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English
Series:
Part 1 of The Ironfather
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Irondad Creators Awards 2022, Peter Parker's Bio Parents
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Published:
2020-10-07
Completed:
2022-09-12
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79,691
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25/25
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The Secrets We Keep

Summary:

“Who are all these people?” Pepper looked at the crowd forming around them.

Tony flashed his million-dollar smile that always made Pepper melt. “Don’t worry about them Pep, it’s just business.”

So, Pepper let it go. She shouldn’t have.

 

Pepper's life was perfect. Tony was the perfect husband, gentleman and he made her feel like the luckiest woman alive. It was everything she dreamed of.

But she soon finds out Tony's biggest secret. So she hides her biggest secret by running away. Problem is, Tony is not about to let her go.

Notes:

Hiiiiiiiiiiii

I'm a mess and this is just for shits and giggles so let me know your thoughts and if I should continue this

Chapter 1: Two Truths and A Lie

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text

Hindsight 20/20, Pepper wasn’t sure why she didn’t see the warning signs. When she walked into her first day of work as Tony Stark’s assistant, she had heard the rumors. That he was impossible to deal with. Erratic. Always trying to get himself killed. Watch out, he's dangerous. He gets into a ton of dangerous situations. But Stark Industries had always been a big name in weapons, which then turned into a big tech company. Pepper wanted to work her way up to the top; she dreamed of running a company of her own one day. And working for Stark Industries was a leg up from every other company.

What she didn’t plan for, was to completely fall in love with her boss. She had heard he was a playboy, but under that facade, he was a loving and protective man. After working for him for years, she had gotten to know what she thought was the true side of him. After closed-door meetings that he would have with various men, (she was never told who they were or why they were there) he would always walk over to her with a big smile. When he danced with her, it felt so right. Like sunshine and daisies. And when he finally proposed to her, with the grand gesture of fireworks and an audience, she of course said yes.

When she was younger, she used to play this game with other girls at sleepover parties. Two truths and a lie. They would share 2 true things and 1 lie, and they had to guess which was the lie. So Pepper had started playing this game with herself even as an adult.

The night before her wedding to Tony Stark, she thought of her two truths and a lie:
1. She loved Tony Stark with all of her heart
2. She was going to marry Tony Stark
3. She was going to leave Tony Stark

She thought she would never ever want to leave Tony Stark. He was the perfect man, the perfect future husband.

At their wedding, there were many people who came up to them to congratulate them. To welcome her to ‘the famiglia’. These big, Italian men who Pepper had never seen before, nor did she remember inviting, were all lining up to talk to them. At one point, Pepper leaned over to Tony and whispered:

“Who are all these people?” Pepper looked at the crowd forming around them.

Tony flashed his million-dollar smile that always made Pepper melt. “Don’t worry about them Pep, it’s just business.”

So, Pepper let it go. She shouldn’t have.

--

Three months after they returned from their romantic honeymoon in Venice, Pepper laid curled up next to Tony. She could feel his chest rise and fall with each breath he took. It was early morning, and the sun was just starting to peek through their shades in the Penthouse. It was mornings like these that she loved spending with her husband. Just the two of them, no work, just their naked bodies wrapped up together.

Unfortunately, Pepper did not feel great that morning. For the last two weeks, she had been getting nauseous every morning when she woke up. Sometimes, she could keep it in. Other times, she had to overwhelmingly sprint to the bathroom and puke her brains out. Luckily, Tony was a heavy sleeper. She didn’t know why she felt so sick, but the last thing she wanted was for her husband to worry. He was always protective of her at all times, but when she was sick, he would hover. Baby her. And while she loved him, when she was sick, she always wanted to be alone. She didn’t need him to baby her. He would freak if he found out she was puking.

So, she quietly snaked out from Tony’s hold and made it just in time to puke into the toilet. As she puked for what felt like the 1000th time that morning, she thought about how this wasn’t normal. She made a mental note to make a doctor’s appointment for today.

After she flushed the toilet, she got ready for the day by brushing her teeth, taking a shower, and combing her hair. When she came out of the bathroom, she saw Tony was sitting up, rubbing the sleep from his eyes.

“Morning Mr. Stark.”

“Morning Mrs. Stark.” Tony smiled at his wife. He got out of bed and walked over to her, wrapping his arms around her. He swayed her a bit as if they were dancing.

“Remember our first dance?” Tony asked, looking into Pepper's soft eyes.

“Oh, you mean the one where you abandoned me on the rooftop?” Pepper’s voice had no real bite behind it.

“Yup,” Tony sighed contently.

“Sir,” Friday spoke. “You have men waiting to meet with you.” Pepper and Tony both sighed. It seemed like lately, Tony was always getting called into meetings early in the morning.

“We should both go get dressed,” Pepper noted.

“Don’t worry, you don’t need to attend this meeting,” Tony commented, sifting through his closet for his suit.

“And why are they scheduling meetings with you so early? And who are they?” Pepper questioned, genuinely curious.

“Not important, they – “ Pepper cut her husband off.

“They must be, if they are trying to meet with you now and you’re actually going,” Pepper noted.

“Well, someone’s gotta run the family business,” Tony said seriously. “And besides, one day, our son will run the business. Then we won’t even have to deal with the interruption” Tony wagged his eyebrows.

“How do you know we will have a son?” Pepper folded her arms. She wanted a little girl. But she guessed a little boy would be cute too.

“I need a son to take over,” Tony responded as if it was the most logical thing in the world. His business partners were asking when he would have his son. Having his son would be critical for his business.

“Why can’t a girl take over!” Pepper responded angrily. If they had a daughter, she would never want her to be cut out of Stark Industries.

“There’s just a lot more to it. Honey, please don’t worry about this, okay?” Tony begged, wanting Pepper to let this go.

“Fine, but you promise we will have dinner tonight?” Pepper wanted just a night to themselves, without any interruptions from work.

“I should promise you and I will” Tony grinned, and leaned in to kiss his wife. Tony’s kisses always made Pepper melt. She could forget about the entire world when she was in her husband’s arms.

--

After Tony dressed and went to his meeting, Pepper got ready for her day. Since she was now helping run SI, she too needed to be ready for her meetings. As she checked her schedule for the day, she realized she had a two-hour window for a doctor’s appointment. She quickly called up her doctor and was grateful that he could squeeze her in on such short notice.

Leading up to her appointment was uneventful. She met with product development about the new Stark Phone, and with marketing to discuss how they would advertise the new phone. As she was reviewing the final advertisement plans, Happy knocked on her door.

“Ready to go Mrs. Boss?” Since her marriage to Tony, Happy started calling her ‘Mrs. Boss’ since she was basically doing Tony's job. She didn’t fully know where Tony would run off to during the day sometimes, but she could handle all things business. This was her dream after all.

“Yes, thank you Happy.”

As they approached the car, Happy broke the silence;

“So why are we going to your doctors? You sick or something?” Happy nervously asked.

“No just a regular check-up,” Pepper lied. The last thing she wanted was for Happy to tattle to Tony before she knew what was going on. She was sure it was nothing and did not want her husband to worry.

They drove to the doctor’s office in silence. Pepper looked out at all the buildings as they passed. She used to drive or walk herself, but when she started dating Tony, Tony insisted that Happy drove her everywhere. He had said it was what he paid Happy for, and he joked that Happy needed to earn his salary.

But Pepper remembered the one time she had tried walking out of the building to grab a coffee, Friday locked the doors, preventing her from leaving. She and Tony got into a big fight about it.

He said he was just trying to protect her.

She yelled at him for being ridiculous.

He told her how much she loved him.

She said he had to trust her.

He said that he did, but it was the world he didn’t trust.

She told him there was nothing to worry about, that the coffee shop was in a safe area nearby.

He said that he had to protect the one thing he loved the most.

Pepper lost that argument, and had never driven or walked alone again. She shook the memory out of her head as they came to a stop in front of the doctor’s office.

“Want me to come inside?” Happy asked.

“No, just wait here,” Pepper responded as she stepped out of the car.

The doctor did his usual checks. Took her blood pressure. Checked her heart. Checked her ears and eyes. Pepper was only half paying attention when she realized the doctor was talking to her.

“Sorry what?” Pepper asked.

“You came in for nausea correct?” He asked patiently.

“Yes, that’s correct.” She answered.

“Can you describe it for me? How long has it been going on?” He asked.

“Well, let’s see. For the past two weeks. I usually wake up feeling nauseous. Sometimes I get sick, sometimes I don’t. Usually, it’s in the morning, but sometimes I feel nauseous after lunch.”

“And when was your last period?” He asked.

Oh my god. Pepper’s eyes widened. She had been so busy the past few weeks with work that she didn’t even realize her period was late. Like 3 or 4 weeks late.

“Ummm, I think it’s late,” Pepper responded quietly.

“Let’s get you a pregnancy test, then we will go from there.”

Pepper peed on the stick in the bathroom then waited there. It was the longest two minutes of her life. How could she have forgotten that she didn’t get her period? Was she even ready to have a kid? Was Tony ready? Sure, they wanted kids, but maybe in a few years. She still wanted to be able to go out at night with Tony and go to dinner, rather than worry about diapers and breastfeeding.

Her alarm went off. She looked down at the stick.

Pregnant.

‘Oh my god’ Pepper thought, ‘I’m pregnant. What will Tony say? Will he be happy? We literally just talked about having a child this morning.’

Her doctor gave her a bunch of information and offered to schedule an appointment for her with an OBGYN. She declined, saying she needed to discuss it with her husband. She needed to make sure he was free for the first appointment.

As she walked back out to the car, she could see Happy was on the phone.

“I’ll call you back.” He quickly hung up and turned to her. “Done already?”

“Yea, let’s go home” She smiled. The more she thought about it, the more she wanted to go surprise Tony with the announcement. She knew deep down, even though it was sooner than she expected, she was excited to start a family with her husband. They would be the perfect little family.

She dreamed about it on the car ride home. How she would soon be rocking her baby to sleep at night. How her husband would tell their baby stories, and how he would absolutely spoil their child. She smiled at the thought.

When they got inside the tower, Pepper and Happy walked in together without saying anything.
“Friday,” Pepper questioned, “Where is my husband right now?”

“Oh that’s not such a good idea-“ Happy was interrupted by Friday.

“He is in conference room 38D.” Friday said emotionless.

“Thanks, Fri, take me there.” Pepper stepped into the elevator, and Happy quickly jumped in after her.

“Hey I think he’s in a meeting right now, we should not go-“ Happy was cut off yet again.

“I work for this company too you know.”

“I just don’t think Boss wants you to-“ Again, Happy was cut off.

“I’m the boss too Happy.” Pepper retorted and stepped out onto the floor. She hadn’t been up here before, usually Tony had meetings here with those men she didn't know.

She swung the door open and was not prepared for what she saw.

In the room was her husband with their friend Rhodey. There were also three big men she recognized from the wedding standing next to them. But what caught her attention were the two other men. They were tied up, with their arms and legs tied in the air. They were both covered in blood, and she could tell they were still bleeding out like crazy. They had bullet wounds that were oozing blood from their legs and from their lower chest. She noticed one of the men was not attached to his arm anymore, and a bloody saw was lying on the ground not too far from her husband. The other man was missing an eye, and she spotted the missing eye lying on the ground in a pool of blood. Her husband was holding a gun, as was Rhodes. The three big men were holding bloody knives. Tony’s eyes were black, filled with rage and anger that Pepper had never seen before.

Pepper stood there with her mouth agape. What was happening?

“Finish this,” Tony barked to Rhodey. Why the hell was Pepper in here?

Tony walked over to his wife and pulled her out of the conference room to the elevator.

“You aren’t supposed to see that.”

“What the HELL were you doing?!” Pepper cried out. “Why were those men tied up and why were you hurting them?”

“They are bad men Pepper. They wanted to lock me up, take me away from you.” Tony growled.

“Boss I tried to stop her from- “Happy was cut off once again.

“We will talk later.” Tony spat out. He was pissed that Happy let his wife just walk in on this, Happy knew better than to let Pepper onto this floor. Pepper stifled a sob.

“Please don’t hurt Happy,” Pepper begged. Tony’s eyes softened. He didn’t want to scare his wife. He took her hand and led her out of the elevator and to the couch, leaving Happy behind in the elevator.

“I would never,” Tony promised. Tony noticed how Pepper was shaking. “Hey, sweetheart it’s alright.”

“How is it alright? You were torturing two men!” Pepper sobbed.

“It’s part of the job,” Tony said emotionless.

“What? Stark industries is not a company that murders people! We don’t make weapons anymore!”

“But the Stark family business does,” Tony stated matter of fact.

“What?” Pepper was shocked. What was he talking about?

“I kept it hidden from you long enough. I guess now you know enough, I might as well tell you the rest. I run the Stark mob.” Tony explained.

“The mob?” Pepper asked in disbelief.

“Yes Pepper,” Tony said, “I’m the Boss. Like mob boss kind of boss. Stark Industries is a front for the Stark mob family, most people know that, I’m surprised you didn’t realize sooner. But that’s one of the things I love about you.” Tony smiled at her and reached out to touch her face. But she pulled back.

“So you kill people?”

“We have to, that’s part of it.”

“And you don’t see what’s wrong with that?” Pepper worried she already knew the answer.

“No, we do what we have to so that we can grow, build our empire you see.”

“But this is insane, Tony how could you keep this from me?”

“Would you have married me if you knew?”

“Probably not,” Pepper muttered honestly.

“See? Exactly why I didn’t. I wanted you so bad, and I would have done anything to get you. And I still would do anything for you. I love you Pepper; I only do this to protect us.”

“Protect us? Why not just quit, leave this insanity?”

“I could never,” Tony scoffed. “My father built this empire, and I have to continue on the legacy. That’s what I was born to do as a Stark. I had to live on the legacy.”

Pepper shuttered at that. But then she thought about their baby. The one she just found out about. The one she was about to tell Tony about until she found out his secret. How could she bring a child into this world? She couldn’t picture raising her son or daughter in this fucked up world. How could she be okay with having a child born for the sole purpose to kill for their father’s company?

“But you could leave, can’t you?” Pepper asked, with what little hope she had left.

“That’s not how it works.” Tony shook his head. He would never want to leave the mob. He made so much money from his illegal business, way more than Stark Industries brought in. And, he felt so powerful when he killed. When he tortured an enemy, he felt on top of the world.

“Listen, I know this is a lot to take in, but it feels good to get this off my chest,” Tony paused. “I hate to run out, I know we have a lot to talk about, but I need to get back downstairs.” With that, he leaned over to kiss her cheek, then got up and left.

Pepper took a shaking breath. In all honesty, she was terrified. She was pregnant with her husband’s baby, who turned out to be a murderer. How did she not see the warning signs? She should have known, should have done her research. But it was too late, she was going to have a baby with this man, and her baby would become a killer.

Unless she left. But she could never escape. He would never let her leave, and Friday would stop her anyways. But she had to leave. She didn’t want her baby growing up in this. Now that she knew the truth, she didn’t even think she could stay. She loved Tony, she really did, but how could she live here, knowing what goes on downstairs. Those bloody bodies would haunt her for the rest of her life. She was not going to subject her child to that.

--
Pepper had to give herself credit, she had played the role of happy wife for the past three weeks after finding out she was pregnant with her mob boss husband’s child. She happily cuddled up to her husband, cooked dinner with him, watched movies, and kissed him back. While she still loved him, she was now terrified of him. She thought of the game she used to play and played another round.
1. I’m pregnant
2. My husband is in the mafia, yet I still love him
3. I’m staying with him

Since the day she found out the truth, Pepper started planning her escape. Pepper had planned it all out. She discretely hired someone to make her the fake documents that would help her disappear. “Mary Fitzpatrick” was her new name on her new birth certificate, that she kept tucked away in the bottom of her purse. After getting all the needed documents to live her new fake life, all she needed was an escape. And she found one.

She asked Happy to take her to this new coffee shop. She heard they had fair trade coffee that was to die for. Happy grumbled about it being across town, but he still agreed to take her. Not like he had much choice. He still didn’t forgive himself for letting Pepper go inside the conference room. So anything he could do to win back Tony's trust he would do. And Tony had specifically ordered Happy to make sure Pepper was happy. Happy dropped her off to get coffee and told her that he would wait in the car just outside the coffee shop.

She entered the coffee shop, just to walk through its back door. It was a new place after all, and Happy had no time to investigate its safety. He had no time to find out that there was another entrance onto another busy New York street.

She walked out the back door and didn’t look back.

Notes:

Comments are appreciated!!!

Also, since I already kinda spoiled it with the tags, Peter is going to be their kid in the story (sorry Morgan), how old do you want to see him as? Do you want him to be a little baby, or already a teenager?

Chapter 2: Just Me and You, and Ironman Too

Summary:

We jump back and forth to see how Pepper and Tony are living their lives apart.

Notes:

Wow!!!! Thank you all for the kind comments and suggestions! It's so exciting to see what people have to say, I've really enjoyed reading your comments and want to take them into consideration as I write.

I've seen a mix of requests for Baby Peter/Kid Peter and Teenage Peter. I'm working on trying to find a way to incorporate multiple age ranges and will continue to take suggestions as to what age you want to see.

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text

“What do you mean she’s not in the coffee shop?” Tony gritted out. What the fuck did Happy do?

“Sir she must have gone out the other exit.” Happy said into his phone as he looked outside the other entrance Pepper must have slipped through.

“What the FUCK were you doing? I pay you to watch my wife, and she disappears?” Tony yelled into the phone, and pulled his jacket on, and grabbed the keys to his Audi.

“Boss, I’m so sorry-“

“Sorry won’t cut it unless you FIND MY WIFE YOU DUMBASS,” Tony screamed into his phone.

“Sir-“ Tony did not let him finish.

“Call in everyone who can be discrete about this. We need to find her. Someone must have taken her to piss me off. And I’ll kill whoever took her away from me.” Tony snarled.

“But sir, what if she wasn’t kidnapped?”

“What the FUCK are you talking about?!” Tony was pissed that Happy could accuse such a thing.

“Well, it's just, this is a new coffee place, she never goes here. I just, am worried that she planned this.” Happy spoke softly, fear laced in his voice. He was trembling thinking about what his boss would do to him.

“We. Will. Find. Her. She is NOT leaving me.” Tony snapped. “You and I both know, that’s not how marriage works in our world. Until death do us part. There’s no leaving me. I will NEVER let her go.”

Happy shuddered, in fear for himself, but mainly in fear for Pepper. The way Tony was talking reminded him of how he used to be before Pepper. When he was erratic and bloodthirsty. Before Pepper, he was a lot less careful and unpredictable. Pepper had seemed to calm him down, but without her, the old tendencies were back in full force.

Tony was about to start up again at yelling at Happy when there was a knock on his office door.

“Find her before I get down there,” Tony ordered, then promptly hung up the phone. He turned his attention to the door.

“Yes?” He said with hostility.

“It’s Nat.” Pepper’s assistant.

After Tony made Pepper co-CEO of Stark Industries with him, she hired Natasha as her assistant. Originally, she had said her name was Natalie. Turns out, she was working for SHIELD, and her mission was to take down the Stark Empire. Tony was all but ready to kill her at the time, but she proposed a deal that saved her life. She was a trained assassin and could protect Pepper. And, for a reasonable salary, she was willing to lie to the US government, SHIELD, and every other government body interested in the Stark empire and would convince them that Tony was not doing any criminal activity, all while remaining as Pepper’s bodyguard. Turns out, she was incredibly loyal to the Stark family. She was deadly too. When they needed an extra hand dealing with a rival mob, she was always Tony’s go-to. And she was incredibly discrete. Pepper thought Nat was just her assistant. Pepper had no idea Nat could kill someone with her bare hands.

 

“Get in here,” Tony called out, and Nat quickly entered, shutting the door behind her. “You better know where my wife is.”

“Isn’t she out for coffee with Happy?” Nat looked at him and noticed the rage plastered across his face.

“And you just let them go?!” Tony couldn’t hold back his anger.

“You know, I’ve been busy cleaning up some of your messes. Do you remember Stefanos? The guy you killed last week for trying to steal your car? I’ve been busy clearing your DNA from that evidence and getting rid of the body. Pepper is safe with Happy” Nat stated.

“Obviously I don’t remember,” Tony rolled his eyes. “I kill too many people to remember why I killed each one. But the point is, she’s not with Happy.” Tony grunted out.

“What?” Nat asked with shock.

“Turns out, the new coffee shop has a back entrance, and she’s gone. Happy, the terrific bodyguard that he is, had no idea until 15 minutes after she went inside. The dumbass had no idea she was gone.”

Tony looked down at his lap, trying to hold back the tears. He was angry, but mostly, he was worried. What if one of his enemies took her? What if they hurt the love of his life? He would never be able to forgive himself if something happened to her. Did she mean to leave? Or is she lost? Why would she have left him though? They were so happy, and she hadn’t shown any signs of fear after she found out the truth of the Stark mob.

“We will find her,” Nat tried to reassure Tony, “I won’t stop looking for her.”

“Neither will I.”

--

Pepper had never been to Queens. Tony had always referred to it as a dump. He said it had nothing to offer, which is why Pepper had never been there. Despite her fears, it was the only place she could afford. With only 5 grand in her purse and no access to any of her savings, she had to start over. Becoming Mary meant a fresh start, and she had to get used to that. She knew she would have to find a job, something that paid enough to get benefits but not too much to draw any attention to her. No one could find her. No one.

As she stood in her new tiny one-bedroom apartment in Queens, she touched her stomach. Her baby was in there. Hers. And she was determined that she would be able to give him or her a good life. Away from the mob, they would be safe together.

After being here for almost a week, she had started to get some furniture. Used and cheap, it was all she could afford. She missed the plush couch she and Tony had in the penthouse, but she refused to let herself think about it. When she thought about Tony, all she could do was cry. She took a deep breath and went back to decorating her apartment. As she was rearranging her sofa, she heard a knock on the door.

‘Oh god, they didn’t find me, did they?’ Pepper thought worriedly, her heart started beating faster. She looked through the peephole to see a woman and a man she had never seen before. She hesitated on answering it when she noticed they had a loaf of some kind of bread in their hands.

If there’s one thing Pepper noticed about her pregnancy, she was hungry all the time.

She opened the door and looked at the man and woman. The woman had long straight brown hair and had a big smile that reached her eyes. Seeing her smile, made Pepper smile. The man also had brown hair and his smile was just as warm as hers.

“Hi,” Pepper said. “Can I help you?”

“Hi,” The woman started, “My name is May Parker, this is my husband Ben, we live across the hall and wanted to come say hello. We saw you moved in last week.”

“Oh yea I did,” Pepper smiled genuinely, “I’m uh Mary.” It was still weird to say that. “Mary Fitzpatrick.”

“It’s nice to meet you, Mary,” Ben held out his hand, and Pepper shook it. She then shook May’s hand.

“It’s so nice to finally have a young neighbor across the hall. Most of the people that live here are old and boring.” May laughed as she spoke. To Pepper, she seemed like a genuinely happy person.

“Well hopefully that means it’s a quiet building?“ Pepper asked, hoping it would be true. The less social the building was, the less risk there was of anyone in the mob finding her and her baby.

“Ha I wish,” Ben rolled his eyes. “A lot of the old-timers can’t hear their grandchildren on the phone and yell into it. And it’s always at 6 am on a Saturday, who calls their grandchildren at 6 am?”

“That’s actually kind of funny,” Pepper let out a soft laugh. It was soft, but it wasn’t forced.

“Oh, and before we forget, we made you a walnut date loaf.” May held out the dish, and Pepper took it.

“Wow that’s so kind of you, thank you!” Pepper smiled, ready to eat half of it since she was so hungry. “I would invite you in but my place is a mess…” Pepper opened the door fully to reveal the scattered boxes with furniture.

“Oh nonsense. You’re still getting settled. If you want, you should come over for dinner sometime!” May grinned, she was happy to finally have a neighbor around her and her husband’s age.

“Yes, you should!” Ben quickly agreed. May and Ben had the same thought. Mary seemed like a nice woman, and they could use more friends in the building.

“Wow you are both so kind, really thank you. Moving here I was so worried I would be lonely, but now I don’t think I will be.”

“Duh, we will knock on your door and bug you to come over.” May grinned, excited to get to know her new neighbor. Pepper grinned back.

“Where did you move from?” Ben asked.

“Upstate,” Pepper responded. Her birth certificate said she was born in Albany, so it made it easier for her to just stick with that. Small town girl who grew up outside of Albany and dreamed of going to the big city finally made it.

“Where upstate? It’s so beautiful up there.” Ben asked.

“Just outside of Albany.”

“How nice,” May commented. But then her phone rang. “Oh I gotta take this, it’s the hospital. It was so nice meeting you, come over soon okay!”

“Yes, please come over anytime.” Ben smiled softly at her.

“Will do, thank you both.” Pepper smiled and waved, then closed the door.

--
“You find her?” Tony’s head snapped up when he heard the door to his office open.

Rhodey, Tony’s consigliere, shook his head. “No,” he said solemnly.

“FUCK!” Tony slammed his hands on the desk.

“We need to do more,” Rhodey suggested.

“We do,” Tony agreed. But what more could they do?

--

“And you’ll never guess what this guy had stuck up his butt,” May laughed and didn’t wait for Pepper to guess, “An apple!!!! I’m telling you, being a nurse is rewarding, but people sure are weird.”

Pepper laughed and touched her stomach. After a few months, she had really gotten to know the Parkers. They were fantastic neighbors and even better friends. She told them what she could tell them, about how she was starting a new life here in Queens. She even told them that she was expecting. And they were supportive. May excitedly told her about being a nurse at a hospital nearby and promised to make sure she would have one of the less creepy doctors help her deliver. They spent their free time together, just hanging out and watching movies in the Parker apartment. With all the changes in Pepper's life, she was most grateful for the Parkers. She became so close with them after these few months of living in Queens, that she felt like they were her family.

“You know,” Ben broke their fits of giggles, “We aren’t able to have kids.”

Pepper looked at him with raised eyebrows, what was he implying?

“I think what Ben means,” May caught Pepper’s confused look, “is that while we only just started to get to know you, we would be happy to help you and your baby. I’m sure it’s scary knowing you’re bringing a baby into this world alone, but we can support you. We are always here for babysitting.”

“Exactly,” Ben stated. “We want to be a part of your baby’s life; at whatever capacity you feel comfortable with, Mary.”

“Wow,” Pepper started to tear up, overwhelmed by the love she felt, “that means so much to me, thank you.”

“Please, thank you. We always wanted kids, but we couldn’t.” Ben said, with a hint of sadness in his voice.

“Are you going to get maternity leave?” May asked. After Pepper had moved here, she immediately looked for a job. She quickly landed a job as an administrative assistant. Back to square one. It reminded her of her first few days of working for Tony.

“Yea, I get 12 weeks.” Pepper sighed. She knew if she had stayed with Tony, she could have taken all the time in the world to be with her baby. She wouldn’t of had to work ever again. But at what price if her baby had to grow up to become a mobster and kill people?

“Hey, that’s pretty good! Have you thought about what you’re going to about child care?”

“Umm… no” Pepper looked down, suddenly feeling overwhelmed. What was she thinking? She couldn’t raise a baby as a single mother.

“Like we said, we want to help,” May stated. “And we really mean it. You know I work mostly evening into night shifts at the hospital, right? I can watch the baby during the day when you’re back at work.”

“Oh my god, you would do that?”

“Obviously! Anything for my little godson or goddaughter.” May grinned.

“Niece or nephew.” Pepper stated.

“What?” Ben looked puzzled.

“You’re going to be way more than just godparents to the baby. You’re the only family I have. I want you to be Aunt May and Uncle Ben.”

“You mean that?” May started tearing up.

“Of course, I do,” Pepper said, “You’re both going to be so important to him or her.”

May pulled Pepper into a hug, and they both cried. Finally, Pepper felt like she had done something right for her baby. Her baby might never know their real father, but May and Ben would be even better role models.

She just wished the Parkers would be enough for her little family. After she left the Parker apartment and crawled into her bed, Tony was all she could think about. Despite the dangerous man that he was, she missed him like crazy. She could only wonder whether or not he was okay. Was he missing her as much as she missed him? Because she thought, no, she knew she would miss him forever.

--

Tony stumbled into their bedroom in the Penthouse. It had been months. Months. And no leads. Currently, he was hammered and an absolute mess. He had hoped it would help him forget the pain. If anything, it only made it worse. He missed his wife every waking moment. He even missed her in his sleep. How could he have ever taken her for granted? He missed the way she used to kiss his cheek before bed. He missed the way she would curl up into his side. He missed holding her, dancing with her, being with her. He was completely lost without her.

 

Missing her came in waves. Tonight, he was drowning.

 

--

The next morning, Pepper woke up in a cold start. She wrapped the blankets up around her but still shivered. She thought about the only thing she wanted that morning.

Tony.

She imagined being wrapped up in his arms, cozy and safe. She wished she could be tangled up in their silk sheets right now, bodies pressed up against one another. She just wanted him to hold her, to be able to kiss his cheek and feel his goatee tickle her skin. She missed being able to run her fingers through his hair. She missed how in the morning, he would wrap his strong arms around her, and hold her. She thought back to the times when she would try to get up, but he would tighten his grip and mutter for her to stay. Right now, she wished she did.

Suddenly, she felt the baby kick. She sat up, startled. The baby had never kicked before. Feeling the soft thump against her ribs, she cried. At that moment, it really sunk in that she was having a baby.

And she was going to love this kid more than anything.

--
“Wake up Tones,” Rhodey shook his friend’s shoulders.

“Go way,” Tony muttered into his pillow. He was so hungover, all he wanted to do was sleep all day.

“Common man, you gotta wake up, do something productive.” Rhodey was worried about Tony. Tony had become even more ruthless after Pepper disappeared, but when he wasn’t working, he was an absolute disaster. Drinking all the time. Holing himself up in his lab, doing god knows what.

“No.”

“I won’t leave until you’re up.”

“Fuck off,” Tony growled and turned his head into the pillow. Rhodey yanked the sheets off of Tony.

“Common, up up up,” Rhodey pulled Tony up into a sitting position, and Tony sighed.

“Ugh, are you seriously making me get up?” Tony rubbed his aching head. “What are you, my mother?”

“Sometimes it feels like I am,” Rhodey confessed. He paused and looked at his friend “Man this isn’t healthy.”

“You think I don’t know that?” Tony spat out.

“We are all worried about you, Tones.”

“If you were that worried, you would have found my wife by now,” Tony muttered.

“We are trying!” Rhodey raised his voice. “But we’ve all had to babysit you to make sure you don’t kill yourself doing something reckless. Common man, think about it. You could be helping us by at least taking care of yourself.”

“That wouldn’t help find her,” Tony grumbled.

“Well do you have any ideas? You’re the smartest one here, and yet you haven’t used that big brain of yours. We could use more men on the ground looking for her, but you don’t trust anyone. We need more eyes to look all over the place.”

Just then, Tony’s eyes widened.

“That’s it,” Tony spoke.

“Finally, I’ll call more men.” Rhodey went to leave, but Tony stopped him.

“No,” Tony spoke, “we don’t need more people per se, just more intelligence. A way to look by air. Something that can do more than just a man. Something smarter than a man”

“What are you talking about Tones?” Rhodes asked. Tony looked his consigliere dead in the eye.

“Ironman.”

--

Pepper sat in the waiting room of her OBGYN. It was her last appointment before she was expected to give birth. She was insanely nervous. When the doctor called her in, she laid down for the ultrasound.

When her baby showed up on the screen, her heart skipped a beat.

Her baby. She couldn’t wait to hold him or her.

“So, you decided not to find out the sex of the baby?” The doctor asked, not really remembering her file. He saw so many patients in a day he didn’t really have time to remember any of them.

“Yea, I want it to be a surprise,” Pepper spoke sweetly, never taking her eyes off of her baby on the screen.

“Lots of parents are like that for their first time,” the doctor commented. “Do you have names picked out?”

“If it’s a girl, I want to name her Morgan.” Pepper smiled, thinking of her eccentric uncle Morgan. She loved that name for a girl. “If it’s a boy, I think I’m leaning towards Peter.”

“Very well, just be prepared to provide the name at the hospital for the birth certificate. It’s a hassle to go back and get those forms filled out afterward.”

“Okay, thank you, Doc,” Pepper’s smile faded as her baby disappeared from the monitor. The doctor didn’t even warn her that he was stopping the ultrasound, or that he would promptly get up and leave.

“I’ll see you again soon little one,” Pepper muttered to her baby, who kicked back.

--
“Alright, this is what, test number 112?” Tony spoke out. He was in his lab, surrounded by the armor he had been working on for the past few months. It was now mid-July, and he was getting impatient. He was so close.

“Yes sir,” Friday spoke.

“Alright, commencing test number 112.” Tony stood back, and the armor wrapped around him.

He moved his arms and legs around. Success.

He tested the lasers, the repulsors, the missiles, the minigun. Success.

He put his hands down and propelled himself in the air to fly. Success.

His bots fired a round of bullets at his chest. He looked down and saw no damage. Success.

He stepped out of the armor seamlessly. Success.

He turned on the remote operator and tested all the same functions. Success.

 

Tony grinned. Ironman was born.

 

--

On August 10th, Pepper went into the hospital as Mary Fitzpatrick and gave birth to a baby boy.

She held her baby, and she knew she did the right thing all along. This pain and suffering from leaving her husband was worth it for this small, delicate, and beautiful little boy.

He was perfect. He had tufts of light brown hair that stuck out in every direction and curled on the end. His small fists were bunched up into the blanket Pepper had carefully wrapped around her baby. As he slept, he puffed out these small yet deep little baby huffs of air. And most notably, he was the spitting image of Tony.

“Peter Benjamin,” Pepper whispered to her sleeping baby, “I love you more than words could ever say.”

Notes:

I hope the jumping back and forth between Tony and Pepper wasn't so confusing.

 

Before I continue, I want to know, do you want to see Tony and Pepper end up together? Or should they stay apart?

Leave a comment and let me know!!!

Chapter 3: Tasteful Art With a Triple Agent

Notes:

I have LOVED reading your comments!! You all have so many good ideas!! A few of you must be able to read my mind because some of your comments have literally been some of the things I have thought about writing. I feel like there are lots of different directions I can go, so I'm still trying to decide how to incorporate all the things I want to happen to this little fam.

This chapter features baby Peter (around 4 months old if I did my math correct), but I do not plan on him staying a baby for long. So those who wanted an older Peter, stay tuned!

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text

It was on every channel. The whole world was watching. Everyone was waiting for the secret that had captured the world's attention to be unmasked.

“Our top story tonight, Tony Stark, head of Stark Industries and alleged mobster is addressing a live audience today. For more information, we take you to Jessica Jones. Jessica?”

“Yes Edward, I am here now at Stark Tower where Mr. Stark is about to make an announcement. We have reason to believe Mr. Stark will be denying allegations that he is in fact Ironman. Sources have seen the suit flying around the city, with many speculating that Tony Stark is the man in the can.” Jessica paused and turned to see Tony Stark and James Rhodes walk on stage. “There is Mr. Stark and Colonel Rhodes now!”

Tony and Rhodey walked up to the stage, with Rhodey taking the mic. The cameras zoomed in on Tony as he strolled up to the podium looking bored. Rhodey shot him a warning look then took a deep breath. He adjusted his tie and cleared his throat.

“Good afternoon everyone,” Rhodey greeted as he scanned the crowd for any threats or rivals. None. “Thank you for being here. I am joined here today with my good friend, Tony Stark, who has an important announcement for the entire world.”

“Thanks, Rhodey,” Tony started, “There’s been a lot of speculation about whether or not I am Ironman, and the truth is…”

Tony paused. He thought about Pepper. What Pepper might say or tell him to do. Maybe what she wanted all along was honesty. And maybe she was watching right now. And maybe, he could finally do something right by her and tell her the truth upfront.

“I am Ironman.”

The room exploded in chaos.

--

Peter waved his little chubby arms in the air. Pepper smiled down at her little baby and hovered her hand above Peter’s hand. He wrapped his hand around her finger and smiled sweetly.

“Mommy loves you,” She cooed, and leaned down and kissed his face over and over again. Peter’s laughter bubbled out and filled the room.

Pepper had been doing this for the past 4 months. Her baby was 4 months old now. She couldn’t believe it. Time was going by so quickly. His first smile, the first time he held his head up on his own, his first laugh, all in the past. Those sweet moments went by so quickly, she was scared to miss another moment. She had been back at work for about a month now, not because she wanted to, but because she had to. Luckily, it was almost Christmas, and she would get some time off to be with Peter.

Pepper was so content watching her Peter that she barely registered the sound of the door jingling open.

“Mary?” Pepper turned to see May enter her apartment. She had given the Parkers a key to her place since May was now watching Peter during the day while she worked. May and Ben had been fantastic. May was so good with Peter, it was clear that Peter adored her. He would always coo and wiggle around excitedly whenever he saw her. Peter must have heard her voice just then because he kicked his feet out and tried to roll over. He was still working on that skill. When he realized he couldn't do it, he huffed out in frustration then grabbed his foot and brought it up towards his mouth.

“In the bedroom with Pete,” Pepper called back out to her friend.

“Awwww,” May walked up next to Pepper and looked down at Peter on the bed. Peter looked over to the voice and gurgled when he saw May. “His Christmas onesie is adorable!”

“Thanks, I just got it!” Pepper smiled. She loved this onesie too. The little feet had little reindeer on the bottom, and Peter seemed to love them too. Pepper quickly realized that her son loved warm fuzzy things. But what he loved more was attention. He loved to be held and talked to and would cry if Pepper put him down before he had fully fallen asleep.

Just then he made a soft whimpering noise, and Pepper immediately scooped him up. He leaned into his mother, seeking the comfort and warmth she always provided. He rested his head against her chest, and let out a deep breath of air. His sighs reminded her of Tony.

“Anyways, Ben and I got him a Christmas present,” May smiled, and held out a bag. “I know it’s not much, but it’s the #1 toy this season.”

When she had been with Tony, she had always stayed on top of the latest and greatest trends. Not necessarily baby trends, but she figured that if she had stayed with Tony, she would have had the time to worry about baby trends. Back then, trends had been important to her. Now, all she cared about was getting to spend time with Peter.

After Peter was born, she realized all the things she had once had, all the luxurious and expensive items, were worthless. The most valuable thing couldn’t be bought. They weren't things. They were feelings. They were moments and memories filled with love.

Pepper sat down on the bed and shifted Peter into the crook of one arm and unwrapped the present. She pulled out the red and gold plushie.

It was Ironman.

“It’s all the rage these days, what with Ironman flying around the city. Kids are obsessed, I had to fight some crazy mom to get the last one,” May smiled triumphantly.

Pepper forced out a smile. She had seen the news. Everyone had. Ironman, New York’s newest protector. Or so they thought. In the back of her mind, she asked herself why Tony really created Ironman. Was it a distraction? Or part of some plan? The statistics showed that Ironman had decreased mafia-related crime all over the city. Probably because every rival mob of Tony’s was too terrified of Ironman to do anything.

Peter reached out with both hands to grab the Ironman plushie from his mom. He held it in his hands and looked at it for a long time. Pepper had never seen him so focused on one thing for so long. Peter then wrapped his chubby arms around his Ironman and held it close to him.

“Awww I think he likes it,” May commented and brushed one of Peter’s curls back. “Who knows, maybe it’ll be his new favorite toy!”

“Yea, maybe,” Pepper wondered how Peter could be so much like the father he never met.

“Also,” Pepper looked up and saw May holding her hands behind her back, “I got you, well, all of us, a gift. But it didn’t cost me anything!”

May stretched out her hands to reveal 4 tickets.

“What is it?” Pepper looked at the tickets. The MoMA Christmas Special tickets for tonight. “How did you know I liked modern art?”

“Oh common! Ben loves Modern art too; you both have literally talked about Jackson Pollock for hours.”

“How did you even get these? I heard they were impossible to get!”

“I told you about Filipe, right? He’s the doctor at my hospital that I always gossip with. His husband works for MoMA. And obviously, he knows all about you since we talk all the time and he thought it would be fun for all of us. He said he couldn’t wait to make me go and suffer. He and I both don’t fully get modern art, but obviously, we gotta support our husbands’ passion.”

“And Peter can come?”

“Uh, duh! That’s why there are 4 tickets!”

“Wow, I don’t know what to say,” Pepper paused, “Oh, but wait!”

Pepper shot up from where she was sitting on the bed and handed Peter to May. May instinctively wrapped her arms around her nephew, who wiggled excitedly to be in his favorite aunt’s arms.

May looked up to see Pepper holding a box.

“I was going to give this to you on Christmas, but since you gave me early gifts, I want you to have this now. And sorry I didn’t wrap it.” She handed over the box, and May handed back Peter, who eagerly grabbed his mother’s shirt with his tiny fist.

May opened it up, to find a framed photo of her and Ben sitting on their living room couch. May was holding Peter who was bundled up in a fuzzy blue blanket. He was smiling up at them, and May was smiling back at Peter. Ben had his arm draped around his wife’s shoulders, and was smiling at May. You could see the love in Ben’s eyes as he watched his wife hold their nephew.
May hugged the picture to her chest.

“I love it!” She cried out and pulled Pepper into a hug. “Thank you Mary!”

“You do? Good, it’s the least I could do for you and Ben. You both do so much for me.”

“Oh stop, you know we larb you and Pete tons,” May stated.

“Aww, I larb you both too.”

--

“You gotta admit, Ironman is working! Our rivals aren’t trying to fight us, if anything, we are doing so much the city.” Tony exclaimed with his arms stretched out.

Nat rolled her eyes.

“That’s what PR has been trying to push, that Ironman is good for the city. You better keep up that image,” Nat reprimanded, “because this is barely believable.”

“What’s not believable about it?” Tony shot back, “I’m patrolling Ironman remotely all throughout the city, and none of the other mobs have been dumb enough to challenge me.”

“For one? You’re a mobster and everyone knows it. And two, you’re literally just looking for Pepper.” Nat commented.

“So? Kill two birds with one stone.”

“So, are you actually going to help people? Because eventually, other families won’t be afraid of you,”

“Find Pepper first,” Tony looked down at their wedding picture on his desk. He couldn’t believe it had been almost a year without her. It was killing him.

“You know I haven’t stopped looking for her,” Nat said quietly.

“Neither have I,” Tony looked up at Nat, his eyes bright with tears.

“Tony?”

“Yea?”

“If you find her, what are you going to do?” Nat asked, her voice laced with fear.

“I would never hurt her, god did you really think I would?”

“No, it’s just – “

“I need her back Nat,” Tony cried out, “I can’t live without her.”

“Tony you can’t just force her to be with you if she doesn’t want to.”

“No, she loves me, I know it.” Tony looked down at the wedding photo again. They both looked so happy staring into each other’s eyes. There wasn’t a shred of doubt in Tony’s mind that he still loved Pepper. With everything he had.

“Love and fear are very different.”

“She doesn’t fear me,” Tony scoffed at the idea.

“She didn’t until she learned your secret.”

“What? That I’m in the mob?”

“She fell in love with a lie, can you blame her?”

“I love her, that was NEVER a lie.” Tony was starting to get mad.

“I’m not doubting that, but you hid something that was very important. Lifechanging information like this isn’t something easy to see past.”

“She loved me before, I’m still the same man as I was before she knew my secret.”

“But in her eyes, you aren’t. She knows the truth now, and she doesn’t trust you.”

“Wow thanks for the help Dr. Phil,” Tony deadpanned.

“I’m just trying to set up your expectations. We may never find her.” Nat commented.

“No!" Tony slammed his fists on his desk. "We will never stop until we find her. She is everything.”

“I know,” Nat sighed. She felt bad for Tony. She and everyone else close enough to Tony could feel his pain.

“Sorry, I know I always bring her up,” Tony was always afraid of showing his biggest weakness. But with Nat or Rhodey or Happy, he couldn't help it. They were the only people he could trust, and he was in so much pain. Without Pepper, he could barely breathe. The pain swallowed him whole, and those three were the only pain meds that could take some pain away. If only for a moment.

“Listen,” Nat hated having the change the topic knowing how agitated Tony got when Pepper was mentioned, but it was past 5pm. “I gotta go, I have tickets to MoMA’s Christmas Special.”

“How’d you swing that?” Tony smirked, trying to forget the tidal wave of sadness.

“Well, when you work for Tony Stark people are afraid to say no.”

“You bet they are,” Tony laughed. “Have fun, Triple Agent.”

“I will, try and enjoy yourself for once yea?” Nat smiled at the door.

“I will once Pepper is home.”

--

Pepper was so happy that May did this for them. Standing here in MoMA was such a nice change of pace compared to staying in Queens doing nothing. Not that she didn’t like just spending time with her son, but getting out and getting to feel like an adult again was really nice. It also helped that Peter was fast asleep, cuddling his Ironman plushie. Pepper had tried to take the toy from him before they left to meet May and Ben to catch the subway, but Peter screamed the second she tried to take it away. At least he was happy and not screaming in MoMA.

“Did you know one of Pollock's paintings sold for $140 million a while back?” Pepper heard Ben comment to May as they stared up at the giant Pollock painting in front of the couple. Pepper stood behind them, not wanting to ruin their date night. She knew that they barely had time to get to go on dates, especially when they were helping with Peter so much. The last thing Pepper wanted to do was get in their way.

“What kind of idiot would spend that much money on splatter paint?” May whispered as quietly as she could, hoping no one would overhear. A couple next to them shot May some serious side-eye. So much for being quiet.

“It represents so much more than just that, he helped create Abstract Expressionism. He’s basically a revolutionary when it comes to modern art.” Ben exclaimed. How did he marry a woman who didn’t know the difference between renaissance art and modern art?

“It’s overpriced,” May stated as a matter of fact.

“It’s tasteful!!” Ben shouted. More couples looked over at the pair with questioning eyes, while Ben muttered out apologies. May just laughed.

Pepper smiled listening to them argue over art. But her attention was pulled away when Peter started to whimper. She could smell it from here, he needed a diaper change.

“Hey May and Ben,” Pepper called out to her friends ahead of her, who turned around to see what she needed. “I think I need to go to change Peter. I’ll be in the bathroom.”

Both Ben and May smiled and nodded, and went back to arguing over whether or not they would spend $140 million on a Jackson Pollock.

--

After Pepper strapped a new diaper onto Peter, she redressed him. She had gotten so quick at that. And he was such an easy baby. She talked to other moms, and they often mentioned how envious they were of her. He rarely cried. The only thing he would get fussy over was when he was tired or wanted to cuddle or when he was deprived of his new toy. It seemed like he was now inseparable from his Ironman.

Pepper strapped him back into the stroller and pushed him out of the stall with the changing table.

Pepper was washing her hands when she heard the door open. In all honesty, she wasn’t really paying attention to anyone else at the moment. She looked up at herself in the mirror and saw red hair she never expected to see again.

Both sets of eyes widened.

‘Don’t trust her.’ Pepper immediately thought.
‘Make her trust you.’ Nat told herself.

“Holy shit,” Pepper whispered.

Don’t trust her.

 

“Pep?” Nat couldn’t believe it. Out of every possible scenario, she never expected that she would find Pepper in a bathroom at a modern art museum. “Holy shit.”

Make her trust you.

 

“Um I gotta go,” Pepper quickly grabbed the stroller and took a step towards the door.

Don’t trust her.

 

Nat’s eyes widened as she saw Pepper grab the stroller. ‘Holy shit was there a baby in there? Whose kid is that? I can’t let her leave, holy shit, holy shit, holy shit.’

Make her trust you.

 

“Wait! I um, don’t have a job anymore,” Nat lied through her teeth. A last-minute decision out of desperation, but Pepper seemed to stop rushing towards the door.

Make her trust you.
Make her trust you.
Make her trust you.

 

“What?”

“I, um, no longer work for Tony,” Nat whispered, quickly glancing to see if anyone else was in the bathroom. She saw no one. “He uh fired me after you um left.”

“I’m so sorry Nat I didn’t mean to hurt your career, it’s just, did you know he was in the mob?” Pepper whispered the last part.

If anything, Nat felt kind of bad. Pepper had been terrified of her husband, and rightfully so. Tony was dangerous, and she was no better. She lied to Pepper for the entire time she worked for Pepper, and Pepper still had no idea. And she felt bad that she had to keep lying to Pepper. But Nat was a trained liar and a damn good one. The thousands of hours of training as an agent made it a lot easier for her to lie to an innocent woman’s face.

“Wait what? No! I didn’t know, but is that why you left?”

Pepper nodded. “I just couldn’t do it,” she said softly and looked down at the stroller. Nat followed her gaze and saw the baby wrapped in a blue blanket hugging what looked like Ironman.

“Is he…” Nat started to ask, but she could tell instantly. He was the spitting image of Tony. Those big brown eyes were identical to the ones she had been staring at not two hours ago. And if that didn’t give it away, he was hugging an Ironman plushie.

“Yea,” Pepper said. She knew what her old assistant was asking. Was he Tony’s? Does he not know about his own kid? Does she feel guilty about keeping her husband from his own child? Does she miss her husband with every breath she takes?

Yea.

“What’s his name?” Nat asked. Everything she could find out would be incredibly useful.

Don’t trust her.
Don’t trust her.
Don’t trust her.
Don’t trust her.
Don’t trust her.
Don’t trust her.

 

“Peter,” Pepper said softly. Despite how it was probably safe to tell Nat his real name, something reminded her over and over again not to trust her. That Nat was connected to her past, her very dangerous and unwanted past.

“He’s beautiful,” Nat wanted to reach out and touch him. To hold him. She thought that maybe she should grab him. But she knew she couldn’t do that. Security would probably try to stop her. Not that MoMA security would actually be able to prevent her from kidnapping, she could kill them all with one hand while carrying a baby. But causing a scene like that would be very bad for the Stark family. Very very bad.

“Thanks,” Pepper looked down at him and could feel the tears in her eyes. “I just - I just wanted to be able to give him a normal life, you know? A chance to be a kid, and not have his life decided for him. I don’t want him to ever have to kill someone like his father.” She whispered the last part out as if saying it would cause Tony to appear from thin air.

