Just A Nerd Lost in Space

It was obvious that SHIELD’s medical wing was not meant for young patients. Tony mentally scoffed when he saw someone had tried to hastily put up colorful posters and pictures on the walls in a sad attempt to make the usually stoic and sleek hallways appear more warm and cozy.

It was just Tony and the doctor walking down the corridor to Peter’s room- Fury had left to continue to deal with the aftershocks of finding a still-operating HYDRA base.

Dr. Helames slowed down to stop in front of a door at the end of the dead end hallway. “And here we are,” She smiled, and Tony felt grateful that she didn’t comment on his obviously-nervous appearance. “I’m going to go in with you but I’ll step out once Peter feels comfortable enough with you.”

“Right,” Tony said, taking a deep breath. Part of him was begging to just bolt and never look back, but Tony locked those feelings up behind steel doors. He refused to be a coward and just abandon his child. He was not Howard Stark.

“Just as a reminder, he does have enhanced senses so try to keep your voice low. We had to make his door and walls soundproof because he kept hearing noises from even outside of the base.”

Tony didn’t even know what to say towards that so instead he just nodded tightly. Dr. Helames smiled again, this time more understanding, before gently opening the door.

Once it was open enough she poked her head inside the room and in a soft voice called out, “Peter? May I come in?” She paused for a moment, obviously waiting for the kid to respond. He must have given a positive reaction because the doctor then asked, “I also brought a friend to visit you, is it ok if he comes in?”

This time the kid’s response came out much more hesitant, but the doctor waited patiently. It was obvious that Dr. Helames was trying to allow Peter to have the chance to make choices for himself, which made sense; his captors hadn’t most likely allowed the kid to make any decisions on what was happening to him. Tony mentally noted to give the kid choices for simple things in the future.

Tony shifted his weight as he waited for Peter’s decision. If he was being honest with himself he hadn’t even thought there was a chance that the kid would refuse to meet with him today. If Peter decided to send him away right now Tony wouldn’t hold it against him- he clearly remembered how he barely wanted to meet with random people after returning home from his own kidnapping. Regardless, Tony had promised himself he wouldn’t give up on the kid, and if there was one thing Stark men were good at it was keeping their promises.

Dr. Helames’s grateful voice brought Tony out of his musings. “Perfect, we’re going to come in then,” She said, opening the door wider to allow herself in. She turned back to look at Tony, who was still rooted in his spot just outside the room. She smiled reassuringly as she gestured with a tip of her head for him to come inside. Before Tony could talk himself out of it he squared his shoulders and joined her inside the room.

As much as Tony had been trying to prepare himself for this moment it seemed as if it were all in vein as he still felt his hands tremble and the air leave his lungs in a quick release as soon as he spotted the boy on the bed. The kid was absolutely tiny, smaller than what Tony had been expecting. The boy’s hair was longer than in all the pictures Tony had seen previously, and it curled sweetly near the nape of his head. But what Tony couldn’t help but notice most of all was how bright the kid’s eyes were- and how they were the exact shade of Tony’s own.

Peter had his head cocked to the side in obvious confusion and with a hint of fear. He looked quickly between Dr. Helames and Tony, before deciding to settle his gaze on the stranger in front of him. Tony knew the exact moment that Peter seemed to recognize him when he saw the kid’s eyes widen while he sucked in a quick gasp.

“Peter, I’d like you to meet a good friend of mine,” Dr. Helames announced but Tony didn’t even spare a glance at her; his gaze was stuck firmly on the little boy in front of him who looked seconds away from bolting. “This is Tony Stark. Tony, this is Peter.”

“H-hey kid,” Tony stuttered out, and part of him was embarrassed at how emotional he sounded in front of the doctor. However, a bigger part of him could care less how he sounded because he was finally meeting his son! Maybe it was creepy but Tony couldn’t stop staring at the kid. He drank in every feature of the boy as if he were about to go blind; he tried to memorize every little detail the kid’s face while he silently realized that holy crap! Tony had somehow helped make this beautiful, perfect creature in front of him. The genius was usually proud of the things he created and invented but he could already tell that the title for his best (greatest) creation would always belong to the tiny boy in front of him.

Tony watched in trepidation as the boy raised a small hand and waved hesitantly. Tony felt a watery smile on his lips as he waved back.

“Peter,” Dr. Helames said, snapping the boys attention back to her for a moment. “I have to go check on other patients, but is it ok if Mr. Stark here keeps you company until I come back?”

