Into the DadVerse
“What?” Tony said, glancing between Pepper and Peter. He crossed his arms, pouting. “You’re joking, right?”
In the biggest betrayal ever known to man, in Tony’s opinion, Pepper was taking Peter to one of her work conferences. Tony, however, had not been asked to go. In fact, Pepper had told him that he wasn’t allowed.
Pepper looked at him with a pitiful, fake, look on her face. Her manicured hand was resting on top of her packed suitcase, the other on Peter’s shoulder.
Before she could say anything, her husband interrupted her with a loud sigh.
“And you didn’t tell me until the day you were leaving?” He said, gasping with a hand over his heart. “I can’t take it. My family are against me.”
As Peter snickered underneath his breath, Pepper sighed (with an amused smile playing at her lips). “Oh, I’m so sorry! Your invitation must have got lost in the mail, darling. But I’m afraid it’s just too late.”
Tony pouted, sitting down at their dining table. He looked out of the window, pretending to be deep in thought. He placed a hand beneath his jaw, humming to himself.
“I just can’t believe it,” Tony said, glancing at Peter. “Leaving me all on my own, what will I do with myself? No Peter? No Pepper? I’ll have to have a dinner party with the bots to keep me company.”
“Don’t be so dramatic,” Pepper grinned, leaning over to kiss him on the cheek. As she leant back, she whispered something into her husband’s ear (so that Peter couldn’t hear). “Don’t you dare guilt trip him in staying. He’s been so excited about coming on this trip with me, he’s NOT staying to keep you company.”
Tony watched as Pepper swayed back away from him. Something so threatening shouldn’t do something to him, but it definitely did. He have her a look, raising an interested eyebrow. Before he opened his mouth to say something, Pepper glared at him (as if to tell him to keep it PG).
“Fine!” Tony exclaimed, stepping up. He looked down at Peter, who was smiling at him. He’d miss that smile, even if they’d only be gone for a week. “I’ll just have to FaceTime both of you on alternating hours.”
Peter grinned, walking forward to give Tony a hug. Tony returned it, wrapping his arms around him. He plastered a kiss onto his head, keeping him in an embrace for a bit longer than usual.
“Take care, Petey-Pie. I know what you’re like. I better not get a call to tell me you’ve fallen down the stairs, or something like that,” Tony said.
“I will, dad!” Peter said, grabbing his suitcase. “We’ve got to go now, though! We’ll see you later!”
Tony watched as Peter and Pepper walked down to a car. He helped them pack the luggage into the boot of the vehicle, stepping away as the driver opened the back door’s for them. He waved goodbye to his family, staring at the back of the car as it drove away.
It felt a bit like the end of a teenage movie. The main character (Tony was definitely a protagonist, it was obvious) watching as his family left to the airport. If he wanted to make it more stereotypical, he’d take his own car to meet them at the gates.
He decided against that, however.
He still wasn’t completely alone. The rest of the Avengers did live in the tower, as well. But his best friend, since his college days, did not (which felt a but like a kick in the teeth). He had his own place, refusing to take Tony’s generous offer. Tony wasn’t sure why.
When Tony gave him a call, he told Tony that he didn’t have any time to come over. Rhodey’s mother was visiting. Tony loved Rhodey’s parents, so he offered to bring some stuff over. However, it sounded a bit like a family emergency. So Tony thought he’d stay out of it.
His next option was... Natasha? He’d known Natasha the longest, after all. But as he went downstairs to find her, she was sparring against one of the punching bags. Tony thought he’d stay out of her way (he didn’t want to end up like the broken piece of equipment).
What about Bruce? They were the science bros. They had spent a lot of time down in the labs together. Surely he’d be available. When Tony walked down to Bruce’s personal lab, he was sat with a big pair of glasses over his face. Clearly in a scientific trance, he was too focused on his page to realise somebody had walked in.
He didn’t even bother to check on Steve and Bucky. He didn’t want to walk in on anything that would scar him for life.
Sitting down on his sofa, he was tempted to phone Peter. But he had only been gone for... one whole hour. He looked into the reflection of his phone, his own face staring back at him.
He did start to feel a little pathetic. It wasn’t his fault that he couldn’t go without them for too long. They were his family, so how could he?
He ended up walking over to his own lab. Perhaps he could distract himself by working on one of his projects. But when he did, he noticed the party hat Peter made him on his desk.
