I am so sorry for not updating this sooner! I was out all day Friday and was working all day Saturday and was way too tired to write! Hopefully, this chapter makes up for the weight -it might've accidentally become 3,000 words so that might make it up to you guys!?

WARNING: Slight reference/implication to abortion but nothing major.

Everyone returned to the Avengers Compound, their rooms remained the same. All but T'Challa, Shuri, Dr Strange and Wong had come with them.

Pepper lay in bed, her hands subconsciously hovering over her stomach as she stared unseeingly at the ceiling. Tony had said something in his farewell video to her that had confused her. It loitered at the back of her head. He had said 'you both'. She rubbed at her stomach unconsciously before her eyes widened at the possibility. All the signs pointed towards it. She had just assumed it was stress. Quickly throwing on clothes, she snuck out of the compound and drove to the nearest 24/7 pharmacy. She bought five pregnancy tests and rushed home.

Test number one was positive.

Test number two was positive.

Test number three was positive.

Test number four was positive.

Test number five was...positive.

Pepper stared in horror. A hand pressed against her stomach. She released an animalistic wail and fell to her knees burying her face in her hands.

—LINE BREAK—

Hearing the cry echo throughout the compound, the Avengers leapt from their beds none of them had really been asleep. They rushed towards Pepper's (and Tony's) room, running into one another on the way. They froze. Staring down at the crying woman, Rhodey rushed past to hold her. He noticed the tests and slowly the others did too.

"Oh Pepper." A few of them whispered, taking a seat on the floor and bed around her.

The TV flickered on moments later when the only sound in the room was quiet cries and murmured reassurances.

"Hey, sweetheart."

Everyone looked up at the sound of Tony's voice. There he was on the screen. He wasn't recording in his lab like the other videos, he was in his and Pepper's bedroom at what must've been the restored Malibu Manor.

"If you're watching this then I was right. I began to notice some symptoms that led me to believe you were pregnant. I could be wrong, but if you're seeing this then I...well, I wasn't." He smiled sadly, "I should've told you that I suspected but…there wasn't any time. Not really."

Pepper watched through blurry eyes as her deceased husband spoke gently to her.

"It's…it's cruel. I know it is. That I'm leaving you alone to raise a child, well…that's if you plan to. It's one hundred percent your choice, of course, it is."

There was a silence in the room. Tony, himself, had stopped talking too.

"I think it was my destiny," His lip twitched at the word and despite the layers of sadness in his eyes, a glimmer of amusement could be seen, "to never get the life I wanted. To never be there for my family. It…you have no idea how much it pains me to know that I won't have a child -or won't be there for her or him as they grow up." A tear trickled down his cheek, "If you do have our child, please don't let them grow up thinking I didn't love them. Make sure they know that I wanted to be there." He wiped the tears that fell away, "I will always be there for you, Pepper. For you both. You just won't know it." The screen faded.

Pepper released a series of loud and painful sobs. She would raise her child to know just what their daddy did. To know that their daddy was the best man in the world and that he wanted nothing more than to be there. That he loved them so very much.

As the group stayed silent, they never noticed the invisible figure sitting on the chair in the corner of the room holding his face in his hands as he cried.

—LINE BREAK—

Every year, the Avengers and friends gathered on Tony's death anniversary. They gathered at his grave and comforted one another. They always ensured that they could go, even dropping everything and flying across the country to go. That's not to say that they didn't go to talk to his grave on their own or in pairs throughout the year.

They had all changed as the months and years flew by.

Natasha had retired from her life of killing and spying, she had her own apartment and was currently seeing someone; Bruce was living out in the countryside, he too was seeing someone and many were suspicious that the redhead and doctor were dating especially when the others never met the twos so-called partners.

Clint had returned to the farm with his family, living in peace; Scott had managed to get shared custody over his daughter, who stayed with him every other weekend and he was dating Hope van Dyne.

Vision and Wanda were living together in a quaint apartment, the two had even decided to go to university.

Peter, Harley and Shuri seemed to have formed a little group and were right on track to becoming incredible and famous scientists/engineer; the two boys had gone off to MIT and were roommates, it seemed that an anonymous man had paid for their university life (they all knew it was Tony).

Wakanda was thriving as the world grew friendly with the country, T'Challa had done a great job.

The two 'wizards', Dr Strange and Wong had returned to their daily lives; Fury had retired. He'd moved off to the countryside, where Tony had set him up a nice cosy place to stay until he departed from the world (or got bored and wanted back in the action).

Rhodey had briefly returned to the army but after six months, he found it too difficult and decided to retire; Sam too had returned to work, but he hadn't retired.

Happy and surprisingly (or not depending on how close you were to them) May had gotten together and no one could be happier for the pair…especially when Happy had finally asked the brunette out. It took months and only happened because Peter all but shouted to his aunt that the head of security was trying to ask her on a date.

