Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

When Peter’s tear-filled goodbyes were meant to send him back to another Earth, he thought the wizard meant his Earth. 

This Earth had a city out of his imagination. A dark city with more smog than New York ever had. A city that crushes spirits before they can even be born. A city home to some of the most extreme villains Peter’s ever seen.

This? This is not his earth.

~

“Red, what’s the status on that security system?” Red Hood demands, suddenly thankful his mask has a filter when a blast of Fear Gas pushes him behind a wall. He would have had a face full of the stuff had the filter not been installed. He’s so close, the winding hallways of the warehouse no match for Red Robin’s hacking abilities. He found the building plans in no time.

“Fuck– Red Robin!”

“I’m trying here, Hood!”

“Language, Hood.”

“Fuck off, B!” This whole mission is going to go to shit if Red Robin can’t get the security system down. That’s what keeps blasting him with Fear Gas. These guys are getting more and more advanced by the day, and it’s not good.

The sound of footsteps alerts him to another presence, and he prepares his gun. No one in their right of mind would be out in this unless they were working with Scarecrow. Red Hood groans, taking the safety off and aiming in the direction the footsteps came from. Suddenly the footsteps go up and Red Hood has to shake off the uneasy feeling it leaves him.

“If I could just…” The voice has him looking around, unsure of just how fast this guy can move if he’s already so far from him. The real kicker though? It’s not Scarecrow’s voice. A pop and a hiss alert Red Hood to the dismantling of the very security device Red Robin has been trying to hack into. A canister of pressurized Fear Gas falls from the ceiling with a metallic clang.

“That stuff sure packs a punch, doesn’t it?” The voice is filled with awe, and a soft thud brings a new form into Red Hood’s line of sight.

“Hood, it’s down. I don’t know how, but–”

“Red, there’s someone else here.” Red Hood whispers as he stares at the guy, gun cocked and ready.

“You know, a typical response to taking down a security system for a bad guy like this is a thank you – And you have a gun! That complicates things, doesn’t it?” The guy is in a tight red suit. Not a fancy suit either, more like Superman’s suit. Spandex leaves little of his scrawny frame to the imagination. His boney hips and lanky arms cause his expectations of this guy to shrink, but the spider motif is impossible to miss. As for how the guy heard him coming, the only explanation is that he’s a meta.

“Hood, I’m nearby. He could be dangerous.” Red Hood knows better than to underestimate his enemies, but this guy makes it hard to think much of his abilities. He doesn’t respond to Red Robin, but he chances a look up, finding his teammate in the rafters above him.

“I mean, this gas freaked me out, so I can only wonder what it’ll do to a normal human!” …Is he rambling? From the sound of his voice, he can’t be much older than Red Hood himself, but the rambling suggests he’s closer to Red Robin’s age.

“The more you talk, the closer I get to putting a bullet through your skull, Kid.” The guy looks offended, putting his hand on his chest in a show of dramatics that Red Hood is not unfamiliar with.

“You wound me, masked man! I am twenty-six years old!” Red Hood shakes his head, disbelief flooding his thoughts. There’s no way this kid is older than twenty.

“Hood, do not engage,” Batman says, sounding more exasperated than anything.

“I don’t take orders from you anymore, B,” Red Hood replies. The guy cocks his head to the side, thinking. Suddenly, the eyes of his mask light up in interest. Red Hood watches as Red Robin sneaks forward while Spider-Man is distracted.

“Ah, you’ve got a comm system? That’s cool. I don’t have any friends who know I’m Spider-Man, so that doesn’t work for me, and police scanners go off too much for me to have that in my ear.” Finally, a name. Spider-Man suddenly looks up, stepping back just as Red Robin jumps down, landing where the metahuman used to stand.

“Wait… Are you kidding me? Red Robin is my favorite Robin! But that means you’re Red Hood, right?” Spider-Man’s attention is back on Red Hood in seconds, which is smart since he’s the one holding the gun.

“You didn’t know who I was?” Red Hood asks. Spider-Man shrugs.

“Your suit is pretty generic as far as I’ve seen, sorry! Should the bat logo have given me a hint?” Spider-Man motions to the red bat on his chest. Red Hood can’t believe this kid. He must be new to Gotham if the accent and attitude are anything to go by. That doesn’t bode well for him, Gotham crushes people.

There’s a lull in the exchange before Red Robin lunges and Spider-Man launches himself into the air, hanging off a low portion of ceiling in a low squat. Red Hood shoots his gun, the bullet leaving a hole in the wall behind the metahuman. Spider-Man manages to dodge, but not by much. He’s on the walls now, standing as if gravity has no hold on him whatsoever.

“Wow, you almost got me there! I have to admit, you and Robin have the most extensive training, Red Hood, so I was expecting a challenge with you two. Speaking of Robin, is Batman here? I heard you talking to him.” A few more gunshots are the only answer Spider-Man receives. He lands on the floor once more, a necessary evil to dodge the barrage of bullets.

“Hey! I’m not the guy you need to worry about here, Scarecrow and his gas are probably halfway across Gotham by now, unless Batman and Robin caught him.” Red Hood pauses, but Red Robin does not, swinging at Spider-Man. The metahuman catches his fist, turning to him with narrowed eyes.

“I’m talking to your brother here, Red Robin. You may have been my favorite, but that doesn’t mean I won’t fight you if you come at me.” Red Robin stumbles back, and Spider-Man lets him go. He’s not fighting back, merely self-defense. Neither of them miss the “brother” comment.

“You’re insane, Spider-Man.” Spider-Man just laughs at Red Hood’s comment.

“No, just experienced. Now, if you don’t put down that gun, Mr. Hood, I’m going to have to take it from you.” Red Hood scoffs, taking aim once more. His finger hovers over the trigger, a twitch of his finger would be enough to end this kid if he wasn’t so fast.

“I’d like to see you try– Holy shit.” In seconds, Red Hood finds his hand empty. Not only that, but his feet are… webbed to the floor. Are those really webs?

“What in the world?” Red Robin asks, shock evident in his voice. A soft click alerts them to the gun, now in Spider-Man’s hand, having its safety being re-engaged.

“Not this world, I assure you. Wait, that makes me sound like Superman, doesn’t it?” He takes that moment of confusion to web Red Robin to a nearby wall. The vigilante is about to cry out, but Spider-Man puts a web over his mouth too.

“Don’t worry, they dissolve in about an hour!” Spider-Man tries to run off when he runs straight into a firm chest. He doesn’t even open his eyes when he begins speaking again.

“Ah hell, is this Batman or Scarecrow? I’m hoping it’s Batman, and that’s why my Spider-Sense didn’t go off.” A low grunt is the only response he receives before he’s anxiously ranting again.

“Look, I didn’t want to web up your sons, I just needed to keep them there long enough to let me take care of this Scarecrow guy! Look, if I can figure out what it’s made out of, I can neutralize it and then no one has to wear a gas mask out anymore.” There’s more to the rant, but Red Hood stopped listening after that. Maybe this kid is some kind of genius too with all his sciencey talk. One look at Red Robin shows that they’re having the same thought.

“You will free them, and you will come with us willingly.” Spider-Man pauses. He looks up at Batman, eyes wide. He looks almost scared.

“No, I don’t think I will.” Suddenly, there’s a sharp object poking at his side, and Spider-Man turns his head to look at a little Robin. Immediately, the metahuman’s shoulders tense, but his eyes seem to relax.

“Aw, you’re even cuter in person!” Red Hood lets out a low whistle. Spider-Man is a goner now. Robin is going to carve out his organs and feed them to him personally. 

“Can I kill him, Batman?” Robin asks. The black-clad hero sighs, pinching the bridge of his nose. Spider-Man has the gall to laugh , which nearly seals his fate as Robin’s eye twitches.

“No, you may not.”

Chapter Text

“Of all the people to bring a stranger into the Bat Cave, I didn’t think it’d be B.” Red Hood rolls his eyes at his brother’s words. Nightwing, as well as the other Bats, have been called to the Cave due to some… concerning comments made by Spider-Man. It’s clear he knows more than anyone should about the people behind the masks.

“Wow, this place looks way cooler in person. Do you guys have a lab here? I didn’t have a chance to stock up on my web fluid when I was ejected from the last universe I was in.” Red Hood looks at the guy incredulously. He can’t be serious. Luckily, Batman ignores him.

“How did you dismantle that device?” He asks. Spider-Man looks between each of the Bats, a growing sense of awe in his already limited features behind his mask.

“Holy shit– You’re all real. That’s awesome ! Wait, does that mean everything I know about you all is true? Does that mean the Joker is really that insane? Also, Batman, are you really–”

“Answer the question, Spider-Man,” Red Hood says with a glare. He looks at his family, who are all in varying stages of shock.

“So now I’m sure you understand the urgency behind your summons.”

~

Peter understands why they’re all freaked out, he knows everything about them for crying out loud! The problem is that he can’t focus on anything when literally all of the heroes he’s read about since he was a child are in one room standing before him. It’s overwhelming!

“Spider-Man, hurry up before B gets angry.” Peter rolls his eyes, not that they can see it. Batman doesn’t kill, and they all know it.

“With all due respect, Red Hood, Batman doesn’t kill. A fact that increasingly pisses you off, and has since you were a teenager.” Suddenly the man is in his face, pinning him against the wall with his forearm on his neck.

“How do you know that? How much do you know?” Peter smiles, a laugh that can more likely be described as a giggle escaping his throat as he responds with a question of his own.

“This place isn’t bugged, right? Because if I’m going to come clean, I don’t think this is going to be something you want just anyone in Gotham to hear.” Red Hood looks to Oracle and Red Robin, both of whom shake their heads.

“Red Hood, I had it–” Peter cuts Batman off, not wanting to hear him and Red Hood get into it again.

“You can’t control him, Mr. Wayne. You lost that when he died at the Joker’s hands at fifteen.”

All hell breaks loose as Jason backs away like he was burned. He can’t believe Spider-Man knows. He knows everything . It’s a terrible realization to come to. He thinks he knew already, but to have it confirmed and thrown in his face is a different story entirely.

“Well then, do we get to know who you are, Spider-Man?” It’s Tim who asks, and Spider-Man seems to light up at that.

“I knew you were my favorite for a reason! Well, since I am no longer being restrained, I think it should be fine, right?” He’s talking to himself, mostly, but no one complains as he removes his mask, revealing his messy brown hair and matching brown eyes.

“My name is Peter Parker, and in my universe, you’re all comic-book characters.”

~

Everyone is de-masked except for Robin now, not to anyone’s surprise.

“Wait, so you know our entire lives?” Peter nods, a wordless response to Dick’s question. The eldest Wayne child chuckles uncomfortably.

“That’s probably the most uncomfortable thing I’ve ever heard.”

“For the record, I didn’t know any of you were real when I was making theories about what would happen in your future.” Peter tries to laugh it off, but he knows first-hand how weird it is for someone to know the most intimate parts of his life without his prior knowledge. When his universe started to combine with the other two Peters’... that was an odd experience. He brushes right past it, not letting the tension sit for long.

“Tim is my favorite Robin because he’s someone I can relate with. He’s a little genius, after all. Then there’s you, who I took a lot of my moves from.” Dick’s expression, along with his crossed arms, show he has questions, so he elaborates.

“After I was bitten by that spider, I was way more flexible than I had ever been. I could do flips and do all sorts of weird maneuvers to get away from Flash, but I also got faster, stronger, could stick to walls, and what I call my Spider-Sense. It’s how I’m able to dodge bullets and catch punches.” That last part is punctuated by a look toward Jason and Tim. Only one of them looks like he feels even slightly bad, though. The other has been glaring at him ever since he admitted to knowing everyone’s identities.

“You’re full of it,” Jason says, continuing to glare at Peter as he pushes himself off the wall. He stalks forward, and despite his menacing aura, Peter’s Spider-Sense doesn’t alert him to any danger. Not from Jason, anyway. He waits until Jason is a little too close to him. He can feel the vigilante’s hot breath on his face.

“Am I?” Peter asks, barely above a whisper, before catching a batarang behind his back. He doesn’t look at who threw it, but he has a hunch.

“Damian?” Peter asks. Jason scoffs, turning around and storming away.

“Well that was… something,” Barbara says. Peter shrugs it off, pulling his mask back on. He’s probably worn out his welcome anyway at this point, and he has to find a way to get back to his Earth. That’s when he spots Damian, Bruce, and Alfred talking. Likely about him.

~

“Father, he caught the batarang!” Damian fumes. Bruce pinches the bridge of his nose.

“ And he knows all of our identities! I may not agree with Todd on many things, Father, but Spider-Man is dangerous. How can we even prove what he says is true? None of this should be possible!” The boy continues his rant, but both Bruce and Alfred are adept at tuning out raging (although justified in said rage) children.

