Fic - The One Where Steve is Wee, Thor is Sweet and Darcy is a Stalker
Darcy knew she was being a creepy stalker. She knew it, and yet…well, she was in too deep to stop now.
In her defense, now that Steve was back to normal and everything was fine she wasn’t really stalking him. It was more of a historical preservation thing. Yeah, totally for the sake of posterity.
AND if you wanted to get technical about it, she was actually stalking Thor, but she’d been doing that since he first arrived on Earth; she was basically his social media gateway so that wasn’t new and not creepy at all.
Darcy bit her lip as she scrolled forward through the video footage that Jarvis had compiled from the time Steve was small. She willed herself not to be distracted by adorable eating or adorable sparring or adorable story time or anything else. Stark had promised Steve that Jarvis would turn over all recordings to him, so Darcy just had to get to the one she wanted first.
“Yes! This is the one! Jarvis, split screen please,” Darcy exclaimed.
Darcy’s eyes avidly skipped over the images in each quarter of the screen. The top, left image was from an overhead, static camera. The top, right image was from a static camera stationed near the window showing a wide view of the common area. It showed that the lights were on in the kitchen, but the rest of the living area was in low light. The giant TV screen displayed “The Wizard of Oz” beyond Thor’s broad shoulders on the couch.
The screen on the lower left had images from a camera attached to the inner wall facing toward the window, but the angle was less of an overhead angle and more focused on people. At the moment the lower right portion of the screen had the same image as the lower left.
“These two,” Darcy asked Jarvis while pointing, “they’ll follow the people, right?”
“Yes, Miss Lewis. The lower left camera will follow Prince Thor and the lower right will follow Captain Rogers.”
“Please get rid of the two on top and make these two bigger.” Darcy clapped with glee as Jarvis followed her instructions and then leaned forward eagerly.
After Steve had been regressed to the age of a nine year old child, everyone in the Tower went a little crazy trying to figure out how to fix it. They had lived through a little over forty-eight hours of scrambling and speculation, science and magic. But in the middle of all of the craziness the adults were keenly aware of needing to keep Steve safe and protected. Even when the rest of the building was franticly working through caffeine-fueled theories, Steve was never alone.
Maybe it was because Thor had plucked him out of danger in the middle of battle when he was disoriented and confused immediately after the change; like a duckling, Steve imprinted on the Thunder god and seemed to be the most comfortable when the much larger man was present. So when Thor wasn’t acting as liaison with Asgardians who were trying to fix the problem, he was with Steve.
The video Darcy was searching for showed Thor seated in the middle of the couch, his legs stretched out casually with his feet up on the sturdy coffee table. Thor was watching the movie - by the audio Darcy could tell that Dorothy and her friends were about to enter the Emerald City. Steve was sprawled on the couch to Thor’s right, sleeping with the abandon only afforded to the very young. Regular sized Steve would’ve needed the whole couch to accommodate his length if he wanted to stretch out, but in his reduced state, the quarter of the couch he was sprawled on was more than he needed.
Steve’s head was cushioned on Thor’s thigh with his head was turned toward the TV and his left hand curled up by his cheek. Thor’s right hand was snaked under Steve’s arm and settled gently on the boy’s chest. Steve’s hand rested on top of Thor’s and he curled himself under Thor’s arm like he was Steve’s favorite blanket. Steve had had an asthma attack earlier in the afternoon which freaked everyone out. Bruce gave him the all clear once the medicine kicked in, but the incident put everyone on edge. It was one thing for a spell to turn Steve back into a feisty kid, but the very real danger his fragile health presented added new urgency to fix the situation.
“Hey, how’s he doing?” Jane slid onto the couch on Thor’s left side and tucked herself under his free arm.
“He is breathing well and has been sleeping for a little while now,” Thor responded softly.
Jane tipped her head against Thor’s shoulder, but her eyes were on Steve. “Sleep’s probably the best thing for him.” She reached across Thor’s lap and gently brushed Steve’s hair back from his face. “If he’s not watching the movie, maybe we should just put him to bed.”
