114Welcome to my new muse: MCU/Avengers fandom with HP Crossover. Specifically, I'm trying my hand at a "Tony Stark is Harry's dad" fic. There are a ton of these out there so here's what makes this one different:
1) I've changed up Lily and James's history so she didn't cheat on James or have a threesome with James and Tony. You'll get the background in this chapter. It should still keep most of Harry's history the same.
2) Harry was not made into a Horcrux in this story. All the other Horcruxes are still around and are the same as canon (so the Chamber of Secrets happened as it had). This is important to the main plot and will be a major part of the story.
Timeline: Tony's was aged down a bit to make him closer to Lily's age and the HP universe was moved up to the Avengers. I also moved Howard and Maria Stark's death up from December to October (Tony is 22). The full timeline is right before the chapter but the basics are —
• 1975: Tony Born
• 1978: Lily Born
• Oct 1997: Lily and Tony meet
• 1998: Harry born
• Halloween 1999: Voldemort's defeat
July 2013: story starts the summer after Goblet of Fire and a year after Avengers / the Battle of NY. Iron Man 3 and Winter Soldier did not happen and the Avengers are closer to where they were at the beginning of Age of Ultron. I'm also including an aged-up Peter/Spider-Man to match Harry. His history will come out further in.
All of Harry's history is the same except for his birth year (adjusted up) and he was not made a Horcrux as a baby. All of the others exist though. Harry was protected by Lily's sacrifice and Voldemort didn't fully die from his other Horcruxes. Harry still has the scar.
You will see some familiar plotlines getting used in new ways from both Harry Potter and the MCU. This starts out in the HP fandom, then shifts Harry into the MCU, before finally bringing both fandoms together. If I can pull it off, I'm really hoping for a full crossover with characters and plots intermixing.
Source materials: I have read all of the Harry Potter books but do use a lot of the movies as references (Harry's eyes will always be green though!). For the Avengers/MCU, those come strictly from the Infinity Saga movies (through Avengers with some of Age of Ultron). I have not read any of the comics and outside of some random details from wikis, I don't know anything about them. If that bothers you, please know this might not be the fic for you.
And finally, as of posting the first two chapters, I have through chapter 16 written (about 100k) and the whole story is outlined. The pre-written chapters are about the first third of the story. I have no beta for this fic. I do try to be diligent on editing and use three different editing software, but I'm sure it's not going to be perfect.
Full Timeline
Tony Stark
Born: 5/29/1975
Graduate MIT: 1992 (age 17)
Visiting the UK: Sept-Oct 1997 (age 22)
Parents died: Oct 1997 (age 22)
Takes over SI: December 1997 (age 22)
Afghanistan Capture/Iron Man #1: Feb-Apr 2009 (age 34)
Iron Man#2: May 2010 (age 34-35)
Avengers #1 (NY): May 2012 (age 37)
Current: July 2013 (age 38)
Lily Potter
Born: 1978
Left Hogwarts: 1996 (age 18)
Met TS: Oct 1997 (age 19)
Has Harry: 7/31/1998 (age 20)
Marry James: Dec/Jan 1998/1999
Death: 10/31/1999
Harry Evans
Born: 7/31/1998
Mother died: 10/31/1999
Dursleys: 11/1/1999-7/2013
Hogwarts years:
• First: 2009-2010 (11)
• Second: 2010-2011 (12)
• Third: 2011-2012 (13)
• Fourth: 2012-2013 (14)
Now, onto the story. I hope you enjoy it :)
Sirius Black never planned on returning to his ancestral home, 12 Grimmauld Place, when he ran away at only sixteen years old. He moved in with the Potters on that very night and never once looked back or regretted his decision to leave his toxic family, with their prejudiced beliefs, behind him. Sure, over the years he had thought about them more often than he would have liked. After all, it was hard not to when he saw some portion of his extended family tree as he dueled against the Death Eaters or heard his insane cousin ranting down the halls of Azkaban. But he never regretted upholding his beliefs against them and he never intended on returning to any part of his former life.
