Bigger Family
CHAPTER 18: BIGGER FAMILY
“Sorry it took me so long,” the man that looked like Sergeant Barnes—and probably is Sergeant Barnes come to think of it— said softly.
“How…” Steve’s voice wavered, just as his body seemed to do. Tony instantly gripped his boyfriend’s waist to keep him steady. “How are you here? Is this real?”
Before Barnes could form a response, Tony interrupted, “How about we’ll take our seats first? I’m strong, but not strong enough to keep you up, Cap.”
Steve nodded and gripped Tony’s hand comfortingly for a second. “Yeah, sorry.”
“I assume you are Sergeant Barnes?” Tony asked once they all found their seats. At the man’s affirmation and Steve’s subsequent hitch in breathing, Tony continued, “Steve’s Bucky?”
“I’m not Steve’s Bucky,” Barnes huffed out. “That punk ain’t my keeper.”
All of a sudden, Steve burst out laughing and sobbing at the same time, pushed himself out of his chair, and launched all 240 pounds of him onto the newcomer. Well, that happened, thought Tony. Either way, he has to make sure this wasn’t just some plot to break Captain America.
“How are you alive?” Tony asked bluntly. “You see, I don’t trust you yet. I will need a full DNA testing and a shit load of answers right now before I kick you out of here.”
“Tony!” Steve gasped, staring at his boyfriend in shock.
“No, Steve. I have to make sure this is not some plot to kill you.”
Barnes raised both hands and smiled carefully. “Stark is right, Stevie. At least someone here isn’t stupid.” He nodded appreciatively to Tony as if he was thankful for his doubts. “I didn’t die when I fell off the train. Remember when you saved me from that lab over in Austria? Turns out, they gave me a weaker version of the Serum. I don’t remember much, but when I woke up, I was strapped to a table. Won’t go into many details but I lost this.” Barnes raised his one arm, revealing a metal one instead of flesh and bones. Even Tony couldn’t help but marvel at the technology. “They experimented on me and programmed me into their weapon. I was called the Winter Soldier.”
“Fuck,” Tony muttered. He knew little things about the Winter Soldier. There truly wasn’t much to get information from as they’ve always been considered as ghost stories. He only ever heard about the Winter Soldier from his Aunt Peggy. She said some say the Winter Soldier is immortal and is responsible for half the successful assassinations in the entire planet since the 1950s. Though he knew one thing for sure over the years: no one knows his real identity. “Fuck,” he muttered again. His son was in the same building as the world’s most dangerous assassin.
“What??” Steve stood up in alarm. “What about the Winter Soldier?” He asked no one in particular.
Barnes smiled brokenly. “Your boyfriend seems to know. Fury can tell you more about it. I couldn’t remember everything. Just bits and pieces—but none were good. Wakanda found me in a Siberian bunker a little more than a year ago. Just before all those aliens attacked New York, come to think of it. Took some time before they got me back to normal. Enough to give me back some of my memories, at the very least. Shuri deprogrammed me to stop activating at the trigger words. I had therapy for half a year, got this vibranium arm in my 2nd month in therapy, then, three months ago, I got in contact with Fury and began working with him to clear out HYDRA bases.”
“Shuri? You know Shuri?” Tony asked. Steve just sat there looking confused by the minute.
The smile on Barnes's face turned sincere. “I know her, alright. Spent months listening to her rants. I had to fix myself up faster just to get away.”
“And… and Winter Soldier?”
“Ain’t owned by HYDRA no longer.”
“Why now?” Tony demanded. “Why now? Why not right after Shuri fixed you?”
The door burst open, revealing Nick Fury in his signature black outfit and eyepatch. “I’ll take over, Barnes.”
"Stark, Rogers," Fury greeted dryly before sitting next to Barnes. "I see you met Barnes. Sergeant, next time, be fucking patient."
Then, Fury began telling them about the Winter Soldier's background (No shit, he did the Kennedy one) and the subsequent freedom from the brainwashing—all while Bucky Barnes sat rigidly next to the director of SHIELD. He gave them a copy of Barnes's psych clearance, his solo missions in SHIELD, and every other detail they might need.
"No one else knows," said Fury. "SHIELD is compromised, and I need help cleaning it up. Barnes destroyed half of their bases in three months, but I need someone to cut off the head."
