Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

The lakeside cabin was quiet. That was one of the first things Peter noticed when Happy had dropped him off there about a month and a half after the battle at the compound. May was busy working on the paperwork to resurrect both of them, figuring out a place for them to live, as well as throwing herself into work with F.E.A.S.T. Tony and Pepper had graciously offered to let Peter stay at the cabin while things were sorted in the city. After living in the city and then going from battle to battle, Peter wasn't used to how quiet it was.

The next thing he noticed as he watched Happy drive away was the young girl eagerly waiting on the front porch, bouncing up and down on her toes. A grin broke out on her face as she saw Peter approaching.

“Petey!” She squealed, flying off the porch and launching herself at him. Peter was suddenly grateful for his spider-reflexes as he dropped his bag and caught her. She wrapped her arms around him and held tight.

“Hey, Mo,” he said warmly, giving the girl a squeeze.

“Morgan, I thought we told you to let Peter come inside first?” Pepper chided, stepping out onto the porch. She smiled warmly at Peter, “Hey, sweetie. Come on inside. Morgan isn't the only one desperate to see you.” Peter set Morgan down, picked up his bag, and followed both Stark ladies into the house. He was met by warmth and the smell of apple and cinnamon wafting into the entryway from the kitchen. He could see the fire burning in the living room fireplace, adding to the coziness of the cabin.

“This is nice, Mrs. Stark,” Peter said, glancing around the house.

“It's Pepper, Peter,” She said gently. She motioned towards the stairs, “Tony is upstairs in our room, resting. Let me show you to your room and then you can go see him. If I don't get you up there soon, he won't stay put.” Peter followed her up the stairs and passed a room labeled with a pink sign reading “Morgan's Queendom”. Pepper opened the door beside it, stepping aside to allow Peter to enter. He froze just inside the doorway. He recognized the furniture and décor from his room at the compound. He blinked and looked again, sure it would disappear. He thought for sure everything had been destroyed during the battle, but here it was at the Starks’ cabin.

He knew why he had a room at the compound. Before the blip, it was convenient for him to have a place at the compound for when Mr. Stark needed to repair or update his suit. It also helped once his internship had been official for him to have a place to stay when they spent too long in the lab. He'd also stayed a time or two when May had been out of town for work. But he didn't understand why his things were here.

“Peter,” Pepper's voice brought him back to the present. He felt his face flush as he turned to look at her, realizing that she had repeated his name several times. He mumbled an apology, but she waved him off, “You can leave your things here. If I don't get you to Tony soon, he'll never let me hear the end of it.” Peter dropped his bag and followed her to the door at the end of the hall. She opened it and popped her head in to let Tony know Peter had arrived, but once Peter had entered, she closed the door leaving the two alone.

Mr. Stark was reclining in bed, leaning against a pile of pillows, a Stark pad in his hands. He looked up as Peter entered. The teen shyly glanced at his mentor, who broke into a huge grin as soon as Peter met his gaze. Peter couldn't help but notice how much the look reflected Morgan's grin from earlier. The next moment, a pang shot through his heart as he realized yet again that his mentor had his own real child now. His actual flesh and blood. Not a random spider-teen who had attached himself and wouldn't let go. He thought back to the many voice messages he'd left for Happy and then Mr. Stark, following the events with the Vulture, and felt embarrassment that he hadn't left either of the men alone. He resolved not to do that anymore. Mr. Stark had enough on his plate, with his family and recovery, without worrying about a random superhero as well.

“Kid,” Mr. Stark called to him, motioning for him to come over. Peter shuffled over to the bed and sat down beside the older man. Mr. Stark extended an arm.

“Hey, Mr. Stark,” He said softly, leaning into the man's embrace. He could hear his mentor’s heartbeat, irregular as always, but stronger and steadier than it had been after the man had snapped. As he moved to settle himself, he could see the red and white puckered skin, the scarring left even after time spent in Dr. Cho's cradle. As Mr. Stark readjusted his hold on the Stark pad, Peter could see the faint tremor of the nerve damage the man would deal with for the rest of his life. But he was here and alive, and Peter would be eternally grateful for that.

“What are you working on?” Peter asked, snuggling closer. Mr. Stark pulled up a hologram to show him the internals of the latest Stark phone, explaining the improvements he was working on. Peter thought that if he closed his eyes, he might be able to imagine that the past five years hadn't happened and he was back in the lab at the compound working on his internship. Desperate to hide his anxiety about intruding on the Stark family and more than ready to feel some sense of normalcy, Peter began to ask questions and bounce ideas of his mentor. At least for right now, he could pretend like nothing had changed, that five years had not passed, and it was just an ordinary internship day with Mr. Stark.

“I thought I told you to rest, not get Peter started to work right away?” Pepper's voice came from the doorway, a hint of teasing in it. Mr. Stark looked sheepishly at his wife and shrugged, not offering any defense. He set the Stark pad on the bed and stretched.

“Is it time for dinner?” He asked. Pepper nodded. Peter stood and moved so his mentor could follow. Mr. Stark reached for the cane resting by the bed and began moving towards the door, followed closely by the teen. Peter's heart clenched, watching his hero move at such a slow pace. It had been a matter of weeks to him since the man had been strong and fighting aliens in the park. And now he was so broken. The whole city, whole world, whole universe was broken in what seemed like minutes. Peter couldn't reconcile before the blip with the return. Envy for those who had remained surged inside him. At least they had five years to reconcile everything. His life had changed in an instant. Peter tried to shove his emotions deep inside as he followed the Starks down to the kitchen. There was no point in him dwelling on it at this moment.

“Petey! You disappeared and didn't get to come play My Little Ponies with me!” Morgan complained as soon as he entered the kitchen.

“Peter will be here for a while. There will be plenty of time for him to play ponies with you,” Pepper answered. She turned to Peter, “Sit next to Tony, Peter. That's your spot.”
It had been his spot, before, too, sitting next to Mr. Stark and across from Pepper. He wasn't sure if he still really belonged there, but for the moment he was grateful that, at least, one thing had stayed the same.

Peter slid into the chair next to Mr. Stark as Pepper placed a bowl of soup in front of him. The smell of roasted pumpkin and herbs filled the room. Pepper finished placing the soup bowls on the table and then sat a plate piled high with grilled cheese sandwiches in the center.

“There is more soup, Peter, and I can always make more sandwiches if you're still hungry. We also have apple cider muffins for dessert,” the woman explained as she sat in the seat across from him. Peter shot her a smile. He ate a spoonful of soup, pleasantly surprised with how tasty it was. Before the blip, Pepper had rarely cooked. Tony would sometimes make breakfast (he made the best breakfast foods. Mr. Stark claimed he had learned after making Pepper a memorably bad omelet so she would stop complaining about it), but for most meals they would order out.

“This is really good, Mrs….uh …Pepper,” He stammered, still trying to remember to call her by the unfamiliar name. Before she had been Ms. Potts. Now she had married Mr. Stark and had a daughter. Yet another thing that had changed.

“Now, hold on one minute,” Mr. Stark complained, glaring at the boy, “How come she is Pepper and I'm still Mr. Stark?” Peter shrugged. He had called him Tony, once, right after the man had snapped, but it didn't feel right. And it definitely didn't feel right now that Peter was aware of how much he did not belong. Tony turned to Pepper, “How much did you pay him to do that?”

“I asked nicely,” she retorted with a laugh. Morgan's face scrunched up as she balanced on her knees to reach for a sandwich.

“Why doesn't he just call you Mommy and Daddy? That's what I do,” The child asked, waving her newly claimed grilled cheese in the air. Peter felt his face flame. He may have harbored thoughts before, but now he knew he had no claim to Mr. Stark being a father figure to him.

“Remember, we told you that Peter has another family with a mommy and daddy. And now he has his Aunt May,” Pepper reminded the girl patiently.

“I ‘member,” Morgan answered before going back to eating. Pepper then smoothly turned the conversation to the new Stark phone.

“Do you think it will be ready to release on time, or should we push production?”

“It should be ready to be released in the new year” Tony replied, “The kid had some good ideas for it. I still think we need to focus on our basic version. The demand for that is high at the moment.”

“Maybe Peter can help you develop a more efficient version of our Stark Basic phones.”

“Would you like that, Pete?” Mr. Stark asked turning to him. Peter nodded, a huge grin breaking out on his face. At least working with his mentor, he could pretend nothing had changed. The conversation drifted towards the Stark Basic, then towards ways Stark Industries and charities funded by Tony's foundations were working towards helping the returned. Peter ate quietly while Tony and Pepper chatted, with occasional comments added by Morgan, who was mostly content to eat her food. After dinner was finished (and Peter was forced to eat the “appropriate amount for growing Spiderlings”), Peter helped Tony with the dishes while Pepper ushered Morgan upstairs for bath time.

“Here, Roo,” Mr. Stark handed Peter a large plate, when the last of the dishes had been dried and put away, “Put some of those apple cider muffins on here and go put them on the coffee table. Choose a movie. Morgan will come down for a muffin and a story, but we can watch it after she goes to bed.”

“Sure, Mr. Stark,” Peter said, taking the plate. He was used to movies with Mr. Stark, too. Maybe that was something that would still be the same. Mr. Stark joined him on the couch as they waited for Pepper and Morgan to return.

“Have a muffin, Pete. Morgan and Pepper made them this afternoon. Morgan insisted we needed something special for you,” the older man handed him one of the muffins. Peter gratefully accepted it and began to eat it. Soon enough, they heard Morgan bounding down the stairs. The girl came flying into the room, her dampen curls bouncing around her shoulders. She leapt onto the couch, landing half on Peter and half on Tony.

“Careful there, squirt!” Tony laughed, adjusting his daughter so she was on his lap and not sprawled on Peter, “We don't want to knock Peter out on his first day with us.”

“Don't be silly, Daddy,” Morgan said with a frown, “I can't hurt Petey. He's the bestest and strongest superhero there is.”

“Even better than Iron man?” Peter asked, raising his eyebrow. In his mind, there was no better superhero than Iron man.

“Of course, Petey,” Morgan said, giving him a look like he was being ridiculous, “Even Daddy says Spider-Man is the bestest. Right, Daddy?”

“Right,” Tony affirmed with a grin, handing his daughter a muffin. Peter felt his cheeks growing red yet again as he met Tony's eyes. Morgan took the muffin and bit into it, giving Peter a triumphant look.

“I still think Iron Man’s better,” Peter ventured, shyly. Tony's gaze softened, and he reached out and ran his fingers through the boy's curls.

“Daddy, you have to tell Petey and me a story now,” Morgan said, turning serious.

“And what should the story be about, Morgan?” the man asked as his daughter leaned back against him. She squinted, pondering for a second before proclaiming it needed to be about Spider-Man.

“It really doesn't,” Peter argued, feeling that if his face turned any redder, he would be rivaling a tomato for color.

“Oh, but it does. And, no arguing about my version of events, kid. Clearly, I'm the expert,” Mr. Stark teased, “Now, Morgunna, have I ever told you about the time Spider-Man tore a ferry in half?” Peter wondered if a couch could possibly swallow him whole and how he would go about convincing it to do so, as he tried to sink further into the cushions.

Morgan giggled, “That sounds silly.”

Tony nodded with mock seriousness, “It was very silly.” Peter covered his face with his hands, as his mentor launched into a very exaggerated version of events. Peter listened to the story, to Morgan giggling and asking questions, to Mr. Stark’s ridiculous claims, and slowly felt like maybe he wasn't intruding on their time together, until the end, when Mr. Stark said, “And that's all the story for tonight. Now off to bed, sweetie.” He set Morgan on the floor.

“No!” the child protested, “Another story!”

“There once was a girl who didn't go to bed so her father sold all her toys. The end,” Tony said. Morgan giggled, as Pepper came into the room to retrieve her. Pepper lifted her up and began moving towards the steps.

“Daddy! That's a terrible story!” the girl laughed, wrapping her arms around her mother's neck.

“Go to bed!” Tony called to her, “I love you tons!”

“I love you 3,000, Daddy!”

Peter listened to their exchange, feeling out of place. Mr. Stark needed to be able to take care of his daughter and put her to bed, not worry about some random teenager from his past.

“Pep is probably going to read for a bit after putting Morgan to bed, so it's just us. What movie did you choose, Underoos?” Mr. Stark asked, turning to him, “Star Wars?”

“A New Hope?” Peter asked eagerly. Tony grinned and directed FRIDAY to start the movie. He stretched his arm around the teen, and Peter instinctively snuggled closer. Mr. Stark played with his hair as the movie began. Peter let the familiar story wash over him. Before the movie was even half over, he drifted to sleep.

“Is he out?” A voice drew him back to consciousness. He felt too groggy to open his eyes, so he lay there as the couple talked to each other.

“I think so. May said he hadn't been sleeping well,” Mr. Stark answered, still moving his fingers through Peter's curls.

“No wonder. He's been through a lot recently. She said they've been staying with friends, and he's been sleeping on couches or on the floor,” she murmured. She paused and then added almost as an afterthought, “He's so quiet. Too quiet.”

“I knew we should have made sure he came here as soon as he was back,” his mentor grumbled.

“He's here now,” Pepper said softly, reaching down to smooth Peter's curls. Peter let out an involuntary whine at the loss of contact when she moved her hand.

“Coming back to the land of the living, kiddo?” Mr. Stark teased, as Peter forced his eyes open.

“Is the movie over?” He mumbled.

“Yeah, for a bit,” Tony answered.

“Oh, you should have gone to bed. You didn't need sit with me,” Peter yawned. Mr. Stark laughed. Peter could feel his chest moving under where he lay.

“About that, kid,” Mr. Stark began, “Think you can unstick yourself?”

Peter shot up, suddenly realizing he had inadvertently used his powers to trap the man.

“I am so, so, so sorry, Mr. Stark! I didn't mean to!” The words spewed out, Peter's face turning beet red.

“Relax, kiddo,” Mr. Stark said, “I'm not upset. I missed my sticky spider-kid.” Peter inwardly preened at being called Mr. Stark’s spider-kid. Until it hit him that he had no right to that title anymore.

“I should go to bed,” He said, shooting to his feet.

“Good night, sweetie,” Pepper said, reaching out to rub his shoulder. Peter mumbled good night to both adults before fleeing to his room. He didn't belong. He didn't belong. He didn't belong.

He shut the door behind him and slid to the floor, trying to hold back the tears. The room. The movie. Talking about SI tech with Mr. Stark. It was too much like before. But the cabin. Mr. Stark’s real daughter. Pepper cooking. The compound gone. No apartment. It was different. Too different. And he had to remember this wasn't his place anymore.

Eventually he managed to pull himself together enough to move from the floor. He went to his bag to pull out his pajamas, grabbing his phone as he did so. He looked at the time. It was just past ten. May would definitely still be up, so he decided to give her a quick call to let her know he had arrived safely and say good night.

