Okay, so I had an overwhelming urge to write this because I'm seriously jonesing for an Iron Baby. I know. I know! I have other stuff I gotta write! But when you're being driven batty by an incessant plot bunny hopping around in your brain telling you to write a delivery room scene, it's really REALLY hard to think about writing anything else!

I tried to make it as realistic as possible by drawing on personal experience without being as graphic as actual reality. Hope it still hits the mark, and you find it enjoyable!

Thanks in advance for reading (And reviewing if you feel so inclined!)

Right now, this is a one-off. But I'm leaving the option open for more. Because you just never know...;)

Photo credit for cover image: zetson via compfight

"Oh my God! I can't do this anymore! It's too hard! I'm too tired!" Pepper exclaimed breathlessly.

She and Tony had been in labor and delivery since two am. It was now close to 9 am, and Pepper had been battling through contractions steadily since they arrived. In the middle of the night, she'd awakened suddenly to a strong stab of pain in her back. When it kept coming back every few minutes, Tony insisted they go to the hospital. Pepper dismissed it as only a pesky, lingering cramp, and went to the bathroom to get a drink of water. As soon as she flicked the bathroom light on, and began filling her glass, however, her water broke. At that moment, the Stark household went into full on panic mode. Pepper was trying her best to waddle down the stairs while Tony was racing past her, his arms full of luggage. He yanked open the front door, threw the suitcases out onto the lawn, and ran outside, slamming it behind him. He began piling everything into the trunk, and then hurriedly climbed into the drivers seat of Pepper's car, punching the ignition button and gunning the engine to life. But, almost immediately, he cut the engine, climbed back out and raced back inside, muttering, "Pepper! Almost forgot Pepper! What the hell is the matter with you? Jesus, focus, will you?" Eventually, they both made it into the car, and Tony sped them to the hospital, gripping Pepper's hand anxiously in between shifting gears.

Almost seven hours later, Pepper was teetering on the edge of complete exhaustion, as each contraction had become subsequently more powerful than the last. The only good news was that she had also been steadily dilating, leaving both of them hoping and praying things would stay on that course and she could deliver soon.

"No, no, no, Pepper. Come on, baby. There's no quitting. You can do this. I know you can," Tony encouraged, looking deeply into his wife's eyes.

Pepper panted breathlessly and whimpered. "It's so hard though! And it hurts so much!" she said, her voice warbling from the threat of pain-induced tears.

Tony smiled weakly and nodded in understanding, handing her a cup of ice chips. "I know it does, but..."

"Oh really! You know? You've given birth before? Don't be ridiculous. You don't know how this feels! How could you?" she prattled testily before taking in a mouth full of ice and handing the cup back to Tony.

Tony tried to hide a chuckle at her temper flaring as he set the cup back down on the bedside table. "Okay, you're right. I've never been through this exact thing. That would be rather disturbing if I had, actually. But I did have an electro-magnet put into my chest without anesthesia in the mountains of Afghanistan, so that was..."

"Oh please!" Pepper cried, interrupting him. "That was nothing like this!"

Tony frowned dejectedly. "Well, I wouldn't say it was nothing like it. I mean there was a lot of..."

Pepper huffed. "Can we get back to the task at hand, here?!" she exclaimed. "I'm about to give birth to your child. The least you could do is...huh!" she cried, as another strong contraction interrupted her rant. Pepper yelped loudly and squeezed her eyes shut, clenching her teeth.

Tony quickly took Pepper's hand, which she gripped tightly, and fell silent, watching her work through the pain. "That's it, baby. Just breathe," he murmured to her encouragingly. She nodded in acknowledgment of his words, and began to take deep, cleansing breaths. He continued to watch her for signs that the contraction was passing. And soon, she opened her eyes to look at him, her chest heaving to catch her breath. He smiled at her in admiration and planted a kiss on her forehead."You're doing great. You're a natural," he said, looking back into her eyes, his own sparkling with adoration.

"Thank you," she murmured weakly. "And I'm sorry I snapped at you. I'm just in so much pain," she explained. She laid back against the hospital bed and closed her eyes, taking a couple of deep breaths, and smoothing her hands over her swollen belly. "They keep saying to get some rest between contractions. But I don't see how that's possible."

