You’re something beautiful
Tony didn’t know what was going to happen next.
Everything in that moment seemed so uncertain to him, how they were going to figure out if there were any casualties during the fight and take care of the injured then get everyone back home where they wanted to be, how they were going to clean up and rebuild the Compound, the fact that everyone who got dusted is now back on earth.
Parents who got dusted but their young children did not so now the parents have to deal with that, wife’s and husbands who have moved on, loss of jobs and so much more but that wasn’t any of Tony’s concern.
He had his kid back and that was all he could focus on. After ten freaking years of mourning and wishing so badly to have his kid back in his arms again, he finally did.
Even though Peter was a five year old instead of his fifteen year old self, that was okay. That was more than okay. They could make that work together.
Once they got to the Avengers facility, Tony and Pepper took Peter and led him into a more private room so it was just the three of them.
Both adults stepped out of their suit and went to guide Peter over to some chairs. They both sat down as Peter stood in front of them, his eyes glued on Tony.
“I’m gonna take your Iron Spider suit off.” Tony told him and then pressed the finger scanner then the suit was going back into it’s nanotech form, leaving Peter in his spandex suit. That shrunk down with him as well which made it look like Peter was wearing a Spider-Man Halloween costume.
Tony pressed the spider in the middle of his suit that also only worked on his hand and Peter’s.
It fell off of Peter’s small frame, going back to its original size. The underwear that Peter was wearing underneath didn’t shrink down due to the fact that it wasn’t Stark tech underwear.
Peter caught it before it fell down anymore and exposed anything then he looked up at Tony with a blush on his face. “Um… can I have some um, clothes or something, please?”
Tony was going to stand up but Pepper got up before him and moved around the room to try and look for something. There wasn’t anything to give Peter. It’s not like there was a stack of five year old boy clothing sitting there.
She came back over with a throw blanket and sat back down. “Just until we can get you some more clothes.”
Peter watched her pull one of her hair elastics out of her hair and hand it to him. “This is to tie up your underwear so it doesn’t fall off.” She explained and handed him the electric but Peter hesitated.
“Um, can you maybe tie it?” Peter asked, embarrassed that he had to ask his father figures fiancé to tie his underwear for him. Pepper tied it no problem and then wrapped the blanket around his shoulders.
“Thanks.” Peter shifted a bit, feeling really uncomfortable because he wanted so badly to cry and to throw himself into Tony’s arms and be rocked but he didn’t know why.
Tony was looking at him the whole time with almost a sad yet happy look in his eye. He reached out and ran his fingers through his hair. “I missed you, kid. So much.”
Peter smiled weakly up at him. “I missed you too.”
Tony knew it was only ten hours for Peter. Peter was without him for ten hours but he was without Peter for ten years so he wasn’t going to argue with the child about who missed who more but he was sure he would win.
Tony then looked down. He had so much to tell Peter. Some good and some bad.
“Look, bud,” Tony began. Pepper reached out and grabbed his hand for support. “a lot has happened since you… since you’ve been Uh, gone.”
Peter nodded, having assumed as much.
Tony continued. “So, a little after everything happened and I got back down to earth, Pep and I-”
Peter cut him off. “Wait. What do you mean after you got back down to earth? How long were you stuck in space for?”
It was so weird to listen to Peter speak like a fifteen year old but look and sound like a five year old. It was almost scary.
“It doesn’t matter anymore-”
“No. Tell me. You have to tell me.” Peter begged him and Tony was somewhat disappointed that Peter still had his persistence and stubbornness in him.
Tony sighed. “Peter.”
“Tell me!” Peter demanded and started jumping up and down exactly like Morgan used to do when she was younger and both Pepper and him stared at Peter in awe.
Peter must have realized what he was doing because he immediately stopped and his face turned red then he was tugging the blanket more around himself.
“It was three months. But I’m okay now and everything is okay.” Tony saw the colour drain from Peter’s face so he tried to reassure him. “It’s okay, bud. See.”
Peter reached for him a bit so Tony took his tiny hands in his and Tony could see his eyes watering a bit. “Bud, everything is okay. Hey guess what?”
Peter looked up at him with curious eyes. “What?”
“Well,” Tony smiled and looked at Pepper. “a little after that, we decided to move away to get away from everything so we moved to a cabin in the woods by the lake and we got married.”
Tony didn’t know how Peter would react to that. He knew how badly Peter wanted to come to the wedding and how much he was looking forward to it and Peter’s reaction was basically how he would have expected even teen Peter to react.
“But-but I wanted to come to the wedding. You said I could.” Peter cried out but there weren’t any tears yet. He hoped it didn’t get that far.
“Peter, it’s okay. It wasn’t that fun without you anyways.” Pepper said to him and Peter looked up at her then scrunched his face up.
