#tony stark being a dad basically

[yourbustedkneecaps]

weird thought but imagine Tony training his kids like puppies. you can’t tell me he wasn’t the stay-at-home dad for Morgan’s five years of life during the Snap and wouldn’t train her to park herself right in front of him after eating to get cleaned up before rocketing back to her toys. he’d make weird sounds (“bah-uh-uh!”) and say like two words while she’s going practically stir-crazy inside and she’d veer off course to hop into her shoes and coat so he’d let her go outside. Tony randomly says some semi-grammatically incorrect phrase out of nowhere and Morgan starts grabbing her dirty laundry or cleaning up some of her toys for whatever reason because “daddy said so!”/Tony trained her to.

it just sounds so funny to me. and like,,, imagine Peter coming back and Tony instinctively doing the same thing to him when they’re at the lake house and not realizing until much later what he just did to his kid/“intern” while Peter just,,, silently loses his mind.

you know…

The Lake House — 2:45 PM, Lunchtime

Peter loved spending weekends at the Stark’s house upstate. It was a small break from Spider-Manning, school, and May had more time to herself for things like online classes and dates with Happy or whatever. And it was never ever boring with the Stark’s.

After the Snaps and the five year gap between them, it was rightfully apparent how much everyone had changed, especially after the dusted were brought back and the whole world hit new (and unheard of) crisis after crisis. Peter had heard from more than one person in and outside of the Avengers how odd it was to watch the world go from underpopulation to overpopulation in less than a day.

Whatever the case, life could be weirder and so much worse, Peter decided, so why the hell bother trying not to embrace whatever insanity happened now? Mrs Stark — Pepper — was kind and thoughtful, Morgan was a little spitfire with a big heart, and Mr Stark was… different. A good different, but also a kind-of-sort-of-weird different, too. More touchy-feely and a little less snappish and abrupt in personality, if only a bit. And he always, alway, always acted like he cared.

To Peter, being with his family was all that mattered. In Queens with May and Ned and MJ or upstate with Mrs Pepper and Morgan and Mr Stark, as long as he had them, he couldn’t care less.

Per usual, Morgan was one of the first to wake up, tromping down the stairs and switching on Saturday morning cartoons to doze on the couch to, inevitably waking up the rest of the house by 10 AM at the latest. Peter was always second to rise (unless he didn’t sleep at all) and collapsed beside her to snuggle until Mr or Mrs Stark wandered down to start breakfast or take off for work.

There would be breakfast together while watching kiddie cartoons, followed by cleaning up for the day and either lab time with Mr Stark or playing with Morgan, often outside in the dewy morning air.

Playtime had overshot lunch by quite a bit, landing Peter and Morgan uncomfortable (Pete), pouty (Morgan), and starved (both). Mr Stark, ever the househusband, was already finishing lunch prep by the time they clattered inside demanding food like dirty, hungry wolves nipping at his ankles.

Peter sure as hell felt like one, shoveling homemade chicken macaroni and cheese casserole down his throat at breakneck pace.

“Whoa! Slow it down, Underoos!” Mr Stark said, plopping another thick scoop into Peter’s bowl.“I know you’re hungry but don’t choke, kiddo.”

Peter was pretty sure he blacked out during his first bite of food. It definitely didn’t feel like his third serving of pure mac and cheesy goodness. “S’ry, Mi’ter ‘Tark.” He made sure to pause for a drink of water, punctuating his words.

Morgan giggled around her own stuffed cheeks, face and hands coated in a small and sticky bit of casserole.

“Mouth closed, Little Missy,” Mr Stark chided, eyebrows raising. “You too, Pete. Don’t talk with your mouth full!”

Peter hummed in response, chewing. He debated smiling with his teeth too, just to gross out Mr Stark and make Morgan laugh. He didn’t, instead bumping his leg to Morgan’s dirty shoes under the table in a game of Footsie while they finished.

Mr Stark hounded them to finish their water and rinse their plates for the dishwasher before heading back out to play again. Peter wasn’t expecting to freeze three steps from the sink at the sharp, “Ahp-bup-bup-bup!” from his mentor.

“Park it!” Mr Stark called over his shoulder as he turned the faucet on quick.

Morgan immediately raced back into the kitchen, hands outstretched and face tilted the second she stopped in front of her father. Mr Stark turned around with a damp rag and knelt, gently wiping her hands and scrubbing her face of casserole smears. She scrunched her face and closed her eyes, laughing when he squished her cheeks and blew a little raspberry as he did.

Directly next to her and completely out of his element, Peter’s eyes widened when Mr Stark rinsed out the rag and turned on him, grabbing his hands and tilting his head to check for mess. Mr Stark wiped Peter’s face and hands just like he did with Morgan and discarded the rag, turning to the fridge as if nothing happened.

Stock still, it took a second to register the water bottles being stuck in his and Morgan’s hands with a promise to finish them by the time they came back inside. Pink and suddenly very, very embarrassed, Peter let Morgan drag him out the door without a word back at Mr Stark or his weird, mushy, fatherly actions.

What just happened?

[negasonic9403]

Deaf!Peter trying out his new suit for the first time

Peter: Woah, Mr. Stark this is so cool! The suit is amazing!

Tony: It's got quite a lot of special features kid

Karen (AI): *smaller screen focuses in on Tony's lips and brings up captions that Peter can read*

Peter: *confused* You programmed my suit with captions?

Tony: *smirking* Well duh, I can't have you running around clueless when there's too much background noise or if someone's turned away while they're explaining the plan. That also works with the comm system too and if your AI ever goes down, but your suit still has power, I added a feature where you can alert me that you're on your own so I can intervene if need be

Peter: *pauses slightly as he's reading along while Tony's speaking* Wow, thank you Mr. Stark! That's just— wow! This really helps a lot, thank you!

Tony: It works for other languages too. The captions will appear in English

Tony: *signing in Italian Sign Language* Including other sign languages

Karen: *shows Peter captions in English*

Peter: *signing in ASL and excited* It worked! You said it includes other sign languages for the captions!

Tony: *signing in ASL and laughing* Yes, just don't expect me to know anymore Italian. I can speak it, not sign it

[yourmcu]

Ace

Pairings: Natasha Romanoff x Gamer!Stark!Reader, Avengers x Reader

Summary:

Your girlfriend, your dad, along with the rest of the Avengers, support you during a VALORANT tournament.

Word count: 4.6k+

Warnings: too much VALORANT descriptions, you can google stuff about it if you want to get a good visual of this story, basically an avengers fic as a whole but i love supportive gf nat >:(

A/n: one of the drafts I left a long time ago! I miss writing for the avengers, so I decided to finish this one.

(completely italic dialogues - casters commentating)

All the hollering from the lounge died down when Natasha practically shoved both Sam and Bucky off the couch, stealing the TV remote in the process. Their basketball game can wait, her girlfriend’s tournament is more important.

“Oh, shoot. Y/N/N's tournament is today?” Sam suddenly remembered and Bucky made a quick detour out of the lounge to fetch Steve and possibly the others. They kind of promised you they'd support your game this time around, with the knowledge that they had free time on the dates of your tournament. Sam snapped his fingers, “Snacks. I'll be right back.”

No, you weren’t a professional athlete; if anything, you’re the opposite. Your wrists move more than your whole body most of the time, you only stay an hour or less in the gym, and you prioritize getting better in Aim Lab than a shooting range.

Ever since women playing in VALORANT E-Sports were normalized, you were one of the anticipated gamers to compete, of course you were on board and signed on to an esports organization and team roster. You’ve made a name for yourself in the gaming industry because of your high IQ and big brain plays. You used your head in every match, every round unlike the majority of the players mindlessly aiming and not landing shots. Because of your career, you’re known for something else and not just Iron Man’s daughter.

Natasha didn’t like the fact that you were glued to your computer most of the time at first. She thought Tony spoiled you too much even as an adult, but she later on realized that you graduated with a degree before settling into gaming. You worked for the Avengers, sometimes as an IT for a big company which paid more than you needed. You were basically set. All of this while you were still pretty young, a little younger than Natasha.

It’s safe to say all of Natasha’s doubts went away. She felt rather impressed and took a liking to you, which developed into something more over time.

From her phone, you chuckled when you heard Sam and Bucky’s shuffling. “We’re not up for another thirty minutes, babe.” On your end, you and your team were with the event's coordinators backstage of the actual place the tourney was held. Natasha always called you before and after your events, just because she was the best supportive girlfriend ever.

“I know, I wanted to set everything up before anything else,” Natasha put you on speaker while she dealt with the TV’s settings. You smiled to yourself, absolutely adoring your girlfriend even more when she was eager and supporting your games. “Are you guys still at the hotel?���

You had to travel out of the country for the tournament. As much as Natasha wanted to go with you (Clint wanted to go too because he ‘needed a break’, you just rolled your eyes at him and laughed), being a full time hero and an Avenger doesn’t mean you get to travel 24/7. She has to be with the team in case something terribly wrong happens, which doesn’t come with a warning. “Backstage, actually. Cloud9 and Misfits are wrapping up their last match right now,” You replied. “I've already warmed up at the hotel earlier. It's crazy how our room fits all of our PCs.”

“Ah, c'mon, you don't need no warm-ups!” Sam teased, hearing you on speaker as he walked back with refreshments and an assortment of chip bags.

You giggled, rolling your eyes at the Falcon’s words. “Stop it, Sam. You know me; I always get tilted when I play too much before the actual competition.”

Sometimes you get anxious and it affects your performance, same goes for when you warm-up too much; you lose focus the more games you play, leaving nothing for the tournament.

Despite Natasha's excitement to watch your team play, she’s not too vocal about it. She wouldn’t squeal when it starts or bombard you with loud encouragement through the call, because one, she doesn’t want to be the embarrassing girlfriend, and two, she’s the Black Widow. She’s naturally subtle about everything. You knew her more than anyone else though, so even if that was the case, you still felt her support.

Thirty minutes went by quicker than you’d hope, you were so caught up in watching the game of the other rivaling teams and commenting on everything that happened whilst still in the call with Natasha. You also answered Bucky’s queries when he came back; he’s only ever heard of e-sports since you started competing in it. He couldn’t imagine how hard switching point of views and the player’s face cameras must be. Bucky has only watched, what, actual live game tournaments, basketball or chess or whatever. It was confusing to him at times, but you told him he’d get used to it eventually just by taking note of the red and blue colors.

You were cut off by one of your teammates placing a hand on your shoulder, signaling you that it was time to go. “Alright. Nat, I have to go, I’ll call you when I get back?”

The two men were the first ones you heard react, Sam shifted in his seat excitedly while Bucky wondered out loud if he should call Tony, Peter, and Bruce, who were all unnecessarily working overtime at the lab.

You felt yourself smile again when she spoke. “Okay,” Natasha bit her lip, feeling anxious about the tournament, “I love you.”

“I love you.”

“Good luck!” Sam shouted before you hung up.

Natasha almost snorted when she heard loud footsteps coming towards the lounge entrance. Her sister had the worst timings ever.

“Someone decided to take a long shit while we were heading back. Has Y/N’s game started yet?” Yelena walked in as fast as she could with Fanny, looking at Natasha expectantly as she shrugged off her thick coat and got out of her boots. Fanny ran to where the couches were as soon as Yelena removed her leash, wagging her tail happily without a clue in the world.

“About to, but you did miss her on the phone.”

“Ah, fuck.”

Soon, Bruce, Tony, Peter, Wanda and Vision came down to watch as well. Your tournaments were one of the occasions the team had the chance to bond and get together in one room, it definitely helped with the morale as Steve would think, and they have you to thank for that.

Everyone was just in time to see you walk out to the stage with your team and the opposing one. You were in your team jersey and arm sleeves with your teammates behind you in a straight line.

Tony woot-ed, plopping down next to Natasha. “Heard Y/N/N's team is going up against a brand new team roster. This should be a piece of cake for her, eh?”

Peter sat down beside him, looking at the said rival team with yours, all lined up on stage. “I don't know about that, Mr. Stark. One of them recently went viral after getting five aces on a ranked game. She's radiant, too.”

Admittedly, he also played VALORANT with you and Ned, but often miscalculates his strength as he frequently breaks his keyboard or mouse because of freaking out whenever he sees an enemy. His reflexes and fighting skills were better off used in real time.

“And Y/N/N's been on the top ten leaderboard for, what, six months?” Tony challenged, evidently confident in your skills.

The chatter on who's better than who died down when both teams sat down on their respective computers. Though it wasn’t that noticeable to most people, Natasha noticed it right away: you were wearing the necklace she gave you. You considered it your lucky charm.

After both teams chose the maps they wanted to ban and maps they wanted to play, the game started.

You mostly play the character - or agent - Killjoy. The agent reminded you so much of yourself from her overall vibe and game mechanic: she had utility to aid the whole team, from turrets to alarm bots, and an ultimate that conducts lockdowns on any part of the map. You were so used to that character that you even played her on maps she’s not very helpful at because you mastered everything about her, which made you stand out from other players as no one would dare use characters on maps they weren't good in. Gears were practically turning in your head as the game loaded.

