Familial Expansion

Chapter 86

‐Fields of Mount Paozu-

Once finished with running through their routine warmup stretches, Gohan asks Goten, "Are you ready?"

Goten giggles and excitedly nods. "Yep!"

"Alrighty then." Gohan takes his stance and shouts, "Go!"

Goten effortlessly turns Super Saiyan and charges Gohan head on.

Even after dozens of training sessions like this in the weeks since the –as the media dubbed it– 'Battle of New York', the sight of his baby brother transforming still stuns Gohan.

So much so he's nearly too slow to block Goten's first strike in time.

Gohan quickly composes himself and guards against Goten's rapid barrage of attacks.

He throws some punches as well, mixing in a feint here and there to test Goten's reflexes. The boy isn't hindered in the slightest; dodging or blocking his older brother's strikes while continuing his assault.

Gohan can't suppress his proud smirk. He knew Goten's potential was immense; his lengthy study into their Saiyan biology provided much evidence to support that theory, but seeing it in action like this was astounding.

It's also a little scary. Goten may still be a ways off from pushing Gohan to use even half his power while in his normal state, but if Goten continues to develop at such an accelerated rate, his baby brother could pass his current maximum at Super Saiyan 3 before he even turns 10.

Gohan can't afford to slack off, or he could lose his position as the strongest.

Perhaps it's a smidge of that 'Saiyan Pride' Vegeta's always going on about, but something deep down inside of Gohan chafed at the prospect of his baby brother showing him up.

He's already shattered his record as the youngest Super Saiyan ever, so it's not a stretch to think Goten can surpass him if he's not careful.

Gohan goes a bit more on the offensive and drives Goten toward the forest.

Once they're completely surrounded by trees, Gohan flashsteps out of sight, speeds across the branches, and throws Ki blasts at Goten from every direction.

Goten's able to deflect every blast, even the 'extra' ones that come in random bursts and always from the opposite direction of whatever Gohan's current position is.

Gohan periodically stops to take notes and outline some sketches of Goten's impressive use of his tail while defending against the barrage of blasts from his 'helpers'.

It's like he has an extremely nimble third arm tailor-made for covering his blindspot. It swats away Ki blasts with perfect precision. And the way he whips the furry appendage around trees or their branches to seamlessly maneuver across the forest truly embodies their Dad's favorite nickname for him.

Gohan had never considered how useful the Saiyan tail could be in battle, he'd only ever viewed it as a hindrance due to the weakness it creates, or a hazard due to the volatile Great Ape transformation.

As Gohan analyzes his brother's technique, another detail catches his attention. The fact Goten's tail turns gold along with his hair when Super Saiyan.

It makes Gohan curious about how the Great Ape and Super Saiyan forms would interact with each other.

He should discuss it with Vegeta at some point and see what he thinks, perhaps –by some miracle– even convince the older Saiyan to help his brother master every facet of his tail since he's the only one with the knowledge on how to do so.

Though that's only if he's not still mad –or as his Dad referred to it, 'butthurt'– about Goten becoming a Super Saiyan at such a remarkably, young age.

The teen is yanked out of his musings when a stray Ki blast almost nails him in the face. Gohan manages to bend backwards just in time to avoid it.

It seems as he theorized, Piccolo, Videl, and Trunks grew a tad impatient and decided to up the difficulty. 

The amount of incoming blasts has tripled, yet Goten hasn't been tagged even once.

"C'mon, guys." Goten playfully taunts. "Is that all you got?"

In response, the Ki blasts increase to an even higher volume.

Just as Gohan worries he'll need to step in and call off the exercise, an alarm blares, Goten looks down at his wrist, mutters something Gohan can't make out, then stops all the Ki projectiles at once by simultaneously flaring and ballooning his aura to effectively bounce the blasts off of it.

In the brief interval the area was clear, Goten flashsteps across the woods, tags Trunks, Videl, and even Piccolo in rapid succession before casually appearing over and dropping onto Gohan's shoulders. "I got them all, Bubba."

Gohan's so startled he nearly loses his balance, but he manages to steady himself and looks up at his brother. "You sure did, Buddy, awesome job."

Gohan grabs onto Goten's ankles and jumps down from the branch he'd been perched on.

Goten wraps his arms around Gohan's head and giggles as they descend to the ground.

The boy powers down and playfully tugs at Gohan's hair. "Now Mush!"

Gohan chuckles. "Ah! Hey, easy! What’s the rush?" It's not like Goten to want to wrap up training early.

"It's almost time!" Goten frantically waves his watch adorned wrist in front of Gohan's face. "We've gotta hurry or we'll miss it!"

Gohan tilts his head in confusion. "Miss what?"

"Of course you forgot." Videl amusedly jabs as she and Trunks land in front of him. "Your Dad and Steve's date. We want to observe."

"Correct me if I'm wrong." Piccolo says as he joins them. "But aren't dates supposed to be between the participants only? All that 'reality' TV Tony and Pepper have forced me to sit through over the years indicated as much."

