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They had won.
They had also lost.
They always lost in one way or another, and Nat’s death was a huge blow that none of them had really had time to adjust to yet. But then Carol Danvers snapped the gauntlet, and Thanos and his army were fading away to dust, and they had won. It was over.
But as the dust of their enemies caught on the wind, filling Tony’s vision and mixing with the smoke, haze and orange flames from the wreckage that was the compound; in the blink of an eye, Tony was transported back to Titan five years ago. And in that moment, the ashes in the air weren’t Thanos, but Peter’s again. Peter, his kid, settling on his skin and burning through his armour and down through to his bones.
Tony couldn’t breathe and his chest seized. He spun around on the spot, eyes scanning the battlefield, not seeing the faces of his friends and teammates as he frantically sought out any glimpse of red and blue. Panic and adrenaline coursed through his veins like wildfire, getting thicker the longer he couldn’t spot the kid’s face.
He’d seen him. He’d had one precious moment with the kid in the midst of battle, Peter chattering away like they’d only just seen each other- because to him, they had- and as if they were out getting ice cream instead of in the middle of fighting an alien army. Tony had only been able to stare at him in wonder that he was here, and then he’d hugged him, felt him solid beneath his arms and mentally thanking every deity in the known and unknown universe that this had worked. Nat’s sacrifice hadn’t been in vain.
But then Peter had disappeared from his sight, and Tony hadn’t seen him since.
“Tony.”
The sound was a mere whisper over the roar of blood in Tony’s ears, he couldn’t even pinpoint the person or direction it was coming from. He couldn’t breathe.
“Tony.”
A hand landed on his shoulder and he jumped. It took him a moment to recognise Pepper’s face, still wearing the Rescue suit and looking at him with that look. The one that told him she knew exactly what he was thinking right now.
“He’s over there,” Pepper said gently, pointing behind him.
Tony whirled around and finally spotted Peter, talking to Dr Strange. Tony’s knees buckled faintly with relief. The kid looked dirty and exhausted, but unhurt. And solid. Blissfully, beautifully, solid.
He turned back to Pepper, pulling her close and kissing her deeply. “I love you,” he said.
She laughed, her eyes full of tears. “I love you too. Go see your kid.”
Tony stumbled away without needing any more prompting, his heart pounding in his chest. Peter’s back was to him, so he didn’t know what had alerted the kid to Tony’s presence, but Peter turned around before Tony could make his throat work.
Peter’s eyes sparked up at the sight of Tony, his face washing over with relief, and then concern and then understanding- God, was Tony that transparent? He left Dr Strange immediately, heading towards Tony.
Tony didn’t even let him open his mouth this time before he’d wrapped his arms around Peter and hugged him tightly. Peter returned the hug quicker than last time, tucking his head against Tony’s shoulder the same way Morgan did.
God, Morgan. Peter didn’t know about Morgan yet.
“I’m ok, Mr Stark,” Peter said softly.
Tony choked out a laugh and tightened his grip on the kid before pulling back to cup Peter’s face in his hands.
“Nope,” he said with a shake of his head. “No more of this ‘Mr Stark’ crap, ok?”
Peter frowned, as though they hadn’t been having this argument for at least six months before Titan happened.
“But-”
Tony shook his head again, stepping closer. “Nope,” he said firmly. “I lost… it’s been five years, kid.”
Understanding dawned in Peter’s eyes and he nodded as Tony hugged him again.
“I love you, Pete,” Tony said hoarsely.
Peter froze, but Tony didn’t care. He hadn’t been able to say those words to Peter where the kid could actually hear him for the past five years, and he wasn’t going to miss the opportunity now.
“I love you. And I’m- I’m so sorry I didn’t tell you before. I missed you, Underoos.”
Peter hugged Tony so tightly that Tony felt his armour dent beneath the kid’s grip.
“I love you, Tony,” he murmured, and Tony heard him sniffle slightly. “I missed you too.”
As far as Peter was concerned, it had only been a moment since they’d seen each other, but Tony appreciated the sentiment regardless. He turned his head slightly to press a kiss to Peter’s temple and Peter sniffled again.
