Chapter Text
New York- June 2016
They stood on the roof of a nearby building, looking down at the wreckage before them, watching as the police swarmed to investigate the incident. Law enforcement would no doubt find the Vulture amongst the debris soon.
Peter wanted to rub at his face, but that would only smear the blood around, and he did not wish to make things look even more gruesome than they already were in Tony’s eyes.
This wasn't his life a year ago, but he’s been on this path since he was 11 years old when the world exploded with superhumans and heroes. There wasn’t any other choice, but to become Spider-Man and he didn't regret it. However, gazing at the damage in front of him, he certainly wasn't ready to be a big time hero. It's best he sticks to being the 'small neighborhood Spider-Man' for as long as possible. Considering the look on Tony's face it probably won't be long.
Tony whirled the suit around to examine Peter in his cobbled together Spider-Man sweats, “Start from the beginning, leave nothing out. Justify your actions.” Tony’s tone was harsh, and it made Peter feel small.
Stutteringly, Peter began to tell the tale.
“It was my idea, my problem. They were all just trying to help,” Peter lifted his chin to look Tony head-on in his suit, while he was dressed in costume pajamas.
Tony simply raised an eyebrow and crossed his metallic arms.
“Long short short about 8 months ago, when our classmates went on the Oscorp field trip, I got bit by a radioactive spider. Someway… somehow the bite gave me abilities.. superpowers. I have superhuman strength and speedy reflexes,” -his tone increased in pitch from excitement-, “durability, a healing factor and what Riri calls my 'spider sense'. Sometimes I can just feel danger coming.” Peter wanted to pace as he spoke, but he was also aware that he definitely broke a rib and did not want to aggravate it.
“And how exactly did you find all of this out?” Tony prodded.
Peter blushed, caught in something he had wanted to conceal, “the 5 of us, including my friend Ned, experimented on my different abilities a lot and they’ve been helping me train and find criminals and…,” Peter’s voice trailed off as he looked down again, “Like I said it’s not on them, they were just helping me stay out of trouble-.”
Tony balked, “You call this staying out of trouble?! Ok, so you have superpowers for months and you don't come to me for help. You just decide to rely on yourselves. How did you get here?!” Tony was yelling now as he pointed to the chaos below them, thankfully no one had noticed them otherwise there would be more questions to answer.
“Ok so, this part of things started at the beginning of the year, as you can see and saw”- Peter gestured to himself- “I’m Spider-Man and I was just trying to help.”
“Ah, yes, the videos of you backflipping on Youtube are really helping the world.”
Peter continued as if he hadn't heard Tony's sarcastic comment, “We had noticed that some of the petty thieves and more violent muggers had gotten their hands on some kind of alien technology. And we, Maddie actually, created a little tracker for us to follow them to the source and that’s how we found the Vulture and his men. After the trip to Washington, Harley noticed the FBI catching the case, and we were going to back off, I swear.
"But then my prom date's dad turned out to be the Vulture and we knew his movements conceded too closely to your transporting plane so-. It seemed like the right idea to simply just take care of it ourselves. There were no casualties, I just want to emphasize that.” Sure Peter wasn’t directly in control of making that happen, but still no human damage, only property.
Tony sighed, “Peter, you are a very smart person, and everything I've heard hasn't had you justify, why. Why did you put yourself in danger? Why did you specifically go behind my back to do all this?”
“Because if you can do the things I can, help people in terrible situations but you don't, when bad things happen then that's on you.” A pause and a breath. Grief threatened to over take him as he thought back to the night of Uncle Ben's death. “Isn't that why you’ve done all you have?”
Tony wanted to smile, but held his poker face. He was proud that all his time travel shenanigans hadn't affected the innate personality of Peter Parker, the boy who just wanted to reach for a better world.
“And why wouldn't you let me help?” A simple question.
“Well, you’ve had so much on your plate lately, from the creation of the nine realms highway, to HYDRA coming out of the woodworks, Captain America turning out to be an asshole, not to mention Stephen's car accident and recovery. It never felt like a good time to add more concerns to your massive pile. You had more important things to do, and this was something I could do to lighten the load.”
