Archive of Our Own

Despite how the scene appeared, Peter had everything under control. The situation was totally and without a doubt handled. Sure, he’d already been thrown into a few buildings and he was fairly certain that he was running out of web fluid, everything was fine. If you didn’t count his broken nose or the fact that this alligator hybrid monster was pinning him down and growling its hot breath into his face. Absolutely fine.

It was only a week ago that the hybrid creature had made its first appearance in downtown New York. Peter hadn’t been sure what to think. While it looked human to a point, there were parts about the alligator monster that couldn’t be human. The glowing yellow eyes, the sharp claws, the scaly green skin and disturbing bumpy tail that dragged behind it. Not to mention the teeth. Those were a hundred percent alligator. Peter didn’t know the full extent of its strength, but it was clear from the start that it was enhanced. The evening Peter had encountered it, it had been picking up cars and shaking them about.

The creature was bigger than Peter, just as strong, but thankfully it didn’t appear to be fast. Whatever it was, was feral but it seemed to take after an actual alligator in the sense that it didn’t move incredibly fast. What it lacked in agility and speed it made up for in anger.

 He’d be out on patrols when Karen had alerted him of the threat. In true typical Peter fashion, he swung off to take care of it. He just hadn’t been prepared for the fight that was ahead of him. He thought he’d been doing pretty good when he cleared the area of civilians. The creature had been preoccupied with growling and snarling at a car that’s alarm had went off. He webbed the creature up and called it a day.

Or that’s what he’d thought he’d done. He’d turned his back just for a moment, when he turned back around the creature had ripped through webbing. The only thing Peter had managed to do was piss it off even more than the car alarm.

The creature had charged at him, but he’d managed to dodge it by a couple inches. They carried on like that for a few minutes. The creature would get angry, growl, and then leap again. Peter would jump out of the way just seconds before it could land any moves on him. When he’d gotten close enough to try and restrain the hybrid it snapped and bit at his leg. Its teeth were strong, strong enough to pierce the protective layering of his suit that was for sure. Peter had managed to get away, delivering a swift kick to the creature’s face. From what Peter could tell it must have hurt. The thing had practically hissed at him before scurrying off.

Peter had tried to go after it, but his leg felt like it was on fire. Pained and swelling from the bite, he let Karen direct him home to the tower. Lord it had hurt getting there and while he’d begged Karen not to say anything to Tony that hadn’t happened. The man was waiting for him as soon as stepped into building.

“Why didn’t you call me!?” He demanded as he helped Peter across the private lobby and to the elevators. “I told you to always call if you run into a situation, instead I get FRIDAY relying a message from Karen saying that you got bit by some wild swap monster.”

“But it wasn’t a situation,” Peter argued back, allowing most of his weight to fall on Tony. “I thought…well you see I had him! Then I went to call the police but when I turned back around it had chewed through all my webs. Or it clawed them, I’m not sure but it got out!” Peter said, relaying the events.

Tony sent him a hard look as the elevator stopped at the medical unit. “That’s when you know it’s a situation,” he sighed, supporting more of Peter’s weight as the teen limped out of the elevator. “Look, you’re dripping blood everywhere,” Tony said as he glanced down at the marble floor.

“Sorry,” Peter mumbled, giving Tony a sadden look. “I’ll clean it up,” he added as they made their way to one of the bays. Thankfully Tony had gotten pretty good at stitching him up, they usually didn’t need to call a doctor in. Usually.

Maybe 4 times out of 10 which Peter didn’t think was too bad. Tony’s medical knowledge was more then he let on.

“Pete, kid.” Tony said as he ushered Peter to sit down on the empty bed. “That’s not what I’m getting at.  I don’t care about the floor I care about you,” Tony tutted, pressing the spider emblem and enabling Peter’s suit to go slack. He helped the teen step out of it, hissing when he caught sight of the bite. “God that’s deep,” he said with a frown. He started to rush around the room, grabbing everything he thought he’d need while he continued to lecture. “We don’t know anything about that creature. It looks like we’re going to have to figure out what it is exactly and where it came from. Until we know more, I don’t want you going after it. One mutant bite is enough for you.”

“I really did have it under control! I Just…miscalculated a few things,” Peter said, not ready to drop the argument yet.

“Peter,” Tony said as he stopped in his tacks. “Until we know just what it is or what it can do, you stick to the typical Spiderman crime fighting. Muggings, car theft, getting kittens out of trees. That sort of thing. I mean it, I don’t want to see you near it again. Look at your leg, you’re lucky that thing didn’t take it off. You and I both know how strong the suit is, if it can tear the fabric like that it’s dangerous. Let me handle this.”

Peter looked at Tony then to his leg and finally back at Tony. The bite was nasty, 8 puncture wounds that continued to ooze slowly. Together they formed a bite mark right in his lower thigh. Then Tony was staring at him with a look Peter only seen him use a handful of times. “Okay,” he mumbled quietly.  

Cleary that hadn’t happened. Peter wanted it to of course! He hadn’t planed on getting involved again until Tony gave him the all clear. But the thing showed up in Central Park and Peter had to do something. There was no way he was going to sit on the sidelines if he could help, not while it screeched and chased people that clearly couldn’t fight it off. If he didn’t do something somebody would get hurt. So, he’d been the only person getting hurt, at least he hadn’t gotten bitten again though. He didn’t know how he’d explain that to Tony.

The creature was currently hoovering over Peter, snapping its jaws and chopping at him while he did everything, he could to hold it off. It was getting closer and closer and Peter’s arms were starting to get fatigued under the force it took to hold the creature away from him. Just when he thought he was about to lose part of his face he heard thrusters. He’d never been so relieved and terrified all at the same time. Relieved mainly because he got to keep his face for another day and terrified because he was about to get the lecture to end all lectures. Tony would probably still be chewing him on when he graduated.

‘Communication with Ironman has been established,’ Karen said right before a powerful blast shook him. He could feel the vibrations from the repulsor that had just been fired into the creature. It let out an angry roar but thankfully it let go of Peter. It looked torn, like it wanted to run and like it wanted to go after Tony.

“Didn’t I tell you to leave this one to me?” Tony asked, his voice slightly robotized from the suit. Peter could hear the heat behind it though and he inwardly winced.  Meanwhile the creature had decided that the best course of action would be to run. Peter didn’t blame it. Part of him thought about scurrying off to hide as well. At least until Tony calmed down. “Didn’t I tell you” Tony started again. “to leave this one to me?” He asked once more, his voice slowed down as he tried to get his point across.

“Yes,” Peter groaned, letting himself slump back to the ground. “But it showed up in the park and I was on patrols and Karen told me that people were panicking, and I had to do something!” Peter argued.

“Are you okay?” Tony asked, landing right next to Peter.

“Yeah…I’m okay. I’m fine.”

“Good. We’ll talk about this later,” Tony huffed before turning to fire another repulsor at the creature that hadn’t managed to get too far.

So that was how it was going to be then? It was a ‘I’m going to yell so hard at you once we’re back in the tower that your grandkids are going to be hear it’ kind of situation?

For a moment Peter just sighed and closed his eyes. Now that he wasn’t afraid for his life, he could feel the exhaustion sink in. The fight had taken more out of him then he’d thought. He gave himself a total of 10 seconds for self-pity before he staggered to his feet.

Something was coming, something bad was coming and it was going to be there any minute.

Peter only had a second to regain his footing before he was knocked back down to the ground by a powerful explosion. A flash of white-hot light had blinded him while he felt the energy of the force shake his core. It happened so quickly that Peter’s brain couldn’t figure out what had just taken place. It hardly mattered though because the explosion had been strong enough to knock him unconscious. If he’d been able to keep his eyes open for just a moment more, he would have seen Tony hit the ground too.

It wasn’t the first time that Peter had been out on patrols and then woken up some place completely different. This however was the first time that he’d woken up some place other than the medical unit. Everything ached but he figured that was normal for the situation. There had been an explosion, that he could remember. First Peter had tried to stop the weird scaly monster and that hadn’t worked, and then Tony had gotten there, and he’d been yelling, well…reprimanding Peter at the very least. A bright hot heat and a loud low thunderous sound. That was all Peter could remember.

“Ouch,” He mumbled as he forced his eyes open. Where was he exactly? It was too cold and too hard to be the medical unit. He attentively brought hand up to rub at his eyes only to realize that he couldn’t move. Not far anyway. Peter forced his eyes open the rest of the way. What he seen only brought forth more confusion followed by question after question.

The room was small, and it lacked any kind of windows. The lights overhead didn’t provide much light. Instead the emitted more of eerie yellow. Combined with the lack of color in the room, everything looked more sickly green. Everything had been painted white but from what Peter could tell that had been a long time ago as the paint had started to chip off the cement floors and walls. There was a single door and it appeared to be cement as well, it on the other hand had been painted back. When Peter glanced down at himself, he could see that his left wrist had been shackled to the wall. He gave a couple experimental pulls and frowned nothing happened. They were strong enough to hold him.

 His heartrate sped up when he looked over at the spot next to him. Slumped against the wall was Tony, clearly still out of it. One of his hands had also been chained to the wall. The Iron suit he’d been wearing before was gone, leaving Tony in just the joggers and sweatshirt he’d had on under it.

Peter’s suit had been removed as well. He wished he’d picked something a little warmer to wear then just a shirt and old pair of sweats. “What the hell is going on,” Peter mumbled as he looked up and spotted the camera. “Hello?” he tried quietly.

Somebody had to be keeping them there. That was the only thing Peter could think of and if there was another explanation it wasn’t coming to mind. He looked up at the camera with unease before he let his gaze travel to Tony. He wondered how long it would be before the man woke up. A sense of guilt settled inside of him. This was his fault. He’d done it again; exactly what Tony had told him not to do. This time though it seemed like he’d really made a mess of things.

