Peter landed on the rooftop less gracefully than expected, groaning out in pain as he stood up straight and felt his ribs severely disagree with the movement. Perhaps dealing with eight big guys at once wasn’t the best idea on his part, but who else was going to stop that robbery?
“Have you completely lost your mind, kid?”
The hero sighed at the voice coming from his mask and slowly moved to sit on the edge of the building. “I had it covered, Mr. Stark.”
Ever since Peter had received the new AI chip from Pepper two weeks ago, it had practically become his lifeline. It had been the only way for him to cope with Tony’s death and continue being Spider-Man. Even if Tony may no longer physically be there, his voice was comforting. Grounding.
“Obviously, since you’ve got a cracked rib and a concussion. You totally got it covered, if having it covered means being in way over your head and nearly getting your ass handed to you.”
Well, this was new. Since when did AIs argue?
“What’s this about? Why are you yelling at me?”
“It’s in my programming. The Postcards Protocol. Pre-recorded lectures, speeches, and phrases for potential conversations designated for future events and developments. This is one of sixteen lectures set for playback when your suits shows substantial injury to your body.”
The Postcards Protocol? Why was it called that? Peter shrugged his shoulders and took a breath, looking out at the city. “Well, still, I handled it.”
“Barely. You’re gonna get yourself killed if you keep diving in without a plan like you just did.”
Though he was getting a stern talking to by artificial intelligence, Peter couldn’t resist a smile. Tony had gotten that together, to have someone talk sense into him if he couldn’t do it himself, just to make sure Peter was safe.
And that just made Peter Parker miss Tony Stark even more.
~*~
On his way home from school, Peter decided to take a longer route. May had to work late, and any other day he’d be alright with that. But today was his birthday, the first one since he had been snapped out of existence. Everything was so messed up right now, and he wasn’t sure if he would be celebrating turning seventeen or twenty-two. Biologically he may still be a teenager, but it was 2023 and he should be nearly done with college by now. There’s a lot of things that should be happening right now. He should be training with the other Avengers, Steve included, running drills or reveling in quiet nights in the still standing compound. Wanda and Vision should be talking sweetly to each other while roaming the halls.
Natasha should be catching Clint eavesdropping from the vents.
Tony should be teaching Morgan how to ride a bike.
Peter shuddered out of his thoughts as his apartment building came into view, skipping the song coming through his earbuds while entering the building and making his way to his door.
Mom and dad, don’t worry bout your son
I’ll be okay; I’ll take these days one by one
The boy listened to the more intensely, the tears falling faster than he could catch himself. Songs didn’t used to make him emotional like this. Nothing really used to make him emotional before. He’d always overcome grief and loss and all the negative thoughts by desperately searching for a silver lining or balancing it out with something positive regardless of how difficult it was. But now, after all that had happened, he just couldn’t do that. No amount of silver linings could brighten a cloud this dark.
Turning the doorknob to his front door after unlocking it, he pulled his earbuds out and walked in, only to be met with a room full of people. “Surprise!” they shouted as Peter quickly wiped the tears away so nobody could see them and replace his expression with a smile.
Aunt May, Ned, MJ, Pepper, Happy, Sam, Harley, Bucky, Wanda, Clint and his family, even Bruce and Doctor Strange had all came.
A little girl ran over to the teenager and he scooped her up into his arms, his smile instantly becoming more genuine. “Happy birthday, Petey!” she yelled excitedly, earning a laugh from Peter as he hugged her.
“Thank you, Morgan.”
Chaotic would be the way Peter would describe the party. He jokingly tried to convince May and Pepper that technically he was old enough to drink by government’s standards, while they both reminded him that he still had the brain and liver of a seventeen year old and didn’t need to ruin them both. Bucky was surprisingly on Peter’s side for this debate, but he was probably also trying to earn cool points with the kid. The kids and teenagers ended up playing several rounds of Uno, Morgan beating them nearly every time.
Eventually it came time for cake, and after the typical song beforehand, May smiled and gently squeezed Peter’s shoulders. “I larb you,” she whispered, kissing his cheek. “Make a wish, honey.”
The smile on Peter’s face faded. In years passed, he’d never taken his wishes too seriously. Mostly just requests to pass a particularly tricky test, or something silly like for him to win a raffle at school. One year, his birthday after Ben’s death, he’d wished for him to come back, or for the ability to go back and fix everything, but he realized after he’d made it that it was a foolish request. But now, with his heart aching and an array of eyes looking at him, he took a deep breath, closed his eyes, and blew out the candles.
I just wish that everything was normal again.
Later that night, almost everyone had left aside from Pepper and Morgan. The little girl had gotten tired and fell asleep on the couch, which only made Peter smile as he covered her up with a small blanket from his room.
“You’re great with her,” Pepper said with a small smile. “Couldn’t ask for a better older brother for her.”
“She’s amazing. Already smarter than me and not even half my age.”
A flash of melancholy crossed Pepper’s eyes. “That’s exactly what Tony used to say.”
The mention of his name no longer made Peter tense, but the words used after his name did. Used to.
