Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

As much as Steve hated being ungrateful, he was happy to be back in the States. Wakanda had gotten old fairly quickly, especially when the king made it clear that if any of Steve’s team left their assigned quarters, they would back out on the streets. The few palace staff members who had been allowed contact with the Avengers were curt at best and unnecessarily terrified at worst. It was irritating, especially with how they treated Wanda. As if she were some monster. 

Their leader was a hero himself, even if he wasn’t enhanced, Steve figured the Wakandans would have more respect for heroes. Apparently he was wrong. 

Thankfully, they were now headed to the Compound, where the staff was always kind and timid. It was awkward for sure, but it was far better than the hostility. 

Steve could tell the others felt the same. Clint was stretched out on the Quinjet, a content smile on his face, even though his eyes were closed. On either side of him, Natasha, who had joined the others a few weeks after they had arrived, and Wanda were slightly more cautious, but both looked confident regardless. 

“Seat belts on, we’ll be landing in five minutes,” the pilot, some air force fellow, announced.

“Not to be a downer,” Scott piped up from where he sat on the other side of Sam. “But we’re seriously going to be welcomed back right? I mean…” He shook his head. “I know it’s been a while, but we were at each others’ throats a year ago.”

Steve would've had the same concern, if he hadn't known Tony as well as he did. Sure, this tantrum had lasted longer than normal, but Tony knew that he needed them. That they were family. He expressed as much to Scott and Natasha and Clint agreed. 

"He'll be rolling out the red carpet," Clint added. "He knows he fucked up."

Scott still looked unconvinced, but he hadn't known Tony. 

After a bit of a bumpy landing, the back of the jet opened, revealing three approaching figures, the Compound a proud backdrop to their brisk walk. None of which were Tony, but Steve didn't let that discourage him. The engineer was likely inside, preparing the new Avengers for their arrival. Instead, the short man who had delivered their pardons, conditional on their signature on the Accords, Everett Ross led Rhodes and a confident woman who Steve didn't recognize. Sam stood upon seeing Rhodes, guilty despite Steve's reassurance that his injury wasn't Sam's fault. Accidents happen after all. 

The rest of Steve's team unbuckled and quickly stood to greet their welcome party. 

The trio boarded the jet before they could join them on the tarmac. 

"Welcome to the Compound," Ross began, no hint of pleasure in his gaze. However, his expression was far more kind than the others, who glared at the new arrivals. Steve tightened his jaw, ready to play the diplomat through these final formalities so he and his team could come home. 

"It's good to be back," Steve agreed. His team nodded wearily. 

“I’ll be giving you a brief overview of the changes of both the Compound and the Accords. Obviously, you all know most of this because you signed, but it’s part of the move in process at the Compound now,” Ross explained. “Then Lt. Col. Rhodes, who I’m sure you know, and Major Danvers have volunteered to give you a tour of the new spaces. ”

“Shouldn’t that be Tony’s job?” Natasha asked pleasantly, a small smirk on her lips. She was clearly just as amused as Steve was with all of this decorum. 

“Dr. Stark is currently facilitating a team building exercise with the Young Avengers. And regardless, this wouldn’t be his responsibility.”

Steve frowned. “Why not? It’s Tony’s building, you’d think he would want to be the one to show off all his new upgrades and all.” After all, Tony lived to please, preening under any stray compliment tossed his way. It was a bit annoying at times, but it was very Tony. The idea that he would want to spend his time with some random children rather than his family was a bit absurd. 

Ross’ brow furrowed. “Dr. Stark sold the Compound to the UN a year ago. It was pretty big news for a week or so.” Ross studied them intently and Steve clamped down on his urge to squirm. “He rents out space in the basement to work on any consults for the UN, but his name isn’t on the lease anymore.” Rhodes and Danvers interrupted their intimidation tactics a moment to share an amused look. Steve couldn’t help but be irked at their uncivil treatment. Ross continued on, however. “Regardless, we have a schedule to keep. If you’ll follow me.” He turned briskly and his partners followed suit. Danvers waited for everyone to exit the jet before heading up the end of their group. 

Steve rolled his eyes at the lack of trust. They’d signed the Accords. They’d played Tony’s game for a while in exchange for continuing to do the work they were meant to do. The world needed the Avengers. Needed the hope they inspired, and the protection they provided. 

As they marched up to the front doors of the Compound, Quinjet taking off once they got out of reach, Steve checked in with Bucky. 

His friend had been mostly silent on the flight home. Of course, Steve understood that while this had been his home, it had never been Bucky’s. That would change, sure, but Steve saw his trepidation as Bucky took in the looming hangar they were headed toward, and the main building of the Compound itself to their right. The exterior hadn’t changed a bit, for which Steve was grateful. He knew Tony got an itch to remodel once he’s lived somewhere for more than a year, always restless, always striving for perfection. The Compound was about as close as you could get to that, easily walking the line between professionalism and homeliness. As they journeyed through the hangar to reach the path for where their meeting would be held, Steve soaked in their surroundings. He could hear the training facility whirring to create new enemy configurations and itched to join whoever was practicing inside. 

However, they were ushered to the right before they could reach the training area, being led toward the main Compound. Clint and Natasha seemed unimpressed by the rigidity of their companions, but had the forethought to remain quiet about it. Sam, Scott, and Bucky all maintained a weary aura, while Wanda joined Steve in holding an air of confidence. Steve knew this Compound. It was his home. Sure, they were being strict now, but they’d all be back to movie nights and team dinners in no time. 

Ross and Rhodes directed them through a maze of hallways and stairwells—despite Steve seeing a rather large elevator at one point—until they reached a simple conference room. 

They settled and withstood Ross drone through a powerpoint about all the red tape Tony had bracketed for rather spectacularly. Steve didn’t pay too much attention. They’d get that all out of the way once he spoke to Tony. 

Sam and Bucky politely took notes, but the rest of them leaned back and let the noise wash over them until the final ‘Are there any questions?’ was waved off. 

“If that’s all, then I’ll leave it to you, Commanders.” Ross nodded to Rhodes and Danvers. Steve’s team shuffled toward the door as Ross disappeared. 

“The training center hasn’t changed much since you all left,” Rhodes began. “So unless you are particularly keen on us explaining it again, we’ll leave you all to explore it yourselves.” He raked his eyes over them, waiting for any indication that they needed a review. Satisfied, he continued, motioning for them to follow him and Danvers back into the hallway. “That leaves the main conference areas and the dorms then.”

“Is the common room in the same spot?” Wanda asked, not particularly interested in the business side of things. Steve didn’t blame her; that presentation had been needlessly long. 

Danvers made a face. “There is no ‘common room’. If you had been listening to Mr. Ross, you would know that there are several lounges in the dorms that can be booked in advance, or used if they are empty, by on-site members.”

“So is there a kitchen in one of the lounges?” Clint added, similarly confused. 

“There is a cafeteria on the first floor for any Avengers member, civilian employee, or authorized visitor.” Rhodes seemed equally annoyed with Steve’s team. However, Steve reasoned, if Tony had refrained from rearranging for once in his life, they wouldn’t have this problem. And a cafeteria? Really? They weren’t middle schoolers; they knew how to cook. 

As the tour continued, Steve’s incredulity only deepened. They had mostly passed civilians and politicians, all who ignored Steve and his team. The few hero types they had encountered—everyone had color-coded identification badges, which Steve had been assured they would be issued soon—seemed only to be refraining from sneering because of the sharp looks Danvers and Rhodes had been issuing. Danvers ducked out before they reached the dorms, citing a council meeting, leaving just Rhodes to assert some respect in the others. 

Rhodes indicated to all of them which dorms they were assigned to. Steve shook his head in disappointment. The dorm held a bed, desk, and side table, with a closet and bathroom off to the left. He’d thought the pettiness was over, but clearly not. He really needed to talk to Tony. 

“These are smaller than our rooms in Wakanda!” Clint pointed out.

“Yes, well all the resident dorms are the same size. I suppose you could rent two, but that’s a conversation for Mr. Ross.”

“What does that have to do with our dorms? Just give us our old rooms,” the archer reasoned. 

Rhodes let out a breath before responding, “The entire Compound was gutted to suit the needs of the UN. Your ‘old rooms’ no longer exist. And Mr. Ross is your liaison for the UN, who is paying for your lodging here.”

That made Steve pause from looking inside the cell-like space. “We have to pay to live here now? This is our home.”

“This is a UN owned facility. You are lucky they are covering your rent here.”

Steve shook his head. This was ridiculous, but it wasn’t the time to fight about it. “We’ll talk to Ross about it later,” he assured everyone. 

Rhodes nodded, and gestured for them to follow again. “Hopefully upstairs we can find an empty lounge, since you were asking about those earlier.” His tone was easy, but his eyes still glinted. 

Another flight of stairs, and then they were striding down an identical prim hallway. The lounge door, which had been locked on the floor below, was propped upon here. Far from being empty though, as when Steve peered in, he sickly realized there were nearly ten children gathered around. 

He, or maybe someone else on his team, must have made a noise, because the kids glanced over from the game they were playing on the TV. 

“Hey, Commander Rhodes!” a young black girl called over, grin wide until she saw who accompanied the leader. “Hey… others,” she tacked on obligatorily. The dark haired girl who shared the love seat elbowed her. 

“Rhodes, why are there children here?” Natasha demanded lowly. She of all people understood how disturbing it was to be thrust into this world so young. 

“We’re the Young Avengers,” a different black girl piped up. “We assist with the Avengers when they aren’t enough.”

“And it’s a weekend,” an Asian girl added glibly. 

The second black girl rolled her eyes. “We’ve been a team since last December.” The accusation was clear. 

“A very effective one at that,” Rhodes agreed. “Men, meet codenames Ironheart—” He indicated the first girl who spoke. “—Hawkess—” The elbower. “—Spider-Man—” A timid looking boy. “—Iron Lad—” On Spider-Man’s left, a boy with a scowl on his face. “—Ms. America—” The second black girl who had spoken, who wore a matching glare. “—Ms. Marvel—” The Asian American girl. “—and Wiccan.” The final boy gave a wicked grin. 

Steve gave a half-hearted wave before his team was being directed away. He heard someone close the door behind them, cutting off any of the whispers that he might have heard. 

“We’ll talk about this later, Rhodes,” Steve assured the older man. 

Rhodes shook his head briefly, but didn’t respond. When they reached the end of the hallway, he turned. “None of your assessments are until tomorrow, so I would recommend getting settled upstairs. Your IDs will be in the HR office on the first floor of the east wing and should be ready around noon.” Rhodes gestured to the elevator. “I’ll see some of you at oh’ eight hundred tomorrow morning.”

“What about our stuff?”

“Hmm?” Rhodes flicked his eyes to Wanda. 

“Our stuff. You know, our clothes and things that we left here. Where is it?”

Rhodes’ face twitched as if he wanted to smile, but he settled on another bland expression. “It was believed that Dr. Stark’s gifts were unwanted since they were left behind so abruptly. As such those items were donated to shelters around New York City accordingly. Have a good day.” 

He left before any of them had a chance to respond. 

***

Harley released some of the tension in his shoulders when the door clicked shut behind him, the buzz of the electronic lock filling the air once again. If Teddy wanted back in from the bathroom, he could knock. He slumped back in his seat, still on edge from the appearance of the Rogues. Peter immediately intertwined their fingers. 

“Forgot that was today,” America grumbled, picking at her controller. They had been in the middle of a Smash Bros tournament to cool down from their training earlier in the day when the Rogues had arrived. It looked like Billy had ‘accidentally’ reset the matches, which was fine with Harley, as he’d been in last place most of the game. Maybe that’s what he gets for playing as Pichu, but Harley was pretty sure he wasn’t helping the character at all, if Peter’s jargon-filled criticisms were anything to go by. 

Kamala nodded in agreement. “I was hoping the president would drop this whole charade,” she admitted, tucking a hair behind her ear. 

“If only,” Harley agreed. The president had pressured all the countries affected by the Rogue’s tantrum into dropping extradition treaties before pardoning the Rogues to the tune of massive world wide protest at American embassies. Harley was proud to say that he’d organized Midtown’s school walk out earlier that month. “Maybe they’ll just break all the rules and be out before dinner. I mean, if they didn’t know that there was a youth league now, then they probably don’t know anything else about the Compound or the Accords.”

“I mean, they only have to break two rules instead of three,” Riri pointed out. “Council’s got them on a short leash. And once they get pulled from the Accords, they’re shipped off to Nigeria.”

America snorted. “Anybody want to help me trick them into using the training facility without a spotter. Oh, and before their assessment! Two in one!” She grinned, jostling Kate to garner some support. Their probationary member rolled her eyes, but a small smile got past her stony demeanor. 

“Dad said to leave them alone,” Peter mumbled, running his fingers along the seam of the couch he and Harley shared with America and Kamala. The other couple had spent most of the morning fighting over the M&Ms that were mixed in the popcorn bowl, but now it was discarded to the side. “He doesn’t want anyone in unnecessary danger,” Peter continued. Yeah, his dad had been pretty clear about that. Spent most of their previous meeting threatening them to stay safe or be benched. 

Kamala leaned forward. “Wait, maybe I missed something, but why did Papa Jim introduce you to them? Weren’t you and the Rogues like… housemates or whatever after the Incident?” 

Harley glanced at her in confusion before leaning back. Right. Kamala had been in Jersey City during their last Young Avengers meeting, where Peter had asked everyone to keep his identity a secret. Well, his other identity a secret. 

He was ready to jump in, since Peter had been on edge all day with the move in, but his boyfriend beat him to it. “No, um. I never actually met the original Avengers when they were living in the Tower. I lived with my aunt during the school year and Dad decided it would be easier if I stayed out of that stuff. We didn’t think it was going to last long anyway.” Peter shrugged, biting his lip. “Now I just…” He sighed. “I don’t want them here and I don’t trust them and so I don’t want them to know about my dad. I…” he tried to further articulate his feelings about the situation, but was unable to. Harley squeezed his hand in solidarity. There had been many long nights where the pair had discussed Peter’s fears of the Rogue’s return. They had decided then that the less contact Peter had with Rogers and his crew, the better, but obviously it was impossible to avoid them completely when they worked out of the same building. At least, Harley knew, FRIDAY would always alert them if they were going to have any unwanted company. And JOCASTA had made it pretty clear that she had opinions about the Rogues as well, if her ID badge malfunction earlier meant anything. 

Harley just hoped that with his and the other Avengers’ support, Peter would still feel safe at the Compound. 

Fortunately, Kamala nodded easily, her determination glinting in her eyes. “I get it. I won’t say anything about it,” she promised, nodding to Peter. 

Harley saw the tension ease out of Peter and he smiled gratefully, as did Harley. He knew he could always count on his team. 

A moment later, Teddy knocked on the door. Billy popped up to let the final member of the Young Avengers in. 

“Did you guys seriously let Billy reset the game?” he groaned to the room. “I was winning!”

“Exactly,” Billy grinned. “I also took it upon myself to make you Jigglypuff too, since you clearly need a handicap.” It was true, Harley mused, Teddy hadn’t lost a single match yet. 

Teddy grabbed the popcorn bowl to his right as consolation before plopping down beside Billy. 

America regarded Teddy. “Rogues stopped by,” she mentioned, leaning her head against Kamala’s shoulder to watch the Hulkling. 

“I seriously miss all the fun,” Teddy pouted through a handful of popcorn. “At least tell me you didn’t dump ice water on their heads without me.”

“No pranking, you guys heard my dad.” Everyone rolled their eyes at Peter. They all followed the Compound regulations to the letter, but joked around about pranks and sleepovers nonetheless. Peter was the only one that advocated for the rules regularly, even though he knew that none of his friends would risk their spot on the team. 

“Yes, Dad,” the YAs, including Harley, chorused sarcastically. 

Peter smirked a little at that. The first time they’d given him a parental moniker had ended up disastrous. When they landed on something a bit more gender-affirming, Peter had adopted the role. Even if that meant Harley was ‘Team Mom’ in a few jokes every now and then. “Good. Now hold off on the popcorn, none of you want to get stomach aches during training later,” Peter teased. 

There were various groans before Billy suddenly started up a melee round, bringing all of their attention back to the screen. 

Peter leaned heavily into Harley’s side as Luigi, his character, knocked Pichu off the map. Harley didn’t complain. When he’d met Tony back in 2013, he never expected that four years later he’d be living in New York, being a part of a superhero team, and dating his secret son.

Chapter Text

Finally being welcomed back into the US was a start, Natasha reasoned, but it was going to be an uphill battle to get everything back to the way it was. The spy didn’t kid herself. She knew that a lot of the trust that they’d once garnered—by both the other Avengers and the public—was gone. However, she knew that that didn’t mean they couldn’t earn it back. It would take work, yes, but it would be worth it in the long run. She wasn’t sure how well the other returning Avengers recognized this, but Steve at least was being diplomatic in his approach with Stark and his disciples. 

And disciples they were. Natasha had yet to see Stark alone in the Compound, on the rare occasions he was there. There was always another Avenger with him, and that Avenger always glared at her and anyone one else that had followed Steve to Wakanda. Except for Spider-Man, or Peter, as she had overheard several people referring to the teen as. Peter would train his eyes on whoever came near, but rather than loathing, his eyes held fear. He would shift protectively in front of the engineer as well, as if waiting for an attack. Whatever Stark had been telling him about the returning Avengers was anything but flattering. The behavior was concerning, especially because if Stark decided to further spread his rumors to the other teens and heroes, there wouldn’t be an ounce of doubt. 

The hostility was already reaching the unbearable, with Avengers leaving rooms when Natasha entered, and the touching of weapons and glances at cameras. Natasha didn’t need to feel welcome by any means, but she knew that her teammates weren’t as accommodating. It would only be so long before Wanda or Steve would snap, and Natasha really didn’t want to take that risk. 

They’d already gotten close during their assessments on their second day back. Rhodes had been overseeing the physical skills segment, which was hardly fair with how deep he was in Stark’s brood, going so far as to marry the man. Why, Natasha would never know. Even as a master of reading people, she’d never sensed anything going on between the pair. 

Rhodes had assigned each member to go through a complicated sort of obstacle course. It was the last task for the day, and thus far everything had been fair, even if it seemed a bit ridiculous that the members needed to be reassessed. Sharpshooting, strength, speed, uncommon abilities had all been considered, and now it was down to a combination of all to appraise quick thinking and problem solving. 

Wanda was picking her way through the quasi-maze slowly. There were several pop up traps that once triggered, had to be dealt with. If it wasn’t dismantled within thirty seconds, then it would shoot paint out. The goal was to complete the challenge with no paint whatsoever, but there was a five mistake maximum. Wanda already had four. 

She stepped on the trigger for another challenge. Natasha tensed as she watched the younger woman groan as she tried to skirt around the object. It simply followed her, a blinking camera trained on her. 

Everything happened too quickly. Just as the fifth and final paint swatch shot towards Wanda, her powers flared and she dissipated the paint over the walls of the course. Not a drop on herself, but Rhodes ended the simulation regardless. 

“Maximoff, get over here,” he barked, posture stiff. 

Steve jumped to his feet. “Let her finish the course, Rhodes.”

The commander raised an eyebrow. “I believe she has. Unless the parameters for this task have changed, no uncommon abilities are to be used. That includes Ms. Maximoff’s ‘magic’.” There was a clear look of disdain on his face. 

“Wanda’s powers are a part of her. She can’t just turn them off to complete some course,” Steve protested, stalking over to Rhodes. 

“Are you saying that there is a lack of control that I should be taking into account?” Rhodes asked coolly. 

Steve shook his head quickly, taking a step in front of a sour looking Wanda. “No! No, she’s just. It’s-”

“Clearly this course is rigged against members who haven’t completed certain training,” Natasha articulated for Steve. He tossed her a grateful look. 

Rhodes gave them a dubious stare. “This is an entry level course that can be completed in multiple different manners. Its completion is required for any new Avenger, including the Young Avengers. If Ms. Maximoff cannot complete this task by the end of the week, she will not be placed on a Avenger team and be in violation of her pardon, if I’m not mistaken.”

“But-” Steve started. 

“This is non-negotiable. The paperwork you signed to be considered for Avenger status indicates as such.” Rhodes turned his attention back to Wanda. “Now, Ms. Maximoff, you have until Friday to complete this course. Otherwise, that is the last of the assessments today. I will see you all in the morning.” He left without another word.

That was just the first of many near-altercations with Stark’s followers, which Natasha and Steve related to their ‘Team Leader’ Carol Danvers, the woman from the tarmac. 

“Yes, well these courses are mandatory. Unfortunately there isn’t anything I can do for you, especially since Ms. Maximoff is assigned to the Delta Team,” Danvers informed her. 

That was another thing. There were different teams of the Avengers, and the returning Avengers were divided among them, instead of remaining one team as they should have. Danvers insisted that it was purely strategic, but Natasha could see the satisfaction in her eyes when Steve had expressed his concern. 

Instead of maintaining the team dynamics that years of experience had garnered between the original Avengers, minus Stark of course, Natasha was under the command of some military type and working alongside Loki. And Natasha was pissed about that. An invader seeking out to destroy not just the Avengers, but Earth itself, and Stark and co decided to just roll over because Thor had promised that his brother had changed his ways. They got all hot and bothered about Wanda peering into their minds as if Loki didn’t have the power to control them. 

Worst of all, no one had warned Clint before he had walked in on the god drinking a smoothie in the cafeteria and immediately attacked, already gaining him a ‘strike’, as if they didn’t need all the help they could get. 

When Carol dismissed them from their meeting, Natasha left as quickly as possible, leading Sam and Steve down the hall. She couldn’t spend another minute with that snake. 

Fully intending to find Clint or Wanda to express her anger with, she caught the boys off guard when she paused just halfway down the hall. A conference room door was propped open and Stark and the Spider-kid were speaking lowly inside, just visible with their backs turned on the trio. 

“I- I just, with decathlon nationals coming up and-”

“If you’re not going to tell me the truth Peter, then you might as well shut up,” Stark growled. 

Peter ducked his head, the tips of his ears turning red. “I’m serious!” he yelped. “MJ has been calling more practices during lunch, which is when I normally do all my homework, so I haven’t had time to do it.”

“Cut down on patrol.”

“What?” The boy’s drumming fingers stopped. He turned to Stark in horror. 

“You need to prioritize. If decathlon is taking up more time, then cut down on patrol.”

“I’ll get my grades back up after-”

Stark shook his head. “Peter, you can’t choose to put off being responsible. Cut down on patrol or I’m putting you on probation.”

“I can’t be who you want me to be—who you made me to be—if I cut down on patrol!”

Natasha ran her tongue over her teeth in thought. Before she could ask if the others were thinking what she was, she heard voices coming from down the hall. Some of the other teenagers that occupied the Compound chattering about a girl named Kate. 

She motioned for Steve and Sam to follow her, passing the kids’ glares as they strolled back to their floor. 

***

Scott was attempting to take a nap when he heard a series of clamoring footsteps pass his door. He sighed. The other Rogues would be knocking soon enough for another one of their gossip sessions. Not that Scott didn't empathize. Lord knew he received just as many dirty looks, not to mention the eternal cold shoulder Hope was giving him. But some of their complaints about how the Avengers were structured now were a bit melodramatic for his taste. Maybe he just didn’t understand because he had never been a part of the original team, but even changes that had been planned before the split were now scoffed upon by the other Rogues. Especially by Wanda and Clint. Those two carried out every whim Steve had without question. It was a bit concerning, since that was exactly what they had been taking a stance against. Not for the first time, he wished he had stayed home. 

Unlike the others, he really just wanted to keep his head down. Get out of this probationary period and do some good so his daughter could be proud of him again. While the rest of them were sneaking out to bars and clothing stores, he read up on the Accords. He wanted to know what he’d committed to past the powerpoint slides he’d seen a dozen times. 

Sighing, he roused himself and followed the other Delta team members into the lounge where the Alphas waited. Wanda and Clint, who was technically an auxiliary member, had already settled into where Steve, Natasha, and Sam held court, so Scott was the last to arrive. Bucky had stopped joining them half way through the week, claiming headaches and exhaustion until Steve gave up. Scott envied the man, but he was already unwelcome with one half of the Avengers. He didn’t have room to make any more enemies. 

The others were already complaining as he took a seat beside Sam. 

"And the kid just seemed to take it, as if he was used to Stark berating him for something as trivial as grades," Steve scoffed. He sat directly across from Scott, so the Ant Man made sure to make a sympathetic face, even if Steve was directing his tirade to Clint and Wanda. 

