Chapter Text
One week, that was all it took. One week before the newly christened Spencer Stark made his first splash in the media.
Tony had kind of expected there to be trouble when they went public with Spencer's identity. The kid was going to be under a microscope and, even though he claimed he was used to the media, he'd never lived like this the way that Tony had. He hadn't been raised in it. So, Tony was pretty much resigned to the idea that there were going to be things that Spencer did that were going to end up causing a stir in the media. He just hadn’t expected it to take only a week. Or for it to happen like this.
Tony was working when he got the phone call. He was at Stark Tower on the R&D floor, talking with one of the scientists, when his phone gave a specific type of ring. It was the tone that let him know it was FRIDAY and that it was important for him to answer it. Tony held up a hand towards the man he was speaking with, Dr. Munroe, and pulled his phone from his pocket. “I’m sorry, Dr. Munroe, I’ve gotta take this.” That said, he wasted no more time in bringing the phone to his ear.
FRIDAY didn’t even let him get anything out before she was speaking. “Boss, the NYPD is calling the Compound, and they’re saying it’s urgent they speak with you. I’m rerouting them to you.”
The NYPD? Why on earth were the police calling him? If it was Avengers business, they would’ve called the Council, who then would’ve called in the Avengers. Or, someone there would’ve called Tony directly. So what the hell was going on?
Tony didn’t have long to wait. True to her word, FRIDAY rerouted the call to him instantly, and a second later there was a deep voice saying, “Mr. Stark?”
“That’s me.” There was a bad feeling growing in the pit of Tony’s stomach. Angling himself away from the others, he began to make his way over to the elevator. “What can I do for you, Officer? It’s not often the NYPD calls me directly.” He tried his best to sound casual even though he felt anything but that. Something told him this phone call wasn’t going to go well.
He really, really wished that sometimes, he wasn’t right.
“This isn’t a social call, Mr. Stark, or a business call. Actually…” There was a brief pause, during which Tony’s stomach clenched even tighter and countless different scenarios began to build in his mind. Then, “…we’ve got your son down here in custody.”
Tony froze inside of the elevator, staring at the opposite wall with an expression of absolute shock. “Spencer?” Spencer was ‘in custody’? Holy shit. Since when did the kid do anything worth getting arrested for? “What happened? Is he all right?”
“He’s fine, Mr. Stark. A couple of bruises but nothing serious. And I’d like to explain this face to face instead of over the phone. If you could come down here…”
“I’m on my way.” Tony cut in. “I don’t want anyone speaking with him until I’m there, either.”
What the hell had Spencer gotten into? The kid didn’t seem like the type to get into trouble with law enforcement! Hell, he’d been a Federal Agent! Tony hadn’t figured he’d ever have to worry about something like this with Spencer. Who says it’s something bad? There’s no way he did something serious enough to warrant getting arrested. That’s not who he is. There’s got to be more to this. That was the only way it would make sense. Tony had to be missing some important facts here.
Well, he wasn’t going to find them out until he got down there.
His driver, Lucas, had the car ready by the time Tony got downstairs and he drove quickly to get Tony to the station the call had originated from. FRIDAY was already looking into their records to see what was listed there about Spencer. So far, nothing. That didn’t stop Tony from worrying and wondering the whole way there, though. What on earth could’ve happened that the kid managed to get arrested? He was supposed to be at Peter’s for a movie marathon. How the hell had that ended up with him being arrested?
It couldn’t be anything superhero related. For one, no one had mentioned Peter, and his name hadn’t popped up in any police records. FRIDAY had a program that ran for things like that. If Peter’s name popped up in any hospital or police station, anything like that, Tony would immediately get an alert. I should get Spencer’s name on there now, too. Plus, the guy on the phone hadn’t mentioned anything about Spencer in a suit. So what the hell was going on?
Tony had run through way too many scenarios by the time he finally arrived at the station. There was no press outside the station – not yet, at least – which made it easy for Tony to walk right up and march inside without being accosted by anyone.
