Chapter Text
“Hello, everybody. Today we are gathered here to celebrate the life of May Parker, who unfortunately had her life cut short. May worked as an emergency room nurse in Queens and was a valued member of the community. It was a busy job, but through all that, she also had time to raise a wonderful kid: Peter Parker. I invite him to share a few words about Aunt May.”
Tony did the opening for the funeral. Peter thought that he was great with speeches and commanding presence. There weren’t that many people at May’s funeral, but Peter still wanted things to be the best they could be. As long as Tony was okay with it, which he was. Peter took a deep breath and walked towards the stand. He saw the faces of all the Avengers, Pepper, Ned, and MJ. He smiled slightly, glad that everyone came.
“Hi, everyone. Um, my Aunt was amazing. She was always very strong, but she was also very kind. Anyone who knew her knew that she was such an incredible person. I knew that when my Uncle died, it was really hard on her, as it was hard on me. But, she powered through and still had the time to help me through it. Death is so hard, believe me. I really don’t want to say goodbye to the amazing person that she was. There was so much I wanted to tell her that I never got a chance to,” Peter said. The following things he would say would be revealing. “I never got to tell her about being Spider-Man. I even donned the suit to try to save her when she was shot. But I froze, and it was too late. Even if the gunshot pierced her heart, which was a near-fatal shot.” Now Peter was crying, and he could feel the tears in his eyes. “I-it f-felt like it w-was all my f-f-fault. I d-did nothing to s-save her.” Peter took a few breaths before continuing. “But, maybe, it was beyond my control. I can’t really control the one who shot her. I can only control myself. I don’t know if I’m ready to move on yet, but I know that May would want me to keep going on.”
There was a small applause after Peter finished. He got through it. He got off the stand and sat back down in between Tony and Pepper. Tony rubbed Peter’s back soothingly as a few more tears fell.
“You did great, honey. What you said was wonderful,” Pepper said.
Because Peter was May’s only living relative, no one else was there to tell a story about her. So, instead, there was a moment of silence for May’s memory. Peter looked around at everyone, dressed in their proper black mourning attire. He could feel that even if not many people in this room knew May, they all understood who she was. Perhaps they also empathized with Peter’s current situation.
After a few minutes, Steve was called to the stand. May wasn’t particularly religious and never really wanted a religious ceremony for her funeral. So, instead, they would have someone do a reading of a piece for funerals. Steve volunteered to do a reading.
“This poem was done at my mother’s funeral. I thought that it would be fitting to recite for this day. This poem is titled “Child and Mother” by Eugene Field:
O mother-my-love, if you'll give me your hand,
And go where I ask you to wander,
I will lead you away to a beautiful land,-
The Dreamland that's waiting out yonder.
We'll walk in a sweet posie-garden out there,
Where moonlight and starlight are streaming,
And the flowers and the birds are filling the air
With the fragrance and music of dreaming.
There'll be no little tired-out boy to undress,
No questions or cares to perplex you,
There'll be no little bruises or bumps to caress,
Nor patching of stockings to vex you;
For I'll rock you away on a silver-dew stream
And sing you asleep when you're weary,
And no one shall know of our beautiful dream
But you and your own little dearie.
And when I am tired I'll nestle my head
In the bosom that's soothed me so often,
And the wide-awake stars shall sing, in my stead,
A song which our dreaming shall soften.
So, Mother-my-Love, let me take your dear hand,
And away through the starlight we'll wander,-
Away through the mist to the beautiful land,-
The Dreamland that's waiting out yonder.”
Steve finished his poem and got off the stand. Now, it was time for the burial part of the funeral. Everyone stood out and walked outside to the graveyard. Steve and Bucky carried Aunt May’s coffin outside. But before Peter went outside, MJ and Ned stopped him.
“Dude, I’m so sorry. We had no idea your aunt was shot,” Ned said, pulling Peter into a hug.
“It’s okay. I didn’t tell you guys. The man who shot her got locked away for 20 years, so I won’t be seeing him anytime,” Peter explained.
“I can see why he didn’t want to tell us; it’s… a really awful thing to happen to someone. But, for the record, I knew you were Spider-Man, and I promise to keep that secret as well,” MJ said. After a few seconds, she reluctantly joined the hug as well.
Peter separated from the hug and wiped a few tears from his eyes. “Thank you, guys. Thank you.”
The three exited the building and walked to where everyone was waiting. There lay a tombstone for Aunt May, and in front was the pit where her coffin was placed. Tony wanted the headstone to be there almost immediately, so Tony, being Tony, “sped” up the process for making one. Peter hadn’t had a chance to read it yet.
May Parker
1962 - 2017
Here lies a beloved aunt, nurse, and mother figure.
Peter smiled briefly before being handed a shovel by Sam. The tombstone was right next to Uncle Ben’s. They’d get to be next to each other for the rest of eternity, which brought Peter some comfort that his caretakers would be together.
“Kid, would you like to start?” Sam asked
Peter nodded and went to the pile of dirt beside the pit. He then shoveled the dirt into the hole before turning around. He walked to Bucky and gave him the shovel.
