Happy Saturday you wonderful people!

We've reached one of my favorite instalments of this in-between story so I won't ramble. I'll leave you to meet Morgan…

6. Meeting Morgan

Ruth, the midwife, scooped the baby up and placed her on Pepper's chest with a satisfied, "Look what you did, Pepper. She's here!"

Pepper started to cry, unable to help herself. She looked into the most beautiful sight she had ever seen—the face of her newborn daughter. She felt like she'd already known her for months, her little movements inside of Pepper's own body, what started out as fluttering and then became solid nudges of a foot or hand. She remembered how her whole stomach would ripple when Morgan turned. She had imagined her in her mind's eye a hundred times, but now she was here, real, her own tiny person.

And she'd never seen anything so beautiful in her life.

She'd always imagined the baby would look like Tony, and she was right. Her genes had a place in Morgan's chin and cheeks, but the rest was all Tony. She was perfect.

Tony was crying at her side, his chest heaving and arm shaking around her shoulders.

"Hello, baby," Pepper said, tears streaming down her cheeks. "Hello, Morgan."

Tony reached out and stroked a finger over Morgan's cheek, his touch so soft it was barely there. "Hey, Morgan," he choked. "I've waited a long time to see you again."

Pepper looked to him, seeing the elated smile on his face and the love shining in his eyes, though he was crying tears of joy.

Pepper felt a wave of new love for him, and a dawning understanding of what this meant for him.

She had waited months for this moment, of meeting her child, she'd longed for it since the day the test turned blue, but for Tony it had been years since he'd properly been with her. She loved her daughter so much already and couldn't imagine going a day without seeing her ever again. And Tony had gone two whole years with only the briefest reprieve when he was returned to 2023 for less than a day.

"Do you want to hold her?" she asked.

Tony didn't answer with words, but his eager smile told her exactly how much he wanted this. He took his arm from her shoulders and reached for the baby with confidence she did not feel. She supposed this was his experience over hers. To Tony, holding their newborn baby was a reunion, not something to be wary of. He already knew exactly how to hold the baby securely and without worry as he'd done it all before.

She didn't think experience diminished any of his joy, though, as she had not seen him happier than he was as he lifted her to his face and kissed her cheek since Peter gave him adoption papers.

"I missed you so much," he said, voice choked. "And now you're here." He closed his eyes and fresh tears slipped down his cheeks. "Thank you."

Pepper wasn't sure if he was thanking Morgan for finally coming or Peter for allowing him to experience this moment again.

"Okay, Pepper, just the afterbirth now," Ruth said.

Pepper turned her attention back to what her body was doing, Tony's words drifting over her as he extolled on his love for Morgan and his happiness to be with her again. One thing stood out to her, though, and she wondered if that was something she could veer off early.

It seemed Tony was going to call their perfect baby daughter Maguna.

Pepper rolled over in bed, feeling sore and oddly empty. She knew it was the weight of her daughter, who was now out in the world as her own being, that she missed, and she felt an overwhelming need to see her again.

She climbed out of bed, moving carefully to ease her sore body, and pulled on a robe. Fastening it around her waist, she padded barefoot through the house, following Tony's voice into the living room where he sat on the couch with Morgan cradled in his arms and his intent gaze on her.

"I waited for you for so long, Morgan," he was saying. "I don't think your mom can ever understand. I knew when Peter sent us back that it was going to be hard, but… God, I ached to see you again. I can't tell you how happy I am that you're here now."

He bowed his head and kissed her round cheek, a soft smile on his face.

Pepper leaned against the doorjamb, unnoticed by Tony, who was focused wholly on their daughter.

"And he'll be here soon, too," Tony said, no doubt in his voice. "He might not want to come, too busy being sensible, but believe me, Morgan, your big brother won't be able to resist." He shook his head. "You're going to have him wrapped around your tiny little finger, just like you have me and your mom. And your brother… Peter, that's his name… is the best person you'll ever meet. I mean it. People call me and the Avengers heroes, and we've done some stuff, but Peter is better than all of us. He's going to save the world again." His voice became a little choked. "He's going to save the world again, and he's going to live."

"He is," Pepper said.

Tony's head snapped up, and he looked a little guilty, which confused her, until he said, "I know it should be both of us telling her about Pete, but I couldn't resist."

"That's okay," she said with a smile. "We've still got lots more to tell her." She crossed the room and sat beside him, covering both their legs with a blanket. "Your brother, Morgan, is wonderful. He's not perfect—"

Tony snorted. "Definitely not."

