It had been almost a month since Steve and Tony had brought home their new baby daughter. The media in particular had a field day with the story of the super hero couple's new baby girl. The public was practically drooling over the images of the baby that Steve and Tony had begrudgingly released at the insistence of Pepper, who had astutely said that the media would not leave them alone until they got a glimpse of the baby the media had taken to calling "America's new Sweat Heart".
The photos of the little baby girl were such a hit that Pepper was actively campaigning for the super hero couple to start up a blog so she didn't have to be constantly fielding calls from every form of media imaginable begging her for more pictures of the Rogers-Stark babies. So far Steve was completely against it and Tony was moderately apposed. But, Pepper was like a shark who had scented blood in the water and was gradually wearing Tony down. It was only a matter of time before Tony gave in and both he and Pepper knew it. Steve was also aware of how she had cornered his partner like a predator who had almost sunk her claws into her prey, but he wasn't going to give in that easily.
Steve was incredibly weary of how much the general public already knew about his family and he was not about to let them even further into their private lives without a fight. However, he knew that he would eventually have to give in since Tony himself was an incredibly public figure even before becoming Iron Man. It was only expected that the same fate would befall the Rogers-Stark children.
As for Tony, he had been working a lot since they had returned home from their last mission. After all, the CEO couldn't leave Stark Industries unattended for long, despite how talented Pepper was at running the business for him. For the first time in a long time, Steve was glad that Tony's income and substantial wealth allowed for him to stay home with the babies, even if he didn't particularly like being completely reliant on his partner for everything. Despite his relief at having the freedom to stay home and take care of their children without worry, Steve still felt that he wasn't contributing to their household in an equal way to Tony and it bothered him immensely.
The CEO came home every day exhausted and complaining about how the Board was nagging him as usual. So, in an attempt to keep from adding any extra stress to Tony's already heavy load, Steve had kept this insecurity to himself. However, Tony could tell that there was something bothering his lover, even if Steve wouldn't say anything to him about it.
It was on one of the nights that Tony returned home particularly late from work that he finally had enough. He had come home to a dark house, their children already having been asleep for hours and Steve himself appearing to have gone to bed already. The genius had tiredly made his way up the stairs and down the extensive hall to the master bedroom, silently cursing how far away his comfy bed and sexy lover were from the garage.
Once he had finally forced his body to the door, Tony had quietly opened it and found Steve already laying beneath their covers but not yet asleep. Tony stepped in and closed the door delicately before making his way further into the room, stripping off pieces of his rather annoying suit as he went. He was just working off his tie when he reached Steve's side of the bed and gently sat on the edge of it.
"Hey," Tony said softly.
"Hey," Steve replied gently with a soft smile.
Tony leaned down and placed a chaste kiss on his lovers mouth before quietly mumbling, "I missed you".
"What are you missing me for?" Steve asked playfully. "I have been right here this whole time."
He grabbed Tony's very loose tie and pulled him into a much steamier kiss. Steve's action elicited a slight moan from his partner before the two pulled apart.
"I know you have." Tony replied, but a slightly guilty look overcame his face.
Steve furrowed his eyebrows at his lovers suddenly serious look.
"What's wrong?" He asked.
Tony finally opened his eyes and looked into his lovers brilliant blue orbs, searching them for the information that had not yet passed the lips that he so desperately wanted to kiss again.
"You are not useless." He stated seriously.
Steve had a thoroughly confused look on his face and swiftly sat up, one of his strong arms moving behind him to better support his weight.
"What?"
"I said you are not useless." Tony replied with the same seriousness in his voice as before.
"….Ok" Steve said hesitantly.
"Don't try it" Tony retorted. "I know that you have been thinking that you're useless or not doing enough cause I go off to work everyday while you stay here with our children, and thats bull shit."
Steve looked utterly flabbergasted, his mouth hanging open and eyes wide.
"Wha…?"
"Yeah I get the whole 1940s thing that a man is supposed to be the 'bread winner' and 'bring home the bacon' and all the other crap they call it, but this is the 21st century and thats bull shit." The shorter male gestated rapidly, his hands flying in random directions. "You staying here and taking care of our children is far more important than my stupid job! You are not useless. In fact you probably do more work than I do" Tony ranted, his voice ever escalating in both volume and emotion.
"So stop it." He concluded.
Steve's mouth firmly shut and his once taken aback face had become a hard serious thing.
