#rhodey is done with tony's claims of denial

[iloveyou3thousand]

I would love to read a werewolf fic where Peter is being courted by an unwanted alpha rival to Tony. Peter keeps gently rejecting the rival, but it takes Tony to run the rival off. Also, how did Tony court Peter and convince him to become mates?

I chose Steve as the rival Alpha because of reasons. Don’t worry, he’ll find his own mate eventually!

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Tony should never have introduced Peter to the team.

It was becoming progressively more obvious that it had been a mistake, that inviting him into his pack was never going to end well, and that he should have thought it through much better before he’d implored that Peter come along one full moon a couple of months back.

Tony had been observing things escalate for a while now, and the more he noticed, the more it started to upset him. He’d been in denial about it at first but could now privately admit that maybe he was starting to get jealous. He kept telling himself he didn’t have the right to be upset, Peter had never been his before and he might never be because Tony had never even so much as insinuated that he might be interested in the young Omega, and yet…

And yet when the full moon came around and Tony was forced to watch how Peter’s stunning wolf was cornered by a very persistent Steve, he wished that he’d laid claim on Peter before it all started.

Bringing Peter into the pack had been innocent enough, but Tony could have known that an Alpha like Steve would be particularly intrigued. He always had to have what Tony wanted too, huh?

Tony knew that Peter liked it. He was aware of how much the younger wolf enjoyed the attention, he could see it in the way that he acted when Steve came close during full moons, when he rubbed their flanks together as they walked and nipped playfully at Peter’s neck.

When Peter returned those gestures, even if only slightly, Tony’s jaw ached with the near-desperate urge to do something about it. Go over and bite Steve in the tail, or something. Make it hurt. Show Steve that Peter was off limits.

But while Tony always looked after Peter, during the full moons and otherwise, he showed his affections differently. More subtly. He didn’t go hunting for Peter like Steve did, didn’t push Peter down into the fallen leaves like Steve did, didn’t trap him under his paws like Steve did.

He wasn’t forward, purposely courting Peter, and he definitely wasn’t doing anything like that during a full moon.

Peter occasionally came to walk close to Tony while they were out and about in their alternate form, and sometimes he’d come snuggle up to Tony for a nap, but that was never anything more than playful or simply affectionate. Or so Tony thought.

Thankfully, Peter had never made an actual move to show Steve that he was genuinely interested in return, that any of the feelings that Steve appeared to have for him were reciprocated. Sometimes he even caught Peter trying to avoid Steve during yet another full moon. Not that it helped much to ease Tony’s worries.

He made the mistake of letting all of the frustration build until it inevitably snapped. He knew, logically, that he should never have let it escalate to that point, but eventually it was just…too much. And too late.

They had shifted about an hour before, and were all making their way through the dark woods, meandering through trees with some wolves occasionally breaking away from the pack to chase each other, follow a scent trail, or go scavenging, coming and going as they pleased.

Tony had been trailing behind a little, keeping an eye on Peter as always, when he caught Steve making his way toward the front of the pack where Natasha and Peter had been walking together. Already, Tony felt frustration bubble up in his chest, because he knew what was about to happen. And sure enough, Steve sidled up to Peter, bumping against him as they walked, trying to nuzzle and scent him. Resentment clawed like an ugly thing up Tony’s spine. Not just toward Steve, but toward himself for not having done something about it sooner.

Peter didn’t seem to reciprocate any of Steve’s advances, though. Maybe he wasn’t in the mood.

As a matter of fact, as Tony was glaring holes in Steve’s back, he saw how Peter tried to duck away from one of Steve’s playful pushes. The young wolf looked over his shoulder, and Tony thought their eyes met briefly, but then Peter hurried off in another direction, disappearing among the trees.

Steve followed after, of course. Tony growled unbidden, and was about to head after them, when Rhodey appeared by his side and gave him a gentle nudge. Right. Rhodey was right. If they wanted to go off together to mate, then that was none of Tony’s business.

That didn’t mean it didn’t suck though.

Tony had done his best. He’d tried so hard. He’d protected Peter, always kept tabs on him, made sure that if he was ever in trouble he got out of it well on the other end too. He brought him little gifts and they tinkered together in the workshop and Tony tried to always be encouraging of every one of Peter’s ideas and aspirations, even if he didn’t always agree with everything.

But Peter didn’t like him like that.

Or he did, and Tony had missed his chance.

Tony let the rest of the pack get ahead. Right now he preferred to trail behind like the old wolf he was, wallow in self pity for a little while.

He didn’t expect Peter to show up next to him, panting like he’d been running, tongue lolling out of his mouth. Tony gave him a puzzled look. He didn’t smell any different, and Steve and him hadn’t been gone for that long either.

Peter was walking very close, keeping their flanks aligned and looking at him as if he wanted something from Tony.

Steve followed soon after, sidling up to Peter’s other flank, and Tony’s annoyance was back. The only conclusion Tony could draw was that Peter was probably sticking to him right now because he had noticed how Tony was protective of him, and he didn’t want Steve to court him. That should have come as a consolation, a happy realization, but it was bittersweet.

At least Peter felt safe with him.

Tony tried to step aside a little, get away from the two lovebirds to see what would happen, but when Peter followed, so did Steve.

