Bend The Definition Of Fate

After Tony got Peter changed into a new diaper he tried to put him down for his nap but it was a bit harder than he expected it to be.

Peter refused to lie down in his crib. Every time Tony would try to put him down Peter would whine loudly and reach up for him with grabby hands.

Tony knew he should just leave Peter because it was nap time and his best friend was waiting in the living room plus Peter would eventually fall asleep on his own but Tony just couldn’t. He tried to imagine how Peter was feeling and how hard it would be for him right now with everything going on and all the emotions.

Tony also couldn’t make out why Peter was looking at him like that and what the expression on his face was. Peter looked almost sick and Tony actually thought that Peter was about to vomit but then he didn’t.

Tony hoped Peter wasn’t coming down with anything.

The whining from Peter continued so Tony did what he thought was the only option. Rock him.

So there Tony was rocking Peter back and fourth in his arms until he settled down just enough for Tony to place him back into his crib for his now well needed nap.

Peter started sucking on his thumb so Tony had to look around the room for his pacifier to suck on instead. He knew he should be pulling Peters thumb out of his mouth and not even letting him use the pacifier because it was a bad habit to have right now and he would rather Peter stop crying in other ways but everything was still so new to Tony so he didn’t really know what to do but this whole thing is only temporary anyways so it’s okay.

“Sleep for a bit, Pete” Tony said softly as he laid Peter down in his crib “I’m just gonna be in the living room”

Thankfully Peter went down easy. Tony brushed the soft baby curls out of Peters face and smiled down at him. He watched Peters brown eyes slowly close with sleep then he left the bedroom.

Tony walked back out to Rhodey and sat down on the couch. His friend was giving him this look “What?”

Rhodey held his arms up in defence “Nothing, just... you’re good with him”

As Tony sat down on the couch he sighed and put his hand over his face. He was silent for a few seconds before speaking “I’m not so sure about that”

Tony couldn’t see his best friend but he could imagine the look on his face when the spoke “What are you talking about, Tones? Peter looked up to you way before he ever knew you and then he met you and people say that it’s not a good idea to meet the people you look up to because you’re gonna be disappointed when you meet them but I know for a fact that Peter was far from disappointed. You changed his life for the better and even now, you’re looking after him with this whole... de-aging thing going on and you’re gonna be there for him after too”

Tony definitely didn’t need that pep talk but it did help a little bit. Maybe a lot.

It was hard for him because he loved Peter like a son but he never knew his boundaries with the kid. Certain things that happened in Peter’s life as a teenager had Tony wondering if he should get involved in it. He always wanted to, well not at first but later on he did but he never knew if he was allowed to or should be and so that always stopped their relationship from progressing even more.

Now with Peter having been de-aged to a two year old toddler meant that Tony really had no other choice than to get involved with Peter’s life. Including the diaper changes and everything that comes with that but he didn’t mind it. He actually liked doing those things, maybe not so much the diaper changes but everything else because he missed out on that part of Peter’s life so this was kinda his way of experiencing all that.

Tony was interrupted from his thoughts by the sound of bare feet hitting the floor getting louder and louder.

When he turned around towards the sound Tony saw Peter running out full force towards the living room, holding in his arm what looked like a piece of LEGOs.

“Daddy! Daddy!” Peter called out. His face looked stressed as he ran over to Tony. Once he was in reach he lifted his arms up and demanded to be picked up.

Confused as to how Peter got out of his crib that Tony had just put him in less than fifteen minutes ago, picked him up and held him so that Peter was standing on Tony’s lap with Tony holding Peters tiny hands for balance “How did you get out of your crib, Pete?”

Peter looked to be thinking about it for a second before speaking “I c’imb then me go uh oh”

Peter shook one of his hands free from Tony’s hand so he could put it on his head to show Tony how he must have fallen on his head. The action caused Tony to have to quickly put his hand behind Peter’s back to stop him from falling over.

“Uh oh, did you hit your head?” Tony asked slightly concerned.

Peter nodded and Tony checked to see if he could find a bump or anything but found nothing.

“I wan’ play!” Peter said excitedly as he bounced on Tony’s lap.

“Play? What happened to your nap?” Peter looked confused at Tony’s question then shook his head.

“No nap. Play”

Tony looked over at his best friend and saw how he was smiling at him in that way that he usually did when he was proud of him for doing something. Usually when he would see him eating something in the kitchen instead of drinking coffee down in his lab.