Then, the first game commenced.

The Avengers always made noise whenever you got a kill, or whenever the casters praised you for outsmarting the opposing team, which Steve and Bucky appreciated because it was hard for them to distinguish whether or not you did something good.

Your team easily won the first game. The Avengers were now watching your tournament on the flat screen TV like a bunch of teenagers watching a romcom, all giddy and filled with anticipation.

“Look at that, 13-1? She’s insane." Bruce shook his head. A team needed to win at least 13 rounds to win, if it's neck and neck, 14, or they may choose to go into overtime.

“I’ve never seen Y/N play with that kind of aggression before; they don’t stand a chance.” Wanda pointed out. She liked to spectate from the side whenever you played at the compound, whenever she could.

Natasha’s lips turned upright when they replayed your team’s best moments. One included your one versus three clutch, in which you threw a taunting, questioning look at the opposing roster across the stage after you effortlessly took out three enemies on your own. It was like their heads weren’t in the game at all.

The team laughed when they showed the exact clip of your face camera mocking the other team across the room. Natasha liked that about you; sure you were reserved and shy in general, but she loved it when all your confidence just comes out while you’re out there.

Another clip was when you had a problem with communication, so you weren’t aware that there were enemies around. Your character didn’t stop running because of that and you were exposed to two enemies. You reacted fast and jumped, pulled out your vandal to shoot both of them in the face.

Tony clapped his hands together at that moment. “Let’s go. Let’s fucking go, Y/N/N.”

Natasha, not all that phased on your brilliant play, could still not contain the smile on her face as she plopped back down on the couch.

“What? Wait, hold on, how did she even-” Sam looked back at everyone while they reacted to the highlight. He didn’t exactly process what happened because you moved too fast.

“God reflexes,” Yelena shrugs, not looking away from the screen. Wanda laughs in agreement.

After a bit of commentary and commercials, it was on to the next match on a new map.

Now, Natasha did not know the difference between the multiple maps at all, but she did remember you mentioning that your weakest one had to do with ice.

The next match was on a map called Icebox.

So, she watched intently as your team took a little while during the agent selection. But in the end, you decided to go for Killjoy again. Natasha could only guess what you had in mind to pull off another win.

“This is highly unusual for [Team Name] Y/N, isn’t it? Right now she’s watching the flanks when we usually expect her to be out there with a duelist to try and take picks!” The caster exclaimed, looking at their partner caster. “She’s one of the strong sentinels who you would trust to be by your side - and look at that, she takes out two already, they did not expect anyone to be holding the flank!”

“But she's using Killjoy again - couldn't she have gone for Cypher or Sage? Then again, they already have Skye on their team.”

Even though you were trying to play smart in this map, you still hated it, it was your weakest one. Still good, but not all that great. The opposing team seemed to know the typical Killjoy strategy on the Icebox map. You got sniped every round and your setups were way too predictable to the opposing team.

Soon, the score was 4-10. It was definitely not good to be on the end of only winning four rounds. Your team had to win the remaining rounds or hope for the best and go to overtime, or you lose this game and go onto the third one which would be way nerve racking and increase the odds of losing.

“Intense match so far we've got here. With [Team Name] Y/N at the bottom of the leaderboard this just has to be a miracle for [Team Name] to get a second win and move on to the next round.”

“There's also a bit of a setback with her shots in the last few rounds. I guess this is when we get to see if she's learned a thing or two from her girlfriend, right?”

Natasha rolled her eyes. “They honestly did not have to bring that up.”

The other commentator expressed confusion at their partner's comment.

“The Black Widow! [Team Name] Y/N's been dating her for the last couple years. Honestly, where have you been?”

Everyone groaned as they started bringing your dating life to the conversation when they should be sticking to the game. Tony chose to laugh it off to and ignore the annoyance, whereas Yelena mumbled, “Did they just turn into a morning show now?”

After everyone in your team died, you all decided to ask for a timeout to talk things out. While that was going on, the Avengers had their own timeout and were trying to talk about the game, or at least what they thought was happening.

“Okay, assuming we've all seen how this Killjoy character works, her character would make most sense if her utility was in Site A." Bruce said, in thought.

Vision, one of the smartest of the bunch, had not grasped the game mechanics that well over the hour and half of the tournament. "But why is that, Dr. Banner?"

“Site A is pretty cramped, while site B has a lot of space. Of course the opposing team would always go to B since Y/N’s character's utility can't place utilities in both sites, they only have limited range," Peter points to the map as soon as it's shown up close, the casters having their own separate conversation about it.

Bucky turned to a confused Steve and Sam, “I have no idea what they're talking about.”

“Where else would she put her chicken gun on site B, then?” Tony joined the conversation, talking about your character's utility placement.

“It’s,” Natasha sighed. “It’s not a chicken gun...”

“Well, that chicken gun slows down enemies, right? It would make sense if Y/N places those bomb thingies to instantly kill them.” Yelena said.

“Lena, I think Y/N is fairly capable of playing the game right,” Wanda chuckled.

“Then she should be winning.” Yelena said jokingly, chugging on her drink.

It was astonishing how a group of heroes are knowledgeable about a video game, just so they could follow what you enjoy doing. That's how much they adored you.

Clint entered the room and looked at the source of ruckus, absolutely sick of the discourse. He was aware of your tournament and has been probably spectating on different means. “They still get another match if they lose this one. It’s the best out of three.”

“I’m starting to think someone’s cheating, has anyone noticed that some of the opponent team instantly kill them with only one bullet?” Steve squinted.

Tony scoffed. “That’s ridiculous, it’s a tournament.”

“It’s because they hit them precisely on the head, Steve. Who wouldn’t die if they got shot in the head?” Sam crossed his arms.

“Me,” that came from Vision.

“You don’t count.”

They all turned back to the screen once the timeout timer ran out. Natasha could sense the tension in your team, just from the way you glanced across the stage… she could tell you were gonna have a different way of playing the remaining rounds. The screen turned to you stretching your neck from both sides, seriousness evident in your face as you clutched your mouse, ready for the game to resume.

“And we're back, and it seems that [Team Name] had enough time to come up with a different game plan. We've got one duelist camping B, one on mid, and look at [Team Name] Y/N's utility. She's got her alarm bot and nano-swarms over on A, but her turret is on B as she's over by tunnel to keep it active.”

“Again, I have no idea what he's talking about.” Bucky shrugged, crossed his arms and kept his eyes on the screen.

After fixing your team's strategy, all that was left was to deliver with accurate shots and stay alive as much as possible. By the end of a few rounds, with your team’s communication and teamwork flawless than ever, the score was 12-11. Your team only had to win one more time to officially win.

At this point, Yelena and Wanda were loudly reacting to the gameplay, Sam and Tony were howling, rooting for you. Clint ended up setting himself on one of the sofa's arms, invested in the match.

Natasha was on the edge of her seat, clutching the couch cushions. She couldn’t help but chuckle when they showed your reaction momentarily, clearly breathless and eyes wide, fist bumping your teammates seated beside you.

“Oh, what a comeback! The most intense so far, am I right?” The caster exclaimed.

“[Team Name] only has to win one more round before moving on to the next part of this tournament!”

The last round wasn’t exactly in your team’s favor in the half. Three of your team got killed already, only two of you remaining and the five of the enemy team. The rival team obviously did not want to hand over the win that easily.

After the call of another successful kill by the opposing team, you were the last one standing against a full set of players. You would either have to clutch up the round or go into overtime.

Clint perked up, pulling out his wallet. “Alright, who wants to get the bets started?” He asked, placing down a crisp fifty dollar bill on the coffee table. “Y/N wins the game.”

They all stopped to look at him as if he was a madman.

“C’mon, Barton, it’s one versus five.” Sam pointed out.

“So what? Am I the only one who believes in Y/N here? Oh, Nat, you better start placing fifties.”

Natasha merely rolled her eyes, not once wanting to bet on or against her girl. Her eyes glued to the screen in which your character is cautiously checking if the area is clear to plant the bomb.

But Tony pulled out the same type of bill from his wallet, placing it on top of the archer's money.

“Mr. Stark, you do realize you're betting against-” Peter started.

“Hush, spiderling. Watch the game.” Tony brushed him off and watched the screen intently.

Tony was proud of you, truly. But it would also be funny to tease you lovingly when you go home as a loser.

You set up your utility, kind of surprised the whole enemy team went to the other site in which they thought you were heading. They did not leave anyone behind to make sure, as per your cautious scan of the area before settling. After checking all angles again, with thirty seconds to spare, you planted the spike.

“This is a dangerous game to play. She has to hold a lot of angles by herself, they could come in from anywhere.”

The spike continued to beep, which added a lot more tension among the Avengers. Natasha alternated from looking at the actual game to your face camera, of which was the only one left colored. You kept pacing at one of the hiding places, waiting for the slightest noise or actions from the other team.

You decided to peek at one of the entrances to the site once, the Jett with an operator narrowly missed your head so you took the opportunity to blast her head off. Afterwards, your alarm bot from the other side of your hiding place went off, so you went and peeked quickly, managing to pick off another player from the opposite team. Two down, three to go.

The Avengers erupted in noise. Sam and Peter were losing their minds, Bucky and Steve had amazed grins on their faces, and Natasha was clinging on to Yelena and Fanny like a fangirl trying to contain herself.

“What was that?!”

“She's a god!”

“My god, this is way too intense for me.”

Both commentators erupted in surprised glee as well. “A double kill from [Team Name] Y/N! The others are slowly making their way into the site, what will she do?!”

A Sova fired a dart to hopefully reveal your location on the map, but you were too quick to shoot it down to cancel it. But, the Sova spotted you anyway, and was able to shoot you until you were at only 50 HP.

You hid again and recalled your turret, placing it on top of the wall in front of you before sneaking your way to the opposite side. It could watch your back while you attempt to peek on the other side to surprise your enemies.

That move managed to catch one of the other players trying to sneak in as well, and you killed them off with ease. Three down, two to go.

“Down goes [Player Name]! Sova and Yoru are still on the lookout, it's like an intense version of hide & seek up in here!”

Barely anyone was talking now, all eyes on the enormous screen.

“Y/N has her ult!” Peter pointed out.

That you did, as your third kill managed to unlock enough points for it. Aware of its availability, you hurried off to the perfect spot to plant it to cover almost the entire site, still hidden from your enemies. Killjoy's voice rang through the game, saying 'Initiated!', when you planted her ultimate.

“What's that? What's happening?” Steve asked.

“Well, it's called 'lockdown', so I'm assuming it's locking off the area within its perimeter... trapping everyone inside...” Bruce said, lost in thought because of the game.

The Yoru activated their ultimate in time with yours, and you were now twice as cautious, looking around for blue swirls of the duelist to avoid getting sniped easily. He tried to blind you, but you were quick to move your view away from the flash to avoid it. Stupidly, the Yoru's ultimate ran out while trying to destroy your lockdown, so you killed them without hesitation. Four down, one to go.

Clint cackled at the turn of events while the others continued to freak out, teasing Tony, a billionaire, on losing a fifty-dollar bet. “What did I tell you, Stark?! What did I tell you?!”

The spike's beeps started getting faster and you could finally see the finish line. But, you were still cautious as they still had more than enough time to defuse if they managed to kill you.

“You know, [Team Name] Y/N could just leave the site at this point. It's game over for [Rival Team Name].”

“Ah, don't speak too soon there! [Team Name] Y/N's now inspecting the outer corners of the site, unaware of [Rival Team Name] [Player]'s sneaky entrance - and she's placed a smoke down, ready to defuse!”

Of course you were unaware of the opponent's whereabouts. But, you did hear the defuse sound go off for a second. With that, you head back, holding a grenade to throw near the area of the spike.

“She's got this in the bag.” Sam said in content.

After a few seconds, the defusing sound started up again, but you were certain that the grenade you set off did some damage to your opponent on top of the information you got from your teammates before they died.

You started to jiggle-peek from your spot, clearly visible from your opponent's perspective, so they had no choice but to stop defusing the spike to try and shoot you.

Unfortunately, they did a number on you, so you decided to go around. Once the cooldown reset on your turret, you placed it down on one side for intel. With only 20 HP left, you snuck up to the other side of the obstacle to hopefully pull off a knife kill for the finale.

“This game is way more intense than I thought.” Bucky spoke thoughtfully amidst the suspense-filled silence.

“Shhhh!”

“Oh my god, she's got her knife out.” Natasha said in disbelief, watching your character sneak up behind your opponent whose back is facing you.

“So?”

“Just wait for it.” Natasha bit her lip, knowing fully well how you always prefer a devastating way to end a match.

The commentators were freaking out, a combination of “no's”, “don't do this”, and “not like this” rang through the Avengers' speakers. It was considered devastating in the VALORANT community to be killed in game with a knife instead of a gun or anything else. The opponent is oblivious, having already defused half of the spike, but they didn't know what would soon come.

