#beaconfalls whb

[petertingle-yipyip]

Where Happiness Begins - Peter Parker

Chapter Nine: Used To Be

// WHB Masterlist //

//Series Inspo: @stuckonspidey​​ @cxptain-capsicle​​ // Series Tags: @writingsbychlo​​ @mc225g​​ @fandom-princess-forevermore​​ @istg-lyssa-stop @olliekookie @rosegoldhome​​ @chubsluda​​ @missmulti​​ @eterna​leviee @freerebel @peterparker-glee-other @disgustangg @jackiehollanderr​@imsobored3000  @eridanuswave​ @drunklili​ //

Pairing: Peter Parker x Stark!Reader

Word Count: 14,475

Summary: Five years is a long time, but it’s time that Tony takes to rebuild his life and his family. He never forgot his oldest daughter, but he did learn to move on. When Steve comes to him asking for help, can Tony get things back to they way they Used To Be?

Things weren’t what they used to be on Earth. No one understood the full extent of what was lost. Half of humanity was gone, that much was the easy part to understand. But what no one knew how to cope with, was why it was the people they loved.

Tony hated that Y/N and Peter were gone. Steve hated that Bucky, and as far as he knew, Tony was gone. Okoye had lost T’Challa and Shuri. Rocket lost all the Guardians. Sam, Stephen Strange, Wanda, and millions of others had turned to ash in front of their friends and loved ones. There is no way to cope with that. And Pepper… Pepper didn’t know what she had lost.

Nebula and Tony were left to find a way home from Titan. They were the only two on that planet that survived. While Tony was friendly to Nebula, he couldn’t ignore the hollow feeling in his chest. The place where his daughter had been, where the ghost of his daughter is.

“What was her name?” Nebula suddenly asked. They had been playing finger football, a game so ordinary that it felt out of place to do in that ship. “Your daughter.”

“Y/N.” Tony said softly. “Her name is Y/N.”

He emphasized the word ‘is’. His brain was refusing to admit that she had disappeared before his eyes. He loved her. He raised her. He had done everything in his power to protect her, and he still failed her. He knew that he should’ve sent her home the minute he sent Peter home. But that didn’t work for the kid either.

Thinking of Peter hurt Tony almost as bad as thinking of Y/N. He remembered that he had told Y/N not to get too attached to Peter because he wasn’t meant to be a permanent addition to their lives, but he ended up finding a place in their hearts. A place in their family.

“I’m sorry you lost her.” Nebula said earnestly, despite her voice being the same monotonous voice she always used.

“Yeah… Me too.” He nodded carefully. “So you won!” He exclaimed, feigning happiness. He didn’t think he could sit and talk about Y/N any longer. It was still so fresh, the image of losing his only daughter. “Have fun?” Tony asked, offering his hand to shake.

“It was fun.” Nebula nodded, shaking his hand.

That was less than a week after Thanos and the battle on Titan. It was pushing the three week mark, maybe even beyond it, by the time he was able to gather the strength to make the message he was dreading. He leaned forward to tap the side of his damaged helmet.

“Guess I should say something, huh?” Tony sighed, a heavy sadness falling on him. “I don’t know, Y/N/N, maybe there’s nothing to say. You’ll never get the chance to see this, and maybe that’s my fault. This is just so I know that I said it to you, even if you can’t hear it…

“Y/N, honey, I’m sorry. I wish more than anything I could’ve saved you. Because you and your mother were what got me out of bed everyday. You were undoubtedly the best thing to ever happen to me. And if I had the chance, I’d trade my life for yours.

“Oh, man. This is hard. I love you, so so much. More than I could ever put into words… But I guess you did that when you were a kid, huh? Forever and ever... Just didn’t think there’d be an end to our forever.

“Well, I’m not gonna bore you with the details of what’s going over here. Just wanted to check in and let you know that I love you and I really messed up time. I failed you, and I have to live with that… Just- Just know that when the inevitable catches up to me and I can’t pull an ace out my sleeve - that ace was usually you - that I’m gonna think about you. Love you, Cupcake.”

Tony ended that message and decided he had to deliver one more. There was someone else who needed to hear Tony’s voice, for possibly the last time.

“This thing on?” He opened with. Tony wanted to leave a message for Pepper, praying that she was okay. But a different part of him was afraid there was going to be no one to receive the message. “ Hey, Miss Potts... Pep. If you find this recording, don't post it on social media. It's gonna be a real tear-jerker. I don't know if you're ever going to see these. I don't even know if you're... if you're still... Oh god, I hope so.” Tony didn’t think he could cope with losing his wife and daughter. “Today is day 21, uh 22. You know, if it wasn't for the existential terror of staring into a void of space, I'd say I'm feeling better today. The infection's run its course, Thanks to the blue meanie back there. You'd love her. Very practical. Only a tiny bit sadistic. Some fuel cells were cracked during battle, but we figured out a way to reverse the ion charge to buy ourselves about 48 hours of time. But it's now dead in the water. We're 1000 light years from the nearest 7-11. Oxygen will run out tomorrow. And that'll be it... And Pep, I- I know I said no more surprises, but I was really hoping to pull off one last one. But it looks like... well you know what it looks like. Don't feel bad about this. I mean, if you grovel for a couple of weeks, and then move on with enormous guilt. I should probably lie down. Please know that... when I drift off, I will think about the two people that meant the world to me… And that’s you and Y/N.... Because it's always you two.”

Nebula helped Tony off the floor and into one of the seats. She even got him a blanket. Nebula knew there was nothing left to do for Tony. There was no way to get the Benatar back to Earth, and no way to help Tony. He would die in the middle of nowhere in space, alone.

As Tony was drifting off, a bright light shone in his face. He tried to ignore it, but it grew brighter and brighter until he couldn’t ignore it. When he opened his eyes, he saw a woman. A woman with blonde hair, a red and blue suit, and glowing a strange blue glow. But Tony didn’t care to ask how she found them. Maybe she could get them home. He felt hope in his chest, a feeling he hadn’t felt in weeks.

And that was exactly what she did. The mysterious space woman was able to guide the Benatar back to Earth, more specifically to the Avengers Compound. Inside was Steve, Nat, Bruce, Pepper, and Rhodey. The incoming ship caused the compound to shake, steadily picking up intensity until the Benatar landed. Nebula helped Tony out the ship and down to the ground as Steve ran to his friend to help.

“Couldn’t stop him.” Tony managed as he walked with Steve.

“Neither could I.” Steve admitted. Steve glanced behind Tony, expecting to see Y/N right behind him.

“I lost the kids.” Tony mumbled, saying it out loud to someone who wasn’t there to see it made it feel fresh again. The image of his daughter disappearing mid-sentence and then the image of Peter disappearing in his arms flashed in his mind.

“Tony, we lost.” Steve said, hoping to console and show solidarity.

“Is uh..” Tony couldn’t ask the question. He couldn’t get his brain to ask Is Pepper alive.

“Oh my god!” Pepper said, rushing to Tony so she could hug him tightly. “Oh my god!”

“It’s okay.” Tony said gently as he held her close. And for the first time in nearly a month, something actually was okay.

Tony now sat inside, an IV inserted into his arm as everyone tried to brief him on what he missed on Earth. The words Rhodey spoke held no weight in Tony’s frazzled mind. Behind his friend were projections, images that resembled mugshots. Images that showed the people that were gone. Some were smiling, like Peter’s, while others were more serious, like his daughter’s.

“It’s been 23 days since Thanos came to Earth.” Rhodey began.

But Tony’s mind wandered. He saw things that were his daughter’s. Her childhood drawings were still on the fridge. Her picture was still hanging on the wall. A framed photo of her and Peter was still on the desk. The mask plate to her first suit was still on the corner of her desk, right beneath her computer screen.

“So where is he?” Tony asked, suddenly full of anger. Full of pain.

“We don’t know.” Steve shrugged. “He just opened a portal and walked through…. Tony, you and Y/N fought him.”

“What?” Tony asked in shock. “Who told you that? No, he wiped my face with a planet and used my daughter as a punching bag while the Bleecker Street magician gave away the Stone. There was no fight, alright? He’s unbeatable.”

“Did he give you any clues?” Steve pressed. He knew he shouldn’t have. He knew he should’ve let Tony rest and ask questions later. But his own grief was pushing him to continue, pushing him to find some sort of lead. “Any coordinates? Anything?” Steve was practically begging.

“I saw this coming a few years back.” Tony said casually, in an ‘I-Told-You-So’ type way. “I had a vision… I didn’t wanna believe it. Thought I was dreaming. You know, I told Y/N about it? And she was ready to wade through Hell and high water with me, if that’s what it took.”

“Tony, I’m gonna need you to focus.” Steve tried to steer Tony back to the present.

“And I needed you.” Tony emphasized. His anger now to a point that he didn’t care to try to control. “As in past tense. Oh, and so did Y/N. Did you know she looked for you for weeks after Germany?”

“No, I didn’t know.” He admitted sadly. “But you knew. Why didn’t you tell her?”

“Because obviously, we can’t count on you for anything.” Tony replied simply. “But that trumps what you need. It’s too late, buddy. Sorry.” Tony shrugged weakly. “You know what I need? I need to shave. And I believe I remember telling all youse-” Tony’s balance faltered as he went for Steve, but Rhodey was able to catch him. Rhodey tried to calm Tony, but the stubborn man continued his rage fueled rant. “Alive and otherwise what we needed was a suit of armor around the world! Remember that? Whether it impacted our precious freedoms or not- that’s what we needed!”

“Well, that didn’t work out. Did it?” Steve snapped. He understood that Tony was in pain, that Tony was grieving arguably more than he was. But Steve wanted to find a way to bring everyone back, to fix what they couldn’t stop. “We’ve got to do something. We owe it to those people-”

“I don’t owe anybody shit!” Tony countered angrily. “I owe my daughter a future. I owe Peter a future. But I can’t give it to them now, because you were too concerned about our freedoms. Look where that got up, Cap.” Tony said, his arms out to the side in a grand gesture.

“I said we’d lose.” Tony continued, his voice no longer full of rage. Instead, his voice was soft, the voice of a man who had given up. Who had lost everything. “You said ‘We’ll do that together too’. And guess what? We lost. And you weren’t there… But that’s what we do, right?” Tony’s anger was resurfacing as his daughter’s face flashed on the holograms again. “We’re the Avengers, we’re the Avengers. Not the Pre-vengers?”

“You made your point.” Rhodey tried, hoping to settle his unstable friend. Rhodey knew Tony better than anyone, could read him better than everyone. He could see the grief in his face, the loss in his eyes. Tony had been through a lot in the past ten years, since Loki first came to New York. But losing his daughter and the kid he had been mentoring at the same time, in the same way, that was a whole different kind of hurt. A kind of hurt that no person deserved. “Just sit down, okay?”

“Nah, nah.” Tony scoffed. “Here’s my point. You know what?”

“Tony, you’re sick.” Rhodey tried again.

“She’s great, by the way.” He pointed to the mysterious space woman. He learned her name was Carol Danvers, an Air Force pilot from the 80’s who had gotten her powers by exploding a Kree reactor. “We need you. You’re new blood. Bunch of tired old mules!” He ranted as he crossed the room to stand face-to-face with Steve. “I got nothing for you, Cap. I got no coordinates, no clues, no strategies, no options. Zero. Zip. Nada. No trust. Liar.” He spat, the venom soaked his words. Tony didn’t care to be polite or kind. Tony didn’t care about anything anymore. He pulled his housing unit off his chest and slammed it into Steve’s hand. “Here. Take this. You find him, and you put that on. Then you hide.”

“Tony-”

“No, cause that’s what you’re good at, right?” Tony mocked. “Hiding? Running away when people need you the most? You lost someone a month ago? So what. I lost my daughter. I don’t care who you lost. It’s not the same. So don’t talk to me like it is.” After that sentence, Tony fell to the floor, losing consciousness on the way down. But he dreamt of her.

You’re twelve years old, designing your own suit. You aren’t planning any of the specifics. You don’t worry about the technical aspects or the functionality of it. You are more concerned with what it would look like. You draw a suit like your dad’s, red with gold accents and the centerpiece of a glowing, blue Arc Reactor. You draw the suit without the mask, filling it in with your own face instead.

“Dad?” You ask, running up to his desk and waving your paper at him. “Dad, when can I be a superhero? I want to be like you!”

Tony laughs a little, picking you up and placing you in his lap. He stares at you with a delighted smile and proud eyes. He doesn’t know how he got as lucky as he is, but he thanks the universe everyday that he has you. “How about this?” He says happily, sliding the glove he’s working on onto your hand. The glove tightens to fit your skinny wrist, lighting up and moving with your hand. “This is a starter piece. When you build the rest of the suit around it, you can be a superhero.”

“Do I get a superhero name?” You ask excitedly, posing heroically with your dad’s glove. “Something cool, like yours!”

“Nope, you don’t get to copy mine.” He shakes his head with finality. “You’ve gotta come up with your own.”

“But I want something cool like yours..” You whine.

“How about this? You can buy it for the low, low price of a million dollars.” He offers with a wink.

You huff and cross your arm, thinking of a counter offer. “How about my dessert for the next month and I promise to only put on the suit when you need help. I’ll be your sidekick!”

“Hmm, no.” He shakes his head, putting you back on the ground and pulling the glove off your hand. “Nope. Iron Man works alone.”

“But Tony Stark works with Y/N Stark.” You counter with a coy smile. “So it’s not ‘Iron Man’ working with anyone. It’s like father-daughter bonding!”

“Father-daughter bonding.” Tony laughs. “That’s a good one. I’ll use that on your mom later when she asks why you’re always drawing suits.”

“You’re the best.” You smile.

“I know.”

“I love you, Dad.”

“I know.”

“Forever.” You hold your hand out for him to take.

“And ever.” He grins, taking your hand. You two lift your joined hands up and then come back down, solidifying your promise. No matter what happens, you know you’ll always love and trust you’ll dad. You’ll follow him anywhere, help him with anything. And Tony knows just how amazing you’re going to be, and he couldn’t be prouder.

Outside the room where Tony rested, the others talked about going after Thanos. They had managed to pinpoint where Thanos was, thanks to Nebula’s help. Bruce tried to reason with the small group, acknowledging that they were lacking in numbers. Carol was the one who suggested using the Stones to bring everyone back. While it seemed unlikely, impossible even, the Avengers knew there was no other option.

Later that day, everyone except Tony was aboard the Benatar and headed to Thanos. But they were too late. Thanos had used the Stones to destroy the Stones, leaving no chance of changing what he had done. The only outcome that had any effect was that Thor decapitated the Titan, offering himself closure but no real comfort.

There were no options left, no hope. No second chances. All of those that were left had no choice but to move on, to start over. But no matter how much time passed, there was a void in everyone’s hearts. A void that no amount of time could heal, that no new people could replace. But people had to try.

Five years had passed. Five years since Tony had watched Peter and Y/N fade away. He could finally talk about her without wanting to cry. He could remember her fondly instead of painfully. He could tell Morgan about her without feeling like he was leaving her behind. He wouldn’t say he felt whole again, but he had learned how to live with the hollow feeling. He knew Pepper was beside him, feeling the same emptiness that he did. But Tony would argue that he felt it deeper since he watched her go, since he heard her final sentence be cut short.

Tony wandered his property, clapping his hands. He had hoped that would’ve gotten their attention.

“Chow time!” He announced happily. But when he got no response, he called her name. “Maguna? Morgan H. Stark. You want some lunch?” He sat on a log near a small tent, waiting for Morgan’s appearance.