Nat nodded. Surprisingly, Nat understood. She chose to join the mob. She made her choices because she could. Peter couldn't. If Peter had been born where he was supposed to be, with Tony and the rest of the mob, he would have no choice. What surprised her more is how bad she felt for Pepper. To have to make a sacrifice like that, Nat couldn’t imagine doing it herself.

“Listen, it was good to see you Natalie, but I really have to get going,” Pepper smiled and quickly walked to the door.

“Wait let me give you my number, maybe we can grab coffee sometime,” Nat said hoping to stall her.

“I don’t think that’s a great idea,” Pepper said as she pushed the bathroom door open and walked out, leaving Nat alone in the bathroom.

Nat tried to process everything. Pepper had Tony’s kid without him knowing? He would freak if he found out. He might start murdering everyone in his path to get to his son. Tony would do anything for his wife, but for his son? The heir to his entire empire? He would do more than anything. She could feel the blood drain from her face in fear. The anger and resentment he would feel towards Pepper made her wonder whether or not Tony would actually keep his word and not hurt Pepper. She knew how angry he could get. Nat reasoned that yes, it was kinda terrible that she’s keeping Tony from getting to know his own child, but the tradeoff and sacrifice Pepper made actually made a lot of sense to Nat. That boy was just a little baby, he was better off not being forced into the mob. Nat finally understood why Pepper left. Finally, she found Pepper. Finally, she had answers to the problem the entire Stark mob had dealt with for the past year.

But what was the solution? Just because she knew why Pepper left and where she was, did that mean she should tell Tony? Tony trusted her, and Nat wanted to move up in the mob. Nat wanted to be a leader, not just a trusted bodyguard, assistant, and backup assassin. But at what cost to poor Pepper and baby Peter? Yet if she didn’t tell and Tony found out, what would he do to her? Kill her?

Nat stood there in shock for what felt like hours as she tried to figure out what to do. In reality, it was only seconds until her brain clicked into place that she should follow Pepper out. Nat realized she didn't actually know where Pepper was staying or what name she was using. Maybe she could try and figure out where Pepper was going and what Pepper was up to while she herself figured out what the hell she was going to do about all of this.

But when Nat opened up the bathroom door, and looked all over MoMA, Pepper was nowhere to be found.

Notes:

OMG should Nat tell Tony?!?!

 

Let me know your thoughts, much appreciated!

Chapter 4: The Instincts We Follow

Notes:

I'm sorry this took so long to post! I wasn't sure about it, but I hope you like it! Again, thank you all for the comments, I really really enjoy reading them!!

 

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text

The next morning, Nat stood nervously outside of Tony’s office. Should she go in? Should she not go in?

She took a deep breath and entered. Tony sat at his desk and was looking up at Rhodey who was pacing. They were arguing.

“I swear Justin Hammer is a dumbass. It’ll take him over 20 years to create the technology to rival my current Ironman, and by then, I will be so much further along,” Tony said, his voice laced with boredom.

“But he’s still a threat to our family, we have to do something!” Rhodey argued.

“He’s too high profile, we touch him and everyone will know it was me,” Tony knew that Hammer had so many government officials in his pocket, he was too prominent to touch without turning some heads.

Nat cleared her throat.

“Ahem, boys,” she started. “I need to speak to Tony.”

“Get in line,” Rhodey rolled his eyes.

“It’s urgent.” Nat tried to keep her voice steady to hide the nervousness in her voice.

“Alright Romanov, spit it out.” Tony gestured for her to speak.

“Can we speak privately?” Nat asked.

“Because suddenly the consigliere isn’t high up enough to know about this?” Rhodey asked skeptically and folded his arms.

“Rhodes is right. Anyways, get to the point,” Tony said. Before Nat could get a word in, his phone rang. He gestured to Rhodey, “Ugh it’s Happy.”

“Yes Happy?” Tony whispered out. “Yea put the tracker on Hammer’s car. Somewhere he won’t see it! Yes, under the wheel well is good. Yes, put a tracker on all of his cars. But make sure to put them in different places in case they find one. Got it? Good. Now get out of there before anyone sees you.”

Rhodey stepped away from his friend and walked to Nat. He put his arm on her shoulder and started walking her to the door.

“Listen, promise me this isn’t as important as the situation with the Hammer mob. Besides, maybe you’ll have more time to get Tony more information about whatever it is you wanted to talk about.”

With that, he closed Tony’s office door, shutting Nat out.

As that door closed, Nat knew another one open. Her instincts told her exactly what to do.

--

The seasons changed and so did Nat. From Winter to Spring to Summer to Autumn to Winter to Spring, time waited for no one.

As Nat walked into her office, she thought back to the time over a year ago when she walked into Tony’s office to tell Tony about how she found Pepper. Getting kicked out was a sign. God was she glad she changed her mind and kept it a secret.

Nat looked down at the folder she worked so hard on putting together over the past year and a half. It took her so long because she had so little information and she had to keep it under wraps. After Rhodey pushed her out of Tony’s office, she realized he was right. She needed more information and to actually find her. And besides, she needed to track down Pepper quietly. Once she found her, she knew she could help Pepper. No one could find out what she was up to, especially any rivals. If any rival families found out what she was doing, they could kill the heir to the Stark family before she was able to save him. But with what she had learned at MoMA, she was able to find Pepper without raising any flags. She spent months just looking through birth records at all of the hospitals in the NYC area. She had no idea how old Peter was exactly, but she narrowed down the dates and looked for any birth certificates with a boy named Peter. She found hundreds. It took her months of discretely investigating all of these families one by one to finally find the right Peter.

It was over a year after the MoMA Christmas special when she was finally able to confirm Mary Fitzpatrick was indeed Pepper. Pepper, aka Mary, had started over without her husband. She had a job, was extremely close to her neighbors, May and Ben Parker, and appeared to be generally happy with her life. Despite living in poverty, Pepper appeared to have all the support she needed from the Parkers.

Nat had spent the past year internally battling with herself on what the right thing to do was. Nat’s instinct told her she had to help Pepper. But what even would helping Pepper look like? Did she still love and miss Tony the way Tony craved her? Tony still talked about Pepper nearly every day to her or Rhodey or Happy. It seemed he would never get over her, and no one else had any leads. If she told him she would have a major edge in the Stark family. But still, she wasn’t sure if it was really her place to dictate Pepper and Peter’s lives. Maybe they were better off outside the mob. Maybe the right thing to do was just to protect them from afar. She could try to warn them if any danger came up. She could protect them and keep them secretly tucked away from the mob.

Nat looked out the window and wondered what Peter looked like now. Did he look more like Tony? He had to be walking. He might even be talking by now. She looked back down at the folder and started going through each page. It was then she realized the pages were out of order.

Someone had seen the file.

Nat frantically opened up her computer to look at her security camera. She sped up the footage from the past few days and immediately noticed someone enter her office. It wasn’t someone she recognized. The man was wearing all black and took pictures of her file. Shit.

Shit. Shit. Shit.

She slowed down the footage and was able to take a screenshot of his face. She ran his face through the database Tony had put together to track Stark employees, Stark mob associates, and any other mobsters they had information on. Tony had been smart. He hacked into other mobs’ files and stole as much information as she could.

She gulped when the matched showed he was from the Hammer family.

Pepper was in danger, serious danger, and Nat knew what she had to do. She had to help Pepper. Help her and Peter escape. She figured they would have to lie low, change their names, move to another city. Nat would help them disappear. This was her fault anyway; she put them in danger. But first, she needed to get to them, make sure the Hammers hadn’t already gotten to her. She opened up her desk drawer to find the keys to the Audi Tony gave her.

She was so distracted looking for the keys she didn’t hear Happy come into her office.

“Hey what is that?” He grabbed the folder. Nat whipped around her eyes bursting with fear.

“No give me that back,” Nat reached out to try to grab it, but Happy held it high with his left hand and pushed her back with his right.

“What is this?” Happy looked at the birth certificate. She knew she was screwed if she didn’t give up her secret immediately.

“It’s not something that concerns you, give it back I gotta go quick.”

“Common tell me what it is, it must be important if you have a whole folder of some random kid’s information.” Happy turned to the next page and looked at Nat’s notes. “Who is this kid?”

“I don’t have time for this, give it back,” Nat begged.

“Seriously, spill now.”

“I have to do something first, I’ll tell Tony I promise,” Nat jumped from where she was sitting and snatched the folder out of Happy’s hand. She stormed out of the office, with the folder and car keys in hand.

Happy stood in Nat’s office looking at the exit she just left in. To Happy, it seemed suspicious. What was Nat up to? Happy knew Nat wasn’t afraid of anything, yet he couldn’t get her fear-filled eyes out of his mind. Something was up.

Happy decided that he had to rat Nat out so he went to Tony’s office. When he barged through Tony’s office door, Tony was meeting with a man Happy hadn’t seen before. The man was bald and had an eyepatch. Tony looked relieved to have an interruption. Happy rushed to Tony’s side of the desk and saw that Tony was discretely checking the location of the tracker they planted on Hammer’s car. It was on the move. Ever since last year, the Starks and Hammers had been going at each other. The tension was building between the mobs, and Tony knew it was a ticking time bomb.

“Excuse me, I have a meeting with Mr. Stark!” Eyepatch said.

“And you are?” Happy asked, with his eyes narrowed.

“My name is Nick Fury, and it’s none of your damn business why I’m here!” Fury shouted.

“He’s trying to get me to join his super-secret boy band,” Tony explained with boredom.

Fury rolled his one eye. He wasn’t going to wait around for this little interruption to end.

“I will be back soon Stark to finish our discussion.” Fury huffed as he stood up and walked to the door.

“Bye now!” Tony waved as Fury slammed the door behind him.

Tony pivoted his chair to face Happy.

“Did you forget how to knock?” Tony joked.

“Hope I didn’t interrupt anything important.” Happy worried.

“Nope just some Avengers initiative.” Tony rolled his eyes.

“Sounds important,” Happy commented.

“Eh maybe,” Tony wasn’t so sure. A superhero? How could he, a mobster, be a hero?

“Anyways, I thought Nat would come here since she has something to tell you.” Happy stated and looked around. Maybe Nat was hiding in some corner to kill him for ratting on her. She was a superspy after all.

“What are you talked about?” Tony asked. Tony looked back at the screen with all of the Hammer car locations. A handful were in Queens.

“She just,” Happy blubbered out, “she had this folder filled with information about some woman and her kid. It seems strange to me. She said she was going to tell you and wouldn’t let me look at it.”

“Hmm, not sure what that’s about. Did you get any information?”

“Well I saw an address, it’s in Queens.”

“You think she’s headed there now?” Tony asked rhetorically.

“Maybe,”

--

“U’cle Ben!! U’cle Ben!!” A 20-month-old Peter bounced up and down on his toes in the living room of the Parkers. He was holding his favorite toy. The Ironman plushie May and Ben gave him for his first Christmas. He loved Ironman more and more as he grew and brought his Ironman with him everywhere.

“Peteeeeeee,” Ben picked up Peter and swung him around, soaking up the giggles that filled the apartment.

“Aun May?” Peter asked looking around. Where was his favorite aunt that he missed so much?

“She had to go to work and she won’t be back until wayyyy after your mommy comes to get you, so it’s just you and me bud.” Peter gave Ben a pout, and Ben laughed. “You’re adorable when you pout, you know that kid?”

“May May May MAYYYYY” Peter chanted. Peter wanted his favorite aunt to come play with him, even if her food was yucky.

“I know you loveeee my wife, but what about me? Do you love me? Can you say I love you?” Ben asked as he hugged Peter to his chest.

“I luv youuu,” Peter sang and giggled into his favorite uncle’s chest. Uncle Ben was fun. He would toss Peter in the air and let Peter do acrobatics in the air. He loved it.

“Common it’s snack time, then it’ll be nap time. What do you want for a snack bud?” Ben asked.

“Blubleblablananana,” Peter said confidently. Ben looked at him confused. Sometimes, Peter could speak clearly. Other times, he still made absolutely no sense at all.

“Almond date loaf?” Ben smirked.

“Noooooooooo,” Peter wined. Not yummy.

“Ummm, do you want blueberries and bananas?” Ben asked hesitantly, hoping that’s what he wanted.

Peter squealed in excitement.

--

Nat pulled up to the apartment building in Queens in the black Audi. She scanned the area, looking for any threats. Her eyes landed on a black BMW with tinted windows. She looked at the license.

HAMM3R

Nat yanked the car door open and ran towards the building.

--

“Your Ironman plushie doesn’t need any blueberries, Peter,” Ben tried to negotiate with his nephew, who was laying on his stomach on the floor with his blueberries and his Ironman stuffy attempting to put a spoonful of blueberries into the mouth of Ironman. But Ben’s suggestions went unnoticed, as Peter kept babbling to his stuffy and pushed the spoon into the face of his favorite toy, spilling blueberries all over the floor.

Ben heard a knock on the door and stood up from where he was crouching next to Peter.

“You’re silly Pete,” Ben bent back down to ruffle Peter’s curls. Another knock, more urgent than the last.

“I’m coming!” Ben called out and rushed to the door.

He was shocked when he opened the door to see an unfamiliar man wearing a grey suit and glasses towering in his doorway. He had two larger men behind him.

“Can I help you?” Ben asked nervously.

“Is Mary, um” Justin Hammer looked down at his phone to confirm the name one of his spies gave him. His spy promised that they had seen one of Tony’s closest associate's digging into this little family. Told him it would piss off Stark. This kind of opportunity was exactly what Justin was looking for. Justin didn’t really have time to look into it, but he knew that if one of Stark’s people was looking into these civilians, he could use them to hurt Stark.

“Is Mary Fitzpatrick home?” Justin finished his question.

“Um, no, but can I take a message?”

“Actually no, you can’t,” Hammer smiled wickedly and pulled out a gun.

--

“Don’t you have a tracker on all Stark cars?” Happy asked.

“Yea” Tony rolled his eyes. He obviously wanted to keep tabs on where his crew was going at all times.

“Well pull it up, we can see where Nat went,” Tony rolled his eyes, and typed in the code to overlap the location of the car Nat was in with the Hammer car data.

Nat’s car was directly overlapping with three of Hammer’s cars. Tony’s eyes bulged. The threat was imminent and Nat couldn’t do this alone.

Tony called for his suit, and it encased him immediately. Tony rocketed out of his window, leaving Rhodes behind.

--

“Whoa whoa whoa, please put that down,” Ben’s eyes widened. He put his hands up and stepped in front of the view of Peter to protect his nephew from seeing the gun.

“Where is she, and why is Stark so interested in you?” Hammer demanded, walking forward with the gun pointed at Ben’s chest.

“What? Who’s Stark? Tony Stark? I don’t know him, I promise! Please put the gun down I promise I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“But you DO know Stark! His crew has been looking into you.”

“What that’s impossible! We aren’t in the mob! Please I’ll tell you anything you want, we just don’t have anything to do with the Stark mob.”

“LIAR!!” Hammer screamed as his finger closed on the trigger.

--

Tony was still in the air when he saw Nat running towards the door of an apartment building. He landed in front of Nat, and she stopped dead in her tracks.

Tony was about to speak when they heard a gunshot ring out.

“GO” Nat yelled.

Tony took off and broke through the window where Friday detected the shot.

--

Ben looked down, to see the blood seeping through his shirt. He looked back up to see the strange man smirking.

Ben fell to his knees and collapsed onto his back. He looked up at the ceiling, trying to remember how to breathe. For Ben, everything felt like a dream. He felt nothing, yet he felt everything. His body was in so much pain, but it felt like he wasn’t even in his body.

“U’cle Ben?” Peter called out, looking for his uncle. The strange noise was confusing, he had never heard anything like that before.

When Peter spotted his uncle lying on the ground, he screamed, dropped his Ironman, and ran to his uncle.

“Nononononono” Peter sobbed and put his head on his uncle’s chest and wailed into his favorite uncle.

“Pete,” Ben breathed out. He lifted a shaky hand to brush the curls out of Peter’s face. Why did it hurt to talk? Why was Pete so blurry? He took a shaky breath, feeling the exhaustion pull at him. He had so much to say to his beloved nephew. With a weak voice, he spoke, “With great power, comes great responsibility.”

Ben closed his eyes.

“Why boo-boo? U’cle BENNNN” Peter said through tears. He tried to shake his uncle. Uncle Ben didn’t respond, and Peter cried harder. So hard that he was gasping for air. Peter was confused, why was uncle Ben sleeping on the floor funny with a big boo-boo? He had never felt this scared in his life.

Hammer watched the little boy cry over his uncle and raised his gun. He would do what he had to do. Anything to piss off Stark. He pointed it at the boy and was about to pull the trigger when he heard the window shatter.

Hammer looked up in time to see Ironman blast him with the full force of his repulsors. Hammer had no time to react. He was hit by the blast, sending his lifeless body flying into his crew. Tony shot more blasts over and over again, his instincts screamed for him to protect. Protect, protect, protect. It didn’t matter how high up Hammer was or who Hammer’s connections were or what mob war he just started, what mattered was that Tony trusted his instincts to get rid of Hammer once and for all. He shot at them until he knew that Hammer and his men were nothing but ashes.

Tony glanced around the apartment to see why the hell Hammer targeted these people. He had no idea who this guy was. The impoverished state of the apartment clearly meant he wasn’t a mob associate. He saw pictures scattered around the apartment of that man. There was one which looked like a wedding photo with a woman who had long straight brown hair. There was another photo of him and the same woman holding a baby.

He only realized he wasn’t alone when he heard the muffled sob. There was a kid on the ground crying. Tony watched the boy sob on the chest of the bloody man for a moment, then realized he should probably do something about the kid. Instinct told him to help the poor boy. He walked over and crouched down next to the toddler, who was sobbing onto the dead body. The kid had to be under two, he was tiny.

Looking at that boy was the first time Tony felt something in a long time. Tony had learned to always suppress emotions, especially when it came to his line of work. In his world, death was inevitable. But the scene in front of him was unforgivable. Tony felt an overwhelming urge to protect this small innocent boy. He couldn’t fully explain it.

Tony was already uncomfortable dealing with kids, let alone a kid who just had something traumatic happen. But something told him he had to be the one to help the child. That thing telling him to help… it wasn’t words.

It was instinct.

A protective, caring, loving instinct.

“Hey kid,” Tony’s voice sounded tinny in the suit. When the kid didn’t look up, he shook the boy’s shoulder. The kid looked up, and his eyes widened.

“I’nman?” He sniffled out; eyes still filled with tears.

“Yup, hi buddy, come here,” Tony said awkwardly and reached his arms out and plucked the kid off the body.

“Cold!!” The boy cried out. Tony realized he must be talking about the suit, so he set the boy down on the couch, who started to cry harder now that he was alone on the couch, then Tony stepped out of the suit. He quickly picked the boy back up, instinctively holding him close, and walked him away from the body. Tony was surprised when the kid wrapped his arms around him and put his face into Tony’s neck. Tony held the boy’s head there as he continued to cry. Tony hoped that by cradling him like this, he could keep the boy from seeing his uncle’s body again. He went and opened the door next to the couch, and was glad to find a bedroom. At least here he could keep the kid away from the dead body. He felt strangely natural holding the kid as he continued to cry. Tony did his best to rock the kid, thinking that the movement could be soothing. Tony looked around the bedroom and saw more pictures of the man and his wife.

He almost dropped the kid when he saw pictures of his own wife.

He walked up and examined them closer. In every single photo, she was holding a kid. This kid. The kid currently in his arms.

“Hey kiddo,” Tony shook the boy to get him to lift his face up. Tony picked up a picture of his wife. In the picture, the boy had chocolate all over his face and was sitting in Pepper’s lap. His wife smiling into the camera with her cheek pressed up against the boy’s cheek. “Who is this?”

“Mommy.” He sniffled out.

“That’s your mommy?” Tony asked again, dumbfounded.

“Uh-huh,”

“This woman right there?” Tony used his thumb to point out Pepper.

“Mommy,” Peter confirmed. Tony was still completely in shock.

“And what’s your name?” Tony set the photo back down and sat on the edge of the bed, holding the kid a little tighter.

“Peter!” The boy looked at him as if it was so obvious that Tony should have known. Tony was surprised that Peter wasn’t crying anymore, but he figured the kid had a short attention span… just like Tony.

“Right… And what about daddy?” Tony asked. Was this his son? Tony examined the kid's face and knew the answer immediately. Those big brown Bambi eyes reminded Tony of the eyes he saw when he looked in the mirror every morning. He realized this kid had to be under 2, yet he was answering questions. So this kid was a genius too. Like father like son.

He didn’t just see and hear similarities; he could feel it. Deep down he already knew the truth. The boy he was holding was his son.

“I dunno” Peter shrugged and put his head back down on Tony’s shoulder. Peter felt safe in Ironman’s arms. Real Ironman was much bigger and warmer than his stuffy.

“Where’s Mommy now?” Tony asked.

“Mommy work,” Peter said with a hint of sadness. But immediately after, he yawned, feeling an overwhelming sense of exhaustion. Unbeknownst to Tony, it was past the kid’s naptime. Peter wiggled in Tony’s arms, looking for a more comfortable position.

“You tired Pete?” Tony wondered, shifting the boy in his arms to make him more comfortable.

Peter nodded against Tony’s neck.

“Close your eyes,” Tony rubbed his boy’s back in slow soothing circles.

“Scared,” Peter whispered out, his eyes started to fill with tears. As he started to remember the confusing and scary thing that happened to his uncle, he began to shake.

“Shhh shhh shh,” Tony tried to soothe and began to run his fingers through Peter’s hair. “I’m Ironman, I’ll protect you.” Tony could feel the little arms wrap around his neck, with fists grabbing the back of his shirt.

“Promise?” The boy whispered.

“Always.”

--
Tony held Peter securely for a long time. He felt the boy’s breathing even out against his neck, and he pressed a kiss to the boy’s temple.

Where did that come from? Tony was shocked by his soft behavior. He, a mobster, was kissing a toddler’s head. But it felt so right. Instinctive. This was his son; he was basically sure of it. But he had a feeling he knew a certain redhead who he could confirm the paternity for him.

Tony gently stood up, trying not to jostle Peter. He walked back out into the living room to find Nat, Rhodey, Happy, and a few men from his crew there. Tony looked around, and Ben’s body as well as the ashes of Hammer and his men were already gone. His crew had heavy-duty cleaning supplies, the kind they would usually use for serious jobs.

“Where the man? Is he…” Rhodey cut Tony off but didn’t look up from where he was still wiping blood from the floor.

“He was already dead when we got here. We tried to save him but there was nothing we could do” Rhodey said solemnly and continued scrubbing. The Starks had a rule as did most families. Leave civilians out of the bloodshed. Yet that asshole Hammer didn’t seem to have the same morals. At least he paid dearly. While killing a rival mobster could start a war, no other mob would question Tony’s actions to protect a child. Especially if the child was his.

“I called them as soon as I got here and saw the car,” Nat commented quietly, noticing the boy was asleep in his arms. Rhodey and Happy finally looked up at their boss.

“Um is that a kid?” Rhodey asked confused.

“Yea same question,” Happy added quickly.

“That’s Peter isn’t it?” Nat asked. Tony turned to her with a raised eyebrow.

“I tried to tell you over a year ago, but this one pushed me out of your office.” Nat pointed to Rhodey, who put his hands up in surrender with a confused look on his face. “It’s taken me all this time to track them down. I just got the address last week.”

In reality, she had known for longer, but she knew if she told him the truth, she was a dead woman. So she lied. She knew she would have to keep lying. Not just for herself, but for Pepper. For Peter. The less she revealed, the better.

“You should have told me,” Tony whispered, trying not to lose his temper. He couldn’t, not when he was holding a sleeping boy. He could yell at Nat later. He paused only for a second as he looked down at the boy in his arms. “So, he’s mine?”

“Yea. He is.” Nat revealed the biggest part of the secret that had been plaguing her for the past year. Tony closed his eyes, inhaled deeply as he hugged his son just a little tighter. “He was born on August 10th.”

Tony did the math in his head. 9 months after his honeymoon, his son was born. And he missed it. And he missed so much more. It made him sad to think about it. He missed so much of his baby’s life; he wouldn’t miss anymore. He promised himself that. And he would do everything in his power to ensure that.

“Holy shit, I took her to a doctor a few weeks before she disappeared” Happy choked on his own words.

“I’ve been trying to tell you this. But,” Nat paused, and sighed heavily, “Pepper really wanted to give him a normal life and- and I didn’t know how to tell you.”

“You found Pepper,” Rhodey gawked.

“Normal? That’s not really possible as you can see here,” Tony ignored Happy and Rhodey’s comments. Tony’s eyes gestured around the room which was completely destroyed.

“I know it’s not,” Nat said solemnly, “that’s why I came here today to try to convince her to come back.”

Liar, Liar, Liar. Nat’s mind screamed it over and over again, but she kept going.

“I have no idea how Hammer found out about her.”

“Where is she?” Happy wondered looking around.

“Work,” Tony said, “at least that’s what he says.” Tony glanced down to check he was still asleep. He still couldn’t believe he was holding his son.

“When will she be back?” Rhodey asked.

“I’m not sure,” Tony stated, his expression cold. “But I’ll be here to take her home.”

Notes:

I feel TERRIBLE about killing Ben

Next chapter Tony and Pepper will reunite... any thoughts on how that should go?

Chapter 5: Inside Your Heart, I Won't Let Go

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text

Pepper was exhausted. It was a long day of work, and her boss was an ass. He kept her late, long past sunset, to go over his schedule even though she had to leave. Funny how she always seemed to have demanding bosses.

As she walked down her street in Queens, she noticed how quiet it was. Peaceful. Usually, it was loud, the hustle and bustle of Queens would surround her and stimulate all her senses. But now, she could hear her soft breaths. The streets were empty. There were no street vendors yelling for attention, or taxi cabs honking, or kids laughing. There was just the moon to keep her company. The moon was big and bright tonight. The moon was so captivating, she couldn’t look away. Usually, the moon hid behind the light pollution, so she rarely saw it. After such a long and difficult day, it was nice to see something beautiful and tranquil. She took one last look at the full moon before she stepped into the apartment building.

If she had been able to pry her eyes away from the moon, she would have noticed the familiar black Audi.

She knew Ben would be okay having Peter for a bit longer than usual, but she herself wanted to spend what little free time she had with Peter. Usually, after work, she would give Peter a big and dramatic hug, always initiated by Peter, and they would spend a little time together with the Parkers. Then they’d go back to their apartment down the hall, eat dinner, play for a bit, then cuddle on the couch while Pepper would read Peter a book. Pepper cherished those moments and loved her cuddly little boy. The weight of her little boy as he hugged her made the long terrible hours at work worth it.

If she hadn’t been daydreaming about Peter as she walked up the stairs, she would have noticed the trickle of blood on the steps.

Finally, Pepper was home. Pepper opened the Parker’s front door and dropped her bag down on the floor. At this point, they were so close they didn’t even knock when they came into one another’s apartment.

If she had looked across the hall from the Parker’s door before she entered, she would have noticed the scorched wall caused by Ironman’s repulsor blast.

“Hey Ben, sorry I’m a bit late, my boss was being terrible as usual. I hope Peter wasn’t any trouble.” Pepper said, shrugging her coat off to hang on the coat tree.

“Peter is no trouble, ever. You on the other hand…”

Pepper's eyes bulged. That wasn’t Ben’s voice. Or May’s. She recognized his voice immediately. His voice was the one she couldn’t forget. His voice was the one she heard over and over again in her dreams. Pepper rounded the corner of the apartment and saw the man she hoped to never see again.

No. No no no no no no. This can’t be happening.

There sat the one and only Tony Stark. His black suit was as dark as his eyes. He looked angry. No, he looked beyond angry. His deep frown and dark gaze were piercing. He stared her down and made no movement. He said nothing, yet his eyes told her everything.

She couldn’t be more terrified.

In Tony’s lap sat her son. Well, their son. Tony’s arms were wrapped protectively around the boy. He was wide awake, playing with Tony’s red tie. Peter looked up, sensing his mother’s presence.

“Mommy!” Peter cried out, making grabby hands. Finally, his mommy was home to give him his hug. He started to wiggle against Tony’s strong arms.

Tony broke the eye contact he was making with his wife to look down at his squirming son. The dark eyes were immediately replaced with a soft, loving gaze.

“Stay with Daddy for a minute Petey, Mommy and I need to talk,” Tony said, and reach to his side to pick up the Ironman plushy to hand to his son. Peter immediately grabbed it and started babbling to himself as he danced around his favorite toy against his father’s chest, oblivious to what was going on around him.

“Tony, I- I” Pepper stuttered out.

“Oh, so you remember my name?” Tony’s soft gaze disappeared as he looked back up at his wife.

“I-I-I” Pepper continued to stutter, completely shocked.

“It’s nice to see you too, wife of mine. When were you going to tell me we have a son?” Tony hissed out.

“Where’s Ben? God, what did you do to Ben? I swear if you hurt him-”

“I didn’t do anything to him.” Tony hissed out. “You on the other hand… well let’s just say your choices led to what happened.”

“What the hell are you talking about?” Pepper asked nervously. Her gaze shifted towards the broken window.

“You know your choices almost got our baby killed today. Justin Hammer found you. You’ve probably heard all about their family. They’re the ones that aren’t afraid to kill innocent civilians. They killed Ben in front of our son and were about to kill our baby too. If I was a second later, he would be dead too.” Tony gritted out quietly, hugging their son with a little squeeze.

“Wh-what?” Pepper was shocked. She could feel the tears pooling in her eyes.

“You left without saying anything! You put our baby in danger by living in this dump! The Hammers found you and they were going to kill you to get to me. What you don’t seem to get is how dangerous your runaway plan was. What were you thinking?” Tony said and glanced down quickly to make sure Peter was still playing with his toy.

“What was I thinking? You are in the mob! You kill people for a living!”

“You didn’t seem to have a problem after I told you.” Tony scoffed.

“But I did! I don’t want to be associated with the mob, and I certainly don't want Peter to grow up and be a murderer like you.”

“Yet you are associated with the mob. Like it or not,” Tony stated. He paused and looked down at his son, who looked up at him with big, innocent brown eyes. “And so is he.”

“He doesn’t have to be.”

“He’s a Stark. Stark blood runs through his veins. No matter what, other mobs will always want to kill him, whether or not he knows who he really is.”

Pepper was on the verge of tears.

“Peter honey, come give Mommy a hug.”

Tony glared at her. He knew she was trying to use Peter as a buffer. Tony hesitated, not wanting his baby to leave his arms. Holding Peter calmed Tony, and thinking about letting his baby go made him anxious. More anxious than he had ever felt about anything ever before. But Peter was wiggling excitedly to see his mom, so he let his son go. Peter hopped off his lap and ran straight into his mother’s arms.

Tony wondered if his son would ever be so happy to see him the way he was for Pepper.

“Mommy,” Peter said as Pepper scooped him up and put him on her hip. He pointed at his father. “I’nman!”

Pepper didn’t hesitate. With her son securely in her arms, she took one step back then quickly turned to run to the door.

But Happy and Rhodey appeared out of thin air to intercept her escape. They stood in front of the door, effectively blocking any potential way for Pepper to run.

“Pep,” Happy said. “Don’t make this harder than it has to be.”

“Just let me and him go please,” Pepper begged.

“We can’t do that,” Rhodes sighed.

“Why don’t you put Peter down so he can play. We have lots to talk about.” Tony stated as he stood directly behind her. It wasn’t a suggestion.

Pepper hesitantly lowered Peter to the ground and planted a kiss on his forehead. Peter immediately ran off towards the bedroom, making a beeline for the bed. Peter always found a way to jump on the bed, especially when his mommy was preoccupied.

Tony took a step towards her, like a predator hunting its prey. Pepper took a step back, moving away from Tony each time he got closer. They did this until Pepper’s back was pressed up against the wall. Tony put both his arms on the wall beside her, caging her in.

“So, you decided it was a good idea to keep my son a secret from me? Pep how could you?” Tony asked heatedly, yet the hurt was evident in his voice. His dark eyes glared into her soul.

“Tony, I wanted him to have a good life,” Pepper whispered out.

“A good life!” Tony laughed with no happiness backing it. He brought his face within inches of Pepper’s. “You call this dump a good place to raise our kid? This is one of the most dangerous places in New York, and you pick here? Not to mention he deserves to have a father. And I deserve, no, I need to have my son.”

“Why so you can raise him to be your little minion? Killing everyone in sight like you?” Pepper snapped back.

She could smell the familiar cologne mixed with coffee and motor oil that she had been longing to smell over the last two years.

“You brought him into this world fatherless. You lied to me and hid from me. You’re no better.”

She still smelt like the Pep he dreamed about every night.

“He has May and Ben! They love him-“

Pepper could feel his warm breath on her face. It reminded her of the countless mornings of them waking up together, tangled in each other’s arms.

“No one can replace his father. No one.”

Even with the fear in her eyes, she was still as beautiful as ever.

“So what you’re just going to take him from me?”

The way he looked at her, even after all this time, still brought butterflies to her stomach.

Tony smiled. He leaned in further, their noses and foreheads touching.

“If I wanted just my son, we would have left hours ago. No, I came back for what’s mine.”

With that, he leaned in and closed the distance. He kissed her roughly, letting his fear of losing her and the loneliness melt away. For so long, he dreamed about kissing her again. To feel her body against his. To have her back. Finally, he had her, and there was no way in hell he was letting her go.

He couldn’t help the grin that spread across his lips when he felt her kiss him back.

He pressed his body against her, pinning her entire body against the wall. His mouth wandered down to her neck, and he kissed her neck ferociously. He sucked hard on her neck, making sure to leave bruises.

The moan Pepper was trying to suppress slipped out. She could feel Tony smirk against her neck.

“You still want me,” Tony breathed against her neck.

Something in Pepper’s brain snapped, and she halfheartedly tried to push Tony off. But his strength kept him in place. He kept kissing her neck, going lower and lower. He began to push back the v neck of her shirt and was working his way down her neck to her shoulder. Marking her as he went. He brought his head back up to her neck and sucked hard on a spot he knew would get his wife to moan again.

“Tony stop, Peter could walk back and see us,” Pepper begged, barely able to hold back a moan.

“I love it when you beg,” Tony commented breathlessly against her neck, and went back to kissing.

“Tony,” Pepper said seriously and pushed him again. This time, he let her push him off.

“Fine, we can continue this later. Besides, you are grabbing what Peter needs so we can go home.”

“What?” Pepper asked shocked.

“Your stuff is obviously still in our room at home. But I didn’t know I’d be bringing home the son I never knew I had. So, I don’t have anything for him yet. Grab what he needs for a night, and I’ll have Friday order everything else he might need and want. Not like I trust poverty-stricken baby clothes or any of Queen’s finest crappy furniture in my tower.”

“You really can be a snob about your wealth.”

“Well, what can I say? This is atrocious.” Tony said, waving his hands around his room.

“Well, we aren’t going to come and join you in your little fantasy.” Pepper stated crossing her arms.

“Ha. Funny you think you have a choice in this matter. No. You are my wife. Until death do us part. And pretty sure neither of us are dead. But the more you run, the more danger you put yourself in; I have to protect you and my son, that's my job. That little boy is my son. My son that you kept from me. I missed so much already. I’m not missing a minute more of his life.”

“Tony please understand, I wasn’t trying to hurt you. I was trying to do what’s best for him.”

“What’s best for him? Do you think taking him away from his father is what’s best for him? Oh babe, you have no idea how wrong you are. No matter where you go or what you change your name to, you’ll never be able to leave me behind. I’ll always find you and Peter. Always.”

Pepper shuddered.

Tony reached out and grabbed Pepper’s hand. With his other hand, he reached into his pocket and pulled out her wedding ring.

“How did you find that?” Pepper asked flabbergasted. When she left, she had brought it with her. She kept it in her apartment on her nightstand. She couldn’t get herself to part with it.

“Happy looked through your apartment, found it pretty quickly. On your nightstand in a little bowl shaped like a heart? I’m flattered. But I prefer it when you wear your ring, it reminds everyone you’re mine.” Tony said as he slipped her engagement and wedding ring back onto her finger.

Pepper looked down at the ring. She had looked at it almost every night. She wouldn’t wear it, out of fear and guilt. But she would always look at it and think of Tony. The ring being back on her finger was surreal. And scary. Very very scary.

Tony didn’t let go of her hand. He pulled her hand, and she stumbled into his arms. He immediately wrapped his arms around her waist and tugged her closer to him so that they were chest to chest.

They stared at each other, never breaking eye contact. The anger in his eyes started to melt away. Instead, Pepper saw his longing eyes glance down at her lips. Pepper couldn’t help herself as she leaned in just a little closer to him. He closed the distance and crashed his lips into hers once again, awakening the lust that Pepper had forced down for so long. She had gotten by with nothing for the past two years, and the part of her that missed her husband was finally whole again.

She kissed him back for the second time today. She hated herself for being so selfish. For still melting to his touch. For still loving him.

As they were kissing, she heard little feet come stomping over. She felt one hand tug on her pants.

Tony and Pepper parted lips and looked down to see Peter staring up at them with big brown eyes.

“My turn my turn!!!” Peter bounced with a big grin on his face, pulling on both of his parent’s pants.

“You want a kiss too, Bambino?” Tony asked, scooping him up with one arm, while still holding Pepper flush against him with his other arm. He littered his little boy’s face in kisses as Peter happily giggled.

“Mommy mommy!!!” Peter squealed, reaching out to his mom. Pepper immediately wrapped her free arm around her baby. She took Peter from Tony and pulled Peter close to him. She kissed him on the cheek, and he giggled into her neck.

“It’s time,” Tony stated, putting a hand on Peter’s back. Tony sensed Pepper hesitating.

"We still have a lot to talk about, and we will, back home, where our son will be safe." Tony explained as he put an arm around his wife and gently guided her out of the Parker's apartment towards her old apartment.

Pepper could feel the tears welling up in her eyes. She never wanted this. Not for Peter. She wondered if she would ever be able to see May again, or if May would hate her for what happened to Ben.

Because right now, Pepper could only hate herself as she let herself be led out of the apartment.

Notes:

Ahhhhh Pepper still wants Tony!

 

Comments always appreciated, sorry I'm bad at responding to everyone. But let me know what you think and what might happen (or want to happen)

Chapter 6: Domestic Bliss or a Fallacy?

Summary:

Tony, Pepper, and Peter return to the Tower for Peter's first night home. Tony fills the evening with fluff and Pepper is conflicted.

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text

She couldn’t even look at him.

Currently, she was looking out her window in the backseat of the Audi. Peter was in Tony’s lap, happily giggling and playing with his father. The father she was trying to protect him from. Tony had refused to send Happy to the nearby Target for a car seat, claiming that Peter was much safer in his lap than any cheaply made Target piece of shit. Tony swore that he would hold and protect Peter in the backseat of the car like his life depended on it. Peter didn’t seem to mind. He had never been in a car before, so he was oblivious and happy. Peter had no idea how unsafe it was to not be in a car seat. He also had no idea how the danger stretched beyond just the car ride to the tower. With Tony being in the mob, the danger would last forever. Pepper glanced over at her innocent little boy. She wished she could have done better for her son. So many ‘if she had only’ scenarios were racing through her mind, but there was nothing she could do. They were in Tony’s Audi headed to the tower, whether she liked it or not.

A part of her was okay with that.

As she looked at Peter, she glanced up at the father of her baby. Her heart skipped a beat looking at Tony’s soft smile. Tony looked down at his son like he was the whole world. His strong arms were wrapped softly around their boy. He was so infatuated with playing and talking to Peter. Peter grabbed at his goatee, and Tony just tickled him. Tony laughed along with his son, just happy to have his son in his arms.

It was so pure, that Pepper could almost forget that he was a murder. Almost.

As the car entered the garage, Tony looked up from Peter. Pepper spoke before Tony could even open his mouth.

“I can carry him up,” Pepper offered, opening her door. Pepper was terrified of going back up to the penthouse after all this time. If anything, holding Peter could help calm her nerves.

“I got him, why don’t you get his bags,” Tony rolled his eyes. No way was he letting go of his son.

“Tony, there’s nowhere for me to go but upstairs.”

“I want to hold him,” Tony pouted.

“Fine, whatever,” Pepper rolled her eyes. So much for getting what little comfort she could from holding him.

The ride up the elevator for the family was silent. Peter just excitedly swung his legs while he was securely perched on his father’s hip.

When the elevator doors stepped open, Tony strode out, and Pepper took a hesitant step, watching the father-son duo walk forward.

“Welcome home Petey,” Tony said, kissing Peter’s cheek. Peter leaned into the kiss and hugged his father back. Peter’s arms barely wrapped around Tony’s neck, and Pepper could see how content Tony was.

But 10 seconds later, Peter was bored and wiggling to get down. He wanted to explore. There was so much to see and play with, he had to see if there were any cool Ironman toys. After all, this was Ironman’s home, and Peter figured Ironman had to have the coolest toys.

“He wants to go down,” Pepper explained when Tony didn’t appear to make any moves to let him go.

Tony looked at her, calculating whether or not it was safe to let him down. Even after all this time, Pepper could read his mind because she still knew how his mind worked.

“He won’t go anywhere; besides you have Friday to watch him.” Pepper justified.

Tony nodded, agreeing with her.

“Friday, watch Peter. Monitor his vitals, heartbeat, everything. Make sure he is always safe. Alert me if there’s anything at all.” Tony said.

“Got it boss, would you like to make this a protocol?” Friday asked.

“Yes, call it the Baby Monitor Protocol,” Tony confirmed.

“Yes boss, Baby Monitor Protocol is now engaged.”

Tony slowly lowered Peter to the ground. Before letting go, he kissed the top of his boy’s head. Peter ran off to look out the window at the city skyline. Peter pressed his nose against the floor to ceiling window and slapped his hands against the glass. Tony was glad the window was thick and sturdy, being bullet and shatterproof also helped.

“Pleased?” Tony asked Pepper in a bored tone.

“He is, can’t you tell? He loves all the lights in the city.” Pepper explained.

“I would know that about him if you didn’t run off,” Tony said with a hint of sadness.

“I’m sorry Tony, really I am. But –“

“If you say he was safer out there in that dump that is Queens one more time, I will lose it. I want what’s best for my family, that’s final. Family always comes first, no questions.”

“If family comes first then quit the business. If not for me than for him.”

“Even if I walked away, they would still come for us. Trust me, being here is the safest thing for him.”

“He shouldn’t have to grow up and become this, I won’t allow it.”

“You didn’t give me a choice! I didn’t even get to hold my son when he was born. Or see his first steps. Or hear his first word. I missed so much, and that’s on you.”

“I am sorry Tony, truly I am,” Pepper did feel guilty. She couldn’t imagine not getting the chance to watch her son grow. But she knew deep down that she did what was right. To give him a chance at a normal life. It was what she had to do.

“We can work this out,” Tony said, resting a hand on her shoulder soothingly and started gently guiding his wife towards the bedroom. “Besides, let’s go put his stuff in the guest room. We can get everything he needs tomorrow and convert it into his bedroom tomorrow.”

“Is there a crib in the guest room already?” Pepper asked stopping in her tracks.

“He’s not a newborn baby, does he really need a crib?”

“Yes, Tony! God, he could roll off the bed and hurt himself, he’s not old enough for a regular bed,” Pepper exclaimed.

“Oh, well what do you suggest we do? The furniture store I like is closed. I’ll send Happy first thing tomorrow and make him demand same day delivery. I am not sending Happy out now to buy some crap from some garbage cheap chain like Target or Walmart. God thinking about it scares me.” Tony faked shuttered.

“You’re so pretentious,” Pepper rolled her eyes.

“Well then where is he sleeping tonight? The floor? My son is not sleeping on the floor.” Tony complained.

“He can sleep in the guest bed with me. I’ll hold him so he doesn’t roll off,” Pepper stated.

“You mean in our master,” Tony added.

“No – “ Pepper started, but was cut off.

“Pep, you’re still my wife, you’re no guest here. Common, tell me you don’t miss our cuddles?” Tony said, dropping his hand onto the small of her back.

Pepper rolled her eyes, and walked into the guest bedroom, leaving him behind.

“You didn’t deny it.” Tony smiled.

“Tony not now,” Pepper huffed, placing Peter’s things down.

“Yes now,” Tony protested, “You still love me, I see it in your eyes.”

“Yea well so what?!” Pepper seethed. “I have Peter to think about. What’s best for him? News flash, it isn’t the mob! You don’t seem to get that because you’re too selfish. And yea I still love you, I can’t help it! I’ll always love you, but I know it’s wrong. Everything you do in the mob goes against everything I believe. I fell in love with the sweet, eccentric man who helped people, not hurt them.”

“I do help people, what do you think Ironman is all about?” Tony explained. “I help those who need help. Real, normal, good people. It’s the bad people that I hurt. The ones like Hammer who kill innocent civilians. The Starks never kill civilians, it’s something we live by. Those that deserve to be killed are worse for society alive.”

“You don’t get to decide who lives and dies.”

“If I don’t, more good people will die. I’m making the world a better place for kids, kids like our little boy.”

“You really think you being in the mob is helping?”

“It is. Give me a chance, and I will show you how. Please.” Tony begged, taking his wife’s hand.

Pepper couldn’t help it, a tear rolled down her face. Maybe it was the fear, or maybe it was the hope that her husband wasn’t such a bad guy after all.

“Hey hey,” Tony soothed, wiping the tear from her face with his thumb. He gently cupped Pepper’s face in his hands, and she leaned into the comfort. “Don’t cry honey, it’s going to be okay.”

Pepper could only try and hold back the sob as another tear rolled down her face. Tony leaned in and kissed away her tear.

Pepper was surprised. This was the gentle, sweet man she fell in love with. It was like the murderer inside him faded away, and the Tony she knew and loved was here. She craved that Tony for so long, and she finally was back in his arms.

Maybe she could deal with this. Maybe, he wasn’t as bad of a mobster as she thought. Maybe Peter was okay here.

Or maybe he wasn’t.

“Sir, young Peter appears to be hungry. He is currently chewing on his hand.” Friday interrupted.

Tony leaned back from kissing Pepper’s face and took her hand.

“You hungry too?”

--

Dinner was a fiasco. Without a highchair or a bib, Peter made an absolute mess. He was covered in tomato sauce, and half of his pasta was on his lap or on the floor.

Despite the mess, Peter was grinning ear to ear. Being at Ironman’s house was fun. He had yummy pasta, and Ironman didn’t make him eat broccoli or peas like Aunt May and Uncle Ben would. And Ironman made a funny face every time he made a mess. So currently, Peter’s hand was smacking what was left of the pasta sauce on his plate, and smearing it on his face and shirt.

“Okay silly,” Pepper stood up and walked over to Peter, and grabbed the end of his shirt, and pulled it up over his head. “It’s bath time.”

Peter squealed and kicked his feet as Pepper lifted the shirtless Peter into the air. Peter loved bath time, he loved splashing the water and playing with rubber ducks.

“I’nman come! I’nman come!” Peter chanted reaching one hand out towards his father.

“You want daddy to come help give you a bath?” Tony asked with a smile.

“Baf!” Peter giggled.

Tony grinned and followed his wife and son to the bath.

Tony watched everything Pepper did to prepare the bath. From testing the bathwater temperature, to pouring water carefully on Peter’s head without getting it in his eyes, to gently rubbing the pasta sauce off the boy’s cheek, he took mental notes so that he knew what to do for next time. Tony felt like he had to know because he wanted to be involved in everything related to Peter. He had to catch back up after missing so much already. Every moment he could spend with his son he would.

As Pepper dried off a shivering Peter, she turned to him and gestured for him to take the towel.

“I’m going to grab a diaper and his pajamas; can you finish drying him up?”

“Of course,” Tony took the towel, and Peter sleepily stepped over to his dad. Tony gently rubbed his back and shoulders dry, then wrapped Peter in the towel. He continued to shiver, so Tony pulled him in close, not caring if he got a little damp. Hopefully, his own body heat would help calm his shivering boy.

When Pepper returned, she saw her son wrapped in a towel, resting his head on Tony. She felt the soft smile creep up on her face. She let it stay, unable to force it away.

Her husband looked up and returned the smile.

As the pair worked to dress their little boy, Peter continued to blink away the sleepiness.

“Someone’s tired,” Pepper commented.

“Stowy,” Peter mumbled out leaning his head back down onto his father’s shoulder as Pepper pulled the pajama pants over his diaper.

“What?” Tony asked, unsure of what Peter said.

“He wants a bedtime story,” Pepper clarified, “I didn’t bring any of his books.”

Peter looked at his mommy with big sad eyes.

“No stowy?” He asked, his eyes filling with tears.

“I can tell you a story, common Pete,” Tony said, lifting his little boy up into his arms. Peter immediately smiled; the tears long gone. Tony strode out of the bathroom, leaving Pepper to follow. As they approached the bedroom, Pepper noticed Tony turn into the master bedroom rather than the guest room.

“Tony, we aren’t staying in the master.” Pepper complained.

“Pete, you want a story?” Tony asked.

“Mmm hmmm,” Peter confirmed.

“And you want us to cuddle, with you in the middle?” Tony asked.

“Peta’ cuddle sanwich!” Peter said happily, bouncing in his father’s arms.

“Then it’s settled,” Tony confirmed, lowering Peter to the bed. “We all sleep together tonight, deal?”

“Yay!!!” Peter giggled and clapped his hands. Tony helped him get under the covers, and Peter crawled into the middle of the bed and laid down.

“Don’t think I don’t know you’re using him to get what you want,” Pepper scolded.

“Believe me, I want both my baby’s close to me,” Tony smirked stripping down to his boxers and crawling in. “Please babe. Besides if you say no to cuddling I think Peter will cry.”

Peter was not listening at all to what his father was saying. He was entranced watching his father take off his clothing. Wanting to be just like his hero, Peter abruptly sat up and started pulling at his shirt.

“Off” Peter demanded and pointed to his shirt.

