The Field Trip

“Class, make sure to get your permission slips signed by the end of the week! We’ll be visiting Stark Tower on Monday and I doubt anyone wants to get left behind!”

----

Honestly, Peter wouldn’t mind being left behind, he thought as he climbed onto the bus. A tour of the tower was a recipe for embarrassment and disaster on all counts. It was also ridiculous for him to walk to school just to be bused back home, but his chemistry teacher wasn’t his biggest fan, so he didn’t bother appealing. He sat in the front of the bus, far from Flash and his little friends. Unfortunately, as the bus started to move, Flash scurried back up the aisle and plopped down in the seat behind Peter.

“Parker!”

Peter ignored him.

“Oi, Parker!”

Joy to the world. Something thumped Peter’s head, and he finally turned.

“What.”

“I’ve been taking bets on whether or not people think you’re lying!”

“Lying about what?”

“The internship, idiot. I think you’re faking it, but five people so far said they believe you. Did you pay them?”

“Why would I pay them?”

Flash rolled his eyes like he was talking to a deceased rock. “For attention.”

“I don’t want attention,” Peter said. “I’d really rather you leave me alone, actually.”

“Not gonna happen, suck it! Hey, d’you think we’ll see Tony Stark himself? I bet you know him well, don’t you? ‘Cause you two are best friends.”

Peter rubbed his forehead. “I never said that.”

“Yeah, whatever, Parker. I bet when we get there, nobody’s gonna know you.”

----

Peter was mildly pleased to see Flash proven wrong within about a minute of being in the tower. They were standing in line to check in when someone called Peter’s name. Peter (and the rest of the class) turned to see one of the secretaries waving to catch his attention.

“Peter, dear! Why are you waiting in line with the schools?”

Peter glanced over to Flash, who was gaping.

“I’m on a field trip!” he called back.

“Are you?” The secretary looked faintly amused. “Well, have fun!”

“Thanks, Tina!”

Everyone stepped forward, forming a line for the metal detector, which was really more of a scanner. It said each student’s name flatly as they stepped through, and a guard checked them off on paper. When Peter took his turn, there was no robotic voice.

“Good morning, Mr. Parker. I must say, it’s odd to find you using this entrance,” JARVIS said pleasantly.

“Morning,” Peter replied. “I’m on a field trip.”

“So I gathered. I hope you have a pleasant one.”

“Thanks, JARVIS.”

Flash jabbed Peter in the arm as soon as they started walking. “What the hell was that?”

“JARVIS. Ton- Mr. Stark’s AI.”

“Pay attention!” their teacher rebuked. “The tour’s about to begin!”

Peter listened attentively as a young woman showed them down a hall lined with old prototypes and photos from the infancy of Stark Industries. He’d only been down here once or twice, so he wasn’t bored. Well, yet. They filed into an elevator and ascended to one of the research departments, where a short video was shown. The tour guide explained some new developments in such simple terms that a kid could understand, and Peter remembered that they were kids. He doubted anyone else in his class would understand a fraction of the mechanics and engineering that went in to the designs.

Next, they were taken to one of the smaller labs. As they walked, Peter spotted Clint ambling down the hall, and the man’s face lit up when their eyes met.

“Peter! You didn’t tell me your class was coming in!” Clint strode over and fluffed Peter’s hair fondly. Peter turned pink.

“Hi, Clint.”

“Did you taste the cookies that Barnes made last night?”

Peter shook his head, and Clint started digging in his pockets.

“Oh my god, they were delicious! They had little bits of walnuts and chocolate chips, but the kind of chocolate chips that make your brain melt a little… Here, found it! I saved you one, but I ate half because I figured you wouldn’t mind. You have to convince him to make them again. Please, I beg you. Can I have half of that?”

Peter broke the half-cookie into two pieces and handed one to Clint, who ate it happily.

“Thanks, Pete! See you later!”