Tony was expecting more hesitation from Peter but was surprised when the kid nodded eagerly, eyes much brighter if that was even possible. Dr. Helames beamed. “Perfect! Then I’ll be back in a few minutes.” And with that she silently exited the room, but not before shooting Tony a small wink. Tony turned back towards the kid when he heard the door click shut behind him.

The room lapsed into an awkward silence as the kid nervously fixed his eyes down to his blanketed lap while Tony just continued to gaze at the boy. He saw the kid’s eyes peek up shyly before shooting back down towards his lap when he saw that the man was still staring at him. Tony internally groaned. Great, not even five full minutes and I’m already scaring my kid. Great job, genius, he berated himself.

He forced himself to stop staring and instead glanced around the room. With a quirk of his lips he commented, “Not exactly a five star hotel, huh?”

His heart almost came to a stop when the kid gave the most delicate giggle he ever heard. Peter looked up to meet Tony’s eyes as he smiled timidly. He pointed a finger towards a chair next to the bed as he stared imploringly at Tony.

The billionaire raised an eyebrow as he smiled softly. “Do you want me to sit there?” Peter bobbed his head, clearly glad that the man could easily tell what he wanted. Tony could feel his heart melt as he moved to sit in the chair. “Alright, thanks for the seat, kiddo,”

Peter bashfully bowed his head as he fidgeted with his blankets. From the closer angle Tony could observe some of the kid’s finer features. He could see how the kid’s eyelashes were long like his own and how slight freckles dotted his nose and cheeks. There was a light scar on the side of his chin and Tony couldn’t help but wonder if it came from before or after his time with HYDRA.

Tony’s eyes drifted to the bedside table at Peter’s other side of the bed and noticed there was a small model Empire State Building made out of Lego blocks. “You build that?” Tony asked, making sure to keep his voice warm and quiet. Peter looked up and nodded, a slight blush staining his cheeks as he continued to stare at his lap. “Wow, it looks really good! I couldn’t have made a better one even if I tried.”

It was an obvious lie and Tony internally winced at how forced his exclamation sounded. He wasn’t used to interacting with kids, especially ones as young as Peter, so he didn’t even have a baseline on what to say to the kid. Regardless of how stiff Tony sounded the kid started to uncurl on the bed, turning to face the man next to him. The boy bit his lip and pointed towards a box next to the Lego Empire State Building, looking hopefully up at Tony. The genius melted on the spot.

“Do you want me to grab it?” Another shy nod from the kid. “Alright, hold on.” Tony reached across the bed and grabbed the box, handing it over to Peter slowly so he wouldn’t scare the kid. Peter took it and opened the box, showing the contents to the billionaire. Tony saw that the box was filled to the brim with various Lego pieces, blocks, and cars. The boy picked up a little orange sports car and started to spin its wheels as he cocked his head at Tony.

“What’re you thinking, kiddo?” Tony asked and immediately wanted to smack himself. The doctor had told him the boy was practically mute after the trauma he had faced, why would he suddenly answer Tony of all people?

Peter blinked at the question before his eyes drifted to Tony’s chest. He reached forwards and tried to touch the Arc Reactor. Reacting on instinct Tony flinched away, causing the boy to stiffen and pull his arm backwards, quickly lowering his head and looking as if he were waiting to get hit. Tony’s heart clenched as he regarded the boy in regret. It seemed that Tony was doomed to continue to make stupid mistakes and keep scaring his kid away

“Sorry kid, you just… uh surprised me is all,” Tony started. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you. Can you please look at me again?”

Peter gnawed at his lower lip but ultimately peered up at Tony. His previously bright eyes had dulled slightly as started to spin his car’s wheels faster. Tony tried to offer him a soft and comforting smile. “Do you want to see my Arc Reactor?”

Peter’s eyes widened but he didn’t offer a nod or shake of his head. Reading the expression on the boy’s face Tony assumed that the kid wanted to see the reactor but didn’t want to admit it in case it made Tony upset. Taking a deep breath Tony decided to lower his shirt so the kid could look at the reactor clearly.

Tony tried not to squirm as the boy studied the Arc Reactor in silence. He wasn’t exactly a fan of showing people what had basically kept him alive for the past year (and also what had very nearly killed him), but he swallowed the discomfort in order to make his son (still not freaking used to that) less apprehensive.

Peter lifted his eyes to meet Tony’s gaze before he very slowly lifted the hand that wasn’t holding the toy car. The kid cautiously reached to touch the Arc Reactor while still holding Tony’s gaze. It was obvious that Peter was trying to give Tony a chance to move away again if he needed to, and that made the genius’s previously cold heart flutter as he realized how empathetic his son was.

