I know, this is an extremely late update. Sorry about that. Not a lot happens in this chapter, but I wanted to get it out because you all deserve to know what happens next. Enjoy!
A heavy sigh escaped Tony's mouth as he slowly climbed into bed. His aged body popped and cracked as he leaned forward and pulled the covers over him. "Lights," Tony commanded, and soon he has laying in darkness. And Tony tried to fall asleep, he really did, but the day's events were still running through his mind.
After the bath Tony had toweled Peter off before putting on a diaper. He still had no idea whether or not Peter was potty trained, but he was too tired to ask and he didn't want to deal with an accident in a new bed. From there the two ventured into Peter's bedroom where they went through the closet and dresser. There were a few outfits that Pepper had supplied, but none were suitable for sleeping. Tony assumed she had it on her list of things to get, but he would remind her, just in case. - Right. He still needed to do that.
Without suitable pajamas, Tony opted for getting one of his old T-shirts for Peter to wear. Tony took Peter into his room and showed him around before finally stopping by the closet to get a shirt. It was an old gray T-shirt that said Stark Industries on the front in black letters, and when Tony put it on Peter it seemed to eat him.
"Is this a dress?" the little boy had asked with a giggle as he flapped his arms up and down.
"It's not on me, but I think you could pull off the dress look. I'm sure it fit it with all the fashion trends in the fall," Tony teased, but Peter just giggled in return. He was oblivious to Tony's reference.
"Okay. So that one went over your head. Guess we can't win them all," Tony muttered under his breath as he tousled Peter's messy hair.
From there the two had wondered around the living area a bit more before Pepper cornered them in the common room. She was adamant about Peter needing a haircut because his hair was horrendous. The little boy was a little wary when Pepper pulled out the scissors but Tony was quick to distract him. After one quick Google search for "popular children's cartoons" Tony decided on the show Paw Patrol. With some peanut butter and jelly sandwiches divided up between the three, they all sat in front of the TV, watching talking dogs work together as Pepper cut Peter's hair. Even after Pepper was done, the three ended up watching an additional four episodes of the dogs. They were just too witty and cute, but of course Tony would never admit that out loud.
"He's had a long day," Pepper hummed as she turned off the TV. Tony was already standing and scooping the dozing boy into his arms.
"I think we all have," Tony said as he made his way towards the mouth of the hall "Thanks, Goodnight Pepper." - It was only eight thirty in the evening, but Tony was absolutely exhausted. As soon as he put Peter to bed, he was going to crash.
Tony was a little surprised, though, when the boy didn't wake up after he had put him to bed. He figured with Peter's sensitivity to the world around him it would wake him, but he was wrong. It just proved to him how wiped out the little boy was.
Tony stood over the bed, watching as Peter's chest steadily rose and fell with each breath. He was here. He was going to be okay. Nothing bad was going to happen to him.
"Goodnight squirt," the inventor hummed, leaning down and pressing a gentle kiss to the top of Peter's head before leaving the room. "Friday, If Peter wakes up and he's scared, let him know where I am," Tony said to his AI once he was back out in the hallway. - And now here he was laying in bed, desperately trying to get his mind to calm down so that he could give his tired body a rest.
In all honesty, Tony had no idea if he had actually fallen asleep. He remembered laying on his back and staring up in the direction of the ceiling, the room completely dark. He remembered that his mind was running a million miles an hour...and then he lost time. His eyes had adjusted to the darkness and he could make out the shape of the light fixtures that hung from the ceiling. He could see the corners of the room and if he looked around, Tony was sure he could see the general shape of all the furniture.
The man scrubbed his face and let out a shaky breath. He was sure he had fallen asleep, but only a glance at the clock would confirm his theory. So with one fluid movement, Tony rolled onto his side to look at the glowing digital clock that was at his bedside. What Tony was not expecting was to come face to face with a small figure that was literally two inches from his face. He could see the dark outline of the figure, but what really stuck out were the big round eyes that stared back at him.