“No. I ruined your wedding!” Peter yelled and threw his face into the space between the two adults but then he realized how he was acting and lifted his head up. “I’m sorry.”
“It’s okay. You didn’t ruin anything, bud. I promise you.” Tony said to him and cupped his cheek again. “But we need to tell you something else.”
Peter looked between the two of them. “What is it?”
“We have a kid.” Tony said. He didn’t want to dance around the fact but he knew how badly Peter always wished he had a sibling and even though Morgan was technically now his older sister, he hoped Peter would still be happy. That was definitely not what Tony was expecting when he thought of Peter and Morgan playing together one day.
Peter only stared at them. He tried to let it process in his mind for a few seconds. Tony had a baby while he was gone. Peter couldn’t help the smile that formed on his face then he started bouncing on the balls of his feet.
“I have a baby brother?” Peter asked, excitedly.
Both Tony and Pepper looked at each other surprised. Not at all what they were expecting. Pepper shook her head and reached out to take one of Peter’s smaller hands in hers. “Not exactly, Peter.”
Peter frowned. “Big brother?”
Tony couldn’t help but laugh. “No, bud. You have a big sister.”
Peter didn’t want a sister. He wanted a brother so he threw his head back in protest. “I don’t want a sister. I wanted a brother.”
“Pete. She’s kinda like a boy, I mean she likes playing with cars in the mud more than dolls. Although she still has lots of dolls.” Tony explained to try and make Peter feel better and then he laughed. “Actually, she might try and dress you up like one of her dolls.”
Peter realized again what he was doing so he stopped. He had no idea what the hell was wrong with himself. “Oh. What’s her name?”
“Morgan.” Tony answered and smiled. He missed her a lot since they never really separated from each other.
Peter smiled and looked over at Pepper. “Does she have your hair?”
“No.” Pepper playfully smacked Tony. “She took after her father's hair and his eyes and basically everything about him.”
Peter didn’t know why that made him jealous. People always used to say that he and Tony looked alike and he knew that wasn’t possible since they weren’t related in any way but it was still his favourite compliment to receive.
Now there was an actual child that looked like Tony because she was Tony’s. Peter was jealous at that but he tried not to let it show.
Peter glanced between the two of them for a few seconds before landing on Tony. “What about Aunt May? Did she get dusted too?”
The smile on both of their faces fell and Peter felt his fall as well.
Tony held his hand just a little bit tighter. “Peter, when the snap first happened, there was a lot that happened. Airplanes fell out of the sky, killing all those inside if they didn’t already dust and killing those where the plane landed. People getting dusted in their cars and crashing, machines operating, a lot of bad stuff like that happened.”
Tony paused for a few seconds before continuing. “Your Aunt, she didn’t get dusted but she was driving when the snap happened and another car crashed into hers. She died, bud. I’m so sorry.”
Peter didn’t say anything for a long couple of seconds. Both Tony and Pepper waited silently to see how he would react and then all at once, tears fell out of Peter’s eyes and he was crying.
The sight broke Tony’s heart so he held his arms out for Peter and Peter raised his arms up to be lifted up by Tony which is exactly what Tony did.
He lifted Peter onto his lap like all those times he did and still does with Morgan when she’s upset but he learned how to hold a child like this from Peter originally. He missed holding his kid in his arms so much it almost hurt to have him back.
Peter cried against his shoulder but Tony knew he was crying for a lot more than his dead Aunt. He was crying because he was scared, exhausted, confused. The fact that he got dusted ten hours ago but woke up ten years later as a five year old with a fifteen year old mindset. He was crying for a lot of reasons but Tony let him. He held his kid safely in his arms and let him cry it all out.
They must have stayed like that for a long time because Tony’s butt had gone completely numb but he didn’t care. His kid needed him.
Peter’s cries turned into small hiccups then he pulled away from Tony a bit to look at him. “What-what happened after?”
Tony didn’t understand. “What do you mean, bud?”
Peter used the corner of the blanket to wipe his tears. “Did-did you bury her?”
Tony didn’t like that a five year old was asking that question. It hurt to hear. “Yeah. We did. We buried her right next to Ben and we had a beautiful funeral for her with her favourite flowers on her grave.”
Peter nodded his head, sniffling. “Lilies?”
Tony nodded. “Yes. Her favourite.”
Peter laid his head back on Tony’s shoulder and let out a sigh. Tony knew how important it was for Peter to hear that his Aunt had a funeral and was buried next to his dead Uncle even if he wasn’t there for it.
Peter felt his eyes start to flutter shut. “Thank you.” He whispered in Tony’s ear then reached a hand out for Pepper to hold.
Without even thinking about it, Peter’s thumb disappeared into his mouth and his eyes closed.
Pepper cooed at the sight and slowly let go of Peter’s hand so she could stand up. “He’s sleeping.” She whispered to Tony.
