The first time Tony Stark had the honor of being called 'Uncle Tony', it was a mere three days following the battle of New York.
Tony had immediately taken to his new team- The Avengers, so much, that he rededicated his Tower, Stark Tower, to the Avenger's Tower.
Bruce had been living in India, but when ask if he would like to come back to New York, to work for Stark Industries when not working with the Avengers, the other scientist immediately accepted.
It was then he told Tony the only complication he had to this plan- and it was not the Hulk.
It was Bruce's nine year old daughter, Isabelle. Or, as she preferred, Belle Banner. And she was probably the cutest little girl Tony had ever seen. When he and Bruce traveled back to India to the family friend that Bruce had left her with while working, and then again while with the Avengers looking for and battling Loki, she ran into his arms sobbing, and the sight made Tony smile. The family had kept the news on the BBC, covering all the happenings in New York with the Chitauri; Little Belle had been absolutely terrified.
Bruce knelt on one knee as she slammed full speed into his open arms, and he held her just as tightly as she did him.
"Daddy I was afraid you weren't going to come back!" She sobbed, as Bruce stroked her long, dark chestnut curls.
"Hey, shh." Bruce tried to sooth his child, "Hey, now. What did we tell you?"
"You'll always be back for Belle." She echoed, Bruce mouthing the words with her.
"Always, Bella-Bear." Bruce soothed. "Remember that." Bruce stood up, the tiny girl still clinging to his neck like her very life depended on it. He turned and started to walk over toward Tony. Tony, who was grinning from ear to ear, waited patiently over by the garden gate of the home they'd come to in order to pick the girl up, intending not to be intrusive in their reunion. "Hey, little one. There is someone I want you to meet." He whispered, gently putting her down.
Tony crouched down and smiled. Belle shied back against Bruce, clinging to his arm.
"It's okay, babydoll. This, this is Uncle Tony." Bruce felt unsure of himself as he said it- he was not used to trusting people this way, the way he almost automatically trusted Tony; but with Tony, he felt like he was a brother. A true and trust worthy friend. Hell, even Hulk had trusted Tony, and even rescued him. When he looked up to meet the other man's eyes, he thought he saw a bit of emotion swimming there, and the smile only grew on Tony.
"Hey Belle. Nice to meet you." Tony said in a small, gentle voice.
"Hi." She peeped, looking Tony over skeptically.
"She's shy..." Bruce chuckles, ruffling her ringlets. "Belle, do you want to go back home?" Bruce ask, and she looked up at him with large, excited eyes.
"Home? Or HOME home?" She ask, trying to figure out if he means their small, one bedroom apartment in the city outskirts, or back to the states. Bruce and Tony had already been to the apartment, and packed what few things they had up and put them on Tony's jet.
"Home home." Bruce grins, and when Isabelle smiles back, Tony wonders if there are any features the little girl has she inherited from her mother. She gives a small squeal and tugs at his hand, toward the gate.
"Home!" She cheers, and Bruce lets go of her hand to let her run ahead on the path. He looks over at Tony, who is now back on his feet.
"I hope that was okay." Bruce says nervously. "We don't... she's..." Bruce sighs and shakes his head.
"It is an absolute honor to be her Uncle Tony, Bruce. I will live up to that for her." Tony laughs, slapping a hand on Bruce's shoulder.
"Thanks, Tony." Bruce replies sheepishly. Tony takes out his cellphone and begins to type a message, to who, Bruce isn't sure.
"So, I noticed the books, the little rocket hanging from her corner of the bedroom, the glow stars- Space is her dig, right?" Tony asks. Bruce hesitates, then nods, impressed with Tony's perceptiveness.
"Uh, yeah. I didn't really... know how or what to do with her, so I read my books to her, starting when she was born. Put her to sleep at first, but as she got older, she loved space." Bruce explains.
"Thata girl. Wouldn't expect anything less. Listen, if it's cool with you, I'm gonna have Pepper tell the crew to paint her walls like a ombre from purple up to black, and boom!" He gestures broadly into the air, "galaxy ceiling!"
"You're going to- I'm sorry, what?" Bruce stammers.
"In your apartment. She'll want her own room, right? Space theme? No? Don't tell me you'd rather do princess..." Tony groans, but he stops when he sees the look on Bruce's face. The other man looks as if he is on the verge of tears. Tony tilts his head, concerned. "You good, man?"
"I-" Bruce shook his head. "Tony, you really don't-"
"UNCLE Tony has spoken!" Tony said, turning on his heels and trotting off down the path after his new found niece.