"That's right." Gohan confirms while Videl and the boys snicker at Piccolo's plight. "It's supposed to be private."

"Come on, Gohan." Videl says. "You can't tell me you're not at least a little curious to see how it goes."

"Yeah, Bubba." Goten agrees. "We gotta make sure Uncle Steve treats Daddy right or else he's gonna get it."

Gohan looks back up at Goten. "'Gonna get it?' Who did you hear that from?"

"Mommy, Uncle Rhodey, and Uncle Happy."

Really? Them too? Gohan sighs in resignation. Is he the only one who wants to respect their privacy?

Well, they're probably gonna do it with or without him, so if he's this heavily out voted, he may as well tag along to make sure his friends and brother behave themselves while they all snoop on Dad and Steve. "Fine."

Videl and the boys cheer, but Gohan quickly stipulates, "But when I say it's time to leave, we leave, deal?"

Videl and Trunks salute Gohan. "Sir yes Sir."

Goten hops off Gohan's shoulders and mimics Videl and Trunks. "You got it, Bubba."

Gohan chuckles and fondly shakes his head. "I guess that'll have to do." He pulls the beacon out of his pocket and activates it. "Let's go."

Videl and the boys bolt through the portal without another word.

Before following after them, Gohan looks over at Piccolo and asks, "Do you want to come with?"

Piccolo rolls his eyes. "As tempting as that is, I think I'll pass."

"Thought as much." Gohan smirks. "Just wanted to check. See you later." He waves, then steps through the portal.

As he enters his lab, he finds Videl and the boys have already taken the elevator to the family floor.

Rather than wait for JARVIS to bring the cab back down, Gohan opts to jog up the stairs and join them.

On arrival, he's greeted to the sight of the 3 troublemakers laid out on the living room couch 'casually' watching TV; obviously just waiting for Steve to arrive to pick up Tony.

Gohan leans over the back of the couch, wryly smirks down at them, and quips, "Real smooth, guys, Dad won't suspect a thing."

"I won't suspect what now?"

Gohan, Videl, and the boys twist around and find Tony exiting his bedroom, wearing one of his beloved, band t-shirts with a red blazer over it, and a pair of black skinny jeans.

"Daddy!" Goten cheers before leaping over the couch, –as well as Gohan– dashing over to Tony, and jumping into his arms.

"Monkey!" Tony catches Goten, hugs him to his chest, pelts his face with kisses, then blows a raspberry on his neck.

Goten giggles from the kisses dissolve into shrieks when his neck is tickled.

Videl strolls over to the pair and playfully mocks Tony's choice in outfit. "Is that really what you're wearing for the big date, Old Man?"

Tony shifts Goten to one arm, sets his free hand on his hip, and sticks his tongue out at Videl. "As a matter of fact, it is."

"But you wear that kind of stuff all the time." Trunks points out as he joins Videl in her critique. 

Tony ruffles Trunks' hair and tells him, "I'll have you know, Short Stuff, that Steve and I agreed on a more casual attire this time around."

"Isn't a first date supposed to be a little formal?" Videl asks.

"We already had our first date." Tony informs her. "The shawarma joint."

"That doesn't count, Daddy." Goten rebuttals. "Me, Bubba, Uncle Bruce, Mr. Thor, Ms. Natasha, and Mr. Barton were all there too."

"Alright then, Smart Guy." Tony pokes Goten on the nose. "What about the baseball game where Steve and I ended up on the kiss cam?"

"Goten and I were there too, Dad." Gohan reminds him.

Tony raises his free hand over his Arc Reactor. "Et tu, Squirt? Has everyone turned on me?"

"Well, Sir." JARVIS chimes in. "It could be argued the gala you and Captain Rogers attended together 2 years ago qualifies as your first date." He projects a holoscreen featuring the pictures of Steve and Tony dancing together that were on the front page of every gossip rag for weeks.

"Ha!" Tony cheers. "Thank you, JARVIS." He points to the displayed images. "There, photographic evidence of a formal date. Now stop hassling me on my choice of wardrobe, you heathen."

Gohan and the boys laugh at Tony's dramatics, and Videl finally relents in her teasing. "Alright, you've got me there."

"Who's got what where now?"

Everyone turns to find Steve stepping out of the elevator, dressed in khakis, a blue, plaid button up over a plain, white t-shirt, and a brown, leather jacket.

Tony plants one more kiss on Goten's forehead, sets him down, and joins Steve in front of the elevator doors. "Nothing to worry about." He assures, then whispers behind his hand, "Let's move it before they start critiquing your outfit too."

Steve looks completely lost for a moment, but promptly decides to just roll with it. "Sure, you're ready to go then?"

Tony links an arm with one of Steve's. "Yep." Then looks over at the kids and says, "Behave yourselves, gremlins. We'll be back in a few hours."

Steve chuckles and turns to reenter the elevator with Tony, but stops when Goten calls out, "Wait!"

