Anything For You, Pumpkin
Reader X Tony Stark!Father
Author: Actually Tony Stark’s Daughter, Kate
Warnings: Abuse, injuries
A/N: IT’S DONEEEEE. I actually really loved writing this, but writing about abuse was kind of hard, and I absolutely do not mean to offend or hurt anyone with this fic. Like I said, loved the request, whoever you are. I had an idea to do a second part where the reader meets Peter, but let me know if you want Part 2.
“So are you staying for movie night, Y/N?” Natasha asked you after an intensive round of training at the Tower. Though your face was already warm, you felt a blush flare up. You had been on the team for a little over a month, and the Avengers had welcomed you with open arms. You knew that everyone adored you, but you still felt shy and inadequate around the experienced superheroes.
“Um... I think I better head home, actually.” You said. Nat looked kind of disappointed, but she shrugged it off, knowing you were kind of shy during gatherings.
“How are your powers doing?” She asked, changing the subject as you grabbed your stuff from the corner of the training area. You smiled, and shrugged, One of the reasons that you caught the Avenger’s eyes was that you had fire powers. No one had been able to pin-point where they were from, and as far as you knew, you had had them since birth. Nat walked you up to the living room where the rest of the team was getting snacks ready for the movie. You were about to head out when Tony yelled out to you.
“Where do you think you’re going, Y/N?” He asked, his tone making you smile. Tony was the Avenger you looked up to the most. He was the one that had found you, brought you to the team, and he cared about you the most, which was saying something. Everyone loved you and loved having you on the team, but you saw Tony as your father figure.
“I was about to head home. Homework, and what not.” You lied quickly.
“Ahh, come on. It’s Friday night, and you haven’t hung out with the team in days.”
“This is part of your training, Y/N. Getting to be a part of the team.” Tony say adamantly. You caved, secretly happy that someone wanted to have you around.
The movie had ended, and you were happily chilling with the rest of the team in the kitchen, listening to their banter. Tony was watching you out of the corner of his eye, happy that you were starting to feel included. When you first joined the team, Tony felt a need to protect you. It was new to him, seeing as he had never really been the nurturing type, but he thought of you as his kid.
You were laughing at Bucky and Sam’s petty argument when you felt a buzz from your phone in your pocket. You gulped, and the color drained from your face. You didn’t have any friends at school, so when someone texted you, you knew it could only be one person.
Mom: Get here right this second.
You grabbed your bag, and ran out of the Tower, dreading your return home. Tony ran out after you, calling your name through the downpour that was engulfing Manhattan. He caught up to you quickly, and grabbed the strap of your backpack to get you to stop.
“Y/N, what’s going on? Are you okay?” Tony could see the fear behind your eyes as you tried to come up with an excuse.
“My, uh, my mom needs me home. Right now.” You answered quickly, trying to shake Tony’s grasp off your backpack.
“Is something wrong?” The concern in Tony’s voice made you realize how much he cared about you, but the longer it took you to get home, the worse the repercussion would be.
“No, no I don’t think so. My mom is just... strict.” You couldn’t find a better word to explain it. Tony looked skeptical, but seeing your anxious face, he nodded quickly, and watched you run towards your neighborhood. His gut told him something was off, but against his better judgement, he went back inside.
“Where have you been?” Your mother asked, anger in her voice.
“I was- I was out.” You whispered shakily, still out of breath from the run home.
“You’re supposed to watch the house while I’m out.”
“I know... I just, I had study group.” You said wincing at the obvious lie.
“Don’t lie to me!” She screamed, coming closer to you. You crawled back instinctively, bracing yourself. “I didn’t want you! I don’t want to have to worry about you. You stay home so you don’t get in trouble, so I don’t have to clean up the messes that you make.” You nodded, and your eyes glanced up to her, then back down at your feet. She took it the wrong way.
“Did you just roll your eyes at me?!” You shook your head violently, terror filling your eyes. The woman grabbed your arm, her long nails digging into your skin painfully. You knew there would be more scratches and bruises to cover up. Your hands were heating up, and you folded your arms so you wouldn’t show your powers. You could feel your skin burning, and you desperately tried to keep your powers under control. “Go to your room. And don’t even think about coming out again until Monday.”
You nodded, running to your “room”. It was more a closet with a small window. There was just enough room for your bed and a small desk. You fell onto your bed, silent tears running down your face until you fell asleep.
