Only a few minutes had passed, but it felt like hours later when the lab doors finally slid open.

Steve immediately got to his feet, shifting the fussing baby in his arms. "Tony, are you okay?" he asked anxiously.

"I don't know." Tony frowned. "It's impossible, but according to Jarvis, I'm lactating."

Steve sagged with relief. "Oh, Tony, that's great news."

Tony shook his head. "It just means my hormones are even more messed up than I thought. Random heats, spontaneous lactation. This isn't normal."

Steve put a hand on Tony' shoulder and squeezed firmly. "You need to stop thinking you're broken. Because you're not. You're a beautiful omega with strong maternal instincts. And because of how well you've bonded with the baby, your body's starting to consider her your own."

"You're really a glass half full kind of guy, aren't you?"

"I try," Steve said. "I'd like to believe that no matter how bad things look at the time, there's still the chance for a happy ending. If we fight hard enough, we can make a difference in the world for the better."

Tony shook his head. "I don't know how you can keep telling yourself that. Just about everyone you grew up with is dead, except for Bucky. And Bucky's been tortured and brainwashed. I don't see how you can still be optimistic."

"Bucky may never be the same person he was in my day," Steve acknowledged. "But he's not the same person he was when Hydra had him. And that's what really matters. I'm not giving up on him, Tony, and I'm not giving up on you either."

Tony sagged into his arms. "I want to live in your world. It sounds so much better than mine."

"It's the same world, Tony." He pressed the baby into Tony's arms. "Just look at her. Doesn't she make you feel hopeful for the future?"

And of course, that was the moment Stephy started crying in earnest.

Tony flinched. "I am definitely going to have to get used to this feeling."

"What feeling?"

Tony lifted up one side of his shirt with his free hand so Steve could see the little trickle of milk down his chest. "I thought I was bleeding at first," Tony confessed. "But you're right, lactating is a relief, considering the other possibilities."

"Absolutely," Steve said. "Once you relieve some of that pressure by feeding her, your chest will stop hurting. It's the easiest fix."

"Easy, eh?" Tony said. He looked down at his chest and then at the baby. "Then you tell me how I'm supposed to go about this."

Steve rolled his eyes. "You're a genius, Tony. I'm sure you can figure it out."

"Okay, then." Tony pulled his shirt up to his neck and held it in place with his chin. "Alright, Stephy. Take your pick."

The baby looked at Tony skeptically.

"Don't look at me like that. I've never nursed before. So, I'm sorry if this isn't what you're used to."

"That's right," Steve said. "She's probably not used to nursing either. With all the nannies she has, she's probably been bottle-fed all along."

Tony clasped her to his chest. "Oh, you poor baby. Momma's going to take much better care of you."

Stephy squirmed a little and latched on to Tony's right nipple.

Tony twitched. "Oh god, this is the weirdest thing."

"Does it hurt?"

"No, it's just...difficult to explain."

It couldn't be that bad, Steve figured. The tense, startled expression was fading from Tony's face as the baby suckled.

Tony leaned back against the lab bench with a contented sigh. "Oh yeah, definitely not as sore anymore. But I'll be pissed if my chest starts hurting again before Stephy needs dinner."

"I doubt it," Steve said. "Your body produces way more than you need at first, but as long as you keep breastfeeding, everything will normalize."

"Oh, I will," Tony said. "Anything to help normalize me."

Steve frowned at the implication in Tony's words. After all this, Tony still didn't consider himself a normal omega?

He squeezed Tony's shoulder. "You don't need any help. You've got this."

Tony flashed him a sheepish smile. "Not really. I just read every single parenting article I could find that first night."

Steve nodded slowly, remembering how easily Tony could become an expert in any topic he set his mind to. "So, you had to do a little research. Nobody knows everything when they first start out. Remember that nice woman in the park? She didn't know what she was doing either. So, you checked some parenting sites and now you know."

"Except for this whole breastfeeding thing," Tony said. "I had no idea this was coming and I didn't read a single thing on what to do."

"But look at you. You're doing just fine."

"For now," Tony said. His eyes skittered over to his computer. "I should look up how often I'm supposed to breastfeed her."

Steve sighed. "Tony."

