Saving Mr. Stark:

James' awakening was violent.

He came to awareness thrashing, the echoing pain of disintegrating into dust wracking his whole body. He couldn't even focus for the first few minutes because he was too busy trying to suck in as much air as possible and hurriedly checking himself over just to make sure he was actually alive. Everything seemed fine, senses working, all his body parts accounted for, his thoughts were clear, and even the constant pain that came from his metal arm wasn't there any…

James stilled, then turned to look at his right shoulder.

It wasn't metal.

He may or may not have freaked out at that, horrified by images of being back in HYDRA's clutches and gruesome new experiments. He didn't even hear the other person approaching (and what did that say that the Winter Soldier could get snuck up on like that) until there was another voice in his ear.

"Whoa, hey, Sergeant Barnes! Sergeant Barnes, they don't have you anymore, Steve got you out, remember?"

Steve's name actually brought him back, but probably not for a good reason. He'd long honed the sense that told him that where Steve was, there would be trouble not far behind; especially after he'd started wearing the American Flag on his backside.

James quickly came back to reality with a calloused hand patting his (Not Metal, How!?) shoulder. He followed the hand up to its owner, expecting one of Steve's friends, or ex-friends, waking him up to tell them they won. Instead he was met with the jarringly familiar face of Howard Stark.

"You're in the infirmary. We wanted to check you out after whatever those Nazi bastards did to you. Heard you start making noise while I was walking by…"

Howard Stark, THE Howard Stark, his victim, was standing over him, chatting reassuringly, several years too young.

James passed out again.

0o0

So, time travel.

He didn't know why, or how, or what was going on, but James had gone from fighting aliens and…dying, to waking up in the middle of WWII, fresh back from his and the 107ths rescue from HYDRA. He was surrounded by old familiar faces, obliviously repeating history in front of his eyes. There was colonel Phillips, drilling some newer recruits, three of which who would not come back from their next stint in the field, and five who would be so injured they'd be shipped back home.

Lucky.

Steve was strutting around, enjoying finally being taken seriously for once in his life, inspiring better morale with each step, still in that ridiculous get-up under his jacket. There was Peg in the strategy tent, trying not to look so fond as she occasionally peeked at Steve, but giving herself away with the faint quirk of her lips.

And then, Howard.

Howard was in a field lab set up to analyze the HYDRA weapons acquired when James and the others were rescued. He joked and smiled and had the same genius glint in his eyes that James remembered his son having. However, James could also see, overlaying the inventor, the sharp image of an older, bloody man calling his name and for him to help his wife. He regretted all of the Winter Soldier's kills, but only one had been his friend, and known who it was specifically that was killing him. When he'd been recovering in Wakanda he'd often lay awake at night hearing the horrified, confused whisper of 'Barnes?' before the sound of metal fist hitting flesh. It was maybe the clearest kill he could remember, he could only imaging what Howard and his wife had been feeling.

But now though, that hadn't happened…yet.

He was back in the past, in the before, mere months before that fateful train journey, and none of that had occurred.

And if he had any say, it wouldn't.

Determinedly terrified, James entered the lab, causing Howard to look up from the readings he was examining.

"Sergeant, how are you holding up?"

James shrugged, forcing himself not to fall into small talk.

"Alright, kinda. Um, do you got a minute?"

Howard gestured at the cluttered space full of unfinished projects and designs.

"Of course!"

James let out a relieved breath. Howard looked expectant.

"Would…, would it be possible to make some sort of homing device that could be hidden on a person?"

Howard looked somehow both contemplative and confused, so James pressed on.

"I told the brass that when our division was captured, they took me from the others to interrogate? I know I mentioned Steve at some point, and after he broke in to save me, I think they put two and two together. And now, with this whole Captain America separate HYDRA squad thing, I'm just a little worried they might try to nab me again to lure him into a trap."

