Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Tony looked at the thing across the table. He was caught between laughing and crying. He settled for staring. Between the fluffy curls and brown eyes, there was no mistaking what or who it was.

Honestly, Peter Parker was a danger magnet and ended up in drastic situations. The situations before could be handled, albeit tedious. The lack of thermoregulation lead to a heater in his suit, heightened sight required special sunglasses, and even the nightmares after the Vulture was basically solved by late night movies and a therapist.

But now, not even Tony Stark knew what to do. What was he, a billionaire, playboy genius, and superhero, supposed to do with a spider teen that had been reduced to a less than three-foot, spider toddler?

What the fuck was he supposed to do?

He sighed and ran his hands through his hair. Tony was on the brink of letting his anxiety take over if it weren't for the child in front of him. "Okay, Peter, explain this to me one more time."

Peter looked at the clock hanging on the wall of his chemistry classroom, then banged his head onto his desk for the umpteenth time.

His mind wandered as his last teacher of the day droned on about the colligative properties of solutions. For a concept he basically exploited everyday to replenish his web fluid, he wanted nothing to do with the lecture.

Today was Friday, which meant lab time after school. Happy would pick him up from his apartment tonight and ship him off to the Avengers Compound. For the entire weekend, he'd spend hours alongside Mr. Stark improving their suits, inventing new solutions for Stark Industries, or simply tinkering.

Last time, they'd added several more web shooter combinations accessible via KAREN which Peter longed to try. He'd patrol before Happy picked him up.

Mr. Stark also mentioned something about a visitor coming that he wanted Peter to meet. He was cryptic, making Peter anxious to meet said person.

The bell rang and the students hurried to put away their things, excited for the weekend to start.

"You losers still up for a movie night on Sunday?" MJ asked as the infamous trio of friends walked to the front of the school together.

"Yeah, my mom said she can have you guys come over around 5 and we'll order pizza." Ned confirmed, "Will you be done with your internship by then, Peter?"

"Of course, I should be done by noon anyway."

"We are not watching any Star Wars this time." MJ declared as they claimed a bench near the pickup area.

"What?" Ned was confused, "Why not? They are the best movies ever created and must be honored properly with marathons."

"No offense, but I can only sit through so many space battles."

"You've insulted Lukas Films." Peter pointed out. "And nearly all fans of space-themed movies. That's about half the population, MJ. That's a lot of enemies."

"They can fight me."

"You're on your own," Ned said as stood up and waved towards the line of cars. "My mom's here, I gotta go. See you guys, Sunday!"

MJ looked up and saw her parent's car too. "Same. Bye losers!"

After quick goodbyes, Peter watched his friends drive away. That was his cue.

Peter ran into the nearest alleyway and emerged minutes later as the friendly, neighborhood Spiderman. He shot a web upwards, launching himself into the air. Peter swung towards the heart of the city, above the bustling crowds and cars.

His visual display lit up in recognition. "Welcome back, Peter. How was school?"

"Good, can you set a reminder for half an hour before Happy is going to pick me up today."

"Of course."

"Thank you, KAREN!"

He whooped and hollered, swinging around the corners of skyscrapers and diving over subway trains. Peter flipped onto the roof of a nearby condo complex. It wasn't the tallest building but overlooked a park Uncle Ben used to take him to.

He watched children play on the jungle gym and couples get ice cream. There were dogs chasing balls and frisbees and, at times, their owners. People were out jogging, roller skating, and biking. It was a pleasant feeling to know that there could be a little kid enjoying a day at the park like Peter had when he was younger.

All content feelings were washed away when he heard felt his Spidey Sense flare.

"KAREN, scan the area."

He looked around the rooftop and saw nothing, not even a flying pigeon. Peter searched his surroundings, all sides of the building. Besides a lost dog eating a sand which out of a trash can, he came up empty handed.

"There is nothing unusual within a mile radius of you, Peter."

His Spidey Sense had been wrong before. It once made the hairs on the back of his neck stand up during his physics class. He frantically looked for anything that might be dangerous, the only thing he saw was the physics unit test in front of him. Moments later, his teacher stood up and knocked over his water bottle. There was a loud crash and he apologized before putting it back and writing free-response questions on the board. Peter didn't consider either of those things to be a threat on any level. The day continued normally, Peter was confused but everything was fine.

Mr. Stark teased the idea of puberty screwing with him and his powers as he got used to his spidery counterpart.

So, he assumed his Spidey Sense was just messing with him. He shook his head in an attempt to relieve the tingling sensation at the base of his skull.

It was a quiet afternoon, with very little crime for the local superhero. This meant the rooftop above the park was now covered in loose webbing.

"Alright, KAREN, try the web grenade setting with 30% electricity and 45% elasticity."

Peter aimed and added another splash of white to the concrete roof. It was flimsy and crackled into pieces, the electrical current was broken within seconds.

"One more time and we'll move on. Please lower elasticity to 40%."

KAREN spoke up, "Happy will be picking you up in a half an hour, Peter. You should get going to or face his lecture."

"Okay, okay, let's go."

Peter walked to the edge and leaned back. He became weightless for a moment before catching and pulling himself back up.

"You realize you only had 0.6 seconds until smashing onto the floor." KAREN chastised.

Peter couldn't hold back the snarky remarks. "That means I had 0.6 seconds to spare."

"You were also 0.6 seconds away from me contacting FRIDAY."

"Touché. Are you and FRIDAY friends?"

"In a way. We are close, yes."

"Do you talk about me? I hope you say good things. You guys must have some good gossip."

"Yes, I tell her about the times you were 0.6 seconds away from becoming a Peter pancake."

"Hey! I thought we were friends, KAREN. Snitches get stitches." He smiled at his AI's personality. Peter could practically hear her smirking back. "Plus, I'm still-"

Peter felt one of his webs snap. He scrambled to shoot another, catching himself halfway to the ground. "-in one piece." He finished.

Peter slid to the ground, landing on an empty street corner. Judging by the familiar sites, he was close to his apartment. He fiddled with his web shooters for a minute, making sure all was intact.

He felt a prick on the back of his neck, then someone from behind putting him in a headlock. Peter threw them off with ease and narrowed his eyes at the attacker.

Who was dumb enough to attack Spiderman so openly in broad daylight?

Peter lunged at the attackers. He simply took a step to the side and Peter landed on the grimy New York road. The hero's vision tunneled and grew blurry. His limbs felt weighted down by lead and he struggled to push himself back onto the sidewalk.

Apparently, this guy knew what he was doing?

Through the slits of his eyes, he saw a man above him who held him down with a foot. The man tapped an empty syringe in his face and clicked his tongue. "Silly Spider."

Peter's world went dark and he slipped out of consciousness.

Meanwhile, Tony Stark was in his lab elbow-deep in the works of a drone. After a recent meteor shower, he was determined to replace and improve its sensors before sending it back up to orbit.

Dumb space rocks were not going to get in his way.

"Sir, there is an incoming call from Happy Hogan." FRIDAY interrupted. "May I put him through?"

After the billionaire made a noise of affirmation, Happy's voice was throughout the lab and laced with annoyance. "Hey Tones, where's the kid? I've been here for half an hour, normally he's running to the car. His aunt says she hasn't seen him since he left for school."

Dumb kids, however, might get in his way.

"What do you mean?" Tony pushed the drone to the side, wiping the excess grease and oil off his forearms. "Have you asked KAREN?"

"She's not responding. We don't know where he is."

Stark felt the initial panic set in. Peter would never miss a lab day at the compound nor deliberately turn off KAREN. "Okay, I'll track him down. Stay there. I'll let you know when I have something." The call ended. "FRIDAY, where is he?"

"He's on the corner of Parsons Blvd. and 45th Ave."

"Alright." He let his armor form around his body. It was the quickest way to get there, especially with New York's traffic. He was out the door in seconds, flying towards Queens. "ETA, girl?"

"23 minutes and counting."

"'N now I am 'ere." He finished.

Although this was no laughing matter, Tony couldn't help but smile at Peter's babbling. It was downright amusing. The best part was that Peter didn't seem to notice the slight lisp and mispronunciations of his younger self's voice.

It seemed as if Peter's body was just younger for he still has the memories and mental state as before. FRIDAY confirmed, after a quick scan, that he was in good health too. Unfortunately, the muscle memory for speaking wasn't as developed.

"Do you have any inclination as to how to turn you back to your normal, hormonal, teenage self?" At Peter's negative response, Tony let his head fall to the table in defeat. "Okay, then we'll start to figure it out. You were injected, right? Maybe if we find out the extent of the effects chemically, we can reverse or remove them. C'mon."

The billionaire began to pull up blue holograms with FRIDAY's help when he heard a grumble. He looked over at the toddler who was furiously blushing as he held his stomach, a weak attempt to quiet it.

Tony noticed the time and shrugged. Chemical reversals were typically a quick task. "How about dinner first?"

Peter nodded with a shy smile before beginning to slide off the table, crawling down the leg with the help of his sticky hands. It was reassuring to know he still had his powers. Then again, that meant a super-powered toddler. They'll have to run more tests on that later.

Tony took slow steps for his one stride was four wobbly steps for Peter and held open heavy doors all the way to the common rooms. He made sure to watch the boy carefully, not wanting him to fall or get lost in the compound. He didn't know how long peter would be like this either but knew he needed some supplies like fitting clothes; basic necessities. The shirt and remaining boxers would not last and they had little to no leads on a solution. A note was made to FRIDAY. It'd be a new experience taking care of a toddler for a little while, he hoped to have answers soon.

His train of thought was broken by his wife, "Tony!"

Pepper must have just gotten back from the tower, hair down and business attire rumpled. She was sitting on the couch staring at the small child who was now hiding behind Tony's legs at the sudden outburst.

"Who does he belong to, Tony? I swear this isn't a funny joke!" She spoke loudly with a tone of authority that made Stark Industries investors crumble to her demands. Even Tony felt himself cringe at the accusations.

No wonder the spider kid was hiding.

He clarified quickly. "No, no, this isn't a joke nor whatever you think it is. This is Peter, Peter Parker."

"Your intern? As in Spiderman? The vigilante in Queens?"

"How many Peter Parkers do I know, Pep? I found him like this after his patrol this afternoon."

"He's so small."

"I don't know how he ends up in these situations. He's gonna give a heart attack one day." He looked down at the spider child, "Petey? You remember her?"

The boy nodded and pointed at her with a toothy grin. "'Epper!"

She got up and crouched by Peter to get a better look. The boy still wore his oversized clothes from the transformation. The science pun on the front gave it away. Stark was not a tall man yet Peter barely made it to about his hips. His hair had more curls than before and his brown eyes were innocently expressive. "Tony, he's adorable."

"That's what I thought too." The man chuckles. "Yeah, figured he'd have you wrapped around your finger at first look. Kid's lucky."

She playfully hits him as she gets up. "As if he hasn't already done that to you."

Peter's stomach interrupts the moment once again, he blushes furiously. He hates to be so needy to the people who are already helping him get back to normal.

"Dinner requests?" Tony asks the group.

"How old is he? I don't want him to choke or otherwise not eat well."

Tony hadn't thought of that. "FRIDAY?"

"According to Peter's dental records after a brief scan, he is approximately two to three years old. He should be able to eat most things as long as they are cut into small pieces.."

"Perfect, you can still have solid food. Congrats, kid." He jokes but Peter only looks guilty and is unusually quiet. The genius should have known he'd still have his guilt complex towards getting help from others. The spider kid must be overwhelmed. Tony could sympathize. "Then I know just what to make. It'll take a little while if you can hang on. That okay?"

Peter nodded and followed Tony to the nearby kitchen. The man started to get out several boxes and jars labeled with various spices and ingredients. The fully stocked kitchen at the compound was a luxury Tony rarely got to enjoy. He practically lived off of coffee and takeout for convenience.

It was a wonder Tony never stepped on Peter. The boy stayed close, following his mentor. Eventually, he found his way onto a stool so he could finally see what Tony was doing on the tall counter.

It became a game that whenever the man looked away, Peter would steal a bite of something. Pepper joined them later in casual attire; she sat next to Peter and helped steal ingredients too. Whether it be cheese or basil leaves, Tony quietly made sure to cut more than he needed for the thieves across the center island. He kept looking over his shoulder dramatically though, making faces at the two's childish behavior.

Peter's giggles were infectious. He was quiet and understandable cautious at first but now looked like a carefree, happy kid sitting next to his wife. Tony knew he wasn't the most certified for child care, but he'd do his best. God, everything was so domestic. He was going soft.

"Alright, dinner is ready," Tony announced.

Peter fist-bumped the air and climbed down his stool as he shouted, "Yes!"

"Thank you for not starting another house fire, honey." Pepper quipped, "It smells fantastic though, what is it?"

"That was one time, it wasn't even my fault. It's Maria's Ravioli. You've had it before, Pep."

"Right, it's delicious." At Peter's confused look, Pepper continued. "You'll love it, Peter. It's pasta."

Apparently, that was a good enough answer for Peter because he began to dramatically demand said ravioli for his hungry three-year-old body.

Three bowls topped with sauce and grated cheese ready to go, they collected at the large dining table. Tony could barely remember the last time that table was used.

"Do you like it?"

The boy nodded furiously, cheeks full of pasta and hands stained with sauce. Peter decided early on it was much easier to eat without a fork. "M'ster St'rk, I didn't know you could cook. T'ank you!"

"You're welcome, it's a good thing for you I can." Tony said with a smile. "I used to eat this meal when I was younger, figured it'd work for you."

"Your mother must have had a tolerance for a mess then." Pepper tried to wipe Peter's face and hands as much as possible. Mr. Stark rolled his eyes, it was inevitable. Uncoordinated toddlers and red sauce do not mix. The oversized t-shirt and boxers Peter wore were most likely ruined. "Do we have any fitting clothes for him?"

"Not yet, FRIDAY?"

"Peter's supplies with be coming in about an hour."

"You are a godsend FRIDAY, thanks, girl. That gives us enough time to clean up." Tony prompted. "Let's go, Pete."

The boy handed his bowl to Pepper before rushing to follow his mentor. They went to Peter's room, a guest suite that slowly collected his things. Between overnight stays, injuries from patrol, and lab days after school, it didn't hurt to leave a room available.

Tony started filling the bathtub with warm water and added Pepper's bubble solution. He turned to the uneasy spider child beside him. "Ready?"

At the lack of response he sat down next to the boy and continued, "Look, I don't like this just as much as you. As a toddler, you need help. Sorry, I'm not gonna have you drown or slip and fall. I don't know how to explain that to your aunt on Sunday. It's okay to ask for help too, no one will be upset or bothered. I'm only here to help."

Peter nodded silently and attempted to take off his large shirt. Tony watched with amusement. The boy had managed to pull it up to his neck, struggling to pull it up and over his head.

The man had to bite his tongue not to laugh at Peter's honest attempt at being self-sufficient. "Petey, would you like some help?"

"No."

At this point, the boy was stuck. The shirt around his face left the boy blind as he squirmed to free his arms.

"You sure?"

"Yep."

Peter straightened up to try and wiggle out of this damn shirt. His uncoordinated, younger body was not helping though. He moved his arms as much as he could to pull at what fabric of the shirt he could grab. All of the swaying and squirming caused him to stumble around like a headless chicken until he finally lost his balance. Fortunately, Peter fell directly into Stark's lap.

The boy made a noise of defeat. "Please help me, M'ster St'rk."

Peter could see Tony's smirk as he pulled off the shirt with ease. Followed by his boxers, Tony grabbed a blushing Peter by the armpits and carefully placed him into the bathtub.

The toddler was immediately captivated by the soapy water. Peter tried to grab the bubbles with his hands, grinning when they floated with the ripples in the water or suddenly disappeared.

Tony got to work quickly. He massaged shampoo and conditioner into the boy's soft hair and rinsed, careful to avoid anything getting in Peter's eyes. The little spider was rather cooperative with the whole process, obediently tilting his head or offering a limb.

Then, he lathered the boy up in soap to remove the remaining mess of dinner. As a toddler, Peter was simply fascinating to watch and Tony couldn't help but stare when he finished.

Peter splashed around in the tub, giggling to himself and managing to hold a few bubbles in his hands. He practically squealed in delight when he clapped his hands together and saw the bubbles disappear or fly back into the water.

The genius couldn't think of any other word to describe Peter right now besides 'cute'. He'd never of thought he'd ever call something cute, especially a person. Yet here he was smiling alongside a three-year-old Peter Parker.

He got out his phone and took pictures. They would become great blackmail for embarrassment purposes later. His father would laugh at him, but right now Tony found he cared much more about Peter's approval than Howard's.

Stark placed a dollop of bubbles onto the boy's nose to get his attention.

Peter went adorably cross-eyed before rubbing them away and looking up at the man. "All done?"

Tony nodded and lifted him out of the bath and onto a white, fluffy towel on Tony's lap. He wrapped Peter in the towel, squeezed him for good measure, then brought part of the towel up to dry the boy's hair. Peter laughed when Tony made faces at him as he made his hair go crazy with a speedy towel dry.

Practically swaddled in the towel, Peter was taken to the common room. With another happy squeal, Tony dropped him onto one of the large couches next to Pepper with several boxes.

"The demon is now clean! I've done my job! I deserve an award." Tony announced dramatically.

"He's not a demon." Pepper replied as Tony pecked her on the cheek as he joined her near the boxes. "Everything arrived while you two were gone. It should be enough for a couple days, we can always order more if needed."

Tony opened one of the boxes and got a playful glint in his eyes. "Thatta girl, FRIDAY. Alright, Peter, let's get you into some clothes for the night."

Peter let the billionaire help him into a soft, footed onesie. He grumbled about the baby clothing until he noticed the familiar red and gold design. He froze, the fanboy inside Peter was screaming.

"I am I'on Man." Peter said breathlessly. Then he grinned up at Tony and happily chanted his hero's signature line over and over again. "I am I'on Man! I am I'on Man!" The spider was practically jumping up and down with excitement on the couch. Pepper had to put a hand on Peter's back to make sure he didn't fall over.

Tony's was surprised by the boy's sudden outburst of pure excitement. Apparently, his toddler body's emotions were more relevant towards mood swings than he first thought. It seemed his teenage counterpart took a backseat for a minute.

Tony decided to play along anyway. "Are you a fan of Iron Man, Petey?"

"Uh huh." Peter stopped bouncing and sat next to Tony. "You are my fav'rite, Mis'er St'rk!"

"And why is that?" He grinned.

"I'on Man has gaun'lets 'n flyin' boots 'n FRIDAY. You got BARF 'n tech ta help other people. St'rk Indust'ies has clean en'rgy with the arc reactor 'n charity with no weap'ns." Peter rambled like it was the most obvious thing in the world. " You're a genius 'n you help me ev'ry day. He'oes help people. You're my he'o."

Tony went silent. Usually, he made fun of the hero worship, but Peter truly looked at him like he hung the stars. He wasn't sure if he deserved that.

"Iron Man is pretty cool but my favorite is Captain America." Pepper claimed. Thank god for Pepper.

Peter looked shocked. "How dare you?"

"He's saved tons of people throughout history. I'm also sure he punched Hitler in the face."

He'd have that anxiety attack later, away from Peter. Tony cleared his throat and felt the need to defend himself. "Traitor!"

"But I suppose Iron Man and his family did make his shield. And Cap wouldn't be Captain America without his shield" She rolled her eyes and gave a reassuring smile to her husband. "So I've changed my mind! Iron Man is my new favorite."

Peter seems satisfied with her answer. It was justified. He turned to Tony and asked, "Whose your fav'rite, M'ster St'rk?"

"Spiderman. He has super strength just like Captain America. But, Spiderman made his own webs. He cares for the little guy too and not just big threats. I hear he's a really nice guy."

Peter blushed at the compliments and found himself yawning widely. He quickly covered his mouth with his hands in surprise. Why was his body so tired? He'd just sat around the latter portion of the day.

"Alright, bedtime for spider children." Tony clapped his hands and stood up. “C’mon Underoos.”

“Not t’red.” Peter folded his arms across his chest looking even more so like the petulant three-year-old he was. However, another yawn escaped.

“Liar.”

Tony picked up the boy by his waist, careful not to hold him too tight. He kept one arm underneath the boy’s tush at all times and wrapped an arm securely around Peter’s midsection. Tony hoped he was holding him right.

If he was able to put a teen hellbent on burning himself out in the lab to bed, then Stark could put a fussy toddler to bed.

Tony began to walk with Peter throughout the compound.

They walked towards the main entrance, covered in floor-to-ceiling windows. Tony let Peter look out onto the driveway and various planters lit up by garden lights. The
open grass fields nearby were empty and several parked vehicles remained motionless. It was quiet and peaceful: a distinct contrast from the nights Peter spent on top of buildings above the city of insomnia.

Tony and Peter wandered around the entry room. The man’s gait was slow and even as he cradled Peter. The constant motion and peaceful atmosphere were enough for Peter’s body to go limp in Tony’s arms.

The billionaire filed the moment away as a personal success.

They headed back to Peter's room, only across the hall from the Starks' room.

While balancing a toddler in one arm, Tony made a nest of pillows on Peter’s large bed. It wasn’t a long-term solution but would insure Peter couldn't roll off. That three-foot drop onto the floor would probably be devastating to a three-year-old.

He carefully laid down the boy and tucked the sheets around him. Peter instantly nuzzled further into the soft material.

It was amusing to see a sleepy Peter, his teenage self had shut up a while ago and his younger self took over. His thumb had already made it into his mouth and he unconsciously suckled. The kid's eyelids grew heavier by the second; they were practically closed.

Tony had FRIDAY take pictures which were immediately sent to his phone. He ran a hand through Peter's soft baby hair, biting his tongue. It was hard to resist the paternal instincts that rose seeing his protégée like this.

"Goodnight, Petey." He whispered.

The spider child mumbled back some incoherent response. It caused Tony to chuckle softly before keeping the boy's door open just a crack. With a warm, fuzzy feeling his chest, he left.

Tony joined Pepper on the floor of the common room, surrounded by cardboard boxes. She was folding the rest of Peter's clothing and organizing other supplies. Tony was amazed at how small teenage Peter's shirts and pants were when they went through the wash, but toddler Peter's clothing was even more so.

FRIDAY had ordered a few plain sets of shorts, vests, socks, shoes, shirts, pants, jackets, underwear, etc. that would last for while. They didn't know how long Peter was going to be like this. There was also a plastic set of dinnerware and some colorful sippy cups. His AI had even taken the time to get a set of wooden blocks and simple toys for Peter.

"He asleep?" Pepper asked.

Tony nodded and showed her the picture of the sleeping boy.

His wife smiled as she went back to folding clothes. "You're good with him."

"Sometimes."

Tony never even mused the idea of having children. Now here he was, supposed to take care of a spider toddler.

"I'm scared," Tony admitted as he fiddled with a wooden toy block.

"What for?"

"I don't want to screw this up, Pep."

"You've always had Peter's best interests at heart. To be fair, you're the closest thing to a father he's had in a while."

"I'm not his dad. I'm the last person who should be taking that role. Especially for Peter."

Pepper huffed. "I disagree. He looks up to you regardless of what you may think."

"That's the problem."

"So what? I'm not sure you get a choice, Tony."

"What if I end up like Howard!" Tony said with a harsh tone, albeit harsher than he intended. He took a minute to collect himself. "Sorry, I just don't know what I'm doing."

"That's okay, I'm not sure anybody has childcare perfected," Pepper reassured. "Plus, there is a very big difference between you and your father. One of you cares more about other people than themselves. That goes far in the long run."

"I guess." He threw the wooden block into a bin with the others.

"You support him, Tony. You can't deny it."

"True."

"And you are giving Peter the best support that you can give. It means a lot."

"Is that enough though?"

"Are you blind?" Pepper threw an empty cardboard box at her husband. "You have eyes, genius! Use them!"

"I have 20/20 eyesight, thank you very much." Tony shrugged off the box and anxiety. "Thank you, Pepper."

"Yeah, I know. Without me, you'd be in an insane asylum hitting yourself with a wrench." She teased and took Tony's hand, gently thumbing his calloused knuckles. "It's going be okay, alright? You aren't alone, we'll do our best."

Tony nodded and leaned in for a kiss. It was short and sweet, but the gratitude and loyalty behind it were meaningful.

After they pulled away, Pepper asked, "Can I assume you're heading to your lab, or are you going to surprise me this time and try out a normal sleep schedule."

"Ain't no rest for the wicked, Pep." Tony said as he got up. "I want to research everything I can on growth and regression while Peter is asleep, then we can start testing tomorrow. I'll make it quick."

"Fine." Pepper relented as she stood up and met Tony's lips once more. "Goodnight."

Tony escorted her to their room, then check on Peter who was thankfully sound asleep. He made his way down to the lab, asking FRIDAY to pull up research material. Tony flopped into a swivel chair and was greeted by numerous blue screens.

The man joined Pepper a couple of hours later, hoping the entire day was a bizarre dream.

Chapter Text

Peter squinted at the morning sun that leaked from behind his windows' curtains. With a large yawn, he rubbed at his eyes and stretched. He enjoyed the promising silence of a new day for a moment before feeling a wet, uncomfortable sensation below him.

Yesterday's memories hit him like a subway train. Peter sat up frantically with the realization and looked down.

"Oh no."

Peter had already distracted Tony enough with his situation. Pepper too. He'd been nothing but a nuisance, bothering them for the simplest of things. His heart rate spiked, and Peter began taking shorter breaths. This was just one more thing to add to a long list of mistakes. They must be fed up with him by now.

Peter's thoughts only spiraled further down from there.

There was a knock at the door. "Peter, are you alright?"

Upon seeing Tony enter his room, Peter burst into tears and buried his face in his hands.

"Woah, woah, woah. What's going on, buddy? FRIDAY said you were upset."

The kid just cried harder. Any words he managed to get out were beyond comprehension. Tony moved closer and noticed the darkness of the sheets around the boy. He didn't have to be a genius to figure out what happened.

"Oh, Petey. You're okay." He picked up the sobbing child and held him close, ignoring the stench and damp pajamas. Tony ran a hand down Peter's back, a sore attempt to calm him. "It's okay. Accidents happen. Nothing to be upset about."

Tony didn't really know what to do about a crying toddler. As a teen, Peter rarely cried. Except for small fits of frustration, which were to be expected, Peter never really acted out around Tony either. When he did, his behavior was manageable and Tony usually diffused the situation quickly.

He wanted to do something, but he was out of his league here. So, the billionaire settled on staying silent.

Peter's cries eventually got quieter until the only sound in the room was the boy's shaky breaths. "I'm sorry, M'ster St'rk. I p'omise it won't happen ev'r again. I'm so sorry."

Tony sighed, knowing how this would end. Turns out yesterday was not just a dream and he knew Peter's hysterics were mostly caused by his physical state. "It's fine, Peter. Don't worry about it."

"It's all my fault." Peter rambled, "I'm sorry. Are you ang'ry?"

"Of course not. It was completely out of your control."

"Wha' about the bed?"

"I'm a billionaire, Peter. There is an army of maids that come through the compound regularly. It won't be a problem. Trust me, the beds have seen far worse." Mr. Stark said with a chuckle and began walking towards the attached bathroom. "I swear, kid, your guilt complex is worse than mine. And while the mattress is fine, I don't think the cleaners will be willing to clean you."

Tony put Peter on the bathroom mat, stripping him of his dirty clothes. Throwing them in a nearby basket, he placed Peter in a newly filled bathtub. The man rinsed the child's body and wrapped him up in a soft towel quickly. Unlike last night, Peter was quiet and sulked the entire time.

Tony noticed his behavior too. Peter was normally a chatterbox whenever he was at the compound, talking for hours on end in the lab. He set him on the counter and tilted Peter's head to look up at him. "C'mon. What's the matter."

"I don't like bein' a baby." The boy frowned. It'd not even been 24 hours and he'd already had a mental breakdown crossed with a tantrum. "You 'n 'epper are so nice. I'm a bother."

"What makes you think that?"

"I can't do anythin' on my own. I can't ev'n take off a shirt 'n make messes eve'ywhere." Peter did not handle dependency well, yet he was stuck in a three-year-old's useless body. He wished an alien would come and zap him off the face of the earth.

"That's okay, Peter. It'd be weird to have a completely independent toddler running around. Like I said before, we expect you to ask for help. You aren't bothering anyone."

"Okay."

"That being said, it'd be a huge help if you had some more... protection... on to avoid any more accidents."

It took a moment for Peter to fully understand what 'protection' meant. When it did, he shouted immediately. "No! No! No!"

Stark knew Peter wouldn't like the idea as soon as he found a pack of training pants in the supplies FRIDAY had delivered. But in reality, he didn't want to see Peter have another accident and be upset with himself. Tony wanted to avoid self-depreciation as much as possible, thank you very much.

"Peter, you don't have as much control of yourself as you did before. You know this."

"No di'per! I won't do it ag'in."

"Fine, kid. But if you have another accident, I'm gonna duck tape one onto you."

"Okay."

"You want to pick out your clothes for the day?" Tony offered, trying the make the best of the situation. "That's something you can do."

Peter nodded and Tony carried him into the common room where his clothes lay in piles. He chose a pair of jeans with a white shirt and green flannel. Peter even managed to find a tiny black pair of converse that Tony helped him tie.

The boy smiled at himself in the reflection of the window. Stark thought it was an outfit teenage Peter would of worn.

Peter and Tony walked into the kitchen where Pepper was making breakfast. The kitchen had a soft morning glow and the sweet smell of Mrs. Stark's cooking filled the common rooms.

"You boys hungry?"

"Always!" Peter called and climbed up onto a stool.

Tony poured himself a tall cup of coffee. "Whatcha making, sweetheart?"

"Waffles."

Peter clapped his hands and gave a small cheer as a plate of cut-up waffles was put in front of him. She drizzled warm syrup on them too.

The billionaire rolled his eyes at the child's ridiculous mood swings. It would be a roller coaster until they got Pete back to normal.

"Eat before you lock yourself in your lab. I don't know if you heard, but people need food to live." Pepper mocked and slid another plate in front of her husband, giving him a quick good morning kiss. "Dying is not good for your health, Tony."

"Thanks for the reminder."

Peter perked up at the mention of possible lab time. "Lab?"

"Hold up, kiddo, you can barely hold a glass of water without spilling it." The genius pointed out, grabbing said cup before the child spilled it all over himself as if to prove his point.

"I w'll stay out of the way. Be ext'a safe."

"Peter, we don't want you getting hurt or worse," Pepper added. "Tony works with some stuff that's pretty dangerous, more so now that you're little."