“Keeping him close is one way to monitor him, but I doubt he’ll accept Master Bruce. Look at him, he looks frightened, even behind the mask.” Alfred sighs. Peter looks no different from the others when they were taken in by Bruce. Scared, lonely, and afraid to reach out for help.

“Whatcha talking about?” Suddenly, Peter drops down between the trio. He’s hanging upside down by his webs, and his tone suggests a grin despite his hidden features.

“You could hear us, correct?” Peter nods.

“Then there’s no use in lying. Alfred and I were debating on the prospect of offering you a room here. Do not consider it an act of pity or charity, it’s not a selfless act. You know our identities, which is dangerous to more than just Gotham’s heroes.” Peter nods, understanding.

“You mean people like the Kents, right? That makes sense. I mean, in today’s economy I really shouldn’t say no to a free room, regardless. I can barely afford my apartment in Queens as is! Not that I can control that in this version of Queens.” Damian’s eye starts twitching, and Peter laughs at the sight.

“You really are adorable, Damian. Never change.”

~

Peter is led through the manor by Alfred and a wary Damian. Peter understands completely, so he can’t fault the boy for being so protective. Apparently, there’s a room free down by Jason, which is a source of anxiety for Peter. Jason obviously hates him, and he can’t blame him. He did bring up the worst moment of his entire life. His death was hard on everyone, especially himself.

“Here we are, Mr. Parker. I hope to see you at breakfast tomorrow. If you find yourself too restless to sleep tonight, you may wander around, but if you leave any webs behind, I must ask that you clean them up. I will be back momentarily with a set of clothes.” Peter looks in the room, awe filling his features.

“This place is bigger than my whole apartment!” Damian scoffs behind him, having stayed to observe him.

“Listen, I grew up with nothing, okay? Aunt May and I were living paycheck to paycheck, and New York isn’t Gotham, but it’s not a cakewalk either.” By the time Peter is done checking out the room, Alfred is back with a set of clothes.

“I apologize for how big these may be on you, but Master Timothy is shorter than you, and Master Richard and Master Jason have broader shoulders than you do. These are from when Master Jason was still growing. I’m sure you know all of them started off as skinny boys much like yourself.” Peter laughs nervously. He does know, he read all about them growing up. He almost feels as if he could have grown up alongside Jason and Dick.

“Thank you, Sir.” Alfred smiles kindly.

“None of that, Mr. Parker. You may call me Alfred. Now, I must bid you goodnight. I’m sure you’ve had a long night. Come along, Master Damian.” Peter watches them leave, Damian glaring at him the whole way out.

~

Peter flops back onto the bed, groaning as the hard mattress hits a tender bruise. Other than the initial ache, the mattress is the most comfortable Peter has ever had the pleasure of resting on.

Stupid rich people.

Peter inspects the clothing on his person, the white shirt is worn at the collar, and the sweater at the left sleeve. Peter smiles at that, having chewed holes in enough of his own sweaters to know where these came from. It’s kind of funny, Peter always chewed on the left sleeve too. The sweatpants are in near-perfect condition, minus some oil stains. He finds himself smiling, he’s learned a lot about Jason from his old clothes alone.

Before he knows it, Peter’s fatigue catches up with him and he is out like a light.

Chapter Text

“DAMIAN!” Peter jolts awake, an angry voice echoes down the hall. Peter jumps up, opening the door and poking his head out to see Tim barrelling down the hall. He knew it was wishful thinking that he’d get a few days of peace after getting transported to Gotham.

“I know this is normal, but reading about it and living it are different things entirely…” Peter groans, lightly hitting his head against the wall. A nearby chuckle alerts him to another presence.

“It’s not every day, but they don’t have the best relationship.” Turning his head, Peter spots Dick standing by his door. The man puts a hand on his shoulder, leading him down the hall.

“Come on, Alfred and Bruce wanted to talk to you.”

~

“Good morning, Mr. Parker,” Alfred says, setting a plate in front of Peter as he sits down. The smell of the dish is mouthwatering, it’s been a while since he had the energy to make himself pancakes, after all.

“Good morning, Alfred. These smell wonderful .” Dick chuckles at Peter’s remark.

“Alfred’s cooking is second to none.” Dick’s attention is pulled away as Damian and Tim enter, one covered in glitter and the other in scrapes.

“Guys, really? It’s not even eight o’clock!” Tim at least has the decency to look ashamed.

“He put glitter in my coffee machine!” Peter is holding back his laughter, his shoulders shaking in the effort such a task takes. Dick shoots him an amused glare, no heat behind his gaze. He turns to Damian, expecting his explanation to follow. He does not disappoint.

“I am reluctant to admit that Tim caught me in the act. I miscalculated how long he would be asleep for. However, this was merely retaliation for the misplacement of my swords.” The two boys glare at one another with such intensity that Peter fears they’ll suddenly shoot lasers at one another. The tension is so thick that Peter can’t help but burst into laughter, his whole body shaking with the force of it. The noise brings Damian’s attention to Peter, in which both Tim and Dick tense up.

Peter, mid-laughing fit, catches a knife thrown by the youngest Wayne child. Damian stares at Peter with wide eyes for a moment before remembering who he is and glaring at the boy with equal the intensity he had been glaring at Tim. Dick and Tim share a look before both looking between Damian and Peter.

“So it wasn’t a fluke?” The boy’s voice is menacing, but Peter’s Spider Sense doesn’t spike any higher than it has been in Damian’s presence, so he deems it nothing to worry about.

“It’s not a fluke, Damian. I call it my Spider Sense. If there’s danger nearby, I’ll sense it.” Peter thinks about all the times he’s been in the wrong place at the wrong time and had to act like a regular old civilian. It gets annoying after the first two times being held at gunpoint.

“Damian, what did I say about throwing knives at the table?” Alfred asks. Damian tenses up, grumbling something about stupid rules about maiming threats.

“You’re more of a threat to me than I am to you, Little Man.” The boy’s eyebrows pinch together thoughtfully.

“You heard that?” He asks. Peter smiles in response, shaking his head as he puts another bite of pancake in his mouth, practically moaning around his fork.

~

“Mr. Parker, Master Bruce wishes to speak to you regarding a possible employment opportunity. Could you follow me to his office? Damian, he wishes to see you as well.” Peter looks at the others, who only shrug in response.

Once in Bruce’s office, Damian sits down in a seat in front of the desk, scowling. Peter sits in the other seat, feeling severely underdressed. Bruce looks up from his work when Alfred closes the door, smiling at both of them.

“What is it, Father?” Damian asks, not looking the man in the eye. Bruce sighs, his kind smile wry as he gazes upon his youngest.

“I hear there was knife throwing this morning?” He asks. Damian grumbles, not speaking coherently enough for Peter to understand.

“It’s fine, no one was injured from that incident, although I can’t say that Tim’s lungs are free from glitter.” Damian glares at Peter, a frequent occurrence now. Bruce raises an eyebrow in question.

“I was woken by the sound of Tim’s outrage and poked my head out to see him rushing down the hall. I don’t remember the glitter until breakfast, though. I’m a little shocked by that development, I always thought glitter bombs were more Tim’s prerogative.” Bruce nods in understanding, turning back to Damian, who scoffs.

“I thought we were here to talk about Peter, Father.”

“We are,” Bruce starts, “But we do need to address your relationship with Tim. You two are getting bad again.”

“Now, about your employment–” “I don’t have any legal documents, Sir.” Bruce sighs.

“I was getting there, Peter. I wanted to explain the job first. Can you drive?” Peter nods, but offers a confused face.

“Can you be available during the day for conferences?” Peter nods again.

“Do you have experience caring for children?” Ah. That's it. He gets it now.

“Not murder-y children, but with my skill set, I can manage.” Damian looks at Bruce in disbelief.

“Father!” “You two can watch each other for all I care, Damian, but there are things that he can do legally that you cannot.” Damian crosses his arms with a huff, obviously displeased.

“I do not need a babysitter !” “He may not need a babysitter, but if he’s going to be combative, I do need financial compensation for the trouble. I work hard, but not for free.” The look of pure betrayal on Damian’s face is almost worth the knife thrown at his head.

~

Damian stormed out some time ago, so Peter exits Bruce’s office alone. He swings open the double doors, thanking Bruce as he steps out. When he closes the door and turns back around, Peter is met with Jason Todd himself.

“Oh, I thought you would have gone back to Crime Alley last night.” Jason looks at Peter, an odd expression on his face. Peter sighs, pinching the bridge of his nose and thinking of what to say next. It’s silent in the hallway, Jason unwilling to speak and Peter not wanting to say something stupid. It’s awkward, but when dealing with a person like Jason Todd, it’s important not to say the wrong thing when he’s already emotionally charged.

“Look, would you rather I pretend I don’t know anything? That I don’t know your whole life story already? As uncomfortable as it is, I think I’d rather know if someone knew everything I’d done already. Contrary to what you and Damian believe, I’m not trying to be your enemy.” Jason doesn’t respond, but he does hold Peter’s gaze until he’s done speaking. Peter offers a wry smile before turning to walk back to his room. He’s only a few steps away when he’s pulled back and facing Jason once more.

“Do you want to spar?” Peter grins.

~

Lucky for them, the Cave has an open space for these occasions. There’s even a first-aid kit, which Peter assumes he’ll need despite his enhanced healing. Jason is ruthless after all.

“Feel free to back out at any time, Kid.” Peter scowls, knowing he is still underestimating him.

“Not on your life, Todd.” They circle one another, both with their guards up. They discussed the rules, no weapons (including Peter’s webs), and the first to draw blood is the victor. Usually, Peter wouldn’t go that far, but he doesn’t think Jason will listen any other way. The room is silent, minus the humming of the nearby monitor, and the air is charged. No one would dare come between them now. Jason, impatient as he is, finally lunges, and Peter dodges easily, fluidly shifting around the space as Jason looks around. He’s stronger and faster than Jason, but he knows he can’t rely on that. Since the Robins start off small, they have to learn early on to fight bigger foes than anyone of their age or stature has any business facing off against.

“Stop dodging and throw a punch already, Kid!”

Chapter Text

Tim watches through his laptop as Peter and Jason dance around. Jason throws punches that Peter dodges each time.  He heard they were going down to the Cave to spar, and Tim knows that Jason means no harm to Peter. If the man was telling the truth, then his… sense can feel that, meaning he’s actually dodging these hits. Jason isn’t being serious, but those still aren’t easy hits to dodge.

“C’mon, man. I thought you of all people would have been able to hit me by now.” Peter must have a death wish, egging him on like this. Jason becomes more and more frustrated with each missed punch. Peter can’t help but smirk, his eyes holding a teasing glint. The final straw for Jason is when Peter pulls a move that shocks even Tim.

“Hey, Tim? I know you’re watching because you’re a stalker and that’s part of why you’re my favorite, so I have a question. Can you play a song over whatever speakers are down here, I work better with music.” Tim freezes behind his laptop screen and sees Jason do the same.

“Tim is what ?” Peter pays the fuming vigilante no mind, asking for yet another favor.

“Can you also record this? Whether Jason beats my ass or not, I can learn from this.” Tim can’t believe Peter’s audacity. If he wasn’t convinced he had a death wish before, he sure is now. This man is about to get put on the floor if he isn’t careful, and Tim won’t even be able to blame Jason for it anymore.

Although, for his personal entertainment, he complies with Peter’s requests and plays the music. He pulls up some rock playlist and hits shuffle, and the song that comes on has Peter grinning like a maniac.

~

“I love this song!” The first few chords have Peter bouncing around, and as soon as the words start, he is singing along as he dances across the floor, playing with his prey and continuing to dodge and weave through Jason’s attacks until he finally sees an opening, squatting down and sweeping the man’s legs out from under him. Jason drops, but he rolls over before Peter can land a good hit. He grazes the man’s face, though.

“So you gotta let me know… Should I stay or should I go?” Peter sings. Jason is on him in seconds, shoving him to the floor and using his body weight to pin him down. It would certainly be a problem for someone without enhanced strength, but for Peter? It’s like he’s moving a cloud as he flips them over, pinning Jason to the ground instead. Jason looks surprised, and Peter chuckles out the next lyric, grinning as his canines sharpen, and a bit of venom drips onto Jason’s shirt. Peter flinches at the sight, backing off immediately. Jason takes that moment to charge at Peter, catching him off guard as he finally lands a hit, making the metahuman’s head snap painfully to the side with a sickening crack. As Peter’s face goes lax, his body goes taut. Time to get serious, then. The music picks up, and Peter jumps up, putting some strength behind his movement and successfully attaching himself to the ceiling, leaving Jason to try and predict his movements.

“This indecision’s bugging me,” Peter sings along before dropping behind Jason, kicking him to the ground. Before Jason has time to react, Peter has one arm pulled behind him, and one knee in his back.

“Y’know, this is fun!” Jason snarls, struggling against Peter’s grip, which earns him more pressure in his back.