"Jesus Fucking Christ!" Tony screamed as his heart leaped up into his throat. The man knew that it was Peter, he absolutely knew. Even a split second before he reacted Tony knew it was likely that it was his child, but his body was on autopilot. As Tony screamed his bolted upright and practically dove over onto the other side of the bed. It was silent as Tony just sat there blinking back at the two eyes that returned his gaze. "Peter?" he finally stammered.
"Sorry," came a small voice as the figure shifted their weight from one foot to the other. "I didn't mean to scare you," it called out. "But I can't sleep."
Of Course he couldn't sleep.
"N-No, it's okay Peter," Tony said as he pushed himself back to the side of the bed he had been sleeping on. "Did you have a nightmare or something?" he asked as he stretched out his arms, taking the little boy in them.
Peter was cold and shaking, and honestly, Tony was a little surprised by that. But as soon as the two touched, Peter was quick to move into Tony's embrace. The older man pulled Peter close to his chest and layed back down before rolling over so that Peter was closer to the middle of the bed instead of the edge. With that the man took his large hands and pushed back Peter's hair so that it was out of the little boy's face. Now the father and son just layed in bed, staring back at each other.
"I'm sorry," Peter finally said, his voice shaking as tears began to collect on the edges of his eyes. "Please don't be mad! I-I just had a nightmare and I woke up and-"
"Hey, Hey, Hey!" Tony said in alarm as he took his thumb and gently wiped away the tears that were now falling down Peter's cheeks. "I'm not mad! You just startled me," Tony said before humming in the back of his throat. "I could never be mad at you, okay? So don't tell me you're sorry." Tony said, pulling Peter into a soft hug before resting his chin on the top of his head. "Do you want to sleep here with me tonight?" he then asked.
Peter was still shaking but at Tony's offer the boy instantly relaxed. His body wasn't shaking as much and his uneven breaths had calmed down. The little boy simply raised an hand and rested it on Tony's chest, directly on top of his arc reactor scar before a muffled "Yes please," escaped his mouth.
"Allright, it's settled then," the inventor hummed before pulling away from Peter slightly so that he wouldn't smother the boy in his sleep. Peter still kept his hand in the same spot on Tony's chest, but his eyes wandered up to his father's face, looking for comfort. And that's exactly what he got.
"How long were you standing there anyways?" Tony asked, letting out a large yawn as he stared back at the little boy.
"I dunno...maybe ten minutes?' Peter said carefully. "I didn't want to wake you up...but then you woke up all by yourself," the little boy explained.
"Well next time, instead of just standing there and watching me sleep, you can just wake me up. I won't get mad, okay? And there will be less screaming on my end," Tony said, a small smile pulling on the edge of his lips.
"Okay," Peter said as a sleepy smile appeared on his face as well. The two layed there in silence for a long moment before Peter's small voice spoke up again. "G'night daddy," Peter said, his eyes almost all the way closed. "I love you."
"I love you too Peter," Tony said as he felt something whell up in his chest. "I love you to the moon and back."
God damn this kid was going to kill him.
Tony was surprised to wake up to sun filtering into the room. Normally he was awake before the sun even came up, or he was asleep when it was already daytime, causing him to use the curtains. This was different though. The room was bright and warm.
Tony's eyes surveyed his surroundings before his eyes fell onto the little boy who was taking up most of his king sized bed. During the night Peter had wormed his way away from Tony and underneath the covers before sprawling out on his stomach. His little arms and legs took up a lot more space than Tony thought a kid his age could. But in all honestly didn't mind Tony. Starfish sleeper, Tony though, keeping a mental note on all of Peter's habits.
The warm golden light of the sun hit Peter's round cheeks and highlighted his brown hair, making it look almost golden. And from where Tony lay, he could still see the rise and fall of Peter's body as he took in long breaths. And...was that snoring? It was soft and scratchy, but definitely there.
In the golden sunlight Tony could only think of how important Peter had become to him in such a short time. Tony had been in kind of a dark spot in his life...but Peter was like then sunshine. He was there to make it better. Brighter. The elder Stark wished he could stay like that forever, just the two of them sharing that moment. But after a while the little boy's eyes lazily opened.