**
"Just so we're clear," said Tony. "You and Barnes weren't…"
Steve stopped in his tracks and slowly turned to look at his boyfriend dead in the eye. "Weren't what?" He asked with a cautious tone.
Tony shrugged, "Oh, you know… one bed, no heater. I know you said you only realized you're bisexual this century but I have to know, Steve."
"Are you asking if Bucky and I ever had sex?!" Steve's eyes went wide. When Tony didn't respond, Steve grimaced. "That's, ugh, now I can't take that picture out of my head. I may need to bleach my brain— of course, we haven't, Tony! He's like my brother."
"Oh."
Steve rolled his eyes. "Yes, oh, sweetheart. Don't gotta worry about that." said Steve, then added with a frown and a shake of his head, "Ever."
**
Informing the team about Steve's undead best friend turned out better than expected. For one, Clint was amusingly afraid of the Winter Soldier. He said they met once on a mission in Budapest. The archer admitted it was the first time he didn't hit a target.
Natasha also admitted to having had a hunch as to what Fury had been doing the past months. But since she wasn't fully convinced before, she never told the team. Steve assured her it was fine.
The fact that SHIELD was infiltrated by HYDRA was the bigger issue on hand. Natasha and Clint had immediately volunteered to keep an eye out, obviously feeling more disturbed because they have worked with the organization far longer than anyone on the team. Sam offered to provide backup if needed, and Bruce teamed with Tony in shifting through the data. Steve, on the other hand, already began planning how to expose and destroy Pierce.
Bucky didn't move in until two days later. Fortunately, he came while Harry was still in school. Tony didn't want to explain yet how the Bucky Barnes in his bedtime story suddenly came to life.
"—ave a kitchen and a living area you'll share with Steve. The bedroom is over here and this is Ste—"
"Stevie ain't sleeping with you?" Bucky interrupted, surprised. "I thought you’re together. Saw Steve’s statement on the news."
"Ah, yes. No, we're not sleeping together, but we are dating. Been together for three months."
"Why not? I would have thought the punk set his claim on you already. Go all caveman and shit like that. He's too smitten, it's creepy."
That got Tony to smile. Hearing something like it from his boyfriend's best friend was reassuring. "I've got a kid. We're trying not to overwhelm him."
"No shit?" Bucky grinned madly. "You've got brown eyes, a brunette, spitfire, and you've got a kid? Damn, Stevie."
Tony turned around and glared, "There is nothing wrong about single parents, and if yo—"
Bucky raised his arms in surrender again, an easy and amused smile on his face. "You got me wrong, Stark. I only meant you ticked off the checklist of Steve's type. He's always been easily attached to mouthy brunettes. Why'd you think we became friends? See, you're definitely his type and all Steve ever wanted when we were kids was to have a family. You like, gave him everything he wanted, I guess."
Well, wasn't that surprising? Tony knew Steve adores Harry. But recently, his boyfriend had somehow become a second dad to his son—watches after him when Tony's busy, always around at all of Harry's milestones, reads him second bedtime stories, feeds him… hell, sometimes, Steve even picks him up from school.
"He calls my kid bubby," Tony offered instead, looking anywhere that wasn't Bucky.
Bucky's grin turned soft. "Sarah used to call him that. I remember the first time Sarah called him bubby around me. We were 8 or 9, I think. Steve turned so red, I thought he was stung by a bee. Me and his mother listened to him yammer about not calling him bubby in public for half an hour, and Sarah just clipped him on the ear when he finished. She said, "Steven Grant, don't you get embarrassed for having a mother that loves you. James ain't gonna laugh at you. Not when everyone calls him Bucky." I swear to god that was the first time someone actually made fun of my name."
They both burst out laughing. This prompted Tony to share about the same experience he's had with Steve getting all shy when Tony called him sweetheart around their teammates for the first time.
And that's how Steve found two of the most important people in his life. Tony and Bucky had long since abandoned their room tour and ended up sharing stories over the counter while drinking Harry's juice boxes.
"What's happening here? And why are you drinking the juice boxes?! That's not for you!" Steve snatched away the apple juice from Bucky's hands before he could stick the straw in it. Tony just continued sipping.