He winced when he shifted, trying to pull against the chain once more. Everything ached but that was the least of his concerns. He realized though if he was hurt that meant Tony probably was too. “Hello?” He asked again, looking up at the camera. Somebody had to be watching if the flashing green light was any indicator. “Every hostage should at least get an explanation,” he muttered before trying the chain again. There was still no luck. There was a chance though that if Peter could get up enough of his strength, he might still be able to break it, he wasn’t working with 100% of his strength so he just had to…heal hopefully.

It only took a short amount of time for the lack of any tech to really hit Peter. No phone, no suit, no way to call for help. He didn’t even have a clock to look at. There was no way to tell how long he’d been in the room. Minutes seemed to pass slowly, or at least that was how he felt. He wasn’t sure. He tried to think about anything he might have learned about this situation. Did Steve ever tell him what to do if he’d been taken captive? He was sure Tony had probably given him a lecture about getting kidnapped, he just couldn’t recall anything that was said. Had he trained for this? The only thing that was coming to mind was ‘never give up any information, don’t negotiate with terrorist,’ he was sure that only applied to prisons of war. Not whatever this was.

Eventually the door creaked open and someone stepped inside. It was probably the least threatening person Peter had ever seen. A middle-aged man with coke bottle glasses and a slight frame. Peter inwardly scoffed. So, this was the person responsible for taking up the rest of his afternoon?

“Hello,” the man said in a chipper tone followed by a smile. Peter didn’t know what to make it. What was the point in trying to seem friendly, he’d already captured them? “I’m sure you’re wondering why you’re here,” so he was cliché about things.

“You need to let us go,” Peter said, clearing his voice and narrowing his eyes. If wasn’t for that chain holding him back, he was sure they could have been out by now. “I don’t care why we’re here you need to let us go.”

The man’s smile fell, and he sighed deeply before running a hand through his chestnut hair. “I can’t do that, Peter. You see,” he paused before sending Peter a sharper look, “if you had let me finish…I was trying to explain to you that you’re at Oscorp. We know about your…mutation,” he mumbled like it felt wrong just saying it. “You’re in the same building you were in 3 years ago when you were bitten.”

“What do you want,” Peter asked, pulling at the chain again. His senses had been going off since he woke up, now it seemed like it was going haywire. “Money?”

“No,” the man said shaking his head. “I don’t care about that. I’ve got everything I need right here for continued research.”

“What do you mean?” Peter shook his head and tried to follow along, but the man was being vague.

“The spider? It died after it bit you, you know that because you were there. I think you tried to step on, was it?” The man asked with another frown.

“It bit me!” Peter argued. “I didn’t mean to kill it, I just…I mean it bit me and I was shocked so I…” he trailed off, not wanting to feel bad about stepping on the spider but somehow, he still did.

“It was a 2-million-dollar project and you just stepped on it like it was nothing,” he laughed, throwing his hands out. “However, we speculated that it wouldn’t live long anyway. Radiation would have killed it eventually or old age. Spiders don’t really live that long. What you gave us though by meeting our little spider was something so much better.”

 Peter didn’t answer, his mouth felt dry and the knots in his stomach were forming at an alarming rate.

“See we couldn’t finish the testing on the spider. What we can test now though is you. You’re our next best thing. I myself would argue that you’re even better.” The man finally stepped into the room, letting himself get closer to Peter. “My name is Doctor Osborn and I think you have a lot to offer us, Peter. I see no limit to what Oscorp could achieve. It’s going to take some research though, it’ll take some work, but it could be groundbreaking for us. What else could we produce, what all can you do, could this help others? I think you being an active participant in these experiments is key.”

“I’m not an active participant though,” Peter spat, backing himself against the wall. “You didn’t take us willingly, you kidnapped us.” Peter could see through the ruse. “I don’t think you’re interested in helping anyone but yourselves. Whatever you were doing to that spider was unethical. Alerting DNA is unethical”

“Now that’s not so, Peter,” Osborn said, lowering himself to the ground so that he could be eyelevel with him. “Parents can do it these days, haven’t you hared of being able to pick your baby’s eye color. Maybe not practical but…it’s not hurting anyone. What I have planned is going to help people.”

“That’s different!” Peter argued. “That’s picking eye color, not giving someone mutated genes. And if you were so worried about helping people why didn’t you just look at the research from the spider…before I was bitten.”

“It was confiscated,” Osborn said shortly, standing up and brushing the dust off his pants. “SHIELD didn’t think what we were doing was…beneficial. They couldn’t see the vison I had. I had nothing left of the research from any of my projects by the time they finished with me. Everything I have now is from memory alone.”

“I told you I don’t want to help you find your ‘vison’ or whatever. I know what Oscrop is about and it’s not about helping humanity. It’s about performing weird science experiments on people and animals that don’t have a choice. What you’re doing isn’t right.”

“Sounds like you’ve been listening too much of Stark’s ramblings,” Osborn bit as he folded his arms across his chest. “It took a long time for us to realize what happened. Even longer to find you. Now that we have, we’re going to do what’s best.”

“Who’s to say I’m going to let you experiment on me,” Peter asked. Once the chain was off, he was sure he could break them out of there. If Norman was right and he was in fact in the same building as he was on his field trip, he might be able to navigate it to a degree.

“We have Stark and that’s all it’s going to take to get you to corporate.” Osborn said, his face once again neutral. “If you try anything, we’re going to hurt him and that’s going to be on you. If you even think about getting out of here, you’re going to sit there and watch just what we can do to him, Peter.”

Peter could feel his face paling. They were going to hurt Tony. There were going to hurt the person he seen as his dad.

‘it’s all my fault,’ Peter thought to himself.

“So, the better you behave the easier Stark has it. How we treat him is completely up to you. Just remember that. After all this is over, we might let him go…we might even consider letting you go. If you don’t comply though nobody makes it out of here. Especially not him.” Osborn said, giving Peter a softer look this time. “Just do what your told and we don’t hurt your dad. How does that sound.”

“What are you going to do?” Peter asked hesitantly.

“Testing starts tomorrow. We’ll bring you some water and food here in a bit. Don’t worry about Tony, I’m sure he’ll be out for a while longer. The blast from the explosion we created knocked him out but the drugs we administered should keep him out sedated until tomorrow morning. He’ll sleep through the night, if you’re good tomorrow we might give him a blanket. Would you like that for you dad?” Osborn asked but Peter never answered. He just watched the man without saying a word until he eventually left, and Peter was left alone with Tony.

“I’m sorry, I’m so so sorry,” Peter whispered, despite knowing that Tony couldn’t hear him.

***

“What the hell is going on?” Tony asked, groaning as he forced himself to sit up. Something was off, he hadn’t woken up on a floor in a long time.

“That’s exactly what I said,” Peter said, clearing the man’s thoughts for a moment.

“Pete?” Tony asked, he blinked a few times before looking around. “Kidnapped?” He asked.

“Yeah,” Peter mumbled sadly. “You’ve been out all night. Or at least I think it’s morning now.” The teen added as he tried to scoot just a little closer to the man. The shackled kept him just out of reach.

“Alright,” Tony said, looking around the room again. “What do we know so far?” He asked. This wasn’t his first kidnapping, admittedly he’d never had a kid along for the ride.

“Well…” Peter started. “We’re at Oscorp, they’re mad about spider I stepped on 3 years ago, uh- “he trailed off, deciding that he wanted to leave out the part about them threatening to hurt Tony. “We’re still in the city if that helps. “I guess the alligator monster was just a ploy and they created the explosion to bring us here. Dr Osborn said he’d be back in the morning so I’m guessing he’ll be here soon.”

“Dr. Osborn?” Tony asked, narrowing his eyes some. “Norman might be a doctor but he’s far from a medical professional. He’s a whack job,” Tony scoffed. “No suits?”

“No, I guess they took them off? I think they would have been damaged anyway, right?”

“They would have lost some of their functions, but I doubt they would have been completely useless.”

“Oh.” Peter said softly. “What do we do now?”

“They’ve got cameras,” Tony muttered, looking back to the single camera in the room. “They’re watching us,”

“Yeah,” Peter sighed quietly. “They don’t turn off from what I’ve noticed.”

Tony nodded but he didn’t say anything. Instead he gave Peter a look. Peter could tell that Tony was saying something in that look. Something that couldn’t be expressed in words, but it was loud and clear for Peter. “Well, kid. We wait.”

Peter could only assume it meant someone would come for them.

Before anyone on their side could get to them though Osborn was back, and this time he wasn’t alone.    

“Ah, everyone’s awake, perfect,” Norman said, stepping into the room followed by two armed men. “Tony,” he said with a short nod.

“Whatever you’re thinking Osborn I’d be quick to change my mind if I were you,” Tony said coolly.

“That’s no way to talk to your host,” the man said with a short laugh. “I trust that Peter has filled you in, and like promised I’m back and I think Peter and I have some business to take care of.”

“Business?” Tony asked, whipping his head around to look at Peter. Peter gave the other an apologetic look before staring down at the ground.

“I guess he left some things out, don’t worry Stark, you’ll have time to talk to him later.” Norman commented before nodding towards one of the guards. The man, a tall lean figure who Peter didn’t think could do much without the gun, stepped forward while the other man approached him.

“Get up,” Norman ordered, and Peter hesitated before slowly clambering to his feet. The guard was leering over him with one hand on the gun in his waistband. Peter couldn’t help but eye it with caution. The guard grabbed the key out of his pocket and slid it into the keyhole on Peter’s cuff, for a moment Peter was free.

Instantly he yanked his hand away from the guard, already planning on using his strength to overpower him. Then he heard the sickening thud, it broke his attention from his plan of action just long enough for him to look and see what had happened.

