A few days later, Bucky was able to leave that horrid hospital and go back home to his warm bed that was freshly made and had a basket filled to the top of all his favourite snacks and movies.
He had only moved the basket to the side, ignoring the small note atop the pile signed by Natasha and Bruce, before climbing into his bed and falling soundly asleep.
Tony went to check on his son countless of times, making sure he had water for when he awoke and making sure that he was not crying or spitting nasty things about himself in front of his mirror, the actions causing Thor to sigh.
"Tony." He spoke, placing a kind hand on his shoulder. "He's okay. I'll stay inside for when he wakens, if you would like?"
"I know, I just- I don't want him to feel as if he isn't himself anymore. He's still Bucky just- one less limb.." Tony muttered, closing the door of his sons bedroom softly. "And it's okay, I think what he needs right now is some space. He's been pretty smothered and will be extremely lousy from the drugs."
Thor gave a simple nod, following Tony out into the lounge and stopping at the sliding door at the side of the house. "What would you like me to do?"
"Could you put Scout into the stables please? I might get Bucky to have some alone time in the woods on a ride, do you think that's a good idea?"
"Yeah, I'm sure he would enjoy it very much. But what about the other horse? We still haven't been able to move it. Don't you think he'll go near it?"
Tony sighed. "I don't think I'll worry about that for now. Bucky can go near him if he wants, just no riding or leading him, Okay?"
"Okay."
Thor slipped his gum boots back on and headed out to one of the many paddocks, baseball cap secured atop his head.
Tony ran a tired hand down his face before walking over to their record player in the corner of the lounge, placing one of Elvis Presley's records on so that Bucky could wake up to his favourite kind of music.
After making sure the music was at not too high a volume, Tony made his way out of the house to go and do his jobs.
Not even two hours after falling asleep, loud knocks echoed throughout the house from the front door and awoke Bucky from his slumber. He gave a groggy groan, slowly slumping towards the door in his track pants and tank top, hand holding his bandaged left nub of an arm.
The knocks became louder and more persistent, causing Bucky to yell, "I'm coming, don't get your panties in a twist! Jesus!" As he walked faster to the front of the house.
Bucky opened the door, eyes widening at the sight of a man and woman dressed in pressed suits, holding clipboards to their chests. Their eyes trailed over to Bucky's missing arm, allowing him to give an eye roll and mutter, "it's rude to stare, you know."
The two adults were caught off guard at his snarky comment, pulling on their blazers before speaking. "Is this the Stark residence?"
Bucky nodded sleepily, giving a small yawn. "Yes, it is. And who might you be?"
"Social services." They responded flatly.
It was Bucky's turn to be taken aback. "Social services?!" He thought to himself. "Are they here to take me away from dad?"
"Um aren't you supposed to call first and arrange a meeting?"
"Yes but we could not seem to get ahold of your father or the home phone, so we took it upon ourselves to arrive here as the matter is very important." The woman stated. "Is your father home?"
Bucky nodded. "Yes. He's just somewhere outside. Make yourself at home and I'll go find him for you."
"Thank you."
The two of them walked inside of the boys home, taking a seat beside one another on the couch as Bucky slipped on a random pair of shoes and headed outside.
Hearing distant yells coming from the open doors of the stable, Bucky walked inside to find his father and two other workers trying to place a halter on the wild stallion, but were failing miserably as he started to bite at them.
"Hey dad?" Bucky called, keeping his distance to try and not spook the horse anymore than it already was. "There's some people here waiting to talk to you."
Tony turned to look over at his son, relief washing over his features at the sight of Bucky standing, half asleep with no dry tear stains on his cheeks. "Hey, Buck. Could you please just tell them I'm busy and will have to come round another time?"
"I can't."
"Why not?"
Bucky gulped down the lump in his throat. "Its Social services and they said it was important.. are they gonna take me away from you?! Don't let them!" He cried.