An idea came into his mind. He remembered what Strange said to him the day of Steve’s birthday party. A trip to the multiverse sounded exciting.
Then, moments later, he found himself in one of his cars. He drove down the roads, listening to his playlist that was usually circulating the speakers in the lab. He had a pair of sunglasses on, blocking him away from the sunlight that shone through the windscreen.
And then, he was stood by Strange’s front door. When the door opened, Stephen’s cloak was floating there. Apparently his name was Levi, for levitation (Peter had named him). It looked weirdly human, making Tony just a little bit uneasy.
Strange finally walked in seconds later, a cup of coffee (?) attached to his hand. He grunted at Tony, turning around and getting his cloak to tell Tony to walk after him.
“I expected to see you today, Stark,” The man said, taking a seat. “Just not this early.”
“I don’t know if I believe you,” Tony said, taking the opposite seat. He looked away from the coffee table beside them, for just a second. When he looked back, a full cup was there instead.
“Have a drink, Stark,” Strange said. “I know that you’d only come here if it was the last resort. Peter and Pepper out of town?”
Tony stared at him with an unamused face. “Fine. You bested me! Now, how about that multiverse trip you told me about? It’ll feel like a Christmas Carol.. just slightly different.”
Strange sighed. He didn’t bother to acknowledge the reference. Instead, he got up from his seat and picked up a tub of suspicious looking power from his shelf. Tony looked at it, concerned, as the wizard started to unscrew the lid.
“Are you about to drug me for this? How can I trust you?” Tony asked, his body working on autopilot to try and scoot away.
“You can’t trust me, you’ll just have to find out if it works. Won’t you?” Strange said.
It was sort of ominous. It gave Tony a familiar uneasy feeling. He wasn’t even sure why he wanted to go through with this. Seeing Strange stood in front of him with the powder just made him want to back out. But, was he going to give up the chance to see if the man was right? Knowing Peter was his soulmate would feel... right. Perhaps he was willing to take the risk.
“Okay,” Tony said. “Lets do this.”
He always was one to take big risks, anyway.
Strange sprinkled the smallest amount of powder over his forehead. Tony didn’t expect the smell to be so pungent, so he immediately coughed. It went everywhere. Strange didn’t look impressed, mumbling something about a waste of resources. Then, before Tony could recover, another bit of powder hit his face.
And then everything went dark.
——————-————
When his eyes opened again, it felt like he was floating in some sort of bubble. Next to him, Strange was staring. When Tony sat up, the sorcerer almost had a relieved look (which only lasted a second. It was so quick that Tony wondered if he had imagined it).
Tony looked down, noticing they landed right outside the Avenger’s tower. Tony was about to complain that they were in the same timeline, when he noticed this one still had the Stark logo. It felt almost like a fever dream, like he couldn’t quite believe it was there.
A timeline where he never became an avenger. Sometimes he had dreams that started with that. He’d wish that he never went to Afghanistan, but he thought that he’d never have the chance to see the difference.
Now he did.
Strange took his arm, transporting them inside the building. When Tony landed, he stared at the covered walls. The interior was similar to Tony’s penthouse: modern and sleek. But, there’s a stark difference.
The walls are covered in photos of a young boy, someone Tony recognised (but he can’t put his finger on it). Photos of his father, older than he ever remembered him, were also there. There’s wedding photos there too, of him and Pepper. The wedding is what looks familiar, with a theme that looks almost identical to his own.
His thoughts were interrupted by a different Peter Parker. Tony watched the skinner boy run down the stairs, holding what looked like a report card in his hand.
That’s when he realised.
He stared at the young boy again. That was definitely a toddler Peter. A toddler Peter in Tony’s arm, both of them dressed in matching outfits. He looked at the framed photo, not quite believing what he was looking at.
“Looks like he’s your biological son in this timeline,” Strange said, walking up behind Tony as they stared at the photo.
“Yeah, looks like it, Tony said.
A bit of him wished that he was the Tony Stark that got graced with this timeline. It felt like it was the ultimate one, where he got to spend every day of Peter’s life with him.
But, he loved his life still. It was unfair to wish for a ‘better’ timeline, when it was so good already. He loved how Peter was, how Spider-man let him be the hero Tony knew he was. Peter also didn’t have to suffer with asthma, or poor eyesight, because of the bite. Also, they wouldn’t have met the rest of their family (the avengers).
