Chapter Text
Prologue
The thunderstorm came as a relief on a hot morning.
Tony pulled the hood of the borrowed raincoat deeper into his face and reached out to do the same for Peter. Lightning split the sky in the distance and Peter stopped, staring at it in fascination. Tony put an arm around his shoulders and tugged him onwards, eager to reach the barn.
Peggy held open the door for the both of them. As soon as he was out of the rain, Tony took off his hood and turned to look back towards the farmhouse, its lit windows blurry through the heavy rain. The rest of the crew had preferred to stay inside and finish the hearty breakfast Peggy, Carol and Maria had served up after their arrival.
He smiled, part of him tempted to go back outside.
Being in space so often meant that weather was something they rarely got to properly experience. It was nice, for a change, to see a thunderstorm again.
Peggy leaned into his side to look out as well. The hood had protected her hair for the most part but some dark strands had escaped and were hanging wetly into her smiling face. “The crops need the water.” She wiped a hand down her face. “I just hope it stops before the festival tonight.” Turning to walk further into the barn, she took off the raincoat and left it hanging on a nail that was embedded in one of the support beams.
“There’s a festival?” Tony asked, shrugging out of his coat as well and snagging the hood of Peter’s as the kid made his way over to the cows that had come in from the rain. Peter’s arms slid out of the coat and Tony smiled when he climbed into the cow’s enclosure to pet them.
Thunder rolled over them, the barn shaking a little. The rain was drumming against the metal roof. A couple of electric lamps hanging from the ceiling swung slightly, their lights flickering every now and again. The stuffy air in the barn smelled of cattle and hay. It was warm and dry.
Comfortable.
“More of a gathering,” Peggy answered. “A fire, some food, a couple of drinks. It’s going to take place here on the ranch. You should come, too.” She sounded slightly distracted and Tony followed her gaze to where Peter was hugging one of the cows, his arms around its neck while it chewed calmly. “He’s a farm boy alright,” she said. “You really thought he was core-bred?”
“We had no reason to believe otherwise.” He turned away and approached the tractor instead, his hand stroking over its hood. “So, what’s wrong with it?”
“It won’t start,” Peggy replied. “It worked perfectly fine until a couple of days ago. Good thing you decided to come.”
“Yeah, who doesn’t love free labor?” Tony asked with a smirk.
“It certainly doesn’t hurt that you don’t cost anything.” Peggy winked at him.
Tony popped the hood open and pulled an empty crate closer, turning it over so that he could step on it and properly check on the engine. “I’ll take a look.”
“As if you had another choice.” Peggy leaned against the tractor, her eyes wandering over to Peter again. With a lowered voice, she asked, “You think it’s a good idea to take him home?”
“Kids should be with their folks,” Tony answered, leaning closer to the engine to check on some of the wiring.
“Yes, but his home is the place the Alliance will keep a close eye on.”
“The plan is to hook Peter and his folks up with someone. They could join a crew, keep Peter out of sight and on the move.”
“You mean as you are doing now? Why can’t they stay with you?”
Tony looked at her. “I don’t need the trouble. Besides, we run a risky business.”
Peggy hummed thoughtfully. “Did Vision come back to you at all?”
Tony shook his head. “Not yet. Whatever it is they did to him, the proof is buried deeply. One thing’s for sure, it’s affected his mind. He’s not quite right, gets confused, shows weird …” He hesitated to tell her about the way Peter had basically had a premonition about the grisly scene they’d found on that ship wreck a couple of days ago. It sounded too paranoid. “Just … he’s weird.”
Tony looked towards Peter and saw him standing still, staring at the wall, his hand on the cow’s forehead as if he’d been interrupted mid-pet. Then he looked towards them and, upon seeing their eyes fixed on him, quickly turned away, moving in to hug the cow again with one arm, his other hand scratching its forehead gently.
Tony felt his heart sink. They’d been speaking too softly to be heard across the barn but for a second … he almost thought Peter might have heard.
“I’ll leave you to take care of this,” Peggy said, patting Tony’s shoulder. “When are you planning on leaving?”
“When we’ve heard back from Hera.”
“I should hear something by tonight,” Peggy said. “Join the party. You can leave tomorrow.”
