A/N: Fluff, so much fluff. Your teeth will rot. You have been warned. Little bits of Angst, determined Tony, Sassy Steve, adorable Peter, cute Wade, and fluff.
So this story will officially become a series. I have an idea of where I want this one to end, where it'll feel natural, and then I'll probably launch right into the next story. Most of them will be multi-chapter fics, and I'll throw in some one-shots here and there. Most will probably be scenes that occur during time-jumps, or stuff that just doesn't fit into a chapter. I can't wait guys! So, here is a special, fun, chapter for you all!
Also, I'm posting some screenshots of the program that I use to try and keep everything in some kind of timeline order, so I remember what's happened and when. It's another peek into my crazy mind. You can find it over at my tumblr (megaranoelle. tumblr. com)
I'm also thinking in the future (near future), if people are interested, in making gift fics, because that's fun. More into that later.
Unbeta'd, and Marvel owns more of this than I do.
Also, if you go to my Tubmlr page (megaranoelle. tumblr. com) you can catch some behinds the scene stuff about the fic. No spoilers, promise. Maybe you can influence the story.
Steve was sitting with the two boys in the living room while Tony was making the hot cocoa. He claimed that Steve couldn't be in the kitchen because he was making his secret hot cocoa, and it was a family recipe that no one else could know. Peter claimed that it would be worth it. Steve let Peter and Wade pick a spot on the couch, and then go through the movie list. Steve had told Wade that he had done a good job with helping Peter in the bedroom while Tony was comforting the younger boy. Wade seemed to have done this before, and Steve was curious about why a young boy knew how to comfort night terrors.
"My mom is sick." Steve was pulled from his thoughts by the sounds of Wade's voice. The boy was young, he had just turned 9, barely over two years older than Peter, but he spoke with a confidence in his voice that Steve expected to hear from teenagers. Peter was leaning against Wade's side, looking at Steve, too. "She has bad cancer."
"Wade can tell what people are thinking sometimes," Peter told him. He was sounding calmed down a lot from the nightmare now.
"Sometimes my mom had bad nights, when she can't sleep," Wade continued. "And I can't sleep, and then I'll sit with her. She can't work sometimes, but I know that she's gone to find Jackson because he helps her with the cancer."
"Is he a doctor?" Steve asked, turning and facing the boys. Wade hummed and nodded.
"But she doesn't get better," Wade said. Peter seemed to burrow into Wade's side a little more, wrapping the big blanket around them tighter. Tony came out with a platter of a mugs, setting them down on the coffee table. He glanced at them and raised an eyebrow. "I was telling Mr Steve that my Mom is sick with cancer." Tony's eyes widened a little.
"How do you know so much about this?" Tony asked softly as he sat on the other side of the boys, so he and Steve were on either side of them.
"She tried to hide it from me, but I talked to Jackson about it, too," Wade said as if it made all the sense in the world.
"Is Jackson who she went to go look for?" Tony asked, and Wade nodded.
"He helps her, gives her medicine to try and make her feel better." Tony handed Peter his cocoa, then handed a mug to Wade, who took a drink right away. "This is really good!"
"It's Daddy's Mama's special drink," Peter told him with a smile.
Tony was chewing on the inside of his cheek at Wade's words. He wondered how bad the boys Mom was, what kind of cancer she had, and if she should really be out and about. He was glad that he hadn't sent her out alone, and the volunteers would have called if something had happened. But in the morning Tony wanted to talk to her, he could help her.
Steve reached over the back of the couch, tapping Tony's head with his finger, drawing him back from his thoughts. Tony shot Steve a little smile, a movie lighting up the TV screen in the living room. It didn't take long until the boys had finished their hot cocoa, and it had the desired effects that Tony had expected. Barely half way through the movie and they had fallen asleep, Peter leaning into Tony, and Wade leaning into Steve.
Tony watched Steve pull part of the blanket over Wade, adjusting him so that he was comfortable, but careful not to wake him up. A little part of Tony said that Steve was good with kids, but he had always known that. Steve would make a good dad, and that thought was the one that worried Tony a little.
His mind took him back to the gym, how they had been talking, and suddenly, they weren't. He could still feel Steve's hand against his cheek, and Tony knew he was going to be in trouble if that happened again. Steve was going to want to have a conversation about what happened, and Tony knew that they would need it, but he also really didn't want to have that awkward conversation. It would be better to just not let it happen again, no matter how good all of it had felt.
Even the kiss had been amazing, and Tony had kissed a lot of people in his time. The two kisses with Steve had been so much better than any kiss he had had with George, and that had been Tony's latest, and rare, attempt at something serious.
Steve rubbed Wade's arm as he slept, the movie still going, but his mind was on Tony. He wasn't sure what had come over him, why he had stepped to Tony like he did, but he didn't regret it. When he touched Tony, and saw him practically cry at the touch, he felt something tight in his chest. Tony hadn't been the first man that he had kissed, there had been an Allied soldier in France on one of their missions, but he hadn't kissed like Tony had.
Perhaps the past few months, all the avoiding that Steve had done to Tony, was trying to tell him something. Maybe it was like when little kids had a crush, and they would pull hair, and kick toys, instead of being nice. Maybe Tony was his schoolyard crush, and his mind, and body, was trying to tell him now that maybe it was something else.
He had gotten to know Tony the father, then he found out that he was Howard's son, and he had trouble putting those two together, or maybe separating them. Was he really as mad at Tony as he thought he had been? Or was he just having his own issues with the identity reveal? They had worked well together during the battle, really well, and Steve had been devastated when thought that Tony was gone. Was that the wake up call his mind needed? He and Tony needed to have a talk, and even Steve knew that that was easier said than done.
Steve made a noise as he shifted, a blanket falling away from his shoulders. He opened his eyes, realizing that he had fallen asleep, and there was light streaming in through the windows now. He had fallen asleep on the couch. Looking around he noted that Tony, Peter, and Wade were gone, but someone had placed a blanket over him.
He pushed the blanket off and got up, heading for the hallway of bedrooms. The door to Peter's room was partially open, and when he peeked his head inside he saw that Peter and Wade were both asleep on the bed, looking much more peaceful than earlier that morning. He let out a little breath of relief at seeing them there. He moved to go check in Tony's bedroom, and saw that Mary's door was open a little. There was a voice talking inside, low and quiet.
Tony had went into Mary's room after putting the boys to bed, drawing a blanket up and over Steve. He had sat there in silence for hours, watching Mary sleep, thinking about what needed to be done, (he would be checking in with SHIELD today about Phil again), and of course, Steve. "What do I do, Mary?" He asked quietly. "He's Steve Rogers, saintly Captain America, and I'm the definition of debauchery. It's not cool to develop a crush on your childhood hero, and then to act on it, especially when said hero is also your own child's hero. This is all sorts of messed up."
He leaned back in the chair by her bed, tapping on his arc reactor. "What the hell is wrong with me? This is what I'm worrying about? I have to worry about Peter, and make sure that you're alright, and, Phil, and that's not even on top of the destruction to the city, and did you know about Wade's mother? I mean, you probably did, you were always better with other parents. I'm really kind of anti-social when you think about it. Not good at personal interactions, at all." Tony let out a breath. "I can just continue on, cause we said it, what happens in the gym, stays in the gym. That's a legit excuse, right?"
