Chapter Text
“Please state your name for the court.” The lawyer asked.
“You know who I am.”
Bucky rolled his eyes. Tony sounded completely calm, almost confidant. Not at all like the boy who had snuck into his and Steve's bed the night before, trembling and shaking and begging them to tell him it would be okay. The kid trusted them, against all odds they had somehow become a major source of comfort. The Tony in front of him now looks like he doesn't care at all.
The courtroom was exactly how Bucky had imagined it, from the woodwork of the stands to the judge sitting up high in her robes and her little hammer. Almost like it wasn't real, just one of those courtroom dramas. Tony was one of the last ones to testify. Bucky and Steve had already made theirs. He retold in front of the judge, jury, and everyone how he found Tony naked and dazed in bed. They answered every question, whether it was about the Starks, Steve and Bucky's relationship, and everything that happened before and after they discovered the abuse. It didn't feel right, sharing all these things, all about Tony.
“I need you to state your name. Out loud, for the record.”
The man speaking to him looked like a jackass, his suit neatly pressed and his hair combed back with a load of grease. He was one of Stane’s lawyers, set to prove his innocence. This was Bucky's only day in the courtroom. He was only here to testify and be here for Tony to do the same. He had no idea what Coulson had done yet, what evidence he presented, what other witnesses he brought in. He had his guesses, but in the end all that mattered was Tony.
Bucky wished he had been more involved. He had been too focused on Tony, too busy making sure he got to stay out of all this mess and tried to just get the kid to smile. He wasn’t sure how he was supposed to convince that kid, a literal child, that things were going to be okay. How was he supposed to tell Tony there were no monsters hiding anywhere if Stane walked out of here with his name cleared?
"My name is Tony Stark."
Bucky was watching from the benches. He had already testified. It had been terrifying for him, just reiterating what he saw, what he did, and what Tony had told him when the lawyers asked. If Bucky had been shaking with nerves at just that then he could imagine how bad this must be for him. Scary wouldn't even begin to describe it.
Yet Tony seemed calm. It wasn't real, but it was hard to tell.
Steve had both of his hands wrapped around Bucky's and squeezing tightly. The lawyer asked a question but Steve had leaned in close and his lips brushed over Bucky's cheek as he whispered.
"It's going to be okay. Tony will tell the truth and it will all he just fine." Steve whispered.
Bucky watched him. He tried to find anything in Tony's flat expression. What if he was afraid and regretting his decision? Bucky saw the way Tony's eyes darted from the lawyer and back towards where Stane was sitting a few yards away. He wished Tony would look back at him, he would find a way to try and tell Tony that things would be okay. Across the room with a court proceeding between them, he would somehow try to comfort him
Tony's face twisted, curling into a look of disgust, his whole body tensing and his shoulders rising high. "What?" The kid asked.
Bucky leaned forward. He had missed it. He hadn't heard the question but Steve was squeezing his hand tightly.
"I asked about your first sexual experience. That's why we're all here after all." Stane's lawyer said, shrugging his shoulders with his arms outstretched as if what he said was obvious and not something horrible.
"My first time." Tony said, softly repeating the words to himself. The calm, flat tone back in his voice and nearly smothering the sound of it. His eyes darted around the courtroom, finally seeking them out and when Bucky caught his gaze he tried to smile and nod encouragingly. He wanted to be a source of comfort for him so badly. "You know, 'sexual experience' is a rather broad term. Can you narrow it down for me?" The kid finished quickly.
Bucky's heart skipped. Why hadn't Tony said it?
The lawyer turned on his heel, flashing a sharp grin. "I'm sure we have all read the magazines about how vast your experiences are, especially before your trip to rehab. I was just wondering if you could tell us when you had your first experience."
"How am I supposed to know if you won't say something more specific than just saying 'experience'. Anything is an experience." Tony said. His eyes were back on Bucky, slightly large and afraid despite his calm voice.
"He's giving up." Bucky whispered.
Steves grip on his hand was tight enough to hurt. "He's not. He's just… he's hesitating. He's going to say it."
They had talked about it. Tony was the victim here, the witness to every crime. They needed his testimony.
"You need it narrowed down because you've had a lot of experiences. Haven't you? Even before your partying ended you up in a rehab center there was a new girl on TMZ every other week about how the two of you had a wild weekend in the Hamptons or wherever you spent your days off? Your love life has been well documented after all."
"I was allowed to have fun at school." Tony said.
"So it was all fun for you?"
Bucky sat up in his seat. He didn't know what Stane' lawyer was doing but he was worried it was making Tony afraid. Making him second guess. But whatever mind games they had was nothing, all Tony had to do was tell the truth, he didn't need to be afraid anymore. Bucky would make sure of it.
"Not all of it." Tony said.
"So only some of it was fun. Please, tell all of us in the courtroom at what point your sextapes, your drug binges and partying turned into you being the victim of all of this." The lawyer hissed.
Bucky pushed himself up to his feet. The man was openly mocking him. Some sort of intimidation technique used on a child in a courtroom and Bucky turned to see the disgusting smirk on Stane's face. He genuinely thought that he would win. He must truly think he had control, that Tony would never betray him to the point that he would tell a courtroom full of strangers what had happened to him.
He was wrong.
"I have to go." Tony said quickly.