There was the usual lull in conversation the minute he walked into a room. By now, Tony was far too used to it, and he didn’t pay it any real notice. No, his eyes were already scanning the room even as he walked, looking for the one person he was here for, though he knew there was a chance they’d have Spencer in a room somewhere away from everyone else.
Or not.
It took only a few seconds for Tony to spot a familiar figure. Off to the right of the station stood Spencer, and Tony was surprised to see that the teen wasn’t anything at all like what he expected. Instead of sitting calmly and quietly, or looking like he was fighting to hold himself together, Spencer was on his feet and standing toe to toe with the officers around him, glaring them all down without an ounce of fear. There was temper written clearly in every single line of his body as well as a willingness to stand up for whatever it was he was defending – and Tony had no doubt he was defending someone. That stance, that wasn’t Spencer, that was Volt. Spencer always had more confidence when in the suit. At the moment, he might as well have been wearing it. He wasn’t in a fighting posture; no, his posture more screamed a dare to anyone to try and make him move.
That probably had something to do with the teenaged girl sitting on a chair behind him. Tony caught just a glimpse of her as he walked in. What he saw was enough to make Spencer’s posture make a bit more sense. The girl was small, thinner than Spencer even, though Tony would bet she was taller when she stood up, and she had pastel pink hair and lavender skin. The tips of her ears peeked out from her pixie cut hair with a point that would’ve done Tolkien’s elves proud. Her features were a bit smoother, too, and her eyes slightly more almond shaped, all of it combining to give her a rather ethereal and beautiful look. Or, it would’ve been, if there wasn’t a big bruise marring one side of her face, what looked almost like road rash on the other side, and fear in her eyes.
Tony took all of that in within just a few short seconds; reading people what something he was more than skilled at.
The next instant Spencer had his attention entirely once more when he gave a firm “No” in response to one of the officers in front of him. “Absolutely not. You’ve violated her rights repeatedly since we’ve been brought in here. Until you can guarantee that you’re going to start respecting her as a human being and allowing her the same rights as everyone else, and until you provide us with officers who aren’t blinded by racism or overwhelmed by lust, I’m not moving.”
One of the officers said something in response – Tony couldn’t hear it, he wasn’t close enough yet, though he was making his way forward – but he could clearly hear Spencer’s response, just as he could see the way his features tightened. “Being a Stark has absolutely nothing to do with it. It doesn’t matter who my Dad is. What matters right now is the blatant disrespect and outright cruelty you’ve shown when dealing with an already traumatized individual. Not only is she a human, she’s a minor, and you have no legal standing to touch her or speak to her until her parent or guardian is present. Barring those, she has the right to legal representation and an interpreter, neither of which you’ve provided.”
Even from a distance, it wasn't hard for Tony to see the slight crackle that was building in Spencer's eyes. It was a surefire sign of his growing temper. That, combined with the words he was saying, had Tony picking up speed. When he was close enough to finally get attention, he called out to Spencer, deliberately keeping his voice as easy as possible. "One week, huh? One week was all I get for a grace period?"
Spencer’s eyes shot up and found Tony in an instant. The relief that was visible there did Tony’s ego a lot of good. As Tony got closer, Spencer relaxed, his body losing some of its tension. “I figured it was only polite.”
Oh, the sassy little shit. Tony flashed him a grin. He neatly stepped around the last few officers and went right up to Spencer’s side. With a lift of an eyebrow and a twitch of his hand, he asked a silent question and, after a small pause, got a nod in response. That settled, Tony reached out and curled his hand over the back of Spencer's neck. Being this close let Tony see that the girl wasn't the only injured one. There was a mark on Spencer's temple, the one that he hadn't been able to see from his previous angle, and catching sight of it now made Tony wince in sympathy. It'd obviously bled at some point. There was blood on the side of Spencer's face, on his ear, and on the shoulder of his dark blue sweater. There was also a bruise on that side of his face, on his cheek and over his jawline.
“You look like hell,” Tony said bluntly, tilting himself to better look at Spencer’s face and then running his eyes down the rest of him in an attempt to find any other injuries. “You all right, Pikachu?”