Tony frowned, hesitant.
“You can bring Peter. Nobody here has any clue of what’s going on in the ‘verse, nobody will recognize him.”
He shrugged, still not sure. “I don’t know.”
“Come on,” she replied, nudging his shoulder. “Can’t hurt to have a little fun, right?”
Tony smiled, ducking his head. “Right. Can’t hurt.”
Chapter 1
The map of the ‘verse that was spread out on the kitchen table was old. It had been folded and unfolded so often that it was frayed at the edges and the colors had faded a little. Nevertheless, the planets and moons were still easily visible, their names still readable. Carol tapped one finger against Aberdeen, a moon orbiting Hera. “SHIELD recently raided a few towns on Aberdeen, arrested many Independence supporters.” She crossed her arms, her lips pressed tightly together and her eyes narrowed. She’d cut her hair since Steve had last seen her. It was no longer falling to her shoulders, but short and brushed back, blond strands that didn’t want to stay in place held out of her face with a red headband. “We haven’t heard from them in over a month.”
Maria was standing by the sink, sipping on a mug of coffee. “They likely got arrested.”
Steve hummed thoughtfully, a frown digging into his forehead. “They can’t arrest anyone simply for supporting the Independence.”
“They can when they prove that some kind of upheaval was planned,” Carol replied.
Clint gave a nod and leaned back in his seat. “It’s easy enough to fake that kind of proof. Planting evidence is pretty common when SHIELD feels they need to get their number of arrests up.”
Steve looked at him. “You’ve seen that kind of thing happen?”
Clint scoffed. “I’ve done that kind of thing when I was an agent.”
Maria stepped closer to the table, her eyes alighting on Hera. “There’s an increase of SHIELD agents patrolling the farms on Hera as well. There’s a higher number of raids. Our contacts say that they seem to be looking for something.”
“Or someone,” Carol added, glancing out the window into the rain, where Tony, Peter and Peggy were making their way to the barn.
Maria followed her gaze, sipping on her coffee. “That’s a risky business you got yourself tangled up in.”
Nat hummed in agreement. “If you’re worried about keeping Beck here-”
“Worried?” Maria scoffed. “I’m not worried about us; I’m worried about you. That boy’s a fugitive and you’re hiding him. If they find him, they can brand you as traitors. You’ll never see the outside of a cell again.”
Steve nodded. “We’re aware.”
Carol looked towards the small arrangement of couches and armchairs near the fireplace on the other side of the room, where Maria’s daughter Monica was keeping Shuri, Pepper and Bruce busy with a boardgame of some sort. “You know the risks, but you’re pulling others into it as well. Shuri, Pepper and Dr. Banner. Are they aware of all the risks?” She paused, pressing her lips together. “I hope you know what you’re doing.”
“We don’t have an alternative,” Steve answered. “We won’t hand him back to them. All we can do now is find his family and make sure they’re safe.”
***
Rain was drumming against the steal rooftop, the sound accompanied by the soft moo of the cows and the rumble of thunder. It almost felt like they were cut off from the rest of the world, shielded in a way.
Tony pretended that he didn’t notice Peter’s tentative approach, but he made sure that he was able to see him out of the corner of his eye.
As soon as Peggy had mentioned the issues with the tractor during breakfast, Tony had decided to take Peter with him to check it out. It was a test of sorts. An opportunity to learn something about the kid and confirm some thoughts Tony had had over the last couple few days while they were making their way Lian-Juin.
Peter still didn’t talk much and shied away a lot when someone came too close too quickly, especially if it was Steve or Clint. However, he showed an interest in the engine room and the bridge, often sitting with either Shuri or Steve to watch them work and explain what they were doing to combat the silence.
And Peter listened with single-minded concentration, his dark brows furrowed thoughtfully. It made Tony think of Beck’s words when they had first found out that he’d smuggled Peter onboard the ship.
“Peter was more than gifted. He ... he was a gift. Everything he did - music, math, theoretical physics – even … even dance … there was nothing that didn't come as naturally to him as breathing does to us.”
And also to the ones he’d spoken just a few weeks later, a sick fascination burning in his eyes.
“His brain was remarkable before. Now it’s unstoppable.”
