Out Of This World

In life, Tony’s been called many things. Unfair, stubborn, cruel, and even a murder. But nobody really knows who he is underneath it all. When all the bandages come off, and the real person can be seen from underneath…he’s kind, funny, scared, and fair. And he certainly knows that seeing a bloody, young, and crying teenager stuck in a room with a collar around their neck… well, ‘ethical’ isn’t the word that springs into his mind. In fact, he’ll say that it’s disgusting. How he doesn’t throw up as soon as he lays his eyes on him… he’ll never know.

Every pair of eyes in the room are on him, waiting for him to make his next move. He’s not sure what on earth to do. He’s seen atrocities in his life, but none of them have ever been so close to his home- to his work. He’s working with people who feel as if this, whatever it is, is okay.

“You all better step aside, or-,” Tony says, coldly. His mouth moves by itself, as he speaks without his mind even thinking. “Well, you don’t want to find out.”

The scientists walk away, leaving a clear line to the room for Tony to step towards. All he can see is a little boy’s head through the one window, his eyes so wide and red from crying that Tony would’ve thought he had an infection. He’s shaking from head to toe like a leaf, and Tony knows- he feels- that it’s his job to make sure he’s okay. The automatic pull he feels to this little one is scary, but he’ll help him in any way that he can.

“Hey, buddy. I’m just opening the doors, okay? I’ll be with you in a second,” Tony announces, hacking into the system they’ve used to operate the doors. They slowly open, and Tony sighs as the boy tries to back away. He’s terrified, so Tony steps out of the suit to show him he’s not a scary robot (Tony doesn’t know that Peter finds the human a lot scarier). “I don’t know if you know who I am-,”

“I-Iron man?” Peter whispers, eyes flickering up to the TV. “I saw you on the news.”

“That’s right,” Tony smiles, “And I promise you, I won’t hurt you.”

Peter doesn’t seem to believe him. His eyes are wide as he stares, unblinking, at the sign on Tony’s arm. On his under suit, which was designed by one of the ‘costume’ interns that Fury hired (that’s the only part of his uniform that they’ll get to touch… which is why he likes having the suits), there is a logo, one Peter wishes he never saw before. It’s shield’s. That must mean he’s working with them, and this is all a ruse, and-

“Hey, hey- look,” Tony says, covering the logo with his hand. “I’m not like them, buddy. Nothing like them at all. You don’t have to trust me, but I can get you out of here. Okay? And once we’re in a safe place, I’ll take this stupid thing off and you’ll never have to see it again.” He kneels to the ground, “What’s your name, sweetheart?” he asks, trying a different approach that might show the kid that everything’s just fine.

“Peter,” Peter whispers.

“Oh, lovely. That’s a very nice name, Peter,” Tony says, “My real name isn’t Iron Man. My name’s Tony,” he smiles. “And I have a lot of friends who have just as nice names, who’d like to help you as much as I would.”

Peter tilts his head to the side like an inquisitive puppy. Scared, but still brave, he takes a few steps forward and finds himself almost melting into Tony’s side. He feels the man freeze up, but as soon as he’s by his feet he feels safe- and he’s not going anywhere. And when Tony caves in, wrapping himself protectively over the kid as he stands up (Peter still holding on), everything comes together and feels so good.

“Let’s take this stupid thing off you,” Tony tells him, reaching up. It’s a simple design (probably made by Hammer tech or something like that) and falls apart with one button. It’s off to the ground and far away from Peter’s neck. Just like it should be. The flesh underneath where it had just been is damaged, and he knows they should go to a hospital to check on it- but the kid’s still trembling, and it would be cruel to keep him away from somewhere homely. They’d go later. “There we are, all better,” Tony smiles.

“I want to get out of here,” Peter whispers.

“Same, kiddo,” Tony says, turning them around. He slowly makes the kid detach from him, after a lot of convincing, just so he can step back in the suit. Once he’s in it, he carefully sweeps Peter of his feet and gets prepared to carry him down the hallway. But before all of that, he destroys this place. He destroys their research. And he makes sure that these workers are taken away by higher authority. Because what they’ve done… it’s disgusting. He doesn’t even bother to check it over.