"I know, right? They're coming one right after another. She must be in a hurry to make her appearance. You haven't caught a break since we got here," he joked, smiling.

Pepper chuckled softly. "Like daughter, like daddy," she joked back. "She has to make a dramatic entrance."

Tony chuckled, and put a hand on her stomach as he listened to the soft woosh-woosh of his daughter's heartbeat coming from the monitor strapped to Pepper's belly. He could feel the baby move, and he smiled, knowing this would be one of the last times he would feel this before she'd be out into the world and in his arms.

Suddenly, Pepper inhaled sharply, and gripped his shirt sleeve in response. Tony's eyes flicked to the bedside monitor tracking her contractions, and then to Pepper's face. "Okay, honey. Here we go. Here comes another one," he said, taking her hand again, and watching her intently.

Pepper squeezed it tightly, and slammed her eyes shut, holding her breath.

"You've gotta breathe, Pep. Come on. Hee-hee-hoo. Hee-Hee-hoo," he instructed.

Pepper opened her eyes and squinted at him, trying her best to mimic what he was doing.

"Hee-hee-hoo. Hee-hee-hoo," they both breathed, in unison.

Tony nodded. "That's it. You're doing great. Just keep breathing. Hee-hee-hoo," he said.

Pepper yowled in pain. "Oh my God! I need to push!" she cried.

Tony's eyes went wide. "Push?! Seriously?! We're there already?!" he exclaimed.

Pepper nodded. "Get the doctor!" she squeaked, as the peak of the contraction hit.

Tony immediately left her side and yanked the door of the room open. "She says she ready to push!" he yelled across the corridor to the nurses station.

Two nurses came running in response. "Okay! Let's check!" one of them said, sliding on a latex glove.

The other tipped the head of Pepper's bed back, laying her on her back more. She panted and whimpered as they checked her dilation, and Tony gripped Pepper's hand nervously, watching with rapt attention.

The nurse checking her nodded at him. "She's right! It's time to push!" she confirmed, smiling. "Looks like we're having a baby! I'll go grab the doctor!"

The one nurse scurried out the door while the other began prepping the room for the imminent arrival of Baby Stark.

"Oh my God!" Pepper cried, her voice giving out from another round of on-coming tears, this time of the happy variety. She smiled at her husband, who was grinning back at her. "I can't believe it! I can't believe..."

"We finally get to meet her?" Tony finished, excitedly. He beamed back at her.

Pepper smiled and nodded. "I'm so excited! I'm so exhausted, but I'm so excited!" she cried.

Tony chuckled, and just then, the doctor came in, suited up in OR scrubs and grinning. "They tell me we're having a baby this morning!" he said jovially.

"That's the goal!" Tony quipped, still grinning.

The nurses helped Pepper to get sat up as they raised the hospital bed to a steep incline. She set her feet in the stirrups, which were positioned so her knees were bent far back. A bright surgical lamp was flipped on and pointed at the end of the bed, and the doctor took position on a stool between her legs.

"Okay! At the start of the next contraction, bear down!" he instructed happily. "Go as long as you can pushing as hard as you can. Stop when you run out of steam or the contraction ends. Got it?" he asked.

Pepper and Tony both replied, "Got it!" Pepper looked at him curiously, and Tony just smirked sheepishly and shrugged. She smiled and shook her head. But soon her expression changed to one of concern.

"Oh God! Oh! I think another one's coming!" she warned.

"Then 1...2...3..." the doctor said.

"Push!" he and Tony both cried.

Pepper gripped Tony's hand and clenched her teeth, bearing down as hard as she could.

"Good! That's good! Keep going!" the doctor exclaimed.

Pepper grunted and Tony felt her hand clamp even harder around his as she continued to work. He winced. "Yeow! Okay. That's quite a grip you got there, Pep!" he said, his words strained from the discomfort.

