Disclaimer: All Characters belong to Marvel.
It turns out that finding an apartment that fit the both of them wasn't as easy as he thought it would be. Especially when he had to do it alone while also caring for a baby. He should've prepared better, but you can't sue a guy for being completely lost on this.
Natasha, Wanda and Clint had been sent in a mission two weeks ago that had obviously gotten more complicated and asides from a couple of text messages, she had been quiet.
Sam, Rhodey and Tony were in the Middle East dealing with another emergency, which made him twitch because he should be there helping them out.
Pietro was still around, but he had to stuff it when their neighbor asked where Natasha had gone.
"There were some family issues um… She went with her siblings to solve them. She said it would be bad to take the baby there" he lied, and he was almost proud when Holly accepted that, that he almost forgot it meant Pietro couldn't help him out.
Which only left Vision to help, but he was busy back at the facility helping with the new recruits and aiding Tony as much as he could.
Thereby, he was alone.
He knew they wouldn't be able to stay away from work forever, and he was not particularly happy that she had to go first. But the mission required a trained spy and if Fury was able to pull Barton from his family to do it, Natasha was going to be needed too.
But obviously, he underestimated Natasha and her maternal skills by a long shot, if James behaved with her the same way he's been behaving for him. He missed his mom, and probably his aunt too, and it was painfully obvious he didn't know what to do.
"James, buddy c'mon you gotta stop crying" he pleaded as he bounced the baby in his arms, shooting the real estate agent an apologetic smile "I'm sorry. My… My wife went away for a family affair and he's not taking it well. He- she has always been with him… Do you think we could reschedule?"
The woman accepted and rescheduled for the next morning, when hopefully Vision would be able to tag along and help him.
He drove back to the house as fast as he could without breaking the law and basically ran inside with James, who was still crying his heart out and making him feel like the world most horrible father.
"Okay… A bath, Nat said bathing you helps" he moved upstairs, filling the tub in Natasha's bathroom and stripping down to his boxers before doing the same with the baby "Okay, a bath with daddy, let's do this"
He was not a fan of water, and Steve and Natasha had that figure out since basically day one, but he seemed to like it when either of them got in the tub and cuddled him, so they did it as often as they could. He had been afraid of drowning him, but eventually Natasha convinced (forced) him to do it. And it worked like a charm, because for the first time in all morning Steve felt like he had accomplished something and for once, James was not crying.
"If this is the sight that I will come home to after every mission, I might go away often" Natasha's voice from the door startled them, but James was all too happy to cry, cooing and stretching his arms towards his mother, who didn't hesitate to lift him up.
"I didn't hear you come in. Not sure that's good" He smiled, watching as James snuggled to Natasha's neck, obviously happy to be in her arms. "How did it go?"
Natasha shrugged, handing him the baby as she stripped down to her underwear, getting in the tub across from him and reaching for the baby, ignoring the way Steve blushed and spluttered some words.
"Steve, you've seen me in far less. And I need a bath, I might as well save water and spend some time with my boys" she grabbed the baby soap and started rubbing it on James back as he once again settled against her "God, I missed him"
"He missed you too. It was interesting looking after him… I did found a couple of places to look into, but I had to reschedule today because he wouldn't calm down" he stated, and almost jumped out of the tub when Natasha moved to sit between his legs, her back pressed to his chest.
"The mission was awful. Wanda was able to get in and do her thing quite easily, but she got caught getting out and we had to go in. I have to admit, that worried me. She's still not that efficient at hand-to-hand combat" she yawned, washing the soap from James body as he played with a strand of wet, red hair. Steve carefully wrapped his arms around them and lathered her with soap, closing his eyes once he realized Natasha was not going to pull away, because this was his family, no matter what she said.