"It's a shit excuse, and you know it." Tony jumped at the voice behind him, nearly falling out of the chair, and turned around to glare at the intruder. The red-headed assassin gave him a little smirk. "You have to remember that you aren't the only ones who wake up in the middle of the night as well," she told him.
"You saw us?" Tony frowned a little.
"You didn't even bother to close the gym door," she retorted, leaning against the door frame. "Do you regret it?"
"I'm not having this conversation with you," Tony said, slumping back down into the chair.
"Yeah, but you have no intention of having this conversation at all, do you?" Natasha guessed and Tony wrinkled his nose up. "So might as well have it with me." Tony wasn't looking at her, and missed the pointed look out the door. "Do you regret it?" She asked again.
"No," Tony answered, staring at Mary's bed. He'd rather be having this conversation with her.
"But?" Natasha prompted after a couple seconds of silence.
"It's all ill-timed don't you think?" Tony turned his head to look at her. "Just after, whatever the hell we all went through, and I'm not exactly the most stable person in the world. There's a reason that I've been single for so long."
"Because you've been trying to protect yourself, and your son," she told him. "That much is obvious from the douche that plastered himself all over TV." Tony groaned. "Tell me you didn't seriously date him."
"Three dates," Tony grumbled. "That was it, and those I regret."
"But not what happened with Steve?" Tony raised an eyebrow at Natasha. "I'm just saying, you don't have to treat this the same. Steve knows about Peter, and Peter knows about him, so there's nothing to hide, or to try and protect."
"He's going to have his own problems to deal with, soon," Tony said, trying to throw the attention off of him. "It's not everyday that the world sees a long lost superhero come back from the dead."
"Most people won't believe that it's actually him, and he won't actually have to deal with that much if he decides to ignore the media," Natasha threw back.
"Well, in my life, I don't have that luxury," Tony said with a snort. "I've spent over six years trying to keep my son from the spotlight that is my life, and thanks to Loki, that's probably going to be ruined. Which, he's going to be here later today with Thor, just to let you know." Natasha's eyes narrowed a little, but she didn't comment on the new information. "If there were even a chance that anything would happen past what happened in the gym, then Steve would have to be ready to handle the press, no two ways around it."
"Steve's a big boy, he can take care of himself," she told him. "He's had over a year to start to get used to things. And he would be a very good ally to have with Peter. You already know that Mary trusts him."
"Why are you suddenly on Team Steve?" Tony looked at her and frowned.
"I've always been on Team Steve," Natasha said. "I've worked with him before, and I only spied on you." Tony gave her a little sneer. "But, with what I know about both of you, you'd work well together. You two would never be bored, that's for sure." She looked at him and shrugged a little, before turning on her heal and walking out. Tony sighed and looked back at Mary.
"How can you work with these people? They would drive me nuts." He slouched in the chair. "My life is so messed up."
Steve looked at Natasha as she walked out and he followed her down the hall a bit. "That doesn't count as a talk, just so you know," Steve said to her.
"Yeah, but it's as close as a talk as you're going to get for at least a couple days," Natasha countered. "Even if he doesn't know that you heard everything. What are your thoughts?"
"That I may have become more determined," Steve said. Natasha smirked.
"You're not doing this just to make yourself feel better because of what you used to think about him, are you?" Natasha looked at him. "He's not a charity case, and he's not a damsel in distress."
"I know that." Steve frowned. "It's not like I'm expecting to jump into something serious, because I don't think either of us is ready for that, yet." Natasha smirked at him, but didn't say anything. "I mean, not to say that I've been giving deep thought to anything, but it's not like I haven't given it any thought at all, but-"
"Would you like some advice?" Natasha asked him suddenly, mercifully cutting off his rambling. "Tony displays classic signs of touch deprivation. Try working with that, little things like touches on the arm, or back, pressing shoulders or knees together. If you're the touchy feely kind of guy that is, I don't know." She shrugged her shoulder, heading up the stairs back to her bedroom, going to check on Clint. "Good luck, Captain."
Steve followed her with his eyes. Classic signs? That wasn't something that he had ever heard of back in the 30's and 40's, so how was he supposed to know. But he could admit that her advice wasn't bad, and it was something that he could do, and maybe it would give Tony the time and space he needed. Steve could help, he wanted to help, and he could put up with the press or anything else that Tony worried about. He headed for the kitchen now, his goal to make breakfast for everyone this time.
Tony tore himself away from Mary's room, checked in on Peter and Wade to make sure they were still sleeping, then went back downstairs. He slipped into the underground garage where he had moved most of the cars, and set up a space that he was sure would contain Loki. Thor had assured him that shackles around his wrist dampened his magic to a point where he couldn't use it, so he just had to create something that would keep Loki in one place. Tony had gone the route of an electric fence, like a bad dog that couldn't stay in its own yard.
There was a cot against the wall, and he had even put a couple of books in there. Thor said he was waiting to gather the energy needed to go back to Asgard, or some such medieval thing, Tony wasn't exactly sure. All Tony had heard was that Loki might be staying there for a little bit, and even Tony wasn't cruel enough to not give someone something to do.
Tony went to all four corners, checking that the transmitters were working and hooked up to the system. There was the chip sitting in the leather cuff on the cot, and Tony thought that he would be able to slip it underneath the shackles on Loki's wrist, where the man wouldn't be able to get to it if Thor tightened them enough.
When he was satisfied that everything was working and would be ready, he changed the program on his Starkpad and brought up the system that was still running in SHIELD's systems, while he headed back for his workshop. No word from Fury yet, so now Tony had to take it into his own hands. The bug had been low level searching, avoiding anything that the agency was doing to update their security, gathering all the needed information to bypass it as it was implemented.
Tony hummed, looking through updated files on all of the Avengers, which he supposed they officially were now, which was kind of weird to think about. He went through and took out any information that linked Peter to him, because he still didn't trust SHIELD, and didn't want Peter's life in danger. The important people who needed to know about Peter knew through Tony himself, that was enough.
He stopped when he saw a file that had been tried to be redacted, but his bug had copied it first, making a ghost file for Tony. He frowned as he opened it, seeing a lot of medical jargon. Tony didn't think that would be out of the ordinary, there were a lot of SHIELD agents that had been injured during the attack on the Hellicarrier, but this was different, someone was trying to hide this file. It looked like it had been entered into the system for all of three minutes. That was enough time for someone to enter it, print it off to make a manual file, and then remove it from the system. It was considered a Level Seven security clearance.
Tony brought the pages up in front of him, blue glow of the hologram in front of him, eyes skimming over all the words at once. He was barely aware of the door opening behind him when he realized what he was looking at. Tony's mouth dropped open and his eyes widened, shock and anger coursing through him.
"Tony!" Tony jumped when Steve's hand reached his shoulder. "Are you okay?"
"No," Tony breathed, shaking his head. He looked at Steve, then back to the words in front of him, gesturing helplessly. "Coulson isn't dead." His hands circled around the files, brain working double time to actually comprehend what he was seeing. "He's not dead, but SHIELD is hiding him. They want us to keep thinking that he is. The bastards have no intention of telling us!"