However, he would’ve been a dad. A dad for a lot longer than the few months he had been in his timeline.
He followed this timeline’s Peter, walking into the lab. This lab was split into two. It had signs up on the top that said ‘dad’s side’ and ‘Peter’s side’.
The lack of Iron Man suits, and Spider-man suits now, made the room look bare. It reminded him a bit of the man he used to be. But this Tony wasn’t like that, it was obvious.
Tony’s eyes travelled to the report card that the kid must’ve put on the table. It said ‘Peter Stark’ on the name line, making Tony swoon. And, of course, straight A’s. He tried to pick it up, confused as his hand went through the table. He looked down a his hands, remembering that he wasn’t really ‘there’.
This timeline’s Peter plopped down onto one of the chairs, zooming around from wall to wall as he waited (presumably) for his father to walk in. It definitely put a smile on Tony’s face.
This definitely wasn’t his Peter, but the two obviously shared some similarities. Their smiles were the same. Their lust for life, to be happy and loving to everyone around them.
Those eyes, however, were not the same. They might have been the same colour, but those eyes did not share the same trauma his Peter Parker had. When Tony looked into his son’s eyes, she saw pent up pain and anger at the world (although nobody would ever know, if they just looked him in the eye). This Peter did not have any of that.
He turned around, to see Strange walking towards him. He was about to ask about this multiverse (he had plenty of questions about the science) when its Tony walked in the room, Howard Stark following right behind him.
Seeing Howard Stark’s face, alive and a lot older, freaked Tony out. He glanced over at Strange, his heart beating out of his chest. But this Howard didn’t look as harsh. His arm leant on his son’s shoulder, grinning as his grandson rushed over to give him a hug.
This wasn’t his Howard Stark. This definitely wasn’t the pent up man he knew. Perhaps Captain America didn’t fly his plane into the ice in his timeline. That would mean Howard had nothing to compare him too.
He didn’t blame it on Steve, of course. Alas, it is just what happened. He did blame it on Howard, however. So it wasn’t too pleasant to see the man acting all chummy with an alternative version of him.
It was unfair. Why did he have such a shitty childhood when this Tony got everything? He took a step back in the room, watching how they all interacted.
His life was good though. Maybe better. He didn’t know much about this Tony Stark. Maybe he was even more depressed than him. He could be. He didn’t know this man’s (his?) life story.
“Dad!” This Peter grinned, in a voice that sounded exactly like his Peter (but then again, not). “I put my report card on the side, did you see?”
This Tony put his arms out, telling Peter to run into them. When Peter did, he grabbed the card from his side. He read over it and grinned, with the fatherly smile people told him he had. The kid’s grades were perfect, so he recognised the look of pride the man held.
“I have now, kiddo,” Tony said, (Phony? Fake Tony?) with a smile. “And I’m so proud of you, little Stark. An absolute genius, just like your father.”
“I get it from you,” Peter grinned, resting his head against the billionaire’s shoulder. “And grandad, of course.”
Howard laughed. That wasn’t a sight our Tony had ever seen before. It freaked him out. Howard grabbed the report card from Tony’s hand, reading it over. The prideful look in the man’s face was recognisable, but he had never seen it directed at him. Instead, it had always been of photos of Steve Rogers.
“Wow, kid. Impressive numbers. Intelligence just runs in these Stark’s genes,” Howard said, wrapping an arm around his son, and his son’s son. His family.
It hurt. But, Tony couldn’t stop staring. His eyes just wouldn’t leave, even when Strange said something in his ear.
They there for a few more hours. Tony follows them around, with his words stuck in his throat. Strange was there, somewhere, but he wasn’t too bothered to look.
Pepper joins them later, alongside Ned (he’s glad that Peter’s still best friend’s with someone so great). Ned and Peter talk about something, sitting on the floor of the living room making lego. Peter looked so innocent, with glasses that are too big for his face. He really was glad that, in some universe, the kid got to be... happy.
Happy shows up with Rhodey later. They all just look carefree. Different to what he’s used to. It’s so, so nice.”
What a wonderful timeline, Tony thought. There’s bits in it that he loves, that he wishes he had, but these people aren’t the ones he fell in love with. They don’t have the same backgrounds, the same stories, that made them, them.
