Chapter 6

A week after Pepper's release from the hospital, Tony continued following a strict schedule in order to attend the SI meetings, spend time with the twins, and try all the techniques Jarvis had suggested for coma patients. With the inspiration obtained from Pepper squeezing his hand the first night he tried talking to her, his efforts had now taken off. He had massaged Pepper's back and legs to prevent sores, had prepared her favorite meals himself and had eaten them next to her while engaging in casual conversation or telling her about the developments of the company, and had even read to her articles from magazines or books she liked.

While no other noticeable movement from Pepper had been detected by Tony's watchful eyes, Jarvis had found that her brain was reacting to her environment in ways that made them believe she was slowly coming around. At first, the brain activity had been so small that Jarvis had noted it as a fluke. However, the more Tony interacted with Pepper, the more her brain lit up as a response to his actions. Tony could feel that she was coming back soon, and this hope had been the only thing keeping him as sane as possible with all the responsibilities he now had.

He knew that hiring outside parties to help him with his chores was always an option, but he also felt that if he did that, he would be acting just like his father. He did not want his kids to confess to an older Bruce that they were traumatized to have a nanny at 14 –just as he had at some point before leaving for Colorado. He also did not want to relive the arguments their parents had regarding how Howard was always away, and how Maria had to take care of Tony all by herself when the nannies were not around. He did not want Pepper and him to turn into Maria vs. Howard, version 2.0. It was not that his parents did not have good times together, but all Tony could remember the most were the bad times.

Turning his head to the side and reading the time on the clock, he realized the alarm would go off in less than five minutes to signify the beginning of another long day. He groaned and stretched his limbs before getting up from the couch and disabled the alarm. He then walked to the twins' room and peeked inside to make sure they were still asleep.

Happy was scheduled to stop by later on to feed the twins when they woke up, and then Rhodey would cover for Tony while he attended his morning meeting with the members of the board. In the afternoon, however, Tony would have to resort to videoconferencing from his home with the SI executives since Rhodey had been called to attend an emergency meeting with his own bosses, and Happy had to be actively present on the floor for a security audit.

Tony closed the door to the nursery and chuckled to himself as he walked into his and Pepper's bedroom; his situation was turning worthy of a cheap soap opera. Yet, the actual worse aspect about this soap opera was that he was somewhat enjoying it. His little family consisted of a hot-looking sleeping redhead, two strapping-looking-always-hungry kids, a high-ranking official of the Air Force, a former boxer with a James Bond complex, a virtual butler, an overactive dog, and himself: a crazy, almost sobered up, retired superhero.

"Morning, Pepper," he said to the sleeping woman as he bent forward and kissed the top of her head. He remained still for a minute eyeing her form like a hawk, but when she did not respond he sighed and walked away toward the bathroom. After using the facilities and brushing his teeth, he undressed and walked into the shower, his sore muscles welcoming the scalding water. The couch was not very comfortable to sleep on for long periods of time.

As the water helped him wake up, his mind wandered. Any sane person outside looking in would think Tony had the worst situation happening to him, but deep inside he knew better. As difficult as it was managing all his duties, he was content that they at least were worries of the average man. After being kidnapped and kept in a cave for three months, shutting down his company's main source of income without consulting anybody else affected by such a decision, almost dying of palladium toxicity, blowing up his house during his birthday party, crashing the Stark Expo, battling gods and aliens, nearly blowing himself up inside a wormhole, and then fighting super-powered human furnaces, the troubles he now experienced were a blessing in disguise.

The dilemmas he now experienced were aligned with the life of the run-of-the-mill person –something he had not considered himself to be for a long time. He had the consolation that there were many people out there living the same or worse real life situations he was working through every day, and that with the work and patience he was putting into it, his last concern –Pepper, would soon be resolved. Smiling to himself despite his obstacles, he quickly scrubbed himself before shutting down the faucet and exiting the shower room.