Steve stared at what Tony was seeing, blinking rapidly. They had seen the blood on the cards though, on the wall. But they had never seen the body. "Dammit," Steve breathed out. When Tony started to swipe through files he stopped on a picture, and Steve had to turn, punching a dent into one of Tony's tables. There was Phil, in a hospital bed hooked up to a lot of the same machines that Mary was here in Tony's house, and looking alive by the heart monitor in the picture.
"I'm going to get him," Tony growled out. The files disappeared, the tablet turning off. "I'm bringing him back here." Steve grabbed Tony's arm, and his eyes flared with anger. "Don't even think about stopping me! There's nothing there they can do that I can't-"
"I'm going with you," Steve said, cutting off Tony's rant. His eyes were bright, a fire lit behind them. "You're going to need help getting him out." Tony looked at him then nodded once. "I'll get Barton and Romanoff, they'll know how to find him, and the best way to transport him."
"I have a truck," Tony said. Steve had a point about the transporting part, he hadn't thought that part through. "If we can get a stretcher, I'm sure we can make it work." Steve nodded and put a hand on Tony's back as they headed up for the stairs. They were going to get the man back. Tony would put a second bed in Mary's room if he had, too, if it meant that they would heal better, being together. But Coulson was a tying factor to all of the Avengers, to everyone that was in Tony's house.
In the end it was decided that Bruce would stay with the Fitzpatrick's to watch Peter and Wade, and Bruce would be able to keep Peter from seeing Loki again when they got back, Tony didn't want another reason for his son to have a nightmare. Clint and Natasha had come in a borrowed vehicle, and they said it would be better for them, plus Tony and Steve, to drive that back to SHIELD, then take a Quinjet back to the mansion. There was enough space to land on the helicopter landing on top of the mansion, even if it would draw a little bit of attention, and the Quinjet would be the easiest way to transport Coulson.
Natasha had done all the talking, and Clint looked about as ready to murder someone as Tony was feeling. They had no idea that the man was still alive, either. They would go with the excuse of picking up Loki and Thor, not wanting to transport them in a mere vehicle, in case someone got a little too curious, and the people of New York decided to take justice into their own hands. It was true though, a riot was not needed in the still rebuilding streets of New York.
"My doctors are setting up in the room next to Mary's," Tony said from the back, sitting next to Steve, looking down at his phone. "The room should be all set for when we get there, and I'll transmit all information to them
"You two should go talk to Fury, tell him and Hill that you're here for Thor and Loki," Natasha said from the front passenger seat. "It'll distract them enough for us to get to Coulson and get him to a Quinjet."
"Isn't it going to be hard to transport him from the room to the hangar?" Steve asked them. Tony looked up at the question.
"This isn't our first rodeo, Captain," Clint said with a small smirk. "You just worry about Fury and Hill, and getting Loki and Thor to the hangar. We'll need ten minutes."
"We can buy you the time," Steve said, and Tony nodded, agreeing. They'd give them all the time in the world.
Parking, the four split into the two groups, and Tony walked next to Steve as they headed for the level where they were supposed to meet with Thor. In the elevator Tony glanced at Steve, and the taller man moved a little closer to Tony, letting their shoulders almost touch. Tony resolutely did not think about how the small motion calmed him down a little.
"Friends," they heard Thor call to them as they walked down the hall. He was standing outside of a door, no doubt Loki's holding cell, and he smiled at them. "Tis a generous offer from you, Man of Iron, to give shelter until I am able to return to Asgard with my brother, and the tesseract."
"You'll be taking it back with you?" Steve asked when they stopped in front of the blonde man.
"Yes," Thor nodded. "It is where it belongs, having been lost from my father's vault many years ago. It has proven to not be safe here on Midgard."
"Not arguing with you on that one," Tony said, hands in his pockets. "It'll be a shame to see a possible source of clean energy go, but there are way too many volatile activities it could be used for. I don't think my Tower could take another hit from that thing."
"I am sorry for the destruction that was wrought to your Tower, and to this city," Thor said solemnly.
"Don't worry about it big guy, well, at least about the Tower," Tony said with a shrug. "So, it's possible to adjust Loki's pretty bracelets, right?" Thor tilted his head in question. "I have a way to contain him, and it'll work best if I'm able to put a thin cuff around one wrist, and I thought we could hide it under his own shackles, so it's harder for him to try and get off."
"Ah, yes," Thor nodded. "Indeed, this is something that can be done. I am merely waiting for your Director's return with the tesseract, and then we will be able to depart."
"We're getting the transportation ready," Steve told him, glancing down the hall. Tony could hear the boots of Fury coming, and assumed that Agent Hill would be right behind him. Steve glanced at Tony, silently reminding him to try and keep his cool, they couldn't jeopardize their plan yet. Tony just gave him a nod.
"Captain, Stark," Fury said as they approached the small group. "I see you're ready to take a couple things off our hands?"
"Can't say I'm not glad to see them go," Hill murmured, handing Thor a bottle of water. IN her other hand she held a silver briefcase, one that no doubt held the tesseract. Thor nodded to them, and opened the door behind him, Tony closely following behind him. He could stand to be in a room with Loki again over Fury, and wasn't that just peachy.
Loki was sitting, and he had a new accessory, something over his mouth, that actually looked a little painful. If the glare he leveled at Thor was anything to go by, it must have been. Steve had walked in as well, and frowned a little when he saw the mouth piece. "Is that necessary?" Steve asked, glancing between Thor and Fury.
"I like to think that it is," Fury spoke up first. "I was getting tired of hearing his voice."
"Can he do any magic with just his voice?" Steve asked, this time looking at Thor. Thor had gone over to Loki and carefully removed the gag, handing the bottle of water to Loki. The skin was red where the gag had been.
"Not with the shackles on," Thor told them.
Tony stole a glance at his watch. They still needed to buy some time, and at this rate they were going to be ready to go in less than two minutes. Tony looked at Steve, then walked over to Thor and Loki, feeling Steve's blue eyes on him. "Thor, do you mind if I take a look at that? I can't stop the curiosity in me." Thor nodded, handing over the gag, before helping Loki stand. It was eerie that he was so silent now.
Tony turned over the Asgardian metal carefully, and winced a little when he saw what looked to be little metal burrs on the inside. They looked like they would be painful. "Why does it feel like they made this specifically for you Prancer?" Maybe it he could antagonize Loki a little, it would buy them the few extra minutes they would need. "Legends call you Silvertongue, right?" Loki turned his glare to Tony now. "Have they used it on you before? Just how much does it hurt?"
"I could show you, if it would satisfy your curiosity." Tony turned a little to look at Loki when he suddenly moved. It was faster than anyone thought that he would be able at the moment, and in one second Loki had grabbed Tony's hands with his bound ones, slammed his hands up and smirked a bit when the gag latched onto Tony's face.
The room exploded with shouting and moving, Thor grabbing Loki's arms and pulling him back, shoving him up against the opposite wall, Steve shouting Tony's name and lunging towards Tony, Fury and Hill each drawing their weapons to point at Loki, who had started to actually giggle. Tony gasped, then felt the burs dig in around his lips, fine silver points easily sinking into the skin. Pain flared up and he felt Steve's hands catching his arms, holding him up.
