Natasha walked through the hallway on one of the top floors of Stark Tower, one of the personal floors, searching for the billionaire. She entered the living room and looked around, hoping to see him so she could stop her search, get him to fill in the paperwork for Pepper and get on with gathering her information. Normally, Natasha, or Natalie as she was known by Stark, would not be allowed on these levels but Pepper entered in the code in the elevator so that she could search his personal floors for the genius. Whilst walking down one of the corridors, Natasha thought she heard Stark's voice talking to someone she didn't recognise the voice of. She swiftly walked down the corridor and entered the room where the voices were coming from, what she saw was not what she expected.
Stark was sat in the middle of the floor of the room next to a small child who was talking animatedly as he continued to build something out of lego. The boy turned around upon hearing the door open and quickly dived at Stark and hid behind his body, out of Natasha's sight.
"Natalie?" Tony questioned as he turned to look at the door, the body held in his arms, still hidden behind his body.
"Pepper sent me up to get you to sign this paperwork." Natasha said, holding out the paperwork. She was thrown by this whole situation, who would trust Stark to look after their kid? Why would Stark agree?
Tony sighed and stood up, lifting the child into his arms who quickly burried his head into Tony's neck. "Pepper shouldn't have let you come up here. This is my private space."
"She said it was urgent."
Tony shifted the boy's weight in his arms and walked out of the room, Natasha followed behind.
"Whatever, just don't come up here again, and don't mention what you've seen up here."
"The boy? Who is he?"
Tony stopped as he entered the kitchen and tried to set the boy down on the counter. However, he refused to let go of Tony's neck so Tony quickly gave up and just changed the position of the child again before getting a beaker out of a cupboard, filling it with juice out of the fridge and giving it to the boy.
"That's classified information."
"Who's kid is he then?"
Tony looked at her in disbelief, "You're really asking me who is parents are?"
"Yes..."
Before Tony could respond, Pepper ran into the room but stopped upon seeing the scene inside, "Tony, I'm sorry. I didn't even think about Evan before sending her up."
Tony held up a hand before she could carry on with her apology, "It's fine. Just try not to do it again, even if she is your assistant. Natalie, this is Evan, he is my son."
"Your son? I'm pretty sure that would have made the news if one of the paternity cases came out as true."
"He wasn't a paternity case, I was aware of the pregnancy, his mother signed over custody when he was born. There was no case, no publicity. I've kept him away from media attention as much as I could. Now, if you don't mind I would really appreciate it if you could just keep this information to yourself."
"Of course, no media outlet would believe me anyway."
"That's not what I meant although also don't tell the media."
"Who else would I tell?"
"SHIELD."
Natasha's eyes widened slightly before she schooled her face to one of confusion, "SHIELD?"
"Don't bother Natasha."
"My name's Natalie."
"Come on Natasha, or should I say Black Widow? Did you really think you would get in here and I wouldn't know who you are or that you are spying on me? Come on, you can't be that naive."
"She's a spy?" a small voice asked, coming from the boy still wrapped in Tony's arms, Evan.
"Yeah, do you remember when I told you about Agent Coulson?"
"The spy in a suit, with sunglasses?"
"That's the one. She works for the same people as him."
"Cool. Dad, can I be a spy when I grow up?"
"I thought you wanted to be a zoo keeper?"
"You would let him become a zoo keeper? Don't you want him to be an inventor like you?" Natasha asked, sure that Tony was just indulging him. After all, Starks were engineers, inventor, that's who they were and he would surely want his son to follow in that path. However Tony's reaction suggested that wasn't the case.
"He can be whatever he wanted to be. I am not my father, I will not force him into a career that he doesn't want. If Evan wants to be a zoo keeper then he can."
"Yeah!" Evan chimed in as he finished his juice and handed his father the cup who dropped it into the sink, "Do you think I could do both?"
"I'm sure you could if you wanted to. You can do anything, right?"
"Right!" "Tony?" Pepper called, still stood by the doorway, "Can you just fill in this paperwork and then we can both leave you two alone. I know you had plans for today."
"Fine," Tony sighed as he managed to set Evan down on the counter top this time and reached for the paperwork, "I only have vague plans anyway, where do you want to go buddy?"
Tony bent down and started to scan the documents as Evan looked thoughtful for a minute, eventually piping up, "Dad?"
"Yeah?" Tony replied, not looking up from the paperwork as he quickly made his way through the countless pages.
"Can we go see Uncle Rhodey?"
Tony signed the last piece of paper, handed it to Natasha before turning back to his son, "He not in the country, remember he said last week when he came to visit."
"Oh yeah," Evan said, sounding disappointed, "Um, what about the zoo?"
Tony picked up Evan and swung him onto his shoulders, "The zoo it is!" he exclaimed as Evan giggled from his father's shoulders. Tony turned to exit the room but before they left Tony turned back to Natasha,
"I meant it you know, don't tell Fury. Don't tell anyone. I don't want Evan involved with any of this."
Natasha thought for a moment, it was her job to tell Fury what she found out but he never explicitly said that she had to tell him anything she found out about the people close to Tony, only about him. She looked at Evan, sat playing with his father's head, 'He doesn't need to be involved with this, he's just a kid.'
"I won't tell anyone. He's just a kid."
"Thank you," Tony said before turning and leaving the room, talking to Evan all the way down the corridor.
"Dad, do you think the lions will still be there?"
"I'm sure they will."
"Awesome! I love the lions, and the meerkats, will the meerkats be there too?"
