Tony stays until Peter falls asleep.

Then he stays for another few minutes, until he's sure Peter is completely and soundly asleep, not being plagued by nightmares like he has been every other time he's fallen asleep.

"Tony."

He looks up, startled. Pepper has appeared in the doorway behind him. He instinctively knows she's been watching him watch Peter for an indeterminate amount of time. Something tells him he should feel embarrassed, or abashed, but instead he just feels tired. "Hey, Pep."

"Hey." She comes inside, her footsteps nearly silent. He knows she must have taken her heels off already despite not having changed out of her work outfit, otherwise he would hear them clicking.

He looks down as she approaches, putting a hand on his shoulder. He brings his up to cover her automatically. "How was the meeting?"

"Boring as they were when you had them," she says simply, her other hand running through his hair once before dipping to his chin to tilt his head up gently. Her blue eyes are gentle but stern. "Listen, Tony. It's sweet of you to be concerned, but he's fine, and you're hovering. He's not going anywhere. Just let him get his rest and you can finally get some of your own, yeah?"

He wants to resist, but he knows she has a point. He really is hovering. Besides, if he wants Peter to trust him, then that trust has to go both ways. The kid said he wouldn't take off and leave, and Tony had to believe him.

"Yeah, alright," he concedes, standing up carefully so he doesn't jostle the sleeping kid, then wraps an arm around her shoulders, feeling hers slide against his back, and lets her guide him out of the room.

They're both quiet until they've closed Peter's door behind them and they're in the kitchen. They separate long enough to start preparing their own food - reheated soup, simply finishing off the leftovers, but neither of them mind. Pepper makes them both bowls and puts them in the microwave as he gets them both drinks, and they return to the table at the same time. Only when they're sitting side by side, stirring their soup, do they talk again.

"Pepper…" Tony hesitates, not even sure how to start with what he wants to say. He's not even sure what he wants to say, really. Does he want to ask her to stay here? To take Peter back with them? Are they prepared for that, the battle it might still cause? And that's not even mentioning his guilt, and his itching desire to break his retirement long enough to hunt down the bastards that did this to Peter, and all the ones who'd tried to use him to get to him and the other Avengers.

"I know," she cuts in, gently, because of course she does. "You know I have no problem with him staying, Tony. But you can't keep him here if he doesn't want to stay."

He lets out a low, frustrated breath. "He agreed to stay until he's healed, at least. I don't know if his definition and mine are nearly the same, but… Jesus, Pep. He's a kid. And the things he's told me… he has no one. From the sounds of it, he's been living on the streets, doing absolutely horrifying things to get by, and I just…" He shakes his head. "I can't let him go back to that."

"You can't keep him from leaving, Tony. Aside from how illegal that is…"

He waves her off. "Hardly an issue," he mutters, and he means it. What was the worst Peter could do, try to call the police? He has a feeling that the kid wouldn't want to do that, that he doesn't trust the authorities - and rightfully so. Even if he did, the idea of someone trying to arrest him was laughable. But that was besides the point. He wanted Peter to want to stay. "I just… I don't know how to convince him to stay," he says at last. "And even if I can, the likelihood that he's going to want to leave the city, where he can't be Spider-Man anymore, even for a short period…"

"It'd hardly be a short period if you want him to stay for good, Tony," Pepper points out. Still, she considers it. "We could always move back into the city."

They could, but he didn't like that idea, either. He liked living in the lakehouse. He liked not being in surrounded on all sides by chaos all the time. But would he give that up? For Peter, maybe. It was hard to say.

"I suppose that's true," he says at last. "I don't know, Pep. I'll have to talk to him, see what he'd be willing to do. I don't want to drag him with us kicking and screaming, but…"

"But you're stubborn as a mule and not wanting to won't stop you?" Pepper finishes with a small smile. "Yeah, I know."

Tony can't help but crack a smile too. "You're the best, Pep." He bumps her shoulder playfully.

"I know I am." She smiles and nudges him back.

From there, the conversation drifts to the mundane, about work, the company, Morgan, and everything in between, and they sit there long after their food is gone and talk. They don't even move from the island except for long enough to refill their drinks, which switched from water to actual alcohol as the night progressed. They're so deep into conversation that neither of them realize how much time has passed until the sound of soft footsteps jolts both of them to attention.