Pepper gave one more good push, along with a yelp, and then fell back against the bed, letting go of his hand, which Tony immediately began to open and close while massaging the palm, grimacing as he did it. Her chest heaved as she tried to catch her breath, and her cheeks were bright red and flushed. Beads of sweat had collected on her forehead, which Tony promptly dabbed away with a soft cloth. He smiled at his wife, and she smiled back. "Good work, baby," he said. "Just one step closer to meeting our little girl."

"One step out of thousands, it seems like," she said. She winced and sat back up.

"Got another one coming?" Tony asked.

But Pepper didn't have time to respond. The contraction gripped her, and she immediately bared down, grabbing Tony's aching hand again. He winced, and she noticed, but he just dismissed her concern with a wave of his other hand and gritted his teeth as she pushed. Pepper refocused, and panted before baring down again. As she lost her strength, she took some deep breaths and relaxed against the bed. Tony dabbed her forehead again, and kissed it softly. "You're doing great, Pep," he murmured encouragingly.

"Good! Very good! We're making progress, kids!" the doctor announced.

Pepper gasped. "We are?" she asked hopefully.

"Yep! Hopefully only a few more pushes and Baby Stark will make be making her long awaited debut!" he replied.

Tony and Pepper beamed at each other with excitement.

XxXxXxXxXxXx

Though the doctor had made the assumption that Pepper would deliver soon, it wasn't long before the progress of mother nature had come almost to a standstill. Pepper went on pushing for another hour and a half, yet there was very little change in the baby's position. Several more pushes had moved her only millimeter's farther down the birth canal, and Pepper was quickly losing her stamina.

The contractions had slowed, as well. Which, was a good thing, in a way, allowing Pepper to rest more in between pushes. But it was also a bad thing, as the baby's heart rate would drop with each contraction, and they knew if significant progress wasn't made, she'd need to come out as soon as possible via C-Section to avoid any further duress.

Tony watched helplessly as Pepper's strength got sapped time and time again with each new round. He did his best to try to comfort her, encouraging her, feeding her ice chips, and mopping her forehead.

"Oh, God! I'm so tired!" Pepper whimpered softly to him. "Why isn't this working? Why isn't she here, yet?"

Tony stroked his wife's cheek with the pad of his thumb. "It is working, Pep. It's just taking a little longer, that's all," he assured her. "The doc says we'll keep going as long as we can. Any progress is good progress, he told me. But he also doesn't want to completely exhaust you, either. If it looks like there's no other way, you'll have to have a C-section, okay?"

Pepper's chin started to quiver and a tear rolled down her cheek. "I just wanna hold her," she murmured hopelessly. "I just want this to be done, so we can meet our daughter."

Tony smiled, and wiped away the tear. "I know, baby. I know. Me, too. And you know what? We will. Soon," he assured her.

"I don't want a C-section. Don't let them do it. I have to do this on my own. Tell them, Tony. I have to do this myself," Pepper pleaded.

Tony gave her a sympathetic smile. "You can do this, Pep. I know you can. But if the doc says the baby's not moving, we have to do what's best for her, right? And does it really matter how she comes into the world? Only that's she's healthy and safe when she does?"

Pepper sniffed as another tear escaped her eye. She nodded solemnly. "Of course," she murmured.

Tony nodded back, and planted a gentle kiss on her damp forehead. "I love you," he murmured, resting his forehead on hers. "And no matter what happens, I'm proud of you. Okay?"

"Okay," she murmured back, closing her eyes and relishing her husband's affection. But the tender moment was quickly interrupted by another contraction.

Pepper pursed her lips, and winced as the pain washed over her. "Oh! Ow, ow, ow!" she squealed.

"Okay! Time to push!" Tony instructed, taking her hand again. "Push hard, baby! Push hard!"

"I am!" Pepper cried, as she gritted her teeth and grunted, pushing with everything she had.

"That's it! That's it! Keep going!" the doctor exclaimed.

"Is it working? Is she moving?" Tony asked him hopefully.

The doctor nodded, and quickly gave instructions for the nurses to get ready. "Okay, Virginia! It's crunch time! Push whenever you feel the urge, contraction or not. That last one got some work done for us, and she's moving down nicely now."