"P'ease! I will wear a mask n' goggles n' gloves. Anythin'. I really want to go in t'e lab."

"Fine." Tony relented. He personally knew how much of a cruel punishment no lab time felt like. "But there are new rules." He emphasized with his fork.

Peter nodded seriously. At least as serious as he could at three feet tall and partially covered in syrup.

"First of all, you are restricted from all labs but my own and need adult supervision at all times. No more screwing around with the interns while you're like this. Secondly, no power tools."

"What about a sold'ring gun?"

Tony shook his head. "You know what power tools are, Peter. Also, you are currently banned from all chemical storage and experiments unless permitted which means no spider webs or suit. Deal?"

"Deal." Peter took Tony's outstretched hand, only able to hold three of his fingers. They shook on it.

Pepper took that exact moment to attack Peter's syrupy face with a napkin.

"No 'epper!" Peter whined. The child batted at her hands, trying to get away.

"No Peter!" Pepper whined back playfully.

Peter squirmed out of reach. He hopped off his stool and hid between the legs of it. He was just small enough to fit underneath. A small giggle escaped the boy.

Pepper bent down to his level and grinned. "Are you trying to hide, Peter? You know I can see you." She grabbed his ankles, causing the boy to fall on his butt. Then, she pulled him out from under the stool.

The action made Peter's shirt ride up, completely exposing his belly. She lightly ran her finger down Peter's sides, making him laugh. Within moments, Peter was a giggling mess. While trying to catch his breath, Pepper finished removing the remaining syrup.

"There." Pepper let go of the boy.

Peter scrambled over to Tony. He leaned against the man's legs, and said in between breaths, "She's a traitor."

"She made you breakfast. The score is even." Tony shrugged. "Ready to go?"

Peter looked up with a sparkle in his eyes. "Your lab?"

"Yes. The goal is to get you back to a teenager asap. I kinda need you for that."

"Let's go!" The boy cheered and ran, well as fast as a toddler could, towards Stark's lab.

Tony looked back at his wife, unsure. Pepper simply waved him off. "You'll be fine. Just make sure he doesn't blow up your lab with you two inside, please."

"Will do." He gave her a quick hug before following Peter.

As soon as the glass doors swooshed open, the toddler raced over to worktops littered with the pieces of the defunct drone. He had to go on the very tips of his toes to see over the edge of the table.

DUM-E beeped at them in greeting.

"Nuh uh, Peter. We can play with that stuff later." He guided the boy over to an empty table, lifting him to sit on the top. "Blood first."

Tony found a blood sampling kit and began to sterilize the inside of Peter's arm. However, when the boy saw the needle, his eyes went wide and Peter scrambled off the table.

Tony sighed and tried to retain as much composure as he could. His frustration with the lack of knowledge he had on how to handle toddlers caused his patience to dwindle faster than usual.

"It's okay, Underoos. We take your blood all the time, it'll be quick."

Stark took a step towards Peter, which apparently was the wrong thing to do because the boy ran to the farthest wall.

It seemed as if he thought Tony was able to stab him, possibly hurt him. Which was the exact opposite of what the billionaire was trying to do!

The man tried a different tactic, laying the syringe on the table behind him. Tony slowly approached the child who pressed himself into the wall. It hurt to see such a frightened look on Peter's face.

"I don't know why you're scared, but I really need your blood to-"

Peter crawled up the wall and onto the ceiling. Stark took a step back as he watched the boy climb around light fixtures, running his hand through his hair.

So the kid could still stick to walls.

"C'mon, kiddo. Please come down." Tony felt his heart speed up at the sight of the toddler several feet above him. "What are you afraid of? Maybe we can do something about it."

"Hurt."

Tony looked back at the needle abandoned on the table. "Oh."

Children are way more sensitive than adults to most stimuli. Whether it be a scraped knee or bruised shoulder, it hurts more when you're a little kid. Additionally, medical equipment varies with the age of the patient. The Avengers compound isn't exactly equipped with infant-oriented medical supplies.

Peter was scared of the needle, and rightfully so.

Stark scavenged through drawers and containers until he found a smaller needle. It wasn't going to be the most efficient mechanism but would do the trick. He attached it to the syringe in the sampling kit.

"Hey, bud. It's fixed now." Tony held it up for Peter to see. "Can you come down for me? Please?"

Peter hesitantly crawled back down to the ground, observing the genius's work. The man let out a breath he didn't know he was holding when the kid was back on the floor.

"Better?"

He was still apprehensive. "It won't hurt?"

"Would I ever hurt you?" Tony asked playfully.

Peter grinned, shaking his head. "You shock'd me w'th the i'on man gauntlet."

"Hey, I had nothing to do with that! You grabbed those exposed wires all on your own."

Peter giggled making Tony smile. "Ready?"

He nodded and climbed back onto the table. Peter flinched once he saw the needle again and looked away, but held his arm out nonetheless. Tony had a substantial amount within a few minutes thanks to the three-year-old's cooperation.

"Thank you, kiddo." He walked over to a storage cabinet and inserted a small vial of blood into a nearby machine. "FRIDAY? Can you cross-reference this DNA sample with Spiderman's."

"Yes, this will take a few minutes due to the spider-oriented abnormalities."

"That's fine." Tony turned back to Peter who sat patiently, swinging his legs. "I want to run some tests on your blood, start with reactivity to pinpoint the base drug that caused this. That means chemicals. That also means you'll be staying at this table for the day."

"But M'ster St'rk, I wanna help," Peter whined as Tony set a chair, pens, and paper up for him.

"I get it, but it's not safe for you to be hands-on right now. Pepper and May will torture me to death if something happens to you. You were promised lab time this weekend, so you can do theoretical and conceptional stuff today."

"That's borin'. I wanna do excitin' stuff w'th you like we always do."

"Toddlers don't play with chemicals. I need them to make you a teenager again so you can play with them." The billionaire held up a folder and showed a hologram screen. "This is all the research, notes, and blueprints I have on Spiderman as well as some SI inventions that are fairly interesting. You need to stay over here but have this to keep you entertained. Sound fair?"

"Okay!" Peter nodded and made 'grabby hands' for the folder.

"I'll be over here if you need me." Tony surrendered the folder to an excitable Peter and went back over to his workstation.

"Your results are ready, Boss."

"Thanks, FRI. Pull them up."

A hologram of Peter's DNA appeared. Stark studied the deconstructed double helix carefully, noting the access amounts of radical oxygen. He started by observing the effects of ascorbic acid and various types of thiols.

Two hours and several tests later yielding little results, Tony sighed in frustration. Typically drug reversals were quick, but he kept hitting roadblocks. He was a mechanic, not a miraculous biologist.

Machines were so much easier to fix than humans.

He leaned over Peter's table, checking the toddler was still alive. The genius looked over the collection of papers and hologram screens, filled with a variety of graphs and data.

He saw a design of an SI branded hearing aid, an older version for a line of products assisting the disabled. Then, he saw Peter's updated design. The handwriting was messier than usual but Tony was happily surprised by the subtle improvements. Peter was able to reduce the weight using a sodium-based solution instead of a lithium one and increase the volume by changing the shape.

Even as a three-year-old, Tony was impressed by his protégé's work. He made a mental plan to send these new blueprints to Pepper for manufacturing.

"Whatcha workin' on, bud?"

"A pict're." Peter answered, continuing to scribble on his piece of paper. His tongue poked out of his mouth in concentration. He paused, examined his work, and grabbed another color of pen. "Find anythin' new? Can I be a teenager now and use chem'cals?"

"Not yet." Tony bit his lip in hesitation. "It's not going to be as easy as I first thought. I don't know when you'll be a teen again, kiddo."

"Like I'm not gonna be old'r this week'nd?"

The billionaire shook his head.

Peter dropped his pen, his eyes went wide. "What about May? She's re'lly busy at the hosp'tal. 'N what do I tell my school?"

"I'll tell her the truth. And we can call the school and make up some excuse like that you're sick or went on vacation or something."

"I don't wanna be little, M'ster St'rk." The boy's voice became small and broken. Peter's hope seemed to shatter and he could feel tears prick at his eyes.

"I know, I know, Pete." Tony scooped up the boy into his arms. Peter leaned on his shoulder, grabbing a fistful of the man's shirt for comfort. "I'm sorry I don't have all the answers but we'll figure something out."

"I don't be t'ree an'more."

"I know, we'll find a solution eventually." He reassured. "I think I'm done with chemical experiments for the time being if you want to come take a look at the notes I have so far. You're the better biological chemist here."

"Okay." Peter mumbled.

Tony pulled up the research, letting the boy in his arms read it through. Peter reached an arm towards the hologram, pulling it closer. He zoomed in onto his karyotype, pulling apart the chromosomes until he was looking at strings of genetic code. Then, he scrolled down the list of notes until he found a list of the recorded enzymes. Peter found an experiment Tony did with solutions of proteases and smiled.

"There!" Peter pointed at the second plateau on the production graph.

"Okay, so there's extra proteins in your blood. That's normal, especially for your enhanced hemoglobin."

"But there's not the right am'no acids left ov'r like before." He gestured to the DNA sequences. "No inhibitors. The telome'ases are exp'essed."

"As far as I can tell, you don't have cancer or something unless you suddenly developed a tumor within the last five seconds, kid, please elaborate."

Peter zoomed into the DNA, breaking it down into nucleotides. "It's isotope 32 inste'd of 16. The sp'der made the phosphate group radiact've."

"Which means instead of regeneration, it could cause possible regression." Tony finally came to the conclusion and gave the boy a pat on the back. "It's still phosphorus which is why it wasn't reacting in my experiments. Peter, you're a genius!"

"Boss, Mrs. Stark is requesting access to your lab. She comes bearing lunch."

"Let her in, FRI. Wanna take a break, Underoos?"

Peter nodded and squirmed, wanting to be let down. When his feet touched the floor, he ran over to the woman. "'Epper!"

"Hello, Peter. You and Tony still alive?"

"Hey, we survived just fine." Tony defended. "My lab partner and I were doing great work in here."

"Good to hear, but I have sandwiches." She walked over to an empty table, handing a glass of water and a cut sandwich to Peter. "Any progress?"

"A little. We found a molecular discrepancy in Pete's DNA, but other than that no. Pete's gonna be small for a little while longer."

"I made drawin's too." Peter added.

"Oh yeah, I saw some stuff for SI. Want to show Pep?"

The boy smiled, rushing to lay out his work in front of the CEO. Tony allowed a stupidly wide grin on his face as he watched Peter babble to Pepper about his latest designs. It was hard to understand the kid at times, but with Pepper's occasion comment of understanding, he continued his excited rambling nonetheless.

""N I made you 'n M'ster St'rk a pict're." Peter held up a scratch piece of paper with colorful scribbles. There was a red and gold blob next to a purple one with orange squiggles. There was a smaller shape, red and blue, between them too.

Pepper carefully took the paper from Peter, covering her mouth in a mixture of shock and awe. Tony was speechless and just stared at it. It was no Picasso, but the three-year-old's honest effort and intentions made it priceless.

Peter cocked his head at seeing such emotion in their reactions. "Do you like it?"

"I love it." Pepper said genuinely, making the toddler beam with pride. She looked over at her husband who continued to stare. There was something unsettling that began to form in his eyes.

Pepper turned back to the boy. "Peter? I wanted to put some of your things into your room, would you like to help me?"

"Yeah! Can M'ster St'rk come?"

"I think he's gonna be in the lab a little longer, sweetheart." Pepper gave Tony's hand a reassuring squeeze underneath the table. "He can join us when he's done, okay?"

"Okay."

She took the empty plate and Peter upstairs, leaving Tony alone with his thoughts.

The man continued to stare at the drawing long after he heard the lab doors close behind them.

He didn't deserve this.

Tony should have left him in Queens instead of bringing him to Germany. He literally threw the teen into danger, and now Peter was addicted to it.

Stark got up slowly and walked to the drone he had been working on before. Mere hours ago he was expecting to see his mentee run into the room and listen to everything and anything that kid could ramble about.

He threw the drone across the room. Danger found Spiderman. Danger found Peter too. That was because of him.

The genius had ignored every single red flag, any notion of trouble, and each inkling of reconsideration. There was never a minute when Tony considered what his actions could do to the boy. Never considered the consequences.

The billionaire tossed the table onto its side in pure frustration. He reached for the nearest object, a screwdriver, and lodged it in the wall on the other side of the room.

In fact, he enabled Peter's addiction to his superhero persona. He gave him access to everything he needed to do so: the suit, KAREN, a lab. Without Tony, he'd be a normal person running around with his friends and excelling at school.

Stark thought back to the first time he met Peter Parker. The boy had this starstruck look on his face when he saw the billionaire in his apartment's living room. It was the first time Tony thought happiness was still an option for him. The hero worship took months to wear off, making Tony wonder how someone could be so fascinated by another person.

He dropped to his knees underneath the weight of regret, feeling the wave of wild anger fade. Tony looked around his lab and at the destruction, he caused in such an emotion-filled frenzy.

How did that fascination start? Why?

Tony Stark had no idea.

Peter had always been an excitable teen, especially on the topic of science. His intelligence and natural curiosity were side effects of that. Peter was always eager to please and put effort into everything he did, regardless of the importance. He was grateful and polite to everyone he met. Peter had his snarky sense of humor that allowed him to come up with the wittiest comebacks that rivaled Tony's.

Most importantly, he fought for the little guy. As Spiderman and Peter Parker.

Tony realized Peter was a superhero from day one. Maybe he wasn't at fault.

Stark leaned against the leg of the table. His lab was a mess, but he could clearly see Peter's drawing.

Tony knew Peter was a great kid. Tony also knew he would do anything for him.

His breathing became more normal. His heart stopped racing. The man sighed calmly, letting his mind wander in his emotional state.

He would do his best.

Meanwhile, the majority of Peter's room has been removed and replaced with boxes. Peter carried folded bundles of his new clothes from the living room to Pepper. She organized them into his dresser in between opening up the cardboard crates.

"What's is in all the boxes?" Peter asked handing the CEO another small stack of shirts.

"Tony had FRIDAY to order some stuff for you. Little kids need different things than adults."

Peter peered into a box on his tiptoes. "But I'm not a re'lly a l'ttle kid."

"I know that. I trust you won't be falling face-first down the stairs like an actual toddler, but not enough to give you a glass bowl. Seriously, you're clumsy enough as a teenager and have broken-"

Peter squealed.

Pepper turned around, startled to find the boy inside one of the boxes. "Petey, are you okay?"

"'Epper! 'Epper! Look!" He held up a small, stuffed, brown bear clad in a black mask, blue buttoned suit, and red gloves. "A bear!"

She had to stifle a laugh at seeing the toy. "It's a Bucky Bear, sweetheart." Pepper hadn't seen one of those since she was little; she thought they didn't make them anymore.

"Bear!" Peter said happily, pulling the stuffed animal to his chest and hugging it tightly.

Pepper smiled and took Peter out of the box. She continued emptying the rest of it as Peter showed the bear around the room.

Soon all of the new basic toys were put into a wooden chest, child-safe products were in the bathroom cabinets, bulkier car seats and carriers were stuffed into the closet and other supplies were tucked away throughout the ensuite.

The teen's room now resembled a pseudo nursery.

Pepper sat in the middle of the empty room with a pamphlet of instructions. She had been staring- no, glaring- at it for the last 10 minutes and was still confused.

When did putting together a crib become so difficult? It was basically a box with bars and a mattress. Why was this so hard?

She looked at Peter who quietly played with said wooden pieces and his bear. While it was not going to be easy taking care of a three-year-old Peter, at least the kid got a break from the stress of school, Spiderman, and life in general.

It was reassuring to know Peter was a happy kid, at whatever age he happened to be. Pepper wanted to do her best to keep him happy.

Even if that meant tediously building a crib with useless instructions.

"Peter? Would you like to help me build?"

He perked up at the notion of hands-on building and bounded over to her.

"I have no idea where to start." Pepper admitted and handed the instructions to the toddler.

In mere seconds of scanning the paper, Peter grabbed a large, flat piece of wood. Pepper eventually took pity on him and helped drag it closer. Then, he collected four blocks of wood and a couple of screws. "This is the bott'm of the bed."

Pepper nodded in understanding. "Oh okay, I'll put the parts together if you show me what to do."

So, Peter showed her every piece to screw, hammer, and glue together. He would do one and let Pepper do the rest while he found the next pieces. Pepper listened and watched carefully, but insisted she didn't need a tutorial on hammering. Peter appreciated her patience and was polite the entire time.

They made good progress by the time they heard a knock and Tony at the door. "How's it going in here?"

"M'ster St'rk!" Peter exclaimed, "We made a bed!"

"It was nice to have some assistance from your engineer over here," Pepper added. "He's still a genius."

Tony smiled, joining them on the floor. "He's one of the best."

Pepper slid the last guard rail into place. "Thank you, Petey."

"Welc'me." He paused, seeming to remember something, and raced to the other side of the room. "M'ster St'rk! I fo'nd a bear!"

"Oh my fucking god." The man burst out laughing, "FRI, Where did you get this?"

"It's a secret." FRIDAY sassed.

"Fine, I'll check the receipt attached to my credit card." He said in between breaths. "You found a very awesome bear, Underoos. I had this guy's friend when I was younger."

"Really?"

"Oh yeah, he was much better than the real-life one too. I loved that thing." Tony gave the bear and the kid a pat on the head. "Would you and your bear like some dinner?"

"Yeah! Can we have the pa'ta from last n'ght?"

"Sure. You want some too, Pep?"

"Yes, but I'm gonna take care of these empty boxes first. So, give me a minute or two."

"Alright. Let's go, Pete." Tony headed back to the common rooms with Peter and his bear following.

Unfortunately, they don't get far by the time Peter realized what the warm trickle down his leg is. He looks down and sees the dark spot forming on his clothes.

How was this happening? He was fine all day.

The boy tossed his toy aside and grabbed his crotch. Peter crossed his legs tightly, trying to ignore the sudden urges. He knows it was unavoidable as the steady stream of urine already started to stain the inside of his pants.

"Peter?" Tony called from down the hall.

Before he can react, he's sitting in a puddle of his own waste with silent tears rolling down his face. He can feel the shame and utter guilt of the whole ordeal begin to set in. The worst part was that he has no control over it and that's how Tony found him: a crying, blubbering mess of apologies.

Look at him now being such a superhero now! Peter's anxiety from this morning returned in full force, putting him on the verge of a panic attack.

"Hey." Tony said softly, getting the boy's attention. There's a softness to his voice only reserved for Peter. "Let's go back to your bathroom and get you cleaned up again, alright?"

Peter took Tony's outstretched hand and gave a solemn nod. He toddled back into his room, head down, and held onto the comfort that holding the man's hand gave him.

Pepper gave them a questioning look when they returned so soon, but after seeing Peter, she spared the two a sympathized smile.

Tony guided the miserable three-year-old to the attached bathroom, repeating the bathtime routine. Once Peter was clean and wrapped in a towel, he carried the boy into his bedroom.

Peter was put onto a mat on the top of his dresser. He looked up at Tony, a pout on his lips. "No d'aper."

Tony shook his head. "We already talked about this."

He took the boy's towel to the bathroom, leaving him completely exposed. Stark returned with a diaper, powder, and wipes. He pushed Peter to lie down on his back, not really excited about the whole situation either.

Tony was new to this but had enough common sense to figure it out. He quickly wiped the toddler down for good measure, being careful around sensitive areas. After dusting his bottom with powder, the billionaire held up the boy's ankles and slid the plastic underwear underneath.

Wait... Was it backward? He flipped the diaper around. Better.

Peter refused to make eye contact with him. The three-year-old needed a more drastic adjective to describe the embarrassment he felt. Peter did not approve of this but didn't have a choice in the matter.

Tony finally taped down the tabs and had Peter sit up with a blush on his cheeks.

"All done."

The toddler made a noise of annoyance, pulling at the tabs of the diaper. Tony smacked his hands lightly.

"Nuh uh, it stays on. Don't even think about using your super strength either." He said sternly. "You know why."

Peter nodded his head silently, attempting to retain what dignity he had left.

Tony helped him into another onesie, this one was a solid red. It was a similar shade to Spiderman's original, homemade suit. All it was missing was the trademark spider emblem.

He pulled Peter up onto his hip, patting the boy's padded bum. Peter laid his head in defeat on Tony's shoulder as they walked back to the common rooms.

Peter's accident from earlier had already been cleaned up and three bowls of pasta waited on the kitchen counter. Pepper sat on the couch with a StarkPad, prepping for the week ahead.

He leaned over to give his CEO a kiss on the cheek and mumbled, "Thank you, I appreciate everything you've done the past few days."

"Someone has to make sure you and the kid don't kill yourselves on the weekends." Pepper teased.

"We're alive."

"Just bar'ly though." Peter added sarcastically.

"Hey." Tony jostled the cheeky toddler, throwing him over his shoulder like a bag of potatoes. Peter squealed at the sudden motion, dangling upside down.

"You're lucky. That cute face of yours is the only thing stopping me from dropping you." The billionaire taunted. He spun around the living room making Peter sway. "Can you believe this kid, Pep?"

"Says the man who allows a three-year-old to use lab equipment worth millions of dollars."

"He still has his smarts; Underoos is more than qualified. Right, FRIDAY?"

"I have video of Peter burning his hand on a hot pan on the kitchen stove last week, boss. Intelligence is up for debate."

"Pete, you dumbass." Tony gently let the boy fall onto the couch and burst out laughing. This kid was truly a mindless professor.

"I didn't know the st've was on, M'ster St'rk!" Peter defended. "It was an exper'm'nt. I want'd to know if I could st'ck to no st'ck pans."

Tony was too busy laughing to respond.

Pepper simply face palmed, and muttered, "Idiots."

"You are going to be the death of me, kiddo. All of these grey hairs are from you, ya' know." Tony said in between breaths, trying to compose himself.

"Can I interest either of you in dinner?" Pepper asked. "Petey should probably eat something before he goes to bed."

Peter nodded his head in agreement. "Yeah, I'm re'lly hung'y!"

Tony looked over at the clock to see it was nearing 7 o'clock. Mixed with a heightened metabolism, they should probably feed the three-year-old sooner rather than later.

"Sure, but you two will have to get started without me. I want to call May before she starts her night shift."

"Okay. C'mon Peter, let's get some food into you."

Peter eagerly followed her into the kitchen like a duckling.

It made the man grin. If you told Tony Stark five years ago that he'd be watching his wife and young protege eat dinner, content with the world. He would have called bullshit on the whole thing immediately.

Tony walked back to his lab, thinking back to how normal and domestic it all was.

"FRIDAY, please call May Parker."

A hologram of Peter's aunt appeared. "Hey Tony, how's your weekend?"

"Good so far. I hope I didn't bother you while you were busy at the hospital."

"Not at all, I'm on break for the next hour or so. How's Pepper?"

Ever since the Homecoming fiasco, Stark had gotten closer to Peter and therefore May. As overbearing, worried, and stubborn as the women could be, they had a common interest: Peter's wellbeing. So, they sorta 'co-parented' the boy when the other was busy or unavailable.

When he first introduced her to Pepper, they got along like a house on fire. In fact, they regularly got together for tea during the week. It was scary. They would take over the world one day.

"She's well. Pep is eating dinner with Peter now. Speaking of Peter, he was out on patrol-"

"God, what happened?"

"Why do you say that like it's a bad thing?"

There was a sigh on the other end of the line. "When is it not?

"A few days ago, he saved two kids from a mugger and they got lunch together afterwards. That was a good thing. He was making friends."

"So then what happened today? I typically get calls from you when something goes wrong. Is Peter okay?"

"Nothing is wrong per se..."

"You're stalling, spit it out."

"Peter is perfectly fine. He's still the same happy, healthy, spider kid we all know but is now three years old. He still has his powers, and his intellect, but is kinda trapped inside the body of a toddler. We found him yesterday and I thought I could fix him before the weekend and tell you then when he was a teen, but it's going to take longer than I first thought. So, I'm telling you now."

There was silence on the other end. Tony was worried he'd somehow said too much, too fast. "May?" He asked softly, "You good?"

"Peter is a baby?"

"Yep. He's three now."

"How the fuck did this happen, Stark!" May practically yelled. It was expected. "Is he okay?"

"Woah, woah, woah. Peter is fine, as I said, he's with Pepper. Right now, we have no idea what went down but I'm looking into it."

"When will he be a teen? Can I see him?"

"Still looking into that too, but you're welcome to come over as soon as you're done at work. I'll send Happy for you."

"What are we going to do about a toddler? A spider toddler at that!"

"That's why I'm calling you. Technically, you are his guardian and I wanted to okay everything with you before this got out of hand."

"You are his guardian too, Tony. For a genius, you're awfully dense."

"Look, we don't need to get into that right now. I swear you sound just like Pepper." Tony rolled his eyes. "I don't think I can get Peter back to a teen by the end of the weekend. So we need a relative, you, to call his school and tell them he's sick or something."

"Got it, I'll let them know Monday morning."

"Next, Peter needs a place to stay where-"

"Nope, sorry Tony. I love my nephew but don't have the time to look after him. Toddlers can't exactly be left alone for long periods of time and I can't bring him to work either."

"That's okay. As I was saying, he can stay at the compound and you can visit when you are free. I'll need to see him regularly anyways if I want to make any progress on a reversal."

"Housing a three-year-old in the Avengers compound is your solution?"

"FRIDAY had supplies delivered yesterday and most rooms are off-limits for Peter. He'll be fine. Plus, Peter still has the brain of a teen, May. I think we can trust him enough not to stick random objects in his mouth or put forks in power outlets."

"You'd be surprised at the lack of common sense that boy has. He was a troublemaker when he was younger."

"Really? What was Peter like when he was actually three?"

"I didn't take care of him when he was that young but Mary had plenty of stories to tell when they came over. Peter was so curious and naive, even worse back then. We had to make sure all the cabinets and drawers were locked or Peter would get into them. I swear, he'd cut himself one day with a cheese grater."

"Doesn't sound too unfamiliar. I had to lock the display cases so Peter would stay away from my suits."

"Oh goodness, did he try to fly in one?"

"No, he tried to steal the arm to see how the repulsers in the gauntlet worked. Although he did test one of the newer prototypes of the rocket boots when I walked out of the room. Found him on the ceiling, manually removing them with a screwdriver." He chuckled at the memory. Stark had rewatched the FRIDAY's security footage and laughed for five-straight minutes at the kid's first flying attempt.

"Sounds like Peter." There was someone talking in the background on her end. "My break ends soon and they want me to take over asap. I'll head over when I'm done here."

"No worries, see you later."

"Bye, Tony! I expect pictures of Peter to be sent to me soon."

"Of course. Bye, May."

The screen went dark and the hologram disappeared. He pulled out his StarkPhone and sent May what pictures he could. If he didn't, then May would get Pepper to team up on him. He wanted to avoid that if possible.

Tony came back to the common room to see two of his most favorite people on the couch. Two empty bowls were on the coffee table next to a tall glass and blue sippy cup. They seemed to be watching the end of some TV show Tony didn't know the name to. Pepper had her hands through Peter's fluffy hair, the boy dozing in her lap with half-lidded eyes.

"Dinner is sitting for you on the stove." Pepper reminded softly.

Tony quietly thanked her and returned with his own bowl of microwaved pasta a few minutes later. His mom's pasta was the best when it was made fresh, but leftovers could still bring a warm feeling accompanied by good memories to him.

Pepper continued to talk in a hushed tone as she asked, "How's May?"

"Busy at the hospital." He replied, sitting next to her. "But, she'll be here when her shifts are over."

"Good, I bet she'll want to see Peter."

"She demanded pictures but wanted him to stay here. That alright with you?"

"Of course. He's always welcome. The kid is nice to have around."

"May told me otherwise; Peter was a trouble maker when he was little. Apparently, he liked to explore everything he could, including the knives in the kitchen."

"Not too far off from another superhero I know." Pepper teased.

Tony rolled his eyes at the woman in his life. He looked down at Peter, curled up like a kitten in his wife's lap.

"Is he still awake?"

Pepper took in Peter's peaceful features as he fought a losing battle against sleep. "Not for long. Wanna take him?"

"Sure." Tony gently lifted Peter out of the woman's lap. "I'll get back in a minute."

Pepper watched the pair leave. Peter was good for Tony and Tony was good for Peter.

She turned off the TV and collected the empty dishes. The CEO grabbed a StarkPad on her way back, beginning to scroll through emails. Eventually, she pulled up a calendar and started to plan out her week.

If anything, the only consistent factor in her life was an organizing calendar.

Tony returned shortly. "I want to head back down to the lab, keep experimenting without a toddler beside me."

"Sure, but I need you to sign these recent investment contracts before Tuesday."

"But Pepper, I'm busy." The billionaire whined.

"Oh no, I am not taking care of another toddler." She crossed her arms defiantly.

"You're way better at doing these sorts of things than me, Pep. Can't you do it?"

"I'm busy too. I've got your company to manage."

"This is true. You're very good at doing that too."

"You have a few days. Can you at least look them over, please?"

"Fine. Tuesday, right?"

"Yep, and if you miss the deadline FRIDAY will lock you out of your lab until it's done. Right, FRI?"

"Of course, Mrs. Stark."

"My own AI turning against me?" Tony mocked, "FRIDAY how could you?"

"I have your best interests at heart, boss, and Mrs. Stark does too."

"Good thing I have Pete on my side still. Speaking of which, is that all?"

"I need you to attend some meetings later this week, but other than that, no."

"Fantastic."

Thank God for Pepper Stark, everyone.

Tony gave her a quick kiss before rushing off to his lab for the night. "Thank you for being the best wife, CEO, and woman known to this world."

"I like to think I'm the best in the universe, but you're welcome." Pepper called. She shrugged at the man's antics, continuing to color code and schedule her calendar. While it would most likely change or be completely ignored, it helped the woman's remaining sanity.

Chapter Text

Peter stared at the ceiling and groaned before flopping back into his crib. He weighed his options. "FR'DAY? Is M'ster St'rk awake?"

"No, Peter. He went to bed a few hours ago. Would you like me to wake him?"

"No, t'ank you." Peter knew that man needed sleep.

Peter had woken up a little over an hour ago and just couldn't go back to sleep. He stopped counting sheep when he got to 3,000.

According to a nearby clock, it was about four am. Too late for Tony to be awake and too early for Pepper to be up. There was little to do besides sit in his crib and look around the dark room.

A sudden urge for something sweet to eat made Peter start to climb over the railings and out of bed. At least he still had his Spidey powers to some degree.

The boy toddled to the door of his room, peering into the hallway. All clear.

