Hero

Tony held Morgan tightly as they tried to catch their breath. Tony held her clutched in his arms as he coughed, looking around as he did.

“Peter?” Tony called out.

“Yeah?” Tony let out an immediate sigh of relief when he heard the boy’s voice. He turned again to see him giving Tony that concerned expression with wide eyes. “Are you okay?”

“I’m supposed to be asking you that,” Tony replied. He looked down at Morgan, who was looking up at him with the same expression Peter had on his face. “You guys okay?” Morgan nodded slightly, looking at their surroundings.

“Yeah, I just don’t have a good feeling about this…” Peter replied. Tony felt his stomach drop. If Peter didn’t feel good, that wasn’t a good sign. Tony set Morgan down on her feet. She immediately fixed the dress she was wearing, with crinoline and the works that Pepper had picked out for their dinner outing. Shit, Tony realized. They were going to miss dinner.

“Where are we?” Morgan muttered, grabbing her dad’s hand. Tony opened his mouth to answer before realizing that he had no idea. He looked around to see them standing in the middle of an empty street. Tony’s mouth still hung open as he tried to formulate an explanation as to what was going on.

Tony remembered talking to Strange about five minutes ago. The man was annoyed with something out of his control, and Tony couldn’t remember what. Tony offered his condolences and claimed to need to get Peter and Morgan ready to go. Now, Tony was searching for an explanation.

“Uh, Tony” the kid stuttered. Tony looked over at him. “I think we should start walking.” Peter was looking down the street, and Tony had no idea what was going through the boy’s head, but it would do nobody any good if they continued to sit here and ponder about what was going on.

“Let’s go,” Tony declared, walking past Peter down the eerily dark and empty street.

They were surrounded by trees on both sides, and Tony didn’t exactly feel good about the situation. Peter was only in his jeans and one of Tony’s old MIT sweatshirts, despite Tony telling him nearly an hour ago to be ready. Either way, he didn’t have the Spiderman suit on hand. Tony wasn’t any better off, only in his button-down and slacks. They had virtually no protection.

The thought made Tony walk a bit faster. Peter had no trouble keeping up and probably would’ve walked faster if it weren’t for him and Morgan. It wasn’t long before Tony had Morgan back in his arms. She tiredly put her head on his shoulder as he walked faster.

“Do you see that?” Peter eventually said. Tony looked up, seeing nothing but what the streetlamps provided on the street.

“No…” Tony muttered, squinting into the distance.

“I think it’s a house.” Tony squinted harder, trying to make out whatever Peter was seeing in the nighttime fog. Eventually, it became hard to miss. And Peter was wrong. It wasn’t a house, it was a mansion. It was huge and lit up by its own light. The closer they got, the more Tony could recognize the familiar gate that enclosed it.

“Shit…” Tony muttered, realizing they had stumbled upon the Stark Mansion. “What the hell is going on?”

“What do you mean?” Peter asked.

“This is,” Tony trailed off. Why would the lights be on? Tony couldn’t think of a single explanation as to why they would have ended up where they were or why the lights to an abandoned building were suddenly on. It was then that Tony noticed how new the mansion looked. Maybe not brand new, but it didn’t have the wear he had come to recognize it by in recent times. Things were starting to click as they grew closer.

“Should I press the button?” Peter asked, his finger itching to press the white button near the gates.

“No,” Tony immediately barked out. He was still looking at the mansion, trying to convince himself that this wasn’t real.

“But––” Peter was cut off at the sound of an engine. Both of them froze up and turned around as the sound grew louder and headlights rested on their frigid forms. Despite the headlights blinding him in the moonless night, Tony could make out and recognize that classic vehicle anywhere.

“Move out the way, Pete,” Tony demanded softly. Peter complied, standing close to Tony’s side as the car rolled forward slowly. Behind them, the gate opened, but the car slowed to a stop next to them.

“Tony, is that you? What are you doing home? Is that a beard? I can’t see. Come into the light.” Tony choked up at the indisputable sound of his mother’s voice. She was in the passenger seat close to them. Her eyes were squinting out, landing on Peter and then the little girl in his arms. She frowned in confusion. She studied his face, and her jaw dropped. “Howard, I––”

“What is it, Maria?” Howard drawled, sounding tired from his seat behind the wheel. “What are you doing?” He called out as Maria got out the car.

Tony didn’t move as his mother got closer to him. Eventually, she was standing right in front of him, staring into his eyes.

