Growing Up

5 Years Old

If Tony had thought about it, he would have realised this was a bad idea. However, he had done no such thing until he had the entire team and a 5-year-old in the same car and was headed to the zoo (Steve did want to point out that putting more than the allotted amount in one car was dangerous, and Tony wanted to point out that he didn't care, just get in the car, Steve).

It took fifteen minutes to arrive at the zoo and once Tony had parked the car, they all tumbled out. Natasha unbuckled Peter and lifted him out of his car seat while Tony left to buy tickets. Following the rest of the team to the gate, Natasha carried Peter across the parking lot while he happily chattered about all the animals they were about to see.

"Where to first, kiddo?" Tony asked, as soon as they were through the gate.

"Penguins!" Peter yelled, squirming out of Natasha's arms and racing down the sidewalk.

Before Peter could get too far ahead, Steve snagged his sleeve and stopped him. Peter didn't let this stop him from getting to the penguins, though. Grabbing Steve's hand, he tugged him down the sidewalk in the direction he thought the penguins were.

When they arrived, Peter let go of Steve's hand and pushed to the front, pressing his face against the glass. He stared wide-eyed as he watched the penguins waddle around their habitat then jump into the water. Nevertheless, it didn't take long before he wanted to move on to the next exhibit. When Clint reminded him about the hawks, Peter went shooting off down the sidewalk, tugging on Bruce's hand this time.

* * * * *

They hadn't even made it to half of the animals when Peter announced he was hungry. Stopping their route to the elephants, they instead went to find something to eat. Fortunately, before Peter could whine too much, they found a small stand that sold fries, hamburgers, and corn dogs.

"Can we see the ostrikes next?" Peter asked, finishing his corn dog and looking up at Tony.

"Sure, we can go see the ostriches next," he said. With a grin, Peter got up from the table but Tony pulled him back down. "You gotta wait until everyone is done first, buddy."

Peter frowned but nodded. Picking up his napkin, he said, "I'm going to throw it away."

It was five minutes later when Tony realised Peter hadn't returned from throwing away his napkin. He looked around, expecting to see his son looking at the peacocks behind them, but didn't see Peter anywhere.

"What's wrong, Tony?" Steve asked as Tony stood up, looking around the plaza again to make sure he hadn't missed any place.

"I can't find Peter," he murmured.

That caught everyone's attention. Even if they weren't finished with lunch, they stood up and tossed the food away. Deciding to split up in order to cover more ground quicker, they headed off in different directions.

Tony practically ran towards the ostriches, knowing that's where Peter had wanted to go next. When he got there, though, Peter wasn't in sight. Tony followed the sidewalk to the next exhibit, searching for Peter in each one but finding nothing.

Steve and Bruce were having the same luck as Tony. No matter where they looked, they couldn't find the five year old. They even looked under benches and asked workers, but there was no sign of Peter. Rhodes met them at the cross section in the sidewalks, bringing back to same news. The three walked down the sidewalk together, looking for Peter in the reptile section but only finding Clint (who looked very nervous next to the anaconda).

Natasha was certain Peter was nearby. He couldn't have gone far and he tended to turn right when at a cross section. Looking in all the exhibits she came across with each right turn, she finally found Peter next to the monkeys. He was sitting on the ground, face buried in his arms as he cried. Rushing over to his side, she knelt down in front of him and gently touched his knee.

"Peter?" Peter looked up then jumped at her. "Hey, hey, you're okay," Natasha told him, lifting him up and rubbing his back soothingly.

Pulling out her phone, she sent the team a text telling them she had found Peter by the monkeys. They arrived less than two minutes later. As soon as Peter saw his dad, he squirmed out of Natasha's arms and into Tony's. Tony was more than willing to take him from Natasha, hugging him tightly and kissing his face.

"I was scared," Peter told him. Tony hummed and rubbed his back.

"You're okay now, buddy."

"Can we go home?" Peter asked. With a nod, Tony turned and headed for the exit.

By the time they got back to the car, Peter had stopped crying, but he was still quiet. When they arrived home, Tony turned on a movie in hopes it would help Peter feel better. It wasn't surprising when they discovered Peter was fast asleep though, curled up beside Tony at the end of the movie.

Very quietly, the team all said goodbye, but Tony didn't get up from where he was laying with Peter. Instead, he asked Steve to toss a blanket over them and he ended up sleeping on the couch with Peter tucked safely in his arms.