"I am not contributing…" He began.
"Bull shit." Tony interrupted, leaning in towards his partner slightly.
"…as much to this household…" Steve continued on, valiantly trying to get his point across over his lover's aggravated interjections.
"Bull shit." The CEO cried more loudly than before, his finger flying up to poke the super soldier in the chest.
"…as you are."
"Bull shit!" Tony practically yelled, poking Steve harder this time with each word.
"And, language!" The Captain proclaimed at the same volume.
There was a moment of tense silence as the two men stared at each other.
"Steve Rogers", Tony began. "You are the most infuriating man that I have ever met…" Steve smiled slightly before Tony concluded his statement with, "…and you're dead wrong".
The super soldier's smile melted in an instant. He opened his mouth to argue, but his partner cut him off.
"You are a strong, intelligent, loving man who I honestly don't deserve" Tony hesitated for a moment, his body slightly curling in on himself as if afraid he had just shared a bit too much of his inner demons, even if it isn't the first time he's said this to him. "You do so much for me and our children." He hesitated again, his hands coming to rest on his knees and squeezing tightly. "I hate it that you don't see yourself the way I do. You bring as much, if not more, to our family than I do. Yes, I have a lot of money. Too much money for all of us to use in several life times and the amount just keeps growing. So let me do something useful with it, like taking care of the people I love." Tony implored, looking to his partner like a kicked puppy.
Steve softened slightly, cause in a way he did see Tony's point. Even if part of him, the part of him who was still that poor city boy from days long gone who dreamed of fighting for what he believed in, still didn't fully believe that he was doing everything he should. But that hardly mattered when his partner said those things and made the part of Steve that was more and more becoming a part of the 21st century melt a little. For now, he could let the part of him that still doubted go, just for Tony. He might not fully believe it just yet, but Tony had a way of convincing him about most things and Steve was sure that this would be one of them.
In lieu of a vocal response, Steve leaned in and kissed Tony lovingly. He had learned a long time ago that the ex-playboy was a much more physical creature than he himself was and Steve knew that sometimes actions spoke louder than words with this man.
When they finally pulled away a bright smile graced Tony's lips. He leaned up to kiss Steve's forehead before moving to stand and get ready for bed, but the super soldier, it turned out, had other ideas.
Steve reached up and pulled on Tony's loosened tie, dragging the younger man in for a much deeper kiss. The genius quickly gave up on the idea of getting up and instead leaned further into the kiss, his arm reaching out to balance his weight.
Steve opened his mouth and invited his lover in. Tony quickly took the bait and their tongues began to engage in a heated dance. He was now thoroughly distracted and Steve took advantage of it.
Using Tony's tie to his advantage once again, Steve pulled his partner down on top of him as he collapsed onto the bed making sure that Tony hips landed nicely between his already spread legs. Tony let out a strangled moan at their new position and how incredibly sexy he found the man beneath him.
Steve's hands moved to Tony's hips and slowly, achingly, made their way up his partner's body feeling every muscle and curve of the body that the super soldier knew so well. When he finally reached the top of his lover's shirt and the aforementioned tie, he started to undo first Tony's tie and then each of the tiny buttons on his shirt with practiced fingers. One of Steve's fingers delicately brushed against the hollow of the other man's neck as he undid the top button of the shirt causing Tony to gasp slightly at the unexpected contact. Tony used the intake of breath to his advantage and decided that his lover was far too composed for his liking.
The genius broke the kiss and started making his way towards Steve's neck leaving a trail or kisses and sensual nips in his wake. Once Tony reached the place where his lover's neck and shoulders connected, he gave a particularly hard bite, causing Steve's sure fingers to falter on the small button he was currently attempting to undo. Steve could feel Tony's smirk against his skin, but decided to ignore it in favor of undressing his lover.
Tony continued his assault on his partner's neck until Steve had finally managed to undo the very last button of the billionaire's shirt and triumphantly tore the material from his body. Tony chuckled slightly at Steve's exuberance, clearly he wasn't the only one who's control was starting to waiver. His smirking mouth slowly made its way up to Steve's ear. His hot breath made the super soldier shiver underneath him, which only caused Tony's smirk to grow.
"Getting a little impatient there, Captain?" He teased before gently nipping Steve's ear eliciting a gasp and slight buck of his hips into Tony's.
