"Jarvis, I need answers, now!" Tony demanded. He looked over as May came in. "Come on, we're going down to the lab. All of us." He told them as he helped Bree stand so he could get to his feet.
"It seems there is a disturbance over Fifth Street," Jarvis answered as everyone made their way down to the lab.
Bree walked over to Peter and ruffled his hair. She looked over at May then at Tony, seeing him start pulling up different screens.
"Kid. I need you over there." Tony pointed to the back up console. "Scan the building. We need to know what the exact energy source is." He told Peter. "Holy shit..." he muttered to himself as the images began coming through.
"Tony? What is it?" Bree asked cautiously.
"It looks like the city is under attack." Tony answered. "Jarvis, who are these guys?"
"Attack?" Bree questioned, her interest piqued. She walked over to the screen, seeing a large hole in the sky with people on little flying boats pouring from it.
"They are not of this planet, sir," Jarvis answered.
"Is there any defense? Shouldn't The Avengers be handling this?" Tony asked the AI.
"They are here, just arrived," Jarvis answered just as Tony's cell began to ring. "Nick Fury is on the line for you."
"Put him through." Tony told Jarvis. "I need an evacuation route."
Bree furrowed her brows. "What?"
Fury was quickly patched through. "Stark, are you able to help the team out? They're getting pinned down and it's knocking on your doorstep."
"Fury, I need to get my family out of here. Can you clear a path for us?" Tony fired back.
"If you hurry, yes. Your tower is becoming the center of the action," Fury answered.
Tony grabbed a headset for each of them and put his in. "Alright Fury, get my family to safety and I'll help."
"I'll have a vehicle there in five," Fury answered.
Bree's eyes filled with tears. "Tony..."
"I will be part of your escort to the perimeter. As soon as this is over, I will come get you. I already know where you are going and you will like it there." Tony promised Bree, hugging her tight. "Put this in." He said, handing her the ear piece.
"Wh-where will we be going?" Bree questioned as she put in the familiar earpiece.
"I can't just say darling. It's a safe house for a reason honey. What I can tell you though is that you will be safe there. I need you to trust me." Tony said urgently. He grabbed several wrist bands from his desk and put one on each of his wrists, then put one on Bree. "This will link you to my suit. If it alerts me, I will be to you in minutes." He explained, then handed one to May and Peter.
Bree's tears began to fall as she realized this was really happening and so close to their brand new home. "Tony..." she murmured again, feeling both scared and worried as Peter came up and hugged her.
"Honey, I wish there was more time, but there isn't. With the earpiece, you can talk to me at any time. Talk to me the entire time if you want. But we have to go now." Tony patiently explained. "The car will be here in less than a minute."
She nodded and wiped her tears, feeling May wrap her arm around her shoulders as they began making their way up the stairs. Bree made sure to keep tabs on Peter and kept close to Tony the entire way to the front door.
"I need you to be brave and be my sidekick, alright kid? Your job is to take care of Bree and May for me. Can you do that?" Tony asked Peter. When the car pulled up, he activated his wrist bands, calling his suit to him. "Honey, I love you more than anything and I'm only doing this to keep you safe." He assured Bree as he walked them out to the vehicle.
Peter quickly assured he would do what his uncle asked before getting into the waiting car, with May following behind him.
Meanwhile Bree turned to hug Tony tightly, not caring that the suit was now in her way. "I love you too, and I know. Go be a bro."
"I will be back as soon as I can, I promise." Tony said, carefully hugging Bree. He got her in the car, closed the door, then took off, flying above the car to keep their path to the perimeter clear and safe.
Bree wiped her tears continuously even after they were safe and away from the fight. "I wonder what safe house Tony knew about?" She pondered.
May leaned over and hugged Bree. "I don't know, but if he feels it's safe, I trust that is." She said truthfully.
"I know. I trust his judgment. It's just... all of this happened so suddenly." Bree looked over at Peter, watching him mess around on May's phone. "I just want him to stay safe too."
"He's going to be fine." May assured Bree. "I think it was sudden for everyone."
Bree sighed and looked out of the window just as the car pulled onto the highway, getting further and further from the action in the city. "I hope he will be... we need him."
"He has the best reason to fight, needing to keep you safe. He did say you could talk to him, so you can also check on him." May pointed out.
"That's true," she nodded. "I will when we reach the safe house. Wherever that is."
"I wish we knew, but I understand why he couldn't tell us." May replied.
Bree sighed softly and stared out of the car window. It was a half an hour before the car got off the highway and went down another road. Eventually they pulled up to a small house with a wrap around porch with a large fenced in yard behind it. "I guess we're here."
The driver got out and opened their doors for them without saying a word, then walked up to the front door of the house and unlocked the door with a hidden hand scanner.
"Come on, let's get inside." May said, trying to hide her own nervousness.
Bree took Peter's hand and got out with him as she looked around. Neighbors were pretty far away. She put one hand up to her ear, tapping the side of the device. "Tony, baby... we're here."
"Good. You'll be safe there." Tony answered while dodging a blast that ended up hitting a nearby car. "I trust there was no excitement along the way?"
