hellenhighwater:

There seems to be some sort of fairytale Steve-Tony thing going on right now, and may I just recommend that somebody uses the Swan Maiden as a prompt? And that they also read this post first. And then come back and tell me that any MCU character other than Steve “I Will Fight God Barehanded” Rogers would be the swan in this scenario.

Picture this: Tony, young heir to the Stark dynasty, who never satisfies his father’s high expectations and never sees his mother outside of balls and galas. He’d much rather be inventing than glad-handing politicians and society members, but Howard locks him out of the workshop when there’s networking to be done. So instead Tony usually goes out into the Manor grounds, away from the noise and people, where there’s an old, barely-maintained koi pond that’s mostly been taken over by nature. There’s a pair of swans that likes to swim there, and an old bench. Tony sits there sometimes. Usually he’s quiet, but sometimes he talks to the swans, tells them stuff he can’t talk about to people. 

Steve and Bucky are swans. Always have been; Bucky’s the ideal of the species except for a wing injury that keeps him from flying long distances, and Steve’s  awkward and small, before he hit a growth spurt and turned into the biggest male anybirdy had ever seen. They spend most of their time together, usually in a small, undisturbed pond mostly ignored by humans. There’s a scrawny young human who comes there sometimes, and he talks. He’s not bad, for a human. They like him well enough, but frankly the food he sometimes brings is more interesting. 

Except one day Howard has had enough of Tony’s dodging out of social events, and storms off onto the grounds to find him, Stane trailing behind. He finds Tony at the old pond with the swans, and immediately starts yelling at him. Stane joins in with commentary. Tony gets up from the bench and opens his mouth to respond, and Howard hits him so hard across the face that he falls to the ground.

That was a bad move. 

There is a blur of white feathers, honking, and thunderous flapping across the surface of the pond. By the time Howard has turned to see what it is, it’s already turned itself into a six-foot-two shirtless slab of muscle, and Howard goes down with a single punch. Bucky, trailing behind, gets Stane with a second hit.

Tony, on the ground, assumes he has a concussion. Because that is the only explanation for the two enormous men standing in front of him, wrapped in feathery capes and looking like they wish Howard and Stane had put up a better fight. 

(Steve and Bucky really would like to punch more things, please, but clearly the injured little guy takes priority.)

….and then they go up to the house and fuss, probably, and Steve and Bucky eat the entire salad course that was supposed to be served to the guests at dinner, and Tony continues to wonder if he’s hallucinating. Howard and Stane eventually wake up and come to the house, only to find that Tony has acquired a pair of bodyguards that won’t let them within ten feet of him. Who keep…hissing?

It’s weird, but Tony’s happy with the arrangement. And Steve’s happy with Tony. And Bucky, longsuffering, puts up with them both (Until he meets Tony’s socialite friend, Natasha, and then there’s a little less suffering involved.)

I’m so proud of you! You almost shipped! (I remain convinced that non-shippers write the best fic, even shippy fic. There is the proper focus on friendship and relationship, and the appropriate lack of icky kissing.)