young avengers → infinity war & endgame [p. parker]

THE WAR: FOURTEEN

"I shouldn't be alive, unless it was for a reason. I know what I have to do, and I know it is right."

______

THE WAR: DEFEATED

TITAN

"Now what?" Surprisingly, it had been Quill to break the defeating, wandering silence that had been present ever since Thanos left Titan with the Time stone. The Guardians were more so speechless, not being able to wrap their minds around the fact they lost Gamora and he battle. Peter and Valeria had tried to get Tony to say something, anything to get some confirmation of his well being, but received nothing more than nods and shrugs. The state he was in reminded Valeria a lot of the Tony she'd see stay up late in the Avengers compound, where he'd let the guilt and sadness overtake him. She knew it was only going to get worse.

"Tony?" She said it quietly, making sure only he could hear it. His stare was weak, but he tried to hold it together for her and Peter. Although he didn't know where to go to or what exactly to do, Tony just wanted to get these kids home to their aunt and uncle. The people who kept them safe, who loved them. As he watched them both hold expressions of worry, Tony couldn't help but confirm what he always thought was true: him becoming part of their lives was the worst thing that could've happened to them. They were just kids, they weren't supposed to be superheroes fighting—

"No. You're wrong." Tony stopped his train of negative thoughts, looking up again to see Valeria's saddened eyes. "I'm sorry that I, I read that. But I can feel your guilt either way and I don't want you to feel guilty. This wasn't your fault, you couldn't do anything to stop it. You tried, we all did. You in particular have always been worried about this since New York six years ago. Peter and I made the choice to come out here and help you. You found me in the worst point of my life and have stuck with me since then. You didn't have to, Rhodey didn't have to, just like Uncle Manny didn't either. But you all did, and I wouldn't be the person that I am today without you all. I lost my dad three years ago, but I know he'd be so happy to see that I gained three father figures to fill in that empty spot in my life."

Peter stood by as he watched Valeria try to comfort their mentor, bringing him into a hug. His senses began to act a bit awry, especially when they focused on Valeria, but he dismissed them as just the overwhelming emotional response to losing to Thanos.

Tony had to fight the tears from not escaping during the hug, wanting to stay strong for Peter and Valeria: it's what he believed in his heart that he owed them. On the flip side, Valeria wasn't as successful as Tony, wanting to curse herself once the teardrops began to stream down her cheeks. Her back was to Peter, Strange being the only one in the other side to be able to notice the look in her face. He'd be lying if he said it didn't pull the strings of his heart, wishing it didn't have to be this way.