Goten sprints over to the pair and hugs Tony's leg. "Have fun, Daddy."

Tony chuckles and ruffles Goten's hair. "I will, Monkey."

After one more squeeze, Goten releases Tony's leg, looks up at Steve, crosses his arms, and sternly informs him, "Now I expect my Daddy back before bedtime. You got that, Mister?"

Tony huffs in amusement. "I'll be sure to remember that line when you start dating, Monkey."

Steve smirks, crouches down in front of Goten, and drops a hand on his shoulder. "Understood, Boss, I give you my word I'll have him back to you by curfew."

"Alrighty then." Tony grabs onto Steve's hand as he stands back up and tugs him into the elevator. "Try not to burn the tower down while we're gone."

"No promises." Videl sing-songs as the doors close.

Steve chuckles and waves to the kids. "See you later, guys."

Gohan, Videl, Goten, and Trunks all wave back until the elevator doors were shut once again.

As soon as Tony and Steve's Kis begin descending toward the tower garage, Videl turns to Gohan and the boys and orders, "Get out of your gis and into civilian clothes on the double. This is a covert operation."

Goten and Trunks salute Videl. "Ma'am yes Ma'am."

Trunks turns to Goten and boasts, "Bet I can get changed faster than you."

"You're on." Goten readily accepts the challenge. 

They race down the hall and flashstep over to Goten's room.

Gohan chuckles at the boys' antics and tells Videl, "You've really got those 2 in line."

Videl smugly shrugs. "What can I say? I have a very commanding presence."

Gohan nods in agreement and says, "True, you're very bossy."

"Damn right I–" Videl begins to brag, but then she fully registers Gohan's words. "Hey!" She punches Gohan in the arm. "Just get changed already, you cheeky dick!"

"Ma'am yes Ma'am." Gohan chortles and books it to his own bedroom.  

Videl huffs in irritation as she watches him go, but laughs to herself once Gohan's out of earshot.

She pulls a capsule containing her regular clothes from her belt and goes into one of the floor's unoccupied bathrooms to change as well.

-Steve & Tony-

"Those rascals can certainly be a handful." Steve remarks.

"Yeah." Tony heartily agrees. "Gotta love 'em for it though."

Steve laughs. "That you do." 

Tony lightly squeezes Steve's hand and asks, "So, what's the plan for today?"

Seemingly just noticing Tony was holding one of his hands, Steve abashedly rubs the back of his head with his free one. "Well, I thought we'd get something to eat, go on a walk through Central Park, then maybe catch a movie."

Steve glances over at Tony then shyly amends, "Unless you'd rather do something else."

Tony chuckles and gives Steve a peck on the cheek. "That sounds perfect."

Steve smirks and squeezes Tony's hand.

The elevator finally arrives to the garage and Steve leads Tony over to his motorcycle. 

He grabs a helmet hanging from the handlebars and tosses it to Tony. "Here, safety first."

"Taking the hotrod, are we?"

Steve dawns his own helmet, mounts his bike, and pats the remaining space behind him. "Yep, hop on."

Tony waggles his eyebrows and quips, "Any excuse to get me to hold you."

"You see right through me." Steve shoots back.

Tony chuckles, slides the helmet on, gets settled onto the bike, and eagerly wraps his arms around Steve's midsection. "No complaints here, Sweetheart, let's ride."

Steve revs the engine and takes off toward the exit. 

JARVIS wordlessly opens the garage door for the pair and closes it behind them once they're on the road.

-Gohan, Videl, Goten, & Trunks-

Once they sensed Tony and Steve leave the tower, Gohan directs Videl and the boys to the roof.

"Uh, why did you bring us up here?" Videl asks. "I kinda assumed we'd follow them with your car."

Gohan tsks and wags a finger in disapproval. "Dad would recognize my car in an instant and blow our cover."

Videl crosses her arms and huffs in irritation; a tad embarrassed she hadn't considered that. "Ok then, brainiac, so you're suggesting we fly? I thought you wanted Saiyaman's identity to stay a secret."

"Not fly per se." Gohan answers. "But I thought that since we cut today's training short for this intrusive, little escapade, we'd squeeze in a mini exercise to make up for it."

"What do you mean, Bubba?" Goten asks while absently scratching at his head through his accursed hat.

"I propose a little parkour, we run and jump across the rooftops of the city's high-rises, then when we reach wherever Dad and Steve are going, we flashstep down into an empty alley or something."

"That sounds really fun!" Goten cheers.

"Yeah." Trunks agrees. "But can't we get caught on a security camera? Even disguised, someone might figure you out."

"Not to worry, Young Sir Trunks." JARVIS assures. "I'll be monitoring every security feed in the city. Should any of you be inadvertently recorded, I'll step in and alter the footage as necessary."

"Cool." Trunks remarks.

"Sounds illegal." Videl chimes in.

Gohan nods. "Oh it probably is, so move as fast and as quietly as you can to avoid that outcome. To spice things up further, JARVIS can tally how many times we each get spotted. Whoever gets recorded the least amount of times wins."