Tony then stood up, keeping his child safe in his arms but Pepper was smiling at him. “What?”
“He’s sucking on his thumb. It’s adorable.” She smiled at him and Tony felt his heart melt. That was absolutely adorable. Morgan had grown out of that habit a long time ago and he’d be lying if he said he didn’t miss it a bit but now he had another thumb sucker.
“I need to see this.” Tony said then looked over at the mirror in the room so he walked over to it, careful not to stir Peter too much. He walked over to the mirror and saw his kid sleeping.
He missed that sight so much he would have dreams on those lucky nights he got to have Peter back in his arms but then he would wake up, soaking wet from sweat and no Peter. Those nights were a gift and a curse.
But now here he was, safe in Tony’s arms like he was always supposed to be.
Tony would see him suck on his thumb occasionally in his sleep, he looked over at Pepper and smiled at her and then he looked back in the mirror and looked at his reflection staring back at him.
The smile fell from his face.
He was definitely ten years younger. It was a huge difference. All the gray from his hair and beard were gone, his hair was a lot thicker and little to no wrinkles,
It was weird… really weird. He looked at himself in the mirror only hours before and he was a fifty year old but now he was forty. Wow.
“What is it?” Pepper asked but he knew she knew already what he was looking at because she was touching his face. “I still love you. And I know Morgan still will. Peter definitely does.”
Tony looked away. It would definitely take a lot to get used to. “I know. Let’s go get our daughter now and introduce her to her new little brother.”
Pepper smiled at him then leaned forward to press a kiss to his lips. She stayed like that for a few seconds, Tony kissing her back and then she pulled away.
They walked out of the room after Tony grabbed Peter’s Spider-Man suit and threw it over his arm. They walked down the hallway where all the Avengers and some Wakandans were.
Everyone stopped to stare at them and Tony knew it was no doubt due to the fact that Tony was ten years younger and holding a child in his arms that was supposed to be Spider-Man.
“I’ve waited ten years for this moment so I’m taking my kid home with me and I don’t want anyone to bother us.” Tony didn’t care if he was being a bit harsh. He had the right to be selfish at times too.
No one said anything but Tony could tell that they all had so many questions or comments but he wasn’t sticking around to hear them.
He turned around and left with Pepper in tow.
When they got to a car out front that would now be theirs since the other one was blown up in the fight, Tony opened the back door. “I’m gonna sit in the back with him since we don’t have a car seat yet… plus I don’t want to let him go.”
Pepper nodded her head, climbing into the front seat and waiting for Tony to get comfortable with Peter on his lap before she started the car and drove away.
“Should we stop somewhere to get him some clothes?” Pepper asked quietly.
“No. I don’t think a lot of stores are going to be opened after everything that’s going on. We should wait a few days for everything to settle down before we leave the house.” Tony said to her. He didn’t want to leave the house at all once he was home but he knew it was necessary to get Peter some clothes that actually fit him.
“I don’t think we kept any of Morgan’s outfits from that age. I can look around to see if we have anything.”
Tony hummed. He was looking down at Peter sleeping in his arms with his thumb still in his mouth and his head cradled in the crook of his arm. “We’ll figure something out.”
Pepper looked in the rearview mirror at the two of them. A smile crept onto her face. She knew that Tony was content with Peter and so she didn’t try talking to him anymore.
The car ride was just over two hours long so she kept quiet and occasionally glanced a peek at the two of them every so often.
Just as they were pulling up to their street, Pepper spoke. “I’m gonna go inside and explain to Morgan what’s going on and who Peter is before you bring him in so it’s not too much for her, okay?”
Tony’s arm had gone numb a long time ago. His butt as well but he didn’t care one bit. “Oh, uh, yeah. Yeah that’s a good idea. Tell Hap to come out when you go in.”
Pepper pulled the car up front and turned it off. She took her seatbelt off and turned around to look at the two of them. Peter was still sound asleep in Tony’s arms but his thumb had slipped out of his mouth. “I’ll be right back.”
Tony smiled at her. “Good luck.”
Tony watched Pepper enter the house and then he was waking Peter up. “Hey, bud. Wake up.”
Peter slowly woke up and shifted on Tony’s lap but once he realized where he was, he quickly scrambled off of Tony’s lap and slid onto the seat next to him.
“Oh. I’m sorry.” Peter rubbed his eye but since it was nighttime, it was too dark in the car for Tony to see the blush that was probably raising to Peter’s face.
“Don’t be sorry.” Tony really hoped that that wasn’t the last time Peter fell asleep on him like that. He missed it so much.
Peter yawned and then looked outside. “Where are we?”
“We’re at the cabin I was telling you about. I’ll show you around inside after you meet Morgan. Pepper is in there with her now and- oh look who it is.” Tony smiled at seeing Happy.