“No Peter, we wear our clothing to bed. Ironman isn’t setting a good example.” Pepper glared at Tony, who sighed and got back up out of bed.

“Alright, I’ll get a shirt. Pep, all your stuff is where you left it.”

Pepper sighed, giving up. Only Peter could convince her to sleep in the same bed as the man she left. She would do anything for Peter, anything to make him happy.

As she went to go get ready for bed, all she could think about was how conflicted she felt. She knew how terrible her husband truly was. She had seen him torturing men. But this kind, gentle Tony that she spent the last few hours with reminded her of what she had been missing the last two years. Seeing Tony with Peter made her heart melt. It made her forget all the bad things he did. But she still felt fear. Fear that she was putting Peter in danger. Fear that Peter would become a murderer. Fear that she was becoming complacent with everything that was wrong with her husband.

When she returned, she saw Tony and Peter lying down next to each other. Tony was tickling Peter, who was laughing and kicking hysterically.

“Oh good, mommy’s back. We can start the bedtime story,” Tony smiled and pulled back the covers for his wife to get in. She rolled her eyes, but obliged, sliding in next to Peter.

“Stowy!” Peter exclaimed and rolled over towards his mom so Pepper could wrap her arms around her son.

Tony smiled, propped his head up with the palm of his hand so he could look at his wife and son, and he began his story.

“Once upon a time,” Tony started, in a quiet, gentle voice, “there was a genius billionaire playboy philanthropist –“

“What’s a playboy fanantopis?” Peter asked rolling back into the center of the bed.

“It’s uh… a king,” Tony explained, “A very special, smart, caring king.”

Pepper rolled her eyes.

“And so, this king lived in a magical tower, and he lived on the tipity top of his tower,” Tony said, as Peter rested his head on his dad’s pillow. “One day, he met the most beautiful woman in all the land. She had strawberry blonde hair and the prettiest blue eyes.”

“Like mommy” Peter smiled, turning to look at his mom. Pepper smiled back and brushed a curl out of her baby’s face.

“Exactly like mommy. And the king knew the moment he met her that she was the one for him. The king knew that they were meant for each other and that he would do anything for her. She was graceful, classy, captivating, brilliant, beautiful, and she had the biggest heart.”

Tony paused and looked at his wife. He meant every word of it.

“When they got married, it was the best day of the king’s life. When he saw his queen walking down the aisle during the wedding, his heart stopped. He knew he was the luckiest man alive. He thought they would live happily ever after. But one day, the queen learned a secret about the king she didn’t like. And even though she loved the king, she disappeared one day. She took their son, the prince, with her.”

“Oh no,” Peter whimpered softly.

“The king was heartbroken. He cried and cried and cried because he missed his queen so much. He would do anything to find his queen again. So, he did everything he could. He had all the knights search for her, but no one found her. It wasn’t until she was in danger, where an evil man was going to hurt her.”

Scared at the thought the queen could be hurt, Peter reached out with both of his hands to pull both parents closer to him. He pulled on their shirts until they were flush against him, with his parents’ legs touching below Peter’s body.

“But the king found her. The king saved her from the dangerous evil man. And even though the queen was still mad at the king for his secret, she was willing to give him another chance. And the king did everything he could to convince her that the secret didn’t matter.”

“Hm,” Pepper huffed, rolling her eyes. The secret did matter, but she didn’t want to start an argument and rile Peter up. Tony glanced at his wife knowing what she was thinking.

“Instead, the king made a new promise. He promised to be better for the queen and the prince. He promised to be a better king, the best husband, and the greatest dad in all the land.” Tony explained and pushed his leg in between Pepper’s. She let him, and their legs intertwined together.

Tony smiled to himself and glanced down to see his son’s eyes drooping.

“And even though the queen was very upset, the king made another promise. He promised her that he wouldn’t keep any more secrets. He promised that they could live happily ever after, playing with their prince and having lots of fun. And the king knew that he would be the luckiest king in all the land if she gave him another chance. And every day, he did everything to make his queen love him again. So, they lived happily ever after.” Tony said quietly and looked down to see his son’s eyes closed.

Tony watched his son’s breathing even out. In the low light, he could see all the soft features on Peter’s face. The rosy cheeks, the delicate curls, the little fists that were lightly holding the blankets. Tony was entranced. He still couldn’t believe that this perfect boy was his.

Tony looked up to see Pepper’s blue eyes watching him.

“I meant what I said,” Tony confessed softly.

“What?” Pepper asked quietly.

“I promise, no more secrets. We can live happily ever after.”

Pepper sighed.

“Tony it’s not just about the secrets. It’s about what you do every day. You kill people.” Pepper whispered.

“As I said, we kill bad guys, not good people.”

“How do I know that? And how will Peter even know the difference? He won’t understand.”

“And Peter doesn’t understand the fact that you hid him from his father,” Tony seethed, trying not to raise his voice. “It’s really hard to put on a straight face and pretend to not be hurt by what you did to me.”

“If you weren’t a killer I wouldn’t have done what I had to do,”

“You should have talked to me, told me what was going on in your mind.”

“I wouldn’t have left if I did.”

“Exactly,” Tony said.

They laid there, silently looking into each other’s eyes for what felt like an eternity. Pepper blinked, the fatigue hitting her like a truck. She had no more energy to argue with Tony today. She let her eyes slip close. Shortly after, she felt Tony shift in the bed, and lean over and kiss her nose.

“I love you Pep. So much,” Tony whispered, and reached out and pulled Pepper and Peter closer to his chest. He left his arm to drape over her back.

“Love you too,” She sleepily muttered, falling into a dreamless sleep.

Notes:

I've done some reflecting over the past few weeks, I'm thinking of making it a two-part series, with the second part taking place when Peter is a teen.

Thoughts?

Chapter 7: Unexpected Hope

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text

Pepper woke up first. She wanted to sleep longer. Stay in dreamland, where none of this was happening. But reality came crashing down and hit her like a truck. Also, Peter kicked her in his sleep, so she knew she wouldn’t be able to fall back asleep.

Groggily, she slipped out of bed. She looked down at her son who was sprawled out on the bed. His small chest rose and fell with each breath, each time he filled his lungs with air it revealed his little belly button since his shirt was rolled up slightly. Tony was still out, unsurprisingly. He still slept like a log. Pepper noticed how peaceful he looked in his sleep. As she looked at Tony, she wondered how she was forgiving him so fast. She figured it was because he was so damn charming, especially when he was with Peter.

She hated to admit it, but he was a good father.

But she wouldn’t give him the satisfaction of winning. In her nightmares, she saw Peter becoming a mobster. Mugging. Murdering. Selling weapons. Dealing drugs. Running illegal gambling rings. It terrified her.

She wouldn’t let that happen. She wouldn’t let mobster Tony win. Maybe, just maybe, if he could prove he wouldn’t turn her baby into a criminal she could make this work. Let Tony be the good father he so desperately wanted to be.

She was pulled out of her thoughts when she saw Peter roll over and stretch. He opened his eyes, blinked, and started to rub his eyes. He sat up, looking for his mom. When his eyes landed on her, he immediately reached his arms out, demanding to be picked up. She scooped him up quietly.

“Hungy,” Peter cried, resting his head on his mom’s shoulders. He was so hungry, he could feel his tummy rumbling.

“Okay,” Pepper whispered. “Let’s go have breakfast.”

As Pepper walked out of the bedroom holding a sleepy and hungry Peter, she saw a redhead sitting on the couch looking down. Who had access to their penthouse? Pepper could only recall Rhodey, Happy, and Natalie, but Natalie no longer worked for Stark industries.

Right?

Wrong.

Natasha heard the footsteps and knew who it was without looking up.

“Good morning Pepper,” Nat said.

“Natalie? What- what are you doing here?”

“I’m here to help you I promise,” Nat looked up, and saw Pepper’s cold eyes staring down at her.

“Hungy,” Peter cried.

“I got him sippy cups on my way over this morning. There’s milk in the fridge.” Nat commented.

Pepper raised her eyebrow but followed her instructions. She carried Peter over to the kitchen and she put Peter down on the floor to set up his sippy cup, only to have him hang off of her pajama pants. Once she closed the cap on the bottle, she held it down to Peter who eagerly reached up and grabbed it. Once Peter had his milk, he plopped down on the cool hardwood floor and tilted his head straight up, trying to get as much milk as fast as possible. Pepper looked up to see Natalie watching her.

“Tell me how Tony found me.” Pepper demanded.

“Pepper I swear I want what’s best for you and your family,” Nat promised.

“No, Natalie, you can’t possibly know – “ Nat interrupted her.

“My real name is Natasha Romanov, I’m an agent of SHEILD,” Nat explained her secret.

“Shield?” Pepper asked, more confused than before.

“Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement, and Logistics Division.”

“That’s a mouthful.”

“Yea.”

“You didn’t answer my question.”

“I’ve worked for SHIELD for a long time. They sent me undercover to Stark Industries to gather intel.”

“Does Tony know?” Pepper asked.

“He does.”

“And why hasn’t he sent his mob after you?” Pepper asked scared.

“Because I work for him too. Protecting him from SHIELD.” Nat explained

Pepper paused to think.

“So, he flipped you.”

“Yes,” Nat admitted.

“I saw you over a year ago. You said you no longer worked for SI. I believed you.” Pepper complained. The hurt was evident in her voice.

“I’m sorry, I had to lie to you.”

“You’re the reason Tony found me.” Pepper realized.

Nat sighed.

“I didn’t tell him immediately after I saw you at MoMA. I don’t know why I didn’t. I guess part of me felt like it wasn’t my place, and the other part of me didn’t want to give him false hope in case we never found you. But that wasn’t how I planned on him finding you.”

“So, you ended up telling him.” A tear slipped down Pepper’s eyes.

“I didn’t, he followed me to your apartment. He saved Peter, that’s what’s important.”

“But-"

“Peter would be dead if it wasn’t for him,” Nat said, her eyes cold. Pepper shuddered in fear.

“How did that man find us?”

“Who, Hammer?”

“I think that was what Tony said his name was,” Pepper admitted, not really remembering everything Tony said yesterday.

“It doesn’t matter,” Nat said quickly.

“Yes, it does. I did everything I could to protect Peter. How did he find us?” Pepper demanded.

Nat sat there, not answering.

“Nat? I have to know.”

“You really don’t. What matters is you are safe now.”

“Did he find us through you somehow?” Nat looked Pepper in the eyes, and Pepper could see the answer was yes. Everyone knew Tony was a genius, but it slipped Nat’s mind that Pepper was also really smart.

“I am sorry that it happened this way. And I’m sorry Ben Parker had to pay the price. Really, I am. Please forgive me.”

“You want my forgiveness?” Pepper asked, the anger seeping through her voice. “Then you better make sure my son never has to join the mob. He deserves to have a normal childhood. It’s not selfish of me to ask that. It’s not just for me. But for Peter. For Ben.”

“What are you asking me to do?” Nat asked.

“To help us. When the time comes.”

Nat nodded. She understood.

--

An hour later, Tony was only semi-conscious when he reached out for his wife and son in bed. When he only felt the cold sheets between his fingers, rather than the warm bodies, his eyes snapped open. His vision came into focus, and all he saw was the empty bed. It was the all too familiar feeling he woke up to every morning for the past two years. His chest felt heavy. A sense of dread flooded him. Was everything that happened yesterday just a dream? Having his wife back was a common dream he had. But this time, it felt so real. He started to panic, fearing that he had gotten his hopes up.

His panic disappeared the second he heard his door creak open. He could hear small feet padding over to the side of the bed. He felt the sheets draped over him tug as Peter hoisted himself onto the bed. Tony could see the big grin on Peter's face when he climbed all by himself onto the bed. Tony couldn’t control the brilliant smile that spread across his face as Peter crawled over and laid down on top of Tony’s chest.

Seeing and feeling the weight of his son on his chest calmed Tony. Tony took a deep breath, watching his son’s body rise and fall with his breath. 24 hours ago, he didn’t realize how much he needed his son, the son he didn’t know about 24 hours ago. Tony felt content and secure for the first time in a long time.

“Hi Petey pie,” Tony said, running his fingers through his boy’s hair.

“I’nman!” Peter smiled up at him and rested his head back down on Tony’s chest. Peter draped his short arms around Tony's waist, his arms not nearly long enough to wrap around half of his dad’s body.

“Peter, I’m your dad,” Tony said. While he appreciated being recognized as Ironman, he really wanted the validation of being called dad.

“I’nman.”

“Dada” Tony corrected.

“I’nman!!!” Peter giggled.

“Daddy?” Tony tried.

“I’nman.” Peter rolled his eyes, getting bored of the game quickly.

“We can work on it I guess.” Tony sighed. “You hungry?”

“Mommy gib baba,” Peter explained.

“What?” Tony didn’t understand how Mommy came so easily but Daddy was a mystery. He also didn’t understand the baby talk at all.

“Milk,” Peter wined.

“Oh, she gave you milk in a bottle? Okay but-”

“Pira’ here!” Peter interrupted.

“What?” Tony was more confused. He really needed a translator for the baby talk. Maybe he could get DUM-E to translate. But probably not. As Tony sat up, Peter wrapped one arm around Tony’s neck and with the other hand, Peter pointed in the direction of the living room.

“Pira’ wif mommy!”

“Who?” Tony asked, getting out of bed with Peter attached to him like a koala bear.

As the father-son duo entered the living room, Tony understood what Peter was saying when he saw who the guest was in the living room. Tony couldn’t help but burst out laughing.

Nick Fury frowned. After being kicked out yesterday, he made a point to come back the next morning. When he arrived Nat was already here, and he got to meet Pepper. Tony’s wife. Or so he had read in the files Nat had originally sent him all those years ago. Shortly after Fury arrived, Rhodey and Happy joined the mix. Fury thought he would be able to quickly meet with Stark and Rhodes to discuss the Avengers initiative he wanted to propose.

“Stark why are you laughing?” Fury asked with frustration.

“Peter called you a pirate! Ahhhh that’s funny because it’s true.” Tony continued laughing, while everyone else looked at Tony with bewilderment. Even Peter was confused.

“He pira’,” Peter said as if explaining it again would help everyone else who didn’t seem to get it.

“He sure is Pete,” Tony laughed and kissed his son’s forehead.

“Stark,” Fury interrupted, “We need to continue our discussion from yesterday. You know, the one that got interrupted.”

“Alright fine, but he’s hungry, I need to feed him,” Tony explained, walking towards the kitchen. He paused. “Oh Happy, can you go pick up everything we need for Peter?”

“Now?” Happy wined and stood.

“Yes now,” Tony rolled his eyes. Peter watched and tried to imitate the eye roll as dramatically as possible. Tony grinned while he watched his son copy him, and planted a kiss on his boy’s cheek.

Pepper got up and went to Tony. She put a hand on his shoulder and he turned.

“I got him, go, this sounds important,” Pepper said.

“Stark, I have a busy day,” Fury added.

“Alright, fine Pirate, you win.” Tony placated.

Tony huffed out in annoyance but handed over his son. After dropping a kiss on his son’s temple, he added a kiss to his wife’s cheek. While his lips were still against her soft cheeks, he whispered out,

“I love you.”

--

“So, let me get this straight,” Rhodey started, “You want us, the Stark Mob, to run this Avengers initiative? Use Ironman technology along with other enhanced and powerful humans to suppress other mobs, but disguise it as being earth’s mightiest heroes?”

“Close,” Fury explained. “SHIELD is up my ass about shutting down the Stark Mob. Those above me think we have enough evidence to put you and all your associates away for good, but I disagree. I think we can come to an agreement. Wouldn’t it be a shame to waste Ironman’s true potential?”

“I will never work for the government,” Tony grunted and folded his arms across his chest.

“You won’t. SHIELD –”

“Can’t afford to pay my fee I know,” Tony joked.

“Tones,” Rhodey warned.

“You’re on thin ice Stark, and I’m offering you a solution.”

“So how would this work?” Tony asked, focus apparent.

“You stop other mobs. There are things we can’t do within the law, but there are some gray areas. That’s where you come in. Get rid of rival mobs, like you did with Hammer. You get rid of mobs that are dangerous to society, which is all SHIELD wants. And you benefit because- “

“Because we inherit their market share,” Tony concluded.

“Exactly,” Fury explained.

“And what do you want in return? You could be fired, or worse, thrown in prison for setting this up.” Rhodes asked.

“Same thing that you want. Money. Power.” Fury explained.

“You’re as corrupt as our triple agent,” Tony remarked with a grin on his face. Nat rolled her eyes, while Fury and Rhodes ignored Tony.

“But how does the heroing come in?” Rhodey asked.

“You want the public to like you right?” Fury probed.

“I wouldn’t say we want…” Tony argued.

“Yes, you do,” Nat interjected. She had been quiet, letting Fury take the lead, but he wasn’t getting the point across. “You want the public to trust the Avengers. We live in a time where mobs are randomly killing people. People want to feel safe. The Avengers can provide that. If you give the people hope, they will give you power. You think power comes from taking, but the most powerful people are given their power.”

"You think our mob can give people hope?" Rhodey asked.

"I know so. People need something to believe in right now. They need hope to hold onto. Hope and trust go hand in hand."

“You’re saying if we convince the world to trust us, we will be invincible. Untouchable.”

“Exactly,” Nat confirmed.

“So, we do a few good deeds, save the day all while destroying and stealing our enemies’ business, and the world will follow us?”

“It will,” Fury added. “How could SHIELD justify taking down the Stark Mob, when they are the heroes in the Avengers that give our citizens hope. The people will protest and call SHIELD the bad guys if we try to touch the precious Avengers. But you won’t be able to do this alone. Ironman will need help.”

“What are you suggesting?” Tony inquired.

“I have a few friends who are ready to join the Stark mob.”

“Let’s set up a meeting. We will decide if they can join.” Rhodey stated.

“It’s not up for debate.” Fury said.

"Yes it is, I'm making it up for debate," Tony argued.

“Trust me, you’ll like them,” Fury added.

--

After giving Peter some cereal and bananas, Peter was restless. He ran all over the living room, trying to get his mommy to chase him.

“Mommy ou’side!” Peter demanded, patting his hand on the windows.

“You want to go out?” Pepper asked.

“Play! Play!” Peter cried and pressed his face against the window.

“I’m not sure Friday will let us go outside.” Pepper sighed. If she knew anything about her husband, there was no way he was going to let her just walk out of the tower. Especially not with Peter.

“Nooooooo,” Peter cried. “I wanna play.”

“I know baby, let’s just play inside.”

“Nooooo,” Peter cried, tears starting to flow. He couldn’t help it, the idea that he couldn’t go outside was devastating. He burst out sobbing, the tears dripping down his face and staining his shirt. He tilted his head back, and his wails filled the room.

“Friday?”

“Yes, Mrs. Stark?”

“Friday, really? After all these years? Please, call me Pepper.”

“Boss has insisted on the formalities. I can call you Mrs. Boss if you’d like.”

Pepper rolled her eyes. Another battle for another time.

“Can I leave with Peter for the park?”

“Unfortunately not Mrs. Stark. Boss has given me strict orders to not lose sight of you.”

“Hmmm,” Pepper thought. “Isn’t Peter’s happiness a priority?”

“Of course, as of 2:30 am this morning, Boss has altered my programming to make Peter my priority.”

Pepper smiled. She had an idea. A crazy one, but she figured it might just work. She hoped it would.

“I think it’s important to consider his mental health, Friday.”

Friday paused.

“I require further information to follow your train of thought,” The AI sounded confused.

“Well, Peter is currently throwing a tantrum yes?” Pepper asked. She looked down to see her son was still wailing on the floor.

“That is correct,” Friday confirmed.

“If you let me take him to the park so that he can run around, he will be so happy. It will end his tantrum, and he usually goes to the park with me on weekends. Part of raising a child requires physical activity anyway, so going to the park to play is critical for his physical and mental health, right?”

Friday paused again.

“I can see your point.”

“So can you open the elevator for us? Since Peter is a priority, I think he needs this.”

Friday paused for a long moment, and Pepper could hear her own heartbeat ringing in her ears.

“Very well Mrs. Stark.”

Pepper grinned when the elevator doors dinged. It stayed wide open, waiting for the mother and son to be ready.

“Okay Peter, let’s get your outside clothes on. And shoes. And a sweater.”

Pepper quickly changed out of pajamas. She quickly gathered what Peter needed from the guest room, and Peter followed close behind. He was already tugging at his pajamas, hoping to try and help get himself ready. Pepper effortlessly changed him, and Peter plopped down to put his shoes on. Once Pepper tied his shoes, Pepper quickly swooped him up and he wrapped one arm around her neck. He pointed to the elevator and squealed.

“Bye bye!” Peter sang.

“Yes, bye bye,” Pepper confirmed as the elevator doors closed and descended.

As Pepper walked out of the tower, she grinned. She could not believe that had worked. It seemed way too easy. She hugged Peter close as she continued walking down the street. She glanced around. She recognized no one in the sea of people on the street.

Yesterday when she left May and Ben's apartment with Tony, she had lost all hope. But now, her hope was back, and it fueled her fire. Tony and his mob would never control her.

She didn’t have time to second guess herself. She picked up the pace. So many thoughts were swimming in her head. Maybe she could get to Queens. If she could find May, she could explain everything. Maybe they could get a rental car and skip town. She had to see May. She had to make sure she was okay. She had to help May because Pepper felt so guilty about what happened to Ben. She wanted to make things right by May.

At the same time, she felt bad about leaving Tony like that. She knew he would be devastated, which made her worry. There was no way he would be foolish enough to let her just walk out of the tower with Peter. Leaving the tower had been easy. Too easy. Friday’s blind spot seemed so obvious.

There was no way Tony would have allowed her to slip away so easily.

Right?

Notes:

oh shittttttttttttttt

 

Comments always appreciated! Hope you enjoyed, thanks for sticking with me!

Chapter 8: Your Heart Will Remember Me

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text

As Pepper continued walking down the busy street in Manhattan, she looked around again. There were so many people in Midtown, she forgot how crazy it was around the Tower. She realized she must have looked strange, clutching a little boy and walking down a New York City street is not a common sight. Everyone with a kid in Manhattan had a stroller. She was glad that New Yorkers were always on the move and no one spared more than a glance.

She continued going forward, each step reminded her she was one step closer to May and one step further from Tony. She felt bad for Tony, or maybe she realized she felt bad for herself. But at the same time, she couldn’t dwell on her emotions. She might still long for him and she might still think about the way his eyes lit up when she walked into the room, and maybe she wasn’t upset by the fact she woke up next to Tony in the penthouse this morning, but this wasn’t about her anymore. This was about what’s best for Peter. And Peter was safer in Queens. He had a life there, with people like May who could be a good influence for him. He was safer when they were disconnected from Tony. If Nat hadn’t meddled and looked for her, Pepper and Peter would be fine. They did not need Tony and his overbearing protection.

After she rounded the corner, she looked around. Her eyes landed on a somewhat familiar face. It wasn’t one she was very familiar with, but she recognized the man in black nonetheless.

It was one of the men from her wedding. He was one of the men who came up to her and Tony at the wedding and congratulated her for joining ‘the famiglia’. And he was looking right at her.

She quickly glanced away and took a shaky breath. She couldn’t cry, not now. Then Tony would win. No, she had to be strong. She picked up her pace. She turned left, walked one block then right, then left again, hoping she would lose him so she could go to Queens and find May. But when she looked around again, he was still following her from a distance. This time, they made eye contact.

Shit.

Shit. Shit. Shit.

She was definitely being followed. She thought about how she could shake him. Maybe walk to Times Square and get lost in the crowds of people? Or maybe attempt to lose him at a busy subway station? She had to get away so that she could see May. But judging by his cold stare, he wasn’t going to let her slip away that easily.

Before she could make a decision, Peter cried out.

“Swing!!” Peter exclaimed, pointing to the playground. In her feeble attempt to lose the guy, she ended up at a park. He squirmed and leaned as far out as he could, trying to get his mom to drop him.

“Honey we have to keep going, this isn’t the park we are going to.” Pepper lied. Of course, it was a park, Peter wasn’t stupid, he’d take any park with a playground.

“Nooooo,” Peter started to cry loudly.

“Okay, okay, shhhhh, calm down,” Pepper begged as she bounced her little boy in her arms.

Shit.

So much for an easy escape.

Pepper quickly went through her options in her head. She could make a run for it. Maybe she could make it. But if she walked away from the park, she knew Peter would throw a massive tantrum. In public. With hundreds of random strangers watching. There was no way she could continue on her way to Queens, knowing how much more upset Peter would become. And a crying Peter would make it impossible to lose the man - the bodyguard or whoever was following her - she wasn’t really sure who he was. Tony would catch up eventually, and if he saw Pepper blatantly trying to escape, he would lose it.

Pepper shuttered at the thought.

The easier option would be to go to the park. Maybe after letting Peter play for a little bit they could slip away when the bodyguard wasn’t watching.

Pepper was still thinking over her options when Peter squirmed again.

“Hold still,” Pepper asked.

“Go go go! Play!” Peter begged.

Pepper sighed. Pepper looked back at the man following her, only to see a second man had joined him. Another familiar face from the wedding. Both were watching her carefully. They looked like they were both ready to sprint after her. Pepper sighed again and realized there was no escaping today.

She held back the tears. She knew she wouldn’t see May today. Her heart ached thinking about how May was all alone right now. May must have been scared and confused as to what happened to Ben. Did she wonder what happened to her and Peter too?

Next time, she promised herself.

She knew that Tony would be pissed anyway for her defiance, but she figured she could at least let Peter feel like a normal kid and let him play on the playground. She gently lowered him to the ground, and Peter took off for the slide. He crawled up the stairs excitedly and stood at the top of the slide.

“Mommy Ca’ch me!” Peter giggled, and tumbled down the slide. Pepper grabbed him as he slid to the bottom and whisked him up in the air. She spun him around, which earned her some giggles.

She brought him over to the empty swing set and put him in the baby swing. His legs dangled in the holes of the swing, and he excitedly kicked his legs.

Pepper forced out a smile, knowing the men were watching her every move.

“Swing!” Peter clapped as Pepper pushed him gently.

Peter continued to giggle and excitedly babble to himself. He loved the swing. The swinging motion, coupled with the wind in his hair and the rush of excitement as he swung around made him a happy boy.

Pepper zoned out, trying to forget everything that had happened in the last 24 hours. But she was aware enough to know she was constantly being watched. The men from the wedding, her men in black, her bodyguards, or whoever Tony had to tail her, were ever-present in the park, their imposing figures caused an old lady to clutch her purse a little tighter as she passed. They never took their eyes off of her or Peter. They just stood there, occasionally talking into what appeared to be an earpiece. Luckily, Peter was oblivious to the men watching them as he continued to giggle in the swing.

“He’s a cutie,” A deep man’s voice commented, pulling Pepper out of her daydream. Pepper turned to see a tall man with slick blonde hair smiling at her as he leaned against the slide.

“Oh, thanks, which one’s yours?” Pepper asked, eyeing him up and down as he walked closer. Pepper figured most would find him attractive, but her gut told her something was a bit off with the guy.

“She’s around here somewhere. Always keeping me on my toes.” He said not taking his eyes off of Pepper.

Pepper didn’t say anything, just turned back to her son and pushed him in the swing. She hoped the guy would go away; Pepper felt creeped out by his leering presence.

“She’s my whole world.” The man continued.

Pepper glanced up at her bodyguards. They were watching, but Pepper noticed it looked like they were ready to pounce. Their mouths were moving, but Pepper couldn’t make out the words.

“I know what you mean,” Pepper mumbled, still watching the bodyguards.

“My name is Aldrich Killian,” He walked close to Pepper, much too close for comfort. He extended his arm out by basically shoving his hand as close to her as he could without touching her.

“Pepper,” Pepper had no choice but to meet his hand for a handshake. His hand was sticky and gross. She tried to pull back, but he didn’t let go. She pulled again, and he pulled her closer. She looked up at him, eyes wide and full of fear.

“Let me go,” She demanded.

“Do you have a last name, beautiful?”

Just then, a hand grabbed the back of Aldrich’s shirt and yanked him away from Pepper. Aldrich let go of Pepper and stumbled back. Tony stepped in between Pepper and Aldrich with his arms crossed and protective anger radiating out of his body.

“It’s Stark.” Tony’s icy voice was harsh. His words were full of venom. His eyes were filled with fury. Aldrich took a step back; the intimidation was working.

“Mr. – Mr. Stark,” Aldrich stammered out.

“Aldrich Killian.” Tony imposed. Aldrich flinched back.

“Sir I-”

“Last week you mugged a woman and hit her child across the face with a pistol. You claiming you have a child makes me sick to think about it.”

“Mr. Stark I-”

“I have no patience for you. But I’ll give you a ten-second lead. My friends over here,” Tony gestured to the two men who followed Pepper to the park, “want to have a nice conversation to remind you to keep your hands to yourself. They’ll make sure you’ll never be able to touch what’s mine. Lucky for you, this mistake will be your last.”

Aldrich’s eyes bugged out of his head and he stumbled back as the two men approached. He began to ran, and the two men followed him. As they passed Tony, Tony grabbed one of them by the arm.

“Start with the hands,” Tony whispered loud enough for Pepper to hear. The man nodded and sprinted ahead to catch Killian.

Pepper closed her eyes in fear. This was her worst nightmare come to life.

Tony turned to her, his eyes showed a mixture of possessiveness, concern, and fear. She met his gaze, and she knew.

Pepper knew she was totally screwed.

 

--

Tony always felt security, especially at the Tower, was necessary. He had men stationed all over the tower, inside and out. He made sure the guards had thorough training, especially when it came to protecting those closest to him. They all knew Pepper was the priority. Every guard knew that Tony would take a bullet for his wife, and all guards were instructed to save Pepper over Tony, no matter what. This meant all guards were to talk to him directly when it came to the safety of his wife. And now, his son.

When one of his guards called him to say he saw Pepper leave with Peter, he thought it was some kind of sick joke. But Friday confirmed it, saying Pepper convinced Friday that it was necessary for her to take Peter to the park. Tony almost lost it. He might be a genius, but Pepper was just as slick. If it wasn’t for the guard that had spotted her leaving and followed her, and the other guard who joined him, he would have actually exploded with rage. He sped over in his Audi to where the guards said she was, unwilling to wait for Happy or Rhodey or Nat. At least Pepper hadn’t been stupid enough to try and skip town. At least she went to the park, like she told Friday. But he had to wonder, why did she really go to the park? The guards seemed to think she was aware of their presence. It made him wonder why she had actually left.

And when he was a block away, the guards called to say Aldrich Killian was at the park talking to his wife. Tony gripped the wheel so hard his knuckles turned white. Aldrich Killian played dirty, Tony was well aware of his record. There was no way in hell he didn’t want his guards to kill that man. Even if Killian had just looked at his wife, he would have ordered the hit. But Killian threatened his wife, making Killian's impending torture even more justifiable. And if his men weren’t there to spot Killian, Pepper and Peter could be dead.

God, his heart couldn’t take this stress.

Now, he was staring at a shaking Pepper, who looked like a deer in headlights. She looked at him, her eyes filled with fear.

“Let’s go,” Tony stated and pulled Peter out of the swing.

“I’nman!” Peter giggled and wrapped his arms around his father’s neck. Peter was oblivious, as always, to what was going on.

“Tony – ” Pepper was cut off.

“We will talk back home,” Tony said coldly and walked away with Peter.

Pepper chased after him.

“What is wrong with you?! You can’t – ”

“We. Will. Talk. At. Home!” Tony gritted out, pausing between each word.

Tony swung open the back door of the Audi to reveal a car seat. Since when did Tony have time to pick up a car seat? Pepper figured Happy must have gotten it and installed it while Tony was meeting with Fury and she was escaping.

Despite his anger, Tony gently lowered their son into the car seat. Pepper watched as Tony made their boy giggle by making swooshing noises as he buckled the seat. Pepper saw Tony smile and lean over to plant a kiss on Peter’s head. Tony closed the door and smiled at Peter again through the window.

When he turned, the smile was gone. Instead, he scowled, and the fear and concern were back in his eyes. He sniffed and took a step closer to Pepper.

“We are going home, and we are going to talk about this,” Tony explained.

“You can’t just do whatever you want and expect us to be happy.” Pepper exploded. She was so angry at him for everything. From his lies all those years ago, to ripping them away from Queens, to suggesting methods to torture Killian in front of their son.

“Get in the car,” Tony said, his tone suggesting he was about to blow any second.

--

The car ride was silent. Peter was mesmerized by the world passing him by. He stared out the window, his big brown eyes looked up at all the buildings they passed.

In Tony’s attempt to remain calm, Tony kept his eyes on the road. His eyes occasionally glanced in the rearview mirror. To check the traffic, but mainly to check on his son.

Pepper watched Tony for a while. She tried to read him, but his oddly calm expression scared her. She couldn’t look at him anymore, so she stared out the window and waited for her impending doom. Her knee bounced nervously. Luckily, Tony didn’t comment.

As they pulled into the garage, she was surprised to see Happy there waiting for them. As Tony and Pepper got out of the car, Happy opened the backseat.

“Happy what are you doing?” Pepper asked nervously.

“Happy is taking Peter to show him all the new toys Daddy got him.”

“Toys?” Peter asked, his eyes gleaming at the possibilities of new toys. Happy pulled Peter out of the car seat and onto his hip.

“Common kid, let’s go open all of your new toys,” Happy bounced Peter, who giggled and clapped excitedly.

Pepper took a step forward to follow Happy and Peter, but Tony grabbed her hand. She shot him a daring glance, but he stared back just as harshly.

“I’m following my son,” Pepper announced.

“He’s safe with Happy. And we need to talk.”

“You know spoiling him with toys isn’t what he needs.”

“He deserves everything and anything,” Tony stated matter of fact. Tony paused.

“Besides, you can’t just change the topic. We have to talk.” Tony complained.

“So are you going to hurt me like you did Killian?” Pepper blurted out, the fear making her voice tremble.

Tony’s jaw dropped.

“You think I would hurt you? Pep are you serious?” Tony softly asked. He took her shaky hand in his and gave her hand a squeeze. He pulled on her hand lightly and guided her to the elevator.

“Today was really scary for me. And you’re mad which is making me more scared. And you kill people for a living.” Pepper whispered as the elevator doors closed and began going up.

“You’re right. I am mad. Furious that Killian thought he could touch you. And I’m mad you put yourself in danger. But I don’t want to scare you, so I’m trying to calm down. But do you know how scary today was for me when I found out you had left? So forgive me if I’m having trouble calming down!”

“Tony you scare me,” Pepper admitted. Tony’s eyes widened, and Pepper could see the pain in his eyes so clearly.

“You know I would never hurt you. Or Pete. It’s just- why did you leave?”

“I wanted to take Peter to the park, he was throwing a tantrum. He needed to go outside.” Pepper lied.

“Is that really why you left?” Tony asked insecurely.

“What do you want me to say? I told Friday where I was going. And where did you find us? Oh yea, at the park, like I said!”

“Tell me the truth,” Tony whispered. Pepper looked him dead in the eye.

“If I was on the run, why would I stop at the park? Do you know what I want to know? How can you justify what you do? Your world includes killing people. That’s not the world I live in, or want to raise my son in.”

Tony listened, but he didn’t believe her. He was in the business of lying, and besides, he could read his wife like an open book. She was lying. She was diverting the subject as best as she could. This was a problem for Tony. But Tony liked challenges, and he especially loved tinkering with and solving complex problems.

Pepper had to learn to never lie to Tony. Tony knew it was critical for their family’s safety. And dammit, he was going to give her that lesson.

“Pep I know you’re scared and I’m sorry. Let me protect you, and you won’t be scared again.”

“Sorry doesn’t fix it! Sorry doesn’t fix that you’re still in the mob!”

“Please understand,” Tony begged as the elevator doors opened. He took her hand and led her out of the elevator. “I just want to keep you safe. It’s my job to protect you, don’t you see that? I want to make this work. Us.”

“How can we? When I can’t live with what you do,” Pepper admitted, a tear rolling down her cheek. Tony noticed and pulled her closer so they were face to face.

“I promise to leave work at the door. I won’t talk about the mob, or bring any mob business to our floor.”

“I’d rather you quit.”

“You know I can’t do that, but this is a compromise. Compromising is a thing we need to do, right? Please just give me, us, a shot.”

“And what about Peter?” Pepper asked.

“What about him?” Tony asked, guiding them both to their bedroom.

“Promise me you won’t make him do what you do. Ever.” Pepper looked him dead in the eye.

Tony paused only for a moment, the words carefully crafting in his head.

“He will never have to do the things I do now.”

Because Ironman and the Avengers will clear the way for Peter. Tony will take over the world, and Peter will inherit the world. No one will ever challenge the Starks. Peter won’t have to lift a finger to rule over the Stark Empire or the world.

“Really?” Pepper asked her voice quiet but full of hope.

“Really,” Tony smiled and rubbed her arm reassuringly.

“You know, sometimes I still think about what you did to those men I saw in the conference room on the 38th floor.”

“Don’t think about that,” Tony begged as he sat down on the bed.

“How can’t I? Do you know how scary it was to see that?”

“You know what’s scarier?” Tony diverted, trying to avoid discussing that day, “In the span of 24 hours, two different people tried to hurt the one thing I need to protect the most. That’s my family. You and Peter.”

“Tony, what do you want me to say? That I wasn’t scared? Because I was terrified! Knowing Peter almost got killed, then that man not letting go of my hand. I’m scared of this world you operate in, really really scared!”

“Let me protect you from everything. I can keep you safe.”

“Can you? I feel like we are just going in circles. You’re telling me you want to keep me ‘safe’ but I just want to give Peter a normal life, not in the mob!”

‘But once I teach you the lesson you need to learn, there won’t be any more fights,’ Tony thought but did not dare to say. He had to be strategic. He knew the lesson would have to be a surprise.

“Everything I do protects you and Peter. Every territory I gain is another step closer to being safer than before.” Tony said as he sat down on the bed and took both of Pepper’s hands in his, pulling her closer so that she was standing over him.

“I thought you said you wouldn’t ever talk about business,” Pepper said. “That you would quit.”

“You’re right I said I wouldn’t talk business, but I didn’t say I would quit. Gosh Mrs. Stark, are you trying to put words in my mouth?” Tony asked, a smile formed as his hands caressed her hips.

“Maybe,” Pepper admitted. “I was kinda hoping it would work.”

“Speaking of work,” Tony pivoted the subject, “your boss at whatever hellhole in Queens you were slumming… I mean working at, called like 10 times.”

Tony took his hands off of Pepper’s hips and rummaged through the nightstand. He pulled the phone out of the drawer and unlocked the phone. Pepper reached out for it, but Tony turned out of the way to dodge her.

“Common this isn’t even a Stark Phone, Pep! And your password is Peter’s birthday, that’s not secure.”

“Give it back Tony,” Pepper warned, reaching out for it again as he continued to hold it just out of reach.

“I can call your boss, demand a raise for you. But that’d be kinda pointless. I’m promoting you anyway.”

“What? Don’t call my boss! Promoting me? What are you talking about?” Pepper was starting to get frustrated.

“Effective immediately, I am making you sole CEO. None of this co-CEOing with me anymore. I want you to run the company.”

“What?”

“I, Tony Stark, am making you, Mrs. Virginia Stark, the CEO of SI. You start now. I have about a thousand and one things for you to do.”

“Tony you can’t be serious.” Pepper stopped reaching for her phone.

“I am serious. I want you to run the company. I need you back. Obviously, the legal parts of SI. I’ll be busy with the Avengers.”

“The Avengers?”

“Oh, you haven’t heard of us?” Tony joked. “We are earth’s mightiest heroes. Ironman and whoever else Fury picks up will be the world's newest and greatest crime fighters.”

“What?” Pepper asked, her face scrunched up in confusion.

“Pep, I’m becoming a hero. Save the day all that jazz. Besides you’re getting me off-topic. Your phone,” Tony jingled the phone in his hand as if to taunt Pepper.

Pepper was having none of it though. She stood over Tony as he sat on the bed, and reached out for the phone. When he held it behind his back, she leaned down over him and reach out behind him. He flopped onto his back, tucking the phone under his back. He looked up and smiled cutely at her.

“You drive me insane,” Pepper rolled her eyes. She was still standing over him so she reached her hands under his back to try to grab his phone. Tony grinned at her.

“You look so beautiful, even when I get you all flustered,” Tony flirted.

“Tony,” Pepper scolded, and continued her search under his body. Tony reached up to her with a soft smile on his face. He wrapped his hands around her back and pulled her flush against his body.

And she could feel every inch of him below her.

If Pepper was being honest with herself, she had been terrified earlier today when Killian grabbed her hand. When Tony stepped in between, she was flooded with a sense of relief. She had felt safe. She was grateful that nothing bad happened but disappointed she didn’t escape. At least Tony didn’t seem to see through her plot to escape. After all, Friday told Tony she was heading to the park, which is exactly where he found her. Maybe Tony would trust her more.

She thought that maybe, if she could gain a little more trust, she could make a run for it and actually escape.

He thought that maybe, she was already starting to fall back in love with him. All she needed was a gentle push, a lesson that would remind her how much she loved him, and wouldn’t want to run.

Pepper broke the eye contact to look at the phone. It was no longer hidden under Tony; it had been pushed off to the side. When she looked back at Tony, she saw the longing in Tony’s eyes. It woke up something deep inside her, something she had been trying to suppress as much as possible.

 

She pictured her fantasy so easily.

She would slip her hands under his shirt and feel his sculpted muscles.

He would pull her in for a kiss. His hands would dip into her pants and he would squeeze her ass, grinding her body against his.

She would take off his clothes slowly, starting with the shirt and working her way down to his pants, kissing him all the way down. She’d tease him by stopping at the tip, feeling how hard he already was.

He would return the favor by stripping her quickly and flipping them over. Once on top, he would start with her breast, caressing every inch with his tongue. He would mark her whole body with his mouth.

She would moan and beg Tony to get inside her. To stop teasing her by hovering his tip just outside of her clit and just enter her already. To go deeper inside of her.

 

She shook her fantasy out of her mind violently. With all her might, she pushed back the longing and tried not to think about all the things she wanted to do to him.

Pepper maintained eye contact as she lifted her body up and crawled up to Tony’s face so that their noses were touching. He grinned up at her, his hands lightly gliding down her back, beckoning for her to lie back down on top of him. She maintained eye contact and kept him distracted while she reached to the side, feeling around for her phone. She smiled and quickly grabbed it.

As fast as she could, she hoisted herself up off of Tony. Her sudden movements startled him. She looked back down at him, and she could see how flustered he was. He definitely wasn’t expecting the turn in events, and clearly, he was bummed. But in Pepper’s mind, she wouldn’t reward him for bad behavior.

“I’m going to go check on Peter, he’s probably hungry,” She admitted as she fixed her hair and clothing.

“You’re such a tease,” Tony complained.

He was horny as hell now, and all he could think about was pulling his wife back into bed with him. He wanted her so badly. He wanted to wrap his arms around her naked body, to feel every inch of her, to feel himself inside of her. His dick throbbed at the idea.

“But I’ll wait until you’re ready,” Tony admitted. He couldn’t force himself onto his traumatized wife. He needed to know that her heart wanted her as much as he did. That he still captured her heart the same way she owned his.

To Tony, this morning had proven that they could not go on fighting like this. That he had to do something. Playing the nice, understanding, forgiving husband wasn’t working for Tony. He had her back physically, but her heart wasn’t fully there.

He was going to fix that.

Notes:

I'm sorry she didn't escape, but I think Pep deserves a more exciting escape right?

Few notes from me:
1. Poor Pepper
2. Tony is a hypocrite
3. I probably won't do too many steamy scenes (unless you want me to)
4. Thanks again for all the comments! I'm trying to get better at responding but I'm still a sporadic mess

Chapter 9: The Heroes We Cultivate

Summary:

We meet the Avenger's (finally!) and new friendships are formed

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text

“So pirate, where are they?” Tony asked Fury.

Tony, Nat, Rhodey, and Fury were standing in Tony’s office early Monday morning after Fury insisted on a meeting. Fury claimed it was critical that the Avengers meet each other, but for Tony, he just wanted to get this meet and greet over with. Tony wanted to just give these guys a list of targets and send them on their way to get their jobs done.

In reality, Tony wasn’t all that interested in the Avengers initiative. There was no I in team after all. And he really didn’t like having to listen to others and take orders. Tony was the one to make orders, and he wasn’t about to take a demotion. He also wasn’t keen on making friends, especially not turning any associates into buddies. Too many of his crew had died trying to infiltrate other mobs, so why bother to get to know these guys? Tony didn’t have high expectations of Fury and his merry band of misfits. Fury was SHIELD after all.

“Ask your security, they are the ones who stopped them for a pat-down.” Fury retorted.

“That’s what I pay them for, how do I know you’re not bringing people to kill me?” Tony questioned as Nat rolled her eyes.

“Do you think I’m stupid?” Fury asked and Rhodey shook his head in annoyance.

“Well…” Tony started but was cut off by a knock on the door.

“Enter,” Fury called out.

“Hey this is my office,” Tony complained. Fury glared at him but quickly turned his attention back to the door.

“There they are,” Fury nodded as the 4 men entered the room.

Tony sized each man as they entered. The first to walk through the door was a blonde-haired, blue-eyed, muscular dude. Off the bat, he realized maybe Fury did better than he expected. This man was built, really built. Tony figured he could easily win any fight and could take down anyone Tony asked him to.

Not too bad.

The second man that entered was just as built. His long blonde hair flowed freely, and he had a goofy grin on his face. Tony could immediately tell he might not be the smartest, but with him and the other blonde, they could intimidate anyone who thought about crossing him.

The next man was a smaller blonde. But he had a calculating look on his face. It reminded Tony a lot of how Nat would enter a room. While not as large, he might be able to do just as much damage.

Finally, the last man seemed the most out of place. His messy brown hair fell into his eyes, and he looked around like he was in trouble. He wasn’t particularly built, with clearly no muscles. He walked into the room nervously and looked like he was about to explode any second.

“Stark, I’d like you to first meet Captain Steve Rogers.” The first blonde man reached his hand out. Tony took his hand and was impressed by the firm handshake.

“Quite the handshake Cap,” Tony quipped.

“He’s enhanced.” Fury commented.

Tony had heard about enhanced individuals before. Tony vividly remembered his father talking about their potential in the mob. Howard had been obsessed. He wanted them, saying they were needed. Enhanced associates were the only way the Starks could ever have complete control over all of New York. Being stronger and faster than anyone else, they were perfect for taking down rivals and controlling their crew.

“And this is Thor,” Fury motioned to the long blonde-haired man who entered second. His handshake was just as strong.

“My name is Thor Odinson,” Thor boomed as he approached Tony. His handshake was just as strong as Steve’s. He figured he might be enhanced too.

“Thor thinks he’s a god,” Fury whispered.

“With his size, he could pass as one,” Tony commented but quickly regained focus and turned his attention to the third man.

“And this is Agent Clint Barton. He is an excellent marksman and archer.”

Tony nodded shook Clint’s hand. He could always use a skilled shooter.

“Finally this is Dr. Bruce Banner,” Fury motioned to the nervous brunette.

“You’re Bruce Banner?” Tony asked. He had heard of the legendary doctor, aka the science experiment gone wrong. Tony was fascinated by the man, and couldn’t believe he was finally meeting him.

“Yes, I am Dr. Bruce Banner,” Bruce held his hand out, and Tony eagerly grabbed it.

“It’s good to meet you, Dr. Banner. Your work on antielectron collisions is unparalleled, and I’m a huge fan of the way you lose control and turn into an enormous green rage monster.”

“Thanks,” Bruce nodded and looked down.

“Dr. Banner is only here to lend us his brain, meaning we won’t be needing that enormous green rage monster.”

“That’s surprising. No, I guess it’s not surprising,” Tony said with a great deal of disappointment.

“Don’t worry, there’s a lot we have in store,” Fury consoled.

“Gentlemen, and Nat, let’s discuss in a conference room,” Rhodey suggested.
--

“So let me get this straight,” Steve said.

Tony rolled his eyes. He might be a pretty boy, but he sure wasn’t as smart as Tony. Or Bruce, who looked equally frustrated.

“So this Loki, he’s your brother?” Steve asked Thor.

“He’s adopted,” Thor mumbled.

“And he is leading the Chitauri mob?” Steve asked.

“Yes,” Clint rolled his eyes.

“Why?” Steve asked. “Why cross you and your father, when your family has always sided with the Starks.”

“He wants power, and he thinks this is the way to get it,” Thor explained.

“And you think he has some plan to try and take control of the Stark mob and then the rest of New York?” Steve continued to ask.

“The Stark mob is the only one standing in his way. Stark has the weapons to keep him laying low. Word on the street is he has something better than Ironman.” Nat explained.

“And any threat to the Starks is not tolerated,” Tony said, his eyes dark. He hadn’t dealt personally with the Chitauri. He had heard reports of some of his men getting mixed up with them before, but they had always been relatively small events. Nothing Tony had ever considered a big enough threat to get directly involved with.

“And the Chitauri are worth more to SHIELD than Stark?” Steve asked.

“They are a threat because we don’t know what they are capable of or what they are planning. SHIELD knows what Stark is capable of. If we can take down Chitauri, SHIELD will be more than satisfied. It’ll prove that the Avengers are needed. And that the Starks are on our side.”

“Um, you don’t know what I’m capable of,” Tony argued.

“Yea we do man, I read the report Fury gave us,” Clint said.

“Let’s go to my training room, and you’ll see what the report definitely didn’t say,” Tony whispered to Clint. Tony grinned as he stood up.

Rhodey, Clint, Thor, and Steve all smiled too. This would be fun.

--

Everyone had brought their gear to practice. Tony was glad since he could show off and not just sit in a boring meeting. And, as another bonus, Fury left after the debrief in the conference room.

As Clint shot an arrow, Tony blasted the arrow mid-air with his repulsor. Nat threw a knife at Clint, who dogged it easily. Thor stealthily watched Steve practice his punches on a punching bag, and threw his hammer at Steve as hard as he could. But Steve whipped around and caught it, and threw it back. Thor grinned.

