Happy Saturday!

I hope you all have amazing weekends ahead of you. I plan to spend some time with family and to do some writing, which is a great weekend for me.

This instalment is short, I know, but it's a—if not the—favorite of mine. It's one I come back to read when I need a little boost in mood.

"First" Words

"No, no, no! Mercy, Mo, please stop!" Peter pleaded.

Laughing delightedly, Morgan danced her fingers into the curve of Peter's neck as he rolled on the floor, writhing like he was being tortured.

Pepper knew how ticklish her son was, but she was sure a lot of Peter's reaction was more for his sister's entertainment than actually Morgan's tickling. She was only so strong at fifteen months, after all, and her tiny and gentle hands could only do so much.

It was one of their treasured weekends with all their family together again, and Pepper was soaking it in. Though Morgan kept them busy during the week, and Pepper and Tony loved every single day with her, they all missed Peter when he was gone. Morgan was now old enough to make her feelings known, and Peter was often requested, though she wasn't yet able to say his name. Instead, she would point to one of the many pictures of him around the house and pout, not accepting their explanations that he would be there soon, as she had no concept of time.

"Please, Mo, mercy," Peter pleaded.

Morgan sat back on her heels, clapping her hands on her knees, and looked around at Pepper. "Mommy, see? See, see, Mommy?"

"I see, honey," Pepper said, smiling widely. "You tickled Peter."

Morgan nodded eagerly. "I tiggle."

Peter sat up and tucked his hand under his chin. "How come you say tickle but not my name, huh? Don't you want to say Petey?"

Morgan babbled in her half-formed English and patted Peter's leg.

"Yeah, you're too cute. You know that, right? Too cute for me to be upset."

Morgan laughed and clapped her hand on his head. Peter pretended to collapse under the blow, flopping to the side, eyes closing. Morgan laughed again and bent over him, smattering his cheeks with wet kisses.

"Way! Way!"

"Are you saying wake up?" Pepper asked. "You want Petey to wake up?"

Morgan clapped her hands. "Yes!"

"I won't," Peter said, eyes still tightly closed. "I won't wake up until you say my name. I'm going to sleep forever."

"Say Petey," Pepper encouraged. "Say Petey for your big brother. We don't want him to sleep forever. He'd get in the way."

Peter chuckled.

"Pee-Pee!" Morgan said delightedly.

Peter's eyes snapped open, his brows flying up. "Did you say Petey?"

"Pee-Pee!"

Peter sat up, lifting Morgan onto his lap and cuddling her to his chest. "Pee-Pee? How is that fair? Petey!"

"Pee-Pee!"

Pepper burst into laughter at the look on his face. Tony said Morgan called him Petey in the future, but apparently there was a step to get there, and she loved it.

Tony was drawn in from the kitchen where he was making dinner. He looked from Pepper's teary eyes from laughter, Peter's dumbstruck expression, and Morgan's delight.

"What did I miss?" he asked.

"Morgan learned to say Peter's name," Pepper said between giggles.

"You did! Clever Morgan!" Tony cheered, lifting her from Peter's lap and spinning her. "Are you saying Petey?"

"Pee-Pee!" Morgan cried, patting Tony's cheek.

Tony's eyebrows shot up, and then he roared with laughter, Morgan laughing delightedly with him.

"How is that fair?" Peter asked. "It's supposed to be Petey!"

"Apparently you skipped a step last time," Pepper said.

Morgan patted Tony's cheek and smiled widely at him. "Pee-Pee!" It seemed she was enjoying their reactions. "Pee-Pee!"

"I'm telling no one about this," Peter vowed. "Nope, no one."

"I am," Tony chortled. "Friday, put a call into Rhodey."

"No!" Peter gasped, betrayal all over his face.

Friday spread a hologram from Tony's phone on the table, and Tony sat down on the couch, settling Morgan on his lap. After a few rings, Rhodey's face appeared, and he said, "Hello, Miss Morgan. How's my favorite girl!"

Morgan clapped her hands and waved.

"Morgan learned a new word today, Rhodey," Tony said. "Maguna, tell Uncle Rhodey who your brother is."

Morgan pointed to Peter and cheered. "Pee-Pee!"

Rhodey's mouth dropped open. "Did I just hear that right?"

"Yes," Peter groaned.

Rhodey howled with laughter, then looked over his shoulder and called, "Hey, guys, you've got to hear this."

Steve, Natasha, and Okoye appeared. "What's going on?" Steve asked.

Tony kissed Morgan's cheek and said, "Morgan, what's your big brother called?"

Delighted, Morgan clapped her hands and cried, "Pee-Pee!"

They roared with laughter, and Peter buried his face in his hands. Feeling bad for him, Pepper took his hand and tugged until he stood and then she wrapped her arms around him and hugged him. He settled in her embrace, sighing heavily.

"Do you really mind?" she asked. "Because we can work on correcting it."

Peter pulled back and said, "No, I don't mind really. Well, I do, because I'm never living that name down, but still… it's not her fault."

"It's not," Pepper agreed. "And you know how much she loves you.

Peter beamed. "Almost as much as I love her."

"Only almost?" Pepper said.

Peter nodded. "Only almost."

Tony had once told Pepper that Peter was the only one that loved Morgan as much as they did, and she knew now that was true. And Morgan really did adore her brother. It made Pepper so happy to see them together, to watch Morgan grow and change and watch Peter delight in it along with them.

She'd never thought she would be a mother, but she now had the two best children anyone could ask for.

So… Too sickly sweet? Like I said, this is a favorite of mine and I hope you can enjoy it as much as I do.

Until next time…

Jadey xxx