She came out of the tent wearing an all-too-familiar helmet. “Define lunch or be disintegrated.” She responded playfully.

“Okay, you should not be wearing that, okay?” Tony said, gently taking the helmet off her head only to be greeted by a mischievous smile that reminded him of Y/N. “That was a part of Y/N’s first suit designs. She was very proud of this.”

“Okay.” She nodded.

“Are you thinking about lunch?” Tony continued his original conversation. “I can give you a handful of crickets on a bed of lettuce.” He teased.

“No.” Morgan laughed.

“That’s what you want.” Tony joked. “How did you find this?”

“Garage.”

“Really? Were you looking for it?”

“No!” She responded quickly. “I found it, though. Y/N had all the cool stuff.”

“Yeah, she did.” He smiled fondly. “You like going to the garage, huh? So does daddy.. It’s fine, actually. Y/N hadn’t touched that thing since she upgraded.”

As Tony was walking Morgan back into the house, a black car rolled up. Steve, Scott, and Nat exited the vehicle. Tony hadn’t heard from them since he returned to Earth five years ago, so he knew whatever they wanted to talk to him about wouldn't be anything he had wanted to be involved in.

They talked on the porch, Scott explaining his wild idea.

“Now, we know what it sounds like…” Scott tried to reason.

“Quantum fluctuation messes with the Planck Scale, which then triggers the Deutsch Proposition. Can we agree on that?” Tony offered. The three looked between each other, visibly confused, as Tony handed each of them a drink.

“Thank you.” Steve quickly added politely.

“In Layman’s terms, it means you’re not coming home.” Tony simplified.

“I did.” Scott defended.

“No, you accidentally survived.” Tony corrected. “It’s a billion to one cosmic fluke. And now you wanna pull off a… What do you call it?”

“A time heist.” Scott chuckled.

“Yeah, a time heist.” Tony nodded. “Of course, why didn’t we think of this before? Oh, because it’s laughable? Because it’s a pipe-dream?”

“The Stones are in the past. We can go back and get them.” Scott pushed.

“We can snap our own fingers.” Nat added. “We can bring everyone back.”

“Or screw it up worse than he already has, right?” Tony countered.

“I don’t believe we would.” Steve said honestly.

“Gotta say, sometimes I miss that giddy optimism. However, high hopes won’t help if there is no logical, tangible way for me to safely execute said time heist,” Tony said firmly. “I believe the most likely outcome would be our collective demise.”

“Not if we strictly follow the rules of time travel.” Scott defended. “That means no talking to our past selves, no betting on sporting events-”

“I’m gonna stop you right there, Scott. Are you seriously telling me that your plan to save the universe is based on Back to the Future?” The fact that it was reminded Tony of Peter, the way he made plans based on what he saw in movies.

“No.” Scott answered, now embarrassed.

“Good. You had me worried there.” Tony nodded. “Cause that’d be horse shit. That’s not how quantum physics works.”

“Tony..” Nat pressed. “We have to take a stand.”

“We did stand.” He replied sadly. “And yet, here we are.. Some of us, anyway.”

“I know you got a lot on the line. You got a wife, a daughter. But I lost someone very important to me. A lot of people did.” Scott desperately said. He practically begged for Tony’s help. “And now- now we have a chance to bring her back. To bring everyone back. And you’re telling me you won’t even-”

“That’s right, Scott. I won’t even. I got a kid.” Tony agreed. “I already lost my daughter, five years ago. She would’ve been twenty two this year, but I watched her turn to dust. So, no. I won’t.”

“Mommy told me to come save you.” Morgan said as she ran up to her dad, who picked her up easily.

“Good job, I’m saved.” He told her before turning to Steve. “I wish you’d come here to ask me something else. Anything else. Honestly, I- I missed you guys, It was… Oh, and the table’s set for six.”

“Tony, I get it.” Steve spoke up. “And I’m happy for you. I really am. But this is a second chance for all of us.”

“I got my second chance right here, Cap.” Tony sighed. “I can’t roll the dice again. If you don’t talk shop, you can stay for lunch.”

“You think if it was the other way around, and you were gone, Y/N would say no?” Steve tried.

“You think Y/N would risk all of your lives just for me?” Tony scoffed.

“I think Y/N would take on Thanos by herself if it meant she could get you back.” Steve said simply. “You were everything to her and you know that. If there was even the slightest chance to get you back, she would do it.”

“She was a kid.” Tony argued, careful not to raise his voice since he was holding Morgan still. “She’d be stupid to try your Time Heist. The answer is no, Steve. I’m sorry, but I’m not losing again.”

Later that night, Tony was washing dishes after dinner. He had accidentally rinsed a spoon with too much water, and it shot out on the surrounding photo frames. When he was drying them off, he realized it was the photo of him, Y/n and Peter took with his Stark Internship certificate. The excitement in Peter’s eyes was obvious, as was the admiration in Y/N’s. He figured he might as well run some numbers, see what the actual probability of the Time Heist was.

“And don’t worry if it doesn’t pan out. I’m just kinda-” Tony rambled as F.R.I.D.A.Y. completed the sim.

“Model rendered.” Her automated voice said, showing a 99.987% success rate.

“Shit!” Tony exclaimed with a chuckle.

“Shit.” A small voice repeated from behind him.

“What are you doing up, little miss?” He whispered.

“Shit.” She repeated.

“No, we don’t say that. Only Mommy says that word. She coined it, belongs to her.”

“Why you up?”

“Cause I got some important shit going on here.” Morgan gave her dad a look. “What do you think? No, I got something on my mind… I got something on my mind.”

“Was it Juice pops?” Morgan asked excitedly.

“Sure was.” Tony nodded. “That’s extortion. Great minds think alike. Juice pops, exactly was on my mind.” Tony said, leading Morgan to the kitchen after glancing at the rendered model one last time.

After the two got their Juice Pops, Tony brought Morgan back to her room.

“That face goes there.” Tony said, pushing Morgan’s face into her pillow.

“Tell me a story.” Morgan said tiredly.

“Once upon a time, Maguna went to bed. The end.”

“That’s a horrible story.” She laughed.

“C’mon, that’s your favorite story.”

“Tell me a story about Y/N.”

“A story about Y/N..” Tony repeated. He thought of what story to tell Morgan. He had so many amazing memories with his daughter, so many laughs, so many triumphs. But there were just as many pitfalls. Every high had a low. “Once upon a time, there was a girl named Y/N. She was super smart and crazy popular, just like her dad. She wanted to be a superhero. She wanted to help people. But she wanted to help her dad the most. And she did. She helped her dad everyday from the moment she woke up to the moment she fell asleep. And then she did it all again the next day. But then, she had to go. She didn’t want to, but she had to.”

“She coming back?” Morgan asked, her eyes half shut.

“Love you tons.” Tony smiled, not wanting to promise anything. Tony wasn’t even sure he wanted to do anything with his successful model.

“I love you 3000.” Morgan replied.

I love you forever. And ever.

“Wow.” He whispered. “3000. That’s crazy… Go to bed or I’ll sell all your toys.”

He went downstairs and found Pepper, reading a book on composting. He tried to listen, but his attention kept shifting back to the successful model that still illuminated his table.

“I figured it out, by the way.” He interjected, unable to keep it in any longer.

“You know, just so we’re talking about the same thing-” Pepper said, wanting to make sure she knew what he meant.

“Time travel.”

“What?” She asked in obvious amazement. “Wow… That’s amazing and terrifying.”

“That’s right.”

“We got really lucky.”

“Yeah, I know.”

“A lot of people didn’t.”

“No, I can’t help everybody.”

“It sort of seems like you can.” Pepper pressed. “Or at least help the person you even considered this for.”

“Not if I stop.” Tony countered. “I can put a pin in it right now, and stop.”

“Trying to get you to stop had been one of the few failures of my life.” She joked. “And so was trying to get Y/N to stop..”

“I sometimes feel I should put it in a locked box and drop it at the bottom of a lake… Go to bed.”

“But would you be able to rest?” She offered gently. “Tony, you did all of this because there’s the chance that you can get our daughter back. I know that’s why you did it. And I also know that you’ve hardly gotten any real rest in the past five years. You’re happy with Morgan, but you still need Y/N.”

“She was the best parts of both of us.” He smiled fondly.

“And the worst parts of you.” Pepper joked.

“She was not!” Tony said, feigning offense.

“She was just as stubborn as you are!”

“I can get her back..” He whispered, as if the words hadn’t truly set in yet. There was a viable chance to bring Y/N back. And he had to take it. “Morgan is gonna love her.”

“Morgan already loves her.” Pepper laughed.

The next day, Tony rode over to the Compound. He was conflicted still. Yes, he had the chance to get his daughter back but was it worth risking the daughter he had now? Tony would have to make sure that he didn’t lose what he found. As he drove up, Steve was waiting outside, seemingly distraught. 

“Why the long face?” Tony asked as he rolled down his window. “Let me guess. He turned into a baby.” Tony teased, jumping out the car and heading to the trunk.

“Among other things.” Steve answered hesitantly. “What are you doing here?”

“That’s the EPR Paradox.” Tony explained. “Instead of pushing Lang through time, you pushed time through Lang. It’s tricky, dangerous. Someone should’ve cautioned you against it.”

“You did.”

“Oh, did I?” Tony joked. “Thank God I’m here. Regardless, I fixed it.” He proudly lifted his newest toy. “A fully functional time-space GPS. I just want peace.” Tony threw up a peace sign. “Turns out resentment is corrosive. I hate it.”

“Me too.” Steve agreed.

“We got a shot at getting these stones, but I gotta tell you my priorities. Bring back what we lost? I hope to God, yes. I’d absolutely love to have Y/N and Peter back. Keep what I got? I have to, at all costs. I can’t lose another kid, Cap. And… maybe not die trying would be nice.”

“Sounds like a deal.” Steve smiled, offering his hand for Tony to shake. “We’re gonna get her back.” Before heading inside, Tony pulled something else out of the trunk. He had a new shield for Steve.

“Tony…” Steve hesitated.

“Why?” Tony questioned. “He made it for you. Plus, I don’t think Y/N would recognize you without it and I need to get it out of the garage before Morgan takes it sledding.”

“Thank you.” Steve said honestly.

“Will you keep that a little quiet? Didn’t bring one for the whole team.” Tony stopped and turned to Steve. “We are getting the whole team, yeah?”

“We’re working on that.” Steve replied.

Tony worked with Bruce and Scott to design the Quantum Suits. They resembled the Ant-Man suit with Stark styling. Nebula contributed the helmet design. She said Peter Quill used the same tech. Tony jokingly called her friends the Rings of Uranus. The only thing left was a test run, to which Clint volunteered for.

After the test was successful, they had to figure out when to go to get the Stones. Nat and Clint went after the Soul Stone, Thor and Rocket for the Reality Stone, Bruce for the Time Stone, Tony and Scott for the Tesseract which contained the Space Stone, Steve went for the Mind Stone, and Rhodey and Nebula went for the Power Stone. Everyone had enough Pym particles for one round trip. No one could afford to mess up.

“We can all stand around posing up a storm later.” Past Tony said, hauling Loki to his feet. “By the way, feel free to clean up.”

While the familiar scene played out in front of Tony and Scott, they conversated with Steve about the unflattering fit of his old suit. Scott said that he could tell the undercover HYDRA agents, because they even looked like bad guys.

“Miss Stark?” JARVIS had alerted 2012 Y/N, unbeknownst to either Tony. “There appears to be a second Tony Stark in the building. Your father is descending in the elevator with the others. Should I alert Mr. Stark?”

“What?” 2012 Y/N questioned, leaving the table in your dad’s lab to see the projection JARVIS had given you. It was Y/N’s dad but older. He carried himself with the same Stark pride, but Y/N could tell something heavy was weighing on his shoulders. “Where is this?”

“He is headed to the ground floor.” JARVIS replied. “Dr. Banner is in the stairwell so it seems he’ll be taking the elevator.”

“I’ll intercept him.” 2012 Y/N said, her curiosity taking over. “Let me know if he changes course.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

2012 Y/N headed out of the lab and towards one of the elevators. Y/N knew her dad and the rest of the team was heading down with Loki. The SHIELD team designated to take the Scepter would be in a different elevator. So she had hoped she’d get an empty one and you did. She quickly made her way to the ground floor, able to beat her dad’s doppelganger.

“Who are you?” 2012 Y/N asked when face to face with the older version of her dad. “Well, I know who you are but it doesn’t make sense.”

“Uh, Y/N..” He said softly. A part of him knew that he would see her, but he still wasn’t prepared for it. She was so young, so innocent. The fights and bruises and scars and tiredness hadn’t gotten to her yet. “What are you doing down here? I thought you were working on-”

“I was in the lab until JARVIS told me-” She began before shaking her head quickly. “Don’t distract me! When are you from?”

“Y/N, hon, listen.” Tony said, a slight sigh in his voice. “I’ll be gone in a few minutes. Please. Just pretend you never saw me.”

“Pretend I-” She said in shock. “Do you really expect me to forget that an older Tony Stark lookalike was wandering the Tower the exact day Loki was here? No, you came here for a reason.”

“Y/N?” 2012 Tony called, drawing her attention.

“Don’t move.” She told Tony before hurrying to her dad.

“Alright, move it Stuart Little.” Tony said to Scott, who had slid into 2012 Tony’s Arc Reactor. “Things are getting a little dicey and she won’t leave me alone for long.”

“You promise me you won’t die?” Scott checked.

“You’re only giving me a mild cardiac dysrhythmia.”

“That doesn’t sound mild.”

“Pull my pin!” Tony insisted quietly.

“Here goes!” Scott exclaimed before disconnecting 2012 Tony’s reactor. 2012 Tony fell to the ground, grasping his chest. 2012 Y/N dropped to her knees, calling for a medic. Scott kicked the case to Tony, who picked it up and headed off. Just as it seemed to have gone to plan, 2012 Hulk came barrelling through the door as he yelled about hating stairs. The door flying opened knocked the case from Tony’s hands and sent the Tesseract sliding away.

So Tony and Scott sat in a broken down car, waiting for Steve to leave the Tower. They had one chance. It had to be perfect, but it wasn’t. He had the Tesseract in his hand and he lost it.

“Sorry, buddy.” Tony explained when Steve came out. “We got a problem.”

“Huh, yeah we do.” Scott agreed quickly.

“Well, what are we gonna do now?” Steve asked in defeat.

“You know what, give me a break Steve.” Tony defended himself. “Y/N just interrogated me like I was in cahoots with Loki and I got hit in the head with a Hulk.”

“You talked to Y/N?” Steve asked with raised eyebrows. He was almost insinuating that his conversation with Y/N was the reason he lost the Tesseract.

“No, it was more like she was yelling at me for being in my own building.” Tony countered. “Imagine that. My own daughter scolding me for being in my building.”

“You said we had one shot. This- this was our shot. We shot it. It’s shot.” Scott ranted anxiously. “Six stones or nothing. Six stones or nothing.”

“You’re repeating yourself, you know that?” Tony interrupted. “You’re repeating yourself.”

“You’re repeating yourself.” Scott countered childishly. “You’re repeating yourself.”

“I dropped the ball.” Tony said simply.

“You ruined the time heist.” Scott whined.

“Is that what I did?”

“Yeah!”

“Are there any other options with the Tesseract?” Steve asked loudly, trying to refocus the two.