“Hey kiddo,” his aunt greeted as she answered the phone, “How is life at the Starks’?”

Peter gave her a run down of his afternoon and evening, eagerly recounting working on Stark tech with Mr. Stark, seeing Morgan, and Pepper's delicious cooking.

“Sounds like it's good for you to be there, honey,” May said as he finished, “I'm glad you're having a good time. You should probably be headed to bed now. I larb you. Good night.”

“Larb you too,” Peter replied, as his aunt ended the call. She had been blipped as well, but had quickly found a place in her work with F.E.A.S.T. He checked his messages and saw a few from both MJ and Ned. They had both been dusted while on the field trip to MoMA. When they returned, they had been near each other and school and museum officials had quickly helped them locate their families, unlike Peter, who had taken a few days to locate May. Ned’s parents and MJ's dad hadn't blipped, so they also had places to stay immediately. Peter had been moving from place to place so often since reuniting with May that he had barely had an opportunity to see his friends.

He couldn't help but feel a little jealous that they seemed to fit so seamlessly into their old lives while he felt like his entire world had changed. Was he the only one who was struggling? Even May seemed to be doing better than him. He read a message from Ned, asking if he wanted to come over the next day to build his newest Lego set. Peter quickly replied he couldn't and was out of the city for a few weeks. He was unsurprised when his phone immediately began to buzz with a call from Ned.

“What do you mean you're out of the city? I thought the compound was destroyed?” Ned demanded as soon as Peter answered the phone.

“It was. I'm not there. May is staying with a friend, and there was no space for me,” Peter explained, “Mr. and Mrs. Stark are letting me stay at their cabin until May can find a place.”

“You're staying with Iron Man?” Ned gasped, “Dude, that is so much cooler than lego! Tell me everything!” Peter sighed and gave his friend the same version of events that he had recounted to May earlier.

“What is your life, man?” Ned said as Peter finished.

“It isn't a big deal,” Peter stammered, “They had room, and I had nowhere else to stay.”

“Peter, it's Tony Stark. I doubt he's letting you stay because ‘you have nowhere else to go’,” Ned sighed as if this were a conversation they had frequently. And to be fair, it was kind of a conversation they had regularly. For both of them, the last time they had talked about Peter's feelings about Mr. Stark being his pseudo-father had been weeks ago. But it had also been a lifetime. Five years where Peter had been dead. Five years where Peter had been replaced by a real, flesh and blood daughter.

“Ned!” Peter snapped, ready to be done with this vein of conversation. Ned quickly apologized and changed the topic to the Star Wars movies they had missed while they had been gone. During one of the few times Peter had managed to see Ned, they had watched one of the movies. Peter still hadn't seen the others yet, but Ned was dying to talk about them anyway, trying to resist giving too many spoilers while still letting his enthusiasm for them ring loud and clear.

Peter listened as his friend rambled, managing to get in a comment here and there, but mostly content to listen. At least listening to Ned’s steady stream of words meant he wasn't alone with his thoughts. Their conversation was interrupted by a knock at the door. Peter moved to open it, finding Mr. Stark leaning on his cane.

“May or Ted?” The older man asked with a smile.”

“Mr. Stark,” Peter rolled his eyes, “You know it's Ned.”

“He knows my name????” Ned sounded like he was having a panic attack on the other end of the line. Peter resisted the urge to groan. Ned knew Mr. Stark knew his name. He'd met him several times pre-Blip.

“Well, it's getting late, kiddo, so you should probably be telling Fred goodbye and head to bed,” his mentor said. Peter agreed and told the older man good night once more before heading back into his room and telling Ned goodbye.

“Oh my god,” Ned wheezed, “You just got sent to bed by Iron Man the savior of the universe himself!”

“Ned!” This time Peter couldn't hold back the groan. He quickly said good night and hung up, his best friend still laughing as he did. He changed into his pajamas and went into the ensuite to brush his teeth and wash his face. When he reentered his room, he collapsed on the bed not even bothering to crawl under the covers.

Ned seemed to be fitting seamlessly into this new life. His younger sister had blipped as well, so they returned to two overjoyed parents, ready to spoil rotten the children that they had grieved. May was finding fulfillment in her role. Mr. Stark had a family. It was just him left alone. Just him struggling with it all. Just him who didn't really belong anywhere. He blinked back the tears, buried his head in the pillow, and tried to sleep, hoping that dreams would drown out all the thoughts in his mind.

Chapter Text

“Petey, wake up!”

The weight of a small body landing on him jerked Peter awake. He had been at the Starks’ for just over a week, and Morgan had evidently decided to be his personal alarm clock. And her interpretation of that meant body slamming him and screaming in his ear.

“Mo,” He groaned, trying to roll over and (carefully) dislodge her. He wondered if she somehow had gotten bit by a radioactive spider as well, because her sticking powers seemed to rival his own as she clung tightly to him.

“You've got to get up, Petey,” She all but shouted in his ear.

“Morgan,” Mr. Stark called firmly from the hallway, “When I told your mother that I was going to wake up your…wake up Peter, I did not mean “Morgan go jump on him and scream in his face”. No one wants to have little terrors shouting in their ears first thing in the morning.” Morgan shot up to her knees, somehow managing to dig them into Peter's ribs.

“I'm NOT a little terror!” She protested. Peter winced and tried once more to deposit her beside him on the bed.

“I think he would disagree. Come on, leave him be,” Her father's voice grew sterner. The four year old petulantly climbed off of the teenager and stalked out of the room. Peter could hear her stomp down the stairs.

“Take your time, Underoos,” Tony said in a gentler tone, “No need to rush, but Pep needs to talk to you about something. I’ll be downstairs fixing breakfast. Come down when you’re ready.” With that, he gently shut the door, leaving the teen alone once more. Peter flopped over on his bed, trying to block out the light. He knew Morgan hadn't meant anything by it. She was excited to have a playmate, especially with her dad still recovering and her mom having to do so much work with SI and the government to assist all the returned as much as possible. And her excitement made him feel a bit less like he was intruding in the Starks’ home. He really just wished she didn't have to be quite so enthusiastic first thing in the morning. More than anything, the teen wanted to lay in bed and go back to sleep, but he didn't want to inconvenience Pepper any more than he already was by making her wait too long. He forced himself to crawl out of bed and made his way to the ensuite. He quickly showered and then headed downstairs to join the Stark family.

“Good morning, sweetie,” Pepper greeted as he walked into the kitchen. She was seated at the table reading something on a Stark Pad, a cup of coffee in front of her. Mr. Stark was standing at the stove scrambling some eggs.

“Hey, Underoos. There's some toast and bacon here. Eggs are almost ready.”

Peter grabbed a mug and headed towards the coffee maker. Mr. Stark tutted.

“Yeah. No. I've seen a caffeinated spider-child. We do not need that.”

Peter pouted, but put the mug back and grabbed a glass to fill with orange juice instead. He then plated up his food and joined Pepper at the table.

“We received an email from Midtown,” Pepper told him, sitting down the Stark Pad.

“May sent it to you?” He asked, confused as to why they would have an email from his school. Pepper shook her head, an odd expression on her face.

“I'm sure May got it as well, but we're on your contact list. From before,” she explained, “School will be starting back next Monday.”

“Oh, so I'm going back to the city?” He asked. He wasn't sure where he could stay. Maybe with Ned? Maybe MJ? Then again, even though they were just friends, May probably wouldn't be thrilled about that. Would one of her friends let him stay? At least then he wouldn't be imposing on the Starks’ anymore. Tony snorted as he turned towards Peter, ready to put the eggs on the teen's plate. Peter jumped to his feet before the man could move. Mr. Stark was able to walk short distances without his cane, albeit slower than before he snapped, but Peter felt guilty every time the man did so because of him. Peter took the skillet from his mentor, ignoring the man's look of amusement. Tony looked over at Pepper.

“I think he wants to leave us already, honey,” He teased, moving back to begin washing up the breakfast dishes, “I know it's not the breakfasts, so it's probably the wake up calls.”

“Tony,” Pepper gave a long suffering sigh before looking back at Peter, “You don't need to go anywhere, Peter. They'll be having shorter days until after Christmas to give everyone time to readjust and find teachers for the influx of new students. They won't have as much new content, since you've covered most of the material before-”

“Wait!” Peter interrupted, momentarily forgetting his mission to cause the Starks as few problems as possible, “What do you mean that I covered it before? I should be in new classes right? For senior year?” Pepper scrolled through something and projected a hologram showing Peter's class list. It was all the courses he had taken last year…five years ago.

“They're making us do junior year all over? But we were almost finished! We had, like, two months left!” He complained, scrolling down through the list. When he had blipped, he'd been just a few months from 17. Then, he came back to discover that not only had five years passed, not only were people who had once been his age now almost finished college, but on top of all that, he was still going to be 16 for almost an entire year. And now, now, after everything, he was going to have to do his junior year all over again. Pepper gave him a sympathetic smile.

“I'm sorry,” she said, “I know it's a lot. I think part of the reasoning is that covering a familiar curriculum will give you time to adjust and also not overwhelm you with trying to learn entirely new material and being back.” She reached out and covered Peter's hand with hers. He offered her a watery smile, trying to ignore his guilt at causing so much trouble for them. Not only was he invading their space, now he was being a whiny child.

“You won't start school until almost ten, and I need to start going back into SI anyway, so you can ride with me. Either Happy or I will bring you home, depending on my meetings,” Pepper explained. She squeezed his hand, “May is going to try to get off a few afternoons each week in order to spend some time with you.”

Peter nodded in understanding, looking back at the schedule. It looked like he only had about three or four classes a day, some happening two or three times a week (like his AP classes), while others only met once a week (like gym and his lone new class entitled “Recent History and Events”). At least classes were starting later. So that meant Pepper didn't have to be up extremely early to get him to school in Queens before heading to work in Manhattan. As it was, she would already be getting to the office late, and he felt bad enough about that.

“Kid,” Mr. Stark said, a note of amusement in his voice.

“Huh?” Peter looked up realizing that both his mentor and his wife were looking at him. Mr. Stark chuckled as he pulled out a chair and sat next to Peter.

“So eloquent,” the older man laughed, “Pep was asking if you wanted to go back to school shopping today. There is a list of supplies the school is asking each student to bring.”

“Oh, I don't have money. I guess I could call May and see if she has any,” the teen stammered, his mind racing trying to figure out how he could get the needed items. Pepper looked at him bemused, and Tony arched a brow.

“Pete,” Tony said slowly, “Billionaire. I think Pep and I can handle paying for a few school supplies.”

Peter's eyes widened, “Oh! I couldn't ask you all to do that!” And now here he was costing them even more money.

“You don't have to ask us,” Pepper said gently, “We already told May we would cover expenses while you stayed with us.” Money that should go to Morgan. Or to SI employees. Surely some of them needed it. A random kid from Queens definitely had no claim on their resources. There were other people more deserving than him. At that same time, Peter sensed this was an argument he wouldn't win, so he forced a smile and thanked both the adults.

“Why don't you grab your coat, Peter, and you and I can run to the store and get what you need right now,” Pepper said, putting the Stark Pad away and standing up. Peter flushed bright red.

“Oh, I don't…I mean, May looked, but we didn't,” He stammered.

“Get him a coat when you go out,” Tony said to his wife, catching onto what Peter was trying to communicate, but at Peter's expression, he quickly amended his statement, “On second thought, I have an old one here that I never wear and was planning to donate anyway. You'd be saving me the hassle of doing that if you wore it, kid.” Peter was skeptical of that, but also acknowledged that since it was November in New York, he needed one. He accepted the proffered coat without complaint and dutifully followed Pepper out to the car, adding the coat and the school supplies to the rapidly growing debt he already owed the Stark family.

Peter followed Pepper into a department store in the small town closest to the lake house. He was surprised to see an entire back to school section set up. It felt very out of place amidst the fall and Thanksgiving décor in the sale section and the Christmas décor being set up. Pepper stopped to survey the space as well.

“Most schools have been closed since Bruce snapped. Officials realized the year would need to start all over once everyone returned,” she said in a low voice, cautious of who might overhear. The details of what exactly had led to the returning of those who had been dusted were classified. The general public only knew that aliens and the Avengers had been involved, there had been a battle that had destroyed the Avengers’ compound, and that Iron Man had almost died saving the universe. The Infinity Stones, time travel, and the exact details were firmly off limits.

“Do you have the list of what I need?” Peter asked, moving towards the school supplies. With Pepper's help, they were quickly able to get everything he needed.

“Do you need anything else, honey?” she asked, “Your aunt asked if we could get you some clothes, so we can get those, but if there is anything else we can get you, please let me know.” From experience, Peter knew that if May insisted, he was not going to win, so he resigned himself to having Pepper pay for his new wardrobe. He tried to fight back the anxiety he was feeling about the amount he would end up owing the Starks by the time he was able to return to May.

Pepper might be a billionaire, but she let him buy clothes from the department store. Peter was grateful that she didn't drag him to a rich people store. At least these would be normal clothes that wouldn't make him stand out or anything. He let Pepper convince him to get a few pairs of jeans, a couple of shirts, and some sweatshirts and basics. Then, she dragged him to the shoe store next door to get a few new pairs. After that, much to his relief, Pepper declared they were done.

“I was thinking we could stop at a local coffee shop for a quick lunch before we head home,” Pepper told him as they carried the bags to the car.

“Coffee sounds good!” Peter eagerly agreed. He placed the bags in the trunk and then moved around to the passenger door. The crisp, late fall air chilled him to the bones, and he was grateful that Mr. Stark had insisted he take the coat. Coffee, or any hot beverage really, sounded completely appealing at the moment.

“Tony would kill me,” Pepper laughed, shaking her head, “I might be persuaded to let you get decaf.” Peter rolled his eyes. Mr. Stark was stricter about the “no caffeinated spiderlings” rule than May.

“Fine,” He replied. Decaf coffee was better than no coffee. He added, “Maybe you should get some decaf for the lakehouse?” If they had it there, then he could at least drink some.

“Not a bad idea,” Pepper mused as she started the car, “If most of the coffee supply was decaf, then maybe Tony would actually drink less.”

“Yes, totally do it for him,” Peter laughed. And then they wouldn't be buying it just for him. Pepper turned onto the main street of the small town and pretty soon was pulling into a parking space in front of a small coffee shop. Half of it was a bookstore and the other half was filled with overstuffed chairs, sofas, and low tables scattered among them. Pepper went to relay their orders at the counter while Peter claimed a spot in one of the armchairs.

“Here's one decaf caramel latte with whipped cream,” Pepper sat a cup in front of him, as well as a plate with an oversized blueberry muffin and a sandwich. She went back to retrieve her order before sitting in the chair next to him.

“Tony and I come here sometimes,” Pepper said amiably as she joined him, “People have gotten used to us living here and generally leave us alone. It was a little crazy when we first moved here.”