“See you,” Peter replied, both amused and painfully embarrassed. Everyone was staring at him again. He ducked his head and ate his bite of cookie. It was really good. He’d have to remember to compliment Bucky on them.

After the visit to the small lab, the tour guide took them up to one of the major ones, where they all looked through a wide glass window at the proceedings inside. Peter caught a glimpse of Bruce, who was hunched over his laptop, seemingly puzzling over something. He looked up, and his face scrunched in surprise at the sight of Peter with the other kids at the window. His mouth curved into a smile, and he waved. Peter waved back and watched as Bruce pursed his lips, then stood up, making his way to the door and poking his head out.

“Hey, Peter? Can I borrow you for a moment?”

Peter looked to his teacher, who gaped. Bruce ran his fingers through his hair, looking apologetic.

“It won’t be for long. I just need him to look something over.”

“I… sure, of course,” the teacher stammered. Peter wove around his classmates and slipped through the door, following Bruce to his laptop.

“Can you check to see if this formula makes sense? I’m running on coffee and fumes at this point and I don’t know if I’m just seeing what I want to.”

Peter nodded, tilting his head and biting his lip as he studied the complex formula.

“Everything seems to check out,” he finally said. “You probably shouldn’t take my word for it, though.”

“I’ll send it up to Tony. I just wanted to rule out any glaring errors. I appreciate your help,” said Bruce, smiling.

“I didn’t do much,” Peter replied.

“You saving me from sending Tony anything obviously incorrect, which is about a week’s worth of teasing,” Bruce said. “I’d say that’s a solid favor.”

“Maybe.” Peter watched as Bruce yawned. “You should probably get some sleep.”

“Probably,” Bruce agreed. “I meant to sleep last night, but I got absorbed. Have a good day, alright? I’ll see you later.”

“You too,” Peter said, and headed for the door.

“That was Dr. Banner!” his teacher squeaked upon his return. Peter shuffled his feet. Luckily, the tour guide shepherded them away from the glass window, and Peter slid to the back of the group. They got into an elevator, and just as the doors were sliding shut, Pepper strode in. She was holding several notebooks, looking somewhat harried. She scanned the group superficially, and did a double-take when she spotted Peter.

“Peter! Why aren’t you in school?”

“I’m on a field trip.”

“Is that today? How’s it going?”

“It’s good,” Peter said somewhat helplessly.

“Excellent.” Pepper checked her watch and rubbed the bridge of her nose. “Everything’s running behind schedule today, what a mess. Dinner’s probably going to be late tonight, alright? I think Clint wanted pizza, so we’ll probably order out.”

The elevator stopped, and Pepper habitually pressed a quick kiss to Peter’s forehead before stepping out.

“Who was that?” Flash whispered, squinting at Peter, who was rubbing at the smudge of lipstick that had probably been left behind.

“Nobody,” Peter muttered.

“Why did she kiss you? What the hell is your deal, Parker?”

“Shut up, Flash. We’re on a tour.” It was the closest Peter had come to snapping in a while.

“You don’t-” Flash cut himself off with a yelp; his ear had just been twisted by a bored-looking MJ.

“Thanks,” Peter said, and MJ just raised an eyebrow at him, unimpressed. The elevator doors opened again, and they all followed the tour guide out onto one of the manufacturing floors, where prototypes were generally made. Peter smiled at the sight of Oskar, one of his favorite engineers, digging through a drawer of screwdrivers. The man tended to misplace things; his brain worked in tangents that left huge messes wherever he worked.

“Hi, Oskar!” he called. Oskar popped up, his face stretching into a sparkling grin.

“Peter! Can you help me find my T6 torx screwdriver? It’s gone missing!”

Peter trotted over, peering into the drawer.

“It’s probably not in here, you must’ve left it somewhere… When did you last have it?”

“I can’t remember!” Oskar groaned. “I used it last week on an upgrade to Colonel Rhodes’s suit, but now that I have to make more modifications, I can’t find it!”