Tony allowed Peter to touch the Arc Reactor. He was expecting the child to push hard against it but instead Peter just lightly grazed his finger over the top of it. The kid smiled as he looked over the Arc Reactor before leaning back and away from the billionaire. Tony pulled up his shirt once he was sure the kid didn’t want to continue to study the reactor. Smiling slightly he questioned, “You’re a fan of Iron Man, aren’t you?”

Peter grinned widely and motioned to a shelf on the opposite wall. From here Tony could barely make out a child’s version of the Iron Man helmet, which for some reason looked vaguely familiar but Tony wasn’t sure why. Tony couldn’t stop his own grin from forming on his lips when he realized that his son was actually a fan of his alter ego. The idea made Tony feel warm inside.

“Well, I guess he is the best hero out there,” Tony teased, causing the kid to giggle again as he continued to play with his toy car on the bed. Tony felt the last of the previous tension uncoil from his stomach as he decided that yes, his kid had the most adorable little giggle out there.

“And why are you laughing?” Tony asked in mock offense, making sure it was obvious that he was kidding by widening his smile. Peter looked up at him with starstruck eyes so Tony figured he was doing a good job of it. “You don’t believe I’m the best superhero, kiddo?”

Peter rapidly shook his head, giggles growing louder. It was at that moment that Tony knew that he had fallen deeply in love with the boy in front of him, and that without even trying the kid had seamlessly wrapped the billionaire tightly around his finger. If the kid asked for the moon right then and there Tony would have probably called up the head of NASA to ask how to buy the moon just to keep that beautiful smile on his son’s face.

Peter’s eyes snapped to the door and before Tony could as if something was wrong he heard a soft knock. A second later Dr. Helames poked her head in the room. “Everything ok in here, boys?”

“Yeah,” Tony confirmed, shooting a small smile with Peter that the boy slowly returned. “Everything’s going great, doc, I think me and Petey here are getting along swimmingly.”

Peter flushed and and lowered his head, but Tony could see the timid ghost of a smile on that precious little face. God, he was sounding so sappy but Tony didn’t care; he absolutely already adored this kid with his whole heart.

“I’m glad to hear that,” Dr. Helames replied truthfully. “But unfortunately it’s time for Peter to take a nap, he’s still healing and the medication we have to give him will make him drowsy.”

Peter’s expression completely changed at those words and he turned wide eyes towards Tony. The genius’s chest tightened when he saw the honest distress in those doe-brown eyes, but he knew logically that the kid was still healing so he needed all the rest he could have.

Still, Tony reached a cautious hand to lay on Peter’s shoulder. “Don’t look so sad, kiddie, sleeps important. Or, at least I’ve been told that,” Tony gave an exaggerated eye roll, earning a watery giggle from Peter. “How about this: You take a nice nap, and I’ll come visit you again really soon?”

A tear slipped from Peter’s eye and Tony, without even thinking about it, reached up to wipe it away. He froze, and was about to apologize until Peter leaned into Tony’s hand against his cheek. The boy pursed his lips and held up a hand, pinky out.

Tony blinked and the realized what the kid meant. If possible his chest warmed even more as he asked, “You want me to pinky promise, kid?” Peter nodded and stared at Tony wordlessly. “Fair enough, pinky promises are pretty unbreakable I guess.” Tony moved his hand away from the kids face as he wrapped his pinky around Peter’s much smaller one. The kid beamed up at him and Tony returned the expression. The kid put his little car back into the box and leaned away to put it on the bedside table.

Tony quietly stood up and watched as the kid got comfortable on the bed. The kid waved at him again so Tony waved back. “See you later, kiddo, have wonderful dreams.” Peter watched owlishly as Tony went towards the door. The billionaire paused before he turned back to the kid.

“I’m really glad I got to meet you, kiddie, and I can’t wait to see you again.” The last thing Tony saw before he closed the door to his son’s room was Peter’s bright eyes.

“Where exactly are we going?” Tony asked from the passenger seat, pulling off his sunglasses to raise an eyebrow at Fury. “I thought SHIELD headquarters were in DC, not the middle of nowhere.”

“We figured that out headquarters wasn't exactly a child friendly location, especially for a recently traumatized child.” Fury responded evenly. “On top of that, the HYDRA base that the kid was being held in was found nearby from here. It didn’t make sense to transport him all the way to the East Coast with how hurt he was. Instead, we decided to keep him at a smaller safe house that SHIELD has for Wit-Sec purposes.”

