Chapter 25
"Mister Stark, can I stick to non-stick pans?"
Tony rolled over to see Peter lying on his back, tucked into the sleeping bag and staring at the ceiling.
"Wha-?" Tony grumbled, glancing at the clock on the wall that read 1:42 a.m.
"Also, hypothetically, if Ned sprayed me with a can of Raid, would I die?"
"Pete, go to sleep," Tony groaned, before pausing. "Wait, did Ned spray you with a can of Raid?"
Peter's eyes widened as he whispered, "not yet."
"Okay well I have to add talking to Ned and testing your DNA for effect of Raid on the list of things I need to do," Tony sighed, sitting up.
"Why are you still awake?" He asked, glancing up at Pepper who was asleep, curled up in a chair to their left.
"Couldn't sleep," Peter whispered in response, rolling to his side so he was facing Tony.
"And so you're having an existential crisis instead?" Tony asked, and Peter shrugged.
"Seemed like the best use of my time," he replied. "I was just worrying. My mind is racing and I couldn't make it stop."
Tony leaned his back against the wall with a sigh, and Peter sat up, crossing his legs and placing his hands in his lap.
"I don't know how I'm going to help him Mister Stark," Peter murmured, his voice soft with worry and fear.
Tony sighed. "If I'm being honest, I don't either. I really don't know how to help him, and I'm flying by the seat of my pants here, but I know that as long as we stick by his side and we're there for him when he needs, no matter how much he insists he doesn't need us, then he will slowly get better."
"Do you ever think he'll be 100% better? Will he ever be able to go back to normal?" Peter asked, and it was at that moment that Tony truly remembered. Peter was only sixteen. Things like this didn't happen to fifteen and sixteen year olds like Harry and Peter, and Peter had been handling the entire situation surprisingly well and with maturity beyond his years. But he was still sixteen and he still had hope that things could go completely back to normal after something like this.
"Pete," Tony sighed, running a hand through his hair, "Harry's normal his entire life has been nothing but pain, from the sounds of it. If we're looking long term, big picture here, yeah, maybe he'll seem better and it'll be like nothing happened some of the time, but his scars and the memories and the nightmares- they'll never truly go away."
"You're right," Peter dropped his head, and Tony stared at the teen with searching eyes.
"Peter, what's going through that brilliant head of yours?"
"I feel selfish," he sniffed. "I just feel like, it's not fair of me to expect him to get better. He's been through so much and here I am saying 'oh when's he going to get better?' but that's not fair to him. I can't expect him to just wake up one day and go, 'oh I'm better now!' That's not realistic, and I feel so guilty and selfish for thinking that way. But the hope is still there, you know? No matter how many times I tell myself it's not going to happen, somewhere in the back of my mind, I'm telling myself that it will."
"Kid, I'd be lying to you if I told you I hadn't had the same thoughts cross my mind. It's a coping mechanism, I suppose. You're not selfish for wanting him to get better, nor have you been selfish at all through everything that's happened. Look at you, you're sleeping on the floor of a hospital room in a sleeping bag. You're here for him, when you very well could have taken Steve and Bucky up on their offer to take you back to the hotel where you would have had a nice, comfortable bed. But you chose to stay. You're not selfish.
"And as for wanting him to get better, I want that too, more than you could ever imagine. But we have to accept that this is a waiting game. It's going to take time for Harry to regain trust and the ability to share, even to the degree of before the attack. And this court case with his aunt is going to take a lot out of him, so he's going to need us. He's going to need you."
Peter nodded, tears clouding his vision, but he blinked back the tears, determined not to cry in front of his mentor.
"Come here kid," Tony held his arms open, and Peter crawled over to the billionaire and curled himself under the man's arm. "Everything's going to be okay, I promise."
When Pepper woke around 5 in the morning, that was how she found the two. Peter was asleep with his head nestled into Tony's chest, her fiancé's arm still wrapped around the teen. Tony's cheek was resting in Peter's soft curls, strands of hair moving slightly as he breathed in and out.
With a smile, Pepper took her phone out of her pocket and snapped a quick picture before stepping outside to make a call to Steve, who had left a voicemail for her at around 4:30, presumably about the court case.
"Pepper," Steve's voice sounded strained on the other end of the line as he answered.
"Steve, what's going on?" She asked, frowning as she made her way to an empty waiting room and took a seat.
"It's Natasha," he rasped, voice sounding rough with lack of sleep. "They came around four this morning and arrested her."
"What?" Pepper exclaimed, all haziness from sleep gone. "Why would they do that?"