You strike your knife at their head, killing them instantly, the spike left undefused. The game graphics became slow motion while the screen flashed green with 'VICTORY' in the middle of it all. You stood up almost immediately, proud of your savage last kill, fist-bumping all your teammates.

“AN ACE FROM [Team Name] Y/N! [Team Name] IS GOING TO THE MASTERS!”

You hugged your team as well before turning to the camera nearest to you, blowing hot air onto the lens, and tracing a heart followed by a cheeky grin and a wink.

“Yup, she's a Stark alright!”

Roars and cheers emitted from the commentators, the present audience, and the Avengers. Sam yelled and everyone followed, but the loudest one was Clint, who then swooped down to collect his cash prize for winning the bet. Tony didn't care at all, laughing along with the others; he had something new to brag about his kid. Natasha's cheeks flushed, as they always did when it came to you.

“SHE WON!”

“I'll get the booze!”

“In your face, Stark!”

“Cap, you stepped on my foot!”

Natasha unlocked her phone to take a quick picture of the livestream of the heart you drew on the camera, as well as of the stage displaying all of your team's headshots with an abundance of confetti almost covering it. All she wanted now was to call you, but she knew you probably had interviews and post-game rituals with your team, and she had champagne to drink with her own team in celebration of you.

The next morning, on a quick flight back home, the first thing that caught your attention was Natasha's Instagram story of the tournament. Your family supported and watched the tourney for you, as the following slides of her story consisted of the team chugging on champagne, Clint showing off an apparent bet that he won, and Peter and Sam posing in front of the TV when your face camera was shown up close.

Smiling, you liked her stories and replied with 'Thank you for supporting me, my love. I'll see you all soon'.

[remotepixel]

Platonic Yan!Tony Stark headcanons:

First post, very nervous </3.

(Request are open btw!!)

I've seen him called a mother hen multiple times but it's definitely amplified here.

-He's always wondering about the what-ifs and, as an important part of his life, most will be centred around you.

-Even small things like not wearing a coat when it’s cold will probably mess up his heart even further (please put one on, for his sake).

-Tech will be made in your honour because 'you never know'.

-And, as for giving it to you, I think it would go two ways:

-Straight-up giving it to you as a gift (pretty casually for him).

-Or leaving it really obviously somewhere and when you ask about it he acts all casual like he didn't spend the last week on it.

-In either of these scenarios he would be impatiently waiting for you to praise him.

-Like you're looking at it and he's making his usual quips while internally dying in suspense.

-He lives off your approval even if he'd never admit it.

-Any sort of positive reaction to him or his work would lift his mood for the rest of the day (though it may indirectly encourage him to work instead of living to get that same reaction).

This is probably obvious but mf would definitely stalk you online.

-Like, the tech isn't just for you, he isn't that selfless.

-Its a way to monitor you:)

-The Stark phone is tracking you 24/7 and reading/watching everything you're doing.

-There's a screen in his lab just for your activity and JARVIS is on alert in case he misses anything (which is kinda hard when he's glancing at it every 2 seconds but the lack of sleep catches up sometimes).

Just like his constant seek of approval, he wants to constantly be in your life and know everything about you (other reason why his inventions are handy).

-Knowing everything allows him to feel comfortable and increases the chances of you actually liking him (or at least, that’s his logic), and it’s the same for being around you 24/7 (though it also helps his paranoia, that he will be there to protect you if anything happens).

-He'd play nice with your parents (lowkey reluctantly) , teachers, background check all your friends, anything to keep himself involved and in the loop surrounding you.

(He definitely has a whole terabyte or more of information about you with a lot of security measures just in case anyone finds it).

I think due to his upbringing (yk, not having a good dad lol) he would compliment you often.

-He's not an overall affectionate guy so it would probably be the subtle 'good work' or pat on the shoulder but he'll try at least.

-That's why he normally goes with gifts- whether tech like mentioned before or anonymously paying for any subscriptions, bills, etc.

You not liking him for any reason would crush his soul.

-He overthinks everything, to the point where if you forget to say hello to him or something he'd convinced he's done something wrong.

-He knows self-loathing isn't good and he's reading too much into it, but it doesn't help when all he can think about is yet another person leaving.

-He'll play it off ofc but he'll be searching for ages trying to find any more clues for your behaviour.

-He isn't good at comforting so, if you’re in any sort of negative mood, he'll make more jokes, drop in a few not very subtle 'you can talk about anything to me', just anything to try and get you happy once again.

-If you're happy, you'll want to be near him and that makes him happy in return.

-In his mind, its a fair deal.

Although impulsive, he’s self aware.

-He knows his behaviour is strange to say the least, but he basically gaslights himself into believing it’s the best choice.

-Like, you fall over once? Well, that wouldn’t have happened if he was your guardian.

-I don’t think kidnapping would happen unless you get put into serious danger which he then believes warrants keeping you ‘safe’ in the tower, or he overreacts to a trivial thing (he’s in his mother henning mood), decides enough is enough, and then realises what he’s done an hour later and now has to live with the consequences.

Overall, he’s a paranoid, approval-seeking, obsessive silly little guy :)

[skylarinfinity]

Male reader being the dad of the team yet being younger than most (26)

[m/n walk into compound living room and see steve and tony bickering like usual]

m/n: [hit the back of steve and tony head using a paper] steve can you do something useful like finish the report? and tony go to your lab keep bruce company-

[tony and steve nods before doing their task]

m/n: [walking toward the couch and sighed] sam! can you put your wing where it supposed to be? do it now before i trash it out!

sam: [running down the stairs] okay! okay i'm sorry [take his wing to his hero suit closet]

m/n: [heard something in the vent] clint! come down now before i go up there and get you!

[clint immediately jump out the vent and look at m/n with fears]

m/n: [glare at clint before nod and walking towards dining table and take half full vodka bottle that been sitting in front of natasha, putting it back into the cabinet] okay, that enough of alcohol for you today- [natasha glare at m/n] oh don't you glare at me- [stop when to clear their throat]

m/n: [turn to see wanda and smile at her] i have meeting with fury but after that we going to buy you a new clothes and your basic needs- [realising] friday can you tell thor that his breakfast ready for him? and please remind bruce to take his medication! [walking away from the dining area]

wanda: [look natasha with confused] is he avengers leader? i thought steve or tony is the leader.

natasha: [sighed] no he actually the youngest and one of newest avengers member but he takes the avengers dad title...

thor: [walk in smiling and start eating breakfast] without young m/n, avengers would die starving and compound will full with trash-

[exploding can be heard by where their are and following with m/n shouting]

m/n: anthony stark!!!

tags lists @sonicqaulan @graysonfriggason @thebettermaximofftwins @sloanalistair @acienthazard @starlinggoldeneyes @ortegaolsen @wednesdaywanda @sandwichmarvel @gardenofmarvel @wanda-cabin-natasha-jacket

[themculibrary]

Irondad/Parent!Tony Stark Masterlist 4

part one, part two, part three

5 Times Peter Didn’t Say He Was Struggling…And The One Time He Did (ao3) - Bladam_Shevine T, 16k

Summary: Peter had a knack for keeping things to himself, causing an unnecessary amount of stress for a graying Tony Stark.

5 Times Peter Sleepwalked And The 1 Time He Pretended He Did (ao3) - losingmymindtonight G, 8k

Summary: Peter sleepwalks, Tony stresses.

Accepting the Tides (ao3) - Emma_Anacortes T, 78k

Summary: Tony had dragged Peter from the depths of despair after May’s death. It was normal that he’d grown to care a little about him, right?

Yeah, okay. He freaking loved the kid.

So naturally he would feel a little weird when Richard Parker randomly shows up in Peter’s life. Naturally he’d feel protective, nervous, and confused because where has Richard been all this time? And why does Tony feel sick every time he sees him around Peter?

All he knows is if Richard hurts his kid, Tony’s gonna give him hell.

Atlas Held (ao3) - Grumperella T, 8k

Summary: OR, after an explosion brings down a building on top of them, Peter is the only thing between Tony, Natasha and certain death. Trapped under rubble together, well… nothing builds bonds like shared trauma.

built from scraps (ao3) - peterstank T, 138k

Summary: or: the one where tony was dusted instead of peter, so he and pepper try to figure out the whole ‘family’ thing together.

(oh, and it turns out that the man who died in peter’s arms on an alien planet is his biological father. who knew, right?)

Calm down Peter, its only the AVENGERS (ao3) - Idek_Anymore T, 98k

Summary: May Parker gets shot on her midnight trip to the local corner store for ice cream. Peter now had no living relatives left, and now he truly knew that nothing is worth living for. But then Tony Stark takes him in, with no hesitation of adopting him on the spot.

Ever since then, things go smoothly. Tony and Peter get closer than ever, and Peter even starts to call him dad (but only around the people he is close to, like Pepper and Rhodey, because no one can know that Peter is adopted by Tony). Actually, its perfect; Peter finally has a family and life. School ends as well, and summer finally arrives after a long wait.

Then the Avengers are pardoned, and Tony decides to house them in the tower with himself and Peter; basically opening his private life to a bunch of traitors. But it’s fine, he wants them back; he wants his old family back so much. Things only go haywire after that.

catch those pieces as they scatter (ao3) - lostintranslaation T, 75k

Summary: Five years. Five years of Peter’s life, gone. Everything he knows is in pieces. Thankfully, he has some people around him who are willing to help him pick up the shards.

Distracted by a Dime (ao3) - happyaspie T, 56k

Summary: Peter Parker thinks he has everything figured out. Where he can eat, sleep and make a little bit of money. What he needs to do in order to continue attending Midtown High and being Queen’s friendly neighborhood Spider-man. How to keep his entire situation under wraps and most importantly, who he can trust.

Then, along comes Tony Stark with an offer he can’t refuse. The plan is to remain professional, to not get too close to the Stark-Rogers’ family. Not getting comfortable means not slipping up and saying anything that he can’t take back.

…but for Peter- things rarely go as planned…

Five Times Tony Acts Like A Father (ao3) - buggieb peter/ned, pepper/tony T, 26k

Summary: And one time Peter acts like a son.

In which Peter, with the help of Tony, learns how to drive, survive, share, and - perhaps - how to love again. (Oh, also: he learns how to handle his liquor!)

From Now On (ao3) - buckleyirondad T, 201k

Summary: The Parker Family worked alongside the Starks since the creation of the company.

Following a tragic accident that leaves Peter Parker without a family, Tony goes against the pleas of the people closest to him and decides to adopt Peter. The duo fight against unpredictable odds as they enter a universe bigger than they truly understand. [Pre-Iron Man through to Endgame]

Hold Me Together (ao3) - An_Odd_Idea G, 4k

Summary: Peter still doesn’t feel quite solid. Sometimes Tony can’t believe he’s really there either. They cope.

Like Father, Like Son (ao3) - An_Odd_Idea T, 7k

Summary: 48 hours to build a reactor. More accurately, 48 hours to talk Peter through building a reactor. And Tony is chained on the other side of the room.

Peter Parker's Sweet Soul (ao3) - happyaspie G, 7k

Summary: Peter Parker has always had what Ben told him was empathy towards his fellow Man. Science called a sympathetic response or emotional contagion. May called it a sweet soul and Tony called it having a big heart. But Peter? He called it annoying

Or:

5 times Peter hated how sensitive he was and 1 time that it was worth it.

Peter's Ghost and one (1) obnoxious orange stone (ao3) - Bean_reads_fanfic mj/peter, pepper/tony G, 19k

Summary: "Rest," she'd said.

Was this rest? It didn't feel like it.

...But then that's what you get when your soul is tied to Peter Parker's.

(In which Tony's unusual afterlife is explored, and things aren't as permanent as they seem.)

Shake My Hand(And I’ll Forgive You) (ao3) - Frogdottir T, 40k

Summary: “The audience laughed in approval; a sound reminiscent of the Truman Show. Peter dropped his pen. It slid off his notebook and onto the gravel below.

Everybody knew.

Peter tangled his hands in his hair and yanked in a helpless devastation. Happy, Fury, Rhodey, Pepper, the Avengers, Strange, Wong. Everybody knew. Even before the memory of Peter Parker had been wiped from the world. Everybody that mattered had known, and they had all kept it from him.”

or Peter Parker discovers that running from fragments of himself comes with a heavy price.

After all, what is sacrifice without consequence?

stark robotics and technology conference (ao3) - iron_spider T, 4k

Summary: Peter leans against the wall while Tony chooses their floor, and the doors close. “Do you, uh, want me to do some interning stuff? Like go and get you coffee? Make sure the, uh—programs are all ready? Make sure the paintings are straight in the ballroom? Make sure the chairs are—”

Tony snorts. “Kid, I just thought you’d enjoy this. May told me about when it came through Queens but you two couldn’t make it because she was working and didn’t want you to go alone, and I thought, after all the shit you’ve been through lately, that you deserved something fun. No interning for you. That’s just an excuse.”

Peter remembers that. It was six months after Ben died, and he wasn’t gonna bother May too much about the conference. He didn’t know how much tickets cost anyways, or if kids his age could even go.