“If that is what you think is best,” Thor replied looking down fondly at the boy as well. They sat for a moment companionably marveling at the stranger in their midst who had so easily won the hearts of everyone in the Tower.
Jane pushed herself away from Thor and sat up on her knees. “I’ll go get his pajamas and stuff ready.”
Thor caught her right hand in his left as she began to rise and brought it to his lips as his eyes met hers. “You have a kind heart, my Jane.”
With her free hand Jane brushed a stray lock of hair away from Thor’s face in a gesture that was familiar to Darcy. “As do you, Prince Thor.” When Jane leaned in to kiss Thor Darcy couldn’t see her face because her back was to the camera, but Darcy had seen the soft expression enough times to have it memorized and she wasn’t here for the Jane and Thor show anyway.
Jane pulled away from Thor and walked away from the camera to go get things ready. Darcy gestured animatedly at the screen before her as she scolded. “How do you walk away from this, Jane? Have I taught you nothing?”
In the meantime, Thor turned his attention to the boy sprawled on the couch. “Come my young friend, Jane says it’s time for you to be in bed.” Thor eased his free hand under Steve’s head between his leg and Steve’s shoulders. He gently pushed Steve up into a seated position. Steve started slightly, but didn’t rouse completely as Thor shifted his weight and rose from the couch. Darcy cursed inwardly as Thor’s massive frame blocked Steve from view, but then he stepped to the side just slightly to get a better grip on Steve as he lifted him from the couch.
Darcy sat back in her rolling chair, eyes wide and fists covering her mouth as Thor settled Steve against his shoulder. The first camera showed Thor, tall and mighty, gently rubbing circles on Steve’s back to soothe him back down into slumber. Steve’s legs dangled from his seat on Thor’s right arm. The second camera showed Steve, sleepy and trusting, rubbing his check against Thor’s shoulder until he found a spot he liked and relaxed with a sigh. Steve’s left hand wrapped securely around Thor’s bicep and his right arm made its way around Thor’s neck.
It was embarrassing, but Darcy was pretty sure she made some sort of dolphin noise when Thor turned and walked away from the camera and Steve’s little hand slid off of Thor’s arm as he completely gave himself over to slumber.
“Darcy!”
Darcy yelped in alarm and jumped out of her chair smashing her knee in the process. She whirled around guiltily and tried to come up with a rational explanation for her actions while balancing on one leg.
“Sweetest thing ever!” was what she managed to choke out.
Adult-sized Steve Rogers was shaking his head with disapproval from the doorway. “Darcy, we talked about this…”
“I know,” Darcy interrupted, “and this was selfish, I know…but Jane was telling me that Thor had to…you know…put you to bed” Darcy gestured helplessly behind her at the screens. “And you two were just so sweet.”
“Jarvis, please erase…”
“WAIT!” Darcy interrupted again throwing her arms wide as if blocking the screen would somehow prevent Jarvis from doing his work. “Can I please just show this one bit to Jane? And Natasha?”
Steve sighed. “Darcy, it’s a matter of security. The fact that someone was able to do that to me…make me so vulnerable,” his eyes cut away and Darcy could see how uncomfortable he was. “Just once was bad enough. But if this got out and it was widely known do you know how many more yahoos would give it a try? And maybe succeed in making it permanent?”
Darcy shook her head, “I know…” She was really starting to feel like a heel.
“But it’s more than that,” Steve reached up and rubbed the back of his neck as he shifted his weight from foot to foot, “It’s personal, you know?”
Darcy grinned widely, “Exactly!”
Steve’s brow creased in a frown.
“It was personal, and meant so much more to all of us because you’re ours. We’re family.” Darcy’s hopes began to rise as Steve remained silent. “This isn’t Thor smashing mugs and trending on Twitter. This…” Darcy gestured behind her again, “is just for us.”
