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The video plays and for a second Tony wants to look away. He knows this road. He's driven it before. He's seen it covered with blood before.
The cold creeps up his spine despite his suit. Steve is eyeing him. Tony can see him in his peripheral vision. F.R.I.D.A.Y notifies him that his heart rate has elevated the moment the car on screen hits the tree. There's blood pounding in his ears to the rhythm of his father's skull hitting the car and his mother's last breath.
He can barely see as he blinks back the tears threatening to fall. It's registering one painful second at a time. The pounding in his ears is returning too quickly. Where everything was excruciatingly slow it now seems blindingly fast. His hands start a tremor that echoes beneath metal. He exhales harshly. The breath he hasn’t been aware of holding hangs in the air between the three men.
“Howard..” she called for him.
Her last word had been his name. The same one he had reviled since. Steve makes a move and it snaps Tony out of his thoughts. Dragging him completely into the present.
“Tony..”
“Did you know?”
He hates how small he sounds. His voice has lost it's sarcasm and confident timber. He sounds desperate and so what if he is? He stares at Steve unflinchingly.
Bucky is behind him and it crosses Tony's mind. His good it would feel to break his skull open against the floor. How would he feel to count his last breaths by the moments. His anger is building while Steve hesitates.
“I didn't know it was him,” Steve says finally and their eyes barely meet. Tony is well past anger.
“Don't bullshit me Rogers!”
Bucky flinches. His gaze jumps to anywhere but them. There's so much rage boiling in Tony that when Steve steps further to his line of vision, blocking the former assassin, Tony actually let’s out a low growl.
“I'm sorry but it wasn't him! It was-“ He's between them again before Tony can blink and when he does all he can see is bits of Maria Stark's wide terrified eyes.
His words catch in his throat and his face plate snaps down. Steve has that hard look about him more Captain America than the kid from Brooklyn that used to sip coffee next to him at the Tower. His gauntlets Are up Tony aims past Cap and charge them and fires up towards the ceiling of the bunker.
“Bucky go!” Steve is yelling.
His shield knocks Tony to the ground but his thrusters keep him out of range. He shoots towards the hole in the ceiling where Bucky is climbing and dodges Cap's shield. It embeds in the steel next to Bucky who uses it to pull himself up to the opening and balances in it.
He turns toward Tony eyes wide and expectant. His metal arm is swinging towards him as Tony passes him and scratches the shin plate. The screech follows Tony into the icy Siberian air. In the distance he can see a figure clad in black approaching Zemo who sits on the edge of a cliff.
Bucky is on the roof joined by Steve staring up at him as he surges towards the man. The Panther and Zemo are talking when Tony approaches. Zemo's is exuberant and Tony realizes he thinks he's won. Has he? His heart feels heavy at the thought. Things will never be the same again. No matter how much Steve apologizes there's no forgiveness in Tony Stark. Not an ounce left.
The Accords he could have dealt with. If it were just that… he could see it working out. They could talk like they used to. Now with this hanging between them…talking seemed futile. He was tired of trusting the wrong people. His father, Obie, Natasha, Steve...
There were only three left in the whole world that he did. One was fighting for his life and the other two he hadn't spoken to properly in months.
“Boss? Company inbound. Mr. Rogers and Barnes," F.R.I.D.A.Y. informs him.
“You'll take it from here?” Tony asks. T'Challa removes his cowl but Tony refuses to do the same. Refuses to show how deeply he is cut by Zemo's machinations. To give T’Challa anything to say to the men fast approaching.
“C-can you help them? Please?” Tony asks. His voice breaks and he swallows a lungful of cold when he tries to steady himself further. It fucking hurts to know that he still cares what happens to him…to all of them.
He doesn't turn. He can't look at him. He might not have the strength to leave if he does. Can't stand to hear the words again or watch him choose. T'Challa nods. Tony's thrusters power beneath him an he's in the air.
“I'll see you in Washington,” T’Challa shouts in the wind.
“No you won't” Tony answers lowly.
He knows his voice doesn't carry and that this time is up. Steve is right below him and Bucky trails behind. Blonde hair sticks out against the snow. Blue eyes stare up at him in pained curiosity. He takes off before Steve can open his mouth. They're lost in the snow just 5 miles out.
“Any pursuit?”
“ No, boss.”
“Good.”