Tony couldn't have had any other response, but to retract the suit from his frame and wrap his arms around Peter. At this point in time he had shared many hugs with his kids, but he will never tire of the trust placed on him. “I don't care if world-conquering aliens fall from the sky and life on earth ends. I still want to know about your homework trouble and the struggles of finding a date to homecoming and just… all you kids are mine, do you understand? I've taken responsibility for you and I take it very seriously.”
Peter gripped Tony tightly, nodding into his neck, obviously choking back tears.
“However, I cannot let these actions go uncontested. There has to be consequences, because you just got lucky and that is not always something you can rely on. So you and your compatriots are to meet me on Monday after school in the lab. There is much to discuss and a lot of monitoring in your future. Let the others know that a serious conversation is coming their way.” Tony stepped back from the newly anxious Peter, “Head straight home I'm tracking you until you get there. Go.”
Tony flew off the edge of the building and into the clouds and watched as Peter scrambled to swing away. It seems children always grow up too fast and it is time to pull out the reserved Iron-Spider.
___________
“That was it? He didn't say anything else? No punishments or rewards?” Harley prodded, asking the same question for the millionth time, “because if I’m walking into my doom, I’d like some forewarning.”
“I told you everything that happened, there were no clues to indicate punishment or reward,” Peter sighed as they both stepped into the elevator, beeped their identification codes in, and felt the whoosh upwards toward their groups lab space.
The first person to greet them was Riri at her desk scrambling through her notes and seemingly trying to memorize all her work.
Peter attempted to slow her down by waving a hand in front of the computer screen. “What's going on? Why do you feel so …panicky?”
The answer came from behind, as Maddie came through the side office door munching on a chocolate bar. “Riri’s convinced that we’ve pushed Tony's buttons too far this time and he's going to fire us or something like that. So she is trying to collect all the important information in her head. Me? I'm just going to keep eating his snacks. If I gotta go, he's not keeping his chocolate.”
Immediately, Harley turned to the nearest sensor, “JARVIS, FRIDAY is Tony firing us?” Harley wasn't sure he could lose another father-figure.
“I am quite certain that Sir’s plan doesn't include any terminations.” JARVIS answered.
But FRIDAY rebutted, “But we aren't quite sure what Boss’ plan is, simply that he's preparing for a change of plans. He has been very secretive even from us.”
Peter now had a new fear growing in his heart. “That's not very reassuring.”
He thought this meeting would be a lecture, about keeping secrets, and pushing boundaries. He never imagined being barred from Stark Industries and it's tech or worse being pushed out of Tony’s life.
Peter would take the fall, then, he began to tell them as such, “I'm sorry, I dragged you all into this. I hope we aren't being left behind, but I don't want to be the reason anyone has to leave. If he makes it an ultimatum, I'll take all the blame and go. That way you guys can keep being interns and stuff. So you can calm down, Riri, please.”
Riri stopped moving at the beginning of his speech and huffed at its conclusion. Placing HONEY’s developing code away, she rolled her eyes at him, “Come on Peter, as if we aren't going to be a united front on this. Tony put us on this path with the scholarship outreach and the meet-and-greet at his own wedding. We are all family now and if he dares to pit us against each other, he will quickly rue the day he brought us together.”
She came around the table to grab a hold of Peter’s hand and sent a pointed look at Maddie and Harley, “For the record, I don't think we are actually being fired. But… just in case he ‘grounds’ us and takes away lab privileges, I want to remember where I left off.”
“Boss is on his way up, get ready.” FRIDAY warned them like Riri had asked and the four of them began shuffling around making whispered instructions to act natural.
Tony entered to observe some very studious workers at various stations and knew that the appearances were staged, “Hmm. To the break room couch children, double time please.”
Peter was the first through the door, eager to get the conversation over with, while Maddie lingered behind trying to dissect Tony with her eyes.
Tony simply raised an expectant eyebrow, before she walked past to take the empty space at the end of the couch.
