**Request for 19dtice where the Maximoff twins are Bucky's... adopted kids? Sort of siblings? Anyways, this one was really fun and I liked writing protective Bucky. I changed a few minor details you had mentioned before to make the plot and the timeline work, but I hope you still like it. Enjoy!**

Bucky didn't have a lot of clarity between sessions. The chair, missions, the freezer. Bucky didn't get a lot of time to himself, and even less time to remember being Bucky. Some things never got lost, though. He wasn't always Bucky, but he was always protective.

The first time Bucky saw the twins, he had almost pulled away from his handlers to get to them. They were just so small. All wide eyes and scared smiles. Bucky just wanted to get to them and protect them and maybe ruffle that little boy's hair or let the little girl ride on his shoulders. And maybe never ever let them out of his sight again.

"Who are they?" Bucky ground out in harsh Russian. He was on his way out for a mission, his mask of hard obedience and loyalty. It wasn't a handler who responded, just one of the agents in charge of getting Bucky out on the road.

"New recruits."

It wasn't a lot to go off of, so Bucky just watched. Watched and learned and planned. He made careful note of the twins' schedule and while HYDRA handlers followed them. He knew when they got their meals, and what they were doing for HYDRA. And most of all, Bucky was holding onto as much of his consciousness and clarity as possible.

So when Bucky broke out of the HYDRA facility with two children thrown over his shoulders, it really  shouldn't have been a surprise to anyone.

"Names?" Bucky asked as the three ran from the broken and burning remains of the HYDRA base.

"Wanda."

"Pietro."

They only stopped once Bucky was sure they hadn't been followed. Bucky had just finished tucking the twins into some shitty motel beds - if there was one thing Bucky knew how to do, it was disappear into the crowd. The motel hadn't even asked for ID, and Bucky paid entirely in cash. The twins were natural born actors, too, they had played up their relationship to Bucky so any suspicious would be avoided right from the get-go, with Wanda and Pietro both referring to Bucky as their father as soon as they got to the front desk.

Bucky watched as the two twins slept. He ran a calloused hand down his face, the sheer exhaustion he was feeling finally setting in.

He had no idea what to do now. It wasn't like... Well, he could call Steve, but that just didn't seem like a smart thing to do. Steve was Captain America, he was the US governments poster child. It didn't matter they were old friends, he would turn Bucky over and- Why had Bucky done this? What was he thinking? He could barely keep himself functioning, who did he think he was to bring-

"Why are you still up?"

The sound of a voice made Bucky jump. It was just Pietro, though.

"Can't sleep," Bucky murmured as Pietro settled onto the couch next to Bucky. "Thinking about next steps."

The boy hummed. "You're going to take us back."

"What? No!" Bucky shook his head, but Pietro's eyes were set.

"Yes you are. You have enough on your plate without having to worry about us, too. Don't worry, Buck, we can-" Pietro swallowed a lump in his throat. "We're always fine. We can look after ourselves."

Bucky pulled Pietro into his lap and looked at the boy with as sincere a look as he could hold. "Pietro, I'm not going to leave your brother or sister. I made a promise to you back in that cell, do you remember that?"

Pietro nodded a little.

"Good. I meant it. I told you I'd never let anything hurt you again, and I'm never going to give up on that promise. You and Wanda are coming with me."

Pietro nodded a little and Bucky could tell her was tired. "Come on," the soldier said, scooping up the boy. "Time for bed."

Once Pietro was down again, this time for real, Bucky pulled out his phone. It wasn't just him this time. It was two kids, too, and he had to think of them.

"Stevie?" Bucky whispered when the phone picked up. "I need a favor."

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The twins stared at the tower with wide eyes. Wanda looked more hesitant than Pietro. Pietro looked more angry.

"Stark Tower? Really, Buck?"

"I know, I know, but this is where Steve is staying and we need his help. I know you guys don't like him, but Stark isn't-"

"'Like' him?" Pietro asked mockingly. "He killed our parents! If we never saw him again, it'd be too soon!"

