Chapter Text
“I’ll be fine, Steve.” Tony smiled up at him, his breathtakingly beautiful eyes sparkling. There was humour in his voice but also understanding. Acceptance. He might need daily reminders but right now he knew that Steve – that the Avengers saw him as their family. That he was important.
Of course, he realized it right now. Steve hadn’t left Tony’s side for more than an hour since the ‘island incident’. Even the others had tried to stay as close as possible. There had been a couple of sit-ins in Tony’s workshop and however much he had protested, all of them had seen the smile while he ranted.
Steve and Tony had even slept on Steve’s floor after the others decided to go back to their own. He hadn’t been able to stomach the thought and Tony, as self-sacrificing as he was, had offered to stay with Steve. Sometimes the soldier thought Tony had to know what he felt for him. But he didn’t. Steve knew he didn’t, because Tony would never be as cruel if he knew.
It was torture to sleep beside Tony. Having him so close but not being able to touch. To watch his calm breathing and unguarded expression whenever he managed to sleep. Tony had a hard time falling asleep but whenever he managed, he would sleep through an Alien attack, Steve was sure.
Steve had never before been so grateful for his enormous bed and hated it as much at the same time.
Whatever the others insinuated, Steve knew that Tony could never like him like he liked him. Not even Captain America was interesting enough for someone as amazing as Tony. It stung a little that Tony didn’t show any hesitation whatsoever to climb into Steve’s bed. He obviously didn’t even consider that something could be between them. Sure, Steve hadn’t told the other man that he was gay. God forbit that he fancied him. Still, it was disheartening to say the least.
Steve sighed heavily. Who was he trying to kid? He was head over heels for his genius. He was so in love with Tony that it wasn’t even funny anymore. Not even for Clint.
“I still think one of us-”
“Nope.” Tony leaned a little away from Steve, raising his eyebrow challengingly. “Not happening. I’m a big boy, you know? It’s just a couple of days and Pepper will be there. As much fun as I would have with all of you haunting me, Pep would kill me and don’t even give me the puppy dog eyes. I’m much more afraid of Pepper Potts.”
Steve nodded. That was reasonable. Almost too reasonable for Tony.
“I’ll even bring you something from Germany. What do you want?”
“I don’t-”
“Nat gets sweets, obviously. Bruce gets an autograph from someone there. Clint wants me to smuggle Kinder Surprise Eggs, whatever the hell that is, and I’ll get a beer jug for Thor for whenever he will come back. What do you want?”
Steve didn’t say To come with you. He also didn’t say For you to stay here. And he definitely didn’t say You.
“I don’t need anything, Tony.”
“I didn’t ask what you needed. What do you want?”
“I have everything I could wish for.” He smiled at the smaller man, trying to hide the truth. He was happy. Maybe happier when he had ever been before. It was enough to have Tony as his teammate. As his best friend and family. It didn’t change that Steve wanted more. But that would be greedy. And the last thing he ever wanted to do was make Tony uncomfortable.
Tony frowned, obviously knowing that he was hiding something. But he didn’t push. He rarely did with stuff like that. The genius could be the most persistent person Steve had ever met, standing his ground to everyone, not giving even an inch. But he also knew when to keep silent. To accept that others didn’t want to share.
Steve appreciated that. He loved him for it more. Not many people would go toe to toe with Captain America, not giving two thoughts about the fact that he could hurt and kill them without even trying. Even less people would be willing to indulge Steve Rogers curiosity, his illiteracy in almost everything technological. Tony had taught him so much in the last couple of months.
But most important: Tony could make Steve laugh on days when he felt the ice creep into his bones and he couldn’t stand water even being near him. He would talk and talk and talk when Steve couldn’t hear anything else but his erratic heartbeat and he would sit beside him, silently, when the world got to heavy and loud around him.
Steve loved Tony.
He would do everything in his power to keep him safe and happy. Steve would take anything Tony was willing to give him. He already had given the soldier more than he had ever hoped for: a family and a home. Hope. Someone to love. People to believe in.
“I’ll find something.” Tony smiled. It was a little subdued but all the softer. “I’ll find something you want.”
Nodding, Steve smiled back. There was nothing else in this century he wanted or needed. It was all right here.
Steve had made Tony eat a healthy breakfast before he and the rest of the Avengers let him go. Tony had glared at all of them suspiciously as if he expected a sneak attack, being chloroformed by any of them or to be imprisoned in his workshop.
