Chapter Text
Sixty-seven years. Fury had said he had been sleeping for sixty-seven years. Steve scoffed, sleeping. My lily-white Irish ass, I've been sleeping. I’ve been frozen and unconscious, you fucking idiot. Steve never said these things out loud; instead, he stayed quiet and listened. He let them bundle him off to a cabin in the woods to ‘acclimatize himself to the new century.’
The agents had left him with books, pamphlets, and suppressants. One of the agents had scowled at him and told him that there could be no “Stupid alpha posturing in this century. Omegas have rights now too.” Steve had stopped himself from rolling his eyes. Clearly, Peggy had succeeded in removing all documents that listed Steve Rogers as an omega. Steve eyed the bottle of pills; hopefully, the suppressants will work for me.
Another agent waited until she had left then quietly passed Steve a small box that he stated was for ‘later.’ As curious as he was, Steve waited until he was sure he was alone before opening the box and instantly regretted it. The agent had given him alpha porn! Shutting the box, Steve hid it under a bed in one of the other rooms. Even if he was an alpha, there was no way he was reading that! Shuddering to himself, Steve could hear his mother's voice in his head scolding him for telling lies. “That’s the thing about lies, Steven. They always come back to roost.”
Sighing, Steve sat down on the old couch and hid his face in his hands. For the first time in weeks (decades technically), he allows the tears to come. He had done everything he could to follow Bucky, including allowing the army to experiment on him. Steve had been overjoyed when they were reunited, only to have Philips threaten to separate them again. Bucky was the one who said that Steve was an alpha; after all, it wasn’t illegal for two male alphas’ to be together if both were unmated. Besides, omegas weren’t allowed to fight. Any omega that joined the army was used for relieving the soldier’s stress, especially the male ones. After all, that’s all a male omega was suitable for, especially a tiny, sickly omega like him. They were there to relieve stress, not to mate with…never to mate with.
Thoughts of Bucky sent him spiralling down into a depression. I don’t even have a picture of him, Steve thought, bringing his knees to his chest. Bucky…what am I supposed to do without you? No one knows the truth, and Lord knows I can’t tell them. I'm in the future, and I think it’s everything you ever dreamed about. I just wish you were here with me.
Months passed, and Steve was finally allowed back into civilization, though he was heavily monitored. Thankfully, they put him in Brooklyn, close to the old neighbourhood, so he could easily slip away and lose them. Steve found an internet café and began searching. He wanted to see how far omega rights had come in the last seventy years, along with making sure the suppressants SHIELD was giving him wouldn’t hurt him. Steve breathed a sigh of relief when he found multiple sources stating that the suppressants were a generic form suitable for alphas and omegas. The websites did say that it was better to have ones specific to one’s gender.
It turned out that male omegas were now considered unique and considered the mark of special status for their alpha. Despite the freedoms female omegas had, life was still difficult for male omegas who were seen as being neither male nor female. It was only after a male omega was mated that they had any value in the workforce and only if they had their alpha’s permission to work. Despite this, alpha females were accepted with fewer issues. Humming quietly to himself, Steve wondered what the public would think of having an unmated omega as Captain America. Not that anyone will find out. Bucky’s the only alpha for me, and he’s gone. I’ll probably spend the rest of my life on suppressants.
A few weeks after being brought back into civilization, Fury came to him one night in a gym. Steve had been having trouble sleeping, and instead of tossing and turning, he had gotten up and headed for the gym. Bucky had snuck him into this gym back in the thirties, and Steve had been glad to see that not only was it still standing, but the same family still ran it. He had spent hours talking with old Daniel Reeves, who had run the gym when Steve was a kid.
Fury came to him with a mission, needed him to save the world after shooing him out of it. Shooting Fury down, Steve took a punching bag and left, heading back to his SHIELD-issued apartment. Rolling his eyes at the large stack of documents waiting on his table, Steve sat down and read through them all. The last thing he wanted was to be surprised by was people's classifications. He wasn’t surprised when Agent Coulson arrived the next morning to escort him to something called the Helicarrier. Steve already had a bag of things ready to take with him, including the specialized omega suppressants he had picked up for himself.
When all the others arrived on the carrier, Steve was even more thankful for the suppressants. Lord only knows what he would have done without them. Tony and Natasha were both alphas; Bruce was a beta with alpha tendencies, and Thor…well, Steve wasn’t quite sure what Thor was, but if he had to guess, Steve would say the Asgardian was an alpha. Even Agent Coulson was an alpha. From what Steve could discover, the only other omega was one of the compromised agents, an Agent Barton. Even then, Barton was a mated omega, though Steve didn’t know who his alpha was.
Then came the truth of what he was being asked to fight…Aliens. From outer space. Steve was having a hard time wrapping his mind around that, unfortunately for him, actual aliens were invading New York, and he had to fight them off. The team he was working with was alright, considering they had been thrown together not even a day before, and one of them was recovering from being brainwashed. They came together as a team by the end and successfully fought off the attack.
After the battle, Tony had asked everyone to stay in the tower. Steve had accepted, wanting to get out of the shit hole apartment SHIELD had put him in. After moving in, Steve had gone out of his way to apologize to Tony and get to know the other man better. He soon learned that Tony was nothing like Howard. Both men were abrasive, but Steve figured out that while Howard was an ass for the sake of being an ass, Tony used it as a mask, a defensive tactic. Once he realized this, Steve eased up and tried to get to know Tony for Tony.
