#Prototype Cup Germany

[motorsport-magazin]

Motorsport Termine: Online / TV 13.07. - 14.07.2024

Samstag 13.07.2024 09:30 – Goodwood – Festival of Speed – Youtube.com – Live 11:00 – Truck EM – 1. u. 2. Rennen Nürburgring – Youtube.com – Live11:15 – Formel 4 Italia -1. Rennen Mugello – Youtube.com – Live14:15 – Prototype Cup GER – 1. Rennen Zandvoort – Youtube.com – Live15:00 – ADAC GT Masters – 1. Rennen Nürburgring – Sport 1/ Youtube18:55 – Formel 4 Italia -2. Rennen Mugello – Youtube.com –…

[duck7]

Prototype Cup Germany 2023 ʳᵒᵘⁿᵈ ⁵ Assen 🇳🇱

Race 2 start crash.

[ninyard]

Today I’m thinking about Kayleigh Day.

Fighting for her sport, in the beginning. Her, as a female co-founder, travelling the world as a representative of Exy. I’m picturing her standing in front of all-male boards and councils selling the sport, selling her life’s work, a young woman in an underrepresented field, desperate for her passion project to be picked up, to be respected. Do you think she had to sit in front of Olympic Councils with Tetsuji by her side and beg for the sport to be including in the Olympics? While men sat there and asked her, why does this sport work, do you think she had to put on a brave face and ask them to watch one game, to see what it was all about? Do you think she had spreadsheets and documents and presentations of how having a mixed gender sport worked, of proof that the sport had taken off already in Ireland and Japan?

Can you imagine her, unknowingly birthing the Raven mentality as she spent night after night awake until all hours on phone calls with a time difference, a cup of coffee to one side, and the first prototype of an Exy racquet to the other? When she wasn’t talking business, she was probably touring the country, offering free equipment to schools that were willing to trial the sport, offering coaching support to anyone who was willing to ask for it.

Kayleigh Day, sleepless and running on caffeine and years of work, receiving the phone call that the Olympics had decided to give Exy a shot. Then a call with Russia, with Germany, with Australia and China, as more and more people joined their little team, more and more schools and colleges and local sports clubs picking up the sport. Suddenly she’s in Barcelona, watching a game, hearing calls being shouted in Spanish, calls that she’d first came up with on her bedroom floor with Tetsuji on the other line. She’s in Japan, maybe she’s made it to the Olympics, the first ever Irish National team playing against the first ever Japanese National team. She can’t help but feel a tug in her chest watching fans in the crowd invest themselves into the game, upset at a loss, ecstatic at a win. She’s standing back and watching her life’s work FINALLY pay off. She’s finally getting to see what it was all for. But it doesn’t last long, does it?

[noe11egance]

“A God’s Favorite Angel” Loki/Fem! Reader Relationship: Asgardian God/Mortal Doctor

Summary:

While on Earth, Loki had grown fond of a certain doctor and scientist who worked in the Avengers compound. He tries desperately to get her attention, as she is constantly working. Occasionally taking her time off alone with none but herself. Loki was curious to solve the mystery of the beautifully intelligent woman that he calls, angel.

Word Count: 1,419

a/n: This is my first time writing fanfiction and posting it somewhere online! Reminder that this is Chapter one of the series I plan to write. If you like it please let me know, enjoy. <3 Written by noellegance

Chapter 1: Oh, Doctor

The watch on your wrist reads 2:00 A.M and the coffee pot that you’ve made only a few hours that had once been full is now nothing more than a drop at the bottom of your coffee cup. Everyone at the compound found themselves in bed before the clock struck midnight, aside from yourself. 

Having chosen to stay behind when the rest of the Avengers were on a mission somewhere North of Germany. Opting to stay out of the fight in exchange for conducting research for a prototype machine you’ve been developing in hopes of being able to treat wounds and apply first aid in mere seconds. Finding little success in the functionality of the prototype tonight, much to your dismay.

Stressed and exhausted with your only lifeline being the cold brew of coffee in a cup that is near empty. You still cannot find the motivation to call it a night, your work was important to you and you were determined to see progress.

“You’re overworking yourself again, Doctor,” a deep voice introduces itself. Taking your attention away from your work, nearly dropping the blueprint for a newly developed schematic that was important to your work. You were not expecting anyone to be awake at this hour and the voice didn’t belong to anyone at the compound, so who was it? 

“Who’s there?” You set down the blueprint gently on the table, your eyes scanning the dark room. The only light coming from the light flicker of your desk lamp.

“I’m hurt, Doctor. Am I that forgettable?” The deep voice chuckles and the sound of heavy boots echo through the workshop. The sound gets increasingly louder as the vague shape of the figure reveals itself, circling around you. Feeling its presence but being unable to fully see who it was. It was as if the figure was purposefully avoiding the radius of the light.

Your body tenses with adrenaline and fear, ready to attack whoever the intruder was with whatever was on hand. You were by yourself, vulnerable. But you refuse to simply cower because that isn’t who you are. 

“That look in your eyes, you look like you’re ready to attack someone. Come on, pet, no need to be so tense. I wouldn’t hurt you.” You knew better than to trust the words of a shadow. “And here I thought you’d be more hospitable. I am a guest, am I not?”

“A guest? Is that so?” You grab a wrench that was next to you on your workbench, just in case. “I do believe guests are supposed to introduce themselves before inviting themselves in.”

“It really is disappointing, I came all this way to see you and yet you greet me with such hostility.” Suddenly, without warning, the figures reveal themselves. Towering over you with a smirk tugging on the corners of his lips. Lifting your chin with his index finger to make you face him. “Hello, Doctor.”

“Loki,” the grip on the wrench loosens slightly. Your gaze meets his. His emerald green eyes pierce through yours, the feeling was exhilarating... “What are you doing here?”

Loki cocks his head to the side, “I’ve made it abundantly clear, haven’t I?” He pulls away from you. Raising his hand, and with a snap a few lights come on. Blinding you for a few moments as your eyes adjust to the sudden change of brightness.

“Asgard as of late has left me… unsatisfied. I’m bored.” He sighs dramatically while flashing his signature smirks, in clear hopes of charming you into spending time with him. “If only there was someone who could help me with my predicament.”

“If only,” you roll your eyes and turn your back to him. Returning your focus back to your work before you were rudely interrupted. “Why not bother anyone else? Who is currently not working.”

He chuckles and picks up a tool from your hand and holds it just out of reach. “Just what are you working on this late at night, Doctor?” 

“That is none of your concern, I don’t need your help.” You attempt to reach for it but he just holds it just out of reach. “And you’re being a nuisance.”

“Your words wound me, pet,” circling around you as you ignore him. He notes the state of your work space.

Messy and disorganized with papers scattered all over. Blueprints, medical records, research papers, progress reports, all on different aspects of your job at the compound. The work seemed to never be finished. He both pitied and admired your dedication, but at the cost of your own well being.

His eyes trail away from the disarray of your work space and back to you. The way your ponytail droops down in a way that can only be achieved naturally through movement and time. 

The way you roll up the sleeves of your lab coat and turtleneck to allow more mobility, showing off your forearms. Your glasses resting on the bridge of your nose, noticing how you constantly have to adjust them as they were just a little too big for you.

“Loki? Are you alright?” Your eyes meet once again which snaps him out of the trance that you unknowingly put on him.

“Yes, Doctor, I’m fine.” He flashes a slight grin. “Are you?” Raising his eyebrow and crossing his arms. Making himself appear in “When was the last time you had a break?”

Come to think of it, you haven’t had a break in a few hours. Since the Avengers came back from their mission abroad and shared dinner together you haven’t stopped once. Maybe for the occasional coffee refill but that is about it.

Loki notices the look in your eyes, how you’re unable to answer because your pride wouldn’t let the words out. He found that endearing. “Ah, just as I thought. For someone who works so hard for the sake of others, you fail to take care of yourself. Working on… whatever this is until the late hours of the night. I wonder why is that, Doctor? Are you truly that altruistic?” 

Loki was doing the equivalent of poking at a sleeping bear. You clearly were not in the mood to handle his teasing and his attempts to try and make you open up to him. But he just kept pressing on, using his silver tongue and effortless charm to get what he wants from you. Inching closer while looking down at you with a confident, near arrogant, smirk. “Someone so good deserves to be properly appreciated, don’t you agree, angel?”

His slender fingers gently lifting you chin, leaning down to your eye level. His words leaving his lips like sweet, warm, honey to your ears. You can tell he is enjoying this, toying with you, and you let him.

But your pride was trying to push back, to push him away and deny yourself this feeling that you fail to even put to words. Melting like putty in his hands, but a part of you held on. The part of you that reinforced the idea that you don’t need anyone else, you were the only one you could trust.

“You think your words have any affect on me? I am not just another one of your playthings, Loki. Something for you to do with as you please just for the fun of it,” defiance. Defiance and competition were your defining traits that dictated your very being. And you hated losing.

Both you knew that this was a game. A war of attrition of who is to give in first. The tension so thick that it can be cut through with a sharp blade. You were stubborn, not easy, and he loved it.

“Oh no, pet, I think of you much higher than that,” he doesn’t step away or back down, continuing to towering over you. “If anything, I admire you. You’re headstrong, determined, stubborn, intelligent… and beautiful.” He was sincere, you could have sworn that those piercing eyes of his softened for just a moment before returning to their mischievous glint. 

“You don’t mean that,” you retort as if it was an instinct. To deny any sort of praise, not allowing yourself to feel vulnerable around him.

“You don’t, Doctor?”

“Not one bit.”

“Then allow me.”

“Allow you to what?”

“Prove it to you,” he reaches for your hand gently. Leaning down and kissing the back of your hand, his gaze meeting yours. His attention completely on you “My angel.”

CHAPTER 2 OUT NOW:

https://www.tumblr.com/noe11egance/733037759378407424/a-gods-favorite-angel-chapter-2-lokifem-reader

[hirocimacruiser]

20th century

NISSAN

MOTORSPORTS 1958-2000

'80~

WEC championship,

And to participate in Le Mans

Group C flourishes.

In the early 1980s, the FIA ���​(International Automobile Federation)

The rules and classification of competition vehicles were changed.

Group C vehicles that are racing sports cars

is not classified by displacement as in the past,

Only the total amount of fuel used is specified (good fuel consumption is essential);

What type of engine can you use if you clear this?

It is a challenge for manufacturers as they are willing to participate.

It has become a very important category. The same regulations apply from the following year.