Bucky and Steve found themselves living together in Brooklyn, Steve had given up the pedestal that was Captain America after two months of trying, he just couldn't and as a result, he became Steve Rogers, the artist, who had no connection to Captain America and he liked it that way. Bucky had somehow landed a modelling career. No one knew how that had happened, but the super soldier was proud of all the help he had done with said career -being an amputee, he had been able to build up the confidence of those in similar conditions.

The two gods had set up a new Asgard with the Asgardians. They took over the nice and cosy farm planet that Thanos has retired to. Loki and Thor both shared the responsibilities as king, though the latter took the title.

Then there was Pepper. She did what she does best, she worked. She worked and she raised her daughter. After her daughter was old enough to go to school, Pepper stopped working from home and had her hours fixed so she'd be able to drop her daughter off at school before going to work and she'd be able to pick her daughter up on her way home. That's not to say she didn't continue to work at home, but things at SI were calmer than ever.

Despite all of this. Despite almost everyone turning away from their superhero identities, if the world is in danger, if there's no possible way to save the dying world. The Avengers new and old will return to save the day and if they can't save them, they'll avenge the world.

—LINE BREAK—

Morgan Antonia Stark woke up early on her sixteenth birthday. For some reason she couldn't sleep, though that was probably because she was excited about being able to legally drive, (she'd already passed the test and just had to wait until she was of age to actually drive on the roads…don't ask, it was the perks of being a brilliant driver and being the daughter of two famous people -one of which was dead and legendary).

She sat up and grabbed her phone, she threw her wireless headphones on went to turn her music on when a message appeared. Curious, she opened it. There stood her father giving her a sad sort of smile.

"Hey, baby girl." He whispered,

Morgan made a face, how did he know she'd be a girl?

"I know what you're thinking, how do I know you're a girl?" He chuckled and tapped his nose, "Call it a father's instinct…or I might've been told by a powerful being not of this world. Your choice, baby girl." He said with a loving and amused smile.

The sixteen-year-old found herself chuckling. From what she'd heard and seen by FRIDAY's old camera footage, this was definitely her dad.

"I know what it's like to grow up without a dad. I mean mine was alive for the first two decades of mine, but he was absent. Cold and calculating. Your granddad wasn't the best father, darling girl. But I can't help wondering what's worse. Not having a dad at all or having an uncaring one. I'd like to think it was the latter, but…" He shrugged and looked on at her through the screen with sad cinnamon eyes, "I am so sorry for leaving you behind. For not being there for you. For just…being dead." He rubbed at his eyes.

Morgan found herself rubbing her own eyes,

"It's okay, dad."

"I can't help but wonder what you'd be like. Do you have my hair or Pepper's? My eyes or hers? My love for building and creating or her love of…well, being the best businesswoman ever?" He paused and changed the subject, "At least you know people love you. I don't doubt that Harley and Peter have taken on the role of big brothers and are overly protective of you. Same with your Uncle Rhodey, how many times has he threatened a boyfriend or girlfriend with the War Machine? I bet he's even pulled the Captain America card!"

The girl chuckled. It was all true. So very annoyingly true.

"It's sad that I can't pull the 'Iron Man will destroy you, but Tony Stark, the angry protective dad will obliterate you' card." He looked on wistfully and sighed, "That would've been fun."

She chuckled once again, given how protective she'd heard him be, she could almost picture her coming home with someone and having her dad read them the riot act.

"Baby girl, your mother has undoubtedly never gone into my workshop and she'd have been the only one able to. See after my death, I told FRIDAY to let everyone grab their belongings from inside before shutting the place down. My bots -your robotic siblings, I suppose- have gone to sleep like the rest of the room. It's merely dormant. FRI doesn't have access there either. What I'm getting at is that you're old enough now and I want you to have my workshop. It's all yours baby girl, whether you use it to build or completely change it. It's all yours. But don't…don't get rid of my bots, okay? Please."

Morgan nodded and headed down to the room. She stood outside the door trying to work out how to get in.

"You don't need a code. Just make one up now and it'll be yours to get inside until you change it." Tony answered as though he knew she was struggling.

The girl typed in a simple code just using the numbers and paying no attention to the alphabet version. It was a typical birthday date code.

"Welcome to my haven, baby girl. Treat her well." Tony whispered,

Morgan entered, her eyes were wide in awe as the place came to life. Three bots rushed over to her beeping happily.

"Hello…Dum-E…Butterfingers and U." She murmured looking at their names on the side of their bodies.

