To Have a Home
By Ammie Hawk
Disclaimer: Happy Halloween!
AN: So, as it is Halloween, and I'm feeling very festive, I thought I'd post another chapter.
Anyway, I'm done rambling, on to the chapter.
Chapter 2
Steve Rogers sighed as he sat by the bed of his best friend. He still couldn't believe that Bucky was actually alive. Though, he wasn't sure what he was going to tell the other man when he woke up. How was he supposed to tell the man he'd been in love with since they were kids, that almost immediately after he thought he'd died, he'd bonded with someone else? Not that it had lasted long, or been that strong, he'd gone under the ice shortly after, and his bondmate was now long since passed away. But would Bucky forgive him for that, he didn't know.
Before he could dwell on the matter further, the door burst open and Tony barged in. He was actually surprised to see the billionaire, as he was sure the rest of the team had headed back to the tower to get some much needed and deserved rest.
"Tony?" blue eyes followed the brunet as he began pacing around the room. "What are you doing here?"
"He's in the hospital," Tony said, making no sense to the other man. "We got to the tower, and then had to come right back."
He continued to rant and pace, but Steve was so confused he only picked up a few words like sick, small, Howard, and Hulk.
"Wait," he held up his hand. "Is Bruce okay?"
"What? No, Bruce is fine, a bit pissy, but fine," Tony shook his head. "It's the kid."
"I'm confused," the man out of time shook his head. "What kid? You know what, start at the beginning."
"Okay," the brunet took a deep breath and sat down on the only available surface, the edge of Bucky's bed. "We got back to the tower, and there was this kid in the corner. He was unconscious and feverish, so we decided to take him to the hospital. Come to find out, Jarvis let him into the tower because, get this, the kid's a Stark. Yeah, I know, crazy, right? Anyway, so apparently, the kid's my dad's. So I've now got a twelve year old kid brother, that I know nothing about, including where the hell he came from, because my dad died over twenty years ago. If anyone can tell me how that's fuckin' possible, I'm all ears."
As the Captain listened to this new turn of events, his heart skipped a beat. This news was extraordinary, and in normal circumstances, yeah, impossible. But he had a niggling suspicion on how this might have happened, but he wanted proof before he actually said anything.
Flashback
Captain Steve Rogers sat alone in the room that he had been given, after just losing his best friend in the entire world, Sergeant James "Bucky" Barnes. He had tried getting drunk, but the Serum wouldn't allow that. Surprisingly, Howard Stark had found him and took him home with him.
"So," speak of the devil, "I understand you were close to Barnes, but I think he'd want you to continue on. There's so much to be done, and unfortunately there's no time to dwell on it."
"I know," the blond cleared his throat, hoping to keep his voice from cracking under the suppressed emotions, "but it's just so hard. Bucky's been my best friend for forever, he was always there, ya know, ready to get me out of all the scrapes I got into. There was also the possibility for something more. Sorry," he realized what he'd just admitted, "I don't know why I just said that."
"It's okay," Stark slipped his arm around the blond's shoulders. "I'm not here to judge you. Nothing goes beyond this room."
"Thanks," he laid his head on the other's shoulder, drawing comfort from the contact. "But none of that matters now, he's… he's gone. I went crazy when I found out he was captured, and I knew I had to do something. But… but now, there's nothing…"
He choked back a sob as the tears started flowing down his cheeks. Howard just let him cry, slipping his other arm around him and pulling him close, rubbing his back soothingly. When the tears finally stopped, the brunet tilted Steve's face and placed a soft kiss on his forehead, then his nose, and finally on his lips.
"H-Howard," the blond pulled back suddenly. "I-I can't… not now…"
"I know," Stark gave a small smile and got to his feet. "Just know that I'm here if you need anything."
End Flashback
"Tony," the blond shook his head, "I think, maybe, the best way to get your answer, is to find out who the other parent is."
"Yeah," Tony ran his hand through his hair. "Also should see what's actually wrong with him, besides the obvious infection and blood loss."
"I'll go with you, if you want," the Captain offered. "I mean, it doesn't look like Bucky's waking up any time soon, so I've got nothing but time."
"Yeah, sure, why not?" the brunet shrugged, pushing to his feet. "Let's go check on my kid brother."
Steve nodded, and together they left the room and made their way to ICU. The sight that greeted them when they entered the hallway was not what they were expecting. Staring into one of the rooms was the director of S.H.I.E.L.D., Mr. Nickolas Fury himself. He must have heard their approach, since he turned as soon as they got close.