As light as the footsteps are, both of them immediately think it's Morgan coming out. Tony glances at the clock, then back at his tablet, which he and Pepper had been looking at something on before the sound had startled them back to reality. "Go back to bed," he says without looking up.

"Oh… sorry."

Tony nearly jolts from his seat, but Pepper has him beat. She's up almost before Peter speaks, taking his arm from where he's leaning heavily against the wall as he shuffles out. "Don't listen to him, Peter, he's an idiot. He thought you were Morgan. Did you need something?"

If Peter is phased by Pepper's sudden appearance or the fact that she knows his name, he doesn't show it. He offers her a small, shy half-smile and looks down. "No, I'm okay."

"What are you doing up, then?" Tony isn't sure if he sounds like a concerned parent or a controlling asshole more, although it might be a bit of both based on the look that Pepper gives him. He can't help it. On one hand, he knows Peter probably wasn't doing anything wrong, that he needs to trust him when he promised that he isn't going to try to run off without talking to him first. It doesn't look like he'd get very far even if that was what he was trying to do, but the paranoia is still there.

Peter's eyes snap to him, slightly wide, and his smile fades. Tony immediately feels like an ass again before he even speaks. "I was just a little hungry and I didn't want to bother anyone so I thought…"

"Again, he's an idiot," Pepper says, sharper this time, as she helps Peter onto a seat at the island. "You're more than welcome to anything in the house, Peter. Can I make you something particular? Tony and I had leftover soup. I think there's some more left, if you'd like some of that."

Peter bites his lip. "That'll be fine, Miss Potts. Thank you." He looks at Tony, and the return of his hesitance makes the elder hero want to smack himself. "Was I not supposed to leave the room?"

"It's not like that," Tony blurts immediately. "I mean… you're not a hostage here, Peter, and of course you're not confined to the room. I just…"

"Was worried that I lied?" Peter looks at him, and Tony has to look away. That was exactly it, and he doesn't want to admit it. "Don't worry. I would be too. But it's not like I have anywhere to go, even if I had any way to get there, which I don't. If that makes you feel any better."

"It makes me feel like an asshole," Tony admits. He sighs. "I'm sorry, Peter. Really. I know if you really wanted to run, you would, but I just… worry." He leans forward, resting his hands on the table. He may as well lay his cards out now. He feels the urge to reach out to the young vigilante, but he doesn't want the touch to be rejected - which is well within his rights, and only to be expected with some of what he knows now - so he doesn't. "Look, I want you to stay. With us. At least for a while. But I don't want you to feel like you have to, either. Once you're healed, I'll let you go, if that's what you want, but…" I want you to stay. I want you to want to stay. He doesn't say it, but he knows the words are implied, that Peter can read them on his face.

He seems to, and several different emotions flicker across his face before he shuts them down. It only occurs to him the complete irony of what he said - telling him he's not a prisoner, but that he essentially has to what he wants for him to let him go, regardless of whether it's something he would do anyway, in nearly the same breath - when he registers the tinge of residual fear and resignation that flashes on Peter's face. He wants to say something to fix it, but Peter speaks before he gets the chance.

"I…" he stops, looking down at the bowl of soup as Pepper sets it in front of him. "Thanks, Miss Potts. I'm… flattered, Mr. Stark, really, but you don't owe me anything. I know you think you do, because I'm another superhero and because I got hurt by people looking for you and because you don't feel like you did enough or whatever, I'm sure there's more reasons I don't know, but you don't. I don't blame you for any of it, not anymore. There's no point. And I'm not really interested in being a charity case nor do I have any names for you if this is about a vendetta, so…"

"Is that what you think this is?" Tony blinks at him, surprised. He probably shouldn't be, but he is. "Peter, you're not a charity case. You're a hero - one of us, more so now than any of us really. And while I want to know who the hell spent the past six years torturing you, yes, it's a general want to go out and murder them, not just the ones who were looking for me, I assure you. And I'm plenty capable of finding them on my own, if I actually decided to." He does reach out to him now, putting a hand on his forearm. "And hero or no, Peter, I would still want to help you. You could quit being Spider-Man in the next five minutes and I would still want to help you. I supported Spider-Man as a vigilante hero because of the man behind the mask. What you do, and who you are, inside and out. I don't just put my faith in people randomly, and I definitely don't make multimillion dollar suits for charity cases I care nothing for." He pauses. "And I swear, kid, you need to call me Tony."