And then when Steve tried to nip at Peter’s neck again, this time Peter whined, which immediately had Tony up in arms, back straightening and shoulders squaring to glare at Steve’s wolf over Peter’s lowered head.

He gave a warning grumble in the back of his throat, Steve acknowledged it with a simple look, and then tried to nuzzle Peter again.

This time when Peter cried, Tony’s lip pulled up into a snarl, and he stopped in his tracks to nudge Peter aside so that he could put himself in between the other two wolves and growl at Steve.

Steve didn’t look like he was about to back down.

The pack ahead had stopped at the sound of Tony’s growl and they were looking in their direction, both curious and surprised to see Tony protecting Peter from Steve. They must have all thought that Steve and Peter were inevitably going to mate. Everyone had assumed so – even Tony, after all.

Steve made a move to go around Tony to get to Peter, and Tony snapped his jaw at him, flashing sharp teeth in warning. Tony wasn’t afraid to throw hands. He might have been one of the oldest wolves, not the strongest and definitely not stronger than Steve, who was younger, not to mention enhanced, but none of that was enough to deter Tony when it came to protecting Peter.

Tony had made himself clear. He was on Peter’s side, and if Steve didn’t back off he wasn’t afraid of things getting ugly.

The ball was in Steve’s court now. He could continue to antagonize and challenge Tony, which would result in a fight, which could result in some pretty serious injuries. Or he could choose to relent, back off, find someone else to court. If he was clever, he chose the latter. Tony knew that their pack would fall apart if Steve inflicted serious damage upon Tony. If he cared enough about the people around him, he would admit defeat, and let it all become water under the bridge.

Steve didn’t look like he was ready to step away, though. His eyes were on Peter, which gave the impression that he was barely afraid of Tony, even though he was the one posing the threat right now. He probably knew his odds. No, he definitely knew his odds.

And then Peter unexpectedly moved.

He’d been silent until now, frozen on the spot, and Tony could have sworn that he smelled frightened. Tony could only hope he wasn’t frightened of Steve. If that was the case… Tony wouldn’t hesitate, he’d make sure Steve didn’t run with them again. He’d have to find a new pack.

Peter moved, and for a fraction of a second Tony was afraid that he was going to surrender himself to the other Alpha after all – when instead, Peter rubbed up against Tony’s side and buried his muzzle almost pointedly into the fur at Tony’s neck.

It was Tony’s turn to stand frozen now, his snarl faltering a little at the blatant display of affection. He couldn’t see how Peter retained eye contact with Steve to really drive the point home.

Peter wasn’t Steve’s to have.

Peter wanted Tony.

Slowly, very slowly, Steve took a step back. He was getting it now. The truth of it all was dawning on him, and he was admitting defeat. If Peter didn’t want him, then Steve couldn’t force him to. He’d courted him, he’d done what he could, and now Peter was showing a most obvious sign of affection, and it wasn’t directed at Steve.

Tony feared that it was all a ruse. Just a way to get Steve out of his hair for Peter, to protect himself from unwanted advances.

Thank god Peter proved him wrong when, once the situation had been dealt with and they all tentatively continued on their journey until they found a good spot to rest for the night, he didn’t leave Tony’s side once. He came to lie with the older Alpha, cuddled up closely, nuzzled him when he could and groomed his coat.

Tony had spent so much time wishing this would happen that he was left completely stunned when finally it did.

They slept together that night, curled close, with Steve lying by himself a little farther away. Tony didn’t feel bad. Steve would find another mate, and he was too busy counting his lucky stars to really care in the first place.

Come morning, Peter was quiet, almost shy, and he still refused to leave Tony’s side.

As they started making their way back once everyone was awake and had shifted back properly, Peter walked with Tony, and after a few minutes a warm hand wiggled its way into his own, twining their fingers together slowly.

When Tony looked down he caught a rosy blush high on Peter’s cheeks.

He lifted their joined hands and pressed a kiss to Peter’s knuckles. Peter’s face only turned redder.

“I’m sorry about last night, Mr. Stark,” Peter mumbled, keeping his voice down to keep the conversation between them. He looked up at Tony, “I’ve always been yours.”

Tony let out a shuddery sigh. He was a lucky bastard.

And he just kept getting luckier.

[okyverlo]

Hi ho, hi ho my dears and darlings, it’s off to rants we go.

Iron Man 3.

Interesting little tidbit to start you all off; I had always put Iron Man 3 after Thor the dark World in my mental timeline, probably because that’s the order I first watched them in, and when I was first told that Iron Man 3 was the first part of phase two I was a very confused Oky.

Now on to the rant.

My small peeve is the indecisiveness about Tony’s capability.

We see the man single-handedly overrun a secure mansion filled with properly armed guards with finagled supplies from a Walmart, including a very gun-reminiscent taser.

Later, with Rhodey, Tony doesn’t appear to know how to use a gun at all, even though he was a weapons designer and knows the ins and outs of them.

We have that deleted scene from the first Iron Man that shows Tony grab up a gun and try to fire it only it’s been jammed; Tony knows his weapons, and he knows how to use them.

I get that it was for comedy’s sake, but come on, show some consistency.

My big peeve with this movie is the way Tony is just left alone.

