New to This

by Codylovescats

Summary:

Peter Parker had a mosly normal yet crappy life but he went and got bit by a radioactive spider like a month ago and his body started to change in weird ways, his adoptive parents dying just after moving to Gotham and now some guy With a red helmet has basically adopted him.

Just his luck.

Notes:

• Inspired by A Brand New Future... by AvacadoFields
• Inspired by Dark Matter by mysterycyclone
• Inspired by Butler Spider by Danny_shells

Chapter 1: New to Gotham

Notes:

Sorry for ooc, I mostly know these guys from fanfics and like one movie. Rusty wirting, I have a bad memory so bear with me. My apologies.

TW: Dead bodies, Guns, Mention of blood, Implied death of baby, Vomit

Peter kicked at the random can at his feet, the street was filthy, old newspapers, cans, bags, and some other items he'd rather not think about at the moment were scattered around.

It's not like it was the first time he'd seen a dirty street, he's seen plenty of cities- courtesy of the foster system and being passed around from home to home, one his adopted parents (None of them even deserved that title) kidnapped him, or at least he's pretty sure it was kidnapping as his placement wasn’t official- taking him to the big Apple, New York. It wasn’t long before they were found out however, they weren’t the cleverest of criminals by a long shot. He went back to the foster system, back to another family. It seemed to be a never ending cycle for him.

That city was filled with rats, desperation, and all kinds of people, plenty of litter filled the streets. It's a miracle he hadn't contracted a disease just from breathing it all in and by it he meant the pollution, the chemicals, the bodily fluids, and who knows what else could be in the air.

And speaking of him being on the street, in Gotham of all places. The city with the highest crime rate ever, was because of his newest adopted family- kind of, they weren't the worst people to get adopted by, by a lot but they weren't very good either.

There was an argument for what seemed like every other hour and then a baby in the house, it was like it was never calm. Always crying, but it's not like he could blame the kid, if his parents clearly hated each other and never stopped shouting he'd probably cry too. If he was a baby that is, which he isn't, he's 13. Practically an adult, sure he may have just started puberty and had gotten the highest of high voice cracks he thinks a person could get but still- he was definitely an adult. He may sweat a little more, holy hell the sweat, it was sticky- like more than regular amount but he can blame that on all the spider crap going on with him.

His thoughts were interrupted by a gunshot, those seemed to be very common around here but he shouldn't be surprised, It's Gotham. And he's still on the street- after running away, he could tell it was only getting worse in that house. Only a matter of time before someone gets hurt, stuff already got thrown around from time to time and he had the responsibility of making sure it didn't accidentally hit the baby. Not that they asked him too, he just took it upon himself to do it. No matter how much that baby annoyed him and kept him up it didn't deserve to get hurt.

Now that he was thinking about it he should probably get back, for the baby at least. His plan to run away wasn't a very thought out one and he refused to make himself homeless in a place like this. He wasn't that stupid or desperate yet.

He took a look around, typical rundown buildings and people that made the back of his neck tingle, another spider thing. He wasn't used to everything that came with being bit yet. He figured it was something that came with spider puberty, if that was even a thing? not like he had any other spider people to ask. All he knew he had so far was his strength, his healing factor (definitely the most needed), and his spinnerets, he made sure to hide them whether that be under bracelets or long sleeves. No need to be labeled a freak, especially not when in the foster system. You never know what kind of person you'll end up with, sure there were nice ones but there were also people who'd throw him in a lab for a pretty penny or just to get rid of him for being a meta.

The webs, when he could use them- (he made sure not to use them where people could see) were pretty useful, he'd use them to grab things, steal things. He felt bad but he didn't always have food or suitable clothes. He made sure only to replace his clothes when they were ratted to hell or ripped up so badly the holes showed skin, he wasn't exactly a fan of stealing but with how much he bounced around he wasn't confident in keeping any job. Plus he was 13, most people wouldn't hire him at that age, even though he was confident he could be better than most older kids depending on the job.

Maybe he should try and find one again, he doubted Gotham cared about child labor laws but the people here probably didn't want to hire him either way. These people definitely seemed the suspicious type who wanted no nonsense. People Peter's age always seemed to come with nonsense, according to some of the adults he had been placed with before.

Before his thought should get any deeper though there was movement above him, according to the tingling on the back of his neck. When he looked up there was some guy with a mask and a jetpack flying around, unfortunately he hadn't read up on Gotham's villains yet so he wasn't sure which psycho this was. There were two shadows following along, no doubt these heroes or vigilantes? He keeps hearing about it. He didn't know much about the heroes besides what he's seen in the news, he didn't have the means to search anything about them most of the time and when he did get his hands on anything with Internet he'd waste his time on online games and books.

 

Once the flying guy and the two shadows were out of view he decided to go back home, not like the place ever felt like home. More like just four surrounding walls and a cracked roof, but it was better than the street, most of the time.

—-

The sound of shouting echoed around the apartment, he was seriously surprised no one had come banging on the apartment door yet but perhaps it was a common thing around here? He was sitting on the bed in his room, he didn't have to share a room for once. Even if it was practically the size of a small walk-in closet it was still his. The baby was in the main bedroom, sleeping now despite the shouting from its parents. Poor thing was probably used to that by now after all, to the point it didn't even wake him anymore.

Peter was laying back on his bed, on top of the blanket. It was drafty but he wasn't too cold despite the thin walls that seemed to offer little protection from the cold. He'd recently replaced his clothes so there was not too much tattering and no holes for the cool air to slip through. If his adoptive parents didn't stop fighting he was gonna slip out the window- or the door, once again. Usually they'd have cooled off by nighttime, no one wants to be noisy once it's after 8:00pm it seems. He crawled under the blanket and shut his eyes, hoping the noise would die down soon and he could rest without waking up every two seconds from something getting thrown at a wall or the shouting voices getting louder.

—-

Another day, another walk through Gotham, he wandered off somewhere while his foster family was busy. He wasn't necessarily sneaky, he was just pretty sure they didn't care much about him going out, no matter the time.

This time he was in a new part of the city, it looked even sadder than the rest of it. Definitely still dirty as hell though. The tingling on his neck and that buzz in his ears got a little worse when he started to walk this way but he carried on. He'd have to find his way around eventually, but of course it's just his luck that he happened to run into some mugger (who definitely wasn't in his right mind) before getting any further. He was too busy being annoyed at the buzzing in his ears that he didn't stop to think about why it had suddenly gotten so loud.

