In the End

He knew what needed to be done, the moment Strange raised one finger up at him. That there was only one way out of this battle, and the war he'd been fighting, both internally and externally, for the better part of the last fifteen years. There was only one way out of this, and he knew what he needed to do.

They were in the endgame now.

He stood, bracing himself, as he took a deep breath.

This was the reason Strange didn't want to tell him what happened. Because it was a choice that he'd have to make all on his own. A choice to lay down on the wire, to put everyone else first over himself. He couldn't be instructed to make this decision. It had to come from him.

He flew forward then, grabbing Thano's hands as he stopped him snapping his fingers once more. They'd worked so hard to bring back those who they'd lost the first time. They'd brought back Clint's family, Barnes, Strange, and so many others. They brought back Peter.

He couldn't lose the boy again, couldn't watch him crumble in his arms, begging him to be able to stay. He couldn't handle the pain of the loss, not again.

The nanotechnology moved stealthy, removing the stones from Thanos' iron gauntlet, as the stones flitted onto his armour, instead.

Thano's threw him backwards, as Tony watched him bring his fingers together, trying to snap them and bring back the same pain he'd caused the first time.

Only this time, nothing happened.

He smiled back at the Titan, watching him turn the gauntlet around to see the stones missing from his handpiece, and raised his own armour to show off the gems like he was flaunting his own expensive jewellery. He'd never been the kind for ornate gems, but standing there in that moment, he felt like every bit the billionaire persona he'd worn for so long.

Thanos' face flitted with anger, as he realized the switch that had occurred, knowing that it meant he no longer had possession of the Infinity Stones he'd gone to such great extents to possess.

"I am inevitable," Thanos warned him, as he took a step closer to Tony, trying to attack him to take the stones from him once more.

He smirked then at the man, raising his hand, "I am Iron Man," he said, with every bit of flare that he had the first time he'd uttered those words.

He snapped his fingers then, as the power of the Infinity Stones coursed through his body, closing his eyes as he knew what it was that needed to be done.

He saw Thanos took a step back, as the world watched their interaction. He could see the ships above them crumbling, as soldier after soldier in Thanos' army turned to dust in front of him.

He could see the fear in Thanos' eyes, as he could feel it coming, the same way Tony had felt the inevitable coming when they stood on Titan all those years ago. When he knew that they'd lost, and that death was coming for them all.

Good.

It was how he felt when Peter had collapsed in his arms, begging him, not wanting to go. And Tony had felt powerless in that moment, unable to stop it, unable to save the boy he'd grown to care for as a son.

That moment had haunted Tony for five years. It had driven him to isolation, to hang up the suit, and shun the outside world.

It was only fair that Thanos felt a fraction of the pain he'd inflicted over all of them. It was only fair that he experienced the same fear and helplessness that they'd all felt when Thanos' had snapped his fingers and taken everything from him.

He watched, as Thanos crumbled away, before falling down under the pain that the radiation from the stones flowing through him had caused.

He closed his eyes briefly and thought of his daughter. Of Morgan, and the fact that he'd never see his daughter's smile ever again. He would never hear her laugh or her exclamations of love for him. He'd never see the things she grew up to accomplish or be there for so many more of her firsts. And she'd have to live knowing that he'd sacrificed himself so everyone else could have their loved ones back when it meant her losing her father.

"Tony," he heard Peter's voice call out in fear, and he smiled up at the boy as he saw tears streaming down his face. "Tony, please."

"I'm so proud of you, kid," Tony rasped out, as Peter sobbed. "Remember that. You've done so good, and I love you."

"Please," Peter cried, "You can't leave Tony. Not after everything. We won. We finally won. Please, don't go."

"I'll always be with you," Tony told him gently, knowing the inevitable was coming.

"We need to get this man back to the lab," T'Challa said, coming closer to them, "Dr Strange, can you open a portal back to Wakanda?"

Strange nodded, smiling over at Tony and the man groaned.