"Good morning Petey," Tony said as a broad smile spread across his face. "Did you sleep okay?" asked.
"Morning daddy!" Peter replied back as he pushed himself up onto his knees, rubbing his face with small fists to get the sleep out of his eyes. "And yeah I did. I like your bed better than mine though. It's nice and hard."
"Did you say my bed is hard?" Tony asked as his browns pulled together in confusion. "I'll have you know that I have a very nice and comfortable bed.
"Well...my bed is really squishy. I don't like it." Peter explained. "Your's is hard...it's nice." Peter said, giving Tony a reassuring smile.
"Oh. So you like a firm mattress, huh? Well, we'll get Pepper to change that so you feel better when you sleep," Tony said as he began to sit up.
"Or I can just sleep here with you," Peter offered innocently. A nervous laugh bubbled out of Tony's throat and he shook his head as he sat up.
"You can sleep with me every once in a while, but when you get older, you'll be too big! You'll have to sleep in your own bed then."
"But I'm not big yet so until then I'll sleep with you," Peter said confidently.
"Sounds like a plan for now," Tony laughed as he pushed his legs over the bed and stood up. "Alright. How about we change your diaper and go get some breakfast!" the man suggested as he began to move towards the door and then down the hall towards Peter's room.
"Okay!" the little boy replied as he slid off of the bed and followed Tony out of the room. By the time Peter and Tony were in the bathroom the man could tell that Peter was waddling uncomfortably.
"Hey Peter, do you know how to use a toilet?" Tony asked as he reached into the cabinet to get either diapers or pull ups, depending on what Peter said.
"No?" the little boy said in confusion as he looked over at the toilet.
Okay, so it was going to be diapers.
"I mean, I've see them and people use them but...I've never used one." Peter said as red began to creep up the little boy's neck and onto his face. Tony figured as much, but the more he thought about Peter's answer, the more upset he was getting. The little boy had to have been going somewhere, and as far as Tony knew, the children had not been kept with diapers on. And if so, the were not fresh. Honestly, Tony felt sick to his stomach, but he tried to not let it show.
"That's okay," Tony said after taking a deep breath. "I'll teach you. It's pretty easy! Now lay down so I can change you," Tony instructed as he pulled out the changing mat, and a fresh diaper. He was sure he needed more, but he wasn't really sure what. He had only changed a wet diaper, and other than that he had no experience with this. He was kind of winging it.
"Friday, please tell me how to change a diaper," Tony said hesitantly as Peter obeyed, laying down on the mat. With that Tony pulled up the T-shirt Peter was wearing so that his bottom was free from obstruction. Now he could see that Peter was pretty full. "A very poopy diaper," Tony specified as he eyed the bulging material.
"First I would suggest getting wipes, and baby powder. You'll need them later. As well as a trashcan nearby." Friday's voice rang out. As she spoke Peter quietly looked up at the ceiling with a wide smile on his face.
"Okay sure," Tony said hesitantly as he stood up and walked back over to the cabinet before returning shortly with the items. "Now what?"
"Unfasten the diaper and lift the child's legs up. Wipe up as much mess as you can with the diaper before folding it in half and throwing it away. Make sure his bottom does not touch the mat until he is clean. I would suggest having wipes nearby to clean up the rest, boss." The AI responded.
"Right okay," Tony hummed as he eyed Peter's diaper. Honestly this was giving him a lot of anxiety. He had never done anything like this. Part of him wanted to ask Pepper for help, but another part of him didn't want any help because god dammit, he was the kid's father. He would need to know how to do this sooner or later. "Okay. You got this," Tony said as his hands hovered over the tabs of the diaper. "You're Tony Stark for god sakes. You can do anything. So that means you can change a diaper," Tony muttered to himself before taking one more deep breath and going for it. In one fluid movement he was awkwardly picking Peter's ankles up, and the next he was undoing the diaper.
And in the next second Tony froze. It looked about how he thought it would look, but the smell hit him pretty quick. Tony could only sit there as he tried to keep his composure while trying to suppress the urge to gag.