Peter wandered into the common room, then the kitchen. The soft glow of dawn coming from the floor-to-ceiling windows gave the room a peaceful look.

It was after school when Peter was sent to grab snacks for Mr. Stark and himself in the lab. That was when he first found them. Impressed by the stocked kitchen, he usually made some simple sandwiches for the two of them or grabbed some fruit or chips or snack mix. However one day, he wanted something different and decided to explore every single cabinet, drawer, and shelf just to see the extent of the kitchen. There was a pleasant surprise in one of the cabinets above the fridge: a box of chocolate chip cookies. They finished them quickly. The billionaire made a note to buy more for the next time Peter joined him in the lab.

Now, Peter assumed they were still there. And his toddler sweet tooth demanded cookies. All he had to do was climb up there.

Easy.

Peter pulled a stool from the center island in front of the fridge. He pushed himself up onto the seat and tested his powers on the stainless steel. Not as stable as sticking to the side of a building, but better than sticking to a non-stick pan. Satisfied, he began to crawl the remaining couple of feet to the cabinet.

He reached for the handle above him and pulled; unfortunately, cabinets were a lot harder to open as a toddler than a teenager. He made sure his feet were flat against the fridge before grabbing the handle with both of his hands. With a small pull and accidental super strength, the cabinet door flew open.

Combined with his limited Spidery powers on the smooth steel and sudden movement of the cabinet, Peter lost his footing and grip on the handle.

He let out a surprised yelp and fell.

Peter was expecting hardwood floors, not the two hands around his waist.

The spider child took shaky breaths and felt tears threatening to fall as he tried to comprehend what was going on. Peter's mind raced through thoughts of 'I'm going to die by falling off the top of a fridge' to 'I'm alive and not a broken mess on the floor'.

"You're okay."

Vision blurry with tears, Peter looked towards the feminine voice and saw familiar red hair. The boy curled into the chest of the woman and cried out of pure shock. He allowed instinct to take over. She rubbed Peter's back and mumbled reassurances. They stayed like this until his cries were reduced to quiet hiccups.

"Do you mind telling me your name, маленький паук?"

Peter froze for a second. Pepper knew his name.

He looked up at the stranger and answered quietly, "Peter."

"Nice to meet you, Peter. Can you explain why you were climbing the fridge? I didn't expect to catch any children this morning."

Sniffling, the toddler pointed up at the open cabinet. She smirked and set the boy on the central kitchen counter before grabbing the cookie box. Opening it up, she handed one to Peter and set another aside for herself.

Peter took the cookie with a small smile and tried to stuff as much of it as he could into his mouth. He didn't know where these cookies came from, but they were amazing. Hands down some of the best cookies in New York.

After a few bites and calming breaths, he addressed the women in front of him. "Who are you?"

"My name is Natasha."

"Th'nk you, Na'as'a for savin' me. 'N for the 'ookies."

"You're very welcome, Peter."

"Are you a fr'end of M'ster St'rk?" He tilted his head like an innocent puppy.

"Sort of-"

"Nat!" Pepper called from the other room. Dressed in casual attire, she walked into the kitchen. "I didn't expect to see you so soon, good morning!"

Natasha reciprocated Pepper's welcoming hug; it was always good to see a friend. "Nice to see you too."

"When did you get in? FRIDAY never alerted us." Pepper asked as she began to make coffee. "Would you like some?"

"I arrived a few hours ago but didn't want to wake anyone. And yes, a large mug if you have one."

"You forget the amount of coffee consumed here on a regular basis." She rolled her eyes at the thought of her husband's all-nighters in the lab. "Is your room alright?"

"Everything is wonderful, Pepper. It's much better than the Bartons’ couch." Natasha took a sip of freshly brewed coffee. "Thank you."

"Don't mention it. I see you've met Petey." She ruffled the boy's hair who smiled and mumbled a vague 'good morning' around a mouth full of cookie.

"Yeah, and he was desperate for sweets. Cute kid, very polite too. Is he yours?"

Pepper nearly spat out her cup of coffee. "Oh gosh no. He's Tony's protégé. You can get the whole story from Iron Man himself later."

"It has to be a good story. I never imagined Stark as a mentoring type."

"Me neither, but this kid has wormed his way into the man's metal heart." She tapped Peter on the nose causing him to giggle. "Those puppy dog eyes are dangerous."

Peter kept a smug smile on his face. He continued to lick the chocolate off his fingers only to be stopped by Pepper and a dish towel. The boy's whines were promptly ignored.

"We'll see," Natasha smirked into her mug. "I've built up an immunity to Clint's gremlins."

"Good luck. Let's go get dressed, Petey." Pepper lifted Peter onto her hip and headed back down the hall to the boy's room.

"Can I pick w'at to wear, 'epper?" The toddler asked.

"Sure, pick whatever you want."

As soon as she put him down, Peter began to open the drawers of his dresser. Pepper held her breath each time he used his powers to climb and open the higher ones. The three-year-old looked through many options, taking his time to choose.

Within a few minutes, he held up a pair of navy blue shorts and a white t-shirt covered in little icons of science equipment to Pepper. It was no surprise the kid would pick something covered in atom structures, microscopes, and chemical flasks.

"Good choices." Pepper put Peter onto the changing station on top of his dresser and began to undo his pajamas. She noticed the soiled diaper immediately and took pity on Peter’s vibrant blush. The woman went to the bathroom for supplies and, on her way back, grabbed a 5x5 Rubik's cube.

Pepper handed the puzzle to Peter. "Think you could mix this up for me?"

Peter did what he was told, but with a questioning look. "Are you gonna so've it?"

"No, not me. I can barely solve a normal 3x3 one." Pepper explained and had Peter lie down. "I wanted Tony to solve it, he hasn't tried this one yet."

"He's nev'r?"

"Not yet, which is why I need someone who can solve it to mix it up. That way, there's no easy solution for him."

Peter gave a determined nod and began to twist and turn the cube. He had to use a little more focus and effort now that his hands were smaller.

With the toddler distracted, the diaper change was quick and relatively easy. The tabs were torn off and the dirty diaper was pulled away. Pepper made sure that thing was hidden in the deepest darkest part of the bathroom trash can. A couple of wipes and powder later, she had him in a fresh one before he could finish mixing up the Rubik's cube.

Pepper was washing her hands when Peter yelled, "All done!" He held it up to her, showing off his hard work. "Can he solve it now?"

"Not yet, clothes first." She set the puzzle toy aside and pulled the t-shirt over his head. Followed by pants, Pepper swore Peter looked like he looked like a younger version of Tony. The resemblance was almost uncanny.

Meanwhile, Natasha savored her coffee and the silence of the kitchen. After keeping watch over Barton on house arrest, the calm morning was more than welcome. She applauded Laura for taking care of all four kids.

The moment was ruined by Tony stumbling into the room. The assassin watched him silently. He groped for a mug through closed eyes, somehow managing to pour coffee into it. The signs of bags underneath the man's eyes suggested another night in the lab.

"Good morning, Stark." Natasha greeted.

Startled, Tony took a sharp breath and nearly choked on a mouthful of his cherished, liquid caffeine. "Widow."

"I see you're still not a morning person."

"What an observation." He grumbled. "What did you need to talk about in person?"

"The Rogues."

"And what about them? They're still assholes?"

"They're being pardoned."

Tony paused, thinking about the very fight that's been giving him nightmares for the last few months. Letting the Rogues roam freely made him more than uneasy. Stark moved into the living room and sat on the couch. He gripped his coffee tightly as a million red flags shot up in his frenzied mind.

Natasha sat down next to him and continued. "They're not completely off the hook. There will still be a probation period."

"What are you not telling me then?"

"Ross wants the Rogues to stay at the Avengers compound for that time."

"No."

"Why not? The compound is the best-suited building to house several super-powered individuals. They’ll be under constant surveillance until proper evaluations can be made."

"They're criminals."

"Bullshit, you know they're also our team. Why else offer to change the Accords since you got back to New York?"

Tony ran a hand through his bedridden hair and took a long, slow breath. Neither action was as calming as he wanted them to be. "Fine. At least I get to keep an eye on them if they're here."

"Good, because Ross wants to reestablish the team as soon as possible. That means reuniting each side of the issue."

"We've already done the whole apology thing. The feeling is mutual. Me and Cap, and even Barnes, are on better terms now."

"Not officially. And if we ever want this to finally blow over, you guys have to prove that those feelings are mutual. That means sitting down with everyone and signing the rewritten Accords."

"I'm assuming you've already talked to the cat king about this? Why can't we all congregate at his castle?"

"As Wakanda is becoming a global hub, T'Challa decided it would be better to stay away from the public eye for now." Natasha explained, "The compound is literally in the middle of a deserted forest in upstate New York with enough-

"M'ster St'rk!" Peter called from the doorway with Pepper behind him. He ran over to the man, doing his best not to trip in his haste, and held up the 5x5 Rubik's cube. "Can you so've it? Can you so've it?"

Tony set his mug on the coffee table and pulled Peter up onto his lap. "Why can't you solve it, kiddo? I've seen you do it hundreds of times." He said confused.

"'Epper said you have nev'r so'ved it before. Only t'ree by t'ree ones." Peter explained excitedly.

"Okay." Tony glanced up at his wife who shrugged innocently and hid in the kitchen. "I guess I'll solve this one then. What's your record?"

"Th'rty-sev'n s'conds."

"FRIDAY please set a timer." He took the puzzle toy and searched for any patterns.

"Your timer has started."

Tony began to flip, twist, and turn the colorful cube with ease. Pepper was clearly a liar, but Peter didn’t have to know that. The man was very familiar and experienced with the object, handling it deftly. It was impressive to watch. However, Natasha found it more entertaining to watch Peter's astonished expression than the billionaire’s focus.

As soon as it was solved it, he dropped the puzzle toy and called, "Time."

"Thirty-five seconds."

"That was close. I still got it though." Tony handed the Rubik's cube back to the three-year-old who immediately started to fiddle with it in amazement. "I need to get you a harder one.”

"Like father like son." Natasha quipped. "Is this the kid you wanted me to meet?"

"He's not mine, but yes."

"He was older last time I saw him."

"He was de-aged a couple of days ago, Widow."

The boy paused at the nickname. He looked at Natasha critically as if to confirm that she wasn’t just some figment of his imagination. "L'ke the Black W'dow wit' the taze' bracelets? This ’s who you were talkin’ about?" Peter asked miming her widow bites.

"Yes, Underoos, this is the person I wanted you to meet.” Tony clarified, nudging the toy back into Peter’s focus. Short attention spans were a blessing. “Anyways, this little spider ran into some unusual, local villain while out on patrol. I'm currently working on a solution for him. When do they arrive?"

"In two or three days," Natasha supplied. "T’Challa will be here sooner. We still need to contact some of them. It's a little short notice."

Tony huffed, "Just a little."

Turns out short attention spans are mere curses in disguise. Peter stopped playing with his Rubik's cube and asked curiously, "Who's coming, M'ster St'rk?"

"Some demanding investors at Stark Tower. Just boring Stark Industries stuff." Tony lied easily and put his hands over Peter's ears. The toddler fussed as Tony whispered to Natasha, "The others don't know about him yet. I want Peter as far away from this as possible."

The assassin nodded in understanding.

On the other hand, Peter whined and pushed the man's hands away. He crossed his arms in a petulant manner. "I'm not a re'lly a t'ree-yea'-old."

"I know, but you sure act like one sometimes. Speaking of which, I miss my fully functioning lab partner so let's go back to the lab."

"Labt'me!" Peter cheered happily.

"I may be the one with my name plastered on buildings but Pepper is the one who runs most of the operations around here. She should be able to help finalize plans and smooth over rough details." Tony said as he bounced the excited child in his arms. "I appreciate you coming beforehand, Nat."

"No problem, thanks for letting me. I'm glad we're on the same page now."

"Me too."

"Labt'me. Labt'me. Labt'me." Peter repeated impatiently. At his mentor's annoyed look, he hastily added, "P'ease."

"Better." Tony praised as he carried the boy downstairs. “Do you remember all the rules?” He asked when they walked through the sliding door.

"Yep!" Peter said when he was put down and climbed onto a chair at his workstation. It was still littered with papers and pens from his previous visit to Tony's lab.

Satisfied with that answer, he left the kid to his own devices and returned to the problem at hand. He managed to pinpoint a few more differences in toddler Peter's blood compared to teenage Peter's.

Tony had tried to decode and substitute and edit as much as he could last night, but the differences still remained. Even if he managed to stop one of the regression factors in Peter's blood, Tony would only end up finding more.

Each abnormality seemed to adapt to every situation Stark could think of. It was infuriating. The only way to separate each component would be to kill off the rest of the sample, then hone in on a single area. However, that method isn't exactly applicable to human children.

His next best option was trial and error, something that made Tony want to bang his head against the wall. He could continue reactivity testing, not for identification, but for the most antagonist result. Then, make a dilute solution of a bunch of different things to try and treat the problem. Tony had FRIDAY begin said experiments, hoping that something would work.

Meanwhile, Peter worked on more theoretical tasks again. He was brainstorming and designing new inventions. They were all small, like water filters and computer drives, but would still be beneficial to the daily person's life.

These were the things he liked to build with the actual interns. They had once made a machine that could deliver coffee to some of the more sleep-deprived workers on their floor. It was basically a small drone that could carry mugs and worked well. However, the problem was programming the drone not to drop the coffee on said people. The plan was to have a mug be left on a worker's desk or cup holder. Yet, the drone understood this as setting down the coffee cup wherever there were set coordinates; even if the device was five feet above that location. After ruining many people's clothes and paper blueprints, the coffee drone was banned. Although, it led to similar intern-made drones which are now used in the majority of Stark Industries' manufacturing for the delivery and distribution of building materials.

Peter liked to brainstorm and think of new ideas. It was dull compared to what he normally did alongside Tony, but it still engaged his brain more than anything else.

The toddler was dragged out of his thoughts when something bumped into his chair followed by a series of irritated beeps. It jostled the table enough to cause a few pens to roll off the table too. He looked down to see DUM-E stuck between the leg of the table and the seat of his chair.

"Clumsy rob’t." Peter rolled his eyes good naturally and clicked his tongue.

The toddler climbed off the chair and moved it back to free the annoyed bot. DUM-E sped out from underneath the table and spun around in the open space. It rolled towards Peter, waving it's claw about the place in a gesture of thanks.

Peter wasn't fast enough to step out of the way and ended up falling onto his diapered butt as DUM-E approached. Nonetheless, he waved back at the robot's happy beeping.

DUM-E turned back to Peter's workstation, noticing the fallen pens from when it was trying to free itself. The bot picked up a pen and delivered it to the three-year-old. DUM-E dropped it on top of the toddler's head causing him to giggle. It retrieved another pen and, once again, dropped it onto Peter.

"DUM-E." The boy shook his head fondly and put the writing utensils back into the robot's claw. "They go on t'e table."

DUM-E gave another round of beeps, turned around, and threw the pens across the room. Peter just facepalmed. At least one probably made it onto a lab table. Somewhere.

"They go on t'is table." Peter amended and climbed back onto his chair. "Do you know w'at a table is?"

Butterfingers rolled towards them with the abandoned pens, making curious noises. It dropped them onto the table.

"See! Butte'f'ng'rs gets it." The boy tossed a pencil off the table. "Try aga'n, DUM-E."

The robot obediently put it back on the indicated table.

"Better." Peter praised and patted its claw. Butterfingers nudged his chair, wanting attention too.

The toddler got an idea and grabbed another pen. He threw it and yelled, "Fetch!"

Both robots raced to get it. Butterfingers was faster and proudly brought the pen back to the table. The bot got it three times in a row until DUM-E managed to snatch a victory when it caught the pen in midair.

Peter smiled at the two robots, clapping each time one of them got the writing utensil first.

They got more ambitious the more they played. While Peter couldn't throw very far, he managed to get a pencil, pen, or marker twelve feet away sometimes. A couple of minutes into their game, both bots came back to Peter without a writing utensil and beeped frantically.

DUM-E used his claw to grab Peter's shirt and tugged. The three-year-old got the message and followed them across the room, using the bot's claw as a guide. He was led to the broken space drone and bent down to see the pencil was stuck underneath the table.

Neither bot was able to reach it.

So, Peter laid on his stomach and wiggled under the workstation. He used his back legs to push himself further in, able to squeeze his shoulders and head underneath if he laid flat.

Peter shuffled closer to the pencil but found his hips didn't fit underneath the table like the rest of him. He tried to pull himself closer with his arms, twisting his body in an attempt to get it. Peter brushed it with his mere fingertips but only pushed it farther out of reach.

"Sh't." The boy cursed. He was only a couple more inches away! Peter blamed the diaper. "A'most."

DUM-E and Butterfingers made concerned beeps behind him.

Peter squirmed further underneath the workstation, continuing to reach for the pencil. The boy grunted in a mix of exertion, focus, and frustration. His feet were no longer getting the traction like before so Peter planted his foot against a leg of the table and pushed.

It didn't have the effect he wanted. Peter managed to grab the long-lost pencil but nudged the table backwards in the process. He heard a few tools skitter off the table and spare metal parts clank onto the ground.

"Whatcha doing, kiddo?" Peter could hear Tony's footsteps from around the corner.

Pencil in hand, the toddler wriggled out from underneath the table and proudly handed it to Butterfingers. The bot happily took the writing utensil, but DUM-E stole it quickly and waved it around as if to taunt Butterfingers.

"Playin' fetch with DUM-E 'n Butte'f'ng'rs." Peter said and smiled at the playful robots.

Stark shook his head fondly. What was he supposed to do with these three kids?

DUM-E rolled backward as the other robot tried to steal the illegitimate toy back. It ran straight into the workstation Peter had ventured under, jostling the half-constructed drone. There was a loud groan as the space device began to tilt.

The two robots sped away, but Peter wasn't lucky enough to have a motor and wheels attached to him. His uncoordinated stride left him vulnerable.

The spider toddler looked up at the large metal machine with wide eyes as he tried to scramble away.

"Peter!" Tony shouted and dove towards the kid.

He grabbed Peter around the waist and pulled him close to his chest. Stark rolled to his knees and braced his back against the onslaught of fallen objects. Peter shut his eyes tightly in fear and held onto Tony, burrowing his head into the man's midsection.

There was a loud crash when the larger pieces tumbled down onto the duo. Several power cells, bundles of wire, and screws clinked and clanged onto the ground as the various sets of cogs and gears took a couple of moments to whirl to a stop.

When all the noise came to a stop, Tony looked around at the mess of parts and loosened his embrace on Peter.

"You alright bud?"

Peter nodded against his chest. The drone was now in about a hundred more pieces than when he found it but at least the three-year-old was still in one piece. Peter was obviously shaken up; he clung to his mentor.

"You wanna take a break from the lab?"

Another nod. Tony got up with Peter in his arms and maneuvered himself around the fallen machinery.

They went to the common rooms. Pepper was at the kitchen island signing Stark Industries documents and Natasha was curled up on the couch with a book.

His wife looked up when they came in. "Hey guys, how was the lab?"

"Good. No new news though." Tony went about the room getting a sippy cup ready, rendered one-handed with a clingy toddler. The man wouldn't be surprised if he let go and Peter was still stuck to him regardless.

"Is Peter okay?" Pepper asked. There was a level of concern in her voice.

"Yeah, just got spooked when some parts dropped on the floor. Probably pretty loud with his hearing. Would you like some water too, Underoos?"

"Yes, p'ease."

Tony filled a sippy cup with water and handed it to Peter. Still not wanting to be on his own, Peter sat on Tony's lap when he joined Pepper at the island.

For the second time that day, Peter simply wanted to be held. Screw his dignity. He sat silently, sucking his water as he leaned against Tony.

Peter reviled in the man’s subtle warmth as he listened to the quiet noises of the room. Pepper tapped her tablet and Natasha flipped the pages of her book while Peter sat with Tony watching the whole domestic scene. The sense of normalcy and calmness was rewarding.

"May Parker has requested me to alert you of her arrival," FRIDAY announced.

He never liked calmness anyways. Peter looked up at the ceiling. "May is comin'?"

"I think she's already here." Pepper answered as his aunt appeared in the doorway.

"A'nt May!" He yelled. The three-year-old turned to see May and jumped out of his mentor's lap.

May caught the bundle of excitement barreling into her legs with a chuckle. "Hello, honey. How is your weekend?"

Peter wrapped his arms around her neck when she lifted him up. "Me 'n M'ster St'rk play'd in t'e lab together."

May raised an eyebrow at the billionaire. "Yeah?"

"Uh huh 'n he cook'd dinner too. He's a re'lly good chef. His pasta is re'lly good. 'Epper 'n I built a bed too." Peter lowered his voice for a minute. "I don't tell M'ster St'rk, but she's re'lly nice. 'Epper is a lot 'ike you."

"I hope that's a good thing," She said as she carried Peter towards the group. "It's a pleasure to see you two again."

The Starks nodded in greeting as Peter continued to ramble, "She hung out wit' me a lot 'n show'd me Bear! He's got a mask 'Ike a supe'he'o. Not 'ike Sp'derman but kinda 'ike Falc'n wit' his goggles."

"He really likes his toy bear." Pepper supplied, "Peter slept with the thing last night."

"I see. He used to always have a stuffed animal with him. Mary could barely separate him from them long enough to wash those toys. Peter hasn't touched a stuffed animal in years though. Is it normal to have him act like this? I thought he still had his teen brain?"

"Don't worry, he does. His sarcasm and humor are still very much intact." Tony added, "However, he will be affected by his younger appearance's emotions and instinctive behaviors. Not surprising given what we know. Over the past 24 hours, it seems like erratic mood swings, lack of coordination, and speech impediments are to be expected."

"I'm amazed the kid still calls him 'Mister Stark' all the time with his level of annunciation," Nat said as she walked into the room. "Hello May, my name is Natasha. It's very nice to meet you. You're Peter's aunt, correct?"

"Yes and you as well. How do you know Peter?"

"I was with him in Germany."

"Rom'n'ff." Peter said with a grin, "She's a sp'der too."

"Tony?" She spoke with apprehension, unconsciously holding Peter tighter at the sight of the newcomer.

"Meet our resident assassin, Black Widow."

"That doesn't reassure me, Stark."

"She's the one helping with the Accord nonsense." Pepper cut in. "Nat is also a good friend. You have nothing to worry about, May. Peter will be fine."

"She gave me cook'es t'is mornin'." The three-year-old added.

"In my defense, he was already climbing the fridge to get them," Nat said. “I’m not the one who gave him access to a million-dollar research facility.”

Tony glared at her for a moment. "It's not like I'm letting him in there alone." He grumbled under his breath, "All of the dangerous stuff is locked anyways. You have knives stashed all over the compound. I know it."

"Those are for emergencies, and even then, the blades are covered. There is a watch on your hand that can literally summon your gauntlet in mere seconds. That could do much more damage than my knives if Peter were to find them."

"I have eno'gh common sense not to k'll myself." Peter reminded them. Seriously, he knew not to stab or blast himself. He was aware that would hurt.

"Okay. I like her." May relaxed but didn't let go of Peter. "It's nice to meet another sensible person in this place."

"I'm a literal genius. I have plenty of common sense." Tony said.

"Debatable." All three women said in unison.

"Pete, help me. I'm being tag-teamed."

The boy shook his head. "You're on yo'r own."

May lightly bounced the boy in agreement and asked, "Are we still on for tea this week?"

"Always." Pepper confirmed, "Natasha is here the rest of the week, would you mind if she joined?"

"Not at all."

"This is how World War III starts," Tony mumbled as he slouched in his chair.

"Hey. Would you like something to drink, May?" Pepper offered. "You're welcome to stay for a while."

"No thanks, Happy is waiting for me outside. I just wanted to stop by real quick to see the little munchkin." She ruffled Peter's hair. "Has he behaved?"

"So far," Tony assured. None of them really wanted to deal with a full-blown tantrum.

"Good to hear and see that everything is still okay. I should be on my way; it's a bit of a commute back to the city." May detached herself from the toddler, giving him to Pepper. "Let me know if there are any changes in the situation. I would appreciate it."

"Of course." Pepper said, "See you later, May."

"Bye May!" Peter called as Tony escorted her back to Happy's car.

The boy reclaimed his stool and reached out for his water-filled cup that had been stranded on the counter. It was a few inches too far away. He wished for web-shooters. Natasha nudged it towards him. Peter mumbled a 'thank you' around the spout of the lid.

"Would you like something to eat?" Pepper asked.

"Fruit p'ease!" Peter replied."'Ike st'awberries."

"Strawberries sound good." Natasha agreed. "I can make a few grilled cheeses too."

"Sure." Pepper pulled out a small basket of strawberries, a cutting board, and a knife. "Whole or cut, Nat?"

"Whole is fine."

"Me too!"

"You don't get a choice, Peter."

The boy gave a small pout. Although, it disappeared in seconds when he was handed a bowl of freshly cut fruit.

Natasha and Pepper got to work on the grilled cheese sandwiches. Some of them were fancy with added turkey or extra seasonings. Pepper's had melted mozzarella with tomatoes and basil. The boy wasn't sure what was in Natasha's. Peter's grilled cheese was simple, just how he liked it, but the others smelled fantastic.

Tony returned shortly, immediately entranced by the delicious scents in the kitchen. He grabbed one and stuffed it in his face, not unlike the three-year-old beside him.

"Don't choke," Pepper reminded. "I can cut one into pieces if you're going to eat like that."

Tony rolled his eyes. He ate quietly, listening to Natasha's recent mission updates and Pepper's synapsis of the latest SI news. He'd heard the majority of their stories before between his night and day jobs.

While he didn't have much to add to the conversation, it was still nice to see two friends getting along after everything that had happened. Maybe were was hope for him and Cap... Eventually.

He felt Peter lean into his side, nibbling on the remains of his lunch. His movements were slow and less purposeful. It seemed like the excitement of the day had finally gotten to him. The boy looked exhausted.

"You tired, Underoos?"

"No." Peter insisted, trying to stifle a yawn.

"Liar." Stark teased and lifted the boy onto his hip. "An afternoon nap wouldn't hurt."

The toddler made a high-pitched noise of disagreement, drawing the attention of the women in the room. Peter squirmed in Tony's grip, pushing the man's arm away from him.

"Oh, Petey." Pepper took Peter from her husband, cradling the fussy three-year-old. "Your little body needs more sleep than your bigger one."

The boy whined but cuddled into the women's shirt nonetheless.

"I'm gonna take the cranky spider to his room," Pepper announced. "I'll be back in a little bit."

Tony watched his wife carry Peter down the hall. There was a unique, almost maternal, sort of way she cradled the boy. He couldn't help but think the maternal look suited her well in that moment.

"He's a good kid," Natasha commented.

"He's a great kid." Stark corrected.

"Then I'm glad there are good people looking out for him."

Tony tried to keep his inhibitions at bay as he nodded and said, "Me too."

He got up and collected dishes, depositing them into the sink. Tony gave Nat a wave goodbye and went downstairs to his lab.

There was the faint sound of machinery, whirling and working, throughout the workshop. The quiet hum of electricity and the sound of his own footsteps put him on edge.

Tony could feel the anxiety circling his chest and creeping into his limbs. The man took a long breath before he called, "FRIDAY?"

"Yes, boss?"

"Music."

Within seconds, AC/DC was blaring through the hidden speakers in the lab. It blocked out some of the negative voices and overemotional thoughts in his head.

Tony took another breath, this one was more steady and relaxed. The billionaire strode over to the fallen space drone, heaving it back onto the table. Tony rolled a toolbox closer to the workstation and DUM-E was at the ready with a fire extinguisher. He began to deconstruct, wanting to get to the source of the problem. Soon, the tabletop was covered with raw sheet metal, numerous well-loved tools, exposed wires, and several electrochemical cells in various conditions. Tony had FRIDAY document many changes he wanted to make to the next set of space drones to be manufactured. However, he couldn't help himself from making subtle improvements to the one in front of him.

By the time he drilled the drone shut, Tony was calm. He was okay; he was getting better.

The music was lowered to a reasonable level and Tony began to clear off his workstation. At seeing the tools being put away, DUM-E let out a disappointed beep at not using the fire extinguisher. Butterfingers gave the other bot a reassuring nudge.

"FRIDAY, please pull up recent research on the kid." Tony commanded.

Several hologram screens appeared before him. He swiped through the most recent reactivity tests, examining them closely. Most of them had been inconclusive, but he noticed usually high levels of iodine in the younger sample of blood.

Iodine was not an uncommon material in his lab. In fact, Bruce used to use copious amounts of it in his experiments due to its wide and distinct color range.

"FRIDAY, access KAREN."

"Hello, Mr. Stark." His protégé's AI greeted. "Can I help you with something?"

"Yes, I need to see Peter's suit cam footage," Tony said, "but only from Friday after school."

One of his blue-tinted screens began to project Spiderman's point of view from a few nights ago.

Tony had seen the footage before. He'd seen that afternoon's hustle and bustle of the city from the top of a skyscraper, the mess of new web combinations, the 0.6 second recovery before a painful fall, and the attacker on an empty street corner.

Tony took note of Peter's disoriented movements, suggesting a sedative or painkiller-based drug concoction. There was a definite lack of super strength. However, that avenue already led him to a dead end.

He tried rewinding and rewatching the assault to get a mere glimpse at the syringe. Yet, when Peter managed to get a good look at the attacker, the syringe was empty.

The billionaire doubted he could color match iodine reactions to a clear syringe. Tony huffed in frustration.

"Boss?" FRIDAY called. "Mrs. Stark is requesting your presence upstairs in the common room."

Tony looked over at the clock, noticing that he'd lost a few hours staring at a drone's wires and suit camera that he originally intended. "Please let her know I'll be there in a couple of minutes, FRI."

He ran a hand through his hair. "KAREN?" Tony asked. "Can you please look over the rest of Peter's footage from the week and alert me if you find anything unusual."

"Of course, Mr. Stark. Also, Peter has several texts and calls from 'Guy in the Chair' and 'Scary Lady' within the last two hours."

"Huh, are those contact names?" Tony asked distractedly. He began to save and close his research, thinking back to another kid Peter mentioned during one of their lab sessions. "They're Peter's friends right?"

"Yes, Peter often refers to them as Ned Leeds and Michelle Jones or MJ. They go to school together."

"That's right," Tony smirked. How could have he forgotten the suit hacker and his mentee's high school crush?

Peter rarely shut up about those two when he was talking about his day or whatnot. Those kids were as smart as they were troublemakers with or without superpowers; just like he was when he was in school.

"How many times have they called?"

"Ned Leeds has called 11 times and sent 42 messages while MJ called 6 times and sent 18 messages directly to Peter."

