The first thing Steve noticed when he, Natasha, and James got on the quinjet was the addition of Pepper Potts. He knew Tony and Pepper were having problems, so he had kind of assumed she would travel with the attorneys. Tony didn't look too comfortable, so Steve assumed his friend was even further in the doghouse after their little incident.
"I thought it would be best if I told you the details of the agreement with the Sokovian government before we got back to the states," Pepper began. "They requested a government agent watch over the disposal of Ultron's remains. Of course, they wanted one of their own, but Senator Kent managed to convince them to let the U.S. handle this one. They'll have an agent at the compound by the time we land."
"That's ridiculous," Tony complained. "We can handle this ourselves."
"It's non-negotiable, Tony. Just play nice," Pepper replied.
Before Tony could get himself into any more hot water, Steve decided to intervene. "We'll make him feel at home, Ms. Potts. We're all on the same side. We just want the threat neutralized once and for all."
"Good," Pepper replied. "I'll be sticking around as well, so I'll try to help you handle the diplomacy." She looked at James then back at the others. "I think I was promised the full story on how this young man came to be and why he was brought on an unsanctioned mission."
"Now, that's a long story," Tony replied. "Cap, Red, one of you want to take this one?"
Steve and Natasha took turns filling Pepper in on James with Tony and the others interjecting from time to time. By the time they were finished, Pepper was just shaking her head. "And, I thought aliens in New York was crazy," she replied. "We need to get some legal work taken care of on James, but this story isn't exactly shareable. Any ideas?"
"I've been thinking about it, and I have one that could work," Natasha began. "James is eleven. Steve was still missing and I was still with my old handlers. It would be plausible to the government that Russia managed to get a hold of Captain America's DNA and impregnated one of their own. We could say I've been looking for him since I defected, and Steve helped me find him."
"Won't they deny it? I mean, it obviously didn't happen," Pepper replied.
"They'd deny it even if it did," Natasha said coldly, "but there is no one left alive who can honestly be sure it's a lie. I handled that personally."
"Okay then we'll put the attorneys to work," Pepper replied, but Steve didn't miss the way her eyes grew wider at Natasha's admission. He also noticed Natasha's body language was suddenly guarded. It was always hard to watch her close herself off.
"I think it's a good plan. We'll want joint custody please, Pepper," Steve said as he touched Natasha's shoulder. "No one needs to know the whole truth except for those of us on this plane."
The rest of the flight was uneventful. Steve noticed Natasha had gotten pretty quiet, so once the others were busy entertaining themselves, he decided to get her thoughts on something more pleasant. "Do you think you could pull up some houses on line? We might as well start looking now."
"Umm, okay, sure," Natasha responded as she pulled out a laptop. Soon, they were looking at local real estate. "This looks promising. It's only ten minutes from the compound. School district is top notch. It has three bedrooms, two baths, a big kitchen, double fireplace, and a nice size fenced in yard so James can have a dog."
"A dog?" Steve grinned. "You want a dog?"
"Well, I've never had one, but it seems like a nice normal thing to do, doesn't it?"
"Yeah, it does."
"We don't have to get a dog. I was just thinking out loud," Natasha replied.
"No, I like the idea. It'll be good for James," Steve replied. He could have easily added that it would be good for her to have the normalcy, too, but he wisely kept that to himself.
"One of the bedrooms is already a nice shade of blue," Natasha added. "Do we need to look for something with four bedrooms? I mean, I know you just got Bucky back, so if you want him to stay with us-"
"No, three is fine. I think I'd rather it be just the three of us if that's okay. Like you said, we want James to have a normal childhood for a change. There's not anything more normal for a kid than living with his mom, dad, and a dog, right?"
Natasha smiled at him then clicked on the next picture and frowned. "Maybe we should keep looking. The third bedroom is on the small side. James needs his space, and we each need our own rooms."
"Let me see," Steve replied. She pushed the screen his direction. "It's not that bad. I'll take the smaller room. I just need a bed and a chest anyway. James's room is a good size, and the master has a big closet and a private bathroom so you'll have a place to unwind."
"You need to have your space. It's your home, too. We can keep looking."
"Nat, you know you love this house. I'll be fine. Besides, I grew up in Brooklyn during the depression. That room is huge by my standards, and there aren't a lot of houses for sale in the area. What is most important for me is the short commute. It's perfect. We'll make an appointment to look at it when we get home, okay?"
Natasha smiled at him, and Steve almost melted because it was the smile he rarely saw from her. It wasn't her teasing smile or her guarded smile. It was the smile Steve had decided was her truly happy smile. He'd seen it the first time when they were at Clint's. She didn't know he was watching her playing tea party with Lila. She was so relaxed with the little girl even as things were going crazy with Ultron. Steve knew she wasn't really sacrificing to give up avenging for motherhood. As much as he was going to miss her in the field, he knew she deserved the chance to enjoy James and a semi-normal life. And, if he was really lucky, maybe someday she'd want him around for more than just their son's sake.
Upon arriving at the compound, they were greeted by a familiar face. Steve smiled when he saw his former neighbor. "I'm guessing you're the one they sent to keep tabs on us."
Sharon returned his smile. "It's not every day I get pulled off a case to handle a diplomatic incident caused by Captain America," she paused. "Senator Kent requested me personally. He was always a friend to Fury and an ally of Shield's. He figured you guys might appreciate a familiar face."
"It definitely helps," Steve replied as James came to stand beside him. "This is my son James. James, Agent Carter."
"Nice to meet you, Agent Carter," James responded politely.
"Nice to meet you, too, James. Call me Sharon. I was your dad's neighbor in D.C."
Steve laughed. "More like my Fury assigned protection detail, but I am glad you're here. We weren't sure who they'd send, and the last few days have been a little unnerving."
Natasha joined them. "Hello, Agent Carter. I guess we don't have to ask why you're here." She handed James his backpack. "You left this on the plane, James."
"Thanks, Mom," James replied as he put the pack on his back.
"Mom?" Sharon asked. "This is going to be a very interesting debriefing."
Steve smiled again. "You have no idea."
"Speaking of debriefings, we should probably get this one over with so Tony and Vision can get to work. James, why don't you take your bag and put it away. We'll be up when we are finished." James nodded and left the three adults alone. "The others are already in the conference room."
"One question before we join them," Sharon said raising an eyebrow. "How is James even possible? You were frozen until just a few years ago."
"The Red Room acquired a sample of Steve's DNA. They impregnated me with it as part of my graduation ceremony. I carried James to term then they took him from me. After I joined Shield, I started searching for my son. Once Steve found out, he helped me look. We've finally have him with us."
"Wow," Sharon replied. "That's a very well-thought-out story. Most people will probably believe it. Good job." She lowered her voice. "I read your file, Agent Romanoff."
"Not everything was in the file, Agent Carter," Natasha replied.
Sharon nodded. "I'm not going to push. Like I said, it's a good cover. Maybe one day you'll tell me the real story."
Natasha didn't answer, and Steve could sense the tension, so he cleared his throat. "We should probably join the others now. It was a long flight."
Thankfully, both women nodded and Steve followed them to the conference room. He was sure Natasha was just aggravated that Sharon had read her file. He certainly couldn't imagine any other reason why she'd be upset. Personally, Steve was just glad their government oversight was coming in the form of a friendly face.