He covered the lower half of his body by wrapping a towel around himself, and grabbed a second towel to dry his hair. He then threw the towel he had used for his hair in the hamper and walked out of the bathroom. He walked directly to the closet and went through his wardrobe until he found a pair of comfy jeans. He took them out and tossed them on the chair behind him. He then returned his attention to the closet and took out two shirts. He pressed them against each side of his chest before looking up at Pepper to ask her opinion…but he dropped them both on the floor instead.

"Pepper…" he uttered as he walked towards her, hand on his mouth. He hovered above her and gulped, nervous as heck as he tried to call her attention once more.

"Pepper, can you hear me?"

The redhead was lying on the bed, still unconscious it seemed. However, her right arm was hanging from the edge of the bed, and her left arm was resting on her stomach.

"Pep, are you awake?"

When he received no response, he placed her hanging arm back on the bed. He then picked her up and carefully laid her down closer to the middle of the bed so that her body was not near the edge. He scratched his head as he stared at her, not wanting to leave her for the day due to the development but, knowing he had no real choice in the matter, he sighed deeply. A deal was on the verge of possibly closing today with a medical research company he had contracted to fund its continued efforts in finding alternatives to cure patients with undetectable brain disorders.

Just like what his Pepper seemed to have.

Shaking the thoughts away, he returned to where he had dropped his shirts and picked one at random before getting ready for the day.

xxxXXXxxx

General Rhodes was called to the closest base available in New York for a confidential meeting –well, as confidential as it could be if Tony and Happy knew about its existence. He knew what the meeting was about, and while he had been praying that it did not have to take place, watching the news of Pepper's reappearance in the newscasts told him the shit was close to hitting the fan.

As he arrived to the location, the look of grief on his peers could not have been more forewarning of the string of insults he was surely about to hear. Even though he had no involvement in the leak of the information, he had also not done anything to prevent it from happening –not that he even knew about it until it was out, mind you. To make matters worse, Tony was quickly growing fond of the children Rhodey had tried so hard to keep away from him. He hated the day they encountered that distracted nurse.

"General, the committee is ready for you."

Rhodey nodded toward the Master Sergeant that had been sent to escort him. The door in front of him was opened to show a group of other similar-ranking Generals and the Chief of Staff himself. Rhodey's head was already hurting by just staring at their wild-eyed faces.

"General Rhodes, please sit down," he called to Rhodey, who wasted no time in following the order. "Let's cut to the chase on this. Does Tony Stark know about the tape?"

Rhodey appreciated the no-nonsense approach the Chief of Staff was taking; he too was tired of the trouble this situation was causing to everyone involved. He shook his head to answer the question.

"Fortunately, that has not been brought up."

"For now."

"I beg your pardon, sir?"

"General, your intervention is needed more than ever. I have just been informed of a terrible development."

"What would that be?"

"The tape has disappeared."

Rhodey rubbed his forehead with his right hand, feeling the pressure in his head increase. From all the things he needed right now, chasing after the damned tape was not one of them. "Do we have any suspects? Is there an indication that this act is connected to the news leak?"

"We have a suspicion, yes, but we have not been able to determine how the tape was even lost in the first place right under our noses, knowing what we know. It was heavily guarded and protected inside a steel-room. All that we found was melted metal everywhere. I think you know what this means."

Rhodes narrowed his eyes, memories of a fight they thought was long done returning to him. He hated his position in this; he hated lying to Tony. He had paid with two black eyes, but this punishment alone would not suffice if and when Tony found out the truth.

And truly, to be honest with himself, with the tape gone it was no longer a matter of if, but only a matter of when. "Will we be monitoring the airwaves for the possible release of the contents of the tape?"

"Yes, General Rhodes, but we all know how effective that turned out to be when the Mandarin stole the broadcasts."

They were in deep shit, indeed.

xxxXXXxxx

While the male executives frowned upon the scene unfolding in front of them, the female executives present at the meeting found the CEO of Stark Industries' current situation quite endearing. Tony Stark had just walked by the screen, dressed in his business casual outfit while holding a baby boy in one arm and a half-full baby bottle in his other hand. He rearranged the baby in his arms before reattaching the bottle to the hungry baby's mouth, feeling relieved to have ended the crying that had started just minutes ago.