"Petunia Dursley, she demanded it. Said she didn't feel safe with her husband's murderer on the loose. The police were apologetic, but they still had to arrest her and-" he stopped and took a deep breath. Pepper could hear Bucky murmuring something to the soldier, but she couldn't make out what it was.
"I'll go down to the police station as soon as I wake up Tony and let him know," Pepper shook her head, trying to shake away the flustered feeling she was experiencing. Virginia Potts did not get flustered.
"I don't know how far you'll get," Steve told her, "they were still booking her when we went a few minutes ago. But I do think it's a good idea if you still come down here."
"I'll be there in twenty to thirty minutes," Pepper told him, running her hands through her hair to try to tidy it, using the glass of the window as a make-shift mirror.
"Thanks Pep," Steve said, voice sounding ragged and tired. "See you in a few."
"No problem at all. Just make sure everyone keeps a level head and I'll see you soon," she ended the call before closing her eyes and counting to ten. It had been a week from hell, and she was so ready for it to finally be over.
Recollecting herself, Pepper looked at herself in the window, staring at her reflection.
"You're a badass woman. You've got this."
It was something she did from time to time when stress caused her patience and confidence to stretch a bit too thin. Honestly, it was something Natasha had suggested, and she had found that it helped surprisingly well.
Turning around and feeling the tiniest bit more confident, Pepper exited the room with her head held high.
When she reached Harry's room, she saw Tony readjusting the blanket that was lying on top of Peter, who was still sleeping, but was now lying on top of his sleeping bag.
"Hey," she called quietly, getting ahold of Tony's attention. His eyes softened and crinkled as he flashed her an adorable lopsided grin.
"Good morning gorgeous," he made his way towards her, placing his hands on her waist and pulling her into a kiss.
"'Morning," she gave him a small smile, but her stomach dropped at the thought of telling him about Natasha.
"What's wrong?" Tony questioned, pulling away from her a bit when she tensed involuntarily. Pepper sighed, knowing it would be better to just come out and say it.
"I just got off the phone with Steve. Apparently the police showed up at the hotel this morning with a warrant for Natasha's arrest."
Tony turned bright red, and with a quick and terse movement, turned to both sleeping teenagers before exiting the room and pulling Pepper down the hall to the empty waiting room where she had just been.
As soon as the door shut behind him, he began raging, making Pepper thankful for the millionth time that, with his temper, he wasn't the one that was the Hulk.
"How could they get away with this? He was fucking raping Harry when we came in! There was a warrant and an award for his arrest! It was his gun and he was going to shoot Natasha! There has to be a law or something against this!"
"Tony, I understand why you're upset, and I'm pissed off too, but we have to keep our cool here, because the bigger scene we cause, the worse off it's going to be for Nat. But if we're polite and respectful to everyone interacting with her, they're more likely to be more forgiving."
Tony took several deep breaths, focusing on various things in the room around him, willing away the panic attack that was threatening to surface. He had the routine down to a fine science now: five things he could see, four things he could touch, three things he could hear, two things he could smell, one thing he could taste.
An ugly floral couch, a lopsided and scratched table, a vase of fake flowers, mismatched curtains, a muted television playing the morning news.
The floor beneath his feet. Pepper's hand on his chest. The band on his wrist for his suit. The ring on his left ring finger because Pepper thought it was important people know he was engaged too.
The soft chatter from the nurses station right outside the waiting room. His own breathing. The sound of an announcement going off, paging someone to another part of the hospital.
The clean and unpleasant smell of the alcohol and disinfectant the hospital used. The strong, falsely cheery floral scent coming from a wall plug-in that was in the corner.
The taste of cold, stale coffee he had taken a swig of when he had awoken, left over from last night.
"You okay?" Pepper asked as Tony's gaze refocused on her. Her hand was still pressed against his chest, feeling his heart rate slow down back to a reasonable pace. She reached her other hand up and placed it on his face, cradling his cheek in her palm.
"Fine now," he replied breathlessly, leaning into her hand.
"You need to shave," she told him, not knowing what else to say.
"I know," he closed his eyes and just basked in the fact that she was there and real and his.
"I have to go to the police station," she whispered, not wanting to leave.
"I know."
"I love you," she leaned her forehead against his.
Peeking an eye open, he gave her a fleeting grin.
"I know."
This earned a small smile and blush from the redhead, making Tony feel several times better just at seeing the brief expression of happiness.
"I love you too."
She gave his face a pat, and pecked his cheek before slipping out the door once more.
*
Pepper didn't know what she was expecting to find when she arrived at the police station, but she had been hoping that her advice of keeping a level head had been respected.
