Disclaimer: All characters belong to Marvel.


A disgrace. That's what Johann Schmidt would have called him.

His father had failed him and HYDRA, but he wouldn't do the same.

"We found him, sir!" an agent stuttered as he walked into his office, pale as the man behind the desk turned to face him.

"You found the child?"

"Yes. It's in the New York suburbs." The young man swallowed nervously "But there's a problem…"

"What"

"Captain America and Black Widow are taking care of him. They are living undercover as a couple. Our spies have tried to get closer to them but they've not been able to."

"Do they know it's their child?"

"I don't know sir, but there's a chance. He's been kept out of the public eye. The child is always in the care of an Avenger. It will be extremely hard to pry him away."

"If he inherited the Serum, we must get our hands on him. We didn't come this far to let them take him away. We lost the Twins, we can't lose that kid."

"And what do we do?"

"We find a weakness. I want someone watching their every move. At some point they will slip."

"And then what?"

The man grinned, his bare teeth resembling that of an animal about to attack.

"That will be up to me…."

-00-

CENTRAL PARK, NYC.

It was a sunny day in New York, and Central Park wasn't as crowded as they thought it would be, probably because it was a weekday and most people were actually working. It didn't matter thought, it worked perfectly fine for Vision and Wanda.

As instructed, Vision had left early to drive Steve's car to the facility. Wanda had waited thirty minutes before loading their SUV with all the things she thought the baby would need for this little trip to the park and driving to pick him up.

Central Park was a good hour away from Steve and Natasha's suburbs house, but they were less than 10 minutes away from Stark Tower. Besides, it was public enough that no one would blatantly try to take James from them. Or so she thought.

Vision, wearing jeans and a grey hoodie with a dark yellow snapback, had been sitting by the pound with James for a while as she basked in the sun. He had managed to add blonde hair to his disguise, so when James accidentally pulled the cap off, the hair covered the gem perfectly. Every once in a while he would turn to look at her and smile, which made her heart ache in turn. He was amused by the concept of a family and she had to admit it was appealing, in the future maybe. She put those thought asides and closed her eyes, feeling everything around her.

That's why she felt this presence… She had been listening to those around her, their minds some sort of show she liked to watch from afar. How different their concerns were to hers and how their lives differed. But this new person… he was dark and it made her uneasy.

She felt someone sit next to her, and opened her eyes to find a man, no older than 28, maybe. He was dressed in all black, blue eyes almost grey as they seemed lost and stubble that reminded her of Steve's when he had started growing his beard. She immediately reacted, her powers surging through her as she got in his mind. But she froze.

"You are in danger. They want the child. You must leave now!"

His eyes snapped at her for a moment before getting up and swiftly disappearing through the trees. He wasn't the dark presence she felt. Someone was still looking at them, and the anger was rising within them.

"J? Honey we should go" she shouted at Vision, eyes conveying the message he clearly understood.

She placed everything in James's stroller and started moving towards her SUV, Vision trailing behind and cuddling James as close to his chest as he could.

"There's a man. He's wearing a black mask and a white X on his vest. He's trailing behind" Vision stated, moving to stand beside her and grabbing her hand "I've connected to FRIDAY. She sent a distress call to Stark Tower. Mr. Stark is on his way"

As they got closer to their SUV he ran a scan "They've tampered with it. A bomb of sorts has been placed on the chassis"

They moved closer to the street, moving as far away from the SUV as they could while avoiding to look suspicious, Vision's hand on her back as he acted as a shield in case something was thrown at them. They heard the distinctive sound of tires screeching in the asphalt as a white Audi stopped in front of them, Tony rolling down his window, giving them a tight smile.

"Hello there. Wanda, take the baby and get in the car." She took James and hurriedly hopped in, only then she realized he had his Iron Man gloves on and she had no doubt the rest of the suit was somewhere in the car.

As Tony sped up towards the tower, the masked man approached him, shoving him forcefully against a car parked nearby, only it didn't have the effect he expected as Vision changed his density and was able to go through the car without causing damage.