The Avengers had talked about it. Just for a moment entertaining the idea to keep him safe where they would know no one would be able to harm him.
Natasha and Clint had come up with unsurprisingly good cover stories for both keeping Tony hidden or following him on his trip.
Bruce, who had gone a little green when Tony told them the day before yesterday that of course, he would travel to Germany on his own, had reminded them all that Tony had been very patient with them. Even accommodating regarding their obsessive need to keep an eye on him. But he wouldn’t be able to keep that up for much longer.
As much as Steve knew the genius liked and appreciated them, he needed room to breathe. He needed times in which he could express himself in ways only Bruce and sometimes Peter could understand.
Once, Tony had tried to explain to them how he had come up with a plan that he had used in the field that had worked but thrown all of them off their rhythm. It had been a particularly bad fight between them before the genius had snapped, opening about thirty windows on a laptop and starting to fill all of them with different information in just a few minutes. Than he had turned, glared at all of them and had said: “A hostage is taken in a bank. What do we do?” Then he had pressed one finger down and a second later three plans had popped up, perfect plans all thought out and ready to go. “This is what my brain looks like all the time. Don’t you dare tell me I don’t know what I’m doing.” He had stormed off and all of them had read through the different windows, calculations and plans.
Afterwards no one had assumed he hadn’t planned out what he did. The only problems were that he didn’t care for his own safety and that he most often couldn’t communicate his thought process and outcomes in the timeframe they had.
One night, Tony had tried to explain it to Steve. His need to follow his thoughts. His inability to stop thinking. His forgetfulness of his basic needs like food. Like sleep. They had been sitting on the couch on the common room floor and Steve couldn’t stop smiling at Tony. At his excitement, the way he waved his hands and his inability to explain what was going on when his genius took over.
Steve thought he understood enough from what Tony was trying to put into words to understand two things.
One, Tony loved people. And because of that he often forgot that people weren’t as brilliant as he was. They weren’t as loyal, as sacrificing or as good. He saw the world in so many facets, with so many options and possibilities that he couldn’t comprehend that others didn’t see it. When he tried to explain most people thought him to be arrogant or delusional.
So, he started to play that part years ago. Acting as an asshole because people expected him to be one. And he could be one. Steve knew. Tony got frustrated when others didn’t see the picture. Got annoyed when he had to explain stuff that was so obvious to him. His words could cut deeper than any blade of the Widow and be more devastating than a punch of the Hulk. If he saw you as his enemy he would annihilate you. If you threatened what was his he would do worse. Many underestimated him and he used it against them. He expected betrayal from almost everyone and had enough demons to fill hell.
Second, Tony literally forgot anything around him if his genius took over. He forgot his own needs. He forgot the needs of the people around him. He forgot how to communicate like an adult – or human for that matter. He forgot the task at hand, what he was doing, where he was supposed to be and why he was doing what he should be doing. And he needed to let his genius out when it hit him. He needed it like air. He also needed time on his own to sort through his thoughts.
It all came down to the same conclusion: They couldn’t keep him hidden. They couldn’t follow him everywhere. No matter how much all of them wanted to do it. They would keep as close an eye as they could as often as they were able to.
But Tony had to live his own life. They had to accept that. If they didn’t, if they tried to put him into a cage they would lose him and Steve couldn’t. He couldn’t lose him.
And that was the crux of it, wasn’t it? He knew that Tony was in danger. He knew Tony was a desirable target not only for his connections to the Avengers or his money or his genius but also because he had pissed off many people both as Iron Man and Tony Stark.
And he couldn’t keep him safe like he wanted to or he’ll lose him.
“Cheer up, Cap.” Clint patted him on the back. “Loverboy will be back in a flash and we all will feel really stupid for panicking.”
Steve smiled down at the other man, who just a few months ago didn’t feel comfortable enough to look them in the eyes, who didn’t care for anyone but Natasha. They all had come so far in what still wasn’t a full year.
Natasha and Clint roped him into training with them, something they did quite often but he knew, right now, they did it to keep him occupied.
When his cell phone received a message a couple hours later, they went as still as he did. Walking over to it and grabbing his water bottle while he was at it, he smiled.
“What did Mom write?” Clint asked, looking away from Nat. That, as anyone knew, was a mistake. She used the moment to tackle him to the mat.
“Peter followed him.”
“What?” Natasha looked up from where she was playfully strangling her teammate.