Tony let out a husky moan in response to the delicious contact. The Steve's arousal was evident through his thin pajama pants while Tony's was still relatively concealed in his now slightly too tight dress pants.
Steve gave him a steamy and all too knowing look, complete with his own smirk.
"Looks like I'm not the only one." The Captain countered huskily. His hand reaching boldly down between their half naked bodies and cupping Tony's ever growing arousal.
Tony's breathing faltered when Steve squeezed his crotch, his eyes closing in ecstasy.
"Oh God." Tony uttered breathlessly.
"Really now?" Steve teased. "Thats not the name you should be saying in that tone."
Steve made quick work of Tony's belt with one hand while the other kept him thoroughly preoccupied. Once the younger man's belt was finally off, Steve removed both his hands from Tony's body eliciting a whimper from the man above him.
"Steve!" He cried in a nearly desperate voice.
At such an utterance from his lover, one of Steve's hand dove into Tony's pants and started fondling his erection through his boxers. The other hand started the process of removing Tony's pants the get better access to the prize hidden inside the layers of fabric. A loud moan erupted from Tony's mouth at the renewed pressure.
Tony, frustrated by Steve's continued collectedness, decided that his lover had far too many clothed on. He started kissing his way down Steve's body, his hands gliding down ahead of his lips. Once Tony's slightly rough hands found the band of his partner's now infuriating pajama pants and boxers, he slipped them beneath both pieces of offending fabric and proceeded to remove them. Steve's hips lifted slightly to allow Tony to more easily remove the clothing. The ex-playboy tossed the clothing over his shoulder carelessly, fully enjoying the view before him with a little smirk.
Steve gasped slightly as the cold air hit his now fully erect penis. Tony's mouth made its way back to Steve's ear, the smirk back on that infuriating mouth.
"Finally." Tony said in an indignant tone. "Its about time you were laid bare for me."
"Oh really?" Steve said in a slightly shaky breath, Tony's hands having been inching slowly closer to his member. "Are you planning on returning the favor any time soon?"
The genius pushed back so that there were a few inches of space between his lover's delectable body and his own. Looking directly into Steve's slightly flushed face, Tony replied, "With pleasure".
The soldier's hands quickly left Tony's lower body to allow him to remove the last of his own clothing.
While Steve was slightly disappointed at not being able to remove Tony's last vestiges of clothing with his own two hands (or maybe someplace more interesting? A mouth maybe? Oh Steve would have to try that next time), he most definitely appreciated the sight. The ex-playboy's smirk only grew as he looked down at his lover.
"Enjoying the view?" Tony questioned smugly.
"Maybe just a little." Steve said in a joking tone.
Tony smiled down at his partner. Oh how he loved this man. He leaned down and kissed Steve tenderly, telling him in his own special way that he loved him more than anything. Once Tony leaned back from the kiss, Steve looked back at him and smiled.
"I love you too." He said adoringly, before pulling Tony down into a much deeper and more sensual kiss. Tony's hands started trailing lower and Steve's hands wound themselves into his hair.
Suddenly a cry erupted from the baby monitor on Steve's night stand. The couple jumped and broke apart, both of them looking at the baby monitor that the genius billionaire had enhanced because he's Tony Stark. How could he ever resist improving upon the poor excuse for a machine that Clint had given them once they told him about adopting Peter?
The baby's cries were so loud that Steve and Tony could hear it both echoing from the hall and emanating from the electronic device that the younger man was now glaring at. He was silently hoping it would be one of those times when their infant daughter just needed to voice some complaint or another for a minute before falling back asleep. Unfortunately for Tony, it was not one of those times.
The couple's young son soon began screaming and crying as well, a habit which he had taken up recently whenever his baby sister started wailing. At least Peter only joined in on the crying when Sarah was really in need of something or distressed.
Steve, still breathing heavily from their previous actions, chuckled slightly beneath Tony.
"Sounds like we're needed." He stated with a sub tone of mirth.
The super soldier somehow managed to seamlessly remove himself from beneath Tony and after grabbing his discarded clothing and redressing, he started to make his way towards the nursery that was only a few feet down the hall from the master bedroom. Tony just watched him go and huffed dramatically once his lover had left him alone on their bed, high and dry. This was not over! Not at all!
That sentiment however was quickly erased by yet another wail, which child it emanated from the genius would never know.