"Captain, Stark," he nodded in greeting.
"Director," the blond replied. "What brings you here?"
"Him," he motioned with a file in his hand toward the window. "And you. I figured it would be best if you heard it from me, rather than someone else."
"What?" Steve gave the director a confused look.
"It's all in here," Fury handed him the file, "but the short of it is, that boy in there is your son."
"M-My son?" the blond stuttered. "I-If I had a son, he'd be over seventy years old right now, not twelve."
"Let's just put it this way," the one eyed man rubbed his lip, "you weren't the only one we pulled out of the ice, Captain. When we thawed you out we discovered you were just over four weeks pregnant. You remained in a coma, but the pregnancy progressed normally. You gave birth to a five pound nine ounce bouncing baby boy. We were hoping that the baby would bring you out of it, Omega instincts and what not. We were told, however, that the infant did not last the night. An oversight I will personally be looking into."
"Why didn't you tell me before?" Steve shook his head, he couldn't believe his theory was true.
"Cap… Steve," Fury sighed, "I may only be a Beta, but I know what Omegas can go through when they lose a child. It was nine years before you woke up. I thought I was doing you a favor by not telling you."
"I'm sure you meant well, Fury," Bruce interrupted, stepping out of the hospital room. "Right now, though, I think it would be best if they went to see Harry, he's not doing well and could use his family."
The director nodded and headed off down the hallway. As soon as he was well out of earshot, Tony rounded on the super soldier, shoving him against the wall.
"What the hell?!" he practically yelled. "So, what? You seduced my dad and got pregnant? Then decided to drop both of them by flying into the ice?!"
"It wasn't like that, Tony," the blond bowed his head, fighting back tears. "I-I didn't know."
"You know what? Save it," the billionaire snarled. "I can't even look at you."
He gave the Captain one final shove and took off down the hallway. The other two watched him go. Steve made to follow him but Bruce's hand on his arm stopped him.
"Let him go," he shook his head.
"I-I have to explain," Steve took a shaky breath. "It-It wasn't like that. I-I didn't… I-I couldn't… It-It really wasn't like that."
"Steve," Bruce sighed and pulled the super soldier into his arms, "I may not know exactly what happened but I do know you and when Tony calms down and gets his head out of his ass, he'll realize he knows you too. Now, in the meantime, there's a little boy in there who desperately needs his daddy. So, if you can pull yourself together, we'll reunite you with your son."
The blond Omega nodded, rubbing his hands over his face. He couldn't fix things with Tony right now, but he could fix things with his own son, and that was something he couldn't ignore.
888888
Tony found the nearest exit, put on his Iron Man suit, and took off for the tower. He needed to get away. This was just too much for him to handle right now. It was bad enough that Howard had been an absentee father but if it hadn't been for the perfect Omega specimen that was Captain America, things would've been different for him and his mother.
He knew things had never been perfect for his parents, but they might have stood a chance if it wasn't for that shameless Omega. He had probably planned to spring the whole baby thing on him after he saved the world, intending to ensnare himself a wealthy Alpha and be set for the rest of his life. God only knows he had enough sniffing around him, Alphas, Betas, and Omegas, all trying to cash in on the Stark name.
When he reached the tower, he bypassed the platform he'd made for taking off the suit and flew through the busted windows. As soon as he was inside, he held his hand out and began destroying everything in sight. It may have been childish but he really needed to vent.
He had destroyed most of the furniture, avoiding the bar and most of the high end electronics, but had just turned his hand to the large flatscreen, when a voice interrupted his destruction.
"Tony?"
He whirled around, ready to defend himself, but quickly lowered his hand when he recognized the God of Thunder.
"Thor?" he lifted the faceplate on his suit. "Thought you went home, what are you doing here?"
"It was never my intention to stay gone for long," the blond shook his head, "I was just delivering Loki. Why are you destroying your home?"
"Look, Muscles," the billionaire glared at him, "it's none of your business, so back off."
Thor took a deep breath and set Mjolnir on a nearby counter, which had miraculously survived the carnage. He then raised his hands in a placating gesture, taking a careful step forward.
"Tony," his voice was uncharacteristically gentle, "why don't you take off the armor and we can talk. You can say it's not my business, but if it is effecting you this much, it effects the team, which last time I checked, I was a part of. So, please, take off the armor and talk to me."
