Tony and his Kids

Just a Dream

The sunlight bounced off of the clean, white sand, burning Tony's retinas. Each stumbling step sent sand particles flying up into the air, his tracks in the dunes quickly disappearing behind him. His shirt that he had wrapped around his head acted as a small bit of shade and a defense against the sweat that was trying to make its way down his face, but offered little more than that. The heat bore down on him, burning his skin, his clothes, his hair- but why was he here? Why was he back in the desert of Afghanistan that he had escaped fifteen years ago? How did he get back here?

Tony dared to glance toward the sun, noting its position. He didn't have any clue how he got here, but if it played out the same way, then he should be seeing Rhodey's helicopter any minute. Every time he blinked his eyes shut, he remembered the cave. It flashed to the forefront of his mind, causing him to shudder despite the heat, and then Yinsen's face would follow. His face right before he died.

Then, when he opened his eyes, he was there, crouched in the first ever Ironman suit, mouth moving on its own will as he tried desperately to urge his friend to his feet despite the bullet holes that littered his form. His old friend's eyes locked on his and his mouth opened, but instead of his actual last words, a different voice came from his throat.

"You could have saved us."

The scene changed again and he was standing on that barren wasteland of his vision, the stars bright yet menacing as they twinkled around him. It was freezing cold, soundless, and terrifying. He was facing what looked like twenty portals, the biggest one in the center and showing New York. His city. His home. Ten leviathans glided through space, the first one nearly reaching the middle portal.

He didn't want to turn around, but it was like his body was being controlled. Manipulated by someone else. He was forced to turn around and face the destruction an alien army had caused. His teammates were scattered about, dead or nearly dead. It was both instinct and the invisible force that pushed him to crouch at Steve's side, hand moving to the pulse point on his neck.

Steve's eyes snapped into focus, cold hand wrapping around Tony's wrist. Fear pulsed through Tony's being, sending adrenaline through his veins, but he was frozen with terror. The blonde's mouth opened, but another voice came out. The voice of his late son. "Mr. Stark, I don't feel so good."

He froze and then he was standing on Titan, Peter stumbling forward. Ash swirled around them from the team they just met - they had already turned to dust. The remnant of the moon Thanos had thrown were still scattered around them and Tony's stomach was bur ing with the recently-sealed stab wound the titan had given him. He caught his kid in his arms as the bottoms of his legs disappeared and was pulled down to the ground by shock, the teen clinging to him like he was his lifeline as he begged to not go. "I don't wanna go, Mr. Stark, please."

And all Tony could do was watch. He couldn't form words of comfort. Couldn't force himself to move. Cold dread grabbed onto his heart in an icy grip and squeezed just as Peter said the words, "I'm sorry." The brunette's head fell limp, eyes dimming, and the rest of his body turned to ash. Tony tried to grab onto it all, pull it together and make it Peter again, but he only caught a handful of the black soot. Black soot that used to be Peter Benjamin Parker.  The kid. His kid.

Tony lurched awake, bolting upright on his bed. His breathing came in harsh pants and his pajamas were stuck to him with the amount of sweat on his body. One hand curling into the sheets under him, his other searched for his beloved wife, only to find the other side of his bed empty. His battered heart skipped a few beats before he remembered that she was dealing with Stark Industries buisness in Britain - it was the first time she had been on an out of country trip since the Decimation. It was just fitting that he had a nightmare the first night she was gone.  A nightmare that he had experienced multiple times in the last five years.

He rubbed a hand across his eyes, flopping back against the head board as he glanced at the time on his digital clock. 3:56. Pepper would be in a meeting right now ao he couldn't call her for comfort. Usually she was the one to wake him yo as he tended to get trapped in a forever loop of nightmares until someone shook him awake.

What had woken him up? The sudden question had him glancing around and noticing that the door was slightly ajar, a familiar pair of brown eyes peaking in from the hallway. "Morguna," he called, heartrate spiking as he worried something was wrong. Tony kicked away the covers, slinging his legs over the side of the bed as his daughter came into the room, dressed in her Tinkerbell pajamas. "Is something wrong, munchkin?"

"I had a bad dream," his daughter said as she stepped further into the room. The slightly open curtains allowed just enough moonlight to spill through tor him to see Morgan's face, which was blotchy and red from tears. She was holding her Plankton plush close to her chest, the one eyed villain offering her comfort despite his supposedly evil nature.

"Oh, Morgan," he cooed, his own nightmare being pushed further back into the darkest corner of his mind, shoved behind a door and locked away for another time. His primary concern was his family, not himself. His daughter needed help and he was going to give his sweet girl what she needed. "Come here." He held out his arms and she wasted no time running forward and jumping into them. Tony instantlynwrapped his arms around her as the four year old buried her face in his neck. "It's okay. Daddy's here."

They stayed liked that for a few minutes - Tony whispering comforting words while she slowly relaxed. He pushed some of her brown hair away from her face and whispered, "how about we get some juice pops, huh? That sound like a plan?" She nodded, a small smile forming on her face.

The man stood, still holding her tightly. He ignored the way his back popped a little as he moved - not exactly a spring chicken anymore, was he? The genius carried her out of the room and down the stairs of the house he spent nearly Pepper's entire pregnancy planning and building. He had wanted it to be perfect, better than any of the other homes he and Pep had lived in or he'd ever owned. He thought he succeeded.

Tony walked to the freezer, ignoring the way the cold kitchen tiles beneath him bit at his bare toes, a d opened it. Pepper would disapprove of them having juice pops at nearly four in the morning if it were any other situation. He had a feeling this was one of the exceptions. Morgan's smile widened as Tony handed her a juice pop and he sat down at the counter, spinning a little on the stool.

"I love you, daddy," Morgan said around a mouthful of the frozen treat, her eyes no longer filled with fear. He smiled down at her.

"I love you, too, Morgan," he whispered. She moved and settled against his chest, head rested on his shoulder as her eyes slowly fluttered shut. Her breath eventually evened out in sleep and he glanced around the room, eyes automatically falling on the picture of him and Peter on the shelf.

Some day, Tony thought as he pulled his daughter closer, some day I'll see you again, kid. One day, you'll get to meet your sister and I'll be able to tell you how much you mean to me, Peter.

A small tear drifted down his cheek as he opened his mouth to voice a thought that he should have said so many years ago. A sentence that he hoped would travel across the cosmos and time. Something that he hoped Peter would hear from him. "I love you, son."