#rhodey would tell every embarrassing story he can think of about tony to tell peter

[sereinreality]

i still think one of the biggest crimes the mcu committed was not showing us rhodey and peter interacting at all.

[another-stark-sub]

“Are you in love with him?” - Tony Stark Imagine

Notes: I wrote and editted this in two hours instead of going over my notes. Was gonna be spicy fluffy but it just turned into fluffy, and one of the lines/paragraphs (smth like that i dont remember how long that segment was) is based on/inspired by a fanfic on ao3 I bookmarked. I think it’s debt-free, but I could be wrong.  Anyway, I hope you enjoy, and I’m so sorry im not on here more oftennnnn

- - -

“Of course I am. He’s Tony Stark.” You sighed, a weight finally lifted off your chest. “Who isn’t in love with him?”

Bruce blinked a few times, the confusion evident on his face. “Then, why don’t you tell him?”

You scoffed. These geniuses think they know everything, but they couldn’t see what was glaringly obvious to you. “He’s Tony Stark.”

The perplexed expression didn’t disappear from your friend’s expression. So, you explained further, “It’s already a privilege, beyond that really, to be talking to you, to any Avenger. To work with any of you is an honor, and to be friends with you” -you laughed- “it shouldn’t even be possible for someone like me.”

“Don’t say that. You’re amazing, too.” 

You tried to find any tick, any clue that he was lying. But Bruce seemed to really believe this. “I know I’m amazing.” You shrugged. “I’m great. I love and I care deeply, and I have a stable job. I have a place for myself, and I take care of myself.” You clicked your tongue. “However, you all, all  you Avengers… Forget out of my league, more like off planet.

“And Tony? He said it himself. Genius, billionaire, playboy, philanthropist. Add superhero, figurehead, public figure, ex-CEO, and savior of the universe. Bruce, I have confidence in myself, but Tony is something else entirely. No one is worthy of him or his affections unless they’re a god or another Avenger.”

It was hard to keep up with the statistical analysis you were trying to run. The literal one on your hologram and the one keeping your view of Tony in check. So, defeated, you sighed and leaned back in your chair. 

Bruce closed his own work and stood across the lab bench. “Weirdly enough, I’m sure none of us Avengers think that way.” After a few taps of his pen against his palm, he added, “Aren’t there fans making posts about you, too? Tony showed me the, uh, Instagram videos.”

You laughed. “Fan edits don’t make an Avenger. Saving the world does.”

He shrugged. “You help us save the world.”

“From inside Avengers Tower on a computer.” You took a deep breath. “Look, Bruce, I appreciate what you’re trying to do. But, I’m not telling him.” You shrugged and brought your statistical analysis back up.

You knew your own worth. You were worthy of an amazing partner and person. Tony Stark, though, was easy beyond that. You had accepted it soon after you realized your own feelings, and while they haven’t dwindled, you knew it was for the best. 

~ - ~

Tony had never resorted to this before. It was never a question of his ability to code. In the past, it was because he didn’t need a program or an AI to do it for him. He could always tell if someone was into him. He knew when Pepper was into him. The moment Rhodey gazed at him back in their MIT days. Every single reporter and heiress and model he slept with, he knew when their thoughts turned sexual or romantic. 

You, though. With you, he couldn’t fucking tell, and he knew it was because of his own feelings. Tony felt intensely for people before. Pepper, Rhodey, that one reporter all those years ago. However, with you, it wasn’t just that fluttery feeling in his gut or the immediate smile he can’t seem to stop when he sees you. It was the comfort he felt when he heard your voice or the softness he could feel in his heart when he saw a picture of you. 

It was like his entire life was full of panic, never resting, never stopping. But when you entered his life with a gentle smile and a quick wit, it felt like he could finally breathe. 

It was addicting. 

“Sir, I have the calculations.”

“Hit me.”

“Speech diagnostics of you and of Ms. (Y/l/n) are similar. Whenever you speak of her, 79.4% is positive and 18.8% is neutral. Ms. (Y/l/n) has  78.9% positive and 17.2% neutral dialogue regarding you. When she speaks of you, her heartrate increases by 4.6%, and similarly, yours increases by 4.1%. When speaking to each other, heartrate initially increases by 7%.”

Tony nodded. “How does this compare to other Avengers? I gush about Banner like a teenager.”

“Well, sir, while you and Ms. (Y/l/n) have high positive dialogue about other Avengers, all of them have at least a 10% decrease compared to each other. And heartrate varies depending on the topic of conversation.”

Tony snapped his fingers. “Am I excluding all non-super friends? Include any agents, co-workers. Pep isn’t an Avenger after all.”

Friday took two seconds and responded. “You and Ms. (Y/l/n) have a significant difference in speech diagnostics when talking about or to each other compared to any other Avenger, co-worker, and friend.”

When Tony remained quiet, Friday added, “Do you want me to repeat the results?”

“You don’t need to, Friday.”

“But you’re not doing anything with the new information. Would you like me to save these findings?”

“Friday,” Tony warned. 

There was silence as the love-wrecked scientist pressed his fist between his brows. Data and cold hard facts said yes, but was it right?

“Sir?”

“Yes, Fri?”

“Would you like me to play examples for you?”

He blinked. “Examples?”

“Yes. Of you and her talking about each other positively.”

It was an invasion of privacy. Tony shouldn’t. 

“Play examples.”

Before his rational mind could tell Friday no. 

“Are you in love with him?”

Tony’s eyes widened. This was too private. It might not even be about him.”Friday-”

“Of course I am.”

“-stop playback.”

“He’s Tony Sta-”

“Playback stopped.”

Tony scrambled. “What? No, wait, go back. Play it.” Screw rational. You knew he was a narcissist. You wouldn’t expect him to hear that and stop. 

“He’s Tony Stark. Who isn’t in love with him?”

“Then, why don’t you tell him?”

“... He’s Tony Stark.”

Tony started to fiddle with something on his desk. “What does that mean?”

Friday answered, “Dr. Banner asked her if she loved you, and she said yes. This means that she’s in love with you.”

Why did he program Friday like this? “I know that. I mean, those two lines. Why does me being Tony Stark stop her from saying something?” Was it the attention? Did you want some sort of normal life away from cameras and international gossip? Maybe it was the Avenging. Having a partner who was always out risking death wasn’t ideal. 

Sure, you could be in love with him. But you couldn’t be with him. 

“Maybe you should ask her.”

There were celebrities who were able to live normal lives. Some paid to have prosthetics for going outside of moved to a remote country to get out of the spotlight. He thrived off attention, but he could give that up. Avenging, he couldn’t give that up, but maybe he could cut back. Take a mission a month instead of one a week. Or maybe take more digital missions. He wasn’t just Iron Man after all. He was a genius, could hack into the Pentagon if he really wanted to. 

“Yeah,” he said. “Maybe I could talk to her.”

~ - ~

The moment you put your bag down on your lab table, Tony said, “You’re gonna be mad.”

You narrowed your brows. “What did you do?” You pressed your palm to your chest. “Oh my god, Peter overwrote my data, didn’t he? Ugh, I know he said he’s great at managing holograms, but really, Tone, you should’ve given him a tutorial before giving him access.” You brought up your holograms to check your data and analysis. 

“That’s not it.” Tony stood next to you as you looked through your files. “I did something that invaded your privacy.”

You tilted your head. Closing the holograms, you took a deep breath and slowly asked, “How?”

Tony flashed an embarrassed grin before sighing. “You’re gonna be shocked, too, so prepare yourself.”

You did not know where this was going at all. What horrible thing could Tony have done? Steeling yourself, you took a deep breath and nodded at him to continue. 

Tony cleared his throat. “Usually, I can tell when someone has feelings for me. People are obvious about it, but you? You aren’t. So, I had Friday do some analysis on our speech patterns. Me, being in love with you, was one of my controls. You and your dialogue regarding me was the main variable. 

“Long story short, I accessed some audio of you and Bruce talking, and you said that you loved me but could never tell me.” He glanced at you. “So that’s why I need to apologize.” 

Your expression didn’t change. No, that wasn’t it. You, at first, looked confused. Now, there was just nothing. No expression. No wrinkled brow in anger of flushed cheeks in embarrassment. Nothing. 

Tony blinked. “You can shout at me now. If you were confused about when to shout at me.”

You licked your lips before taking a deep breath. “Ok, that was a lot.” You pursed your lips then opened it. But, you couldn’t really think of anything to say. You didn’t even know how to feel. “So you know that I” -you pointed at yourself and then at him- “and that I didn’t wanna tell you.” You shook your head. “Wait, do you know why I didn’t want to tell you?”

A broken scoff left Tony’s lips. “Yeah. I’m a mess.”

It was your turn to scoff. “Wait, you’re a mess? That’s why you think I don’t want to tell you?”

“Among other reasons?”

Other reasons? 

You crossed your arms. “Ok, what other reasons?”

Tony looked offended. Still, he listed, “I’m surrounded by cameras, and everyone wants some privacy. Can’t get it if you’re with me. Then, there’s the Iron Man of it all. I went into a wormhole with a nuke. That was also all over the news. Then, there’s the whole daddy issues thing. I’m working on it, but it takes a while-”

He rambled on and on, listing reason after reason, and with each one, you felt tears well up in your eyes. It was a weird mix of heartbreaking, confusing, and enraging. The emotions built up slowly with each word that left his mouth, overwhelming you to the point that you couldn’t even say how it happened. 

But, as Tony paced and talked so horribly about himself, you somehow ended up in front of him with your hands on his cheeks. 

You only realized it when Tony stopped talking and when his breath touched your lips. “What?” he asked. 

You didn’t answer. You kissed him instead. 

It was a hard press of  your lips against his. It was short, and it wasn’t much. 

But by the way Tony gripped the back of your neck and pulled you back for another kiss, you’d think it was his first kiss. You knew it wasn’t. Not just because you knew he had kissed all sorts of people before you, but because he somehow knew how to make you gasp and melt into him. 

While one hand kept you steady, the other trailed down your back and pulled you closer to him. His lips moved fluidly against yours, pushing and pulling, and everytime he moved back, you chased his lips to continue the kiss, because the softness, the passion, the fact it was finally happening, was all too good. You didn’t want it to stop.

Your hands started to move. For someone so rich, his t-shirt was rough when you twisted it between your fingers and pulled it to you. Slowly, you trailed your fingers along the side of his neck. You rubbed your thumb along his pulse point, a reminder that this was indeed real. You were kissing Tony Stark, and- He was pulling away again.

Desperate, you leaned forward, reached around to hold onto his shoulder, and kissed the side of his neck. 

He let out a breathy laugh, and before you could suck on his skin, his stubble scratched your cheek. 

You looked up at him and giggled when his nose bumped into yours. When your giggles turned into a smile, he kissed you again, a soft and short kiss, before leaning his forehead against yours. 

His thumbs rubbed circles into your waist as you lightly scratched the back of his neck. He didn’t say anything. In fact, he seemed busy gazing at you.

“Speechless, Stark?” you teased. 

He laughed. For a few seconds, he just gazed at you, seeming to prove your point. Tony’s hand began to wander, from stroking your cheek to pushing back your hair. “More confused.”

Remembering why you interrupted him, you brought your hands to his cheeks again and held him there so he couldn’t look away from you. “You are amazing, Tony. That’s the reason I didn’t want to tell you.” You shrugged. “You’re too good for me.”

His fidgeting stopped. “Well, that’s not true.”

“Tony, you’re an Avenger.”

“Technically, you are also an Avenger.”

“You’re a genius.”

“Who can’t cook scrambled eggs.”

“You literally saved the universe.”

“After producing weapons of mass destruction for decades.”

You glared at him. 

He glared back. Then, he fought back. “I don’t plan on retiring.”

“Wouldn’t want you to.”

“I have severe PTSD, anxiety, maybe ADHD, all mixed with trauma galore.”

“And I will learn to help you.”

“I couldn’t give you a normal life.”

“I’d rather have you anyway.”

He opened his mouth, but you instead told him, “I’d rather have you than anything. As long as, well, for as long as  you’ll have me.”

He raised his eyebrow. “You sure about that?”

“Positive.”

Tony shook his head with a smile. “Cause, I’d rather have you for, well, how does til you get tired of me sound?”

You laughed. “Won’t happen. But, sure.” You kissed him again.You would’ve kept going, but there was something to settle first.  “By the way, Tony?”

“Yeah?”

“Is Friday recording right now?”

“Friday records everything. It’s in the contract.”

Friday added, “I record everything that happens in the tower.”

“Ok.” You could work with that. “I’ll forgive you for the invasion of privacy.”

Tony beamed, and you couldn’t help your own smile when he did. Still, you continued, “On one condition.” Your own smile turned devious. “I want evidence that Star Spangled Banner took my ice cream.”

Tony burst out laughing. He kissed you again, a deep kiss, and when he was done, he mumbled, “God, I love you,” against your lips.

[moonlit-imagines]

Headcanons for being Tony Stark’s son (Part 2)

Tony Stark x son!reader

warnings:

a/n: had to split it into 2 parts bc i hit the text limit dhshaggags

prompt: continued

part 1

~sokovia was ur first big mission~

“why is y/n here, stark?” -cap

“the first mistake was letting me become a father”

“good god, tony...”

you having the time of your life crushing robots

“WHEEEEEE”

also proving useful by saving avengers a handful of times

“thanks for the assist, stark clone” -clint

rip pietro

rhodey was actually the most worried about you if we’re being honest, he didn’t understand why they let you in this one???

“y/n? y/n, talk to me! are you alive?”

“yes, uncle rhodey! i’m perfect, stop worrying!”

“i love you, kid! be safe!”

✨a good family you’ve got✨

soon the avengers broke up bc your dad cant get along with steve and it was just really awkward

but you chose your dad’s side

“sorry, steve! he pays my allowance!”

peter was actually a little okay, you know!! spazzy at first, but he was cool

“dude, you’re y/n stark! you’re tony stark’s very own son! i’m talking to mr. stark’s only child!”

“yep, that’s me. i’m what earned tony the title of ‘DILF’”

teenage teamup? ofc

“am i doing alright?”

“looking a-okay, pete!”

tony was worried fighting steve would traumatize you so he made you wait at the hotel with happy and peter

“don’t do anything to embarrass me, y/n. i dont want to see you on the news for something stupid”

you and peter ended up hanging out in your room and watching tv and ordering room service

“how do you do that so smoothly? i’d just freak out and go get it myself”

“years of experience as a spoiled rich brat”

absolutely positively being up all night and trying to fight your exhaustion

“you two seem to be getting along well. couldn’t be me” -happy

“for someone named happy, you never seem to be happy”

“not around teenagers, no”

“i remember when you loved me, ‘uncle happy’”

peter texted you every day after that

whenever flash picked on peter for “never meeting tony stark” he’d show a picture of you and him taking selfies in the lab together yes you invite him over much to the dismay of everyone else around you

plus tony was out of town and you were finally trusted enough to be left alone unchecked so like, happy would just leave at the first sign of peter

“that’s not real!”

“jealous?”

you actually showed up for homecoming on a dare (but in disguise)

didn’t wanna attract all the attention, you just wanted a high school experience

but you got called into avengers tower to help move early on :/ bad timing too cuz peter had to fight his first villain and u missed it

“dude, how do you feel?”

“bruh sound effect number two”

“oh my god”

FRIDAY heard him and pulled up the sound and you were WEAK you couldn’t stop laughing

“please....i think i broke a few ribs. cant laugh until tomorrow”

tony offered peter the avengers gig and peter said no, you were very disappointed but u understood that not everyone wanted to be in the spotlight like that

but you and peter obviously still hung out

oh, tony proposed! they interviewed you on sight!

“y/n, how does it feel to know that you’re going to have a stepmom soon?”

“you guys are aware that pepper helped raise me, right? right?!”

moving on, life was smooth for a while, there was some wedding planning, talk of you being a best man (which rhodey fought you on)

“no, i’ve known your dad longer!”

“i’m his son!”

i n v a s i o n

oh boy that was rough

bruce was surprised that you had fucking grown so much in the past 3 years good lord

“y/n...your VOICE”

“puberty, i know. when’s it gonna happen to you?”

“it hurts more when it’s from a teenager”

“uh, did you forget my birthday?”

peter’s back! peter’s back!

finally, man

“spider-kid, i could use an assist!”

“on the way!”

“aliens, why did it have to be aliens?”

up up and away for tony and peter, leaving you on the ground with all the earthly chaos and fear

“you two are the absolute worst, you know that? DAD, PETER, GET BACK DOWN HERE”

“no can do, kid. i—” *cuts off*

“oh great, no service on the space donut, huh? find a damn wifi password and call me back you asshole”

pepper was probably having a heart attack bc the news stations were having a field day but you were one of the only active avengers left, meaning you had to help clean this up

“bruce, we gotta get going”

“what? where?”

“upstate”

patching up the avengers as best as you could to take care of the threat

but you guys always win, this should be a cake walk, right?

wrong.

this was bad, very bad

after a lengthy battle with thanos in wakanda, you had failed. thanos got the stones, he snapped. the world was in ruins. but you didn’t get to see that part

you dusted away

“tell dad i’m sorry and i love him”

tony finally came back to earth hoping to see you, but upon seeing pepper’s face, he knew you were gone

“he did everything he could, tony! he didn’t deserve it!”

she was extremely upset, she saw you like a son of her own

soon, her and tony restarted their life and had a daughter, dad always wondered what it’d be like to have a little girl. it was different, it really was

she was eager to meet you

morgan stole pictures of you to hang up in her room

“when i meet y/n, im gonna give him a big hug! then we’ll have a tea party!”

tony has a picture of you and peter in the kitchen, he misses the two of you, but found comfort in the fact that you may be with each other

an ounce of hope, he had to try something

save his only son, and his other son

when he got to 2012, he was disappointed that he hadn’t let you become an avenger yet because he couldn’t see you here

yada yada he fucked up now he’s in the 70s and he fixed the fuck up and now hes in 2023

and bruce snapped

and you were all brought back and the way you kicked ass was inspiring

tony had to see his son now. right now.

“y/n, dear god! you’re okay! oh, man. i love you so much, kid. i missed you”

“i love you too. and i can’t believe you went to space without me, meanie”

“get over it”

ah, back to old times

peter and you obviously had to team up for this one! come on, what a story to tell!

and then, a snap and the warriors began to fade. you turned around and saw him on his knees

“no...”

you rushed over to where peter already was and tried to hold back tears, to be strong for him

“hey, dad. i’m here. no more missed goodbyes, okay? i’m here.”

you sat beside him and held his hand while the rest of your family made their peace with him and he finally slipped away

“y/n...are you okay?” -peter

“not even a little”

peter was worried about you, but you were worried about peter

mutual worry

meeting morgan was...surprising

pepper forgot to tell you they had a daughter while you were gone

she was so sweet and for the first month you lived at the cabin, she slept in your room

you got NO space

“i love you y/n”

“love you too” *thinking about dad bc she just reminds you of him so much*

“i love you y/n”

“love you too, morgan”

over and over

peter and you had sleepovers a lot, usually at his house bc you were the only one besides ned allowed over bc of all the spider-stuff

ned fanboyed over you

also sleepovers at peter’s were a nice break from being at tony’s cabin where you were constantly reminded that he wasn’t there

“y/n, i’m going to europe for a field trip! it’s gonna be awesome!”

“dude, you’re gonna love it. are you bringing your suit?”

“no, this is my offical vacation. no spider-manning”

“good for you, man!”

peter sent you all the pictures he took on his phone

all of them

Peter-Man: And this one is me and Ned in our crappy hotel room. And here’s the river. And here’s MJ covered in birds, and here’s the airplane, Mr. Harrington fell asleep on me

you had to come to europe once you heard what was going on

happy and you picked up peter and he was a mess

“you gave away dad’s glasses?”

“i think we’re past the point that i am not smart”

“jesus, peter. you should have called me about them. i would have taken them off your hands if you weren’t ready for them”

having to make sure that you guys didn’t get hurt bc this was honestly your guy’s first solo pair-up

there wasnt much backup here

finally, you defeated the evil (who apparently held a very large grudge against you. sorry mister beck) and were able to go back home

“call me if you need anything, pete”

“i will. i promise.”

and the next thing you know...peter’s identity was exposed

“i left him alone for one day!”

taglist: @alwaysananglophile // @rorybutnotgilmore // @locke-writes // @sweetheartliz07 // @queen-destenie // @natasha-danvers // @lokihiddles // @frostedgiant // @emygirl // @lotsoffandomrecs // @johnmurphyisbisexual // @teenwaywardasgardian // @pappydaddy // @captainshazamerica // @freya-xo // @ravenmoore14 // @purpleskiesstorm //

[time-to-cause-chaos]

the sunny parts

Webpril, day 5: MIT

AO3 link WC: 1, 543

There are papers littering the floor of Peter’s room that have been there for the past month, he can’t bring himself to pick them up, just looking at them gives him a headache.

It’s a real pain though that every time he wants to cross the sea of chaos and forms that is his room, he has to take painstaking measures to make sure they don’t mix up or crinkle.

May’s voice echoes as she yells from somewhere across the apartment, calling him for dinner but he’s not hungry.

Instead of going out and finding May at the table with some take-out, he grabs a pillow from his bed and plants it right in the middle of the room, the eye of the hurricane.

Sitting criss-cross on the cushion he takes a long - exhausting - look around him. Picking up the packet of papers directly in front of him he glances at the corner, this one’s NYU. Shuffling through the pages are his applications, guides, and other papers he hasn’t decided are good enough to look at.

He’d already applied for colleges last year and it had been so fun, him and May had applied for a bunch of colleges so he had alternates and other options in case the other ones didn’t pan out well.

Most, if not all of them, had already replied back and he’d gotten into great ones so that wasn’t a problem.

Nope, the problem now was that with finals and studying, he hadn’t actually chosen which one he wanted to go too. There were so many options and they were all amazing, but each of them had different things and perks.

At first he’d been leaning towards Harvard, May and Ben’s university, that they’d talk so much about when Peter was younger. That’s where they had met and since they both used to speak so highly of it, it seemed like the best option. There was sentimental value as well as academic, and that made it special.

Then there was Stanford, MJ had gotten in yesterday and she’d told Ned and Peter over the phone. For the MJ-standard, she looked practically exhilarated, her eyes were practically glowing and she kept pausing her sentences before starting again. Ned had also gotten into Stanford but he was still undecided.

It was mostly narrowed down to 5 places and frustration boiled over as he looked over the list again. He could read it as many times as he wanted, at this point he had it memorized, the names running over and over in his brain, NYU, Harvard, Stanford, MIT, and UC Berkeley.

NYU, Harvard, Stanford, MIT, and UC Berkeley.

God, this was exhausting. When he’d submitted those applications oh-so long ago, it was thrilling and exciting. He would do anything for that feeling to come back now to replace all the dread and anxiety he currently felt.

MJ was always talking about how great Stanford was, May about Harvard, Tony about MIT, and Ned about all of the above.

Peter didn’t know which one to choose, and he knows he should just do it, but it’s pretty close to impossible.

He needs some air, he isn’t going to make a decision right now anyways, that’s for sure. Peter leaves a note on the door in case May comes looking for him, and uses the fire escape to leave, clambering down with muffled steps. He didn’t take his web shooters and just strolled down the streets, dodging people and dogs was second-nature to him.

It wasn’t till he actually focused that he realized where he was, he’d gone to a park. The same one where Ben would push him on the swings until Peter felt his stomach flip every time because he was so high. When he was much younger he called it “My Park”, mostly because it was hidden from the public eye with the trees that surrounded it. No one was ever there and he’d brought Ned once in 3rd grade, it was much easier to have fun when there weren’t random little kids taking up the slide and parents watching like hawks. It was practically his own.

Reminiscing, he ran his fingers over the chains for the swing and sat down, lightly kicking his legs just enough so that he was a few feet above the ground.

The sun was setting and Peter watched as orange light filtered through the trees, making half his face warm. The other half was still cold in the shadows as swift breezes brushed over him and he ran his fingers through the bright spots in front of his eyes.

He tried not to think about the decision waiting for him at home, but it was inevitable.

He knew he was picking college for himself, it was his future, but he really didn’t want to make the wrong decision.

Tony always told him stories about MIT with Rhodey and all the fun they’d had there. The time Rhodey had broken a wrist and Tony an ankle because of a stupid dare that they were foolish enough to try. The time they’d sent the sprinklers off and everyone had to evacuate. Sometimes they were said in the kitchen with everyone around laughing at the stories that you’d expect to be exaggerated, other times they were said in whispers as Peter fell asleep, probably in medbay after an injury during patrol.

Peter hunches in on himself as the sound of Iron Man flying, he already knew it would only be a matter of time before May sent the cavalry his way.

Peter doesn’t even glance at the suit as it lands on the faded playground mulch with a crunch. For his credit, Tony doesn’t urge him to, instead sitting on the swing next to him, hands placed carefully in his lap.

Peter hates when they all do this, when they all act worried and get cautious, treating him like a bomb about to explode with one misplaced movement.

The two swing in silence next to each other for a few minutes, letting the cool breezes as they whistle through the trees, speak for them.

There’s no movement from either one of them until Tony twists and faces Peter, throwing one leg over each side of the swing.

Peter does the same, watching Tony warily, pressing his nose in the chain.

“What if I choose wrong?”, Peter asks, shifting his eyes to the ground, avoiding Tony’s.

“Impossible, no chance” Tony immediately shakes his head, “First of all, trust yourself, you know yourself better than anyone. Second, you’ll be a force to reckon with for any college or university you go to. I don’t even want to try and imagine the crazy stories you’ll be telling me as I get grey hairs.”

“What about Spiderman?”

“Don’t refer to him as another person, Spiderman is Peter Parker and Peter Parker is Spiderman. You’ll always have Spiderman, even if you decide to take a break from it for a little but”

“No, no, I won’t do that. I’m going to be Spiderman” Peter insists.

“Your choice, Petey. You know, you could also take a gap year”

“I feel like that’d just make me more stressed”, Peter’s eyebrows crinkle, in thought.

“Then go for college, Peter. Be great, and get a degree, and make me and May cry at your graduation, just make sure you’re doing it for yourself.”

“Don’t worry, I’ll probably be crying too.” Peter laughs, “Isn’t it weird though? To think that after everything that’s happened in the past few years, I’ll just go, go away from you all and,” Peter doesn’t air the last part of the sentence. All the fear that everything he’s had is going to be gone, all to waste and forgotten as he’s off somewhere else. The thought makes him queasy.

“You know, as the Tony Stark who actually used to go to MIT, I could apply for work there.” Tony smirks, “We can go to coffee shops and I can meet all your friends and embarrass you” THe last part is said as a joke as Tony smirks, Peter smiles and cringes inside.

“Maybe...no?”

Tony gets up and pulls Peter to his feet, “Let’s continue this lovely conversation at your place, we can talk over burnt asparagus, or some take-out”

Peter nods as he glances around, the wind’s stronger and it’s getting colder as the sky gets darker. Peter shivers and he melts into Tony as the man wraps an arm around him.

Tony holds onto Peter in the same park Ben did, building sandcastles that were really just piles of sand with him. The same park where May had chased him down the slide and wrapped her arms around him and she slid behind him. The same park where Ned and him had lost a bunch of lego pieces as the built model broke and the parts got lost in the sand.

It’s nice, he realized. As terrifying as it is to leave something behind, there’s a secure feeling you get when you know it’s always going to be there for you, forever a shield for you to hide behind when you need to.

Peter just wraps his arms back around Tony, face buried in his shoulder.

It’ll be okay.

[gothamsglam]

How Wonder-land-a-ful!

Transferring to SHIELD high did many things for Tony, one of them was reuniting him with James Rhodes. Just not how he wanted to.

Ever After High/Marvel Fusion. Ironhusbands, of course. (You don't have to know much about Ever After High to read this, think just some fairy tale AU and you'll be fine!)

AO3 LINK IN NOTES

I wanted to churn out one more story for the end of 2020, I thought something more silly would be a great way to end this uh year.

This idea has stuck with me for a while, and I finally wrote it.

Hope you enjoy!!!

~Vix

SHIELD High was so bland . Yes, it was grand of course, structured like the classically large fairy-tale castles of Ever After. The hallways were marble with lockers and vines lining the walls and trees and plants growing willy nilly around the school. Chandeliers hung from the high ceilings, and large arched windows showed off the beauty of the lands around them. In the distance, Tony swears he can see Sleeping Beauty’s castle.

But SHIELD high was just bland in comparison to home. To Wonderland . Not even the personalized dorms could make up for the fact that school was all year long— ew , who made that rule—instead of one day a year. Tony missed the nonsensical beauty of SI High, where the hallways ran instead of you, where you had to find the paintbrushes in passing period to paint the doors—free art credits!—, and the cafeteria that was switched with the auditorium.

But the castle-teria at SHIELD was just a long hall with rows and rows of marvel benches, pillars in the corners to honor the greek storylines and pay tribute to the last generation of Fairytale legends.

It was so boring. And just looking at it made Tony want to *poof* right there and then.

“Hi Tony,” Steve Rogers asked, coming behind him in the castle-teria, “Need a place to sit?”

Oh and this, this was another thing Tony wasn’t fond of. Transferring to SHIELD high meant he actually was walking among the children of fairy tale legend.  Disgusting.

Father was too fond of them, far too fond of them. Back when Wonderland and Ever After had many open portals between one another—back before the curse on Wonderland by the Evil Queen of the HYDRA family. Howard was an ambassador , the git.

Howard didn’t get the White Rabbit legacy as Tony did, no, Uncle Jarvis had. Howard was a part of the Wakandan court, one of many peace ambassadors to the other royal families, particularly the ones in Ever After. Oh, the tales Tony was told as a young bunny, of the Rogers Family’s legacy brought forth by the apple, of the Red Hooded Romanoffs, and the Rose pricked Wilsons.

Tony was glad he didn’t have to walk among them at SI High, he was content to only have to see them in the crowd at Legacy day. Tony was actually really excited for Legacy day, his own legacy wasn’t following his father, but rather his mother and Uncle Jarvis. Signing his page in the Storybook of Legends was a milestone Tony didn’t mind looking forward to.

However Tony also understood why James Barnes, heir to the Evil Queen, wouldn’t want to sign. To each their own, he supposes.

But ugh, SHIELD high had too many Princes, he hated it.

His nose twitching, Tony ducked away from Rogers—who was bigger, blonder, and oh the clocks was that a red crown on his stupid head? “Thanks, but no thanks, golden boy. I’ll just—uh—”

He looked out at the rows and rows of tables, at the heads of up-dos and flower pins, and the sea of gelled down curls and impeccable sleeves. Seriously how does no one have a stain on their shirt? It’s mud-loaf day!

There! Out in the crowd, a hand popped out waving him over, Tony grinned, popping up a bit and rushing away from the other guy, “See ya, Rogers!”

“Bye…?”

Resisting the urge to stick out his tongue, Tony padded away with swift steps, the click of his shoes drowned out by the noise of the castle-teria. Reaching the table in the back, he grinned at the sight of familiar friends.

He wasn’t the only one apart of the exchange program of course, in fact, he was the second wave of students, prepared by letters sent by the other students. Tony had his own assigned group of the next exchange student. A lovely little trio of kids. Peter would not stop asking about the royal classes offered at SHIELD and MJ was more interesting in the classes offered by Maria Hill. Tony wouldn’t know, of course, he switched out of those classes the second day after running into pig shit mid-chase. For a house on chicken legs, it was surprisingly very fast.

Virginia ‘Pepper’ Potts was donned in swirls of light peach and blue with subtle armor around her waist and shoulders. Her hair was curled, pinned away from her face in a half updo, with the rest falling around her and nearly touching the table as she leaned in to pat the now empty spot across from her.

“Tony!” She exclaimed, freckles dancing across her face as she broke out into a smile, “got lost?” She teased.

Tony blew a raspberry, “Pssht, no, How could I get lost here? Wonderland was more interesting, this place is just boring,” he waved, twirling his fork in his food.

T’challa laughed, the matte gold detailing on his black jacket catching the light beans from the windows, it covered his purple and black card-like patterned dress shirt “That’s what you think, Stark. But with everything looking the same, you’ll pass by the same five classrooms over and over without noticing.”

Tony also laughed, “True. Remember, how—when you missed the upside-down sidewalk outside of bio-mechanics—you could end up in fishing class because of the fountain step? Every time the freshmen would come in dripping halfway through class.”

“Oh, does everyone still call them fish?” Sharon asked, pulling out Earl the dormouse from her empty teacup. He hopped up her shoulder to hide in her mini top hat. Her suit jacket was draped over her shoulders—rather than it being on the bench—and her cream shirt had mini hats detailed, blending in with the folds as it was only a few shades darker.

“Classically,” Tony replied with a wink. They turned back to their conversations, gossiping about their peers such as Maximoff—from Cinderella’s line—who was enamored with Vision—from the hunter’s line. Scandalous.

Tony halfheartedly listened to the discussion but was really on the verge of nodding off. His roommate—Justin Hammer, stupid son of the Cheshire cat—kept playing pranks on him and ruining his things with paint bombs. He almost got a fairy fail in physics because his latest essay had swamp goop over it! He had to stay up rewriting it, which wouldn’t be a problem normally but he had stayed up trying to make weld a new type of gear for his pet project.

Tony must have dozed off for a bit, because when he blinked open his eyes, he was resting on his elbows, folded under some familiar fabric. Blinking blearily at the side of his tray, Tony sat up. Well, that’s embarrassing, so much for his reputation. Pushing a hand through his hair, he avoided glancing around and instead went to look at his lap and pull out his pocket watch. However, someone else reached out to poke his side, resulting in a leap and an ‘eep!’.

“Hey there, sleeping beauty!” Rhodey smirked at him, “I think you and Wilson were supposed to have each other’s destinies. That was some impression you were doing.”

Damn him, Damn it all. Of course , Tony would fall asleep right then and there, drooling over his arms in front of James Rhodes . Of course the first time he’d see the precious son of the Alice bloodline—after literal years in different worlds—would be when he’s conked out in front of his dripping mashed potato tray in the flipping Greek castle-teria. Unbelievable, Tony.

And Rhodes— Rhodey —has the literal audacity to sit there with a playful smirk on his face. Sit there in his v-neck— v-neck!!! —map patterned shirt that should make him look like a dork but he doesn’t , and a necklace that dips over his collarbone —and oh stars —his hair .