Peter raised his hands, he wasn't scared. He's dealt with worse, this guy didn't even have a gun. Just a knife, a very big knife. That was aimed at him.

“kid, you got money?” The man spoke in a low and threatening voice that had a slight quiver in it. It seemed like he was on something, the shaking in his hands and his red bloodshot eyes gave it away. “Kid?” He repeated.

“Uhm- no, I don't have anything. Promise.” He stumbled out, still not scared. At all.

The man didn't seem pleased and Peter was sure this guy was about to jump and stab him either way. “Hey, dude. I really don't have anything. I mean- I couldn't even afford pants with pockets.” A nervous chuckle escaped his lips, the man however definitely wasn't amused. In fact he seemed even angrier.

And judging by how the man's grip tightened on the knife and his legs started to move, he was definitely about to get stabbed-

Or not. The man was grabbed from behind and thrown back into the alley wall, a gun was pointed at the guy but surprisingly it didn't go off. The other man had what looked like a red helmet on and a red bird symbol on the front of his shirt.

Definitely one of the vigilantes around here, the man with the red helmet had scared off that mugger as was now looking at him, his gun lowered at his side. “Kid?”

Red helmet- no- helmet guy’s (sounds cooler) voice wasn't as deep as one would expect but still had a rough tone, that of someone who's seen things, really bad things. That seems to be a very common thing around here. “Kid?” He repeated.

Peter snapped away from his thoughts and back to the man in front of him. “Oh uh- yeah?” he managed to stutter out an answer, helmet guy was tall. Built like a tank, his intimidating presence didn't go away even as the man holstered his gun and seemed to have calmed down.

“You alright?”

He nodded his head and kept his eyes on this man, it was clear he wasn't hostile to him but something in the back of his mind still told him to be weary. “Thanks Mr..?” helmet guy seemed slightly perplexed at the question.

“Red hood.” he answered and took a slow step forward, clearly trying not to scare him away as he spoke in a softer voice than he did before. “You’re not from around here?” it was said as a question but clearly a statement. Was it that obvious?

Peter eyed the man, glancing over his appearance again. Red helmet (clearly no hood), brown jacket, gun hostler on his legs, and again, the most striking, the red bird across his chest. That seemed to be the only bird related thing about this man’s whole appearance.

“No, I just moved to Gotham.” Peter responded in a low voice, not too keen on having a longer conversation with the stranger. He had enough excitement for the day and was ready to go home, curl up, and sleep.

Red hood nodded and crossed his arms over his chest. “I'll take you home.” He stated in a soft tone but firm enough to know he’d do just that even if Peter didn’t want it, he was slightly offended at the notion he wouldn’t be fine getting home by himself but found himself too exhausted to argue with the man.

He just nodded in response and began walking, hopefully in the right direction. Red Hood hadn’t said anything but he could hear the heavy steps behind him, they weren’t as heavy before when he was attacking that mugger. Perhaps the heaviness of them was an effort to let Peter know that he was there and was still following along as they walked. Both him and Red Hod stayed quiet along the way though he could definitely feel the man's eyes on him even with the helmet in the way.

—-

He smelled it before he saw it, strong and metallic. Red Hood also seemed to notice something wasn’t right as he quickly stepped in front of Peter and pulled out one of his guns. Judging by how strong the smell was, the blood was fresh, like it had only happened a second ago yet when he peered around Red Hood’s form no one was there. Blood pooled on the porch outside the apartment, the door was open but couldn’t see inside.

Red hood had his gun in hand as he looked inside the apartment, keeping his guard up. He took a closer look inside the apartment and Peter followed, his breath hitched as he noticed his adoptive parents bodies on the floor. He’d seen a few dead bodies before but still had never gotten that used to it, he didn't see the baby however yet he also didn’t hear it. The death was clearly caused by multiple bullets, if the baby had heard it the baby would be crying. Yet he heard nothing at all coming from the apartment.

His thoughts were interrupted by the vomit coming up his throat, he rested a hand on the wall beside the door. He made the right decision just standing outside instead of entering the apartment, probably having a worse reaction than just puking all over the porch. He’d be embarrassed if he wasn’t too busy being sick and disgusted.

The sound of a gun being holstered slightly snapped him out of his sickly thoughts, turning his head to see Red Hood now standing beside him. “Aw, kid…You should've stayed back.” The man hesitantly places a hand on Peter’s back, clearly not wanting to scare him but wanting to comfort him.

“Come on, I’ll have someone take care of this.” He gently but quickly led him away from the apartment, keeping a hand on his back to guide him. Peter let himself be led away, he didn’t know where he was being taken but as long as he was far from that apartment and all that blood.

He had barely registered that he was being picked up and placed onto a motorcycle, still reeling from what he’d seen and now he had to ride on a motorcycle? Hopefully he wouldn't throw up anymore of his meals. “Hold on kid.” Red Hood put his hands on the handles and looked back at Peter before peeling out of the alley they had walked too.

The quick movement reminded him to hold onto Red Hood, putting his hands around the man’s waist as he tried not to puke. The wind in his hair felt nice at least and was plenty calming as well, he closed his eyes and just focused on the feeling, his urge to puke slowly fading.

Notes:

College in morning..first day..

Chapter 2: Settling in

Notes:

Nothing too exiting but it's only chapter two. Patience. I have a plan. (a very loose one that is not organized)
Should I try and upload the chapter before night time next time?

No TW apply i'm pretty sure.

Peter had likely fallen asleep at some point while riding with Red Hood, seeing how was now laying in some random (comfy) bed in an unfamiliar room. He rubbed his eyes before sitting up and looking around the room. There was a side table beside the bed and a shelf against one of the walls with plenty books. He enjoyed reading as it was a good escape from some of his previous foster families. It was better to focus on the action of firing arrows and knocking people off their feet than the sound of glass shattering against the wall or the pain of the bruises he’d get at times.

He’d take a look at the books later, right now he figured he should try and figure out where he is. The door to the room was cracked slightly, he could see some light coming in but he didn’t hear anyone. He opened the door slightly and peeked out, there wasn’t anyone there but he could see a small living room and kitchen. Definitely an apartment. The living room had a decently sized couch and a small tv sitting on the tv stand, in the kitchen was everything you’d expect. Fridge, cabinets, silverware- probably. He didn’t check the drawers yet. There was a note on the fridge, ‘Stay here, food in the fridge.’ The note was likely from Red Hood, it’s not like he had anywhere to go anymore either way so this place was as good as any.