Rhodey flew in as War Machine and shot at Thor, who jumped out of the way. Tony blasted his repulsor at Rhodey which hit him in the shoulder knocking him back. The Avengers continued to practice, completely in their own world. Bruce stood off to the side, observing awkwardly.

Bruce watched, unsure of what to do. He was the Hulk, but he didn’t want to be. He wanted Hulk to never take his body over again. He never wanted to hurt people. He didn’t want to use the Hulk to do evil. Sure, he wanted some of the other mobs off the street, but joining a mob to do that? He wasn’t so sure. But Fury came to him ready to out him as the Hulk. If he didn’t join the Avengers, SHIELD would send him to The Raft forever. So here he was. Maybe he could do some good here. But did Stark even have a heart? He seemed cold. Frankly, he acted and looked exactly like what Bruce pictured as a mob boss. The man might be brilliant, but he seemed dangerous. As if the only thing he cared about in the world was money and power. That wasn’t the kind of person Bruce wanted to be associated with.

Bruce was so wrapped up debating whether or not Tony had a heart or not that he didn’t initially hear the door open. He only noticed that someone new entered the room when he felt a tug on his pants leg.

Bruce looked down to see the biggest brown eyes he had ever seen before. The little boy was staring up at him, his mouth agape.

“Um… hi,” Bruce greeted. The little boy pointed to Tony.

“I’nman!” The boy said.

“Yea that’s Ironman,” Bruce agreed, kneeling down to meet his eye level. “And…. Umm… who are you?”

“Peta!!!”

“Peter? Hi I’m Dr. Bruce Banner.” Bruce held out his hand, and Peter took it giggling. Bruce noticed how light Peter’s handshake was, but it was unsurprising for a little kid. Peter was quickly distracted from the handshake, staring at the shiny thing on Bruce’s wrist. With both of his hands, Peter started playing with Bruce’s watch.

“You like my watch?”

“Wach” Peter mimicked, completely focused on the shiny gadget.

“Yea it tells time, are you familiar with the concept of time and numbers?” Bruce asked, unsure of how to engage the child in conversation.

“One, two, tree, fo’, five, sis, sehven, eigh, nine, ten, eweven, twelwe...” Peter rambled.

“Wow you are pretty smart, how old are you?” Bruce asked.

Peter held up 1 finger, but then added, “I big boy. I two in Augus.”

“Wow okay wow,” Bruce commented, unsure of what to say. Bruce had not spent much time studying the intricacies of child development, but he knew this boy was definitely ahead for his age.

“You play wif I’nman?” Peter asked.

“Yes… we are friends?” Bruce explained, but it sounded like a question.

“We bes frens,” Peter commented, rubbing Bruce’s watch.

“You know Tony?” Bruce asked, but noticed the confusion on Peter’s face. “I mean Ironman?”

“Yea bes frens!” Peter giggled.

Bruce glanced up, to see Tony and Rhodey were still fighting. But he noticed Clint and Thor staring at the young boy, and Bruce watched the pair come over.

“And who is this young man?” Clint asked.

“Peta,” Peter said, reaching out to touch the bow in Clint’s hand.

“I’m Hawkeye, but you can call me Clint. You like my bow?” Clint asked.

Peter nodded excitedly and reached for it again, his hand lightly grazing the cool metal.

“What do you think of my hammer young Peter?” Thor asked, setting the hammer down next to the boy. Peter immediately turned his attention to the hammer, studied it, then tried to lift it up. He wrapped his two small hands around the handle and lifted with all his strength. He scrunched his nose in concentration. His little body shook as he tried as hard as possible to lift the hammer, but he couldn’t. Peter frowned in disappointment.

“That’s alright young Peter, one day you will be stronger than me!” Thor reassured, picking up Peter and throwing him in the air. Peter screamed in excitement. Thor caught Peter in the air and put a giggling Peter back on the ground.

“ ‘Gen!!!! ‘Gen!!!” Peter giggled, reaching his arms up making grabby hands. Thor threw him up a few more times, but when he tried to set him back on the ground, Peter clung on.

“You have quite the grip there, young man,” Thor commented, threw him once more, and set him down again. This time, Peter let go.

If anything, Bruce noticed how short of an attention span this kid had. He ignored Clint and Thor as he wandered into the training room more, walking towards the fight. Bruce didn’t let him walk any further into danger though. Bruce caught up with the kid before he could walk any further into danger. He tapped Peter on the shoulder, and when he didn’t turn around, Bruce tried another tactic.

“Hey Peter, come sit next to me and I’ll explain what they are doing, and umm… we could play?” Bruce suggested awkwardly.

Peter turned with a grin, and ran over to Bruce and took his hand. Bruce led Peter back over to Thor and Clint.

“You guys go back to training, I’ll stay with him,” Bruce said as he passed Thor and Clint. They didn’t need to be told twice as Thor threw his Hammer at War Machine and Clint shot an arrow at Captain America.

Bruce sat down on the floor where he was originally standing, and Peter plopped down next to him. Deciding it wasn’t close enough, Peter crawled over to sit on Bruce’s lap. Bruce didn’t stop him, but he seriously wondered who this kid was and why he was so trusting. And why he seemed so fascinated by Bruce. He was just… Bruce.

“I’nman!” Peter pointed again to Tony, who was swooping down to attack Thor, completely obvious of the young boy in Bruce’s lap.

“They’re training to catch bad guys,” Bruce explained as Peter shifted in Bruce’s lap to get a better view of the fighting.

“Tony… err Ironman… is pretty smart, but Steve, we call him Captain America, is super strong. So is Thor. But Clint and Nat are good at strategy.”

“Wha’s sra’egy?” Peter asked.

“Well, it’s like planning. Basically, they know what they want and they think up ways to get exactly what they want.”

“Wan toys?” Peter asked.

“Yea exactly, they want toys and they’re trying to think of ways to get new toys,” Bruce said. Really, the Avengers wanted power, and to do that, the strategy included threats and murders. But the kid didn’t need to know that.

“Help?” Peter wondered.

“Yea they want to help by getting bad guys off the street.”

“I help!” Peter exclaimed and pointed to himself.

“Maybe when you’re older you can help take down bad guys.”

“I gonna help,” Peter agreed and leaned back onto Bruce’s chest.

Bruce didn’t know what else to say, so he didn’t say anything else. They just watched the group train in comfortable silence.

In just a few hours, the Avengers got more comfortable with one another. They learned from each other’s different fighting techniques. Sometimes they would huddle up to discuss ways to improve form or discuss how rival mobs tend to fight so they could try to simulate the future fights they anticipated. But they were so focused, they never glanced towards Bruce and Peter.

After what felt like forever, the Avengers were finally running out of energy to practice. Ironman and War Machine had teamed up and were beating the crap out of Captain America, Thor, and Hawkeye, while Nat lurked in the corner. She was observing the room when her eyes landed on Bruce and Peter. She knew how protective Tony was over Peter, so she immediately went over to the two.

“Hey Nat,” Bruce greeted, looking up at her. Peter also looked up but didn’t say anything.

“Hey Bruce, hey Peter,” Nat replied.

“You know Peter?” Bruce asked curiously.

“He’s Tony’s kid, and he definitely shouldn’t be down here. What are you doing creeping around here you little spider?” She asked, reaching down to tickle him. Peter giggled and squirmed in Bruce’s lap, looking for protection in Bruce’s arms. Bruce’s jaw dropped. He had no idea Tony had a kid.

“Wach wif Bruce!” Peter said through the giggles.

“Where’s mommy? Does she know you’re down here?”

“I sneak ‘way,” Peter whispered mischievously.

“That’s what I thought, common Peter, I’ll bring you upstairs before Tony sees you’re down here. He won’t be happy.” Nat explained and reached for Peter’s hand.

Peter took her hand, and she helped pull him to his feet. As they started to walk away, Peter stopped. He turned back to look at Bruce, and let go of Nat’s hand. Peter ran back over to Bruce and jumped back into Bruce’s arms. Bruce hugged him back, and oddly enough to Bruce, Peter made direct eye contact while they hugged.

“Bye-bye Buce!” Peter giggled as he pulled out of the hug and ran back to Nat, who was holding her hand out for him to come back. As Nat took his left hand, he waved back to Bruce with his right hand.

“Bye Peter,” Bruce said and waved back to Peter. He watched the boy leave with Nat.

The second the doors closed behind Nat and Peter, Bruce turned around to see Tony and Rhodey staring down at him.

“Whatcha doing on the floor Dr. Banner?” Tony asked.

“Oh, you know… watching?” Bruce said like a question. Bruce wasn’t sure if he should mention the fact that Peter, who turned out to be Tony’s secret child, was here for the past hour watching them fight. Probably sitting too close to the action for someone so young. Bruce figured it was probably for the best that he kept the secret of his newfound friendship between him and Peter. And Nat.

“Being a spectator is hard huh?” Rhodey jokingly asked.

“Yea, you’ve been at it for what? Three hours?” Bruce asked, checking his watch.

“Hey that’s a cool watch Dr. Banner,” Tony commented as he looked at it. “Is it Swiss?”

“Uh yeah it is,” Bruce said and looked up to see Tony staring at his wrist. Huh. Bother father and son gravitated towards his watch. Bruce could only wonder what else was similar between the two.

“Any recommendations Dr.?” Tony teased, thinking he wouldn’t get any.

“What?” Bruce inquired, realizing he zoned out contemplating Peter and Tony’s similarities.

“Any ideas based on your three hours of observations?” Tony explained.

“Oh, yeah. Well, I think we can make some upgrades to everyone’s suits. For example when you and Rhodey fly you notice how noisy it is? I think there’s a way we can make your flight stealthier.”

“And how would you do that?” Rhodey asked with clear interest. Even Tony perked up.

“You know how some birds have really loud flight patterns while others are silent? I think we can use that concept to our advantage. If we can cut down on the air turbulence, we can make a stealth mode. Maybe include a chameleon effect to your suit when in stealth mode.”

Tony grinned.

“Let me show you the labs, Dr. Banner. I think we are going to make a great team.”

--

The rest of the week went by rather normally. To an outsider, it would seem as though the couple had a relatively normal life for, well, a powerful couple.

Pepper went back to working as the CEO for Stark Industries. She did her best to accept her fate. For the time being, there was no escaping. Her guards were watching her 24/7, and with the help of Friday, she knew every breath she took was monitored. She figured Tony was being paranoid, but she realized it was somewhat rightfully so. She did after all try to escape. And she would try again the next time she got the chance.

Pepper was loaded with meetings, resulting in Happy turning into a babysitter. At least Peter adored him and generally listened to Happy. There were only a few instances where he snuck away from Happy to look for Pepper. With the help of Friday, he would usually find Pepper in her office and would sit on her lap and help her with all of her work. Peter fully believed he was helping run the company, and Pepper was happy to keep him close, and away from any mob business.

If he couldn’t find Pepper, he would look for or Tony or Bruce. He rarely found Tony, but when he did, Peter would play in the lab trying to getting his father to chase him or he would sit in on mob meetings. In Tony’s mind, Pepper didn’t have to know about that.

If he found Bruce, he would sit on his lap and watch Bruce work. Bruce wasn’t sure whether or not to mention his newfound friendship to Tony, but he figured there was no harm since Peter was a happy and easy kid to spend hours with. Peter was fascinated with anything and everything Bruce did. Everything Bruce did, Peter watched with amazement. Bruce would simplify and explain most of what he was doing to the best of his ability, and Peter seemed to understand. Peter seemed to gravitate towards Bruce, much to the astonishment of Bruce.

Peter’s fascination was Bruce was mirrored by Tony. Tony would occasionally come down to the lab just to talk to Bruce about ideas. Tony dubbed them ‘science bros’ and Bruce nervously chuckled and agreed. Who was he to say no to a mob boss? At least Tony turned out to be nicer than Bruce hypothesized. Luckily, Peter was never there when Tony would spontaneously show up.

Tony and the Avengers continued to meet every day. They would train together for hours, debrief and plan their next attack. On Friday they went to scope out some rival mobs, but did not attack. They were waiting for the right moment, which Steve assured them it would be soon.

At least Pepper, Tony, and Peter had the weekend together. As a family, they had a relatively normal weekend. They slept in as late as they could until Peter shook them awake. He insisted they play with him all day Saturday; which Tony was happy to do.

And while Tony had been busy all week, he didn’t forget about his lesson for Pepper. All week he thought about it. Planned it meticulously. It was Sunday now and Tony had finalized his plan to fix everything with Pepper, to rebuild their trust.

His plan?

To take Peter with him to Malibu for a few days. Without telling Pepper. And without taking her.

To Tony, if he could show Pepper how much pain she caused him by taking away his son before he was even born, Pepper would finally be able to understand his point of view. He knew she would be upset, hell, she’d definitely yell at him. But he could point out how that’s exactly what he felt. But look at him! He was able to put their son first and forgive Pepper for everything. Therefore, Pepper needed to accept Tony and his life. He couldn’t change who he was, especially not his mob ties, so Pepper had to acknowledge that and take him for who he was.

So on Sunday, Tony thought over his plan as they played with Peter until it was time for his nap. Peter at first refused to take a nap, crying that he wanted to keep playing even as he yawned. But when it was clear Peter was too tired to even stand up, Tony scooped him up and hugged him close to his chest while telling Peter a story. Peter looked up at his father with his big eyes, listening intently. He tried to stay awake, but his eyes quickly drooped and he fell asleep in Tony’s arms.

Even when Pepper suggested putting Peter in the newly assembled crib, Tony refused to let go of his son.

“Tony let him rest,” Pepper complained.

“He is resting,” Tony whispered.

“You know what I meant,” Pepper said, rolling her eyes.

“If I put him down, he’s going to cry.”

“No, he won’t,” Pepper insisted.

“Fine,” Tony surrendered and walked into Peter’s room. But as he went to lower Peter in his crib, Peter began to whimper. Tony immediately stopped lowering him, and brought him back up to his chest, with Peter’s head falling in the crook of his arm.

“See,” Tony grinned walking back into the main room.

“Good luck holding him in your arms like that for an hour,” Pepper smirked.

And she was right. Because after 20 minutes, Tony’s arm hurt like hell. But he would happily suffer through the pain if it meant holding his son. He sat down on the couch, relieving some of the strain on his arms. He looked down at his son, who was drooling on his chest.

“How’s your arm feeling?” Pepper gave him a once over, clearly seeing his discomfort.

Tony shifted his arm with a grunt and accidentally jostled Peter a little too much. He whined and blinked his eyes open.

“Mommy,” Peter whimpered.

Peter rubbed his eyes, sat up in his father’s arms, and looked around. When Peter’s eyes landed on Mommy, he reached out to her. Pepper got up from her spot on the couch and sat down next to Tony. Peter crawled over to sit on her lap. He snuggled into her arms and rested his head against her chest, his legs dangled over Pepper’s legs onto Tony. Pepper wrapped her arms around him, one hand running through his curls. Peter leaned into the touch, burying his head into her chest, listening to her heartbeat.

When she heard Peter’s breathing leveling out, she sighed and rubbed his back. She finally looked up to see Tony staring. She could see the wheels in his brain turning.

“He just…” Tony whispered. “Prefers you.”

“Tony,” Pepper sighed. She didn’t want to hurt his feelings.

“All he’s ever known is you. I’ll never be as close to him.” Tony choked up. It was his worst fear. Tony noticed a lot of little things this past week about Peter. When he was cranky or sad, he picked Pepper over him 100% of the time. Peter’s eyes lit up way more for Pepper when she came back from working downstairs as SI’s CEO. Peter always wanted Pepper to give him a bath. Peter always cried for Pepper, and never for Tony.

“You can’t think like that,” Pepper said.

“It’s hard not to,” Tony mumbled.

“Hey,” Pepper rubbed Tony’s shoulder. “You were the one to help him fall asleep. He feels so safe in your arms. You can’t be too hard on yourself; it’s only been a week.”

“It shouldn’t be this hard.”

“I think you’re making it out to be harder than it actually has to be.”

“Hmm,” Tony mumbled, but he did not agree. He only spent a few hours with Peter during the week, mainly in the evening. He barely saw Peter during the day, only the two times he showed up in his lab and the two times he showed up at one of his meetings with his crew. Tony wished he could spend more time with him. But that was what next week was for.

They sat in silence, listening to Peter’s light breathing. When the elevator door dinged, the couple looked up, wondering who would show up in the penthouse on a Sunday.

Tony wasn’t fully surprised to see all the Avengers standing in the elevator.

“Security breach,” Tony quipped.

They poured out, and Tony stood in front of Pepper and Peter to effectively block Peter from their view.

“Relax Tony, they all know about Peter,” Nat said.

“What if I didn’t want them to know about Peter?” Tony questioned, the anger flaring in his voice.

“We would never do anything to hurt your son,” Steve promised.

“Yeah man, we’re on your side. And besides, what kind of sick fuck would go after a little kid?” Clint asked.

“Guys that’s not why we are here,” Rhodey interrupted. “Tony we gotta go. Some of Hammer’s remaining men are trying to take back territory in Queens right now.”

“Seems like an easy fight. Hammer’s men are all a bunch of idiots.” Tony commented.

“It will be simple, so suit up metal man,” Thor commented.

“Meet at the Quintjet in 5. Bruce your flying.” Steve proposed. The Avenger’s nodded. Bruce looked flabbergasted at the mention of him flying. But they all and followed Steve back to the elevator.

“Aye-aye Captain.” Clint joked and jumped into the elevator with the rest of the team.

As the doors closed, Tony turned back to Pepper who was watching him.

“I’ll be back in a bit.”

“Tony –” Pepper started but was cut off by Tony leaning down and kissing her deeply on the lips. She was startled at first, but she returned it.

“I’ll be safe, all that jazz. It’s a good thing, we’ll get rid of more guys like Hammer who hurt random men who take care of my son.”

“Ben was not random and you know it.” Pepper complained, but Tony ignored it. Instead, he knelt down in front of Pepper’s feet and planted a kiss on the top of Peter’s head. Peter didn’t even stir.

“Interesting that is what you focus on,” Tony commented.

“Hmmm,” Pepper responded, clearly annoyed with his comment.

How dare Tony assumed Ben wasn’t important? Just another reason she couldn’t find it in herself to forgive Tony. All she saw was that Tony always made everything about him. He put himself first. Whereas Pepper, she put Peter first. Always. Pepper truly believed that Tony would put his own desires before Peter, no matter what.

“I’ll see you both later. Love you.” Tony said, standing up.

“Don’t do anything stupid.” Pepper rolled her eyes, happy to have some alone time with her son.

“I never do,” Tony admitted.

Notes:

For Part 1, the Avengers will consist of:
Tony, Rhodey, Nat, Steve, Clint, Thor, and Bruce.

Part 2 I will probably add newer Avengers. So if you want to see Sam, Bucky, Scott, etc, let me know which heroes you want to see in part 2 and I will add!

Chapter 10: Of Legos and Legislators

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text

“Tones are you insane?” Rhodey asked with skepticism and anger.

“No, I’m a genius remember?” Tony said, rolling his eyes.

“That plan is anything but genius,” Rhodey argued. After Tony revealed his plan to take Peter to Malibu on Friday, he came to ask Rhodey to fly them out late Friday night.

“I thought you would be supportive.”

“That is the stupidest idea you’ve ever had. No way it will work.”

“Yes it will.”

“Pepper is going to kill you. Then she’s going to kill me.”

“She will not.”

“Have you met your wife?”

“Okay fine she might get a little mad,” Tony admitted. “But nowhere near as mad as I was when she left.”

“Oh my god, you are an idiot.” Rhodey rolled his eyes.

“Well, what else am I supposed to do? Pepper can’t forgive me! She doesn’t trust me, and she definitely doesn’t fully trust me around Peter.”

“Then you gotta show her that she can trust you. That you would do anything for her or Peter.”

“I would!”

“She needs to see that. Taking Peter on a ‘vacation’ will just piss her off.”

“Do you have any better ideas?” Tony asked.

Rhodey shook his head. There was no way he could tell his friend no despite how idiotic the plan was. Maybe he could help Tony improve the plan so that it wasn’t so idiotic. So that it would actually work and Pepper would forgive him. But how?

“Yea I didn’t think so. So you’ll fly us to Malibu?” Tony asked.

“Fine. But I take no responsibility.”

Tony grinned.

“You’re the best Rhodey.”

“Yea, yea, whatever man. Let’s go see what Cap is up to, I heard he came up with some insane workout regimen.”

--

Pepper sat in the living room of the penthouse with Peter and Happy sitting on the floor. Peter was happily playing with his new Legos. Pepper had scolded Happy for buying so many. She again had to reprimand Happy when he had bought Peter even more sets, specifically, much more advanced Lego sets after Peter finished all 10 of the Lego Duplo’s sets that Happy originally bought. Some of the new sets said 12+. Peter could choke on the pieces, so Happy promised her that he would watch him closely whenever they pulled out the Legos.

“So I put this piece with this one?” Happy asked Peter.

“No no no no no!!!” Peter grabbed the piece out of Happy’s hand. Peter instead handed Happy the instructions manual and pointed to the page they were on. “See?”

“I see, but I don’t get it.” Happy complained.

“Did it!” Peter exclaimed putting the correct pieces together.

Peter loved building things, so Pepper understood why he loved Legos. Even if the toy was technically for older kids, clearly Peter was ahead. She supposed he got his brains from his father, but she wouldn’t want to admit it. That confession would go to Tony’s head anyway.

Peter continued to follow the instructions to put together the Disney Castle. Happy on the other hand started to put random pieces together, much to Peter’s annoyance.

“No dats wong!” Peter scolded.

“My bad,” Happy apologized, but Peter looked at him like he didn’t fully believe Happy. “I’m sorry.”

“Don’ do dat.” Peter lectured.

“Sure kid,” Happy said rolling his eyes.

Before Peter could scold him again, the elevator dinged. Pepper and Happy both looked up, expecting to see Tony, but it was a man neither had met before.

Both Happy and Pepper exchanged a confused glance, unsure of who the stranger was and why he had access to their floor.

“Buce!!!!!!” Peter jumped up and ran to his favorite friend. Peter ran into his newest friend and hugged his legs.

“Hey Peter,” Bruce greeted and patted his shoulders.

“Who are you?” Happy asserted, as he stood up and tried to look menacing and protective.

“Oh hi, I’m Dr. Bruce Banner, I’m looking for Tony, Rhodey said he might be up here,” Bruce explained nervously as Peter continued to hug his legs.

“Why do you want Tony?” Happy demanded.

“Oh um, Avengers stuff,” Bruce explained, not really wanting to get into it. He just had some suit upgrades to show Tony but he didn’t know where he was.

Peter pulled on Bruce’s pant leg to get his attention. Bruce looked down to see big brown eyes staring up at him. Peter lifted his arms up, demanding to be picked up.

“Ummmm…..” Bruce wasn’t sure if he should pick up the kid. The man in front of Bruce was staring him down. This man looked like he would cut Bruce's head off if he touched the kid. The woman on the couch was staring too, but it was less ferocious. But she was still watching with an apprehensive and protective look.

“Pweaseeeeeee,” Peter begged.

“It’s fine, Happy,” Pepper nodded for Bruce to pick up Peter as she stood and walked over to join Happy and Bruce.

So Bruce did, much to Peter’s delight. Peter squealed and hugged Bruce’s neck then buried his face in Bruce’s shoulder.

“I’m Pepper, Peter’s mom,” Pepper explained, extending her hand.

With his free hand, Bruce took her handshake.

“I’m Bruce, I work with Tony on the Avengers Initiative.”

“Really? You don’t fit what I pictured when Tony explained it,” Happy commented.

“Well, I’m definitely no Steve or Thor. But I uh had to join, they needed my brain I guess.”

“So you didn’t want to join?” Pepper asked.

“I didn’t ask to be here,” Bruce admitted quietly and looked down at Peter.

Pepper knew the feeling all too well.

“Sorry about that.” Pepper felt the need to apologize.

“Not your fault.” Bruce didn’t necessarily want to talk about why he was forced, especially since the Hulk isn’t known for being gentle and he was currently holding her precious child. Thinking about being forced into joining made him angry, so on principle, he tried to avoid thinking about it. Whatever he could do to avoid losing control and letting the Hulk take over he would do.

“I gotta ask, how do you know my son?” Pepper asked.

“Oh, he’s snuck into my lab a few times this past week,” Bruce admitted, not thinking it was a good idea to mention how they originally met in a room filled with weapons and armor that could’ve killed Peter.

“He’s been sneaking into my office and Tony’s,” Pepper admitted.

“He likes science, I’ve been working on a few projects and he understands everything I’ve explained to him. He’s a smart kid.”

“Yea he gets it from his father,” Happy explained, and Pepper shot him a glace.

“I appreciate it, Dr. Banner. It’s nice of you to let him in your lab, but you didn’t have to do that. Don’t feel obligated,” Pepper said.

“It’s no problem at all, it’s safe in my lab I swear and it’s fun to have him around. He’s welcomed anytime.”

“Hear that Peter?” Pepper asked. Peter giggled and hid his face in Bruce’s neck.

“Huh, he really likes you.” Happy commented, the surprise evident in his voice.

“Peter, is Bruce your friend?” Pepper asked.

Peter looked up and grinned. “Buce my Fren!”

The adults all chuckled softly.

“Lego!!!!”

“Where do you want to go?” Bruce asked awkwardly.

“No Lego!” Peter explained, pointing to the toys on the ground.

“Oh are those your Legos?” Bruce asked, but really stated it, since it was clear that no one else in the room was meant for the Legos. So Bruce lowered Peter to the ground, thinking he wanted to go play.

Peter started to walk towards his Legos, but he turned around to make sure his friend Bruce was coming. When he realized Bruce wasn’t coming, he ran back to Bruce, grabbed his hand, then led him to his Legos.

They both sat down, and Peter crawled onto Bruce’s lap. Peter started to put together the Legos, happily perched on his friend’s lap. Oblivious to the world.

And they sat like that for a while. Pepper and Happy joined them, but sat on the couch, as they talked to Bruce. They asked about his work and about all his PhDs, and Bruce happily dived into his work while Peter remained completely focused on putting together his castle.

They were still talking about Bruce’s research in gamma radiation when the elevator doors dinged open. Bruce stiffened, worried that Tony might enter and be pissed about the Hulk being so close to Peter. But it wasn’t Tony.

It was Nat.

“Hey Nat,” Pepper greeted.

“Hey Romanov,” Happy joined.

“Hey Pepper and Peter and Happy. Oh hi Bruce.”

“He-hey Nat,” Bruce said blushing. He felt like a schoolboy all over again, being all nervous around his crush. Nat smiled softly and walk over to stand over Bruce and Peter.

“Bruce, what are you doing up here?” Nat asked softly.

“Oh you know, came looking for Tony,” Bruce admitted and Nat genuinely smiled.

“No clue where he is,” Nat said patting his shoulder.

Her hands lingered on his shoulder, and Bruce felt like the spot she was touching was on fire.

“Eh he’s around here somewhere,” Happy grumbled.

You make a new friend?” Nat asked, her hands still resting on Bruce.

“Yea, Peter and I get along well.”

“We frens.” Peter explained while continuing to connect Legos, not even looking up.

“That so Peter?” Nat asked.

“We play in da lab!” Peter grinned thinking of all the fun he had with Bruce.

“You bring him to the lab?” Nat asked in amazement. No way Tony knew about that. Or wanted to share Peter.

“Yea he shows up from time to time. I show him what I do. It’s harmless and he seems to like it. Right, Peter?”

“I sci’tist!” Peter giggled. All the adults smiled.

“Yup, you are,” Bruce agreed.

“huh I guess two Starks are obsessed with you and your work,” Nat said, moving her hand up to brush Bruce’s hair.

Bruce’s cheeks turned a dark red.

“Damnit,” Happy said as his phone went off.

“Dam’it,” Peter parroted.

“Don’t say that kid, your father will have my ass,” Happy warned as he stood up and walked away from the group to take the call.

“Assssssss,” Peter parroted again.

“I’m telling Tony that you taught him those words Happy!” Pepper called out to him.

“Please don’t, Pep please,” Happy begged, the fear evident in his face.

“Then watch your language,” Pepper warned and Happy waved as he left.

“Bye-bye Hap-hap!” Peter waved back from his spot in Bruce’s lap. Upon leaving, Peter sighed and leaned back against his friend Bruce. Peter grabbed Bruce’s wrist and started playing with his watch. Bruce let him, and he even put his own hand in Peter’s lap to give him easier access.

“He really has you wrapped around his little finger huh?” Nat observed and twirled a curl on Bruce’s head with her fingers.

“He got me with those Bambi eyes,” Bruce admitted smiling down at the Legos sheepishly, unable to meet Nat's gaze.

“He knows how to use what he has to get what he wants,” Pepper added and Nat joined her on the couch where Happy had just left.

The adults watched as Peter played with the watch on Bruce’s wrist. Peter babbled, saying something none of the adults could understand.

“Nat, can I talk to you?” Pepper asked, then paused and glanced at Peter and Bruce. “Privately.”

“Sure,” Nat agreed and nodded her head towards the kitchen.

“Oh I can go,” Bruce said, starting to stand up.

“No no noooooo,” Peter wined. “Stay!”

“You can stay Bruce, please,” Pepper told Bruce. “We will be quick.”

“Alright,” Bruce agreed and watched the ladies walk away.

“Peter?” Bruce whispered.

“Wha?” Peter whispered back.

“What do you think of Nat?”

“Da wady?” Peter pointed to where his mom and Nat disappeared too.

“Yea her,” Bruce said.

Peter paused before responding.

“She a ninja,” Peter explained as if it was obvious.

“Oh, okay,” Bruce said. Did Peter really pick up on her hand combat skills?

“What makes you say she’s a ninja?”

“She figh' like pow pow pow!!” Peter explained, making fists and punching the air. “An' she kic' and twow da knife,”

“Huh I guess you did see her throw knives during training,” Bruce commented.

“Bu she nice wady! She gib me cookies!”

“Wow cool,” Bruce agreed. He had a hard time reading her. In fact, Bruce detected a bit of flirting coming from Nat, but he had always had trouble in the past. He was always an awkward nerdy kid. Now he was just an awkward nerdy adult. And Natasha, well she was beautiful.

He had no chance but to just blush like an idiot thinking about her.

--

“So what’s up?” Nat asked.

“I need your help,” Pepper explained.

“You know I can’t help you escape right now.”

“I know,” Pepper sighed. “I just, I need to see May.”

“May Parker?”

“Yes, I need to know she’s okay.”

“You know how risky it’ll be? There’s no easy way for me to sneak you out of the Tower without Tony catching wind.”

“Please, even if it’s just for like 10 minutes. I need to know she’s okay, and I need her to know that I’m okay.” Pepper explained.

“I can track her down and just tell her you’re fine and report back how she is.” Nat offered.

“No, no I need to see her myself. Apologize for what happened to Ben.”

“You know that’s not your fault.”

“It kinda feels like it is.” The guilt had been eating Pepper alive.

“It’s not your fault. I can get a message to her.”

“No please Nat, please,” Pepper begged. “I- I – I feel so guilty. Please I took everything from her.”

“Then don’t you think it’s not a good idea to see her?”

“Please Nat, she has no one else but me and Peter. Please you owe me.”

“I’ll think about it, but it’ll have to be when Tony’s on a business trip.”

“He told me he has no plans to fly anywhere unless it’s with me and Peter!” Pepper complained.

“What do you expect me to do?” Nat asked, starting to get annoyed.

“Look at it from my perspective! Can you? Her husband is dead because of me! I killed her husband. I did.” Pepper admitted with tears in her eyes.

“You are not a murderer Pepper!” Nat complained.

“Do you even know how it feels to know someone is dead because of you?” Pepper asked.

Nat could see the blood dripping down all her victim's faces. She could see their wide, scared eyes. She could hear them take their last shaky breaths. She could smell their piss and blood mixing together.

She remembered everything about the hundreds of her victims. All the people Tony ordered her to kill took their dying breath in front of her. The approval she got from Tony after she reported each mission successful and the power she gained after killing them merciless was intoxicating.

She knew exactly how it felt to kill. She had no regrets.

“No I have no idea,” Nat said, her voice cold and face expressionless.

Pepper did not need to know. Ever. Those deaths would go with Nat to her grave.

“So you’ll help me?”

“I’ll see what I can do.”

--

It was late in the evening on Friday. Peter blinked his heavy eyes open, or at least he tried to. Pepper was towel drying Peter who could barely stand up. It was close to bedtime for him, and she could see that playing with Bruce wiped him out. After she towel-dried his hair and moved down to dry his back and shoulders, Peter laid his head on his mommy.

Peter felt tired. He just wanted to cuddle. Not just stand there cold with a towel. So he wrapped his wet arms around his mommy, trying to show her how cold he was.

“Col’,” Peter complained.

“Peter you’re all wet, let me dry you.”

Peter wined. Pepper could tell how tired he was, so after deciding he was dry enough, she quickly dressed him in his diaper and pajamas, and lifted him up into her arms.

He immediately clung to her like a koala, wrapping his arms around his mommy’s neck and burying his face in her hair.

She carried him out of the bathroom and looked around the empty apartment. It was quiet without Tony. Part of her wished he would never come back. But the other part of her wanted him to come home earlier. But she knew what he was up to, and she had absolutely no influence over what he did. Tony Stark did whatever he wanted. And he always got what he wanted.

She sighed and walked past the couch into Peter’s room. It was filled with everything Peter could ever want, but it was missing one thing.

May.

Peter had asked about May and Ben a lot this past week. He asked where they were and why he couldn’t go play with his aunt and uncle. She didn’t have the heart to tell him he won’t see her for a while. And she definitely didn’t want Peter to think about Ben and what Peter had seen. If anything, she wanted her son to forget the murder he witnessed. All she wanted to do was protect her baby from this world.

And she failed.

Pepper sat down on the rocking chair in Peter’s room. She gently rocked him back and forth, cradling his head against her shoulder. She could feel his soft breaths on her neck, comforting her and reminding her how much her little boy needed her. He needed her to be strong, now more than ever.

“Mommy,” Peter wined.

“Yes, honey?” Pepper whispered into her little boy’s hair.

“Tell me a stowy,” Peter asked, “A I’nman one.”

“You know more Ironman stories than I do Pete.”

“Noo,” Peter complained, rubbing his face against Pepper’s shirt, “I wan da secret one.”

“The secret story? What?” Pepper asked confused.

“How you luv I’nman,” Peter explained.

“I-,” Pepper had no words. “I haven’t said I love him in front of you.”

Peter pointed to her eyes. “Buce says da eyes tell da stowy.”

Pepper stared into her little boy’s eyes. Peter saw what she had been denying the entire week.

Thinking of Tony, her blood boiled. Tony pulled her into his orbit of evil. He forced her to come back to a life she so desperately wanted to escape in order to protect Peter. And she hated Tony for how selfish he was. Tony was the sun. He pulled her in with his warmth, but he burned those that got too close.

But she knew. She knew deep down, a part of her would always love Tony. No matter what. She knew her heart forever and always would gravitate towards her sun.

She was trying as hard as possible to suppress her feelings. To avoid the urge to love him again. His sunshine had burned a hole into her heart, and no matter how hard she tried, he would forever have a hold of her heart. She couldn't help it. How she felt lonely and dark the penthouse when he wasn’t there. How relief flooded her at the park and washed away her fear when he arrived. How even in her sleep, gravity seemed to pull her towards him as she leaned into his touch and let his strong arms pull her close. But she kept trying as hard as possible to hide it.

She thought her love for Tony was a well-kept secret, kept even from herself. It wasn’t.

“Mommy,” Peter wined, tears forming in his eyes.

“Shhh, baby it’s okay,” Pepper cooed and rocked him.

“You luv I’nman,” Peter whispered.

“I- I – I,” Pepper stuttered, unsure of what to tell her son.

“Mommy,” Peter whispered.

“I love you Peter. You’re my son. And Tony, err, Ironman, well, he’ll always have a place in my heart.” Pepper said, never taking her eyes off of her baby.

“I luv you mommy,” Peter agreed and snuggled closer to his mommy. Pepper hugged him closer and closed her eyes.

Pepper continued to rock her baby, gently resting her cheek on her son’s head. She rocked him until she was sure he was asleep.

Pepper took a deep breath and opened her eyes again. Peter was sound asleep. As she went to stand, she looked towards the door and saw Tony standing there. He was watching intently, still fully dressed in his suit.

“How long have you been standing here?” Pepper whispered.

“Long enough,” Tony admitted.

“You look tired,” Pepper noticed. The bags under his eyes had bags. The light in his eyes was long gone. He looked like he was ready to collapse from the long week. Pepper knew he had been busy with Avengers stuff, he usually came home well after she was already asleep and was gone before she woke up.

Tony just nodded.

Pepper lowered Peter into his crib and gently tucked him in. She leaned down and kissed his forehead. She stood back up and walked over to her husband.

Pepper took Tony’s hands in hers. She held them lightly and rubbed her thumb over his knuckles. He pulled her in closer so that their faces were centimeters apart.

“I love you Pep,” Tony whispered, his breath tickling her nose.

“Common let’s go to bed,” Pepper ignored the part of her that wanted to say it back. She ignored the urge to kiss him. She ignored how much she hated yet also loved herself for not being able to forgive Tony.

Pepper pulled at his hands gently guiding him out of Peter’s room. Tony followed, but he was stuck in a daze. He was confused. Pepper could tell their son that she still had a place for Tony in her heart but couldn’t admit it to his face?

It destroyed Tony. It extinguished his flame, smothering his soul with emptiness and pain.

When he had heard Pepper confess to Peter how she felt, it made him want to cancel his plans for tonight. But he couldn’t. Especially after this stab to his heart, he couldn’t cancel. She had a lesson to learn, and after hearing her confess her love to Peter and not to him, he knew she needed to learn the lesson. To never leave him. To openly love him.

She let go of his hand when they entered their bedroom. She watched him stand there expressionless and unmoving. She started to untie his tie. He watched her, his eyes never leaving her face. She looked up to see him watching her and she blinked.

“Tony?”

“I’m going on a business trip tomorrow.”

“Oh.”

“I’ll be leaving early before you wake up.”

“Oh, um okay,” Pepper said, trying to suppress her anger. Why did she feel angry about him leaving? She had been pushing him away since he had found her. And with him gone, she could see May. Maybe she would even be able to take Peter.

She was getting what she wanted, so why was she so disappointed?

--

Tony hadn’t fallen asleep. He had gotten into bed and waited until Pepper fell asleep. Tony slipped out of bed as quietly as possible. At the doorway, he glanced back to see his wife’s form under the sheets. He hoped more than anything this would work. He hoped that this would fix everything. He hoped that the next time he saw her, they could love each other the way they used to. He had no other ideas on how to fix his marriage, but he would do what he had to. And his heart told him that this was the only way.

Tony quietly crept into Peter’s room. He gently pulled his son out of the crib, into his arms, and tucked him into his chest. Peter didn’t even stir.

Tony brought him down to the garage and was met by a grumpy Happy.

“You’re late. And you seriously had to fly now?” Happy grumbled.

“That’s funny, I thought with it being my plane and all, that it would just wait for me to get there.”

“Hmmm, you can put him in his seat then,” Happy said, motioning to Peter.

“I can and I will,” Tony agreed and slipped Peter effortlessly into his car seat.
Tony climbed in next to his son, and Happy took off.

“So Rhodey’s flying you out?” Happy asked as he turned out of the Tower garage.

“Yup.”

“Poor bastard.”

“What else is a consigliere for?”

“You know Pepper is going to kill every single one of us.”

“She’ll learn.”

“Alright boss,” Happy agreed. Happy was there to help Tony. Always. And there was no reason to argue with the boss. Ever. Happy knew when it came to Pepper or Peter, Tony had a short temper and was not about to listen to anyone. Everyone who knew about the plan provided their undying support, no matter their true opinion.

When they arrived at the hanger, Happy waved them goodbye. When Tony stepped onto his plane, he felt excited. Some time with his son was all he needed. Maybe he could even get Peter to finally call him dad. He adjusted Peter into his booster seat for the plane. The plane doors had already shut, and the new flight attendant had already put his suitcases into the back of the plane. Once he was satisfied with Peter’s seat, Tony headed up to the cockpit to greet his consigliere.

“Hey Platypus, thanks again for your help with this.”

“Oh, you have no idea how happy I am to be helping you Stark.” An unfamiliar voice said.

“Who the hell are you and where the fuck is Rhodey?” Tony demanded, pulling out his gun.

“I’d put that away Stark, or I’ll have our flight attendant blow that little boy’s brains out.” He gestured for Tony to look back, only to see a woman point a gun to his sleeping son’s head. She didn’t even seem fazed that she was pointing a gun at a child, her face was blank and her hand was unmoving.

“Don’t,” Tony growled. His hands were shaking, but Tony lowered his gun.

“That’s a good boy Stark. Go sit down, we are preparing for takeoff.”

“No,” Tony seethed, his heart beating rapidly. He could hear each heartbeat in his ear, warning him of his impending doom. “Who are you and where is Rhodey?”

“My name is Stern, and I swear to god I’ll have that boy killed. Now, go. Sit. Down.”

“Wait, Senator Stern?” Tony asked and when Stern smiled, Tony knew he was correct.

“Sit. We have a destination to reach.” Stern warned, and glanced at the flight attendant. Their silent conversation went unnoticed by Tony.

“Who sent you?” Tony demanded, his voice filled with rage, shock, and disgust.

Stern ignored his question and grinned.

“Afghanistan is lovely this time of year.” Stern wickedly laughed.

Noiselessly, the flight attendant crept up behind Tony and pricked Tony’s neck. Tony was unconscious before he plummeted to the floor.

Notes:

oooo plot twist to Tony's plan

Who do you think is behind the kidnapping?

Of note, I am 100% not following the MCU timeline by any means. This is just me and my crazy ideas.

Angst to come!!

Chapter 11: Hold Back the Tide

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text

Pepper dreamed of Tony. She dreamed of the night they first danced together. In her dream, she saw his eyes sparkle when he swayed with her, and felt his warm hand resting on her back. She dreamed of his warmth and his smile. In her dream, she was so happy with him.

When she woke, she was so cold. With her eyes still closed, she reached out for him, looking for his warmth. Her fingers grasped the cool sheets. She had forgotten that he would be gone before she woke up. She sighed and pulled herself out of bed.

She sleepily tiptoed into Peter’s room to check that he was awake. She rubbed her eyes, blinked, and looked down into the crib.

Empty.

There was nothing but the rumpled blankets in the bed. No Peter. The fear jolted her awake, and she frantically began searching the apartment.

“Peter?” She called, looking for him in the living room. Maybe he had snuck out of his crib to play? But he was nowhere to be found.

She checked the bedrooms, the bathrooms, the kitchen, and nothing.

“Friday?” Pepper asked with terror. Why didn’t she think of that before? She could feel the panic attack coming.

“Yes, Mrs. Stark?”

“Where’s Peter? Where’s my baby?” Pepper’s voice trembled.

“He left last night with his father for Malibu,” Friday confirmed her worst fears.

“HE WHAT?!” She screamed, dropping to the ground. She clutched her heart. She could feel her heart beating so hard that it hurt. The ringing in her ears burst like a gun and drowned out her ability to think clearly.

Peter. Peter. Peter. Peter where are you?

How could Tony? What the fuck was he thinking? Oh, she was going to kill Tony.

“Call him. NOW.” Pepper demanded.

“I am afraid I am unable to connect with him,” Friday admitted.

“Friday get him back here right now. Turn his plane around, bring him back.”

“I am unable to connect with Mr. Stark,” Friday repeated.

Pepper full-on panicked. Her son. She felt like she couldn’t breathe. She felt like there was no air left in the world, that the apartment was on fire, that she was choking on her own lungs. She tried to think clearly. But she couldn’t. Nothing else mattered now that Peter wasn’t with her.

The fear of being separated by her son had scared her in the past. Now it consumed her.

“Mrs. Stark, it appears you are having a panic attack. I am requesting assistance from Dr. Banner,” Friday spoke calmly and paused. “Dr. Banner is on his way, as is Happy Hogan.”

When Bruce and Happy arrived, they found Pepper curled up on the floor in a ball. She was shaking uncontrollably, and tears were falling down her cheek and pooling on the cold hardwood around her.

“Pepper? Hey Pepper it’s me, Dr. Banner? It’s me, Bruce. What happened?”

“He took my baby,” Pepper shakily whispered.

Happy let out the breath he didn’t know he was holding. He knew her reaction would be bad. He just didn’t know it would be this bad.

“Pepper why don’t you sit up?” Happy asked.

“Where’s Peter? Where’s my baby?” Pepper cried softly, still not moving.

“He’s fine. He’s with Tony.” Happy timidly admitted. Why Tony didn’t decide to leave a note or something, anything, was beyond Happy’s comprehension.

Pepper looked up. Her blue eyes were shining in the dim light of the living room. But Happy could see not only the tears, but he could see the overwhelming anger bubbling up.

“You knew,” Pepper said coldly.

She paused and studied Happy's conflicted face.

“You knew.” She repeated.

She lunged at Happy.

“YOU KNEW AND YOU LET HIM TAKE MY SON FROM ME!” She shrieked and clawed at Happy. Bruce jumped back in fear, not knowing how to handle it.

“Friday get the team up here ASAP,” Happy begged and tried to block Pepper’s erratic swats.

“HOW COULD YOU HAPPY?” Pepper demanded.

“I had no choice-” Happy started.

“NO YOU LET THIS HAPPEN,” Pepper screamed, hitting Happy against the face.

When the elevator dinged, Nat, Steve, Clint, and Thor rushed out, wondering what the emergency that Friday had alerted them about. When they saw Happy being attacked by a woman, they exchanged confused glances.

“What’s going on?” Steve asked, rushing forward to get in between the woman and Happy.

“Pepper why are you attacking Happy?” Nat asked, pulling Pepper aside.

“He took Peter,” Pepper cried.

“What?” Thor asked, thinking of the little boy they met in the training room. Was this the boy's mother?

“He took Peter and didn’t tell me,” Pepper sobbed and turned to Happy.

“And you knew about it!” Pepper screamed and thrashed out towards Happy, but was held back by Nat.

“Happy is this true?” Nat asked.

“He made me promise not to tell,” Happy admitted, and Pepper wiggled in Nat’s grasp, the anger exploding from within all over again.

“Where did they go? Maybe you can fly out to meet them,” Steve suggested as the elevator dinged for the second time.

“Malibu,” Happy stated, “Rhodey is flying them out.”

“Actually,” A voice interrupted, and everyone turned to see Rhodey in the elevator. “I was compromised.”

Rhodey stood just outside the elevator but was barely able to stand upright. He clutched his chest as if he would fall apart if he didn’t hold on. He had two black eyes and a welt on his forehead. The cuts all over his arms and face were still bleeding.

Pepper stared at Rhodey. Her mind and body were unmoving. When it finally clicked what it meant that Rhodey wasn’t flying the plane, her mind went into overdrive. Worst case scenarios started playing over and over again. Pepper started to tremble uncontrollably.

“Shit what happened?” Clint asked.

“Hey language, Bruce get your medical equipment,” Steve commanded and Bruce nodded.

“Looks like he needs stitches, he might even need surgery,” Bruce said and motioned to the elevator, “let’s go down to Medbay.”

“Who did this atrocity to you?” Thor asked.

Rhodey glared at Thor, the pain and anger flared in his eyes.

“Loki,” Rhodey mumbled.

The room was so silent. No one could talk or even breathe. It was like the whole world had stopped spinning for a moment.

“Who the hell is Loki?” Pepper asked.

“Let’s just say he’s interested in taking Tony down,” Rhodey explained.

The whole world did stop spinning. Permenantly.

“We need to contact Stark, can you call his plane?” Steve asked.

“I’m trying right now,” Happy said, his phone pressed to his ear. Pepper rushed over to Happy, clutching to the hope that she could catch some of the conversation.

“Do you think he’ll kill Tony?” Steve asked, looking at Thor expectantly. Pepper covered her mouth and held back a sob.

“No, Tony is more valuable alive to Loki, no one will accept Loki taking over Stark territory if he kills a child.” Rhodey explained miserably, the pain starting to become even more unbearable.

"What about Peter?" Pepper asked, but no one answered.

“No answer,” Happy said.

“Well, try again!!” Pepper screamed, tears forming in her eyes.

“No answer,” Happy cringed as it went to voicemail again.

“TRY AGAIN!” Pepper screeched, then crumbled to the floor in tears.

“We need to find them,” Clint commented to Steve.

Steve looked at Pepper crying on the ground. Even though he just met her, he sympathized with her. He knew how it felt to lose the people you love. He lost the love of his life, Peggy. And he lost his best friend, Bucky. He didn’t want Pepper to have to go through that.

“Clint, Nat, Thor, let’s go find Loki. Bruce, take Rhodey to Medbay, fix him up. Happy, keep trying to call and locate the plane.” Steve ordered pushing his team out of the penthouse.

Bruce helped Rhodey get back in the elevator by slinging Rhodey’s arm around himself so that Bruce carried the grunt of Rhodey’s weight. Steve, Nat, Clint, and Thor followed after them, immediately beginning to discuss their plan. Happy followed behind them, still on the phone trying to reach the plane.

When the elevator doors closed, Pepper was utterly and completely alone.
--

Tony groaned. Why did his head hurt so much? He kept his eyes closed, hoping that he could just keep sleeping.

But then everything came back to him. The flight, Senator Stern, the gun pointed at Peter, getting knocked out.

His eyes snapped open only to reveal utter darkness. He felt around, searching for the one thing that mattered most. Peter. All he felt was the scratchy linens he was laying on.

“Peter?” Tony’s concerned voice echoed into the darkness, his words floating farther and farther away.

“Peter!” Tony called out, frantically sitting up. Light burst out of nowhere, and Tony shielded his eyes. The dizziness overcame him, but he pushed it away as he held onto the side of the small bed frame with one hand and covered his eyes with the other.