Tony really should say something, “Uh—Hi, honey bear?” His voice cracks, because of course, it does.

“Hi, Tones,” Rhodey replies with a smile, and it’s dazzling . Tony just might scream.

Everything is muted, he couldn’t tell you if Pepper and Sharon were still talking, if T’challa had left the table or if lunch was even over. It feels like, for a brief moment, there’s only Rhodey.

Rhodey, who’s turning around to address someone else. Tony also looks away, trying to keep his ears from burning up and turning red.

“Tony, were you drawing in your mash potatoes?” Rhodey looks over, pressing slightly against Tony to peer over at his tray.

Which prompts Tony to dart out and pull the tray towards him with a, “Nooooo?”

Rhodes looks back at him, raising an eyebrow, “Really?”

“Maybe~?”

That prompted a laugh out of him, gaining the attention of Pepper sitting a bit away from them. “Oh, Tony’s still doing that? I thought that was only a Wonderland thing.”

“Hey!” Tony wrinkled his nose and glared at her, silently grateful at the fact that pulled him out of mentally gaping like a fish at his best friend—are they even best friends anymore? Rhodey probably has like a billion of them at SHIELD. “I can do it anywhere. It’s called art.”

“You wouldn’t know art if it slapped you in the face.”

Tony opened his mouth, literally about to say, ‘I mean if Rhodey slapped me in the face I would say he’s art.’ before he’s stopped by the one jellybean of a brain cell in the back of his mind.

Well that and Rhodey’s “If anyone can bring wonder with them to SHIELD, it would be Tony.”

Which, oKAY , Tony needs to stop exploding inwardly and actually say something, “Um, speaking of wonder, does anyone know anything about that one well myth?”

“The well of wonder?” Sharon asked, polling her hand from her mouth where she was probably stifling giggles, which rude, ok.

T’challa also answered, “I believe I might be of help. Why are you asking Tony?”

Tony darted a look at Rhodey—he can’t see his face because he’s looking at T’challa, but he swears that under the table his fist clenches. Weird—before looking at T’challa, “It’s a surprise,” He winked.

And it was! But for Rhodey. He was supposed to have it done pre-meeting him at lunch, but thanks to Hammer he missed his mental deadlines. It wasn’t like he had sought out Natasha Romanoff beforehand to ask about James’ schedule so he could know when they had lunch together or anything, absolutely not.

See—back when in Wonderland—, Tony and Rhodey would galavant about, exploring the lands and falling down many rabbit holes, quite literally. Tony remembers how in his workshop, Rhodey would always love seeing Tony design the swords and spears for the Wonderland card-guards—the Dora Milaje. However what Tony specialized in was watch-making, specifically enchanted watches. Watches with personality, with faces that weren’t just hands and numbers or mini mirror-pods, but near people like. Pixel-faires born of Tony’s creation. DUM-E was his first.

‘You’ was meant for Rhodey, he’d been making them ever since he heard he was chosen for the second era of exchange students. It really shouldn’t have taken so long, but without the wonder of Wonderland and his workshop, it was harder.

So when he heard about the well of wonder, the last remain flow between the two worlds, he knew he had to find it. Too bad it disappeared every night, popping up all over Ever After.

“It would be best to go with someone Tony,” Sharon said, “The well likes to frequent the forest.”

“I could go with you!” Rhodey exclaimed, well not exclaimed, that was just Tony projecting. Mostly... Maybe? No, probably.

“Really?” Tony asked, “You don’t—?”

“It’s my free period anyway," Rhodey shrugged, “Besides you’re already using my jacket, so now you can wear it in the forest too!”

“I—” Tony looks back at the table, and oh.

Oh , that’s what he was sleeping on.

T’challa mentioned stopping by their—his and Rhodey’s—dorm so they can get directions. There’s more regaling of the well, and mentions of seeing Bruce Banner and Thor frequenting the area, which ooo? But all Tony really remembers is seeing Rhodey reaching over, draping his jacket over Tony’s shoulder.

“It’s a date,” Rhodey grinned with a dazzling smile.

~FIN~

So do you like who is who? I didn't recast everyone, but I might continue this AU so maybe I will later down the line! Please let me know what you think in the comments and leave a kudo too! Love you all!!!

[tonystarkstan]

Tony senses Peter’s agitation from the moment the kid walks in. He sees his wide eyes and fluttering fingers, moving with a restless energy as he itches red marks into his skin. A reminder to himself, Tony knows, that he’s still alive.

This is... well, it’s an ongoing thing. In the months since the reversal of the Decimation and the battle that killed Thanos and took Tony’s arm, Peter’s had many ups and downs.

For awhile, it seemed like it was mostly downs. It was night after night of pacing and Peter waking up screaming; May was nearly in tears when she told Tony she found Peter curled up on the floor one night, trying to protect himself from monsters she never had to see.

The kid is still scared. Tony hates it. Wishes he could scoop the kid up like he does with Morgan, just shush him and tell him it’s okay. (Because kids believe that. You tell them it’s okay and they believe you. Tony dreads the day when Morgan will stop blindly believing him.)

But these last couple of weeks had been good. Peter had come out of his shell more, attending all of his Decathlon practices, hanging out with Ned and MJ, going out to dinner with May, and hanging out with Tony, Morgan, and Pepper on the weekends. There’s been a spark in his eyes, so reminiscent of Before that it makes Tony’s heart ache.

Looking at him now, though, Tony can tell today is not one of those days. Peter’s learned to be more open with Tony, making it easy for the man to see the Bad Brain Day written in the lines of his skin. It’s painful to see.

For a second, they just stare at each other, Peter picking at the straps of his book bag and shifting from foot to foot while Tony studies him. It’s Tony who speaks first.

“You like jigsaw puzzles?”

Peter freezes, for just a moment, at the completely unexpected question. “Um, sure?”

“That’s so convenient,” Tony remarks, pushing himself up from his desk chair. “Because I happen to have a thousand-piece one.”

Peter watches in confusion as Tony crosses the room and stops in front of an old shelf, pulling a box off it before carelessly clearing off the workbench. Tony settles himself on a bar stool and gestures for Peter to sit, too.

Peter can’t help the huff of laughter that escapes him when he sees the picture on the box.

“Iron Man?” he says incredulously. “Isn’t that a bit... I dunno. Pretentious?”

Tony laughs good-naturedly. “Probably. But there’s actually a story behind it,” he tells him, dumping the pieces onto the table in front of them. Tony watches as Peter’s hands immediately start to flip all the pieces to the side with the picture, relieved that the kid’s no long picking at his skin.

“Oh?” Peter asks curiously.

“Yup,” Tony says, picking out and sorting the edge pieces from the middle pieces. For a second, he doesn’t say anything, momentarily letting them fall into a rhythm of flipping and sorting. It’s relaxing, and Tony can already see some of the tension easing out of the kid, now that his restless anxiety has somewhere to go.

“So, I wasn’t always this put-together,” Tony starts, and Peter snorts.

“You’re put-together?” he quips.

Tony glares at him, but there’s no real heat behind it. He rolls his eyes. “Are you going to keep interrupting my attempt at an inspirational story or should I just save myself the embarrassment?”

Peter grins sheepishly, sliding a corner piece into place. “Sorry, sorry. Continue, please.”

Tony watches as the smile slowly fades from the kid’s face, cursing the impermanence of it. This, he knows, is normal, too. He knows that Peter fights for every smile, for every laugh, for every good moment. He knows that it never seems to last. Tony sighs.

“After the whole Battle of New York shebang, I was a bit of a mess.” At Peter’s unimpressed look, Tony shoves him gently before continuing. “And by that, I mean a piping hot mess. A walking disaster. Unless I was drunk. Because then I wasn’t even walking much. I was just a disaster.”

Tony’s fumbling over his words, trying to get this right. He knows—he know there’s something he needs to tell the kid, something in this story and puzzle that’s important for the kid to grasp, and he’s worried he won’t get it right.

Tony starts pulling all the bluish white pieces out—the arc reactor—before he continues. “My relationship with Pepper had completely tanked, I was—I was really not in a good place. Flashbacks, anxiety, nightmares—all that fun stuff, you know?”

And of course Tony knows that Peter understands, but it still makes his chest tighten when Peter nods anyway. “Yeah,” the kid says quietly. “I know.”

Tony nods and lets out a breath. “It sucks,” he says bluntly. “I remember I’d fallen asleep on a futon in my old workshop, doing God only knows what. And I woke up to Rhodey brutally poking me in the side, because he’s an asshole. He was all, ‘Ugh, Tony, you smell.’ And, of course, I just tried to roll over and go back to sleep. Oh, I think this is a part of the right arm—ha, that’s ironic—“ Tony chuckles, passing the piece over to Peter.

Peter’s lips twitch at the joke, eyes darting to Tony’s prosthetic.

“So anyway,” Tony continues. “Rhodey throws a fucking box at me and goes, ‘Look, they made an Iron Man puzzle.’ And, because he’s a little shit, he proceeded to pick the box back up and pour the pieces all over the floor before pointing at me and going, ‘Get yourself together, man.’”

“Heartwarming,” Peter comments dryly.

Tony laughs. “I’ll have to tell Rhodey that’s the first word that came to mind.”

Peter hums in response as he tries to fit two pieces together. It’s only when they’re successfully attached that he looks up at Tony.

“So is this your way of telling me I need to get it together?” Peter asks. It comes out like a joke, but Tony can see the exhaustion seeping into his bones. Tony shrugs.

“Not exactly. You’re trying. I wasn’t, back then,” he says. “But that’s not really the point.” Tony picks up another piece and sorts it into a pile before looking at Peter with serious eyes. “The point is, even though sometimes it doesn’t seem like any progress is being made, and even though it might take awhile, you’re not—you’re not doing this alone. You have help, kid.”

For a moment, there is nothing. Both of their hands still on the puzzle pieces, and Peter stares unseeingly at the piles, eyes burning with emotion. Tony’s words strike a chord deep within him, make Peter think about how he was once nothing more than pieces in the wind. How scared he was when he was finally together again and how terrified he’s been every moment since then.

The idea that he can ever really, truly be whole again seems too good to be true. But Peter looks up at Tony, and god, he just wants to believe him. He tries to believe him. Peter blinks, clears his throat, and nods. “I—thank you.”

Tony just nods and nudges him gently again, allowing them to fall back into the comforting rhythm of flipping and sorting the pieces. After a moment, though, Peter darts his head to the side with a small smile.

“So you really came up with all that on the fly? The whole puzzle metaphor?”

Tony faces him with a mock scowl, ruffling Peter’s hair in response. “Hey, don’t mock my inspirational speeches.”

“I would never,” Peter says, passing Tony another corner piece.

“Of course not,” Tony says dryly. “Anyway, we’ve got most of the pieces sorted, and I’m—God, it’s tragic that I’m even saying this—craving juice pops, thanks to Morgan. She convinced me to buy those Spider-Man ones. How does a juice pop break sound?”

Peter wrinkles his nose. “God, no, those popsicles killed Spider-Man’s image. They’re horrifying.”

“I think they’re endearing,” Tony teases, slinging an arm around the kid as they make their way out of the workshop. Peter leans into the touch, the rest of the ever-present tension seeping out of him.

(And the next time Peter comes over, there’s a Spider-Man puzzle sitting on the workbench.)

[obligatorynasty]

The Weight of the Knife, Part 1: Edgeless

— Sequel to I’ll Be the Fight to Your Flight, Baby. [Read on Tumblr | AO3]

Part: [1] [2] [3] | Read on: AO3 | WC: ~10k | Please excuse any typos.

Main Tags: BadBoy!Tony, Highschool AU, NFF, Angst, TW:Mentions of Blood, TW:Abuse, TW:Graphic Depictions of Violence, TW:Bullying, TW:Underage Drinking and Smoking, Bruises, Choking, [Read all tags on AO3]

Dedicated to @starker-stories, whose love for this AU kept me motivated to write more.

~*1*~

When Peter crossed the threshold into the Stark mansion, the first image that etched itself into his mind was the painting that hung in the foyer. It was massive; nearly covering a two-story wall from ceiling to floor. Adorned with an ornate frame, it stood out from its modern surroundings – partially due to the happy visage of Howard Stark and the even happier young Tony – but mainly due to the large white sheet draped over half of the frame. Peter could tell from the gentle feminine hand placed atop the young Tony's shoulder that it was his mother, Maria Stark, who was obscured. It was hard to fathom – covering a painting in such a blatant way – but watching Tony completely ignore it was even harder. The image was so ingrained that the impact Peter felt was nothing more than a diluted normalcy to Tony.

So Peter didn't bring it up. Instead, he made small talk about the twelve car garage and the unbelievable size of the chandelier that hung in the dining room. He remarked about the mansion’s eerie spotlessness; a feeling like no one lived there or, as Tony clarified, like a dozen house staff maintained the property. He chatted about the practically untouched furniture and how the polished marble tiles squeaked beneath their sneakers, echoing against the high ceilings, as they hurried to the lab. 

“Are you sure we’re allowed to be here, Tones?” Peter asked, each new step into the mansion scratching at his latent anxieties.

“Definitely not but that just makes it more fun, doesn’t it, baby?” 

Tony delivered the line with a heap of charm and that signature bad boy grin. He was so nonchalant, never bothered and always teasing. Sometimes Peter couldn’t believe he was dating the infamous bad boy; the fearsome fighter; the unhinged delinquent; Tony – fucking – Stark. Yet, in their six amazing months as a couple, Peter has had the pleasure of seeing him more as the remarkable genius, the hilarious car singer, and the loyal friend. Sure, Tony was a bad boy through and through but Peter had given him the space to be anything other than that and, so far, they were thriving because of it.

“Maybe it’s more fun for you, but I’m stressed. I’m anxious. I’m-” Peter was stunned into silence when Tony ushered him into the lab. The workspace was a sharp contrast to the rest of the house. It was cluttered; multiple workbenches and desks scattered with complex machinery and technological marvels. “I’m in heaven.” Peter sighed dreamily.

Tony laughed, leaning close, whispering in Peter’s ear a very flirty, “I know something else that could take you to heaven.”

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

“Tony!” Peter giggled, jumping away from his boyfriend, his face flushed pink. “We’re in your dad’s lab !” His laughter trailed off as he wandered the room. His nerd senses were on overdrive and his attention to everything else was waning in the face of all the robotic spectacles and hologram capabilities. 

“You’re right.” Tony threw his hands up in surrender. “Wouldn’t want to get caught in here.”

“Exactly,” Peter nodded, brows furrowing in focus as he examined a circuit board that seemed to be forgotten in a pile of desk clutter. “Are you sure your dad isn’t coming home any time soon?”

“I’m sure enough." Tony smiled, stepping forward to hook his arm around Peter’s shoulders. “But let’s stay focused, sweetheart. I promise I’ll show you around more next time.”

“Okay,” Peter pouted, ditching the circuit board and falling out of his tech-obsessed trance, allowing Tony to lead him to the large hologram screen at the center of the room. 

“Plus, we have that thing at your place later,” Tony said as he began navigating the screen with small flicks of his hand. “I just need to find one thing on this computer and then we can go to the... what exactly did Auntie call it again?”

“Our six month anniversary dinner extravaganza,” Peter punctuated each word with grand hand gestures, all coated in sarcasm. “Catered by chef May ,” Peter joked, mocking his aunt’s voice. “Why she thinks we care about things like that is beyond me.”

“Oh?” Tony glanced at his boyfriend with a raised brow and a sly smile. “But I got you a gift, baby.”

“No, you didn’t!” Peter laughed, playfully pushing against Tony’s shoulder. “You said we’d celebrate a year. You said that.” He paused, eyebrows momentarily knitting in concern, “Wait, you didn’t actually get me something, did you?”

“And what if I did?”

“I would obviously fall into an empty-handed panic.” Peter feigned terror, emphasizing his jest by throwing a dramatic hand against his forehead before letting his expression drop into a small pout. “But, really, did you get one?”

“Maybe, maybe not, but it’s not like I need a gift in return.” Tony stopped searching the console, glancing at Peter with suggestive eyes. “You can just let me fuck the lights out of my virgin boyfriend and we'll call it even.”

“Tony! Oh my-” Peter blushed, covering his face and laughing into his hands as the embarrassment bubbled within him. “O-Okay, first of all, MJ says virginity is a construct.”

“And as usual, she’s right,” Tony joined the laughter, shaking his head as his focus drifted back to the computer. “Virginity is a construct – and with all the shit we’ve done, calling you a virgin just wouldn’t do that mouth justice, sweetheart – but still, it doesn’t stop me from wanting to fuck you until you’re a mess.”

Peter froze, his cheeks going a deeper red at his boyfriend’s candid words and his mind running through memories of their most fervent makeout sessions. Like the time Tony used Peter’s mouth – just fucking used it however he wanted. Or the time he naively wondered how his boyfriend managed to last for so long and Tony proceeded to edge him for an hour. And Peter still got goosebumps whenever he thought about that time in Tony’s backseat when he first learned what frotting was. Fuck , he could go on forever but the soft touch of his boyfriend’s hand smoothing through his hair pulled his focus.

“I know we’re joking and shit but- will you...or I mean, do you want to?”

And Peter could tell by the way Tony averted his eyes, speaking so nervous and low, that the question was serious. So, for a moment, he considered if this was the right time to say yes; if this was the right time to go all the way. Yet, he struggled with that phrase – that right time and the inherent importance it somehow held. As if sex was a special frontier that he needed to cross with care. It was strange because although this type of sex was new, being sexual was not; being close to Tony was not; being intimate was not. There were far more important milestones to worry about, so why was his heart thrumming so loud at the mere thought of answering?

“Okay,” Peter finally spoke, solidifying his answer with a smile and a nod. “How about during the break? I-Is that okay?”

“Wait, for real?” Tony perked up, his expression beaming. “I mean, no pressure, baby. You don’t actually have to if you don’t want to, but if you want to – like really fucking want to, not some my-boyfriend-wants-to-so-I-want-to bullshit – then yes. Hell yes. The break is fucking perfect. It’s-”

“Okay, don’t get too excited,” Peter giggled, leaning against Tony’s shoulder and breathing in the older boy’s scent to calm his nerves. “I want to, so I’ll have to p-prep and stuff, but yeah- last day of school is in two days so we’ll have time this weekend to – I don’t know – focus on it, or I mean- um... fuck , talking about it like this is weird.”

Tony pressed a kiss to the top of Peter’s head, “First rule of fucking: Don’t do any fucking until you can actually talk about fucking.”

“Good tip,” Peter crossed his arms and grinned. “Should I credit Pepper or Bruce for that one?”

“Wow, excuse you,” Tony shook his head, mirroring Peter’s grin. “It was actually Rhodey. His dad taught him about sex stuff and he taught me.” His smile faded then, “I mean, it’s not like my old man would teach me anything about that shit anyway.”

Peter’s expression fell solemn, “The important thing is that you learned it, right?” He slipped a gentle hand underneath Tony’s leather jacket, rubbing comforting circles into the small of his back. “If it makes you feel any better, ever since we started dating, May won’t shut up about safe sex. Every morning, when I’m trying to have a peaceful breakfast, she’s there talking about condoms or lube or – oh my god – ‘anal cleanliness’ and I’m just mortified in front of my cheerios.”

“Glad to hear Auntie has been advocating for me to get my dick wet.”

“Oh god,” Peter shook his head, gripping his sides from laughter. “Do not say Auntie and dick wet in the same sentence!”

Tony laughed, “I was just- oh shit, hold up, I found it,” Tony focused on the screen, quickly moving to transfer the file to his phone. 

Peter leaned in to get a closer look, “Found what exactly?”

“The file I need to upgrade Jarvis.”

“Wait, why do you need your dad’s file to upgrade Jarvis?”

“It’s less of an upgrade and more of a key... well, it’s not really that either,” Tony explained. “My dad has this elaborate dynamic encryption protecting the Stark Industries file system and, where Jarvis is right now, he doesn’t have the processing power to brute force the encryption before a new key is set.”

“Oh!” Peter joyfully interrupted, “And this file will give Jarvis access to the encryption key, which would, in theory, give you access every time the encryption algorithm changes to a new key.”

“Fuck, baby, you really know how to turn a guy on.” Tony playful bit his lip and wiggled his eyebrows at Peter.

“Tony!” Peter blushed, rolling his eyes with a smile. “Seriously.”

“Sorry, couldn’t help it,” Tony laughed, turning his attention back to the downloading file. “But you’re almost right. This file is the encryption algorithm so by having Jarvis learn this, he should be able to learn not only how to break in, but also how to predict any improvements made to it.”

“So you’ll never be locked out of Stark Industries again.”

“That’s the plan.”

“Now that’s something to get turned on about.”

Tony raised his brow and turned towards Peter, placing a gentle hand on the younger boy’s hips. “Am I making you hot and bothered, sweetheart?”

“Maybe a little,” Peter softly spoke, bracing himself on Tony’s arms as he was hoisted up onto a desk. “What are you going to do about it?”

“What am I not going to do?” Tony playfully whispered as he stepped between Peter’s knees, wrapping his arms around Peter’s svelte frame, pulling their chests together and closing the gap between their lips.

Whenever they kissed, Peter was reminded of their first. He was reminded of how nervous he was; how bashful; how shaky. Sitting in his bedroom with his face cupped in Tony’s hands, feeling that heated closeness and the warm breath tickling his lips. Their first kiss was tender, slow, and full of emotion. It was so different from the kiss they shared now.

This kiss was frantic and hungry, filled with emotion but fueled by lust. Their lips crashing together like being apart was agony and their hands exploring every inch of exposed flesh, just aching to dip beneath hems and seams. Peter had gained confidence in kissing, even when open-mouthed and graced by tongue. Threading his fingers through Tony's hair had become commonplace and moaning into Tony's mouth was a thoughtless eventuality. A few months ago, he would have cringed at the thought of making such needy sounds but now, he reveled in it. 

Not a lot made him nervous these days. His stutter was practically gone and his skittish nature seldom made an appearance. Something about facing his bullies head-on just changed him. He was the picture of courage, dauntless and bold, the most fearless…

Oh fuck. Peter was dragged from his thoughts by the electric sensation of Tony’s hand on his nipple, pinching and rubbing at the tender nub as the kiss became rougher. Tony tugged Peter’s bottom lip through his teeth, pleasantly groaning at the satisfied expression on the younger boy's face.

Peter gasped, dipping his head down to hide his surely flushed cheeks and clutching at Tony’s leather sleeves like they were the ground that kept him from short-circuiting. “T-Tony, th-that um - that’s-”

“What is it, baby?” Tony gave a smug grin, bringing a hand up beneath Peter’s jaw, gradually squeezing as he guided Peter’s gaze to his. “Go on, tell me.”

And all Peter could do was whine, shakily and through a strained breath. The lightheaded rush of being choked and the mere presence of Tony’s touch making him bulge in his jeans. His hands trembled where they grasped and his eyes yearned for more. So Tony gave a final hard squeeze before pulling his hand away, opting to grab a handful of Peter’s curls. “I asked you a question, sweetheart.”

“T-Tony, I-I’m- um ...i-it’s-” Peter stuttered, falling back into his nerves like they were never really gone. “It’s g-good.”

“There you are,” Tony whispered, a mischievous smile working its way to his lips as he grazed his fingertips against the hardness just beyond Peter’s zipper. “All nervous and cute just for me.”

The only response Peter could muster was a high-pitched Mhmm and a slight pull on Tony’s sleeves, making the older boy lean in for another kiss – and holy shit was it a really fucking good kiss.

So good that the Jarvis alert was background noise and the click of the door handle was their first indicator that Tony’s dad had arrived. The sound made Tony’s shoulders go rigid as he recoiled away from Peter, quickly closing the hologram console before glaring at the door with tension in his eyes. 

Howard stepped into the room, dressed in slacks and a button-up shirt with rolled sleeves and a loose tie. His face was cast in a five o’clock shadow. His eyes were dark – darker than each swig of whiskey from the glass he cradled in his left hand. “So this is your newest boy toy, Anthony?” He shook his head, “I’ve got to say, I’m underwhelmed by this one.”

“ Don’t call him that.” Tony practically growled, his voice taut and his tone a bit deeper.

This was the first time Peter has ever seen Tony and his dad interact. It was shocking – petrifying, really – enough to kill all arousal and compel him to absolute silence. 

Tony was seething, even more than usual, but Howard just laughed, short and belittling, “Of course, you would be more passionate about a slut like this than the company. Predictable as ever, Anthony.”

“Fuck you,” Tony spoke through clenched teeth. 

And from his place at Tony’s side, Peter could tell that the older boy’s knuckles were starting to lose color from how tightly he balled his fists. He could see that Tony was shaking beneath that leather like a boiling pot, brimming with fury and rage. He knew that Howard’s spiteful baiting was bound to make that anger boil over. 

Howard audibly tsked, downing the remaining whiskey in one large swig. And for a moment, the room was still, filled only with the sound of breath and the tick of a clock, when suddenly, it wasn’t. Howard spiked the glass against the floor. The shattering glass and subsequent splay of shards against tile cut through the lab and shook Peter to his very core. The erratic behavior eroding any doubt Peter held about Howard’s presence; imposing and threatening as it was, like watching a carnivore tear through his dinner. 

“What the fuck did you just say to me?” Howard asked, his voice deep and menacing. 

And Peter thought that would be it. He thought Tony would boil over with anger, yell at his father for speaking to him like that; for acting like that. He thought Tony wouldn’t stand for it.

He was wrong.

“Nothing,” Tony shook his head and grabbed Peter by the wrist, radiating a feeling that Peter knew all too well. The fearsome bad boy was scared ; so scared that his hand began to tremble where it gripped; so scared that he started towards the lab doors with Peter in tow. Tony – never lost a fight – Stark was so scared that he was choosing flight and that alone was terrifying.

Without so much as a glimpse in his father’s direction, they rushed towards the doors. Nearly there, nearly escaped. Yet, in those few seconds, in those few breaths, in those few strides, Peter learned what made Howard Stark so dangerous.

“Always a coward, just like your mother.”

Tony flinched, his muscles tensing and his grip tightening on Peter’s wrist. “Don’t talk about her like that.” He spoke low, scared but provoked, thrashing in his father’s trap.

“Like what? Like the waste of space she was?” Howard scoffed. “All she did was birth a useless criminal son and left when she couldn’t deal with the pressure of raising you.”

And it was like throwing a grenade into a bonfire.

“She left because of you!” Tony exploded, screaming loud enough to rival the impact of the shattered glass.

Slap!

It was faster than Peter could process but the echo of Howard’s hand connecting with Tony’s cheek rang in his ears. Fear and anger ricocheted through his body like lightning in a bottle; yet, he could do nothing but watch. Watch how quickly Tony was shaken from his anger like a knife whose edge had dulled. Watch how unapologetic Howard was; how sickeningly pleased he was with Tony’s prompt obedience. Watch firsthand just how twisted Tony’s life at home was.

It was silent for a few heartbeats, then Tony gripped Peter’s wrist even harder than before and pulled him out of the lab. Walking with urgency and leaving behind the callous laughter of his father. 

“Tony,” Peter whispered, his fingers feeling prickly as the feeling started to fade from the pressure of Tony’s hold. “Tony, um-” He struggled to speak as he was practically dragged towards the front door. “Tony, my hand, you’re-!” He tried pulling against Tony’s strength but to no avail. So he planted his heels when they reached the foyer and the force of Tony’s momentum caused them both to trip forward. “Tony!”

“What the fuck are you doing?!” Tony screamed, grabbing Peter by his upper arm and looking at him with the same frustrated expression that he showed his father. “We need to fucking go!”

Peter’s eyes went wide, a twinge of fear bubbling in his chest before anger overtook it. “You were hurting me!” Peter snapped back, yanking his arm away and marching passed Tony, heading towards the car. 

“I- fuck , Peter, I didn’t-” Tony frustratingly ran his hands through his hair, following Peter into the garage. 

“Don’t,” Peter interrupted, raising his palm.

“Why didn’t you just say something?!” Tony yelled, still fuming as he slid into the driver’s seat. 

“I tried too!” Peter yelled back, slamming the car door on his way in and training his eyes out the window, trying to ignore the tension and the dull pain of the bruise on his wrist. “Can you just drive me home?”

Tony inhaled sharp, “Don’t do that.”

“Don’t do what?”

“That-!” Tony stopped himself and took a deep breath, finally dropping his tone. “Whatever.”

“Great, now you’re whatever-ing me,” Peter mumbled, crossing his arms and gripping his sides in a self-hug. He could feel his emotions in his throat, shaking and threatening to burst, and as he leaned his head against the window, he bit the inside of his lip to keep them at bay.

“If you don’t want to talk, then we’re not going to talk.”

“I never said that I didn’t want to talk.” Peter sniffled – fuck , he thought, as a single tear managed to escape. “I-I just don’t appreciate you t-taking out your anger on me.”

“I’m not!” Tony snapped again.

Peter’s voice was shaky, “T-Then why are you still yelling?”

“Because-!” Tony had a vice grip on the steering wheel, his face a blend of anger and fear and regret. “Because he fucking says shit just to get under my skin and he calls you all these fucked up things and ignores that you’re there and just fucking-” He paused, dropping his forehead against the wheel as well. “I just...”

The sight of Tony struggling made Peter’s heart hurt, but the sound of Tony’s sadness went beyond it. “You just?”

“Nevermind.”

“No, Tones. Don’t do that. Talk to me. I’m-”

“Drop it, Peter.” Tony started the car, ending the conversation like Peter stepped on his toes.

Then, they drove in silence. An awkward and deafening kind of silence – filled with the hum of Tony’s engine and whoosh of the passing scenery – but deafening nonetheless. The peeved energy radiating off of the older boy was familiar but, this time, it wasn’t remedied with silly lip-synced rock ‘n’ roll. No, this was different from those times. Peter couldn’t help but feel tense and, despite his best efforts, he couldn’t stop the way his body shook beneath that fact.

When they arrived at the apartment, the air in the car was so stifling that stepping out into the evening breeze was jarring. Peter tried on a smile, holding the car door open as he spoke, “Are you still coming in for the dinner thing?”

“No.” Tony kept his response short with his lips pressed in a hard line and his eyes fixed on the windshield. “See you at school tomorrow.”

And Peter parted his lips but no words came. So he shut his mouth and the car door, watching from his place on the curb as Tony drove away. For a short while, he stood there, inhaling deep breaths to stave off the tears, but soon, the patter of rain gave him cause to walk inside. 

The apartment was filled with the savory scent of pizza and the sounds of the evening news. It was warm and bright and there was confetti trailing from the front door to the dining table. Taped to the entryway wall was a sign, printed on multiple sheets of white printer paper, that read ‘ Happy 6-Month Extravaganz ’ with a sloppy letter ‘A’ scrawled on a sticky note at the end. 

And Peter didn’t know much more his heart could take.

“Hey boys, I ordered pizza! You wouldn’t believe the fight I had with the office copy machine! It was-” As May rounded the corner and saw the look on Peter’s face, she paused. “Oh, Peter, what happened?”

“Nothing,” Peter shook his head. “This all looks great, thanks Aunt May.” He smiled but even he couldn’t deny the feeling of wetness against his cheeks – he blamed the rain.

“How about some pizza?” May gave a small smile, moving to pull the sign down. “We can eat and watch some movies together. How’s that sound?”

“No, I’m- I’m tired and I’ve got- um, homework to finish up,” Peter sniffled, involuntarily using his sleeve to wick away his sadness. “So I’m just going to go to my room. Night May.”

~*2*~

“Okay, I’m just going to say it,” MJ shook her head, tossing her books into her locker, staring her best friend squarely in the face. “You look like shit.”

And Peter, whose eyes were puffy and whose shoulders were slumped and whose only form of expression came through exasperated sighs, gazed at MJ with tired eyes, “I know.”

“What happened, dude?” Ned questioned, slamming his locker closed and moving to put a comforting hand on Peter’s shoulder.

“A lot,” Peter dropped his forehead against his locker. “A lot happened.”

“Want to talk about it?” MJ offered, her eyes shrouded in sympathy.

Peter sighed, slowly shaking his head, “Not even a little.”

“Well, well, what do we have here?” It was Natasha’s voice, like nails being hammered into Peter’s sanity. “Why so blue? Did your psychotic dog run away?” She laughed, “Maybe for some other twink? Or – what did Loki say? – plaything , right?”

“Nat, stop,” Clint grabbed her arm, trying to pull her away from Peter’s group.

“No,” Natasha resisted, shaking her arm free, a smirk perched on her lips like she was invincible. “Didn’t see Tony with you this morning either. Did he get tired of his bitch?”

“Nat, fucking chill,” Clint whispered under his breath, trying once again to pull her away. “She doesn’t mean it guys. We’re sorry. Come on, Nat!”

“ Sorry? I’m not fucking sorry. ” Natasha scoffed, “Looks like he’s all alone today, maybe we should text Loki, see what he thinks about that.”

“Are you done?” MJ interrupted, glaring at the pair of bullies with her arms crossed.

“Not talking to you,” Natasha sassed, rolling her eyes at MJ. “I’m talking to bitch boy over here.”

Peter inhaled slow, calming the nerves that sat at the back of his mind. “Text them,” He challenged, lifting his forehead from his locker and turning to face Natasha with a bored expression. “Do it. I dare you. Go ahead and see what happens.”

And Natasha, with all of her brazen snark, was taken aback by Peter’s abnormally quick response. “Whatever, you’re not worth my time.” 

“ Whatever, you’re not worth my time. ” Peter mocked, his face unfazed despite the speed of his anxiously racing heart or the force of his grip on the seam in his pocket. “You’re not worth my time, Red.”

“Dude,” Ned held back a laugh, but MJ had no such control; her laughter pulled the attention of curious hallway students, including a guy Peter has never seen before. He was tall and a bit muscular, sporting a denim jacket and staring at Peter with a confidence a bit too reminiscent of Tony’s. It was weird, like locking eyes with a much more smiley and bright version of Tony. Why was this guy staring at him like that anyway? Peter didn’t have the energy to question it; besides, all his attention should be on not getting beat up again.

“Nat, stop fucking around, let’s go,” Clint didn’t give in this time, placing a firm hand in hers and walking away with her in tow.

“Fuck you, bitch. Stark can’t protect you forever!” Natasha’s final words, topped off with a flip of her middle finger, as she disappeared down the hall.

Peter gave a relieved sigh, hand over his heart like he narrowly escaped death, “I think I’m going to pass out.”