The world championship match “WEC Japan” by Fujis

Since it started at Pedeway, Nissan also started

Developed a carbon engine and mounted it on a foreign chassis.

Start participating. As an extension of that, to the Le Mans 24 Hours.

Participated in the race, the first challenge was in 1986, and the best in 1990.

Although it became a fast machine and won pole position, unfortunately, the battle ends without victory. In the 80s-90s

Also in WSPC (World Sports Prototype Championship) he participated full-time and finished 3rd in the series in 1990.

At that time in the United States, a category similar to Group C, IMSA-GTP, which is a popular cars actively participate in the race, Nissan GTP ZX-T

He was the champion from 1988 to 1999.

Nissan has been in the WRC (World Rally Championship) for 7-8 years.

Although he was able to take second place in the series for three consecutive years, the new vehicle In the era of Group B (starting in 1983) and Group A (starting in 1988) after the regulations came into effect, they often played supporting roles. However, there are still marathon raids such as the Paris-Dakar Rally, and popularity in the United States.

At stadiums, off-road races, etc. that collect

Often achieved good results.

In Japan, in 1985, Group A vehicles began

The Japan Touring Car Championship has begun, and Skyline RS Turbo and GTS-R were part of the winning front. And boasts the strongest Group A machine

R32 Skyline GT-R appears.

On the other hand, the Saurus Cup, March one-make race, or an amateur with many Silvias and Pulsars.

Races for beginners were also widely held nationwide.

Also, the first F1GP race in Japan in 10 years will be held in 8 years.

It was held at Suzuka Circuit and has been held every year since then.

With the introduction of F1, there was a sudden F1 boom in Japan.

/The motorsports boom was ignited.

PIC CAPTIONS

Local Kenyan expert Shehkar Mehta and his beloved PA10 Violet achieved the feat of winning the Safari Rally four years in a row from 1979 to 1982. Among the many international rallies, the Safari Rally is far more demanding than the events held in Western Europe, and it became an ideal venue for Japanese cars to demonstrate their excellence.

_____________________________________________

The "Silhouette Formula" car, which was born in Germany in the late 1970s, is a heavily modified racing car that retains only a slight silhouette of the production car. It is equipped with a trendy turbocharger and captivates fans with its overwhelming straight-line speed. In Japan in the early 1980s, Skylines and Silvias spewed flames and raced around Fuji Speedway and other places. Its power is 570bhp

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Group C competition, 1985 WEC Japan. More than 80,000 spectators packed into Fuji Speedway in heavy rain. The works Porsche 956 on the first row of the grid withdrew early, and Kazuyoshi Hoshino, driving the March B5G Nissan (No. 28) that qualified third, won the race, which was shortened to two hours due to bad weather. Although bad weather was on their side, it was the first time for a Nissan car and the first Japanese to win a world championship race.

[brookstonalmanac]

Events 7.15 (after 1900)

1910 – In his book Clinical Psychiatry, Emil Kraepelin gives a name to Alzheimer's disease, naming it after his colleague Alois Alzheimer. 1916 – In Seattle, Washington, William Boeing and George Conrad Westervelt incorporate Pacific Aero Products (later renamed Boeing). 1918 – World War I: The Second Battle of the Marne begins near the River Marne with a German attack. 1920 – Aftermath of World War I: The Parliament of Poland establishes Silesian Voivodeship before the Polish-German plebiscite. 1922 – The Japanese Communist Party is established in Japan. 1927 – Massacre of July 15, 1927: Eighty-nine protesters are killed by Austrian police in Vienna. 1941 – The Holocaust: Nazi Germany begins the deportation of 100,000 Jews from the occupied Netherlands to extermination camps. 1946 – The State of North Borneo, now Sabah, Malaysia, is annexed by the United Kingdom. 1954 – The Boeing 367-80, the prototype for both the Boeing 707 and C-135 series, takes its first flight. 1955 – Eighteen Nobel laureates sign the Mainau Declaration against nuclear weapons, later co-signed by thirty-four others. 1966 – Vietnam War: The United States and South Vietnam begin Operation Hastings to push the North Vietnamese out of the Vietnamese Demilitarized Zone. 1971 – The United Red Army is founded in Japan. 1974 – In Nicosia, Cyprus, Greek junta-sponsored nationalists launch a coup d'état, deposing President Makarios and installing Nikos Sampson as Cypriot president. 1975 – Space Race: Apollo–Soyuz Test Project features the dual launch of an Apollo spacecraft and a Soyuz spacecraft on the first Soviet-United States human-crewed flight. It was the last launch of both an Apollo spacecraft, and the Saturn family of rockets. 1979 – U.S. President Jimmy Carter gives his "malaise speech". 1983 – An attack at Orly Airport in Paris is launched by Armenian militant organisation ASALA, leaving eight people dead and 55 injured. 1983 – Nintendo released the Famicom in Japan. 1996 – A Belgian Air Force C-130 Hercules carrying the Royal Netherlands Army marching band crashes on landing at Eindhoven Airport. 1998 – Sri Lankan Civil War: Sri Lankan Tamil MP S. Shanmuganathan is killed by a claymore mine. 2002 – "American Taliban" John Walker Lindh pleads guilty to supplying aid to the enemy and possession of explosives during the commission of a felony. 2002 – The Anti-Terrorism Court of Pakistan sentences British born Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh to death, and three others suspected of murdering The Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl to life. 2003 – AOL Time Warner disbands Netscape. The Mozilla Foundation is established on the same day. 2006 – Twitter, later one of the largest social media platforms in the world, is launched. 2009 – Caspian Airlines Flight 7908 crashes near Jannatabad, Qazvin, Iran, killing 168. 2009 – Space Shuttle program: Endeavour is launched on STS-127 to complete assembly of the International Space Station's Kibō module. 2012 – South Korean rapper Psy releases his hit single Gangnam Style. 2014 – A train derails on the Moscow Metro, killing at least 24 and injuring more than 160 others. 2016 – Factions of the Turkish Armed Forces attempt a coup. 2018 – France win their second World Cup title, defeating Croatia 4–2.

[revesdautomobiles]

[sbknews]

Bring Your Heat With The All-New GASGAS MOTO Urban Cruiser

One-size-fits-all cruiser for maxing out the fun, unveiled at EUROBIKE 2023. High energy, vibrant, and pure fun! The GASGAS MOTO is a play bike that will inject excitement and thrills into your daily ride. - GASGAS announces MOTO urban cruiser at Eurobike 2023 - A one-size-fits-all cruiser for maximum fun on daily rides - Legend Troy Lee to perform live GASGAS MOTO paint session at the GASGAS booth https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WLWvLmGC5cMInspired by the iconic California beach cruiser-styled bicycles, GASGAS has taken the much-loved concept and raised the bar. By adding our own touches, the MOTO is bold, daring, beautiful and unique. With an open mind and guided by decades of two-wheeled manufacturing history, the GASGAS MOTO is the first bike in the urban cruiser segment to develop a contemporary styling with supermoto aesthetics. Where traditionally urban bikes follow function over form, the GASGAS MOTO proves you can have both. Ensuring simplicity in design, the durable, and very red, steel frame creates a relaxed riding position that’s ‘one-size fits-all’ thanks to its extra-long seat bench. Supermoto inspired 20” wheels compliment the look and feel of this two-wheeled party bike! Pedal-assisted, with a powerful rear hub motor and up to 672Wh battery option, it meets all-day riding needs. A special US version featuring a throttle grip will also become available for the North American market with a maximum motor output of 750W. To get the GASGAS MOTO party started, we’re lifting the covers on this urban cruising game changer at Europe’s largest bicycle show, Eurobike in Frankfurt, Germany. And the legend himself Troy Lee will be on hand to help us do it. During Eurobike, Troy will do a live paint session with the GASGAS MOTO creating a unique, one-of-a-kind cruiser. We’ll also have some MOTO demo bikes to test ride too. GASGAS MOTO – Highlights - One-size-fits-all urban cruiser - Supermoto aesthetics - Fitting for 160 - 190 cm riders - Extra-long and comfy seat - Sturdy, robust steel frame - Strong hub motor - 20” fat tires for massive comfort - Display with Bluetooth connection allowing smartphone connectivity Naturally, the GASGAS booth will be busy with lots to check out. We have the first ever public showing of our ECC prototype eMTB, the bike that helped GASGAS riders Alexandre Fayolle and Alex Marin secure fifth and sixth respectively at the most recent round of the UCI E-Enduro World Cup in Leogang, Austria. With three rounds still to be contested in 2023, the ECC prototype will continue to be put through its paces at the highest level of eMTB competition. Models current and new, including some yet to be released non-e MTBs, will also be on display at the GASGAS Eurobike booth. So, come and find us at Hall 12.0/A14 and we’ll tell you more. Bring Your Heat! Additionally, at the GASGAS booth visitors will get a first view of these models: GASGAS ECA Fresh full-suspension enduro offering ft. 160mm travel. GASGAS MXA Agile fully E-MTB with 140mm travel. GASGAS TRA Full-suspension 130mm travel E-MTB with weight-optimized alu frame. GASGAS TRA Hardtail E-MTB with weight-optimized alu frame. GASGAS TR GASGAS’ first bicycle ft. 150mm of travel front and rear. GASGAS TR Efficient hardtail bicycle ft. trusted componentry on an alu frame. For more GASGAS news check out our dedicated page GASGAS News or head to the official GASGAS website gasgas.com/en-gb.html

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[motorsport-magazin]

Frikadelli Racing will beim Prototype Cup in Zandvoort den positiven Trend bestätigen

Vom 12.-14.07.2024 wartet auf das Frikadelli Racing Team die dritte Saisonstation des Prototype Cup Germany. Nach dem Saisonauftakt in Spa-Francorchamps und der Folgeveranstaltung auf dem Lausitzring führt die Reise der Barweiler Mannschaft dieses Mal an die Nordseeküste in den Niederlanden. Im Circuit Park Zandvoort möchten Klaus Abbelen und Felipe Laser mit dem #30 Ligier JS P320 den positiven…

[duck7]

Prototype Cup Germany 2023 ʳᵒᵘⁿᵈ ⁴ Norisring 🇩🇪

Alex Cascatau hits the wall in a very hard impact during formation lap for race 1. [Update]

[allsports4123]

Thierry Henry, King of the English Premier League

Thierry Henry, King of the English Premier League

a former French football coach Position: Striker.