“Good, you are awake,” A gruff voice with a thick accent said. It was close to Tony, he could feel the presence of this person ever so close to him.

Tony cautiously opened his eyes, to see a group of five men standing in front of him. They wore camouflage and scarves to cover their hair and face. They held their machine guns firmly, with a few of them pointing directly at Tony’s head. Tony scanned the rest of the room and saw metal scraps, a workbench, tools, and more guns. But no Peter. He frantically scanned the room looking for his boy, but all he saw was another man in the room. A bald, skinny man, who just sat in the corner watching.

“Where is he?” Tony asked.

One of the terrorists smacked Tony across the face with the rifle.

“We do the talking!” The terrorist yelled.

“Where is the kid?” Tony demanded not wanting to reveal the kid was actually his kid. If Peter was still alive, Tony didn’t want to give them any more reasons to hurt Peter.

They hit Tony again, even harder this time. Tony could feel the blood running down his face.

“Shut up and start building! You build us Ironman suit!” The terrorist said, waving his gun towards the other side of the room. When Tony didn’t move, two terrorists grabbed him by the arms and threw him across the room. Tony skidded across the ground, he could feel the burn throbbing from where his hands scraped across the cold hard floor.

“I’m not doing anything until you bring the boy here,” Tony muttered from the ground. He couldn’t, he wouldn’t go on without Peter. Tony reasoned that if Peter was gone, there was no point in doing anything these assholes wanted.

The men whispered to one another in a language that Tony could not understand. One nodded.

“Fine,” the man who nodded agreed, kicking Tony in the stomach as he walked past, and promptly went to the metal door. When he left, he slammed the door shut, and Tony could hear the metal locks click into place.

“You build suit or we kill boy,” another terrorist said.

Tony gulped. These weren’t the kind of people who should have the kind of power Ironman brought. But he would do anything to protect Peter. Anything. Even if that means going against what little moral compass Tony had.

“Don’t hurt him,” Tony demanded, trying not to show weakness in his distraught voice.

“We won’t if you give us suit. Give us suit and we will free you.” One of the terrorists explained.

The metal door clicked again, and the terrorist came in holding Peter under his armpits. The terrorist had Peter outstretched as far away from himself as possible in an attempt to prevent the boy from kicking him. Peter kicked his little feet as hard and as fast as he could, demanding to be put down. When Peter saw Tony, his kicks and cries only got more frantic.

The terrorist set Peter down and Peter promptly ran into Tony’s open arms. Tony grabbed his shaking son’s body and pulled him into his chest. He held him tightly, unwilling to let go. Tony’s fingers automatically went to push Peter’s face into his chest to keep Peter from seeing the blood on his face. His hand rested gently in Peter’s hair, soothingly brushing his curls back.

“Finish suit Stark, or else,” one of the terrorists said. Tony bit his tongue to prevent himself from saying a snarky comment about how weak of a threat that was and instead distracted himself by using his free hand to wipe the blood from his face. The group of men gathered and exited the room by slamming the metal door shut. When Tony heard the click, he pulled Peter back to make sure he was okay.

Physically, Peter was completely unharmed. If Peter wasn’t currently crying in a cave, Tony would have no idea just looking at him that Peter had just been kidnapped and separated from his family.

“Did they hurt you?” Tony asked, brushing the curls out of Peter’s eyes and scanning the small boy’s body.

Peter shook his head. No. Peter remembered waking up in a cold dark room. Nothing like the bedroom mommy had tucked him into last night. And a scary man wearing a red scarf was there with a big scary gun. But the scary man didn’t touch him. The man just stared at Peter, watching him cry for his mommy and Ironman.

“it’s okay baby, we will get out of here,” Tony promised and leaned in to kiss his forehead. They had to.

“Afraid it won’t be that easy.” The man who had been sitting in the corner watching spoke up. Tony instinctively pulled Peter closer to him and shielded Peter from the man, blocking the stranger’s view of Peter.

“And you are?”

“Doctor Ho Yinsen, Believe me, I’m not friends with those guys.”

“Ah, I finally met a man called ‘Ho’,” Tony joked, but he made no effort to smile. Ho simply nodded.

“Where are we?” Tony asked, breaking the silence.

“Afghanistan. I’m sure they are looking for you Stark. But they will never find you in these mountains.”

“Who are those guys?” Tony asked.

“The Ten Rings, they’re terrorists, awful people, worse than you Stark,” Ho explained.

“You know who I am?” Tony asked.

“Of course I do. Famous mobster. Ironman. Genius billionaire. Everyone knows all about you and the most powerful mob in the world. You’ve only gotten more powerful and richer in money and blood with Ironman, right?”

“I don’t kill innocent people or kidnap children,” Tony stated.

“No you don’t, clearly that child willingly came with you,” Ho deadpanned.

“He’s my son,” Tony growled and hugged Peter to his chest. Peter hugged him back. Peter’s little fists held Tony’s shirt tightly in fear that if he let go of his hero, he would be taken away from Ironman.

“Haven’t heard that one on the news. Surprising you kept him a secret for so long when you’re constantly the headline of the news.”

“I’d like to keep it that way,” Tony stated. The terrorists might not have put two and two together. Yet. The second they did he was royally screwed.

“The Ten Rings, they say they have everything you need to build an Ironman suit. They want you to make the list of materials. They say for you to start working immediately, and when you’re done, he will set you free.” Ho explained.

“No, they won’t.”

“No, they won’t.”

They paused and stared at each other.

“You have a choice to make Stark,” Ho broke the silence.

“Is it blasting the crap out of those assholes?”

“Would you really risk having the boy get shot in the crossfire?” Ho asked, staring at the father and son.

Tony shook his head. He would never want to put Peter at risk.

“If you can build a suit to do hundreds of tasks, you can build a pod to fly to predetermined coordinates,” Ho explained.

“That would be possible, yes,” Tony agreed.

“Wonderful, so we will send the boy in a pod to the US,” Ho explained.

“What no! Are you out of your mind old man?”

“I told you, you must make a choice. You can make the suit for Ten Rings and hope they will release us. You can take your suit and kill the Ten Rings. The Ten Rings will try to overpower you, but realistically, this is your best option for you to survive. The Ten Rings expect you to try that and will prepare for such, and they won't care who dies in the crossfire. Or you can build pod that will safely deliver the boy home. We can include our GPS coordinates and hope your friends can rescue us in time.”

“if I blast our way out of here there’s no way the Ten Rings can beat me.”

“But they have leverage over you,” Ho pointed to Peter.

“I can build space for him in the suit,” Tony suggested.

“You do not have enough material. You try and stretch it and the metal will be too thin…” Ho paused but then continued.

“And their explosions will rip through your suit like it was made of paper.”

The two men stared at each other with calculating looks, willing the other to talk.

“What if this pod malfunctions? What if Peter gets lost in the pod and no one finds him? He could die!” Tony nervously rambled.

“Would you, the great, brilliant, Tony Stark, let that happen?” Ho asked.

Tony’s eyes narrowed.

“Never,” Tony said unwaveringly.

“I thought so.”

--

It had been one whole week. One whole week since Tony and Peter went missing. Pepper couldn’t even get out of bed. She would wake up in the morning, only wake up and remember she was living her worst nightmare. Again and again.

Each day that passed got harder and harder. There was no word on where they were. No one had found any leads and it was killing Pepper. All she wanted to do was hug her little boy and never let him go. But she couldn’t, and the fear that she never would see him again consumed her.

She was also ready to strangle Tony. She thought she was mad about him dragging her back into his world? Nothing compared to her seething anger she felt towards Tony for doing this to her. How could he pretend that being in Peter’s life was safer for them? It made her shake with rage.

“Pepper?” a soft voice called out from outside her bedroom door in the penthouse. Pepper didn’t have the will to respond. Instead, she just rolled over and stared at the wall.

“Pepper can I come in?” The voice asked again. Pepper didn’t even register the voice, she continued to stare at the wall and wondered what her baby was doing right now. God, she hoped he was still alive.

The door creaked open. While the rest of the team was looking for Tony 24/7, Nat had not only been looking for Tony, but she had been trying to help console Pepper. To no such avail so far.

But she had one final card to play.

“Pepper?” Nat called out and saw Pepper still lying in bed. “I have someone here to see you.”

“Unless it’s Peter then go away.”

“Mary – errr, I mean Pepper?” A new voice said.

Pepper knew that voice. She knew that voice so well. For two years, she heard that voice every day.

“May,” Pepper said breathlessly. Pepper sat up in bed and looked over to her closest friend from the past two years. Pepper’s eyes met May, and she burst into tears.

“Ohhhhhh Ma-Pepper,” May said rushing forward to engulf her lost friend into a hug.

“May,” Pepper sobbed into May’s hair.

“I’m here, I’m here,” May rocked Pepper, holding her as she cried.

“May, he took my baby,” Pepper chocked out.

“I know,” May sighed, holding back the tears. “Nat told me what happened. I’m – I’m so so sorry Pepper.”

“What if they never find him?” Pepper cried.

“Don’t think like that,” May sniffed.

Then suddenly, the damns broke. May couldn’t hold back her tears any longer. Everything that had happened to her in the past few weeks had been fucking awful. When she came home from her shift at the hospital two weeks ago, no one was there. No Ben, no Mary, no Peter. She looked everywhere. She tried to call Ben. She tried to call Mary. She called neighbors and even the nearby deli. Nothing. It wasn’t until she asked the doorman. He looked at her with horror and told her what happened. Only then did she find out the truth. That Ben was murdered. Peter and Mary were taken by the Stark mob. She had lost everything and everyone who mattered in life. She couldn’t even breathe. The love of her life was dead, and her best friend and nephew were gone.

When Nat showed up at her place this morning and told her who Mary and Peter really were, May was relieved to know the mob didn’t kill her best friend and nephew. When Nat told her what had happened to Peter, she lost it. It was bittersweet information. Her friend was alive, but Peter was kidnapped. And there was no trace.

“May,” Pepper cried, “I’m so so so sorry.”

“What are you sorry about?” May asked.

“Ben,” Pepper whispered.

May took a shaky breath.

“That is NOT your fault,” May grabbed Pepper’s shoulders and shook her lightly. “You hear me? You better not be blaming yourself for what happened.”

“But it is my fault,” Pepper sobbed.

“No. It. Isn’t. You did not pull the trigger, and you didn’t invite those guys over.”

“But they came looking for me and Peter, and Ben paid the price,” Pepper explained somberly.

“You and Peter? You both made me and Ben so happy. You were the best thing that ever happened to us. Seriously, I know if Ben could tell you himself, he would tell you that none of this is your fault.”

Pepper looked up at her friend. While her eyes were filled with tears, Nat recognized something else behind those watery eyes.

Hope.

“I’ve missed you so much May.”

“I’ve missed you too, Mary. Er wait should I be calling you Pepper? That is your real name, right?”

“Sorry about having to do that.”

“If you apologize one more time I will scream. You had to do what you had to do.”

“How are you so okay with everything? Ben is dead and Peter is missing and it’s all –“

“I swear Pepper if you say it is your fault again…”

“I know, I’m sor-“

“Pepper!!” May chastised, lightly hitting Pepper’s arm. For the first time since Peter was taken, Pepper laughed. It made May smile.

“Pepper, I’m okay because you’re okay. And knowing you, you’ll whip these mobsters into shape and find your son. If anyone can find him, I know it’s you.” May stated.

Pepper pulled her friend into a hug, seeking the comfort only May seemed to ever be able to provide.

“Thank you,” Pepper whispered as she hugged May tighter.

“Common, let’s go eat something,” May held out a hand to Pepper, and she took it. As they walked out of the bedroom, May added, “besides, you’re the boss's wife, today, you are going to boss these thugs around and get your son.”

--

Tony realized within a few hours of being in that cave, that he had to do something to distract Peter from all of this. To distract him, but to also keep him safe.

“Peter?” Tony called out to his son, who was jumping on the small bed that Tony had woken up on the first day weeks ago. Tony had lost count of the days after 22. His son had been in this cave longer than he had even been home. It made Tony sick.

“I’nman!” Peter giggled out and jumped down.

“Remind me of the game rules,” Tony asked as he continued to tighten a screw on the suit. They had made some progress on the replica suit that would never work and the pod to send Peter home, but it would be months before they finished.

“No peakin’ wen da sca’f guys come!” Peter exclaimed.

“Yup, you get 5 points for keeping your eyes closed and hiding under the bed while they are here. And another 5 for waiting to come out until I say so. Oh, and you get another 5 points for helping me tinker.”

“An go to bed!” Peter smiled triumphantly. For a kid who was currently being held hostage by terrorists, Peter was none the wiser. Tony knew he had himself to thank for that. By distracting Peter with this game, Peter never realized what was actually going on.

“Another 5 points goes to you Pete! How are you winning by so much?” Tony asked as he tickled his giggling son.

So far Peter was winning at the game. Every time the terrorist came into the room, he hid well, and didn’t make a peep. Thank god. Tony did not want his son to see the terrorists beat him and Ho until they couldn’t taste and see anything but blood. He didn’t want Peter to see the waterboarding. But Tony knew Peter heard the screams. Fuck, he wished he could send Peter home right now, he ached to get his son out of the danger.

“Finis’?” Peter asked after his giggling died down.

“Sorry Peter,” Tony sighed, “It’s going to take a while.”

It had been so long and yet the progress they had made was so slow. But Tony could not risk rushing it. One wrong calculation, one wrong screw, could jeopardize Peter’s safe return. And Tony and Ho’s safe rescue.

The design Tony created included coordinates on where to go, but also where the pod came from. Tony knew that the second Peter got home, the Avengers, mainly Bruce, would find the coordinates and would come to save them. By Tony’s calculation, they could safely deliver Peter home in the pod in 5 hours. It would take another 5 for the Quintjet to come to rescue them. Tony timed the interval between the Ten Ring's visits as every 10 to 12 hours. It had to be enough. It had to.

“I wan’ mommy,” Peter pouted as he flopped back onto the bed.

“Me too buddy, me too,” Tony sighed. God, he missed Pepper. How did he fuck up so badly? He hated himself for what he did.

“Hand me the wrench Stark,” Ho asked.

Ho was always listening, but he tried not to. It was hard for Ho, knowing that he lost his entire family despite being a good person. Yet here was a man, who had done so much harm on the world but he got to keep his son. But Ho knew that in the end, he was luckier his family was killed instantly. They didn’t have to see the torture. His son did not have to hide under a bed while the terrorists beat his father. His son didn’t have to eat stale bread and go to bed hungry. His son was brutally murdered, but it had been much less painful than what Peter was going through.

“Here,” Tony said absently as he handed the tool to Ho. Tony and Ho kept working in silence, the dim light barely illuminated their faces enough to see in front of them. Peter laid in bed watching them work, blinking the sleep from his eyes.

Peter was almost asleep when the three heard the familiar click of the lock on the door. Peter peaked his eyes open to see Tony gesturing to go under the bed.

“Peter,” Tony warned, and Peter crawled down below excitedly thinking about the 5 points he would earn for following the rules.

Peter had crawled under the bed just in time, but he decided to keep his eyes open. Peter realized that all these times he had kept his eyes closed and had heard funny noises, but not once did he know why Ironman and funny doctor man were making them.

Peter heard the footsteps get closer until he could see the grimy shoes in front of the bed he was hiding under.

“Progress?” One of the terrorists asked.

“We work as fast as we can,” Ho said.

The sound of the butt of a rifle hitting Ho’s head echoed throughout the room, but at Peter’s angle, he could not see what had happened so he was none the wiser.

“FASTER!” The terrorist demanded.

“They say patience is a virtue,” Tony snarked, much to the dismay of his captors.

Just then, Peter saw the feet move. They moved past his bed, and Ironman had joined them. They moved to the corner of the room, and this time, Peter could see everything.

Peter saw every blow. He saw the water poured over his hero’s face, only to be followed by another whack to the chest. Punch to the face. Kick to the groin. When the knife came out, Peter watched as the knife was dragged slowly across Ironman’s body. Peter saw the blood. But Peter noticed something. The only sound Ironman made was gasps and really quiet groans. Peter realized that if it was him, he would be screaming as loud as possible. Peter knew he would have cried. Why wasn’t Ironman crying?

Then Peter realized the truth. Ironman was a hero; he was stronger than anyone. He didn’t cry, because heroes are more amazing than anyone else Peter ever knew.

The terrorists kept going. They kept hurting Peter’s Ironman. And Peter watched all of it until the terrorists finally left. Peter watched Ho go over to Ironman. Peter watched the doctor stitch up Ironman and cover his boo-boos with a cloth.

“You can come out now Pete,” Tony called out once Ho was done. Ironman was surprisingly chipper. Peter was confused, he did not understand. How could Ironman sound so happy after the mean guys hurt him so much?

Peter crawled out from under the bed and looked up to see Ironman watching him. Peter did not need to be told; he knew Ironman needed a hug. Peter ran over to his hero and jumped into his arms. Peter hugged him as hard as he could, trying to take away any lingering pain he had just witnessed.

Tony wrapped his arms around his boy. Tony loved the empathy Peter had, and that Peter could always read a room and knew what was needed. Peter definitely didn’t inherit that from him. And what Tony needed, what he would always need, was his son to be safe in his arms.

“It’s late, you ready for bed?” Tony asked, breaking the silence but not breaking the hug.

Peter just nodded, and Tony lifted him up, carried him to the bed, and laid him down gently. When Peter made grabby hands, Tony could not deny his son and crawled into bed next to Peter. Peter cuddled into his hero, seeking the warmth and comfort he could always provide.

Just when Tony thought Peter had finally fallen asleep, he heard Peter shift.

“How many poin’s I have?” Peter whispered into the darkness.

“I think…” Tony paused. “3000.”

“Wow,” Peter said, his eyes big and full of amazement.

“Yup,” Tony sighed, brushing his son’s hair and hugging him closer.

“Guess wha?” Peter asked wiggling in his hero's arms.

“What?” Tony asked to humor his son.

“I lub you dat much.” Peter said confidently.

“What do you mean?” Tony asked.

“I lub you 3000,” Peter said as he nestled into Ironman’s chest. Tony smiled for the first time they entered the cave.

“Wow,” Tony trailed off. “3000, that’s crazy.”

Notes:

I love May <3

I know Morgan says I love you 3000, well aware. But I'm sorry/not really sorry, I thought it was cute and we needed some cuteness in this darkness.

Chapter 12: Goodbyes and Hellos

Notes:

Wow I am so sorry for the delay, I recently got a dog and have been super busy with that, but I hope you enjoy it!

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text

“A press conference? Really?” Pepper asked, folding her arms.

“It’s our only option,” Rhodey explained. “We haven’t gotten any demands from Loki, and we need the people to back us up.”

“The last thing I want is for the entire world to know about Peter and how he’s connected to all of this,” Pepper argued. Her worst fear was the entire world associating her son to the mob. Getting the ‘people’ to sympathize with her as a distraught mother wasn’t necessarily a priority for her.

“I agree with Pepper,” May added, “I don’t think it’s a good idea to reveal Peter’s identity to the world.”

“We would rather not have to, but how else will we force Loki to act?” Nat asked.

“Show up in Loki’s territory and demand my son back.” Pepper stated as if it was completely logical.

“Loki is a trickster and now that he’s leading the Chitauri we know he had to be ruthless to get there. He doesn’t follow the old rules. He’ll kill you and won’t hesitate to kill Peter.” Rhodey explained.

The old rules. Pepper rolled her eyes. Pepper had learned a lot in the past month about how the mob operated. How wives and children should be left out of business. The fact that mobs swore to never entangle their woman and children should be reassuring. But Pepper rationalized if that was the case, she wouldn’t have been forced back into this world, and Peter would never have been taken in the first place. So much for following the old rules.

“I’m not a mobster! Loki has no reason to target me, I’m just looking for my son!” Pepper exclaimed.

“If you show desperation, he will take advantage of that.” Rhodey justified.

“I’m not desperate, I’m just ready to cut Loki’s head off for involving my son.”

“Like that will help find Tony and Peter. Let’s just have a press conference, gain sympathy from civilians and other mobs who follow the old rules, and Loki will be pressured to return your son.” Rhodey explained.

“No.”

“Pepper,” Nat warned, “it’s our best chance.”

Pepper grumbled. She didn’t like this at all.

“Fine. But I want to do the talking.”

“I’ll write the script and we can hold a press conference in a week.” Rhodey sighed a breath of relief. Hopefully, this would end soon.

As Rhodey and Nat walked away, May turned to Pepper.

“Don’t tell me you’ll be their obedient puppet right?” May begged quietly, thinking Rhodey and Nat wouldn’t hear.

But Rhodey heard. And it made his blood boil.

--

Tony woke up to the sound of sniffling. It was light. Quiet. As if this person didn’t want anyone to know their misery. And for a second, he didn’t know if it was Ho or Peter. But when he rolled over to look at his son tucked in next to him, he could see the stream of tears down his son’s face. Peter’s eyes were closed, and it looked like he was squeezing his eyes shut as tightly as possible as if he was trying to stop any more tears from falling.

Tony reached out and brushed his face gently. At the touch of the callused fingers, Peter opened his eyes. Just looking into Peter’s eyes, Tony could see the pain and sadness swirled in his teary eyes.

“Mommy,” Peter choked out, his voice shaky.

“I know I miss her too,” Tony agreed, stroking away the tear falling down Peter’s face.

“I wan’ mommy,” Peter cried a little louder this time.

“Shh, shhh, shhh,” Tony soothed, gently brushing Peter’s soft curls and pulled him in closer. “We both do. But for now, go to sleep and you’ll earn 10 points. We are one day closer to seeing mommy.”

“Wen?” Peter asked, leaning into the touch and curling into his father’s arms.

“Soon,” Tony said.

Tony could only hope.

And as he watched Peter fall back asleep, Tony began thinking. What if they never made it out of here? What if their plan didn’t work? Or what if, Tony managed to save Peter but sacrifices himself in the process?

These thoughts swirled in his head as he watched his son’s small chest rise and fall with each breath. He thought and thought and thought, but the more he thought, the more he realized he wished he could apologize to Pepper. He wished he could tell her how sorry he was, and how much he loved her. But he couldn’t.

Or could he?

--
“Just stick to the script, and we will have Peter home in no time,” Rhodey comforted Pepper outside the press room at Stark Tower, where hundreds of reporters were waiting.

Nat glared at Rhodey, her eyes warning him to not make promises he couldn’t keep.

“The script isn’t going to get Peter home, we need to say more,” May pointed out, much to Rhodey’s annoyance. But Nat ignored it.

“You can do this,” Nat called out to Pepper as she walked in the doors. “Rhodey will introduce you and we will be beside you the whole time.”

Pepper took a deep breath and opened the door confidently. She was greeted by the white light of cameras flashing and the reporters yelling. She almost froze. Almost. The only thing that kept her going was Peter. The hope that this press conference was all that kept her going forward.

The sound of her name being called over and over again became white noise as she walked towards the podium. She glanced out to the crowd; her eyes glazed over the frenzy. She barely registered that Rhodey introduced her, and suddenly she was ushered to the podium to begin speaking.

Nat nudged Pepper, breaking Pepper from her trance. Pepper glanced down at her cards and began speaking

“Thank you Rhodey and good afternoon, thank you for being here.” She said shakily but was immediately interrupted.

“Mrs. Stark, is it true Tony Stark was kidnapped by Loki and the Chitarui?” A reporter screamed.

“Hold your questions until the end!” Rhodey scolded firmly.

“By now many of you have heard the rumors that Tony is missing,” Pepper continued. “It is true… Tony was kidnapped by Loki 2 months ago.”

The reporters began murmuring, the wave of sound gently washing over the room.

Pepper kept going

“Loki kidnapped Tony. But Loki also kidnapped…” Pepper took a deep breath. “Our son. Peter.”

The reporters and the cameras erupted. The tsunami of noise and light drowning out the room.

“You have a son?!?!”

“How old is Peter?”

“Why did you both hide the pregnancy and the birth of your child?”

“Is Peter inheriting the Stark empire?”

The questions kept coming and coming, preventing Pepper from continuing. Rhodey tried to control the reporters and get them to settle down, but the longer it went on, the more outrageous the questions got.

“Is Peter a secret love child with one of Tony’s former flings?”

“Is the reason you kept your son a secret because something is wrong with him?”

“What is wrong with you? Why would you bring a child into the mob? That’s too dangerous.”

“SHUT UP!!” Pepper screeched, and the room fell silent.

“All you care about is your stupid dramatic headline! You reporters are so thickheaded that you’d rather write a story about a secret love child or make up some other bullshit story than tell the truth! What don’t you get about the fact that my child was kidnapped and that all I want is for my son to come home safely?”

Rhodey and Nat spared a glance at one another. Pepper was going off script, and there was no way they would be able to stop her.

Rhodey immediately blamed May’s influence.

“Mrs. Stark, why was your son kept a secret?” A reporter called out.

“Because he deserves to have a normal safe childhood, and Loki and the rest of his family of thugs decided a child’s life isn’t sacred, that they could just pull an innocent kid into this mess.”

“Mrs. Stark, if you could send Loki a message right now, what would you say?” Another reporter asked loudly enough for Pepper to hear over the sea of other questions.

“You’ll never live another day without regretting breaking the old rules. I am coming for you. And when I find my son, you will regret everything you did to me and my family.”

Rhodey rushed forward to take Pepper’s spot at the podium, and Nat grabbed Pepper’s arm and began pulling her towards the exit. Once the two women were outside the conference room, Nat exploded.

“Why didn’t you stick to the script?” Nat asked, clearly frustrated.

“Nat, did you not hear the questions they asked? They were offensive!”

“Do you realize how aggressive you came off?”

“I don’t care! I meant what I said.”

“So you plan on going after Loki? That is a horrible idea.” Nat shook her head in anger.

“It’s been two months and we’ve got nothing. Nothing!”

The door slammed, and Rhodey stomped forward.

“What the hell was that? Do you know how bad that makes us look?” Rhodey demanded.

“They asked me if Peter had issues and if he was a secret love child! They tried to distract from the real story, which is exactly what Loki would want.”

“Well, now you threatened Loki and the Chitarui. You’re going to put us at a war with them.”

“Aren’t we already in a war? In case you forgot, Loki kidnapped Tony and my son!” Pepper argued.

“No blood has been shed. Yet. Your stunt may have started it.” Rhodey warned.

“I am finding my son, and getting Loki to make a move is the only way for us to be able to find my baby.”

“You’re not meeting with Loki,” Rhodey stated.

“Why the hell not?”

“You think Tony would ever want to put you in that kind of danger? Loki is insane, he’s a trickster, and we have no idea what he is planning.”

“Well, I am going to find him. And I will find my son.”

“I can’t do that. I know Tony would want you to be safe above all else.”

“I can’t be safe without Peter.”

“You want to test me?” Rhodey asked, getting angrier and angrier. “Fine.”

“Why are you arguing with me on this? Don’t you want to find Tony too?”

“I do, but I know him. He would rather keep you safe than risk letting you try and save him. And as his number two, he would want me to make sure you were safe. I know what the problem is.”

“What?” Pepper asked, taken aback. She was confused. What was the problem? What was Rhodey talking about?

“Nat?” Rhodey turned his attention away from Pepper.

“Yes?”

“Make arrangements to send May Parker away. She has caused more problems than I anticipated.”

“What no! You can’t do that.” Pepper screamed.

“I’m sorry, but it’s for your own good,” Rhodey explained.

“No! You can’t! How can you say it’s for my own good! She’s the only one who has actually been there for me.” Pepper cried, the fear of losing her friend all over again coursed through her veins.

“She’s encouraged you from the day we brought her to the tower to take these kinds of risks. She enables you and we can’t have that. It is safer for you if we send her away.”

“Fuck you! You have no right to do that!” Pepper screamed, the anger boiling over.

But Rhodey ignored her pleas.

“Arrange it,” He said, storming off.

Pepper turned to Nat, her eyes imploring and begging for help.

“Please don’t do this.”

“With Tony missing right now, he’s the boss. If I don’t follow him, I lose my ranking.”

“Nat please, after everything-“

But Nat cut her off before Pepper had to go any further.

“Listen, I have to arrange it, but I will tell you everything. We can keep it a secret. You’ll always know where she is, and I can give you both a burner phone with each other’s contact in case needed.”

“I just don’t want to lose another person.”

“You won’t. You’ll still have her if you need her. But listen, only contact her for emergencies.”

“Is there any other way?” Pepper begged.

“Unless you want me to be replaced with someone else…” Nat trailed off.

Pepper sighed. She knew what that would mean. She would have someone new to tail her every move. Someone much less understanding than Nat. Someone who would be completely loyal to the Stark family. Someone who would care less about what Pepper wanted as long as they fulfilled every demand of the boss.

“Fine but I want everything. Address. Phone. Email. Pager. Literally everything so I never lose May again.”

“Deal.”

“No one can know,” Pepper added.

“Done.”

--

“Ho?” Tony called out.

It was midday. Or at least he thought it was. Without windows, he couldn’t really tell. But they were all up. Peter was playing with scrap metal while Ho and Tony had been working on the ‘suit,’ but they were really working on the pod to send Peter home. The Ten Rings had checked on them a couple of hours ago, and by Tony’s calculation, it would be another 3 hours before they returned.

“I am listening.”

“Do you have paper and a pen?”

“Hm?” Ho looked up from the pod. “You need paper and pen? That’s not the kind of technology I would picture you using Stark.”

“To store a message in the pod would take extra time. And space. We don’t have that flexibility, which is why I am asking for a pen and paper so I can write something down.”

“We are installing the coordinates into the body of the pod. Surely you aren’t planning on writing that down?” Ho asked.

“No,” Tony sighed.

“Then what? You wish to write a letter?”

“It’s my only option. If I could, I would store a hologram in the pod and project my message, but we don’t have the materials or time to build that. And I don’t picture the terrorists forking over excess materials without questions.”

“They do ask questions.”

“And I’d like to avoid as much waterboarding as possible.”

“Easier said than done with these people.”

“Common don’t you have something? I peg you for a guy that always carries a journal.”

“You’re lucky that I do.”

“So –“ Tony started, but before he could finish, they heard the familiar click of the door opening.

They spared each other a glance, and Ho immediately began hiding the pod in the well-designed compartment in the suit. It blended into the body of the suit, looking as if it was the chest cavity. Tony was quick to usher Peter to hide under the bed. When Tony turned around, the men were glaring at him.

“Update.” The terrorist said.

“We are working as fast as we can,” Ho complained.

“You finish by August 11th,” The terrorist explained.

“You know time is a social construct, especially here. Hasn’t anyone told you how to be a gracious host and be patient with your guests?” Tony sarcastically said.

It earned Tony a smack across the jaw.

“It is July 31st.”

“There’s no way we can finish in less than two weeks!” Ho exclaimed.
It earned Ho a punch in the gut.

“You will,” the terrorist stated. “Or we kill the boy you hide.”

Tony’s eyes widened. There was no way they could finish at the rate they were going. They would have to work constantly to finish, and there was no guarantee that they would. And he couldn’t rush in case they made a mistake. If they did, Peter could die anyways.

Tony was so lost in thought that he didn’t notice the terrorists left. He only looked up when he heard Ho call his name for the 3rd time.

“Stark, the clock is ticking.”

Tony nodded.

“So you’ll lend me a pen and paper?”

“Sure Stark, if we can finish it in time, why not.”

--

“May,” Pepper cried, pulling May into a hug for what felt like the millionth time.

They stood in the lobby of the Tower, with Happy and Nat off in the corner watching from a distance. Pepper shooed them away, begging for a minute with her closest and most trusted friend. Rhodey knew better than to show up. Pepper was pissed at him and hadn’t spoken to him since the day he announced May was leaving.

“I’m going to miss you so much too,” May cried into Pepper’s arm.

“I wish you didn’t have to go,” Pepper admitted into May’s soft hair as May rubbed her back.

“I wish that too, but I have to think of the positives,” May argued weakly.

“Like?” Pepper asked skeptically.

“I get away from the hustle and bustle of New York,” May admitted, then dropped her voice. “Chattanooga will be a nice change I think.”

“It’s Tennessee,” Pepper whispered with concern, keeping the conversation as quiet as possible so that no one, not even the AI would pick up on anything they said.

“It won’t be that bad, it’ll be scenic.”

“It still can snow there.”

“I like snow,” May argued.

“it’s no New York.” Pepper reasoned.

“No, but you know where I will be. If you ever need me…”

“I will come find you. I’ll always be able to find you,” Pepper promised and pulled back from the hug as Nat and Happy approached. Already, she felt the warmth of May’s arms around her being replaced by the cold air of the lobby’s strong air conditioning.

“Your bus leaves in 20. I’ll drive you to Port Authority.” Happy offered, and May smiled.

“Thanks, Happy,” May acknowledged, then turned back to her friend. “You’ll find Peter. I know you will.”

Pepper nodded. She had work to do.

--

“I’nman!” Peter cried out. It was bedtime, but I’nman wasn’t coming to snuggle with him.

“Sorry Pete, we have lots of work to do.” Tony said. They were so close. For the past 9 days, they had stayed up and worked as fast as possible. And they were almost done.

“I’nman pwease.”

“Peter, your father and I are very busy,” Ho interjected.

“If you go to sleep now I’ll give you 100 points.”

“Noooooo,” Peter wined. He didn’t want points anymore. He realized the points were getting him nothing. All he wanted was his mommy and I’nman.

“Peter, I wish I could but we can’t stop working.”

“I hwelp,” Peter said, kicking the covers off. That got Tony to move.

Tony rushed over to stop Peter from jumping out of the bed and quickly grabbed his ankles. Peter giggled and tried to kick his feet, but Tony tickled his sides while pulling the covers back over Peter. The tickling only managed to get Peter to burst out laughing uncontrollably and Tony watched fondly. He knelt down next to the bed as his son caught his breath.

“Why you wushing?” Peter asked.

“We only have a few more days here okay? It’s like the sprint to the finish line.”

“Den we see mommy?”

“Yup, you’ll see mommy,” Tony explained, popping the p. He left out the part that Peter would be traveling solo in the pod and that Tony may never get rescued. While he felt bad for hiding that undeniable truth, Tony didn’t want to scare his son.

But Peter was smart.

“Wha’ ‘bout you?” Peter asked.

“What about me?” Tony asked, hoping to divert Peter.

“You come?” Peter asked.

“Pete,” Tony sighed and brushed Peter’s hair off his forehead. “You’re going to go first, but the Avengers will come back for me.”

“Weally?” Peter asked.

“The pod we are building has the GPS coordinates of where we are right now. Once you land back at home, the Avengers will be able to fly out on my Quintjet and save me and Ho… Do you get what I’m saying?”

“Ummm,” Peter thought but didn’t get why I’nman couldn’t come with him. “No.”

Tony sighed. Understandably.

“That’s okay kiddo, just go to sleep,” Tony whispered and leaned over to kiss Peter’s forehead who promptly yawned. “Love you 3000.”

“Lub you thwee-t’ousand,” Peter whispered back his eyes slipping closed.

Tony knelt next to him for a few more minutes, enjoying the serenity in this dark cave.

“Stark, we have work to do,”

“Yea, yea, I know,” Tony said sighing.

“We have just two days until the men said they would come to kill him.” Ho reminded.

“Right,” Tony stood and walked over to the workbench. “Wait so tomorrow is August 10th?”

“Yes, why the sudden interest?” Ho asked.

“August 10th is Peter’s birthday. He’ll be two.”

“And?” Ho asked rhetorically. It wasn’t like they could celebrate with a birthday cake and a party.

“Yea, I guess you are right.”

“Let’s work through the night. We can give him a birthday present in the morning. The pod. And send him home” Ho explained.

“Let’s get to work,” Tony agreed.

And they did.

At one point, Tony looked back at his son fast asleep. He realized by now it had to be past midnight, so his son was two. Two years old. He turned back to his workstation and looked at the blank paper Ho had given him earlier this morning. When he accepted it, he wasn’t sure what to write.

But now, he knew what he wanted to say.

--

Pepper woke up, absolutely miserable.

Today was Peter’s birthday. He was two. He should be here in her arms. She should be able to hug him and kiss him and sing him happy birthday. But she couldn’t. It destroyed her.

Pepper rolled over in bed. She didn’t even have May to talk to without compromising their secret contact information. She looked out the window, off into space, her mind completely blank, when her phone ringed.

Pepper watched the phone buzz. She knew it wouldn’t be May. May wouldn’t risk losing the ability to be able to contact her over a birthday they couldn’t celebrate. No matter how much it crushed the both of them. It had to be someone else.

Pepper picked up the phone and examined the number. An unknown New York number. She was confused but she picked up.

“Hello?” Pepper asked, her voice hoarse from sleep.

“I quite liked the press conference,” An unfamiliar voice answered.

“Who is this?” Pepper demanded, unsure of who she was talking to.

“Hmmm,” the voice dragged out, “I would think you would know who this is. After all, you were the one who wanted to talk.”

“Loki,” Pepper stated.

“Well done dear.”

Pepper growled into the phone.

“Now now, let’s play nice for a bit.”

“You took my son. I have no plans on playing nice.”

“Your son isn’t what I was after.”

“You want power I get it. My child has nothing to do with what you want.”

“Hurts doesn’t it? Being lied to.” Loki asked.

“What are you talking about?”

“Peter has everything to do with the power I want. You are delusional to think your boy won’t inherit the Stark empire one day. Whatever Stark told you is a lie.”

“He won’t…”

“Because Stark promised? He promised he wouldn’t bring work home, that Peter would stay out of it?”

Pepper didn’t respond, giving Loki the green light to continue his rant.

“He has every intention of handing his work down to his son. That’s how it has worked and always will work in our world.”

“Peter isn’t a part of your world.”

“Oh, but he is. And so are you. You might think you aren’t, but you are. You might try to run, but you’ll never be able to escape it.”

“Give me my son and you’ll see. We will leave.”

“Ah ah, but then the day Peter grows up and finds he is the rightful heir to the Stark empire, he will come and try to fight me. Honestly, I am doing you a favor.”

“Peter’s not like that.”

“The boy is a product of his father.”

“No, Peter is different. He is better than all of this. If he has a chance to have a normal life, to be a good person, he won’t want anything to do with this mess.”

“I beg to differ. He will grow and the blood in his veins will drive him towards the mob, not away.”

“You’re wrong.”

“You know, I called to thank you for the press conference. I thoroughly enjoyed watching.”

“I’m coming for you. And so are the rest of us. Other mobs are aligning with us, and we are all looking for you.”

“So what you’ll kill me? Evidently, there will be a line.” Loki teased.

“I won’t kill you.”

“Right you’ll have others do that for you. You play the part of an innocent, perfect, and sweet housewife, but really, you’re no better than the rest of the Starks. You have just as many secrets. And you’ve hurt those around you by keeping them. You play dirty, you’re only playing the sympathy card in order to ruin my plans.”

“So it’s working?” Pepper called him out, much to Loki’s annoyance.

“All I know is it is your son’s birthday. I’ll make sure he celebrates his birthday in style.” Loki tormented.

“I swear to god…”

But the line went dead.
--

“Peter,” Tony sang, shaking the boy lightly to wake him up.

“Peter,” Tony repeated.

Peter groaned and rolled over. It was much earlier than he usually woke up.

“Common Peter, wake up, it’s your birthday.” Tony teased, and Peter peaked his eyes open.

“Birfday?” Peter asked.

“Happy birthday Pete,” Tony said softly.

“Weally?”

“Yes, ‘weally’,” Tony said, mimicking Peter’s childish voice.

“Tanks,” Peter acknowledged, getting out of bed.

“Ho and I got you a present,” Tony stated.

“Yes, your father and I have finished building your pod early,” Ho explained. They stayed up all night. And they figured it out. Ahead of schedule.

“O,” Peter said. Peter realized what that meant. That meant he would be separated from his hero. His Ironman. The nervousness in Peter’s chest began bubbling up, and he grabbed Ironman’s hand for support.

“Common over Peter, let’s get ready,” Tony called out, holding out his hand. Peter tentatively took it, scared of what the future held.

Ho and Tony worked quickly to get the pod situated. It would be able to blast through the door once the terrorists left after dropping off their morning meal. After a few minutes, they would send the pod out. And hopefully, that would buy them enough time to wait for the Avengers to come to rescue them.

So they waited. They waited and waited until the door opened and food was dropped on the ground with a clang.

After a minute passed to ensure the terrorists would be far enough away, Ho turned to Tony.

“It is time,” Ho stated.

Tony took a shaky breath and turned to look down at Peter. Peter was already looking up at him. The second they made eye contact, Tony could feel his own eyes beginning to water.

“Wha? Why you cwying? I’nman no cry. I’nman hero, an’ heroes neva cwy cause dey stwong” Peter asked confused.

“Heroes do cry, Pete. Heroes cry because they are strong. And guess what?” Tony said, holding back the tears.

“Wha?”

“You’re a superhero because you’re going to save us.”

“Weally?” Peter asked, his eyes lighting up.

“Absolutely. When you get home you tell the Avengers to open this,” Tony gestured to the panel inside the pod that showed their precise location on a map. “And when you see mommy, you give her this note for me, got it?”

Tony handed the letter to Peter. He picked up his son, and put him in the seat of the pod, and buckled a crying Peter in.

“I love you 3000,” Tony said.

“I lub you 3000 daddy,” Peter cried out, reaching his arms out to his father.

Tony’s eyes widened at being called daddy. All this time he hadn’t heard that precious name. In all honesty, Tony didn’t think he ever would hear it. It was the greatest gift, and all he could do was let the tears quietly stream down his face.

Tony gave his baby one last kiss on the forehead. He tried not to waste any time, but it was hard not to when Tony knew this could very well be the last time they ever saw each other.

Tony closed the door to the pod. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

“Ready?” Ho asked.

Tony could only nod.

Tony hoped that Peter wasn’t scared. Tony hoped Peter would be brave and make it back safely into Pepper’s arms. Tony hoped that this wasn’t goodbye, but he realized he could accept death as long as Peter made it home.

As long as Peter was safe.

Notes:

There's so much to unpack in this chapter I hope it wasn't too much too quickly

was it worth the wait to hear Tony being called dad? I hope so.

Also what do you think is in the letter to Pepper? Any ideas or thoughts on what he should say?

Chapter 13: When I Drift Off

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text

Pepper stared at her phone after the line went dead. The fire that had been burning inside her since her son’s kidnapping erupted wildly. Loki’s words echoed in her head. ‘I’ll make sure he celebrates his birthday in style.’ If Pepper wasn’t going to make sure Loki was dead before, she was going to kill him herself. Personally.

That anger made Pepper pause. Where did that blood lust from? She wanted nothing to do with the violence that came with the mob, but here she was, ready to kill for her son. She was turning into a mobster herself, threatening people, starting family wars. She was becoming everything she wanted to avoid for Peter. She wondered where that change came from. Was it always inside her all this time? Or was it the madness of missing Peter for so long? God she wished she could talk to May right now.

Interrupting her thoughts was a knock on her bedroom door.

“Pepper?” Nat’s voice rang out.

“What?” Pepper asked, her voice shaking.

“Are you okay? You sound a little shaken up.” Nat commented. Pepper turned to see Nat standing in her doorway, with Bruce lingering behind her.

“Oh, you know…” Pepper trailed off.

“We know it’s Peter’s birthday,” Bruce interjected. “And umm… well I started this before Peter was, well, taken but I thought you might want it since it’s his birthday.

Bruce hesitantly stepped past Nat. His arms hesitantly extended to hand over a small package. Pepper eyed it skeptically but took it nonetheless.

“Thank you,” Pepper mumbled as she took it. She went to unwrap it but then paused. “I’m sorry, I – I sound so ungrateful for everything you’ve done. It’s just hard you know?”

“Don’t worry about it, Pepper.” Bruce smiled. “I don’t think we could ever fully comprehend what you are going through.”

“It’s just-“ Pepper stumbled over how to admit her feelings. God her inability to talk about emotions made her feel like she really was turning into Tony. “It’s just that I’m angry. But I don’t know who I should be angry at. if I should direct that anger at Loki or at Tony. Or even me. Tony lied to me about a lot of things but he loved - er - loves me. But Loki was the one who actually took them. But Tony put Peter in danger, but it was an accident. He wasn’t trying to.”

“So you don’t know who to blame?” Nat asked.

“No! And it’s so frustrating and confusing.”

“I’m sorry, I, I wish I - or well - we could help more,” Bruce stuttered.

“You are helping. I know you are. Everyone is.” Pepper sighed as she unwrapped the gift.

A watch.

Pepper looked up, confused.

“Um, well when I first met Peter he really liked my watch,” Bruce admitted.

“I remember,” Pepper reminisced. “He sat on your lap in the living room.”

“Yea. So I built him one that looks just like mine. The band I put on it is smaller than mine but I didn’t know his exact size but you can always change it out… anyways I thought it would be a cool gift and I leveraged Friday to outfit it with some features.”

“Features?” Pepper asked.

“Well, engineering isn’t my specialty but I was able to use Friday to build everything. I was able to make him his own AI that only he can activate by pressing this button on the right twice. It scans his face to make sure it’s Peter then his AI is activated. Pretty cool huh? Friday suggested giving him his own AI since I thought it could be helpful as a tracking device in case of emergency and as a way for him to contact you or Tony if he got lost, but then Friday said I could do more and so I got carried away trying to add lots of features into the AI so there’s a lot more…”

“It was your coping mechanism,” Pepper guessed.

“Yea,” Bruce admitted. “It was.”

“Thank you, it’s really sweet.” Pepper smiled weakly.

“Of course. But you might want to keep the AI part a secret until he’s a little older okay? There’s a lot of features on there he probably won’t need as a two-year-old.”

Pepper nodded. She didn’t want to say what she was really thinking. That Peter may never get to see this watch. That he wasted his time. That it pained her to have those thoughts, but it was like those thoughts were screaming at her.

“Listen Pep, the rest of the team is here. They planned some stuff to try and help you get through the day.” Nat explained.

“That’s nice of them,” Pepper stated.

“But you don’t want that,” Bruce concluded.

“I think I’d rather be alone.” Pepper sighed. But despite her protests, Nat pulled Pepper out of her room.

Pepper looked up as she exited her room to see every single Avenger in her living room. Steve, Thor, Clint, and Rhodey all stood waiting for her.

“Look Pep-“ Rhodey started.

“No, you don’t get to rationalize what you did to May. She was all I had with Peter gone-.”

“No listen,” Rhodey interjected, “I’m doing what I know Tony would have done.”

“How could you say that?” Pepper asked infuriated.

“Tony would never let you put yourself in any danger you know that.”

“But what about my son? He put him in danger.”

“You know this isn’t something he wanted. And you know he’ll do anything to protect Peter.” Rhodey explained.

“How do you know?” Pepper asked, the frustration in her voice evident.

“Because-“ Rhodey started but was interrupted by Friday.

“Mrs. Boss and Avengers, there appears to be an unidentified object on the patio of the penthouse.”

“What is it Friday?” Steve asked.

“My sensors are unable to penetrate the walls of this object. It appears to be a pod holding something.”

“Thanks, Friday,” Steve said. “Avenger’s let's go. Bruce, you stay with Pepper.”

“I’m coming with.”

“Absolutely not,” Rhodey said.

“Try and stop me,” Pepper said, storming off in front of everyone to the landing pad.

“Pepper!” Nat called.

“Pepper don’t!” Steve yelled.

“Pepper no!” Rhodey yelled as Pepper yanked the door open to the landing pad.

As the Avengers chased after her, Pepper stormed right over to the pod. If this was the gift Loki was talking about, she would see for herself.

When she approached, she noticed it was definitely made from scraps. It clearly wasn’t built in a factory; no, this was one of a kind. And while it was evident that the engineer didn’t have the best materials at hand, the craftsmanship was incredible. It almost reminded Pepper of, well, Tony. But Pepper quickly realized it couldn’t be Tony inside. This pod was far too small for a grown man

As Pepper watched the pod door unlock itself and slowly open, the rest of the Avengers caught up to her and they all watched in anticipation as to what was about to happen next.

“Mommy?”

The soft voice echoed out into the warm summer air. To Pepper, it felt like a fantom voice. As if she was hallucinating and hearing what she wished she could hear. Was she dreaming? Did her mind finally let her hear what she had been wishing for all these months?

Pepper peered over the edge of the pod to look inside. Her eyes bulged when she recognized the soft curls and the big brown eyes.

“Pe-Peter?” Pepper cried.

“Mommy!!!” Peter screamed, his arms lunged out and flailed desperately, begging for his mother begging to hold him. The ride in the pod was scary without daddy. But finally, he found his way home to mommy.

Pepper surged forward, wrapped her arms around her baby, and scooped him up. Her baby was in her arms. Her baby was alive. She pulled him into the tightest hug she had ever given, and buried her face in his hair. It smelt like her baby. She could smell her baby again. It was really him. He was alive, and as Pepper held him, she felt for scratches or broken bones. But he felt fine.

“Oh Peter,” Pepper cried, the tears of joy streaming down her face uncontrollably. “How did you get here? How did you get in that thing?”

“Daddy,” Peter explained, hugging his mom and listening to her heartbeat. He had missed his mommy so much. Her hugs were so warm and he missed the way his mommy hugged him. But he realized he also was now starting to miss his daddy. The mother and son were so engrossed in hugging each other Pepper almost completely ignored the Avenger’s conversation.

“Daddy?” Rhodey asked quietly to Nat. Everyone knew that Peter had only ever called Tony Ironman. Or, well, I’nman, since Peter struggled with his ‘r’s.

“Daddy and mista ‘O wan you to find dem,” Peter explained, pointing to the pod then immediately leaning back into his mother’s arms.

Bruce stepped closer examining the pod. He looked in the interior of the pod, looking for some sort of message or way Stark would have communicated with them, and immediately spotted something.

“I don’t see any note or anything that would give us any clue as to where they are,” Steve said.

“That’s because this is Stark we are talking about. It’s not written down anywhere,” Bruce explained, then pointed to the USB port. “because his message is in there.”

“What?” Steve asked, utterly confused.