The two men began spending more and more time together. At first, they spent most of their time yelling at one another. Then they began talking about things that mattered to them both and Tony started teaching Steve about the twenty-first century. He claimed that it was because SHIELD had so completely ruined Steve’s reintroduction to the world.
It was Jarvis who forced the change in the dynamic of their relationship out in the open.
One morning, not three weeks after the battle, Jarvis sent Steve a text asking if he could call while the soldier was out on his morning run. Texting back the affirmative, Steve found a shady spot out of the way to stop.
“My apologies for bothering you on your run Captain,” Jarvis said after Steve had picked up.
“That’s alright Jarvis. I don’t mind. What can I do for you?
“I felt it appropriate to inform you that Sir’s birthday is on the thirtieth of this month.”
“Thanks, Jarvis! I had no clue. Um...could you maybe suggest something for me to get him. I know we’ve been getting along better, but I still have no idea what kind of gift Tony would like.”
“That may be beyond my capacity, however, Miss. Potts and Agent Romanoff have both invited you to go shopping with them this afternoon.”
Steve sighed, knowing that it was his best choice no matter how distasteful. “Okay. Can you let them know I’ll tag along?”
“Agent Romanoff has said that she will come and get you when they are ready.”
“Thanks, Jarvis.”
“Of Course, Captain. I know that Sir cares for you just as he does myself and my brothers.”
“He what! Jarvis, what do you mean? Jarvis! Damn, he hung up on me.” Putting his phone back into his pocket, Steve headed back to the tower while his mind raced a mile a minute. Was it true? Does Tony think that about me? If he does, what does that mean? Do I feel the same?
Steve was still lost in thought when he arrived at the tower. Jarvis simply took him up to his floor and had the shower running. He made it through the shower and got dressed before coming back to himself. Does it matter? Steve paused midway through putting his shirt on. If he does think of me like that…and I'm starting to think of him like that…maybe I'm just thinking too hard.
He was a little glad that Natasha decided to show up early and drag him to lunch. “Jarvis said you were overthinking something and asked if I could come and distract you.”
Steve sighed, “I feel like I’ve been tattled on by my older brother.”
“Well,” Nat smiled at him as they left the elevator and headed for her car. “You kind of were.”
“Did he tell you what he told me? Just before he hung up on me, I might add.”
Natasha just laughed. “He did and he said that he hung up on you. So,” she asked as they walked into the dinner. “Any ideas on what you want to do for your birthday? It’s coming up, in July, right?”
“What? No!” Steve paused and thought for a moment about what Nat was talking about. “Oh, right. That.”
“What has you so upset?” Pepper asked standing and hugging Steve. Steve had grown close to the other omega and enjoyed her presence, even if she (along with the rest of the team) still had no idea he was an omega. “The point of lunch was to help you relax.”
“I was just asking what he wanted to do for his birthday. It’s the end of May and his in July,” Natasha defended herself. “Now, he’s pouting.”
Steve sat and let his head hit the table. “It's not in July.”
“What’s not in July?” Pepper asked taking a seat beside him. “Your birthday?”
He just nodded, not bothering to lift his head. “I was born November eighteenth, nineteen-twenty-six.” Finally, lifting his head Steve had to laugh at the offended looks on the women’s faces. “What?”
“You’re nineteen!” Natasha exclaimed, nearly knocking over her glass.
“Not until November,” Steve rubbed the back of his neck feeling a little uncomfortable.
“That means you were seventeen when you got the serum.”
“I was still sixteen. Bucky and I lied about our ages when we signed up and I changed my birthdate.”
Pepper sighed, then burst out laughing. “Oh, God. Tony and Clint are going to flip when they find out!” That sent Natasha into a fit of giggles.
Shaking his head Steve turned to the waitress and began ordering. He was halfway through his second burger when they finally stopped laughing. “If you ladies are done, I need help here.”
“I guess you do,” Pepper smirked at him. “This is the first time you’ve had to buy your dad a birthday present, isn’t it?”
“What? No! He’s not my dad!”
“I think the captain doth protest too much,” Nat teased.
“I know that Tony cares about you Steve,” Pepper said quietly. “I’ve had to listen to Tony bitch about how badly Shield messed up your waking and how badly they’ve treated you. On top of that, I’ve seen how you are with him. There’s nothing wrong with feeling that way, I mean technically, you are young enough to be Tony’s son.”
Steve almost choked on his drink while Natasha just laughed.
“You two are horrible. Why did I agree to this again?”
“Because you actually like Tony and want to get him something nice for his birthday,” Natasha smirked and pointed one of her fries at him.
“And you have no idea what to get him,” Pepper added with a laugh.
Sighing, Steve tried to ignore them and focus on his lunch. Thankfully, the women decided to leave him alone for the rest of lunch. Once they were done and Pepper had paid for lunch, Natasha slipped her arm through his and steered Steve out of the restaurant. On his other side Pepper did the same. Instantly Steve felt trapped, apparently, it showed on his face as both women laughed.
“Don’t worry so much младший брат (little brother) we won't bite,” Natasha said gently. “We are just going to walk to the flea market and wander around. This way we won't lose you and it creates a larger space for you in the crowd.”