"No, I'm serious." Tony stepped gingerly over to the computer and the baby continued nursing obliviously. "I think the body metabolizes everything differently. And I better check if making the switch all of a sudden is going to cause any problems. I want to know what to look for."

"Tony," Steve said gently. "Someone once told me that even the best plans have to be adapted in the heat of the moment."

"I know, I know. But I want to be prepared."

"You can't prepare for everything, Tony. And it won't make you any less of a perfect mother if something goes wrong. It just makes you human."

Tony sank down into his chair with a heavy sigh. "I'll keep that in mind."

Steve shook his head as he trudged back up the stairs. There was no reasoning with Tony when he was like this. He'd just have to give him a little time to work it out himself.

Tony didn't come up for dinner and when asked, Jarvis informed Steve that he was practicing holds with the baby.

Of course. Tony probably thought he could learn everything there was to know about breastfeeding in a single night. Just like he had with thermonuclear physics.

But eventually he'd realize that no one could possibly know everything. People had been talking about child rearing techniques for thousands upon thousands of years and still nobody had all the answers. Even Tony, genius as he was, couldn't hope to figure everything out. Steve knew Tony was a fantastic mother. He had all the right instincts and all the right information. But even he was going to make a mistake now and then.

Steve just hoped the realization wasn't going to consume him.

After dinner, he crawled into bed with his tablet and asked Jarvis for a reading recommendation. Normally, Jarvis would pull him a dissertation from a historian, which had the dual benefits of helping him learn about the time periods that he had missed and getting him to doze off on the nights he had trouble sleeping. But tonight, it was a peer-reviewed article from social scientists on trust issues in mistreated omegas.

Steve sighed. "I'm making a mess of things, aren't I?"

The article vanished from his tablet. "Apologies, Captain Rogers. I am not implying that you are doing anything wrong with Sir. I merely thought it would be comforting to know you are not alone in this endeavor."

"You're right, Jarvis. I'm sorry." He motioned for the AI to bring the article back up.

The article wasn't going to be able to tell him everything about fixing Tony's trust issues because nobody was ever going to know all of Tony's circumstances, but it would be good reference material. And it definitely helped to know he wasn't the only one fighting to love an omega that considered himself unlovable.

At midnight, the bed dipped as Tony crawled in beside him.

"Everything okay?" Steve asked. He carefully slipped the tablet under his pillow.

"No," Tony said miserably.

Steve wrapped his arms around him. "Want to tell me about it?"

Tony sighed. "I had another...episode."

"Panic attack," Steve said. He'd heard about Tony's difficulties after the Battle of New York.

"Yeah." Tony shifted uncomfortably. "I was playing peek-a-boo with the baby of all things. And it all came back. The darkness, not being able to see a damn thing. I freaked out. And that freaked the baby out."

"Oh, Tony," Steve said sympathetically. "The baby will be fine. Babies are so resilient."

"Which is good. But I'm not fine. I'm so fucking broken."

Steve stroked Tony's back. "You're not broken."

He didn't know how many times it would take before Tony would start to believe him. Nothing he was doing seemed to make any difference. No matter how many times he stroked squeezed Tony's shoulders and tried to be understanding, Tony wasn't feeling any better about himself. If he could touch Tony's gland while he told him all these things, Tony might be more receptive, but he didn't have that option.

Tony shook his head sadly. "I see it on your face. I'm so broken that you can't even comfort me properly. What good is an omega that can't trust their alpha to look after them when they need reassurance?"

"It's not your fault," Steve said. "You can't blame yourself for all those alphas taking advantage of you."

"It is my fault. I love you and that should be enough to keep me from flipping out on you and accusing you of trying to get in my pants."

Steve sighed. "We've already gone over this, Tony. I'm not offended. It was just an instinctive reaction."

"But you deserve better than that after all you've done for me. I wish I was a normal omega so you didn't have such a hard time."

"You can't do this for me," Steve said. "You have to want it for yourself."

"I do," Tony assured him. "I'm tired of being broken. So if you know a way to fix me and you're not telling me, there's going to be hell to pay."

"Well," Steve said hesitantly. "It's possible that with time and actively telling yourself that I'm not a threat, you won't have such a negative reaction. I don't think you'll ever forget what those alphas did to you, but you might be able to train yourself to tolerate touches from people you trust."