Videl chuckles and shrugs. "What the hell? Sounds interesting, let's do it."

"Yeah!" The boys cheer; Trunks then immediately issues Goten another challenge. "If you get caught more times than I do, you gotta show me how to turn Super Saiyan! Deal?"

Goten accepts without hesitation. "Deal!"

Gohan drops a hand on each boy's shoulder. "Easy, guys, it might be a little early for that."

"Too late!" Trunks indignantly puffs his cheeks out. "Goten already said yes. A deal's a deal."

Gohan sighs in fond exasperation. "Ok, fine, but if you win, Trunks, I'll be supervising. Fair enough?"

Trunks happily acquiesces. "Fair enough."

Gohan nods and claps Trunks on the back. "Alright." He moves to the edge of the roof, turns to face the others again, and asks, "Are you all ready?"

Videl flashes Gohan a thumbs-up and the boys cheer.

Gohan smirks and gazes down at the city. "Scatter!"

They simultaneously leap off the roof and begin dashing toward their targets; each taking a different path to their goal.

While the idea for this game was a spur of the moment thing, Gohan decides to take the opportunity to check on the city's reconstruction efforts.

He's pleased to see it's progressing smoothly, ahead of schedule even. Though Stark Industries commissioning every construction crew in the city and then some to collaborate on it might have something to do with it.

Well, that and the newly founded –by his Dad and SHIELD– Department of Damage Control recovering the Chitauri corpses and weapons probably expedited the process significantly.

The quicker the better. The sooner New York City is repaired and the extraterrestrial bodies and weaponry strewn about its streets are recovered, the sooner its citizens –and by extension the rest of the world's population– can begin healing from Loki's attack.

Though...for some families...things will never be the same again.

Gohan shakes his head and slaps his hands against his cheeks. Now is not the time to spiral down that depressing rabbit hole.

Instead of dwelling on what he can't change, his focus is better spent monitoring the boys as they dart across the cityscape. 

Trunks is really giving this game his all; just barely restraining himself from flying.

Gohan shouldn't be surprised. Ever since Goten first showed his transformation to their friends and family who weren't in New York during the invasion, Trunks has been chomping at the bit to become a Super Saiyan as well.

Despite his reservations about it, Gohan can admit it’s probably for the best Trunks learns how to transform. Just in case the absolute worst happens and the boy is forced onto the frontlines. He should have every possible means for defending himself.

It's the same reason he's started actual combat training with Goten far earlier than he'd originally intended. After being kidnapped by Loki and becoming a Super Saiyan, Gohan can't reasonably hold his brother back anymore. No matter how much he wishes he could.

Trunks might as well be his brother too, so while Gohan is fairly certain having 2 Kindergarten aged Super Saiyans at large is a recipe for chaos of an unprecedented scale, he can't bring himself to root against Trunks when he's well aware how much this means to him.

And on the more selfish, manipulative side of the issue, if Gohan helps Trunks become a Super Saiyan, Vegeta might just be willing to help Goten with mastering his tail.

One can dream, or shamelessly exploit the Prince's pride and refusal to 'owe' Gohan anything. Yeah, he'll probably go with the latter. His Dad will be proud of this strategy.

Speaking of which, it seems Dad and Steve have reached their destination while Gohan was occupied with his internal monologue.

He spots Videl and the boys together on a roof looking down toward the streets.

As soon as Gohan joins them, Trunks gleefully informs him, "JARVIS said I won, so you gotta keep your promise."

Gohan glances over at his brother. Goten flashes him his Stark Watch, raises a finger to his lips, and winks.

Goten must've had JARVIS show him the path with the highest security to guarantee he'd be caught more times than Trunks. 

Gohan chuckles and holds his hands up in appeasement. "Sure, a deal's a deal."

"Yes!" Trunks jumps a few dozen meters into the air in celebration. 

When he comes back down, Videl chides him, "I'm super happy for you, Trunks, but focus on the task at hand."

Trunks salutes her then darts over to Goten to excitedly chatter about future sparring matches once he can transform.

Gohan joins Videl in observing their quarry as Steve parks his motorcycle in the lot of an old diner.

Once he's escorted Tony inside, Gohan calls the boys over and tells them, "Time to move in for a closer look."

-Tony & Steve-

As soon as the couple step inside the restaurant, a young waitress welcomes Steve. "Right on time, Mr. Rogers, we've got your table all ready for you."

Steve exchanges pleasantries with her as she leads them to a decently private corner of the diner.

She hands them each a menu, tells them to take as much time as they'd like, then takes her leave.

Once they're alone, Tony asks, "I take it you're a regular here?"

Steve nods. "Yeah, this place has been around since I was a scrawny, punk kid. A genuine ma and pa joint. I knew the owners back in the day. Their grandkids and great-grandkids run it these days."

Tony gives the place a quick once-over. It's definitely got that hole in the wall vibe, but it's also really homey.