Steve stood with his hands on his hips. He looked up at the screen and shook his head softly. “I don’t understand why this…”
Darcy turned to see Thor standing patiently in the elevator waiting to arrive at the designated floor doing the “baby bounce” and rocking Steve in his arms.
Darcy emitted another dolphin squeak. “Sooooo cute!” slipped out before she could restrain herself. She looked apologetically at Steve.
Steve chuckled and that’s when Darcy knew she would win. So she pulled out all the stops and turned on all the charm. “We don’t need to keep forty-eight hours of the most adorable Avenger ever but can’t we keep these ten minutes? Please?” Darcy clasped her hands in front of her chest and used the puppy-dog eyes. “Not even keep it permanently, just long enough to show Jane, Natasha, Pepper and Maria.”
“Hey,” Steve protested, “that list is getting longer.”
“Think of it as a uniquely Avenger family photo album. Please?” Darcy willed Steve to see in her face that she wasn’t mocking or being sarcastic. There was something so special in those moments that she wasn’t willing to lose without a fight.
“Photo album, huh?”
“Yes!” Darcy impulsively rushed forward and grabbed Steve in a hug. It was kind of like hugging a brick wall. A brick wall with a tiny waist. Steve seemed startled by the contact and patted her shoulder awkwardly.
Darcy gave him an extra squish before she let go and stepped back. Wee Steve was much more open to hugs and cuddles and clearly Big Steve needed more of that in his life. Darcy slid her arm around Steve’s waist and pulled him toward the console where she’d been sitting.
“What do you want to keep?” Darcy asked.
Steve looked surprised that she’d asked the question.
“Well, if you want to erase everything, that’s fine…but didn’t anything happen in the last two days that was worth saving?”
Steve smiled shyly. “I did enjoy reading with Pepper…”
Darcy grinned and pushed Steve into a rolling chair. “Stay right here. I need five minutes to make popcorn. Jarvis, let’s go to the beginning!” She skipped away before Steve could protest and sent a group text to the ladies stating “FAMILY MOVIE NIGHT 5 MIN!!!”
In her defense, now that Steve was back to normal and everything was fine she wasn’t really stalking him. It was more of a historical preservation thing. Yeah, totally for the sake of posterity.
AND if you wanted to get technical about it, she was actually stalking Thor, but she’d been doing that since he first arrived on Earth; she was basically his social media gateway so that wasn’t new and not creepy at all.
Darcy bit her lip as she scrolled forward through the video footage that Jarvis had compiled from the time Steve was small. She willed herself not to be distracted by adorable eating or adorable sparring or adorable story time or anything else. Stark had promised Steve that Jarvis would turn over all recordings to him, so Darcy just had to get to the one she wanted first.
“Yes! This is the one! Jarvis, split screen please,” Darcy exclaimed.
Darcy’s eyes avidly skipped over the images in each quarter of the screen. The top, left image was from an overhead, static camera. The top, right image was from a static camera stationed near the window showing a wide view of the common area. It showed that the lights were on in the kitchen, but the rest of the living area was in low light. The giant TV screen displayed “The Wizard of Oz” beyond Thor’s broad shoulders on the couch.
The screen on the lower left had images from a camera attached to the inner wall facing toward the window, but the angle was less of an overhead angle and more focused on people. At the moment the lower right portion of the screen had the same image as the lower left.
“These two,” Darcy asked Jarvis while pointing, “they’ll follow the people, right?”
“Yes, Miss Lewis. The lower left camera will follow Prince Thor and the lower right will follow Captain Rogers.”
“Please get rid of the two on top and make these two bigger.” Darcy clapped with glee as Jarvis followed her instructions and then leaned forward eagerly.
After Steve had been regressed to the age of a nine year old child, everyone in the Tower went a little crazy trying to figure out how to fix it. They had lived through a little over forty-eight hours of scrambling and speculation, science and magic. But in the middle of all of the craziness the adults were keenly aware of needing to keep Steve safe and protected. Even when the rest of the building was franticly working through caffeine-fueled theories, Steve was never alone.
