3) Don't Make Eye Contact. We Are Not Equals

Monday - March 7, 2016

Stark Tower - Lounge and Dining Area

04:32 p.m.

"Whoa...seriously?"

"Yep! I took his call when I was right in the middle of working."

"That's...wait - why were...why were you making a new coffee machine anyway? Isn't that a little below your average priority?"

Tony let out a huff as he narrowed his eyes. "Not when the old one wouldn't stop cutting me off. Like, really? Who is it to judge how many cups of coffee I can have? It's a damn machine!" He pouted.

Peter giggled beside him, Tony suppressing the urge to do the same as he continued to mope. After the two left Pepper and Rhodey to continue the tour, the billionaire caved and decided to take the teen over to the cafeteria, where Peter confirmed his past suspicions that nothing - BUT nothing could make a cafeteria any less depressing than it usually was, not even Tony Stark.

That's how the pair found themselves sitting on one of the lounge couches near the eating area, staring out the window at the setting sun while sipping on milkshakes. The billionaire had nearly sputtered in shock when Peter had nonchalantly stated he'd never had one before. Not two seconds later, there was an extra large chocolate shake being thrust into his hands.

For the past ten minutes, the two had simply been sitting quietly while Tony chatted away about this thing and that. Most people would have submitted to the urge to roll their eyes and fall asleep out of sheer boredom after five minutes, but not Peter.

Peter was happy to listen.

Tony was currently recounting all of the conversations he's had with the President over the past couple of years, as well as his annoyance at his appliances for ganging up against him. He still had a sneaking suspicion Pepper had tampered with the coffee machine somehow, but he still didn't know for sure. . .

Just as the man was about to delve into how he'd accidentally "dropped" the old coffee machine out the window on the sixty-third floor, he heard the earpiece on him beep quietly. "Hold up for a sec, kid." He called, raising up his hand as he pressed down on the piece.

"Tony, we have to talk."

The man grimaced slightly at the tone of voice Pepper was currently using. That was the "you've just fucked up big time and now it's time for me to whoop your ass" voice.

"Pepper, I'm a little busy here at the moment." He called back, glancing back over towards Peter, who was fighting with his straw as he tried to trap the cherry down at the bottom of his glass.

"It's important."

Uh-oh. Rhodey was there, too? Then he'd really fucked something up. He let out a reluctant sigh as he stood up, Peter's eyes following him as he did so. "I'll be right there." He muttered in submission before ending the call.

A small guttural groan escaped his lips as he lowered his hand once more, turning his head to look at Peter, realizing the boy was now gazing up at him. Upon noticing the man's attention was back on him, the boy quickly averted his gaze, hesitantly lifting his eyes to focus on the collar of Tony's suit.

That was something else the billionaire had been quick to pick up on. Apart from the kid's stutter, the other obvious tick about him was that he never really made eye contact with anyone, especially not Tony. At most, he'd get a fleeting look, which quickly disappeared as soon as Tony noticed. Usually, the teen's gaze only ever reached up to stare at the collar of his shirt.

Once again, Tony didn't really know how he felt about that.

"Is...is everything...okay?"

Tony was jolted from his thoughts as Peter spoke softly. The man regarded the boy for a moment before shrugging his shoulders. "Actually, I have to go and talk to Pepper and Rhodey about something and-"

"Oh, right. I-I'm...I'm so sorry." Peter stuttered out, quickly rising up to his feet. "I didn't m-mean to take up your time, Mr. Stark and-"

"Ease up, would you? You're not keeping me from anything. It's just this one thing that's come up right now."

"Oh...o-okay." The teen whispered out quietly. "Umm...I-I can...I can just wait...wait here for you while you go and...do what you have to."

Tony stared down at the boy in thought, his words leaving a sinking feeling in his stomach. He already knew the kid would not be alright sitting by himself around the heavily-traversed area. The only reason he assumed the boy hadn't noticed the sheer amount of people constantly walking around them was because he'd been talking to Tony for most of the time.

The billionaire could still remember the look of sheer anxiety on the kid's face when he'd first met him in the lobby, surrounded by all those strangers. And from what Happy had told him, the kid had only been down there for five minutes!

Well, he can't stay here... Tony muttered to himself as he glared around at the numerous people walking through the hall, either leaving the cafeteria or entering with colleagues. Loud voices and shrill laughter could be heard between them as they walked.

Apparently, Peter had begun to notice the others as well, for his arms were now tightly wrapped around himself and he was rubbing little circles against the back of his left hand with his thumb, another tick Tony had picked up on. Occasionally, the boy would steal nervous glances around himself, as if he were waiting to be jumped or something.

The last thing I need is for this kid to have a panic attack in the middle of a group of strangers. Tony growled at himself. But then where could he put the teen, exactly? It wasn't like this tower had a daycare center or anything!

"Umm... M-Mr. Stark?"

Tony jolted as his name was called. Glancing back down, he met Peter's gaze for a second before the kid pulled away, eyes falling back to his collar. "Um, are...are you okay? You've k-kinda just been staring out i-into space for a while." He murmured unsurely.

"Yep. Fine. Just trying to find a good place to put you, kid."

"...put me?"

"Mm-hmm." Tony mused. "Can't exactly just leave you here with all the weirdos, now can I?" The billionaire explained as he began to lead the boy over to the elevator.

Peter's eyebrows furrowed as he glanced up at the man. "Y-you don't have to do that, Mr. Stark. I'll be f-" The kid winced as a large group of workers walked particularly close to the pair, brushing up against his arm for a moment. Quickly regaining his composure, Peter flashed an embarrassed look to Tony before lowering his gaze back down. "I'll...I'll be fine." He whispered in a much softer tone.

Tony couldn't help the sympathetic look that washed over his face for a fraction of a second before he quickly recomposed himself. "Yeah, I'm sure you would be." He decided to play along. "Just humor me, 'kay?" He asked with a small wink.

Peter gazed up at him for a moment before giving a small nod,

"Tony. We need you here, now."

"Yeah, yeah, I'm coming, Rhodey! But in case you didn't realize, I kind of have an influential minor on my hands, so if you could just give me a frikkin minute here, that'd be very much appreciated!" He called back as he began to lead the kid towards the elevator.

"Tony, we're not fucking around. Now get your ass over here before I come over there and drag you here myself!"

As Rhodey continued to yell into his ear, Tony couldn't suppress his sigh as he began to rub his temple. "Hey, FRIDAY?" He called.

"Yes, Boss?"

"Go on and take junior here someplace private." He called, grimacing as he heard Rhodey continuing to yell at him. Something about death threats and face punching or something like that. He wasn't really listening anymore.

"Anywhere, FRI. I just... can't deal with this right now." He growled out as he turned away, pinching the bridge of his nose as he felt a migraine beginning to work its way forward.

"Right away, Boss." The AI called.

"I'll come find you in a little while, kid. Alright?" He called, not even bothering to wait for an answer as the elevator doors shut once more. He let out a small sigh as he moved over towards the next elevator and stepped inside. "Pepper's office, FRI." He called as the elevator doors slid closed.

He groaned and ran a hand through his hair, leaning back against the metal bar that wrapped around the elevator walls as he ran through a list of everything he'd done in the past two weeks and just which one of those events he was about to be scolded for.

He hadn't done anything too bad lately...right?

 

---

 

Peter blinked curiously as the elevator doors opened up onto a new floor. He hadn't seen this place yet. Have we not come to this part of the tour yet? Peter wondered to himself as he stepped out of the elevator.

Everything was dark, and yet, even with the lack of light, Peter could tell whatever room he'd just entered was big. Really big.

"Umm...hello?" He called, heart racing at the idea of bumping into a stranger while he couldn't see them. It was bad enough dealing with people when they were actually in his line of sight.

"Hello, Mr. Parker."

Peter jumped at FRIDAY's voice filtering in through the ceiling, a nervous smile working its way onto his face. "Jeez...I don't think I'm ever going to get used to that." He murmured to himself.

"Uhh..." How do you talk to a computer, again? "Excuse me...but it's...uhh...it's a l-little dark in here and..."

"Of course. Allow me to turn on the lights."

Peter blinked as sharp lights quickly illuminated overtop his head, momentarily blinding him.

After taking a second to readjust, the teen lifted his head once more, only for his jaw to nearly hit the floor at the sight before him.

"Holy crap..."

 

---

 

Monday - March 7, 2016

Stark Tower - Main Offices

04:31 p.m.

Never in a million years would he admit it, but Tony's heart was beating considerably faster than usual. He was used to Pepper scolding him. He was used to Rhodey scolding him. He was even used to the two of them scolding him together. But there was just something about the sound of Pepper's voice through the earpiece.

It hadn't been the usual exasperation of him skipping an important meeting or blatantly ignoring something she'd specifically told him to do. This...this was different. This was a resigned, foreboding ring that had his chest tightening the same way it had right before she'd ended things between them.

That alone had Tony's stomach churning in slight nervousness. But just like then, he took it in stride with a nod of his head and a shrug of his shoulders that didn't reveal the turmoil boiling in his gut like a frothing mess of anxiety.

"Alright, I feel like I've just been dragged into the principal's office." The man mused with his typical smirk as he entered the room, instantly taking note of the heavy air hanging around the three.