There are pictures scattered all across the walls of the humble establishment. Most featuring who Tony assumes are the original owners along with their kids and grandkids, as well as various, favored customers over the years.

As he examines the pictures, he finds one featuring a pre-serum Steve, Bucky Barnes, and an older, burly looking man who Tony figures is the original owner standing between the two with an arm wrapped around each of their shoulders, all beaming at the camera.

Right next to it is a snapshot of post-serum Steve sitting in a booth with Barnes and the rest of the Howling Commandos. "I see."

Tony glances at the menu. "So, got any recommendations, Mr. Rogers?"

"Well, I've yet to find a burger that compares to their's."

Tony smirks. "I think I'll be the judge of that."

Steve chuckles. "I figured you'd say something to that affect."

They call the waitress back and give her their orders.

Once she heads to the kitchen to put in their orders and get them their drinks, Tony asks Steve, "So, how'd you first come across this place?"

Steve's cheeks heat up and he bashfully scratches the back of his head. "That's uhh...a bit of a long story."

Tony smirks, rests his chin on the palm of his hand and says, "Well now I have to know."

As Steve reluctantly discloses a very fond yet very embarrassing memory, a certain foursome prepare to infiltrate the restaurant.

-Gohan, Videl, Goten, & Trunks-

After flashstepping down into an empty alley, Gohan has the boys each hold onto one of his hands then leads them and Videl to a crosswalk. 

As they wait for the light to change, Gohan reminds the group, "Don't draw any attention to yourselves, we're just here to observe a bit, not interrupt their date."

"We know." Videl playfully groans. "We'll behave, isn't that right, guys?"

The boys nod in unison and say, "Right."

"I'll hold you to that." Gohan tells them. They cross the street and make their way into the diner.

They're promptly welcomed by a waitress, though before she can escort them to a table, Videl immediately goes against Gohan's wishes for anonymity and discloses who they are and why they're here.

Thankfully, the waitress is happy to assist in their mission and takes them to a booth with an unobstructed view of the couple.

She hands them some menus and the boys are quick to abandon their initial purpose in favor of filling their stomachs.

In perfect sync –as they always are– Trunks and Goten thump their fists against the table and chant, "We want food! We want food! We want food!"

"Ok, ok, ok." Gohan shushes them. "But just a small snack. If we have a full lunch here, Dad and Steve will make us in no time."

While Gohan orders what would appear to be a full course meal for any other family but is merely a light snack for the boys, Tony is struggling to hold in his laughter as Steve recounts the story of how he came to meet the original owners of this diner.

"Once half a dozen of the thugs were out cold and the other half were about to surround us, Bucky slung me over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes, booked it out of that back-alley, and ducked into the first place he found to hide."

"Which just so happened to be here." Tony finishes before taking a sip of his soda.

Steve nods. "Yep, and when those guys were about to storm in after us, the owners chased them off with nothing but a rolling pin and a frying pan."

Tony nearly chokes as a laugh finally escapes from him.

Steve chuckles and tosses a couple fries into his mouth before continuing. "Once they were gone, I thought they would toss us out too, but after Buck explained how I got in over my head trying to stop those creeps from hassling some girls, the missus took one look at me and said we weren't leaving until we had some food in our bellies."

Tony snorts and takes a bite of his burger. "That is adorable."

"From then on we'd stop by whenever we had the chance, either to hide from thugs or get some good grub. Sometimes both."

Tony grabs a couple fries and dabs them into some ketchup. Before he eats them, he asks, "So how'd the current owners take finding out who you are?"

"Well, I hadn't planned on telling them." Steve admits. "But about a week into the reconstruction, I came in just to see if the food was how I remembered it, but our waitress recognized me. When I tried to deny it, she pointed out those pictures of me with Buck and the Commandos. I couldn’t exactly play dumb since she had photographic evidence on hand, so I admitted she was right and ended up trading stories about her great-grandparents with her and her parents. When they needed to close up they told me they'd keep it on the downlow anytime I come here."

Tony smirks. "I'm glad it worked out."

"Me too." Steve agrees. "It's nice to come here and reminisce, not to mention the great food."

Tony clinks his cup against Steve's. "Hear, hear. We definitely gotta come here again, bring the boys along too."

Steve grins at the thought. "That'd be great."

As they finish their meal, Steve tells a few more choice stories about the original owners.

After Steve calls for the check, he asks Tony, "So, what's the verdict on their burger?"

Tony chuckles and says, "I gotta give it to you, or to them, you were right."

Steve crosses his arms in satisfaction. "I knew you'd see it my way."

The waitress returns with the bill. "I hope you both enjoyed yourselves."

"Absolutely." Tony affirms as Steve takes the bill.

"Glad to hear it." She replies. Before she takes her leave, she tells Tony, "I have the feeling I'll be seeing you both here again, but I wanted to take this chance to say thank you, Mr. Stark."

Tony raises an eyebrow in confusion. "What do you mean?"