The archer gave an angry huff at that. "You should never speak to a child like that," he agreed. "And grades, seriously? Stark should know that it's the parent's job to keep track of those." He rolled his eyes. "Of course, how could he? Stark doesn't have a parental bone in his body." Scott tensed slightly. He knew that Clint had kids too, but Scott always felt uncomfortable when the man touted himself as some expert parent. Scott knew he wasn’t a perfect father, but he was doing everything he could to get back into Cassie’s life. Clint seemed to be waiting for his wife to call him still. 

Natasha nodded thoughtfully before cocking her head. "What I'm more concerned about is what he said after Stark yelled. The 'who you made me to be'? Call me paranoid, but that's not something you hear from any boss-employee relationship." 

Wanda swallowed, red swirling between her fingers. "You- you think Stark experimented on him," she growled. Scott didn’t know much about Wanda aside from what he’d seen in the news, but he knew that human experimentation was a touchy subject for her. 

Steve gave her a sharp look and the mist dissipated with some effort. They all knew she was already on thin ice. 

Natasha glanced around her fellow Rogues. "I think there's something going on there that Stark wants to keep a secret. If that secret is the origin of his powers?" She shrugged. "I wouldn't be surprised."

"I'm sorry, who's powers?" Scott interrupted. He hadn’t caught a name and he liked to know who was on Steve’s shit list. 

Sam glanced up at him with a look that read, Seriously? Before anyone responded, it dawned on Scott that there were only so many people they complained about and only one who would still be in school. 

“The Spider-kid. Peter?” Clint grunted. “He follows Stark around like the bastard hung the goddamn moon.” 

Scott glanced between the archer and everyone else. They all seemed in smug agreement. Although Sam had a sour look on his face seemingly unrelated to Clint’s comments. 

Natasha inclined her head. “We should keep an eye on him.” She continued. “Indoctrination of any kind can be dangerous, but Stark… He’ll be smart about it. Choose someone already pliable.” She regarded Clint for a moment, some unspoken communication passing between them. “Clint and I will look into his past, see if there’s anything that we can leverage him against Stark in there. Give him a moment to refocus on what’s right.”

“That sounds good.” Steve agreed. “But…” he sighed. “There should be something we could do now.” 

Scott mulled that over in his head. They were all acting like this was a pertinent mission instead of just a kid not much older than his daughter who glared too much. He shrugged mentally. He didn’t know much about the Avengers' politics from before. He didn’t have a place to judge. Besides, unlike this Peter kid, Cassie was always respectful, following the Golden Rule like nobody’s business. God, he missed her. Hopefully, Maggie would cool down soon and they could talk about flying Cassie out for a weekend. His lawyer wasn’t being encouraging, but Maggie was responding to his texts again. That had to mean something. 

“I could go talk to him,” Sam suggested, “See how he met Stark.” He leaned easily against the couch, but when Scott glanced over, the vet seemed to share his trepidation. 

“I should go,” Wanda announced, sitting up straighter between Clint and Natasha. 

Sam opened his mouth to protest, but Steve beat him to it. “I don’t know if that’s a great idea.” He didn’t need to explain why. Everyone was on edge around Wanda. Stark would swallow bleach before he’d let the mind reader near those he cared for. And whoever Peter was, he definitely checked that box. 

“If Sam, or anyone else, goes, it’ll just be like a lecture.” Steve made a face, but Wanda pressed on. “You all are twice as old as Peter, at least. He’d rather talk to a peer and I’m closest in age. I should be the one to talk to him.”

Scott considered her for a moment. She had a good point. He remembered being a teenager and treating every adult in his life’s advice like it was plague infused. Regardless, Scott wasn’t convinced that Wanda was the best one to be making nice with someone as wary as the Spider-kid. 

However, his opinion never seemed to matter, because when he voiced it, Steve had suddenly taken Wanda's side. 

"No, Wanda's right,” he acquiesced. “Everyone else will be a threat, but she's just another kid in the same situation." 

Scott wanted to protest further, despite not knowing Peter, but he knew Steve would just become more convinced that he was right. 

Chapter Text

Wanda mostly stuck to her room after returning to the Compound. The unwarranted anger surrounded her everywhere, especially in training sessions with the spineless ‘heroes’ that stayed behind with Stark. Worst of all, Vision was on her 'team', but refused to speak to her outside of training and meetings. She knew it wasn't his fault and that Stark had reprogrammed him to hate her, but it was painful every time they passed in the halls. 

She pushed that thought aside for now though, as she crept through the dimmed hallways. It was nearly midnight, but Natasha had informed her that Peter and another boy were watching a movie in a lounge the floor below hers. Wanda would just have to wait for the other to leave so she could approach Peter on behalf of her friends before stopping by the cafeteria for dinner. She kept odd hours in order to avoid any foundless hostility from Stark's followers. Especially the other magic users, who looked disgusted with her, as if they wouldn't have done the same in her situation. 

When she found the room, with the translucent door filtering out soft blue light, she saw both boys asleep, pressed close together. She considered for a moment, before sending tendrils of magic towards the door, popping it open silently. Stepping inside, she directed the faint red trace towards Peter's head. 

She didn't want to wake him. Instead, she decided to just take a peek inside to see how he was to better inform how she would approach him later. 

Carefully, she peeled around his mind only to feel a burning sear through her as she continued to tug. Gasping, she retreated her magic rapidly. 

Peter began to stir and Wanda raced out of the room, back up the stairs. Before she knew it, she was pounding on Steve’s bedroom door. She heard him grunt from inside, but she impatiently unlocked the door with her powers. 

"Wanda?" Steve moaned, slowly rousing. He blinked at her in the dark as she climbed onto his bed. "What's going on?"

Tears filled her eyes and she hugged one of his pillows to her chest. "I couldn't see into Peter's mind!" she sobbed. 

Steve pulled her into a comforting embrace. "Oh, Wanda," he sighed, brushing a hand through her hair.

"It burned, Steve. Like he wanted to hurt me!" 

"That's unacceptable, Wanda. Nobody should be able to hurt you like that. I'll talk to Tony in the morning. Whatever it is, he'll have to change it." Steve rubbed her shoulders. 

"He won't listen," Wanda groaned. She wiped at her eyes, pulling away from Steve. She retreated to his door, but he grabbed her wrist first. 

"I'll make him," Steve promised, power ablaze in his eyes. 

With that promise in mind, Wanda was able to fall asleep once she returned to her bedroom. 

In the morning, Steve knocked on her door and invited her to join him while he tracked down Stark. "When he sees how upset you are, he'll realize that he needs to stop it," he explain. 

Wanda seethed a little at having to grovel before Stark, but she knew there wasn't much else to do. 

They decide to start at the lab floors, because that was where they were always told Stark was when they asked one of the others. This was far from the first time Steve had tried to track Stark down. As far as Wanda knew, their hide and seek was a daily occurrence. 

She hoped today would end with some better results. “He has to be down here,” Steve insisted as they dawdled outside the translucent glass partition separating the lab floor. “JOCASTA, is Tony in the labs? I need to speak with him.”

JOCASTA, the Compound’s AI, stayed silent a few moments longer than was usually necessary. Finally, she replied coolly, “You do not have access to this area.” 

“We’ll only be a minute,” the Captain persisted. 

“You do not have access to this area, Mr. Rogers,” she repeated. 

Steve leaned back against the glass they were again denied access too. Wanda peered a bit further down. At a certain angle, the glass panes overlapped and she could get a glance inside at the lab Stark's named resided by. Inside, a dark skinned girl passed by once. A few moments later, the boy had been with Peter the night before appeared. He returned a moment later holding a box filled with glinting metal. She waited a few more minutes with no more action before turning to Steve. 

"I don't think he's in there," she announced.

He bit the inside of his cheek, clearly disagreeing but knowing they weren't getting anywhere. "JOCASTA, is Danvers in her office?" He motioned for Wanda to follow him back towards the higher floors. 

JOCASTA confirmed that Steve's team lead—still a ridiculous concept—was present a few floors up, but mentioned that she was on the phone. 

Steve rolled his eyes and Wanda agreed with the sentiment. Stark's followers would say anything to avoid them. 

Danvers' door was slightly open, indicating further that the AI had lied, so Steve and Wanda didn't bother knocking. Danvers looked incredulous, a hologram of an ongoing voice call floating above her desk. Everett Ross' contact photo rotated slowly on a loop. Wanda felt its judgement when it turned to her. She flushed slightly, but Steve didn't seem affected. 

"Ms. Danvers, I need to speak with you," he announced. 

She gave him a scathing look. "Excuse me, Mr. Ross, I have some unwelcome visitors. May I put you on hold for a moment?" she asked politely, none of her contempt coloring her tone. 

"Not a problem, Commander. In fact, unless you have any other notes, I believe that's all I needed to speak to you about." 

"That's all. I trust I'll talk to you again soon, Mr. Ross." 

"Of course." 

Danvers scattered the call, her eyes never leaving Steve's. 

"Was there something you needed, Mr. Rogers?" 

Steve sputtered for a moment, likely debating between addressing his incorrect title or her blunt question. "Yes. Yes, Peter hurt Wanda last night and I wanted to report it," he blurted. 

"Interesting. And where did this alleged assault take place?" She didn’t move to write any of this down. Despite this, Wanda relaxed minutely. They were finally being taken seriously. 

Wanda smiled briefly. "It was in the lounge on the floor below ours. I was checking on him because he was asleep and his mind started searing my powers." 

Danvers frowned, leaning back in her seat. She never asked the pair to sit, Wanda realized. As if she wasn't expecting this to take long. Wanda clenched her jaw. "And why were your powers near Spider-Man's mind?" 

"Well, I was-"

"Were you intentionally trying to enter a mind without consent?" Danvers interrupted. 

"No, I-" 

Steve placed a hand on Wanda's shoulder. "Ms. Danvers, Wanda's just a kid. She wasn't trying to hurt anyone." 

Danvers raised an eyebrow. "Should Ms. Maximoff be transferred to the Young Avengers?" 

Steve's brow creased. "No. I just mean that she's young. She can't be expected to be in perfect control all the time." 

Danvers' smile was sickening. "Good. I was concerned that you thought Ms. Maximoff was both incapable of being held responsible for her actions while still being trusted to engage in combat unsupervised. I would have needed to inform her Commander." 

"No, there's no need for that," Steve agreed weakly. 

Wanda felt helpless as she watched Steve stand ignorant to Danvers' delight at his compliance. 

"Now there is the matter of Ms. Maximoff being unable to control her abilities. I will have to speak to the Council about this. Thank you for bringing it to my attention, Mr. Rogers. Ms. Maximoff, do you have anything to add?" 

"Ms. Danvers-" Steve cut in. 

"Major Danvers. Or, Commander, if you prefer. If that's all…" She motioned to the door. 

After Danvers’ rebuke, Wanda hid in her room all day scrolling through Twitter on her spam account and liking particularly scathing tweets about Stark and his followers. It calmed her down slightly, until she came to an analysis about her and Vision’s relationship that concluded it was ‘abusive’. Disgusted with the online trolls, she discarded her phone and decided to take a walk. She could have spoken with Steve or one of the others, who empathized with her anguish over Vision’s reprogramming, but she didn’t want to talk things over again and again. That hadn’t done any good. 

Instead, she found herself fuming while wandering down hall after hall until she was somehow on the lab floors. She didn’t think she had access down here, until she realized that her powers had been active for a while. A red shimmering was just visible clouding the door behind her. Not wanting to get into any more unwarranted trouble, Wanda turned back the way she came, only to find that she was lost. 

She went up a floor and started searching for a sign to indicate where she was on, when a door opened down the hall. Wanda turned to ask how to get back to the dorms when she saw it was Peter. 

“Hey!” she called pleasantly. 

He flinched. 

She decided to take it up a notch. A little bit of embellishment couldn’t hurt. “Hey, Peter. I was looking for you. I wanted to invite you to play cards,” she added when he stiffened, refusing to turn. “You look lonely. I just wanted you to know you always have a friend here.”

Peter scoffed, still facing away from her. “A friend. Yeah, seems likely.” He shoved his hands into his pockets, rocking on his heels. She noticed a pair of headphones around his shoulders, settled on top of his light gray jacket hood. 

“And it’s not just me,” she promised, warming up herself. “Any of the new Avengers would be happy to be a friend. We’re worried about you.”

“Was that before or after you tried to mind rape me?” he spat out. 

She furrowed her brow. “What are you talking about?”

Peter turned on his heel. “Did you decide that we’re all friends before or after you tried to mind rape me? Or do you prefer a different term? Brainwashing? Cognitive breaking and entering?” He rolled his eyes. “I’ll pass.”

“I wasn’t trying to ‘brainwash’ you.” She crossed her arms over her chest. “I wanted to make sure you were okay.”

“Without my consent?”

Wanda shrugged, trying to wrap her mouth around her defense, but she found she couldn’t get the words out. 

“You’re not as nice as you think you are, Maximoff. Stay out of my life. You’ve already hurt my family enough.”

Peter stormed away, flicking his headphones over his ears before she could respond. 

***

Peter always hated the cafeteria. It was loud and bright and despite Midtown’s best efforts, there was always at least one light flickering. Usually, the librarians would let him hide out in the back corner of the library, but there was an administrator using the copier when Peter had arrived, and he didn’t want to get anyone in trouble. Especially not Miss. Chelsea, who snuck him homemade butterscotch whenever she had a free weekend. Instead, he joined his friends in the lunch room and tried to keep his increasingly fritzing senses in check. 

MJ had already finished eating and was sorting through emails on her phone while Ned spoke excitedly about a new YouTube channel he had found. It was dedicated to superhero conspiracy theories, which Peter and Ned always enjoyed. MJ thought they were weird for liking them when they knew a fair amount of heroes while Harley preferred seeing their battle (and fail) compilations. 

"Their latest video is about sightings of the Rogues in the US in the last year. Obviously, that's ridiculous, but some of the more recent pictures and tweets are pretty convincing," Ned explained, playing the video silently. He grinned. "But my favorite video is 'Who is Spider-Man?' Their final theory is that he's either Tony Stark's love child or an alien." 

Peter snorted, choking on his water. 

"You know, the alien thing makes sense," Michelle intoned, setting her phone to the side. "He sticks to walls, produces a mysterious substance from his own body, is never on time." She stared Peter straight in the eye. "I doubt he's Stark's love child though. His tech isn't nearly advanced enough." 

Harley bit his lip, struggling to keep his laughter in. Peter, however, broke first, hiding his head in his arms as he tried to reign in his giggles. 

His delighted mood carried through the rest of classes, even gym, which he never seemed to be able to wiggle his way out of. Even Flash didn’t bother him as much as he teased Peter about being in the wrong changing room. It probably helped that the bully slipped in a water puddle outside the shower, soaking his pants. 

They were still a bit wet when the team sat down for decathlon practice. MJ was at the head of the table, Peter to her left and Ned to his. Harley, the team’s self-appointed mascot, sat off against a wall scrolling through his phone. Since he’d joined the school in the fall, and trials for decathlon were held in the spring, he wasn’t able to apply for the team. Not that he’d really wanted to, from what Peter understood. Yes, Harley was incredibly smart, but he didn’t seek to prove that. He was secure in his intelligence in a way that Peter longed to be. 

“Hey, Keener, still basking in our glory over there?” Flash called, setting his phone aside. Clearly Instagram held nothing important today.

The only reason Harley stayed for decathlon practices was so that Happy wouldn’t have to take two trips to either the Compound or the Tower, wherever Peter’s dad was staying that night. Of course, Flash would never know that. 

“Oh yeah. I can’t go a day without seeing your beautiful face,” he shot back, rolling his eyes, not glancing up from his phone. 

Flash wound up to get another crack at Harley, but MJ beat him to the punch. “Flash, I’m not sure who’s glory your referring to because you certainly haven’t contributed to any recently.” Before he could respond, MJ glanced up from her decathlon binder. “Cindy, where’s Abe?” 

The dark haired girl frowned. “Late? I don’t know. He was in Spanish.” She shrugged. 

Michelle nodded, marking him as absent in her attendance before flipping to her newest practice questions. 

Everyone settled, used to how MJ ran practices. Before she could begin drilling them, Abe slammed the door open. The team turned to him, annoyed expressions drawing over their faces. Peter glanced over to see MJ preparing to call him out. 

Abe held up his phone, some news article pulled up. “The Rogues are back,” he announced, short of breath. 

Michelle and Ned whipped around to face Peter. He bit his tongue. That press release wasn’t scheduled to be announced until later that month. He looked over to see Harley open and close his mouth a couple times before jumping to his feet and placing his phone to his ear. 

 “Holy shit,” Betty breathed. “I- what?” 

“Aren’t there several extradition treaties in place to prevent that from ever happening?” Sally asked. She, like most of the others, had pulled out her phone and started searching for the article or video that confirmed the news. 

“Aren’t there several assault cases that should place them immediately in jail?” Charles added. 

Peter forced himself to keep his face neutral through it all, even as Ned continued to watch him. Michelle had begun to sift through the news to find the confirmation herself. Outside the room, Peter heard Harley’s call connect. 

“Happy?”

“If this is about the ride today, kid, I know. Six o’clock. We’ve been doing this all year,” Happy replied. Peter could practically hear the eye roll accompanying his gruff voice. 

“No, Happy, listen. The Rogues being back is out. A kid at school just came in saying that the media has wind of it. I know they probably already know, but… it’s way too early. I’m worried.”

“Keep it cool, Harley. I’ll check in with the PR team here, but they’ll have it handled. Just keep your head down, don’t worry too much.” He paused. “And keep an eye on Peter if you can. I’ll see you at six.” He hung up. Harley sighed and reentered the room as MJ pulled up the news report. 

Some CNN anchor smiled as the breaking news graphic flashed. “Today insiders at the UN Avengers Compound confirmed rumors that the so-called Rogue Avengers are indeed back in the United States. The employee noted that tensions seemed high between the Ironman followers and the Rogues. However, when they arrived, how they were allowed back into the country, and how long they were staying are still unknown. We here at CNN reached out to several Accords councilmembers, the White House and Tony Stark himself, however all declined to respond at this time. We will be monitoring this issue as it unfolds.” 

“Holy shit,” Betty repeated once the video stopped. 

Ned tapped Peter with his foot under the table, causing him to glance up. ‘Okay?’ he mouthed. 

Peter blinked a moment before nodding. He felt Harley’s eyes on him from where he’d returned against the wall. He was freaking out, sure. Who wouldn’t be? But he had it under control. He had known for months that they were coming back. He could handle this. Keep it cool, like Happy instructed. 

Michelle let them discuss their return for a few more minutes before she redirected the team to her drill packets. Item after item they sifted through, tapping their pencils in hopes of answering first. Harley allowed them to work—even though he usually made snarky comments until MJ threw him out—but Peter heard him tapping away at his phone, probably texting Peter’s dad. Peter itched to reach out to his dad too, but knew it wouldn’t help anything. Ned would pull the fire alarm to get him out of their practice if he thought Peter wanted to see his father. 

Peter kept his cool through the meeting. Everyone was off their game, distracted. Otherwise, Flash would have answered more questions than him. That would have really tanked his week. His watch vibrated a few times. FRIDAY indicating that his heart rate was up.

Michelle ended the practice fifteen minutes early, something unheard of. Ned followed Peter and Harley down to where Happy had parked—a different spot every day. 

“You guys knew, right?” he whispered, hiking up his backpack. 

Harley and Peter glanced at each other. 

“Yeah,” Peter admitted.

“That’s why things have been so shitty?” Ned pressed, motioning to Peter’s head to indicate his excessively fragile mental health recently. 

Peter nodded again, swallowing repeatedly. 

Ned placed a hand on Peter’s shoulder, stopping their progress down the street. “Hey, sort out what I can know with your dad and PR and after whatever press conference they have, let me know, alright?”

“Okay,” he agreed softly. 

Harley reached over and squeezed Peter’s hand. “Happy’s up ahead. We’ve got to go,” he interrupted apologetically. Peter knew Harley liked Ned, but they weren’t as close as Peter and Ned were. The pair quickly ran through their handshake, exchanging weak smiles with each other. Ned peeled off to the subway entrance down the street while Harley led Peter across the street to where Happy was parked, window rolled halfway down. They quickly slid into the backseat, buckling up as the bodyguard pulled into traffic. Already, Peter’s phone was ringing, his dad checking in once he was in private. Peter accepted the call. 

Chapter Text

Carol sent forth a burst of energy, panting heavily as she moved her attention to her next group of targets, not bothering to ensure the previous batch was incapacitated. 

The sun was slowly rising over the muddy field, beginning to light up the town less than a mile from where Carol’s team had landed. The extra light brought their enemy in focus. Half of the soldiers were an acidic red, angrily tearing at the Avengers throughout the field. The others were a pale white, moving more discreetly, but their blows were just as punishing. 

Carol held back a groan of frustration. Each of her blows reached a dozen or so soldiers, but more continued to portal to their location. And many warded off her attacks with what seemed to be magic force fields, briefly unaffected by her powers. Even if they were further from civilization and she could use her abilities to their full capacity, she alone wouldn’t be able to knock out the insurgents fast enough to matter. She would need to be able to catch them off guard in order to truly be effective. Thankfully, some of their drills seemed to be paying off as her team joined her in destroying as many soldiers as possible. Not just her team either, as luck would have it, the government’s assignment had been received early on a Saturday morning and the available Young Avengers were sent out with Team Alpha. 

On the jet ride to this sleepy West Virginian town, Carol had assigned herself, Romanoff, Wilson, and Riri to eliminate the soldiers destroying the town. 

They each took control of the four quadrants of the field, with Riri and Romanoff closest to the town. Wilson and Riri stuck to the air, swooping through the attackers with striking accuracy. The Ironheart armor’s lasers sliced through the pale foes with ease, while a bit more firepower was required for the reds, who were much more skilled magic-users. Wilson went with a different approach, using the bodies of downed enemies to knock down their brethren. Meanwhile, Romanoff weaved seamlessly through the field, using her Widow bites and batons to tackle just as many insurgents. 

Unfortunately, they were barely keeping the number of enemies in the field consistent, with new attackers arriving in increasing numbers each minute. At least Carol had the backup of the YAs. Billy and Peter were working just as quickly to move civilians away from the fighting, which was only moving closer to town, despite Carol’s best efforts. The enemies bounced off of buildings, barely leaving their structures intact. Billy used his teleportation to weave in and out of their rooms. Whenever he found a civilian inside, he deposited them in the street. From there, Peter swung the people as far from the action as he could get, webbing particularly unsteady buildings as he went. The pair worked seamlessly, as all YAs did.

Carol prayed that in the middle of the field, Loki and Rogers could find a similar balance. As she continued to destroy the minions flooding the field, she kept an eye on the two engaged with the largest of the reds. The most powerful of the magic users on the field, who seemed to be their leader, was matching Loki’s spells pound for pound. Rogers continued to block her counterattacks to allow Loki to keep working, but even he seemed to be growing tired. 

The leader suddenly swiveled, forcing Loki to abandon his spell lest he allow stray magic to leak into the field. On the other side, Wilson took a hit and he disappeared into the sea of enemies before reappearing with an enemy in hand and ramming them through the field. 

Carol fired up another round of energy to fire off at the army as she saw Rogers suddenly stop moving. She followed his gaze to see the waiting civilians in the streets, Billy having just teleported back inside and Peter on the opposite side of town. 

As Rogers reengaged with the leader, his voice cut through the previously silent comms. “Nat, I need you to get those civilians out of the street!” he ordered, hefting his shield to protect Loki from a wall of energy. 

“Black Widow, you are not authorized to leave your position,” Carol reminded as she sent another beam of energy through the insurgents. 

“Understood, Captain,” Romanoff acknowledged, sounding out of breath. 

Carol nearly relaxed in the knowledge that at least one of the Rogues had a sound head on their shoulders, only to let out a frustrated groan as she saw Romanoff run through the field to get closer to the town. 

“Black Widow, return to position,” she shouted, knowing it would have no effect. Before Romanoff arrived at the town, Peter had already swung away with the next set of civilians. 

Her quadrant left uncovered, many of the reds seized the opportunity to enter the town, bringing down the first building before reaching the next. 

“Wiccan, report. Do you have eyes on the collapsed buildings?” Carol demanded, trying to shift her focus to the unattended quadrant. 

“I’m inside one now, working on removing civilians now,” Billy responded immediately. 

“Continue with that. Black Widow, return to position.”

“No can do, Danvers,” Romanoff replied. The assassin seemed to have gained access to one of the collapsed buildings. 

Carol refrained from cursing, but only barely, as she continued to push back the enemies entering the town. 

