"the kid brings out a different side of her"
It was movie night at Avengers Tower, and Peter Parker was late, as usual. He came bursting through the doors, backpack slung over his shoulder, looking frazzled.
"Sorry I'm late, Mom!" he called out as he rushed inside. "Decathlon practice ran long."
Natasha Romanoff looked up from her spot on the couch and gave him a smile. "Don't worry about it, sweetie. Clint saved you a spot." She patted the cushion next to her.
Peter grinned and vaulted over the back of the couch, landing neatly between Natasha and Clint. He gave Natasha a quick hug before settling in.
"What are we watching?" he asked.
"The Princess Bride," Steve answered from his armchair. "Natasha's pick tonight."
"Yes!" Peter pumped his fist. "Love that movie."
Natasha laughed and ruffled his hair affectionately. Ever since Peter had come into her life, she'd felt strangely maternal towards him. He was just so sweet and innocent, he brought out her protective side. It made her heart melt whenever he called her "Mom."
Tony pressed play on the movie and they all settled in comfortably. As Westley and Buttercup's romance played out on screen, Peter gradually drifted off to sleep, his head coming to rest on Natasha's shoulder. She put an arm around him and stroked his hair gently. Tony glanced over at them and raised an eyebrow but didn't say anything.
When the movie ended, the team started getting up to head to bed. "I'll take the kid," Natasha said softly, shifting the still-sleeping Peter so she could lift him into her arms. Super soldier strength definitely had its advantages.
"Night Peter," Steve said fondly. Natasha carried Peter off to bed, the others staring after them.
"So when did Natasha have a kid?" Clint asked, confused. "Did I miss something?"
"I know she and the kid are close, but I didn't realize he called her Mom," Bruce added.
"And she just goes with it?" Bucky said. "That doesn't seem like her."
Tony shrugged. "I don't pretend to understand it. But webhead makes her happy."
"Still though..." Steve frowned. "Did we all just collectively miss Natasha becoming a mother?"
"She definitely did not give birth to him," Bruce said firmly. "I think we'd all know if she was pregnant."
"Then what's the deal?" Clint exclaimed. "It's not like her to get attached to some random kid. No offense, Tony."
"None taken."
"And what's with the hair ruffling and the cuddling and the being called 'Mom'? That's new," Steve pointed out.
"Romanoff is full of surprises," Bucky mused. "Always has been. Maybe the kid just brings out a different side of her."
The others nodded thoughtfully. Natasha was certainly complex; she had many layers beneath that cool exterior. Still, this was definitely unexpected.
"Think we should ask them about it?" Bruce suggested hesitantly.
"And incur the wrath of Mama Bear Natasha?" Tony said. "No thanks. I choose life."
That decided it. Natasha's relationships were her own business. If she and Peter had some kind of mother-son bond, who were they to pry? Still, the mystery nagged at them. They eventually drifted off to bed, questions unanswered.
The next morning, the smell of pancakes wafted through the tower. The team shuffled into the kitchen, following their noses. Natasha stood at the griddle casually flipping pancakes while Peter set the table.
"Morning guys!" Peter said brightly. "Mom made breakfast!"
"Smells great, Nat," Steve said as they all took their seats. She gave them a small smile before returning her focus to her cooking. Peter poured everyone orange juice before sitting down between Natasha and Bucky.
The meal passed uneventfully, with light chatter and compliments on Natasha's pancakes. Peter ate with typical teenaged enthusiasm while Natasha watched him fondly. The domesticity of it was admittedly quite charming, if unusual for the normally reserved assassin.
After breakfast, Natasha dropped a kiss on top of Peter's head. "Have a good day at school, sweetie. Learn something."
"I will, Mom. Love you!" Peter said as he grabbed his backpack and headed out.
Natasha's eyes followed him until he was out of sight. The rest of the team exchanged confused glances. Clint opened his mouth to say something, then wisely closed it at Tony's subtle head shake. Questioning Natasha never ended well.