The excuse was flimsy and complete bull, but he couldn't exactly come out and say he had a knock off version of Steve's serum in his veins and over 70 years' prior knowledge. He was relying on the younger Stark's trusting nature being a trait inherited from his uncannily similar father, and playing heavily off the 'hero worship' everyone but Phillips was throwing at Steve's feet. It wasn't healthy, but he was on a time crunch; he could deal with it after he was sure HYDRA couldn't grab him.

There were a couple minutes of quiet as Howard seemed to ponder, and James felt the tension spiking up his back. He hadn't really been able to think of a different plan that would have and equal likelihood of success, there was more than his life on the line after all, failure wasn't an option.

Finally, Howard looked back at James, raking his eyes up and down his body.

"..can only make it so small if we still want to track it over a good distance, not too big or they'll find it. an implant? No, no, have to account for squishy parts. Jewelry? But they might take it if it looks good. What about…"

James could have laughed with joy. Howard hadn't been pondering his suggestion, he'd already started designing it! And if there was one think he knew about all Starks, the things they built WORKED. This was possibly the best outcome he could have hoped for.

0o0

It took Howard a while to finish the tracker/homing device, as well as test it sufficiently, but he finally got it done. He gave it to James the day before the train mission, babbling about how it worked as he helped James tie it to his leg with medical bandages, making it look like an injury.

James was shaking as they boarded their mission transport.

Almost time.

0o0

Despite the insurance of Howard's tracker, James did try his hardest NOT to fall off the train this time.

Unfortunately, it seemed some things in history just couldn't be changed.

The fall and landing were just as painful the second time, and twice as terrifying, considering he knew what would come next. He really hoped the tracker worked.

Even with the pseudo serum in his veins, the fall still injured him enough that he passed out for a bit. When he woke up it was to the alarmingly familiar sight of HYDRA goons dragging him away from the river. He wanted to scream, and was about to try something, anything, despite his massive injuries, just to get away, when there was a shout.

"Hold it!"

The goons froze on the spot.

"That's and American Soldier under my command, and we will be taking him now. Put your hands up and lower yourselves to the ground, now!"

Followed by the sound of A LOT of guns being cocked and raised.

It was over very quickly, the HYDRA goons tried to attack in desperation and all were gunned down with little fanfare. As soon as the shooting stopped a field medic rushed to James' side and began treating him.

"Guess I owe Stark an apology, this thing actually worked."

An army Captain, not Steve, stood over him. He vaguely recognized the man, but in his state James couldn't place the name.

"You are the luckiest SOB I've ever met Sergeant, we expected to find your cooling corpse. I'm glad we got here in time, those damn Nazis won't take any more of my men if I can help it."

James smiled, then passed out again.

0o0

Steve still took the dive.

Apparently he'd thought James was dead, and went on his last mission before he could be told otherwise. James wondered if he still would have sacrificed himself so readily if he'd known about James' continued living status, but he guessed that it wouldn't have changed much. Steve always wanted to go out like a hero.

Almost everyone around James was mourning Steve's loss, especially Peg, but James couldn't really bring himself to be sad. He knew Steve would be fine, would wake up in the future where he would get the chance to be a hero all over again, and with him gone James didn't have to pretend to be the original 'Bucky' anymore.

Now James could focus on fixing his mistakes.

0o0

They won the war. James had known the Allies won, it was blatantly obvious, even to the Winter Soldier, but he'd never been bothered to research the how of it. He knew the War would be won, and that Howard and Peg would make it through to the other side. He knew Peg would eventually found SHIELD, alias HYDRA, and if there was any way he could prevent that going so horribly wrong, he would.

However, that was something for a later time. Right now his focus was the genius who would father the Merchant of Death.

Now that was something he HAD researched.

0o0

James and Howard were drinking in Howard's office. James had called for a 'social visit', and the two of them had holed themselves in the office once he'd been able to pry Howard away from his workshop. Howard was not quite drunk, but getting there, while James' serum was keeping him completely sober, not that he let Howard think that. His plan here hinged on Howard thinking he was being 100% honest in the way most people were when drunk.

James was taking another shot of his drink, when Howard slumped in his chair.

"I don't know if I can do it anymore, Sarge."

James looked at him.