Suddenly, Loki shouted and Carol saw him tumble to his knees, having been hit. Rogers was no longer protecting him, she realized in horror, as the man began punching his way through the insurgents. “Rogers, get back over here!” Loki yelled, switching to defensive as the leader gained the upper hand. 

Before Carol could react, Riri was jumped by one of the reds, knocking her to the ground. More and more assailants tackled her until she set off a series of explosives, sending them back. A moment later, Peter swung by and sent a web her way, pulling her back in the air as he returned to moving the frantic townspeople. 

“Danvers, I need some help over here,” Loki requested, grunting with effort as the leader pummeled him with spells. 

Carol surveyed the field as she continued to fight. The new enemies had started to taper off as they reached their maximum numbers. Rogers had taken over Romanoff’s quadrant and Riri and Wilson had begun to turn the tide in their quadrants. Peter and Billy continued their efforts with Romanoff’s assistance. 

“Coming your way, Loki,” she responded. Sending off a final few blasts to her quadrant and barking for Riri, Wilson, and Rogers to divvy up the field, she joined Loki in the center of the field. Taking a blast meant for Loki, she began to act as a defense. He quickly began conjuring offensive magic, blasting the leader back. 

Across the field, portals began opening again, this time taking injured fighters away from the town. At some point, Romanoff shouted in pain but didn’t call for help, so Carol trusted her to keep working. 

The field narrowed as an increasing number of insurgents portaled away, taking their dead with them. Many of the pale fighters were gone, leaving mostly reds. 

Loki pressed closer, and at Carol’s command, Wilson soared in to take her position so she could join Loki in offense. Their energies pressed the leader further away from the town as the spells it lashed out with grew weaker. Suddenly, the red stopped their counterattacks and opened a portal, disappearing inside. On cue, the rest of the warriors retreated as well, leaving crumbling houses and silence. 

“Team Alpha, Young Avengers, status report: any injuries?” she demanded immediately while simultaneously signaling the Quinjet pilot to return to the scene with a medical professional. 

“Possible head injury,” Riri responded from where she had landed across the field. Her voice sounded strained. 

In the opposite direction, Wilson sounded off as well. “I definitely have a leg injury. Nothing life threatening though.”

“Also a possible head injury here,” Romanoff reported sullenly. 

“Any others?” Carol requested. Silence. She nodded to herself. “Ironheart, Falcon, and Black Widow, stay where you are, Medical is coming to you. ETA five minutes. Everyone else, focus your efforts of civilian evacuation. Follow Spider-Man and Wiccan’s recommendations.”

The minutes between beginning evac and the jet arriving were a bit of a blur. Peter and Billy easily took over, coordinating the uninjured Team Alpha members to target the least stable and most populated buildings first. About half an hour after the three injured members were boarded onto the waiting Quinjet, the National Guard arrived to take over civilian duties. Carol and Peter reported their efforts to the response team and allowed the soldier to relieve them. There had yet to be any civilian casualties reported and only a few major injuries that Peter relayed. Each person was already en route to the hospital. Despite Rogers and Romanoff’s mistakes, the mission could be considered a success. 

On her signal, the rest of deployed Avengers joined their injured counterparts on the jet. Carol, as always, boarded last, visual checking over her team before turning her attention to the pilot, quickly confirming that they were ready, before settling into the copilot seat. All of the Quinjets could fly without a manual pilot, but the Council wasn’t foolish enough to rely solely on the autopilot feature. The paramilitary pilots were always professional and pleasant, unlike the rest of her team. 

She flicked through the security cameras on her tablet. Peter was typing quickly on his phone, likely to his father and boyfriend, while Billy leaned on his side, slowly falling asleep, the exertion of his powers having neared his limit during the fight. In the center of the jet, Riri was laid out, still partially wrapped in her metal armour, with a medical worker by her side. The stretcher was secured magnetically to the floor, but as the jet took off, both the newest Iron child and the doctor swayed. 

Carol switched camera feeds, knowing she was being ridiculously overprotective of the Young Avengers, but there wasn’t much else to settle her ache about them. One glance at Loki, who was seated at her back with a watchful gaze, told her she wasn’t alone in her concern. She started filing her mission report to distract herself. Rogers’ behavior would require several paragraphs. 

However, only a few moments in the air, she heard Romanoff ask, “Who are you texting, Parker?” Possible head injury or no, the spy couldn’t keep her attention to herself. 

Carol locked down her urge to give the spy an immediate dressing down. Peter could handle himself, and if he needed help, he would get it from both a half-conscious Riri and an already murderous seeming Loki. 

“My dad,” he answered honestly. Carol forced herself to continue writing her report. 

“Does he know about your ‘superheroing’?” Rogers continued, an easy tone disguising his persistence. 

Peter was quiet for a moment before confirming that his father did know. Carol was minutely confused before she remembered that the Rogues didn’t know that Tony was Peter’s father. 

"How'd he take it?" Rogers leaned forward in his seat while Peter pressed further back. 

The teen squirmed a moment before glancing up, bouncing his phone on his knee. "That's not really any of your business," he replied softly. Carol assessed her camera feed again, hoping someone would redirect the conversation, but both Riri and Billy were asleep and Loki seemed intent on watching this play out. The Rogues on the opposite side of the jet smiled like sharks in recently chummed water. 

"Well if anyone's giving you a hard time, we can always talk to them about it," Wilson offered. He, at least, seemed honest in his concern, even with his face screwed up in pain. His leg was splinted straight out in front of him and he had an IV in his arm. Clearly the pain medication inside hadn’t gone into effect yet. 

Natasha nodded encouragingly, taking a quick swig from her water bottle. "Or if you're just looking for some support, we're always happy to help you out." 

"What does your dad do?" Steve redirected. 

Peter glanced to Loki, who shrugged silently. His phone pinged and he read the text quickly before replying slowly, "He's an engineer." 

"Oh, that's nice. And what about your mom? What does she do?" 

Peter swallowed. "She passed away when I was four." 

"Did you-" 

Carol was on her feet in a moment, staring Romanoff down. "That's enough," she growled. 

"We're just talking," Rogers defended. 

Carol squared her shoulders. "Were you invited to 'talk'?" she inquired. 

Rogers looked uncomfortable. "We're teammates." 

"Spider-Man, Iron Heart, and Wiccan are members of the Young Avengers. They are not your teammates," she corrected easily. "I suggest you speak among yourselves or I will be obligated to write you all up.”

Romanoff smirked. "For what exactly?" She looked easy again. 

"Perhaps the emotional duress you've been inducing in Spider-Man," Loki offered, leaning easily against his seat. Peter glanced over at the pair gratefully. 

"And the Council isn't exactly favorable to any of your cases at the moment," Carol added. Peter looked up at her in horror. She returned his gaze with something she hoped reassured his anxiety about engaging with the Rogues. She stood her ground though. Peter was entitled to his privacy and she would defend that. Especially against these assholes. 

Rogers stuttered for a moment before slumping back. She grinned a bit cruelly and returned to her seat. She sent a note to Tony to inform him of the incident, knowing Peter wouldn’t bring it up himself. Carol returned to her report, monitoring the silence behind her. When she glanced back through the cameras a half hour before they landed, Loki’s glares seemed to be keeping the Rogues from gossiping. 

Once the pilot gave the all clear, the medical worker whisked Riri off the jet, barking for Wilson and Romanoff to stay put for another pair of nurses to meet them. Carol motioned for Loki, Rogers, Billy, and Peter off onto the tarmac, where Tony was waiting. 

The Young Avengers’ director gave Billy a cursory glance before sending him inside with his fellow magic-user Loki to be checked over by Medical. Carol spoke with the pilot for a few moments, watching as Tony checked Peter over more thoroughly, ruffling his hair begrudgingly at whatever Peter was attempting to joke about. 

“Go with Riri,” Peter insisted to his father as Carol exited the jet, leaving the pilot to shuttle the jet in the garage. “I need to go get cleared up for the debrief. I’m fine.”

“Alright,” his dad agreed. His eyes swept Peter one more time before allowing the boy to lead him back to Medical. 

Carol nodded to the two approaching nurses who each pushed a wheelchair. They helped Romanoff and Wilson into their respective chairs and then swept them off after Peter and Tony. 

“Rogers, get your ass over to Medical,” Carol directed to the dawdling man. 

He looked appalled at her order. “Ms. Danvers-”

“Let’s go.”

He sighed but followed after her, jogging a bit to keep up with her brisk pace. Carol watched her team get checked over in Medical. Wilson had a dented up leg. Romanoff was a false alarm. Riri, who had taken the worst of it, fortunately only had a few bruises and a mild concussion. 

Within the hour, every Avenger on her mission—excluding Riri, who would debrief after being checked out of Medical—had met in a conference room. 

Carol began running through the mission, breaking it into five minute sections, analyzing their mistakes. And there was one major one that needed to be addressed. 

“Rogers, I know this may be difficult for you to understand, but you are not a field commander. You are not authorized to give orders and no one—” She directed her gaze to both Romanoff and Wilson. “—is authorized to follow your orders. If this happens again, it will be enough to bench you permanently.”

“Ms. Danvers-”

“Major.”

“Major Danvers,” Rogers corrected sullenly. “I was doing my best to cover areas that you had missed. No one was helping the civilians and-”

“There were first responders in the area assisting with civilian aid, along with Spider-Man and Wiccan,” Loki corrected before Carol could. 

“And because you moved Romanoff out of position, the insurgents were able to damage several more buildings and many collapsed due to this, trapping civilians that would have otherwise been out of harm’s way. After this Rogers, you left position from focusing on their leader to assist with combating the insurgents, leaving Loki unable to continue his spells.”

“What?” Rogers shook his head, anger flashing in his eyes. “That’s just not true. I engaged with the leader the entirety of the battle.”

“Then why was I unable to cast any offensive spells in the second half of the fight? It wasn’t until Commander Danvers moved to assist me that I could do any containment.”

Rogers slammed his hands on the table. “That’s not what happened!” he shouted, frustration leaking out of him. 

A hologram of a frozen image of the battle appeared on the table. Peter glanced up from where he was fiddling on his tablet. He tapped a button on the screen and then the battle started to play out a speed-up rate. It followed Spider-Man’s point of view, since it was from Peter’s suit, but every time Rogers appeared on screen, he was tagged by Peter’s AI. Plain as day, the footage showed Rogers engaging with the leader and then leaving about halfway though the battle to engage with the soldiers. 

“As you can see Mr. Rogers,” Peter concluded as the footage ended with a bit of flair reminiscent of his dad. “Commander Danvers is correct.” 

The rest of the debrief went a bit more smoothly after that, with Peter hovering his hand over his tablet each time Rogers opened his mouth to disagree. 

When they finished analyzing the battle, Carol dismissed them while she finished saving files on her tablet. Rogers loitered, eyes on Peter, but the boy bolted before Rogers could speak to him, Loki and Billy taking an exceptionally long time exiting the room after Peter. Carol smiled. At least she knew her teammates were looking out for each other. 

***

Tony recognized how lucky he was. After all the trauma and devastation, he got to come to a loving husband and the perfect son. He got to keep his family safe. 

And now he got to watch over more teens who had gotten themselves into the same situation as his own son. Young, superpowered, and lost. Peter’s happiness and safety always came first, but he couldn’t help the connection and concern he’d formed for each of the Young Avengers. 

Once determining that Peter was uninjured, he couldn’t stop his growing worry for Riri that had encircled him ever since he got the report that she had been injured in battle. 

Tony never wanted any of these kids to be sent out to fight, but, as he’d learned with Peter, taking away suits and powers didn’t take away responsibility they felt. They didn’t need another adult lecturing about their decisions. Instead, they needed someone to channel their sense of duty into something productive and something safe. That these teens, abused and rattled as they were, trusted him to guide them was something Tony considered in awe every night. 

Jim said it was because he had years of practice with Peter, who even before the spider bite would constantly be standing up against bullies and cat callers. Ironically, Rogers would’ve loved the kid. If Tony had ever let his son anywhere near that asshole. He was glad his past self had decided to continue to keep Peter’s existence secure, even to Rogers' seemingly trustworthy demeanor. Now, it seemed that Rogers was going out of his way to harass his son, going so far as to send Maximoff to mind rape him. 

Only Peter’s pleas were keeping that sick woman from behind bars. 

To his left, someone joined him in the hallway outside of the medical facility, clearing their throat. Tony glanced over, pulled from his musings. One of Dr. Cho’s proteges who Tony hadn’t yet introduced himself to. 

“Is she alright?” he asked quickly, eyes flicking over her face to see if anything would reveal itself to him. 

The doctor smiled kindly. “Ms. Williams is very lucky. She only has a mild concussion and a few other minor injuries. We’d like to keep her under observation over night to be able to wake her every few hours. Obviously, she’ll need to stay out of the field and away from screens and bright lights until she’s completely healed.” 

Tony nodded. She continued to look at him expectantly. “Of course, I’ll be sure to inform the appropriate members,” he agreed easily. He was always a bit slow to remember that he needed to approve of medical decisions for the other YAs, not just Peter. 

Most of the YAs had informed their guardians about their superhero status and they had understandably selected Tony as an additional medical proxy for their minors. The few who had kept their identity a secret, like Riri, used the guise of the Stark Internship that he’d created for Peter. With that, it gave reason for guardians to sign over Power of Attorney to Tony, so he could approve medical decisions. They didn’t know it, but this capacity had saved their children's lives on more than one occasion.

And when it came down to it, it was usually Riri or Harley who he was approving treatment for. He had a feeling now that Kate had been voted onto the team, she would be giving the pair a run for their money. 

Tony glanced behind the young doctor before smiling apologetically. “Can I see her?”

Her eyes widened a bit before nodding. “Yes, of course. Just follow me.” She swiped her badge against the door, motioning for him to follow. 

A few nurses and doctors were bustling around the medical facility. He knew somewhere down the hall, Romanoff and Wilson were being checked out, which accounted for extra activity. Although all of the medical professionals who worked in the Compound were there on regular shifts, most days there was nothing more to do than wrap an ankle. However, the UN didn’t want to take any risks in under staffing the Avengers, which Tony was thankful for. 

Looking around, he couldn’t help but feel a swell of pride for the space. He’s had a lot of input with the architect and every time he saw one of suggestions in action, he couldn’t help but grin. The Compound’s medical facility was one of the only research hospitals for doctors focusing on the superpowered and it was certainly the biggest. 

Riri’s doctor easily navigated the staff, leading Tony toward the back of the facility, which connected directly with the landing ground for the Quinjets. He knew the route well, as it was usually reserved for the YAs. Because they were all minors, the Accords didn’t require them to reveal their identity. So, for confidentiality, they were kept as far away from the research personnel as possible and only saw doctors selected by Helen and Tony. Over protective? Yes. Necessary? Definitely, seeing as the Rogue’s return had already leaked to the public and JOCASTA still had yet to find the source. 

With a tap of her badge, the doctor allowed Tony into Riri’s room, with the lights at half capacity and the windows opaque. 

“Hey, Williams,” he greeted, appraising her quickly. A few bandages here and there, and a scowl on her face. Yeah, she’d be back out there lasering Doombots in no time. 

The doctor fiddled with a few items on the tablet hanging on the edge of Riri’s hospital bed before looking up. “Ms. Williams, you have no other tests to run in the near future and only need to relax for the time being. I’ll be back in about an hour to check on you, but if you need me, just holler for Alma,” she informed the pair brightly. With that, Alma shut the door gently behind her. 

“How’s the head?” Tony asked, taking a seat beside her. He made a note to himself to get a few of these out in the hallway of the medical area, they were far more comfortable than standing and the YAs guardians were out there more times than he'd hoped for. 

She shrugged, wincing slightly. “Should’ve seen the hit coming. My system saw it, alerted me, and I still didn’t react fast enough.”

Tony sighed. “There’s no reason to think of should’ve’s and would’ve’s, Ri. You know that. You’ve got to focus on what you’re going to do in the future.”

Riri snorted. “Yeah, well the future’s benched for a while, along with me. No lab, no fighting. I’m going to be stuck twiddling my thumbs for the next few weeks.” She pushed her hair out of her face. “I hate that this puts me on the side lines.”

“Hey, I get where you’re coming from.” She frowned but allowed him to continue. “I know what it’s like to crash in a suit and I know what it’s like to feel useless because your body doesn’t turbo heal like everyone else’s. But please don’t think that because your mind is what put you in the field means that you should push your mind to get you back in it. I’ve tried that, it only gets you hurt worse.” He paused before smirking. “I’m old, please learn from my ways.”

“The imperative word here is old.” 

“Hey, no need to break your old man’s heart,” Tony grinned as his son walked in, clicking the door shut behind him. He wrapped Peter in a brief hug to reassure himself of his boy’s safety before settling his son down beside him. 

“Again, I refer you to ‘old’,” he informed Riri cheekily. Tony rolled his eyes.

“Not so old that he can’t kick your ass,” Riri smiled back. “Watch your back,” she warned. 

Tony held up his hands in defeat. “Alright, alright, no one’s ass is getting kicked.” He considered. “Except for maybe Rogers, did he keep giving you crap after I last texted you?” He was already a hair trigger away from pulling Peter from all missions Rogers was sent on, but he knew Peter didn’t want him to interfere and bring any more suspicion to their relationship. From what FRIDAY had relayed, the Rogues had already gone above and beyond in concerning themselves with his son. 

On the flight back, Peter had asked for advice about what to say to the Rogues, who were interrogating him once again. As always, Tony wanted his son to stick as close to the truth as he could possibly be, while still remaining safe. It made for easier lies and, Tony knew, abated some of Peter’s guilt. 

“Not me, no. Mostly Major Danvers. I finally just played footage from the Spidey cam to set the record straight about all his lies about the mission,” Peter replied, fidgeting with the sleeves of his giant sweatshirt. 

Tony couldn’t help but be a little proud of his son’s boldness. “As long as your being smart about it,” he reminded, ruffling Peter’s hair. 

His son rolled his eyes. “I am,” he promised. Suddenly, he leaned forward. “You feeling alright, Ri?” he asked, studying his friend's face. 

She nodded firmly. “Yeah, I’m all good. My skull doesn’t make too good a cushion for my brain, but what else is new?”

“Maybe you should get surgery to line your skull with foam padding,” Peter suggested. 

“And what will the recovery time be on that “Mr. ‘I-Don't-Want-To-Get-Top-Surgery-Because-It-Will-Put-Me-Out-Of-Commission-For-Twelve-Minutes’?” 

Peter's face flushed. “Seven?” he answered weakly. Tony hated to admit it, but Riri was spot on. Peter refused to leave Queens without a hero, even if it would leave him more comfortable in his body after he recovered. 

Speaking of… “Hey, take you binder off.”

“Da-ad,” Peter whined, leaning against Tony. 

“Nuh uh, you know the deal. If you wear one in a fight—even a modified one—you can’t wear one the rest of the day. I let it slide for the debrief, but time’s up.”

Peter watched his dad for a long minute, a frown firmly planted on his face. Sighing, he slipped his arms into his sweatshirt and awkwardly wriggled out of the specially designed binder. With input from Peter and a seasoned binder designer, Tony had created a safer fit for extreme exercise. A more generic design was being anonymously sold through a trans-owned clothing company. And he donated a few thousand to LGBT shelters throughout the country every time Peter told him about any microaggressions or head on bullying he’d received. Unfortunately, he wasn’t able to intervene more, as not even his son’s principal knew that Peter was a Stark. 

Peter passed the binder to Tony, coughing harshly to pop his lungs out again. He and Riri began to chatter about their upcoming team building activities. Alma came back and confirmed that Riri was still in the green. FRIDAY checked in to inform him that Jim would be ready to return to the Tower within the hour. 

God, Tony knew he was lucky. But he’d give it all up as long as he could keep Peter in his arms. 

Chapter Text

Peter buried his head in Harley’s side, trying to keep his breathing steady. His therapist had left half an hour earlier, agreeing to come out to the Compound for their session instead of Peter going to his office. The therapist usually opposed getting any more involved in the superhero antics than necessary, but Peter had practically begged him to come. He knew he was being irrational, but he’d had more and more difficulty leaving the Compound the past few weeks, even if it meant having to see the Rogues more often. The Tower felt safe to him most of the time, but the Compound had far fewer memories waiting for Peter. 

“Hey, Peter, I’ve got you. Let it out.”

Harley. Right, Peter’d forgotten that his boyfriend was there, even as he tried to fuse with him. Harley detached one of his arms from around Peter to start stroking his hair, continuing to murmur soothing words. Peter allowed them to wash over him for a moment, eyes closed tight in a pathetic attempt to keep his tears in. 

He tried to focus, he really did, but the image of his father with a shield in his chest danced in his eyes. 

“He almost died,” Peter sobbed. “And- and Steve just bashed him over and over and-”

“It’s okay,” Harley soothed. “Your dad’s all better now. He’s alright. It’s over.”

Peter gasped in air, shaking his head. His neck prickled and he pushed Harley flat against the couch suddenly. “Get out,” he yelled, staring at the empty doorway. Someone was there, he could hear a heartbeat. 

Stupid, Peter frowned. He should’ve waited until he could go to his room. He shouldn’t have just found Harley in the nearest lounge and collapsed. Stupid, stupid-

The heartbeat abated with near silent footsteps, although there was no acknowledgement that there was someone there. Harley’s going to think that I’m crazy. He’ll hate me and tell everyone how stupid-

“Peter, are they gone?” Harley asked. He didn’t move from where Peter had pushed him, except for a tentative hand on Peter’s back. Peter felt a brief flash of gratefulness before it gave way to his ebbing anxiety. 

Peter nodded slowly, fresh tears in his eyes. 

“Hey, let’s go to your dorm, yeah? Get some sleep. Therapy’s over, now we can just relax. If you want to talk about everything later, we can, but right now we should just calm down.”

Peter hummed softly in agreement, trying to maintain his composure. They would go to his room and watch Brooklyn 99 and Harley would hold him until they fell asleep. That sounded nice. 

Except Peter knew he couldn’t sleep. Harley left a couple hours later, since he had school in the morning. Peter did too, but they both knew he wouldn’t be making it. He followed Harley’s footsteps and heart beat as far as his ears would take him. He strained all the way until he heard Happy’s car pull out of the driveway. 

He laid awake in bed for what felt like at least three hours, maybe more. He wasn’t trying to keep awake—his dad would be upset if he was—but every time he was about to drift off, he saw it again. The suit’s footage of Captain America’s shield slamming into his dad’s chest, disabling the suit. Leaving his dad to freeze for seven hours, bleeding out. No one had known where he was. No one had known if he was going to make it. No one would let him see him for a week after. 

Peter choked a little, wiping harshly at his tears. He bit his knuckles, trying to keep from spiraling. His watch beeped. He took it off in agitation. God, his dad was going to be so upset with him. 

He sat up suddenly. He couldn’t sit still any longer. Taking a deep breath, Peter opened the dorm door his dad had rented out for late nights. He wasn’t really sure where he was going. He just had to get away, ghosting around the hallways until he’s started pacing outside the closed cafeteria.

Peter balled up the end of his sleeves into his fists before quietly running his knuckles over his tightly pressed lips. The lack of sleep wasn’t nearly as bad as the nightmares that were rearing their heads again. The spring and summer months were filled with awful anniversaries and his memory never let one slide past unnoticed. There hadn’t even been a particular one this week, just the knowledge that they were coming up on a year since the Avengers had split was enough to put him on edge. 

His dad always tried to make his schedule lighter these months so that he could be there when Peter needed him, but it was impossible for the man to be completely available. 

The engineer was supposed to be asleep, but instead was hours deep into trouble shooting for SI in the lab. They were only staying at the Compound because his dad had meetings early the next day and Jim wasn’t going to be back at the Tower for a week. And his step-dad was only out of town because the Rogue’s return had leaked prematurely by a still unknown party and he was helping manage the public’s reaction by fulfilling as many interview requests as possible. Peter groaned to himself. It had already been two weeks since the news broke and he still hadn’t asked what Ned could know. His friend hadn’t pressed about it again, but Peter should’ve been better about keeping him updated. He let out another distressed noise. He was such a bad person. 

“Peter, would you like me to contact someone for assistance?” JOCASTA asked politely. She tried brightening the lights again, but returned them when he flinched. His senses were flaring up again, he could feel it. He should go back to his room, get his headphones and try to calm down. 

“N-no thanks. No thanks,” he answered softly, not glancing at her nearest camera. 

