kismet

In the week or so after meeting the Waynes, Peter relaxed. He had made it through the dinner and the movie after without exposing himself as a dimensional traveler or Spider-Man. They liked him. Or at least they’d seemed to.

After an extremely lively dinner that reminded Peter achingly of both May and the Avengers. The familial vibe, the way there were multiple different conversations flowing overtop each other and laughter generous. It was just so nice. Peter had almost wanted to stay forever. To be a part of that.

But eventually the night had ended and Tim had driven Peter home. He’d then stayed the night with Peter for the first time. Nothing had happened but it had been nice sleeping next to someone like that again. Waking up wrapped around Tim was one of his new favorite feelings in the world.

Either way, he was content with how things had turned out. So content that he’d agreed to attend their Halloween party later in the week. Thankfully it wasn’t going to be any kind of big gala, just a party for friends and family. Peter found himself actually looking forward to the event.

But until then, life went on.

Peter was in the middle of one of his regular patrols when he was waved down by Nightwing who was standing with Red Hood and Red Robin at his side.

Peter swung towards them, flipping through the air and landing lightly on his feet in front of them.

“Hey guys, what’s up?” He greeted.

“Hey, Spidey.” Hood grumbled.

“Spider-Man.” Red Robin said neutrally.

“Hi! So there’s a hostage situation on fifth and fifty-third and we could use your help.” Nightwing said brightly. “Wanna come?”

“Sure!” Peter agreed readily, bouncing on his toes.

“Great!” Nightwing replied happily. “Spoiler said you were able to hack into our comms, can you do it again?”

“Really?” Peter blurted before nodding. “Yeah. Yeah. I can do that.” He tilted his head slightly. “Karen, you got that?”

“Got it, Peter.” Karen beeped.

Peter shot the other vigilantes a quick thumbs up and leapt off the building with a whoop.

Approaching the bank on the street that Nightwing had mentioned, he called out. “So what’s the situation?”

“Seven gunmen and twenty-three hostages. There were talks of a bomb on the premises.” Red Robin reported clinically. Peter nodded as he came to a stop in front of the bank. Police and S.W.A.T. were lined up outside. They turned to look over when Peter and the other three Vigilantes came to a stop in front of them.

“Just a heads up, I know how to defuse most bombs.” Peter piped up, watching as Nightwing spoke with the police.

“Nope.” Red Hood growled. “I don’t want to know how you know that.”

“Okay.” Peter chirped back with a small snort.

“Come on, let’s go.” Red Robin cut in sharply.

“Okay.” Nightwing started. “Red Robin, you and Spider-Man go through the back. Red Hood, you and I will…”

Peter winced as he fell onto his couch in a bloody heap, the gunshot wound on his shoulder bleeding through his suit. He let out a groan as he reached forward to grab the first aid kit, shuffling to pull it open and grab a needle and thread.

They had wrapped up the robbery and dismantled the bomb rather quickly but not before Peter was hit by a bullet. The other three vigilantes had been rather frantic in their attempts to convince Peter to go see their doctor but he’s swung away before they could physically grab him and drag him to the clinic.

Now he hissed a breath through his teeth as he clumsily stitched himself back together.

God, he had been shot too many times since getting to Gotham. He’d gotten injured a lot before, back in New York but he was pretty sure he’d hit a record level of injuries in the last few months.

After stitching himself up and taking a quick shower, Peter fell into his bed with a grunt. Falling into a dreamless sleep almost the second his head hit the pillow.

Peter sighed as he rushed into the classroom, the teaching pausing to glare at him as he came in late.

“Hey.” Peter breathed, sliding into the seat next to Tim.

“Hey babe.” Tim whispered back, not taking his focus off of his notes.

Peter smiled softly, opening his laptop and turning his attention to the lesson.

“Aunt Pam! Aunt Harley!” Peter called out as he made his way through the living room, bored out of his mind.

“Sugar!” “Little Spider!” Twin greetings rang out warmly from the spare room. Peter quickly followed after the voices, a grin splitting his face.

“Hey nerd.” Michelle said with a lazy wave, smirking from over the bar.

“Hi Peter!” Gwen greeted with a wild grin, spinning on the barstool.