Bruce stood for a moment, mouth agape, shock setting in on the luck he and his daughter had just stumbled into.
By the time the jet was wheels down in New York, Pepper's crew of interior designers and construction crew was on their way out, the apartment finished. Tony had called it an apartment, anyway. It was well over 2000 square feet, more of a penthouse than an apartment. The bedroom that Tony and Pepper had made for Isabelle was bigger than their apartment in India... And if was being honest, probably bigger than their last one in New York as well. Bruce's jaw nearly hit the floor when they walked in, and he froze in the doorway.
Belle, however, who had really taken to Tony on the plane right back, was already zooming off, Tony in tote, to explore her new home. Bruce heard the sound of heels clicking, and he turned to see Pepper coming from what was now his kitchen. Dark oak counters and black marble countertops gleamed in the lights. Matching black appliances sat around- more than Bruce currently could identify- including a sno-cone maker.
"Well, Doctor Banner?" Pepper ask with a bright smile, "What do you think?"
"I- I don't really think I can accept this, Miss Potts." Bruce sighs, hands in his pockets. His eyes cast to the floor.
"Yes, well..." Pepper said, gently taking Bruce's arm, "Tony already thought you might say that, but from the sound of that-" she pointed in the direction of Bruce's daughter's squeals of delight, "Its too late, Isabelle has spoken." She tugged slightly and he began to walk with her, hesitating.
"Pepper- This place is beautiful." Bruce commented, looking at the rich dark woods of the floors, the eggshell white walls. There was a large globe in the sitting room, next to a window and two very large, comfortable looking navy blue couches. There were bookcases, filled with books that covered Bruce's fields of study- and included all the ones he had written himself. The bottom two rows were age appropriate children's books.
There was a large fireplace and a television mounted on top. Each corner held gorgeous, blooming houseplants of various shapes and sizes. There was a large woven Indian rug with tones matching the accents of the room. There was even an enlargement hung on one wall of the picture Bruce kept in his wallet that he had shown to Tony. It was of Bruce smiling up at Isabelle, who was laughing on his shoulders at a festival in India. It was at least two feet high, and melted Bruce's heart. Pepper paused and let the physicist gawk for a moment, but he turned when he heard Tony yelp, followed by giggling from both Belle and Tony. Pepper laughed, too.
"Ready to move on?" She ask, gesturing. She took him down a hallway and opened the first door. "Your study." Pepper explained, stepping aside. Bruce cautiously peeked inside. There were more bookshelves, plenty of them empty for Bruce to fill himself, but there were artifacts and knickknacks here and there. Copies of Bruce's diplomas hung on the wall behind his large oak desk. There was a new Stark Tech desktop set up on the corner of the desk, a printer on a table to the side. Bruce looked back at Pepper, pure joy gleaming in his dark chocolate eyes.
"Moving on!" Pepper called from the door, and Bruce followed her. A few feet up but across the hall, Pepper opened another door, revealing a bright blue bathroom. There were mermaids and sea creatures everywhere, and the tub had stained glass doors in blues and purples. "This is obviously Miss Belle's." Pepper beamed proudly.
"She'll love it!" Bruce gushed.
"Yours is in the master suite, of course." Pepper explained.
"I can't share the mermaid suite?" Bruce joked, and Pepper gave a genuine laugh in return.
"That is between you and your mini-me, Doc." Pepper replied. "Come on."
She lead him down the hall, and halted just shy of an open door, where sunlight was pouring into the hallway. Tony could be heard saying something about bring careful, and Bruce rushed ahead, only to be completely floored once again. The carpet was a rich purple, and looked very soft. The walls were just as Tony had mentioned, and faded up into a gorgeous galaxy scene on the ceiling. The light fixture was a silver and white planetary system chandler. There was a large rug in the corner near a huge pile of toys and dolls, which was made to look like a full moon. On the opposite wall was a queen-size bed, complete with princess canopy, which was sheer black and adorned with silver stars. In the middle of said bed was Isabelle, who was jumping excitedly.
"Bella-Bear." Bruce's voice sounded firm. "Keep calm, remember?"
The little girl rolled her eyes, but jumped once more and then allowed herself to fall back amongst her many pillows. Bruce looked over at Tony and mouthed 'OH MY GOD' at his friend, who laughed out loud. Pepper raised an eyebrow curiously at Tony from behind Bruce, confused about his comment about 'keeping calm'. Tony shook his head only slightly, and Pepper knew there was a story to be filled in on later.