Arsenal's highest scorers and the second-highest scorers in the history of the French national football team, he led Arsenal to an undefeated PL title in 2003–04, France's 1998 World Cup, Euro 2000 and Barcelona's 2008–09 treble. He is also the most scoring champion in PL history. So the nickname is 'King of EPL'.

He has won the Premier League's top scorer several times and joined the 20-20 club due to his breakthrough, spatial penetration, and subsequent goal determination, which combines tremendously fast speed and power. In particular, the right-footed kick on the side in the right space of the goal post called "Henri Zone" has made numerous goals with luxury shots, which is considered the highest level of the time.

He was famous for his soft and accurate shots, creating a one-on-one situation with as much penetration as David Villa, and the kick that bloomed in the corner at a timing that the goalkeeper did not expect was excellent.

The free kick was also very good. However, his ability to hold out with his body or to fight in the air was not good. Considering that he was 188cm tall and weighed in the mid to late 80kg range, it is quite surprising. Henry has 174 Premier League goals, only six of which are header goals.

In fact, Henry had many patterns of standing on the side rather than holding out at the center and pushing in to the center using tremendous speed. However, the reason why he scored fewer header goals was because Arsenal and Barcelona, which he belonged to, had extremely few air balls, and in fact, he scored quite a few header goals in the national team, and these goals showed good header skills and long stay time.

However, France was not just Arsenal, not a team that needed air combat capabilities like England, and even if necessary, Trezeguera had the strongest air combat capability as a partner at the time.

Compared to Michael Owen's rotting partners with Rooney, Raul, and Ronaldo, even with good crosses such as Beckham, Figo, and Gerrard, it is hard to call it a weakness.

In the national team, he had relatively little influence compared to his status at the club. There was a side where Zidane and his movements overlapped, and France was organized with Zidane-oriented tactics, not him, until the World Cup in Germany, the last World Cup in his heyday.

And he had a considerable talent for playmaking, perhaps because of the influence of Berkamp, or because the technique was great from the beginning. Arsenal's ability to play 4-4-2 from the days of Berkamp & Henry to the days of Persie & Adebayor was largely due to the presence of a versatile striker, who was also the starting point.

Proving that is the combination with left and right wingers. When Pires or Jungberry pulled Agro, Henry penetrated the space and scored, or the situation of the role came out. It was Arsenal in the past that played as the prototype of a second-line winger who is currently 4-3-3 or 4-2-3-1. And at the heart of it was Henry and Berkamp.

For your information, in the past, Berkamp was in charge of this role alone. Ian Wright and Anelka are also players in the EPL top class, but they were strong in scoring with active penetration rather than coordinating the game itself like Henry. In fact, Berkamp once said that he liked Anelka because he was more straight than Henry as his partner.

Henry's 20–20 record for the 02/03 season remains 20 assists even after the EPL assist rule was revised, making it even more remarkable in that it was all assists from open play. As he started playing soccer on the side, he developed a mindset that he should not be greedy, and it is even more thrilling to record assists than when scoring. However, for this reason, there was criticism that he was looking for a teammate in the scoring chance even though he was a striker. 안전놀이터

If it's a weakness, it was quite frequent to blow good chances with girl shots. He preferred a shot that was exquisitely wound with a far post in the "Anri Zone" position, and these technical shots are difficult, so even if the impact of the kick is a little bad, the shot is likely to go out strangely. Therefore, there were often cases where they made a cool chance and rolled over to the keeper or went to the front and hugged him.

Among the existing strikers, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Robert Lewandowski show similarities. If Aubameyang resembles explosive speed and spatial penetration, Lewandowski has a lot of similarities in overall play style and ability to score at various points. In the winger position, Son Heung-min shows a similar appearance.

[milstrim]

There is Good in the Dark

Chapter 4--The Avengers

There was an elegant sling! as a red, white, and blue shield sped through the air, bouncing off of two oncoming robots that deflated at the touch, crashing to the ground neatly. Steve caught the shield as it rounded back, slipping it from arm to arm effortlessly as he twisted in air, hitting one robot with it before slinging at an approaching robot behind him. They both crashed to the ground as well, the shield zipping back once more to his arm, leaving the soldier alone in the ruined room.

There was a less-than-enthusiastic clap. Steve turned, a small smile paired with raised eyebrows as the screen of the training room lifted, revealing his team. It was Tony who was clapping--obviously--his boyfriend (Sorta, maybe, had been. A lot had happened, and right now the two were--well, a rough patch wouldn't begin to describe it) sporting a teasing and mocking smirk. Steve rolled his eyes good-naturedly, trotting over casually as the training robots he'd knocked down lit back up and lifted, resetting to the starting position.

"Wow, three seconds worse than last time. Looks like someone's getting old," Tony joked.

"I thought I'd take it easy today, Tony," he said, shifting the shield off of his shoulder and placing it against the wall.

"Yeah, taking it super easy, Cap," Sam said with a teasing smile and a roll of his eyes. "You really like to make us look bad, huh?"

Steve chuckled, "I live for it."

"Enough flirting, you'll make Tony jealous," Nat said, a teasing smile glanced their way. Tony rolled his eyes, shifting his shoulders to give Nat the most exasperated look the man could muster. She, of course, ignored him, instead turning to Sam. "Your turn, bird brain."

"Wow, so nice today, Nat." With a playful grumble, Sam stepped into the confines of the training room with what must be the tenth new prototype of his wings. Tony had been preparing a lot of new technology over the past few months, on a constant and worrying grind. Don't get him wrong, Steve and the rest of the team appreciated the extra materials and the ability to build back trust by practicing with them, but he knew that the billionaire only got like this when he was on the edge of losing it. And it wasn't much of a secret as to why.

Peter Parker had been in Tony Stark's life for nearly a year, but he had become a fundamental part of the Avengers barely five months ago. It had all started on a bright sunny day in Queens, or, if you really went back, it all started on a warm summer day in Germany. That's when Spider-Man had first been introduced to the splintered team after all. Looking back, definitely not the greatest first impression, but Steve honestly counted it better than his second nearly half a year later.

So, the warm summer day in Germany. It had been at an airport with a heavily successful escape on a stolen Quinjet. Steve and Bucky had escaped, leaving the remnants of his team--a stranded colonel, a fallen giant, a betrayer, and an inconceivably hurt boyfriend--behind on the tarmac. They'd gone to take care of the rest of the Winter Soldiers in Siberia and had instead met a broken man, a tape recording, and even more broken relationship.

Steve regretted nothing and everything he did that day. He didn't regret saving Bucky in the slightest. That was his best friend, lost and accused and hurt and searching for a peaceful answer. He regretted everything he did to Tony along the way. That was the man he'd loved for almost three years, beaten and bruised and betrayed on the cold floor of a Russian storm.

But Steve had still left, still sent that letter with an apology that would never express in words his regret and fear at what he'd done--the secret he'd kept--and still broken his team out of the Raft. The cameras had all strangely been deactivated and the alarms strangely silent. After a few moments of consideration, it really hadn't been that strange at all. It was the small shred of hope that had stuck with him.

The next important day, the sunny one in Queens, had happened seven months later. The Rogue Avengers had been pardoned for two weeks and had only been at the tower that had been sold and then bought back in three months--when that had reached the news it had made Steve's lips curl in amusement at Tony's impulsiveness--for five days when it happened.

By that point, they'd only heard about the spider-kid from Germany once in defensive passing from Tony. The conversation had been shut down pretty quickly at the vigilante's inclusion and what he was currently doing, with only a curt response from the billionaire explaining that he was training the kid and that he was 'Taking care of it fine by myself, thank you very much.' Steve had been too nervous to push anymore on the subject, walking on eggshells around the man he'd loved and yet still hurt so badly. He wished he'd pushed harder, at least to have the barest of explanations for that January day.

Tony had tentatively joined them for breakfast that day, pushed to converse by Rhodey who'd more or less been very calm and easy with all of them. Steve should have honestly expected that from the easygoing colonel, who'd been nothing but gracious and friendly towards them, if a little more distant than usual. So Tony had sat down for breakfast, sipping at a dark coffee and every once in a while taking a bite from his omelet.

The tension had been palpable, few words being shared for minutes on end. Finally, Steve had decided to bite the bullet. He'd cleared his throat softly, setting down his cup of orange juice that he'd only managed to swallow from once. Tony had glanced up at him, feigned indifference painted on his face. At least, Steve had hoped it was feigned.

"Tony, I wanted to be the first to reach out, to try and make amends. I'm sorry about--"

"You're the first to reach out?" Tony had snapped immediately, cutting off the rest of Steve's carefully planned but clearly not planned enough apology. The team had tensed, eyes glancing defensively as the billionaire gestured around the room in a great arc, though Rhodey had tried to stifle his broad actions. "I'm sorry? What do you think all of this is? All those meetings and bribes and stupid PR projects to try and get you in good graces? And you're--"

"Tony," Rhodey had warned, not that it had really stopped the man.

"No, I wanna hear this. Please, give me your apology that is so great and is obviously much better than--"

Tony's phone had rung. His words had petered out at the ringtone set to Sweet Child of Mine, turning away from the somber and petrified Steve to fish his phone out of his pocket, shooting up from the table. Despite the hostility palpable in the room, and all the eyes glued to the retreating billionaire, Tony's posture had loosened almost immediately at the ringtone, and though he'd turned away from Steve to press the phone to his ear, he swore he'd seen a small smile drape itself on Tony's face.

The engineer had answered the phone with a quiet, "Hey, young buck, what's up?"

Steve's hearing was good, but as good as it was, the only thing he had been able to catch on the other end was a shocked and broken up, "Mr. Stark! This is...Cheryl Brooks from...Queens Hospital Center...Parker at the moment--"

The captain had opened his mouth to ask what was important about someone named Parker at a hospital in Queens, but Tony had darted before he even had the chance. Steve hadn't seen the man for nearly another week.

Peter Parker had been introduced two weeks later. Steve couldn't say that he'd made the best first--technically second--impression, and it was still biting him in the ass even now.

"Tell me how the pigeon did later. I'm gonna go take a shower. Me and Pepper have a girls' day planned," Nat excused, dragging Steve from his thoughts and giving him a pointed look. Steve subtly shook his head, but the spy ignored him and slipped out the door, waving goodbye to the two of them.

"So," Tony said. He dared a snatch of a glance at the billionaire that was leaning on the overlooking rail as Sam started his session. Despite the persisting bitterness between the two, he couldn't help but blush as he looked over the man in his black, skin-tight training suit. "Any luck with Peter?"