Tony shuddered and shook his head, focusing back on the tractor … and Peter who was now standing only an arm’s length away. Tony hummed softly and said, “Hand me the line wrench, please.” He reached out a beckoning hand.
Peter froze, as if he wasn’t quite sure whether to turn and escape back to the cows … but then he grabbed the tool from the battered toolbox and handed it over.
“Thank you,” Tony replied. He shifted a little to the side, pointedly not looking at Peter as he said, “Come here, check this out.”
Peter hesitated again, then slowly approached to climb on the crate Tony was using to get to the right height to fix the engine. He kept to the very edge of it, his hands tightly folded and his shoulders pulled up, trying not to touch Tony even accidentally.
“Now,” Tony said gently, ignoring Peter’s unease. “I’m looking to see why it won’t start. It could be the fuel filter or the ignition switch.”
“Alternator.”
Tony paused at the whispered word, surprised. “What?”
“The alternator,” Peter repeated a little more loudly and nodded, his face earnest. “Common problem with this brand of tractors.”
Tony stared at him, then he huffed a laugh. “Is it now?”
Peter nodded and one corner of his lips lifted into a little smirk. “Saw it all the time. Fixed it a lot.”
“When was that?”
Peter’s eyes drifted to the side, avoiding Tony’s. “Home.” He ducked his head. “Mr. Delmar always let me fix his tractors.”
Tony nodded slowly, his face softening. “So you know a lot about that kind of stuff?”
Peter shrugged and hesitantly met Tony’s eyes. “I like engines.”
Tony smiled. “I get that. I like engines, too.”
Peter’s hands kneaded each other nervously.
Tony held out the wrench. “Sounds like I can hand over to you, then.”
Peter didn’t take the wrench, but he looked at it, almost longingly.
“Go on,” Tony beckoned. “It’s okay. Show me how to fix it.”
He didn’t need Peter to show him and Peter likely knew that.
“Show you?” he asked, frowning skeptically.
“Yeah,” Tony replied. “Like … like a test. To see what you can do.”
Peter smiled tentatively. “I’m good at tests.”
“I bet you are.”
***
The Carter Ranch consisted of several barns and huts, but the main house was the only building that had a basement.
Since the crew had arrived at the ranch, the basement was locked, the key hidden away in a little flowerpot sitting on a nearby windowsill. Tony balanced the tray with a sandwich and a jug of water as he took the key and unlocked the door, making sure to lock it again behind him once he’d stepped into the dimly lit stairway leading downwards.
The wooden stairs creaked under his steps and the lamps fixed to the wall flickered as he passed.
Since Peggy had bought the ranch, the basement had been set up to hold temporary guests needing to stay out of sight; fugitives and people that were a danger to the last remains of the Independence. The former stayed until a safe, permanent place for them was found, the latter until the danger they posed was neutralized, until the family or Independence cell they were a threat to had relocated.
For now, it held Quentin Beck.
The crew had brought Beck here blindfolded, unable to identify the world they were on. And Peggy would keep him here until they knew that Peter was safe and out of his reach.
There was an additional door at the bottom of the stairs, steel bars making it easy to see Beck sitting on one of the cots provided, reading a book from the shelf in the corner. Other than the cots and the bookshelf, the room only held a table with four chairs and had a small bathroom attached to it. There were no windows, the only illumination provided by a lamp in the ceiling.
Tony used the same key to gain entrance and locked the door behind himself again, turning to look at Beck, announcing, “Lunch.” He set the tray down on the table, taking the one that held the empty plate and jug from Beck’s breakfast.
He turned towards the door to leave, but Beck’s next words stopped him in his tracks. “Why do you think that this will keep me from getting to Peter?”
Tony turned around to him.
Beck was still lounging on the cot, the book resting open on the pillow. “The woman who brought me breakfast covered her face. If she worries about me seeing her, you are not planning on killing me. I however know who you are and I know your crew, your ship. It will be easy to find you once I get out.”
“You can find us,” Tony confirmed. “You won’t find the kid, though.”
Beck smirked. “You won’t be able to hide him that well, Stark. Peter is a ticking time bomb. And you’d do well to make sure that you and your crew are as far away from him as possible when he goes off.”