"But he's good," Pepper finished. "He always does what he thinks is the right thing, even when it hurts him, because that is who he is. Even when it gives me and your daddy grey hairs."

Tony huffed a laugh. "I think you've dodged the bullet with the greys, but me…" He shook his head, "I've got plenty thanks to Pete."

Pepper remembered the horror of seeing Peter in the med bay with his horrifically injured hand from when he closed the wormhole. He could only have lived through that as he was destined to be alive in 2023. The doctors themselves didn't understand it: they said the pain and trauma alone should have destroyed him.

But that had not been the thing that came close.

"Do you think he'll come soon?" Tony asked, his voice even but eyes gleaming with excitement.

"I'm sure he will," Pepper said. "I know he wants usto carry on without him, live our lives, but he has to come see Morgan."

Tony nodded, let out a deep sigh, and then said, "But how long will he stay?"

Pepper frowned. "I don't know. As long as he can, I guess."

Tony looked down at Morgan for a moment, her eyes closed with sleep again, and said, "I want him to stay forever."

"So do I," Pepper said honestly. "But he'll do what he believes is right for us."

"That's what I mean, though. I want him to be with Morgan. I want her to grow up with him in her life. Before, he was a story to her, and pictures, and we didn't do it right. When she was three, she…" He closed his eyes. "She thought she could see him. I never said it explicitly, that Peter was dead, and in her mind, he had to come see her because he was her brother. You and I had to sit her down and explain that would never happen. I remember how much that hurt her."

Pepper leaned her head against his shoulder. "We'll do better this time. We'll make sure she understands."

"I don't want her to have to understand. I want her to know him, and I want him to know her from the very beginning. He's going to be here in 2023, but she'll already be a little girl, then. I want him to know her as a baby, as a toddler; I want to share all the amazing moments I know are coming with him. He adored her when he met her, and she loved him so much, but he missed so much. Even though he went back to see it, he didn't live it. I mean, if there's a chance for her to grow up with her brother in her life, doesn't that mean she should?"

Pepper nodded. She wanted that, too. She wanted both of their children to be together, to play, and for Morgan to learn from him. That would be perfect.

"We'll ask," she said. "I'm sure he wants this as much as us."

"When he comes," Tony said, lifting Morgan and nuzzling his face in her dark, downy hair.

Pepper stared at them both, overwhelmed with love, and then a flash of light at the window caught her eye, and she knew by Tony's soft laugh that he had seen it, too.

She touched Morgan's cheek and said, "Someone is here to meet you, Morgan," then got to her feet and went to the door.

There was a soft knock before she could open it, and when she did, she saw the shining face of their son, his cheeks flushed and a guilty look in his eyes.

He launched into speech, his words rushed and apologetic. "Look, I know I should have waited, and I wanted to, but I was just sitting there, talking to Bucky and the others, and it got harder and harder not to come. I know you need time, just the three of you as family, and I'll go as soon as I've seen her, but—"

Pepper held up a hand, and he cut off. "We do need time as a family, but you're a part of that family, and we've been waiting for you."

Peter beamed and allowed her to take his hand and tug him into the room. Peter moved slowly, and then, when his eyes fell on Tony and Morgan, he moved away from her as if drawn to them like a magnet. His focus was wholly on Morgan; Tony disregarded for what was possibly the first time ever. His feet seemed a little unsteady, and Pepper placed a hand on his elbow to support him. She didn't think he even noticed.

"Hey, Mo," he said, his voice so soft it was barely audible. "I've been waiting for you."

"You want to hold her?" Tony asked.

Peter blinked, as if coming back to awareness, and smiled ruefully. "Oh… Hey, Dad."

Tony chuckled. "Hello, Pete. Come on. Sit down, and I'll hand her over. Which you should be very happy about as last time it took two hours for me to hand her over to Rhodey."

Peter laughed. "He told me. I don't think I should hold her, though. She's so tiny, and I might hurt her, and I don't want to do that, god no, but—"

"Sit," Tony said firmly. "There is no one in this world that Pepper and I trust more with her than we do you.

Peter smiled and shook his head, then sat down on the couch and made an awkward cradle with his arms.

Tony gently eased Morgan into his arms and said, "That's it, support her head."

Peter looked like he was handling a bomb, the look of concentration on his face was so intense, but he was also smiling. He stared down at Morgan as if he had never seen something so incredible in his life, and this was the person who had traveled in time, space, the Multiverse, and bore the Infinity Stones, which were incredible on their own.

Pepper looked at Tony and saw his eyes were filled with tears, but he was smiling just as widely as he had the moment Morgan was placed in his arms for the first time.