Tony's eyes had widened, and his breathing picked up. "Tony, listen to me," Steve said, catching Tony's attention. "Stay calm, don't move." Tony, being who he was and unable to resist moving his mouth, tried to talk and ended up moaning in pain, a moan that was quickly turning into something more strangled. His gripped Steve's arms tight with his hands. "Thor! How do you get this thing off!"
"It is imperative that he not move," Thor growled out, his glare still focused on Loki. "There are latches at either side that will need to be pressed carefully, and slowly removed. If it is done too quickly the skin will tear."
Steve could feel a fine tremble in Tony's hands as amber eyes opened to meet his. He must have heard Thor's words. "Hands on my shoulders, Tony." Tony nodded, slowly moving his hands up to grip Steve's shoulders. "I'm gonna do this slowly, I'm gonna get this off, alright? I'm sorry if it hurts." Tony rolled his eyes a little, a sign of 'Get on with it.' Steve took a couple of breaths and reached both his hands up to one side of Tony's face, feeling for a latch, and gently lifting it. Tony winced a little, but otherwise didn't move. He could hear the hard breaths coming from Tony's nose, his hands moving to the other side. The second latch was lifted, and Tony closed his eyes tightly. The gag hadn't just fallen right off, it was still clinging to Tony's mouth. Not Steve knew why Thor had said to remove it slowly.
Careful hands gripped the metal on either side, and slowly started to pull. Steve felt a little resistance, and he tried not to think about what was happening. When Tony was finally free of the odd device, he took a gasping breath. Steve saw the fine pinpricks of blood around his mouth and on his lips, then looked inside the gag and saw the metal burrs.
Tony let go of Steve, turning on Loki, brought his hand back and launched a well place punch to Loki's jaw, sliding his arm in right past Thor. Loki let out a huff, stopping giggling, and just smirked a bit. "I believe that answers your questions, does it not?" Tony wound back, and punched Loki one more time.
"Tony," Steve put a hand on Tony's shoulder, but didn't pull him back. It wasn't that Loki didn't deserve it. Thor took the gag back, placing it back over Loki's mouth, for a few minutes not feeling so bad about it, and Tony took a couple steps back. Steve saw Tony glance at his watch and blinked. Tony had been buying them time. He probably hadn't planned on Loki's reaction, but he had tried to start an argument to buy them more time.
"I have the perfect place to put him," Tony growled under his breath. "Let's just get out of here." He tried to dodge Steve's hand when he tried to look at his mouth. He grabbed the briefcase that that Hill had dropped to the floor when she pulled her weapon and walked out of the room. Thor walked behind Loki, guiding him out of the room, Steve following. Today was already turning out to be an interesting day, and it wasn't even lunch time.
Natasha was waiting for them in the hanger, standing by one of the quinjets, the engines already going, ready to take off. "About time, she said when they walked out. "I want to get back before the guys eat all of the bacon." She gave a short nod to Fury and Hill, Thor and Loki were next, Tony following with a bit of space, and Steve after him. Steve made sure that the back of the quinjet was raising before anyone could say anything and Clint was already taking off.
Tony put the briefcase down, furthest away from Loki, and he and Steve followed Natasha off to the side. Thor was looking over quizzically as well. "You took the whole hospital bed?" Steve looked at the red-head as Tony went about checking Coulson's chart. Tucked into the corner and strapped down was Phil Coulson, asleep and unconscious in the hospital bed, with minimal equipment surrounding him. The sounds of the engines had drown out the sound of beeping machines.
"It was easier," she said shrugging, moving to the co-pilot seat besides Clint. "We didn't want to move him to another bed, it was faster this way as well."
Steve shook his head a little and looked at Tony. "Well, it was nearly as bad as Fury made it out to be, he doesn't even have to be on oxygen." Tony flipped through a couple of pages. "The spear nicked one of the ventricles to the heart, but they emergency surgery to fix that, and they've kept him in a drug induced coma to make sure that it heals correctly." Tony took pictures of the pages, sending them to the doctors at the mansion. "I think he should be awake by the end of the week at most." Steve nodded, letting out a little smile. They needed a win in their column right now. They would deal with Fury later.
"Then the Son of Coul will make a full recovery?" Thor asked, a smile on his face. Steve nodded, and Thor's smile brightened more. "I am glad that the Gods smile upon him so kindly."
"So am I," Tony said quietly, Steve's supesoldier hearing picking it up.
Tony went with Clint, and Thor to make sure that Loki would be secure, and Steve went with Natasha to watch the doctors check over Coulson. The conferred with everything that Tony had said on the ride back, took some mobile xrays, and what they told Steve was a mobile CAT scan machine, but it just looked like the oddest thing he had ever seen. Steve also wondered where Tony kept all this stuff.
Steve was talking to Mary's doctor in the hall when Tony came back up. "Mr Stark," the doctor greeted. "As I was telling Captain Rogers, Miss Parker is recovering nicely. Her breaks are healing cleanly, which is the best we could have hoped for. She will need some light physical therapy when she wakes up-"
"Do you know when she might wake up?" Tony interrupted. Steve nudged his arm a little, and Tony gave a little apologetic wince to the Doc.
She just smiled at Tony, then shook her head. "I'm sorry, I don't. We're keeping a close eye on brain wave activities, looking for swelling, but sometimes the body just does what it wants to do. I know that isn't the answer that you were hoping for, but I can be positive that she will wake up." Tony let out a little sigh and nodded. "I can give you good news on Mr Coulson, though." Both Tony and Steve perked a little bit at that. "We're going to bring him back to the waking world tomorrow afternoon if all our tests come back positively."
"So soon?" Steve asked, a little furrow between his brows. "That won't hurt him, or damage the surgery that he had?"
"Not in the least," she shook her head. "We actually need him awake to see how well the surgery will hold. His heart has been controlled to work at a regular constant, but we need to get his heart used to working at its normal paces. It will help him heal as well, I'm very confident in his recovery."
"So, full disclosure," Tony started, "Agent and Mary are dating, relatively seriously, too." The Doctor glanced at Steve for a second, and he just motioned between to Coulson's room. Steve was actually a little happy to hear Tony going back to calling Coulson by his ridiculous nickname. "As soon as he wakes up, he's gonna wanna go see his lady love, so what are the chances that he can move from the bed?"
"Not very high for the first day or two," she said. "We want to get his heart working at normal pace again, but the stress of walking might overdo it right away."
"What about putting him in a wheelchair?" Steve asked.
"I'll consider it," she told them. "It'll just depend on how things go tomorrow." She nodded to the men, and went back to find her colleagues.
Tony let out a breath, nodding a little. Steve put a hand on his arm and he found Steve's blue eyes. He was smiling at him a little and Tony returned it. "So, I'm not sure if this is the right thing to do, but I'm thinking of not telling Peter until tomorrow," Tony said, a little wince on his face. "And only because, I want him to see Agent when he's awake. Don't wanna traumatize the kid with another sleeping person, and have him think that he might not wake up, too."
Steve blinked a little, wondering why Tony was telling him this, then he realized that Tony was kind of asking his opinion. "I would say that that's probably not a bad idea," Steve said carefully. "I'm usually not for keeping something from anyone, especially Peter, but he's been through a lot the past few days." Tony nodded a little, his fingers starting to snap in a nervous habit. Steve touched Tony's elbow, and the man stopped snapping and looked at Steve. "Why don't you go in and see him first."