"I was worried" he said into her hair, placing a soft kiss on James's as he lay down on her shoulder "He wouldn't stop crying, and I couldn't really call you. Hill said you were busy and Tony kept Vision too busy to worry about Wanda or helping me out"
Natasha nodded, squeezing Steve's hand before rinsing the soap and moving to get out of the tub "We need to find that babysitter. I'll get him ready. Maybe he'll be up to napping with me"
Steve nodded and got off the tub, wrapping a towel around them before taking one for him. He dressed in sweat and a tshirt and joined Natasha on the room again, as she settled James on the bed next to her.
"Stay"
He was only too happy to oblige.
-00-
"How long do we have to keep this up before we move? Not that I don't like being at Stark but… I'm a soldier, not a driver. We don't need to be undercover" Steve complained as he trimmed his beard and combed his hair, earning an eye roll from Natasha as she brushed her teeth next to him.
"We just moved in. It would look suspicious if we moved out after a couple of months here. Can we at least try to hit the six month mark?" She said moving to the room to get ready for work, since she was starting up as Natalie Rushman today. At least to those looking around.
"He'll be walking by then!"
"And we still have to get the house baby proofed before we move there. So stop whining."
They had found house well outside New York. Two story, four bedrooms and enough weapons to start an army. But of course, they had a child to think about now, so Steve (and Wanda) took it upon himself to make the place feel warn.
They were still looking for a babysitter, but Wanda had offered to step into the role for as long as they needed (and as long as she was not in a mission), something Steve was secretly thankful for. He didn't trust many people, and having a stranger looking after his son was not something he was looking forward to.
"Good Morning, Ms. Romanoff. Baby James has woken up" FRIDAY's voice ran through the room, and soon enough was followed by James's loud cries from his room.
"I'll get him" Steve said as he moved past Natasha to the room. James was holding onto the railing of his crib, tears traveling down his cheeks as he cried.
"I will admit it, you got that from me" He lifted his son and moved to change his diaper and dress him up for the day "Your aunt Wanda will look for you today, I'm sure you will like it."
James hair was getting long, which meant it curled at the top of his head. Natasha wanted to cut it off but he wanted the hair to grow. He actually loved Natasha's curls and hated it when she straightens it.
"I hope you know how much we love you, James. I will say it a lot, which will probably compensate for Natasha not saying it, but we love you. And we'll be with you, until the end of the line"
"Hey. Wanda's here. We should get going the quinjet leaves in two hours" Natasha stated stepping into the room, taking James from his father as he moved to finish getting ready.
"Steve seriously likes to dress you up as an old man. You are lucky, it looks cute on you" she kissed his forehead before heading down the stairs where Wanda and Vision were waiting for her.
"Captain requested my presence here since I will not be taking part of this mission" Vision stated, a smile gracing his lips as James turned to eye him curiously.
"It's fine. We should be back tomorrow. Maria will bring the car back tonight so the neighbors don't get suspicious. You should drive it back to the facility in the morning"
"He will. All the security is in place?" Wanda asked taking the baby from Natasha.
"It should be. Don't blow our cover if a neighbor stops by. You got everything he needs right here, but you can order takeout or whatever for yourselves, because we barely cook"
"Do not hesitate to call us if James needs something. I'm sure Hill can pass you through" Steve stated, climbing down the staircase as he adjusted his tie, grabbing two coffee mugs for himself and Natasha "Good luck, he's a little energy ball"
"They had to stand Pietro and Tony for heaven knows how long, I think they can handle it" Natasha rolled her eyes, grabbing the car keys and pushing Steve out of the door "See you tomorrow!"
-00-
He was lucky. He knew that from the moment he met her. She could see in him things no one else could, and he would always be thankful of it. But she deserved better, and he knew it.
He was not human. He knew that and he has come to accept it. He was not a robot. He was unique and he could do things not even Thor could, but he could never give her this.
"Have you ever thought about this?" He asked, startling Wanda as she prepared a bottle for James.
"About what?" she wondered as she continued her task.
"This. A house and a family" he shrugged even though she couldn't see him.
"I did, once. Back when I was a little girl. I would dream of having a wedding and kids, but then my parents died. And we realized those were just fantasies. Why?"