In fact, this Tony hadn’t gone through the trauma that gave him strength. He didn’t want to leave that trauma behind, as, again, that’s a part of what ‘Tony Stark’ was.
Tony’s staring, like he had been for a while, at his alternate family when Strange finally joins him. He stands by his side and watches them, letting the silence remain for a second.
“Does this prove to you that you two are soulmates?” Strange said, his voice a little less strict than it would usually be.
“Well, I don’t know. It’s just one more reality,” Tony observed, “I just don’t know if this would persist over them all.”
“So you want more proof?” Strange questioned. He looked at Tony, who finally tore his gaze away from his family to give Strange a look (a look that said ‘of course, isn’t it obvious’). “Well, okay then.”
With one more look, Tony took Strange’s arm and closed his eyes... Peter was basically his son anyway, he wouldn’t be missing much (he definitely didn’t want to see his Howard again, so he wasn’t that upset to leave this one behind).
———————————-
When they landed in the next multiverse, they were in Europe. Tony swore that something must’ve gone wrong, considering he didn’t think Peter had ever left the country (he guessed it was different for this Peter).
When he looked at the side of a nearby building, his heart dropped. There, in front of them, was a memorial. For this universe’s Tony Stark.
“I’m dead?” Tony asked, shocked. “How is this meant to prove that me and Pete will always be together?”
“You had a relationship before your death,” Strange explained, “From what I know, you sacrificed yourself to save the universe. I won’t spare you the details.”
Tony frowned. He didn’t like this universe, this definitely wasn’t one he wanted to live in. They walked around for a while, before finally finding Peter.
This Peter looks terrified. He looked like he had been through everything possible. He’s wearing a black Spider-man suit, one that Tony hadn’t designed. His breathing is fast, as he talks to someone that looks awfully like Nick Fury.
If Tony thought his Peter had trauma behind his eyes, this Peter’s whole face was stricken with it. He didn’t want to think about what this boy had seen.
Then, suddenly, Nick transforms into a man with a fish bowl on his head. Tony’s just confused. Confusion turns into anger, when the train comes out of nowhere and hits his kid straight on.
Tony would’ve been sick, if he was physically there. He runs to the trail-track, scared to find the corpse of his son. But, no. The kid’s nowhere to be seen.
He started to freak out. He’s glancing to Strange, then back to the track, then back to Strange. Over and over again. “Where is he?! Why did you show me this?”
“I didn’t know that would happen,” Strange admitted, “I’m sorry, Stark. Nobody should see that.”
Tony simply nodded, asking the man where he’d be now. Strange gets them on the train. Tony has to watch as Peter groans in pain, bleeding from all over his body. He’s got tears streaming down his face.
He’s screaming that it’s too much and Tony couldn’t do anything to help him. It was useless. All he wanted to do was reach forward to rescue him. But here? He was dead.
This Peter didn’t have a Tony in his life anymore. It hurt. It hurt him a lot more than it should’ve. This wasn’t his Peter, so it really shouldn’t bother him. But his heart was telling him something, telling him that if he had to live without Peter again... his heart would never be full.
Hours later, when the kid’s running through field’s in a foreign country (in a shirt’s that too big on him), Tony was incredibly frustrated. He’s about to tell Strange to move onto the next multiverse, as it’s killing him to see this, when a hovercraft flies down.
When the door opens, Happy walks out. He’s wearing a suit (looking a lot smarter than their Happy) and looked concerned for his Peter, stepping out of the jet.
Tony felt a tear slip from his face as Peter asked if it was really him. When Happy took him into a hug, he wished that he was there instead.
He had never wished for anything so much.
Peter’s voice cracked when he talked, “I just really miss him, Happy.”
It wasn’t difficult to figure out who ‘him’ was. Tony winced, trying hard to keep some composure as the two people talked. When Happy talked about him too, he couldn’t believe how weird/scared it made him feel.
He didn’t want to die. He didn’t want to leave his son behind.
“Tony made a lot of mistakes,” Happy said (and this Tony had to agree with that, maybe all alternative Tony’s had that underneath their belt), with a sigh. “He had a lot of regrets. One thing he didn’t regret was choosing you.”
Peter’s bottom lip trembled at that comment. He’s got a tear down his face, with a dark bruise covering his eye. His hand is curled into a fist, as he refused to look Happy in the eye. He’s just... broken.
