So, I was laying here, in bed, at like, five in the morning, not able to sleep. And I was thinking about Tony and Peter, and all the sweet scenes between them, and then I thought about the expo scene, and then I had a great idea!
I could vividly see an alternative scene in my head, and I wanted SO much to read it. So I grabbed my phone off my bedside table and opened google to search a fanfiction that fit my thoughts...
But it didn't exist...
So that's why I'm writing it here. Please let me know what you think!
REVISED NOW.
The drones were everywhere, swarming in all directions, and people were screaming. The sounds morphed together into one soundtrack in Tony's ears as he looked around quickly, assessing where he needed to go first.
"Jarvis, what do we have?" He called breathlessly.
His A.I. took a moment to answer, scanning his surroundings.
"Miss Potts is safe at the moment," he stated, knowing who Tony's first priority was. "There are exactly 134 children here, twelve of whom are in immediate danger. Beginning with the one directly behind you."
Tony whipped around and immediately stepped back at the view of a small girl, no older than three or four, trying to rip her teddy bear out of the grasp of one of the drones. Tony noted the little child's tears, and then he saw the blaster aiming directly for her and realized his reaction time was up.
The sound of his blasters charging filled the space around them, and then the drone flew into a million pieces, the girl wrenched her toy forward to hug it to her chest.
"Annie!" A woman's voice screamed. "Annie! Are you okay?"
The child was snatched up by her mother, and then Tony was gone, soaring over the unlikely battlefield to look for his next target.
Traffic crowded the roads, cars heading in any direction that wasn't toward the expo, and Tony could practically see the dollar bills and tabloid magazines floating away in the wind.
This was horrible for his finances and even worse for his public image.
And then that didn't matter, because a little boy was standing in a small clearing, an Iron Man mask on his face and a drone in front of him, blasters charged and ready to destroy the child. Tony didn't have time to think. His blasters were charged before he touched the ground and then he destroyed the drone, moments before the kid would have been killed.
A moment to breathe was necessary after this action, and then Tony was looking around again for his next course of action. The drones were slowing down, finally, and the parking lot was clearing, but then he heard a small sob, and he turned back to the boy before him.
"Kid? You good?"
Height-wise, he looked around five, though possibly slightly older. His shoulders trembled, and then he was stumbling and Tony was catching him, freeing himself from his suit so that he could hold the kid more securely.
"Woah, you're okay..." he gasped. "It's okay. You're safe. I-I saved you."
He carefully reached forward and gripped the mask, carefully sliding it off the little boy's head, his other hand moving to smooth out the soft blond hair beneath it.
"Hey!" He drew him close, wrapping his arms around the boy and pulling him into his chest. "You're good. What's your name?"
"P-" the kid stuttered. "P-P-Pete-Peter."
"Do you know where your parents are, Peter?" Tony asked quietly.
"Aunt May and Uncle Ben brought me," Peter said into the man's shoulder. He hiccuped loudly. "I d-d-don't know where they-" he broke into sobs again.
"We'll find them," Tony promised instantly. "We'll find them. You'll see."
He held the little boy to his chest, resting his forehead in the blond hair as he waited for the child to calm down before searching for his relatives.
A minute. Five minutes. An hour. He didn't care how long it took to sooth the kid. He'd hold him as long as it took.
"Peter!"
A high voice shrieked the name moments before a lady with brown hair and glasses came running over, her hands on the boy in an instant as she tried to wrench him out of Tony's arms.
"He's mine! Let me have him!"
"He's okay," Tony quickly assured the Lady. "He's okay. I promise. Just give me a minute..."
Peter slowly pulled his face away from Tony's shoulder and stared him in the face, his little chin dropping slightly.
"I ruined your suit, Mr. Stark," he said mechanically.
"It was ruined long before you blew your nose in it, Kid," Tony shot back. "You looked around much? This place has completely gone to-"
The woman was giving him a stare. He wisely decided to shut up.
"You're sure you're okay, Peter?"
The kid nodded.
"Thank you, Mr. Stark."
"Don't mention it. That's what I do."
For a moment, he though the child was about to push away from him, but instead, Peter put his face right back into his neck as though that was where it belonged.
Tony found his fingers threading through the little boy's hair, his hand trailing down the small back as Peter's trembling finally stopped and he breathed out a little sigh, finally pulling away.
He set the kid down on his feet and ruffled his hair, watching as Peter jumped into his aunts arms and she hugged him close, and Tony suddenly felt very cold without the little body pressed against his chest.
"Thank you so much, Stark," May whispered. "Peter, you see... he's our world. If I ever..."
She cut off, choked by sobs, but that was okay. Tony understood. He smiled at her. Not a signature sarcastic smirk, but a genuine smile, and then he stepped back into suit, passing the helmet back to the little boy.
"Nice job, Kid," he praised. He shot an approving nod toward the young Peter Parker, and then the faceplate closed and he was gone.
