~Iron Family~

Poor Steve

Tony popped out of his suit like a cuckoo clock, clenching his jaw in annoyance.

"I am concerned, kid. Concerned that I can't leave you guys alone with Happy for a few hours! Come on, kids. I mean, really--how hard is it to babysit a middle-aged man?"

The kids started giggling and Happy looked around. "Really?! The betrayal!"

Tony pinched the bridge of his nose. "Anyway, I was only calling to tell you that I was a few minutes away. The meeting ended early, and I think you all should explain to me what happened before Peanut turns into a bath toy for the lake."

"We were trying to wash your car for you!" Morgan explained, sliding down from the counter. "And I bit Petey and lost my tooth!"

"Aww! You washed my car for me? How sweet!"

Tony gave Morgan a squeeze, gushing about how grown-up she was, before he froze.

"Wait, what? You bit Peter?!"

Morgan gave a proud nod and Peter laughed. "Yup. Still got the bite marks to prove it."

Tony gasped. "Maguna! That's not nice! We don't bite peop--AH!" She chomped down on his finger.

"Happy, go get the horse. Peter and Harley, take Morgan and put her in a corner somewhere."

Morgan threw a tantrum with that, along with her sippy cup of apple juice. Tony was now drenched in it, slipping on his squeaky shoes as he tried to chase her down.

***

Morgan was very excited the following morning, when she discovered that the tooth fairy had left her a twenty dollar bill from the early 1900s. She planned to spend it all on candy, not really caring when Tony told her it probably wouldn't work because it was so old.

"Kids! Breakfast!" Pepper called as she marched down the hallway, banging her hand along the three doors that stood side-by-side.

"Good morning, Pepper," Peter said as he yanked a comb through his hair. Pepper snatched a quick hug and kiss.

"You need a shower," she commented. "What do you even do all day? Hang out at the gym?"

Tony scrolled through the news on his tablet as everyone's dishes clattered around him. He sipped his coffee, raising an eyebrow as everyone began to snarf down their cereal or pancakes without a word.

"So..." Tony started. "Saturday. December second. Two thousand seventeen...What are we gonna do today, gang?"

"Sledding! Sledding!" Morgan cheered. "Steve's shield!"

"There's no snow outside, Morg," Harley sighed, giving a little shake of his head as he poured himself a glass of orange juice.

"There can be," Peter said with a wild grin.

Oh, great. Not another one of his ideas.

Was that what people thought about Tony sometimes?

"We can get those little indoor snowball toys that you have!" he started excitedly. "And we can put that giant white sheet over the ground!"

"Sledingggg," Morgan groaned.

"Uh, sorry--no." Tony held his hand up. "We'll have enough snow come January."

"But what if we don't have a white Christmas?" Morgan whined.

"It'll still be Christmas even if we don't have snow," Pepper reassured her with a smile, grabbing everyone's dirty dishes. She planted a kiss on Tony's cheek. "Well, I've gotta run. We're making some kind of sale with Saberling today, but I didn't pay attention during the meeting because I was just thinking about you!" She cooed on the last part, giving Morgan's nose a playful boop and patting the boys' shoulders.