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Harry had it all planned. Hermione had said it looked like he had invested an uncharacteristically long amount of time and care in developing his Presentedial Medal (for acts of ingenuity and service to the military) Speech. (Harry agreed that portalling an entire army to Antarctica where they could cool off was pretty ingenious) Harry thought that was a rude observation, but since she had helped him edit it, Harry let it slide.
However, his dad had done something that Harry couldn’t let slide.
Harry's face still turned red when he remembered the pre-celebration where his dad had made everyone wear name tags that described their relation to Harry. ‘Dad’, ‘Dogfather’, ‘Smartest Friend’ (with British hastily penciled in on one, Gwyn had a matching U.S. one), ‘Best Boyfriend’, and ‘Best Mate who is Better than Boyfriend’ were all in attendance. Harry had not anticipated a name tag in Tony’s distinct handwriting emblazed on Professor Lupin’s chest — ‘Harry’s first crush.’ Tony even gave Lupin a mortifying shoutout in his long-winded toast that Tony said Harry should model his acceptance from.
So, yeah, Harry’s perfect, and uncharacteristically thoughtful (again rude) speech was going to have to be heavily edited last minute. That’s okay, Harry thought as he made his way to the podium, he worked best on the fly.
——
Tony was trying not to look too smug as he watched his son confidently walk to the stage to accept his award. He quickly shared a proud look with his wife and smiled down at the other two perfect people between them. It delighted him to see the looks of affection and admiration on both Vincent and Morgan’s faces that they directed toward their brother.
Harry again captured Tony’s attention as he shook Michelle Obama's hand and made his way to the podium. Tony was trying to stop himself from bouncing in excitement. Harry hadn’t let him hear the speech. When Tony casually tried to bring it up, Harry had evaded his prodding. It reminded Tony of Harry’s first few months at the tower where it was a game to trick Harry into revealing slivers of his life. He was relieved when he asked Harry more directly about how the speech was coming and received a cute scowl and a “ Piss off, it's a surprise.” This gave Tony the brilliant idea of throwing a pre-celebration party where he could give a perfect toast that he hoped Harry used as inspiration.
Tony watched as Harry started his speech in classic Harry fashion — by awkwardly introducing himself — like the whole world wasn’t aware of the debt they owed his son — who had saved the world's collective ass at least three times over.
He intently listened as Harry outlined how Sirius had informed Harry of his true parentage and sent him to the States where he was “kidnapped and adopted against his will” and then trained to be a superhero. (Tony laughed hard at that). After each part of his story, Harry took the time to thank and compliment those who were a part of that portion of his journey.
“Sirius is the best dogfather a person could have. Thank you Siri for having the courage to do what was best for me when everyone else agreed to keep me as a sitting duck in a place that you knew was driving me mad. Thank you for your constant support, strangely sage advice, and being someone I look to when I need an example for how to model my life.”
As his story continued, Tony was surprised that Harry was willing to address the portions of his life he usually avoided talking about. He was proud when Harry bravely addressed what the family now referred to as the ‘potato incident’ and the lessons he learned about unconditional support, and the strength in asking for help. Throughout the speech, the graciousness bookends continued.
Tony listened as every other one of Harry’s friends or family received a sincere piece of gratitude. Even Natalie (even though Harry had referred to her as Psycho in his speech) was included. At first, Tony had been a bit surprised that his contribution to his son’s success had been glossed over — but he figured Harry was probably saving the best for last.
Harry’s story continued until he recounted the recent events surrounding the mission that earned him his medal. Tony frowned slightly as it seemed like Harry was wrapping up his speech. Harry was giving a message to others who felt like they hadn’t found their home yet — that their people would come into their lives and they should be open to accepting them. Tony thought that was the perfect segway to a quick little dad shoutout. He was gobsmacked when Harry ended with a quick thank you and started moving off the stage.
Tony was relieved when he saw Harry turn back to the stage. He was slightly miffed when Harry started with “Oh, I almost forgot.”
His heart sank when Harry finished that sentence with “Thank you so much to Jess and the cult of chaos for letting me chill on your commune after I accidentally portalled there after that super long mission. Your literature is surprisingly insightful, the closest thing to a bible I’ve read — and I appreciate the tasteful smut sprinkled throughout the messages. Thank you…er…again.”
Tony watched as his son turned and walked off the stage. He sat there stunned. He watched Harry walk towards their row, not making eye contact with any of them. Tony was confused and hurt, but still proud of the message of hope that Harry had chosen to bring to the world during his moment of success.
On instinct, Tony flew out of his seat when it appeared Harry tripped at the corner of their isle and was going to fall into him. He should have expected Harry to use his portalling power to stop himself from smacking face-first into Tony’s metal chest. However, when Tony looked up expecting Harry to pop out a couple of feet from him, Tony didn’t see Harry. It was only when he heard Vincent say “What is Harry up to now?”
He noticed that the crowds’ attention was once again directed onstage where Harry had just popped out of a portal. He watched as Harry approached the podium for a third time and grabbed and winked at Michelle. This time Harry stepped out from behind the podium and casually started pacing at the lip of the stage.
”None of you thought it was weird that I didn’t mention the biggest reason why I can stand before you today?”
Tony watched, still standing as Harry addressed the crowd.
“Which I guess makes sense since none of you spoke up when he was overlooked for this award, which is bullshit since he probably deserves it more than any other person — sorry Hermione — being that has come in contact with this planet.”
Harry then turned toward Tony.
“Dad”
Tony's eyes welled up as he made eye contact with his son, after all these years Harry calling him by that title still gave him a little burst of warmth. Tony was too surprised to register what Harry said when he continued with “You may as well sit down, while I tell the world the lessons you taught me. Try not to let any of this go too much to your head.”
Tony got the message of what Harry was saying when Vincent tugged on his arm, and Harry gave him a quizzical look and then the universal gesture for ‘sit your ass down’.
Tony then watched in awe as Harry restarted the story, glossing over the action and instead highlighting the moments where Tony had helped him. He talked about Tony’s ‘ingenious inventions’ (Harry’s words not his), which Harry gave enough details to show he’d done some research on Tony’s research. That realization had Tony’s eyes starting to well up again. Vincent elbowed him and gave him a tissue. Tony felt compelled to give a one-armed hug to Vincent in thanks. Tony again made eye contact with Pepper who gave him a knowing look before she turned back to the stage.
Harry talked about the advice Tony had given him, some that Tony didn’t even remember giving. Harry said that Tony had taught him how to prioritize his friends, family, and his safety and comfort while still standing up for what is right. Harry said without his dad, and the example of balance he exemplified, Harry would have become a martyr.
After that bombshell of gratitude that floored Tony, Harry made eye contact with him again with Tony’s favorite half-smirk. Tony could see the tell-tale signs that Harry was just as overcome by this deep affection between them that usually went unexamined. Harry quickly reigned in his emotions, however, and delivered the last part of his speech,
“Before I leave, I would like to leave you with one final lesson, one that I keep hoping will sink in for my dad — and that is payback’s a bitch. You all are having to hear Harry’s greatest hits for a second time because this git thought he could embarrass me and not face retribution. So while I was planning on ending my original speech with a final note about how we should be more like Tony, I will instead end by saying that I hacked into your digital diary Dad, and the fantasies that you wrote about between you and the Hulk are now public for everyone to see on ao3 under IronHeartAndMassiveDong — an existing account that I can’t believe the media hasn’t realized is you by the way. Thank you, and good night for real this time.”