Peter’s in Tony’s arms when they get back to his penthouse. Nobody else is there. It’s just them in this huge building. Peter’s never seen anything like this before. Everything is huge. Every corner has a feature piece, or art that doesn’t make sense, and there’s more money here then he’s ever seen before. He can’t keep his eyes of it. It looks like it hasn’t been touched in years. He knows he’ll mess it up. Is that why Tony brought him here? To test him? If so, he knows he’ll fail. He’ll be back in that place in no time and his saviour will be a forgotten memory.

Tony takes him over to a living room, letting him sit on the clouds- no, sorry- they’re sofa’s. Peter gets confused… especially when they’re both from the same material. These things are so soft that he could float away and find himself in the middle of the sky. They have fluffy pillows of them too, outlined in fake fur. It feels like an animal to the touch, maybe something like a cute dog- or, well, you catch the drift.

Tony’s not in the under suit anymore, as promised. Instead, he’s wearing an old band shirt with a pair of grey joggers underneath. It makes him look a bit like Ben… which puts Peter in a weird state for a second. But once Tony starts speaking, he blinks, and everything is back to normal. Ben’s not there, staring sadly at him… it’s just Tony.

“Pepper picked them,” Tony says, catching Peter stroking the edge of the pillow. The boy looks upset, or guilty, so he immediately retracts his hand. But Tony just chuckles, moving his hand back where it came from. “They barely get the attention they deserve, it’s okay if you want to touch them. I used to do it all the time. Guess the lure of it just got lost on me,” he smiles. “Anyway- Pete! Is there anyone I can get in contact with to get you home?”

Peter’s eyes go wide. “No, no- can’t go home,” he says. “It will put her in danger.”

“Who’s in danger, kid?” Tony asks, slowly scooting over so the pillow is the only thing in between them. He puts his hand over where he’s stroking the fur, squeezing it gently like he’s seen Barton do when he’s with his kids. He can be fatherly… what’s stopping him? You know, apart from the tragic background with a far away father who didn’t give a shit about him, therefore never teaching him how to properly love the people around him. No, that definitely wasn’t stopping him at all. “Pete?” he asks again when the room is silent for just a bit too long.

“…D-Do you promise that you’re not one of them?” Peter asks, “Because they do know who she is and where- but you look more powerful and if you go over there- she’ll be dead before I know it and I won’t be able to stop it and it will be all my fault,” he rants, hand shaking so much it makes Tony start moving back and forth.

“I promise,” he says, putting his hand over his own heart. “With all of my heart,” he smiles, making Peter feel safe, “That I am not anything to do with them. We might be under the same company, but their work isn’t overseen by me- and I had no clue they had you in there. If I did? Oh, you would’ve been rescued the second they brought you here.”

“…They killed my dad. Well, he wasn’t actually my dad, but he was the closest thing I had to one and they- they just shot him in front of me. They left him to bleed out as they drugged me,” Peter admits, staring at his feet. “And they’ll go after my mom next. Her name’s May and she- she can’t protect herself, Tony. They’ll kill her,” Peter whimpers.

“They won’t,” Tony interrupts, a fierce look on his face. “Peter, they’re not going to be free men once I go anywhere near them. What they did to you… kid, it’s so wrong. I promise you that I will keep May safe, okay? We’ll get her in a safe house if we have to,” he says, and he sounds so stern that he must be telling the truth. Peter takes a deep breath, finding himself more and more comfortable as he sinks into the sofa. Tony keeps talking as he tries to throw away the new memories he made in that room. “Evil assholes- thinking they have the right to keep you locked up like that. They had no right… why did they even need an innocent little kid? I hate these weirdos that like to test on humans and animals… it’s so weird,” Tony rants. He moves his hand away from the kid’s, using it to check up on the scarring. That’s weird… it’s mostly gone?