“No, no, no. There’s no other options. There’s no do-overs. We’re not going anywhere else.” Scott argued. “We have one particle left. Each. That’s it, alright? We use that- Bye bye. You’re not going home.”

“Well if we don’t try-” Steve emphasized. “No one else is going home either. Not Bucky.. Not Hope.. And not Y/N.”

“I got it.” Tony said simply. “There’s another way, to retake the Tesseract and acquire new particles. We’ll stroll down memory lane, military installation. Garden State.”

“When were they both there?” Steve questioned.

“They were there at a- I’ve a vaguely exact idea.”

“How vague?”

While Tony and Steve conversated as if it was obvious, Scott was left in the dark to ask questions that no one would answer. Tony told Scott to get back to the Compound, while he and Steve went to the 70’s. Tony headed off to find the Tesseract, where he ran into his father on the way. Steve went to find Dr. Pym, where he saw Peggy on his way.

“I guess I’ll be eating dinner in the pantry again.” Howard joked.

“I have a little girl. Well, two girls but my oldest is in high school.” Tony said with a proud smile.

“A girl would be nice… Less of a chance she’d turn out exactly like me.”

“What’d be so awful about that?” Tony asked. “My oldest is just like me.”

“Let’s just say that the greater good has rarely outweighed my own self-interests.”

“Where are you with names?” Tony asked, trying to make light conversation until Steve showed up.

“My wife likes Elmonzo for a boy.”

“Might wanna let that stew awhile.. You got time.”

“Let me ask you a question.” Howard said in turn. “When your kid was born- either of them- were you nervous?”

“Wildly, yeah.” Tony laughed. “But those two are the best things that ever happened to me.”

The two finished their conversation before Tony snuck off with Steve. The two went back to the present, where they met with the rest of the team. Everyone except Natasha. She had given up her life so Clint could bring back the Soul Stone. After a tense interaction by the lake, they agreed that Nat’s sacrifice had to be worth it. It had to work.

Rocket and Tony fit the Stones into a Gauntlet. Thor argued to be the one to snap, his personal grief was leaking out. He wanted to do something right, to help fix what he didn’t stop. But Bruce was the one to snap. He said he was made for it since the radiation from the Stones was mostly gamma.

“Remember, just bring back everyone Thanos snapped away to today. Don’t change anything from the past five years.” Tony reminded his friend.

“Got it.” Bruce nodded.

“F.R.I.D.A.Y. do me a favor and activate Barn Door protocol. Will you?” Tony asked as he gave Bruce space.

Metal sheets covered every window in the Compound, locking down the facility. Bruce put on the gauntlet, screaming in pain as the power surged his body. Painfully, he snapped his fingers before passing out, allowing the gauntlet to slide from his hand.

Everyone waited, time seemingly froze. They had no idea if it had worked. They started to wonder if it had been for nothing. Until Clint’s phone rang. It was his wife, his wife who had been lost in the Snap five years prior. They could hear the birds outside the Compound. Everything seemed to be looking up, until a barrage of missiles hit the Compound.

Back on Titan, you finished your original thought.

“-ever.” You said slowly, stepping in a small circle. Your dad was gone. But Quill and the rest of his friends were back, holding onto each other and checking on one another. Strange was there, watching as if he was waiting for something specific to change whatever path you were all on. “Peter…” When you didn’t get a response, you tried again. “Peter!?”

“What?” Quill yelled.

“Not you, moron.” You rolled your eyes. “Where’s my Peter?” You asked Strange.

“Why would I know that?” Strange questioned.

“You seem to know everything else.” You rolled your eyes. “While we’re at it, where’s my dad?”

“And Nebula.” Quill added.

“What happened?” You asked finally.

“Y/N?” Peter asked from the ground. He was laying on his back a few feet away from you.  “What the hell just happened?”

“Oh my god!” You exclaimed in relief. You rushed to his side and dropped to your knees. He quickly took your hand in his, squeezing it tightly. “Are you alright?”

“Little queasy but otherwise, I think I’m alright.” He offered a small smile.

“Hey, promise me something.” You said quickly, your joy of seeing him again taking over any rational thoughts.

“Anything.” He grinned.

“Once everything is in the clear, you take me on a date.” You said with a smirk. “A real date too, not just hanging out at my place.”

“Uh, yeah!” He said happily. “Yeah, for sure. Any- anything you want, Y/N.”

“We need to get back to Earth.” Strange announced. “It’s been five years since Thanos and the fight on this planet. Thanos won and snapped his fingers, wiped out half of all life. The ones left on Earth managed to reverse what Thanos did, which is how we’re all here right now.”

“So where’s my dad?” You asked again, helping Peter to his feet. “If we’re all back and everything was reversed, why isn’t he here with us?”

“Your dad didn’t disappear when we did. He’s back on Earth but Thanos is there, right now. We need to get to Earth.”

“In case you forgot, my suit is wrecked.” You laughed. “When we fought Thanos last time, we got our asses kicked. What makes this time different? Is this the one?”

“I can’t tell you that. But it’s different because you’ll be together this time.” Strange vaguely answered. “Now, you need to get to your lab to deal with all of that.” He gestured to your lack of a suit, as well as the gash you had forgotten about.

Strange opened a portal to a lake house. He stepped through and motioned for you to follow. When you crossed through, you didn’t recognize the area. The lake was new. The house was new. A lot had changed in five years apparently. A gentle squeeze of your hand let you know Peter was with you.

“Wait…” You said, taking a couple cautious steps forward. “Where are we? I thought you were taking me to my lab. My suit is- I need-”

“You’re where you’re supposed to be.” Strange interjected. “Go to the front door.”

“I’m not going up to a random person’s front door.” You laughed. 

“Uh, Y/N?” Peter interjected quietly, pointing to something low behind you. You slowly turned and saw a small girl standing behind you, staring at you in confusion.

“Hi.” You said awkwardly. “What, uh- What’s your name?”

“Morgan.” She smiled. “Who are you?”

You opened your mouth to speak but saw something familiar around her neck. You knelt to her level, reaching for the pendant but deciding against it. You noted small details about her. Her brown hair, her round face. She seemed sweet, welcoming. Her eyes were kind, full of wonder and hope for the world. You wondered if she knew what happened five years ago.

“That’s a pretty necklace.” You commented. It was the prototype housing unit you designed. After you wore it, you realized you didn’t like the long necklace so you ditched it for the bracelets. The necklace was still a cute accessory, but you wondered how Morgan got it. “Can I ask where it came from?”

“Garage.” She said simply, her small fingers grasping the pendant. “Daddy said Y/N would let me have it.”

“Who’s Y/N?” You asked carefully.

“Daddy said she wanted to be a superhero, but she left. She was smart and popular.”

“Y- Your daddy?” You stammered. “Is your dad’s name Tony?”

“No.” She shook her head. “He’s just Daddy.”

“Okay, fair enough.” You chuckled. “Listen, I uh- I know your dad. Can you take me to the garage? The garage where you found the necklace.”

“I have to ask Mommy.” She held out a hand for you to take. You stood and took her hand, reaching quickly for Peter with the other. “Do you know Mommy too?”

“Y/N, it’s okay.” He nodded, squeezing your hand once before stepping back. Once you felt his grip disappear, you nodded for Morgan to start walking.

“Yeah.” You said suddenly, remembering she had asked a question. “I knew her a few years ago, before this super crazy thing happened.”

“Crazy?”

“Totally.” You nodded, earning a small chuckle from her.

“Mommy!?” She yelled as she entered the home. “I found Y/N!”

“Wha- How did you know?” You said, stopping in your tracks.

“Daddy talks bout you a lot.” She said before pointing to a collection of photos on the wall. “And your picture is everywhere.”

“Huh.” You smiled. “Guess he did miss me.”

“Morgan, honey, what are you yelling about?” Your mom came around the corner. “Oh my god.”

“Hi mom.” You smiled, hurrying across the room to hug her tightly.

“I can’t believe it.” She mumbled into your shoulder. “You’re here. Oh, my god, you’re here. Your dad really did it.”

“Wait, Dad? What did he do?” You asked, the smile still stuck on your lips as you pulled away slightly. “How did he do it?”

“Your dad figured out time travel, Y/N.” She said, still in amazement.

“That’s awesome.” You laughed. “But also terrifying! Anyway, Morgan said she found some of my stuff in the garage… I need to reload my bracelets and if there’s time, update to Dad’s new network.”

“You’re not gonna find what you need in the garage.” She shook her head, heading to a table in a room off of the Living Room. “One, cause it’s a mess. Two, cause your dad told me to give you these if you came by.”

She handed you a set of bracelets, engraved with an arc reactor and the word Stark. They fit your wrist perfectly, a slight blue tint to the metal. They were light, light enough that you could barely tell you were wearing them.

“Woah.” You mumbled in amazement. “These are awesome.”

“And fully upgraded from what I heard.” Your mom added.

“No shit.” You exclaimed, tempted to tap them together and see what upgrades your dad gave you.

“Shit.” Morgan repeated from beside you.

“No, no, no!” You exclaimed quickly. “That’s an adult word, Morgan. You can’t say it.”

“Shit.” She giggled.

“No!” You whined. “Mom is gonna kill me!”

“You’re right about that.” She nodded.

“Hi, sorry to interrupt.” Strange said, suddenly at your side. “But we need to go. Pepper, you’re gonna wanna suit up and come too.”

“I forgot about Rescue!” You exclaimed.

“What about Morgan?” Pepper countered.

“Happy Hogan.” He said, gesturing to Happy who was sitting on your parents’ couch. “We have to go now. Steve Rogers is standing up to Thanos alone.”

“Alone?” You asked, a heavy feeling in your chest. “Where’s my dad?”

“We have to go.” Strange said simply.

“If I get there and he isn’t okay-” You said seriously, knocking your bracelets together. “You are going to be the one to answer for it.”

The suit was remarkably light. You watched the reflection in the window as the nanites spread to cover your body. It moved with ease, as if you weren’t wearing a suit at all. The design was sleek, the way you had always made your suits. It was colored to mimic your dad’s, but your dad had added more gold accents to yours. You wondered what else your dad had upgraded it with, but you knew you’d find out in time.

Strange turned and opened a portal for you, Peter, and your mom to step through. Your mom hurried into the room wearing Rescue. You all quickly went through, armed and ready to fight. The scene you came out to was insane. Strange and his friend Wong had gathered everyone willing to fight.

You recognized T’Challa and his sister Shuri, who you had yet to meet but knew to be brilliant. You saw Bucky and Wanda on the other side of the battlefield. Hundreds of people from Wakanda, spaceships full of people, a woman on a Pegasus, a woman who could shrink the way Scott could. People from all over the universe were collected for the fight.

You saw who you thought was Thor, now holding an axe and seemingly gained a belly the size of a basketball. Steve had a broken shield and Mjolnir, which didn’t quite surprise you. But you still couldn’t see your dad.

“Do you see him?” You asked Peter.

“I do.” Your mom answered. “He’s alright.”

“Avengers..” Steve said over comms. Your body tensed, your heart rate picked up. The adrenaline began rushing through your veins. You weren’t quite sure if it was fear or excitement taking over your thoughts, but you let it wash over you. You looked out at the vast army before you, stretching into what seemed like forever. You sent out a silent prayer to whatever God would hear you, asking to keep you on the one path that would save everyone. “Assemble.”

All hell broke loose. Fighters charged from either side. You were separated from Peter early, having to fend for yourself. Your new suit was highly responsive, picking up on things before they entered your peripherals. The power it had was insane, cutting through Thanos’ army like butter. Your dad had added new extensions to the suit; displacer sentries, stabilizing thrusters, energy refocusers, an upgraded unibeam, and liquid nitrogen cannons. 

Finally, you made your way to your dad. The fighting seemed to go around you two, as if the universe knew you two needed a minute. You let your helmet fall away, as did your dad. You both stood frozen for a minute, wondering if it was real.

“I got back and you were gone.” You said simply, your throat now tight. You blamed it on the dirt being kicked up from the fight. “Strange didn’t tell me where you were… Kinda freaked me out.”

“Well, I didn’t wanna hang out on an abandoned planet for five years.” He tried to joke. “Had to get back to your mom.”

“When I came back, I- I thought you-” You felt the tears coming. “I thought you were gone, Dad. And not just gone, like somewhere else, but gone as in dead. And then I thought how I didn’t want to live without you and I- I got really scared, Dad.”

“Y/N/N..” He said gently. You quickly closed the distance between you two and hugged him tightly. “It’s alright. We’re alright.”

“I love you, forever.” You mumbled into his shoulder.

“And ever.” He smiled.

You pulled away and sniffled, wiping your eyes quickly. “You have to tell me how you did it later. Time travel!? That’s insane. Oh! And Morgan, she’s super cute.”

“Morgan?” Tony eyebrows furrowed. “You met Morgan?” He smiled softly.

“Yeah, I met her when I went to get Mom and this awesome new suit.” You smiled, gesturing grandly to the suit you wore. “Which is incredible, by the way. I’m in love.”

“Hey! Holy cow!” Peter exclaimed as he ran into your dad. “You will not believe what’s going on. Do you remember when we were in space? And I got all dusty? I must’ve passed out, because I woke up and you were gone. But Doctor Strange was there, right? He was like ‘It’s been five years. Come on, they need us.’ and then he started doing the yellow sparkly thing that he does all the time and-”

You rolled your eyes in amusement as Peter rambled. Your dad was watching him with a soft look in his eyes, glancing quickly between Peter and you. Tony felt a deep sense of relief, a heavy weight lifted from his chest by seeing you two in front of him. The two people that he wanted to bring back were now in front of him. You stepped behind Peter and nudged him forward. Peter stumbled into Tony, who hugged the boy tightly. “This is nice.” Peter said gently.

“As grateful as I am to have you two alive, we have bigger issues.” You commented, seeing the van that was sounding off with La Cucaracha. “We need to get the Stones to that van.”

“How long do you need to get it working?” Tony asked Scott.

“Ten minutes, maybe.” He answered.

“Who has the Stones?” You asked as you, your dad, and Peter jumped back into the fight. You dodged attacks from either side, effortlessly spinning and ducking shots and projectiles. You saw Clint running through the crowd, one arm tucked against his chest. “Clint has them but he’s gonna need help.”

You were headed that way when you felt your leg being dragged down. You looked and saw a Chitauri soldier had grabbed your ankle and was pulling you down to the ground. You let yourself fall for a moment before turning gravity against the Chitauri and getting your feet aligned with it’s chest. You bent your knees slightly, using the alien as a push off. The thrust from your boosters burnt the Chitauri’s wrist to the point where it released you. You quickly shot off a blast to put a hole in it’s chest as it hit the ground. Your attention turned back to Clint as you saw him become surrounded.

“Hey.” Tony told Strange below you, causing your path to stop so you could listen. “You said one out of 14 million we win, yeah? Tell me this is it.”

Strange glanced up and saw you waiting for his answer. “If I tell you what happens, it won’t happen.”

You rolled your eyes within your helmet and took off. T’Challa got to Clint so you changed your course. You decided on a bit of revenge until you were needed to help move the Stones. “F.R.I.D.A.Y., give me locations on Thanos and Peter.”

“Peter is approximately 36 feet to your left with Shuri, no critical damage to the suit indicates no dire injuries.” Her automated voice answered quickly. “Thanos is six feet straight ahead. Maximoff approaching the target.” She showed you a zoomed image of where the Titan was.

“Keep me posted when those Stones change hands.” You ordered as you landed next to Wanda.