"Awesome," Tony said. "Let's do this." He tipped his head to one side, exposing his neck.

"It's not going to work right away," Steve cautioned.

"I know. But the sooner we start this, the sooner I'll be cured." He flashed Steve a nervous smile. "I'll try really hard not to flip out again, but don't take it personally."

"I won't," Steve said. "Now just try to relax." He slowly slid his thumb over Tony's gland.

Tony's whole body went rigid. His breathing was shallow and his eyes were wide with panic as they darted across the room. This was the same way Bucky had looked when he first brought him to the Tower, utterly terrified of the rest of the Avengers and bracing himself for a blow that would never come. Steve had hated seeing the look on Bucky's face and he hated seeing it on Tony's.

Tony gasped out a breath as Steve took his thumb off the gland.

Steve gathered the shuddering omega into his arms and kissed every inch of Tony's face he could find.

"I will never hurt you," he said fiercely. "Never."

"I know. But it didn't help." Tony curled his hand into a fist. "Damn it. Why can't I trust you?"

"It'll take time, Tony. And the more I touch you without hurting you, the more ammunition you'll have against the panic."

"Ammo," Tony said bitterly. "I'm at war with myself."

"And you're winning."

Tony snorted derisively.

Steve cupped Tony's face in his hands. "Look at me. You're not a failure because this didn't work the first time. And it doesn't mean you don't love me. I know you do. The fact that you're willing to put yourself in such a vulnerable position speaks volumes, Tony. You're strong, you're brave, and you're stubborn. I know you, of all people, will find a way through this."

Tony's smile was small, but it was genuine.

"You've had a rough night," he said gently. "So you should get some rest and try not to think about this too much. But we will keep trying."

"Keep on trying till we run out of cake," Tony murmured.

Steve frowned at him. Tony looked a little tired, but he didn't seem that far gone already.

Tony waved a hand. "Never mind. You don't get the reference."

"Ah."

"Fun game," Tony said. He stifled a yawn. "At least I think it was. I burned through the whole thing with Rhodey one night when we were really, really drunk." His head dropped down onto Steve's chest as he began singing under his breath. "But there's no use crying over every mistake. You just keep on trying till you run out of cake. And the science gets done and you make a neat..." He trailed off with a snore.

Steve cradled Tony gently against his chest and kissed his forehead. Tony might have trust issues, but the fact that he was comfortable sleeping beside him every night spoke volumes.

"Jarvis, can I see that article again?" he whispered quietly.

"Of course, Captain."

Steve stared at the article until his eyes burned and all the words blurred together.

He woke up just a few hours later. Tony was still sleeping so he carefully untangled himself from the genius' cuddly embrace. He couldn't bear to wake him when he looked so peaceful and relaxed. God, he wished Tony looked like this more often. He needed all the rest and relaxation he could get.

Even though it was only a little after 3 a.m. he headed down to the kitchen. Clint and Bruce were already there, which wasn't too surprising. Both Clint and Natasha were early birds and Bruce tended to keep odd hours like Tony.

"How's Tony?" Bruce asked.

Steve slid into the seat at the table across from him. "We're taking it one day at a time," he said. He knew Tony wouldn't want him telling everyone else about his attack, but he couldn't pretend that everything was perfect.

Bruce gave him a sympathetic smile. "If either of you need to talk, I'm always here. I don't claim to have all the answers, but sometimes just talking things through can help."

Tony wandered into the kitchen with the baby, adjusting her into a better nursing position as he grabbed his cup of coffee.

Clint raised an eyebrow. "I think you're doing things a little backwards."

"Shut up."

"Really, though. She's eating mush and now you want to go back to breast milk."

"For your information, even babies on solids still need to have formula or breast milk," Tony said. He smiled down at the baby. "So I'm going to nurse her for the rest of the time."

"Good for you," Bruce said. "There's so many benefits to breastfeeding. Not that bottle-feeding was bad for her or anything," he added quickly.

"I know," Tony said. "She's done just fine on the formula. But breastfeeding is better and I only want the best for my baby."

"So, what are we doing about all this formula that you're not going to use now?"

Tony shrugged. "Donate it, probably. Well, most of it. I should keep a little for those time when we get called out and Pepper has to take over."

Clint grinned. "So does that mean we get our pantry back now?"