Steve blinked. Tony was friendly today. He would take it.

He shrugged. "I tried talking to him again yesterday after he got back from school. He's still not super excited about me."

"It's probably all the detention he gets himself into. He'll warm up to you eventually."

"It's been five months."

"To be fair, you were a bit of an asshole when you met him," Tony excused. Steve nodded, but then he squinted and shook his head, crossing his arms.

"I don't think that's it, Tony," he muttered, excusing himself from acknowledging Tony's look by staring at Sam taking down the robots. "Him and Sam didn't get along at first either, and now they're completely fine. I think he just doesn't like me."

Tony huffed. "Please, the kid likes everybody. He's been going through a rough patch, his aunt did die not too long ago."

Steve wanted to argue more--about how Peter always stiffened around him, about how he walked around Steve in great arcs, about how the kid all but refused to be alone with him, and about how he always made a point to stand just a little too defensively between him and Tony if all three were in the room--but he bit his tongue. Tony was smart enough to have noticed it by now (he was pretty sure, anyway), and if he was choosing not to talk about it, then he wasn't ready, or Peter wasn't ready. So he just shrugged and nodded as amiably as he could, waiting and wishing his face would stop flushing.

    Peter stirred at the knock on his door, swirling from where he'd been reading a book for school in his rolley chair. Well, staring at the same line over and over again and hoping that it would register. So far it had been fifteen minutes and still nothing but glossy eyes and mushy thoughts.

The teenager identified the person outside--obviously Mr. Stark, his heart pittering quickly in an attempt to keep up with the man--before murmuring, his voice low and tired, "Come in."

Mr. Stark entered his room, his hair wet and the collar of an old and frayed Guns N' Roses shirt he was wearing stained with the remnants of his obviously recent shower. He must have had some Avengers training today. Mr. Rogers always called it 'team bonding,' and it was all he could do to not roll his eyes at the ridiculous hypocrisy of it. He was the one that had abandoned Mr. Stark, not the other way around.

"Hey, kiddo," Mr. Stark greeted, leaning on the door frame. "Whatcha up to?"

He gestured at the book with a tired shrug. "Um, just reading for school, so..."

"Yeah? What do they have you reading? More Shakespeare?"

"No, uh, The Crucible. It's more boring though."

"Yikes," Mr. Stark sympathized. "Wanna take a break?"

"For what?"

"Lunch. Down in the common room."

Peter glanced at the door skittishly, already dreading what that meal would be like.

Mr. Rogers was an enigma to Peter Parker. On one hand, well, he was Steve Rogers. The man spouted by school and museums and government propaganda as the epitome of goodwill and the American ideal and everything to look up to. And Peter did look up to him--or had, really--with starry eyes filled with the amazing tales of adventure and the bright colors on his lunchbox in third grade (and then Mr. Stark had revealed himself as Iron Man, soon the red and blue had turned to red and gold). It was practically ingrained into him at this point to worship the very ground the man walked on, and it was overwhelmingly confusing to puzzle out because the teenager just didn't trust him.

Part of Peter felt he was being a little judgmental and slightly unfair. Mr. Rogers had never really done anything to him. The man had always been pleasant and amiable, offering extra helpings of food whenever he was dragged to eat meals with the Avengers, asking genuinely interested questions about school and his studies, and once even offering to help train him. All in all, Mr. Rogers was accommodating and, despite their rocky start, nice.

And yet Peter hated being anywhere near him.

Well, hate was a strong word, maybe 'defensive' was a little better. Nervous? The teenager didn't know. All he knew was that he didn't like being in the same room with the century-old man. Peter had seen the videos from Siberia--barely a month after he'd spent his first month at the tower, accidentaly-sorta-on-purpose-maybe-he-definitely-hacked-into-Mr. Stark's-stuff--and it had taken all his self control to not rush to Mr. Stark immediately. Somehow, he'd managed to keep to himself, to pretend like everything was fine when Mr. Stark got back and when he'd left, refusing to show any terror or confusion or how he felt in complete shambles about the panic he felt over his mentor being hurt like that. By Captain America, the leader of the Avengers, and who Mr. Stark had been dating. Had trusted.

He'd kept it together that day and he kept it together even now--though the nightmares he had about a shield and a flickering arc reactor were persistent--despite his weirdly protective urge to create his own shield between his guardian and the pardoned rogue. But though he felt like he'd managed to keep his distrust mostly under wraps and as carefully controlled as it could be, Peter still didn't know how to move on, or, better yet, how to protect Mr. Stark. That was all he wanted. For Mr. Stark to be safe.

And, by the amount of times he'd accompanied the mechanic to a team meal that he didn't want to be anywhere near, he wanted him to be happy as well. He always bore just a slightly bigger smile when Peter agreed to any kind of 'team' thing, so the teenager grinned and bore it. For Mr. Stark.

"You feeling okay, kid?" Mr. Stark asked, breaking Peter from his thoughts as he stepped forward and placed the back of his hand against his forehead. The action was so familiar he had to bite down tears. If Mr. Stark noticed, he didn't say anything, just tutted and withdrew his hand. "No fever. You ate this morning, right?"

Peter rolled his eyes. "Yes, Mr. Stark."

"And you slept okay last night?"

"Yep. I'm just sick of this book." Mr. Stark squinted at him in suspicion before clearly giving it up. "So, lunch?"

"Yep, c'mon. Capsicle and Big Bird are cooking."

Peter trodded after Mr. Stark, leaving his book behind disdainfully. He shoved his hands in his pockets to hide their nervous shake as he followed his mentor into the elevator and then onto the Avengers common floor. Mr. Wilson and Mr. Rogers were the only ones there at the moment. He wondered briefly where everyone else was before shrugging it off. A lot of the time people stuck to their own rooms (or labs) or liked to explore the city.

The two soldiers looked up with cheery greetings as Peter and his guardian stepped into the kitchen where a pile of scrambled eggs were being cooked in a rather large pan. He guessed a second pan would have to be cooked to feed both Mr. Rogers after a workout and him.

Peter ignored Steve's greeting smile, instead nodding at Mr. Wilson in hello. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Mr. Rogers and Mr. Stark exchange a look. Peter didn't even notice how he stepped closer to Mr. Stark.

"Hey, Mr. Wilson," Peter said. The man rolled his eyes, pointing the spatula in his hand at the teenager in a mock threatening posture.

"Sam. How many times do I have to tell you that?"

"Good luck," Mr. Stark griped. "It's been a year. He lives with me and I'm still 'Mr. Stark.'"

"That's your name, Mr. Stark," Peter chirped. There were chuckles all around, followed by a slightly awkward silence. Mr. Stark practically ignored it as if there wasn't a lingering tension in the room that Peter couldn't explain. All he knew was that when Mr. Stark moved closer to Steve to grab a plateful of eggs and hashbrowns, Peter moved with him, keeping just a little too close. Not that the teenager was aware of his actions. His knowing was nothing more than protection.

Breakfast went by a little longer than Peter would've liked, but really more than ten minutes was about 100% longer than he liked it. Still, Mr. Stark seemed insistent to stay and make small talk, discussing training and Avengers stuff and every once in a while dragging Peter into the conversation about school, so the teenager stayed. He didn't know quite why, but he felt tugged to stay by Mr. Stark.

Logically, Peter knew that Steve wouldn't hurt Mr. Stark, not while he was in the tower--not that he even could with all the defensive and protective measures in place--but his fingers trembled whenever the thought occurred and refused to stop. It left him in a rather tedious conversation for the better part of half an hour before Mr. Stark finally got up to clear his plate, snipping a goodbye to Sam and bidding a softer one to Steve. There was something softer there. It made his eyes narrow defensively.

Swallowing back apprehension, Peter smiled at the two Avengers and stepped back in the elevator with Mr. Stark. The moment the doors closed, it was tense, palpable with what he identified as clear disappointment. Maybe. Mr. Stark was never really mad at him, but glancing at the billionaire from the corner of his eye only revealed the tense posture packed in the coils of his shoulders. It made Peter tense too, his jaw clenching and his hands deep in his hoodie shaking.

The doors opened and Mr. Stark spoke.

"Kid, I think we need to talk."

    When Clint came to, it was surprisingly sunny, inappropriately so for how everything had been the past few weeks. The man winced at the thought, taking in everything he could as he glanced around. His body felt as broken as ever, fresh slashed skin and wounds clearly shown through the tattered fabric of a hospital gown and sweatpants. His thumbs were still broken, and he knew he needed to get to a hospital soon if he ever wanted to shoot straight again. He had a reputation to maintain.

And a family to save.

Next, the archer took in his surroundings. He was in an alleyway, damp and foul as spring heat roiled off of the dumpster in waves. There was a foul-smelling brown liquid stuck against the roughly paved road. The windows of the buildings the alley was propped against were old and crumbling, the few windows he could make out cracked and boarded up with rotten wood.

The scenery of the alley felt familiar, but it didn't tell him where he was, so, with a steadying grunt of pain, he forced himself up onto his feet. His stomach rolled in pain as an obviously broken rib poked up against some organ he didn't know the name of. He bit down a grunt and took a step forward, and then another and another until it was a rhythm.

On that rhythm, Clint forced his way out of the alley and into the yellow sunlight. He blinked harshly, his mouth unraveling as crowds of people swarmed the streets. After nearly a month of a simple little cage with nothing but a cot and the small reassurance that if he stayed compliant, his family wouldn't be hurt, this was overwhelming.

The thought careened his thoughts forward as he shoved his way into the crowd, moving with the flow of people that gave him sideways looks and moved away. Why had he been let go? Why hadn't he just been killed? Why had he been taken in the first place? He'd never heard of any demands or motives, not even a familiar face or voice. All he had from his time there (wherever it was) was Quentin Beck. Not that that helped him any.

As Clint continued forward, he finally recognized where he was. New York. Manhattan, New York. His eyes widened as he spotted Avengers tower a few blocks away. He tried to dart towards it, but was immediately held back by the injuries littering his body. He grunted, slowing down.

Answers and safety would be able to wait just a few more minutes.

Eventually, the retired Avenger was at the feet of the tower, doors of welcoming safety waiting for him. Despite the sideways looks he was getting, Clint walked in. Immediately security stepped in his way.

"Sir," said a gruff security guard, looking over his appearance in clear disapproval and apprehension. "We're going to have to ask you to leave the premises."

"I'm an Avenger," he snapped, gesturing towards his probably very bruised face. "I saved the world? Get out of my way."