Tony paused taking in their postures, Peter was slumping avoiding eye contact, both Harley and Riri looked at him head on, one intrigued the other suspicious, while Maddie was full on glaring. Tony missed the shy sweet child Maddie used to be, but trauma changes a person.
“I have been hearing the rumors, so let me put them to rest. No one is getting fired. As if I could even fire my own children.” Tony snorted, “But things are going to change around here for the better hopefully. Less secret keeping for one.” The disapproving look he shot at the four of them shook Peter's heart.
“So do the three of you,” Tony referred to Maddie, Riri, and Harley, “have any good explanation on why you didn't let me in on Spider-Man's little project and let things progress as far as the destruction of an amusement park.”
“We were supporting a friend,” was the straightforward line spoken by Harley.
“And why could I not support that friend with you?”
Riri twitched her shoulders, sending a side glance at Peter, “It just felt like something we had to do on our own.”
“Ahh independence, teenagers are always craving it and never know what to do when they have it.”
“We could have been more… transparent yes. But at some point adulthood is thrown in your face and we chose to deal with it how we could. From your very example, you can't blame us for that.” Maddie's snarky words reminded Tony of his role here.
Tony hummed, “Peter said something very similar and you are both right. I will start by taking a more hands-on approach to this internship versus the free creative space I've been providing,” -I like that free creative space Harley interrupted him but Tony ignored it to continue on- “but first a history lesson. Can anyone tell me what the Mali Empire, Maurya India, Han China, Achaemenid Persia, and the West Roman Empire all have in common?”
The four children on the couch eyed one another and the confusion on the out-of-left-field subject hung in the air. The elevator door dinged as Riri spoke their shared answer, “Well, considering those are all empires and don't really exist anymore, then I’m thinking your point is that they fell, collapsed, got destroyed multiple other synonyms.”
Stephen strutted into the room, after a brief look around the lab, to catch the tail of their conversation, “Please tell me you weren't or aren't destroying more things. The ceiling hasn't recovered from Harley's flame thrower.”
“Nope, just a simple history lesson,” Tony leaned into Stephen’s greeting kiss. As his husband found a seat at the kitchenette counter, Tony reoriented onto the conversation “and yes, Riri, they fell. But why?”
“Oh, most empires fall due to rapid over-expansion and an inability to keep up with food demands of the ever increasing population, which leads to rebellion.” Peter's words sounded scripted and he had probably used a very similar sentence on a research paper.
Tony snapped, “That's correct, but the more important reason is the in-fighting. Disagreements and bureaucracy are what lead to mismanaged resources and that takes all empires down. And I tell you all this to discourage you from breaking my empire.”
“An empire? Tony, I know we joke, but please don’t actually take over the world,” Pepper announced her arrival by the heels clicking on the ground. “What's going on, Tony? My assistant checked my schedule and JARVIS had added this meeting. Which I hope won’t become a common occurrence. What do you need?”
“I do apologize for meddling without your permission, Ms. Potts, but Sir insisted,” JARVIS' tone was apologetic.
Pepper waved her hand at JARVIS' sensor dismissively, “I know it was Tony's fault not yours.”
Tony stood from his position and moved back to take in the whole group, “Pepper, I'm glad you are here. We were supposed to wait on one more, but he’ll probably be a dramatic bitc- person, so we can go ahead and get started.”
Tony took a fortifying breath and looked at his kids, “I can no longer treat you like children, so I won't try. You are young adults now, looking for worthwhile responsibilities. I will give it to you with the express command that you never let anything destroy what I've built by any internal dispute. That's why I talk of empires, I’m trying to build a name that will last well into the future and I need your help to do so.”
Tony waved Pepper up from her seat and made a broad gesture at the children still lingering in their confusion. “Pepper, my dear, choose an heir.”
Pepper raised her eyebrows, “An heir? An heir for what?”
“Why, the next CEO of Stark Industries, of course.” Tony answered.
Pepper wanted to groan, but simply rubbed tiredly at her eyes and turned to face the children, who at hearing Tony’s pronouncement sat straighter in their seats. She evaluated each of them in turn, “Who wants the job?”
Riri and Harley's hands shot up, she looked at their eager faces and made a decision. “On a scale of never to every five minutes, how often will you yell at the stupid old men?”