Maria Stark had little to no explanation as for what she is seeing. The only thing that assured her that she wasn’t crazy was the fact that Howard had pointed out the figures in the driveway first. But she didn’t know how to explain the fact that she was seeing her son probably twice the age she last knew him to be.

“Maria!” Howard yelled out, slamming the car door to follow his wife. He thought she was crazy for a second, getting out of the car to talk to a stranger in their driveway in the middle of the night. Howard saw how still she went, and he didn’t know what to think. “Who is that?”

Howard walked up to Maria, barely paying attention to the stranger she was talking to. He placed a hand on her shoulder. She turned to look at him, her eyes wide and filled with an emotion Howard had never seen before. He was astonished before he looked at the man in front of her.

If Howard didn’t know any better, he’d say that he was staring at his son or even himself. The man was an exact, older replica of Anthony Edward Stark.

“Who?” Howard’s voice trailed off. Soon, he had the same astonished look that Maria adopted. “Who the hell are you?”

“Tony?” Maria moved forward, reaching out to touch Tony. Tony didn’t move. He was still frozen in shock at the realization. Peter bit his lip nervously, never moving and never taking his eyes off Tony.

“Mom?” Tony whispered despite his better judgement. Peter frowned and snapped his head towards the woman. He was staring at Maria Stark.

“Alright, pal,” Howard interrupted, pulling his wife back. “We don’t take strays. We’re going to need you to get off our property.”

“He has children, Howard,” Maria pointed out softly. Maria tried to get a better look at the little girl who had buried her head in Tony’s neck but to no avail.

“Like I give a shit,” Howard said, his voice shaking. Maria realized that Howard recognized their son in the man as well. “I’m not letting this lunatic into my house.”

“Is Jarvis home?” Tony asked softly. He knew the name would strike a chord in both of them. Though Jarvis wasn’t exactly a secret, it wasn’t likely for a stranger who looked like their son to ask for the family butler who was practically a second father.

“Get in the car, Howard,” Maria demanded. Howard scoffed and looked at her, shocked to see how serious she was being. “Now.”

“You can’t be serious. This is supernatural. You expect me to believe this man is my so––”

“Just get in the car,” Maria repeated. She gestured to the little girl in his arms and the young boy who stared at the entire interaction with eyes so big Maria double guessed his age. Howard bit his lip for a while before relenting. He got back behind the wheel. Maria opened the back door, gesturing for them to get in. Howard rolled through the gate once all doors were closed.

Peter jittered in his seat as Howard cruised up the drive. He kept looking at Tony’s parents and at Tony himself. He wasn’t stupid. He knew that they had to be in the past somehow. Tony’s parents were dead. He remembered Tony visiting with Strange, so he deduced that the interaction must have something to do with their current state.

“Tony?” Peter whispered nervously. Tony shook his head slowly when he saw how Maria and Howard both perked up. He looked over at Peter as reassuringly as he could. Just wait, he tried to convey.

They rolled up to the front doors. Howard cut the engine and got out the car. Maria looked back at them and smiled. Tony carefully got out the car so as not to wake Morgan. Peter followed after him nervously. Tony felt his stomach drop when he saw Edwin Jarvis standing in the front door, analyzing Tony. Howard whispered something in the man’s ear, causing Jarvis to nod and enter the house.

“How about we talk in the lounge?” Maria suggested, gesturing for them to follow her.

Peter felt out of place in his, technically Tony’s, worn hoodie in the luxurious mansion. Maria was clearly dressed like she had come back from a special event. She took out her earrings as they settled into one of the many expensive couches in the room. Howard came back in and sat across from them, never taking his eyes off Tony. Maria eventually sat next to him, thanking Jarvis as he brought in beverages for all of them.

“Should I get you a soda, young sir?” Jarvis offered Peter, who blushed awkwardly.

“Uh…”

“No caffeine this late,” Tony answered for him, thinking off the last time Peter had a sugar rush in the middle of the night. Jarvis perked an eyebrow up thoughtfully and nodded, pouring Peter a water. It was quiet for a few moments after Jarvis walked out of the room.

“Okay,” Howard said, startling all of them with his clap. “Let’s say you are Tony––”

“Howard!” Maria exclaimed, blushing at his blatancy.

“Here’s the thing, my lazy ass son just got swept off to another semester at MIT,” Howard started again, glancing at Peter’s hoodie. “Yet, you arrive looking just like him, maybe thirty years older. Are you telling me you’re the same person?”