Still, the curiosity was killing them. As soon as she was gone, they huddled together to strategize. "We need to get to the bottom of this," Steve declared. "Tony, can Friday access records to confirm she didn't actually legally adopt him or anything?"
"On it, Cap," Tony replied, already having Friday scan through various databases. After several minutes, he reported no records of Natasha becoming Peter's legal guardian.
"So they definitely don't have any official relationship. This is so weird," Clint said, shaking his head.
"Maybe we could ask Peter?" Bruce suggested. "He seems open."
The others agreed that was their best bet. When Peter returned from school, they put their plan into action.
"Hey Peter, got a question for you," Tony said casually as Peter walked by.
"Sure Mr. Stark, what's up?" Peter asked.
"What's the deal with you and Nat? How come you call her Mom all of a sudden?"
Peter's eyes widened. "Oh geez, she told me her codename was classified. I didn't know you guys didn't know!" He winced apologetically.
Steve exchanged a baffled look with Bucky. "Her codename?"
"Yeah, Mom's her codename when she goes undercover on missions sometimes," Peter explained, hoping he wasn't revealing too much. "She said it helps her blend in and seem less suspicious. But I guess I messed up by calling her that in front of you guys. She's gonna kill me..."
Comprehension dawned on the team's faces. "Ooohhh," Clint said. "That makes so much more sense!"
They all breathed a sigh of relief. Peter wasn't actually Natasha's son, it was just an undercover thing. That was much more believable.
"Don't worry Pete, your secret's safe with us," Tony assured him. "We won't blow her cover."
Peter exhaled. "Oh good. Please don't tell her I slipped up! She'd be so mad."
"Mum's the word," Steve promised with a smile.
Crisis averted. The team felt the matter was settled until Natasha and Peter returned later that evening.
Peter was chatting a mile a minute about his day while Natasha listened attentively. "And then Ned was like, no way, and I was like, yes way! Oh by the way, I totally aced that Spanish quiz. Just wanted you to know since you helped me study, Mom!"
Natasha smiled proudly and tweaked his nose. "That's my boy."
The Avengers froze, exchanging baffled glances. They'd been so sure it was just an undercover thing...
"Then at decathlon practice, Flash was being a jerk as usual, but MJ totally put him in his place. It was awesome." Peter rambled on.
"Don't listen to anything that boy says, alright? He's clearly jealous of you." Natasha said, her tone laced with concern.
Peter rolled his eyes in embarrassment. "I know, I know. You don't have to go all mama bear on me."
Natasha just chuckled and pulled him in for a one-armed hug. "It's my job to worry about you. Now go wash up for dinner."
After Peter had bopped off, Natasha noticed the team eyeing her strangely. "Everything okay, guys?" she asked innocently.
"Yup, all good here!" Tony said with exaggerated cheerfulness. The others quickly chorused their agreement.
Natasha frowned, unconvinced, but didn't push it. She went to help set the table, leaving the team thoroughly befuddled once again.
"What the hell?" Clint muttered. "I thought he just called her that undercover."
"So did I," Steve admitted. "Now I'm really confused."
"Something funny is definitely going on with those two," Bucky said.
Over dinner, Natasha and Peter chatted and laughed together like a real family while the rest of the team looked on, more perplexed than ever. Tony nearly choked on his potatoes when Peter said "Pass the salt, Mom?" in the most casual voice ever.
Thor, who'd been off-planet until now, leaned over to Bruce and asked quietly, "Did Lady Natasha give birth while I was away? When did she acquire a son?"
Bruce just shook his head helplessly. If the demigod was baffled too, they must really be missing something.
Later, alone in his room, Peter greeted Ned on their regular FaceTime call. "Dude, I messed up big time today," he confessed. "The Avengers definitely think Nat is my actual mom now!"
Ned's eyes bugged out. "What?! How did that happen?"
"They heard me call her Mom and got all confused. I panicked and told them it was her undercover codename. But then I slipped up and called her that again in front of them later!" Peter groaned.