Spencer’s expression softened a little more. One corner of his mouth curved up into that quiet little smile he sometimes got. “Yeah.” All at once his expression tightened again and his eyes flashed back to the girl sitting behind him. “She’s not, though. She needs a doctor.” Sharp eyes flashed as they shot to the side to glare at the officers. “Not to be locked up in a police station for a crime she didn’t commit.”
“Hey, hey, calm down there, Turbo. Talk to me. What’s going on here?” Tony tugged him in a little, curving them away from the officers. The others had backed off just the slightest bit, giving them a moment of privacy, and Spencer took advantage of that to lower his voice and speak quickly.
“I could feel her panic with my powers when I was coming back from Peter’s. When I got to the alley they were in, she was too concussed to even use her powers, and there were three males between the ages of twenty and twenty-five who were attempting to strip and assault her. They hadn’t gotten her clothes off yet, but they were close.” Spencer shot a look down at her and pursed his lips, his whole expression pained. “I wasn’t in my uniform, so I… I tried to be careful about it, but I couldn’t leave her there. I called the police and then I drew their attention away from her. When the police finally showed up, two of them were unconscious and she had just punched the last one. The officers took in that and her appearance and made the assumption of ‘mutant gone crazy’ and arrested her while sending the others on to the hospital. They didn’t even… they weren’t even looking at her right! There was just disgust and fear and even a bit of lust when they looked at her.”
Jesus. Tony gave Spencer’s neck a squeeze and tried to project calm even as his own stomach rolled. These were supposed to be the guys looking after their city. How the hell were they supposed to do that when they treated some of its citizens like this?
Spencer wasn’t done yet, though. Even with Tony’s calming touch, he was still livid. “She panicked when they tried to cuff her. I mean, of course she did, she was just assaulted and here they are slamming her into a car and putting cuffs on her! But, she, she can’t speak, Tony! Not the way they wanted. Best as I could get from her, she’s hard of hearing, and they haven’t provided an interpreter for her at all!”
There was a brief moment where Tony could only stare at Spencer. He didn’t bother asking how Spencer had been arrested, too. It wasn’t hard for him to picture it. He could easily picture this hurt, scared girl trying to fight against the officers, terrified of what they were doing and not understanding what was going on, and Spencer right there at her side. There’s no way he would’ve just stood back and let the officers treat anyone like that. That just wasn’t who he was.
“Good for you,” Tony murmured, giving his neck one last squeeze before letting go. He took in Spencer’s surprised look and grinned. Then he winked. “Why don’t you see if your friend would be comfortable with riding with us over to the hospital while I go talk to the lovely officers here. Lucas has the car outside; he’ll have no problem taking us over.”
The surprise on Spencer's face morphed into one of relief. The amount of it, and the way that Spencer visibly slumped spoke more than words. It told Tony that the kid hadn't been entirely sure of Tony's support here. The fact that he’d felt the need to question it at all was something that Tony was damn well going to work on. He might not have any clue how to be a father – he had a pretty good idea, however, about how not to be one. It didn’t matter to Tony that Spencer wasn’t his by blood. Neither was Peter, and Tony had long since claimed that kid as his own, even if just in his head. These boys, they were his, and he was going to do everything in his power to do right by them.
Including taking on the local police.
Tony turned his attention to the police officers that were watching them not-so-discreetly. Behind him, he heard the shift as Spencer moved back towards his new friend and then the rustle of fabric as he most likely squatted down. A quick look back showed that he was right. Spencer was squatting in front of the girl and had lifted his hands to start signing to her. An aura of calm was starting to build around Spencer; feeling it made Tony want to smile. The kid was getting a lot better at his projections.
The sound of movement brought Tony’s focus back. Right. No time to sit and think about things right now. He could be proud of Spencer’s accomplishments later. Right now, he had some officers to eviscerate.
A shark’s grin curved his lips. The sight of it would’ve been enough to warn anyone that knew him that he was about to cause some serious trouble. As Tony moved towards the unsuspecting officers, he chuckled inwardly.