"None," Bree answered as she turned and walked into the house, seeing that it was fully furnished. "How long have you had this place?"
"It's not mine, but I know the owner. I will tell you more in person." Tony promised Bree. "He's one of us, so don't worry."
Bree sighed and walked into the living room to curl up on the couch. "How bad are things?" she murmured.
"Bad? Who said anything about bad? It's a walk in the park." Tony tried to reply, knowing his tone was unconvincing, especially with all of the noise around him.
"Tony...," she scolded. "Please don't hide things from me."
"No one has any major injuries. We know how to take them down, but we need to find a way to stop them from coming through that hole." Tony told her, being truthful this time.
"Well... what opened it?" Bree asked, trying to help. "Something has to be holding it open." She furrowed her brow in thought, remembering everything she and Coulson talked about. "It could be that staff... the one that god carried around."
"Most likely. Thor is on that. The rest of us are on damage control." Tony called back through the com, nearly being knocked out of the air.
"Tony?" Bree shot to a sitting position. "Baby, are you okay?"
"I'm alright. It's just rough out here. Suit is still at one hundred percent though." Tony assured Bree.
She smiled softly, absently rubbing her stomach. "Good... we both need you to stay with us."
"I'm not going anywhere. As soon as we close this hole, I'll be back with you. These guys can handle the clean-up." Tony told Bree. "I think I'm going to take that spa day with you though." He joked.
Bree laughed. "I would love that, seriously." She looked over at the tv, wondering if she should dare to turn it on and watch the news. She looked over at May, who was drawing on paper with Peter, then down at the remote on the coffee table.
"I can tell what you're thinking honey. You can see the footage once I'm by your side, alright? If you watch it now, it's only going to stress you more and that's dangerous for our little marshmallow." Tony pointed out.
"Sometimes I hate that you know me so well," she murmured, letting herself fall back against the couch.
"I'm just trying to keep you and little marshmallow safe." Tony said truthfully.
"I know baby, I know."
"I need the two of you to be alright." Tony told Bree. "Honey, I'm not going to be able to talk for a few, but I love you." He added, hearing the transmission about the nuke.
Bree pulled her knees up to her chest as the comm went silent, causing her to stare down at the carpeted floor.
"What happened?" May asked, moving to sit by Bree. She wrapped her arms around Bree, holding her close.
"The comm went quiet," she answered softly. "He said he'll be back soon."
"Let's give him a few minutes before worrying alright?" May told Bree. "He's going to be fine."
Bree nodded and looked back down at Peter. "How is he doing?"
"He's scared and worried, but I have him drawing a picture for Tony right now." May answered.
"We're all safe here. Tony is out doing hero stuff, something he likes seeing him do," Bree said in return.
"He looks up to Tony so much." May told Bree. "I couldn't imagine a better role model for him."
Bree smiled. "Me either," she said softly. "Should I check the comm again?"
"I don't see why not. I can't imagine it would upset him." May said truthfully.
With a deep breath, Bree looked back down at the floor. "Tony?" she called, activating the comm with her finger.
Tony faintly heard Bree's voice, causing him to stir. When his eyes opened, he was laying on the ground with The Avengers gathered around him. "Bree? Honey? It's good to hear your voice."
"Hi baby," Bree said softly. "You sound out of breath. Are you okay?"
"I'm alright, just took a bit of a hit. No major injuries though. I'll be headed your way in about ten minutes." Tony promised Bree.
Bree found herself sniffling. "You better not be lying to me Anthony Stark."
"You know I wouldn't do that. Give the kid your phone. He can link it directly to the suit which will confirm my vitals, injuries, and damage to the suit." Tony explained, letting her confirm his information if she wanted.
"Peter, can you connect my phone to Tony's suit?" Bree asked, pulling it out of her jean pocket.
Peter nodded and took the phone. "Yes, Aunt Bree." He tinkered around for a minute, then handed it back to her. "The suit is pretty banged up, but Uncle Tony only has a few cuts and a bruised rib."
Bree let out a sigh of relief. "You're a lucky man, Tony."
"I'm lucky enough to have the most amazing wife." Tony told Bree.
She shook her head, tears escaping her eyes. "Just come home to me when you can, baby. Please."
"I will be there soon. They can finish this without me." Tony promised Bree.
Bree smiled and turned to May. "He's okay. I'm... I'm going to go get some air." She watched May nod before she stood and walked through the house and out of the back door.
The yard was well manicured and had a nice patio surrounded by flowers. Bree smiled to herself as she walked out onto the patio and sat in the porch swing with a sigh.
Fifteen minutes later, Tony made a controlled half crash landing right into the yard. As soon as he saw Bree, he disengaged the suit and untangled himself the mess of metal. "Honey, I'm home."
Seeing the blood running down the side of his face made Bree instantly begin crying. "Tony!" She clamored off the swing and ran into his waiting arms, hearing him grunt from the impact.
"Hey now, I'm alright." Tony told Bree, holding her close. "It's just a cut, nothing worse."
Bree buried her face against his chest, able to smell the smoke and gunpowder on his shirt. "I was scared," she sniffled. "We all were... are they gone?"