"Tell Cap it's not personal. That child doesn't belong to him." The man hissed, walking away with two other men and jumping in a SUV that waited nearby. He barely had time to move a couple away from the sidewalk before the SUV Tony had given him exploded.

Once he made sure the civilians were uninjured, he hid behind some trees and flew out to the tower, where he could see a Quinjet moving to the helipad.

"Maria has sent Sam and Rhodey to take over for Natasha and Steve on their mission. They'll meet us at the facility. Get everything ready on the jet." Tony ordered him as he moved around, before the latest Iron Man suit attached to him. "Let's go"

The flight to the new Avengers facility was short. So short in fact, that the take-off procedure probably took longer. But that was on a normal flight. In stealth mode, FRIDAY reconfigured the route to do a few laps around different states and at least two holding patterns before landing at the facility, where Maria and Fury were waiting for them.

Tony got out first, running a scan around the area before nodding to Wanda, who followed with the baby in her arms and Vision right behind.

"Steve and Natasha will be here any minute. They will be taking an SUV to a safe house" Maria explained as they went into the facility through one of the many secret passages only the Avengers knew. "Care to explain what happened there?"

"We were enjoying a day at the park. Natasha and Steve knew our plans. We were by the pound when I felt this presence, someone looking at us" Wanda stated as she softly bounced James "A man sat beside me. Long hair, lost eyes… at first I thought it was him, but when I got into his mind he simply told me to leave. That someone wanted James. And then he simply vanished"

"A man with a black mask did chase us" Vision connected to the facility's interface and showed them a picture on the man "He requested I told the Captain that it was not personal"

"Rumlow" they all turned their heads when they saw Steve and Natasha walk into the room, the later making a bee line towards her son.

"Rumlow is dead" Maria stated as she read her files on a StarkPad "His injuries after the helicarrier crashed into the tower were severe"

"It has to be Rumlow, Maria. Back when Pierce gave the order to have me killed, he tried to take me down in the elevators. He said it was not personal" Steve stated, moving towards Natasha "We can't go back to the suburbs, we've been compromised"

"I have a nice array of houses all over the world; say the word and I'll ship you to one. Sentry mode" Tony said as he stepped out of his suit, moving to check more files on a screen.

"I have a safe house" Natasha stated, looking at Steve and then everyone in the room "James will stay out of this. We need to find Rumlow before he finds him"

"Alright then, I'll see if I can get Thor to come over." Tony left the room, and Steve's eyes set on Maria.

"Have Rhodey and Sam comeback, it's time to assemble"

-00-

BARTON STATE

"Are you sure you wanna do this? Because as soon as you step through that door they won't leave us alone" Natasha stated as she parked her SUV just outside the fence that surrounded Clint's farm, well out of sight from anyone's prying eyes, including Cooper and Lila's.

"Do they know about James?"

"No. Not even Clint. He has this deal with Fury and Hill to only call him in cases of extreme emergency. And I really had no time to tell him during our last missing, we were too busy being stealth and then rescuing Wanda…"

"Let's do it then, or else, I might spill the beans next time I see him"

She drove the rest of the way and parked the SUV next to Clint's beat up truck, jumping out and waving at the kids as they spied from the second floor "You should get James, I'm about to be jumped on"

As if on cue, the front door opened and two very excited kids came out running to hug their aunt, ignoring Steve and the sleeping baby in his arms at the moment.

"Aunty Nat! You came!" Lila smiled, reaching up for her. Natasha didn't hesitate to pick her up, knowing she wouldn't be able to do it soon.

"And dad didn't have to drag you in" Cooper finished, smirking as she shoved him lightly.

"I wanted to see my favorite niece and nephews. And you, young man, were more adorable when you didn't speak"

"You didn't know me then" he replied cheekily.

"Exactly" she waved at Laura, who was holding back an excited Nate as Clint walked closer to them.

"Let your aunt breathe or else she won't comeback" he scolded lightly, rolling his eyes as they took off to the house. He nodded at Steve and shot her a questioning look.

"We'll explain later, let's go in"

-00-

"Alright, Nat you know where your room is. Steve, guest room is downstairs. Did you guys bring anything for the baby?" Clint asked as he helped them with their bags, still eyeing them curiously.