As he walked into the house for the first time in almost two decades, the irony of his situation wasn't lost on him. Once again, he would be a prisoner in the home; although this time, he at least deserved it. Anyone who betrayed their friends, as he once had, deserved this imprisonment.
Sirius ignored the stinging remnants of dark magic whirling around him as he made his way up the rickety old stairs on his way to his old bedroom. This particular spell threatened harm to anyone who entered the premises with malicious intentions. It would also be the first enchantment, out of many, that Sirius suggested Moody remove to use the home as "Headquarters". They certainly would have their hands, and wands, busy with cleaning out the dangerous curses embedded deep inside its structure. No one wanted to live in a house constantly trying to curse them, and according to his former family's "values", every single person who entered the next few years would qualify as having "malicious intent".
Nothing, however, could be done about the permanent sticking charm on his mother's portrait over the stairway, where she was currently screaming insults at him as he passed by it. It was no secret how much she despised him on the day he ran away, and how she continued to despise him until her death. Now, her insults did not affect him as much as one might think. Not only had he given up trying to win her approval long ago, but the constant reminder of failing his best friends thirteen years ago hurt him far more than anything she could say to him. Still, before making the last turn to his bedroom, he conjured a curtain to cover the old hag and ordered Kreacher not to remove it. Despite his own growth regarding his mother, he doubted the Order members wanted to hear Walburga's relentless venom throughout the day.
When he had offered Albus his home to use as the Order of the Phoenix's Headquarters, it had seemed like a solid, logical idea. As an escaped convict with a lucrative reward on his head — dead or alive — he couldn't exactly go out to rally new supporters like Hagrid and Remus were currently out doing, he couldn't watch over Harry at Privet Drive like the rotating guards assigned this duty throughout the summer, and he couldn't gather intel across enemy lines like Snape; even though Sirius didn't trust the man any further than he could throw him. No, Sirius could only remove the old wards on Grimmauld Place and provide his approval — as the sole heir of the Black Estate — for Albus to set a new Fidelius Charm around it. So, outside of playing host to whatever group of members who happened to be staying at Headquarters over the summer, Sirius's existence served no meaningful purpose; at least until Albus allowed Harry to arrive.
Harry. Sirius absolutely hated how Albus forced his Godson to return to his muggle relatives, particularly this summer. Sirius couldn't care for Harry while was hiding last year — even though the teen would have gladly joined him in the Hogsmeade cave — but staying at Grimmauld Place changed that, and after the Triwizard Tournament, Sirius begged Albus to let Harry stay at "Headquarters" right from the start. Harry had witnessed his classmate's murder, saw the dark wizard responsible for his parent's death resurrected, was tortured, and then barely made it out of a duel against the evil bastard. The least they could do was to allow him to stay in a place where he was surrounded by people who cared about him. But no. For reasons Albus refused to reveal, Harry needed to stay with his Aunt, at least at first. It made no difference how many ways Sirius demanded, going as far as threatening to revoke the use of Grimmauld Place, the older wizard wouldn't reconsider.
Sirius's rage came to a halt as he approached his locked bedroom door, forcing him to put Harry's injustices on hold in order to confront whatever mess lay beyond the solid wood door. Had his mother burned everything in the room, as she had to his face on the family tapestry, and he would walk in to see piles of ash scattered around it? Perhaps she rearranged the room to make space to store their growing collection of dark artifacts? It felt like just the spiteful, yet ironic, thing she'd do as soon as her disgrace of a son abandoned their family values. He briefly considered simply vanishing whatever was inside as soon as he entered, not even looking at anything that might be in there before sending it all out to the rubbish. A fresh start in the home without having to confront his past might be exactly what he needed.
In the end, after shifting his weight between his feet — as if moving would cure all of his troubles —in the dreary corridor for far too long, he gathered up his Gryffindor courage and opened the door. His mother would not control him any longer.