I’ll start with the bigguns; where the hell was S.H.I.E.L.D.? 

S.H.I.E.L.D. is a global peace-keeping spy organisation.

Fury has spent two movies trying to get Tony onside, starting at the end of the first Iron Man.

Tony was very visibly part of the group that ended the battle of New York.

And yet, Fury and his flunkies never show up.

There are supposed bombing going about throughout the U.S. with a man being called the Mandarin claiming responsibility.

And yet, Fury and his flunkies never show up.

The fictional President Ellis ends up being kidnapped, strung up on display, by a mad man who can literally breathe fire.

And yet, Fury and his flunkies never show up.

Tony blows up all his suits at the end.

And yet, Fury and his flunkies never show up.

It genuinely baffles me how S.H.I.E.L.D. dropped the ball so hard that not only were cracks left in the ground, there is in fact a large hole.

And what of the other Avengers?

Okay, Thor is not on world- I completely forgive that; he physically cannot help.

Clint is possibly in recovery from Loki’s brainwashing? I’m willing to forgive that absence, though I would love to have confirmation or denial of that on screen.

But that still leaves Bruce, Natasha and Steve.

Natasha is possibly off on a mission trying to find the head base of the Mandarin or something else that S.H.I.E.L.D. needs her to do, I grant you that, but much like Clint’s maybe recovery, we don’t get anything saying one way or the other.

Natasha never show up.

Tony is left alone.

Given that we see Steve driving off alone on his motorcycle at the end of Avengers, most of us chose to believe he went on that road trip Fury suggested, but before he started driving, we saw him and Tony amicably shake hands, a symbolic mending of bridges from words spoken in anger and sadness.

Are you really telling me that Steve wouldn’t at least try to contact Tony after the genius gives out his address on TV?

Are you telling me that Steve wasn’t staying in hotels with TV’s on his trip so he never caught the news?

Are you telling me that Steve never once heard a couple passersby talking about what Tony had done?

Steve never shows up.

Tony is left alone.

And Bruce.

Bruce.

Bruce not showing up at any point during the mess with A.I.M. has led to a number of fan theories about him going back to Calcutta, or other places to resume his self-imposed work of being a doctor.

I can forgive that, Bruce striving to balance the damage he and Hulk have caused, and to find a sense of peace within himself, I get that, I understand that, I respect that.

But once again, we have no information on that in the movie, but still forgivable.

What I can’t get over though?

Tony Stark, a man who we see genuinely struggle throughout the whole of this movie with the things he has seen, the nightmares he can’t control, and the fears he cannot disperse, opens up to a someone he sees as a friend, someone who he thinks will listen, someone who he thinks will care.

And that someone, Bruce, is sleeping.

Had fallen asleep near the very start.

It’s once again played off for comedy, to make the ending a little more lighthearted, a little less scarily real.

But it once more leaves Tony alone.

It reinforces the idea that people don’t care about what actually happens to Tony.

It reinforces the idea that therapy -talking to someone- isn’t worth the effort, because in the end they won’t listen.

It reinforces the idea that Tony can only rely on himself to push through his demons and dreads that crawl through his mind.

Is it any wonder that the man is breaking?

[naferty]

In response to what has been voted in ‘merica right now here’s me attempting to make everyone and myself a little bit happy. 

Y’all remember that Not-So Incredible Journey thing I had going a long time ago? Yeah, here’s the complete first chapter for ya. All 4k of it. Sorry for it being so long.

Tony Stark was a shifter who refused to shift.

It wasn’t that he couldn’t, like the media would say. It wasn’t that his ego was beyond the stars and nobody was worthy to see his animal form, like the media would also say. It wasn’t that his animal was huge and would cause chaos in indoor and outdoor environments, like the side of the media scraping the bottom of the barrel would say.

Out of his own will he refused to take to his paws. Out of early experience he refused to give other shifters the advantage. The power they didn’t need to strut around anymore than they already do. The whole world knew of predators being top of the food chain, with the exception of certain prey animals that predators couldn’t touch. The apex predators.

Tony was neither. Something that Howard didn’t approve of. Something he really, really, didn’t approve of.

“A waste of potential on you.”

Most shifters were excited for the day when they could finally shift. It was a child’s dream, their hope. They couldn’t wait for it to happen.

Tony had been one of them.

On his notebook he would doodle different animals. Giant animals and fast animals. Strong animals and animals that would make others cower in fear. Incredible animals worthy to stand next to Captain America.

He lost count of how many pages had a doodle of Captain America and his friend, Bucky, with him standing in the middle. The two fierce felines, small in size but big at heart, and him in whatever animal he wanted to be for the day. A wolf, strong and fierce. An eagle, fast and patriotic. A lion, powerful and intimidating. Hell, he even drew one with him as a dog, trying for realistic because the odds of being pure wild animals were small.

And if by chance he had been destined to be a dog he swore he would never hurt the Captain and Bucky. He was their allies, not their enemies.

Turned out he didn’t need to swear anything. Not to them or anyone in the world.

The years following up the day he finally shifted he had always experienced a sort of fear. An ingrown, instinctive fear that made him wary of anything and everything and anyone. He couldn’t explain it and when he asked Jarvis about it he was informed the feeling could’ve only come from his animal passing over to him. It made Tony think long and hard about it. Made him wonder what kind of animal was terrified of nearly everything. Of anyone who got near him and anything that hovered over him. What kind of cowardly animal lived like that?

