Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Prompt #1: Hugs and #2: Stressed

Adventures in Old English

┈┈┈┈┈┈🕸┈┈┈┈┈┈

Peter Parker was a smart kid. He really was. He got excellent grades, and worked (and kept up!) regularly in the lab with a couple of the brightest minds around. Dr. Banner and Mr. Stark both thought he was smart, too. So why couldn’t he write this ridiculous English Literature paper? Why was trying to read, understand, and analyze Chaucer leading to a stress headache and complete mental breakdown? He scrubbed at his eyes, trying to pretend there weren’t a few tears of frustration there, and worked on taking a few deep breaths.

His phone rang, startling him. He picked it up, looking at the display. Why was Tony calling him at 9 PM at night?

“Mr. Stark? What’s up?”

“Hey kid. Your watch is reporting some crazy heart and respiration rates, but FRI says your suit isn’t active. Everything okay?” Ugh. Peter only wished he was out patrolling as Spider-man. Chasing down a few villains sounded way preferable to this assignment. Unfortunately, it was nearly half of his grade for the quarter, so it’s not like he could just blow it off.

“Oh. Um, everything’s fine, sorry. I’m just trying to write an English Lit paper, and it’s not going well, and I was just flipping out a little bit. I’m fine, though. Sorry to alarm you or whatever.”

“I see. Is May there?”

“Nah, she’s working tonight. She’ll be back before I go to school tomorrow, though.”

“Huh. You gonna be okay?”

“Yeah. It’s just Chaucer. I mean, at least Beowulf was the translated version. I can barely understand this stuff, much less analyze it. Why does any of this matter?”

“Sorry, kid. I wish it was Chemistry or Physics or something, and there was something I could do to help.”

“Me, too. But if it was either of those, I probably wouldn’t need help.”

“True. Hang in there, bud.”

“Thanks. I’m sure it’ll be fine. I’ll try not to set off any of your alarms again, but if I do, just ignore them.”

“Hmm. If you say so.”

Peter continued to muddle his way through the passages that had (mostly) made sense when his teacher explained them as they went. He tried to remember what she had said about this particular tale, but wasn’t making much headway. Thirty minutes after Tony’s call, he only had two paragraphs written, and he doubted that they made any actual sense. It took effort not to just throw his laptop and his English Lit book out the window.

Suddenly there was a knock on the door. Who could that be? Mrs. Goldenstein down the hall checked on him sometimes, but she was usually in bed before now. He moved to the door and hesitantly opened it.

“Tony?”

“In the flesh. I brought reinforcements. I never paid much attention in English, but turns out I know someone who aced all her English classes.” He reached to the side and pulled Pepper Potts into view. She was dressed in a cute sweatsuit and looked like she had been headed to bed. The redheaded CEO rolled her eyes slightly at her fiancé's theatrics.

“Hey, Pete,” she said kindly. “Tony said you could use some help with Chaucer? Turns out he was a favorite of mine.”

“Are you serious?” Peter asked, surprise and slight awe leaking into his tone. “You really don’t have to. But, uh, that would be pretty much amazing. I was kind of about to jump off a proverbial cliff.” He quickly gestured them inside.

“I could have sent Pepper by herself, but I wanted to do something to help, too,” Tony said, walking past him to set a fragrant bag on the counter. “I brought chocolate, Chinese food, and this.” He turned back to Peter and pulled him in close for a tight hug, wrapping both arms firmly around his shoulder and squeezing just the right amount. One hand came up to cup the back of his head and brush the hair there gently.

Peter felt all the tension in his shoulders melt just a little bit in his mentor’s hold, and the physical support made him relax and take a deep breath. It came back out a little shakily, but instead of forcing its way out as tears, he felt his frustration bleed out through his feet to make way for a little bit of hope, instead. Not all crises required super suits, but heroes were always welcome.

Chapter Text

Whirling Thoughts

┈┈┈┈┈┈🕸┈┈┈┈┈┈

Peter wasn’t sure what was happening in the movie. He hadn’t been paying attention for at least fifteen minutes - pretty much since it started. He felt a little too warm, but his hands felt cold. So wouldn’t that be weird if he tried to hold MJ’s hand with cold hands? He slipped his hands under his legs, trying to warm them up. Wait, did she even want him to hold her hand? He’d been trying to decide the answer to that ever since the movie started, but he wasn’t any closer to knowing what to do. 

They had been spending lots of time together, sometimes even without Ned, and he had held her hand a few times, and she had held his a few, and she had even kissed him the night before. Which was… amazing. But he didn’t know what the rules were here. They had only held hands while walking together, not sitting watching a movie. And they had only held hands when it was just the two of them, or when they were out in public, but without anyone else that knew them. Ned was here, on the other side of Peter. He didn’t think Ned would care. His best friend knew how much he liked MJ, and he had told him some of what had already happened between them. But would MJ care if Ned saw them holding hands? Would it make it awkward between them?  What would MJ even do if he tried to hold her hand and… and she didn’t want him to? What if she did want him to hold her hand, but he wasn’t doing it, and she thought maybe he didn’t want to, and--

MJ interrupted his spiral of self-doubt by shifting closer to him until her head was leaning against his. She put her arm through his and tugged his hand out from under his leg so she could hold it. Oh. Okay. All of the swirling thoughts in his head seemed to settle like a dust devil that had just run out of wind.

“Finally!” Ned said in exasperation. “Now will you answer me when I ask you questions?”

“Yeah,” MJ said nonchalantly. “I was going to wait and let him decide if he cared if you saw us holding hands, but I could almost feel the steam coming out of his ears while he tried to decide what I might want him to do.” She softened her teasing tone by leaning in to kiss Peter’s cheek, and he felt himself lean into her lips, prolonging the contact an extra second. He let out a huge breath he hadn’t known he was holding.

“So,” Ned continued, as if nothing monumental had just happened, “watch this part, and tell me if you think it’s plausible, or if they took just way too much creative license…”

Chapter Text

Change of Venue

Hey Mr. Stark?

Yeah kid, what’s up?

May’s working tonight, and she said I needed to let you know if my plans changed and I was gonna go out

Weren’t you doing that game night tonight with your friends?

MJ got sick. Ned and I were still going to play, but now his Lola came to town unexpectedly

So I’m gonna patrol

If that’s ok

You can do that for a while, but why don’t you swing by the Tower in about an hour?

Um… ok

What was that game you were going to play called?

Just the new Mario Kart on the Switch

Do you still want to play that?

You don’t have a Switch Mr. Stark, you have an xBox. And it was Ned’s game. That’s okay though. I’m sure we’ll get to try it later.

Be safe, Pete.

Is there even a question?

So many questions.

😝

Peter’s patrol had been pretty boring. Surprisingly quiet for a Saturday night, actually. He was hoping for a little more action to take his mind off his week. It had been a rough one, with May working extra shifts, Flash and his buddies being especially difficult, two big papers due, and his regular insomnia on top of all that. He’d really been looking forward to hanging out with Ned and MJ tonight, especially since May was working. 

Peter didn’t love being alone. I mean, he did fine with it, obviously. It’s not like he was a little kid. But he liked to be with people more often than not, and he didn’t feel like being alone tonight. But Tony had invited him to the Tower, so that was something. He was happy to spend some of the evening with his mentor, and even happier to just not be home in a quiet apartment by himself. It made Peter feel warm inside when people actually went out of their way to spend time with him. And that wasn’t completely fair. He knew MJ and Ned didn’t mean to cancel tonight. It just seemed like things came up so often lately. Everyone was busy.