“Apparently he saw Tony leave the Tower without any of us, panicked and snuck onto his plane.”
“Hah!” Clint laughed breathlessly. “The bug is better than all of us.”
“He got caught.” Nat said, helping Clint up, but her smile was relaxed.
“Over the Atlantic Ocean. It’s not like Tony could kick him out.”
“But he’ll send him back.” Nat looked at Steve, one eyebrow raised.
“Yes. He asked if I could get him from the airport around 11am tomorrow.”
“Uhhh he lets you take care of his kid.” Clint cooed grinning at Steve. “That means something, Cap.”
Steve blushed. He knew that Tony didn’t mean it that way. He was just texting with him and asking him because May Parker would be at work when Peter landed. It didn’t mean what Clint insinuated. Even if he wished it did.
A couple hours later he got a picture from Happy. It showed Tony and Peter in an animated conversation. Both men had sparkling eyes and no one would assume that they were anything but father and son. The Avengers knew that they weren’t blood. But seeing them together, seeing Peter trust and love Tony and Tony trying to be his best for the kid even if he still feared that he might mess him up was humbling.
It also proved to Steve that Tony, despite being betrayed, brutalized and let down by the world and so many people he still hadn’t let himself turn cruel or uncaring. It seemed to be the opposite actually.
And Tony had asked Steve to take care of Peter while he was on another continent. Even if just for a few hours. It didn’t matter that it hadn’t the same connotation for Tony as it had for Steve. It still was a sign of his trust. That he knew Steve would protect Peter with his life because Tony loved him.
After that Steve relaxed. Tony was safe.
He was woken at 4:34 in the morning by a call. It wasn’t the Avengers Alarm ringtone, so it took him a second longer to realize what was happening.
Rolling onto his side he grabbed his phone from the bedside table and put it to his ear without looking at the caller ID.
“Rogers.”
“Steve?”
His name was enough to wake him fully. Dread, scorching hot, pooled in his stomach and churned through his chest. He barely realized that he had stopped breathing, that his heart was almost jumping out of his chest or that he was clutching at his blanket with a desperate iron grip.
Pepper’s voice hadn’t been her own. Almost too distorted to be recognisable by anguish and terror.
“What happened?” Because he needed the facts. He needed to know. He needed to start working, to get to the Quinjet, to wake the other Avengers and-
“He… Tony…” He heard her take a steadying breath. Her voice still shook, but there was an underlying hardness in it now, too. She had lived through this before. She knew what could happen. Because Tony was alive. Steve knew he was. There was no other way. There was no other fucking way.
“He never made it to the hotel.”
Steve tried to breathe. He needed to breathe. He had to stay focused. Tony had been taken. He didn’t make it to the hotel so most likely he had been grabbed off the streets. When he sent Peter back it must be around 6am in Germany if he was to land in New York around 11am.
“It… His driver was killed by… by a sniper. Headshot.”
They had prepared for it. They had known about his schedule.
“The police… They say…” There was a hitch in her voice before she cleared her throat. “They found blood. They say he couldn’t be seriously injured.”
But they couldn’t know that, could they? If he had been moved fast enough there wouldn’t be much blood. That he had been taken suggested that it wasn’t a hit on his life. Or at least that whoever had taken him wanted to draw this out as much as possible if it was a hit.
More likely was that he had been taken because of the reasons Steve had thought about not twenty-four hours ago. He could be used as leverage against the Avengers, Stark Industries and Steve. He could be taken to demand a ransom. He could be used for his genius. All of this could be because of revenge.
Without additional information Steve couldn’t be sure.
“What else?”
“…they think whoever did this was a professional.”
Obviously, Steve thought, but didn’t say it.
“When they found the car, it was burned down. The… the blood… it was a little to the side of the road. They think they put him into the trunk and-” The sound she made wasn’t a sob but it was too close for comfort. “They didn’t find anything else. No bullet casing, not the place where the shooter had been and the coroner… she says she is probably not going to be able to find much on the driver. They used some chemical fire accelerator and there is barely anything left of the car.”
They must have been at least two people. Probably three. They were most likely highly trained, focused and practiced.
“Did he get any threats?” Logically he knew he shouldn’t demand answers like he did just now. Pepper was distressed, probably in shock and obviously breaking. But he couldn’t. He needed answers. He needed to react and he needed… Tony.
“Nothing serious.”
Or they dismissed it.
“Jarvis?”