“You took everything from me.” She said angrily.

“From us.” You added, charging a blast from your palm.

“I don’t even know who either of you are.” Thanos replied.

“You will.” Wanda said simply, her eyes glowing red as her power swirled around her.

You stood watching in awe for a moment before remembering where you were. You shot your blast at the charging Thanos, knocking him off balance. Wanda quickly followed up with two huge rock piles, both were knocked in pieces by his sword. Wanda launched quick bursts at him, each one more powerful than the last.

You flipped over Thanos, sending off shots from above and then behind him. Together, you and Wanda brought the Titan to his knees. Wanda kept applying pressure, Thanos groaning in pain.

“The Stones have transferred hands to Peter.” F.R.I.D.A.Y. told you.

“You got this?” You asked, your focus now completely shifted. “I gotta go.”

“Go.” She nodded.

You took off quickly, F.R.I.D.A.Y. guiding you to Peter’s location. You find him surrounded by Chitauri, but his artificial limbs assisted him in the fight. You landed with enough force to push the last few Chitauri away from him and into someone else’s attack.

“You know, I was on the fence about the instant-kill. But it came in handy, didn’t it?” You joked.

Peter chuckled before more Chitauri came at you both. They grabbed at you, throwing you to the side and focusing on Peter. Everytime you tried to help, five of them shoved you off. You heard Peter call for help, to which Steve threw Mjolnir for him to grab. You took off ahead of the Hammer, hoping to keep a clear path for Peter. Peter shot a web, using Mjolnir as a ride out of the chaos.

A shot from one of the ships sliced Peter’s web, sending him to the ground fast. You dropped until you were able to grab him.

“I’m always having to help you out, aren’t I?” You commented teasingly as you tossed him to the woman on the Pegasus. You flew alongside her until a shot came too close for you to successfully dodge and threw you into Peter. It knocked him off the Pegasus and sent both of you crashing to the ground.

Peter had gotten up and tried to run, to get the Stones a little bit closer. A blast from the cannon landed right in front of him, sending him flying backwards so he would land in front of you. The impact shattered his artificial limbs and he let his mask fall away. He grabbed the gauntlet and tucked into a ball to protect himself from the shots still coming. You pushed yourself to your side as you put up an energy shield over you and Peter.

“F.R.I.D.A.Y., what are they firing at?” Tony asked as some of the cannons changed direction, the question playing in your helmet too as the system showed a projection of an incoming object.

“Something just entered the upper atmosphere.” She responded.

“Let’s hope it’s on our side.” You mumbled, momentarily dropping the shield to watch.

You looked up to see a bright flash of light break through one of the ships, disabling it and going through it once again to slice it in half. You were so impressed by the power it had that you almost didn’t notice the falling rubble. 

“Little help would be nice!” You yelled over comms as you threw up another shield, to which Steve asked Danvers to help. You had assumed Danvers was the one who broke the ship in half so you kept still until help arrived. You dropped the shield and stared in awe as Peter spoke.

“Hi.” He said quickly, still keeping the gauntlet close. “I’m Peter Parker. She’s Y/N Stark.”

“So cool.” You said simply.

“Hey, Peter Parker.” She chuckled. “Y/N Stark. I saved your dad once. He ever tell you that?”

“He did not. But I came back to a giant war so there hasn’t really been time..” You nodded, pushing yourself to your feet and put your helmet on again.

“You got something for me?” She asked Peter, nodding towards the Stones.

“I don’t know how you’re gonna get it through all that.” Peter said tiredly as he stood and handed over the gauntlet.

You noted how tired he was, how beat up he was. But he was still ready to fight. Your heart ached, and you quickly realized that you didn’t just like Peter Parker. You loved Peter Parker. The revelation didn’t surprise you, but you wished it had come at a better time than that moment.

“Don’t worry.” Wanda said as she landed next to you.

“She’s got help.” One of the Wakandan warriors who you later learned to be Okoye added. Your mom joined the group, along with Pegasus woman, Valkyrie. Mantis, Hope Van Dyne,  and Nebula showed up, along with Shuri and Nebula’s sister, Gamora. Together, you fought through the army to get the Stones to Scott’s van.

You and your mom focused your fire high, aiming at ships and taller enemies. You followed behind Danvers, working on keeping her path clear. Thanos charged Danvers, dead set on stopping her for the Stones. You, your mom, Shuri, and Hope shot beams at him, knocking him to the ground.

“After this, you gotta show me how you made those.” You yelled to Shuri, who looked over and laughed slightly. “I’m Y/N, by the way.”

“Shuri. You seem to be doing well with what you have.” She teased. “Is it new?”

“First time in it.” You answered with a proud nod. 

“Really, Y/N?” Your mom commented. “Now? Your dad just upgraded that suit for you.”

“You wanted me to make friends.” You defended, focusing back on the task at hand.

You all added extra force to throw Thanos back. He rolled, lifting his attention to where Danvers was headed. Since you all wouldn’t let him get to Danvers, he decided to destroy where she was headed. He threw his sword into the tunnel, destroying it and sending a massive energy wave that launched everyone back.

“The gauntlet is about twenty meters behind you.” F.R.I.D.A.Y. told you. “Mr. Stark can reach it but Thanos is already on his way.”

“Not if I have anything to say about it.” You replied, pushing yourself to your feet. You took off in a sprint before pushing off a short ledge, taking flight and headed that way. You watched your dad tackle Thanos before getting elbowed away. Thor and Steve kept him back, using Mjolnir and Thor’s new axe to their aid. Danvers beat you there and fought him off a minute, until Thanos threw her to the side.

You helped your dad up to his knees and watched Thanos put the gauntlet on. You and your dad dropped your masks, not worried about them anymore.

“Not again.” You whispered fearfully.

Danvers came back just in time, stopping him from snapping his fingers. She had the upper hand until Thanos pulled out one Stone and used it to send her flying. Strange looked over at you two, holding up one finger to tell you both that there was only one way.

Your dad stood slowly, understanding what he was meant to do. You understood it at the same time so you grabbed his hand, hoping to pull him back to you. “Dad, please.” You begged. “No. No! It’s not worth it.”

“I can’t lose again.” He said softly.

“Think about Morgan.” You tried desperately. “A-and me. I just got you back.”

“I am thinking of you two.” He replied gently. “I love you, forever.” He said before running to Thanos, trying to take the Stones from him.

You looked to Strange again in anger. You wanted to take it out on Strange, but the look he gave you made you reconsider. Strange looked at you as if you had a role to play, as if it wasn’t just about Tony. You and your dad had been through everything together. You had been glued to his side since Loki first arrived in New York. Every fight, every training session, every injury, and every upgrade you were there. You started it together. You had to end it together.

“F.R.I.D.A.Y., did my dad ever add the suit-to-suit interface to exchange nanites?” You asked quickly, running through the possibilities. “If he gets those Stones away from Thanos, it’s too much energy for him to handle. It needs to be dispersed.”

“It’s added but I’ll need time to activate it.” Her automated voice said. “Opening the entirety of both suits to interface with each other-”

“I don’t need a whole suit.” You cut her off. “My left palm. His right shoulder, upper shoulder. Clavicular region.”

“Less than a minute. Initiating interface.”

You ran over to your dad as he was knocked away. Your steps froze when Thanos raised his hand again and your dad laid face down.

“I am inevitable.” Thanos said in triumph. You braced for the second Snap, but nothing happened. You noticed a faint glow from your dad’s suit so you started running again.

“Interface available in 5… 4… 3… 2… 1… Interface active.” F.R.I.D.A.Y. announced to you.

Tony knelt in front of the Titan, Stones in hand. He shoved them into his suit, a Stone aligned with each knuckle. He thought about what he was going to do, the risk he was going to take. Someone had to do it, and it seemed only Tony could. But his mind brought back words that weighed on his heart..

Years ago, Steve had told him “The only thing you really fight for is yourself. You’re not the guy to make the sacrifice play, to lay down on a wire and let the other guy crawl over you.”

Peter said “I just wanted to be like you.”

Y/N had argued “I don’t know how to live a life without you and I don’t want to. I shouldn’t have to!”

Morgan had told him with a smile “I love you, 3000.”

Pepper once told him “You’re all I have too, you know.”

Y/N would always say “I love you, forever.”

But the heaviest one was what Strange had told him just minutes before, “If I tell you what happens, it won’t happen.”

“And I…” Your dad panted. You could see the power of the Stones coursing up his suit, scorched marks climbing to his neck. You got to him quickly, standing beside him. You placed your hand on his shoulder, the energy diverting up into your body as the nanites mixed.

It was white hot, burning every cell in your body. It was intense, scorching every nerve it touched. Your fingers trembled, your pulse beat unevenly. Your stomach muscle clenched, your knees shook. But despite it all, you stood tall. You gathered yourself with a deep breath and spoke.

“We.” You emphasized.

“We-” Your dad nodded slightly.

“-are Starks.” You two said together before he snapped his fingers. The surge brought you to your knees beside your dad, who used his other hand to reach across himself and steady you. You made sure to keep your left hand where it was, refusing to move it until you could get the Stones out. You two watched as every soldier Thanos brought, his whole army, turned to dust the way you did five years ago. Thanos sat on a nearby rock as he turned to dust himself.

You and your dad manage to get to a nearby debris pile where you turned and leaned your backs against. Your dad coughed as you reached over and pulled the Stones from his suit and dropped them next to you. You saw the relief in his posture once you took the Stones away.

“One hell of a day back.” You tried to joke, to which you both laughed weakly.

“You shouldn't have done that, Y/N/N.” Tony said weakly.

“There was only one way, remember?” You countered. “I had to. We started this together, we end it together.”

“Love you, kiddo.” Your dad smiled at you.

“Forever.”

“And ever.”

“Y/N?” Peter said gently. “Mr. Stark?” Peter ran up to you both, falling to his knees between you two. He gently took one of your hands in his. “Hey. Can you guys hear me? It’s Peter. We won. Y/N, Mr. Stark, we won. You did it. You guys did it.”

“You-” You coughed, smiling weakly at him. “You still owe me… a date, Petey.”

“Anywhere you want, Y/N/N.” He laughed sadly. He leaned forward and hugged both of you. “You’re gonna be fine, I promise.”

“Maybe not this time.”

Gently, Peter was guided away from you two, tears slowly falling down his face and leaving streaks in the dirt that covered his cheeks. You smiled softly, knowing you really did love the boy. You wanted to get up and comfort him, wrap your arms around him and hold him tight. But you didn’t have it in you. You could barely manage to keep your eyes open.

Your mom knelt in front of you two where Peter was. She sighed gently, trying to put on a brave face, but she was hurt the most. Your heart sank when you saw the pain she was in. She was looking at two of the three people that meant the world to her, sitting before her and fighting for their lives. She had watched her family sacrifice themselves for the world, a sacrifice those two - especially those two - never should’ve had to make.

“Hey.” She said softly. “You’ve both looked better.”

“Hey, mom.” You said as your dad answered, “Hey, Pep.”

“F.R.I.D.A.Y.?” She said, hoping for good news.

“Intense emergency surgeries needed. Immediate treatment raises survival rate by about 60%.” Her automated voice answered.

“Brother.” Shuri whispered to T’Challa as Pepper gently comforted her family. “I think I can heal them in my lab. They don’t have to die.”

“How would we get them there?” T’Challa asked honestly. He wanted to help them, but he didn’t think it’d be possible. “It is too far to guarantee there’d be time.”

“We can’t leave them to die here.” Rhodey commented. “We gotta at least take them home.”

“It’s okay.” Pepper nodded to you two. “We’re gonna be okay, alright? You two can rest now.”

“Love you, Mom.” You whispered. “Tell Peter… Tell him I love him too.”

You smiled softly at your mother before leaning your head back against the debris. Your eyes drifted shut, your body feeling heavy. You gave into the darkness as your dad did the same. The reactors in both of your suits faded to a dull glow, not quite off yet.

“The reactors aren’t off.” Peter noted, his voice strained from his pain. Not physical pain, but emotional pain. He had become so close to Y/N Stark to the point where he thought he loved her. She meant so much to him in the short time he knew her, so much so that he convinced himself she was his soulmate. He didn’t even believe in that kind of thing until he met her. Now he really wished he hadn’t hesitated. “They’re not gone.”

“Peter-” Steve tried to console him. Steve was feeling the loss too. He was devastated. Y/N and Tony were both practically family to him, the only family he had left. And now they were gone. They gave up their lives to save the world. Steve felt a pang of guilt, that even though they got everyone back, they still lost. Steve had insisted on it, that they would win this time around, but they still managed to lose.

“I can hear it!” He yelled, his voice breaking. “Their hearts are still beating.” He looked back to Y/N and Tony, their eyes shut. “They’re not gone. Just look!” He threw both hands forward, gesturing to the center glow of their chests.

“So what do we do then?” Thor asked. “The Compound is ruined. How are we supposed to help them?”

“Take them home.” Carol suggested. “You, Sparkles.” Carol pointed to Dr. Strange. “You can make portals. Make a portal to take them home, and then we go from there.”

“What do you actually think we can do for them?” Strange questioned defensively. “Those Stones-”

“I think that Peter Parker is onto something.” Carol countered easily. “Make a portal to take them home.”

“They won’t survive.”

“If you’re so sure,  at least let them die somewhere they’d be comfortable.” She rolled her eyes.

“We have the technology to heal them.” T’Challa spoke up. He figured it was the least he could do, to offer whatever Wakanda could give to help. “If you can get them home and keep them stable, Shuri and I can get what we need and bring it to you. But we’d have to hurry.”

“And you’re sure they’re alive?” Strange asked Peter.

“One hundred percent.” He responded confidently, his eyes on Y/N. “I know it.”

Strange opened two portals, one to Wakanda and one to the Stark’s lakehouse. Carefully, Rhodey scooped up Tony and Peter carried Y/N. Pepper went through first, hurrying to get Morgan out of the house so she wouldn’t see what her dad and sister looked like. Tony and Y/N were carried to their rooms and gently set up in their beds.

Wong helped the rest of those who fought get home. Steve, Bruce, Clint, and Thor followed the Stark family to their home, as did Carol. Dr. Strange went with T’Challa so he and Shuri would have a quick way back to Tony and Y/N. Pepper asked F.R.I.D.A.Y. to disable the suits so their housing units could be taken off and to keep their vitals posted. Both of their pulses were extremely weak, but they were still there. They were both put on ventilators - Tony kept a few on hand just in case the Compound wasn’t the best option for treatment - and were given an injection of painkillers.

Peter had been right.

Pepper stayed with Tony in their room, while Peter argued to stay with Y/N. Steve had offered, told Peter he should get home and get some rest, but Peter set himself up in the window nook and refused to get up.He had washed the dirt and blood off his face and out of his hair, his wet curls still dripping onto his shirt slightly. Despite using cold water to wake himself up, he still just wanted to curl up and sleep.

He called May after Steve left the room and went downstairs to talk to others. He had taken off his suit, leaving him in the clothes he had worn to the field trip, before he had gotten on the spaceship. 

“Hey, May.” Peter said tiredly. He was exhausted, every muscle ached. He wanted to lay in his own bed and sleep for a year, but he knew what his priority was at the moment. “You okay?”

“Where are you, Peter?” She asked anxiously. “I- I called you twelve times and you didn’t answer. Are you okay? You- you never came home from your MOMA field trip and I-”

“I’m fine.” Peter cut in. “I- I got caught up in that dusty thing a few years ago.”

