Malibu
“Go on. Make yourself at home,” Tony tells him.
Harry is a little bit in awe of everything. This was the biggest house Harry had ever been in. “You live here?” Harry asked.
“I know, it's really impressive. I bet your dad doesn't have anything like this.” Tony couldn't help sounding smug, just as he couldn't resist the urge to shoe off. “Hey, JARVIS, introduce yourself.”
The AI does all the explaining, of what he is and how he controls the house.
“Norman could never create something this advanced,” Tony said, full of pride and arrogance.
“Dad's degrees are in chemistry,” Harry said, “and business. And plus, he doesn't have a lot of time to tinker with computers.”
“Fair point,” Tony conceded. “That's why you're better off with me and why he's better off without you.”
Harry sat on the couch and fidgeted with a throw pillow. “You really think he's better off without me?” Harry still found this devastating, and Tony felt just a smidge bad for saying it.
“I do. As much as I hate to say it. You know it, too. It's not your fault that he's not properly equipped to take care of a child.”
“And you are?”
Well, not exactly. No. Absolutely not. But Tony needed to think of a better way to word his response.
“Truth is, you don't really need a dad! He's holding you back from being your best self and pressuring you to become something else, isn't he?”
Harry clenched his jaw until his teeth hurt and then shook his head. “No,” Harry said, “everything he does is for my own good. Daddy always knows best.”
“That's horseshit!” Tony said, this time with 100% conviction. “That's just the sort of thing that shitty, arrogant and hyper-controlling parents say to try and stop you from questioning their decisions.”
Harry would have a hard time rebuking the assertion that Norman was controlling and arrogant. But the arrogance was… (what? Justified?)
“I won't ever do that,” Tony said. “I'm not gonna pretend that I always make the best decisions, because I definitely don't. Many of my decisions are famously terrible. You can ask anyone. I'm reckless and impulsive and—”
“You're really good at selling yourself,” Harry said. “Now I feel silly for ever worrying about your qualifications for raising a child.” The deadpan delivery was great. Harry would fit in perfectly around here. Tony was actually happy with his decision. This was going to be good for both of them. They were a perfect match. Not as father and son, but as friends. Tony could even see himself becoming a mentor if he could just reign in some of his more destructive impulses.
“Harry, you're selling yourself short if you think you need an oppressive father to constantly look over your shoulder and criticize and pick apart every small mistake.”
Harry was still listening to Tony, but he was also looking around the room, searching for something.
“What are you looking for?”
“A blanket,” Harry said. Then he glanced down at the decorative pillow. “And I'd prefer a proper pillow if I have to sleep here.”
Tony chuckled at that. “I'm not going to make you sleep on the couch.”
“Well, I'm not sleeping with you.”
“Do you think I only have one bed?”
Harry felt stupid and that was rendered obvious by his cheeks turning a lovely shade of pink.
“And don't think I didn't notice the abrupt subject change,” Tony meant for that to sound teasing, but it struck a match that ignited a burst of anger from the emotionally distraught little boy.
Harry tossed the ugly pillow across the room, stood up and stomped his foot. “I don't want to listen to you shit talk my dad any more! You made your point. It's shitty and I don't like it. Now I want to go to sleep.”
As soon as Harry finished his outburst, he froze. His face was red from anger, but his eyes were filled with fear. Rather than standing his ground, Harry shrunk back when Tony started to move.
But rather than move toward Harry, Tony retrieved the pillow from where it had harmlessly been flung onto the rug.
“I'll never hit you,” Tony promised. “No spankings, no sticks, nothing like that. Ever. And I'm never going to withhold food. I'm never going to force you to eat something you don't want. I'll try to avoid touching you at all if it makes you uncomfortable…” Tony wanted to alleviate Harry's every possible fear, but Harry's relief was tempered by clear signs of skepticism.
“Does that mean you're not going to molest me?”
If Tony had been drinking something, then he'd have done a spit take. Instead he just sputtered, “God, no! That's disgusting.” Tony recoiled and threw the pillow at the couch where Harry had initially found it. “There won't be any molesting. Ever. I may be a party boy and a womanizer, but I'm not a creep.”
“Kidnapping kids is kind of creepy, no matter what the reason.”
“I prefer to think that I liberated you.”
“Oh,” Harry said, “so that means I'm free to go?” Harry wasn't so naive as to think Tony would actually let him leave, but he still stepped towards the exit.
“JARVIS, lock all the doors.” Tony wasn't fooling around any more. “Harry, you know I can't let you leave.”
Harry crossed his arms and stared defiantly. He was emboldened by Tony's promise. “Is that because you know what's best for me or are you just doing what's best for yourself?”
“I'd say it's a bit of both.” But if Tony was honest with himself, then he'd say mostly the latter. “If you go back now, you'll be grounded for life.”
“And you'd be sent to prison.”
Tony waved a hand. “No,” he said, though he wasn't sure. “I could easily bribe a judge to dismiss the case or cut a plea deal with the district attorney. At worst I might get stuck with some community service or a slap on the wrist. It might cost me some money in legal fees, mere pocket change. It might temporarily damage my reputation, but I'm not getting locked up. I'll be mildly inconvenienced, meanwhile your life will be ruined.”
Harry heard too many stories about how powerful money can be, along with Stark's famous family name, Tony could probably get away with almost anything, including this. “If you're so sure of that, then why not let me leave?”
Tony blew out a long sigh. “Because I like you, Harry. I don't want you to suffer for something that was mostly my mistake. I'd rather make it up to you in my own way.” He tried to smile reassuringly and said, “I'll gladly shoulder a little more responsibility if it means protecting you from the sort of things I went through at your age. I believe we can help each other.”
The thing Tony thought he really needed to put more emphasis on was what could happen to Harry. “What I'm most worried about is what your father will do. You called me. You left the hotel room willingly and the security cameras will confirm that. He'll be absolutely furious and there is a high chance that anger will be entirely directed at you.”
Harry sucked in a sharp breath and turned to face the wall.
“What's the worst thing he's ever done to you?” Tony asked. Harry didn't respond. Tony decided that he needed to fan the flames. “Imagine that magnified by a thousand. And he'll want to kill me, which is probably the only real consequence I have to worry about.”
“That's stupid. My dad's not a murderer.”
“He'll hire someone else to do it.”
Harry scoffed, “with what money? Hitmen are expensive and you've got a lot of private security to protect you.”
“What about you?” Tony asked, “Who's going to protect you, Harry? What defense do you have against Norman's temper?”
Harry shook his head, no. No, he wasn't going to disparage his dad any further. “I'm tired. I want to go to bed now.”
“Okay, okay,” Tony relented. “I'll show you where to go, help you get settled in.”