Chapter Text
Chatter fills the lobby. Their gestures are loud and their volume shy of being socially inappropriate.
“You just had to be there.” Ned says, followed by a dreamy sigh. He is clad in a blush button up layered underneath a dark blue jacket. His eyes curve into crescents, mirth dances in those dark brown eyes. “Too bad you hadddd to pick up a shift at the last minute.”
Peter laughs. His laugh draws the attention of people around them, it contrasts against their rowdy actions; for it is soft and alluring. His gaze shifts between his two friends, Ned and MJ. “What kind of friend does that anyways? Ditching us without a second thought.”
MJ smiles, a brief thing. She shakes her head, shrugging. Their stacked light hearted teasing eases the tension of her frame. The group of friends had an unpleasant run in with Flash after their academic decathlon meeting. “Still on about that?” She asks, “I didn’t think I’d have to remind you who is paying for dinner tonight.”
Peter and Ned quickly murmur an apology alike. The elevator chirps, opening its doors.
A silence looms in the air for a minute while they wait for the doors to close. The elevator of Peter’s apartment complex is an old run down thing, it’s a surprise how it passes the maintenance checks. It doesn’t help Peter’s paranoia when his super hearing picks up every creak and drum of the thing.
“Peter and I were at the Stark tower, the usual. Right?” Ned looks at both of his friends, already finding their eyes on him. “Doctor Strange—”
“He called him Mr. Doctor Strange sir.” Peter whispers to MJ, pointless since Ned still heard. A chuckle escapes MJ’s lips.
“Dude, not cool.” Ned shoots a pointed look at Peter; who raises his hands in surrender.
“Doctor Strange.” Ned pauses, waiting for them to let out their giggles before he can move on. “Doctor Strange walked in with Mr. Stark and they were totally fighting.”
“We don’t know for sure.” Peter adds, his eyebrows furrowed in thought.
Ned groans, throwing his hands up in the air, “It was so obvious, Peter.”
“A lover’s quarrel?” MJ suggests, wiggling her eyebrows. Peter and Ned cringe at the thought, muttering how gross and weird that was.
“Ahem. Moving on. They were arguing about…something? I didn't catch it.” Ned frowns, trying to remember what they were talking about. He was too awe struck to remember anything in his daze.
MJ sighs, “There goes my plans of selling it to the tabloids.” She leans against the wall, ignoring the elevator’s handrails pressing against her back.
Peter’s lips quirk up in a gentle smile, fond of his friends. He must not believe MJ was being serious or otherwise he would not be that relaxed, scolding them about breaching his co-worker’s private matters.
“Peter introduced me to Doctor Strange. After some talking we discovered that I had a natural infinity for magic.” Ned explains, he himself can’t believe it. Well he can actually. Ned’s Lola has called him magic, and sometimes he felt a weird sensation in his hands that never went away even after trying hand massages on the internet. It’s different to hear it from Doctor Strange; someone he holds on a pedestal. It felt weird though, he was just mimicking what he saw in fantasy movies, muttering all sorts of weird combinations of words. It is shocking it worked.
“Theres some family history.” Peter chimes in. “Doctor Strange was impressed.”
“He was.” Ned stands a little straighter, in pride. His cheeks ache from grinning too much. “You guys think I’d be better than him at magic?”
“Oh yeah.”
“Duh.”
“How did he figure out your natural talent for magic?” MJ pressed on, raising an eyebrow. It seems like so much has happened in the afternoon she was gone.
“Mr. Stark pestered him to let me use his magician tools or whatever. Mr. Stark called them toys. That peeved Doctor Strange so they went at it again.”
“We discovered Ned could open portals with the sling ring.” Peter added, and thank fuck for him because MJ was a little lost. What the fuck is a sling ring?
“We are going to experiment what exactly I can do with it. We found out that I can open a portal to anywhere.”
“Basically anywhere. Ned has to have prior knowledge. He created a portal to this diner we went to last week. Y’know the one. He’s lucky it was closed and dark out. Otherwise, there would be a lot of questions.” Peter hums, eyeing his undone shoelaces in distaste. He really should tie them but they are almost at his apartment. “Wait. What do you mean experiment?”
“Ned. Don't tell me…” MJ starts. It’s never a dull day with these two around. MJ doesn't mind, but it's starting to become more troublesome recently.
Ned avoids their gaze, facing the wall. His eyes trace every button. He considers getting off the elevator right now. “I accidentally stole it?”
“You stole the sling ring?” Peter's eyes are wide. “Mr. Stark and Doctor Strange are going to kill me.”
“Ned.” MJ’s tone is laced in disbelief. For all Doctor Strange knows, these two are just some kids. Well, Stark’s kid and then his kid by association.
Ned retrieved the aforementioned from his pockets for a split second. A weathered golden ring with black accents. He shows it off long enough for his friends to get a good look before stuffing it back in when the elevator doors open.
They are silent until they reach Peter’s apartment. They leave their shoes at the shoe rack, careful in their organization. Peter hangs his keys by the doorway. They shout a greeting to Aunt May when they pass the kitchen.