He really hung onto the idea of Iron Man after Ben died. Peter held him closer than ever.

The Chasm Between (ao3) - TheSleepingOwl N/R, 60k

Summary: In which Peter is poor, and Tony is not, and sometimes it becomes a thing.

Tis the Damn Season (For a Christmas Miracle) (ao3) - peacockgirl pepper/tony T, 23k

Summary: Morgan just wants her big brother to come home for Christmas. Tony just wants to figure out why being around his daughter is sending him into a tailspin. And Peter just wants to survive his first Christmas alone without freezing to death in a graveyard.

Luckily Morgan Stark is very, very stubborn. And immune to Strange's spell.

What If? branching off of Long Story Short (It Was a Bad Time) Chapter 10, but you don't need to read that to understand.

[definitelynotindecisive]

So I found you through your batfam/Spiderman fic and I was wondering if you could make a rec list?

Hey there! Thank you for checking out my blog and for reading my fic! I love seeing that you've commented on a chapter in my inbox.

As far as a rec list goes, I've never actually written one before. But I assume you want ones that are specifically spider-man/batman crossovers?

It's a whole new way of looking at [daddy issues] by spaghettiash: This a series of two little one-shots that I absolutely loved. It's another Peter gets transported to the DC universe with Dick Grayson looking exactly like Richard Parker. Love this one.

Help Me, I Don't Feel Like Myself Anymore by Astra_Nova_Kat: This fic was amazing, this was my bookmark comment exactly "I need this, I need this like I need oxygen, like I need love. This is so well written, I could cry. I need it injected into my veins and tattooed on the inside of my eyelids, omg." Again, much like the one above, Peter is transported into the DCU and stumbles across alternate versions of Richard Parker and Ben Parker. I loved it.

Aunt May and the Justice League by Anonymous: This fic is great, if you love the idea of Aunt May being kick ass and -fade to black- sleeping her way through the Justice League in a super classy way, and being such a supportive mum to her dear nephew Peter in the DCU. Very much open relationships, though the main plot doesn't really start to kick in until a few chapters in.

Green, through and through by another_fucking_robin: I love this one, particularly because it's trans Peter Parker. There just aren't enough of them, and when it's well written, it plucks at my heart strings. Plus, the Lazarus Pit is an ally, and I love that for them. This fic just starts off so good, I was in love with it from chapter one.

rot with all the burnouts in the cell by magnuschases: This fic is really entertaining. Like, Dick Grayson, you are the father! And Peter's responses were just great. Awkward grandpa!Bruce will always have my heart.

Singing In My Blood by LialeeEderian: This one is cute. Peter literally falls into Dick Grayson's life. Dick Grayson is clearly his alternate universe dad, and everyone can see it.

a shining spider web by Selador: an alternate spin off of Dark Matter by mysterycyclone. In this fic, the nice guy on the subway that gives him sunglasses during his migraine, clearly Jason Todd, takes him home and adopts him. Very cute and sweet.

Homesick by NotSoSweetHeh: I adore this fic. Peter convinces the Batfam that he's actually an alien, rather than a dimension traveller. Seems easier to him, that way. And it is very easy for him to pull off.

Harry Potter and the Great Custody Battle by dajgen: Okay, say what you will about JKR, she's TERF piece of shit and I hate her. However, I do not hate Dajgen and their work (that would make me a hypocrite, considering my work Wildflowers in the Spring, with is also a HP/DC crossover). Controversial to add a HP related fic, but I feel like I should add it anyway, because I genuinely enjoyed it. It's basically a fic where Harry is related to both Tony Stark and Bruce Wayne. Harry needs them to get out of the Triwizard Tournament. So, a threeway crossover. I won't give anymore spoilers, should you choose to read it.

I hope you liked my picks, I've never actually made one of these before, so I hope I did it right 😅 feel free to hit me up if you want to share your thoughts about my recommendations. I tried to pick fics that were in a similar vein to mine, since I wasn't sure exactly what you were looking for. Thank you for this ask, it was really fun putting this list together! Shout out to all these very talented writers. There's plenty more, but I don't want to inundate you. If you want more recommendations at a later date, feel free to ask me again 💕💕

[crazyunsexycool]

My little love

Chapter 22

Pairing: Bucky Barnes x Enhanced!reader

Word count: 4.6k

Warnings: this is fluff central ok, Henry and Charlotte being cuties (they get it from their dad so they’re a warning), implied smut,

A/N: I am so excited to share this chapter. This is like a day in the life kind of thing. Also a new member joins the Barnes family! I’m sorry I couldn’t help myself!

Series masterlist

“Hey Stark.” Bucky calls from the door to Tony’s lab.

“What’s up terminator?”

“Do you wanna see Steve get his ass kicked?”

“Always.” Tony replies as he tosses the screwdriver he had in his hand. “Why is he getting his ass kicked and by who?”

“Y/N has been cleared by medical and is starting her training today. What Steve doesn’t know is that the cure that Bruce created for the toxin doubled the serum she already had in her system.”

Tony laughs as he walks to the door, already taking his phone out and texting the rest of the team. Both men make their way to the gym as they talk about how they think Steve will do.

“I’m telling you Barnes, he’s gonna win”

“Nah, my girls got it in the bag.”

“Wanna bet on it?” Tony stops in front of the gym doors.

“Oh it’s on.”

They shake hands and walk in, the rest of the team already waiting for your training to begin. Bucky looks at you and winks as he and Tony settle side by side against a wall. Everyone is whispering amongst themselves and making bets on who will win. The odds are in your favor. Henry cheers for you and of course Lottie cheers for Steebie.

“Why is everyone here?” Steve asks as he makes his way towards the mats.

“I don’t know.” Of course you knew why, you just weren’t going to tell him anything.

“Are you excited to get back into training?”

“Steve, you've known me long enough to know the answer to that.”

“Ok,” he chuckles as he gets into a defensive position. “Let’s start easy, it has been a little over six weeks.”

“You got it.”

You try to hide your smirk as he throws a punch, obviously taking it easy on you. For the next few minutes you dance around each other. Every once in a while you land a punch and Steve flinches at the force behind your hits and kicks. At this point some recruits have stopped what they were doing just to watch.

“Alright let’s move on to holds and grappling. Do you want to go first?” He asks.

“Nope. I need to freshen up on how to get out of some holds.”

“Ok.” Steve moves behind you and wraps his right arm around your neck and locks it with his left, not too tight that he’d actually hurt you.

You pretend to struggle and Steve stops, before giving you instructions on how to free yourself. Then he gets back into position. You look up at Bucky and wink. He in turn elbows Tony who starts recording.

“Just think it through. Someone is holding you like this, how do you get out?”

You bring your hands up and take his left arm and pull it out, in a quick motion you bend down at your waist so that Steve is pulled over your back and lands on the floor in front of you. He looks up at you bewildered, you’ve never been able to break any of his holds.

“What the fuck just happened?” He says as he stands up.

There’s cheering and grumbles as people pay up on their bets. You however can’t stop laughing. It takes you a good minute to calm down.

“Wow you should have seen your face.” You say as you start to laugh again.

“How the hell did you do that? Did you put metal in my clothes or something?”

“No,” you scoff before giving him an innocent look. “Did I forget to tell you that the antitoxin Bruce created basically doubled the serum that was in my system?”

“You little shit. You’re a super soldier now?”

“Yeah.” You give him a shit eating grin.

“Oh Y/N, Y/N, Y/N. You shouldn’t have told me that.”

“Why?”

It’s Steve‘a turn to give you a mischievous grin. “Because now that means we have to make your training routine more intense. To help you keep up with your serum of course.” He starts walking away backwards as he laughs at you.

“No, that’s not fair.”

“It’s a rookie mistake, it happens to everyone. I’ll see you tomorrow on the running trail at 6:00.”

“In the morning?” You practically shriek which only causes him to laugh more.

“Captain's orders.”

You curse him under your breath as Bucky walks up to you and throws his arm around your shoulder.

“Tough break, Sugar. I’ll miss you in bed.”

“Haha, if you think you’re staying in bed while I have to run, you're dead wrong.”

“Cute but not gonna happen.”

“I’ll drag your ass by your arm.”

Bucky laughs as he steps away from you. “You’re cute when you’re threatening me.”

You glare at him as you follow him out of the gym.

“How much did you make on the bet?”

“Enough to take my girl out somewhere for date night.” He smiles at you before holding the gym door open. “What do you say? Just you and me, tonight?”

“It could be nice.”

Charlotte sat on your bed while you got ready. She even helped you pick out a sundress for the occasion. You held up different accessories and she happily pointed to the ones she liked best. Then the chaos happened. Charlotte was informed that she wasn’t going on this date with you and Bucky. In your defense you told her Henry wasn’t going either. But not even the promise of spending the evening hanging out with Steve was enough to stop the waterworks. Not until Bucky made it worse with his promise to her.

“Doll,” he was carrying Lottie into the living room with you trailing behind. “If you let me and mama go out alone, we’ll talk about getting you a sissy.” The words slipped out before he realized what he had promised.

That was enough to get Lottie to stop crying. Her face was still slightly red but she was smiling now.

“A sissy? Pwomise?”

“We’ll talk about it. But that sissy won’t be here for a while anyway.”

“Is kay.” She wipes away her own tears as she smiles at Bucky. “Can wait wit bubba and Steebie.”

“No doll, I mean-“

“James, you've done enough damage. Why don’t you quit while you’re ahead?” You murmur.

“Yeah, you’re right. Ok doll, have fun with Bubba and Steve.”

During the whole conversation Steve had been sitting in the living room. You could tell he was trying to suppress a laugh.

“Come on sweetheart, let your parents go so they can talk about that sister.”

“Bye mama, bye dada.”

“Bye sweet Angel. Henry,” you turn to watch him walk out of his room with a few toys in his hands. “Hey bubs, have fun and we’ll see you later ok?”

“Ok, can I stay up later than bedtime?”

“We’ll leave that up to uncle Steve.” Bucky says as he opens the door to leave. “Make sure you listen to him. Love you guys.”

“Love you too.” Steve answers with a chuckle.

“Aww look at our oldest child taking care of his siblings.” You joke as you take a picture with your phone. Steve was on the couch with Lottie in his arms and all of Henry’s toys on his lap.

“Bye mom, have fun talking about having a sissy.”

“Oh we’re going to talk and we’ll talk so hard.” You wink as Steve grimaces. With a laugh you walk out the door hand in hand with Bucky.

****

The date had been simple but fun. A movie, dinner and then drinks at a bar to end the night. The fun part was the teasing. At the movie theater Bucky chose the seats at the back where you could make out in peace. During dinner he made sure to keep a hand on your thigh, slowly moving up or giving a gentle squeeze. When you got to the bar you were both handsy and riled up. So much so that you pulled Bucky out of the bar and found the first dark alley you could.

“Is this what you want, sugar?” Bucky murmured against your lips as he trapped you between himself and the brick wall of the bar. “You want me to fuck you right here? Can’t even wait to get home.”

“Stop teasing.”

“Me teasing?” He pulls back to give you an incredulous look. “You’re the one that couldn’t keep your hands to yourself in the bar, Sugar.”

You smile up at him as your arms come up his chest and wrap loosely around his neck.

“I can’t help it when you look this good.”

The complement didn’t get the reaction you thought it would. You felt Bucky tense.

“Buck-“

“Don’t panic. We’re being watched.”

You turn your head just slightly so that you can look out of the corner of your eye and you gasp.

“I said I was sorry already. Sugar, don’t be mad at me.” Bucky pleaded as you walked into your apartment.

Steve was there with both kids in the middle of a game of candy land. All three of them look up at you.

“Dada.” Lottie runs towards Bucky, while Henry gets up to hug you.

“How did things go here?”

“Everything‘s fine. How was date night?”

“It was great up until the end, when Bucky decided to scare the crap out of me.”

“I already said I didn’t mean to scare you.”

“How would you handle it if you were in an alley and someone said ‘don’t panic, we’re being watched.’?” You were looking at Steve with your arms crossed.

“Why were you in an alley?”

“Oh you sweet summer’s child.” You mutter before you give him an eyebrow wiggle. “We were going to have a conversation.”

“Oh, ew. I don’t need to know these things.” Steve gives you a disgusted face.

“Anyways,” Bucky continues. “We have a surprise for the kids.”

“A suwpwise dada?”

“Yeah doll, we have a surprise for you and Henry.”

“What is it?” Henry peeks around you to get a better look at his father.

Bucky walks back to the door and opens it and brings in a small crate. He sets it on the coffee table as both Henry and Lottie look inside to find a small white fur ball curled up on a blanket.

“We found a kitten while we were out on our date. She didn’t have a home so she’s going to stay with us.” Bucky explains softly.

Henry stares in amazement at the new addition to the Barnes family. Meanwhile you walk out and grab the few bags of supplies you’d picked up.

“This is what Bucky was referring to when he said we were being watched.” You murmured to Steve.

“What’s her name?”

“She doesn’t have one yet, we have to pick one out.” Bucky says as he settles on the couch. “What do you think Lottie, do you like the kitten?”