By Monday, your self-tended burns had stopped radiating heat and blistering, though they were still very visible. You chose a long-sleeved shirt, even though it was blazing hot, and some shorts to try and vent out the heat. You walked out and kept your head down. When you got outside, you breathed a sigh of relief, and continued your walk to school. You prided yourself on the fact that you were top of the class at Midtown. When you were younger, you had buried yourself in your studies to occupy your time alone. The day was short, and the work was easy, which you were grateful for because you could keep yourself busy without having to think too much about it. Besides sitting by yourself at lunch (again), the day was refreshingly simple, and you felt relaxed for the first time in days as your headed to the Tower. You greeted everyone with a soft smile, and then went to change into your workout clothes for train. You had chosen your favorite tank-top, and some shorts that were still in your locker at the Tower. You had completely forgotten about your very visible cuts and burns until you heard the gasps of the team when you walked back out.
“Oh my gosh.” Nat practically shrieked as she ran over to you. Your heart dropped into your stomach as you realized what everyone was staring at. Tony walked over to you, and guided you out of the room, and into his private lab. You both remained silent for second. You knew Tony wanted you to confess without a prompt, but you refused, clenching your jaw, and staring at the floor.
“Just strict?” Tony asked finally. You looked at him, utterly confused, until you realized what he was referencing.
“No, no I don’t think so. My mom is just... strict.”
The words echoed in your ears as you remembered them. Your eyes filled with tears as you contemplated what to say next.
“How d-did you know?” You said, your voice shaking with the strain of keeping your tears from falling.
“There’s always a risk of being an Avenger. I’ve had eyes on you since Day 1.” Tony said, anger burning in the back of his eyes as he inspected the claw marks scratched into your skin. You gulped, not knowing how to take this new development. “I knew your mother was horrible to you, but I was waiting for you to bring it up. I didn’t know she was... abusive.” He spat the word out.
“She’s not...” You trailed off under the murderous gaze of Tony. “I’m fine, really. I’ve had worse bruises from Nat.” You said, smiling a little. Tony breathed in, relaxing just slightly, but a rage still burning within.
“I was saving this until your birthday, but I think now is more appropriate.” He said, guiding you out of the lab, and upstairs to the living areas. The two of you passed down the hallway that Nat and Wanda’s rooms were in, until you stopped at one of the doors that you knew to be unoccupied. Tony nodded, and you cracked open the door slightly. A large bay window took up one of the walls, a bed facing a TV that beckoned you to binge a few years worth of shows, and a desk with gold letters that spelled out your name above the desktop. You breathed in, shocked that someone would do this for you. Your eyes skirted over all of the accessories that made you instantly feel more at home than you had ever felt anywhere, even the library.
“If you don’t like something, we can always get it changed, but Nat thought you’d-” Tony started, but you sprinted back to him, and ran him over with a hug.
“Thank you.” You whispered.
“Anything for you, Pumpkin.” Tony said after he recovered from the shock. He hugged you back, feeling more paternal in that second then he ever had before.
“What about my mom?” You asked, anxious to hear the answer.
“I-We’re your family now. Don’t you worry, we’ll deal with her.”
Nearly 4 months had passed since you had officially moved into the Tower. Anybody could see that you were infinitely better. Your smiles were more genuine, your spunky/sassy attitude finally outshone your shyness and fear, and you knew where your place was in life. You were an Avenger, you had a team, you had a family.
Today was your birthday, and you laughed to think that the team was even more excited than you were, which is saying something, because this was your first actually celebrated birthday. After a dinner of pizza from your favorite pizzeria, a cake that had miraculously made it through a day of the boy’s watering mouths, and many shared memories of you that made everyone laugh, Nat announced it was time for presents. There were so many, it was kind of hard for you to remember all of them. It seemed like everyone had made up for 15 years of disappointing birthdays 10-fold. As the pile of presents waiting to be opened diminished, and the room filled with wrapping paper and bags, Tony felt himself getting more excited but anxious for you to receive his present.
“Alright, alright.” Tony said as you opened the last gift. You looked at him, an ever-present smile still bright on your face after laughing about Bucky telling you they were all expecting you to pick the best present, since they had made it into a competition. “Hate to break it to you, Barnes, but prepare to lose, because I’m winning the best present award.”
“Don’t count your chicks before they’re hatched.” You quipped, excitement building up in you for Tony’s gift. He rolled his eyes at your comment, and handed you an sealed envelope. You raised an eyebrow at it, and began to open it, wondering what could possibly be inside. You pulled out a blue, official-looking form with a lot of fine print, and three signatures. You recognized two, one belonged to the person who used to be your mom, and one was Tony’s.
“It’s an adoption form.” Tony said. Everyone around the table was holding their breath, waiting for your reaction. “Welcome to the family, Y/N Stark.” A hand traveled up it’s way to cover your mouth as you took everything in. A tear rolled down your cheek from pure happiness, and it warmed your heart to notice that there wasn’t a dry eye in the room. Tony stood up to give you a hug, and you returned it, love for your family heating every part of you. “Anything for you, Pumpkin.” Tony whispered, holding you closer. You responded with a term you thought you would never have the privilege of using. And nothing had ever felt more right to say ever, and you would remember it for the rest of your life.