“No paparazzi following you around?” Peter asked. He remembered how they would sometimes hound Mr. Stark before the blip when the man would take him places. The bright side was that SI had quickly confirmed Peter was an intern, in order to explain his presence, so it had effectively shut Flash up about his internship being fake (even if it had been initially).

“We're too boring now,” Pepper took a sip of her beverage, “Married with a daughter living in the country. No scandals. Nothing too exciting.”

“Yeah,” Peter said softly. Once May found them a place, that would probably be it with the Starks. With Mr. Stark living out here, there was no way his internship would still happen. Happy would probably be stuck on Spider-Man duty again, like before the Vulture. Both May and Mr. Stark had asked Peter to hold off on patrolling until they had a more stable living situation. No one had wanted him to be observed climbing into random building or to have any of May’s friends accidentally discover his secret.

“Do you think I might be able to patrol some days after school?” Peter found himself asking. Pepper pursed her lips thoughtfully.

“You'd need to talk to your aunt and to Tony, but I don't see why not. Either Happy or I could meet you after patrol to drive home. It would give you something to do while you wait for me if I'm in meetings.”

“Are you sure you can't ask him? He's a bit…” Peter trailed off.

“Overprotective? Helicopter-like?” Pepper snorted, “I'll mention it to him. You should probably ask your aunt though.” Peter nodded, agreeing. He had been itching to get back out, and this would give him the chance. After they finished their drinks and food, they moved over to the bookshelf to explore. Peter found a few new books that had come out in the last few years, and Pepper insisted on buying them. At his hesitance, she assured him that she enjoyed reading young adult novels and would love to read them when he finished. The two them began chatting about their favorite books, with Pepper giving him a few recommendations of newer ones he needed to read next.

The anxiety that had lessened throughout the morning came back in full force as soon as he followed Pepper into the cabin. Mr. Stark and Morgan were on the couch. Mr. Stark was asleep and Morgan was curled up on his lap watching a Disney movie. They looked so perfect together, Morgan being his mentor in miniature, and Peter couldn't help feeling like he would interrupt their time together. He thanked Pepper and rushed to carry his bags upstairs before Morgan could call him into the living room.

He had left his phone in his room that morning, so after he put his new clothes away, he grabbed it and checked his messages. In their group chat, Ned and MJ were having a steady stream of conversation about having to repeat junior year.

“At least you only have to be 17 for two more months,” Peter complained to Ned, who had a January birthday, “I'm still 16 until August! I have to redo both junior year and being 16.”

After chatting a bit with both friends, Peter checked the rest of his messages. One was from Aunt May asking if he had been able to get the school supplies and new clothes. He sent her a summary of his shopping trip with Pepper, enthusiastically telling her about the coffee shop and new books.

“Decaf coffee, I hope,” May texted back almost instantly. Peter rolled his eyes.

“You're almost as bad as Mr. Stark!” He complained.

“You climbed on his ceiling, kiddo,” May responded, “You were literally ON HIS CEILING. The poor man is recovering. He doesn't need you doing that.”

“Pepper asked me to climb on the ceiling the other day,” Peter snarked back.

“Well, it is useful that you can clean it. But we don't need the spider-child climbing all over it and giving the universe's savior a heart attack in the process.”

“Fine,” Peter replied, “She's buying me decaf anyway.” May replied that “as long as it was decaf, it was fine” and excused herself to return to work.

His final message was one from Mr. Harrington explaining that a modified version of Academic Decathlon was restarting and asking if Peter wanted to join. Peter responded that he'd have to talk to his guardian before committing. Mr. Harrington thanked him for considering it and asked for an answer by the next Thursday, the first day of practice.

Peter sat his phone aside and grabbed one of his new books. Since he was free of copious amounts of caffeine and not planning to crawl “all over”, he decided to stick to the ceiling in the corner of his room and read his book there. He surveyed the room from his new vantage point and wondered if Pepper would let him make a web hammock.

“Peter,” FRIDAY's voice came about half an hour later, “Mr. Stark asked if you could please come downstairs.” Moments later, Peter was joining Mr. and Mrs. Stark in the living room.

“Hey Pete,” Mr. Stark motioned him to the couch. Peter draped his coat over a chair and moved to join the couple.

“I talked to Tony about your Spider-Man idea,” Pepper explained as soon as he was seated. Peter blinked in surprise. He hadn't expected her to talk to him so quickly.

“Oh, I haven't talked to May about it yet.”

“Not a problem,” Mr. Stark answered, “You can bring it up to her, but I'd actually like to talk it over with her to set parameters.”

“So I can start patrolling again?” Peter almost bounced out of his seat with excitement. He suddenly felt ridiculously giddy. Mr. Stark held up his hand to stay his excitement.

“May still has to give the ok, bud,” he cautioned, “And like I said, there will definitely be parameters. Like, stick to the little guy and don't-”

“Do anything you would do or anything you wouldn't do. Stay in the gray area,” Peter finished for him, having heard the guidelines repeated on multiple occasions. He resisted the urge to roll his eyes, figuring that would do more to work against his campaign to have Spider-Man return to the streets than to help it.

“And whatever else your aunt and I decide.”

“But you're OK with it?” Peter verified, practically vibrating with anticipation.

“With parameters,” His mentor said firmly. Peter couldn't contain himself anymore and leapt to his feet, throwing his arms around Pepper. She was caught off-guard by the spider-teen’s strength, but recovered quickly enough to wrap her arms around him.

“Thank you! Thank you! Thank you for talking to him!” the teen repeated as he squeezed her.

“Hey, Pete, maybe loosen your grip a bit on my wife?” Mr. Stark teased. Peter immediately let go and moved to step back.

“Oh, I'm so sorry!” he cried, horrified that he may have hurt her. Pepper sent a glare to her husband.

“Tony, be nice,” she chided. She leaned forward to pull Peter back into an embrace, “Don't listen to him. He's just jealous I got a hug first.” As soon as Pepper released him, Peter turned to Tony and threw his arms around the older man.

“Slow your roll, kid,” Mr. Stark cautioned as he embraced the kid, “We still do have to talk to your aunt, but I promise to plead your case.” Peter squeezed him, attempting to be gentle to the still recovering man, while also barely containing his enthusiasm.

“Oh, my suit needs to be fixed! It still hasn't been repaired from the battle! And I don't know whether to use Iron Spider or my regular suit? Which do you think would be better? Both need some repairs done, and I think there's at least one slash mark. No, maybe more. Oh my god! Ned is going to be so excited to be my guy in the chair again! I can't believe I finally get to go out again! It's been so long, and that's not even counting the whole time I was dusty or any-”

“OK, spider-boy, go get your suits and meet me out in the garage. We can at least get started on repairs while we wait to talk with your aunt,” Tony cut him off, gently pushing him out of his arms and towards the stairs.

“I'm just so excited! I can't believe it,” Peter continued to ramble as he dashed up the stairs to retrieve his suits from his room.

“I think that's the most I've heard him speak at one time since he's been here,” Pepper said with wide eyes. Tony nodded thoughtfully.

“Yeah, and that's what worries me,” He took a deep breath and stood, “I'm going to head on over. Send him out as soon as he's back.”

Tony had just arrived in the basement section of the garage, where his home lab was set up, when Peter came bounding into the room, arms filled with both suits.

“Here kid, let's work on the regular suit first. The Iron Spider will probably take a bit more time, and I know Pep wants us to actually join her and Morgan for dinner. We can work on that one another day.” Peter agreed, setting the Iron Spider aside and bringing his other suit over to his mentor. Tony rolled his chair to his work station and grabbed his glasses so he could see as they worked, motioning for Peter to join him. The teen continued to ramble, overflowing with his excitement to be in the lab and preparing to go back out as Spider-Man. Tony couldn't stop the grin that broke out on his face as he listened, happy once more to have his spiderling working alongside him.

‘Boss,” FRIDAY broke into Peter's monologue, “Mrs. Boss would like to know if you and Peter will be coming for dinner. She also said this isn't really a question, but she's trying to be nice.” Tony snorted and glanced at the time. Somehow, in the midst of working and Peter's stream of conversation, several hours had passed.

“Fri, please tell Pep we will be inside in a few,” He instructed and turned to the teen beside him, “I think it's time we call it a day. We can come back out and finish this tomorrow.”

As he stood from the chair, he groaned, reaching for his cane. Sitting for long periods left him feeling stiff. Peter paused his talking to watch him, noticing how gingerly the man moved, how worn and haggard he looked. And he was filled with regret that he was disrupting the man's recovery. The Starks had been nothing but kind to him, yet here he was making it harder for Mr. Stark to recover. He needed to get away quickly before Mr. Stark saw the tears in his eyes. He didn't need to add making the man feel bad that he was upset to his ever growing list of impositions to Starks if he could help it.

“I'm sorry!” he blurted before dashing away, leaving Tony alone in the workshop. The older man frowned at the teen’s retreat, concerned about the abrupt change in mood. When he made it to the kitchen, he noticed that only Pepper and Morgan were present.

“Where's Pete?” he asked as he sat down. Pepper looked just as confused and concerned as he felt.

“He said he wasn't feeling well and asked if he could take a plate to his room. What happened?”

“I don't know. He was being normal Peter for the entire time we worked, but just as we were heading inside, his mood completely changed. I don't know what to do, Pep! It's like he's shutting me out.”

“I guess we keep giving him time. Maybe let May know when you talk to her?” Pepper sighed, “Maybe he just needs to be normal, to have school and patrolling?”

“Just give him time,” Tony repeated, unable to stop himself from sending yet another worried look towards the stairs.

Up in his room, Peter sat on the floor, untouched plate of food beside him, tears streaming down his face at the thought of how much trouble he was causing the family who continually gave him so much only to receive nothing but problems from him. Intruder. Intruder. Intruder. The word echoed through his mind on repeat.

Chapter Text

Monday's return to school came too early. There was an earlier start time, due to the need to reregister so many students, have an orientation for the students who had dusted, and make sure the students who began the year previously were situated. As Peter climbed out of the car, chaos was probably the only way to describe the scene in front of him. Friends greeting each other. Parents hovering outside of cars, calling farewells to the children they'd lost for five years. Cars honking for those stalling to move. Teachers and staff urging students to enter the building. Peter took a deep breath to steady his nerves, waved goodbye to Pepper, and walked towards the building.

“Name and birthdate,” a very harried secretary asked when Peter reached the entrance.

“Peter Parker. August 10, 2001.”

The secretary scanned her list and made a check mark, “Those returning need to report to the auditorium. It's straight ahead-”

“And to my left,” Peter finished quietly. The secretary paused and looked up at him.

“Sorry,” she murmured. Peter gave her a tight smile and headed to the auditorium. He was directed to a row of tables at the front, where he received his class schedule, packet of information about counseling services provided by the school (courtesy of Stark Industries Disaster Relief Fund which was ensuring all New York City schools could access mental health resources, according to the pamphlet included in the packet), and his locker number. He was then instructed to take a seat with the rest of the returned students for a mandatory orientation.

“Peter,” Ned waved to him as he approached the seats. He's seated next to their classmate, Betty. Even though they've never really been friends, she's been in their class since freshman year, and he's relieved to see another friendly face. Peter says hello to them both and all but collapses on Ned's other side.

“My younger cousin is now a year older than me,” a student in front of them is loudly complaining. Peter vaguely recognizes her as a senior that he had been in band with freshman year (and a few weeks in sophomore year, if he counted those). Suddenly he's very glad he was only in his junior year when he dusted. Yeah, it sucked for him, but at least he wasn't months from leaving high school only to find himself still in it for another year.

“Any chance you can hang out after school? Betty and I were just saying we should head to Delmar's. Do something normal and all that. I was going to see if MJ wanted to come too,” Ned asked.

“I'd have to ask my-” Peter cleared his throat, “I'd have to ask. I'm not sure what time my ride needs to leave.”

“Do you have your internship at all this week?” Ned questioned. Betty's eyes widened.

“You still have it?” She questioned, surprise evident on her face, “Even after everything? I heard the college internship program was suspended for the time being.

“Parker, are you still claiming to have that Stark Internship?” A voice loudly echoed from behind him. Peter groaned. He angled his body to look at Flash. Why did Flash have to dust? Couldn't he have lived and gone to college and been far away from Midtown by now?

“Yes, he has it. Still,” Ned answered before Peter could formulate a response.

“Sure he does. Because SI has so many high schoolers working there,” Flash rolled his eyes.

“Ignore him, Ned,” Peter hissed under his breath. Ned frowned, but turned away from the other boy. Flash scoffed, but didn't say anything else.

“Anyone sitting here?” They both turned to see MJ standing next to Peter.

“You,” Peter replied brightly. MJ slouched in the chair.

“Delmar's after school?” Betty asked.

“Sure,” MJ answered. She turned to Peter, “You coming?” He shrugged, as just at that moment Principal Morita approached the podium on the stage and began to welcome the returned students back to Midtown. His speech consisted of a summary of the changes to school and curriculum, description of the counseling services being offered, and instructions about how the transition back to school would run. After his speech, the students were dismissed to their first period classes. Ned, MJ, Betty, and Peter quickly compared schedules and were relieved to find that they were all in AP United States History together. Unfortunately for Peter, Flash was also in the class. Thankfully, Flash ignored him, which Peter hoped would be the case for the rest of the year (although he wasn't holding his breath). He should have known that Parker Luck meant that it wouldn't hold through the end of class.

“All AP courses will require extra homework beyond what is required in regular classes and will require more effort outside of class, especially as we have limited class time. You will have readings and essays that will need to be completed at home. The due dates for assignments are in the syllabus,” their teacher informed them as he wrapped up his lecture.

“Oh, come on, we already took this. More work?” One of the returned students grumbled to a friend.

“Not all of us,” a student who had not dusted snapped, “It's not like we asked to have the quality of our education compromised by this.” Peter felt the all too familiar sensation of guilt twisting his stomach. He wasn't just getting in the way of the Starks, but everyone returning also disrupted the lives of everyone who had remained.

“That's enough,” their teacher, Mr. Dell, said firmly. Yet another change. In the previous five years, his former APUSH teacher had retired, and Mr. Dell had been hired in her place. Mr. Dell continued, “As I said, you can find the schedule for due dates in your syllabus. At the back of the syllabus, there are some forms your parents need to sign by the next class.”

He shot a look in Peter’s direction and quickly amended, “Or guardian.”

“Because Parker's parents are dead,” Flash whispered to the boy sitting next to him, one of the remained students. The bell rang and everyone gathered their belongings to head to their next class.

“Hey, Penis!” Flash mocked as they left the room, “I heard your aunt dusted too. Do they have internet in the shelter where you live? Because you need it for all those essays that are a huge chunk of our grades. Wouldn't want you to fail or anything.” Peter ignored him, pushing past to head to his next class.