Instead, she found Clint leaning on the counter, gripping the opposite side with white knuckles.
"This is bullshit! She didn't do anything except protect herself and two others, one of which had just been brutally attacked!" He exclaimed, the veins in his forehead and neck bulging as they did when he was tense or yelling.
"I'm sorry, but I don't make the rules. You need to take a seat now until someone comes and gets you," the receptionist told him in a terse, tired voice. It was evident that she was at the end of her shift and tired of being yelled at.
"Clint," Pepper called, walking over to the desk where he was now looking as if he were about to explode. "Go sit down, you aren't helping anything right now."
Clint opened his mouth, a retort on the tip of his tongue, but when he saw the serious look on Pepper's face, he mashed his lips together and turned to take a seat.
"Very sorry about that," Pepper apologized to the receptionist in her business voice. Even though she wanted nothing more than to demand answers about what was going on with Natasha, she knew that being obnoxious and pushy would get her nowhere.
"It's alright, I understand and I get that all the time," the receptionist shrugged it off. "If you leave your phone number, I'll be sure to give you a call as soon as I know anything else, is that alright?"
"That sounds perfect. You'll have to excuse my friends. This is their teammate and she was just protecting someone that we love, who's in the hospital right now. We're all a bit tense, so please excuse us if there's any hostility. It's truly not meant for you," Pepper explained, the business tactics kicking in.
Personal stories usually sold someone on buying what they were selling, or getting on their side. Pepper had become an expert on sweet talking clients over the past several years.
Heaven knows Tony wasn't the most patient person to do the negotiating.
The woman behind the desk gave Pepper a sad, kind smile.
"I've very sorry and I hope that they're alright. I'll try to get this figured out quickly so you all can go home and help your friend."
"Thank you," Pepper gave her a small, close lipped smile and turned to take a seat.
"Hey Pep," Steve said, standing up. Pepper gave him a friendly hug and they sat down next to one another. Bucky was on the other side of Steve, head resting against a jacket that had been bundled up to form a makeshift pillow.
"How are you doing?" Pepper asked, looking around at the team who was sitting in the station's fluorescently-lit waiting room. Bruce was sitting with his elbows resting on his knees, leg bouncing up and down anxiously. On the other side of a set of double doors, Clint was on the phone, presumably on the phone with Fury.
"We've all been better," Steve sighed, rubbing his hands over his face. "How's Harry?"
"He's still asleep. It's Tony I'm worried about at the moment," Pepper bit her bottom lip, thinking guiltily about how she just left after his panic attack.
Steve winced with a nod, knowing already what had probably occurred. "Does Peter know anything?"
Pepper shook her head. "No, he was still asleep when I left. I don't know if Tony's going to tell him or not, but I know he won't tell Harry. It would only upset him more and he would blame himself."
She paused for a moment.
"Where are Thor and Loki?" Pepper asked, noticing the lack of chaos.
"They're still asleep at the hotel. We figured they'd be better off there than here," Steve chuckled. "We got Friday to ward the room and let us know when they wake up. Bruce will head over there when they wake up so they don't destroy the hotel."
"Good thinking," Pepper nodded, knowing that the two would level the hotel if given the chance. One of them intentionally, the other accidentally.
"So what do we do now?" Steve asked. Even his captain's instincts were at a loss of what to do.
"We sit and we wait."
*
Tony paced back and forth wearing only socks on his feet. His shoes had been squeaking, and he didn't want to wake either Peter or Harry, and the noise had been annoying him greatly.
"Mister Stark?" Peter grumbled, sitting up from where he had been curled up on top of the sleeping bag, in the same position Tony had left him in earlier.
"Hey kid," Tony walked over to him. "Sorry if I woke you."
"No, m'fine," he yawned. Tony gave a small chuckle. The kid was not a morning person, and waking up was often times a process that took half an hour.
"You hungry? I can go grab you something from the cafeteria or I could possibly sweet talk one of the nurses into letting more order something in."
"Can we have waffles? Harry really likes waffles," Peter grumbled, rubbing his eyes as he tried to focus his mind on staying awake.
"I'll see if we can swing that," the billionaire winked at Peter with a small smile. The teen's hair was sticking up on one side, the curls flattened from where he had his head against the pillow. There were creases from the pillow case that could be traces along Peter's cheeks from where his face was smashed into the pillow.
Overall, Peter was looking adorable in a little-kid type way. And after the events of the morning so far, Tony didn't have the heart to say no to anything.
