A/N: (This is a fem!Peter story, so if that's not your speed, turn back now.)

I've been reading MCU fanfic since Endgame last year and started writing a few different stories since, but this is the one I'm making the most consistent progress on, so here's me making a leap of faith and posting something for the first time in a year.

This was in part inspired by two stories over on AO3: Never by BaronessEmma and One Whose Worth Lies Far Within (A Diamond In the Rough) by Emily_F6. I combined a few of the basic concepts of both stories together with basically all of my favorite Tony-Stark-Raises-Kid-Peter-Parker tropes and came up with this story.

As of right now, this story will be the first in a series and will only cover the first IM film, with a few accompanying short stories/one-shots that will follow that will cover moments of Penny's life up through either CA:WS, AoU, or CA:CW, at which point I have multiple ideas that diverge from canon in a big way, so I may end up writing a full length fic set after that time (maybe. I'm trying not to let my brain run away with things before I can actually write this fic first).

Also, there are lots of trigger warnings for this fic, so please, please keep them in mind before reading! If you think I need to add any, comment and let me know! Nothing will be described graphically, but there will be rather frank thoughts and discussions about potentially triggering subjects from time to time, so please be safe!

TW: Implied/Referenced rape of a (young!) child, rape aftermath, mild depiction/frank discussion of child sex trafficking, PTSD and dissociation, plus all the canon stuff seen in Iron Man.

One: A Gift

"You got a family?"

"Yes, and I will see them when I leave here. And you, Stark?"

"…no."

"Ah. So you're a man who has everything, but nothing."

0o0o0o0o0o

Tony had lost track of how many days had passed since he'd been kidnapped. He'd never been particularly good at keeping track of time as it was, but being stuck in a cave 24/7 didn't help. Yinsen probably knew, but Tony didn't want to ask. It wasn't exactly morale boosting information.

If he had to guess he'd probably say it'd been a few weeks, not including the time he'd been out of it after being operated on and then tortured.

Nevertheless, it'd been long enough for Tony and Yinsen to have developed a routine, during which Tony switched between mind-numbing boredom and heart-stopping terror whenever he wasn't working on the suit. The suit thankfully provided an excellent distraction, but Yinsen insisted that Tony take regular breaks to eat and sleep. It was during those breaks that for the first time in his life, Tony preferred boredom.

It was even getting easier to push down his fear the longer he worked. It was always in the back of his mind, of course, but it was easier to ignore while the Ten Rings left him alone to work.

Until they showed up with something new. Or someone, to be specific.

As per usual, Tony and Yinsen placed their hands on their heads when they heard shouting on the other side of the door to their cell/poor excuse of a workshop. The door swung open a moment later to reveal their despicable host and his usual gaggle of guards swinging Tony's guns around dangerously. Two other guards followed behind, dragging a small body between them.

Their captor spoke, and Yinsen translated a moment later. "He says he's brought you a gift."

The two guards tossed the body on the ground in the middle of the room. It took Tony a moment to realize that the body wasn't just small, it was a child. A girl, perhaps five or six years old, unconscious and dressed in filthy rags that barely passed for a shirt and skirt, bruises visible on every inch of exposed skin. If it weren't for the tiny whimper she gave upon hitting the ground, he would've thought she was dead.

"A gift?" Tony asked, projecting his confusion over his rage. "Why would I want a kid?"

Yinsen translated, and a short exchange of words later gave Tony his answer. "To relieve stress," Yinsen said in an emotionless voice. "Since you cannot attend those parties you are so fond of."

Tony's blood ran cold as he realized what was implied and he had to fight the urge to vomit. Did they honestly think he would be desperate enough to rape a child just because they tossed one in his direction and he might be horny? The very thought was sickening.

He'd sooner seduce Yinsen.

He knew he had a reputation; it was well known that Tony Stark slept around. He just didn't do committed relationships. He liked his unattached status and didn't plan on changing it anytime soon… unless the right person came along (or already had, but he was pretending his feelings for Pepper weren't as deep as they were). Being in the public eye meant that the world thought his personal life was up for grabs, so he'd just opted to not have one. 'Tony Stark the genius CEO and philanthropist' and 'Tony Stark the billionaire playboy' were what the media wanted, so that was what he gave them.

But while the media had said many, many things about Tony over the years that weren't true — and even some awful things that were — not once had he been accused of rape.

Why?

Because Tony Stark being a billionaire playboy meant he'd never had to look far to find someone willing to have sex with him. As reckless as he was, Tony had long since learned to be very careful with his sex life. He took consent and birth control extremely seriously and wasn't afraid to put things to a stop and be left unsatisfied for a night rather than for something to come back to haunt him down the line. It just wasn't worth it.

