After Civil War References, mild language

"Goodnight, sweetheart," Tony waved from the door of your room, pulling the door shut as FRIDAY slowly dimmed the lights and into darkness. You closed your eyes and fell almost immediately into sleep, your eyes feeling oddly heavy and impossible to keep open. Not only did your eyes feel heavy, but your body felt as if it were sinking into the mattress, falling into a nothingness that encompassed you as you drifted into sleep. It was almost too easy.

~~~

"Steve, you gotta see this," Sam called out from the living room of the small compound, watching various news reports over multiple screens. Steve hurried to his side, and all Sam could do was watch him for the inevitable reaction.

"During the night, Tony Stark's only child, his daughter (Y/N), was apparently abducted from the Avengers compound located in upstate New York. There are no reports of signs of foul play, and it's unlikely that she left on her own volition, as all of her belongings are still in place."

"Have we heard from Tony?" Steve asked quietly, almost a whisper, his gaze fixated on the screen in front of him.

"Do we honestly expect to?"

"Stark has been contacted for comment, but we've had no response from him or his representatives. It would appear that he has shut himself into the compound with a team of government officials coming and going throughout the morning."

"The Accords," Sam groaned, "do you think they'll let him in on this? It's too personal."

"I should call him."

"Steve, come on. I think any of us, particularly you, are the last thing he wants to deal with right now. Put yourself in his shoes for just a minute and think about it. What would you do?"

Steve sighed and crossed his arms, reaching up to rub his chin as he thought. It was true, he was probably the last person that Tony would want to get involved in this. But what if he was the only person that Tony had? "If they tie his hands, I might just be the first person he'll be waiting for. (Y/N) is only fifteen, Sam. She's not going to get out of this on her own." Steve nodded in his own resolution and turned back towards his office, dropping into his chair with a loud sigh as he reached for the phone to make the call that he could very easily end up regretting. He sat still with his hand hovering just above the numbers, jumping slightly when Bucky approached and leaned against the door.

"I heard. What are you gonna do, Steve?"

"I can't just let this go and trust that the Accords are going to work like the government thinks they will. If they hold the Avengers back because of Tony, they'll never find her, or they'll be too late and find her dead. I can't let that happen, Buck."

"Okay. So, when do we start?"

Steve set the phone down and stood, finally deciding that maybe Sam was right; calling Tony might only open up more problems that would ultimately delay your rescue by slowing the team down. "We just did. Get everyone together in the conference room. We're going underground on this one, and I'm pretty sure that you're not gonna like it."

~~~

Tony stood at the large window in his office, wringing his hands and then forcing them deep into his pockets for a few minutes, again removing them to repeat the cycle with an occasional bite of his thumb nail in between. Managing his anxiety could be a struggle, even on a good day, given his mounting governmental responsibilities and the remaining guilt of how the events with his own team had played out against Steve and his. He wanted to call Steve for help; he really just wanted to call him and make amends, but he couldn't bring himself to do it yet. But now, suddenly with his own family in danger and the Accords tying his hands, he was running out of options.

"Tony, I can see what's going through that mind of yours," Rhodey said, moving to stand at his friend's side. "You can't call him. He's a fugitive."

"I wasn't thinking that at all, since you think you know me so well."

"Yes you were. You can't lie to me, Tony, and I can't lie to you either. If you call Steve to bring him or any of the others into this, you'll be a vigilante and a fugitive by association, just the same as they are. He broke into a maximum security prison, caused more injuries than I care to say out loud, and broke out a team that's equally as guilty as he is. Let the process do what it's meant to do."

"But it's Steve," Tony groaned, turning away and sitting into his chair with a fatigued and heavy drop. "Even if we disagreed, he's a good person who will do what's right."

"When he ran with his team into hiding, he took that point of view and blew it all to hell."

~~~

A full week had passed with no sign of you, and Tony was at his wits end; they still wouldn't let him participate in the search for you, given that he was your father and that he was becoming more and more volatile as the days passed. Even Rhodey was unable to get through to him now, and he had begun to sleep in your room. He had thought about calling Steve every single day, multiple times each day since you had disappeared, and now he sat alone on your bed, holding his phone with the number entered with his thumb hesitantly hovering over the screen to finally open the line.

Steve and his team had been working nearly non-stop to find you, watching news reports each day that confirmed that Tony was still being held back, and that the government methods were completely ineffective, just as they had anticipated. He had waited each day for Tony to call him to ask for help, but he honestly wasn't surprised that the call had yet to come. Steve had held his phone in his hand so many times, both waiting for it to ring and waiting for his own hand to dial, and today was just another of those times. If they spoke, what would they even say? Were there words strong enough to pacify the fight, when both men were too weak to speak them?

But as of yet, neither of them had made the first move.

Steve was jolted from his thoughts at the sound of Sam's steps bounding down the hall towards him, rushing into his office, but stopping just at the entrance. "Steve, Wanda's found her!"

~~~

"I have come to move the prisoner."

"I wasn't advised of this move? Who ordered this?" the guard of your cage asked the new man at your door, but it was too dark for you to see his face.