“Hi guys.” Peter said, leaning forward and pulling the two girls into a half hug. “What can I get for you two lovely ladies?” He asked after pulling away and grabbing his notepad.

“Sup Peter.” Hood greeted as he dropped a bag from Bat Burger between them.

“Hey Hood, thanks.” Peter returned warmly, digging into the bag and pulling out his food

“No problem kid.” Hood said, reaching out and ruffling his hair.

Halloween day dawned and Peter woke with an itch in the back of his neck. Something bad was going to happen. He went through the day mechanically, cringing and flinching at every rogue sound. His senses were buzzing constantly and it was driving him crazy. The green rose up in his chest and made his vision fuzzy. His head was aching so bad that he could barely make it through his shift.

As soon as he was off the clock he rushed home to take a nap before the party, hoping to feel better when he woke up. He didn’t. Actually he felt two steps away from a complete sensory overload. Not good.

He decided to take a shower in hopes that it helped calm him down but it only irritated his senses further, his skin extra sensitive to the spray of water. So much so that it actually almost hurt, the water hitting his body.

So that’s how he found himself naked and shivering on the bathroom floor, fighting a panic attack. Unsuccessfully.

He could hear police sirens eight blocks away and a baby crying two buildings to the left, his neighbors were screaming at each other angrily. He clenched his eyes shut against the sound and slammed his hands over his ears. His whole body was shaking with fear or rage. A green haze obscured his vision and he growled at himself from under his breath, fighting to pick himself up from the floor. The smell of rotting wood and dust mixed with the acrid scent of chemicals invaded his nose, sending him into a coughing fit.

He didn’t understand what was happening. He could count on one hand the amount of times his senses had acted up this badly and all times predated something bad. Really bad. Like, Green Goblin or Mysterio bad.

Suffice it to say, Peter was worried. He’d seen a lot of bad things during his time in Gotham so far. Seen the evil of this city. But this? He was pretty sure he had never experienced something like whatever was about to happen.

He didn’t know what and he didn’t know when but he knew it would.

He wasn’t sure how much time had passed as he laid practically comatose but eventually he was able to pull himself off the floor and get himself into the clothes he had picked for the get together. He could only be thankful it wasn’t a costume party.

He slumped down into his bed after he dressed, groaning as he grabbed his nanotechnology glasses off of his dresser and shoved them onto his face. He let out a deep sigh of relief when a few nanobots separated from the glasses and formed into a set of hearing aids. The sounds around him muffled to a bearable input instantly.

“Thank you Karen.” He choked off, feeling short of breath.

“Of course, Boss.” Karen whispered back softly, trying not to irritate his senses further.

“Alert me when Tim pulls up, please.” He said, closing his eyes. He relaxed when Karen beeped in the affirmative.

Time passed in a blur and it felt like both hours and seconds later that Karen spoke up again, “Timothy Drake-Wayne has arrived.” She whispered.

“Thanks Miss K.” Peter groaned back as he sat up in his bed, fighting a yawn.

“You’re welcome, Peter.” Karen replied warmly.

Standing up, he stretched his stiff body, wincing at the pain shooting through his limbs.

He startled when a knock sounded at his door and quickly raced to open it. “Hey.” He breathed, trying not to sound pained.

Apparently he failed because Tim’s eyes narrowed, a worried frown appearing on his face as he scanned Peter. He tilted his head when he caught sight of the hearing aids. “What’s wrong?” He questioned softly, grabbing both of Peter’s hands and stepping into the apartment.

Peter tried for a smile. “I’m okay.” He said, squeezing Tim’s hands. “Just having a bad day. I get these sensory overloads sometimes.”

Tim still had the cutest little frown on his face as he scrutinized Peter. “Is it because of your meta abilities?” He blurted, eyes widening as he finished speaking.

Peter froze, body stiffening as he stared up at Tim. “What?” He choked out.

Tim pulled Peter closer, looking at him with concern. “Peter. I know you’re a meta.”

Peter could only stare for a minute before he slumped. “Yeah.” He whispered. “It’s because I’m a meta.”

Tim nodded, pulling him into a hug. “We don’t have to go to the Manor. We can just stay here, have a quiet night in.”

“But it’s Halloween!” Peter protested, pulling away. “I’ll be fine! I want to go.” He promised.