“Fair enough,” Tony allowed, taking out a tablet to finally look through Peter’s file. Before they had left his Malibu mansion Fury had sent Tony Peter’s personal file to his StarkPad. The file was put together by a SHIELD agent and was supposed to give details on Peter’s known childhood and portions of what HYDRA had done to him.

For a good amount of the car ride Tony had steadfast ignored the file. On one hand he did want to know more about his son (and wow, he still wasn’t used to saying that), but on the other hand he didn’t know if he could mentally take reading about how his previously unknown son was tortured before he even reached his tenth birthday.

In the end logic won over sentiment; if Tony was meeting his kid for the first time he needed to at least have some background on Peter.

The beginning of the record was straight forward: It listed Peter’s date of birth (8/10/01), primary location of residence (Forest Hills in Queens, New York City, Tony noted with interest- it seemed that Peter was a city boy), and physical descriptions.

Tony’s breath caught in his throat when he saw that there was another picture of Peter after the second page of the file. In this new picture Peter looked even younger than in the picture Fury had shoved at him in his house. The kid here looked like he was probably around five or six years of age in the picture, with wild curly hair and a shy smile on his face. He was dressed nicely, and Tony guessed that it was a school picture.

Tony tried to ignore how his heart was clenching in some sort of foreign emotion (Tony refused to call it parental affection- he hadn’t even met the kid yet!) as his eyes soaked in every detail of his son’s little face. While there were parts of his face that strongly resembled Mary’s face (or at least what Tony remembered of Mary’s face), there was also a quite staggering amount of features that resembled Tony’s. The billionaire couldn’t stop the warm feeling spreading through his chest when he realized that the boy had the same shade of brown eyes that Tony had, and a similar looking chin. The kid was a tad paler than Tony, and his hair looked as if it curled much more than Tony’s own hair, but there was enough of a resemblance that the kid almost looked like what Tony did at that age.

Blinking away the heat that was growing behind his eyes (he would not cry- Stark men were made of iron, as his dad used to say, and they did not cry), he compelled himself to turn the page and continue reading.

The next section went into great detail of what exactly the HYDRA scientists had done on the little boy. The more and more Tony read the more he wanted to scream in anger and sorrow as he was forced to confront the reality that those sick assholes had actually tortured and experimented on his young child. Words like starvation, surgery, minimal anesthetics, beatings, and other terrible phrases assaulted Tony’s eyes, but the genius forced himself to read on. While the file was far from complete, there was enough information for Tony to guess at least a fraction of what Peter had had to endure.

Whoever compiled this file together had attempted to make some sort of timeline of events. It seemed that for the first few days that HYDRA had Peter in their grasp they had just tested his natural abilities. They noted that the boy was small for his age (only 44 inches and 48 pounds on the first day) with a variety of health issues like asthma and a severe astigmatism. However, after only five days they had moved onto the next phase: actually mutating the kid’s genes. Tony’s eyebrows steadily climbed upwards as he read about their procedure.

“What the Hell?” Tony broke the silence in the car. “So they created a radioactive spider and had it bite him? What the Hell, I know my specialty isn’t in the genetics field, but how is that even possible!”

“You're asking the wrong guy,” Fury grunted, turning the car onto a gravel road. “I didn’t understand half the shit in the medical part of that record.”

“Wonderful,” Tony muttered. He read on and finally got the page that seemed most important for the situation at hand: how Peter was dealing with the trauma of the past month.

This section was very obviously written by Peter’s therapist as it focused mostly on the kid’s mental state. Child is showcasing a common occurance of selective mutism, the genius read with growing apprehension. Because of his enhanced senses, all light and sound around him are “too loud,” meaning that great care should be taken in order to not cause the boy further pain. Along with this, child has displayed severe night terrors, causing him to remain awake in spite of the clear exhaustion in his body.

Triggers noted so far: white lab coats, surgical masks, the smell of bleach, and moving too quickly/loudly. Because of the severe starvation the child faced while in captivity, his stomach has shrunk and he has trouble eating normally. Extra fluids and nutrients should be given to him by IV as his enhanced metabolism does require more nutrients than average. With a more stable environment it is possible that the child could come terms with the PTSD he is facing, along with any other issues. Further talks are needed with Agent Fury and other members of the counsel.

As Tony closed the tablet and practically threw it to the back seating area he once again asked himself how the Hell he was supposed to help this kid. Not just any kid, his mind chimed in. He’s your son, can’t forget about that! Howard’s probably laughing in his grave over what a complete failure you’re going to be as a father.