"In any case," Tony continued as if he was not holding a child in his arms while leading a business acquisition meeting, "I'd like to relocate your labs to Stark Tower. I think we can provide more powerful equipment in our R&D department than what your lab in Oakland can handle."

Thankfully for Tony's sake, the head of the medical research facility he was trying to merge with his company was a female, and seeing Tony's family man side was encouraging her to relocate her entire staff to the East coast, if for no other reason than for the sake of seeing the former playboy learn the ropes of parenthood.

"We had not considered the possibility of taking my staff and their families away from the only life they've ever known, but the offer is too tempting to pass on, Mr. Stark. Though, I don't know if these incentives are enough to convince my people to move."

"I've figured as much," he said as he took out the bottle from baby boy Stark. He then walked off the screen again and returned to it immediately with a burping cloth on his shoulder as he placed the baby on his chest and began to pat his back. "I can understand the stress of leaving behind everything you once knew and starting anew, I can guarantee you that," Tony said, earning him a few knowingly chuckles from the audience. "Why don't you present the options to them, and then tell me how that went before closing the deal?"

The CEO of New Hope Medical Research facilities turned her attention to her male colleagues, who shrugged at her. They spent plenty of time in New York already, begging for grants for their research. It was not the end of the world for them to permanently move to the city, and it would probably be easier on their own families and themselves to move to a new location if it meant having a stable source of grant funds.

"We will keep you posted, Mr. Stark," the CEO of New Hope finally said.

"Good deal. Anything else we need to discuss?"

"Not on our end, though we wonder if Ms. Potts is doing any better. We certainly hope her illness comes to a quick close."

Tony's discomfort with the topic was blatant on his face. He pursed his lips in that way he did when he was confronted with a conversation he did not wish to have, and turned his head to the left. His eyes betrayed his mind, showing his thoughts were a thousand miles away from his body. With a quick shake of his head he was back in full business-mode, eyes staring directly at the screen in front of him. "I appreciate your concern. Pepper and I will figure this out."

"We wish you both the best, Mr. Stark."

With a quick nod from everyone, the meeting was adjourned and the screen flickered as it turned off. Tony turned around and grabbed the baby bottle from the table next to him before exiting the living room and entering the nursery. Baby girl Stark had already been fed and was fast asleep. Baby boy Stark in his arm was already nodding off to dreamland as well. By the time the baby hit the pillow, he had passed out. Tony knew he had a few hours before it was babysitting time again, so he was going to make the best out of it.

He slowly closed the door shut to the nursery and returned to the living room, he pulled on his tie until it was off his neck. He walked toward his bedroom and walked straight to the closet, hanging the hardly used item on the tie rack. He was about to take off his business jacket when Jarvis chimed in.

"Sir, you are needed downstairs, urgently."

"What is it?" Tony asked, rearranging his collar over his jacket in case he did need to head out.

"Child Protective Services, along with Ms. Potts' family are demanding your presence at the reception of the first floor," the AI said, and if Tony had not known any better, he would have sworn there was a hint of actual concern coming from his virtual butler.

Tony's eyes again betrayed his racing mind. He took in a deep breath and let it out slowly in shallow breaths, staring at Pepper the entire time. He licked his lips and took in an even deeper breath, walking up to her and kneeling on the floor next to her form. His hands twisted the bed sheets in between his fingers while a familiar feeling was taking over him.

It was the same feeling he had whenever he was about to jump into the unknown. It was the feeling he had when the initializing sequence of the Mark I had finished and his suit was powered up for the first time. It was the feeling he encountered when his body had been paralyzed by Stane before he had pulled the arc reactor out of him. It was, in fact, the same damned feeling he experienced when his eyes witnessed the destruction of the mother ship of the Chitauri Army before the blurred imaged of Pepper disappeared from his dying screen.