With the reminder that they did in fact have two kids, Tony swung himself out of bed and went to help Steve with their infant children. He ended up being the one to change Sarah's diaper, the reason that she and then her brother had been crying. After getting his baby girl a clean diaper, Tony proceed to fawn over the one month old infant.
"Aw, aren't you just the cutest little cock blocker ever?" Tony cooed in his baby voice, his lips puckering slightly to add to the over all affect.
Steve's back stiffened instantly from his place in front of the crib on the other side of the room while he cuddles Peter in his arms. The baby boy having needed soothing after being distressed about his little sister's own unhappiness.
"Oh, yes you are!" Tony continued, blowing a raspberry into his daughters stomach. "How will I ever get laid with such a cute little cock blocker in the house?"
"Tony!" Steve yelled, turning to fully face his partner, while their infant son looking tiredly between his parents with a pacifier in his mouth and an elephant plushy clutched tightly in his little arms.
"What?" Tony whined while leaning down to place his exhausted daughter in her crib. "Its not like she can understand anything I'm saying."
"But, Peter might!" Steve stated angrily, his signature "Tony stop it now" glare firmly in place.
"But-"
"No!" Captain America declared firmly before turning around to place the now nodding off Peter in his crib.
"If you really must complain about a failed sexual endeavor to our infant daughter then I think you need some time to learn a lesson." He declared when he turned back around to face Tony.
"What kind of lesson?" Tony asked, dread fulling up his every pore and his face growing steadily more and more pale.
"I'm cutting you off." Steve proclaimed, his hands coming to rest firmly at his hips.
"What?!" Tony cried, his entire body reaching out to his lover as if to implore him to reconsider. Not that the genius would ever do that…or at least not yet.
"Yes. Until you have learned how to behave yourself" Steve said smugly before parading victoriously out of the nursery.
Tony's body went limp with shock. How could this happen? No! He wouldn't let it!
Tony marched after his lover and had opened his mouth to argue before Steve shot him "that" look, the one that meant there was absolutely no arguing with him, after which the younger man immediately froze up, all arguments dead on his tongue. It looked like there would be no sex for Tony in the foreseeable future.
It had been a hard few months for Steve and Tony. It had begun wonderfully with the adoption of their precious baby girl. They'd had a peaceful couple of months with her and Peter to get used to the newest iteration of their family, but reality had soon come crashing down on them.
It all started with a Shield job that Steve was needed on. He had gone off on what was only meant to be a quick trip. He was only supposed to be gone for a few days, staying in the couple's D.C. apartment to rest before returning to their Malibu home after the job was over. It had ended up being a much longer stay than either partner had anticipated.
At the end of the two week long period, Shield had fallen and Hydra had been exposed once more. The parasite having grown to far greater strength than it ever had in the time since Steve thought he had destroyed it the first time during World War II.
When he finally returned home, Captain America was a mess. He had cried for days about Bucky and having lost him again. Tony did everything he could to comfort his lover, but it didn't seem to make much impact. The only thing that could heal Steve was his family's love and time.
Eventually, Steve came back to himself, despite still being worried about Bucky. Though he continued to be consumed by guilt over all of the hardships his best friend had no doubt endured during his absence. The relief that Tony experienced over Steve's recovery was short lived, however.
They were soon faced by an even greater threat than before, this time one of their own creation, or more specifically Tony's creation: Ultron. In order to protect their children, the heroes left them with Clint's previously unknown wife and family. They trusted that the safeguards Fury had set up to protect their fellow Avenger's family would be suitable for defending their own children as well.
At the end of their ordeal, it was Tony who was badly was plagued by nightmare after nightmare where he was forced to relive the terror of the vision that Wanda had inflicted upon him. It had gotten so bad that one day Steve had walked into their bedroom to check on Tony only to find his lover gone. Eventually, after franticly searching, the super soldier found his lover in their master bathroom wielding a wicked looking knife. Tony had already inflicted cut after cut on his arms and had the kitchen knife prized over his wrist, ready to inflict one last and final blow. In that instant, seeing his lover so torn apart and broken, Steve felt as if his heart had been ripped from his chest and was laying in the steady stream of blood stemming from Tony's arms. It was terrifying and incredibly detrimental to both partners.