Several feet below him, on the ground clutched to his aunt's chest, the little boy stared up after him, raising a hand to wave slightly, and then he slid his helmet back on and whispered something very quietly.
"What did you say?" Aunt May asked as she carried him back to the car a little later. "What did you say after Mr. Stark flew away?"
She couldn't see the smile under his mask, but she knew it was there.
"I am Iron Man," the boy recited quietly, and then he laid his head against her shoulder and fell asleep.
Dreams weren't uncommon to Peter, but this was different. This hadn't been a nightmare, and instead of the overwhelming panic that would usually have been within him, now he just felt... strange...
He wasn't ridiculous to have forgotten being saved by his childhood hero, but it had been years since he'd dreamed of it. May had never mentioned it again, which made Peter wonder if she remembered it at all.
Either way, it was easier not to mention it to others.
Peter reached for his phone to check the time and noted that it was just after three in the morning. Too early to get up, for sure.
He checked his texts, replying to MJ to confirm for dinner and a movie the following evening and flipping open his texts from Aunt May to read her message to him.
Hi Peter!
All is well here. Just boring conferences. You're not missing much here, except for me. (Heart emoji)
I'm sure you're having a blast with Stark there, just make sure you eat enough and don't stay up all night.
Love you, Pete! I'll call you tomorrow!
Larb, Aunt May (heart emoji x3)
He smiled at the text and then decided against texting her and unintentionally letting her know he was up at three in the morning. She had three days of meetings and conferences in Florida, which was why Peter was staying at Stark Tower with Tony and Pepper.
Peter carefully slipped out of bed and threw on the MIT sweatshirt that was tossed over the back of his desk chair.
"Friday? Status?"
"Hello, Peter!" Friday said to him, chipper as always. "Ms. Potts is asleep in the master bedroom and Mr. Stark is down in his lab working on Mr. Roger's uniform. Would you like me to alert him that you are awake?"
"That's okay, Friday," Peter assured her. "I think I'll go down there myself. Will I be let in?"
Friday was silent for a moment, scanning her codes until she said: "Yes, Peter. I'm allowed to let you down into Mr. Stark's lab under these current circumstances."
Peter opened his bedroom door and slipped out, closing it behind him. He made his way to the kitchen to get a quick drink and then he went down to the lab to talk to Tony.
Tony didn't notice him coming down the stairs until he pushed the glass door open and entered the lab, and then he was all concern.
"Pete? You okay? What are you doing up at-" he checked his watch, possibly to ensure that it was the next morning, "at this hour?" He completed. "Did you have a nightmare?"
"Not a nightmare," Peter corrected. "Just a dream. Or not even that. Just a memory..."
Tony watched him, and then he set down his wrench and gestured to the couch.
"Want to talk about it?"
Peter shrugged, but went to curl up in one corner of the couch nonetheless, facing toward Tony when he came to sit beside him.
"Do you remember the first time we met?" Peter asked carefully.
Tony's eyebrow went up.
"When I showed up at your apartment, ate your aunt's disgusting food, and surprised you when you got home from school all to invite you to join me for the ultimate freak-show in Germany?"
Peter shook his head.
"No. I'm taking about nine years ago. At the Stark Expo."
Tony visibly thought about it.
"There were so many people there, Pete. I gave out so many autographs I don't even remember all the faces. I'm sorry, I just-"
"I didn't get your autograph," Peter cut in. "I didn't get your autograph, and I didn't get killed, thanks to you."
He watched Tony, waiting and watching as the engineer's expression twisted slightly, and then his lips moved.
"Nice job, Kid," he murmured. "Peter. Oh! That was you?"
Peter nodded slightly.
"You saved me. Remember?"
"Na. You were doing great on your own," Tony contradicted. "You were about to-"
"Get blown up? Yeah, I know."
Tony winced.
"Yeah, you were."
The two of them sat in silence for a moment, and then Peter slowly uncurled himself from the corner of the couch and crawled over next to Tony.
"Are you mad?" He asked softly. He felt Tony's arm go around his shoulders and squeeze them slightly.
"Of course not, Kid. It's just a little scary to know how close I was to never knowing you," he said quietly.
Peter snuggled up to his side and put his head on Tony's shoulder.
"I didn't know if you remembered it," Peter admitted. "Or if you just didn't know it was me."
"I didn't," Tony told him. "I didn't forget about it, but I'd never considered that it was you."
Peter smiled and closed his eyes resting his head on Tony's shoulder.
"How about we go upstairs and I make you a cup of tea, and then we can crash on the couch for awhile?"
"Sounds good," Peter said tiredly. He pushed himself off the couch and headed for the stairs, glancing back for his mentor. "You coming?"
"Always." Tony followed the kid, wrapping his arm around him and pulling him into a hug, Peter's forehead resting in the crook of Tony's neck like it belonged there. "Always."
