Pulses of Bravery

All characters belong to Marvel Comics

I own nothing

"I'm scared, Cap." Tony snuffled, wrenching his teary dark brown eyes away. His resistance to the time stone was deteriorating. His body was devolving into a small form of a child inside a metallic gold and hot rod red armor. His lips quivered as he felt the impending dread surge in his veins.

Every pulse of his heart beat controlled his existence. Within minutes if he didn't gain control of the cursed gem stone-he would cease to exist.

Tony looked timidly upwards at the towering super-soldier in front of him. "Don't look at me..."

Steve wearing his dark royal blue uniform, revealing the indentations of rippling, firm muscle underneath the Kevlar eyes crystal azure colored eyes glimmered with warmth and burning defiance. The chiseled lines of his youth and angular face were smooth, and the helmet was strapped over his chin. He stared at the boy with a leveled, intent gleam, reading her hidden emotions.

"I know that we have our differences...I was jealous of you because you spent more time with my father. Now, I can that you are the hero that wasn't created from a bottle. You are the greatest soldier who ever lived." He suddenly lurched, and stepped backwards, and tucked his arms against his chest, blocking the amber light from the reactor. He dropped his head low, "I guess I just wanted to be brave like you. A real hero." he commenced distantly.

Steve removed his helmet, and knelt on his armored knees, allowing the age regressing, boy billionaire to stare beyond the disciplined semblance of Captain America. The corner of his lips drew into a warm smile, and Tony couldn't stop crying. "You're brave, Tony. You may not be a soldier, but you are a good man. Yes, we have our battles in the past, but we have learned how to overcome our differences." He placed his leather gloved hand on the boy's armored shoulder. "You're not just my teammate, but also my friend."

Tony shook his head, disbelieving Steve's words. He sagged his shoulders a little, feeling the surge of the rocks power scorching in his blood. "There isn't much time left, Cap." He snapped back. He couldn't help it. He hated the fact that he was fading into a void of nonexistence. His legacy and life's work meant nothing. He wouldn't even become a memory. Just a lingering thought. Inside he felt the bitterness penetrate into his core and nothing was going to stop the gem lodged close to his heart. He wanted to live. His pleading brown eyes locked with Steve's sincere crystal blue embers. He closed his eyes, trying to seal off the tears. "I can't pretend to be brave. I just can't."

"All men can be brave, Tony" Steve whispered in soft tone. His blue eyes shimmered against the dim light. "We don't get our strength from science. It's not real." He placed his hand over Tony's chest. His heart. "We get it from in here, son. Sometime our hearts can make become invincible, but you need in yourself. Remember Tony Stark was a hero long before he forged his armor."

"You mean even before I was a genius, billionaire playboy, and philanthropist? When I looked to my father for answers and only found silence in his words." he managed to choke out. "I wanted to make him proud, but he never believed in me. I was a distraction from his work-from his obsession of finding you in the ice. I failed him so many times, because I wasn't a good son." He gave the super-soldier his heart wrenching confession. "There were so many things I wanted to tell him...I made those designs just to get his attention. I guess he didn't care..."

"No matter what you chose to believe, Tony, your father loved you more than anything he created." He swallowed, feeling the pulsing waves against his hand. He knew the time would betray him once again. He refused to let Stark go. "You were his greatest creation. Sometimes it takes a lifetime for a man to figure out that his life wasn't wasted, that he did something great when he brought a good legacy into his world."

Tony sniffled a little, his face tightened and skin paled. He didn't have much time left. "I'm proud to call you my friend, Cap."

He lunged into Steve's chest, and then rammed his armor against the royal blue uniform, and Steve was shocked with reaction for a few seconds, his eyes watered as he listened to the boy cry into his broad arms. He lowered his head against Tony's shoulder, placed his hand on the metal face plate and closed his eyes. "Whatever happens, I will not leave you, my friend." he avowed, his own tears cascading down his chiseled features. "I will stay with you until the end." he said slowly. "That's a promise."

Tony clenched his eyes shut, and listened to Steve's strong heart beat. "I'm not afraid," he sobbed, feeling the jabbing pain enter his heart. "I can be brave."

"You have to fight this, Stark," Steve digressed, holding the boy close against him, and a brotherly embrace. "You can beat this magic. I know you can..." his words crawled from the back of his throat in a broken whisper, and opened his blue eyes; narrowing and watching his friend shrink into the armor.

"I'm not letting you go..." He screamed aloud, a complete loss of breath after he listened to the bones of the child twist and crackle against the armor. The golden aura of light emitted from the reactor. His heart seized up. "Be strong, Tony..." He crooned softly, easing the pain of the shivering boy. "I'm right here..."

"Cap," Tony whimpered weakly in a desperate tone, pained tears blurred his vision. "Don't let me go... That's an order."

Steve nearly smiled at that, but then found himself shedding tears even more uncontrollably, and he cried and prayed that his friend would return to him.

Tony buried his face into the white star, drenching the material with his pain, and he said, "Goodbye, my friend."

"No!" Steve roared, and stuck his fingers into the reactor pulling out the stone, not caring if he would die. He was prepared to sacrifice himself to give Tony back his life.

"You're going you make it, Stark." Steve clutched the stone into a fist, and held the power while he shielded the boy with his vigorous arms, holding him close. "Don't give up the fight." he soothed, in a mere whisper, shrouding his own fear. He could feel his heart sinking in his chest and grief overwhelmed his body, clotting his blood with pints of sorrow. He had to be strong. "Believe that you will have the victory." he rasped, stroking his hand over armor. He released a breath of defeat, his eyes glossed with tears as he spared a glanced and looked deeply at the trembling body latched against his torso, and he whispered out his own confession. Honest and true. "You're going to live. You hear me, Stark. You're going to have your life again."

Tony pulled aback, and lifted his soggy brown eyes, looking at Steve. "No matter what I've said about you, the names and teasing." he choked up his words. "You are my hero...Steven Rogers."

Five seconds...Heartbeat...A tear.

A blinding flash of light pierced the space between their bodies.

Steve fell onto his back, holding the stone, and his eyes were screwed shut. He screamed with rawness escaping from his throat as his bones jostled in thralls of anguish.

His chest heaved, and heart throbbed. His vision swam momentarily as the bittersweet words deafened in his ears. He blinked the moisture out of his eyes, and stared at Tony's mass growing back; pieces of the suit broke off and shattered across the floor. The muscles grew and the boyish features changed into aged chiseled lines of a masculine, handsome face.

"I can't control it!" Steve yelled and his face contorted with pain. "Get out of here, Tony."

"Sorry, Cap," Tony replied, moving closer to the thrashing super-soldier. He managed to grab Steve's wrist, lifting his arm off the floor. "A good man never leaves a friend behind...Wait I can't believe I just said that..."

Steve nodded firmly, despite the tantalizing spasms erupting in his body, he gripped Stark's shoulder, "It's good to have you back, Stark." he said, his light blue eyes grew intent, but his sweaty face beamed with anew hope shining in his stern gaze.

"Yeah, if you like having an arrogant, self-centered and not a team player genius watching your back?" Tony jeered, unclasping Steve's fingers, and removing the stone. He tossed it aside. "I'll admit it is good to be back, spangle shorts."

Smirking, faintly the golden haired soldier shook his head, "You're never going to take this seriously?"

"Let me think," Tony paused momentarily, and then grinned, widely. "Nope." he answered, helping the captain to his feet. "Just for today...I will say thank you."

Steve smiled, his focused blue eyes lit up at Tony's rare gesture of humility. "You're welcome."