As he swung onto the penthouse balcony of Stark Tower, he could hear more activity than usual inside. What the…? FRIDAY unlocked the door for him, and he made his way inside hesitantly, stopping to change quickly out of his spider-suit and into jeans and a t-shirt. He’d somehow forgotten to throw his shoes in his bag. That was dumb. So he slung his backpack on one shoulder and padded barefoot into the living room.

No one heard him come in, apparently, and he just stood watching, in shock. Mr. Stark apparently had not one, but two Nintendo Switches, and he had the both connected to two big screens (the regular TV, and one they’d dragged in from somewhere else), so up to eight people could play at once. It was hard to even find one console right now. Where had he found two at such short notice? 

Just as surprising was the company. Sitting around the large living room were Pepper…er, Ms. Potts, Colonel Rhodes, Happy, Ms. Natasha Romanoff, Vision, and Brandon from Mr. Stark’s security team. He was always nice to Peter, and went out of his way to say hi. But Peter had never seen him in the penthouse. What was going on?

Mr. Stark looked up towards the door like he was expecting him to be there (he probably was, thanks to FRIDAY) and grinned at Peter. “Hey Underoos, you gonna join us?” He patted the empty spot on the couch next to him. The other members of the party smiled his way and called out various greetings. 

“Mr. Stark, what is all this?” Peter walked over and slid onto the couch next to him, tucking his feet up on the cushion. 

“Since your game night canceled, I thought we might do the same thing here. Then when you do get to play with your friends, you’ll have an unfair advantage.” Mr. Stark waggled his eyebrows like a cartoon villain, and Peter smiled at the image. The older man reached over and swiped an affectionate hand across his hair, as he often did, and Peter pretended it bothered him, as he often did. 

“You didn’t have to do all this for me… and how did you get everyone here?”

“It sounded like fun. I just sent out an open invite to whoever was in town, promising pizza and the privilege of hanging out with our favorite Spider-kid, and we had a full house in no time. Rogers and Wilson wanted to come too, but they were too late responding, so I told them next time. Pity, that.” 

Mr. Stark’s eyes shone. He got along better with the previous “Rogue Avengers” than he used to, but he still enjoyed taking Captain Rogers down a peg or two whenever it wasn’t offensive to do so. Peter shook his head. 

“You know, they could have come anyway,” he said reprovingly, bumping his shoulder into the older man’s. “It’s not like everyone will want to play the whole time.”

“Nah, eight’s a full house,” Tony said happily. “Get something to eat. These yahoos are just getting the controllers figured out. Brandon and Rhodey are the only ones who have played before.”

“My nephews beat me regularly,” Colonel Rhodes laughed from the other couch. But I hear it’s harder to fall off in this version than it was on the Wii, so I’m in.”

Peter grinned. “I haven’t played it yet, but I’m excited to try!”

“Well, grab a slice of pizza, or three, kid, and we’ll get this show on the road. They’re just going to do a practice round right now.”

Peter did as he suggested, and came back to the couch balancing four slices of pepperoni, a small salad (because he knew Pepper would give him disapproving looks if he didn’t) and a Capri Sun. The “practice race” was in full swing, and it was quite entertaining listening to the group try to figure everything out.

“Why am I not moving? What’s wrong?”

“Hap, you’re going backwards. You must be hitting the wrong button.” Tony didn’t try to hide his amusement.

“Why is there even a backwards button anyway? That’s stupid. We should start over.”

Rhodey spared him a glance. “I dunno, why do regular cars have reverse? C’mon, man.”

“Wait, where’d you go, Romanoff? Is that a shortcut??” Tony glared sideways suspiciously, which led to his own vehicle running into a tree. He swore quietly.

“I’m not sharing my secrets.”

“Oh my gosh , Tony. Did you just blow me up again? I swear, if you don’t stop doing that…”

“You’ll what, babe?”

“Don’t sound so excited,” Pepper growled. “It’s not anything good.”

“Is Brandon still in the lead? Who invited you, man?” 

“ Some body had better stop throwing shells, or there’s gonna be a fight.”

“Woo-hoo! I got the bullet again! Watch out suckers, coming through!”

“You know that just means you were doing so bad that the game felt sorry for you, right?”

“What the heck? What just happened to me? Why am I under water?” 

“Boss, if you watch ahead of you a little bit, there are signs that will show you where the track’s going. You know, so you’ll stop hitting walls.”

“Shut up, Brandon. Don’t act like you’re trying to help me, Jeff Gordon.”

“Hey, Vis, I thought you’d be better at this. Aren’t computers supposed to be superior at stuff like this?”

“It is not completely a combination of strategy, understanding, and reflexes. There are a lot of variables, especially with so many unpredictable and flawed human participants.”

“Why you pointy-eared ba-”

“Language!”

“I understand the reference, but I don’t believe it’s applicable in this case, because—”

Peter grinned, listening to the bickering and teasing of his friends. It warmed his heart to know that they’d all been willing to come hang out with him, doing something that was obviously outside of many of their comfort zones. It was nice having more people in his life than he’d had last year. He finished off his pizza in record time and grabbed a controller. Someone had to beat Brandon and show up the other superheroes, and he was definitely feeling up to the job. Ned was never going to believe this.

Chapter Text

Laundry Day

It was well into November, and it had been extra chilly lately. Pepper liked it warmer, but when she was out of town, Tony didn’t like to turn up the heat much. He liked getting to wear warmer clothes and drink hot coffee (or sometimes even hot chocolate) all day and remind himself that it was fall outside, even if he didn’t often go out. 

Peter was at the Tower for his weekly internship, and had been wandering all over the lab this afternoon, and now all over the penthouse while they waited for pizza to arrive. Tony couldn’t figure out what he was doing. He seemed to be looking for something.

“Pete, what’s eating you?”

“Huh?” The teenager’s eyes were wide, as his head shot out from where he was nonchalantly looking through a closet.  His face was just a little too innocent. Something was up. Tony turned and faced him, arms crossed and eyebrow quirked.

“Can I help you find something? What did you lose?”

“Um, nothing. I’m just cold. I was looking for a jacket.”

Tony tilted his head to the side in confusion, staring pointedly at the carefully folded hoodie sitting on the table between them. “Didn’t you just bring that one back?” One of Tony’s old MIT hoodies had been missing for a few weeks—ever since it got cold—but that mystery had been solved when Peter sheepishly pulled it out his backpack earlier that afternoon, returning it washed.

“Is there something wrong with that one?” he asked again.

“It’s all clean. I was just looking for one you’d already worn or something, so I don’t get that one dirty.” Tony had gotten pretty good at reading the teen, and that was only a partial truth for sure.

“Kid, there’s a whole stack of clean ones in my bedroom; we just did laundry. You’re fine to wear that one, or I can turn up the heat if you’re really cold.”

“No, I… I don’t mind the cold, I just…” Peter was looking really nervous. Or was it embarrassed?

Finally he spit it out. “That one just smells like our laundry. Because after I wore it all weekend when I was sick, May washed it. I like it when it smells like… like here, instead.”

Tony was surprised, but he felt his expression soften. Well, that was… was sweet. Without another word he pulled his own hoodie over his head and handed it to the flustered Peter, then walked over to the table and pulled the clean one on instead.

He turned back to Peter, who was standing, frozen. “We good now? Anything wrong with that one?”

“No, uh, it’s great,” Peter said quietly, his voice muffled as he quickly pulled on the hoodie Tony had been wearing for the last two to three days. The kid’s face was flushed, but he also looked content now. 

“The pizza’s almost here,” Tony said, glancing at his watch. “Why don’t you go grab the veggie tray out of the fridge, so I don’t have to lie to your aunt if she asks if we ate something healthy?”

Peter turned to do as he asked, a slight smile on his face. Somehow Tony didn’t think he was going to get that hoodie back for a few weeks. He’d be sure to have one ready when the kid was ready to exchange it, though.