“Well, don’t,” Ned laughed. “That was fucking awesome, dude. Very Tony Stark of you.”

“Guess that’s what happens when you move up the food chain,” MJ joked. “Suck Tony Stark’s dick for protection one time and the whole school becomes your bitch.”

“We both know he’s sucked that dick more than once,” Ned smirked, bumping his arm against MJ’s.

“Please stop,” Peter rolled his eyes and started towards the lunchroom, “Let’s just go eat.”

MJ laughed, moving to walk beside Peter, “Where is Tony today anyway?”

“Yeah, he’s usually at your locker before lunch starts,” Ned added. 

“Like I said,” Peter sighed. “ A lot happened.”

“Oh, okay, fair enough,” MJ shrugged as they entered the lunchroom. “No further questions.”

“Well, I have a question,” Ned interjected, following behind Peter to the lunch line. “What the fuck are we doing for the break?” He posed the question with urgent eyes. “Because, and I don’t want to alarm anyone, but we have got to be the only juniors without spring break plans.” 

“Oh no, not that.” MJ feigned surprise, her eyes bored and her voice monotonous but not even her eye roll could stop Ned’s enthusiasm.

“Oh no is right, MJ! Peter, are your cool friends doing anything?”

“My cool friends?” Peter squinted as he grabbed a tray and moved down the line, unimpressed by the high school food but too exhausted to complain.

MJ snorted, “He means the big buff trio.”

Well, even Peter had to smile at that, “You mean Steve, Sam, and Bucky?”

“MJ, that codename is for private correspondence only,” Ned joked. “But yeah, have they roped you into any plans yet?”

“I don’t know,” Peter shrugged as they exited the line, surveying the lunchroom for Steve’s table and locking eyes with a waving Bucky. “Let’s go ask.”

“What?” Ned’s eyebrows flew upward. “You’re bringing us to sit with Steve Rogers?”

“I guess I am,” Peter gave a small grin. “I’ve got to introduce my cool friends to my new friends eventually, right?”

Ned dramatically gasped, “When did my best friend become so smooth?”

“He was always this smooth,” MJ laughed, following Peter to the table.

“Hey Peter,” Bucky smiled, gesturing to some empty chairs. “And MJ and Ned, right?”

“Yeah,” MJ said as she sat. “Nice to finally meet you guys.”

“Likewise,” Steve said before shooting Peter a skeptical look. “Hey Pete, where’s Tony?”

“Not sure,” Peter clenched his jaw, biting on the inside of his lip to stave off his lingering emotions, preparing himself to make excuses. “He’s probably just skipping today. No big deal.” He waved away any hint of sadness, replacing it instead with an over-enthused – and clearly forced – smile. “Anyway, we were talking about spring break, right Ned?”

“Right,” Ned said, blinking a few times before shaking his head. “Right!” He dropped his hands against the lunch table, pulling everyone’s attention – leave it to him to always have Peter’s back. “Spring break is next week, guys. Do you have any plans?”

“Well, me and the guys usually visit my family’s beach house,” Steve answered.

“How big is the house?” MJ asked.

“Oh, the house is huge,” Bucky assured. “If people doubled up in the beds, it could probably sleep like twelve people.”

“Did you guys want to come with us?” Steve offered. “We could make it a party. Tony could bring his friends too. What do you think, Pete?”

Peter was distracted, idly pushing food around his lunch tray and staring into the abyss of students. His mind wandered through yesterday’s events, silently wishing they never happened. He wondered where Tony was; where Tony had been all morning. It was like him to skip classes but never lunch. It was the only school period they shared. What was happening?

“Peter!” MJ snapped him from his thoughts. “You there?”

“O-Oh, what? Sorry, um- what were you-?”

“Spring break party at Steve’s beach house with all of us and Tony’s crew?” MJ summarized. “That sound good?”

“Yeah, probably,” Peter nodded. “Sounds good to me.”

“Great, then I’ll ask my parents if we can use the house and let you guys know what they say on Friday.”

“Thanks, Steve,” Ned excitedly said.

And the conversation went from there. Planning about what food to bring, what alcohol was the best, what games they would play. Some great mingling between mutual friends that Peter was barely present for. He was so in his own head that he didn’t realize who was approaching the table.

“Hey.”

Peter lifted his head, surprised to find that the voice belonged to the guy from the hallway, who was pulling up a chair to sit beside him. “Um...hey?”

“What’s your name, kid?”

“Definitely not kid .” Peter raised his eyebrow. “Who’s asking?”

The guy laughed, “My name’s Quentin – Quentin Beck – and I saw you, in the hallway, telling that girl off and I knew I needed to introduce myself.”

“Wait. That girl? ” MJ interrupted, looking just as confused as the rest of the table. “You don’t know who Natasha Romanoff is? Who are you?”

“Oh, I’m new here. Just transferred today. Nice to meet you guys,” Quentin was courteous, making eye contact with each person at the table before focusing his attention solely on Peter. “Especially you, kid.”

“Peter,” He introduced himself, feeling a bit uneasy with the unfamiliar attention.

“It suits you,” Quentin gave a bright smile. “Your shirt is also pretty funny.”

Peter furrowed his brow, so unsure about what shirt he threw on today that he had to glance down. Peaking between his unbuttoned plaid shirt was his ‘ if you believe in telekinesis, please raise my hand ’ t-shirt. A classic. Peter let out a light huff of breath that ended in the smallest of smiles, “Thanks. It’s actually my favorite one.”

Quentin gave a small laugh of his own, looking at Peter with adoration, “Suddenly, it’s my favorite too.”

“U-Um...you look good too,” Peter clumsily reciprocated. “I mean, your jacket is really cool.”

“You’re really cool,” Quentin shot back with a grin.

“O-kay!” Ned loudly interrupted, clapping his hands together. “Let’s get back to the spring break plans.”

“Agreed,” MJ nodded, staring at Peter with the strongest what-the-fuck-are-you-doing look. “Peter, do you think your boyfriend would mind driving?”

“ Boy friend, huh?” Quentin smirked, not looking away from Peter for even a second. “Glad to know we’re teammates, Peter.”

The line made Sam and Bucky burst into laughter. “Steve, you need to take some notes,” Bucky joked, smiling at Steve, who laughed as well.

“And you better be careful, new kid,” Sam warned, pointing towards the cafeteria doors. “Tony is literally coming this way.”

Peter perked up, surprised to see Tony sauntering towards them. The bad boy’s presence brought the lunchroom to a grinding halt and only when he made it to Peter’s table, did it resume. 

“Move,” Tony spoke directly to Quentin.

“Um...no,” Quentin snorted, seemingly unbothered. “Don’t be a dick. Just get another chair. I’m talking to Peter.”

Everyone, even Peter, was stunned by Quentin’s blind confidence. Tony, however, was immediately set off. “ The fuck? ” Tony cursed as he grabbed Quentin by the jacket collar and effortlessly yanked him up from the chair. “It wasn’t a fucking question.”

“T-Tony! Stop,” Peter promptly stood, pulling Tony’s hand away from the denim. “He didn’t mean it.”

“What?” Tony gave Peter an incredulous look. “Who the fuck is this guy to you?” He moved forward, shoving Quentin back a step. It was all the cafeteria crowd needed to be fully tuned in. Enraptured by the actions of the notorious bad boy and what seemed to be his latest target: a very confused Quentin Beck. A second shove had people whispering, but a third had them outright rowdy with their phones primed to spread the brawl to everyone in the school.

“Tony, stop it !” Peter snapped, his voice low but serious, immediately compelling Tony’s focus. “Hallway,” He demanded before walking off.

Tony tsk ed but followed with his hands shoved in his pockets and anger lingering his eyes. All the way to the empty hallway, where Peter now stood, arms crossed and disappointed, “What is going on with you?”

“Who the fuck was that?” Tony fumed.

“Nobod- wait, no, I-I’m asking the questions,” Peter stressed. “Why are you so on edge?”

“You know why.”

“Actually, no. I really don’t.” Peter pointed out. “You told me to drop it , remember.”

“Not that- fuck, that’s not what I meant.” Tony let out a frustrated sigh.

“Then what did you mean, Tony? Because skipping out on dinner really sends a clear message.” Peter could feel a sting in his eyes. “I’m so confused and hurt and I was looking for you all day today and you finally show up but you’re not even here for me. You just came to cause trouble, didn’t you?”

“No, Peter, that’s-” Tony stepped forward, grabbing Peter’s hand. “I am here for you. I only ever come to this fucking place for you.” He shook his head, “I didn’t want to fight, I just- Why would you even think that?”

Without warning, the lunchroom doors swung open and Quentin emerged, “Oh, sorry, am I interrupting something?”

“Yes!” Tony yelled, in sync with Peter’s very annoyed, “No.”

Peter pulled his hand from Tony’s, “Did you need something, Quentin?”

“Oh, um- I just wanted to say sorry for what I said in there,” Quentin seemed apologetic, looking at Tony with remorse in his eyes. “I didn’t realize that you were Peter’s boyfriend. I overstepped. Sorry, man.”

It appeared a sincere apology, but Tony remained silent.

“Tony, he’s apologizing ,” Peter emphasized.

“So?”

“You’re unbelievable,” Peter whispered, shaking his head and moving towards the lunchroom doors. “I don’t want to talk anymore. Skip the rest of the day for all I care.”

And Tony did just that.

~*3*~

When Peter said skip all day, he didn’t think Tony actually would. He was convinced that, despite the tension, his boyfriend would follow their normal routine. On a regular day, Tony would be there within minutes of the buses leaving, ready to drive him home. So Peter stood outside the school, hopefully waiting for his boyfriend to pick him up. Yet, as the minutes ticked by and the school became emptier, Peter realized that Tony wasn’t coming.

Left with no choice, Peter started the walk home, just as he’d done countless times before; trekked the three miles whenever the weather was nice or he missed the bus. After all, getting driven around by his boyfriend every day would make him lazy. There was no harm in putting feet to the concrete, exercising his legs, inhaling some fresh air. No, the harm started after the first two blocks, when the sky decided on rain and not just any rain – no, this was soak-through-a-backpack , fuck-you-Peter kind of rain.

And Peter nearly screamed, his frustrations pooling as he dashed to take shelter beneath a storefront awning. In the cover, he dropped his head into his palms, convinced that the universe hated him. He didn’t have an umbrella, he didn’t have anyone to pick him up, and no matter how much optimism he tried to muster, he knew an hour-long walk in the pouring rain would break him.

Beep!

A car horn close enough to Tony’s that Peter’s whole body experienced a wave of happiness but, as he lifted his head, the wave dissipated. The car wasn’t Tony’s or MJ’s or Steve’s. Just an ordinary sedan that he was set to ignore, but then, the windows rolled down.

“Well, if it isn’t Tony Stark’s plaything.” It was Loki, parking the car against the curb and stepping out into the rain with vengeance in his eyes. “Where’s Stark?”

Shit. Peter tensed, “Fuck off, Loki. Tony’s on his way.” A bold-faced lie – one he wished were true; one he hoped appeared as true.

“Is he?” Loki smirked deviously, moving closer and closer to Peter, “You see, I received a quite interesting text from Natasha today.” He cracked his knuckles, “What was it you said to me that night? Touch me again and I’ll have him break the other one ?” He recalled, standing inches away from Peter. “Now, that only works if you actually have a him , doesn’t it?”

Yeah, the universe definitely hates me. Peter thought, inhaling sharply as regret seeped through his body and he backed against the brick of the storefront. The very thing he tried so hard to contain swarming to the surface: fear. “Don’t come near me! T-Tony will find out! H-He’ll know, he-”

“There’s the Parker I know,” Loki smirked, grabbing Peter by his collar, “Once a scared little bitch, always a scared little bitch.” He gave a dark laugh as he slammed Peter against the brick with one hand. The other winding into a fist and poised to deliver a punch.

And Peter closed his eyes, relaxed his jaw, and prepared for the inevitable, a pit in his stomach from knowing Tony wouldn’t be saving him. He wanted to cry.

“Hey! Get off of him!” 

A perfectly timed interruption that stopped Loki in his tracks and filled Peter with a thankful relief. It was Quentin, emerging from an expensive, tinted-windowed sports car and bolting towards them without hesitation. With his fists balled and ready to defend, he promptly stepped between them, shoving Loki back a few steps.

Quentin’s serious eyes were striking, especially when paired with that confident grin and the way he hovered his fists like a trained fighter squares up for a brawl. Or the way he pulled off that denim jacket and draped it over Peter’s head like he was protecting something important. Or the way he so reassuringly affirmed that Peter would be fine, so hold this for me, kid. I’ll handle this.

And Peter would be lying if he said it didn’t remind him of Tony.

However, what happened next was nothing like the notorious bad boy. Quentin wasn’t a violent fighter. Though Peter appreciated the protection, the way Quentin fought was boring. He didn’t seem to enjoy the conflict – in fact, he only threw punches when Loki threw them. He was clearly trained but instead of a self-serving show of brutality, he leaned toward ending it as cleanly as possible. In the end, Loki stopped the fight. Not because he was dazed or bruised or bloody, but because Quentin’s resolve was stronger.

And much like Natasha, Loki left Peter with a warning before driving off. “Sooner or later, you’ll run out of assholes to protect you, Parker. And you and I both know that a scared little bitch like you can’t protect yourself.”

Quentin exhaled, winded from the fight and thoroughly soaked with rain, but smiling bright nonetheless. “Hey, Peter! Do you need a ride somewhere?”

Maybe the universe didn’t hate him after all. “Y-Yes!” Peter spared no time in rushing to Quentin’s car and following him inside. “You’re a lifesaver, Quentin.” He said as he shed his wet clothes, denim jacket first, plaid long sleeve second.

“Beck.”

“Hm?”

“My good friends call me Beck.” Quentin smiled, slicking his wet hair away from his forehead.

“Oh,” Peter nodded. “Beck, then. ” He sighed, leaning back against the seat, thankful for the heat pumping through its vents. “Thanks for helping me out.”

“No need to thank me. I’m just glad I showed up when I did,” Quentin gestured to Peter’s wrist. “Before he could do anything else.”

Peter flinched, covering his bruised wrist like he was caught doing something wrong, “This was- um...yeah, I’m glad too.”

Quentin furrowed his brow, “Who was that anyway? And that Natasha girl too?”

“That was Loki,” Peter sighed, “They’re my... enemies , I guess?”

“Enemies?” Quentin gave a soft laugh, “That’s pretty intense. What’d they do?”

“It’s complicated.”

“Try me.”

“No, I don’t like getting too much into it,” Peter shook his head. “I was duped and Tony helped me. Let’s leave it at that.”

“Tony helped you, huh?” Quentin repeated, clearly annoyed. “Then where was he just now?”

“He was just busy today.” Peter was making excuses. Again.

“Too busy to protect his boyfriend?” Quentin scoffed. “If you were my boyfriend, I would protect you all the time. No matter what, even if we had some stupid argument at school.”

Peter’s eyes went wide at Quentin’s sentiment, “We weren’t arguing. We were just-”

“I’m not blind, Peter,” Quentin interrupted. “I heard you both fighting in the hall. Tony seems quick to anger and, honestly, you don’t deserve that.”

Peter crossed his arms and stared out the window, “And how do you know what I deserve?”

“I don’t, but I know you don’t deserve a guy that would leave you stranded in the rain.” Quentin sighed, “Look, I can tell you’re upset, so I’ll drop it for now, but at least think about what I said, okay?”

Peter glanced over to Quentin, whose eyes seemed so genuine that he felt bad for being annoyed. “Okay,” He nodded, relaxing his arms, feeling a bit embarrassed for being so peeved. “Um...so, your car is... nice.”

“Thank you. It belongs to my parents,” Quentin gave a bashful laugh. “I couldn’t find my bus stop this morning and when I finally got there, I missed the bus so I took the car.”

“Without telling them?” Peter rose his brow.

“Without telling them,” Quentin slowly repeated with a grin. “I’m definitely going to be in some deep shit so let’s enjoy it while it lasts.” He pressed a button to the right of the gearshift, “Seat warmers,” He said as he pressed another button, switching on the radio and filling the car with the low hum of rock music. “Surround sound and–” Another button. “Self-driving navigation. Put your address in and we’re all set.”

“Wow, this is my first time in one of these,” Peter mentioned as he inputted his address on the touch screen. “There. Did that work?”

“Perfectly.” Quentin nodded as he started the ride and the car pulled away from the curb. “Now, sit back, relax, and enjoy your warmed butt. We’ll be there in a few minutes.”

Peter almost laughed at that one – almost – instead, he took the advice. He relaxed, soaking in the warmth and peacefully listening to the radio mixed with the pitter-patter of the rain. But then an AC/DC track played. “Can we skip this one?”

“Not in a ‘Shoot to Thrill’ kind of mood?” Quentin asked as he skipped the song.

Peter shook his head, leaning forward slightly, “It’s not that...it’s other stuff.”

“Does this other stuff wear leather and have a surprisingly high grip strength?”

“Yeah,” Peter nodded, “By the way, sorry he did that to you.”

“No worries,” Quentin shook his head. “Let’s not talk about him. I want to know more about the kid, Peter Parker.” 

“I am not a kid,” Peter lightheartedly complained. “We’re probably like one year apart.”

“I know but you get so worked up over it,” Quentin grinned. “I can’t help it.”

Peter sighed but smiled, “Fine, what do you want to know?”

Quentin beamed, “Do you have any hobbies?”

“Comics, I guess,” Peter answered. “I have a collection up in my room.”

Quentin gasped, “Can I come in and see it?”

“Sure, I guess.”

And when they arrived at Peter's apartment and ventured into his room, talking about comic books turned to playing video games for a few hours. And that turned to homework together and raiding the fridge for snacks. Chats about sharing interests turned to lending comic books, which very quickly turned to hey, Beck, do you want to come on our spring break trip? Somehow, it all turned Peter’s awful day into something a little brighter.

“Thanks for hanging out today, Beck,” Peter flashed a quick smile, leaning against the door frame.

Quentin smirked, “And thank you for the comic book. I promise to bring it back with all its pages and exactly one unidentifiable snack stain.”

Peter laughed, an honest laugh, “Sounds good.”

“Wow,” Quentin smiled, moving his hand to gently tilt Peter’s chin upward, “Your laugh is really cute, Peter.”

“W-What?” Peter blushed – what the fuck? blushed? – he pulled away, quickly laughing it off like one big joke. “My laugh is actually quite manly.”

“Anything you say, kid.” Quentin gave Peter one last smile before turning to head down the hall. “See you tomorrow!”

“See you!” And as he closed the apartment door, Peter scoffed but there was no denying the smile on his face; no denying that Quentin’s company had cheered him up.

Just as Peter turned to head to his room, the door opened again. It was May, “Hey Peter, who was that boy in the hall?”

“His name’s Quentin,” Peter answered. “He gave me a ride home today.”

“He was here until now?” May glanced at her watch. “It’s past seven. What about Tony?”

Right. Tony.  

Peter sighed, the flurry of negative emotions washing back over him at the mere mention of his boyfriend’s name. “What about Tony?” He mumbled, stalking into his room like the moody teenager he was.

~*4*~

The next morning was just as rough as the last but, at least, the sun was up today. Peter rode the bus to school, thankful that the ride was quiet despite the rumors that were starting to brew. According to a very frantic text from Ned this morning, students were starting to gossip about his relationship. The question at the center of speculation: are Tony and Peter breaking up? And it hurt to not know if that speculation was justified. After all, they had been arguing a lot and tensions were high.

Peter sighed as he stepped off the bus, ready to resign himself to another day of sadness, but then a voice called out to him that made his chest feel tight.

“Peter!” It was Tony, leaning against his car in the parking lot, smoking and gesturing for Peter to join him. He seemed less angry today, less brooding. The sight filled Peter with joy, but he was reluctant to show it. He was still upset. He was still confused. He was still hurt, but none of that could stop his feet from carrying him across the lot. “What?” He asked, crossing his arms, keeping his eyes on the pavement.

“I want to talk,” Tony said, flicking his cigarette away. “Can we?”

“You ditched me yesterday,” Peter whispered, unsure why his hands started to tremble in his pockets. “It was raining and I had to walk and-”

“ You told me to skip,” Tony interrupted. “Why didn’t you take the bus?”

“Because I didn’t think you would listen to me,” Peter sighed, shaking his head. “I waited for you.”

“How was I supposed to know that?” Tony let out a frustrated huff of breath, dragging a hand through his hair.

Peter bit the inside of his lip and turned on his heel, “If I’m bothering you, then we can just-”

“Wait, no!” Tony reached out, grabbing Peter by his wrist.

The same bruised wrist as before. Peter flinched at the contact, inhaling sharp through his teeth as a dull pain erupted up his forearm. “L-Let go!”

Tony’s eyes went wide, releasing his grip immediately. “Sorry! I’m sorry, baby, I forgot-”

“How could you forget something that you did!?” Peter snapped, clasping his bruised wrist in his hand, holding it to his chest. “I don’t want to talk anymore.”

“Peter,” Tony’s voice was unsteady, frantic, worried. He reached out again, a gentle hand in Peter’s, but the younger boy just yanked it away.

“Don’t touch me.” 

Tony paused, slowly closing his hand and stuffing it into his pocket. “Okay, but please, baby, just talk to me, I didn’t mean-”

“No,” Peter shook his head, once again starting towards the building.

Tony followed, keeping his hands to himself but unrelenting in his pleads. “Please. I’m sorry. Don’t be mad, baby, just stay and talk to me.”

“Stop calling me that,” Peter fumed, irritation dripping from every word. 

Tony jogged forward, stepping in front of Peter to halt his strides. “Okay, okay , but I really just want to talk. I want to fix this, I-”

“I told you no,” Peter repeated, stepping around Tony without even looking him in the eye. “The bell is going to ring soon. I have class.”

“Peter,” Tony reached out again, grabbing almost desperately at Peter’s hand.

“I told you not to touch me!”

“I don’t know what else to do-!”

“Is there a problem here?” All of sudden, there was Quentin, fearlessly interjecting with one hand pushing against Tony’s chest and the other hovering in front of Peter in protection. His shoulders rigid and his body braced for a clash more intense than their last.

Tony scowled, his eyes cast in a dark and threatening glare, “Move the hand before I break it.”

“He told you not to touch him.” Quentin challenged, ignoring the warning and shoving his hand harder against Tony’s chest.

And Peter watched with a sinking feeling as Tony grabbed Quentin’s wrist and fingers like he was leveraging to snap the bone. “Tony, don’t!” He yelled, louder than he has in a while and Tony must have taken notice because he released Quentin without question.

But then Quentin scoffed, putting two and two together, “You’re the one that fucked up Peter’s wrist, aren’t you?” He laughed low, his tone unsurprised, “And you left him in the rain to get beat up?”

“What?” Tony squinted, “What the fuck is he talking about, Peter?”

Peter shook his head, panicking, “Quentin, stop, you don’t have to-”

“No, he should know that because of him, you almost got the shit kicked out of you by that Loki guy.” Quentin asserted. “I’m glad I was there to take you home.”

“He took you home?” Tony’s voice went stagnant, coasting somewhere dark that had Peter struggling to find the words to respond.

“Yeah, I did,” Quentin boasted. “I was there to protect him, to spend time with him, to get his mind off all the stress you put him through.” He said, stepping back and throwing his arm around Peter’s shoulders. “So, don’t worry, I’ll be taking him again today.”

Peter froze, staring into Tony’s eyes and feeling a swarm of guilt in his stomach, “I didn’t- um, Tony, we didn’t do anything-” He pulled away from Quentin, “It was just-”

“Was he in your room?” Tony asked, tone unchanging.

“Yes, but-”

Tony closed his eyes, taking a deep breath through clenched teeth as his hands balled into fists. Anger was radiating off of him, billowing into the air and making it hard for Peter to breathe. Yet, as Tony opened his eyes, his fists relaxed and his fury seemed to wane as he brought his hand up slowly, threading his fingers through Peter’s hair, “I’m taking you home today.”

And Peter understood that it wasn’t a question.

“Okay.”

~*5*~

After school, the tension had grown beyond control, especially now, as the spring break group convened for a quick meeting – meaning Steve, Sam, Bucky, MJ, Ned, and Tony were hit with the surprise of Quentin’s invitation all at once. To make things worse, the sheer pressure emanating from Tony was making the atmosphere unbearable.

“So,” Steve began, smiling at the group despite the clear unease. “I’ve got good news.”

“We got permission to use the beach house!” Bucky blurted out, beating Steve to the punch.

“Steve’s parents said we can have it for the week.” Sam added, “Monday through Friday.”

“Like they said,” Steve shook his head, playfully putting his hands over their mouths. “Before I was so rudely interrupted. We got the okay from my folks.”

“Yes!” Ned exclaimed, shaking Peter by the shoulders, probably trying to relax the mood. “Spring break!”

Steve laughed at Ned’s enthusiasm, “Is he always like this?”

“Always,” MJ assured. “So is everyone clear with what they’re bringing?”

“We’ll handle the drinks,” Bucky gestured to Sam, Steve, and himself.

“MJ, Peter, and I will get the food.” Ned gave a thumbs up. “But someone else needs to get stuff to light the grill.”

“I can handle that,” Quentin offered.

“Perfect,” Steve nodded. “Tony, you’re friends are good with getting the music set up and the games, right?”

“Yeah,” Tony shrugged. “Happy’s bringing his car.”

“I’m bringing mine,” MJ added.

“Me too,” Quentin and Tony said in unison, only adding to the tension nagging at Peter’s insides.

“Having four cars is perfect,” Ned interjected, laughing awkwardly. “Everyone will have legroom.”

“Sounds good to me.” Steve smiled, waving to everyone as they dispersed. “See you all on Monday!”

No one lingered – not that Peter blamed them – the conversation was strained and uncomfortable. He was relieved that Quentin didn’t start something as they exited the school. Maybe it was because Tony was so silent and Quentin wasn’t the type to start a fight on his own. The walk to the parking lot was quiet, even quieter was the drive to Peter’s apartment. Another awkwardly silent drive with Tony’s unease imposed on the atmosphere.

As Tony parked the car against the curb, Peter opened the door before saying, “Do you want to come in?”

“No,” Tony said, keeping his car running and his hands on the wheel.

“We should talk now, Tones,” Peter closed the door. “I’m sorry about what Quentin said.”

“Which part?” Tony stressed. “The part about Loki, or that he brought you home, or maybe that he was in your fucking room ?” His voice got louder and louder with each word.

Peter’s voice caught in his throat, “W-We didn’t do anything.” 

“How long was he there?”

“I don’t know...until May got back,” Peter shrugged. “We just played video games and did homework. I lent him a book,” His hands were starting to tremble again. He hated it. “He’s my friend.”

“Sure, a friend ,” Tony scoffed.

“What are you trying to say?”

“You let him touch you,” Tony seethed. “You couldn’t stand me touching you but you didn’t seem to care when it was him. What the fuck happened to I’m yours, but you’re mine too , huh?”

“Nothing happened to it!” Peter was starting to panic. All of their conversations had spiraled out of control, escalated beyond what they should have been, and this one was no different. “I was just upset with you and he was nice to me so I didn’t think about it. I didn’t mean to-”

“I wanted to end this shit today.”

Peter’s heart skipped a beat, so scared by the vagueness in those words that his whole frame began to shake. “W-What do you mean?”

“Nothing,” Tony shook his head. “Get out of my car.”

“What?”

“I said get out.”

“Tony.” That came out more pitifully than Peter wanted and – oh no – his vision began to blur behind tears. “I don’t like him,” His voice was distorted and breathy and on the verge of sobs, but somehow, that didn’t stop him from getting angry. “You’re the one that started this!” He yelled, looking up to combat his tears. “You’re the one that got mad first! I was trying to talk to you about your dad and you-”

“I don’t want to talk about him!” Tony snapped, slamming his hand against the steering wheel. “Why don’t you get that? Why can't you just fucking let it go?!”

“Because he hit you, Tony!” Peter snapped back. “He hit you and I couldn’t do anything and I could tell you were scared and that-”

“Peter, stop! Just fucking stop!” Tony dropped his face into his hands. “This isn’t something you should worry about.”

“Tony, I’m your boyfriend ,” Peter stressed, wiping at his tear-stained cheeks. “How can I not worry? It happened in front of me and I-”

“Can you just get out?” Tony lifted his head, his expression was blank but his eyes were wet, so clearly filled with tears of his own.

“But Tony, I-”

“Peter, I’m serious, get the fuck out of my car.”

“If that’s what you want then fine!” Peter fumed, throwing open the car door and stepping out. “Be that way!” He yelled before slamming the door shut and turning towards his building, not bothering to glance back, even when the roar of Tony’s engine disappeared down the street.

As he ambled into his building and up the stairs, Peter wondered if this was what it felt like to be at his wits’ end; to feel utterly crushed by the weight of his emotions; to feel his heartache and be at a loss when trying to fix it. He stepped into the apartment, surprised to see May’s shoes by the door and hear her bright greeting. Right, it was the weekend, she was home earlier than usual. 

“Peter!” May was stunned when she laid eyes on her nephew, rushing over to pull him into a hug. “What happened?”

“I don’t know!” Peter started to break down. “Things just keep getting worse and we keep arguing and I-” He sobbed, “I don’t know what to do!” And the tears he so viciously tried holding back fell freely and he was hopeless against them. 

“Okay, calm down,” May rubbed gentle circles into Peter’s back. “Come sit down,” She said as she guided him to the couch, where he continued to cry. Where he continued to weep as she headed into the kitchen and prepared two cups of tea. Continued to sob as she grabbed a box of tissues from the linen closet and calmly sat, waiting for the tears to run dry. And once they did, she finally spoke, “Now, explain.”

“Tony hates me,” Peter’s voice was hoarse. “All we’ve been doing is fighting with each other and Quentin made it worse.”

“The boy from the hall?”

“Yeah,” Peter sniffled. “He’s my friend but Tony thinks I like him and we’re fighting about that too now.” He sighed, taking a sip of tea before continuing, “And everyone’s going on that trip to Steve’s family’s beach house. And it’s just going to be the worst, Aunt May.”

“What were you fighting about before Quentin?”

“I-” Peter hesitated, “It was something that happened at Tony’s house.”

“And what happened?”

“Something bad,” Peter mumbled, placing his mug on the coffee table.

“I’m listening.”

-

Read Part 2: Here.

[talltree-writes]

We’re Going on a Trip

Fandom: PJO and MCU

Summary: The annual school trip has rolled around and the teachers have been keeping it oddly quiet. When they finally announce it, Peter’s heart sinks— just once, could he have a normal field trip? Coupled with the stress of having Percy Jackson, a relatively recent addition to the Avengers, on the trip, Peter is dreading Friday. 

Genre: fluff, irondad and spiderson, avengers fam, someone give Percy a break

Pairing: Percabeth is there 

Warnings: Cursing, Character typical injuries, Nightmares

Author’s Note: I keep forgetting this account exists, so I forgot to cross-post from my Ao3. Anyway, I’ve had this done for months, but haven’t been fully happy with it. It’s part of a series of one shots that I’m apparently only updating once a year... oops. Anyway, here’s this

“Class, as you know, the science department takes one field trip together every year. This year, I am excited to announce, Mrs. Pruta’s marine biology class, Mr. Looves Physics class, and our Chemistry class will be the first group to tour the newly reinstated Stark Tower this Friday. Now, Stark Tower was intended to close around this time last year, but Mr. Stark…” Peter tuned out whatever Mr. Gray was saying. 

Stark Industries? Really? The big annual field trip that he looked forward to every year was to the building he spent most of his time in anyway? He’d been on that tour already, given to him by the head intern herself once his Stark Internship turned from a cover story to fact. 

****

After Peter was shot, the Baby Monitor Protocol automatically called Mr. Stark, who demanded that Peter come straight to the tower to get patched up.

Unable to use the medbay that was still under construction, Colonel Rhodes set up his makeshift OR in Mr. Stark’s lab. With no anesthetic, as they did not have any of the stuff that could knock out a super soldier or enhanced human, Peter allowed his eyes to wander as Rhodey pulled the bullet from his leg and stitched him up. His eyes caught on an unsolved problem scribbled on a chalkboard.

Once Rhodey had finished patching him up, Peter hopped off of the table and limped over to the  chalkboard. He scanned his eyes over it, looking for the issue, for why it was unsolvable to the smartest man Peter knew. Finally, his eyes caught on it. “Hey, Mr. Stark?”

“Yeah, kid?” Mr. Stark came to stand behind Peter. 

“You forgot to balance the chemicals. Just redo it from there and your answer should be… this.” Peter picked up a piece of chalk and finished the problem after doing the calculation in his head, writing the answer on the bottom. 

Mr. Stark double-checked his work, marking his own calculations to the side. When he came up with the same answer, he turned to stare, astounded, at Peter. “Kid, that was a graduate-level problem, and you just solved it.” 

Peter shrugged, “You just needed a fresh set of eyes. Besides, I’ve studied ahead. How else could I have created my web fluid?” 

“Yo-wha- studied ahead?” He sputtered. 

Peter shrugged again, as if he hadn’t just admitted to knowing graduate level science and math at a high school age. “I was bored, so I read ahead and looked stuff up. When I finished our book, I moved on to the next, and then the next, and suddenly I found myself reading research essays and then I guess I could do this stuff. I didn’t know it was that advanced…” He blushed at the end. 

Mr. Stark stared at him again for a minute before speaking. “How’d you like to help me in the lab sometimes? Let’s say once or twice a week for now, and then we’ll see where it goes.” 

Eyes round as saucers, Peter met Mr. Stark’s gaze “Work in your lab… with you?” A pause as it sunk in. “Yes! Mr. Stark, yes! I’d love to!” 

“Great! You start Monday. You’ll be getting your first paycheck from Stark Industries in no time!” Mr. Stark clapped Peter on the shoulder.

If possible, Peter’s eyes got bigger. “P-paycheck? You’re going to pay me for working here?” 

Mr. Stark chuckled. “Of course, Underoos! Stark Industries doesn’t have unpaid interns anymore. I recently realized that minimum wage isn’t even a viable income, so why should I expect my hard-working interns to live off even less. I need them to be focusing on their work, and if they don’t know where their next meal is coming from, they can’t do that. You’ll be a fully realized intern, with higher access, of course, so you’ll receive the same treatment. Of course, school must come first, or else your Aunt will kill me. But I expect that will be no problem.” 

“Th-thank you, Mr. Stark! Thank you so much!” 