"Ah, no, I don't have too, I mean," Tony started to ramble, taking a step back. "You probably knew him better, I mean, he had your cards. I'm just the one that brings the doctors and makes sure that everyone gets better, saving the world and all that-"
"You're more than that," Steve said to him. "You led the damn charge to go down and get Coulson."
"No, no," Tony shook his head. "I found the information, then Natasha and Clint came up with the plan."
"You were a man on a mission," Steve told him. "When you found out that he was still alive, you were ready to set fire to something. And then, when we needed more time, you did something incredibly stupid, but you bought time for Clint and Natasha." Steve's thumb brushed gently by Tony's mouth. The marks would heal without issues. "That was all you, and you did that without any prompting, because you care. None of us would be here if it wasn't for you, and that means you matter."
Tony looked at Steve as he spoke, a little taken aback if he were honest with himself, and he saw the fire in Steve's eyes, but it was a good thing. But then he saw something else, and it really hit Tony then, Steve was still young, like really young. He had gone into the war barely over Twenty, and that was all he had known after that. Steve was still stuck in a Twenty-Six year old body, never really having grown up, had fun, done everything he should have been doing in his Twenties.
While Tony wasn't that much older than him, he had done so much more, and had actually been able to live. Shit, what was Tony thinking, why was Steve Rogers giving him a pep talk? This kid had had to grow up way to fast, at much too young an age, even before becoming Captain America. Tony couldn't trap him in any kind of relationship with him, he was too messed up for that.
Tony suddenly reached up, putting a hand on Steve's cheek, and Steve stopped talking. He turned his head a little, almost hesitantly, and kissed Tony's palm. "Tony?"
"Sorry, just, my mind wandered a little," Tony said softly. "Listen, I'm serious, you go in there first and I'll make sure everything is set up with the doctors, get them whatever they need. Gotta check in with Petey, too." Tony pulled his hand back and was heading down the hallway at a quick pace, leaving a slightly stunned Steve in his place.
Tony found Bruce first, he was sitting out in the covered patio, windows open to let the breeze, and the smell of the gardens in. There was a teapot there, and an empty mug of tea in front of him, and he was sitting on the ground. Tony walked over, sitting next to him, and Tony thought he had been silent, but Bruce opened an eye to look at him.
"Peter and Wade are with his grandparents," Bruce told him. "They went out into the gardens." Tony nodded a little. "I'm glad I've already had my tea. Spill."
Tony twitched his nose a little, then poured more tea in the mug for Bruce. "When Cap came to talk to you yesterday, was it awkward?" What kind of opening line was that?
"What is it that you have discovered?" Bruce asked, ignoring Tony's question. "What possible thing would be important enough to try and talk yourself out pursuing anything with Steve?" Tony looked over at the older man. "Please, I've known you for like, fifteen years now, Tony. I knew you before you hired Pepper. You're both attracted to each other, and only you could possibly find a reason to not pursue a relationship with him. I know this, because I did in fact talk with him yesterday, and I know he's not the one about to say no."
"He's still just a baby, Bruce," Tony whined a little. "He went into the war at drinking age, for fucks sake, and then he never really, left the war. He fell in the ship, and he came out here, and I'm sure Mary did what she could, and then he was suddenly Captain America again when Loki came, and he's never been able to grow up."
"So that makes him incapable of making his own decisions?" Bruce asked carefully. "And he's only about seven years younger than you, that's not much of an age difference." Tony scrunched up his face.
"He shouldn't choose to be with someone like me. I've got anxiety attacks, and nightmares, and so many Daddy issues it's not funny," Tony moaned a little. "I'm already a father, and sure my son likes him, but that doesn't mean he's ready to be a dad-"
"Actually, I'm pretty sure that he's told you that he was," Bruce threw in.
"-but he should be finding someone who's stable. And possibly female. Not that I'm judging, because, hello, if there was another species out there that actually looked hot, I'm pretty sure I'd be there."
Bruce snorted. "No, you wouldn't, not anymore."
"Well, I would have!" Tony snapped a little. "But's that's not the point. The point is Rogers."
"The point is that you like him a hell of a lot more than you thought," the older man inferred. "And it's scaring you."
"And it's scaring me," Tony admitted softly. "How are you always able to do that?"
"Because I know you, Tony, sometimes I know you better than you know yourself." Bruce took a sip of his tea. "So, before you think that you're robbing the cradle, or whatever, really think about what it is you want. If you want to start something with Steve, that's fine, and if you want to move slow, that's okay, too. Think about what you want in the future, then decide if that's something you think you could give him, and yourself."
"I've got to think about Peter, too," Tony said weakly. They both knew that was a non-issue, Peter adored Steve.
"If you were in a relationship with Steve, would you try to make him happy?" Bruce was looking out the window at the gardens as he spoke. Tony envied how peaceful he could be sometimes.
"Of course I would," Tony said. "If I was in a relationship, I would try and take it seriously."
Bruce just hummed and nodded. "Then I think that you have your answer." Tony watched Bruce for a few quiet moments. He knew that he owed Bruce a lot, probably his life. If it hadn't been for him figuring out what Howard had been up too, it would probably be Tony that was trying to keep a rage monster behind bars all the time. That wouldn't have ended well.
"Thanks, Bruce." Tony pushed himself up, leaving the patio, taking a turn and walking out into the gardens. He could hear the voices of Peter and Wade, it sounded like they were playing tag or something, and Tony knew just where to head. He turned through some bushes, to the center of the garden where there were chairs, and a large circular area that his mother had set up for entertaining. Rachel was sitting in one of the chair, underneath the large umbrella, while William was walking around, Peter holding onto one leg, and Wade holding onto the other. Tony smiled as he watched them.
"Daddy!" Peter spotted Tony and grinned, hopping down to the ground and running towards Tony. Tony reached down and grabbed Peter, swinging him around once, then hugging him tightly. "Hi, Daddy," he giggled, hugging him back. "You missed breakfast."
"I did, but I'm back now," he smiled at him, walking over to the little group. "Did you eat all your food?"
"Yup!" Peter nodded, smiling. "And I drank all my juice, too."
"That's my boy," Tony said, kissing his cheek. He set Peter down, then ruffled Wade's hair, chuckled when the boy tried to wiggle away from the hand. "And did you eat all your breakfast, Wade?"
"Sure did," he said with a grin. "Mr Steve is a really good cook." Peter nodded along with the statement. "He said that he'd take us swimming later today, too."
"Are you gonna come swimming with us, Daddy?" Peter asked, both boys looking up at him with brown eyes shining.
Tony blinked a little. "I'll come down to the pool with you, sure." He didn't have to go swimming, all he had to do was be in the same room with them. He'd be fine. The two boys whooped and went running back inside. "Don't run so fast in the house!" He shouted after them, and the retreating steps became quieter as they slowed down. "Thank you!"
"Where did you disappear to this morning?" Rachel asked from her seat.
"I had to go pick up the last of our teammates." He let the sentence soak in for a second, waited for Rachel to brim with anger, her mouth opening to berate him again. "And I found Phil Coulson alive, and brought him back here." And then he watched the anger drain from her face, along with a little bit of color.