Chapter Text

Not Helping, DUM-E

Tony was trying to breathe. He’d been trying to breathe all day, but felt like there was a weight on his chest, pressing in. There wasn’t a good reason for it. Nothing too disastrous was happening. No one was in danger. DUM-E had been squeaking as he moved all day, but otherwise, nothing was even bugging him that much. He was just anxious today. Really anxious. It’s like his mind kept flashing stuff he was terrified of, but when he mentally turned to look and see what it was, it skirted behind a metaphorical wall. It stayed just out of sight, taunting him. 

Pepper should be home later tonight. Hopefully not too late. She was pretty good at helping him relax. Well, when she wasn’t mad at him for not doing whatever she’d been asking him to. Even that… he couldn’t think of anything she’d been after him to do that he’d ignored. He knew he could be anxious without any real reason, but it had been quite a while since he’d experienced it. Maybe he should call Pepper. No, he didn’t need to bother her with this. He just needed to keep things quiet and avoid anything too stimulating or triggering. That usually helped. What else did he have today? Peter was supposed to come over to work on his designs for that robotics competition coming up, but that wasn’t pressing. Maybe he’d have him come tomorrow. Tony glanced at his watch. He wouldn’t have left school yet.

Hey, kid. Okay if we table lab time and make it tomorrow instead?

If you need to, yeah. I can’t come until 4 tomorrow though, because I have AcaDec 

Everything okay?

Yeah, just feeling off. Not sure if I’m up to working this afternoon. We’ll do tomorrow at 4.

Peter didn’t respond.

For the next hour, Tony worked on mundane physical tasks around the lab, doing some oiling and maintaining most of the machines, even though he’d done that the month before. Busy work for his hands. 

Everything was going okay, and he was keeping the anxiety at bay, when suddenly DUM-E, who had been following him around with a broom, like that was going to help out somehow, turned abruptly in his ineffectual sweeping, hitting the coffee maker and slamming it against the wall. Tony was on the ground nearly under it, working on something, which meant it broke just above him, scattering him with glass and hot liquid at the same time as the crash.

Suddenly he was back in Afghanistan, crouching behind a rock as warm blood trickled down his face and dotted his hands. Even though technically he knew he wasn’t there, and that he was safe in his lab, he couldn’t clear the panicked sensation. Couldn’t escape from the sense of pure dread that he was about to die. Time slowed and almost stopped. He felt like he was both breathing too slowly and also breathing impossibly fast.

Eventually he realized that he could hear a soothing voice through the fog, close to his head. Hands stroked lightly through his hair and down his temples, and though his body was lying on the hard floor of the workshop, his head was cradled in someone’s lap. He slowly opened his eyes and stared up into the worried ones of his young protégé.

“Hey, there you are. Can you breathe with me?” Peter was breathing exaggeratedly, and Tony consciously struggled to slow his rate to match. “There you go.”

After a minute or two of concentrating on his breathing, more real sensations came back to him. His arms were bent, his hands wrapped around Peter’s forearms on either side of his head, holding them there. The boy didn’t seem to mind. He could feel something digging into the back of his thigh. Probably the tool he’d been working with a few minutes… was it minutes? before. He could feel the slight breeze of the air vent above them on his face. He could feel a few sharp spots on his skin where he might have a little glass. He could hear DUM-E's worried beeping off to the side. 

"It's okay, buddy. It was an accident. He's going to be okay," Peter reassured the upset robot.

“Pete,” Tony finally managed to have enough oxygen both for breathing, and for communication. “What are you doing here? I thought you weren’t coming today.”

“Yeah. I just felt like I should anyway,” the boy said softly. He almost wasn’t a boy anymore, at 17, and easily the same height as Tony now. 

“Maybe I should look at getting back on something for my anxiety.”

“I think that might be a good idea,” Peter said neutrally. Tony could hear the undercurrent of worry in his voice, though. “You want to try sitting up?”

“Uh, yeah. I can do that.” Tony still didn’t move. Peter was still hovering over him.

“You’ll have to move if I’m going to get up,” Tony said in slight exasperation.

“You’ll have to let go of my arms if you want me to move,” Peter replied, amused. Oh.

Tony sat up, and then eventually stood, with Peter hovering. Tony walked over and swiped a project up on his holo table, ready to jump into some work so he could try to forget about what just happened.

“Well, that’s not happening,” Peter said, firmly taking hold of his upper arm and steering him towards the workshop door. 

“What exactly do you think you’re doing?” Tony asked the teenager, not fighting the pull on his arm yet.

“You and I are going to go upstairs, we’re going to eat and drink something, and then we’ll hang out on the couch with a movie until Pepper gets home,” the kid said in a no-nonsense tone. 

Tony sputtered, but didn’t really have a response for that. He wouldn’t have let Peter work around all that heavy machinery after an episode like that, either. He settled for a grouchy expression and giving Peter just enough resistance that he had to pull him slightly. Very much like a disgruntled 5-year-old, actually, he thought self-awarely.

Later, when Peter had made sure they were both fed, and they were sitting together on the couch watching Furious 7 (which Tony insisted was the best movie in the franchise), Tony found himself actually drooping a little on the couch.

“Tony, why don’t you lay down?” Peter finally asked from his seat next to him.

“It’s not even 7 o’clock,” Tony protested in frustration.

“Panic attacks are exhausting,” Peter replied. “Just rest for a while. May always made me do that after one,” Tony looked at him sharply. They were definitely addressing that. Why didn’t he know about that? “and I always felt better afterwards,” Peter continued.

A little more cajoling and a little more super-strength nudging, and Tony found himself curled up under a blanket on the couch next to Peter. Man, the kid was pushy. Where had he gotten that from? Tony was sure he was just going to “rest,” not sleep or anything. Who could sleep during all those car explosions on the screen, anyway?

But then he felt a hand stroking his hair again softly, scratching lightly at his scalp, like the kid had been doing when he was coming out of the attack, and his eyes slowly melted closed. He’d just rest them, too, for a minute. That’s the last thing he remembered that evening.

Chapter Text

Rash Decisions

“What makes you think that’s going to keep anyone from recognizing you?” Peter asked his mentor with a flat look. “Plus, it’s not even that cold outside today.”

Tony Stark was decked out in a nondescript gray hoodie, a dark blue slouch beanie, and sunglasses. “It works every time, Pete.”

“I just don’t see why we have to go anywhere, anyway,” Peter almost whined. “I have homework. Or I should be working on those college applications.”

“I’m worried about you, kid, and so is your aunt.” 

Peter looked annoyed. “Why?”

“You’ve been moping around all week, not eating enough, and generally kinda quiet and grouchy. We’re going out.”

Peter obediently put his coat on, but rolled his eyes and huffed through the process. 

They stepped out the front doors of Stark Tower (after drawing a few very confused looks from the security team and receptionists as they exited the VIP elevator) and Tony started walking. “Where are we even going, Mr. Stark?”

“Central Park. You could use some fresh-ish air and nature. Crap like that.”

“That’s like a twenty minute walk!” Peter objected, stopping in his tracks.

“Well, better put a little pep in your step, Spiderling, or it’s going to be a long afternoon.”

Peter rolled his eyes again, but his scowl had an amused tilt to it. It was a little entertaining to see his mentor tapping into the more playful parts of his personality. And, other than the goatee (which was a little less carefully manicured than usual, thankfully) he kind of did look more like a homeless person than like Tony Stark right now. Or maybe an eccentric uncle. Peter huffed what just might have been a laugh and hurried after the man, who hadn’t even checked behind him to see if Peter was coming. He probably needed to at least keep an eye on him to make sure no one tried to mug him.