Mr. Stark smiled fondly at Peter and said, “It’s no problem, kid, now go on home before your aunt gets worried.” 

Peter nodded and headed towards the window, pulling his mask down as he did so. He opened the window and waved as he jumped out, nearly giving his mentor a heart attack, as that move always does. 

As soon as he knew Peter was out of earshot, Mr. Stark said, “Hey, FRIDAY? Remind me to tell Pepper we’re paying all of our interns now.” 

When Rhodey just stared at him, Tony shrugged. “The kid and his aunt can barely make ends meet, but they won’t let me help them. If I can give the kid a little extra change and gain an employee, I should do it. I mean, it’s not like it’s going to put a huge dent in my wallet, anyway.” 

****

“Get these permission slips signed and returned to me by the time we load the bus on Friday.” Mr. Gray shouted as the bell rang and all the students filed out of the classroom. 

Ned caught up with Peter after grabbing a permission slip. “Woah, dude! This is awesome! We’re going to Stark Towers! Well I guess it’s not as awesome for you, since you work there and all.” 

Before Peter could remind his best friend that he worked there as well, Flash cut in. “Ha! How lame do you have to be to lie to your own best friend, Penis?” He jeered as he passed. “We all know you don’t actually have a job at Stark Industries. They don’t even accept applications until you’re a grad student, and even then, only, like, seven get it. No way that you, Penis Parker, have a job with Stark Industries!” 

 Peter glowered at Flash but didn’t deign to answer. Ned on the other hand, shot back “He’s not lying, Flash! And he’ll prove it to you on the tour! Peter knows Tony Stark personally!” 

Turning away, Flash scoffed, “Yeah, right. You’re fooling yourself if you think he’s not lying to you. We’ll all see on Friday how much of a liar he is.” 

As Flash walked away, Peter and  Ned turned back to their lockers. “God, I hate that guy. I can’t wait for you to show him he’s wrong. Hey! Do you think you can get Mr. Stark to show up? That’ll really give him a kick in the ass!” 

Peter shot a look at his friend. “No! You don’t understand, I can’t let Mr. Stark know I’m going to be there. He’s going to embarrass me! It’s one thing for people to know I’m an intern, it’s another thing for people to know Tony Stark is basically my father.”

Ned’s demeanor shifted. “Oh, yeah.” He perked up again. “At least you’ll have Percy! Mr. Gray said his class is in our group.” 

Upon hearing this, Peter slammed his head into his now-closed locker. “Shit. Percy. At least I have an internship. How are we going to explain him and his clearance? He’s not been released to the public as an Avenger yet. This is going to be an absolute disaster.” 

“Hey, maybe it won’t be that bad. It’s not like there’s any guarantee that all of the Avengers will be there.”

Peter brightened up. “Yeah, why would any of them be there? They don’t live there. And it’s not like Mr. Stark knows about the field trip. Why would he? He’s got a billion dollar company to watch Pepper run. And he’s an Avenger. He’s super busy, like, all the time, and he never knows what’s going on in his building.” Maybe this field trip wouldn’t be so bad after all. 

***

  The day of the field trip arrived and Peter was up well before his alarm went off. “Aunt May? Is there any way I can not go on this field trip?” He called from his bed. 

“Peter, this is the biggest field trip of the year, and you always look forward to it. Don’t let the minor possibility that Tony Stark will be there ruin your day.” She said as she stood in his doorway. “Besides, you’ve missed too many days while Spider-manning to miss another.” 

Having risen into a seated position, Peter collapsed onto his pillows with a groan. “But May, Mr. Stark is going to embarrass me!” 

May chuckled. “Tony probably won’t even be there. You know how many meetings he has. He’s a busy man. He most likely doesn’t even know about the tour today.” 

“You’re right, you’re right. I’m just nervous. I’m scared about my identity getting let out of the bag, not to mention Percy’s. God, if Percy’s gets out we’re going to have serious problems.” 

Walking back into the kitchen, Aunt May called over her shoulder. “None of that is going to happen!” 

Peter groaned again, but got up and started getting dressed for school. He brushed his teeth, and tried to brush his hair, before looking at the clock and realizing he was going to be late if he didn’t leave now. 

He grabbed a Poptart from his aunt’s waiting hands, gave her a kiss on the cheek, and was out the door a second later, calling back “Love you, Aunt May!” 

Despite everything, Peter was kind of excited about the field trip. Sure, embarrassment was inevitable, but he was about to see a bunch of floors of the tower he never saw when he was working there. Plus, the look on Flash’s face when he realized the internship was real would be priceless. 

He made it to the school just in time to see the kids start loading the buses. Peter jogged forward and moved into the back of the line he saw Mr. Gray marking roll for. Just as he was about to board the bus, Mr. Gray pulled him aside. 

“Peter, you and I need to talk for a second.” He said. 

Confused, Peter went along. “Mr. Gray if this is about being tardy, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to, honestly.”

Mr. Gray shook his head. “No, Peter, this is about the rumors you’ve been spreading around about you being an intern at Stark Industries. Now, we’re very lucky that we got this opportunity, but I don’t want you, or Mr. Thompson, to embarrass us with talks of this internship. And if the talk continues, I’m going to have to have a conversation with the principal about it.” 

Near tears, Peter couldn’t muster any words to counter his teacher’s disbelief. So he just nodded and got on the bus. 

***

Meanwhile, at the Jackson-Blofis residence, Percy sat snoring through his alarm clock, Annabeth curled beside him. Annabeth, who was visiting both camp and her boyfriend while on break, had started the night alone on the bed, but when a nightmare woke Percy up, she allowed him to crawl off the floor and into the bed. 

“Percy… Percy… Percy!”  He startled awake to the sound of both his alarm and his mother saying his name. “Percy, it’s almost time for you to go. Remember you have your field trip today.” 

Percy shut his eyes and breathed “Shit.” 

“Language!” His mom bopped his head and left him to get ready. 

Through everything, Annabeth slept on. Suddenly, Percy had a brilliant idea. “Wisegirl?” He gently shook his girlfriend. “How would you like to tour Stark Towers with me today?” 

Her eyes blinked open. “Will Pepper Potts and/or Tony Stark be there?” She mumbled, sleep still heavy in her voice.

“Probably. I can introduce you if you’d like.” Percy smiled at the girl next to him. His Wisegirl. 

She glanced at his smile curiously, more awake now. “You’re very smiley for this early in the morning.” 

“Just thinking about how lucky I am to have a girl like you”

She smiled back and a light pink dusted her cheeks, as if Percy didn’t say something like it every time they saw each other. “You sap. Now, c’mon, if we don’t leave soon, you’ll miss the bus and I’ll miss the train. 

“The train?” Percy said curiously. 

Sitting up, Annabeth tied her hair back. “Yes, the train. You didn’t think I’d be able to just join your field trip did you?” 

Percy pouted. “I thought maybe you could use your Yankees cap and sit on the bus with me.” 

“And what if someone else needs to sit next to you? I can’t just stand or perch or something.”

A devious smile crossed Percy’s face. “You could always sit in my lap.” 

A sharp intake of breath, a shove, and a thud later, and Percy was back on the floor, Annabeth laughing above him. “So I’ll take that as a ‘no’ then?” He asked. 

“I’ll see you at Stark Towers. After I take the subway there.” She stepped over him and grabbed her clothes. “Get up, Seaweed Brain, before we’re late.” 

Just then, Sally popped her head in the door. “Percy, what are you doing on the floor? You need to leave in 10 minutes!” 

Percy just groaned, but got up and started to get dressed. 

****

When Percy got to the school, he barely made it in time to catch the bus. His teacher shot him a sour look, but let him on nonetheless. He found a seat next to someone he didn’t know, and took out his phone to text Ned and Peter. 

From: Sea dude

To: Man in Chair, Geeker Parker

What’s the plan, gents

From: Geeker Parker

To: Sea dude, Man in Chair

Hope and pray we get out of this unnoticed. No chance your dad can help? 

From: Sea dude

To: Geeker Parker, Man in Chair

No… That’s not really how that works…

From: Geeker Parker

To: Sea dude, Man in Chair

:/

From: Man in Chair

To: Geeker Parker, Sea dude 

How does that work, anyway?

Before Percy could answer, he felt the eyes of someone on him, and looked up to see his teacher giving him another stink eye. He swiftly put his phone away. The ride was almost over anyway, so he just relaxed and focused on seeing his girlfriend again soon. 

Upon arrival, it took the teachers several attempts to calm the students down. Finally, when they did, they went over last minute rules. “Turn your phones off and be attentive, we’re very lucky to have this opportunity, and you’re a representative of the school. Please be on your best behavior, but don’t forget to have fun and enjoy the experience!” Mr. Loove said. 

It took forever to get everyone off the bus, as people kept stopping to stare at the top of the building. Percy didn’t know why, they saw it from their school every day, but he guessed one of the tallest buildings in New York was quite the sight up close. 

Inside, Percy caught Annabeth’s eye as she talked to the receptionist, trying to get a visitor’s pass. She shot him a smile before returning to her conversation. Percy turned his attention to Peter and Ned as they came over. 

“Dude, isn’t that Annabeth?” Ned asked as soon as he was close enough. 

Percy smiled. “Yeah, that’s her. She’s in town for a few days and I thought I’d invite her. I’m going to help her get her guest pass really quick, ‘scuse me, boys.”

He slid past the two towards the desk. Slapping an easy grin on his face, he approached the receptionist who was currently fighting with Annabeth. “I’m sorry, ma’am, but you aren’t registered for a tour today, so I canno- Oh! Hi, Percy!” She smiled and blushed. 

“Hey, Erin. I see you’ve met Annabeth, my girlfriend. I was hoping I could get here first so I could request a pass for her, but she beat me to it. Do you think you could-“ 

Before he could finish, he was interrupted, once again, by Mrs. Pruta. “Percy Jackson, please stop flirting with these two fine young ladies and return to the group so we can check in.” 

“Oh, you mean this lovely young lady, here? Annabeth, this is my marine science teacher, Mrs. Pruta. Mrs. Pruta, this is my girlfriend, Annabeth Chase. She’ll be joining us on our tour today.”  Percy grinned. 

Flaring her nostrils, as she always does when she gets mad, Mrs. Pruta said “I’m afraid we only have enough badges for the class and she hasn’t registered in order to get one.” 

Erin piped into the conversation “Oh, that’s quite alright. Percy’s clearance is permission enough to give her a badge. She’s fine to join you.” 

“P-Percy’s what?” She spluttered, but quickly recovered. “We will discuss this later, young man. Now return to the group.” She stiffly stuck one arm out in the direction of the congregated students. 

As soon as they got to Peter and Ned, they burst out laughing. “Did you see her face? I thought she’d seen a ghost!” Percy said. 

“‘P-Percy’s what?’” Annabeth mocked. Normally, Annabeth respected teachers, but this one put a thorn in her side. 

Annabeth’s face suddenly sobered up as she glanced down at her phone. “What’s wrong, Wisegirl?” Percy stopped laughing. 

“I just got a text from a certain messenger friend of ours with a specific message to give you.” She pulled out her phone and showed it to him. 

Mist falling today. Time to tell the world everything.- H

“Fuck.” He muttered. “I had definitely planned on having a few more months without people knowing.”  

Ned and Peter craned their necks to see the message, but Percy handed Annabeth’s phone back to her. “What’s up?” Peter asked, concerned for his friend. 

“The Mist is going to fall much sooner than we anticipated, and as usual, the gods have no explanation for us.” Percy explained. “I’ve got to get an emergency press conference together by the end of the school day.” 

Peter grimaced. He had never experienced the stress of a press conference, and hoped he didn’t have to. Ever. “Just tell FRIDAY after we go through security. She’ll notify Dad and set it all up.” 

Percy nodded silently. Then, they both came to the same conclusion at the same time. “FRIDAY is about to let the cat out of the bag, isn’t she?” He groaned. 

Solemnly nodding his head, he patted Percy’s shoulder. They were screwed. 

Resigned to their fate, the boys looked to the approaching figures. And groaned.

****

‘Crap.’ Peter thought, as he recognized the two women coming towards them. Lacy and… Shuri. He’s in for it now. 

“Welcome, students!” Lacy shouted to get their attention. “My name is Lacy Ames, and I will be your tour guide for the day. If you will turn your attention to me, I have a few announcements, some rules, and then some guest badges to hand out.” The group quieted, especially when they noticed the intern’s companion. 

Lacy continued. “First of all, Princess Shuri of Wakanda will be joining you on your tour today. Any words, Princess?” 

Catching Peter’s eye, Shuri smiled wide. “I just heard there was a tour, and I was bored. So I thought I’d tag along and learn a little bit more about where I’m staying for the next few weeks.” She subtly winked at Peter. 

‘Hell yeah two weeks of lab time with Shuri!” Peter thought. He and Shuri had met at an otherwise boring meeting and bonded over their love of science. After her show of force in the battle for Wakanda, she had been established as a Junior Avenger.  

Peter briefly thought he would escape the embarrassment of seeing his best friend in front of his classmates, but he was mistaken. Once Shuri had caught his attention, she called out to him. “Hey Peter?”

He sighed, but answered. He knew what was coming. “Yes, Shuri?” 

“Toss me my keys!” 

Peter, without a printer in sight, chose the next best thing. He threw his backpack at the Princess of Wakanda. 

“I said my keys.” She said, deadpan as the backpack flew past her. 

“I thought you said printer.” Peter shrugged. 

“Why the fuck would I say printer?” She disregarded the teachers’ looks. 

The two came together in the middle of the space and did an intricate handshake that involved feet, hands, and hips. They had developed it when they were bored after they had both been kicked out of an Avengers meeting because they were ‘only Junior Avengers’. As they concluded their handshake, they burst into giggles together,  until Lacy cleared her throat and shot a pointed glance at the shocked class behind them. She, who had retrieved Peter’s backpack, handed the bag back to him and gestured for them both to rejoin the group. 

With the class still sitting in stunned silence, it was easy for Lacy to regain their attention. “Now, for some rules. No touching, no yelling, no pushing, always wear these badges I’m about to give you in a visible spot, or you will be escorted from the premises, and, biggest of all, no bullying.” Peter shot a glance to Flash, or, well, the back of Flash’s head, since he was front and center and Peter was in the back again, doing his best to hide. 

“Now, as I call your name, please come forward and get the badge I hand you. Cindy Moon.” Cindy went forward and grabbed the white badge. “Eugene Thompson” 

“It’s Flash, actually.” He said, and winked at the Princess. Shuri looked like she might puke. 

On and on the list went until there were no more badges. Mr. Gray, who had been checking off his sheet as the list went on, spoke up. “Um, ma’am, I’m afraid a few of the students didn’t get one. Mr. Parker, Mr. Leeds and Mr. Jackson seemed to be missing badges.” 

With a bright grin on her face, Lacy said “Oh, they can just use their own. Happy, our head of security,  has a thing about not giving one person two badges at the same time. Boys, do you have your badges?”  

They all pulled them out, Peter and Percy’s a shimmering gold, Ned’s a bright red, much different from any of the guest badges, and even the badge hanging from Lacy’s lapel. 

Flash, upon seeing the difference, threw his hand into the air. “Miss, why are theirs different?” 

“Good question, Eugene. It has to do with the ranking system. We have five levels here at Stark Towers, Alpha, Beta, Gamma, Delta, and Epsilon. Alpha is the lowest ranking, and Epsilon is the highest. You all have Alpha clearance, which is clearance for guests and the press. Beta is for interns on the lower levels. These are usually our graduate interns, Gamma is for our R&D department and marketing, Delta is for our top scientists, who often get to work with Doctor Banner plus accounting and department heads, and Epsilon is for the Starks, their close friends or family, and the Avengers. Now, if you’ll follow me, I need you all to scan your badges here. Please make sure to remove anything from your pockets and put them in this bucket.” 

Peter, Percy, Ned and Annabeth filed to the back of the line. Lacy went first. “Lacy Green, Gamma clearance.” Everyone except the three boys, Shuri, and Lacy jumped. 

“Oh, don’t mind FRIDAY, she does that with everyone. She’s the building’s AI. She is the eyes and ears here and will detect anything that happens.” Lacy explained. 

Each time someone went through the scanner, FRIDAY announced their name and clearance, and each time, it spooked them. Peter wanted to laugh, but then he remembered how he reacted when he first spoke to FRIDAY. He was like a child on Christmas morning every time she spoke. 

Finally, it was their turn. When Peter went through the scanner, FRIDAY’s voice suddenly had a familiar Irish lilt. “Peter Parker, Epsilon clearance. Welcome back, Petey, I will alert Boss to your arrival.” 

Resigned to Mr. Stark finding out anyway, Peter calmly replied “Thank you, Fri. Will you remind him that I am here on a school trip, though?” 

“Yes, Petey. Mr. Stark said to have fun.” 

As he tried to ignore the stares of his classmates, Peter heard Friday say “Percy Jackson, Epsilon clearance. Welcome back, Mr. Jackson. I assume you’re on this field trip as well?” 

“Yeah, FRIDAY. Quick question, where are Tony and Pepper?” 

FRIDAY responded immediately. “Miss Potts is in a meeting until 1 and Mr. Stark is in his lab. Should I alert them to your presence?”

“Please. Could you also organize an emergency press conference for 3:45 this afternoon?”

“Yes.” A second of silence. “Boss has asked for an explanation.” She informed him.

Percy thought for a second. He wanted to remain under the radar, even if this information was coming out later that afternoon. “Tell him everything is going public today.” When she didn’t respond again, Percy assumed he got the message. 

Peter was thankful that most of the attention was off of him as everyone shifted to the bigger mystery. 

Percy looked around at the crowd of teenagers and smirked. “What, never seen someone talk to an AI before?” He confidently crossed to stand beside Annabeth, one arm around her waist, the other stuffed in his pocket. Peter was pretty sure only he and Annabeth knew how anxious Percy really was. He did well to cover up, but his smile was just too tense, his posture just too alert, he was nervous. 

Lacy smiled brighter and raised her voice slightly to grab everyone’s attention. “If you’ll follow me, we’ll begin our tour in the Avengers’ museum. 

As they walked forward, Shuri dropped back to walk with Peter. “I take it Percy is the new addition I’ve been hearing so much about.” She said quietly.

“Yeah, that’s him. His girlfriend, Annabeth, probably isn’t far behind, honestly. I’ve met her a few times and she’s brilliant, not to mention awesome at fighting. She reminds me of you, actually.” 

The princess studied the back of the blonde’s head. “I think she and I could learn a lot from each other.”

At Peter’s look of surprise, she laughed. “I’m not a man, you ass. I know that even with all of Wakanda’s advancements, technology, and knowledge, there are still things I don’t know. Annabeth and I have different backgrounds, so we’d obviously be familiar with different areas.” 

“So… you know about… them?” Peter hesitated to say anything incriminating around his classmates. 

She chuckled again. “Yes Peter, I know about ‘them’” she mocked. “I’m here to develop a new suit for Percy. He can’t battle evil forces in the world without some sort of protection.”

Peter nodded. The two fell into companionable silence as they listened to Lacy’s speech, following behind the students and occasionally whispering dumb comments or jokes until they stopped in front of an open doorway. “-and here we have our first stop, the Avengers museum. You will have 45 minutes to explore. Just remember the rules and we shouldn’t have a problem.” Lacy stepped aside to allow the students forward into the exhibit. 

The duo followed Peter’s friends as they wandered through the exhibit, the three young Avengers having already seen most of it. They stopped at each one so Annabeth, MJ, and Ned could get the information. “How long exactly are you in town?” 

“My brother plans to leave in two weeks, but I think I will stay longer. I will be finished with the gear Tony commissioned in little time, but I want to work with Percy and Annabeth on developing more weaponry, perhaps incorporating Vibranium. I have brought all of the materials I need and I suppose I can work with your rudimentary technology for a little while.” Shuri shot him a mirthful glance.  

Before he could respond, Ned called him over to see one of the new exhibit. “Dude, come over here! They’ve got a Spider-man exhibit!” 

Peter rushed over with a giggling Shuri close behind. What he found made his jaw drop. Behind a glass case stood two mannequins; one wearing a replica of his current suit, the other clad in his old pajama suit. To the side were facts about Spider-man and a small screen showing him in the middle of a fight. “Woah…” 

“Dude, does this mean Spider-man is officially an Avenger?” Ned asked. 

Peter kind of shook his head. “I guess. I wonder if Mr. Stark was ever going to tell me.” He trailed off in thought. 

“Once you had graduated and were ready to publicly become an Avenger is what he said when he told the rest of us.” Came a voice from behind them. 

The five jumped and turned around, coming face to face with a casually dressed Wanda. Peter’s face paled. “W-wanda, what are you doing here? I thought everyone was at the compound.” 

She gave him a sympathetic smile. “They were, and then Stark told them about your field trip and they all came back into the city to pop in. Even Steve was on board after he found out what that Eugene kid had been doing to you.”

Eyes shutting, Peter groaned. “I’m done for. This is it, I’m going to die.” Okay, maybe he was being a tad dramatic, but can you blame him? 

“I’m sorry, Peter, but I thought I’d give you a heads up. Stark is definitely making an appearance at some point, and it’s going to be big.” 

Before Peter could say anything, maybe a prayer to one of the many gods, Flash rushed over to get a glimpse of the Spider-man display, not noticing the civilian-clothes-clad superhero. He shoved Peter and Ned out of the way. “Out of my way Penis. You too, Dead. I need a picture with the Spider-man suit.” 

Peter shot Wanda a glance, and caught the tell-tale red cloud of her magic in her eye. He subtly shook his head at her. She didn’t need an assault, or, gods forbid, a murder charge on her hands. Instead, she took a deep breath and said, “I’m pretty sure bullying is not allowed in any building Stark Industries owns.” 

Flash turned, a haughty sneer already slipping onto his face, until he realized who spoke. Expression melting away, he gulped and started to back away. “Y-yes ma’am.” He scampered off before anything else happened. 

She sighed and looked back at the group. “I should probably go. But good luck today, you’ll need it. Especially after that little scene: Friday has orders to send any alarming footage straight to Tony.” 

At Peter’s swear, she gave him one last sympathetic look and ruffled his hair before turning to weave her way back through the exhibit to the private elevator. 

Running his hand through his hair, Peter turned to Percy, “Well… we’re fucked.” 

Percy laughed. “No, man, you’re fucked. They aren’t targeting me-- I’m not the one who lied about a bully. The only thing I have to deal with is a press conference at the end of the day and maybe some weird looks.” 

Annabeth snorted. “Only thing? Seaweed Brain, you don’t explain the whole gods thing well to new demigods, how are you going to explain it to the entire world?” 

“It’s a good thing I’ve got you here then, Wise Girl.” He wrapped his arm around her waist and tucked her into his side. “What better way to introduce the world to demigods than by introducing them to the children of prophecy.”

”You ass, you didn’t even ask.” She playfully shoved him. He widened his eyes and stuck out his bottom lip. She rolled her eyes. “But I guess I’ll help you.” He pulled her back into his side and kissed her head.

Suddenly, the class heard from the end of the room “It’s time to move to our next section, so if you would please all follow me.” Lacy led the group towards the public elevator. “We’re going to have to split into a few different groups. So I’ll go with the first group. Princess? Would you and Peter mind going with the second? And Percy could go with the third?”

Peter nodded, uncertain, his Spidey-Sense already tingling. He traded a glance with Percy; Lacy was definitely in on Mr. Stark’s plan.

The first group filed into the elevator, while the other two waited patiently. As soon as the doors closed, Peter heard a heavy scurrying in the vent, undetectable to anyone else. He shot Percy another look, this time glancing up to warn him of what was to come. 

Just as the vent opened and a leather-clad figure dove through it, Peter sidestepped. The man hit the floor with a “shit” and rolled over to reveal his face. The children around them murmured in amazement as they realized that the lump in front of them was the one and only Hawkeye. 

“Aw, Pete, how do you always hear me coming?” Clint moaned as he sat up. 

Peter froze. Was Clint trying to out him as Spider-Man? Percy stepped in “It’s because you’re loud, bird brains. It’s a wonder that you made it this far as a super spy.”

Eyes going comically wide when he spotted the source of the voice, Clint feigned surprise at Percy’s presence. “What do we have here, folks? Could this be my favorite junior Avenger?” 

Amidst gasps of shock, Percy grinned and held his hand out to help Clint up. “Are you saying I’m your favorite because Spider-Man kicked your ass in that accuracy competition?”

“You can’t prove that.” Clint said, folding his arms. “Speaking of, though, you need to work on your accuracy. Didn’t they teach you how to shoot a bow and arrow at that camp of yours?” 

Annabeth laughed. “Oh, they tried to teach Seaweed Brain. He managed to nearly shoot Chiron, who was standing behind everyone. They haven’t let him near a bow since.” 

Pouting, Percy mumbled, “I’m still better than both of you at hand-to-hand.

Eyebrows raised, Annabeth turned to Percy. “Really? You think you’re better than me at hand-to-hand combat?” She whirled back around to face the acclaimed archer. “Is there anywhere that I can prove him wrong before the end of this trip?”

Clint grinned a Cheshire-cat grin while the blood drained from Percy’s face. “I do believe there is, Miss…?” 

“Annabeth Chase” She stuck her hand out. 

Clint shook it, the evil glint still in his eyes. “Well, Miss Chase, I do believe that there is a stop on your little tour here that will take you to the Avengers training room. In fact, I’ll make sure of it. And I certainly want to be there when our dearest Avenger gets taken down.” 

“I really don’t think there’s any need for that, really. Wisegirl, you know I don’t think I’m better than you at hand-to-hand combat. In fact I know I’m not as good. There’s really no need to show everybody.” Percy panicked. 

At this point, the elevator returned and the second group loaded in, including Peter and Shuri, who had stayed quiet for most of the encounter. As Peter passed, though, he clapped his hand on Percy’s shoulder, “Good luck, dude.” Accompanied by a grimace. He’d only met Annabeth a few times, but he’s pretty sure she isn’t one to let a challenge like that go by.  

The doors slid shut on the group. Even though it was only a ten second ride (Stark tech did have its perks), everyone shifted uncomfortably in the barely-big-enough elevator. No one uttered a word until the doors opened again and spit them out onto one of the research and development floors. 

All of the students, and even Mr. Gray, were fighting for a position at the observation window to see what the lab ahead of them was working on. Peter and Ned hung out in the back, having already seen this floor, and occasionally worked on it themselves when the scientists needed some help on new tech. 

Moments later, the last group joined them, sans Clint. One look from Percy told Peter they had not seen the last of the archer, though. Upon the arrival of the rest of the group, Lacy continued her monologue. “Here we have one of our research and development labs. This is where we work on lower clearance tech, like new Stark phones, and interns work on solo projects. Mostly this lab is populated by the lower level interns who each have one or two scientists or higher level interns that they check in with.”

Peter froze, again. He forgot about check in leaders. Which wouldn’t be important, except that he himself is a check in leader, and his team works on this floor. In this lab. Not even Percy could get the attention off of him now. 

��Hey, Pete! Can you come check something out for me?” He heard a voice. Looking over, he saw Mikey, one of his team members. 

Looking to his teachers for permission, and taking it from their stunned expressions, Peter nodded once and silently followed Mikey through to the lab. On Mikey’s workstation was a little robot, designed to help people with arthritis in their hands do small tasks, like shoe tying or, hypothetically, writing and typing. 

Mikey pressed the On button, and they both waited for something to happen. Nothing did. “I can’t figure out what’s wrong. It was working fine yesterday.” He said, helplessly. 

“Calm down, let me take a look at the inside.” Peter grabbed a nearby screwdriver and unscrewed the back panel. Inside was a cross of different colored wires and motherboards and circuits and-- there. “There’s a tiny disconnected wire in the back.” Peter fixed Mikey with a look. “This is a simple mistake that you usually catch. What’s up?” He narrowed his eyes and asked “How much  sleep have you gotten recently?”

“Eight hours!” Mikey responded defensively. Another look from Peter and he amended his statement “In the last three days…” 

Peter placed a hand on his intern’s shoulder and began leading him toward the door on the other side of the lab from the elevator. “You know I can’t condone that as both your friend and your check in leader. For both the safety of this lab and your health, I need you to hit the barracks. There is no way that you can safely operate any equipment in this state, much less conduct experiments.” 

They reached the door, and Peter opened it. Inside there were three sets of bunk beds. Mikey nodded and headed for one of the beds, and Peter shut the door behind him. Turning back to Lacy, he said “Please continue the tour, I have something I need to do. I’ll catch up when I’m through.” 

Mr. Gray started to object. “Mr. Parker, this is highly against the rules, and how could you possibly find us or get around the building--” Peter cut her off. 

“Mr. Gray, it’s obvious you don’t believe me about my internship, but I have to call a group meeting right now for the safety of this lab. As for how I will know where you are, FRIDAY will tell me. I practically live in this building and I have a higher access level than our lovely tour guide. Now, if you’ll please excuse me…” Peter no longer seemed like the excitable and cheerful .

He turned around and called his interns’ attention. “Alright. I know not all of you are in my unit, but I think it’s time we do a lab wide check in. So, keep working, but I’m going to check on everyone.”

Clapping her hands, Lacy called everyone’s attention back to her. “While Peter does his job, we are going to continue on. Next, we’re getting a rare treat. We are going to go to the Avenger’s floors and get an exclusive look into the life of an Avenger.” Her eyes sparked with excitement, obviously she was just as excited for this as the children. 

As the words left Lacy’s mouth, Percy’s hand tightened around Annabeth’s. Concerned, she looked at her Seaweed Brain. His face was grim and he leaned down. “A lot of secrets aren’t going to be so secret by the end of this, I guarantee.” 

Annabeth’s stomach dropped. She knew he wasn’t just referring to their secret. That was coming out today anyway. He was talking about Peter’s. Percy and Shuri exchanged concerned looks. Poor Peter. 

As they filed back into their groups, Percy was approached by Flash. “Hey! Jackson!” Percy turned to Flash with an unimpressed gaze. “Uh, I mean, Percy,” He amended. “What the hell is going on with Penis? What did he do to get all of this stuff?” Flash still didn’t believe Peter? Gods almighty, this boy was dumb. 

Percy sighed. “Eugene, Peter works here and he works closely with the Avengers. He got all of that by working hard and studying harder. Get over your jealous bullshit before it bites you in the ass.” 

His teacher snapped “Language, Mr. Jackson. We are guests here and you will not be the reason we get thrown out.” She turned away, making no comment on Flash’s behavior. 

Incredulous, he turned to Annabeth. “I hope she realizes that they aren’t going to kick me out. And that, technically, I could kick her out… right?” 

Annabeth just shrugged. “For all the knowledge your school claims to have, your teachers are pretty stupid.” 

The second group, chaperoned by Shuri, entered the elevator, which left Percy with his class. “FRI, you’re getting all of this footage of Eugene Thompson on film and voice recording, right?” Percy asked, once the doors had closed on Flash’s group. 

The Irish A.I. responded. “Yes, Mr. Jackson. I have already sent the footage to Boss. A Code Spider-Baby has been set in place. 

Percy sighed, once again. Code Spider-Baby meant that the Avengers were mad. And when they were mad, it didn’t end well. “Remind the Avengers that murder is not only immoral, but also illegal.” 

A moment passed. “Boss says that intimidation is not.” 

Percy had no answer. Intimidation of a minor was probably immoral, but there was no stopping protective-father Tony Stark. 

The elevator door dinged as it opened, allowing the third group in. They closed once the last person had filed in, and automatically took them to their destination. Floor 47. Fuck. 

Floor 47 was the Avengers training floor. The door opened and the group rushed out when they saw the set of adults standing there waiting for them. 

None other than Steve Rogers, Bucky Barnes, Natasha Romanoff, and a smirking Clint Barton stood waiting. “Now that everyone is here, let’s begin. Today we’re going to teach you some self defense skills. We’re going to split into groups and cycle through stations. But first, how about a few demonstrations?” 

The class cheered, drowning out the ding of Peter’s arrival. They did not, however, drown out Natasha. “Glad you could join us ребенок пауk.” The class turned around as he entered. 

Peter’s stomach dropped when he saw the glint in every super adults’ eyes. The Captain’s voice boomed as he exclaimed, “Peter! Percy! Why don’t you come help us?” He phrased it in a way that was definitely not a question. 

Resigned to their fate, the two trudged forward. Steve had a shit-eating grin on his face as they made their way to the front. “Why don’t you two choose your own partners?” 

Clint spoke up at this moment. “How about Steve, Annabeth, and Peter, versus Percy, Bucky and Natasha?” 

“What about you?” Annabeth questioned, walking up to join the group, grinning widely. 

Clint grinned innocently. “There’s six of you and that perfectly matches up. Adding me into the mix would only complicate matters.” 

A cough that suspiciously sounded like the word coward came from Bucky’s general direction. 

Rolling his eyes, Peter asked “Full capacity?” with the hint of a grin on his face. The whole class faded from his consciousness. 

Smirking, Natasha replied “Full capacity.” 

Steve called out to FRIDAY “Please activate operations PH2O and PW.” Part of the floor opened up to reveal a large salt-water pool. Parts of the wall and roof came outward. 

The five Avengers and Annabeth squared off. Natasha and Peter faced each other, Percy and Annabeth shared grins across from each other, and Bucky and Steve shook hands before stepping a few feet back from each other. 

“Fight!” Clint called from his place amongst the crowd of children, a place he knew he wouldn’t get dragged into the fight. The group converged at the same time. 

Despite the clash of super soldiers on the far end of the room, the Midtown high group focused on their classmates. Percy and Annabeth were blurs that no one could tell apart as they produced weapons from seemingly nowhere. As the two whirled around in a deadly waltz, Percy’s energy seemed to be flagging. The students watched as he stepped into the pool and seemed to gain his strength back. Slash. Jab. Clang. Their weapons moved with renewed vigor. As they watched, a tidal wave encased both of their legs and lifted them into the air. 

Peter, meanwhile, jumped into action, facing off against the deadly assassin with calm grace. He flipped over her as she struck a low blow to his legs, missing him by half an inch. He whirled around when he landed to face her and brought his leg up in a high kick. Natasha grabbed his standing leg and flipped him on his back. Before she could do anything else, he shot a web at the roof and pulled himself up to stick to the protruding piece of ceiling. He smirked as Natasha looked up at him. “Come down here, ребенок паук” She said in a sing-song voice. 

“You said full capacity, I’m just using my full capacity.” He teased. 