“Hey,” Pepper’s voice came from behind Tony and they both turned to see her.
She was beaming at Peter.
“Hi, Miss Potts,” Peter greeted her automatically.
Pepper laughed and gently pried Peter from Tony’s grasp to hug him herself. “It’s Pepper, Peter,” she corrected him for the millionth time. “And it is so wonderful to see you, you have no idea.”
Tony’s skin crawled, his fingers twitching without Peter in his arms and he reached for Peter the moment Pepper dropped her arms, crushing Peter against his chest.
“Oh, ok,” Peter said in surprise, readily winding his arms around Tony again, his voice muffled slightly as his face was pressed into Tony’s shoulder.
Tony chuckled wetly, burying his face in Peter’s hair and closing his eyes.
“Stark,” a new voice said, and Tony reluctantly opened his eyes to find Strange standing there.
“Hey, Merlin,” he greeted him.
Strange rolled his eyes, but Peter distinctly stifled a laugh. He was sure that sound was what kept Strange from making a smart retort in kind.
“If you’d like,” he said, his face soft with empathy as he looked at Tony and Peter. “I can open a portal to send your family home.”
Family. Home.
The words had never sounded so good to Tony. Morgan was there, he knew, with Happy. It had been pre-arranged before Tony left for the compound- Happy being at the cabin on standby in case Pepper was needed.
He had no idea what time it was, all his sense of time was completely gone; but just the knowledge she was there and Tony would get to see her again was enough for him right now.
“Right,” he said through a tight throat, only slightly loosening his grip on Peter.
For the first time it seemed, Tony took in the wreckage around them of the compound. The debris, water and flames everywhere.
“God, this is going to be a bitch to clean up,” he said heavily, already making a mental list of what needed to be done.
“Tony.”
Tony turned his head to see Steve approaching, a soft smile on his face as he took in Tony and Peter.
“Go home,” Steve said gently. “Get some rest. Go see… we can deal with all of this tomorrow.”
Tony faltered, glancing around at everyone who had fought on their side. “But-”
“I’ve got this,” Steve said firmly. “We’ll get everyone home and taken care of. Clean up can wait. Go home.”
He didn’t need to convince Tony any further. He nodded gratefully to Steve, whose smile widened knowingly.
“Rhodey,” Tony said suddenly, before Strange could start to open a portal. “Um, I’ve got to find Rhodey first.”
“He’s over there with Thor and Clint,” Pepper said gently, pointing.
Tony nodded and reluctantly dropped his arms from Peter. “You don’t move an inch,” he warned Peter, pointing at him. “Got it, Parker?”
Peter beamed at him. “Got it,” he agreed.
Pepper placed a hand on his shoulder, squeezing it gently as Tony walked away. “He’s missed you so much,” she said softly.
Peter’s responding smile was rather shaky as he looked to Dr Strange. “So, this was it? This was the one?”
“Yes,” Dr Strange nodded.
“All thanks to you,” Steve added and Peter blinked confusedly.
“Me?” he repeated. “What did I do?”
Steve’s face softened and he exchanged a glance with Pepper before answering. “I don’t think Tony would have managed this if he wasn’t so driven to get you back, Peter,” he said gently.
Tears sprung to Peter’s eyes, although he was no less confused. “What is ‘this’?” he asked. “I know it’s been… five years, but I don’t understand.”
It had been five years and Tony loved him and was hugging him, and he and Captain America were friends again… Peter had no concept of anything anymore.
“Time travel,” Steve replied unhelpfully.
Peter’s eyes widened. “Holy shit,” he breathed. “Time travel?”
A thought occurred to him and he turned to Pepper. “May,” he blurted out. “Do you know where she is?”
Pepper smoothed one of his curls back gently. “I don’t,” she admitted. “But we’ll find her, ok? We have a plan. Once we get back home, Happy’s going to go find her.”
Peter sighed in relief. He could only imagine how frantic his aunt must be right now.