He moved to sidestep, but the man got in his way once more. "Sir, if you don't leave I will have to remove you from the premises myse--"

"Friday?" Clint interrupted. "Get me to Steve, please."

"My pleasure, Mr. Barton. Please step towards the private elevator. Mr. Johnson, your services are no longer necessary."

The order from the AI was enough to make the man step back and allow Clint access to the elevator. The archer stepped in, letting his shoulders drop in fatigue and barely held back fear. He just wanted to see his family again. He needed to know that they were okay and everything was going so slow--

The doors opened.

"Clint?" Sam asked.

Clint looked up to see the soldier, Steve padding up next to him. There was the widening of eyes before the two ran towards him. Clint had only managed to step out of the elevator before they were on him, their arms supporting him as they plopped him into a chair.

"What the hell happened to you?" Steve said, giving him a once over. He chuckled.

"Do I look that bad?"

"Your eyes are practically black," Sam deadpanned. "And I'd say your nose has been broken three times."

"Just twice," he corrected good-naturedly. "Have you heard anything from Laura? Or my kids?"

Sam and Steve exchanged a glance. "No. Can you explain what happened?"

Clint sucked in a breath to answer when a shot of cold broke through him. Like a freezing wave, he forgot. He forgot everything they wanted him to. He just didn't know who they were. "I...I don't know. I can't remember. I can't remember!"

"Okay, calm down, Clint," Sam reassured. "We're going to get you to the Medbay and then--" He broke off, Clint glanced up. "Steve, his eyes."

Steve didn't say anything, but he wordlessly muttered the word 'blue.' He managed a sigh. Not again.

"Clint, stay here. I'm going to go get Tony."

Without another word, the soldier was gone. When Clint looked down, his hands were coated an iridescent blue.

    "Talk about what?"

Tony didn't answer just yet, nodding his head towards the couch as he strutted out the elevator. He'd found over his five months of living with and practically being Peter's dad that the couch was better for talks. It was comfier and imbued with positive memories of movies and meals and the one time that the two had fallen asleep on each other. It hadn't happened since that one time, and despite Peter's embarrassment about it, he knew the kid had found familiarity in the rare comfort that Tony struggled to offer. He was getting better, he just wasn't quite there.

Peter followed behind him hesitantly--his hands still in his pockets, Tony noted--slowly resting on the couch after the man had plopped down in false confidence. Talks weren't Tony's thing, not that he hadn't been trying with Peter, but being open had never been a very strong trait of his, and he didn't know if it ever would be.

Tony hadn't been able to be open with his parents, had practically resisted all of Rhodey's encouragements (though he'd eventually come around, not that the two really had super emotional conversations on the regular), had attempted friendship with Happy and Pepper (a little more with Pepper, but not everything worked out in the end), and had reluctantly grown close to the Avengers--even more so with Steve. Steve had managed to open him up just a little, but a little was enough, to being hopeful and emotional and happy, but then there had been the Accords and Germany and...and Siberia.

The happiness had been drained away on that day.

And now it was slowly growing back, warily and nervously and at a snail's pace, but it was coming back nonetheless. Part of it had always been there, just twisted in the darkness of misery. Of loneliness. There had been weeks-- months-- after Steve's betrayal and departure in which the mechanic would reach out a hand in the darkness of his rumpled covers, searching for comforting warmth and a familiar strong heart, only for his fingers to trace frozen air.

Tony had never loved anyone like he'd loved Steve. It had been scarily all consuming, every moment adorned equally with warmth that buzzed in his chest and blew through his hair, and fear that drained the heat from his hands and left his weakly beating heart tired. And he'd loved it. Tony had felt alive, and not with fear and action, but unending infatuation.

It had been almost puppy-like at first, all big eyes and red ears from Steve whenever Tony had caught him staring over at him, like Tony had even tried to stop himself from openly taking in Steve. It had been cute. Tony had never been evasive about romantic inclinations, and he hadn't been any different with Steve, dropping every single hint and line he could think of in front of and towards the super soldier. There had been a good month in which he'd been debating on whether Steve just wasn't into him or if he wasn't being forward enough when he'd found out from a certain red haired spy that he was just too shy to do anything about it. He still remembered the feeling of the smile from that day.

In almost five years, the two had come full circle. Miscommunicated flirtation, a few dates, taking it slow, hot and heavy, a relationship unlike Tony had ever known, betrayed and destroyed heartbreak, a timid apology, and now it was back to miscommunicated flirtation. Well, miscommunicated flirtation was a bit of a stretch. It was more like any time Steve or Tony were in the same room, his recently obtained super-teen would tense up in barely concealed terror and become protective in a way that Tony had really only seen him do with May.

It had only been once. Tony didn't even think Peter had known he was there, he'd just pulled up on the kid's street to see a man, shifty and low and unabashedly staring straight at the woman's chest, forcing a chit chat with May when Peter had exited the apartment building. The kid had tensed then, his shoulders squaring, his feet planting, his chin lifting, and his eyes narrowing. Not quite a challenge but not quite not one either. Peter hadn't trusted that man around May, and he didn't trust Steve around Tony. It was almost sweet, in a way, to know the kid wanted to protect him like he'd wanted to protect May, but it worried him more.

"Mr. Stark?" Peter's voice wobbled, dragging Tony from his memories. He resisted shaking his head, instead casually readjusting his spot on the couch and turning to address the kid sat in front of him like he was being tried in court.

"At ease. You're not in trouble, kid."

His shoulders only dropped fractionally. "I'm not?"

"Have you done anything to be in trouble?"

"This is a trap."

Tony smiled. "It's not. Promise."

"So... What did you want to talk to me about?"

He chewed on his tongue, debating how to lead off. He settled on short and sweet. "Wanna tell me about you and Steve?"

Peter's shoulder tensed up the fraction he'd managed to drop, his face contorting in confusion. "What? I don't really talk to Mr. Rogers."

"Not what I mean, kid." The way Peter looked at him, slightly terrified but more than anything just confused, his mouth curved into a lost frown. It told Tony just about everything he needed to know. Reluctantly, Tony ripped off the band-aid. "Why do you freak out around Steve?"

It was less of a question, but not quite an accusation. A pointed observation that slapped the teenager in the face.

"I-I don't, Mr. Stark. Mr. Rogers is fine."

"Really, huh? Kid, it's been going on since you got here." Peter was silent, his stare hard and baffled. "You're telling me you don't realize what you're doing?"

"Doing what?"

Tony slumped slightly. "It's hard to explain. You just 'tense' around him, Pete, like you think he's about to go rabid at any second." When Peter remained silent, he continued. "It's not bad, kid, but it is concerning. You walk around him as far away as you can, you stand between him and me even when we're six feet apart. I don't think you even want to be in the same room as him."

"Mr. Stark--"

He held up a hand. Peter's voice trailed off immediately.

"This isn't--I'm not mad, kiddo. I want to know why because I want to help. Steve's my friend, and I want you to feel safe around him."

"I do! Mr. Rogers is fine! He's great!" Tony fixed the protesting teen with a doubting glare, not even trying to hide the challenging sarcasm in his face. Peter, to his credit, stared back, if a little nervously as he muttered with a shrug. "Fine, I'm not super comfortable around him, but I didn't realize it was that big of a deal."

"It's...it's not, Peter. If you don't want to be around him, I'm not going to push you, but I want to help, and I want to know why so I can make it better."

Peter's jaw clenched and unclenched rapidly, as if he didn't know whether to be anxious or not. Finally, after a full minute, the teenager opened his mouth, the tatter of words escaping.

"It's just...I saw on the recordi--"

The shattering ding of the elevator opening interrupted Peter, revealing Steve, eyes blown wide and panicked as he rushed over. Tony stood, moving to step towards the panicked soldier while silently cursing the way the teenager's jaw clicked shut.

"Steve? What's wrong?" he asked, his voice soft and low and unwillingly familiar. With a glance at the teenager still seated on the couch, the soldier obviously forced himself to calm, though his posture remained unnaturally straight.

"Come to the common room. I'll explain there."

Immediately, before Tony could utter a word, Peter shot up. The mechanic swiveled to eye the kid, but when he looked at the teenager, he didn't find what he'd been expecting. He'd thought that the kid would be defiant and protective like he usually was at the indication of him and Steve being alone together, but instead he was... scared.

"Peter?" Steve asked before he could. The teenager grazed his hand across the back of his neck before rolling up his sleeve in response.

"Something's wrong. Really wrong."

Tony squinted, his nerves squirming at the sight of Peter's hair standing on end, pulling itself towards the ceiling as though it were trying to escape the nearby danger.

"Okay. Keep an eye out, tell me if anything gets worse. Steve, what do you need to show me?" Tony said, now properly terrified but refusing to let his voice wobble or his hand shake. Peter's hair only freaked like that when he was in danger, and those two words should never be in the same sentence. He had to keep his kid safe.

Tony moved to grip Peter's arm, hoping to reassure him and keep him close as they went to go see whatever was freaking Steve out so bad, when the kid let out a strangled gasp. He fell to his knees. Tony moved to grab him as Steve jumped over the couch, kneeling beside the kid now clutching at the hair on his head like a lifeline.

"Peter. Peter." He didn't respond.

"Queens," Steve said, his voice soft and low, a large hand reaching out to comfort the kid. There was a pained cry at the touch. Steve retracted his hand, burned.

No, not burned, blue.

The palm of Steve's hand--where he'd touched Peter--was coated an icy blue, almost ethereal. It glowed in a way that was eerily similar to the Tesseract, or the arc reactor that had used to be burrowed in his chest.

Steve's eyes met his own, panic and concealed terror, before both turned back to Peter, still struggling for strangled breaths on the floor. Tony was the only thing keeping him up, and when the man looked down at where Peter's skin touched his own, he found the same blue coating him. He moved his hand--blue and tingling with the feeling of a cold burn--towards Peter's face, lifting up the kid's chin before gasping.

"Pete?" he whispered. There were a few tears slipping down his cheeks, the skin under his eyes red and beginning to puff. But that wasn't what had drawn the gasp of terror from him.

Peter's eyes were icy blue, the same as what was coating him and Steve. They were entirely blue. No white or black or familiar copper brown in the face in front of him. No hint of Peter.

"Medbay," Tony said on autopilot. "We have to get him to the Medbay."

Steve nodded quickly, moving to scoop Peter up. He'd only managed to just cradle the kid in his arms when it happened.

