Family Lines

Chapter 5: Peter Stark

Warnings: Mentions of Child Endangerment

Sam and Dean spoke about their hunting experiences with the Avengers. Although they made it sound like it was normal, everyone else was horrified. Even Tony was a bit uneasy about certain stories.

"Hold on, you killed a wendigo," Tony asked.

"Yep," Dean smiled proudly, "It was nothing."

"Wow. I can't say, I'm not impressed," Tony said, "Do you two drink?"

"Yeah," Sam smirked, watching him get up, "You got beers...?"

"Do you prefer beer," Tony asked, grabbing a bottle of expensive-looking liquor.

"We can take whatever you got," Dean said, looking over his shoulder.

"So, Sam, you were going to college at one point," Steve asked, leaning forward in his seat.

"I was. It didn't really work out," Sam said, shrugging.

"Why not," Steve asked.

"Well, uh, demon stuff," Sam said, forcing a smile.

Steve knitted his eyebrows.

"Have you been going through that demon stuff your whole life," Steve asked.

"Not exactly. I've been hunting since I was a boy, but there were moments of peace in-between," Sam explained.

"Since you were a boy," Natasha asked, noticing Tony come back with the glasses in her peripheral, "How young did you two start hunting?"

"I was around 8 when I started," Sam said.

"I was 6 when I started my training," Dean responded.

The room became increasingly more disturbed by this news.

"You were too young for that," Clint whispered, "No child should be hunting (or training to hunt) anything at that age."

"I mean, it was no big deal. It kept us safe," Dean said, brushing it off as nothing.

Tony licked his lips as he grew more irritated with the stories he heard.

"Was John behind all of this," Tony asked.

"He was the one that taught us," Sam said, taking a glass of liquor.

"John taught my nephews how to hunt... Do you two honestly want to be hunters," Tony asked.

Sam and Dean both fell quiet. A look of thought danced in their eyes. There were moments when others had asked Sam if he wanted to leave the family business, but they never knew what he did. Other hunters just assumed that they were okay with their life. Bobby mentioned leaving, but he never really asked them since he too was stuck in the hunter life. No other hunter ever asked them if they truly wanted to be one. Nonetheless, one who was related to them by blood.

"Boys..."

"No one has ever really asked us that before," Dean said softly.

A look of hurt and pity crossed Tony's face. The elevator door opened and Peter stepped inside. He took off his backpack and earbuds.

"Hey, Dad. I'm home... Hello," Peter said, noticing Sam and Dean.

"Peter, these are your cousins," Tony said, causing them to stand up.

"I didn't know I had cousins," Peter said, looking back and forth between the two strangers.

"You must be Peter Stark," Sam smiled, offering to shake his hand, "I'm Sam. This is my brother, Dean. We heard a little bit about you."

"Weird. I've never heard of you before," Peter said, emphasizing his clear discomfort.

"Well, we never knew we had an uncle until today, so join the club," Dean teased.

"You two are freakishly tall," Peter said, noticing how he had to look up to see their faces.

"Oh..."

"No offense, of course! I just... Wow, you're tall," Peter said, focusing on Sam's height.

"None taken," Sam smirked.

"I'm gonna get cleaned up," Peter said, looking at Tony.

"You do that," Tony said, watching him leave.

"Your son is a ray of sunshine, isn't he," Dean teased, sitting down with Sam.

"He's actually a sweet kid, once you get to know him. He's just uneasy about having strangers in his home," Tony reasoned.

"Where is his mother," Dean asked, glancing at Natasha and Wanda.

They both shook their heads quickly.

"He doesn't have one," Tony said.

"Did you adopt him," Sam asked, clearly not noticing the silent warning Wanda and Natasha were giving.

"His mother died when he was a baby," Tony said, bluntly.

"I'm so sorry," Sam apologized, a look of guilt resting on his face, "I didn't know..."

"I know, you didn't. It's fine," Tony reassured, "There's a reason why Peter gets uneasy about strangers in our home."

Dean stood up from the couch, taking that as his cue to leave.

"We should go find a hotel to stay in for the night," Dean suggested, feeling uncomfortable with the conversation, "We'll be back tomorrow morning."

"Great," Tony smiled, standing up as well, "Try to get some rest."

"You too," Sam smiled, following Dean out the door.