That was a little more than just several calls and messages. "Are they okay? Can you show me their texts from the last half an hour?" He demanded with a little more urgency than intended.

"Yes. It appears they are talking about a movie night at 'The Guy in the Chair''s house."

Tony let a wave of relief crash into him. He was really hoping not to play superhero tonight with Peter out on the sidelines, especially with the boy's friends. The billionaire could handle a little teen drama.

From what the man could grasp, the movie night was tonight. With no response from Peter, the boy's friends were worried about his whereabouts when he didn't show up. Ned and MJ were genuinely concerned for their favorite spider, just like Tony was when he found Peter on that empty street corner earlier that weekend.

"FRIDAY, does Pepper need me upstairs immediately?"

"She says it's not urgent but would like you to join her soon."

"Alright, then tell her I'll be up in a little bit," Tony said. "KAREN? Call Ned Leeds and MJ."

Back upstairs in his room, Peter woke up slowly. He stretched and pulled a blanket over his shoulders as he sat up. The boy stared at his room for a moment, waiting for his eyes to focus and his mind to clear up.

He was back in the solid red onesie from last night and his diaper was uncomfortably wet. Peter didn't remember ever needing to use the bathroom; it was odd. A nearby clock told him it was late afternoon. It felt odd to wake up then too.

Pepper appeared in the doorway; Peter had a sneaking suspicion FRIDAY had alerted her when he first woke up. The boy looked up at her groggily.

"Hello, sleepy boy." She said and lifted him onto the nearby dresser. "Did you have a good nap?"

Pepper got the three-year-old into a clean diaper. It was the first time Peter noticed the plastic underwear had characters on them. They didn't just have any baby cartoon characters either, these were Avengers.

"Bann'r!" Peter murmured sleepily when he happily saw the angry, green mutant.

"That's Bruce." Pepper nodded. "You would've loved working with him when he wasn't the Hulk."

The toddler looked at her with wide eyes. "You worked wit' him?"

"Uh huh, but he liked to work with Tony the most. Just like you and Tony, they would spend hours in the lab together. The rest of the Avengers used to call them the 'Science Bros'. Bruce was a really nice guy."

"He's supe' cool too! I read his papers about 'adia... rad'a..."

"Radiation?" Pepper supplied.

"Yeah! 'N the ones about ast'ophys'cs."

"Well if you ever meet him, I bet he'd love to hear about it. That man takes pride in his work, I think he would appreciate seeing your interests in it."

"Can I meet h'm?"

"I don't think so. I don't know where he is at the moment." Pepper replaced Peter's onesie with his clothes from earlier that day.

"Does M'ster St'rk know?"

She smiled at Peter's persistence. "Probably not."

"Does Na'as'a know?"

"She probably doesn't know either; no one really does."

"Can I meet him w'en we know where he is?"

"Maybe, but we got to find him first."

Peter seemed satisfied with that answer, staying quiet as Pepper finished dressing him. Outfit complete, Pepper set the boy on the floor and watched him wander around the room.

It was strange to think this three-year-old's room used to belong to a teen. Peter looked so small compared to the majority of the room, even if half of the furniture had been changed out.

"Mrs. Stark?"

Pepper looked towards the ceiling out of habit. "Yes FRIDAY?"

"There is an SI investor on the line, would you like to answer?"

"Yes," she glanced down at the toddler and weighed her options, "but I'll take the call in my room. I need you to stay here for one second, sweetheart. That okay?"

Peter gave her a thumbs up. They already established that boy's common sense was still intact, right?

"I'll be right back." Pepper said as she walked away.

The three-year-old decided to investigate every inch of his redecorated room. He hadn't fully paid attention to everything that changed.

While his bed was significantly smaller and more prison-like, there was an added toy chest beside it. Peter didn't dare to look at what Pepper had stuffed in his closet. His desk seemed the same, as did his wardrobe. He did find a couple of newer, soft blankets and sheets tucked away in the cubbies in the corner of the room though.

He did have to admit those blankets were soft; easy on his heightened senses. It was not unlike cuddling a large, fluffy kitten.

The toddler went to the toy chest, heaving open the large lid. Peter briefly wondered if Pepper stole the container from Mary Poppins, it seemed to hold an infinite amount of colorful trinkets.

He rifled though the plastic and foam objects until he found a trifold. It was simple and white, the toy had a little red handle on it like a briefcase too. However, when he opened the trifold, Peter was met with about a thousand different colored buttons.

"W'at the?" Peter said mostly to himself.

Peter could help but stare. This toy looked like the inside of an airplane's cockpit. The only difference was the lack of navigational controls and the odd shapes of each button.

He fumbled with it for a bit, flipping it over and checking the other sides of the trifold. No instructions. No on or off button. Nothing. So Peter did the only reasonable action he could think of: he pushed several buttons.

The plastic toy lit up and began to screech.

Peter put his hands over his ears to try and block out the horrid noises. He kicked it to the other side of the room and ran behind the attached bathroom door.

What kind of villain decided to hide this torture device in an unsuspecting child's toy box? Sure, bad guys can be mean, but this was just downright evil.

The boy peered around the door. It was no longer flashing bright lights at him.

He carefully brought his hands away from his ears. It no longer sounded like a fire alarm going off in a garbage disposal either.

Peter inched himself back towards the plastic trifold. He examined it carefully. Ready to run if needed, he cautiously pressed a single button on the edge of the toy.

It still made a lot of noise, but the sound resembled a bird more than a banshee.

Peter pressed that button again and immediately recognized the cliche 'cock-a-doodle-do' of a rooster. Knowing that, the button did kinda look like a side view of one.

He pressed another button. This one was round with two triangles on the top and heard the 'meow' of a cat. While Peter had never owned a cat in his life, he knew the animal's sound was distorted, unnatural, and just plain obnoxious.

"T'is is a was'e of my time." Peter decided as he folded up the toy and placed it back in the chest. He hoped never to hear those synthetic animal noises ever again.

Peter shut the lid to the toy box. The teen inside of him had no interest in these children's toys. No way. Not happening.

However, the blue, yellow-trimmed bag beside the toy chest piqued his curiosity.

Peter dragged said bag away from the wall by its yellow handles. He zippered the bag open and found numerous neat stacks of wooden blocks inside.

It wasn't like the scrap metal parts and wires he'd find in Mr. Stark's lab, but it was probably as close as he would get to hands-on lab time.

The boy smiled and tilted the bag, letting its contents spill out onto the floor. Various smooth triangles, disks, cubes, cylinders, arches, and bricks littered the carpet.

He began to build a bridge like the ones he'd seen out of patrol throughout the city. Peter quickly discovered the difference between these blocks and his Legos. None of the pieces fit together quite right. It allowed more room for his imaginative creativity but also meant needing an intuitive base for any structure. Especially when it came to balancing each side of his bridge.

Pepper returned later to find the little engineer on the floor with a very elaborate toy structure beside him. The creation was about as tall as the boy and nearly twice as long.

She was impressed. "Wow. Is this a suspension bridge?"

"Uh huh!"

"It looks great, Peter." She plucked the boy off the ground, ruffling his fluffy curls. "I'm sorry that took so long. How does takeout sound for dinner?"

"Ch'nese?"

"Sure, but I doubt you'll be able to handle anything too heavy right now. No fried wontons this time. However, I think I know something in that realm you can have." Pepper said as she began to walk towards the common rooms. "FRIDAY, could you please order the usual for me and Tony from that Chinese place near the tower?"

"Of course, anything else?"

"Yes, a small plate of steamed dumplings with white rice. You'll have to ask Nat what she wants too."

"Your order has been placed." The AI confirmed.

"Can you also call everyone to the kitchen for dinner?"

"Ms. Romanoff said she will be there shortly. Is Boss's presence required immediately?"

Pepper sighed. "I guess not; the food will take a while to get here. I'd still like Tony here before we all starve though."

"Noted, he will be up in a little bit."

"Thank you, FRIDAY."

"You rem'nd me of MJ too." Peter commented.

"Whose MJ?" Pepper asked.

"She's a fr'end from school 'n the Ac'dem'c Decat'alon captain. I ca' see why she looks up to you. Both of you are lead'rs 'n take care of others."

"Thank you. This 'MJ' sounds amazing, I'd love to meet her one day."

"Really? 'Cause she's always want'd to meet you too."

"Why is that?"

"You work hard for t'ings 'ike she does. Both of you guys are ve'y clever 'n pers'asive 'n comm'nding when you need to be. You can take a te'm of people to success."

"Well Pepper, your fan count continues to grow and inspire future generations." Natasha said from the doorway. "I assumed FRIDAY ordered dinner already?"

"Yep, it'll be here soon but you should see the fan accounts following SI right now. It's getting ridiculous."

Peter scrunched up his nose in disgust. "I hope some of t'em get delet'd quick."

Natasha smirked and took Peter from Pepper. "And this is why you're staying out of the media until you're a legal adult, маленький паук."

Widow bopped the toddler's forehead lightly. Peter giggled and grabbed her hand. He quietly played with it, gently spreading, crossing, and folding her limp fingers as if they belonged to a marionette doll.

When he got Natasha's hand into a loose fist, she would suddenly open it up widely and playfully twist Peter's nose. Peter did his best to keep Nat's hand at bay. The three-year-old was apparently very entertained by this, squealing each time the assassin's hand sprung into action.

Pepper enjoyed watching Natasha smile and play with the boy in her arms. She took a subtle video with her phone, sending evidence to May that Peter was in safe hands.

Eventually, Natasha let up and bounced the laughing three-year-old. The camera did not go unnoticed and Nat made sure to wink at Pepper when the CEO looked up from her phone.

"Your order has been delivered at the main entrance of the compound, Mrs. Stark." FRIDAY reported.

That got Peter's attention. He freed himself from the assassin and tugged Pepper's hand. "Dinn'r. Let's go!" Peter said, pulling the woman out of the room.

Pepper looked at the demanding child with a raised eyebrow. While the three-year-old did have a little super strength left, it didn't do as much as Peter had hoped.

"P'ease?" He tried.

"Better." Pepper followed the boy.

Tony emerged from his lab to find Natasha. She could see the mischief in his eyes immediately but decided it was better not to ask. She would figure it out sooner or later.

The genius fixed himself a drink; Nat noticed the lack of alcohol with approval.

"Progress?" She asked.

"Not much, but that's better than none." Stark shrugged, "Too many dead ends. Staring at the problem for six hours straight isn't helping either."

"Seems like you need a pair of fresh eyes."

"My partner is currently said problem. No offense to the kid, but he's still a kid."

"Fair enough."

Pepper and Peter returned, carrying several Chinese takeout boxes. The toddler was only trusted to hold one container as Pepper helpfully held the others. The boxes were deposited on the center island of the kitchen and divvied up amongst the group.

Peter's face was covered in soy sauce within seconds. He stuffed steamed dumplings in his mouth with his hands; he had nowhere near enough coordinate to handle chopsticks at the minute.

The adults smiled at his childlike manners, ignoring the clean-up process to follow.

"What do you going to do on your vacation from school, Petey?" Tony asked, taking a bite of his pork noodles.

"Labt'ime." Peter answered immediately.

"Playing hooky for the lab already, маленький паук?"

"He learned from the master." Pepper gestured to her husband. “I have to head to the Tower early tomorrow. You gotta make sure these two don’t turn themselves into robots, Nat.”

"I’ll try, but Ross wanted to discuss details about the upcoming week in person. I don't think that's the best place for Peter to be either."

"And you're sure you can't postpone their arrival?" Tony asked hopelessly.

Natasha shook her head. "It's no longer a debate."

"Why can't I go with Na'sh'a?" Peter spoke up, nibbling on the last of his dumplings.

"The government doesn't exactly approve of vigilantes." The assassin reminded him.

"Guess you’re stuck with me, Pete. No one is leaving you alone until you can reach door handles by yourself."

"I can if I cl’mb."

“Woah, that wasn’t a challenge.” Tony assured.

"Next thing you know, he’s in the vents." Natasha smiled, twirling her remaining noodles with chopsticks.

Pepper shook her head. "Oh no, not again. We do not need another search and rescue expedition.”

”The ductwork is mapped out this time. Plus, I installed anti-bird mechanisms to avoid that.”

"You know the archer would still find a way around them. He’d spend days just to figure out how to bypass your systems." Pepper said as she threw away her empty takeout container.

Tony shrugged and followed her suit, collecting Nat and Peter's boxes. "Then I guess I’ll have to upgrade them until the vents are bird free."

"Good luck. Fury and a highly trained team of engineers have already tried to do that for years." Widow recalled, "Clint has gotten in their vents ever since he was first recruited. He’d hide up there for hours to avoid training. He even built nests of pillows and blankets up there for naps.”

"Who is C'int?" Peter leaned in curiously.

"You've met Barton, маленький паук. He's Hawkeye."

"Oh yeah! I used some of his arrow des'gns for webs in the Sp'd'rman suit. They were supe' cool. I used t'ings l'ke the launching mec'an'sm to make the webs go farth'r 'n stuff."

"Clever, Stark has been teaching you well." Natasha praised.

"SI is lucky." Tony said. "You should see the things he comes up with. The kid is a genius."

"He's even got crazy Einstein hair too." Pepper fixing the boy's hair. "We can change that though."

"'Epper." Peter groaned with any teen attitude he had left, edging away from her. "My ha'r is f'ne!

Tony put a hand on Peter's back to stop him from leaning all the way off the chair. "Get used to it, Underoos. She does it all the time."

The three-year-old looked up at him with a dramatic sigh. "May too."

"Seems like you got your hands full. Make sure they behave, Peter." Natasha said as she stood up to leave. "I have a virtual briefing in a little bit, so I'll see you guys tomorrow."

"Thanks again, Widow."

"No worries, Tony." She reassured. "Goodnight, маленький паук."

"Goodn'ght, Na'as'a." The toddler waved.

"I need to get ready for tomorrow too," Pepper said. "The weekend is an easy distraction sometimes."

"You work too hard sometimes." Tony whined.

"Part of the job I guess, I like it though."

"The night is still young, Pep." Tony nudged her arm and spoke softly. "We could relax a little once Pete's in bed."

She nudged him back. "That is another part I like."

Tony snaked his arms around her waist, pulling her close. He gave Pepper a peck on the cheek before whispering in her ear. She blushed with a smile and kissed him softly, her hand finding its way into Tony's.

"Icky." Peter groaned, dropping his head. He covered his face with his arms, folded onto the table.

They paused, looking at the disgusted child. Tony rolled his eyes at his protégé's immature behavior. "Just you wait."

"Are we being too lovey dovey for you, Petey Pie?" Pepper smirked and grabbed the boy. She held him close and littered his face with playful, dramatic kisses. "You're lucky you're cute."

Peter squeaked in her arms. "Icky! Icky! Icky!" The toddler giggled.

"Not as much as you." Pepper teased and poked his rounded belly, setting the boy off on another set of giggles. "C'mon, let's get you changed and ready for bed."

Peter laughed when he was bounced in her arms. The sensation was so calming and exciting, that he didn't know how else to react.

He was deposited onto the top of the counter and Pepper leaned him onto his back. Peter looked at his room upside down. He missed seeing everything like this, that angle was just so appealing to his overly active mind.

He saw Tony emerge from the bathroom with supplies in his hand and Peter felt himself smile. Not for the things in his hand but just at seeing his mentor, he just really wanted to smile.

Screw childish emotions for another minute.

"M'ster St'rk." Peter waved both of his hands at the man.

Tony passed his things to Pepper and looked down at the boy. He turned his head as much as he could to imitate Peter's upside down angle. "Watcha lookin' at, Underoos?"

Peter just smiled, feeling a little sheepish for doing so. "Nothin'."

"You sure, 'cause it looks like you're looking at something." Tony bopped him on the nose lightly, causing the three-year-old to go cross eyed for a moment.

Pepper stripped him down, wiped him completely, and got him into a fresh diaper within minutes. She squeezed Peter's sides to get his attention. "All done."

The three-year-old sat up, letting the women ease the remaining shirt off him. "T'ank you."

"Of course." Pepper buttoned Peter into a fuzzy, red, flannel shirt with matching pants.

Peter fiddled with the sleeves. "It's sof'."

"Pajamas are supposed to be comfortable, Underoos." Tony said, offering the boy his stuffed animal sidekick.

"Bear!" Peter happily latched onto his toy. His clothes may be soft but were nothing compared to Bear. Peter decided Bear was the softest thing he ever touched.

Peter felt a blanket on his shoulders and then someone's arms underneath him. The blanket was pulled around him and Bear, creating a warm cocoon. He looked up to see Tony's face, calm and comforting. There was a small swaying motion that made Peter's eyes droop and heartbeat slow.

For the first time in a while, Peter truly felt safe and loved at that moment.

Before he knew it, Peter was put in his crib with the phantom notion of swaying. There was no avoiding sleep. The boy cuddled with his toy and let his breaths even out.

Soon, he found his way into a dream-like state; safe and loved.

Chapter Text

Tony cracked the door open just enough to peer into Peter's room.

The curtains were drawn, blocking the dawn light. The supplies, trinkets, and remains of a toy block creation lay abandoned in the darkness. The room was silent, except for the three-year-old's relaxed breathing.

Stark slipped into the pseudo-nursery and quietly tiptoed towards the crib.

The man wore his usual three-piece suit, minus the coat for now. Pepper always insisted on proper attire in public. It was a formality Tony usually disregarded, but found his clothes laid out for him when he woke up. He had a feeling that was Pepper’s not-so-subtle hint.

He looked down to see a half-awake Peter, clutching onto his stuffed animal friend. The boy's sensitive hearing must have given him away.

"Hey bud," Tony whispered, "it's time to get up."

Peter's eyes were still blurry with sleep, heavy and half-lidded. He looked up at his mentor when Tony brushed his hand against the boy's arm but didn't acknowledge him beyond that.

"C'mon, Underoos."

Tony lifted the boy out of the crib with ease, cradling him gently. Peter whined with the pitch akin to a kitten and held an arm out towards his bed. The billionaire got the message and retrieved the momentarily forgotten toy. Peter pulled Bear close to his chest with a sigh of contentment.

Stark hauled the three-year-old over to his dresser. It didn't seem like Peter was in the mood for daily decisions, so Tony pulled out a pair of blue and white striped pants followed by a grey shirt with a matching striped pocket. The whole outfit was unimaginably soft, in fact, there was little difference between the boy’s pajamas and everyday clothes. He removed Peter’s pajamas and undid his diaper. Tony got Peter situated and finished by putting pair of grey socks onto the boy's feet.

The billionaire carried a sleepy Peter on his hip into the kitchen.

It was a joke when Pepper first decided to get a set of Avenger-themed magnets for the communal fridge. When the team began living together, they would leave reminders or pictures underneath their corresponding magnet. It even got to the point where each magnet had a set of chores attached.

Barton took it a step further and had FRIDAY order a magnetic alphabet. The whole affair led to profane chaos, but everyone enjoyed rearranging the letters. Eventually, it turned into an odd game of Scrabble.

Since everything had been transferred to the compound, the magnets stayed hidden in a box within the depths of the kitchen.

However, Tony found a note underneath his old Ironman magnet on the fridge: Take good care of Peter and have a great day. I believe in you, and you know he does too. Try not to burn the compound down while I’m gone, I’ll be home early. -Pepper.

He smiled as he opened the fridge and started to collect ingredients.

Surprisingly, cooking with one hand was not as difficult as Stark assumed. The prep work was much harder and took much longer, but it was manageable. It wasn’t Food Network worthy cooking, but everything was edible.

Peter stayed quiet. He watched his surroundings with a dazed expression. It was all unfocused and muddy in his mind. His senses and limbs were still numb from sleep.

He was honestly considering just going back to sleep then and there. Until he saw a hand in front of his face, followed by the rich, savory scent of seasonings. Peter had to blink a couple of times to realize the hand held onto a fork with eggs.

“Want to try some, Underoos?” Tony asked, prompting the child.

Peter opened his mouth and was delighted by a warm, pleasant taste. He hummed happily, causing Tony to chuckle.

The three-year-old perked his head up to look around. The kitchen had that familiar morning glow you see in movies; it was littered with all sorts of things like a movie set too.

Peter saw the glare of the sun bounce off the chef knives, shining onto the freshly cut produce on a chopping board. The minced herbs and grated cheeses nearly made the kid drool. He saw a cluttered mess of haphazardly used utensils too. Chaotically leaving tools out in the open was something his mentor loved to do, especially in the lab. Then, Peter noticed the egg scramble filled with all sorts of pure deliciousness.

Peter took in the wonderful scents of breakfast and asked softly, “Mo’e?”

“Sure, bud. Let’s get a plate.” Tony said as he set the boy down.

Peter set Bear on the floor; then, he toddled over to the cabinets and climbed to the top of the counter. He reached down, pulled out the drawer, and grabbed two forks. The toddler held them out proudly. “You too, M’ster St’rk.”

“Fine.” The billionaire relented and got out two large plates. Among his spider powers, Peter’s metabolism didn’t seem to fade with the transformation. Neither did the concern of his mentor’s wellbeing.

“Where is ‘epper?”

And everyone else in the boy’s life for that matter. What an empathic hero this kid was.

“The tower. Don’t worry, she had breakfast before she left.” Tony set a plate in front of Peter and took a fork.

Stark leaned against the center island as he watched the boy eat in the same manner his teenage counterpart would: rushed but content.

There was the familiar ding of the elevator.

“Hey Tony, you wanted to see me?”

“Mornin’ Hap, I need you to install a car seat for today.”

The man froze when he walked into the kitchen. “A what?”

“A car seat.” Tony gestured to the toddler sitting on the counter. “For him. Pep put it in his closet.”

Happy held a hand to his head, already feeling the oncoming headache. “Woah woah woah, where the hell did he come from? Tony, I left you alone for the weekend and then this happens.”

“Calm down, it’s not like I burned down the compound. Please tell me you have more faith in me than my wife. This is Peter.”

The toddler swallowed a mouthful of eggs and gave a small wave. “Hi Happ’. S’rry I wasn’t t’ere when you pick’d me up on Fr’day.”

“No offense but I have a little less faith now. I thought you were joking when you said he was a three-year-old.”

Tony shook his head and pulled Happy out of the kitchen. “I wish I were. I’ve been trying to get him back to his normal self since then. Look, if the public catches me with a child, I rather have said child safe in a car seat than flying around the backseat.”

“Okay, I’ll get it installed. Is Peter okay otherwise?” Happy asked genuinely concerned.

“Yeah, he’s intact. Personality and memories are still there. The mood swings aren’t too fun for him though.”

“Are you okay?”

“I’m fine.” At Happy’s expression, he took a long breath and tried again. “It’s different but not bad. I don’t want anything to happen to the two-foot spider.”

“Fair enough, I’ll get the car seat. Car is out front when you two are ready.” Happy disappeared into Peter’s room.

The billionaire ignored the rush of horrid outcomes that ran through his head. Any of the possibilities the day brought could happen. None of that would happen though. He took a moment to calm his racing mind.

Tony returned to the kitchen to see Peter’s plate in the sink and the boy on a stool with Bear in his arms. “Whe’e are we goin’?”

“May called me last night. She said she found someone to take her place for a shift at the hospital. So, she has the morning off.” The billionaire cleaned off his own plate. “I thought it’d be fun to go visit.”

“Yes!” Peter squealed. “W’en do we leave? W’en do we leave?”

“Slow down, Underoos.” Tony chuckled at the boy’s sudden enthusiasm. “We can leave in a couple of minutes. You need shoes and I need my coat.”

“I’ll get yo’r coat, M’ster St’rk.” Peter said as he climbed down the stool and ran over to the main entryway of the common rooms.

There were large sliding glass doors that lead to the rest of the compound, including the tarmac, small gardens, and open training grounds Peter liked to explore when he visited on the weekends. Beside it, there was a set of hooks above an entry mat and a half-filled shoe rack. There were a couple of jackets and bags hung there, among them was Tony’s overcoat.

Peter tugged on the coattails, but it didn’t budge. He stood on top of the shoe rack and began ascending the wall. He was nearly there when his mentor pulled him off the wall.

Stark got his coat on and held up a gray pair of shoes with blue Velcro straps. If he had to wear formal attire, he would at least color-coordinate Peter’s outfit too.

“T’ank you.” The three-year-old took the shoes and sat down. He got them undone but struggled to put them on. Each time he tried, the heel would fold or his fingers would get stuck. He huffed in a mix of frustration and embarrassment. “Um, M’ster St’rk... Can you...?”

Tony kneeled and slipped both shoes on effortlessly. “Of course.”

“Are we re’dy now?”

“Yep, let’s go.” Tony stood up, slid on a pair of glasses, and slung a large black tote over his shoulder.

“W’at is t’e bag for?” Peter asked as he followed the billionaire to the garage.

“It’s for later.” The man said obscurely. Fortunately, Peter seemed satisfied with that answer and didn’t push any further.

Pepper was the one who encouraged Tony to take Peter to visit May in the first place. She even had the forethought to pack for them. Never in his life did Tony imagine himself carrying a diaper bag with a toddler following him out of the house.

“Ready?” Happy called when he saw the duo appear.

“Yep! We’re re’dy to go!” Peter said who was practically jumping with excitement.

Tony rolled his eyes and handed the large bag to Happy. How did this kid have so much energy?

The driver merely smirked. “Can he sit still for an hour?”

“Start the car, Hap.” The billionaire gave him a playful shove before opening the door for Peter.

He watched the boy clamber inside and blatantly avoid the newly installed car seat. The three-year-old reached for the seat belt and tried to fasten it. It was hard when the shoulder strap was nowhere near his shoulder.

“Peter, what are you doing?”

“Gettin’ in t’e car.”

“Uh huh.” Tony looked at the toddler with amusement. The man went around the other side of the car and grabbed Peter. “I don’t think so, bud.”

“That t’ing is not for me.” Peter whined.

“Sorry, kiddo. I want you to be safe.” Tony explained. “It’s like safety goggles. You have to wear them inside the lab.”

“No. Th’s isn’t a lab! I’m not gonna jump out the win’ow ‘ike an id’ot eith’r.” Peter squirmed as Tony placed him in the car seat. The boy tugged on the straps as they were put around him. He tried to push and kick the offending restraints out of the man’s hands. “No! C’mon M’ster St’rk, I’m not a real t’ree-ye’r-old!”

“Tough, kiddo.” He sighed. Tony could feel Peter’s humiliation and near panic growing. The man stopped fighting, allowing the fussy child to remove himself from the apparent torture device.

He spoke calmly in an effort to calm a defiant Peter. “If you want to see May today, we have to drive there. If we are driving, you have to be in this car seat. Would you like to see May today?”

Peter seemed to think it over for a moment. He nodded and asked softly, “Can I buckle myself in?”

“Sure, but you can’t unbuckle until we get there.”

Peter nodded once more and climbed into the dreaded car seat. He pulled the straps over his shoulders and between his legs up and into the center clip. Tony stood and waited until he heard the tell-tale click of completion.

“Thank you, Peter.” Tony said and climbed into the car himself.

The car roared alive and purred as they joined the continuous flow of vehicles on the long highway into the city.

The more buildings and cars Peter could see, the closer he was to his beloved city.

Peter looked out the window to see various cars. Some had single drivers, probably commuters on their way home or to work as Pepper had done earlier. There was one with a dog too. Peter didn’t know what kind it was, but it looked happy with its head out the window. Others had many people, like the car he was in with Happy and Mister Stark. Peter could see several suitcases in most of these cars, those definitely belonged to the tourists.

Tony looked up from his phone and never-ending inbox about halfway through the drive. Peter seemed utterly fascinated by the window, no longer bothered by the childish car seat.

“Watcha see out there, kiddo?”

“Not’ing much,” Peter said, and after a moment of silence, asked, “how mu’h long’r?“

“I don’t think much longer.”

“It feels l’ke forev’r”

“It can.” Tony looked around the interior of the car. There wasn’t much to look at, but the black tote on the floor did catch his eye. He reached inside, fumbled around, and pulled out the 5x5 Rubik’s Cube.

The man tossed it into the child’s lap. “Thirty-six seconds.”

Peter grinned at him as he held the colorful cube.

“Set timer, FRIDAY.” Tony tapped on the rim of his glasses. “Ready?”

The three-year-old nodded. Waiting for the signal, he balanced the Rubik’s Cube in his lap and laid his hands flat against the sides of the car seat.

“3... 2... 1... Go!”

Peter grabbed the cube and began solving the riddled sequence. Turning and flipping the rows and columns with difficulty, he was disadvantaged by his downsized hands. He got one side completed with more struggle than usual. His mind knew what to do but couldn’t relay it to his fingers. The time continued to tick away. When he finally got all six sides, he dropped the toy with frustration.

“Two minutes, twenty-three.” Tony reported. “Harder this time?”

“Unfa’r!” Peter was practically glaring at the puzzle cube at this point. “It doesn’t fit me anymo’e.”

“It fits you just fine; it’s just a little different now.”

The boy frowned. “Nuh uh, I’m too l’ttle now. It doesn’t work.”

“Just because you’re little doesn’t mean things don’t work anymore. They’re just different. As far as I know, that’s a new personal record for you as a little spider.”

“I’m not ev’n close to last t’me.”

“Big spiders are a bit different from little spiders, bud.” Tony retrieved the toy and gave it back to the boy. “Two minutes, twenty-three. Ready?”

Peter sighed grumpily, much like his teenage self. Regardless, he nodded.

“Go.”

Peter got to work, solving each side of the Rubik's cube. He still found it difficult, but less so than the last time. The puzzle toy fell into the boy’s lap; once again complete.

“Minute, fifty-five. See, much better.” Tony praised.

Peter held up the colorful cube. “Yo’r tu’n.”

“My turn?”

“Th’rty s’x sec’nds.”

“Alright.” Stark took the Rubik’s cube and set his glasses onto the rim of the boy’s nose. A light-up display popped up in front of Peter. “Tap the top to start and stop the timer, baby Einstein.”

“Gotcha. Re’dy?”

The man put the puzzle in his lap and laid his hands laid against the leather seats. He nodded.

“Go!”

At the end of the day, Tony didn’t manage to improve his time. While thirty-six sounds impressive, it was still too close to the spider teen’s record for him to accept. He found himself feeling more accomplished with Peter’s large improvements over the trip though.

The boy was glued to the hustle and bustle of the streets outside the window as soon as they got close. A site so familiar to him, it was hard to live without for more than a couple of days.

Tony was unsurprised to see Peter already halfway out of his car seat when they parked. He knew it wouldn’t take long for the kid to figure it out. Stark lifted the boy onto his hip; one of the more comfortable positions he’d found in order to hold an excitable three-year-old.