"I keep looking, and looking, and looking, and I can't find him. I just want to bring him home, make it up to him for getting him killed, you know, but I always end up empty handed."

James casually made himself sound buzzed and confused.

"But Steve crashed a plane, you didn't kill him?"

Howard gestured something, almost sloshing his alcohol.

"I didn't give him the right weapons, the right protection, I don't know. I know I could have done something at least… He was my friend, don't got a lot of those."

"it wasn't bad equipment, or bad intel, or anythin' like that Stark…" James interrupted, making sure Howard was looking at him. "nothing anyone could have done would 'a stopped him from crashing that plane…"

"Because he was a hero…"

"No, because he thought I was dead."

Howard stilled suddenly, staring at James with and almost sober intensity.

James continued as if he hadn't noticed.

"When they were torturing me I heard a couple things, things they probably didn't know I was listening to. They talked about a lot of stuff I didn't understand, but one thing I did get was when they started talking 'bout Red Skull and the serum."

Howard was listening with rapt attention now. James hoped Steve would forgive him for what he was about to do.

"They were saying all this stuff about good becomes great, bad becomes worse, but they also were talking about why Skull couldn't just replicate the formula and juice up all their guys. They said the formula made whoever got it strong, but it also messed with their heads. They'd end up finding one thing to hook on to, and then they'd become obsessed, do anything to get what they wanted. Skull was obsessed with world domination, overachieving bastard. Guess it makes sense. I didn't really think anything about it until later when I saw Stevie. You remember why he had you fly him out over enemy territory on an unauthorized mission?"

Howard had a mixed look of stubbornness and dawning horror in his eyes.

"to rescue the…no, he only mentioned you…"

Hook, line, and sinker.

"Yeah. Not Stevie's fault. We were all each other had since his mom died from tuberculosis when he was 18..."

He heard Howard gag on his drink. Yeah, he loved Steve, but there was a reason the army hadn't wanted him.

"And I think me and his mom were the only two people to really believe in him, so when the Erskine guy pumped all those chemicals into his system, I guess he latched on to that. Better than World domination, but not particularly good for anyone, Steve included."

James had no clue if any of this was actually true or not; it was plausible, but that could have also been Steve's obvious PTSD acting up. Either way, it didn't matter if it was true or not, because he just needed Howard to think it was. For one point, Howard looked at Steve like an idol instead of a human being, and because of that was tearing himself over an unpreventable death. James' research had told him Steve wasn't the only one partially stuck in the past, and that the stress of it had caused Howard years of undue heartache. On another note, if Howard thought the serum was faulty he wouldn't attempt to reproduce it, meaning HYDRA's motive for killing him would disappear. Third, Howard thinking Steve would have lived with better equipment would cause the man to dive even deeper into weapons manufacture. James thought back to the 'flying car' at the Expo; it would be such a waste if Howard's genius were never allowed to branch away from simple weapons.

It also didn't need to be said that James would in fact like to see less tools for him to possibly kill people with circulating.

"I'm actually kinda glad he went out like he did." James whispered into his drink, like he was telling a dirty secret. "Before anything happened. He got to be a hero like that, and I know that's all my Stevie from Brooklyn ever wanted.

The rest of their drinks were downed in contemplative silence.

0o0

It wasn't the work of a single drinking session. It took a couple dozen more as well as several mutually attended events, celebrations, and meet ups before James felt Howard's guilt had been sufficiently assuaged. In all that time he actually became friends with Howard, something the genius obviously appreciated.

He also put some work into Howard and Peg's friendship, bridging the gap between the two and smoothing their sharper edges. He went with them to Long Island when they decided together to finally give Steve a proper send off, standing by them as they dumped the one vial of Steve's blood remaining into the cold waters.

Maybe he should have felt guilty about lying to them, but in his mind, a world without super soldiers was a better one.

