apologize. Right, Mommy?” She looked up at Laura.

“That’s exactly right,” Laura said with a nod, patting Natasha’s arm.

“But I didn’t do anything wrong!” Wanda cried.

“I know, baby girl,” Steve said, kissing her head. “But sometimes you have to apologize to make other people feel better. It may not feel right, but that’s what you have to do to keep the peace.”

Bucky stared at him in disbelief, noticing that Laura had an incredulous look on her face. Louder than he’d intended, he said, “Are you serious right now?”

“She’s just a kid. She’s crying. What am I supposed to say?” Steve hissed.

“You’re supposed to discipline her! She’s your Little and you’re her Caregiver!” Bucky looked at his best friend’s face and realized that he was done. “That’s it. I’ve had it. I want you both out of the tower.” He hadn’t known he was going to say it until it was out.

There was a moment of shocked silence. Steve’s face went from surprised to hurt in a flash. “Bucky! I’m your best friend!”

“Yeah, you are. And Tony’s my Little. I have to look out for him because no one else will. Right now, I don’t feel comfortable letting one of you stay here. Wanda’s not sorry for doing it. She’s just sorry that she got caught. And you’re not interested in disciplining her. You’re more worried about soothing her hurt feelings than protecting Tony.” Bucky shook his head, a little disgusted.

“Tony can take care of himself,” Steve argued. “Wanda’s my Little. She’s just a –”

“I swear if you say Wanda’s just a kid one more time, I’m going to punch you. I could use the same argument! Tony’s just a baby! Yet if he did something like that, you can be damn sure I’d punish him in some way. I wouldn’t coddle him to the point where he thinks he can try it again!”

“That’s not what I’m doing!”

“Well that’s what it looks like from here!” Bucky yelled back. “So I mean it. Both of you, get out!”

“You don’t have the authority to kick us out. Only Tony can do that,” Steve snapped. “And he won’t.”

That brief glimpse into Steve’s smug self-assurance only made Bucky angrier. No wonder Steve thought he could act like a belligerent five-year-old: he knew that Tony would never do anything against him. Either because he knew that wasn’t Tony’s way, or because he knew that it would only tarnish Tony’s reputation. What Steve didn’t know was that Bucky was more than prepared to absorb that blow on Tony’s behalf.

“Actually, if I may interject,” JARVIS said pleasantly.

“Of course you can,” Laura said before Steve or Bucky could respond.

“As Sir’s legal Caregiver, Sergeant Barnes has the right to dictate who may or may not have access to Sir’s home,” JARVIS said. “That decision can only be overridden by Sir.”

Legal Caregiver? Bucky tried not to show his surprise. He hadn’t known Tony had filed anything. He was going to have to follow up with Tony on that, but right now wasn’t the time to dwell on that. It was more satisfying than it should have been to see how shocked Steve looked by that. Maybe this was the kicker Steve needed to finally accept Tony as a Little. If it was, he’d be doing it outside the tower.

“I want to talk to Tony then!” Steve said.

“Sir is unavailable right now,” JARVIS said.

Unavailable could mean a lot of potentially worrying things, but JARVIS didn’t sound worried so Bucky focused on Steve. “Thank you, JARVIS. You and Wanda have exactly one hour to get the hell out or I’ll call security to have you removed.”

“Buck, please.” Steve was looking worried now. “We have no where to go.”

“That’s bullshit. You’ve got loads of money. I got back pay so I know that you did too. If you really can’t afford a place, I’m sure SHIELD would give you both an apartment. Frankly, I don’t care. Tony is done paying for you both to be assholes,” Bucky said. “If you ever learn some manners, I’ll think about letting you back in. Right now, that’s not looking likely.”

“We’re Avengers!” Steve said. “We have to be together.”

“No, we really don’t. You’ve got a communicator. You’ll get the calls. I mean it, Steve. Leave.”

Steve swelled up like he was seconds away from unloading. Bucky shifted his stance, prepared for Steve to come at him – but he didn’t. Instead, Steve scowled and scooped Wanda up. He stormed out of the room with Wanda in his arms and Bucky heard the sound of the elevator doors closing moments later. It was only then that Laura glanced over at him.

“You handled that well,” she said quietly.

Bucky sighed. “I didn’t want to do that.”