“I believe it would be in your best interest-”

“Jo, please, just- Be quiet,” he requested, running his hands through his hair. He just needed to think. He knew JOCASTA meant well, but she wasn’t like FRIDAY. But he’d left his phone in his dorm and the second AI wasn’t uploaded to the Compound's main systems. The UN only requested one AI and his dad wouldn’t allow their family’s personal AI to be exploited by the Avengers. 

Footsteps sounded off behind him. “Hey kid, you alright?” 

Blearily, Peter wrapped his arms around his middle. “Can’t sleep,” he mumbled. He glanced over to Wilson only for his vision to be briefly interrupted by his father’s cracked open suit. He swallowed down bile. “Dad keeps dying. Cap keeps splitting him in half.” Peter blinked unshed tears out of his eyes before giving up and wiping them away. He swayed a little, and Wilson reached out for him. In a flash, his awareness surged and he stumbled back. 

“Hey, I’m sorry kid. Didn’t mean to scare you.” Wilson held his hands up as proof. 

Peter swallowed convulsively before nodding. His heart pounded, but his Spidey sense didn’t alert him to a threat. “Leave me alone,” he requested hoarsely. 

“I'm just trying to help. Promise,” he reiterated. He hunched down a little to be on Peter’s level. “I didn’t mean to make anything worse.”

The teen shook his head, still in a bit of a haze, but more irritated than anything. He wanted to be alone again. “Whatever. Just- Jo, can- can you get Harley or Dad or someone?” His voice cracked slightly and he winced. Stupid second puberty. And stupid nightmares too, while he was at it. 

He watched Wilson grab a leather jacket that was hanging on the back of one of the cafeteria chairs at the table the Rogues had claimed. Minus Maximoff, who always seemed to be eating when Peter was, despite his confirmation with JOCASTA that she wasn’t there. Peter shuddered at the thought that it could have been her who he encountered instead that night. He didn’t think he could hold his ground a second time, even with the amulet Stephen had gifted him protecting his mind. The amount of uncontrolled power that boiled in her was enough to keep his Spidey sense ringing hours after each encounter. He didn’t think he’d ever be able to go out on the field with Team Delta. Unless she was benched. Or preferably extradited. 

“Good evening, Peter.” Vision’s cool voice broke Peter out of his thoughts. 

He grimaced. He’d forgotten that JOCASTA had sent for someone. Wilson was still hovering a few feet away. Peter wasn’t sure if he had said anything else. “Hi Vis,” he croaked, emotions still building up in his chest. 

Vision frowned at Peter, then turned his attention to Wilson. He gave a firm glare, which Peter appreciated, before returning his gaze to the teen. “Let’s get you back to Mr. Stark,” he directed. The android wrapped an arm around Peter, throwing one final glare over his shoulder before leading him away from the cafeteria. 

***

James had to admit, his legs were a work of art. He’d never thought he’d be able to walk again, but now he was lifting weights with his legs and doing push ups as swiftly as before. It wasn’t easy by any means, but he was stronger than ever. He had his husband to thank for that. Ever since their first day together at MIT, he and Tony had been close. They’d always had each others’ back. But it wasn’t until the near death experiences in Germany and Siberia and subsequent recovery that he and Tony had become open enough to actually discuss their relationship. Pepper and Tony had already been broken up for some months—everyone agreed they were better off as friends—so they decided to give it a try, with Peter’s blessing of course. 

Peter had just rolled his eyes and muttered, “About time,” when James had asked for his blessing. He’d been in Peter’s life since the beginning, so he figured if anyone would know about James’ feelings towards Tony, it would be Peter. He was a bit more enthusiastic when James asked if he could propose. 

Currently, his wedding ring—made of titanium alloy—sat in a locker along with his work uniform. He had a glorious, hour long lunch wedged between his scores of meetings for the day and decided to use it in the gym to loosen up a bit. He wasn’t made to sit around all day and his restless energy grew with each meeting. 

He gave the bag a few more punches before downing some water. Happy and him used to box while waiting for Tony to come up from the Malibu basement lab, back before Afghanistan and all the craziness that followed. The weight of the sandbag always made him nostalgic, although he didn’t regret where he was now. 

James checked the wrappings on his hands before jogging back over to get a few more rounds in before his alarm for his next meeting went off. 

Although the gym had previously been empty, Wilson had wandered in while he was taking a break. 

James nodded over to the Rogue, although he hesitated to use that word. He respected Wilson. Out of all of those who had followed Rogers, he seemed to truly wish to atone for his mistakes. Unlike Lang and Barnes, both of whom followed orders, Wilson actually sought out ways to improve the Avengers, not just subsist off of them. If the hero played his cards right, James could see him becoming a field commander himself in the future 

Wilson began running through sets of weight lifting while James continued his round with the bag. The silence was comfortable, and James appreciated the respect that seemed to exist between them. 

Unfortunately, the quiet didn’t last. 

James steadied the bag, preparing for another bout of hits when Wilson sat up at the bench press. “Hey, Rhodes, I was wondering if I could talk to you for a second?”

James’ shoulders dropped. This again. He respected Wilson, he really did. But it was easy to forget that he was still Rogers’ right hand man. 

“I’m sorry, now isn’t a good time,” he responded curtly. He gave the bag a few jabs, but they weren’t as controlled as before and the bag swung wildly. 

Wilson stopped it, suddenly in James’ space. “It’s not about Stark, if that’s what you’re worried about. I’m not here for Steve. I’m done being his messenger boy.”

James considered the veteran for a moment. He seemed sincere, but James didn’t want to be hasty in his judgement. At his core, Wilson seemed to be a good man. Rather, it was a question of whether they’d broken through the surface. However, Wilson’s earnest gaze didn’t waver. 

“Alright. What can I do for you?” he allowed, cursing himself. Like Tony and Peter, he just wanted to see the best in people. 

“I want to apologize. If I had been paying attention at the airport, I would’ve been able to warn you. I never intended for anyone to get seriously hurt. I just wanted to help a friend, even if I didn’t really understand why or if he really needed help.”

James let the soldier’s words wash over for him a moment. Apologies aside, the last part was entirely unprompted. It seemed Wilson really was beginning to see through Rogers’ guise. He nodded slowly. “No need to apologize. All’s forgiven. I never held that against you.” 

“Then what are you holding against me man?” Wilson pressed, looking distraught. “Because I know it’s something.” 

“Wilson, you’re-” On the bench where his water sat, his phone began buzzing, giving him a fifteen minute warning until his next meeting started. He crossed the room to turn it off and began unwrapping his hands as he continued to speak. “I mean no disrespect when I say that you’re my subordinate. In the workplace, which we’re in, I do not and will not treat you differently here. Are there things that, in my personal life, I hold against you? Yes. But this isn’t the time or place to discuss them.”

Wilson considered that, joining James by the bench. “Then when is? I made mistakes. I own that, but I can’t atone for them if I don’t know what they are.”

James finished balling up his wraps. They were old enough that he probably should just throw them out, but he couldn’t bring himself to do it just yet. He mulled over Wilson’s words. James wanted—if not unity—a functional working relationship with each of the Rogues. He figured letting Wilson in on his understanding of the past would be a good enough start. Even if Tony would call him bat shit when he found out. “Let’s get a beer tonight. I know a tiny bar in Queens where no one will bother us.”

Wilson nodded. “Thanks man.” His appreciation was genuine, but James couldn’t help but wonder if he’d regret this. 

James shook his head. “Here, it’s Commander Rhodes. Now get back to your work out, I’ll meet you in Common Room 1B at five tonight.” 

Chapter Text

“Preliminary witness statements from West Virginia indicate that these creatures are able to cloak their appearance. A civilian caught an uncloaked member off guard, which is what led to the attack,” James explained, scrolling through corroborating documents on his tablet. Much to Carol’s annoyance, she and her fellow team leads were reanalyzing the battle from nearly two weeks before. The same enemies had popped up twice in the time since then and didn’t show any signs of stopping. They needed a plan. 

On James’ right, Tony hummed in acknowledgement. “From the footage I’ve watched, the creatures didn’t seem prepared to launch an attack yet. A lot of their movements seemed uncoordinated which probably explains why there were so many waves. The creatures weren’t intending to attack. They were caught off guard, like Jim mentioned.” He glanced over to Stephen and Carol, eyes shining with concern of the implications. 

Matt Murdock, the Defenders’ usual correspondent, bobbed his head. Out of all the Enhanced people Carol had met, Matt was always the most impressive to her. A blind man who had disciplined his senses to allow him to see. There was something noble about that. “If that’s true, it’s safe to say that Team Alpha got off easy. If these creatures ever do get in sync, it won’t be a few hours of fighting. It will be a war. And not a war easy to be won.” 

Carol felt the severity of this threat permeate through the room. Sue Storm and Tony seemed the most drained. The first was always aware of Earth’s vulnerability. The second was always aware of Earth’s humanity. 

She cleared her throat. “These creatures, as we’ve been calling them, are a species called the Wraith, descendants of the Skrull. I didn’t recognize them during the fight, but when I was writing my report, I knew they seemed familiar. It finally clicked this morning. Red females, white males. ‘Cloaking identities’, as you put it.” She nodded to Tony. “They’re a military society full of warriors. And exceptional shapeshifters. They usually function in the background, infiltrating planets by replacing leaders of the host species. Unlike the Skrull, they are magic users. The fact that these Wraiths are attacking in their true form indicates that they are attempting a hostile takeover. They perceive no need for deception.” Carol cringed. Earth was unfortunately often overlooked by more technologically advanced species. 

Tony gave a look of determination. “Well let’s prove them wrong. We’ll need to alert the other planet-side teams about the threat, give them everything we know. You said they’re shapeshifters?”

Carol nodded. 

“Do we know any limitations? Is there anything they can’t shift into?”

“From what I’ve observed, they only take on appearances, not abilities. Like the Skrull. They can only change mass so much in either direction, although I’m not sure the exact limit on that, only that there is one. And if they do imitate an object, again, they don’t gain any of its properties.”

Tony nodded thoughtfully. Carol could see the way he dissected each piece of information for a point of exploitation before settling it with the rest of his knowledge of the Wraith. “Spider-Man came across several civilians who pinged his Spidey sense and kept them separated until the National Guard arrived. Most people he identified turned out to be a Wraith. If possible, I’d like to upload JOCASTA to their location and send Spider-Man there as well—with supervision—and see if Jo can differentiate between the remaining Wraith and some humans police line up style.” He glanced around the room. “Call me paranoid, but I’d like to get a handle on the shapeshifter part of their abilities before they figure out that the Earth isn’t free real estate.” He sighed. 

“I’ll speak with the base they’re at and see what we can do,” Carol agreed, once again grateful for the engineer’s foresight. 

Tony smiled slightly before pressing on. “And are their magic abilities innate or learned?”

“Learned. They broke off from the Skrull in order to study sorcery,” Carol informed him.

The engineer turned to Stephen with a click of his fingers. “That sounds right up your alley. You should take Loki and review footage from the West Virginia battle as well as any usable video from the other encounters. See what spells they’re using, how they channel energy. Figure out ways to safely counteract it.”

Stephen raised an eyebrow. “I do know how to do my job,” he drawled, leaning back in his chair. The other leaders rolled their eyes at the long old banter. 

Tony grinned. “Good, I was worried I’d need to call up Wong. He always wants me to send him Hulk ice cream before he’ll do anything helpful.”

“You are lucky I’m on the UN’s payroll,” the sorcerer agreed dryly. 

“Don’t I know it,” the engineer chirped. 

Carol cleared her throat at the pair, who would go on wisecracking for hours if she didn’t interrupt them. “Any other suggestions, Stark?” 

He nodded. “I’ll look through their tech. Jim, can you look through their fighting styles and formations? As well as any patterns in their movement?”

James agreed to Tony’s request easily. Thankfully they’d gotten past the honeymoon phase and were professional again. 

“Carol, will you look through their history, anything you might’ve missed?”

“Can do, Stark.” Carol took over from there, knowing Stark didn’t like instructing the non-Avengers teams if he didn’t have to. “Murdock, you keep your ear to the streets. Let us know if they’ve gotten into New York yet. And Storm-”

“Keep an eye on space? See if there are any signals of their activity on other planets?”

Carol nodded. The Fantastic Four’s access to a satellite was one of their best attributes in her opinion, although she would never admit it. 

“Already on it.”

“Thank you. I’d also like to send any bodies to you for autopsy. That is, if we’re able to get our hands on any before the Wraiths remove them.” Sue being an exceptional biologist didn’t hurt either. “We’ll keep each other informed as to any pertinent progress and due a full report at our meeting next week.”

The other leaders nodded in agreement. 

“Moving onto other items on our docket then,” Carol continued, swiping her tablet until she found their agenda. From there, James took over, leading the heroes through training changes, Accords amendments—a never ceasing update—membership assignments, and every other bureaucratic hoop that Carol appreciated, but didn’t necessarily enjoy. 

Towards the end of their meeting, James reached her least favorite section. “Any updates on probationary members? Maximoff, Barton, Rogers, and Romanoff each have one strike against them. Wilson, Barnes, and Lang are still currently in the green.”

Matt and Sue sat back for this one. They were lucky enough to only see the Rogues during joint training sessions. 

Carol nodded. “Team Alpha has been called out twice since West Virginia, and both times Rogers has given commands to teammates without authorization. Thankfully, he hadn’t tried to change formation again, which as we know was disastrous in West Virginia, but Romanoff has continued to follow his instructions,” she recounted, not bothering to conceal her frustration. 

“Thankfully, Lang has continued to keep his head down and followed orders. However. Maximoff is just as volatile in the field as she has been off,” James reported. His reference to her attempted assault on Peter immediately popped into her mind and she couldn’t help but glance at Tony. 

Matt leaned forward slightly. “You have enough evidence to get her charged, Stark,” the lawyer reminded him. “I’d be happy to represent Peter. And you, for that matter. There isn’t a statute of limitations on a crime that’s never been held before a court of law before.”

Tony scoffed. “You think I wouldn’t be pressing charges if Peter let me? I’d have her court martialed before she could choke out the first sentence of her sob story.” He shook his head. James subtly placed his hand over Tony’s. “God, what’s she got? One more mistake? The way Rogers is still feeding her bullshit, I don’t doubt the Council will be removing her from the Avengers within the month. Then it’ll be extradition central and maybe my kid will start to sleep through the night again.” He sighed. “Let’s call in the aliens about the Wraith.”

Carol rolled her eyes. “Only some of the Guardians are aliens,” she corrected, but called the non-US Avenger branches, X-men, Guardians and any other stray heroes for the remainder of their meeting. 

***

Sam loitered outside Common Room 1B. He was a few minutes early, but he wanted to put his best foot forward with Rhodes. 

Their meeting place was a floor below where he and the rest of the returned Avengers were staying. Sam appreciated the gesture. He hadn’t told Steve that he was meeting with the ‘other side’. He rolled his eyes to himself. This in-group out-group BS was screwing the whole of the Avengers over. He figured if he could act as a bridge between the two sides, then maybe they could reach some mutual trust. Not that he thought there should be two sides anymore. They’d signed the Accords. This issue was supposed to be resolved before they even landed on American soil. Whatever this was actually about, it went far deeper than international law. Sam hoped Rhodes would be willing to lend some insight into that tonight. But more importantly, Sam hoped to gain just a small amount of trust from the Commander. 

He checked his watch. Five on the dot. He adjusted his leather jacket, the same one he’d picked up from the cafeteria a few nights before. Maybe Rhodes could shine a light on Peter as well. Sam really needed to get Steve to back off, but the more they discussed the kid, the more Steve convinced himself he was right. 

“Sorry for the wait,” Rhodes called from the opposite of the hallway. “My husband thought it would be funny to switch phones. He was mistaken.” Rhodes nodded for Sam to follow him when he didn’t move. 

Sam was latently surprised that he’d shown up at all, after all the shit he’d gotten from the other returning Avengers. He shook himself out of his haze and followed the Commander towards the front of the Compound. He’d never seen Rhodes in civies before and it was a bit jarring. Dark jeans that his leg braces disappeared against and a simple jacket covering a black t-shirt. Sam hadn’t considered that the hero owned anything other than his uniform. 

As he caught up to Rhodes, he cleared his throat. “No need to apologize. You’re a busy man. I’m grateful you were able to make time for me.”

Rhodes nodded, keeping a brisk pace. “I always make time for my men.” The non-answer sat heavy on Sam’s chest and he remained quiet for their rest of their walk. 

A nondescript gray Sedan sat in the circle drive. Rhodes unlocked it and motioned for Sam to get in. 

“I hope you like 80s rock,” Rhodes commented. “Because Tony locked the radio to that station as an April Fools prank and I haven’t gotten around to fixing it yet.”

Sam laughed before sobering up slightly. He was in Rhodes’ car. Tony Stark’s husband’s car and they were going to have a beer in some bar an hour away. He wondered vaguely if he was being led to his execution. 

The music of their car ride was interrupted by Rhodes pointing out a few stops along the way, noting whatever importance they had. Usually, it had something to do with Stark. It was nice, Sam reflected, to get a peek into Rhodes’ life. He wondered what it would be like to be his friend. He figured that was a goal worth working towards. 

Rhodes navigated New York traffic with an ease that tipped its hand to his experience in the city. He pointed out the bar, a hole in the wall that was already in uproar with a flickering sign reading Josie’s Bar, before passing it to find a spot to park. Hardly the place to have a genuine conversation, but Sam had already decided to let this night unravel as it may. Rhodes slid into an empty spot a few blocks away and fed the meter before motioning for Sam to follow him. Rhodes chose a couple of open seats at the far end of the bar. The bartender, Josie herself it seemed, took their order. A bottle of beer and a glass of water for each of them. She left them to their silence. 

Sam watched her work for a while before turning to Rhodes. “So, you don’t have any security?” Sam asked mildly as they waited for Josie to return with their drinks. 

Rhodes shook his head, eyes straight forward. His confidence seemed to be waning the longer they sat there. “Tony wanted it, but it wasn’t really necessary.”

“But he does, right?” Not at the Compound, but Sam had seen them shadowing Stark on the news and shuttling him places every once in a while. 

Rhodes nodded slowly. “It’s not really a safety issue though.”

Sam let that roll around in his head for a moment. Stark didn’t need security. He had an army of suits a tap away on his watch, not that he would use them unless it was an absolute emergency. But the man had been targeted for kidnapping and assassination more times than Sam could count. He understood Stark for wanting a bit of a buffer between himself and the world. “I don’t blame him,” Sam replied lightly. 

Rhodes finally turned to face the hero, giving him a long glance. Whatever he saw must have satisfied him because he gave a short nod. 

Josie brought their drinks over silently and Rhodes paid the bill. The gesture was clear. Once their beers were gone, their conversation was over. 

Rhodes took a swig of his drink and gave Sam a look. Right. It was Rhodes’ time that Sam was wasting. He was the one who wanted to have this conversation and he wasn’t having it. 

He cleared his throat. “You mentioned that you weren't upset about the accident in the airport.” 

Rhodes nodded. 

“I’d rather not play a guessing game all night,” Sam admitted, swirling his beer, but not drinking. “Would you tell me what it is that I did? I want to be able to work through it. To be able to work as a team again.”

Another drink and then Rhodes sighed. “I don’t trust you, Sam. You seem to have a good head on your shoulders, but you had to have known that Rogers was off his rocker. Or at least keeping secrets from Tony.”

“I didn’t,” Sam responded immediately. “In retrospect, I should have, but at the time I couldn’t take a step back. Even before the Accords, everything was moving so fast, I just assumed that Steve had our backs covered. I didn’t know that it was Stark who ran the business end. I didn’t know Steve hadn’t told Stark shit.” He ran his tongue over his teeth. “I didn’t know I needed to be cautious. I just took the checks Steve gave me.”

“That was Tony’s money.”

Sam sighed. “That makes a hell of a lot more sense.”

Rhodes frowned. “Where did Steve tell you he got the money?”

He searched his memory. Everything felt so long ago, but it had barely been over a year. “I think he mentioned something about an Avengers fund. I didn’t really think about it.” 

Rhodes turned away, sipping his water while deep in thought. Sam took the chance to get a drink of his beer, waiting. Finally, he returned his attention to Sam. “Tony doesn’t really give a shit about his money. I don’t either, if I’m being honest, but it’s the principle of it. Not that you took the money, but that Rogers kept asking for it, knowing what he knew.”

“Knowing what he knew?”

“Barnes, as the Winter Soldier, killed Tony’s parents. Wasn’t his fault, but he was the face. Rogers never told you?”

“There’s a lot Steve doesn’t tell me. I learn a little more about it every day.” He rubbed a hand over his face and took another drink. “But that’s not what bothers you.”

Rhodes nodded, sighing. “You asked Tony to go to Siberia. You had to have known that Rogers was AWOL at that point, but you trusted him. You trusted him. Why did you ask Tony to go after him in Siberia?” Rhodes paused for a moment. “‘Alone and as a friend.’ That’s what you said. You had to have known that Rogers was no longer Tony’s ‘friend’ at that point.” 

Whatever it was that Rhodes was holding against him, he’d never thought it would be that. He’d nearly forgotten that Stark had shown up at the Raft. Alone and as a friend. God, he’d been so stupid. “Stark had been pulling his punches that whole time. Steve had been too, at least, I thought he’d been. Maybe he hadn’t. But I knew that if Tony went there with any sort of backup, that would be it. Steve would tip over the edge. Get himself and as many others as he could take down with him killed. I thought Stark would be able to reason with him.” He eyed his half empty beer sadly. “I didn’t think he was already that far off the reserve. I always thought Steve was a good person. When he said jump, I jumped. I didn’t question it,” he admitted softly. He glanced over at Rhodes. He hadn’t said any of that aloud before and the weight of it was pooling in his chest. He reached for his beer. 

“Do you question it now?”

“Huh?” Sam asked, choking down his drink.

“Do you question it now? Did you read the Accords? Have you stopped taking Rogers at face value?” Rhodes pressed. 

Sam snorted. “Yeah. My hero worship is long gone.” He rolled his eyes. “Steve holds these gossip sessions pretty much every day. God, it’s disgusting. He beats up on anyone who doesn’t hold his hand. I try to mitigate his delusions, but there’s no point. He’s not the man I met in DC. Maybe he never was, I don’t know.” The realization burned, but he was grateful for it. The more he thought about it, the more Steve seemed to be poison. Stuck in his own ways and damaging everything he touched. 

“Do you think that Rogers will ever come to his senses?” Rhodes seemed tired, but honestly curious. 

Sam shook his head. “If Clint and Wanda stick around? No. They’ve fed his ego enough for a lifetime. Bucky’s probably the only person who could knock any sort of sense into him and he’s as estranged as you can get while still living with the guy.” Sam took a long drink of water. “I wish I could give up on him. I really wish I could. But I just keep hoping he’ll sort himself out and make amends. I love working as an Avenger, Accords and all. But I hate the divide that exists between us.” He motioned between himself and Rhodes. “If I could get rid of it, I would.”

Rhodes smiled briefly. “Tony says the same thing. I think in his ideal world, Rogers would be babysitting Peter on weekends and-” He stopped himself, wide-eyed. “Sorry. I just mean that Tony doesn’t want the divide either.” He grabbed his beer, eyes dark, but didn’t drink. 

“If you uh- If you don’t mind me asking, what’s their story?” Sam asked softly.  

Rhodes took a long swig of his beer, clearly thinking through his answer. Sam held his breath. “Tony has… known Peter for a long time. He grew up around here. In Queens,” he clarified. Rhodes nodded to himself. “He was raised by his Aunt May. Got spider powers, invented some tech, brought a couple villains down. Tones was pissed when he found out,” he chuckled. 

Sam considered him for a moment. He knew that that wasn’t everything, not by a long shot. But it was far more than he was expecting Rhodes to admit. “They just seemed close,” he answered softly. “I, um. I saw him the other night. Peter. He was wandering around the cafeteria. I think he might’ve been crying. Vision came to take him to Sta- to Tony.” Sam rolled his shoulders. “Tony seems like a really good influence on Peter.”

Rhodes licked his lips. “They care about each other,” he allowed. “There’s not a thing Tony wouldn’t do for him.” He cleared his throat, emptying his beer. “Tony’s expecting me home before midnight, so we might want to head back to the Compound. It was really nice talking to you, Wilson.”

“It’s Sam. And thanks.”

“James.” 

They shook hands and James led them back to the car. The ride home, they both sang along to the top ten hits from June 1983. 

Chapter Text

Usually, Tony enjoyed watching the new recruits train. They were creative and energetic. Unfortunately, their newest recruits were still the Rogues. 