Rhodeys face suddenly changed “Oh! I almost forgot. Peter, I got something for you”

Peter looked over at Rhodey curiously and so To y placed him on the ground so that he could walk over to see what Rhodey had for him. Tony also watched curiously since he had no idea what his best friend could have brought for his kid- Peter, brought for Peter.

Rhodey reached down to grab his bag that was on the floor and pulled it up on the couch. Peter stood in front of Rhodey and put his little hands on each of Rhodeys knees as he watched the man with wide childlike eyes filled with wonder and innocence.

Rhodey reached into the bag and pulled out a toy.

A stuffed platypus.

It took Tony a few seconds to catch onto what his friends idea was but once he did he started laughing out loud “Okay, Rhodes, clever. Clever one, Platypus.”

Rhodey just glanced up at Tony quickly with a smile on his face before he held it out in front of Peter. Peter seemed to love the toy because he was squealing loudly and bouncing up and down on his feet while he made grabby hands for the toy.

“I wan’! I wan’!” Peter demanded.

Rhodey didn’t give the toy to the demanding baby just yet “Do you know what this is, Peter?”

Peter continued to bounce on his feet as he answered “Toy! Fo’ Me!”

Both Tony and Rhodey laughed but Rhodey shook his head “No, Pete. It’s an animal, it’s called a platypus and your daddy used to call me that when we were younger”

Peter’s face sank as he looked up at Rhodey with sad eyes “Not mine?”

“No. No, Peter, it is yours, I brought it just for you” Rhodey handed Peter the toy and Peter’s face lit up as he grabbed it, hugging it to his chest before walking over to show it to Tony.

“Wow! You better thank Rhodey later for that” Tony said. Peter nodded and hugged his new toy to his chest again “How about you go play with it now”

Peter nodded again and went to go sit on the carpet where his toys were. He plopped himself down and started mumbling words to his new toy that Tony couldn’t understand. He had been pretty good at understanding what Peter had to say even with his new way of pronouncing words but he still couldn’t make out what Peter was saying right now. He guessed that Peter was just making sounds.

Tony turned to Rhodey “I still call you that, you know”

Rhodey looked away from Peter and at Tony “What?”

“Platypus. I still call you that” Tony clarified.

“Oh. Yeah, just not as much anymore I guess but I saw that toy and it just bought back so many memories of us” Rhodey said smiling. He then continued “Like all the times in our dorm room, I would have never expected you to become a dad like this-“

Tony cut him off “Or at all”

“No. That’s not true. I knew you would become a dad some day and I knew you’d be a great dad, you just- it was gonna be later on, like right now with Peter” Rhodey smiled again over at Peter and Tony couldn’t help but follow his gaze down to his kid.

His kid who was lying on his back with his legs up in the air and holding onto his new Platypus toy. Tony felt his heart growing inside of him for love for this child sitting on the floor, his child.

“It looks good on you” Rhodey admitted “Being a dad”

Tony snorted “Yeah, changing diapers must be quite the look. Pepper is totally digging the diaper changing vibe”

Rhodey laughed. “I just never thought of that”

“Thought of what?”

“You,” Rhodey pointed to Tony “changing his,” Then he pointed to Peter “diapers”

“Well,” Tony held up his arms “I’m quite the natural now so-“

Tony was cut off by a tug on his pant leg from Peter. He looked down and saw Peter aggressively tugging on his pants looking stressed “What? Speaking of changing diapers, do you need yours changed?”

Peter shook his head but still continued to tug on Tony’s pant leg “I wan’ soote’“

It took Tony a few seconds to understand what Peter was trying to say to him but when it clicked he had to make sure he was right “You want your pacifier?”

Peter nodded.

“I’ll be right back then” Tony remembered it was probably still in Peter’s bedroom so he stood up and went to go and get it but as soon as he started walking away he heard footsteps chasing after him “You wanna come?”

Peter nodded and reached up to hold onto Tony’s hand. Tony loved the way his heart would flutter whenever Peter did that. It was so cute.

Inside Peter’s bedroom, Tony saw how Peter got out of his crib. He piled up all his blankets and his pillow so he could stand on it and get out. Smart kid. Wild, but smart.

Once Tony got the pacifier he handed it to Peter who plopped it into his mouth and began sucking on it. Tony didn’t understand why Peter found that so comforting but he didn’t try to worry about that right now.