"Buddy, I'm sure all the animals will still be there."
"Good. When I've got a zoo, I'm going to have giant lion and meerkat areas because they are the coolest!"
"What about the other animals, won't they get jealous?"
"Oh, maybe. I guess I'll just give them all giant areas!"
"Good idea buddy!"
Stark was sat in the middle of the floor of the room next to a small child who was talking animatedly as he continued to build something out of lego. The boy turned around upon hearing the door open and quickly dived at Stark and hid behind his body, out of Natasha's sight.
"Natalie?" Tony questioned as he turned to look at the door, the body held in his arms, still hidden behind his body.
"Pepper sent me up to get you to sign this paperwork." Natasha said, holding out the paperwork. She was thrown by this whole situation, who would trust Stark to look after their kid? Why would Stark agree?
Tony sighed and stood up, lifting the child into his arms who quickly burried his head into Tony's neck. "Pepper shouldn't have let you come up here. This is my private space."
"She said it was urgent."
Tony shifted the boy's weight in his arms and walked out of the room, Natasha followed behind.
"Whatever, just don't come up here again, and don't mention what you've seen up here."
"The boy? Who is he?"
Tony stopped as he entered the kitchen and tried to set the boy down on the counter. However, he refused to let go of Tony's neck so Tony quickly gave up and just changed the position of the child again before getting a beaker out of a cupboard, filling it with juice out of the fridge and giving it to the boy.
"That's classified information."
"Who's kid is he then?"
Tony looked at her in disbelief, "You're really asking me who is parents are?"
"Yes..."
Before Tony could respond, Pepper ran into the room but stopped upon seeing the scene inside, "Tony, I'm sorry. I didn't even think about Evan before sending her up."
Tony held up a hand before she could carry on with her apology, "It's fine. Just try not to do it again, even if she is your assistant. Natalie, this is Evan, he is my son."
"Your son? I'm pretty sure that would have made the news if one of the paternity cases came out as true."
"He wasn't a paternity case, I was aware of the pregnancy, his mother signed over custody when he was born. There was no case, no publicity. I've kept him away from media attention as much as I could. Now, if you don't mind I would really appreciate it if you could just keep this information to yourself."
"Of course, no media outlet would believe me anyway."
"That's not what I meant although also don't tell the media."
"Who else would I tell?"
"SHIELD."
Natasha's eyes widened slightly before she schooled her face to one of confusion, "SHIELD?"
"Don't bother Natasha."
"My name's Natalie."
"Come on Natasha, or should I say Black Widow? Did you really think you would get in here and I wouldn't know who you are or that you are spying on me? Come on, you can't be that naive."
"She's a spy?" a small voice asked, coming from the boy still wrapped in Tony's arms, Evan.
"Yeah, do you remember when I told you about Agent Coulson?"
"The spy in a suit, with sunglasses?"
"That's the one. She works for the same people as him."
"Cool. Dad, can I be a spy when I grow up?"
"I thought you wanted to be a zoo keeper?"
"You would let him become a zoo keeper? Don't you want him to be an inventor like you?" Natasha asked, sure that Tony was just indulging him. After all, Starks were engineers, inventor, that's who they were and he would surely want his son to follow in that path. However Tony's reaction suggested that wasn't the case.
"He can be whatever he wanted to be. I am not my father, I will not force him into a career that he doesn't want. If Evan wants to be a zoo keeper then he can."
"Yeah!" Evan chimed in as he finished his juice and handed his father the cup who dropped it into the sink, "Do you think I could do both?"
"I'm sure you could if you wanted to. You can do anything, right?"
"Right!" "Tony?" Pepper called, still stood by the doorway, "Can you just fill in this paperwork and then we can both leave you two alone. I know you had plans for today."
"Fine," Tony sighed as he managed to set Evan down on the counter top this time and reached for the paperwork, "I only have vague plans anyway, where do you want to go buddy?"
Tony bent down and started to scan the documents as Evan looked thoughtful for a minute, eventually piping up, "Dad?"
"Yeah?" Tony replied, not looking up from the paperwork as he quickly made his way through the countless pages.
"Can we go see Uncle Rhodey?"
Tony signed the last piece of paper, handed it to Natasha before turning back to his son, "He not in the country, remember he said last week when he came to visit."
"Oh yeah," Evan said, sounding disappointed, "Um, what about the zoo?"
Tony picked up Evan and swung him onto his shoulders, "The zoo it is!" he exclaimed as Evan giggled from his father's shoulders. Tony turned to exit the room but before they left Tony turned back to Natasha,
"I meant it you know, don't tell Fury. Don't tell anyone. I don't want Evan involved with any of this."
Natasha thought for a moment, it was her job to tell Fury what she found out but he never explicitly said that she had to tell him anything she found out about the people close to Tony, only about him. She looked at Evan, sat playing with his father's head, 'He doesn't need to be involved with this, he's just a kid.'
"I won't tell anyone. He's just a kid."
"Thank you," Tony said before turning and leaving the room, talking to Evan all the way down the corridor.
"Dad, do you think the lions will still be there?"
"I'm sure they will."
"Awesome! I love the lions, and the meerkats, will the meerkats be there too?"
"Buddy, I'm sure all the animals will still be there."
"Good. When I've got a zoo, I'm going to have giant lion and meerkat areas because they are the coolest!"
"What about the other animals, won't they get jealous?"
"Oh, maybe. I guess I'll just give them all giant areas!"
"Good idea buddy!"