“You know, when you said you had plans for us today, I didn’t picture this. I think I pictured everything other than this.” Tony said, looking around and trying not to breathe in too much… smell.
“Mr Stark, don’t whinge, this will be fun.” Peter assured him, walking over to one of the stalls inside the large barn. Horse riding. That was what Peter made him drive all the way out of the city for. He was inherently grateful Rhodey and Pepper were both across the country on business so they wouldn’t see this. Happy, well, he’d just have to give Happy a generous present. Despite Tony driving them out here, Happy had apparently been in on this plan and had cleared Tony’s schedule for the day. Maybe a trip to Downton Abbey set when they were next in the UK?
“Oh, this one’s nice! Look Mr Stark, he’s all spotty.” Peter’s hushed voice had Tony shuffle hesitatingly over to the stall door and peer in past Peter’s curly head. The horse inside was white with black spots all over, like a dalmatian.
“Didn’t know they made them like dalmatians?” He wrinkled his nose. The spotty horse had recently left a green pile of shit behind itself. “Kid, what are we doing here?” He tried to keep the whine out of his voice, but this place was making him itchy.
“We’re a little early,” He said, looking around at the empty barn, “There’ll be someone here soon I think.” Before Tony could voice his fear that his sneakers had already been ruined beyond repair from walking around this place, a lady in a green plaid shirt, roughed up jeans and god-honest cowboy boots came striding around the corner.
“Hey! You guys must be here for the eleven o’oclock?” She came right up to them and shook each of their hands. “I’m Lena, I’ll be your instructor and guide today.”
“Nice to meet you, I’m Peter,” Peter said and glanced at Tony. He introduced himself as just ‘Tony’ as the woman didn’t seem to have recognised him. It was strangely comforting, that bit of anonymity out of the city, just him and Peter.
Lena gave them a quick tour of the barn and asked about previous experience. Tony admitted he had zero, not something he often had to admit, and Lena assured him they would take things slowly and make sure he was comfortable as could be. He doubted anything about this would be comfortable. He was crazy, utterly crazy, to follow the kid’s suggestion in the first place. Peter, it turned out, had ridden a few times when he was younger at the annual fayre his parents used to take him to. That, in Tony’s eyes, set him at an unfair advantage despite Peter’s insistence that he’d been on a leading rein.
“This is Copper, she’s a little temperamental. I’ll be on her today.” Lena said as they passed one of the stall. Copper was a ginger horse that looked like she would rather be anywhere other than in her stall.
“Redheaded, temperamental mare? I’ve got one of those at home.” Tony nodded sagely to Lena and Peter snorted.
“Oh my god, I’m so telling Pepper when we get back!” He chuckled and they all laughed,
“I have to admit, I’ve got a weakness for chestnut mares.” Lena said, offering Copper a treat from her pocket. The horse shuffled forwards and took the treat gently. Tony avoided Peter’s pointed smirk and ‘hmm’d’ noncommittally.
“Which one’s the kid on? Please be the psycho.” Tony smiled at the woman winningly and she laughed loudly.
“I’m afraid you’ll both be on the dead-broke horses until you’ve gotten a bit more experience under your belt.” She led them a few stalls down to one with the name plaque ‘Zoro’. Tony nosed over the door at Zoro, a large white horse with a long mane. “This gray one will be yours, Tony. Zoro is a lovely boy, he’ll look after you.”
“He doesn’t look gray to me? He looks white.”
“You don’t call horses white,” Peter said, surprising Tony, “they’re actually gray.”
“That’s true, Peter.” Lena smiled, gesturing to the stall next to Zoro. “This is Steve.”
“What? Steve?” Tony was leaning over the stable door before Peter could stop him. Steve was blonde! Tony was cackling.
“Oh god.” Peter moaned, cheeks pink.
“Is anything wrong with riding Steve, Peter?” Lena asked, watching Tony with a bit of concern as he started snorting.
“We know a Steve.” Was all Peter said. Lena didn’t seem to understand the problem, so Tony did his best to control himself. He needed the blackmail material, getting Lena to find Peter another horse just wouldn’t do.
“It’s fine, just a funny name for a horse that’s all.” He dismissed it with a wave of his hand and did his best at keeping a straight face. Peter narrowed his eyes at him suspiciously and Lena let it drop, moving on to explain how to halter their horses and bring them to the hitching post in the centre of the large barn. She demonstrated with Copper and gave Tony and Peter their halters for their own horses. Tony was determined to get this right and not look a fool, striding to Zoro’s stall with false confidence. He unlatched the door and stepped inside. The door closed of its own accord behind him and his heart jumped. Oh, wow. The horse was much bigger up close. He could hear Lena and Peter talking in the next stall and could see them through the slatted walls dividing the stalls. Peter was stroking his horse’s neck before he started to put the halter on. Ah, good idea. Tame the beast.