He got his answer on the day he finally shifted and it explained everything.

He cried in his room that night after he managed to shift back. Cried and hid under the covers and refused to go out. He didn’t need anyone to tell him what a huge disappointment his animal form was going to be to Howard and what an easy target he was going to be to everyone else. They were going to mock him, threaten him, hurt him, and it was going to be such an easy thing to do.

Howard only proved it all correct when he barged in and demanded to see his shifted form, wanting to see the only thing Tony had left that could’ve earned his approval. When he saw Tony crying it was obvious he had even failed at that.

Tony shifted out of fear, unused to the control yet, and the pure disappointment in Howard’s eyes and disgust on his face was enough to tell Tony he was never going to be good enough.

“You’re not going to tell anyone about this, boy. You will learn to control it and hide it away. If you so much as show a whisker I’ll make sure to cage you up and throw away the key.”

Tony nodded, curling up and trying to hide from the harsh words.

“Disgraceful. Not even Captain America would look twice at you.”

And Captain America probably wouldn’t. The only possible reason he would even look his way was a reason that terrified Tony.

The only reason anyone would was a reason Tony couldn’t allow, was terrified of.

And so he learned to suppress the urge to shift. Learned to hide it and learned to be careful around others. So long as they didn’t know, he was safe. As safe as his animal could be in the world. But instinct was something he could not ignore, and the pure desire to hide in the presence of predators and avoid catching their eye made it extremely difficult to behave in a manner that didn’t tip them off of his potentially cowardly animal.

He had to play the unaffected role when predators were baring their teeth and giving off dangerous vibes. He had to play the confident schnook when predators postured against each other and growled and hissed. As he got older he had to learn to fake interest and flirt with predators in order to prevent any bias and raise suspicion. His only saving grace was the fact that shifters were limited. They were known and they were plenty, but not everyone could shift. As he got older he learned everything he needed in order to hide his instincts, his weakness and his animal. No human or shifter could figure it out.

No one was to ever know about the creature that was chosen for him. If they ever did, if the public ever learned about it, he’d not only be a laughing stock but he’d also be known as the disgrace and weak link of the Stark family and shifter community. He’d also never recover from the backlash itself. Already he struggled to survive his own father's harsh words. To hear it from the press? From thousands? From predators, preys and humans alike? To see that weakness get confirmed because he couldn’t control his emotions and had a mental breakdown…

The urge to burrow down and hide himself was strong from just thinking about it.

But even if he were to have the skill to bottle everything up perfected, even if he were to have his animal in control and caged up, he couldn’t fight the instinct to shift. To stretch his paws, to tune in his senses, to have his animal free. All shifters experienced this urge. One could fight it all they wanted, but shifters were required to change to balance out their body’s hormone production and mental state. Tony wasn’t excused from this. His animal wanted freedom, and no matter how much Tony denied it he couldn’t prevent it forever.

At his home, with the protection of the mansion, he was able to shift and keep away prying eyes. No servant ever spotted him and no Howard ever saw him hidden under or behind furniture. For his mother and for Jarvis he always appeared. They never cared for his animal. To them his animal was just any other animal. It was the animal he was meant to be.

A piece of his heart always chipped away every time they said that. If he was always meant to have this cowardly and disgraceful little animal as his own… then he never stood a chance from the start for Howard’s approval and Captain America and Bucky’s respect.

He had always been doomed.

And so from the safety of his home and the safety of the shadows he scurried, letting his animal free. It had been easy when he had the Stark mansion as an option. So many empty rooms. So much untouched space, but when he was pushed to study away and was required to live in dorms even shifting had become a fear. The risk of getting spotted, of someone with no respect for privacy walking in, of someone with an animal shift that had a strong nose and was capable of sniffing him out, it was all too much. Especially for a fourteen year old surrounded by shifters four to eight years his senior and completely alone.

In an environment that seemed to be working against him meeting Rhodey had been both a blessing and a terrifying experience.

The canine shifter, older than him by one year, had migrated to him because of their similar circumstances; attending MIT at a young age and being shifters. And while Tony should’ve been ecstatic at having found someone around his age to get acquainted with, the fact that Rhodey was a predator and a very sharp and fast German Shepherd had made him hesitate getting close with the canine. Then his hesitation had changed from fear of the predator possibly hurting him to fear of Rhodey learning of his animal and deciding he no longer wished to associate himself with a weak little… with someone like him.

Tony swore to himself to never shift in front of Rhodey. To always excuse himself and hide away should the urge to change ever became too much to resist and spare the canine from the knowledge of his animal.

For the most part he had managed it. Rhodey never suspected what he was and, besides occasionally asking why he refused to shift and begging for a clue or two, he never openly forced Tony to reveal it. Of course he ended up finding out anyway, and not by Tony’s choice. Like Howard had predicted, Tony lost control of his emotions when a dramatic change happened in his life and it only proved how weak his animal to be.

The day he received the phone call about the car crash he was sent into an emotional spiral. Sorrow, fear, anger, denial, it was all mixed together and nearly sent him into hysterics.