The guard next to Tony had taken the butt of the gun and whipped it across Tony’s face. Tony looked unfazed but a small stream of blood had started to trickle from his nose.

“What did I tell you?!” Norman barked. “Put the cuffs on him!” He ordered and this time Peter didn’t resist. The guard grabbed ahold of him roughly, forcing him to extend his arm so that he could securely attach another set of handcuffs to one wrist and then the other.

Norman approached again, this time pushing the guard out his way and yanking Peter towards him. “That was a warning,” he hissed, digging his nails into Peter’s shoulder. “You act up again or if you try anything else, he’s dead. Do you get it, or do you need another visual?” Norman hissed, going as far as to shake Peter a bit.

“So that’s what your playing at?” Tony asked, his expression one of disgust. He’d yet to stand up but Peter thought maybe it was safer he stayed sitting. “You’re going to use me to get to him?”

“Always the smart one, Stark,” Norman mumbled before sending him a glare. “Someone thinks highly of themselves.”

“Don’t listen to him Peter, don’t worry about me, I’ll-”

Peter closed his eyes and winced when he heard the gun hitting Tony’s face again.

“Get him out of here,” Norman huffed, passing Peter off to the guard so that the man could drag him to his next destination.”

For a long few moments the room went silent, both Norman and Tony staring each other down. Tony counted the seconds in his head before he decided that Peter had to be far enough that the couldn’t pick upon the conversation.

 “You know you’d be dead by now if you hadn’t decided to chain me up. That’s why you chained him up too, because your afraid of him.”

Norman didn’t say anything, he didn’t disagree or agree with Tony on anything he’d said. Instead he turned the conversation to a new direction.

“Because you decided to smart off, today isn’t going to be easy for him.” Norman mumbled. “So now that you understand how this works, let me tell that it’s going to go both ways. If Pete acts up, you get hurt. If you act up, he gets hurt worse. What I’ve got in store for the little spider today isn’t for the faint of heart,” Norman laughed, shaking his head. “He’s not going to be such a pleasant sight when I’m finished with him. However…” he trailed off. “I might find a bit more mercy in me if you don’t make this harder than it has to be.”

“What are you going to do to him?” Tony asked quietly.

“Whatever I see fit, Tony,” Norman replied. “Just remember that when you make me angry, I’m just going to go right back to my lab and take it out on your kid. Hopefully that’ll give you some incentive for the time being.”

“He’s a kid,” Tony spat, pulling at the chain that kept him grounded. “If you want to hurt somebody hurt me.”

“I already am,” Norman said before motioning towards the guard. Without saying another word, they both walked out, leaving Tony to sit alone for the rest of the morning and the afternoon.

Tony had always had a good sense of time. He hardly ever had to look at a clock to know what time it was. Even so he still needed a reference to check with from time to time. At some point they had brought him food and water and taken him to a separate room for a bathroom break but after that he was thrown right back into the cell. It felt like hours had passed before Peter was brought back to him.

Instantly he jumped up when one of the guards brought the teen back, ushering him into the room and chaining him back to the wall within in seconds.

“Pete you okay, what did they do to you?” Tony asked, dying to get closer but kept just a few feet away from him because of the restraint. Apparently making sure Tony couldn’t physically comfort his kid was another way to break them down.

Peter looked paler than he had before he’d left. He looked tired and stiff and his face seemed pinched like he was in pain. “I’m okay, it’s fine, I’m alright,” he answered quickly. “They just took some blood. I mean probably too much blood, but it could be worse,” he said with a nervous laugh.

“You were gone all day Kid, it doesn’t take that long to get blood,” Tony answered, pulling again on the chains that kept him from the teen, like maybe eventually they’d give.

“Well…not usually. They don’t really do things like Dr. Banner does when he takes blood,” Peter mumbled, holding his cut wrist to his chest.

“They cut you open?” Tony asked quietly, his eyes going wider. This was what they were up against?

“It’s fine, really. I healed pretty quickly, I’m feeling better already,” Peter answered but Tony could sense the lie.

Before Tony could say anything else the door opened again and two trays of food were slide inside, both close enough to reach. Tony couldn’t help but feel completely disinterested in his food. A bowl of cream of wheat, an orange, and some water. He was pretty sure they feed people better on the Raft.

“Let me see your wrist,” he insisted. It must have hurt still because Peter kept it pressed protectively against him. Slowly and carefully the teen sat down, and he’d pulled his tray closer with his left hand.

“I’m fine, Tony. I promise,” Peter mumbled but eventually he relented and held his arm out for the man to see. The skin had started to heal but it was still open, and it still looked raw and painful. A sliced wound ran from his wrist to his inner elbow. Tony wondered if they at least used clean equipment.

‘They didn’t even stitch him up afterwards.’ Tony thought to himself, a sense of mortification falling over him. They were going to pay, as soon he found a way out, everyone who had touched Peter would be punished.

 He slowly sat down before he pulled his own tray closer. The man examined it for a moment before deciding to roll his orange over to Peter. “Here you need to eat more.”  Tony knew just how important it was for the teen to get enough calories. It affected everything form his energy to his healing.  The dinner they had served them wouldn’t be nearly enough.

Before Peter could answer though the video camera above them came to life. It crackled with sound for a moment before a voice came through a hidden speaker. “No Sharing.” The voice barked and Pete quickly rolled the fruit back.

“How about you look at the blood work you did today and figure out what his Kcal intake should be,” Tony snapped. “Enhanced teen, enhanced diet,” he added.

The camera crackled again, and the voice was back.

“No sharing,” it stated once more.

“It’s okay Tony, really!” Peter insisted again. “I’m fine, they gave me lunch,” Peter added.
And if that was a lie did it really matter if Tony didn’t have to worry himself sick?

***

It’s been one week, and Tony couldn’t be more frustrated. He anticipated a couple days’ worth of waiting but this was pushing it. He was sure the team knew they were missing by now. The suit should have sent out an SOS and his last location, still though nobody had showed up. He had been concerned the first few days now though he was internally panicking.

Everyday they’d come and take Peter for ‘testing’ or whatever they were calling it. They would bring him back hours later and he’d like worse then when he left with them. The bruises stood out against his ashen skin, taking longer and longer to fade. The busted lips wouldn’t heal up before they were reopened the next day. The new cuts didn’t heal over night anymore either. Somebody was wiping the blood off him but even then, Tony could see red smudges were a rag had been dragged over bloodied skin.

Tony would ask that Peter show him the damage, Peter would fuss about it and swear he was fine, but he’d eventually let Tony look. The last couple of days he didn’t put up much of a fight, simply showing the man new incisions with a sense of tiredness Tony had never seen before.

His teenager was bubbly and bright and talkative. Peter was saying less and less as of lately. As soon as he’d get back, he’d sit down and rest his head against the wall. Everything he did was slow, before everything Peter did made Tony’s head spin. Zipping around the lab, running around the kitchen during breakfast. Now it seemed like it took every ounce of energy the kid had to focus on dinner.

He wasn’t eating nearly enough. Tony didn’t know just how much weight he’d lost but the clothes they’d showed up in now bagged around Peter’s frame. The collar of the shirt would pool around his shoulder and the sweatpants he was wearing were tied as tightly as they could go, and Tony knew they were still too big. He knew Peter wasn’t eating the same amount of food Tony was. Food was brought to him three times a day and while Peter said he was eating when he was away from the cell Tony didn’t believe it. Which meant he was only getting fed once a day.

He’d spent the first few days in holding screaming at the camera when Peter was gone. Demanding Peter’s release. So far it gotten him nowhere, he hadn’t even seen Osborn since the first day. Then he tried a different approach, he was silent. That hadn’t done anything either. Peter was still taken from the cell an hour after they had woken up and returned shortly before they were brought the last meal of the deal.

He’d look so hauntingly at Tony and it made him want to scream. Where was his parental adrenaline, the one that allowed mothers to lift cars off their kids? If they could do that surly, he could yank the chain that held him to the wall. He’d tried everything aside from breaking his hand and that was next if they didn’t get out of there soon.

Peter never fought though. Despite what Tony kept telling. Repeatedly he’d tell the teen to do what he had to, if he seen an opportunity-take it, don’t let him hold him back, if he could fight back then he should. Still every morning he hauled himself from the cold hard floor and stood waiting for them to get there. He could hear their footsteps coming minutes before they got there. Tony was no longer sure if Peter could fight them off in the state he was in.

He also didn’t know how much more Peter could take. He didn’t know how much either of them could handle.

That morning was the same as before.

Peter had been awake for a while, but he hadn’t uncurled from his ball yet. It was so cold in the room and with nothing to sleep on his back was starting to ach from spending so many nights on the floor. When he heard their steps getting closer, he forced himself into an upright position. He used one hand to steady himself as he stood up, hating how it made him dizzy.

Tony woke up a few seconds later, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. “kid…” he trailed off.

“I’m fine, it’ll go by fast,” Peter mumbled. Everything hurt though. His head, his body, his throat too. The only thing that kept him sane was making sure they didn’t hurt Tony. That was goal and as long as he had something to focus on, he could get through it.

“Peter if you have a chance fight them, I want you to, are you hearing me?” Tony asked, his tone firm yet on the verge of pleading. “Don’t worry about me, if you can get out, I want to.”

They kept the door locked when Peter was in the lab with the people who stuck him with needles and hurt him with the sharp scalpels but as far as chains went? They came off during the day. But every hour he was in there, he was reminded what would happen if he tried to leave. He couldn’t even if he wanted to. Knowing that Tony would be hurt left him with a physical reaction that would never allow him to fight.

“It’s okay,” He mumbled. “I promise, it’s not as bad as you think.”

“That’s bullshit,” Tony muttered, shaking his head. He could see what they were doing. He could see the marks on Peter when he got back.

