Chapter Text
“You guys need some help?” Peter quipped, perching himself on a lamppost and watching as Iron Man shot at a slug-looking-alien attacking lower Manhattan.
Natasha Romanoff, Black Widow if you will, looked up from the ground and raised an eyebrow at him. Hawkeye, standing next to her, gave him a mild glance before continuing to shoot his arrows.
“Who’s the new guy?” He asked Natasha.
“Spider-Man,” Iron Man answered for her. “Thought you usually stick to the smaller things.”
Peter shrugged. “You guys usually don’t have this much trouble.”
Iron Man snorted through his distorted mask. “Well if you’re gonna help; help.”
“Tony we can’t just have him on the field without actual orders! He isn’t on our comms and-“
“Rogers I swear to god I will shove a sock in your mouth if you don’t shut it yourself!” Tony shouted. “Look at this situation and please tell me we don’t need backup. Please.”
Right on cue the slug-thing, Peter dubbed, growled loudly and threw a glob of slime at Steve. Steve took his shield and blocked it, but it left his shield looking a grotesque green. He grimaced. “Fine.”
“I don’t think the slug likes your flirting,” Peter commented, before swinging behind it, out of its view.
Hawkeye snorted from the ground. “I like this guy.”
It was true, Peter had to admit. He typically stayed away from the Avengers level threats. Partially because he didn’t want them finding out his identity. Partially because he didn’t feel like it. Looking out for the little guy. That was his thing.
But when they made the news earlier, headline; AVENGERS STRUGGLE TO TAKE DOWN ALIEN SLUG ON DOWNTOWN MANHATTAN PIER, he almost felt sorry for them.
“Why don’t we just knock him into the water?” Peter suggested, flipping over him and webbing his face.
The slug groaned, unable to see, he pried at the webs and failed. He yelled in agony. Peter bit back a laugh.
Tony didn’t. “Yeah, Cap. Why not knock him into the water?”
Steve glared at them from below. Peter landed next to him in his usual crouch and Tony floated down. While the slug was distracted with the webbing, the 5 of them had time to reevaluate.
“We can’t put him in the water because that would just leave more cleanup for us. The city is already mad about last time,” Steve explained.
“Hey where’s your big green guy?” Peter asked. “It’d be much easier for him to just punch this guy in the face wouldn’t it?”
Steve sighed. And Tony snapped his metal fingers and titled his head, as if he’d thought of that before. “Y’know I said the same thing..”
“Tony we talked about this,” Steve said. “He’s not-“
“He’s never gonna feel safe to come out here if you keep him pent up like that! It’s ‘cause of how you treat him, Spangles.”
“Tony-“
“I didn’t mean to start anything,” Peter interrupted quickly. It wouldn’t be very helpful to anyone if they argued instead of focusing on the real issue.
“Don’t worry about it, kid. These two have been having this issue for weeks now,” Hawkeye waved a hand in the air.
Peter nodded slowly. Of course the Avengers would have inner problems. Living with each other all the time? Peter would lose his mind. Then again…
“Look,” Peter said, snapped their attentions back to him. “Why don’t I just keep webbing him up? It seems to be working pretty well for now.”
“Yes but we’ll need a better plan than ‘webbing him up,’ that won’t hold him back forever,” Steve said with a sigh.
“What’s the issue with just shooting him? Shouldn’t all those blasters and guns be doing something?”
Natasha held up her gun like it was useless. “Every-time we shoot him he just grows everything back. These aliens and their regeneration… it’s driving me insane.”
Peter hummed. He had to have some kind of weakness. He swung away, toward the slug. None of the Avengers reacted, they continued to brainstorm without him.
Peter squatted on the end of the pier, where the slug was very proactively destroying an empty Ferris wheel with his fat body. Not like he could see what he was doing. It was good that they evacuated the pier.
“He slug!” Peter yelled. It turned in his direction. So it could hear.
Peter ignored the shiver that ran down his spine. His senses always helped him, but they also seemed to make his anxiety more heightened. The last thing anyone needed heightened.
He reached down into the water and cradled some in his spandex covered hand. Then he launched it at the slug. “Take this!” The water melted off his shoulder. And it didn’t regenerate.
Peter’s entire body lit up. “Weakness!” He whispered to himself. He turned to yell at the others, but they already saw, “hey-!”
“You’re a genius, kid!” Tony flew over, dropping next to him. “We really should’ve just drowned him in the first place.”