Happy opened the backdoor for Tony to grab the tote. He looked at his boss, failing to hide his smile. “You look like a soccer mom.”

“Yeah, yeah whatever. At least I’m not the driver of the team carpool.” Tony dismissed him. “I’ll see you after the game.”

Tony walked up the stairs of the building to the Parkers’ apartment. He was lucky not to drop the bag or the child. Peter fidgeted with excitement the entire way.

Stark stood close to the door. “Would do you the honors?”

Peter proudly knocked on the door and gasped quietly when he heard his aunt’s shoes on the hardwood floor.

May answered the door in casual clothing, a contrast to the scrubs Tony usually saw her in. “Good morning you two.”

“May!” Peter shrieked, leaving Tony to wince at the volume.

“Hello, May.” The man said as he gratefully transferred the energetic toddler to her. “He’s been really excited ever since I told him where we were going this morning.”

“I imagine. Have you been driving Tony crazy this morning, Petey Pie?” May teased and lightly tickled the boy’s ribs.

Peter giggled. “Nev’r.”

“This is how you’d be when Mary brought you to visit. You’d be bouncing off the walls like a kangaroo.” May reminisced as Peter clung to her. She turned to Tony. “They had a shorter drive though. How’d he do?”

“I’ve learned car seats can be death traps. He did surprisingly well though.”

“Good, I know this whole thing was such short notice since... and I didn’t know-“

“It’s alright.” Tony put a hand on her shoulder. “He’s happy to be here. So am I.”

May gave him a crooked smile before ushering him inside. “Come in, come in. I found something I wanted to show you guys.”

“W’at is it?” Peter asked as he was deposited onto the living room’s carpeted floor.

“It’s upstairs, one moment. Help yourselves to anything, Tony.”

Tony set the bag and his coat by the door. He noticed one of teen Peter’s hoodies on the rack nearby. It was one of the boy’s favorites. He would always bring it to the compound sometimes. That thing would swamp the kid now. The mental image made the billionaire chuckle.

Stark joined Peter in the living room when May returned with several large binders in her hand. She spread them out onto the low coffee table in front of him.

Tony heard the boy groan and fall onto the floor dramatically. “May...” Peter bellyached.

“What are these?”

“They’re photo albums, Stark.” May explained.

Tony saw the impish expression on May’s face and smirked. “Where do we start?” He picked up a well-loved, green binder at the top of the pile. “Preschool, huh?”

“He was about 4 then, so a little older than he looks now. Quite the artist then though.”

The man opened the binder to find a first day of school photo. Peter stood next to, who Tony assumed were, Mary and Richard. The kid wore a miniature button-down and a brand new backpack, beaming into the camera. There were other pictures of Peter at school, interacting with other classmates and playing. Just like May said, there were plenty of finger-painted masterpieces within sheet protectors. At the end, there was a picture of his whole class and teacher assistants.

“Know any of these people, Underoos?” Tony mused and propped the book up for Peter to see.

The three-year-old studied the photo for a minute but just looked confused. “I’ve nev’r met any of t’ese people ‘n my l’fe.”

Tony snickered. “I have photo evidence that says otherwise. Remember anything from then?”

“I rememb’r fallin’ off a tr’cycle.”

“Oh my gosh, I remember that too.” May laughed. “I came to pick you up that time. You refused to ride a bike for years after that.”

“It wa’ traumat’z’ng.” Peter folded his arm in every bit of the petulant child he was. “I k’ow how to r’de a b’ke now.”

“Geez Underoos, how do I scare you enough to stop web-slinging?”

The death glare Peter gave Tony could rival that of the Black Widow’s, but it looked out of place on the two-foot spider. “Nev’r.”

Tony shrugged and picked up another binder. This one was blue with white laces. Peter was already on the smaller end of the size spectrum, especially as a toddler. However, he was apparently even smaller as an infant.

The genius had no other words to describe the pictures in front of him other than ‘cute’. The Tony Stark’s vocabulary of adjectives had been reduced to that of a five-year-old’s by Peter Parker. ‘Cause darn it, baby Peter Parker was just downright cute.

May nudged him. “Hey, take a look at this.”

Tony took the photo in his hand and howled in laughter. “I need a copy of this.”

Peter toddled over to his mentor to try and see. “W’at is it, M’ster St’rk? Can I see?”

“I completely forgot about that program. I need to thank Pepper.”

“W’at is it?”

Tony handed the photo to the boy who merely blushed. “I act’ally rememb’r th’s one.”

It was a photo of a 1st grade Peter clad in a ‘Stark Industries Day Camp’ shirt. The program was offered to interest young kids in STEM. It was kinda like a small fair where elementary schoolers could explore the world of sciences for a day over the summer. Donations had been collected by various investors to support STEM education programs at nearby schools.

“I bet you can guess his hero-worship afterward was not a surprise for us.” May commented and gave another picture to Tony. “Here’s another one a couple of years later. We went for his birthday.”

Sure enough, it was a ten-year-old Peter dressed up as Iron Man. Complete with a plastic mask and gauntlets, the boy posed on the main entryway into the annual StarkExpo for a photo.

Tony’s smile faded before he put his head in his hands and mumbled, “Of course that was you.”

“What’s wro’g, M’ster St’rk?” Peter said as he grabbed the picture from his mentor.

May saw the distant look in Tony’s eyes; she had seen it countless times when people were left behind at the hospital. She took the photo albums out of the man’s lap and offered him a side hug. “You saved him that day. That’s what he cares about.”

“I’on Man is a supe’he’o, M’ster St’rk. Th’t is what supe’he’oes do.” Peter added earnestly.

Stark wanted to argue. He was the one who caused that mess. And of course, he was the one to put Peter in danger in the first place. If he hadn’t saved Peter that day...

“Peter? Why don’t you help me put this stuff away? Then, we can go to lunch.” May proposed.

“Yeah!” Peter grabbed a few binders and followed May upstairs, careful not to trip.

Tony didn’t want Peter to see him like this. He breathed. 4 seconds in... 7 seconds out... 8 seconds in... He kept a finger on his pulse.

By the time his heartbeat was normal, May and Peter had come back down the stairs.

“So, where were you thinking for lunch, Tony? Me and Peter were hoping for sandwiches down the street.”

“That sounds good.” Tony grabbed his coat. “Want Happy to drive us, May?”

“Nah, it’s not far. Think you can walk there, Petey Pie?”

Peter nodded. “Sandw'ches!”

“I take that as a yes.”

Tony opened the front door. “Lead the way.”

As soon as the door was open, Peter bolted. He ran down the stairs, not unlike his teenage self. He flew down the railing and almost into the line of parked cars on the edge of the sidewalk.

“Peter!” May used her strict nurse voice. “What was that? You can not run away like that, no matter how excited you are.”

“I didn’t ev’n run into the st’eet.“ Peter defended. “I kn’w you wer’ beh’nd me.”

“No, but you did run farther than we could see you.” Tony supplied. Peter may have had a point, but the man did not want to cross May when it came to Peter’s safety.

May grabbed the boy’s hand. “Stay close.”

Peter obediently held onto his aunt. He didn’t really want to cross the women either.

“You too, M’ster St’rk.” He looked up at Tony with an outreached hand.

The man rolled his eyes at the three-year-old’s inclusive, almost naive, gesture, but happily accepted. He held on to the smaller hand gently.

The trio walked around the block, past the tourists, vendors, and residents alike. Tony had never truly been in this part of Queens; it was much different from the area around Stark Tower. It was still the inner city Stark where had once lived, but Peter’s inner city was more casual and alive.

Tony felt Peter pull on his hand. He looked down to see him jumping over the cracks in the sidewalk.

The billionaire had seen suit footage of Spiderman saving a black cat who was stuck in a tree. Heck, he even saw the friendly neighborhood hero crash into a store selling mirrors that Peter later spent hours making repairs to. No way the kid was that superstitious to be walking carefully around New York’s horribly damaged streets.

Then Tony got a foolish idea. They waited at a street corner for the person at the end of the crosswalk to light up. Before they stepped out into the street, Tony lifted Peter’s hand up high as the boy jumped off the curb over a crack. The result: a smiling Peter when he landed back on the ground.

May smirked at the man’s antics. “Stark helping you swing around the city again, Petey Pie?”

Peter didn’t get a chance to respond before May lifted him by the hand as he jumped onto the next curb. The toddler giggled. “You help’d too!”

“Let’s be fair. Underoos started it.” Tony said as he and May swung the boy up into the air when he jumped over another piece of cracked concrete.

Peter looked up at the adults and bounced. “Aga’n! Aga’n! Aga’n!”

“Alright, alright, alright.” May gave into her nephew’s whims. ”On the count of 3.”

May, Tony, and Peter swung their arms back and forth as they walked up to another curb. They counted together. “1... 2... 3!”

Peter jumped off the curb. May and Tony lifted him into the air by his arms, listening to the boy’s infectious laughter.

“How long has it been since you’ve seen Mr. Delmar?” May asked.

“Thu’sday afte’school.”

“3 whole days since you’ve had his sandwiches. How have you survived?”

“I bar’ly surv’ved. Too long.”

Tony gave the Parkers a questionable look. “Are Mr. Delmar’s sandwiches really that good?”

Peter nodded. “Delma’ has the best sand’iches! He makes the b’ead and pes’o by hand f’esh eve’yday. He wo’ks very hard for eve’ything to taste just right so his sand’iches are g’eat.”

Tony didn't fully understand the boy’s excitement until he smelled the toasted bread and meats coming from the shop on the street corner.

“There’s a park on the next block over. Most schools aren’t out yet so it should be fairly empty. It might take some time to get the food and I don’t want to raise suspicion about a three-year-old.” May explained, “I’ll met you there.”

“Okay.” Tony agreed. The last thing he wanted was to see a picture of him and Peter on the front cover of every news article in New York. “You want to head to the park, kiddo?”

“The pa’k doesn’t have sand’iches”

May nodded. “Don’t worry, I’ll bring sandwiches to the park.”

“C’mon Underoos, we can get some energy out before we have to drive back to the compound.” Tony reasoned and started walking away from Delmar’s Deli. “Better yet, I’ll race you there.”

“Okay!” Peter cheered and ran after him.

Tony slipped his credit card into May’s pocket and waved to her before leaving with the energetic toddler.

As May had assumed, the park was deserted. There were trees surrounding a soccer field and dirt trails leading to picnic tables and benches. It wasn’t a very big park; nonetheless, Peter was enthralled by the open space.

As soon as the boy saw the colorful play gym, he bounded up the large lattice steps. Stark watched Peter explore the castle-like structure with amusement.

The toddler found himself in front of the first obstacle: a bouncy bridge. Peter held onto the railing and hesitantly stepped onto it. The floor wobbled uncertainly, watching the uneasy motion ripple through it.

It may not have been very concerning to walk across as a teen, but as a three-year-old, that bridge was practically an earthquake waiting to happen beneath him.

He quickly decided he didn’t like earthquake-prone bridges.

Peter jumped in place, allowing the movement to travel to the end of the bridge and back. When the motion returned, it pushed him upwards as if he were bouncing on a trampoline.

Peter had used trampolines before at the compound.

The boy jumped forward this time. Delighted by the wavy effect he got from the bridge in return, he smiled. Peter skipped across as if he were on a long tumble track. He ran back and forth, giggling at the waves his steps made. The three-year-old grasped the railing for stability and jumped on the middle of the bridge. It felt like he was on a roller coaster.

When Peter was out of breath from laughing, he ventured into a plastic tunnel. The boy crawled inside and looked out of its large, circular window. He pushed up his face against the scratched, clear plastic and saw Tony.

It was that same uncontrollable, happy feeling he felt last night at seeing his mentor. An elated squeal escaped him, echoing throughout the tunnel.

Stark walked over to the window. “I ought to take you to the park more often when you’re hyped up on energy.” He mused.

Tony put his hand onto the plastic, Peter did the same. When Tony moved his hand around, Peter matched him. It made the man smile

Peter squealed again in response, too rilled up for words.

The toddler crawled out of the tunnel and down a small slide with a grin plastered on his face. He ran back towards the bouncy bridge only to be caught by Tony on his way.

“You’re so energetic, kiddo.” Stark grabbed the three-year-old and threw him over his shoulder, bouncing the boy. “Tell me your secret.”

“T’ere is no secr’t.”

“Tell me, you two foot gremlin.”

“You gotta catch me f’rst, M’ster St’rk!” Peter giggled as he wiggled out of the man’s grasp.

Peter ran over to the under side of the play gym, Tony at his heels. He climbed up a curvy ladder onto the main platform.

Peter dangled his feet over the side of the structure. He quickly brought them back when Stark reached up, close to grabbing them.

“Too s’ow.” The three-year-old taunted.

“I’m just giving you the benefit of the doubt.” Tony finally got one of the boy’s shoes and tugged gently.

The boy recoiled with laughter and ran back across the structure to the initial staircase. Peter looped around the equipment’s lower supports. He ran circles around the billionaire, but kept his distance as to not get caught. Naturally, Tony chased after the boy.

When Peter dared to get close, Tony snatched him up. He’d playfully swing and toss the toddler around before setting him free. Peter returned to the main platform to escape his mentor when he found the park’s main attraction.

Stark watched Peter suddenly freeze at the top of a large, twisty slide. The boy inspected it with curious apprehension. Tony waited for him but Peter remained hesitant, focus glued to the downward ramp before him.

“You’re okay, bud.”

Peter shook his head. His eyes remained fixated on the entry of the slide as if its sloped jaws would bite and swallow him whole.

Tony stood at the end of the long slide. “I’ll be right here to catch you. You’ll be okay.”

Peter sat down and scooted to the edge of the slide. “P’omise?”

“I promise.”

Peter screamed when he felt himself slide away from the platform. At first, he was scared by all the motion. Then, amazed by the smooth sensation. Next thing he knew, Peter was smiling and screamed out of utter joy.

The three-year-old slid right into his mentor’s awaiting arms.

“You like it?” Tony asked, feeling himself grin at Peter’s animated expression.

“Aga’n! Aga’n! Aga’n!”

The boy raced back to the top of the slide. He peered over the edge at Tony, waiting patiently.

“Go ahead, kiddo.” The man assured.

Peter slid back down, giggling the entire way. Tony caught him at the bottom each time, capturing Peter long enough to amuse him, and letting the toddler do it all over again.

At one point, instead of Tony, Peter found himself in his aunt’s arms. “Ready for lunch, Petey Pie?”

He nodded enthusiastically. “Sandw'ches!”

May lead him to a small picnic table on the other side of the playground. She rifled through the tote bag for wipes, cleaning off the three-year-old’s hands. Meanwhile, Tony divided the sandwiches amongst them.

Peter was happy to see his sandwich was made just how he liked it. He took large bites making his cheeks look like a chipmunk.

“I’m amazed that you’re able to fit that much food into such a tiny body.”

“Much of physiology is still a mystery, May.” Tony noted.

Peter swallowed. “Ma’ic.”

“I’m sorry, what?”

“Ma’ic.”

“I speak 5 languages, kiddo, and I still don’t understand.” Tony looked bewildered. “Help me, May.”

“He says it’s magic, Stark. You don’t speak toddler?”

Peter nodded and repeated, “Ma’ic.”

“Oh no, magic does NOT exist. I’m not even having this conversation.”

“Ma’ic.” He insisted. The toddler giggled at his flustered mentor.

“Nuh uh.”

May rolled her eyes at the duo as she ate her lunch. “Can we use magic to turn Pete back into a teen?”

“Nope, not happening. Not a valid option.”

“But it's an option?”

“You know what I mean.” Tony looked at the woman who wore a devilish grin. He’d seen that same exact grin on Peter before the kid did something mischievous. They were teaming up on him now. “2 against 1 is unfair you know.”

“Majo’ity rules.” Peter claimed.

“I’m scared for the future of this country.” Tony mused.

May smirked. “It can’t be all bad. Maybe the next generation will discover the uses of magic.”

“Don’t endorse this. Stop feeding people fantastical lies.”

“What if I classified magic as imagination? Imagination creates endless possibilities Plus, people haven’t figured out how imagination works either. Maybe they’ll figure it out in the future.”

“Imagination is good but it needs to be applicable.” Tony argued. “Magic is not applicable now nor will it be in the future. Sciences are always applicable.”

“Regardless, I’m a little more interested in the present at the minute.” May said as she put her arm around the dosing child next to her. “Tired, sweetheart?”

Peter had his head laid atop folded arms on the table. “No,” he responded stubbornly. It wasn’t that obvious... Was it?

“C’mon kid, we’ll give your aunt some time before she needs to head to work.” Tony pulled out his phone. “Happy can pick us up back at your place.”

May ran her fingers along her nephew’s back. The boy was always such a fool. She couldn’t bring herself to care though; that boy was her fool. “Sounds good.”

Stark helped her clean off the table and collect their things. He grabbed the tote, doubting May would let go of the toddler. The man watched the park disappear over his shoulder. In all honesty, he wouldn’t mind taking Peter back there when he was a teen.

Tony thought over the past three days on the way back to the compound. It had been crazy, full of ups and down. Both for himself and Peter. However, it occurred to him that the past three days weren’t all bad, nor all good... Just different.

He looked over at the sleepy toddler curled up in the car seat next to him.

Said toddler should be a teen who is at school with his geeky friends or out helping the people in the city that he loves dearly. Tony can’t quite solve Peter’s current predicament yet, however, he’d can help Peter through it until he has a proper solution. He hoped he was the one able to help Peter in the best way possible.

They rolled from the smooth pavement onto the gravel driveway of the Avengers compound. Happy pulled up to the side entrance of the main building.

Tony looked up to see the boy starting to stir. “Welcome back to the land of the living, kiddo.”

“Th’s body nee’s too mu’h sleep.” Peter sat up and yawned.

“It’s really not unusual for toddlers to nap.” The man said as he got out of the car. “I’m actually surprised you weren’t out for longer.”

“W’ere’s May?” Peter began to undo the buckles of his car seat. “I didn’t get to say goodb’e.”

“She didn’t want to wake you.” Tony removed the straps over the boy’s shoulders and helped him out of the car. “May is back in Queens, probably working at the hospital by now. May is also only a phone call away if you need her.”

“Okay.” Peter looked back at their chauffeur. “T’ank you ‘appy for the r’de!”

Happy didn’t respond but the three-year-old swore he saw the man give a small smile before driving away. Peter followed Tony inside the compound with a similar smile of his own.

Stark deposited the black tote by the door, shrugging off his coat which ended up on nearby hooks. With a little effort, Peter was pleased with himself for taking off his shoes by the door without the billionaire’s help. The boy tucked them away in the small shelves beside Tony’s.

Peter let out a surprised squeak when he felt hands around his waist. He smelled the familiar perfume that lingered on his mentor before he saw her face.

“Hello sweetheart, did you enjoy your day out with Tones?” Pepper asked as she settled the boy onto her hip.

“Uh huh. May was t’ere too!”

“How’s May doing?”

“She’s workin’ now tho’gh but A’nt May was mean ‘n got out p’oto alb’ms to embarr’ss me. T’en we got sand’iches at the best sand’ich shop in the wo’ld!” Peter explained animatedly.

Tony listened to Peter ramble about his day to his wife. The boy was always a chatterbox when he was over on the weekends, recalling anything and everything he could from the past week. Peter’s rants soon became comfortable background noise for Tony.

“Hey honey, can I borrow Pete for awhile? I had a couple more tests I wanted to run before it got too late.”

“Sure.” Pepper set the boy down. “You okay with that, Peter?”

“No mo’e nee’les?”

“No more needles.” Tony assured.

“Labt’me!” Peter cheered. He grabbed the hem of Tony’s untucked dress shirt and pulled him toward the lab’s entrance. The man rolled his eyes but followed nonetheless.

Later, when the sun began to set, the elevator to the common rooms opened with a ding. MJ and Ned were greeted with the sight of Pepper Stark lounging on a plush couch with a StarkPad and numerous SI files beside her.

"Oh, hello." She looked up at them when they entered, beginning to collect her things. "You must be Peter's friends. I'm Mrs. Stark but you're welcome to call me Pepper. It's a pleasure to finally meet you guys."

"You too." Ned said in nervous shock at the mere presence of the CEO before him.

"Same here." MJ said confidently shaking Pepper's outstretched hand, definitely ignoring the admiration that spurred inside her. The girl practically idolized said woman. "My name is MJ and this is Ned." She gestured to the awestruck guy beside her.

"Well, welcome to the Avengers compound. If you need anything, just let us, or FRIDAY, know. I'll get the boys out of the lab." She rolled her eyes fondly. "They'll never leave if they don't have a reason to."

As soon as she was out of sight, Ned let out a breath he didn't know he'd been holding and rambled, "Oh my gosh, that was Pepper Potts. I can't believe this. This is so cool."

"Pepper Stark." MJ corrected. "But yeah, this is pretty cool. Did Mr. Stark say anything else about Peter?"

"Nope, but I'm assuming they just got caught up in whatever project they were doing and ended late. Happened all the time when Spiderman first helped the Avengers out when May wasn’t enforcing a schedule."

"If you say so." Her eyes wandered around the room, taking in it's large size and expensive quality. The large, flat-screen TV and detailed bar showed class, but the magnets on the fridge and shoes by the back door said otherwise.

They heard a high-pitched squeal from behind them and turned to see Tony Stark with a happy toddler on his hip.

"Ned! MJ!" Peter shouted in Tony's ear.

The man cringed at the loud noise but found himself smiling at Peter's excitement. It was just how toddler Peter just greeted everyone he knew. He addressed the visitors with a wave.

Ned could recognize his friend’s face in any state. "Oh my god, Mr. Stark. Is that Peter?"

"Yep. Also, call me Tony. 'Mister' makes me feel old."

"This is why you asked us to cover for him at school?" MJ clarified. "He doesn’t look much older than four."

"Three actually, but he's still got the sass and intelligence of his teenage self."

"What about Spiderman?" Ned asked concerned. "Can he still climb walls?"

"Yes, he's still got some powers but not to the extent as before. The suit is locked away in my lab behind a Parker-proof lock and his 'guy in the chair' will be on hiatus for the time being."

MJ crossed her arms. "Why do I get the feeling we won't be getting our teen Peter back anytime soon, Tony?"

"It's a work in progress but-"

"His n'me is M'ster St'rk, MJ." Peter spoke up.

"Dude," Ned nearly doubled over laughing, "we need to work on your pronunciation."

"His speech isn't fully developed yet." Stark ruffed the boy’s hair. "And you know what my name is, Petey."

"M'ster St'rk."

"I told you to call me Tony. MJ didn't have a problem with it."

MJ had to stifle her own laughter. "Tony is a lot easier to say than Mr. Stark."

"Nuh uh." Peter shook his head. "M'ster St'rk."

"You are a stubborn child. Just make sure you let the other two get a say on movies tonight."

"We already agreed on no Star Wars," MJ added, "and I'm holding these two nerds to their word."

"You can look through FRIDAY's selection of movies." Tony offered, setting Peter on the floor. "You have the run of the common rooms too, takeout with be here in a little over an hour."

"Thank you again, Tony, for letting us have our movie night here." Ned said graciously.

"Of course, just make sure Underoos doesn't suffocate in a blanket or something."

"I'm not that stup'd, M'ster St'rk." Peter defended as the man ignored him and returned to his lab.

"Says the guy who literally burned a hole through his desk in the middle of chemistry." Ned reminded.

"That was one t'me 'n the chem'cals weren't lab'led r'ght."

"Why am I not surprised?" MJ said and flopped onto a nearby couch.

She watched Peter waddle over to her. He folded his arms on the seat of the couch, laid his head on top, and looked up at her with chocolate brown eyes in interest.

"Only you could end up like this Parker." MJ commented taking in his tiny stature and undeveloped state.

"Do we want to set up on the floor tonight?" Ned suggested, "Tony mentioned he had blankets we could use."

"P'llow fort!" Peter announced.

MJ raised an eyebrow. "Really?"

He nodded seriously. "There's lotsa room 'n we have lotsa p'llows 'n blankets."

"I'm down. Me and Peter used to do it all the time during weekend sleepovers in elementary school." Ned agreed. "Where's the supplies, bro?"

Peter looked towards the ceiling. "FR'DAY?"

"There's a supply closet with extra sheets and on the first door to your left down the hall towards your room, Peter." She answered, effectively startling MJ and Ned.

"Th'nk you!"

They opened said hall closet to find enough pillows and blankets for a small military base. To be honest, that's exactly what the compound was.

Ned hummed in approval. "This will work."

MJ helped Peter carry several pillows and blankets to the living room as Ned collected various chairs. The main couch was perfect and, after adding the backs of chairs and stacks of cushions around it, would be a great base.

Peter ventured into the kitchen. He stole a drawer-full of snack bag clips, along with some string and a pair of scissors.

MJ and Ned lifted a large sheet over their work, holding it tightly as Peter secured it. The little engineer quickly ran around the base tying down the loose ends to the best of his ability.

"You sure this won't fall on us?" MJ asked the toddler cautiously.

"You dou't me?"

Ned observed Peter's work. "It seems fine to me."

"What about this side?" MJ poked at one of the clips precarious holding three pieces of the sheet.

"Not yet!" Peter shouted, but within moments the clip slid off said sheet and made half of the fort's ceiling cave in.

"I blame MJ." Ned pointed out.

"Thanks for having my back, Ned."

"It's okay." Peter reassured, beginning to fix the roof. "I wish I us'd my webb'ng."

"Did you seriously consider using your webs to make a pillow fort?"

"They're st'ong, MJ, 'n can last for hours."

"Pillow forts are creations without societal limits, I resist any notion of bringing superhero nonsense into one." MJ defended, wanting some normalcy. "Especially on movie nights."

"But I'm a supe'he'o." Peter gasped dramatically, "Are you k'ck'ng me out?"

"No, spiders can be in the fort, but their webs are banned. We already made that a rule. Last time he used them during one of our movie nights, we spent the night detaching Ned from a wall instead of watching movies."

Ned grimaced at the memory. "She has a point."

"F'ne, I resp'ct the rules of mov'e n'ghts." The boy relented. "The cl'ps are just f'ne for the p'llow fort. But we need d'corat'ons."

"On it." Ned gave a mock salute.

He finished up securing the large sheet as Ned and MJ decorated.

The inside of the fort became a nest of blankets and various throw pillows. Ned managed to string some fairy lights to the roof of the fort and MJ created a stand out of spare books for a movie-filled StarkPad.

As they were adding finishing touches to their fort, Peter was the first to recognize the savory scent of food with his senses. He peeked his head outside of the fort.

Sure enough, Pepper was walking out of the elevator with several pizza boxes.

"P'zza!" Peter shouted and ran to the kitchen. Ned and MJ dropped whatever they were doing and followed suit.

"I figured pizza would be fine for everyone. You three ready for dinner?" Pepper asked as she began opening said boxes.

They made noises of confirmation and generously thanked the woman. The trio returned to their fortress with plates of pizza and a variety of sodas.

Much to his chagrin, Peter was off-limits from carbonated beverages and settled for lemonade in a spill-proof sippy cup.

MJ leaned against the cushions as Ned laid on a throne of pillows and Peter sprawled on top of several blankets. Pizza and drinks were precariously balanced around them.

"What should we watch?" MJ asked the two boys as she sipped on her cherry soda.

"Star Wars." Ned said quickly.

"No." The girl just gave a look of disappointment. Not anger, just disappointment. "Peter?"

"Monst'r Inc?" He said around a mouthful of pizza.

"Okay." She scrolled through the StarkPad, surprised at the sheer amount of animated, kid friendly movies on said device. "We can watch the prequel afterwards too."

They nodded in agreement and watched colorful doors fill the screen.

They laughed at the creature's voices and critiqued the old animation software used. It may have been good then, but now it was sadly hilarious.

It was decided MJ had the best impression of Edith, the monster behind the desk, and Ned wondered how many monsters could be behind the doors of the Avengers compound. Peter couldn't help but sympathize with the little girl, being so shocked by such a sudden change of scenery.

By the time Sully and Mike were searching for their missing human child, Ned, MJ, and Peter were glued to the screen, surrounded by empty cups and plates.

"I see you've conquered the living room quite well." Tony said as he bent down to the entrance of the kids' pillow fort. The movie paused automatically to his arrival. "MJ? Ned? Mind taking a minute to take your plates to the kitchen? I'm gonna borrow Pete for a second."

Ned and MJ nodded and gathered their dishes. Peter crawled out of the tent and took Stark's outreached hand, following him to his room.

"Are you having fun with your friends." Tony asked as he lifted the boy up onto the changing mat.

"Uh huh. We made a p'llow fort with mov'es 'n 'epper gave us p'zza for d'nner. Ned put fa'ry l'ghts in the fort 'n MJ put losta p'llows in the fort with supe' soft blankets. The l'ghts are so p'etty. It looks l'ke the l'ghts outs'de in the c'ty."

Tony quickly changed the boy's diaper as he rambled about his friends. "The lights are pretty at night."

"The tower has t'e best l'ghts, M'ster St'rk."

"I'm glad you like the fairy lights." He chuckled, zipping Peter into a light blue onesie littered with tiny airplanes. "I know it's not what you guys first planned, but is your movie night still good?"

"Yeah!" Peter cheered and then pointed to the Bucky Bear in his crib. "Can Bear come too?"

"Sure, Underoos." Tony carried the boy to his crib for the requested stuffed animal then back out to the living room. He let the boy crawl into the pillow fort with his friends. "I'm returning the spider child."

"Thank you, Tony!" MJ called from inside.

"Oh my god, Peter." Ned grinned at seeing his friend and pulled out his phone. "You are so cute in your pajamas with your bear."

He held his Bucky bear closer and pouted. "No p'ctures."

"C'mon Peter-man, how do you expect us not to take pictures when you're like this?" MJ pulled the three-year-old into her side and ruffled his hair. "I bet the Starks have already started a collection for you."

"Mean." Peter whined.

MJ rolled her eyes. "I feel attacked."

She poked at the boy's ribs, causing him to squirm. Then, she ran her fingers along Peter's covered feet making him giggle. MJ grabbed the toy beside him and used it to tickle the boy's neck.

Ned had to bite his tongue from behind his phone's camera, filming the entire interaction.

Peter became a laughing mess, batting at her hands and trying to grab his bear back. In between breaths, he managed to say, "Tra'tors."

MJ let Peter take his stuffed animal back and allowed her small smile to linger.

The toddler clutched the bear to his chest as if she would steal it again. "Bear came to watch the mov'e too 'n not be attack'd."