After a few passing moments of silence, the woman reached into her purse and pulled out a small box covered in red and blue wrapping paper, handing it to the teenager. “Happy birthday, Peter.”
It had been a few hours since Pepper and Morgan had left, Peter recalling how Morgan wouldn’t leave before hugging him tightly and tiredly mumbling another happy birthday, along with an “I love you”. He hadn’t opened the gift yet, it resting at the foot of his bed as he began to suit up for the night. Just because it was his birthday didn’t mean that the city was going to pause all crime. He had a job to do.
He stopped before he pulled his mask on, glancing back at the gift he hadn’t opened. The last thing Pepper had given him was the AI chip, and that had brought on emotions he’d been struggling to keep down. What was in store for him this time? Sighing softly, he grabbed the present and carefully tore off the wrapping paper. He was met with a gift box and slowly pulled off the lid, looking at the contents in confusion.
It looked almost like the AI chip, with a few key differences like a smaller size and color. He stared at it for a little while as he tried to decipher what it could be, before getting an idea and pulling his mask on. “Mr. Stark?”
“Yeah kid?”
“What’s this?” he asked, holding the object in front of his face so the AI could scan it.
“It appears to be an extended update of the Postcards Protocol.”
Peter only grew more confused by that answer. “You mean the one that makes you freak out when I put myself in danger?”
“That’s the one.”
He was still perplexed why Pepper had given it to him as a birthday present, but perhaps she had only found it a few days before. Regardless, he pulled the chip out of the box and placed it in the slot next to the current one housing Tony’s voice. There were a couple beats of soft whirring before the AI spoke again.
“Initiating file: August Tenth.”
The typically calculating and artificial tone of voice was replaced by the same one, only sounding more...human. More Tony.
“Hey, kid. Guess if you’re hearing this then we got you back. Now listen, there’s only so many speeches I can think of to put in this thing, so I’m only making one for non-milestone birthdays and you’ll have to deal with that. You’re older now, kid. I bet you’re becoming the next billionaire genius, and...I’m sorry I’m not there to see it. I’m sure Morgan’s already got you wrapped around her finger. She’s good at that. Look after them, Pete. She needs her brother. Pep needs both her kids. Anyway, I hope you had a great birthday. You deserve it. Each and every birthday you have…don’t do anything dumb that’ll keep you from celebrating the next one. ...Love you, kid.”
Peter didn’t even realize he was crying until May was in the room and gently pulled the mask off of him, bringing him into a tight hug.
“...I miss him, May.”
“I know, honey. I know.”
~*~
It was a surprisingly quiet Saturday night on patrol, and Peter was passing the time between crimes sitting on the fire escape of an abandoned building and looking out over the city. The lights contrasting against the darkness was pretty to him, almost like a reflection of the stars in the sky. But the stars reminded him of space, and that was one place he’d rather not go back to. It was pretty, but screw space.
“Hey, Mr. Stark?” he asked after an hour or so of unusual silence.
“Yes?”
“What’s all recorded in the Postcards Protocol?” It had been a question that had been puzzling him for a while, but he wasn’t sure if the AI would have the answer.
“According to the files, there are pre-recorded speeches, lectures, and phrases for every major milestone in your life, such as important birthdays, high school graduation, college acceptance, college graduation, marriage, advice on girls, kids, and several confidential files that will not be accessed until the right time for them to be opened.”
How did Tony have the time to set this all up? When did he start recording these? He knew from the conversations with Pepper that he had made sure to have recordings set up for Morgan, but why did he have them for Peter, the kid from Queens who shot webs and annoyed him with pop culture references and science puns?
He sighed and shook the questions out of his head, and decided to call it a night.
It was a few days later when he was walking through the store that he passed through the cards section on his way to another aisle and caught sight of something that made he stop in his tracks. He took a step closer to it, picking up the card from the section clearly marked “POSTCARDS” with slightly trembling hands and tears brimming from shock.
The card was a simple picture of New York, nothing new, but with two words written across it.
Missing you!
That’s why it was the Postcards Protocol. Tony missed Peter when he’d turned to dust on Titan, and he knew that Peter would miss him after he was gone as well. It was all so fitting. Just too fitting.
But maybe...maybe it was a hint.
He rushed out of the store immediately after purchasing the card, no longer caring about what he had originally been there to get. Jumping into a nearby alley, he yanked his mask from his backpack and pulled it over his head, not even waiting for the greeting from Tony before speaking. “Mr. Stark, when was the first message in the Postcards Protocol recorded?”
“The first message ever intended for the Postcards Protocol was erased before it was put into the final program, but was recorded June twentieth, two thousand eighteen.”
A thousand thoughts rushed into his mind, but only one stayed still and screamed out to him as he quickly pulled on his suit. “Record a message for me.”
“Recording now.”
Peter smiled and shot a web, swinging up to the top of the highest building he could and letting his eyes look over the buildings. For the first time in what seemed like a long time, he was determined. Determined beyond compare. He was going to figure this out. Tony was telling him something, and he was going to listen.
“Hey, Mr. Stark. If you’re hearing this, well...that means I got you back.”