“I haven’t said anything yet,” Tony responded coolly. Howard narrowed his eyes at him. “What year is it?” Howard laughed, looking over at Maria.

“What year is it?” Howard repeated. He cleared his throat and answered seriously despite how unreal the situation felt. “1985.”

“What?” Peter squeaked out, looking over at Tony who didn’t looked as surprised as he felt. His parents looked at Peter, who looked like he regretted speaking.

“Where are you from?” Howard questioned, looking at Peter instead of Tony. Peter opened his mouth, but Tony interrupted.

“The future. Don’t interrogate him. Interrogate me,” Tony demanded.

“How old are you?” Maria asked softly, starting to believe the situation more with each second that passed.

“Old enough,” Tony answer with a forced smile. “Listen, you aren’t going to get answers about the future or our situation by interrogating us. I can tell you things about myself or you guys to get you to believe the situation better, but that’s about it until I figure out how I can get us out of here.” Howard scoffed.

“So you just expect us to believe that you time traveled?” Howard chuckled. Tony shrugged, cursing under his breath when he felt Morgan stir slightly. Howard looked at her. “Who’s this?”

“None of your business.” Howard nodded slowly.

“And who’s this? He’s wearing the hoodie you refuse to let Jarvis wash,” Howard noticed. Peter blushed under the man’s scrutinizing gaze. Tony was getting annoyed with how uncomfortable his father was making Peter feel.

“None of your business, so leave him alone,” Tony demanded. Maria was still looking at the sweatshirt. Tony had to resist shouting out when she got up and moved closer to Peter. Peter tried to relax a bit when Maria gave him a soft smile.

“May I?” Maria gesture to his hoodie. Peter didn’t know what she was talking about, so he just shrugged. He tried not to squirm when she reached behind his neck and pulled out the worn tag. She ran her thumb over it a few times thoughtfully. “Howard, it’s my handwriting.” Howard was staring at the entire interaction. His eyes flickered back to Tony when she spoke. “Howard, it’s him.”

When Morgan woke up, she didn’t know where she was. She did, however, recognize the snores of her dad next to her. She looked around, expecting to see her mom, but she wasn’t anywhere to be seen. She thought about waking her dad, but a loud snore made her decide against it. She crawled out of the bed, noticing that she was wearing a large t-shirt instead of her dress. She padded across the carpet and opened the bedroom door.

The door led out into a long hallway. Morgan looked back and forth before exiting. Her hands clutched the shirt as she walked down the hallway and, eventually, down the stairs. She didn’t recognize the potential danger or unusual situation like her dad did. She was, however, amazed with how shiny and new everything in the very large house was. She smelled food and smiled instinctively.

In the kitchen, there was an older man cooking at the stove. Morgan naturally walked silently, taking a seat at one of the stools at the island, swinging her legs back and forth. She figured this man knew her dad. When the man turned around, he was surprised to see the little girl smiling at him from behind the island. He recognized her as the little girl in Anthony’s hands last night.

“Good morning, miss,” Jarvis greeted, walking over to the fridge.

“Good morning,” Morgan responded instantly.

“Can I interest you in some juice?” Jarvis asked, pulling out the freshly squeezed jug he had made earlier. Morgan smiled wider and eagerly nodded. Jarvis smiled back softly and procured her a small glass to drink from. “I see you’re an early riser.”

“Mmhmm,” Morgan hummed, downing the entire glass. Jarvis poured her another.

“Are you hungry? We have many options you can eat.”

“Do you have toast?” Morgan asked with a shy smile.

“Yes, we do, miss.” Jarvis moved to start preparing the toast. “Can I offer you eggs as well?”

“Yes, please,” Morgan responded.

Jarvis had expected the child to ruin his fluent breakfast routine with incessant bothering, but he was pleasantly surprised to see how polite she had remained. The little girl was fairly quiet and ate her toast and eggs with a proper fork, asking for jelly shyly.

“Oh.” Morgan turned to see a woman in a pink robe and a man fully dressed beside her. She didn’t recognize them, but they looked familiar. She thought that maybe this was their house, so she smiled at them.

“Good morning,” she greeted, taking a bite of toast. They both stared at her without responding, so she turned back to her meal.

“Good morning, may I offer you a coffee?” Morgan heard Jarvis greet them. She heard a mumbled response from the man. Howard sat at the small table, opening up the newspaper Jarvis had retrieved earlier. Maria hesitantly sat down next to Morgan.