Peter sat back down on the floor where his toys were while Tony sat on the couch in his spot “The kid loves that pacifier. He never used to use one but I guess when he was with May, she got so tired of his constant crying so he gave that to him and now Peter won’t put it down”

“Is it bad that he’s using it?” Rhodey asked.

Tony shook his head “No. I don’t know. Maybe, at his age, but then again he’s technically fifteen so I don’t really know”

“If it makes him stop crying then it’s probably okay-“

“Daddy! Daddy!” Rhodey was interrupted by Peters loud baby voice.

Both men looked towards the toddler in the room who was lying on the ground looking up at Tony “What is it, bud?”

Peter didn’t say anything else. He put the pacifier back in his mouth and began playing with his toys again. Tony thought that that was really weird but ever since Peter got de-aged Tony has seen him do some pretty weird stuff, hell even when Peter was a teenager he saw him do some weird stuff that Tony just acted like he never saw because he didn’t wanna ask.

Rhodey started the conversation again “How are things with Pepper going?”

“Surprisingly good, for now. Hopefully for awhile” Tony admitted. It was really hard when Pepper found out about Peter in a bad way. In hindsight Tony guessed that he should have told her before it got out the way it did.

“I’m guessing she loves Peter. I mean as a baby”

Tony smiled and nodded “She loved him when he was a teen so yes, now she can actually pick him up which I’m pretty sure she always wanted to do but he was too heavy before”

“I don’t think he was that heavy” Rhodey laughed “I bet she could have lifted him. I did and he was pretty light-“

“Daddy! Come play wif’ Me!” Peter asked as he stood up and started wobbling over to Tony.

“I’m talking to Rhodey now, I’ll play with you later” Peter stomped his foot and let out a loud whine. “Peter” Tony warned.

“I wan’ you to play wif’ me” Peter used his puppy dog eyes on Tony which were literally impossible to not say no to now.

Tony however wasn’t gonna fall for it “No, Pete. Actually I’m gonna get you something to drink because you haven’t drank in awhile”

Tony sat up and walked into the kitchen with Peter following behind him. There was a box on the ground next to the kitchen island that was opened but wasn’t unpacked and till had a bunch of baby stuff in it. Peter went to go look in the box while Tony was looking in the fridge for apple juice.

Tony grabbed the apple juice and then looked down at Peter who was holding a bottle from the box in his hand up towards Tony. Tony looked at him confused “Are you sure you want to use this?”

Peter didn’t say anything but he looked down sadly and went to go put the bottle back in the box “No, it’s fine, Pete. If you want the bottle then you can use it”

Peter smiled and handed the bottle up to Tony who took it and quickly washed it before filling it up with apple juice.

“Give me that” Ton said pointing to Peter’s pacifier.

Peter reached up to his mouth, took it out and handed it to Tony. When Tony grabbed the pacifier it was full of toddler Peter saliva and it was gross but Tony didn’t really care that much as he just wiped the wetness off his hand and put the pacifier on the kitchen counter.

They walked back in the living room where Peter sat on the ground and Tony sat back on the couch. He was about to start talking to Rhodey again but Peter interrupted once again.

It was actually kinda funny now how much Peter kept interrupting Tony and Rhodey and wasn’t letting the two talk. Rhodey must have thought the same thing because he pointed it out “Looks like someone is fighting for your attention”

Tony didn’t answer Rhodey. He looked at Peter who was desperately trying to get on the couch and into Tony’s lap so Tony helped him up.

Once on the couch, Peter immediately crawled into Tony’s lap and started drinking his apple juice from his bottle. He was content sitting there and slowly Peter started dripping backwards so that he was lying fully down on Tony’s lap.

Rhodey smiled at the scene and then stood up and stretched “Well, I’m jet legged as hell so I’m gonna leafs you two be while I get some sleep. Plus I don’t think I’m gonna win your attention over him”

Tony smiled “No, you won’t”

Peter, completely oblivious to the conversation happening around him continuing to drink from his bottle. Tony gently shook him to get him to say bye to Rhodey “Say goodnight to Platypus, Pete”

Rhodey laughed and Peter weakly waved, way too content just drinking his apply juice on Tony’s lap.

After Rhodey left it was just Peter and Tony there. Just how it always was but tomorrow was gonna be very different with Rhodey there to see first hand Tony as a dad to a toddler Peter.