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1.
It was Isabella’s 3rd birthday party, and she wanted to eat the cake that had been sitting on the counter. First, she ran (with as fast as her little legs could take her) to MJ. She grabbed onto the dress pants MJ was wearing and lightly pulled them to get MJ’s attention. MJ stopped her conversation with Uncle Bruce and looked down at the girl. She put the drink she was holding down on a nearby table and picked Isabella up.
“What d’ya my little monster, huh?” MJ asked as she gave the girl her full attention. Isabella looked seriously at the teen.
“I would like cake now,” Izzy stated in her big girl voice.
“Please,” She added as an afterthought. MJ looked at her sternly and raised an eyebrow. “You haven’t even eaten lunch yet.”
Isabella pouted her lip and dropped her head onto MJ’s shoulder dramatically. “I’m not hungry.”
“Really?” MJ asked as she shifted the girl’s weight to her other hip. “Then how are you planning to eat dessert?”
Isabella crossed her arms and lifted her head defiantly. “There is always room for dessert.”
MJ and Bruce laughed loudly at the girl.
“Nice try, still no,” MJ said as lightly bopped the girl on the nose. Isabella wrinkled her face into a frown and squirmed out of MJ’s arms. MJ let her down and Isabella stormed off to ask someone else. She looked longingly at the cake on the counter and scanned the room until she found Harley talking to Peter. She smiled gleefully and skipped over to the pair.
“Hi Har’y. Hi Peter.” She said in an innocent tone as she hugged Peter’s leg.
“Hi, darlin. You having fun?” Harley asked as he crouched down in front of the girl. She rapidly shook her head and let out a toothy grin. She reached her arms up to Peter expectantly, and he lifted her.
“Peter, can I have cake please?” She asked. He thought for a moment. “What did MJ say?”
“She said no, but she’s not the boss of you,” Izzy stated as if it were clear as day. Peter and Harley laughed loudly.
“Oh honey, MJ is the boss of everyone,” Harley explained through his giggles. Izzy wrapped her arms around Peter’s shoulders.
“Please, Daddy?” She asked in a small voice. Peter froze and looked down at her. She put on her best pleading face as though she would die if she didn’t get what she wanted. He contemplated for a moment before sighing. “You are totally using that to your advantage.”
He set her down, and they sneakily made their way to the kitchen. She giggled slightly and Peter shushed her and gestured to MJ. Isabella nodded and they continued tip-toeing. Unfortunately for them, there were many people there, so many heads turned when they saw the pair sneaking. They arrived at the counter and Isabella’s greedy little hands reached for the godly sweet snack.
“Isabella Payton Jones-Parker! Peter Benjamin Parker! What do you think you’re doing?” An angry voiced called out. Peter and Isabella looked at each other in fear and then looked to where MJ was standing, arms crossed and glaring.
“Busted,” Isabella mumbled.
“Run!” Peter yelled. He grabbed the cake and the two ran down the hall, laughing the entire way.
2.
Ezra was really into soccer, even though he was only 5. MJ and Peter looked and then found him a league to join, something about too much energy. Peter and Harley went to as many games as possible but had to miss a few because of hero things. MJ went to every single game without fail. No one knew how she managed to do it because of her busy schedule, but she did.
Ezra’s team was cute and was filled with a bunch of giggly yet determined little boys. Ezra was obviously the best on the team, in MJ’s humble opinion, and he was really good at offense and scoring in the other chubby kid’s goal. MJ didn’t talk to the other parents much, they seemed like assholes. Whenever she would read during the game (which was most of the time) the parents would give her disappointed and irritated looks.
“Where are your parents, Miss?” One of them said.
“Which one is your brother?” Another dad asked her.
She, of course, ignored them and continued reading her book. They didn’t like that, so the pestering and looks became more frequent. When someone on the team would score a goal or block something, all the parents would scream and cheer. MJ, though, wouldn’t move a muscle, unless it was Ezra, of course, to who she would look up and give him a small nod and smile. Ezra appreciated it, and that’s all MJ cared about.
“You, know, you should at least try to seem interested,” one of the moms, ugh, Tracy, told her one day.
“In the last 5 minutes, Sam scored a goal, Kyle fell over and scraped his knee, One of the other team’s players just ran into Drew, and Ezra just got the ball and passed it to Westley. Are you done?” MJ asked without looking up from her book. Tracy gaped at her like a fish and nodded quickly before running over to the other soccer moms. MJ rolled her eyes at the woman and flipped the page of her book.