Now that note mentioned food, looking inside the fridge he could see it was relatively empty food wise besides some tupperware. He picked one of them up and took a look inside, it was a simple meal of chicken and rice with what looked like peas and corn throughout the rice.

After heating up his meal in the crappy microwave and managing to find a fork from one of the drawers, he sat back on the couch. Wondering when Red Hood would get back. Hopefully soon…or maybe not, he wasn't sure how loud he’d be allowed to stay. It was tiring getting passed around from home to home, he didn’t think he was that difficult of a child yet he still hadn’t found a permanent home and even when he thought he had it still somehow didn’t work out for one reason or another.

He finished his meal relatively quickly and decided to take a look at the books, there was even more in the living room than the bedroom. There was a good variety in the genres, surprisingly even a few romance books. He couldn’t imagine Red Hood of all people reading romance, him sitting there (helmet on) reading about people holding hands and kissing. Unreal.

Before he could really get into any books though his wrists started to hurt, specifically the spinnerets. He rolled his sleeve down to take a look, they were a little red though he was unsure why, another spider puberty thing? He lightly pressed down on one, making some of his silk come out. That still seemed to function fine though. At the sight of his webs he suddenly felt the urge to curl up in a nest of his webs, which was a totally normal thing that normal people did.

He didn’t resist his urges much in the long run, he felt bad messing up Red Hood’s apartment but he really wanted to snuggle up in his webs- God that sounded so weird. He weaved some more webs around the house, mostly near the corners. Making sure to leave room between the couch and doors so there was still room for walking, though they were pretty high up anyways. Once he was finished there webs were basically all over the ceiling, acting like a hammock for himself. He curled up in one of the dark corners and brought along one of the books with him to read, one that seemed to be the crime solving type. The webs were pretty strong and stable, holding him up no problem. He wasn’t sure if he would ever get used to how he made all this happen from the stills in wrists however.

—-

The click of the front door woke him, he looked down between the webs to see Red Hood there. Clearly confused at all the webs, his gun in his hand as he looked around. “What the hell.” He muttered under his breath. “Kid? Are you here?”

“Up here.”

Red Hood just stared at him for a moment. “You scared the shit outta me!” He took a look at the webs again. “You did this somehow?” He pulled on the webs, seemingly testing their strength. With how he was holding his gun it looked like he was tempted to shoot at them.

“Um, yeah. Sorry. I kinda messed up your house.” Peter jumped down from where he was, taking a moment to steady himself. “I was just, um-” what exactly was he doing again? “I was just sleeping?”

“In these webs? That you somehow made? Yeah, okay.” He muttered the last two words under breath, seemingly done with the situation and two tired to care much. Red hood took off his helmet to real his face, well most of it. He still had a domino mask underneath. His hair was black with a strip of white. It was odd but he thought it looked cool as well.

He walked into the kitchen, taking one of the drinks out from the fridge and drinking straight from the jug. “So, how exactly do you make those webs?” The man wiped his mouth before looking in his direction again.

Peter set down the book that he had brought into his cocoon of webs with him, he really didn’t think this through. Putting up webs in this guy’s house? Yeah he was definitely gonna be seen as a freak now but it’s not like he had any feasible excuse in mind. “From my wrists.” Red hood raised an eyebrow before walking over.

“Your wrists?” He looked down at Peter's arms which were currently being covered by his shirt sleeves, a conscious effort from him. He didn’t need them to be seen.

Peter rolled up his sleeves slightly so he could see the small slits. “Yeah, it’s where the webs or spider silk- whatever…are, so...” He trailed off, feeling nervous at how the man would react to such an unusual thing as well as being embarrassed to show his spinnerets off. It couldn’t help but feel like a slightly intimate area.

Red hood observed his wrist for a second. “That’s cool as hell, you were born like this?” He questions, looking back up at Peter who was still looking away, his cheeks slightly flushed in embarrassment.

He shook his head. “No, it was just..some accident. I’d rather not get into it.” He muttered, the memories from said incident wasn’t something he’d particularly like to remember at the moment. Especially the pain that came from it, searing hot, fiery, never ending pain all throughout his body for what felt like hours, maybe even days. He couldn’t- wouldn’t remember.

Red Hood ruffled his hair. “No worries kid. Your secret is safe with me, now, I know your secret but not your name?” The man looked at him expectantly.

Peter hadn’t thought about it. He really hadn’t, sharing his name was honestly the last thing on his mind. “I’ll tell you if you let me see your face.” Not that he really meant it, vigilantes and their secret identities.

What he didn’t expect was for him to go ahead and take off his mask, his eyes had a vibrant blue hue that seemed to have traces of a green color behind all that beautiful blue. Peter never really looked at the man fully before now, always feeling nervous in his presence- anyone’s presence really, he was afraid they’d look into his eyes and just know that he isn’t normal.

Peter just stared at him for a moment before looking away, feeling embarrassed. “You didn’t have to do that, I wasn’t being serious.” He glanced at the man who was putting his helmet and mask on the table.

“I don’t care if you see my face and know my name, that’s only important to those bats.” He glanced at the man’s shirt. He’s not a bat? Jason sat on the couch, his arms crossed over his chest. He was looking at Peter but moved on after a quick moment of silence. “Nice to meet you Peter, so..you got any family you can stay with?”

Peter shook his head. “No, those people you saw were just my foster family. I don’t think I have anyone. That wants me anyway.”

“Don’t worry about it kid, I’ll figure something out.” Jason patted the seat beside him on the couch, beckoning Peter over who compiled and sat down, keeping some space between them. “For now we should lay down some ground rules.” Peter nodded, he could follow rules. He could definitely follow rules.

Jason turned so he was facing him. “Okay.” He seemed to be in deep thought for a few moments. “Right, no opening the door for strangers. I won’t always be here, I have work to do. Don’t open the door for nobody, especially around here-”

“I’m not a baby.” Peter interrupted him with a groan. “I already know all that stuff.”

Jason looked at him with a hint of annoyance before continuing. “No running off, It’s dangerous. No showing off your powers, we don’t need anybody getting curious about you. Especially Batman..”

Peter tilted to his head slightly. “Don’t you work with Batman? You have a bird on your shirt.” Jason seemed to groan at the question, seemingly annoyed at even having to talk about Batman.