He was running a battle simulation with Team Alpha and the Young Avengers. While Wilson was easy going, following directions without complaint, Romanoff and Rogers were shouting their own orders left and right at the YAs. Carol did her best to mitigate the backlash, but in the field, she couldn’t do much. Loki wasn’t even trying to help. Tony considered muting the interfering pair, but knew that would only make matters worse. 

And, privately, the collaboration was further impaired by Riri and Harley’s absence. Riri hadn’t been cleared for battle yet—although she could work in the lab again—and Harley was down in Tennessee for Mother’s Day. Peter hated being around the Rogues, especially Rogers and especially when there were weapons around. His Spidey Sense buzzed continuously. Harley and Riri—his boyfriend and his pseudo-sister—helped calm him. Peter trusted the other YAs, but not to the same extent. 

Tony was still proud his son hadn’t let it affect him in this training yet. Peter had already feigned sick once and real panic attacked twice, getting out of joint training. He never passed up a mission though, which was how Tony convinced him to join the training session. 

The simulation, although no one in the field other than Carol knew it, closely resembled that of what they believed the Wraith at full coordination would look like. While each Avengers team was heavy with air and ground support, they had limited magic users. And when the Wraith were all skilled sorcerers, they needed to leverage the field to allow their own magicians to only act offensively. That way, each exertion was proactive, hopefully ending the potential battle sooner. Unfortunately, the lack of coordination in the field resulted in extensive property damage and death tolls that were easily preventable. 

Tony allowed his gaze to rove over the field. JOCASTA was recording and after they would pick apart to battle for any weaknesses in strategy, but Tony liked to find any holes in real time. He always wanted to keep his senses sharp. 

Despite Rogers’ best efforts, the teams were mostly keeping formation, covering Loki and Billy as they threw out null magic. 

Kamala and Teddy worked closely with Wilson in close proximity to the two magic users while the others kept a larger perimeter. 

Across the field, he watched Peter propel himself off one of the support beams and swing low over the holographic enemies, webbing them as he went. Once a target was hit, it disappeared. The web fluid combination made specifically for training dissolved instantaneously as well, reacting with the nitrogen in the air. 

It was a maneuver Peter had performed countless times, however this time he held back a bit. 

Apparently, Tony wasn’t the only one who had noticed though. 

“Come on, Parker, grow a pair!” Rogers shouted. 

Peter miscalculated his next web launch and lost momentum, tumbling to the floor. 

Tony slammed the button halting the simulation. 

The holograms fizzled out and all attention turned to him. 

He knew in the rational portion of his mind that he should be this angry. Rogers didn’t know that Peter was trans so this couldn’t be a purposeful microaggression. But logic didn’t mix well with seeing his son hyperventilating on the floor. 

He flicked his attention back to all the other heroes. 

“Everyone out. Training’s over. Danvers, take Rogers to an open conference room and wait for me,” he instructed, trying to maintain an air of professionalism. The YAs seemed to understand what was happening. America sent off the others while she waited with Peter until Tony could arrive. His nanoparticles encased him in a suit, allowing him to quickly descend to where Peter had landed. 

His son’s mask was tossed aside and he clutched America’s hand between his own—a coping technique that only worked with a fellow superhuman. 

Tony thanked her quietly and sent her off to join the others. 

“Hey, buddy,” Tony greeted softly, retracting the suit almost completely. 

Peter never cried during panic attacks, only after when his metabolism had chewed through the surge of cortisol. Instead, Peter just sat there, immobilized by an internal sense of fear, grinding his teeth, trying to remain as small as possible. 

As much as Tony hated his son’s trauma-induced panic attacks, those related to his dysphoria were so much worse. There was nothing he could do to reassure his son’s racing thoughts, nothing that worked anyway. 

He wrapped Peter’s fingers around the hands, hard nanobots still activated around it. “Just focus on me, Peter,” he encouraged softly. It had been so long since Peter had experienced dysphoria at the Compound. Everyone there was either extremely gender-affirming or they didn’t know. Tony would never let Peter work or live in a place that wasn’t accepting. But he couldn’t out Peter in order to set Rogers straight and unfortunately, Rogers hadn’t done anything wrong. Not on purpose. Of course, the one thing that Tony cared about the most was the one thing he couldn’t write Rogers up about. 

Peter leaned into his dad’s shoulder, breathing evening out slightly. He rubbed his son’s back, whispering as many affirming words as he could think of. 

A little while later, Peter shifted back. “‘M gonna go change,” he whispered. 

Tony nodded. “Do you want me to come with you?” he asked, helping Peter to his feet. 

His son shook his head. “I just- I want-” He groaned in frustration at being unable to articulate his emotions. Tony truly knew that the panic had passed when his son’s eyes filled with tears as he gestured vaguely to his body. He pulled his son into another tight hug. 

“I know, buddy,” Tony breathed. “If I could take it all away, I would.” He watched his son exit the cavernous training grounds. 

“Fri, let him know I’ll be in the lab after I have a few words with Rogers.”

“Will do, boss,” the AI responded quickly through his watch. He wished that he had her wired through the whole building, but the UN didn’t go for that idea. JOCASTA was sweet, but young. Eager. 

He sighed. “Is Riri still down there?”

“She is.”

Tony nodded to himself before heading out. It would be a long day. 

***

Riri scrolled through lines of code until she found the section she had previously skipped. Now that she was finally cleared to be back in the lab, she regretted her earlier decision to put off this upgrade. All the intentions she had before her injury were lost on her now, aside from brief snippets she’d written in the comments. She knew it had something to do with the targeting systems, but after that Riri was as confused as any non-coder would be. And if her headache was anything to go by, it was possible that she should have taken another few days off before entrenching herself in the holograms of Tony’s lab. 

Riri sighed, rubbing her temple. “Tony, what do you think ‘Green equals straight, red equals unclear means?’” she called across the lab. 

Her mentor glanced up from where he was running a simulation on Quinjet landing gear. “It means I should take you back to Alma because you’re speaking gibberish.” He raised an eyebrow. 

She rolled her eyes. “No, it’s about a targeting system update. I think it- Oh!” She groaned. “It’s literally just for lining up shots. The colors are supposed to indicate whether I should shoot. If I had coded it,” she added grumpily. This section was the most complicated, which is why she'd kept putting it off. All the other changes to her HUD had been to simplify aspects. 

Before Tony could respond, the airy sound of the lab doors opening and closing interrupted. Peter emerged wearing an oversized gray hoodie and black joggers. In the pocket she knew was a tape measure and a couple screwdrivers at minimum that Peter always carried with him. His hood was up and his noise-cancelling headphones hung around his neck. Riri pursed her lips. 

“Hey, buddy,” Tony called. Peter stared at his dad, wide-eyed. “Hey, Peter,” he breathed, words impossibly gentling further. “How are you feeling?”

Peter shrugged, turning away from his dad and sitting down at the work station across from Riri. He looked torn between seeking out the comfort he clearly needed and not being a bother. 

God, I could kill Rogers, she mused. At least Tony had given him a proper dressing down before he’d come to the lab, otherwise Riri would have put herself back in the hospital with her own tirade. She hated how one comment from the Rogue could bring down Peter’s whole mood with dysphoria. She knew he was really only down there to avoid the Rogues, but she was glad he’d decided to be with people who loved him. With Harley in Tennessee for the weekend, Peter’d been around her more often, which she wasn’t complaining about. 

Only fifteen minutes later, with Riri and Tony trying to stay focused on work while Peter toggled between Instagram and Snapchat on his phone, JOCASTA alerted that Barnes was on his way down for his scheduled arm maintenance. 

Tony cursed softly. “Hey, is that alright, Peter? I can reschedule if you don’t want anyone else down here.”

Peter stayed turned away from his dad. “It’s okay,” he replied after a moment. 

“Okay. Let me know if you want him to leave at any time.”

“Okay,” Peter echoed. 

The doors opened with the same airlock noise. Tony and Riri both stood. Tony crossed towards Barnes and shook his hand. “Right this way.” Tony gestured to his work station. 

Barnes didn’t move, instead, he looked over at Peter. 

Riri took a step forward, towards Peter. He didn’t look up, but his shoulders tensed. 

Barnes cleared his throat awkwardly. “Hey, um, Peter. I, uh. Heard what happened earlier. Are you okay?”

Riri balled her fists. No Rogue, not even one Tony would let on his team, had the right to talk to Peter. Least of all about his internal state. However, before she could intervene and get in a few choice words about the assassin's audacity, Peter shrugged slightly. “‘M alright,” he mumbled. He glanced over his shoulder. 

Liar, she thought sullenly. If Peter wanted to engage with a member of Team Asshole, fine, but she wasn’t letting him go in without back up. Thankfully, Tony had pulled out his tools and called Barnes over to his workstation before he could continue talking to Peter. 

Barnes was the only Rogue with any sort of access to the lab, much to Riri’s chagrin. Of course, there was severe limitation on that access. He had maintenance for his arm done once every month or so, which was the only time he could get onto the lab floors. If he wanted into a room with Tony though, FRIDAY refused to open the door until Peter or Rhodes were inside, the one area in the Compound she had any access to. Riri respected the AI’s rule, because she was sure Tony’s self-sacrificing ass wouldn’t request anything close to that. 

Riri returned to her coding, keeping one eye on Barnes as he answered Tony’s questions. The soldier in turn kept an eye on Peter. Nothing malicious, it seemed, just curious. Peter seemed oblivious to Barnes’ gaze, which was a good sign in Riri’s book. If his weird sixth sense wasn’t going off, then Barnes couldn’t be planning anything. Not that that convinced her to stop stealing glances between lines of code. 

Peter, for his part, continued to mindlessly scroll through his Twitter feed. His dad’s old MIT hoodie swallowed his body, which Riri knew was the point, but didn’t make it any less endearing. His cheeks were red and he frowned viciously, but somehow he still made her heart warm a bit. 

She finished her outline for the changed targeting system. 

“Hey, Peter, can you take a look at this? I started it pre-concussion and can’t really remember what I was trying to get at,” Riri explained. 

Peter nodded and she slid over so he could join her on the workbench. His eyes flickered over the screen, but he couldn’t seem to concentrate on the actual meaning of the code. Finally, he gave up, running a hand through his hair and knocking over his hood. “I, um. I think it’s okay. I can send it to Ned if you want, since computer science is more his thing. He should have clearance now,” he mumbled, pulling his hood pack over his face. He fidgeted with the strings, avoiding Riri’s eyes. 

“You sure everything’s alright, Peter?” Barnes called over. 

Tony and Riri locked eyes immediately and Tony opened his mouth to speak. 

 “Yeah,” Peter answered softly. “Just feel wonky in my body is all.” He gestured loosely to himself and then ambled back to his seat. 

Riri shot Peter a sympathetic look. Peter hunched in on himself more. 

“Peter, do you want to go to take a nap upstairs?” Tony asked, a similar expression on his face. 

“No,” Peter responded, voice edging on a whine. He pulled his hood further down on his head. Even though Riri wanted Peter to be comfortable, she was grateful that he was willing to stay. The awkward transition of Barnes waiting outside until Commander Rhodes could meet them or having to reschedule the session in the middle of maintenance weren’t ideal situations for anyone. 

The rest of the repairs went forward in silence, except for Tony’s questions about functionality and motion range. Riri continued to work and Peter continued to stare at his phone. 

“All finished. Looks like you live to brood another day, Barnes.” Tony wiped his hands on his jeans and started packing up his tools. 

Barnes swayed awkwardly for a moment before answering with a quiet, slightly puzzled, “Thank you.”

“No problem, Barnes.” Tony didn’t glance up from his tidying. 

Barnes cleared his throat. “If you don’t mind me asking, why me?”

Tony set aside his tools. He leaned against his workstation, trying to create a casual air. He failed. “What do you mean?” the father responded dubiously. 

“Why do you trust me, of all people, down here?” Barnes pressed, rubbed his hands together uncomfortably. Riri couldn’t help but agree with the sentiment. Why did he trust Barnes?

Tony shrugged. “Why do you keep checking on Peter?” he countered. 

Peter’s eyes shot to Riri’s at the mention of his name. His whole body tensed. She tried to send him a reassuring smile, but he just hunched his shoulders further. 

“Because Steve made him upset earlier.”

“That’s not your fault,” Tony argued. “You’re not obligated to Peter.”

“I’m obligated to not be a dick.”

“Guess that’s why then,” Tony conceded, sending Barnes off with a wave of his hand. Riri took a brief moment to reassess. Maybe allowing the Winter Soldier into their walls wasn’t such a mistake after all. When the opaque glass door sealed again, Tony sat down beside Peter. 

“Sorry about that,” he murmured, smoothing Peter’s hair. His son clung around his middle, shuddering at the comfort. “I know, buddy,” Tony soothed. “I’ve got you.”

Chapter Text

James landed on the ground, out of breath, but knowing that he still had a ways to go. The Wraith had been given the signal to retreat, and the remaining soldiers were portaling away with their dead. 

As frustrated as he was that they again were getting away, he knew that his team was at their end. They’d been better coordinated this time, but they were still exhausted, especially with no backup. Fifty miles northeast of DC. The Wraith were savvy. Not so close to ready the missile silos, but close enough to put a huge population at risk. 

“Team Delta, turn your attention to any civilians that are still present. Lang, catch everyone up. The Wraith are withdrawing, I’m giving the military the All Clear now.” James clicked off his comm and watched his team join Lang across the field. Vision and Maximoff both took to the air while She-Hulk, Bruce’s cousin, took bounding leaps to reach the main focus of the Wraith’s destruction. Once James heard Lang issuing sections to his team, he asked FRIDAY to open a channel to the deployed military unit. 

A few clipped words with their Colonel—who wasn’t too keen on a Lieutenant Colonel turned Avenger’s Commander now outranking him—to approve the military’s engagement in the area before he took flight again. Immediately, the wisps of red magic caught his eye. 

“Maximoff, report. What are you engaging?”

“Not now, Rhodes!” she shouted. 

Vision arrived at James' side. “A few Wraith made a move towards the remaining civilians. Wanda attacked,” he explained quickly. 

James cursed under his breath as the two increased in speed. 

Maximoff’s magic oozed throughout the scene, blurring fleeing innocents and enemies together. She pulsed the telekinetic energy, knocking everyone including James to the ground. 

“Maximoff, stand down. The Wraith are retreating. Civilians are in danger.”

Her magic only thickened at the command, swallowing more and more of the streets she hovered above. The Wraith had already portaled away as the magic consumed the area. Only the citizens remained. 

“Maximoff, now!” James shouted. He was ignored again. From where the magic had knocked him, James turned to Vision. “I need you to dispatch Maximoff. I’m sorry.”

Vision shook his head sadly, already turning his attention to the Scarlet Witch. “There is no need for apologies. Wanda lost my sympathy in Leipzig.” With that, he turned his attention to the sky, concentrating his power into the Mind Stone. 

James held his breath as the android approached the out of control magician, but Vision’s energy overtook her magic in a second. He caught her before she could drop to the ground. 

“I will return her to the Quinjet before joining the clean up effort,” Vision informed him before whisking the witch away. 

James sighed before returning his attention to the remaining two members of his team. “Lang, report on civilians.”

“Um, they- I got most people away in time. The- the stragglers. Wanda- I don’t think they made it,” the hero confessed. Sure enough, as the toxic magic dissipated, countless unmoving citizens were revealed. 

“Start searching for signs of life. I’ll alert the military to the situation. They’re only a few minutes out,” he informed through the comms. Then he switched to a private line with FRIDAY. “Direct them to the area most dense with heat signatures. Then put me through to the Colonel.”

“Colonel Sullivan, sir.”

“This is Commander James Rhodes. There was an incident in the field a moment ago. One of my team members lost control and had to be removed from the situation. Many civilians were endangered and I believe there was a large number of casualties amassed. When your troops arrive, the focus should be on finding survivors and providing medical attention where possible,” he instructed quickly. Sullivan gave his assent and James rejoined Lang and Jen’s effort. Not long after, Sullivan and his soldiers arrived on the scene. James quickly transitioned command over to the Colonel, knowing he needed to save his energy for the bureaucracy he was going to be wading through as soon as he arrived at the Compound. 

He peered into the Quinjet. Maximoff was strapped down in the middle with a medical worker scribbling away on a tablet beside her. Jen had de-Hulked and was munching on a protein bar. Lang was across from her, staring at his hands in shock. Vision sat beside the pilot, speaking lowly to her about Maximoff. 

James cleared his throat, his faceplate retracting. “I’m flying ahead to the Compound. You all are to report to Medical upon arrival. The briefing will be delayed until further notice. Is there anything that needs to be addressed now?” he asked. 

His team shook their heads. 

“Alright. I’ll be in my office if something comes up.” With that, he backed out of the jet and took to the sky. It wasn’t a long flight back to New York, even in the Quinjet, but he needed to get a head start of Maximoff’s slip up. If he played his cards right, this would be it for her. One less weight off his and his husband’s shoulders. 

On the flight back, he called Tony. The information needed to remain need-to-know—all mission details were to remain confidential regardless—but he needed to give his partner some word of warning. And an update on his own condition, which was a part of their agreement about missions. 

“Hey, babe,” Tony answered immediately, his face popping up on James’ HUD. He was now in his lab at the Compound, but James could tell the engineer hadn’t gotten a lick of done since they’d been woken in the early morning by FRIDAY’s alert in the Tower. “You coming home?”

“Coming to work,” James corrected. The Tower was home, even if it seemed that they slept at the Compound more. “No injuries, but I’ll pop into Medical first. I’m going to up to my neck in paperwork for the next twenty four hours,” he reported. 

“What happened?”

“You know I can’t tell you,” James frowned, cutting through the air, momentarily appreciating the sunrise from this height before returning his attention to his husband. 

Tony pouted. “I’m a Commander,” he reminded softly. 

“Team Delta hasn’t debriefed yet. But trust me, it will be on the docket soon enough.” If he thought it was necessary, it was certainly under his purview to make Tony privy to the details of the mission. But he didn’t want to give Tony any false sense of hope. 

That seemed to appease his partner slightly. “Will you be home for dinner?”

James shook his head. “I think I’ll be sleeping at the Compound tonight,” he admitted. “You, Pete and Harley should go back to the Tower though.” When Tony had brought Harley to live with them over last summer, the last thing he’d expected was the boy becoming a permanent installment in their lives. He was like a son to James even before he started dating Peter. 

“You know they don’t mind staying up here.”

James couldn’t help but smile. “I think Happy might.”

“Happy couldn’t care less.” 

James grinned ruefully at his husband. “Doesn’t change that I’m going to be swamped for the next few days.”

“Alright, I’ll see you tonight.”

“Don’t stay up,” James reminded. 

“No promises.”

James shook his head but ended the call with a smile. 

He checked his route on his HUD. Fifteen minutes. He asked FRIDAY to call Stephen. 

The sorcerer answered immediately, likely in his office. James didn’t recall any meetings that either were scheduled for that day. Stephen agreed to meet James in his office after he was cleared by Medical. 

Their approval didn’t take long to garner—as he had an AI that was ready to point out any potential injuries—and soon Stephen was knocking on his door. 

“There was an issue in the last mission you wanted to speak with me about?”

James gestured for his fellow Commander to sit. “Overall, the mission was fine. A few disjointed moments, but Lang is certainly integrating well with the team and Maximoff is… Well, she likes to take her powers out for a ride and missions give her the opportunity to do so.” He sighed. “At the end of the battle, the Wraith had begun to retreat, but a few were still in a civilian-heavy area. Maximoff engaged. I ordered her to stop. She didn’t. The Wraith had all disappeared, but she continued to activate more magic. Civilians were in danger, so I instructed Vision to stop her.”

Stephen nodded, considering his recounting. “Maximoff has yet to demonstrate control over her abilities since the day she arrived. Despite attending countless sessions with Mr. Laufeyson and I, she has yet to improve. I was critical of sending her into the field since meeting her and still am.”

“And I never questioned your judgement,” James reminded. 

“The Council however-”

“The Council felt pressure from the President to make good on his promise to the American people, especially after their pardon’s leaked before we fully had a handle on how to cover their return. The Rogues are anything but rehabilitated and have yet to make any real amends.” Except for Sam, he conceded distractedly. But Sam wasn’t the out of control individual they were discussing. 

“You believe that it is time for Miss. Maximoff to be retired?” Stephen’s face was neutral, but James didn’t need to be a mind reader to know his opinion on the issue. 

Before he could respond, JOCASTA alerted the pair. “Commanders, Team Delta have arrived at the Compound and are being directed to Medical now,” the AI informed them. 

James nodded to the nearest camera in acknowledgement before returning his attention to Stephen. “I believe that it is time for the Council to re-evaluate her position on the Avengers. I believe that she has broken far more than two rules and caused far more destruction than relief. However, that is for the Council to decide. I simply ask you to consider the best way to separate her from her abilities, if such an eventuality arises.” James was careful to not ask Stephen directly to seal her powers. He shouldn’t be having this conversation at all, let alone assuming the authority to direct Stephen in any way. No conversation was ever truly private, if Jo’s easily timed interruption was any indication. The Council, although respectful of their Commanders, had every right to pull this footage if the need should ever arise. 

“I see,” Stephen nodded thoughtfully. “I do indeed think it’s possible. Would you mind if I picked Mr. Laufeyson’s brain about this? As Sorcerer Supreme, I have much control over where magic concentrates itself in the universe, but that is most applicable to that of a trained magician, not inborn abilities,” Stephen rationalized. 

James considered for a moment. On one hand, he should keep this matter as in house as possible. On the other, he desired to know if it really was possible to finally dismiss Maximoff. “I don’t see the harm in getting another magic-user’s opinion in the hypothetical,” James conceded eventually. “JOCASTA, could you contact Mr. Laufeyson and see if he’s available?”

“Certainly, Commander, although Mr. Laufeyson appears to be turning in for the night. Also, I should inform you that Mr. Rogers, Miss. Maximoff, Mr. Barton, and Mr. Wilson are en route to your office currently.”

“You’re welcome to leave before they arrive,” James assured the sorcerer. “No need to add another headache.”

Stephen hummed. “Unfortunately, I don’t quite trust our colleagues to play nice while alone with you. Especially considering the events from this morning.”

“While your concern is appreciated-” But before James could finish, they both heard Sam shout from down the hall. 

“Steve, come on, wait. Let’s think about this.” 

A moment later, Rogers, Barton, and Maximoff barged into his office, Sam not far behind. James stood up from behind his desk while Stephen retreated to his right, seeming to allow James to handle the situation for the time being, despite his previous doubts. 

Before James could demand to know why they were in his office, Rogers announced, “I would like to file assault charges against Vision for Wanda.” 

James could hardly keep back his startled laughter. Rogers wanted to paint Maximoff the victim? After her own attempts to enter Peter’s mind? One glance at Stephen told him that the fellow Commander was thinking the same thing. 

Instead of laughing at the absurdity of the request, James kept his tone as respectful as he could muster. “Mr. Rogers, what transpired is still a matter for the Delta Team to discuss until such a time that the details of the mission become disclosed to the public. You are not privy to the happenings of today’s battle, as I should remind Miss. Maximoff as well.”

Rogers resolutely ignored him. “I would like to file assault charges against Vision,” he repeated, heels digging in. 

“Steve,” Maximoff whined. James could see how the soldier often likened the twenty something to a child. “I love him. I don’t want to file assault charges against Vis. I want to file them against Rhodes. He’s the one who told Vis to hurt me. Vision never would have done it if it weren’t for Stark’s reprogramming anyway.”

“Nobody reprogrammed Vision.” James didn’t know where else to start to deconstruct her tirade. “He’s an android, that isn’t possible, nor is it anyone’s—let alone Dr. Stark’s—desire to do so.” James shook his head at their delusions. “Regardless, I acted in my capacity as Commander to ensure the safety of the civilians present. Any injury that followed was not malicious, but necessary in order to protect those we are meant to protect.”

“There were Wraith present!” Maximoff protested. 

“I will not argue about the truth,” James stated simply. 

“Guys, let’s just cool off. We can talk about this tomorrow,” Sam requested, putting a hand on Rogers’ shoulder. Throughout the conversation, he seemed dubious of the lies Rogers was peddling—reminiscent of their night at Josie’s. James was pleased that Sam had continued to consider Rogers’ actions and words critically. 

Rogers disagreed with Sam immediately. “No, this is getting out of hand.”

“I believe Miss. Maximoff getting out of hand is the whole reason we’re in this situation,” Stephen answered sardonically, leaning against the wall on the far side of the room. 

“Listen here, Strange-” Barton barked, stepping toward the wizard. 