“Ok,” Tony said, returning to their side after reassuring himself that Rhodey was ok.
Rhodey had merely hugged him, nodded knowingly towards Peter and promised to come by the cabin the next day.
As soon as he heard Tony’s voice, Peter turned to him immediately. “You invented time travel?!” he demanded.
Tony froze, blinked and then recovered swiftly. “Ok, first of all, I didn’t invent time travel,” he corrected Peter. “I just found a way to successfully navigate through time.”
Peter frowned. It sounded like time travel to him.
“Secondly,” Tony continued. “That is not even the biggest news of the past five years. I mean, Happy has a beard now.”
Pepper rolled her eyes. “Tony. Really?”
“I’m saving the other stuff for when we’re not standing on the site of the apocalypse,” Tony hissed to her, and Peter cocked his head in interest.
Pepper just smiled and nodded however, so it evidently made sense to her. “Alright,” she agreed. “Let’s go home then.”
With a nod from Tony, Dr Strange opened a portal. Tony decided not to ask how Strange knew exactly where to open the portal. Some things he just didn’t need to know.
“Come on, Pete,” Tony said thickly, and gently prodded Peter through the orange swirls.
It was completely jarring for Peter to find himself standing suddenly on the grassy lawn of a lakeside cabin. Once the portal closed behind them, the only sounds were the gentle waves on the lake and the sounds of an… was that an alpaca?!
Tony disengaged the nanotech suit he wore and Pepper removed her own suit, which Peter had never seen before. What else had changed in five years?
“What time is it?” a voice asked.
It took Peter a moment to realise it was him. He had a thousand questions, and that certainly hadn’t been the first one he’d intended to ask.
Tony glanced at his watch. “It’s about five-thirty,” he replied. He hesitated and then added. “Tuesday October 17, 2023.”
The date hit Peter like a brick. It really had been five years. “Oh,” he breathed, his head swimming slightly.
Tony was watching him worriedly, and then placed a supportive hand on his elbow. “Yeah. Let’s go over here and sit, bud,” he said, pointing towards the dock. “There’s… there’s a lot to tell you.”
Peter nodded dumbly.
“I’m going to head in,” Pepper said to Tony gently. “Get cleaned up and check on... things.”
Tony nodded and she walked away towards the house. Peter noticed him glancing longingly at the house for a moment, before he guided Peter down to the dock. They sat on the end, their feet dangling over the water, just sitting in silence.
“God, I can’t believe you’re actually here,” Tony broke the silence suddenly, his hand tight on Peter’s shoulder. “I can’t believe this worked. Shit.”
He took a shaky breath and turned to Peter. “This is a lot, I know. And I don’t want to dump stuff on you, but there’s stuff you need to know. Stuff I should’ve told you, God, five… no, six or seven years ago. Ok?”
Peter nodded, his eyes wide as they fixated on Tony.
“I love you, Peter,” Tony said again, his face more solemn than Peter had ever seen it. “I love you like my own kid, and I’ve missed you like hell. I’m so sorry that I couldn’t- couldn’t save you. And I should’ve told you a thousand times over, but I didn’t because I thought… I thought we had time. And- shit.”
“Mr Stark,” Peter cut him off, alarmed to see tears in Tony’s eyes. Tears sprung to Peter’s own eyes, even as Tony raised an eyebrow at him pointedly and Peter laughed faintly.
“I mean, Tony,” he corrected himself. “Sorry. I just… sorry. But you did save me. You used time travel to save me.”
Peter leaned over to hug Tony without hesitation, closing his eyes as Tony carded a hand through his hair softly.
“Thank you,” he murmured.
Tony kissed the top of his head lightly. “I wish we’d been able to do it sooner,” he replied.
Peter just nodded.
“Um, May,” Peter said hesitantly. “Did- was she dusted too?”
Tony tensed and pulled away.
“Pepper said Happy was going to find her…”
Tony nodded. “Yeah. The thing is Pete, I don’t know what happened,” he admitted. “When half the planet disappears, resources are limited. And, I was pretty out of it for a while.”
Peter frowned confusedly.