“Dude, you gotta learn a thing or two about computers,” Clint quipped.

“Nat, can you grab a flash drive and my computer?” Bruce asked.

“Sure,” Nat rolled her eyes but proceeded to run back inside as she called out. “Send the woman.”

“It’s not like Captain underpants will even know what a flash drive is.” Bruce added.

“He’s got a point,” Rhodey added.

“Computers are not Steve’s specialty,” Thor joked.

“Wouldn’t want to risk it,” Clint joked.

“Yea well…” Steve argued, “Fine, I don’t know what a flash drive is.”

“Told ya,” Clint joked.

“Yea yea, well at least I have manners,” Steve claimed.

“You’re always such a gentleman, especially when you killed that arms dealer with your bare hands when he tried to take the Bronx from us,” Nat quipped as she ran back out with the computer and the flash drive.

“Thanks, Nat,” Bruce acknowledged then immediately got to work.

While he wasn’t as skilled as Tony was with computers, Bruce made quick work to figure out what was saved in the pod.

“It’s coordinates,” Bruce explained.

“Where is it?” Steve asked. “It must be where Tony is being held.”

“Pulling it up now,” Bruce commented without taking his eyes off the screen he had projected in the air above the pod. “It looks like somewhere in the mountains in Afghanistan. Possibly in a cave since it’s the outskirts of this mountain range.”

“You think that’s where Stark is?” Steve asked.

“I think so,” Bruce said, “my hypothesis is that he probably couldn’t save both him and Peter so he sent Peter first with these coordinates hoping we would find them and be able to rescue Tony.”

“If that’s true then we are probably already on borrowed time. If Loki sent him to Afghanistan, he’s probably already been informed that Peter escaped and is probably already on his way.”

“We must get going if we want to save Stark,” Thor added.

“He’s right, we don’t know how long we have. Let’s take the Quintjet.” Rhodey agreed, “Bruce you’re driving.”

“Grab your guns boys, this might get messy,” Nat added, as the Avengers ran back inside to get to the Quintjet parked on the roof of the Tower.

Only when it was quiet, only after the Avengers had flown away, did Pepper realize she was alone. For the first time, she was alone with her baby.

“Peter, baby, are you okay?” Pepper asked, caressing his soft cheek.

“I misseded you, mommy,” Peter said wrapping his short chubby arms around his mom and burying his head in her hair as she carried him back inside.

“I missed you too baby,” Pepper whispered, brushing his curls with her fingers.

As Pepper carried him inside, she realized something. She was alone in the tower. There were no Avengers, no Tony, not even Happy was here. No one was here, therefore no one was here to stop her from leaving. And now that she had Peter safely in her arms again, she wasn’t going to let him stick around and let Tony and the mob take any more of his innocence.

She wasn’t going to mess up this time. She had a chance, and she was going to take it. After everything they had taken from her - from her freedom in Queens, to Peter, to May, everything she had lost she was going to get back what she could.

And that’s how she found herself packing up two backpacks. One for her, one for Peter. It was a slow process, especially since Peter was attached to her hip and refused to leave the safety of her arms. Not that she was willing to let him down anytime soon, but she worked as fast as she could. She knew she had time. If what Bruce said was true about them being in Afghanistan, it would take hours to get there and return. She needed that head start if she was going to make it to Tennessee.

She and Peter could be with May. Without the mob, without the danger. And with no one in the tower to stop her, she quietly slipped out. She had learned the override code to open the locked door in the emergency staircase.

And that’s how she ended up on the busy streets of New York again with her son. But this time, she was much more prepared. With clothing, money, and even a stroller, she walked to Port Authority to catch a bus to Nashville, where she would transfer for a bus to Chatanooga. Then she could be with her friend.

As the bus left the station, Pepper looked out the window. With her son sleeping on her lap, she realized that she wished she had bathed him before they left. He smelt like he hadn’t bathed in well, months. As she patted down his back and as her hands drifted down to his legs in order to hoist him a little higher, her hands grazed over his small pockets in his shorts.

That’s when she felt the crumpled piece of paper in his pocket.

Delicately, she pulled out the crumpled-up paper from his pocket and started reading.

--
It had been hours since Tony and Ho had sent Peter home. Hours. And the longer they waited, the more antsy Tony became.

“Why not sit?” Ho asked.

“Can’t,” Tony muttered. “Thinking.”

“What is troubling you?”

“You really don’t know the answer to that?” Tony grumbled.

“Of course I do. But you know what we did to send Peter home worked.” Ho reasoned.

“Something will go wrong… I just feel it.”

“You have to have hope.”

“Yea yea, cause that will save the day. Hope.” Tony rolled his eyes.

“Hope gives us a reason to keep going. Hope is power. It is something no one, not even the Ten Rings can take from us.”

“You’re one to talk, didn’t the Ten Rings kill your family?”

“They did, but I still have hope.”

“For what?” Tony asked.

“When I die, I’ll get to be with my family again. So if the Ten Rings decide to kill me, I’ll be okay with that,” Ho explained.

“Thanks for the preaching pastor Ho,” Tony quipped.

“I don’t know what will happen, but I do know that I’m okay with not knowing everything.”

“Speaking of not knowing everything, it just doesn’t make any sense.”

“What doesn’t make sense?” Ho asked.

Neither noticed the door quietly click open.

“How did the Ten Rings ever get to me? And why? It seems like an awful lot of work for a mobster that has no relation to what they do. I can’t stop thinking about it, there’s something I’m missing.”

“You have unique talents. You have created Ironman, no one else has come close to replicating.”

“They seem to me like they’re the kind of group that needs quantity over quality.”

“Meaning?”

“Meaning, they need guns. Amo. Not an Ironman suit. That’s why I think someone else is behind this.”

“You are as brilliant as they all said,” A voice echoed in the cave, causing both men to turn to look at the shadowy figure.

“Who are you?” Ho asked as the figure entered into the light.

“Loki,” Tony muttered, his eyes squinting.

“Well done Stark,” Loki teased, “you figured it out. Mostly.”

“What the fuck do you want?” Tony snapped.

“I’ve come to wish the birthday boy a happy birthday.” Loki grinned a wickedly evil grin.

Tony’s fists clenched up. His blood boiled. How dare Loki break the unbreakable rule, the code all respectable mob families lived by?

“You know the rules. You fucked up. You brought a kid into the middle of all of this. No families will want anything to do with you after this.”

“Maybe. But maybe, the other mobs are sick of Ironman. You think you’re better than all the other families.”

“I am.”

“Which is exactly why your son had to come with you. You think you’re invincible, that nothing and nobody can touch you. You let the ones who love you most take the fall for you. At least this time you get to watch your son suffer. I'm going to make your son watch as I put on the Ironman armor and rip apart your body. Then I'll leave him here to die, all alone and scared.”

Tony tried to surge forward. But Ho caught him and held him back. Tony struggled until Ho gestured to where Loki’s gun was holstered on his belt.

“Now now Stark, we haven't given Peter his present yet.”

“Don’t you dare say his name,” Tony gritted through his teeth.

“Impatient, are we? Let me see the little boy. Come out young Stark wherever you are.” Loki called out, searching the room for the small boy.

“No,” Tony called out. Anything to delay him. The second Loki realized Peter was gone Tony knew they would be done for. They wouldn't be rescued and he would never get home.

“No?” Loki asked, taking a step forward. “You’re in no position to tell me what to do.”

“Leave the boy out of this,” Ho demanded. “He is no more a part of this than any other innocent child.”

Loki glared at Ho, but continued to look around. When he still didn’t find Peter, he looked into Tony’s eyes.

It’s how Loki realized what really happened.

“He’s gone isn’t he?” Loki asked, his voice oddly calm.

Neither man dared to respond.

“What did you do?!” Loki shouted.

Again, neither man responded.

“ANSWER ME!” Loki screamed.

“He never belonged here,” Ho stated calmly.

But Loki rushed forward and drew his gun. He shoved Ho against the wall and pressed the gun to Ho’s temple.

“That’s not for you to decide.” Loki seethed.

“You really think we’d help you or those terrorists?” Tony asked, hoping to take some of the heat off of Ho. It did, as Loki turned around and stomped over to Tony.

“Your son can never inherit the Stark empire,” Loki explained.

“He will,” Tony said confidently. “It’s his birthright. Even if you kill me, I know the Avengers will make sure he gets what belongs to his.”

“He will never earn it. No, that power, it’s mine.” Loki stated, his eyes full of lust. “Since I was a boy I dreamed of having the kind of power the Stark’s had. It’s not right you just inherited it. And it won't happen for the next generation. I’ve worked harder than you ever had to build a name for myself. I’ve kidnapped you and I’ve earned the takeover.”

“You’ll never take over the Stark mob. No one will respect a kidnapper. You’d never gain the trust of my associates. They don’t mess with anyone’s family.”

“Oh because family comes first right Stark?” Loki sneered. “Times are changing.”

“Sure technology changes, but family… no. No, family will always come first. To those that are lucky enough to have it.”

“Idiot.” Loki scoffed.

“You’re a fool Loki,” Ho interjected. “To put greed before love, that makes you weaker than anyone I’ve ever known.”

Loki fired his gun, but instead of shooting at Tony or Ho, he shot under the bed and waited for Tony to react.

“I know that’s where the boy usually hides,” Loki explained madly. “The Ten Rings told me. So since he’s not there, I’d like to know where he is.”

“I’ll never tell you,” Tony said.

“Wrong answer,” Loki reprimanded and raised his gun.

Tony was shoved to the ground unexpectedly. And before Tony had time to realize Loki pulled the trigger. A shot rang out. Ho collapsed like a rag doll on the floor.

“Ho!” Tony yelled.

Ho’s blood pooled out onto his chest and spilled onto the floor. Tony rushed to hover over him, trying to slow the blood with his hands. But it wasn’t working. Behind Ho’s ragged breath, Tony heard Ho’s final words.

“Don’t waste it. Don’t waste your life.” Ho whispered.

“Get up,” Loki roughly grabbed Tony, ripping him from Ho’s body.

Tony tried to shove him back, but it earned him a shot in the left arm.

“Even that man, who you know nothing about, sacrificed himself for you,” Loki commented. “It’s pathetic how much people worship you when you couldn’t give a damn about them.”

“You’re wrong. Ho was my friend. And you killed an innocent man to prove what? All you are is an asshole with anger management problems.”

Tony felt the blow to his face before he even saw Loki move.

“You’re fast I’ll give you that,” Tony admitted. “But you have no one. No one is on your side. You’re a monster.”

Loki kept hitting him to the point where Tony couldn’t stand. Even once Tony fell, Loki kept going. He could feel the blood beginning to pour out of his body from all over, but the more he bled, the less he began to feel.

“No, I am the next king of New York,” Loki said raising his gun to Tony’s head.

Tony closed his eyes. This was the end.

And as his eyes closed, his mind filled with images of Pepper. He saw her smile light up the ballroom as they danced. He saw her walking down the aisle at their wedding, wearing a long white veil holding flowers. He saw her hugging and kissing Peter.

But his mind didn’t get the chance to drift too far. Tony heard the bang. But he didn’t feel anything. He waited, and still, he didn’t feel anything. So he opened his eyes.

“Hey sleeping beauty,” a familiar voice called out. It was familiar, but it felt like that voice was from a lifetime ago. That voice reminded Tony of… Clint.

“Huh?” Tony gargled. Why was it so hard to speak? And why was the world spinning?

“He’s lost a lot of blood. Thor, help me lift him so we can carry him to the Quinjet.” Another familiar voice.

“S’eve,” Tony said breathlessly.

“Tony are you with us?” Steve asked again.

“Uhh,” Tony groaned. Not really. Everything was blurry and he was so tired. So, so tired. He let his eyes slip closed, only to be shaken back away.

“Don’t fall asleep on us Tony,” Rhodey said.

“Rogers, Thor, lift him we don’t have much time. We don’t know who else is here or who else will come,” Nat rushed forward to the door in order to lead the way.

Tony wanted to tell them about the Ten Rings, to tell the Avengers to go kill the terrorists that tormented him for the last few months, but he couldn’t find the air to speak. He felt himself being lifted, and the pain shot through his body. He groaned; the pain was unbearable. How did he not feel it before?

“Hold tight for a few minutes tin can,” Clint said, running alongside Steve and Thor.

“We are getting you to the Quintjet and Banner will take a look at you,” Thor explained to a semi-conscious Tony, who was dripping blood as they ran.

“Bu’ Ho,” Tony muttered, but none of the Avengers understood what he said. To the Avengers that were close enough to hear, it sounded as if Tony was trying to confirm he understood what was going on. Even in his delirious state, Tony hoped that someone would find Ho. He hoped someone could come to collect his body and give him a proper burial. Maybe next to his family.

As they continued running out of the cave, Tony gasped and his eyes rolling to the back of his head. The pain and dizziness were becoming worse with each stride Steve and Thor took. Despite them tag-teaming it and being somewhat coordinated, Tony still felt jostled around as the two ran with Tony in their arms.

After what felt like an eternity, Tony felt himself being lowered. Finally, they had made it to the Quinjet. Tony only realized they were in the Quintjet when he felt the cool metal on his back as he was laid down on the makeshift examination table within the main cabin of the Quinjet.

“Bruce he’s lost a lot of blood,” Rhodey explained. “Loki was about to shoot him.”

“Friday scan him,” Bruce requested.

“Fri’ay,” Tony babbled, not fully able to pronounce Friday.

“You with us Tony?” Bruce asked.

‘Barely,’ Tony thought.

“Boss has significant blood loss, mainly stemming from his left arm. He has five broken ribs, a mild concussion, a shattered humerus in his left arm, and multiple contusions and bruises.”

“Tony?” Bruce asked as he pulled out a needle, and Tony turned to look at Bruce, his eyes glassy and unfocused. “I’m going to fix you up, but first I’m going to put you to sedate you.”

‘Thank god,’ Tony thought as the needle went into his arm. Finally, the excruciating pain would go away.

As he closed his eyes and began to drift off, he dreamed of Pepper.

Notes:

I am so sorry this took like 1000 years to write. But I hope you enjoy it. Feel free to share thoughts or ideas you have, I am always looking for inspiration.

The letter is in the next chapter, and since I already have some writing done I will try and post quicker (no promises, puppy + work +studying = I have no free time)

Chapter 14: I'll Dream of You

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text

Hey Ms. Potts,

If you find this letter, don’t feel bad about this. Part of the journey is the end. Just for the record being kidnapped and tortured by terrorists with our son with a minimal probability of rescue isn't as fun as it sounds. And this isn’t something I planned for, or ever wanted our son to experience.

Because I thought I was right, I made a stupid mistake to force you to leave Queens. Because I thought I knew what love is, I created more problems by sneaking away with Peter. And because of love, real love, I am sacrificing everything I once thought was important for what really is important.

That’s you. And Peter.

I can’t imagine my life without you. I thought if I could prove to you that I was good with Peter by taking him to Malibu, keeping him happy and entertained, that you could love me again. To me, this plan was foolproof. It was my way of trying to win you back. I thought I could show you that even though I am who I am, I could protect Peter and you from my world, and we could be a happy family.

But I get it now.

I get why you left. Why you hid from my world, kept Peter a secret, and didn’t want to return to me. No matter where I go, danger lurks in my shadows. And my enemies have no problem taking Peter to hurt me. In reality, I can only do so much to keep him safe. And I know it’s not enough. I will never be enough, and I will never deserve you and Peter. I get it now – you and Peter were far safer living amongst all the nobodies in Queens.

These men, they asked me to make them weapons. They threatened to kill Peter. I would never have considered making these terrorist weapons if they hadn’t threatened Peter. I would do anything and everything for him. I always will. I could have made a replica of my Ironman suit. I could have blasted my way out and flew us home. But there was the risk that Peter got hurt. I will never voluntarily put Peter in harm’s way. That was always your biggest fear, right? I see why. He’s too innocent, too pure, to be put in harm’s way. So I built this pod to send Peter home. I built this impenetrable pod to send Peter home safely, even if it means I never make it home.

I do not know what will happen to me. I do not know if these men will kill me or not because of what I did. But I do know one thing.

I do not regret sacrificing myself to save Peter. And I never will. I wanted him to be better and he is. I want him, no, I need him to live a full happy life.

So Pep, please hug our son for me. Give him a big hug and kiss, and rock him to sleep every night and tell him his favorite stories. Keep him safe, and please tell him I love him. I hope to escape and come home, but I do not expect you to be there if I return. I finally get that you and Peter are not safe with me. I never should have forced you and Peter to come to live with me. Peter shouldn’t have to join the familia. He should be able to be a kid, not forced into a life of crime. So I promise you if I return, I’ll never make him be a mobster. I just want to be a father, a good, present father. My father was never really there for me, so I’m just trying to break the cycle. I made a mistake, and I’ve tried to fix what I can. I know what I’ve done can’t be undone, but I hope you can forgive me. If not that’s okay too. I get it. I figure that if Peter escapes and returns to you, I can just slowly fall asleep as these terrorists torture me to death. And that'll be it.

Pepper, I’m really sorry. Sorry for keeping my ties to the mob a secret. Sorry for forcing you back into this life. I’m sorry for hurting you. I just hope you can forgive me. Even if you can’t, I’ll never stop loving you. But part of love is letting go, right?

When I drift off, I’ll dream about you. It’s always you.

- TS

Pepper stared down at that note for a long time. It felt like a piece of her heart was ripped from her body. Tony had poured his heart out to her, and this is how she repaid him? By getting on a bus and leaving with their son? She realized that even with all the fucked-up things he’d done, from the gruesome murders to the threats he had made, he sacrificed everything for her and Peter. He wasn’t just saying he would give up his life for their son, he proved he would. And she was cruel enough to leave him after he made that sacrifice. Leave him to be buried without a wife by his side or to abandon him when he would come back to an empty home, she wouldn’t know.

She didn’t know if Tony was even still alive or if the Avengers had rescued him. But what she did know was that even if Tony told her to leave, he wouldn’t really want that. He would give anything to have his family with him. But he was willing to let her go, even if it killed him inside, he would do it if that made Pepper happy. Because he really was more than just a heartless mobster. Behind that tough exterior, he was still the man she fell madly in love with.

And Peter? What would Peter want? Pepper heard Peter call him Daddy. Pepper always thought that leaving Tony and the mob meant Peter was better off. But she knew something now. Safety is all relative. Peter trusted Tony. He admired him from the moment they met. Peter felt safe around his father, and after the hell they went through, in the end, Peter was safe. He was saved because of Tony. And who was she to keep her child from his father, when all Tony did was prove he loved his son? He even said Peter shouldn’t have to join the mafia, and that Peter would never be forced into the life of crime. If that was her biggest fear all along, why was she running?

But what was best for Peter? She wasn’t completely delusional. Even if Tony was still alive and was rescued, he wouldn’t step down from his position. It was the family business; it was a part of him just like Ironman was. That meant Peter would never be able to have a normal life. He wouldn’t be able to grow up and live a normal life like any other kid. There would always be dangers being associated with Tony and Peter would never be fully safe. And just because he wanted Tony, did it mean he truly needed Tony. Pepper did a good job without Tony, she could do it again.

And if she kept going, she would be able to live with May. She'd have May’s help and no one could interfere with that. In Tennessee, Peter could have his Aunt May back. She knew Peter missed May. And she was such a good influence on him. Whereas some of Tony’s associates… they could end up encouraging Peter to become a mobster.

A tear ran down her face. This was Tony she was thinking about. Her Tony. Her husband, that despite everything, loved her unconditionally. And at that moment, she realized the unconditional love was mutual. She did love him. She loved him for loving Peter as fiercely as she did. She loved him for his genius and for making her feel so loved. She loved him with all her heart, every fiber of her love belonged to him. There was no other man on this earth she could ever love the way she loved Tony.

But at the end of the day what did she want? Did she want to keep running from her husband and hide in Tennessee, or could she accept who he was, mob and everything, and try and make things work? Did she want to be safe and away from any dangers the mob presented to her and her son, or was she willing to take the risk for love?

When she glanced down at Peter, she made up her mind.

Notes:

I'm updating earlier than I expected I would yay!

So this is a bit shorter but I hope it was still good, and I hope the letter and Pepper's dilemma is complex yet understandable and hit the feels just a little. Also, the letter was heavily inspired by Tony's message from Endgame's trailer but clearly, I don't own that (so plz don't sue me).

Thank you for reading, and thank you for all the comments!

Chapter 15: Cheeseburgers are the Best Medicine

Summary:

Pepper's decision is revealed, and Tony arrives back at the tower.

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text

Bruce worked for hours. Pumping blood into Tony’s body, bandaging up his arm as best he could, bandaging up all the cuts. The deep cuts would need to be stitched and Tony’s arm would need to be cast, but they could wait until they could get him to Medbay. It wasn’t until just before they landed that he was finishing up. He was cleaning up the bloody gauze and putting away his equipment when Clint approached him.

“He okay?” Clint asked.

“He will be. He was pretty beat up.” Bruce explained.

“No shit,” Clint nodded.

“He’s under a lot of pain meds, he’s going to be pretty out of it,” Bruce commented as he disposed of his gloves.

“Good, that looked like it hurt,” Clint added.

“How far are we from landing?” Bruce asked.

“We’re close,” Nat called out over her shoulder as she continued to monitor the flight.

As they started to descend, Tony began to wake up.

“Tony are you with us?” Steve asked.

“Captain underpants?” Tony asked, still very much out of it.

“Yup that’s his only name, no one can call him anything else!” Clint declared with a grin on his face.

“Birdbrain?” Tony called out and Clint frowned deeply as the others laughed.

“Not so funny now when you’re the one dubbed by the nickname king,” Rhodey commented.

“Tony?” Steve asked again.

“Am I dead?” Tony said, his voice hoarse.

“No, we are going home,” Bruce explained. “You got hurt pretty bad, how are you feeling?”

“Like shit,” Tony spat out and proceeded to sigh loudly.

“We’re almost back, then you can go and rest,” Rhodey explained.

“I want a cheeseburger,” Tony demanded.

“What?” Rhodey asked, shaking his head in disbelief.

“I. Want. A. Cheeseburger,” Tony stated, articulating each word.

“You’re insane man, god I’ve missed you,” Rhodey laughed.

“We’ve all missed you, Tony,” Steve said.

“Yeah man, the tower’s been too quiet without you and Peter,” Clint added.

“Peter,” Tony whispered, his eyes wide. Even in his delirious state, he could feel his heart hammering with concern over Peter’s safety.

“He’s safe. Don’t worry, he arrived at the Tower this morning.” Rhodey rested his hand on Tony’s shoulder to reassure his friend.

“How else do you think we could have found you?” Nat asked.

Tony sighed. Right, of course. Without Peter’s safe return home, they would have never found Tony. He would be dead, and Loki would have won.

“How is he?” Tony asked his head falling over to the side of the table to look at the group gathering around his makeshift bed.

“He seemed a little scared at first, but once he saw Pepper, he seemed to be okay,” Bruce explained.

“Pepper…” Tony whispered, his voice trailing off. He had so much to say to her, he just wished she chose to stay so that he could tell her.

“Wait who’s still at the Tower?” Clint wondered.

“Just Pepper and Peter are there. Happy had the day off.” Nat explained.

“So no one is with Pepper?” Rhodey asked the worry building. How could they have forgotten to make sure someone was with Pepper? What if she ran and took Peter? Tony would never forgive the Avengers for losing his family.

“It’s all good,” Tony said deliriously.

“What are you talking about?” Rhodey asked.

“I believe in Pepper. She’ll keep Peter safe.” Tony groaned, rolling over.

“If she left, we can’t possibly know and besides-” Rhodey went on.

“I just want her to be happy. Whatever that is.” Tony confessed with a loopy smile.

“What did that cave do to you man?” Clint asked.

“Tony, how are you so calm? Aren’t you concerned?” Steve added.

“Obviously I’m concerned,” Tony said, “but I have total faith in Pepper. You fools on the other hand… I still don’t have my cheeseburger.”

“It’s the drugs,” Bruce explained, “he’s on so many painkillers he’s completely out of it.”

To the Avengers, Tony’s lack of concern seemed to be coming from the number of drugs currently in his system. Tony was so out of it. In reality, the Avengers knew that if Tony was more with it, he would be badgering them to know Pepper and Peter were safe.

Clint and Nat glanced at each other. They silently agreed to search the penthouse for Pepper the moment they arrived.

“We’re 30 seconds from landing on the roof of the tower,” Nat called out.

“Thanks, Nat,” Steve answered. “Tony we’ll help you stand, common.”

Steve and Rhodey went forward to help Tony sit up, but he shooed them away.

“I can do it myself,” Tony grumbled.

“Thing is, you don’t have to,” Steve said.

“Tony it’s not about whether or not you can,” Bruce explained. “I won’t allow it. Doctor’s orders.”

“Fine,” Tony unwillingly agreed and allowed Steve and Rhodey to guide him off of the bed and carry all of his weight. “But I want my cheeseburger.”

And that’s how Tony found himself finally home. With Steve and Rhodey’s help, he was delicately guided out of the Quintjet with the rest of the Avengers trailing behind with Clint and Nat slipping past the group to search for Pepper and Peter.

And when Tony finally got to enter his penthouse, he let out a deep breath he didn’t know he had been holding for the past few months. Finally, he and his family were safe. Steve and Rhodey began to guide Tony to the elevator but Tony pulled back to the couch.

“No I want to sit on my couch, eat a cheeseburger, hold my son, and talk to Pepper,” Tony argued.

“No,” Bruce put his foot down, “we need to take a look at you in Medbay.”

“You already fixed me up on the Quinjet.”

“There are more things we need to look at. You probably still need more blood transfusions, there are a few cuts we need to look at for potential stitches, and we need to actually cast your arm,” Bruce explained

“Cheeseburger first.”

“Tony,” Rhodey sighed. God his friend was stubborn.

“No sign of her, or Peter,” Clint said, jogging toward the couch Tony was trying to sit on.

“What?” Rhodey’s head snapped up.

“We couldn’t find her in the penthouse,” Nat explained.

“No.” Tony choked, “No, no, no, she left?”

“Man I’m so sorry, we will look for her, she won’t get away,” Rhodey promised.

“No, don’t.”

“Excuse me?” Rhodey asked.

“Don’t look for her. I told her she could go if she wanted to.” Tony said, looking down at his hands. Even with all the drugs pumping in his veins, he remembered exactly what he wrote to her. Even in his current state, he wanted her to be happy. But damn did it hurt. He had hoped he was enough, that his apology would be accepted.

“You what?” Rhodey asked. “When did you talk to her?”

“I – I fucked up. I put Peter in danger and it’s all my fault. So I gave her the choice to leave, but I really, really didn’t want to. I figured she needed to have a choice to leave even if it’s not what I want. I just thought I did enough to prove I was a good enough father and husband for her to stick around. I- I can’t live without them, but I guess I deserve this,” Tony explained, not answering Rhodey’s question.

“You didn’t cause any of this,” Rhodey argued as the elevator dinged in the background.

“But I did. Peter never would have been stuck in a cave with terrorists threatening to kill me in front of him if I had just let Pepper stay in Queens. None of this would have happened if I had just listened to Pepper!”

“But-” Nat started but was interrupted.

“But nothing. I don’t deserve her. Or Peter. I’m a horrible father.”

A new voice coming from the elevator cleared their throat. All heads turned to the elevator to see who was capturing their attention.

“No, you’re not.”

At the elevator stood Pepper. She looked windblown, probably from the fact she had to transfer buses, and promptly ran back from Port Authority to the Tower. In her arms was Peter, who was fast asleep and curled up in her arms. His head was nuzzled in the crook of her neck and his soft breaths tickled Pepper’s skin. The backpacks slung over her shoulder fell to the floor with a thud.

“What the hell? Pepper?” Steve asked.

“Language,” Clint reprimanded, and Steve shot him a look.

“Did you forget something?” Rhodey sneered.

“Yea,” Pepper glanced around at the Avengers, her eyes locking with Tony. “You.”

Pepper’s eyes began to fill with tears. Pepper took one step forward, and Nat tried to step in the way. But Pepper put out her hand to stop Nat from coming any closer, never taking her eyes off of Tony.

“Your eyes are red. Few tears for your long-lost husband?” Tony quipped, a soft smile growing on his face.

“Tears of joy, I hate husband hunting.” Pepper softly smiled as Tony grinned.

“Yeah well, your vacation from me is over,” Tony joked, making grabby hands for Peter.

But their moment was interrupted.

“Tony your arm still needs to be cast you shouldn’t hold any weight-” Bruce warned but was cut off.

“Let me hold my son Banner, that’s the best medicine there is right now,” Tony said not taking his eyes off of Peter.

“Tony, are you hurt?” Pepper scolded, looking Tony dead in the eyes and immediately seeing the answer, “You got hurt and you didn’t tell me? You need medical attention.”

“No,” Tony said still reaching for Peter.

“Common, we’ll both come with you to Medbay then we can talk after,” Pepper promised and began walking towards the elevator, with Tony following closely behind.

“Let me just hold him-” Tony begged, trying to take their sleeping son from his mother. But Steve and Rhodey caught up to the couple and grabbed one of each of Tony’s arms to support his weight which promptly caused Tony to groan.

“Common Tones,” Rhodey said, “Let us help you get to Medbay.”

“I want Pepper and Peter in the room,” Tony demanded as the group entered the elevator.

“I don’t know if that’s such a good idea…” Rhodey started as the elevator doors closed and they began their descent.

“No!” Tony snapped. “I want Pepper, Peter, and where’s my cheeseburger?”

“Cheeseburger?” Pepper asked, completely confused.

“Don’t get him started,” Clint rolled his eyes.

“Your husband is quite fond of cheeseburgers in his delirious state,” Thor explained.

“Delirious state?” Pepper asked.

“He’s on quite a bit of pain meds, I’ll explain in Medbay,” Bruce promised.

--

Bruce explained everything to Dr. Cho. He explained all the injuries and what he had given Tony, who sat intently on the hospital bed, refusing to lie down.

“I still haven’t gotten my cheeseburger,”

“That’s enough!” Steve sighed. “Thor, go get Tony a cheeseburger.”

“What makes you think I know how to make a cheeseburger?” Thor asked, slightly offended.

“Just go buy one,” Nat rolled her eyes.

“Why me?” Thor asked.

“Because you’re a meathead, which makes burgers your specialty,” Clint explained.

“Huh?” Thor cocked his head at Clint, completely confused.

“Exactly my point, so go,” Clint shooed Thor, and eventually, Thor did leave.

While Dr. Cho and Bruce worked to stitch up Tony and cast his arm, most of the Avengers left. All but Rhodey left, who stood next to Pepper in the corner of the room.

“Why are you here?” Rhodey asked quietly.

“Because Tony wanted me and Peter to come to Medbay,” Pepper said, confused why Rhodey was asking.

“You know that’s not what I meant. Why did you come back?”

“Excuse me?”

“You heard me.” Rhodey snapped.

“It’s none of your damn business. This is between me and Tony.” Pepper hissed.

“No, as his best friend and consigliere I’m trying to protect my best friend. You broke his heart when he came home and didn’t see you.”

“But I’m here aren’t I? So why bother asking me this?”

“Because you did leave. Which means you have doubts. Understandable, but Tony needs to be able to heal, then when he gets back to work he needs to be 100% focused.”

“And you think I’m a distraction?”

“After what Loki did, Tony needs to assert his authority back over New York. He can’t be worrying about you running off.”

“Bold of you to wedge yourself in our relationship.”

“I’m just trying to protect my friend.”

“And I’m trying to protect my son, my husband, oh and my friend who you forcibly banished. Thanks for that.” Pepper scolded.

“How do I know you won’t break his heart over and over again?”

“Because I love him. I’ve always loved him, but love is complicated. You wouldn’t know that. How do I know you want what’s best for Tony. And for his son?” Pepper asked, glancing at Tony. They were finishing casting his arm.

“I do. I was born into this lifestyle. As was Peter.” Rhodey explained watching them wrap the final bandages around Tony’s deepest cuts.

“Peter doesn’t have to go into this though. He has a right to be whoever he wants to be.”

“It’s not always about want. There’s a lot of pressure, our allies expect Tony’s son to take over.” Rhodey said, looking Pepper in the eye.

“Tony loves Peter. I know he won’t force him to do something he doesn’t want to.” Pepper met his eye contact and hugged Peter a little tighter.

“We can’t escape our responsibilities because of love. Don’t have any delusions about that,” Rhodey warned, his whisper dropping so that it was barely audible.

“Gee thanks,” Pepper scoffed as Banner and Cho approached the two.

“We’ve stitched up his cuts and cast his arm,” Cho explained. “We are also giving him more pain meds to be given twice a day. He needs rest, lots of it. Some of the cuts on his leg were pretty deep, so he shouldn’t put any pressure on it for at least a week. Bring him down here in a few days so I can check how everything is healing. So no business until I clear him, got it?”

“Thank you, Doctor,” Rhodey patted Cho’s shoulder and walked over to Tony. “You ready to go Tones?”

“Usually doctors give lollypops.” Tony whined like a child, “and I still don’t have my cheeseburger.”

“Thor is leaving it in the penthouse. Common let’s get you upstairs.” Rhodey gestured for Bruce to come to take Tony’s right arm while Rhodey went for the left. Together, they helped him stand and walked over to where Pepper was watching.

“Hey Ms. Potts,” Tony smiled softly and Pepper reciprocated the smile.

“Mr. Stark,” Pepper contently sighed as they walked towards the elevator, “I’m glad you’re alive.”

Tony watched Pepper the entire ride up to the Penthouse. And she watched him. When they arrived to the Penthouse, Thor was there, waiting with a cheeseburger.

“Finally,” Tony sighed. “My cheeseburger.”

Tony moved towards the couch, and Pepper and Thor followed. Bruce and Rhodey helped Tony get situated, and Thor handed him the cheeseburger while Pepper sat down next to him, careful not to jostle Peter awake.

“Thanks,” Tony mumbled and quickly went to unwrap his precious burger. He devoured it and looked up to see the three Avengers watching him. “What are you three still doing here? Can’t a guy have some privacy?”

“Uh Tony I don’t know if that’s such a good idea…” Rhodey said, his eyes flickering to Pepper. She frowned at him.

“Fuck of Honeybear, I need to talk to my wife. Bosses orders.” Tony stated flatly and threw the cheeseburger wrapper at his friend, not appreciating Rhodey’s attitude towards Pepper.

“Alright,” Bruce interjected, hoping to avoid any conflict. “We’ll go.”

With that, Bruce grabbed both Thor and Rhodey by the arm and pulled them towards the elevator.

“Let me hold him,” Tony demanded. Pepper took a deep breath, and delicately untangled their son from around her neck. Gently she handed him over to Tony, who carefully took Peter into his arms. Tony stared down at his son, relieved to finally have him back in his arms.

“He’s really tired,” Tony commented.

“Yea,” Pepper said. “I think that flight really took it out of him.”

They sat there for a moment, watching their son’s light breaths in awe.

“You came back,” Tony broke the silence.

“Yea, I did.”

“Why?”

“Because… because I realized how much I love you. I do. I really love you. Tony, you are a good father, and you’ve shown how much you love me and Peter. I had no right keeping you in the dark about my pregnancy or leaving you like that. I’m really sorry.”

“I’m sorry too. For keeping so many secrets. For scaring you with my stupid decisions. For well, everything I’ve done to hurt you.”

“I think we have a lot to work on.”

“Yea we do.”

“And I don’t think we can do it alone,” Pepper commented.

“What do you mean?” Tony asked.

“I think… I think we should see a therapist.”

“A shrink?” Tony asked skeptically. “Really Potts? I don’t know if I want someone poking around in my head.”

“I think it’ll help us communicate better. It’ll help us rebuild our trust, and be better parents. Please, Tony, think about it, for me and Peter.”

“Okay.”

“Okay?”

“If you think it’ll help us… I’ll give it a shot.”

“Thank you,”

“I love you, Ms. Potts.”

“I love you too Mr. Stark.”

Pepper leaned in to kiss Tony. For the first time in over two years, she kissed her husband and felt the spark she used to feel before learning he was a mobster. She had missed his warm lips. The lips that made her crave more of him.

Tony contently sighed into the kiss. He missed her so much. Not just for the last three months, but for the last two years. She was the air to his lungs, and her lips reminded him of why it was worth fighting for her.

What broke them apart was Peter shifting in Tony’s arms. Pepper backed off first, and Tony’s mouth tried to follow her to keep the kiss longer, but Peter’s soft coo pulled him out of his desire.

They looked down at Peter who was scrunching up his nose. He wiggled in Tony’s arms, then stretched his arms out and opened his eyes. He blinked once, twice, as if to blink away any lingering sleep. When his eyes came into focus, he first saw his mommy smiling at him… then he saw his daddy.

“Daddy!” Peter squealed lunging at Tony’s neck and wrapping his arms around his father.

“Hi Bambino,” Tony smiled, his eyes soft and full of love.

“Daddy we home!” Peter pulled back from the hug to look at his dad.

“We are home,” Tony smiled. “And we won, we beat the bad guys and got back to mommy.”

“Daddy I was big boy,” Peter explained, shifting in Tony’s lap so that his face was inches from Tony’s face.

“You were and I’m so proud of you.”

“Tanks!” Peter said, pressing his nose against Tony.

“Peter what are you doing to your poor daddy?” Pepper asked, noticing how hard Peter was leaning into Tony.

“I misseded daddy,”

“I did too Peter,” Pepper said. “I did too.”

“Yea mommy?” Tony taunted, turning to Pepper. Peter also turned to look at Pepper while simultaneously wrapping his arms around Tony’s neck and pressing his cheek to Tony’s cheek. “And how will we make up for lost time?”

“Tony!” Pepper chastised as Tony wagged his eyebrows.

“We can snuggle,” Peter answered his daddy’s question and reached one arm out to grab Pepper and pull her closer.

“Hear that Pep?” Tony grinned, “Gotta come in closer to snuggle. Peter’s orders.”

Pepper rolled her eyes but let her husband pull her into his side. She let him drape one arm over her back, and she shifted to her side to face Tony and Peter. She rested one hand on Tony’s thigh, and wrapped her other arm across Tony and Peter’s body, pulling them closer to her.

The family stayed like that for thirty seconds, until Peter squirmed.

“I’m hun’gy,” Peter wined.

“What do you want to eat?” Pepper asked.

“Cheesebooger,” Peter announced proudly.

Pepper laughed. Yea Pepper didn’t regret coming back.

Notes:

Seems like I could end it here... but I'm not!

I think there's more to this story. Let me know if you have any thoughts or suggestions!

Thanks for reading :)

Chapter 16: The Mistakes We Make

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text

The next morning Tony slowly woke. He felt the sheets draped over his body being tugged as if something from the floor was pulling them. Or rather someone.

Tony heard the small grunt, followed by the bed dipping ever so slightly. He felt small hands crawl up his chest until they stopped on either side of his ears. Despite his eyes being closed, he could sense a small head lingering in front of his face with small breaths of air hitting his nose.

Tony cracked one eye open, to see himself within millimeters of big brown eyes. Tony opened both eyes fully to see his son grinning over him.

“What are you doing up?” Tony whispered, hoping to not disturb Pepper. Last night, despite Tony's complaints, Pepper and Tony tucked their son into his crib. Tony wanted Peter to sleep between the couple in their bedroom, but with Tony’s healing legs and multiple bandages, Pepper was worried Peter might roll over and kick Tony.

‘Well, at least I’ll have the comfort of knowing he’s safe with us.’ Tony had argued.

‘Tony we don’t want him to become dependent on sleeping with us.’ Pepper reasoned.

‘I don’t mind. In fact, I don’t know I can sleep without him.’

‘You have to. It’s what’s best for Peter.’

‘What you don’t want to sleep with our son?’ Tony asked, clearly offended.

‘Believe me I would love to. But the more normal we treat him, the easier it will be for him to forget this ever happened. Do you really want him to remember all the traumatic things that happened?”

‘No… but please Pep, just this one night.’ Tony begged.

‘Tony…’ Pepper sighed.

‘Oh I see how it is,’ Tony interrupted her, ‘you just want me all to yourself.’

‘Well, what if I do?’ Pepper seductively asked, and wrapped her arms around Tony’s lower back.

‘Alright you win Pep.’ Tony agreed, and leaned in to kiss her.

Tony sighed at the memory. He had promised Pepper they would treat Peter normally as if nothing happened in order to not remind him of what he went through. He sold out, but how could he not when Pepper looked at him with those eyes?

“Pway daddy,” Peter requested, pulling Tony from his thoughts.

“It’s 6 in the morning!” Tony complained, “ We go night night still.”

“Pweaseeeeee,” Peter begged through a yawn.

“Sh, shh, shhhhh,” Tony hushed. If Pepper woke up, she would think Tony snuck over to Peter’s bedroom and brought him over.

“Daddy,” Peter wined, dropping his head on Tony’s chest.

Tony looked down at his son, who was staring at him. The father and son looked into each other’s eyes, Tony deep in thought while Peter listened to his father's heartbeat. The rhythmic thumping of Tony’s heart soothed him, and Peter’s eyes began to droop closed. Tony watched his son fall back asleep. Tony figured that maybe once Peter fell back asleep, he could move Peter back into his crib so that Pepper didn’t find out.

But then again, the warm weight on Tony’s chest was soothing, and knowing his son was safely asleep in his arms lulled Tony back into a peaceful sleep.

--
The next time Tony woke, he could sense he was in trouble.

Peter was still asleep on his chest - Tony could feel the soft rise and fall of his son’s breaths. But Tony could also feel Pepper’s stare.

Tony cracked his eyes open to reveal how correct his sense was. Pepper was glaring at him.

“Good morning Pep,” Tony innocently greeted.

“Tony,” Pepper said flatly.

“Before you get mad at me, I swear I didn’t bring him in here during the night.”

“Oh sure, like I believe that.” Pepper rolled her eyes.

“Seriously I didn’t.”

“Do you know how hard it’s going to be for Peter to feel like a normal kid again after being kidnapped?”

“I do, I do Pep, I swear he snuck in here this morning.”

“You’re saying he escaped his crib?” Pepper asked, not sure if she could believe Tony.

“He’s a Stark! He can figure out how anything works easily and take it apart.”

“And he just happened to fall asleep on you?”

“Well I wasn’t going to let him wake you up.”

“Hm,” Pepper grunted, standing up.

“Where are you going?” Tony asked.

“To make sure Peter really escaped. I’m not sure if I should be mad at you or Peter.”

“Relax, he just wanted to sleep in with us.”

“Hard to relax when I worry about our son’s mental health.” Pepper said as she walked out of the room.

When she came back, she looked surprised.

“So he escaped huh?” Tony taunted a grin forming on his face. “I was right.”

“I just worry that he’ll become dependent on sleeping with us.”

“And that’s such a bad thing?”

“Do you want a 15-year-old sleeping in bed with you?” Pepper asked.

“I mean it’s Peter, not some random kid hoping in bed with us.”

“True, but I’d like to be able to have sex with you without our son in the bed.”

Tony nearly choked.

“Mrs. Stark! Are you just using me for sex?” Tony flirted.

“What if I am?” Pepper asked, crawling into bed and hovering over Tony’s lips.

“I’ll allow it,” Tony said with a soft smile, and leaned up to kiss Pepper.

Pepper immediately pulled back.

“Our son is in the room.” Pepper scolded, a wicked smile on her face.

“Pepper,” Tony moaned in frustration.

“I’ll put him back in his room, then when I come back, I think I owe you an apology.” Pepper winked and lifted Peter gently off Tony’s chest.

Tony smiled up at the ceiling as Pepper walked out with Peter. How did he get so lucky?

He lifted his head up when he heard the quiet click of the door closing. He watched Pepper reemerge without Peter and walk over to the foot of the bed and climb over him.

“Better?” She whispered, her lips hovering over his.

“Better.” Tony agreed and closed the distance.

Tony felt like a schoolboy when their lips met. As if he was falling back in love all over again. He had missed her so much when he was kidnapped, and longed for moments like this. His hand gently caressed her back, roaming her smooth skin. He pulled her in closer, his arms protectively wrapped around her and he held her close. He could feel her hands brushing his hair. He let his hands drift lower to the curve of her ass, and he gave her a light tap. He felt her smile against his lips, which made him grin.

"Are you going to be okay if we…” Pepper trailed off as she leaned back in to kiss him.

“Yea, yea,” Tony breathlessly agreed. How could he not be okay?

“I don’t want to hurt you,” Pepper kissed his neck.

“You could never hurt me,” Tony admitted, letting his hands slip below her waistband.

God did he miss her body.

They made quick work of stripping each other’s clothing. When they were skin to skin with Pepper laying on top, she looked into his eyes. She could see the longing, the desire, and the love in his eyes. While she was lost in his eyes, Tony flipped them over so that he was on top.

“I need you, Tony,” Pepper breathed into his ears.

Just the words alone, after so long, almost made him cum.

Even though it had been so long, Tony easily lined himself up. He slid into her in one slow long drag, filling her up. When he finally hit bottom, he began to move, sending waves of pleasure throughout both of them.

In reality, he didn’t last long. Neither of them did. When they finished together at the same time, their orgasms coming in waves of pleasure, Tony collapsed on top of Pepper. He could feel his cum spilling out of her, but he stayed inside her as he caught his breath. When he tried to move, Pepper was quick to hold him in place.

“Stay,” Pepper asked, “I like feeling you inside me.”

“mmmm,” Tony hummed, happy to comply with his wife.

They layed like this for a while, until they heard the familiar voice of FRIDAY.

“Bosses,” Friday interrupted. “In order to make it to your therapy on time, you will need to be ready in 10 minutes.”

“Crap,” Pepper sighed.

“Can’t we just skip the first one?” Tony asked. “I feel like this was great therapy.”

Pepper slapped his arm and rolled her eyes.

“Fine,” Tony said, pulling out of her.

“We can continue this later.”

“Round two?” Tony asked with glee.

“If you’re a good boy.” Pepper sarcastically said.

“I’m always a good boy,” Tony said, pulling on his boxers.

“We’ll see about that.”
--

After handing Peter off to a grumpy Happy, the couple took the elevator down to the fifth floor to meet their private therapist. Tony and Pepper arrived only five minutes late to therapy.

Dr. Christina Raynor wasn’t pleased.

“You’re late,” she commented, motioning for the couple to sit down.

“Sorry.” The couple said simultaneously.

“Apology not accepted. Why were you late?”

The couple looked at eachother.

“You had sex this morning didn’t you.” Dr. Raynor noted.

“How-“ Pepper was cutoff.

“The look.”

“What look?” Tony asked.

“Anyways,” Dr. Raynor pivoted, clearly uninterested in continuing the conversation, “tell me why you think you are here.”

“We have issues to work out.” Pepper discussed.

“What issues?”

“Trust.”
“Martial.”

The couple looked at each other after they both spoke.

“So you think you are on the brink of divorce?”

“No,” Tony stated confidently.
“Yes” Pepper said simultaneously.

Dr. Raynor raised her eyebrow.

“Sure we have some minor issues about my work but we can talk this out.” Tony stated, clearly thrown off guard with the therapist's bluntness.

“It’s not just your work, it’s also how we are going to parent our son and how we aren’t going to let him get involved. And how you lied to me.”

“Technically I just hid it from you.”

“By it, you mean the mob?” Dr. Raynor asked.

Tony nodded.

“Pepper, tell me how you are feeling about your relationship.”

“It’s a mess.”

“Elaborate.”

“I can’t trust him. He kept such a big secret from me about running the mob. I fear for our son’s future and our safety. God he was kidnapped, nearly killed. But I love Tony. I do. I want our son to have his father but I worry it’s too dangerous.”

Before the doctor could prompt Tony, he interjected.

“You kept secrets from me too! A big one! You kept me from my son for almost 2 years! I can’t trust you around our son without constant surveillance. God, you almost got him killed when you tried to run away. You broke my heart as if it was nothing.”

"You broke my heart too! I fell in love with a different person. But you put Peter in way more danger when you tried to sneak away with him in the middle of the night. And look where that landed our baby. In a cave with terrorirsts.”

“I did that so you could see how I feel! Obviously, I didn't plan for us to get kidnapped, but you kept me from my kid. He’s mine just as much as he is yours.”

“But you kill for a living. He’s a kid, he shouldn’t be around that.”

“He won’t be, I already promised you that.”

“Alright-“ Dr. Raynor tried to interrupt.

“How do I know you can keep that promise?”

“I’m the boss, I can do what I want.”

“But you’re not the boss of this family.”

“And what, you are? I’ve made so many sacrifices to appease you and get you to stay.”

“I've made a lot of sacrifices too!”

“But you still think of yourself as the only one who’s looking out for Peter, I am too. I can do more for him than you can.”

“Don’t you dare go there-“

“ENOUGH.” Dr. Raynor yelled, getting the couple to stop arguing and turn to look at her.

“This is going to require a lot of work. Far more than I thought.”

“See,” Pepper interrupted, but Dr. Raynor held out her hand to shush Pepper.

“You’ve both done lots of things wrong. I think we can both see that.”

“No,” The couple said simultaneously.

Dr. Raynor narrowed her eyes.

“Fine,” Tony rolled his eyes, “Yes.”

Dr. Raynor turned to Pepper expectantly.

“Yes,” Pepper muttered.

“Good, we agreed on something. That’s a start. Now let’s start from the beginning of your relationship.”

 

--
“I think this is a good stopping point,” Dr. Raynor said, closing her notebook.

“Thank god,” Tony muttered.

“What was that?” Dr. Raynor asked.

“Just said thank you,” Tony responded cheekily.

“Sure you did.” Dr. Raynor said flatly and motioned for the couple to leave.

As they closed the door behind them and quickly hopped on the elevator, Tony was quick to comment.

“I don’t like her,” Tony stated.

“Me neither,” Pepper agreed. “But she's a Stark employee. There’s no one else that will see a mobster and his wife and not report everything they here to the police.”

“For someone on Stark Industry’s payroll, I would expect better.” Tony complained.

“Well, too late now. At least we agree she’s rude,” Pepper commented.