The days following the call he locked himself away from the outside world. Shifted and tucked under his bed in the pile of clothing and blankets thrown carelessly around. No one disturbed him. No one knew and no one probably cared. No one, except for the German Shepherd with the sharp nose and loyalty Tony never earned nor deserved. One sniff around the room and Rhodey had found him easily under the bed. The canine didn’t scuff or scrunched his face in disgust or whined at the indecency of being friends with the animal he had found. No, all Rhodey had done was crawl closer and curl around the pile Tony had claimed, snout close and warmth circling Tony.

Not by choice Rhodey had learned about his animal, but even so Tony wouldn’t change a thing about it. Rhodey didn’t behave differently after the knowledge had been revealed and Tony had been so thankful for it. Now when he shifted he had a canine companion by his side and the social interaction he never thought he’d get and a friendship that would last for years.

Years that included taking the reigns of SI, Rhodey getting sent away and earning honors, Tony having to endure predator reporters with their vicious grins attacking him with every scandal in the book and Rhodey calling him shortly after each one to check on his well-being. Rhodey losing brothers-in-arm and Tony comforting him the best he could. Tony rising as the most sought out billionaire bachelor and painting a target on himself for every prey and predator to hunt out and Rhodey standing right beside and watching over him every step of the way.

Then Tony met a one no-funny-business Serval, Pepper Potts, and Rhodey had to assure him the feline was not going to hurt him, was not out for blood and would have to go through Rhodey if she even tried. Then letting her know by subtly and firmly reminding what dogs are most known and praised for and the rivalry between dogs and cats was going to make it really easy to do so. Rhodey found a partner in Pepper when she proved to be particularly vicious and protective against a business partner who didn’t understand the meaning of no and trapped Tony in a situation that had unsavory results no matter what option he picked.

Afterwards Tony suddenly found himself having a very loyal canine and a cunning feline as his best and closest friends. Tony and Rhodey nearly cried tears of relief when Pepper discovered Tony’s animal shift and didn’t even bat an eye from the knowledge and joined them on their cuddling session when they got too emotional and shifted right then and there.

And that was only the first half of it.

Tony relied on Rhodey and Pepper (and later on Happy, the very sufficient Brown Bear bodyguard that nearly gave Tony a heart attack the first time he growled at someone that had gotten too close to Tony) as his support and protection, and while Tony had gotten really good at acting, the truth of it was on the inside he was still as scared and terrified as he was as a child. No amount of promises from a German Shepherd, a Serval and a Brown Bear would make fear of the outside world disappear completely. Being on the predator side of the line they could never understand his view of the world. Which was why meeting Bruce Banner, a fellow prey animal, had been exactly what he needed. Tony only wished he had met the Western Cottontail in better circumstances, but the cards fell where they willed.

And it all happened because Obie betrayed him and it brought forth two of the greatest things that could happen to Tony, and worsened his already existing issues to a whole new level.

Obie betraying him had given rise to Iron Man and brought a confidence he never knew he could feel and the anonymity that came with it. Iron Man was the fourth support he relied on that nobody knew the identity of and later helped bring Bruce in as his fifth support after Tony had run into the hare shifter during one of his many hunts for his illegally sold weapons. For reasons Tony would later discover Bruce had been captured and studied in a shady facility that housed an equally shady organization that had the misfortune of owning some of Tony’s weapons. When Tony and Rhodey had busted their way inside they had expected it to be a normal routine. Cause havoc, find weapons, destroy them, double check to make sure they were all truly gone and fly out before reinforcements appeared to make their job more difficult. The last thing they thought they’d find was Bruce caged up and chained and pleading for them to help him.

Tony would never forget the way his fellow prey animal looked behind that seemingly unbreakable glass and the collar around his neck. How his hair stuck out at odd angles and his ragged clothes that passed their limit of being used and how his eyes looked almost dead to the world. Tony probably should’ve thought first before releasing the cottontail from his cage. There was a reason he was locked up with high security, but he never once hesitated, and never looked back, when he found the controls and released the hare.

The pure relief and gratefulness that had been on Bruce’s face was enough to quelch any thoughts that he was a malicious character. And when the collar was removed, Tony and Rhodey found perhaps the greatest ally they could have ever earned for their cause.

The Hulk was near unstoppable and not someone to be taken lightly, but for some reason the giant green beast had a very soft spot for Tony. Perhaps because it recognized a fellow prey animal, or perhaps because it knew that he and Rhodey were responsible for letting Bruce free. Or another option could possibly be because the first time Tony watched the Hulk transform he didn’t run or hide or scream in terror.

No, Tony stood there gaping, staring in awe, in amazement, wondering how exactly the Hulk was possible. How he had occured, what the muscle to head ratio was, how much the Hulk could weigh, how those pants of his were still in place while everything else could’ve seen better days. A lot of things in general. Except for fear. Fear was perhaps the last thing on his mind. The Hulk might have been giant, dangerous, intimidating, a reason to run, and very green, but through it all Tony somehow still sensed the prey inside. He still smelled the recently named Bruce Banner and fellow prey on the Hulk.

Tony wasn’t scared of him.

Rhodey sure as hell was. At least in the beginning. When he finally got the memo of “treat the Hulk as an ally, not a monster, and you shall receive an ally and not a monster,” working with the Hulk, and in turn Bruce, went smoothly and teamwork clicked in place.