"Do you still want that family?"
"I have one. It's dysfunctional and I could do without some of them. But I have it" She finally turned around to find Vision standing by the glass doors that lead to the patio, which reminded her of the first time he'd come out of the cradle "Why are you asking this?"
"I… I've seen how Captain and Agent Romanoff have changed ever since they were charged to look after James. Long before they knew he was theirs. And I've seen how everyone seems to have built a bond with the child, love him I'd say. But… I see you with him and I am reminded of the fact that I could never give you that. I'm not human and I-"
"You are you, Vision. And I wouldn't change anything. I don't regret being with you so please, don't you ever regret it. So what if we can't have children? We can be happy, just you and I" she wrapped her arms around his waist and sighed "If you do want a child, I'm sure we can do something about it"
"I don't believe it will be possible"
"Steve and Natasha have a son. And we all know they didn't make him in the good old way. There are options, if that's something you want" she kissed his shoulder "Now c'mon, it's time you feed him"
"I do not wish to disturb him, he is finally asleep"
"And he will be up in a few minutes for his afternoon snack, might as well get it out of the way. Go up, he won't bite"
He sighed, but took the bottle from Wanda none the less, smiling as she pecked his lips. He moved up to the room and just as she said, James was sitting up on his crib, blinking confused as his eyes settle on him.
"Hi, little James" he smiled, and took off the snapback he was wearing. James tracked his every move, but didn't cry, so he assumed it was okay. "Your aunt sent me up. But she did not say what I was supposed to do".
He lifted the baby from the crib and sat on the rocking chair, placing the bottle in his legs as James pulled himself up using his jacket and stared curiously at his face. Taking a chance, he slowly allowed his face to turn red, watching as James curious expression change to amusement, a giggle coming from him as he poked the lines in his face.
James was not afraid of him, he realized. He didn't look at him any different. He was just Vision, uncle Vision. That brought a smile to his face as he adjusted the child in his lap and proceeded to feed him, ignoring the camera snapping away by the door.
"It's not that bad, right?" Wanda asked as she stepped in, sitting next to him and running her hand through James's curls as he looked up at her, smiling but never letting go of his bottle.
"He is a terribly well behaved child. I will risk myself here and assume he got it from our Captain. I do not believe Ms. Romanoff was this compliant. She is quite abrasive"
"I would kick you out if I were there" Natasha's voice ran through the house as FRIDAY projected an image of her in the wall "But you are right. I have always been a handful. How is he?"
"He is good. We played all afternoon and we are thinking of going to the park tomorrow. So you can have a break from the mission"
"Sounds good. Vizsh, scoop out the park before getting there. Map out escape routes and the fastest way to get to the house or the facility. Is Pietro tagging along?"
"He was sent to a mission in Russia with Sam and Rhodey. It will be just the three of us, Agent Romanoff"
"Unless you want me to start calling you Jarvis, I'd suggest you call me Natasha. And start calling Rogers by his name. You are my brother in law anyways"
"I will. Do you need my assistance during the mission?"
"Hill has it all mapped out. Steve and Tony are running through some last minute details as I speak. Clint is flying the quinjet. I was just checking in on James."
As if on cue, he stopped sucking his bottle, his arms reaching towards Natasha's projected image, smiling and babbling.
"Be good for Wanda and Vision, Jamie. We'll be back before you notice" she waved at him, then glanced at the duo "Don't do anything Steve and I wouldn't. Goodnight guys"
Natasha's sudden disappearance seemed to upset James, who cried out reaching for her. Wanda took him from Vision's lap and started singing a Sokovian lullaby that soothed him almost immediately.
He didn't know much about the future. But if he could have something like this with Wanda, he would fight the universe to get it.
AN: So… I had to write some ScarletVision because the trailer broke my heart and I had to fix it. Also, my struggle to stay in a team is real, because Tony will always be my spirit animal but Steve's just so… him. So I have 'til April 29th to choose my side… Don't forget to R/R! -OHP