“No, but you were protecting your Little. I agree that Wanda would’ve tried again. Maybe not this exact plan, but something. Regardless of whether or not she knew the full implications of what she was doing and if it was wrong, she can’t be around Tony if she’s a danger to him. The same goes for Steve. I’ve watched how he acts around Tony. I wouldn’t let someone like that around my Tasha,” Laura said, wrapping an arm around Natasha’s shoulders. Natasha silently leaned into the hug.

Laura’s support meant a lot. Bucky tried to smile. “Thanks, I appreciate that. I just don’t know what goes on in Steve’s head sometimes.”

“I don’t know either, but I hope he figures it out. Wanda will never learn as long as he makes excuses for her.” Laura sounded like she was talking from experience.

Steve had never learned either. Was that because Bucky had made too many excuses for him when they were kids? He couldn’t help remembering all the fights Steve had been in and how there had always been a reason – a reason that usually sounded more believable if it came from Bucky. Even though Bucky hadn’t been around, that hadn’t changed in the future. Tony or SHIELD or the PR team always made excuses for Steve’s actions. He’d never had to face up to someone to accept the consequences because someone else always paved the way or smoothed the ruffled feathers in his wake.

It was a troubling thought.

“I don’t know if it will stick. I’ll have to talk to Tony about it, but he’s not in the right frame of mind for that right now. Still, I don’t feel right about making that kind of decision on his behalf,” Bucky said.

Laura smiled at him. “That’s why you and Tony make such a great pair. You listen to him. You understand what he’s comfortable with and why. I don’t think Tony and Steve are well suited to each other.”

Bucky grimaced. “You can say that again.” That would’ve been a nightmare. You had to know how to give and take with Tony. It had been a little bit of a process even for Bucky to figure out. But he liked that Tony didn’t always bend over and do whatever he was told: it was very comforting to know he’d never railroad or force Tony to do anything because Tony was capable of saying ‘no’ and Bucky was willing to listen. Laura was right; that was why they worked.

“Go, Bucky,” Laura said gently. “You should be with Tony. I’ll drop this one off to Clint and then follow up with JARVIS and make sure Steve and Wanda leave.”

“Thanks,” Bucky said again. It seemed paltry, but he really meant it. He’d never thought much of Laura Barton before, but she was turning out to be a good friend to both him and Tony. He ducked out of the kitchen and hurried to the elevator.

Chapter Text

Tony was right where Bucky had left him, curled up on the window seat with his tablet cradled protectively on his lap. Bucky was cautious with his approach. He didn’t begrudge Tony for having told him to get out; when things got bad Bucky was known for hovering, and sometimes Tony could abide that and sometimes he couldn’t. But he also didn’t want Tony to get angry and ask him to leave again.

“Hey,” Bucky said softly, pausing a couple of feet away. He resisted the urge to reach for Tony and, instead, shoved his hands into his pockets. “How are you doing?”

“You kicked them out,” Tony said, and Bucky blinked at him in surprise. Tony didn’t look at him, just kept staring down at the tablet, and he realized that Tony must have been watching the video feed.

“Yeah, I did. If Steve can’t rein her in and she poses a danger to you, than I don’t want either one of ‘em here,” Bucky said. He wouldn’t apologize for it, either. Maybe if Steve had agreed to make Wanda leave without him – but no. Steve would never do that, and Bucky wouldn’t expect him to.

“But it’s Steve.” Tony finally lifted his head. His eyes were bright with confused tears.

“Oh, darlin’,” Bucky whispered, heart clenching. In a handful of steps, he crossed the distance between them. Tony pulled his knees up against his chest, leaving space for Bucky to take a seat as well. Bucky took it and rested a hand on Tony’s right knee, just looking at him. The puffy shadows under Tony’s eyes seemed to be growing bigger by the day. He was beginning to think that Tony was in desperate need of a vacation.

“I don’t want to come in between you and Steve. You guys have been best friends for literally forever.” Tony turned away, staring out at the New York City skyline. “I… I don’t want you to turn around someday and realize that you regret being here with me instead.”

Bucky took a few seconds to absorb this, wanting to be sure that he understood exactly what Tony was worried about and how best to respond. Tony was very good at talking circles around people; he could speak for an hour without ever saying what was really bothering him. But in this case, Bucky was pretty sure that Tony was being honest: Tony was afraid that Bucky would leave him.