Tony took a few hesitant steps towards Zoro and tried to look him in the eye. It was a little hard as he appeared to be dozing. Unless he was pretending, eager to catch Tony unawares. He stuck out his hand and awkwardly patted his furry neck.
“Hey. Wake up.” Zoro opened his eyes and raised his head to look at Tony and he regretted every decision that led him to this place. He was about to get mauled and nobody would even know. Peter wouldn’t be able to get in here and save him until it was too late and there was a hoof through his skull.
“Breathe.” Came Peter’s voice from behind and Tony turned to see Peter leaning over the stall door, smiling sympathetically at him. “I can hear your heart rate, it’s going crazy.” Over Peter’s shoulder, Lena was with Copper and Steve, both tied to the hitching rail and she was lifting one of Copper’s feet. She was far enough away that she wouldn’t hear their conversation.
“It’s much bigger than I thought.” Tony admitted quietly and Peter quirked a brow and bit his lip, stifling a snigger.
“That’s what she said.” He mumbled, letting himself into the stall. Tony shook his head and closed his eyes in exasperation.
“Since when are you old enough to make those sorts of jokes?” He sighed.
“Uh, ever since you met me? I wasn’t a little kid you know, as much as you think I was.” Peter rolled his eyes good-naturedly.
“Was? Are. You still are.” Tony stubbornly said. “Right, come on, we need to wrangle this beast, give me a hand.”
“Oh my god,” Peter laughed, “he’s fast asleep. I told Lena I wanted to help you, so your dignity is saved this one time, just so you know.” He said as he took the halter from Tony. “Like this, come on. He won’t bite.” With a bit of encouragement, Tony had the halter on Zoro and led him from the stall and Lena tied him at the rail with the other two. She handed them brushes and they got to work, Tony lamenting the state of his clothing silently. The cleaner the horse got, the dirtier he seemed to get?! Peter had told him to wear older clothes, so Tony had worn an old blue shirt he liked to wear in the lab and loose-fitting jeans. He didn’t have any beat-up sneakers though like Peter did, so his rather expensive converse would just have to get thrown when he got back to the tower.
Lena stood back to admire the horses and congratulated them on a job well done. Peter was beaming and it pulled a reluctant smile from Tony. They went into the tack room to collect the equipment and they put it down near where the horses were tied.
“Right, you’ll want the bridle on first. You’re lucky the horses are well trained, and they won’t go wandering off when you take off the halter.” She took off Copper’s halter and put on the bridle. That looked simple enough. Only down side was, he’d have to get all up in its face again. He kept an eye on Peter and did his best to copy what he was doing but at some point, the reins got twisted and he had to be rescued by Lena before he caused an accident. Peter managed his just fine. Smug little shit.
Next came the saddle, and Tony managed this without help. Like a boss. He sent Peter a pleased grin over the top of his horse and the kid gave him a thumbs up. Lena disappeared and brought out helmets and Tony spent a few minutes lamenting his hair getting ruined, much to the other’s amusement.
They led their horses into an arena outside that had what looked like sand on the floor. It wasn’t like the sand at the many beaches Tony had been to, it seemed more compact so at least the horse wouldn’t sink when he got on. Speaking of getting on, Lena was leading her ginger beast to some steps and was climbing on with brief instructions. Tony hadn’t been listening, too busy calculating the distance between the pedals and the floor, a distance his shorter (sturdy, he liked to think) legs couldn’t hope to reach at his age. Peter lined his horse up to the block and climbed the steps and got on. Tony’s turn. Okay, that’s not so difficult. Zoro stopped by the steps and Tony was able to climb on board without any hassle. Yes! This was easy! John Wayne eat your heart ou-SHIT they were moving. He grasped hold of the saddle and tried to remember the instructions on holding the reins correctly.
Peter grinned over his shoulder at Tony who did his best to smile back. He was fairly certain it was more like a grimace. What on earth possessed Peter to do this on a Sunday in the middle of June? More importantly, why had he agreed? Actually, that one had a pretty obvious answer, it was Peter. Lena guided her horse around the arena edge and the other two horses just followed behind, leaving Tony to be able to get his bearings and listen to some instructions from up front. He did his best to sit up, keep his heels down and not lean on his saddle as he became a little more confident with his balance. Lena showed them how to steer and Peter was able to demonstrate for Tony to a round of applause.
The next task, Tony was certain no man had ever thought ‘this is a good idea’. The trot. Lena led the ride for another circle around the arena and all of a sudden the horses were running and Tony bruised parts of him he thought would be safe now he’d left high school P.E.
“Jesus Christ on a bike.” He moaned when they stopped, and Peter started cackling at him. Lena looked far too smug as well. “How are you not crying?” He complained, reaching down to make some adjustments.