Bucky's head flung around quickly to see Tony up and trying to climb over the edge of the witness box. There was a commotion, a few people yelling, the sound of wood banging against wood. Bucky couldn't make out a word. Tony had made it out and was moving quickly towards one of the side doors, hands tugging at his tie, yanking at the top buttons of his shirt.
Tony was running away and Bucky moved to follow him. Steve was still holding tightly to his hand, being yanked along behind him and Bucky made no move to stop. He would drag him out the door after Tony without even considering another option.
They pushed through the doors a few moments after Tony disappeared behind him. The kid hadn't gone anywhere. He was frozen, standing completely still a few steps away, staring down the empty hallway as if he was lost.
Steve gave Bucky's hand a hard squeeze. "Tony." Steve said. He stepped forward, around Bucky, his footsteps slow and cautious and still Tony didn't move.
"I can't. I thought I could but I can't." Tony said. He was shaking.
"It's okay to be scared. It's okay to-"
"It's not okay! It isn't." Tony said quickly. He didn't turn around, but he braced his hands on his hips and took another single step forward. "Why does it always have to happen to me? Why do I have to be the one to testify? Can't it be some other poor kid? It never worked for me before. No one ever believed me before."
"This time is different." Steve said, still squeezing Bucky's hand tightly.
"Its not." Tony said.
"It is. People will believe you. Coulson has good evidence. The clothes from the night we took you to the hospital. They have Stane's computer. They have solid evidence, you will be believed this time." Steve said.
Bucky's heart was pounding. This wasn't supposed to be how the day was supposed to go. They were supposed to be happy, they were supposed to put a monster away and Tony was supposed to feel safe, truly and genuinely safe for the first time in forever.
"Well fine. They have everything they need, they don't need me." Tony said. He looked over his shoulder at them, eyes tinted red.
"You really want those lawyers out there telling your story for you? You want to have Stane out there telling it? Twisting what happened? You have the chance to tell the truth." Bucky said.
"No one ever cared before." Tony said.
"People care about you. The wrong people listened was all. Your dad sent you to one of the best rehab facilities in North America, far away from the spotlight and how messed up everything is, he made us responsible for you when he died. Howard had your picture in his top desk drawer of his workshop so he saw it every time he opened it. He cared. I'm not saying he and your mom were good at it, but I know they loved you." Steve said.
"They didn't care."
"They didn't know." Bucky urged. He had spent so much time in Howard's lab, the man testing and building and improving the metal arm he had attached to Bucky's shoulder. He had saved his life in some military operation and all Stark did was talk about his kid. Bucky remembered. He couldn't imagine that man willfully letting someone hurt his kid? Bucky could never imagine letting someone hurt his son like that.
"Then they didn't notice. They didn't care enough too." Tony turned around completely. He reached up and wiped at his face with his arm, quickly trying to get both his eyes and his nose. "I was fourteen years old and fucked up on drugs and no one cared enough to notice."
Bucky didn't have an answer. He couldn't come up with an explanation. Maybe before he met Howard, before he had to save the man's life and get to know him, he did know. Maybe he looked away and pretended not to notice or he blocked it from his mind. Maybe he forgot on purpose or maybe he just never considered something like that and just didn't see the signs. Maybe he was just an idiot.
"There's no point in trying to get answers from dead people. We noticed. That whole courtroom in there noticed and are here just for you. They came here just to listen to you." Steve said. He gave Bucky's hand a final firm squeeze, making the metal plates grind together and he may have to have Tony take a look at it too.
Tony didn't say anything for a moment. He stood in front of them, arms crossed tightly around his chest. He looked far too young to be here doing this. Bucky could imagine how his thoughts were swirling. He had many low moments himself, certain of what he had to do and horrified a moment later when the time came to do it.
"You're allowed to change your mind. It's okay." Bucky said.
"Oh sure, you guys are here to let me change my mind. No way you guys are trying to convince me to go back in there." Tony's voice was shaking harder.
"We would like you to, but even if you don't, Shield is presenting all the evidence it has collected. I trust Coulson." Steve said. He took a small step towards the kid, not getting go of Bucky's hand but the other held out gently towards Tony. "We can go home. The prosecution can handle things. We just wanted you to have the chance to tell your story."
Steve was trying to make Tony feel better. They had spent months worrying about what they would do without Tony's testimony, if the evidence was enough to put him away or not. Neither of their jobs were to make sure Tony took the stand. Their jobs were to keep him safe and happy regardless.
"They're gonna make it seem like I wanted it." Tony said, face twisting in disgust.
"Maybe. But they can twist it however they want. How are they going to make it seem like you wanted it when that would just be admitting you were a child?" Steve said, hand outstretched like an offering.
Tony stared at it, brows furrowed. He bit his lower lip, mashing it roughly between his teeth.
"Yeah." Tony said softly, still staring at Steve's hand. "Why do you guys always make so much sense?"
He took Steve's hand. Bucky moved forward, pulling Tony into a hug without hesitation, making sure Tony was tucked away safely between him and Steve. They held each other. Outside the courtroom where they still heard loud, booming voices.
"We can still just go home. Everything will work out." Bucky said. After everything that happened, Tony would be okay.
"I don't want to go home. Not yet." Tony said. He gave them both a tight squeeze.