Shortly after that lovely interaction, the game ended with their team winning. The boys cheered and ran to get snacks from the team mom. MJ started packing up her chair when she heard a little stampede running towards her. A weight tackled the back of her legs.
“Hi, Ez. ” She said as she turned towards him. Behind him, stood 2 boys, Sam and Jack, both very sweaty and pink from the sun.
“This is my mom!” Ezra said proudly. The boys waved at her shyly. “Mommy, can we have a playdate?”
“Sure, Ez, just not today,” she responded. “It is very nice to meet you all.”
MJ planted a kiss on Ezra’s forehead then all the boys ran off to chase each other. The other parents stared at her in surprise. A nicer couple, Julie and Rick, led all the parents towards MJ slowly. Rick held onto Julie’s shoulders lovingly as Julie put a hand on MJ’s shoulder. “Oh, dear. We are so sorry. We did not realize… if you need any help at all, please, do not hesitate to ask,” Julie said kindly. MJ snorted and shook her head. If only they knew.
“Thanks, ma’am, but I’m good. My boyfriend and I are quite… comfortable.”
Julie looks hesitant, but nodded and pulled MJ into a quick hug. MJ froze and did not hug the women back. Physical contact was reserved for family only. MJ gave Julie an uncomfortable smile and slung her chair over her shoulders.
“Ezra, you ready to get some lunch?” She called out as she walked away from the parents and towards her car. She held out her hand and a little one quickly grabbed it.
“Mommy, can we get sandwiches from Mr. Delmar’s?”
“Only if we get one for Peter, your sister, and Harley.”
3.
Isabella loves to draw, paint, and color. She thought, and her parents agreed, that she is the best artist in the world. So when she drew a flower with Harley when MJ and Peter where at school, she was super excited to show them. She was practically vibrating when she heard the elevator ding, signifying Peter and MJ’s return. She ran to greet them, proudly holding her artwork in her hand.
“Mommy! Mommy! Look what I made today!” Izzy squealed as she shoved the paper proudly in front of her and towards MJ’s face. MJ grabbed the paper and examined it for a moment.
“Isabella, you are the future of this society,” MJ said seriously. Isabella blushed, recognizing the obvious compliment. “Thanks, mommy.”
Peter suddenly grabbed it from MJ’s hands and beamed at it. “This is going on the fridge!” He declared as he walked towards the kitchen.
4.
Ezra and Isabella knew that Peter was Spiderman and that Harley was Iron Lad. MJ, Harley, and Peter made the collective decision to tell the kids once they adopted them. If something ever happened…
If something ever happened MJ would tell her children the truth. No matter how painful it would be.
It was a Saturday afternoon. Peter and Harley had been called downtown because some sort of baddie was wreaking havoc. MJ was not worried, she knew her boys would handle it, but that didn’t mean she would let Ezra and Isabella watch it live on TV. Yet, like all parents, sometimes MJ wasn’t paying 100% attention. Like at this moment right now. She was reading a book on the couch in the living room, with Isabella coloring and Ezra watching one on his shows.
She didn’t see Ezra grab the remote and change the channel. She did hear a soft gasp though and that caused her to look up.
The news channel. The Avengers fighting. The camera focused on Spider-Man. He was held by the throat by one of the monsters at the edge of a very tall building. The monster was squeezing tightly from what MJ could tell. Peter struggled weakly before his arms dropped to his sides. MJ knew she should’ve been the responsible parent and turned off the TV immediately, the children were already traumatized enough, but he couldn’t find the power to.
The creature threw the unconscious Spider-Man off the building. MJ faintly heard Isabella and Ezra start to cry. She pulled them onto her lap and hugged them tightly.
“Daddy!” Ezra screamed.
“Come on, Harley,” MJ whispered, praying to every god out there that her pseudo brother would catch the love of her life.
People were used to seeing Spider-Man fall, but he always caught himself. Not this time.
MJ sighed in relief when she saw Harley emerge but it caught in her throat. He wouldn’t make it in time. She quickly forced the kids’ faces into her shoulders so they wouldn't see what was about to happen. Not a second later, Peter landed on the ground, hard. MJ winced, he landed semi on his side, that would definitely result in a badly broken arm and many bruises.
“Daddy,” Ezra sobbed as he clutched onto MJ tightly.