Pepper was currently sitting at her desk, elbows propped up and hands folded in front of her face, concealing any and all expressions from his line of sight. Rhodey stood up against the side of the desk, arms crossed over his chest as he simply stared down at the ground, face hard.

Tony ignored the itching burn beginning to spread over his skin at the notable tension as he took a seat, resting a cheek on his fist. "So what'd I do? Spray-paint a few lockers? Put some bugs in the teacher's desk? At least tell me it was yearbook-worthy."

Usually, the two would brush off the man's words and get right down to business, but this time Rhodes let a smile fall onto his face as a scoff flew out of his mouth, though something in Tony told him the man definitely wasn't laughing because he found it humorous.

Rhodey simply shook his head as his exasperated smile turned into a sigh. He raised his head and glanced over at Tony. "So...new intern, huh?"

The billionaire's fingers drummed against the chair armrest, a soft little noise that carried heavily in the otherwise silent room. He clicked his tongue before leaning back. "So that's what this is about? You all are still debating whether or not I'm crazy to take an intern? Gotta say, jury's still out. But my decision's pretty final at this point."

"Really? So you don't want to explain how you met this particular kid, Tones? Cause something tells me you wouldn't just pluck up some random teen off of the street. Or am I simply believe that you just went to the closest high school you could find and picked the first face you saw?" He growled.

Tony could feel his hackles raising at the aggression in his friend's tone. He narrowed his eyes. "What's to explain? I met the kid through his application to the September Foundation. His file intrigued me. I went to see him. I liked what I saw so I offered him an internship. What more is there?" He growled out, nerves getting the better of him as his anger started to swell in response.

Rhodey either didn't pick up on the shift in tone or - what Tony more likely assumed - he simply didn't care, for he let out a humorless chuckle. "Yeah, you liked what you saw all right. But it didn't end with an internship did it, Tony?" He growled out, eyes narrowing as he stalked forward. "That kid never applied for a scholarship, did he?"

"Didn't you hear what I just sai-"

DON'T BULLSHIT ME, TONY!" Rhodes snarled, eyes flaring in fury for a moment as Tony quickly jumped up to his feet. The colonel glared at the man in front of him for a moment longer before he shut his eyes, allowing a calming breath to sweep through him as he rubbed the bridge of his nose.

Pepper, who has stayed silent throughout the ordeal, finally rose up from her chair. "Tony…" She called slowly, eyes hard and jaw clenched as she gazed back at the man.

Tony turned a solemn gaze to face her as Rhodey took a step back, arms crossing back over his chest. "We just need to know one thing," She said slowly, eyes never leaving the man's face. Finally, the words Tony had been dreading ever since he entered the room finally drifted into the air.

"Is he Spider-Man?"

Any other time, Tony would have simply barked out a laugh and quickly denied the statement. But the looks that were laying into him told him they already knew the answer. Lying to them would do him no good now, not that his lies ever usually fooled them.

"...yeah."

Pepper lowered her head and sat back down while Rhodey let out a sharp breath, slapping his arms down in frustration. "Jesus Christ, Tony. I-I...I just…" The colonel seemed to be at a loss for words as he ran a hand over his face. "What the hell is the matter with you?!"

"Long list. You got time?"

"You know...I've stuck by you on some stupid things, Tony. Some stupid, crazy, irresponsible things, but I think this takes the frikkin cake!" He shouted.

"How can you allow him to be...to be going off doing who-knows-what all by himself?" He asked. "No! Even better! How could you possibly think it was okay to drag a goddamn baby to Germany to fight Captain frikkin America?!"

The colonel began to pace back and forth. "I mean, you said he was young, but...but I- I never thought you would stoop so low as to drag innocent children into things that shouldn't concern them!" He snarled out, whipping back around to face the man.

Tony's face remained stoic as he watched his friend pace. He glanced down, watching his fingers tap against the side of his leg. "It wasn't ideal-"

"Ideal?! It's fucking criminal!"

"What did you want me to do?!" Tony shouted, fists clenching at his sides as he glared back at him. "You know how bad things were. We had to do something right then and there. We were severely lacking in numbers and time. It was either we did something or Ross was going to kill them." He folded his arms over his chest as he glared down at the ground. "So I made a choice."

"Yeah, a really stupid one."

"What's done is done, Rhodes!" Tony barked. "We can't go back in time and change anything, so we might as well just move on."

"Move on?" The colonel repeated. "Oh no. You do not just get to walk away from this scot-free without any consequences, Tony! I mean...did you even think of the ramifications, here? Of...of what would have happened if that kid had gotten hurt? Or worse?"

"He didn't."

"But he could have!"

"But he didn't!" Tony snarled, the ferocity behind the words making Rhodey and Pepper gaze up at him in slight surprise. The billionaire stared back at the two for a moment before the fire burning in his chest began to dwindle, leaving an uncomfortable itch that sat against his chest.

He let out a tired sigh as he shut his eyes, slowly falling back down into his seat. He propped his elbow upon his knee as he rested his forehead on his hand. "And I didn't drag him into anything...he was already in."

Rhodey and Pepper exchanged glances before the woman rose up from her seat, slowly walking over before kneeling down in front of the man. Tony's eyes blinked open before connecting with hers.

"Tony...you need to tell us the whole story."

He stared back at her, stared into those bright blue eyes that once made him feel so good. Now he had to turn away for fear of crumbling to bits under their sheer force.

"Kid popped up on my radar a few months back." He started softly, rubbing at the back of his neck. "There had been some videos and a couple sightings of a new hero around the city, so obviously I wanted to know about it."

He paused, glanced down at his hands. "Now, I don't know how this kid got his powers, but...they're impressive. He can do some pretty incredible things with them. Not only that, but he's smart as shit, too. Made his own tech with nothing but garbage he found in the dumpster." He muttered with a small shake of his head. "But, he was severely under-equipped. So...that's where I came in."

Rhodey regarded the man and his words for a moment. "He was doing this before you even came into the picture?" His voice was wary, still full of distrust. Tony pretended not to notice.

Instead, he nodded. "I knew the kid wasn't just going to stop doing it...not after I heard why he was doing it in the first place. So…" He paused to pinch at his eyes. "I upgraded his suit, and - despite my better judgment - I brought him to Germany to help us fight. I know it was stupid."

Rhodey's narrowed eyes stayed locked on the floor beneath them for a moment longer before he lifted his head, letting out a loud sigh. "Hate to admit it, but that kid really did help us out." He muttered.

Tony couldn't help but let out a scoff at that.

The colonel paused. "Well, wait. If there's one thing I remember about that Spider-Kid, it's that he never stopped talking. It was like...just...it was insane. Honestly, I don't know how I didn't pick up on the fact that he'd like, twelve"

"Fourteen."

"Whatever." He paused once more. "And...and that kid I just met...that kid out there...he was nothing like that." Rhodey said , eyebrows furrowed. "I mean - hell, when I started talking to him, it was like he was about to burst into flames at any second. I have never seen a kid look so scared of...talking."

Tony tensed up at that, something both Pepper and Rhodey instantly picked up on.

"Tony..." Pepper called suspiciously, warning the man to not even try to hide anything from them.

The billionaire kept his gaze focused on the ground as he debated whether or not to actually tell them the whole truth. After all, this was a pretty touchy subject.

The man thought back to Peter. Judging from how the teen usually acted, Tony doubted he wanted anybody knowing about his personal life. Though, he also hadn't wanted anybody to know he was Spider-Man and welp…

But this… this was different.

On the scale of sensitive subjects, this was about as high as one could go. Tony didn't feel comfortable just thinking about it. But actually talking about it...confronting it head-on...

That made it real. And if it was real, then it was just another thing for him to screw up.

"Hey..."

His eyes jerked upwards at Rhodey's voice, the man currently leaning closer to place a hand on his shoulder. "You okay? You're kinda spacing out."

Tony continued to gaze up at the man before his eyes flickered over to Pepper, who was currently giving him the same worried look.

It wasn't his place to speak about this. After all, Peter's private life was just that. Private.

And yet, Tony couldn't help but long to throw the words out, to open his mouth and just spew out what had been plaguing his mind throughout the night, hang it on someone else's shoulders to bear.

Rhodey cocked a brow. "Does this have anything to do with why you offered the kid an internship? Seems more your style to just monitor him from afar or something."

Tony rubbed his neck anxiously. If there were any people he could talk to about this, it was the pair currently standing in front of him. He could count on them to keep this between the three of them while simultaneously creating an outlet for Tony to vent his frustrations to.

And if the past few hours were any indication, Tony was willing to bet he would encounter many new frustrations when it came to Peter Parker.

And yet...something held him back. Something made the man pause and rethink what he was about to do, a black seed of doubt that curled around his ribs.

A month ago, he never would have hesitated to tell Rhodey and Pepper something. Of course, he'd usually disguise it with thick layers of sarcasm and snark, but they usually uncovered the truth fairly easily.

They were the people he trusted with everything.

Then Siberia happened.

He glanced back up to meet the gazes of his friends once again. His head growled at him to swallow his fear and just spew whatever it was he wanted to say, but the phantom pain in his chest made him pause, a sharp pain, a familiar pain. Like the feeling of a shield-

No.

He trusted them.

He had to trust them.

If he didn't...then he really did have no one.

Tony let out a sigh as he rubbed his eyes, reaching into his pocket. Rhodey and Pepper watched as the man pulled out his phone, tapping a few buttons before a projection appeared in front of them.

