Chapter 13
Peter blinked as he opened his eyes and looked around. The familiar scene of the park where Tony had found him.
"How...”
We brought you here.
Peter jumped as the voice answered him. The last thing he remembered was being in his bedroom and now he was out in the city, with the mysterious voice telling him it had brought him here.
"How...how did you get past FRIDAY?" Peter asked, trying to ignore the fact that what ever this voice was had taken complete control of his body.
We are much better at sneaking than even you.
Peter frowned, unsure of how to take that. Obviously they were, since Peter was just now learning that all his missed time was due to whatever this voice was.
We are heroes.
“What?” Peter asked.
We are heroes. We also patrol the streets.
“I haven’t heard of any new vigilantes.” Peter replied, his eyes narrowing.
You're not supposed to.
"I don't like that." Peter frowned. "If you're helping people, you shouldn't be hiding. Not even Daredevil is that big of a secret. People know he exists."
The voice didn't respond.
Peter sighed and looked around. He didn't have his suit, so coming out had really been a pointless endeaver. Still, he was out of the compound. As far as he knew, no one knew he was gone, so this could be the perfect time to disappear.
"Stark can't find me this time." Peter mumbled.
You have no food or money. Your clothes are to light for prolonged exposure to nature. You will being going back.
Peter's mouth dropped at the firm response.
"What do I mean 'I will be going back'? This is our chance to escape! To leave and protect them! You know I can't be with them."
I said you will go back.
"You can't make me go back. I'm doing what's right. I'm sparing everyone the trouble of having to deal with me and all that comes with it." Peter said, hugging himself.
Not a choice. I am apart of you now. Your health is my health. I am stronger because you are now stronger. I will protect you now.
Peter sniffled as a tear ran down his cheek. Everyone seemed to be telling him they would protect or love him, he wished they would stop.
I am tied to you, you die, I die and that is unacceptable.
"What do you mean, you're 'tied to' me? What, I'm like, a host to you? Are you some kind of parasite?"
PARASITE?!
The voice screamed in offense, causeing Peter to jerk back wildly and fall to the ground.
"Ok! I get it! Not a parasite! Geeze." Peter grumbled, slowly standing up.
Remember it.
The voice huffed and continued to mumble lowly.
"So....now what? There's nothing I can really do. Ummm....Oh! How about we play some 20 questions since there's no one around to think I'm weird."
I already know everything about you.
"Unfair, but that leave me knowing very little about you." Peter frowned. "Do you at least have a name?"
We have been called, Venom.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Pepper sighed as she rolled on her side facing the window. The soft light on the moon poured into the room.
Things with Peter were both good and bad. He hadn’t been physically violent to anyone, but he was emotionally distant. His face was like an open book as to how he was feeling. She couldn’t figure out how anyone was oblivious to his situation.
Even worse was the never ending rotation of emotions on Peter's face and in his eyes.
The boy feared and mistrusted everyone. Every time a caring word was spoken to him, he practically folded in on himself, obviously uncomfortable.
Sighing, she threw off the covers and climbed out of bed. She didn't think there had ever been a time Tony had been the one sleeping and she was the one awake. She gave a fond smile at him before slipping out the door.
Padding quietly down the hall, she stopped outside Peter's room. She debated on going in to check on him, but decided against it. If Peter was awake, she didn't want to disturb him.
Continuing on, she entered the kitchen and set about making herself a cup of coffee.
"FRIDAY?"
"Yes Ms. Boss?"
"Order me some child psyhcology books. I don't see Peter talking to Sam any time soon, so I want to better educate myself to help him."
"Right away."
Pepper blew at her coffee as she sat down on the sofa. She didn't bother to turn on the lights since the room was lit up enough by the moon's natural light.
She wanted to be prepared when Peter woke up. He needed to bring her A-game when it came to him. She was going to be his mother after all, she needed to be able to be there for him until he was willing to let Wanda and Pietro in.
She would do all she could, until Peter's face held a permanent smile.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Peter was panicking.
He raced down an allyway and out into the, thankfully since it was New York, empty street. No one saw him come out.
He looked down at his clothes, surprisingly clean despite what had just occured.
You need to calm down.
"Don't talk to me!" Peter shouted, his voice strangled by fear. "You're a monster! I wish I never knew you!"
Tears started to pour down his face as he continued to run. His bare feet slapped hard against the pavement of the sidewalk. He didn't even know where he was going.
I am not a monster. He was.
"You...you killed him! You tore him to shreds, then tried to eat him!"
I was hungry!
"You can't kill and eat people! That's not what heroes do!" Peter gasped, falling to the ground of the park he had originally come to in.
Maybe they should. They can't get back out on the streets my way.
"It doesn't work like that! There are some people that might agree, but most people will hate you! You're already talked about in the news! People fear you!"