It was the feeling of flight or fight that had only led to total triumph or total failure.

Suddenly, his everyday problems did not seem as common as they had this morning.

Pepper, I need some strength. I can't continue doing this alone.

"Sir?"

After one more broken exhale, Tony stood up and flared his nose. He turned around and exited the safety of his home, heading downstairs to face the newest enemy he had inadvertently added to his list: the pissed off relatives of his girlfriend.

xxxXXXxxx

"Jarvis, where is Happy?" Tony asked as the elevator reached the first floor, about five minutes after Jarvis had informed him of the visitors.

"Mr. Hogan has been on location since their arrival. He has now just convinced them to take the matter to a private conference room."

"Good. Where are my lawyers?"

"Standing by outside the conference room."

"Alright."

Tony's famous stern man façade was immediately set when he stepped out of the elevator. The news that CPS had arrived at Stark Tower was obvious on everyone's faces as they stared at their CEO walking towards the conference room where they knew the Potts family awaited him. He stopped in front of his two attorneys before staring around him to make sure the looks from his employees were diverted to someone else.

"Talk to me."

"Ms. Potts' relatives have approached CPS to inform them of the situation. Their version is not quite truthful or filled with actual facts, but we're afraid your past actions are going to come into play for this demand."

"What do they want?"

"CPS has been charged with executing a complete evaluation of your ability to provide a safe environment for your children, Mr. Stark. They are willing to take this to court, if need to, to transfer official custody to Mr. and Mrs. Potts."

"They can't do that. These are my kids," Tony retorted, trying to keep his voice down.

"We understand, sir. But the truth is that they have built a very good case. They are arguing that since Ms. Potts' care has been given to you, and having a company to run on the side, you are unfit to care for the children as well."

"That's bullshit!"

"It may be, but the media's reports on their speculations about the circumstances of Ms. Potts' return are not helping us here, and neither is your…colorful past. I think we might need to settle this right now."

"Settle? I TRIED to settle with them! Nothing is stopping them from coming by and seeing them! What else do they want?"

"I think this goes deeper than that, Mr. Stark."

"Fuck," Tony whispered, trying to keep his composure. "Alright, let's roll," he said and entered the conference room.

The look of satisfaction on their faces was sickening to Tony. The last thing he had wanted to do was to fight Pepper's family for anything, knowing that if she were awake the fact would pain her. However, Pepper was not there to help him, and the responsibility for protecting all of them fell on him.

"Greg, Joanne, Jack," Tony greeted the trio as he sat on the table with them. "Nice to see you again."

Neither of them uttered a word to him but stared at the woman sitting next to them. He did not recognize her, but he immediately knew she was the representative for Child Protective Services.

"Mr. Stark, my name is Mary Doe. I'm with CPS and I'd like to ask you some questions."

"Sure, why not," Tony said as he adjusted his jacket.

"I apologize for barging into your workplace like this, unannounced, but I'm quite concerned with some of the information I have been given to work with."

"I understand."

"Very well. I take it by the time it took you to join us that your attorneys may have already briefed you regarding the reason for my visit?" Mary asked, taking out a pen and opening her notepad and jotting down some notes.

"A little, yes," he responded, rubbing his chin with his hand. "I was kind of busy upstairs, putting my kids to bed. I apologize if you had to wait longer than usual. I assure you the service isn't that slow around here."

The look Joanne gave him told him where Pepper had gotten her showstopper stance.

"Yes, well, I can understand how it might be difficult to live where you work, and work where you live. It can certainly be stressful, especially if young children are involved."

Tony bit the inside of his mouth to keep him from screaming. He knew what the woman was doing, and while he was not cheering for where her carefully planned responses and questions were leading the conversation, he had to give her props for being able to make him lose his mind while not needing to raise her voice.

"Not any different than every other American family, Mary. I'm sure your folks had some rough times at some point; we all do."

"Absolutely, but my parents were not: a) superheroes; or, b) comatose."

