Young At Heart (Literally).

Tony decided he liked Mr Banner. In fact, he liked everyone in the group. All of the funny people in funny suits seemed to like little Tony. Tony wasn’t used to that. Most adults thought he was annoying and they’d tell him to go away, instead of letting him talk about all of his greatest inventions.

However, he was still weary around them. He’d hoard his toys, scared that they’d take them away from them. Daddy did whenever he got drunk. Sometimes he’d throw Tony’s favourite in the fire, forcing the toddler to watch. He wondered when they’d do that to his black widow action figure, which he kept in hand at all times.

Currently, Tony was sat in another cool lab. Dr Banner was wearing a stethoscope around his neck and was listening to his beating heart. He didn’t usually like tests, but Mr Barton had brought a box of ice lollies for him. He liked the strawberry flavour, so he was currently eating one those as Bruce made sure he was all okay.

Tony could’ve told Mr Banner that he was totally fine, but he did look really worried. Tony didn’t like it when his friends were worried, so he’d do whatever he needed to make sure they were all okay.

“Does the name Loki mean anything to you, honey?” Bruce asked, a hand on the small boy’s shoulder. He brushed his hair away from his face, making sure he wasn’t too hot.

“Nu-uh,” Tony replied. He closed his eyes, tying his hardest to think of the name. It did sound familiar! He gasped after a second, “Oh yes! I read about him in a book once. He’s got a big brother called Thor! Thor’s got massive muscles and he’s awesome!”

“I’m glad you think so, little man!” A voice bellowed from the door.

Tony slowly looked over, bits of his ice lolly melting down to his hand. He blinked. He hadn’t seen this person around yet. He was tall, even taller than Mr Rogers, and had very long blonde hair. He wore a red cape that Tony gasped at. Now, this is what he thought when he imagined a superhero!

Just because Thor looked awesome, it didn’t mean he was less scary. Tony looked over at Natasha, who was deep into her book, and tired to get her attention without admitting he needed it. Daddy taught him from a young age that people didn’t like to listen to his problems.

“M-Mr Banner?” Tony stammered, although he tried his hardest not to, “Who’s that?”

“That’s Thor,” Bruce said, “You can go say hi, if you’d like,” he offers, “We’re all done with the tests.”

Tony jumped down onto the stool that’s just in front of the desk. Standing on the wooden box, Tony made sure to grab a chocolate ice lolly to give to Thor as a peace offering. “Hello Mr Thor!” Tony said, trying his best to hide behind the ice lolly he held tightly in his hands. “I, uh, I brought you this!”

“Why thank you!” Thor beamed, his smile wide. His smile reminded him of the biggest stars in the sky, bright and welcoming. Tony’s shoulders easily relaxed as Thor took the ice lolly, his brain easily wondered by Midgardian things; this was very similar to little Tony’s mind at the moment. “You know, you’ve got the might of a young warrior!”

“I-I am a warrior?” Tony exclaimed, running to the toy box that Banner had brought down with him. Two foam swords filled the middle of the box, two foams swords that would be perfect for a duel. “Do you want to play with me Mr Thor?”

“A duel with someone so strong? Why, I’d be a fool to give that up!” Thor chuckled, taking one of the swords that Tony offered him. Planting one foot down, Thor put one hand on his hip. He put his sword forward, waiting for Tony to reciprocate. “Lets go!”

Tony and Thor spent the next hour fighting each other, swords bashing against the other. Thor might’ve held back a little, or a lot, as he let Tony get the upper hand. And when Thor ‘fell’ to the floor with a dramatic grunt, Tony laughed so lovely that anyone would fall from any height to hear it.

“I won!” Tony announced, fake sword in the air. He smiled up at Steve, a toothy smile over his face. Steve reciprocated the grin, making Tony feel safe all over.

“Well, of course!” Thor laughed, “You’re a worthy young warrior, young Stark!”

With Natasha and Tony going up to dinner, it left Thor, Bruce and Steve in the room to discuss what happened to Tony and how they could fix it.

“He’s perfectly healthy,” Bruce explained, “His heart seems to be, even without the arc reactor. It’s like his younger self has just been transported here.”

“I assume that Tony’s ‘de-ageing’ might have something to do with my mischievous brother, Loki!” Thor added, hands on his large hips. “My brother did this to me once, when we were kids. My father had to get me to reveal my deepest, darkest, secret to change me back. It was gruelling, indeed!”

“Oh?” Steve said, sitting up. He had been on the sofa with Natasha, deep into a conversation. However, this comment took him out of their bubble. “Oh, now, that’s not good. I don’t think we’re going to get little Tony to tell us something so interesting about himself, especially since he can’t remember his future self.”