Good. It will keep them from doing wrong.
"They don't know your victims have all been criminals! Some of them didn't even have police records! To the public, some of those murders look like they were done to innocent people!"
Peter curled up into a ball, hot tears continuing to slide down his cheeks. All this time the killer he had been chasing, was himself.
Idid that! You do not take credit for the bad guysIstopped.
Venom huffed.
Peter didn't care. Venom wasn't a seperate person that could just claim the murders for himself. He was apart of Peter, he had said so! Everything he did, Peter was there when he did it, along for the ride even though he didn't know it.
He was the reason the murders were happening. He gave Venom a body to do it through.
Venom was quiet for a long time as Peter cried, huddled in the dirty alley.
It is getting late. You should let us take you home.
"No! How can I go back! They'll lock me away once they figure out what I've done!" Peter cried harder. "I know I don't deserve a family or love from others, but that doesn't mean I wanted to be thrown in jail! Worse, because I have powers, they'll lock me away in The Raft!"
What is The Raft?
"It's where people like me are locked away when they do wrong. You don't get out of that place! You're there until you die!"
I would never allow that to happen!
"It's your fault I'll be there!" Peter growled. "It will be all your fault!"
Silence returned as Peter's tears started to dry up, no longer able to continue.
"I...I have to leave. We have to leave the city. Disappear. Forever."
I do not want to.
"You don't have a choice. You're in my body. You're not gonna do as you please anymore." Peter sniffed, pulling himself to his feet.
One night. Spend one more night, and I will help you leave.
Peter rubbed his eyes, Venom's voice ringing in his head.
"How can I trust you not to take over whenever I try to leave?"
You can't.
Surprisingly, Peter respected the honesty.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Tony paused as he heard a loud thump come from Peter's room as he went to pass. He briefly considered sticking his head in to make sure the kid was ok, but shook his head and moved on.
He had had enough of threats against his life, thank you very much.
"Hey Pep." Tony yawned, stepping into the kitchen.
The smell of fresh coffee filled his nostrils.
"How long have you been up?"
"A while." Pepper smirked. "I was up when insomiac Tony Stark was sleeping."
"Blasphemous!" Tony gasped in mock horror.
"I ordered some child psychology books. I need to study up."
"That's good. I promise to stay out of your way. I've learned my lesson."
"Good." Pepper smiled, moving to the refridgerator to pull out various items.
"Breakfast?" Tony asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Just because you don't eat it, doesn't mean Peter won't. He needs to eat more to gain back some weight, and acknowledge that metabolism . I think he's programed himself not to think about it."
"Maybe he needs to spend some meals with Cap. If he sees how much he can put away, it might make Pete feel better about increasing his own portion sizes. We can't eat as much as they need, so I'm sure it's not encouraging for him to see our plates."
Pepper thought about it, and nodded.
"More Avenger family meals then. I'll let everyone know. Steve will have to sit next to Peter until he feels comfortable enough to fill his own plate."
The two were quiet as Pepper cooked and Tony enjoyed his coffee.
"FRIDAY, is Peter awake?" Pepper asked, finishing up breakfast.
"Yes. He is currently laid out on the floor."
"So that was the thump I heard." Tony smirked. "Kid fell out of bed as I was passing."
"Please tell him breakfast is ready."
"Yes, Ms. Boss."
Pepper was loading the plates when Peter stumbled into the room.
Pepper looked up with a smile, and froze. Noticing her stare, Tony turned, his eyes widening as he took in the disheveled teen with extremely dirty feet.
Seriously, how had they gotten like that? They were covered in dirt and grime.
"Good morning, Peter." Pepper smiled, pulling herself together. "Come have a seat."
Peter nervously shuffled forward, pulling himself onto the bar stool next to Tony.
The billionaire desperately wanted to crack a joke about Peter's appearance in an effort to lighten the mood, but kept his mouth shut. He didn't want to upset the boy.
"How was your night, kid?" he asked instead, hoping it wasn't a bad question. "Was the bed to your liking?"
Peter looked at him through his peripheral vision before giving a slight nod.
"It, it was good."
"Glad to hear it." Tony said with a satisfied nod. "I'm pretty picky about my mattress choices. Only the best in this household."
"He's not lying about the picky part." Pepper said, rolling her eyes. "We spent five hours picking out a mattress once."
"I have to sleep on that, Pep!"
"No, I have to sleep on it. You rarely do."
"And I have to enjoy it when I do!" Tony huffed, turning away.
Peter watched the two with an odd fascination. The last time he had seen a couple "argue" like this was with Ben and May.
It gave him a warm feeling he hadn't had in so long. This wasn't what he refused to acknowledge he felt with Wanda and Pietro. This was different. This was........like a family.
No. No. Don't think about it.