Tony's eyes widened and he took long strides over to Bucky, cupping his face in his large hands before saying, "they aren't going to take you away, I promise I won't let them."
"I- Okay.."
He pressed a kiss to the crown of Bucky's head, rubbing his shoulder gently before leading him up to the house.
"Buck?" He asked, grabbing ahold of his boots. "This May take awhile and I think it's best if you take Scout for a ride to the river? Clear your head. You've been cooped up inside long enough, right?"
Bucky nodded in agreement. "Okay.." and took his boots from his dads hands. "Don't let them take me away.. okay?"
"I won't. I promise. Now go get some fresh air, soldier. Everything will be okay."
Bucky couldn't help but listen to his fathers reassuring voice, slipping his boots on quickly before heading into the stables again to find Thor and Loki on either aid of Scout, ready to assist the younger that they called their nephew.
"Hiya, Buck." Loki said happily, taking ahold of Bucky's hand and leading him over to his horse. "You ready for a ride?"
"Loki." Bucky said, voice flat. "You don't need to baby me. And yes, I am ready."
Loki nodded, mumbling an apology before shuffling behind the shorter and helping him into the saddle, Thor handing him the reins.
"Please be careful." Thor said softly, opening the gate that led to the woods. "Don't need anymore hospital visits."
Bucky gave Thor a small smile at his attempt to lighten the situation before flicking the reins and walking off slowly into the wilderness.
*********
The trek only took half an hour before they were stood before the slow moving river, Bucky gripping tightly at the saddle as he slipped down from the large horse and led him over to a tree stump.
Bucky took a seat, bowing his head and finally allowing the tears to fall. They ran down his cheeks slowly, traveling over his lips and leaving a salty taste on his tongue.
He felt so weak. So fragile. Everyone was treating him like a toddler who was learning to walk and he hated it.
Bucky hated all of the attention he was getting. It made him feel as if he had to rely on others to do everything for him. Tony had told him he was still himself, but how was he still him when he only had one arm and wasn't allowed to do anything without supervision?
Scout nuzzled his nose gently against his owners face, blowing hot air against his cheeks in attempt to cheer him up. But at this point, Bucky couldn't seem to even give a simple smile. He felt hideous.
The sound of a twig being snapped a few meters away cut Bucky from his thoughts, hand pausing against his horses neck as he rose his head.
"Whoa, kid." The guy muttered, staring at the tears streaming down Bucky's cheeks. "What happened?"
Bucky turned side on at the figure, causing him to gasp and their eyes to widen. "Oh my god-"
"You." Bucky hissed, recognising the blonde hair. "You did this to me! if you had never shown, up my dad wouldn't have pulled out the shotgun he wouldn't have fired it and missed, I would still have a fucking arm I wish he got the target not because I want my arm back but because I want you dead!"
The man stared at the smallers hooded eyes, the haunting pain bursting through from behind the pupil as he struggled to climb back onto his horse.
He took a step forward to give a hand, but before he could even move Bucky was up on Scout in the blink of an eye and trotting off, hair blowing freely in the wind.
The man sighed, chewing lightly on his lower lip before hunching his shoulders forward and walking away from the river, head bowed.
Bucky arrived back home with the tears still streaming down his hot tinted cheeks, handing Scouts reins over to Loki before quickly walking over to the house, not bothering to give an explanation.
He found Tony standing outside of the front door, pacing back and forth with his hands in his hair, tugging harshly.
"D-dad?" Bucky croaked, wiping the back of his hand across his cheeks.
Tony turned on his heel, sighing in relief and pulling his son into a hug. "There you are, Bucky!" He breathed, "I was worried you weren't gonna come back. Are you okay?"
Bucky hugged Tony back just as tight, nuzzling his face in the crook of his fathers neck before responding. "N-no.. I-" he couldn't get the words out without breaking down into more tears.
"It's okay, take your time, Soldier. Take your time."
