Irondad Oneshots

He was mine

Why do you still fight?” The Titan seems genuinely confused. “There is nothing left for you to gain. All you can do is lose.”

Tony's breath catches in his throat. “His name was Peter.”

The rest of the Avengers look at him in surprise. Tony never talked about what happened on Titan, but Rhodey had told them, behind closed doors when they were sure the inventor couldn't hear them, about a kid named Peter who was on that spaceship with Tony, and didn't come home.

Thanos seems equally surprised, if a little confused. “What?”

“His name was Peter.” Tony repeated, voice shaking with rage, and loss and shattering grief. “His name was Peter, and you took him from me. You took my kid. And you're going to pay for that.”

He darted forward, the cannons on his suit firing up, and sending a bright blast.

They fought, but everyone present had to look away, shielding their eyes, because the light emitting from their battle was bright enough to be seen for miles around.

Then it stopped, abruptly, and Thanos was on the ground, Tony bent over him.

"You will never hurt my son again," he hissed, the rage in his voice scaring the others. "You can't snap your way out of this one."

His gaze turned to Thor. "Want a shot?"

Thor raised Stormbreaker, the sky growing dark, lightning crackling out if the angry clouds.

It hit, the air filling with the smell of fire.

And Thanos was gone.

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

They waited eagerly.

Soon reports came up of people returning, all over the world.

Then Shuri told them that her brother, the king, had returned.

Clint got his family back.

Wanda returned.

Sam and Rhodey reunited.

The guardians found each other.

Steve found Bucky.

And Tony was jealous, for a moment.

Because if Steve could get his friend back, the one he'd chosen over Tony, why couldn't Tony get his kid back?

But since when had the universe ever given him what he wanted?

He had lost so much, so much.

But it couldn't stop there.

It had to take his kid too.

And he would be the punch line of some great cosmic joke.

He thinks he's going to get something good for once in his life. Ha.

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

Pain.

Shredding, tearing pain.

Forcing him apart, then pushing him back together.

The particles reformed slowly, the form of a young boy coming together.

An ordinary boy, in looks.

But wearing a suit made of iron.

The spider had returned.

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

Tony sat in his lab, fingers carding through his hair.

The genius was wearing thin, breaking.