“Good morning, dear,” the woman greeted. Morgan smiled again. “What’s your name?”

“Morgan,” Morgan mumbled.

“That’s a pretty name,” Maria replied, thanking Jarvis for the tea he set in front of her. “How old are you Morgan.”

“Five.”

“That’s very big, sweetheart,” Maria whispered excitedly, making Morgan giggle at her antics. “Where’s your father?”

“Still sleeping,” Morgan answered, confirming for all three adults in the room that Tony was her father. “He snores.” Maria chuckled.

“I bet he does. What about your brother? What’s his name?” Maria tried out. She could see Howard looking at her from the corner of her eye.

“Peter,” Morgan answered without thinking. It hadn’t taken very long for Tony to explain their relationship to her when she was only a bit younger. She had come to know him as her brother despite. Tony explaining how they weren’t blood related.

“Peter…” Maria repeated, looking over at Howard. He still had his newspaper up but was clearly listening to the conversation his wife was having with his supposed granddaughter. “You look so much like your father. You have his eyes.”

“That’s what everyone says,” Morgan whined, having heard that phrase too many times to count. Maria laughed.

“Who’s your mother?” Maria glared at Howard when he finally decided to join the conversation with a blunt question.

“Pepper,” Morgan answered, recalling the name she’d heard her dad call her mom multiple times. “She’s pretty. She has red hair. I wish I had red hair.”

“You have beautiful hair,” Maria complimented, patting the dark hair of the girl comfortingly. “Your father’s going to have a lot to deal with when you get older.” This caused Jarvis to smile, who had listened to the conversation despite his better judgement. To think of Anthony, his Anthony who was probably drunk out of his mind at college, with a child was heartwarming in many ways. He hadn’t even known the child for more than a few minutes and could already see so much of him in her.

“Do you not recognize us, kid?” Howard asked the question Maria had desperately been wondering herself. If this was Tony’s child, why didn’t she recognize them? Morgan didn’t get a chance to answer before they were distracted by another presence in the room.

“Good morning, young sir,” Jarvis greeted Peter, who was blushing at the unexpected attention he was getting. He nervously tugged on his borrowed shirt.

“G-good morning,” Peter stuttered a greeting to everyone in the room.

“Petey!” Morgan yelled out, throwing her hands in the air as a greeting. She picked up a piece of her toast and waved it at him. “Toast!” Peter smiled.

“Yeah, I see that,” Peter responded, not sure how to feel about the entire scene. Based on how much Morgan had eaten, she had probably been alone with everyone for quite some time, making Peter nervous about what she could have said.

“Would you like some breakfast, young sir?” Jarvis asked, gesturing to the various dishes he had made. He fixed Maria and Howard’s plates, setting them down in front of the two. Peter felt his stomach growl and nodded almost instantly. Jarvis gestured to the seat beside Morgan.

“Where’s Tony?” Peter asked Morgan. Maria frowned at Peter using his dad’s name before guessing that he must be trying to keep the whole thing secret. She felt a bit bad that she had extracted the information from Morgan who couldn’t have known better.

“Snoring,” Morgan muttered, taking a sip of juice. “Where are we?”

“Uh…” Peter stalled, looking at the other occupants of the room who were also wondering what Peter was going to say. “Vacation?” Morgan frowned.

“Mommy is going to be mad we missed dinner,” Morgan pouted.

“They rescheduled,” Peter offered as an explanation. Morgan didn’t show any signs of disbelief, so Peter counted that as a win.

“Peter, huh?” Howard said from his seat. He had completely abandoned the newspaper. “How old are you?”

“Sixteen, sir,” Peter answered hesitantly.

“Sixteen, huh? That’s getting up there. Know what you want to do after high school?” Peter hadn’t thought that he’d have to face the same social situations he dreaded in the 21st century, but here he was.

“Uh, chemistry, maybe?” Peter offered non-committedly. “Maybe engineering? I don’t really know.” Howard nodded along with each answer Peter provided, ignoring the glare Maria was sending his way.

“What’s your father doing these days?” Howard asked casually. Peter felt himself blanche.

“Howard,” Maria reprimanded.

“What? I’m just curious as to what my son is getting up to thirty plus years later where his own children don’t recognize us,” Howard barked out bitterly. Peter narrowed his eyes.

“I know who you are,” Peter said. He didn’t offer any further explanation.

“Let me guess,” Howard drawled. “He fucked it up, didn’t he?”

“Howard!” Maria yelled, nodding towards Morgan. “This is not appropriate.”