"Look, Belle! Dad is just in time to see the coolest part!" Tony said, grabbing a remote from her bedside table. "This button here, it brings out your TV." Tony demonstrated, and a TV flipped out from behind a huge photograph of a nebula on the wall at the foot of her bed. "This one does the lights." He said, clicking the large lights out, causing blinds to cover the windows, and, allowing the sparkling, star shaped fairy lights running along the edge of the ceiling to shine.
"WOAH!" Belle called, taking the remote Tony offered her. She wasted no time ignoring the adults in the room, learning to use the television by trial and error.
"You good here, Sweetness?" Tony ask, and Belle gave him an idle 'thumbs up' without looking over.
"We still need to see your room, Bruce." Pepper reminded him. Bruce followed the couple at first, but then hesitated at the doorway, looking back at his daughter. When he turned around, he blinked a few times to hide the tears of joy and relief in his eyes.
"You guys- I just-" Bruce took a deep breath. "If I live ten lifetimes, I cannot repay this kindness. I really, really don't feel comfortable accepting the pay rate you offered on top of this Tony. I was hesitant before this."
"Oh, Brucie. No." Tony laughed, "You will. I'm gonna use that brain of yours so much. I have waited years to find a mind that could keep up with mine- and I'm afraid you have walked into my perfectly designed prison." He winked, and all three shared a laugh.
"She's so happy." Bruce breathed. "Really. Thank you."
"Nothing of it, man. You saved me, twice. Restarted my heart. I think this is the least I could do. Try to remember that bar is different when you're, well, me." Tony joked. "Plus- I have a niece now. Aunt Pepper and I are very thrilled by that."
"We are indeed." Pepper agreed eagerly. "I didn't know her measurements, so her closet is empty except for what you brought, but with your permission, once you feel adequately settled, I'd love to take her shopping."
"She'd love that, Pepper." Bruce agreed quietly. "Thank you."
"Oh no, thank you. I am so excited to spend time with her!" Pepper gushed. "You, however, since we got you a couple sets of things when the battle was over- I took the liberty of getting you some things, not too much. A couple dozen shirts and pants, ranging from formal to pajama and everything in between. You'll find a couple different styles of each type of shoe as well, oxfords and loafers mostly, but also boots and sandals. I hope you like them all, but if not, please don't be shy, it can all be exchanged." Pepper finished as she pushed open the door to the master suite. Bruce felt faint.
This bedroom could not have been more perfect if he'd picked each piece himself. He was not sure where Pepper had found all the pictures of Isabelle and Bruce, but there was a wall of them artfully arranged to the left of the bed. In the right hand wall was a inset fireplace, which had a television mounted over it as well. There the centerpiece of the back wall was a kingsized bed, the frame of which was made of aged bronze. A soft, purple comforter gracefully covered the bed. The curtains were a similar, slightly lighter color, and were tired back with golden rope. There was a small bookshelf beside the bed, still empty. Bruce ran his finger over the smooth wood, jumping slightly when Pepper spoke up from the doorway where she and Tony were propped.
"That's for your favorites, or current reads." Pepper explained. "Otherwise I don't really like to leave blank spaces."
"I don't know what to say, you guys. Really." Bruce croaked, a knot rising in his throat.
"Say you like it?" Tony suggests, laughing.
"Love it. So, so much." Bruce closes his eyes and takes a deep breath.
"Well. Kitchen is fully stocked. Veggies, frozen meals, kid cuisines... Juice, soda, milk, cereal, whiskey... there are snack foods- including the gummy bears Tony said you mentioned that you bribe Belle with. That's what is in the jar beside the toaster." Pepper said, nodding back toward the kitchen.
"So far, its just you two and us, we're four floors up." Tony pointed. "Code to get in if you need to is 5612, just punch it in the elevator. Otherwise- This gorgeous gal and I have dinner to get to- and you have one of your own to feed." Tony said, tugging at Pepper's hand.
"Call us if you need anything!" Pepper called as they walked down the hall.
"ANYTHING, BRUCE!" Tony reiterated as the door shut behind them.
Bruce stood for a few moments, taking the room in, before he, too, ran and dove head first into his bed. The soft mattress caught him like a cloud, and he sank into the warmth. He lay completely still for at least ten minutes, his mind reeling, when he felt the bed have a small amount of weight shift and he lifted his head.
"Hey punk." He greeted, rolling over.
"Dad." Belle said with a serious expression.
"Isabelle." Bruce mirrored.
"Is this place for real ours?" She ask, sitting up and crossing her legs.
"It is." Bruce nodded. "Is it okay?"
"Its a castle!" She shouted, throwing her hands in the air. Bruce laughed.