"Fine. Ready Ned?"

Almost three hours later, Tony poked his head into the tent to check on the three friends. He was met with an adorable scene with the trio cuddling and brought out his phone for pictures.

They were immediately sent to May.

Ned was dozing against one of the propped up cushions with MJ's head resting on his shoulder. Peter was cuddled between them, he had an arm around Bear and his other hand in his mouth. As the movie credits rolled, the fairy lights filled the area with a warm glow.

Tony reached inside and shook Ned's leg. "Wakey wakey, kiddos. I promised your parents you'd be home before midnight. I don't need another lawsuit on child abduction."

Ned nodded sleepily and woke up MJ with his elbow. She jolted awake causing Peter to mumble some incoherent phrase in his sleep. MJ carefully carried Peter as they clambered out of the nest of blankets and pillows.

Stark took Peter, letting the sleepy toddler's head rest in the crook of his neck. He ushered the other two teens downstairs where the head of security was waiting. "Happy will take you home, I hope you two had a good movie night. I think Peter enjoyed it."

"Thank you, Tony." Ned said, waving to Happy.

"Thank you, it was a good movie night." MJ got into the car. "Good luck with Peter."

They drove off towards the sparkling lights of the city, not unlike the ones inside their pillow fort.

He carried Peter to his room. Tony tucked him into his crib, making sure his Bucky Bear was beside him. Stark let his inhibitions fade and instinct take over, giving the kid a kiss on the forehead. "Sleep well, Underoos."

Chapter Text

Peter turned over in his crib with Bear at his side. He laid on warm pillows and snuggled a fuzzy blanket. His eyes lazily took in the morning sun falling into his room. He debated turning back over and falling asleep, but a sweet scent got the better of him.

The crib was no match for his spidery powers. The three-year-old climbed out of it with ease. He peeked around his bedroom door and peered down the hallway.

Peter followed his nose into the almost empty kitchen. He saw Pepper at the stove, clearly the source of the delicious aroma. However, with his footsteps quieted by his footed pajamas, she didn’t notice him.

He moved slowly and deliberately. The Spider Child leaned against the cabinets as he slinked closer. With Mission Impossible theme song playing in his head, he crawled to the center island and risked sparing a look around the corner to see his target. Pepper was indeed still oblivious to his position.

Peter took refuge for a moment. His plan of attack was being executed to perfection. He rubbed his hands together mischievously. The toddler planted his feet and took a big breath.

When the time was right, Peter sprung forward and yelled. “BOO!”

Only to his surprise... Pepper was gone. He looked around underwhelmed.

“BOO!”

Peter jumped, screaming in surprise at the sudden noise.

“I got you.” He whirled around to see a grinning Pepper who scooped him up in her arms and continued cooking. “Morning, Petey.”

The boy shook off the shock with a smile. He should have seen it coming. It was THE Pepper Potts after all. “How’d you f’nd me? I was so sne’ky. I was ’ike a s’adow.” Peter wiggled his fingers ominously for emphasis.

“Shadows don’t giggle.” Pepper teased. “And FRIDAY, remind me he needs a crib cover for when I’m not at work.”

“No wo’k toda’?”

“Sorta, I get to work from home today.”

“Does M’ster St’rk get to wo’k f’om home too?” Peter asked hopefully.

“I think so.”

“Yes!” Peter pumped his fist in the air as Pepper set him down on a stool.

The woman prepped two plates of buttery French toast and fresh fruit. She placed a serving in front of the boy, adding a dusting of powered sugar to his meal. Peter watched in awe as he put his hand into the shower of sugary snow. He happily licked the hand that was left covered in white flakes.

The boy tried to fit as many pieces of toast in his mouth as he could. They tasted of sweet cream with a hint of nutmeg. Simply fantastic. A happy moan escaped him causing Pepper to chuckle.

“Why is b’eakf’st so good, ‘epper?”

“I dunno, it just is. Plus, it’s the most important meal of the day.”

“It’s fantas’ic.” Peter concluded. “T’ank you fo’ b’eakf’st!“

“You’re very welcome.” Pepper watched Peter nibble on his last pieces of fruit. “Do you want to bring Tony’s plate to him in the lab?”

The three-year-old nodded enthusiastically. He slid off his stool and ran around the center island. Pepper lifted him up onto the counter and offered him a plate of plain French toast.

Peter looked around at the fresh cut fruit splayed across the kitchen top. A line of strawberries were carefully placed beside the toast followed by a handful of blueberries. To finish, he reached for the bag of powdered sugar.

She replaced the bag in the boy’s hands with a small, semi-filled strainer. Pepper didn’t want her husband to end up with diabetes.

Just like he’d seen her do to his breakfast, Peter tapped the side of the sifting instrument on his hand. He gently dusted the fruit, French toast, part of the counter, and his pajamas.

“Pe’fect.” Peter announced.

When he climbed back onto the floor, Pepper handed him the plate. She watched the toddler scamper down the hall and silently hoped he wouldn’t drop the plate before he got there.

Meanwhile, Tony poured over his most recent notes concerning age regression. He was brainstorming a combination of new experiments to attempt with the remaining samples of Peter’s blood. To be honest, he really didn’t want to put the boy through the whole blood drawing process again.

“Peter is requesting access to the lab, boss.” FRIDAY reported. “He has breakfast for you.”

Tony collapsed in the nearest swivel chair and adjusted the collar of his dress shirt. He closed his research files and turned off the holographic screens. “Let him in, girl.”

“Hey there, Underoos.” Tony called when he saw the toddler, covered in powered sugar, proudly holding a plate of French toast. “Whatcha been up to this morning?”

“Good mornin’ M’ster St’rk. Me ‘n ‘epper made you b’eakf’st.”

Stark took a bite of the offered food. The presentation was clearly Peter’s doing but the taste was undoubtably Pepper’s work. “It’s delicious, thank you.”

“Welc’me. ‘eppper said you were wo’kin’ f’om home aga’n too.” The three-year-old began to toddle around Tony’s chair as he spoke. “I ‘ike when you wo’k f’om home.”

The man swiveled around as he ate, keeping an eye on the kid. “Yeah, why is that?”

“I dunno. I just do.” Peter answered quietly.

“Is it because I’m just that amazing?”

Peter giggled. “No.”

“Really? Okay fine. Is it because I’m a genius?”

“Nope.”

“Is it because I’m a billionaire?”

“Nuh uh.”

“You sound like being a billionaire is a bad quality to have.” Tony teased. “Is it because I’m a superhero who saves lives?”

“May saves ‘ives too.”

“Fair enough, but that’s good because I like working from home when you’re here too.”

“Yeah, why is t’at? ‘Cause I’m amazin’?”

“Smart ass.” Tony smirked. He set down his plate and grabbed the three-year-old around the waist, throwing him over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes.

Tony closed up the lab and walked down the hall. He took uneven steps in order to jostle the toddler playfully. “C’mon, if I’m working from home then so are you.”

“Do I get pa’d?”

“No, you don’t get paid. I can’t put a three-year-old on a Stark Industries payroll.”

“I don’t ev’n get mini’um wage? Unfa’r.”

“You get dinner tonight, Petey.” The man snarked as he opened the door of to boy’s pesudo-nursery. ”That’s way better than minimum wage in New York.”

Tony flopped the boy onto the changing table’s mat and unbuttoned his onesie. He replaced Peter’s soiled diaper with a new one that make the toddler smell as sweet as the packaging they came in. It was a different scent to find on Peter but not necessarily a bad one.

“You’re lucky me and Pepper haven’t set up the high chair for you during mealtimes yet.”

“If you two put me in a ’igh cha’r, I will eat yo’r soul.” Peter threatened with no menace whatsoever.

The man blew a raspberry on Peter’s exposed stomach, making the three-year-old howl with laughter. “We don’t have any souls available at the minute. You’ll have to eat something else for dinner, kiddo.”

Tony put Peter in a white short sleeve underneath black overalls and ruffled his hair.

The toddler looked down at his outfit and then at Tony’s. “We match. We both ‘ave b’ack ‘n whi’e.”

“I guess so.” It was true, the billionaire was wearing a white dress shirt with black pants.

“Hey, Tones.” Pepper poked her head into the room and tilted it down the hall. “Ready.”

“Yep, let’s go Underoos.”

“W’ere are we goin’?”

“You’ll see.” Tony carried the boy towards the entrance of the compound with Pepper by his side.

They stopped in front of the floor-to-ceiling windows. Peter looked around confused. Then, the little Spider heard the whine of an engine. The sound grew louder and louder. Peter had his hands covering his ears when he finally saw a large Quinjet.

The boy watched in silent awe from inside as their visitors touched down gently onto the landing pad. Peter took his hands away from his ears and waited with the Starks until the plane’s motor stopped whirling.

A large ramp fell from the side of the plane, exposing four figures. They were dressed in traditional robes and African garments.

The three of them went outside to greet the arrivals. Peter squirmed excitedly in Tony’s arms and babbled nonsense into his ear. It was clear little Peter was more in control than big Peter at the moment.

Regardless, Tony walked with prestige and pride rivaling that of the visiting king.

He came face to face with T’Challa. “Good to see you again, Kitty Cat.”

“You as well, Stark. Mrs. Stark. This is the boy I’ve been told so much about?” T'Challa gestured to the three-year old.

“The one and only.”

As soon as Peter spotted her iconic braided, space buns, he squealed. Tony rolled his eyes and adjusted the energetic toddler on his hip. Those two got on like a house on fire. And he really didn’t want the compound to catch fire.

“Shu’i!” Peter shrieked.

“You’ve grown since I last saw you Peter.” Shuri smiled and ruffled his unruly hair. “How the fuck did you manage to get yourself into this one?”

“Shuri, language.” T’Challa chastised.

“It’s fine. His mind and profanity are very much still intact, as is his sarcasm.” Tony assured.

“Welcom’ to t’e Int’nat’onal sarcasm soc’ety.” Peter gave a mock salute. “Cert’f’ed malarkey only.”

“Much to our chagrin.”

“Shuri will still find a way to corrupt him.” Okoye warned.

The Wakandan teen perked up. ”Is that a challenge?”

“Tony is doing a fine job of that already.” Pepper said. “It’s a pleasure to see you all again.”

“Same here. Unfortunately, our time frame is limited given the circumstances.” T’Challa prompted.

“Of course.” Pepper began leading their four guests inside. “FRIDAY can show you to your rooms and lead you to the conference center when you’re ready.”

Shuri, Okoye, and the other man followed the A.I.’s instruction through the labyrinth of the Avengers compound.

T’Challa cleared his throat. “Who wants to be the one to call-?”

“Not now. We’ll have plenty of time to him in later.” Tony waved the king off. “Petey, why don’t you help Shuri get settled? It’s gonna be a lot of boring business stuff for awhile.”

The boy nodded and ran after the others.

Tony watched him go and waited a couple seconds to make sure they were out of super-hearing earshot. “I think you understand my side of the altercations now.”

“We both want the Accords to benefit the next set of heroes for when we’re no longer there.”

“I’m glad we have something to agree on.” Pepper added. “Shall we?”

Meanwhile, Peter caught up to the Wakandans and followed Shuri into her room. The princess all but flopped onto the large, white, plush bed found in every guest suite.

The three-year-old climbed up and sat beside her. “M'ster St’rk didn’t tell me you were comin’. How ‘ong are you stayin’?”

“Only a day or two. I’ll take anytime I can get away from the palace to see the rest of the world though. It’s fascinating how you primitive people live.”

“New Yo’k is not p’imitive. We do more t’an mash rocks toget’er.”

“You guys still string exposed wires between houses to access the internet. Literally wooden poles holding up fire hazards.”

“New Yo’k was the or’ginatin’ city of t’e meme.”

“Touché.” Shuri sat up and faced the boy. “Alright, I vote you show me the most innovative parts of New York. Then, I’ll take you to Wakanda and we’ll decide whether I can still call this city ‘primitive’.”

“Neither Tony or T’Challa would want you wandering around Times Square any time soon.” Okoye said as she set Shuri’s suitcase inside the doorway. “Besides, your mother asked me to protect you. Meaning, I’d be going with you if decided to explore.”

“It’ll be cultural research.” Shuri insisted. “Good for improving the versatility of the outreach program. Peter?”

“Yeah. It’ll be edu... ed’cat... edu’ation... at’onal... edu’cat...”

“Educational?” Okoye supplemented. “Good try, but no.”

Shuri sighed and fell back onto the bed dramatically. Under her breath, she mumbled. “Killjoy.”

Okoye rolled her eyes before leaving to settle into her own room. She did not need to control a media storm headlining photos of the Wakandan princess carrying a mystery toddler down the city streets eating hot dogs from local vendors.

“I’m practically an adult.” Shuri grumbled. “Yet here I am.”

“Mood.” Peter agreed.

“Next time I’ll sneak off the plane before Okoye captures me.” Shuri began unzipping her suitcase and haphazardly unpacking a couple of things. “You swing around the city all the time, right? Spiderman would have probably be the best tour guide around.”

“Not right now. My web shoot’rs ‘ave been actin’ up. I need a mecha’ical fix not a chem’cal fix.”

“My tour guide not able to search the streets for the best and finest sights to see? That’s no good.” Shuri tucked her suitcase into a corner. “C’mon, let me take a look.”

Peter led her to Tony’s lab. The sliding glass doors opened automatically upon their entry. They had Stark Industries’ best materials and machines at their fingertips.

Peter pulled a stool over to the display cases. He climbed up and pushed on the padlock of his suit’s container. “It’s ‘ocked.” He pushed on the lock again, but it refused to budge. “FR’DAY, p’ease open it.”

“Access denied via Baby Proof Protocols.”

“Not fa’r, FR’DAY.” Peter glared at the ceiling as he heard the Wakandan cackling behind him. “FR’DAY...” He whined.

Shuri collected herself and spoke proudly. “FRIDAY, please open.”

“Access granted.”

“S’owoff.” Peter mumbled as he reached inside for his webshooters. The boy held them up for Shuri to see. “I’m tryin’ to change the rele’se mecha’isn fo’ mo’e distance. T’ere is too mu’h pressure which breaks the web.”

“Lessen the pressure without reducing distance capabilities, huh?” She took the small device, observing the output valve carefully. “Maybe we can incorporate an equalizer to contain the released pressure which would also balance the pressure exerted on the webs to the outside environment.”

“So all we need is an ext’a valve or somet’ing bet’een the web stor’ge and d’spens’r. ” Peter concluded.

“Exactly. It’ll need to be small and flexible too. Got any aluminum sheet metal?”

“Over ‘ere.” Peter tugged on the handle of a large drawer. Shuri took pity on the three-year-old and helped him pull open the drawer.

The toddler’s eyes sparkled. It was the same sparkle painters had when they saw a blank canvas. He innately reached for a piece that was quickly snatched by Shuri.

“Please don’t cut yourself.”

“Hey, I can ha’dle it. I’m not re’lly a t’ree ye’r old, ya’ know.”

“Peter, I wouldn’t let you handle sheet metal even if you were the same age as Captain America. You’re a clumsy idiot.” Shuri said as she rifled through one of Stark’s toolboxes.

“Fine.” The toddler relented as he followed the Wakandan to a nearby work station. He hopped up onto the table top and watched her work intently. Peter tried to help but Shuri managed to keep the accident-prone child away.

Minutes later, she held up the improved creation. “Here, try this.”

Peter strapped the device to his wrist, aimed at the farthest wall, and fired. He was thrusted backwards in surprise. It threw Peter backwards. He would have fallen off the table if he hadn’t bumped into Shuri.

“You okay?” She held him close to her midsection. Stark would murder her if Peter so much as scrapped his knee while he was with her.

“It wo’ks!” Peter cheered. He shot his webs again, anticipating the jolt this time. Much better. “You added mo’e pow’r too?”

“Nope, you’re just smaller but the webs seem stronger and are going farther now. It shouldn’t malfunction anymore with long distances.”

Peter shot a web on the high ceiling and pulled it taunt. “Aw’some.”

He held the web in one hand and leaned off the side of the table. It held perfectly.

“Peter... What are you doing?”

“Just tryin’ somet’ing.” Peter stepped back then hurtled himself off the edge. “Yeet!”

The boy swung across the room screaming in joy. He may not have been fifty feet above New York streets but he was thrilled to swing from his webs once again. Peter let go, landing with only a couple stumbling step onto a different workstation.

He turned just in time to see Shuri attach the other web shooter to her wrist and leap off a table. She kicked her legs wildly, clutching the tiny white thread that was the only thing between her and the floor. When she let go, the teen crashed into a nearby wall. Shuri quickly collected herself off the floor and leaned against the wall as if nothing happened.

Peter covered his mouth attempting not to burst out laughing. “FR’DAY? P’ease tell me we hav’ vid’o.”

“Would you like that video to be sent to the ‘Dream Team Bitches’ group chat?”

“Sen’ it! Sen’ it!” MJ and Ned would get a kick out of the princess’s antics.

Shuri threw her hand over the boy’s face and used her arm to put him in a gentle choke hold. “FRIDAY, delete!” She demanded. “Delete it!”

“The video has been sent to the ‘Dream Team Bitches’ group chat.” The AI reported.

Shuri released the boy and fell back dramatically. “You made it look so easy... and fun.”

“‘Cause I’m t’e best a’ound.” He singsonged.

Shuri flipped him off.

“You gotta use your uppe’ body.” Peter said as he clambered onto another table. This time he shot a web at the ground and leaned back. “It’s gotta be in f’ont of you too so you don’t spin outta cont’ol.”

The boy swung across the room a couple times as a demonstration. Shuri fired a few webs and followed suit. The Wakandan learned quickly with minimal damage to Tony’s lab. Soon the duo where challenging each other’s web slinging abilities.

It evolved into a dangerous game of tag... Quickly.

Peter might have been able to stick to walls but his movements were still uneven and uncoordinated. He was lucky to not have fallen more than a couple inches. Shuri used every bit of beginner’s luck to web sling alongside the Spider Child. She utilized her larger size to her advantage, more weight caused more momentum which lead to more speed. It was tricky not to get caught in the webs you already made though.

It was all for play: one web shooter per person. They ducked and dived under workstations, cornering each other with their webs. They ran and hid behind machines, racing to the other side of the room.

Then, the laboratory doors opened... Tony, T’Challa, and Okoye stood there speechless.

The lab was covered in webbing. A white maze of strings woven between tables and machines. DUM-E and Butterfingers were smart enough to stay out of the fray.

In the midst of webbed chaos, the two culprits stood silently.

Okoye sighed in amusement at T’Challa’s expression. The king just kept a hand over his face, hoping the scene in front of him was just a bizarrely familiar nightmare.

“Peter Benjamin Parker.” Tony spoke firmly but evenly. “Mind coming over here and explaining what you’re doing with a web shooter on your wrist.”

Peter never heard Tony use his full name like that before. The boy felt a chill go down his spine.

Shuri held up her hands in defense, an apologetic smile on her face. “His idea.”

“I know.”

Peter, head down in shame, slowly made his way towards the doorway. “Yes, M’ster St’rk?”

“Please look at me.” Tony kneeled down to Peter’s height and lifted the boy’s chin. “In order to be in the lab like this, we agreed on a set of rules, right?”

Peter nodded, an embarrassed blush growing on his cheeks. His face felt hot as involuntary tears pricked at the corner of his eyes. He rambled. “I-I didn’t mean to. T’e disp’ay wit’ t’e shoot’rs... T’ey got f-fix’d ‘n I want’d to t’y t’em out... S’uri made t’em p’etty cool now. I’m n-not out in t’e city. I-I’m only in t’e lab...”

“And you broke one of these rules?”

Peter nodded again.

“Which one did you break?”

Peter hesitated.

“Peter?”

“No Sp'derman.” He mumbled, voice cracking. “Are you ang’y at me?”

“Never. I just don’t want a Peter pancake on my lab floor, bud.” Tony pulled the boy into a hug, Peter sniffled into the man’s shirt. “The rules are there for a reason right now.”

He got up with the kid in his arms. Refusing to lift his head away from Tony’s shoulder, the boy clearly felt guilty.

“FRIDAY, note Shuri is no longer considered adult supervision for Peter in the lab. Additionally, Peter will not be allowed in the lab unless explicitly directed by me.” Tony announced then turned to T’Challa. “Anything else to add?”

The Panther grinned. “We’re going to have lunch. You’re welcome to join us when you’re done here, Shuri.”

“Wait, what?”

Shuri wasn’t fast enough to escape the web maze before the lab doors closed behind them.

Pepper watched the group filter into the kitchen as she set down a large platter of pre-made sandwiches and sides. “Lunch anyone?”

Peter sulked as Tony prepared him a plate. The others helped themselves to a variety of breads, meats, cheeses, fruits, and veggies. The smorgasbord had a little of everything to please everyone, even the Wakandan visitors.

However, Pepper noticed one was missing. “Where’s Shuri?”

“Finishing up in the lab.” T'Challa answered.

Tony smirked. “She’ll be here soon if she finds the web cleaner in the cabinets. We’ve learned to keep quite a supply around here.”

“Can we buy it in bulk?” Okoye asked and pulled up an image on her Kimyoto beads. “Shuri has been trying to incorporate those webs into fabric for some time now. There’s been quite a few failed attempts but apparently the elasticity could improve potential energy collection.”

She projected a short video of T’Challa trying desperately to tear the sleeve of a training suit off his arm. He pulled and tugged, nearly knocking over one of the Wakandan lab tables. The king screamed at his sister in vain.

T’Challa shook his head fondly. “She somehow increased the dissolving time by weaving it together.”

“Peter’s webs around the city normally take about 4 to 6 hours to dissolve, maybe 3 if the weather is terrible. He’s managed to get it in the Iron Man suit a couple of times but it’s not bad.” Tony said, “How long were you stuck?”

“About 10 hours. Even then, we ended up pressure washing part of it to loosen the dumb thing off.”

Peter ate quietly. The chatter and useless banter of the others around him was oddly comforting.

As somone who has personally helped free Tony from a broken metal suit, Pepper began, “Would you rather be stuck in the Iron Man suit or the Black Panther suit for 24 hours?”

“Black Panther.” Okoye responded without hesitation. “I rather be trapped in a sleek and flexible material than a bulky metal one any day.”

Tony tapped on his watch, releasing a fleet of nanobots to assemble his classic red and gold gauntlet. “Would you like to try the tin can on for size? We can start a timer when you’re ready and compare observations.”

“I’d rather not be stuck in either suit. Yours are too flashy to get anything done right.”

“My suit is literally black.” T’Challa protested. “How ‘less flashy’ do you want.”

“It’s glow-in-the-dark purple.”

“Where’s Na’as’a? Peter spoke up.

Everyone paused and looked to Pepper who simply shrugged. “I don’t keep track of everyone. That’s FRIDAY’s job.”

“Can I go look for her?” Peter announced. “She needs to eat too.”

“You have to finish your lunch first.” Tony warned. “Your metabolism isn’t stopping anytime soon.”

“I’m not hung’y.”

“Liar. You’re always hungry.”

Peter shook his head like the stubborn toddler he was.

“Two more bites of something then sure.” He negotiated. “Nat is probably in the gym.”

Peter grinned and downed a handful of fruit before running off towards the gym. If Spiderman wasn’t in the lab or his personal room, he would probably be there.

There were weight benches and treadmills: only the finest equipment built to handle the world’s team of superhumans. Large mats and foam padding covered the majority of the floor, perfect for sparring. On the far end of the room, a set of bars and suspended platforms hung around odd-shaped tumbling blocks.

That was where Peter spent most of his time.

He’d stack the large blocks or lay them out into an obstacle course. The spider teen would swing across platforms and between bars. His favorite was the set of hanging rings in the very corner. Peter could maneuver himself expertly around them or otherwise hang depending on his mood.

Peter peeked his head into the gym. It was then Peter realized just how small he was. What would have been waist-height for him as a teen now towered over him as a toddler.

Intimidating was only one of the many words that came to mind.

The boy flinched at a sudden loud crash. For a minute, Peter felt his breath catch and a weight on his chest. He was back underneath the warehouse from Homecoming night.

Peter tried to focus on his hands in front of him. He could see the light color and fleshy tint of his skin, unlike the dark and dusty hands from before.

Peter tried to focus on his socks underneath him. He could feel his toes wiggle against the soft fabric, unlike the immobile ones from before.

Peter tried to focus on the hum of the building around him. He could hear the air conditioning clearly, unlike the deafening silence from before.

Just like Tony had taught him, Peter then tried to focus on his breathing. He was in the compound, not underneath the warehouse.

Rejoining reality, he looked up to a man lying by a rack of fallen weights. It was the other person from the plane.

Peter recognized Natasha's voice on the far side of the room. “Surrender, Buck?”

Then, an unfamiliar, deeper voice. “Not a chance.”

The unknown man brought himself to his knees, metal limb gleaming underneath the bright gym lights. He looked through a curtain of long, tangled hair, his focus unwavering. Shaking his head like a wet dog to regain himself after his fall, the man sprung into action and joined his opponent on the main sparring mat.

Widow ducked as he rolled into an almost animal-like crouch, chest heaving in exertion. The man prowled the edges of the mat waiting for her next move.

Buck... Peter had heard that name before. He’d seen that arm before too. “Winte’?” He whispered.

The boy rushed forward, coming to the edge of the mat to watch the training match.

Natasha brought her foot up in a side kick only to be caught halfway. She was pulled forward and underneath Bucky as he tried to pin her down. Fortunately, the woman was quick and used her elbow to push against the man’s inner arm. He crumbled. Nat gained the upper hand, pushing him onto his side and restraining his arms.

Peter watched with bated breath as the duo sparred, neither pulling their punches. It was as if they were dancing, flawlessly ornate and perfectly practiced. But both had this feral look in their eyes, a look Peter knew didn’t belong in Swan Lake.

Bucky gripped the back of Widow’s shirt, wrenching her off and tossing her a couple feet away. Nat naturally landed on her feet and recovered quickly. She leaped onto the man’s shoulders, using her weight to bring them both onto the floor.

If Peter tilted his head, they looked like a perfectly twisted pretzel.

Bucky writhed trying to escape her. He twisted around and used the mats to his advantage. Pushing her into the ground, Natasha inevitably had to let go and reached for his neck. Bucky gripped her ankles in an attempt to restrict her movement. They paused, each heavily breathing. The two sparring partners played a game of chicken, waiting for the next person to move.

“Winte’?” Peter asked quietly and tilted his head.

Bucky cringed at the old name, tilting his head to match the kid’s confused expression. Why was there a toddler sitting on the edge of their sparring ring?

Natasha took the distraction as the right time to flip Bucky over and pin him down. “Keep your focus, Barnes. There’s more here than just goats.”

“You doubt them. They have power in numbers.” He said and graciously tapped out. The man sat up after Nat released him and properly examined the child. Buck paused as if determining friend from foe.

Natasha kneeled beside Peter, fixing a twisted strap on the boy’s overalls. “Need something, маленький паук?”

“Lunch is ready ‘n you weren’t t’ere.” He explained. “I cam’ to find you.”

“Oh, I guess we could stop for lunch. Have enough for two more?”

“Uh huh.” Peter nodded. “P’enty.”

“Good.” Nat then addressed the metal-armed man. “Barnes, meet Peter.”

Bucky gave a small wave. He felt uncomfortable around children. They seemed breakable. Steve was a very breakable child.

Peter waved Nat closer, eyeing the man. The boy went on his tiptoes and whispered into her ear. Natasha smiled. “He doesn’t bite.”

Not on purpose Barnes thought as he watched Natasha handle Peter. He willed himself not to run away from the child. Inside Bucky knew the Winter Solider was gone but still didn’t want any impulsive behaviors to come back. Natasha could handle him if he was dangerous. He doubted Peter could.

“Winte’?”

The man flinched when he saw the boy beside him, ripping Bucky out of his self-deprecating thoughts. Several red flags went up in his mind, causing the man to involuntarily recoil backward.

“How mu’h can yo’r a’m lift?”

Bucky froze for a second, surprised. “My arm?”

Peter nodded and pointed at the metal-plated limb. “How mu’h can it lift?”

Bucky’s concern grew for the naive child and he looked to Nat for direction. She was of no help whatsoever. “I-I dunno. A lot?” He answered quietly.

“Can it lift me?” Peter asked curiously.

“I think so.” Bucky reached forward and gently grabbed the straps of the three-year-old’s overalls. He slowly lifted the boy.

“T’at’s so cool!” Peter exclaimed. He joyfully kicked his feet which were now suspended a couple of inches off the ground.

Bucky carefully put him down. He was quietly amused when Peter reached for his metal hand, fiddling with the shiny digits and mumbling to himself.

“Um... Peter, can I ask you a question?”

“Uh huh.”

“How much do you know about me? ”

“You know M’ster St’rk,” Peter compared his hand length to Bucky’s. “‘n t’at Winte’ has a cool metal a’m.”

Suddenly, Bucky felt much calmer around the toddler. It was rare to find someone who was so open and seemingly unafraid. He decided Peter was a friend. “You don’t have to call me Winter, I have other names.”

“You want him to pronounce Buchanan?” Natasha teased.

“Bu’ha’an.”

Bucky grinned at Peter’s attempt. “Yeah, it’s kinda a mouthful. Winter is fine.”

“C’mon,” Natasha said as picked up Peter. “If we don’t go soon, lunch will be gone.”

“Coming.” Bucky said, utterly fascinated by the child in Widow’s arms.

Upon their arrival, Peter declared, “I found Na’as’a ‘n Winte’!”

“Good job, kiddo.” Tony said as he took Peter from the female assassin. He now understood the effort it took to do anything one-handed. He didn't want to burden anyone else with that feat. “Help yourself to whatever you want, guys.”

Distracted by the child himself, it finally came to Bucky as an afterthought to who the child belonged to. And at seeing them together, he did not need to be around for another generation of Starks.

Tony was too familiar with the behavior himself to not recognize Barnes staying away from the group. He especially noticed how the long-haired man’s gaze lingered on Peter.

“You’re welcome here, Barnes.” Tony offered. “Besides, the kid’s last name isn’t mine.”

Bucky edged closer. “But aren’t you...”

“We’ve already done the whole apology shebang.” Besides, as angry as he may have been at Barnes he wasn’t the one to blame. “Germany is in the past and I very much believe you’re capable of keeping everything in check, even around Peter.”

Grateful, he smiled and gestured towards the billionaire. “Does he at least know who helped build parts of my arm?”

Peter’s face morphed into shock and his mouth formed a perfect “O”. He slowly turned to Tony who nodded shyly.