"Really?! Oh my God!" Pepper exclaimed excitedly. Her vigor was renewed, and she took a deep breath, before baring back down, and grunting loudly.

"Push, Pepper! Push, push, push! You're doing it, baby!" Tony cried excitedly, their hands clasped tightly together.

Pepper gritted her teeth and kept pushing. She yowled as the contraction passed and her stamina waned. Her chest heaved as she laid back against the bed once again.

"She's almost here, Pep! You're doing so well!" Tony told her, beaming, and mopping her forehead.

"We should see the top of her head on the next push!" the doctor informed them.

Tony and Pepper grinned at each other. Pepper chuckled softly and Tony gently kissed her lips. "You ready to meet your daughter, momma?" he murmured playfully in her ear.

Pepper grinned at him. "More than ready," she replied. "I can't wait."

Tony took her hand, and kissed the back of it sweetly, gazing into her eyes, his own sparkling with anticipation. "Then let's have a baby, huh?" he said, smiling. He glanced at the monitor, which was showing another contraction was fast approaching. "Uh-oh. Here's our shot, Pep. Get ready!" he warned.

Pepper nodded and took some deep breaths. When the first wave of pain hit, she clenched her teeth and bared down once more, pushing as hard as she could with every ounce of strength she could muster.

"That's it! Push push push! Aaaaaaannnnnddddd!..." the doctor exclaimed, as the top of the baby's head began to appear. "We're crowning! And I'm seeing lots of dark hair, guys!"

"Huh! Oh my God!" Pepper cried breathlessly. She panted for a moment, and then took another deep breath and bared down once more. This time, the pain went from sharp and stabbing to a searing burn.

Pepper yowled and gripped the railings on the bed, arching her back. "Oh my God, this hurts so much!" she screamed.

"Push push push!" the doctor ordered.

Pepper whimpered, but kept pushing. She lolled her head to rest on Tony's shoulder, and she gripped his hand again. Tony glanced downward just in time to see his daughter's head emerge, and he gasped.

"Look, Pep! Look! Here she comes!" he cried, in awe. Pepper had slammed her eyes shut again when she'd started to push, but quickly opened them at his behest. She gasped and panted, as she watched her daughter appear.

"One more push and we'll be done, kids!" the doctor announced.

Tony looked at Pepper and nodded resolutely, grinning. Pepper nodded and took a deep breath, baring down one last time. After only a few moments, the baby's shoulders appeared, and the doctor worked to pull the newborn into the world the rest of the way. He held up the baby for them to see, and Tony and Pepper gasped. "Congratulations! It's a girl!" he announced.

The baby was long, and had a thick mop of dark hair. She was wriggling and not at all happy to be so rudely removed from her warm and cozy residence for the last nine months. She let out a spluttering cry as she squirmed, her arms and legs extending and contracting widely. The doctor turned her to suction her nose and mouth and cut the cord, and then he placed the infant into Pepper's arms.

"Oh my God! Your beautiful!" Pepper said to her daughter, happy tears filling her eyes as she gazed adoringly at the baby. The infant quieted her cry to a whimper at the sound of her mother's voice, and Tony extended a finger down, which she instantly grasped in her hand, wrapping her tiny fingers around it.

He chuckled. "I can't believe it! She's here! And look at all that hair!" he cried in amazement. They both chuckled at the thick shock of dark hair on their daughter's head. Tony stroked the little girl's fingers with the pad of his thumb. He was completely mesmerized by this tiny being, and took his eyes off of her only long enough to look at his wife in adoration. Pepper turned her eyes to look at him and they both smiled lovingly. "You did it, Pep," he murmured lovingly. "You did it. You're amazing."

Pepper smiled lovingly. "You were a big help," she said. "I couldn't have done it without you."

Tony smirked and chuckled. "Well, you wouldn't have had to do it, if we hadn't..." he began.

"Okay, that's enough of that," Pepper said, promptly stopping him from going into graphic detail. She looked back at their brand new little girl. "But aren't you glad we did?" she murmured mirthfully.