"What?" William stepped closer to Tony. "But, I thought-"
"We all thought that," Tony told him seriously. "They were lying to us, trying to hide it, and I couldn't stand for that. So we went down there and brought him back here." Tony let a little smile escape when William started to grin. "He's gonna be fine, and the doctors say that he should be awake tomorrow. I don't want to tell Peter until he wakes up, though, because it'll be a nice surprise I think."
"That's good work, Tony," William said, clapping a hand on his arm. "That's real good work. Mary'll be real happy about that when she wakes up." Tony smiled and nodded.
Steve was searching through ebay, (with Jarvis's help), looking for some replacement Captain America cards, when Peter and Wade ran up to him. They stopped inches away from his legs, and they both stared at him, quietly, something brewing behind their eyes. Steve raised his head a little to look at them. These two were going to be troublemakers as they got older.
"May I help you two?" Steve asked them after several seconds of silence.
"Can we go swimming now?" Peter asked quietly, smiling.
"It's been an hour after lunch," Wade added in. Now that Steve looked at them, they were holding their hands behind their backs as well.
"Alright, but you have to get all your swim stuff ready," Steve told them.
"We're already wearing our suits," Peter informed him, smiling.
"And our towels are waiting in the pool room," Wade said after him.
Steve chuckled a little at them. "Alright, let's go swimming."
Peter and Wade shared a look, then grinned, and suddenly they were moving their arms, jumping on Steve. His eyes widened as the boys launched their surprise attack, but within seconds they were gone, running towards the pool room, giggling. Steve had floaties around his wrists and ankles, and there was a small inner-tube around his neck.
"Ah, so they attacked you," Tony said with amusement from the entryway of the living room. Steve turned to look at him, seeing him in board shorts and a blank tank-top. He threw a bundle of clothes at Steve, and he caught them on reflex. "There's a changing room inside the pool room, I'm pretty sure those trunks should fit you. Come on, Soldier, before they come back and attack you with pool noodles."
Steve pushed himself up from the couch, putting the tablet down on the coffee table, and following Tony. "Pool noodles?"
"Large foam things that are used in pools. They're supposed to help float in the water, but human ingenuity turned them into so many other things," Tony chuckled. "I'm sure you'll see them in all their glory in the pool."
"Those don't exactly look like swim trunks to me," Steve said as he look at what Tony was wearing, pushing the door to the pool room open for him. Peter and Wade were throwing different pool toys in the pool, and Steve pulled all the floaties off, throwing those in the shallow end as well.
"That's because I don't swim," Tony said casually, grabbing a pile of towels, lining them up on a table.
"You don't know how to swim?" Steve asked, a little shocked that he wouldn't have gotten lessons.
"No, I said I don't swim, not that I don't know how." Tony corrected him. He looked passed Steve for a second. "Alright, you two can get in now," he called, the two boys jumped into the water. Jarvis had put up a floating barrier that let the boys know where not to go, where it would be far too deep for them. "The changing room is right over that way." Tony motioned with both of his arms like Vanna White showing off a prize, giving a wide, cheesy, grin to go with it. "I have to watch the boys until you get back."
Steve could hear the splashing behind him, and headed for the changing room. He couldn't help but wonder why Tony didn't swim, but figured that he would tell him in his own time.
Tony could definitely admire Steve's body when he came out in the blue swim trunks, and got into the pool with the boys. Like Tony had predicted, Steve became well acquainted with the pool noodles. He was sitting in one of the loungers, some yellow colors sunglasses on, arms behind his head, just enjoying the temperature controlled room, and the sounds of splashing and laughing.
Tony's phone buzzed from the table, and he reached over to grab after letting out a breath. He looked at it and saw that it was the satellite phone he had given to Wade's mom. He caught Steve's attention, pointed to the phone, then the door. The blonde nodded, and went back to his pool noodle battle against Peter and Wade. Tony stepped just outside the door and answered the phone.
"Hello," Tony greet with a smile. The joy in the pool room had become a little infectious. "Tony Stark's Water World at your service, how can I help you?"
There was a little chuckle over the phone, but it sounded a little forced and Tony frowned a little. "Hi Mr Stark," Mrs Wilson said, and she sounded tired, or something. "Sounds like the boys must be having a lot of fun."
"They are," he said. "Are you okay?"
"Of course," she said a little too quickly.
"Wade told us about your cancer last night." Tony winced a little. He really had no tact sometimes. "Sorry, I didn't-"
"It's alright," she assured him. "He worries sometimes."
"Did you find Jackson?" There was a pause and Tony really didn't like that.
"He didn't make it, he was in Midtown during the attack." She turned away from the phone, but Tony still heard her air stealing cough. Tony bit the inside of his cheek.
"Listen, get yourself to a hospital, Julie," Tony told her when he was sure she was back at the phone. "There's one in Queens that won't be as busy."
"Mr Stark-"
"Call me Tony, in fact, tell them that Tony Stark sent you," he continued. "Wade told us about Jackson, that he helps you. I'm assuming it's because your job doesn't exactly offer amazing health benefits."
"I can't ask you to-"
"You're not asking me anything." Tony had a soft spot for single parents. When Peter had first met Wade, he had done the over protective father thing and looked up Wade Wilson, and his family. His mom, Julie Wilson, was divorced from her husband, who worked in the military. It had taken a little bit of digging, but he found buried reports of abuse, and that's why she had left.
"I happen to know that they have an excellent cancer center at the hospital, and they'll give you any treatment that you need." And if he happened to know a few people on the Board of the hospital, well that never hurt as well. "You're sick, I can hear it," his voice softened. "Wade can stay here with us as long you need, and when you get checked in, I'll bring him over to visit you."
"He'll worry, for sure," she agreed.
"Yeah, but you'll be able to tell him that you'll be okay," Tony said. "I know I don't know you that well, like, at all, but, Wade's a good kid, and he means a lot to Peter, and you mean a lot to Wade." Tony stuck his hand in his pocket, shrugging a little to himself. "I'm an engineer, a mechanic, I like to fix things, it's what I'm good at."
There was a soft laugh, and he finally heard a smile in the voice on the line. "Alright, I'll go." Tony smiled a little. "Thank you Mr-Tony."
"Yeah, yeah," Tony said waving his hand, unable to talk without his hands even over the phone. "Shoot me a call once you're all settled, or if you run into any trouble. I'll get that little spitfire of a kid over to see you after that." She thanked him again and the line disconnected.
Tony stepped back into the pool room, and saw that the pool noodle battles were over. Steve was trying to weave the pool noodles together to make some kind of raft. "Daddy! Come help us!" Peter called when he saw that he was back. Tony swallowed a little and walked over to the side of the pool, sitting down on the edge, and slowly letting his feet dip into the water.
"Go ahead and bring that over here." He motioned to Steve. "Let the engineer fix this." Steve walked over with the pool noodles, his first attempt already starting to unravel. "Wet noodles are the worst." Tony shot Steve a little smirk, and brought the water toys up into his lap. Steve rolled his eyes a little, but Tony could see the smirk at his lips.
"You know how you wanted to get back to your apartment?" Tony asked Steve, leaning the doorway to his bedroom. "Well, wanna head on over to Queens with me and the boys?"