He took it so seriously that he wouldn't sleep with a woman unwilling to use the condoms he provided. He played it off as a matter of preference, but he'd also had more than one woman try to get him to use condoms they'd poked holes in themselves in the hopes of "accidentally" getting pregnant. While Tony might be irresponsible, he wasn't irresponsible enough to father a child before he was ready to have one. And he certainly wasn't irresponsible enough to land himself in court, drowning in sexual harassment and assault charges. There was a line and, much to everyone in his life's exasperation, he regularly did a tightrope routine on it.

What they didn't know was that he wasn't stupid enough to cross it.

He'd been on the receiving end of those who did and he had no intention of imitating them.

So no, Tony Stark might be a playboy, but he was not a rapist. And certainly not a pedophile either.

In the split second before Tony replied with what would likely be a lot of disgust and yelling, he glanced down at the kid and hesitated. It didn't take a genius to put at least some of the pieces together based on her appearance. It looked like she'd been used as a punching bag and there was no doubt she'd already been raped, judging by the men's smirks and the kid's ripped clothing. So if Tony rejected her, they'd probably just take her away again and continue abusing her the way they had been.

If Tony played along, however…

He eventually settled on a forced smile and a "Thank you."

It didn't have to be translated and the beaming smile and snickers that came from their captors made Tony's skin crawl in disgust.

Both Tony and Yinsen waited until they were locked in again before moving and kneeling on either side of the kid. Yinsen immediately went into doctor mode, gently checking her vitals. She was out cold and didn't react, which was both a relief and concerning.

Beyond the dirt, bruises and blood, the girl was caucasian, with hair he assumed was brown — but it was dirty enough to be hiding its true color. And she was tiny. Not just because of her age — she certainly wasn't older than eight, and that was being generous — but because she was practically skin and bones. She was probably being starved, and had been for a long time to be as emaciated as she was.

It was horrifying, seeing a child like that. It was all wrong, and if Tony felt out of his depth when he was being tortured and planning an escape, he was completely lost as to what to do next.

"Child trafficking?" Tony whispered, not wanting to risk waking the kid.

Yinsen hummed. "Most likely. Looks like she's American or European. Makes her rare — valuable — here. To end up here… she likely has no family, no one to miss her. It makes it easier to smuggle her out of a country and bring her to a place where no one will look for her. It's smart."

"It's sick," Tony snapped, then took a deep breath. It was useless taking his anger out on the only ally he had. "Is she stable?"

"For now. I'll let her rest on my cot—"

"No," Tony interrupted. "Put her on mine. You need sleep and I won't be able to any time soon. Will they come back for her?"

Yinsen shrugged, then lifted the kid and did as Tony requested; settling her into the cot and draping one of the few blankets they had over her, like he was tucking her in for the night. "I don't know," he answered after a moment. "I hope they do not because if she's with us…"

"…then she's not with them," Tony finished, glad to see that they were on the same page. He looked down at the kid again, resolve hardening in his chest as his mind shifted towards their escape plan. "Well, looks like we'll have to make some modifications to the plan then," Tony said, catching Yinsen's eye.

"I'm sure we can adapt," Yinsen replied evenly, though there was an approving glimmer in his eye.

With that, Yinsen went to bed while Tony forced his thoughts to focus on escape plans and metal suits rather than the little girl fast asleep in his cot.

End Note: Tony's a playboy, but he's a responsible playboy. The man is far too smart to take unnecessary risks when it comes to someone else's life. As Iron Man, he puts himself in danger all the time, but he beats himself up the moment someone else becomes collateral for his actions. That's not something that develops after he builds the suit. That's there from the very beginning and we see it in the guilt he feels over the soldiers' deaths due to his weapons. I firmly believe that that same logic applies to other areas of his life, including sex. He's a logical businessman, and I highly doubt he'd think one night of pleasure would be worth traumatizing a partner or bringing a child he wasn't willing to raise himself into the world. The cost-benefit just doesn't work out in his favor.

It's one thing to be a womanizer. It's another thing to be a predator.

Why would he care so much about this? Because there's no doubt in my mind that his reputation attracted people willing to use it to take advantage of him… rich, famous, and known to drink and sleep around, especially from an early age? Yeah, at the very least he'd probably had women trying to get pregnant by him, but he's likely a victim of sexual assault as well, but he'd never admit it because no one would believe him.

Ramble aside, I hope you all enjoyed this and please let me know what you think!