"Oh yeah," Tony replied in agreement, smiling fondly at the now drowsy baby. He rested his forehead on Pepper's, and turned his head back to watch his daughter. He sniffed and Pepper looked at him. He chuckled bashfully at her as a tear escaped his eye and rolled down his cheek, swiping at it hastily.

Pepper smiled at him. He smiled back, and kissed her forehead again before bringing his gaze back to the baby. A few blissful moments passed between the new parents and their child, each of them oblivious to the chaotic world of the doctor and nurses around them. "My God, isn't she the most perfect baby you've ever seen?" Tony asked, finally. "I can't take my eyes off of her."

Pepper chuckled. "Most definitely," she replied. "And I think someone's a very proud papa," she teased.

Tony suddenly looked at her in realization. "That's right," he said, grinning. "I guess I am officially a dad, now, huh! Wow! That's...phew," he said, in amazement, shaking his head in disbelief.

Pepper chuckled at him. "It only just occurred to you?" she joked.

Tony chuckled again, and shrugged. "No, Ms. Smarty Pants," he joked back. He looked at his daughter again. "But it's for real now, you know?"

Pepper nodded. "You bet it is," she said. "And I can't wait to watch her grow up. What an adventure," she mused softly, gazing at her very sleepy newborn baby.

Tony smiled and kissed Pepper's temple. "Wouldn't want to be on it with anyone else, either," he said.

They shared a loving smile.

"Ditto," Pepper murmured. Tony gently kissed her lips, and then went back to gazing at the new love of his life.

Just then, a nurse came to the side of the bed. "Can we borrow her for a moment? We need to get her weighed and measured," she said.

"Of course!" Pepper said, carefully handing the baby to her.

Tony stood up. "I wanna watch," he said to the nurse. "Be right back," he told his wife.

He followed the nurse to the other side of the room, and watched, enthralled, as his little girl was weighed and measured, cleaned up, and swaddled tightly in a receiving blanket. The nurse handed her to Tony when they were done, and he gingerly took her into his arms. The baby nuzzled against him, lazily opening one bleary eye to look at her father (bright blue in color, much to Tony's delight, as Pepper's blue eyes were one of his favorite things about her), and then went back to sleep.

"Hey, little lady," he cooed. "Look at how amazing you are. I never dreamed I'd have a daughter, and that you'd be this gorgeous. You're breathtaking, actually," he said. He looked behind him at Pepper and then back at his daughter. "Just like your mom," he said fondly. Then, he slowly turned around to walk back over to Pepper's bedside, moving carefully so as not to jostle the sleeping newborn.

"7 pounds, 14 ounces, and a whopping 22 inches long," he reported proudly. "She's gonna be tall. Just like you, Pep. And she even has your eyes. Well," he said. "Your eye color. She opened one long enough to let me see."

Pepper smiled. "Well, that answers that question, doesn't it?" she asked.

Tony sat down slowly on the edge of the bed, and Pepper reached out for him to hand her the baby. But Tony refused. "Hey, my turn's not done yet," he argued.

Pepper giggled and smiled lovingly at him. "I have a feeling I'm going to have to fight you to get to hold her, aren't I?" she teased.

"Oh, you bet your sweet bippy, you will, Potts," he teased back. "Me and Little Missy here are going to be inseparable. I already know it," he gushed.

"Until there's a poopy diaper to change, that is," Pepper replied. "Then you won't be able to hand her to me fast enough."

Tony chuckled, glancing at Pepper briefly, and then back at his little girl. "Meh. We'll see," he said, shrugging. "Everybody poops, Pep. Honestly, I don't know what you think would be so bad," he quipped matter-of-fact.

Pepper folded her arms, and smirked wryly at him. "Yeah, right," she said skeptically. "I'd like to see you do it once without retching."

Tony rolled his eyes, and smirked, looking down at his daughter. "Your mother's already doubting my parenting abilities," he told her. "But we'll show her, won't we, princess? I'm gonna flat out rock this dad thing. And she'll just have to eat her words," he said, before turning his head and smirking cockily at his wife. "So challenge accepted."