"There's no time," Tony tried to tell them. He'd nearly died before, and he knew what it felt like to be on the verge of death. He knew the pain all too well.

And this time, he didn't think he was going to survive.

"I have Dr Cho on the line," Rhodey said with a nod, "She's going to meet us there. Strange, can you portal her in afterwards?"

"Honey Bear," Tony rasped.

"You're not dying today, Stark," Rhodey told him gently, "I've been saving your ass since you were thirteen. I'm not about to stop today."

Pepper moved closer to him, picking up with the added strength of the Iron suit she was wearing.

"You're going to be okay, Tony," she told him gently, as his damaged body was lifted off the ground.

"I love you and Morgan so much," he told his wife. "I love you."

"I know," she said with a soft smile.

He closed his eyes then, succumbing to the pain of his injuries. If he died today, at least he'd die knowing that everyone he loved was safe. That they would be protected.

There was no need for Iron Man anymore.

Darkness surrounded him, and he accepted that it was the end.

He heard the sound of the monitors beeping around him before he opened his eyes, with giggles filling the room.

He wondered if this was Heaven or Hell, forced to listen to the sounds of his daughter for the rest of eternity, plagued by knowing he wouldn't see any of the people he loved for a while, if ever again.

"I think he's waking up," he heard a familiar voice say, and he blinked his eyes open to see three children of various ages crowded around him in the room.

"Tony?" he heard and looked up to see a boy he hadn't seen in a while looking back at him steadily.

"Harley?" he asked in surprise, "What are you doing here?"

"Don't you know, old man?" Harley asked, "We're connected. I knew you were in trouble and I came."

Peter snorted then, and Tony glanced over at the innocent boy who had been crying the last time he saw him.

"More like Pepper called you and you showed up," Peter said, as Harley playfully threw a pillow at him.

"Daddy," he heard a soft voice quiver, and he saw his daughter sitting there on Harley's lap, as she jumped off of him and moved towards her father.

"Hi Baby," he said, trying to sit up as she climbed onto the bed.

"I was scared," she admitted as she rested her head on his chest. His body still burned lightly from the pain, but he wondered what was done to him to stop it from hurting as bad as it did when he used the power of the stones.

He was dying from radiation, and now he was fine.

"I was too," he told her gently, "But I'm here now. And I'm not going anywhere."

"Good," Peter said softly, looking down. He reached out to take the younger boy's hand, knowing the pain he must have gone through. How similar to his own was it, to watch someone he'd cared about as family to die in their arms?

"The two of them have been moping around all week," Harley scoffed, and Tony looked over at the boy in question. How long had it been since the last time he'd seen the boy in person? He'd keep in contact with him over the years, collaborating on projects with him over email, sending funds to his school to ensure he had the best equipment, and checking in on him after the first snap to see if he'd been one of the lucky ones.

He hadn't.

"As if you were any different," Peter shot back, "You've been pacing around this room for days, ranting about heroics and bravery and the lack of fairness in the universe."

"What happened?" Tony asked them both, holding his daughter tighter. "After the snap?"

"You were brought back to Wakanda," Peter said, gesturing to the high-tech room around them. "Doctor Cho, Shuri, and Doctor Strange all worked to save you. I believe they used some fusion of magic, vibranium technology, and Extremis to stabilize you and reduce the damage caused from the radiation."

"Am I enhanced?" he asked, raising a brow. He didn't feel any different, but he wondered if he would, or if it would become his new normal, like breathing.

He never wanted superpowers. It was why he never injected himself with the Extremis virus after he removed the unstable part of the code that caused people to blow up. He was a baseline human in a suit, and that was more than enough for him.

But if it meant his life, a life with his daughter, and the two boys he'd grown to think of as sons, then he could accept it. To live with it, even if it wasn't what he wanted. He hadn't wanted the Arc Reactor either, but it had kept him alive.

"No," Pepper said, entering the room then, as she eyed the four of them. "They used just enough to repair the damage and nothing else. There will be some lingering effects. You'll heal faster from injuries and won't get sick as often. But you're still you, Tony. And you're here. That's all that matters. You're safe."

