I do not own any of the named/recognizable characters present. They belong to Marvel. Other recognizable things belong to their respective owners. This was written purely for fun.
Junker5 requested: I apologize if you get this twice. My rotten cat jumped on my ipad and I'm not sure if my letter sent or erased! I would love a scene with Uncle Bruce and Tony babysitting a baby Stark. Sprout & your 25 Days of Christmas have me totally loving Bruce
"Maaaa-ria!"
The baby girl giggled and clapped her tiny hands together, and when Bruce smiled back at the baby, Tony felt himself grin.
Maria Stark was just five months old, and Tony had no idea where the time was going. She was already sitting up on her own without help for several minutes at a time. She'd be walking and talking in no time. She was already beginning to babble, and from all of the different things Tony had read, her first words were just around the corner.
She already knew her name, and as Bruce repeated it again to her, she laughed delightedly again. It prompted a soft laugh out of Bruce, and Tony felt himself smile again.
They were up in the penthouse, away from the lab for the day since Tony had to watch his daughter for the afternoon. Tony was leaning comfortably back on the sofa, watching Bruce play with his little girl. "Are you gonna stay down there all day?" Tony asked teasingly.
From his position on the floor, lying on his stomach in front of Maria, Bruce glanced briefly back at the father. He turned another smile back at the baby, who immediately cooed happily to have his attention again. "You like me being down here with you, right?" he asked the baby, and her smile widened. "Right, Maaa-ria!"
As Maria laughed gleefully again, Tony couldn't help but laugh, too.
Bruce pushed himself up into a seated position. "She is the sweetest little baby," he said, lifting her carefully when she reached for him. She latched her little hands into the fabric of his shirt and made little "buh-buh-buh" sounds which dissolved into giggles when he carefully straightened some of her red hair. "It's hard to imagine that she's actually your child."
Tony shrugged. "Well, she's got Pepper for a mother," he said by way of explanation.
Bruce hummed in agreement as Maria looked toward Tony. Another smile lit up her face and she reached for him. "Da," she babbled happily.
Tony beamed. "That's right!" he praised. "Da-da."
"Da!" she said again, reaching for Tony. "Da-ba-ba."
Bruce smiled adoringly and handed her over to her father. "She's so close to talking," he mused as he leaned back, watching the little girl grab at the fabric covering his arc reactor.
"She's getting there," Tony agreed, watching his daughter with loving eyes. She was starting to get a little fidgety, which meant she was starting to get sleepy. "I'm gonna go put her down to sleep, and then we can start going over some of that new data."
"Sounds good," Bruce said, watching Tony stand up. He watched them for a moment before he got to his feet. "Let me go grab something really quick," he said. "I'll be right back."
Before Tony could respond, Maria made a fussy noise. He shushed her gently and began the trek back to the nursery, and by the time he got there, she was crying.
He was making little circuits of the room, hoping the movement would calm her down, but she kept crying. Her diaper was clean, and she had her bottle an hour ago. She was just cranky.
"Baby, you're just tired," Tony said reassuringly, but she didn't listen.
A few minutes later, she suddenly stopped mid-wail. Tony looked over at her, but her watery eyes were locked on something behind him. He twisted to see what had her attention, and he immediately felt his breath catch.
Bruce was standing in the doorway, and in his hand was the stuffed rhino Tony had bought for him nearly two years ago. He was making the stuffed animal dance in midair, and once Maria had stopped crying, he stepped forward, keeping the toy dancing.
"Poor, cranky baby," Bruce said softly in a sing-song voice, making the toy move in time with his voice, and the little girl let out a watery laugh. Bruce smiled again and let the stuffed rhino come a little closer.
Maria reached for it, and her chubby little fingers ran over the soft fluff. She cooed softly as her hand ran over the toy.
Tony began to rock a little now that she had calmed down, and Bruce hummed a little tune and made the stuffed rhino dance until the baby girl's eyes grew heavy. Tony carefully set her down in her crib and she didn't even fuss.
"You are some kind of baby-whisperer, I swear," Tony whispered as he looked down on his sleeping daughter. He glanced back over at Bruce, who was also watching the baby, but his fingers were moving across the stuffed animal in his hand.
Bruce peered over at him and caught Tony staring at the stuffed rhino. "I've been wanting to give it to her," he mumbled in explanation. "I mean, I know it's not new or anything, but—"
"Are you sure?" Tony asked, meeting Bruce's eyes. He knew how important that toy had been to the little boy he had cared for and loved those two years ago. In those six short weeks, the toy had gone from new to love-worn in certain areas.
Bruce smiled and looked down at the stuffed rhino. "I think she'll have more fun with it than I will," he replied softly, offering it over to Tony. "It served its purpose with me. It's time for it to be loved by your real child."
Tony felt his breath catch again, but he knew an affectionate smile had crossed his face, and he accepted the stuffed rhino.