“There here,” Peter said quietly and on cue the door opened, and a new day began.

***

“This looks infected,” one of the scientists said as Peter sat on their cold metal table. He’d been stripped down his underwear once again. They were looking at one of the cuts they’d made into his leg a few days ago. He knew something was wrong by the way it wasn’t healing but to be fair it had been deep. Deep enough to make him cry out and struggle against them when they’d done it.

“What do you mean?” Osborn asked, leaning in to get a better look. Sure, enough it was reddened, and it made his entire leg look swollen. The man shrugged before moving on. “Take his temp, if he’s got one don’t cut on him today. No needles either.”

The small group of people in white coats hesitated for a moment before looking at Norman. “What do you suggest we do for the day then…if he does have a temperature sir.”

“Get creative,” Norman huffed before throwing his hands up. “Try water boarding.”

The room went silent again as the four people looked around at each other. “Is there information we should be trying to obtain?”

“No,” Norman said easily before strolling towards the door. “Just trying new things,” he said before he left.

Peter had long since stopped questioning what any of this had to do with science. Sure, the first few days made sense. The tissue and blood samples, making him run into he was too tried, prodding him with the electrical stick to see how high his pain tolerance went. Which was a disappointment to them, he might have healed fast, but he still felt the typical amount of pain.

Then they had just started to put needles into his veins and pumped him full of things that burnt him from the inside out, they’d make large incisions his skin but only to let him bleed freely onto the floor.  This couldn’t be for any kind of scientific reasons.

“102.5” The first man said before sighing in frustration. “He’s sick…”

“Do you want to give him anything?” Another man asked, looking at Peter with something that almost seemed like worry.

“We don’t carry anything like that. Just go get a bucket of water and some towels.”

For a moment Peter thought they might be about to show him their first act of kindness towards him. He’d been so wrong though.

They pulled out the straps that they used for particularly painful things. Peter had grown very familiar with them over the last week. Then they forced him onto his back, wrapping the straps around him and tilting the metal table until it slanted downwards.

“What are you doing?” Pete asked, his voice filled with panic, they had never done this before.

“Stay calm,” One of the men said with an air of boredom about him. “You’ll make it worse.”

Then one of the men strapped his head down, something they really didn’t do often, and placed a towel over his face. He could no longer see anything, but his senses were blaring at him. Something bad was about to happen. Knowing that he couldn’t see what that bad thing was made it even worse.

Suddenly he was being smothered, water was flowing through the fabric of the towel and he couldn’t breathe. He was back under the water, back under the building, a place where he couldn’t breathe. He was drowning. The water was flowing into his lunges, he couldn’t cough it out and he couldn’t free himself despite how he flailed against and twisted against his restraints.

This was it, he was going to die, and he was going to die tied to a metal tabled surrounded by strangers. He’d failed everyone, he’d let them all down. He’d never get to see the tower again, he’d never get to see the Avengers one more time, he’d never have tea with Ms. Potts or play video games with Clint or run with Steve. He’d never get to hug Tony ever again. He had never even apologized to the man for getting them into this situation.  Just when he’d started to feel an overwhelming sense of acceptance it stopped, and the towel was pulled from his head.

He coughed and choked up the water left in his lungs when the bed was tilted up right again, but the main thing was that he was alive. He wasn’t dead.

“Please,” Peter begged, the tears streaming down his face. He hadn’t cried once since he’d been there, but this had been enough to break him this time. “Please let me go home, please I just wanna go home…I just want Tony.”

“Why are you crying?” One of the men asked, shaking his head at the teen. “Tilt the bed back again and get some new towels, we’ll be at this for a while.”

And then the process started all over again and every time Peter was sure would be the last.

It never came though, he didn’t die that day. At the end of it he was dried off and dragged back to his cell where he was shackled.

“Kid?” Tony asked as Peter slid down the wall. “Are you okay?”

Peter didn’t say anything. He simply stared ahead at the door.

“Peter answer me, are you okay?” Tony asked.

He had really thought they were going to kill him back in that room. He’d never felt it before like that. It was like the time the building had fell on top of him and he thought he was done for. Or when he couldn’t swim hard enough in the lake that day and a suit had come and rescued him. Expect nobody had rescued him back there. The water just kept filling his lungs, taking all the air from him and promising him that if he blacked out, he wouldn’t wake back up.

“Peter!” Tony all but yelled. “Kid what did they do?”

“I’m sorry,” Peter finally answered. “I’m sorry this is my fault. I should have listened, we wouldn’t be here if I had listened.” Peter mumbled, letting himself cry in front of the man for the first time. He’d done good at keeping tears away, especially in front of Tony, but he couldn’t stop them anymore. Just like he couldn’t stop them back in the lab. He didn’t have the energy it took. “I’m just really sorry.”

“No, Peter listen to me,” Tony said, sitting up straight and scooting as close as the chain would allow him to go. “That has nothing to do with what’s happening. Osborn is a sick man, Peter. You didn’t do any of this do you understand?”

Peter was quiet for a long time. Instead of answering, because he couldn’t believe what Tony was telling him, he closed his eyes. “I don’t feel good. I really wanna go home.”

“I know Pete, I promise you we’re going to get there. I promise it’s going to be okay.” Tony said, his tone gentle as he longed to just touch the teen, to hold him close and never let them touch him again.

“You promise?” Peter asked tiredly. He wanted to be reassured, even if it was a lie.

“Of course, I promise,” Tony whispered back. “What did I tell you when we first got here.”

“We wait.” Peter answered, not bothering to open his eyes.

“That’s right, we’re going to wait.”

“Okay.

Peter didn’t open his eyes again until he heard footsteps coming close once more. That’s right it was time to eat. As usual the guard opened the door enough to slide the food inside. This time however he only brought one tray with him and he slid it straight across the room to Tony.

Tony frowned when he realized that they hadn’t brought food for Peter. “Hey,” Tony snapped, stopping the guard before he could close the door. “Where’s the kid’s food?” He asked.

“I was instructed to bring one tray for you and that was it,” The guard responded coldly before slamming the door shut.

“Osborn!” Tony yelled, startling Peter for a moment. Tony glared up at the camera and yelled again. “I know you can hear me, what the hell is this about?”

A few seconds passed before either of them got a reply. That time the voice did belong to Norman himself.

“A new phase in the experiment. How long can our spider go without eating.”

“You can’t do this,” Tony argued. “You can expect me to eat in front of him. He hasn’t been eating enough as it!” Tony yelled. “He needs calories and protein and-and” Tony stumbled over his words as he grew more and more angry.

“Do you recall our last discussion, Stark?” Norman asked through the camera’s speaker. “I believe you found it very interesting.”

Tony did remember what they had talked about. If he didn’t stay compliant, Peter would get hurt. “Norman don’t do this. He’s hungry, I think he’s sick, something’s wrong…” Tony said, shaking his head. “He needs to eat.”

The other side of the camera was silent for a while before Norman spoke up again. “I would eat Stark, or tomorrow isn’t going to look much better for him.”

“It’s okay, I’m not that hungry tonight,” Peter mumbled which was true. He really didn’t have much of an appetite after everything that had happened. He was feeling more tired than usually and food wasn’t at the top of his priority list.

“Pete, I can’t do that,” Tony said, once again shaking his head. “You don’t understand.”

How could a parent eat in front of their child who had nothing?

“Please Tony, I’m really not hungry,” Peter said again. “I don’t want it anyway.” This time he was telling the truth.

“Are you feeling sick, kiddo?” Tony asked, trying hard not to let his voice shake. He knew something was wrong, he could feel it.

“I’m not hungry,” Peter insisted for a third time, sounding even more worn out. “You should eat though.”

“Listen to the boy, Stark. Eat…or you’ll be reminded of our talk.” The camera crackled again. Norman.

Tony closed his eyes and frowned before grabbing he usual orange and peeling it. They had to get out. And soon. He needed a plan, he needed to figure something out before it was too late.

***

Despite thinking for hours on end Tony still couldn’t come up with a way to get out. He knew the shackles were made of Vibranium. There was no way he’d be able to free himself, even if he did break his hand, he didn’t think it would be enough. Then he had to think about how he was going to free Peter with a broken hand.

That didn’t make him any less desperate though. A week had passed since they had stopped bringing him food. They’d come with water for the teen but even now he didn’t drink as much as Tony thought he needed to.

He’d tried again to share his food. When he said he couldn’t help it, he meant it. There was no way he could mentally, emotionally or physically deny Peter the food he had when the kid was starving. When he hadn’t eaten in days. How could anyone expect him to follow a rule that went against everything a parent was? Norman was sicker then he thought.

Tony had tried again, he rolled an orange over to Peter and insisted that he eat. “Peter you have it eat,” The man said, not caring that the camera was going off.

Peter was starting to get desperate himself. He’d been sick since they’d brought him back that day, but it seemed like the need to eat was outweighing everything else. Hesitantly he reached out, like he was afraid of what would happen if he touched the food.

Norman had made sure to give him a reason to be afraid. A few seconds later the door opened up and guard walked in wearing an irritated expression. Instead of making his way towards Peter he beelined for Tony.

Peter’s eyes opened wider and he looked more alert then Tony had seen him in the last few days. 

“You can’t ask me not to feed my kid,” Tony barked out, only to have a fist slammed into the side of his face. He gasped for a moment, brining his free hand to wipe the blood away from his mouth. His teeth had cut into his bottom lip with the force of the hit.

That was all it took for Peter though. Instantly the kid was yelling and kicking out at the guard, yanking on the chain harder than he ever had. He must have been a sight, his wild eyes and his almost nonsensical screaming and rambling. It was enough for the guard to give him a nervous look. Like he might be thinking about what would happen to him if that chain did break.