“I can take him if you ever need me to,” MJ offered. Peter laughed.

“It's fine. I'm used to it,” he replied.

“It's not fine, and it isn't right,” MJ said, frowning. Peter didn't answer and entered their AP Environmental Science class.

“Michelle, Peter,” Mr. Harrison greeted as they entered, “I know you have until Thursday, but I couldn't help wondering if you both will you be joining us for Academic Decathlon this year?”

MJ quickly answered in the affirmative. At both their looks, Peter found himself nodding. Both Mr. Stark and May had told Peter he should join again, but he had been hesitant to agree. But, standing beside MJ, he couldn't help saying yes. Mr. Harrington looked relieved, while MJ looked satisfied.

By lunch time, Peter was done with the day. Other than agreeing to join AcaDec again, Mr. Harrington's class had been uneventful, but the teen was tired of hearing about how things had changed and being told to redo work that he already had done. He followed MJ into the cafeteria and was pleased to see Ned waiting for them with his lunch tray at the table that had been “theirs” throughout their time at Midtown. MJ smirked at them and positioned herself at the end of the table, opening her book to read as she ate.

“There's so much homework!” Ned complained. He gave Peter a rundown of all the assignments he'd been given.

“Yeah,” Peter agreed, “Mo is not going to be happy. She was upset I was going back to school and not going to be there. She'll be a mess when she finds out she has to leave me alone so I can work on homework.”

“Little sisters are so annoying,” Ned agreed.

“She is not my sister!” Peter protested, perhaps a little too emphatically, based on the way MJ suddenly put her book away and moved to grab her “People in Crisis” sketchbook.

“Didn't you say she screamed in your face last week to wake you up? And on Saturday, you said she followed you around repeating everything you said? That's, like, classic little sister behavior. My sister does that all the time. Hate to break it to you, Pete, but you're a big brother. Congratulations!”

“MJ, would you like a chocolate chip cookie? Pepper made them, and she's the best baker ever,” Peter looked pointedly at Ned while holding the bag out to the girl.

“Thanks,” MJ bit back a grin and helped herself to one. She took a bite and her eyes widened in surprise, “These are really good! Who knew the most inspiring female CEO of the 21st century was also an incredible baker?”

Ned kept reaching for the bag, but Peter
kept moving it away from him. Finally Ned lunged across the table and grabbed it.

“We do not lay across the table!” the lunch monitor scolded, walking over to their table, “Is that clear?”

“Yes, ma'am. Sorry, ma'am,” Ned said quickly, having the decency to look ashamed. As soon as the monitor left, he triumphantly pulled a cookie from the bag and waved it in front of Peter's face before taking a bite of it. Peter took the opportunity to snatch his food back from his friend.

He loved Morgan. Adored her. She had managed to have him wrapped around her finger since they met in Tony's hospital room in the SHIELD facility where his mentor had been taken following the battle. While they waited for the man to regain consciousness and recover, he would entertain her while Happy worked to locate May, Rhodey met with government officials, and Pepper spoke to doctors and handled SI business. She clearly adored him, both as Peter and Spider-Man, often declaring Peter to be her favorite person and Spider-Man her favorite hero. But, she wasn't his sister. No matter how much he wished for it. The Starks were already doing so much for both May and him, he couldn't take advantage of their kindness by trying to force his way into being a part of their family claiming Morgan was his sister, that Mr. Stark was his…that Mr. Stark was so important to him.

The bell signaling the end of the period broke into his thoughts. Peter threw away his trash and followed MJ and Ned to their next class. He somehow managed to make it through a review lesson and, then it was the final class of the day, Recent History and Culture, the newly created class that gave an overview of the past five years, required for all of the dusted students. And because of Parker Luck, Flash was in the same section. The teacher was a new hire, fresh from university. Peter tried to ignore that he should have been only a few years younger than her, that had she attended Midtown, they would have been peers.

“Welcome back to Midtown, juniors! I'm Ms. Smith,” She started cheerfully, as if they were returning at the end of the summer or a long break, rather than returning after being dusted for five years, “Let me explain what we will cover in this class. This isn't a class covering the events leading to the blip. That is a hard topic for many, and we do have counseling resources available for those of you who need to talk with someone about it. Instead, we will be covering the major local, national, and international events of the past five years, advancements in technology, science, and medicine, and an overview of popular movies, tv shows, music, and literature, as well spotlights on celebrities and well-known figures. The homework for this class will be a bit different as well. You'll mainly be watching movies and shows or listening to popular songs, which we will discuss at the beginning of class. The list of media assignments and due dates are listed in the syllabus.”

“This doesn't sound too painful,” Ned muttered, knowing Peter would be able to hear him. Peter nodded, but didn't answer. He had been wanting to catch up on some of these things anyway, so at least he now had a reason.

“Today, we'll start with a spotlight on one of the heroes of reversing the blip. As I said, we won't be looking at events surrounding it. Instead, we will be looking at events in their lives during the last five years. We will be looking at the past five years in the lives of Tony Stark and Pepper Potts, as well as the major achievements of Stark Industries.” Peter could feel the eyes of several of his classmates on him, as the teacher continued the lesson, oblivious to the discomfort of her student.

She started a short documentary from several years before, celebrating Morgan's birth. It covered a brief history of their relationship, their engagement at the press conference (Pepper really should thank him for turning down the Avengers). It moved on to their wedding, including video footage that SI had released to the media to mark the occasion. Peter had seen a few pictures of the wedding scattered throughout the cabin. He hadn't seen any video of it, though. He knew from the pictures that the event had been drastically scaled back from the plans prior to the blip. Tony had asked him to be a groomsman. In the clip, an obviously pregnant Pepper was standing next to Tony, flanked by her sister and Rhodey on the dock next to the lake. He knew the plan had been for them to get married in a grand ballroom in one of New York’s most exclusive hotels. The intimate wedding at the lake house was so different. And he had missed it. He was supposed to have been there, and he missed it.

The next part focused on the birth of Morgan. There was a clip of the announcement of her birth, as well as another clip showing Pepper and Tony leaving the hospital with her. Peter drank in the features of her baby pictures, wondering how different it would be if he had been there. Would he truly belong then? Or would he be intruding on their perfect little family much as he was now?

He didn't even realize he was crying until MJ slid a package of tissues onto his desk. He blushed and discreetly wiped his face, glad he was at the back of the class. He didn't know if he could handle any of Flash's snide comments without having a complete breakdown.

With that documentary finished, Miss Smith started a new one on SI advancements during the past five years. Most of these, Peter already knew about. The Starks frequently discussed business around Peter and Morgan. As soon as class ended, Peter grabbed his things and shot to his feet.

“Delmar's?” Ned asked. Peter shook his head. He needed to get out and away.

“Internship?” his friend persisted.

“Not until next week,” Peter forced himself to answer. May had agreed to let him begin patrolling again, but insisted he wait at least a week. He took a deep breath, trying to hide how upset he was feeling, “I'll call you later. See you tomorrow.” He waved goodbye to MJ and rushed out of the building. And began wandering, his head exploding with thoughts.

May was busy at her new job and looking for a new apartment. She was staying with a good friend. He didn't belong with her right now. Ned and MJ were with their families. And Starks, they were gracious and welcoming. But how long until they resented the constant intrusion of a random teenager? They deserved to be their own little family again. He found himself at the gates of the cemetery where his parents and Ben eternally rested.

He meandered the familiar route to their graves, listening to the crunch of the leaves beneath his feet. The few leaves remaining looked like how he felt at the moment. Shriveled and barely clinging on. Before he'd stayed with the Starks, he had often woken from nightmares about Thanos and the plethora of traumatic events he had experienced, both in and out of the suit. But, they significantly lessened since moving into the lake house. And he knew the truth of why, had known it since before the snap. Mr. Stark made him feel safe. He was often the only one who could. Even though his mentor was still recovering, Peter felt calmer being there. But “intruder, intruder” still ran through his mind on repeat. The hero was still recovering, he didn't need to have to take care of Peter anymore. He'd built a new life, had moved on to a lake house, marriage, and Morgan. Peter realized that for sure after the documentary. Peter was being selfish to make the man hold onto his past. The teen didn't belong there anymore.

Peter turned a corner in the path, spotting his parents grave, along with Ben's grave, up ahead. He broke into a jog and was soon kneeling before them, running his hand over his mother's name.

“I miss you. I miss actually having parents…being in a family. Belonging,” he whispered. Ben and May had always loved him, made him feel welcome. But they had also made it clear they were not his parents, not replacing them. And since Ben died, it was just him and May. He hadn't even realized how much he missed having parents until staying with the Starks, wondering what it would be like if his parents were still alive…or, if he allowed himself to think it even briefly, part of the Stark family.

He could barely see the stones through the tears pooling in his eyes and streaming down his face. He leaned against his mom's headstone and sobbed, face buried in his hands. Once the tears dried, he still sat there, too tired, too desperate to feel like he belonged to move. At some point it began to drizzle and still he stayed. The sun began to set and the street lights buzzed to life, and he remained. The drizzle turned to a steady rainfall, and he didn't move. He didn't realize how long he had been there, until he heard footsteps approaching. He looked up to see Pepper. At that moment, he realized that he had completely forgotten to message her when school ended. He quickly pulled his phone from his pocket and realized it was still turned off from school.

“I'm sorry! I'm sorry!” He blabbered, jumping to his feet, tears pooling in eyes once more. Here he was, yet again, being an inconvenience to the couple who had been nothing but kind to him.

“Peter, sweetie,” she soothed, reaching out and wrapping her arms around him, “It's ok. Ned called May and told her about your last class. She figured you might come here.” Peter wrapped his arms around her and rested his head on her shoulder. Pepper held the sobbing teen, murmuring reassurances that she wasn't upset with him and he wasn't in trouble. When he managed to get himself under control, Pepper led him across the cemetery to the parked car.

Peter stopped short when he saw Mr. Stark standing next to it. His mentor crossed the short distance, taking the teen from his wife and led him to the backseat, climbing in beside him. Pepper walked around the driver's side, joining them in the car. Mr. Stark reached up to the front seat and grabbed a soft, fleece blanket. He then helped Peter out of his soaked coat and wrapped the blanket around the shivering teenager.

“Pep, go ahead and turn up the heat so we can thaw out the spidersicle,” Tony said softly, pulling Peter into a hug. Peter let himself be held, resting his head against Mr. Stark, allowing the man's irregular heart beat to calm him. He breathed in the scent of cologne, coffee, and motor oil and closed his eyes. He drifted to sleep as fingers combed through his hair.

On the drive back to the cabin, he floated in and out of consciousness, hearing bits and pieces of Tony and Pepper's conversation.

“It's a good thing Ned thought to call May,” Mr. Stark was murmuring.

“May said he was really worried. Peter was really upset.”

“It shouldn't have happened,” his mentor’s grip on the teen momentarily tightened, and Peter snuggled closer, falling to sleep again.

The next time he woke to Tony saying with an edge of frustration in his voice, “I never wanted my children to experience this. They shouldn't have to go through it.”

Peter kept his eyes closed but scrunched his nose, straining to listen. He could hear Tony's heartbeat, irregular but still strong. He could also hear the steady, reassuring beat of Pepper's heart, their low voices still talking, and the car making its way down the road, but nothing else.

Pepper and Happy had been hesitant to introduce him to Morgan at the hospital, afraid of how he might react. They were shocked at how well he took the news of the newest Stark. What they didn't realize was that Morgan's existence didn't come as a surprise to him. Yes, he had to reconcile that she was four years old, not an infant, but he had known about her before Thanos. A few days before his ill-fated field trip to MoMA, he had been in the elevator with Pepper and noticed the third heartbeat. It took him a few moments to realize what that meant. Neither Pepper or Tony mentioned it, so he assumed they must be planning to tell him later and decided to wait until they gave him the news to admit what he had heard. Then Thanos happened. And he dusted. By the time he returned, Morgan was already four.

He strained harder but still heard nothing. His forehead wrinkled in his confusion. Tony had mentioned children, plural, as if he already had more than one. Pepper had to be pregnant. But maybe she wasn't as far along as she had been with Morgan? Maybe it was early, and he would hear the new heartbeat soon. He resolved to try to help May find a new place sooner rather than later so he could get out of Mr. Stark’s hair. With the new baby coming, they would need his room. There were only three bedrooms on the second floor, and the baby definitely would need to be near Mr. Stark and Pepper.

The car slowed and turned. Peter could feel the change from the pavement to the gravel driveway. Mr. Stark stopped playing with his hair and gently shook his shoulder to wake him up.

“Hey, Roo, we're home,” he said quietly. Peter forced himself to sit up, stretching and yawning as he did. He looked over and found Mr. Stark watching. The boy immediately felt guilty that Tony and Pepper had been forced to track him down due to his thoughtlessness.

“I'm so-”

“Yeah, don't even finish it,” Mr. Stark said, cutting him off, “I'm going to have to start a “needless apology” jar or grounding you or something if you keep apologizing for things no one is upset about.”

“But-”

The stern glare from his mentor cut him off and Peter clamped his mouth shut. The man's gaze softened, and he reached out to pull Peter's head towards him, planting a kiss on his temple.

“You're OK, Roo. No one is upset,” Tony reassured him. He released the boy and continued, “Now, Happy brought pizza, so what would you say to a pizza and movie night, like old times at the tower? Should we go for an old Star Wars movie or one of the new ones? If we let Morgunna choose, it will be either Encanto or Frozen, and I don't want to talk about Bruno or letting it go. Ever.”

Peter giggled, then said, “Maybe one of the new ones. I have to watch them for homework anyway.”

The older man raised an eyebrow, “Homework sure has changed since I was in school.” He reached for Peter's door to open it. Peter took the opportunity to give the man a hug.

“Just getting the door-” Tony started. Peter lightly shoved him.

“We're there, Mr. Stark,” He retorted, sticking his tongue out at the man and climbing out of the car. Tony threw back his head and laughed, before getting out and following Peter to the house.

Later that evening, after being accosted by a relieved Happy and an excited Morgan (who eagerly told him about her unexpected trip to SI with her daddy and then her adventures with Uncle Happy, getting ice cream), Peter found himself curled up on the couch next to his mentor, stuffed full of pizza and much more relaxed. This couldn't last. After the new baby was born, he knew the Stark’s would need to give focus to the new baby and wouldn't have the energy for a needy, anxious teenager, but for now, he was going to enjoy the time with them.

Chapter Text

“Um, Pepper, the drop off is over there,” Peter pointed towards the row of cars dropping off students. It was slightly less chaotic than the previous day had been, so he didn't understand why the woman was turning into the parking lot instead.

“I know,” Pepper replied, as she pulled into a parking space. She turned off the car and opened her door, “But I need to speak with your principal.” She got out and stalked towards the school, clearly a woman on a mission.

The teen raced after her, “What? Why?”