“It took me three weeks to get back to Earth after…” Tony closed his eyes, unable to say it. He just shook his head faintly and moved on. “And we almost didn’t. We were out of food, and just about out of oxygen…”
His grip on Peter tightened painfully. “And I had a moment, where I was… grateful that you were… gone,” he said through gritted teeth. “Because if I’d had to watch you starve, or slowly suffocate, I-”
Peter reached for Tony’s hand without thinking, gripping it firmly as Tony squeezed his eyes shut, his tone dripping with self-loathing and regret. “It’s ok, Tony,” he said quietly, his voice trembling.
Tony drew him back tight against his side, kissing his temple. “I’m so sorry, kid,” he murmured.
Peter shut his own eyes tightly, squeezing Tony’s hand. He registered the touch of metal and opened his eyes, staring down at Tony’s hand in his grasp.
“You and Miss- I mean, Pepper- you got married?” he exclaimed suddenly.
Tony looked down at his hand too, and chuckled. “Well yeah, kiddo. We were engaged before all this happened,” he reminded Peter.
“I know,” Peter nodded. “But you hadn’t even set a date yet, and… I missed it,” he said disappointedly.
Tony smiled at him sadly.
And then Peter remembered something else, and he bolted upright, looking to Tony with wide eyes. “You got stabbed. On Titan.”
Tony looked mildly surprised for a moment, as though he’d forgotten that. “Oh, yeah,” he said finally. “I’m fine,” he reassured him.
Peter didn’t find that super comforting, but it was clear that Tony wasn’t going to linger anymore that subject.
“Anyway, when I got back to Earth, I… we lost,” Tony said simply, a lump in his throat as he gazed out over the water. “We lost, and I’ve always been a sore loser. But I lost twice, because we lost the battle and I lost you.”
He turned his head to look at Peter, his faced lined deeply with more pain than Peter ever imagined on his face. “I lost my kid. You disappeared in my arms, and I couldn’t do a damn thing,” he said with difficulty.
Peter’s eyes swam with tears.
“I don’t know what I would’ve done if not for…” Tony trailed off again, taking a deep breath.
“Anyway, I’m not sure what happened to May,” he said apologetically. “But I promise, we’ll find her, ok?”
Peter nodded. “Ok,” he agreed.
Tony hesitated. “The thing is, according to Pepper and Rhodey, there was a lot of mess. You had cars with their drivers disappearing, buses and trains… there was a lot of accidents.”
After his return to Earth, Tony had heard so many stories that haunted him for months afterwards. Even beyond the accidents, there were just so many stories. Mothers whose children- newborn babies- turned to dust in the blink of an eye, doctors turning to dust mid-surgery leaving their patients to catch infections.
Peter was a smart kid, so it didn’t take him long to get at what Tony was implying. “Oh,” he said quietly.
He instinctively rested his head on Tony’s shoulder, who tightened his grip on him.
“Happy will find her,” he said firmly. “And he’ll bring her here, and you guys will stay with us while we get you set up. Ok?”
Peter nodded, closing his eyes. “And- if he doesn’t?” he asked, not able to bring himself to say the words that they both knew he meant. What if May was gone for good?
Tony rested his chin atop Peter’s head. “Then you’ll still stay with us,” he promised. “I’m not letting you out of my sight for a long time, Underoos.”
Even if it hadn’t been five years for him, Peter was okay with that idea.
He took a deep breath and let it out slowly, relaxing against Tony’s side. “When did you get so… huggy?” Peter asked without thinking.
Tony snorted, although he tensed slightly and made to drop his arm from around Peter. “Right.”
“No,” Peter said quickly, burrowing deeper against Tony’s side. “No, it’s just…”
Tony resumed his tight grip on Peter, tentatively running his fingers through Peter’s hair. “A lot changed, kid,” he murmured. “And even besides all that… right now, I’m just liking the reminder that you’re solid. And here.”
Peter nodded. “Solid is good,” he said, recalling the feeling of disappearing and shuddering faintly.