Tony continued to glare as he reluctantly began the process of removing his Iron Man suit. He wasn't sure why but he couldn't help but obey the command in the Asgardian's voice. Once he was finished, Thor motioned for the brunet to join him on the stair to the sunken living room, the only available seat left in the penthouse. With a sigh, he complied. When he got close enough the God of Thunder grabbed his wrist and pulled him onto his lap.
"Hey!" the billionaire protested trying to get up.
"Relax," the blond began rubbing his back soothingly. "Just accept it and tell me what's going on."
"Fine," Tony began to explain what had been going on, slowly relaxing into the other's hold.
"So this boy is the son of your father and Steve, making him your brother?" Thor scowled. "This is joyous news. Why would you be destroying your home over it?"
"That's just it," the brunet shook his head, but couldn't bring himself to get too worked up, not while he was in the Asgardian's hold. "I found out that the one person who made my childhood a living hell, could've made me nonexistent, had he not decided to dump himself into the ocean. I mean, it's obvious he loves someone else. So what? He runs to the first Alpha that could support him and seduced him into knocking him up?"
"Tony," the god's tone was reprimanding, "Steve is not like that and you know it. Perhaps, you should talk with him before jumping to these unfounded conclusions."
"I guess," the brunet sighed, he didn't know why but all his anger and frustration seemed to melt away at the blond's ministrations. "I'm-I'm just not sure how to."
"A good start would be to go back to the hospital and talk to Steve and wait for your brother to awaken."
The Omega nodded and Thor gave him one last pat on the back, before getting to his feet and grabbing his hammer. He then wrapped his free arm back around the billionaire and began swinging Mjolnir.
"Hold on," he warned as he leapt into the air, flying toward the hospital.
Tony tried to protest the manhandling, but once again found himself incapable of fighting. It was as he was relaxing into the strong one armed embrace, that it hit him. Thor was a fucking Alpha! The fucking asshole had subdued him with his Alpha pheromones. Not that he could get too riled up about this fact, the fucker still had a hold of him.
He couldn't believe he'd been Alpha whammied when not in heat, not that he ever let an Alpha near him at that particular time, mind you. Though, he couldn't say he actually hated the treatment. It was actually quite nice and refreshing to have all that attention focused on himself. Of course, when the other shoe fell, like it always did, he'd be the one hurt and left in the dirt.
With that thought filling his head, they landed on the roof of the S.H.I.E.L.D. facility. Tony immediately pushed away from the God of Thunder and gave him his most vicious glare.
"You-You Alpha'd me!" he practically yelled.
"Tony, I was helping you," the blond frowned. "I was doing what any Alpha would do for a distressed Omega. I was helping ground you. You needed support, I gave it."
"Alphas don't do that," the billionaire shook his head agitatedly. "They never give support, and they always want something in return when they do."
"I will never understand your ways," Thor shook his head. "On Asgard, an Alpha takes care of and protects Omegas in their care. You are my friend and my comrade and I would do anything within my power to assist you or any Omega on the team, with no strings attached."
"Yeah, right," Tony scoffed.
Before Thor could argue further, a tremor ran through the building. The two Avengers immediately put their dispute on hold to face the new threat.
"Earthquake?" the billionaire asked, though it seemed unlikely in New York.
"No," the blond frowned. "That was magic."
"Loki?"
"He is safely contained on Asgard," Thor shook his head. "This is coming from inside the building."
Together, they made their way to the stairs and began the descent into the bowels of the hospital. Thor took the lead, as he could feel where the magic was originating. They finally came to a stop outside a room, where the rest of the Avengers had gathered in a state of panic.
"Tony," Bruce sighed in relief at the sight of the pair, "he's waking up, but somehow we were kicked out of the room and we can't get back in."
"Calm yourself," Thor commanded in a voice that even the other Alpha deferred to. "We do not need the Hulk to make an appearance for a simple case of panicked magic."
All eyes turned to stare incredulously at the God of Thunder.
"But that's…" Steve's eyes widened at the implications.
Thor ignored all of them and made his way to the door, gripping Mjolnir tight. He lifted the hammer to his head and slowly pushed the door open.
Ammie: Okay, so there it is, the next chapter. Hopefully, I'll have more to post soon. I'm actually doing pretty well on my Christmas posts so, who knows, this may continue to get added to. Anyway, let me know what you think.