“I’m already re-evaluating everything from the last six months, Captain Rogers.” Jarvis’ voice was cold and detached. So much more like the machine he actually was than normally. There was nothing left of his sarcasm and warmth.
“Why didn’t you alarm me when it happened?”
“I just got off the phone with-” Pepper started, fury lacing her words but Steve interrupted her.
“I was asking Jarvis.”
“I didn’t know.” Jarvis’ words were clipped, a dangerous threat dancing under the surface. “My presence on his phone is not nearly as all-encompassing as it should be. Sir didn’t have time to modify it after his last upgrade.” Steve remembered Tony telling him about it in passing. Something about his clingy teammates that wouldn’t let him work.
“I’m going through the data as we speak. Something scrambled the signals. His trackers are out of commission too. These attackers were more than prepared.”
Fuck.
“Jarvis…” The name was a desperate plead from Pepper. “We… what…”
“Please sit down, Miss Potts. If you aren’t able to calm down I will be forced to contact someone to help you.”
Jarvis must have hacked the call, because Steve could hear Pepper moving. He could hear her trying to calm her breathing.
“I will work through every signal, trying to find as many information sources as possible. Although the street where Sir has been attacked is not covered with any surveillance.”
Of course, it wasn’t. Something dark twisted in the flames licking at Steve’s insides. They obviously knew way too much about Tony. About Iron Man. Possibly even about his previous kidnappings and where others had failed.
“Captain Rogers will wake the other Avengers. After that we will inform you how we will proceed.” There was no room for objections in the AI’s statement. No room for discussions. And Steve was grateful for it.
“The second you hear something-”
“I’ll tell you. Same goes for you.” Pepper interrupted him. Her voice like steel. She took another deep breath. “I’ll call Rhodey now.”
“I’ll wake the Avengers.” Steve said, his voice hard. Forcing himself to soften it he added, “We’ll get him back, Pepper.”
“Of course, we will.”
The line went dead. Silence encompassed him, only interrupted by his thundering heartbeat, the too irregular in- and exhales and the unrelenting scream in his head.
Tony had been taken.
Tony was in the hands of someone who had not only killed the driver with him but burned down the evidence in a pointed declaration of dominance.
Tony was held by someone who would do whatever it took to get what they wanted. And Tony, his Tony, wouldn’t give in. He would rather die than build a weapon. He wouldn’t give up information. Whatever they wanted he wouldn’t give it to them. He wouldn’t think his life would be worth saving by compromising his believes or those he considered more important.
Steve closed his eyes, and pressed his forehead to his knees. He felt everything slip. He felt the world lose colour and-
Hands were on him, grabbing his shoulders.
“Steve!” It was Natasha.
Balling his hands tighter, Steve forced everything down. It didn’t matter that he felt shattered. It didn’t matter that there was nothing left but the frantic scream, the terror, the anguish. He needed to be in control. He needed to be able to help Tony. He needed to be better!
He looked up, meeting Natasha’s eyes. It was enough to know Jarvis had filled her in. There was the same desperation in her eyes he felt. The same fury. The same fear.
As soon as she knew she had his attention she sat back on her heels, her eyes growing darker. More focussed.
“Agent Romanov, I woke Agent Barton and Dr. Banner and asked them to come to Captain Rogers’ floor.”
“Thank you, Jarvis.” Natasha answered, her voice precise and calm. Too calm. Too precise. This was not their Nat. It was the Black Widow talking.
“Get up, Captain.” She stood up, leaving his bedroom without so much as a backwards glance.
Steve followed. He didn’t feel his body. Didn’t feel his bare feet walking over the cold floor. Didn’t feel his hand opening the door wider to step through. He didn’t feel the stool he sat on.
He didn’t feel the warmth of the coffee mug Natasha pressed into his hands.
He was barely able to hold it. The smell reminded him of home. Of safety. Of Tony.
Minutes later Clint burst through the vents. Almost at the same time the elevator doors opened and let Bruce in. Both looked panicked. Bruce wasn’t green yet, but the balled fists were a bad sign already.
“What happened?” Clint demanded, repeating the same question Steve had asked not thirty minutes ago. It already felt like a lifetime.
Steve opened his mouth. Nothing came out. He tried a second time. “Tony has been taken.”
The silence that stretched between them felt like an eternity.
Clint tensed so much, it looked like he would snap his back any second.
Bruce eyes were shining bright green. Before anyone could say anything, he held up his trembling hand to stop them. Forcefully he started one of his breathing exercises. His eyes stayed green however.