“Besides,” Pepper added with a wave of her free hand. “Do you know how many people will be jealous of us? You with two gorgeous red-heads on your arms and us with you!”
Shaking his head, Steve decided to just go with it, he knew there was no way he would ever get away from them. The women took turns picking stores to look over, but nothing jumped out at him. They were heading for the exit, making plans to do this again when Steve spotted it. Letting go of the women he headed straight for the store.
“Steve,” Pepper called out after him. “What did you find?”
“Buck and I used to play this all the time on leave,” he said quietly running his hands over the wood and glass. “The brass had it set up so whoever got the high score for the week won a carton of smokes. The fellas both love and hated when we would play.”
“Were you good?” Natasha smiled at him.
“We were the best. No one could beat us, but we always shared the smokes with whoever was in third.” Steve paused and thought for a moment then turned to Pepper, “I want to get this for Tony.”
Pepper smiled and gave Steve’s arm a quick squeeze, “I’ll have it paid for using your account and arrange for it to be delivered to your floor.”
“Thanks, Pepper.”
~*~
“Tony,” Pepper called out when she got back to the tower that night.
“Over here Pep!” Tony waved at her from the couch. “How was your shopping trip?”
Pepper sat down and cuddled into Tony’s chest inhaling the alpha’s scent. “Interesting. Natasha brought Steve with her.”
“That’s good. He needs to get out more. Did Natasha ask what he wanted to do for his birthday?” Pepper started laughing. “What?” Tony asked, twisting a little so he could see Pepper’s face. “What’s so funny?”
“It turns out that Steve’s a bit more of a liar than anyone thought.”
“Pepper, what are you talking about? Everyone knows he lied on the enlistment forms.”
“Apparently he lied in more ways than one. He told us today that his birthday is November eighteenth…of nineteen-twenty-six.”
“WHAT!!” Tony sat upright quickly, knocking Pepper off him. Standing, he began pacing, “you’re telling me that Captain America is a teenager! Oh, sweet science, he was only sixteen when he got the serum! What the hell was Howard thinking?”
Pepper shrugged a little as she straightened herself while trying to ignore the sour smell of upset alpha. “Steve does look older, so it’s understandable they believed his lies. Besides, they were desperate for men. It’s not like Steve and Bucky were the only ones who lied about their ages.”
“How are you so calm about this?”
“Because there is nothing, I can do about it. Throwing a fit is just going to make Steve feel bad about it. That’s why I'm telling you, despite him wanting to.”
Tony paused and looked over at his girlfriend. Sighing, he headed back to the couch and sat back down. “He wanted to tell me?”
“Yes,” she had to laugh at the hopeful look on Tony’s face. “On our way back, he mentioned wanting to talk with you about his age. I convinced him to let me break the news to you first while Natasha is telling Clint.” Pepper reached out and ran her fingers through Tony’s hair. “It’s amusing how much you both want this and yet neither of you have to courage to speak up about it.”
“There’s nothing to talk about,” Tony protested.
“Of course,” Pepper patted Tony’s hand condescending. “I'm going to bed. You coming?”
~*~
“I’ve changed my mind,” Tony said the next morning at breakfast. The team was still sitting around the table nursing their hot beverages. It changed from morning to morning who was drinking what, but it was always hot.
“Changed your mind about what?” Natasha asked.
“About giving Steve his own floor in the tower.” Tony didn’t bother looking over at the table as he was too busy getting his coffee. If he had, he would have seen the terror on Steve’s face.
Steve's head snapped up and his eyes filled with panic. I knew it. He’s going to kick me out of the tower and off the team. I should never have told Pepper and Nat my real age. No one wants to follow a kid into battle. Especially not when they have other options and one of those options is Tony Stark.
Seeing her brother’s panic and knowing that he was about to run, Natasha reached out and gripped Steve’s arm. “Расслабься, младший брат. Все будет хорошо.” (Relax little brother. It’ll be okay.) She whispered. Natasha knew that Steve didn’t understand Russian, even Clint only understood a little, but it seemed to calm him.
“I’ll save the floor for later, but a pup shouldn’t be living on their own,” Tony turned and headed for the table. He kept his head down, not wanting to see if Steve took his idea badly. He didn’t realize that Steve had already thought the worst. “I spoke with Pepper last night and we agreed that you should stay on our floor with us.”
Steve could only blink at Tony, not quite believing what he had heard. “What?”
Tony smiled up at Steve, putting his coffee down. “I can assure you that the Avengers will continue to follow Captain America in the field. However, here at home, I think it would be best for you to put the shield down and just be Steve and Steve is an eighteen-year-old pup.”
“You want me to live with you?”
“Yes,” Tony paused and glanced down at his coffee. “Unless you would rather live with someone else.”
“NO!” Steve called out almost knocking over his cup. “I mean, no that’s okay. I don’t mind living with you, so long as Pepper is okay with it.”
“Of course, I am Steve,” Pepper came up behind him and ran her hand across his shoulders and kissed his head. “We both talked it over and agreed to ask you. So long as you are comfortable with it, you have a room on our floor. Whenever you are ready, we can talk about design, both for your room and your floor.”
“My floor?”