"For saving the city and my family. We had a few close calls with those monsters, but you took them down before they could get to us."

"Oh...no thanks are necessary." Tony assures, taken aback by the genuine gratitude. "Besides, I couldn't have done it alone."

The waitress shakes her head. "Oh, no, I know it was a group effort. I already thanked Mr. Rogers, I just wanted to tell you too. And if you could, please pass my thanks to the other Avengers."

Tony smile softens. "I could, but I think Steve and I can bring them in the next time their in town so you can do it in person."

"Oh, my family would absolutely love that. Anytime you guys come in, we'll make sure you have privacy."

Tony nods. "Much appreciated, Miss. I know my boys will love your family's food."

The waitress blinks and her gaze shifts to the side for a moment before she nods. "Well we'd love to have them too."

With one more nod to Steve, the waitress leaves to greet some other guests.

Tony looks over in the direction she'd glanced at and finds 4 suspiciously familiar figures.

Before he can think to check their Kis, Steve stands from his seat and asks, "You ready to go?"

Tony looks up at Steve, then down at the check. Steve already left some cash.

He turns back to Steve and says, "You don't have to pay, I can cover it."

Steve smiles and shakes his head. "Nonsense, I'm the one taking you out, aren't I?"

Tony's heart swells with affection for this man. No one he's gone out with has ever offered to pay for a date, which is understandable, he's obscenely rich, though the gesture would have been appreciated. 

But he has a reputation to uphold, so instead of showing how touched he is, he playfully scoffs and quips, "So old fashioned."

Steve offers a hand to Tony. "That a bad thing?"

Tony takes Steve's hand and lets him pull him up to his feet. "In this case, I think I can let it slide."

Having said that, once Steve turns to lead them out of the diner, Tony quickly fishes a hundred dollar bill out of his pocket and slips it in with Steve's money. Such great service deserves a tip afterall.

Hand and hand, they walk back to Steve's bike. Then as they get back on the road, neither notice those 4 'suspicious' figures duck into an alley and flashstep to the top of the nearest high-rise before following after the couple.

While nearing Central Park, Steve spots a floral shop up ahead and asks Tony, "Do you mind if we make a quick detour?"

"Sure, what'd you have in mind?"

Steve parks in front of the store and tells Tony his plan.

Tony's smile turns a little somber, but he readily agrees. "Let's do it."

They go inside the shop, purchase a couple of bouquets, then mount the bike again.

Tony secures the flowers between them and Steve takes them to the Battle of New York memorial. 

Right between Stark Tower and the Grand Central Terminal, Pepper and Tony negotiated with city officials to erect a pair of monuments to honor the lives lost that day.

One was a statue dedicated to the first responders who risked their lives to rescue and evacuate civilians caught in the crossfire. 

The other, a granite wall with the names of every casualty carved into it. Each name had a plexiglass framed picture of the victim embedded into the wall above them.

20 victims, considering the scale of Loki's attack, most would say it was miraculous the casualty count was so low. Though as far as Tony was concerned, any number higher than zero is too many.

If he had just been better prepared, if he hadn't allowed himself to fall for Loki's trap, maybe these people would still be alive.

He's long since memorized each of their names, but he still looks over each one of them as he and Steve set the flowers in front of the monument.

As if having read his mind, Steve squeezes his hand and tells him, "Don't let yourself go down that rabbit hole."

Tony squeezes Steve's hand back. "How can I not?"

Steve releases Tony's hand, wraps his arm around his shoulders, and pulls him into a side hug. "This job...we try to save as many people as we can. Sometimes that doesn't mean everybody. But if we can't find a way to live with that, next time...maybe nobody gets saved."

Tony rests his head on Steve's shoulder. "Don't waste it. Don't waste your life, Stark."

"Did someone say that to you?" 

Tony nods. "A friend, his name was Ho Yinsen."

"Yinsen, I remember you mentioning that name once."

"I've never told anyone about him. Happy, Rhodey, not even Pepper or Gohan."

"Well, if you'd like to talk about him, I'm happy to lend an ear."

"Guess it is my turn to open up a bit."

With a parting nod of respect to the monument, the pair return to Steve's bike and make the short trip over to Central Park. 

-Gohan, Videl, Goten, & Trunks-

After stopping at that flower shop, Gohan had a strong hunch where his Dad and Steve were going.

His suspicions were soon confirmed, so Gohan called a pause to the mission. Since they were here, it's only right they pay their respects too.

Like Tony, Gohan knew the victims' names by heart and has spent an unhealthy amount of time ruminating over what he could've done differently that would've prevented these people's names from ending up on this memorial.

"B-bubba?" Goten hesitantly calls to his brother. 

Gohan looks down at him. "What's up, Goten?"

Goten tugs at the hem of his shirt and asks, "If you hadn't had to save me from Loki," he points over to the memorial. "would you have been able to save them?"

"Oh, Goten–" Gohan readies to reassure his brother, but before he can give a response, Trunks heads him off.