It showed a picture of a man with dark brown hair and matching cold eyes. He had a strong build and a handsome, charismatic face, even with the slight discoloration on his cheek. The skin around it was a nice olive tan, but the left side of his face was dotted with white spots, almost like healed chemical burns. They were almost unnoticeable from a distance. But up close, it was near impossible not to recognize him.

"I met his father," Tony growled.

Pepper's mouth fell open. "Richard Parker? That's his son?!"

"Richard Parker?" Rhodey echoed, eyes widening. Anyone who worked at Stark Industries knew his name almost as well as they knew Norman Osborn's.

Pepper stared at the image for another moment before her gaze hardened, falling back onto Tony. "Oh, do not tell me you're only keeping this boy around simply to keep tabs on his father." She whispered darkly.

Tony glared up at her. "Of course not, Pepper! God, I couldn't care less about Parkstem!" He snarled, the notion she was implying wounding him much more than he let on.

"I…" He hesitated, wondering just how to explain everything that had happened. Honestly, he didn't even quite understand it himself yet.

"The kid lives with his father and… and his 'associates.' I...I don't know much but it's...it's strange," he ran a hand through his hair. "I was only in there for a short time and I could tell something was...off. Wrong. I...he was scared of something. And I think I have a pretty good guess of what it was."

He didn't need to say anymore. Understanding crept onto their faces like shadows along a wall.

Pepper took a breath, shutting her eyes as she gave a small shake of her head, carefully crossing her arms, as if she didn't know where to put them. "Did...did you see anything?" She whispered softly.

Tony glanced up at her for a moment before giving a shake of his head. "Nothing physical." He muttered, folding his arms. "But I saw enough to raise some flags. And now...now I don't know what do to with them, cause nobody else seems to have any."

Pepper drummed her fingers against her arm as she gave a slow nod. "Richard Parker is one of the most beloved men in the city."

Rhodey sighed and leaned against the desk. "Everyone's got something to hide."

The woman grunted and raised a hand to her head, brushing her fingers through her hair and pushing it out of her face as she turned back towards Tony. "This is...I...I don't know, Tony. Parker's a staple figurehead. And as far as I know, there's never been any public accusations made against him, at least nothing big enough to ripple any waves. Just..." she hesitated, face pinching slightly. "...are you sure?"

"No." His answer was instant. He wasn't sure. The fact of the matter was that he hadn't seen anything, nothing that could be construed as immediate danger, nothing concrete. He was just going off of gut feeling, a hunch more than anything. And recently, gut feelings had been getting him into more trouble than he cared to admit.

Still, there was just something...different here. Some internal drive that left him feeling incredibly wary of that house, the same feeling he remembered from when he was young.

He had grown up with Howard Stark, after all.

"No, I didn't see anything. But I did see a kid who could use some help. At least...you know, at least with his web-slinging side job. And I do have some responsibility there, at least enough to offer what I can. A suit, some pointers, whatever. Enough to keep me from feeling guilty for giving a kid a multi-billion dollar suit as a play-thing." His quip fell flat. Or maybe he just wasn't in the mood to laugh.

"This is serious, Tony." Pepper said softly, letting out a deep breath.

The billionaire's shoulders jerked at his scoff. "Thanks for the news."

"What are our options here?" She ignored his snip and turned to Rhodey.

The colonel sighed as he shook his head. "Without hard evidence...nothing," he huffed. "Especially since we don't know for sure if something even is happening. Besides, with someone like Richard Parker, we can't exactly start throwing around wild accusations."

Tony paused at the man's words, brows furrowing slightly. "What if...what if they weren't accusations? At least, not blind ones."

"What're you talking about, man?"

"I mean...what if, err- why don't I just ask the kid straight out?"

Rhodey threw him an unsure look. "Doesn't really seem like something he'd be comfortable talking about. I mean, that kid doesn't seem comfortable talking about anything, really."

He rose up to his feet. "But we don't know that for sure." Tony shook his head and rolled his eyes, hoping the aura of distain he was presenting was strong enough to cover the lingering unease still churning in his stomach. "Look, I don't have time for guessing games anyway. I'm just gonna ask him straight out and demand a real answer here. Simple as that."

Pepper approached as he made for the door. "Tony. Hold on now."

He sidestepped her. "I'm not about to become some open-door shelter for every sob story in the city, alright? And I'm certainly not going to entertain the idea of beating around this bush." Tony didn't know what he'd been thinking. There was only one right thing to do here and it certainly wasn't to keep goofing off in his tower with some random kid. Giving him the suit upgrades had been one thing, but offering a full internship was taking things a step too far. He could see that now, could feel the assurances flooding his system as he strode across the room.

Pepper got in his way again, this time planting herself firmly between him and the door. He swallowed his annoyances and allowed her to speak. Her eyes narrowed and her voice was firm. "You'd better behave yourself, you understand? Don't you go and traumatize that boy just because you can't handle simple human decency. For once just pretend to have a semblance of empathy."

He threw her a tight smile and stepped around her once more before walking out the door, the two of them watching him leave with matching looks of hesitance and discomfort.

"Trust me, Pepper. If there's one thing I know, it's how to pretend."

 

---

 

Monday - March 7, 2016

Stark Tower - Private Lab 1

04:45 p.m.

Of all the things Peter had imagined he would end up doing that day, exploring Tony Stark's personal lab definitely wasn't one of them.

For the first couple of minutes, the teen had only been able to stand there gaping as he tried to drink in every single thing he possibly could about the incredible lab.

The room was huge, extending out into a large open floorplan that sloped up into a staircase leading to a second level.

Around him numerous monitors and machines flashed and illuminated the already bright room in their own hues of light. In the center of the room stood a holo-table complete with projections and unfinished projects on the surface. Numerous metallic tables surrounded it, some holding small metal pieces and wires while others held parts as big as a car tire.

Farther in the back sat another arc energy tube similar to the ones down in the other labs, only there were multiple around the room and they were all much more slender, snaking along the walls like circuit lines and power wires.

But it was the numerous Iron Man suits on the second floor lining the walls that really made Peter drool for the longest duration of his awe-fest.

It had taken a lot of mental slapping, but Peter had finally been able to snap out of his stupor, which is what found him sitting on the small couch that sat up against the wall of the first floor.

The teen's legs were folded underneath him as he merely continued to look around the room with a small grin still plastered on his face. The gentle humming of computers and the whirring of distant machines met Peter's ear in a gentle concoction of bliss as he let out a contented sigh, shutting his eyes as he rested his head against the back of the couch.

VRMMM!

The teen yelped loudly at the startling noise, jerking his head up only to blink in surprise at the sight in front of him.

A large robot with a long metallic arm-like crane was currently sitting in front of him. The claw connected to the arm slowly stretched forward towards Peter's face, the teen leaning back slightly as the machine seemed to 'take him in', or whatever the robot version of that was.

After taking a moment to realize the robot meant no harm, the teen couldn't help the small chuckle that bubbled out of his mouth. "Huh,...you're kind of cute." He uttered, pressing a hand against the cold metal of the robot. His eyes caught the large white letters printed onto the machine's side. "DUM-E, huh? Why do I feel like there's a story behind that?" He teased the machine, which simply let out another hum in response. He opened his claw and grabbed at Peter jacket, pulling the teen forward slightly before letting go.

The teen giggled. "What exactly are you anyway?"

"That is DUM-E, Mr. Parker."

Peter visibly jumped a few feet as FRIDAY spoke, his eyes darting nervously up towards the ceiling as she continued. "Mr. Stark created said robot as well as others to function as assistants in and around the lab." She explained, DUM-E seeming to hum in confirmation.

The teen stared up at the ceiling for a moment longer before letting out a nervous chuckle. "Heh...umm thanks...FRIDAY."

"You are quite welcome, Mr. Parker."

Peter wrinkled his nose. "Umm...can...c-can you just call me Peter?" He asked hesitantly.

"Of course, Peter." The voice replies cheerily.

The teen let a loose smile fall onto his face at the AI's relaxing voice, the tone relieving some of the tension in his shoulders.

"So...you're Mr. Stark's AI?"

"That is correct. I run the main parts of the tower and also act as an assistant to Mr. Stark during missions in his suits." She responded.

Peter nodded. "Cool." He called before the room settled into silence once more. For some reason, the feeling made the teen feel a little awkward as he coughed nervously and rubbed the back of his neck. "S-so...do you...like...being an AI?"

. . .

. . .

What?

The teen's mental berating was cut off as the voice responded. "I find it to be quite enjoyable."

Peter coughed nervously once again. "R-right…" He breathed before letting out an annoyed groan. "God, Peter. You are so stupid." He muttered to himself, falling back down against the couch.

. . .

"I do not think you are stupid, Peter."

The words caught him off guard as he blinked in surprise. The teen slowly sat back up as he glanced at the ceiling, replaying the words over. Had he heard that correctly?

After almost ten years of constantly hearing such words on a loop, Peter had basically fallen into a routine of berating himself the same way, repeating the words he heard at home in his head over and over again. He didn't think much of it. It was just habit nowadays.

So safe to say, the AI's words caught him extremely off guard.

Peter felt a small smile fall onto his face as he rubbed the back of his neck.

"Umm...thanks, FRIDAY."

 

---

 

Monday - March 7, 2016

Stark Tower - en route to Private Lab 1

04:53 p.m.