"If your insinuation just now is any indication of the veracity of the information you are concerned about, I can assure you there is nothing to worry about. I'm not –and haven't been for a while in fact, patrolling the skies, anymore. And, Pepper's medical records do not reflect a comatose state."

The CPS agent was not in the least deterred by Tony's argument. She actually gave him a lopsided grin, trying her best to hold a snicker from popping out. "Your attempts are honorable, Mr. Stark. However, with no other link between the children and you other than your claim that they are yours, the children belong with their mother. Since their mother is indisposed, then these willing blood relatives are next in line," she said as she pointed to the Potts.

"No link? My claim? Pepper was…is…my girlfriend! Who else would be the father of these kids?"

"Did you, Mr. Stark, perform a paternity test on them before you brought them here?"

Tony pursed his lips for the second time today. He rested his right hand on his knee, under the table, opening and closing it at a fast pace to keep himself from throwing the table at them. He was not sure what was more insulting to him: the fact that they believed Tony was not the father of the twins, or the fact that they were implying that Pepper was some kind of a slut.

"I didn't see a need to do so. I trust Pepper."

"I was afraid of that. Until a formal medical evaluation is made to confirm the paternity, the children must be removed from your care."

"What? Because of a lousy test? You want a test result, let's go to my lab and run one right now!"

"It's not that easy. The test must be performed by an independent party. After the test shows that you have the right to claim custody, an evaluation of your suitability begins. The final report of this evaluation is then sent to a reviewing committee, which will determine whether the children should be returned to you."

"I'm their father," Tony began slamming his fist on the table. "When did that become not enough proof that I'm suitable for the job?"

"You'd be surprised."

Tony pushed the chair away from the table and stood up. He covered his mouth with his hand and paced around the room as he spoke. "Do you need proof? Is-is that what you want? Let's go upstairs and see them. See for yourself that they are fine. They-they are clothed, well-fed, and watched for. I-I got them brand new furniture, and I…I…I read to them…a-a-and and I bathe them…and…I took a class to learn how to take care of them…I can…I can get you the number of the expert…"

"That won't be necessary. Although, you say that you just put them to bed, correct?"

"Right," Tony responded, breathing shallowly.

"Who is there with them now?"

Tony's eyes darted to Happy, and then his mind drifted to the location of Rhodey. He opened his mouth to retort but the look on Mary's face was enough for him to realize she had caught him.

"Pepper…Pepper is with them."

"Has Ms. Potts awaken?"

Tony gulped, opting to shake his head when his voice left him.

"I see. Who is watching Ms. Potts?"

Tony hung his head, scratching the back of his neck with his left hand. A part of him was screaming to lie his ass off and tell them someone was there, but the shock of the situation was messing with his usual quick reactions. In truth, he was never good at lying unless lying got him in a girl's pants.

"If I recall correctly, Mr. Stark, Ms. Potts' doctors recommended that she be placed in a hospice where she would be monitored constantly. Is this correct?"

"Yes."

"And, I was also under the impression that you declined their medical recommendation in favor of bringing Ms. Potts here to be under your care."

"Right."

"So, legally speaking, you are not complying with Ms. Potts will of caring for her by making the appropriate decisions for her."

"Pepper would want to be here."

"Correct, but I believe her proxy request also states that if she were to be in a state where she is no longer able to care for herself for more than…" Mary stopped as she sorted through her papers to find a copy of the executor order, placing it face up on the table and sliding it to Tony's attorneys, "six months," she continued, "then her will refers to finding a way to euthanize her."

"Pepper is not on life support, she's just…"

"Just, what? Mr. Stark? Asleep? Hangover?"

Tony covered his face with his hands, breathing into them before speaking once more. "I'll hire help. I didn't want to because I wanted to be the one there for them, but, if it helps you see that I can handle it…I'll get a nanny for the kids, and a nurse for...for…for Pepper, and…"

"You are welcome to do that AFTER the procedure I described to you is complete."

"How long are we talking about? A week, two?"