“Wait, so how do’s it move so well ‘n f’ex’ble ‘nough to be ‘ike a re’l arm? I can’t wait to tell Ned! It’s me’al right? I know it’s vib’ia’ium. But t’en how do t’e joints wo’k? ‘N how do t’ey wo’k ins’de him? Is it conne’ted to h’s nerv’s or to h’s br’an, or-“ Peter rambled. The boy’s excitement made his annunciation even worse.

Tony rolled his eyes, just letting the kid babble practical nonsense. “FRIDAY, remind me to give Pete my old notes later.”

“You may not share last names but you do seem to share interests.” Pepper noted. The notion made Tony less uneasy about caring for Peter instead of May.

“Finally, no more webs!” Shuri appeared, flopping onto the countertop by the others. T’Challa wordlessly slid a plate towards her.

“Thank you.”

“Shut up! I still want to slap you, Stark.”

Okoye raised an eyebrow. “You want to slap the man housing you while you’re visiting another country?”

“Yes. Hard.”

“And this is going to benefit you how?”

“I’ll make me feel better.”

“And this is going to harm you how?”

“He might slap me back.” The princess admitted. “Probably harder.”

“So you’re gonna find a different way to make yourself feel better?”

“Maybe.” Shuri glared at the small bit of food precariously balanced on her fork, then she smiled.

“I think we’re all gonna be finding ways not to slap each other soon.” T'Challa added, “If the past-.” The man paused with closed eyes, breathing deeply. He calmly brushed the salami off his shoulder and listened to his sister’s irritating giggles. “Shuri, that’s not wha-.”

T’Challa cringed at the slimy tomato slice that hit the front of his suit. Nope. He did not have enough patience for this. “Shuri!”

The king turned around to see not the princess, but his royal guard with the communal plate of sandwich fixings. The two miscreants tried to stifle their laughter.

“Okoye...” T’Challa said with any remaining notion of calm. “Just remember, you started this.”

He reached for the veggie tray and threw bits of broccoli and cauliflower at the Wakandan girls.

Shuri knew better than to start a fight she couldn’t win, T’Challa and Okoye were mere amateurs at best. However, she did not expect to feel the heavy, cold, wet feeling of Italian salad dressing seep into her side. There was only one other person in the room capable of such a feat.

“Peter, what the hell!” Shuri shrieked and shoved the bowl of leafy greens on top of the boy.

Okoye avenged her by attacking Tony with pieces of cheese and Pepper retaliated by covering T’Challa in melon bites.

The teams did not stand a chance when Natasha stole a handful of grapes. She preferred to snipe her victims from across the room and nailed Shuri first try. The Wakandan teen mistakenly began to catapult blueberries at Bucky who attempted to defend himself with bread rolls. One of the bread rolls hit Tony who then turned on Pepper with a handful of crushed crackers.

The battle had soon turned into a war and it was everyone for themselves.

Okoye held two bottles of ketchup and mustard, one in each hand, and squirted anyone who came near. Peter sprinkled cheese onto his opponents. T’Challa smashed strawberries. Pepper smushed avocado. Bucky shredded meats. Tony hoarded vegetables. Shuri frisbeed bread slices. Natasha watched amused.

When the dust settled, ammunition and supplies gone, it seemed more food ended up on the soldiers than on the battleground.

Natasha, perched on top of a counter, spoke above the chaos. “I propose a truce. All in favor say ‘aye’.”

“Aye.”

“A’e.”

“Finally.”

“About time.”

“Hell yeah.”

“Truce established.” Nat declared.

Each of them helped clean the majority of the mess, compiling dishes in the sink to be washed later. One after the other, each of them disappeared into their respective rooms to rinse off.

“C’mon Petey, you’re with me.” Pepper took Peter to the attached bathroom in the boy’s bedroom.

“Ba’htime?”

“What else are we doing? Can’t have ketchup footprints all over the kitchen.”

Pepper loosened the stained overalls and no-longer-white shirt off the three-year-old. Peter watched as she ran a bath, occasionally checking the temperature.

“Bubbles too?” Pepper offered him the bottle of soapy solution.

He eagerly took it and leaned over the side of the tub. Peter began to pour slowly. The bubble solution came out slowly at first, then it suddenly rushed out of the bottle.

Pepper had to rescue the plastic container when Peter inevitably dropped the whole thing into the water.

Filled to the brim with bubbles, the women helped Peter into the water. She was gentle and patient with him. Something Peter would be eternally grateful for.

Pepper was careful not to let anything into the boy’s eyes, having him lean back when she rinsed his hair. Peter was fixated on the soapy foam in front of him. He picked up handfuls of warm suds and let it slowly drip down his arm and back into the bath. He babbled to himself. More nonsense and sounds than actual words.

Pepper wondered if the boy truly knew what he was doing.

She dipped her hand into the bath and flicked water droplets at the boy, getting his attention. Peter squeaked in surprise.

“All done, sweetheart.” The woman drained the water and pulled out the fluffiest towel she could find. She scooped the boy and wrapped him up tight, giving him an extra squeeze for good measure.

Peter wiggled in his towel cocoon. “Burr’to.”

“Yeah, you do look like a yummy burrito.” Pepper noted. She pulled him into her chest and swung him around, burrowing her head into the toddler. “My burrito. Om nom nom.”

The three-year-old shrieked with laughter. “No! No! Don’t eat me. ‘epper!”

“Fine.” She flopped the bundle of giggles onto the changing table. “But maybe just a small bite of your arm.”

Peter’s mirth was contagious and Pepper found herself smiling like a fool. No wonder Tony was captivated by this kid since day one.

“Can I have a sn’ck?” Peter asked as Pepper got him into a clean clothes. This time, Pepper had picked out a simple, green, short sleeve shirt with matching stripped pants.

“What do you want?”

“‘ookies.”

“What about an apple?” Did she really want to risk a sugar high today?

Peter looked disgusted at the notion and repeated. “‘ookies.”

“Okay. Here’s my offer: an apple and a cookie.”

“An apple ‘n two ‘ookies.” He negotiated.

“How does an apple and half a cookie sound?”

Peter mulled it over. He could see why Tony made her CEO of Stark Industries now. “An apple ‘n a ‘ookie.”

He followed her into the kitchen and watched Pepper slice up an apple. Peter missed the ability to eat a whole apple without this whole knife and cutting board business.

Then, Peter heard Shuri in the other room. “It’s really easy. You hold A to drive and navigate with the joystick or the controller itself. Left trigger throws items forward. Right trigger throws them back...”

Peter was in the common room before the start-up music played on the Wii.

“You were gonna p’ay Ma’io Kart wit’out me?” He pouted.

“I know you can hear it from across the compound. Besides, Barnes has never played.” Shuri passed the man a controller. “I can’t have him scared off by the competition yet.”

Peter looked at the metal-armed soldier as if he had grown two heads. “How?”

“Nintendo wasn’t really popular when I was younger.” Bucky admitted. “And can you please repeat the controls one more time?”

Shuri groaned. “It’ll be on the screen for you in a second, Grandpa.”

“Give your elders some respect, Shuri.” Pepper said and handed Peter a small plastic dish of apple slices and a cookie.

“T’ank you, ‘epper!”

“Alright guys,” Shuri loaded up the main menu. “It’s 200cc to warm up. Want to pick the first map, Snowflake?”

Koopa Troopa Beach, Bowser’s Castle, and Thwomp Ruins. All classics to start them off. Shuri stole gold the entire race so far. No one even came close to rival her. Peter was thrown off his usual game, settling in at 4th place for the time being. He blamed the apparently large size of the controller. Bucky managed to nab 7th. Not bad for his first time.

“Why?!” Bucky shouted at the colorful game. “Who decided that cows roaming a race track was a good idea? They just stand there.”

The last map: Moo Moo Meadows.

“Cows are dumb but they make good obstacles.” Shuri explained nonchalantly as she expertly dodged a blue shell.

“Don’t run into t’e cows, Winte’. You’ll hurt t’em.”

“I’m trying Peter!” Bucky loved his goats back in Wakanda even more now.

“Peter, they’re not real.”

“I don’t care, Shu’i. No an’mals shou’d be run over.”

“Well you slow down when you hit a cow, so I mean the game- No. Oh no. Don’t you dare, Daisy.” Shuri all but growled at the screen. “Don’t you dare. Fuck off.”

The Wakandan princess glared at the video game princess, dressed in her cheery orange ball gown. Shuri tried to push the artificial player off the road, throwing any and all items at her. The two battled for 1st place. With the finish line in view, Shuri used her last speedy red mushroom to sprint to victory.

Her plans were foiled by a single banana peel.

“No. No. No. Not like this!” Shuri gaped at the silver 2nd place next to her character and let the controller loosely fall out of her hands. Once on the edge of her seat, the teen slumped back into the couch. “A CPU...”

Bucky claimed 5th place. He patted the princess’s shoulder. “You still beat me and Peter.”

“T’at was not a su’prise.” Peter frowned as he took 9th place. “T’at was expected.”

“But a CPU, Barnes!” Shuri emphasized.

“CPU beat all of us.”

“A CPU isn’t a person. It’s a computer-operated player.”

The end credits and slideshow began to roll alongside the scoreboard: Shuri 1st, Peter 5th, and Bucky 6th.

Peter lowered himself onto the floor to grab the Wakandan’s abandoned Wii remote. He pushed it towards her. “Redempt’on?”

Shuri took the remote and loaded up another tournament. “Redemption.”

Peter climbed back onto the couch just in time for the next race to start.

“See, Daisy! I will get my revenge on you! Then, I’ll get the rest of your pathetic Mario family! Peach. Toad. Luigi. All of you will suffer!” Shuri yelled at the top of her lungs throughout the course.

Peter assured Barnes that she wasn’t actually going to physically attack the screen, but he still had doubts.

“Whose in the lead?” Natasha leaned over the back of the couch several races later.

“Who do you think, bitches!”

“Not for long, Shuri.” Bucky taunted. He was getting better and even got 2nd the last two races. The only thing between him and 1st place was the princess now.

Meanwhile, Peter struggled in 8th. His tongue poked out in concentration, attempting to keep his character on the track. Items were useless, all they did was throw Peter off the course.

Nat took a seat next to the boy and whispered. “Let’s give them a run for their money, маленький паук.“

The three-year-old nodded. “Dr’ve fast.”

The racers zoomed past the castle and around the fields of Hyrule Kingdom, past the master sword and the collections of rupees.

“How many of them do you have? Stop with the red shells, Shuri!” Bucky protested. “I’m so close.”

“That’s not me.”

Bucky looked over to Romanoff. The smirking assassin expertly navigated the track as Peter instructed and threw items. The duo had gone up the ranks into 3rd place.

“Stay out of this, Natasha.” Shuri warned.

“It’s all fun and games, right?”

“Until someone gets hurt.” Bucky knocked Shuri off the side of the track and took the lead. “Ah ha! Finally- oh c’mon!”

The spider duo had saved a blue shell for this very moment.

All three of them finished one after the other. Peter and Nat, Shuri, then Bucky.

“I was in 1st for all of two seconds.” The metal-armed soldier complained. “Couldn’t let me have it for just a second longer?”

“What’s the fun in that?” Nat high-fived Peter.

The Wakandan shrugged. “At least they aren’t CPUs. GG everyone. GG.”

The game flicked back to the main menu and the room’s lights brightened

“Thank you, FRIDAY.” Tony called.

“It controls the Wii too? Are you telling me I lost that one game to the automated ceiling fan.”

“She is much more than that, Shuri, I assure you. Dinner is ready when you guys are.”

“It smells del’cious.” Peter commented.

“T’Challa and Okoye would be happy to hear that. They offered to cook tonight.”

“W’at are we havin’?”

“They called it jollof or something.”

“T’at doesn’t help me, M’ster St’rk.”

“It’s chicken and rice, kinda like a jerk seasoned curry.” Shuri explained. “We make it all the time back home.”

Tony took a suspicious Peter into the kitchen. “At least try some before you say no.”

Pepper and Okoye were taking out bowls and silverware for everyone while T’Challa manned the stove. He added a variety of seasonings to and occasionally stirred a large pot. Peter tried to read the endless row of spices lined up on the counter beside him. At least half of them were titled in different languages. It seemed like every single type of dried leaf and powdered vegetable was there.

“Mind if we sample the king’s work?” Tony asked.

“Of course, it’s still very hot though.” T’Challa gestured to the stove. “Have you ever had something like this, Peter?”

The boy shook his head. He really hadn’t had the opportunity to taste anything outside of New York. Not even in Germany.

Stark clicked his tongue. “We need to get you out more.”

“Then, I promise you this is a good place to start. My mother makes this for me and Shuri all the time. It's one of the few things I know how to cook well.”

Tony held up a cooled spoonful of jollof for Peter to taste. The man was a little surprised the three-year-old allowed himself to be fed instead of taking the spoon itself.

The boy leaned forward to take a bite and immediately reeled back. He tensed his whole body and began to kick his feet, blindly swatting the spoon away. His eyes watered and Peter scrunched up his face with a loud whine.

“Don’t like it.” Tony said as more of a statement than a question.

Peter shook his head violently, tightening his grip on Tony to distract himself from the terrible sensation in his mouth. He wished he had just spit it out instead of swallowing. Everything inside of him felt like it was on fire. Everything was hot. Everything burned.

“Too spicy?” Tony knowingly offered the boy a sippy cup filled with water. Although more subdued, he’s seen that reaction on teen Peter when he ate something like that. He chuckled when Peter greedily began to suck. “Sorry bud, should’ve known your palette can’t handle much.”

The three-year-old didn’t respond, simply letting the cool water slide down his throat to chase away the heat. Peter only relaxed when the cup was half-empty, but even then, it didn’t leave his mouth.

“That’s okay.” T’Challa said. “I have some unseasoned meat left over if he wants it.”

“I think he’ll like that.” Tony squeezed Peter’s arm in a weak attempt to comfort him.

Eight meals were brought into the living room. Scattered along the couches, the group enjoyed the Wakandans’ meal. Flavorful and filling as expected. Even Peter liked his doctored version of jollof. Upon Shuri’s insistence, they watched a couple re-runs of old NCIS episodes.

Nat, Pepper, and Okoye bantered over the TV ensemble’s apparent ignorance to provide drama. Tony internally screamed at the inaccuracies while Bucky and Peter predicted the plot. Promptly ignoring the others, Shuri mouthed the actors’ lines and T’Challa intently followed along.

Around the fourth or fifth episode, Bucky really wasn’t keeping count, Peter stopped responding. He found the boy dozing off beside him. The man watched the three-year-old’s chest calmly rise and fall. If he wasn’t already asleep, he would be soon. When he looked back up, Barnes found the Starks staring at him with a fond smile.

This kid must have everyone wrapped around his finger by now.

“You want to put him to bed?” Pepper offered.

“He never took a nap today.” Tony noted. “I assume he’s pretty tired.”

Bucky nodded shyly. He liked being around Peter. His presence was both reassuring and comforting to him. The kid may be small but he seemed a little less breakable than before.

He carried the boy down the hall to his room courtesy of FRIDAY’s quiet directions. The soldier was not surprised to find the pseudo-nursery next to the Starks’ master bedroom.

He carefully laid a tired Peter into his crib. The boy cuddled into a blanket but then made a noise of discomfort. “No Bear?” He mumbled.

“No what?” Bucky kept his voice low.

“Bear?” Peter repeated almost desperately. The lack of sleep made the three-year-old even more emotional than usual. He sat up, looking as if he was about to cry. “Bear.”

Barnes picked up the distressed child. He held him tight in an effort to calm Peter and looked around the room. “Where’s Bear?”

The boy latched onto Bucky, grabbing a fistful of the man’s shirt to ground himself. “I dunno!"

“What does he look like?”

“He’s b’own... ‘n b’ue...” Peter’s voice wavered hopelessly. In his mind, the world might as well have ended without his furry companion.

Bucky chuckled when he saw it. “And a little bit of red too?”

“Uh huh... Bear!” Peter clung to the recovered stuffed animal like a lifeline.

“He seems like a really special bear.” Barnes said. The man set the three-year-old back into his crib with his Bucky Bear.

“Ve’y spec’al.” Peter said with closed eyes. “Good’ight, Winte’.”

“Goodnight, Peter.” He watched the boy cuddle the familiar toy for a few moments before closing the door.

Chapter Text

New York City. The crown jewel of the nation. The city has so much to offer; so much opportunity. Times Square. Central Park. Wall Street. All examples of the American Dream.

It held the most diverse group of people in the country, offering opportunity to each and every one of them. Regardless of ethnicity, sexuality, or spirituality, New York City was full of the generous, the violent, the weird, and the fascinating.

This place was also home to Peter Parker: Your Friendly Neighborhood Spiderman.

The suit clad teen could be seen all over New York swinging around buildings, helping old ladies cross streets, saving lost cats from trees, and stopping local thieves. He had the opportunity to help others everyday.

But today, the city had presented him with a much bigger, more specific opportunity: The Vulture.

A man who had inflicted great pain on numerous innocent people through his weapon smuggling operations. Not just any weapons either. These were the ones carefully salvaged from the wake of superhuman destruction and pieced together for recreation. His team was attempting to harness alien technology for personal gain.

Peter remembered the thrill of such a daunting task. The intrigue. The fascination. The honor.

But he also remembered how quickly those aspirations shattered. They crumbled alongside the warehouse on Homecoming night. They were the blocks of concrete weighing him down, the shards of glass digging into his skin, the thick dust burning his throat.

He could feel the strain of his muscles and the ache of his bones. His vision blurred from exhaustion. His head became lighter without air as his suit grew heavier with blood.

At one point, it all disappeared and went numb. No more aches. No more pain. No more concrete. No more glass. No more dust. No more blood. No more air. No more suit.

Peter woke up gasping for breath, tears streaming down his face. His currently regressed body could do nothing else but wail and shake. The city... the vulture... the warehouse... Then...

“You’re okay, bud. You’re okay.”

Peter frantically took in his surroundings. Through the blur of tears and racing thoughts, all he could find was a light. A familiar turquoise gleam that brought him back to reality.

“You’re okay, Peter. Look at me. You’re okay.” Tony coaxed, holding him close in his arms. Peter burrowed into the man’s chest, helplessly sobbing. Tony began to demonstrate exaggerated deep breaths for the panicking toddler.

The man had not been in bed long before he heard soft cries from Peter’s room. FRIDAY had reported an elevated heartbeat that made Tony nervous. When he found Peter crying in his sleep, Tony knew exactly what was happening.

When Peter eventually figured out how to follow his mentor’s breathing pattern, Tony spoke in that soft tone he kept reserved for Peter. “Good. In and out, in and out. You’re okay.”

”M’ster St’rk.” Peter tried to speak but all the memories flooded back into his mind. Overwhelmed, he couldn’t respond beyond continuing to ball.

“It’s okay to be scared.” Tony assured. He let the boy cry into him as he rubbed comforting circles into his back. “Nightmares can be scary.”

Peter sniffled a couple of minutes later, calmer but still emotionally distraught. “I’m so’ry. T’at hasn’t happen’d in a wh’le.”

“Don’t be, kiddo, you’re going through a lot right now. Does it happen a lot?”

Peter nodded and hiccuped pitifully. “Vu’tur’.”

“The Vulture, huh?” Tony already knew what happened on his Homecoming night. Even if Peter refused to admit it; he could tell it bothered the teen. The man just wished the boy would come to him when the nightmares bothered him most.

”Yeah, I was unde’ne’th t’e wa’ehouse aga’n. T’apped.” Peter’s voice wavered, the onslaught of memories threatening to come back. “M’ster St’rk.”

Tony thumbed away the couple of tears that fell down the boy’s cheek. “You’re okay. Just breathe for me, alright?”

“I didn’t mean to wak’ you.”

“That’s okay, I’m actually glad you did. Nightmares happen to everyone.”

“Not I’on Man.”

“No, Iron Man gets them too. Some don’t really go away, but they get easier with a little help.”

“I’on Man is a supe’he’o.” Peter protested weakly, raw emotions still lingering.

“Sometimes, even superheroes need a little help. I’ll wake up Pepper and she helps to calm me down. Other times, if I wake up, I’ll call Rhodey or talk to FRIDAY.”

Contrary to popular belief, superheroing is not all good-doing and glory. It has a long list of dangers and perils attached to it. While it took getting used to accepting the help, Tony did not want Peter to go down the same insomniac rabbit hole as he did.

“Not A’nt May o’ Ned ’n MJ. It’s too sca’y.”

“You’re right it’s scary, but wouldn’t you want to know if one of them had nightmares?”

“Yeah, I care abo’t t’em a lot.”

“They care about you a lot too, Pete.”

He mulled it over. “Does I’on Man get sca’ed in t’e day too?”

“Of course. Everyone has their fears.”

“‘ike w’at?”

“I don’t like space and am still a little scared of water. I’m terrified of losing Pepper, Rhodey, and, heck, even you.”

“I don’t wan’ to lose you, M’ster St’rk.” Peter wrapped his arms around the man’s neck in a loose hug. The mere thought of it made the three-year-old anxious.

“Me either, but I don’t think that’s happening anytime soon.” Tony returned the gesture. “C’mere, kiddo.”

Tony pats the clingy child’s padded bottom and carries him back to his room. He climbed back into bed and pulled the covers up, careful to keep Peter between him and a sleeping Pepper.

Peter kept his head on the arc reactor, the soft hum alongside the man’s heartbeat was reassuring. He let his fears slip away. He was safe now. The adrenaline slipped away too, leaving his body numb and heavy. His thumb made it between his lips, suckling unconsciously.

Tony cooed. He felt oddly comfortable with the boy curled up against him like this, allowing his own breaths to follow steady the rise and fall of Peter’s chest.

The man felt someone lightly squeeze his hand and looked up to see a partially awake Pepper.

“He okay?” She whispered

“Nightmare.”

Pepper hummed. Her eyes were on Peter and a small smile was on her face. “He’s something special.”

“Very.”

They laid like that for the rest of the night. Between two of his favorite people, Peter’s nightmares never returned.

Tony woke up hours later, sunlight beginning to creep past the blinds and into his room. He had not slept like that in a long and even he had to admit it felt pretty good. The man yawned and began to sit up, careful not to disturb the sleeping toddler beside him.

“Morning, Tones.” Pepper came to sit on the bed next to him, already up and in fresh clothes, and exchanged a kiss.

“Mornin’.” Tony mumbled, leaning into his wife.

“Are you gonna be okay today?”

“It’ll happen regardless of what I do.”

“Yeah, I guess that’s true.”

After a moment, Pepper turned to the pint-size spider. She ran a hand through the boy’s hair and down his back. “Good morning, baby boy.”

His eyes fluttered open, hazy and unfocused. Peter stretched like a kitten, yawning like one too. He looked around, surprised by the lack of bars surrounding him before realizing exactly what happened last night.

But this time, he didn’t feel guilty.

He felt quite content actually. He reviled in the Starks’ sheets, so warm and soft. They smelled like a mix of Tony and Pepper. The hint of metallic lab residue. The remains of strawberry-scented shampoo. His cologne. Her perfume. All of it.

It was something Peter only felt around the two of them. It was something he couldn’t quite describe. It was also the same something that made him want to smile at them, even more so now since he had been regressed to a toddler.

“Morn’ng.”

“Did you sleep okay, Petey?” Tony asked, pulling Peter’s thumb out of his mouth.

The boy nodded. “No mo’e nigh’ma’es.”

“Good.“

“Let’s give Tony some time to get ready, hmm?” Pepper suggested.

“Okay.” Peter held his arms up in an unmistakable ‘pick me up’ pose.

Tony mouthed ‘thank you’ to his wife who smiled knowingly.

He got up and turned on the shower in their master bath. Ever since Peter had been transformed into a three-year-old, Tony really hadn’t gotten time to himself except for the few times the kid was asleep. But even then, he spent that time looking for a way to turn him back. Shuri had joined him in the investigation. Yet, he was no closer to finding a cure than he had been the last four days.

He stripped and let himself be engulfed by hot steam.

Tony didn’t mind the kid. He was sweet, polite, beyond intelligent, and honestly just fucking adorable. He knew the dependence and vulnerability bothered Peter. It’s not like the spiderling had a choice though. Tony hoped he could get the teen back to normal. But until then, they’d make the best of it.

That was the whole reason he had been revising the Accords up to this point, right? A temporary sense of normalcy until the next global disaster. Regardless of how he might have felt about the whole debacle in Germany, Tony knew the team needed to be reunited. If not for Avengers’ sake, then for the rest of the world’s.

He focused on the water and its warmth to avoid the neverending cycle of rumination his mind brought forth.

By the time he stepped out of the shower, Tony felt refreshed and ready to handle the morning. The afternoon was still up for debate.

Towel around his waist, he went about brushing his teeth and adorning a light amount of cologne. He felt a small tug and looked down to see a grinning three-year-old.

“M’ster St’rk!” He shouted. “Look! Look!”

“Inside voice, Peter.”

The comment went unnoticed.

“‘epper gave me a spide’s!” Peter showed off his shirt to Tony. It was indeed a white shirt covered in a black pattern of little spiders and webbing.

“Very cool.”

The toddler climbed onto the countertop, babbling on and on about how cool spiders were, as Tony continued to go about his morning routine.

Stark rinsed his face and covered it in shaving cream. He rubbed it in and reached for more, only to find the can had been abducted by the distracted toddler who was busy fiddling with the various bottles and containers in front of him.

Tony put a dollop of his remaining shaving cream onto Peter’s nose before stealing the foamy lotion back.

The boy giggled and tried to wipe it off, quickly learning that the white fluff refused to leave. It stuck to his hands and the front of his shirt.

Peter watched Tony expertly apply the rest of the shaving cream to his lower face. He did his best to mimic the man.

Let’s just say it didn’t go so well.

Tony rolled his eyes at the shaving cream-covered toddler. He styled his beard with a razor before rinsing the foam off himself and Peter.

Back in his signature 3-piece suit, Tony and Peter headed to the kitchen.

T’Challa and Okoye were talking amongst themselves at the center island. Something about some royal event in Wakanda next month. They waved at the two upon their arrival. Natasha was prepping another pot of coffee and Bucky hovered beside her.

It was crazy how fast the compound went through their coffee supply. Even more so now with the added company.

Peter claimed a seat next to Shuri who was stuffing her face with muffins. The three-year-old was lucky someone set aside one for him or Shuri would have eaten the whole dozen.

Pepper handed her husband his mandatory cup of joe.

“Did I ever tell you how much I love you?” Tony asked, blissfully gulping down the drink. He didn’t care if it burned his tongue anymore.

Pepper hummed.

“Coffee for me, ‘epper? P’ease."

"Sorry, Petey. Caffeine is at the top of the do-not-give-little-kids list. Especially with your metabolism. Can I get you something else? Want some milk with your muffin?"

Although he made a face at the colorful sippy cup, Peter accepted the milk. Nevertheless, sucked the cool, sweet drink with pleasure while holding onto both of the bottle's handles.

“Hey Stark,” Shuri spoke up, “I think I found something last night.”

“If you’ve waited all night to tell me then you can wait until you finish eating.”

“You sound like a dad.”

“Shut up.”

“How can you even argue against that at this point?” Shuri scoffed and pulled up an image on her kimyoto beads. “Anyways, take a look this.” She showed the man a long set of data points and intersecting graphs.

“I’ve only had one cup of coffee. I need at least three before trying to decipher your nonsense.”

“It’s one of Peter’s blood samples from before the...” She emphasized the last part with rhetorical quotation marks, “...incident."

Tony immediately perked up at the implication. “There’s a coffee machine in the lab. Let’s go.”

“Labt’me!” Peter cheered.

“Nuh uh, squirt. That privilege is gone for a while. We’ll come and get you if we need you, ya?” Peter’s bottom lip wobbled as he looked at Tony with those damned puppy eyes. “You get to hang out with the others for a little while. That’ll be nice.”

“Oh Peter,” Pepper sympathetically hoisted the boy onto her hip. “I’m not that bad. We’ll see Tony later.”

The boy watched his science friends leave over Pepper’s shoulder. He whined pitifully. Pepper couldn’t tell what Peter was more upset about: not being in the lab or not being with Tony.

“Hey T’Challa, did Peter ever introduce you to Bear?” Bucky interrupted.

“No...” The king cocked his head in confusion for a moment, before playing along. “...but I would love to. Have you met him, Okoye?”

“No, I don’t think I have. Is he nice?”

“Bear is really nice.” Pepper tried to get the grumpy toddler engaged “Peter? Why don’t you go show T’Challa and Okoye your bear?”

“Bear is ju’t a bear.” Peter grouched.

“Hey, he isn’t just any bear. You told me he was a special bear!” Bucky held a hand to his chest in mock offense and had to support himself with the counter. “You lied? Of all the people in his place! Shame kid, shame on you.”

“Winte’!” Peter couldn’t stop himself from giggling at the soldier’s dramatic performance. “I’m not a l’ar.”

“Liar, liar, pants on fire.” He sing-songed. “I don’t believe you.”

“T’en Bear can tell yo’ how spec’al he is.” Pepper let the boy scamper off to his room to retrieve his beloved stuffed animal. She turned to smirk at the metal-armed man.

Back in the lab, Tony tried to ignore DUM-E and Butterfingers ramming into his side for attention. The two bots had the attention span and energy level to rival Peter’s.”

He ran a hand through his hair as Shuri finished her explanation. “So you’re telling me he’s radioactive?”

“No, we already knew that.” Shuri gestured to the number of blue holograms FRIDAY had pulled up for her. “The drug he was injected with has long since catabolized as expected, right? So we can’t trace any of it. I figured since Peter’s blood mutated from radioactivity it’s possible the drug might of been mutated too. So I cross-referenced some of Banner’s research and found that the drug was most likely an alternative form of a specific enzyme inhibitor. Said chemical has been connected to late human development.”

“So a radioactively mutated drug for a radioactively mutated vigilante?”

“10 points to Gryffindor!” The Wakandan cheered.

“What can we do?

“So far we only know a few components of what we’re dealing with here, but with a little more time and research we could be reverse engineering the drug soon.”

“FRIDAY! Pull up Brucie’s relevant old research!” Tony exclaimed. He strode over to the nearest workstation, pushing everything off the side to clear it.

Shuri pulled up two chairs as FRIDAY transferred data onto a myriad of blue screens. They quickly fell into a comfortable silence. The bots whirred beside them and provided emotional support.

Tony paused. “So princess, what makes you think I’m a Gryffindor?”

When the duo remerged, hours later, they found Peter happily playing with his set of wooden blocks in the common room. Pepper supervised from the couch with a StarkPad in hand, answering emails from her infinitely filled inbox.