Tony was about to stand up go to the nurses station to ask about getting some waffles for the three of them, when stirring from Harry's bed caught both his and Peter's attention.
"Hey bud," Tony spoke softly, padding over to Harry's bed. He didn't want to stand directly over Harry in case at first glance seeing a man standing over him upset him, so instead, he stood off to the side a bit and waited for Harry to get his bearings first.
"Peter, would you go tell a nurse that Harry's waking up, please?" Tony asked, and Peter gave him a short nod before disappearing for a moment.
"T-Tony?" Harry blinked a few times, voice scratchy and groggy. He swallowed thickly, trying to wet his dry throat.
"Here," Tony grabbed a cup that was sitting beside the bed and poured some water into it from the pink pitcher. Holding the straw in place, he helped Harry sit up and take a sip.
"There you go, nice and easy," he cooed as Harry greedily began gulping down the water. "Slow down a bit, it's not going anywhere."
Harry took a deep breath as he finished drinking, squinting up at Tony. With a small laugh, the billionaire slid Harry's glasses on to his face.
"Better?" He smiled, eyes crinkling. Harry didn't think he would ever get tired of seeing the man, his dad, smile.
"Much better, thank you," he gave a small smile back, and Tony's heart melted. He loved seeing the kid, his kid, happy.
"Good morning handsome," a nurse walked in, sanitizing her hands as she smiled at Harry. Peter trailed behind her, giving Harry a shy smile.
"Good morning," Harry blushed. He had never been called handsome before, and he could feel his ears heating up with embarrassment.
"How are we feeling today?"
"A bit tired, but I'm fine," Harry responded. He would never understand the 'we' that nurses used. It wasn't that it irritated him, it was just confusing.
Why would they want to lump themselves with him?
"That's to be expected, nothing to worry about," she smiled at him as she began to check his vitals.
"When can I go home?" Harry asked, shifting uncomfortably as she began checking beneath his bandages.
"That will be up to Doctor Atkins, but if I had to hazard a guess, I would assume that she would be comfortable transporting you to another hospital back in American in the next few days," the nurse explained, and Tony nodded. But in the pit of his stomach, he knew that even if they were cleared to head home in the next few days, Natasha would have to stay here on terms of bail.
They could go home, but not as a team.
"Mister Stark?" Peter asked softly, nudging his mentor's arm. "Can I talk to you out in the hall for a moment, please?"
Tony gave the teen a confused glance, but followed him after promising Harry they'd be right back.
"What's up?" He asked, looking at Peter's concerned face.
"First off, Harry looked really uncomfortable with us in there while the nurse was checking and changing his bandages, so I wanted to give him some privacy. Secondly, what's going on? I can tell something's off."
Tony sighed, cursing they kid's spider senses. He knew that even if he tried to sugar coat the truth, or even lie, Peter would catch on. Or, even if he didn't, once the truth was revealed, he would resent the fact that he had been lied to.
Closing his eyes, Tony took a deep breath and counted to ten.
"Mister Stark? Are you okay?" Peter asked, concerned puppy dog eyes searching his mentor's face.
"I need you to keep calm and keep this a secret. Harry can't know, and I don't want you freaking out because Pepper and the rest of the team is taking care of it."
"That's not a promising way to start this sentence, but I promise I won't tell Harry."
"I'm sorry I don't have better news, and I'm not going to try to sugar coat this. It wouldn't be fair to you, and it would make me feel shitty," Tony sighed, resting his head against the wall.
"Is everyone alright?" Peter asked, mind racing from bad news about Harry to bad news about Aunt May back home.
"It's Natasha," Tony began, "she was arrested this morning. I don't know a whole lot of details, but all I know is it's Harry's aunt that's pressing charges. She's claiming Natasha murdered her husband."
"But that's bullshit!" Peter clenched his fists. "Natasha was saving Harry! It wasn't even her gun!"
"I know," Tony shook his head sadly. "And that's what Pepper's down there trying to prove, and even trying to get Nat out on bail, but I haven't heard anything. All we can do right now is hope for the best."
"So wait," Peter paused, soaking in all of the information he had just received. "So even if Harry gets cleared to go home, to the medbay in the tower, Nat's not going to be able to come with us is she?"
"Probably not kid," Tony sighed.
"That's not fair at all. This sucks," Peter muttered under his breath.
"You could say that again," Tony gave a short, bitter laugh.
"Natasha doesn't deserve this, and neither does Harry. Why can't things just be normal?"
"Hate to tell ya kid, but we bypassed normal a long time ago."
This time it was Peter's turn to give a bitter chuckle. "You could say that again."