Percy cowered in the corner, tear stains on his face. He was so scared he could feel his heart beating against his chest so fast he could hardly breathe. Which he was grateful he felt like a single gasp would alert Gabe of his presence.

"Where are you,boy?" Gabe asked his voice slurring as Percy heard something crash, imagining the vase that most likely had fallen off the mud room table.

"If you come out now it would make things so much easier for the both of us." Gabe pleaded, Percy saw a shadow pass across his hiding place. He pressed a trembling hand to his mouth, stifling the sobs that were wracking his body.

'God, please I don't want to die here! Please! I don't, I don't want to die!' he prayed silently one hand coming up to clutch the metallic cross that was resting in the hollow of his throat. His sweaty fingers slid over the grooves in the cross and he mentally sighed in relief.

He looked through the gaps in the heater and saw his mother's prone form he gulped and closed his eyes. An image of his mother happy pulling out a tray of blue cookies danced in his head. Her head turning toward him eyes sparkling as she brushed back a strand of hair that had escaped her hastily made bun.

"Love you my little sailor." the fake her said as he rushed up to her and

she swung him up smelling of detergent and butter.

His eyes popped open and he took a deep breath in. He could do this, he just needed to reach the phone, the pay phone. But in order to do that, he needed Gabe out. From the noises, he was making it seemed Gabe was in mom's- his room. He looked at him and saw the window, the one he would often look out of, crafting stained glass paper projects to hang in the glimmering light.

He needed to focus, focus. What was important was the fire escape if he popped it open Gabe might just think he had run out that way.

Then he could run to his room- no he needed to get out. 'But Gabe might spend a long time outside, I could get a few things' he reasoned. 'Too late' he realized, Gabe was already stomping back over. A loud crash followed, Percy realized happily Gabe had fallen. Popping up he fumbled with the latch and pushed the window open. Praying that no noise would come from the rusted frame.

It didn't.

Breathing in Percy hunched back over and closed his eyes. He heard Gabe muttering and swearing pushing himself off the ground. Slipping a few times on his worthless car magazines. Silence. Then aloud.

"Oh shit, the little fucker climbed down the fire escape!"

Percy breathed in with relief when he heard Gabe fumbling for his jacket and pushing his way out the door. Percy stood up shakily. He climbed over the radiator and stepped in some of his mother's blood. He let out a muffled cry and started to cry, he ran to his room and grabbed some stuff and stuffed it into a bag, all while crying. Tears spilling all over his clothes.

He peeked out of his room and saw Gabe was still out of the apartment with a loud cry he ran out of the apartment, down the steps and out the door of the apartment building. He ran as fast as he could, tiny fingers clenched around the coins he had taken from his mother's purse. He raced over to the pay phone as he rounded the corner he saw Gabe. With his back turned to him thankfully, but he was waiting for him.

Percy skidded to a stop and quietly back up around the corner, eyes still burning with tears. He spun around and raced back, where could he go? Mom had only shown him that pay phone. He ran to the park and hid in a bush, pressing his fingertips to his forehead he cried. Where else could he go? Mom always drove him around or they took the bus, he never memorized the way around?

'God you got me out but now what do I do?' he gasped, crumpling into a ball, and then almost as if the skies were laughing at him or mourning his mother's death. The clouds opened up and torrents of rain slammed down upon New York.

OoOoOoO

"Sir, you really shouldn't be out right now, you may be Iron Man but your no machine, this could severely impair your immune system"

"I know, I know, but I need time to think, away from Pepper so I guess this is where I am," Tony replied to the AI, a hint of anger lacing through his tone.

"Okay, but an argument shouldn't cause you physical damage."

"And yet they do, all the time it seems," Tony muttered, just then realizing how ridiculous this was, he was in the pouring rain, soaked to the bone, wearing one of his nicer suits. The final nail in the coffin was the fact he was talking to a machine, god he must look crazy.

"Jarvis where is the nearest diner?" he asked, teeth chattering as he just then realized how cold he truly was. " It's at least a ten-minute walk from here, sir," Jarvis replied, his voice metallic and empty. Tony looked around and realized with a start he was in the residential area of New York.

He stomped around for a second muttering about how overall unfair this was, he then decided he rather be warm than be freezing cold in the middle of a thunderstorm.

He rushed across the cracked sidewalk, stepping over chalk drawings that ran together, blurring to form a puddle of cloudy water. His designer shoes were soaked, the leather ruined. 'I blame Pepper, for all of this, this is on her.' he promised, images of him finally being able to talk her down flashed through his head before reality struck "The day I can talk down Pepper is the day I truly become the most successful man in the world." he muttered out loud.

"In the universe,sir."

"I think I like you better his way, a bit more sass, glad I found a way around that speech impairment," Tony said puffing up his chest for a second.

"You are truly amazing sir."

"Here we go again back to the robotic tone and no sass." Tony sighed, rushing across a park before letting out a loud cry as he tripped over a large crack in the sidewalk. Letting out a muffled curse he used a bench to pull himself up. He glanced over and saw a pale arm poking out of a bush.

"Please don't be a dead body, oh please just be some drunk passed out." he prayed before prying the bushes apart to see a young boy. His eyes were closed, long eyelashes framing a babyish face that was already straightening out into a muscular chin. Black mussed hair was plastered to his forehead. Long trails of raindrops ran across his face, creating the illusion fo tears.

Blood ran along with them making it seem as if he crying blood, wait for blood? Tony let out a low gasp when he saw cuts all over the boy's body, some from the bush but some looked suspiciously like ones made from a kitchen knife.

Tony felt his heart break, this kid was a clear case of child abuse, he probably ran away from some abusive, let's say step-father. Tony reached in and lifted the boy up. Then he almost dropped him in shock, the boy was covered in mud, tears, and blood. So much blood caked his feet Tony was sure then and there the boy was dying.

He laid the boy down and lifted up his shirt and rolled up his pants. He had a few yellowing bruises, some new others looked old. The blood wasn't his . . . oh god, he probably just watched someone get killed, probably a mother or parent.

"He has signs of a pulse,sir, but I advise you, if you don't get him out of the rain now he will die from a mixture of shock, and the cold."

Tony then noticed the bluish tint to the boy's lips. With a snap decision, he lifted the boy and carried him to a nearby shelter, a tree that was dripping a bit but had enough cover to help Tony get the boy semi-dry.

"Jarvis?"

"Yes, sir?"

"Call Happy, tell him to bring a heat blanket, towels, and some hot tea."

"Right away sir." Jarvis murmured. Tony used his slightly damp inner shirt to wipe the boy down. As he was doing this he noticed the small gilded cross clutched between the boy's fingers.

"So you're a believer? Well, that sucks because I'm an atheist." he chuckled before hugging the tiny body to his chest, rubbing the arms and fingers, waiting for Happy to come.