Bucky gulped down the lump that had began forming in the back of his throat, breaking away from the embrace and wiping his eyes before letting out a shaky breath. "I- I met the guy..."
"What guy?" Tony questioned, stomach suddenly churning nervously.
"The- the one th-that trespassed.. he asked wh-what happened t-to me and I-I told h-him it was all h-his fault! Why is he in the woods?!! Who is he?!"
Tony sighed. "His names Steve. Steve Rogers. He's an ex soldier from the army, probably in his early twenties and hates my guts." He explained, rolling up his sleeve to show off a large scar. "See this? He did this to me on our last meeting. He's been trying to steal our horses for almost two years now."
"And you've just left him alone in the woods!! What if he comes back to try and take the foal again! Or even Scout!?"
"He won't."
"HOW DO YOU KNOW!?" Bucky screamed, stepping away from his father in anger. "HE COULD COME IN THE MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT!!!"
"Bucky!" Tony hissed, "he won't. I promise you. He hasn't in these past few weeks, has he? No. Now stop worrying, please. It's all okay. Promise me you'll drop it, Okay?"
Bucky only gave a nod, opening his mouth to ask about social services when tony grabbed ahold of his wrist and led him inside of their home and into the lounge.
Tony stepped aside for his son to take a look inside of the lounge, Bucky's eyebrows scrunching together in confusion.
There, on the couch, sat a small boy with chocolate coloured hair, only slightly lighter than his own and deep brown eyes just like his fathers. "D-dad?" He asked, "who is that?"
"Bucky.. that's Peter.. your younger brother." Tony responded, watching as Bucky's eyes widened and a look of disbelief crossed his features.
"Wh-What? How is that even possible? Mum left ten years ago!"
"I know this is very confusing and shocking, but that's your younger brother. Social services have been trying to contact me while you were in hospital and my phone was off. That's why they showed up."
Bucky looked between his father and the boy on the couch, noticing small traits they both had that looked almost identical. "B-but how? Mum wasn't pregnant.."
"She was." Tony sighed. "She just- she didn't tell us. Panicked and left without a word."
Bucky took a seat on the couch opposite Peter, covering his left side with a nearby blanket at noticing the odd stares he was getting and sucked in a shaky breath. "And why is he here now? After all these years... why now?"
"Your mother.. your mother got too far gone, Bucky. She turned to alcohol and is now in recovery, Social services took your brother away from her in an instant and when they found out about us, they knew Peter should be with us."
Bucky groaned, hiding his face in his hand to try and process all of the information being thrown at him. "I have a brother.. an alcoholic mother.."
"I know this is a lot to process right now, but we can figure things out. We are family after all."
He nodded, looking up and giving a small smile toward his younger brother, earning a shy smile back and a wave. Bucky chuckled softly, "Yeah. We are."
"A-are you o-okay with me b-being here?" Peter suddenly stammered out, staring over at his older brother. "I d-don't wanna be a nuisance.."
"Of course I am." Bucky whispered gently, "it's just shocking- you know? Finding out after all these years that I have a younger brother."
"Y-Yeah.. Okay."
Tony smiled over at his two sons before interrupting with the clap of his hands. "Okay, Pete. You will have the spare bedroom as your room, and I'm sure Bucky wouldn't mind helping out with painting the walls if you would like?"
Peter nodded energetically. "I'd love that."
*************
As Bucky assisted Peter with unpacking his clothes into the dresser in the room, his mind couldn't help but travel back to.. Steve?
His eyes. Those goddamn eyes. So bright, blue. Almost like the sky and ocean mixed together. His lips. Those plump, peach coloured lips, chapped yet looked so soft.
Bucky quickly shook his head to rid of the thoughts, mentally growling at himself. Steve was the reason he had one arm. He despised of him.
"You okay, Buck?" Peter asked softly, looking up from folding some clothes.
"oh yeah, I'm fine.. just.. lost in my thoughts.." Bucky responded, rubbing his eyes one at a time.
"Okay.."
*************