Peter chews his lip. "Tony," he begins, slowly, his brows drawn together. "You didn't even know who I was."

"Didn't I?" He leans forward. "Kid, I told you. I sent you the suit. I spent my time and money working on it. Did I do that for any of the other vigilantes? No. As you so astutely noted, I don't support most of them. I knew who you were. I watched you. I didn't do as much as I could have, nor did I know the extent of your life or activities - obviously, or this wouldn't have happened, but… you weren't a charity case. It's not like that at all."

"But you asked my name," Peter points out, brows furrowing.

Tony has the decency to look slightly abashed. "I… knew your name. But I didn't want to freak you out more by already telling you I already knew. It would have been a lot of questions and I just…"

He can see the moment it clicks in Peter's head. "Ah," he murmurs, thunderclouds clearing a little. "I see."

It's silent for a moment, but then Pepper breaks in. "The point is, Peter, you're not a charity case. We want to help you, and that's all. But you have to let us."

Peter looks back at her and nods slowly. "Okay, but… how? Because as much as I appreciate it… I can't stop." He looks back at Tony, biting his lip. "You can't make me stop."

"I don't want to make you stop. Not permanently. God, I know I couldn't if I tried. I do want you to take a break and heal. And so help me, yes, if I have to make you do that, then I will." Tony pauses, studying him for a moment before adding, "Besides, if I wanted to make you stop, I wouldn't have told you I was fixing your suit, would I?"

That gives Peter a pause, and Pepper uses it to jump in again, carefully, placing her hand over Peter's and giving it a gentle squeeze. "What we're saying isn't that we want to make you stop, Peter. Although I think the fact that you're worried about us trying is just proof that even you realize it would be better for your health. But while we don't want to make you stop, not permanently, we think it would be good for you to take a break. Preferably get out of the city for a while, so you're not tempted to go out before you're fully healed."

"And also before I can figure out who the hell did this to you," Tony adds.

Peter frowns and looks back at him. "So you are going to go after the people who did this?"

"What, did you think I was going to just let it go? Yeah, I don't think so. I'll have them taken care of as soon as possible, believe me." Tony shakes his head. "This is personal, now. Not just because of what happened to you, but if they're looking for me, they can't have good intentions. I have a family to protect." He glances at Pepper, who smiles a little.

Peter takes a tentative bite of soup, seeming to consider this. "If I agree to stay with you until I'm healed enough to patrol again… will you let me help?"

Tony leans forward, itching to reach for him again but still holding back. The last thing he wants is to risk this progress. "Help with what? Your suit? Catching them?"

Peter bites his lip. "I meant with catching them, but I would love to help with my suit, if you think there's something I could do," he admits quietly.

Tony presses his lips together, thinking about it for a moment. "I'll tell you what," he says finally, leaning forward a little more. "After all you've been through, I can hardly deny you the right to help me catch the people who did this to you, and having your help will definitely make it considerably easier, so consider that done. If you're willing to stay, we can stay wherever you're most comfortable. If that's here, we can do that. We'll stay. But if you agree to actually leave the city and come back to the lake house with us, to try and get the rest we know you really need... I won't just repair your suit. I'll make a new one, and I'll let you help. We'll build it from scratch, and we can build whatever you want into it. Unlimited creative input, anything and everything you've ever wanted in there. But you have to really try to rest and heal, got it?"

Peter stares at him. His lips twitch and his eyes are bright, like he's trying to suppress his excitement at the idea. "Really?" He sounds so disbelieving, so tentatively hopeful that it makes Tony's chest ache.

"Really. Absolutely," Tony promises. He carefully lays his hand over the arm Pepper was already touching, giving them both a gentle squeeze. "Do we have a deal?"

The huge grin that breaks across Peter's face at the words is almost confirmation enough, but his next words just solidify it. "When do we leave?"