"I love you, Morgan," Peter said. "I waited so long for you, and I love you so much."

"She loves you, too," Tony said, voice a little rough. "She just doesn't know it yet."

Peter smiled, and Morgan's rosebud lips opened with a yawn as her eyes opened. Peter looked enchanted, completely taken over by the baby he held, and Pepper felt a deep peace in her heart at the sight of them.

"Peter, we want you to stay," Tony said, voice almost pleading.

Peter frowned and looked at him. "What do you mean?"

"I mean now. We both do. We want Morgan to grow up with you in her life. I don't mean all the time, because I know you have things you need to do, but just when you can, as much as you can. We want Morgan to know you now."

Peter sighed and reluctantly handed Morgan to Pepper. Confused, as he seemed to be so happy with her, Pepper took her and tucked her against her chest.

His hands free, Peter mussed his hair and rubbed at the back of his neck. "It's not a good idea," he said. "I know you think I will be Worthy, and the odds are in my favor, but it's not total—there's a one in ten chance that I won't—"

"We know," Tony said curtly, cutting off the painful words. "But we still want this."

"Think, honey," Pepper said, sitting close to him and leaning against his side. "If we're wrong and you're right, God forbid, she'll never have a chance to know you at all. I can already see how much you love her, and Tony told me how much she'll love you, so you can't deny her that love in her life."

"But what if I'm not Worthy, if I die…" Peter said plaintively. "What will happen to her?"

Pepper swallowed hard and said, "Then she'll mourn you with the rest of us. But at least she will have a chance to know you."

"If you don't stay, and the result is…" Tony cut off, shook his head, and fixed haunted eyes on Peter. "If you're not here after the battle, you will only ever be a name and face to her, a story we all tell. She'll not have any memories of her own of you."

Peter's eyes filled with tears, and he bit his trembling lip. "I don't want her to hurt because of me."

Tony held Peter's face in his hands and pressed a kiss to his temple. "Pete, the only way she's not going to hurt without you is if she never knows you existed, which you can't ask us to do. If she never meets you, you'll be the brother she dreams of and wishes was there so she could know him. If you give her this, these four years, she'll have memories of you that she can always treasure." He sighed. "Do you regret having May, even though she's gone now?"

Peter shook his head jerkily. "No! God, no! I'd never regret having May. I loved her. I still love her. Even if I could never see her again, I'd still love her, and…" He huffed a reluctant laugh. "Okay. Yeah, I get it, Mr. Reverse Psychology."

"This isn't about tricking you, honey," Pepper said gently, rocking Morgan in her arms. "This is about our family. You can't ask us to go through our lives never talking about you, because that's impossible, and you can't deny Morgan her brother. We want this for both of you. Don't you want to watch her grow, be there for it?"

Peter sagged against Tony, who wrapped his arms around him and cradled the back of his head.

"You want it, too," Tony said. "I can tell,"

"I do," Peter sighed. "I want it so much, but I don't want to hurt her later. I know you say she'll hurt without me being here at all, but…" He stared at Morgan a moment, his eyes longing, and then said, "Okay, I'll do it. I'll be here. I can't stay all the time because there are things I need to do, and she needs time with just the two of you, like I had before." He gave a curt nod. "Weekends. I can come at the weekends. Then there's a balance for her, routine when she's old enough to know. I get to make memories with her, which I want so much, and then if I'm not here…"

"We'll take care of her," Pepper said, "And she'll take care of us. But we, your dad and me, believe you will be here. We know who you are."

Peter gave her a sad smile. "I wish I knew that, too."

Tony pressed a kiss to Peter's cheek and said, "We'll know enough for all of us. Now, are you hungry? What am I saying? You're always hungry. What would you like?"

"I'll get it," Peter said. "You two have had what's probably the most exhausting day ever in your lives. I'll make some soup and sandwiches. That sound good?"

Pepper's stomach growled in response, as she hadn't eaten at all since going into labor the night before, and she said, "That would be lovely, Peter. Thank you."

Peter gave Morgan a look of adoration, then got to his feet and rushed into the kitchen, humming to himself.

"He's going to be here," Pepper said.

Tony swallowed hard and nodded. "He is. Every weekend. I think that's… It'll be enough for now. It's perfect."

"It is," Pepper said, pressing a kiss to Morgan's head. "It'll be what we all need."

So… Now you know the plan. We're going to be spending a lot of time with Peter and Morgan, and also time in the Soul Plane and with the others at the compound when their lives don't overlap.

I hope you'll enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it.

Until next time…

Jadey xx