The bedroom was exactly as he remembered it, which genuinely caught him by surprise. The bed on the far wall remained half made and the top drawer to his dresser clumsily closed, leaving one side sticking out as if he had woken up there that morning and gotten dressed in a hurry. All of his Gryffindor banners, quidditch pictures, and posters of muggle motorcycles and ladies still hung on the walls throughout the room — whether his parents could not remove his own sticking charm or just didn't see them, he'd never know; everyone who could tell him was dead. The bed linens, duvet, and tassels were all covered with a thick layer of dust, which also settled into the exquisite mahogany wood of the closet, bedside table, and bookcases. As familiar as the room should have felt given its untouched state, walking into it felt as foreign to him as walking through the front door had been less than an hour ago. Further proof of how this place was never his home.
For reasons Sirius would later attribute to Lily's remarkable Charms talent, an old envelope leaning against a book on his bedside table immediately caught Sirius's attention. Covered in slightly less dust than everything else in the room, Sirius hesitated touching it, fearing it was Regulus who had left for him. Who else would have risked Walburga's wrath by entering the forbidden bedroom? Tapping his fingers lightly on his leg, Sirius debated if he had the strength to read his brother's last thoughts about him. But what if the letter contained Regulus's remorse for joining the Death Eaters, and he requested to follow Sirius instead? What if it didn't? Sirius liked to believe that his younger brother eventually regretted his life choices, so by opening this letter he could immediately shatter the illusion he had created about his brother's fate.
For better or worse, any hope he had of reading Regulus's final words vanished as soon as Sirius wiped the dust off the front of the envelope and saw his name written not in Reg's blocked scribbles but in Lily's elegant script as if she had handwritten each of the letters with the utmost warmth and affection.
His hands moved almost on their own to break Lily's red monogram wax seal, and pulled out more pieces of yellowed parchment than should have logically fit in an envelope of this size; another demonstration of Lily's magical abilities. Sirius didn't want to read it — in fear that Lily somehow knew from the afterlife how deep he'd failed her son — but he owed James and Lily a debt he could never repay in his lifetime, and he deserved Lily's words, no matter how harsh they were.
Dear Sirius,
It breaks my heart to know that if you're reading this it means James and I are gone. If you're reading this, it should also mean that Harry, my precious baby boy, is now in your care. You shouldn't have any trouble transferring custody of Harry or accessing the Potter vaults and properties. We've left all the necessary legal papers in a red file in our vault. This folder also contains Harry's original birth certificate, which brings me to the real reason I am writing this letter to you. You see, James is not Harry's biological father, and Harry's real name is Harry Anthony Evans.
Knowing you, the first part won't be a complete shock. I know you've had your doubts about how James and I went from close (almost best) friends to pregnant with Harry seemingly out of nowhere, but I also want you to know that James is Harry's father in every way besides blood. Please never doubt his love for Harry and my love for James, even if I had to grow into that love. James is truly our hero and I would not have married him unless I loved him with all of my heart.
Why am I telling you this? Apart from the fact that you'll see Harry's birth certificate and question what you're reading, we never planned on keeping it a secret from anyone, definitely not from Harry. After the war, James wants to officially adopt Harry, making him the Harry Potter you were all first introduced to. If you're reading this, though, it means we've died in the war with no one knowing the truth and I cannot let Harry's past simply disappear. He deserves to know where he came from and the decisions I made to keep him safe.
The story begins in early October 1997, on the night we learned that the Death Eaters were on their way to attack the muggle music festival. Do you remember it? I'm pretty sure we all thought we were going to die at some point during the night and we were equally surprised by our victory. The muggles were left none-the-wiser, and we all disapparated to London to celebrate. Or, at least you, James, Peter, Remus, Frank and Alice, and Marlene went to celebrate without me because I turned down the invitation. I think I said I was tired from the battle and was heading home to sleep.
I lied. I wasn't tired, but I also didn't feel like celebrating either, so I wandered around London until I found this small, rundown pub… the perfect place where I could do whatever I needed to do to forget that I had just seen Severus at the other end of my wand. I'm sure it wasn't the first time Severus and I had fought against each other at a raid, but with their stupid masks, I never had to think about it. That night I was putting my all into these spells, wanting to hurt or kill the person across from me when his mask slipped just enough for me to recognize him. It startled me for a second, and suddenly I realized he had never used a single offensive spell on me during our duel. He was only defending himself against me, obviously not wanting to actually harm me. I know you hate him, so you can't understand, but Imagine if, one day, James agreed with your family's morals and you now had to fight him. It'd be easier to do without seeing his face.