"He's where?!"

Tony's eyes were practically bulging out of his head as FRIDAY repeated what she had just said moments ago.

"As I said before, Peter is currently in your worksh-"

"Yeah, yeah! I heard you the first frikkin time, FRIDAY. But why the hell is he in there?" He shouted as the elevator moved underneath his feet.

"You said to take him someplace private."

"Yeah, I meant like an unoccupied room or something. Not my private lab."

"Perhaps you should have been more specific."

"Alright, I do not need any attitude from you, m'kay?" He muttered. If it was possible, Tony was sure the AI would have been smirking at him.

The billionaire was baffled. FRIDAY knew better than to allow strangers and newcomers into his private lab. Those rights were restricted to himself, Pepper and Rhodey, and even then he hated when they interrupted him in there.

Maybe she's malfunctioning. He thought to himself, though something in the back of his head told him the AI was functioning perfectly fine.

The man let out a sigh as he felt the elevator slowing. "I swear, FRIDAY. If this kid's broken anything in there, I'm going to give you such a virus…" He voiced the threat, though he was sure the AI was practically rolling her nonexistent eyes at that.

The doors slid apart and Tony quickly stepped out, briskly walking down the short hall and into the open doorway of his lab.

Safe to say, he definitely didn't expect what he saw…

Peter was currently sitting crisscrossed on one of the many swivel chairs around the room, lazily spinning around slowly. Next to him stood DUM-E, who was currently humming loudly, something Tony found he only did whenever he was...happy? At least that's what he assumed.

Everything else around the lab was in the exact style of messiness he'd last left it in, not a single crumpled piece of paper out of place.

But that wasn't even the strangest thing. No...it was Peter himself, or more specifically, what the kid was doing at the moment.

"You know, your vocal processors are really super advanced. Though I guess I shouldn't really be surprised. After all, you were made by Tony Stark. You know, I've always wanted to build something like you. Well...I guess not exactly like you. Probably more something along the lines of DUM-E, cause I mean, who wouldn't want their own little robot friend to hang out with? Of course, it's kind of hard to come by triple-wire electrical output sensors whenever you're digging through dumpsters. That's not usually the kind of thing people are messing with. Though I guess some people over at Oscorp probably use those kinds of things. Huh...you think Oscorp has any cool things in their dumpsters? I should really go and check those out sometimes. Maybe I'll even find some multi-repulsion circuits. That would be great."

He was...talking. A lot.

"Your projects sound very interesting, Peter. I'm sure they will turn out wonderfully."

"Thanks, FRIDAY. But I can't even begin to name all the projects I've had to scrap. I just don't have the tools to make anything out of them." He sighed before perking slightly. "But I have been able to make a few. You know, when I was ten, I built a little flying drone that could drop my garbage in the trash can without me having to get up." He rubbed the back of his neck. "I guess I could probably update him to better suit my needs nowadays though."

The kid was so engrossed in speaking to the AI that he hadn't even noticed Tony's presence. The man opened his mouth to alert the kid but decided against it at the last minute. Maybe he could learn something from this little opportunity of his…

Peter pushed the ground gently with the tip of his foot, the chair sliding against the floor until he was up next to the arc energy tubes along the wall.

"You know, this is super awesome," Peter called up to the AI. "I've always wanted to learn more about Mr. Stark's arc reactor and the science behind it, but my dad's not too keen on letting me learn up about that kind of stuff." The teen murmured with a little shrug.

Tony cocked a brow at the boy's supposed interest. Arc reactor energy was still a new concept being passed around in the field, Not many kids his age were probably all that into it. Then again, most kids his age also weren't swinging around the city in the middle of the night, so Tony had to assume Peter was an outlier in more than just one sense of the word.

"Well, what can you infer about the reactor, then?" FRIDAY asked, the billionaire blinking in slight surprise before throwing a perplexed look up at the ceiling. Was FRIDAY...egging him on?

Peter furrowed his brow and scrunched his nose in a moment of thought before shrugging his shoulders. "Well from the little I have read on it, I know the original had a palladium core and that it's a sort of fusion reactor." He said before going back to slowly spinning in the chair, Tony quickly ducking back behind a large metallic suit piece set up on one of the tables as to not alert the kid of his presence.

"But the thing is, one of palladium's isotopes, Pd-107, produces silver when it undergoes beta decay." Peter pointed out. "So when the neutron becomes a proton, you get an electron remainder. But there shouldn't be an electrical current when the electron is released because it balances out the proton count between the palladium and silver." He announced as he continued to lazily spin. "So Mr. Stark would have had to come up with some kind of way to capture the electron that's released, which would generate that electrical current."

"And how do you believe he did that?"

Peter stared up at the ceiling for another moment, ceasing in his spinning motions as he thought. After another minute, he proceeded to spin once again, only in the opposite direction this time.

"I guess he found a way to utilize the beta decay of Pd-107 ions as an electron source for the electron capture of Pd-103, which would produce an electric circuit between two different radioactive isotopes. After that, the electron capture process would cause an influx of gamma waves to be emitted towards the center of the reactor, while high-energy electrons are emitted from the center out towards the rim. Because the electron-proton counterflow creates a deficit of electrons in the core, a massive electrostatic potential is developed and the palladium core attracts lower-energy electrons from the suits wiring. The ejection of electrons from the core produces an electrical cell capable of generating enormous voltage and current."

The teen paused, scrunching his nose. "Of course, that was before Mr. Stark took out his reactor..."

He began to spin once again.

"Anyway, that energy outflow could still be used, which is what he did." He murmured with a small tone of awe dripping through his words. "Basically, all you have to do is increase the size of the reactor itself and balance out the same ratio of electrons to protons to fit the new size and you're basically good to go." He explained.

"Then you can adapt that new energy to flow into the building's main generator, which can then be used to power up the rest of the building. Plus, assuming the tubing they used is able to reabsorb the excess electrical currents and shift them back down towards the core, that gets you a continuous renewable energy inflow going throughout the entire building." He finished, before pausing in his spinning once more. "At least, that's how I think he did it. I'm probably way off base."

Jesus Christ. Tony breathed as the kid finished up and began to ramble on about how FRIDAY compressed her systems to switch between the tower mainframes and the suits' systems.

Tony knew the kid was smart. He'd been able to develop his own designs for functioning web shooters but...this? This was ridiculous. Here he was, nonchalantly figuring out mechanics and procedures that not even the top scientists and engineers had been able to figure out, and that was with the actual blueprints in front of them!

You're just full of surprises, aren't you? The billionaire breathed as he watched the kid laugh to himself, speaking freely to the AI. From what the teen had just been able to figure out, Tony wondered why Peter hadn't skipped a few grades, or hell, why he wasn't in college already just on his scientific knowledge alone. Although, the billionaire knew from experience that putting that much pressure on a fourteen-year-old wasn't always the best answer.

Does his dad know about this? He wondered to himself, curious as to just how smart Richard assumed his kid was.

Finally, after watching the teen continue to chat to the AI while teasingly poking at DUM-E, Tony grew restless of hiding and decided to make his presence known.

Stepping out from behind his hiding spot, he strode over towards the teen. "Hey, kid."

Peter let out a yelp and jerked backward, the chair skidding out from underneath him as he floundered to the floor. Tony blinked in shock as the teen quickly rushed up to his feet, nervous smile adorning his face as his cheeks blushed red, his hand rubbing at his neck. "Hehe...h-hey, Mr. Stark..." He mumbled out.

Tony resisted the urge to reply with a usual quip as he walked over. Peter lowered his gaze. "Umm...d-did...did everything go...okay?" He asked softly, Tony realizing with interest that the teen's stutter had returned.

He shrugged. "Yeah, nothing to worry about." He replied, Peter nodding his head as he folded his arms over his chest and looked away. Tony rested against the side of the nearest table as he glanced down at the schematics laid out around it. "Bit surprised to find you in here, though."

Peter furrowed his brows and gave a small tilt of his head before his posture suddenly grew tense and his eyes filled with a certain apprehension. "Am...um...a-am I not...supposed to be in here?" His voice was small.

Tony stared back at him, the reply he'd been preparing seeming to die in his throat for some odd reason.

He didn't like people in his lab. Plain and simple. He didn't like people in his lab. Nor did he have an issue letting that fact be known loud and clear to everyone and anyone who crossed his path. His lab was just that - his lab. Not Pepper's, not Rhodey's, the one place he could claim as a shelter of sorts, the one place he knew he could relax and unwind with his inventions, his projects, his machines.

Peter wasn't supposed to be there. That was fact.

So why couldn't he say so? Why was he having such a hard time letting that piece of information be known?

Peter was watching him with a new wary look in his eyes, shuffling on his feet and inching away bit by bit, rubbing the side of his arm with a tight, white-knuckle grip he tried to hide.

Tony knew that posture. He knew that body language. He knew it all too well.

("Anthony, you get in that room and you wait for me to sort you out! Jesus Christ, you better pray I'm feeling a bit more forgiving before I get up there, you hear me?")

Punishment. Peter was waiting for punishment, waiting for Tony to punish him.

He swallowed the sudden bile rising in his throat. He opened his mouth and the words he'd been forming changed as they passed his lips. "No. It's...it's fine, kid. I, uh...I told FRIDAY to bring you up here."

