One

When Tony Stark first meet Mary Parker nee Fitzpatrick she had been a junior at MIT while Tony was finishing his doctorate degree. He had meet her in the library when she had told Tony off for smoking in the classified section of the library.

She was pretty, not that tall and slender. She had big hazel brown eyes and short dark hair, her lips were painted a strawberry pink. They had argued for a bit, and then Tony had offered to buy her a caramel macchiato.

They ended up having sex in the library one time and then Tony being Tony had ended up breaking Mary's heart and because of pride, or vanity, or because Tony was an asshole he didn't apologize to her.

Mary graduated from MIT a semester early. Two years later Tony had heard from his best friend Rhodey that she had married a man named Richard Parker. Three years later he received a picture in the mail. Inside was a cheap, kodak photo with a happy, smiling baby with curly brown hair and Mary's eyes. He had turned it around and he recognized Mary's beautiful handwriting on the back, PETER BENJAMIN PARKER.

Tony instructed his newest assistant, a nervous wreck with freckles that he had secretly nicknamed Pepper to send an expensive, yet thoughtful gift to the newest member of the Parker family.


Christ. Fuck. Holy shit.

Obadiah Stane looked up at Tony who looked like he wanted to murder someone or as if he were in the middle of heart attack. Or both. They were standing in the middle of the lobby of Stark Enterprises.

Obadiah looked at him with a raised eyebrow. "You don't have to do this you know. You can give up any guardianship, I can get a social worker, just say the word-"

"No." Tony practically snapped. He still had a hungover from yesterday and his back hurt because his newest conquest Chrissy? Lory? Had tried some new BDSM trick on him that he didn't quite agreed on.

He was in no mood to deal with a kid. Crap, not even a kid yet. A toddler. Three years old still counted as a toddler right? The boy couldn't even sign up for the local preschool yet. Tony looked at the newspaper that laid on the coffee table: DISASTROUS PLANE CRASH IN RUSSIA. Fourteen members confirmed dead. . .part of the United States Government. . .reason unknow. Mary Parker and Richard Parker-

He then recalled the call from his surprised lawyer than told him that Mary had left him as the guardian of little Peter Benjamin Parker. Why the hell had she chosen him? They hadn't seen each other in almost a decade and their last exchanged had been a photo of her newborn son.

Why had she left him as Peter's sole guardian? Tony had immediately searched for any other relatives that Peter may have. Mary had been an only child and her own parents had died six months ago in a car crash. Richard had a brother named Benjamin and a wife named May. But Tony had found out that both of them were barely making end meets and couldn't possibly take care of a child. Not to mention that they lived in Queens which is another subject entirely.

So it seemed that Tony was stuck even though Obadiah practically had the social worker on speed dial. For some reason he couldn't call them. Maybe it was because it was Mary's child and he felt guilty about how he had treated her all those years ago.

"Here you go, sweetheart," Pepper cooed as she opened the door trying to carry his coffee and a stack of folders while at the same time holding the hand of an energetic three year old with wild, curly brown hair and wide brown eyes that was looking around as if he had been in a cage all his life.

Obadiah didn't look pleased and to be frank neither did Tony. When Tony didn't say anything, Pepper spoke up. "This is Peter, Mr. Stark."

Peter looked at him with wide, baby like innocence as he started sucking on this thumb. Tony frowned. "Thank you, Miss Potts, can you please take him to his room? The nanny should be there by now. She will take care of him."

Pepper looked disappointed at his lack of response, but really what did she expect? He was no Mary Poppins. "Come along, Peter." Pepper said as she handed him his coffee with more force than necessary as Peter trailed behind her like a baby duck following his mama.

Obadiah and Tony watched as they left, "Tony, what are we going to do about that infant?"

"Nothing for now," Tony said. "He's practically a baby. How much trouble can a baby be? Besides there's nannies and boarding schools and summer camps. With any luck I will never have to even see the kid."

"Still to raise a child that it not your own from a woman that you had an affair years ago-"

"Obadiah you know me," Tony replied as he took a sip of his coffee. "It will take the Grim Reaper himself to drag me down the aisle. The kid doesn't look psychotic and god knows that I don't want to procreate a child."

"But?" he sounded annoyed.

"But I won't live forever. I still need an heir."


"Look at him."

"I am."

"Well, look at him. He's practically a baby. He's three years old." Days later Tony was feeling less sure about his decision as Rhodey looked on amused. Rhodey was wearing his old MIT sweatshirt.

"He's three. He will be in preschool next year." Rhodey said with a raised eyebrow. "Remind me again why you agreed to take him in. You don't even like kids." They were in Peter's nursery where he was playing with blocks with his nanny. Was the kid ever unhappy?

"I wasn't kind to his mother when she was alive." Tony said shortly. Peter was telling something to his nanny something about a kitten and a cookie.

"Tale as old as time." Rhodey said. "Look, Tony don't take the kid in because of guilt. It will never work well. Let the kid be adopted, he's cute or give him back to his actual relatives."

"His aunt and uncle can't afford him and you know how I feel about foster care." Tony said dryly. "Which you know is where he will end up, everyone wants babies. No, Peter will stay with me."


Tony was in the middle of his third glass of whisky when he heard a squeaky voice say. "Mickey Mouse. I want. . .to see Mickey Mouse." Tony jumped a mile when he saw Peter in a pair of Winnie the Pooh pajamas.

"How the hell did you get out of your crib?" Tony snapped with more force than necessary because Peter burst into tears. Shit. "Jarvis, get the nanny, will you?"

"Yes, sir." The AI replied.

Tony picked up Peter who was wiggling in his arms. "Peter, Pete. Stop crying now." Peter did as he was told, though this was replaced by hiccups. He gave a frustrated sign, where was the nanny? Tony took him so that he could see the ocean overlooking his Malibu mansion. "Look, kid ocean."

Peter gaped and Tony relaxed as Peter started looking at a couple of seagulls. He could do this. He could do this for Mary and for himself. After all he needed an heir.

-End of Chapter One-

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