“No way.” Peter says once he shuts his door. They sit in a circle on the floor. “You held onto it this whole time? It's been two days. Why didn't you say anything?”
“This is going to sound crazy. I think Mr. Stark helped me steal it. Or get away with it.” Ned admits.
“Yeah that is crazy.”
“You’re serious?”
Ned nods, “Mr. Stark isn't the type to pass on a discovery like this, as you know.” Ned turns to Peter. “I’m pretty sure he’s intrigued by magic but he’d rather die than tell Doctor Strange that. Mr. Stark began to lead him away to his office or something after the whole thing with the portals. I need my eyes checked because I swore he winked at me.”
“I should have expected that.”
“So you’re trying to experiment with it?”
“I’m not going to let this opportunity pass up.” Ned’s decision is firm. “Are you guys with me?” He already knows the answer. Would they even be friends if they weren't as curious as him?
“So we discovered your portals can open about anywhere as long as you have some idea of where it's located.” MJ repeats, more for herself than the two. “What about fictional worlds?”
“Oh, like Star Wars?” Ned and Peter turn to each other, eyes filled with glee at the possibilities. Though maybe they should put a hold on that, at least until Ned can accurately pin point where in the timeline he wants to be. If it even works like that.
Peter turns around, and rummages through his bottom shelf of movies. They are mainly alien movies, or some romance. They don't want to risk their safety and romance isn't something they are looking for.
Ned spots a CD in a sleeve, “What about this?” Ned holds up the disc. Mischief dances in his eyes.
“Don’t remind me.” Peter sighs, his tone is fond.
“Ned I love you.” MJ smiles, good to know she is on board with the idea.
Scribbled in sharpie, reads [From The Shadows Into The Light], a game created by all three of them.
An otome game. MJ took care of the graphic designs and soundtrack. Ned and Peter worked on the programming to make it function. Together, they brainstormed the character routes and developed the good and bad endings. They tested it out themselves and while it is fun, it's so tedious with the affection levels. You gain one affection point, be careful not to breathe too loud or you’re in the negatives.
There's only one existing copy and Ned is holding it.
It’s heavily inspired by the DC comics they found in Mr. Stark’s office. That’s putting it lightly, they kinda ripped the entire thing off by including the same backstories, characters and cities.
The only thing that was their idea was the routes, some new events, the main female lead (player), and the fact that Mr. Stark is a minor villain.
Mr. Stark is an obstacle for the male characters when it comes to pursuing the female lead. He’s surrounded by death flags, though his actual death is a fade to black sort of deal. Peter isn't so cruel. The only reason Stark is included in this otome game as a villain is because he banned Peter from the labs for two weeks. It's justified.
If Mr. Stark had a problem with it, he’d confront Peter and his friends. They didn’t take any measures to prevent this from reaching his desk. There’s no way he doesn't know already, he’s Tony Stark.
He’s one of the few unromanceable characters, because that sends full body shivers up everyone’s spine just even thinking of him like that.
Mr. Stark is a huge fan of the DC comics, if anything he’s probably flattered. In a weird way that only he could achieve.
They stare intently at Ned who already moved on without them. Waving his hand around with no idea what he's doing, and blabbering nonsense.
The door swings open, causing Peter and MJ to flinch. “Starting without me?” Talk about the devil and he shall appear.
Clad in a designer suit, Tony Stark leans against the doorway. “You might want to upgrade your security, anyone can get in.”
Peter doesn’t think he’s talking about the front door. Otherwise Aunt May would be storming in here and grabbing Mr. Stark by the ear. She did it once. She’ll do it again. He’ll have to check the windows soon. Either a latch is broken or the whole window is gone. You can never be too sure with Mr. Stark.
Ned, who’s been in his own world trying to figure out a combination to open a portal. It’s more of a struggle this time. Peter assumes it is because a fictional world is way different from the park they pass by every morning.
“Ned?” Tony asks, his voice leans into amusement. His sunglasses perched on his head, a stylistic choice. Considering it is a very gloomy afternoon in New York. “Hows it going?”
Ned had meant to wave at Mr. Stark. It didn't go as planned, accidentally directing the magic currents towards Mr. Stark. His face dropped in shock, along with Peter and MJ’s. The worst possible outcome to ever happen, well, it happened.
He heard the crackling of a portal ripping through time and space, and saw it too. A neon yellow circular outline swallowed Tony Stark. The media is going to have a field day when they realize that he’s disappeared. The headlines are going to make jabs at his character, claiming he abandoned New York.
“I’m not halluncinating…did Mr. Stark just got sucked into our otome game?” Ned questions, and he already knows the answer.
Peter blinks, the motion is slow, similar to how someone would try to fight off sleep. “We are screwed.”
“It could be worse.” MJ clears her throat. And it could be. It could always be worse. But dropping Peter’s billionaire dad in all but name in their DC otome game takes the cake.
They just hope that Tony ends up in Metropolis instead of Gotham.
“How long do we have until Mr. Stark’s bodyguards come after us?”
“Well, assuming he lost them before he reached my place, twenty minutes. Who am I kidding? Five minutes.”
“Forget that. What about Doctor Strange?”