“And mean.” Tony added as the elevator door opened.

When Pepper and Tony walked into the main room, Happy was quick to hand off a bouncing Peter to them.

“Thanks for watching him Hap,” Tony greeted as he took a giggling Peter into his arms.

“Get Captain America or someone with more energy to watch him,” Happy grumbled, “he’s a handful.”

“Say bye-bye to Happy,” Tony told Peter.

“Bye bye Hap Hap,” Peter waved.

“Sure, bye kid,” Happy half-heartedly waved and walked towards the elevator.

“Also don't forget to say thank you Peter,” Pepper reminded Peter.

“Tanks,” Peter whispered.

“You’re welcome kid. You already have better manners than your father.”

“Hey, watch it, I’m the one who signs the paycheck.”

“Actually I do,” Pepper interjected.

“Shhhh,” Tony dramatically shushed as Happy walked away, “he doesn’t need to know that.”

Happy just rolled his eyes as the elevator doors closed.

“Well now that Mr. Not-So-Happy is gone, what do you want to do Pete?” Tony asked, pressing a kiss to his son’s forehead.

“Couh,” Peter said, pointing to the couch.

“Couch it is,” Tony said, and went to sit down, with Pepper following. He situated Peter on his lap so that both were comfortable.

“Peter come and give mommy a hug, I missed you,” Pepper said, her arms outstretched. Peter grinned and bounced over into his mother’s arms.

“Hey no fair,” Tony complained. “Peter come give me a bigger hug.”

Peter jumped from his mother’s lap into his father’s, giggling as he landed. To the young Stark, this was a fun game.

All parties were too preoccupied to notice the familiar ding of the elevator.

“Peter,” Pepper called, gaining Peter’s attention, “come cuddle with me under this blanket.”

Peter happily hopped over and Pepper draped the blanket across her son and pulled him close. Not wanting to be outdone, Tony slid under the covers and pulled his family closer to him.

But before he could get too comfy, a familiar voice interrupted the family.

“Fury is calling a meeting.” Nat announced and all three Starks turned.

“What the hell for?” Tony groaned and Pepper shot him a glance for swearing.

“It’s Avengers business,” Nat explained.

“Fine,” Tony groaned again, lifting his portion of the blanket off of him and draping it over Pepper. He got up from his spot on the couch. He turned to look down at Pepper who was watching him with an amused smile.

“Have fun,” Pepper smiled, hugging Peter a little tighter, who leaned into the hug.

“Don’t move a muscle,” Tony commanded. “I’ll be back in five minutes.”

“Fury is coming all the way out here, you can give him more than five minutes,” Nat said.

“No can do. In five minutes I’ll be back to cuddle with him,” Tony explained, nodding towards Peter.

“I’m not giving him up,” Pepper explained, pressing her cheek to Peter’s cheek.

“That’s not fair you got to hold him more than I did today,” Tony complained.

“And now I have him all to myself,” Pepper taunted.

“You two are less mature than Peter,” Nat rolled her eyes, and grabbed Tony by the arm to pull him along. “Common Stark.”

“What does Fury want now with the Avengers?” Tony asked as the two entered the elevator and watched the elevator doors closed.

“He wants to talk about Loki,” Nat said flatly as they began their descent.

“Hmm,” Tony grumbled. It wasn’t like he really wanted to talk about the man who masterminded his captivity.

When Tony and Nat arrived in the conference room on the 38th floor, all the Avengers were there as well as Fury.

“Decided to show up?” Joked Rhodey.

“Let’s get started,” Fury said, ignoring Rhodey’s comment. “I’ve called this meeting to talk about Loki.”

“What about him?” Steve asked. “We talking about how to divide up his territory?”

“I know you have all been busy with Tony’s return, so maybe you haven’t been keeping as close of an eye out as you should be.” Fury warned.

“Excuse me?” Rhodey asked angrily.

“Loki’s not dead,” Fury stated and the room went silent.

“We shot him in the cave. How is that possible?” Steve broke the silence, the confusion evident in his voice.

“He seemed survived long enough for the Ten Rings to find him and save him.” Fury explained.

Tony’s blood boiled. How dare the Avengers be this sloppy? Loki deserved to die for what he did to Tony and his family.

“And what do you want us to do now?” Thor asked.

“SHIELD wants him gone. Loki is mischievous, and the government doesn’t want to have to deal with him anymore.”

“So you want us to kill him.” Tony concluded.

“If you kill Loki, SHIELD, and the United States government will announce the Avengers as earth’s mightiest heroes, and the government promises to align and support the Avengers initiative. The Avengers will have the power to do whatever they want, with no government interference.”

The room went silent as everyone thought about the implications of what Fury said. If they killed Loki… the government would support the Avengers. But Tony caught what Fury was insinuating. Fury was implying the government will support not only the Avengers but also the Stark mob. The government will turn a blind eye to everything they do. The Stark mob would have the power to do whatever they wanted with absolutely no repercussions. They would own politicians, law enforcement, military personnel, everyone. They could, and they would take over every other family’s power with the government’s support. They would hold a monopoly that would be more powerful than anyone could ever imagine. The Stark family was filthy rich now… imagine how rich they would be when they owned everything. With that money and power, they would be gods. They would own everything, and there wouldn’t be anyone able to stop them.

They wouldn’t just be the kings of New York. They’d be the kings of the world.

Tony nodded to Rhodey. Rhodey nodded back.

“Consider it done,” Rhodey announced.

Fury nodded, clearly satisfied, and dismissed the Avengers. On their way to the door, Rhodey grabbed Tony’s arm.

“Hey Tones, can I talk to you for a sec?” Rhodey asked.

“Sure Platypus,” Tony agreed and waited for everyone else to leave the room.

“Listen, I know you made your promises to Pepper…”

“What’s this got to do with Pepper?” Tony asked defensively.

“This is more about Peter.”

“What about him?” Tony questioned, his eyes narrowing.

“I know you promised Pepper you’d never force Peter into this life.”

“And I intend on keeping that promise.”

“But hear me out,” Rhodey said, holding his hand up to Tony so that he wouldn’t interrupt. “If we kill Loki, we will be invincible.”

“Yea I know, I was at the meeting that just now,” Tony said, rolling his eyes.

“Once we kill Loki, and we will, everyone will want a piece of the power. You and I both know that Peter has to inherit this, all of this, in order for the Stark family to live on.”

“You know how Pepper feels about that.”

“What if Peter wanted to join? What if Peter actually wants to take over one day? Pepper can’t deny her son his birthright especially if he wants it.”

“So what? You want me to disobey my wife? That’s a death sentence.”

“You’re Tony Stark. You need a successor. All that hard work and you’re just going to throw it away?”

Tony sighed.

“I know you man, you want your legacy to continue. You have to start teaching Peter the same way your father taught you.” Rhodey continued to argue

“My father was a piece of sh-“

“Your father wasn’t great, we all know. But you can do better. You can actually prepare Peter for the business. You can set him up to take over the empire we are building. And believe me, when we are done, we are going to rule the world. No one except you and your bloodline deserves this empire.”

“Then what are you suggesting I do consigliere of mine? Lie to Pepper?”

“Keep it a secret. Bring Peter to meetings, introduce him to our allies as your successor. He’ll fall in love with the business as he grows up in our world and when the time comes, you and Peter can tell Pepper that Peter is choosing to be involved in the business.”

“That seems like a horrible idea.”

'If Pepper found out, she would kill me'

“Do you have a better one? Or are you planning on throwing the Stark Empire away?” Rhodey asked.

'She is definitely going to kill me'

“No.”

“So it’s settled. Keep it a secret and your legacy will live on.” Rhodey explained as he walked out the door, leaving Tony to think about what he just agreed to.

All that kept repeating in Tony’s head was one word.

Mistake.

Mistake. Mistake. Mistake.

Notes:

Why is life so busy?! I find I only have 10 seconds during each day to write which is why it takes forever. PS I'm sorry for the incredibly short sex scene.

Hope you enjoyed the grave Tony just dug for himself!

Chapter 17: Of Dreams and Stomach Bugs

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text

It was dark. The darkness was all-consuming. Tony couldn’t see or hear anything.

Until he could.

Tony heard a small sound. The sound of drops of water falling. Like a leaky sink, he heard each drop fall rhythmically.

He turned towards the noise, and there was just enough light to see what was happening.

Tony’s heart dropped.

They were back in the cave in Afghanistan. Peter was tied down to a table. His small boy was surrounded by the terrorists, the men who tormented him and Peter for months. How were they back in the cave?

“No pwease no,” Peter cried. “STOWPPPP.”

But his cries were futile. The terrorists, they kept pouring water over Peter’s face. Peter screamed a blood-curdling scream as he gasped for air in between each bucket of water poured on him. The pain of listening to Peter cry and scream was unbearable.

“Daddy hewlp,” Peter cried.

“No!” Tony shouted at the terrorists and rushed forward, but he was moving in slow motion.

“Daddy please hewl-,” Peter begged, but the water was poured over his face before he could finish.

“No!” Tony screamed as they poured another bucket of water.

“Daddy hwelp mwee,” Peter cried desperately.

“No!” Tony pleaded, as they kept pouring more water on Peter.

“Daddy hwelp!!!!” Peter screamed.

“I’m trying baby!” Tony yelled, reaching one arm out to his son.

Suddenly Tony was standing over his drenched son. Peter looked so miserable, so hurt, that Tony had trouble looking.

“I’m here baby, I got you,” Tony pleaded and Peter looked him dead in the eye.

“You’ll never be fast enough to save me,” Peter whispered.

Suddenly there was a large cracking sound. Tony looked up to see the walls of the cave crack, and water flooded in. When Tony looked back down at his son, he was gone.

--
Tony jolted awake. He sat in bed, trying to catch his breath. It was just another dream. Just like all the dreams he had every night for the past four months.

Since coming home, the therapy had helped, sure. Pepper and him were working on fixing their relationship. Tony was working on being a good husband and father, all while running his empire. There were enough distractions with work and his family during the day, he didn’t have time to worry about the lingering fear he still had over his son’s safety.

At night, the demons came to haunt him.

Every night, it was another nightmare. Another horrifying reminder that Tony was incapable of preventing bad things from happening. His nightmares taunted him with different scenarios of how Peter could die, all because of Tony. In each nightmare, no matter what he did, he could never save Peter.

It terrified Tony.

Tony knew the strength of Ironman. That he has always had enough tech to protect his son. But what if it isn’t enough? His nightmares reminded him of that constantly. With each nightmare, Tony built a new protective measure. But each nightmare came up with a new way to kill Peter, causing Tony to spiral into self-doubt and fear over his ability to protect his kid.

And his wife.

Speaking of, he rolled over to face her. Even in the dim light, he could see her soft features relaxed in her sleep. Seeing her in bed next to him calmed him. Helped him forget how lonely it was when she was gone. He brushed a strand of hair out of her face, and just watched her sleep, peacefully unaware of Tony’s nightmares.

Tony didn’t want to worry Pepper. They had enough to deal with. Luckily since they started having sex again, things seemed to be okay. She seemed… content. At least she ignored his mafia side and focused on loving the other parts of him. At least that’s what she told the therapist. Tony was just grateful for the second chance. He was not willing to lose her.

So he quietly got up and tiptoed down the hall. It was a nightly ritual. He poked his head into Peter’s room and watched him sleep from the door. When just looking through the door wasn’t enough to calm him, which it never was, Tony walked into the room and crouched next to Peter’s bed.

He had gotten bigger since they were saved from the Ten Rings. He was talking more, was having full conversations, and asked so many questions. He had a growth spurt. When he was awake, he followed Tony around like a shadow. Which Tony loved. Tony happily paraded him around, showing Peter off to everyone, from Stark Industry engineers to the occasional capo that came to negotiate territory.

Tony watched Peter sleep for a bit longer but dragged himself down to his workshop. He felt the need to create something to protect Peter from. Last time it was fires, this time it was for waterboarding.

He was surprised to find Bruce Banner in his lab, completely unaware of the newest arrival.

“Dr. Banner,” Tony greeted, startling the other man.

“Tony? Wha-what are you doing down here? It’s 3 am,” Bruce asked.

“I could ask you the same thing,” Tony quipped, moving to his workstation.

“Just looking into ways to… never mind,” Bruce commented.

“What do you mean never mind? Spill Banner.”

“I’m trying to look for a way to separate me from the Hulk.”

“Not a fan of the big green guy huh?”

“I want control back over my life Tony.”

“That guy might come in handy one day. Who knows, maybe Hulk will save the Avengers.” Tony commented.

“Highly doubt it, the hulk is just a big green asshole.” Bruce scuffed.

“I don’t think so.”

“The Hulk could hurt you, or anyone on the team, or even Peter!” Bruce flinched, knowing he shouldn’t have mentioned Peter’s safety. Everyone knew how touchy Tony had been since the kidnapping.

“Bruce,” Tony sighed, and looked Bruce dead in the eye, “I don’t think the Hulk would hurt Peter. I really don’t.”

“You can’t be sure.”

“I think I can, because I know somewhere, deep down in that big green giant, there’s a heart. And you know, Peter just has this way of being too adorable for the Hulk to not like him.”

“He is pretty cute,” Bruce chuckled. “Hey, are you going to make him an Ironman suit or I guess he would be Ironkid?”

“Noooo way, that kid would try and be a superhero.”

“He does idolize you.”

“And I think he wants to be just like me.”

“And that’s such a bad thing?”

“I want to keep him away from danger, not encourage him to run into it.”

“He’s two.”

“But one day he’ll be 15… and then god, I can’t think about him getting older.”

“It’s going to happen one day.”

Tony sighed.

“And we all know you’re grooming him to take over, that’s dangerous in and of itself,” Bruce commented, and Tony shot him a look. Bruce looked down, embarrassed. “Sorry I shouldn’t have said that.”

“You’re not wrong,” Tony commented.

“How does Pepper feel about it?” Bruce asked.

“She doesn’t know. She can’t know.”

“Not that it’s any of my business…” Bruce said, and Tony’s eyebrow raised. “But doesn’t she never want him involved?”

“Yes which is why everyone is keeping their mouth shut… or I’ll have to shut it for you.”

Bruce’s eyes widened.

“I’m kidding relax, but seriously don’t tell her. And before you give me your opinion just know if you try to give me advice, I’ll force you to be our therapist. You’d be a great replacement for Dr. Raynor.”

“Oh god please no.” Bruce begged, “I’m not that kind of doctor.”

“You know, I had a nanny when I was 14. What 14 year old needs a nanny?” Tony taunted, and Bruce covered his ears.

“No, no, no, goodnight Tony,” Bruce said, backing out to the exit.

“Bye Brucie!” Tony waved with a smirk.
--

When Peter woke up, he knew it was still early. He could tell because the sun was only just coming up and it was mostly still dark in his room. Mommy and daddy would still be asleep. But if he was quiet, maybe he could go downstairs and play in the workshop.

“Friday?” Peter whispered as quietly as he could, looking at the ceiling.

“Yes Peter,” Friday said fondly. Friday was always extra nice to him, but Peter noticed that sometimes Friday was sassy to daddy.

“Are mommy an’ daddy sweeping?” Peter asked softly.

“Your mother is asleep in their bedroom, but your father fell asleep in the lab downstairs. Would you like me to wake one of them for you?”

“No!” Peter begged, then realized he needed to whisper. “Don tell dem I gonna play dow’staywers.”

“As you wish,” Friday said, and Peter tiptoed down the hall.

When Peter entered the workshop, he immediately spotted his father hunched over at the desk. He was definitely sleeping. Peter thought about going over and jumping on him when he saw the Ironman helmet sitting on the desk. As quietly as possible, he tiptoed over. Standing on his tippy toes, he reached up for the helmet, and quietly lifted it off the table.

Peter turned it over, fascinated by the metal. Daddy never let him play Ironman, saying it was too dangerous. But it was just the helmet, and he really wanted to at least try it on.

So he did.

When he slipped the helmet on his small head, everything lit up. Peter started giggling.

“Friday?” Peter whispered, knowing Friday was installed in his Ironman suit.

“Peter, I should inform you your father would probably not want you playing with any of his Ironman armor.”

“No shhh,” Peter said shaking his head vigorously, “it okay, I jus wanna pway I’nman.”

‘Okay Peter.” Friday said softly. She clearly had a soft spot for him. “Would you like me to show you the built-in features?”

“Can I fwy?” Peter asked hopefully.

“Not without the rest of the suit.”

“I wan fwy.”

“The suit isn’t designed to fit you,” Friday explained.

“Owh,” Peter pouted, the disappointment evident.

“Let me show you something else,” Friday said kindly, causing Peter to grin beneath the mask.

Instead of flying, the mask lit up and showed Peter footage of his dad. Footage of his dad soaring high in the sky. Footage of his dad flying back home and being greeted by Peter.

Peter walked around the workshop, mesmerized by the footage. So much so, that he ended up walking into a wall face first.

The noise was enough to wake Tony up.

“Uh oh,” Peter whispered to himself but Friday responded.

“Peter, I would advise that you act extra cute, that appears to distract your father,” Friday suggested.

“What are you doing up little man?” Tony asked, crouching down in front of Peter.

“Hi daddy, I’m you!” Peter sang as Tony pulled the Ironman mask off to reveal a grinning Peter.

“Where did you get this?” Tony asked, holding out the mask.

“I found it.”

“Oh you found it, so it’s yours to wear now huh?” Tony asked, setting the Ironman mask on the counter.

“I pway I’nman!” Peter said, reaching out to hug his father. “An I stowp da bad guys.”

“And you did a very good job. But I can’t have you taking things you find here, there’s some dangerous equipment here…”

“I’m hungwee,” Peter interrupted, tugging on his father's arms.

Tony chuckled.

“Nice way to divert from discipline kid.”

“Huh?” Peter asked, cocking his head. Tony huffed in amusement and picked up Peter as he stood.

“You’re pretty smart huh? Alright, let’s go make breakfast my little Ironman.”

--
When Pepper woke up, she felt off.

She wasn’t sure why she felt so off, but she felt tired. Odd, because she knew she was getting enough sleep. Except when she and Tony made love after they put Peter to bed, she always got enough sleep. That included last night. In fact, they had gone to bed early. So why was she so tired?

“Friday, what time is it?” Pepper croaked out, the sleepiness evident in her voice.

“It is currently 9:45 am.”

Holy shit. She hadn’t slept that late in… well, forever.

“Where’s Peter? And Tony?”

“They are eating breakfast in the kitchen currently. Would you like me to ask them to prepare a breakfast for you?”

“No,” Pepper sighed. Her stomach felt… off. She didn’t feel like she could eat anything right now.

“Are you feeling alright Mrs. Boss? Your basal body temperature is raised, and you appear to be quite tired.”

“I’m fine,” Pepper muttered.

It was just a little stomach bug. Pepper told herself.

“Part of my protocols requires me to run a health diagnostic for anyone the Boss deems important.”

“What?” Pepper asked, getting out of bed.

“Boss has you and Peter listed as a priority, and therefore I must scan all vitals and check for symptoms in case of illness.”

Ugh. Tony and his overprotectiveness. It was just a little stomach bug.

“Would you like me to contact Boss about this?”

“No,” Tony would freak out if Friday told him that she was sick.

“Are you sure? I can alert Boss to come to check on you.”

“Please don’t,” Pepper grumbled.

The last thing she needed was for Tony to worry that she was sick. He hovered, much to Pepper’s annoyance. A month after Tony was rescued from Afghanistan, Peter had a little cold. It was minor, really, Pepper knew it would blow over in a day. But Tony was a mess. Tony refused to leave Peter’s side, going so far as to sleep on the floor beside him, just in case he needed something in the middle of the night. As much as she loved her husband, he was overbearing.

“Very well, running diagnostic,” Friday informed. Pepper rolled her eyes. Tony sometimes cared way too much. It was just a little stomach bug.

As she was brushing her teeth, Friday interrupted her morning routine.

“To continue with the diagnostic, I require that you use the facilities.”

“Excuse me?”

“I require a urine sample to finish checking your health and wellbeing,” Friday explained bluntly.

“This is ridiculous, no!”

“Would you like me to inform Boss and request his assistance-“

“No! Ugh fine,” Pepper muttered, going to sit down to pee. Friday was being so pushy, borderline manipulative.

When she was finished, she quickly washed her hands and began brushing her hair.

“Happy?” Pepper grumbled.

“I appreciate your compliance,” Friday acknowledged, which Pepper just hummed in acknowledgment.

“I have completed my diagnostic,” Friday informed Pepper.

“And everything is normal, just a stomach bug, I figured as much.” Pepper snarked, turning to leave the bathroom.

“That is not the case,” Friday paused.

Pepper raised an eyebrow.

“You are pregnant.”

Pepper’s eyes widened.

It wasn’t just a stomach bug.

Notes:

I am back from the dead

Seriously I've been way too busy, but hoping it will calm down in the next few weeks so I can get back to writing more.

There were a few comments about having Morgan so guess who's on the way!! While the MCU has a big age difference between the two I cannot wait that long for her to join the story haha.

How should Tony react to finding out? Should Pepper try to hide her pregnancy?

Chapter 18: The Magic of Christmas

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text

Oh god.

Oh god, oh god, oh god.

Pepper paced around the master bedroom frantically trying to think about what to do.

Oh the one hand, she knew Tony would be thrilled. Absolutely ecstatic. But was he ready for another kid? She knew Tony loved Peter and adored being a father. But to have another kid in this world? It still scared her. And she was now just taking back responsibility as CEO of Stark Industries. If she had another kid it could hold her back from taking over. Tony’s men, the men she knew lurked in the shadows watching and waiting, would have something to say about a mom of two running a business.

Fuck.

She touched her stomach lightly. She didn’t feel anything. Obviously, she couldn’t. It was still so early on. But soon she would be able to listen to the heartbeat at the doctor’s office and would feel the baby kick.

It was terrifying to know she was pregnant. But at least this time, things were better with Tony. The mob boss Tony and her Tony, the Tony she loved, were separate. She was still scared to bring a baby into this world, but she was much less scared. She could do this.

And she knew Tony would want to be there every step of the way. They had watched a movie the other day where a couple was pregnant. Pepper noticed the longing in Tony’s eyes when the couple first heard the baby’s heartbeat. And she noticed the longing in Tony’s eyes when the baby was born. Tony missed all those moments with Peter.

But he wouldn’t for the next one.

She sat down on the bed. So if they were going to have a kid… she was going to have to tell Tony. But how?

Pepper sat and thought about it for a moment. It was already December. Christmas was two weeks away. She knew Tony was planning on going all out on presents, she had already seen Happy carry in multiple carloads of wrapped boxes from all sorts of different stores.

She grinned. Maybe she could one-up him.

--

A few days later, Pepper’s secret was no longer a secret.

Really, she had been doing a great job keeping it low-key. Seriously. She hid her morning sickness and her weird cravings. She kept her grumpiness from lack of sleep to a minimum, and she wasn’t even close to showing.

But when the Black Widow is your secretary and security guard, nothing gets by her.

When Nat showed up with Pepper’s usual coffee order, Pepper did what she did every morning. She dumped it out a few minutes after Nat left. She even did it slowly. Poured out half of the cup immediately, then an hour later poured out the other half.

But when Nat came in this particular morning, she sat down.

“You never sit down.” Pepper commented, her eyebrows perking up.

“I thought it might be nice to catch up,” Nat said casually.

“Sure, what do you want to catch up on?” Pepper asked, flipping through the paperwork. The paperwork was never-ending.

“How’s Peter?” Nat asked.

“Good. Getting into everything, as usual.”

“Hmm.”

“What?”

“Why aren’t you drinking your coffee?” Nat questioned.

“I’ll get to it.”

“Like you have been the last week?”

“What?” Pepper asked fearfully.

“You tell me.”

“Tell you what?” Pepper asked, her eyes narrowing.

Nat’s eyes also narrowed, and the two women stared at each other for a long time.

“I think I know what it is.”

“Do tell,” Pepper asked, unsure of if she should be concerned or scared.

“You and Tony have been awfully happy together lately.”

“Yes, we’ve been working things out.”

“You’ve been having a lot of sex.”

“Nat,” Pepper hushed, hoping no one would overhear.

Nat leaned in.

“And a result of unprotected sex is pregnancy.”

Pepper’s eyes widened.

“You’re pregnant, aren’t you?” Nat asked and immediately knew the answer.

“You can’t tell anyone!” Pepper begged. “Seriously, I haven’t even had the chance to tell Tony.”

“You’re going to have to tell him. He needs to know. And I won’t let history repeat itself.”

“I am!” Pepper exclaimed.

Nat’s eyes narrowed.

“Seriously! I was going to surprise him at Christmas. So you can’t ruin it.”

“I won’t,” Nat promised.

Pepper let out a sigh of relief.

“But I want to help.”

“Ummmm how?”

“How do you plan on surprising him?”

“I’m…. not sure,” Pepper admitted.

“Well, let’s start brainstorming.”

--

On Christmas Eve, the entire Avenger’s team gathered for a Christmas eve dinner. Pepper thought Tony went totally overboard. Everyone wore Santa hats and sang Christmas songs to Peter. And Peter absolutely adored it, jumping around and clapping after every song. Pepper wondered what other mobsters would think of her husband if they saw him so domestically. But she shook that thought out of her head, refusing to let any thoughts of the mob in her head.

“Okay, everyone!” Clint announced.

“What do you want birdbrain?” Tony joked, lifting Peter up into his arms.

“Picture time!”

“Ugh why man?” Rhodey complained.

“Common man, it’ll be cute, something for Peter to remember his first Christmas with us!” Clint argued.

“Did you just say cute?” Rhodey asked.

“Yes, because we are so cute,” Nat said dryly.

“I second that,” Rhodey nodded to Nat.

“I must agree with them,” Thor added.

“You guys stink!” Clint complained.

“Fine,” Tony huffed, and stole Rhodey’s Santa hat and put it on Peter. “We’ll take a picture for you Legolas.”

Tony pulled his son closer, and the father-son duo grinned into the camera.

The group hung out for a while, talking and sharing stories of their Christmases as a kid. Clint accidentally revealed he had a wife and kids, much to the group’s surprise. Thor talked about his Christmas’s with the Asgardians, the good Christmas’s before Loki went rogue. Nat shared nothing, which surprised no one. Bruce was in the middle of talking about the first Christmas he remembered when he stopped to look at Peter.

Everyone turned to see him asleep, curled up in his father's lap. Peter’s head was tucked into his father’s chest, and his mouth was slightly open.

“That’s adorable,” Clint admitted.

“Why is everything cute or adorable man?” Rhodey asked.

“Even I can agree that is cute,” Steve commented.

“See!” Clint exclaimed.

“Shh,” Nat threw a pillow at Clint, “you’ll wake him.”

“I’m going to put him to bed,” Tony explained and stood carefully, cradling his precious son. “before you clowns can wake him up.”

“I think that’s our cue to leave,” Steve said and stood.

“And that’s why you’re the captain,” Tony smirked and walked away.

“Thank you all for coming,” Pepper said courteously.

“Thanks for having us Pep,” Rhodey said.

“Yea thanks, Pepper.”

“Thanks Pepper, and Merry Christmas.”

A chorus of thank yous and Merry Christmas’s rang out.

As everyone slowly filtered out, Nat hung back. She waited until everyone else left before she pulled out a small envelope.

“This is for you,” Nat said, holding it out.

“What is it?” Pepper asked. She looked at the envelope. The return address was Tennessee.

“I didn’t read it.”

“Really?” Pepper asked skeptically. Snooping seemed like something Nat would be required to do for Tony.

“It’s addressed to you. Not me. I know who it is, and I’m sure you do too, but I know it’s not my business to snoop. Or Tony’s.”

“Thanks,” Pepper acknowledged, truly appreciating the privacy.

“You’re welcome. And Merry Christmas.” Nat said as she went to the exit.

“Merry Christmas. I’ll see you tomorrow?” Pepper asked.

“Yup, we’re all coming to Christmas dinner. Tony insisted.”

“Great,” Pepper said, looking down at the letter.

“Goodnight Pepper,” Nat said softly.

“Goodnight.”

With Nat gone, Pepper looked up to make sure Tony wasn’t in the room. She quietly walked into the nearby bathroom and locked the door. Despite things being better with Tony, she didn’t want him to see this letter. She had a feeling this letter from Chatanooga Tennessee was from a specific person, one Tony wouldn’t necessarily be thrilled to know she was still in contact with. While Tony wanted to forget Pepper’s time in Queens and pretend it didn’t happen, Pepper couldn’t forget May.

Pepper felt the cool paper between her fingers. She slowly cut open the envelope, pulling out the card. There was a snowman wearing a Santa hat on the front of the card. As she opened the letter, she recognized the familiar cursive of her best friend.

 

 

Dear Pepper,

Remember the day me and Ben first met you? I made that walnut date loaf and you ate the whole thing and told me it was amazing? Well, I made that walnut date loaf for my new neighbors and their son was quick to tell me it was horrible.

The loaf made me think of you, but the boy made me think of Peter. I just moved to Rose Hill, Tennessee, and this boy reminds me so much of Peter. His name is Harley. He’s a few years older than Peter, but he is smart just like Peter. He has this love of technology and is fascinated by little things, just like Peter. I think they would be good friends.

I miss you. And Peter. I wish we could be together again; I want to see Peter grow. But I know Peter deserves to know his father, and this is safer for me. I moved to Rose Hill without Nat or any of the others knowing I left Chattanooga. They haven’t been watching me that much, so I figured now was the time to lose them. Rose Hill is so small. Quiet. So different from New York. Rose Hill is helping me gain closure on what happened to Ben. I know it’s not really your husband’s fault, and it’s definitely not your fault, but it’s just hard sometimes. I didn’t realize how much I needed a change from New York until I got here. I guess it was a good thing your husband’s friend sent me away.

Anyways, I hope you and Peter have a Merry Christmas. And if you ever find yourself looking for me, you can find me in Rose Hill. I’ll attach my address.

With Love,

May

 

 

Pepper flipped over the card, only to see the smallest handwriting she had ever seen wedged between the trademarked card logo. She squinted and was barely able to make out the address in Rose Hill. It was more secure that way. It wasn’t obvious. You would only notice the address if you looked for it.

Pepper couldn’t fully process what she read. She missed May, but with everything going on right now, there was no way she could go see May. So Pepper hid the letter, stuffed it into the bottom of a drawer in the bathroom, and walked out to find her husband.

--

They say Christmas is only magical for children. Once you no longer believe in Santa, the magic is lost. Gone, lost at sea, never to return.

But this one Christmas, Pepper disproved that for Tony.

“Tony this is ridiculous.” Pepper motioned to the mountains of presents beside the tree. The tree was already 20 feet tall, and the fact that all the presents were stacked just as high all around the tree made the tree look small. There were so many presents.

“Hey it’s my money, and I want to spoil my kid.”

“Please tell me he made Peter an Ironman suit,” Rhodey commented.

“I thought about it,” Tony commented.

“And?” Steve asked.

“It doesn’t have full functionality but it’s an exact replica, just Peter sized.”

All the Avengers and Pepper rolled their eyes.

“Where is the young Stark?” Thor asked.

“He said he had something to get first,” Tony explained, not really sure what Peter was doing. But he let Peter have his fun, it was his first Christmas in the Tower after all.

“Daddy!” Peter came running down the hallway chanting.

“Hi Pete, say hi to everyone.”

When Peter reached his father, he grabbed onto Tony’s pants with one hand, and held a piece of paper in the other. He nervously waved to everyone, who smiled back at him.

“Whatcha got there?” Tony asked, bending down to his son’s eye level.

“Dis for you Daddy!” Peter announced and handed the paper to his father.

“Thanks Peter,” Tony said and turned the paper over. It was a drawing of some sort, but it was mostly squiggles.

“Dats you and dats me! And we pwaying wif mommy and see I gib you a hug cause I lub you 3000.”

“Awww, thank you Pete, I love you 3000.” Tony hugged his son.

Pepper smiled softly at the sweet moment her son and husband shared, and it reminded her of how lucky she had gotten. And why she chose to stay.

“Alright present time!” Tony announced.

--

After hours of opening presents, they finally got to the last couple of presents. Peter had received so many gifts that he had fallen asleep in a pile of presents in the middle of opening all the gifts. But his reaction to his own Ironman suit had been priceless.

Finally, dinner time rolled around, and the team settled down at the table.

“A toast,” Steve called out, “to the Stark family.”

“To the Stark family.”

“To the Starks.”

“To the Stark family.”

As they all took a sip of wine, minus Pepper, Clint couldn’t help but interrupt.

“So Stark, I think Peter didn’t get enough presents,” Clint smirked.

“Is that so?” Tony played along. “Peter, what did I forget to get you for Christmas?”

Peter thought about it for a moment.

“Nofing!” Peter answered. “And beswides, dats Santa’s job.”

“Kid’s got a point,” Steve agreed.

“Clint you spoil your kids?” Tony asked. “Since you know, you dropped that ball last night.”

“I sent home some things.”

“When we gonna meet your kids?” Rhodey asked.

“Nat’s already met them,” Clint said offhandedly, biting into his ham.

“You met his kids already?” Rhodey asked.

Nat shrugged.

“Of course she did, master spy and everything,” Tony said.

“You should bring them over! We would love to meet them,” Thor exclaimed.

“I try to keep that part of my life far away and safe from our kind of work, no offense Stark.”

Pepper shifted uncomfortably.

“None taken birdbrain. In my opinion, having peace of mind helps.”

“We can help keep them safe here, you know that right? You don’t have to sacrifice seeing your family for us” Steve added.

“I’ll consider it, thanks guys.”

Pepper suddenly stood, feeling the urgent need to go to the bathroom.

“You okay honey?” Tony worriedly asked.

“Fine,” Pepper muttered, “just need to use the bathroom.”

Tony nodded.

When Pepper was out of earshot, the team couldn’t help but bring up business.

“So Tony,” Bruce started, “we hear anything about Loki?”

Tony sighed.

“Nothing,” Rhodey said. “No one has heard a word from him in months.”

“Not even his dear ol’ brother?” Clint asked, looking at Thor.

“No, as I’ve said before we are no longer on good terms.”

“But you must know something. You know the guy better than us, what’s his next move?” Bruce asked.

“I do not. He is unpredictable, he always has been.”

“So all we know is that he’s alive, running around somewhere?” Steve asked.

“Yes.”

“And we have no idea what he’s planning?” Steve asked.

“No clue,” Rhodey said.

“Any hypothesizes?” Bruce asked.

“He wants power. He’ll come after us. We don’t know how, and don’t know when. But we know he will come. That’s all we know.” Nat explained.

“So we will just have to be ready for when he comes,” Steve said confidently.

“And-,” Clint started, but stopped when he heard Pepper coming back into the dining room.

“Anddddd,” Clint stalled trying to think what to say instead, “this ham is fantastic did you make this Pepper?”

“Uh no,” Pepper said, “the cook did.”

“Well compliments to the chef,” Thor smiled.

“Yea,” Pepper said, looking around. She felt like she was missing something, but she let it go.

--

After everyone had left, the family sat on the couch. Really just Pepper and Tony were sitting. Peter was sprawled out on the couch, fast asleep with his new Ironman plushie in between his arms.

“Today was special Pep,” Tony smiled at his wife draping an arm around her, “thank you.”

“Thank me? I didn’t do any of the cooking. Or gift shopping.”

“Yea but you made it special.”

“Hmm,” Pepper said, a soft smile growing on her face. “I think I can make it more special.”

“Oh yea?” Tony asked, returning the soft smile with a mischievous glint in his eye. He brushed a strand of hair out of Pepper’s face.

“I have one last present for you,” Pepper mysteriously explained.

Tony tried to pull her closer.

But Pepper pulled back.

Tony groaned.

“It’s hidden in the tree.”

“No but you’re right here,” Tony complained, as he grabbed her hand and tried to pull her back to the couch and into his lap.

“Tony,” Pepper rolled her eyes and grabbed the hidden box in the tree.

“Ok…” Tony said, taking the box once Pepper handed it to him. Pepper sat down next to him, her nerves starting to take over.

“Just, open it.” Pepper told Tony, begging the butterflies in her stomach to settle down.

Tony slowly unwrapped the box. When Tony pulled out the tiny Ironman booties, he was thoroughly confused. The red and gold shoes were adorable and extremely soft, but Tony didn’t get it. As he held them up in the air, he could see the gold glitter in the light, but couldn’t understand why he was holding them.

“These are too small for Peter,” Tony said, looking at Pepper with a confused expression.

“They’re not for Peter,” Pepper explained, putting a hand on her stomach.

“But they won’t fit me, so what…” Tony trailed off, his eyes wandering down to where Pepper put her hand.

He paused.

“You- you’re pregnant?” Tony stuttered.

Pepper only nodded, tears beginning to fill her eyes.

Tony just looked at her with wonder. Until a grin overtook his face, and he smiled like an idiot.

“Were going to have another baby?” Tony asked, the tremble of excitement in his voice overtaking his question.

Pepper nodded, the smile breaking through. Tony laughed. A happy, joyful laugh, the kind of laugh you hear only hear from a person that has everything they’ve ever wanted.

He couldn’t believe how lucky he was. He pulled her into a tight hug.

“Tony,” Pepper gasped, patting his back. “I can’t breath.”

Tony quickly let her go, rubbing her arms.

“I’m sorry. Are you okay? I didn’t hurt you or the baby, right?” Tony asked, his hand drifting to her stomach.

“No, I’m okay,” Pepper nodded, as Tony continued to rest his hand on her stomach.

“I’m, just, wow. Wow. I’m excited,” Tony soothed, gently rubbing circles on her stomach.

“So you’re okay with this?” Pepper questioned.

“Okay with this?” Tony’s eyes widened. “I’m more than okay with this! We’re going to have another baby! Were you were worried about how I would react?”

“Maybe a little?” Pepper admitted.

Tony took her hand.

“This is the best thing that’s happened to me. Well, besides you and Peter. It’s equally as good. Honey, I can’t wait. I want to be there for everything. All the doctor’s appointments. The birth. I’ll get to hold him or her, watch them crawl then walk… honey it’s everything I’ve always wanted.”

Pepper huffed a breath of relief.

“God I love you,” Pepper confessed.

“I love you too,” Tony agreed and kissed his wife.

It was Tony’s best Christmas ever.

Notes:

lol Christmas in July.

Hope you enjoyed, apologies that I've been slow to post, more to come!

Thanks for reading!

Chapter 19: Docs and Glocks

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text

Not long after Christmas, Pepper found herself at the obstetrician with Tony. Their first checkup. The couple would be lying if they said they weren’t nervous. Pepper was nervous about having two children. Tony was nervous about fucking up or that something was wrong with his kid.

“What if the baby has two heads?” Tony asked, pacing around the room while Pepper sat on the examination table. “Or an arm growing out of their back.”

“Then we’ll name him or her Janus.”

Tony glared at his wife.

“Tony please stop pacing; you’re giving me a headache.”

“I can’t have a kid named Janus.” Tony wined, walking back and forth at a rapid pace.

“And we won’t, so please, sit down.”

“I’d rather name our kid after your eccentric uncle, what was his name? Morgan?”

“Mmm hmm,” Pepper rolled her eyes. Tony secretly loved the eccentricity of Morgan. It was actually a good name.

Before Tony had a chance to dream up any more nightmares, the doctor entered.

“Good morning Mr. and Mrs. Stark,” the doctor greeted, somewhat intimidated by the mob boss’s presence.

“Hi Doc,” Tony greeted. “Please tell me the baby doesn’t have two heads.”

Pepper lightly smacked his arm.

“Let’s take a look, shall we?”

And the doctor did. He checked Pepper’s vitals, asked some questions, gave a prescription for Pepper’s morning sickness.

When the doctor pulled up the ultrasound, Tony squeezed Pepper’s hand when the baby appeared on the screen.

Tony held his breath.

When the heartbeat started, Tony thought he was going to have a stroke.

“Is the baby okay? Why is the heartbeat so fast?” Tony asked, semi- frantically.

“The baby looks healthy. I’d say around 10-12 weeks. Baby’s tend to have faster heartbeats than adults.”

“So we’re good.”

“Yes, the baby looks normal and healthy, we won't be able to tell the baby’s gender for at least a few more weeks. Right now, he or she is about the size of a strawberry.”

“And only one head?” Tony had to be sure.

“Only one head.” The doctor confirmed.

“Thank god,” Tony huffed quietly.

“I’ll see you in a few weeks for the next checkup, and if you need anything in between, don’t hesitate to call.” The doctor said, quickly cleaning up and preparing to leave.

Once he left, Tony let out a deep sigh, and gently rested his hand on Pepper’s belly.

“My little strawberry,” Tony softly smiled, and Pepper watched him. He looked so content. Excited.

“You ready to take your strawberry home?” Pepper asked, fatigue overtaking her.

“Anything for my wife and strawberry.”

“You’re not going to let that one go,” Pepper commented, standing up.

“It’s funny how our baby is the size of the strawberry, and if I remember correctly, you’re allergic to strawberries.”

“You finally remembered something,” Pepper said as they exited.

When they got into the backseat of the Audi, Pepper huffed, trying to get comfortable. Tony said something to the driver about avoiding potholes. Because the driver today wasn’t Happy, the man listened.

Usually Happy drove them, but Tony put his forehead of security in charge of Peter while they were gone. Pepper was unsure, having not left the tower without Peter since Peter and Tony returned home, but it was better than having Rhodey watch him. At least, that’s what Pepper told herself.

When the elevator doors to the penthouse finally opened, all Tony and Pepper could hear was giggling.

The couple glanced at each other, wondering what trouble their son concocted.

When they finally saw Peter with Happy, Tony dropped to the floor in a fit of laughter.

Peter stood, paintbrush in hand, painting Happy’s face. There were blue smudges on his forehead, and gold stripes up his neck. The red paint on his chin was slowly dripping on Happy’s suit, much to the glee of Tony. Happy and Peter were sitting in small, kid-size plastic chairs, with Happy’s body spilling out from all corners of the plastic chair. He looked like a giant in the tiny chair, covered in paint, frowning so deeply Tony thought his jaw would hit the floor.

“Fri take a picture! Take a picture!” Tony chanted through his fit of laughter.

“haha,” Happy deadpanned. “I’m never watching him again.”

“Noooooo,” Peter wined, smacking Happy’s face with another swipe of gold paint.

“What happened Happy?” Tony asked his colorful forehead of security.

“He wouldn’t stop crying. Then he got me with those Bambi eyes and said this was the only way he would be happy.”

“You beautifwul!” Peter exclaimed, dripping more paint onto Happy’s suit.

“Your kid ruined my suit,”

“Tony will have it dry cleaned,” Pepper tried to appease.

“And what about my face?” Happy grumbled.

“I hope it never washes away,” Tony taunted.

Happy glared.

“Wash it off in the sink,” Pepper asked, helping Happy stand up from the small plastic chair.

“At least one of you is a responsible adult,” Happy grunted, stomping off.

“Peter,” Pepper turned to her son, “what do you say to Happy?”

“Tank you!!” Peter waved.

“Yea yea, for you kid, I guess I can accept that.”

“ A’gan?” Peter asked.

“Maybe tomorrow kiddo,” Tony said, picking Peter up to bring him to wash his hands.

“Tony,” Pepper called, and he spun around to face his wife. “I’m a bit tired, I’m going to lie down for a bit.”

Tony’s eyes softened.

“Alright Pep, feel free to have Friday come and get me if you need anything. I’ll play with Pete.”

“Yay!” Peter exclaimed. Playing with daddy was fun.

As Tony was helping Peter wash his hands, the elevator dinged.

“Tones!” Rhodey called out.

“Hey, Rhodey!” Tony turned over his shoulder to watch his friend approach.

“You’re late.”

“To what?” Tony asked.

“Common man, the family meeting. Our biweekly family meeting with the capos.”

“Shit,” Tony cursed quietly.

“oooo bad word daddy!”

“That’s right Peter,” Rhodey smirked, “we usually tell daddy ‘language’ when he says a naughty word.”

“waygage?” Peter tried to mimick.

“Exactly,” Rhodey chucked, and Tony rolled his eyes.

“No one is going to let that go.”

“Especially not Steve.”

Tony smirked.

“Alright Pete, you ready for a family meeting?”

“We pway?”

“After okay buddy, but guess what?”

“Wha?”

“You get to come with daddy and uncle Rhodey, and you might see more friends.”

“Yay!” Peter giggled, clapping his hands.

“You excited?” Tony asked his son, walking to the elevator.

“Yea!! Go, go, go!”

“You heard him Rhodey,” Tony said, turning to his consigliere.

“We better hurry up then.”

When they finally got to the conference room, 30 men were already waiting for their leader to take his place at the head of the table. Tony situated himself at the head of the table with Peter in his lap. No one dared to say a word about the presence of a toddler. Quickly, they began discussing territory and dealings.

Peter couldn’t care less. This wasn’t fun like he was promised. Instead, Peter started kicking his legs, letting them sway off the end of his spot on his father’s lap.

“What are our leads on Loki?” Tony asked after they finished discussing their arms dealing.
“We know he is in New York.” One of the largest capo’s said. “We got guys on the ground who say they’ve spotted him in Queens and in Midtown.”

“Not far from us,” Rhodey noted.

“We aren’t entirely sure what he’s up to.”

“Where has he visited in Queens and in Midtown?” Tony asked.

“A bar in midtown. They saw him at some hospital in Queens. No clue why.”

“What was he doing at a hospital, stealing medical supplies?” Tony asked.

“We did a number on him in Afghanistan, he’s probably still recovering,” Rhodey explained.

“So now is the time to act.” The capo argued.

“I agree,” Tony said.

“What are your orders, boss?” Another one of the capos asked.

“Order a hit on him. 10 million dollars to whoever can bring me his head.”

“Consider it done sir.”

Tony nodded, dismissing everyone. As the men trickled out of the room, Rhodey stayed seated with Tony and Peter.

“Hey Peter,” Rhodey called for the boy’s attention, who turned to look up at him. “you have fun at the meeting?”

“Not weally,” Peter muttered as he kicked one foot against the table. “I ‘fought we were pwaying.”

“We will Peter,” Rhodey reassured. “how about, you get to play a new game?”

“Wha game?” Peter asked, his curiosity taking over.

Rhodey pulled his Glock out of his belt. Peter looked at it with a puzzled expression, unsure of what kind of toy that was.

Tony was quick to cover Peter’s ears with his hands.

“Rhodey what the hell are you doing?” Tony whispered angrily.

 

“It’s time he starts to learn more about what we do,” Rhodey explained.

“No!” Tony seethed. “He’s too young.”

“Tones now’s the time to start teaching him everything,” Rhodey said cooly.

“And you think starting here is a nifty idea?!”

“Just have him hold it, you don’t know when he’s going to need to be ready.”

“He’s a baby for Christ's sake, He doesn’t need to add weapons to his toybox.”

“But –“

“No Rhodey, absolutely not.”

“Tony-“

Tony interrupted him. Tony quickly lifted his hands off Peter’s ears and lowered Peter off of his lap.

“Pete, how about you go grab that toy you left in my office.”

“Okay!” Peter was quick to run off, excited to finally be doing something.

“Tony, you need to do more to prepare him,” Rhodey said, clearly frustrated.

“He deserves to have his childhood.”

“You know he needs to be ready by the time he’s a teen. You won't know how soon he will need these skills.”

“I'll always protect him. Always. I never got the chance to be a normal kid. I want that for him. Part of protecting him means giving him a normal childhood.”

“Clearly Pepper is getting her way,” Rhodey huffed.

“Excuse me?” Tony looked taken aback.

“Pepper never wanted Peter involved, and now, you’re listening to her.”

“No,” Tony turned to frown at his friend. “Peter is my heir. He is the only one who can take over my business. I just want him to have a few years of being a normal kid. My father never gave me a chance to be a kid, and look how I turned out.”

“You’re not as bad as you think you are,” Rhodey’s expression softened.

“Hmm,” Tony hummed.

“You’re doing good. Making Pepper happy, introducing Peter to our world. I just think you should go a little faster with Peter. He has a lot to learn.”

“He’s brilliant.”

“Like his father,” Rhodey added.

“You trying to butter me up?”

“Maybe, just, consider it. I’ll be there to help you. Maybe in a few months, we let Peter try to hold a gun.”

Tony’s heart told him to say no. To never let his son, his baby, be exposed to a gun at such a young age.

But a different instinct, an irrational, greedy, dangerous instinct took over.

“You got yourself a deal.”

 

--
All while Tony was in his meeting, Pepper was curled up in their bed. The appointment had drained her. She was about to fall asleep when her phone rang. Unknown number. She almost ignored it, but something told her to pick up.

So she did.

“Hello?” Pepper asked.

“Hi sweetheart.”

“Loki.”

“The one and only,” Loki said, and Pepper could hear the sickening grin.

“What the hell could you possibly want? After what you did to my son?”

“Oh Pepper,” Loki teased, “you are my favorite of the Starks.”

“I’m not interested in what you have to say,” Pepper said, pulling the phone back to end the call.

“Before you hang up, I just want to congratulate you on the new baby. I’m sure Stark will find a wonderful job for the newest addition.”

“How- how do you know about that?”

“How do I know you’re pregnant? I know everything, Pepper. I have eyes everywhere.”

“Leave me and my family alone.”

“Afraid I can’t do that,” Loki sighed, “your husband is hunting me.”

“You kidnapped him and our child. I hope he finds you.”

“He will. I’m sure he will. But it’ll be too late by then.”

“What do you mean?” Pepper asked.

“I’m offering you immunity. A way out. Leave Stark, with your kid, and I won’t come after you.”

“Excuse me?”

“You heard me. If you want to live, you must leave Stark before your child is born.”

“What the fuck is wrong with you?” Pepper seethed.

“It really is quite a shame. That boy of yours deserves a normal life.”

“He has one!”

“He never will. Not with Stark’s influence.”

“Fuck you,” Pepper growled.

“You think your husband has changed for you huh? That he won’t make your son the next ruler of his little kingdom? Think again, Pepper.”

“You’re wrong,” Pepper said confidently.