Bucky raised a brow at his friend. "I didn't see any name on it."
"Steve, Steve-o, your mother called you Bubby," Tony pointed at him accusingly.
The way Steve blushed was reminiscent of how Bucky described it earlier, causing Tony and Bucky to burst out laughing again.
“Shut it, both of you,” grumbled Steve, swatting each of their heads. “The team’s already in the penthouse. Get both your asses up right now.”
Still laughing, the two brunettes staggered their way towards the elevator, leaving an exasperated but grinning blond behind.
When they got to the penthouse, Sam and Clint were on the couch watching an episode of Supernatural while Bruce and Natasha were on the bar counter drinking glasses of Harry’s chocolate milk. Steve huffed out a laugh, thinking how the whole team seemed to have suddenly changed from drinking alcohol to beverages meant for children. He’s not gonna be the one to tell the little boy where his milk and juice boxes went.
“Hey,” Steve called out, prompting everyone to look at him. Sam immediately paused the episode and jumped off the couch. Clint followed behind him but with more hesitancy. Bruce chugged down the rest of his milk and did the same. Natasha just raised her brow, choosing not to move away from the counter yet. “Everyone, this is Bucky. Bucky, these are my teammates, Sam, Clint, Bruce, and Natasha. We have a Thor, too, but he’s not here.”
Bucky rolled his eyes. “I know who the Avengers are, punk. A pleasure to meet you, anyway.” He said, then turning his gaze to Clint for a second and pointed at him, eyes wide in recognition, “Oh, I know you. Saw you in uh, Budapest.”
Clint grumbled under his breath and crossed his arms. “Hmm.”
“Are you still sore about that?” Bucky laughed. “If it makes you feel better, you did graze my suit.”
The sullen look on the archer’s face smoothened and he sighed defeatedly. “Yeah, it kinda does.”
“Yasha,” Natasha’s voice was strong and controlled. Steve felt Bucky stiffen beside him but it went away just as quick as it appeared.
“Natalia. How are you?”
“Good. Got a scar, though.”
“Sorry about that,” Bucky smiled sheepishly.
“Wait, you knew each other?” Tony suddenly piped in, asking the same question everyone was thinking.
Bucky looked at him and shrugged. “A little. I used to train her.”
Something in Tony’s brain must have short-circuited because he stood there gaping. Steve honestly was the same but since everyone was looking at Natasha and Bucky, no one actually noticed Steve’s jaw hanging.
“I didn’t know he’s your James, Steve,” Natasha spoke softly. “He never took off his mask. I would have told you if I knew.”
Steve shook his head and breathed. “I know, Nat. It’s fine. I was just surprised. There’s nothing about the Red Room in his file.”
“Oh, I didn’t train her in the Red Room,” Bucky offered. “It was after she graduated.” Natasha tilted her chocolate milk in affirmation.
Sam chose that moment to speak, “Well, it seems like two already know you. Cool. I like your arm, by the way.” Bucky grinned and flexed.
**
Tony picked up Harry from school at exactly three in the afternoon. He’d gotten used to the number of children brushing past him so it didn’t bother him anymore as he entered the building and found his son already waiting for him in the lobby with a grin, holding up a test exam in his hand.
“Daddy, look! I got a perfect hundred!” Harry exclaimed proudly. Tony returned the grin and took the offered sheet with reverence.
It was a spelling test, which was likely what made Harry so proud of himself. He’s always had trouble with spelling. He’s been practicing so hard the past few weeks— and for his efforts to turn fruitful, it must have felt so gratifying. “Wow, baby, this is wonderful!” Tony kissed Harry on the head. “Wait ‘till everyone hears about this. They’ll be so happy. Congratulations, kiddo.”
Harry shivered in happiness and grabbed Tony’s hand to lead him out of the school and into their car.
“Listen, kiddo, there’s someone we’d like you to meet at home,” said Tony as he strapped the child in his seat.
Harry tilted his head and furrowed his brows. “Who’s it, daddy?”
"He's a friend of Uncle Steve, bud. He'll be staying with us from now on."
"Oh, like Uncle Sam?"
"Not quite," smiled Tony. "You'll see. I think you might like him. He's a fan of your apple juice."
Harry's face contorted in half exasperation, half indignation. He sort of looked so much like Steve, it was amazing. "My juice? Again?!"