“Yield before I draw blood, Jason. I only agreed to it so you would listen to me.” The man beneath him doesn’t respond, but Peter sees the green glint in his eye and immediately curses. Apparently Tim saw it too, because the music stops abruptly and the elevator slides open, revealing two of the Wayne’s.

“Peter—“ The metahuman doesn’t turn around, doesn’t acknowledge Bruce’s warning, but he does get off of Jason, backing up with his hands in the air defensively.

“I know we said no weapons, but if you fight me like this I’m not gonna be able to abide by that!” Peter warns. Jason lunges without speaking, and Peter feels his Spider Sense go wild . So he was right. He’s not in control right now.

“Peter!” This voice isn’t the patriarch of the Wayne family, but Tim, who sounds more fearful than he has any business being. He knows about Tim’s experience with Jason like this, how he was hunted for sport by the man. He’s too young to have had to deal with that, and Peter will walk down to hell himself before he lets him fight Jason like this again.

Peter shoots some webs at Tim, securing him to the floor where he stands before getting tackled by Jason, his head cracking against the floor. Blood pools where Peter’s head hit, and he chuckles at the irony of it. By their rules, Jason won.

“Shit, you really pack a punch, don’t you?” Peter asks. Jason still isn’t speaking, but he’s breathing heavily.

“I didn’t mean to do this, Jason. I didn’t mean to make you this upset. I know you probably can’t hear me right now, not really, but I’m not your enemy. I’m not . I don’t want to hurt you, I never did. I just wanted to show you that I mean no harm, and you listen to fists more than you do words. Now that the worst two people to help have come down, this is going to be harder than it needs to be.” The last bit was more to himself, but that doesn’t mean he wasn’t heard by the other Wayne’s in the room.

“Fuck off.” Peter perks up at Jason’s words. He’s coming back, then. At least a little bit. He launches himself at Peter, and Peter almost can’t dodge him. There’s too much happening, his senses are going haywire with the intensity of his Spider Sense and the watchful eyes of the others.

Bruce tries to come forward, but Peter webs him down too. His presence will only make Jason more volatile, just as it does on a normal basis.

Jason grabs a knife, throwing it at Peter fast enough that, while he does dodge it, Peter gets a nasty cut a little too close to his eye for comfort. It burns horribly, and he knows from experience that it’s going to leave a scar. He won’t die from it, but the blood is distracting.

“Come on, I didn’t want to have to do this!” Peter webs Jason’s hand to the next weapon he grabs before launching web after web, cocooning the man. He thrashes around for a bit, until Peter walks forward, pulling Jason toward him. Jason tries to head but him, but Peter puts a hand in his hair, stopping him from further movement. Jason glares daggers at Peter, who only sighs. His canines sharpen again, and he winces as he pulls Jason’s head to the side, exposing his neck. He prefers to bite arms or wrists, but they’re currently covered in web fluid, and releasing them to do this will only allow Jason an opening to attack.

“I’m sorry, Jason. I really am.” Peter bites, using Jason’s collarbone as leverage to sink his fangs into the man, allowing his venom to flow through his canines and into Jason’s bloodstream. Only enough to sedate him, a skill he’s luckily had extensive practice in. When Jason drops, eyes slipping shut, Peter finally allows his body to relax. His head is pounding, his cheek stings, and his teeth feel gross . He hates biting people. He hates it.

“I’m sorry, Mr. Wayne. He’s only asleep though, I promise.” With that, Peter’s body seems it’s job done and he too falls, out before he hits the floor.

~

“We’ve all seen the video, B. He played with Jason until he landed a hit. He’s obviously more skilled than he let on! Can we trust him?” Dick asks, looking between Jason and Peter, who are both lying in beds in the Cave, both being monitored closely.

“You didn’t see him take down Jason when he was mad, Dick. He wouldn’t let either of us close. His first instinct was to protect, and when he couldn’t get through to Jason, he sedated him.” Tim hums thoughtfully, looking over the lab work. Jason’s blood has the venom coursing through it, but Peter was right, the dosage wasn’t lethal. It easily could have been, but he was able to hold back. He looks at the man, sound asleep in the bed, and wonders just how many times he’s done this. He also wonders just how spider-y Peter is to have this ability. Maybe he should run some blood from Peter too…

“Not without his permission, Master Timothy.” The boy in question tenses up, and he turns to the owner of the voice, Alfred, with a sheepish grimace. He’d wonder if he was speaking aloud, but he knows that the butler can read all of them like this.

“So how long do you think until they wake up?” Steph asks, turning to Tim.

“It can’t be too long, not if Jason’s blood sample was correct. It’s quick-working venom.” The boy responds. Honestly, Jason should be awake within the hour. Peter, however? It’s unclear, and dependent on just how exhausted his body has been before he lost consciousness.

“I can’t believe this, why didn’t Peter let Bruce or Tim help?” Duke asks. Dick turns to Duke, who hadn’t been there when Peter was introduced. He just came back from a weekend trip, after all.

“Well, Peter actually knows everything about us, including Jason’s death. Apparently we’re comic book characters in his universe?” Dick offers. Duke pauses, looking to the others, who shrug.

“Still not the weirdest thing we’ve dealt with. Wait… Is it just us?” Dick shakes his head.

“Nope, it’s everyone. The Kents, Diana, Selina, even Harley and Ivy.” Duke’s eyes widen. He knows everything .

“That’s not concerning at all.” The sarcasm drips from his voice as he tries to laugh off the information, and Dick laughs with him.

“You can say it’s weird, Duke. It’s all weird.”

Chapter Text

Peter stirs as a conversation goes on around him. The voices are hushed, obviously trying not to wake him before his body seems the amount of rest he got sufficient enough. Just from listening, Peter can tell it’s Tim, Dick, Bruce, and Jason. There’s a dip in the bed next to him, and Peter chances a look to see Damian resting his head on the bed next to him, snoring softly. He’s so cute, who allowed this? 

“You’re a piece of work, Jason. You saw the video we pulled from the security footage, he webbed you up and you were out. Luckily the stuff dissolved when you both were out or we would have different problems.” Dick is sitting with his arms crossed, slouching back in his seat. He happens to look back at Peter, who he is shocked to find staring at him now.

“Shit, you’re up? How long have you been awake?” Peter chuckles, looking between the brothers and their father.

“Long enough to hear you talking about my webs. How long has Damian been out?” Peter’s question is met with thoughtful silence.

“About an hour. Now, tell us how you tamed the demon brat.” Tim’s voice is one of astonishment, and Peter can’t help but laugh. He didn’t tame anyone, and he’s not sure how in a day he won over probably the most cautious Robin in existence.

“Trust me, if I know him, he’s just biding his time until he can set one of his pets on me. Honestly, his collection of animals is impressive, and I’d love to meet them all.” Tim huffs, leaning back in the same manner as Dick, looking upset at that response.

“I’d say someone snap a picture, but he’s already awake.” There’s a soft yet stern murmur from Peter’s bedside, making the metahuman smile triumphantly.

“Of course I knew, Damian. I have enhanced senses. I heard your breathing pick back up, and your heart rate is higher than any sleeping person’s should be. True sleep is hard to mimic.” Damian sits up, moving away from the bed with a loud groan of frustration.

“Don’t be too upset, no one has been able to fool me yet.” That apparently is not the comfort Peter thinks it is as a small dagger is launched in his direction. Peter fidgets with the knife as he speaks once more.

“You know, throwing a sharp object every time you get flustered isn’t the way to make friends. Just because Jon is indestructible…” Damian’s eyes widen and each of the bats in the Cave tense up. Peter did not just bring Jon into this.

“Parker, I will make you regurgitate your own intestines if you mention Jonathan Kent again.” Peter puts his hands up in surrender. He then gets an idea, he can have some fun with this, can’t he?

“Okay, so I’ll bring up Bernard then?” Tim groans, turning away with his hands over his face.

“Isn’t that your friend from high school?” Bruce asks. Tim groans in agony, embarrassment flooding his features. Damian pulls another face.

“You really know everything ?” Peter shrugs at the boy’s question.

“I’ve been very open about this, haven’t I? Why are you still shocked?” Dick chuckles at his response, rubbing the back of his neck as he averts his gaze.

“You have to understand that this is incredibly strange for us. You know everything about us, but we know next to nothing about you. I know I have questions, so the others must too.” Peter nods, understanding where the vigilante is coming from.

“Well, I’m assuming you want to monitor my physical state for a little while longer, ask away.” The silence that fills the room is excruciating, and Tim seems to be the first to break it, ever the curious soul.

“How did you get to Gotham?” Peter can’t help the smile that breaks onto his face.

“You are not going to believe this, but a wizard sent me here. I think, after everything, the other Peters and I have had enough magic for our lifetimes.” Tim nods, pulling out a notebook and jotting something down. Peter tries not to feel anxious about that, turning to the others.

“Anything else?”

“What villains have you fought? What are they like?” Peter’s eyes widen. The question is broad in nature, but Peter knows what answer Damian wants. He sits back and begins to explain multiple villains from his home world, as well as his experience with the ones from the world he just came from.

“Wait, the world you came from wasn’t yours?” Tim asks. Peter shakes his head. He begins the lengthy explanation of his experience in what multiverse theorists call Earth-616. It’s a rough explanation, but it gets done. Tim interjects often with questions of his own, and Peter merely smiles, happy to have someone as interested in this as he is. By the looks of the other brothers and Bruce himself, these questions are going over all of their heads.

“What about that Green Goblin guy?” Bruce asks. Peter looks at him with a pained expression. He then looks to Dick and Jason, who look incredibly uncomfortable with this scenario.

“Let’s call him… our version of the Joker. His torture wasn’t physical, at least not to me. He couldn’t catch me, but he did make every Peter I’ve met stop pulling their punches at one point or another, and  I won’t exclude myself from that. After I lost both Ben and Gwen, I was in a dark spot. Meeting the other Peters helped me out of it, that’s for sure.” Jason’s eyes flash green at the mention of the Joker, and Dick puts a comforting hand on the man’s shoulder. Peter looks at his lap before continuing, cringing a bit at his own words.

“I’m going to be better, try to cure before I kill, I promised the other Peters that much, but I can’t promise I won’t kill again.” Peter chances a look at Jason, whose gaze is boring into him in such an intense manner that Peter has to look away. The others don’t miss that exchange, that’s for sure.

“Gotham villains aren’t like that, not all of them. Some of them kill just for the fun of it, have you considered that?” Damian asks, his expression grim.

“I can’t judge people based on the worst few, now can I? What kind of person, let alone hero, could I call myself then?”

~

Peter’s answer to the last question rattled all of them, but none more than Jason. It’s not Peter’s fault, Damian’s question would be hard for anyone to respond to, not just the spider-themed vigilante. It's a hard realization to come to, that some villains are just bad people. That some villains need to be brought down permanently.

“Hey, I showed the others the footage from the infirmary, how are you holding up?” Barbara asks, putting a hand on Jason’s forearm. Jason looks down, sinking into the couch, since he had been pacing in the living room.

“That Green Goblin guy does sound like the Joker, doesn’t he? I can’t imagine a guy like Peter having dealt with a guy like him. He’s so… smiley.” As if on cue, laughter comes from around the corner. It’s definitely his brothers, perhaps minus Damian, but it sounds like Steph might be there too.

“I just came to check on you, they’ve roped Peter into a game of UNO, and Steph has a bet with Duke and Cass that Peter will wipe the floor with Tim. Dick is there in case someone gets violent, and I think Bruce is checking in with Damian now.” Jason nods, acknowledging the information. He thinks about how long it’s been since he came to game night, and decides to follow Babs as she wheels herself back to the dining room.

“Babs!” The group cheers. Peter sits with his arms crossed, but a smile graces his features as he sees people entering the room. As his eyes find Jason, his smile grows to a beam.

“C’mon, Todd. Watch me beat your genius brother here at UNO. I think Cass and Steph have money on me, and Duke on Tim.” Peter glares lightly at the daytime hero, who holds up his hands in defense. Cass and Steph share a knowing look after glancing between Jason and Peter.

“Do you want to add to the pool? I already told Cass and Steph that if I was going to be a subject, that I was getting a cut.” Jason glares lightly at Cass and Steph before pulling out a twenty.

“Put me down for Peter. Sorry Tim, but I think the spider has you beat there.” Jason walks around the table, spying Peter’s cards before he actually lets his money go. Dick snatches it for the fund, which puts the total at eighty bucks. If Peter wins, the money will be split more, but it’s the principle of the thing.

“C’mon, Peter. Kick this emotionally stunted idiot’s ass.” Tim throws back that none of them have room to talk about being emotionally stunted, a quirk they all picked up from Bruce himself, and Peter laughs, not disagreeing.

Chapter Text

Peter does in fact wipe the floor with Tim in UNO, a fact that none can dispute. There’s even a video in the family chat that will silence any arguments on the matter (money exchange included), much to Tim’s chagrin. Peter is laughing through the entire thing, his shoulders shaking with the magnitude of his fit. It’s actually pretty funny, everyone is screaming around them. In the back you can see Alfred and Damian walk in, look at one another, and walk right back out without even turning around. Jason swears he sees Tim glaring at Bruce as he walks by, the faint sound of the previous night’s chaos playing from his cell phone as he walks through the entrance hall.

