Family in Winter

[DarkledMind]

November 25


Tony held his arms close to his body, hands up and around his mouth, trying to keep his frigid fingers warm. The designer gloves were not helping as much as he thought they would, and he had the breathe hot breath on them so he could move his fingers at all. The poor man was shaking in his boots (also designer) and trying to keep warm to the best of his abilities.


Bruce threw a sideways glance to the man. He was much more composed, his woolen trench coat open to the winter air, and his bare hands shoved into the pockets of the flowing back coat. Steam rolled from his mouth like a dragon as he laughed at his partner, turning his gaze down upon him. "I told you to dress warm."


The smaller of the two men shot a glance to the other, but the glare soon melted away. Bruce was smiling, really smiling, for the first time in a long time. Tony felt his stomach drop a few inches and flop around like a silly teenager. Big, fluffy snowflakes landed in Bruce's greying curls, and Tony reached out to brush the ice away, and fix the bird's nest before him. "First impressions, mate."


Bruce indignantly looked up, his brows knitting together as he crossed his brown eyes to look up at the deft fingers fixing his messy hair. He sighed and continued to pout and glare at those fingers, which elicited a series of giggles from his partner. Bruce mumbled, deep in the back of his throat, "This isn't out first impression, Tony."


Tony snorted in response, stopped his preening, and then playfully sighed in frustration when Bruce shook his head slightly, releasing the mess of wild curls from the confines of Tony's perfected style. "First in a series of many long firsts, over many long years."


It was Bruce's turn for his stomach to drop, and the typical, cynical scowl crossed his features. He took his brown eyes and broke them away from his partner's, casting them down to the sidewalk they stood on. He watched as the fluffy snowflakes fell onto the asphalt, then melted away into nothingness. Bruce licked his lips and let out a heavy sigh that sounded old and heavy, like slamming a dusty book shut.


A gloved hand reached onto his shoulder, the thumb rubbing small circles in comfort. Bruce's hand reached up absently, taking Tony's into his own. He squeezed tightly, the grasp uncertain and needy, before taking and pressing a kiss to the tattoo on Tony's wrist. Remember. But all he wanted to do was forget.


"Hey." The single word pulled Bruce out of his reverie, his eyes snapping back to his partner's. The green orbs that were always so bright, vibrant, and full of life were calm and comforting, crinkled at the corners in just a certain way that Bruce knew he meant so much more than his usual smile. Bruce gave a small smile back, a smile that didn't reach his eyes. He tried to look away, but another gloved hand grabbed his chin, turning brown back to green. "Cheer up, hon. We are bringing home our little girl."


Bruce's smile reached his eyes that time, and he whispered out her name, "Cersei." Like calling a saint's name out in the darkness.


Hands intertwined, they entered the orphanage from the cold streets of New York. In small tradition that spanned fifteen years of sadness, joy, hate, but above all love, they paused at the first step. Tony looked up at Bruce, and Bruce's tentative eyes wavered into exaltation as both, with a determined chin, stepped in unison onto that first, slick stone step.


@NotAllThatCreative

 

[NotAllThatCreative]

"Alright, now tell me what this is." A woman with dark curly hair said to the blind child in front of her and handed the girl a stuffed animal. "What does it have, Cersei?" She shifted in her spot on the floor and watched the light red headed child in front of her quietly. She was trying help her identify various things by using touch instead of hearing. "Come on, munchkin. You know what it is."


Cersei seemed a little confused and took the stuffed animal into her hands. She gripped onto it tightly and shook it up and down at first, trying to see if any noise came out of it. Tilting her head, she ran her fingers over the soft fabric and seemed a bit confused still. She shook her head and continued with what she was doing, absently running her fingers through the stuffed rabit's fur.


"You're impatient." The woman chuckled and shook her head. "You didn't give any time!" She sighed softly and took another toy into her hands, setting it in front of Cersei. "What's this?"

 

[DarkledMind]

Tony was the first to knock on the door, his leather jacket hanging open now after entering the toasty building. Bruce had his coat draped neatly over his arm. "Hello?" he made sure to say after knocking. Bruce followed with a smile and a similar greeting. They were ecstatic to see their new little girl, her pale hands reaching and grasping at foreign objects. But their hearts dropped at seeing her eyes empty and cloudy.


It took the couple quiet a while to get used to the idea of their new child being blind. Of course they had met her before signing the papers, but she was such a sweet little girl. And their hearts ached and burned to see her fumble around blindly and awkwardly. Bruce, surprisingly, was the first one to suggest adopting her. Tony had no qualms about it, but was curious. Bruce had been almost totally against having children, and only came along with Tony to the orphanages because Tony desperately wanted a child. It made sense to Tony after he read Cersei's file. Of course Bruce would want to care for her. He saw what he could have been if his mother hadn't decided to marry her rapist.

 

[NotAllThatCreative]

"They're not here at the moment." Anya's voice came from in front of the small table that Cersei was at. "Just me so I can help you if you need it." She reached behind her and grabbed another stuffed animal, placing it in front of the blind child. "Come on, missy. Work with me here." She huffed lightly and frowned. "Or not..." Shaking her head, she sighed quietly and watched the child in front of her. "At least you're quiet." She murmured as she heard some of the boys upstairs roughhousing.


Cersei paid no mind to the woman in front of her and kept accepting the stuffed animals that were handed to her. She kept them in a pile next to her and pushed her hair out of her face, waiting for the next one to be placed in front of her.

 

[DarkledMind]

Tony smiled brightly, placing his hands in his pockets and walking towards Anya, his head down. "Actually, we are here for little Cersei, here." He pulled up a chair, sitting to the left of the little girl. He smiled again, his eyes waning and the green darkening in sadness at the blank, quiet little girl. He tried not to let his voice crack as he turned to her. Tony's eyes watered lightly as he spoke, "Hey Akahana, remember me? Tony? And Bruce?"


Bruce was quiet and somber as he approached the table. He pulled a chair up to the right of Cersei, draped his coat over the back, and sat. Wordlessly, he reached out to grasp Tony's hand, and they squeezed, hard. Bruce's scarred arms shook and the tattoo brushed up against the scar it was named after. Calmly, the other reached out to brush his fingers against Cersei's. "Yeah, honey. We are here for you."

 

[NotAllThatCreative]

"I believe it's a good thing you got her when you did." Anya commented and glanced towards the two before turning her eyes back to Cersei. "They were planning to ship her back to Japan today if no one adopted her." That really was the orphanage's plan. The child had been there for a good month and they felt that because of her blindness, she wasn't going to get a good home and were hoping that if they sent her back home, she'd find a good family. Even back in Japan, the orphanage owners were unsure of her getting adopted into a good home.


Cersei heard his words and her sightless eyes drifted in his direction. She didn't utter a word but it was obvious that she understood then because of the nod she gave. When she felt Bruce's fingers, her expression turned back to one of confusion. She gripped onto his fingers and ran her thumb over them as if taking in the little details that were present. Letting go of her stuffed animal, she gripped onto Bruce's hand tightly and smiled lightly.