“Stop, you’re getting him worked up. He’s sick.” Tony said, trying to remain calm himself

“Follow the rules!” The guard ordered before grabbing the orange and slamming it back onto Tony’s tray. He walked back out of the room and slammed the door behind him in anger.

“Fuck,” Tony muttered while Peter dissolved into a coughing fitting. “Drink some water, Pete. It’s alright. Just drink something okay?”

“No, they promised,” Peter mumbled, shaking his head. “He promised.”

Tony frowned, wishing he knew what to do for Peter. “Who?” he asked. “Who made a promise?”

“Norman. He promised that he wouldn’t hurt you. I just had to listen. I’ve listened. I listen to them all the time,” Peter whimpered, rubbing his hands down his face, a sign of exhaustion.

“Peter…you don’t need to make those kinds of promises,” Tony mumbled softly. “You’re the kid, I’m the adult. I’m meant to look after you remember?”

“No,” Peter said, trying to get comfortable on the floor once again. He wrapped his arms around himself to try to keep warm. “You’re all I have. I can’t let you get hurt.”

“Hey, don’t think like that. You’ve got everyone on your side. No matter what you are never going to be alone,” Tony insisted. “Do you understand?”

Peter didn’t say anything for a long few moments before he finally whispered. “But you’re like my dad. You are my dad. I can’t let anything bad happen.”

Tony felt his heart ache all over again. “Yeah, and you’re my kid so I can’t let anything happen either.” It felt like it was a little too late to be making that promise though. “How are you feeling?”

“I’m tired,” Peter said. “I don’t feel very good,” he added after a bit. Tony wanted to cry. He knew Peter didn’t feel good, he’d been saying it for the last two days but there was nothing Tony could do for him.

“If I pass you this orange are you going to eat it. I’ll peel it and you can eat quick before they get back.”

“No, don’t,” Peter said, forcing himself to sit up straight again. “Please, please don’t that. I don’t want them to come back.”

“Pete you have to eat. I don’t care what happens to me. I’m worried about you,” Tony said, trying to keep the frustration out of his voice.

“I won’t do it,” Peter said before shaking his head. “Please, Tony. Please don’t do that I can’t. Besides, they’ll only make the time in the lab worse.”

“Peter please,” Tony sighed. “You have to eat.”

“I will!” Peter added quickly. “When we’re done waiting.”

Tony knew what Peter was implying. That once they were out of here Peter would eat. But Tony was so afraid that he wouldn’t last that long. He didn’t know how long it would be, but he knew Peter couldn’t take much more.

 ***
Morning came again despite how Tony tried to tell the guards that Peter was sick. It didn’t seem to matter to them because they hauled the kid to his feet and practically dragged him out of the room. A little bit later and they brought Tony breakfast again. He ignored it, refusing to eat. He can’t, it feels wrong in every sense. That morning he was too sick with worry to eat regardless.

It had fifteen days since they were captured, and Tony didn’t want to admit it but was starting to lose hope. It was getting harder and harder to see a way out of this.

In the lab Peter wasn’t holding up much better. He was too tired to pay attention to what they’re talking about, but he was too afraid to let his guard down.

“This looks really bad,” one of the scientists said. They were looking at his leg again and Peter knew it wasn’t good. It hurt to put weight on it and even he couldn’t ignore the infection in it. It should have heeled up by then, even with his impaired healing factor.

“Yeah,” another one agreed. “His blood pressure is low, and his fever’s high, he’s probably going septic from it.”

“You think he’s going to make it?”

They were talking about the probability of him dying right front of him. Like his life had no meaning, like he wasn’t capable of feeling fear, of feeling hurt, like he couldn’t feel at all.

One of the men glanced at him, like for a moment they saw him. Like they recognized he was a person. It didn’t last long though.

“It’s hard to tell. Look how out of it he is,” the other man said, grabbing a pen light and shining it into his eyes. “The guard said they had to drag him to us today.”

“I can hear you,” Peter hissed. Even to him though his voice sounded weak and rasped.

“We didn’t ask you,” the man said before looking towards another man in the room. “Report it to Norman and see what the assignment is for today. For now, we’ll start with solitary and audio. Powell, go get the box.”

The box. Peter had only been in it once before. A few days after they had first gotten there. He’d hated it knowing that they were going to put him back in it made Peter want to beg. He felt like an animal caught in a trap, willing to gnaw off his own leg if it meant he could be free.  

“No, not the box,” Peter said between a couple coughs. “I can’t do the box today.”

“You will do the box. Or your dad will get hurt,” The first scientist said, and Peter shrank back instantly. “We have no use for Tony Stark, he’s ordinary. Disposable. Norman said we can easily kill him and keep you.”

Peter kept quiet after that. He’d been hearing it for days now, but it never made the words any easier.

A few moments later the metal box was brought in, and Peter was instructed to get inside it. He was too weak to move quickly but a few yanks and slaps had him had him going as fast as he could to crawl in.

 It was small, just big enough for Peter to fit into while they placed a lid on top, trapping him inside. What was worse was the sharp high-pitched tone that played through the speakers inside the box. It was dark and all he could hear was that sound. Four hours they would play that sound.

He was able to tolerate twenty minutes but when the clock kept ticking away Peter found himself in the middle of a sensory overload. It was too loud, too small but no matter how he begged to get out they didn’t let him out.

Each moment afterwards was agony, he had started to wonder if his ears were bleeding or if they simply felt like they were.  
 
“Please!” Peter cried out, knowing that it was useless. It felt like his eardrums were going to rupture or maybe his head. He wasn’t sure which would happen first. He stayed there until he’d gotten sick on himself, throwing up nothing but water and bile. That was when they turned the sound off and hauled him back out of the box.

He thought maybe that would be the end of the experiments for the day, if he could even call them that anymore. Instead though they had taken him to a whole new room, one he hadn’t seen before and forced him to stand under the spray of freezing water.

“Your kid’s really sick,” Norman said as he pushed open the door to Tony and Peter’s holding cell. “He’s throwing up back there and everything.” The man’s expression mirrored that of fake concern and pity.

“He needs a doctor,” Tony seethed. He hadn’t seen Norman for some time and all he could think about was how he was going to kill the man if they ever made it out. “You’re starving him, his healing factor won’t work if he doesn’t have enough food.”

“I sort of figured that,” Norman agreed as he bent over to grab Tony’s uneaten tray.

“You figured?” Tony snapped.

“Yeah, I did do some actual blood work after all,” Norman laughed. “I got everything I needed to know in the first couple of days though. It doesn’t take much to get a good understanding of his physiology. He’s certainly an interesting little find.”

“So, all this has just been for the purpose of torturing him,” Tony stated, he’d already known that though.

“I think the first few days he believed me,” Norman sighed before looking at Tony. “He might even still believe me, but I doubt it. I told him all this was for the greater good, that we were going to do tests on him to improve lives. Really though? This has been about you all along Stark.”

Tony watched in apprehension as Norman started to pace the floor a few feet away from him. Part of him didn’t want to hear what the man had to say but he needed to. He had to know. “About me how?”

“I didn’t lie to Peter when I told him that all my research was gone…” Norman trailed off before he snapped his head back around to look at Tony. “SHIELD shut me down, but it didn’t happen until /you/ tipped them off. They came and seized everything, but they did it one year after Peter was bitten. Which is around the time he meets you correct?”

“You’re doing all of this because SHIELD took your work?” Tony asked.

“Did you or did you not tip SHIELD Off?!” Norman hollered. “When you found out just how the kid got his powers you told Fury and you know what he did?! He all but shut OSCORP down! It ruined me, it ruined the company, we barely have a leg to stand on. I went from leading the world in DNA and genetic advancements to practically selling 23 and Me Kits!” Norman scoffed before turning to Tony again. “All because of you.”

“Because it’s not ethical!” Tony yelled back. “Some 14-year-old was bitten in your facility and suddenly he’s got super powers? What part of that seems okay!? You were creating things that went against the laws of nature, altering DNA, some things need to be left along, Osborn!”

“You don’t get to decide what goes against nature, Stark! Despite what everyone thinks about you, you aren’t God!”

Tony stared down at the cement floor in despair before he looked back up at the man. “Norman please…” Tony said softly. Begging was the only thing left to do. “Please, he’s sick. He needs a doctor, he could die like this.”

“You don’t think I know that? That’s the whole point,” Norman replied. “What better way to hurt you then to hurt your kid? What better way to ruin you like you ruined me then to take your kid away from you?”

“I’m asking as a parent, what if it was Harry?”

If Norman was moved or compelled by the statement, he didn’t show it. Instead he gave a halfhearted smile at Tony before shrugging.  “Well it’s not is it? No, it’s your son. Throwing Harry’s name around isn’t going to change anything, we both know I’m not that kind of man.”

“Please, I’m begging you. I’ll do anything, keep me here, kill me, just let Peter go.”

“No. After this I’m going to let you live but it’s going be without Peter. Oh yes, Stark. You’re going a live a long long time. You’ll get to carry this memory around for the rest of your life.”

“Norman, look at it from a father’s perspective.”

Norman only smiled again “He’s not your kid. But that’s a sweet statement. So, because you asked so nicely, I’ll let you hold him when he dies. How’s that? His vitals aren’t there yet but they should be soon. He’s got a nasty infection. Oh, you know what I think you’d like Tony. How about I give you his baby teeth too, you know, for sentimental purposes.”

Tony was floored for a moment. “He’s 15, he doesn’t have any baby teeth,” he mumbled.

“Damn, they’re back there pulling the wrong ones,” Norman tutted. “Maybe if I hurry, I can stop them,” Norman laughed before giving Tony one final look as he headed out the door.