“Did you take it to the bathroom with you? Put it in your pocket? Leave it out on a workbench?”

“Probably the last one,” Oskar admitted. “Hey! Hey everyone! Please tell me if you see a T6 torx screwdriver!”

“This one?” a woman called, waving a screwdriver in the air, and Oskar’s face brightened.

“Yes! Thank you, Nadia! You’re the best!”

“I thought I was the best!” a man cried from across the room.

“Times change, Neal!”

“Rude!” Neal replied. “Just for that, you’re not getting my leftovers at lunch!”

Oskar gasped dramatically, and Peter laughed.

“I’ve got to go, Oskar. It was good seeing you!”

“Good to see you, my boy! Thank you for your help!”

Peter waved, scurrying back to the group. No sooner as he returned, he saw Tony and Rhodey enter the room and make their way over to Oskar. Everyone in the group gasped or squeaked at the sight of them. Tony gave his paparazzi-smile and waved, his eyes widening when they caught on Peter.

“Kid, you didn’t tell me your class was coming in! Shouldn’t I have signed some sort of form? Permission slip? Is that a thing that they do still?”

“I had Pepper sign it,” Peter said. His cheeks were a deep red; everyone was gaping at them.

“Such betrayal,” said Tony, shaking his head. Someone called for his attention, and he started. “See you later, Peter. Bye, Peter’s class.”

Peter’s classmates looked like they were having heart palpitations. Flash opened his mouth and emitted a raspy wheeze of shock. Peter guessed that he was losing big money at this point. Idiot.

“Alright,” the tour guide said, slightly thrown. She shook herself before continuing. “As you can see, this is where many Stark Industries prototypes are made. We have engineers from around the globe working on them, some of which are tested upstairs, which is where we’re heading next. Now, if you could follow me back to the elevator….”

----

When lunchtime rolled around, a large group of Peter’s classmates squished in around him, demanding to know why the hell everyone knew him so well. He dodged questions mostly by having his mouth full, but that strategy ran dry when he finished his sandwich.

“Seriously, what the hell is your deal, Parker?”

Peter stared at the ceiling and mouthed ‘help’ to an unknown entity before leveling his gaze at Flash.

“I’m an intern here. I’ve told you that already.”

“Yeah, but you’re actually friends with Tony Stark. Why did he ask you about your permission slip, anyway? That was just weird. Shouldn’t your little aunt just sign it?”

Peter did a full-body flinch at the mention of May and lifted his eyes back to the ceiling. Flash jabbed Peter’s shoulder.

“I asked you a question!”

Peter stammered for a second. “When… when you work here, you -um- If you’re coming in for other reasons, you have to sign something saying you won’t spill any secrets.”

“Why would you know any secrets?”

Someone cleared their throat, and both Peter and Flash turned quickly. Peter let out an audible sigh of relief at the sight of Natasha.

“You’re Flash,” Natasha said, sounding bored, but Peter could see something dark flickering in the back of her eyes. Evidently Flash saw it too, because he gulped and scooted away from Peter.

“How do you know my name? Wait… are you the Black Widow?!”

“I’m one of Peter’s friends. I’ve heard a lot about you.” She stepped closer.

“You- you have?”

“I’ve heard enough to know that I don’t particularly like you. You’re bothering Peter. I don’t like people who bother my friends.”

“I… no, no, I’m not bothering him. We were just hanging out, right Peter?”

Natasha’s face turned cold. “You leave him alone if you know what’s good for you.”

“Are you threatening me?” Flash squeaked, putting on his last front of bravery. Natasha bared her teeth in a smile, and Flash nearly fell off the bench hurrying away. Natasha picked up his abandoned apple and took a bite. She wrinkled her nose and tossed it into a nearby trash can.

“How’s the tour, Peter?” she said calmly.