"The suits are yours too. I made one for you, she's called Rescue and I originally planned for your mother to have her but…well you know what Pepper's like. But it's only for you to use if you want to. Though, if you do please wait until you're at least eighteen and maybe don't tell your mother as she'll bring me back to life and kill me with the heel of her Jimmy Choo's."

She chuckled as she walked around taking everything in with a large and all too familiar grin as her gaze landed on the rows of Iron Man suits.

—LINE BREAK—

At some point about an hour after exploring, Morgan got in one of her dad's old cars. She drove straight out of the garage exit and onto the quiet roads. It was still early. She came to a stop outside a cemetery and found herself wandering, her headphones were still on her head as she'd forgotten to take them off.

"Baby girl. I love you."

She jumped as her dad's voice suddenly came through the headphones.

"I love you so much. I will always be proud of you -unless you do some of the stupid shit I did as a youth, then I won't be. Always know that I love you so much and I am so sorry for not raising you. I love you, baby girl. Happy birthday."

The voice shut off and the message was over as Morgan pulled the headphones off and left them laying around her neck. She came to a stop as the last words were said and stared at the grave before her. Tears were in her eyes at her dad's message. She stared at the grave. The first was for her grandma, Maria Stark. The next her granddads, Howard Stark. Then the final one was for her dad, Tony Stark.

'Anthony Edward Stark
1970-2019
I Am Iron Man
And
I Am Ready.'

Morgan had heard of this. She'd watched her dad announce that he was Iron Man and also that he was ready to go in the videos he gave to the Avengers. She elegantly dropped to the ground on her bottom, her legs crossed. Faintly, she remembered that she was in her pyjamas which consisted of loose short shorts and a loose tank top -the weather was incredibly warm at the minute. She reached out and traced the words on the stone.

"Hey, dad. I'm sorry for not coming to see you before. I mean I was always told I could go if I wanted to and sure I came for the big anniversary visits, but mum never really wanted me to come when she visited on her own and I felt awkward asking the others. But now that I can drive here, I would like to come and talk to you every week or two, if that's alright?" There was a faint rustling as a calm breeze wandered through the cemetery, "Thank you for everything you've done dad. For saving the world, even though the world was never nice to you. For just being a great man. I always think you'd have been a brilliant dad. Everyone else does too. It's a shame we never got to meet, but considering how much everyone told me about you, I feel like I know you." Morgan stayed there for hours, ignoring the ringing of her phone as she told her dad everything about her. She barely even registered the presence of another until a hand fell on her shoulder. She jumped.

"It's only me." Rhodey murmured as he slowly sat down next to her, letting the girl place her head on his shoulder.

"Why are you here?"

"You've got your mum out in a panic looking for you. Everyone has been looking for you."

"I'm sorry."

"It's alright, kiddo."

"How'd you know I would be here?"

"You're dad used to pull the same thing." He answered looking at the grave of his best friend, "He never told anyone but when the workshop wouldn't help cool him down or something, this was his second retreat. He'd come and talk to his mum for hours. It took a while for him to talk to his dad though."

"I miss him and I never knew him."

"I know, kid. I know. He'd have loved you so much." He answered pressing a kiss to his nieces head, "I miss him too. He was a good man." They stayed staring in silence for a few minutes, "We best get you home before your mum ignores my advice and calls the police." Morgan chuckled a bit and helped her uncle up. "Besides, you've got presents to open and a cake to eat."

—LINE BREAK—

Pepper couldn't help but notice how alike her daughter and husband were. Morgan was Tony. She had his brain, his dark hair, his emotive coffee eyes -hell recently she'd become obsessed with coffee like the man had been! She had his love for creating, his musical talent. She was Tony. Only younger and a girl. She was also freer. Tony had never been allowed to follow his own dreams. He'd been forced into the spotlight at too young an age and he was forced to become an adult at the tender age of four. He wasn't allowed to be who he had wanted to be. He had the weight of the world on his shoulders and the gaze of the public and press digging into his back. He had to do things he didn't want to.

But Morgan could. She wasn't forced to become an adult. She was allowed to be a child. Pepper had shielded her from the press as much as possible. She could build if she wanted to and she could play the piano if she wanted to. She didn't have the weight of the world wearing her down. She was a freer version of her father.

If Pepper believed in reincarnation, then she would be certain that this was her husband living another life, having another chance. She most certainly wasn't the only one who thought so either.

—LINE BREAK—

If Morgan decided to change her passcode to 'I Am Ready' at the end of the day, well no one had to know. Mostly because it was a password.

And if the workshop became her haven, then well, she is Tony Stark's daughter after all.

Here's my Tumblr if you're interested, it also has the story collages: anxious- - -soul (no spaces between the dashes but sucks and wouldn't allow the dashes without spaces)

Anyway,
Thank you for reading,
Hope you enjoyed this,
Please review,
No hate -don't like, don't read

Bye~