The blue spread like a shot, and suddenly it wasn't just Peter's eyes or Steve's hand that was completely shining blue, it was everything. It spread out from the kid's chest at alarming speed, coating Steve first and then Tony from where his arm had been against the kid.

The three stood completely still as though statues, planted firmly in space. The contagious light grew from the three, moving into the ground and leeching into the walls. It only took minutes for it to completely coat the world.

Only five figures knew for how long the Earth shone as bright as a newly born star, life on the planet wavering and reforming from light blue to dark scarlet hues.

// Ch 1 // Ch 2 // Ch 3 // Ch 5 // Ch 6 // Ch 7 // Ch 8 //

[kaseshipearth]

keep your chin up (someday there will be happiness again)

prompt fill for Anon: how about Stephen comforting Tony after a bad day and tony is just rly mad at himself for being stupid (in his opinion) and he wants to sleep but has nightmares and just needs a hug?

read it on AO3.

Stephen can’t help but smile when he hears the front door open. Tony had been at the compound for a couple of days, working hard on new prototype weapons and armor for the other Avengers. Once Tony got started on a project, it was hard to get him to stop.

After the defeat of Thanos a few years ago, Ross was able to negotiate terms with the Rogue Avengers to bring them out of hiding. There were months of long, boring meetings with representatives from countries around the world that had signed the Sokovia Accords to readjust the terms of the agreement with the Avengers’ help. Several times, Steve Rogers said something selfish that would set Tony off, and Stephen (who had started dating Tony not long after the battle on Titan) would have to step out of the room to avoid ripping his head off.

Stephen knew that Tony still had nightmares. Nightmares about the fight in Germany. Nightmares about the battle on Titan, of Thanos stabbing him with his own blade.

“Hi, babe. You’re a little later than expected,” Stephen greets as Tony shrugs off his jacket and tosses it over a chair. Stephen sets the spatula down and engulfs Tony in a hug, pressing a kiss to his temple. But, something seems off as they hug. Maybe it’s just in Stephen’s head, but he swears that Tony hesitates before wrapping his arms around Stephen, giving him a short squeeze.

“Hey,” Tony says, his voice tight.

Stephen’s brow furrows with concern immediately. He pulls away and gently takes Tony’s hands in his own. “Is something wrong?”

Tony sighs, pursing his lips together. “Just had a bad day, that’s all.”

There’s a tug at Stephen’s heart. After everything Tony has been through, he only deserves the best days, with hugs and laughter and light. With most of the Avengers staying at the compound now, he wonders whose room he’ll have to Portal into and threaten with mystic spells. ( Not that he’s done that before.)

Stephen smiles. “Well, dinner is almost ready. What do you say we eat, and then after dinner we drink some cheap wine and watch a terrible movie? I think we still have one more Austin Powers movie to watch.”

Tony shrugs. “First, we only have expensive wine in this house. Do you even know who I am?” Stephen chuckles lightly. “Second, no,” he sighs, pinching the bridge of his nose. “My day was really terrible. I think I’m just gonna go to bed.”

Stephen frowns. “Okay, I'll turn off the stove and--”

“Stephen,” Tony interrupts, “I love you, but what I need now is a hot shower and alone time. Okay?”

He hates when Tony looks at him with That Look. A strange combination of sadness and desperation and disappointment. Stephen knows it isn’t directed at him, but he never likes seeing Tony like this.

“Okay. Just let me know if I can do anything.”

Tony offers him a weak smile. “You’re too good to me, you know that?” He steps forward and gives Stephen a quick kiss, grabs a glass of water, and heads to their room.

Stephen watches him as he goes, until he rounds the corner of the stairs and disappears from view. Then, he turns his attention back to the stir fry on the stove. He longs to help his husband, to figure out what’s bothering him and help him fix it. He wishes he could take all of Tony’s burdens from him and place them on his own shoulders.

Tony was so good. Too good for this world, truly. He doesn’t know how much he helped Stephen after his accident, after Dormammu, all of it.

After the defeat of Thanos, Stephen found himself longing to see the man again. One rainy night, just a couple of weeks after Titan, Stephen had made up his mind about going to the compound when there was a knock at the sanctum door. It was an emotional Tony, who told Stephen that Pepper had ended their relationship for good. Something about him never taking the suit off, despite her wishes. They ended up talking all night. Tony was like an open book, letting out all his pain and anxiety over a bottle of scotch. And surprisingly, Stephen, who took a long time to open up to new friends, found himself telling Tony about his trials as a Master of the Mystic Arts. He even told him about Dormammu, a subject he could barely bring himself to even think about but that plagued his dreams. Not to mention the horrors he was facing from other Masters, who were infuriated that he’d given up the Time Stone and wanted him stripped of his abilities (even though Stephen insisted he knew what he was doing, that giving up the Time Stone would allow Thanos to return to Earth, where Thor would behead him before he could snap his fingers).

That one night turned into coffee runs and dinners at local eateries, until Tony finally asked him to go on a real date. Stephen said yes embarrassingly quickly. Though they got off to a rough start, Iron Man was slowly capturing Stephen’s heart.

Is it odd that they bonded over similar tragedies, shared tragedies, and depressing life histories? Maybe. But Stephen knew from the moment Tony showed up on his doorstep that stormy night that he’d found a lifelong companion. They’d laughed and cried together, and now, five years later, they’re married and live in a lovely house on the lake (with nights spent between the compound and the sanctum). They have made so many wonderful memories together, but sometimes, days like this happen. Stephen hates it because most of the time, it’s Tony’s own inner critic who drags him down to this level.

Tony doesn’t know his own worth. And it sucks.

Stephen’s evening after that is fairly boring. He eats a little bit of dinner, serving Tony a bowl and covering it with foil for later (Tony sometimes snuck out of bed to eat in the middle of the night). Then, after an episode of Westworld, a quick Portal trip to the Sanctum to check in with Wong, and a couple hours of meditation, Stephen finally shuts off the lights downstairs and heads to bed.

As he’s brushing his teeth, he can’t help but stand in the bathroom doorway and stare at Tony’s sleeping figure in the bed. He hopes tonight is a nightmare-free and that Tony has a better day tomorrow. Then, he climbs into bed, gently kisses Tony’s cheek, and lets sleep overtake him.

Stephen wakes up to a trembling bed.

He frowns, his sleepy mind unsure what is happening, and turns to Tony, wondering if he’s feeling it too. He then realizes… Tony is causing the bed to shake, deep in sleep.

A nightmare.

A whimper escapes Tony’s lips as Stephen sits up, carefully shaking Tony awake. “Tony? Tony, wake up!” he says.

Suddenly, Tony bolts upright, almost knocking his head against Stephen’s, gasping for air. Unfortunately, this is a normal thing for both of them, so Stephen’s muscle memory kicks in naturally. He gently cups the sides of Tony’s face and turns his head so they face each other head on. “Breathe, Tony,” Stephen coaxes, his stomach tightening when he sees Tony’s eyes frantically darting around the room. “It’s okay, I’m here, just breathe.” Tony’s own hands clutch hard at Stephen’s wrists, but his breathing begins to slow. A few minutes later, he’s breathing normally again. Once he reassures Stephen that he's okay, Stephen readjusts the two of them so they’re leaning against the headboard, Tony’s head on Stephen’s shoulder, with Stephen’s arm draped protectively around him.

“I’m sorry,” Tony says eventually.

“You know you don’t have to apologize,” Stephen replies, kissing the top of Tony’s head. He lifts his hand and runs his trembling fingers through Tony's hair.

Silence passes over them as they stare out the window at the lake, the full moon’s light reflecting on the water’s surface.

“The kid and I got into a fight today,” Tony admits. “A bad one. That’s why I was upset earlier.”

Stephen frowns. “A fight?”

“Yeah,” Tony says. “Peter heard that Norman Osborn escaped from prison and wanted my help going after him. I told him he should be studying and not playing the hero all the time, especially since this guy almost killed him last time they fought. Things just… escalated from there, and he left. This nightmare that I had, he’d gone after him anyway and I didn’t know and… he didn’t…” Tony stops, swallowing.

“God, I’m such an idiot sometimes. I want to help the kid, but I don’t want him getting hurt. He tells me to stop treating him like a kid but, he’s my kid, you know? Am I being selfish? Am I an idiot?”

Stephen shakes his head. “You are the furthest thing from an idiot. Tony, you have to stop being so hard on yourself. You said it yourself, he’s your kid. Some things may have been said, but it’s nothing you two can’t get over. You’re like his Iron Dad or something.”

“Oh, shut up,” Tony says with a laugh, giving Stephen a shove. He’ll take it--anything to cheer his husband up. To Stephen, Tony’s laugh is the most beautiful sound in the world.

“I say you call him tomorrow, apologize, and talk it out. Hell, I can come too. You know he loves me,” Stephen says. “Everything will work out. I know it will. That kid is too smart to let an argument ruin what you have.”

A moment of silence passes over them.

“You’re the best, you know that?” Tony says.

“I do know that, but I could always use reassurance.”

Stephen can hear Tony’s eyes roll in the dark. “I can’t believe I fell in love with you.”

“I love you too,” Stephen says.

The two heroes lay like that for a few more minutes before crawling under the blankets, cuddling close. Stephen wraps an arm around Tony’s middle, pulling him close to his chest, and together they slowly drift into sleep again.