“Oh, no!” Thor shook his head, “The magic converts you into the age in which this secret originates from. If Tony’s secret comes from when he was five years old, than that is the one he must tell.”

“Well, shit,” Bruce said, leaning back into the desk that he was just writing on.

Having Tony young and small in the tower was weird, at first. The Avengers were not used to having the man around so often, especially as a young kid that wasn’t aware of how the modern world worked. It was like when Steve first came back, if Steve was stuck in a small toddler body.

He was wild, rushing around everywhere with a smile. But, at times, he’d retreat into himself. He’d sit on the sofa, arms tucked around his body with a frown. He’d watch Steve, scared out of his mind. Tears would bubble in his eyes when Natasha was out of sight, and nobody else would know what to do.

“Tony?” Bruce asked one day, when the Captain heard the little toddler messing with one his bots downstairs, alone. “Auntie Nat told me that you wondered of alone. Are you feeling all okay?”

“N-No!” Tony cried, shaking his head. The bot he was trying to make was all messed up, his head not attached to the machine. It wasn’t working like little Tony wanted it to, so it was making him very frustrated. “I’m useless- M-Mr Banner! Mr Banner- I- can’t do it! I can’t do it! Daddy was right! I’m-I-I’m not smart!”

Bruce frowned, kneeling down beside Tony. He looked over the robot, raising his eyebrows. It worked very well, for someone so young, and Tony didn’t need to feel upset about it. Seeing Tony this worked up hurt his heart. He wondered if adult Tony felt this way when things didn’t go his way, or if their weapons he made malfunctioned during a mission.

“This is incredible, Tony,” Bruce said, picking the robot up in his hands. He smiled at it, noticing little things in his design that adult Tony would normally incorporate.

“N-no it’s not!” Tony cried, “I-It’s rubbish, Mr Banner! It doesn’t even work!”

“Buddy, this is so advanced!” Bruce said, a little taken back from how upset Tony was. “It’s so, so, good. Look at the little robot, honey? It’s working and you’ve got the coding right, and it’s awesome.”

“R-Really?” Tony said, looking up at Bruce with a reserved smile playing on his lips. He looked back down at his robot in Bruce’s hands, finally proud of himself. “T-Thank you, Mr Banner.”

Tony carried this robot with him everywhere now, keeping Auntie Nat figure in the top pocket of his toddler blazer jacket. He showed every single person he could, making them look at his robot whenever he could. Everyone told him how smart he was, making little Tony the most happy that he had ever been.

He even put it on his bedside table when he went to sleep. He even turned it into an alarm clock, coding it to beep at him early in the morning. And when Natasha tucked him under the sheets, she’d make sure little robot was set a certain time.

After his bedtime story, Tony looked up at Natasha and saw his Mama for a second. That got him thinking, and Tony was very confused for a second. Where was Mama? Daddy? He’d been in the tower with these people for a long time now, and they still hadn’t shown up to come and get Tony.

“M-Mama?” Tony whispered, trying to grab Natasha’s hand from where she was stood. “W-Where’s my Mamma, Auntie Nat? I miss her! I miss her a whole bunch!”

“Tony, darling,” Natasha whispered. She knelt down beside Tony’s bed, a frown on her face. “They’re just on a company trip, honey. They’ll be back soon enough.”

Tony pouted. Did Auntie Nat think he was stupid? “No, they’re not. They’re not, Auntie Nat. P-Please don’t lie to me! Where’s Mama and Daddy? Have you hidden them f-from me?”

“No, sweetheart. They’ll be back soon, trust me,” Natasha told her, grabbing his hand. “For now, little one, it’s time to go to sleep.”

“N-No!” Tony complained, shaking his head. Tony threw his covers of himself, jumping out of the bed that Natasha just put him in. He shook his head at the woman, “You’re lying, Auntie Nat! Don’t lie to me, please!”

“H-Honey- they’re-,” Natasha stammered. She had been taught how to compose herself time after time in the red room, but Tony’s eyes made her insides melt. She didn’t know what to say. “They’re gone, Tony. But, we’re here for you now. Okay?”

Tony’s face fell. Mama was dead? Daddy too? He stared into Natasha’s eyes, shaking his head over and over again. “No!” He cried, before rushing out of the room. He ran into the elevator and begged Jarvis to take him outside, to which the robot voice did.

Natasha came bursting into Steve’s floor, waking the super solider up. She looked disheveled, terrified, and Steve hadn’t seen her this in shock before. “Steve! Steve!” She shouted, shaking his shoulder. “Tony’s gone. He’s gone- He ran away! Steve, please. Help me find him.”