The man had been watching Morgan since he was her favourite Uncle because he always gave her candy.
Peter’s eyes went wide as he peeked out the window and then smiled when he saw the man. “Happy!”
Tony opened the back door and Happy stopped in his tracks. He was looking at Tony with wide eyes and then looked down at Peter.
He pointed to the child while looking at Tony. “Peter?”
Tony nodded and Peter bounced on his knees next to him. “Happy. Happy, it’s me. It’s Peter. Do you remember me?”
Tony thought that he saw Happy's eyes tear up at the sight of the child that he’s seen Tony cry over. “Kid. Peter. Hi, of course I remember you. How could I forget.”
Peter beamed in the seat next to him while he stared at Happy.
Happy walked closer to the car so that he was standing right next to the open back door. “Pepper told me that you snapped and it aged yourself back ten years and everyone that came back was ten years younger but this- this is something else.”
Inside, Pepper walked inside the house and Happy was immediately at her side with a concerned look on his face. Probably terrified that she was walking in without Tony.
She smiled at him. “We won. We won, Hap.”
He immediately relaxed and hugged her. “Where’s Tony?”
She pulled away from him. “He’s in the car. With Peter. But, Happy, Tony will explain everything to you but… it didn’t work out how we expected it to. Tony snapped and it… it aged him back ten years. Everyone else that got dusted, they came back ten years younger.”
Happy froze. He wasn’t sure what he was hearing was correct. “But Peter…?”
She didn’t say anything else so Happy went outside. Pepper immediately looked around for Morgan. “Morgan? Baby, we’re home.”
Pepper smiled when she heard footsteps running from upstairs. “Mommy! Mommy!”
Morgan jumped down the last step and crashed into Peppers arms. “Did you win, mom? Where’s dad?”
Pepper hugged her daughter and pressed a kiss to her forehead. “Dads in the car and yes we won, beautiful.”
Morgan squeezed her tighter. “I wanna go see him!”
Pepper stopped her from bolting out of the house. “Wait. I need to talk to you about something first.”
Pepper led Morgan over to the couch and sat down. Morgan was looking over at her with so much concern in her eyes. “What is it, mommy?”
“Well, do you remember Peter?” Pepper started with.
Morgan smiled and nodded her head. “Yeah! He’s the boy in all the picture frames with daddy.” Morgan’s smile then dropped. “He’s the boy that makes daddy cry every night.”
Pepper smiled fondly. Peter was mentioned everyday in their house but sometimes it was even hard for Morgan to listen to stories about Peter because Tony always said that Peter would have been her older brother but died before she was born and Morgan always wished she had someone to play with.
“Baby, you know how much daddy loves him.” Pepper said and Morgan was nodding her head.
“I know, mommy. Dad loves Peter like he loves me.” Morgan explained.
“Mhmm. That’s right my sweet girl.” Pepper reached her hand out and cupped Morgan’s face. “Well guess who daddy brought home?”
Morgan’s face lit up. “Peter? My big brother?”
Pepper smiled at the resemblance at how Peter reacted. “I told you we won, didn’t I?”
Morgan stood up and jumped up and down. “Where is he? Where is he?”
Pepper gently pulled her back down beside her. “That’s what I wanted to talk to you about, sweetie. You see, when Peter got dusted, remember we told you about what happened before you were born?”
When Morgan nodded, Pepper continued. “Well, when all the people who got dusted came back, they came back ten years younger than they were before. So Peter was fifteen so that would make him-”
“Five.” Morgan said before Pepper got the chance. Pepper nodded and then Morgan looked down in thought. “So- so Peter is… my little brother and not my big brother?”
Pepper nodded her head. Morgan didn’t react and how she expected. She knew that it was hard for a nine year old to process what she had just been told after spending her whole life being told she had an older brother.
“Do you want to meet him?” Pepper asked her and she was immediately looking up with a giant smile on her face.
“Yes! Oh please! I have a baby brother! That means I’m the oldest so I can protect him!” Morgan stood up off the couch but Pepper didn’t move since there was still one more thing that she had to tell her about.
“That’s right, baby.” Pepper said with a smile.
“And I’m older so I can tell him what to do.” Morgan spoke with conviction and Pepper laughed.
“I guess you can but I have to tell you one more thing.” Pepper patted the couch again and then Morgan sat down, a frown on her face.
“So when daddy had to do the snap, it also aged him back ten years. He’s gonna look a little bit different but he’s still the same daddy. He still loves you so much, okay?” Pepper watched Morgan’s face but she could tell that her daughter was too excited to process what she was truly saying.
“That’s okay, mommy. Can I go meet my baby brother?” Morgan asked excitedly and Pepper couldn’t hold her back anymore.
“Let’s go meet him.”