“He never told me that he loved me, Happy. We only got one hug,” Peter said, pulling his knees up to his chest. It made him cry harder.
This Tony never got the chance to say ‘I love you’?, Tony wondered. How? In only a few months, Tony had wanted to say it. And he did. Perhaps circumstances just weren’t the same for these two.
“When you were gone, Pete.. he was distraught. He lost you, his kid, and he was so scared that you died without him saying anything. He inverted time travel to get you back. He saved all of the universe for you. If he didn’t love you, nobody would’ve been back,” Haply explained, placing a hand on top of Peter’s knee. “So, don’t ever question his love for you.”
Peter was dead too? What the hell was going on in this universe? He really felt for this Tony and Peter. But he was also confused? If Peter died then... why was he here? He clearly was alive now.
One word piqued Tony’s interest, though. Time Travel. That was a thing here? How was this universe ahead of them in science? Was this Tony more of a genius than him? So many questions, that he’d never get the answer for.
He was so trying to make a time machine when he got back.
“Thanks, Happy,” Peter said, with a sigh. “Also, I know about you and my Aunt,” He added the last bit, laughing when the man’s cheeks tinted red.
Happy and May, huh? Tony would have to set that up in his universe as soon as he could. He listened to the sound of the kid’s laughter, happy that he still managed to have moments of happiness in the midst of all this pain.
When Peter jumped up to add some stuff to his suit, playing around with the hologram in the back of the jet, Tony watched with eyes filled with wonder. He looked just like Tony did.
Wow, Tony figured he was proud of every Peter Parker in the universe. He just couldn’t help it.
Strange knew about Morgan’s existence in this universe, but he also knew it would be smart to not tell Tony about that. Because he also knew that there might be the possibility that she would exist in their own timeline. He didn’t want to ruin that for Tony Stark, as much as they didn’t get along. He wasn’t a monster, after all.
“Time to go, Stark,” Strange said. “I’ve got a bit more to show you.”
“Okay,” Tony nodded. “You’re like the ghost of the christmas ‘timelines’, or something. Aren’t you?” Making the same reference as he did earlier, he still smirked at his own joke.
“You irritate me, Tony Stark,” Strange said, putting a hand into the man’s shoulder to transport them to the next timeline (wherever that might be).
——————————-
The next timeline was completely different. Strange and Tony landed in a house, one that the ‘Iron Man’ didn’t recognise.
“Tony Stark!” Someone called out, staring right at him. For a moment, Tony freaked out. He thought that perhaps something went wrong, that they’d be stuck in a different universe forever. But the person was talking to the Tony of this world, who’s stood behind him.
“Richard Parker!” He said, or, well, the other Tony did.
Parker? Wasn’t Richard Peter’s father?
Tony turned around, to see Strange pointing to a photo. In the photo there was two adults, who he didn’t recognise, holding Peter in their arms.
“How have you been?” Richard said, walking forward to Tony. He took the man’s hand and did this weird, complex, handshake.
College buddies? He looked like someone Tony would’ve hung out with and he definitely couldn’t have come up with a handshake like that when he was 20+.
Tony heard a noise from around the corner. Ignoring Richard and himself, he stepped into the house’s kitchen. Standing in the hallway, Tony let himself smile at the sight.
There, sat on the kitchen side, was Peter Parker. This Peter, however, looked to be younger than the boy Tony knew. He must’ve been about eight.
He was making a cake, or something like that, with a woman who Tony assumed was Mary Parker. He admitted to himself that it was a bit weird how jealous he got over that. But it was their thing...
“Did you see that Tony’s here, bud?” Mary said, “I think you should go say hello to your Uncle.”
Tony knew that he wasn’t the kid’s actual Uncle. Perhaps he was a lot closer to Richard than he once believed. Was he the kid’s godfather? It looked to be the case.
Tony followed young Peter Parker into the living room. He smiled when the boy ran up to him, jumping into Tony’s arms. The giggles filled with the room was incredibly sweet.
He wished, for the 50th (?) time that day, that he could’ve helped raise this amazing kid. But, at least he got the chance to seem like this once.
“There’s the best kid in the world!” Tony exclaimed, holding Peter up and circling him around like he was flying.
“Tony!!” Peter giggled, “I’m flying!”
“Oh my god! Are you?” Tony asked, “You’re magic, Petey!”
“I am?!” Peter gasped.