Tony laughed loudly as he drove off.
By the time they reached the tower, Harry was still bummed out that he didn't have any juice boxes left until Tony assured him they only drank the ones on Steve's floor. Of course, being the sweet kid that he was, told Tony they could drink those in the penthouse too if they really liked it so much. He can share. Tony just couldn't help but pick him up and kiss him on the cheek.
Bucky had insisted he stay inside his and Steve's floor for the time being— just until Tony decides he can meet the Harry Steve kept talking about. He's seen the photos, of course, and he already thinks he's the most adorable kid in the world.
Only Steve and Sam were left in the penthouse when Harry and Tony arrived. The two were in the kitchen, with Steve leaning next to the counter while watching Sam cook his mama's gumbo recipe.
"Woah," Harry gasped. "What'cha cooking, Uncle Sam? It smells good."
Sam reached down to ruffle Harry's hair. "Yo, pint-size. It's my mama's special soup. You're gonna like this, I bet."
Harry grinned and agreed even though he hadn't really tasted any Cajun food before. Thankfully, Sam knew not to make it too spicy for their resident 6-year-old.
"Where's my hug?" Steve called from the counter with a huge smile.
Harry instantly threw himself onto the Super Soldier's open arms. "Uncle Steve! Guess what? Guess what?"
Steve placed him down after a quick kiss on the back of his head. Tony chuckled and leaned over to kiss Steve on the cheek as well before putting Harry's backpack on the counter.
"What?" Steve echoed just as cheerfully.
"I got a hundred on my test! Daddy, show him, please?"
Tony dug into the backpack, pulled out the same sheet of paper from earlier, and handed it to his boyfriend.
Steve's face was comical when his eyes landed on the circled number of the top right corner. "This is great, bubby! We're gonna hafta celebrate!"
Tony's heart swelled at the nickname, especially now that he knew how special it truly was.
Sam craned his head to look at the test paper as well and, like Steve, acted like it was the best thing since sliced bread. "Aw man, now we have to have Bruce make his chicken biryani, too."
"Is everyone coming to dinner?" Harry asked excitedly.
"Sure is, kiddo. Told you we're having someone over for you to meet."
"Right now?"
Tony chuckled. "Later, bud. Go change first. I'm not washing curry stains off your uniform."
Harry nodded easily and ran towards his room to change. "Oh, and your godfather called earlier. Have JARVIS play the message," yelled Tony in addition. Harry yelled back an affirmation and everyone heard the door close with a thump.
Beside Tony, Steve laughed. "You don't even know how to use the washing machine, Stark."
The billionaire sniffed. "It's the principle of the matter, Cap."
One by one, the residents of the tower entered the penthouse for dinner. Bruce came in first sans chicken biryani, but he did bring ice cream and proceeded to help Sam and Steve in the kitchen. Clint came next and he brought Phil who brought with him. Natasha didn’t bring anything or anyone but she did end up volunteering to grab their guest from Steve’s floor.
Because it wasn’t every day that the Avengers joined them for a meal, Harry was positively ecstatic about the whole thing. The littlest member of the mixed-matched family made sure to put on his best t-shirt (the one with a t-rex roaring) and even went so far as to put on his adorable Avengers clip-on necktie. He had everyone coo and smother him in hugs and kisses.
And when Sam announced he was almost finished with the fried chicken, he went straight to the kitchen and refused to leave his booster seat, even though dinner would not start for another thirty minutes. The others had no choice but to sit around the table as well (because Tony finally bought an actual dining table instead of them eating on the island counter).
It was that scene that greeted James Bucky Barnes, former HYDRA weapon and current HYDRA nightmare. Five of America’s mightiest heroes and one of SHIELD’s most feared agents, all eyes on the tiny green-eyed, messy-haired kid as the said kid tells them about an upcoming Thanksgiving school play.
“Hey, guys,” Natasha announced their presence.
Everyone returned the greeting, but the child had his attention fully on their new resident. “Daddy.” It wasn’t only Bucky that heard Harry whisper and saw him tug on Tony’s shirt. “That’s Bucky. Daddy, it’s Bucky!” The quiet hissing of the child had all grinning behind their palms. Ever since Halloween a few weeks ago, Harry always asked for a Bucky bedtime story from Tony or Steve. Tony even dug through his stuff again in the storage basement to look for his old Bucky Bear and Captain Ameribear just so Harry can have them in his room. Every person in the penthouse apart from Bucky himself knew how big of a fan the 6-year-old was.