“I…I must be honest with you,” Peter says slowly. “I am not human. That’s why they- it’s… it’s the reason they took me in.”

“…Okay?” he says, raising his eyebrow. “So… you’re going to have to elaborate on that one.”

“I..I come from a different planet?” he says, “I know you have a friend like that. Thor? They said he was from Asgard and said that if he was less powerful than…than they would’ve done this to him. They wanted information from me, to try and crack intergalactic travel. But I-I don’t even know how I got here. I came here two years ago- and it was parents who did it. Our planet was destroyed, and I was the only survivor. All of my friends and family died, and then I was happy here because I found a lovely couple who took me in and now Ben’s dead and it’s all my fault-,” Peter knows he’s ranting, he knows he should stop and take a break but it’s been such a long week and saying it out loud helps him to understand it all- and it looks as if Tony wants to know. “I just- I felt loved with them, and then- then it’s all gone like that. People are cruel, Tony. Sorry. I know you are one, but you’re good- but most of them- they’re all evil.”

“I won’t argue with you on that one, bud,” Tony sighs. He looks into the boy’s eyes and all he sees is… damage. He’s broken. There’s been so much loss, so much misery, in his life that he’s hanging on by a thread. One more thing could be the end of it all, so he decides he’ll be the one to help build it up again. Tony’s quick to accept the fact that Peter’s an alien. In fact, he’s one of the only people in the world that’s good for this situation. He’s besties with an alien. Like Peter said, he knows Thor. So, he’s seen it all and finding out this kid he rescued is from outer space? Well, it’s not crazy. “So, you’re an alien? They’ve seen a lot of others like you, so I’m struggling to figure out why they thought it would be a good idea to steal you of the streets. Honestly, they’re assholes. But they don’t represent the rest of us. Humans are a lot nicer than I imagine you’ve seen, and I’ll make sure to show you that.”

Peter smiles to himself a little. “So… it’s a bit like you’re a spokesperson… for people?”

Tony chuckles, “A bit like that, yeah.”

“…I’m not so sure if I believe you yet,” Peter says. “But I know you’re good. You’re like Ben and May. I can trust you.”

Tony’s breath hitches. Peter’s so sure that this will be okay, and it makes Tony’s heart swell with pride. He’s made this kid comfortable. He’s made sure that he’s safe, and he’s the one who will get him back home after this without a single scratch on his back (well, no more than they’ve already gave him).

Tony takes Peter to a spare bedroom that night, tucking him in. He feels like a good father, something he has always feared. And as he lingers by the switch, hand on it as he waits for Peter to settle down… he can’t help but smile at the way he watches Tony. There’s admiration in his stare, all of him wondering how he got so lucky that someone cared, that someone was willing to walk in and save him. Because if he hadn’t, Peter wasn’t sure how much longer he would’ve gone in that horrible room.

“Night, night, Pete. I’ll be here in the morning. And if you need anything, you ask FRIDAY. She’s in the ceiling, okay?” He smiles. Going to press the switch, he stops when Peter just looks at him as if he’s gone crazy. “Pete?”

“In the ceiling? What do you mean?”

“Have you ever heard of an AI?” Tony chuckles, mainly at the boy’s face (not at his perfectly reasonable question).

“Yes, I have,” he says. His mouth turns into a big ‘O’ as he puts two and two together before Tony can explain it. “Friday’s an AI?” Tony nods as Peter finishes his question. “Awesome,” he whispers. “Friday?” he says, directing his attention to the ceiling.

“Yes, Peter?” the robotic voice says, resonating out of the speaks across the room.

“May you turn the lights of for me? It will save Tony having to perform such an extraneous task,” he says, giggling to himself at the look of shock on Tony’s face. He hears the man laugh as the room turns black, but then the doors shut and he’s all by himself.