“Everyone, calm down.” James interrupted. He and Stephen both noted the wisps of magic dancing around Maximoff’s fingers. “There is a time and a place for this discussion, but this is not it and these are not the individuals who should present, aside from Miss. Maximoff and I. I request that you all disperse now.”

“Rhodes, you’re being unreasonable,” Rogers argued, voice raising with each word. Maximoff’s magic sparked before dissipating so quickly James would have missed if he hadn’t been paying attention. 

“You’re out of line Rogers. If Miss. Maximoff has a complaint, she is welcome to report it through the Council’s official channels. Until then, I would like you all out of my office.”

Rogers looked none too happy about that answer, but Stephen beat him to the punch. “If I may, I am quite disappointed by this display. I will be speaking with the Council myself about this encounter. And Miss. Maximoff, I suggest you keep your head down until they come to any sort of decision about the unwarranted and frankly uncontained magic I just witnessed. I suggest you all listen to the Commander and get on your way.” With that, Stephen opened a portal to just outside a dorm hallway within the Compound. The room number was one James recognized as Loki’s. Stephen stepped through and closed the portal before those in the office were able to see the god inside. 

James returned his attention to the present Rogues. “I suggest you get along with your evening. The debrief has been postponed until we speak with the Council. JOCASTA will add it to your itineraries as soon as we get something scheduled.” He ushered them out, closing the door behind them. Returning to his seat, he sighed. Stephen was speaking with Loki about how to go about sealing Maximoff’s powers. The Council needed to be caught up before they discovered such discussions were occurring. They should’ve been informed before Stephen, but James wanted reassurance that action could be taken. 

He drafted an email to the Council over the course of an hour before deleting it in its entirety, beginning again immediately. He needed to strike a balance between patience and urgency while still respecting their authority. However, he would have preferred to fill the email’s subject line with a more straightforward: Maximoff fucked up and we’re acting accordingly. 

James was halfway through the second draft when his door opened again. He sighed internally, hoping their AIs hadn’t missed the Rogue’s return.

Thankfully, Peter popped his head in instead. James relaxed immediately, professionalism washing away as he smiled at his stepson. 

“Hey, Pete,” he greeted warmly, saving his email for later. 

Peter glanced behind him, ensuring that he’s shut the door, before announcing, “Dad wants to know when you’ll be ready for dinner.”

James sighed, he hadn’t realized that he’d already burned through the whole day. “I’m going to have to skip out on this one. I’ve got a lot of paperwork to do now,” he admitted apologetically. 

“But, Jim,” Peter whined, always fluctuating between a carefree teen and a hardened adult. “Tonight's special. May never comes to the Compound.” James’ silently cursed himself. He forgot that they had dinner with May scheduled at the Tower. Although Peter frequently spent the night at her house and she and Tony had a standing brunch date every other Sunday, he didn’t see much of Peter’s aunt. Despite both of them being so entrenched in the family, they never had any real reason to see each other other than Peter. And that could only ever happen in private. 

“I know, but this can’t wait.” James wished he could set this aside and have a nice night with his family, to get to know Peter’s other guardian better despite knowing her since Peter was four, but he knew that once this was finished, many more nights would free up again. 

“Something happened on your mission?” Peter asked, maturity surging with whatever he perceived in James’ demeanor. 

“A lot of somethings,” James conceded. 

Peter bit his lip. “Do you- do you think that things will get better?”

“If the Council takes what happened in the field today seriously, then I think we’ll be getting back on track. Now tell your dad I’m sorry and give May a hug for me when she gets here.”

***

Not an hour after Rhodes blew up at Steve, Clint found himself in the cafeteria staring down the devil himself again. 

Stark was speaking with the chef, no doubt wheedling his way around the cafeteria rules that were always being thrown in Clint’s face. 

The archer swiped his ID, gave a curt nod to the woman running the entrance, and approached the line. 

“Okay, the only time I’ve ever snuck into a movie was for the stupidest reason. I was in my second round of grad school and Jim and I went to see some Pixar movie in theatres. I want to say it was Toy Story, but it could’ve been Bug’s Life. It was the nineties is my point—God I’m so old—and we ran into a couple guys from our comp sci class. Jim was taking it with me even though the Air Force really was paying for him to study aerospace engineering. Anyway, we were both well over eighteen at the time and the original Halloween was also in theatres. They asked us if we wanted to sit together in the movie.” The cafeteria man chuckled at the set up. Clint rolled his eyes. At this point, Stark had already been served his food and didn’t seem aware of the line forming behind him. Even if the line was only Clint. Not even the chef who was facing him seemed aware of Clint’s presence, completely enthralled with Stark’s likely fabricated story. 

“Pixar was still new at the time, so all people knew about them was that they were marketing towards kids. Well, neither Jim nor I wanted to lose all of our cred in comp sci, so-”

Clint cleared his throat behind Stark. 

The engineer turned quickly and his face hardened before he checked his exits. He grabbed his tray from the counter. “Anyway, Farid, long story short, I about shit myself in a movie I didn’t even want to see just so some twenty year olds I didn’t even like would still want to do group projects with me.”

Farid waved him off with a jovial look before serving Clint with an icy demeanor. 

The archer swiped up his tray and scanned the seating area so he could snag a table as far from Stark as possible. There were only a few other civilian employees in the room, so he spotted Stark’s area immediately, even if he was absent, just his piled high tray remaining. A second scan of the room put him back up front speaking with a woman Clint didn’t recognize. 

“May, I am begging you to let me pay for your guest pass. I’m the one who asked you up here last minute.”

The woman, May, rolled her eyes. “I think I can spare ten dollars for your buffet, Tony,” she teased, handing over a few bills to the cashier. 

“The UN’s buffet,” Stark corrected. “I’m divested.”

Clint settled into his chosen table, his original plan to ignore the billionaire tossed out. He positioned himself so that he could watch the buffet, the front, and Stark’s table. The familiarity Stark had with the unknown woman was concerning. Stark and secrets never ended well. 

“The UN’s buffet that you designed,” May added, idly watching the cashier ring her up. 

“There’s no winning with you,” Stark grumbled. 

May’s receipt printed, but she waved it off. “Thanks, Marcy,” she smiled, following Stark to the buffet line. As she was filling up her tray, Peter and Harley came racing down the hallway. They swiped their IDs quickly and joined Stark and May across the cafeteria. 

Peter gave the woman a tight hug and a kiss on her cheek before loading up his tray. Harley stole a roll off of the other boy’s plate and Peter swatted at him with a grin. 

“Hey, you be careful with my boy,” May chided sweetly when she saw what Harley had done. They settled down at Stark’s table, May and Stark on one side, the boys on the other, laughing at whatever Harley had muttered back. 

Clint rolled his eyes, eating the mashed potatoes he’d grabbed that definitely weren’t approved by the ex-NFL nutritionist that the Avengers were supposed to see, which was completely ridiculous. If they didn’t know how to take care of their bodies by now, they shouldn’t be heroes, in his opinion. The new heroes didn’t know how to handle themselves, but Stark was still inviting them all in with open arms. The Defenders and the Fantastic Four in the US alone, and then the other superhero teams popping in other countries. 

“I’m really glad you could make it. I know we were supposed to be at the Tower, but-”

“Things have been crazy up here, I understand,” May assured, placing her hands over his briefly. 

Peter groaned. “God, can you two save the bedroom eyes for later?” 

“Sorry, is our open honest communication embarrassing you? You should be taking notes, especially if you want to keep that one.” Stark nodded to Harley with a knowing grin. 

Clint shoveled down one more bite of potatoes before pushing up, leaving his half eaten tray on the table. He couldn’t believe Stark had sunk so low again only six months after his marriage with Rhodes. And dragging the Spider-kid and his boyfriend down with him. What sort of power play did he have going on with this kid?

He needed to tell Steve about this. As much as he wanted to see the cute little life Stark had crafted for himself in the past year fall apart, he had a vested interest in the Avengers remaining a legal entity. Otherwise he’d be back hiding from all the countries who still had their heads buried in the sand when it came to the justifications of Steve’s actions. If keeping his job and out of prison meant keeping Rhodes and Stark making heart eyes at each other, then so be it. He had a wife and kids that he needed to get home to at some point. Being an auxiliary member hadn’t granted him all the freedoms he’d been hoping for. 

Clint felt Stark’s gaze on him as he exited the cafeteria. He could help but imagine the little red target on his back, waiting to make the shot. He wondered vaguely if someday Stark would be directing Peter to pull the trigger. He made it back to the dorms in record time to find all his teammates minus Bucky already in the common room, trying to cool down from the battle and then the argument with Rhodes earlier that day. 

“We’ve got another issue,” he announced without preamble. “I was just in the cafeteria and Stark was eating dinner with some woman.” Sitting on the floor across the room, Scott rolled his eyes. 

“And?” Wanda asked, clearly uninterested if it didn’t relate to Vision’s attack on her earlier. 

“And it was almost definitely a date.”

“Is he-” Steve shook his head. “He’s not actually cheating on Rhodes, is he?”

Recognition flashed in Sam’s eyes from where he sat beside Scott. “No, you guys are completely misinterpreting-”

“You weren’t there Wilson,” Clint seethed. “What would you know about Stark and some woman?”

“Look, I’ve talked to James-”

“What would Bucky know about all this?” Steve demanded.

Sam groaned. “Rhodes! I talked to Rhodes.”

Clint stared at Sam wide-eyed. “And why the hell would you do that? Are you going soft? They’re the enemy. They want to see us fail.”

“The only people that are ensuring your failure are yourselves,” Bucky piped up, clearly having heard the shouting and deciding to leave his room for once. 

“Barnes, do you even care about what’s at stake here?” Clint shot back. 

Bucky scoffed. “It sounds like your shitting on my teammate for no reason. Was Wanda endangering civilians not enough gossip for you today?”

“We’re your teammates, Buck,” Steve admonished with a disappointed look. 

“Last I checked, none of you were on the roster for Team Beta,” Bucky retorted, crossing his arms. 

Steve sighed. “I just don’t get why you’re the only one on Tony’s team.” Clint couldn’t help but wonder the same thing, considering Bucky’s history with the billionaire. 

“I’m on Dr. Strange’s team,” Bucky corrected. 

Steve rolls his eyes. “Yeah, and so is Tony.”

“Well as Tony’s only teammate, I think I’m within my rights to say that who he eats dinner with isn’t any of your business.”

Clint was tired of trying to reason with someone who so clearly didn’t want to be reconciled. “It is if it jeopardizes our positions on this team!” he shouted. Silence rang through the room. He took a breath. “And Rhodes is already pissed. If anything else sets him off, it’s Extradition City for everyone, not just Wanda.”

“No one is extraditing Wanda,” Steve finally responded. 

Scott cleared his throat, looking uncomfortable. “Um, no offense, Steve, but I was at the mission this morning. I can’t disclose anything too detailed, but I think the Council may have grounds to remove Wanda from the team.” He looked at the young woman apologetically. “And that would result in a breach of contract, requiring the US to extradite her.” 

“Scott’s right, Steve,” Sam agreed. “We need to play our cards carefully. And that means stopping all this shit with Stark and Peter.”

Steve shook his head, standing to pace the room. “What about Tony and Peter? I’m just lending a supportive hand.” Clint couldn’t help but agree with Steve. Everything they’d done in regards with the pair had been out of concern. Maybe some of that concern was selfish, but just because it didn’t come from the right place didn’t mean that it was inherently bad. 

“Then what are all your meetings with Clint and Natasha about? Because I know you’re not swapping recipes in your dorm at four in the morning,” Sam pressed.

“Clint and Nat have been checking up on Peter, you know that. We all agreed that we should gather more information so that we could help him.”

“And that checking up includes breaking into school records? Finding birth certificates? Trying to break into his bedroom?”  

Steve looked uncomfortable with the line of questioning, but pressed on regardless. “We just wanted to know how to best approach him.”

Sam jumped to his feet, approaching Steve quickly. “Oh, so after Wanda failed to brainwash him you went for the nicer approach?” Unwarranted anger rolled off of Sam in waves. 

“She didn’t-”

“It’s not like any of our research did any good,” Clint interrupted. Sam was getting way off track. They needed to deal with Stark’s impending break up before it resulted in them back in the Raft. “The birth certificate was a fake. We couldn’t get anywhere near his dorm at the Compound without alarms blaring. Kid’s a total ghost. SHIELD has no files on him, even though it does for the rest of the Young Avengers. You have to admit that there’s something up with him. Something that Stark has a hand in.”

Sam just stared at Clint. “You don’t get it, do you? We’re given the opportunity to start over. To make things right and all you do is push and pry and whine about how things aren’t exactly how they used to be. You leak our presence in the US to Fox fucking News just to slight the Commanders here—who put in the work to be Commanders—and then balk when the public doesn’t immediately shower you in praise. I can’t stand by any more and watch you tear the Avengers apart!” He took a deep breath, glancing between Steve, Nat, and Clint. “The good Avengers, not the shitty version you started on.”

Clint clenched his fists. “No, you know what Wilson? I’ve put in the work. I work so fucking hard to keep this team together. That’s what I’m doing now. I’m trying to keep Stark and Rhodes from falling out so that we can still have jobs. Because like Scott said, jobs means staying out of jail. So excuse me for trying to control this situation. Maybe it’s just me, but I don’t like unknown variables.” Clint stepped toward Sam, his measured words gaining speed. “So don’t for a second think that I’ve been acting irrationally here. There’s something going on with Stark and Peter. Maybe Stark experimented on him. Maybe he kidnapped him. Maybe they’re writing a prop comedy show. I don’t give a shit what it is, but I want to know so that I can keep all my ducks in a row so that maybe—someday—Stark will let me see my kids again.”

Once again, silence reigned. 

Finally, Sam spoke up, eyes dark and untrusting. “The only thing keeping your from your kids is your wife’s restraining order.”

“Wilson-”

“Enough!” Steve barked. “This isn’t solving anything. The only way we know what’s going on with Tony and Peter—the only way we help save Peter from whatever Tony might have done to him—is if we talk to him. I intend to do so now, I don’t know about the rest of you.” 

Clint sneered at Wilson, who was instead looking between Lang and Barnes. 

As Steve led his team upstairs to where Peter’s dorm was, Wilson and Barnes sprinted off in the other direction. 

Chapter Text

Harley was proud to say that he was an expert at getting Peter to ignore his obligations. His boyfriend was a perfectionist and tried to get every possible task done months in advance. After May went home for the evening, Peter went off to work on his online advanced chemistry classes through Columbia. Not that Peter needed to get ahead on college credits, what with all the APs and duel credits Midtown offered. The teen just got bored easily and when he got bored, he got anxious. One solution Tony had found was more school, which Peter didn’t mind, absorbing any new information like a sponge. 

Harley, however, was not taking any summer classes. Since he knew that Peter didn’t really need to study since he had a near perfect memory, he pulled his boyfriend off to an open lounge to play a few levels on Lego Batman—they’d already finished Lego Harry Potter the week before—before Peter’s dad was ready to head back to the Tower. Harley still found it weird that he was allowed to live with Peter even after they started dating, but he wasn’t one to look a gift horse in the mouth. He was pretty sure Tony was already planning their wedding anyway. 

They hadn’t even gotten past the loading screen when the door was pushed open and half of the Rogues poured into the room. 

“Hey, this room is booked for-” Harley started, tossing his remote aside as they approached.

“Now isn’t the time, kid,” Barton snarked. “Come on, Peter.” He grabbed Peter’s arm and pulled him off the couch. Harley grabbed his boyfriend by the middle and Peter yanked his arm back. 

Barton gave him a disgusted look. “Play nice, kid. We’re trying to help your friend here.”

Rogers stepped forward, but Lang put a hand on his chest. “Doesn’t look like the kid wants to go anywhere.” A glance as Peter’s angry face confirmed that notion. “Maybe we should cool down a bit.”

Both Romanoff and Rogers opened their mouths to protest, but before either could get a word out, Maximoff shouted and extended her powers toward Peter.

Harley flinched, but Peter pushed him aside. The magic bounced off of him, courtesy of Strange’s amulet. 

Maximoff screamed in frustration and before Harley could do anything, she focused her attention on him. Peter seemed to recognize what was about to happen, but as he leapt in front of his boyfriend, the doors flew open and Harley heard, “Enough!”

The magic dissipated in a flinch. In the panic, Barton got ahold of Peter once more and Harley watched in horror. He tried to catch his breath and think for a moment. No suit, outnumbered. He wasn’t expecting to fight for his life tonight, DC villains notwithstanding. 

“What the fuck are you doing?”

Harley looked up to find Tony standing in the doorway, facing the Rogues, Barnes and Wilson at his side. The father’s shoulders tightened with each moment of silence. 

Peter continued glancing between his father and his boyfriend as if unsure who he should be protecting, even if he was the one who was in danger. Harley swallowed before standing back on his feet. 

The movement seemed to be enough to startle the Rogues into action. 

“We’re getting Peter out of here,” Barton announced, pulling the teen to his side demonstrably. “We’re not letting you keep him locked away. He’s just a kid.”

“Locked away-” Tony sputtered. “Let go of him.” 

There’s a darkness in Tony’s voice, enough so to get Clint to let go of Peter in shock. 

“Peter, let’s go.” Harley wrapped an arm around Peter and guided him through the Rogues toward his dad, but Peter resisted.

“Hey, come on,” Harley whispered, squeezing Peter’s hand.

Peter shook his head. “No. I’m tired of this.” He looked straight to his dad. “This is supposed to be my home.”

“Are you sure?” Tony asked, face softening minutely. 

Peter nodded. “I’m tired of this,” he repeated, leaning his head on Harley’s shoulder. 

“Alright, bud,” Tony breathed. 

Harley kept a hand on Peter, guiding him to the further couch, while Tony ushered the others to sit on opposite couches. Lang, Barnes and Wilson sat on the connected couch with the remaining Rogues settled across from Peter, Tony, and Harley. 

“What is this all about, Stark?” Barton asked venomously

Tony watched Peter for a moment longer before addressing the Rogues. “Peter is my son,” he stated simply. 

Barton rolled his eyes. “We get it if you don’t want to admit what you’ve done, Stark, but don’t lie to us,” Barton scoffed. “We’re not stupid.”

“What the hell are you talking about?” Tony sputtered. Harley silently agreed. He’d never pegged them for stupid assholes. Just assholes. “Peter’s my son. What do you think I did?”

“You experimented on him! Possibly kidnapped him. Tony…” Rogers shook his head. “He’s just a kid, you can’t hold him hostage like this.”

Harley blinked at Rogers. He looked to Peter. Peter stared back, just as confused. Experimented? Kidnapped? Stupid assholes it was. 

Tony also seemed appalled by their sheer level of idiocy. “You- you think I kidnapped my own son? Me?” He looked at the Rogues with wide eyes. 

“Stop with the lies, Tony,” Romanoff interrupted haughty, not even trying to hide his feelings of superiority. “You don’t have a son. I wrote your file, I think I would have noticed.”

Tony scoffed. “Yeah and your profiling has always been spot on.”

“Where was he, if he wasn’t in Malibu?” Romanoff countered, leaning back. 

Tony stared at her in disbelief for a moment before replying. “Peter’s aunt and I share custody, if you have to know. He was in New York.”

“Some ‘father’ you are,” Barton rolled his eyes, using air quotes. 

Peter let go of Harley’s hand and started to squeeze his own, always concerned about keeping his super strength in check. 

“Why do you think I kept his existence out of the media? Do you really think I’d let my kid get mixed up in all this?” Tony demanded, hurt clear in his eyes. Harley remembered when he first came to Tony with Iron Lad. Tony had begged him to forget about it. To stay away from the superhero life for as long as he could. He could only imagine how much he had struggled when he’d found out about Spider-Man. He knew how much Tony still struggled with Peter’s alter ego. 

“Looks like you did.” Rogers responded coldly, judgement deep in his eyes. 

Tony sighed, glancing over at Peter to gauge how he was doing. Peter locked his jaw and nodded to his dad to keep on going. 

“Peter gained his mutations against his will.” Tony informed them. “Trust me, if I could’ve stopped it. I would have.”

“My dad didn’t know I was Spider-Man until months after,” Peter added, staring Rogers in the eye. 

“Peter, kid, you don’t have to lie for him,” Rogers promised him. 

“Can you all stop being assholes?” Barnes interrupted, staring Rogers down. 

“You don’t seriously believe him,” Barton scoffed. 

“What proof do you need?” Peter interrupted. “He’s my dad. I’ve known him since I was a baby.”

Barton’s scowl cleared slightly. “Where are the baby pictures then?” he challenged. 

Peter went pale. “Those are private,” he mumbled. Harley covered his boyfriend's hands with his own. He indicated the  door with his eyes, but Peter shook his head. 

“Peter, go wait in the car.” Tony put a hand on Peter’s knee and jostled him slightly. 

Peter shook his head again.

“I’m not asking. Happy’s in the driveway, go to the car.” His voice was low. 

Harley wasn’t taking no as an answer either and dragged Peter to his feet and out of the room. Once they reached the hallway, Peter tugged his hand free of Harley’s and slumped against the wall. 

‘Come on,’ Harley mouthed. 

Peter shook his head. 

Harley sighed, and sat down beside him outside the room. 

Inside, Barton cleared his throat. “If you want me to be serious about you suddenly having a son, then show us baby pictures.”

Peter cringed. Harley knew that Tony still had Peter’s baby pictures, but that he had them locked down. 

“That’s not an option,” Tony insisted. 

“Why?” Barton repeated. 

Tony went for the truth. “Peter doesn’t like them.”

To his right, Peter mouthed, ‘I’m sorry.’

Harley shook his head. ‘It’s okay.’ 

The teen could practically hear Barton’s resulting eye roll. “God, you’re a worse liar than I thought. Any dad I know would jump at the chance to embarrass his kid.”

“I’m sorry that my respect for my son confuses you. Peter doesn’t like his baby pictures so you’re not going to see them. That’s final.” Tony sighed. “Look, at this point, I don’t care if you believe me or not. I just want you to stop harassing my son.”

“I want to believe you, Tony, I really do.” Rogers responded with faux earnestness. “But even you have to admit it’s ridiculous that we never knew about him.”

“What, like we were such great friends?” Tony rebuked. 

Peter’s eyes lowered at the continued argument. Harley nudged his shoulder, but his boyfriend just shrugged. 

“We don’t want him to be another victim,” Steve argued. 

Harley grabbed Peter’s hand before he could jump up and give the Rogues a piece of his mind. His own anger flashed but he needed to keep his restraint for the both of them. 

“Another victim?” Shock coated Tony’s voice. “Rogers, that’s it. You are all far too delusional. I’m leaving. Don’t talk to my son again, or I’m filing a restraining order.”

Harley heard someone stand, but before the door could open, another person jumped to their feet. 

“Call Xavier.” It was Barnes. “He’s the leader of the X-men. Completely neutral. He’s got no reason to lie about this.”

Silence stretched through the room. 

Finally, Tony conceded, pulling out his phone. “Fine. FRIDAY, call Xavier.”

After another bout of silence. The call connected. “Stark, did you need something? Our next meeting isn’t for another week.”

Tony sighed. “I’m sorry to do this to you, but I’ve got a question. It seems dumb, but I just need you to be honest.”

“Go ahead.”

“Do I have a child?”

Xavier seemed taken aback by the question. “Did something happen? Is Peter okay?”

“Yeah, just some assholes who don’t believe that the kid’s mine. I was hoping you could convince them.”

“Well, if they can hear me, Peter is certainly Stark’s son. Not sure how you couldn’t see the resemblance. I have to go. I’ll talk to you next week, Stark.”

“'Til then, Xavier.” The call ended.

Inside the room, Tony sighed. “Was that good enough for you? Or would you like to systematically interview all of his nannies as well?”

“Like he had any nannies. You probably only met him after he became Spider-Man,” Barton scoffed. 

“Jesus, Barton, you don’t rest do you?” Tony groaned. 

Harley glanced over at Peter and saw his boyfriend’s dwindling patience. He tugged his hand and Peter followed. There was no need to listen to the rest of their pointless conversation. 

***

Natasha had never been so blindsided before. Her whole life, she had seen through any attempts of deceit with ease, but never once had she suspected Tony to be a father. And not just a father, but a father to Peter, who she had seen him interact with countless times. It was so clear now, but they had flown under her radar for too long. She couldn’t have been that unaware. 

As she and the rest of Steve’s team returned to their floor to digest the information they’d just learned. How they had all missed it. For once, Barnes, Lang, and Wilson seemed eager to discuss the revelation with them. Wilson and Barnes didn’t seem quite so surprised, even when receiving the news. Lang didn’t even seem startled, although he clearly had been just as unaware as the rest of them. 