Within twenty minutes Tony was climbing into the back of his car with Spencer and his new friend – “Her name is Lark, but she also goes by Elf sometimes” – and they were on their way away from the station. It’d taken quite a lot of talking, and a phone call to Charles, before he’d managed to get the girl released to him. There was no doubt in Tony’s mind that the girl was a mutant. This much physical manifestation? Yeah, that didn’t typically come with the superpowers that others got. Not without a lot of other bad side effects. Like being giant, green, or full of rage.
Lark seemed to either accept whatever it was that Spencer was signing at her, or she trusted him a lot more than Tony had expected because she gave a small nod when Spencer had signed at her once Tony was back, and then she'd followed them to the car without protest. Despite the fact that Tony had been right, she was taller than Spencer, she still held herself curled in, avoiding the officers and their stares. When Spencer had taken off his jacket to wrap it around her, she’d given him a grateful look from underneath shaggy bangs and then promptly pulled the jacket even tighter around her.
The ride to the hospital was quiet. Tony wasn’t surprised when Lark stuck close to Spencer’s side. Nor was he surprised when Spencer didn’t even hesitate to get out with her once they were there and follow her inside. They wouldn’t be leaving her alone until the representatives from Xavier’s arrived to take over.
What did surprise him was just how protectively Spencer was standing at her side once they were in. Sure, he’d seen the kid protect Peter before, sometimes even unconsciously. He’d noticed how Spencer tended to look out for those that he cared about. But he’d never really seen him interact with a stranger like this while he wasn’t feeling defensive. All the people he’d met at the Compound, he’d been on the defensive, trying to protect himself. That need wasn’t here. Spencer was fully ready to protect Lark and didn’t seem to care one whit for what it made others think of him. Tony couldn’t help but feel proud of that.
Because Tony had been smart enough to be messaging Pepper about this whole thing, she’d already called ahead to the hospital and made sure they weren’t going to have to go sit in the waiting room. As soon as they were in, a nurse was leading them down a hall and towards a private room. Once there, she opened it up and gestured Lark inside while looking over her shoulder to Tony. “Why don’t you gentlemen go and wait down the hall for us? This shouldn’t take too long.”
Almost instantly, Lark flinched, leaning in towards Spencer just the slightest bit. In response, Spencer turned himself and slid one foot a few inches to the side until he had discreetly put himself between Lark and the nurse. His voice was calm as he spread his hands out and continued to project the same sense of peace he’d been projecting for a while now. “If you don’t mind, ma’am, I think I’ll stay with my friend. She’s not exactly comfortable around everyone right now, and while she’s decent at reading lips, it’s easier for her if there’s someone to act as interpreter.”
Smoothly done, kid. Tony was impressed. He’d manipulated that perfectly. There was no way the nurse could refuse to let him in now, especially not when Lark so clearly didn't want to come out from behind Spencer, which only lent credence to his words.
Tony smiled when eyes turned his way and he held his hands up. "I'll wait. The guys from Xavier's should be here soon, anyway. Someone should meet up with them." That last part he directed at Spencer, who nodded at him. There was a brief moment of indecision on Spencer's face, a hesitance that didn't usually show, and then Spencer reached back and Tony instinctively reached out as well, holding his hand out for Spencer to catch. The teen did, curling his fingers briefly around Tony’s and giving a small squeeze, at the same time sending a projection of gratitude that was warm and heavy, like a quick hug. “Thanks, Dad.”
Even though Tony knew that word was being used because of their audience, hearing ‘Dad’ from him never failed to give the inventor a thrill that was equal parts amazing and terrifying. He squeezed Spencer’s hand back before letting go. “No problem, kid.”
Fifteen minutes had passed by the time the people from the X-Men showed up. He’d been expecting Jean Grey, who Charles had warned him he’d send. She was another telepath, a strong one, and also someone with other strong powers that would hopefully be able to contain anything if their new girl got upset. She was also kind, and female, and trained in handling traumatized kids, which was exactly what was needed here. However, Tony definitely hadn’t expected the short, burly guy at her side. As he pushed up from his chair in the waiting room – dutifully ignoring some of the stares sent his way, though thankfully Lucas had come in with him and made sure to take care of any would-be-photographers – and met the two with a smile. “Well look what the cat dragged in. Didn’t expect to see you here, Wolvie.”