Maybe it was because Thor had plucked him out of danger in the middle of battle when he was disoriented and confused immediately after the change; like a duckling, Steve imprinted on the Thunder god and seemed to be the most comfortable when the much larger man was present. So when Thor wasn’t acting as liaison with Asgardians who were trying to fix the problem, he was with Steve.
The video Darcy was searching for showed Thor seated in the middle of the couch, his legs stretched out casually with his feet up on the sturdy coffee table. Thor was watching the movie - by the audio Darcy could tell that Dorothy and her friends were about to enter the Emerald City. Steve was sprawled on the couch to Thor’s right, sleeping with the abandon only afforded to the very young. Regular sized Steve would’ve needed the whole couch to accommodate his length if he wanted to stretch out, but in his reduced state, the quarter of the couch he was sprawled on was more than he needed.
Steve’s head was cushioned on Thor’s thigh with his head was turned toward the TV and his left hand curled up by his cheek. Thor’s right hand was snaked under Steve’s arm and settled gently on the boy’s chest. Steve’s hand rested on top of Thor’s and he curled himself under Thor’s arm like he was Steve’s favorite blanket. Steve had had an asthma attack earlier in the afternoon which freaked everyone out. Bruce gave him the all clear once the medicine kicked in, but the incident put everyone on edge. It was one thing for a spell to turn Steve back into a feisty kid, but the very real danger his fragile health presented added new urgency to fix the situation.
“Hey, how’s he doing?” Jane slid onto the couch on Thor’s left side and tucked herself under his free arm.
“He is breathing well and has been sleeping for a little while now,” Thor responded softly.
Jane tipped her head against Thor’s shoulder, but her eyes were on Steve. “Sleep’s probably the best thing for him.” She reached across Thor’s lap and gently brushed Steve’s hair back from his face. “If he’s not watching the movie, maybe we should just put him to bed.”
“If that is what you think is best,” Thor replied looking down fondly at the boy as well. They sat for a moment companionably marveling at the stranger in their midst who had so easily won the hearts of everyone in the Tower.
Jane pushed herself away from Thor and sat up on her knees. “I’ll go get his pajamas and stuff ready.”
Thor caught her right hand in his left as she began to rise and brought it to his lips as his eyes met hers. “You have a kind heart, my Jane.”
With her free hand Jane brushed a stray lock of hair away from Thor’s face in a gesture that was familiar to Darcy. “As do you, Prince Thor.” When Jane leaned in to kiss Thor Darcy couldn’t see her face because her back was to the camera, but Darcy had seen the soft expression enough times to have it memorized and she wasn’t here for the Jane and Thor show anyway.
Jane pulled away from Thor and walked away from the camera to go get things ready. Darcy gestured animatedly at the screen before her as she scolded. “How do you walk away from this, Jane? Have I taught you nothing?”
In the meantime, Thor turned his attention to the boy sprawled on the couch. “Come my young friend, Jane says it’s time for you to be in bed.” Thor eased his free hand under Steve’s head between his leg and Steve’s shoulders. He gently pushed Steve up into a seated position. Steve started slightly, but didn’t rouse completely as Thor shifted his weight and rose from the couch. Darcy cursed inwardly as Thor’s massive frame blocked Steve from view, but then he stepped to the side just slightly to get a better grip on Steve as he lifted him from the couch.
Darcy sat back in her rolling chair, eyes wide and fists covering her mouth as Thor settled Steve against his shoulder. The first camera showed Thor, tall and mighty, gently rubbing circles on Steve’s back to soothe him back down into slumber. Steve’s legs dangled from his seat on Thor’s right arm. The second camera showed Steve, sleepy and trusting, rubbing his check against Thor’s shoulder until he found a spot he liked and relaxed with a sigh. Steve’s left hand wrapped securely around Thor’s bicep and his right arm made its way around Thor’s neck.