“I wouldn’t call it that.” The man moved on just like that, not elaborating on it further. “What else?” He whispered to himself before continuing. “Don’t mess with my weapons, they’re not for kids.” Peter huffed at being called a kid by him for about the hundredth time.

“Not a kid.” He muttered.

Jason raised an eyebrow but didn’t say anything about it, instead he went into the kitchen, seemingly to find food. “Shit, I forgot how empty it is here.” He looked over at Peter, thinking about something for a second before speaking again. “You up for a grocery trip?”

It would be nice to get out, he supposed. He enjoyed being outside even if Gotham wasn’t the ideal place for such a thing. Peter nodded and went to put his shoes on, they were left in the bedroom. Probably by Jason as he woke up with them off. Speaking of, it seemed like he would be staying with him for a while. He wasn’t opposed, besides Jason seemed to have a vigilante thing to do. He’d likely be alone a lot and that’s how preferred it, that’s what he’d tell himself anyways.

He was sleeping on the couch. He decided that by himself. There’s no way he’s stealing the man’s bed after all this, taking him in,being subjected to that mess at his foster parents house, having to deal with his freaky spider crap and all that.

He wasn’t sure if it was a spider thing or a puberty thing but he’s been hot as hell for what feels like days which would be fine except he kept sticking to things by accident- which was a little unpleasant as he would leave a trail behind, though crawling up walls was a pretty unreal experience. Especially when he looked down, he’s only crawled up the walls inside so it looked like a long fall when he got to the top. It was still slightly scary but more exhilarating than anything else.

“Let’s go Peter!” Jason called out from the living room, Peter quickly followed behind him. It’s normal for cities to have grocery stores but imagining gothamites- he learned they were called from the tv he heard in the background playing at one time or another when he lived elsewhere.

Imagining these people in a grocery store shopping seemed silly to him, he imagined they all had the same cold look on their faces and the same dreary appearance. Those people doing such an (in his mind) domestic activity was funny. He didn’t see any grocery stores around but it’s not like he’d seen much of the city anyways, he was pretty sure there was some type of rich area as well.

Peter shook off his thoughts and continued to follow Jason, he stopped once they were at his motorcycle, Jason took a helmet out a compartment under the seat. Plopping it onto Peter’s head, it was a little big but still fit pretty comfortably. Peter followed as Jason got on the motorcycle, at least this time he didn’t feel like throwing up his guts.

It was a pretty peaceful ride, especially once they were in an area with less gunshots. He could fall asleep riding with Jason every time, there was just something so peaceful about the wind blowing through his hair. He wasn’t sure how long it took but they eventually made it to someplace that looked like a market, decently sized and it didn’t look that busted.

He trailed after Jason as he made his way inside, there were only a few other people beside the one worker at the front. He simply followed Jason, not sure what to do and he had planned to follow along but he couldn't help but trail off to another shelf when he spotted them. Sweet, flavorful, mouth-watering, enticing, gorgeous, colorful, rainbow, skittles. They called to him more than his stupid spider tingles did, he didn’t realize when but he was now standing in front of them. He didn’t eat them much seeing as he was broke- probably cause he was a 13 year old boy but still.

Normal skittles, sour skittles, tropical skittles? He needed to try them! He didn't have any money though (and seemed to forget about Jason) maybe he could steal them? Probably not the best idea to risk it for skittles of all things but they looked so good, especially the sour ones. He stared at them a while before sighing in defeat, the skittles would have to wait for him a little longer. He started to turn around- “Ah!” Jason was standing there beside him but not too close.

How long had he been there? “What the heck! You scared me.” Peter huffed and slightly pouted. Jason however seemed amused and just grabbed a package of sour skittles.

“If you want them you could’ve asked like a normal person.” He didn’t actually seem bothered though just appeased at having found him drooling over skittles, like a weirdo. Peter's eyes drifted to the man’s arms. He was holding a basket that seemed decently full, he couldn't help but notice the amount of frozen meals.

Peter looked up at him again. “You don’t need to spend anything on me.”

“Kid, who else is gonna eat this?”

He blinked. “You?”

Jason raised his eyebrows. “Really?” he said loudly before going to check out, Peter started to trail behind but noticed what seemed to be another villain outside the glass door of the market, the villain was gone before he could get a good look. Probably running away from one of the vigilantes that happened to run by next.

He quickly ran outside- last time he hadn’t been able to get a good look at them. Mainly because he turned and went walking off, too tired for that excitement (plus they were practically gone in less than a second). Peter looked toward the direction the two ran but they had already gone pretty far, he heard something above, somehow. Despite it being a ways up and the noise was more of a soft patter of feet than a hearable noise. He looked up, a vigilante in black and blue hopping across the rooftops.

It looked exciting being up on the roof, going from one to another knowing you could slip and fall at any moment. These vigilantes were likely pros and didn’t need to worry about that. He wondered if he could do it too, jumping around, using his webs like they do their grappling hooks. The urge to do so was overwhelming, he nee-

“Peter!” Jason stood beside him, his voice in that soft tone like when they first met once again.

“Yeah?”

“You’ve been staring at that rooftop for a while, you didn’t hear me calling you. You alright?

Peter nodded once but Jason seemed unconvinced and even more worried instead but he didn’t push the issue. He just walked over to his motorcycle, expecting Peter to follow. Which he did while watching the man put the groceries in the motorcycle compartment (how did they fit). He hopped on once Jason was finished with that, the wind in his face brushing against his fair and through his hair again. It still felt as peaceful and calming as it had before, the cold breeze adding another comforting layer to it.

He wondered if this is how it felt when the heroes would swing from one building to another, the allure of such a thing was almost too much. Perhaps he’d try tomorrow, right now he was much too tired to do anything about it.

Notes:

Sorry if the first half is chopped, it's uncomftorable writing in places i'm not familar with. (school)

What do you guys think I should add in my story?

Let me know if you see a mistake, I tend to write these at night if not at school and I don't function as well past 8pm.

Chapter 3: Nightwing

Summary:

Peter meets Nightwing then goes to the manor.

Notes:

TW: Mentions of suicide

It's always Nightwing that find people a top buildings, thought i'd continue the trend.

I also lowkey just made up how parts of the manor looked, why Alfred kind of hard to write?