“Yeah, yeah, I think I did too.” She paused, letting out a heavy sigh. “Come home, Peter.”

“I can’t.” He said sadly. “Y/N, she got hurt real bad, May… I can’t leave her right now.”

“You love her, don’t you?” May asked, a small smile on her lips that Peter didn’t need to see to know it was there.

“Yeah.. I think I do.” Peter chuckled nervously. “I never got a chance to tell her.”

“You’ll get one… Don’t miss it.”

“Love you, May.”

“Love you too, Peter. Text me before you go to sleep and call me in the morning.”

“Will do.” And with that, Peter hung up the phone.

A small knock on the door sounded before it was cracked open enough for a small child to slip inside. She shut the door carefully behind her, as if she was used to sneaking around the house. She ran across the room until she stood in front of Peter, looking at him with her head tilted slightly. Slowly, unsure of what to do, Peter pulled his legs to his chest to make room for her. She climbed into the open space and crossed her legs, dropping her hands in her lap.

“Morgan, right?” Peter asked, leaning his head back as he tried to stay awake.

“Who are you?” She asked plainly.

“Peter Parker.” He gave a lazy salute.

“Are you her boyfriend?”

Peter chuckled. “No.. Not yet, at least.”

“You like her?”

“I do.” He nodded with a lazy smile. “I like her a lot.”

“She’s pretty.” Morgan said, as if Peter hadn’t noticed that. “Is she hurt the way Daddy is?”

“How do you know that?”

“I was sneaky.” She whispered, bringing one finger to her lips to emphasize how quiet she was. Peter chuckled in response.

“Yeah, Y/N is hurt.” Peter said carefully. “But she’s gonna be okay. You know why?”

“Cause she’s like Daddy.” She said confidently. “And Daddy is Iron Man.”

“Yeah, but also because she has to come back to her family. You and your mom and-”

“And you.” Morgan cut in. “Want to make a card with me?”

“You go get started and I’ll meet you down there.” Peter responded, holding out his pinky. “I just need a minute and I’ll go downstairs after. Pinky promise.”

“Okay.” She nodded, quickly finishing the pinky promise. “Bye, Peter!” She said before quickly sneaking out of the room, leaving just Y/N and Peter.

“When we met, I never thought we’d end up here..” Peter said to Y/N, even though he knew she probably couldn’t hear him. “After everything we’ve been through, it kinda seemed like you were invincible. Nothing could really take you out like this. I mean, yeah, we both came out of everything with some sort of aches and pains, but not like this.

“I know you’re fighting for your life, Y/N/N. And I know you have your own reasons to fight, but I gotta ask you to fight for me. Please… I just- I love you, Y/N Stark. And I want to be able to tell you when you can actually acknowledge it. I- I want to take you to parties and school dances. I want you to come to Decathlon a-and laugh at how easy the questions are because you’re brilliant.” He chuckled lightly before closing his eyes, curling in on himself a little more. “Just come back for me, please.”

A light knock sounded before Shuri entered, a cart of equipment being led in behind her. Two Wakandan soldiers followed behind with her equipment, setting things up while Shuri went and spoke to Peter. Peter sat up slowly, unsure of how long he had been asleep.

“We can take it from here.” She told Peter, gently putting a hand on his shoulder. “You should get something to eat, Peter. You look starved.”

“Yeah..” He nodded slightly. “But I have a card to make first.” He smiled lazily before taking one last look at Y/N. “She’s gonna make it, right?”

“I’m going to do everything I can.”

“Oh, she kinda got stabbed like right here-” Peter’s hand hovered over Y/N’s side, where he remembered Thanos using her suit’s blade against her. “That was before we got dusted so I don’t know if it’s still there but…” He shrugged, pausing to decide if he wanted to ask his next question. “How’s Mr. Stark doing?” Peter asked carefully, now fully knowing if he was ready to hear how his mentor was. “Is he gonna..”

“Mr. Stark is going to be okay.” Shuri promised. “We could not save his arm, but we saved him. The only thing I don’t know is how soon he’ll wake up. His injuries were rather traumatic and that kind of shock takes a toll on the human body.”

“Thank you.” Peter said honestly. “For being on my side back there and believing they could be helped. And for being willing to help them.”

“The world owes them a debt that can never be repaid.” Shuri said honestly, scanning Y/N with her Kimoyo Beads. “It is the least I could do.”

“I’ll leave you to it then.” Peter nodded before heading downstairs to join Morgan in her card making.

Steve handed Peter a plate of food and two water bottles, reminding Peter that he had to take care of himself too. Most of the adults stayed in the other room, discussing their worry in quiet whispers. Carol sat with Peter and Morgan around the coffee table, each of them making a card. Morgan was finishing her card for Tony, while Peter worked on one for Y/N and Carol made one that was meant for both of them. Carol and Peter took turns telling jokes or making fun of their own drawings to make Morgan laugh. By the time they were done, they each made a card for Y/N and Tony, until Morgan fell asleep against Peter.

“You really care about them, don’t you?” Carol asked Peter once Morgan was asleep.

“Y/N and Mr. Stark believed in me when no one else did.” Peter began fondly. “When I went with them to Germany to fight Captain America, she told me that I was going to have to put up with her for a long time. She told me that she wasn’t gonna let anything bad happen to me, that we had to stick together. But now... It’s different. When she smiles at me, I feel dizzy. When she laughs, I can’t help but laugh with her. Even when she looks at me, I- I don’t know how to explain it.”

“I can explain it.” She smirked at him. “That’s love, kid.”

“It is?” Peter asked. “That’s kinda what I had hoped it all meant.”

“Did you ever tell her?”

“I had a chance… But I hesitated.” He admitted, remembering on Titan when he wanted to kiss her. “But if I had known this would’ve happened-”

“Yeah, but you didn’t know.” She cut him off. “What matters now is if you’re gonna hesitate next time?” She challenged.

“God, I hope not.” Peter chuckled.

Soon, Shuri and her brother, along with the two Wakandans that came with her, were coming down the stairs. Most of the equipment was packed and being carried with her. Peter was careful not to move and wake Morgan when Shuri came downstairs.

“They’re both going to make it.” She said with a proud smile. “However, there are some things we could not fix.”

“Like what?” Steve asked tensely.

“We could not save Mr. Stark’s right arm. The damage was too severe.” Shuri explained. “They’ll both have burn scars up into their chest and neck area. Mr. Stark’s may even reach the side of his face. As for Y/N..” She paused to show a detailed image of the inner workings of the lower arm, the nervous system breakdown and muscular system. “This is what her right arm looks like, the one that didn’t take on the energy of the Stones. And this-” She swiped to a new image, an image where some of the nerves were in pieces. “-is her left arm. Unfortunately, her damage seemed to have found its way to her nervous system. Some nerves were seared through, meaning she has lost all sensation in her left arm, as well as some of her finer motor control.”

“So what exactly does that mean for her?” Pepper asked anxiously.

“It means she will not be able to fully move her fingers and possibly her wrist, and she won’t physically feel anything at any point on her left arm. But she will live.” Shuri explained. “I’ve also healed a stab wound she had from her first fight with Thanos, and there won’t even be a scar.. They should wake in a few days. They are both on IV drips with painkillers. I’ve done all I can.”

And with that, Shuri left. One by one, the rest of the Avengers that were there left. Peter left the following morning, having fallen asleep on the floor with Morgan. Happy drove him home, but Peter fell asleep again on the way. His body was more exhausted than he had been letting on, and now it had caught up to him.

He tried to get back to normal life. He went back to school, saw Ned and MJ. He went back to Decathlon, but it just didn’t feel right to him until he could hear your voice again. A few days after he was settling back in, he got a call from a number he didn’t recognize.

“Hey, Spiderman.” You said. Your voice was as sweet as honey, making his heart beat three times faster. “Got time for a visit?”

“For you?” Peter replied, pretending he had to think about it. “Definitely. Where at?”

“Right here.” You said, stepping out of the car to stand in front of him. “Hey, Peter.” 

“Hi.” He breathed a sigh of relief. Seeing you standing before him, your long-sleeved shirt buttoned up to the top to hide the burns, it made his chest feel tight. He wanted to hug you, to pull you against his chest and never let you go. But he hesitated, just slightly. His biggest concern was how fragile you were.

“You’re looking at me like you’re scared.” You commented, scrunching your eyebrows in confusion. “I thought you’d be happy to see me.”

“I am!” He promised quickly. “I am happy to see you. I just… I have something I want to tell you.”

“I have something I need to tell you too… But it can wait till that date you owe me.” You winked.

“No, it can’t wait.” Peter said, swallowing hard and gathering all his courage. “I wanted to tell you this back on Titan, but I chickened out.”

“Peter, it’s not that serious.” You laughed nervously. “It can wait until tonight, okay?”

“No. It can’t.” He insisted, grabbing your hand. “Y/N, I- I love you and I really want to be with you.”

“That’s great.” You smiled widely, squeezing his hand gently.

“What?”

“Peter, I realized something before this.” You gestured to your left arm. “When Carol came to help us, and I got a good look at how beat up you were but you were still willing to fight… When we were on the beach and you wanted to make sure Toomes didn’t die even though we were on opposite sides… When we were in Germany and you said you trusted me… There are so many little moments between now and the moment I met you that have brought me to this one, single, recurring idea.”

“And what idea is that?” Peter asked smugly, taking a step closer to you. Suddenly, his confidence was through the roof.

“That I love you, Peter Parker.” You smiled widely. “And I really want to be with you.”

“That’s… amazing.” He sighed happily. “Otherwise this could’ve been really awkward."

#beaconfalls whb #where happiness begins #peter parker #peter fanfic #peter parker fanfic #peter parker fic #peter x you #peter parker x reader #peter parker x stark!reader #peter parker x yn #peter x reader #Peter x Y/N #peter x stark!reader #peter x yn #mcu fanfic #mcu peter parker #MCU Spiderman #avengers fanfic #mcu fic

[writingsbychlo]

i noticed beaconfalls-imagines didn’t tag you in her whb teaser like she usually does. is there a reason for that or was it just something like her forgetting? do you read her series or r u kinda not into marvel at the moment?

ohhh I’m not so into marvel lately, I haven’t read anything marvel in so long, I should really get back into it. She maybe just forgot, I was reading it, but I’m not sure how many parts I may have missed, sometimes I don’t get notifications of my tags until I see one of the other girls reblog something or the post is sent to me x

[petertingle-yipyip]

Where Happiness Begins - Peter Parker

FINAL: Chapter Ten - Every Single Time

// WHB Masterlist //

//Series Inspo: @stuckonspidey​ @cxptain-capsicle​ // Series Tags: @writingsbychlo​​ @mc225g​​​ @fandom-princess-forevermore​​​ @rosegoldhome​​​ @chubsluda​​​ @missmulti​​​ @disgustangg​​​ @jackiehollanderr​​​ @eridanuswave​​​ @drunklili​​​ @eternalharry​​​ @freerebel @istg-lyssa-stop @olliekookie @imsobored3000 @eternaleviee @peterparker-glee-other//

Pairing: Peter Parker x Stark!Reader

Word Count: 12,433

Summary: Y/N Stark had eight months away from the public to cope, to heal. In those eight months, Peter was her saving grace, every single time. After Peter’s summer trip changes course thanks to Nick Fury, Y/N takes it upon herself to pay him a visit. Now Peter gets to see what Y/N has really become since the Snap.

Eight months had passed since your return. Eight months of intense physical therapy and a whole new image. You redecorated your room, making it feel more like home. You redid your closet, finding more clothes you were comfortable with considering your new scars. You helped your dad rebuild the Compound, having the help from the rest of the team made it easier. You had made amends with Bucky, talking through your distrust of him. You mourned Nat after finally getting Clint to tell you what happened on Vormir. Your family had stepped out of the spotlight for those eight months, silently operating Stark Industries. The public wasn’t told that you were back, let alone that Tony Stark was alive and well. The last update your mom gave the media was that he was with family.

But the most important thing that had happened over the past eight months was your relationship with Peter.

You hadn’t expected to fall in love with Peter Parker, especially not in that short time you knew him before the Snap. But you did. You were ecstatic when you found out that he felt the same way. Peter had kept up his Spiderman responsibilities in those eight months, saying that Queens still needed someone to look out for the little guy. You always encouraged him, reminding him that he was doing the right thing.

“I got asked if I was gonna be the next Iron Man.” Peter said to you over the phone when he got home from patrol. He had just laid down for the night, but he wanted to call and hear your voice first.

“Yeah, people used to ask me that too.” You laughed. “The world needs an Iron Man. They need that image to look up to, you know? Something to put their faith in. To believe in. I just don’t think my dad is gonna put the suit on again anytime soon.”

“Have you decided if you’re going to?”

“No, I haven’t…” You paused, looking over at your bracelets sitting on your nightstand. “I’m barely starting to feel normal again, so I don’t know… What do you think I should do?”

“I think..” Peter paused to think. He didn’t know what he thought. One on hand, he loved when he got to fight by your side. He always felt like he could do anything when you were beside him, but he also knew what you had gone through. The last time you put the suit on, you thought it was going to be the last thing you did. “I think you should do what makes you happy.”

You chuckled slightly. “That’s what everyone tells me… You should get some sleep.”

“Yeah… I love you, Y/N/N.” Peter said sweetly. “Good night.”

“I love you too, Pete. Night.”

The next day was your first media appearance since your return. You had partnered with May Parker to create a foundation to help those displaced by the Snap. Most people called it the Blip but the word ‘blip’ sounded accidental, as if there was no intent behind it. But you knew. You knew all too well that the Snap was intentional.

As May was giving her speech, you waited in the kitchen area with Peter, Happy, and your dad.

“You’re gonna do great.” Peter said kindly, pressing a gentle kiss to your cheek. He stood beside you in his suit, his mask discarded. His hand was on your lower back, a subtle reassurance that he was there.

“I can do it if it’s too much, Y/N/N.” Tony offered kindly. You looked over at your dad and considered his offer. Tony had been on the stage before, photographed and interviewed a thousand times over. But it was different now.

His right arm was now replaced with a vibranium-titanium alloy, similar to Bucky’s arm. Shuri helped you and Peter fabricate it after Morgan helped you design it. She had insisted on making it solely out of vibranium, but you had to explain that it wasn’t intended for fighting. It didn’t have to be invincible.

Your dad had an arm he designed on his own that he used for daily use, but he said the one you and Morgan made was for special events. Other than the arm, which you could only see his hand, the burn marks trailed up his neck. 

“No, this was my partnership.” You said, hoping to convince yourself more than anyone else. “I should be the one to talk to the people.”

“I’d like to welcome the person who helped make this all possible.” May concluded her speech. “She’ll be led out by our very own, Spiderman.”

“Here we go.” You sighed as Peter dawned his mask. He held his arm out to you which made you chuckle, but you hooked yours through it. You ducked your head as you walked out, keeping your eyes low and your face shadowed until you reached the podium.

“I’d first and foremost like to thank May Parker for welcoming the partnership.” You began with a smile, placing your hands on either side of the podium. “Eight months ago, what was done five years prior was undone. Soon, it’ll be six years since the Snap happened, six years since I and millions of others disappeared.

“But eight months ago… Eight months ago we were brought back by the only people that could pull off a stunt like that. And it came at a price, a price that I’d pay all over again if I had to.