Tony couldn’t help but grimace at that thought. One of his biggest fears was still the thought that he would one day end up like Howard: bitter, drunk, alone, and not giving a damn about the people around him. And as Fury parked the car inside of an abandoned looking building Tony made himself a promise right then and there: He would make sure that Peter always understood that he was worth something, unlike how Howard had made Tony feel when he was a young child. Tony’s son deserved the world after everything he had been through, and Tony would make sure to give it to him.

“Gotta admit, this is a pretty neat place,” Tony said as he took in the location. After getting out of the car Fury had motioned him to a nondescript door within what appeared to be an abandoned mill factory. However, it was obviously more than what it seemed because after Fury had put his hand against the wall (Biometric scanner? Tony wondered, curious despite the situation) the door slid opened, revealing a sleek elevator.

The elevator had taken them to what Tony assumed to be a fully functioning and modern underground SHIELD base. There weren’t as many agents like there usually were in the DC headquarters, but there were more than what Tony had expected to find here. A few looked up as Fury and Tony passed through the corridors, but the majority just continued on with their assignments.

“This is one of our bases that’s more… off the books,” Fury told Tony as he led him through the halls of the base. “The only ones who work here are the ones I have personally vetted.”

Tony nodded in approval. “Smart move. How many people know about my k- about the kid,” He stuttered out.

Fury didn’t comment on what he almost said, however, instead answering, “Just me, Romanoff, two more highly trusted agents of mine, and three doctors who have helped to treat the boy.” Fury paused before continuing in a quieter voice, “And of those who who know about your… relation to the child, only I, Romanoff, and Peter’s doctor-therapist know the truth.”

“That’s good,” Tony breathed, relieved. He wanted to keep the news of his newfound son from as many people as possible. The kid was already in danger from HYDRA, Tony didn’t want to add his own personal enemies into the mix, enemies that would love an easier target to take out the “Invincible” Iron Man as the press had dubbed him.

“I assumed you wanted to keep Peter’s existence as much of a secret as possible,” Fury remarked as they finally arrived to what appeared to be a medical wing.

“Yeah, I don’t need the press or anyone else hounding this kid just because he’s related to me,” Tony sighed. That was always the downside to his fame and fortune- how the media and public would scrutinize his every move, just waiting for him to stumble and fall.

Fury held up a hand to stop Tony in front of a pair of wooden doors. “I know that you are eager to meet Peter, but it’s probably best if you see Dr. Helames first, just so you know what to expect with Peter and what not to say.”

Tony slowly nodded. “Whatever you say.”

Fury knocked on the door and opened them once he heard a female voice call out a cheerful “Come in!” Tony walked in behind Fury and noticed an older woman sitting behind a simple desk doing paperwork. She looked up as Fury closed the door.

“Nick,” She smiled, getting up to pull him into a hug. “Wasn’t expecting to see you so quickly!”

“I did tell you I work fast,” Fury responded with a genuine smile after returning the hug. He lifted a hand and motioned towards Tony. “Celida, you obviously know who he is.”

The doctor chuckled as she reached to give a handshake to Tony. “Yes yes, Tony Stark. I wish we could be meeting in better circumstances, but my name is Dr. Celida Helames.”

“Pleasure to meet you,” Tony said, giving her a professional smile.

“I’m assuming you’ve brought him here to meet Peter,” Dr. Helames told Fury as she went back to sit behind her desk. Both Fury and Tony took seats across from her.

“Yes I told him about their relationship,” Fury commented as he glanced over at Tony. “He wanted to meet the child as soon as possible.”

“Is this true,” Dr. Helames asked Tony seriously, one eyebrow raised behind thick glasses. “He’s not forcing you to do this, correct?”

“No,” Tony answered firmly, a little surprised at how quickly his response came out. “I’m here out of my own free will, Fury told me that this kid is my son but I want to meet him regardless of the fact.”

Dr. Helames’s face softened as she smiled at Tony. “Good. I just wanted to make sure that you know what you’re getting yourself into because you won’t be able to back out later on. It would just be cruel for little Peter.”

“Actually I have no clue what I’m doing,” Tony admitted as he leaned back against his chair. “But this kid is my son, and I’m not just going to abandon him like he’s nothing. He needs help, and while my life isn’t exactly going great right now I do want to help Peter.”

Dr. Helames blew out a soft breath as she took off her glasses to clean them with the end of her cardigan. “I’m truly glad to hear that, Mr. Stark. Because I’m not going to sugar coat it, Peter is not in a good spot right now. He might be physically healing but mentally is a whole other story. Did you read his file yet?”