“He’s gonna be okay, honey,” MJ reassures him. And if Peter wasn’t okay, well MJ would kill him. MJ wanted desperately to patch herself in so she could talk to Harley, but she couldn’t do that when the kids were with her. She let out a sigh and settling on rubbing the kids' backs comfortingly as she watched the screen. Harley landed next to Peter and checked his pulse.
Harley removed his hand but didn’t do CPR, Peter had a pulse. MJ let out a breath she didn't know she was holding. Harley paused for a moment, MJ assumed he was talking to Bucky and Sam, before scooping Peter up and flying off.
“Miss Jones, Harley has requested your presence in the Medbay,” FRIDAY said. MJ bit her lip and looked at the distressed children in her lap. How could she choose between them and her love?
“FRIDAY, where is Pepper?” MJ asked the AI.
“Mrs. Stark is currently on her floor, preparing dinner.”
“Please tell her to come down, Protocol The Itsy Bitsy Owie.”
“Certainly, Miss Jones. Mrs. Stark is on her way now.”
MJ nodded and pulled herself together. She stood from the couch, pulling the children onto each of her hips as she did.
“Daddy’s gonna be okay. I have to go help him, and I need you both to be really brave for me, can you do that?” She asked them. They both nodded.
“Grandma Pepper is going to bring you guys up to her floor for a little while, okay?”
Isabella’s lip quivered and she broke into a loud wail. MJ gently shushed her. “Oh baby I know, I’m so sorry.”
“But Daddy,” she heaved.
“Miss Jones, Harley is requesting you come to the Medbay immediately,” FRIDAY said.
“I know! I know!” MJ yelled at the ceiling as her children cried in her arms. Frankly, the situation was quite overwhelming.
“Daddy is okay. He’s gonna be okay,” she said as she rocked the children. Isabella threw her face against MJ’s neck and sobbed again.
The elevator opened and Pepper walked out. She saw the situation and quickly walked over to help. Pepper grabbed Isabella from MJ’s arms, and the girl latched onto her grandmother figure.
“It’s okay, Izzy.” Pepper said soothingly. “Hey tell you what, how would you like to help me make some pasta?”
Isabella nodded hesitantly. MJ looked to Ezra, who was sniffling and hiccuping loudly as he rubbed his eyes. She pressed a kiss to the crown of his head and set him down on the ground.
She crouched in front of him. “I need you to look after your sister, okay?”
Ezra looked at Izzy and nodded. “I will, Mommy.”
MJ nodded and pushed him towards Pepper’s extended hand. He grabbed it and the trio walked towards the elevator.
“Go take care of our boy,” Pepper called as the elevator closed. The second it closed, MJ jumped into a different elevator, tapping her foot impatiently as she waited for it to get to the right floor. She sprinted towards the Medbay and forced herself to go faster when she heard a scream. She entered the room and Harley and Tony were standing by Peter, trying to hold him down as he screamed. Harley now only had his gauntlets on and was otherwise in casual clothes. He had tears building up in his eyes as he listened to his brother scream.
Tony, on the other hand, had grabbed Peter's head and was quietly whispering to him. Peter was shirtless and MJ almost threw up at the site of the dark bruises covering his body. The med team prodded Peter and were quickly discussing to each other. She entered the chaos and was immediately filled in on what was happening.
"Miss Jones, when Peter fell he severely injured his left arm and back. He has a dislocated shoulder; his left arm has many breaks and it needs to be fixed as soon as possible, however, his spine also has a few cracks, so we need to also flip him to his stomach as to not further aggravate his back. Bruises are covering his body but the darkest ones are on the previously mentioned locations. Dr. Banner's super pain meds will be here in 15," One of the doctors said.
"Do what you have to," MJ confirmed, as his medical proxy. She walked over to Peter and ran a hand through his hair. She shared a look with Tony and Harley, all knowing that only more pain was to come.
"I'm so sorry if only I was faster," Harley whispered brokenly as he forced down the tears.
"Harley now is not the time," MJ warned. He blinked rapidly and nodded. "Peter, hey. I know you're in pain, but you need to calm down. You're making your wounds worse. I am so sorry, my love, please, lie still."
He cracked open his eyes and reached for her. She moved to caress (if she held his hand he would break it) his face. He wheezed roughly and threw his head back.
"Everything hurts," Peter moaned.
"I know. I know it hurts. Just a little longer, then everything will be okay."
Peter nodded and leaned into her touch as the doctors approached.