"Boss," Friday commented. "I would suggest that you don't wait much longer with this task. It will only make it worse, and I'm sure the boy is uncomfortable."
"I'm okay!" Peter said quietly as Tony grit his teeth and rolled his eyes at Friday's commentary, unaware that Peter had even said anything.
"Not helping friday," Tony said through his teeth. Suddenly Tony couldn't hold it in anymore and his body convulsed as he leaned away from the stinky mess and let out a horrible gagging noise.
"G-Good God." Tony said in between gagas as he desperately tried to get his breathing under control.
"I'm sorry," a small whine piped up as Peter watched with a concerned look on his face.
"N-No. It-it's okay P-Peter." Tony continued. "You're okay. This i-is all on me," Tony said as he squeezed his eyes shut, taking in a steady breath. It took it a moment but he was finally able to compose himself and then continued with his task.
The inventor didn't even bother to fold the diaper up, he simply scraped what he could off of Peter and then tossed it away before wiping Peter down with some wipes and setting the boy's legs down.
"I'm sorry," Peter whined again as he looked at Tony with obvious concern.
"Don't be sorry Peter. It's not your fault," Tony said with a nervous smile before taking the baby powder and applying it to Peter. Within a few minutes Peter was standing back up again in a fresh diaper.
"Congratulations Boss! You can now add diaper changing to your resumé." Friday proclaimed.
"When did you become so sassy?" Tony grumbled as he rolled his eyes before getting up and stepping towards the sink to wash his hands. Looking back at his son, Tony sighed. "Okay Peter. While changing your diaper is great, and I feel like we've really bonded, I honestly don't want to repeat that. So try not to go in your diaper, okay? It's okay to have accidents, don't feel bad if you do go in it...but if you have to go to the bathroom, just tell me and we'll work on that. Okay?" Tony said wearly as he eyed the little boy.
"Okay," Peter said with a nod.
"Alright then. Let's go get breakfast, huh?" Tony said as he dried his hands and ushered Peter out of the bathroom. He would deal with the diaper in the trash later.
When Pepper walked into the kitchen area of the living-space, she was surprised to see Tony and Peter sitting at the table with eggs, turkey-bacon, and apple slices on each plate. Honestly the eggs looked overcooked, the bacon looked a little more crispy than it should for peak taste, and the apples were cut askew with seeds still on some of the edges of the fruit. But when Pepper looked over to Peter, he was eating the food with a big smile on his face. It was clear he was enjoying himself, and Pepper didn't want to say anything to ruin that.
"Did Tony cook you breakfast?" Pepper asked as she sat down at the table across from Peter and next to Tony. Both boys turned their heads to look at Pepper and Peter opened his full mouth at the sight of her.
"Aunt Pepper!" Peter giggled as egg spewed from his mouth and onto the table and plate underneath him.
"Good morning Peter," Pepper hummed as she leaned on one arm and reached out with the other to snag an apple off of Tony's plate. "Did you sleep okay in your new bed?" she asked, pulling off a few seeds before popping it into her mouth.
"No," Peter said innocently, shaking his head before finishing the food in his mouth. "I slept with daddy all night! I was too scared and the bed is too squishy," Peter said before taking some eggs in his hand and shoving it into his mouth.
Tony simply watched Peter as he ate his own food. He figured he would normally have Peter eat with a fork, but he was a kid, he could do what he want. Also, did he even know how to use a fork? Or did they just eat with their hands while in captivity? Honestly, Tony would not have be surprised if they had.
"Sorry Pep, Peter seems to like a firm mattress," Tony said, turning his head to look at the woman a little closer. "So what brings you here this early in the morning?" he asked.
"What, I can't just come up here to visit Peter?" Pepper said innocently before taking another apple off of Tony's plate. The inventor scrunched his nose together and stuck out his tongue, but the woman simply shook his head. "I did come up here to see Peter," she continued. "But I also came to tell you a few things," Pepper said as she shifted herself to look at Tony a little better.
"Lay it on me," Tony commanded.