“Yes,” Pepper took the coffee Tony offered her and sat down next to Steve. “Tony already set aside a floor for each of you. I’ve got the names of interior designers for all of you if you want to use them. You can do what you like to your floor, we just ask that you check with Jarvis before changing walls around or doing other major changes. Otherwise, you are free to do as you like. Steve, we thought that you could work on designing your floor for when you are ready to move out.”
“Oh,” Steve could only blink at the pair, not quite believing his luck. The couple he had started viewing as parents wanted him to move in with them and were also offering him a future home.
“While we’re all here,” Bruce said after a while. “I think it might be best if we discussed your cycles. I know all of you are on suppressants, but we should know how regular everyone’s cycle is just to be on the safe side. The last thing we need is for one of you to be suddenly thrust into a rut, or heat if your suppressants run out.”
“That can happen?” Steve exclaimed almost choking on his hot chocolate. I had no idea the suppressants could just stop working!
“It’s not common, but it has been known to happen. It mostly happens with long-term usage of suppressants or in highly stressful situations. They aren’t designed to work for a person’s entire life.”
“And it’s not healthy to be on suppressants for too long,” Tony added with a grimace. “Trust me, I’ve been there and it’s not pleasant. There’s a reason I wear scent blockers rather than use suppressants.” Tony patted a small patch on the side of his neck for emphasis.
“Tony’s right,” Clint threw in after swallowing his banana. “SHIELD had mandated that everyone has to go through one cycle every three years, minimum. They even pay for the time you take off to go through it and make sure that if you’re mated your partner has the same time off.”
“Hun,” Steve could only stare into his now empty cup.
“Steve,” Tony called quietly. “When was the last time you went through your cycle?” Part of Tony was upset that he didn’t know what Steve was and thus couldn’t properly prepare for it. After all, alphas needed different things to help them through their rut than omegas did for their heat.
“Um…” Steve had to think hard about it. When was the last time I…oh yeah. I shared a cycle with Bucky when he was on leave, just before he shipped out. We decided to wait for him to come back before bonding, just in case. I was on suppressants when I signed up and Erskine chose me for the experiment. “June nineteen-forty-three.”
“Do you remember what dates?” Bruce asked.
“I think it was the thirteenth?”
“Just the thirteenth?” Bruce shared a concerned look with Tony.
“I think so,” Steve refused to look at anyone else. He couldn’t handle the judgement he knew was coming. “I was really sick, so my cycles weren’t regular or very long.”
“Did you spend it alone?” Bruce continued without pause. He knew that Steve had been ill as a pup, it only made sense that it affected his cycles.
Steve just shook his head. He didn’t want to admit that he had spent it with Bucky. Everyone knew that Bucky was alpha and even today two alphas being together was looked down upon, though still not as bad as an unmated male omega.
“You may want to think of coming off your suppressants for a while and allow your body to go through a cycle. If you would prefer, I'm sure Tony can supply a sound and scent-proof room for you to spend your cycle in.” Bruce said quietly. It was clear to him that Steve was uncomfortable talking about his cycles. Then again it wasn’t something they did in the forties.
“Brucie-Bear is right. It would be best for you to come off your suppressants in a safe place. I can prep a set of rooms for you that are sound, scent, and Hulk proof. I’ll also make sure that you have a new set of toys as I'm assuming that you don’t have anyone you want to spend your cycle with.”
Steve shook his head, feeling horribly uncomfortable. When he was younger no one ever talked about cycles like this. Tony offering to buy toys, just made it worse. “Um…yeah, okay…I'm, just going to go…to the gym…yeah,” getting up Steve raced from the room. He needed to get away from the stares.
Tony watched Steve leave with a sinking feeling. Sighing he leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes.
“Do we even know what Steve is?” Bruce asked.
“No,” Natasha said quietly. “SHIELD has no documentation about his second gender. Not even from the SSR. Fury wants me to find out what he is, but I don’t care one way or another. Does anyone know what he might be?”
“All the history books say he’s an alpha,” Clint said with an eye roll. “After all there was no way, the army was letting an omega into the army. Not as anything other than a bed warmer.”
“Clint!” Bruce exclaimed. “Don’t take out your bad attitude on Steve.”
Outside the kitchen, Steve had to bite his lip to stop the whimper that wanted out. It wasn’t like Clint was wrong. He had seen those omegas, convinced that they would be helping the cause only to end up on their backs for the soldiers. If it wasn’t for Erskine, Steve would have been one of them. Wrapping his arms around himself, Steve headed for the elevator. Once in the elevator he closed his eyes and leaned against the wall, trying to hold himself together.
“Steve,” Jarvis said quietly. “If you would exit the elevator and follow the lights, I will lead you to a safe spot.”
Numbly, Steve left the elevator and followed the blinking lights to a bedroom. Closing the door behind him Steve headed for a dark corner. Leaning against the wall he slid down and hid his face behind his knees. I want my alpha. I want my Ma.
In the kitchen, Clint was still angry. “Why not!” pushing his chair back, Clint stood and began pacing. “He probably thinks just the same as all those assholes in SHIELD and the government. That the only reason I'm worth anything is because of this bite mark on my neck.”
