It’s Quiet Midtown
SPIDER-MAN MISSING?
CRIME ESCALATES SINCE THE SUDDEN DISAPPEARANCE OF THE FRIENDLY HERO
TONY STARK TO DISCUSS SPIDER-MAN!
SPIDER-MAN DEAD
BEHIND THE MASK! FRESH NEWS ON THE LATE GREAT HERO
SPIDER-MAN IDENTITY REVEALED
SUPER-TEAM WITH A SUPER-TEEN?
THE TRAGIC STORY OF PETER PARKER.
He can explain.
The idea of a grandeur memorial service for Spider-man man rubs Tony the wrong way.
Peter and May’s funeral felt surreal. Oddly enough, a lot of students showed up. Peter had apparently touched the lives of more people than he knew.
The memorial was quiet.
Michelle, MJ to Peter, was quiet.
Tony Stark was quiet. (The students were surprised that the man showed up, but it was touching. No one dared to talk to him. Their super-avenger-fan selves didn’t have the nerve to bring up his fane at a time like this).
And what was really daunting, was lowering the two empty caskets to the ground. It did strike a nerve that neither Peter nor May had any remnants left.
Well, that’s not exactly true. They found dental records of May Parker, but nothing for Peter. Tony investigated it for two weeks before deciding that it was pointless. They were both gone and holding on to false hope only made the grief feel longer.
Ned Leeds, however, wasn’t quiet. After the funeral, all he could do is stare at the empty chair in the lunch room and reminisce on one of he and Peter’s last conversation. He finds it horribly ironic that one of the last things they discussed was the future and what colleges they wanted to go to.
It’s almost like the universe was mocking and laughing at him in some cruel and twisted way.
Suddenly, asking out Betty Brant was a toss up.
On one end, Peter said he should go for it. And, who knows? Maybe he needs someone like Betty in a time like this.
On the other, he felt like he was maybe leaving Peter behind.
And... he just can’t do that.
In all of this, he finally got to meet his hero, Tony Stark. And by ‘meet,’ he means ‘receive a pat on the back from.’
He wishes he could have met him in better circumstances. Literally any other circumstance.
But, the world works in wondrous (and screwed up) ways. So, they got to bond over the loss of their best friend/protégé.
Not only that, but May Parker too.
Hell, the whole Parker bloodline was erased in a little over ten years. Tony almost volunteered himself to arrange the funeral, but they found a family friend to pick the (empty) caskets and flowers.
Peter’s was obviously too large for his smaller body, but Tony thought (perhaps) that’s what Peter would’ve wanted.
But this time, everything coordinated with Tony.
The decision to reveal Peter’s identity wasn’t an easy one. He talked to Pepper and Ned, mostly, who both agreed to wait a bit (or, a month, as Tony decided). The news and media realized their favorite web-slinger was MIA, and took to twitter within two weeks of the fire.
Tony received a ridiculous amount of messages and calls to actions. It was public knowledge that Ironman and Spider-man were buddies, but he didn’t think they’d target him specifically.
But, it does make sense. The only thing people knew for sure about Spider-Man was his association with Tony Stark, brief involvement with the Sokovia Accords, and lifesaving capabilities.
The only issue was: that’s all anyone cared about.
However, Tony wanted people to care about the kid.
Peter Parker and everyone else who died in the damned fire.
Because no one else got their (empty) casket carried through Queens on live television.
No one else got graffiti art and parade floats.
Peter Parker wouldn’t get his service broadcasted for half the world to see.
No fans crowding the streets that carried his casket.
Peter got something small and suiting to himself.
Spider-Man got the news.
Because the people cared about Spider-Man.
Not Peter Parker.
For Tony, it was the opposite.
Sure, when he originally recruited the kid, it was strictly professional.
He’d help bring down a patriotic war criminal, then Tony would keep an eye on him.
No more, no less.
But damn, after the Homecoming Fiasco, he couldn’t bare to take one eyes off of the kid.
And that, somehow, led to... this.
As horrific as it is, Tony’s glad Peter didn’t die from Spider-Man.
But... shit. The kid was gone and he can’t breathe.
He can’t speak.
So instead, he sits.
Pepper (thankfully) wraps her arm around his neck to offer some kind of condolence. Comfort. Anything to let him know she’s here and she’s grounded.
She’d met the kid only a few times, but he did make one hell of an impression. And she knew that Tony would eventually find a way to blame himself for everything. But for now, he’s quite. And he’s relatively stable.
The orchestra plays music that’s somehow managing to be too loud and too quiet all at the same time.
Then it’s over. Pepper reaches across the couch and shut the T.V. down.
The world seems silent now.
”Tony.” She holds his hand and lightly pulls him to bed, even though it’s half-past seven.
“Tony.” He knows he hasn’t spoken at all today. He went through motions silently and allowed everyone else to do the work.
He feels numb.
He can’t speak.
And laying in bed, he realizes he just can’t breathe.
—-
Let it be known, that the original intentions of Peter’s captors were purely selfish.
They’d hold him for a while, perhaps rough him up a little, and finally force Stark to trade a pretty penny for the boy.
And when the intern turned out to be Spider-Man himself, the price on his head surely would jump!
But the selfish beginnings lead to malevolent methods.
To think, if Stark had waited a week before revealing his identity, the kid could be living life as a free “man.” The trade would be made and both parties left remotely satisfied.
However, cards were in favor of the villains this time.
And what was a simple kidnapping then became a mass conglomeration of multi-variety experimentation.
Gathering products of a mutated individual who could walk on walls and lift buses would surely be time well spent.
How long would the experiments go on? Doesn’t matter.
It would take however long it needed to take.
And when it’s all said and done, they would still have Stark, who’d definitely be willing to see his little boy again.