So there I was at the pub, three or four drinks in, doing my best to ignore everyone around me when a man sat down in the chair next to me. I'm sure he was attempting to pick me up, except after the night I had, that was the last thing on my mind. Only he didn't leave. This man was arrogant in a way that would have made James seem humble in his early Hogwarts years, yet somehow we ended up talking at the bar until it closed. Several times throughout the night, he tried to persuade me to go back to his hotel with him. Of course, I said no (really, Sirius, you think I'd do that?!) and he walked me "home" instead… or to a house I randomly chose so I could safely disapparate. He introduced himself to me as Anthony Rhodes, a name I would much later discover was fake. He was an American muggle in London taking some type of advanced science class. I got the feeling it bored him out of his mind. Honestly, I can't remember what we talked about all night. He did a lot of rambling about projects and things I had no hope of following, but he said all of it with a passion I had never seen in a person before. I guess that's why two or three days later, I found myself back at the bar searching for him. We met up there almost every night for the next two weeks. Each night he had a following of women watching and waiting for him, and each night he sat at my table listening to me as if nothing else mattered. And each night he walked me "home".
The last night I saw him was at the end of October. I had spent the day healing Order members after the attack at Bristol. Frank had nearly died, and I seriously contemplated skipping the pub altogether, not in the mood for company. At the last minute, though, I decided Anthony's energy and enthusiasm would help to turn my somber day around. And he did. Somehow, he was more boisterous than ever, and we both drank more than we usually did. Looking back, I should have known something wasn't right, or maybe I did and simply didn't care. I followed him back to his hotel room after the last call. I'll spare you the more intimate details of what happened. All you need to know is that it was consensual on both sides, and he was gone by the time I woke up the next morning. I'd never felt so ashamed leaving the hotel alone. It felt like once he had gotten exactly what he had wanted from day one, he had no other "use" for me. He never showed up at the bar again, and a week or so later I stopped going back too. Anthony was long gone.
After Anthony disappeared, James started visiting my flat more often. I think he picked up on me feeling down about it all, and what began as a close friend being there for another evolved into casual dating. We hung out at my place, went sightseeing around London, and had a dinner date here or there.
I discovered I was pregnant with Harry in the middle of December. Deep down, I think I knew earlier and hoped that if I ignored it, it might be some sort of dream. I'm embarrassed to say that now. Harry is my world. I couldn't imagine my life without him, or James, and I'd give up anything to keep him safe.
I told James in mid-January. He found me crying on my bedroom floor surrounded by pieces of a torn-up muggle magazine. I'm going to blame my outburst on pregnancy hormones and feeling alone. See, as I was leaving my first healer appointment at St Mungo's, feeling excited for the first time since the pregnancy potion turned pink, I noticed Anthony's face plastered on the front page of a muggle magazine on one of those street stands. I'll never forget the headline, "Tony Stark takes the reign at 22", with an article inside about him taking over his family company — a company successful for making some of the muggle world's most dangerous weapons. I realized then that my child could be in danger, both from You-Know-Who )for being born to a muggleborn and a muggle), and from the American muggle world for having a father as well-known as Tony Stark. The more I learned about Tony Stark, a man best known as the genius playboy with an unhealthy history with alcohol, sex, and drugs, the worse my situation became.
Claiming Harry as James's son was originally James's idea. Once I shared my concerns about the baby's biological father, he explained how, as a prominent pureblooded family, if the baby were a Potter it would balance my muggleborn status while preventing anyone from connecting him to the Stark legacy. Not wanting to use James in the same way I felt used by Anthony, I didn't agree right away. However, as the weeks passed, James was always there for me and my baby. On days (and nights) when the morning sickness became unbearable, he brought me potions. He accompanied me to almost every healer appointment (missing at least one Order raid for it) and bought the first baby gift: the little red blanket I used to bring Harry home from St. Mungo's. So, when Alice took me aside one day to ask if I was pregnant (guessing me to be about as far along as she), telling her James was the father just felt right. James offered me the greatest gift — a way to keep my child safe, which became more desperately needed as the power of He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named grew.