While Clint was ranting, Tony quietly got up and with a squeeze to Pepper’s shoulder snuck out of the communal kitchen. Unlike Clint, Tony thought he knew what his pup was, and it wasn’t an alpha. But, like Clint said the government and most of the population viewed male omegas as nearly worthless unless they were mated. Tony was hoping that Steve hadn't mated, there was nothing worse than losing one’s mate and there was little chance that anyone Steve could have mated with was still alive. “J, where is he?”
“In his room on your floor, Sir.”
Nodding, Tony made his way to the room he and Pep had put together this morning for Steve. He paused outside the door and thought about knocking but shrugged it off. Opening the door Tony let himself in before closing it. Taking a moment to look around he felt his heart sink when he saw Steve hiding in a corner.
Pulling off his scent blockers, Tony slowly made his way closer hoping that his scent would comfort the pup. “Steve? Oh, piccolo, it’s okay.” Sitting on the floor Tony reached out and gently pulled Steve into his chest. “Don’t listen to what Clint says. He has no idea what he’s talking about. Not even Fury knows the truth. Technically, I have no idea what the truth is either, but I think I have a clue. No, you don’t have to say anything if you don’t want to. I understand.”
Steve smelt Tony before he saw him and tried to hide further into the corner. Feeling Tony’s hands on his shoulders combined with the scent of parental alpha broke down Steve’s walls. He allowed himself to be pulled into Tony’s chest. Hearing the alpha’s words and knowing that Tony has figured out Steve’s secret but didn’t care, broke Steve, even more. Wrapping his arms around the alpha Steve allowed the tears to come knowing that here, with his alpha parent he was safe.
Pepper waited until Clint’s rant was really going before she too left. Jarvis was kind enough to let her know where to find her boys without her asking and mentioned that Tony had removed his scent blockers. Standing outside Steve’s door, she too removed the scent blockers before opening the door. Immediately she was surrounded by the scent of protective parental alpha, and she loved it. I’ll have to remind Tony of this when he claims that he’ll be a terrible father.
Catching Tony’s eye, Pepper slowly made her way over to her boys and laid her hand on Steve’s head. “Why don’t we cuddle up on the bed?” moving her hand from his head down to his arm, Pepper tugged gently encouraging Steve to stand up. Together the three made their way to the bed and leaned against the headboard with Steve in the middle.
“Here’s what we’re going to do,” Tony said after a while. “I’m going to prepare a room for you to spend your cycle in for the second week of June. I’ll stock it with food, water, and everything an omega and alpha can use. We won’t tell anyone else what day you do in, hell you don’t have to tell us either if you don’t want to. I just ask that you let Jarvis know, so he can let us know that you’re safe.”
Steve only nodded and buried himself further into Tony’s chest. It was well known that pups in distress were most comforted by the scent of the parent with the opposite second gender. That Steve was finding comfort with Tony, an alpha told Pepper and Tony all they needed to know about Steve’s second gender. Once Steve was asleep the pair gently got off the bed and tucked him in, before leaving his room.
“Jarvis, keep an eye on him for us please?” Pepper asked as she and Tony cuddled up on the couch. It was still early, but they knew Steve was exhausted and stressed. He needed the nap. “It’s no wonder he never told anyone,” She whispered.
“And he can’t,” Tony told her. “The second Fury or Ross finds out they’ll lock Steve up until they can find a ‘suitable’ alpha and force Steve to mate with them. And knowing them, the alpha chosen will be the worst kind of alpha there is.”
“Oh god,” Pepper covered her mouth knowing that Tony was right. Lowering her hand to her chest Pepper nodded. “So, we don’t tell anyone. Steve’s gone this long pretending to be an alpha, so long as he goes through his heat without anyone finding out then he can go back on the suppressants for another three years. We can order special ones for him, no one will second guess you ordering special omega suppressants for me or Clint.”
“Very true. I know Clint is back on the suppressants, at least until Agent gets better.”
It had been shocking for them all when Phil Coulson called Clint a week after the battle, letting them all know that he was alive and recovering from surgery. The Avengers had all rushed to the hospital Phil told them he was in, each wanting to see him with their own eyes. Fury was pissed.
They had gotten Fury to admit that he had no intention of letting them know Phil was alive and had plans for Phil to lead a new team. In his best Captain America voice, Steve just glared at him then told Fury that Phil was an integral part of the Avengers and would be returning to them as soon as the doctors cleared him for moving. For Phil's arrival, Tony had prepared a medical suite, including doctors, nurses, and physical therapists.
“I think we can do this,” Tony pulled Pepper close. “We can keep our pup safe. Hopefully, he can find someone to bond with before anyone finds out.”
Pepper twisted until she could press a kiss to Tony’s lips. “I know you’ll keep him safe no matter what. You’re such a good father.”
~*~
Later that afternoon, after a glare from Pepper, Tony invited Steve to come down to the lab with him again. Tony enjoyed bringing Steve down to the lab and showing off his creations. Steve had instantly connected with the three bots, spending hours playing fetch with them. “You know,” Tony said, trying not to laugh and Dum-E and Butterfingers raced for the ball Steve had thrown. “Those were created to be helper bots.’
“They are helping,” Steve shot back.
“Helping me!” Tony laughed. “Not playing with their younger brother!”
Both men froze, staring at each other. Steve was the first to break the silence, hoping that Tony had meant what he said. “Are they really older than me?”