Steve jumped up, throwing on a jacket over his vest top. He didn’t bother with his shoes, jumping into the elevator. He ran outside of the tower, eyes looking around the dark night. He jogged down the streets, screaming the kid’s name. His heart was pounding out of his chest, terrified that someone took Tony and that they’d never get him back.

Steve’s head turned quickly, hearing a rustle in the bushes behind him. He turned around, focusing on the kid that crawled out from underneath them. He was hugging an action figure to his chest, and Steve immediately recognised him as their kid genius.

“Tony!” Steve shouted, rushing to him. He went to pick Tony up, but the boy flinched back in one swift movement. Tony went tumbling back onto the pavement, his little legs falling up. “Tony, sweetheart. Hey,” Steve whispered, kneeling down on the side of the road. “It’s just me.”

“S-Steve, please don’t hit me! I swear- I-I didn’t mean to run away!” Tony cried, “I-I was j-just mad that nobody told me that Mummy and Daddy aren’t here anymore.”

“Woah, sweetheart. I’m not going to hit you. I’m not,” Steve whispered, a little mortified that Tony would ever think that of him. “I’d never, ever, hurt you. Not even if you did the worst thing in the whole wide world. Do you understand?”

Tony gulped, nodding. “D-Daddy said that if you were around that you’d take me a-and hit me to prove a lesson..,”

“He did?” Steve asked, angrily clenching his fist when Tony confirmed it. “He’s a liar, Tony. I’d never hit you. Nobody should hit you and if people did then- well, that’s very wrong. Did Daddy do that to you?”

“No!” Tony shouted, lying by the skin of his teeth. He couldn’t tell Steve, because Steve was daddy’s friend and he didn’t want him to hate Daddy because of him now. And, well, Daddy did always say to never speak a word of what happened in his office. “He didn’t, Steve! He didn’t! I p-promise!”

“Okay,” Steve nodded, putting his hand out for little Tony to take. “Shall we go back to the tower? What do you think, sweetheart?”

“Y-Yes, please.”

Tony took Steve’s hand, squeezing it reallllly tight. He was terrified that Steve would flip, but he didn’t. Nobody did. He felt a little cut on his knee, where he fell on it, but he didn’t tell Steve about it.

They went back to the tower, but Tony was so tired. He tugged Steve’s hand as soon as they walked in the front doors. “Mr Rogers?” He whispered, “May you c-carry me back to my bedroom?”

“Of course, little one,” Steve smiled, slowly getting the boy into one arm. Tony’s face was up against his chest, as Steve made sure his whole body was supported. He looks down at Tony, noticing the blood rushing down his leg. Even as a child, Tony would avoid telling people about his injuries. “Does your leg hurt, kiddo?”

Tony nodded, whimpering. “R-Really hurts, Mr Rogers. But, I’m okay! I swear!”

“No, you’re not,” Steve said, telling Jarvis to scan him as they walked up into the penthouse. JARVIS said something about a cut knee, so Steve got the alcohol wipes and cool band-aids out of the cupboard.

“N-No, I’m not,” Tony pouted, when Steve slowly put him down on the sofa.

Steve wiped the gravel and blood away from his knee and cleaned it up, trying hard not to wince at how Tony sobbed. He got his knee all clean, drying the wound with a few dabs of tissue paper. Placing the ‘disney’ themed band-aid over his wound, Tony whimpered at the pain.

“Was it scary when we didn’t tell you the truth, Tony?” Steve whispered, as he let Tony eat as many of Clint’s marshmallows as he could. He’d deal with the sugar rush later.

“Y-yes,” Tony admitted, “I don’t like it when people lie to me, Mr Rogers.”

“I know, buddy. It’s not very nice of us, was it?” Steve pouted, rubbing his arm. “But, bud, we were just trying to make sure that you were all okay. It was very silly of us to keep it to ourselves, but I promise that we’ll tell you anything you ask. Okay?”

“O-Okay,” Tony nodded, smiling a little to himself.

“But, you need to promise not to run away. There’s a lot of people outside, Tony. You could’ve been hurt badly, sweetheart. We don’t want that, because we all love you loads and loads,” Steve explained, sitting himself up on the sofa.

For the first time since Tony was turned into his child form, the young boy curled himself up into Steve’s lap. Steve couldn’t believe how weak at the knees it made him. He had to admit that this kid was adorable, and he almost wished that he could’ve been there to help raise Tony. He knew that he’d make sure he wasn’t hurt, if he was, but there was no use dwelling on something he couldn’t change.

“Yes, Mr Rogers. Of course,” Tony pouted, before falling asleep in the man’s lap.

Whatever they had to do to change Tony back, Steve couldn’t wait to see his old friend and tell him how much he meant to them. Because it was obvious how much their friend needed the reassurance.. and it was true, the Avengers loved Tony Stark.