Riri narrowed her eyes in thought “On occasion,” and Harley slumped back with an “Always.”
Pepper cast her eyes to Tony, “I choose Riri and I would like to once again put in a formal complaint on your method of deciding heirs.”
“Your complaint is once again noted and dismissed. Stephen, babe, it's your turn to pick an heir,” Tony once again, gestured performatively to the remaining three.
Stephen moved to stand beside Tony and Pepper in front of the teen, crossing his arms over his chest. Taking a moment to adjust his stabilizing gloves, Stephen asked, “What does my heir get?”
“Head of Research and Development for you.” Tony eyebrows wiggled impatiently.
Stephen did not respond to the harrying, “And what do the other two get?”
“Next Iron man and Ambassador respectively, now please,” Tony motioned for Stephen to get to it choosing. The children on the couch were watching the back-and-forth with riveted attention, Pepper was attempting to starve off a headache.
Stephen rolled his eyes at Tony before turning away, to let their kids make the decision for themselves. “Ok, who wants what?”
Riri leaned back comfortably, as an intense silent conversation began with a ping-ponging eye contact between Peter, Harley, and Maddie.
“I’ll be the ambassador. Whatever that means,” Maddie puffed out her lips, annoyed.
“Iron Man,” Harley said, overlapping with Peter's, “R&D.”
“Who's my mentor exactly? The elusive fourth person?,” Maddie asked with pretended indifference.
“I’m right here.”
The group -minus Stephen who’s wards noted the arrival- startled, shocked by the sudden appearance of the man in a fully decorated three-piece black suit with green and gold accents.
“Loki, couldn't you announce your arrival like a normal person?” Tony had a hand on his chest and proclaimed, “Some of us have heart issues.”
“I'm not a normal person, I'm Royalty and there's a doctor in the room. Now do be quiet, I must talk to my charge. You, girl, follow me.” Loki walked off to the elevator.
“King Loki of Asgard is my mentor? Alien ambassador,” Maddie's expression was starstruck as she scrambled out of her seat chasing the mage.
"Wait," Stephen sounded out before any exits could be made, "Which of us is mentoring F.E.A.S.T and the Cornucopia or did you not think that far?"
"What is the Cornucopia?" Pepper asked, mildly offended, "Did you guys start another thing without telling me?"
Tony waved her concern down, "I was thinking we split the agency into it's base parts. Pepper takes F.E.A.S.T, which is mostly charity food work. I take TILDA and the Iron Legion, obviously. You have the Kathmandu group for your main and then you and Loki can split the Cornucopia into those that will remain on Earth and those that will journey beyond it. Does that work?"
"Stark, I only agreed to take on one apprentice. Now, you are trying to foist an agency of ruffians on me? I am above that." Loki's posture tilted his nose upward and Maddie imitated the Prince's stance. (And oh no, Tony is having some regrets.)
"Hey, now Key Lime Pie, the agency is your fault and you will take some responsibility. So far, Tony and I have been doing all the work." Stephen chastised the god. Loki grumbled, but ultimately nodded as he entered the elevator with his charge; Maddie already had Loki's mien of superiority down pat (Oh no).
Stephen breathed out, praying for patience, before refocusing his attention on his heir, “Come on, Peter, tell me your ideas on how to change the world.”
Peter, flashing to his side, started talking, at a mile per minute, about the elimination of infectious diseases and the possibility of drastically increasing life expectancy.
“Hey, pay attention to your mentee, what are we going to do?” Harley grabbed Tony's arm.
Tony's response was to ruffle his hair as he answered. “I’m going to teach you how to be me.”
These words caused an instant reaction from the previously silent Pepper, “Don't set anything on fire or so help me…”
“We won't burn the building down, I promise,” Tony tossed the words out as he led the excited Harley to the elevator and leaving Pepper and Riri alone.
Pepper let out a groan of amused frustration, while walking with Riri to the door as well, “Rule number one as future CEO: Never make important decisions like Tony Stark, understand?”
There was nothing left for Riri to say but, “Yes, ma’am.”