“Yes,” Tony said quietly. “I made Dum-E when I was sixteen. So, he’s twenty-six and you’re only eighteen. In fact,” he laughed a little pointing the screwdriver in his hand at Steve. “U’s twenty-five and Jarvis is twenty-one. Butterfingers is the youngest at fifteen. So, you’re the second youngest.”
“At least I'm not the middle child,” Steve joked.
“As the middle child, I feel the need to point out that I am the most intelligent and advanced of all my siblings.” Jarvis pointed out, laughter clear in his voice.
Tony snickered, “you just got burnt.”
“That’s fine, I accept that from Jarvis. You want to make any comments old man and I’ll just keep your birthday present for myself.” Smirking to himself Steve turned and headed for the elevator.
“Wait! Wait, wait, wait. What’s this I hear about a present?” Tony got up and followed Steve into the elevator. “What did you get me?”
Steve laughed and shook his head, “and here I thought you were supposed to be the adult.”
“Someone has been telling you lies.”
The two men laughed as they entered Steve’s floor. “I haven’t wrapped it because it’s not your birthday yet and I'm not sure that it works, but I figured you should be able to fix it up. Umm…I know it's old and probably horribly out of fashion but…it's something I use to do with Bucky when we were on leave. When I saw it, I just had to get it for you.” Rubbing the back of his neck, Steve led the way to the room where Tony’s present was hiding. If he hadn't been on the suppressants, Steve was sure his smell would have given away just how nervous he felt. Right up until he opened the door.
“Holy shit! This is AWESOME!” Tony was nearly jumping up and down like a school kid. He had always wanted a pinball machine as a kid, but Howard had never let him and as an adult, he could never find just the right one and was too busy to go looking. (After all, it’s rather difficult to send out your personal shopper when you don’t know what you want.) “I’ve always wanted one of these!”
Steve stared at Tony in shock. A part of him hoped that Tony would enjoy the pinball machine purely because of the old technology that ran it, he had no idea Tony had always wanted one.
“Jarvis! Pull up all information you can get on this machine. Steve, can you lug this down to the lab? I want us to get started on this right away!” Tony was practically vibrating in his excitement.
Steve couldn’t help but smile as the scent of happy, parental alpha washed over him. “You have to get the doors that Jarvis can’t.” Making his way over to the machine Steve nodded to the bedroom door that had closed behind them. Gently picking up the machine he followed his dad down to the lab. They had a pinball machine to fix. Together.
~*~
“Tony?” Steve asked quietly one June afternoon. Both men were in the lab, Tony working on his armour and Steve sketching.
“What’s up Caramellino?” Tony didn’t look up from the piece he was working on, so he didn’t see the shocked and pleased look on Steve’s face at the nickname.
“Um, I was wondering if you could help me try and find some people?” Pulling out his phone Steve texted Jarvis asking what the name meant.
“Sure,” Tony put down the armour and turned to face the young man he considered a son. “Who are we looking for?”
“Bucky’s family,” Steve couldn’t look away from Jarvis’ reply. [Caramellino: An Italian nickname for one’s son meaning butterscotch.] “He had three younger sisters, but I'm not sure if they’re still alive. SHIELD never gave me any information on any of Bucky's family.” He knew that George and Winifred Barnes were already dead, but he hoped that one of the Barnes girls might still be alive.
Tony pulled out his phone and began typing away, “what are their names and birthdates?”
“Becca, Kenzie, and Abbie,” Steve told his dad only to blush and look down when Tony gave him an unimpressed look. “Rebecca Ioana, Mackenzie Alexis, and Abigail Elizabeth. Becca was born December twenty-fifth, nineteen-twenty-six. Kenzie’s birthday was April nineteenth of twenty-nine and Abbie was the baby. She was born September ninth, nineteen-thirty-three.”
“Okay, Jarvis can you pass along this information to Agent, see if he can find anything while I start looking for them.”
“Thanks, athair,” getting up Steve shot Tony a grateful smile. “I’ll go start on lunch. Jarvis don’t let him get caught up in another project until he eats something.”
“Of course, Steve,” Jarvis said, and Tony could hear the laughter in his voice.
“Wait!” Tony called out making Steve pause halfway through the door. “Why is he, Steve?”
“It seemed a bit ridiculous to be calling my brother by a formal title while at home,” Jarvis explained. “We discussed it and agreed that I would only call Steve, Captain while on the battlefield.”
“You discussed it,” Tony looked between Steve and one of Jarvis’ cameras. “You know what,” he held up his hands in surrender. “I give up, just make sure you keep your mother up to date.” Shaking his head Tony watched Steve leave feeling happy and content. “Jarvis, what did Steve call me?”
“I believe that athair is Irish Gaelic for father.”
“Hum.” Tony’s smile grew bigger and softer as he turned back to his work. His attempts at working lasted all of five minutes before Tony put down his armour and rushed upstairs. He remembered when he was a pup and wanted to spend time with his dad, only to have Howard shut himself up in the lab for days on time. This was the last thing he wanted for his pup, even if that pup wasn’t his biologically and was eighteen.
Entering the kitchen, Tony paused and leaned against the doorframe, just watching. Pepper and Steve were working together to make lunch. They were both laughing as Pepper pulled Steve into a dance when Jarvis put some music on. At that moment Tony made up his mind about one idea that he had been considering for a while now. Turning around he headed for his room and searched for the small box he had hidden away.
