Chapter Text
Tony was taking a walk through Central Park with Peter Parker, listening to the kid chatter on aimlessly and quietly trying to let go of this week's anxieties. Well... He was only sort of listening and only sort of trying. After a late night reading over and over and over the new draft of the Accords, and what with the looming dread of meetings with Secretary Ross and the rogue Avengers in the upcoming weeks, he was a little distracted. He threw a sideways glance at the kid and couldn't help but smile. His attention span had lapsed about a mile ago and he now had no clue what Peter was rambling on about, but seeing him all excited and laughing at his own jokes gave Tony life.
It amazed him how carefree this kid was. Even more amazing was the fact that he had stuck around so long- It had almost been a year since Germany and Tony couldn't begin to fathom how this bright, bubbly, optimistic teenager could stand to be around him, Tony Stark. Heck, Tony could hardly stand to be around himself most days. And on top of everything else, he had somehow managed to single-handedly alienate everyone in his life. And Pepper- Oh, Pepper. His heart twinged painfully thinking about her. After the Sokovia fiasco, she had insisted that they take a break in their relationship. He couldn't blame her. He had been an unmanageable nightmare, and though Pepper was a patient woman, she had her limits. They had only now started to patch things up after the hell he had put her through, and though reconciliation was what he desperately craved, he couldn't help but wonder-
How long would it be before he screwed up again?
"Earth to Mr. Stark!"
Tony was jolted out of his thoughts. He smiled again as Peter's amused eyes met his. Well... Maybe he hadn't alienated everyone.
"Did you hear anything I just said?" Peter laughed in a mock-accusatory tone as they passed into the shade of the trees.
"Every last word!" Tony said, feigning indignation.
"Name one thing I've talked about in the past five minutes!"
"Star Wars."
Peter's eyes narrowed and his voice dripped with sarcasm, "Astounding. The great Tony Stark is wro- aagghh!"
The kid stopped dead in his tracks, pulling a comical face and leaving Tony confused.
"Pete?"
Peter immediately slipped out of his backpack and fished a web-shooter out of the main compartment. "Make sure no one's looking!" he said, thrusting the backpack into Tony's hands and hurrying toward a low-hanging bush. The older man cast a glance over his shoulder before turning to watch in bewilderment as the kid started stringing thin wisps of webbing between two branches.
"What-?"
"I walked through a spider web," Peter said matter-of-factly, as if that answered everything. He was now quickly weaving intricate patterns through the webbing with two fingers.
"Annnd?"
Tony now noticed that Peter's left hand was clenched in a loose fist. When he had finished the web, he very carefully unclenched it and deposited a tiny spider onto its new home. Tony made a noise of disbelief and Peter met his gaze with mischievous eyes as he said in what he probably thought was a very sincere tone, "They are my people, Mr. Stark! They must be protected."
Tony shook his head, laughing. "Kid-" he began. But he just laughed again and put his arm around Peter's shoulder as they continued walking.
What he thought had been a one-time joke turned out to be no joke at all. As the summer wore on, Tony began to notice more and more just how protective Peter was of "his people". From carefully reconstructed webs to daring rescues from inadvertent (or advertent) boot-heels, Peter Parker made sure that his eight-legged friends were offered the same protection that he extended to the citizens of Queens. What was even stranger- he was starting to rub off on Tony. This became evident when the man had trapped a fairly large wolf spider beneath an empty wine glass and promptly carried it outside the restaurant in the middle of date-night dinner one Friday evening. A few heads turned curiously as he settled back into the booth, beside Pepper. She looked up from her salad as if he had lost his mind. He just shrugged awkwardly.
"I blame Spider-Kid!"
A smile twitched at the corner of her lips as she leaned over to press a kiss to his forehead. "You ready for tomorrow?"
"Does it matter?"
His hand trembled a little as he picked up his fork and he wished for the millionth time that Pepper and Rhodey did not have to be halfway around the world the same day the rogue Avengers were scheduled to return to the Compound. Everything was happening so fast. He silently cursed Thaddeus Ross. Pepper put a steadying hand on his and tried to meet his eyes.
"Why don't you invite the kid?"
"Why don't you pick a dessert?"
An anxious pit formed in his stomach that had nothing to do with the salad. He hoped the wolf spider had found a nice crevice to crawl into, away from the unforgiving feet that shuffled relentlessly across the sidewalk. He tried not to picture it crushed beneath a shoe or picked off by a pigeon. Had he picked a good spot to let it go? Would it be able to survive? Find food? Maybe he should have let it stay inside. Left it alone. Let it be. Maybe, maybe, maybe... He leaned his head against Pepper's shoulder, feeling sick. Gosh dang it, Peter. That kid had really gotten to him.