Watching this, younger looking, Tony interact with an eight-year-old Peter was precious. Tony had brought the kid a present, which Peter thought was the coolest thing in the world.
Knowing this Peter, hopefully, wouldn’t go through the loss of losing his parents, made this timeline one of the best so far. He wouldn’t have to live through all the trauma.
And knowing Peter still found his way to him, even when he lived with his biological parents, made this whole soulmate thing more real.
Tony was running around the room with Peter on his shoulders, as the kid’s parents cooked their dinner. He spoke to the little boy, telling him about a ‘beautiful lady’ he met in his restaurant the other night.
Tony assumed this ‘beautiful’ lady was Pepper, or he’d be really disappointed. However, what was really confusing was ‘restaurant’.
Tony couldn’t cook. His mother and father never bothered to teach him. This Tony’s relationship was, most likely, a lot better then. Just like most of the timelines. Maybe Tony just drew the short straw for Howard Stark’s personality in his universe.
But he really couldn’t imagine himself as a chef... that seemed a bit far fetched to be true.
Peter nodded along to Tony’s rant, clearly pretending to understand what the man was saying. Tony thought it was adorable.
Later on, Tony eavesdropped on this Tony’s and Richard’s conversation. They were sat in the Parker’s garden, with bottles of beer in their hands.
“I’m proud of you, Rich,” Tony said (Tony’s just happy that his consistency for nicknames’ was present across every universe so far), taking a sip of the drink. “You’ve really grown since college.”
College buds! Tony knew it from the moment they first interacted. That sort of boosted his ego, if only for a bit.
“Well, I’ve got my beautiful son to thank for that. He’s a riot, isn’t he? I think he’s going to save the world one day,” Richard said, his words a little slurred. It was clear that he was a little tipsy.
Tony smiled to himself. Richard how no idea how important this kid actually was, especially to both Tony’s.
“He’s the best kid, ever. I don’t say that lightly,” Tony remarked, grinning.
“Well, he has got the best god father to look up to. Doesn’t he?”
Tony wasn’t embarrassed to admit he made a fist bump to himself in the sidelines. He was a little proud of himself that he guessed that too.
“I don’t know about that,” Tony laughed. “But seriously, Rich. I’d do anything for that kid in there.”
“Oh, I know you would,” Richard said, as if he had just said the most obvious statement in the whole world.
Tony didn’t bother to follow the two men in, when they go back into the house. He stood in the middle of the garden, letting himself think about his relationship with Peter.
“I guess Pete really is my soulmate, huh?” Tony said into the air, when he realised Strange was nearby.
Strange came around the corner, nodding. “So you finally admit that I’m right, huh?” He said, grinning wider than Tony had seen from Stephen Strange.
“I would never say that to you, doctor,” Tony winked.
“I know, Stark,” the man laughed. “Shall we move on?”
————————————
They moved through a lot of different universes, each differing from the other. But, still, one thing remained the same. Peter and Tony always had a strong friendship, or parental love, in every timeline.
Some of the timeline’s could’ve been identical to their own, or one they had seen before.
In one timeline, everything was exactly the same expect for the fact that Peter Parker was ‘Penny Parker’. That one was interesting.
In another, Tony had been an evil version of himself. Sweet, innocent, Peter Parker was his partner in crime. That one disturbed him.
But, after a long day of universe hoping to prove a point, Strange informed them that this was the last one...
They landed in a building that was similar to Stark Industries. However, the logos across the walls did not have his name in them. Instead, they read ‘Parker Industries’.
Tony immediately felt pride for a Peter he hadn’t even seen before. Everything that kid did make him proud, however, so it wasn’t too astonishing.
When Peter came around the corner, he looked a lot older. He was dressed in a perfectly tailored suit, with an expensive watch on his wrist. He’s walking down the hallway with a confidence that makes him look like a different man. Tony nearly didn’t recognise him. Peter’s curls, however, were indistinguishable. He’d always find those.
“Marcus!” He called to one of his employees (and, wow, his voice had dropped). “How’s it going?”
“It’s going good, sir!” The man called back, a bright smile on his face. “How’s the new project doing?”
Peter gave him a wink. “Great, as always.”
When another employee called Peter ‘Spidey’, he had a bit of a panic. Nobody knew about Pete’s identity in any other timeline. What was so special about this one? But he realised that Peter didn’t seem to care, so why should he?