Tony hadn't attempted suicide again after witnessing what it did to his lover, but Steve knew that it was a close thing. He was well aware of the guilt that Tony felt over creating Ultron in the first place, but he also knew that his lover's willingness to go to such drastic measures in order to protect their friends, their family, and the rest of the world had stemmed from something. The same something that was eating Tony from the inside out. Steve tried to do everything he could, but it just didn't seem to change anything.
One particularly bad night, Tony's tossing and turning had woken up Steve. He looked over to find his lover's face scrunched in pure unadulterated agony. He quickly shook Tony awake hoping to spare his love any more suffering.
When Tony was finally roused from his hellish nightmare, he fell apart. He broke down sobbing uncontrollably and curled tightly in on himself, though it did nothing to ease the guilt and overwhelming grief that consumed him.
Steve wrapped his arms firmly around Tony and pulled him tightly to his body so that the man was pressed firmly to his chest, his head resting right under the larger man's chin.
"Shhhh. I'm here." Steve consoled quietly.
After what seemed like hours Tony's breathing finally evened out and sobs no longer shook his body.
"Tony" Steve began. He didn't want to pry if Tony wasn't ready to talk about it, but he knew that something was terribly wrong with his lover and it was breaking his heart to see him this way. He had sensed something was off since their mission to retrieve Loki's scepter, but whenever he tried to get Tony to talk about it, the younger man would shrug off Steve's concerns with his usual antics.
Burying his nose in Tony's hair, Steve continued, "This has gone too far. I'm worried about you. I'm so worried." He pulled him closer to him as if he could absorb the other man's pain into himself.
"Please! Please tell me whats wrong so I can help you." Steve implored, tears of his own stinging his eyes.
A long silence followed his desperate plea. If Tony hadn't been so shaky in Steve's arms, the elder would have suspected his lover of being asleep.
"Its terrible." Tony finally said, shattering the silence of the house. "They're all dead. The other Avengers. Our team. Their bodies are scattered all over the place."
Steve pulled him even tighter against his body and nuzzled his head against Tony's as a way of both urging him to continue and comforting his love.
"Its only after I have been looking around for a while that I see…" Tony's voice broke. He struggled to hold in his sobs just thinking about the image that plagued him most both awake and asleep.
"You." Tony said softly. Almost as if he was afraid speaking it aloud would make it true. "You and our kids. You obviously tried to protect them, but they're still covered in…." Tony sucked in a sharp breath. Unable to bring himself to finish his sentence, but it wasn't necessary. Steve had gotten the message loud and clear. His blood froze at the mere thought of his children, his babies, dead. Dead on some unknown battlefield somewhere where Steve himself is unable to protect them.
Tony was so far gone into the darkest depths of his subconscious that he didn't even notice how stiff his lover had become.
"And thats not even the worst part." Tony continued, though it was difficult for Steve to even begin to imagine something worse than the images that were permeating his mind and slowly invading his subconscious like molasses oozing through the cracks in his defenses.
"I'm alive." Tony whispered so harshly that one would suspect the words of betraying him in the worst possible way.
"You're all dead and gone, yet I'm still alive. Just sitting there, staring at the three of you, and wishing that I was dead too." Tony concludes in a harsh whisper, self loathing permitting every word like acid spilling from his mouth.
Steve was shaking. He didn't know how Tony had managed this long without completely falling apart. If he had to experience what the younger man had just described over and over again, he would have fallen apart long before now. And he knew that the images Tony was painting for him were nothing compared to what he actually experienced every night. He could imagine himself in Tony's place and could only conclude that he would have spent every night clutching his partner's dead body desperately and calling out to him over and over. And the little ones, his babies. The mere notion of clutching the lifeless forms of his infant daughter and young son was soul shattering. That was the moment Steve realized for certain that Tony was infinitely stronger than he ever would be.
As if sensing his lover's harmful train of thought, Tony reached out and wrapped his arms securely around Steve's abdomen. He pulled them together until they were chest to chest, their legs tangled together until Tony wasn't sure where he began and Steve ended.
"Promise that you wont ever leave me." Tony begged in the faintest whisper against the base of Steve's neck.
Steve wove a hand into Tony's hair, the other securely wrapped around his lower back, and his face pressed against the top of his partner's head.
"Only if you swear the same." Steve replied in a desperate voice. He knew that if Tony left him alone he would never be abel to bear it. He wouldn't survive it. At least not completely. He might be able to endure for his children, maybe. But even then, he wasn't sure how long he could live without Tony.
