steve/tony notfic plotbunny thing!
For xcziel and julorean who want to know how this story goes BUT I ONLY KNOW LIKE, HALF OF IT SO IF ANYONE WANTS THIS PLOT BUNNY SERIOUSLY GO FOR IT
So Tony and Rhodey and Steve and Bucky are all teenage bffs, have been for a while, then Rhodey signs up for the military and suddenly Bucky wants to do it too, and it's always been sitting at the back of Steve's head because he's an orphan but his parents were both in the military, so suddenly HE'S all gungho and meanwhile Tony's like "uh no Steve, STEVE, have you seen your health charts lately they won't let you in for one but for two it's a really bad idea."
and they fight and there's some power dynamics shit because Tony never has to work a day in his life and Steve will have to claw his way up except Tony would gladly GIVE HIM A LADDER bc HELLO, but Steve runs away from home when Bucky signs up, and the next thing Tony hears is some dumb fuck looking to fill his quota let Steve enlist DESPITE EVERYTHING
except of course it's actually super serum time, but it's so top secret Tony never hears about it, and the next thing he knows Steve is missing presumed dead on a mission. and it feels like Tony's entire world is gone.
It takes like a week after that for things to get declassified enough that they even find out Bucky died too, just a few days before Steve, and Rhodey loses his shit at the people in charge of that clusterfuck (because Rhodey/Bucky feels but also just, augh, the only reasons Bucky and Steve even got into the military was because of him, and he's balming himself but he thinks Tony might be blaming him too, and Tony is TRYING SO HARD NOT TO, BECAUSE HE CAN'T LOSE ALL THREE OF HIS FRIENDS IN A WEEK HE JUST CAN'T.)
So they find a way to make it work even if it feels like it's killing them for a while, but they do. They keep living, and it gets a little better, and years pass and they wind up exactly where they were at the start of Iron Man--Rhodey being a bamf, Tony making weapons to defend American soldiers like Steve. And Bucky. Weapons big enough that one day no one will ever have to lose what Tony lost.
And meanwhile there are rumors of this super soldier going around, this dude who fighs for their side and wears a mask and a costume, goes by Captain America and answers to the military, and Tony really kind of hates him because pfft what a dick, what a goody-two-shoes, all his interviews are either awkward as fuck or carefully practiced Yaymurrica mouthpiecing, and MAYBE HE REMINDS TONY OF STEVE JUST A LITTLE, BUT MOSTLY IN A WAY THAT PISSES HIM OFF BEYOND REASON. Because he's everything Steve always wanted to be, big and strong and fighting bullies, and Tony makes a promise to himself that if he ever meets Captain America in person he's going to punch him in the face.
then, like. The military comes to Tony and they're like, "Hey, so, you know how our war on terror is kind of winding down? Well, PR decided we need a boost in recruits and like, funds and stuff, so look, we got you a mascot." And Tony is just, "Uh, excuse me, a WHAT." And they're like, "Tadaaaaaaaaaaa."
And Tony just. Rage. Raaaage. Flames on the side of his face. Tony is ten kinds of dick to Captain America Steve, who thought now would be the first and only opportunity that he might get to tell Tony that's he's alive! Because it turns out that the military is one giant bag of dicks and made Steve sign his life away after Bucky died, so he couldn't have any contact with any of his friends from his life before, told Steve it would only put them in danger from people who want to hurt him blah blah basic emotional manipulation--which Steve was especially receptive to since Bucky had just died.
But Tony's angry and surly and drunk and just wants to blow shit up now, and Steve hardly recognizes his friend from all those years ago. So he goes all snappish and surly too, but he also kind of HAS TO spend time with him at all these functions (always in the mask), and he realizes Tony is just really sad about something, starts like, super subtly asking Tony what it is, and Tony rankles and bristles and won't tell him. But despite that they start being sort of not enemies, because Tony is smart enough to realize he shouldn't take out his misplaced grief on someone who just reminds him of the dead and unrequited love of his goddamn life.
AND DUDES SORRY BUT I DON'T KNOW WHAT HAPPENS AFTER THAT. Maybe Bucky comes back from the dead all winter soldiery and Tony builds the suit in his basement for lols and something else that rips Steve's mask off at exactly the wrong time, and then emotional fallout and then makeouts.