They arrived at Central Park in good time, and having reached his destination, Tony slowed down and started positively strolling along the sidewalks, hands clasped behind his back. Peter eyed his sudden change of pace doubtfully but matched his speed.

“So, tell me what’s going on.”

“Huh?” Peter wiped his hands on his jean pockets awkwardly.

“Why are you moping around this week? Did you and Ned have a fight? Did you forget to renew your Star Wars fan club annual registration?”

He was ridiculous. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Did you get a ‘B’ on a test?” 

“No.”

“Have you been hacking Karen and doing something I don’t know about?”

Peter sighed and shook his head.

“Was someone mean to you on patrol?”

“Tony.”

“Did you have a fight with Michelle?”

Silence.

“Ah.” 

Peter glared at the ground, hands stuffed firmly in his coat pockets as they walked.

“I don’t want to talk about it.”

“But maybe you should, bud. I know I’m not the best at relationships,”

Peter scoffed, and bumped the older man’s shoulder with his own. “You’ve had your moments, but you and Pepper are doing pretty well.”

“But, I can listen, and it sounds like you probably need to talk,” he continued, as if Peter hadn’t spoken.

Peter walked in silence for a few minutes. Tony, for once, kept his mouth shut and gave him a few minutes.

“She’s mad at me because I told her we should break up.”

Tony stopped, and Peter had to stop, too, or leave him behind. “Do you want to break up with her?”

“Of course not. But we had that scare last week where it seemed like my identity was going to get out, and it made me think. If it did, and she was my girlfriend at the time, it would put her in danger.”

It was Tony’s turn to roll his eyes. “So, are you gonna to stop hanging out with Ned, so people don’t think you’re friends? Gonna move out of May’s apartment, so she’s a less obvious connection?” 

Peter looked solidly at Tony in a way that was very much not a “no.”

Tony squared his shoulders and got that look on his face. “Peter Benjamin Parker, don’t you dare start making idiotic decisions for other people based on fear.”

Peter’s eyes widened. Tony didn’t often speak to him that way. He wasn’t yelling, but it was just a notch or two below, and it made him take a step back. Then he narrowed his eyes. “It’s my decision, Tony.”

“Kind of. In a relationship, you’re only half of the decision. And you can’t just decide to cut people out of your life because they might be in danger because of you.”

Peter knew he probably had a stubborn look on his face, but he was trying, really trying, to think about what Tony said. He started walking again, as if he could walk away from the possibilities that scared him so much. “But Mr. Stark, what if something does happen to her, because of me?”

“Pete, that could be true in any relationship. We can’t control all the outcomes, and you’ll just drive yourself, and everyone else, crazy trying to do it.”

Peter sighed, and Tony reached over and hooked his arm around Peter’s shoulders, squeezing gently. 

“And if your identity did get out, we have plans in place, kid. There are things we can do, for your aunt, for your friends, and for you, to help protect you. It won’t just be a free-for-all, bud, and you won’t be on your own. I promise.

Peter stopped walking, and Tony stopped with him. Peter turned into the older man, hugging him tightly, then stepping back while sniffing a little bit and wiping at his eyes.  

“How did you do it? How did you not just worry all the time about someone trying to hurt, or take Pepper, Morgan, or even Rhodey?”

“Or even you?” Tony was looking at him that soft way that he never understood, but really liked.

“You worry about someone taking me?”

“That, or hurting you.”

“But I’m Spider-man!”

“All the more reason to worry. You’re more of a target. Should I try to make you stop being Spider-man, or make you stop seeing me because I worry about people targeting you as Peter or as Spidey, because both of you can be connected to me?”

“That’s ridiculous.”

“Is it?” Tony eyed him, then started walking forwards again.

Peter sighed again. “Fi-i-ine. I will try to stop worrying about it so much. But I might want to see those plans you were talking about, if someone did figure it out.”

“Of course, Pete.” Tony squeezed his shoulder again as they walked. He picked his phone up and sent a text message. “Now, if you think you’re ready to revisit that conversation, there’s a certain young lady who’d like to talk to you. Apparently she’s had a crappy week, too, and she was hoping this conversation would go the way it did.”

“What? MJ asked you to talk to me? I thought you didn’t know why I was upset.”

“I didn’t. She didn’t give me any information; just asked me to talk some sense into you. She left me to flounder through the rest on my own.”

“Yeah, that sounds about right,” Peter said, grinning at the path in front of them as they walked. 

“Well, she’s right over there,” Tony said, stopping Peter by his arm and pointing at a park bench in the distance.

Peter sighed nervously. “Here goes nothing.”

“You’ve got this kid. This time, listen to her, instead of telling her what you think is best for her, okay? That never works out, I promise.”

Peter grinned. “Right. Wish me luck.”

“You don’t need it. She seems pretty crazy about you.”

Chapter Text

Lose the Lights

“I still can’t believe your mom let you come up here for the weekend.”

“I know, right? I thought she’d be totally against it, but when Pepper Potts herself extended the invitation, I don’t think it ever occurred to her to say no.”

Peter opened the panel above them, and climbed out, bending down to give MJ a hand as well. She climbed up and joined him on the roof of the Avenger’s Compound. He resettled the backpack he carried and led her over to his favorite spot. He pulled the two big blankets out of his bag, and then the small thermos of hot chocolate and two cups. 

“Wow, you’re super prepared there, aren’t you?”

"The Boy Scout motto is 'Be Prepared.'”

“Peter, when were you ever a Boy Scout?”

“Well, a Cub Scout, when I was little.”

She looked at him in surprise, then shrugged, smiling. “Actually, that tracks.”

He shook his head in exasperation. “Help me spread this out, so you can take advantage of my preparedness.”

They spread one blanket on the roof and sat down on it, and then Peter wrapped the other one around them. They’d have hot chocolate when they got chilled. 

“So… what are we doing up here?”

“FRIDAY?”

“Yes, Peter?” she asked from his Starkwatch. Right, no speakers up here. 

“Can you dim the outside lights, and kill the ones up here please, as per our conversation earlier?”

“As per our conversation?” MJ giggled, teasing him gently. He scoffed at her.

The lights dropped to low levels, and were extinguished directly around them. 

“Oh. Wow!”

Peter smiled, but it was so dark MJ couldn’t see it. All they could see were--

“The stars! They’re so bright!”

“Aren’t they amazing? Lay down, or you’ll get a crick in your neck. I may know that from experience.”

“Do you know any of their names?”

“Actually, yeah. Tony and I spend a lot of time up here. It’s a good place to sit and think, or just get some quiet time. Some perspective. It used to kinda freak him out, because of the whole wormhole into space at the end of the Battle of New York, you know?” MJ reached over and gently grabbed his hand, calming him as his words started to trip over each other.

“Oh. Hey. Um, but now. Now, he likes to lay out here with me. He’s taught me lots of constellations and stuff.”

She nudged his shoulder with hers. “The stars, Pete? Tell me about some of them.”

“Right. You see that super bright one up there? That’s not a star at all. You can tell, because when you concentrate on it, it’s not twinkling like most of the others.” 

Their curls were pressed together as he pointed and she tried to make sure she was looking in the same place. “So what is it?”

“Well, that one’s Jupiter.”

“Oh, wow. What about that one? It’s really bright.”

“But see how it’s twinkling? Kind of blinking? That’s actually Sirius. It’s the brightest actual star in the sky. And if you look over this direction, do you see the three little stars in a row? Those make up the belt in the constellation ‘Orion.’ It’s my favorite.”

“Peter?”

“Yeah? He turned his face towards her and found MJ’s already there. She pressed her lips against his quickly, and let out a little breathy laugh before pulling back.

“You’re really cute when you’re excited about stuff.”