"I swear." Tony replied as he tried to press himself even further against his partner.
"Then I promise." Steve stated in a slightly shaky murmur.
That was certainly not the last night that the vision haunted Tony's dreams, but it was the first night since that fateful mission that he was able to sleep without visiting that darkest pit of his subconscious where the vision now dwelled.
About a month had passed since that night when Tony had finally confided in Steve. Tony had improved greatly over that time, but there were still occasions where he was blindsided by a particularly clear image from his vision and would freeze up in panic. On these occasions it would take him hours, sometimes days, to regain his footing again. It had been a few days since the last occasion on which Tony had experienced such a thing and he and Steve both knew he was due for another episode. Steve suspected it would be sooner rather than later. Thats why he put off leaving on his mission as long as he could.
He had hoped at first that the situation would sort itself out without the super soldier having to interfere, but alas it had not gone that way. To the contrary, Clint and Natasha were already on the scene but the situation was steadily worsening. They needed Steve and they needed him now.
When he finally couldn't put off leaving any longer, Steve regretfully took one of the couple's private planes and headed for the battlefield. He was desperately worried about Tony and willed himself to resolve the situation as quickly as possible so he could return home and take care of his family.
Tony, for his part, had encouraged Steve to go. He knew how bad it must be for their comrades to be unable to handle the situation on their own and he would not let them be put in unnecessary danger. Even if that meant allowing the love of his life to go back into a war zone without him being there to back him up.
The more Tony thought about it, the more worried he became. So, the genius endeavored to do anything and everything to keep himself distracted until his lover returned home to him.
Fortunately for Tony there was plenty to do in the Rogers-Stark household. It was nearly a full time job keeping an eye on the now two year old Peter, who's favorite pass time had become running around the house on the walls and ceiling and seeing how much he could smash before his parents got fed up and put him in his specially designed playpen with his toys.
Little Sarah, who was almost a year old now, enjoyed watching her brother's antics and seemed to especially enjoy the desperate attempts her parents made to try and get Peter off the walls and into the cage like playpen.
It was during one of Peter's now frequent rampages that a particularly bad episode hit Tony. In an instant the innocent image of his baby daughter in her elephant themed infant floor seat (which Steve had picked because he thought it was cute and perfect for the non-powered baby girl) turned into an image of her bloody and mangled body.
Tony crumpled to the floor in a heap of despair, he must have spent a good twenty minutes curled up on the floor trying to pull himself together when Peter cautiously came up to him.
"Dawdy?" He questioned, he was still in the process of figuring out language. "You ok Dawdy?"
Tony was still too caught up in the throngs of his panic to respond to his son. He merely curled tighter in on himself and tried to keep his sobs from escaping his mouth so as not to scare his son further. It seemed to have worked because Peter walked away. However, he returned a moment later with his favorite elephant stuffed animal (Steve had some obsession with elephant themed baby things that was completely beyond Tony).
"Hewe Dawdy. Elie will hewp." Peter said seriously as he placed his bear in his father's arms.
This action only resulted in Tony crying harder, but for a completely different reason. One that he was perfectly ok crying over.
Peter laid down and curled into his father. Tony slowly and gently wrapped his young son in his shaky embrace. They stayed like that until the baby made a slight noise and Peter, realizing that his little sister was being left out voiced his concerns.
"Dawdy, Sawah lowvs you and is wowied too." Peter said firmly.
Tony managed a small laugh before responding.
"Of corse she does. She loves you too." He replied softly.
"Then we should cuwddle with her too." Peter retorted adorably.
Tony let out a real, healthy laugh at that before agreeing. He slowly got up, taking his son with him and went to grab his daughter from her chair before taking them both to bed. The three of them curled up and took a well deserved and very restful nap on Steve and Tony's giant mattress.
It was to this lovely scene that Steve returned home. It warmed his heart to see the three people he loved most in the world all curled up happily together and he knew that Tony would be ok. Or as ok as Tony ever was.
As exhausted as he was, Steve decided that he should join his family and surprise his lover and their children when they woke up. After a quick shower to rid himself of all the grime from his travels, Steve carefully slid himself opposite Tony so that their children were tucked safely in between them. It was the most peaceful and contented sleep that either Steve or Tony had ever had, until it was shattered in the wee hours of the morning by their daughter's crying. Peace was always short lived when two of the most famous super heroes in the world had two kids under five.