“Let me guess,” Tony replied. “You’re the only one who can make sure that doesn’t happen.”
Beck tilted his head. “Who says I want to stop it from happening?”
Tony pressed his lips together, his jaw clenching.
Beck shifted forward, resting his feet on the floor. The cocky smile on his face proved that he clearly still thought he could win in the end. “This is your last chance to turn back. To surrender him to me. If you don’t, nothing will stop me from killing you the next time I see you.”
“Yeah,” Tony scoffed. “Good luck.”
Again, he turned to leave, but Beck said, “You think I don’t have people looking for me? How do you think I got him out of that facility in the first place. I wouldn’t have been able to do it without help.” Tony looked at him questioningly and Beck grinned. “I’m not the only one who sees the Alliance and SHIELD waste potential.”
“And I’m getting really tired of dealing with you,” Tony replied, unlocking the door and leaving the cell.
Beck’s voice carried up to him as he was climbing the stairs. “Don’t get too attached to him, Stark! He’ll break your heart!”
***
The rain stopped in time for the festival to start.
Clint, Steve and Tony helped to put up some tables and benches around the fire pit, while Maria and Carol managed to get a fire going. Peggy had Shuri, Pepper and Bruce help her in the kitchen to prepare some salads and sandwiches.
By the time the first guests from the surrounding farms and from the nearby village arrived, bringing bread, beer and meat, the sun was sinking lower. The heat had returned in wake of the storm, though the air still smelled like rain. Food and drinks were spread out on the tables, a band began to play and it didn’t take long before everyone settled into what seemed to be a well-practiced routine of grilling meat, drinking, dancing and chatting.
To Tony’s relief, nobody questioned the crew’s presence, accepting that they were friends of the women running the Carter Ranch and nothing more. Still, the crew made an effort to keep Peter a little apart from the others and the kid didn’t seem to mind. He was perfectly happy right now sitting by the fire with Bruce, staring into the flames and munching on some bread and grilled meat. Clint and Nat were chatting with a group of farmers while Shuri had run off into the barn with a couple of teenagers from the village. She certainly didn’t get to be around people her age as often as she probably needed to. Sometimes, Tony wanted to ask her whether she didn’t want to leave Serenity, make her own way, but he refrained. Part of him was afraid that she would take the chance to leave and he was just selfish enough not to want that to happen.
“You look sad.”
He startled out of his thoughts, turning around to Pepper.
She’d donned a simple white cotton robe for the festival, her blond hair pinned up in a complicated-looking series of braids.
In the light of the flickering fire, she looked flawless.
Tony had seen the way some people were looking at her, obviously in awe that a Companion was gracing them with her presence, and even more impressed when she’d started to mingle and talk to them. Some of the younger men were eyeing her nervously, probably trying to get up the courage to ask her to dance.
Tony cleared his throat. “You look beautiful.”
A light smile tugged at her lips. “How uncommonly chivalrous of you.” She held out a hand and he accepted, letting her link her arm with his as he started a stroll.
“Peggy said she will hear back from Hera about Peter’s folks tonight. So we’ll head for Beaumonde in the morning. Give you a chance to find some work of your own.”
Pepper nodded. “I appreciate it. It’s been a while, with everything going on.”
He caught her looking at Peter. “This will all be over soon. After Beaumonde, we’ll take the kid home and things can go back to normal.”
“What about Beck?” Pepper asked. “You can’t keep him here forever.”
“I want to see what Vis finds out about the academy, then we’ll see,” Tony answered. “We need to know what was going on there to decide what to do with him.”
A young man approached them, his cheeks flushed, and asked Pepper to dance with him. She smiled kindly and looked at Tony questioningly. “Go on,” he said. “I’ll wait.” He watched the young man take Pepper’s hand, his fingers shaking with nerves, and smirked. This dance would probably be all the young man would talk about for weeks to come.
He was distracted by a woman with long dark hair that stopped in front of him, smiling and looking hesitant, almost afraid to even talk to him.
“I don’t like to dance,” Tony said. “Sorry.”
She shook her head and reached out to set a wreath made of daisies on his head.