Tim didn’t look convinced. “Are you sure?”

“Yes. I’m sure.” He swore, deciding not to mention the looming feeling that something terrible was going to happen tonight.

Tim scanned him again, straying to his face for the longest. He deflated, huffing. “Fine.” He said, pointing a stern finger at Peter. “But I’m watching you.”

Peter smiled slyly, pushing all of his worried to the back of his mind. “I’m alright with that. No complaints whatsoever. Watch me all you like.”

“Alright, charmer. Let’s go.” Tim rolled his eyes, pulling Peter towards the door.

Peter pouted. “Can I at least have a kiss first?”

Tim turned, an amused smirk on his face. His eyes crinkled as he leaned forward to leave a peck on Peter’s lips, biting his bottom lip once before pulling away. “Ready now?”

“Mhm.” Peter hummed, savoring the tingling feeling in his lips.

“Come on.” Tim said, huffing a laugh.

The party was well underway by the time Peter and Tim arrived, drinks being passed around the room, people dancing off to the side. Laughter and happiness permeated the whole space.

He’d been introduced to three new people; Diana, Clark, and Barry. They all seemed very nice but Peter had a hard time focusing on anything. He sat on one of the sofas with Tim in his lap, listening absently as people chatted around him.

Currently Steph was telling a story about this guy who’d tried to ask her out at the last Wayne Gala with Cass and Duke chiming in every so often. Peter laughed when everyone else did, ooh’d and aah’d appropriately but he wasn’t all there.

He could tell others were starting to notice so he tried to get more involved, act more energetic like he usually did but he could also tell he was missing the mark.

“Okay I have to say it if nobody else will.” Jason said after a moment of silence. “Pete, kid, you look like shit.”

“Language, Master Jason.”

“Sorry, Alfie.” Jason called out before turning his attention back to Peter. “You okay?”

“Yeah.” Peter huffed a laugh. “Just a bad day, I guess.”

“Hm.” At least half of the people listening hummed.

“I’m fine!” Peter promised, perhaps a bit sharply.

“They’re just worried, Pete.” Tim soothed, running his hands over Peter’s shoulder.

Peter deflated, darting an apologetic look at the group. “Sorry. I’m really okay, I swear.”

“If you say so, kid.” Jason said, waving a hand.

“I’m- I just need some air. I’ll be back.” Peter rushed out of the room, ignoring the calls coming from behind him. He bent over at the waist as he ran out the front door, breaths heaving. What was wrong with him today?

Falling to his knees in the gravel, he pressed his forehead to his knees and squeezed his eyes shut in an attempt to block everything out. Everything was too loud, even with the aids. The trees rustling, the birds chirping, even the wind. His sense buzzed intensely, practically screaming in his mind. What was happening to him? He might’ve screamed or passed out but he couldn’t tell, he wasn’t aware.

He didn’t know how long he stayed like that when the sound of a loud alarm startled him. A siren sound split through the air, disturbing the silent night.

What the hell?

He quickly ran back into the Manor, barely a mind to close the front door behind him. He paused in the doorway, staring at the playing card sitting innocuously in the entryway. He bent down and picked it up flipping it in his hand before shrugging and shoving it in his pocket.

“What the hell is that?” Peter blurted the moment he reentered the room, gesturing around as if to indicate the blaring alarm.

“Arkham breakout.” Dick answered distractedly from where he was talking to Bruce in the corner.

Peter looked around, frowning in confusion. “Where’s Tim?” He asked.

Dick’s head jerked towards him. “He went to find you. He isn’t with you?”

“No?” Peter said softly. “I didn’t see him.” He frowned, pulling out the playing card and holding it up. “Found this though, super weird.” He said. Peter jerked back when everyone in the room jumped forward, eyes wide.

“Where did you get that?” Jason bit out, staring at the card with hatred.

“I- it was in the entryway.” Peter answered after a small pause. “Why? What’s wrong?”

“Fuck!” Steph yelled, face red. “Fuck!”

“What?! What’s happening? Where’s Tim?” Peter began to panic. He didn’t understand what was going on. He needed Tim. Where was Tim?

“Tim’s been taken.” Bruce answered, staring at the card in Peter’s hand sharply.