Tony sniffed after a moment and pulled back. “So, we should get you cleaned up and fed,” he said. “But there’s one more thing I need to tell you.”
Peter looked at him expectantly, bracing himself.
He took a deep breath. “You have a little sister who’s going to be very excited to meet you.”
Peter gaped at Tony for a moment, before looking over his shoulder at the house. “What?”
Tony nodded, looking a little nervous to Peter’s eyes. “Morgan. She’s four… going on forty,” he rolled his eyes slightly. “I don’t know what else I expected, mixing mine and Pepper’s genes together, but still. Anyway, she knows about you. She’s seen pictures and then she started asking questions, and Pep thought it would help me to… talk about you more, so we started telling her stories, and… kid?”
The tears that Peter had been fighting back on and off since opening his eyes on Titan were back, and slowly trailing down his cheeks. Tony reached over, cupping Peter’s face in his hands and brushing tears away with his thumbs gently. He did the gesture so naturally, so unthinkingly that it only made Peter cry more. Because it was suddenly so obvious that Tony was a dad and that explained everything.
“Pete?” Tony asked gently, brushing his thumb along Peter’s cheekbone.
“I- Sister?” Peter asked in a small voice.
Tony’s face softened and he drew Peter close, kissing his head. “Sister,” he confirmed softly, running his fingers through Peter’s hair again as Peter rested his forehead against Tony’s collarbone, sniffling quietly.
“I meant what I said, bud. You’re my kid. Just as much as Morgan is,” Tony said vehemently. “You’re family. You and May.”
Peter closed his eyes, a lump in his throat. “I always wanted a little sister,” he said quietly, and he could sense Tony smiling as he kissed his head again.
“From the day she was born, I knew you’d be the best big brother to her,” Tony said, his voice rather choked up. “Want to meet her?”
Peter nodded eagerly. “Yeah,” he said, wiping his eyes.
Tony helped him up and they headed up to the house. Now Peter noted the signs he hadn’t noticed before- the little tent and chair on the lawn, the bike by the side of the porch. There was definitely a little kid who lived here.
As they climbed the porch stairs, the screen door opened and there stood Happy Hogan- complete with greying beard, as Tony had said. He was staring at Peter as though he was a ghost.
“Hi, Happy,” Peter finally said, when it didn’t look as though Happy was going to say anything.
Happy just laughed, much to Peter’s surprise. “Holy shit, kid,” he said, running a hand over his face. “I am so happy to see you.”
Peter didn’t know what to do when Happy hugged him- not quite as tight as Tony had done, but he was no slouch either.
“Thanks, Happy,” Peter said, a little awkwardly.
Happy pulled away and shook his head. “I’m going to head into the city, track down your aunt,” he said.
“Thanks,” Peter said again, gratefully.
“Be careful with traffic,” Tony warned him. “It’s late too, so don’t rush.”
Happy rolled his eyes. “I’ll be fine, Tony. I’ll let you know when I have news.”
Tony nodded. “The girls?”
“Morgan and I had dinner before you got back. Pepper took her up to have a bath,” Happy explained.
Happy left as Tony led Peter inside the house, not giving Peter much time to look around before they headed upstairs.
“We’ll give you the full tour in a sec,” Tony explained.
Pepper must have heard them, because she stepped into the hall with a smile.
“Does she know?” Tony whispered.
Pepper nodded, her smile lighting up her face. “Yeah. It was the only way to get her to agree to have a bath- I told her it was best to be squeaky clean when she meets her brother for the first time, and I had to promise her that I’d braid her hair for her too.”
Tony grinned and Peter’s cheeks warmed.
“I put something for Peter to wear on the bed,” she added to Tony, who nodded.
He pulled Peter down the hall and into a bedroom.
“En suite is through there,” Tony pointed out. “Clothes on the bed, towels are in there. Get yourself cleaned up, and then come downstairs, ok bud?”
Peter nodded and Tony squeezed his shoulder before leaving the room.
He was so happy for the chance to have a hot shower and clean up, Peter didn’t really think of anything else beyond how wonderful a hot shower was. So much had happened in what felt like such a short amount of time.