“Is not a sissy, dada.”

“I know, doll, but it’s going to take some time to get a sissy.”

“Kay.” Lottie said with a frown. She gives the crate a side eye before walking over to you and holding her arms up. “Uppies mama.”

“Come here sweet Angel. Did you have fun with Steve?”

“Yeah, pay wit Steebie and bubba.”

“Are you ready for bed my sweet girl? You sound tired.”

“Mmhhmm.” She says as she nods before laying her head on your shoulder.

“Let’s get you into bed then. Do you want a story?”

She nods. “An hugs.”

“And hugs, you got it.” You say as you walk back toward the bedrooms.

“Alright let’s think of names.” Bucky says.

“How about snowball?” Steve offers but Henry shakes his head.

“Winter?”

Bucky grimaces.

“Snowflake?” Henry says.

“How about… Alpine? Al for short.” Bucky offers as he scratches the kitten’s head, she meows in approval.

“Alpine. I like it.”

“Me too.”

Steve and Henry both agree before the former stands.

“Alright you guys I’m gonna go. See you tomorrow.”

“Bye uncle Steve.”

“Thanks for watching them.”

“Of course, they’re my favorite people.” Steve smiles and walks out with a wave.

“Can Alpine sleep in my room daddy?”

“Yeah, I think she’d like to have some company after being all alone. Let’s get her bed set up in there.” Bucky hands Alpine to Henry, who holds her close to his chest.

Bucky grabs some of the items in the bags and follows Henry, who is walking at a very slow pace as he holds Alpine. In his room Bucky sets down a cat bed in a corner and then places a blanket over it. He leaves some toys on the floor before turning to Henry.

“Alright kiddo, the bed it set. Tomorrow we’ll go over what we have to do to take care of her, ok?”

“Ok.”

“Do you want a bedtime story?”

“Yes, please.” Henry says as he sits down on his bed, the little ball of fur tucked into his elbow.

Bucky picks up the chapter book they’ve been reading together and sits down next to Henry. He starts where he left off and reads until Henry has slowly drifted off to sleep. Alpine claiming her spot at the end of the bed.

****

“And they lived happily ever after. The end.” You finish reading the book Lottie had chosen.

With a kiss to the forehead you start to get up as quietly as you can thinking that Charlotte is asleep.

“Mama?”

“Yes my sweet Angel?”

“Dada a pwince an mama a pwincess.”

“You think your dad is a prince and I’m a princess?”

“Yeah.” She replies sleepily.

“Why is that?”

“Cus dada an mama is pwetty. An dada lobe mama and mama lobe dada.” She says as she points at the drawing of the prince and princess holding hands.

“That’s right mama and daddy love each other very much. And we love you and bubba very much too.”

She gives you a sleepy smile. You sit there another few minutes playing with her hair until her breathing finally evens out.

In the hallway you find Bucky waiting for you. He follows you happily into your shared bedroom and when the door is closed, Bucky is on you.

“James.” You whisper yell as you laugh when he throws you on the bed.

“If I remember correctly, we were about to have a very important conversation in the alley before we were interrupted.”

“Oh yeah, what were we going to talk about again?”

“Not much.” He shrugs as he hovers over you. “I was gonna make you yell my name so that everyone knows you makes you feel so good.”

“Hhmm. I'm willing to hear your argument.”

“Bubba?” Lottie giggled as she walked into Henry’s room.

This was a normal game for them, hide and seek. It was a lot more challenging considering Henry could disappear. That was never an issue for Lottie who is determined to find her older brother.

“Buuubbbaaaa.”

Lottie is searching around his usual hiding spots when a small meow gets her attention. Her little brows pinch in confusion at the sound as she turns around, unable to find the source. Another meow comes from the corner of the room and Lottie carefully walks over to where she thinks the sound is. As she closes in, Henry appears in front of her with Alpine in his arms. Lottie jumps back and starts laughing.

“Bubba!” She shrieked between her bout of laughter, while Henry joined.

“Sorry baby. I didn’t mean to scare you.”

“Is kay.” Lottie replies while eyes the kitten in her brother’s arms.

“Do you want to pet her? Her name is Alpine.”

“A-pine?”

“Yeah, let’s sit down, come on.” Henry moves to sit on his bed and watches as Lottie hops on.

Her little hand reaches for Alpines head but she’s a bit rough and Alpine hisses. Lottie whimpers and pulls her hand back, her bottom lip wobbles.

“It’s ok Lottie. You just have to be gentle like this.”

Henry runs his hand over Alpine’s head in a much more gentle and slow manner. Then he takes Lottie’s hand and guides her. All of the attention makes Alpine purr as she leans into the touch happily. For a few minutes the kids stay just like that. Sitting on Henry’s bed and giving Alpine all of the attention and cuddles she could want.

“Hi my sweet babies.” You said from the door getting both of their attentions. “Do you want to go play outside for a while?”

Lottie and Henry look at each other as if they’re having a silent conversation.

“Can pay on swings?”

“Of course sweet Angel.”

Lottie gives you a beaming smile before hopping off of Henry's bed. You chuckle as you move to let her get out.

“But on some basketball shorts, it’s hot outside and wear your sunglasses.”

“Ok.” Henry says as he moves to his drawer.

Lottie is in her room already digging through her basket to find the perfect sunglasses, she never leaves the apartment without them. Her growing collection is thanks to Nat. She turns around and proudly displays her selection. Purple flower shaped shades with purple lenses.

“Great choice. Alright, let’s get you changed.” You say as you show her the tank top and shorts you chose.

Lottie happily stands on the bed as she begins to take off her shirt. You give her the tank top, which she puts on inside out at first. Like the big girl she is, Lottie puts on her shorts, also backwards before you point it out and then help her put on some sneakers. You then quickly put her hair up into two pigtails. She leads the way into the living room where Henry and Alpine are already waiting.

You grab the small backpack with water bottles and snacks and watch as Haney ticks Alpine in one arm while holding on to Lottie’s hand.

“Alright my sweet babies, let’s go have some fun.” You say as you open the front door for them.

The rest of the afternoon the three of you spend it at the small park area.

Today was the day. Charlotte was having her bed changed into a big girl bed, her words. She was ecstatic as she stood by the door to her room and watched her dad move some things around. Henry had lost interest quickly enough and announced that he would go find you. With a look over his shoulder, Bucky couldn’t contain his smile as he watched Lottie, she waited patiently and gave Alpine some very well deserved head scratches.

“Do you want to help me out, doll?” Bucky says as he begins to remove some of the unnecessary pieces.

“Yeah.”

“Ok, come here. Do you see that screw driver?” Bucky points to it but Lottie grabs a pair of pliers. “No sweetheart that one.” He points again and this time she grabs the right tool. “Thank you. Now this is a flathead screwdriver.”

“Fathead.”

“Flathead.” Bucky enunciates.

“Fathead.”

“Well, we aren’t getting anywhere with that.” Bucky says as he continues to work on the bed.

Lottie talks his ear off as she tells him about going to the park and petting Alpine. Every once in a while she’ll actually hand him a tool after he points it out for her.

“Alright doll, you now have a big rip bed. Why don’t you try it out?”

Lottie obliges quickly and happily by getting up on it and jumping a few times. She lets herself fall backwards with a laugh. Bucky kneels on the floor beside the bed and pushes some of her loose hair out of her face.

“Is it Lottie approved?”

“Mhm. Big bed cause am big.”

Bucky chuckles. “That’s right but you’ll always be daddy’s little girl.” He says before pressing a kiss to her forehead.

Bucky turns and begins to clean up the mess he’s made while Lottie slips off the bed and walks towards one of her play chests. She’s rummaging around until she finds what she wants.

“Dada can paint? Pease?”

Bucky turns to see her holding her little play makeup kit that Wanda got her for her birthday. Lottie specifically was holding out one of her many nail polish bottles.

“Oh doll, I’m not good at that stuff. Why don’t we go see if mama can do it?”

“No want mama. Want dada to paint.” Lottie said. Her eyes were wide but sad and her bottom lip jutted out in a pout.

“Ok I’ll paint your nails. But you can’t be mad if they turn out bad.”

“Tank you dada.” Charlotte throws herself into Bucky’s arms in order to hug him. Then she sits on her bed and sticks her foot out before wiggling her little toes. “Can paint dada’s too?”

“You want to paint my nails?”

Lottie nods, way too excited for her own good. He sighs because he knows that there will be no way out of this and he’d do anything for her.

“Ok, you can paint my nails.”

Lottie claps and urges him to hurry up.

******

Henry walks away from the mess Bucky is making in Lottie’s bed to find you in the kitchen. You’re currently reading through recipes for a few side dishes. The team has decided that it’s a lovely afternoon to have dinner outside.

“Hi mama.” Henry says as he walks into the kitchen. “What are you doing?”

“I am deciding on what I should make for dinner with the rest of the team?”

“Why do you call them team?”

“Well, they are my team.” You say, a little confused at his question.

“I know but that’s when you go to work. Aren’t they our family too?”

You smile at him. Even with everything he went through he had a huge heart.

“You are absolutely right. I just don’t think about it that much because you can be a team and a family. As long as we’re together. Now, do you want to help me make something for our family dinner?”

He nods as he walks around the kitchen island.

“Go get the step stool so that you can see better.”

“Ok.” He moved around quickly and brought over the step stool you kept in the kitchen so that he could be at a better height. “Where do we start?”

“We start with cutting some potatoes so that we can boil them.”

“Will you teach me how?” He tilts his head to get a better look at you.

“Absolutely. We’ll make a chef out of you.”

For the next hour or so you work with Henry on how to properly use a knife and ignore his comment of him already knowing how to use one. You prep all of the ingredients together, Henry helps you mix them together. Toward the end you are both covered in flour after he accidentally knocked over the mixing bowl. Both of you had trouble breathing but weren’t sure if it was because of the flour or the fit of laughter.

After cleaning up the mess you and Henry continue working together. That is until Charlotte walks out to the kitchen.

“Mama look, dada painted.” She held her hand out so that you could see her perfectly painted nails. They were painted with a sparkly hot pink nail polish.

“Oh my, your nails look so pretty.” You gush and she only seems to get more excited. Then she calls for her dad to come out.

“Made dada look pwetty, mama.”

“You did? But your dad is already pr-“ the words die on your tongue as Bucky steps into the kitchen. You are at a complete loss of words and your mouth hangs open at the sight before you.

He sends you a glare that rivals those of him as the winter soldier. It seems that Charlotte had given him a full makeover. There was a headband on his head and multiple colorful clips and elastics creating small versions of pigtails. Bucky’s face wasn’t any better. Lottie had also used the makeup kit Wanda had gifted her. He had purple eyeshadow eyeshadow and pink blush and even a bit of lip gloss. But the cherry on the makeover sundae was the manicure, if you could call it that. It was hard to miss even if you were sitting in pitch black. In a very messy style, Bucky’s nails were the same nail Lottie had. Even better still was when you looked close enough, the pink also stood out against the black metal of his left arm.

“Oh Lottie,” she looked up at you excitedly and waited to see what your thoughts were. “You did such a good job. Daddy has never looked prettier.”

Lottie shrieked in delight and she clapped and wiggled in her spot. Henry was laughing so hard he almost fell off the step stool but you turned around just in time to catch him. Before Bucky could disappear you took your phone out and took a few pictures of his makeover. You even convinced him to take some pictures showing off his manicure with Lottie.

“If you show anyone these pictures we’re going to have some trouble.” Bucky murmurs but Lottie hears him.

“Habe to show Steebie and Sammie and Tony and Buce and Cint so can make pwetty too.” She argues.

“Why don’t we just take your makeup kit with us? I bet they’ll let you make them pretty anyways.”

“Kay.” She beamed and ran back to her room to prepare her kit. Alpine follows her every step back into her room.

Henry couldn’t stop pointing and laughing at his dad, so much so that he was on the floor. You however were looking at him with so much fondness and love that you might burst, it confused him a bit.

“What?”

“Nothing, it’s just… you’re such a good dad and I love you so much.” You informed him as he walked closer to you.

Bucky only managed to give you the same shy smile he did whenever you told him the same thing. It was still hard for him to accept the fact that he was a father and that he was doing a good job. He looked over your shoulder to find Henry giggling as he got up from the floor to return to his post next to you.

“You also look so pretty right now.” You said as you wrapped your arms around his waist and stood on your tippy toes to give him a quick kiss.

“And now you do too since you got some of my lip gloss.”

“Mama doesn’t need makeup to look pretty.” Henry argues and you can’t help the ‘aaww’ that escapes you before you’re hugging him instead.

“Want hug too.” Lottie had walked back out with one of her backpacks stuffed with her makeup kit and probably more hair accessories. She dropped it though and ran towards you so that you could pick her up, which you did.

The time cooking went by quickly and it was just the four of you, and Alpine, having a good time in the kitchen. When it was time to head out to have dinner, Bucky decided to leave Lottie’s work untouched. Of course it caused a lot of teasing by the guys but by the end of it all of them were also done up in signature Lottie style. Even Henry and Vision ended up painted to the heavens. Everyone laughed and joked and you, Wanda, Pepper and Nat took many pictures to have as evidence or blackmail.