The change was instantaneous, the kid's muscles slipping out of their tenseness as his face relaxed and his smile hesitantly returned. "Oh. That's...t-that's good, or, uh...that's nice. T...thank you."

Jesus, Stark. What the hell are you doing here? Tony pushed the voice to the back of his mind as he approached the kid. Peter took a few steps back but didn't outright flinch away from him as the man stepped forward. Tony stopped next to him and placed his hands in his pockets, staring out over the lab as he took a deep breath, trying very hard not to spare the kid another look.

Being this close together, it was a bit easier to notice the faint scar running up the side of the kid's neck, mostly hidden by his hair but still present nonetheless.

Ask him. Ask him now and get it over with. That's why you're here. That's why he's here. You need to ask him and then this whole shitshow will be over and he'll be out of your hair. Just ask him. Ask him now.

Tony paused for a moment before glancing down at the boy by his side. "You want me to show you around?"

Peter blinked before turning to look up at him, giving a little smile and a nod. Tony nodded in return.

"Super."

Mistake. Another on the list.

 

---

 

"This is literally the coolest place I have ever seen in my entire life..."

Tony couldn't hold back his snort as Peter's eyes practically dripped with starlight. The two of them were currently on the second floor of the extensive lab, leaning up against the metal railing that separated it from the small five-foot drop down to the first floor.

Throughout the duration of the tour, the teen's mouth had been hanging open, eyes in a constant state of shock as they explored. The first visual sweep he'd done the moment he'd entered had nothing on this! Peter's elbows currently rested on the top bar of the metal railing, arms resting on top of the cool steel as he gazed out over the rest of the lab.

Tony walked over and stopped beside the boy, taking in the view for a moment as a small smile slipped onto his face as well.

THUNK!

Both boys jumped at the loud noise. Whipping their heads down to peer over the railing, they both noticed DUM-E, who was currently bumping up against the small wall underneath them as he backed up and rammed it again and again, no particular purpose in sight.

Tony let out an irritated sigh as Peter chuckling next to him. "I swear that thing's basically an overgrown Roomba. Worse, actually, cause he doesn't even clean anything." He muttered while Peter continued to smile.

"Aw come on. He's cute." The boy chuckled as he continued to gaze down at the struggling robot.

The billionaire quirked an eyebrow at the teen. Usually, most people who met and had the displeasure of working with the robot were quick to voice their annoyances, as well as their desires to scrap the robot for parts. Tony, of course, would never allow it. Despite his scathing comments about the robot, he still considered it a close friend. Everyone knew he'd never get rid of it.

Still, that only made the fact that Peter enjoyed DUM-E's company all the more surprising, though Tony probably shouldn't have been. He'd only known Peter for a short time and most of those meets had been private, but the billionaire had a feeling the kid wasn't one to be mean.

Tony glanced down at DUM-E before gazing at Peter once again. He'd noticed the kid's speech had drastically improved as time had passed. Time to test it out even further.

"You know, I overheard you talking with FRIDAY on arc reactors." He began. "You interested in them?"

The teen's eyes lit up as he spun around, curls tossing around his forehead as they tickled his skin. "Yeah!" He breathed out. "It's only the most successful example of renewable energy out there today." He exclaimed with a smile. "I know a little bit about the science behind it, but I've always wanted to know more." He murmured wistfully.

Tony couldn't suppress a scoff. "A little? Kid, you know more than most of the smartest engineers out there," he said, Peter blushing as he ducked his head slightly.

"No, I don't. I just...you know...I...I just thought it was mostly common knowledge...you know? I mean..." He trailed off before giving Tony a shy, almost searching look."...really?"

Tony blinked at the hopeful tone in the teen's voice before giving the kid a smile. "Definitely. But there's still a bit I could teach you if you'd like." He teased, throwing the teen a knowing look.

As expected, Peter's eyes lit the room as he beamed. "Seriously?" He gasped out. "That's...I mean...I-I don't...and-" His tongue literally seemed to tie itself into a knot as he tried to speak. Tony, thankfully, cut him off before he could pass out. "Of course I will. Not every day I meet someone who's as interested as you in this type of stuff. Plus you're not a total pain to talk to so I might actually look forward to it."

Turning his gaze back towards the extensive lab, the teen chuckled softly. "Really, Mr. Stark..." He breathed out. "I'm pretty sure I've had dreams about this place. Like...my father's lab doesn't hold a candle to this." He awed.

Tony's smile fell as Richard came to his mind. Instantly all of the distracting thoughts he'd been culminating while showing the kid around seemed to dissipate, allowing his brain to finally think clearly.

What the hell was he doing? Making plans with the kid? After today, he'd probably never see him again and that was how he liked it. All he had to do was get the information he needed and work from there. No distractions. No emotions getting in the way. No annoying teenagers adding more to his plate than he needed.

It was time to get this over with. He'd wasted enough time as it was.

. . .

So why did he suddenly feel so nervous?

"Hey, kid?"

The teen turned back towards him, his smile disappearing as he took in the sight of Tony's troubled face. "Y-yeah...?"

Tony struggled to suppress his groan of turmoil as he quickly took in the shift in moods. But he knew this needed to be done, should have been done days ago. The man stared down at the boy for a moment longer before letting out a sigh of acceptance. Time to get this over with.

"I know I asked this before, but I've come to notice I never really got a straight answer..." he began slowly, watching Peter's face for any signs at all. "So I'll ask again. Is everything alright at home?"

The teen let a smile fall onto his face once again as he let out a chuckle. "Yeah...yeah, everything's fine, Mr. Stark." He said with a grin. "I mean, it can get a little crowded at times, but it's mostly fine."

His voice was so steady, so calm, so...unlike the Peter he'd known for the past few hours that Tony was almost convinced right then and there that maybe he had jumped to conclusions; maybe he'd been wrong. The words were spoken with such an air of confidence, such a tone of amusement that Tony really could believe that Peter found it funny. He could believe that Richard was a modern-day businessman with a successful company that took up most of his time. He could believe that Peter needed some people at home to make up for the absence of his father. He could believe that Peter was simply a shy, soft-spoken boy; a shy, clumsy, soft-spoken boy.

He maybe even would have believed it...if not for the way Peter's hands had curled into tight, shaking fists almost completely hidden behind his leg.

Goddammit, he wished he could believe it.

Tony's gaze hardened. "Don't lie to me, Peter. I want a straight answer." He said in a firmer tone. "I need to know if everything is alright."

Peter's smile was now faltering and he blinked up at the man in surprise, as if he was shocked he hadn't just let it go and accepted his first answer. Honestly, Tony was just as shocked.

"I...I umm..." He stuttered out, hands fisting the denim of his jeans. "...why wouldn't I be?"

Tony took in the sight of the teen, noticing how his hands were beginning to tremble. He suppressed the urge to sigh. He should have guessed this wouldn't be easy. Well, he wasn't about to drop it now, and he certainly wasn't about to play any games.

"Stop toying with me, Peter." The man said tersely, a certain firmness slipping into his tone against his better judgement. "I need to know the truth. I need to know if you're alright." He continued as he took a step forward, noting how Peter, in response, stumbled backwards. "I...I-I'm fine."

"I don't think you are."

"Well, I am! I...I-I..." Peter could feel himself choking on the words as he always did whenever he got flustered. As usual, it only aggravated him even more, which made the stutter worse.

"Peter..." Tony called, taking another step forward. "I need you to trust me, kid. If you're in trouble, I can help you. I can protect you. But I can only do that if you tell me what's going on."

"N-nothing's going...on. I..I-I..." He struggled to take in another breath. The man moved closer as Peter's hands wrapped around his arms, fingers gripping the limbs so tightly that Tony was sure it would bruise almost immediately. "Kid...are you afraid of someone in that house?"

"N...no...no, I'm..."

"Peter...are they hurting you?"

"Stop."

"Is your father hurting you?"

"Stop."

"Is he?"

"NO!" the teen roared, fists shooting down to his sides as he screamed. Tony actually found himself rearing back at the sudden explosion. "No! He's not! He's a good man. He's a good father. He would never do anything to hurt me! They're not doing anything to me. He's not doing anything to me. He loves me! He would never. How dare you accuse him of that? How fucking dare you say that?!" Peter's eyes gleamed as he took a threatening step forward, face flushed. "You don't know him. You don't know me. You don't know anything about our family, so don't pretend that you do, alright? Because we're fine. I'm fine!"

Tony's felt his back hit the railing as Peter leaned closer, fists shaking by his sides. "He's not a bad guy. He's not a bad person. He only ever wants what's best for me. He takes care of me, takes care of us, our family. He loves me. I love him and...and he loves me, alright? He loves me!"

The teen held the man's gaze with a burning glare of his own before his head whipped away and he took a few steps back, chest heaving slightly as he glared viciously at the ground, hands continuing to tremble against his legs. The billionaire continued to stare back in shock. He knew the teen might respond poorly, but he never thought he'd get so...angry. But at the moment, Peter looked like he wanted to throw something...particularly, something heavy. It was unnerving, seeing such a foreign emotion as rage in Peter's eyes.

After a moment of harsh, ragged breathing, Peter shook his head and glared at the man before him, gritting his teeth. "Believe whatever the fuck you want, but my dad...my dad's not a bad guy, alright?" The kid fully turned away at that, bringing his arms to wrap tightly around himself. "He's not a bad guy. He's...he's not a bad guy, okay? He's...not the bad guy..." his voice trailed off into little more than soft whispers at he slowly sat down on one of the work stools near the railing, the venom he'd been spewing seeming to dissipate from his voice fairly quickly, replaced by a sudden resignation, a tired ache that left his words hollow and empty.