It’s too dark, he thinks, as he lies there. Peter doesn’t bother to try and fall asleep, because he knows what he’ll get as soon as he closes his eyes. The memories will come flooding back, a harsh reminder of all the shit he’s been through recently. And then he’ll thrash about and scream underneath the covers, and Tony will walk in and tell him to leave. He’ll roll his eyes, telling him there’s no reason for him to act like this and then-

“Peter?” the robotic voice says, “Your heart rate has elevated. Should I contact Sir for you?”

Peter quickly shakes his head, “No, no, he’s done too much for me already. I wouldn’t want to put him out. It’s okay. I’ll be fine.”

“May I offer you some techniques Sir uses whenever he finds it hard to sleep because of nightmares?”

Oh, Peter thinks. Tony gets nightmares too. Well, that means he’s not as ‘wimpy’ as he thought he was. If Tony gets them, surely it’s normal that he does too. So, he takes Friday’s advice. She plays the most beautiful music through the room, and she talks him through different exercises to keep his heart rate calm. The room’s at the perfect temperature too. In fact, the whole environment is just perfect… and Peter realises he doesn’t want to leave.

He can’t go home… it would put May in danger. And if he doesn’t go home, where else could he go? He hopes the answer to that is here. He wants to stay underneath Tony’s wing. He’s already bonded with the man, and he knows that it would be like losing someone dear again if they were pulled apart. He thinks that, even in this short time that they’ve known each other, that Tony likes him too. The way he looks at him sometimes, only sometimes (it’s like he’s ashamed- because Peter can only see it when he drops the mask he has around his face), it’s the same way Ben smiled at him. Peter thinks that’s a good thing.

And that night, as he listens to the small sound of footsteps (Tony’s footsteps) near the door, he finds himself sleeping soundly for the first time in a while.

Tony

Tony paces back and forth down the corridor near Peter’s room for a while until he can stay calm. He needs to take a breath and realise the kid will be okay underneath his watch, but it’s not enough. It’s only when Friday tells him some of the team has come upstairs that he finds himself walking away from him.

“You look tired,” Clint says, bow on his back (Tony winces… shit, he missed training).

Tony checks his watch. It’s 2pm. He found Pete at about 8am, and the kid looked exhausted- so he put him to bed then. But it’s messed up his concept of time just a little bit. When looking outside, he expected to see the pitch-black sky- but instead it’s all bright and birds are still chirping and- oh, Steve looks mad.

“Tony, this is the third week in the row that you’ve missed group training,” Steve sighs, crossing his arms over like an annoyed teacher who’s just caught a kid smoking outside the school grounds. “What’s your excuse this time?”

“Right, okay. So, this is going to sound out there this time. And, really, I won’t be surprised if you don’t believe me here,” Tony scratches the back of his head, a little smile on his face. “So…I maybe rescued an alien? Like, he’s this little kid- and he’s incredibly sweet… and he came from… space.”

The team all look around and stare at him, mouths gaping. Expect for Thor, who looks like he’s over the moon. It’s like he’s ecstatic that he might not be the only one anymore (and he has Tony to thank him for that, doesn’t he?). Steve looks tired of him, and Natasha just laughs in his face. He thinks it’s quite rude. But then again… he’s not sure if he’d believe Peter if he hadn’t found him in a research lab.

“It’s not that hard to believe! We have an alien on our team!”

“Yeah? And where is this E-T then?” Clint asks, dropping his bow off on a special hook Tony had installed as soon as they all moved in. “Can he turn invisible?”

“No,” Tony huffs. He pauses. “Well. I’m not sure. He could. We just met. I thought it would be quite rude to poke him with a stick and ask him what he can do, especially since I found him in the research’s teams sector. They had this awful collar around him, guys- honestly, it was horrible. Anyway- yeah- he’s asleep right now.”

“Wait, Shield kidnapped him?” Steve asked, suddenly a lot more interested. He straightens up, his mind changing from ‘Steve Rogers’ to ‘Captain America’. “Right, okay- so, I’ll go talk to Fury and make sure I understand how this happened underneath his watch.”

