Adopted By a Billionaire

Chapter 21

It was hard for Percy to get back to some semblance of his normal self. He was skittish around the other Avengers, aware of the role they played against his "father" but not willing to talk about it. It was over, his daddy was okay for now and that was all he could ask for. He was a smart kid, smarter than any of the meanies that used to bully him and he knew that his daddy was a hero and a hero gets hurt. But his mommy used to tell him that a hero always gets up, never lets others defeat them.

"I don't wanna," Percy pouted, stomping his foot on the carpet. He crossed his arms, looking away from his father.

Tony sighed, rubbing his face tiredly, "Buddy, you have to go to school. Every kid does, whether they like it or not."

The six year-old hesitated before looking up at him, "When you were like me... Did you go to school?"

He laughed and ruffled the kid's hair, "Yup. I didn't like it but it helped me be who I am today."

"I can be like you?" Percy bounced on the balls of his feet, clapping his hands happily with a wide grin, "I can be a hero?"

Tony hesitated for a moment, his grin faltering, before his smile widened and he nodded, "You can be better than me."

"Nuh-uh!" He shook his head rapidly, grabbing onto the man's thumb and shaking it as if to emphasize his next words, "There's no one better than Mr. Tony! Not even Mr. America or Miss Spider Lady!"

The hero stared at the boy in shock for a second before his smile softened, "If you say so, kid. Come on, let's go to the kitchen and get you a lunch."

"Can Mr. Brucie make me dinosawr-saur sandwiches like yesterday? They're yummy!"

"We'll have to ask him if he can, okay?"

"'Kay!" The child ran ahead of him, stopping at the elevator door, "Mr. JJ, can me and Daddy go to Mr. Brucie?"

The doors slid open smoothly, "Of course, Mini Stark. May I ask how you are feeling today?"

Tony entered the elevator and smiled at Percy talking animatedly to JARVIS, looking up at one of the cameras in the corner. He told the kid a few days ago that they were basically the A.I's way of seeing and now, every time he started to talk to JARVIS, he would always look for a camera.

"And then Mr. Brucie made me and Jim Jam sandwiches!" Percy said happily while waving his arms in the air as he talked, walking out of the elevator. "Mine were dinosaurs while Jim Jam had triangles! What did you do today, Mr. JJ?"

"I have helped your father in the lab," The A.I. spoke. "As well as provided Mr. Thor with some help in the library." He used the name that the child was most familiar with when referring to the god, so as to not confuse him. He also made sure to adjust his vocabulary so that he understood what he was saying.

Percy smiled at a nearby camera, "You're really nice, Mr. JJ!"

"Thank you, Mini Stark. I do try."

The six year old giggled at the name before bounding out of the elevator as the door opened, making sure to say bye to the A.I. He latched onto Bruce's pant leg when he saw the man, staring up at him.

Bruce glanced down in surprise before he gasped and looked up at the ceiling, trying not to look back at the child and get sucked into his seal eyes, "Hi, Percy. Do you need something?"

"I go to school today," Percy pouted, his little fists tightening a bit on the fabric of the scientist's jeans. "Can I have dinoswa-saur sandwiches? I really like 'em."

"Oh," Bruce relaxed and looked back at the kid and ruffled his hair. "Sure thing, bud. Why don't you go see if we have any lunch boxes in that cabinet," He gestured to the one by the fridge. "And see if we have one that you want to use." Bruce knew that, for the last week, Tony was buying things that his new son might need for school and that included a lunch box. Unfortunately, the Stark didn't know what the child liked, so he bought over five different ones and stuffed them in the cabinet by the fridge.

Percy clapped happily, bouncing on the balls of his feet, "'Kay! Thank you, Mr. Brucie!" He quickly opened the specified spot, his eyes widening with awe as he saw all the different kinds of designs. He squealed and picked an orange one up, turning to Tony, "I want this one! Lookie, lookie, this horsie has wings and it's black! Isn't that cool?"

"It's very cool," Tony nodded, grinning at the kid. "Give it to Mr. Brucie so he can put your food inside it when he's done making the sandwiches."

"Oh, yeah!" The six year-old stood on the tips of his toes so he could slide it on top of the counter. He puffed his chest proudly as he got it up there before hugging Bruce's leg, "Thank you, Mr. Brucie, for making me yummy food. I go- I will go draw."

Bruce smiled, "Okay, I'll call you when I'm done."

"M'kay!" Percy grabbed Tony's hand, dragging him to the living room, "Draw with me!" He took out his little basket from under the coffee table that was filled with two sketchbooks, a pack of colored pencils, and a 64 Crayola crayon pack. He handed his father one of the books before plopping himself on the floor and opening up his own, already reaching for a black crayon.

"What're you going to draw?" Tony asked as he searched for a pencil in the basket. He grinned triumphantly when he found one.

"I am drawing my puppy," Percy said as he drew a large black oval on his paper.

The Stark looked up from where started sketching the head for another Iron Man suit, "What puppy?"

The six year-old grabbed a red crayon, "My puppy. I will show you when I'm done." 

"Alright," Tony nodded, resuming his work on his drawing. After a few minutes, Percy poked his arm to get his attention. "You finished?"

"Mmhm!" Percy turned his paper, holding it up proudly.

The dog was black and red with pointy ears and even sharper teeth. Its body was, apparently, huge as the dog was about five times bigger than the tony drawn version of Percy. The dog even had big red eyes, one a little bit bigger than the other, but Tony could kind of tell what type of dog it was. Where did the kid see it from though?"

"What's its name?" Tony asked after complimenting on how cool he thought it was.

"Her name is Ms. O'Leary!" Percy said happily. "She is a- well, mommy always said it was a bad word- but she is a hou-hound!"

So, Tony was right. "Ms. O'Leary is an awesome name for her." He ruffled the kid's hair before hearing the kid's name being called. "Come on, I think Mr. Brucie's done with your lunch."

"Yay!" Percy gathered the crayons he used, putting them in his basket, and grabbed his and Tony's drawing, also adding them to the basket. He stood up, taking off to the kitchen, "Mr. Brucie! Mr. Brucie! Did you make noodle dinos?"

Xxxxxxxxxxx

Words: 1,228

Sorry, it's short and I'm not really proud of this chapter but I hope you enjoy it all the same

-- Yuki :D