"Do you think we could borrow Nate's portable crib? And don't worry; Steve's staying with me… Well, me and the baby" Steve had to do a double take there, because asides from the fist day with James and the day she had arrived from the mission, they had not shared a bed.

"Whatever rocks your boat? Anyways, get settled, dinner will be done in a few. Let me get that crib..." Clint stated, leaving them alone in the hallway. Natasha eyed him quickly before moving to her room, dragging her only bag in and placing it on the bed to start unpacking.

"There's space in the closet, we'll be here for a while once all of this it's over. And if we move the desk to the corner, we should have space to set up the portable crib" she disappeared with her toiletry bag to the bathroom.

He settled James on the bed before sweeping his eyes around the room. He had been to her quarters at the facility a few times, but it had nothing especial. Tony made sure they had the best furniture but quite honestly, they didn't really feel like making it home. However, this room felt warm; the walls were decorated with different paints that obviously she had carefully chosen. Her bedding was red and her bed was plush, if the way James relaxed into it was any indication.

Her desk was filled with drawings he assumed came from Lila and there was a toy version of herself on the nightstand that was probably built by Cooper with his father's help. And there were pictures of her with all three kids; his eyes caught one of her with Nathaniel at the hospital, her smile wide as she cuddled the new born, making him smile. The room felt more lived in that her facility one, which he found interesting considering they used to spend most of their time there.

"Here's the crib. Call if you need me…" Clint stated as he dropped it by the door before disappearing downstairs.

He snapped into action when he heard the shower running, quickly unpacking his and James's bag, and he was almost done with setting the crib when Natasha reappeared, wearing grey yoga pants and a black tank top, her hair pulled in a ponytail. She left the room for a moment and he could hear her talking to Laura before returning with a baby tub.

"I left hot water. So if you don't mind, could you fill this with lukewarm water? Jamie needs a bath" she quickly unpacked her bag before laying down on the bad, a soft smile gracing her face as James immediately cuddled to her.

"Sure." He finished settling the crib before grabbing his things and moving to the bathroom, not before clumsily dropping them on the floor twice.

"Your dad was able to lead a team during World War II and can run the Avengers with an iron fist, but he's a complete klutz doing regular stuff. He's one of a kind" she smiled, before sitting up and working on undressing James.

By the time Laura called them, Steve and Natasha were done and James was ready for a bottle.

After dinner they decided on watching a movie. Lila was currently fixated on Hotel Transylvania 2 and Cooper actually liked it, so it was an easy choice. But of course, there was only so much a child could do to keep its curiosity at bay.

"Aunty Nat, whose baby is that?" Lila asked as she cuddled to her dad, eyeing James as he lay quietly on Steve's chest, eyes glued to the screen.

"He's James, and… he's our son." She saw Lila's eyes widening as much as her father's and she had to hold back a laugh.

"But… Pregnant woman are huge. You've never been huge" Cooper stated, earning a whack from his mother "Sorry"

"I can't get pregnant, not like your mom was. He's especial" she said, running her hand on Steve's leg as she sat across from him on the couch.

"You adopted him?" Cooper asked, moving closer to his sister on the floor, probably to avoid another whack from his mom in case he asked something inappropriate again.

"No. He really is mine and Steve's baby. You'll get it in a couple of years when you are older"

"So Uncle Steve is your husband?" Lila asked, moving to Natasha's side and cuddling to her, her eyes settled on Steve and the baby. "Because mom and dad are married and they have us"

She felt Steve tense up and this time she did nothing to hold back her laugh, she couldn't complain, she always told Lila to speak her mind and never lie, which Clint found ironic.

"No, he's not my husband. He's… my boyfriend" she eyed Steve, who tried not so subtly, to hide his smile by kissing James's head.

"Okay. He's cute" the little girl stated, and then turned to her mother "When Auntie Nat and Uncle Steve get married, can I be the flower girl?"

"I think it's time for bed" Clint said, getting off the loveseat and pulling Cooper from the floor "Say goodnight"

Lila and Cooper whined, but did as told and moved upstairs, Clint following with a sleeping Nate in his arms.