“Fine,” Peter replied, his voice somewhat weak. “Thanks for that.”

Natasha shrugged indifferently, but her eyes were warm. “Hair Club after school, do you think?”

“That would be great,” Peter sighed. Natasha gave him a knowing look.

“JARVIS told us that the other kids were being annoying. I wouldn’t be surprised if you have a little Winter Somebody tailing you.”

Peter hid his face in his hands. “He doesn’t have to do that. I’m fine.”

“You know how he gets,” Natasha replied. “None of us want anyone bothering our precious Peter.”

Peter made a faint sound of embarrassment. “You guys are ridiculous.”

Natasha pinched his cheek. “You love us.”

“I never said I didn’t,” Peter mumbled grudgingly. Natasha gave a real smile.

“I’ll see you after school.”

“Bye, Nat. Thanks.”

“Any time.”

----

Sure enough, Peter noticed a limber figure following the group as they continued the tour after lunch. Bucky was good; Peter never caught more than a ghost of his presence, yet he was always there. It was comforting, though Peter didn’t want to admit that. He smiled a little every time he caught a flash of metal or sweeping brown hair. It was because of Bucky that he wasn’t nervous when he made his way to the bathroom and Flash followed him.

“Parker! How much did you pay the Black Widow to do that?”

Peter blinked. “I didn’t pay her.”

“Yeah, I forgot. You can’t afford her. How did you do it, then?”

Peter ignored the question, keeping his eyes firmly to himself at the urinal.

“You’re gonna have to talk eventually, Parker. You’re not telling anyone something.”

“I don’t tell anyone a lot of things,” Peter replied mildly, re-zipping his jeans. When he turned, he saw Bucky standing directly behind Flash. Peter didn’t startle; his ears had picked up on the faint squeak of the bathroom door several moments earlier. Flash clearly hadn’t, because when he zipped his pants and pivoted for the door, he let out a noise that would’ve been a scream if Bucky’s hadn’t clamped a hand over his mouth. His eyes were bugging out of his head, and if he hadn’t just used the bathroom, Peter guessed he would’ve pissed himself. To be fair, Peter might’ve as well if he was in Flash’s place. Bucky looked angry, and an angry Bucky was flat-out terrifying.

“Romanova warned you,” Bucky said. “Told you not to bother Peter.”

Flash choked on his breath.

“You didn’t listen.”

Flash frantically tried to speak, and Bucky removed his hand.

“I’m sorry! I’m sorry! I won’t… I’ll stay away from Peter, I swear. I’ll never talk to him again. Just let me go!”

“Don’t believe you.”

“I…” Flash twisted to look at Peter. “What the hell, Parker? Why the hell are you hiring people to scare me? You’re such a fucking baby!”

Bucky gripped Flash’s shoulder hard enough that he whimpered.

“Peter did not hire me. Peter is a mission-assist and primary sub-target. He is a good person. He deserves more than anyone can offer him. You are a potential threat to his happiness. I will not tolerate that. Do you understand.”

“Yes! I understand, let me go!”

Bucky didn’t let go. “This is your second warning today. I hope you don’t need a third.”

“I won’t! I won’t bother Peter, I swear!”

“Don’t make promises that you don’t intend to keep.”

Flash said something unintelligible.

“Mind yourself. You don’t want to meet Hill.”

“He met Hill,” Peter said. “She picked me up from school.”

“You don’t want to meet Hill again, then,” Bucky amended. “Wouldn’t go well for you, Eugene.”

Flash turned red, but his fear seemed to outweigh his anger. Bucky released him, and he scurried out of the bathroom.

“He just doesn’t quit, does he,” Bucky grunted.

“He’s complicated,” said Peter. “He’s not really that bad, most of the time. You guys really don’t have to try to stop him. It might just make it worse.”

“I’d like to think we made an impression.”

“Maybe,” Peter said. “He’ll be back at it again by next week, though. Once he realizes that you’re not actually going to do anything.”