Returning a few moments later Tony was happy to note that Pepper was still pulling Steve around the kitchen laughing. Tony cleared his throat, “mind if I cut in?” with a wink to Pepper Tony pulled Steve into a dance. It was something he had done with Ana and Edwin Jarvis when he was a pup.
After spinning Steve around the kitchen for two songs, Tony let the pup go and pulled Pepper into a dance. While he was twirling her around the rest of the Avengers quietly joined Steve at the breakfast bar, watching the pair with a smile. A part of Tony wanted to be upset that they were invading his space, but he had more important things on his mind. Tony smoothly pulled the small box out of his pocket with one last twirl, opened it, and lowered himself to one knee. “Well Pep, what do you say, want to switch Miss. Potts for Mrs. Stark?”
“Tony, if that is your idea of a romantic proposal, you really need to go back and work on it,” Pepper laughed.
“I'm a scientist, not a romantic you know that. But even science can’t explain how much you mean to me, or just how much I love you. You mean the world to me, and I want nothing more than to spend the rest of my life with you proving it to you if you’ll let me.”
“Well,” Pepper glanced over at Steve and winked at the young man. “I suppose I’ll just have to say yes then.”
Laughing, Tony slipped the ring onto Pepper’s finger, then jumped up and kissed her. “I love you,” he stated.
“Aww,” Clint cooed while elbowing Steve. “Look at that Stevie, your mom and dad are finally getting married.”
Steve pushed Clint away, shaking his head and smiling. Clint confused him, there were times, like now when Clint treated him like a younger brother. Then there were other times when Clint was upset at all alphas and took it out on Steve because of his ‘antique way of thinking.’ Clint’s flip-flopping attitude aside, Steve was quite happy that the man he looked at as a father figure was getting married. Steve liked Pepper and enjoyed spending time with the omega. She reminded him of his mother.
“This is a most joyous occasion!” Thor boomed. “We must celebrate!”
“Thor!” Steve called out as he turned to embrace the god. “When did you get back?”
“Just now Steven. I have spoken with Furious Nick, and he directed me here. I would have been here sooner, but I went to see the Son of Col. I was most pleased to learn of his continued survival.”
“We all are,” Tony said with his arm still wrapped around Pepper. “I’ve had word from his doctors, and they are letting him come home this weekend.”
“All the more reason to celebrate!”
“Nothing too big,” Pepper protested. “We don’t want to overwhelm Phil right away. So long as we keep the party small, I see no reason why we can’t celebrate.” Pulling out her phone, Pepper walked away while typing furiously.
“So, Thor,” Tony asked once he could no longer watch Pepper’s ass. “How long are you back for?”
Thor shifted looking slightly uncomfortable. “I have disobeyed my father’s orders and have been banished from Asgard.”
“That sucks big guy,” Clint reached over and rested his hand on Thor’s shoulder.
“It does, however, I was able to retrieve some of my things and Mjølnir before I was removed.”
“Well, feel free to stay here Pointbreak. I have a floor prepared for everyone, including you. It doesn’t have too much but it does have a bed, couch, tv, and fully stocked kitchen. Jarvis can put you in contact with a designer or shopper if you want. Or, one of us could take you out. Actually…that might be a good idea. Why don’t you and Steve go out shopping together, I’d go with you but that would end in disaster with the press.”
“That sounds like a wonderful idea! Steven, we should do this shopping!”
Steve shook his head and shot a glare at Tony. “Sure, why not. When do you want to go?”
“We should do the shopping forthwith!”
“Yeah…Thor buddy,” Tony was almost regretting suggesting Steve go shopping with Thor. “You may want to change your clothes before heading out.”
“Ah, you are correct Anthony. It would not be proper for me to be out in my armour.”
“I think some of my stuff might fit you if you want Thor,” Steve offered with a smile. Putting a hand on Thor’s arm Steve nodded his head towards the hall. “Come on, let’s see what might fit you.”
The pair headed down the hall to Steve’s room. “Is this your room Steven? I thought Anthony said he had a floor for everyone.”
“He does,” Steve took a deep breath and used grabbing shirt and trousers for Thor as an excuse to hide his face. “I…I lied about my age when I joined the army. The others found out and, well Tony and Pepper asked me to stay on their floor with them.”
Thor studied the captain for a moment. “It is a good thing for children to stay with their parents. May I ask how old you are Steven?”
“Eighteen.”
“How old were you when you joined your army?”
“Sixteen.”
Thor was shocked. Jane had spent some time explaining how humans aged and their second genders, so he understood just what Steven meant. “That is quite young. Let me dress, then we can share stories while shopping.”
Smiling, Steve passed the clothes over and headed for the door. “Sure, thing Thor. If those don’t fit feel free to go searching for something else that works. I’ll wait for you in the kitchen.” Not waiting for a response, Steve headed back to the kitchen, hoping that the others had left. Thankfully, Nat, Clint, and Bruce were gone, leaving only Tony and Pepper. “I think my clothes should work for Thor.”
“That’s good,” Pepper laughed. “We don’t want Thor going out in that armour. You’d both get mobbed.”