“Some of you are looking at me, wondering how much it cost. ‘How much did Y/N Stark have to pay to change the universe?’ It wasn’t money. It wasn’t anything you can put a number on.” You glanced down at your left hand, trying to lift a finger and tap the podium, but you couldn’t do it. “In order to undo what was done, we had to put ourselves at risk. The fate of the few versus the fate of the many, type of deal. So… We did.” You shrugged with a nervous chuckle.

“I know what it’s like to come back scared, afraid that you’ve lost everything. To come back confused, not understanding what happened to you. None of you were there when it happened. I wasn’t even there when he snapped his fingers. But I vividly remember watching people turn to dust. I remember the words I was saying when I turned to dust.

“Which is why when May came to me with the idea, I knew I wanted to be a part of it. And having Spiderman to help has been amazing… We’ve done a lot to help, but there’s so much left to do. I guess I’ll open the floor for questions.”

“Is Tony Stark retiring as Iron Man?”

“You’d have to ask him.” You shook your head. “I haven’t asked him because he’s been through a lot. I’m not in any place to speak for him.”

“Why haven’t you made any appearances in the past eight months?”

“I’ve been busy with physical therapy and trying to get my life back on track. My family is more important than tabloids.”

“Are you going to be the next Iron Man?”

“I don’t know if I’m putting on that suit ever again.” You said honestly. “What we went through, to keep what was brought back, it’s a lot for anyone to process. Coming back from it is traumatizing enough on its own. My dad and I, we nearly died that day. Would I do it again? Yes, if it meant I could keep what I got back. But am I willing to take up that mantle of Iron Man? No, I’m not. And you want to know why?” You laughed slightly, shaking your head in disbelief. “I’m not willing because there is no next Iron Man. Iron Man is Tony Stark. I know that I’m a Stark, and I know how similar I am to my father, and I know that a lot of people expect me to take over his legacy… But no one in this universe is the next Iron Man.”

“You mentioned physical therapy, and that you and your father almost died. What exactly did it take to bring everyone back?”

“It took the sensation in my left arm.” You said carefully, lifting your left hand for people to see. You unbuttoned your sleeve at your wrist, tugging it up slightly to show the scars. “It destroyed every nerve from the tips of my fingers up to some of the deep nerves of my deltoid. I have limited movement in my fingers and wrist and at my shoulder joint, as well as intense burn scars that lead up my arm.”

“And what happened to your dad?”

“Ask him yourself.” You said simply as you fixed your sleeve.

“We’ve seen highly advanced biomechanic artificial limbs in recent years. Colonel James Rhodes has the braces for his legs, which came from Stark Industries. A vibranium arm cannon on Ulysses Klaue. The entire arm of the Winter Soldier. Why is it that you don’t have a similar brace to assist in your movements, if there is such deep tissue damage?”

You chuckled under your breath, nodding as you thought of an answer. It would’ve been easy to be snippy, to be rude to silence the reporter and others with similar speculations. But you knew now wasn’t the time for it.

“Artificial assistance devices like those only work if there are nerves to fire on. Colonel Rhodes had a spinal injury, meaning the nerves in his legs were fully functional. There was just nothing to connect them to his brain so he could use them.” You explained carefully. “In regards to my arm, those nerves basically don’t exist. They’ve been severed essentially. Now is it possible that we could develop such a brace? Yes, it’s possible. But I’ve adjusted to the functionality of my arm so I’m not too worried about a brace.”

“Is it true King T’Challa and his sister, Princess Shuri, offered Wakandan aid for yours and your father’s recovery?”

“Have you reached out to the King?” You asked, tilting your head in question. “Go talk to him. King T’Challa and Princess Shuri have been very kind, reaching out and visiting through our rehab and PT. As far as Wakandan aid, that’s not my question to answer since I was unconscious for the beginning of my recovery. I’d like to ask that questions relate to the assistance program, please.”

“When we first caught word of Mr. Stark being back, Ms. Potts said he was with family. We also know that Tony had a second daughter in your absence. How did it feel coming back and seemingly being replaced?”

“Replaced…” You repeated, nodding silently as you digested that word. “Let me ask you something, Mr. Reporter. Did you lose someone important to you in the Snap?” He nodded.

“My boyfriend..” He said solemnly.

“And did you date in those five years everyone was gone?”

He nodded hesitantly.

“Did you replace him?”

“I- No, I- I could never.”

“So why would you think my dad replaced me?” You laughed. “When I came back and saw my mom and our new home for the first time, there was a photo of me in every room. There was a room made up to be mine, as if I was never gone. My dad had a fully updated suit made for me. My family didn’t replace me. They carried my memory with them in everything they did. They grieved. They coped. They pushed forward. But they never forgot or replaced me.”

“Will you and your dad mentor Spiderman to be like Iron Man?”

“Spiderman works with us as an Avenger, yes.” You nodded, gesturing to Peter. He gave a small wave to the crowd, who offered a light applause in return. “I believe he has made several comments that he is more focused on Queens and being a local hero than being the next big hero. But again, ask him yourself.”

“It’s rumored that you’re romantically involved with the man under the mask. Are you in a relationship with Spiderman?”

“Not to my knowledge, no.” You laughed. “I don’t know who’s under that mask. I figure if he wants me to know, he’ll tell me.”

“How did Ms. Parker know to reach out to you for help with this program?”

“Her nephew is an intern at Stark Industries.” You glanced at the clock at the back of the room, deciding you’d been on stage long enough. “Since no one is asking about the Program, I’ll take one more question and then I’ll hand the floor over to Spiderman.”

“Yeah, I have a question.” Your dad announced from the back of the room. Every reporter silenced, turning in awe. Some were trying to crane their necks, to catch a glimpse of the tech mogul.

You had to bite your tongue to hold back your laughter. “Yes, go ahead.”

“As that guy-” Your dad gestured to the general area of the reporter who tried to say you had been replaced. “-said, you have a new sister. He worded it terribly but that’s his problem.”

“I do.” You smiled.

“Let me ask you this.” Your dad said, crossing his arms and trying to keep a straight face. “Do you like your sister or would you rather be an only child again?”

“She is hilarious.” You laughed. “I absolutely love her. When I was healing, she had Spiderman and another Avenger make get well soon cards for me and my dad. She’s always asking to hear stories about battles and she has been begging me to make her a suit to play in.”

“Oh, she has?” His eyebrows raised with a smile.

“I told her no.” You defended with a laugh. “But yes, I don’t want to be an only child again. My life is so different now, some things are amazing while others are troublesome. One thing I know I wouldn’t change is my sister. I love her.”

With that final remark, you stepped away from the podium. You gave a final wave to the crowd, blowing a kiss with a wink for the cameras before ducking back into the kitchen area. Your dad met you in the room soon enough, enveloping you in a tight embrace.

“You did great, Hon.” He said proudly, placing a quick kiss on your forehead.

“I was terrified.” You laughed when you pulled away. “But I’m glad it’s over with.”

You thought the media was the peak of your stress. You had hoped you’d be able to live a normal teenage life. You wanted to focus on Stark Industries, focus on your relationship with Peter. But all of that went out the window with one phone call.

You had been working out at the new Compound when you got the call. It was Nick Fury, calling for the fifth time. You weren’t going to answer but you decided answering and telling him to leave you alone was the only way he’d leave you alone.

“Fury, what do you not get?” You sighed in annoyance, walking through the halls to your lab. “If I’m not answering, that means I don’t want any part of whatever you’re doing.”

“Y/N?” Peter’s voice came through instead. “Hey.”

“Wha- Why didn’t you call me from your own phone?” You asked carefully. You had almost said his name, but you didn’t know what situation he was in. Last time you talked to him, he was at a hotel in Venice.

“This is Earth, Dimension 616. I'm from Earth 833.” A man said in the background. While Peter got distracted geeking out over the idea of a multiverse, you handled something else.

“F.R.I.D.A.Y., you there?” You asked, swiping an image off your table to be in front of you. It had the sound waves from the phone call in the corner along with a photo of Peter and Nick Fury.

“Yes, ma’am.” The automated female replied. “What can I do for you?”

“There's a voice on this call that I don’t recognize.” You explained, waiting for Peter to stop talking so the unknown man would speak again. “He just said he’s from Earth 833. Can you run a vocal database scan when he speaks again?”

“Of course.”

“Never apologize for being the smartest in the room.” The man told Peter.

“Running scan now.”

“Hi, remember me?” You said to get Peter’s attention. “Why did you call me, Spidey?”

“We know who he is, Stark.” Fury said loudly. “Since you wanted to avoid me, I had to contact someone else.”

“You’re asking teenagers to do your dirty work. Why not Thor? Or Steve? Or Danvers?” You countered, waiting for the results of the vocal scan.

“They were born in stable orbits within black holes. Creatures formed from the primary elements: air, water, fire, earth. The Science Division had a technical name. We just called them Elementals.” The unknown man began explaining.

“Results ready.” The automated voice told you. You muted your end of the call and turned your attention to F.R.I.D.A.Y. “My records show that he’s an old Stark Industries employee. His personal information has been removed from the system, but he did exist.”

“Son of a bitch.” You sighed in annoyance. “Can you get me recent seismic activity and spikes from across the globe?”

“We have a spike in Morocco and Mexico in the past few days. And it looks like there was one in Venice earlier today.”

“Venice?” You asked quickly. You looked at the hologram and saw a video of a large being made from the waters in the canals. A man in a cape flew around, fighting it in almost a choreographed way. Then you saw a boy in a plaid shirt and a jester’s mask. Peter. “That’s what Fury wanted from us. To fight whatever the hell that is.”

“And you’re coming with us.” Fury said, most likely directed at Peter.

“Fury?” You cut in. “You can’t be serious.”

“Excuse me?”

“After the Washington Monument incident, if he puts on the suit again in front of his classmates…” You trailed off.

“They’re gonna figure out who I am.” Peter finished nervously. “And then the world is gonna figure it out and then I’m done. Besides, this all seems like big time and I’m- I’m the neighborhood Spider-man.”

“This is Avengers type stuff, Nick.” You agreed.

“Bitch, please.” He scoffed. “Y’all been to space. And I thought you two are Avengers.”

“Yeah, and it turned me to dust for five years and destroyed my nervous system.” You answered quickly. “We don’t want any part of it.”

“Ms. Stark, if I may?” The unknown man spoke. “Prague is-”

“No.” You said simply. “You don’t talk to me.”

“Y/N-“ Peter tried.

“No. I don’t trust him.”

“He’s-“

“He’s coincidental.” You said firmly. “I don’t trust him.”

“So come and meet him.” Fury said and ended the call, as if to say he didn’t need you after all.

You rushed home, planning to take the jet to Venice so you could meet up with Peter and prove a point. You were packing a small bag with a few days worth of clothes, fitting your bracelets to your wrists after a moment's hesitation. You turned to see your parents in your doorway.

“What are you doing with those?” Your dad asked, pointing to your wrists.

“I thought you were done with all that.” Your mom sighed.

“I have a very good reason.” You defended. “You guys know after this-“ You gestured to your arm. “-that I’d need a good reason to put these back on.”

“I’m waiting.” Your dad said expectantly.

“Peter…” You said quickly, an understanding look falling on his face. “Fury hijacked his trip and now he has to fight some “elemental” from another dimension. Problem is F.R.I.D.A.Y. ran a vocal scan on the man explaining it all because he sounded familiar… He’s not from another dimension. He’s an old Stark Industries employee.”

“So it’s all fake?”

“His story, yeah.” You said, picking up your bag. “I don’t know what he’s using to cause the damage, because that much is real. But I need to get there and find out.”

“Take these.” Your dad handed you a small case. “I was coming to show them to you so you could give them to him when he got back, but if you’re going to him…”

“What are they?” You asked, not opening the case but shoving it in your bag instead.

“E.D.I.T.H.”

“Edith?”

“Even Done, I’m The Hero.” He smiled proudly.

“Clever.”

“If Fury is involved, you have to be careful.” He said earnestly. You could tell he didn’t want you to go, neither of them did. But you put on your suit to protect your family. And Peter was your family. “Don’t go with or associate with anyone you don’t know. Don’t know, don’t go. Got it?”

“You never lectured Peter like this.”

“Peter has his- What does May call it? His Peter Tingle. You don’t. You barely have common sense.”

“Common sense and Peter Tingle are not synonymous.” You laughed.

“Peter can sense when something is off. You can’t.”

“Stark Intuition hasn’t steered me wrong.” You winked. “I’ll be fine.”

“You better.” Your mom said firmly. “Because Morgan told me you owe her some new toy.”

“I love you.” You told them, quickly hugging them before heading down the stairs. “Forever.” You turned to look at your dad.

“And ever.” He smiled softly. “And be careful!”

After Happy took you to the airport, he insisted on taking the flight with you. He asked if you were sure about what you were doing, if you were ready to put the suit back on. But once you told him it was for Peter, he eased up on his questions. He told you to be careful to look out for Peter but to look out for yourself first. You waved him off, saying that you’d been through worse.

You arrived in Venice early the next morning. You tapped the side of your glasses, following the directions to Peter’s hotel. As you were entering, Peter’s classmates were leaving. They whispered praises, some thanking you for what you and your dad did. You smiled politely, nodding in response.

“Y/N?” Peter said, coming down the stairs with Ned. “What are you doing here?”

“Surprise.” You smiled widely, jumping into his arms for a hug. “I missed you.”

“I’ve only been gone for like a day.” He laughed.

“Yeah, well.” You shrugged. “Oh, and I have a surprise for you!”

“We’re going to Prague!” One of Peter’s teachers announced.

“You came here because of that, didn’t you?” He looked down at you with a knowing look.

“I came to be with you, Peter.” You replied, lacing your fingers through his. “Is that so wrong?”

“Hmm.” He pondered out loud as you two walked to the bus. “It’s coincidental…”

“I can go home if you’d like.” You teased. He smiled, wrapping his arm around your shoulders to pull you into his side. “That’s better.” You laughed.

“Excuse me?” One of Peter’s teachers said, stopping you from getting on the bus. “Who- Who do you think you are?”

You chuckled before you realized he was serious. When he stared at you with an expectant expression, you cleared your throat nervously.

“I’m Y/N Stark?” You tried, to which he simply shrugged. “I’m paying for myself.”

“Well hop on then!” He smiled, ushering you onto the bus.

You and Peter sat in a row of seats close to the front. His classmates all craned their necks to catch a glimpse of you as they walked by, hoping to get a wave or a word from you. You paid them no mind, focusing on being with Peter. You knew that he’d get roped into whatever Fury was planning in Prague. You knew it’d end up with you getting pulled into it too. But you just wanted to enjoy time with Peter.

“It’s from my dad.” You smiled softly, pulling the case out of your bag. “I don’t know what it is, but I think I have an idea. He called it EDITH.”

“From Mr. Stark?” He said in awe, carefully taking the case from your hands. He opened it slowly, reading the note that was inside. “For the next Tony Stark…” He read out loud. “Edith?”

“Stand by for retinal and biometric scan… Retinal and biometric scan accepted.” The automated voice said.

“Even done, I’m the hero.” You smiled slightly.

Peter looked to you and saw a hologram picture come up on the lens next to your face. The hologram read “Y/N Stark. Successor to Tony Stark and Stark Industries.”

“These are amazing.” He said happily. “How do they look?”

“You’ll grow into them.” You said honestly. “I had to.” You pushed your glasses up your nose.

“Wow.” He breathed, squeezing your hand slightly. “I love you.”

“I love you too.” You smiled, pressing a gentle kiss on his cheek.