"The test results will take two weeks. After that you can initiate the custody request, at which point we will review your situation and monitor your activities for six months. At the end of the six months we will take about three months to write the report, and once the report is sent to the committee, the turnaround time for their decision is 3-6 months."

Tony's eyes widened at the timeline he had just been given. He walked over to the chair he had abandoned and sat on it. He pulled the chair to the table and rested his elbows on it, resting the weight of his face by holding his chin with his clasped hands.

His eyes darted to Joanne, who had the sternest look of the three of them. After everything he had done to accommodate Pepper and their kids, it still was not enough for the law? What else was he supposed to do? Quit his job? He'd do it in a heartbeat if it meant keeping them all with him.

"Is this about money?" he asked as his eyes jumped from Joanne to Greg, and then to Jack. "How much do you want? Do you want me to drop off the kids with you every weekend? Do you want to spend the holidays here with us? Do you want them to go to church with you? Tell me what you want."

"We want to make sure that Virginia has nothing to do with a man like you."

Tony did not immediately respond, opting to close his eyes for a minute before opening them again, turning his attention to Mary who was eyeing him stoically.

"What would happen if I don't let you take them?" he challenged.

"Then your right to claim custody becomes null. You won't be able to request the review."

"What happens to Pepper?"

"Her family now has the right to take you to court for her custody as well seeing you're not following her will. In all fairness, the court might be able to give you a month extension to make your decision before accepting the challenge of her family; mostly because by the time you were aware of Ms. Potts situation, she had already been in known illness for more than six months but you were not yet fully aware of her situation."

"So, you're pretty much saying you're gonna walk out of here today with my kids, and then you're gonna come back and take Pepper, too?"

"In essence, yes."

Tony exchanged looks with his attorneys. This is what they had meant. Their hands were tied, and so were his. "Will I get to see them?"

"I'm afraid not."

"What about Pepper?"

"I'm really sorry, Mr. Stark."

xxxXXXxxx

Happy had just left the living room with the guests that had come for the Stark kids. He had also taken Jarvis with him to give Tony some time alone to kick and scream all he needed to let his anger out. He had at least been given the chance to say goodbye to them and keep their belongings, but it did not ease the pain, at all.

He now sat in a chair in between the two empty cribs, holding onto the baby bottle he had used earlier today. The silence of the room was suffocating, and he could not help to expect a cry from the twins to be heard any minute. However, he would not hear those cries for a long time now and perhaps not ever again.

He hung his head and let his eyes fill with tears, feeling as the most powerful man with no power at all. His defunct suits would not get him out of this situation, and neither would his money nor his influence. If he thought it made any difference, he would beg fucking Nick Fury to disappear him, Pepper and the twins, and forget that he ever had to live through this crock of shit.

Wiping the tears from his eyes he stood up with a sob before sending the bottle to shatter on the wall in front of him. He turned around to face the window of the room, resting his weight on his hands, and his hands on the frame. He took in deep breaths that ended up turning into chocked sobs, digging his fingers into the wood surrounding the window.

He closed his eyes when he heard movement behind him, signaling that either Happy or Rhodey had finally returned home. When he heard doors open and close, he figured they were still giving him time, for which he was grateful. He was not sure he could trust himself to not do something remarkably stupid at the moment, but with them keeping an eye on him, the odds of him fucking up were small…er.

His assumptions were proven wrong, however, when his breath caught in his throat a second after hearing her unmistakable voice. Taking his lack of response for a lack of attention, she spoke again in a louder voice.

"Tony?"

He felt his heart stop, and all he could to prevent him from falling was clinging to the window frame as tightly as he could.


A/N: Yeah! She's awake…you love me now? Well, you're gonna hate me again. I've got family visiting me for the next four days, so I won't be able to update until later next week. Unless, of course, your response and need to kill me is so great that I'm left with no option but to have to hide under my car from my guests and type a quick chapter if I can. What do you think? Oh, if you want a spoiler for this story –though I recommend you keep the surprise to yourself, look up "Iron Man 3 deleted scenes." You'll know what the spoiler is when you see it.