"Thank you," he told her softly, as Rhodey filed in behind her.

"Did you think we'd just let you die?" Rhodey asked, looking at him a little incredulously. "You're my brother, man. I'm not going to just stand by and let you die on my watch. I didn't take that shit when you overdosed in our first year. I didn't take it when you got taken in Afghanistan. Or when your body was so damaged after Siberia that they thought you wouldn't make it. I wasn't going to take it now either."

He laughed softly, pain filling his chest lightly, and Pepper came closer to press a kiss on his forehead.

"Get some rest, Tony," she said softly. "You have a long road to recovery, but you'll be okay. And when you wake up, we'll all be here. I promise."

He felt his eyes close out of exhaustion, with a sense of peace filling his soul for the first time since he was kidnapped all those years ago.

Everything was going to be okay.

He didn't know how long it had been when he woke up again, but he knew the world had begun to finally heal while he was under. The governments of the world were still in shambles, but they were piecing themselves back together, day by day. In the aftermath of the final battle with Thanos, the countries of the world had unified, no longer divided by race or religion. Instead, they came together to rebuild their world and try and get things back to where they were.

He knew it wouldn't last forever; it rarely did. But for now, it was enough.

Morgan had taken to Wakanda, sitting in the labs with Shuri, Peter, and Harley, as the four of them created robots, gadgets, and tech galore. He was almost amused to see the flying robot the moment he entered the room as Morgan ran after it, Shuri piloting it, and the boys trying to instruct the bot to do various things.

"What's all this then?" he asked, leaning against the door frame as he watched the scene with a grin.

"Daddy!" Morgan squealed as she came running. He bent down and picked the girl up and hugged her tightly.

"Tony," Peter grinned, and Tony pulled the boy into a hug using his other arm.

"Well this is a nice sappy display," Harley said, crossing his arms as he looked up at them.

"Come here, kid," Tony said, looking at him amused, and Peter pulled the boy in, so they were in a giant group hug.

The version of him from fifteen years ago would be confused by the amount of parental feelings he felt in that moment, but he knew this was how it was always supposed to be.

He was getting old, he knew that more than anyone, and as the repairs to his property began, he knew he would need to think of the future. Of Iron Man and Stark Industries and find a way to balance the life he'd once had and the life he now possessed. Things would need to change, and nothing would be the same again. Not after so much had changed.

Because whether they liked it or not, Thanos had changed things forever when he'd snapped his fingers all those years ago. He'd torn apart families, destroyed the ones left alive as they struggled to piece themselves back together after they'd have their loved ones ripped away from then.

The boys pulled away from him, and he held his daughter still as the three teenagers excitedly showed him what it was that they'd been working on while he was under.

He smiled as he watched them all interact.

Things wouldn't be the same again, but they would survive this, like they had all the other pain that had been thrown their way.

"Harley," Tony said, calling the boy over. "Come by my office later. We need to talk about some things."

The oldest boy looked a bit confused, but he nodded as they went back to building things. He smiled peacefully. The pain had mostly faded, and his burns healed, and he thought at that moment, that maybe, despite all the pain he'd faced, that it was always meant to happen this way.

He found out about Rogers' little trip when an older man comes back with Wilson after the mission meant to return the stones to their rightful place in time. Turned out that Rogers returned himself to the past as well, to live the life with the woman he'd always loved, even after finding out she'd lived a life without him.

He knew time travel would have consequences.

It wasn't as if he didn't know Aunt Peggy growing up. She'd been his godmother, there for him when his father was too busy with work or whatever else he'd chosen to throw himself into instead of raising Tony.

And he'd met his Uncle before, having spent a few holidays with the Carters when his own family were otherwise occupied, but he supposed the man had been older when he'd seen him, having aged considerably through the years and no longer looking like the once hero.

It was infuriating, because his father had spent years looking for the man's body, missing events from Tony's life like his graduation, his birthdays, him going off to college, all because he was in pursuit of the man who'd been present in their time all along.