He pursed his bottom lip, placing his finger under your chin. He lifted your face to meet his, placing a sweet kiss on your lips. You hummed against his lips slightly, one of your hands moving to the back of his neck.

Fury’s driver pulled over at a rest stop, giving everyone ten minutes to go to the bathroom or stretch their legs. He directed you and Peter to another room, where another one of Fury’s friends were waiting. You sighed silently, shutting the door behind you two.

“Take off your clothes.” She told Peter.

“Excuse me?” You cut in.

“You two said Spiderman cannot be seen in Europe.” She explained, a mild accent in her voice. “So I made this. Another suit.” She lifted a pile of black cloth from the table.

“Okay, Fury and I are going to have a talk about this.” You said in annoyance. You jumped up to sit on the table, flicking the suit to unfold. “Ew… No offense.”

“Take off your clothes.” She insisted. “Now, hurry up!’

Peter hesitantly unbuttoned and pushed his jeans down. You rolled your neck in irritation, not happy that Fury would interfere with Peter’s suits. He knew all of Peter’s suits were Stark products. 

“Incoming student: Brad Davis.” F.R.I.D.A.Y. told you, showing his silhouette on the other side of the door.

“Shit!” You exclaimed quietly, hurrying to pull your long sleeve over your head. “You, hide.” You told the female agent. “You, come here.” You told Peter.

The woman slid to her left, hiding behind a beam to the building. You pulled Peter to you by his shirtfront, hooking your legs around his waist. Before Peter could ask what you were doing, you smashed your lips against his. His hands found your waist easily, pulling you closer to him. You smiled against his lips as you slid your hands down his shirt when you heard the door open.

Peter jumped away from you, turning to see Brad in the doorway. You covered your mouth with the back of your hand to hide your laughter as you saw Peter’s cheeks turn pink. Brad dropped his eyes, muttering an apology and hurrying away. Once Brad was gone, you laughed as you leaned back on your hands. Peter glared at you, running his hand over his lips.

“You knew he was coming, didn’t you?” He asked, quickly pulling his pants up.

“It was either that or let it look like my boyfriend was hooking up with a random European chick on his school trip while I watched.” You shrugged, biting back your laughter as you pulled your shirt back on.

“Did you have to take your top off?” He asked, mildly annoyed that you had been so quick to ditch your shirt. He snatched the suit as you jumped off the table.

“You had your pants off, Peter.” You reasoned. “It looked more realistic. Trust me.”

“My point is-” He tried to explain.

You spun to stand in front of him. You put your hands on his chest to stop him and he looked down at you, a slight glare in his eyes. “I’m sorry, okay?” You offered honestly. “I wasn’t thinking that Brad was gonna see me shirtless. I was thinking that I needed a cover for you having your pants at your ankles. It was the first thing that came to mind… I’m sorry.”

“You’re lucky I love you.” He nodded at you, a smile playing on his lips.

“I am lucky.” You agreed, taking his hand to get back on the bus.

“Hey.” Brad said, stopping in the aisle by your seats. You looked up at him innocently, your legs draped over Peter’s lap. “I just wanted to say, I didn’t see anything.”

“What are you talking about? You furrowed your eyebrows, tilting your head in mock confusion. “Sorry, but should I know who you are?”

“Uh..” He stammered, making Peter chuckle. “I’m Brad, Brad Davis.”

“Okay… Hi, Brad.” You played innocent.

“I- Y’know, back there.”

“Yeah, what are you talking about, Brad?” Peter teased.

“Uh- nothing.” He shook his head quickly. “Nevermind.”

Brad hurried away, now embarrassed. You looked at Peter, trying to hold back your laughter. But once Peter cracked a smile, you burst out laughing. You clapped your hands a couple times, trying to collect yourself.

“See.” You said towards the end of your laughing fit. “Everything worked out.”

Peter nodded happily, leaning his head against the seat as he looked at you.

“What are you thinking about?” You asked softly.

“That.” He gestured to the black suit from Fury.

“It’s ugly.” You commented.

Peter chuckled. ”You know what I meant.”

“Yeah..” You nodded gently. “I know what you mean… You don’t have to do this, Petey.”

“If I don’t, who will?”

“Let that Beck guy handle it.” You tried. “He seems to know what he’s talking about.”

You contemplated telling Peter about what F.R.I.D.A.Y. found when the vocal scan was done. You thought about telling him it was all a fake, that you and him could go to Fury and expose Beck, but seeing the look on his face made you reconsider. You decided to talk to Fury about it on your own, handle it without putting Peter in the middle. You just wanted to focus on being with Peter.

All Peter wanted was a nice vacation, away from superhero problems. He just wanted to be a kid, for a while at least. And now you were with him, and that made it ten times better. But with Fury hijacking his entire class and changing his trip, giving him a different suit. He felt like he had no reason to say no, like it wasn’t enough to not want to do it.

“You know I can’t do that, Y/N/N.” He sighed.

“My dad said for the next Tony Stark.” You continued, pulling the glasses case from his bag. “Not the next Iron Man. Maybe this isn’t your fight, babe.”

“I know…” He whispered, carefully taking the case and opening it to look at the glasses. “But I don’t think I can really say no.”

“Then you’re not doing it alone.” You insisted.

“No.” Peter shook his head quickly. “I can’t- I can’t let you do that.”

“It’s not up to you.”

“Y/N, you can’t be serious.” Your silence was enough of an answer for him. “You can’t be considering putting on the suit again for this.”

“I put on the suit to protect my family.” You shrugged. “You are my family, Peter. You’re not doing this alone.”

“Is this really what you want to do?”

“I don’t think I can really say no.” You smiled softly.

“Dope glasses, Parker.” Flash said from the next row of seats, leaning to take them from Peter’s hands. “How’d you pay for them?”

“Flash, give them back.” Peter said seriously.

“No, I’m really paying you a compliment.” Flash said, leaning away from Peter.

“Hi.” You said from your seat, leaning to the side so you could see Flash. “Um, yeah, so my dad made those for Peter so if you could just-” You paused, crawling over Peter’s lap to reach across the aisle. Peter held your hips as you used the armrest near Flash to lean your weight on. You reached forward with the other hand, taking the glasses from his face. Flash stayed frozen, unsure of what to do next.

“Thanks.” You smiled before pushing off the armrest and letting Peter pull you back into your seat.

“You are amazing.” Peter chuckled, to which you smiled widely as you handed the glasses back.

Later that night, you and Peter were standing in a conference room with Fury, Beck, and the rest of Fury’s associates. You only recognized Maria Hill, someone you had trained with and interacted with back when SHIELD was active. You and Peter stood to the side, by the large fireplace.

“Are we boring you?” Fury asked you two when he got you to snap back to reality. “And I thought you didn’t want anything to do with this.”

“Yeah, well, you kinda made this my business so.” You replied with an eye roll. “I only came here to help him with what he needs.” You nodded towards Peter. “I didn’t come for you.”

“They’re not bored.” Beck cut in. “They’re thinking about how you kidnapped him.”

“He had obstacles.” Fury countered. “I removed them.”

Fury turned to Peter, asking about the plan. You stood by him, not listening to what was said. You had F.R.I.D.A.Y. make notes to remind you later. You kept a loose grip on his hand as he spoke, trying to remember why that man was familiar. You had seen him once or twice before, knowing that he was an old Stark Industries employee only made you feel more unsettled. One line from his mouth snapped you from your thoughts.

“No matter what the cost.” Beck said, almost regretfully.

“I’ve heard that line before.” You chuckled nervously. “You wanna know what that cost is?”

“Y/N..” Peter tried, knowing where you were going. He tried to keep you next to him, but every word from your lips was another step towards Mysterio.

“The cost, Mysterio-” You mocked his sudden interest in the name. “-is more than anything you can pay. The cost is your entire livelihood. Losing what sense of normalcy you had and having it replaced with nothing but pity stares and apologies. The cost is seeing everyone around you treat you like a glass doll. The cost, Mr. Beck, is a piece of yourself that you will never get back.”

“Ms. Stark, I never meant to upset you.” He tried to defend himself. “All I’m saying is that if we don’t stop it now, if it gets too big, it’ll draw power from the Earth’s core and be unstoppable. That’s what happened on my Earth, when I lost my family.”

“Hey, listen.” Peter cut in, gently grabbing your arm and pulling you back. “My friends are here. And I can’t help but think we’re putting them in danger.”

“You’re worried about us hurting your friends?” Fury snapped. “Stark gave you a multibillion dollar A.R. tactical intelligence system! Do you know what that’s capable of?”

“Back off, Fury.” You said angrily. Your temper was already spiking, your anger rising with every second. Your slight altercation with Beck already had you on edge. Now you were ready to fight just about anyone. “You don’t get to talk about what my father’s tech is capable of.”

“It’s clear to me that neither of you are ready for this!” He yelled, pointing to both you and Peter.

“Gee, maybe we tried to tell you this!” You replied loudly. “But you had your head too far up your own ass to realize.”

Fury simply waved you off, not even bothering to turn around and face you. You stormed off, slamming past Mysterio as you left. You muttered that he was a fraud when you passed, knowing he would hear you. You knew it was probably not the best idea to provoke anyone, but you didn’t care. You were seeing red. You had made your way to the roof, sitting with your feet over the edge.

“Hey, dad.” You sighed into the phone, the cool European air settling your burning anger.

“What happened?” He asked knowingly.

“Fury.” You laughed bitterly. “He begs us to come help and now that we’re here, even though we don’t want to be here, he says we’re not ready.”

“Hate to say it but maybe you’re not.” He said softly.

“Not you too.”

“Not in any physical way.” He defended. “But mentally. Y/N, you haven’t been anywhere near a fight in eight months, maybe more at this point. All I’m saying is maybe you jumped in head first without taking a test lap.”

“This guy- Beck or Mysterio or whatever he’s calling himself… He said it has to be stopped, despite what it would cost…” Your voice was sad, defeated. All of your anger had melted into despair, loneliness. You felt as if you were really on your own, even though you knew Peter was on your side. “I just want one thing that isn’t gonna threaten my life… Or Peter’s.”

“I wish I could help, hon.” He said honestly. “Morgan misses you.” He tried to cheer you up.

You chuckled slightly. “Yeah, I miss her too… Peter loves E.D.I.T.H., by the way.”

“Yeah, I figured he would.” You could hear the smile on your dad’s face.

“Why did you give her to him?” You asked, Fury’s implication of E.D.I.T.H.’s capabilities swirling in your head. “As the next Tony Stark… What does that mean? Kinda thought that title fell to me...”

“Well, I- I just figured he’d be the next big face of technology and all that. You have Stark Industries as your inheritance, you know that.” He explained. “You’re always gonna be the next Stark, no matter what or who comes up. And I figured he’s gonna be the future of the Avengers, whether we want it or not.”

“But what if Peter doesn’t want that?”

“That’s up to him… Even if he doesn’t take that responsibility, I can’t think of anyone else that I would trust with E.D.I.T.H., not anyone at all. Can you?”

“No…” You smiled softly as Peter came to join you. “No, he’s perfect.”

“I’m guessing he just showed up so I’ll talk to you later. Love you.”

“Forever.”

“And ever.”

“You alright?” Peter asked when you hung up the phone.

“Stop looking at me like that.” You pushed both hands through your hair, letting out a long breath.

“Like what?”

“Like you feel bad for me.” You snapped, turning to face him. “I get enough pity stares from people on the street. I don’t need it from you too.”

“Y/N.” He said carefully, trying to find the right words. Peter didn’t pity you. He was worried. “I’m worried about you.”

“Why?” You scoffed. “It’s the same thing it always is. ‘Come help us save the world and risk everything you care about.’ Just once, I want to go somewhere because I want to. Not cause I have to.”

“That’s not what that was all about.” He nodded towards the building, signalling he was talking about you snapping on Fury. “You wanna tell me what’s really going on?”

“What do you think, Peter?” You sighed tiredly. You were tired of feeling the way you did. You were tired of feeling sad, feeling lost, feeling afraid. You just wanted to be Y/N Stark again.

“I think… I think you need to just... “ Peter struggled to verbalize. He didn’t want to say something like therapy, because he knew you didn’t even like PT. “You need to talk.”

“I need to talk.” You nodded slightly. “Okay. What should I talk about? The fact that everyone doubts me now? The fact that my dad lost his arm when it should’ve been me? The fact that-”

“Woah woah woah.” Peter interjected. Your eyes went slightly wider when you realized what slipped out. “What was the second thing you said?”

“It doesn’t matter.” You tried to cover it.

“Y/N.”

“It should’ve been me!” You yelled. “Alright!? It should’ve been me instead of my dad.”

“You know Mr. Stark wouldn’t have let that happen.” Peter shook his head. “Why should it have been you?”

“I get people hurt, Peter…” You whispered, close to tears. “My dad… You…”

“How- How did you get me hurt?”

“The beach.” You shrugged. “Against Vulture. That night when he dropped a concrete roof on you. If I hadn’t taken your suit, you would’ve-”

“Stop.” He said firmly. “That night wasn’t your fault. I went after Toomes. I went in because I wanted to stop him.”

“Stop him from taking my dad’s stuff. And that only mattered to you because I convinced you to get involved in Avengers drama.”

“What are you talking about?” He asked, not understanding how any of it could be your fault.

“And Titan.” You continued. Your guilt was flowing out like a river. Maybe it wasn’t actually your fault, but it felt like it was. When you traced back the timeline, you felt like it all led back to you. “You would’ve gone home if I wasn’t on that stupid ship.”

“I was gonna get Snapped away anyways.” He said suddenly. His words shocked you into silence, so Peter took his chance to speak. “All of that was going to happen anyways. Nothing would’ve made it any different. If you didn’t take my suit, it would’ve been easier to stop Toomes but I still would’ve had the shit kicked out of me. If you weren’t on that doughnut, I still would’ve stayed. If you hadn’t convinced me to go to Germany, Mr. Stark would’ve done it himself.”

“That doesn’t change the fact that my dad lost his arm because he wanted to bring me back.” You cried.

“You can’t take the blame for that.” He offered. He wasn’t trying to seem tired of the conversation, but he was growing tired of hearing you blame yourself. As much as he loved you, he hated how stubborn you could be. “Doctor Strange said there was only one way we would win, right? So it wasn’t because of anything you did. It was fate, or something.”

“Fate.” You laughed slightly. “Guess you and I were fate too, huh?”

“Nah.” He shook his head with half a smile. “I did that on purpose.”

“Shut up.” You laughed, smacking his chest slightly.

“You know I can do this, right?” He offered. “You don’t have to do this if you don’t wanna.”

“Yeah.” You lied. “Yeah, I know. Sorry for- for freaking out down there and losing it a minute ago.”

“It sounds like you’re still working through everything… Are you sure you’re alright with this? With suiting up again?”

“No.” You laughed nervously. “Everyone expects me to fight, whether I can take it or not. Cause I’m Iron Man’s daughter...  I’m supposed to get up, y’know? Every time, no matter what hurts or how it hurts. I have to get up… But I just-”

“You went through a lot, baby.” He said softly. “It’s okay to not be okay yet.”

“What if I’m not?” You asked honestly. You had to hold back tears talking to him, now more than you did earlier. Your overwhelming emotions won the fight, hot tears falling steadily down your face. “What if I’m never okay?”