Peter’s brain seemed to be short circuiting, and he didn’t make sense when he did talk. “Uh, I mean, I don’t… Um.”

“Pete.”

“Mmm-hmm?”

“Tell me more about Orion.”

“Oh, yeah. Well, see that star at the top that’s kinda reddish?” MJ nodded against the side of his head. “That’s Betelgeuse.”

“Like the movie?”

“Pretty sure the star was named first…”

He went on, pointing out different stars and constellations to her. They drank the hot chocolate, and laughed about things that had happened at school that week, and snuggled under the other blanket. 

┈┈┈┈┈┈🕸┈┈┈┈┈┈

“Underoos? You guys still up here?”

Peter turned, startled, to see Tony’s head poking up through the roof access.

“Yeah, we are. But shhh. MJ’s asleep.”

“Aw, so cute,” he said dryly.  “But bud, it’s almost 10. We didn’t realize you were still out here. I thought you wanted to watch a movie tonight, too?”

“Oh, we did! Sorry, we just lost track of time. Look, we figured out a new constellation using that app on my phone.”

“Really?”

“Yeah, c’mere and I’ll show you.” He flipped up the edge of the blanket, and his mentor came to lay with his head close to the teenager’s so he could point out the “new” discovery.

Which is where they still were when another head popped through the access point. This time it was Pepper. “Tony? I sent you to find the kids half an hour ago!”

Chapter Text

Blazing Regret

It had been a rough night. One stove left unattended had eventually led to the whole apartment building going up. The fire had been slow-moving, thankfully, so they had had time to evacuate almost everyone. But the condition of the older building combined with the steady breeze that night had meant it had spread faster than they could fight it, and the building was pretty much a total loss. There had been many injuries and lots of smoke inhalation, but thankfully only one death from such a giant blaze. 

Of course, that number would have been a lot higher without the help of Spider-man. He had shown up early on, and been able to reach and rescue many people the firefighters couldn’t reach, which had brought their death toll down to almost zero. It was a shame that one teenage girl (who’d apparently been asleep, and somehow hadn’t heard any alarms) didn’t make it. Spider-man had found and dragged her out, finally, but it was too late. The hero had seemed pretty broken up about it. Chief Harris had mourned her, too, but in his years of experience, he knew that these things sometimes happened, no matter how much they could do.

The chief was sitting on the far side of one of the depleted engines, filling out some preliminary paperwork as the lingering smoke continued to clear. It was late, nearly 11 PM. His firefighters were still clearing the area and making sure no flames would re-ignite, which would take some time. His captains were overseeing that effort, but he wished he could trade places with one of them. Paperwork wasn’t anyone’s favorite, even if most of it was digital now. He was startled from his task by something all New Yorkers recognized: the unmistakable sound of Iron Man’s repulsors landing nearby.

A fanboy at heart, even though it had been over ten years since Tony Stark had created Iron Man, Chief Harris stood up and followed the sound to a nearby alley. Quite a ways away, and only visible because of a light that was glinting off the area, he saw Iron Man walk forward a few steps, then crouch near a huddled figure. Seeing the flash of red and blue in the street light’s gleam as the figure moved, the chief had a realization. That’s where Spider-man had disappeared to. Oh, he looked miserable. Was he hurt?

What happened next was unique, and not something most New Yorkers had experienced. Iron Man stood up and stepped back, then the suit disengaged, and Tony Stark stepped out of it. He leaned down and drew Spider-man to his feet, and then pulled him into a tight embrace. The wind was still blowing a little, but the chief was sure he could hear broken sobs. His heart melted for the apparently younger-than-he’d-realized superhero. Chief Harris knew all too well what he must be dealing with, having held several young firefighters as they went through the same thing the first time they failed to save someone. This business was an exercise in heartbreak. 

He felt like he was intruding, watching as Stark soothed the other hero, holding him close and rubbing his back, but couldn’t look away, having too much empathy for the situation. He imagined calming words were also being spoken.  After just a minute, Stark asked something, and Spider-man hesitated, then nodded.  Stark returned to the Iron Man suit, then scooped the other hero up in his arms and blasted off. He hadn’t realized Iron Man and the Queens vigilante were so close, but he was glad.

Chief Harris found himself wiping his unexpectedly wet eyes before he sniffed and turned to go back to his seat on the engine. Paperwork wouldn’t do itself, after all. He took an extra moment to make a note in his phone. It couldn’t remove the pain of not being fast enough, or strong enough, but a nice card, signed by the department, to thank the young hero might be in order. He needed to know he was appreciated, and that his efforts had saved many, many lives tonight. Everyone fell short sometimes, but that didn’t mean they weren’t doing good work, or weren’t making a difference. He’d make sure that happened as soon as he got back to the station.

Chapter Text

Techless Wonder

“Let’s review: whose idea was it to take a tech-free camping trip, Pepper? Who insisted on it, actually?” 

Oh. Maybe that wasn’t the right thing to say, based on his wife’s murderous expression. 

“Well, I didn’t know there was going to be a freak thunderstorm rolling in the third night, now did I?” she growled at him, a frightening mix of angry and really stressed out. “The temperature has dropped at least 20º in the last hour, and that storm system is definitely full of at least rain, and maybe snow. I admit I was wrong; I admit defeat. Now would be a good time to use your tech, Tony. Call a suit or something. Get us out of here.”

“Pep, honey. I did my very best to do exactly what you asked. I honestly don’t have access to anything until Happy gets us at the pick up point tomorrow afternoon. No FRIDAY, no suit, no phone even. All we have is what’s right here,” he said, gesturing to their campsite. 

Pepper’s eyes widened as she realized how serious he was. She took a deep breath and visibly tried to relax. Because this trip was supposed to be all about relaxing. No tech, no communication, no being called back because there was an emergency with SI or with the Avengers. Her vice presidents could handle SI. Wilson and Barnes could handle the Avengers, with Rhodey as back-up. Peter and May had Morgan. This was just Pepper and Tony, being together, without any interruptions. 

What a crap idea. 

“Ugh.” She dropped down in a camp chair, her head in her hands. “What are the chances our tent can handle a storm like that? Or the temperatures tonight?” Then more rhetorically, “ Why did I think it was a good idea to hike a few hours away from civilization to set up camp?”

Tony wisely didn’t answer that last question. But he’d better address the others. “Hon, our tent is for summer camping. It’s really not made for it. Our sleeping bags are decent, especially zipped into one big bag, but they won’t work if they’re wet.” He looked disgruntled. “Why didn’t FRI see this storm as a possibility?” 

“Did you specifically ask?”

“I thought I did. I’m sure I would have… Maybe I didn’t.”

“Tony, what should we do? Is it worth trying to make a run for it?” She knew that last one wasn’t feasible. It would be dark in two hours, and they were unlikely to be able to outrun the storm. “ Can we do anything to make this better?”

Apparently that was the right thing to say. Tony started thinking, then quickly started doing. Pepper did her best to follow his instructions and fill his requests as he relocated and remade their campsite in a flurry of activity. He asked her to disassemble the tent while he walked in a big radius around their current campsite, found a giant set of boulders that made a bit of a windfall, and re-pitched the tent with them as two of its walls. He had packed an extra tarp and some rope, so he rigged a third wall-slash-extra-overhead-rain-protection to supplement the light fly on their tent. He had Pepper gathering a bunch of dead pine boughs that he made most of a 4th “wall” with using dental floss to tie it all together. (“Who brings dental floss camping, Tony?”) and he rigged a larger shovel-like hand tool (which was surprisingly effective) to dig a big trench around their tent to divert any running water.

As they stood back and looked at his creation as the first raindrops started to fall, Pepper was amazed. “Just… wow.”

“You can tell me all about how amazing I am, but let’s get in the tent while we’re still dry, first,” he said wryly.