Tony took a breath, took two, and when he found it still wasn't enough to satiate the burning in his chest, he took a few more. He flexed his fingers against the sides of his legs, the tips hot and numb against his palms. He opened his mouth to say something, anything, any noise to clear the air wavering in thick tension, but found he had nothing to say. What could you say after that? Was there anything? Anything that could be said to solve something like this? Some magic words to fix everything, make the issues float up and disappear? There had to be.

But Tony didn't know them.

What he did know, however, was that his situation had just become a lot more complicated.

There was no denying what was right in front of his face, not now, not anymore. Peter's denials had, ironically, been exactly what he needed to confirm it. There was obviously something going on in that house that had Peter afraid and whatever it was, Tony knew it wasn't something simple words were going to fix. He couldn't just throw money at this either. This was a real, actual problem. And this kid right in front of him was at the root of it all.

Tony let out a sigh and rubbed at the back of his neck. Nothing he could say would make this all better. Nothing he could quip or snark about would make this kid feel better...so he'd have to try something else.

Peter's body visibly tensed as Tony stooped down and took a seat on the floor next to the stool, next to the kid. But he didn't shout again. Instead, his lowered head cast a tired, weary glance his way, eyes dull.

The billionaire tapped his fingers against his knee, waited for Peter to say something. The boy drifted his gaze away from him and stared down at the floor below him, hands clasped before him as his elbows rested on his knees. "I can leave...if you want me to." His voice was small, just like his form, hunched and defensive in his seat.

Tony didn't look at him, just rested the back of his head against the railing behind him. "I don't want you to leave." Shockingly, it was the truth. "I'm not mad, you know…"

"You should be."

"Why? Cause you called me out? You had the right idea."

"I spoke out of turn."

"Kid, I'm not some tyrannical dictator here. You have the freedom to speak."

Perhaps not all that surprising anymore, Peter didn't say anything else, just kept his head down and his eyes on the floor. Tony licked his lips and let out a little sigh. "I believe you. If you...if you say nothing's going on, then...then I believe you."

No response. No movement. Tony felt his skin prickling with nerves.

"Pete...kid, look at me."

Still no response. Not even a twitch of the fingers or a tilt of the head.

The man sat up a bit and turned to fully face the kid. "Come on, now. It's alright. Why don't, uh...why don't we just put this behind us and get back to where we were before, huh? We can just forget about the whole thing."

Tony watched the teen's fingers slowly curling together and for a moment, he thought the boy might speak. But Peter's head still refused to turn, his eyes refused to lift. He remained silent.

The man sighed and turned away with a tight expression, feeling a bubble of frustration welling up inside of him. He had no idea how to handle this, no idea how to even attempt it. How was he supposed to get the truth out of this kid if he couldn't even get him to look him in the eyes?

His eyes trailed around the lab, mind briefly wondering how he'd even gotten here, sitting up here begging with some kid rather than tinkering away all by himself in his lab, surrounded by peace and quiet and the occasional disturbance from his skillfully-challenged robot.

His eyes caught sight of the machine over in the corner of the lab and slowly Tony sat back up again. He blinked, mind whirring. An idea, small and uncertain, flickered into thought. But maybe...

. . .

"Everyone always asks why I keep him."

Peter, for a moment, didn't even seem like he'd heard Tony speak. But after a second, the boy sighed, shut his eyes and lifted a hand to rub at his neck. "...what?" He asked softly, voice barely above a whisper. He still didn't lift his head or his eyes.

Tony gestured over at DUM-E. The robot was currently working on picking up a coffee mug that had last been left on one of the tables. He was quick to run into the corner of the table and knock the mug down, running over the shattered pieces of it as well just for good measure.

Peter glanced over at the robot with a cocked brow. "With all the accidents he causes, all the miscalculations he makes and just the sheer annoyance of him alone makes him a worthy candidate for the trash-heap or the local college." He muttered, waving his hand dismissively in the air. "At this point, most people just consider him a waste of space."

Peter lowered his head once more, fingers curling tighter into a singular fist. "Why don't you then?" He muttered bitterly.

"Cause that's not how I see him."

The teen furrowed his brows slightly but still kept his gaze down.

Tony continued. "I made DUM-E when I was just a kid. Back then, he was considered a marvel, especially considering I'd been so young when he'd first been built. He helped me work down in my father's labs and became almost like...a friend. " He murmured out.

"As time went on, technology advanced and machines became bigger, faster, smarter... DUM-E couldn't really keep up anymore, you know? Nowadays, people are always bugging me to get rid of him. To just toss him out or upgrade his circuitry and wiring. But...I already know I'll never do that."

Peter listened in silence, foot tapping against the floor as the man spoke.

"DUM-E was always there for me when I needed him, so who am I to not do the same for him? I mean, just because everyone else sees him as...a nuisance, or a waste of space, or just a lost cause...doesn't mean I have to see him like that as well." He smiled down at the teen by his shoulder. "I'm never going to give up on him."

Peter took in the man's words carefully, chest twinging strangely at them for reasons he did not know. After a moment, the teen let a soft smile form on his face. "I like DUM-E."

Tony smiled beside him. "Yeah...I think he likes you too." He answered. "He hasn't run over your foot yet, so that's usually a good sign." He muttered, smile increasing as he heard Peter huff out a laugh beside him.

The teen blinked at the floor, eyes seeming to trace over the etched tiling, following the grooves with his gaze. He blew out a little breath, fingers twitching. "Mr. Stark?"

"Hmm?"

"...Why did you become Iron Man?"

Peter looked up as he spoke, eyes finally meeting Tony's with a look of pure sincerity, of longing and questioning and a million different emotions the man couldn't even begin to understand.

Tony paused at that, paused at the sight, paused at the question, though it wasn't new. It had been asked of him nearly a million times. Every press conference, every meet and greet, there always seemed to be somebody who wanted to know why he did it. This shouldn't have been any different.

However, there was something that made him hesitate. Something in Peter's voice, something that wasn't present in the voices of everyone else who had ever asked the question. This wasn't the voice of some sleazy reporter who wanted to see who could get the biggest scoop on Tony Stark. This wasn't the voice of some obsessed groupie who simply wanted to claim they knew more about their idol than anybody else.

No...this was the voice of someone genuinely curious, someone who was actually slightly afraid of the answer they'd receive.

This was the voice of someone who wanted confirmation on whether or not being a hero was actually worth it.

Tony paused for a moment before lifting up his hand and pulling his tie off of his neck, tossing it down towards the floor. "You know I was a weapons manufacturer before all of this, right? Before Stark Industries got into renewable energy?"

Peter nodded his head as Tony had assumed he would. "Well, when I got back from Afghanistan after being in captivity for three months - you know about that too, right? Good, anyway, when I got back, I discovered that my weapons were being dealt under the table to war activists and third-world terror parties. It was then that I realized I could do so much more than just create weapons of destruction. I...I could help people...in ways my weapons never could. I could...become something more than just another billionaire making money off of the suffering of others."

He passed before turning towards Peter. "I had the power to do something more - help people. So I guess the better question is: Why wouldn't I become Iron Man?"

Peter stared at the man for a moment longer before turning his gaze back down to the ground, nose scrunching slightly in thought. After a moment, the teen couldn't help the laugh that bubbled out of his mouth, Tony turning to look at him at this.

"You know...everyone always says that you're just a stuck-up, arrogant prick who doesn't really care about anything else other than money and business-"

"Flattery will get you nowhere, kid."

"-but I knew you were my favorite Avenger for a reason."

Tony froze before glancing over at Peter, who was smiling warmly at him. His fingers weren't twitching anymore. His body wasn't shivering.

His eyes were staring right back at him.

"You're not what everyone says you are. And...and I know I haven't known you for very long so I really have no right to be saying stuff like this, but...you're way better than what I was expecting, too. And I guess that's saying something…" His eyes seemed to shine even brighter than before. "...cause you were already pretty great to me."

Tony simply stared back at the teen, at a loss for words for around the fifth time that day, something the teen seemed notorious for.

Before either of them could say anything else, a small knock over by the door alerted them to another presence. Turning around, they noticed Happy standing in the doorway. "Hey...if you don't want the kid to be late, I suggest we leave now." He called in.

Tony glanced down at his watch and grimaced at how late it actually was. Damn...when did that happen? "Uh...right." He said before turning quickly rising to his feet, reaching down to help Peter up.

The teen's face had dimmed considerably, his face twisting into a look of slight pain as he stuffed his hands into the pockets of his jacket. He jumped slightly as Tony bumped him in the shoulder, a gentle tap that caught his attention.

"Hey…" The man called, hesitating for a moment. He felt his fingers beginning to curl in his pocket, felt them twitching against the fabric, but he kept his face calm even as the words in his throat left him feeling breathless and unsure.

They still had to be said. He knew that now.

"I'll see you Wednesday, alright?"

The words seemed to make Peter happier as he perked up slightly, a small smile forming on his face. He gave a small nod of his head adjusted the straps on his backpack before ducking out the door, Happy following after him.