Having the Hulk as an ally was a huge relief for him. Not only because the Hulk was a very reliable heavy hitter that could take damage like no tomorrow and made sure to keep Tony and Rhodey safe from alloy breaking attacks, but also because any sane person would never try and challenge the Hulk. Something that was especially useful considering their hunt for illegally sold Stark weapons labeled Tony and Rhodey as villains, or at least very misguided vigilantes that caused property damage.

Knowing Iron Man and War Machine had the Hulk on stand by and one call away from barreling over anything, many didn’t dare stop them anymore when destroying weapons. At least regarding security and guards keeping watch over their merchandize. They knew to hightail it out of there with their tails between their legs when they heard the mechanical whirr of Tony’s and Rhodey’s armors.

But just as they received an upgrade, so did those trying to stop them.

And wasn’t that just a kicker. Who better to try and stop the Hulk than the Avengers themselves?

And because this was Tony’s life, who better to lead the Avengers than the not-so-gone-than-originally-thought Captain America himself, and with his crime fighting partner, Bucky, by his side? Ironic, really.

His life was a big enough joke that his childhood heroes, who he always imagined helping if he ever had the chance, only looked at him as a bad guy. Captain America’s gaze of disapproval at having the law broken aimed at him? Worst feeling in the world. Any traces of Tony’s inner child were burned the moment Captain America ordered him to stand down and threw his shield at him. If he had any inner child left.

Howard was probably laughing in his grave at being right. Captain America wouldn’t look twice at him. Not as an ally or even in friendship. He only saw a bad guy he needed to stop.

And so here he stood. On one side of the field with War Machine and Hulk, while the Avengers, the heroes, stood on the other. The Hulk grunted, glaring down at them all and making them shuffle in unease. The two Avengers that didn’t look particularly intimidating, the Falcon and Hawkeye, were obviously hesitant. Black Widow appeared calculating, probably planning ways to escape Hulk should he go after her. The three didn’t pay Tony and Rhodey any mind, choosing to focus on the biggest threat. It was Captain America and his pal, Winter Soldier, that actually spared a glance or two at Iron Man and War Machine. Tony sort of wished they didn’t.

They were inside a bunker of sorts. Tony’s team (that he so lovingly called Science Legion, shut up Rhodey it’s a great name!) had been in the middle of a search for a missile; a possible missile created with the Stark Jericho blueprints that could potentially be a fully functioning Jericho. What they found upon arrival was an empty bunker with no soul inside and after a quick scan and search there was no sign of the missile either.

What they ended up finding instead were the Avengers, appearing sometime during their search and with their weapons already aimed. Tony had been genuinely surprised by it. Since when did the Avengers set up traps for them?

“You didn’t have to set up this surprise party for little ol’ us,” Tony snarked, his only defense against the predators staring them down. Unease and nausea settled in his gut.

“We didn’t. Doesn’t mean we don’t appreciate whoever set it up. Consider this a last present before we bring you in if you want,” Captain America said. No humor in his voice.

“We appreciate the thought, but we're going to have to sadly decline. You understand. So much to do, no time at all.”

“I don't think so. This will only end in one way for you. You can come in quietly, or you can see exactly why we're called the Avengers.”

“Yeah? What are you avenging exactly? Property damage? Seems like you guys were downgraded.”

“There’s no downgrade if it means stopping people like you.”

Tony’s heart chipped just a little at that. “Careful, Captain. You keep this up and I’ll start to think you don’t like spending time with us.”

“I’d like nothing more.”

Captain America held his shield out, taking one step forward. He was glaring, visible even through the helmet he wore. Winter Soldier shifted next to him, taking hold of his weapon and ready to back up his friend. Widow, Falcon and Hawkeye were quick to follow. The fight was about to start.

Tony prepared his unibeam, ready to start big. The sound of it charging echoed in the room along with Hulk’s massive footsteps and Rhodey’s whirring mini-gun. Five against three. Statistics were not in their favor, but statistics hadn't counted on the Hulk. With just him alone they had an army, and the Avengers knew this. They had to fight careful, plan their moves, take out the weak in the way before going after the strong.

Tension filled the room. So strong it was nearly suffocating. There was something off about this hash out. Typically when they fought against the Avengers the only sense around was the sense of extreme caution. Escaping unharmed or with a few scrapes, from either side of the battlefield.

There was unease in the air. It sent the hairs on the back of Tony’s neck to stand. His animal giving him the urge to run, to hide, to stay safe.

Danger. Danger. Danger.

There was something else in the area, but their focus remained on each other. None of them were prepared for the flashing of light and cracking of loud sounds that soon filled the room. The bright lights and cracking sounds no doubt meant for Hulk to disorientate him but the sheer power required to even make him blink also affected everyone else immensely. All the Avengers shut their eyes and covered their ears, mimicking their giant, green comrade. Iron Man and War Machine were unaffected from the sound, but the lights were enough for them to look away out of instinct. With no visual and the sounds of coughing assaulting his ears Tony couldn’t comprehend what was going on around them. He only knew a third party was involved and they weren’t after just Tony and his team, they were going after the Avengers, too.