Tony pulled out his wallet and fished out a card and some cash. “Here,” he held them out for Steve to take. “I’ve been remiss on not getting your bank account set up and I highly doubt SHIELD had cared. So, for today you can use mine. Also, I have a new phone for you.” Tony fished a cellphone out of his pocket and tossed it to Steve. “That has Jarvis on it just in case. While you’re gone, I’ll look into getting you a bank account.”
“I’ll get started on that right away,” Pepper assured Steve with a smile. “Then I’ll set our lawyers on the military. See what they can get for your back pay. You go and have fun with Thor, just be home in time for dinner.”
“Yes, Máthair,” Steve leaned down to hug Pepper and kissed her cheek. Hearing Thor, Steve quickly hugged Tony, then with a wave and “Bye máthair! Bye athair!” Steve headed to meet the god at the elevator.
Pepper watched him go with a shocked expression on her face. “Tony…did he just?”
Tony laughed and pulled his omega into a hug, “yes he did. He did the same to me in the lab. Jarvis said that it was Irish Gaelic. I'm going to assume máthair is mother.” Tony laughed a little at Pepper’s expression. Kissing her head, Tony rested his cheek on her head. “Can you believe we’re parents?”
~*~
“Steve,” Jarvis called out early one July afternoon. Steve was curled up on the couch in the penthouse drawing while Pepper was sitting on the other end doing paperwork. The pair had grown closer over the last few weeks. Pepper had even convinced Steve to help her plan hers and Tony’s wedding.
“What’s up, Jarvis?”
“Father would like for you to join him on the common floor. There is a surprise waiting for you.”
Sharing a concerned look with Pepper, both omegas got up and headed for the elevator Jarvis had waiting for them. Stepping out of the elevator they were greeted by a smiling Phil. The alpha had been released from SHIELD medical and was more than willing to join his omega at the tower. Steve had been surprised to learn that Phil and Clint were mated. Though, when he thought about it, they were good together.
“Don’t worry,” Phil was quick to reassure them. “It’s a good surprise. I promise.”
“If you say so Phil,” Pepper smiled. “I trust you.”
“Hey!” Tony exclaimed coming out of the living room. “I can do good surprises! Besides which, as your husband, you should trust me.”
“First of all, Mr. Stark,” Pepper snickered as she poked the alpha in the chest. “You are not my husband just yet. And second, I do trust you. I trust you to blow things up, make horrible split decisions,” Pepper decided to ignore Tony’s protests. “And I trust you to look after our son. So, what’s the surprise?”
“I believe we are the surprise,” a voice came from the living room.
Steve froze. He knew that voice. It may be older and a little raspy, but he knew that voice. “Becks? Is that you?” Letting go of his mother, Steve headed for the living room with a single-minded purpose. “Kenzie? Abbie?”
Three older women occupied the couch. Steve was instantly reminded of both Bunică Inga Barnes and Babushka Viktoriya Morozova (Frost). Despite their age and the white in their hair, all three women still looked like the three kids that chased him and Bucky around Brooklyn. Steve could feel tears prickling at his eyes while a wobbly smile broke out across his face.
Moving fast despite their age the three women were up off the couch and hugging Steve close. “Oh, Ursuleț,” [Romanian Little Bear] Rebecca crooned. “Life’s still being tough on you. Come and sit with us.”
“You don’t have to talk,” Abby added with a smile as they all sat down. “Lord knows Becks and Kenzie do enough for ten of us.”
“Hey!” The two called out, making Steve laugh.
“I’ve actually missed you three,” he admitted, leaning into Kenzie.
“I'm not sure if I should be offended by that or not Steven,” Becks scolded.
“I’d be offended if I were you,” Abby innocently told her.
“Oh, hush Abby,” Becca shook her head. Reaching over she began running her fingers through Steve’s hair. “So, you remember that cute alpha I had begun seeing before you both left? Well, I ended up marrying him.”
“Didn’t even take his name properly. She hyphenated!” Kenzie quickly added, sounding horrified. “Became Mrs. Barnes-Proctor!”
“Humph! Well, I wasn’t about to let some alpha tell me I could no longer use my name. Besides, Conor didn’t care.”
“She even went to university and got a job…after being married,” Abby added trying to sound shocked while not laughing.
Hours later Pepper had invited the three women to dinner and to spend the night. The Barnes sisters had accepted the offer for dinner but insisted they return to Brooklyn for the night. They exchanged phone numbers with Steve, Tony, and Pepper, including their address in Brooklyn.
“You come and visit us whenever you want Stevie,” Becca told him as they were leaving. “You will always be our brother.” Hugs and kisses were given, then silence reigned with the closing of the elevator doors.
Steve made his way over to the couch where Tony and Pepper were sitting and forced his way in-between them. Pepper reached over and began running her fingers through her son’s hair. It was probably the happiest she had seen him since he moved in with them. “Did you have a good time?”
Steve nodded, then with a sigh hid his face in Tony’s neck. “It was great…and painful.” The pair could hear the tears in Steve’s voice. “When I left for war, Becks was sixteen, Kenzie was fourteen and Abby was only nine. Now…they’re in their eighties!”
“Oh, Mio Caramellino,” Tony crooned as he pulled the pup closer. “I know nothing I can say will make it better. But know that if you ever need to talk about it, we are here to listen.”
“Thanks…for being here and for finding them and bringing them here dad.”
“Qualsiasi cosa per te, figlio mio.” (Anything for you, my son.)