Now that he was standing atop one of the buildings throughout Gotham he wasn’t so sure about this, it was a very long way down. He’d definitely be dead if his webs somehow snapped on him, he wasn’t sure if that was very likely but he also hadn’t used them to swing around before. At least the skyline was pretty, he could see all the lights from various buildings in the distance and it seemed peaceful up here with no one but himself. Just one more step, here I go, I’m going. In three, two, on-

“Hey!”

he almost jumped off the building by accident from how startled he was at that random voice, why didn’t his tingly thing say anything? He turned to see the black and blue vigilante from yesterday, his outfit really gave the impression of night-time. The blue accents against the black, he also had a bird across his chest that matched the other blue parts of his outfit. Do all the vigilantes around here have birds on them?

“What are you doing up here so late?” The vigilante took a step closer.

Peter looked him up and down. “It’s like- 3pm?”

“It is-?” The man places his hands on his hips before continuing. “That doesn't matter, what does is that you’re a little too close to the edge there.”

Peter glanced at the building below, it’s not like he was going to jump- well- he was but not in the way this guy seemed to be thinking. “I wasn’t going to jump.” He wasn’t the best liar and the vigilante in front of him obviously wasn’t convinced.

“Okay, but you could slip. Please step back for the edge?” He spoke in a soft voice and was ever so slightly moving forward, likely in case he did actually jump. Which he wasn’t, now that there was someone else here he really wasn’t

He complied and moved towards the vigilante. “I wasn’t gonna kill myself.” He wasn’t lying about that, well he wouldn’t have done it on purpose anyway. Hopefully his webs would’ve helped him but his attempt to test it was interrupted, maybe he could do it anyways and the vigilante could catch him just in case? But then he’d have to reveal he was meta, maybe not. The guy had a bird symbol so he was likely another friend of Batman’s, of the little he did know of Gotham, he definitely knew about Batman. Everyone knows about Batman.

The vigilante was now only a few feet away from him. “I believe you.” He obviously didn’t but Peter decided against calling him out, he wasn’t interested in arguing with the guy. “Why don’t we get down from here?” The man continued to speak like he was talking to a scared animal, it was slightly annoying. He already told the man he wasn’t gonna kill himself and he wasn’t lying.

“Yeah sure.” His plans were already ruined anyway, that still didn’t mean he liked it when the vigilante suddenly grabbed him and swung off the roof with a (very cool) grappling hook. Well maybe his plans weren’t totally ruined, he still got to jump off the building just while being held. Not as cool as if he used his webs but still, really cool.

They landed down the street below. “Where are you staying? I can take you home.” Peter glances at him before looking around, he hadn’t gone far seeing as he definitely wouldn’t have been able to make it back by himself. He didn’t even know Jason’s address.

“It’s fine, I'm pretty close. You don’t have to walk me.”

“I’d feel much better if you let me?” The vigilante gave him another smile, yeah he definitely still believed he was suicidal. Peter decided to comply either way, he’d try and swing another day. Or later at night but wouldn’t most the bats be out at night, so maybe not? Maybe he could go to the more swankier part of town, maybe there’d be less bats around.

He snapped out of his thoughts when he realized the vigilante guy was still staring at him. “I’ll lead the way?” The man nodded in response. Peter began to walk, he loosely knew where he was going. It only took a short walk for them to arrive and when they did he could see the vigilante looked a little surprised.

“You live here?” He seemed to be a little more suspicious than before, Peter decided to ignore that and instead knock on the apartment door. It was less than a minute before he heard shuffling and the click of the door being unlocked.

Jason looked down at him. (Unfair, when will he grow?) “Peter! You can’t just leave like that without saying anything.” He seemed angry, albeit a bit worried but mostly angry.

He shifted nervously. “I mean, I didn't plan on leaving that long. Jason started to speak before stooping, seeming to notice the vigilante currently standing behind Peter.

“Great, you brought a bird with you.”

Peter glances at the man behind him, they seemed to know each other. Not surprising they both have some kind of bird thing going on with their suit logos. He looked back at Jason who was even more annoyed than before. “At least he came through the door this time.” He muttered under his breath.

“Jace? No..don’t tell me you've been infected by Br-Batman?” The blue vigilante seemed to speak in a playfully pathetic tone, taking a few steps closer so he was right beside Peter.

Jason rolled his eyes. “Don’t compare me to him, kid just needed help.” Jace, as the other vigilante called him, seemed to have a problem with Batman? He’d think about it later, right now he felt awkward just standing there so he started to make his way inside the apartment, unexpectedly the vigilante behind him followed him inside. “You’re not off the hook Peter, just gotta deal with this annoyance first.” He eyed the blue vigilante.

He just made his way into the kitchen, pulling out of the frozen meal and throwing it in the microwave. Some kind of chicken and cheesy broccoli thing, his neck started to tingle a little. Someone was watching him- correction that blue vigilante guy was watching him. He could hear a little bit of the conversation despite the obvious effort to whisper.

“Seriously Jace? Frozen pre-made meals?”

Jason scoffed before responding. “It’s food. And it was short notice.”

“It’s a miracle you haven't just been feeding him burgers.”

Peter stopped listening when he heard the microwave beep, pulling out his decently looking frozen meal and plopping down at the table. Eating in silence- well besides the hushed conversation. He passively ate while focusing on daydreaming instead, about his webs again. He really wanted to swing, it looked freeing. Above everyone, easily weaving through buildings and not having to deal with anyone down below. It was fairly easy to sneak out due to the fact Jason wasn’t actually home, he went out to do his Red Hood thing. Wouldn’t be too long before he went and did it again, Gotham had a pretty active night life after all.

“Sooo, Peter is it?” He nodded. “Where’d you meet our sweet little Red Hood over there?” The vigilante was looking at him with a big smile, was talking to him that exciting?

He glanced towards Jason, who was now sitting on the couch grumbling to himself about something. “Someone tried to mug me and he helped.” Peter poked at his leftover meal, he was still hungry but being questioned didn’t do much for his appetite.

“Did his helping involve a gun, someone getting shot, dying?”

He eyed the vigilante. “No? I mean he had guns but he didn’t fire any.”

The man in front of him nodded. “How long have you been her-”

“Kid.” Jason- Red hood, he had his helmet on and got up from the couch and made his way over. “I got a few things to do, don’t go running off again.” He looked at the other vigilante. “You stay here with Nightwing.” He got the night part but he didn’t see any wings, he should have added wings. Blue wings. That’d be cool.