Peter wakes up with the sun, something he’s begrudgingly used to from working odd hours to pay his bills and due to his… other activities. Crime never sleeps, after all, so Spider-Man barely does either. Especially not when he was working on his master’s thesis. Thinking about that brings a spike of anxiety that is wholly unwelcome in this new universe. School and work and Spider-Man was stressful, and something that Peter was proud of himself for almost finishing.

“Good morning, Mr. Parker. Would you care for a cup of coffee?” Alfred’s voice brings Peter out of his anxious thoughts. Peter nods, clearing his throat with a cough after Alfred leaves the room.

“Are any of the others up yet?” He asks as Alfred reemerges from the kitchen, a steaming cup of coffee in hand. Alfred pauses to think for a moment before responding.

“Those who still attend school should be up shortly, but I am usually the only one awake at this hour. Peter looks around for a clock to check what time it is.

“It is 5:30, Mr. Parker. I checked with Master Bruce, you are not required to tend to Master Damian today.” Peter chuckles, shocked and yet not at all surprised by how well the butler can read him already.

“Then how about we call today a bit of a test run? Don’t worry, Mr. Alfred, I’ll have him ready!”

~

Damian is actually pretty self-sufficient, but he does need reminders about what time it is and that cereal is not a proper breakfast for a growing boy like himself. For that particular reminder, Damian shoots Peter a dangerous glare.

“I have survived on much less, Parker.” Peter rolls his eyes.

“So have I, but this isn’t going to sustain you until lunch. I may have told Alfred I’d get you ready today, but that does not mean that I am above holding you here until you eat a real breakfast.” Peter and Damian glare at one another for a good minute or so before the older kids come in.

“I know, I just wanted to– Oh no,” Duke says, followed closely by Cass, Steph, and Tim.

“Great! You guys can watch Damian for a sec while I get Alfred. Don’t worry, He’ll be webbed down so he doesn’t escape, but the kid needs more than cereal, and I need some real food too. I just remembered I’ve been forgetting to eat as well,” Peter says, shooting webs from his arms before rushing into the kitchen, where Alfred has been waiting. Both of them choose to ignore the mass chaos ensuing behind the dining room doors.

“Does Damian go through periods of time where he just…” Peter trails off, not sure how to word this question.

“Doesn’t want to eat? You’d be correct, Mr. Parker. I’m sorry to have given him to your care when he is in this state.” Peter shakes his head quickly.

“You didn’t know, it’s fine. It would be rude to blame you for something that’s not your fault!” Alfred finds himself chuckling, and Peter is glad to have made the man laugh. He doesn’t want him to feel bad about this, and what he said is true. There’s no way this is Alfred’s fault.

“Here, why don’t you help me whip something up for him? This will be a good test of your abilities in the kitchen as well, Mr. Parker.” Peter smiles, rolling up his sleeves and washing his hands before turning back to Alfred.

“Where do we start?”

~

 Peter wipes sweat off his brow with a smile. With Alfred’s help, he cooked a lot of food, but the butler kept telling him they needed bigger portion sizes. Peter brushed it off, just happy to have something to do while ignoring the chaos still occurring in the dining room. They carry out the plates with ease, and Peter even helps dish out enough for all five people. None of them question how much food is left over, no matter how much it bothers Peter, and Damian even manages a plate of eggs and a few pieces of sausage before it’s time for Peter to drive him to school.

When Alfred hands Peter the keys to the car he will be using to take the youngest Wayne, he finally asks, “Why did we make so much if they weren’t going to eat it?” Alfred merely gives Peter an amused look.

“You have advanced healing and super strength, correct?” Peter nods, wondering if he mentioned it before, or if Alfred is just that good.

“Then it is likely that you need to eat more than even a growing boy does at your age, Mr. Parker. I will have it warmed for you upon your return, and maybe a few pancakes?” Peter’s face goes slack. Alfred must have heard him talking about not eating before he came in. He can’t believe he’s been found out already. It’s not like he hasn’t been eating, but he certainly hasn’t been eating enough .

“You– I– Has anyone told you that you’re way too observant for your own good?” Peter asks. Alfred laughs lightly once more but responds that yes, he has been told something similar on occasion. 

Peter and Damian walk to the car, and both wave to Alfred as he drives off. There’s not much the two of them feel comfortable talking about alone together, so most of the ride is silent. Well, until Peter parks the car to walk Damian into the building.

“What are you doing, Parker?” Damian demands, not stopping their trek.

“I wanted to talk to you. I know you don’t like the idea of me being your babysitter, but Mr. Wayne is right. We don’t have to be best friends, but we do have to be able to tolerate each other. I’m not here to be your enemy, Damian.” The boy scoffs, looking at Peter with an annoyed expression. His next words don’t sound too annoyed, though.

“You interpret my silence as a representation of how I feel about you, Parker. Do not make that mistake. You are a verbose person, I am not.” Peter opens the door for Damian, who swiftly walks past him and directly to his class without so much as a goodbye. Great. Well, at least he knows Damian doesn’t hate him… He thinks so, anyway.

Peter drives back to the manor, listening to the news on the radio. You’d think it would be stressful for him, but the incessant chatter actually brings him comfort. Having background noise like that helps him focus on other tasks. Like, say, the road.

~

“Welcome back, Mr. Parker. I trust you and Master Damian had no issues on the way?” Alfred asks as Peter walks in. He smiles at Alfred, letting the man know everything he needs to.

“Yeah, we were fine, but I may need some legal documents, like a valid ID. No one stopped me or gave me trouble, but to keep dropping Damian off and picking him up, I’ll probably need one. I wasn’t stopped, but that’s probably because I was dropping him off,” Peter says, rubbing the back of his neck.

“I’ve already told Master Bruce. We are waiting for confirmation that it is possible. It shouldn’t be too hard, considering Mr. Kent has legal documents, but Master Bruce refuses Master Jason’s help on the matter.” Peter nods in understanding. As illegal as their nightly activities are, it’s still important to do as much as you can legally, a mindset that Peter is highly familiar with.

“Now, enough of that, let us get some food in you, hm?” Alfred leads Peter back into the dining room, where Dick, Jason, and Bruce sit. The others are either in school or at work, it seems.

“How was the Demon Brat this morning?” Jason asks, mouth half-full of eggs. Alfred and Peter watch as all three men consume the food they prepared earlier this morning. Peter laughs, seeing the nearly empty plate of leftovers in the center of the table. Alfred sighs, turning to Peter with an apologetic look.

“It’s fine, Mr. Alfred. I can make myself something else. Maybe some toast? I don’t want to eat your entire supply…” All three men at the table freeze, looking between themselves and the food they consumed.

“There was so much left over, we didn’t know. Peter–” The spider-themed vigilante waves off Bruce’s words with an awkward smile. It’s not hard to make more food, so it doesn’t bother him too much. Peter makes his way toward the kitchen, hearing Alfred scolding the men through the door. Curse his super-hearing. Peter sighs, reaching for a loaf of bread and putting two slices in the toaster on a nearby counter.

“... to eat at least as much as the Kents do. What was going through your minds when you lot grabbed such a large plate of food from the fridge like that?” Alfred’s voice carries, despite not having raised his volume in the slightest. The bread pops up, and Peter goes to the fridge for some butter. The door to the kitchen opens once more, and Peter doesn’t even turn around to see who it is. Alfred is still scolding someone so it has to be one of them, right?

“We’re really sorry, Peter. We didn’t know, honest.” Peter hums, not answering Jason in favor of opening a nearby drawer and pulling out a butter knife to spread the greasy substance on the lightly browned toast. It’s perfect, and Peter wonders just what setting the thing must be on to cook it to such perfection. Jason sighs, sensing that Peter is ignoring him. That’s really not the case, Peter just doesn’t want to make the situation bigger than it already is in their eyes.

“Are you that upset?” Peter shakes his head, still not responding verbally.

“What’s wrong?” He shrugs, which is apparently not satisfactory enough as Jason sighs. Peter hears footsteps behind him and turns to see Jason pulling ingredients from the fridge and lighting the stove.

“What are you–”

“You were going to just eat the toast and call it a day, weren’t you?” Peter chooses not to respond but feels his face heat up even as he tries to feign nonchalance. He watches Jason crack some eggs, putting them in a small bowl and mixing them together. He then grabs some cheese, sprinkles it into the mixture, and grabs a pan. He then walks over to Peter, who has yet to spread the piece of butter on his knife onto his sad excuse for breakfast, and steals the butter right from the knife. He puts the pan on the stove, drops the butter into it, and listens as the butter starts to sizzle.

“Jason, I don’t need–”

“I’m not going to listen, you know? I’m very stubborn, and known to use violence to get the results I want. So, unless you want to be forcibly removed from the kitchen, go back to buttering your toast. You can eat that while I’m making you a real breakfast.” Peter scowls, narrowing his eyes at the man and earning a deadpan look in return. Eventually, he gives in, allowing Jason to cook him a disturbingly large amount of eggs as he quite literally nibbles on buttered toast.

“If you’re going to just stand there, at least grab me some sausage from the freezer. And some more cheese, while you’re at it. I underestimated the amount of eggs I used.”

Chapter Text

After the whole breakfast fiasco, Alfred is much more careful with the food he sets aside for Peter. He even decides to make an extra portion for Jason, who seems to be keeping the man company for his first meal more often than not these days. Alfred can’t complain, this is the most he’s seen of Jason Todd since he was brought back to life. If spending time with Peter makes him happy, who is he to stop it?

Besides, Peter comes to Jason more often than not for sparring practice after he’s done with Damian for the day, which is currently after he is dropped off at school since they haven’t received the go-ahead for Peter to get proper documentation yet. Jason lets him come, smiling from ear to ear whenever Peter asks to spar. It’s obvious to him that Peter hasn’t had any formal training, but he’s not bad, he’s just instinct-driven. He relies on his Spider-Sense, which isn’t bad (if you’ve got it, use it, after all), but there will be a point when that’s not enough anymore, and Peter needs to be prepared for that.

…now why Jason has decided that this is his problem and not Bruce or Dick’s, only God knows at this point.

“You have to duck , stop flailing around already!” Jason calls, causing Peter to groan. The man has been trying to dodge, but his Spider-Sense has been so loud today that it’s hard to focus on anything else. Not that he’s told anyone about this, mind you.

“I’m trying, Jason!” Peter suddenly succeeds in ducking, and on instinct launches and lands a punch on Jason’s face, right below his eye. Peter recoils before Jason does, hands over his mouth as a stream of apologies fly from his lips. Jason is laughing hysterically. Head still tipped back, the poor man can’t even catch his breath enough to keep up with the intensity of his fit. Peter curses, picking Jason up to bring him to where he thinks the Bats’ med bay is and calling for help, only relaxing even slightly when Alfred comes down the elevator and takes a still-cackling Jason from Peter’s arms, helping him to his feet. The man gives Peter an odd look, which he completely misinterprets.

“I am so sorry! Please check him for fractures, I don’t know how much I was able to pull back, my Spider-Sense has been going haywire, and I can’t focus when it’s like this, and I was already annoyed so I don’t know if that hit was hard enough to crack concrete or not and–” Alfred and Jason stare at Peter, the latter open-mouthed, finally having calmed down after a quick dose of pain medication.

“Excuse me, Mr. Parker, did you say hard enough to crack concrete ?” Alfred asks, cutting Peter’s anxious rambling off right at the bud. Peter takes a deep breath before nodding sheepishly. Alfred merely sighs, bringing Jason to where he can be X-rayed. Peter is biting his fingers raw the entire way, beating himself up mentally.

“Master Bruce, we may need a benchmark on Mr. Parker’s abilities sooner than we thought.” Peter cringes, turning around to see Bruce standing in the doorway with a vaguely impressed expression on his face. If the entire family weren’t filled with vigilantes, this would be more concerning. As is, it’s already high on the list Peter currently has running.

“I didn’t mean to hurt your son, Mr. Wayne, I promise. I wasn’t focused and it’s been a long time since I’ve had the opportunity to spar with someone who isn’t what you all call a metahuman. I really didn’t mean to aim for his face, and I definitely understand if you want to send me away from your family after this–”

“Peter, no one is sending you away.” Jason’s voice is soft, likely due to the pain meds, and Peter whines high in his throat, darting over to inspect the man himself. Jason tries to bat his hands away, but Peter’s glare is enough for him to drop his hands, apparently.

“I’m not some fresh face to this kind of treatment, Spidey.” The nickname slips easily, and Peter pretends not to notice, face flushed as he swats at Jason’s hands.