“Who said we wouldn’t do anything.”

“He’s just some insecure kid. It’s not a big deal.”

Bucky frowned, but nodded. “Reevaluating tactics.”

“Tactics?” Peter asked, confused.

“You’re a mission sub-target. Mission: protect. Original strategy: intimidation. Reevaluating tactics for effective protection detail.” Bucky shrugged. “Sometimes the first strategy isn’t the best one.”

“You… what?”

When Bucky spoke again, his voice was low and soft. “I want to keep you safe.”

Peter felt something foreignly warm flow through him. He blinked. He felt more wanted than he had in a long time. Bucky placed a hand on his back.

“Go on. You’ve been in here too long.”

“Thanks,” Peter said around a lump in his throat.

“Romanova said we’re having Hair Club after school.”

“Yeah. Clint gave me one of the cookies you made, it was really good.”

Bucky inclined his head, his mouth curling up a little, and gestured to the door. Peter gave him a small smile in return before leaving.

----

Flash stayed away from Peter for the rest of the field trip, which Peter found quite pleasant. It was odd, being with his classmates and not having Flash breathing up his neck. He started to let his guard down, and by the time they had to leave, Peter found that he’d genuinely had a decent few hours. He talked to MJ a bit, which kept him on his toes in a different way. She was sharp; he made a mental note never to introduce her to Natasha, Hill, or Pepper. The three of them were terrifying enough without another in their ranks.

“Say thank you to Sarah for showing us around, class!” their teacher called as the tour guide left them in the lobby.

“Thank you,” everyone chorused, and the woman smiled.

“I hope you enjoyed your tour of the tower!”

“It was wonderful, really,” their teacher gushed. “Such a fantastic opportunity.”

Peter tapped the teacher on the shoulder as they headed for the front doors.

“Yes, Parker?”

“Can I just stay here? I -uh- I come here after school anyways for my internship, so it’d probably be more convenient…”

“I can’t just leave you here without a parent. You’ll have to come back to school.”

“Alright,” Peter said.

“Mr. Hayes!” a girl cried. “I think I left my phone in the bathroom!”

The teacher sighed. “Do you remember which bathroom?”

“Yeah, the one by the testing room.”

“I don’t know what to tell you, Rebecca. You can’t go by yourself, and I can’t leave everyone else here.”

“Peter can go get it, can’t he? He works here!”

“He’s under my supervision,” said Mr. Hayes. “He’s staying right here.”

“I can have someone bring it down,” Peter offered. Mr. Hayes gave him a suspicious look, but nodded in agreement. Peter pulled out his own phone and plugged in his headphones.

“Hey, JARVIS?”

“How can I help you, Mr. Parker?”

“This girl left her phone in the bathroom on the seventh floor. Can you have someone bring it down, please?”

“Certainly. Would you also like me to send Mrs. Potts or Mr. Stark down to collect you from your teacher? It would be counterproductive to be bussed back to your school and proceed to walk back to where you came.”

“I… I think they’re probably too busy,” Peter said. “It’s alright.”

“Mr. Stark is currently debating the best kind of mac n cheese with Colonel Rhodes. I would hesitate to classify him as busy.”

“Well… okay,” Peter mumbled. The girl poked him.

“Is someone bringing my phone?”

“Yeah. They’ll be down in a few minutes.”

“Thank god. I was totally freaking out.”

Peter kept his eyes on the elevators. Not three minutes later, a man stepped out of the leftmost, a phone in hand. He scanned the lobby before making his way over to the group. The girl -Rebecca- took it from him, thanking him effusively. He shrugged, heading back to the elevators. The doors to the middle one opened, and he stepped in as Tony strode out. Mr. Hayes’s eyes widened as Tony marched over.

“I’ll be keeping Peter,” Tony stated, placing a hand on Peter’s shoulder. “I hope you enjoyed your visit.”