“Wow Jace, abandoning your son already?" The man replied playfully but it still slightly bothered people to be called Jason’s son,he barely knew the guy!

Red Hood however didn’t respond to the teasing. “Kid, Peter, I might be gone a few days this time-”

Nightwing quickly stood from the table. “Jason! You can’t just leave him here by himself.” Nightwing didn’t seem angry, just more worried if anything. “No way I'm letting you leave my future nephew here alone. You’ve already seen he likes to run off.” This guy sure accepted him into this future family he was imagining in his head, and he only ran off one time! After like..a day and a half of him being here? Okay maybe the ratio was a little bad but still.

“And what do you suggest? Nightwing.” Red Hood was definitely annoyed by now.

Nightwing thought to himself for a moment. “I'll take him to the manor.” Manor? Like a mansion? I guess vigilantes needed money to make their weapons and gadgets but honestly he’d imagine vigilantes to be all moody and struggling like in the movies he managed to watch.

“You are not taking my kid- the kid to the manor. Bruce would adopt him the second he stepped through the doors.”

Bruce? Must be the owner, the owner of a mansion which means rich. Rich guy with a mansion named Bruce in Gotham? Yeah that’d be Bruce Wayne, he's seen him on tv and magazines before. Not the best headlines at times and didn’t he already have like three or four kids?

He noticed the two vigilantes went back to having a hushed conversation, a much more heated hushed conversation. He decided to just sit and wait for the outcome, he just got here and now he’d be living with a total stranger (He was already doing that) or three for a few days. Staying in the rich part of town didn’t sound so bad. Besides the fact he’d totally stand out, his outfit wasn’t dirty per say but you could tell he wasn’t particularly well off and he didn’t expect Red Hood to buy him clothes either, he was already intruding on this guy’s life enough by now.

The other two men seemed to finish up their conversation as Nightwing began to walk over. “Peter! Time to pack up, you’re gonna be staying with a friend of ours for a few days.”

Red hood grumbled as he stood cross-armed by the door. “No friend of mine.”

Peter wasn’t sure how to feel about it but at least he wouldn't be stealing Jason’s bed for a few days, though he wasn’t sure the man would even be here to enjoy that from how he spoke of some kind of mission previously. “You mean Bruce Wayne?”

Nightwing smiled, he had that kind of smile that could only be described as ‘lighting up the room.’ “Smart kiddo! I promise you’ll be safe there okay?” He nodded in response, already imagining how light and fluffy a rich person’s bed would be and he could basically sense if there was danger either way. He was pretty good at running.

“I’ll take you on my bike okay?” Another nod in response, he started to follow the man to the door. He didn’t really have anything he needed to pack, all his belongings were on him, aka, his clothes.

Jason stopped him before he could fully leave, ruffling his hair which he proceeded to whine about. “I’ll be back soon kid, don’t let those brats mess with you.” He let out a small smile in response.

“I won’t.”

Nightwing seemed to soften while watching the interaction, beckoning Peter to come with him after a moment which he obliged. Following Nightwing to his bike, a very cool bike that had the same bird symbol sprawled across its front. He still preferred the Red Hood motorcycle, red was more his color.

He got on behind the vigilante, making sure to hold on with a firm grip. His driving was millenia better than Red Hoods however. It was a peaceful ride if you ignored the gunshots and less than sane inhabitants along the streets. It wasn't too long before he and Nightwing reached the manor, it was larger than anything he had seen up close before. He hopped off and followed Nightwing who had pressed on a few things near the gate, likely a code to get inside the gate, Peter followed along while looking around. The place was expertly maintained, he could tell there was plenty of love put into keeping the place well kept just by front of it. Well trimmed grass and trimmed plants.

They stopped outside the large wooden doors, Nightwing didn’t seem to knock. So he assumed that whoever was going to open the door already knew they were there and speaking of. The door creaked open, revealing a posh and distinguished looking man. Judging by the man’s attire he was the butler.

“Master Nightwing, it is a pleasure to see you. I do wish you’d visit more often.” The man eyed the vigilante before turning his gaze to him. “And you must be Master Peter.”

Master? That was new and he didn’t even live here, it felt a bit awkward but he could just tell arguing with the man would lead nowhere. “Nice to meet you.” He mumbled nervously, sure Nightwing said they were nice but it’s good to be cautious and maybe he was just a tad bit afraid of being judged by people who were way better off than him. Not to mention his head had been tingling about ten feet before they even got on the property.

“A pleasure to meet you as well, you may call me Alfred.” The man- Alfred took a step back from the door to allow him and Nightwing to enter. Nightwing however did not, which only managed to spike his nerves.

He looked at nightwing expectantly. “Sorry kiddo, promise you’ll be safe. Still have some vigilante things to do.” Nightwing was now waving at him and he couldn’t help but feel annoyed. He seriously just dumped him at this random rich man’s house?

Peter groaned to himself as he heard Nightwing whisper about ‘keeping and eye on him and ‘flight risk’ to Alfred. He was not a flight risk- well he was- as in he planned to fly off a building and swing through the air- not the run away kind, maybe, as long as the people here behaved. He looked around the house. If you could call it that, it was big. Who needed this much space? He couldn’t see anyone else at the moment but he didn’t feel like dealing with any more new people right now anyway, in fact he felt quite tired which wasn’t too unusual lately. It was like everyday even if he had slept a full eight hours (he never did) he’d still be exhausted no matter what.

“Master Peter, perhaps you’d like to enjoy a hot meal?” The butler turned back towards him as he awaited a response.

He nodded. “That sounds good, thanks.” He glanced over at Nightwing who had hopped on his motorcycle and was preparing to take off, the man waved at him once more before peeling out of the driveway.

Peter followed Alfred through the foyer deeper inside the manor as they headed towards the kitchen. The inside was as well kept as the outside, he wasn’t entirely sure what he should be doing so he just lurked near the kitchen island as he watched Alfred start to prepare something.

“You are allowed to sit Master Peter.”

“Oh- right, yeah.” How had he even noticed he was standing? He seemed quite focused on the food he was currently preparing. Not that weirder things haven’t happened recently, he took a seat over at the (way too long) dining table. Sitting at the last seat on the left side.