“Stark Industries? Do you even know what that is, or did he complete ruin its legacy, too?”

“Why would you assume––” Maria started.

“Because the kid didn’t even mention the multi-million-dollar company I built! He’s his oldest son, and he acts like he had no intention of taking over the business, so Tony must have fucked it up. I knew it––”

“Actually, it’s a multi-billion-dollar company, now,” Peter interrupted, causing Howard to pause. Even Jarvis had to stop to look at Peter for a few seconds. “It provides world-renowned technology decades ahead of other products in the market, and it’s leading in annual donations to charities all over.”

“Technology?” Howard repeated, trying to think of what the word could mean in the context Peter puts it in. “What––”

“Daddy!” Morgan immediately hopped out of the chair and ran towards her dad, who was standing in the doorway with a bewildered expression on his face. He instinctively picked Morgan up as she ran at him. Meanwhile, Howard was trying to make sense of what Peter said to him about a multi-billion-dollar company.

“Why did you get out of bed?” Tony interrogated the young girl quietly.

“I wanted to eat,” Morgan responded charmingly, trying to stave off any repercussions her actions might have. “Petey said we were on vacation. I thought we were going to have dinner with Mommy?”

“Plans change.” Tony hadn’t even acknowledged the stares of everyone else in the room until Morgan’s arms tightened around Tony. He looked up, trying to figure out what they could have wrunginged out of his children in the time he was asleep.

Jarvis smiled at Anthony when their eyes met. Though this man acted almost entirely different from the young man he sent off with a hug back to college, there was almost no mistaking the soft eyes Anthony had when he looked at someone he cared about. Jarvis never thought he’d live long enough to see the boy grow into fatherhood, so he was more than grateful for the brief seconds he got to see with Anthony and his daughter.

Maria, on the other hand, felt herself tear up at the interaction. Not too long ago, she was reprimanding Tony for ignoring his father once again as he prepared to head back to school. Tony was no stranger to daddy issues, and that was what probably made her feel so joyous to see him as a father. In the few seconds she had seen the two together, she had no doubt that the girl adored her father. From the way she lit up when she saw him to the way she practically strangled him with her tiny arms, love was ever present.

Howard didn’t know what to make of the situation. His scientific brain was still trying to understand the entire time travel situation. He was back and forth in believing it. This came to a head once again when he saw the little girl run into Tony’s arms. Howard had always had his doubts when it came to Tony. The kid was smart, really fucking smart, but he was lazy. He knew he was probably fucking around at college instead of applying himself, and Howard wasn’t really sure Tony would ever grow out of it. He just hoped that the boy would mature enough to make sure the company wouldn’t go to shit after it was passed on. Fatherhood had never come to Howard’s mind.

The oddest part was how natural it seemed to Tony. Howard couldn’t remember a single time he held Tony like that, but it was clear Tony did it all the time with his own daughter. He wasn’t entirely sure what the child was doing running at Tony, so he was astonished to see how swiftly he picked her up. It made Howard question more than ever question whether this was the boy they raised.

“Uh, Dad,” Peter tried out, glancing over at Howard as he said it. Tony immediately looked over at him, a bit astonished at the title. He tried not to react to it too much when he saw what Peter was trying to do. “How are we going to get home?”

“I thought it was vacation,” Morgan pouted. She was too smart for her own good. To that question, Tony had no answer. Time travel was Strange’s thing, and Tony wasn’t even sure if Strange knew what had happened.

“I don’t know. I need some time, Pete,” Tony sighed, pressing a hand to his face while he carried Morgan with another. He offered her seat back, but she refused to be let down. Tony sighed as he sat at the table uncomfortably across from Howard. Jarvis brought him a cup of coffee, which Tony responded grateful smile and a “Thank you.”

“You know, if you told us what exactly was going on, we could potentially help––” Howard started to suggest his aid.

“No,” Tony interrupted, barely sparing a glance. “You’re not getting access to information about the future through us, so stop trying it. It hasn’t even been a full day yet. We have to wait to see what Strange is going to do.” Tony directed the last sentence at Peter, who didn’t looked very relieved at the information.

Maria had quickly fallen in love with Morgan, having never expected to have a granddaughter. She had begged Tony to let her take Morgan out for a few outfits that fit her and some ice cream. Tony had relented despite his anxiety when his mother guilt-tripped him. Tony was left at home to try and calm Peter, who was still tense about the whole situation.