“Your aunt, Tony, and I have concerns over the content and manner of instruction in your last class yesterday, and I was elected as the one most likely to remain calm in a meeting,” Pepper explained without breaking stride.

No, no, no! This couldn't be happening! Pepper needed to get to SI, not be stuck in a meeting about him. Why did everything he do end up causing problems for them?

“It really isn't necessary,” he argued as they entered the building. Several students who were unaware of Peter and his connection to the Starks visibly gaped at the Pepper Potts striding into the school.

“Have a good day, Peter,” Pepper said, heading towards where Principal Morita stood waiting with a very nervous looking Ms. Smith.

Peter shot his teacher a sympathetic look before heading to class, very much wanting to get away from the sea of onlookers. As he walked away, he heard the principal greeting the CEO and ushering both her and the teacher into his office.

He felt eyes on him all morning, as the students who had not dusted realized that somehow he knew one of the most famous couples in the world. He tried to tune out the hushed conversations about his SI internship, but his enhanced hearing was making it difficult.

“Why was Pepper here?” Ned asked quietly as they entered the cafeteria. They didn't have any morning classes together on Tuesdays, so it was their first time seeing each other.

“Complaining about yesterday,” Peter sighed.

Ned frowned, “Good.”

“Good?” Peter raised an eyebrow. He dragged Ned over to their table. MJ wasn't there yet and most students were on the other side of the room or waiting in line for their lunches. Their corner of the room was fairly empty.

“Good?” Peter hissed once they had relative privacy, “How is it good? She is already going out of her way to bring me here. And now she was stuck going to a meeting about me, making her even later! She's CEO of one of the largest tech companies in the world! She doesn't need to be in a high school meeting for some random teenager-”

“I hardly think you're a random teenager,” Ned inserted. Peter looked even more exasperated.

“I am, though!” He hissed, throwing up his hands, “And she definitely doesn't need me being an imposition right now because…” He trailed off.

“Because…” Ned prompted.

“Because she's pregnant,” Peter whispered, his eyes filling with tears, “She doesn't need to have to worry about me, because she's pregnant and needs to focus on her own family.”

Ned thought of a million things he could say to counter Peter's worries, but the teen was too distraught to listen. At that moment, Ned, instead chose to hug his friend, recognizing that Peter wasn't in a place to listen to anything he would say.

At the end of the day, as both boys were walking towards the exit, Ms. Smith popped her head out of her classroom and asked to speak to Peter for a second. The teen grimaced but followed her into the room.

“I'm so sorry about Pepper!” He blurted as soon as he was in the room, “I didn't know that she would come to school and complain!”

Ms. Smith blinked, but then quickly shook her head, saying, “No, I'm sorry, Peter. She was entirely within her rights as one of your guardians to complain. The lesson was entirely insensitive of me. I was aware of your relationship with the Stark family and should have thought of that beforehand. I am so, so sorry for the pain and discomfort I caused you yesterday. And I should have noticed how upset you were during class. I want you to know I won't let that happen again. And I am sorry, really.” The woman's eyes shone with sincerity, causing Peter to blush.

“It's ok. Really,” the boy muttered, ducking his head to avoid her penetrating gaze. Before she could respond, he hastily exited the room. Ned was hovering anxiously at the doorway, so Peter quickly snagged his arm and dragged him out of the building before Ms. Smith could react.

The rest of the week dragged by slowly. Ms. Smith didn't try to speak with him again, seeming to gauge his discomfort with discussing what had happened any further. Ned kept giving Peter sympathetic looks, but didn't bring up what he had said. Pepper's pregnancy and the inconvenience he was being to Tony and Pepper weighed heavily on his mind. Peter was preoccupied with it so much that MJ all but yelled at him after the first AcaDec practice on Thursday afternoon, telling him to get his head in the game. He got called out in class for not paying attention a couple of times, with a couple of his teachers threatening to call his guardians if he didn't improve. Peter endeavored to focus more after that, not wanting the Starks or Aunt May to be distracted from their lives by a call from Midtown.

As the days progressed, his teachers kept giving more and more homework, causing Morgan to pout everytime the teen had to turn down her invitations to play with him. Finally, it was Friday. He didn't have any classes after lunch, so Pepper had picked him up after the morning classes had ended. They'd grabbed lunch on their way to the lake house, where Tony had shooed him up to his room to work on his homework.

A few hours later found Peter stretching at his desk and looking at the clock. He'd been working for awhile and had accomplished a lot, but now he really wanted a snack. He headed downstairs, ready to find something to hold him over until dinner.

The teen paused as he walked by Morgan's room, wrinkling his nose. He'd thought he'd smelled something off for a few days, but the child was always smuggling the outdoors into her room. Leaves, sticks, acorns, and once this past summer, according to Pepper, a frog. But whatever was in there now was really beginning to smell.

“Hey, Pete, did you manage to finish all your homework? I don't want you working on it all weekend,” Mr. Stark said, as he exited his bedroom where he had been resting. He was doing pretty well walking through the house unassisted. (Although Peter had overheard his doctors fussing at him about the impromptu drive to the city earlier in the week. Evidently he hadn't been cleared to drive longer distances yet.)

“Do you smell something weird coming from Mo's room?” Peter asked, taking another sniff. It smelled sweet but rotten. Tony paused and sniffed as well, before opening the door to his daughter's room.

“Morgan,” He said firmly, “Did you bring something in from outside.”

Morgan looked up from where she was playing with her dollhouse and smiled innocently, “No, Daddy.”

Tony raised an eyebrow and waited, maintaining eye contact with her. Finally Morgan looked away frowning and grumbling, “Maybe Ferguson is here.”

Tony's eyes widened, and he repeated cautiously, “Ferguson? The pumpkin you made Peter carve with you last weekend because he wasn't here on Halloween?”

Morgan nodded emphatically.

“Morgan, sweetie,” her father said slowly and evenly, “I'm afraid Ferguson needs to go back outside. Where exactly is he?”

Morgan pointed to her toy chest in the corner, her bottom lip quivering and eyes filling with tears. Tony stopped in her ensuite to grab a trash bag before heading to the toy chest to remove the offending pumpkin. Thankfully, the child had hidden the gourd in a cardboard box in order for easier smuggling to her bedroom, so cleanup was relatively painless. The man placed the box inside the bag and turned to his daughter, “Time to say any farewells to Ferguson.”

“Bye Ferguson,” Morgan whimpered before turning back to her dollhouse.

“OK, I'm taking this to the compost heap,” Tony said in a low voice as he left the room. He looked over at Peter, “Finished the homework, Underoos?”

“Almost. I needed a break, so I'm grabbing a snack,” he told his mentor.

Tony nodded, “Do that and finish it. Come find me when you're done.”

“I will,” Peter said, going down the stairs ahead of the older man. He quickly grabbed a couple granola bars and went back up to his room to finish his essay for English class and the last few questions for his history assignment. Soon enough, he was asking FRIDAY where Mr. Stark was.

“He is down in the kitchen with Mrs. Boss,” FRIDAY replied. Peter put his laptop on his desk and headed down to his mentor. He paused at the bottom of the steps, listening for the extra heartbeat he was certain he should be able to hear, but he was still unable to pick it up amongst the other sounds. He made a mental note to talk with May about the apartment search again. He knew he had several months, but he was also certain they would need time to transform his room from a room for a teenage boy to a nursery.

“Hey, Mr. Stark,” he said as he moved into the kitchen. His mentor looked up from where he was seated talking to Pepper.

“Hey, kiddo,” the man greeted, “Morgan has been begging to have one last campfire before winter, and they're calling for snow next week. I figured we might as well do one tonight.”

Peter's eyes lit up with excitement. They had had a couple of campfires in the two weeks he had been at the lake house, and he had become as excited for them as Morgan.

“With s'mores?” He questioned, rubbing his hands together and bouncing on his toes with glee. Tony and Pepper exchanged a look of amusement.

“Yes, with s’mores,” his mentor laughed, “I was going to ask if you wanted to go to the store with me to get marshmallows. Pepper needs a few more things for dinner. I wanted to know if you wanted to come with me.”

“Should you be driving?" Peter asked concerned, before adding bashfully, “I may have overheard the doctors talking to you.”

Pepper smirked and nudged her husband's shoulder, “Told you I didn't need to fuss at you, because Helen would do it for me.”

Tony rolled his eyes and then pulled something from his pocket, “I have been allowed to drive to the store for a few weeks now, thank you very much. But, I wasn't planning on driving today. I was going to ask if you wanted to drive.”

He handed Peter a small card. Peter looked at it and realized it was a new driver's license.

“This came today. All your paperwork has gone through, so you're officially reregistered in all government systems.”

Peter studied the card, “What's the asterisk next to my birthdate mean?”

“Everyone who was blipped has it. It's so anyone who looks at it can know that you are five years younger,” Pepper explained.

“So I can't convince anyone I'm 21 and buy alcohol?”

“Uh, no. Nope. No underage drinking on my watch. Learn from my mistakes and all that,” Tony said quickly, "I do not need your aunt coming after me, thank you very much."

Peter laughed and then asked, “Did you want to go now? I'll go grab my wallet and meet you outside.”

“Don't forget your coat, Underoos,” Tony called after him. Driving again was much easier than Peter would have thought, but for him it had only been a few months. The lake house was about fifteen minutes from the grocery store, so he wasn't on the road that long anyway.

“Here, let me get a cart, and you begin finding things,” Tony instructed as they entered the store. They made quick work of getting everything and made their way towards the check out. Peter paused at an aisle near the cash registers.

“Everything OK, Roo?” His mentor asked from behind him.

“Uh, yeah, but do you think Morgan would like one of those? To replace Ferguson?” Peter pointed to a row of pumpkin shaped pillows. He picked up one that looked like a jack-o-lantern. It was soft and perfectly squishy. When he looked up, Tony was wearing the look he had worn when he first saw Peter on the battlefield, one that had been unusual then but had quickly become familiar to Peter. It was one full of love and affection, like Peter was the most precious thing in the world to him.

“Yeah, kid, I think she'd love it,” Tony said softly. Peter basked in his father-fig- mentor’s gaze for a moment. No! Wait! Not his father-figure. Mr. Stark was having another baby. The man couldn't afford to give the attention the baby and Morgan required to him. Maybe they should get the new baby one too?

“Should we get another one?” He asked, setting the one he was holding in the cart. Tony looked at him in confusion.

“Do you want one?” he asked.

Right. Mr. Stark didn't know he knew about the baby already.

“Oh, uh, never mind,” the teen quickly.

“Pete, if you want one, you can get one.”

Peter looked at them. There was one that looked like it was (unofficially) Spider-Man themed. He grinned and picked it up. His mentor laughed as he added it to the cart.

When they arrived back at the cabin, Peter carried everything inside to the kitchen.

“Thank you, Peter,” Pepper said from where she stood at the stove, cutting some vegetables for dinner, “Do you mind getting Morgan and helping her feed Gerald?”

“I can do that,” Peter said. He grabbed the bag with the two pumpkin pillows and headed upstairs. He put the bag with his pillow in it in his room and pulled out Morgan's. He held it behind his back and knocked on her open door. She turned from where she was having a tea party with her stuffed animals.

“Hey, Petey,” she said sadly.

What's wrong, Mo,” he asked, concerned.

“I miss Ferguson. We were supposed to have tea today,” she pouted. He bit back a grin.

“Well, I don't think Ferguson the First can come back, but I think Ferguson the Second might be able to join you.”

“Ferguson the Second?” the child asked skeptically.

“Yep. Ferguson the Second,” Peter confirmed. He whipped the pillow out from behind his back, and Morgan squealed with delight.

“I love Ferguson the Second! He's my bestest friend!” she grabbed the pillow from Peter and hugged it close, clearly delighted. She then wrapped her arms around Peter, pumpkin pillow still in her grasp.

“Thank you, Petey!” she cried, squeezing him as tightly as a four-year-old could. She pulled away, “Would you like to join Ferguson the Second and I for our tea party?”

“I would love to join you, but not right now,” Peter told her. Her bottom lip began to jut out, so he quickly added, “Your mom wants us to go feed Gerald.”

The little girl brightened immediately, “Can I show Gerald the new Ferguson?”

“Let's leave him here. We don't want Gerald to think he's a real pumpkin.”

Morgan giggled but readily agreed. She held on to him anyway, as she headed towards the stairs, declaring that her parents needed to meet the new Ferguson.

“Mommy! Mommy!” Morgan exclaimed, running into the kitchen, waving around the pillow, “Look what Petey gave me!”

Pepper turned from where she was preparing dinner and smiled at her daughter's delight, “Well, that was very kind of Peter.”

“Yep,” Morgan agreed, “Petey got me Ferguson the Second because Daddy wouldn't let Ferguson the First stay for tea.” She then proudly showed Tony the new pillow before darting upstairs to put it back in her room so she could feed Gerald.

“You wouldn't let Ferguson the First stay for tea?” Pepper asked her husband, bewildered, “I thought you put Ferguson in the compost pile over the weekend?”

“Yeah,” he said, “About that. We should really start communicating better. Ask questions like, ‘Honey, did you put the pumpkin in composting or did Morgan smuggle him to her room?’”

“Oh no,” Pepper groaned, “How bad was it?”

“Pete smelled it this afternoon. It was starting to get bad, but not as bad as it could have been. Thankfully, Morgan had hidden Ferguson in a cardboard box, so the mess was contained.”

“Well, thanks, Peter,” Pepper told the teen, shaking her head. She turned back to her husband, “I blame your genes.”

“Yes,” he said dryly, “Because I love the outdoors so much.”

“Chaos,” Pepper declared, “Because you cause chaos and so does she.” Peter snorted, but the woman turned to him next, “Don't act like you're any better. I remember how you were in the lab.” At that, both Peter and Tony laughed. Peter headed to get his coat as Morgan bounded back down the stairs.

“Let's go feed Gerald, Petey,” she declared, holding her hand out to him. Peter took it and allowed her to pull him outside to the alpaca’s pen. As they care for the animal, Morgan informed Peter of all the things they would be doing with Ferguson the Second.

“Sounds like fun, Mo,” he told her as the head back to the house.

“It will be,” she declared. She threw herself at him, “You're the bestest big brother, Petey! I love you so, so much!”

Peter awkwardly hugged her back, trying to keep his emotions off his face. This couldn't be happening. Morgan really shouldn't be calling him her brother. Especially with her new, real sibling on the way. He pushed those thoughts aside, trying to keep focused on the present. He'd enjoy time with Morgan now, while he was here. He'd be gone soon enough, but he was here now. He squeezed Morgan back tighter.

“Thanks, Mo,” he whispered, “I love you too. I love you so much.” Leaving her and not being able to be a part of her life anymore was going to be so hard. Necessary, but so hard. He blinked back the tears as he held the girl. All too soon, she pulled away, dragging him back to the house.