He hadn’t seen anyone else, he wondered if anyone else was home or maybe they didn’t care enough to come downstairs. If they even heard what was going on. It didn’t take long for Alfred to finish the food, just a few simple but really good looking omelets. “Thanks.” He mumbled before digging into the food, they were really good. The one time he had tried to make them himself it was a very unpretty sight, somehow burnt yet not entirely cooked through and he even considered himself a decent cook! These however were on a different level and so heavenly.

Once he had finished his meal, pretty quickly at that. Alfred had suggested laying down to which he agreed. He followed him up the stairs and down the hall, there were plenty of rooms. He couldn’t help but be curious but he decided to leave the snooping to later.

They ended up in a fairly large room though every room was likely this size. “Pleass make yourself comfortable Master Peter, if you happen to need anything I welcome you to come find me.” After making sure he wasn’t in need of anything Alfred shut the door, his footsteps slowly being unheard as he made his way down the hall.

Peter immediately made sure to check out the bed which was just as or more comfy than expected, a fluffy blanket to match. He sighed and kicked off his shoes. Curling up in the bed and closing his eyes. It wasn’t long before he found himself drifting off to sleep, it was peaceful here if you ignored how he was in a total strangers house after all.

But he had realized one thing just before drifting off,

 

he had forgotten his sour skittles…

Notes:

Apologies if it drops off near the end.

Hey guys you know that traumatizing thing that happens at American schools, yeah that happened. But it was just a hoax it seems. Not sure, but it was a crazy day monday. No one got hurt.

Anyways I actually got decently rested so most of this should be good to go.

Chapter 4: Talks

Notes:

TW: Mentions of death and dead bodies

I only went over this once so I aplogize for mistakes or if something dosen't make sense.

It had been a while since Peter got a full night’s rest or even longer than that seeing as he fell asleep a little past 5pm and it was now morning but it seemed sleeping in a luxury bed was the solution, no nightmares, no waking up, just peaceful calming sleep and maybe a weird dream he can’t seem to remember but still- no nightmares. He was content to just stay in bed all day, unfortunately that didn’t seem to be in the cards as he heard a knock on the door before the click of it opening.

“Good morning Master Peter, we can’t stay in bed all day can we?” Alfred steps drew closer as he curled deeper into the blankets, trying to be unseen inside them. “The bed won’t be going anywhere, you need a healthy breakfast to start the day off with which I will be preparing soon.” Peter groaned. “It’d be a shame if there was no one at the table to enjoy my cooking.” He huffed but started to sit up in the bed, looking at Alfred who was standing a few feet away from the bed.

“Morning.” Peter muttered.

The older man gave him a soft smile. “Master Bruce and Master Dick will be glad to meet you, they are already awaiting your arrival at the dining table.”

He knew who one of those people were thanks to papers and the other was probably one of the rich guy’s kids. He stood up from the bed and stretched out his arms. Meeting people first thing in the morning, just great. “I have left a few clothing options for yoy in the closet, I hope to see you joining us at breakfast?”

Peter groaned. “Yeah, I’ll be there. Thank you.” Alfred nodded at him before leaving the room, closing the door behind him as he retired down the hall. He walked over to the closet and looked over the options, a casual black t-shirt and jeans with a few other variations but he decided to wear the red hoodie that had a gold colored ‘R’ symbol on it paired with blue jeans.

They fit decently beside the fact the sleeves of the hoodie covered his hands, hiding them from view. He could roll them up if need be but for now he enjoyed the warmth and fuzziness of it as he started walking down the hall, trying to find the way downstairs to the kitchen.

It wasn’t too hard as he already mostly memorized the way from yesterday. His real concern was the two strangers that were in the house- It was their house in the first place. It would be rude to avoid the guy who let him stay right?

He took a few deep breaths before walking downstairs and to the kitchen, hesitantly peeking his head in. There was an older man sitting at the head of the table with black hair and pale skin, his expression was hard and his blue eyes looked like they had seen too much even for a man his age.

There was another man sitting on the opposite side of the table he was facing, he was younger than the other but seemed to be in his 20’s if he had to guess. His raven hair was as black as coal and his blue eyes were bright and seemed to shine with more hope than the older man’s did. He looked decently cheerful and he couldn't help but feel like he had met the man before.

He was content to just stand there and examine them for a while but unfortunately the older man- Bruce Wayne seemed to notice him, he groaned on the inside at the fact he’d been caught before walking over to the table. He didn’t want to talk so he just stood there till the younger man- Dick he assumed, greeted him first. “Peter, It’s nice to meet you.”

“Nice to meet you.” He muttered back before glancing at Bruce, the tingling in his head seemed to be louder at the sight of this man and that only made him want to turn tail and run back to his room- to the room he was staying in.

Bruce gave him a smile, one that didn’t quite reach his eyes, fake. “It’s great to finally see you Peter. I hope you’ll enjoy your stay.” He nodded in response before sitting on the opposite side of the table from Dick and two chairs away from Bruce.

He sat there for a moment, just looking between them before turning his gaze towards Alfred who was whipping something up. It smelled delicious too, if he wasn't starving at the moment he’d be a bit self conscious about eating in front of two new people. It usually wasn’t a pretty sight, he could feel their eyes on him even when it didn't seem like they were looking.

Dick flashed him a smile before speaking. “Do you have any family Peter?” The man questioned, he tried to make it sound like small talk but he was fishing for something, Peter just wasn’t sure exactly what.

“No, I don’ t think so.” He muttered, paying more attention to whatever was being cooked than what Dick was asking him. He was really hungry and whatever that was smelled really good.

The man gave him a sympathetic smile. “Where have you been staying?”

They already knew he was with Red Hood- or NIghtwing so he figured they meant before then. “I was with one of my foster families.” A glance at Dick told him the man wanted him to continue telling him about his family but he decided against it.

Speaking of, they never discussed what was gonna happen after this. Red hood made it seem like he was gonna take Peter back after his mission but why would he even do that? He’d probably go right back to foster care, fun. Though Gotham didn’t seem the kind of place that would have a good system.

“Well, Peter, I can give you the tour after we eat breakfast.” Dick sure was smiley.

“Sounds good…do you know Red Hood?” The question seemed to catch him off guard for a second and by the hair raising on the back of his neck the other man at the table also seemed to be watching him despite his eyes being elsewhere.

“Who doesn’t?”

“I didn’t- not really. I think I saw something about him on tv once.”