When they brought Peter back that afternoon, he mumbled a few garbled words to Tony before falling asleep, Tony tried to keep him awake and talking for a bit longer, but he was too out of it and his cheeks were swollen. The kid couldn’t even stay up long enough to answer Tony’s questions. Tony hoped that they didn’t really pull any of his kid’s teeth, but he knows that should be the least of his problems. They could fix that. If they ever made it out.

Peter didn’t even wake up the guard comes to bring a single food tray, it’s a first.

The take Peter with them a total of three more times and each time he comes backing looking far worse. Like he’s closer to…Tony can’t even think it.

 He pleaded and begged the guards not to take the kid, but they didn’t listen. He does everything he knows to do. In last ditch efforts, he offers them money, secrecy, anything they want. They don’t’ even bat an eyelash at Tony.

Peter would open his eyes and struggle to stand and follow them, but he was too weak, so they’d drag him along.

On the 19^th afternoon they brought Peter back but this time they don’t chain him up Instead they pushed him roughly into the room, causing him to stumble and fall before they slammed the door shut.

‘I’ll let you hold him when he dies’

“Peter!” Tony yelled, getting on his knees and crawling as close to Peter as he could. The teen seemed to realize that he wasn’t chained up this time and he crawls too. Reaching for Tony in a way that he hadn’t been able to before. “Hey, it’s okay, I’m right here. I’ve got you now,” Tony promised when he was finally close enough to help guide Peter to him.

“Never been on this side of the room before,” Peter mumbled as Tony pulled the kid into his side, holding him tight for the first time in days. Peter exhaled softly before nuzzling into Tony and closing his eyes once again. “I missed you.”

“I missed you too,” Tony said gently, resting his chin on the top of Peter’s head. “I missed you so much kid.” They had been in the same room for nearly twenty days, but Tony had missed Peter in different ways. He missed pulling the teen in for hugs every now and again, patting his back when he was proud, ruffling his hair when he’d done something mischievous or clever. He’d missed being able to physically touch Peter and comfort him in ways words couldn’t.

This was everything he’d wanted but he could hear Norman’s words in his head, playing over and over again. His welled burned with tears he wouldn’t let fall, not when Peter needed him.

Was this it? Were they finally cutting the last shred of hope Tony had been holding onto?

“It’s not so cold now,” Peter mumbled, leaning fully into Tony when he could no longer support any of his own. “It’s been really cold,” he explained.

“I know,” Tony whispered, his voice choking up. “I’m here now though, so you aren’t going to be cold anymore.”

Peter forced himself to open his eyes and look up at the other. “Are we still waiting?”

If Tony was honest? He wasn’t sure if they were still waiting or not. It didn’t feel like it. That wasn’t what the kid needed to hear though. If he could hold out hope for anyone, it would be Peter. It didn’t matter how faint the flame was, if there was life there then they were still waiting. “Yeah kid, we’re waiting.”

“You think…do you think we’ll wait for a very long time.” Peter asked, once again closing his eyes.

Tony forced himself to hold back the emotions. Instead he forced out more words, anything to reassure Peter. “No, Kid, I don’t think we’ll wait long at all.”

“Good” Peter whispered. “I was sick back at the lab,” he added. “But I’m feeling a lot better now that I’m here with you.”

Tony ran his finger through Peter’s oily and matted hair, remembering how soft and curly it usually was. Especially right after a shower. “Me too Pete.”

Neither of them said anything for some time, Tony had started to think that Peter had fallen asleep, but he eventually spoke back up. “Hey Tony?”

“Yeah Pete?” he asked, pulling him even closer.

“I love you,” Peter replied. “I wanted to say thanks for being my dad…even though you didn’t have to be.”

“Peter,” Tony mumbled. “I love you too but don’t thank me for those things,” he said urgently. “Don’t thank me for anything. We’re going to get home soon okay?” Peter had been the best thing that had ever happened to him. If anything, he should thank Peter for allowing him to fill that role.

“I know…” Peter trailed off. “I just wanted to tell you…you know, in case we didn’t,”

“We will,” Tony insisted. “Let’s talk about something else, okay?” Tony suggested before easing Peter into a new position. One where he could stretch out and rest his head in the man’s lap. Again, his fingers went to Peter’s hair, trying hard to tell him everything in the one simple touch. “Do remember the time we went out to Malibu?”

“Which time?” Peter asked tiredly, is eyes growing heavier as the seconds passed.

Tony laughed softly despite how he didn’t think he could stop himself from crying that time around. “The first,” Tony answered. “And we went to the beach and you loved it to so much. You got so excited about the sand dollars.”

Peter mumbled something but Tony couldn’t make it out. Instead he kept talking. If he kept talking, then maybe this wouldn’t be happening.

“We got there really late, but you demanded that we go to the beach, it was the first thing you wanted to do,” Tony said softly, letting himself break down on the inside all over again. “I didn’t think it was a big deal, because New York has an ocean, but you said this was different. It was different because this was a ‘Malibu beach’ and so we went, and we stayed there for hours.” Tony could practically smell the sunscreen he’d lathered all over the kid and the felt sun warming his skin.

Tony talked for as long as he could, he retold his favorite memories with the teen and went over every adventure he could think of. He talked way past the point of Peter falling asleep. Tony had to stop every couple of minutes, terrified that the extremely still teenager in his lap had stopped breathing. Peter kept breathing though and eventually Tony let himself fall silent.

He sat there with legs and arms that had fallen asleep, but the thought of moving hadn’t even crossed his mind. For all he knew this was the last time he’d ever hold Peter. He didn’t take his eyes off him after that, he watched him sleep and thought about Peter blowing out the candles on his last birthday cake. It had been a hard birthday without May, but things were getting better every day.

It seemed like everything was coming to an end now. And just what was he meant to do after it was all over? He didn’t know how he could ever find another reason to get up in the morning without Peter.

Peter’s breathing was getting shallower and Tony didn’t think he could hold the teen any tighter. “I love you kid, you know that? You know how much I love you right?” he whispered, hoping Peter could hear him.

Another silent hour passed, and Tony knew that Peter’s breathing would probably stop by morning.

The only thing that pulled Tony from his thoughts was the distant sound of screaming and gunfire.

***
His first thought was, ‘my kid is dying and his last moments shouldn’t be surrounded by gunfire,’ and then his second thought was, ‘this isn’t just gunfire, this is rescue.’ He hoped anyway.

Tony’s breathing picked up as does his heartrate, he held tighter to Peter in the event that this isn’t what he wants it to be. The shouting gets louder though, and Tony could almost make out a series of familiar voices. He didn’t know why but he was stunned when the door swung open and a group of people were suddenly filling the room.

Tony knows he knows these people, but it takes a split second for him to truly see them. It was like it took a moment for his eyes to sync back up with his brain. The moment it happened though he starts barking out orders.

“Take him! Take him now, he’s dying.” Tony demands.

“Get him to the jet I’ll get Tony,” Steve instructed while Clint runs up to grab the teen.

While Tony knew he’d just told them to take the kid, when Clint does grab Peter from him, picking him up and stepping aside for Steve, he’s filled fear. He’s torn between wanting them to get Peter out of there as fast as they can and wanting to take him back.

 “Barton,” Tony says urgently. “Get him out of here. If it comes between me and him, it’s him. If it comes between him and anyone else, it’s him.”

Clint opened his mouth like he wanted to say something but when he glanced down at Peter, he knew that they don’t have enough time to start that conversation. Instead the man turned to Natasha whose cool expression was starting to break. “I’ll cover you,” She nods and the two take off running down the hall.

 “Tony, move as far away from the wall as you can,” Steve said, giving the man a few moments to stand and stretch the metal that had been forcing him there for almost three weeks. In an instant a shield is cutting through it and freeing Tony.

Steve reached for the man’s hand, pulling him along. “Come on.”

“Wait…where…are we safe?” Tony asked, shaking his head. He had no suit, no armor, nothing that would keep him safe. He needed to live to make sure Peter lived.

“Everyone who was in the facility was already taken down. There were only seven people operating it,”

Seven people. That was it. That was all that had stopped him from getting Peter help faster.

Tony had all but forgotten they were still in New York when they climbed up flight of stairs to the roof. It felt like he’d been kept in the cell so long that spaces outside of it didn’t exist. His heart sored when he heard the sound of Quinjet even before he opened the door. For a moment he was afraid his brain was playing tricks on him but when he stepped out onto the roof, the jet was there.

He wasted no time in climbing in, he’d only admit later what a struggle it was. While he hadn’t been going through what Peter had, it wasn’t exactly summer camp. Nearly three weeks of sleeping on the floor had stiffened his joints and he too had lacked a few necessary vitamins from the food.

Inside Natasha and Clint were helping Bruce secure Peter to a stretcher. Bruce gave the orders while the other two followed. They were pulling out tubing and bags of saline and sterile bandages, they were huddled so close though that Tony couldn’t see what was happening. When he did get closer, he was quickly stopped by Steve.

“They’re working and we’re about to take off. Give them room, we’ll be at the compound in twenty minutes.”

Twenty minutes felt like hours, especially when there wasn’t anything, he could do but watch and hope that they’re efforts would be enough. Bruce kept reading off the vitals and asking for scans from Friday, none of which helped the journey. Broken bones, infection, dehydration, blood pressure dropping. It made a knot from in Tony’s throat as he listened.

“Tony sit down,” Bruce said firmly when Tony once again got closer. “I’ve got it, you can’t help right now.”

If only they had known how useless he’d felt the last few weeks, how he wanted nothing more than to help. He needed to help.

It took another fifteen minutes for Bruce to situate him but by that point they had already reached the compound. When they landed the medical team had been ready for them. Bruce and Steve had just gotten Peter wheeled out when they took over from there.