The lavender haired boy bops his friend on the head and says, "Don't be dumb, Goten." 

"Trunks!" Gohan scolds.

Trunks crosses his arms and huffs. "What? It's dumb to blame yourself for what someone else did. It's all that loser Loki's fault."

Videl drops a hand on top of Trunks' head. "Pipsqueak has a point, you both did all you could, and that's all there is to it."

So blunt and spoken with such certainty, Gohan can't muster up an argument. 

Goten apparently comes to a similar conclusion. He giggles and hugs their outspoken friends.

Videl ruffles Goten's hair, then bumps shoulders with Gohan. "Now that we've cleared that up, let's get going, our targets are on the move."

Gohan chuckles and nods. "Right."

Gohan picks Goten up, sits him on his shoulders, takes Trunks hand, and follows his Dad and Steve's Kis along with Videl.

-Central Park-

After arriving to their originally scheduled destination, Tony opens up to Steve about his time with Yinsen. "He was being held captive by the same group that abducted me. He kept the shrapnel from my own weapon from shredding my heart and helped me build the very 1st miniature Arc Reactor and Ironman suit from a pile of scraps. He saved my life, twice, giving up his own in the process."

Steve grabs onto Tony's hand and squeezes it. "I'm sorry, Tony."

Blankly looking around at the scenery, then up at the sky, Tony remarks, "I'm the reason his family was killed, yet he still helped me."

"Those lives are on Stane, not you, Tony."

Tony shakes his head and meets Steve's eyes. "But I trusted him, I gave him unfettered control of SI, freeing him up to do his under the table deals without a care in the world. All so I wouldn't be stuck behind a desk and could screw around whenever and wherever."

Steve spots a bench a ways down the path they were walking on, leads Tony over to it, and sits them both down. "You’re not that man anymore."

Tony gives off a hollow laugh. "Aren't I?"

"No, you're not." Steve adamantly declares. "You're the man who opened his home to me when I had nothing and nowhere to go."

"C'mon, you're Captain America. It would've been treason to leave you to flounder about on your own after just waking up from a 60 year nap."

"You’re the man who's risked his life to save the world multiple times now, Loki and the Chitauri being just the most recent example."

"It's not like I did any of that alone. Wouldn't have saved anybody if I had been."

"You're the man who covered the entirety of the funeral costs for every one of Loki's victims out of your own pocket to ease the burden on their friends and families."

Tony huffs. "You say that like I'm not one of the richest people on the planet."

"I didn't see any of the other world's wealthiest offer those families or the city itself any support."

"So I have a shred of human decency, or I'm just the only loaded schmuck with half a brain to know good PR when I see it."

"That may have been how you spun it for the vultures on your board of directors to keep them off your back, but I'm not so gullible."

Tony smirks. "Saw right through me on that one, huh?"

"Yep." Steve confirms. "And do I even need to mention the boys?"

Tony playfully shoves at Steve's shoulder. "Well now you're just playing dirty."

Steve slings an arm around Tony's shoulders. "Is it working?"

Tony laughs again, though this time it's a genuine laugh. "Maybe just a little bit."

Steve chuckles. "I'll have to remember the Gohan and Goten card sooner next time."

"No fair." Tony whines.

Speaking of the boys, Tony suddenly remembers those 'suspicious' figures from the diner the waitress glanced at when he mentioned his kids.

He hadn't thought to check at the time, but now he concentrates for a second, searches out their Kis, and finds their's, along with Videl and Trunks' fairly close by.

He casually leans back against the bench and surveys the area. He spots them ducking behind some trees at the edge of his peripheral.

Tony huffs in amusement and inches closer to Steve so it looks like he's going in for a cheek kiss, which he does give Steve a peck before whispering into his ear, "Looks like we have an audience tailing us."

For a moment, Steve is alarmed, but considering Tony's tone, he extends his senses, picks up on 4 familiar Kis nearby, shakes his head, and chuckles. "Those rascals."

While Tony thinks it's adorable his boys wanted to stand watch over his date, he can't resist the urge to mess with the nosy rugrats. "Wanna help me teach said 'rascals' a lesson about respecting others' privacy?"

He'd expected at least a mild protest from his date, but Steve is immediately on board. "What do you have in mind?"

Tony quickly explains his plan and once Steve nods in confirmation, they vacate the bench, stroll over to a rest area hand in hand, and take cover in one of the public restrooms.

Once out of sight, they suppress their Kis, sneak out of the restroom from the opposite side they came in through, and duck behind some tress.

Just as Tony anticipated, the kids dart over to where they last felt them and begin searching for them.

Though as the couple move in to sneak up on them, something Tony hadn't anticipated happens.

A trembling Goten yanks off his sunglasses, hops off Gohan's shoulders, begins to frantically look around the area, and tearfully calls out, "Daddy? Where did you go?! Daddy?!"

He drops to his knees and starts hyperventilating. Struggling to take even a single breath between his desperate pleas for Tony. "Daddy!"