There was no better place to be in than between shared laughs and conversations amongst your team or better yet your family.

Ch 23

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[crushingonevery1]

Im okay (part 1)

Warning: nothing really, slight mention of anxiety, reader has a chip in her body, i think that's it

Pairings: Peter Parker x girlfriend reader

School just ended and Peter and you were sitting in detention after being caught talking in class. You were both guilty of getting detention on purpose more times than you would like to admit. Your uncle and aunt were never home during this time so you got the most freedom to spend time with Peter. And currently, they were both on a business trip and had locked the mansion basically leaving you on the streets to fend for yourself for the week. You weren't complaining tho May and Peter had very generously offered for you to live with them whenever that happened, cause it happened way too much. Your uncle would come to find you through the tracker installed in your shoulder once they were back. You were sure he knew about Peter but just didn't care or didn't find a 17-year-old too dangerous for his "asset".

You were both just exiting school and going back home when Peter got a call from Mr Stark of course you knew about him being Spiderman so after reassuring him that you will be fine and that he should hurry up, you made your way towards Peter's while he left for the avengers tower.

-------------------------------

At the tower, it had been a few minutes since the quinjet had landed and everyone was scattered in the living room and kitchen filling up. Peter was texting you every detail of his mission and happily smiling when you told him you were proud of him. Obviously everyone noticed that the usually talkative teen boy was smiling and blushing towards his phone and not talking to anyone or even replying when Tony called out to him. so Tony after getting ignored for the second time finally pulled out Peter's phone out of his hand looking at who he was texting.

"TONY!!" Pepper shouted clearly unimpressed.

"Relax pep I'm basically his dad" he replied very confidently looking through the texts before finally clicking on your pic. All the while Peter just sat quietly trusting Mr Stark with anything and deciding it was about time he told them about you despite you saying no.

"Who you texting kid??" asked Sam all the way from the kitchen clearly entertained knowing Tony was in for an ass-whooping later.

"umm... my girlfriend..." that got everyone's attention. It was TOO quiet for a good 2 mins before Tony finally pitched in.

"She's cute. Although I'm not sure telling her every detail of our mission to impress her is a good idea, you are not THAT ugly kid."

"WAIT WHAT!!!"spoke the one and only captain america " Peter how could you be so reckless!!". He was clearly disappointed and usually peter would instantly apologise when he saw someone upset. not this time tho, he felt the need to defend you.

"no shes not like that i swear, she would never... She's already got so much of her own stuff going on she can't and she won't."

Seeing the usually too obedient kid argue against cap everyone understand whoever you were, you were important to Peter and they will figure out whether you were a danger or not before passing anymore comments to hurt the kid. They all kept quiet and Peter was about to apologise for being rude when Scott spoke up from the couch next to him. "so hey, when do we get to meet her?? How long has it been? How'd you meet? Give us the deets kid."

Seeing all of them waiting impatiently for his answer made him a lot more calmer before he decided to answer a few questions they might have.

"Her name's y/n. She's in my maths class, and she's like super smart, like more than me. We started officially dating like a month back but we were best friends before that too. She's really close with Ned and MJ too!!" He was practically shouting out of excitement by the time he finished. They smiled widely at the whipped teenager remembering their own first loves and congratulating the spider. When everyone was done sharing their first love experiences Tony finally spoke "As much as I loved hearing about Manchurian candidate being a complete chick magnet, circling back to the exciting part of today, Underoos,when do we get to meet the spider girl?" This made Peter blush profusely before he finally spoke

"Mr stark, you know how my birthday is next week ??" At this tiny doubtfully nods, clearly dissatisfied that his question was ignored. Ignoring the expression on the older man's face Peter continues "Do you think you could throw me an early birthday party...like today?"

Completely forgetting everything at the name of a party Tony very happily replied "You got it Underoos, EVERYONE!! TONIGHT AT 8!! MY KID'S TURNING LEGAL!!"

"next week stark, the kid turns legal next week, you're not letting him drink today"

Ignoring the fight in the background between Tony and Steve everyone went back to whatever they were doing while Peter made his way to the kitchen where Sam, Bucky, Pepper and thor and loki sat. He quickly took a seat at the table dialing your number extremely excited to hear your voice.

"hey honey, did you reach home safe??" "Yes I did Pete I texted you remember?"

"Right!Is may home?" "No she went to help aunt Betty she told us yesterday at dinner"

"oh that's even better! Hey Mr stark is throwing me a birthday party tonight can you please join us it would mean the world to me" "ofc Pete anything. But...your birthday's next week isn't it ?"

By now the convo between Bucky and thor had calmed down and they were all very much listening to your conversation with zero shame.

"Yea! Yea ikr! I told Mr stark but you know him, he's so ...extravagant!!so he just wanted to have a early celebration" the lie made everyone hearing cringe very evidently but they awaited your reply not expecting you to buy that.

"right... I'll be there ofc but umm...you think u could meet me at the gate...I don't want to have to walk in among all the supers completely alone... actually nevermind I'm being a baby I'll be there, you enjoy with your frien-" "hey relax, breathe for me, I'll be coming home in a bit we'll get ready together and come to the party together don't worry, okay ? Rest well honey I'll be home in an hour"

They were superheros for godsake your unusual anxiety instead of excitement over your boyfriend's birthday was wayyyy too obvious in your voice, but there was currently a bigger issue at hand...

"YOU'RE LIVING TOGETHER?!?"

------------------------------------

[kandisheek]

FIC REC WEEK 27 – NO POWERS

This Love I Hold True by justanotherrollingstony (adoctoraday)

Pairing: Steve/Tony Rating: T Words: 3,219 Tags: Marriage Proposal, College AU, Pre-Serum Steve

Summary: Tony and Steve have known and loved each other for years, and now it's time to make it official.

Reasons why I love it: I never knew that I needed to see Steve ripping into Howard like that, but boy howdy, it's so satisfying. I love both Steve's and Tony's perspectives in this, and the proposal scene just feels perfect for them. This fic is absolutely lovely, and I hope you check it out for yourself!

He Blinded Me With Science by youcancallmearrow

Pairing: Steve/Tony Rating: G Words: 9,220 Tags: Office AU, Found Family, Fluff

Summary: The Security Admin Department at Stark Industries has a point system in place to pass the time. +10 points for tagging management with a "Kick Me" post it note +10 points for paging a punny fake name over the office intercom without getting caught +10 points for stealing any office supplies off Clint's desk and returning it in jello +20 points for making Steve swear It's a good thing productivity isn't in the job description.

Reasons why I love it: This is the kind of Avengers team I love to see! They're giving family vibes left and right, and I love how they basically adopt Tony and Bruce instantly. And the Stony in this one is cute as hell, plus I'm giving extra points for morally upstanding decision-making regarding workplace romances. This fic is wonderful, and you should definitely read it!

The weather outside is frightful by BladeoftheNebula

Pairing: Steve/Tony Rating: T Words: 5,552 Tags: A/B/O, Snowed In, Courtship

Summary: “I can’t believe this!” Steve paused, his hand hovering over the piece of firewood. Was that—? “Of all the idiotic, selfish—“ The last of the words were cut off by the wind, but that was definitely a voice. Steve frowned. The voice was too clear to be coming from a truck or a car, which meant they must be on foot. He looked at the heavy fall of the snow. No one should be out in this. Or, Tony is an omega in distress, and Steve is just the alpha-in-shining armour he needs.

Reasons why I love it: Yeees, give me all the mountain man Steve! Neb always writes fantastic A/B/O settings, and this one is no exception! I love how respectful Steve is, especially in contrast with Ty, that weasely ass. And Tony is adorable, as usual. I love this fic so much, and I bet you will too, so I hope you give it a shot!

When Love Comes Knocking (You Out) by itsallAvengers

Pairing: Steve/Tony Rating: T Words: 8,591 Tags: Meet-Ugly, Parent Tony, Misunderstandings

Summary: Steve really just wanted to buy some goddamn groceries. Instead, he tries to help a kid who's managed to get lost in a Walmart parking lot and ends up being punched in the face by his irate and panicked father. Surprisingly, this doesn't turn out as badly as it sounds.

Reasons why I love it: Oh Steve, in today's day and age you should've known what was coming to you. I love this entire premise, and protective single dad Tony is always a treat. Also love the bad boy vibes Steve is giving off throughout the whole thing, it's a really cool take on his character in modern times. This fic is fantastic, and you should definitely read it!

What Could've Been by itsallAvengers

Pairing: Steve/Tony Rating: E Words: 11,047 Tags: Canon Divergence, Palladium Poisoning, Service Top Steve

Summary: So. Tony's dying. Palladium poisoning is a shitty, painful way to go, but hey: at least it's his birthday party, right? A cool send off. Lots of alcohol and fun and girls and- ...And all Tony wants is Steve Rogers, the stupid Art Professor who used Tony for a booty call now and again and whom Tony had stupidly decided to start falling in love with. Whilst in the middle of getting slowly poisoned to death. God, he wished his life was easier.

Reasons why I love it: This fic is so sad and so beautiful at the same time. All the little signs of how much they care for each other just make my heart melt. I love Steve's reaction to seeing Tony's chest for the first time, and the dialogue throughout the entire fic is incredible. Definitely check this one out, it's so good!

[kjwaikiki]

Stony fic idea:

I’m back on the Avengers train after a YouTube au trailer deep dive and I have a fic idea. I am throwing out the idea of timelines, canon, and pretty much everything.

My big fic idea is that Howard is still alive and Tony is young, maybe early 20s at the oldest, when all the Avengers shenanigans take place. Maybe that means Howard and Maria have Tony even later on in life or maybe they are just younger, I do not know I am disregarding pesky things like timelines.

Now the main point of this fic is that it is Howard who helps with the Avengers and backs them up being sort of like a benefactor. Steve is of course ecstatic to see and work with his old friend again, but he notices something is off about Howard. He asks some questions, does some digging and finds out that Howard had a son. Of course Steve asks Howard (or maybe Maria if she is around) but doesn’t really get a clear answer other than the fact that Tony and Howard had a fight a few years back and Tony hasn’t been in contact since.

Steve tried to do something nice for his friend and tracks Tony down. Eventually he finds him working on sustainable energy sources in some remote lab in a foreign country (or whatever you imagine I am not too clear on this part). Steve introduces himself and tries to convince Tony to go home or at least talk to Howard. Tony is not impressed, Howard has been an emotionally distant father at best and now he has Captain America come to his place of work to drag him home like a stray dog! Needless to say Tony is not impressed and kicks Steve out on his ass.

Steve is stubborn though and continues to bagger Tony throughout his day to day. Tony has carved out a nice little life for himself among the locals and he does not appreciate Steve ruining it for him. Eventually Tony agrees to talk to Steve and explain the fight and why he will not go home. It turns out that for a little while after Tony graduated college he was able to work well with the old man. They collaborated on a lot of projects and seemed to be getting along well. Until the next Stark Expo when Tony found out that all of the inventions Tony had made everything he designed was being patented as a Howard Stark invention, as solely a Howard Stark invention.

Tony was of course hurt and more than a little angry so he decided that his next idea would be one he kept to himself. His next design turned out to be Iron Man (in its infant stages Tony thought of it as combat armor for troops or even remote controlled soldiers) and from the idea of the Iron Man suit came other ideas like the Arc Reactor and J.A.R.V.I.S. until suddenly Tony was sitting on a cache of technology that would change the world.

Unfortunately Howard eventually found out about Tony’s inventions and shut him down. They had a terrible row that basically boiled down to Howard calling Tony a spoiled, selfish child who didn’t know the powers that he was messing with. Tony in response called Howard a hack who hadn’t invented anything worthwhile since the war and was so desperate to stay relevant that he’ll steal ideas from his son. The fight ended with both of the men storming off angry and Tony went back to an apartment he owned in the city to cool down for a few days. Tony figured that he’d give the old man a few days to calm down and then show him the tech he was working on with the clear stipulation that he gets credit for his inventions.

Only Tony’s plan doesn’t work out because when he goes back to Stark headquarters he finds that he has been terminated from his position and locked out of his lab that contains all his inventions and J.A.R.V.I.S. and all his bots. Tony calls up his dad, yells at him a little and then pleads with him to at least let him get his stuff. Tony even tells him he can keep the suits but he wants his bots and J.A.R.V.I.S. Howard says no. Tony threatens to get lawyers involved. Howard asks with what money. It dawns on Tony that Howard has effectively cut him off or at least he thinks he has (Tony has a personal bank account not connected to his father he has been squirreling away money in for years). Tony is angry and hurt and leaves the country and from there he applies for a gets the job he is currently working in. After that he cut off all contact with his father and erased himself from all digital software (Steve found him through luck, good old detective work, and being able to charm the pants off of little old ladies).