“Don’t even start with me, Todd. I know for a fact that I can bust down solid concrete walls in a few swings, so you are going to sit here and let me check you for a damn concussion and a fractured skull.” A cough reminds the two that they are not alone, and Peter jumps away from Jason like he’s been burned.

“I’m sorry, you should check him. He’s your son , and I’m the one who hurt him, and–”

“ Peter .” Bruce’s voice comes out strained, but it’s more exasperation than anger. Peter’s shoulders tense, arms going lax and hanging by his side, his nails bite into the palm of his hands and he hangs his head as he waits for the Wayne patriarch to deliver his verdict.

“Peter, it was an accident. Alfred can handle Jason, I’m more worried about what you said caused that reaction.” Peter tries to think back to his ramble, but the lack of oxygen he supplied his brain at that moment leaves him coming up blank.

“That Spider-Sense of yours… You said it’s been going off today?” Peter’s eyes widen, and his eyes meet Bruce’s. He knows he’s white as a sheet at this point, but he can’t seem to shake the feeling that something bad is going to happen, and if this isn’t it, then what could it be?

“Yes sir. Normally it’s only when immediate danger is around… Have any villains gotten out of jail recently that I should be concerned about? The Riddler? Firefly? Clayface? Bane? Black Mask?” The ease in which Peter rattles off these names is a bit concerning, but not as surprising as it should be given his circumstances.

“None that you should be concerned about, no.” Bruce’s reply is vague, and Peter would refute that if he hadn’t just punched the billionaire’s son in the face.

“Fine, don’t tell me. I just… something’s not right. Something bad is going to happen, I’m sure of it. I don’t recommend anyone going out tonight unless something actually happens. I know you haven’t known me for very long, but I need you to trust me. Don’t go out there tonight.” Peter knows he sounds desperate, but he can’t help it. His head hurts with the intensity of his Spider-Sense, and he can’t just let them go out and get hurt.

“Mr. Parker, you’d have a better chance at getting this lot to talk about their feelings.” Alfred supplies, putting a hand on his shoulder and making him jump. Peter looks back to Jason, who is staring at him with a contemplative look on his face. Peter wants to apologize again, even opens his mouth to do so when Jason holds up a hand.

“I’m fine, Peter. I’ve dealt with worse before.” Peter gives a disapproving look.

“Jason, you’ve died . There’s not much worse than that.”

~

Jason is benched due to his cracked skull, and Peter is benched due to his inability to cope with the current magnitude of his Spider-Sense, and the fact that they need to call Clark Kent himself in to help strength test the poor guy. That leaves the two of them, Alfred, and at least one other kid in the house at all times to watch them. It’s Damian's turn until he finishes his schoolwork, which doesn’t take long at all, and Alfred makes him stay for a decent dinner before calling for another child to come babysit the two grown men in his care.

“I can’t believe they did this,” Peter grumbles, drowning in a too-large sweater that has Dick’s name sewn into the tag. It’s still in good shape, and the soft texture is an absolute dream for his senses. Jason shakes his head.

“They’ve done worse to keep just me out of commission. They just don’t want you out there when your Spider-Sense is acting up because you don’t know these streets like we do. We’re also here to watch each other.” Peter thinks about it for a moment, it makes a lot of sense. He’ll let Jason out of this mansion over his dead body, and Jason would rather die again than subject an unsuspecting person to Gotham’s darkened streets. They really set up the perfect trap for them, and the others aren’t even needed.

“That’s what I get for being an open book. Maybe I should try the mysterious approach? You seem to do it well.” Jason snorts lightly at that comment, giving Peter a strange look that he can’t decipher.

“You two are boring ,” Damian complains as he sits in the dining room in full gear, tapping his foot impatiently as he waits for Steph to return from patrol. She and Bruce should be approaching shortly.

“God, that almost sounded like he’s a real kid, didn’t it?” Peter asks, catching the knife thrown his way as he looks for Jason’s reaction.

“He could be a real kid a little more, it would help with his tendency to stab first and ask questions later.” Peter chuckles at that.

“Oh, like your shoot first ask questions later motto is any better?” The two bicker lightly, not even noticing when Steph and Damian switch. It’s a cold night, so Alfred brings in hot chocolate for all three of them, a gesture in which Peter is incredibly thankful for. He can’t regulate his own body temperature, and it’s not due to the lack of meat on his bones thank you very much.

Chapter Text

“I’m gonna go–”

“No you’re not, sit down.” Steph isn’t taking any chances with these two. She may not have known Peter for long, but she can already tell he’s got about as much self-preservation as the Wayne men do. He is not going anywhere on her watch.

“You’re such an ass, Steph.”

“Where do you think I got it from, Jason?” Currently, she has them both confined to the living room. Peter, who is still noticeably shivering, has nearly all the blankets from this room piled on top of him. He almost looks like he’s in a cocoon. It’s actually concerning how cold he is.

“Alfred, can we get some more fire in here? I think Peter might freeze.” The butler brings some more wood in, and Peter inches closer to the fire, careful not to jostle his fluffy cocoon. It would be endearing if it didn’t look like he was going to die if even a single blanket fell.

“I thought you said you were from Queens? How did you survive winters there?” Peter doesn’t bother trying to face her, keeping his eyes trained on the dancing flames in the fireplace.

“If I wasn’t patrolling, I was sitting next to a space heater.”

~

“And you’re sure nothing’s gone wrong yet?” As the night drags on, Peter’s worry only grows. Something is coming. It is . There’s no other explanation for his constant state of awakeness when he would much rather be asleep in his newfound comfy bed.

“Nothing that we can see,” Tim supplies, sitting on the couch opposite of Jason as he looks through the cameras on his laptop, occasionally speaking through his comms to Barbara. Alfred comes with another round of hot chocolate, which Peter nearly chugs despite the steam visible above it.

“Aw, come on, Alfred. No coffee?” This question earns Tim a light smack on the head with a rolled-up newspaper, Alfred’s current weapon of choice.

“No, Master Timothy, there will be no coffee at this hour. The protocol, if you are to fall asleep, is to leave you until morning and request another family member to watch Master Jason and Mr. Parker.” Tim openly scowls at that, returning to his laptop only when it beeps at him.

~

Dick enters the living room to relieve Tim of his duty only to see that Peter has taken up residence on Jason’s person, to which Jason is stunned beyond belief. He tried to get Peter to move, but has apparently long since lost that battle, seeing as the man is currently curled up on top of him with every blanket on the main level on top of him. The clicking of the camera app alerts Jason to his presence, and Dick only laughs as Jason curses his bloodline, sending the picture to the family chat anyway.

Tim takes the liberty of explaining Jason’s struggle to detach Peter from his person. Apparently, Peter is more spider-like than any of them realized.

~

“It’s your turn, Babs.” Barbara barely has time to look up as Dick departs from the Bat Cave, his Nightbird pulling out as soon as he sees her actually logging off. She keeps her comm in, just in case. The lack of visuals does indeed help with the stress.

By the time she gets upstairs, Jason has accepted his fate as a bed for the spider-themed vigilante. He has a book in his hand and is reading it while his nose is buried in Peter’s hair. That’s all it takes for her to agree with Steph and Cass about Peter being good for Jason. While the man can’t weigh more than 170 pounds soaking wet, he must be a comforting weight for Jason, whose eyes are drooping.

“Comfy?” Babs asks. Jason glares at her, but he’s too tired for there to be any real heat behind it. Or is he not tired enough? It’s always hard to tell with Jason.

~

Cassandra doesn’t know what she expects when she walks back into the manor after patrol, but it isn’t Jason fast asleep with Peter on top of him. She snaps a quick picture, sending it to the family chat and watching the others coo over the sight. Even Damian seems pleased that Peter is finally asleep. Cass grabs a book of her own, sitting on the floor in front of the couch when the others come up from the basement, which means she can go change now too. She has a hard time imagining Peter would sneak out with Jason, or any of them for that matter, being injured if he perceived it as his fault (which this kind of was, but it was funny that it was Jason getting hit for once, honestly), but one can never know. Especially if Steph is correct in her assumption that Peter is just as reckless as the other men in this family. He might be, considering how he acts around Jason, but until someone gets hurt, it’s free entertainment.

~

(Bat)Family Chat: 4:26am

Cass: peterandjasonsleeping.png

Dick: NO FAIR THAT’S BETTER THAN MINE???

Tim: lmao

Duke: you got embarrassed jason???

Steph: i told you they’re adorable

BatDad: Jason is letting him do that?

Tim: you should have seen them b

Dick: I got the play-by-play from Tim, it was pretty funny.

Damian: Parker is asleep?

Damian: Good.

BatDad: Damian, I know that was not meant to be threatening, but it does sound that way.

Tim: peter’s not in danger from the demon brat

Dick: I have to agree with Tim on this one, it seems Damian was won over pretty easily.

Damian: I resent this statement.

Dick: Am I wrong? You wouldn’t kill for him?

Damian: I never said that.

Steph: awwwwwww is this baby’s first crush?

Tim: no, that was jon

Duke: i –

Dick: Did he just do that???

Steph: oh sweet jesus tim’s really gonna die tonight

Cass: I can’t say I’d stop Damian from going after him for that comment

Babs: Tim? I’d run

Alfred: If any of you wake Mr. Parker I will withhold cookie privileges until further notice.

Tim: don’t you threaten that when i’m asleep too?

Alfred: That is correct, Master Timothy.

Damian: Tim is safe until Parker awakens. After that, I promise nothing.

Alfred: That is all I ask, Master Damian.

BatDad: Peter said it was his Spider-Sense that made him so restless today. He’s convinced someone broke out of Blackgate.

Babs: I haven’t heard anything

Tim: me neither

BatDad: Good. Has anyone been quiet for too long?

Tim: jason would know more, but penguin has been quiet for a while now

Dick: He goes through long quiet moments regularly.

Tim: that’s why i’m not worried

BatDad: Anyone else?

Duke: not that i know of

BatDad: Good. We aren’t due for a breakout for a while yet, are we?

Babs: Nothing looks amiss yet, but I’ll run some more checks tomorrow

BatDad: Thank you, Barbara.

Alfred: Are you all sleeping in the living room, or are you all going to fawn over the men sleeping on the couch all night?

Steph: sleepover?

Duke: yes

Tim: cass, you in?

Cass: I suppose

Babs: I should get home, but I expect more pictures

Dick: I’m taking Babs home, then I’ll come back.

Damian: I want to be close to Parker and Todd.

Tim: subtle much?

Damian: Parker interests me.

Steph: awwww baby’s second crush!

Damian: You’re on thin ice, Brown.

Steph: noted

~

(Bat)Family Chat: 9:37am

Jason: whoever took that second picture, your mom’s a hoe

Dick: You can’t say that to Cass, Little Wing.

BatDad: It’s too early for this, is Peter awake?

Jason: would i be this quiet about this if peter were awake?

BatDad: No.

Jason: there’s your answer old man

Jason: i’m not losing cookie privileges over this

BatDad: Understood.

Jason: also, damian, you already have a meta this one’s mine

Jason: STEPH THAT WAS LOUD SHUT THE FUCK UP

Steph: I’M SORRY THAT WAS CUTE????

Jason: i’m blocking all of you and moving to ny

Damian: Fine by me.

Jason: i’m taking peter

Damian: I’ll hunt you for sport.

Duke: well that took a dark turn

Steph: you didn’t expect that??

Duke: oh, i did, but still

Steph: fair

Tim: go the fuck back to sleep before you wake peter up i’m not getting blamed for this

Jason: fine by me i have a purring weighted blanket on me

Steph: HE PURRS? CAN SPIDERS PURR?

Damian: Male wolf spiders can indeed pur, Brown. Peter has displayed various traits from various arachnid breeds.

Tim: you speak like a victorian sick child

Damian: As soon as Parker awakens, your soul will belong to Hell.

Dick: For the last time, I do not summon demons, Damian, nor can I send Tim to Hell.

Damian: You’re no fun, Grayson.

~

Peter wakes up feeling warm, which is much better than he had been feeling the night before. His Spider-Sense started the moment he came back to the world of the living, and it’s causing a throbbing headache that sits deep in his eyes. Everything hurts, but if no one is going to believe him that something is wrong, he’s going to have to go find it himself.

Chapter Text

“Where the fuck is Peter?” Jason asks as soon as he wakes up. He repeats the question, much louder this time, which startles enough of the family awake and alert that he can ask it a third time and hopefully receive an answer.

“What do you mean ‘where’s Peter’?” Steph asks, voice still groggy with sleep. She peers over to see Jason on the couch alone .

“WHERE’S PETER?!” She cries, throwing the blankets she and Cass had been sharing off of them both and running through the house to search for him. Everyone was told about The Incident as they arrived back to the manor, so they all know Peter’s been on edge for days now. Within minutes, the whole household is scouring the premises for one Peter Parker. It’s been a little over a week, how could they have lost him already?