The nickname made Logan scowl the same way it always did. Jean, however, smothered a smile. She held her hand out as she got close and shook with Tony, warmth bright in her eyes. “He insisted on coming with. I think he was just hoping to see your son again.”
Tony’s eyebrows shot up a little at that. He turned his focus to Logan, who was glaring at Jean. Lifting one finger, Tony wagged it his direction. “You better not have any designs on my boy here, Logan. He’s only fifteen, I’ll have you know!”
Logan rolled his eyes. “Don’t be any stupider than normal, Stark.”
“Now that’s not nice. I don’t know if I want him talking to you.” Tony crossed his arms over his chest and mock-glared at Logan.
He was rewarded with a sharp grin that showed just a hint of fang. It was a grin that was known to make plenty of people shiver. “What, scared I’m gonna teach him how to kick your ass, bub?”
Unable to help himself, Tony broke pose, losing his fake anger and openly grinning now. “Nah, he’s got Barton for that. Birdie’s been teaching him all sorts of ninja-death-by-thigh tricks. I’m pretty sure he could kick my ass without breaking a sweat.” The words came out with a fair measure of pride to them. Clint had been teaching both Peter and Spencer for a little while now and the two were showing a marked improvement. Tony was pretty sure either one of his boys could take him on and win. The fact that Spencer had powers that could easily disable his suit only made his chances even better. Oddly enough, that thought didn’t scare him.
His teasing earned him laughter from the two in front of him. Tony stuffed his hands down into his pockets and grinned a little at them. While he only knew about Jean through Charles and reputation, he was comfortable enough with Logan, and the fact that he and Spencer seemed to get on like a house on fire was just an added mark in the feral man's favor.
“I’m sure he’ll be happy to see you too, Logan,” Tony said once everyone had calmed again. His smile was genuine and open, something that Logan at least knew was rare for the genius. “I’ve been planning on bringing him out for a visit once the press died down a little. Of course, I wasn’t expecting him to go and get arrested, but…” He shrugged his shoulders as if to say ‘what can you do’.
He'd already explained the entire situation to Charles, so he knew these two would have a pretty good idea of what had happened.
Whatever they might’ve had to say about it was lost when a nurse came towards them. “Mr. Stark?” She waited until he turned to look at her and then offered him a rather nervous smile, eyes flicking over to Logan and Jean and then back to Tony, then down to the ground. “You’re, um… your son asked us to let you know that they’re done. You’re free to go back if you’d like.”
Tony tried not to roll his eyes at the woman’s obvious nerves and the way she was trying (and failing) to discreetly stare at them through her bangs. He managed his best press smile instead. “Great. Thanks, sweetheart.” Without waiting for her to say or do anything else, he gestured to Logan and Jean and then set off in the direction of the room Spencer and Lark had gone to. It only took a minute for them to get there. Tony made sure to knock on the door, waiting for Spencer’s low “Come in!” before he opened it and stepped inside.
What he found had his smile softening into something more real. Lark was on the bed, dressed in hospital scrubs and Spencer’s jacket, her legs crossed under her, and Spencer was sitting on the foot of the bed with one leg drawn up and a hand resting on her knee. The whole room felt kind of like slipping down into your warm bed on a relaxing night. Warm, peaceful, and safe.
Man, Spencer was really projecting, wasn’t he?
Spencer kept his hand – just his fingertips, really – on Lark’s knee even as he turned himself to look up at them. When he saw who was coming in behind Tony, his expression eased just a little more and he gave that shy half-smile that was always just as equally embarrassed as it was pleased. “Logan. I didn’t know you were coming.”
The feral stepped around Jean and let the door close behind him. He flashed Spencer a sharp grin. “You got arrested, pup. Like hell I was stayin’ away.”