She rolled her eyes and pushed a button on her wrists. The class gasped as the Black Widow fired at their classmate. “Hey!” Peter cried as he leaped from the ceiling to the floor, where Natasha was ready to intercept him with her widow’s bites. She started to swipe at him and he double tapped his watch face. “Karen, activate gauntlets.” Instantly, the nano-tech of his suit wrapped around his forearms. He intercepted the Widow’s Bites with his suit covered arms. He didn’t hear the gasp of his classmates. 

They continued their fight until Natasha had him twisted with his back to her and a knife she grabbed out of nowhere to his throat. They both panted from the exertion of their fight, before grinning. Natasha released him from her hold and he twisted around. “Where did those come from?” She asked. 

“They came from adaptation. Last time we fought, you electrocuted me with those things. I adapted my suit to cover only parts of my body, just like Mr. Stark’s.” He grinned that grin that made the Avengers all fall in love with him in the first place. 

Natasha rumpled his hair and pulled him into a hug. “Brilliant job, ребенок паук.” 

Around them, the other duos came to a stop as well. Annabeth had her drakon-bone sword poised at Percy’s heart, his sword clattering to the floor far below them. Steve and Bucky both stilled with a shield at one throat and a dagger on another. 

The room was still and quiet; a pin could drop and everyone could hear it. Percy and Annabeth’s critiques of their fight as they descended from the water column broke the silence. The students gaped as it lowered them to the floor before calmly splashing back into the pool. 

“Ok, what the fuck?” Flash yelled, a small amount of pure terror glimmering as he looked back and forth between the two students. No teacher reprimanded his language. 

Steve traded a look with the rest of the Avengers. “Now would be a good time to remind you about the non-disclosure agreements you all signed.” He said. “I think we might have to allot a little bit more time to the question and answer portion of this tour.” 

The other Avengers in the room, including Peter and Percy, nodded their heads and they led the group back toward the elevator. The ride in each group was tense and awkward. No one knew how to process the information. Percy and Peter? That girl, Annabeth? What were they? Even Flash was silent. 

Finally all three groups had been corralled into the very same room Percy’s press conference would be held in only a couple of hours later. Silently, the group of Avengers in the tower filed onto the stage, minus Percy and Peter. Nat led the pack, followed by Clint, Steve, Bucky, Tony, Bruce, T’Challa, and Shuri brought up the rear. 

The room sat in silence until Tony said “So who has questions?” Every hand went into the air. 

Tony pointed at one hand in the crowd, and Betty stood up. “Are Percy and Peter Avengers?” 

A pause, before “Is everyone’s question about Percy and Peter?” Tony asked with an exasperated sigh. Everyone but Annabeth nodded their heads. 

Another sigh. “Alright, lets get those two up here, then, to answer your questions.” 

Peter and Percy both made their way up to the small stage. The other Avengers gave them space up front. Only Tony remained, acting as a mediator for the two teens. 

Every hand shook with earnest, trying to get called on, but Tony gestured for Betty to ask her question again. “A-are you two Avengers?” She stuttered. 

The two looked at each other, and Percy saw the anxious look on Peter’s face, so he spoke for them. “Yes.” He said simply, not expanding on the matter until he had to. 

Tony pointed to another hand. Abe stood up. “Uh, Percy, how could you do that stuff with the water? An-and fight like that?” 

Percy took a deep breath. Now was the time. “I fight like that thanks to five years of training with swordsmen far more experienced than I, and obviously, my beautiful girlfriend. I could do that stuff with the water because…” He took a deep breath . “Because I am a demigod. I am half god, half mortal, and my godly parent is Poseidon.” He smiled bravely as the group burst into disbelieving chatter. 

Tony whistled loudly  to draw their attention back. Immediately, hands flew back into the air. Peter’s stomach sank when Tony gestured to someone within Flash’s vicinity, and Flash spoke up. “How come you let Penis Parker and Pussy Jackson into the Avengers? Just because Jackson is supposedly some freak hybrid doesn’t mean he should be in the Avengers. He’s probably never done anything. Not to mention, Penis is some wimp loser. You need someone like me. I’m brilliant and I kick major ass.” He finished smugly, not aware of the glares from the stage, and the single pair of eyes being restrained behind him by a pretty pissed Ned. 

Not letting either boy try to de-escalate the situation, Tony Stark leaned forward, and said in a deadly quiet voice “What did you say about my sons?” 

The grin dropped off of Flash’s face. “S-sons?” 

Tony took on a manic grin. “Oh, yes. Sons. Not only do I know what you just said, we know everything you’ve said within this tower. Now, usually I’m above threatening minors. Usually. But due to your actions today, I think you deserve it. If you ever, and I mean ever, insult, ridicule or diminish in any way my sons, I will personally call every notable university in the world and get you blackballed from admission. And I promise Eugene, you will never, ever have a job at Stark Industries, or any worthwhile company in New York.” 

Flash, much to Peter’s surprise, did not back down. “But what’s so special about them? Penis, especially. He’s not worth anything.” 

Tony went red in the face, and Clint had to hold Natasha back, her weapons drawn already. The other Avengers seemed to be stifling anger as well. “Not worth anything? Buddy, let’s get something straight: Peter Parker is worth everything. Far more than you will ever be. He is the kindest, smartest, most humble and giving person I’ve ever met. This kid is smarter than you, smarter than me, hell, this kid is smarter than Bruce Banner. Not only that, but he would also give anyone the shirt off of his back if they asked him for it. But he’d never brag about it to anyone. You know how I know this kid is the best of his generation? Because not only is he brilliant, he could also boast about his position on the Avengers, but he doesn’t. He could have been like me, and told the whole world who he is, but he didn’t. Now, I think it’s time he does.” Tony finished, leaning back and gesturing to Peter, who stood a little taller after hearing everything Mr. Stark said about him. 

He took a deep breath and tapped his watch face twice. “Karen, activate Iron Spider.” The nano-tech creeped swiftly over his skin until the full Iron Spider suit encased him. The class gasped as they realized who their classmate was. 

“No!” Flash cried, outraged. “There is no way Puny Parker is Spider-Man! This has to be some kind of trick! Penis could never do what Spider-Man does!” 

The marine biology teacher crossed her arms. “Mr. Jackson, Mr. Parker, I think enough is enough. Please apologize for this silly prank and get down off the stage. I don’t know how you pulled this off, but I will be having words with Principal Morita when we return. Now get down.” 

In a flash, Tony’s wrath turned on the teachers, who had clumped together. “And you lousy lot call yourselves teachers? Are you so dense that even after everything you’ve seen today, you still don’t believe them? Percy Jackson and his girlfriend have saved this world more times than me! Peter Parker has saved my ass too many times to count.” Tony looked over the disbelieving eyes of Flash and the teacher. “Alright, you know what? You all signed a non-disclosure agreement, so if you leak anything you’ve seen or heard here, we’ll know it was one of you, and our lawyers will bury you in so many lawsuits, you won’t be getting out of them for decades. Now get out of my tower.” He said sharply. No one moved. “Now!” He shouted. 

Everyone jumped up and filed out of the room as quickly as possible. The last person was Mr. Gray. “Percy, Peter, you heard the man, come along.” 

“I will be keeping them with me. You’ll find I’ve been listed as a guardian for both of them.” Tony said with narrowed eyes. 

Mr. Gray nodded and scampered from the room, leaving only a single, blonde-haired girl sitting in her chair. Percy hopped off the stage to go talk to her. He pulled her to a standing position and into a hug. “Think that was good practice?” He asked. 

She chuckled. “I think most of the attention was on Peter, but yeah, good practice.” 

Tony Stark approached. “And who do we have here?” He asked. 

Percy straightened and grabbed Annabeth’s left hand. “Tony Stark, I’d like for you to meet my amazing girlfriend, Annabeth Chase. Annabeth, this is Tony Stark.” 

Tony smiled and extended his hand. “We’ve heard a lot about you, Miss Chase.” 

“All good things, I hope. I’d love to get you opinions on some of my designs.” Annabeth shook his hand. 

Natasha approached. “You must be Annabeth. Percy never stops talking about you. You’re a spectacular fighter. We should train together sometime.” She winked before walking off again. 

One by one, each of the Avengers introduced themselves. “After what I saw today, I think you would be a valuable member of our team.” Steve said with his Mr. America smile. 

“Ok, but first, the cat’s got to come out of the bag. That goes for a couple of things, I think.” Tony’s face was steeled in determination. 

Curious, Peter turned to Mr. Stark. “What’s the other thing?” He asked. 

“That’s a surprise. Peter, go put on the suit that’s in your room. Percy, the same goes for you. Annabeth--” 

Natasha cut Tony off. “Annabeth can borrow something of mine.” She smiled. Annabeth lit up at the opportunity to talk to the superspy more. 

Tony nodded. “Then that’s settled. We’ll tell the world what it needs to know in an hour and a half.”

****

The crowd of reporters talked animatedly. The Starks were about to announce something big, and no one had an inkling what it was. 

In the antechamber off to the side, Percy paced nervously while Peter sat with his knee bouncing. Percy felt bad for him; at least Percy knew what he was about to announce. Peter had no idea what he was doing here. Mr. Stark hadn’t told him anything.

Annabeth grabbed Percy’s hand and squeezed it comfortingly. “Percy, we’re going to be fine. It’s just like telling a group of new campers.” 

“You’re right. They’re just a bunch of unclaimed new campers who don’t know what they are. With cameras. And a lot of questions. Oh gods, I can’t do this on my own.” Percy’s eyes started looking panicky.

Annabeth grabbed his face and turned it towards her own. “That’s why you’re not alone, Seaweed Brain. You have Peter over here, you have Tony, and you have me. And if we have to, we can Iris Message Chiron and he can help explain. It’s okay.” 

Percy nodded and took deep breaths. Then Tony walked into the room in a tailored suit and his signature glasses. In his hands were two small boxes. 

Tony went immediately over to Peter, who had his head in his hands, covering his ears from all the noise of the reporters. “Kid, I got some things to help you.” He opened the smaller of two boxes. Inside sat two earpieces, like the ones singers and performers wear onstage. They were smaller, though, less perceptible. “They block out all of the useless noise and help you focus on the noise you want to. And these,” He opened the second box, revealing identical glasses to the ones he wore, “just look cool.” When Peter just stared, he thrust the boxes into Peter’s hands. “Take them. They’re yours to keep. Use them whenever you need them.” 

Peter gingerly took the boxes. “Thank you, Dad.” He hadn’t meant to say it , but he paid no attention to Tony’s reaction as he fit the earpieces into his ears and put on the glasses. Immediately, he sighed with relief, quickly followed by a gasp of surprise as the glasses turned on. Analytics scanned across his eyes. He realized that Karen had been programmed into the glasses, and that he now had her at any time he wanted. He got up and hugged and a still-stunned Tony, who slowly hugged him back. 

They embraced for a moment before Tony’s watch beeped. “It’s go-time, kids. You guys wait here until I announce you. Peter, you’ll know when to come out.” He winked at Peter. 

Tony opened the door and stepped out and up onto the stage. “Welcome, everybody, to this press conference. Today we have a few announcements from a few different people, including one from me. So without further ado, allow me to introduce our newest Avengers, Percy Jackson and Annabeth Chase.” 

The pair traded glances. When did Annabeth officially become an Avenger? They stepped out the door and into the hoard of flashing lights and screaming reporters. They walked up to the podium set up with a dozen microphones, ready to capture their truths. 

Percy cleared his throat and everyone settled. “Hi, everyone, my name is Percy Jackson and this is my girlfriend, Annabeth Chase, and we are demigods.” The crowd jumped into a frenzy, shouting questions and snapping pictures. 

Tony came back to the microphone. “Everyone calm down and raise your hands like civilized people. Thank you.” the crowd calmed slightly. 

Annabeth pointed to a blonde haired reporter. “What do you mean by demigod?” 

“We are the product of relations between gods and mortals. We are half god or goddess and half mortal.” She answered. 

Pointing to another sandy-haired reporter. “Who are your godly parents?” 

Percy answered. “I am the son of Poseidon and Annabeth is the daughter of Athena.” 

A dark hair reporter stood up with no prompt. “What good do you bring to humanity? Why shouldn’t you be subject to tests or wiped out completely? Do you pose a danger to us?” 

Percy took a deep, calming breath, then launched into their story. “Our kind has spent centuries fighting monsters and wars. In the past few years, myself, Annabeth, and several other brave demigods fought multiple primordial beings that tried to take over the world, resulting in tolling wars. We’ve been key characters in those  wars and history in general, and you would be amazed to find out how many historical figures were demigods. We don’t pose any kind of direct threat to the mortal world, we’ve been saving it for centuries. Next question.” 

A curly haired reporter stood. “What benefit do you bring to the Avengers?” 

Annabeth took this question. “We are skilled fighters who train from the time we discover our identity to now. We have demigods who have been training constantly for ten or more years. We also have knowledge of and weapons that can kill monsters” 

The next question came from a raven-haired reporter. “How many of your kind are there?” 

“Fewer now, thanks to the last couple of wars, but our numbers grow every time a new demigod child is born. There are many kinds of demigod, Roman, Greek, Norse, and probably more that we don’t know about yet. Annabeth and I are Greek, but we have friends and family from other pantheons.” 

Annabeth leaned forward to speak. “This will be the last question, thank you.” 

The final question came from a reporter up front. “Why tell us now? You’ve kept the secret for so long, why now?” 

Annabeth answered. “We’ve kept our secret for so long thanks to something called the Mist. It’s a veil between the mortal world and our own. Unfortunately, I received word today that the Mist will finally fall at any moment, and we wanted to make the world aware on our terms.” 

There was a flurry of movement as the reporters tried to ask more questions, but Tony, once again, stepped forward. “That will be all for this segment of the press conference.” The two filed off, disappearing back to the antechamber. They both breathed a sigh a relief that it was over, even if the effects of everything they just announced would last for the rest of their lives. 

Onstage, they heard Tony calming down the crowd. “Now, I have an announcement, myself. For this, I’d like to bring out my personal intern, Peter Parker.” 

Peter braced himself and stepped into the room, hesitant smile on his face. Mr. Stark was standing at the podium and gestured for Peter to join him. “Ladies and gentlemen, and those who identify as neither, I give you my heir to Stark Industries!” 

Whipping his head around, Peter came face to face with a beaming Tony Stark. Him? Heir to Stark Industries? Surely Mr. Stark didn’t mean it… He glanced back toward the crowd of reporters and gave them a brave smile. 

“Peter will not be taking questions at this time. I’m afraid he just received this news as well. Thank you everyone for coming today, this now concludes our press conference.” Tony led the dazed teenager off the stage.

They entered the antechamber and Percy clapped him on the back to congratulate him. Tony didn’t stop in the antechamber, he led Peter all the way to the elevator and then into their lab before either of them talked. 

“You ok, Pete?” Mr. Stark finally asked. 

“Ok? Mr. Stark, I’m in shock, I’m overwhelmed, but yes, I’m ok. I was just given the most prestigious honor I could ever imagine. Your heir? I mean… wow. Although this means I’m going to have to triple major or something. I was already going to double major in chemical and mechanical engineering and now I’ll probably need to add business so I can run the other side of things… Unless you’re leaving that half to someone else, of course, then please disregard everything I’ve said--” 

Mr. Stark cut him off. “Pete! You’re rambling. It’s just you, but don’t worry about anything just yet. You’re not taking over tomorrow. You’ve got time.” 

Peter took another deep breath to calm down, then turned to Mr. Stark and pulled him into another hug. They both melted into each other. “Thank you, Mr. Stark.”

Mr. Stark buried his head in his kids shoulder and smiled. “You’re welcome, kid, you’re welcome.” 

[iron--spider]

harm and foul (whumptober - laced drink)

The ever-present soundtrack of hard rock pulses through the room, despite the fact that most people are just standing around in small groups talking to each other. No one’s dancing. It’s another AC/DC song, Peter thinks—he isn’t completely sure. It’s Tony’s birthday, and just about every superhero known to man is here, all of them mingling with each other in the kind of scene any reporter would shit themselves over. Peter had been worried about the possibility of someone attacking them while they’re all gathered in one place, but Tony assured him that he had contingencies, and left it at that. 

 But Peter isn’t worrying about that anymore. He’s staring over at Tony, who seems to be getting a gentle verbal-lashing from Pepper before she presses a hard kiss to his forehead, leaving him behind and on his own again. Tony’s been acting strange as hell for the past half hour or so—he was completely normal, talking to everyone, having fun, and then he—wasn’t. Then he got weird, started sitting alone, swaying and laughing at people who passed him by, no matter who they were. 

 Peter doesn’t like it.

 “I just talked to Maria Hill and I’m dead, Peter,” Ned says, throwing himself over the back of the couch. “I’m dead.”

 “Mhm,” Peter grunts, still staring at Tony.

 “What are you doing?” Ned says. He smacks him in the arm. “I know you’re around these people all the time, but I’m not, and I need you to be more excited.”

 “Only like six of these people know who I really am, not including you,” Peter says, in a hushed breath.

 “Is he acting weird?” Ned asks, and Peter glances down at him, sees him looking at Tony now too. “Why do you keep staring at him?”

 “He’s acting weird,” Peter says, watching as Tony covers his face with a very limp hand. 

 “Maybe he’s just a little drunk,” Ned says, hitting Peter again. “I mean, it’s his birthday, Peter, cut him some slack.”

 “He barely drinks nowadays, even on special occasions,” Peter says. His spidey sense is going off like crazy, and he doesn’t understand what else it could possibly be. There’s no way there’s someone in here that shouldn’t be, is there? Peter sighs, glancing down at Ned. “I don’t know, I feel weird. I feel like something’s wrong.”

 “Is, uh, Miss Potts worried?” Ned asks, finally tuning in for real.

 “I think she’s distracted,” Peter says. “She’s the one that always oversees this stuff and I know the party is so great because she planned every bit of it, so, it’s—I think she’s distracted. Plus they’ve got that merger deal thing whatever corporate blah blah coming up this week and that’s weighing on her too. I mean, she was over there talking to him. I think she knows something’s off, but she’s got eight hundred things on her plate as usual.”

 “What about his other close besties?” Ned asks. “Like the me’s and you’s?”

 Peter searches out Happy and Rhodey in the crowd, and finds them over by the third buffet table, and they’re both looking at Tony too. Their gazes are narrowed and they’re whispering back and forth at each other, and Peter knows just from the way they look that they’re thinking along the same lines he is.

 “They seem suspicious,” Ned says. He climbs over the couch awkwardly, and stands next to Peter. “Does Tony even like big parties like this? I feel like the last one you told me about—”

 “Since the whole saving the world thing he likes to be around everybody a lot just to make sure they’re all good,” Peter says, knowing because Tony discussed the party with him ahead of time to make sure he’d be okay being around so many superheroes. Let’s not do fanboy mode. Spider-Man’s cooler than all of them, anyway. “We’re doing the family party on Sunday afternoon.”

 “Aww,” Ned says.

 Peter sighs. “Back to the matter at hand—I’m going over there. Something’s wrong, he’s not drunk, it’s—it’s something else. I don’t know.”

 “If there’s a bad guy here—you know what, I feel safe,” Ned says, looking over as Thor and Bruce pass him by. “I think I’ll make it.”

 “Be right back.” Peter says. He weaves around the chattering groups, watching as Tony yawns big and long. Peter is a little bit irritated that nobody is around him right now, on his birthday, especially the first fucking one after he saved the damn world. They’re lucky he’s still alive. They’re lucky he has both arms. They’re lucky he’s even here. People should constantly be gathered around him listening to his stories because he’s the coolest person here. It’s his birthday. Just another example of Tony being criminally underappreciated, and it makes Peter’s face go red with anger.

 “Hey, lookit you, short stuff,” Tony says, grinning at him as Peter comes closer. “What’s wrong? Why’re—why’re we so fired up?” He sways when he talks and the chair he’s sitting on swivels dangerously.

 Peter sits next to him, holding him by his shoulders. “Tony—”

 “Remember when you would only call me Mr. Stark?” Tony laughs. “God, kid, we literally had to go through hell and back to get you to stop that shit—”

 “You haven’t been drinking tonight, right?” Peter asks, and Tony keeps laughing, swaying back and forth. “I didn’t see—”

 “I mean, I guess,” Tony says, his eyes widening. “I don’t—shit, I don’t remember. Must have, right? Feeling like this.”

 “What do you feel like?” Peter asks. 

 “Like a scrambled egg on the sidewalk on a sunny day,” Tony says. He meets Peter’s eyes again and snorts, shaking his head. “You’re an incredible human being, you know that, Pete? You know that? I hope you know that.”

 Peter laughs a little bit. “Yeah, so are you, but right now—”

 “No, no, for real,” Tony says, leaning over until he’s completely off his chair, and Peter has to move with him, because he’s not staying upright. “You make me so proud, kid, you’re the best of us, all of us, even Captain Moral Fiber.”

 Compliments are always disarming to Peter, especially from Tony, and he remembers Ned saying once how people tell the truth when they’re drunk, but that reminds him that Tony isn’t drunk, he doesn’t even smell like he’s drunk, and something’s wrong, something’s wrong, compliments aside. 

 “Tony, something’s wrong,” Peter says. He holds him up, and starts to march him over to Rhodey and Happy, but then Tony stops him with a hand on his chest.

 “Nope,” Tony says. His face goes a little green. “Uh. Shit, Pete—” He snorts, rolling his eyes, and covers his mouth with his free hand. “Uh. Would rather not puke in the middle of all these people—”

 “Okay,” Peter says, breath catching in his throat. “Okay, bathroom.”

 They’re starting to gather looks, which makes Peter angrier, because no one was paying attention to Tony a moment before and it’s his damn birthday, and Happy, Rhodey and Pepper immediately converge on them as Peter veers towards the hallway where the bathroom is. 

 “What the hell is going on?” Happy asks. “He’s been acting weird as all hell—”

 “Ever since he was talking to Fury,” Rhodey says, following close behind.

 “Babe—” Pepper starts, her hand on Tony’s back.

 “I think someone spiked his drink,” Peter says, glancing around at the three of them as Tony leans into in, gagging a little into his own hand. Peter tries to speed up, even though he wouldn’t blame him if he puked before they get to their destination. 

 Everyone starts talking all at once, and there’s a lot of cursing and exclaiming which makes Tony laugh, and gag again. 

 “Who in fresh hell—”

 “All we’ve got in here are literal heroes, magazine cover heroes—”

 “You think it was a prank? Like that time Clint gave everybody the pot brownies?”

 “Honey, Tony, you said you’d had three goddamn vodka tonics—”

 “He has no idea what he’s talking about,” Peter says, hoisting him up a little higher. They’re only steps away from the bathroom but it feels like it’s gonna take ten years to get there, and the hallway seems small and loud despite the fact that they’ve left the party behind. 

 “Hey, hey, Spidey,” Tony protests, but then he heaves again.

 Peter clicks his tongue and keeps talking. “I’ve had a bad feeling for a while, looking at him, I don’t even think he was drinking—”

 “He’s been on that tomato juice kick for a while,” all four of them say at once. 

 “Jesus, he’s gonna puke any minute—” Rhodey says. 

 “Go look around for anybody weird,” Peter says. “I don’t think it’s a prank, I’ve got—I’ve got a bad feeling. I said that, but, yeah.”

 “On it,” Rhodey says, patting Tony on the shoulder and turning to head back towards the party. 

 Pepper pets the base of Tony’s neck and Happy pushes the bathroom door open when they get there. “Happy,” she says. “Can you go watch the cameras please? Go over the last, maybe, hour and a half?”

 “Got it,” Happy says.

 “Ugh, so fucking embarrassing,” Tony mutters, and Peter rushes him into the nearest stall and makes sure he doesn’t slam his face into the toilet before he spills his guts into it. “Jesus, sorry, kiddo.”

 “Don’t apologize, someone roofied you,” Peter says, glancing back as Pepper stands in the entrance to the stall, her eyes worried.

 “God, no, no way,” Tony says, and he laughs, puking again. “This isn’t—fuck—this isn’t college. Where’s—oh Jesus—where’s Rhodey?”

 “Trying to help you,” Pepper says. “Dammit, I should have realized something was off, baby, I’m sorry.”

 “I wouldn’t have realized if I didn’t have a literal built in alarm system,” Peter says, looking back at her. He watches as Tony flops down, leaning against the stall wall.

 “Why the fuck did we put stalls in here, baby?” Tony asks, looking up at Pepper as he wipes his mouth with the back of his hand. “Why? This is—this is—living quarters—” He doesn’t finish his sentence, just widens his eyes and holds out his hands. 

 Pepper chews on her lower lip, and glances at Peter. “Peter, sweetheart, I’ll be right back, can you stay with him? I’ll be right back. I’m gonna go get him a change of clothes and maybe kick everybody out. And ask Helen how we can flush this out of his system.”

 “I’ll be right here,” Peter says, nodding at her. 

 “I love you!” Tony calls after her. “Light of my life!”

 “Love you too,” she yells, and Peter hears the door close. 

 He sighs, looking at Tony. “Tell me if you need to puke again,” he says. 

 Tony narrows his eyes at him, and he’s still swaying despite the fact that he’s sitting and leaning on something. “Yeah,” he says. “Try not to puke on you.”

 “I think we can move past it,” Peter says, smiling a little bit.

 Tony snorts. “You’re all angry tonight, webs,” he says. “Like a little—mini Hulk. Go tell Bruce, we’ve got mini Hulk.”

 Peter shakes his head, and looks at him hard, trying to get him to focus for just a second. “Tony, there’s like, a bad guy here or something. I don’t think anyone would genuinely roofie you for fun, and I’m like 95 percent sure that you got roofied—”

 “I’m thankful for your service,” Tony says, smiling at him. “Always on my team. Amazing. I’m—kid, I’m bursting with pride. I’m telling May. You deserve—something. I don’t know. A new Lego set. A car.”

 Peter really doesn’t wanna laugh at him, considering the situation, and he ducks his head down and tries really, really hard to stifle his giggles. “I’m gonna go wet a towel so you can wipe your face,” he says. He pats Tony’s knee. “Stay there.”

 “Staying,” Tony says. 

 Peter pushes himself to his feet, trying to sort through all the insanity in his head. He walks over to the sink and grabs one of the fancy red towels, putting it under the tap and running the water.

 “Uh, Pete,” Tony says. 

 “Yeah?” Peter asks, making sure the water isn’t hot. “You okay?”

 “There’s—”

 Something hits him hard in the back of his head before he hears the end of Tony’s sentence, and he hits the counter, his face smashing into the mirror. The blow would have knocked anyone else the fuck out, but Peter just blinks around the hazy dizziness, turning and immediately grabbing Whoever The Hell This Is by the throat, shoving them against the wall. 

 “Holy fuck,” the dude says, trying to swat at Peter’s hand. “What the hell? Who the hell are you?”

 Peter’s got glass in his face and he winces as he reaches up and plucks it out, tossing it back towards the counter. He hears Tony stumbling around, trying to get to his feet, and Peter stares at the asshole in front of him. He looks—familiar. Like Peter’s seen him somewhere before. He’s wearing a black hoodie, like he thought that would help him be stealth.

 “Justin fucking Hammer,” Tony says, crawling out of the stall and wincing like everything is too bright. “What the fuck—”

 “Anthony, who is this twink? Why’s he so strong?”

 “He’s—wait, Justin Hammer?” Peter exclaims, holding him tighter and shoving him harder against the wall. “This is the guy with the drones! From the Expo! The one that almost killed me!”

 “That shit still—fries my brain,” Tony says, bracing himself against the wall and pushing himself up. 

 “Why is he so strong?” Hammer whisper-yells.

 “He’s Spider-Man,” Tony shrugs, yawning again. 

 Peter’s head whips around so hard that it nearly snaps off his shoulders, and Tony grits his teeth when their eyes meet, like he knows what he did. Peter sighs, heavily, and knows he can’t blame him for anything he does while he’s like this. But future Tony is gonna be real pissed at his Roofied self. 

 “Well,” Hammer says. “Okay, that, that makes—”

 Peter directs his anger to Hammer. “You did this,” he says. “You did this to him.”

 “Well, yeah,” Hammer says, still holding onto Peter’s arm with both of his hands. “I mean, who did you think did it? Thor? For shits and giggles?”

 “Why did you do it?” Peter says, getting closer to him, trying to be menacing. “Are you stupid or something? There are a billion superheroes here—”

 “And look how far I got,” Hammer says, tilting his head at Peter.

 “Pete, he’s nothing,” Tony says, trying to gesture towards him, and he yawns again. “He’s a rat. Jesus, I’m tired.”

 “I just wanted to get Anthony’s help with something,” Hammer says, scoffing. “I was gonna kidnap him—just for a couple hours, Jesus—and force some, uh, advice out of him, for a newly escaped convict, and then I was gonna drop him off, no harm, no foul—”

 “A lot of harm and foul,” Peter says, almost nose to nose with him now. He points over at Tony with his free hand. “You drugged him. You messed him up!”

 “Oh, it’s fine. A little concoction of my own making, very proud, very proud. And Jesus, it was too easy, frankly, for the supposed security this place claims,” Hammer says. “Hogan should be ashamed. Ashamed. I got all the way up here, got to the prize himself, drugged him in front of all these assholes—” He stops talking so he can laugh, and Peter’s blood boils.

 “Hey, Pete, you’re bleeding,” Tony says, his brows furrowing. He stares for a long second, tons of emotions flickering across his face. He looks back at Hammer, and rushes at him before Peter can do anything, tackling Hammer to the ground.

 “Stupid asshole,” Tony says, punching Hammer in the face, though, in his current state, it doesn’t look like it lands with much finesse. “Making my kid bleed—”

 Hammer turns up his nose. “Tony, Tony, this is great, real fun,” he says, patting Tony’s waist. “But—”

 Peter quickly pulls Tony off of him with hands hooked under his arms, and he deposits him behind him quickly. Tony is still trying to throw punches. Peter turns, just as Hammer is trying to scramble to the door, and Peter punches him square in the nose. This one lands a little better than Tony’s did, and Hammer unceremoniously crumples back down to the tile, unconscious. 

 The door opens quickly, and hits Hammer in the side of the head.

 “Hey,” Tony yells, as Happy appears in the doorway. “You’re supposed to knock.”

 “What the fuck is this?” Happy asks, and he pushes his way inside, with Pepper and Rhodey on his heels. 

 Peter moves over to help Tony back to his feet and God, he smells like puke. Peter holds onto him anyway, and figures he’s gonna be totally out in just a little bit, if the yawning is any indication.

 “He broke in, somehow,” Peter says, as Pepper moves to Tony’s other side and supports him. “I don’t know, he was trying to kidnap Tony. He gave him something.”

 “Peter’s bleeding,” Tony announces, kicking out one foot, trying to shove Hammer’s leg away. “Red alert. Priority one.”

 Peter’s face goes a little hot. 

 “When the hell did this dickhead even get out of prison?” Rhodey asks, staring down at him. “How? They wouldn’t have released him and I can’t picture him staging an escape—”

 “He did,” Peter says. “He told us. No idea, but we gotta—take care of Tony, like now.” He’s so exasperated.

 “And the blood,” Tony says. “My kid is bleeding, fuck’s sake.”

 “Helen’s waiting for us, we’ll move up to the med wing,” Pepper says, patting Tony on the back. “We’ll take care of both of you.”

 “We’ll take out the trash,” Happy says, glaring down at Hammer. 

 ~

 Tony falls asleep after five minutes with Helen, and there isn’t much to do other than give him fluids and some oxygen and wait for him to wake up. Happy and Rhodey make sure to make Tony’s closer friends feel accordingly bad about not noticing what was going on, and then they immediately start on upping security. Thor and Nat handle Hammer, while Clint finds out just how in fresh hell he got out of The Raft.

 Peter and Pepper wait for Tony to wake up. 

 Peter has three text threads going: one with May, who’s on her way. One with Ned, who is still way too excited to have been a part of this at all. And one with Natasha, who swears Hammer won’t ever reveal Peter’s identity. Or escape from prison again. And Peter is sure that she wouldn’t be saying it if she didn’t mean it.

 Hours and hours go by, and Tony snores. Pepper encourages Peter to sleep too, and he only wakes up once, when May brushes his hair back and kisses his forehead. He smiles at her, glances at Tony to make sure he’s still out, and then he drifts off again. 

 “Buddy.”

 Someone is shaking Peter gently, a familiar hand on his arm. 

 “Pete.”

 Peter gasps awake when he realizes it’s Tony who’s talking to him. Tony smiles, and he looks a lot better than he did the last time Peter saw him—he’s sitting up in bed now, only a little pale. Peter scoots his chair closer, smiling back. He sees May and Pepper out in the hallway, talking to Happy. 

 “Kid,” Tony says, with a sigh. “I don’t remember one single thing about the party, which is a feeling I thought I’d left far, far in the past, but apparently dumbass Justin Hammer decided to come in and wreak some havoc.”

 “He’s the worst,” Peter says. 

 “Yeah, Happy’s real embarrassed that he even got in here,” Tony says. “So is everybody else, apparently. Pepper’s been taking lots of calls.”

 “I mean, hopefully one of us would have taken him out if he actually got a hold of you,” Peter says. He shudders to think.

 “You did all that,” Tony says. “They told me everything. You took care of it, you noticed, you knocked the hell out of him, all the while dealing with a very drugged-up me.”

 Peter shakes his head. “My spidey sense was going crazy and I just—I don’t know, you were acting weird. I wasn’t sure if you were gonna drink at the party but it just—I don’t know, it didn’t feel like regular drunk. Not that I know anything about being drunk.”

 “You’re the damn hero,” Tony says, looking at him fondly. “And I’m the asshole who told Hammer your identity. I’m sorry, Pete, Jesus.”

 “You couldn’t help it,” Peter says. “For real. He messed you up.”

 Tony nods, grimacing. “I literally cannot believe I allowed Justin Hammer to lace my drink. Him. Of all people. It’s like—an infant getting the better of you in a card game.”

 “He was stupid and I didn’t like him.”

 Tony snorts. “But for real, and everybody’s saying it—something really bad could have happened if it wasn’t for you. That guy’s an idiot but he’s an idiot with a grudge. So thank you. I’m really proud of you. You—you had my back, kid.”

 “Of course,” Peter says, grinning. I always will.

 “And whatever dumb shit I did, just—embarrassing shit, forget about it, okay? Wipe it from your mind.”