"Well," She said, taking a deep breath. "I have a few things, but the most important one is that Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters will be coming today. I received a call from their office an hour ago so they should be here soon. They would like to meet with you and the girls that were kept...at that place. I think they are also evaluating the other two children," Pepper said as she watched Peter eat from the corner of her eye.
"What about Peter?" Tony asked. He tried not to show how hesitantly he had asked, but his voice gave it away.
"I'm not sure, but they didn't express interest in him. Either way, I should probably be there with you as well. I'm sure there is some legal paperwork one of us will have to fill out."
"Then who will watch Peter?" Tony asked, his eyes now solidly on the boy. He was eating, but it was clear that Peter was listening with interest.
"I can't just go with you?" Peter asked, his brows knitting together.
"I'm sure you can Peter. But it's going to be awfully boring, and you're going to have to behave so that the adults can talk," Pepper explained with a kind smile. And even though Pepper had good intentions, Tony couldn't help but feel put off by that statement. He felt like that was something Howard would have told him. And by God, he wasn't going to do anything that reminded him of Howard.
"Nah,' Tony said waving Pepper off. "I'm sure there is a toy in Peter's room he could bring to play with. Or he can watch something on the tablet. I'll have Friday download some games."
"You just have to be quiet so that we can talk-"
"And if you do make noises it will be okay because you're just a kid and-"
"Tony," Pepper warned as she raised an eyebrow. It was obvious that they had different opinions.
"I could stay with Peter,' a voice suddenly called out and the three looked up to see Steve Rogers standing at the threshold of the room. It was clear that his presence had taken them by surprise and the solder cracked a sheepish smile as he took a step closer. "Sorry. I didn't mean to sneak up on everyone. I just came in for breakfast and couldn't help but hear your conversation." - Tony blinked a few times as he looked at Steve. He was trying to process if that was actually a good idea, but before he could say anything someone else spoke up.
"Yeah! I wanna play with Mr. America," Peter interjected enthusiastically as he slammed his little fists on the table, sending two apple slices a few inches into the air before they landed outside of Peter's plate.
Tony looked over at Peter who was grinning back at him. His focus then went over to Pepper and then his gaze landed on Steve. There was absolutely no way he was going to let Steve watch Peter. It's not like he didn't think Steve was capable. He just had his own issues to work out with the man before-
"Please!" the little boy said when Tony had not said anything.
"Alright, alright. Mr. America can stay with you," Tony said with a heavy sigh as he rolled his eyes. It was clear Peter had a thing for Steve, and the inventor wasn't sure how thrilled he was about it.
"Yay," Peter cheered as he wiggled his little body from side to side as he sat in his chair.
"Then that settles it. Steve will watch Peter till we are finished," Pepper said as she stood up and grabbed Tony's arm, hauling him out of his seat. "Let's get you looking presentable. They will be here soon," she said and began to tow the man out of the room. "We'll be back later Peter, just be good for Mr. Rogers and do what he tells you to do." Pepper said with a small wave.
"Okay," Peter said as he waved back at a very agitated Tony and a smug looking Pepper.
"I'll be back soon buddy," Tony said quickly, trying to get in a quick goodbye. "I love you," he added on before he brain could stop him. He didn't know why he had said it...it just sort of fell out of his mouth.
A warm feeling was creeping in Tony's chest and he tried to process his emotions, and it didn't help that Peter replied with a "Love you too." - Before he could do anything about it, he was out the door with Pepper.
Now it was only Steve and Peter.
"Are you hungry?" Peter asked as he eyed Steve who was now sitting down at the table across from Peter.
"I sure am," Steve said as a small smile spread across his face. The food Tony had cooked was out on the table so Steve simply grabbed a spare plate and began to serve himself some eggs and bacon.
"Well, eat up all that food. You have to eat a lot to be big and strong," Peter said, his attention now back on his own plate of food.
"You go it mostly right," Steve chuckled as he began to eat the overly cooked breakfast.