"Hello, Peter. We are going to flip you onto your stomach now, okay?' Helen Cho said. The doctors piled around him, all laying their hands on him. Helen counted down slowly, and they effortlessly turned him. He barely even screamed.
"Good job, bambino," Tony said as he kissed Peter's hand. One of the doctor's lightly grabbed Peter's broken arm and he let out a wet sob into the pillow.
"Please stop," he begged the doctor. Said doctor looked to MJ and she nodded. He put it back onto the bed for a moment, and MJ kissed Peter's forehead and sat in a chair behind his head.
"Close your eyes, Peter," She said into his ear. With a shaky breath, he followed her directions. She stroked his hair as the doctor once again grabbed his arm. He flinched sharply and MJ grabbed his shoulders, gently holding him.
"I am going to try to relocate your elbow, Mr. Parker," the doctor said. He grabbed Peter's elbow and his wrist and slowly started moving the arm, and therefore shoulder back and forth. Peter moved to get away.
"Harley, hold him!" MJ said, snapping Harley out of his daze. Harley moved his hands to Peter's hips as Tony continued to hold Peter's other hand tightly. The doctor continued this motion until finally, a slight pop was heard. Peter cried through the whole thing. Peter slammed his head against the pillow and MJ grabbed it gently and kissed it.
"Almost done," MJ said. Suddenly, a doctor ran in with the super pain meds, and everyone in the room let out a sigh of relief. The doctors hooked Peter up to it and began prepping for surgery.
"It'll be okay, Peter. We'll see you on the other side," Tony said. Peter nodded blearily. The trio waited until he passed out to leave the room. Tony clapped a hand on MJ's back. "You did good, kid," he said. She smiled weakly as he walked away.
"Can you and Pepper keep my kids for the night?" MJ asked as she looked to Harley. "It's gonna be a rough one."
Tony gave her a thumbs up and walked away. "Call me if there are any updates."
MJ turned to Harley, who was the definition of a mess and wrapped him into a strong hug. He fell into her grip and they collapsed to the floor. They cried into each other's shoulders as Harley continuously apologized with MJ trying to shush him because it was only making her tears flow faster. They stayed there for a good 15 minutes before crawling against the wall.
MJ laid down back pressed into the wall, and Harley laid in front of her, protecting her from everything he could and holding her close. They laid there, the exhaustion taking over, until they both finally fell asleep, knowing that Peter's screams would plague there dreams for months to come.
5.
Ezra and Isabella were usually very good children who loved each other very much. They rarely fought, but when they did it was rough and always ended up in someone crying.
Harley was watching Ezra and Isabella in his lab when he heard a grunt. He looked up and saw Ezra grab Izzy’s arm and start pulling her away from her toys. He rolled his eyes and ignored them. Not a moment later a whine was heard.
“Ezra stop it!” Isabella yelled at her brother. Harley watched them go at it for a moment, screaming and hitting each other.
“Hey!” He called loudly to get their attention. They both froze and looked up at him. He gave them a little glare for effect.
“Both of you, stop. Now.”
Immediately they started protesting with he started, and she did this or he said this.
“I don’t care who did what. It stops now or no dessert for a week, capiche?” He said strictly.
“Yes, Uncle Harley,” they said in unison in a sulky manner as they returned to their previous activities.
+1
At Ezra’s school, they had this thing called Parent-Teacher Nights where parents went to the school for an update on how their child was doing. That’s how Peter and MJ found themselves shuffling down the halls and looking for Ezra’s classroom for a meeting with his teacher.
"MJ, I swear it's this way!" Peter cried out, frustrated.
"Parker, I was the one on the tour!" She argued back.
"MJ, I literally drop him off every morning!"
"Yea, at the front of the school!"
"Are you assuming I don't watch my child walk into his class? I am offended, Michelle!"
The other parents stared at them and gave them looks, but they ignored them. They continued arguing until they reached the room that Peter thought was Ezra's. They knocked on the door and a middle-aged man opened the door. “Ah, you must be Ezra’s parents!”
Peter smirked at MJ and she shoved him.
"We are," MJ answered.
"Please, come in!" The teacher, Mr. Tye, Peter thought told them. The pair walked through the class and sat in two chairs positioned in front of the teacher’s desk.
“I just want to say that Ezra is such an amazing student. He is so smart and reads extremely well for his age.”
“He gets it from me,” MJ said nonchalantly. Peter rolled his eyes but couldn't help the smile that appeared on his face.