Steve had been looking at his lack of clean clothes after showering off from the pool. "Yeah, sure," he nodded. "When were you thinking of heading out?"
"In about fifteen minutes?" Steve raised an eyebrow. Tony just smiled at him. A very familiar smile that he had seen on Peter's face just a couple of hours ago. Faux innocence.
"Why so quickly?" Steve asked as he opened the dresser and pulled out his last pair of jeans that were clean. He really needed the clothes. He was probably going to have settle for the one red shirt he had left as well. Steve had planned on going back yesterday to grab some clothes, but then, well, Tony had happened.
Steve glanced over when Tony didn't answer right away and saw Tony shuffling his shoe against the ground. That was a sign that Tony had done something spontaneously, something that wasn't a surprise to anyone that knew him, but wasn't sure how everyone else was going to react.
"Wade's mom is over there, and she may be an inpatient at the moment, because that Jackson she was trying find didn't actually make it and now she has no meds-" He stopped when Steve placed both hands on Tony's shoulder.
"So, we're taking Wade to go see his mom." Tony nodded. "Alright, then. I needed some more clothes from my apartment, and I could pick up my laptop and a couple books." Steve said casually as he walked around the room, grabbing his pants, shirt, and socks. "Then we can get Peter's stuff together, and some of Mary's stuff." Steve sent a smile Tony's way. "I'll be ready in ten, by the way."
"Right! Ten minutes, got it," Tony nodded and wandered off, probably back to his room, or to get Wade and Peter.
The ride itself wasn't too exciting. Tony took his own sedan, finally getting one so he didn't have to keep borrowing the town car form Happy, and took other exit from the underground garage, where they would be seen by practically no one. Wade and Peter were in the back, playing a game together on one of Tony's tablets, and Steve was in the passenger seat. All the bridges were open again for traffic, and heading into the city were a lot of trucks carrying supplies, and volunteers mostly, and it made Steve smile a little to see everyone coming together. He wished that he could do more, to be out there helping everyone, but public opinion was split about the Avengers, about whether they had actually done more damage with their actions, or if they were even safe to have around. He didn't need to be a reason to set back any of the efforts.
Tony reached over, poking his cheek as they drove away from the damage, eyes still on the road. "You sense of duty is speaking," he said, "and it's loud." Tony glanced over at him real quick. "I know you want to help, but we just gotta lay low right now. We saved the world, I think that we're allowed to take a little break."
"But we caused a lot of the damage," Steve argued weakly.
"We did what we had to do," Tony replied. "If we had tried to do it without any damage, then a lot more people would have died. I'm not happy about the destruction, but we tried to keep it to a minimum." Steve nodded. He knew that it made sense, and there would probably be plenty of options for him to try and make up for it later, but he still wanted to help, it was ingrained in his bones. "I gotta start rebuilding the Tower, you can help me with that," Tony offered.
"No offense, Tony, but I don't think that the Tower is of national importance," Steve told him.
"It is to me, and I've got no work crews," Tony kept going. "I've sent them all off to help rebuild around the city, still on the clock. And I've spoken with Pepper, and we've already rerouted a lot of funds to go towards rebuilding and volunteer efforts. The Expo Venues have been refitted to house those who lost their homes, or who can't get to their homes right now. We've got soup kitchens and food pantries coming as well to make sure that they get food. With the exception of the Expo, it's all done anonymously. The donations will show up in the expense reports at the end of the quarter, for those that like to try and check the spending of big businesses, but I don't care about the publicity. It's all about getting the city back on its feet again."
"Please tell me that you're hearing yourself right now," Steve said, looking at Tony, pulling a glance towards Steve before looking back at the road. "What you just told me was some of the most selfless stuff I've heard come out of your mouth, or from anyone for a while actually."
Tony wiggled in his seat a little, the high praise making him uncomfortable. "Yeah, well, you know," he shrugged casually, playing it off. "It's just my way of telling you that I need help with the Tower, and you'll still be helping and all that. I'm working on some redesigns for the Tower, and I think you're just the man to help me with it. Plus you know, you're helping."
Steve let out a little chuckle. "Yeah, alright, I'm in."
Once they had crossed the bridge it didn't take too long to get out to the apartment building. Tony and Steve had decided that it would be easier for Steve to take Peter through the apartments to get their stuff, and Tony would go with Wade to the hospital. The hospital was only a couple minutes away from the apartments so Tony and Wade would most likely be back by the time Steve and Peter were done. Tony leaned back to kiss Peter's head when he and Steve got out of the car, waiting until they were inside before heading to the hospital.
He had told Wade that his Mom had to go somewhere else to get some medicine, that she hadn't been able to get to Jackson. Tony wasn't sure if Wade had been close to Jackson or not, and didn't really feel that he should be the one to tell him he was dead. Tony glanced in the mirror to check on Wade every so often, watching the boy continue the came on the tablet.
When they got to the hospital Tony slipped on his ball cap and sunglasses, grabbed Wade's backpack, and took Wade's hand as they walked into the hospital. Wade looked at the hospital, looking to see how high up it went, and how many buildings there were. The doors opened for them and Tony went up to the front desk to check in. Tony had requested that Julie come to this hospital because visitors were required to check in, and Tony had handled the privacy of her visitors list himself. Just in case.
"We're here to see Julie Wilson," Tony said, watching Wade inspect around the desk. He was very curious.
The receptionist typed something in the computer, and Tony knew what was coming. "I'm sorry, Sir, but I don't see-"
"Sorry, I forgot, I'm here to request the pleasure of visiting with Mrs Wilson." Tony had not forgotten, he had expressly told them to turn away anyone who didn't say that phrase, or something very close to it. The receptionist smiled and nodded, pulling out two visitor passes.
"If I could just get your names, and see some ID," she said putting a clipboard up on the desk with a pen.
"You wanna write your own name, kiddo?" Tony asked Wade. He grabbed the clipboard and pen and handed it to Wade as he pulled his wallet from his back pocket, flipping the leather open and pulling out his ID. He handed it to her and watched her slide it through a small scanner.
"I'm done," Wade said, tugging on Tony's pant leg. Tony tapped the counter with a finger and Wade leaned up to put it there. As he signed his name he saw the receptionist pause before trying to hand the ID back. He flashed a smile, tapping the spot next to the clipboard with one finger, and then pushed the clipboard back to her. As he slid the ID back in his wallet he took Wade's hand again.
"Have a nice evening ma'am." The woman blinked, then smiled and nodded to him, watching them head towards the elevators. Tony clipped his pass to the bottom of his shirt, then clipped the other badge to Wade's sleeve, making him giggle a little.
Up the elevator to the fifth floor, Tony nodded to the nurses at their station, and put his hands on top of Wade's head, steering him down the hall and around the corner. Julie's door was closed, and Tony knocked twice before pushing it open.
"Mom!" Wade smiled and hurried in when he saw his mom in the bed. He quickly climbed up and let the woman pull him into a hug. Tony walked in and pushed the door closed before taking a seat in one of the plush chairs by the bed.
"Have you been good for Mr Stark, baby?" Julie asked Wade, messing with a little cowlick on the top of his head.
