AN: I only claim Mary Stark and any unrecognizable characters . This story is a Steve Rogers love story but that won't happen for a while. This story is will follow the events of IM, the Avengers, and AOU.

December 17th, 1991

It was raining outside. Tony ran through the front door of his parents house just as a clap of thunder shook the sky. The lack of shrill cries was a terrifying sign. The room looked up at the sound and was surprised to find Tony dripping into a puddle on the expensive carpeting his mother had painstakingly picked out. Aunt Peggy's warm chocolate eyes widened. She stood as quickly as a seventy year old woman could, pushing past the two officers taking her statement to get to her godson.

"Tony-"

"What happened?"

She pressed her red painted lips together sharply. She paused a breath before speaking again. "There was a car accident. Another driver ran a red light. He reeked of scotch." Tony closed his eyes, taking it in. When he opened them he spoke with a fragility that didn't fit a seventeen year old boy with a MIT student ID.

"Both of them?"

"I'm sorry Tony." Her heart broke for her boy. Her beautiful, genius boy just like his father. "Oh love." As her hand skimmed his cheek Tony's eyes met hers with a new wave of urgency.

" What about Mary?"

He had never felt so alone as he did when the rest of the room was exchanging their own telling looks.

"Aunt Peggy, was she in the car?"

"Oh darling- "

"Was she in the car-"

As another clap of thunder shook through the house over the boom of Tony's yelling a whining cry drifted from upstairs. It was the most beautiful sound Tony had ever heard. His eyes widened as he looked up the staircase then to Peggy. She smiled gently at him, offering him an aprovitory nod. He dashed up the stairs after the sound.

He skidded to a stop midway down the hall in front of the door with a pale pink star pegged to it. He tiptoed into the room holding his breath. His eyes skimmed the room, roaming over white bins of plush animals, shelves crammed with little golden books, pink frames with cutesy sayings inside, and an array of glow in the stark stars stuck to the ceiling. He finally settled on the delicate pink crib centering the room. His heart lurched when he looked inside.

"Hi, Mary." He let out a shaky breath as he reached down to stroke his baby sister's peach fuzz head. "Hey, baby."

She looked up at him in confusion. She hadn't seen him in months; he'd skipped Thanksgiving, and it took a moment for her eight month old brain to recognize him. When she did though she lit up in a grin, smiling up at him with chubby pink cheeks and dark blue eyes. She had no idea that she had just become an orphan. She reached out to Tony with chubby fist as he sank to the floor next to her. He reached through the bars, letting her wrap one hand securely around his finger, and gripped the bars with his other.

"Sorry you had to wake up. There's a lot going on down there." He gestured back towards the door like she could understand him but she was too preoccupied with the mystery of his index finger. "There's a lot going on up here." He tapped against his forehead with his other index finger. Mary looked up at him startled at the sudden movement that ran through his other hand. He was shaking.

"It's just you and me now Mary." He didn't bother to push back stray lines of tears that ran down his cheeks. "Well I mean we've got Aunt Peggy and Uncle Obie. But we're Starks. You and me we're the only ones left"

He brushed away fresh tears with the heels of his palms."We've got to watch out for each other now Mar. We're gonna have to take of each other." He let out a wet laugh when Mary began nodding like she understood every word he was saying. Really he knew she was probably just checking out the moon and comet shaped mobile over their heads.

"I'm gonna take care of you though Mary. Don't you worry kid. I'm gonna take care of you."