“Fuck, someone call Babs and tell her to keep a lookout for him,” Jason demands, turning and storming back through the manor. Multiple voices inquire about where he’s going, and Jason shouts back but one thing;

“I’m going to catch a spider!”

~

Peter stands atop Wayne Enterprises, looking out over Gotham City in all its gruesome glory. He just has to pick a direction, and if his Spider-Sense doesn’t flare up more than it has been, then he’ll try again. Whatever it is, he needs to find it ASAP. He won’t be able to sleep until it’s taken care of. Unless he’s on top of Jason, apparently, but that was more instinctual than anything, his human side and his spider side duking it out. He can’t regulate his own body temperature and he needs to stay warm to stop his body from slowing down. It’s interesting what the mutation changed and what it didn’t.

He swings from building to building, spiraling outward from the building he started on and waiting for his Spider-Sense to become more suffocating. He anticipates it so much that he almost misses the slight uptake his sense provides. As soon as he does, though, he takes off, swinging as fast as he can through the neighborhood until he can almost recognize his surroundings. This is…

“Park Row…” Peter gapes, looking around the vacant-looking buildings with boarded up windows. The few places that still have open windows look like they’re shelters, and if the mass of people lined up for food wasn’t enough of an indicator, then the Wayne Foundation posters would have sealed the deal. Peter watches people filter in and out, smiling sadly when he sees children jumping around with smiles on their faces at the prospect of food.

“This is why I do what I do,” Peter mutters to himself, a sad smile beneath his mask. He suddenly hears a flurry of gunshots and takes off, swinging himself up so he can run on top of the buildings as he gets closer. Upon first inspection, the incident appears to be a standard robbery. That doesn’t seem right, though. Maybe it’s different in Queens, but a standard robbery has a few knives, maybe a gun if they’re unlucky. Of course, he assumed robberies in Gotham would include at least one gun, and that many shots from a single handgun simply isn’t possible. It just isn’t.

“What the hell are all of these masks about?” Peter asks, dropping himself around the corner nearby. That’s when it hits him, where he’s seen these guys before. They’re all over Gotham and probably work for Jason’s number two on his kill list. Well, maybe not number two on a good day.

~

Red Hood spies Spider-Man just before he goes and does something stupid. Spider-Man shoots webs toward the building Black Mask’s goons are piling into, and Red Hood grabs his arm, pulling him back before he can jump off the roof. Spider-Man turns around, ready to punch whoever grabbed him, but stops when he sees who it is.

“Shouldn’t you be benched?” Spider-Man asks.

“Not when you’re doing something dumb like this, Spider-Man,” Red Hood responds.

“Besides, didn’t you already tell B that I don’t listen to him anymore?” Spider-Man rolls his eyes, not that Red Hood can see that.

“And yet you did for little ol’ me,” The spider-themed vigilante responds, a cheeky smile on his face. Another gunshot fires, followed by sick laughter, and Spider-Man is quick to turn back to the crime scene. Not as quick as Red Hood is to pull him back though. They’re chest to chest, Spider-Man looking slightly up at Red Hood, who can’t be that much taller than him, now that he thinks about it. Red Hood keeps an arm around the small of Spider-Man’s back, effectively trapping him so long as he doesn’t use his strength against the crime lord again.

“If you wanna go down there, Spidey, you’re gonna have to use that strength to get out of this.” Spider-Man scowls and he swears that Red Hood knows it based on the deep chuckle that follows. He also knows that since The Indecent, Peter has been incredibly careful about his super strength around all of the Bats.

“What, so I get the nickname without you being drugged now?” Peter fires back, breathing deeply to keep himself calm. It’s Red Hood’s turn to scowl now, and he does. Deeply.

“You’ve got some nerve, scaring us like that. Good job finding this bunch, though.” Spider-Man huffs, deciding that if he was going to be trapped here, so is Red Hood. Spider-Man wraps his arms around Red Hood’s neck, almost like they’re dancing. Their faces are close, but the masks create a certain amount of distance, if only metaphorical.

“I could have taken them, Hood.”

“B has a rule, never fight alone. You run with him, you play by his rules. I’m just an enforcer.” Spider-Man can feel the shit-eating grin on the man’s face. He retaliates by getting close as he whispers his next line. Their lips practically touching through their masks, leaving Red Hood tense as a steel rod.

“I’m not here to join, I’m here to help, there’s a difference.” With that, Spider-Man pushes off of him, no super strength needed as the man stands in shock, and swings down to meet the False Facers in the act.

“Oh, he’s good ,” Red Hood sighs after he regains his composure.

~

Peter makes it back to Wayne Manor to find the entire clan waiting for him at the dining room table. He looks to Jason for help, and he offers none, merely pulling out a chair for him to sit at as each of them gives their best disappointed glare. Peter thinks Damian’s might be worse than Bruce’s, but none shall ever compare to Alfred’s.

“What were you thinking?” Dick, probably the most composed out of the lot of them, asks.

“I was thinking that my Spider-Sense was driving me up a wall and nothing was helping. It was worse today, which meant they were closer.” Peter’s comment doesn’t help his case one bit, but in fact makes it worse.

“Did taking out the False Facers help?” Peter shakes his head, avoiding everyone’s concerned looks.

“Alfred told you we needed to call Clark sooner rather than later, when’s he supposed to get here again?” Tim asks, looking at Bruce. The man checks his watch right as the doorbell rings. He stands up, giving Peter one last look before walking to meet their guests at the door.

“You’re benched until we figure out what’s making your Spider-Sense go off.” Peter begins to protest, but Bruce isn’t having any of it, and neither are his children.

“Jason?” Peter asks, his saving grace.

“Nope, that was class A idiotic behavior. I have my own goons that I take to meet Black Mask.” Peter scoffs at his response.

“I made it out alive, didn’t I? I almost had them wrapped up before you even got to me!” Jason raises an eyebrow.

“Because I took out the snipers before I spoke to you.” Peter laughs incredulously at that notion. While highly probable, Peter doubts he needed it, dealing with similar situations by himself back in his universe all the time.

“I’m a tough spider, I can take a few bullets.” The way he says that like it’s nothing definitely does not help his situation any if the sudden wall of noise he’s met with is any indication.

~

When Clark Kent walks into the Wayne family’s dining room mid-intervention, he just knows something’s wrong. It’s not even for Jason this time! Jon, who begged to come along to hang out with Damian, bodily tackles his friend with a bright smile on his face. This, however, does not stop Bruce’s kids from ripping a person Clark doesn’t recognize a new one. Some of them are still dressed in their suits, meaning the kid knows, but why? The only explanation Clark can think of is…

“Bruce, is that a new kid?” The question is innocent enough, but it has Bruce pinching the bridge of his nose anyway.

“He’s from another universe, a metahuman who we think has strength comparable to yours.” That’s Bruce’s only explanation, not confirming or denying anything, before he tears Jason and the new kid apart. It’s interesting to see Jason on the other side of these

“Well, Kid, my name is–” Clark knew he should have stayed home today when the kid cuts him off, the same mischievous glint in his eye as Jason possessed the first time they met.

“Clark Kent, or Superman. There’s also Conner Kent, your clone, Jonathan Kent, your son and the current Superboy, and your wife, Lois Lane-Kent, right? Jon is Damian’s best friend, I saw them just now, but not his only friend anymore. Conner is Tim’s best friend, has been for ages, and you’ve been sleeping with Bruce here for years. Yes, I am aware that your wife knows. Am I forgetting something?” The dining room is silent, and Bruce looks disappointed but not surprised by the information this kid just spewed. The amount of correct information this kid just spewed.

“What in the world…?”

“I’m well aware, Kent,” Bruce sighs before adding on, “Apparently we’re all comic book characters where he comes from.” It’s absurd. This entire situation is absurd. Why is this a thing that he has to deal with today? Clark sighs deeply before responding, not even touching what the kid just said.

“How much can you lift?”

Chapter Text

It turns out Peter can lift a lot more than anyone was anticipating. He’s not as strong as Kon, Clark thinks, but he’s not far off. Not many metahumans can say they’re as strong as a Kryptonian, but Peter is the closest Clark has ever seen. This verbal exam gives him a good starting point, at least.

“Alright… Peter, was it? One last test. Can you hold up a building?” Peter thinks for a moment before responding. He’s pretty sure he’s done that before.

“I mean, I’ve had one dropped on me, but I didn’t try to hold it up, so maybe? Is that more or less force than I’d need to stop a passenger train car?” Nevermind, this kid might be stronger than Kon. Peter tries to do the math in his head, Clark sees it, and he belatedly thinks that maybe a genius shouldn’t have powers as well. He’s thought that about Barry too. Jason, who just entered around that point of the conversation, stops in his tracks.

“Spidey, what the fuck?” Peter scrambles for an answer, head snapping toward the second Wayne child.

“I mean, listen, it wasn’t easy to stop the train car, but I did it!” Clark is going to scream . Out of all the answers this kid could give, is that really going to be the most definitive one?

“Peter, the amount of force you need to put a dent in a moving train car is astounding. Jason, let me see your face again?” Clark makes a point to appear like he’s assessing the damage done to Jason’s face, maneuvering his head to see how ugly the bruise looks and poking it just hard enough for Jason to glare at him. Peter hardly looks at them while this happens, eyes only darting over when the prodding causes Jason to take a sharp breath.

“That’s what I thought. You, my friend, have incredible control.” Peter looks away, scowling and obviously doubting his capabilities. It never feels good to hurt someone with your abilities, but it’s important to not get so caught up in it that you can’t use your abilities at all.

“Not enough to not hurt people I care about, apparently.” Clark sighs, it’s like talking to his son all over again. Jason stiffens up, looking at the new guy with a strange expression.

“You could have decapitated him and shattered his skull with that punch, how about we start there?” The whine his statement wrenches from Peter’s throat doesn’t ease Clark’s unspoken thoughts. They’re attached to each other already.

~

In the end, Peter and Clark agree that in order to get a more accurate reading on his strength, they need to fly Peter out to Kansas for a more exact measurement of just how much he can lift. Not immediately, but in two weeks when Clark can finally get some time to go visit his parents. Peter is immensely thankful for it, and tells the superhero as much before he leaves, his son and Damian in tow. Apparently, he’s staying with the Kents for the weekend to give Peter a break.

“So, how did you know about Clark and B?” Jason asks, an amused grin on his face. Peter rolls his eyes, motioning to how Bruce is walking back into the manor with a dopey smile on his face.

“Oh, that? That was pure bullshit. The comics never explicitly say that. While we’re at it, though, let’s put Diana and Selena on the list of people I know he’s sleeping with too, why don’t we? They have to tire him out enough to sleep somehow.” Jason’s sharp bark of laughter brings out Peter’s own laughter, and the two can’t seem to stop. When Duke and Cass find them clutching their stomachs and breathless, they don’t even ask what’s wrong. They just keep walking through the entryway, followed shortly by Barbara who rolls her eyes. Tim and Dick stop, but only the latter stays.

“Can you take anything seriously, Little Wing?” Jason and Peter exchange a look before beginning to laugh again. Seeing the two are once again in hysterics, Dick decides to leave them alone. Bruce and Alfred come by to check on the noise, but neither of them pay the older men any mind as they can’t even manage words at this point.

~

“I’ve never seen him so…” Duke tries to find the right words, but they allude him. Steph’s deadpan addition of the word “happy” leads them all to murmur in agreement. Cass starts signing something, and Tim nods when she’s done.

“Of course we’re happy Jason is happy!” The laughter they all hear from the entrance tells them that. The problem is that none of them can stop thinking about how Peter is from another world. What happens if he has to go back? How will Jason react?

“God, I am so glad Damian isn’t here to have this conversation, I think we’d have a custody battle over another meta,” Dick chuckles, remembering how he and Jason often got into fights about their shared friends. The others nod, thinking about how Damian has been almost agreeable with Peter, despite launching sharp objects at him at every opportunity.

“What’s up? This feels like some kind of serious meeting…” Peter asks, Jason coming in just behind him. They quickly change their topic of conversation, but they know Peter picks up on their cagey behavior based on the face he makes. He thankfully lets it go, leaning on Jason as his stomach growls. Peter immediately straightens up, weight shifting nervously as Alfred gives him a disappointed look.

“What did we talk about, Mr. Parker?” The butler asks.

“I told you that I don’t want to be a burden, Mr. Alfred,” Peter grumbles. Jason rolls his eyes, moving toward the kitchen wordlessly. Peter extends his arm, causing webs to come from his shooters and attach themselves to Jason’s shoulder, turning him back around with a quick pull. Jason looks at the webs, intrigued, before looking back to Peter.

“If you won’t let Alfred cook, I’ll do it. You need to eat, and I doubt you made it to the kitchen before rushing off to Crime Alley this morning.”

~

Peter thanks both Jason and Alfred profusely for the food, his stomach making its thanks known as well as he takes the first bite. The sheer amount of food in front of him would be intimidating to most people, but he isn’t going to complain after they put the effort into making it for him.