Color flooded Spencer’s cheeks. He tried to glare at Logan and failed miserably at looking like any sort of threat. Tony wasn’t ever planning on telling him just how much he looked like some angry little kitten when he did that – small, adorable, and not the least bit threatening. “I wasn’t actually arrested, thank you very much. They had absolutely no legal grounds upon which to arrest either one of us.”
“Which he wasn’t the least bit shy about reminding them of,” Tony piped up.
Rolling his eyes at them, Spencer turned his focus back to Lark, who was watching them all silently. Tony took notice of the fact that her eyes matched her hair. They also carried a sharpness that made it clear she was paying plenty of attention to them all and she hadn’t quite decided if she trusted them or not. However, considering how much her eyes softened as she focused on Spencer, how the sharp edges faded away into something a whole lot more open and even gentle, it was pretty clear she trusted him.
Spencer lifted his hands in front of him and not only began to sign – he made a point of saying the words out loud as well. “I apologize for being rude. I didn’t mean to leave you out of the conversation. These people are from the school I told you about. The woman is Jean, and the annoying man beside her is Logan.” He finger-spelled his way through Jean’s name – Tony knew a little sign language, thank you very much! He had lived with Barton in his home for quite a few years! – but the sign he made for Logan’s name wasn’t one that Tony recognized. Though he followed it up with another one, grinning this time as he snapped out three fingers in a move that was very clearly a mimicry of Logan’s claws.
Understanding lit Lark’s eyes. They flashed up towards Logan, this time obviously seeing more about him than she had before. There was surprisingly no fear in her gaze. “It’s nice to meet you,” she said, speaking for the first time since Tony had met her. Her voice wasn’t at all what the engineer had expected. It was just a bit deep, a bit husky. “I’m Elf. If you make sure to face me when you speak, I can read your lips.”
She didn’t give her real name, probably not realizing that Tony already had. Either that or it was a blatant statement meant to show just how little she trusted them right now.
Logan lifted his hands and surprised Tony by signing as he spoke. “I can sign if it makes it easier for you.”
One pink eyebrow arched up. Lark watched him for a moment before her lips twitched up. “I won’t say no. Sign’s always easier to understand than lipreading.”
“Well if you have trouble understanding anything we say, please let us know,” Jean said, interjecting herself smoothly into the conversation. She was all smiles when Lark turned to her. It was easy to see why Charles had sent her. Jean was calm, composed, and sympathetic without crossing over into pitying. Everything about her made her the clear choice to send to speak with a victim. There was nothing about her that seemed confrontational.
So, of course, Lark was watching her with the utmost suspicion. “Spencer told me why you’re here.” She tilted her head, studying the two X-Men. “He says you want to help, but I recognize who you are and I’m not interested in fighting for your team."
“No one’s going to make you fight if you don’t want to,” Jean hurried to reassure her. “Our school is just that – a school. You can go there without ever joining up with the X-Men if that’s what you want.”
It didn’t look like Lark believed her. She had her eyes narrowed on Jean, though they darted down to Spencer for a moment and then back up. “Would I be free to change my mind one day?” The way she said the word free, it was like it was something foreign. Like she wasn’t quite sure of the English word she wanted.
Logan was the one to answer her this time. “Yeah. It’s an offer that’s always there, not an order. You do what you want.”
She must've found his words more believable than Jean's, which was something odd and worth thinking about because she gave a small nod. Then she looked back down at Spencer again and there was a wealth of words that passed between the two of them without them ever having to say anything. Spencer’s expression grew sad and he gave a small nod, once more resting just the tips of his fingers on her knee. It seemed to give her the support needed to draw in a breath and look up at the others again. “I want to go with you. I want to… to learn. And I want to be free. I’m sixteen years old, as far as I can figure, and if I’m adding it all up right, I’ve been someone else’s property for twelve of those years. I got away a year ago and I’ve been free to be my own person since then. Spencer says I can trust you to help me without taking away that freedom.”