Bucky took the shovel and put dirt into the pit. “I’ll keep him safe, I promise,” Bucky whispered to the coffin. With his enhanced hearing, Peter heard what Bucky said and smiled again.
Bucky passed the shovel to Steve, who gave it to Sam, then to Clint, then Natasha, then Thor. The passing continued through to Bruce, Rhodey, Tony, Pepper, Ned, and MJ, in that order. The hole was almost finished before MJ gave it to Peter, who finished it off.
“So, what now?” MJ asked. “I mean, uh, what are we doing now?”
“We’re headed back to the Avenger’s temporary house for lunch,” Natasha said. “Peter, do you want them to come?”
“Of course! I guess that Happy will be here to pick us up soon?” Peter asked.
Sure enough, Happy pulled up in front of the cemetery, in a limousine, no less. Ned started exclaiming about how awesome and cool this was. Peter giggled at that, and everyone entered the limo.
“Good to see you laughing, Peter,” Rhodey commented.
“Indeed! Laughter is the best medicine, as you Midgardians say!” Thor boomed.
Peter blushed as he rubbed the back of his head. “Thanks, I guess?”
“You’re welcome,” Rhodey said with a warm smile.
The rest of the car ride had some relatively quiet conversations, while Peter mainly remained silent. He just fidgeted with his hands on the way home. The trip back was fairly quick too, so everyone was at the temp house soon enough.
Everyone got out of the car, and Ned once again started to cheer over the mansion in front of him. This time, everyone laughed and walked inside. Pepper offered to prepare the food for this meal, citing that she finally had enough time to. Pepper made sandwiches and vegetable and fruit plates. All the food was spread across the dining table, and a few more chairs were added to accommodate MJ and Ned. Everyone then sat at the table and starting eating.
“What you said at the funeral… was very beautiful,” Bucky said.
“Thanks, Bucky. What you said the other day really helped. You’re also really good with words,” Peter said.
Bucky smiled. “I try, kid.”
Once again, a comfortable silence fell over Peter. But he remembered something important. Tony had asked him about adoption. Peter still wasn’t ready to move on from May, as discussed in his speech, but who would adopt him is something he was thinking about. Tony and Pepper were the first ones to open their arms to Peter and the ones who offered the adoption of him. He thought he would be most comfortable approaching them, and the Avengers would be there too.
“Kid, you alright? You’ve been staring at me for the past five minutes. You got something to say?” Tony’s voice cut into Peter’s thoughts.
Peter didn’t know if it was the time to ask, but he thought it was time. “Um, I t-think, I w-want for you and Pepper t-to adopt me.”
Pepper and Tony looked at each other and then back to Peter. They both smiled at him.
“Of course, sweetheart. We were hoping you’d say that,” Pepper said.
Peter got up and hugged both of them. Everyone cheered, with hoots and hollers filling the air.
“It’s about time!” Clint exclaimed.
Peter separated from the hug and sat back down. Tony said that the adoption process would begin as soon as Peter wanted it to. Peter did want the process to start soon, but to him, getting adopted wasn’t replacing May. His new family was just that, new. He would never forget May or Ben, ever. But maybe this was the first step to moving forward.
– EPILOGUE –
“Peter?” Bruce called. He was checking the rooms of the Avengers Compound for leftover things.
Peter popped his head into the room. It was the room he first stayed in. “Yeah?”
“I think you may have left your backpack in here,” Bruce said. “Other than that, we have to get headed outside to get back down to Manhattan. I think the compound is pretty clear.”
Bruce left the room, and Peter sat down on the empty bed. It’s been a little over a month since May’s funeral, and the Avengers were back at the compound to get more stuff for Avengers Tower. Peter almost left his backpack here! He combed through it quickly and stumbled on a picture.
Peter held it up to his face. The picture was of a woman, a man, and a boy. It was May, Ben, and Peter. They appeared to be on a couch, cuddling together. Peter smiled at it and put it back into his bag. The adoption just went through for him, so Tony and Pepper were now his legal guardians, but he still had all the memories of his time with May and Ben.
Bucky popped his head in. “Peter, kid, we have to go now.”
Peter got off his old bed and walked to Bucky, slinging his backpack around his shoulder. He smiled at Bucky, who returned it. They left the room and walked outside the compound. There were a few cars and moving trucks waiting for them. Clint and Thor stood next to trucks.
“Young Peter, it has been wonderful getting to know you this past month! I hope to see you around when I visit the tower!” Thor exclaimed.
“Don’t forget about us. I’ll pop by more than you think,” Clint said.
“Bye Thor, bye Clint. I hope to see you guys soon,” Peter said, giving them both hi-fives.
Peter, along with Thor, Clint, and Bucky, helped to load a few boxes onto the truck and then walked towards a car to get in. Tony got out of a car and walked towards Peter. He put his arm around Peter as he took him closer to the car.
“You ready to go, kid?” Tony asked.
Peter smiled. “Yeah, yeah, I think I’m ready.”