Bruised (Irondad)

15

"Pepper I don't know what to do".

The twins are in bed, hopefully asleep. Despite Tony's attempt to get their ridiculous pet mammoth to sleep in the common room, he insisted on climbing into bed with Gianna. Now he has to check her vitals every few minutes for fear that she might suffocate in all of that fur.

Pepper and Tony have retreated to their private floor, out of earshot from the rest of the Avengers. The images of those scars are burned into Tony's retinas and he never wants to see them again. He didn't mention anything to Ben or May, he didn't ask Gianna or Geo, he waited until eleven pm to tell Pepper.

Now they're huddled on the couch, a shitty film playing as background noise, cradling hot chocolate with an open bag of chips beside them.

"I know", she responds with a meek smile. Neither of them know what to do. What do you do with a secret assassin child? What do you say when you see two huge scars on her back that no one seems to be talking about? "I think you should ask May. If anyone knows and will be willing to give an answer, it will be her or Ben. It seems as though she's been more of a mom than their biological one".

Tony gulps back his uncertainty and nods, staring into the dark abyss of his mug. He knew taking on five year old twins would be complicated but never in a million years did he imagine anything like this. There are so many questions without answers that he doesn't know how to find. If he had just accepted responsibility for his kids five years ago then he wouldn't be in this mess, none of them would be.

Pepper shifts to lean her head on his shoulder. Her hair tickles his chin but he doesn't reject it, instead resting his head on hers. "You're doing good, Tony, they're here and they're eating and we're seeing a happier side to them. Now it's just about learning more about them, seeing more of their happier side, getting them to trust us.. and hopefully everyone else here".

"Easier said than done", he grumbles, lifting his eyes to stare at the wall, "Jarvis what are Gianna's vitals?".

"The same as two minutes ago".

Pepper chuckles, the mechanic rolling his eyes and muttering something about giving his artificial intelligence a personality. "See, you're already a helicopter parent, everything will be fine".

**

The next morning sees Gia eating her pop tart without fuss. In fact, it's as if she never had any problem accepting food from them in the first place. She sits with her brother at the bar and eats happily, chattering with Giovanni about a skating competition they have coming up. And once again, they seem like normal kids.

Nemesis lies at the twin's feet, and although Tony is becoming irritated by Gianna's new shadow, he is thankful that he's not the only one who is making an attempt to watch over them constantly. Additionally, if anybody tried anything he's certain that that beast would tear them to shreds within a second. He also seems to make them both more comfortable, which is a bonus.

They're dressed in matching tracksuits, something Tony would've thought detestable before but now the light grey outfits seem strangely adorable and he's not about to tell them to change. The best part of the morning, is when Gia disappears for a moment, returning with a hairbrush and hair ties. She pads up to Pepper, a shy smile tugging at her lips.

"Can you braid my hair?".

Pepper did nothing to hide her excitement, quickly getting to work with weaving the girl's hair into two dutch plaits which tumble neatly down her back. Subsequently, both Tony and Pepper were left beaming all morning, the sentiment and progress having lifted their spirits after the struggles of the day before.

After that, they head to the rink.

With only a couple of days until competition day, the kids have training sessions back to back. Tony isn't even sure when they're going to have time to breathe, but May reassures him that they do this every month before a big competition, that it makes the children feel better and more prepared.