 “Oh no, you gave me primary control of all your suits and workshops,” Peter says. “And while you were sleeping I locked you out entirely. So there’s that.”

 Tony narrows his eyes but he grins, sinking a little lower into his bed. “Alright, I guess I deserve that. You’re the only one with any kind of awareness around here.”

 Peter laughs, palming the back of his neck. “The family birthday party is gonna be way better. Nobody weird is gonna break in and it’ll just—it’ll just be better.”

 “Definitely,” Tony says. He looks at Peter for a long moment, a soft smile on his face. “I mean, when it really comes down to it—you guys are all I need. And a new damn security system.”

 Peter grins. “Well, Happy’s on that. His pride is at stake. And oh, I forgot. You owe me a new Lego set. You promised, so.” He doesn’t mention the car.

 “You can have seven new Lego sets, how’s that?” Tony says, raising his eyebrows at him. 

 “I’m kidding, I’m kidding,” Peter says.

 “I’m not,” Tony says, throwing his legs over the side of the bed. “You deserve Legos and Legos you shall have. Now let’s go, I need some of that birthday cake. There better be some left, after what the hell I’ve gone through.”

 Peter gets up, walking alongside him. “Oh, I called down to make sure they saved you the second tier.”

 Tony beams at him, slinging an arm around his shoulders. “Pete. You really are my hero.”

[tsuki-chibi]

Avengers Valentine’s Fic: Six Hands are Better than Two

Read it on AO3!

--------

When her cup of tea was ready, Pepper carried it over to the table and sat down. She took a careful, too-hot sip, then set her cup down and looked at the tablet sitting in front of her. This was it. The moment of truth. Despite of her nerves, her hands remained remarkably steady as she picked up the tablet and unlocked it. The first file opened seamlessly, and she scanned it with a critical eye.

She knew exactly what she was looking for. The biggest issue was finding it. The first few she dismissed out of hand due to various health problems. The fifth file showed a man with blond hair; she lingered over that one for a minute before flicking past, knowing that she would prefer someone with darker hair. The sixth was passed over for the same reason. Then she landed on the seventh, showing a striking man with dark brown hair, blue eyes, and a broad smile with straight, white teeth.

“Not him. Too much like a movie star.”

Pepper shrieked and jumped about a foot in the air. “Tony! What the hell?!”

Tony laughed as he sat down beside her, close enough to steal the tablet but out of range of any punches. “I asked JARVIS to tell me when you started looking at the profiles,” he said smugly. “I wanted to see too.”

“JARVIS, you traitor,” Pepper muttered without any heat.

“My apologies, Ms. Potts, but Sir was most persuasive.”

Knowing what that meant, Pepper shook her head. “Tony, you have got to stop threatening to sell them to MIT,” she said, exasperated. “One of these days JARVIS is going to take you seriously and have himself voluntarily moved, and then where will you be?”

“J loves me too much for that,” Tony said dismissively, continuing to flick through. “Is this really all you have to choose from? Slim pickings.”

Pepper sighed and rested her cheek on her hand. “Well, fewer men are donating sperm now,” she said frankly. “People are nervous about having biological children showing up on their doorstep in twenty years.” She could appreciate that fear, but it made this process no less frustrating.

When she had first decided that she wanted a baby, Pepper had thought long and hard about her choices. As an aromantic woman, she had absolutely zero interest in a relationship. She liked sex – was rather good at sex, actually – but that was about the extent of it. And no one night stand or frequent booty call was going to agree to have a baby with her without bringing feelings into the mix. Eventually they’d want more: they’d want a relationship, the whole 2.5 kids and white picket fence, and the thought made her skin crawl.

No romance. No relationships. Just a kid. That was harder to get than she had anticipated. She had done quite a bit of research into adoption, but every place she had reached out to had unapologetically informed her that they were reluctant to adopt a child to a single woman. She probably could’ve paved the way by throwing money at the situation, but she was loathe to do that when she’d already be facing a ton of media scrutiny as it was.

There was also surrogacy as an option, but Pepper was more than willing to carry the baby herself. It was Rhodey who had suggested that she go to a donation clinic. Pepper hadn’t seen any harm in looking to see what was available; she wasn’t committing herself just by looking. But she hadn’t anticipated how lackluster it would be. Did she really want to choose the father of her child like she’d pick out a pair of shoes?

Well, no. Of course she didn’t. But she was running out of options – and time. She was turning thirty-five after this year, so she was approaching the threshold where pregnancies were a higher risk. She was already aware she was probably only going to do this once, so she had to make it count. This was the best resort. She held a hand out for the tablet back, but Tony shook his head.

“Seriously, Pep, you don’t have to go with one of these losers,” he said.

“Then how else am I supposed to make it happen? I am not interested in a relationship,” Pepper said, a bit more forcefully than was necessary considering who she was talking to, but she was so damn sick of having to repeat herself. People thought there was something wrong with a woman who didn’t want a relationship. There was a reason she and Tony had covered for each other for as long as they did.

“I know you’re not,” Tony said, far more kindly than she deserved, and Pepper’s shoulders slumped.

“Sorry. I didn’t mean to bite your head off,” she said. Out of everyone, Tony knew exactly what it was like to fall short of people’s expectations. He had cultivated a reputation as a slut early on to keep people from figuring out that the infamous Tony Stark had no interest in sex: he would bring drunk women home with him and then put them to bed. Anyone who remembered going to bed alone never wanted to admit that Tony hadn’t slept with them, so they’d make up stories. And she was pretty sure the sex tapes had been faked.

After Afghanistan, when Tony could no longer bear the idea of bringing strangers home, he and Pepper had officially become a couple to give them both some relief. Unofficially Pepper had cultivated a few discreet fuck buddies, while Tony had been content to remain alone. Their agreement had worked very well to keep them both from being bothered by the media, or worse hunted by prospective partners, until Tony met Dr. Stephen Strange.

Pepper had seen the writing on the wall from the moment they returned home from the fight on Titan, having been victorious. Stephen looked at Tony like Tony was something precious, and Tony’s eyes lit up whenever Stephen walked into a room. Naturally, the two of them had awkwardly danced around each other for a few months before Pepper got impatient and forced them to talk it out.

“That’s okay. I get it. Hell, no one gets it better than me,” Tony said. He set the tablet down and looked at her seriously. “What if I offered to do it?”

Her eyebrows jumped. “You’re gonna have sex with me. You.”

“Eww, no,” Tony said, making a face. “But I’d happily donate some of my sperm to the cause. Stephen says that the whole process is way more advanced than it used to be, but that there’s plenty of room for improvement… maybe he and I will take a look at it and see if we can’t figure something out.”

“If anyone could do it, it would be you too,” Pepper said, still reeling from the offer. “You… you’d seriously want a baby?”

“I’ve been thinking about it. I know you and I didn’t work out, but I still think any kid of ours would be awesome.” Tony gave a small smile that quickly faded as he added, “I mean, I understand if you don’t want to. I’ll probably end up being a shitty dad –”

“Tony, no. That’s not it. Anyone who sees you with Peter knows you’re a wonderful dad,” Pepper said immediately.

“It’s not really the same,” Tony mumbled, looking embarrassed.

“Yes, it is and you know it. He literally calls you and Stephen ‘dad’,” Pepper pointed out.

“But we didn’t raise him,” Tony said. He shook his head. “Anyway, I just wanted you to know that the offer is there if you’re interested.”

Pepper hummed softly. “What did Stephen say?”

“He’s okay with it. You can talk to him about it if you want to, which you probably should.”

“He’s ready to be a parent?” Pepper asked. “Or are you just looking to make a donation and that’s all?”

“No, we want to be parents with you. Midnight feedings and all. You could move into a room on our floor, and we can set the baby up in the room between us and you. That way, we can help equally. And you’d still be able to go back to your floor when you needed a break,” Tony explained, sounding adorably eager.

“You’re really serious about this,” Pepper said, amazed. At one time, Tony hadn’t been sure that he wanted to be a father at all. That was all Howard Stark’s influence as far as Pepper was concerned. She knew that Tony would be a great dad, but Tony was petrified that he was going to turn out like his father. Having Peter around had done wonders for Tony’s confidence in that regard.

“I am… but only if you’re okay with it. I get that it could be awkward or uncomfortable,” Tony said. “I mean… Stephen and I would still be Avengers and everything.” He looked up uncertainly.

“Let me think about it,” Pepper said slowly. “Is that okay?”

“Sure. Take all the time you need.” He stood up, passed her the tablet, and ambled causally out of the room. Only someone who knew him well, like Pepper did, could recognize how tense he was as he went. He really, really wanted this, she realized.

“JARVIS, have Tony and Stephen really talked about this?” Pepper asked.

“Yes, Ms. Potts. In great detail,” JARVIS replied. “Dr. Strange has just arrived home. Would you like to speak with him?”

“Please,” Pepper said. She believed Tony when he said that Stephen was okay with this, but she wanted to be sure before she even started considering this. She didn’t want a baby to be the thing that came between Tony and the only person he’d ever seriously fallen in love with.

It was only a few minutes before Stephen joined her in the kitchen. He was wearing his uniform, minus the Cloak, and looked tired. Pepper waved him to the table and got up to make herself another cup of tea. She also poured one for Stephen. Unlike Tony, who might as well have had coffee in his veins considering how much of the stuff he drank, Stephen preferred tea. When she turned around, Stephen had picked up the tablet and was flipping through the profiles. Pepper rolled her eyes.

“See anyone interesting?” she asked, sitting again.

“I see some people who may have lied on their applications,” Stephen said critically, stopping at one profile and frowning down at it. “Besides, I believe the more important question is whether you’ve seen anyone interesting.”

“I didn’t get very far before Tony interrupted me,” she admitted. “He had a proposition.”

Stephen didn’t look surprised. “He mentioned he was planning to bring it up today. What did you think?”

“I’m not opposed to the idea,” Pepper said carefully. In truth, it was the best option she’d heard yet. “But I wanted to see what you thought. This isn’t just between me and Tony. I know Tony; he’ll want to be there 100%. And that effectively makes you a father too.”

“It does,” Stephen agreed, his blank expression giving nothing away.

“So… are you okay with that?” Pepper said. “Is that something you want? If it’s not, now is the time to say it.”

“I never imagined I would have a child,” Stephen told her. His hands shook as he lifted his cup. “Particularly after the accident. I lost all interest in sex after that, and a couple of the medications that I’m on would make it difficult for me to get someone pregnant.”

Pepper nodded, having already known this. Tony had told her in confidence after she professed worry over how the two of them would get on, what with Tony’s complete lack of interest in sex. Stephen wasn’t asexual, or at least he didn’t claim the label for himself, but based on what Tony said he was pretty adamant about never wanting to have sex. Luckily, that suited Tony perfectly fine.

“But that doesn’t mean I’m not intrigued by the idea. I like having Peter around. I like seeing the joy that Peter’s presence brings to both Tony and myself. I would very much enjoy raising a child. We’ve talked about adoption, but then when you started looking into donations, Tony suggested this could be a convenient solution for all of us.” Stephen hesitated briefly. “My one concern is that I’m not sure how much help I would be at first. My hands…” He trailed off, grimacing.

“It’s fine,” Pepper said gently. “Tony and I will be there. Hell, there are plenty of people in the tower to help. And trust me, there is still plenty you could do.”

“So you’re considering it?” he asked.

“Well… yes, I am. Some people might think it’s crazy… my mom sure will. But I really want a baby, and I like the idea of my child being a part of someone I know and love,” she said. “Even better if it’s Tony, because I know him so well. Plus, Tony brings you to the table as well. The idea of three parents instead of being a single mom sweetens the pot significantly.” She smiled to show that she was teasing, even though she was partially serious.

Stephen smiled too. “Give it some thought. You don’t need to decide right away.” He sat back, rubbing his neck. “JARVIS, where is Tony?”

“Sir is in the workshop.”

Pepper and Stephen exchanged exasperated looks, and then Stephen stood up. “I better go get him out of there, or he’ll pull another all-nighter.”

“Please do,” Pepper said, standing up herself. She picked up her tablet as Stephen left, and did a quick pass through all of the profiles. Some of them sounded impressive, but… she cast a thoughtful look at the door and hummed under her breath as she washed her cup out and set it in the dishwasher.

She did a lot of thinking over the next couple of days. She talked to Rhodey, who was very much in support of the idea, and she talked to her mother, who was very much not. And she also spent some time looking seriously at the files that the agency had given her, trying to decide who she might pick if she decided not to take Tony up on his offer. The problem was, Stephen’s skepticism had made her nervous. After all, she was trusting that complete strangers were who they said they were, and Pepper had been burned that way before in far less high-stakes situations.

There was always the option of asking JARVIS to run background checks, but honestly Pepper wasn’t sure she wanted JARVIS to bother wasting the processing power. Not when, the more she thought about it, the more she realized that she had never wanted to be a single mother. It was just the only avenue that she felt was open to her, and she wanted a baby badly enough to accept the cons.

But why do so when she didn’t have to?

It was late at night when Pepper crawled out of bed and padded, bare foot, to the elevator. JARVIS took her down to the common room floor, where she knew that some of the Avengers had been having a late night watching movies. As expected, everyone else was gone and Stephen and Tony were alone in the room, cuddled up on the couch: the two of them had a bad habit of falling asleep there and then regretting it the next day.

Pepper paused for a moment in the doorway, staring at the two of them with a smile. Stephen was laying on the couch itself on his back, bare feet stick out from beneath the blanket. Tony was laying half on top of him and half on the couch, mostly buried beneath the blanket. They made for an adorable sight, one that made her heart swell with happiness on Tony’s behalf.

This was all that Tony had ever wanted. This, right here. Or so she had thought. But maybe there was something else that Tony wanted too, which Pepper had never considered before. Being asexual and not wanting to have sex meant that there was a very obvious obstacle in the way of Tony having kids, but even more than that Tony had to be extremely careful about who he had a child with. Way too many people would take total advantage of him if it meant getting their greedy hands into the Stark fortune.

She didn’t need to take advantage; Tony would gladly hand her his entire fortune without blinking an eye. Hell, in a way he already had by making Pepper the CEO of Stark Industries. Technically, if she had been so inclined, Pepper could’ve overthrown Tony and forced him out of his own company. Thankfully for Tony, she had absolutely no intention of doing that. S.I. would die without Tony’s genius guiding the way, which was something that men like Obadiah Stane were too stupid to realize.

She padded over to the couch and sat down on Tony’s side. Stephen awoke first, blinking owlishly. “Something wrong?”

“No, not at all,” Pepper said. She patted Tony’s knee.

“Huh – wha?” Tony was slower to stir. “Pep?”

“I wanted to see if your offer was still open,” Pepper said.

Tony snapped to immediately. “Of course it is!”

“Good. Because I think I want to take you up on it,” she said.

“Seriously?” Tony said.

“Seriously.”

“Oh my god,” Stephen said. “You’re going to have a baby.”

Pepper wasn’t sure who he was talking to, but she shook her head. “No. We’re” she gestured between the three of them “are having a baby.”

The resulting brilliant smiles that lit up both Tony’s and Stephen’s face made her feel warm from head to toe, and she knew immediately that she’d made the right decision. She beamed as Tony and Stephen kissed with joy, and then Tony pushed himself up and threw his arms around her. Pepper hugged him back happily, returning Stephen’s smile over Tony’s shoulder.

They were really gonna do this, and she knew that three of them would do it right.

[abundanceofsoph]

SkyFire 1: Chapter 28

Christmas & New Year’s in NYC: December 2015

Word count: 3k

SkyFire 1 MASTERLIST

>Instagram posts

Instead of splitting up for Christmas or trying to decide which family they should spend the holidays with, Aurora and Harry decided to invite Harry’s family out to New York so they could all spend Christmas together. Gemma and Robin’s kids all decided to go to their partners families so Anne and Robin were happy to fly out to them.

Harry flew back to New York with Rori on the 16th after the X Factor show and the couple spent the week leading up to Christmas finishing the decorations around the penthouse, watching sappy Christmas themed romcoms and going ice skating in Central Park.

Anne and Robin flew in on the 23rd and in an attempt to avoid the paparazzi, Happy picked them up from the airport and brought them to the tower. Once they arrived, Anne pulled Harry into a tight hug while Robin went to greet Aurora. After dropping their bags in one of the guest rooms they all headed for the kitchen where Steve was cooking dinner for everyone. It was a casual night in, just Harry, Aurora and their parents with the rest of the Avengers having dinner on another floor to give them some time with Anne and Robin. Once dinner was finished and the dishes were cleared, they all moved into the living room to watch a movie and stayed up late into the night sharing stories of Christmases past. Aurora always loved when Anne would tell stories from when Harry was little, and he would bury his face in her shoulder as he blushed in embarrassment. Steve entertained them all with stories of Christmases in the 1920s and Aurora shared a few tales from her own childhood. The large pine tree in the corner provided the room a soft glow as they chatted, and the large wall of windows looking out over the city provided a beautiful backdrop. Aurora nuzzled into Harry’s chest as conversation flowed until she finally dropped off to sleep. Everyone took that as a sign to turn in for the night and Harry gently lifted Rori into his arms and carried her to bed.

xXx

Harry had spent the morning of Christmas Eve taking Anne and Robin to the holiday market in Union Square. He was happy to spend time with his mum and stepdad, but also wanted to be able to give Aurora her space, knowing that December 24th was always an emotional day. They headed back to the tower after lunch, stopping at Aurora’s favourite bakery along the way to pick up donuts for everyone and an apricot Danish for Rori.

Most of the Avengers were sprawled out in the living room when they got back, excited to see the boxes of donuts in Harry’s hands. While Anne and Robin joined them on the sofas, Harry turned to Tony. “She downstairs?” he asked, expecting Aurora to be in either of her studios as she usually spent her mother’s anniversary.

“No,” Tony replied. “Last I saw she was in her room.”

Harry scooped up the Danish and headed down the hall towards Rori’s wing of the penthouse, finding her pacing across the smaller living room there.

“Brought you back a Danish from Maggie’s,” he said as he approached her, he quickly dropped it on the nearby coffee table and pulled her into his chest as soon as he spotted the tears dripping down her face. She was shaking in his arms as he held her but didn’t make a sound as her tears stained his shirt. “It’s ok love,” he soothed. “It’s ok.”

“Every year I think it’ll get easier,” she whispered, “but it never does. It always hurts so much.”

“I know baby,” Harry murmured, his hands rubbing circles in her back. “You’re always going to miss her. There’s nothing wrong with that.”

“I really thought I’d be ok,” she said. “Last year was so much easier with you and your family, but this year I feel like I can’t breathe.”

“This hasn’t exactly been an easy year, love,” he replied. “I don’t think it’s all that surprising that you’re struggling more with missing her after everything that’s happened.”

“I just don’t know what to do, H,” she confessed. “Usually I’d paint, or I’d play or just do something to get out what I’m feeling but I haven’t been down to the studios in months.”

“I could go down there with you if that would help,” Harry offered.

“I… I don’t think I’m ready,” Rori replied. “I know it won’t be as easy as it was, and I’m scared to find out I can’t do anything the way I used to.”

“Ok,” Harry said. “Today’s probably not the best day to tackle those fears so what do you say we go for a run. Just the two of us. We can run until we’re dead on our feet and then curl up in bed and watch The Santa Claus.”

“That actually sounds perfect, Harry.”

“Alright, come on let’s go get changed.”

After quickly slipping on some work out clothes, they both pulled on their hoodies and headed for the elevator.

Tony turned in his seat to watch them pass by the living room. “Just going for a run in Central Park,” Aurora explained.

“Ok, have fun kids,” Tony replied. “Make sure you’re back before it gets dark.”

Once the elevator reached the lobby, they left the building and crossed the street. They both stretched out their legs before heading off north towards Dalehead Arch at a gentle jog. After a few minutes of jogging, Aurora broke out into a harsh sprint and Harry sped up to follow. They ran for the better part of an hour, until they were both sweating heavily, their breathe ghosting in the air as they bent over, hands on knees as they gasped for air.

“Feeling better?” Harry asked once he regained the ability to speak.

“Much,” Rori gasped. “We should probably head back; the sun will be setting soon.”

Harry reached out for her hand, lacing their fingers together as they turned for home, slowly walking along the paths as the sun sank lower in the sky. As they walked, they started to cool down, the winter air biting at their skin. Aurora tucked her left hand inside the large front pocket of her hoodie, her fingers turning cold where they poked out from the brace. She shivered a little, drawing Harry closer to her side and letting him wrap his arm around her. When he let go of her hand she tucked it into her pocket as well.

“We’re almost back,” he said. “Want to jog the last bit?”

“Yeah,” Rori agreed. “I’m exhausted but it’s too cold to stay out any longer.”

Harry nodded and they both increased their pace to a light jog, soon reaching the edge of the park and crossing the street. They both sighed in relief as soon as they stepped into the welcoming warmth of the lobby, smiling at the receptionist before heading towards the bank of elevators. Rori blew warm air onto the tips of her fingers, while Harry rubbed his hands together and they both laughed at each other’s bright red faces. When the elevator opened on the penthouse, they stepped out to find everyone exactly where they’d left them two hours ago.

“Good run?” Steve asked.

“Yeah,” Rori smiled. “Exactly what I needed. Bit cold out though.”

“A bit cold?” Harry chuckled. “It’s bloody freezing out there.”

“Yeah ok,” Rori said. “It’s more than just a bit cold.”

“Go shower and get into something comfy,” Steve told the pair. “We’ll come get you when dinners ready.”

They did as they were told, heading down the hallway towards Aurora’s room and the large bathroom leading off from it.

“How about I run us a nice hot bath instead?” Harry asked.

“Sounds wonderful,” Rori agreed, heading over to her chest of drawers to pull out her thick Christmas pajamas and then grabbed Harry’s from his case before joining him in the bathroom. The room was already warming up as it filled with steam and she quickly stripped out of her hoodie and active wear, as did Harry and they both sank into the hot water of the bath. Aurora situated herself between Harry’s legs, leaning back against his chest as his arms wrapped around her waist. She left the brace strapped around her hand and opted to rest it on the lip of the tub instead of taking it off. While she’d shown Harry the scars on her stomach and shoulder, she had yet to show him, or anyone, the mess that was her hand and she still wasn’t ready for him to see it. He hadn’t pushed her, but he had noticed the way she never let him in the bathroom when she went to shower or any other time she needed to take the brace off, and he hoped she would realise soon that he would never be horrified or disgusted by what was under the brace, just as he hadn’t when she’d finally shown him the rest of her scars two weeks ago. As if in answer to her silent fears, he placed soft kisses to both her shoulders, paying special attention to the golf ball sized knot of scar tissue on the back of her left shoulder from the exit wound. She lent her head back against his chest, relaxing into his arms in the warm water.

“Feeling better?” he murmured.

“Much,’ she replied. “I love you, Harry.”

“Love you too.”

xXx

Christmas Day in Avengers tower was loud, and the penthouse was crowded. Having grown up with only her mother and her unofficial family from the bar, Aurora was surprised to find that she absolutely loved the crazy, bustling madness of the ragtag group assembled around her. Thor, Clint and Natasha was piling their plates high while Bucky and Sam bickered over crackers. Tony and Steve, with Peter’s help, continued piling more and more plates of food on the already full table, while Rhodey, Pepper, May and Happy were laughing cheerily as they took photos in the paper crowns from their own crackers, and Bruce was chatting with Anne and Robin. Harry sat by Aurora’s side, one of his hands on her thigh as the he dug into his food with the other, a bright smile lighting up his face and making his dimples pop. They all migrated to the sofas once they were all full to bursting and spent the rest of the day lounging around enjoying each other’s company.

xXx

Anne and Robin left a few days after Christmas and Aurora and Harry spent the week before New Year’s watching movies, going ice skating in the park or doing anything at all that let them spend time together.

Before long New Year’s Eve was upon them and everyone got dressed up for the massive party Tony was hosting, and by 11:30 the penthouse was crowded with people, the music loudly filling the space as people danced and drank away the final hours of 2015.

Aurora slipped down the hallway towards her room, towing Harry along behind her until they were away from the flashing lights and the swarming mass of people. She pushed him against the wall, attaching her lips to his as she pressed her body against him in the dark. They kissed for a while before Harry spun them around, pining Rori against the wall as he lips moved down along her jaw.

“Did I tell you how beautiful you look tonight?” Harry asked, leaning in the suck on the skin below her ear.

“You did,” Rori sighed, tilting her head, inviting him to continue. “But please, feel free to keep saying it.”

Harry chuckled into her neck. “I know this year was bad but 2016 is going to be good for us.”

“I think you’re right,” she agreed, lacing her fingers through his long curls and tugging his face up to kiss him again. “I’m feeling more like myself every day.”

“I love you,” he whispered, lips brushing lips.

“Love you too,” Aurora replied. They pulled apart a few minutes later when they heard someone shout out that it was nearly midnight. Rori adjusted her dress and smoothed out Harry’s shirt before they made their way back down the hall and into the living room where everyone was gathered around. The patio doors were open, and people were gathering out on the balcony in preparation for the fireworks display and the large flatscreen on the wall displayed the ball, ready to drop.

Harry wrapped his arms around Aurora as he stood behind her, his chest pressed tightly against her back while his chin rested on her shoulder looking out across Central Park as they waited for the fireworks to start.

 “10… 9… 8… 7… 6…”

As everyone began to shout out the countdown, Harry spun Aurora in his arms so that she was facing him, kissing her deeply as the countdown reached one, and everyone screamed out wishes of happy new year. Harry blocked it all out, focused entirely on the beautiful woman in his arms. They were both so swept up in their kiss that neither realised that the fireworks display had started until they pulled apart. “Happy New Year my love,” Harry murmured in her ear as he quickly spun her back around. He heard her giggle as she moved and he returned to his previous position, holding her tight with his chin on her shoulder. The fireworks burst against the night sky and Aurora’s laughter died on her lips. Due to the way his was pressed against her from hip to shoulder, he instantly felt the change when she froze, her breathe sticking in her throat as her heart began to thunder in her chest. Before he could ask, she was spinning around to bury her face in his chest, her chest heaving as she gasped for air and trembled in his arms. It took him a brief moment to realise what was happening but as soon as his thoughts caught up with him, he bent down, scooping Rori into his arms and rushing from the room. As the elevator doors closed behind him, the sound of the fireworks was muffled but he didn’t stop until he reached the soundproof booth of the recording studio, dropping down onto the sofa in the corner of the room, Aurora still cradled in his arms as he attempted to calm her.

A few minutes later, when she was still shaking and gasping for breath, Harry realised that he was out of his depth. “JARVIS?” he asked. “I need you to get Sam down here now.”

Sam appeared at the door a couple of minutes later.

“What happened?” he asked, falling to his knees beside the couple.

“The fireworks triggered her PTSD I think, so I got her down here as quick as I could, but I can’t get her to calm down,” Harry said in a rush, his own face wet with tears.

“Right,” Sam nodded. “You did good Harry.” He reached out to touch Aurora’s shoulder, but she flinched away, burrowing closer against Harry. “Rori, it’s Sam. You’re safe. There isn’t anyone here who’s going to hurt you. You’re safe Aurora.” His voice was low and level, calmer than Harry knows he was when he was trying to soothe her before Sam arrived. “Harry’s here,” Sam continued. “Can you hear his heartbeat? Can you feel his breathe? I need you to try and breath with him kiddo.” Sam looked up at Harry as he spoke. “Need you to steady your breathing too, Harry, otherwise this isn’t going to help much.”

Harry nodded, focusing on his own breathing, taking deep, deliberately calm breathes to encourage Rori to mimic him. Slowly she began to settle against his chest, the shaking lessening more and more as the minutes ticked by until she was almost completely still in his arms.

“You with us again?” Sam asked calmly, once again placing his hand on her shoulder.

“I am,” she whispered softly. “Sorry.”

“Nothing to be sorry about,” Sam replied, his voice still calm and slow. “We talked about how this might happen, remember? I’m guessing you didn’t mention it to Harry like I suggested given how freaked out he was when I got here.”

“No, I didn’t,” Rori admitted. “I’m so sorry Harry. I just thought I’d been doing so well and the pyrotechnics at the X Factor didn’t set me off at all, so I figured I’d be fine tonight.”

“S’ok love,” Harry murmured, his hand rubbing along her spine. “Just wish I’d known how to help you.”

“You did,” she promised. “You got be somewhere quiet and got Sam. Couldn’t have done any better.” She sat up a little to kiss his cheek.

“I’ll leave you kids to it,” Sam chuckled. “Have JARVIS let me know when you’re ready tomorrow and we’ll have a chat, yeah?”

“Got the surgeon in the afternoon,” Rori replied.

“We can talk before you go to the hospital then.” Sam stood up from where he’d been kneeling on the floor and headed for the door. “JARVIS can you let them know when the fireworks have stopped?” he asked before he left the room.

“I really am sorry, H,” Aurora said after Sam left.

“Please don’t apologise,” Harry replied. “Not your fault.”

Instead of replying she kissed him deeply, putting all her love and appreciation in the way her lips moved against his.

“Don’t know what I’d do without you,” she said when they pulled apart.

“Good thing you’ll never have to find out,” he replied, a soft smile on his face as he lent in to kiss her again. “Happy New Year Rori.”

“Happy New Year Harry.”

 I’ve made the decision to split this story into two halves.

This is the end of SkyFire 1: The First 5 years.

It seemed like a good place to end and then I will pick up the story in SkyFire 2: The indefinite hiatus.

I have a lot planned for these two characters and I’m really excited to have you join me 😊

SkyFire 2: The Indefinite Hiatus

READ THE COMPLETE FIRST PART ON AO3

[waitimcomingtoo]

In Case You Don’t Live Forever - Chapter Sixteen

Pairing: Peter Parker x Venom!reader and a lil something else for the kids ;)

Warnings: Endgame spoilers, mentions of suicide

Authors Note: This story is far from over. Feedback is always appreciated ♥️ thank you for reading

Masterlist

“Braid chain!” You clapped your hands. A few amused laughs escaped from Carol’s and Nat’s lips as they sat down in front of you. This was a regular routine for you whenever all the girls were together. You positioned yourself in the back and took Nat’s hair in your hands. Her red hair was down her back now and only the very tips were blonde. It had been three more years. Five years total since the snap.

Your life had gone on, no matter how much it felt like it hadn’t. Or how much you wished it hadn’t. You threw yourself into your work and covered stories on men like Flint Marko, Dr. Curt Connors, Norman Osborn, and Max Dillon. All ordinary men who become a threat over night. Without Venom, you weren’t much use to stopping villains. But your suit and your webs offered enough protection to distract villains until the police came. You steered clear of your old neighborhood. You couldn’t bear to be around it. Aunt May had vanished in the snap, along with all of Peters friends. You cleared out May and Peters apartment and put the stuff in a storage locker.

You kept most of Peters clothes in your bedroom. His wardrobe had become your wardrobe. Your style had completely shifted from comfortable and casual, to sweaters, hoodies, and baggy t-shirts, all belonging to Peter. Nat noticed your change in appearance but said nothing. She knew it was your way of grieving him. You didn’t wear everything, though. Some things only he could pull off and you were okay with that. You kept his favorite sweaters in a box and would smell them occasionally just to get a whiff of his cologne. The scent had faded over the years but boys drown themselves in axe and Peter was no exception. You could still smell his sweet scent and it brought tears to your eyes every time.

You ran your fingers through Nat’s hair as she skillfully braided Carols. Everyone, Steve, Rhodey, Carol, Nebula, Rocket, Thor and Bruce were over. Your meetings were usually digital but you had decided to meet in person for the five year reunion. Everyone looked different up close. Bruce was the most changed. He had mixed his DNA with the Hulks and became one entity. You sat down with him and talked seeing as you had similar powers. You both turned into something that was bigger and stronger. The Hulk was different from Venom though. The Hulk didn’t really talk to Bruce and he didn’t chose when he came out. Seeing Bruce as the Hulk made you miss Venom terribly. Sure, you were without her way longer than you were with her, but she was your best friend. She knew you inside and out, literally. You would still talk to her, you just had to get used to the fact that there would be no answer.

Out of the corner of your eye, you saw Nebula watching you braid each other’s hair. You couldn’t read her expression from where you were but you knew it couldn’t be good.

“I’ll be right back.” You whispered to Nat. She hummed in response and focused again on Carols hair.

“What are you doing over here? Come join the Braid Train.” You took Nebula’s hand and led her over to where Nat and Carol were seated. Nebula looked embarrassed.

“I don’t have any hair.” She said only to you. You could tell she was ashamed. You gave her an assuring smile.

“So? You don’t need hair to ride the Braid Train. All are welcome. I’ll let you in on a little secret. If you sit in the back, it doesn’t matter if you don’t have hair. You can braid mine.” You told her. Nebula beamed at you. She didn’t smile often, and when she did she looked uncomfortable with it , but you always appreciated it. You sat back down and took your hair out of your ponytail. You always sat in the back and were used to no one braiding your hair. Nebula was the perfect addition. She gingerly placed her hands in your hair and began to weave it together.

“You know, I was bald too once.” You said to Nebula as you resumed braiding Nat’s hair.

“Really?” Nebulas monotone voice sounded excited.

“Yep. My sister and I had shaved heads.” You replied.

“My father didn’t let me have hair lest I fall victim to vanity. He wanted me to be a weapon.” Nebula said. You reached back and squeezed her knee. Or, you tried to. It was metal and cold, but she understood the gesture.

“I don’t think you’re a weapon.” You shrugged.

“Then what am I?” Nebula asked.

“Anything you want to be. That’s one of the perks of girl power. You can be anything you want to be.” You informed her. Nebula was easy to talk to because she didn’t expect anything from you. She just wanted to talk.

Steve suddenly burst into the room with something you hadn’t seen in years in his eyes,

Hope.

“We found something.” Steve smiled, unable to contain his excitement.

“I found something. And ask them if they know Ant-Man.” An unfamiliar voice called from the other room.

“Is that Scott?” Nat asked.

“Who’s Scott?” Carol asked. You didn’t know either.

“Scott Lang. Ant-Man. He disappeared 5 years ago.” Steve rushed out. You all stood up and went to Steve.

“You mean someone returned from being dusted?” You whispered in shock. The hope was contagious and infecting you as well.

“Well, no. He wasn’t dusted. He was in the Quantum Realm. He’ll explain it. Come on.” Steve pushed the you and girls into the room with Scott. Little did you know, you life was never going to be the same.