The fact that five years had passed… that alone was enough to make Peter’s head spin. But May was just a question mark right now, as were Ned and MJ, and all of Peter’s classmates. That was terrifying. And Mr Stark- Tony loved him like a son, considered him family and had proclaimed him big brother to his daughter, even before he thought it was a possibility that Peter could come back. That thrilled Peter more than he could say.
It was only when he was back in the bedroom and changing into the clothes Pepper had left on the bed that it occurred to Peter. This room wasn’t a standard guest room. Not that the room was full of his belongings, but it clearly been decorated with someone specific in mind. After what Tony had said outside, Peter knew with certainty that someone was him.
It was only minor clues- the walls were painted deep blue, his favourite colour. There were heavy curtains on the window, perfect for someone who might have highly tuned senses that were sensitive to light. The framed pictures on the walls- different landscapes of Queens, all spots that Peter was sure he’d mentioned to Tony as being some of his favourite spots in the borough. The clothes though, he was sure were Tony’s- they were too large to belong to anyone else and as Peter pulled the sweatshirt over his head, the distinct notes of motor oil and coffee filled his nose.
Once he was dressed, Peter hesitantly left the room and crept down the hall. There was a door left ajar just down the hall with a light streaming out from the door and Peter halted as a little voice met his ear.
“Will Peter play tea party with me, Mommy?”
“I’m sure he will if you ask him very nicely, sweetie. But not tonight, ok? Give him some time to settle in,” Pepper’s voice replied. “Now hold still.”
There was a pause. “We can colour,” Morgan spoke again. “I bet he likes to colour. I’ll even share my crayons with him.”
She sounded so matter of fact that Peter wanted to cry.
“I think Peter would definitely love to colour with you,” Pepper agreed, sounding rather choked up herself.
As curious as he was to see Tony and Pepper’s daughter, Peter forced himself to keep walking and headed downstairs, as Tony had told him. And there he found Tony in the living room, freshly showered himself and sitting on the couch.
When he spotted Peter in the doorway, he immediately broke into a soft smile, his eyes crinkling at the corners. Tony extended a hand in his direction and Peter hurried over, letting Tony pull him down to squish into the seat next to him.
He curled up against Tony as though they’d done it a million times before today, curling his fingers into Tony’s sweatshirt and resting his head on Tony’s chest.
“You ok?” Tony asked him.
Peter nodded slowly. “Yeah. It’s just… it’s been a long day,” he said without thinking and then frowned. He kept forgetting it had been so much longer than a day.
Tony chuckled faintly, resting his cheek atop Peter’s head. “You have no idea, kid.”
A few minutes later, footsteps sounded on the stairs, one steady and one that sounded as if the person was jumping every other step.
Pepper stuck her head around the doorway, smiling at Tony and Peter. “You ready?”
Tony looked down at Peter and raised an eyebrow at him questioningly. Peter nodded, unable to stop himself from smiling.
Pepper disappeared and a second later, a little figure dressed in purple pyjamas scurried past Pepper into the room and over to Tony, clambering onto his lap to claim the other side Peter wasn’t on. Peter was holding his breath as she got herself situated with Tony’s help, and then she turned to face Peter and he got his first look at his little sister.
She was so clearly Tony’s child, was his first thought. She had Tony’s colouring, eyes and hair colour. But it was more than that. As she looked at Peter, her eyes had the same glint that Tony had. And she looked at Peter like she knew exactly who he was, and this wasn’t a first meeting, but a long-awaited reunion.
Tony had wrapped an arm around Morgan as tightly as his other arm was wrapped around Peter, pressing a kiss to her cheek. “You know who this is Maguna?” he asked her quietly.
She nodded excitedly. “It’s Peter!” she said proudly.
She leaned over and kissed Peter’s cheek lightly, who’s eyes filled with tears. Tony squeezed them both, and Peter distinctly heard him sniff.
“Hi, Morgan,” Peter managed to say, blinking back tears.