"Nope. Just means there's more room for baby food jars."

"Damn it."

"No cursing in front of the baby," Tony said sternly.

Steve gently tugged Tony's arm. "How about we take the baby somewhere else and let Clint eat his breakfast in peace?"

Tony's forehead creased. "But it's not time to go for our walk yet."

"Soon."

"Yeah, soon. But soon isn't now. You have to get dressed and finish breakfast and everything. And then maybe it'll be time for our walk."

Steve fought to keep a straight face. "When will then be now?"

The corner of Tony's mouth curved upward. "A Spaceballs reference? I'm so proud."

"And I will be proud if we can all have breakfast together without fighting for once," Bruce muttered.

"Sorry, buddy," Tony said. He tapped a finger against Stephy's cheek. "Come on, kiddo. Mommy's got to get you ready for our walk. I know it'll be a little earlier than usual, but you'll get to see the sunrise. I know you'll love all the pretty colors." He jammed a mini muffin into his mouth and headed for the elevator.

"Well, that was easy," Steve said.

"Too easy," Clint grumbled.

"Let's just be thankful this time and not overthink it," Steve advised. "I'll see you guys later."

"Good luck," Clint called after him.

Steve got dressed in less than five minutes and headed back down to the den to wait for Tony. Since Tony had to get himself and the baby dressed he'd probably take a lot longer to get ready. So, Steve budgeted an extra twenty minutes at least. He settled into the couch and started up a cooking show.

The show ended and Tony still hadn't come back downstairs. With a sigh, Steve got up to look for him and see if he needed help getting the baby dressed or anything.

He checked Tony's room first and didn't see him, so he poked his head into the baby's room. Tony was sitting on the floor in the baby's room, arranging blocks in front of the baby and counting them out for her.

Steve cleared his throat and Tony looked up with a start.

"I thought we were going for our walk."

"Oh, you're right. I got distracted and..." Tony looked regretfully at the baby. "I'm sorry, sweetheart. We missed the sunrise today. But don't you worry, there's always tomorrow."

Stephy squealed and banged two blocks together.

Tony smiled and scooped her up in his arms. "Alright, Steve. We're ready to go."

Steve nodded as Tony shut the door behind them. He had forgotten how bland the baby's room was. Sure, the baby had her crib and her toys, a full closet full of clothes, and her changing table in the connected bathroom. But the walls were beige. And what child wanted a beige room?

He could transform the room into something really suitable for a child, he was sure. Maybe some pastel butterflies and fluffy clouds.

It would be a nice surprise for Tony's upcoming birthday. He just needed the others to keep Tony and the baby out of the room for a few hours while he painted.

Steve spent most of the hour walk running through designs in his head. He was definitely going to have to plan this out. Probably make a few dozen sketches before he knew exactly what to paint. And the park would be a good place to sit and sketch while observing the butterflies in their natural habitat.

He was lucky that Tony was in one of his moods when he just rambled on about technical things that Steve didn't understand, so he didn't notice that he wasn't paying quite as much attention to the conversation as usual.

After their walk, they stopped at a small cafe for breakfast. Tony slid into one of the booths and unbuttoned his shirt just enough to let Stephy nurse. None of the other customers seemed fazed except for one young man a table over who was watching with unholy glee as he recorded them with his iPhone. Probably to sell to TMZ or one of the other stupid gossip sites. It was irritating how little privacy there was in the modern world.

Tony reached over to squeeze Steve's hand. "Good publicity, remember?"

Right. The world wouldn't just take their word for it that Tony was a good mother. They had to have proof. Well, here was their proof. Maybe this would finally be enough to get the media to stop bothering Tony all the time. Because Tony didn't deserve to have all these vultures following him around, waiting and hoping for him to crack.

Tony squeezed a little harder. "Steve, you need to relax. You have your war face on."

"Sorry. I just don't like the paparazzi following us around when we're just trying to have time to ourselves."

Tony's mouth twisted wryly. "I don't like it either, but that's just the way it is. You can't always get what you want."

"Well, you should. Love, respect, family. Whatever you want. You deserve it."

Tony smiled and patted his cheek. "I already have all that. You, the baby, the team pack. But thanks for caring."

"I'll never stop caring," Steve murmured.

And he didn't care if the paparazzi heard that.