It was embarrassing, but Darcy was pretty sure she made some sort of dolphin noise when Thor turned and walked away from the camera and Steve’s little hand slid off of Thor’s arm as he completely gave himself over to slumber.
“Darcy!”
Darcy yelped in alarm and jumped out of her chair smashing her knee in the process. She whirled around guiltily and tried to come up with a rational explanation for her actions while balancing on one leg.
“Sweetest thing ever!” was what she managed to choke out.
Adult-sized Steve Rogers was shaking his head with disapproval from the doorway. “Darcy, we talked about this…”
“I know,” Darcy interrupted, “and this was selfish, I know…but Jane was telling me that Thor had to…you know…put you to bed” Darcy gestured helplessly behind her at the screens. “And you two were just so sweet.”
“Jarvis, please erase…”
“WAIT!” Darcy interrupted again throwing her arms wide as if blocking the screen would somehow prevent Jarvis from doing his work. “Can I please just show this one bit to Jane? And Natasha?”
Steve sighed. “Darcy, it’s a matter of security. The fact that someone was able to do that to me…make me so vulnerable,” his eyes cut away and Darcy could see how uncomfortable he was. “Just once was bad enough. But if this got out and it was widely known do you know how many more yahoos would give it a try? And maybe succeed in making it permanent?”
Darcy shook her head, “I know…” She was really starting to feel like a heel.
“But it’s more than that,” Steve reached up and rubbed the back of his neck as he shifted his weight from foot to foot, “It’s personal, you know?”
Darcy grinned widely, “Exactly!”
Steve’s brow creased in a frown.
“It was personal, and meant so much more to all of us because you’re ours. We’re family.” Darcy’s hopes began to rise as Steve remained silent. “This isn’t Thor smashing mugs and trending on Twitter. This…” Darcy gestured behind her again, “is just for us.”
Steve stood with his hands on his hips. He looked up at the screen and shook his head softly. “I don’t understand why this…”
Darcy turned to see Thor standing patiently in the elevator waiting to arrive at the designated floor doing the “baby bounce” and rocking Steve in his arms.
Darcy emitted another dolphin squeak. “Sooooo cute!” slipped out before she could restrain herself. She looked apologetically at Steve.
Steve chuckled and that’s when Darcy knew she would win. So she pulled out all the stops and turned on all the charm. “We don’t need to keep forty-eight hours of the most adorable Avenger ever but can’t we keep these ten minutes? Please?” Darcy clasped her hands in front of her chest and used the puppy-dog eyes. “Not even keep it permanently, just long enough to show Jane, Natasha, Pepper and Maria.”
“Hey,” Steve protested, “that list is getting longer.”
“Think of it as a uniquely Avenger family photo album. Please?” Darcy willed Steve to see in her face that she wasn’t mocking or being sarcastic. There was something so special in those moments that she wasn’t willing to lose without a fight.
“Photo album, huh?”
“Yes!” Darcy impulsively rushed forward and grabbed Steve in a hug. It was kind of like hugging a brick wall. A brick wall with a tiny waist. Steve seemed startled by the contact and patted her shoulder awkwardly.
Darcy gave him an extra squish before she let go and stepped back. Wee Steve was much more open to hugs and cuddles and clearly Big Steve needed more of that in his life. Darcy slid her arm around Steve’s waist and pulled him toward the console where she’d been sitting.
“What do you want to keep?” Darcy asked.
Steve looked surprised that she’d asked the question.
“Well, if you want to erase everything, that’s fine…but didn’t anything happen in the last two days that was worth saving?”
Steve smiled shyly. “I did enjoy reading with Pepper…”
Darcy grinned and pushed Steve into a rolling chair. “Stay right here. I need five minutes to make popcorn. Jarvis, let’s go to the beginning!” She skipped away before Steve could protest and sent a group text to the ladies stating “FAMILY MOVIE NIGHT 5 MIN!!!”