Chapter 13
Peter was the first one to notice the physical changes in each of them almost a week later. It happened only after sort of recovering from knowing both his Aunt and Uncle were dead again and that this really wasn't a dream, something which had understandably distracted him. It was a different kind of grief and he had scared his new dads when he wouldn't eat but he was coping, for now.
Peter was definitely stronger and faster than he had been the first time he was recovering from the spider bite. The wrist web spinnerets were new and interesting. Then again what really made him pay attention to their changes was when Tony picked up something heavy that he knew his older self had needed to move for the genius at one point in New York. The fact that Doctor Strange picked up a solid steel slab that had to weigh close to fifty pounds like it was a dinner plate at one point the next day didn't help Peter's internal freak out.
Peter waited another week, figuring out his wrist spinnerets and making a batch of his old web fluid along with a launcher before acting. His first stop? Stocking up the room he was going to use with snacks and drinks. His second? Going to his room to put on his newly modified hoodie spider suit. He had to be dressed properly for this! Pre-teen body or not!
Jarvis and Friday didn't even say anything about him getting to be Spiderman in the house!
Of course, Peter didn't realize that the way he was crawling all over the ceiling, stalking his dads from above, was just plain adorable. The fact that he was dressed in personally modified sweats and only socks gave away that he wasn't actually leaving the building. It just made him even more cute and adorable as a tiny spider ninja. Levi was even playing along!
Friday and Jarvis just watched on in amusement and didn't bother to warn the two geniuses about their brother's antics. They would show them the video footage later once Peter was done stalking them or got caught. Probably both.
Peter was pleased with himself when he managed to stalk both men all over the ceiling for the entire morning. He was less pleased when Stephen started frowning at the time around lunch and acting like he had forgotten something.
"Where's Peter?" Stephen eventually asked.
"I thought he was in his room playing with Lego's... Didn't you check?" Tony asked with a frown. "Didn't we agree to check on him every two hours after him not eating?"
"We did but you went passed me in that direction around the check time so I thought you had checked him," Stephen frowned. "You also seemed smug when you went back towards your lab."
"Uh, huh, I fetched a tool that I had accidentally left in my room... somehow, around mid-morning. So, he's been left alone, in his room, all morning?" Tony concluded, rising concern making him anxious.
"Tony, he's old enough to be left alone that long and we still remember his more teenage self," Stephen reminded him. "I'm sure he's fine. Let's just get him for lunch and he's probably just playing with that ridiculous Lego set you bought him before we even knew to look for him."
"He loves LEGO stuff," Tony said sheepishly. "He was still building with them even after I gave him access to my lab as my intern and as Spider...man. Didn't Madam Web say that his powers were coming in?"
The two men stared at each other and then abruptly rushed towards Peter's, still mostly basic, room. Peter had to clap one hand over his mouth not to let his giggle alert them to his hiding/stalking spot even as he scuttled along the ceiling after them.
"Where is he?" Tony exclaimed even as they searched his room for their son.
Peter? Peter was laughing so hard and silently that he nearly fell off the ceiling. Even loosing his grip with one hand and one foot wasn't enough to stop him from his quiet wheezing laughter.
When he noticed them start heading for the room door to look for him in the rest of the mansion Peter got himself ready to pounce. With a wide grin he set up the first part of his trap. A single strand of fresh webbing shot to the slightly open door of his trap room and pulled it shut with an audible click. A click that immediately drew the attention of both men. Peter smirked at the determined looks the two adult exchanged before hurrying over to the door and opening it.
They were perfectly positioned for his cannonball into them, tumbling all three of them into the guest room. This allowed Peter to close and web up the door with a cheerful yell of success immediately after their tumble. Both men groaned under his weight and from the fall they hadn't been able to stop. Fortunately, Peter had the forethought to make sure the area was clear and that they were fully in the room before essentially trapping them in there.
"Peter," Tony groaned as he hauled himself up and off of Stephen's prone body to look at his spider child practically dancing in victory. Stephen followed suit and the first thing they did was capture their son and check him over before hugging him.
"I caught you! I caught you!" Peter said triumphantly.
"That you did," Stephen said ruefully. "Were you spending all morning setting up this trap or did you actually get snacks like you were supposed to?"
Peter wilted slightly but pointed at the large number of snacks and sealed drinks on the dresser he had put there for them during their captivity.
"Bambino, did you actually mean to get trapped with us?" Tony asked, amused. He had used the distraction to check his arc reactor and the way it sat in his chest before joining Stephen.
"Uh, no?" Peter admitted sheepishly after re-evaluating the situation critically with his child body/mind and teenage superhero knowledge.
Both Dads exchange an Uh huh, look knowingly.
"At least I used my old web fluid and no the new stuff I'm growing," Peter pointed out, making a face at the growing portion. "We mostly know when it will dissolve and let us out again."
"You completely forgot about my portals didn't you?" Stephen dead panned.
"Maybe?" Peter admitted sheepishly, shifting on his feet in embarrassment. Before the two men could look at him sardonically or in amusement he had webbed them up in cocoons, much to their shock.