It felt like it was chaos all over again. Tony didn’t even have time to process the fact that he had been rescued. His only thoughts were of Peter.

“I want to go back there,” Tony snapped when one of the personal stopped him at the doors that separated the med bay with the rest of the compound.

The man held up his hand and shook his head, “Dr. Cho is suggesting you get a physical and then wait until the patient has been stabilized,”

“I’m fine, and that patient is my son. I want to be with him. So, you’re going to let me through.”

“Sir, they have a lot of things they need to do for him. He’s got broken bones and a life-threatening infection, it’s better if you wait,” the man said again, this time shaking his head. “I’ll have Cho or Dr. Banner come and talk to you as soon as they’re able to.”

“I’ve been kept away from him for days!” Tony shouted, gaining the attention of the rest of the team.

“And I promise you that you can see him when he’s been stabilized. They’re actively trying to save your son’s life. They need to work and you being there is going to make the process harder. Do what’s best for him.”

Tony opened his mouth to say something else, but a hand was placed on his shoulder and he was being pulled away from the large metal doors while the other man retreated through them.

“Tony, let them do their thing. You just got back, you need to be checked over by a doctor as well. Peter is in good hands,” Steve said gently, continuing to steer Tony away from the doors.

“Don’t tell me what I need,” the man all but hissed. “What I need is to see him. Instead I’m being told I can’t enter a unit in my own damn building.”

“I understand,” Steve added as he guided Tony towards one of the waiting chairs in the waiting area. “I imagine they’re going to bring you back there soon so they can look you over and then by that time they’ll probably allow you to see him. Bruce said he had some injuries they were going to have to correct, bones that didn’t heal right. I promise you the last thing they want is to keep you from Peter.”

Tony ran a hand over his face and heaved a sigh, “How did you finally find us?” He asked, “I’m not one to rush but it took a minute.”

“I did,” Steve admitted. “We looked day and night for you, we even had SHIELD on it. Oscorp had left your suits and your phones, anything that could have a tracker in it, in a warehouse 500 miles away from the actual location you were at. We even found Peter’s shoes there.”

“They had a chip in them,” Tony agreed.

“We caught the alligator hybrid Peter had been chasing earlier the week you went missing, turned it over to SHIELD. They couldn’t get much information form it, he didn’t really speak but it did know one word. Osborn.”

“The monster told you?” Tony asked in confusion.

“Hybrid,” Steve corrected. “Well…mostly. It’s more reptile than anything but it was making its way back to Oscorp when we caught it. We did a little more digging and realized that Oscrop had been closed to not only the public for the last three weeks but also to most employees. We took a guess and we were right.”

“Thank you,” Tony said eventually. “For coming.”

“You don’t need to thank us, we’re a team. We’ll also come for each other, Peter too.”

“I didn’t think he was going to make it,” Tony whispered. “I think he was dying.”

“We’re not going to let that happen,” Steve added firmly. “He’s safe now, you both are.”

***

“We’re going to put you on a saline drip to replace some of the fluids you’ve lost over the last couple of weeks. We’ll prescribe some mild pain medication and that should help some of the aches, other than that I think this can all be fixed with some bed rest and a few more proper meals,” Bruce said as he handed Pepper his full report.

 “And Peter?” The man asked form his own hospital bed. “I’ve been asking about him for an hour,”

“Tony you’ve only been back here for ten minutes,” Pepper sighed as she handed Tony his cup of water. “Drink you’re dehydrated.”

“Why do I need water if I’m going to get saline?” He argued only to be met with a firm look. He reluctantly took a few sips.

“Is there anything you can tells us about Peter’s status?” She asked with as much patience as she could.

Bruce’s expression fell a little, but he didn’t look overly devastated and Tony had taken that as a good sign. “Cho knows more than I do. I was only back there long enough to help get him stable and then I came back here to get you checked out. From what I can tell though he’s going to be okay, he’s pretty banged up but I think we’re in the clear now.”

Tony sat up a little straighter in bed before adding, “In the clear? What does that mean?”

“He’s not going to die, Tony,” Bruce deadpanned. “He’s got injuries and he’s sick so he’s looking at a lengthier stay here at the compound. The last I knew they were getting him to surgery to fix the bones that were broken, and he’s being given some serious antibiotics.”

“You’ve got antibiotics that work for him?” Pepper asked.

“They were last year’s project,” Bruce nodded. “Tony brought him for a check up and when I took the blood work, I got to work on them. We were originally just making fever reducers for him, but I figured we should start on things that he might need in the future.”

“Have I told you I loved you lately, Bruce?” Tony asked, finally feeling like he could relax some. “He’s really going to be okay?”

“Yes, I’ll let Cho talk to you about it more but from what I seen back there they had it under control. And no, I don’t believe you have.”

“Well I love you,” Tony mumbled. “How long until Cho comes?”

“Should be shortly,” the man added. “Now do you think you could sleep until she gets here or are you going to be up the rest of the night hitting the call light?”

“Get me hooked up to some fluids, bring the kid, and I promise you won’t hear another word from me.”

“I can get you some saline, but it might be a little bit before we can get Peter back in a room,” Bruce reminded him, but Tony shrugged.

“I can wait, until then I’ll just ring someone in here every couple of minutes to see what the hold up is.”

“Tony,” Pepper grumbled. “We’re fine Bruce. I think Happy and Rhodey are on the way, if you could just direct them back here when they arrive, we won’t be any trouble.”

“You won’t be any trouble,” Bruce said with a tired smile. “I don’t know about him.”

Tony did his best to pass the time. It was a little easier when Happy and Rhodey got there but not much. He picked idly at the cheese burger they had brought him. From Rhodey he’d learned that Norman Osborn was now in custody at SHIELD headquarters along with two other scientist who aided him throughout the ordeal. The other people though, four to be exact, had been killed in the fight.

Another couple of hours passed before finally Cho made her way back to Tony’s room.

“Hey, I heard you’ve been waiting a while to talk to me?” She asked with a small smile and a weary look on her face. “I’ve got some good news so don’t look at me like that.”

Tony realized he must have been giving her some kind of panicked expression. “Sorry, I’ve just been waiting a while, starting to get a bit nervous.”

The woman gave him an understanding smile. “He’s doing better. We started him on the enhanced antibiotics as soon as he got there. His vitals were bad, but we managed to get them in a better place.” She took a seat at one of the vacant chairs and continued.

 “We debated holding off on the surgery, but I figured we should go ahead. We had to reset bones in both arms and in one of his legs. There wasn’t anything we could do for his ribs, they’re fractured by his healing factor should start improving and he should start healing up. He lost a good deal of weight but we’re going to take care of that too. High calorie meals, some supplements, we might need to use a nasogastric tube at first but if he can eat and keep it down I won’t worry about it.”

“That’s good,” Pepper said nodding her head quickly. Tony could only agree.

“We cleaned and closed up any open cuts, there were a few but again, his healing is going to make quick work of that. He had water in his lungs too, do you know how that might have happened?” 

“Water in his lungs?” Tony asked. “No, I…I wasn’t back there with him during the day.” He explained. “They took him from me in the mornings and when he was brought back, he was hurt usually but he never told me much about what happened,” he mumbled. “Water in the lungs like he was drowning?”

Cho hesitated before nodding. “That’s usually how we get water in our lungs. I’m not sure what happened either, Peter will be able to tell you but I’m thinking something involving water happened. It gave him a respiratory infection but we’re also treating that. He’ll have some oxygen on for a while, but it’ll come off when he’s breathing better. After he’s been released, I can recommend a dentist for the back two morals they removed.”

Tony’s heart sank even further. Norman had talked about the teeth, but Peter had never confirmed it with him. This was how he was finding out that his kid’s teeth had been pulled.

He couldn’t wait to make Norman suffer for this.  

“When can I see him?” Tony asked.

“He’s in a room now so you can go see him, I’ll disconnect you from the drip and you should be good to go. Maybe only one at a time though?”

It wasn’t even a question on who would get to see Peter first.

“You know it’s going to be hell trying to get him away from the kid once he’s in there,” Rhodey added as Cho pulled on a pair of gloves so that she could start removing Tony’s IV.

pulled the needle out and pressed some gauze to the small wound in Tony’s arm before sending him a firm look. “I’d rather you spend the night in an actual bed.”

“I slept on a concert floor for the last three weeks. Reclining chairs are considered a luxury at this point,”

Nobody said anything at that, instead the room was filled with a thick silence before Cho spoke back up. “I’ll have someone bring you one. Just try to make sure you sleep. It’s important.”

“Is Peter awake?” Tony asked, disregarding the request as she placed a bandage on him.

“He was coming in and out of it, the sedative we used for the surgery was pretty strong so he’s going to be a bit hazy for a while.

Tony nodded again before he carefully hauled himself out of the bed. He’d gladly sit with his loopy kid for as long as it took. He had come so close to not having a kid to sit with that it didn’t matter.

“Well Tones, I think the rest of your night’s been booked up huh?” Rhodey asked.

“I imagine so, probably the rest of the week too,” he added lightly.

“We’ll be around, alright?” Happy said, placing his hand on Tony’s shoulders.

“I’m actually about to get their guest rooms set up for them. Tony I’ll be back later alright? Please try to take it easy and tell me how Peter is. Because I’m going to ask  you in next ten minutes so be by the phone.”

“I promise,” Tony added softly.

When he finally made it to Peter’s room it was dimly lit, and it looked incredibly sterile but functional. It wasn’t like the room he’d been in with amenities to make it more welcoming and comfortable. There were no beside tables or decorative pieces. Instead it was made up entirely of machines and equipment. The only thing that stood out was the reclining chair Cho had sent up.

That and Peter.