Morgan beamed at him. “Mommy said I have to help you know all the important stuff. She said you’ve been away a long time and so you missed stuff.”
Peter nodded, his heart melting as Morgan nestled herself against Tony’s chest, sitting in his lap so that she was almost nose to nose with Peter. “That’s right,” he agreed.
Then she looked at him innocently. “Do you like to colour?” she asked sweetly.
Peter choked on a laugh. “I love to colour,” he reassured her and Morgan looked immensely satisfied.
“I knew you would,” she said smugly.
Pepper returned to the room then, with a bundle of blankets in her arms and she stopped in the doorway, smiling softly. “You right there?” she asked, and it took Peter a moment to realise she was talking to Tony.
“Are you kidding me, honey?” Tony asked, his voice thick with emotion. “This is all I’ve wanted for years.”
He kissed the top of Morgan’s head and then Peter’s. Morgan just giggled, but Peter had to choke back another sob, his eyes burning with tears.
Morgan seemed oblivious though. Pepper put the blankets in a hutch and retreated to the kitchen to make them all grilled cheese sandwiches, while Morgan began to earnestly tell Peter about all her favourite movies, books, and the TV shows that Peter needed to know- what she deemed the important things.
Some Peter recognised from five years ago, which was a relief. Some were definitely new.
“Uncle Rhodey is really good at playing games,” Morgan informed Peter. “Uncle Happy isn’t so good at games, but he always brings candy when he comes to visit.”
“What else is important, little miss?” Tony asked her.
Morgan paused thoughtfully. “Um… Mommy is always right,” she told Peter solemnly. “And you can’t use Mommy’s word, because she coi-coined it,” she stumbled slightly, then looked up at Tony for confirmation. “Right, Daddy?”
“Right,” Tony nodded.
Peter frowned up at Tony quizzically. Tony caught his eye, covered Morgan’s eyes with one hand and clearly mouthed the word ‘shit’. Peter grinned slightly.
“Juice pops are the best,” Morgan continued, pulling Tony’s hand away from her eyes. “Orange is my favourite flavour. I like exploring, especially in the garage. I find treasures and keep them in my tent. I’ll show you tomorrow,” she promised. “Will you still be here tomorrow?”
“Yes,” Tony replied firmly, before Peter could say anything. “Peter’s not going anywhere, honey.”
Morgan’s eyes gleamed. “Good,” she said happily.
She snuggled closer, lowering her voice to a whisper. “The other important thing to know,” she whispered to Peter. “Is that Daddy’s the best Daddy in the whole world.”
Peter couldn’t help but grin. “I already knew that one,” he reassured Morgan.
And it was true. He’d been mentored by Tony for a year and a half prior to the events on Titan, they’d spent hours together, while they worked on their respective suits or Tony helped Peter improve his fighting skills. Peter couldn’t even pinpoint the moment in those eighteen months when he’d begun to see Tony as a father figure, but it was true. Tony had always been his hero, his teacher, and then slowly his friend. But if Peter knew anything, it was that Tony was indeed a great father- even if they’d never spoken of it until now.
He looked up at Tony, and found Tony looking at him with that same look of wonder he’d had on his face when Peter had found him on the battlefield. Tony dipped his head and pressed a kiss to Peter’s forehead.
Peter smiled at him before turning his attention back to Morgan, leaving Tony to close his eyes tiredly as Morgan began to describe her favourite TV show to Peter (which Peter was definitely not in the target demographic for, but God knew Tony and Pepper ended up watching enough episodes that Peter may as well get caught up too).
There was so much to do- to the compound and to the world. There was still the question of what had become of May, and Peter’s friends, and Tony desperately wanted to be able to give him good news. There would be so much healing needed for everyone; those who had lost people and those who had just returned to find themselves missing five years.
But for now, tonight, Tony was alive and relatively unharmed. Pepper returned to the living room with a plate of sandwiches and sat on his other side. She rested her arm on the back of the couch, softly stroking the hair on the back of his head. Tony had his wife beside him and both his kids in his arms for the first time. All the work, all the questions could wait. Because this was the truly important thing.