From there the two fell into a comfortable silence of just eating. They stayed like that for a while and Peter seemed to be content with it. Steve simply ate his food as he watched Peter eat his own. When the little boy was finished, Steve got up to take his plate and wash it, but the little boy opened his mouth before he could touch the plate.
"I didn't recognize you with you beard," Peter said, his eyes trained to the table a few inches in front of him.
Steve suddenly stopped, his breath catching in his throat as his eyes shot up to Peter. What had he just said?
"What do you mean by that Peter?" Steve asked as he forgot about the plate and sat back down in his seat.
"When you got me and the others out of that place...I didn't recognize you because you had a beard," Peter explained, his eyes still avoiding Steve as he spoke. "But you're Steven Grant Rogers, Captain America. Born July 4th, 1918. Right?" Peter asked, his large brown eyes now flickering up to meet Steve's.
"How-?" Steve began but then recalled that Peter had been in a HYDRA base. He knew very little about what they had wanted Peter for, but from the file he had read over, and some questions he had asked FRIDAY about Tony's findings, he had a fairly good idea. "How much do you know?" Steve finally asked.
"Everything," Peter said almost automatically, though his voice quivered slightly. It was obvious he was nervous.
"Everything?"
"Yeah. Everything about you. Even stuff before you became Captain America. I know about Mr. Barnes and I know about your shield and-"
"Wait," Steve said in shock as he leaned forward towards Peter. "You even know about Bucky?" Steve asked. Peter shrank back a little more and his eyes went back to his lap as he began to grab at his own fingers with nervous energy.
"Sure. I know about all of the Avengers," Peter said with a shrug. "I know about Natasha Romanova and the red room...and a lot more. I know about Dr. Bruce Banner and his work with gamma radiation. And then Tony and his Iron Man suits. I know how they are built and how to shut them down and stuff like that...but that's only for the old suits." Peter said in a quiet voice.
"You know your dad is Iron Man?" Steve asked, to which he got a head nod. "And you know how his old suits work. Inside and out?" Steve asked, getting another nod. And all Steve could do was look at Peter in shock. Because holy shit, if they would have never found Peter, HYDRA would have turned him into a deadly tool. He would have been the ultimate weapon. He could have easily infiltrated them and taken them down from the inside.
In fact..it could be happening right now.
Steve stood up slowly and made his way around the table so that he and Peter were on the same side. Once Steve was near the boy he crouched down so they were able to look at each other with ease.
"Please don't tell daddy," Peter suddenly spoke up as tears began to collect in his eyes.
"Why not Pete?" Steve asked, his brow knitting together.
"I don't want him to think I'm bad," the little boy stammered as the tears began to fall. "I don't want him to be mad at me for knowing secret things.I don't want him to hate me. I-I wish I didn't know them but they made me know all that stuff. It's not my fault." Peter cried out, covering his small face with his hands.
"Hey now," Steve said calmly as he reached out and pulled the little boy up against his chest. "If Tony knew about this, he wouldn't be mad," Steve said, trying to sooth the boy. "Your dad loves you, you hear me? He wouldn't be mad, just a little worried," Steve said. The little boy was now shaking against his body, and the man couldn't help but feel bad for thinking (even for a moment) that Peter as some sort of threat. He was a little boy who was scared, and who felt safe enough around Steve to tell him the truth.
"He won't be mad that I saw super secret things?" Peter muttered into Steve's side.
"Never." Steve said, squeezing the boy's shoulders. "He won't be mad at you. Just the bad people who had you." Steve explained. "You did nothing wrong though, understand?" Steve asked as he pulled away enough so that he could take Peter's chin in his hand and tilt it up so they were looking at each other. Peter just blinked up at the blonde ban a few times, as if trying to find the right words.
"Okay." Peter sniffed. "But would you help me tell him?"
"Of course Peter," Steve said, wiping away some tears with his thumb. "I'd do anything for you."
Also, Silverink58 did an amazing commission for me! It's from the bathtub scene in Chapter 8 and it's so cute! I honestly can't thank them enough for their hard work on this. It's amazing and warms my heart! (It's the cover of this fic, as well as my new avatar. check it out!)