“I’m right. Leave Stark. It’s your only option.”

The line went dead.

Notes:

Tony's digging himself a deeper hole :0

Thank you for reading!

Let me know what you think, or if you have any predictions on what will happen!

Chapter 20: Broken Promises

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text

January rolled into February, and suddenly, it was February 14th. Valentine’s Day.

On that morning, Pepper was not at all aware of the holiday when she woke. Pepper rolled over to find empty sheets next to her. Her hands grabbed empty fabric, and she sat up, confused. She rubbed her eyes and suddenly the door creaked open.

“Happy Valentine’s Day,” Tony whispered giddily. It was their first Valentine’s Day since Pepper coming home, and Tony was determined to do it right. For Pepper, it was worth it.

“Tony?” Pepper’s voice was horse from sleep. “What? It’s Valentine’s Day?”

“Yup,” Tony said popping the p, “and I gotta say, I nailed it. But before I speak too soon… breakfast.”

Tony gestured to the tray of food in his hands.

“I made you an omelet.”

Pepper burst out crying.

“Shit,” Tony cursed, “what did I do? Honey is something wrong? Is it the eggs? I’ll get rid of them-“

“I forgot it was Valentine’s Day,” Pepper sobbed.

“Oh Pep,” Tony soothed, placing the tray of food down, “it’s okay. Don’t cry, really it’s okay.”

“No, it’s not,” Pepper cried even harder. “I’m the worst wife ever!”

“No Pep, you’re the best. I literally cannot live without you. I think I proved that. You keep me going. You and you only. So you forgot this one holiday? Big deal. You’re all I need, believe me, you show me that you love me by sticking with me, despite all the bad, you’re here. And I love you for that and want to show you how much I love you.”

“Really?” Pepper asked, her eyes shining with tears.

“Absolutely,” Tony confirmed. He loved Pepper more than anything.

“I love you too, Tony,” Pepper reached out to hug her husband, who gladly reciprocated. After a few minutes of hugging, Pepper pulled back and wiped her eyes. “Sorry, it’s the pregnancy hormones.”

“That’s okay Pep, I don’t mind.”

“I love you,”

“I love you too.” Tony smiled softly. “Now you have to try my omelet.”

“Is it really that good?”

“Better than the one I made you on the plane.”

“That took you hours,” Pepper commented, taking her first bite. It was good.

“That’s because I made it with love.”

“So how many hours did this omelet take you?”

“A billion hours,” Tony confirmed.

“Hmmm,” Pepper hummed as she chewed.

“You don’t believe me.” Tony faked being hurt.

“You were in bed with me last night so couldn’t have been a billion.” Pepper smiled, thinking of the night before.

“It was years in the making,” Tony argued.

“Hmmm.”

“How is it?”

“Wonderful,” Pepper confirmed, “thank you, honey.”

“Don’t get too comfortable with that omelet, I have a full day of fun dates for us planned.”

“Really?” Pepper wondered with excitement.

“Yup, and it’s just you and me.”

“What about Peter?” Pepper asked.

“Everyone in the tower offered to babysit him. But I went with the best option.”

“Poor Happy…” Pepper sighed. “He’ll be covered in paint within the next hour.”

“Oh well, he refused and threatened to quit if I made him watch Peter again. So I guess technically I went with my second choice.”

“Which is?” Pepper asked.

“Rhodey,” Tony said, watching Pepper’s face drop. “And before you say anything don’t worry, the other Avengers are around too and plan to play with him.”

“They better,” Pepper huffed.

“Why don’t you like him? Not only is he my best friend but he’s my consigliere. I need him and trust him with my life.”

“I just don’t trust him with Peter,” Pepper explained.

“I do,” Tony argued. “Can we fight about this another time? Let’s not ruin today.”

“Fine, but this discussion isn’t over.”

“I expect nothing less,” Tony quipped.

--
When Peter snuck out of his room, he thought he would maybe see his mommy or daddy in the living room.

Instead, he saw Rhodey.

“U’cle Rhodey?” Peter asked, running up to him.

“Hey, buddy!” Rhodey lifted Peter in the air, twirling him around. When Rhodey finally put a giggling Peter down, he stumbled a little, caught his breath, and looked back up at Rhodey.

“Where mommy an daddy?” Peter asked.

“They went out, but guess what?”

“Wha?” Peter jumped in excitement.

“We get to play!” Rhodey said.

“Weally?”

“Yes really,”

“Yay!” Peter exclaimed, and plopped down on the floor next to his Legos.

“You want to play with Legos?” Rhodey asked, following his nephew.

“Yea, der da best,” Peter explained, clicking two pieces together.

“They are a lot of fun,” Rhodey agreed, sitting down next to him. “What are you building?”

“A hoswpial,” Peter explained.

“A hospital?” Rhodey clarified, and Peter nodded. “Why?”

“Cause dats where Aun’ May works an’ I miss May.”

Rhodey frowned.

“Hmmm, why don’t we build something else?”

“Wike wha?” Peter asked.

“Hmmm, I don’t know, maybe like a safe house?”

“Wha’s a safe house?” Peter asked.

“It’s a secret house where you hide when our rivals… er the bad guys are looking for you.”

“Oh no,” Peter whispered, “I don wan bad guys to find me.”

“That’s why we have a safe house, to keep you safe.”

“Ok,” Peter said, “but I wanna hwelp people.”

“Peter, buddy, there’s a lot you need to learn about the business.”

“Wha?” Peter asked.

“One day you’re going to take over your father’s empire, and you need to be ready.”

“Wha’s a’ empire?”

“It’s the family business. It’s what your daddy does. We take over parts of the city, we rule Brooklyn and Manhattan, and parts of the Bronx.”

“Wha you do?”

“We sell things that the cops say we shouldn’t. We make lots of money doing that, and anyone that gets in our way…. Well, let’s just say we hurt them so they get out of their way.”

“I don wanna hurt anyone!” Peter cried, fear trembling in his voice. “I wanna hwelp people.”

“You have to learn, you help your own people,” Rhodey said solemnly.

“No!” Peter slapped his lego on the floor. “I hwelp.”

“You help us, yes.”

“I hwelp da good people,” Peter explained angrily.

Why was Uncle Rhodey being so mean to everyone? Peter didn’t get why he was acting like a bully. Didn’t the good guys help people? Because that’s what Peter wanted to be when he grew up. A hero. Someone that would help people, not hurt them.

“And you hurt the bad people,” Rhodey added.

“I no wanna hurt anybody.”

Rhodey sighed.

“We can talk about this another time.” Rhodey huffed.

Rhodey knew it would take time. Peter hadn’t been exposed to this world when he was born, but eventually, this would be normal to him. Peter would grow to accept this life. It was his fate after all.

Rhodey just needed time.

But something inside him ticked. It was like a fire exploded inside of him, urging him to teach Peter more. Right now.

It couldn’t wait. Rhodey wasn’t going to wait for Tony like they had agreed on.

“Hey Pete, can I show you something?”

“Wha?” Peter said, clicking together the red hospital cross.

“It’s downstairs, common!” Rhodey said, tugging on Peter to get up.

“Wha is it?” Peter asked, following behind him.

“It’s a surprise!”

“I wike surprises!” Peter said. He wondered what the surprise was. Was it getting to see Aunt May? That would be the best surprise.

“Common!” Rhodey explained and told FRIDAY to take them to 38D.

“Where we going?” Peter asked.

“You’ll see.” Rhodey winked at his nephew.

When they stepped out onto the floor, Peter wondered why they were on this floor. Sometimes his daddy took him to this floor for important meetings, but they were usually really boring.

“Common, in here,” Rhodey said, pointing to conference room 38D.

Rhodey went to a back cabinet and opened the door. Inside, was a G17 Glock. One of Rhodey’s favorites. A perfect learning weapon.

“Here,” Rhodey said, handing Peter the gun. “Careful, it’s loaded.”

“Whoa,” Peter said, feeling the weight in his hand, “Dis big.”

“One day you might need to use it.”

“Why?” Peter asked.

“To protect yourself from the bad guys.”

“Bu-”

“No buts. As your uncle, I need to show you how it’s used. We need to get you ready for anything that could happen.”

“Why?” Peter asked.

“Because you’re our future! And no matter how thick Tony’s head is, he knows you need to start learning everything right now.” Rhodey yelled, anger bubbling up inside him. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to yell.”

“Is ok,” Peter shrugged.

“I just want to keep you safe okay?”

“Okay,” Peter nodded.

“Great, let’s get started.” Rhodey smiled and Peter nodded.

 

 

From a rooftop a block away, Loki intently watched as Rhodey showed the boy how to hold, aim, and fire the gun. Loki rolled his eyes.

While the cold wind blew strong, neither the cold nor the wind was going to stop Loki from getting a good photo of the child and the consigliere. A couple of good photos. Crystal clear photos of Peter holding a gun.

Loki grinned.

 

 

--
After their romantic day full of dates, Tony and Pepper came back, excited to share the news they received from the OBGYN just hours ago. The appointment had confirmed the gender, and they knew they were far enough along to start telling everyone. And that meant Peter.

“Peter buddy, come here,” Tony said fondly, gesturing for Peter to come and sit on his lap. Peter bounced over and crawled onto his father's lap.

“There’s something we need to tell you, kid,” Tony said with a smile.

“Wha?” Peter asked, eyes full of curiosity.

“Mommy and I are making you a big brother.”

“Broder?” Peter’s face wrinkled, and he looked at his father with bewilderment.

“Mommy is going to have a baby.”

“Baby?”

“Peter,” Pepper reached out to caress her son’s face, “you’re going to have a baby sister.”

“Where baby?” Peter asks, confused and looking around as if his baby sister would appear out of thin air.

“In here,” Pepper explained rubbing her stomach. Peter reached out and put his hand on his mother’s belly.

“Ooooo,” Peter’s whispered, his mouth forming a small ‘o’, his brain starting to understand. “You ate baby!”

Tony laughed.

“No silly,” Pepper smiled fondly, “your baby sister is growing in here.”

“How baby get in der?”

“Uhhh,” Pepper and Tony looked at each other, unsure of how to explain it. Sometimes Peter was too smart for his own good.

“Yea, yea, I ate the baby,” Pepper said, not really wanting to have to explain sex.

“Oh nooooo,” Peter wined. “You going to poop out baby sister?”

Tony laughed again.

“No, it’s um, much cleaner than that,” Tony said, holding back from laughing.

“It’s not exactly cleaner…” Pepper muttered.

“Poop won’t be involved bud, I promise.” Tony held out his pinky, and Peter took it.

“Some women poop giving birth,” Pepper commented. May told her that happened a lot at the hospital.

“Ewwwwww,” Peter wined.

“That won’t happen, don’t worry about that kiddo,” Tony reassured. “Why don’t you go play with some Legos?”

“Okay!” Peter grinned, running off to find his Legos.

“He’ll be a good big brother,” Tony said.

“Yea, I think he will be,” Pepper smiled at the thought of her son playing with their daughter.

“I don’t want to miss any of it. I feel like we’ll blink and they’ll be all grown up.”

“I think it will be more than just a single blink.”

“Fine, three blinks and they’ll be moving to Seattle.” Tony huffed. “Stupid Seattle.”

“Hey! Seattle is a great city. Why would they move to Seattle anyways? We have at least 18 more years until we have to worry about that.”

“Less than 16 for Peter.”

“So we have lots of time to spend with them.”

“I’m just scared, I don’t want to miss anything in their lives.”

“You won’t Tony,” Pepper reassured, rubbing Tony’s shoulders. “You’ll be there for every moment.”

“I have to be,” Tony whispered. He sighed and rested his hand over Pepper’s stomach. She had just a small bump. Tiny, but Tony noticed. It made him smile.

Tony couldn’t wait to meet his daughter. A chance to do everything over again.

He was determined to do it right.

Notes:

Hmmmmm what is Loki up to?!?

 

Sorry it took so long to post! I hope you enjoy!

Chapter 21: Shit

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text

As spring began to bloom so did Pepper’s stomach.

Much to her annoyance.

She forgot how uncomfortable it was to be in the last month of pregnancy. The acks and pains were exhausting, Pepper often found herself unable to do much more than a few minutes of movement. Going to her desk downstairs was enough of a task, but she didn’t want to be confined to the penthouse. She was still CEO of Stark Industries, and believe it or not, she was determined to keep working until the end of her pregnancy.

But still, being tired was a constant.

So much so, that she and Tony got into a little argument.

“Pep, please just stay home today, you don’t need to work.”

“Yes, I do.”

“No, you don’t.”

“I want to continue to work until the baby comes.”

“Well, I want you to rest because you’re exhausted and I don’t want you passing out while I’m in my meetings today. Who will come to help you?” Tony worried.

“I have Happy.”

“But it’s healthy to rest. You need to rest.”

“So do you,” Pepper pointed out.

“Do as I say, not as I do.”

Pepper rolled her eyes.

“Please, Pep, I worry about you and the baby,” Tony admitted softly. He reached out and gently rubbed her swollen belly.

Pepper sighed and looked from his hand to his eyes. The puppy dog eyes were the last thing she needed.

“Fine I’ll stay,” Pepper muttered, and Tony flashed her a big smile. “But I want my laptop.”

“I’ll get it for you,” Tony promised and gave her a quick kiss on the lips.

And that’s how she ended up staying in the Penthouse. Curled up on the couch, responding to emails while watching Peter play. She didn’t want to admit it to Tony, but it was nice to be home with just Peter, especially since she was starting to feel some really painful cramps.

After responding to the 1000th email, Pepper looked up from her spot on the couch to watch Peter. He was building something complicated with his Legos. Something the box said was for kids 6 and up. But he was brilliant, like his father.

“Mommy?” Peter asked, not taking his eyes off the Legos.

“Yes, honey?”

“Where’s daddy?”

“He’s downstairs, working.”

“You working too,” Peter commented.

“I am,” Pepper said.

“Why daddy no wanna work here too?”

“He had some important meetings.”

“Like wif uncl’ Rwody?”

“Yea, Nat and Bruce, and I think Thor.”

“Buce…” Peter smiled. He had missed seeing his friend Bruce. Bruce liked science and showed Peter cool experiments. Maybe he was working on that now. Maybe Peter could help him with his experiments like last time. “Buce is my best fwiend.”

“Really?” Pepper asked.

“Uh huh, we do science togetder.”

Pepper nodded, thinking about how Peter was best friends with someone 40 years older. Peter should really have friends his own age, or at least a friend who was also still a child. But Pepper knew Tony. Tony was hesitant to let anyone in, especially to meet his son. Since the kidnapping by Loki, Tony was terrified to let anyone other than those currently in the Tower near Peter. Even for Peter’s pediatrician, Tony ran a full background check.

Pepper went back to work, thinking about how she wished she could get Peter friends his age. That was never a problem back in Queens. The apartment was right next to a playground. Peter had played with kids there, and she never thought about how lucky they were when they could do that.

Thinking of Queens, she missed May. It had been months since Pepper had gotten the letter from May. Pepper longed to be able to just talk to her, tell her everything that was happening with her love life, with Peter, with the new baby…

Pepper knew the address. May had given it to her. But she couldn’t get the letter out without at least one of the mobsters seeing it. But she knew a certain redhead who would help her get the letter delivered without anyone else knowing.

Pepper got up with a grunt, her stomach making it hard to stand from the plush couch. She took a few deep breaths through the pain, as standing seemed to bring on another bought of cramps. She looked for a pen and paper and sat down at the kitchen island, and with a deep breath, began writing.

 

--

While Tony was pleased he convinced his stubborn wife to stay home, he was pissed he couldn’t convince the Avengers to let him skip their current meeting. Which was looking like it was going to take an extra hour or two.

Tony couldn’t hold back a groan when Steve suggested again that they stake out Queens to find Loki.

“We already did that Capsicle,” Tony interrupted.

“Tony just hear me out-” Steve asked.

“We tried that already and we got nothing. Zip. Nada.” Tony gestured to the screen. “Our best bet is to find his allies.”

“Thor what do you know?” Nat asked.

“Loki has many unsavory friends. I tell you I do not know current wear-abouts, but they must be in Queens. That is where they have always stayed.”

“See?” Steve grinned.

“You know what Steve, I have a retirement home I can put you in-”

“Incoming call from unknown number.” Friday interrupted.

“Don’t answer.” Tony waived it off.

“No Stark, I disagree, we shall answer, it may be my brother,” Thor said. “God of the walls, answer.”

“Fine, Friday answer it.” Tony slouched in his chair.

“Hello, Avengers. Brother.” Loki’s evil smirk could be heard.

“I am an Avenger too brother, or have you forgotten?” Thor grunted.

“Brother you disappoint me, you are on the losing side.”

“We are not!” Thor slammed his hand on the table.

“No, not yet,” Loki said calmly. “But you will be.”

“Oh yea Loki, care to make yourself seen? I for one would love to catch up.” Tony sassed.

“Oh Stark, do you give up yet?” Loki taunted.

“Never.”

“You should.”

“Yea? And why’s that? Scared I’ll take over what’s left of your territory?”

“Not at all, I’m scared for you,” Loki said coolly.

“Sure reindeer games.” Tony rolled his eyes.

“Give up, or you will regret everything you have ever done.”

Tony paused, if only for a second.

“I’m going to find you. And I’m going to end you.”

“I’ll end you first,” Loki warned.

The line went dead.

“Tony,” Nat broke the silence. “He sounds like he has a trick up his sleeve.”

“Oh yea? Like what?”

“I’m not sure, but the way he threatened you… it was ominous.”

“Does anyone have any ideas on what he’s got planned?” Tony asked.

No one spoke.

“So Thor, what’s his play?” Steve asked.

“I am not sure.”

“Dammit.”

“Language,” Steve interjected.

“Seriously? You’re still on that?” Clint interjected.

“Focus people,” Rhodey added. “This is getting us nowhere.”

“You know I think each day Loki sounds a bit crazier and crazier.” Clint shrugged.

“You can smell crazy on him,” Bruce added.

“No shit,” Tony smirked.

“Shit.”

All heads turned to see Peter standing in the doorway. He walked over, his head not even reaching the height of the table. He looked around for a moment, found his father and paused, but continued scanning the room. When his eyes landed on a certain scientist, he grinned.

“Buce!!!” Peter exclaimed, running over to Bruce.

“Uh, hey Peter,” Bruce said as Peter grabbed his pant leg to pull himself onto Bruce lap. “What’s up?”

“I wanna do science!” Peter grinned.

“Oh, yea sure, how about after the meeting we go down to the lab?” Bruce offered as Peter settled on Bruce’s lap.

“Yea!!” Peter swung his legs in agreement.

“Yea?” Tony interjected. “And what about your old man?”

“Me an' Buce pway.” Peter explained.

Tony tried to hold his jealousy back. He really did. But that was his kid, and dammit if he didn’t get to spend time with his own kid. He was happy that Peter loved Bruce, but he wished Peter had come running in to see him, not Bruce. Why didn’t Peter come in to see his own father?

“You should come with us to the lab Tony.”

“Hmm, the lab I own? I can do what I want.”

“I know, but maybe you can show him some of what you’re working on.”

“I do that already, but I’m going to show him more features of my suit.”

“Good.”

“It’ll be way cooler than whatever you show Peter.” Tony touted and crossed his arms.

“Nuh uh!” Peter said, “Buce does cool science!!”

“But my science is the cooler kind right kid?” Tony asked.

“Hmmm….” Peter mockingly rubbed his chin like the adults always do.

“Kid you’re supposed to be on my side!”

Peter erupted into a fit of giggling.

“Peter!” A voice thundered from the hallway.

“Uh oh it’s mommy” Peter whispered into Bruce’s ear. “I snuck ‘way.”

“Peter are you in here?” Pepper waddled into the room, her belly making it hard to walk normally. The cramps in her stomach were starting to get more painful.

“You foun' me!!!” Peter exclaimed, hopping off of Bruce’s lap.

Tony was quick to get up and scoop Peter into his arms.

“I swear, this time, it wasn’t me.” Tony pleaded to his wife with Peter wrapped around his neck like a Koala, giving his mother his infamous Bambi eyes. “I didn’t tell him to come down here and make you worry.”

“It’s fine Tony,” Pepper sighed, and groaned.

“Mommy?”

“Pep what’s wrong?”

“Nothing just had a little pain, it’s nothing.”

“Pain?!” Tony panicked. “What do you mean it’s nothing?”

“It’s just a little pain, it’s no big deal.”

“No big deal? No big deal? Of course, it’s a big deal! You’re 9 months pregnant something could be happening to the baby and our baby could be hurt!”

“Actually Tony it’s probably-” Bruce interjected.

“Not now Bruce, we need to get to the hospital.” Tony huffed gathering his things.

“Tony it’s too early, the contractions are far apart.” Pepper explained.

“You’re having contractions?! What!?!” Tony panicked.

“Yes, they started this morning. No, I didn’t tell you because I knew you would freak out. It’s too early to go, I don’t want to go yet.”

“The hospital will make an exception for us because it’s me.”

“No, they won’t” Pepper rolled her eyes.

“I’ll put a horse head in their bed if they try and deny us,” Tony grunted

“That’s just what they do in the movies, you don’t actually have access to horseheads,” Pepper rolled her eyes.

“I could help acquire a horse head,” Thor offered.

“Horses say neighhhhhhhh” Peter added.

“Not helping,” Pepper hissed as another contraction came on.

“Pepper, how far apart are the contractions now?” Bruce asked.

“Oh I don’t know, this morning they were every hour or so.”

“And now?” Bruce asked.

“Uh, like every 2 or 3 minutes?” Pepper explained.

“We need to go to the hospital now,” Tony said. “The doctor said every five minutes Pep is when we go!”

“Wait,” Bruce interjected. “Since it’s your second child, she may come faster than Peter did.”

“What do you mean?” Tony asked.

“I don’t think you’ll have time to make it to the hospital.”

“Shit!” Tony cursed.

“Shit!” Peter echoed.

“Let’s take her to Medbay, now.” Bruce jumped into action. “Nat call Cho, she should come down to assist, she the only other person with clearance to see Pepper and enough medical experience to help us.”

“Isn’t she a geneticist?” Clint asked but everyone ignored him.

“Are you ready?” Tony asked his wife as he led her to the elevator.

“No, are you?”

“Absolutely not.”

Notes:

Ahhh Morgan is coming!!!!!!

 

I apologize for the seriously long delay, let me know what you think! What trick could Loki possibly have up his sleeve hehehe

Chapter 22: The Promises We Trust

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text

Tony had once told Pepper she was the only girl he could ever love. That Pepper was forever and always his #1 girl.

He was wrong.

Holding his daughter for the first time was the moment he realized he had room for one more girl.

His Morgan.

Morgan already had stolen his heart, and she was only a few hours old.

When Pepper went into labor, Tony was mildly freaking out. Ok that’s a lie. He was hysterically freaking out. Seeing his wife in pain drove him nuts, and he was barking orders to his men left and right. None of his men dared to speak up to Tony in fear he would rip their heads off. Only Pepper could.

“Tony if you don’t stop pacing right now, I am going to throw you off the roof of this building.”

“Tony you are not helping!”

“Tony hold my hand or I swear to god I am going to punch you in the face.”

“Tony stop yelling at the doctor, you sound like a maniac, SHUT UP.”

 

Tony wanted to argue that her screaming at him to shut up made her sound like a maniac, but one look at his sweaty, uncomfortable wife told him that she would make good on her threats if he said anything back to her.

So he shut up.

He was quiet while he held her hand until the moment their baby cried. For such a powerful, intimidating man, it didn’t take him long to start crying at the sight of their baby.

He got to do all the things with Morgan that he didn’t get to do for Peter. He saw his baby’s first breath. Heard her first cry. Tony cut the umbilical cord. Tony held his child the day she was born.

It was magical.

Tony looked down at his daughter in his arms. She was so innocent. Pure. Perfect. He drank in her small figure like a fine wine. He loved her already so fiercely. Similar to how he felt protective of Peter, but even more so for his little girl.

Tony looked over at his wife. He smiled fondly. How incredibly lucky was he? His family was complete. Everything in his life was perfect.

Tony would cherish that moment for the rest of his life.

But the best was yet to come.

 

When Happy brought Peter into the room, Peter bounced over to Tony.

“DADDY!” Peter yelled, running over.

“Shhh,” Tony hushed Peter as Peter clung to his knee. “You don’t want to wake your sister.”

Peter pulled on Tony’s pants and made grabby hands. “I want.”

“You want to hold her?” Tony asked his son.

Peter nodded frantically.

“Okay, come sit on the chair,” Tony said, getting up to allow his son to get situated. Once Peter was sitting, he showed Peter how to hold his sister gently, and put his baby girl into his son’s arm.

“Tanks,” Peter said smiling up at his dad, “I wike her.”

Peter looked at his little sister. She was small. Squishy looking. She was soft and sleeping and Peter loved her instantly.

“I like her too,” Tony smiled softly, kneeling down next to his two kids.

“I wuv you thwee thousand,” Peter whispered into his sister’s ears.

“You’re going to be such a good brother,” Tony said, rubbing Peter's back.

“I’m going to pway with her, and show her my Legos, and we can pway I’nman!”

“I’m sure you will,” Tony said softly.

“We gonna be best fwiends.”

“Are you going to protect your sister?” Tony asked.

“Aways,” Peter mumbled, brushing the little hairs on her head. “Where’s her hair?”

“It’ll grow in. Hair takes time to grow.”

“Oh,” Peter said, “an wha about her teef?”

“Babies don’t start with all their teeth; they grow in eventually.”

“Can we go pway now?” Peter asked.

“No, your sister is still sleeping,”

Peter didn’t respond, he just stroked his sister’s head.

“That’s your sister Morgan.”

“My baby,” Peter responded softly. “My mo.”

“Morgan,” Tony corrected.

“Mo,” Peter corrected.

Tony chuckled softly and shook his head.

--

It only took a few days to get settled. Peter always wanted to be around Morgan. Tony and Pepper often found Peter sneaking into Morgan’s room and sleeping on her floor at night, just to be close to her.

Tony adored the love Peter already had for his sister.

It was when Tony was watching Peter and Morgan while Pepper was alone in her room relaxing for the first time since giving birth that Pepper received a call.

Another unknown number.

Pepper already had an idea of who it was. She answered on the 3rd ring.

“What do you want this time Loki?” Pepper growled.

“To congratulate you of course,” Loki purred sinisterly.

“You know, your calls are really creepy.”

“I bet. I also bet that Peter is so happy to be a big brother.”

“Leave me alone.”

“Can’t do that sweetheart,” Loki smirked from behind the phone. “You want to know what else I think?”

“I don't want to know,” Pepper huffed.

“I bet you anything that Peter will make a great mob boss one day.”

“He won’t be a mob boss.”

“Oh Pepper, how naïve you are.”

“He won’t. It’s true. Tony promised me.”

“You really believe him?”

“Peter will be whoever he wants to be when he grows up. Except for becoming anything like you.”

“You want to be let in on a secret?”

“I don’t trust anything that comes from your mouth,” Pepper spat.

“Tony has every intention of bringing Peter into all of this.”

“You’re wrong.”

“Oh Pepper, Pepper, Pepper, Pepper,” Loki tisked.

“Stop saying my name,” Pepper complained.

“You really should have taken my offer to ditch Stark.”

Before Pepper could respond, the line went dead.

Pepper huffed in annoyance. Why did Loki keep calling, making demands and empty threats, just to hang up on her?

Notes:

Yay I finally posted. It is a short chapter, but more to come!

Thank you all so much for commenting, it motivates me to continue writing!

Chapter 23: The Calm Before the Storm

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text

If Tony thought he had a handle on this parenting thing, he was so wrong.

Two kids were a different beast. Especially with a newborn.

Tony was used to no sleep, in fact, he prided himself on getting 0 sleep. But yet here he was struggling with a toddler and a little baby. And god, was he exhausted.

But he couldn’t be any prouder of his family. He talked about the kids with his business partners, to the rest of the Avengers, hell, he even bragged about the kids to Pepper.

But watching them while Pepper was in a meeting was exhausting. A few minutes earlier, Pepper came up to feed Morgan before her next meeting, leaving Tony with just Peter. But Peter was a handful on his own.

How the hell did Pepper do this on her own regularly?

“DADDY!!” Peter screamed, running across the room into his father’s arm.

“Yes, my crazy bambino?” Tony scooped him up, holding him upside down.

“Can we pway legos?” Peter asked, his shirt falling with the gravity, revealing his pale little belly.

“Sure bambino,” Tony agreed, turning his kid back right side up.

Peter dumped the Legos on the ground right as Tony got a call.

“Ugh,” Tony grumbled, checking his phone. He had to answer. “Shit, I need to answer this. Peter, don’t go anywhere; Steve is going to come up and play with you.”

“Shit,” Peter echoed, clipping two pieces together.

“Only mommy says that.” Tony pointed his finger as he got up and walk towards his office. “She coined it; it belongs to her.”

“Shit,” Peter said, looking up at his father with a big grin.

Tony gave his son the biggest shocked face, erupting Peter into a fit of giggles. Tony smiled to himself as he closed his office door, and answered the phone.

Peter looked down pouting. He wanted to play with his dad… but his dad was busy. And his mom was with Morgan. And Peter didn’t really want to play with Steve.

Peter knew where he could find the next best option.

 

 

---

 

“Bwuce!!”

“Peter?” Bruce turns around to see Peter running into his lab.

“Hi Bwuce!” Peter greets.

“Hey Peter, what are you, um, doing here?”

“I wike pwaying wif you.”

“I like hanging with you too.” Bruce smiled down at Peter, who was standing next to his desk.

“Wha you workin on?” Peter asked, standing on his tippy toes.

“Just some gamma radiation research,” Bruce explained as Peter crawled onto his lap.

“I hewlp.”

“Uh, sure, I guess?” Bruce commented, not sure how Peter could help.

“Is fo’ Hulk?”

“Um, yea.”

“I wike Hulk. He nice.”

“He’s a big green ass- astronomical jerk.”

“Noooo,” Peter shook his head. “He nice. He hewlp.”

“Hmm,” Bruce shook his head, unwilling to agree. But he continued to explain what he was doing to Peter. He was a good kid, and Bruce knew he had a soft spot for him.

He just didn’t know if the Hulk did.

“Peter? Are you in here buddy?” Steve asked, running into the lab. “Oh thank god he’s with you.”

“Uh, yea, he showed up a little while ago.”

“Thanks for watching him, he snuck off before I even got to the penthouse, the little rascal,” Steve plucked Peter off Bruce’s lap, tossing him high into the air and catching a giggling Peter.

“Sure no problem.”

“Seriously, Tony woulda killed me if I lost his kid.”

“Friday would have found him, he has all sorts of security measures for Peter,” Bruce explained.

“Apparently not, Friday couldn’t tell me where he is.”

“Huh, that’s strange.”

“Still, Tony would’ve killed me.”

“Yea he probably would,” Bruce chuckled. “Bye Peter, be good to Steve.”

“No p’omises,” Peter smirked.

“God, you’re just like Tony.” Steve chuckled to himself, carrying Peter out of the lab.

When they arrived back at the Penthouse, Tony was waiting for them.

“So where did you two go?” Tony asked nonchalantly, reaching out for Peter. Peter eagerly reached over to his dad.

“Just for a little tour of the tower,” Steve lied as Peter curled into his father.

“That’s interesting because Friday couldn’t tell me where Peter was. Or Pepper or Morgan.”

“I donno boss.” Steve shrugged. “I don’t really get the technology stuff.”

“Course you don’t Capscile.”

“Yea yea, whatever.” Steve waved him off, stepping back into the elevator.

“Say bye- bye to Steve, Peter.”

“Bye Bye Sweve”

“So lego time?” Tony asked, and Peter grinned.

 

--

They played with the Legos for hours, building model planes and cars, and even the Lego death star.

Tony looked up from their final products only to see Peter staring outside.

“What are you looking at Pete?” Tony asked.

“Wha dat building called?” Peter asked pointing to the Empire state building.

“That is the Empire state building,” Tony explained, standing up and lifting Peter into his arms.

“And dat one?” Peter asked.

“The Chrysler building,” Tony explained, looking out at the New York skyline. Sometimes he forgot how from the Penthouse, they could see everything. It was the beginning of a beautiful night. The sun was starting to set in the sky, leaving Manhattan surrounded by light pink clouds which contrasted against the dark buildings.

“And da weally big one wif da pointy thing?” Peter asked.

“The World Trade Center and that pointy thing is called a spire,” Tony explained, hugging his son close.

“Where does da sun go?” Peter asked.

“Well the sun is fixed in place in respect to our solar system but the earth moves. And the earth rotates around its axis and every day the sun comes in and out of view of where we are currently standing based on how we are angled at the sun…” Tony paused, looking at his son to see if he understood.

“So we go bye bye, not da sun?” Peter asked.

“Yea, we’re moving, not the sun,” Tony smiled. Sometimes he could forget how smart his own kid was.

“But we go togefer?”

“Yeah buddy, we’ll keep going around the sun together,” Tony promised. “Forever”

“Wuv you daddy,” Peter sighed, leaning into his father’s chest.

“I love you too my baby boy.” Tony smiled softly.

The two were so lost in looking out at the sunset together that neither noticed Pepper watching her boys fondly.

 

 

After Pepper grabbed Morgan to feed her, she was bombarded with call after call for hours. Luckily after feeding, Morgan slept in Pepper’s office the entire time. Pepper wished she could’ve slept with Morgan. By the time the last call ended, she could see out the window that the sun was setting. She sighed, ignoring the next incoming call.

She looked down at her desk and pulled open one of her drawers. She dug down, only to pull out the letter from May from Christmas time.

The letter had May’s address in Rose Hill. The one wishing she could meet Morgan. She sighed. She wished she could see May. She wished May could meet her daughter. She wished May could see how much Peter had grown.vShe stuffed the letter into her purse, along with the “loose” change Tony gave her for lunch that day. For some reason, he thought lunches cost $1000. He insisted she treat herself to a nice lunch, but she didn’t even get a chance to take a lunch break, let alone go out for lunch.

She got up from her desk, grabbed her purse, lifted Morgan into her arms, and went home.

 

 

Being home with her boys was a relief.

When the elevator doors opened and she saw Tony, the love of her life, she couldn’t help but smile.

It wasn’t until Pepper gently put her hand on Tony’s back did he turn around, completely startled. But when he saw who it was, his eyes softened.

It was his Pepper. The love of his life.

Her smile grew. Seeing her husband be so tender with their son filled her heart with joy. She felt like she made the right decision to stay with him and to not run again. She loved her husband, their two children, and what they built together.

Everything was perfect.

 

 

 

 

Until it wasn’t.

Until the Avengers showed up.

Until Steve frantically announced Loki was attacking the city.

Until Nat said they needed all hands on deck to fight off Loki and the Chitari, who were attacking innocent civilians.

Until Pepper begged for Tony to stay behind, but only Bruce could stay behind because they needed Ironman.

Until Tony suited up and flew off the balcony, into the unknown terrors of the city below.

Until everything changed for the Starks forever.

Notes:

Wow writer's block is real!

Apologies for the delay. I have most of the next chapter written and the final chapter finished. I will hopefully finish this story soon!

Let me know what you think will happen!

Chapter 24: Fire in my Heart

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text

“Where the hell is Loki?” Tony demanded as he flew through the sky. He had already stopped the Chitari from collapsing a building on hundreds of civilians and destroyed their warehouse with hundreds of weapons, but the damage done throughout the city was already extensive.

“We don’t know,” Steve said over the intercom, smashing the head of a Chitari soldier.

They were winning, but Tony knew the only way to really end this madness was to get Loki.

And Tony wanted to be the one to hear his last breath.

“Anyone spot him?” Tony asked, blasting a group of Chitari into ashes.

“Not for the past half hour.” Nat chimed in.

“Anyone finds him, tell me. He’s mine.” Tony growled.

--
Pepper looked out the window, trying to see if she could see her husband. The news on the television was showing footage of how innocent people were being slaughtered, estimating hundreds of lives were already taken. Hundreds of innocent families were devastated. As guilty as she felt, Pepper only cared that her husband was safe.

“Where’s daddy?” Peter asked, hugging his mother’s legs.

“He’s out there, stopping the bad guys,” Pepper promised as she stroked Peter’s curls, trying to not let any fear be heard in her voice.

“Who are the bad guys?” Peter asked.

“I don’t know,” Pepper paused turning to Bruce. “Who are those guys?”

“The Chitari are a part of Loki’s family.”

“Loki? Those guys work for Loki?”

“Yea they might be a lot of them, but they’re not as skilled as Tony or the Avengers. If anything, this will help the public and government’s opinion on the Avengers since we will argue that we are keeping the peace.”

Pepper paused. Hearing Loki’s name brought up the memories of all the phone calls between her and Loki. The ultimatum.

“Bruce, promise me you can keep a secret.”

“Oh, Pepper, I don’t know…”

“Bruce, please. I need to talk to someone.”

“Ok, what is it?”

“Loki called me,” Pepper admitted, and Bruce held his breath. “He gave me an ultimatum.”

“What was it?”

“He told me to leave Tony because he was grooming Peter to take over one day.” Pepper blurted out, clutching Peter and Morgan a little closer.

“Look Pepper there’s something you should know-” Bruce began.

“Now’s really not the time-” Pepper interrupted.

“Pepper, you need to know-” Bruce pleaded, but was interrupted.

“That your son is the next in line to the mob.” A new voice said.

Pepper spun around to look at the source hiding in the shadows.

“Loki,” Pepper said, the disdain evident in her voice.

“Hello Pepper, wonderful to see you.” Loki smiled as he stepped into the dim lighting, but the smile didn’t reach his eyes.

“I’d be lying if I said the same.”

“I’m perplexed Pepper,” Loki paused, “why didn’t you take my offer?”

“Why would I?” Pepper snapped back.

“Because I wanted to give you a way out of this.”

“Why would I want to leave my husband?”

“It’s true. What I said about Peter being next in line.” Loki shrugged as if it was the most casual thing.

“No, it’s not,” Pepper said firmly, pushing Peter behind her. “Tony promised to keep Peter out of the mob.”

“And you really believe him, Pepper? After everything he’s done?” Loki seethed.

“I do. I love my husband.”

“Your husband is a liar. He’s grooming Peter to take his place, and you’re too naïve to see it!”

“You’re lying!”

“I’m not,” Loki pulled out his phone, and projected the pictures he took months ago. The pictures of Rhodey showing Peter how to shoot a gun before Morgan was born.

“Those photos are fake.” Pepper denied, transfixed on the photos of her baby holding the gun. It couldn’t be true. It couldn’t.

Loki rolled his eyes dramatically and looked over to Bruce. Pepper followed Loki’s eyes to Bruce.

“It’s not true. Tell him.” Pepper probed Bruce.

Bruce didn’t say anything.

“Bruce, it’s not true. Tony isn’t grooming Peter.” Pepper begged as if her pleading would change reality.

Bruce looked down to his feet.

Pepper’s heart stuttered.

“You knew? You knew all this time, and you said nothing.” Pepper whispered.

“I’m sorry. I’m so sorry Pepper. I-I couldn’t. I promised, we all did.” Bruce struggled.

Pepper’s heart shattered.

Then, it erupted into flames. Smoldering flames.

“So everyone knew? Everyone except me?!” Pepper yelled. She felt her world crumbling. Everything Tony promised her was a lie. Peter wasn’t going to be kept out of this world. All the little promises Tony made – all a lie. Pepper’s safe little bubble popped, and with it, so did her emotions.

“I’m so sorry,” Bruce’s voice was barely audible.

“Hurts doesn’t it? Being lied to.” Loki grinned.

It felt like deja-vu.

The fire in Pepper’s heart exploded.

“You!” Pepper turned to Loki, “What the hell do you want from me? What do you get out of all of this?”

“To hurt Tony,” Loki said, taking a step towards Pepper. Bruce held his breath. He could feel his own anger coming. “And that means hurting you and your precious children. The things he loves the most.”

Loki pulled out a glowing stick. Pepper didn’t know what it was, but as it got brighter, she knew. She knew he was there to kill her and her babies. She closed her eyes and choked back a sob. Everything she did, taking Tony back, trusting him, was all a big mistake. She fucked up, and her kids were going to pay for it.

Bruce’s fists clenched so hard they turned green. Pepper shouldn’t have to pay the price for Tony’s mistakes. And pure, innocent Peter didn’t deserve to die because of Loki. His hand began to shake with unadulterated rage. The anger deep inside Bruce boiled over. Enough for the pure, unfiltered fury to explode. Enough for the monster in Bruce to ignite the Hulk.

 

Everything happened so fast.

All Pepper could register was the large, rough hand of Hulk shoving her. He pushed her so hard, that she slammed into the wall 10 feet away.

As she flew through the air, she saw Hulk was struck by the glowing stick, but it didn’t seem to do anything to the hulk.

“RUN,” Hulk screamed in his primal tone as he smacked Loki back. “RUN NOW.”

 

Pepper didn’t wait. She grabbed her crying children, scooped them into her arms, and ran.

But even as she went down the stairs, she could hear the foundation crack. She heard the Hulk fighting Loki off, she could hear the Penthouse being destroyed. It was only a matter of time before the building collapsed. She knew her only shot of getting out of the building fast enough was to try the elevator and sneak out of the garage.

She took a deep breath in the stairwell. The building shook again. She sprinted.

Notes:

I'm alive!! Thanks for reading!

Chapter 25: Wish I held her closer

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text

“We turn now to Jessica Jones, who is standing outside Stark Tower. What can you tell us about the destruction Jessica?”

“Yes Edward, I am standing in front of the entrance to Stark Tower. It seems the majority of the destruction is isolated on the top floor of the Tower. That is the private Stark residence. It is believed his wife and children were home. It is unclear whether or not they were able to escape the building before the roof collapsed causing the top half of the building to collapse on itself. With the weight of the rubble, it is unlikely anyone could have survived that level of devastation. Tony Stark was seen flying into the building a short while ago.”

“Who would have thought the untouchable Stark Tower would see such devastation?”

“Indeed Edward, for a man with such power, it seems he has been challenged.”

“You mentioned the wife and children, do you have any more details on that?” Edward asked.

“It is believed that the family, along with Bruce Banner were in the penthouse when Loki broke in. It is believed that the Hulk made an appearance quickly, and there was no possible time for escape before the Hulk collapsed the roof. As you can see, the damage spread to multiple floors, and debris surrounds the building. The destruction is extensive.”

“What effect will this have on Stark?”

“Experts on the Stark family believe this is a critical moment for Stark. The unsaid rule of keeping wives and children out of the conflict has been broken, and Stark will go for blood. Not just of Loki, but the Chitari, and all other rivals. Will he turn this tragedy into an opportunity?” Jessica Jones paused, “you can be damn sure of it.”

--
Hindsight 20/20, Tony should’ve occasionally looked back at the tower during the battle of New York.

If he had looked back, maybe he would have noticed Loki slip into the building.

If he had looked back, maybe he would have noticed the first signs of destruction.

If he had looked back, maybe he would have been able to get back to the tower fast enough to save his family.

 

Tony once thought the day his parents were murdered was the worst thing that could happen to him.

Tony once thought the day Pepper disappeared without a trace was even worse than his parents’ death.

Tony once thought the months he and Peter spent as prisoners in a cave in Afghanistan was even worse than Pepper disappearing or his parents’ death.

But he was wrong.

 

So, so very wrong.

 

As he knelt down amongst the rubble that was left of the penthouse, he couldn’t help but realize how absolutely wrong he was.

 

This was the worst thing that ever could have happened to him.

When he flew into what was left of the penthouse, he knew immediately. No one could survive this level of destruction. Half the floor was still smoking from the fire. Wherever the fire hit, it vaporized everything along its path.

It was why he was numb. Unable to move. Unable to think.

They were gone.

Peter and his big grin and joyful laugh. He would never hear his sweet giggles.

Morgan hadn’t even crawled yet. She never would.

And Pepper--- he couldn’t breathe. Thinking of her being killed, stopped Tony’s heart.

They were gone.

And Tony was here.

Peter should be here showing Tony his newest Lego creation.

But only Tony was here.

Morgan should be here, smiling from her bouncing chair.

But only Tony was here.

Pepper should be here, juggling all the chaos of two children perfectly while still rolling her eyes at Tony.

But only Tony was here.

His family was gone.

But Tony was still here.

 

“Tony.”

 

Tony didn’t move. He couldn’t.

 

“Tony.” A hand on his shoulder.

 

“Tony!” The hand pulled him up and spun him around.

Rhodey was there. Tony barely registered him. Rhodey was shaking Tony, but Tony couldn’t feel it.

“They’re gone,” Tony whispered, so quiet, Rhodes could barely hear him.

“We don’t know that, don’t talk like that.”

“Look around,” Tony shuttered, “tell me how the hell they would survive this.”

“We’ll find them, it’s-”

“Friday, where are they?” Tony asked cutting off his friend

“I am unsure of where they are,” Friday responded.

“Friday, when and where was the last time you saw them?” Tony asked.

“This afternoon in the Penthouse. Morgan and Peter were with you while Pepper was meeting with prospective clients for Stark Industries.”

“Friday that was 12 hours ago. Where are they?!?” Tony cried desperately.

“I am unable to locate them.”

“They’re gone,” Tony whispered, a tear running down his cheek.

His family was gone.

But Tony was still here.

“Help me lift up some of this stuff, they might be stuck under something.” Rhodey urged his friend, shoving Tony back into the ironman suit.

Robotically, Tony helped Rhodey lift up the pieces of destroyed furniture, pieces of the roof, pieces of unidentifiable debris, looking for Pepper, Peter, and Morgan.

 

They didn’t find anyone.

 

That is until they got to a large pile of rubble.

Rhodey heard the groan first.

“Tony! I heard someone.” Rhodey said frantically pushing rubble aside.

Manically, Tony rushed over, shoving everything out of his way.

The hope to see his family vanished from his eyes when he realized it was only Bruce. Bruce laid there, his shirt torn apart, covered in ashes.

“Bruce?” Rhodey called out, “Are you with us?”

“Uhhhhhh,” Bruce groaned, rubbing his face. He lifted his head, confused on his surroundings. What happened?

“Bruce?” Rhodey inquired again, and Tony backed away in disappointment.

“I don’t know what happened.” Bruce slurred.

“What do you remember?” Rhodey asked.

“Ummmm….” Bruce pondered.

“Common, think!” Tony interjected.

“I remember coming up to the Penthouse and finding Pepper then Loki showed up. Loki was talking to Pepper.”

“What did he say to her?” Tony asked hysterically. “Where is she?”

“I- I don’t know. Something about you. I can’t remember exactly, but it made me mad, I- I couldn’t help it.”

“You turned into the Hulk, didn’t you?” Rhodey asked, surprisingly calm.

Bruce paused, and looked down at himself. His clothes were in tatters, he was covered in dust. The Hulk made his memory so foggy. “Yea, I think so.”

“DAMNNIT BRUCE! You destroyed the place!” Tony screamed.

“No, no Loki did. He had this glow stick.”

“Where’s Loki now?”

“I think I threw him around.”

“Have the team check the surrounding area for Loki,” Tony grunted, and Rhodey nodded.

“What happened to Pepper? And my kids?” Tony asked.

Bruce paused, thinking. “I don’t know.”

“Are you FUCKING serious?!” Tony screamed.

His family was gone.

But Tony was still here.

“Tony I don’t know!! It all happened so fast and I don’t have control of what the Hulk does, he only lets me remember what he wants me to know.”

“Well then let’s just bring the Hulk out then-” Tony started, but Rhodey cut him off.

“No!” Rhodey said firmly.

“Rhodey I need to know what happened to them,” Tony begged.

“We won’t stop looking,” Rhodey promised, then paused when his cell phone started ringing. “Hold on.”

Tony and Bruce watched Rhodey as he talked.

“Thor just told me, said he found Loki’s head just down the road.”

“You cut his head off?”

“More like ripped it off.” Rhodey grimaced. “At least Loki is no longer a concern.”

“But the damage is done.” Tony grimly stated.

“We won’t stop looking,” Rhodey promised.

“No,” Tony sighed. “We won’t.”

“And-”

“Rhodey?” Tony said, staring off at the Manhattan skyline.

“Yes?”

“I’m going to avenge my family.”

--

Pepper took a deep breath. And another one. For the past few hours, it felt like she hadn’t been okay.

She still wasn’t.

She may never be again.

Morgan was finally asleep, after crying for nearly 3 hours on this bus. It was cramped, all three of them on one bus seat, but it was all Pepper could afford with the money she had on in her pocket when they fled the Tower and ran to the closest bus station.

Peter groaned and looked out the window. Pepper stroked his hair with her free hand.

“When can we go see daddy?” Peter asked.

Pepper sighed.

“Shhhh, Peter, you don’t want to wake Morgan up,” Pepper ran her fingers through Peter’s curls.

“But mommy, where is daddy?”

“He’s….” Pepper paused. He was too young to know. It would be better if he forgot all about Tony. Forget that he ever knew his father. Forget everything from his past, to protect his future.

“Mommy?” Peter asked, confused. He loved his dad.

“Peter I need you to count all the cows we see as we go. Aunt May will want to know how many we saw. Can you do that for me?” Pepper asked, hoping to distract him.

“Ok Mommy.” Peter looked out the window again, looking for more cows.

Rose Hill Tennessee was another 2 hours away. They were almost safe. Pepper couldn’t wait to see her friend. To give May a big hug. To be able to tuck her kids into bed safely, not wondering if someone in the mob would try and kill them ever again.

Pepper promised herself the moment they got out of Stark Tower, they would never go back. She got lucky this time, but she would never risk that again. They would never go back to a life filled with danger. No matter what, no matter where, she would keep who she and her kids are a secret. The Stark name is too bloody, too dangerous for her. And especially her children. A normal life, one where they could just be kids, was all they needed.

Sometimes, it’s the secrets we keep that keep us alive.

Notes:

Thank you all so much for reading and commenting!! I really appreciate all the support.

I hope you enjoyed this story. I want to continue, I have ideas, but it might take me time.

Thanks again!

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