“Mommy, Petey and I will be having a tea party,” the child announced to her mother as she entered the house.

“OK,” Pepper said coming over to them, “Dinner will be ready in about 20 minutes, so don't eat too much at you tea party.” She winked at Peter, and he grinned.

“Sounds good,” Peter said, allowing Morgan to drag him up to her room.

After dinner, Tony had Peter come outside with him to help start the fire. Peter had grown up in the city. His family had always had enough that he was not in need but seldom extras for things like vacations, so his experience camping had been limited to once with Uncle Ben, when he had decided to "impart the wisdom of the outdoors” on Peter. Uncle Ben had barely any experience in the outdoors, either, so the trip had been an absolute disaster, but it was still one he looked back on fondly. Peter couldn't help wondering if this is what real camping was like. Outdoors, by a lake, with a fire. It must be nice.

Peter took a deep breath, inhaling the scents of the fallen leaves, the lake air, the smell of smoke from the fire. Yes, this was quite nice, indeed. Perhaps he might be able to convince Tony to take him over the summer. The man has taken Morgan a few times. For all his claims to not be outdoorsy, Peter knew that the billionaire knew how to rough it, having survived in a cave for three months, as well as numerous Avengers missions without amenities. Morgan likes being in nature, and Tony had said that he didn't mind camping for a night or two, as long as he wasn't being kidnapped and held hostage or raiding Hydra. Peter rejected the thought as soon as it came. The Starks would have a new baby by summer and wouldn't have time for him.

“Can you go tell Pepper the fire is ready and help bring out the marshmallows and roasting skewers?” Tony asked from where he tended the fire. The man paused, looking carefully at Peter, “And grab my MIT hoodie while you are in there. It's hanging by the front door.”

Peter readily agreed, running across the yard and practically skidding into the house.

“Peter, I know you are sticky, but I need you to walk in the house, please,” Pepper scolded from the kitchen.

“Sorry,” the chastened teen apologized, “The fire is ready.” He grabbed the bag of marshmallows and the roasting skewers from the kitchen, before looking around the entry way for the hoodie.

“Have you seen Mr. Stark’s MIT hoodie?” he asked Pepper.

“Oh, yeah, it's here,” Pepper tossed it to him. He caught it and headed back outside, Pepper and Morgan following close behind. Peter frowned as he approached the fire. Tony was already wearing a hoodie.

“Here's everything,” Peter held up his offerings as he approached, “And your hoodie? Mr. Stark, why do you need another hoodie?”

Tony grinned and took the proffered items, “That is for you, Roo. Can't have a frozen spiderling.” Peter gave him a huge smile and pulled it on, inhaling the scent of motor oil, coffee, and cologne that was Tony.

“Petey, let's make s’mores!” Morgan exclaimed as she arrived at the fire with her mom. Pepper was carrying the chocolate and graham crackers, setting them down on the picnic table near the fire before joining the group.

“This is nice,” she murmured. Tony caught her eye and nodded, knowing she was referring to more than just the fire. He reached out and snagged her hand, watching Peter help Morgan hold her skewer over the flame.

Peter couldn't stop the smile on his face as he helped Morgan, listening to her rambling away. Things were going to change, but at least he would have memories of what it might be like to be part of a family. Even if it wasn't going to last, the teen determined to himself that for the moment, he would try to ignore the fact that he was imposing and enjoy being with the Stark family while he could.

“Having fun, Underoos?” Tony asked, watching as the teen put together his third s'more of the evening. He'd cut the kid off soon, but right now he was enjoying watching the boy's interactions with the little girl.

“Yeah, Mr. Stark,” Peter said, meeting his eyes and enthusiastically nodding, “Yeah, I am.” He took a bite of his gooey treat before turning and offering a bite to Morgan.

“This is the bestest ever, Daddy,” Morgan agreed enthusiastically, her face covered with the remnants of melted chocolate and marshmallow. Both the teen and the girl were all but vibrating from the sugar overload as they shared the last s’more of the evening.

The older man knew that neither of his kids would be sleeping anytime soon, as full of sugar as they were, but he couldn't find it in himself to be upset.

“You're staying up with them until they crash, I hope you know,” Pepper spoke softly, as if reading his mind.

‘Yep, I'm thinking a movie night is in order,” Tony readily agreed. He frowned as he took in Morgan's messy face, “After little miss gets a bath.”

Pepper looked over at Peter's messy face and hands, “Maybe him too.”

Tony laughed and agreed. There would be time for all of that. Baths and movies and cuddles. He had nothing but time to be with his family.

This was exactly what he had been fighting for when he snapped, and it had absolutely been worth it.

Chapter Text

“Is it just me, or is already having a holiday break really weird?” Ned asked as they came out of school the next Wednesday.

“We had Back to School in the middle of November, and that's the part you think is weird?” MJ said, raising an eyebrow at him.

“This whole thing is weird,” Peter muttered. MJ and Ned couldn't argue with that. MJ headed off towards her dad's car, and Peter and Ned walked together.

“Are you going out today?” Ned asked as soon as they were far enough from school that no one would overhear.

Peter grinned and nodded. Tony and May had given the green light for him to patrol after school on Monday, and the vigilante was savoring being able to swing around Queens once more. He quickly said goodbye to Ned and sent a text to both his aunt and his mentor, as well as Happy and Pepper, letting them know he was headed out as Spider-Man before finding a spot to change.

Patrol was relatively uneventful (both May and Tony had reiterated the “no weapons” rule, along with Tony's gray area), other than helping one girl find a lost kitten, stopping a mugging and a couple pickpockets, and preventing one would-be bike thief from being successful, he mostly hung out on roof tops and enjoyed swinging around. It was good to be back. He needed to meet Pepper by five, so he swung back to where he had stowed his backpack and changed into his regular clothes, taking the subway Manhattan. He walked around to the parking garage to use the private entrance to SI's headquarters. It was controlled by FRIDAY, so he didn't need to go through security. He jumped in the elevator, and FRIDAY delivered him to the executive floor, where both Tony and Pepper had offices (although, the fully-retired superhero and semi-retired businessman seldom used the space).

Pepper had ensured everyone on this floor knew who the teen was on sight, so the security guard stationed near the elevator and the receptionist just outside Pepper's offices only smiled and waved. Peter went into the set of offices belonging to Pepper and her team. He greeted Pepper's private secretary and was ushered into the CEO's office.

“Hello, sweetie,” She welcomed, looking up from her computer, “How was school?”

“Not too bad. I had a pop-quiz in Spanish, but I'm pretty sure I did ok,” the boy answered, dropping his bag to the floor and plopping in a chair in front of her desk.

“Hopefully,” Pepper agreed, “Hey, what time do you get out of AcaDec tomorrow?”

“Um, Pepper, I don't have school tomorrow.”

“What? Why not?”

“It's Thanksgiving,” Peter said slowly, like it was the most obvious thing in the world, which seeing as it was a national holiday and all, it kind of was. The normally composed CEO's mouth dropped open.

“What?” She repeated “How?” She looked back at her computer and began clicking furiously as she pulled up her calender. She collapsed against the back of the chair, mouth still gaping, “How did we miss this? We are NOT prepared.” Peter thought that he was quite possibly the first person in history to see Pepper Potts panicking.

“Fri, please call Tony,” Pepper said, standing and beginning to pace.

“Hey, babe,” Tony greeted almost immediately, “You and Pete headed home soon?”

“Hey, honey, we have a problem,” she said, wringing her hands.

“What's wrong?’ her husband asked, voice filled with concern.

“Just that tomorrow is a national holiday, and we are not prepared.”

“Wait, that’s tomorrow?” Tony yelped, “FRIDAY! You’re supposed to remind us of stuff like that!”

“Sorry, Boss,” The AI managed to sound neither apologetic nor contrite.

“Here’s what I’m thinking,” Pepper said, quickly formulating a plan. If she was good at anything, it was making plans, and years of both working and being in a relationship with Tony had helped her perfect her skills at making plans while stressed, “Peter and I will go by the grocery store on the way home. We’ll see what we can still get. You call May, Happy, and Rhodey to see if they can come. Maybe check with any of the Avengers still in town to make sure they have places to go as well.”

“Sounds good,” Tony replied, “I’ll order take out so we don’t have to cook tonight as well.” With that the couple said their farewells. Pepper turned to Peter.

“We’ll go ahead and head to the store. I don’t even know if anything is still in stock this close to Thanksgiving, but we’ll see what we can get.”

“I can't believe the organized Pepper Potts forgot Thanksgiving,” Peter teased as he move to pick up bag and wait for her next to the door.

“Hey, watch it!” Pepper retorted, tossing a pen towards him. Peter easily caught the projectile and tossed it back. Pepper shook her head as she grabbed her things, wrapping an arm around the teen and steering him down the hall.

They stopped at a larger grocery store on the outskirts of the city, since Pepper wasn't sure how well stocked the one closer to the lake house would be this close to the holiday.

“So, guess we'll have turkey breasts and some chicken?” Pepper said, pondering the meat choices.

“Mashed potatoes?” Peter asked hopefully.

“Of course. Would you use your super strength to grab a bag of potatoes, please? And maybe choose a few other vegetables?”

With the two of them working together, the groceries were quickly procured and they headed towards the check out area. As they passed the bakery section, the teen turned to Pepper with his best puppy dog eyes.

“What do you want, Peter,” the woman gave a long-suffering sigh, although amusement was evident in her eyes. The teen bounded over to a box of donuts and held them up.

“Please, Pepper!” He begged, angling the box so she could see it, “Please!”

Pepper took a step closer to look at the treats, “Are those Avenger themed donuts?”

“Yes,” Peter replied, “And I call dibs on the Spider-Man donut.”

“Put it in the cart,” she said, shaking her head. The Spider-teen pranced over triumphantly to place his treasure with the rest of the groceries.

“You may have to fight Morgan for Spider-Man,” Pepper teased.

“Um, hello,” the teenage vigilante said under his breath, gesturing towards himself.

“Come on, spiderling,” she chuckled, pushing the cart towards one of the open lanes, “Let's go home.”

When they arrived back at the lake house, Peter helped Pepper carry in the groceries, trying to shield his precious purchase from Morgan. Thankfully, the girl was in her room playing tea party with Ferguson the Second and her other stuffed toys.

Tony began helping them put the items away, updating Pepper on the guest list for the next day as he did.

“Happy said he would pick up May and bring her,” he explained, “The other Avengers all have plans already. Rhodey is having lunch at his mothers's in Pennsylvania, but I bribed him with a game night, so he promised to drive up for the weekend. He also said, and I quote, “How the hell did you both forget Thanksgiving?”

“We've been a bit preoccupied this fall,” his wife objected. Tony laughed and went to put the next item away. He paused when he noticed Peter protectively holding the box of donuts.

“Kid, are those Avenger themed donuts?” he grinned.

“Maybe,” Peter said, pulling it closer.

Tony arched an eyebrow, “Underoos, I do not need an entire box of donuts. Neither do you.”

“Peter, go ahead and put them in the cupboard. You can have one in the morning,” Pepper directed.

“The Spider-man one,” Peter confirmed. Tony shook his head in amusement and motioned to the cabinet where Peter was supposed to put them.

“The Spider-man one,” the vigilante repeated without breaking eye contact with his mentor.

“Spidey, I promise you that no one will eat your donut,” Tony said, slightly exasperated. The teenager nodded with satisfaction as he put the box in the cabinet.

Peter finished putting the groceries away as the couple began planning which dishes for the next day to begin tackling.

“Dinner will be arriving in about 45 minutes. Why don't you go give your aunt a call,” Tony suggested as he pulled out a cutting board.

The teen frowned, “I can. But I'm seeing her tomorrow.”

“Let me rephrase that,” the man replied, “Your aunt wants you to call her. Go do that now.”

“OK,” the boy said amiably, heading up to his room to make the call.

“Hello, honey,” May said as she answered the phone.

“Hey, Aunt May, are you excited about coming tomorrow?” Peter asked eagerly, “Pepper and Mr. Stark have already started working on some of the dishes.”

May laughed, “Yes, I am excited. But I did want to give you a heads up about something before I came over.”

“Are you ok?” the boy asked quickly, his voice full of concern.

“I'm fine, Peter. But you know how Happy has been helping coordinate between SI's disaster relief fund and F.E.A.S.T?” May said in a tone that seemed to be a mix of unsure and caution.

“You're dating Happy aren't you?” Peter asked.

“How-” His aunt started.

Peter rolled his eyes, “He's liked you forever. If you were worried I'd be upset, I'm not. I like him. But don't tell him I said that. I may need to make him sweat.”

May sighed in relief, “Good. I knew you liked him, but I'll admit I was a little worried. We've only been dating since last week, so it's still really new.”

The aunt and nephew chatted a bit more about the new relationship, as well as the man's treatment of May. Satisfied that his aunt was happy, Peter finally said goodbye, promising her a big hug the next day.

“And don't you dare tell Tony and Pepper! Happy wants to surprise them!” May warned.

“Pepper probably has already figured in out,” Peter laughed, “Bye, May!”

“You're right. She probably does. Larb you, honey.”

“Larb you, too,” Peter replied, ending the call.

The next morning an over-enthusiastic Morgan woke the teen by flinging open his door and yelling to him from just outside his doorway.

“Mo!” Peter shouted in frustration, turning over and hiding his head under his pillow.

“Morgan Stark!” Both the girl's parents scolded coming into the hallway from their bedroom.

“Daddy said I couldn't go into Petey’s room to wake him up anymore,” the girl shrugged innocently, “So, I didn't go into his room.”

Pepper herded her downstairs, scolding her as she went while Tony moved to the teen's doorway.

“Go back to sleep, Roo,” he soothed.

Peter groaned, sitting up, “I can't! I'm awake now.”

“Come on, Spider-baby,” the man replied, “Let's get some food in you.”

“Not a baby,” Peter whined, getting out of bed and walking towards his mentor. The man reached out and wrapped an arm around Peter. He still had a limp, so the teen adjusted his pace to match the man’s steps.

“OK, grumpy little spiderling,” Tony amended.

“Not little or grumpy,” Peter huffed.

Tony chuckled and pulled him closer, “If you say so, kid.” When they reached the kitchen, Pepper was working on dinner prep, and Morgan was seated, pouting, in her time out chair. Tony pulled the box of donuts out, opening it for Peter to take one. The teen snatched the coveted Spider-Man donut, holding it protectively close.

“Mine,” he hissed, still feeling rather out of sorts about his abrupt wake-up.

“Ok, Gollum. The precious is yours,” Tony said, rolling his eyes. He took an Iron Man themed one and offered the box to Pepper.

Morgan's eyes welled with tears and her already protruding lip stuck out even further.

“I wanted Spider-Man!” she wailed.