As they squeezed past the boulder to enter their tiny haven, Pepper asked, “Tony, you don’t even like camping. When did you ever learn any of that stuff?”

“Wilderness Survival Class my freshman year at MIT,” he said. It sounded like an easy ‘A.’ It was not. But just because I don’t enjoy something doesn’t mean I don’t know anything about it. 

“What about things you do enjoy?” she said with a grin, snuggling closer and pulling him in for a kiss. 

“Oh, I know much more about those. You might even call me an expert.”

┈┈┈┈┈┈🕸┈┈┈┈┈┈

The surprising storm was one residents talked about for years. It dropped twice as many inches as they usually got that whole month, mixed with a little hail, even, and set a record low for July. But Tony and Pepper stayed warm and dry all night, courtesy of one random college course and a guy who was really good at problem-solving.

Chapter Text

Something's Gotta Give

“How long do you think you can keep this up?”

“What do you mean?” Peter Parker asked grumpily, looking up from the dining room table where he was surrounded by books, papers, candy wrappers, and an energy drink. He had dark circles under his eyes, his hair needed washing, and he had been staring at the same calculus problem for at least two minutes without writing anything. 

“Peter, you’re doing too much. Something’s gotta give.”

“May, I have to do all of this stuff. According to you, I can’t let my grades slide,” May nodded in agreement, “I can’t quit patrolling most days, because people depend on me,” she raised an eyebrow, “and I have to do all the other stuff, too.”

“You mean volunteering at the shelter, Academic Decathlon,” Peter’s eyes narrowed, “the internship with Tony,” his eyes widened in alarm now, “and Peter, you literally spend three to four hours a day being Spider-man. This is not sustainable, especially not for a 16-year-old. Something needs to change.”

“May, I don’t know how to stop any of them. People are counting on me!”

“Peter. Baby. That is too much for anyone to try to keep up with and live up to, and you’re not even an adult yet, honey.”

He mumbled something as he rubbed at his eyes, obviously tired beyond belief with finals looming and not enough hours in the day. 

“What was that?” May prompted.

“I said , I may not be an adult, but I’m a superhero. I can do this.” Then his mouth opened in a giant yawn, and he scrubbed at his watering eyes again, and looked very much about six years old.

“Well, that may be true, but as your parent, I’m not going to allow it.”

Peter’s face crumpled, incredulity battling with maybe the tiniest bit of hope. 

May continued, “You need to pick between AcaDec and the animal shelter.” He opened his mouth to argue, and she put a finger up. “Not forever. But for now, until we both feel like things are under control again.” He closed his mouth, staring stubbornly.

“And you need to cut your time in half,” she took a deep breath, “either with Tony at the Tower, or with Spider-man. School comes first, and you’re spreading yourself too thin.”

A shocked expression slowly stole across the boy’s face. “You can’t… how could I… no , May.”

“Peter, I’m serious. Tony is going to back me up on this one; we’ve already talked about it. We need you to take care of yourself, and you’re overwhelmed, baby. You’re going to have to decide. And I need you to practice a little self care.”

He was staring listlessly at his homework and study materials, having immediately set aside his refusal when she mentioned Tony’s support of her ultimatum, but his eyes bounced back to her face at that.

“What do you mean? What even is that?”

“Things that give you a little life. Things that make you feel good and help you relax. Long showers,” she eyed the state of his hair “preferably this evening. Movie nights with people you love, where you just relax.” The teen’s expression lightened at that. 

“Healthier food options, and plenty of water,” she said, eyeing the candy wrappers and Monster drink on the table. “And in bed by 10:30 every school night for the foreseeable future.” His face was stubborn and resentful, but also so, so tired. 

“I need your decisions in the morning, so I can help you rearrange things. This is going to get better, Peter, I promise.”

┈┈┈┈┈┈🕸┈┈┈┈┈┈

That weekend at the Tower, Peter tucked himself under Tony’s arm as the opening strains of the Jurassic Park theme started. Ned and MJ both had family plans that night, and May was working, so he had hesitantly asked if Tony wanted to have a movie night with him, and his mentor had happily agreed.

“I can’t believe you’ve never seen the original, kid,” Tony complained. That’s like a crime or something.”

“Or the second one. We could watch that one after…”

Tony made a buzzer noise with his mouth. “I promised May I’d send you to bed before midnight, so no can do, Spiderling. How was patrol earlier, by the way? How are the shorter stints working for you?”

“They’re not so bad. I’m still able to help a lot. And I’ve been varying the times I’m out, so I’m not too predictable. You know, so they’re not like, “oh, it’s after 6 PM, we know Spider-man won’t be around, and stuff.”

“Hey, that’s a great idea. I’m proud of you kid. You’re adapting pretty well to this new schedule, and I think you’re already feeling better, right?”

“Yeah,” he said with a tinge of resentment. “It’s not easy to feel like I’m dropping balls left and right though.”

“Hey, I’m just grateful, and honestly surprised, that you picked to shorten your patrol hours instead of the internship.”

“Yeah, I just really didn’t want to. I… I would miss you, I think,” he finished softly.

“I’d miss you, too, kid,” Tony said, bringing a hand up to skim over the kid’s unruly curls. “I’m glad you called me this weekend.” Then changing the subject he said, “Now, watch this part, it’s foreshadowing for when—”

“Are you going to talk through the whole movie again, Mr. Stark?”

“Ingrate. Art should be participatory.”

“How ‘bout you participate when you watch it without me, okay?”

Tony’s laugh filled the room, and obediently, he was quiet after that.

Chapter Text

200 Park Avenue

Peter Parker knew this was a bad idea, but what was he supposed to do? He’d gotten off on the wrong train stop, his phone was dead, and he actually wasn’t that sure where he was compared to where he needed to be. He definitely had no idea how to get to the Morgan Library & Museum OR back home at the moment, and the extremely cold rain that had just started falling had him wet and nearly frozen in his inadequate winter gear. Why hadn’t he checked the weather before he made plans this evening? Why hadn’t he listened to Ned, who said he should have done this sometime last week?

As he ducked into the lobby of Stark Tower, he hoped he could fly under the radar and just warm up for a few minutes. Maybe if he took his soaking jacket off he could actually stop shivering. He really had no idea what his next step was, but he was sure he’d be able to think better if he got out of the freak winter storm.

His art history teacher was offering a pretty substantial chunk of extra credit if he spent an hour at any kind of art exhibit and wrote an essay on his experience with three pieces. And Peter desperately needed extra credit in that class. 

He had also procrastinated though, with all that had been going on with uh, Spider-man, and Homecoming, and all the insanity that had been, and now this extra assignment was due Monday. The Morgan Museum had free Fridays from 5-7, so he had taken the train there after AcaDec today. After several delays he had managed to misread which stop he needed to get off at, and then when he’d thought he could probably walk the last half mile to the museum, he’d gotten hopelessly turned around. Even though he didn’t have his Spider-man suit with him (he and Aunt May, and Mr. Stark and Aunt May were still hammering out the details of the circumstances wanted before she would be willing to let him continue that) he was about ready to climb a building so he could figure out where he was compared to where he needed to be. And just hope no one saw him.

That was all before the clouds had decided to let loose. He just happened to be less than a block from Stark Tower (which was impossible to miss) when it started raining, and without even thinking, he instinctively headed straight for what he hoped was a safe place.

So now he stood inside, dripping and shivering, and unfortunately both security and the employees at the reception desk had all noticed him. It was “after hours,” so there wasn’t a lot going on there. He knew Mr. Stark had said the sale of the building was on hold after all the chaos the Vulture had wreaked, but Peter suddenly realized just because he knew the owner of the building didn’t mean anyone else knew him, or that he’d be welcomed here.