Collapsed on the couches, Lang, Wilson, and Barnes had some silent agreement settling among them. Natasha scowled at them. They were pulling away from the rest of them, she could tell, but before she could confront them, Clint sighed heavily. 

“I still can’t believe it,” Clint repeated for the third time since arriving upstairs. “I mean, Nat, Steve, you guys saw him with Lila and Cooper. He called them ‘smaller agents’. There’s no way he could’ve known about Peter then.”

“That was only two years ago,” Natasha reminded Clint thoughtfully, her attention drawn away from whatever the trio was conspiring to do. “Stark and Peter seem to have a relationship deeper than two years.”

“Well, maybe he just didn’t know Peter when he was their age,” her partner countered. 

Steve shook his head. “Tony said he had baby pictures.”

“That he wouldn’t show us,” Clint pointed out. 

“We’ll make him,” Steve promised. 

Wilson cleared his throat. “I know you all think that you all think that you’re gearing up to do the right thing, but whatever you’re wanting to do next, please give it a few days.”

Natasha glared at him. She wasn’t formulating any sort of plan and she doubted that Steve was either. 

“Sam, could you give it a rest?” Steve asked, allowing his exhaustion to shadow his words. 

The other man stared back. “I wish you could see things from everyone else’s perspective Steve. You’re too far down this road, man. You’ve gone too far and I can’t stand by and watch anymore. You come after Peter or Tony again and it won’t just be James or Carol at their side. It will be me,” Sam warned. Internally, Natasha rolled her eyes. Sam would never truly turn his back on Steve, no matter what Stark was peddling. Their bond went too deep. 

“I don’t know what you’re talking about, Sam,” Steve pleaded. 

“Steve, I can't believe your mother raised someone as batshit as you,” Barnes mocked back. He scoffed at their leader. “Sam’s not the only one who’s seeing through your bullshit. I thought you’d come to your senses but you haven’t. You’re devolving and I won’t take part of it. Stay away from that family.”

Natasha’s blood ran cold. 

“Bucky, you can’t mean that,” Steve insisted, hurt welling in his eyes. “You have to know that something’s up. I know you don’t know him well, but Tony’s not the caring type. If he really is Peter’s father, then there’s no way that he’s one Peter deserves.”

Barnes laughed dryly. “I don’t know Tony? There’s a reason why I’m on ‘Tony’s team’, why I’m allowed in his lab, why he doesn’t leave the room when I enter. It’s because I do know Tony and he knows me and he trusts me. Maybe not enough to tell me Peter was his son, but enough to let me in the same room as him.”

Steve clenched his jaw. “Peter isn’t Tony’s son,” he ground out. 

“As interested as I am to see whether you finally decide to listen to Dr. Stark, I unfortunately have more important matters to attend to.” 

Natasha’s attention snapped to the entrance of the room, where a portal dissipated behind Strange. 

“What are you doing here, Strange?” Steve demanded, jumping to his feet. He threw one last look at Barnes, Wilson, and Lang to inform them that their conversation wasn’t over. 

Strange gave the soldier an unamused look. “Although this doesn’t concern you Mr. Rogers, if you must know, I have been ordered to revoke Ms. Maximoff’s magic.”

“What?” Steve was in Strange’s face immediately. The trio stood slowly in concern. 

“Do I need to repeat myself?”

“Strange, let’s talk about this,” Natasha attempted slipping forward and placing a hand on Steve’s shoulder. There was still time to salvage this, she was certain. She hadn’t been gathering as much information as she could about this new system they’d thrown together for things to fall apart so quickly. 

The wizard looked distinctly unimpressed. “I didn’t realize you were appointed to the UN’s Accords Council.” He gestured sarcastically. “By all means, Miss. Romanoff, give us your ethically informed opinion.” 

“That’s not what I meant,” Natasha appeased calmly, not rising to the bait as she directed Steve towards the still silent Wanda. The only indication that she was listening was the red mist floating around her hands. “I just think that we shouldn’t be rash about anything.” 

“Considering all of the Accords’ bylaws that Miss. Maximoff has skirted around, I think it is quite generous that the Council has waited for two attempted assaults to take place first before taking action.”

“You can’t do this, Strange,” Steve bit out, shielding Wanda behind him. 

“As Sorcerer Supreme, I can and should. Miss. Maximoff has been uncaring with her abilities since the moment she received them. She is undeserving and dangerous. I cannot in my right mind allow her to continue.” Strange stared Wanda down. 

Steve took a step forward. “You don’t get to decide that. This is America. If you’re so convinced that she’s doing something wrong, then put her in front of a jury. It’s her right.”

“Miss. Maximoff is not an American citizen,” Strange corrected. “And regardless, the Council—the governing body for super humans globally—voted less than an hour ago in an emergency session.” 

Strange stepped past Steve easily and began a spell pointed towards Wanda. 

“Strange, you’re making a mistake,” Natasha informed him, knowing it was pointless. The wizard had sided with Stark a long time ago. There was no turning one’s back on such a decision. 

“I don’t believe I am.” He nodded to the trio. “I trust I have your assistance.”

They stepped forward, pushing Steve away from Wanda. Clint and Steve protested loudly. Natasha couldn’t move. Their odds of turning the tide back in their favor were dwindling. First Wilson, Lang, and Barnes had joined Stark’s cause. Wanda was about to lose her abilities. With only Clint and Steve left at her side, she knew there was no more going back to normal. That she had been fooling herself this whole time. 

She watched in horror as Strange conjured golden magic that encased the terrified Wanda. It overpowered her own leaking red magic, pulling her into the air. Scarlet mist mixed with Strange’s golden glow, pouring into the orb of magic between them. 

Steve and Clint’s shouts quieted in her ears, replaced by the roaring of her own blood pumping. 

The final drops of magic dripped out of her and Stephen released her from his hold. Wanda collapsed into the couch, limp in a way that Natasha had never seen her before. Without a word, Stephen picked her up with one arm and opened a portal with another. Lang, Barnes, and Wilson followed him through without a second thought. 

They all stared at each other in stunned silence. There was a new normal. 

“We’ll get her back,” Steve promised, his voice empty. 

Natasha lowered her gaze. Her trust for Steve never wavered. But he was setting them on a path that she suspected he wasn’t looking down. The tide turned and she was too far out at sea to get back to shore.

Chapter Text

After Wanda was stripped of her powers and taken to God knows where by Strange, Steve had felt all of his determination seep out of him. He’d been deluding himself. Tony was never going to apologize. The Avengers were never going to be a family. The engineer could make up lies about Peter and Rhodes, but Steve didn’t care anymore. Maybe Peter was Tony’s son. Steve could believe that. But that Steve had never known about the boy? He couldn’t put to rest the idea that there was something else happening that nobody would tell him. 

Out of all the bad the awful night Wanda was taken had caused, two good revelations had come of it as well. 

The first was that Tony was never going to trust him. He never did. Here was the first man Steve had gotten to know after coming out of the ice. Or, apparently, thought he had gotten to know. He’d lived in the same building with him for nearly three years. He saw him almost daily. And yet he’d never known that he’d had a son. Or that he was gay—or ‘pan’, whatever that meant. Steve had trusted him to take command of his team, to make them technology, to run wild in the lab. That last one, admittedly, ended up being a mistake, with Ultron almost causing the extinction of the human race. But despite that, Steve knew deep down that Tony would have his back. Always. 

But he never even trusted Steve enough to tell him he had a son. A son who Tony endangered in Germany to prove a point. There was a divide that Steve had long been wishing away. Now he knew that the crevice only widened with each of their meetings. If he wanted to get Wanda back, he needed to give Stark time to figure himself out. 

And that led him to his second discovery. He realized now that Wanda and Clint and Natasha were his new family. His real family. He needed them. He vowed to keep his head down and to keep in line until he could gather enough influence to convince Tony and Strange that Wanda deserved a second chance. He would show Tony that a real family looked out for each other. 

The following few days, Steve had made good on his promise. He hadn’t sought Tony out, which had been a near daily occurrence for months due to the billionaire’s pettiness. Instead, he kept to his room or the lounge on their dorm floor unless he had training or meetings scheduled. A small part of him hoped that if he could just have one real conversation with Tony—no formalities and no Rhodes—that he would be able to mend their relationship for good. He doubted that he’d get the opportunity though. 

He’d refocused his efforts to keep Clint and Natasha at his side. The duo had begun their attempts to regain some favor with Tony’s followers to little success. He didn’t know if they had the same intentions as he did or if they truly were turning, but he hoped that they were still willing to trust him. 

The biggest blow of that night was Bucky, Sam, and Scott completely abandoning them. In the span of two days, they’d all moved to a different dorm floor and Sam had put in a team change request, no longer wanting to work with Steve. Their betrayal burned worse than Tony’s did. His best friends from both centuries and one of his biggest fans had become disenchanted with the morals they’d proclaimed to uphold. He constantly held out for a text from one of them apologizing and admitting that they’d been hasty in the aftermath of Wanda’s abduction. But it never came. 

When he went to the cafeteria, he’d see them already perfectly integrated into Tony’s side. His heart weighed heavily with the disappointment they’d soon feel when they realized how fake everything Stark promised was. 

Steve flipped through one of Wanda’s romance novels that she’d always adored. He was packing up her room, not wanting all her belongings to be pitched like the last time any of them had been gone for an extended period of time. He knew she was just beginning to build back up her library to what it had been before. There was no need for her to start over again, even if they were going to rent out her room to some visiting X-Man. 

He figured now was as good a time as any to box everything up. Team Delta was away on a mission, meaning both Rhodes and Scott were gone, along with Sam, who was helping fill Wanda’s absence, and Loki. He didn’t know where they were going to find someone as powerful as Wanda to replace her. He didn’t really care all that much either. 

He placed the last few books from her desk into the box and folded the lid on top. 

The more he thought about it, the more empty the Compound seemed. Many of the other Avengers had returned home for one reason or another and since it was a week day, there were almost no YAs to be found as he walked the hallway back to his room, the door already propped open. Even Clint and Natasha were out getting dinner with Agent Hill. 

Just as he slid the last box into his closet, the lights in the hallway went out. He frowned. A week ago, he would’ve been running down to the labs prepared to yell until somebody fixed this. But now he paused. There was no need to get involved. It wouldn’t help his case for Wanda. No one else was on his floor, so he couldn’t ask if they knew anything. He debated staying in his room until the power came back on when he heard thundering footsteps in the stairwell beside Wanda’s room and muffled shouting. 

Despite his wishes to be left out of it, he couldn’t leave behind his sense of duty just yet. He was bred as a soldier and he was raised with good morals, despite Bucky’s snipe. Steve hustled down to the stairwell, hearing voices inside. As per the emergency protocol, the entrance had been sealed, but Steve snapped the door open. He ran face first into Peter, who was speaking quietly with what seemed to be some AI on his phone. 

Immediately, Peter quieted, frowning when he saw who it was. Then the boy sighed. “Fri, who else is available to help in the area?”

“No other life forms detected in this wing, Peter,” the AI responded from his phone.  

Peter sighed again before speaking. “The Wraith have infiltrated the Compound.” His voice sounded exactly like it had on comms during their first battle with the Wraith. No sign of the fun loving kid Steve had caught glimpses of throughout the months. Tony really had screwed the boy up. “JOCASTA is down and if we want to get anything done, we need to get her up again. If you want to help, then follow me and stay quiet,” Peter instructed crisply.

Steve was stunned. Peter had never talked to him like this before, or anyone really. But this wasn’t Peter. Even out of the suit, he could see Spider-Man in Peter’s posture and hear him in his voice. 

“I want to help, kid, but if the Council hasn’t approved-”

Peter groaned, already walking away. “If you’d ever read the Accords, you would know that the Compound is international territory that if attacked, authorized Avengers members are free to defend.” 

“But I don’t-”

“Either come with me and punch some Wraith or whatever it is you do or go back to your room and wait for me to get in contact with someone who can actually help,” Peter snapped, tucking his phone into his back pocket with some finality. 

Steve hesitated for a brief moment and then followed Peter as the boy jumped down several flights of stairs in one go. 

At the next floor, Peter again asked the AI if there were any life forms present. 

“One life form detected,” FRIDAY answered immediately. 

While Peter worked to override the bolted door, Steve asked, “Why do we need to turn on JOCASTA if we have FRIDAY?”

“FRIDAY isn’t linked into the Compound, just my family’s devices and my dad’s- my dad’s lab. She’s great for close range, but won’t be able to coordinate anything Compound wide,” Peter distractedly explained. Before Steve could address his trip over the word ‘dad’, the door swung open and Peter strode through. Steve cursed Tony’s recklessness for rubbing off on the boy as he jumped ahead of him protectively. The life form FRIDAY had mentioned, a man seemingly dressed as a janitor turned from where he was pulling at a locked door upon seeing them. 

Moving quickly, Steve shoved the man against the wall. “Don’t move,” he threatened, recalling the Wraith’s skilled shapeshifting abilities. Before he could begin interrogating the man, however, Peter pushed him away with extraordinary strength. 

“What are you doing?” the boy seethed. “He’s not a Wraith!”

“You don’t know that,” Steve bit out, eyes still locked on the cowering man. “The Wraith are shapeshifters!”

Peter rolled his eyes and turned to the man. “What shifts do you work?”

The man stuttered out something about Monday and Wednesday overnights and Tuesday and Thursday afternoons. 

Peter returned his attention to Steve. “He’s not a Wraith. If he were, my Spidey Sense would have alerted me.” The Spidey Sense. It had been referenced a couple of times around Steve, even defined for him by Danvers, but Steve still wasn’t sure what that entailed. Precognition was a bit too otherworldly for the supersoldier. 

Meanwhile, Peter ripped open the safe room that was locked and ushered the man inside, instructing him to stay there until Peter came back and said the word ‘Parsnips’. Once the man agreed, Peter closed the door and bent the metal lock so that only he or a fellow hero could enter. 

Peter threw a single glance at Steve before stalking off. “You don’t get to tell me what to do. You have no authority over me or anyone else in this Compound. I am trying to keep everyone here from getting overrun. If you want to go around and be bull headed about everything, then turn around. We need to be discreet.” The boy tapped his phone against his leg as he moved, the only point of unease Steve could see. 

“Peter,” Steve tried. “I’m really sorry about what happened. I’m not trying to mess anything up here. I promise.” He smiled sincerely even though Peter refused to look at him. 

At his words, Peter’s phone tapping stilled. “You don’t get to apologize,” he growled. 

“But I’m sorry!” Steve protested. 

Peter fixed him with a fierce glare, stopping in the middle of the hallway. “That doesn’t change how scared I was. Missing for three months was nothing compared to the seven hours that he was trapped in his suit. I couldn’t see him for a week after. They weren’t sure if he was going to make it and Pepper and Jim and May kept telling me that I wouldn’t want to see him. That he wouldn’t want me to see him like that.” Peter stepped forward. Steve’s face fell. “You did that to him,” Peter accused. “So you can go on saying sorry and deluding yourself into thinking that this is over but you’re never going to return to ‘normal’. Normal was you berating my dad every chance you got. It was blaming him for your mistakes and lying to his face. You disgust me. You say that you don’t like bullies but you are one. You can think that you’re changed, that you’re a better person. You can lie low all you want. But you are never going to be a part of our lives again. No one is ever going to trust you again. Not me, not my dad, and not the public. It’s over.” Peter took off again without a second thought. 

Steve stood there in shocked silence. He knew there was some truth to what Peter was saying. He’d come to the conclusion himself already, that Tony would never trust him again. But that was on Tony. Steve had always put his best foot forward. And Tony hadn’t been that hurt after Siberia. A week in the hospital? Tony wasn’t enhanced or anything, but still… 

Steve forced himself to store those thoughts for later. He had to catch up with Peter before the boy completely disappeared. The soldier hurried down the hallway and exited the first floor of dorms. The only way Peter could go was right, toward the conference rooms and access to the training grounds. Sure enough, he caught sight of Peter crawling across the ceiling at a rapid pace. 

The floor was eerily empty. No Wraith, but no civilians or heroes either. 

Steve jogged to catch up with Peter. 

“Where are you going?” Steve asked, brushing aside his urge to make Peter explain his previous rant. 

Peter dropped to the floor. “I have to get JOCASTA back online so we can coordinate. I’m going to her nearest access panel,” he answered briskly. “FRIDAY, any contact from anyone at the Compound?” Peter asked the AI. 

“None, Peter.”

His face darkened. Steve realized that Tony was likely there, if Peter was. 

Peter motioned for Steve to follow him. 

Down the hallway, a few civilian office workers screamed and sprinted out of an unmarked room. They caught sight of the heroes and ran to them in relief. 

“They’re Wraith,” Peter informed the soldier. 

“You’re sure?”

Peter got a sour look on his face. “Positive. I don’t have my web shooters, so we’re going to have to fight them the old fashioned way.”

As the four terrified employees approached, Peter stuck himself to the ceiling in one swift move. Steve was still doubtful of Peter’s assessment, but readied himself to restrain them. 

Once they were within a few feet of the heroes, Peter dropped down on the first man, wrestling him to the ground with his superior strength. 

“Stop, help!” the man pleaded. 

“Peter, get off him!” Steve demanded, trying to calm down the other office workers.

Peter continued to grapple with the man. Steve moved to pull Peter off when the three other workers jumped him, mid reach transforming into their red forms. Steve shouted as they tackled him to the ground. Peter disposed of the first Wraith and pulled a second off Steve, slamming it against the wall and knocking it unconscious in a matter of seconds. A third Wraith moved to counter Peter while the fourth stayed on Steve. The two pairs fought for some time before the heroes eventually got the upper hand, incapacitating the aliens. 

Both heroes were bleeding and bruised, but neither paid it any mind as Peter raced down the long hall. In a matter of minutes, they reached a small door labeled ‘Technology Closet’. A small window revealed rows of blinking shelved with tangled wires. 

“Be careful,” Steve warned. 

Peter rolled his eyes and used his ID badge to quickly unlock the door. He ushered Steve inside. 

“While I’m working on getting Jo up, I need you to protect this room at all costs. If we can get JOCASTA back online, then she will be able to identify who is Wraith and who isn’t.” Peter used his considerable strength to bend the lock in place. 

“I thought you could do that,” Steve protested, searching the room for weapons. 

Peter rolled his eyes pulling a mini screwdriver out of his pocket. He began unscrewing a wall panel. “I can, but that won’t do much good to everyone else in the compound. Jo links onto everyone's unique body signatures that the Wraith can’t replicate. We’ve already tested it against my Spidey Sense.” 

The boy fiddled with a couple buttons on the exposed panel before a holographic keyboard and screen appeared. 

He began typing frenetically, his fingers a blur as the screen scrolled past. A young woman approached the door, tears in her eyes. She looked to Steve for help

“Wraith,” Peter called out, not ceasing his movements. 

Steve clamped down on his empathy. After several minutes of pounding on the door, the woman’s red form revealed itself and she smashed the glass window. Steve gripped onto her and punched her head until she stopped. 

When the Wraith dropped to the ground—either unconscious or dead, Steve wasn’t sure—the soldier turned back to the teen. 

Peter now had his phone wedged between his ear and shoulder and was being walked through his typing by the person on the other end, still at an unbelievable pace. 

More Wraith approached the door. For everyone he pounded away, three times as many appeared, both in human and alien form. Peter no longer warned him when Wraith had shifted shapes, focusing entirely on the screen before him. 

Just as Steve was beginning to be overwhelmed, Peter shouted, “Thanks, Ned!” into his phone, hung up, and jumped to join Steve in the fight. 

In a series of swift, expertly coordinated moves, Peter opened the door and sent Steve out. He followed quickly and locked with even more force than before. Then he began working his way through the pools of Wraith as well. 

“Hello, Peter,” JOCASTA called as they fought. 

“Jo, I’m so glad you’re back,” Peter replied, out of breath but sounding relieved. He and Steve continued to use their brute strength to fight the aliens. 

“As am I. There are two dozen Wraith left on this floor. Your father and Mr. Barnes are making similar progress on the lab floors. In the cafeteria, Ironheart, Ironlad, and Hulkling are preparing a chemical solution to assist their progress toward this area. Ms. Danvers is on the office floor above you handling the situation. The Council has been alerted and is sending other off sight Avengers to your area. Team Delta is due to return in the next hour.”

Steve grunted in acknowledgement. It was good to know they weren’t alone. They continued to fight. Peter leveraged his strength to have multiple Wraith incopacitate each other while Steve stuck with his trusty left hook. JOCASTA too opened wall panels and shot projectiles out of them. Quickly, the battle turned in their favor even as more Wraith arrived. As they continued, JOCASTA announced, ““Dr. Strange has arrived in the Compound and is attempting to halt all portal activity.”

It seemed that the wizard had succeeded, as no new aliens portaled in and they were finally able to dispatch the final few Wraith. 

“Where to next?” Peter requested, catching his breath. 

“Your father’s lab seems to be where the Wraith are focusing their attention now.”

Before the AI could finish her sentence, Peter was already off. Steve followed quickly. So much for keeping his head down. 

***

Bucky’s super hearing made it impossible to avoid Steve’s incessant complaints, even locked up in his dorm. So when Tony had offered to let Bucky hide out in his lab for a few hours each day, he’d jumped at the chance. At first it had been under the strict supervision of either his husband or son. The latter reveal hadn’t been much of a surprise when Tony had confided in him a week or so after explaining that Peter was trans and two weeks after Bucky had ripped Steve a new one for upsetting Peter during training. 

After almost daily encounters without incident, James and Peter started to allow him in there alone. A particularly crucial moment was when a Doombot had been hurtling straight for an already injured Tony in battle. Bucky had taken the initiative to body slam it out of the way, putting himself in the hospital for a couple days. After that, Bucky had been given pretty liberal access to the lab if Tony was inside. 

After Sam, Scott, and his final departure from Steve and the others, he’d found himself spending even more time down there. Tony would explain his projects and Bucky—ever the sci-fi nerd—would soak it all in. Howard’s flying car had nothing on Tony’s suit upgrades. 

It was one of those lazy afternoons where Tony was coding and Bucky was rereading The Hobbit when the electricity went out. A moment later, a humming began and the power came back on at half capacity. Tony had once mentioned that due to the sheer amount of processing power his research required, his lab was hooked up to a separate power source from the rest of the Compound. Whatever had knocked out the power down there was sure to be trouble. 

“Are we expecting company?” Bucky asked, marking his book with a napkin he’d borrowed from the cafeteria. 

Tony saved the project he was working on. “Nothing in my itinerary. FRIDAY, you got eyes?”

“Approximately a dozen Quinjets have landed, surrounding the building. With about twenty passengers per jet, they have approached the Compound,” the AI chirped back. “Boss, I just lost connection with JOCASTA.”

Tony cursed, rolling back in his seat. “Where did they seem to be headed?”

“Unknown, boss. They are in all directions. Before disconnecting, JOCASTA sent warning that their energy signatures match that of the Wraith.”

“And Jim’s off site.”

“Along with most of the Avengers,” FRIDAY confirmed. 

Suddenly, true panic filled Tony’s eyes. “Fri, where’s Peter?” He started typing frantically on his keyboard before FRIDAY replaced his inputs with an image that Bucky has seen several times since his tenure as Tony’s lab furniture began. It was a reliable way to walk the engineer back from a panic attack. Peter’s vitals and location danced across the screen. His heart rate and blood pressure were both above his resting (which by now Bucky was pretty familiar with). 

“Peter’s watch locates him in the dorm sector of the Compound.”

“Tell him to stay put,” Tony demanded, activating his armor. 

The AI paused uncomfortably. “I am unable to do so, boss. I am unable to send signals to Peter’s watch. I believe that interference with JOCASTA may have severed this link.”

“But you can receive signals?” Tony asked, gesturing towards Peter’s EKG in annoyance. 

“Yes, boss.”

Tony made a frustrated noise as the nanoparticles finished settling into the suit around him. “The second you reconnect, I need to know.”

“Will do.”

“Good,” he grunted. He opened a cabinet on the back wall of his lab. Inside was a rack of military grade firearms. Tony gestured for Bucky to take his pick. 

The super soldier hesitated. Like Loki, there were extra precautions around when he could act in battle. Hydra had done a number on him and even with BARF’s assistance, the Council wanted some extra insurance that he wouldn’t go rogue. Ironic, given the past actions of Steve and his crew. 

So instead of immediately grabbing one of the guns that Tony motioned to, Bucky waited. 