“Morgan, when we're in time out, we are quiet,” Pepper warned her daughter. She turned to her husband and took a donut. She looked between her distraught daughter and the brooding teen at the table and sighed, “Happy Thanksgiving, honey.”

Tony looked between both children and muttered, “Well, happy is probably not the word I'd use for it.”

Eventually, Morgan calmed down enough to apologize to Peter, and the teen woke up enough to be slightly less grumpy. The adults banished them from the kitchen to get ready for the day and entertain themselves, so they could get meal preparations done without the two underfoot.

Once he had showered and dressed, Peter helped Morgan bundle up and the two headed outside. It had been flurrying off and on since Monday, but today was the first day any snow was beginning to stick. It was really only a light dusting, but Morgan insisted on building an army of miniature snowmen. Pepper called them in for a light lunch around noon, but the two headed back outside to finish creating the army.

“Please make sure that she never has access to your suits,” Pepper commented, looking out the window at the ever growing army. Most of the grass in the yard and on the easily reached surfaces had now been uncovered, due to the two needing to use every bit of snow they found, but the number of snowmen they had managed to build was rather impressive.

“Definitely not,” her husband answered, joining her at the window, wrapping his arms around her, “She would use them to take over the world. And she has Spidey wrapped around her finger enough that he would probably help.”

Pepper grimaced, “Maybe don't leave him the suits either, in that case.”

Tony laughed, released his wife, and moved back to the table, picking up a knife to finish peeling potatoes. Pepper went back to the dishes she was making. Soon enough, the house was filled with the smells of Thanksgiving dinner.

“It smells really good!” Peter commented when he came in with Morgan to warm up.

“Thank you, Peter,” Pepper said as she turned to greet them. She surveyed the dripping pair, “Why don't you go and change into dry clothing. Happy and May will be here soon. Can you make sure Morgan changes as well.”

“Sure,” Peter answered, beginning to herd Morgan towards the stairs.

“Oh!” Pepper called after him, “Can you also make sure Tony is awake? He went up to rest about an hour ago.” Peter nodded and headed upstairs. He ushered Morgan into her room, handing her clothes to change into and then slipped into Tony and Pepper's bedroom. Mr. Stark lay dozing on top of the covers. He plopped on the bed next to the man, flinging his arms over him.

“You're wet,” Tony said dryly, cracking an eye open.

“Pepper said to wake you up!” Peter replied, giving his mentor his best innocent look.

Tony nudged him, “You have. Now, get off my bed before I have to figure out where we keep the spare sheets and change them.”

Peter acquiesced and stood. Tony sat up and frowned as he eyed the teen.

“And go change before I have a sick and frozen spider-baby.”

“Not a baby,” Peter called over his shoulder as he left the room. He quickly changed and rushed back downstairs to hover next to the front door, watching for his aunt and Happy, bouncing on his toes in anticipation. Soon enough, he heard the crunch of the gravel as the car approached. He flung open the door and darted on the porch.

“I take it that they're here,” Tony said, coming onto the porch behind him, Morgan on his heels. The car came into view and pulled to a stop at the end of the drive. Peter rushed to the passenger side, throwing his arms around May. She wrapped her arms around him in return, holding her nephew tight. Happy walked around to greet Tony and swung Morgan into his arms. Peter could hear Pepper's voice greeting the from the doorway as he finally pulled away from his aunt.

Peter's eye narrowed as he caught Happy's eyes. The asset manager’s face drained of color, and he swallowed.

“Hey, kid,” the man choked out. Peter just glared at him, stepping closer to his aunt, protectively.

“What did Happy do to you kid?” Tony questioned, raising a brow. Peter glanced over at his mentor, noting his confusion and Pepper's smile, hidden behind her hand. His gaze shifted back to Happy, his eyes narrowing further.

“What did you do, Happy?” Peter said shortly. Next to him, May snorted. The billionaire looked from the teen to his aunt to his friend and then to his wife. His mouth dropped open and eyes widened.

“No!” He exclaimed. Pepper started laughing. Tony began pointing, swinging his hand back and forth between May and Happy, sputtering “What…you…you have got to be kidding me!”

Peter and May joined Pepper in laughing. Once the kid was laughing, Happy managed to crack a smile. Tony stood there, still sputtering.

“What?” Morgan tugged on her dad's arm, “What is so funny?”

Pepper recovered first, “Daddy is surprised, that's all.”

The girl's brow wrinkled, “About what?”

“Your Uncle Happy has a girlfriend,” Tony answered, finally finding his words and slapping his friend on the back.

“Ew. Gross,” Morgan grimaced. The adults and the teen laughed as they moved inside.

“Are you ok with this, kid?” Happy asked quietly as Peter followed him into the house.

Peter couldn't stop the huge smile that spread over his face, “Yeah. I mean, don't hurt her, or I'll hurt you and all that. But yeah, I'm fine with it.”

Dinner was filled with laughter and conversation. Peter knew that no matter what happened with the Starks in the future, no matter if he was able to have moments like this again, this moment, this moment would be one he would never forget.

After they finished eating, Peter and Morgan helped Pepper and May clear the table, while Tony and Happy chatted.

“We'll have dessert when Rhodey arrives, but would anyone like decaffeinated coffee?” Pepper asked. Peter's hand shot up and both May and Tony requested a cup as well. Peter helped the CEO get the mugs ready and on the table.

After everyone was settled again, May looked over at Pepper and Tony and then made eye contact with Happy. The man nodded and turned to Morgan.

“Hey, squirt, why don't we go play a game?”

“Candyland? Can Petey play too?” the girl asked, bouncing in her chair.

“Mommy, Aunt May, and I need to talk with Pete right now, but we'll all play a game together later. Ok?” Tony said. Morgan pouted for a second but then brightened at the promise of more games. She jumped to her feet, grabbing Happy's hand, and dragging him to the living room.

Peter's brow furrowed, “I'm not in trouble am I?” He looked between the three adults.

May smiled fondly, “No, kiddo, we just need to talk with you about something without little ears around.”

“OK,” Peter drew out the word. Maybe this was when they told him Pepper was pregnant. They were probably telling him that he wouldn't be able to stay here much longer. He was hoping to get more time with them before he couldn't see them anymore, but if this was it, this was it, he guessed. He was really going to miss Mr. Stark. But maybe they would let him take his furniture from his compound room so May wouldn't have to buy him all new stuff? The Starks would need him to empty the room anyway. For the nursery. At least he would have everything from the room to remind him of Mr. Stark.

“-Pete?” Mr. Stark was saying when he tuned back into what the adults was saying. The man was waving his hand in front of his face, “Are you with us, kid?”

“Huh? Oh, uh, sorry,” he blushed, turning his attention back to the adults, steadying himself for the conversation he knew they were going to have.

“Have you been enjoying the time with Tony and Pepper, sweets?” May asked, reaching out to take his hand. The boy nodded mutely, trying to smile.

“I know we had originally talked about you only staying until I found us a new place, but how would you feel about staying a bit longer?”

Longer? How could he stay longer? Hadn't they told May yet? He couldn't impose on them like that!

“What do you mean?” he stammered.

May squeezed his hand and continued, “Since F.E.A.S.T. has done so well, in conjunction with S.I.’s Disaster Relief Fund, helping the returned throughout New York, we were approached by the Global Repatriation Council asking if we could provide training for workers and volunteers in other countries.”

“OK?” Peter was unsure of what this had to do with him staying longer. Especially when he needed to vacate his place here. Why didn't May know this?

May looked over at Tony and Pepper and then back at him. She gave him a small smile and said, “Peter, honey, they asked me to go. It would be for about six months, since I would be traveling to several different countries to lead the training.”

“Six months?” Peter repeated, his mouth suddenly feeling very dry.

“Off and on. I wouldn't be traveling the entire time, but it will be quite frequent. Tony and Pepper have offered to let you stay with them during the periods I am away.”

“Peter, this is only going to happen if you are comfortable with her taking the position,” his mentor told him, “But you are welcome to stay.”

Of course it would be an incredible opportunity for his aunt. She had always wanted to travel, but those plans had been put on hold when his parents died. And he knew she loved what she was doing with F.E.A.S.T. and was passionate about it. She would be amazing at training other people. He didn't want to hold her back from it. But what about the newest Stark? By the time May returned, Pepper would be almost due or just had the baby. Him taking their attention wouldn't be fair to the new addition to their family.

What would that mean for school? They were starting back full days after Christmas. Getting him there that early was way too much to ask of the Starks.

“What about school?” He managed to ask, quickly adding, “I think this sounds like something perfect for you, Aunt May. But this is so far from Midtown.”

Pepper glanced at Tony and then looked at him, smiling, “Peter, this was never going to be our permanent home. We initially bought it to use as a vacation home. After the first snap, this was a good place for us to retreat as a family, but once Morgan reached school age, we had always planned to move back to Manhattan. Even before reversing the snap, we were preparing to move back to the city in January. We purchased a new property over the summer and just finished renovations of the building, the penthouse, and a lab for Tony.”

OK. He couldn't argue with that.

“And I know I resisted their help with finding a place,” May said quietly, “But it has been so hard. There just aren't good options, especially if I do take this job. After talking with Pepper and Tony, I realized that I need to swallow my pride to do what is best for the two of us.”

“Now that we have finished the renovations of the building, we have several apartments in it that we will have available to rent out. We offered one of those to May, and she finally agreed,” Tony explained.

“I'll be busy with planning meetings and my own training between now and January, so you'll still be staying with Tony and Pepper for the most part, but once I'm settled, we'll have some time there, just the two of us,” his aunt added.

Peter nodded, unable to speak. He felt conflicting emotions about her leaving for so long. Staying with the Starks. Being so close that he still might be able to see them when the baby arrived. But he couldn't help feeling he would be even more of an intruder by then.

Around him, the adults were talking about plans. Plans for May moving into the new place as soon as she could get furniture (evidently her newfound ability to accept help from the Starks didn't extend to furnishing the place). Plans for both of them (and Happy and Rhodey) spending Christmas with the Starks at the cabin. Depending on where she was, plans Peter visiting over one of his breaks. Plans for him staying with her during the occasions she was in the city. Plans for him calling her several times a week and messaging daily. Plans. Plans. More plans. But nothing about the Starks not being able to focus on him anymore. Nothing about Pepper's pregnancy. Nothing about plans for the newest Stark.

Finally the teen couldn't hold it in anymore and shouted, “But what about the baby?”

Chapter Text

“What about the baby?” Peter repeated, quieter, squirming under the sudden attention of three pairs of shocked and confused eyes.

“Baby?” Pepper asked, bewilderment etched on her features. She looked around at her husband and friend to see if either of them knew what Peter meant.

“Your baby?” Peter asked. Now he was feeling confused.

“Morgan?” Tony questioned, trying to discern what the spider-kid meant, “She'll be fine with it. More than fine. She'll be thrilled.”

“No!” Peter said, growing frustrated, “The new one. What about the new baby?”

“Pete,” his mentor said slowly, “I don't think any of us know what you are talking about.”

“Your new baby,” Peter repeated, “The one you're having. You know, since Pepper's pregnant.”

“I'm pregnant?” Pepper asked, bemused. Peter felt even more confused.

“You're pregnant?” This time it came out as a question. Understanding dawned on Pepper's face.

“Peter,” she asked gently, “Can you hear a heartbeat? Is that how you know I'm pregnant?”

Peter's forehead wrinkled in bewilderment, “No! I mean, I could with Morgan. I figured it's too early with this one.”

“Then why do you think-” Tony started.

Pepper interrupted, demanding, “What do you mean you could with Morgan?”

“A few days before Thanos came I was in the elevator with you. I could hear her heartbeat. It took me a moment to figure out what I was hearing, but I figured you and Mr. Stark were planning on telling me later, so I waited to say something. Then Thanos happened. When I came back, Morgan was already four, so I figured there was no point in bringing it up,” Peter shrugged. This conversation was definitely not going how he expected.

Tony and Pepper exchanged a look of shock.

“Pete,” Tony said, “We didn't even know about Morgan then. Pep didn't find out until after the snap, while I was still in space.”

“Well, that explains why he wasn't surprised to find out about her,” Pepper murmured. She shook her head, as if to clear her thoughts and looked back at Peter, “But if you can't hear a heartbeat, why are you so certain I'm pregnant?”

“Because Mr. Stark said you are!” Peter exclaimed defensively. Pepper shot an accusatory look at her husband.

The man threw his hands up, “I have no idea what he's talking about. What in the world would make you think I was saying Pep was pregnant?”

“In the car, when you and Pepper picked me up after the first day of school,” Peter prompted, crossing his arms and feeling attacked.

Tony and Pepper looked even more confused. May was sitting back in her chair, smirking in amusement over the whole exchange. She had a sneaking suspicion of what led her nephew to his conclusion, but wanted to let him share his thought process to see if she was correct. Also, watching one of the most powerful couples in the world struggle with understanding a teenager was pure gold. Absolute gold.

“When,” Tony sputtered, “did I say that?”

Peter was exasperated, “You said you had children plural. You said “you didn't want that for your children”. Plural. You only have Morgan. What was I supposed to think? It was the logical conclusion.”

There was a beat of silence as the adults processed the information. Then, Pepper and May both burst out laughing. Peter sent a look of complete betrayal to both women. Tony rested his elbows on the table, dropping his face into his hands.

“Aunt May,” Peter whined. How could the woman who was practically his mother do this to him.

“Sorry, honey,” May said, shaking with laughter. She did not sound sorry in the slightest. Pepper laughed harder. Tony also began to laugh.

“Why is that so funny?” the teen complained, glaring at the three adults.

“Oh, sweetie,” Pepper managed, “for being so brilliant, you are oblivious.”

Well that wasn't very nice. Actually, it was kind of rude.

May nodded in agreement, “You are a clueless genius, sweetheart.”

Again, rude. Seriously? Were all of the adults in his life going to pick on him now? He turned to Tony.

The man wiped the tears from his eyes and stood. He walked to Peter and knelt before him, resting his hand on Peter's cheek, mirth still evident in his eyes.

“Roo,” he said gently, “I do have more than one kid. Morgan is one of them, but the second one isn't because Pep is pregnant. Although, if we're splitting hairs, Morgan would be second one-”

“Tony!” Pepper managed to scold in the midst of her laughter.

“Right,” the man said, “Kid, I have two kids. Morgan and you. You are my other kid. My first kid. When I said children plural, you were included in that.”

Peter had not known that. At all. And even if May and Pepper were right, it was still rude.

“But, why were you so upset?” Peter asked, confused, thinking back to what he had overheard. He didn't pay much attention to their conversation when he thought it was about someone else, but since it was about him, he wanted to know.

“Peter,” May spoke for the first time in a while, “Even if Tony and Pepper didn’t think of you as their kid, we all still would have been upset. How close we are to the Starks has never been a mystery to the school. That they are your emergency contacts and have been given my full permission to act in proxy for me in meetings with the school is on record with them. That teacher should have given you the option to sit out for that lesson or should not have covered it. There was no need to do a spotlight on Tony, much less force you to sit through it.”