Pepper just giggled and rolled her eyes. Then she yawned. "Okay, I need a nap. I'm exhausted," she said.

The nurses were just finishing cleaning up the room, and one of them stepped over to the couple. "You guys okay, here? Do you want us to take her for a while, so you can get some rest?" she asked.

Tony looked at Pepper and shrugged, and the looked at the nurse. "I'm too jacked up to sleep. Plus, I'm perfectly happy spending my time just staring at her," he said, looking back lovingly at his daughter.

"Fine," Pepper said. "I'm about to fall asleep just sitting here. So, you two enjoy some daddy-daughter time, and I'm going to take a nap," she said.

Tony grinned. "Daddy-daughter time. I like the sound of that," he cooed.

The nurse nodded and smiled. "Hit the button if you need anything," she said before leaving. "We'll be in every hour to check her vitals and to see how you're doing."

Pepper thanked the nurse, and then laid back and closed her eyes. She reached back and patted Tony's shoulder affectionately. "Good night, daddy," she said sweetly, before quickly drifting off to sleep.

Tony smiled at her words. "Night night, mommy," he murmured, unable to stop grinning as he once again gazed at the sleeping baby in his arms.

A few quiet moments went by, and the baby sighed in her sleep, which made Tony grin even more. "God, you're beautiful," he murmured softly. "You know, when your mom told me she was pregnant with you, I got a little freaked out, I'll be honest. Like I said, I never thought I'd have a daughter, let alone even get to be a dad. I didn't know if I was even somebody who should be a dad. God knows my dad wasn't the best role model," he said. He frowned and chewed his lip for a moment in thought. Then he brought his focus back to the conversation. "But then she and I talked it out, and she calmed me down, and...well? Here we are, right?" He smiled softly. But then his brow furrowed, and his chin began to quiver. "God, why am I being such a pussy today?" he wondered to himself out loud, chuckling sheepishly as he swiped at a tear rolling down his cheek. He blinked back the other oncoming tears and smiled at his daughter again. "You. Are. Without a doubt. The greatest thing I've ever created," he said, shifting the baby to lay her head on his shoulder. "You work fast, kid. I'm already head over heels for you." He hugged her gently, and planted a soft kiss on the side of her head before he started rubbing slow circles on her back. She sighed again, and melted against her father's shoulder, and he grinned with deep satisfaction.

Pepper, in the meantime, had awakened at the sound of Tony's murmuring, but had stayed turned on her side to quietly eavesdrop. She'd heard every word he'd said, and, by the end, she was struggling to keep a handle on covering the tears flowing from her eyes. She slowly sat up and faced him, grinning impishly, her cheeks wet with tears.

Tony looked at her curiously, and started to ask her what was wrong, but Pepper stopped him by swiftly planting a kiss on his lips. His eyebrows shot up in surprise, but then he gave in, and kissed her back. Pepper slowly broke away, but rested her forehead on his. Tony looked at her curiously. "What was that for?" he asked.

"For what you said to her," Pepper replied. She chewed her lip as her chin began to quiver, and new tears started to flow.

"You heard that? I thought you were asleep!" Tony said, smiling bashfully.

"I was. But I heard you talking, and...and..." Pepper tried to explain, but her voice gave out. So she just shook her head. "It was beautiful. All of it," she murmured finally.

"Well, I meant it," Tony replied. He carefully rocked the baby back off his shoulder, palming the back of her head, and cradling her behind in the other. He looked at her and smiled, and then smiled at Pepper. "She's really something, isn't she?" he asked.

Pepper scooted up by his side, and laid a hand on his shoulder. She rested her chin on top of it, and gazed at their daughter as well. "She is," she cooed lovingly. "And you're going to make a great dad," she said, shifting her eyes to Tony.

He turned to look at her, his face serious with determination. "I hope so, Pep," he said. Then he turned his eyes back to the sleeping infant. "I really do," he murmured.

Just so you know- Yes! I am aware that Baby Stark needs a name! I wrote this with the intention of it being more about the moment between Tony and Pepper, than the name of the baby. But, as I said, I'm leaving the option open to write more down the road...;)