Steve is aghast because he never thought Howard could be capable of something like that. Tony brushes him off and tells him he doesn’t want to talk about it anymore. Somehow the idea of drinks is brought up and Steve mentions he can’t get drunk. Tony takes that as a challenge and whips up something in his lab that can actually get Steve drunk. They both get drunk and tumble into bed together.

In the morning Steve is surprised and horrified to find that he slept with his friend’s son (who is a lot younger than him). Tony is understandably hurt by Steve’s reaction and all of Steve’s attempts to explain himself just make it worse. Eventually it culminates in a fight and Tony kicks Steve out. Steve leaves and goes back to the U.S. where he tells Howard he found Tony and confronts him about the fight and how he treated his son. Howard tells Steve that he was just trying to protect Tony.

It turns out that Howard was following Obadiah’s advice for the inventions and didn’t take credit because he wanted all the glory but rather to keep Tony out of the spotlight (Obie worded it in such a way that it made it seem as if people knowing how brilliant Tony was would put him in danger). The fight was because Tony was messing with dangerous substances and even people without Howard’s knowledge (Tony had interested buyers lined up for some of his tech). Steve then brings up Howard cutting Tony off and Howard says he always knew about Tony’s other bank account and that he cut him off because he knew he was safer away. Howard had started to suspect Obie was involved in some shady dealings and had started to investigate him. As Howard dig deeper he uncovered some dangerous secrets and a lot of illegal activities.

Obie knew how brilliant Tony was and Howard knew that if Obie knew he was on to him then Obie would just get rid of him and move on to making Tony his cash cow. Howard pushed Tony away to protect him and fully intended to bring him home after the mess with Obie was over with. The only problem was that once it was all over with Howard couldn’t find Tony and he had no way of contacting him. He hired private investigators but they turned up nothing and eventually he gave up.

The next part of this fic are fuzzy to me but I think eventually Steve brings Howard to Tony and they have a chat. There is a lot of yelling and even some crying before finally they delve into the bigger issues:

Tony: “You are a shitty father.”

Howard: “I know I want to be better.”

Tony: “To be better you have had to actually be something in the first place. You were never there in the first place.”

Howard: “I’m trying Tony.”

Tony: “Why? So you can steal my ideas and pass them off as your? Live out your long gone glory days through me?”

Howard: “Because you’re my son and even though I don’t always show it, I do love you.”

That is the turning point in the fight and Tony and Howard make up with some awkward hugs and even more awkward tears. Tony agrees to go back to the U.S. and give working with his dad another try (with some heavy stipulation) Howard looks ecstatic that he has his son back and that is about where it dons on Steve that he has miscalculated. Because now Steve has to live in close quarters with Tony who he has grown to like and care for in his weeks pestering him to come home. Who Steve has kissed and held and heard moan. Who Steve would very much like to hear moan again. Who is the very young son of his dear friend, Howard. Howard who is looking at Steve in gratitude and has no idea that Steve has slept with his son. Steve is in for a really hard time.

I don’t really know where the fic ends from here. Maybe Howard eventually finds out and goes into overprotective father mode because that is his SON his CHILD who is barely an adult and Steve was alive during the Great Depression! Maybe Steve tries to dance around Tony and their sexual tension as the Avengers watch on amused. Maybe Tony eventually catches on to the fact that Steve is very attracted to him and starts teasing him everywhere, in public, around his dad, when he is working out, in the communal showers, etc. There are endless possibilities and I think it is really fun to imagine them all.

[lurafita]

Watch me smuggle complicated father son dynamics into a Malec prompt I don't even get into detail with

Malec AU with Superheroes, BUT!!!! Also with like backstory for Asmodeus becoming a good dad to Magnus (after a while) Okay, think Iron Man. Basically Tony Stark's origin story for Asmodeus, what with being rich and a playboy and making weapons and getting kidnapped and tortured and then getting free and all that. Okay? BUT, think that before all of that, Asmodeus did manage to impregnate one of his one night stands, and paid them off and gave up parental rights cause he didn't want anything to do with the kid. After the traumatizing events however, his perspective on a lot of things changed, and now he wants to reconnect with his son. As in Magnus. By that time, Magnus is either an older teen or young adult. And in one word, unenthused about half his dna wanting to be in his life now. And okay, I give, my idea probably centers more about the reconnecting between Magnus and Asmodeus in these circumstances and I have no idea about how to bring in Alec and if there are other superheroes there Avengers style, but… I have no real arguments. I was just stuck with the thought of Iron Man like Asmodeus and him wanting to make amends towards the son he had neglected all his life. ….

[dustin4ce]

stability.

young! tony stark x male!teacher! reader

a/n: i kinda threw this together while talking to a friend, but if you enjoy it… let me know and i’ll write a follow up!!

warnings: student-teacher relationship, brief mention of sex, mention of abuse, tony crying (poor baby)

ace is the only stability a young tony stark has. mr. (ace) ellis teaches the junior english class at tony’s high school. tony was never good in english, but he tried his hardest. he was a smart kid, he just put all his energy towards science and maths to impress his father, causing his english grade and writing portion of school to fall short.

tony walked into english with his head down, he didn’t want mr. ellis to see the black eye. ace cared too much about tony, and it would immediately bring attention to him. tony hates being the center of attention. the young stark sat his bag down next to his chair as he sat. his head falling heavy on the wooden desk in from of him. this was unusual. tony always seemed interested in english. tony enjoyed english (mainly because of his teacher). mr. ellis came from his desk rubbing tony’s back like he did with everyone, but he got no response. people still filing into class, giving ace the perfect opportunity to talk to tony. the taller authority squated down next to tony, hand still on his back. “hey kiddo — you alright?” that was all it took. the small shakes of tony’s body told him everything. the quiet sniffing and shake in stark’s breath. tony’s fists clenched as he gripped onto his own sleeves, yet he made no effort to turn to look at his teacher. “hey.. why don’t you step out into the hall? maybe go to the bathroom — wipe your eyes with a wet paper towel. i’ll be out there after i explain the lesson.” tony, still shaking, got up with his head down and went outside.

mr. ellis didn’t take long to explain. some simple assignment. ‘write me an essay about a life motto you believe is important’. ace was proud, he came up with the idea himself. he even wrote his own essay. ‘don’t take what you earned for granted.’ it sounded stupid, (the motto), but ace had realized many times that he’d work for something — then quit working to improve what he got as soon as he got it. he wanted to be better. that’s why he was really trying to check on tony — he wanted to be someone people could depend on, especially tony. stark had always had a portion in ace’s mind. tony had trusted him with things — his dreams, life goals, his family. ace always wondered what tony was doing, how tony was doing. he knew it was wrong, but couldn’t stop himself when it was just him in his bed at night. his thoughts always wondered back to tony. the soft touches, his almost perfect smile, his shy personality, his (as ace would classify it) adorable face. his hand always found a way to his pants. he knew better, he swore he’d never let it get out of hand, but when the images of a young tony stark being bent over his desk under him and his control flooded his mind, he just couldn’t keep that promise.

ace had rubbed his hair back after explaining then stepped outside. tony was sitting on the ground, knees basically to his chest, his arms wrapped around his legs, and his forehead pressed to his knees. the young boy was still crying. mr. ellis sat down next to him. “tony — talk to me? what’s going on today?” tony blubbered, he finally looked up, ace’s eyes widened as he saw the bruising on tony’s face. first, he felt sympathy and sorrow. then, he felt anger. who could do this to his boy? his sweet, little baby. he was gonna get to the bottom of it, he made sure of it. “what happened, kid?” ace gently touched tony’s cheek, his fingers shocking tony. “don’t be mad.” tony’s frown and tears still evident. ace nodded. “my dad, uh, didn’t like my grades — maths and science — they weren’t good enough for him.” tony sniffled, he did really well for the term, but it wasn’t perfect — so howard obviously didn’t like it. “so he hit you?” ace’s voice was laced with anger. stark just nodded. “oh kid — i’m so sorry, i really am.” tony teared up more as ace pulled him into a hug, stark’s head immediately landing on the older man’s chest and cuddling into him. he always loved the smell of mr. ellis, and his sweet gentle demeanor. ace kissed the top of the young man’s head and rubbed his back. tony couldn’t take it, through his tears he mumbled what he thought would be incoherent. “mm — ‘m sorry. i love you.” but ace heard, yet said nothing. just smiled. he heard all he needed to. tony stark had told him he loved him, and ace knew he loved his tony stark. nothing was ever going to hurt tony again, especially not his father.

[irondadfics]

Hello! Im not sure if rec lists are open, but I really like this trope where peter gets sent to another universe in the body of 'peter stark' and basically peterS is a bit of a jerk whereas peterP is the opposite so peterP has to navigate peterS' universe while dealing with peterS' mistakes. Did I mention the peterS is Tony's biological child? Not the best description, but I've been starving for fics like these...

Hello, could this one be close to what you’re looking for?

Savoir-vivre, or whatever you call it by Bergen

A phone call that his son is being held at the 28th precinct throws Tony’s savoir-vivre out of balance. Because his son should not be in New York, much less at a police station. “Isn’t his mother listed as his primary guardian?” “She’s also listed as living in Maryland. Are you going to collect your son or not?” There is an edge to the police woman’s voice, particularly over the words ‘your son’. And Tony realizes, awkwardly, self-consciously, that he probably couldn’t sound any more like a deadbeat dad. The reality of the situation is: he hasn’t seen Peter in almost a month now, since their latest horribly ugly falling-out. And practically bailing him out of jail was not part of any of the one thousand bonding and rekindling scenarios he has run in his head since then.

[robertdowneyjjr]

so none of this is what any of you asked for, but part 3 of the stonyclunks soulmates au @stark-and-shield @polizwrites @soliloquent-stark

(parts one and two)

tony spends his flight home from london agonizing over what he should do next.

on the one hand, his feelings about captain america haven’t changed. if anything, he’s now even more adamant that he wants nothing to do with him, because not only does tony now have proof that cap is a total dick, he also now feels like all that childhood trauma?? was the result of a lie. now he knows that he grew up being compared to someone who isn’t even really as great as his dad made him seem. so maybe now he has some validation (and vindication) that howard was wrong. but still, he could have just done without the years of feeling like he wasn’t good enough.

on the other hand, he’s a hopeless romantic at heart and he’s always dreamed of meeting and growing old with his soulmate. he grew up surrounded by them — his parents are soulmates. ana and edwin jarvis are soulmates. aunt peggy and uncle daniel are soulmates. that nature-defying love has always been the shining example of what real happiness is to him and he’s been desperate for it since he was 25, the average age when people meet their soulmates. the fact that he lived until he was 38 and still never met his soulmate had hurt him everyday. and sure, he’s happy in other ways. he’s content with how his life has turned out. he has amazing friends. he has a family that supports him. but god, he wants to share it with someone who he knows is fated to be his.

now, he’s kind of annoyed that he and his dad have another thing in common, what with howard not meeting maria until he was in his 40’s. and at this point he’s starting to think that being soulmates with captain america is some sort of sick cosmic joke that the universe is playing on him.

also he’s really, really pissed that the words that are permanently marked on his skin are so ugly.

at dinner before their night at the opera, tony tells maria, “mama, i met my soulmate.”

“oh that’s wonderful, antonio! tell me all about them!”

maria can hardly contain her excitement, and tony feels awful that the news he’s about to share isn’t worth her feeling this happy about.

“it was two weeks ago, a total accident. he was really mean,” he explains softly. if they weren’t in public right now he might even have just shown her the words on his thigh, but he knows her protective instincts would rear their head immediately and she’d skip the opera just to get started on hunting down the man who spit such vitriol at her son.

“oh. well, has he apologized for it?” maria asks. “i hope he has some basic manners, at least. i won’t allow someone who treats my son such poorly into the family, whether you’re soulmates or not.”

“he… has. quite dramatically,” tony says, thinking about the instagram post that had been causing a media frenzy for a week now.

“well, good. he should know you’re to be treasured,” maria sniffs. “when will i get to meet him?”

“i haven’t seen him again since. i don’t know if i really want to.”

“why not, bambino? you’ve always wanted to meet your soulmate.”

“mama… it’s captain america.”

maria looks around the restaurant. “where? i thought howard was with him tonight. crazy old man, still thinks he’s in his prime and trying to keep up with people half his age.”

“no, mama. my soulmate. he’s captain america.”

“oh. oh dear.”

“yeah.” tony picks up his fork and starts eating again. “i think i might just be better off dying alone.”

maria doesn’t know whether to laugh or cry. suddenly all the excessive whining from steve that howard has been telling her about makes a lot more sense. she knows that steve is a good man. maybe not perfect like howard always made him out to be. but kind, nonetheless. he would be good to tony, good for him, she’s sure. tony just needs to give him a chance.

but also, like she said, tony should be treasured. if steve wants to make up for how they started off, he needs to pull out all the stops. tony deserves nothing less than the best, after all. and to be honest, maria thinks she might enjoy watching steve grovel a bit. she’s also looking forward to making fun of howard for having such an idiot as a best friend and future son-in-law.

so she starts planning.