An intimidating security guard casually approached him. Peter wanted to bolt, but he just couldn’t make his feet move to return to the frigid downpour outside. 

“Evening, son. Can I help you?”

“Um, I was just coming in out of the rain for a few minutes?” Peter managed to get out.

“Well, I can understand that, but the problem is we’re technically closed, and we especially can’t have unaccompanied minors in here. I’m afraid I’ll have to ask you to leave.”

Peter cursed inwardly. He was still actively shivering, and probably making a puddle on the floor. The guard looked sympathetic, but also serious about his directions. Peter had just turned to go take his chances outside again, when a light Irish lilt interrupted them.

“Mr. Parker, you’re expected in the penthouse. Hurry along and don’t keep them waiting.”

The guard startled almost as much as Peter, looking at the ceiling as if he might be able to see FRIDAY. Peter had only “met” her twice before, but he’d been suitably impressed, and had managed to have a short, interesting conversation with her the last time.

“Um, excuse me, uh, FRIDAY?" The guard said with a bit of awe, apparently not used to her addressing him. “Are you talking about this kid? He’s wanted in the penthouse?”

“Yes, of course. Please direct him to the express elevator.”

“Um, I should do a security screening…”

“Mr. Parker has already been cleared. Please escort him.”

“Okay, then,” the guard mumbled incredulously, jerking his chin for Peter to follow him. Which he did, wet sneakers squeaking embarrassingly as they crossed the expensive (and expansive) floor. Everyone in the lobby seemed to be frozen, watching them. Peter kind of wanted to run back out into the storm under all that scrutiny.

He entered the elevator alone, and the guard gave him one more puzzled look before the doors closed.

“Um, Ms. FRIDAY?” Peter asked nervously as the elevator began its ascent. “I wasn’t expected at the Tower, much less at the penthouse. I haven’t talked to Mr. Stark since I, uh, turned him down at the Compound,” he said in confusion.

“Correct. However, I have just explained the situation to Ms. Potts, and told her I am bringing you up, so now you are expected.”

“Miss Potts? Are you freaking kidding me? I can’t see her right now! I mean, look at me,” he said, feeling how wild his eyes were getting as he anticipated arriving at what was sure to be a very upscale penthouse in his current state.

“Nevertheless, she is waiting for you.”

Within twenty seconds, the elevator stopped, and the doors opened. Crap. It was fancier than Peter had imagined. And he was still dripping. 

“Please exit the elevator,” FRIDAY urged after he stood there for a few moments. Peter did, cautiously, as he heard the clicking of heels approaching him. This had been a very bad idea indeed. Then she was there, sweeping into the entryway, looking perfectly put together and smiling politely at him. 

“Peter, right?” She didn’t seem upset. “Tony didn’t mention that you were coming by. You’re welcome, of course.”

“Um, he didn’t know, Ms. Potts, because I’m not really. I mean, I wasn’t really. Coming by. Here.” Smooth, Parker. “He didn’t invite me or anything. I was trying to go to the museum, and I got lost, and then it started raining, and it was really cold. I just ducked in to try to warm up. But then FRIDAY told me to come up here…” He quieted abruptly, aware of how rambly that had been. Then, “I can leave!”

“Nonsense! No matter the reason, you’re obviously soaked, and it did get quite cold out there for October, didn’t it.” It wasn’t a question. FRIDAY mentioned you might need a change of clothes while we dry yours. You’ll find something in the second guest bedroom on the left, down this hall,” she gestured. “Bring me your clothes when you’re done and I’ll get them dried for you.”

“Oh no, I couldn’t possibly!” She leveled him with a serious look, eyebrow raised, and suddenly he had more understanding of how she’d managed to handle Mr. Stark all these years. He shut his mouth and headed down the hall, sneakers squishing. 

“There you go. FRIDAY will direct you when you’re done,” she smiled.

The clothes she’d set in there were thankfully warm and comfortable. A pair of sweats that fit his waist but were a little long. The t-shirt and hoodie were too big, but that made them extra cozy. She’d even included a pair of fuzzy pink socks. Okay, then. Peter smiled in amusement, but didn’t waste any time putting them on. It felt so wonderful to be warm and dry again. He still had a little water dripping down into his collar from his wet hair, so he hesitantly grabbed one of the hand towels to dry his hair as well as he could. He also used it on the outside of his backpack, hoping its somewhat water-resistant fabric had protected his school stuff. He didn’t feel like checking yet. If it was bad news, he wasn’t up for it at the moment. When he was done finger-combing his hair, he folded the used towel up under his clothes so they wouldn’t drip on the carpet, and took a deep breath before walking through the guest room and back out into the hall. 

“Ms. FRIDAY? Where should I take my clothes?” He addressed the ceiling at large, not knowing where the AI’s sensors or speakers were. 

“Please bring them into the kitchen. Go right and take the second doorway to the left once you reach the entry hall.”

Peter followed her directions, and soon Ms. Potts had relieved him of the pile of wet clothes and handed him a sandwich, as well as a steaming mug of hot chocolate and a charger for his phone. How did she even know he needed that? She leaned against the counter with a cup of coffee and gently quizzed him on what he’d been doing in Manhattan that evening and just how he’d managed to get lost in his own city while Peter ate his (delicious) sandwich at their dining room table.

Which is where he was when Mr. Stark breezed in, suit jacket slung over his arm, removing his tie as he spoke. “Pep, how is it that you’re the CEO of my company, but you got to come home earlier than I did on a Friday evening? It’s not right, I tell you,” he complained as he walked over and tossed his jacket and tie on the counter so he could pull her in for a kiss. 

Then he noticed Peter. Mr. Stark pulled back in surprise, not quite releasing Ms. Potts, and looked at the teenager as if he was a complicated math problem. “Um, intruder alert.” His eyes narrowed slightly as he continued, “and he’s wearing my clothes.” He turned to Ms. Potts, head cocked to the side and eyebrows raised, obviously requiring an explanation.

Crap, these were Mr. Stark’s clothes? Well, probably the t-shirt and hoodie. He was pretty sure the sweats wouldn’t fit him, so they must belong to Ms. Potts if these weren’t just extras they had. Peter bit his lip and reluctantly raised a few fingers in greeting.

“Tony, be nice. Peter got caught in the storm, and stepped into the Tower to try to get out of the rain. Of course FRIDAY brought him up to dry off.”

“Heya, kid,” he said softly, a bemused smile stealing across his face. Peter hastily opened his mouth to respond, but Ms. Potts held a finger up to stop him. 

“You eat.” Then she succinctly explained the whole story of the extra credit assignment and the museum he’d managed to lose, coupled with the freak rainstorm. 

“Huh. You’ve got some pretty rotten luck there, Parker.”

“You have no idea,” Peter mumbled softly into his sandwich.

“Well,” Mr. Stark said, leaning back against the counter and bringing a hand up to his chin in thought, we’ve got that whole wing of artwork downstairs somewhere, don’t we, Pep?” She nodded, a corner of her mouth twitching upwards. “What say we take a tour after your clothes are dry, and you can write your essay on some of those?”

Peter was floored. “Are you serious? That would be kind of amazing…” Then he remembered how the evening had gone earlier. “But are you sure they’ll let me walk around and look at them? The guards didn’t seem very happy about me being in the building after hours, especially by myself.” 

“Ah, that’s why FRI felt like she should rescue you,” Tony mused. “Well, I’m pretty sure no one will say anything if you’re with us. I would hope not, at least,” he said with a smirk. “You’ll come, right?” He asked Ms. Potts, looking worried for a split second. “Because she’ll be the first to tell you that I know absolutely nothing about any of the pieces we have,” he said, addressing Peter again. “She seems to feel that I have no appreciation for fine art, actually.”