He saw Clint and Nat smirk at him and ignored them, instead focusing his attention back to the woman before him. “Thank you.”
She held out a cup of wine and, feeling he needed to be polite, he took a sip from it. To his surprise, she took the cup back and took a sip from it herself, smiling widely at him.
Tony raised an eyebrow and then decided that this must be some weird way of welcoming him. “Okay,” he said. “Thank you so much.” He hoped that she would leave, but she took his hands, pulling him towards the dancers. “No, I don’t want to,” he said. “Please.”
But she looked so happy that he gave up his resistance.
After all, as Peggy had said: there was no harm in having a bit of fun.
***
Peggy caught up with him during the dance, pulling him away from the woman with a low “We need to talk”. He was a little relieved about that and just waved quickly at his dance partner, who looked after him sadly.
“Who was that?” Peggy asked.
“No idea, she didn’t say a word,” Tony replied. “I’m glad you got me out of there.” He focused on her, noticing the tense set to her jaw. “What’s going on?”
“Let’s get Steve and I’ll tell you.”
Just a few minutes later, they had retreated the house, gathering around the kitchen table.
“I called my contact on Hera,” Peggy said, pouring coffee into three mugs. “They were able to get in touch with people on the farm Peter lived on.”
Steve smiled. “That’s great news.” His smile dropped, replaced by a frown when he saw Peggy shake her head.
“SHIELD was faster.”
Dread settled in Tony’s chest, a lump forming in his stomach.
Peggy sank into her chair, rubbing her brow tiredly. “They came a couple of weeks ago, asked all sorts of questions, searched the farm and set up a permanent post there.”
Tony looked at Steve and said, “They expect Peter to make his way home.”
Steve nodded. “Maybe we can get his folks out, though.”
Peggy closed her eyes. “There are no folks. Richard and Mary Parker, the kid’s parents, died during the war. His aunt and uncle took over. But then, his uncle Ben Parker was killed during a SHIELD raid a couple of years ago.”
“When they took Peter,” Tony said grimly. “He mentioned that.”
“They framed it as civil disobedience gotten out of hand,” Peggy replied. “The official report stated that Ben Parker was the one who was supposed to be arrested. That he was shot in self-defense. However, people who work the farm heard the agents ask for Peter. They warned Ben and apparently, he tried to go on the run with the kid when SHIELD caught up to them.”
Tony rubbed his eyes. “How did they keep this under wraps?”
“There were no eyewitnesses to the altercation,” Peggy said. “But everyone is sure that Ben Parker was murdered because he wouldn’t let them take his nephew.”
Cradling his mug in his hands, Steve murmured, “SHIELD got away with murder, just like that. How did they justify kidnapping Peter?”
Peggy sighed. “They framed him. Parker wasn’t the only casualty. One of the SHIELD agents was killed in the altercation as well and SHIELD claimed that Peter did it.”
Tony scoffed. “They can write anything into the report. Doesn’t matter what some farmers claim happened. With no eyewitness, SHIELD is in control.” He looked at Peggy. “What about his aunt?”
“May Parker died last winter. A bout of the flu hit the farm. They lost twenty-three people.”
Tony cursed and got up, starting to pace the kitchen. “They’re tightening the noose around Hera because they expect Peter to make his way there.”
“Why is this kid that important to the Alliance?” Peggy asked. “It doesn’t make any sense.”
Steve leaned back in his chair. “The main question is what we are going to do now. We wanted to get Peter back to his folks and all of them to a safe place but …” He swallowed. “That poor kid has nobody left.”
“He’s got us,” Tony said.
Steve raised his eyebrows. “Tony, I don’t disagree with you but given the circumstances, we need to decide together as a team if we’re going to do it. That means everyone. We haven’t really done that up until now. I think it’s time that we actually talk about it.”
Tony pressed his lips together, a sharp reply forming in his mind, but he knew that Steve was right. “Let’s talk to them tomorrow when we’re back in the air. Let’s give them tonight to have fun.”
Peggy cleared her throat. “Who is going to tell Peter about his aunt?”
Tony ducked his head. The wreath of daisies slipped off his head and he caught it, looking at the wilting flowers. “I’ll do it,” he replied. “Tomorrow.”