Someone had planned this was his last thought before something big, heavy and not meant to be thrown on a person and allow them to survive hit him from above. He was sent hitting the floor hard. His head rattling inside his helmet and his vision dancing with black spots. His animal was screaming to curl up and remain motionless, to make whatever was attacking him lose interest, to survive. Except whatever was hitting him was clearly not concerned about a moving target or not.

He managed to hear rumbling right before something bigger hit him and his vision go black.

Sooo, watcha think? This is an animal shifter, secret-identity, misunderstood (not-so) villain Iron Man with a dash of stuckony, rhodey and bruce friendship, and surviving nature together while growing to care about each other. Eeey. 

[naferty]

Oh MY that was Wonderful! I loved your T'Stuckony pregnant verse, its beautiful! This is me totally asking for pregnant sex , for sometime in the future cause that would amazing. I'd love to read that. It would be even cooler if each of them ended up being the father of one pup. I could see Tony's relief, because despite their reassurance his instincts might have worry. Then he sees proof of them fawning over each of the babies and treating them with the same awe and wonder. Proud mama Tony :P

Truth be told there isn’t a lot of porn here. Like at all, but here we go! I added some insecure Tony in here, and some Rhodey/Clint/Sam at the end, too. Hope no one minds!

Continuation of this -

Tony found that, while he absolutely loved his alphas with all his heart, he couldn’t help but want to strangle them every minute of every day for what they had done to him. He was 6 months along in his pregnancy and his stomach looked utterly grotesque. It was oval, poking out from the front, looked deformed and looked disgusting with all the stretch marks and veins sticking out his pale skin.

Logically he knew his alphas weren’t completely responsible, seeing as he was the one who agreed to go through with it, and he couldn’t exactly blame his pups because, well, they were babies and had no say in their cramped mobile home that was Tony’s body. But Tony wasn’t seeing logic. All he was seeing was his once decently toned body looking a shadow of its former self while the three alphas were still fit and gorgeous. It wasn’t fair.

He tried smoothing his large sweatshirt over his stomach, deflating when it did nothing to slim his stomach and creating a mountain on his middle. Lately all he had been wearing were sweaters and jackets and giant shirts and basically anything that could hide his stomach away from innocent eyes. No one needed to see his disfigurement. They didn’t deserve to suffer.

“Sweetheart?”

Tony tensed and instinctively turned his front away and keeping it out of sight. He hadn’t noticed Steve enter their room at all. How long had he been there?

“What are you doing just standing here? Were you looking at how beautiful you are?” Steve gestured to the mirror that Tony had been pointedly ignoring. He didn’t need to see how ugly he looked with his bloated stomach. “We could’ve told you that ourselves.”

Tony mumbled a denial under his breath. These days he was anything but.

“Tony?” The blond alpha pressed his front against Tony’s back, sliding his arms around his expanded belly. “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing.”

“Doesn’t sound like nothing.”

“It’s nothing, Steve.”

“Why do I get the feeling you’re lying to me?”

“Leave it.” Tony shook the arms off and moved away to stand on the edge of the bed. His back and his legs were aching and all he wanted to do was sit down.

(watch out for the cut mobile users)

Steve followed him. Never one to give up easily. “Sweetheart, remember how we agreed to always talk to each other if something’s wrong?”

“Nothing’s wrong,” Tony said, looking up at the alpha from his spot on the bed.

Steve kneeled in front of him, changing their angle so now he looked up at Tony and Tony looked down. “What’s really bothering you, Tony?”

“You want to know what’s bothering me?” he snapped. “Look at me, Steve. I look like I swallowed a damn tire, I’ve gained five pounds since last week, I can’t stand for long because my back is always hurting and I’ve got stretch marks everywhere.”

Steve blinked, waiting for him to continue as if he hadn’t seen anything wrong in what he’d mentioned. “And?”

“And? And - Steve, it looks disgusting.”

“No it doesn’t,” Steve snapped back, shutting him up. “Disgusting is the last thing we’d describe it. You’re beautiful, Tony. You’re full of so much life. You’re carrying our pups. You are by far the most gorgeous omega I have ever seen and I’m so proud I can call you mate.”

Steve placed his hands on the bed by Tony’s sides, pinning him. He leaned up to kiss him, talking against his lips. “In fact, why don’t you lie down on your side so I can show you just how proud I am.”

The words went right to his groin and the sight of Steve’s blue eyes filling with lust had him scrambling to do what he was told.

“Why don’t we do something about these clothes of yours?”

Tony swallowed nervously. His insecurity had yet to leave but he couldn’t act on it as Steve made quick work of his sweatpants, exposing the bottom of his swell and giving Steve access to run his hands inside his sweatshirt and up his stomach, lifting the cloth along. Now his stomach was uncovered for all to see and under the lighting of the room his stretch marks of different sizes and his veins were very easy to spot.

He made a grab for the blankets, intending to pile it in front of him to subtly hide the swell but Steve intercepted him. “Now why would you want to hide something so beautiful?”

“Steve…” Tony refused to beg but it was a close thing.

“You both aren’t starting something without us, are you?” Bucky interrupted as he and T’Challa appeared through the door. “You’d be breaking my heart if you were.”

T’Challa very noticeably ran his eyes up and down Tony’s figure. “The sight of you bare more than makes up for the betrayal.”