"Yup," he nodded, little hands spinning her hospital bracelet around her wrist. "I'm eating all my food, too. Mom! I get to stay in the same house as Captain America!" He exclaimed, turning excited brown eyes up to her. "Like, the Real Captain America!"
Wade and Peter had bonded right away when Wade saw Peter's Captain America hoodie, both boys being Cap fans. Tony thought he might show Wade his collection one day; Peter had already told him about it.
Tony pulled up Wade's backpack and pulled out a Starkpad, placing it on the bed tray. "I brought something so you don't get horribly bored watching TV all day," Tony said.
"That thing is really cool, Mom," Wade said excitedly. "Mr Stark makes them himself, and they're so much cooler than an iPad!" Tony grinned at the statement. Hell yeah his stuff was better than Apple. "He's letting me use one while I'm staying with him and Peter. And Peter's grandparents are there, too, and his Granpa is super fun!"
"Sounds like you're having lots of fun," Julie said with a laugh.
"All the Avengers are there!" He whisper shouted. "The ones that we saw in the newspaper! It's so awesome!"
"I can't show him the suit yet, it's still pretty beat up," Tony interjected. Tony actually planned on sealing the Mark VII, he still wasn't able to actually look at it without flashbacks buzzing at the corners of his eyes. "He and Peter are having a ton of fun though, and they haven't even destroyed anything yet."
"That was last year, and it was only one time!" Wade declared, crossing his arms over his chest, and Tony started to laugh. "We didn't know it was a cherry bomb." Both Julie and Tony snorted.
They talked for a little bit, Wade telling his mom about everything that he and Peter had done together, and he leaned against her side, still playing with her hospital bracelet. Tony had thought that the boy would probably miss his mom, so he had packed some of Wade's stuff in the backpack. "Hey, Wade, do you wanna spend the night here, with your mom? Steve, Peter, and I will pick you up in the morning?"
Wade looked over at him, then up at his mom. "Is that allowed?"
"Yeah," Tony nodded. "It's all cleared with the nurses, and I'm sure you'll behave here just like you do at my place." Wade snuggled into Julie's side, and she kissed the top of his head.
"Thank you, Tony," she said with a smile, arms around her son. Tony nodded, giving her a little smile back. In that moment, Tony knew why he had gone so far to help out a woman he barely knew. He watched Wade and Julie, and he saw Peter and Mary.
"So, it's completely getting late, and I will let you two have fun," Tony said, grabbing his hat and getting up. "We'll be back in the morning." He gave them a wave and left the room, closing the door once again, and making his way to the elevators. Tony waited impatiently for the numbers to light up, tapping his foot a little. He just wanted to get back to Peter.
At the apartment building he could hear the TV on in Mary and Peter's apartment, and decided to knock on that door first. After a second Steve opened the door for him. "Hey, hope you don't mind, but we're gonna spend the night here." Tony said as he walked inside. The TV was on, but Peter wasn't sitting on the couch. He saw the bedroom light on in the boys' room and figured that he was still packing some stuff. "Wade wanted to spend the night with his mom, and I said we would pick him up in the morning."
"Yeah, that's no problem," Steve said, closing and locking the door. He went to his bag and pulled out some tupper-ware containers and Tony raised an eyebrow. "Bruce sent us off with some food, because he figured that we'd miss dinner."
"How does he always think of everything?" Tony walked over, grabbing a couple containers from Steve and taking them into the kitchen. "Seriously, just about everything." Steve followed him into the kitchen, grabbing some plates from the cupboards and Tony opened the tops from the containers. "Mmmm, curry," Tony said, taking a smell.
"He said it's his specialty," Steve said, setting the plates down on the counter.
"He lived in India for several years," Tony said off-handedly.
"Sounds like fun," Steve said, checking the fridge to see what was to drink for Peter. He knew that he and Tony would just drink water. "The traveling I mean. I don't count the traveling I did in the war as recreational."
"Too busy taking down Nazi's to really enjoy the sights?" Tony asked, leaning past Steve to grab Peter's favorite juice.
"Didn't help that most of the tourist sights had been hit by bombs or gun-fire," Steve added. "I was pretty noticeable in my uniform back then anyway."
"And the uniform you wore a few days ago wasn't?" Tony smirked at him. "Cause if not, then I'm thinking I need to drop the red from my suit. Did you hear that J? We should have gone with that all gold design you showed me all those years ago."
"I'll try my best to resist saying, 'I told you so', Sir," Jarvis said from Tony's phone in his pocket.
Steve snorted, smiling though. "Please don't make the next suit all gold," Steve begged him.
"Now I'm tempted," Tony sing-songed. Steve spooned some rice onto the three plates, and Tony followed up with the chicken curry. Peter was coming out of his room as Steve put the first plate in the microwave, and Tony hugged the little boy, kissing the top of his head.
"We're gonna spend the night here," Tony told Peter before he could ask where his best friend was. "Wade is spending the night with his mom tonight, and then we'll pick him up in the morning."
"Okay," Peter nodded. "How much longer does Wade get to stay with us?" He asked, setting his bag by Steve's in the living room.
"Probably two more days at least," Tony said, taking the warm plate from Steve and handing off the next, setting the plate down on the dining table. "We can't keep him forever." He turned and tickled Peter's sides, making the little boy giggle and wiggle.
"They should live with us!" Peter proclaimed and Tony raised an eyebrow. "That way, when Wade's mom gets sick, we can help take care of her." Tony caught Steve glancing back at him from the kitchen. "There are more bedrooms at your house, and Mama likes talking to Wade's Mom, too. They do it all the time."
"What, do you just want everyone to live with us now?" Tony teased. "Next you're gonna say that Grandma and Granpa should live with us-"
"Yes!" Peter jumped up and down, making Tony's eyes widen a little, not ready for that reaction. "They live so far awaaaaay."
"You're the one who opened your mouth," Steve whispered when he walked by with the other two plates of food. "You brought this on yourself."
"I liked you better when you were frozen," Tony muttered. "You were silent, and not so sassy, then."
"I was sassy in the ice, and you know it," Steve shot back with a grin. Tony made a grumbling noise under his breath, because he was probably right.
"Well, all that is something that the adults will have to decide on their own," Tony said to his excited son. "Wade's mom still has a job around here, and Grandma and Granpa have responsibilities in California. So don't be too upset if they say they can't do it, alright?" Peter nodded, giving him his best grown-up look.
Tony watched him for a second, and then Peter went out to the kitchen to Help Steve with the rest of dinner. He let out a near silent sigh, wanting to keep Peter at this age, not wanting him to grow up, to keep him small, and wrap him up in his arms and hide him from the world. He watched him with Steve and felt a little tug in his chest. They worked so well together, and Steve was smiling, clearly enjoying having Peter around, and helping. Steve just looked, right, like helping with Peter was where he belonged.
Tony shook his head and pulled out the chair with Peter's booster seat. He was smaller than other six-year olds, just like Tony had been, but he was almost done with the booster seat. Peter climbed up into the chair and Tony pushed it back in, taking a seat next to him, Steve sitting across from them. Tony bit back the little smile he felt twitching at his lips, and instead took a big bite of his food. He should not feel this okay with such a domestic scene. It was just the stress of the past week, and the fact that he hadn't really slept. That was it.