"I don't require an order," the man offered, stepping into the light so that it would reflect from his metal arm, the flash of light stinging your sight. "And I think I need no further introduction. You will release her to me, or face a grave consequence."

"Sir," the man agreed, rustling his keys in his hands until he found the right one, quickly inserting it and entering a code to release the mechanism that had held you prisoner for over a week now. "Come on, get up," he guard commanded. "I said, get up." The man took a step towards you, but the soldier pulled him away firmly enough to throw him across the hallway and into the wall.

"Do not touch her again." Bucky held out his hand gently and looked in your eyes, doing his best to convey to you that he was trustworthy without saying anything to give him away. "Please, I insist that you come with me, (Y/N). Captain's orders."

"You're not one of them?" you whispered, not yet taking his hand and pulling yourself up to stand. Even if he was a Hydra agent, there was nothing worse that could be done with or to you, so going with him was no threat to you either way. "You know Steve?"

"I am not one of them," he paused, sticking his head out through the door to check for new arrivals. "Not anymore, and he's the one who sent me. But we need to hurry." When you still didn't advance and wouldn't take his metal hand, he dropped it at his side and held out the other. "Do you prefer this one? Because, sweetheart, I don't care which one you take. Just take my damn hand so we can get you back to daddy before all hell breaks loose, okay?"

~~~

"Sir, if I may..." Vision approached quietly, taking careful steps towards Tony across the kitchen. "I believe that something may be shifting in regards to your daughter's situation." Tony spun on his heel to face him at the mention of you, but Vision countered with a quick move to his side, grabbing Tony's arm as if he were about to topple over. "You need to sit, Tony. It's not wise for you to continue without nourishment, and you haven't slept in two days."

"I don't care. What's shifting? What have you heard?" he replied quietly, with a shaky voice and a haze in his expression that told of his extreme exhaustion and waning mental state. "Vision, tell me."

"There has been an incursion on a Hydra base in Eastern Russia, sir. We have reason to believe...that it's Captain Rogers' doing."

"And you think it has to do with (Y/N)? Why?"

Vision pushed Tony into a nearby seat and took one next to him, leaning forward to whisper quietly so that anyone else who may be in the area wouldn't hear him. "Because I have been in communication with Wanda since their escape from the Raft."

~~~

Bucky helped you strap into your safety harness on the small jet, rushing to the pilot seat to make an escape before the guards were able to realize what had just happened and that he wasn't meant to be there after all. Once he had the plane safely in the air and on the way back to the base, he set the autopilot and turned the chair to face you. "Are you okay?"

"Not really."

Even though it was a viable and truthful answer, he somehow wasn't expecting it. "Um...okay...well, is there something that I can do to make you okay?"

"Make this all go away. Can you do that? Can you take me back to that night when my dad kissed me goodnight and said that he'd see me in the morning? When my life made sense? When I felt like I had a reason to live?"

Bucky sucked in a harsh, deep breath and held it for a moment, trying to think of what he could say to that. He had been there; he had felt the same way as you were now. Sometimes he would still be awash with that feeling of despair and uncertainty, wondering if his life was still worth living. It began to hurt him that someone as young as you would be burdened with that kind of pain, when it was no fault or doing of your own.

"I can't," he whispered. "Nothing will ever be the same, (Y/N), I'm sorry."

"I feel like this isn't me anymore, after what they did..." you said, tears beginning to fall and your breaths beginning to catch in your chest. Your throat felt as if it were on fire with a piercing dryness, as if it could suffocate you at any moment. "I don't know if I can do this."

"You can," he offered immediately, throwing off his harness and moving to kneel in front of you. "Look at me, (Y/N). You can. You're Tony Stark's kid, right? Other than Steve, I don't think I've ever met anyone else so determined or bull headed as your old man. There has to be a part of that in you." He stood and took the seat next to you, taking care to leave his human hand on the side closest to yours. "I've been where you are now. They brainwashed me, tortured me, made me do things that I couldn't stop but that I can remember with such clarity that I sometimes feel like I'm back there again. They gave me this scary thing," he paused, holding up the metal hand, "but I'm learning to accept it and change what it means to me."

"Is that why you said that you used to be one of them?"

"Yeah. But it wasn't because I wanted to, that's for damn sure."

"How did you get past it?" you asked eagerly, desperate for him to have an answer; anything that would make you feel that there was a shred of hope for a normal future for you.

"Oh, doll, I didn't," Bucky scoffed, casting his gaze to the floor in front of him and lowering his voice. "I work on this everyday, but it starts to get a little easier as time passes. But getting past it for good won't be an option. You'll learn how to use it."

With a sigh, you accepted that he was right, and it was pointless for you to have ever thought that you could just push this experience away and out of your life. If he could go through so many terrible things and be able to speak so honestly of them, then maybe you could be there one day too. "Thank you...um...I don't know your name."

"Bucky," he smiled, offering his hand again. "It was a privilege to find you, (Y/N)."