“Get this, you two,” Steve threw the blanket far enough for Tony not to reach, “he thinks he looks disgusting.”

In an instant Bucky was on the bed and hovered over him. “Oh no, no, no, no, we can’t have that now, can we? How can you be anything but beautiful?”

T’Challa hovered on his other side. “Perhaps we should make him forget these thoughts of his?”

“You got something in mind?” Bucky said in a tone that suggested he knew exactly what the other two were thinking. At this point all their questions were just to tease and it was driving Tony crazy. He shivered when he felt fingers run slowly over his exposed sides.

“Well,” T’Challa’s voice went lower, sending a shiver down Tony’s spine. “I’m imagining him like this with your lips wrapped around him, his lips wrapped around my own and Steve fucking him until his knot forces the two together and leaves our omega unable to escape us.”

T’Challa’s use of vulgar English words always made Tony’s dick twitch and right then wasn’t an exception. He felt himself slick up on the spot, ready and eager for what was to come.

“Then once they separate his lips will go to you while I claim Steve’s spot and Steve watches us take him, touching himself at the sight,” T’Challa continued as he leaned down to kiss Tony’s cheek and whisper the next bit at his ear. “Then once I’m done James will fuck what’s left of you, leave you unable talk properly or form coherent thoughts and Steve and I will watch it all. He’ll fill you up and keep us all in you so deep you’ll smell of us for days and no one will mistake who’s mate you are and who’s pups you carry.”

Tony released a moan when T’Challa nibbled his neck, almost whining. He wanted it already.

“Do you approve?”

“I approve. I fucking approve of that plan,” Bucky growled, breathing heavy now. “What about you, Stevie?”

Steve’s blue eyes were blown wide with lust. “What are we waiting for?”

Tony was left reeling when the alphas did exactly as promised. He had to lie on his side the entire time, moaning with his mouth full of T’Challa as Steve thrusted into him with gusto while Bucky did brain numbing things with his tongue on his dick. The alphas growled and mumble and marked every inch of his skin, holding his stomach possessively.

It was safe to say he was going to feel sore in the morning and have no mobility of his legs. He was fine with that. Not like he could go far without getting tired these days. Besides, he had three alphas that seemed adamant on making sure he was taken care of.

~~~

Tony had gained a dark satisfaction from seeing his alphas cringe from having their hands squeezed painfully. If Tony was going to suffer bringing their pups into the world than his alphas were going to suffer right along with him.

He had been in labor for who knows how long. His alphas had gone into a panic. Their friends had scrambled to arrive. All of them in varied states of undress, considering the pups took after their fathers and decided they wanted to arrive bright and early in an ungodly hour that no one sane would be up at.

Tony was tired, he was still in pain, his voice was hoarse from screaming and he was sure he had broken three fingers from each of his alphas as he held their hands for dear life. But now the worst of it was finally over. He pushed with everything he had and probably pulled multiple muscles doing so, but as he held all three of his pups, cleaned and wrapped in small fluffy blankets, he could admit, even through the pain, it was worth it.

And as he took in the details of his pups it was very obvious they were not identical in any way shape or form.

“Is it just me or does this one look a hell of a lot like T’Challa?” Bucky joked as he held their last born pup. The dark of his skin and his button nose obviously given from the genes on T’Challa’s side.

“I must confess,” T’Challa grinned at their daughter in his arms, “the gold of our daughter’s hair makes me believe she takes after Steve. What do you both think?”

Steve gently rocked their pup with Tony’s and Bucky’s hair coloring and cooed when he made a soft noise. “Don’t know about you both but I’m pretty sure this one has Bucky’s chin.”

Fraternal triplets. One from each alpha. What were the odds? Tony’s tiny fear that never went away about the alphas not fully accepting the idea of raising a pup that was not their own was left unfounded, rolled up and thrown out the window at the sight of the alphas each holding the pup of the other and showering them with love. Not a single one hesitated reaching for a pup that wasn’t his own.

So now in Steve’s arm was their firstborn that carried half of Bucky’s genes and was lovingly named Peter. T’Challa held their only daughter and second born that carried half of Steve’s genes and was named Gwen. Their little princess. Their last born, and by far smallest, that was named Miles was held gently by Bucky and Tony near melted as he watched the brunet alpha place a kiss on his head. They all did. Not a single pup was deprived of three sets of kisses.

And neither was Tony.

He sighed at the contacts and watched fondly as his alphas presented their children to their friends.

“Aww, they’re so beautiful, Tony,” Pepper said and had everyone agreeing with her.

Clint leaned closer to get a better view and twitched his nose. “They look like gnomes.” Rhodey and Sam quickly pulled their blunt mate back before he said anything else.

“Please ignore anything that comes out of his mouth,” Sam said to the new fathers.

Rhodey nodded. “It’s early, he hasn’t had his coffee, he doesn’t know what he’s saying.”

“I’ll forgive him this once,” Tony managed, closing his eyes for a well earned rest, “but if he calls my pups gnomes again I’ll sick my alphas at him.”

“Understood,” they said together.

“Get some rest, Doll. We’ll be here when you wake up.” He heard Bucky said before doing exactly that. He rested peacefully with the scent of mates, pups and family around him.