 

---

 

Tony watched through the window with a look of unease as the car pulled away from the building and drove out onto the street. His gaze followed the car for as long as possible before it disappeared, a small sigh fluttering from his lips as he shut his eyes.

"I'm taking it things didn't go too well…"

The billionaire let out a bitter laugh. "Yeah…let's just say things went a little south of 'well'". He muttered out before turning around, meeting the concerned gazes of Pepper and Rhodey. "Is this going to be our new unofficial-official club hideout or something?" He smirked, gazing around Pepper's office. "Should we get matching capes?"

Rhodey rolled his eyes but held back a biting retort. He knew the man was upset, hence the excess sarcasm. Thankfully, he was fluent in the language of Tony.

"What happened?" Pepper asked softly as Tony took a seat.

The man stayed silent for a moment before clicking his tongue and shaking his head. "In hindsight, I probably should have expected him to resist what I was saying, but I didn't really think he'd freak out like he did and-"

"Whoa, whoa! He freaked out?" Rhodey repeated, a new sense of unease returning to his stomach. That was not a good sign.

"Yep. I've literally never seen him get so mad before...granted, I've never really seen him do anything before." He muttered before letting out a growl. "That's the problem, right there."

"What?" Pepper asked, furrowing her brow.

"We don't know anything about this kid. I don't know anything about this kid. I mean...of course he wasn't going to tell me anything. Why would he ever trust me? He doesn't even know me!" He shouted out angrily.

His eyes softened slightly as he came to remember something. "H...He doesn't trust me...but for some reason...he...looks up to me." He murmured out softly, remembering the look on Peter's face, the light in his eyes when they'd spoken.

Tony let out a sigh and rested an elbow on his knee, propping his chin up with his fist. Rhodey rubbed at his eyes before turning back towards the others. "Look...the only way we can help this kid is if we get his cooperation. We need him to tell us straightforward that something's wrong, otherwise, we got nothing." He took a breath. "Maybe you can try again. Or...maybe one of us can try and-"

Tony shook his head, remembering the desperation hidden behind the anger in Peter's eyes during their argument. "He's not gonna spill, Rhodes. You didn't see him. He wasn't just being stubborn. He...he wasn't just being abrasive. He was furious. He...he was...terrified."

Pepper stepped forward. "Well..is there any way we can gather some evidence ourselves and-"

"No," Tony growled out. "Anything we find out, Peter is sure to just deny. And if we do get the police involved and it turns out they can't do anything…" He paused. "I don't know what they'd do to the kid." He murmured out darkly.

Pepper and Rhodey exchanged nervous glances.

"No. Peter is the key to all of this. The only way we can do this is if the kid helps us do it." He explained.

Rhodey narrowed his eyes. "Yeah, but how? You said it yourself this kid isn't going to spill. So what's going to change his mind?"

Tony shook his head and shut his eyes, rubbing at the bridge of his nose. His mind wandered back over his conversation with Peter, right after their fight. He'd somehow managed to calm the boy down, even got him to open up just a little bit. He seemed to be able to do that by talking quietly and even exchanging a few jokes.

Yeah, but that isn't enough… He growled to himself. He needed the teen to explain everything.

He needed something bigger.

His eyes shot open as he instantly straightened up in the chair, Pepper and Rhodey jumping slightly at the rushed movement. "Me." He whispered out, a small smile falling onto his face.

"What?" Rhodey asked, only to jump once again as Tony rushed up to his feet. "Think about it. Earlier today, that kid would barely even utter a single word, but right before he left, his stutter was gone, he wasn't shaking and he was looking me right in the eyes."

"Okay, so…" Pepper urged him to continue.

"So...if I can get him to relax that much after only a few hours with him, imagine what it'll be like after a few-."

"Months, man," Rhodey said soberly. "A few months. Rapport isn't built so easily, especially for something like this." The Colonel slowly furrowed his brows, arms folding over his chest. "This isn't just a little thing that can be fixed on a whim, now. This is a serious issue that needs serious attention. Are you really willing to give it that? Cause if not, then don't even bother keeping the kid around, you'll only confuse him.

Tony paused at that, turning his head away slightly as his eyes trailed to the ground in thought. His friend's lack of faith, while slightly painful wasn't all that unjustified. He wasn't known to be the most reliable, even for important things. More often than not, his priorities were just that, his, nobody else's. And with something like this, he knew he couldn't afford to mess around, couldn't afford any mistakes, not when the stakes were this high.

Could he really trust himself with this?

Pepper stepped forward after a few more moments of his silence. "Tony."

He turned to her.

"Are you willing to do this? We need an answer now."

He flexed his fingers, felt his knuckles popping. He had to do this. He had to prove it to himself. He was Iron Man for a reason. Steve couldn't take that away from him.

Tony paused for a moment before turning to stare back at the pair. A simple silent nod said more than any words could.

Rhodey nodded as well. "Alright, new plan: earn the kid's trust..." He paused. "And just how are you going to do that?"

The billionaire stared at them for a moment before turning away, glancing back over towards the window. "I don't know." He finally said. "We'll just have to take this one step at a time."

Tony stared down at the city below them, eyes trailing over the area where he knew Queens was located. Now that the sun had gone down, it was obvious where the rundown low-level area was, considering how dark it was compared to the other numerous lights surrounding it.

And somehow, despite looking out over that very same view countless other times, the city just felt...bigger, heavier. He could feel it staring back at him, cold and unwavering. It made his heart beat softly in his ears, echoing around his head in a tuneless melody. He took a breath, took a few more after that.

This was certainly going to be interesting.

 

---

 

Monday - March 7, 2016

Parker Residence -  Driveway

07:21 p.m.

"Um...bye, Happy."

The man grunted before rolling his window back up and pulling away from the curb, disappearing down the road. The teen gripped the strap of his backpack tightly as he took a deep breath and turned around, taking in the dreaded sight of his house.

Now that it was nighttime, the building seemed to loom even more ominously, waiting to swallow up another victim in its open maw, dragging them in before consuming them completely, never to spit them back out again.

Ignoring the usual shudders that racked his small frame whenever he'd approach his house, Peter let out a sigh and began to trek over, only to pause as he heard the sound of an opening door. To his relief, the sound didn't come from his own house, but the one across the street.

While the houses on his street were all high-end and expensive, the houses on the neighboring streets and the surrounding neighborhoods were anything but. Usually, they were nothing more than small apartments and rundown tenements.

Peter would usually pay no mind to the neighbors, who were all-too-happy to turn a blind eye whenever the situation called for it.

However, there was one exception.

"Peter!"

The teen felt a grin split his face as an older woman in her early to mid-thirties began the descent down her apartment stairs, grasping a large garbage bag in her hand. She had dark brown hair that stretched down to her shoulders, large, round, aqua glasses, and a warm smile.

Peter walked over with a grin. "Hey, May."

May Brenner had been living across the street from him for as long as he could remember. The woman had always been a warm, kindly soul, always ready to give a smile or hug.

The woman tossed the trash into the bin and walked over, wrapping her arms around the teen - as she always did. Peter tensed slightly at the touch merely out of reflex, but May was used to the reaction.

"How are you, sweetie?" She asked kindly, to which Peter shrugged. "I'm good. How 'bout you? You doing okay?"

May took a moment to take a deep breath, face going thoughtful for a moment before she gave a small nod. "Can't really complain."

Peter gave a small smile at that but didn't press it.

They both were avoiding it.

Neither of them really wanted to talk about it anyway. Peter didn't even like thinking about him nowadays. (It was just easier to avoid thinking about why May now lived by herself.)

"That's good." The teen said gently, to which May gave a nod of her own. "Speaking of good, whose car was that you just stepped out of? I've never seen that one around here before." She asked with a tilt of her head.

Peter let out a small chuckle. "Yeah, that was one of Tony Stark's private cars. I'm interning over at Stark Industries now."

May's eyes widened and a smile split her face. "That's wonderful, Pete!" She beamed, dragging the kid into another hug, to which Peter let out a nervous chuckle.

Pulling away, the woman placed her hands on the teen's shoulders. "Stark Industries, huh? Pretty impressive, baby. Though I guess I shouldn't be surprised. You always were a smart one." She chuckled, gently elbowing the teen.

Peter felt a light blush fade onto his cheeks. "I...I mean I guess..."

"Oh, don't be so modest." She smiled, the look falling after a moment of consideration. "Though I am surprised at your choice. I would have Parkstem Labs would be a more...mandatory choice for you." She muttered darkly, glaring across the street at his house.

Another thing about May: she had always been very observant.

Peter's face grew uneasy as he gave a small shrug. "Yeah...I thought so too. Guess Dad had other plans…" He murmured quietly. "I...I should really get home.

May gave the boy a sympathetic look and gently squeezed his shoulder. "Alright, Pete. I'll try and bring you back some leftovers from the diner tomorrow, kay? Just...promise you'll be careful, alright?"

Peter ignored her question as he pulled away. "Bye, May."

The woman watched him go sadly before turning back up her stairs, giving the teen one last parting look before heading back inside.

Peter slowly trudged up the stairs to his own house, slowly pulling his keys out from his pockets, the jingling sound grating painfully through his ears as his hand shook.

Trembling fingers fought to push the key into the lock before they finally hit home, sliding into place before the sound of clicking locks snapped in his head. The harsh sounds made him wince as he grasped the handle and slowly pushed the door open.