The rest of the story is history. We announced Harry as James's son, Harry was born, and six months later James and I got married in a wedding filled with genuine love and gratitude for each other and our small, unorthodox family. I didn't leave Hogwarts ever thinking I'd marry James Potter, but I would do it all again… even as we prepare to go into hiding for reasons we don't exactly understand… and I hope he feels the same way.
I officially used Anthony as Harry's middle name. Call it hormones again, but considering I didn't list a father on his birth certificate, it seemed wrong not to give him some connection to his biological father. As for his last name, I didn't want to use Stark (that defeated the entire purpose of leaving Tony out of it) so I went with Evans. This way if James changed his mind, he was legally free to go. I didn't want him to feel trapped. Little did I know he was already planning to propose to me later in the year and then adopt Harry.
So, there it is. It's everything I know leading up to this moment. Please don't think ill of me (remember, I am dead after all), and don't take it out on Harry. I ask that you tell him as soon as you believe he's ready and will be safe. I don't know what kind of man Tony Stark may turn into over the years, if he could ever be someone Harry could trust, but if Harry wants to find him someday, please let him.
And, thank you, Sirius, for loving and caring for our boy when we can't be there for him. I know you'll give Harry the life he deserves.
~Lily
Sirius would never deny the stream of tears pouring down his cheeks as he sat in a heap on the floor beside his bed rereading the last sentences of Lily's astonishing letter. He had not been there for Harry. Not only had he not been there to provide the toddler the love he deserved, but he hadn't been there because he had gotten himself locked away in Azkaban for allowing his own grief and rage to take control of him on the night Harry's parents — or rather his mother and step-father — were murdered. He had failed them. He had failed them all.
Sirius rested his head on his knees, recalling the night of the muggle music festival and the absolute bloodbath it had been for the Death Eaters. Their group of friends — minus Lily — had gone to the Hog's Head Inn to celebrate and had gotten so drunk while comparing dueling stories and battle wounds they all had to spend the night there. Nobody mentioned anything about Lily's absence and Sirius thought nothing unusual about her not being present. As a healer-in-training, she often opted for an early night over partying with the others.
Despite Lily's assumption of Sirius's potential reaction — his suspicion of her throughout her pregnancy — learning Harry had a different father came as a complete shock to him. After hearing the rumor about Lily's pregnancy, he remembered interrogating James about why he hadn't told Sirius about getting together with Lily Evans. The last any of them had heard, Lily and James's single date at the end of Sixth Year had been a spectacular failure, and they eventually decided they made better friends than lovers. Since then, the two had been practically inseparable; James had almost seamlessly replaced Snape in Lily's life. Sirius should have known something odd was going on surrounding Lily's pregnancy when James refused to give him any information on the subject. Back then, he assumed getting pregnant so quickly had embarrassed James and he didn't want to spotlight the taboo subject. Sirius had stopped badgering him about it and he fell in love with his Godson from the moment he laid on the next-generation Marauder.
I ask that you tell him as soon as you believe he's ready and will be safe.
His eyes flickered up to the last request Lily asked of him. Lily had trusted Sirius — someone hardly connected to her son — to give Harry a family if she and James died in the war, and she also trusted him to decide when Harry should learn that his father wasn't the man who died protecting him, but a man who fled from his mother. Except Lily didn't know what Harry had been through in the years since her letter, and she wasn't here to witness how much this information would hurt Harry inside. Like it or not, Harry's identity as James Potter's son was already set and to pull it away from him… well, Sirius hated to imagine what it might do to him, especially after such a rough year for the teen.
So, Sirius made a plan. Sitting on his old bedroom floor, he vowed to finally keep his promise to protect Harry — even if it meant going against Lily's last wish — by taking this information to his grave. However, the best-laid plans sometimes failed and, just as Sirius had never planned on returning to Grimmauld Place, Sirius would abandon his plan less than a fortnight later for the exact same reason Lily started all of this: to protect Harry.