“Tony, listen to me,” he said, patiently waiting until Tony met his gaze before he continued. “What happens between me and Steve has nothing to do with you. This is not, and never has been, a situation where I have to choose between you. If Steve decides to make it that kind of situation because of Wanda or because he doesn’t like you, that has no bearing on you. That’s not your fault. That’s on Steve.”

He held up a hand when Tony went to speak. “Please let me finish. What you and I have makes me very happy. I love being your daddy. You make me calm. You make me remember why I’m not the Winter Soldier anymore. That’s very important to me. It’s not something I’m willing to give up. If, in the future, you and I mutually decided to part ways, that’s a conversation we can have then. But please believe me when I say that it won’t be because I decided I’d rather be friends with Steve.”

It was Tony’s turn to be quiet for a moment. Then he said, “But you kicked him out because of me.”

“That wasn’t just about you. I would’ve kicked them both out if they’d done that to anyone,” Bucky said honestly. “Natasha, Laura, the kids, Bruce. Wanda can’t be allowed to be here if she’s going to use her powers against us. Especially in public.” His stomach rolled at the thought of it and he whispered his deepest fear. “She could’ve – could’ve used her powers on - on me and – and set the – the Winter Soldier free…”

“Oh, Bucky.” Tony looked horrified. He set the tablet aside and got up on his knees, leaning forward to give Bucky a tight hug. Bucky gripped him back desperately, burying his face in Tony’s hair and taking deep, shuddery breaths. He hadn’t allowed himself to even think about that during the confrontation with Wanda and Steve, but the fear had been there in the back of his mind. It would be so easy for Wanda to wave her hand and shut down the rational part of Bucky’s mind. Not even Tony’s soothing presence would’ve been enough to stop the Winter Soldier from rampaging through that store.

“I don’t want her here,” Bucky whispered into Tony’s hair. “I – It scares me. She scares me.”

“She scares me too. I know,” Tony whispered back. “Thank you. For protecting me. Even if you say it wasn’t about me.”

“It was about you a little,” Bucky muttered. Having Tony in his arms felt so good. “Steve needs to think about some things. He can’t decide who I get to have in my life. And I can’t decide who he has in his life, but I can decide to minimize contact with him based on that. I’ll miss him, but…” he hesitated, then admitted, “sometimes I think I miss the person Steve used to be. That person is gone. I’m not always sure how to be friends with this Steve.”

Tony sighed against Bucky’s neck. “I’m sorry.”

“I’m sorry too, for not kicking Wanda out a long time ago.” If anything came out in the papers about Tony’s classification, Bucky would, at least partially, blame himself. He’d known from day one that it was dangerous to have Wanda here, yet he’d never said anything.

“It’s my fault. I shouldn’t have let her stay here. But Steve said she’d changed…” Tony trailed off and shifted, squirming around until he was sitting sideways against Bucky’s chest and he could tuck his head under Bucky’s chin. It was one of his favorite ways of sitting.

“I don’t think Steve can be unbiased when it comes to her. He’s seeing what he wants to see and Wanda’s going along with it because… well, why wouldn’t she? Not many Littles would say no to having Captain America be their daddy,” Bucky said. “He told me once… he compares Wanda to himself. He said that she volunteered for a dangerous procedure just like he did, but that she shouldn’t be punished for that.”

“She volunteered to get revenge,” Tony said incredulously. “Against me!”

“I know, baby, I know.” Bucky held him tighter, a surge of protectiveness rushing through him. He would tear Wanda’s head off before he allowed her to hurt Tony again. They needed to look into some method of protecting the team from Wanda’s powers. There had to be a way.

That wasn’t something they could fix right now, though. Both of them were too wound up. Bucky knew it could be a while before anything showed up online - and that was if anything was going to show up; they didn’t know for sure that anyone had seen them, or realized what it meant even if they had been seen. The wait would drive Tony crazy if he wasn’t suitably distracted. Luckily, Bucky had the perfect way of doing that. He just had to present it in the right way, or Tony wouldn’t agree.

“I’m feeling kind of wound up,” Bucky said after a couple minutes. “Do you think you could be little tonight?” The key was to make it seem like he was the one who needed it. Honestly, it wasn’t a complete lie. He really was feeling strung out, and nothing eased that like his baby.

“Sure,” Tony agreed without hesitation, just as Bucky had known that he would. “JARVIS, can you continue to monitor the feeds?”