Tony held Bree close, not caring about the soreness in his ribs. "When the hole closed, it disabled all of them. I will financially contribute to the clean-up, but I'm staying with you."
She kissed his chest then lifted her head to kiss his lips, careful of his split lip. "Is our home okay?"
"There's some damage. I haven't been able to get the reports from Jarvis yet though." Tony answered.
Bree nodded, unwilling to let go of Tony. "Thank you for getting us to safety."
"You will always be my first priority." Tony said truthfully.
"Come on you two, let's get Tony inside and cleaned up." May encouraged, walking over to help if needed.
"I'd like to see if you're hurt worse than you think. Jarvis doesn't show cuts all the time," Bree said softly as she reluctantly let go of him and stood.
Tony slowly stood up, holding his ribs. "Bruised ribs always hurt worse than broken ribs." He chuckled.
Bree wrapped one arm around Tony's waist as they walked. "I'll put some ice on it."
"Thank you. I think I'm ready for a nap." Tony mumbled, keeping Bree close as they walked inside.
"Do you want a bowl of water, or a shower ready?" May asked Bree.
"Water for now," Bree answered as she helped Tony up the back deck steps. "He's getting weak."
"I'm fine, just let me sit down for a few minutes." Tony said, managing to make it inside to the couch.
Bree sat beside him and tilted his head to look at the cut on his face. "I think you'll need more than a few minutes."
"Maybe, but only if you'll stay with me." Tony said truthfully, wanting nothing more than to just hold Bree for now.
"I'm not going anywhere," Bree assured. "I was too worried about you to leave your side."
"Can we take a little nap?" Tony asked Bree.
Bree nodded. "Once we get you cleaned up." She took the rag and bowl from May when she brought them in from the kitchen before she gently began cleaning his face and neck.
Tony held still for Bree, letting her clean his cuts. "I have an appointment for you tomorrow. This was too much stress and I want to make sure our little marshmallow is also alright."
"I feel alright, but if it will make you feel better, I will go," she assured him. Bree gently bandaged the large cut on his head before bending to kiss his cheek.
"It will. I just want to know for sure." Tony said truthfully. He pulled Bree into a soft kiss. "Thank you for talking to me during the battle."
Bree ran one hand gently through his hair. "You're welcome. I hope I helped in some way." She turned her head, feeling Peter trying to climb in her lap. She leaned back and allowed him to, then smiled as he wrapped his small arms around Tony's neck.
Tony hugged Peter tight. "Good job kid. I'm proud of you." He said truthfully. "You helped more than you know."
She smiled softly as she ruffled Peter's hair, watching him fall asleep in Tony's arms. "He was worried too."
"I know he was. We can just nap right here on the couch, if you want." Tony suggested. He winced as he carefully moved over so Bree would have room to lay down.
"Not all of us can fit on the couch to sleep. I can lay back in the recliner while you cuddle Pete if you want." She answered.
"I want you with me though." Tony sighed.
"The three of you will fit on the bed." May told them.
Bree looked up at May. "Is there one on this floor and not upstairs?"
"Yes, it's a small guest room." May answered. "I will carry Peter for you." She offered.
When May tried to pick Peter up, he wrapped himself tighter around Tony, making him grunt. "I don't know if you'll be able to," Bree chuckled.
"I'll get him, since I don't seem to have a choice." Tony said with a quiet chuckle. He slowly got to his feet, moving Peter as little as possible.
Bree smiled as she put a stabilizing hand on the center of Tony's back. "Let's get you laying down."
"Sounds good to me." Tony agreed. He noticed that May stayed right by them as well, to help if needed. "Can you get the door?" He asked Bree as they approached the room.
"Of course." Bree opened the door to the guest room and allowed Tony to walk in first. "Are you feeling okay?"
"I'm alright, just tired and sore." Tony answered. He walked into the room and sat on the edge of the bed, then carefully laid on his back with Peter snug on his chest. "I just want to hold you." He told Bree.
Bree walked around to the other side of the bed and laid down. "You need to get your little man first."
"He's fine where he is. I just hope he doesn't move too much and hit that rib." Tony said truthfully.
"Let him fall into a deeper sleep," Bree murmured as she rubbed Peter's back. "Then I'll move him."
"I don't mind him being here." Tony said truthfully. "I was just so scared for you. I hated having to send you off, but it was the only way to keep you safe."
Bree curled against Tony's side then caressed the side of his face. "All of us were scared," she said softly. "But we're okay now."
Tony leaned in and kissed Bree softly. "Yes we are and we're back together now."
"Yes, we are," Bree agreed. "Although I would probably bet that you'll be hearing from Fury soon."
"I better not. I never want to hear from him again." Tony grumbled.
"He'll probably just check on you," Bree said softly. "Or thank you."
"Both options are unnecessary." Tony mumbled, starting to drift off to sleep.
Bree kissed his swollen cheek gently before resting her head on his shoulder. "Rest sweetheart."
"Promise you won't go anywhere." Tony mumbled softly.
"I'm staying right here, Tony," she said softly.
"I love you." Tony mumbled, falling asleep.
Bree smiled softly, feeling her own eyes growing heavy. "I love you too, lover."