“I’ve almost got the hang of posting, so it’s not too bad.” Peter sniggered and Tony glared.
“Hang on, you’re telling me there’s a better way to do this and you didn’t say?” He narrowed his eyes and looked between the two conspirators.
“It’s a little difficult for a beginner, but I’m sure we can give it a go.” Lena said, biting her lip to hide a grin. They spent a little bit of time on this and before he knew it, he was trotting on his own while Lena and Peter sat on their horses in the centre of the arena.
“You’re actually pretty good!” Peter praised him as he trotted the longer length of the arena. “We’ll have to get you back here another time.”
“Don’t sound too surprised kiddo, I’m a genius. My feet keep moving in the pedals though.” He glanced down at his feet and lost his balance slightly as he did. Zoro lowered his head and came to a sudden stop, causing Tony to jolt forwards. “Oh shit!” Lena called out reassurances, but Tony could barely hear her over Peter’s roaring laughter.
“PEDALS!” He looked in danger of falling off as he tipped forwards with laughter and Tony huffed in amusement.
“What?” Tony rode over to Peter and got near enough to reach over and grab his arm. “I’ll push you off!” He threatened, giving his arm a little shake. He made sure not to let Peter go until he sat up though.
“I’m sorry!” He grinned broadly, catching his breath. “That was hilarious though, you nearly went flying off and called them pedals!”
“Aw, it’s okay Tony, they’re called stirrups.” Lena was chuckling too though. Hmm, he didn’t think he’d be able to push the pair of them off.
“Well, I think I’m ready to go faster.” Tony sniffed, and Lena looked at him doubtfully.
“Oh god,” Peter shook his head, “don’t listen to him, he’s a speed freak.”
“Am not.”
“Uh, yeah you are.”
Lena interrupted them, “I saw the car you came in… I’m going to have to go with Peter on this one. We can stay at the trot this time, and work on our balance, next time we can see how much you’ve retained and maybe try stepping it up a notch. Gives you incentive to come back.” Lena winked and Tony heaved an exaggerated sigh.
“I suppose.” He acquiesced and Peter’s face lit up.
“We can come again? You’ll come with me again?” Peter questioned and Tony rolled his eyes.
“I’ve got to get better at this somehow.” Lena grinned at him for that and set the two of them to trotting circles at either end of the arena. Steve wanted to follow Zoro though, so Peter was having a little difficulty getting him to stay in his end. Tony patted Zoro’s neck as he brought him to a stop near the outer rail and watched as Peter steered him away from Tony. A few more circles and reassurance, Peter appeared to have shown Steve just who was boss and Tony couldn’t control the pride that swelled in his chest.
“Great job, kiddo.” He beamed at Peter who asked Steve to stand and patted his neck.
“Got there in the end!” Peter said, looking pretty chuffed.
“Well done, Peter. It’s always a challenge to convince a stubborn horse that your way is the easiest way, but you managed it pretty well.” Lena rode over to him and gave Peter a high five, announcing the end of their session. Tony found himself surprisingly disappointed at that, he’d actually had a pretty good time, despite a few near misses.
They each dismounted and Tony almost ate sand when he forgot to remove his one foot from the stirrup, much to Peter’s amusement. They led the horses back into the barn and untacked, taking care to put the things back in the tack room.
“Thanks, for today Lena, it was awesome.” Peter said as they were brushing their horses down.
“Hey, no problem, you guys were great. I’d love to have you back. It’s not often that I get any bookings for today usually, it tends to be more of a soccer or baseball kinda day.” She said and Peter turned a little pink. What was that about? Lena went to turn Copper out into one of the paddocks and Tony sidled over to Peter once she’d left the barn. He quickly took a picture of Steve to show Cap when he got back to the tower.
“Looking a little pink in the cheeks there, Underoos.” He waggled his eyebrows suggestively and put his phone back in his pocket while Peter groaned.
“Nooo,” He cried, “don’t even go there. That wasn’t what that was at all.”
“So what was it then?” Tony pried, flicking hair from the brush at him. Peter just shook his head and kept his mouth shut. “Okay, okay, I’ll drop it. For now. Though, I realised earlier that I hope she takes card payment or bank transfer as I didn’t bring cash.”
Peter stopped brushing and frowned at him. “No, it’s paid for.”
“Uh, Pete, since when? I always pay, you know I don’t want you paying. This can’t have been cheap.” He gestured round to the stables and Peter rolled his eyes.
“It’s already done. I wanted to. Also, this was my treat to you today.” Peter resumed brushing and Tony’s argument was interrupted by Lena’s return.