"Oh shit!" Tony curses as he abandons his stupid prank in favor of rushing over to his hysterical, baby boy.

Steve is right behind him as the rest of the kids were already at Goten's side.

Videl, Trunks, and even Gohan are unable to console him in the slightest. 

"Goten!" Tony calls out as he stops suppressing his Ki.

The boy twists around, spots Tony, and sprints over to him. "Daddy!"

He jumps into Tony's arms and wraps his own arms around his Dad's neck in a death grip. "I-I couldn't feel you, like when you flew into that hole in the sky! I th-thought you might have gone away. Please don’t go away, Daddy!."

"Oh, baby boy." Tony hugs Goten to his chest. "I'm so sorry." How could he not have considered that? Goten only became a Super Saiyan in the first place because he thought Tony had died.

No wonder not being able to sense him would send the boy with such strong sensory abilities into a panic. "Daddy just realized you all were following us and thought it would be funny to sneak up on and surprise you."

"Well that was really dumb!" Trunks shouts, glaring daggers up at Tony while holding back tears of his own from seeing his friend in such distress.

"You're absolutely right, Short-Stack." Tony agrees. "It was really dumb." He starts rubbing circles on Goten's back. "I'm really sorry, Monkey."

"We both are." Steve solemnly adds as he drops a hand onto Goten's head. 

Goten nuzzles into Tony's neck and sniffles. "It's ok, I'm sorry we spied on you."

"Yeah, I'm sorry too, Dad." Gohan speaks up. "I knew we shouldn't have done it, but I went along with it anyway."

"Same here." Videl chimes in. "I thought it'd be harmless fun. I didn’t think it could backfire like this."

Tony kisses the top of Goten's head, claps Gohan's shoulder, and nods to Videl. "It's alright, I know you were just looking out for me in your own way."

Goten unwinds his arms from Tony's neck, wipes the remaining tears from his face with his sleeve, looks up at his Dad and Steve and says, "I'm ok now. We'll go home and leave you alone."

"There's no need for that, Son." Steve tells him.

"But your date's not over yet, right?" Goten asks.

"Well, we were thinking about maybe seeing a movie." Steve admits. "But we can do that back home with everyone."

Tony smiles at Steve, subtly nods in gratitude, then excitedly asks Goten, "What do ya think, Monkey? We could make a boatload of popcorn, maybe even grab a few treats from the candy stash, and make a ginormous pillow fort to crash in together."

Goten instantly brightens up at the suggestion. "Yeah, like a big slumber party!"

Tony kisses Goten on the forehead. "My thoughts exactly."

Gohan, Videl, and Trunks all happily agree as well, and the group make their way out of the park together. 

-A Few Hours Later-

After vacating the park without issue –luckily, no one was around to overhear Goten's panic attack– the kids went back home via some more parkour while Steve and Tony rode Steve's bike back to the tower garage. 

Once they all reconvened on the family floor, Tony and Steve got to work making a few buckets worth of popcorn and grabbing some candy for the kids while Gohan, Videl, and the boys made a pillow fort (more like a pillow mansion) large enough to comfortably fit the 6 of them along with Icarus.

Once everyone was settled, JARVIS projects a holoscreen into the center of the fort and plays several movies back to back.

One by one, as the hours tick by, the kids and Icarus fall asleep.

Tony snaps several pics of Gohan and Videl cuddled up together with Icarus splayed out on top of them. 

Goten is curled up on top of Tony's chest, holding onto Trunks' hand as the older boy snores right into Tony's ear. Even out cold these 2 are inseparable. 

Tony watches them all sleep, his eyes filled with fondness as he rests his head on Steve's chest.

He glances up at him and finds Steve staring right back at him, the exact same fondness in the younger(?) man's eyes as well.

"Sorry our date got a little derailed at the end there." Tony whispers. 

Steve shakes his head. "Are you kiddin? Besides the 'hiccup' at the park, tonight has been great. Even better than I'd planned."

Tony snorts and leans in close enough to lock lips with Steve. "You truly are too good for this world."

Steve kisses him back, even teasingly poking his tongue into Tony’s mouth for a moment. "You're not so bad yourself, Doll."

Tony eagerly deepens the kiss, their tongues engage in a lengthy dance for dominance until Tony needs to pull back to take a breath.

His cheeks burn up at the pet name, so he tucks his face into the crook of Steve's neck in the hopes of hiding the effect it had on him. "I guess for now I'll take your word for it, Old Man."

Steve chuckles, wraps his arms around Tony, and gives him a peck on the top of his head. "I suppose that's a good start."

He grabs a loose blanket, drapes it over the three of them, making sure not to disturb Goten, drops a kiss on the boy's head and another onto Tony's before letting himself drift off to sleep.

Tony gently cuddles Goten to his chest like a teddy bear (or teddy monkey in this case) and wraps his free arm around Steve before letting the comfort of everyone's presence lull him into a peaceful slumber.