"It is! But some of the things Uncle Tony and Aunt Pepper have brought here for us are very breakable. So you have to remember..."
"Be slow and be calm..." Isabelle groaned the words she'd repeated hundreds of times in her young life. "Yes, sir."
"That doesn't mean you can't have fun, sweetness." Bruce said, petting his daughter's cheek. "Just be careful."
"I will, Daddy!" She promised.
"Why don't we go see what we can find in our new kitchen, hmm?" Bruce suggested, changing the subject. It was easy enough to distract the girl, who eagerly agreed and lead the way back down the hall. Bruce looked around again as he followed after her and sighed. "Now this is a home she deserves." He said to himself under his breath.
Down in their car, Tony carefully navigated around the reconstruction going on everywhere in the city. There were workers from FEMA, SHIELD, the National Guard, and Stark Industries all moving side by side to rebuild the city. Tony honked and waved as some of them greeted him.
"So, tell me." Pepper said, taking a compact from her purse and popping it open. "What is the story on our little niece?"
"Well, she's the cutest little princess in the world, for one." Tony gushed, and Pepper laughed.
"Otherwise." Pepper said. "Where is mom? Why is he so nervous about her getting to excited? I mean- him, sure. It brings out... The other one." Pepper said after a moment of hesitation on how to word what she meant.
"Isabelle is special. She's been dealing with powers since she was born. Her mom was a participant in a government funded round of research Bruce was doing working on his biological chemistry thesis." Tony glanced over to make sure his girlfriend was following along. "She was twenty, underprivileged family, born with some cardiopulmonary issues. She volunteered, both looking for the money and some help. A start to a better life, you know? Her and Bruce... hit it off. He was like... eight or nine years older than her, but who cares. Anyway-"
"Anyway..." Pepper agreed, pulling Tony back from his ramblings.
"So a few months into the study- they get a weird hit on her labs. She's pregnant. At first, great news, right? Except Bruce is NOT willing to continue the treatment on her. Risks are too high. So, they agree she's going to stop it, for Isabelle."
"Oh." Pepper whispered solemnly.
"Yeah. She, uh, she didn't survive delivery." Tony finished.
"Oh, man." Pepper sighed heavily. "So- I take it the story if Belle doesn't really stop with just traveling around with her genius dad?"
"Of course not. That would be maddeningly simple, wouldn't it?" Tony snorted. "So, around eleven months, she starts walking. It takes her about a week to master that... Then she learned to run." Tony said. "Like. Really, run."
"She was affected by the trial?" Pepper ask, "Heightened abilities?"
"Well, yeah. Needless to say that project was nuked... Quietly. Bruce fudged the paperwork to make it look ineffective, and the feds killed it. So now we have Belle- She's also crazy smart, but I mean... Bruce Banner's kid. He is probably one of maybe three people on the planet EVER I would admit is smarter than me- Because he really, really is. He read her physics books to put her to sleep from the start. How could she not be? He reading and mathematics comprehension is off the charts. That is why she isn't in public school. That, and the physical endurance. She can run a mile in about four minutes. Climb nearly anything. Jump about ten to fifteen feet, when she tries. She's also strong, but he's been working with her to keep it all under control. He's got the patience of Job, and she is a great kid." Tony finishes.
"Poor thing. She seems to be a happy kid." Pepper smiles sadly.
"Bruce has tried really hard for her. Did the best he could running the way they've had to. The accident that gave us Hulk- it almost made him go insane. He was constantly living in fear of hurting her. Had nightmare after nightmare of killing her. I can't imagine... That is why he... He tried to kill himself. to protect her, but Hulk did not like that." Tony shook his head, clearing the thought away, "Because, turns out, Hulk has known her from square one. Recognized her as his- and he was not about to abandon her. And Isabelle adores him, too. Told her dad it made him more like her, and made her feel less alone."
"Bless her poor little heart." Pepper said. "Both of them."
"Yeah." Tony nodded. "Yeah. So when I was like- 'Hey, let's make this official. Earth's Mightiest Heroes, he hesitates. And takes out his wallet, without saying anything at first, he hands me that picture you put in the living room. He says 'I'm honored, but I have a prior engagement.' So, I took him to that place with the apple crumble I like so much, and he just... Word vomits all of this on me. And I think to myself- If I had any doubts about keeping this man, they're gone. So I tell him how much we'd love to have them both, and the rest, my love, you have handled more than I."
"I'm glad he took your offer." Pepper smiled, reaching over and taking Tony's hand. "They're perfect additions to our weird little family."
"I thought so!" Tony agreed with a grin.
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