He wondered how Aunt Peggy managed to keep that one a secret. But she always was a mysterious woman and he knew that she and his father had a bit of a falling out, with Peggy only ever visiting when his mother was around.

Howard Stark had thrown away everything to try and bring that man home. And Steve had brought himself home without any of their help.

Well excluding his, because he'd built the entire system in the first place.

But that was beside the point.

"It's good to see you, Tony," his uncle said, and Tony wanted to laugh at the ridiculousness of it all.

"I already know you, Uncle Grant," Tony reminded him, "I just didn't know that the reason you were my uncle was because you commandeered the time machine I built for your mission to return the stones to their rightful place in time to also return yourself, meaning the man who was once my friend now is my family, all because of time travel. I really hate paradoxes, don't you?"

"I loved her," Steve told him, sitting down beside him on the bench. "Peggy was my soulmate, Tony. She always was. And the modern world was never meant for me. I did a terrible job trying to fit in, and we all knew it. A part of me died when I went down on that plane. And I saw a chance to fix things, and call me selfish, but I did."

"I get it," he sighed, looking over at him. "I do. It doesn't make things any less weird, but I know why you did what you did. The Man Out of Time no more. You and Aunt Peggy lived a great life together, and she was truly happy. I'm glad you finally got yourself a life."

"It looks like you got yourself a pretty good one here too," Steve said, gesturing out to the three children running around his penthouse causing havoc. He smiled at the sight of them, of their laughter, and joy, and knew that the man was right.

"That I did, Captain," Tony nodded, "That I did."

"For what it's worth, I am truly sorry, Tony," Steve told him softly. "For everything. For lying to you about your parents. For not believing you that something was out there. For pushing you away when I should have tried harder to fit in here. I'm sorry, and I know I've had the benefit of age to see my faults, but it doesn't make the lies I told any less invalid."

"I forgive you," Tony exhaled. "There's no point in not anymore, is there? So much has happened since then. The world ended. And we un-ended it. I got my family back; I got a life I never would have thought I could have back. And you're family, even if we didn't start out that way."

"That I am," Steve nodded at him. "Now, how about you properly introduce me to my grandkids."

"Not your grandkids," Tony shot back, without a bite in his tone, but he stood anyway and brought the good Captain over to where his children were trying to catch DUM-E who had commandeered the tv remote.

The press conference happened nearly three months after the Great War had ended. He'd held out on it for a while, needed time to help get things to become some semblance of normal, or at least as normal as things could be anymore.

He wasn't sure the world would ever fully recover from the horrific experience they'd gone through. And not everyone had been returned. People who'd died after the snap, not because of Thanos' direct actions, but because of the aftermath, were still gone. People who had died because first responders couldn't get to them in time. People who were gone after, unable to live with the pain of their losses. People who had been killed in the battle against Thanos. They were still gone, and nothing could bring them back, no matter how much any of them wanted to.

Natasha was still gone, and her loss weighed heavily on them all.

He'd done his best to bring back Vision with Princess Shuri and Banner's help, but he wasn't the same man who he'd been as a result of the Mind Stone. He was still sentient, still his own person. But he wasn't the same Vision.

He'd helped the world rebuild too, donning the Iron Man suit from time to time to help with repair and reconstruction. But he wasn't Iron Man anymore, not really. He hadn't been in a while. Regardless of whether he'd actually died or not as a result of wielding the Infinity Stones, a part of him still felt lost in the aftermath. And he wasn't sure that ever would go away.

It was why he was standing at the podium today,

"Thank you all for coming," he greeted them all with a tired smile. "I know we've had a trying few months; years really. And I appreciate that you all could be here today. There have been many questions in the past few months over the future of the Avengers. We've taken some heavy hits, with the loss of the Black Widow. And we've gained new recruits, such as the Black Panther, Doctor Strange, and Captain Marvel. While all three have other responsibilities to attend to, they are full Avengers and will be available in the face of any threats."