Peter, ignoring their sounds of indignant outrage and surprise, carefully picked them up off the floor and set them onto the bed side by side. He stood there for a moment, visibly pondering something before shrugging and hopping onto the nearby wall. Tony and Stephen watched him in indignant incredulity as Peter climbed up onto the ceiling before flipping himself around to face them from his perch above them, hands and feet easily anchored behind him. It was a position that Tony was sort of familiar with from dealing with his Spiderling insisting on being perched in high, awkward places during his actual internship times. There was an actual reason why Peter stayed mostly in his personal lab after all when he wasn't using the internship as a patrol excuse.
"So, I have snacks for us and I really didn't want to try to talk about this without you trying to run away from things like feelings so I figured I'd skip a few steps and just trap you for a bit while we talked," Peter explained. "First things first... I'm stronger and faster then in the Before. Second, you both seem to have gotten some spider from me but its not a lot yet, only minor stuff you usually don't even notice you're using. Like when Dr. Strange picked up that slab of steel about a week ago. I didn't see him strain or anthing!"
"Peter, there are such things as spells that make other things lighter or float," Stephen said with patient amusement, ignoring the slight discomfort of being tied up in webbing.
"But did you use one of them that day?" Peter pestered him.
"...no, I don't think I did," Stephen admitted after a moment of thought. "I thought it was a different, lighter alloy that Tony was messing with."
"Nope, I checked it, solid steel," Peter said quietly. That got the two captive heroes exchanging concerned looks. "Mr. Stark lifted and moved a piece of equipment that I needed to move for him in the Before back in New York."
"Kid, let us up," Tony ordered suddenly very tired.
"Uh, nope! You didn't have this before... Well, before Madam Web and..." Peter's voice hitched in a suppressed sob as he scrubbed at his face through the hoodie mask with one bare hand.
"Peter, we can't hug you like this. Let us up," Tony said gently.
Instead of obeying Peter let go of the ceiling and dropped to the bed they were both trapped on, landing lightly between them. It seemed that while he still had concerns he also wanted the comfort if the way he curled his tiny body up between them and just cried said anything about it. Both men exchanged a desperate look before trying to wiggle closer in their cocoons. They barely succeeded but they managed it. Unable to hold their son in their arms they did the best they could to comfort him until he fell asleep.
"You know we could call the Ancient One to get us free," Stephen offered about an hour after Peter fell asleep.
"And give her this as blackmail? Not a chance," Tony shot back, giving him a look of incredulity over Peter's head tucked under his chin.
"Calling little sis!" Friday announced cheerfully.
"Wait! No! Friday!" Tony protested. "Don't call Morgan!"
"Something wrong?" Tao's amused voice asked over the open line, clearly having heard his protests when she answered the phone.
"Nope, nothing!" Tony said frantically. "Just me and Steph hanging out."
"Stephen?" Tao asked, mild warning in her voice.
"Peter decided we needed to have a family talk and assumed that we wouldn't come to the talk willingly. He's currently asleep and we are slightly trapped," Stephen admitted, ignoring Tony's look of betrayal. "His concern was valid but his methodology was, is a bit difficult to get around to return to our own previous activities."
"Oh, this is going to be interesting. How exactly are you both trapped?" Tao asked, laughter in her voice.
"Webs," Stephen said succinctly. He didn't bother to elaborate especially since he figured that the AIs were going to share the footage of things with her at some point if she didn't arrive and see it for herself.
"Madam Web did say that he was being returned to you not just because of the spider blessing but also because of the mischief he was bound to get up to," Tao laughed. "Give me half an hour to wrap something up with the most recent batch of apprentices and I'll come rescue you. Unless this is more than just young Peter doing something?"
"No, we would have avoided even asking but Friday is choosing to play troll," Stephen said dryly. "I figured we might as well get something out of her amusement. Besides, we can discuss Peter's concerns once we're all comfortable in the living room with sensible comfort foods and drink."
"I wouldn't mind something to eat. I presume you're ready to tell him about the ritual that happened at the Expo?" Tao mused.
"More like he noticed we got something out of it beyond just adopting him," Tony admitted with a wince.
"Ah, so he thought someone had hurt you or was affecting you maliciously with a surface distraction of aid or enhancement. Alright, I'll be an hour to free up the next day or so to help with this. You were lucky I was still awake. Its nearly midnight for us here in Kamar-Taj," Tao explained.
"Sorry, I sort of forgot you're on an opposite time zone but in my defense it was Friday who made the call," Tony apologized.
"Its fine. I'll be there soon," Tao promised and ended the call.
Friday must have sent her a picture because an hour later she portaled straight into the room they were trapped in. Tao surveyed the "damage" and smirked. Tony knew she was definitely going to use this as blackmail and from Stephen's resigned sigh he knew it too. The smirk, however, disappeared when she couldn't get them free without a blade. Tao frowned and muttered before using a spell to create something like battle fans. The edges were sharp enough but she had to be very careful where she cut. She even went so far as to be deliberately slicing the cocoons open from the outside edge of the bed to keep the risk away from the still sleeping Peter.
"Thanks, hun," Tony sighed as he sat up in his neatly sliced cocoon on the bed.
Stephen was freed next and gave his own quiet thanks. Tony picked up their baby spider and cuddled his still sleeping form as they both got up off the bed. Stephen took one look at the door and opened a portal to the living room for them so that they didn't need to deal with the webbed over door.
Tao opted for a nap in a different guest room until Peter was awake and the food had arrived, leaving Tony and Stephen to their quiet discussion in the living room while they cuddled Peter.