Tony and Pepper continued their lighthearted bickering, purposely avoiding looking at Peter so he could eat without feeling self conscious.
And eating he was.
He seemed so distracted by observing them, he wasn't even paying attention to how much he was packing away. If this was how they could get him to eat, Pepper and Tony would gladly do this every morning.
It wasn't like it was hard to find something to snark at each other about. Tony made it far to easy.
Peter was three plates in before the feeling of fullness made itself known. Despite that, Peter didn't even think about just how much food it had probably taken to make him feel that way.
Tony and Pepper had been far to amusing.
"So, Peter." Pepper turned to him with a smile, having noticed he had stopped eating. "What would you like to do today?"
Peter looked at her uncertainly. No one ever asked what he wanted to do. It never mattered. What he wanted to do was never as important as what someone else did, or it wasn't important at all. Peter knew his place.
It was at the bottom. Right where he deserved to be.
Especially after the night he had had.
"Don't waste your time fighting it, kid." Tony shrugged. "Pepper always wins."
He didn't know how to respond. There wasn't anything he could think of. What did people do? All he ever did was go to school or go out as Spider-Man.
Something he wouldn't be doing for a long time, if ever again.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Wanda and Pietro waited anxiously in eyesight of the elevator.
It had been a horrible night for both of them. Peter's emotions had been the most intese they had ever felt. The sadness and dispare had been practically overwhelming.
Their eyes stung slightly from how much they had rubbed tears away.
They desperately needed to see Peter and make sure he was ok.
“He’s having breakfast then getting dressed.” Natasha said, rubbing the two across the top of their heads.
“Pepper will bring him down when he’s ready.”
The ding of the elevator had everyone snapping their eyes over, only for Tony to walk out alone.
“Well, screw you all too.” The billionaire huffed as everyone’s expectant faces fell.
“The kid and Pep will be down in just a bit. Fair warning, kid wasn’t looking to hot this morning.”
Tony breezed through the room, making sure to make eye contact with Natasha before leaving.
Taking one last look at Wanda and Pietro, Natasha followed Tony out of the room.
“My office.” He said, waiting for her in the hallway.
“I’m coming to.”
The two looked over as Steve joined them.
“I haven’t had a lot of personal interaction with Peter outside our time in the gym but, I don’t want to be out of the loop. If I can help, I’m going to.”
“Actually, I can knock out two birds with one stone.” Tony smirked. “Follow away Captain.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Steve shut the door behind them as they entered Tony’s office.
“I’ll start with the easy stuff.” Tony said, sitting down.
“Starting tonight, group meals. Peter’s way under a proper weight, but he acts like he’s afraid to take to much. So, group meals and Cap, you have a permanent seat mate until Peter starts feeling more comfortable taking his proper proportions on his own.”
“Makes since.” Steve nodded. “I’m the only one on his metabolism level. Still, even I know my limits. We need to try to figure out Peter’s. Seeing me eat is only gonna do so much. Peter’s young. He might need way more than me.”
“I’ll see if we can get him to let Helen run some tests. I don’t have a lot faith in that, so you’re our only plan at the moment.”
“Ok, so we have a plan to try to encourage Peter to eat, but what did you want with me?” Natasha asked, crossing her arms.
“Our baby spider needs some…..special surveillance.”
Natasha raised an eyebrow.
“The kid came to breakfast with dirty feet and looking like he had had one hell of a night. Somehow, he got out.”
“Past FRIDAY?” Steve’s eyebrows raised in surprise.
“Yeah, and I’m all ears on an explanation for that. FRIDAY can’t even tell me. Somehow he got out the bathroom. That’s all I know.”
“What did Pepper say?” Natasha asked, frowning.
“We haven’t been able to really talk about it yet. Peter’s been around. I think she’d agree with me on this though. Once Pete’s down with everyone, do your spy thing and check his bathroom. There’s a breach somewhere…..as loath as I am to even suggest something like that.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Wanda and Pietro immediately brightened as the elevator dingged, and Pepper, followed by a slightly drawn and hesitant Peter.
"We have a lot of different things to do around here." Pepper smiled as motioned for Peter to follow her.
Peter didn't respond, choosing instead to follow alongside her silently.
"How about we do a tour? Get you familiar with everything."
Peter looked up, taking in Pepper's encouraging face. It took him by surprise when his first thought was how he would hate to disappoint her by either refusing, or acting completely uninterested.
“Ok.” He responded quietly.
Pepper’s face lit up with a smile.
“Great! You already know we have a gym, but how about we look into some other places.”
“Mind if we join you?”
Peter looked up to see Wanda and Pietro smiling hopefully. He took note of how they made sure to give him space, but be close enough to be engaged should he want to.
It was comforting in a way that both pleased and terrified him.
Pepper analyzed his expressions, ready to jump in if she felt it was in Peter and the twins best interests.