A female voice came out of the ceiling. The voice sounded familiar. Oh! It was Pete’s AI, Karen, that both of them had made in the lab the other week.
Tony was confused. Why was Peter so old? He had seen a few young Peter’s, but there had not been any who were older than 16. Maybe they had accidentally travelled into the future?
“Nope, Stark,” Strange said, like he knew what he was thinking (he always did, it was so weird). “This isn’t the future. Peter was just born earlier than in every other timeline. I’m sure there’s a lot more timelines like this, we just haven’t visited them.”
“Oh,” Tony mumbled, staring at this ‘boss man’ Peter Parker. It was a good look on his kid.
“Boss?” Somebody said, coming up to Peter. Peter smiled immediately to the man, making the employee relax. “Uh, Tony Stark just called to say he was downstairs.”
“Tell him to come on up,” Peter replied.
Tony followed himself into Peter’s office, grinning widely at the situation. Tony was wearing a Stark Industries fleece, clearly flexing his company in front of this child.
“Parker Industries’ beats out Stark Industries’s phone sales with the new ParkerPhone,” Peter said, displaying a newspaper up in front of the mechanic.
Tony, from the original universe, gulped. If he knew himself, he would’ve been annoyed at this comment. However, that wasn’t the case at all. This Tony barked out a laugh, walking around the desk to give Peter a hug.
Peter returned it, whispering something into the billionaire’s ear that this Tony couldn’t hear. This Tony did hear his alternative counterpart’s response, however.
“Of course I’m proud of you, Mr Parker. The phone’s incredible,” Tony said.
“Yeah, thanks for your help,” Peter replied, taking a deep breath. “I don’t know what I’d do without you, dad.”
The dad caught Tony off guard. He didn’t realise that these two were on that level... He had expected a rivalry, considering they were running competing companies.
This universe, although mundane, was the biggest piece of proof that Peter and Tony were soulmates, in Tony’s opinion. This universe wasn’t crazy. It wasn’t out of the ordinary. In fact, they had even met the same way that Peter and Tony did in their timeline.
But the fact that they were ‘against’ each other and still held feelings of love and respect, proved to Tony that he’d always love Peter Parker....
And the fact that this meant Strange was right, made it all incredibly bittersweet.
——————————————
Tony woke up in the sanctum, leant against the chair he had started the day in. Glancing outside of the window, it was pitch black. Wow, they had been universe-hopping for a long, long, time.
“I hope you enjoyed yourself, Stark,” Strange said, letting out a deep breath. “It’s not exactly easy to take a passenger on one of these trips.”
Tony gave him a half smile, a tiny bit of guilt raising in his gut. For a second, he thought he should at least give the man a sincere thanks.
“Thanks, Strange. I was freaking out about being someone so important to him, but you proved that it would always happen. I know now that I shouldn’t worry so much. So, thanks,” Tony said, slipping the man some money from his wallet.
Turning around to go home, Tony missed the sincere smile Stephen gave him. The first time they got along, and Tony just walked out.
He powered up his phone and read all of Peter’s messages about the conference. Reading his excitable messages, he could tell that the kid was happy even through the phone.
He really had missed his Peter- the best one from all the timeline’s he visited (in his opinion).
He gave him a quick call, asking about his day. When Peter returned the question, he simply smiled into the phone and told him that he hadn’t done much at all.
Meanwhile...
Peter and Pepper had been walking around the conference room ALL day. Peter had made multiple connections with some summer programs, excited about what he could do in the future. Pepper, however, was just exhausted.
She said goodnight to the kid, making sure he got into his room alright. Walking to her suite, she immediately rushed to the bathroom. Sick again.
Her hand slipped into her handbag, taking out a pregnancy test (she always kept a few in there, as she had wished for a positive one for years).
Stepping into the en suite, she knew that she was supposed to do this sort of thing in the morning. But she was far too excited to wait.
She took the test. Putting it on the sink, face down, she paced up and down. She had taken so many tests before, but she had never been this nervous before.
Because, for the first time, she actually had hope that this was the one. That she had a baby growing in her stomach.
The two minute alarm went off, spooking her.
With a sharp intake of breath, Pepper picked the test up and turned it around slowly. She stared down at the result, immediately breaking down into tears when she saw the two lines.
There was no way!
They were, finally, going to have a baby...