You glanced at the human hand that he was offering and held your breath, instead reaching out and taking the metal one. His faint chuckle made you smile for the first time in over a week, and you finally felt safe again. "It was a privilege to be found by you, Bucky."

~~~

"(Y/N)!" Steve called out to you, running to the jet and grabbing you into a tight hug. "Oh, God, I'm so glad that we found you. Are you okay?" he asked, shifting into a concerned tone. "Are you injured? What did they do?"

"Steve," you sighed into him, welcoming his embrace openly until he stood you in front of him, though not letting you go. "I'll be okay, thank you so much. I can't believe what you did. Are you going to get into more trouble because of me?"

"It wouldn't matter if we were, (Y/N). I'd do it again." Steve looked up towards Bucky, who was waiting at the jet so that he could take you to the Avengers compound and to your dad. "I hope that Buck was descent company on the ride back."

You glanced over your shoulder at him with a small grin and turned back to Steve, "yeah, I couldn't ask for a better rescuer." When Steve's expression changed to mock hurt, you laughed and gave him a light slap on his arm, "except for you, of course! Next to dad, you know you're my favorite, Cap. Nothing that's happened has changed that."

~~~

"Hey, Tone?" Rhodey called out from the living room window. "Were we expecting company?" He stood in place as he watched the jet land, glancing at Tony when the back door opened and you appeared, walking carefully towards the building but completely alone.

"Oh my god," Tony gasped, running to meet you. In his fatigued and weakened state, he nearly tripped over an ottoman, a garbage can, and his own feet several times, but he paid no attention to it; his one and only goal was to have you safe in his arms again.

"Dad!"

When he met you in the center of the lawn, Tony wrapped his arms around you and pulled you to the ground, crumbling under his own emotions and disbelief that you were actually next to him. "Baby, I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry that I wasn't there." The roar of the jet pulled his attention away long enough for him to see just a second of Steve and Bucky looking down at the two of you before they were out of sight.

"Steve found me, dad. Bucky got me out and brought me home."

"Steve? He...he found you..." his voice faded and his expression dropped, now full of remorse and pain, despite the joy of having you in front of him. "I never called him. He just...he knew..."

"I have this for you." You reached into your pocket and pulled out a folded envelope, handing it to him gently and watching as he opened it to read; you could see his reluctance to do it, but also the need for him to hear what his former teammate had to say after all this time.

Tony,

I know you didn't ask me to do this, and know that you would never have had to. I love (Y/N) like she's my own, and I couldn't stand by and not do something. We were all ready to face the consequences of this if they came, and we knew the risk, but there are things in life that are much bigger than us. No matter how much we fight or disagree, and no matter if we never come to a resolution between us, I couldn't stand to watch you in this kind of pain. I watched the Accords tie your hands so that you couldn't help, and I can't imagine what that did to you. I can only hope that the two of you are able to help each other through this, but if you need me again, I'll be here.

Steve

~~~

"Hey, man, check this out," Sam said, motioning towards the television, standing at the center of the room with the remote resting against his chin as he listened.

"Wilson, do you do anything but watch...TV..." Steve chuckled but quickly faded, seeing Tony at the center of the screen in a three-piece-suit, with Vision and Rhodey at his side, standing before a crowd at the Avengers compound. He stood quickly and moved next to Sam, grabbing the remote from his grasp to turn up the volume as Tony's speech began.

"Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for joining us today."

"What's he doing?" Scott asked, joining Clint on a nearby couch.

"Shhh."

"As most of you know, my daughter (Y/N) was returned to me yesterday without much fanfare or announcement, which as you know is my usual way of doing things," Tony smiled blankly, looking down at his scribbled notes. "After over a week of searching and working with government officials to find her..." he stopped, raising his gaze to look out over the crowd of reporters with microphones aimed at him and incessant flashes in his face. He focused in on one camera, his eyes almost appearing to search for Steve in the hopes that he was watching.

"Oh, shit," Sam groaned, "he's gonna do it, isn't he?"

"Yeah..." Steve sighed.

"What's he gonna do?" Scott prodded at Clint.

"Shhh."

"The rescue of my daughter can't be attributed to the work of our inept and overblown government. They did nothing but sit on their bureaucratic asses and wait for the work to be done for them, which is exactly what Captain Steve Rogers and his team did. They weren't asked to act, but rather knew that it was the right thing to do to find her...which is really what the Avengers are supposed to be about. Doing what's right." The crowd began to shout out questions, but Tony raised his hand to silence them. "Shut up, I'm not done," he snapped. "Yes, they broke the law and are now running as fugitives, but maybe that should tell us that the law is wrong. Avengers as fugitives? How ridiculous does that sound? It sounds ridiculous because it is, and Steve, if you're watching this, know how thankful that I am to you and everyone else on your team. I owe you, and my first step in repayment is to get the Accords repealed." The crowd began to clamor again, but Tony slammed his fist down on the podium to draw their silence. "Hey, Rogers, do me one tiny favor, not that I should have the right to ask, but if I can't get rid of this atrocious waste of a tree," he smirked, holding up a copy of the Accords, "then please save a spot for me at your dinner table, because I'm coming home."