He was met with total darkness, the sight making him furrow his brow in confusion. They are home...aren't they? He wondered to himself as he slowly stepped inside. His muscles coiled in tension as he tried to make out any movement in the darkness, but found he couldn't see anything.

Unease began to fill his gut as he slowly began to feel his way along the wall, hoping to gasp onto the light switch. As he searched, a loud scraping met his ears, making him freeze in place. "Hello?" He called out, whipping his head behind him as he struggled to find the light.

His question was met with a series of small bumps and bangs sounding out around him. "Flint?" He called hesitantly. "C-Curt? Sandra?"

As another bout of silence met his ears, Peter narrowed his eyes. Maybe this was just the opportunity he needed. Gripping the strap on his backpack even tighter, the teen ducked his head and quickly began to make his way over towards the elevator, carefully trying to remember the placement of the furniture as to not trip.

Suddenly, he felt a tingling sensation shoot down his spine. But before he could even try to figure out what it meant, he felt a mountain of water come crashing down over his head as something metallic and hard slammed into his temple. A shout of pain fell from his lips as he slipped on the wet floor, crashing down to the ground, landing painfully on his wrist.

Before he could even begin to try and understand what had just happened, loud laughter filled his ears as the lights came flooding on. He winced at the harsh change in lighting before blinking open his eyes.

Flint and Sandra were currently standing above him, faces adorning scornful looks as they laughed. The strong stench of alcohol wafted off of them in waves. Peter himself was now drenched from head to toe in water, the liquid spreading out around the wooden floor. Next to him, a metal bucket sat at his feet.

"Welcome home, Pete!" Sandra beamed, harshly patting the teen on the head. Peter winced as she slammed her palm into his now-throbbing temple, which now had a small trickle of blood trailing down. The teen hissed in pain as he felt more water trickle into the cut. Gazing down at the puddle underneath him, the teen realized there were little flecks of soap in it.

"What the-?"

"You know, we realized something while you were gone. Who's gonna do the chores around here now that you got your fancy internship, huh? Us?" Flint slurred, words tumbling into one another as he kicked the bucket. The metal container slammed into Peter's side, the teen grunting at the blow, but otherwise remaining silent.

"Jesus, I didn't think you two were actually serious."

Peter turned at the new voice, catching sight of Curt coming around the corner. He gazed at the scene in mild contempt, metallic fingers clicking together. The sound rang in Peter's ears, a harsh noise that made him want to curl his hands over his ears. The man cocked a brow. "How drunk are you two anyway?"

Sandra scoffed before flipping him off, the man throwing her a toothy grin before leaning up against the bar, prosthetic continuing to click as he watched. Click...click.

"I don't like this internship," Flint growled, reaching a hand up to scratch at his jaw. "Seems like a waste of time. Besides, I like having him around." He turned his gaze to Peter. "What are we supposed to do now if we get bored?"

Click.

Peter slowly began to crawl to his feet. "I have homework to do." He lied as he rose up The teen tried to make his way over to the elevator without being seen, only for Sandra to grab his sore arm and yank him back, Peter yelping in pain.

"I don't think so, honey!" She called before narrowing her eyes, tossing the teen back into the soapy, watery mess at their feet. "Thanks to the bad mood your little escapades put us all in, I'd say you owe us something."

Peter stared down at the ground, fists trembling as his hair fell down around his eyes.

"So...since we're all so antsy, maybe we should play a couple games, huh? Might do us all some good."

Click. Click.

"What do you say, hon? We'll even let you pick!" She grinned down as Flint approached, stretching out his hand to grab his arms, only for a lone voice to cut through the chatter.

"Enough." Max called with a huff as he entered the room As usual, his button-down shirt was barely even buttoned at all, save for the few at the bottom, revealing a black toned chest underneath. The man was currently holding a glass of scotch, which made Peter guess the man had been talking with his father...wherever he was.

Out of all the Cons, Max was the one Richard seemed to trust the most.

Sandra clicked her tongue. "Come on, Max. Little son of a bitch deserves it after the shit day we had." She grabbed the man's shoulder, fluttering her eyes. "You know you want to." She said in a sultry voice.

Max, however, didn't fall prey to the trap so many had fallen into as he rolled his eyes and pushed her away. "Shut up, Sandra. You're drunk," he muttered, the woman pouting at his dismissal.

Peter, however, decided now as probably the best time to make his escape as he began to slid past them. "I'm going upstairs," he whispered quietly, not bothering to wait for a response as he kept walking.

Suddenly, he felt a hand grab the back of his shirt and throw him backward. "Where the hell do you think you're going?" Max snarled as Peter stumbled back into place. "Did I say you could leave?" He growled out, narrowing his eyes as he glared at the teen.

Click. Click. Click.

Peter felt his chest begin to heave slightly as Max let out a growl. "You know, I told him this internship was a bad idea." He muttered as he stalked closer. "All it's going to do is confuse you, and Lord knows it doesn't take much to do that." Peter flinched as the man smacked his chest with the back of his hand. His shaking hands slowly began to clench into fists.

"Well don't let this little romp with Tony fuckin' Stark get your head all in a twist, alright? Just cause that asshole is wasting his time with you doesn't mean you get to forget all of our rules, got it?" He snarled darkly, the other Cons moving closer.

Peter felt his teeth grinding together as a new foreign emotion began to bubble up in his chest. Usually, their words never phased him as much, not anymore at least, He'd gotten used to the harsh insults and dangerous threats. But today...something was different.

Maybe it was the fact he'd gotten a taste of respect today. Maybe it was Mr. Stark's words echoing through his mind, reassuring him that everything was okay. But whatever it was...he was tired of this.

"Do you even remember the rules? Must be hard with all the shit running through your system." Peter muttered as he glared defiantly at the ground.

. . .

"What?"

Click. Click.

Peter continued to glare for a moment longer before he seemed to blink back into reality, his words instantly flickering back. Oh, shit.

"Did you just get smart with me?!" Max shouted, stalking forward. "I think he just sassed me." He turned towards the others.

"He definitely just sassed you." Sandra muttered with a grim smile as the other boys moved towards Peter, placing strong hands on his shoulders.

The dark-skinned man pressed his tongue against the inside of his cheek as he grinned. "Heh...alright, alright…" He murmured softly, glancing down at the glass still in his hand.

Suddenly, his hand flew up as he reared his arm back, chuckling the glass as hard as he could. With the Cons restricting his arms, Peter could do little more than turn his head to the side as the glass slammed into him, shattering into a million different pieces.

He shouted in pain and dropped to the floor, warm liquid dripping down the various cuts now spread out across his face. "What the hell is the matter with you?!" Peter shouted out before he could think better of it.

He suddenly felt the breath leave his body as a foot met his gut. He grunted and fell back to the floor. Another kick sent him sprawling onto his back. He grunted in pain as a heavy boot fell onto his chest "G...g-get off!" The teen groaned in pain as he felt his ribs protesting angrily at the added weight, hands scrabbling against the shoe.

Max suddenly crouched down over him, placing a meaty hand around his throat as he pressed his head into the floor.

Peter turned his head to the side and gasped at the pressure around his neck, Max glaring darkly at him as he reached one hand behind him in an expectant gesture.

Curt grinned as he handed the man his knife.

Click. Click. Click.

Peter gazed wildly around the room as he fought to pry the man's hands off of his neck, his eyes rising up to meet the man's gaze as alarm bells exploded in his head, the scent of alcohol heavy on the man's breath. Max blinked in shock at the teen's stare before his lips parted in a snarl.

Peter gasped in pain as he felt the knife slash at the skin underneath his eye. Max leaned closer, squeezing his throat even tighter than before. "Did you just fucking look at me?" He growled darkly before slashing Peter again.

"Don't you ever fucking look at me, you piece of shit!" He roared, banging Peter's head against the ground. The teen gasped as he fought to blink back stars and dark spots. Suddenly Max's face was in his vision again.

"You listen, and you listen good you little bitch." He snarled. "Don't let this Stark guy get in your head, alright? Cause no matter what he says, no matter what you do...you will always be nothing." He snarled. "You're a waste of space. Nothing but a science experiment we like to keep around to play with, alright? You aren't worth shit."

He leaned down closer, his lips just above Peter's ears. "And you will always belong to us."

Peter gasped for breath as Max finally released his hold on his neck. Quickly sitting up, the teen wrapped his hands around his now bruised and bloody neck as he coughed and hacked for air that could not fill his lungs fast enough. He could feel blood dripping down his face, mingling with the tears that had begun to stream down his cheeks.

"Come on," Max growled out, wiping the knife clean before handing it back to Curt. "Your father's waiting down in the lab. And I'm sure he'll have much more to say than I do." He grinned.

Peter stared at the floor for a moment longer before numbly rising up to his feet. Shakily wrapping his arms around himself as he tucked his chin against his chest, he slowly began to follow the Cons to the elevator

He couldn't feel his arm move, but he watched as it wiped at his face, blood smearing against his jacket sleeve. As it moved against his face, the sleeve was pushed up slightly, revealing the bruises on his arms, which were barely even noticeable anymore.

Peter didn't even bother to curse his accelerated healing anymore as he rolled his sleeve back down. Nobody listened to him. And even if they did, it's not like he could ever tell them.

He could never tell them.

He couldn't even look at them.

Click. Click.

 

---

 

3) Don't Make Eye Contact (Unless Tony Stark is Present)