“I did,” Tony confirmed.

“Then you know some things but not everything,” Dr. Helames announced, putting on her glasses to pin Tony down with a serious stare. “The child currently refuses to speak at all. When he was first rescued he didn’t even communicate at all, we were actually concerned if he had a brain injury or that he was deaf. But over the past couple of days he has started to communicate in small ways, like pointing a toy he wants or if he’s tired. It’s not uncommon for a child to become mute after a traumatic experience, but it is concerning on how withdrawn he is.

“I wish I could say otherwise but it’s still very much touch and go with him. We’ve done what we can for him but we can tell he is not fully comfortable here. The poor thing probably associates medical areas with where he was tortured and experimented on. It also doesn’t help that he is still dealing with the physical consequences of his DNA being mutated on top of his mental trauma.”

Tony blew out a shaky breath as he stared at the opposite wall. When he turned back to look at the doctor she had a look of sympathy on her face. “I’m not trying to scare you away, Mr. Stark, believe me. I just want you to know about the hard road of recovery that Peter will be facing. It won’t be easy, at times it will be immensely frustrating and distressing. But Peter does need the support of someone, and you are his only blood relative left. You need to understand that you must be in for this for the long haul.”

The room descended into silence as Tony stared at the floor in thought. Tony wasn’t exactly surprised that a part of him began to suggest that he just get up and walk away from this whole situation. He had never known he had a child before, and he didn’t necessarily need one in his life now. Of course Tony would make sure the child was taken care off and landed in a safe home. Tony could just watch the boy grow up from afar, away from the terrible influence that was his father.

But a much larger side of Tony blanched at the thought of doing that. He had promised before leaving his Malibu home that he would be there for his son, unlike how his own father had never been there for him as a child. And, as Tony glared at the floor, he realized with growing shock that a big part of himself actually wanted to be father. He wanted to have a child to guide and care for, he wanted to come home to a little one that he had to protect and spoil rotten. He wanted to give his son the childhood he had never received. With that in mind he looked at Dr. Helames in the eyes with newfound determination.

“Trust me, doc, I completely understand. I don’t care if it takes him 20 years to heal from this, I want to be there for him. I want to be there for my son.”

“Sorry to interrupt sir, but Nick Fury is currently at the door. Should I let him in?” JARVIS’s calm voice echoed throughout the lab that Tony was working in.

Without even looking up from where he was drawing up schematics for a new suit Tony rolled his eyes. “What else could the pirate want with me at this point?”

JARVIS was silent for a moment before responding, “He says the matter is rather urgent, and that he needs to speak to you face to face.”

“Isn’t it always urgent?” Tony sighed, but nonetheless put down the StarkPad he was holding and began to make his way to the lab doors. “Alright J, let him into the main foyer and tell him I’ll be up in a minute.”

“Of course, sir,” JARVIS said as Tony changed into a cleaner shirt. He walked up the stairs and into the foyer where he saw Fury sitting on one of the chairs.

“Missed me already, Jack Ryan?” Tony couldn’t help but snark as he leaned against a wall. “Or you here to tell me again how bad of a team player I am.”

For once Fury didn’t rise to the bait. Instead he looked weary and just stared at Tony. The billionaire couldn’t help but tense slightly. Whatever Fury was here for was obviously not just a quick social greeting.

“Save it Stark,” The man began. He looked around before glancing back at Tony. “Is it just us here?”

“Yes,” Tony admitted, cocking his head as he stared at the older man. “What’s up, you look like you’re here to tell me the world is ending soon.”

Fury chuckled mirthlessly as he got up to stare out of a nearby window. “Oh trust me, it just might be. But that’s actually not why I’m here.” He turned around to peer at Tony with a sharp gaze. “What I’m about to say might either ruin your life or enhance it. Whatever the case, it will definitely change your life.”

“Can you stop being cryptic for once in your life,” Tony snapped, patience wearing thin. He could already feel his heart begin to race as he waited for whatever news the man needed to say.

Fury exhaled sharply through his nose before turning back to stare out the window. “About a  month ago,” He started in a grave voice, “SHIELD got word of a nearby HYDRA base. We survilanced them for about a week before deciding it was viable to just raid the base with a small squad of agents. They were easy to take out, and so we began to look through their files and base for any information on other HYDRA sects. We were expecting to find many different things, all bad of course, hidden away in their base.  What we did not expect to find was a little boy shackled in one of their cells. He had been beaten, tortured, and experimented on for at least a month.”