[brookstonalmanac]

Events 7.15 (after 1900)

1910 – In his book Clinical Psychiatry, Emil Kraepelin gives a name to Alzheimer's disease, naming it after his colleague Alois Alzheimer. 1916 – In Seattle, Washington, William Boeing and George Conrad Westervelt incorporate Pacific Aero Products (later renamed Boeing). 1918 – World War I: The Second Battle of the Marne begins near the River Marne with a German attack. 1920 – Aftermath of World War I: The Parliament of Poland establishes Silesian Voivodeship before the Polish-German plebiscite. 1922 – The Japanese Communist Party is established in Japan. 1927 – Massacre of July 15, 1927: Eighty-nine protesters are killed by Austrian police in Vienna. 1941 – The Holocaust: Nazi Germany begins the deportation of 100,000 Jews from the occupied Netherlands to extermination camps. 1946 – The State of North Borneo, now Sabah, Malaysia, is annexed by the United Kingdom. 1954 – The Boeing 367-80, the prototype for both the Boeing 707 and C-135 series, takes its first flight. 1955 – Eighteen Nobel laureates sign the Mainau Declaration against nuclear weapons, later co-signed by thirty-four others. 1959 – The steel strike of 1959 begins, leading to significant importation of foreign steel for the first time in United States history. 1966 – Vietnam War: The United States and South Vietnam begin Operation Hastings to push the North Vietnamese out of the Vietnamese Demilitarized Zone. 1971 – The United Red Army is founded in Japan. 1974 – In Nicosia, Cyprus, Greek junta-sponsored nationalists launch a coup d'état, deposing President Makarios and installing Nikos Sampson as Cypriot president. 1975 – Space Race: Apollo–Soyuz Test Project features the dual launch of an Apollo spacecraft and a Soyuz spacecraft on the first joint Soviet-United States human-crewed flight. It was the last launch of both an Apollo spacecraft, and the Saturn family of rockets. 1979 – U.S. President Jimmy Carter gives his "malaise speech". 1983 – An attack at Orly Airport in Paris is launched by Armenian militant organisation ASALA, leaving eight people dead and 55 injured. 1983 – Nintendo released the Famicom in Japan. 1996 – A Belgian Air Force C-130 Hercules carrying the Royal Netherlands Army marching band crashes on landing at Eindhoven Airport. 1998 – Sri Lankan Civil War: Sri Lankan Tamil MP S. Shanmuganathan is killed by a claymore mine. 2002 – "American Taliban" John Walker Lindh pleads guilty to supplying aid to the enemy and possession of explosives during the commission of a felony. 2002 – The Anti-Terrorism Court of Pakistan sentences British born Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh to death, and three others suspected of murdering The Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl to life. 2003 – AOL Time Warner disbands Netscape. The Mozilla Foundation is established on the same day. 2006 – Twitter, later one of the largest social media platforms in the world, is launched. 2009 – Caspian Airlines Flight 7908 crashes near Jannatabad, Qazvin, Iran, killing 168. 2012 – South Korean rapper Psy releases his hit single Gangnam Style. 2014 – A train derails on the Moscow Metro, killing at least 24 and injuring more than 160 others. 2016 – Factions of the Turkish Armed Forces attempt a coup. 2018 – France win their second World Cup title, defeating Croatia 4-2. 2021 – Three people are killed by a distracted driver in the 2021 Bowburn crash.

[fourdaysofrain]

Heavy is the Heart

Summary: Peter tries on a suit. 

(Been a while since I’ve posted one of these, eh? Hope you enjoy!)

Read on AO3

The lab felt colder now. 

Tony had always kept it on the cooler side so that none of the machinery would overheat, but now the whole room felt like it was covered in a thin layer of ice and dust. 

Peter could still feel the ghost of warmth from Pepper’s hand from where she rubbed his shoulder after unlocking the door for him. 

Tony kept it exactly the same, she had said. Even when we moved upstate. He always knew you were going to come back.

Well, here he was. 

He was just here to pick up some textbooks he left behind last time he was here. Either five years or a week ago. Pepper and May made it clear he could visit as often as he wanted, so he could take his time. He didn’t even know what that meant. Take his time on what, picking up old metal scraps?

He ran a finger along his old desk and frowned at the streak left on the surface. Yeah, exactly the same is right. Tony had always been stringent about letting people into the lab, and that apparently included cleaners. 

They never had to worry about dust before. That was new. 

Peter was only there, carefully searching for his textbooks, for a few minutes before he heard a loud crash from below. 

He huffed out a sigh and wiped his hands on his jeans. 

There weren’t any employees in the building, Pepper had told him that on the way over. Not even FRIDAY was active. The entire building had been shut down until the rest of the world got used to the sudden population increase. The only people here were him and Pepper, who was probably waiting for him downstairs. He should go check on her and see what caused that noise. 

His hand was almost touching the door when he heard faint voices coming down the hall. He softly pressed his ear against the door to eavesdrop. 

“You’re sure we can get in?” a voice asked. 

A gruff chuckle sounded in response. “You gotta trust me. This tech is cutting edge. A lot can change in five years, you know.” 

“I’m just saying, Stark seems like the type of guy to protect his stuff. How do we know there isn’t more security?”

“He hasn’t been here in years,” the other voice responded. “His wife being here was a fluke. Stark went off the grid way before he killed himself.”

“Good thing he kept you on the payroll, eh?”

Peter sucked in a sharp breath and stumbled away from the door as they continued. He probably had thirty seconds before they reached the door, and who knows how long it would take them to get in. 

His brain ran over what he knew. They did something to Pepper. They were going to break into the lab. His suit was currently hanging up in his closet. He didn’t even bother to bring his web-shooters. 

He had to find something to protect his identity. He wouldn’t be able to explain being in Tony’s personal lab. Peter’s eyes darted around the room, searching for something that could help him. His breath hitched when he landed on what he needed. 

Of course, he thought. Nothing can ever be easy. 

He let his eyes bounce around the room, looking for any other option, but time was running out. He skidded across the lab and leaped behind Tony’s desk, grabbing a chunk of metal from its surface and slapping it to his chest. 

By the time he hit the ground, Peter was wearing an Iron Man suit. 

Nanoparticles had been a project of Tony’s ever since they came back from Germany. He had just perfected them a few weeks before… all that. Peter remembered his infectious excitement the day he made the first working prototype. Now he was the one wearing it. 

The UI flicked into view. It was too much. He gathered his knees in his arms from under Tony’s desk where he was kneeling. While he was screwing his eyes shut, the door to the lab slammed open. 

“I’m telling you I heard something,” came a clear voice from the entrance. 

Deep breaths, deep breaths. 

“You didn’t hear shit, you’re being paranoid.”

C’mon Peter, you can do this. Open your eyes. 

“I’m just saying, the goddamn CEO was here. You really think she comes here alone?”

Peter finally opened his eyes to peer through the mask. Although he could only see the bottom of Tony’s desk, the UI overlayed everything with a neon glow. FRIDAY was only put in the active suits, but the ghost of her remained in the prototype. 

Peter took another slow, deep breath. Yep. FRIDAY was the only ghost he had to worry about. 

Best case scenario, they wouldn’t find anything valuable and would just leave.

“Wait a second.” Peter froze at how close the voice was to him. “Why does a tech billionaire have a high school biology textbook?”

Peter bit back a sigh. Of course, he had left his textbook on Tony’s desk. When has his life been anything but the worst case?

He counted down slowly. 

“You’re kidding. The fuck?”

Three.

“I swear, come look at this.”

Two. 

“Christ, this is straight out of my son’s class.” Both of the voices were coming from the other side of the desk now. ”Did Stark have a secret kid or something?”

That’s his cue. 

Peter pushed the desk up, knocking over the two men. He flung his hand out at one of them, then flinched at the blast that fractured the desk. 

Right, no webs. He had to do this the old fashioned way. 

By the time he looked up from his hand, one of the men had already scrambled out from under the desk’s remains. He lunged at him blindly while the other struggled with the desk. 

Peter slammed his hand into the man’s head before his fist could make contact with the armor and winced at how quickly he dropped. 

The other man showed his empty hands and started rambling as soon as Peter looked over at him. “Look, I don’t want to fight you. This was all Harrison’s shitty idea, I knew it was bad from the start.”

Peter sighed, blandly noting the metallic edge the helmet gave the sound. He just needed to get rid of these guys so he could take off the suit. 

The men weren't built like most of the people Peter faced. They were scrawny. Peter didn’t want to hurt them. He spotted a roll of duct tape on the floor and motioned for the man to grab it. He picked it up and held it out to Peter. 

“Alright, hands behind your back.” Peter flinched at how familiar his voice sounded through the suit. 

It took him a few times to tear off the duct tape once he sufficiently wrapped the man’s wrist due to how much his hands were shaking. 

It’s just the adrenaline. 

“Are there any more of you?” Peter asked, hoping the suit covered up his nervous lilt. 

The man fidgeted in place. “Just one. Jesse. He’s looking after the girl. He’s chicken-shit, though.” He sneered at the unconscious man on the ground. ”He only has a knife because Harrison was so sure the whole place’d be empty.” He moved his gaze to his feet. ”Jesus. I’m going to prison.”

Peter shifted his weight, still loosely holding the man’s wrists. 

“I just got back and now I’m going to fucking prison.”

Peter was going to vomit. He couldn’t do this right now. This was too much. 

He carefully moved the man down to the floor, trying to tune out what he was saying. He finally got out of the lab and fell into the wall, hands scrambling at his neck until the helmet of the suit finally receded.  

Breathe in, hold, breathe out. 

Holy shit, he felt like he was having an asthma attack. He didn’t know how long he was leaning against the wall, trying to control his breathing. 

Finally, the racing in his chest calmed down and the static on the edges of his vision faded away. He just had to wear the suit for a few more minutes and then he could take it off forever. He could do this. The helmet slid back over his face as he pushed himself off of the wall. 

Keeping to the sides of the hallway, Peter retraced his steps back to the lobby where Pepper had been waiting for him. He peered around the final corner to see her standing with her hands raised, while the third intruder, Jesse, had a knife pointed at her. Jesse had his back to where Peter was standing. 

Peter leaned back behind the corner to take one final deep breath.

He jumped out into the lobby. As he ran towards Jesse, who had dropped the knife in surprise, the rockets in the suit’s boots flicked on. He was flying, shakily enough. From six inches off the ground, he managed to tackle Jesse to the ground, narrowly missing Pepper. 

Peter carefully stood up, trying to not step on Jesse, who was already out cold. He looked over to Pepper, who was frozen in shock. 

The suit made his footsteps echo through the room as he walked over to her.

“Are you okay, Ms. Potts?”

“You’re…” Pepper trailed off to graze her hand on the helmet’s metal cheek, her eyes shining. 

Peter knew how it must look to her. He was wearing the Iron Man suit. Tony and him were around the same height. He just saved a grieving widow wearing her dead husband’s armor. 

“Sorry, it’s--” Peter saw her hand stiffen as the helmet receded. The rest of the armor followed suit, retreating into the housing unit on his chest. “It’s just me. Just Peter.”

“Peter.” Pepper closed her eyes and wrapped her arms around him. “Oh, Peter.”

The metal on his chest seemed to burn with his eyes as he stood there, motionless. 

Pepper slowly ended the hug, keeping one hand on his shoulder and the other cupping his cheek. Peter forced himself to not flinch away. 

“He’d be proud of you.”

Tag List: @ironfamjam @addi-is-amazing @mysterio-is-a-little-bitch @wellplacedbanana @night0seven @unfathomable-universe​ @bibbidi-bobbity-booyah @spideynamu

[travelingstar]

Opportunity Chapter 2

Again before I begin, I just want to state that this fic came from me and @starkravingspiders going back and forth on this idea. They will also be writing their own version of this story, so look out for that!