Tony ran his fingers through the boy’s hair to surprise him from behind. Instead of jumping in alarm, Peter relaxed at the touch.

“You okay?” Tony asked, taking a seat next to Peter in the empty living room.

“Sure, I guess. It’s just, what if Strange doesn’t come?” Tony sighed.

“Pete, I promise I’m going to get you home, with or without Strange,” Tony assured him. “Just relax and let me worry about the schematics of the whole thing, yeah?”

“I had a huge test in physics––” Peter stopped when he heard Tony’s snort.

“You realize we time traveled, right?” Peter scoffed.

“Yeah, but I studied really hard for it! Don’t get me wrong. I’m amazed about the entire thing, but you don’t know how long it took me to do that battery problem––”

“I meant that Strange could probably get us back seconds after we disappeared.” Peter fell silent, thinking for a few seconds.

“If that’s true, then why hasn’t he come yet?” That was a fair question.

“He probably has to figure out where we are first.” Tony wasn’t too sure about the answer either, but he was tired of seeing Peter so stressed out. Tony threw an arm over the kid’s shoulder. “Chill out. You get a free vacation from school without even missing school. I would have killed for that.”

“You would be graduating from school in a year,” Peter pointed out with a pout, not forgetting how advanced Tony had been by his age.

“Yeah, and I wish I was in your shoes,” Tony responded, recognizing some of the self-doubt Peter was building up within himself. “Yo get to live out your years with your best friends and still go to the best college ever.” Tony winked at him at that last part, making Peter chuckle and shrug.

“I don’t know. Columbia is looking really––”

“Please don’t,” Tony interrupted. “Pepper says I’m not allowed to disown you just because you go to another school, but I can publicly humiliate you.”

“Pepper is on my side. We can humiliate you. We have videos,” Peter mentioned vaguely. Tony’s jaw dropped.

“Wow, betrayed by my own wife,” Tony said thoughtfully. “That’s fine. I’ve recruited Morgan. She’s the mastermind.”

“No, you didn’t!” Peter narrowed his eyes, trying to catch a bluff. Tony smirked and nodded.

“I’m her favorite. She loves me 3000. You and Pepper are around the 700 level,” Tony teased.

Tony was glad Peter was easing up and joking around. Neither of them had noticed Howard watching from the shadows. He hadn’t been entirely sure that Peter was Tony’s son, but seeing the boy fall into familiar banter with his son confirmed it. Howard thought he was watching one of those cheesy family movies Maria liked. Tony and Peter had none of the disconnect Howard felt with his own son. Hell, his Tony was about the same age as Peter right now, and Howard couldn’t even begin to imagine sharing the same humor with him. Tony had ended up like the father he wished he could be all those years ago.

Jarvis brought Tony a sandwich later that night, cut into diagonals like Tony remembered. Jarvis offered Tony a glass of liquor, surprised when Tony turned it down, claiming that he needed to keep a clear mind for the kids. It wasn’t exactly time for Jarvis to quit for the night, but he couldn’t help sitting across from Tony as the man scarfed down the sandwich.

“You’ve grown into a proper man, Anthony,” Jarvis started. Tony paused mid-bite, looking up at Jarvis. “You’ve nearly as much gray hair as me.” Tony scoffed, smiling behind his sandwich.

“You don’t know that. You’ve hardly known me a day,” Tony replied.

“I’ve known you your entire life,” Jarvis corrected. His old eyes looked at him as if he were a child again. “Despite what your father may have told you, I always knew you’d grow into your intelligence and potential, and you have not proved me wrong.”

“I’ve done bad things, Jarvis,” Tony muttered.

“And look who you are because of them,” Jarvis whispered. “I wish that your father had treated you the same way you treat your children. Nevertheless, I’m astonishingly happy to see you do right by them. I can only hope that you hadn’t forgotten about me over the years.” Tony felt himself tear up. He couldn’t tell him about JARVIS. That would take too much explaining. Besides, Jarvis didn’t need the explanation. He could see from the tears in Tony’s eyes and the slight smile on his face that he was remembered.

“I don’t know how I got on without you,” Tony admitted. “I was a mess.”

“And now you’re a hero.” Tony frowned at him. “Treasure the way your kids look at you, Anthony. You are a hero to them.” Tony nodded slowly. “You’ve proved your father wrong. You’ve proved yourself wrong. I’m sure you’ve proved many others wrong along the way. I have no doubt it was all worth it to get you where you needed to be: with your children.”