“Jesus,” Tony muttered, beginning to pace the room. Memories of his own time in captivity were beginning to come back, and he could practically feel the phantom pain of the car battery again. He didn’t want to imagine a poor kid going through that. “How young we talking here?”

“Nine years old, ten next month,” Fury answered as he watched Tony pace the room.

“How could anyone do that to a kid,” Tony wondered out loud in anger, eyes blazing as he met Fury’s eye.

All Fury did was shrug tiredly. “In my line of work people don’t care about hurting kids. HYDRA wanted information, and they were getting it regardless if they had to torture this boy.”

“Not to be rude,” Tony interrupted as tried to take calming breaths. His right hand was beginning to tremble from the stress again and he didn’t want Fury to see an ounce of weakness from him. “But why are you telling me this? Didn’t you already tell me you didn’t just want me working too closely with SHIELD? Just a consultant, remember?”

Fury clasped his hands behind his back as he pinned Tony with an unreadable expression on his face. “I believe you can help this kid.”

“Come again?” Tony raised a disbelieving eyebrow at the man.

Fury rolled his good eye as he too took a seat. “I said I believe you can help this kid.”

Tony gazed at Fury a moment longer before scoffing at the man. “This really isn’t the time to be joking around, Fury.”

The spy held up his hands as he leaned back against his chair. “I never play around, Stark. I truly believe that you can help this child. Moreover, I believe you are one of the only ones that can take care of this child.”

“How the Hell am I supposed to help some kid when half the time my own life is crashing and burning,” Tony asked, incredulous that Fury was thinking that he could possibly take care of some little boy that he didn’t even know. There was a reason why Tony’s life was practically always falling a part, why the closest people around him either died or left him. It wouldn’t be fair to bring some kid into the mix of his crazy life, especially after Afghanistan.

Fury took a deep breath as looked at Tony with a hint of pity. “Because, Tony, his name is Peter and he’s your son.”

“... Excuse me,” Tony hoarsely said, stomach flip flopping as his ears rang. He didn’t even attempt to stop his hand from trembling as he absorbed Fury’s words, clear shock on his face. “That’s not- there’s no way-”

“It’s true, Stark,” Fury stated as he picked up his phone. He played around with it for a moment before handing it over to Tony. The billionaire saw that the screen had picture of a little boy who looked much younger than ten. The boy had giant doe-brown eyes, curly brown hair, and a bright smile. Tony noticed with a start that he looked very much similar to how Tony looked at that age.

“His name is Peter Benjamin Parker,” Fury repeated, watching closely as Tony continued to stare down at the screen. “Born August 10, 2001, mother’s name was Mary Fitzgerald Parker.”

“Mary Fitzgerald?” Tony echoed weakly. “I had a fling with her around January of 2000.”

“Then the timeline seems to match up from my understanding,” Fury said with a tip of his head. “Peter was born two months premature. Mary was on break from her longtime fiancee when she potentially met you. We’re not sure if she or her husband Richard Parker knew you were the father of the child. Whatever the case, Richard was written down as the father on the birth certificate.”

“Then how do you know he’s mine,” Tony wondered, finally looking up from the picture of the boy (his son?! ).

“We ran a blood test on him,” Fury informed him. “Some agents of mine had interrogated HYDRA scientists found on site who revealed that they had mutated Peter’s DNA. We ran a blood test to look over the mutation and to see if there were any… adverse effects. We also ran his DNA to find the identity of any remaining family. That’s when the DNA came back positive that he was your son. A 99.9% probability.”

“Could the result have been a fluke?” Tony asked, almost pleading with the man across from him.

Fury shook his head slowly. “We ran the test five times to be sure. Peter is your son.”

Tony lifted a trembling hand to cover his mouth. Screwing his eyes shut he turned away from Fury. This can’t be happening, his mind screamed at him. But it is, another calmer voice answered. You have a son you didn’t know about. You have a son that was tortured and experimented on. You have a son that you abandoned, you’re no better than Howard.

Tony squeezed his eyes tighter in order to hold back the tears that were building up. All his life he knew that he never wanted children, didn’t want to risk being the type of father that Howard had been. And yet here he was, being told that not only did he have a son, but that something horrible had happened to the boy while Tony was none the wiser.

“What about Mary?” Tony whispered. “And her husband?”

“It seems that they were both killed by HYDRA when Peter was around two years old. Both she and Richard were up and coming scientists in the genetics field, and whatever they were studying had caught the eye of some HYDRA affiliates. Peter lived with Richard’s brother and sister-in-law after his mother and step-father’s deaths, but it seems that about two months ago HYDRA decided that they needed Peter to continue studying whatever Mary and Richard had been working on.