And I wanted to give my thanks to those who liked and reblogged the first chapter. I am so happy to see others enjoying what I’ve given so far.

Peter felt himself turn pale.

He faintly heard his bag drop as he looked at Tony. Everything sounded faint, like a bomb went off next to him and he lost his hearing for a moment.

He knew that this wasn’t Mysterio fucking with him. This wasn’t his sleepy haze messing with him. This was Tony.

Not his Tony.

But Tony regardless.

This Tony looked the same but also different.

He looked healthy, like he had actually ate a decent meal lately. He had a slight tan, and had that glow that Peter rarely saw that now was just radiating off naturally.

The Tony he knew had looked like he had skipped meals, would be pale, rarely smile as much and looked pained.

This Tony was smirking at him and giving off warmth.

Something Peter hadn’t felt in so long.

He must’ve been staring at Tony for a longer time than necessary, cause Tony started to walk up to Peter and gently put his hand on his shoulder. Peter momentarily flinched, but felt himself leaning into that touch. God, it had been so long since he had any affection given to him.

Tony looked at him gently, with those soft dark chocolate brown eyes that Peter could just get lost in. Even those were more radiant than the ones he fell for over five years ago on the Tony he knew.

“C’mon Petey, don’t leave me hanging. Tell me everything about this universe. Am I a mob boss and your a hipster trying to live in the worst part of town to get my attention?”, Tony asked grinning, clearly teasing, but Peter could see that Tony was worried about the college student.

Peter felt himself curl up a bit when imagining explaining to this Tony that not only is he dead but- wait.

How does Tony not know that he’s dead? How did he get into his apartment? Did he land here? How can he help to get him back?

So many questions were running through his head that he didn’t feel Tony slightly shaking him to get his attention.

“Hey Peter, what’s really wrong? You haven’t said anything and you look extremely pale. C’mon, let's sit down okay?”, the older man gently told rather than ask Peter and moved them to the couch where Tony was seated close to him. In any other situation, Peter might’ve blushed over the closeness of Tony.

But here, Peter was really trying to keep calm and sort his brain to make sure he can tell Tony everything without having his own feelings get in the way.

Tony leaned back and let out a buff of air before talking again, “How about this, I ask about a given person and you tell me how you see them in this universe and what they are doing so I don’t accidentally insult them and know which ones to insult.”

He winks at Peter, trying to lighten the mood.

Peter took a deep breath before nodding. He knew he at least owed this Tony this much. Maybe he can ask questions later if he’s lucky. “Okay.”

Peter looked over as Tony dramatically sighed before falling to his side and letting out, “Oh thank god you can talk! I was worried that my boy couldn’t talk, cause your greatest strength had always been your sharp tongued wit. Or at least, in my universe you were.” At the last word, Peter saw Tony deflate a bit.

Wha- No. Peter had to focus. Questions later.

Tony sits back up and looks at Peter before asking, “Okay let's start with Bruce. Where is he?”

Peter was internally sighing with relief that Tony was asking him about someone who Peter barely interacted with. Less pain.

“Well, after Thanos snapped 50% of the universe away, Bruce and the Hulk blamed themselves before fusing together. Last I heard, he was doing research on something I don’t quite remember. However I did hear his hand healed alright after he wielded the second Infinity Gauntlet and yeah.”

Peter’s eyes had wandered off whilst talking and when he looked back at Tony, the older man was staring at him like he had just killed a goat, whilst smoking a huge ass pipe and declaring himself the ruler of Canada. In other words, like he was batshit.

“Wait, what?! Thanos did what? Bruce did what with Hulk? He wielded what? Jesus Christ what else happened in this Universe?”

Peter had rarely seen Tony look this shocked and baffled, he kind of laughed as he watched the man trying to wrap his head around all of this.

“Okay, okay, maybe if I hear about the others I might understand a bit better. Clint?”

Peter had to think for a moment. He never once really talked to Clint and didn’t hear much about him except for the more basic stuff.

“Well I don’t know much about him to be honest, since you from this universe never really talked about Clint all too much. So what I know is that he left the Avengers to look after his family before joining again to fight against the accords, siding with Captain Self Righteous and he got put under house arrest for doing so and I think after his family poofed, he started to go on a killing stream before returning to the Avengers to help go back in time to get the Infinity Stones and him and Natasha were teamed up where Nat sacrificed herself for one of the stones. He’s now back on I think his farm with his family? Sorry if it isn’t much.”

As Peter had told Tony this, his facial expression had morphed to looking like he was about to laugh his ass of, to confused, to horrified, back to being confused like he had been with Bruce.

Tony looked off to the side for a moment before looking at Peter with those mixture of expressions on his face.

“Okay, I think it would be good for me to share my own universes version of the Avengers so that were on the same playing field, so that you aren’t left in the dark. So with Bruce firstly, while he has controlled the Hulk and befriended him, he has never fused with the Hulk. Also Clint having a family is honestly too hilarious. The Clint I know has a family that consists of the Avengers, his dog and the Air Vents at Avengers tower. Sure he likes kids, but him having kids? Never in a million years.”, Tony giggled at the end and throughout that as well.

Tony continued with, “Also Captain Self Righteous? I mean sure Ol Stevie can be a bit stiff, but he couldn’t be that bad right? Right?”

Peter thought that a Captain America who was actually good must be impossible, which he assumed Tony could read off of him, because the man looked worried.

Worried what this universes Captain America did to cause the positive Peter Parker to view him so badly?

Peter sighed and let out a empty laugh.

“Oh god where do you want me to begin? Maybe where he decided to just leave you and not read the Accords that were made to restrict Superheroes and to run after his brainwashed friend who needed to be arrested and taken care or? Or that time that he got me crushed under a container at an airport in Germany after he refused to try and talk to you when you offered? Or when he held back the information that Bucky had killed your parents and he left you in Syberia alone without a working and you had to be hospitalized for weeks, leaving us all worried. Fearing that you might die. And then you did! Not than but later. You saved the universe, leaving behind friends and family and your child. And Steve just bailed and left his responsibilities to live his life with a old love he should’ve let go and leaving behind his friend who was also out of time.”

Peter couldn’t stop the words to pour out of him. All of these feelings were trying to claw their way out of his throat. But he didn’t want to burden this Tony. But he couldn’t stop.

He also couldn’t stop the tears from falling down and his breath starting to shake.

He than felt Tony grabbing his arm and pulling him closer towards him, not having realized that he had scooted away from the man.

Peter tried to pull away, the voice again telling him that Tony didn’t need this. He didn’t need someone to just break down and cry. He didn’t need to have to care for Peter. He was just some dumb kid, he didn’t matter.

Before Peter could reach up and scrub away his tears, he felt Tony gently brushing away his falling tears. He felt a gentle kiss on his head before Tony looked him directly in the eye.

His eyes weren’t harsh, instead his eyes were filled with worry over the college student in front of him.

Tony continues to rub and gently holding his face before starting to talk again, his voice being heavy and yet gentle on Peter’s mind.

“If I’m dead in this universe, why isn’t anyone taking care of you? What about Thor? He would’ve let you stay on Asgard to properly heal. Or Rhodey? He’d never let you out of his sigh and would’ve made sure that you were cared for. Happy? He would have pretty much adopted you and cared for you and would’ve done anything for you. Pepper? She would have at least taken you into Stark Tower or whatever it’s called here. She would’ve given you much more than this old apartment with barely anything. Why didn’t you get anything? Did this universes me give you nothing in the will? Why do I have a kid here? Where is Aunt May and your friends? Where is anyone?”

God did Tony looked pained. Peter wanted to look away, feeling ashamed for making Tony feel this way because of him. Wasn’t it clear why no one was there for Peter?

Peter’s hands gently reached up to touch Tony’s hands that here cupping his face, he could feel himself shaking slightly, but tried to pull himself together. He also tried to keep his voice steady, but it didn’t come out as strong as he had hoped.

“W-why would they care for me? They didn’t know me. They lost you a-and I didn’t want to bother them. I-I wasn’t there when the will was read, but I took that old prototype arc reactor and a old shirt of yours. I know it’s bad, but I badly needed something to remind me of you. After I was gone for 5 years, I found out that you and Pepper had a kid. My friends are now older than me and Aunt May is busy. They are all busy. Why would they care? I'm just some kid who isn’t important. I only annoy others and am not important. I can’t even do my jobs and classwork properly to than be allowed by SHIELD to be Spiderman and help others. I’m just in the way of others and am usele-.”, before the now shaking boy could finish, he was pulled into a tight hug by the older man.

He felt Tony rubbing his back and gently heard him whispering to him to let himself cry and that he’s here and that everything will be okay.

That did Peter in.

He starts to sob into Tony’s shoulder, smelling Tony’s usual smell of machine oil, old cologne and something else. He also smelled like freshly made cookies and warmth.

Peter was both melting and sobbing more and as he was reaching his arms around to hug Tony, he noticed that he had held the old arc reactor in his hand. He must’ve grabbed it whilst rambling.

Peter almost didn’t hear Tony speak up again.

“Peter I don’t know what else to say other than I am sorry. I can’t believe that you weren’t cared for by any of the people who I trust my life with and would do anything for in a heartbeat. I am disgusted that you were thrown to the side like a forgotten toy by the others. They should’ve taken care of you. Myself in this universe should’ve cared for you. I don’t know why SHIELD would have control over your suit and being a superhero, but regardless that is wrong. You saying that your dumb and useless is breaking my heart. You are not dumb. You are not useless. Lord you are so damn important. You help keep everyone determined. God damn, I not only failed you in my universe, but here as well.”

That last comment really struck with Peter and so did the rest of what Tony had said. The way Tony spoke made him think that maybe the way the Avengers in his universe had been acting had been wrong? Tony’s voice had shaken at the last part, which made Peter worried as to what had happened to him. But how had Tony failed him in Tony’s universe?

Peter pulled away a bit and looked at Tony in his eyes, which were filled with sorrow and pain that he was trying to hide.

“Tony. What happened in your universe to me?”, he asked whilst looking into his eyes.

Tony looked away for a moment, turning pale whilst taking a couple of deep breaths before he answers.

“When Thanos came, we were prepared. But the fight was hard. We were close to losing, than you were able to get the gauntlet. You wielded it and Thanos along with his army had turned to dust. You soon also turned to dust. You died whilst I held you in my arms.”