Peter beamed at the praise, his face flushing. He was glad he had a mask on.
Tony’s suit formed a metal bucket out of his right hand. Why he would ever need that in a different situation, Peter didn’t want to know or care. The other’s rushed over, seeming to get the memo.
Together, looking like idiots, they all threw water at the slug. Steve scooped with his shield, Tony with his metal bucket, Clint apparently already had water arrows, and Natasha and Peter with their hands.
Soon enough, the slug was melted onto the ground.
Tony huffed, sounding out of breath. He let his metal suit dissemble itself and he stepped out. “Kid. That was amazing.”
Clint nodded in agreement and pointed his bow at him. “We could use more of you.”
Natasha just grinned silently. Steve looked burdened. Peter ignored him.
Peter shrugged and scratched the back of his neck through his self made suit. “Eh- it was nothing. This was a special situation.”
“Oh that’s- come on, Spider-Man. Join us. Let me make you a new suit,” Tony offered. And god that sounded like heaven. An escape.”
“Tony he can’t just join the team, you know that,” Steve chided. “Fury would never let that happen.” Peter wasn’t sure if it was Steve or Fury who didn’t want that to happen.
Peter’s hidden face faltered. “It’s okay, Mr Stark. You guys are probably better off without me.”
Something in Tony’s face shifted, but Peter couldn’t tell what. Then he glared at Steve. Then smiled at Peter. “I’ll tell you what. I’ll make you a new suit, get you some comms that’ll connect with ours and everything.”
Steve opened his mouth, but Tony held up a hand and somehow managed to shush him.
“And hey, we’ll call you if we really need you again.”
Peter’s eyebrows shot to the sky. “You’ll- how? I don’t even-“
“Your suit. It’ll have everything.”
“Tony you don’t even know how old this kid is,” Steve argued.
“Rogers look at him!” Tony nearly shouted. “He’s gonna get himself killed fighting crime in that thing,” he gestured at Peter and he ever-so-slightly flinched.
He wished he missed the crease in Tony’s brow that told him he noticed.
“That’s- that’s a lot, Mr Stark. Really you don’t have to. I mean how will you even get my measurements?”
Tony nudged his suit, “Friday’ll get ‘em.”
Peter’s eyes widened more, if that was even possible. “You- you have an AI?! Oh my god that is so cool!” He gawked.
Followed by a muttered, “this is the most insane thing that’s ever happened to me.”
Tony snorted. “Alright then. I guess you’re getting a suit.”
Peter blinked, reality shifting back to him. “How will you even get it to me?”
Tony shrugged. “I’ll find you.”
Peter hummed. He’d find him.
———
Peter lost hope for that suit in a week. I mean, how long does it take to build a suit? It didn’t have to be anything fancy! Peter wore spandex all the time!
But his head shot up when he felt something shift in the air on his usual patrol. He was taking a breather on a flat roofto when he heard the repulsers. He swung his body around.
Iron Man touched down in front of him.
“Mr Stark! Hi- hey- it’s uh- hi.” His face immediately flushed with embarrassment. So much for the cool-nonchalance he was initially going for.
“Hey kid. Not so fast, I’m not actually here.” The faceplate lifted, showing only the inner workings of a fake suit.
Peter tried not to let his disappointment show, but he was sure his body slumped anyway. “Oh, that’s okay Mr Stark. No worries.”
He heard a sigh. “I would’ve come if I could’ve but I’m at some conference in Sandiago. Trust me this would’ve gotten to you a lot sooner if I wasn’t so caught up.” He held up a metal breifcase.
Peter blinked. He hadn’t even noticed it was there before. “Oh wow. That’s really fancy.”
Fake-Tony set the briefcase down in front of him and gestured for Peter to open it. That’s what Peter did. It flipped open to reveal the most beautiful piece of spandex Peter ever laid eyes on. The webbing design, the spider emblem, the eyes- it was gorgeous.
“Oh my god this is amazing.” He was already thinking of where he’d hide this in his current foster home.
He looked up, very aware that not even the mask could hide his glee. “Thank you so much Mr Stark. Really, this is a lot.”
“I know,” Tony laughed. “I also know you’ll put it to good use.”
“I will.”
“Okay well. This city waits for no one, bye kid.” The face plate flipped back down and a different voice spoke; “Mr Stark has disconnected.”
Peter watched as he flew away. He could only wonder why someone as rich as Tony Stark would do this for someone like Peter.