“Okay, Mr Righteous,” Tony salutes. “But- just give it a second. I’m not sure if they were shield. I’m not sure who was leading it… but some of the scientists in that room- I had no idea who they were. So, it’s as if we’ve got a group underneath Shield acting on their own will. So, I wanted to figure out who that was before I go waltzing into Fury.”

“Good idea, Tony,” Steve says, forgetting all about the lost training session (hm, Tony thinks, he’ll have to do this more regularly). Tony grins as Steve squeezes his shoulder. It’s rare to get such a direct compliment from Steve…he’s usually the brunt of a rant after Tony’s ignored direct orders, so change is good. “We’ll help you out on that.”

Natasha glances at Tony, tilting her head to the side (it’s not like Peter did earlier. His was sweet. Hers? Terrifying). “…Now, now, I never thought I’d see the day.”

“What?” Tony says, biting his lip. What has she figured out now?

“Tony Stark wants to be a dad,” Natasha grins. “You feel like you owe this kid something, and you think you could be good for him. Am I right?”

“Have we ever tested her for mutant powers?” The billionaire asks, turning his sight to Clint who’s grinning at him in a creepy way. He turns, but the archer grabs his hand and twists him around quickly. Tony’s eyes go wide. “What?”

“You do look like a dad!” Clint chuckles. “I mean- you’ve even tucked your shirt into the band of the joggers. Next thing we’ll know is you’ll be taking the old champ down on a fishing trip-,”

Tony huffs. “Right, okay. Look,” he stops himself. “We’re getting off topic now. There’s an alien child in my spare bedroom and all of you are focusing on the fact that you think I’m a dad? If I was, that kid wouldn’t be in a good state. He’s better off being as far away from that relationship developing.”

“Don’t speak so badly of yourself, Stark!” Thor bellows, putting his arm around the man’s shoulders. “Now, when can I meet this fellow alien? Did you hear what planet he was from?”

“No, actually. He just said it was destroyed two years ago when he came to Earth,” Tony says, “But you can ask him yourself… tomorrow, when he’s settled in. Okay?” he asks. “I don’t want to scare him yet. The poor thing was trembling when I picked him up from that place. And who knows if people will try and come after him again? I want to make sure he’s okay.”

“How kind of you!” Thor grins. “You’re an honourable warrior, son of Stark. I shall slot our meeting in my schedule. I’m looking forward to it.” He looks up the ceiling, “Friday? Did you get that?” And when the AI responds with a simple ‘yes’ the God’s face lights up. It’s adorable, to be honest, and Tony has to chuckle as he walks away with Bruce following quick behind (and did Bruce look a little anxious today? Tony would have to check that out another day).

As the rest of the Avengers disperse, Tony grabs one of his tablets and sits outside of Peter’s room scrolling through different gifts he thinks the little one might like. He spends hours putting clothes into his basket, as well as toys (he thinks kids of Peter’s age might like to play with stuff like that still… right? Plus, he’s an alien- developmental and mental age might differ) that cost thousands of dollars overall. And then, after he’s spent all of that, he spends some time planning a room just in case the kid decides to stay. Only the best furniture, the best tech- and everything that would make him feel comfortable.

“Tony?” he hears a voice.

Looking up, Tony sees Peter standing by the door with messy hair. “Hey, kid,” he smiles, standing up. “Nice sleep?”

“Were you standing out here the whole time?” Peter asks, ignoring Tony’s question.

His face in unreadable. Tony’s not sure what to say here, so he tells the truth. “For the most of it. Had to step out for a second, but-,” Tony has the air blown out of him as Peter rushes forward and hugs him.

Peter hides his face in the light that’s on Tony’s chest. “Thank you,” he whispers, too close to tears to trust himself to look up. He feels found since the first time since Ben died- and he feels safe. All because of Tony.

Tony wraps his arms around Peter, “That’s okay, kid. That’s just fine.”

Maybe it’s going to be okay… but if it’s not, Peter’s met one more human he can trust with his life… and hopefully that means it will only go up from here.