He paused for a moment. "We have also had other Avengers step back, such as Hawkeye, and Captain Rogers, who chose to pass his mantle on to Sam Wilson, the new Captain America."

He looked around the room, "The Avengers Initiative was an idea to bring together a group of remarkable individuals, who could fight the battles that the rest of us couldn't. And together, we've had many triumphs and failures, but we've always done our best to put the needs of others above all else."

"There have been many speculations about my current standing with the Avengers Initiative, given my lack of presence on the field as of late, and I brought you here to talk about my future with the team," he said, as the audience listened raptly. "The truth is, I'm tired. I'm not as young as I was when I first started doing this. It's been a long fifteen years, and while I have some regrets about how certain events were handled, I am largely proud of all we've done together. But I'm tired. I have a family now, a beautiful wife and daughter, and two surrogate sons that I consider my own, and I want to spend more time with them. Given the last decade, and the losses we have faced, I'm sure you can understand why I would want to prioritize my family."

"What will happen to Iron Man?" he heard Christine Everheart ask, as she raised a hand to question him. "Will you still step up in the face of danger? Or are you retiring completely."

"Retiring completely," he said firmly. "I think it's time to make way for a new generation of heroes, don't you? The Iron Man armour will have a new pilot from this day onwards. Which brings me to the reason for this meeting today. I am here to introduce you to Harley Keener, a kid I met a few years ago around the time of the Mandarin attacks. He's proven himself to be extremely resourceful, and there is no one I would trust more to leave the suit to."

He gestured his arm out and Harley joined him on the stage, giving a small wave.

"Mr Keener," a reporter called out, "What do you think about all of this?"

"I feel extremely honoured," Harley answered honestly, "I've known Tony for years, and the fact that he trusts me with the suit means a lot. I didn't know my father, not really. And Tony has been more of a father to me than my own. I'm excited for this new chapter in my life."

"What about Stark Industries?" another reporter called out, "Will you be stepping back from them entirely?"

"I stepped down as CEO several years ago," Tony answered, "And I will be stepping down at CTO as well. Pepper Potts will continue on as the CEO of the company, and my daughter Morgan, when of age, will take over complete ownership of the company if it is what she wants to do. I will stay on as Chairman, however I am retiring completely from everything. I no longer will be an Avenger, or CTO of Stark Industries. During the transition period of my retirement, I will stay on to train both Harley as the new Iron Man, and my personal intern, Peter Parker, to take over a more permanent role in the company. But for now, I'm going to enjoy some time with my family."

"Will this be the last we hear of you?" Christine asked again, "You've accomplished so much throughout the years. It seems shocking to hear that you will just drop everything, cold turkey, and play golf or something."

"I can't promise that I won't tinker from time to time, I have a reputation for building, and I don't think that part of me will ever be able to rest," he said, earning laughs from the room, "I'm not exactly going to disappear from the world. But I think I've earned myself some time off, don't you?"

"Mr Keener," a reporter called out, "Will you take over the Iron Man role full time, or will you have another job as well?"

"I have no idea how Tony managed to balance everything," Harley shook his head, "I will be Iron Man full time. However, if I got invited to tinker in his lab with him, I'd hardly say now. I plan on getting my Engineering PhD, so I will be busy with that as well for the next few years."

The two of them continued to answer question after question, as Tony placed a hand on Harley's shoulder, proud of how the boy was handling everything.

It was the right decision. And it was his to make. He'd done the whole hero thing. And now it was time for him to take a step back, and finally breathe.

He watched in amusement as Peter and Harley worked on their suits together, as Morgan sat on his lap and raptly listened.

"No, you can't connect that there!" Peter said quickly, slapping Harley's hand away. "Are you trying to blow up the suit?"

"The voltage is low enough that it'll be fine," Harley beamed at him, "Trust me, Peter. It'll be fine."

"Last time you said that you blew up my suit and got the webbing everywhere," Peter huffed. "Fool me twice."

"Peter you don't understand," Harley grinned, "The suit and I, we're connected. I know what will work and what won't. You gotta trust me."