“You’re going to spoil me… I’ve been surviving on much less than this,” Peter remarks, shovelling another bite into his mouth. Jason snorts, rolling his eyes as he too takes a bite of food. Everyone has decided to join them for lunch, each talking about something different. Tim and Bruce talk about WE business, Damian and Alfred are in a battle of wills about the youngest Wayne eating, and Dick, Cass, Steph, Babs, and Duke are talking about patrol the night before. Peter finishes his observation, feeling eyes on him and turns back to Jason.

“Wait, you’re not joking?” Peter shakes his head and Jason groans, putting his face in his hands before looking at the man incredulously. 

“You mean I lost to a guy who’s malnourished? You’ve got to be shitting me right now.” Peter grins, evading responding by taking yet another bite and reaching for his glass of apple juice.

“Usually I’m no snitch, but this isn’t something to mess with if you’re going out at night like the rest of us. Why weren’t you eating properly?” Jason’s concern is heard throughout the room, many of the other conversations suddenly quieting down.

“I’m f–”

“Ignore those nosy fucks and don’t fucking lie to me, Spidey.” Peter crosses his arms, glaring at the man before him in annoyance.

“All of my money was going toward rent, my suit, and paying for college. Do you know how much debt I’m going to be in once I graduate? If I graduate?” The way he says that, like it’s never going to happen, sits the wrong way with a many of them.

“So, as much as I appreciate the food, and you guys letting me stay here, it’s going to take some getting used to. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I am going to go sleep away this massive headache my Spider-Sense is giving me.” Peter pushes himself away from the table, leaving half of his food uneaten. Jason reaches out, nearly grabbing Peter’s arm. He’s stopped when Peter grabs his wrist, holding it firmly in place.

“I know you’re probably worried about me, but don’t be. I’ve been doing this alone for years now, so I’ll just have to get used to this again.”

~

Peter spends the rest of the night in his room, glaring at the wall. It doesn’t feel right, staying here, but they’re definitely watching him after the stunt he pulled this morning. He’s already caused more problems than he cares to admit, and Peter can’t let the old Parker Luck mess up another family, even if they’re all vigilantes. With a sigh, Peter decides to take his chances. His ears are ringing as he stands, pulling his Spider Suit on. He opens the window next to the bed and climbs out of it, sticking to the wall as he makes his way to the grass below and pulls on his mask.

“And where do you think you’re going?” Peter freezes, hands in the air as he winces, turning around to see Jason standing there in civilian clothes, arms crossed over his broad chest.

“I’m not going after any more Rogues, if you’re wondering. I just needed to–”

“To get out? I know. C’mon, let’s go. Climb back in there and put some normal shit on and I’ll take you back to Crime Alley with me. I’m getting antsy after staying with B for this long too. I’ll tell them you’ll be back tomorrow night if you’re worried about getting back to the Demon Brat.” Peter nods, looking anywhere but at Jason as he climbs back through the window. Once changed, he simply jumps down, using webs to pull the window closed behind him.

“You took longer than I was expecting, so I’m assuming you left a note?” Peter nods, a little peeved that he’s being read so easily. Jason pushes himself off the outer wall of the Manor, waving Peter on as he turns toward where Peter can assume the vehicles are.

“Then let’s go.”

Chapter Text

“Nope, I actually like my odds swinging through Gotham better than I like my odds on a motorcycle. I choose life for the time being,” Peter laughs nervously, reaching an arm up to shoot some webs toward the nearest lamppost when Jason grabs him around the waist and puts him on his bike with little to no effort.

“Nope. Your options are bike or Manor, and those windows lock automatically,” Jason says, climbing on the bike in front of Peter and handing him his helmet. It briefly crosses his mind that Jason may be lying, but he can’t bring himself to call him on it. Peter looks at the offending object, not at all moving to take it. Jason wiggles it a bit, nodding at it in hopes that Peter will get the hint. When he doesn’t, Jason sighs, putting it on his head himself as Peter tries in vain to fight it.

“What the fuck, man?!” Peter’s muffled yell must be very amusing, as Jason chuckles, starting the motorcycle in lieu of any response.

“Hold on, Spidey. These streets aren’t kind to newcomers.” Peter rolls his eyes, reluctantly holding on as Jason speeds out of the Manor and onto the streets of Gotham with a near-manic grin. Peter manages a laugh too, albeit a nervous one as he rests his hands on Jason’s hip bones after struggling to find a place to rest them. He feels Jason chuckle against his front and leans forward as Jason makes a particularly sharp turn, shoulders tense and grip a little too tight against the man in front of him.

“What, never ridden a bike before?”

“This isn’t a bike!” Jason laughs again, bringing a hand to pat one of Peters, bringing his attention to his grip.

“Shit,” Peter curses, immediately loosening his grip and pulling back. Jason turns to look at Peter and the man points to the road ahead.

“Pay attention!” Jason shakes his head, turning suddenly back to the road and going impossibly faster . Aren’t there laws against this? Why aren’t they there yet if Jason’s been going this fast? When Peter voices his concerns, he’s met with a laugh. He may not be able to see real well right now, but he can tell Jason is smiling. After all he’s been through, he deserves it. Peter wonders if people would feel that way about him too if they knew everything.

~

Jason laughs as Peter gets off the motorcycle on wobbly legs. Jason walks to hide it in an alley, covering it up and pulling down a fire escape before waving Peter toward him. The two climb up to Jason’s apartment instead of using the front of the complex and Peter cringes at the sound of metal scraping together. They laugh as Jason misses a rung on the ladder and as Peter hits his head leaning over to check on him. When they finally reach the right floor, Peter climbs through the window at Jason’s invitation.

“I take it Mr. Wayne doesn’t know about this?” Peter asks, pointing at a tire mounted on the wall. Jason sputters, cursing Peter’s perceptiveness.

“Why’d you keep it?” Jason sighs, opening a cabinet and grabbing a bottle. He unscrews the cap and tosses it somewhere before taking a swig of it and moving to the couch.

“How do you know what it is?” Jason asks, passing the bottle to Peter when he comes over.

“Comics, remember?” Jason laughs humorlessly. Peter takes a drink too, if only out of solidarity. He won’t get even a buzz from something like this unless it’s put directly into his bloodstream.

“It’s a reminder,” He says. Peter doesn’t ask, so Jason doesn’t elaborate.

“They care about you more than you know, but I’m not here to be a therapist. I’m here to get a break from suffocating in Wayne Manor.” Jason scowls, reaching for the bottle. Peter takes another drink before handing it back. They trade like that for a while and Peter gets up, making for the kitchen. Jason wobbles over, calling after Peter and leaning against the doorway.

“You can barely stand, and I’m regretting not eating everything you and Alfred made earlier. Let me make it up to you,” Peter says, pushing Jason back into the living room and smiling as he fights it. It’s not much of a fight, but Peter knows Jason can absolutely take him out blackout drunk, so at least he knows Jason is okay with the prospect of Peter cooking.

“Jason, sit down and let me work. I’m going to make something with whatever you have in this barebones kitchen, and you’re going to sit there and wait for it.” Jason mock salutes Peter at his orders, which makes the sober man laugh.

Peter starts off in search of a large-ish pot. Everyone has pasta in their kitchen, right? It’s easy to make and doesn’t take that long to cook. When he finds it, he goes looking for noodles. One thing he wasn’t expecting, though, was the “barebones” kitchen he assumed Jason had to be fully stocked. Jason must enjoy cooking, then. Good to know.

“Have friends over often?” Peter calls, filling the pot with water.

“Just The Outlaws when they’re in town,” Jason responds.

“Does that include Kori and Roy?” The answering chuckle is enough of an explanation, but Jason elaborates anyway.

“Roy drops in whenever he can, usually with Lian. Fucker doesn’t knock either, just waltzes in. Kori drops by occasionally, but she and I like to mess with Dick when she does because it’s so rare these days. Artemis and Bizarro at least call before they drop by, most times.” Peter nods along.

“What about you? Any friends back home?” Peter scoffs, turning to look at Jason who has a shit-eating expression on his face.

“I had a few. MJ, Harry, and even Flash when I was at ESU. So much has happened that even I didn’t have time to worry about them. Now…” Jason’s grin drops immediately.

“I didn’t mean to make you worry more, fuck.” Peter assures Jason that it’s not his fault, so Jason tries to take things in a lighter note.

“A guy like you must have girls lining up for him, right? Or guys, I’m not one to judge.” Peter stiffens completely, dropping the box of pasta in his hand. Jason is up in seconds, summoning the coordination to help Peter clean up the mess as he apologizes again.

“That was a worse question? Maybe I’m too drunk for this,” Jason remarks. Peter offers a tense smile.

“You didn’t know, you’re fine. Gwen… I failed to save her. She was falling and I reached out and… My web caught her as she bounced back from the concrete.” Jason freezes, looking at Peter with a grim expression. Peter tries to brush it off, though.

“I did have a thing going on with Harry for a bit, though. Glad to know I’m not the only one who won’t judge. I kind of figured you weren’t straight either, but that seems to be a theme with the Robins. You can’t tell me that Tim and Steph didn’t look at both girls and guys together.” Jason gags, mimicking tossing up everything he’s eaten in the last twelve hours as Peter laughs.

“Duke and Cass I don’t know, but you, Tim, and Dick? I mean, how can I blame you when Bruce is the one you had to look up to in your formative years? Not that that has anything to do with it, but I bet none of you, except maybe Tim, panicked about being not straight. Bruce is a bisexual disaster if I have ever seen one. Don’t even get me started on his father, I bet Alfred has horror stories about him too.” Peter’s words only serve to make Jason laugh harder. A loud thud has Peter walking over to peek over the edge of the couch. What he finds makes him laugh as well. Jason is on the floor between the couch and the coffee table laughing hysterically. Peter sets a timer in the kitchen before helping Jason up. The two turn on a movie, something action-y and stupid that doesn’t require a ton of emotional labor. Neither of them are up for that tonight. When the food is done they stand around in the kitchen and eat it. Spaghetti is a pretty good meal to go with the amount of drinking they’ve been doing, even if Peter’s metabolism doesn’t let him feel it.

“You what ?!” Peter laughs, doubling over to keep himself standing. Jason is telling him about the time he and Cass taught Duke about the unofficial no doors rule.

“And he said that going through the door is the most unpredictable thing now! Can you believe him?” It takes a while for them to calm down, but eventually they do. Jason falls asleep quickly after that, and Peter looks for his bedroom before carrying him there.

“This is your room,” Peter thinks aloud after he tucks Jason into bed. He smiles at

“Yes, this is my room,” Jason says, very much awake now.

“Books,” Peter says, floundering.

“What, the Big Bad Crime Boss can’t like to read?” Jason laughs, patting beside him on the bed. Peter rolls his eyes, moving to get the man a glass of water.

“You’re drunk, Jason. As hot as you are, I am not climbing in that bed with you.”

“You think I’m hot?” Peter pauses.

“You better not remember this in the morning.”

~

Jason wakes up to multiple phone calls. He doesn’t even look at the number as he declines the next one, stretching before finally taking in his surroundings. He remembers getting drunk and talking to Peter, but that’s about it. They must have touched on some heavy shit for him to not have a clue about what they spoke about last night. There’s a faint humming coming from down the hall and a good smell wafting in from the kitchen. Deciding it’s time to get up, Jason gets dressed in a pair of sweats and a T-shirt. He’s only going to drop Peter off at the Manor, so he doesn’t have to dress up.

Jason grabs himself a plate of pancakes and sits on the island in the middle of the kitchen. The pancakes are pretty good, but nothing will beat Alfred’s cooking. He listens as the humming stops and the squeak of the faucet being turned off echoes down the empty hallway. Jason hears Peter curse as he steps out of the tub into the tiny bathroom and snickers, trying not to let his presence be known.

“How the hell do you fit in there? I’m a twig and I can still barely use that bathroom. Aren’t you rich?” Peter complains. Jason shrugs.

“If you wanted a big bathroom, you could have stayed at the Manor,” Jason replies.

“Oh trust me, I prefer this. It’s what I’m used to. The Manor makes me feel so…”

“Small in a way you haven’t felt since you had parents?”

“Yeah…” Jason would say more, but his phone rings for the umpteenth time. Peter spies the caller ID, wincing slightly at the name that appears. It’s Bruce himself.

“‘Sup, B?” Jason asks, mouth full of pancakes. Peter can feel the sigh through the phone.

“Are you alright? Is Peter alright? Alfred saw the note and Dick said your bike was gone,” Bruce says, sounding concerned.

“Oh yeah, Spidey here was feeling suffocated in the Manor and so was I, so we dipped. I’ll have him home tonight, scout’s honor.” Peter rolls his eyes despite his furrowed brows.

“Hold up a sec, B– Eat Spidey.” Jason is met with a scowl and a growl.

“I’ve faced much worse than a grumpy spider. You need food, so you’re going to eat.” Upon hearing the amused chuckling through the phone, Jason remembers he’s on a call.