“tonio, darling, why don’t you stay over at the mansion tonight? ana was just saying we haven’t had brunch with you in ages.”

“sure, mama.”

under the table, she texts howard.

M: is steve still pouting about his life?

H: unfortunately. i’m just glad beer does nothing for him. i can’t imagine how much worse this all could be if he were drunk.

M: poor boy. maybe he’s also feeling a bit lonely. there are plenty of rooms in the mansion if he doesn’t want to go home to an empty apartment tonight.

H: he might like that. i’ll let him know.

[laurie-stark]

Chapter I: Secret's Keeper

A/N: RAHHHHHHHHHHH Cherry Bomb is finally yours. Thank you to everyone for the tremendous support and excitement leading up to the publication. You guys loving Laurie means more than I can express.

A special thank you to w1steriaa_for being Laurie's biggest cheerleader and also the best proofreader ever. Guys, please go give Amber's works a read bc she is so immensely talented and I could not have done this without her.

see you guys in two weeks for the next update! lots of love, m<3

Word count: 2.8k

Cherry Bomb Masterlist

Seven in the morning was an ungodly hour to expect a fourteen-year-old to pay attention to ninth-grade algebra. The bell had just rung and I was already sitting in the same spot I had been since January. I may be my father’s daughter, but Pepper Potts drilled punctuality into me like it was my life’s blood. And I’d grown up watching how stressed she would get every time Dad ran late for an event or press conference. Being Tony Stark’s personal assistant was hard enough, so I decided when I was still pretty young that being early was another way of being kind. It was the least I could do.

My classmates started to file into the room and take their seats. Despite it still being early in the morning, the New York City summer heat was well on its way. And it was only May. Being on the fourteenth floor of a really old building didn’t help either. But hey, I was not one to complain. I was just happy to be at school at all.

Kidding, of course. That was horseshit. It was mornings like these, when the humidity made it feel like I was underwater and I’d only gotten four hours of sleep because I had been studying for the history test I had next period, that I truly cursed my younger self for wanting to go to real school so badly. Being homeschooled made the most sense when I was younger. Dad was hardly ever in one city for longer than a month and he had crippling undiagnosed separation anxiety to me. So, I spent my childhood following him around the world. It was nice though. I had complete control over my education and my dad did a pretty good job of being involved, as much as a billionaire harlot with a small gambling addiction could. Naturally, Dad spent the most time on science stuff with me. He’d work in his lab on weapons, and then eventually the Iron Man suits, while I did spelling and math and science. It was nice, nearly perfect. As I got older, I think I began to realize my dad was definitely working overtime to be a better father than his was. And he was a really, really good dad. 

Homeschooling also meant that I had a lot more freedom and flexibility than the other kids my age. And where some kids do hard-core dance or varsity one sports, I would bother the Avengers over their intercom. So basically dance, if Tony Stark being a dance mom equated fighting by his daughter’s side to protect the people of New York…You get the gist. I was a registered agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. for a couple of years. It was never anything crazy, I just helped where I could. It started eight years ago, with Loki. Nick and his team knew virtually nothing about controlling the Tesseract and he thought me and my abilities would be helpful. They weren’t. So, Nick found other uses for me. 

The Battle of New York left me fairly shaken up and my parents were super against any active participation during missions. In between my schooling and singing lessons, I would help with the preparation: scouting locations, hacking enemy mainframes, anything that let me feel like I was truly a part of a team. I was always desperate to impress the adults in my life, to show them that I could be useful and worth something. That feeling sparked when I first met Nick Fury and it never truly went away. 

I liked being an agent. I liked being in on all the secrets, I liked helping people, and I loved working with the Avengers. Nat, Steve, Clint, Bruce, and Thor became family. Suddenly I wasn’t a lonesome only child whose only friend was her dad and his assistant. I was the guy in the chair, the one handing out coordinates and fallback plans. I had a purpose. 

Sokovia changed everything. I still had nightmares about what happened a year ago. I’d wake up in a sweat, feeling the phantom grip of metal fingers around my arm. I don’t think I’ll ever forget the sounds of screaming people I couldn’t save because I froze up. They died because I wasn’t strong enough. Dad put his foot down after that. He told me that what I was doing wasn’t good for me and he’d be a terrible father if he let me continue. He was right, but I was still angry about it. 

Real school was our compromise. If I wasn’t allowed to go on missions anymore then I needed someplace else to have a social life. It was pretty good timing too because I had just wrapped up the eighth grade curriculum. It took a lot of convincing and three PowerPoint presentations to finally convince my dad that being a normal kid in a normal school would be beneficial for me. He got me into Dalton and the rest was history.

However, what wasn’t history was the test on that very subject that was surely going to kill me next period. I spent the remainder of my math period going through my flashcards and study notes. I wasn’t alone, nearly half of the class was in the same boat as me. And if they studied as much as I had, then we were all fried. 

…

Halfway through my history test, I knew I was screwed because all I could think about was lunch. Every factoid about Greek history was clouded with fantasies about turkey avocado sandwiches. There was a little French sandwich place just down the road from my school and it was my favourite. The owner was a true French man from a town just outside Paris and he let me practice my French with him. I spent at least two lunch periods a week being ruthlessly criticized by a middle-aged man, but that made it more authentic. I wasn’t super fluent, but I knew enough to hold a conversation, or at least get through a conversation with Emery. But French was not going to help me pass this history test and I was beginning to recall all my knowledge of Percy Jackson as a last resort. 

Forty-five minutes later, I gathered all my dignity and shame and walked my test up to the front of the room. I handed it off to my history teacher, who gave me a grim smile. My classmates seemed to be just as stone-faced as I was and I think we were all hopeful that our teacher would curve the grade. 

I rocked on the balls of my heels outside the classroom door, waiting for my two best friends to finish their tests. When I first started at Dalton, making friends was a challenge. Quite a few of the student body had been attending the school since kindergarten, so their relationships had been forged nearly a decade ago. I didn’t have an abhorrent amount of friends; I knew enough people to say hi when we passed in the halls or have someone to sit with in the cafeteria. I would have been content with just that, but I was fortunate enough to have made two wonderful best friends. 

Like many of the numerous friendship pacts, Brianna Sinclair and Meredith Camden had been best friends since their preschool days. We met briefly during freshman orientation, but it was first-semester theatre class when we really got close. Brianna and I were both huge theatre nerds and she was quick to sit at the desk next to mine. She was a redhead with the spirit to match the fiery hair. She loved performing and astrology, and she was definitely the epitome of an Aries. It wasn’t long before she introduced me to Meredith and we all became happy chums. 

Meredith Camden was perfect. She was the only freshman I knew who was already planning her senior year class presidency. And, she was the most beautiful girl I had ever seen, and I don’t even like girls. Meredith was a true stunner, from her long, silky coils to her perfectly smooth dark complexion. She was kind as well. Even though I met Brianna first, Meredith was the one who really made me feel welcome at Dalton. At first, I was apprehensive about making a trio out of an already tight-knit pair, but Meredith always made sure I felt included. And soon enough we were as thick as thieves. 

Post-test stress had kicked in while I waited for the girls. I used my thumb to rub circles into the centre of my palm, switching back and forth between my hands. When I caught a glimpse of red, my back straightened. 

“How bad was that?” I asked.

Brianna swung her ponytail over her shoulders. “That was the dumbest thing I’ve ever done,” she huffed.

“It wasn’t that bad,” Meredith chimed in softly. “Everything that was on there was in our notes.”

“I was up until like three in the morning studying and I still think I failed,” I said as we began to walk towards the stairs to our next period. 

“Well studies do show that quality of sleep greatly impacts test performance, maybe next time you should prioritize getting a good night’s rest and study more in the morning.” 

Brianna rolled her eyes playfully at Meredith’s info dump. 

I smiled at her. “I’ll give that a try.” 

We squeezed through the flood of students walking around us and I slunk back behind the girls to give us some more room.

“So what are we doing today? Shop along Park? I think Madison Beaucard is having people over. Oh, we could go to the flower market, I have been dying to get my hands on fresh tulips now that they’re in season.” Brianna’s hands were flying around as she talked. 

“Right now?” I asked.

“No, stupid,” Brianna teased.  “After school.”

“Be nice,” Meredith chimed in. Brianna shot a playful look at the other girl.

“We finally, finally finished the renovations on the indoor pool yesterday so you guys could come over to test it out!” Meredith offered. Her family had been chipping away at that project for as long as I’d known her for. 

Brianna tugged on Meredith’s arm excitedly. “Oh my gosh, yes! We are so doing that.” She turned around to face me, still hanging off of Meredith. “You in, Laur?” 

I smiled but heaved a high. “Sorry Bri, I wish I could, but my family is gonna want me home right after school.”

“Of course, how silly of me,” Brianna feigned an English accent. “It’s Wednesday.” 

“Are you sure your Dad wouldn’t miss you just for one week?” Meredith pouted. 

“I’m sorry dude, it’s out of my hands.”

“Ugh, your parents are no fun.” 

I smiled inwardly. “You know I’d be hanging out with you guys in a heartbeat if I could.” 

To Meredith and Brianna, Wednesdays meant I had “family time” immediately after school each week. If it were any other day I would have happily tagged along for shopping or swimming or whatever new activity Brianna found on Instagram was. But Wednesdays were always signed off. 

The truth was that I had training at the compound. Although my dad was firm about pulling my involvement with S.H.I.E.L.D., he allowed me to go Upstate once a week to do drills with Nat. Natasha Romanoff had been training me in hand-to-hand combat since I was seven or eight. She said it was important that I knew how to protect myself. At first, it was just for fun, but with how defenceless I’d felt in the last few years,  I started to get more serious about it. 

There was also the small matter of superhuman powers that I had very little control over. They showed up when I was seven, pretty soon after my father was kidnapped and held hostage overseas. They say it was the trauma and intense emotionality that triggered my powers being awoken. But my knowledge of the powers ended there. My father absolutely refused to let Nick Fury or his team study me or study the things I could do. Which, if I was honest, was a good call on his part, but it did leave me living with a lot of questions. From what we could tell, it was some sort of gravitational and elemental manipulation; the product of experiments my birth mother ran on me as an infant. I tried not to think about that too much, though. I just knew that when I feel things too hard, the powers can get out of control. It was pretty scary, and really confusing as a kid. But thankfully the Avengers found an expert.

Wanda Maximoff has been a great help in the last few months. Training with Nat became also training with Wanda after Ultron and the destruction of Sokovia. Her powers are very different from mine, but she approached me after she moved into the compound to see if I wanted her help. I remember I had woken up in the middle of the night to my bedroom at the compound looking like a storm had passed through. I must have been having another nightmare and set myself off in my sleep. After I did my best to put the room back in order through tears, I found myself on the roof of the compound, looking out at the stars. Wanda found me sitting out there. Turned out she was having similar dreams. She asked me about my powers, I asked her about hers and soon enough she was offering skills and advice and suggesting I start honing in on training. It had been about a year since then and my control had gotten a lot better. But of course, this was all a humongous secret I was keeping from my friends. One secret wasn’t too bad though. 

“I was thinking we haven’t done our monthly movie marathon sleepover this month,” Meredith pointed out as we took our seats. The three of us had history and English class together this semester. “Laurie, is your place free?”

And there was the other shoe. Secret superhero shenanigans weren’t the only thing I kept from Meredith and Brianna. I was also under strict orders to pretend that I didn’t exist. Or rather, pretend that Laurie Stark didn’t exist. 

Sometime after the battle of New York, probably during all the stuff with the Mandalorian, my dad asked Nick Fury to erase me from existence. It was a safety thing. Somewhere between aliens and terrorists attacking our house over and over, my dad decided he needed to take a more proactive role in my general safety. Hazards of the job, he called it. I understood, I guess, but it just meant there were even more secrets to keep. I was enrolled in school as Laurel Potts. My private social media accounts were under that same name, and I even carried a fake learner’s permit with the alias. I always felt really guilty when I had to turn down bringing friends over or lying about why they had never met my parents, but the secrets kept me safe. And they offered me freedom. Win some, lose some. 

“Sorry guys, our kitchen is undergoing a huge reno,” I blurted out the lie. “My dad has been super into…dutch ovens?”

I could tell they didn't believe me but they shrugged it off. Guilt panged at my heart and I rubbed at the centre of my palm again. When it was just me and my dad and our small world, I could be anything. And as much as I loved being out in society like a normal teenage girl, I wished I could live it authentically. 

The girls snuck a look at each other they thought I wouldn’t see. I could almost hear the best friend telepathy going off. They were definitely thinking I must not want them around. With their backs to me, I felt my shoulders begin to tense. My girls had never once made me feel out of place since starting at the Dalton, but I had never been oblivious to the fact that three was a crowd. 

I turned away from my friends when our English teacher pulled the class’s attention to the front of the room. We started our lesson on writing comparative analysis essays, but the only thing I was analyzing was the body language of the girls beside me. The pinch of my thumbnail against my palm was enough to bring me back to the present, and I forced myself to focus on worrying about that rotten history test instead…