“Of course, Sir,” JARVIS said.

Tony nodded, leaning heavily against Bucky. “I… might need some help relaxing.”

“I can do that.” Bucky started to rub Tony’s back, knowing how much Tony loved that. They sat there for a while, just looking out at the city. It was a beautiful sight: this high up, you could see everything. The people walking around on the sidewalks looked like ants so you couldn’t see a lot of detail, but it was still fascinating to watch the hustle and bustle. There was a recognizeable pattern to it that was soothing.

When he thought that Tony was relaxed now, Bucky shifted around until he could get both arms underneath Tony and then stood up. Tony grumbled a little at the move, but Bucky was well aware that getting Tony into a diaper was more important than anything. It would make for a tense, unhappy night if Tony had an accident and that was the last thing either of them needed right now.

“Shh, shh, my grumpy boy,” he cooed, rubbing his head over Tony’s hair. “Daddy’s gonna get you into something more comfortable, and then we can watch the city some more, okay?”

He turned into the nursery and stepped up to the changing table, laying Tony out on top. Tony was blushing, which meant he wasn’t completely in his headspace yet. Bucky let him hide his red face behind a stuffed bunny as he removed Tony’s button-down shirt, undershirt, jeans, boxers and socks. He rubbed some cream in, dusted a little baby powder on, and then lifted Tony’s hips, sliding a diaper underneath him. He pulled the diaper up between Tony’s thighs and fastened it.

It was warm enough that Tony didn’t really need to wear something else so long as he was wrapped in a blanket, so Bucky forewent trying to get the baby into a onesie and grabbed Tony’s favorite blanket. It was a gift from Laura; three weeks ago, she’d given Tony a box and asked him not to open it until he was alone. Tony had been thoroughly shocked (and, adorably enough, embarrassed and flustered) to see the baby blue blanket inside. It was easily big enough to swaddle Tony, with a border of dark blue that was patterned with pale grey elephants and yellow ducks, and – as a bonus – it was incredibly soft. Tony loved it.

He wrapped the blanket around Tony’s shoulders, back, bottom and legs and tugged it tight, folding the rest of it over Tony’s front, including his arms and the stuffed bunny, until Tony was completely swadled and couldn’t get free until Bucky chose to unwrap the blanket. Tony squirmed a little and pouted when he realized he was trapped, but Bucky just smiled down at him. He knew Tony found it very comforting to be swaddled, no matter how much he tried to pretend that he didn’t. Swaddling also meant that Tony couldn’t do anything for himself, so he invariably ended up in a very little headspace. It was exactly what they both needed.

The very last thing was a pacifier, popped into Tony’s mouth before he could protest or cry. Then Bucky scooped him up, carrying Tony into the kitchen. He was getting experienced at making a bottle with the use of only one hand, while holding Tony with his other. It was slower, but the alternative meant putting Tony in the high chair or in the portable bassinet Bucky usually rolled into the kitchen – and that would mean Tony being alone with his thoughts. Not a good idea.

When the bottle was ready, Bucky took it and Tony back to the window seat. By that point the sun was about halfway set, and the first of the stars could be seen. He sat on the window seat and arranged Tony in his lap until the baby could see out the window. Then he removed the pacifier, replacing it with the nipple of the bottle. Tony began to suck down the milk with eager, hungry sounds.

Bucky smiled down at him, the last of the tension sliding off his shoulders. Here, locked up in Tony’s rooms with JARVIS watching over them, he felt safe for the first time all day. He leaned his head against the glass, idly thinking about what he would make for dinner later. A bottle wouldn’t be enough to fill Tony’s belly. Maybe they’d order out. Tony ordered the noodles from their favorite Thai place. He always ended up a mess when he ate them, but he could probably use a bath anyway.

“Good boy,” Bucky murmured, ducking his head to brush a kiss over Tony’s forehead. Tony babbled something around a mouthful of milk, and Bucky knew he was feeling really little if he wasn’t using words. He smiled again, tipping the bottle up so that Tony could drink the last of it more easily.

He wasn’t sure what was going to happen with Steve and Wanda, or what that would mean for the future of the Avengers, but he meant what he said. Steve was his friend and that would never change as far as Bucky was concerned. However, he was not going to take Wanda’s behavior sitting down, and he was never going to let her hurt Tony again.