"Oops," Ned grimaced. "So now they probably think she's your secret biological mom or something?"
Peter nodded, face palming. "I should really tell them the truth. It's getting out of hand."
"Yeah you need to clear this up, it's too weird now," Ned agreed.
"I will," Peter resolved. "First thing in the morning."
But the next morning, Natasha whisked Peter off to school bright and early, ruffling his hair affectionately before he got out of the car. "Have a good day, sweetie!"
Peter cringed. Yup, he definitely needed to fix this.
Unfortunately, the day ended up getting away from him. School, homework, Spider-Man patrol... By the time he got back to the tower, he was exhausted.
Natasha met him at the elevator when he trudged in, looking dead on his feet. "Rough night on patrol, huh?" she asked knowingly.
Peter nodded wearily. "Busted a major bike theft ring. Took a while."
Natasha steered him gently to the couch, where she sat and pulled him down to lay his head in her lap. She smoothed his hair back from his face in a comforting, maternal gesture. Peter practically melted into her.
"Get some rest, sweet boy," she murmured. "You deserve it after the day you've had."
Peter was out like a light in seconds. Natasha gazed down fondly at him as he slept.
When Tony wandered in a few minutes later, he did a double take. "Am I hallucinating, or is Spider-ling using the world's deadliest assassin as a pillow right now?"
Natasha just smiled and held a finger to her lips. Tony decided to roll with it and kept walking. Maybe it was one of those things he was better off not understanding.
The next morning, the Avengers assembled for a mission briefing. As they gathered around the conference table, Clint's eyes nearly popped out of his head. "Is Peter wearing one of Nat's sweatshirts?" he stage-whispered.
The others looked closer. Peter was indeed clad in an oversized black hoodie with a small red hourglass logo on the sleeve: Natasha's symbol. He noticed their stares and shrank self-consciously into the sweatshirt.
"I, uh, didn't have any clean clothes," he mumbled by way of explanation.
Natasha smoothed his hair and smiled, unbothered. "It looks good on you, sweetie."
Tony cleared his throat awkwardly. "Okay then. Let's focus up for the briefing."
But throughout the meeting, the team kept getting distracted by Peter and Natasha's interactions. She would fuss over him, adjusting his sweatshirt hood or brushing an eyelash off his cheek. He would smile at her gratefully or whisper a comment just for her ears. It was excessively sweet and domestic.
Finally, Tony had enough. "Alright kid, what's the deal here? Because we're all very confused. Are you two related somehow and you just never told us? What's going on?"
Peter's eyes widened at the sudden confrontation. He opened and closed his mouth a few times, at a total loss. Sensing his distress, Natasha stepped in.
"Peter is not actually my biological son, if that's what you're all thinking," she said evenly. "Our relationship is difficult to define, but it's real and very important to both of us." She placed a hand on Peter's shoulder and he relaxed, giving her a small smile.
"Peter brings out feelings in me I didn't know I was capable of," she continued sincerely. "I've come to care about him a great deal. We both apparently needed a family, so that's what we've become to each other. I don't care what you all think about it." She looked at them steadily, her challenging expression daring them to make an issue of it.
"Okay then," Steve said after a paused. "You're right, it's none of our business. Thank you for explaining."
The others murmured agreement, sufficiently chastened. Natasha's stare softened. "I know it seems strange to outsiders. But Peter is very special to me." She ruffled his hair affectionately. "My sweet boy."
Peter absolutely beamed at her. "Right back at you...Mom."
Their bond was clearly heartfelt and genuine, even if the origins were unconventional. The team resolved to simply accept it from now on.
"Thank you for understanding, guys," Peter said sincerely. "I know it's weird, but Mom - I mean Natasha," he corrected after a subtle eyebrow raise from her, "is really important to me too."
Natasha laughed lightly and pulled him into a one-armed hug. "Oh, sweetie. They know now. No need to keep up the charade."
Peter's grin was ear to ear. The team smiled back indulgently.
Weird or not, seeing two people find the family they needed in each other was pretty darn heartwarming.