“What?!” Peter yelled. “W-what do you mean taken? By who?”

“The Joker.” Jason spat out, body buzzing.

“I thought he was in Arkham.” Peter whispered.

Jason sighed, gesturing around as the siren continued blaring in their ears.

Peter was in shock. Tim had been taken. Tim had been taken. Well now he knew what his spider sense was screaming about. Someone he cared about, someone he loved had been taken by a terrorist. Fuck.

“What are you going to do?” Peter bit out, glaring now, the card clenched into his hand.

“We will contact the police and they will-“ Dick began soothingly.

“No.” Peter snapped. “What are you going to do?”

“Peter, we aren’t sure what you’re-“ Bruce started, holding out his hands.

“Batman. Nightwing. Red Hood. Spoiler. Black Bat. Catwoman. Signal. Flash, I’ll admit that one took me a while.” Peter huffed, pointing at each of them respectively. He was exasperated and angry and so much more. “I know, okay? I knew before I ever even met Tim.”

Apparently he’d made a mistake because they all stiffened and Bruce shifted into a fighting stance. “What do you want?” He growled in his ‘Batman’ voice.

“What? Oh! Wait, no! That came out wrong. Look, Tim’s been kidnapped-“ Peter babbled, trying not to throw up.

“Tt. We are aware.” Damian scowled, arms crossed as he glared at Peter.

Peter shot him a look before continuing. “I know who you are. I know you’re going to go looking for him. I want to help. What’s the plan?” He asked seriously, pleadingly.

“No.” Bruce snapped. “You-“

Peter growled, his chest actually rumbling with the noise. The sound had started him and everyone else but he barely noticed over the haze of anger that lit his spine at the denial. “If you don’t let me help you I’ll just go off on my own to find him. I’m-“

“Spider-Man.” Jason stepped forward, blocking Bruce from his sight. There were gasps and shouts but Peter could only focus on Jason. Jason with the same eyes and hair as Peter. Jason with the same deep seated anger running through his veins. Jason, who had died if Peter’s suspensions were correct.

Peter’s head snapped up, eyes narrowing on the man.

Jason- Hood held his hands up in a sign of peace, calming Peter’s heart rate slightly.

Peter met Jason’s eyes with desperation. “I have to find him, Hood.”

Jason’s eyes softened and a sad smile played on his lips. “I know, kid. I got you.”

“I have to find him.” Peter repeated, hunching over slightly.

“We will.” Dick said, looking a bit startled when Peter’s eyes snapped towards him. “We will.” He repeated more surely. A promise.

Peter stared at him through narrow eyes, head tilted eerily. He nodded once. “What’s the plan?” Peter asked again, looking back to Bruce.

Bruce frowned, looking over at Jason for a second before glancing back at Peter. “You are Spiderman?”

Peter’s face twitched. “It’s Spider-Man. With a hyphen. I can tell you’re not saying it with the hyphen.” He said instead of answering. Though, it was pretty much an answer in itself.

“He is Spider-Man.” Cass said, her quiet voice cutting through the silence.

“Okay, now that we’ve established that, what’s the fucking plan?” Peter bit out, feeling dizzy with emotion.

“We don’t know yet. We don’t even know where he is. Or how Joker got to him.” Bruce replied calmly, though Peter could see the concern in his eye and it was the only thing stopping Peter from launching himself at the man. Jason shifted closer to him minutely.

“Karen, can you find him?” Peter called out, confusing half of the room while the other half looked on curiously.

“I’m sorry, Peter. I am  currently unable to locate Timothy Drake-Wayne.” Karen’s robotic voice rang out from the room, clearly coming from his glasses.

“Fuck.” Peter spat, looking back up at the group. “That’s not good. If Karen can’t find him it means he hasn’t been caught on any cameras.”

“We’ll find him, Peter.” Jason swore, grabbing Peter’s hand and squeezing lightly. “If I know anything about the Joker, he’ll want to make a spectacle of this.”

“And?” Peter whispered, feeling choked.

“And that will help us find him.” Dick answered, looking tense.

They all looked tense, on edge, like they were springing for a fight. It was comforting, that so many other people were worried about Tim alongside him. That he’d have people by his side while trying to save someone he cared about.

Tim would not be dying, not if he had anything to say about