Her blunt words caused a stunned silence to fall over the room. Tony knew he was staring and couldn’t quite help it. He’d never heard someone speak so casually about being a captive for twelve years. Jesus fucking Christ, that would’ve made her three when she was taken, and just fifteen when she got free. Who the fuck took a kid? Even worse – what had they done to her?
The sad expression in Spencer’s eyes, as well as the carefully banked anger, told Tony that he probably didn’t want to know.
“I been someone’s property before.” Logan’s voice was flat and his gestures just a bit sharper than before as he signed. “So long as I got strength left, I aint letting anyone else have to live through something like that. Not while I’m around.”
The two connected eyes for a long moment. The air seemed charged around them. Then, ever so slightly, Lark nodded. She’d go with them, for now. Whether or not she stayed would remain to be seen.
It took a bit of work for them to get her officially checked out. Tony didn’t bother paying attention what Jean did. The less he knew about how Charles gained custody of all these orphaned kids, the better. Besides, he was a lot more interested in watching Lark and Spencer as the two stood outside near the car the two X-Men had brought with them.
Lark was wearing some clothes that Jean had brought with her. They fit pretty well, though they looked a little big. Lark’s form was long and willowy. Her hair stood out a little more now that it was night. Quite a bit of time had passed since Tony had gotten the call that originally took him down to the station. Little had he known that this was how his night would end.
A low laugh from Spencer had Tony shifting his gaze to the smaller of the two teens. Spencer was smiling up at the girl, hands flying quickly through his signs and his whole expression open and easy. They finished whatever they were signing and Tony saw as Lark lifted her hand, almost like she was going to reach out to hug him, only for her to stop and draw back at almost the exact same time that Spencer flinched. She hadn’t stopped because Spencer flinched; just, at the same time as him.
The empath must’ve sensed something in her emotions. He controlled his flinch and immediately leaned back towards her. Only, he didn’t reach out to hug her. Instead, he lifted his hand and held it up, palm out and fingers loose, right in front of hers. There was a brief moment of hesitation on Lark’s part. She looked back and forth between their hands and Spencer’s face. Then she pressed her hand in so that they were fingertip to fingertip, palm to palm. Spencer pressed his fingers one by one against hers, like playing the keys on a piano, and Tony could see as Lark relaxed a little at the touch. Enough that she could offer him a ghost of a smile in return. It was easy to lipread her soft ‘Thank you’.
Tony resisted saying anything about their interactions while they were in front of others. He waited until they got through all their goodbyes, with promises from more than a few to exchange calls – Spencer even pressed a paper with his number on it into Lark’s hand – and they were finally once more in the back of Tony’s car before he finally spoke what was on his mind. Even then, it was just a simple, “You were really good with her.” He looked across the car at the bit of Spencer’s face that was lit by passing streetlights. “You did a good thing tonight, Spencer. You should be proud of that.”
Spencer ducked his head and shrugged one shoulder, as uncomfortable as always with praise. “She needed help.” He said it like that said it all. To him, it probably did.
“Still. You did good, kid.”
“Thanks,” Spencer said softly. He drew in a breath and blew it back out carefully, turning himself towards Tony once more and no longer hiding, and he reached out and brushed his fingers over Tony’s leg, just briefly. “Really, Tony, thank you. I just wanted to, um, to say that. Thank you for helping, and for, for not… being angry.”
Angry? Why on earth would he be angry? “There was no reason to be,” Tony said simply.
He saw a hint of Spencer’s smile. “Not many would’ve got that. They certainly wouldn’t have given me a chance to explain until later. But you came in full of worry and a dash of amusement, and you let me explain everything, and you trusted me. I just, I wanted to say thank you.” He gave Tony’s knee a squeeze and then drew his hand back, seemingly embarrassed by his own words.
He wasn’t the only one. Tony just barely managed to keep from blushing. He drew back a little and turned to stare out the window, even if he didn’t really see anything there. Better than staring at the kid’s face as he told him “You’re welcome.” It was all he could think of to say to that heartfelt little speech. There was something about Spencer that just had a way of flustering Tony sometimes. The open simplicity that he spoke of the emotions of others, or occasionally his own – even while looking completely uncomfortable or unsure, he spoke about his emotions like they were facts, like just everyone should know these things – was so strange to him. Yet, at the same time, it was almost… nice. In an odd sort of way. There was no way Tony could hide what he was really feeling from an empath and a profiler. The fact that he had someone in his life who he wasn’t going to be able to bullshit was weirdly refreshing.