“I… Alright,” Mr. Hayes said weakly. “Yes, it was really-”

Before the man could finish, Tony was cutting him a paparazzi smile and steering Peter to the elevators.

“I don’t like that guy,” Tony said. “He was a dick during that conference Steve and I went to.”

Peter put on his best surprised-face. “Really?”

“Yeah, he insinuated some rude shit.”

“He does that.”

“Well, I don’t like it,” said Tony. “Got plans for the evening?”

Peter nodded. “Hair Club.”

“Why am I not surprised that they roped you into Hair Club? Well, if you get bored, come hang around with me n’ Rhodey. We’ll be in the workshop. We’re so much cooler.”

Peter laughed. “Thanks, Tony. Maybe I’ll stop by.”

----

Hair Club was the best. They met in Bucky and Steve’s living room this time; Steve had been exiled to the shared floor. Peter’s head was resting in Pepper’s lap, and she was carding her fingers through his hair with one hand while clicking through emails with the other. She had insisted on coming despite being overloaded with work, so she was multitasking. Natasha was sitting behind them, curling Pepper’s hair. Bucky was practicing Dutch braids on Hill, who hadn’t winced once despite Bucky accidentally pulling a little too hard with his metal hand now and then.

“New mission protocol,” Bucky announced after a period of silence. “Strategy: display care. Maintain a strong presence around threats.”

“Yeah? That sounds like a good plan, Barnes,” said Natasha. Bucky nodded.

“Do I want to know what you mean?” Peter asked.

“It just means that we make sure that Flash knows we’re your friends,” Natasha told him. He furrowed his brow.

“What does that have to do with anything?”

“Our presence will remind him of the warnings he received. He will be more likely to think of consequences before engaging,” said Bucky.

“It’s a neutral approach,” Pepper said, managing to type surprisingly fast with just one hand. “I like it.”

“I do too,” Hill agreed. “We’ll have to make a schedule.”

“Good idea. We should include alternates in case of unforeseen exigencies,” said Bucky.

“Exigencies,” Hill echoed. “Strong word.”

Bucky’s mouth curved up.

“Should the schedule be regular?” Pepper asked. “Because our personal agendas vary every week, so that might be difficult.”

“We’ll start by availability,” Natasha replied. “We’ll see.”

“What are you guys talking about?” asked Peter, completely lost. “Schedules?”

“Who walks you there and picks you up,” Pepper said somewhat absently, scanning a new email.

“From school?” Peter looked horrified. “I don’t need a babysitter!”

“You’re missing the point,” Bucky said, and proceeded to offer no explanation. Peter groaned.

“I think we’re pretty cool,” said Hill. “It’s not like we’d be cramping your style.”

“Well, no, but… everyone’s going to ask questions!”

“Say that we’re friends from work,” Natasha said. “And that we like to laugh at teenagers.”

Peter tried to be put off, but Pepper started massaging the back of his neck and he melted.

“Fine. But only because I know I can’t stop you guys.”

“We are apex predators,” Hill said, grinning. “Beware, youngling.”

“Squirt,” Natasha provided.

“Urchin,” said Pepper.

“Teenybopper,” supplied Bucky. “Wee childer.”

Everyone burst into laughter. Pepper threw her head back, Natasha cackled loudly, and Hill wheezed. Peter’s face was red. Bucky maintained a completely serious expression for longer than was humanly possible before giving them a smirk.

“Where did you come up with those?” Hill gasped. “Oh my god. Wee childer.”

Pepper managed to compose herself, returning to her emails, though her eyes were mirthful.

“You’re lucky Tony isn’t here.”

“Please nobody tell him!” Peter said quickly. “I don’t want him to call me a teenybopper!”

“It’s a perfectly good word,” Bucky replied, and Peter glared at him halfheartedly.

“Don’t do it.”

Bucky reached over and patted Peter’s knee.

“You’re safe. For now.”