"Did you carry the one?" Tony asked, looking down at Harley's equations on the page, knowing fully well he'd forgotten.

Harley looked down as well, "Well shit."

"Connected my ass," Peter smirked.

"Language!" Tony scolded them both, and Morgan grinned at the new words she'd picked up. "Morgan, remember what I said about Mommy owning those words? If these brothers of yours don't stop using them, they won't be getting any dessert tonight."

Morgan gasped, looked scandalized, "No dessert?"

"None," Tony said solemnly to her, as Morgan covered both of the boy's mouths.

"No bad words," Morgan told them sternly. "Uncle Rhodey is bringing Nana Roberta's pie for dessert."

"We don't want to miss that," Peter said, tickling Morgan lightly, as his daughter broke out into giggles.

"No, we really don't," Harley nodded.

"I thought I heard giggles," Rhodey's voice called out, as he entered the lab. "I've been instructed to tell you all to wash up. Dinner is starting soon."

Morgan jumped out of his lap, running up to her uncle.

"Did you bring pie, Uncle Rhodey?" she asked him and Rhodey bent down to boop her on the nose.

"You bet I did," he said, grinning at the girl. "I'll make sure you get the biggest piece."

"Really?" Morgan gasped.

Rhodey nodded, "For my favourite niece? Always," he said with a grin, as he ushered the kids out of the room.

"You're supposed to join us as well," Rhodey said, leaning against the door, as Tony rolled his eyes and stood.

"I'm coming," he grumbled, "I'm not as young as those kids. You can't expect me to run for pie, Rhodey."

"I saw you run for a slice of cake last week," Rhodey deadpanned.

"Because Uncle Steve threatened to finish it," Tony argued, still unsure of how to refer to the man. He'd known him as his uncle all his life. But he also was his teammate until recently.

"Of course," Rhodey nodded, in mock understanding.

"Shut up," Tony snapped, half-heartedly.

"You've done real good here, Tones," Rhodey said after a moment. "This life you've built for yourself. With Pepper and the kids. I'm proud of you."

He smiled at his friend softly. "I thought I was going to die that day, when I had the radiation burns. I still don't understand the science completely of how I was healed, but I am grateful. The thought of leaving everyone behind, it seems unimaginable."

"We couldn't do this without, Tony," Rhodey told him softly. "You're family, and nothing about your loss would have been easy to handle. You've made such a huge impact on all of our lives. Far more than you could even begin to imagine. It's only right that you're still here after everything."

He swallowed at that, as he nodded at his brother.

"We should go," he said thickly. He never was good with all that emotional stuff anyways.

Rhodey placed an arm on his shoulder and together they went up to where the rest of his family was.

He watched as Peter and May laughed over a dessert she'd tried to make and brought for all of them. As Harley and Morgan snuck their broccoli onto Harley's sister's plate. As Barnes and Wilson talked to the Asgardians of the Galaxy about their latest mission, and as Steve and Pepper talked to Carol about a world she'd come back from. Happy was sitting next to the Bartons and Paxton-Langs as the families ran around trying out their parents' respective gear, with careful supervision, and Wanda and Vision brought over Vision's latest attempt at making a dish he'd been attempting to perfect over the last few months.

This was his family, together, and whole for the most part, even if they were missing a few pieces.

Things would never be the same as before Thanos' had snapped his fingers.

They had faced him together, just like he knew they would face whatever else life threw their way.

But for now, he was happy just to be with the ones he loved.

A/N: Hopefully you all enjoyed this fic, and let me know what you thought, both of this story and of the movie! This is how I wished it had ended, and I have many thoughts on Endgame, and while I understand the decision to kill off Tony, I cannot support a world in which he does not exist. A reviewer on my fic "The Theories of the Universe" told me I probably would not like how the movie ended, and honestly I'd be lying if I said I didn't cry over it. But fanfiction is the therapy that all of us can get for free and gives me the chance to change things into how I wished they'd ended it.