“He helps out the kids in crime alley.” Dick has been to crime alley? Enough to know that, or maybe it’s common knowledge, he figured a guy who lives in a mansion had no reason to ever go there. No sane person would go there, or live in Gotham. So he wasn’t sane in the first place.

Peter hummed as he saw the chocolate chip pancakes being set in front of him by Alfred.
“Aw no Chocolate for me Alfred?" Dick whined playfully, instead pouring way too much syrup on his own.

The butler seemed amused. “Our friend here needs a warm welcome does he not?” Dick nodded his head in agreement. He did barely have time to do much before passing out in bed, but he’d been busy. Meeting vigilantes and temporarily moving in with a bunch of randos.

At least Dick and Alfred seemed nice, Bruce however was just weird. His head was at a constant low buzz around him, more so than when he was walking around Crime Alley. Despite that he didn’t seem too hostile, maybe it was just because he was tall and in shape and the fact he seemed to carry looming darkness with him wherever he went.

“How about school, Peter?" Bruce laid the newspaper he had been reading on the table, nursing his dark drink.

He groaned in response, school? He didn’t have the best grades but he could blame that on how he rarely had a moment to himself, there always seemed to be something happening everyday. “I don’t really go to school a lot.” In fact he hadn’t gone to school in Gotham yet, he had started the process but having your foster family die really puts a dent in things.

Has Red Hood told the police about that yet? Were the police even investigating it? He didn’t particularly like them but death seemed a step too far, especially when it came to the child. He only saw a glance of the bodies but it stuck with him. The smell too, metallic and strong. Made his head hurt and the bile felt like it was building once more.

“Would you like to?”

Yeah like he was actually asking, he could tell Bruce was the type of guy to make things happen whether you agreed or not- probably more when it comes to orphaned children. “I guess- can you even enroll me?” The prospect of school was less than exciting but the guy was right, maybe he wouldn’t have to go to some random shitty public school if it was a billionaire enrolling him. School in Gotham, sounded like a cesspool of crime waiting to happen.

Bruce continued to give him that half hearted smile. “You don’t need to worry Peter, I'll take care of it.”

Peter stared at his untouched pancakes, poking his fork at the chocolate chips while he thought about how’d that work, he could assume the billionaire was going to throw his money at someone like they did in the movies. His pancakes were lukewarm at this point and had lacked their previous allure.

Dick was looking at him again, his eyes going from the untouched plate to his face. “Not hungry?” The worry in his tone was unmistakable despite him trying to hide it, not wanting to make him feel bad for his lack of eating.

“I’ll eat later.” It didn’t do much to reassure the other man but he didn’t press the issue either, Alfred didn’t look too pleased either but said nothing as he continued to clean. “Can I go outside?” Dick seemed to light up at this.

“Of course, you don’t need to ask Peter. I can come with you if you want?”

He shook his head in response. “I want to be alone.”

Dick’s smile faltered slightly. “Right, that’s fine.”

After listening to the pestering mother hen behavior from the other man to stay safe and not stray away from the manor he was free to go, walking outside behind the house. He’d call it a backyard if it wasn’t so big. There was even a barn, it caught his eye first and he immediately went to check it out first.

Inside was a cow- he was surprised, it was a barn but he didn’t actually expect a full cow in here. Maybe just a few chickens, but it was a pleasant surprise. The cow was cute and had a bat-like symbol on its face. He slowly took a few steps forward. “Hey..cow?”

“Moo.”

Peter nodded in response despite not understanding cow language, he reached a hand out and gently stroked the cows fur. It didn’t seem to mind and it was kind of relaxing too. He smiled as the cow blinked at him, animals were always a comfort. They didn’t yell or argue and if they hurt him it was out of fear or hunger, he found them to be more pure than any person he’d met.

Woof

Woof? He looked at the cow, cows didn’t bark as far as he knew. Another woof rang out, coming from outside the barn. He walked over and slid through the crack in the barn doors from where he first entered. A brown great dane looking at him happily from where it stood in front of him, approached him and started to sniff. Licking his hand- slimy, he started to pet the dog on its head as its tail started to wag.

He was unsure of where the dog had come from but maybe it was another pet like the cow, was the cow a pet? Maybe they were going to eat the cow? He really hoped not, he and the cow had made quick friends after all.

“Titus, do not run off where I cannot see you.” A boy- who looked about his age or younger approaches from the side of the house, a slight accent in his voice. Another one of Bruce’s kids he assumed, the boy eyed him, his eyes flickered over him from top to bottom. “Why are you behind father’s mansion?”

“Just exploring, I wanted a moment alone.” He noticed the boys narrowed eyes and crossed arms. He seemed to be one of those rich people, snobby and above it all but tried not to judge too fast.

“Tt. Father has already taken in another child?”

“No- he didn’t. I’m just..visiting?” He didn’t know what he was doing, he already preferred being with Red Hood. At least it was just the two of them and the small apartment was a little cozy, the manor was too big. Someone could pop out any corner, he wouldn’t even know if someone was in the house or not. “They didn’t tell you?”

“No.” Not very talkative was he?

Peter shoved his hands in his pockets. “I was just talking with the cow.” The boy raised an eyebrow and a little hint of pink went up his cheeks- talking with cows, he sounded like a weirdo.

“Her name is Batcow.” The boy seemed to soften ever so slightly when talking about the cow.

Peter chuckled. “Batcow? Seriously.”

“Yes, I don’t understand why you’re laughing. She has a bat symbol on her face, it is fitting.”

“She’s cute.” He decided not to push on the issue of naming, at least the dog- Titus had a proper name. Though he wondered if this boy had found a dog with a bat symbol if he’d name it bat-dog or something.

The boy had started to stroke Titus on the head. “You’re adequate.”

“Uhm- Thanks? I think?” He slightly shuffled his feet. “So what’s your name?”

“Damian. Have you met Alfred the cat?”

“Nope. Just the human.” What was with these names? If he was the one naming them he could use some more work. “How many animals do you have?”

“There is Alfred, Bat-cow, and Titus. Come with me, I will introduce you to Alfred.”

He’d have to get used to the cat and butler having the same name- for now he’d use context clues, he just decided to follow Damian along, he was already walking ahead of him. Not even bothering to look back and make sure he was trailing behind him.

He still didn’t know much about the boy but the prospect of seeing a cute cat took precedence in his mind nevertheless, so he followed.

Notes:

Math exam next week, oh no.

Don't know if you guys like miraculous ladybug but I am writing a story about that too. Not published yet.