Oh yeah. He'd forgotten that pre-Blip, Tony, and occasionally Pepper, would show up at school to pick him up when he was sick, attend meetings with teachers, and on one infamous occasion, to pick up Peter after he had gotten into a fight with a classmate. And that was why Principal Morita had been so willing to meet with Pepper when she went in to complain. Huh. Maybe he would have figured out what Tony meant if he had remembered all that. Pepper and May might just have a point. Still rude. But a point. And still rude. He would NOT be forgetting that part anytime soon.

“You forgot that, didn't you?" Tony said, watching Peter’s face carefully.

“No,” Peter said petulantly. At Tony's raised eyebrow, he crossed his arms and muttered, “Maybe.”

“Oh, Roo,” the man sighed, standing and pulling Peter up, resting his hands on his shoulders, “Even if Pep and I ever do have another kid, you would not be replaced. You would still be just as much my kid as Morgan and the other kid. You, my brilliant boy, will always be my first. Completely irreplaceable ” With that, he pulled the teen into a tight embrace. It reminded Peter of the hug in the middle of the battle.

“This is nice,” he couldn't help murmuring. Tony laughed, holding him tighter. On second thought, this was much nicer than the other hug. No chaos. No battle. No Thanos. No Infinity Stones. Just the man who had loved him and chosen him. Called him his kid.

Morgan chose that moment to come bounding back into the room. She stopped short and looked curiously at her father and the teenager and then her mother and May as they were trying to control their laughter.

“What's so funny?” the girl demanded, crossing her arms, stomping her foot, and looking pointedly at all the adults. Peter peeked over at her, amazed at how she manage to perfectly emulated both Tony and Pepper in one look.

“Your brother,” Tony began (Peter’s heart leapt at that), “your brother is very, very smart, but he is also very silly.”

“Yes, he is the smartest,” Morgan said thoughtfully, “Probably the silliest too. He's the bestest at everything.”

“This is all very rude,” Peter grumbled, “I feel attacked.”

“Tones, quit attacking the kid,” Rhodey's voice came from the doorway.

“Now, Honey Bear, no one is attacking anyone,” Tony replied, shooting his best friend a grin, “And if you continue to throw around false allegations, I'll have to ask you to leave.”

“I just walked in the door!” Rhodey complained, “Anyway, I was promised a game night, and here you all are cackling like crows without a game in sight.”

“Candyland!” Morgan all but shouted.

“No! No Candyland,” Happy emphatically declared as he came in from the living room, “I've just played three games with her majesty, and she is vicious!”

“Monopoly?” Pepper suggested with a glint in her eyes.

“I refuse to play Monopoly with you and Tony. You both team up against me every time and cheat,” Peter protested with a pout. Peter had started winning once. Just once. And the billionaire and CEO decided to team up and take out the kid. They then realized how much it annoyed Peter, and had made it their mission to do so ever since.

“How about no board game and something like charades?” May suggested. Happy groaned, but everyone else readily agreed.

Tony went to pull away from Peter to help get things set up when he froze, “Kid, are you sticking to me right now?”

“Yep,” Peter said cheerfully, burrowing closer, “It happens when I'm happy. I can't help it.”

“I can be sticky, too!” Morgan declared launching herself at the pair. Rhodey reached out and snatched her before she could knock her father off balance.

“I think one sticky child per person is enough,” he declared, sweeping his niece into his arms, “Why don't you stick to me instead?”

“Ok!” Morgan acquiesced, throwing her arms around her uncle's neck. Meanwhile, Tony managed to peel the spider-child off of him and moved to help get things set up in the living room for the game, dragging Peter along with him, leaving Rhodey to entertain Morgan, while the others got things ready in the kitchen.

Pepper made homemade hot chocolate on the stove, while May and Happy set out the desserts, so people could grab what they wanted before moving to the living room. Tony had to stop both Peter and Morgan from adding an excess of both whipped cream and marshmallows to their hot chocolate, declaring he didn't need two children climbing the walls. One with that ability was enough, thank you very much. Peter preened at being referred to as one of Tony's children, bursting with joy at knowing that not only was he not intruding, but he was a part of the man's family.

After some disagreement over teams, Rhodey declared that he got both kids and the couples could be there own teams.

“I don't want to watch you making eyes longingly across the room at each other-”

“Ew! Gross! Can we not talk about that please!” Peter complained.

“Ew, gross,” Morgan repeated giggling.

“No one would be making eyes,” Happy argued.

“Seriously! Stop!” the teen whined, while the over-excited four-year-old echoed him.

“As I was saying,” Rhodey interrupted, raising his voice to be heard over the noise, “You all have your whole couple telepathic thinking thing going on-”

“I've only been dating Happy for a week,” May countered. Rhodey sighed in irritation.

“I've never been able to discover if Tony is unable to read my mind or if he just doesn't care,” Pepper said cheerfully, “Maybe being on a team with him will clear that up.” Tony smirked, leaning over to kiss his wife. Peter groaned, hiding his face in his hands, ears turning bright red.

“Why?” he complained, “Can I leave? I don't want to be anywhere near you guys!”

“No,” the adults chorused. The teen collapsed on the couch, arms crossed and pouting. Morgan plopped next to him and copied his expression. Tony took in both of his children before turning to Rhodey, “They are all yours!”

Peter promptly stuck his tongue out at the man. The game progressed along that vein. Rhodey quickly regretted his choice of partners when Morgan refused to guess and only copied Peter's actions.

“Hey, Morgan, what do you think Peter is?” Rhodey asked, trying to decipher the teen’s movements. Morgan's only response was to look him dead in the eye and mimic her brother. Rhodey resisted the urge to either facepalm or flip off his best friend who sat howling with laughter.

“This is your fault,” he chose to say instead, which only succeeded in making Tony roar louder. The billionaire and his wife easily managed to beat everyone.

“I think it's bedtime for all those under five,” Pepper declared as her daughter began falling asleep in Peter’s arms. She took the girl upstairs, leaving everyone else in the living room.

“So, what exactly did I walk in on earlier?” Rhodey seized the opportunity to ask. The teenager dramatically groaned and hid his face with a pillow. May gleefully explained her nephew's misunderstanding.

Rhodey shook his head and looked at Tony, “I thought you took the cake for being blind to the obvious, but your kid might have your beat.” Peter groaned once more in response, realizing they were never going to let him live it down. Tony studied his child and began to gather the dirty dishes.

“Help me carry these to the kitchen, Roo.”

Eager to escape his misery, Peter jumped to his feet and helped his mentor carry the dishes to the kitchen. Once the dishes were next to the sink, Tony took the opportunity to grasp Peter by the shoulders and look him in the eye.

“I hope you know,” He said slowly, “That you are mine. Even before Thanos, you were mine, I just never knew how to say it. And every day you were gone, I regretted it. The reason the Blip was reversed, and the one I traveled time to save. You are a one and only, Kid.”

“Um, what do you mean ‘reason the Blip was reversed’?” Peter asked cautiously. Tony ran his fingers through his hair before drawing him close and kissing his temple.

“You were my inspiration for how I solved the problem. Getting you back was the reason I said yes to helping. You were the only thing worth the risk.”

Peter felt tears stinging his eyes as he looked up into his mentor’s face. After weeks of feeling like he was imposing on them and intruding on their family, he couldn't believe how he had missed the love so evident on Tony's face.

“He's right, you know.”

Peter looked over to the door to see Pepper standing there. She had a soft smile on her face, and her expression, too, was filled with love and warmth. Peter held out an arm to her, and she immediately moved to join the embrace.

“So, is that why all my stuff is here?” Peter asked, finally voicing the question that had been plaguing him since he had moved into their home. Tony gave a wet chuckle.

“Kid, we moved your stuff here when we moved into this place. It’s been your room since before we knew whether or not we could reverse the snap. You’ve had a place here as long as we have lived here, because you’re my kid,” The man whispered fiercely, holding Peter tighter.

“Our kid,” Pepper correctly, softly, “You're not just May’s kid or Tony's kid. You're my kid, too. And no matter what happens when May gets back, whether you stay with her or us or split your time between us, no matter where you go to college-”

“MIT, obviously,” Tony interjected.

“No matter where you go to college,” Pepper repeated firmly, shooting a glare at her husband, “Or whether you stay in New York or move someplace else, you will always have a place here with us. You will always belong with us.”

“I actually do want to go to MIT,” Peter asserted. Tony beamed with pride.

“That's my boy!” the man was practically glowing.

“There are two of you,” Pepper sighed. Tony merely grinned wider and kissed his wife. Peter pulled away from both of them, squeezing his eyes shut and throwing his hands over his face.

“Stop it!” he whined, “No one wants to watch their parents do that.” He peeked through his fingers enough to navigate his way out of the kitchen, as far from the overly affectionate couple as possible, missing the way the couple beamed at being referred to as the teen’s parents.

“If you ever think of kissing my aunt around me,” he snapped at Happy as he entered the living room, hand on one hip and the other pointing menacingly at the man, “I will web you to the roof.”

The head of security paled and then blushed.

“Duly noted,” the man said quickly. Peter ignored his aunt's snickers, giving Happy a nod of satisfaction before moving to sit beside Rhodey. Tony and Pepper wandered back into the room.

“So,” Tony said, taking the seat next to Peter, “What are we doing now? More charades? Is Candyland safe now that Madam Secretary is in bed? Monopoly?” He said the last one with a smirk directed at Peter.

“No Monopoly!” Peter said firmly, shooting a glare at the man.

“Uno?” May hesitantly suggested. It was met with approval all around, and the group proceeded to play a few rounds before Rhodey stood, stretching.

“Well, this has been fun and all, but I need my beauty sleep,” he declared.

“Might be a lost cause, Platypus,” Tony snarked.

“Pot meet kettle,” Rhodey retorted. His best friend snorted, also standing.

“Are your bags in the car? I'll help you bring them to the guest room.”

‘“By the door. And you do not need to be carrying anything right now. I wouldn't want your doctors yelling at me. But I do need to know, does the bellhop service come with breakfast in bed tomorrow morning even if I don't have you carry my bags?”

“Only if you get it yourself,” Tony replied with a smirk. Rhodey muttered something about “service these days” and went to retrieve his luggage.

“We need to be heading out,” Happy said to his girlfriend. She nodded and extended an arm to her nephew.

“Walk outside with me?” she asked. Peter nodded and followed the couple outside. Happy continued to the car, saying goodnight to Peter before he left, while May paused on the porch with the teen.

She rubbed his arm, “Are you ok with this? I know it's sudden.”

Peter bit his lip, thinking, before he answered,”Yeah. Yeah, I am. I'll miss you, but right now I think this is where I need to be.”

“I'm not leaving until after Christmas, so I'll be there for the holidays. We'll have plenty of time to spend together before I leave. And I will be in the new apartment in a few weeks, so you can definitely spend several nights with me.”

“I'd like that,” Peter grinned, leaning into May’s side as her arm tightened around him.

“Tony and Pepper have been coparenting you with me for so long, it's probably time I officially give them joint custody anyway,” May joked, “You've given me enough gray hairs. It's time to spread the wealth.”

“Hey!” Peter protested as his aunt laughed. She used her free hand to brush the hair out of his face, giving him a soft smile.

“We'll be ok, Peter,” she whispered, “You deserve time with your parents.”

Peter chewed his lip again, staring at the floor before he cautiously looked back up at his aunt, “You're ok with that? That I think of them like that?”

“More than ok,” May said gently, “Honey, your uncle and I never wanted to replace your mom and dad, especially because Ben was so close to your dad. It tore him apart the one time you called him dad, because your.dad was his big brother. Richard and Mary will always be your parents, and no one can ever replace them. But love is a crazy thing. The more we give, the more we have. There is plenty of space in that oversized heart of yours to love another set of parents too. And Tony and Pepper have loved you and parented you for so long, it's only natural for you to feel that way about them. I can't think of a better couple to share you with than them.”

Peter gave her a huge grin and wrapped both his arms around her, “Thank you, Aunt May. I love you.”

“Love you, too, sweetheart,” she answered, squeezing him tight before letting him go and moving down the porch steps towards the car.

“You know they'll never replace what you are to me, right?” the teen blurted, suddenly afraid to let her leave without confirmation that she knew that. She turned and looked back at him, her gaze full of compassion and understanding.

“I know, sweetie,” she answered with a gentle smile, before heading to where Happy waited. Peter watched her go, giving a wave to her as she looked over at him one final time before getting settled in the passenger seat.

Tony slipped on the porch as Happy and May drove off. His spider-teen stood leaning over the railing, a smile on his face, looking far more content and at peace than he had since coming back from the Blip. Tony's heart flooded with warmth knowing that his kid finally realized that he was at home.

“You know, now that you'll be stuck with me full time, you have to start calling me Tony,” the older man teased, coming to stand next to the teen. He studied the look of consternation on the Peter’’s face.

“Pete?” he asked. The boy bit his lip and wrapped his arms around himself, looking down at the floor, taking a couple of deep, steadying breaths.

“Doesn't feel right,” the teen finally mumbled. Tony wrinkled his eyebrows.

“It doesn't feel right?” the man repeated, confused.

“I said it when you…after you…when I was…” Peter trailed off for a second before repeating, “It just doesn't feel right.”

Tony immediately understood the event Peter meant. The only time the teen had called him Tony was right after the snap that ended Thanos, the snap that almost ended his life. No wonder it didn't feel right. Calling him “Tony” was connected to one of the worst moments in the teen’s life.

“And Mr. Stark feels right,” he surmised. He was surprised when the boy emphatically shook his head. He asked in confusion, “So what does feel right, then?”

Peter was silent for a minute but then looked shyly over at him and hesitantly whispered, “Dad?”

Tony melted and drew the teen into his arms, burying his face in Peter’s brown curls. The boy wrapped his arms around the older man, snuggling close to his chest.

“Yeah,” Tony agreed softly, “Dad is perfect.” They stood like that for a few moments. Suddenly, Peter gasped and pulled away.

“I have to call Ned!”

Tony looked at the teen skeptically, “I like Fred and all, but why are we interrupting this beautiful moment of father and son bonding to talk to him?” Peter made a face.

“Too sappy,” the teen proclaimed, before adding, “He might think Pepper is pregnant. I should probably let him know she isn't before his excitement gets the best of him and he accidentally tells the press or something.”

The older man closed his eyes and pinched his nose between his fingers, “Go on kid.” Peter gave him one last hug and dashed off to call his best friend.

The billionaire, philanthropist, husband, and father couldn't stop the grin from breaking out on his face as he watched his oldest, his kid, his son head back inside the house. His entire world was through that door. After five years of missing his kid, his family was together. His family was complete. And with his heart overflowing with joy, he went inside to join them.