“Right guys, photo op!” She made grabby hands towards Tony and he reluctantly dug out his phone again and handed it over. “Get between the horses and big smiles!” Lena dug into her pocket for a wrapper and crinkled it for some reason as Tony and Peter stood between their heads. Tony slung an arm over Peter’s shoulder and pulled a grinning Spiderling in for a quick squeeze. Tony glanced down and took in the happiness on Peter’s face. Yeah, okay, maybe some bruised balls were totally worth it and he’d be back again, sue him.
“Oh, that’s cute.” Lena said softly and Tony looked back up in surprise. Whoops, totally missed that. She turned the phone and they both leaned in to peer at the picture. Tony’s cheeks flooded with heat as he saw the utter adoration on his face, all soft lines and pride as Peter beamed at the camera with one of the purest smiles Tony had ever seen.
“Send it to me?” Peter asked, shyly and Tony nodded and clapped a hand roughly on the kid’s shoulder.
“Will do.” He took the phone from Lena and stuffed it back in his pocket. “What’s next?”
They took Zoro and Steve to a separate paddock to Copper and turned them out, standing to watch the horses roll and graze. They said their thanks and goodbyes to Lena and promised to book another lesson, much to Peter’s delight, then climbed into Tony’s Audi to drive back home. They were both quiet on the journey back, tired from a long day in the sun, but it was a comfortable silence, broken occasionally by a question here and there about Avengers business or Peter’s school.
Tony pulled up outside of Peter’s apartment block and put the car into park. “Thanks, kiddo. I really enjoyed that. Definitely something different.” He chuckled and Peter laughed too, though Tony picked up on a little nervousness.
“I’m glad.” He hesitated and Tony was a little puzzled. “It- We- I… I used to go with my uncle, and my dad, before they died.” Peter admitted, inspecting his hands fiddling with the strap of the backpack he’d brought. Tony felt the air leave is lungs. Oh god, this was a pretty important thing for the kid. Shit, had Tony made any blunders? He cast his mind back quickly but Peter spoke before he could really find anything possibly insulting that he’d done. “My dad’s grandfather- my great-grandfather- was this famous cowboy who won all sorts of medals back in his day. My dad said I ought to at least be able to ride, do him proud.” Peter shrugged and Tony had no idea what to say.
“Pete, that’s- I had no idea.” He said, his voice soft.
“After he died, Ben took me a few times on Fath- uh- every year.” Peter blushed a little. “Well. I’m glad I got to go with you today.” Peter unzipped his bag and withdrew a red envelope, much to Tony’s confusion, before he reached over and wrapped his arms briefly but tightly around Tony’s neck. His own arms came up automatically to return the hug but it was over quickly as Peter seemed to lose his confidence and handed Tony the envelope and grabbed the door handle, climbing out.
“Pete?” Tony questioned, baffled. Had he done something?
“Thank you.” Peter turned to say, a myriad of emotion swimming in his eyes. He was getting teary and Tony felt his heart stutter a few beats. “Thank you so much for today.” He said softly, closing the car door and hurrying up the steps to the building. He didn’t look back.
With shaking fingers, Tony opened the blank envelope and withdrew a card. He blinked a few times at the Iron man helmet on the front and quickly ran through the date in his head, it was mid-June? His birthday was in May. A belated card? He opened the card and scanned the contents before quickly closing the card and taking a few deep breaths. Oh my god. His trembling hands opened the card again and he read at a slower pace, half blinded by tears that had sprung from nowhere. It read:
'You don’t have to be Iron Man to be my hero. Happy Father’s Day, Dad. Love, your Roo. P.S, I hope you enjoy our day, I know that I will. I’m so excited to spend it with you, maybe it can be our new tradition?’
“FRI, what day is it?” Tony swiped at his eyes and dug out his phone. He opened his text messages as FRIDAY spoke from the car’s internal speakers.
“It is June 16th boss, Father’s Day.” He’d had no idea.
Peter’s chat was top of the list, and he typed out his reply.
- It would be my honor, Roo. I hope you’ve changed my contact name.
Peter typed back almost immediately.
- You’ve been saved as ‘Dad’ for the past six months.
Tony was eternally grateful for the tinted windows as he took a few steadying breaths. FRIDAY’s gentle voice spoke again.
“We would also like to wish you a Happy Father’s Day, from myself and my brothers in the lab. Peter asked us to wait until after he’d given you his card. I believe he didn’t want to overwhelm you on your day out.”
“Thanks FRIDAY,” Tony shook his head, feeling most definitely overwhelmed. “Oh, that kid is going to be the death of me.” He breathed, rubbing his chest. “FRIDAY, book a session at those stables for next year please. We’ll book more in between of course, I just want to make sure that day is available.” He updated the background on his phone to the photo of him, Peter and the horses, before sending it to Peter, putting his phone down and then pulling out of park, heart fuller than he ever remembered it being.