“Told you you’ll like him,” whispered Tony back. “Hey Buckaroo. Meet Harry Stark. Kiddo, meet James Bucky Barnes.”
Harry was gaping, and Bucky could not resist smiling wide. He saw what exactly made his best friend fall in love with the kid. He was just simply too adorable. “Hello, Harry. I’ve heard so much about you.”
“Oh my god, daddy! Is he real? Did you make a hologram? Is he a robot?” asked Harry in one breathing and then turned to the possibly-hologram-possibly-robot and asked again, “Are you a robot?”
Steve, who was sitting on the other side of the kid burst out in giggles, earning him an affronted look from Harry. The Super Soldier clutched on his chest and forced himself to calm down, much to the team’s amusement. “No, bubby, he’s not a robot. That’s really him. That’s my best friend.”
“… he drank my juice?”
And then everyone was laughing. Bucky, having noticed Harry wasn’t paying attention to any of the adults and was actually climbing down his seat, carefully tried to approach the child. When he noticed Harry heading to the kitchen, his eyes went back to the Avengers and found them similarly confused but unwilling to question yet.
Deciding on his first plan, Bucky strode to the kitchen and asked, “Do you need help getting anything, buddy?”
Harry, wide-eyed and awed, shook his head, then continued rummaging through the refrigerator. A few seconds later, it seemed like he found his goal and shut the fridge close, holding a box of… apple juice?
Wait.
“Is that for me?” Bucky asked softly, crouching down to level with Harry.
Harry nodded nervously. “Daddy said you liked my apple juice. You can have them.”
Ah, shit. Wasn’t that adorable? Bucky closed his eyes and silently cursed Steve— or Tony for that matter—for not warning him of their kid’s cuteness. “Aw, thank you, squirt. Best apple juice in the world.”
Harry smiled widely, took Bucky’s hand, and led him back to the table. As soon as Harry reached back to his seat, Tony immediately kissed him on the cheek and told him what a good boy he was, prompting the child to beam and blush at the same time.
After dinner, Harry, Bucky, Sam, and Clint played Mario Kart while Tony and Steve sat on a loveseat watching them. On the other side of the room sat Natasha, Bruce, and Phil, all on a serious discussion about international cuisine. Turns out, Bucky had so much practice in video games when he was still in Wakanda that none could actually beat him.
At around 8:30, Tony, unfortunately, announced it was Harry’s bedtime. Since he had school the next day, the father wasn’t willing to extend. Like always, Harry didn’t protest much. He just pouted and hugged everyone goodnight— And if his arms around Bucky were tighter than usual, only two of them knew.
“You’ve got a great kid, Stevie,” Bucky whispered to his best friend when they finally left the penthouse to the two Starks.
Steve’s eyes widened as he stared at him. “He’s not… I’m not…”
“But you want him to be,” said Bucky easily. “You’re dating his dad. I know you’re not one to enter a relationship you don’t plan on keeping, so I’m assuming you already see him as yours, too.”
The blond Super Soldier ducked his head, giving the brunette a definitive answer. “I don’t want Tony to think I’m trying to steal his son, or that I’m only dating him for Harry.”
Bucky clipped him on the ear. “Of course, you don’t, punk. Even the blind can see how smitten you are of him. I’ve only seen you both interact for two days and I’m already pretty sure I’m gonna have to buy a suit to be your best man.”
“You seem to take the news of me dating a guy so easily.” Steve changed the topic, rather smoothly if Bucky was to judge.
Acknowledging the redirection, Bucky shrugged indifferently. “Might have known before. You did glance too long at Arnie sometimes. Plus, I ain’t actually frozen for 70 years like you, punk. I’ve seen protests and gay rights movements happen.”
“You think he’s gonna say yes if I ask?” said Steve before promptly adding, “Not right now, no. We’ve only been dating for a few months. Just theoretically.”
“I say he’s gonna cry ugly then drag you to bed for some hot sex.”
“Bucky!”