Long minutes later he lowered his hand.
Every second they didn’t do anything was another knife in Steve’s heart. His mind was swirling with images what they could do to Tony. What he could be suffering. At the same time his thoughts were slow, sluggish. He was most likely in shock.
Jarvis recapped the conversation with Pepper showing them all the data he already gathered. Including the provisionally reports by the police.
There was almost nothing to go on. Aside from the burned down car, corpse and splatter of blood there was no sign anything had happened at all.
“They left the blood intentionally.”
Steve looked up. Clint looked at Nat, conviction plainly on his face. “When the lab report comes back it will most likely be Tony’s with some drug remnants to make him more pliable.”
Steve grabbed the kitchen counter forcefully. The only reason it didn’t break was that Tony had enforced it.
Natasha nodded. She was almost expressionless aside from the fire in her eyes.
“Why?” Bruce asked, what Steve just couldn’t bring himself to. He didn’t want to know what that would mean. He didn’t want to think about it.
“It’s proof for us that they got him and that he won’t be able to fight back.”
Steve closed his eyes. He had guessed as much.
“When do we leave for Germany?”
“As soon as we talked to Happy and Peter.”
Steve looked up at Nat a contradiction already on his lips.
“They might have seen something, Steve.” Her voice was hard. “They were with him in the hours before he was taken. There is a reason they waited till he was alone. Do they know about Peter? Didn’t they want to kill a kid? Why didn’t they take them too? It’s common knowledge that Happy is a good friend of Tony. And if they saw Tony and Peter together they would have known they would get Tony to agree to almost anything if they would threaten Peter. But they didn’t. Why?”
His stomach lurched at that but he was able to keep it down. Tony would never recover if something happened to Peter because someone wanted something from the genius. He would do anything to protect his kid. He would-
Why didn’t they take Peter and Happy with them? Didn’t they have the manpower? No one knew about Peter being Spider Man. Was it possible that they didn’t want to hurt a kid? What if they got them too?
Steve opened his mouth but Jarvis was faster.
“I’m in direct contact with the plane. Mr. Parker and Mr. Hogan are safe and secure.”
“Did you tell them?”
There was a pause before the AI answered. “No. I fear for their reaction. Especially Mr. Parker’s.”
Steve closed his eyes. Peter had already lost his parents and his uncle. He had visited the Tower almost daily in the last week and he had joked with Clint about how the Kid was this close to permanently attach himself to his mentor.
He had snuck on a plane just to keep him safe and as soon as he had turned his back on him he had been taken. It would break Peter.
“I’ll get in contact with someone in Germany. She lives near Düsseldorf. I’m sure we can have our base in her home.” Natasha said, standing up. “Clint.”
“Yes.” The archer sat down on the stool beside Steve.
“Bruce?”
“I’ll help Jarvis get through some of the information.” The slight growl in his voice was hard to ignore, but Steve couldn’t care. Not right now.
In the next hours Pepper called twice. Colonel Rhodes was on his way to Germany already.
Natasha’s contact had invited them, promising to start inquiries.
And Steve was uselessly sitting in front of a screen, barely able to understand anything. Barely able to concentrate.
At 10:30am Clint and he drove to the private airport. They watched as Tony’s plane touched down.
Steve had no idea what he should do. He had no idea how to tell Peter that his father figure had been kidnapped. That they didn’t know anything aside from speculations.
Clint was a silent present beside him. The signs of anger were the only he let show. But whenever their eyes met, he nodded. They would get Tony back. They would. That was what he needed to tell Peter. They would get Tony back and-
Peter climbed down the stairs, his shoulders tensing when he saw them.
Steve had no idea what he looked like.
When Tony’s kid stopped in front of them, fidgeting nervously Steve inhaled.
“Peter.” He heard it in his voice. He saw it in Peter’s eyes.
Peter whimpered, an agonized sound that cut right through Steve. Whatever he felt this was a kid that had lost far too many people already. He was a hero, he was Tony’s child and he knew far too much about the cruelty of the world.
“Peter,” he started again, trying to calm his voice and failing. “Tony has been taken.”
Tony’s kid whimpered again.
“We’re getting him back Peter, I promise you, we’re going to do anything and everything to get him back.”
Peter looked up at Steve, unshed tears in his chocolate coloured eyes. Old pain mixing with new in a swirl he should be too young to know.
He didn’t believe him.