"I have a feeling that James being here isn't a miracle… But I'm happy for you both" Laura smiled fondly at the family in front of her. "How are you guys handling it?"

"It's not easy. We didn't have the time most couples do to get used to the idea of a child, but… We are doing okay, I guess" Steve stated as he sat up on the couch, readjusting James on his lap so he could still watch the movie.

"I'm surprised he's been watching it the whole time. Nathaniel only pays attention for fifteen seconds before crawling off to cause trouble" Laura laughed, eyes shifting to the stairs as Clint returned to the room.

"He is Clint Barton's son… what did you expect?" Natasha laughed at the glare she got from her best friend "And yeah, Wanda introduced him to the wonders of television a few weeks ago. Dr. Cho says his brain is developing faster than most children do, and when he likes something he can usually stay focused on it for a while"

"That's nice. Now, care to explain how did this happen? And why are you visiting out of the blue?" Clint asked and Natasha smiled, because she knew she could always count on him to be blunt. Not that Steve would lie, but he tried to butter things up.

"RedRoom froze my eggs before sterilizing me. And HYDRA stole samples taken from Steve when he was defrosted. Nick says they were lost during the SHIELD fiasco and managed to recover them when Steve found him" she explained, eyeing her son fondly.

"Wait… so they basically made him on a tube somewhere?"

Steve nodded "Kind of. And technically, Tony found him. They used a surrogate. We believe they tried to create some sort of soldier based off ourselves, since we both have serums in our system. We found records of different attempts that failed, but James made it to full term. We found out he was our child a couple of months ago. Tony ran some tests…"

"Damn… Okay. And why are you here"

"Because HYDRA knows he's alive. They found Wanda and Vision at the park with him. They want to take him" Natasha stated "We know coming here it's a risk. And we are putting your family at risk too. But we had nowhere else to go. If they were able to track down Wanda and Vision they probably know where we lived."

Laura nodded, her eyes on Clint who simply shrugged "It's okay. You are family, Nat. And if someone tries to hurt you, any of you, we'll help you through"

"We know it's too much, considering Nate is almost two, but do you think you could keep him here for a while? Steve and I need to get back to New York. We need to find out who is behind this and make sure Jamie is safe"

"Nat, Jamie can stay with us as long as it's needed. Don't worry about that" Laura smiled, moving towards her friend and hugging her "I really am happy for you, Nat. And I'm sorry he's in danger"

"We might need Hawkeye"

"He's yours as long as you bring him back"

-00-

While Laura and Clint stayed behind to watch a new movie, Natasha and Steve decided to call it a night. They settled James on the crib and then moved towards the bed.

"I… I can sleep on the floor. I don't need much sleep anyways" Steve stated awkwardly as Nat made herself comfortable on the bed.

"Nope. You are sleeping with me, on the bed. And quit blushing Rogers! It's not like we are having sex!"

His blush got darker but he simply nodded and joined her on the bed, laying flat on his back for a few moments before Natasha cuddled to his side.

"I can't help but think about the man that warned Wanda…" he said after a while, wrapping his arm around her waist. "She didn't see anything out of the normal on him, asides from his glazed eyes and disgruntled appearance but… I have this feeling it was Bucky."

"Yeah, me too. But you didn't ask her anything after she gave her description. Hell, I don't think she knows we heard it"

"It's pointless, he's probably gone anyways"

"Steve, you know going after him right now won't help us keep Jamie safe. And obviously he's on our side"

"We need to find Rumlow"

"And we will. Once we're back in New York…"

"Yeah... once we are back to being Avengers"


AN: Longest chapter yet. My ideas were out of control and it took me a while to put them together, sorry about that, and any spelling mistake, i don't have a beta and i'm sure some slipped in. Also, i have this new plot nagging at me after watching a movie and gosh i'ts driving me crazy! But i wanna try it... young Nat and older Steve? I must do it! Anyways, Thanks to every single one of you that take a moment to read this story and leave a review, it means the world to me! And once again, R&R, love y'all! -OHP