Of course, that didn’t mean he was entirely comfortable with being called out on it. As per usual, when Tony got uncomfortable, he tended to shift the focus off of him, and now was no different. This seemed like the perfect time to bring up something that he’d noticed lately.
"You know… you've started to touch more." Tony wasn't meaning just with Lark, either. Spencer was starting to touch with all of them a whole lot more. Before, it was mostly with Peter and mostly just little touches. Fingers brushing over his arm, or their arms nudging one another. Lately, it had become a whole lot more. Spencer was accepting touches and giving them out in a way that seemed so strange and out of character for him and it had Tony worried. "You know you don't have to do that, right? None of us are going to force it. I don't want you to think you have to try really hard for it just because you’re stuck with us now, or because we’re in the public eye or whatever. If you’re not comfortable with it, that’s okay. We’ve all got our quirks.”
Even in the darkened light of the car, it wasn't hard to see the hint of color that warmed Spencer's cheeks. The kid ducked his head down in a way that Tony had come to recognize; it was what Spencer did when he wanted to watch without people being able to see his face or his eyes. "I… I know." The kid drew in a visible breath and squared his shoulders in that way he had of facing things head on sometimes. His voice grew just a bit steadier, even if there was still a hint of hesitance to it. "I've been speaking with Doctor Strange and Professor Xavier, and both of them have advised me that I, um, that empaths are very tactile by nature. That it’s not just a, a want, but a need. Doctor Strange advised me that there’s no greater torture for an empath than to be deprived touch. For empaths, touch-starvation is actually very literal. I’ve been trying to, um, to accommodate that. While I may not always like it or feel comfortable with it, it’s become apparent that they’re correct and part of me needs it.”
Huh. Stephen had mentioned something along those lines before, though not as in depth. So hard Charles. Hearing Spencer put it into words, though, was entirely different. It had Tony thinking about it more than he had before. He could see what Spencer meant, too. There were times that he’d hugged the kid, or put a hand on his shoulder, and Spencer had tensed a little initially, but he’d also relaxed down into the touch rather quickly. When he was hurting with a headache or strained shields, touch helped to ground him and he seemed to recover quicker.
But the idea that he was doing it even when the rest of him didn’t like it – that didn’t sit well with Tony. There had to be a way around it, didn’t there? Some way that made Spencer less uncomfortable? Tony sat back a little in his seat and tried to think it through. “Does it matter what kind of touch it is?”
“What do you mean?”
"Well, does it have to be full body contact or skin to skin? Does a larger touch have more of an effect than a small one? Like, a hand on your shoulder versus, I don't know, that thing you do where you put just your fingertips on Peter's arm?"
He watched as Spencer drew himself up a little. Discomfort faded away in the face of knowledge. That was one area where the two were startlingly alike. “I’m not sure. I don’t… sometimes, I think more contact helps. I definitely pick up more information with larger contact. But, the smaller contact helps at times, too.”
With anyone else this kind of conversation might’ve been just as emotional as the last one – and therefore something the two were both trying to avoid at the moment. However, with two scientific minds, it quickly turned into a debate on different ways to test this and what kind of data they might be able to draw out of each result, as well as the potential for results to be different with various members of the household.
As Tony let himself get lost in the science of it, he found his body relaxing back into the seat and his smile coming a lot more naturally. Spencer was doing just the same across from him. It’d been one hell of a day, one that neither one of them were going to forget, but they’d walked away learning a few things about one another. And that – that was worth it. They’d weather whatever political fallout there was when it inevitably leaked to the media that Spencer had been arrested. If this was the worst thing Spencer ever did, Tony knew he was getting off lucky. Maybe, just maybe, this whole ‘having a kid’ thing might just work out.