As Tony got closer, he could see the vague outline of a familiar New York skyscraper: Stark Tower. A near replica too. The three-year-old's experience with Legos and brick-building showed. The base had been completed and stood at about a foot tall with loose foundations for the extended balcony.

It was impressive to say the least.

The scientists were each given a plate of food and ate without question. Both Tony and Shuri were used to their respective protectors shoving food in their faces after spending time in labs.

“Have we solved world hunger yet?” T’Challa asked, finishing his own lunch. Okoye had followed Natasha and Bucky to the training room.

“No, but Peter is a few steps closer to being normal.” Shuri answered. “Then he can solve global sustainability issues for us as a thank you.”

“Get in line, Shuri.” Tony scoffed. “I already have a whole list of projects that I want the kid’s insight on when he’s a teen again.”

“Hogging my Science Buddy, Stark? Not fair.”

“He was mine first.”

“You already had one.”

“My Science Bro is currently a jolly green giant wandering around space.”

“And that justifies you taking mine how?”

T’Challa watched the billionaire and his sister go back and forth. Anyone who overheard the conversation might mistake it for a violent argument, but their expressions said otherwise. They were the very definition of a generation gap. Both had their own set of advanced intellect but both were equally immature.

He sought out Pepper in the next room over. The cat-themed hero settled in beside her, pulling up his own work on his kimyoto beads. “Any news on our old friends?”

“Their flight time was delayed an hour.”

“Is that going to impact anything?”

“It shouldn’t.”

T’Challa smiled as Peter carefully placed another block on top of his tower. “Thank you for hosting us given the circumstances.”

“Of course.” Pepper followed his gaze to the little boy who tried to hide a yawn. He had gone from excitedly building to simply fiddling with the wooden toys. It wouldn’t be hard to put Peter down for a nap within the next hour or so. “This place may be under the Stark name, but it’s not just for me and Tony. Besides, New York doesn’t need a bunch of superheroes running rampant.”

“I have seen your country’s news in the media. They’ll have a field day.”

“The freedom of speech can be a double-edged sword, my friend.”

“I suppose that does explain the sudden increase in communication experts among my secondary counsel.”

“Sometimes I think our PR and legal team are some of the only reasons Stark Industries still exists.”

“It concerns me how close you make running a multimillion-dollar company and governing a technologically advanced kingdom sound.”

“All I need now is a crown.”

“Perhaps a throne too. I will admit that adds to the experience.”

Pepper hummed in amusement, then, her attention turned back to the child playing on the floor. “Excuse me for a moment, my subjects need my attention.”

She kneeled down next to Peter. “Whatcha up to, sweetheart?”

“Bu’ldin’ t’e tow’r.”

“I can see that. For a moment, I thought it was the real deal.”

“T’e re’l tow’r is mu’h bigger.”

“You never know. I bet our friends in California could have snuck up and shrunk the thing.”

“L’ke me?” Peter giggled.

“Kinda.” Pepper picked up the boy and headed toward his bedroom. “You ready for a nap?”

“I don’t need a nap, ‘epper.” Peter protested weakly. “I’m sp‘derman.”

She ignored his whines. Pepper was one of the few people who could get the Tony Stark to nap after spending days on end in his lab. A fussy toddler was no challenge.

“FRIDAY, dim the lights please?”

“Of course, Ms. Potts. Enjoy your nap, Peter.”

After getting the complaining boy into a fresh diaper and soft pair of pajamas, she cradled him close to her chest and began to sing.

“Goodnight, goodnight, it’s time now to sleep, the moon’s watching over you and you dreams. Goodnight, goodnight, my sweet little one, tomorrow your eyes they’ll light up the sun. Goodnight, goodnight, sweet dreams for now, drift off to sleep on your pillow of clouds.” Pepper rocked the boy to the melody of the song. Her voice was soft and smooth. “Goodnight, goodnight, my sweet little friend, tomorrow’s adventures they will soon begin. Tomorrow’s adventures will soon begin.”

Peter was asleep before Pepper got to the second verse.

When Peter woke up, he was shivering. It started at the base of his neck, moved down his spine, and settled in his chest. The sensation radiated along his limbs and festered at the tips of his fingers and toes.

It was a feeling that made the boy want to screech and cower all at the same time. He couldn’t tell if it was good or bad or what on earth it was.

Tony had first learned about Peter’s sensory overload when, naturally, he volunteered to be the kid’s secondary emergency contact for times when May wasn’t available. A couple of days later, he got a call from the nurse at MidTown High about Peter and a migraine. Tony was pretty familiar with migraines and knew the sensitive mess he picked up at the school’s health office was much worse than that.

Ever since then, the billionaire made sure every inch of the kid’s bedroom was relatively desensitized. All walls had been soundproofed. All electrical now had dimmers. All windows were equipped with blackout curtains. All vents were negative flow.

No overbearing scents or sights or sounds.

It was an oasis for Peter, away from the chaos of the normal world.

But now, scanning his room from the inside of the crib, Peter’s heightened senses could clearly hear two heartbeats. That was not okay.

Peter pulled his blanket tight around him and Bear, trying to detect where the sound came from.

“M’ster St’rk?” He asked the empty room cautiously.

No response.

“‘epper?” Peter choked out as he clutched his bear tightly.

He could hear the second heartbeat speed up, not unlike his own. Then, the boy looked up and saw its owner.

A man with dirty blonde hair hung halfway out of Peter’s ceiling vent.

The three-year-old shrieked.

“Shit. No, no, no.” The man cursed and lowered the rest of himself down. Hovering by the crib, he watched the child hide underneath a blanket in fear. “Oh, don’t do that.”

Peter felt sudden tears run down his cheeks. He was helpless in this regressed state and no one was close enough to help. No Tony. No Pepper. No Natasha. No Bucky. No Okoye. No T’Challa. Heck, he’d even take Shuri at the minute. His body went into autopilot and decided to take the third option of fight-or-flight: freeze.

Peter covered his head as much as possible with his arms. That’s how ostriches hide right? Those flightless birds have been around for a while and they survived somehow.

However, Peter was not an ostrich.

“Hey there.” The man lifted part of the blanket to reveal part of the crying toddler. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you.” Peter kept his wide eyes trained on the stranger as he continued. “I like the color of your room. Is blue your favorite color?”

Peter nodded hesitantly. “‘n red.”

“Red is pretty good too, but I’m more of a purple fan myself. My name is Clint. What’s yours?”

“Peter!” Natasha entered the room, gun at the ready. Peter couldn’t help but notice the safety was, in fact, off. “Jesus Christ, Clint? I thought Tony specifically told you this room was off-limits.”

“He did.”

“So what the hell are you doing in here?”

“I got curious.”

“That doesn’t explain going against the rules.”

“He never said the vents were off-limits.”

Nat slipped her gun back into the waistband of her pants before picking up Peter, blanket and all. She wiped away the remaining tears. “Did he scare you?”

“Uh huh.” The boy was relieved to be with someone familiar and cuddled up against her. “I’m okay t’ough.”

She turned back to Clint. “And what do we say to children who were scared awake from their naps?”

“I wasn’t lying when I said I liked the color of his room?” Barton humored.

“Good enough.” It was as close to an apology as Nat was going to get. “Do you remember me telling you about Barton, Peter?”

Feeling shy, the toddler beckoned Nat to come closer so he could whisper. “B’rds aren’t as sne’ky as sp’ders, right? Not as sc’ry e’ther.”

“Yeah. The bird is still learning, маленький паук.” The comment made Natasha grin. “But I promise he’s even less sneaky outside the vents.”

“Less sc’ry too?”

“Less scary too.” She confirmed.

“Hey, I’m still pretty scary.” Clint defended. “You should see me in my purple polka dot pajamas. Everyone screams when they see me.”

Peter smiled at the thought. “I would sc’eam too.”

“It’s nice to meet you, Peter. I’ll have to admit, you caught me a little off guard there.” Clint had the decency to look sheepish. Honestly, though, the last thing he was expecting to find tucked away in the depths of the Avengers compound was a child.

“So you want me to tell Tony you broke the rules or you?”

Clint frowned at Nat. “Can we just... Not mention it?”

“What do you think, Peter? Let him go with a warning?” She asked.

The kid looked suspicious. “W’at’s in it fo’ me?”

“What do you want?”

“‘ookies.”

“Cookies?”

“T’e c’oco’ate ch’p ones. M’ster St’rk keeps t’em in t’e top cab’net in the kitc’en ‘n ‘epper only lets me have one w’en I have fru’t too. T’ey are t’e best ‘ookies ever.”

“Chocolate chip cookies. I can do that.”

“Na’as’a gets one too.”

Widow was pleased to be included in the negotiation. She had to hide the pride she held towards the baby spider.

“Fine.” Clint conceded. “So I was never here?”

Peter reached up to cover Widow’s eyes with his hands before closing his own. “I don’t see Ha’keye anyw’ere. Na’as’a?”

“No Hawkeye here.”

The man was surprised but shrugged off the use of his superhero title in favor of jumping back into the vents. Peter listened for the vent cover to close before letting Natasha see again.

“Why was t’ere a b’rd in my room?” The three-year-old asked suspiciously.

“He came to get a new supply of arrows. Barton won’t be here long.”

That wasn’t a complete lie. Clint did come up the compound every once in a while to restock his array of trick arrows. It was not unusual to find remains of his targets in the gym after one of his visits.

“Re’lly? I hav’ some new des’gns for h’s arrows t’at I got awhile ago. T’ey are in t’e lab but I t’ink C’int would l’ke to see t’em! Can I show him? P’ease?”

“You’ll have to ask Tony first.” She set the boy’s blanket aside and carried him out of the room. “I’m not opposed to it though. Barton likes to play with experimental arrows.”

“T’ey are supe’ cool!”

“I’m sure they are. Did you make them yourself?”

“Uh huh, but M’ster St’rk helped me get t’e right mat’rials ‘cause he’s made arrows l’ke t’is before.” Peter explained the best he could.

“What do they do?”

“One of t’em uses my web’s ‘n exp’odes w’en it hits a ta’get.”

“Like your web shooters?”

Peter nodded vigorously and continued. “Just l’ke my web shoot’rs ‘n t’ere is anoth’r one t’at...”

The boy didn’t notice where he was taken until he overheard Natasha call out to the ceiling, “FRIDAY, please request access to the lab and please let Tony know Peter is with me.”

The three-year-old spun around to see the large sliding doors of Tony’s private lab open. “Labt’me.”

“Sort of.” Natasha mumbled at a volume even Peter struggled to hear. He didn’t have much time to process the odd comment when he heard his mentor.

“Over here.” Tony shouted from the other side of the lab.

The woman deposited Peter onto a nearby table that was miraculously cleared off for him. Peter knew the lab got messy when Tony was halfway through an important project. The man called it organized chaos, but this, this was something else.

“Thanks for getting him, Nat. FRIDAY told me you were the closest when I got the distress alert.”

“Of course, he was awake when I got there anyway.”

“You okay, Pete?”

The boy nodded not trusting himself to speak. He still had to uphold his promise of silence if he wanted any sweets.

“I was on my way to help Barnes out of his room before this but I think everyone else is upstairs. Feel free to come join us when you two are ready?”

“We’ll be done here soon.” Tony said as Natasha turned to leave.

“Anythin’ new?” Peter asked hopefully.

“You want the good news or the bad news first, squirt?”

“Good.”

“Me and Shuri found away to get you back to your teenage self.”

Peter whooped with joy.“We need to call May r’ght now. I can be Sp’de’man aga’n! Oh, hav’ to tell MJ ‘n Ned t’at I can go ba’k to school too. T’ey will be so exc’ted-”

Tony positioned himself close to Peter when the boy decided to jump onto his feet. The three-year-old excitedly held both of the billionaire’s hands for support as he bounced, vibrating with excitement.

The man didn’t want to stop the kid’s so-called ‘happy dance’, in fact, he hated to be the one to see Peter’s happiness falter for even a second. However, creating false hopes was just as bad if there was more to the story.

“Slow down, kiddo. I haven’t gotten to the bad news yet.”

Peter paused. “W’at bad?”

“It’s gonna take awhile. The transition is going to have to be a multi-step process.”

“No.”

“The drug in your system mutated when it came into contact with your radioactive blood. That means a base for the antidote needs to be administered in doses so it can safely mutate too.”

“No.”

“Once there is enough, then it can be triggered with an additive in order for the antidote to work.”

“No.”

“Due to your unique body chemistry, we don’t exactly know when the additive can be added to activate the full reversal. We’ll have to measure the levels of base each day while we’re sure there’s enough.”

“No.”

“Too soon then your body will be overworked. Chances for organ failure are too high to even think about speeding anything up.”

“No!” Peter cried, now squeezing Tony’s hands in an attempt to ground himself. His feelings of hope and relief had quickly replaced by those of helplessness and dread. “No. No. No.”

“I’m sorry, buddy, but you know there’s not much more we can do.” Tony pulled the boy into him, ignoring how Peter’s hands continued to clutch his own. “New York will have it’s friendly neighborhood Spiderman back, but they’ll have to wait if they want him fully functioning.”

This could not be happening. He’d be stuck in a toddler’s body for who knows how long, dependent and a burden to everyone. Peter Parker was Spiderman. Peter Parker was not some crying little kid who needed people to supervise and clean up his messes. Especially in front of the Tony Stark.

“Not a t’ree-ye’r-old.”

“I know. Just a little longer.” Tony, although he tried to suppress his actions with much more success than Peter, had the same reaction when he and Shuri came to that same conclusion. “Do you remember what I told you last night, Peter? About the nightmares?”

“It’s okay to be sc’red.” Peter’s voice was weak and watery.

“That’s right. There’s a lot about this situation that we don’t know and that can be scary. We’ll get through this together. I promise.”

“Why wou’d you p’omise t’at to me?” Peter’s voice was weak and watery from the mix of guilt and sadness. “I don’t dese’ve t’at.”

“Please don’t say that.” Tony wrapped the kid in a tight hug. “You know it’s not true.”

Peter failed to control his emotions and allowed himself to cry into the billionaire very expensive suit. The man merely murmured a mantra of ‘you’re okay’s and ‘shh’ed his lament.

Peter felt fingers card through his hair. Ever comforting and ever calming, the boy had felt similarly fingers do the same in the past. The only difference was the previous fingers all belonged to Parkers.

“I love you, Peter. Never forget that.”

“I love you too, M’ster St’rk.”

They remained like that for awhile. Simply holding onto each other like a lifeline. Whatever walls the two of them set up around themselves had been broken long ago. Finally, Tony and Peter accepted the roles they had stepped into.

Peter barely registered Tony leaving the lab until he saw the blue walls of the pseudo-nursery. A knob of soft plastic was pressed to his lips, causing the boy to up look at the man.

“I didn’t think you want it since it’s pretty childish and not necessary, but FRIDAY recommended it while we wait.” Tony explained, holding up the iron-man themed pacifier. “It’s supposed to be calming.”

Calming was an understatement. As soon as the rubbery tip was in his mouth, Peter felt all of the tension leave his body. It numbed the overwhelming emotions tightening in his chest and dulled the scary thoughts that crept into his mind.

Tony was happily surprised to hear Peter hum in satisfaction within moments of sucking on the pacifier.

The man moved Peter onto the nearby changing table and began to undo the toddler’s pajamas. “You like it?”

“Uh huh.”

“I’m glad it helps. Let I said, we’re gonna get though this together.” Tony was getting better at the whole care-giving ordeal, even if it was a little bit embarrassing for the both of them, and had Peter in a clean diaper within seconds. “Now, what about some real clothes? Whatcha got in mind?”

“Can I hav’ t’e sp’d’rs t’at ‘epper-” The pacifier fell out of his mouth as he tried to answer. It rolled behind his head, making Peter try to turn around to find it.

Tony put a hand on the boy’s side to keep in place, moving around was only going to elongate the tedious dressing process. He reached for the pacifier and handed it back to Peter.

The boy examined it for a moment. Now that Peter wasn’t overrun by emotion, his teenage side seemed to be in debate with his toddler one over the pacifier. Tony didn’t know which side won but the soft plastic ended back up in the boy’s mouth.

“We can put your spiders back on if you like.” The billionaire offered.

While Peter wasn’t fond of the idea of continuing to need help getting dressed, he was quite fond of his spider shirt. The three-year-old nodded making the ring of the pacifier tap quietly against the plastic mouthpiece.

“Dinner will be ready soon.“ FRIDAY chimed from above. “Pepper is requesting your and Peter’s presence in the kitchen.”

“Almost done, girl.” Tony finished pulling a pair of black pants over Peter’s hips, adjusting the waistband to cover as much as the bulky diaper as possible for the boy’s sake. “You ready to say hi to everyone?”

Peter merely raised an eyebrow at him, silently asking for more details. Tony continued as if he had responded verbally. Stark had known the kid long enough to pick up his subtle social cues and unmistakeable facial expressions.

“I think you know everyone already, but they’re not in costume this time so I believe a round of introductions are due. Not everyone is here though. Apparently one of them has a family on the West Coast and the witch and the robot wanted to keep to themselves.”

Peter’s expression didn’t change, neither did his level of confusion.

“I really did want this to happen so soon, bud. They’ve agreed to be civil and keep personal questions to a minimum but it’s still not the situation I had hoped to put you in. We’ll do our best until this is all over, but if you get overwhelmed just say something.”

Their entrance into the common room resulted in a good deal of head turning. They were met with a mix of quiet surprise, utter bewilderment, and complete fondness among the large ground of people in the kitchen.

Tony was right, Peter knew all of them. The Wakandans, Bucky, and Natasha were there. He recognized Clint in the back of room, but there were three others that looked only vaguely familiar.

“Hello everyone.” Even with a child clinging to his side, Tony somehow retained the appearance of the ever confident owner of a multibillion dollar company he was. “This is Peter.”

“Ha! Finally!” A dark skinned man wearing silvery leg braces stepped forward, arms raised in celebration. “After hearing so much about him, I finally get to meet my nephew.”

“Slow down, honey bear. You already know it’s temporary.”

Peter had always felt anxious around new people. Nearly every Gen Z kid seemed to have ample amounts of social anxiety. Peter was no exception and felt his fist clench a part of his mentor’s collar. However, Tony seemed relaxed and gave no notion of danger towards this man.

“Hey kiddo.” Said man reached forward and poked at the boy’s round cheeks playfully. Peter hesitantly allowed him to do so. “No one ever told Uncle Rhodey you were so cute.”

“Stop, you’re smothering him.” Tony teased.

“He’s probably used to it by now.” Peter’s attention to the rest of the new arrivals when another dark skinned man spoke. “Let Rhodey have his fun, Tony. I haven’t seen him this excited since he broke Steve’s Wii Fit record on the hula hoops.”

“I’ll have you know, Sam, that through all the blood, sweet, and tears, it was the greatest achievement of my life.” Rhodey defended. “That gold medal is mine.”

“Have you checked the leaderboard recently?”

“Oh no Shuri, you didn’t.”

“You’re right. I didn’t.” Shuri jabbed her older brother’s side getting a hit over the head in return.

“Really... T’Challa?” Sam didn’t know whether to laugh, honor, or mock the king for taking his rightfully earned place on the leaderboard.

“Well, Steve, the Wakandans are coming for your title as America’s Ass.” Clint commented dramatically. “What is this world coming to?”

Steve’s quiet grumbles at the profane nickname went ignored.

“Oh, you have to see him in action.” Shuri insisted.

“Sister, please don’t do this to me.” T’Challa said under his breath.

“It’s true, his hips don’t lie.”

Okoye rolled her eyes as T’Challa put Shuri into a headlock only causing Shuri to sing the infamous Shakira song even louder. Her job was to protect the siblings from others, not themselves. As far as she could see, there was no reason for Okoye to ruin the perfect source of entertainment in front of her.

Pepper appeared next to Tony moment later. “Who named you guys ‘Earth’s Mightiest Heroes’ again?”

Tony shrugged and cleared his throat to gain everyone’s attention before they started putting bets on which royal would last the longest. “Peter this is another reason only certain adults are considered adult supervision for you. Anyways, meet Rhodey, Sam, Clint, and Steve.”

Each of them waved or said some variety of ‘hello’ when their names were mentioned. However, it did little to distract the kid from down right scowling at the patriotic super solider.

“Dinner’s ready.” Pepper announced. “Help yourselves in the kitchen before you sit down.”

They congregated in the dining room and took their seats at a long table. Peter rarely ate in this room, even as a teen. He’d normally be at the stool by kitchen island or on the couches in the living room or some part of Tony’s lab not covered in experimental material.

When he did eat in the dining room, it was usually with multiple people besides his mentor and they would claim a couple of chairs at one end of the table. However, this was the first time Peter had seen the table completely full and all of the chairs occupied.

Given the company, someone had been pulled over a barstool for Peter so the toddler could join them.

No one commented on the way people sat beside their associated teams. Regardless, Peter was grateful to have the Starks on either side of him and Steve far away.

Dinner was a traditional, albeit American, home-cooked meal none of the Rogues were opposed to after being on the road for so long. It was simple and had enough variety for everyone to enjoy. Tony gently pulled the pacifier out of his mouth as Pepper set a plate of cut-up pieces of lightly seasoned chicken and steamed vegetables with mashed potatoes in front of him.

The small talk continued. T’Challa discussed a bit about Wakanda’s outreach programs and Bucky talked about his goats. Steve teased Sam with stories of them living together on the run and Natasha added with her own stories of Clint.

Peter was happy to listen throughout dinner. With so many voices, it was a little hard to keep up so spend most of his time simply smiling and giggling in the joyous atomsphere.

“Mama Rogers was not happy to see us when I dragged you to her doorstep mid-asthma attack.” Barnes pointed out.

“The fact that the majority of Bucky’s childhood memories consists of your stupidity is not surprising to me.” Shuri added.

“Okay not my best moment, but I had a plan.”

“And how did that turn out for the Star Spangled Man with a Plan?” Tony sing-songed.

“I knew what I was doing.”

“You had no idea what you were doing.”

“We were sixteen, Buck.” Steve exasperated. “Like you knew better.”

“Correction: you were sixteen, I was eighteen.”

“By definition that makes him an adult in this country.” The king said.

“T’Challa, what about being an adult makes them more qualified to make decisions?” Okoye questioned.

“Rite of passage, maybe? Personally, I think we were all still pretty clueless at eighteen.”

“Excuse me, Rhodes. Why are you making direct eye contact with me? What did I do?” Tony asked.

“What didn’t you do?”

“Peter, whatever comes out of their mouths next are lies. All lies.”

“Your college days have their own table of contents on Wikipedia.” Natasha explained. “He’ll find out eventually.”

“He looks a lot like you when you were that age. I think Howard and Maria would of liked him.“

“I would to like think so, but we’ll never know.” The table suddenly stilled at Tony’s comment. “Thanks Cap, but right now is not the best time for this conversation.”

“I was close to your parents too, that’s all.” Steve tried to sympathize.

“Howard did like to spend time with you.” The billionaire decided not to mention resulting neglect that came with working with an American icon.

“I was devastated when I heard two good friends had passed, I can only imagine what their son must of felt.”

“Imagined that he wouldn’t be able to handle the truth?”

“It wasn’t like that.”

Tony had kept his suit footage of the battle after the airport in Leipzig from Peter. However, he had quite a few guesses as to what happened. Whenever the boy brought it up in the lab or casually over dinner, Tony would shrug and change the subject.

Peter knew this was a touchy subject for the man, but didn’t expect the palpable tension that filled the room. The sheer heat of the argument was intimidating. None of the other Avengers dared to speak up.

Since Peter had met Tony, there were only a handful a times the man actually got mad. However, this was a whole new level of anger that started to scare Peter.

“Your pity means nothing to me.” Tony words were bold and his tone was dangerously sharp. “You withheld any closure left this information could ever provide.”

“There were other things that needed to get done first.” Steve was losing his patience. Every fiber in his body was asking, no begging, for him to reach across the table and finish what the two of them had started in Siberia. “Bucky is the closest thing I have left for a family and you nearly killed him. I had ample reasons to justify my actions.”

“Bucky is not the problem, it’s the Winter Solider program inside of him. The winter solider already killed many more than just my parents. You were doing nothing to neutralize the situation than controlling those murderous actions onto someone less fortunate.”

“You are too arrogant and self absorbed to see it any other way!” Steve accused. He slammed his fist onto the table making the group’s silverware and dishes rattle. “You’ve not had to watch your best friend be turned into puppet, used by madmen in any way they see fit. You’ve not seen how everyday was a battle to live his own life. You’ve not had to deal with the trauma it’s caused.”

Tony slowly stood up, evidently trying to control the fiery rage inside of him. He raised his voice threateningly. “My best friend is currently paralyzed from the waist down because of this. I’m the one who has to explain our situation to rest of the world calmly to avoid World War III while you and your team illegally parade around Europe. I don’t see how I am the one causing all the damage.”

“You stay perched on top of your tower, with all the resources in the world at your fingertips, simply watching the violence and unrest below. Bucky was just the tip of the iceberg, by sidelining me and the rest of us, you’ve stopped any hope as heroes we had to stop that.” Steve was practically yelling to get his point across and into Stark’s thick skull. “What makes you and your team heroes?”

Everyone began arguing at once, shouting over one another to be heard. Tony. Steve. Bucky. Natasha. Sam. Clint. T’Challa. Shuri. Pepper. Okoye. Rhodey. All of them.

“Not all of us can go running into the night and wake up the next day like nothing happened.”

“We can’t pick and choose the people we save. Money and social status should have nothing to do with it.”

“What happens during the battle is out of our control. We need to help afterwards which needs to be established beforehand.”

“There are others who are able to help like we do. We need to allow them to get involved.”

“There is no point in helping others if we are not able to help ourselves first, it will be a burden to everyone.”

Peter buried his head in his arms as everything became too much all at once. The remains of dinner made his stomach churn. Every thread and seam of his clothing rubbed his skin the wrong way. His eyes burned from the fluorescent spotlights above that had once been ambient evening light.

In the end, it was the sound that sent him over the edge. All of the voices yelling at once. No matter how hard he shut his eyes, covered his hears, or pulled at the tags on his clothes, there was too much stimuli.

Peter could hear screaming in the distance and, one by one, the voices around him miraculously stopped.

It took him awhile to realize he was the one screaming.

“Now is clearly not the best time for this conversation.“ Tony said as he scooped up the crying boy and left the room of irritable Avengers to their own devices.

Peter had always been a touch-oriented person. Meaning, physical contact was important for him. The spider would much rather hug over wave and kept his personal bubble much smaller than most. However, as May had warned him, Tony found out Peter became an octopus when he was emotional: like an absolute cuddle lychee.

When Iron Man got shot down mid-fight and had to stay overnight in med-bay afterwards, Tony woke up to a sleeping Peter attached to his side. When movie nights at the compound explored the horror section of their films, it was not uncommon for Peter immediately latch onto his mentor at the first jump scare. Even when Peter just seemed to have a rough day at school, the kid would simply brush shoulders with Tony in the lab.

Tony didn’t mind Peter’s closeness. In fact, he was happy it was a way he could provide his mentee with some level of comfort. He knew the boy already faced more tragedy than most adults would in their lifetime to warrant it.

This was why Tony was surprised to find the three-year-old version of Peter fighting to be held, pushing against his arms and kicking at his torso. The man was lucky he didn’t drop Peter on the way to the boy’s bedroom.

Peter bawled the entire time.

“Peter, you’ve got to calm down. You’re gonna hyperventilate if you keep this up.” Tony coaxed. “Just breathe for me, alright?”

He set the boy on the soft carpeted floor, watching Peter go between pulling at his hair and grabbing at his clothes. The man had to gently hold Peter’s hands together to stop the boy from hurting himself. His actions did nothing to stop Peter’s thrashing; if anything, they made it worse.

Suddenly, all of Peter’s frantic behavior made sense.

Tony set Peter loose from the fabric restraints of his spider print clothes as the boy writhed. He reached into the kid’s closet, pulled out the softest blanket he could find, wrapped Peter up like a burrito, and began to rummage through the rest of the room.

Peter’s rational mind had lost the battle to his emotional one a long time ago. However, by the time he could feel the rim of his noise-canceling headset over his ears and opened his eyes to look through specialized dark film, Peter was able to calm down enough to take control of himself again.

His brain wasn’t quite able to supply Peter where he was, who he was with, what he was doing, or how he got there. But when Peter looked up, with both hands holding onto the big and bulky sensory equipment, and saw Tony, he knew he would be okay.

“Sensory overload?” His mentor said just below a whisper, adjusting the now coherent boy in his arms to face him.

Peter nodded and mumbled in return. “Sor’y I didn’t tell you soon’r, ev’rybod’ was talkin’ so loud ‘n I didn’t know-”

“That’s okay, kiddo.” Tony interrupted before Peter got into another round of tears. He could only take so much crying for one day. “I should’ve recognized it before it got this far and, yeah, we did get pretty loud.”

“Loud’r t’an a bunch of rh’noc’r’ses.”

“Really Pete? How do you even know what a bunch of rhinoceroses sound like?”

“T’ere was a document’ry at school ab’ut Af’ica wit’ a bunch of t’em.”

“God, what are they teaching kids these days?” Tony was relieved to see the kid give a watery smile before wrapping his arms around the man’s neck.

“Thank you.”

“Any time.” Tony happily returned the gesture, having to hold back the urge to aww when Peter pulled away to rub at his eyes. “It’s been a long day. You ready for bed, bud?”

“Uh huh.”

“Feeling up to trying on pajamas?”

“No.” Peter yawned as Tony set him down in his crib, blanket and all.

The man was about to leave when he hear a quiet whine behind him, looking back to see Peter reaching a hand out between the crib’s wooden bars. “Need something else, Pete?”

“I’on Man.”

He chuckled a bit, taking the boy’s outstretched hand. The kid was clearly delirious with sleep after his sensory episode. “What for.”

“Wan’ M’ster St’rk.”

“They’re one in the same and he’s standing right in front of you, kiddo.”

“I’on man ‘ikes to p’otect but no mor’ n’ghtmar’s wit’ Mi’ster St’rk.”

Tony paused, unsure of how to react. That was not the response he was expecting and could feel the insecurities towards his superhero persona bubble up inside of him. The man was well aware that Peter was practically obsessed with Iron Man, but little did he know that Peter was actually obsessed with Tony Stark.

“Stay... p’ease?” Peter continued when the billionaire failed to respond. “J’st until I fall as’eep.”

The man spoke without hesitation. “Of course.”

And that’s how Peter drifted off to sleep: one hand in his mouth and the other holding onto the person who would do anything to protect him.