“We’re still looking into it, but from what Peter was able to tell us HYDRA agents attacked his home, killing his aunt and uncle while Peter watched before taking him to their base. They then proceeded to experiment on him until we intervened.”

Fury’s voice was calm and even as he intoned the information. Tony wasn’t sure if he wanted to laugh at how calm the man could sound when talking about the torture of an innocent child or cry because holy crap, this was apparently his kid.

“Why did they need Peter,” Tony finally settled on asking.

Fury pursed his lips. “Again, still not completely sure on why. Our guess is that Richard and Mary had potentially used Mary’s DNA as an example to study the effects of genetically altering DNA. HYDRA believed that their study held the key to one day finding a way to replicate the super soldier serum used on Steve Rogers in 1942. HYDRA scientists may have felt that the only way to finish the study was to use someone who had Mary’s DNA, in this case being Peter.”

“You said that Peter’s DNA had been altered,” Tony began slowly, almost reluctantly. “What do you mean exactly?’

“After checking the boy over and interrogating HYDRA’s scientists, we’ve come to the conclusion that he has an enhanced metabolism, healing capabilities, super strength, and… Spider-like abilities.”

Tony blinked at the man. “Spider-like abilities?”

Fury grimaced slightly. “We’re still not too sure about that last bit, but I’ve seen the kid stick to the ceiling with ease. He also has enhanced hearing and sight, superhuman speed, and has a sixth-like sense that is able to detect danger.”

“Jesus, what the Hell did they do to the kid,” Tony questioned, horrified at what he was hearing.

“Too much, Tony,” Fury glowered at the window. “That poor boy has been to Hell and back, and he’s still suffering.”

The two men were silent as they processed everything that was said. Finally, Tony had to break the silence. “You said you think I can help the kid. My kid, I guess. What exactly do you think I can do?”

Fury cocked his head as he turned back to Tony. “I’m not going to lie to your, Stark, my colleagues suggested on not telling you. You obviously never knew about this boy, and we could have kept it like that. However, that’s not fair to either you or Peter.

“Peter’s a traumatized child- he can’t sleep, and won’t allow anyone in a lab coat to approach him without crying. He has been able to talk to a therapist, but she hasn’t made much progress with him. What we have found out, however, is that he was and is still a big fan of Iron Man. One of our nurses brought him a toy repulsor and mask that belonged to him, and he’s constantly replaying Iron Man footage.”

“So what, you want me to meet him as Iron Man?”

Fury rolled his eye once again. “No, I want you to meet him as Tony Stark.”

“Does he even know I’m his dad,” Tony mused, trying not to stutter at the word dad .

Fury shook his head. “No, that’s up to your judgement to tell him.”

“I haven’t even agreed to meet him,” Tony protested but both he and Fury knew that he was lying. The moment that Fury had revealed Tony’s relationship to Peter, the mechanic had already decided he had to meet this kid.

“Look, Stark, not only is Peter a fan of Iron Man, but he’s as big a fan of Tony Stark, genius extraordinaire. Peter’s smart, possibly genius level smart, though he is currently very traumatized. We could keep him at a SHIELD compound indefinitely, but his therapist says it wouldn’t be best for Peter. The boy needs a safe, stable environment in order to deal with his trauma. He has no other family, and we can’t exactly just put him in foster care thanks to his abilities. You’re all he has, even if he might not know it yet.”

Tony gave a shaky breath as he realized that Fury was right. While he might not exactly have a stable environment, he could keep the kid safe. In fact, he could already feel himself growing protective of the little boy and he hadn’t even met him yet.

But moreover, Tony had always promised himself that he would never be the father that Howard Stark had been. I’d want to break the cycle of shame , he had once told Rhodey while drunk in college. He wouldn’t be able to live with himself if he knew that he had a son out there that he just abandoned like nothing.

Decision made, Tony lifted his chin definitely to stare directly into Fury’s good eye. “When’s the soonest I can meet him.”

For once Fury gave Tony a genuine smile as he regarded the man. “If you’re up for it we could go right now.”

Tony nodded his head firmly, standing up from his chair. “Let me put on some nicer clothes and we can head out.”

“I’ll wait here,” Fury offered, taking a seat once again. As Tony began to go up the stairs to his room Fury’s voice stopped him. “I hope you know that there’s no backing out of this once you go through with it, Tony.”

Tony shot him what he hoped was a confident-looking smile. “I know. Don’t worry, I know what I’m doing.”