“Ok.” Peter responded, a brief flinch of shock that he had answered so quickly crossing his face.
Following behind Peter and Pepper, the twins looked over at where Clint and Sam were giving them encouraging smiles.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Peter stared at the large oak door he knew led to Tony’s office.
His revelation during the night sparking even more anger at the man who had betrayed him so.
Tony had endangered everyone at the compound even more than Peter could have ever guessed.
They were housing a monster. A monster that had no problem killing, and no remorse for it.
Why should I?
Because you don’t get to decide someone’s fate! You can’t just kill someone like that, regardless of what they’ve done!
You are naive. They can get out of jail. I stop them from ever being able to commit a crime again.
Peter couldn’t argue that logic. It was hard to commit a crime when you were dead. Peter didn’t want that responsibility though. To be judge, jury and executioner wasn’t what he signed up for when he decided to use his powers and be a masked vigilante.
Venom reminded him of Deadpool, just without all the quips and bizarre, childlike love for the job.
I've felt you get angry for me. Why haven't you been angry at Stark?
He does not think you are the problem. I don't think you are a problem.
People have died because of me!
Criminals have been dealt with because of me!
Venom hissed.
Peter chose to ignore him.
Pepper didn't miss Peter's glance at Tony's door. As quiet, withdrawn and sad as what Peter could be, there was a fire there too.
Tony had a natural talent for drawing out exasperation and anger from people.
"We should get some special equipment to add to the gym." Pietro spoke up.
"You're right." Pepper nodded. "We need to get a baseline for Peter's abilities and outfit the gym to accomodate him in training."
"What?" Peter asked, head shooting up.
"Everyone has special equipment in the gym to help us train." Wanda smiled. "We all practice together, but we also have different abilities that must be honed as well."
Peter's brow furrowed as he looked away. They were already planning to spend more money to further create him a place here.
His stomach churned.
"Here we are." Pepper said, opening a door and walking in.
Peter looked around with wide eyes. The morning sun shone down through the glass cieling, reflecting off the water of the largest swimming pool he had ever seen.
"The pool is always available for use. If you can't remember how to get here, FRIDAY can help."
Peter nodded at Pepper's words, but unable to tear his eyes away from the room. It had been so long since he had been swimming. It was definately before losing Ben and May.
"Peter?"
Peter jumped, startled out of his thoughts.
"Y-yes?"
"Ready to continue?" Pepper smiled softly.
"Ok."
Pepper watched out the corner of her eye as Peter seem to unconciously slow his steps enough to put his close to Wanda and Pietro. The small boy seeking comfort without even being aware.
Wanda and Pietro smiled at each other, but made no move that might alert Peter to what he was doing.
"We have a gaming system in the common room, but thats only used when they're to lazy to actually come in here." Pepper smirked, opening another door.
Peter looked around in awe at the large room full of.......games.
A pool table. Air hockey table. Various arcaid games. On one was, was the largest tv screen he had ever seen, surrounded by every gaming system ever made.
It was an kid's dream room.
A kid's dream room.......that adults were using.
Earth's Mightiest Defenders.
Earth's Mightiest Secret Children.
"This is the best room in the compound." Pietro grinned. "We've had some epic gaming competitions in here."
"He wouldn't say that if he hadn't won any." Wanda whispered to Peter, loud enough for Pietro to hear. "He's a sore loser."
"Hey!"
"It's true."
Pietro crossed his arms and turned away with a pout.
"You don't have to call me out like that." he mumbled.
Wanda grinned mischievously.
Peter watched the exhange, noting how it was similar to Pepper and Tony's "argument" this morning.
There was no heat behind any of these words. No loud voices. No underlying threats of violence. Just.....play.
He thought about his picture of Ben and May that was buried in his bag. He needed to take it out. It was painful, but it reminded him of his last good memories before his ever present bad luck ruined everything.
"We better get out of here before Pietro throws a real tantrum." Wanda snickered, placing her hands on Peter's shoulders and leading him out the room.
Pietro followed behind them and Pepper, muttering about lies and betrayal.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Natsha frowned as she left Steve and Tony to discuss more subtle ways of encouraging Peter to take better care of himself due to his enhancements.
How was he able to get past FRIDAY's monitoring?
"FRI?"
"Yes, Ms. Romanov?"
"What was Peter doing before he entered the bathroom?"
"He appeared to be talking to himself, but his current privacy protocol only allowed me to visibly see him. I am unable to communicate with him in his room, or hear him unless he specifically asks for me."
"Odd."
"Boss wanted to try to gain back a little trust."
"Good luck with that." Natasha snorted.
"Agreed."
Natasha chuckled as she made to way to the elevator.
"Take me to the penthouse. I'm going to have a look around Peter's room. We need to figure out how he got past you."
"I am very curious myself."