[Avengers: Drabble] "For Richer or Poorer" [Bucky/Rhodey, Steve/Tony, G]
Title: For Richer or Poorer
Prompt: writerverse challenge 28 December table of doom, prompt 17 ‘pay what’s owed’
Word Count: 578
Original/Fandom: Avengers (MCU/movie ‘verse)
Pairings: James “Bucky” Barnes/James “Rhodey” Rhodes, Steve Rogers/Tony Stark
Setting: part of my happy ‘verse
Summary: “Yeah, I imagine seventy years of interest stacks up pretty nicely.”
Note(s): originally posted to the writerverse wv_library
For Richer or Poorer
“Pepper?” asked Tony. “What are the company lawyers doing here? Whatever it is, I swear I didn’t do it this time.”
She laughed. “This time, they’re not here for you, Tony. They needed to talk to Steve and Bucky.”
“The Capsicles? What did they do?”
“They opened bank accounts,” said Pepper.
Tony frowned. “Maybe I’ve been doing it wrong, but I didn’t think you needed lawyers for that.”
“You do when the accounts were opened in nineteen-forty.”
“Nineteen-” Tony began, but the door from the main living room opened, and three of Stark Industries’s full-time lawyers came out.
“Miss Potts,” said one, in greeting. “Mr. Stark. Perhaps it might be best to give them a minute?”
Tony, of course, went straight inside.
Steve and Bucky were sitting side-by-side on the large sofa, both of them staring at the very official paperwork spread out across the coffee table in front of them.
“Hey, guys,” said Tony, and neither of them looked up. “You okay there?”
“I’m rich,” Bucky said, softly.
“Yeah, I imagine seventy years of interest stacks up pretty nicely.”
“No,” said Bucky. “I-”
He let out a frustrated huff and ran metal fingers through his hair. “We were poor, Stark. After the crash - what d’you call it now, the Great Depression? - Stevie used to put newspapers in his shoes ‘cause he couldn’t afford new ones. My ma creamed everything, to make the food last longer. Once, I went without supper for two weeks so Steve’s ma could get medicine when he had pneumonia.”
“Bucky,” protested Steve. “We were twelve.”
Bucky ignored him. “I had eight dollars and eleven cents in that bank account when I enlisted, and now…”
He gestured at the table, and Tony scanned the documents for his name. “Yeah, that’s a lot of zeroes.”
“Your lawyers were here to explain it,” said Steve. “When Buck was declared dead by the Army, he’d left everything to me. Then, when I went in the ice, Howard…” He paused, glancing at Tony, who waved dismissively, then continued, “… set up some kind of trust. Something about investments and portfolios, they kind of lost me there. But I think Buck is in shock.”
“I’m rich,” Bucky repeated, faintly. “Staying here, after I started getting better, was a little weird, you know. I mean, Stevie’s probably all right with being a kept man, but I-”
“I’m not-” Tony began, just as Steve said, “I don’t mind, actually,” and Tony spluttered, “Wait, what?” but Bucky waved them both quiet.
“A man likes to earn his own way,” he said, stubbornly. “I’ve been doing a few contract missions for Coulson, when his team needs some more muscle, and I’d just saved up enough for this.”
From the pocket of his blue jeans, Bucky pulled an honest-to-god actual handkerchief, knotted around something that glinted gold - it took Tony a moment to realize that it was a ring.
“Buck,” said Steve, surprised. “That’s great!”
Tony blinked. “You’re going to ask my Rhodey to marry you?”
“He says yes, he’s going to be my Rhodey,” said Bucky, then added, “Jim’s been talking about retirement. He wants to make full colonel first, but… I could afford to get him a real ring, now.”
“No,” Tony said, quickly. “Don’t you dare give Rhodey anything but that exact ring.”
“You think so?” Bucky asked.
“I know so,” Tony told him.
Bucky ran his flesh-and-blood thumb over the plain band of the ring. “Okay.”
THE END
Current Mood:
tired
Prompt: writerverse challenge 28 December table of doom, prompt 17 ‘pay what’s owed’
Word Count: 578
Original/Fandom: Avengers (MCU/movie ‘verse)
Pairings: James “Bucky” Barnes/James “Rhodey” Rhodes, Steve Rogers/Tony Stark
Setting: part of my happy ‘verse
Summary: “Yeah, I imagine seventy years of interest stacks up pretty nicely.”
Note(s): originally posted to the writerverse wv_library
For Richer or Poorer
“Pepper?” asked Tony. “What are the company lawyers doing here? Whatever it is, I swear I didn’t do it this time.”
She laughed. “This time, they’re not here for you, Tony. They needed to talk to Steve and Bucky.”
“The Capsicles? What did they do?”
“They opened bank accounts,” said Pepper.
Tony frowned. “Maybe I’ve been doing it wrong, but I didn’t think you needed lawyers for that.”
“You do when the accounts were opened in nineteen-forty.”
“Nineteen-” Tony began, but the door from the main living room opened, and three of Stark Industries’s full-time lawyers came out.
“Miss Potts,” said one, in greeting. “Mr. Stark. Perhaps it might be best to give them a minute?”
Tony, of course, went straight inside.
Steve and Bucky were sitting side-by-side on the large sofa, both of them staring at the very official paperwork spread out across the coffee table in front of them.
“Hey, guys,” said Tony, and neither of them looked up. “You okay there?”
“I’m rich,” Bucky said, softly.
“Yeah, I imagine seventy years of interest stacks up pretty nicely.”
“No,” said Bucky. “I-”
He let out a frustrated huff and ran metal fingers through his hair. “We were poor, Stark. After the crash - what d’you call it now, the Great Depression? - Stevie used to put newspapers in his shoes ‘cause he couldn’t afford new ones. My ma creamed everything, to make the food last longer. Once, I went without supper for two weeks so Steve’s ma could get medicine when he had pneumonia.”
“Bucky,” protested Steve. “We were twelve.”
Bucky ignored him. “I had eight dollars and eleven cents in that bank account when I enlisted, and now…”
He gestured at the table, and Tony scanned the documents for his name. “Yeah, that’s a lot of zeroes.”
“Your lawyers were here to explain it,” said Steve. “When Buck was declared dead by the Army, he’d left everything to me. Then, when I went in the ice, Howard…” He paused, glancing at Tony, who waved dismissively, then continued, “… set up some kind of trust. Something about investments and portfolios, they kind of lost me there. But I think Buck is in shock.”
“I’m rich,” Bucky repeated, faintly. “Staying here, after I started getting better, was a little weird, you know. I mean, Stevie’s probably all right with being a kept man, but I-”
“I’m not-” Tony began, just as Steve said, “I don’t mind, actually,” and Tony spluttered, “Wait, what?” but Bucky waved them both quiet.
“A man likes to earn his own way,” he said, stubbornly. “I’ve been doing a few contract missions for Coulson, when his team needs some more muscle, and I’d just saved up enough for this.”
From the pocket of his blue jeans, Bucky pulled an honest-to-god actual handkerchief, knotted around something that glinted gold - it took Tony a moment to realize that it was a ring.
“Buck,” said Steve, surprised. “That’s great!”
Tony blinked. “You’re going to ask my Rhodey to marry you?”
“He says yes, he’s going to be my Rhodey,” said Bucky, then added, “Jim’s been talking about retirement. He wants to make full colonel first, but… I could afford to get him a real ring, now.”
“No,” Tony said, quickly. “Don’t you dare give Rhodey anything but that exact ring.”
“You think so?” Bucky asked.
“I know so,” Tony told him.
Bucky ran his flesh-and-blood thumb over the plain band of the ring. “Okay.”
THE END
Current Mood:
tired