“Hey kid,” he whispered as he leaned over the beside carefully. He looked so small in his hospital gown and stark white bed. He was hooked up to more tubes and wires then Tony had ever seen him in despite how many times Peter had been in medical. This was the first incident that landed him in the critical side of the med bay. “I never want to see you in here again,” Tony said just as softly.

Peter didn’t stir though, not even when Tony carefully reached out to run his hand down the teen’s face. “You scared me so bad,” he mumbled. “But I promised you that if we waited, we’d be alright. And you’re going to be just fine.”

Tony watched him sleep for a while, his eyes flickering between the readings on the machines and then back towards Peter. For the first time in days he didn’t look like he was in too much pain, he looked peaceful even when he was covered in bandages.

“Everyone can’t wait to see you, so you get some rest for them, I’ll be here when you wake up,” Tony added softly before he pulled up chair just a little closer. Enough so that he’d he could reach out and touch the kid.

He lingered just a little longer, texting Pepper occasionally, and pulling Peter’s hospital blanket a little higher up on him before he finally took a seat.

Sleep didn’t come easy though. Every time he did manage to drift off, he’d hear footsteps outside the room or one of the machines would give an odd beep and he’d be wide awake. The first time he’d opened his eyes again he could have sworn he was still there at Oscorp. Then he’d look around and the events would come flooding back to him.

He made sure to send Fury a text, one that clearly insinuated that the raft was too good for the people who had hurt his kid but if death wasn’t an option then it was the next best place.

Tony tried to get comfortable again but it when he couldn’t-he eventually gave up. Instead he opted on scooting his chair just a little closer so that he could take Peter’s hand while he sat and waited for morning.

“Dad?” Peter asked and Tony jumped up.

“Kid?” he asked, leaning back over the bed. “Peter, it’s me…can you hear me?”

“Yeah,” Peter mumbled, his voice horse and weak. “Are we still waiting?”

“No, no,” Tony said softly as Peter opened his eyes to look up at him. “We’re not waiting anymore. They came and got us, everyone came and got us. We’re at the med bay in the compound.”

“Oh…that’s good,” Peter mumbled. His big brown eyes blinked slowly up at Tony before glancing around. “When are we getting out of here?”

“We just got here,” he laughed softly. Peter always had hated the medical unit. Tony’s eyes threatened to well back up because it was such a Peter thing to say. He had his kid back.

“We did?” he asked in confusion. His eyes were glazed over but they looked brighter then they had back in the cell.

“Yeah, they set your bones back in place for you and they’re giving you some medicine.”

“Did they give you medicine?” Peter asked, again blinking tiredly.

“A little bit, not much,” Tony hummed in response as he ran his fingers through Peter’s curls. As soon as this kid was feeling better, Tony was making sure they washed his hair. He’d probably feel so much better afterwards.

“Oh, that’s good,” Peter said again, tiredly nodding. “Are you okay?”

“I’m doing great, Kid. How are you feeling though?”

“I hurt a little bit…I’m thirsty,” he added after a bit of thought. Tony didn’t have to be told twice. He hit the call light and they waited for the nurse. “Don’t worry, I’ve got someone coming okay?”

“The Avengers?” Peter asked hopefully in his dopey state.

“They’ll all come see you tomorrow, probably with some Christmas gifts,” he hinted playfully.

“Did I miss Christmas?” Peter wondered, his eyes growing wide.

“Of course, not Pete, we made it back just in time.”

Peter didn’t know close he had come to dying and Tony didn’t think telling him right then mattered. All he needed to know was that they made it just in time.

“Oh, he’s up,” Cho said as she stepped into the room followed by another nurse. “Hey Mr. Parker, how are you feeling?” She asked, heading over to the machines to have a look. “You certainly seem better.”

“I’m thirsty,” Peter mumbled, trying to sit up some.

“Take it easy,” Tony muttered as he quickly eased Peter back down and instead raised the head of the bed some for him.

“We’re not ready for water just yet,” Cho said with a sad smile. “But we’ll get him some ice chips. His vitals are looking better, and his fever’s even gone down a little. Still up there but I think his healing is trying to kick back online.”

Tony breathed a genuine sigh of relief. “Thank God,” he said softly as he looked back over at Peter.

His eyes roamed the room curiously and he still seemed out of it, but Tony could tell he was coming around. “He mentioned that he was a little sore.”

“Yeah, I figured he might be. The sedatives and pain meds are wearing off, so I’ll bring him something for his IV. Those should help keep him out of any pain. Overall though he’s made more progress than I thought he would this fast.”

“You hear that kid, you’re healing up great,” Tony said smiling down at Peter and making sure he kept running his fingers through Peter’s hair.  Peter simply leaned into the touch and closed his eyes again.

Cho finished up in the room and the nurse returned with some ice for Peter along with the medication for the IV. When everything was set back up they both wished the pair a good night.

 “Alright kid, we got the good stuff,” Tony said as he raised Peter a little higher in the bed before dipping the spoon that was brought into the crushed ice and offering a bite to Peter.

The teen frowned before looking at Tony. “I can’t do it?”

“Do you want to do it with two broken arms?” He asked, eyeing Peter.

Peter thought for a moment before shaking his head and allowing Tony to give him a couple bites.

“Careful, we’ve got some teeth we have to replace,” Tony reminded him softly. Peter nodded and chewed hesitantly at the frozen chips. “Promise we’ll get it fixed for you in a couple days.”

“Are we going home soon?” Peter asked again afterwards.

“As soon as your released, Underoos,” Tony said reassuringly. “You missed home huh?”

Peter nodded tiredly again before taking the next bite Tony offered him. Tony watched fondly as the teen chewed slowly at the ice. He swallowed before going on to say, “I missed you the most though. I was really scared.”

Even though Tony had been right there he understood what Peter had meant by missing him. He’d missed Peter too. Instantly he brought his hand back up to Peter’s hair and ran his fingers through it comfortingly. “You don’t have to be scared anymore.”

“I wasn’t scared for me, I was scared they’d hurt you.”

They had hurt Tony more then he could ever put into words, but he would heal.  Peter was alive and he was with Tony and nobody would ever take him away again.

“We’re okay,” Tony whispered. “I’m fine, better than ever. Cho even said so,”

Peter nodded once more, like he was satisfied that he’d done a good job. Tony never wanted the kid to put himself first again, but Peter was already nodding back off, it was a conversation best left for another day. He was sure there would be plenty of tough conversations in the following days but like everything else, they could wait.

Without Tony realizing it Peter had managed to scoot over to one side of the bed and was then glancing down at the vacant spot. “Can you stay with me?”

“I am saying with you, kiddo,” Tony clarified but he could sense that this wasn’t the answer Peter had wanted.

Peter looked back down at the empty spot before his eyes found Tony’s again. “No here.”

“In the bed?” Tony asked with a slight frown, there are so many wires and tubes that he was scared he’d rip something or cause more harm the good.

“Please?” Peter asks softly, he looked sadly at Tony like he was afraid he might actually be told no.

“Don’t you need the space kid, I want you to be comfortable.” Tony asked. “I’ve got a great chair over here that I’m doing good in.”

“Oh…” Peter mumbled. “It was just cold, and I thought…I always feel better when you’re close. Makes me feel safer,” Even though his kid was drugged up he still knew just what to say to pull at Tony’s heart strings.

“Alright kid but if it gets uncomfortable and you tell me,” Tony replied as he slipped his shoes off and tried to maneuver as carefully as he could into the bed. He was thankful that the beds here were larger than at the typical hospital. Still they weren’t all that big and it was still a squeeze.

Suddenly though he had Peter pressed right up against him, doing his best to cuddle in next to the man without moving to much of his own body. Tony could tell it was somewhat of a struggle and he carefully helped Peter rest against his chest. Finally, Peter sighed in content me before closing his eyes again. “Better,” the kid mumbles tired.

Somehow the teen had managed to find the perfect way to nestle into Tony despite the size of the bed. Tony wondered if it was because of how much weight he’d lost but overall, he decided that Peter would have been able to make the squeeze happen regardless. He was good at making himself into to places like that.

Just when Tony thought the kid had fallen asleep, he opened his eyes again and stared at Tony for a moment before speaking. “I need to go home soon if it’s Christmas,”

“You love the compound, I know you hate the medical unit, but you’ll be out of here before you know it. Everyone is going to come and see you tomorrow and you won’t even be able to think about where you are” Tony hummed, wondering if the events had left Peter feeling a psychological sense of urgency to be returned home as soon as possible. He didn’t want to deny Peter anything after everything he’d been through, but this was a bit of a mandatory stay. “And as soon as we get there, you’re going to open all your gifts and we’re going to do all kinds of Christmas things.”

“Yeah but if it’s Christmas I need go home and get your gift. It’s under my bed, I hid it,” Peter said through his drowsily state.

“You’re in a rush to get home to get my gift?” Tony asked, surprised that this was what the urgency was about.

Peter nodded slowly against Tony’s chest. “I don’t like medbay but it’s better then the cell and you’re here, but I spent all November trying to pick something for you. I mean I thought really hard about it.”

Tony laughed softly before running a hand down Peter’s face tenderly. “You didn’t need to get me anything, kid. You’re here, that’s the best gift I could ever want.”

He had his kid and he’d be okay now. When he had Peter with him there wasn’t anything else in the word he could need.

“Still got you something…” Peter trailed before closing his eyes again. Tony could tell he was definitely falling asleep that time around. “Good night, Dad. I love you. You’ll be here when I get up right?”

“Good night, I love you too Pete. Get some sleep,” Tony said softly. “I’m not letting you out of my sight kid.”

It might not have been the kind of Christmas Tony had planned for, but he couldn’t recall ever being more grateful before.

They’d both be so exhausted in the morning that they wouldn’t even notice when Pepper walked in and got something, she considered to be one of the most heartwarming photos she had on her phone.