*hands*
SO YEAH. SOMEONE SHOULD WRITE THAT.
*BAMBI EYES*
So Tony and Rhodey and Steve and Bucky are all teenage bffs, have been for a while, then Rhodey signs up for the military and suddenly Bucky wants to do it too, and it's always been sitting at the back of Steve's head because he's an orphan but his parents were both in the military, so suddenly HE'S all gungho and meanwhile Tony's like "uh no Steve, STEVE, have you seen your health charts lately they won't let you in for one but for two it's a really bad idea."
and they fight and there's some power dynamics shit because Tony never has to work a day in his life and Steve will have to claw his way up except Tony would gladly GIVE HIM A LADDER bc HELLO, but Steve runs away from home when Bucky signs up, and the next thing Tony hears is some dumb fuck looking to fill his quota let Steve enlist DESPITE EVERYTHING
except of course it's actually super serum time, but it's so top secret Tony never hears about it, and the next thing he knows Steve is missing presumed dead on a mission. and it feels like Tony's entire world is gone.
It takes like a week after that for things to get declassified enough that they even find out Bucky died too, just a few days before Steve, and Rhodey loses his shit at the people in charge of that clusterfuck (because Rhodey/Bucky feels but also just, augh, the only reasons Bucky and Steve even got into the military was because of him, and he's balming himself but he thinks Tony might be blaming him too, and Tony is TRYING SO HARD NOT TO, BECAUSE HE CAN'T LOSE ALL THREE OF HIS FRIENDS IN A WEEK HE JUST CAN'T.)
So they find a way to make it work even if it feels like it's killing them for a while, but they do. They keep living, and it gets a little better, and years pass and they wind up exactly where they were at the start of Iron Man--Rhodey being a bamf, Tony making weapons to defend American soldiers like Steve. And Bucky. Weapons big enough that one day no one will ever have to lose what Tony lost.
And meanwhile there are rumors of this super soldier going around, this dude who fighs for their side and wears a mask and a costume, goes by Captain America and answers to the military, and Tony really kind of hates him because pfft what a dick, what a goody-two-shoes, all his interviews are either awkward as fuck or carefully practiced Yaymurrica mouthpiecing, and MAYBE HE REMINDS TONY OF STEVE JUST A LITTLE, BUT MOSTLY IN A WAY THAT PISSES HIM OFF BEYOND REASON. Because he's everything Steve always wanted to be, big and strong and fighting bullies, and Tony makes a promise to himself that if he ever meets Captain America in person he's going to punch him in the face.
then, like. The military comes to Tony and they're like, "Hey, so, you know how our war on terror is kind of winding down? Well, PR decided we need a boost in recruits and like, funds and stuff, so look, we got you a mascot." And Tony is just, "Uh, excuse me, a WHAT." And they're like, "Tadaaaaaaaaaaa."
And Tony just. Rage. Raaaage. Flames on the side of his face. Tony is ten kinds of dick to Captain America Steve, who thought now would be the first and only opportunity that he might get to tell Tony that's he's alive! Because it turns out that the military is one giant bag of dicks and made Steve sign his life away after Bucky died, so he couldn't have any contact with any of his friends from his life before, told Steve it would only put them in danger from people who want to hurt him blah blah basic emotional manipulation--which Steve was especially receptive to since Bucky had just died.
But Tony's angry and surly and drunk and just wants to blow shit up now, and Steve hardly recognizes his friend from all those years ago. So he goes all snappish and surly too, but he also kind of HAS TO spend time with him at all these functions (always in the mask), and he realizes Tony is just really sad about something, starts like, super subtly asking Tony what it is, and Tony rankles and bristles and won't tell him. But despite that they start being sort of not enemies, because Tony is smart enough to realize he shouldn't take out his misplaced grief on someone who just reminds him of the dead and unrequited love of his goddamn life.
AND DUDES SORRY BUT I DON'T KNOW WHAT HAPPENS AFTER THAT. Maybe Bucky comes back from the dead all winter soldiery and Tony builds the suit in his basement for lols and something else that rips Steve's mask off at exactly the wrong time, and then emotional fallout and then makeouts.
*hands*
SO YEAH. SOMEONE SHOULD WRITE THAT.
*BAMBI EYES*