Scott was on board

Nat was on board.

Nebula was on board.

Steve, Rhodey, Bruce, and Rocket were on board.

All that was missing was Tony.

“I know Tony. He isn’t going to say yes.” Steve sighed as you, him, and Scott sat in a car in front of Tony’s cabin.

“He will once we tell him our plan.” Scott responded. Scott reminded you of a teenager. You knew he had missed the last five years, but it felt like he’d missed more. His child like demeanor was refreshing.

“And what if he doesn’t? What if this is our last chance and it fails?” You asked sadly. Scott looked panicked, like he wasn’t used to people looking to him for answers.

“We won’t know if we don’t ask.” Scott said. Steve looked at you and sighed, looking for your approval. You nodded and opened the car door.

“Pretty!” A little girl ran up to you as you walked up Tony’s porch steps. She made grabby hands at you and you instinctively picked her up and laughed a little. She brushed hair out of her face and did the same to you.

“Hi.” You said to her. You hadn’t interacted with a child since elementary school. You didn’t really know what to say. The little girl became shy suddenly and buried her face in your neck.

Tony followed shortly after her and smiled at the sight of her in your arms.

“Looks like Morgan likes you.” Tony commented. You looked fondly at the little girl upon learning her name.

“Hello Morgan. I’m Y/n.” You told her. Morgan smiled at you and toyed with the necklace you were wearing. It was a simple chain with Peters class ring hanging from it. You adjusted her on your hips looked at Tony.

“Is she yours?” Steve asked Tony. He smiled proudly.

“Yep. 100% baby Stark.” Tony said.

“Wanna see my dolls?” Morgan asked you. You smiled at her.

“I’d love too. Steve, Scott, you okay without me?” You asked Steve and Scott. They nodded and you left with Morgan.

After playing house with Morgan for half an hour, she told you that she missed her dad.

“Then let’s go see him.” You smiled at her. After not being able to protect Peter and Venom from the snap, you felt an overwhelming desire to protect Morgan and make her happy. You picked her up and walked back towards Steve, Tony, and Scott just in time to hear Tony speaking.

“I wish you guys had come here for anything else. I really do. But I can’t help you.” You overheard Tony telling Scott and Steve. You looked down in disappointment, not wanting Morgan to see you cry. You felt Tony’s eyes on you as he began to formulate another excuse.

“Please.” You interrupted. Everyone’s eyes fell on you. As much as you tried to fight it, your eyes were swimming with tears. Tony opened his mouth and looked at you sympathetically, but no words came out.

“Please. Please, Mr. Stark, this could work. We could see him again. Please.” You begged. Scott and Steve looked from you to Tony. Tony looked between you and Morgan.

“Y/n…” Tony began.

“Don’t. Don’t say my name like you’re about to tell me no.” You pleaded with him. You set Morgan down and took a step closer to Tony.

“It won’t work. Your Time Warp-“ Tony began.

“Time Heist.” Scott corrected.

“Yeah whatever, Doc. It’s not gonna happen. It’s not plausible. I wish I could help you. But I can’t.” Tony concluded. You knew it was no use trying to argue with him. Steve knew it too but Scott was still hopeful.

“He’d do it for you.” You raised your voice a little. It was shaking but you didn’t want to sound weak.

“Y/n…” Steve tried to stop you.

“No.” You yelled at him. “He would do it for you. If you were gone, you know he’d go to the ends of the earth to bring you back. Doesn’t he deserve the same?”

“Are we still talking about Back to the Future?” Scott cut in.

“You know I miss him as much as you do. But you cannot mess with the flow of time.” Tony pleaded with you but you weren’t having it.

“Not with that attitude you can’t!” You shouted. Scott snickered.

“Alright! That’s enough. Y/n, get in the car. We’ll see you later Tony.” Steve broke up your fight. Steve guided you with his hand on your back back to the car. You got in the backseat and folded your arms like a child.

Hey, what happened back there?” Steve asked cautiously after driving in silence for a while.

“He was being unreasonable.” You huffed. You felt like you just had a fight with a parent.

“Who was that boy you were talking about?” Scott asked you. You turned to face the window.

“Your mom.” You grumbled. Scott knew he set himself up for that one.

“Did you know Spider-Man?” Steve asked you while looking at you in the rear view mirror. Your face contorted with a mixture of anger, sadness, and embarrassment. It had been years since anyone said his name around you.

“Don’t wanna talk about it.” You muttered as you began to play with the window, something Venom used to do. It was times like these when you missed her the most.

“I have a feeling she knew Spider-Man.” Scott said. You glared at him before staring back out the window.

A few days later, Tony rolled up to the Avengers tower with a change of heart and a time machine. When you asked him why he changed his mind, he smiled at you and said “he’d do it for me.”

A plan was made to retrieve the stones from the past. After some trial runs, trouble shooting, and practice trips, you were ready to go.

You walked down the corridor with the rest of the Avengers in your matching suits. You weren’t gonna lie, you felt pretty badass all clad in red and white. You pushed a final bobby pin into Nat’s hair as she squeezed your hand.

“See you in a minute.” She smiled.

Buttons were pushed and you were off on your journey.

The plan was set. You, Thor, and Rocket were going to Asgard to get the Reality Stone. Upon your arrival, Thor had a mental break down that you and Rocket had to bring him back from. While Rockets approach was to slap him and tell him to snap out of it, you had a much calmer approach. You took Thors face between your hands and forced him to look at you.

“Hey big guy. I know you’ve been through a lot and it’s really taken a toll on you, but we need you to be strong. Your depression does not make you less worthy. You can still do this. I believe in you. And Rocket believes in you. Right Rocket?” You asked.

“Whatever Jackass.” Rocket waved his hand dismissively.

“Thank you, Lady Y/n. You’re right. I am still handsome.” Thor said confidently.

“Who said you were handsome? You look like melted ice cream.” Rocket sneered. Thor ignored him and held out his arm. A huge hammer came flying through the air and landed in his hand.

“Yes!” Thor bellowed. “I’m still worthy!”

Rocket and Thor went to find Jane as you went to complete your part of the mission.

“Who goes there?” Came a voice. You followed the sound and found Loki lying on a couch, tossing something in the air and catching it. You put on your best innocent face as you entered the room.

“I’m so sorry, but my friends and I are here for the festival and I just had to sneak away to find you.” You gushed. Loki took long strides towards you as he took in your appearance.

“My brother isn’t here.” Loki informed you, his voice thick with annoyance.

“I’m not here for your brother.” You said coyly as you took another step towards him.

“You’re here for me?” He cleared his throat to mask the disbelief in his voice. You nodded sweetly.

“Of course. Won’t you show me a magic trick?” You batted your eyes flirtatiously. A slight smirk appeared on Loki’s face.

“A magic trick?” He asked. Mischief swirled behind his eyes.

“Well you are the God of Mischief, aren’t you?” You teased. A full, open mouthed smirk dressed his face now. He held up your hand and held your wrist tightly between his fingers. He brushed his fingers on his other hand over your palm and a diamond appeared. You looked at the beautiful diamond, weightless in your hand, and gasped. He had made it appear out of thin air.

“Oh, Loki. Must you think so little of me? I’m a woman of substance. Diamonds don’t impress me.” You have him an over dramatic sigh, but he completely fell for it. He felt a twinge of competition brewing in his chest, like he had to win your favor. You faked a yawn and his eyes gleamed with determination.

“You don’t like that? Well how about this?” Loki challenged and waved his fingers over your palm again. This time, a flower appeared. It didn’t look like any earthly flower. It was ten times more beautiful and smelled better than anything you had ever smelled before. The flowers colors were green and black with accents of gold, just like Loki’s outfit. You stared at the flower in amazement before looking up shyly at him. If you weren’t mistaken, the God of Mischief had a blush on his cheeks as he watched your face carefully for approval. Loki picked up the flower and tucked it behind your ear. He began to lean in slightly but you were interrupted byThor and Rocket knocking over a vase. You noticed they had the stone and were ready to go. Luckily, you saw them before Loki did.

“What was-“ Loki began to turn his head towards the sound but you quickly put a hand behind his head and pulled him into a kiss. You felt his eyes flutter shut and you opened yours. You could see Rocket and Thor pretending to gag out of the corner of your eye. With one hand, you motioned for them to move. They quickly scattered and you pulled away. Loki was fully blushing now but doing his best to conceal it. He seemed completely bewildered, making you wonder if he’d ever kissed anyone before. You certainly hadn’t kissed anyone since the day Peter left to visit MOMA with his school. That felt like a million years ago. You touched your fingertips to your lips and felt a pang of guilt. You hadn’t even looked at another since Peter vanished. He was the love of your life, you were sure it of. And you already had your great love story with him, though be it short. You waited for him for five years now. Surely he wouldn’t mind you kissing one other man, especially if it was apart of a plan to bring everyone back. Loki appeared to be just as lost in his thoughts as you were. You had slightly messed up his long black hair but he didn’t seem to notice.

“Thanks for the flower. And for everything else. Bye!” You stammered and made your escape. Loki was too taken aback to chase after you. You met up with Rocket and Thor and went home.

When you arrived back at the tower, everyone rejoiced when they learned they had succeeded in retrieving the stones. You felt that familiar glimmer of hope again. There was finally a chance of seeing Peters pretty brown eyes once more. You had a rule of never letting yourself get too hopeful. Never letting yourself think you’ll see him again. You knew you weren’t strong enough to handle losing Peter twice. You ran to Nebula in excitement and tried to give her a hug, but she acted like she didn’t even know you. You brushed it off as her being shy.

You looked around the room with glee until your eyes fell on Clint. He was stolid and not speaking. He looked like he’d just seen a ghost.

“Clint?” Steve asked. He seemed to notice Clint’s indifference same time you did.

“Where’s Nat?” Bruce spoke up. You felt your spine tingle and your eyes quickly darted around the room for your red haired friend. You felt fear rise in your throat when you couldn’t find her. Your eyes were drawn back to Clint as he fell to his knees. The Avengers rushed to him with their questions. You didn’t want to hear what he had to say. You left the room immediately and threw up in the bathroom.

You all sat outside by the lake and contemplated what to do next. You hadn’t spoken in hours, unlike everyone else. They were discussing Nat’s death and how to move forward. You jumped slightly when you heard a splash far off in the lake. You noticed a bench was now missing but you were too numb to comment. You tried to go to Nebula for comfort but she was acting strange. She didn’t seem to care at all for Nat’s death.

The decision was eventually made. You weren’t going to let Nat’s sacrifice go to waste. She gave her life for the stone and you were going to make damn sure she did it for a good reason. All the stones were in place. The gauntlet had been crafted, this time in true Iron Man colors. All there was left to do was decide was was going to snap.

“It should be me.” Thor immediately volunteered. You knew Thor was desperate for a win after feeling like he failed in stopping Thanos. He was instantly met with disagreement from the group. You hadn’t said anything in eight hours at that point. You didn’t feel that need. What could you possibly say? Your best friend died inside you. Your boyfriend died scared and on a foreign planet when he was just 18. You made a new best friend and she was ripped from your fingers without a goodbye. You had no words. None.

Bruce was the next to offer himself up, then Tony.

“No.” You spoke up. Your voice was horse after not speaking for hours. You had also been crying and that didn’t help. Everyone looked at you, most had forgotten you were even there.

“Not now, Area 51. The adults are talking.” Tony dismissed and went on about why he should weld the gauntlet but you stood up angrily.

“No. It can’t be you. He needs you. It has to be me.” You said firmly. You were hellbent on doing it and at this point, no one could stop you. Tony looked at you and practically laughed in your face.

“You think he needs me more than he needs you? Y/n, the boy worships you. You know he told me he takes the long way to school just so he can call you and talk to you for longer? And that he absolutely hates chicken and rice but he says it’s his favorite food because you love to make it. He deifies you. He venerates you. He’d do absolutely anything for you. You really think he’d ever forgive me for bringing him back into a world that you’re not in?” Tony reasoned with you. You walked closer to Tony, blocking out every other thought and person in the room.

“And what if this doesn’t work, Mr. Stark? What if you snap and it kills you and no one comes back? Am I a genius who can fix the problem and make a new gauntlet or are you?” You shot back. You were on fire now and didn’t wait for an answer. “Look around the room. I am the most useless one here. Without Venom, I’m just human. And if Thanos comes back for round two, who’s gonna stop him? Some girl or Iron Man?”

Tony didn’t answer. No one did. The answer was clear.

“It has to be me. We all know that the snap will most likely kill whoever does it. And we all know that I’m the least valuable asset to this team. As morbid as it is, it’s okay if I die, if it means you can fix the gauntlet and try again. Everybody in this room knows I’m expendable. I mean, you made me the freaking shiny object to distract Loki with on the Time Heist, right?” You looked around the room as the Avengers looked down in shame. There was no denying you were right.

“Why are you thinking so little of yourself?” Tony demanded. He wasn’t angry anymore, only saddened by your words.

“Because I’m useless. And I won’t be if you let me snap. You can’t help us defeat Thanos if you’re dead, Mr. Stark. I can’t help you defeat Thanos whether I’m dead or alive. I’m the one we can risk losing. It has to be me.” You repeated. You started towards the gauntlet and tried to slip your hand inside. Before you could get it in, Tony grabbed your hand in his and looked at you desperately.

“Please, Y/n. He would never come back if he knew this was the price. He would never risk losing you. Let me do it.” Tony begged you. You shook your head sadly.

“And let you die? Mr. Stark, you have a wife and a daughter.” You reminded him.

“My dad wasn’t there growing up and I turned out to be a billionaire. Morgan and Pepper will survive without me. All my money will be left to them. I wasn’t cracked up to be that great of a father anyway. All I can really do is spoil Morgan and give her my empire.” Tony answered you. Your heart broke at him thinking he wasn’t a good dad.

“Bullshit. You’re a great father. You didn’t know me and you went out of your way to take care of me and protect me. You gave me my suit. That is a quality of a great man and that is what makes you a great father. Not the ability to spoil your kids. Morgan needs you. She needs her dad. And other people need you too. There isn’t a person in this room who hasn’t benefitted from knowing you. This is your family, Mr. Stark. You can’t leave behind your family. There are too many people who care about you.” You raised your voice again. You were never going to back down.

“There are people who care about you too.” Tony tried to protest.

“No there aren’t.” You laughed bitterly. “Who do I have? Everyone I loved became everyone I lost. So if I don’t come back, it’s fine.” Your voice cracked as salty tears streamed down your face. “It’s not like I have anything to come back to. Ask yourself this and answer honestly. Who would he rather lose, me or you?”

“Me. He’d rather lose me.” Tony answered weakly. Even he didn’t believe it. You made a face.

“His father figure? You’ve got it all wrong, Mr. Stark. I’ve known him for five years. He only knew me for 6 months. He’ll meet another girl. He won’t meet another Tony Stark. He can move on from me. He can’t move on from you.” You said. You felt sick to your stomach at the thought of Peter with another girl, doing the things you used to. You only hoped he’d remember you.

“He won’t move on. I know him. He will never move on.” Tony stated, his grip still firm on your hand.

“Well neither could I! I have been a shell of a person for the past five years. I couldn’t even kill myself because I was so terrified of him not being there when I got to heaven. At least while I’m alive, I can see him in my dreams. But I can’t keep living everyday when the only thing keeping me going is the thought that he might visit me while I’m sleeping. I can’t do that anymore. I can’t do anything anymore. I can’t eat, sleep, work, function, even breath without him! But I can do this. Please, Tony, let me do this. Let me bring him back.” You pleaded, almost on your knees at that point.

You had never called Tony by his first name before. Tony realized it too and finally, finally, nodded his head. He let go of your hand and backed away.

“This is suicide!” Thor protested. He tried to run to you but Tony held him back.

“Let her do it. Everybody, get back.” Tony said in defeat. He suited up and placed a shield in front of him. Everyone backed away from you and grabbed something to protect them. You looked to Nebula for support, but she was nowhere to be found. You knew there was no one there to hold your hand this time. No Peter. No Venom. No Nebula. No Nat. Just you.

You raised the gauntlet and slowly slid your hand into it. It opened to fit your arm before molding around you perfectly. You felt the surge of the Infinity Stones rush through your body. You were wearing your suit, but it did nothing to ease the pain. You cried out in pain and Thor once again stepped forward to stop you, but he was held back by Rhodey. You fully slid your hand in and raised it up. Tears poured down your face from the pain, and from knowing there was no way you were going to survive to see Peter again. You gave Tony one last look, but his face was covered by his Iron suit. You gave him a gentle smile, as if too apologize for yelling at him. He nodded his head once. You only wished you could see his face one last time, but he needed protected. You turned your attention back to your hand and put your fingers into position.

With tears rushing down your face, and with great agony in your entire body, you snapped your fingers.

Tag List 🏷

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[elizabeth-234]

The Hourglass

Previous Chapter Ten: For the Great Good Part Two

Hi All. Thank you for reading. This is for prompt ten of whumptober: Internal Bleeding and blood loss.

References to suicide.

Chapter Eleven: Where in the World is Peter? 

???

People were talking around him. They were the type of murmurs you could never hear the exact wording no matter how hard you concentrated. His head lay heavy on the pillow, sunk into the dent worn in it by time. He found the same experience with his limbs. They were all but useless at his side besides the small twitch in the ring finger of his left hand.

Time held no meaning in that state of immobility and exhaustion dragged him back to sleep whenever consciousness creeped back in. Inside the immobile body his cells worked to heal and repair the damage from the attack and fall, though his mind remained unaware. Hours or weeks could have passed, and in some ways they did but Peter wasn’t aware to the consequences of this yet.

He woke up to the sound of voices again. Shaking from the effort, he cracked an eye open. There was a young nurse sitting on a stool near the door. She was on some talking into type of boxed hospital phone. Her intonation rose and fell as skimmed through some paperwork on a clipboard. Peter closed his eyes and panted while trying to ignore the trembling in his neck. He slept again.

Waking moments were more prevalent from then on. He noticed someone was always stationed in his room no matter the time of day. Some stayed in the chair by the door while others came in and watched TV. They sat in the chair beside him and though he would fall asleep, it this strange state of sickness seem less lonely.

The doctor came sparingly but they made sure to give a progress report when they did. “Low urine output still. Give him more fluids” The doctor said much to Peter’s embarrassment. His palms were clammy against the bedsheets but his arms wouldn’t respond to his attempts to move. His mind wanted to claim health, that he was fine and could go back, but his body knew what his mind wouldn’t acknowledge: Peter was hurt and it was taking too long to heal. His heart was beating fast but his pulse pressure remained low. He wasn’t just tired but had full exhaustion and fatigue in his muscles.

Sometimes he pretended they were talking about somebody else so he didn’t have to be embarrassed. Like he wasn’t invisible and they weren’t talking around him. Other times he couldn’t follow the updates from the people. He’d get lost in the numbers and vocabulary, the twisting sentences that almost seemed like they contradicted themselves. A headache formed and he would block out the sounds instead of trying to wake up. Still, Peter slept on.

When he opened his eyes without strain and forethought, it was night. He stared at the moon from his spot on the bed. It hung low and thick in his window. The yellow and dark watercolors of the face casting a strange tint across the room and the blankets covering him. The face stared right back at him all dark eyes and long mouths. Did the man in the moon pity him or was he laughing?

Peter took a mental stock of himself. He tensed his muscles pushing them to see how they functioned after no use. He was breathing hard from his exploration, his legs twitching and restless. With slow, measured movements Peter pushed himself to sit, though his stomach muscles protested the whole way. Hunched over and catching his breath, Peter thought about his next options.

The memories of how he came to be in the hospital were gone, but he knew he had to get out. The more time spent here, the easier it was for the men to come back. They would fine him eventually and such public exposure would work against him. Peter almost caved against the onset of his plans and fell back onto the bed, but he held firm. Rhodey and Tony’s faces appeared before him like apparitions in a ghost story. Their transparent expressions yelling at him to run as invisible enemies attacked them. A branch in the tree outside moved with the wind, disturbing the shadows in his room, and they were gone. He would find a way out for them.

Peter swung his legs off the side of the bed. He gasped as the cold of the tiled floor soaked through his socks and chilled his feet. Some plastic pouch was strapped to his leg. He palpated it and blushed when he felt liquid inside. Pushing away thoughts of his urinary track, Peter tested his balance. He fully placed his feet on the ground and pushed away from the stationary structure of the bed. Back and forth he teetered on the balls of his feet before what felt like the first time in forever, Peter was standing on his own two feet. His muscles burned and shook from the effort, and Peter began sweating but he was standing. It seemed like a time ago he was running on the dock. Had he fallen into the pond? His head pounded. He couldn’t remember what happened next.

Something moved and he saw the heat rustle the papers of the nurse sitting by his door. Her head was bent over to rest on the wall. She was almost asleep. Her eyes kept closing and not even the sounds of Peter’s explorations woke her. He could sneak around her if he moved fast enough. He tried walking but something tugged him back. The IV poll moved forward to catch up with him leaving the metal to scrap on the floor. The nurse woke up with a snort.

“Oh my.” She said when she spotted him up standing. “You shouldn’t be up. Let’s get you settled back in.”

There was no room for argument and he was tucked back in before he knew it. He drooped into the bedding and despite hating to admit it, even to himself, Peter felt like he’d just ran a marathon. Escape stretched further away from him if standing caused this much of an energy drain. He stared at the nurse how was working around him. She was an older nurse, one he might have seen before in one of his brief instances of clarity. She refilled his water and tucked the covers over his shoulders. Before she could move away he stopped her.

“Miss?” He said wanting to ask something that had been bothering him all night. “I’ve been to the hospital a few times when I was a kid and never had someone sit with me. Not that I don’t appreciate it but I don’t think I can sleep knowing someone’s watching me.”



She gave him a critical eye as she checked the IV measurements with the time.

“Well, Mr. Parker that hasn’t stopped you from sleeping in the past 24 hours with other nurses here. I’m acting as a sitter tonight. I’m here to make sure you’re not a danger to yourself given how they recovered you from that lake.”

She patted him on his arm and his mind reeled with startling clarity of her words. They thought he jumped.  They thought he chose to jump into the icy waters and not come back. A shiver ran down his spine. He needed to make her understand.

“That, that wasn’t it. I - someone was running after me and I fell. I - it wasn’t on purpose.” 



She clucked her teeth and pushed the covers up where they had fallen when he tried to get up to reassure her and maybe himself as well.

“Be that as it may, Mr. Parker. I have a job to do until you are cleared with the doctors and you do too. Rest easy tonight and focus on getting better. You’ve had some internal bleeding that they need to look at now you’re awake.”

He nodded and fell back into his pillow all fight and plans of escape forgotten.

“It’s Peter, please. Could you put the TV on? I would feel better with some background noise.” He said.

“I’m nurse Bee. Sleep well, Peter. I’ll be watching over you tonight.”

He closed his eyes and the sounds from the TV filtered into the room. His last thought was he thought he heard a commercial with Shrek come on.

-

“You’ve got some very unusual markers in your blood, Mr. Parker. It’s the reason it took us so long to find a suitable donor to get a transfusion. Now that it’s all set you should be feeling much better. We’ve removed the catheter as well and stopped most of the pain meds. The goal is to get you mobile now, build up any muscles, and, of course, you’ll have to see a psychiatrist. One will be sent up this afternoon. CPS was called and-”

“I’m eighteen, Doc” He said maintaining eye contact. The doctor raised an eyebrow but Peter didn’t move a muscle. He didn’t believe Peter, never mind that he was right not to trust him. It was that or he didn’t care either way. “Plus, I’ll call my uncle and he’ll tell you. There’s no need for anything else.”

The afternoon was filled with appointments. Just thinking about it left him a state of denial. Question after question bombarded him. He was scanned and poked and prodded. He didn’t even know how he was going to pay for everything.

The talk with the therapist was the worst. The hour dragged on. Every question was followed by another. Peter tried to be as honest as possible. Sticking to the truth was best in a lie and it would be easier to remember later, but Spiderman, that place, and May. No, all of those things were off limits. What he did repeat was he hadn’t jumped. He was chased and fell. The man nodded and wrote down something in his notebook before trying to dive into Peter’s past. He had no past here.

In any other circumstances it might’ve been helpful. If Peter was open to the experience he might have found talking about his life to a stranger freeing. But this wasn’t the case. His past was gone here to all outside eyes. It hadn’t happened because it would be dangerous to talk about it. He was increasingly closed off as the minutes went by. His attention more focused on the plaid sweater vest the man was wearing than their session.

Night came again. They must have believed his story because was finally alone. He was parched from retelling everything he remembered and more during the day. Still, something was missing. Dr. Lang suggested it was the trauma but Peter thought everything seemed off somehow. Everything was different from before.

He stuffed the blanket around his feet so the cold air wouldn’t chill them and grabbed the controller. He almost wished the nurse from the previous night was there before he stopped the thought. Escape. He needed to escape tonight. The CPS had been too late to arrive today but he didn’t think he would be lucky enough tomorrow. They couldn’t make plans about him and take him farther away than he was now.

The IV prickled with blood after he pulled it out. He pressed the corner of his gown onto the small hole and once it coagulated, Peter tossed a blanket around his shoulders as disguise. It wasn’t the most incognito appearance but it was all he had until he could find something, maybe a nurse’s zip-up to use. He also didn’t want the cold to stress his body even more in its weakened state.

The memory of the therapist in plaid confirming his time with the CPS tomorrow was enough to get him out of bed and into the hallway. It was empty. Only his heart racing and machines talking were heard at this time of night. Above everything else, he couldn’t be caught. He walked without sound but he was too slow all his thoughts of daring escapes and only managed one hallway when he heard someone walking. A nurse turned the corner wheeling a cart in front of him. One of the wheels squeaked as it rolled. Peter held his breath and pushed himself into the wall but it wasn’t cover enough. As fast as he dared Peter darted into the closest room hoping the patient was asleep. He leaned against the door not breathing until the squeaking grew too faint to hear.

“What are you doing?”

Someone said from inside the room. Peter swallowed. His assessment of sleep was way off base. With a stolen breath he peered around the door wall and into the room.

Papers were strewn over a spread of open books on the bed. It was chaos but the person sitting didn’t seem to mind. They were hunched over one of the papers. Peter waited for them to look up. He wondered if his eyes would be cold or warm but they were shrouded from view. His brown hair longer than Peter’s haircut. It was grown out from his buzzcut but still not longer than his ears. Peter spared a glance at the boy’s mouth and forehead. Both were furrowed and lined as he concentrated.

Peter felt like he was in middle school again waiting in the principal’s office after getting into a fight when one of the other kids called him a nerd. The principal made him stand in front of his desk for five minutes while he finished work. Peter didn’t have time to wait now.

“Well?” He asked again with a raised eyebrow. Peter realized he’d never answered. While the ground seemed infinitely a safer place to look Peter forced himself to look up.

His breath froze in his chest. In front of him sat an apparition. Peter almost pinched himself to see if he was dreaming. His eyes were the same brown with flecks of black speckled throughout, but like the first time it was the emotion that kept his attention. There was a certain duality to his eyes. They stayed focused completely on him and taking in his face but this time there was no recognition of the distance between them. This time Peter felt as though he carried the ocean in him that separated them and, for a moment, he could almost understand the expression in his eyes the first time they met. Maybe he’d been asleep longer than he thought. Peter continued to stare and the longer he looked the more differences he spotted. The lines weren’t the same around his eyes, age hadn’t touched him yet, and he was missing that familiar edge to the brown pupils that had grown over the weeks of Peter being with them.

“I was just hiding - I mean, I was, Tony? What the hell are you doing here?” 



The man’s – boy’s - eyes hardened but the curiosity stayed.

“Who are you? And how do you know my name?” 


Thank you!

Next Chapter Twelve: The President, Shrek, and Sweater Vests 

[areiton]

in the light of a dying star

An Engame Fix it that is actually happy. Like, legit happy, not Arei’s version of happy that makes everyone cry. 

It’s long (almost 6k) so you can read on AO3 or watch for the Read More. 

~*~ 

When he was eight, Uncle Ben took him to a cabin up on the edge of America, near the Candian border. He spent a week there drowning in hot chocolate and burnt hot dogs, fishing in the morning and swimming in the lake in the afternoon, long twilight nights chasing fireflies in the twilight.

He hasn’t been back, not since then. Not since before the spider-bite and the mugger and the funeral.

Not since before Mr. Stark and everything that came with him.

“It’ll be a good place for him to rest,” Peter says.

It’ll be a good place for us to hide, he means.

Pepper nods, and he still doesn’t quite know what to make of her—of the way she watches him, and talks about the long years he was gone. He doesn’t know quite what to do with the way she squeezes his hand and murmurs, “Take care of him.”

He only knows this—he is in a quinnjet and Bucky is flying it, and Tony is in the Cradle, attended to by Helen Cho, and they’re going to a cabin he remembers being happy at.

~*~

He should have died.

There on the battlefield, his entire right side burnt black, his skin reeking of smoke and charred meat—the scent of meat cooking makes Peter gag, now—his eyes afraid as he watched Peter.

He should have died.

Peter thought he would.

He did, for a moment, before FRIDAY sent a pulse of electricity straight to his heart and Pepper slammed an injection of something bright and orange into his thigh and snapped at Rhodey to move him.

He did die.

And Pepper refused to accept that, just like Tony refused to accept Peter’s death, and maybe they were cheating—but he looks at Tony in the Cradle, Extremis working to piece him together, and thinks—he doesn’t care. He will cheat and steal and beg and borrow, whatever the hell it takes, to keep Tony breathing and with him.

With them.

~*~  

The cabin has been cleaned and stocked and prepared for a gravely injured man to convalesce. Peter barely notices as he and Bucky maneuver the Cradle in, and Tony sleeps on, unaware. He only realizes it when he walks through, after fussing over Tony and the room and the power supply and finally being snapped at by FRIDAY. He retreats, but leaves the door ajar. She’ll tell him if there are any changes.

Bucky is in the kitchen, poking at the groceries, and Peter studies him. When Pepper said he needed to take Tony somewhere safe, he hadn’t imagined the former assassin would want to come. But he came back alone, no Steve, no Sam, and no word of explanation—just offered to go and watch their backs.

The world changed, and he wasn’t going to turn down extra protection, certainly not when Mr. Stark was so vulnerable. Bucky came along.

“Did you get your room?” he asks, tired and Bucky shakes his head.

“You first,” he says, simply and Peter would argue—but he’s too tired for that. He nods and grabs an apple, before stumbling into the first bedroom and collapsing face first into the mattress.

“FRI,” he mumbles.

“Sleep, Peter. I’ll wake you if there’s any change,” she soothes and he let’s the promise be enough.  

~*~

Tony doesn’t wake up at all the first month.

Peter answers Pepper’s calls, steps aside to let Rhodey in when he comes by, and immerses himself in everything he missed in the past five years.

Bucky walks with him in the evenings, FRIDAY in his ear and fireflies come out to play, dance around in a swarm and he doesn’t want to ever leave.

“Why did you come with us?” he asks, and Bucky shrugs.

“There was no where else to go,” he says, and Peter squeezes his hand.

~*~

Extremis and the Cradle have a lot of work to do. Pepper won’t even tell Morgan he’s alive, just redirects the little girl and says it’s better.

Better not to get her hopes up, better to let time tell the story.

He sits next to Mr. Stark’s bed, staring at the damage the gauntlet did--and wonders if she was right.

If this can even be fixed.

Except--he was gone for five years. And Tony fixed it. Tony brought him home, brough the whole universe back to life.

So he believed. He sat next to Tony and watched Extremis move under his skin and the Cradle regrow his arm, and he believed.

~*~

“Do you ever think about it?”

Bucky looks at him.

"Do you?"

Peter pulls another handful of grass and twists it til it stains his fingers green. "No. But I think it was different for me? Dr. Strange said others knew, how long they'd been there. For me--it was just seconds."

He let's the ruined grass fall from his fingers. "But I remember how much it hurt," he confesses. "Dying? I remember that. And I remember begging Mr. Stark to make it stop."

He closes his eyes, remembering that day on Titan so long ago.

It feels so recent that he shivers. He can still taste the metallic air and the dust caught on his lips as he shattered into nothing.

"I remember," Bucky says.

Peter looks at him, and the assassin draws him close, and hooks the flower crown he's been weaving onto Peter's head.

"It was lonely. But quiet. Empty. I wasn't cold, and I wasn't being asked to kill anyone, and no one was hurting me," he says, softly. "It was almost peaceful."

He looks, for a moment, sad. Like he misses it.

Peter's heart aches, because what kind of horrible life did he have, that longing for death and the Soul Realm seemed better.

He doesn't ask, and Bucky smiles for him, but it's shadowed and tired, and Peter thinks that maybe Tony isn't the only one here who needs to heal.

They go back to the cabin and Peter waits, waits until the sun has dropped and night has settled and then knocks gently on his door.

"Can I read with you?" he asks, and Bucky looks at him, surprise in his storm grey eyes. "I'll be quiet. I just--I don't like being alone."

Bucky doesn't quite smile. But he does nod.

~*~

Extremis isn't a guarantee. That's what Pepper told him, as they took him off the bloody, dusty field.

It was just a chance. A desperate gamble.

"It could change him," she warned him.

It's part of why she stayed away, far enough that Tony couldn't hurt her and Morgan, if he did change.

It's part of why Peter stayed close. Because no matter what he did, Tony couldn't hurt him, not enough to do serious damage, without killing him.

Pepper looked worried when she said that, but Peter wasn't.

This was Tony Stark, the man who held him while he died, and rewrote time to bring him back, and there was nothing in the universe that could convince Peter Tony would ever voluntarily hurt him.

But sometimes--

Sometimes he reads the extensive reports FRIDAY complied on Extremis, and his gut churns, and he looks at Bucky, fear bright in his eyes. "What if he is different?" he asks.

Bucky slides his tea across the counter to Peter and leans back against the counter. He's wearing loose sweatpants and his feet are bare and his hair is a loose bun at the back of his head and he looks--happy, almost.

Peter likes it. Likes that Bucky is happy here, with them.

"We were," he says, and Peter blinks. "Dying does that to a person, Pete. You know that. He's going to be different because you don't walk away from what Tony did without being a little different."

Peter makes a low, hurt noise in his throat and Bucky smiles at him. Steps into his space and says, softly. "But different doesn't mean broken, and it doesn't mean how he feels about you is going to change."

~*~

Peter deliberately doesn't allow himself to think about how Tony feels about him, and why the thought of that makes his stomach churn and his palms sweat.

