If They Knew All About You

Twist of Fate

There was still rubble on the street. Enough that his driver had to actively avoid it. His sunglasses, the darkest he could find, in addition to the tinted windows of the car, gave Queens the moody look it deserved, very much in line with Tony's own mood. Most of the street wasn't even robed off, not like he had expected. He would have thought that Clarke would have an officer stationed on every corner, guarding every little piece of trash that looked even remotely like Peter Parker could have touched it at some point.

Or maybe Tony just didn't see the officers because the street was flooded by too many reporters and on-lookers. Photographers, television crews, all of them had descended onto the block where Tony Stark's long lost son had lived for all these years. The driver pulled up to the entry of the apartment building. With the privacy screen separating him from the front of the car, at least Tony didn't get to hear a useless "We're here, Sir."

Like he didn't know. Like he hadn't set foot into this building months ago. Months ago, when even with the aftermath of Ultron, the world had seemed a little simpler, though just as dark. He waited for another minute until the security personnel he had brought along with him had cleared the path to the front door. A quick swipe at his watch had his inbox pop up. Nothing from Barton. Nothing from Pepper. Things would go ahead as planned then.

Tony readjusted his glasses before he pushed open the door of the car. The reporters that surrounded him were hard to ignore even at a bit of a distance, shouting the same questions over and over again.

"How is Aiden?"

"What can you tell us about your son's injuries?"

"Are you expecting any criminal charges?"

"How does it feel to have your son back after all these years?"

"Will you sue May Parker in a civil suit?"

The glasses helped shield his face, made it easier to keep his head held high and walk past them seeming stronger, so much more sure of himself than he was. A few long strides later, he was met by Maria Hill at the entrance of the apartment building. He followed her closely first through the door, then into the elevator car. They left the security guards behind on the ground level.

"You look like shit." She didn't even have her eyes on him but on her phone as she pressed the button for the 4th floor of the building.

"So I've heard." He had to keep himself from reaching for the dirty walls as the elevator rattled into action. His head was throbbing from the weird clanging noises as it made its ascent to the upper levels.

"Anything new?"

She was referring to his little underground meeting earlier that day, he was clear about that. "He had nothing."

Maria's eyebrows shot up and she did take her eyes off her phone then. "Nothing?"

"Nothing."

"Well..." She blew out a long breath. "Well, fuck."

"Yeah."

Tony had refused to take off his glasses, not just because he was effectively hiding behind them but also because the bright neon light in the elevator would have made his eyes hurt.

"Now what?"

Tony's jaw popped in agitation. "I'm all out of ideas, to be honest."

Her eyes were still on him, studying him. "We'll find something."

Yeah, that's what people kept saying but he wasn't all that sure anymore. Maybe this was the time for a different strategy. Maybe this was the time for a deal. Where Clarke was an irrational asshole, Ross on the other hand was a man to be bargained with. He wanted power and control alright, but his first instinct had been to control the Avengers, not to destroy them. Maybe—