“I know I can’t really talk here, but I think Spidey needs to be benched until he can stomach three full meals again,” Peter growls again and Jason flicks his forehead, earning a whine.

“He’s already been benched, you were there for that conversation. Are you alright? You only openly show you care when you’re frazzled or you’ve been drinking, Jason,” Bruce asks. The man in question scowls, although his father-figure can’t see it.

“I’m concerned about him, B. He definitely needs as much as the Kents do, but the man won’t eat. He’s like me when you first took me in, but I haven’t seen him hiding food yet.” Jason watches as Peter picks at his food for a moment before abandoning the plate and moving to the couch. It’s then that he spies a familiar sweater on Peter’s person.

“Is that mine ? Did Alfred give you that?” Jason doesn’t even say bye to Bruce before hanging up, instead grabbing Peter’s food and depositing it in his lap before examining the holes in the left sleeve. The holes that he left there, not Peter.

“I, uh… Yeah. Yeah, Alfred gave it to me. Do you want it back? I didn’t bring another shirt–”

“It’s fine. I’m just shocked he kept it, is all.” Peter sighs, levelling Jason with a look.

“I told you last night that they care more than you know, and that’s all the labor I’m willing to put into this right now. You’re grown men, act like it.” Jason rolls his eyes before vaulting over the back of the couch and picking up the fork on Peter’s place, holding it toward his mouth. Peter’s eyes widen before turning into a harsh glare.

“Eat and I won’t have to do this, Peter.” The man sighs in defeat.

“You already have me on watch for not eating, is this really necessary?” Jason nods, and Peter must see something in his eyes because he reluctantly takes the food, wrapping his lips around the fork and chewing on the bite of food.

“You’re lucky you’re cute.” He doesn’t bat an eye when Jason starts having a crisis.

Chapter Text

Peter is almost sad to go back to the Manor. His day with Jason just lazing around his apartment was amazing. They watched trashy rom-coms and when they were done with that, Peter got to watch Jason critique the different movie adaptations of Romeo and Juliet.

“I knew you were a literature nerd and a theater kid, but that level of analysis was quite frankly terrifying to see. I didn’t even know that many versions of Romeo and Juliet existed, let alone that they all differed that much from the original material!” Jason chuckles, leaning on the doorframe as the door swings open, Alfred smiling kindly at both men.

“Hello Master Jason. Master Damian will be thrilled that you have returned, Mr. Parker. Will you be needing dinner, or have you eaten already? The others are at dinner now,” Alfred explains, looking between Jason and Peter.

“We’ve already eaten, but Peter could use some more. I only managed to get him to eat as much as I did,” Jason says, ignoring Peter’s growl. Alfred also ignores it, choosing instead to step aside and wait for Peter to enter the Manor. A few steps in, Peter realizes that Jason isn’t following and turns around.

“What? I’ve spent the past two weeks here, which is the longest consecutive time I’ve been able to handle B in years ,” Jason sighs, looking away when Peter’s gaze turns pleading.

“I’ll come back next weekend, or you can tell Dick you need to stage a kidnapping. Either way, you can reach me one way or another. If I see you on the field before next week, I’ll kick your ass though,” He adds, watching as the light return to Peter’s eyes. The spider-themed vigilante smiles, nodding and watching Jason walk back out the front door without saying hello or goodbye to anyone in the Manor. He doesn’t realize he’s been frozen in the entrance until Alfred puts a hand on his shoulder.

“Come now, Mr. Parker. Master Damian has been rather distraught since you’ve been gone.” Peter nods, following Alfred to the dining room. As soon as he enters, Damian scowls darkly at him, using a nearby steak knife as a projectile. Isn’t he a vegetarian? Why does he even have a steak knife? Peter catches it with ease, looking at Damian with a remorsefully wry smile.

“You can’t just disappear like that, Peter. When Alfred found your note, Damian just about threw a fit. He’s attached to you now,” Dick explains, ruffling the boy’s hair and swiftly taking the second knife from him. Peter fights the urge to coo at Damian, who looks like an angry kitten.

“I’m sure he barely missed me, he was with Jon for the rest of Saturday, right? I just needed to get away for a bit, and Jason just happened to catch me trying to sneak out. I wouldn’t have left for long, I promise.” Peter’s words are directed at Damian, although they’re spoken like a general statement. Damian’s glare softens, but only just. He’s still angry, but there’s a sense of understanding there now.

“Yeah, B can be overbearing. Just tell him to get off your back every once in a while, or I can get Jason to come snatch you for a weekend trip,” Dick says. Bruce visibly deflates, shoulders slumping a bit as Duke pats his shoulder. Steph (barely) holds back a peal of laughter, looking to Tim and Cass for help. Neither of them are faring any better, it seems.

“I’m not used to people caring this much anymore. I usually work alone.”

“I know, but we don’t work like that. Ever since Jason… No one goes into major fights alone, and we have frequent check-ins.” Peter nods at Bruce’s words, understanding completely and yet still not grasping the concept quite yet.

“So… am I really going to be benched until I can eat more, or was Jason joking?” Peter looks between the others, all of whom seem to have a silent conversation.

“I believe that Master Jason may be correct in this manner. I will be watching you this week to see your progress, but you do need to eat more, Mr. Parker.” It’s now Peter’s turn to deflate, to the amusement of the Bats.

~

Peter is affronted with mind-numbing boredom. The only thing he’s been doing (other than being forced to eat much more than he is used to) for the past two days is getting Damian ready for school and occasionally sparring with one of the people who frequent Wayne Manor. He also causes some chaos, but he usually isn’t even trying to! It’s not Peter’s fault that everyone forgets he knows all about them.

“I’m trying not to go out at night, but you all make it incredibly difficult! I’m not used to doing nothing like this, it’s too domestic. I need some sort of outlet,” Peter whines, slumping into the couch after dropping Damian off at school. Alfred chuckles, bringing Peter a plate of food and leaving him with Bruce and Tim, the latter not attending work because of a recent injury. Bruce gives Peter a look, but that only spurs him on further.

“I haven’t been able to relax since I was sixteen, and you all are making me crazy by having me do nothing. Back home I had Spider-Man, a job, and college to worry about. I need to do something or I’m going to die .” Tim just about sputters when Peter takes that moment to drape himself across the couch (and Tim) dramatically. Bruce and Alfred are both laughing now while Tim glares at Peter.

“It’s no wonder you and Jason get along so well, you’re both so dramatic,” Tim grumbles. Peter shrugs, sitting up and taking a bite of the food Alfred handed him. He makes a happy noise as the food hits his tastebuds before doing what his friends back home called his “happy food dance.”

“Why don’t you go bother Jason then?” A new voice, Dick, asks as he vaults over the couch to sit next to Bruce. The older man doesn’t look phased by the sudden dip of the cushion, and even manages not to spill his coffee as he bounces.

“Well, I don’t think he’d appreciate me coming over without notice, and I don’t want to wander around Crime Alley looking for his safehouse…” Everyone but Peter sighs.

“If you’d just–”

“If you offer me anything else other than what you’ve all given me already, I will take my chances with Jason and Gotham’s streets.” Dick holds his hands up in surrender.

“Look, I’m good with computers and chemicals, right? I’m almost out of webs too. There has to be a lab in the basement somewhere, so let me make some more web fluid and maybe let me tinker with some old tech? I’ll be entertained for days!” Peter gets excited just thinking about it, which Dick and Bruce must find amusing if their smiles are anything to go off of.

“Finish that plate and I don’t see why not,” Alfred sighs. Peter cheers, shovelling the food into his system at an alarming rate. Tim opens his mouth to protest, but stops when Bruce shakes his head. Peter, who misses nothing ever, looks between them with a sudden bout of anxiety.

“If it’s that much of a problem, I won’t go near the lab, but I can’t exactly go swinging through Gotham without any webs. I can probably make them in my room if I have the right chemicals.”

“Alfred banned chemicals in the rooms after Damian and I had our last prank war.” Peter perks up, opening his mouth to ask, clearly interested when even Dick shudders at the thought.

“Alfred was mad .”

~

“So… Is this the old model of your phones? You really keep them down here?” Tim looks up from the computer he’s using, which has the device in question hooked up to it, and nods.

“I’m working on wiping it now. Do you want to use it? We usually refurbish them and send them back, but I can hack it again for you if you want me to,” Tim offers, leaning back. Peter shakes his head.

“I can do that part myself. I just wanted to know if you have any more of them. I could use some of the parts for the one I want to build.” Tim gives him an odd look before opening a drawer full of older models and motioning to it before turning back to his computer. Peter grabs three of them before scavenging for tools to begin working. By the time he gets a halfway decent device, Tim left and came back with food.

“What’s that?” Tim asks, putting Peter’s plate next to his phone.

“Shit, I didn’t even see you leave!” Peter calls, jumping nearly out of his skin. It’s not often he’s snuck up on, but it’s not often he’s in an unfamiliar world getting hyper focused on a project, either. Tim grins so cheekily that Peter can’t even find it in himself to be angry.

“I’m building my own phone, didn’t I tell you that? I don’t usually trust the mass produced models, I’m too paranoid for that, so I get old ones and break them. New glass for the screen isn’t hard to come by, and welding metal or melting plastic together is easy enough to make the body…” Peter rambles to Tim about the desired functions. He hasn’t had downtime to play games on a phone in years, so he uses that space to help him keep tabs on villains and to have a more effective way to do his college assignments while on the job. He’s lost too many laptops on patrol.

“…and when that’s fixed, I can–”

“Do you know how long you’ve been down here?” Tim finally asks, setting the food down beside Peter with an exasperated expression. The spider-themed vigilante has the decency to look semi-ashamed about not knowing the answer, but ultimately just grins sheepishly, earning another sigh.

“Peter, it’s almost tomorrow. Eat this and go to bed before I have Alfred come down and make you. You’re already lucky you got me. His disappointed look is enough to chastise even Bruce .” Peter reluctantly picks at his plate as he inches toward the elevator.

~

Peter should have known that Parker Luck would screw up the plan. He’s been doing better, able to eat one and a half meals that are appropriately sized for a metahuman in one day without losing the contents of his stomach. It’s only been four days, even. He uses Dick’s phone to call Jason and tell him the news, restless and fidgeting the entire time. Dick swears that he needs to get Peter his own phone, but Peter refuses his offer along with others from the family to get him his own device. His is almost done, it’s just missing a few things!

That’s what brings him to the current situation. It’s all been too good to be true.

“Parker, that is Bane, you can’t–”

“Unless you have your suit on you, I don’t want to hear it, Damian!” Peter shouts as he weaves through traffic, trying and failing to find a street that isn’t blocked by other vehicles. It was bad enough leaving the school, but he needs to get Damian to safety, his status as Robin be damned.

“So the Bats have arrived, but what about the Spider?” Damian and Peter both stiffen at those words. Bane knows about Spider-Man. How does he know?

“Parker, stop the vehicle!” Damian demands. Peter obliges, jumping out as soon as the engine stops and pulling Damian from the backseat. He spies Spoiler and Signal as they rush toward Bane and decides to literally sweep Damian off his feet and carry him down the street. It’s not a moment later that Signal is thrown through the roof of the car. Peter only momentarily looks at the boy before him before taking off at full speed. He runs faster than any human should be able to, but given his super strength, it shouldn’t be that surprising. Peter manages to duck into an alleyway, putting Damian down immediately and beginning to take the top layer of his clothes off.

“Is this a good idea? Do you always wear that under your clothes, Parker?” Damian asks, looking mildly impressed and definitely concerned about whatever is going through Peter’s mind right now.

“Only when I’m actively working on a case or my Spider Sense is going off,” Peter replies, tucking his clothes into the bag he brought with him before shoving it into Damian’s arms. The boy glares up at Peter, who rolls his eyes through the mask and fights off a smile.

“Now, unless you fancy falling through Gotham’s skyline without a grappling hook to catch yourself, I suggest holding on tight. Bane won’t back off until he’s seen me, I’m sure.” As soon as Damian is on his back, Peter is shooting webs out and launching himself and the boy on his back across Gotham. He needs to avoid confrontation for as long as he can.

~

Jason wasn’t going to go out, he really wasn’t. He did not need to be there for Bane of all people, not when Steph, Cass, and Duke were on it with Bruce and Tim on the way. He realizes that it would go faster with more hands on-deck, but Jason was looking forward to a day off. He hasn’t been taking it easy and his face is throbbing again.

Damian should have been coming out of school, and while Jason knows about the stashed suits in the car Peter’s been driving, Peter himself likely does not. The idiot is probably worrying himself to death about Damian’s safety, not realizing there’s a makeshift armory in the car he drives. So no, he wasn’t going to go out. That is until he gets a call from Babs saying that Spider-Man is swinging toward Bane with Damian clinging to his back.

“I told him a week at least !” Jason complains, pulling his mask on and grabbing a gun.