It's not fair to think about. Peter is a kid that Tony feels responsible for and he has a wife, a baby, a life that has nothing to do with a poor kid from Queens.

But there is this--

A hug on the battlefield. The haunted sorrow in his eyes, after he Snapped Thanos and his forces.

A life he risked, on the chance he could save Peter.

He doesn't let himself think about it.

But he can't stop himself from hoping.

~*~

They spend time every day by the lake, and taking long rambling walks while twilight settles. Every morning, Bucky runs along the dirt road through the forest that surrounds them, almost ten miles to the main road and back again.

But for all the time they spend everywhere else--the place they're most often found is Tony's room. Peter settles there with his books and his computer and listens to Bucky read aloud, when his eyes ache from his own studies. He answers emails from Pepper and May, sometimes, and tries not to think about everyone he hasn't heard from since the Restoration.

And it's at Tony's bedside that he looks at Bucky and says, "I want to tell their stories."

Bucky nods and says, "Tell me how."

~*~

He spends most of his time coding the program to process the endless stories pouring in, and working with Pepper to get it off the ground. And somewhere along the way, it becomes more than just the stories of those who died and came back. It becomes the stories of everyone Tony touched. He reads them, every night, while Bucky sits next to him and he knows that one day--one day it's going to be too much and Tony is going to wake up just to tell him to shut up, flushing in grumpy embarrassment.

He can't wait.

~*~

That isn't quite how it goes. When Tony wakes up, Peter is singing, soft and off key, and Bucky is asleep on the ground because he's a weirdo, and Tony doesn't actually move--it's just a flutter of eyelids that Peter, after over a month at his bedside, thinks he'd register even in his sleep. He looks up and tired, confused, beautiful brown eyes stare back and he smiles.

Chokes back his relief and tears.

"Welcome back, Mr. Stark."

It earns him a tiny smile, before Tony is asleep again.

~*~

"You called me Tony," he whispers, a few days later. Peter smiles, softly. It's been a long few days and Tony has been asleep for most of it, waking and drifting off again. Rhodey is here, sleeping somewhere in the cabin, and Bucky is tucked in the corner of the room because this--this is when Tony will be dangerous. This is when Extremis will cause him to lash out, if it does.

"Don't get used to it," he teases, and feeds Mr. Stark another ice chip. It melts, too quick, on his lip and Peter wipes the drop of water away. Tony's eyes track him as he sits back.

"I like it," he says.

Peter's gut churns, because--he doesn't know how to respond to that. Doesn't know how to say he can't make that their normal because it's too close, too much, everything he wants and can't have.

Instead he says, "Get out of that bed, and maybe I'll use it again."

Tony's eyes brighten and his mouth tightens, and that--that is when Peter finally let's himself breath and the knot of fear loosens in his chest.

He knows that look. It's the look Tony got, when Peter put himself in danger, the look he got, when someone kidnapped Peter junior year. The way he looked when Harry broke up with Peter the first time, and the look he got every time Steve Rogers came up.

It was the look that said, come hell or high water, Tony was going to fix a problem.

In all the time he'd known Tony, Peter can't remember a time he'd failed. He didn't think for a second that this would be the first time.

~*~

He waits, until Rhodey is by Tony's bed and he can slip away and huddle in his room, a corner with the pillow to muffle the noise, and he cries.

Finally, desperate and relieved, limbs shaking, he cries because Tony is going to live.

~*~

No one sleeps easy.

Before Titan, when they were still doing the superhero/mentee thing, Tony said nightmares were a occupational hazard. But living in a cabin--just three of them--the nightmares were a constant companion, a fourth presence in the home, and he hated them.

They haunted the nights--Bucky drifting into the kitchen to make warm vanilla milk and read. Peter shivering in his bed before he crept out and into Tony's room to web a nest in the corner where he could watch Tony while the older man slept.

Tony didn't do much, when he had nightmares. Just lay in bed and listened to FRIDAY reading report after report after report of everything that happened after the Battle of the Avengers.

On the nights when Peter crept into Tony's room and found the man awake, he'd listen to the AI's soothing Irish lilt, and eventually he'd fall asleep there.

Once, Tony asks him about it. "Why do you like coming here, after the nightmares?"

He doesn't answer at first, but then--he died with a thousand words on his tongue and came back and Tony almost died and the words stayed unsaid and he is tired of biting them back.

"In my nightmares, you die," he says, softly, staring at Tony.

"Pete," Tony breathes. He shrugs and blinks the tears stinging his eyes away.

"When I can see you--I know it was just a dream. That you're here--the Snap didn't take you, the Battle didn't take you. You're still here, with me."

"Kid," Tony chokes and he reaches for Peter.

And Peter let's him. Takes his hand and let's Tony pull him close, crawls into the bed next to him and curls under his arm, careful, careful, careful, and he falls asleep there, and neither of them have nightmares.

~*~

Two and a half months after the Battle--a month after Tony wakes up--Bucky says, "Extremis has done everything it can."

Peter frowns. They're on the porch because Tony stopped putting up with being bed bound two weeks ago, and the porch is his favorite place. There are fireflies beginning to float lazy on the air, and Tony is tucked warm and secure against his side.

"But--"

"It was a long shot, that Extremis was going to save him," Bucky says, gently. "And it did--but it was never going to undo all the damage."

Tony looks at his hands--the one twisted with Peter's, long elegant, fingers, calloused and scarred by years of work. And the one that is still burnt and shaky, that is mangled and barely functional. "I can't--I can't work, with my hands. Not like this," he says.

He can't build. He can't create.

"No. Not like this," Bucky says, gently. "But this is how far Extremis took you--and physical therapy can take you further."

Tony stares at his hands, and tears splash on them, on his mangled fingers, and he nods. "Ok."

"I'll help you," Bucky promises.

"Thank you," he says, hoarsely.

Buck smiles, and sits upright. "Don't thank me yet."

~*~

The first time they do PT, Tony is sobbing in five minutes, and cursing Bucky in less than that.

The fifth time, he makes it to seven minutes.

The sixth time, he barely makes it to three. Each time, he screams and curses at Bucky. Peter rubs his shoulder, after, when Bucky leans into him and trembles, and he says, "You know he needs this."

Bucky nods and closes his eyes. "I hate hurting him."

They both do.

~*~

Bucky is quiet.

He listens, and he laughs sometimes, when Peter does something especially ridiculous, like the time he tripped off the dock and fell into the lake and Bucky laughed, loud and startled, enough that he shook a copse of birds from the trees.

But he doesn't talk much. He sits in his corner and reads and he writes, and he watches.

Sometimes, Peter wants to ask him. What he remembers from being dead. What he remembers from the long years before that.

Where is Steve.

Bucky's gaze is always so...empty...that when he thinks about it, when he let's the words gather weight and sit on the edge of his tongue--he always swallows them back.

~*~

"I didn't expect you here."

Peter doesn't move. He fell asleep on the bed, tucked in Tony's arms, and he can hear the birds outside and the creak of the cabin floor where Bucky shifts his weight.

"He couldn't be here by himself."

Tony's arm around him tightens, and Peter presses just a little closer, reassuring, and Tony says, softly, "Thank you. For looking out for him."

Bucky is silent, and then, "Steve?"

It's said gently. So gently it makes tears sting the corner of Peter's eyes and he barely breathes, waiting.

"He don't need me anymore," Bucky says. "Gave Wilson the shield and got himself the life he always wanted."

There's a silence, and then, "I don't know what to do, without him or Hydra. I've--I've never been alone before. Not until now."

Tony shifts, the hand in Peter's hair leaving and he can feel Tony reaching for Bucky.

"You still aren't, Buck," Tony promises. "You have us."

~*~

"What was it like?" he asks, and Tony blinks at him. He's already looking at Peter, something that doesn't even strike him as odd, not anymore. Tony watches Peter. He can count on that, like he knows the sun will rise and the stars will fill up the sky. He doesn't question it, and he doesn't bother trying to parse out what the heavy, intense gaze means.

He thinks he knows, and it's better to leave it unspoken because this cabin on the edge of America is not their home.

There is a world, waiting. Waiting to snatch Tony back and demand more of him.

There is a family, waiting. Impatient for their missing piece. A little girl who misses her father, a wife who deserves her husband. He closes his eyes, because sometimes--seeing that look in Tony's eyes hurts.

"While we were gone," Peter continues on, tilting his head to lean on Tony's shoulder, and pushing the porch swing into a gentle rock.

"Quiet," he says. "It was so quiet. It wasn't just the people, you know. Half of every living thing--and it was so quiet in the aftermath I thought I'd go mad, with it. And that was--that was after I decided I wasn't going to die."

Peter flinches, and looks up, quick, eyes wide and scared. "The trip home almost killed me," Tony murmurs. "And then, Cap and the others--they killed Thanos but there was no undoing any of it. We didn't have the stones. We couldn't fix it. And I wanted to die. I wanted to let the starvation and the infection and everything else take me because--"

He cuts himself off, and Peter squeezes his hand. "Because?"

"Because I missed you," Tony whispers, like a secret. "I didn't know how to be here, without you."

He makes a noise, low and hurt and Tony's eyes are wide and wet and watching, and he burrows into Tony's side, careful, careful. Tony holds him close, and he doesn't know who is clinging to who, only that they are are together.

~*~

Tony watches him.

And he touches.

Before--before Tony never was one much for touch, beyond a grasped shoulder or a hand up while they were sparring. He'd nudge Peter aside in the kitchen and scruff his hair when sending him to bed--but it was different. They sit on the dock, while Bucky fishes, and Tony plays with Peter's hair, combs his fingers through it, slow and sensual and Peter knows it's wrong, knows he should pull away, but Tony's hand--his good hand, his whole hand--is gentle in his hair, and the blackened hand is resting on his chest, where his heart pounds too fast. Tony tugs, once, fingers catching on a snarl, and Peter gasps, his head coming back, arching his neck, eyes fluttering closed.

Tony's hand in his hair stills, and the one on his chest clenches, and Peter has a moment to think, shit, before he scrambling up and away and shouting about making dinner as he darts back to the house.

He does make dinner.

But first, he locks himself in his bathroom and takes his cock in his hand, and strokes himself fast and rough, the tug of Tony's hand in his hair and grip on his chest burning through him as he spills over his fingers.

~*~

 Morgan Stark is beautiful. She's dark haired and bright eyed and brilliant and Peter is charmed by her, helplessly. She sits in his lap, quiet, while Peter rocks them on the swing. Rhodey and Pepper are inside, talking to Tony with Helen Cho, and he wonders if this is the end. The day he will begin to lose Tony.

"Daddy missed you," Morgan says, soft, like a secret.

"Did he?"

She nods, expression grave but her eyes sparkle, like she's telling him something she shouldn't. "Mama says Daddy would have burnt down the universe, to save you."

Peter flushes, guilt and pleasure warring in his gut and this precious little girl squirming in his lap, impatient and twitchy the way her father is. "I'm sorry," he murmurs.

Morgan's eyes narrow, find him and she stills.

For a moment, she is all Pepper--poised and considering, weighing him. Then her smile breaks again, and it's bright and beautiful. "Why? Daddy loves you."

She leans into him and whispers, "Daddy would do anything for the people he loves."

She slips down from his lap and taps on foot, imperiously. "I want to throw stones in the water."

Peter blinks at her, at the sudden change. From secrets to stones in less than thirty seconds. He thinks even Tony would struggle to keep up with her. Still. He smiles, and stands. "Let's find you some, princess."

~*~

He leaves when Morgan is tucked in the bed with Tony. Peter had slipped away when Tony started crying, holding his daughter for the first time in almost three months. They look like a family, curled together on that bed, Morgan nestled between Tony and Pepper, and Rhodey a few feet away.

He couldn't stay for that. It felt wrong to be so hurt.

Bucky is sitting on the bed, reading, while Peter stares at nothing, curled around a pillow, tears silently rolling down his cheeks.

Pepper clears her throat. "Can I have a moment with Peter?"

Bucky looks at him, a question in the tilt of his eyebrows, and Peter nods, scrubs his face as he sits up. "It's fine."

Pepper is quiet as Bucky leaves, and then she smiles at Peter. "You've taken such good care of him. Of both of them."

Peter shrugs. Looks away. "After everything he did, he deserves to be taken care of."

"He does," she says, softly. "And he deserves to be happy."

He swallows hard.

"I have to take Morgan back to the city."

Peter blinks at her, and she smiles, gently. "Tony--the world will always want something from Tony Stark. And the longer they believe he is dead--the more he can rest."

"You're leaving him," Peter blurts and Pepper shakes her head.

"I'm--I love Tony. I will always love him--and he will always love me. But I love him enough to give him what he needs."

Peter frowns at her, and she leans over, kisses his cheek briefly. She smells like linen and sunflowers and something sweet, like candy.

"He needs you, right now. He has since you died. Take care of him--and when he needs me--don't hate him for that."

Peter stares after her for a long time, after she slips away, and it's only when Bucky returns and he listens to them leaving, Morgan's high happy voice echoing through the cabin, that he answers the quietly poised, "What did she want?"

"I think she gave me permission to be with Tony."

~*~

"Do you miss him?"

Bucky shakes his head. He doesn't ask who--doesn't need to. There's only ever been one him in his life.

"I miss--what we could have? I miss the boy I knew before the war and the life we had before the war--I miss peace. But I never was going to have that with Steve. Not here. Not now. We aren't those people anymore."

"You could have gone back with him," Tony says. He's watching Peter, cleaning the dishes and chattering to May and trying to keep himself from going to the boy.

"I'm not that boy, anymore. Neither was Steve--but he was so damn sure he could be."

Tony glances at him. "You're angry with him."

Bucky shrugs. Shakes his head. "Not angry. I just--I understand why he did it. But I don't think he should have."

"What are you going to do, without him?"

"Sam wants me to help him."

"Captain America and the Winter Soldier again, huh?" Tony hums. "But?"

Bucky shrugs and looks at him, almost shy. "I'm tired. I am so tired of fighting and killing. I don't--I don't want to be that person, anymore. I don't want to do that. I just want to be quiet and live."

Tony watches the boy. The one he sacrificed everything for, and can't step away from.

"I understand that," he says, softly.

~*~

The days get longer and longer, thick with heat and humidity, heavy twilights full of singing frogs and birds, and then, almost before he can reconcile, they're sliding toward fall, the days growing short, and the leaves changing. Six months slip away and Peter thinks--he could stay here forever, tucked away with his toes under Bucky's thigh and Tony's arm wrapped around his shoulders, holding me close.

He works on the endless stories, and the website launches with Pepper's help and a mess of publicity in New York that doesn't touch him. May calls, tells him how proud of him she is and she asks, delicate and indirect, when he'll come home.

He doesn't say that he is home. That a cabin on the edge of America, in the embrace of Tony, next to Bucky, is home.

~*~

"Do you love him?" Peter asks, one night after Tony has fallen asleep. The PT session today left him shaking and exhausted, and Peter wonders if they're ever going to be whole again. Or if they're always going to be shattered pieces trying to put themselves back together.

"Of course," Bucky says, startled. He looks at Peter. "But not like you do. I love you both--you're my family. But I don't--I'm not made for relationships, Peter. I never was. I loved Steve, too. And I could never have been with him, not like that."

Peter tips his head. "But--the news reels--they always said you liked---" he fumbles, and stops, flushing and Bucky grins, and for a moment it's bright and there are no shadows in his eyes.

"Fucking is easy, doll. It's the romance I don't do. I can't do. I love you both--but I don't think I can love anyone the way you love him."

Peter nods, and Bucky musses his hair as he walks by. "Don't worry about me, little spider. I'm happy."

Peter catches his wrist, squeezes and Bucky pauses, startled. "Promise?"

Surprise and adoration cascade through his eyes, and he softens. "обещай, паук."

~*~

Ironman died.

That's what the world knows.

The Battle of the Avengers changed everything, rewrote the Decimation, and destroyed the Compound and in the end, killed Thanos and his mass of alien invaders and the cost was staggeringly high--but the one that was most remembered was Tony Stark. Who put on a gauntlet made for a god to wield a power that created the cosmos and risked his life to rewrite the universe into existence.

To bring back a boy with big eyes and chestnut curls and a heart so big it hurt to think about--but the world doesn't know that part of the story.

They don't know this part either--

Extremis saved his life, and it took time, time and privacy and a cabin on the edge of America and a boy who refused to leave his side, to put him back together, but Tony Stark survived.

Tony Stark stares at his boy, the one he was so willing to die for, smiling sleepily over his coffee, and he thinks--it was worth it.

For this boy.

It was worth it.

"We can undo it. Bring Ironman back." Rhodey murmurs to him and Tony looks at the suit, the one that is so much a part of him.

He looks at his hand, the right hand that is still weak and scarred, that will never be whole and he looks at Peter.

Shakes his head.

Ironman died on that battlefield.

Tony Stark doesn't have to.

~*~

Tony goes into the workshop eight months after the Battle, six months after he leaves his bed for the first time. Peter is at his side, and Extremis winds through him, waking up the room and the bots before he can speak.

His hand might never be whole, but his mind is sharper than it ever was.

He looks at Peter, and says, because here, in the workshop where he has always been the most comfortable, he finally thinks he can say it, "You don't have to stay with me."

Peter looks at him, and his eyes are bright and clear and so beautiful it makes his breath catch.

"Do you want me to go?"

Tony is shaking his head before he can finish the question, and his voice is too raw, too honest when he says, "Never."

Peter smiles and draws him deeper into the room. "What are we working on?"

~*~

It feels good, being back at work. Even if he has to lean over Peter, his voice low and steady as he tells him what to do. Peter's hands are strong and steady and capable, and Tony grits his teeth against the want that never seems to go away, and only gets worse the longer they are together.

Sometimes, Peter slips and hurts himself and he shrugs it off, dismisses it like his blood spilling is nothing to worry about, and Tony's heart pounds, pounds, pounds, and his fingers tremble as he cleans Peter's hands and bandages them and holds them like he's precious and wishes he could explain to the boy--he is.

He is.

He is.

~*~

Tony is a little startled to find Peter sitting on his bed. His hands are bandage free and his eyes are bright and warm as he watches Tony. The cabin is quiet, and he has a moment to wonder if Peter planned this, before Peter shifts and all thought vanishes.

He's in an oversized t shirt that Tony recognizes as his own.

"You need to understand something, Tony," he murmurs and that--that's never going to not get to him. Tony, coming from Peter is almost indecent and so fucking perfect, everything he wanted for over five years. "I am exactly where I want to be. I'm not here because you saved my life, or because you were my mentor a lifetime ago, or any other reason you've got in your head. I'm here? Because I want to be here. I'm with you because I want to be with you."

He doesn't say anything else, but Tony is suddenly close enough to touch and he wonders if that was himself or Extremis before he decides it doesn't matter.

"Pete," he whispers.

"I want this," Peter murmurs, and draws him into a kiss that's shockingly chaste.

~*~

It's gentle. He isn't sure why that shocks him. Peter has always been gentle with him, considerate and kind. It does shock him, though, and he bites his lip to keep from sobbing when Peter slowly rides him, when he kisses him, too deep to be anything but dirty, but so careful it's almost reverent, and his hands cling, but they never tip past desperate into hard. It's gentle and possessive but never claiming, and it feels like a gift, and when Peter comes, spilling across his belly with a cry, that feels like a gift too.

~*~

There is a cabin, near the edge of America, right up on the Canadian border. In the summer, the forest is bright and green and lush for miles. In the winter, it's snow bound and the lake freezes and Peter goes out on it, dances endless circles on skates while Tony watches from the porch, hands clasped around a cup of hot chocolate.

There are three suits, boxed up and hidden in the attic--one red and gold, one blue and red, and one black with too many knives and guns for one person to carry. They gather dust, never quite forgotten but happily left behind. Sometimes--sometimes Peter leaves, goes with Bucky to the city and spends a month with May, leave room for Pepper and Morgan to come home.

He visits the memorials for a fallen legend, and he listens to the people who pour out their stories on a archive of survival he coded.

He hugs the friends that still remain and Bucky shows him the graves of the ones they lost.

And then he goes home.

To the cabin on the edge of America and the man who draws him like a star. The world still mourns Ironman, and he thinks--one day they'll go back.

One day, he'll tire of these shadows, step out of them, back into the light.

But for now--for now there is a strong hand on his hip in the workshop, guiding him, and a sassy smile across from him in their kitchen, and a warm body curled around his in their bed.

The world can mourn their legend, he thinks, the snow swirling down as he leans into Tony's greedy, welcoming kiss.

He'll keep the man.

He is, impossibly, happy.

[science-lings]

Pilotwives babysitting peter for the Drabble request :)

Okay, this may not be exactly what you wanted but It’s a plot point in this AU that I wanted to write pretty badly. FYI this is a biodad AU and Peter is a kid. A smaller kid than he usually is. 

Peter knew that something had gone wrong. He could feel it in his bones and the way that Aunt Pepper paled when she listened to a voice on the other end of the phone. He could tell that she tried to hide it but he just knew. She calmly uttered instructions to the person on the other end and she looked like she was about to cry. She looked at him for a moment before hanging up the phone and giving him a half-hearted smile.

“Hey, Petey? How do you feel about visiting your Aunt Carol and Aunt Maria? I have to go take care of some things at work and it might take a while.”

“What’s wrong?” Peter immediately asked. He knew that something was up but he didn’t know how worried he should be so he ended up being extra worried just in case it was something really bad. He wasn’t disappointed.

“Your dad ran into some problems in Afganistan, You know he was there for the weapons demonstration, right?” She said carefully as if she had to think about every word that she said to him. Peter only nodded in response. He had a feeling that the problems his dad ran into were not something like a leopard in the distance or a car breaking down.

“Wasn’t Uncle Rhodey with him?”

“Yeah… Yeah, he was…” Peter didn’t get much information beyond that.

They just waited for his aunts to arrive in their strange little aircraft. It had always amazed him every time he saw it but for some reason, it wasn’t very interesting this time. He had taken a long time to pack, he didn’t know how long he’d be gone. Aunt Pepper helped him of course but he could practically feel her anxiety and it just made him more nervous.

It took a few hours for Aunt Carol and Maria to get there as they lived pretty far away, but that whole time, Aunt Pepper didn’t tell him anything else. He didn’t even know how bad it was and he had a little voice in his head that kept telling him that his dad was dead just like his mom. Although he was half a world away, Peter felt kind of guilty for whatever went wrong even though it was completely illogical. Feelings weren’t exactly known to have much logic.

When his aunts got there, they seemed to already know what was going on and their smiles didn’t seem as genuine. They were a little better at acting than Aunt Pepper was though.

Peter waved goodbye to Aunt Pepper and Aunt Maria helped him into the plane while Aunt Carol took care of his little star wars themed duffle bag. Peter was so nervous that he immediately stuck to the seat when he tried to buckle himself in. He had to do a breathing exercise to calm himself down enough to unstick himself.

“Mutant powers again Hon?” Maria asked.

“Yeah, it gets worse when I’m anxious… I’m like a magnet.” Peter sighed.

“I know… Carol does the same thing, she once got really into a movie and now our couch has a permanent a burn in the shape of your aunt’s butt.”

“What movie was it?” Peter smiled a little at the image.

“It was the Lion King.”

“It was not the Lion King!” Carol yelled as she came back into the cockpit.

“I’m pretty sure that it was…”

“It’s okay Aunt Carol, I cried when Darth Vader cut of Lukes' hand.” Peter attempted to reassure her. “He just looked so sad…”

“Oh do not get her started on Star Wars.” Maria smiled coyly.

“I’ll spare you guys for now. But we will have a marathon while you’re over.” Carol promised.

“Good God…” Maria groaned as Peter smiled a little wider, He was released when he was relaxed enough to not stick to the chair. It was much more comfortable now.

The ride was long but it wasn’t boring. Aunt Carol was happy to talk to him about Star Wars and space while Maria primarily piloted the aircraft. They talked about their daughter Monica who was in college getting her degree and about movies that they all had seen. They let Peter ramble on about some science things that he had recently learned. They always were pretty surprised by how smart he was even though he was only eight years old.

When they got to Louisiana, Goose was waiting for them. Peter was very happy to see the time and space traveling cat. Every once in a while she would visit him and his dad in Malibu but she liked Carol and Maria more. Peter brightened when he left the aircraft and gently patted Goose’ head when she came right up to him. Goose had always liked him, he had always been gentle with her and she had judged him as worthy. She followed them into the house and Peter carried his bag into the main room.

“Can someone tell me what happened? Aunt Pepper didn’t tell me anything…” Peter slumped on the couch next to the person-sized smolder mark and Goose hopped on his lap. Carol and Maria shared a look like they were arguing non-verbally. Carol seemed to have lost as she sighed and sat by him.  

“Tony was on his way back from the weapons demo and his car got shot at. Uncle Rhodes said that last he saw, Tony was still alive but we think that some terrorist organization got to him first. You know your dad though… He’ll think his way out…” Carol said with so much surety that Peter didn’t think that she was lying.

Carols phone rang and she picked it up in hopes that it was news on her friend. It was technically news as she picked up the TV remote as fast as lightning and turned on the TV to a news channel. They were covering what had happened to Tony.

“Peter... “

“I’m not leaving,” Peter demanded. He probably should’ve as the news network showed a grainy video with a disheveled Tony in the middle. He had bandages on his chest and looked like he had been through hell. All around him were masked men with guns, they were yelling in a language Peter couldn’t even identify.

His blood went cold and even Aunt Carol with her automatic heater body couldn’t thaw the ice in his soul. Peter had only been so afraid when he had almost been kidnapped and Happy had left for a moment to go get a funnel cake from a vendor. Sure it still would’ve been scary with Happy there to help but it was so much worse when he was so vulnerable. That was even before his mutations became active. Before he was able to break the guy's ribs with a single blow.

Seeing his dad injured and in so much danger felt like that. It felt suffocating. Someone who had sung him to sleep until he was embarrassed about that, the man that told him bedtime stories about superheroes and listened to him even if he was acting stupid. His dad was up there on the TV surrounded by enemies and covered in blood.

It was a long three months. But it was easier once he accepted it. Every day, they would call Rhodey to check in and his aunts did everything they could to take his mind off of it. Peter taught Carol how to play Pokemon on his DS and she helped him learn how to control his powers. To be able to stick and unstick at will and how to control his strength.

During the day, Peter almost forgot that there was anything wrong. His dad could just be on a prolonged business trip and was too tired to call every night… He was just spending the summer with his fun gay aunts… nothing was wrong. But it all went away during the night. Almost every night, aside from movie nights when he fell asleep on one of his aunts' laps, he had nightmares and woke up sticking to the ceiling and with hot salty tears streaming down his cheeks.

He always tried to be quiet so that he wouldn’t wake his aunts up but it wasn’t very long before they noticed. Peter had woken up stuck to the corner of the ceiling and he curled up into a ball. He tried to muffle the sobs that wracked through his body but he wasn't quiet enough and Aunt Maria woke up which led to Aunt Carol waking up. He automatically apologized for waking them up but neither of them were having any of it. They talked him off of the wall which wasn’t easy as it was mostly his powers going haywire and eventually got him back to sleep after Carol decided to show off her singing.

It was three whole months of this. Peter was thankful that it was with his aunts instead of Obadiah or someone that he didn’t know as well. One day, Carol got a call. For once, it was good news. Great news. She smiled and looked at Peter. They were just finishing up breakfast.

“It’s Rhodey. He says that they found him. They found Tony. There was a big explosion and he broke himself out.” She grinned. “The plane is planning on going to a hospital in New York.”

“Why does he need to go to the hospital?” Peter stopped eating his pancake.

“Rhodes said that there was… something in his chest… I don’t know but they’re on their way back. We should meet him halfway.” Peter rushed to pack up and that’s just what they did.

He was so excited. He couldn’t wait to see his dad again, he was fidgeting in his seat. It felt like forever even though it was only an hour to get there on their alien enhanced spaceship. They landed minutes before Tony’s plane landed and Peter ran to stand and wait by Aunt Pepper. Peter was so excited that he could barely speak, he was practically vibrating.

Tony’s plane landed and he walked out before Rhodey. His arm was in a sling and he looked pretty rough but when he looked out and spotted Peter, he smiled. Peter didn’t wait for Tony to walk down all of the stairs to exit he just ran and launched himself tearfully at his dad. Tony barely managed not to fall over and kept supporting his kid with his good arm.

“I really missed you,” Peter muttered.

“I missed you too bud.” Tony smiled. Peter felt the warm but hard implant on his father's chest and could barely see the light blue glow being covered up by layers of clothing.

“Are you like a cyborg now?” Peter asked in a serious tone and Tony laughed. It kind of hurt but he didn’t care.

“I mean if you want to think of it that way… Like a scary terminator cyborg or a cool Luke Skywalker metal hand cyborg?”

“You’re a cool cyborg.”

“You’re darn right I am.

[irondadgroupie]

Bohemian Rhapsody: Prologue

A/N: Here it is! After months of work, Bohemian Rhapsody begins. Every week, Monday, around this time, I and @intoresus will release this story chapter at a time. As of now, we are still writing this story, coming up with new ideas every day. We want to be as realistic as possible. By the end of this chapter, you can maybe guess what is going to happen and so, this story will include TONS OF medical whump. 

Among many other talents, Tony Stark has the ability to quote from every Queen song ever published.  

There are plenty of ways that you can hurt a man  

And bring him to the ground

It's the terror of knowing what the world is about  

Are you ready hey are you ready for this?  

Are you hanging on the edge of your seat?  

And not in his craziest nightmares would he have imagined that it would just take a single drive for a training session on the compound with Peter to hate their music for the rest of his life.  

It sends shivers down my spine  

Body's aching all the time  

Why, why, why?  

Insanity laughs, under pressure we're breaking  

When, in one impossible instant, he seems to be loosing one of the few people he‘d die to protect.  

These are the days it never rains but it pours  

Pray tomorrow gets me higher

PROLOGUE

“I think I’m going to explode within the next... five seconds.”  

Tony laughed, a mocking smile gracing the billionaire’s lips. “So you want to tell me there’s a way to fill that bottomless pit of your stomach?”

“Hey!” Peter retorted, pretending to be huffy. “It’s not my fault I got that metabolism. And just because I have to eat more doesn’t mean I can’t be full.” To be completely honest, if he were hungry hour after eating literally everything at the huge all you can eat- buffet, he would have either starved already or May would have gone bankrupt. Both weren’t exactly a nice image.

“Alright, I’ll make a mental note that it takes four plates piled with food to cope with Peter Parker’s metabolism.”

“Do you want me to put that in sketchpad for you?” Friday asked. Peter raised his eyebrows. The AI was an incredibly useful tool - a friend, he reminded himself, thinking of how much he’d grown to like Karen - but her sense of detecting sarcasm and jokes really needed to be updated.

“No-“

“Yes.” Tony interrupted his protégé. Not that it was a life-changing thing to keep in mind, but he liked stumbling over side-notes like this when stuck on developing something new which happened quite often, even to the genius that everyone considered Tony Stark to be.

“Why, Mr. Stark, this is- “He was about to say “-really useless information for you” but was interrupted when the brakes squeaked and Tony pressed an arm against the boy’s chest. Peter hated it, because he felt like a kid every time it happened, but since that one time Tony had to jump on the brakes and the belt had refused to hold Peter upright - with his nose catching the worst of it - this happened frequently: Tony pushing him in the seat when he saw things coming. He couldn’t help it, it had just become a natural reflex.

Around a year earlier, Tony would’ve pretended it was because of the legal issues he’d get if one of his interns got hurt on a trip with him - or because he didn’t like bloodstains on the interior of his car. Nowadays, no one would believe that. You didn’t just invite any intern to lunch, let alone someone who wasn’t even an actual intern. Truth was, Tony Stark had started caring deeply for someone that wasn’t him, or Pepper or Rhodey. He might have smiled at that thought if it wasn’t for the anger rushing through his system.

“I hate this goddamn quarter! Feels like all residents are just too stupid to comprehend the easiest of street signs.” Tony let out a breath and relaxed a little, letting his arm drop. “Sorry kiddo.”  

The next free hour he’d definitely use to program Friday to avoid routes with higher risk for traffic accidents.

“At least the sight’s pretty nice.” The man turned the car left, leading them away from the apartment blocks and into more natural areas of the city. Peter couldn’t agree more. The sight was astonishing: it was September, autumn was slowly settling in and the tree’s leaves looked like molten gold in the sunlight. Looking out of his window, he could watch it draw all known colors onto the surface of the broad river. This was one of the times that Peter wished he could just hop out of the car and swing himself to the top of those trees. If this place wasn’t so far from home, he might even do it on a spare day. Until then, he decided, he’d just enjoy the quick mini-road trip with his mentor.  

As if Tony had heard those words, he turned up the volume of the freshly installed audio system, and it took Peter all of his strength to not start head-banging when Bohemian Rhapsody started playing. It was entirely another question if humming along to the melody was less embarrassing.

But Tony Stark was, even though he might not portray himself like that as often, just as much of a nerd as Peter was. The fingers of his right hand, wrapped around the steering wheel, twitched in the rhythm of the piano, and he rolled his eyes when he saw that the kid was holding back the urge to play along with the guitar. His taps intensified when they reached the well known bridge, and Peter finally couldn’t stop it from happening: He closed his eyes, ignoring the blood rushing in his cheeks by the thought that Tony - fucking Ironman - Stark was sitting in the driver’s seat next to him, listening, and just bursted the song out of his lungs.

“Thunderbolt and lightning - Very, very frightening me!” Tony grinned, and the following happened with neither of them consciously thinking about it. As if they’d sang it in duet billion times already.

“Galileo.”

“Galileo.” Peter started grinning.

“Galileo.” Tony grinned brighter.

“Galileo.”

And both finished, in perfect union: “Galileo figaro!” before taking a short breath to go along with the final chords: “Magnifico-o-o-o!” They laughed, and Peter let all guard down, wholeheartedly playing the solo on the air guitar. It was impossible to believe that a song connected to a memory as crazily beautiful as this would turn into one that Tony would hate to hear for the rest of his life.

The song was still playing when his eyes widened in shock, his right arm snapping upwards to Peter’s chest, a curse slipping from his mouth when the brakes squealed for the second time that day.

So you think you can stone me and spit in my eye? (Yeah!)

So you think you can love me and leave me to die?

Oh, baby, can't do this to me, baby

Just gotta get out, just gotta get right outta here.