Pepper was back in the main part of the kitchen getting a glass of water, and Peter’s enhanced hearing clearly picked up her muttered, “ten years of work donated… ” Then louder, with a smile: “I’d love to. I’m always trying to get Tony to appreciate our art collection.”

Mr. Stark rolled his eyes. “Then, maybe if your scary aunt doesn’t mind—make sure you check with her—you can come down to my workshop with me for a while, huh?” 

Was he kidding? He was going to let Peter come see his workshop and his ongoing projects? Would he maybe get to check out the Iron Man armor?  Peter had to work hard to keep the incredulity off his face. He’d honestly kinda thought he might never see Mr. Stark again after Peter had turned down his offer to join the Avengers. He nodded numbly as Mr. Stark walked over next to him.

“Then Happy can drive you home afterwards,” Tony said as if it was settled. “How long before his clothes are done, Pep?”

She glanced at her watch. “Probably thirty minutes or so? His jacket was soaked.” 

Tony frowned at that, glancing down at Peter. “You getting warmed up okay, kid?” he asked, swiping a hand gently across his damp hair, then pulling his chin up with two fingers to get a better look at his face. He seemed concerned. Peter nodded, trying not to obviously choke on the food in his mouth as he did. What was happening?

“His name is Peter, Tony,” Ms. Potts chastised pointedly. 

“Well, I guess I have time to grab a sandwich with Peter, then, if there’s one left for me?” 

“There should be,” Ms. Potts said, shaking her head at her fiancé. Mr. Stark grinned and went to open the refrigerator.

┈┈┈┈┈┈🕸┈┈┈┈┈┈

And that’s how Peter Parker spent one of the most enjoyable, interesting, and surprising evenings of his life so far, eating sandwiches in the Stark’s penthouse, touring their private art collection, and getting a hands-on introduction to Mr. Stark’s workshop. Ned was never going to believe him. He barely believed himself. Maybe his Parker luck wasn’t so bad after all.

Chapter Text

Distance is Stupid

Peter Parker trudged from his last class of the week towards his dorm room. The chill of the early October air was starting to get more pronounced in the evenings, and he glared at the trees with their fiery autumn colors, not quite able to see them as pretty, because he knew they signaled winter was coming. Even though it had been years since the spider bite, winters always brought a few headaches as he tried to stay warm. His body just wasn’t very efficient at dealing with the cold anymore.

For the six-thousandth time that semester, he wished Ned had decided to come to MIT with him instead of going to Caltech. And sure, he saw MJ several times a week since she was here too, but her freshman classes at Harvard and his at MIT were pretty demanding, and she had clicked quickly with her roommate, and spent a lot of her free time working. 

Not that Peter didn’t like his roommate. Peter felt like he could get along with most people, and Garrett was friendly and fun. They even hung out sometimes. But he was pretty into the party scene (as most freshmen were) which Peter had quickly realized he had little interest in. His spider-enhanced senses didn’t take well to alcohol or even secondhand smoke from most other substances, so he had only gone to a few gatherings. There were a few kids in some of his classes that he’d gotten into study groups with, and was enjoying getting to know, but he was just still so lonely. 

Even talking to May a couple times a week was only a short-term fix. She was busy with a really great new job, and Peter was busy too, and Tony… well, Tony texted him several times a week, but didn’t call unless he had a pretty good reason. And Peter didn’t call unless he had a pretty good reason, either, so they’d only talked a few times since he left New York. And Peter kind of hated it. He knew he was supposed to be “growing up” and “branching out” and “moving on” now that he was in college--whatever those meant--but it sucked. He missed May, and Morgan, and Ned, and Pepper, and he really missed Tony. 

But that was kid stuff, right? He wasn’t supposed to be homesick anymore at eighteen. He was supposed to be getting to know new people and trying new things, and having the best time of his life. Most of the other students he knew didn’t talk to their parents, or parental-type-figures more than once a week, or occasional texts, and they seemed fine. So what was wrong with him?  

Just then his phone rang. It was… Pepper?

“Hey, Pepper, what’s up?”

“Peter! Hi, honey. How has your week been?”

“Um, it’s been good, I guess. How about yours?”

“Busy, but good. Morgan had a little virus, so that was fun, but she’s doing better now.” Aw, he missed the little rugrat. He’d recently started video-calling with her once or twice a week (because she insisted) and they definitely brightened up his day when they happened.

“That’s not fun. Let her know I’m glad she’s better, will you?”

“Of course. Hey, the reason I’m calling is to give you a little heads up. Tony’s been completely impossible for pretty much the last month, so I finally--”

As he approached the dorm and went to scan his card at the building door, Peter was aware of motion off to the side. He whirled around, letting out a huff of surprise, half startled and half confused that his spider sense hadn’t let him know anyone was there. The only person in Cambridge that didn’t make it buzz a little was MJ, and he knew she was working all weekend, so who…

He focused back in on Pepper’s voice just as he recognized the figure in the shadows. 

--so he might be showing up sometime this evening, if he can talk himself into it and… Peter?”

“Yeah?”

“You sound funny. Are you okay? Is-- Oh. He’s there, isn’t he?”

“Mmm-hmm.”

“That man. I knew he might be impatient enough to take the jet instead of driving, but he must have taken the suit. Well, I’ll let you go, but I just wanted to tell you not to let him act like he’s there for any reason except that he misses you like crazy, and he couldn’t stand another weekend without seeing you. So, yeah. He might not let that slip, and I didn’t want there to be any confusion.” Peter was smiling slightly now as Tony looked at his obviously one-side conversation in confusion.

“Good to know. I’ll take care of it,” he said, his grin only growing.

“We miss you too, Peter. I hope he’s not too much of a bother, and I hope you two have a nice weekend.”

“Miss you too. Goodnight.”

Tony was wearing a brown leather jacket over his Metallica t-shirt and jeans, and his hair was a few steps away from its typical artful style. He’d taken the suit alright. His face looked uncertain, but was disguised with casual Tony-Stark bravado. “Heya, Pete. I was just in town, and I thought you might be hungry, cause you’re always hungry, and I know you might be busy, but--”

Tony wasn’t able to get any more words out, because Peter had abandoned his backpack and launched himself at the man, pulling him into a tight hug, and breathing in the smells of coffee, his aftershave, and the particular metallic tang that being inside the Iron Man suit gave him. Tony’s arms were around him too, his cheek pressing firmly into Peter’s hair, once he got over the surprise of Peter’s exuberance.

“So, you must be really hungry then, if you’re that excited to see me,” Tony tried to deflect. 

But Peter, having the advantage of knowing Tony’s hand already, just said, “I’ve missed you. So much.” 

There was silence for a moment, and then much more quietly, Tony said, “Oh, kid. Me, too. I’ve been trying to give you some distance, because that's what college kids want, right?” Another pause. “But I really wanted to see you.”

“Distance is stupid,” said Peter, noticing that his eyes were wet. “I’m kinda done with distance.”

Tony pulled back and held Peter by the shoulders with both hands, studying his face. “So it’s okay that I’m here? I mean, I have a hotel and stuff, so I don’t have to hang out with you all weekend, but maybe we could do dinner a couple nights, or…”

“Tony, don’t be dumb. I don’t have class until Monday morning, and since someone said he wanted me concentrating on classes instead of a job, I don’t even have that to distract me. You’re stuck with me for as long as you’re here.”

Tony grinned, and said, “Why don’t you take your stuff upstairs? Are you in the mood for Thai, or maybe Italian?”

“Yes, please,” Peter said. As they entered the building, he saw some of the brilliant red and gold leaves in the waning sunlight and couldn’t figure out how he didn’t notice how beautiful they were before.