“Barnes, as a field commander, I am giving you express permission to engage with any Wraith you can identify,” Tony instructed as a clang at the doors of the lab alerted them to the Wraith's arrival. The doors were sealed shut, but the Wraith simply shed their office worker disguise and opened massive portals outside. 

The soldier grinned, quickly gripping the weapon and mowing down Wraith as they portaled into the room. Unfortunately, they’d come prepared to siege Iron Man’s fortress. 

They smashed through equipment and wall panels, playing particular attention to any cabling. Although many engaged with the two heroes, most focused their attacks on the lab itself. Something wasn’t right. 

“If Jo wasn’t down, they wouldn’t have gotten this far if she wasn’t. She’s got access to all of the weapon systems in the compound,” Tony muttered, slashing through the unending sea of aliens. 

“She has access to all that and she hasn't shot Rogers in the ass yet?” Bucky grunted back. 

Tony didn’t have a chance to respond as a mass of red Wraith tackled him to the ground. 

“Friday, activate the Iron Legion,” he called out. 

“Unable to comply. The Wraith have destroyed my server which connects to the Legion.”

A series of explosions rang out from where Tony was surrounded, clearing the area and overpowering his swears. 

Bucky continued to shoot, but the aliens weren’t too keen on allowing him to act as a sniper for this mission. They tore at his position, causing him to shoot at close range. However much his weapon looked like a run of the mill gun, the projectiles coming out were anything but. Only one or two shots were enough to completely disable a Wraith. Clearly, Tony had been doing his research. 

The fight blurred together. One downed Wraith was replaced by five more. His ammo must have been made from the same nanotech from Tony’s suit, but he never ran out of bullets. They were seemingly regenerating inside the gun. He could hardly keep an eye on Tony’s progress, just hearing the scrape of his metal armor against the bolted tables as the genius continued to pick himself back up. 

Suddenly, the Wraith’s back up seemed to fizzle. As this occurred, in a moment of quiet in the lab, Bucky heard FRIDAY announce through Tony’s suit that Peter’s heart rate and blood pressure had surged again. 

Bucky reinvigorated his fighting, hitting Wraith that got too close with the butt of his gun. 

A moment later, the speakers buzzed with a welcome announcement. “Dr. Stark, I am back online.”

Tony slashed through a trio of Wraith. “Finally, some good news,” he panted. “Who got you going?”

“A combination of Peter and Ned Leeds,” JOCASTA responded. 

“Great news,” Bucky interrupted. “Why aren’t you lighting these bastards up?” he demanded. 

“Apologies, Mr. Barnes. I have no weaponry located in any research areas,” the AI replied regretfully, before giving a run down on who was located where in the Compound and how they were fairing against the Wraith. Tony visibly relaxed when Peter was confirmed to be relatively uninjured, but was again incensed when Steve was revealed to be with him. This anger translated into his aggression as he beat down a handful of Wraith in only a few moments. 

Her mention that Strange had arrived and was halting portal activity explained why their reinforcements had dropped off. 

“Peter and Mr. Rogers have successfully stopped the Wraith in their area and are en route to your location, along with many of the Wraith who were in combat with  Commander Danvers,” JOCASTA related quickly. 

“No can do, Jo. Tell Peter to get to a safe room and request Jim and Stephen instead,” Tony demanded.

The AI remained silent for a moment while they continued to push back on the Wraith. “All have been informed, but Peter is continuing to this location.”

“Dammit,” Tony swore. “What’s his ETA?”

“Peter will arrive a few minutes after the other Wraith are estimated to arrive.”

Bucky called out, “And when’s that?” 

“Less than a minute,” Jo informed them. 

Sure enough, any progress they had made since Stephen had stopped the portal activity was lost as dozens more Wraith flooded into the lab. 

Like clockwork, Peter and Steve sprinted into the area.

“Peter, get out of here!” the father shouted. 

Peter steadfastly ignored his dad and crawled up onto the ceiling. Then, dislocating a long lighting unit, he crashed it down onto a series of Wraith. They didn’t get back up. 

Steve was more or less fist fighting his way into the crowd, ever the strategist. 

After a few more pleas for his son to leave, Tony refocused his efforts on defeating the still swarming Wraith. Between his lazers and Bucky’s bullets, they were making good progress. 

Then, a trio of Wraith got the bright idea to tackle Bucky. He wrenched them off, but his weapon clattered into the sea of aliens. He allowed himself a brief second to swear before locating the nearest blunt object and knocking insurgents back with each powerful swing. 

Suddenly, one of the Wraith morphed into a humanoid bat creature and turned its sights on Peter. It opened its mouth, but no noise came out. Bucky was about to ignore it completely when he looked at Peter. The unmasked boy was suddenly pale. His limbs went slack and he toppled to the ground. 

Bucky continued to take down as many Wraith as he could, tackling them to the ground and beating them with whatever spare wrench or mallet he could find. 

Tony rushed to his son’s side. Wraith tried to pull him back, but the father was too incensed. Wraith were already piling onto a barely conscious Peter. The Wraith’s claws dug into the poor boy’s skin. 

Before Peter could go any further, several small missiles erupted from Tony’s suit. They precisely collided with each of the Wraith and small explosions knocked the creatures off of Peter, who was weakly attempting to face himself. As Tony neared Peter, pulling the last of the Wraith away from him, the Wraith Bucky was currently bludgeoning got its teeth hooked into Bucky's metal arm. A moment later, the alien wrenched it from its socket. 

Bucky grunted in pain. In a rush of adrenaline, he used his flesh arm to throw the Wraith into a sea of its brethren. Steve turned to him in alarm from where he was wrestling the aliens in a similar manner. When he saw that Bucky was injured, Steve began pushing through the mass of Wraith. Bucky resisted the urge to roll his eyes, focusing his energy instead on using his remaining arm to push the enemies away. 

He gripped onto a prototype Ironman arm and batted away at incoming Wraith. Steve found his way over finally and smashed some heads together. He looked intent on helping Bucky and continued to glance at the hanging wires and ragged flesh where his arm used to be. Each pitiful look only gave Bucky more energy as he brutalized his way through the enemy. Steve had proven himself useless long ago, Bucky wasn’t going to seek out his help now. 

Across the room, there was a scream as a second Wraith took a page out of the one who had attacked Bucky’s book. Unfortunately for Tony, his arm wasn’t detachable. Instead his left arm now hung limply at his side, compacted by dripping nanobots. He huddled closer to his son and used the remaining gauntlet to fire away at the Wraith. 

Thankfully, no new insurgents were arriving. JOCASTA had resealed the doors at Bucky’s request. He didn’t want any of these aliens to get off easy. The super soldiers pummeled their way through the last of the Wraith. Once he was sure they were all incapacitated, Bucky retrieved a second gun and took pleasure in sending two bullets into the heads of each one of the downed Wraith. 

Tony had disappeared with Peter after a brief conversation with Jo that Bucky had missed, so it was just Bucky and Steve left in the lab. 

“Nice work today,” Steve commented. “I forgot how efficient you are.”

Bucky turned away and set off to find the father and son. 

Chapter Text

Tony felt his head throbbing as he fought off the last tendrils of sleep. It took him only a moment to regain his bearings. Medical. The Wraith had infested the Compound, but they were contained now. He’d drifted off after the medical worker had assured him that Peter was okay. 

The thought of his son burst through the IV sedatives Jim had no doubt approved. 

“Whoa, Tones,” his husband murmured, his hands leaving their usual post of brushing over his hair to lightly restrain his chest. “You’re alright. Pete’s alright, just sleeping.”

“Need him,” Tony grunted out, but he relaxed at Jim’s voice, sinking back into the hospital bed. 

Jim reached across the bed and grabbed the remote. “No one’s keeping you from him. I’ll get you upright, then you’ll see him on your left.” The bed whirred as it raised into a sitting position. “Harley’s here too,” he added as an afterthought.

“Hey, Tony,” the boy greeted. The father could hear the upset in his voice. 

Tony gave him a soft smile before turning his gaze onto his sleeping son. The medics had explained that the Wraith had likely emitted a sound frequency that wouldn’t have bothered most people, but due to Peter’s enhanced senses, it had been debilitating. Once it had been sustained for long enough, he’d simply passed out, unable to cope with the pain. They didn’t think there had been any long term damage, thanks to Tony dispatching the Wraith before it could rupture Peter’s eardrums. 

Nonetheless, he made grabby hands with his right arm—the left one was heavily bandaged, which must’ve occurred when he was unconscious—for the tablet hanging on the edge of his son’s bed with his medical chart. Harley obliged easily. Usually it was Peter handing over Harley’s tablet, since the boy always seemed to be running head first into trouble. Not that Tony’s son was any different. 

He scanned through the chart and once he was satisfied with the treatment Jim had approved—not that he doubted his husband’s ability to make decisions about Peter—and that Peter really had escaped that battle relatively unscathed, he turned his attention to the room. Like Jim said, Peter was sleeping to Tony’s left, with Harley sitting in between his boyfriend and the engineer. He recalled that Harley had been in the cafeteria at the time of the invasion and was glad to see the teen hadn’t needed any medical attention. Tony was curious as to his side of the story, but knew it could wait for the debriefing he’d no doubt be leading by the end of the day. 

On the father’s right, his husband sat, now holding each other’s hands. He was in a wheelchair, meaning that his mission had been particularly rough before returning to the invaded Compound. Tony squeezed his hand and Jim gave him a loving smile in return. 

Across the room, Happy leaned against the door, arms crossed but he offered Tony a gruff, “Welcome back, boss,” when he saw the engineer’s gaze on him. 

“It is good to see you awake,” FRIDAY chirped from his phone. He smiled to the both of them. 

“Glad you two held down the fort while I was napping,” he praised. “Anything I should know about? Are May and Pepper updated?”

“May’s on shift, but Happy’s going to pick her up when she’s off. Pepper’s in Tokyo still, so she sent her love,” Jim rattled off easily, stroking his fingers over Tony’s uninjured arm. 

“All Avengers on site during the invasion are accounted for and receiving medical attention as needed. Team Delta returned after the majority of the Wraith were defeated and that requested teams have returned to their bases except for the British Avengers branch. They have gathered all civilian and non-injured Avengers present at the time of the Wraith attack. They were being scanned by JOCASTA. Dr. Strange has requested Peter confirm her findings when he is well,” FRIDAY added.

“I’ve got some good news for you,” Jim murmured, kissing Tony’s knuckles, distracting the father from the logistics his AI had rattled off. 

“Mmm, what kind?” Tony responded quietly. Maybe the sedatives were a bit stronger than he’d anticipated. It had kept him asleep while they were pulling bits of nanobots out of his arm, he recalled. Not the most painless procedure. 

Before Jim could respond though, a knock reverberated through the room. The only other person with that much force was in the room with Tony, so he knew immediately who it was. Tony scowled. 

“It’d be my pleasure to kick him out, boss,” Happy offered. 

“Same here,” Harley added, a dark grin on his face. 

Tony ran his tongue over his teeth. “You know what, let him in. Grab the curtain and put it around Peter’s area,” he requested. “Let’s see if he can dig this hole any deeper.” As long as Peter wasn’t in harm's way, Tony was honestly curious as to what Rogers thought was so important that it should be brought to his attention while he was in the hospital. 

The others all expressed their disagreement, but ultimately acquiesced. The knowing look Harley and Jim shared was a bit intriguing, but Tony figured he’d handle one mystery at a time. 

For his part, the soldier looked very surprised when Happy angrily motioned for him to enter. Tony couldn’t blame him for that. He wasn’t stupid, he knew the man had been trying to gain access to the engineer since the moment he stepped foot on American soil. And he knew to what lengths the other Avengers had been going to prevent that from happening. He was pleased with the results, he had to admit. 

But aside from a few professional moments and when he’d revealed that Peter was his son, he hadn’t seen much of Rogers. Unfortunately, he’d gotten nearly daily updates about the man’s antics in various meetings, so his detox wasn’t entirely effective. 

“Um. Hi,” Rogers started. He clearly hadn’t been expecting to get this far. That brought Tony a bit of comfort. Jim taking his hand into his own brought him quite a bit more. 

“Well, what do you want?” Tony asked. “I don’t have all day.”

“Right. Um,” Rogers cleared his throat. “I’m sorry I didn’t believe you about Peter. I thought you would have trusted me enough to tell me about him, but I understand that you didn’t.”

After the initial shock of this being the thing Rogers decided he needed to apologize about after all the shit he’d pulled, Tony rolled his eyes. “Oh, I see. So it’s my fault for not trusting you. If I had just trusted you, you wouldn’t have harassed my son for months, is that it?”

“No, I-”

“You think that because you helped Peter this one time, I’m going to roll out the red carpet for you?” Tony shook his head. “You just don’t get it Steve. It’s not the one thing. It’s not that you didn’t believe me this one time or that you used my money in ways I wouldn’t have approved or even that you tried to kill me. It’s all of it. All at once. They all hurt in harmony and just because you apologize for one thing, pluck out one instrument, doesn’t mean that the whole band doesn’t keep playing. A beach doesn’t stop being a beach because you removed a handful of sand.” He closed his eyes for a brief moment. “You can say sorry all you want, but that doesn’t change what you put me through. What you put my family through. It doesn’t fix anything. You can’t say you’re sorry while still traumatizing my kid every other day.”

“I understand that I need to earn your trust again. I just want us all to be a team,” Steve replied meekly, clearly not expecting to be denied forgiveness. 

Jim scoffed. “Yeah, we’re way past that. Since you never seem to check your email, I suppose I can give you the news in person.” Tony raised an eyebrow, what had his husband been up to while he was out? “About two hours ago, the Council had an emergency meeting. We voted to end Avengers' contract with codenames Black Widow, Hawkeye, and Captain America due to an excess level of rule breakage.”

“What?” Steve shrieked, all pretenses of being a changed man gone. His face was red in anger. “What rules have they broken? Have I broken? Peter said that we were allowed to engage with the Wraith,” He threw an accusatory look towards the curtain, knowing that Tony’s son was behind it. Tony saw Happy step forward defensively and Harley tightened his grip on his boyfriend’s hand. Tony kept his cool though. 

“Engaging with the Wraith on international territory was not an Accords violation. You’re aware that your first strike was a repeated failure to listen to a Commander in the field, which led to civilian casualties.”

Steve nodded sullenly, clearly still unbelieving that he didn’t deserve being blamed for the offense. 

“Your second was the orchestration of Peter Parker’s attempted kidnapping three days ago.”

“Kidnapping!” Steve yelped. “I didn’t try to kidnap anyone, let alone Peter!”

Jim raised an eyebrow. “You instructed Mr. Barton to attempt to remove Peter from the premises without permission from his legal guardian. You then enlisted Miss. Maximoff to use her powers to subdue Peter.”

Tony relaxed against the bed slightly. Bucky and Sam had convinced him to file charges against Rogers and the others without Peter’s knowledge. The Council had been focused on voting about removing Maximoff’s powers, so the report was pushed back a meeting. 

“We just wanted to help. If anything, you should be thanking us for trying to get him out of danger.”

Tony clenched his fists. “What danger? He was playing video games with his boyfriend. I was in the same building. JOCASTA has eyes on everything. The only time Peter’s been in danger in the building is when you’re around Rogers.”

Rogers flailed for a moment, unable to come up with an effective response. Finally, he change tactics. “But what about Nat and Clint? What did they do wrong?”

“Miss. Romanoff’s first strike was attempting to break into private rooms and Mr. Barton’s was assaulting a fellow teammate. It was discovered earlier this week that they both were involved in leaking the return of the probationary members to the press, which violates the privacy clause of their contract,” Jim explained evenly. 

“But Clint and Nat were the one’s informing the public of their own return. They didn’t break anyone’s privacy!”

“They may have consented to this information being released, but did you? Or Miss. Maximoff, Mr. Wilson, Mr. Barnes, or Mr. Lang? There is a clear breach of contract that is being investigated. However, their dismissal was voted upon already.”

“If there’s still an investigation then how are we being dismissed? This has to be against some sort of Accords policy,” Rogers argued. 

Jim nodded, seemingly considering Rogers’ question. If Tony didn’t know the Accords inside and out, he too would be curious as to the legality of their contracts’ termination. “Yes, while normally this would be unprecedented, the sheer volume of harassment complaints leveled toward the three of you, and particularly yourself if I’m being honest, was hard to ignore. The Accords doesn't have a lot of leeway when it comes to interpersonal issues and with JOCASTA’s constant recording presence, it was very easy to verify these claims.” 

Rogers had no response to that. His mouth opened and closed but no sound came out. 

“You have twenty four hours to move out. After that, you will be considered trespassing,” Jim finished cooly, settling a hand on Tony’s shoulder. Tony blinked to his husband. Was that it? Were they finally rid of this stress?

“Tony, you can’t do this!”

The father's gaze flicked to Rogers. He shook his head slowly, jaw clenched. Even in his last moments of equal footing, Rogers decided to cast the blame on him. “I’m not, Rogers. You did this to yourself.”

“You’ll come around, Tony,” Rogers threatened. “You always do.”

“Not when it comes to my family,” Tony answered dismissively. It was over. It was finally over, he didn't need to give Rogers a second more of his time and he didn't plan on it. Happy pushed the dumbfounded ex-Avenger out the door without a second thought. 

After a brief silence, Tony turned his attention to his husband. “Who filed the harassment claims?” he asked softly, feeling drained. 

Jim bit the inside of his cheek. “Well, they were all anonymous, of course. But if someone, for example, was the guardian of a minor and they asked a sympathetic AI for any recorded examples of stalking, harassment, or anything of the sort, they’re automatically filed through the Compound’s tip center. And if, say, someone were in a position to put these claims on the next Council meeting’s agenda—even an emergency meeting—well, you can imagine the level of seriousness such a Council would consider such incidents,” Jim answered casually. 

Tony couldn’t help but kiss his husband. “Well, whoever that anonymous source is might just have earned themselves a favor or two from me.”

“Keep your bedroom talk to yourselves,” Peter groaned, finally waking up as Harley pulled the curtain away. 

Tony smiled at his son. “How are you feeling buddy?”

“I’m alright.”

“Do you want to tell me the truth or do you want your lecture now?” Tony responded easily. He heard Jim laugh beside him. 

Peter paled immediately, eyes wide. “I’m very sick.” He coughed pitifully. Then he winced when the jostling effected his ears.

“That’s what I thought,” Tony agreed, but was already signalling for a nurse. 

***

Riri hadn’t expected to spend her night off using cooking ingredients to rig a short-lived chemical weapon with Harley and Teddy. But the Wraith didn’t seem to care that she had a test the next week, because they attacked anyway. 

She sighed, glancing over at the pair of British Avengers. They’d been called in by JOCASTA to help with the battle but had arrived after it had ended. Now they were acting as security as Peter and JOCASTA scanned through each of the occupants of the Compound to ensure that no Wraith were still in their midst. They were scanning through batches of the civilian employees first, as they didn’t need to debrief and they had families to get home to. Riri had been detained with Teddy and the remaining members of the fully-fledged Avengers for at least five hours now. Tony and Harley had long been cleared by Peter, so they weren’t around. Jim hadn’t been present at the battle, but he had better things to do than to stand guard. 

The first few hours had been the worst because there hadn’t really been a plan. Jim had ordered the Avengers to be separated from the civilians and then he’d gone off to Medical. Now at least, she knew that things were moving along, since Peter was awake and had agreed to survey anyone who could have been exposed to a Wraith. 

A half hour later, Teddy got called to go meet with Peter. She relaxed a bit. If they were starting to work their way through the heroes, then all of the civilians had been processed already. The chance of a Wraith being in their midst was diminishing. 

Another ten minutes went by, and then Captain Britain returned alone. 

“Ms. Williams?” he called out. 

She jumped to her feet quickly. If this didn’t take too long, she could still fit in an hour or two of studying before going to bed. 

Riri followed Captain Britain the short walk into a conference room. At the opposite side of the room, near the second door, stood Loki and Sam Wilson. They seemed to be the muscle of the situation, if their uniforms were anything to go by. Riri was invited to sit in a chair in the center of the room. Across from here sat Peter and his dad. 

Peter looked beyond exhausted—his noise-canceling headphones strapped to his head attested to the toll the Wraith had taken—but he had a content smile on his face for the first time in months. Riri had heard that Rogers’ temper tantrums had finally gotten him grounded and she was glad for it. 

On his right, Tony sat with a pair of reading glasses and a bandaged arm. He was scrolling through what looked like the design of Peter’s mask if she really strained her eyes. If she had to guess, he was intending to make the design even more insulated from sound. Ever the mother hen.

Peter had a laptop in front of him where he was typing notes. Riri was sure that he and Jo were independently deciding whether people were Wraith and then sharing their results. If they were in agreement, then Team Delta would take over, either detaining her or setting her out to go about her day. She wasn’t sure what they would do if they were in disagreement. She doubted it had occurred through. Peter's Spidey sense was fine tuned and JOCASTA was coded by Tony based on his son's assessments. They were a very effective team.

There was a bit of silent conferring between Peter and the AI over the laptop, which she only recognized as a conversation when he shot a look to the nearest camera. 

“Ms. Williams, you are free to go,” JOCASTA announced after a few moments. She wondered what had taken so long with Teddy if this was the whole process. 

Riri grinned. She knew that she wasn’t Wraith, but there was still the errant worry in her mind that they wouldn’t recognize her. 

“Can I steal a hug first?” she asked, looking at her pseudo-brother. Maybe Teddy's delay had been along these lines. 

He grinned and moved toward her. 

She held him tight for several moments. 

“You take care of yourself or I’m putting you in time out,” she threatened softly, holding him at arm's length so she could look him over. 

He ignored her and instead promised, “I’ll see you later.” He returned to his seat and Tony wrapped an arm around his son, pressing kiss into his hair. Peter preened under the affection. 

Sam and Loki gestured her out and told her she was free to go and that there would be a debrief the next day that she would need to be present for. 

The next few days passed in a blur. She saw a lot of Peter and Harley, who were inseparable as was expected after any battle. Peter was still wearing the headphones more often than not, but she had an inkling that this was how often he always wanted them on and was using his eardrums almost shattering as an excuse. She would be having some words with him about that in the near future. 

The following Tuesday, all of her fellow YAs gathered for their training. However, Tony simply sent them off to the lounge on Peter’s dorm floor once they’d all arrived in the gym. 

“I’m tired,” he excused, but she knew that it was more than that. It was over. It really was. Rogers and the rest of his followers were gone. Their extradition had been the day after the battle and everyone was more relaxed for it. Some of the auxiliary members had stepped up to fill in the gaps until some new heroes replaced the four that were lost, but Riri didn’t have a doubt in her mind that they were all better off for it. It was like the whole building had taken a sigh of relief and was still exhaling. She knew that there was still much healing to be done, but for now, it was time to reconnect. 

Which is why she appreciated that Tony had set them up with a bucket of crayons, a pile of canvas, and three hair dryers. 

“What is this for?” Billy asked after they had all piled into the lounge, jostling the crayons dubiously as they all settled into their normal seating. 

A voice piped up from the doorway. “Crayon art. You should see Tony’s Pinterest board for it.”

Riri whipped around to see Peter’s friend Ned standing there. 

Peter beamed to see his best friend. “What are you doing here?” he asked. 

Ned shrugged. “Your dad was impressed with my work on Jo. He offered to work in his lab. I accepted on the condition that I could meet some of the other teenagers who worked here. Imagine my surprise when I saw your name on the roster.” The teen held back a laugh. “Your old man sure does believe in nepotism.”

The other YAs relaxed. They all knew about Ned in some capacity. He’d left more than enough notes of Peter’s homework for them to not. 

“I think the real question here is why you follow Tony on Pinterest,” America interrupted the surprise.

Ned shrugged, taking a seat on Peter’s left, as Harley had already taken up residence on the right. “You don’t? He finds the best pasta dishes on there.”

Just like that, the new teen was drawn into their group. Kate was no longer the newby it seemed, not that Riri was complaining. She doubted Ned had any aspiration to go into the field and if his notes on the coding for her suit was anything to go by, he would make an excellent addition to their technical front. They needed more minds like his. 

They passed around the canvases and Riri started picking her way through the crayons to find the most vibrant red she could. She had to stay on brand, after all. 

She watched Ned get acquainted with her friends while Peter and Harley hung back, content to watch the activity around them. 

Harley rubbed his fingers over Peter’s knuckles unconsciously. They leaned close together and every once and a while whispered something brief to the other. 

When Peter laughed at something Harley had murmured, Ned returned his attention to the pair. When he saw how relaxed they were, he smiled and continued his discussion with Kamala about which blue was better for his art. 

Riri smiled at all of her friends, old and new. They were restoring their home. They were healing at last.