0o0

James and Peg teased Howard within an inch of his life when he told them he met someone and she'd slapped him for proposition her, before lecturing him for a good twenty minutes before she realized who he was and excused herself with a bland face, severely unimpressed. Howard had fallen immediately. It'd taken him weeks of groveling to get her to agree to go on a date, and then he'd fallen even harder when she came all out with her own wit and sarcasm. She basically managed him, and Howard loved it. Of course, telling his two friends with such a sappy expression on his face had just guaranteed they would rib him mercilessly, but they approved.

Well, James approved. Peg ran an extensive background check on this 'Maria Carbonell' before she approved, but James already knew where this was going.

0o0

Howard and James returned the favor when Peg and Sousa eventually hooked up.

0o0

James was the Best Man at Howard's wedding, and the Maid of Honor at Peg's.

They said it was revenge.

0o0

Stark Industries pulled completely out of weapons on May 28th, 1970.

Anthony Edward Stark was born May 29th, 1970.

0o0

James took immense pleasure in putting a bullet in the head of the last HYDRA agent in the base. His proudest achievement, however, was the sniper shot that blew through the brain of the man who in another life had ordered the Soldier to go to that infamous backroad and leave no witnesses.

0o0

Natalia wasn't actually his daughter, but he treated her like it anyway.

SWORD, after destroying HYDRA so thoroughly that even its ashes were obliterated, had gotten permission to give the same treatment to the equally dangerous Red Room. Russia was particularly to weed out that little infestation, considering the rise in assassination attempts. SWORD had been just as vicious with the organization as they had been with HYDRA, however this stunt had also left them with a lot of traumatized little girls in need of therapy and homes.

James vaguely remembered training Natalia in his past life, and on a fanciful whim had gotten custody of her. She was edgy, and terrified, and dangerous, and he absolutely loved her.

The other person who had fallen instantly in love with the deadly six-year-old was Tony, fresh off his third Master's degree and half way through the first of many PHDs, who Natalia tried to stab in the leg when she first met him. Tony thought it was hilarious, and proceeded to 'borrow' Natalia any time he could get his hands on her and spoil her rotten.

Howard told his son he would be a great dad someday, which had instantly set his son into an embarrassed fit as Maria and James laughed.

0o0

Like Steve taking the Valkyrie into the ocean, James guessed some things were just impossible to change.

Tony had gone in his Father's place to a demonstration in Afghanistan for the new Stark Tech Defense line (just because they weren't making weapons anymore, didn't mean Howard was leaving the military undefended if he could help it.) And his convoy was attacked by terrorists. A gadget eerily similar to the one Howard had once made for James did manage to rescue him and a man name Yensin two months ahead of schedule, but the damage was done. Stark father and son immediately locked themselves in the lab and came out a couple days later with an ARC reactor powered by a brand new element. Then Tony had told them what he'd seen, old Stark weapons, hundreds of them, illegally stolen and sold years before. Howard was livid, and his proceeding sweep of his company ousted a group called AIM and an ex-employee, Obadiah Stane.

The FBI had an absolute field day with that.

SWORD had an absolute field day with the suit of armor that began casually blowing up old Stark weapons and terrorists.

Iron Man was born.

0o0

Due to his own serum, James only aged about half the rate of an average person. He'd eventually been forced to come clean to Howard about the 'Experiments' HYDRA managed to run on him, but left out exactly what they'd done.

This of course meant that when Steve was finally pulled from the ice, he was there to greet him.

Then they went to punch aliens.

0o0

Howard had died a couple months before the whole Alien debacle, otherwise he would have lost a bet with James big time, but he was still very much felt. Stark Industries dominated most tech markets, including prosthetics, and Stark weapons were practically forgotten. The ARC tech powered several cities as well as every single Stark building planet wide, and the Stark outreach programs for impoverished kids always made headlines. He left behind a lasting legacy, and a loving son who strove to be everything his father was and more, the title 'Merchant of Death' never once gracing his shoulders.

The funeral was packed, and James only wished Peg could be here in person instead of via video call. People spoke of the man who revolutionized the world, and when Tony stepped up to the podium to say his piece, James saw Howard looking back.

And as he lay awake in bed, Natalia asleep on the other side of the house, all he could hear were Tony's words, and see Howard smiling.