Bucky sighed and let his shoulders slump for a second. "I know. I just... I'm trying..."

Wanda put a hand on Pietro's shoulder an gave her brother a disappointed stare. "We know, Bucky. You're doing the best you can, and you're protecting us. This isn't ideal for anyone, but you're setting aside your own feelings to get us help. We appreciate the."

And with that, Wanda dragged Bucky and Pietro forward and into the Tower's lobby. Steve was waiting for them.

"Hey, Bucky," Steve said as he wrapped his arms around his old friend. "Hey, kids."

The twins were suddenly shy. Bucky smiled at them encouragingly. "Steve here is going to help us get pardoned here in the states."

Steve led the band of runaways to the elevator and upstairs to the common floor. Steve let them get settled in the living room before he went to get a couple rooms together. Since Clint was out on the farm, the twins were going to take that room while Bucky bunked with Steve.

"I don't like being here," Pietro said quietly, his arms crossed over his chest.

"You think I do?" Bucky finally snapped, letting his anger flash across his face. "You think this is a walk in the park for me?"

"You have your best buddy!" Pietro snapped back. "You're having some boyhood reunion!"

"I'm taking up space in an apartment Tony Stark owns!" Bucky said, not even bothering to lower his voice. "I killed his parents and now I'm in his house asking for him to support us!"

The sound of a glass falling and shattering made Wanda, Pietro, and Bucky all whip around. There, in the kitchen, was Tony Stark himself. Glass and water was at his feet.

"What?"

Bucky looked, for the first time since he had helped the twins break out, scared. "Stark. Mr. Stark. I'm sorry, I'm so sorry. There was- There is no excuse, I know-"

"You killed my parents?"

Bucky nodded slowly. "Howard and I were close, Stark, I would have never-"

"I don't give a damn about Howard!" Tony had slammed his hand down on the counter, his eyes blazing. "I couldn't care less about Howard! You killed my mom. You killed..."

Tony seemed to only now be processing the news, and then there was a gauntlet in Bucky's face and Bucky was scrambling backwards away from the Ironman gloves and the humming blaster.

"Woah, woah, woah," Bucky raised his hand in surrender, but then he had to dive out of the way as Tony let out a blast. Steve must have heard the fight and he was suddenly hurtling over the back of the couch to grab Tony. Tony just shook him off and let another blast fly, this time, aiming higher at Bucky's head.

"Tony!"

Bucky was trying to get away from the blasts as best he could, but then there was a wall against his back and Tony was blocking off his sides. The hum in the gauntlet grew. Bucky shut his eyes tight.

"Stop!" Bucky felt a weight on his side and chest and opened his eyes in surprise. Wanda was pressed over Bucky's chest, her face pressed right up into Tony's glove. Pietro was tucked into Bucky's side, his hands splayed over Bucky's arm as if he was shielding it.

"Stop!" Wanda was pushing Tony back into Steve's arms, Steve holding him tightly. "Just stop. Stark... Stark you made the bomb that killed our parents. Bucky was brainwashed to kill yours. Can't we-" Wanda sent Pietro a look. "Can't we call it even? We all made mistakes. We've all been... been hurt and manipulated and-"

"A truce." Pietro stuck his hand out.

Tony was watching the twins carefully, his face frozen in anger but the heat was missing now. There was nothing there, just tight muscles and heavy eyes.

"A truce." Tony repeated the words coldly. "You want..."

"A truce." Pietro said again, shaking his hand slightly. Tony took it, his arm moving robotically. "We won't let our pasts define our futures together."

"A truce." Tony shook Pietro's hand solidly, and everyone breathed a sigh of relief, Bucky relaxing more than anyone else in the room. He let his head thud against the wall behind him as Wanda and Pietro retreated, and Tony was out of the room in the blink of an eye. Steve stooped low to help Bucky up.

"Could have don't worse," Steve said, trying to find some humor in the situation. Bucky gave him a glare.

"The things you do for kids, Stevie." Bucky shook his head as Steve hauled him up to his feet. "The things I do."