“When I got bit, I thought I’d never understand it.” Peter said gently. He suddenly realized this was the first time he saw you cry, the first time he had seen you so broken. He grabbed your hand, holding it tightly. His eyes were forward, looking at the Czech skyline “I thought I’d never be me again… But with a little time and - y’know - understanding, I started to feel okay. Things won’t be the same as they were before Thanos and the Snap… But you have me and your dad. You have your family, Y/N/N. You’ll be okay.”

“I’m so in love with you.” You said softly, softer than you had ever said any words to him. It made his heart flutter. It made his soul feel warm, his entire body alive with the sensation. It felt so different than ‘I love you’. Somehow, this felt deeper, more intimate. “I love you more than anything.”

“Anything?” He smiled widely.

“Anything.” You nodded, leaning your head onto his shoulder.

“I hope I’m not interrupting.” Mysterio said carefully, suddenly in front of you two. You were worried about how much he had heard, but you figured you had bigger fish to fry at the moment. He gauged both of your reactions, your silence and distant stare compared to Peter’s questioning eyes. “I’m sorry. It’s just that Fury asked me to come check on you two. He feels bad about snapping on you.”

You carefully wiped your eyes, not moving from Peter’s side. He kept a tight grip on your hand, your thumb spelling out ‘I love you’ on the back of his hand. You listened to what Beck had to say, not having anything to say in response. You were too distracted by what Peter had said, that things wouldn’t be the same but you had your family. And you had him. It was that moment where you realized that you didn’t just love Peter. You weren’t just in love with Peter. But you had found a home in Peter.

“Wait, really?” Peter asked in shock.

“Do you guys have sarcasm on this Earth?” He joked. Peter chuckled lazily but you ignored it. “How are you guys feeling?”

“Uh…” Peter paused, thinking of what he wanted to say. “I didn’t think we would have to save the world this summer. I know that probably sounds like really messed up but I just-”

“We’ve been through a lot…” You said carefully, watching the words you chose to say in front of Mysterio. “And now I’m here, with the boy that I really like and I was hoping we could have a normal trip, but that’s not gonna happen.”

“You’re not jerks for wanting normal lives.” Beck offered consolidation, sitting on Peter’s other side. “It’s a hard life. You see things. You make choices. People look up to you… Even if you win the battle, sometimes they die. I like you two. You’re good kids. Part of me wants to tell you both to run away from this, but the other part knows what we’re going to fight, what’s at stake. And I’m glad you’re here.”

“Yeah, me too.” Peter said with a small nod.

“But your friends.”

“I’ll get them inside.” You offered, clearing your throat and trying to gather your wits. “I’ll try to keep them somewhere safe for a few hours. And then I’ll meet you out there.”

“Y/N?” Beck spoke up, drawing your attention. “I heard about what you and your dad went through. I think it’s very brave for you to help us.”

“I’m not doing this for you.” You rolled your eyes, tapping your bracelets together. “I’m doing this for my family.”

With that remark, you slid off the roof towards the ground. Your suit had you covered with plenty of room to spare so you headed off to survey the area. The carnival was taking up most of the city’s center, but there was an opera house a few blocks away.

Being in your suit again, you felt safe. You couldn’t deny the comforting feeling of the nanites, the familiar feel of cutting through the night air. You had yearned for those feelings, for something that felt normal. For anything that made you feel like you weren’t limited. And in your suit, flying over Prague, you felt unlimited.

“Hey F.R.I.D.A.Y.? Any operas in Prague tonight?” You said, looking at the ornate building that you recognized as the opera house.

“How many tickets do you need?” The automated voice responded.

So, with Peter’s teachers getting the tickets and his friends accounted for, you met up with him at the carnival. You let him know where they were and that you told his teachers he wasn’t feeling well. One of them, Mr. Harrington, insisted on going to check on him but you promised to stay with Peter through the night, which wasn’t a lie.

“How’s the suit?” Fury asked over comms.

“Suit’s great.” Peter replied.

“It’s ugly.” You cut in bluntly, F.R.I.D.A.Y. having tuned into their frequency.

“It’s a little tight around the old web-shooter.” Peter joked, making you laugh.

“Parker!” Fury scolded.

“All I’m saying is that Stark suits don’t ride up like that. Cause that’s not fun for either of us.” You continued your critique, standing on a ledge of the bell tower that Peter was on. “Which is why he will only be wearing Stark suits after this fiasco is over.”

“Seriously, Stark?” Fury nagged. “Now is the time to stroke your ego?”

“No time like the present.” You responded easily.

“We have a problem, Boss.” F.R.I.D.A.Y. spoke to you.

“Go time, isn’t it?” You asked, noting steam coming from the fountain at the center of the carnival.

“Seismic activity spiking. Ned, Betty, and Michelle just showed up too.”

“Shit.” You muttered, gliding around the tower to Peter. “We have three problems.” You tried to tell him. Before you could explain, the Fire Elemental burst through the fountain. “Okay, make it four problems,”

Peter and Mysterio busied themselves fighting it and trying to keep it away from the bigger structures. You helped get people out of harm’s way, directing panicked traffic and yanking people from debris.

“I need a scan of that thing now.” You told your A.I. quickly. “This is gonna be the only chance to see what kind of a show Beck is really putting on.”

“On it.” F.R.I.D.A.Y. confirmed. A few moments later, she spoke again. “I’m not picking up any natural life. It’s like it isn’t even there.”

“It’s definitely there.” You commented, cutting through a large piece of concrete that was headed towards you. You saw Michelle heading down an alley, knowing you had to protect her and Peter’s other friends first. “I don’t know… Robotics? Holograms?”

“Could be. I’m detecting some electrical signals.”

“How is fire putting off electrical signals?” You asked out loud, landing in front of MJ. Your mask fell away as you spoke to her. “Are you okay? What happened to the opera?”

“What the hell is going on?” She asked breathlessly.

“I don’t know.” You admitted. “Where’s Ned and Betty?”

“Up there.” She pointed to the peak of the Ferris Wheel. You saw Peter and Mysterio handling the Fire monster near the attraction. “What is this?” She mumbled, picking something from the ground. Looking over, you saw her pick up a mechanical object.

“Got something.” An image flashed inside your helmet before Beck launched himself into the fire monster. “A flock of projectors.”

“A projector…?” You muttered in confusion. You quickly recognized the object in her hands as a projector. “MJ, it’s a projector! Holy shit. Okay, take this with you back to the hotel and I’ll meet you there. Do not lose this and don’t show it to anyone.”

“Okay.” She nodded quickly. “Wait, what about Peter?”

“What about him?”

“Isn’t he at the hotel?”

“Oh!” You remembered your lie. “Yeah, he’s sleeping but I got the call about this and had to deal with it.”

She nodded before running off towards the hotel.

“Put everything on Beck and his Elementals in a folder. Send it to dad and after that, lock it away with retinal scan entry. I’ll get it when I need it.” You told your A.I. as you saw Fury walk up to Beck and Peter.

“Sure thing.”

“There’s a void in this world for someone like you.” Fury told Beck as you walked up.

You stood beside Peter, your suit now placing itself back in its housing units. You waited, listening to what Fury had to say. You tapped your glasses, recording the interaction to put in the folder you were sending your dad. Maybe he could recognize the man.

“You two got gifts.” Fury spoke to you and Peter. “But neither of you wanted to be here.”

“What the hell did you just offer him?” You asked in disbelief.

“I’d love to have you in Berlin too.” Fury continued. “But y’all need to decide whether you’re going to step up or not.”

“The way my dad did, right? When he led your Avengers against Loki in - what was it? - 2012?” You laughed. “You want me because of my dad. Not for me and what I’m capable of.”

“Stark chose this life. He made you and him-” He pointed to Peter. “-Avengers. I need that. The world needs that… Or maybe Stark was wrong.”

At that point, you couldn’t hold back your anger. In one swift movement, you threw a hard right hook. It connected with Fury’s face, sending the man stumbling back into Beck’s arms. Peter quickly grabbed your arm and pulled you back.

The tears filling your eyes weren’t from pain. You weren’t upset or sad about what Fury had said. You were pissed. What you didn’t see was the way Peter was looking at you.

He still didn’t pity you, but he understood what that moment entailed for you. He felt that same deep, hollow feeling that came so quickly there was no way to fight it. He felt that when he was on the ferry and couldn’t fix it, and it was even worse when you and Tony took his suit. He knew what it felt like when you questioned yourself, questioned if you were doing enough. But Peter just couldn’t get you to see that you had met and exceeded your dad’s expectations.

“His portrait is everywhere since he managed to bring everyone back.” You began carefully. “There are murals of him on every building, in every city. Everywhere I look, I see him. If he made a mistake, he would’ve said something. Because unlike you, he’s not afraid to own up to his mistakes and do better.”

“You’re just a kid, Y/N.” Fury argued. “Your dad knew better than to let you on this damn team.”

“You have a problem with me? That’s fine.” You said firmly. “But you are not going to stand in front of me and tell me that my dad was wrong in trusting us! What I am able to accomplish because my dad trusts me is nothing short of astonishing. But you’ll never see that, because you can’t get past this absurd vision that there needs to be a superhero team at the ready. You want a team so bad? Why don’t you call the woman that inspired this whole thing? Call Danvers and have her lead some dysfunctional group of superheroes. Because that man-” You pointed to Mysterio. “-isn’t even fit to work for my family’s business, let alone try to save the world.”

“Come on.” Peter said gently, pulling you away. “Don’t listen to him, okay? You know he’s just trynna get in your head.”

“I sacrificed everything to save your ass and millions of others.” You kept ranting. “My dad and I nearly died to bring all of you back. And for what? To have you stand in front of me and doubt what my dad has done? That’s bullshit. Never disrespect my family and my dad's legacy ever again. Fuck you, Nick.” You spat before falling into Peter’s grip.

“Let’s get a drink.” Beck offered, nodding for you and Peter to follow.

“I’m not 21!” Peter called.

“Drinking age in Prague is 18.” You told him tiredly with a shake of your head, rubbing your eyes as a cover to end the recording. You were emotionally drained, wanting to go back to the hotel and sleep for a year. 

“I’m not 18!” Peter corrected.

“Just go, Peter.” You sighed.

“I’d like for both of you to come.” Beck added. “We did a good thing today. We should celebrate.”

You gave in to Peter’s gentle stare, letting him take your hand and guide you. You both followed Beck to a bar a few blocks over. You tapped your glasses as you sat at the counter, running over your information while Beck and Peter chatted. F.R.I.D.A.Y. showed you that every face in that bar was familiar, an old Stark Industries employee. You didn’t believe that every old employee would move to Prague and start a bar. At least, the faces that were real people.

“Sync screens with E.D.I.T.H.” You mumbled. “Retinal scan confirmation from E.D.I.T.H. first.”

“What do you want, Peter Parker? Right now, I know you’re thinking about it.” Beck pressed.

“I want to go on my trip.” Peter cut in. “I want to go to the top of the Eiffel Tower with the girl I really like-” Peter reached over and squeezed your hand gently, as if to say he was talking about you. “-and just be there with her.”

“But you’re not gonna do that, are you?”

“I have too much responsibility.” Peter sighed.

“I think we could make it happen.” You nudged him with a smile, to which he offered a bright smile of his own. “And if not on this trip, I’m sure I could pencil in another.”

“One without fire monsters, preferably.” Peter teased.

“What about a Stark/Parker family vacation?” You offered, your voice raw from screaming at Fury and all of the dust and ash thrown around in the fight earlier. “A little romance for us, a getaway for the adults. And a culturally enriching experience for Maguna.”

“Culturally enriching?” Peter laughed.

“Well unless she has a little boy toy to bring I had to find something for her.” You smiled lazily.

A woman handed Peter his glasses, saying something to him you didn’t understand. Beck asked about them, telling Peter to try them on. Peter was nervous for Beck’s response, the look on Mysterio’s face showing he wasn’t a fan. You were more concerned with how he could have dropped E.D.I.T.H. and not have noticed. How did you not notice?

“They look really stupid.” Beck commented.

“My dad made those for Peter specifically.” You cut in, trying to buy time for him to see what F.R.I.D.A.Y. was showing you since he had the glasses on. “I don’t think you’re in any position to comment on them.”

“What do you have against me?” He asked, leaning around Peter to see you.

You scoffed, looking over at Peter to see his eyes go slightly wider. He looked to you to confirm what you were showing, a small nod signaling he was seeing the right things. “I haven’t liked you since the moment I heard you speak. This whole thing is very convenient and choreographed so forgive me if I’m not jumping for joy that you’re around.”

“If I wasn’t here-”

“If you weren’t here, we wouldn’t be here either.” You smiled bitterly. “None of this would be here, believe it or not.”

You pushed yourself up, turning to leave. Peter was quickly behind you, asking you about what he had seen through E.D.I.T.H. from your links screens. You two walked to the hotel, stopping only for him to get out of the black suit. He didn’t ask about what happened before you two went to the bar, figuring you’d tell him when you were ready.

He knew you were still processing a lot. He also knew that Fury took it too far by even suggesting that Tony had made a mistake by making you an Avenger. You only wanted to help your family, and you never made mistakes when it came to that. You were probably the best Avenger on the team. There was no doubt in his mind about that.

When you got back to his hotel room, you added the video file and the scan from the bar to the folder you sent to your dad. You added a note saying ‘Please ignore my breakdown at the end of the vid. I’m good :)’. You dropped your glasses and your bracelets on the bedside table and laid flat, letting out a deep breath. You felt the bed dip beside you and saw Peter laying next to you.

“You alright?” He asked simply. It felt like the millionth time you had heard those words leave Peter’s lips in the past 24 hours.

“Do you think my dad was wrong about letting me be an Avenger?” You replied, tears threatening to fall again. Only this time, the tears were from sadness. You knew that your dad partly regretted letting you put on the suit, mainly because of the permanent damage to your arm. But before that, he didn’t seem to regret the choice. You always did good, right? “Was Fury right?” Your voice broke.

“Wh- Y/N, no.” Peter answered quickly, propping himself up on an elbow. “Of course not, baby. Tony knew what he was doing when he let you put that suit on.”

“He has done so much for me, my dad.” You began, staring at the ceiling. Different memories flashed as you spoke. “He has sacrificed so much for me. I guess I owe it to him - to everyone - to pick up the mantle as Iron Man.”

“Tony said he wanted me to be better, right? Remember that day?”

“Yeah.” You chuckled slightly. “You went home in Hello Kitty pajamas and a tourist shirt.”

“That’s besides the point.” He smiled. “My point is, Tony has high expectations for both of us. And you-” He took your hand in his. “You have done right by him every single time. You’re the better one between the two of us, but you don’t owe anybody anything.”

“Everyone wants me to live up to that legacy.”

“What do you want?”

“I want…” You thought for a moment. You had no idea what you wanted in regards to hero work. But you did know one thing for sure. “I want to spend whatever time is left on this trip with you. I want to be happy and make memories. I want to go to the top of the Eiffel Tower and...” You stopped, realizing what was the main thing you wanted. “Right now I just want you, Peter Parker.”

He smiled softly, inching higher to lean against the headboard. “You know, I kinda like when you say my whole name.”

“Oh really?” You laughed, the sad feeling in your heart melting away. Only Peter could make you feel better, even at your lowest. “You like when I call you Peter Parker?”

“Yeah, I kinda do.” He laughed, wrapping an arm around your hips and pulling you to him. “It just sounds so good coming from you.”

“Hmm.” You hummed happily, rolling to straddle your boyfriend. “I love you, Peter Parker. More than anything.”

“Anything?”

“Anything…” You paused, waiting for Michelle to knock on the door. “I’m not gonna lie though… It felt kinda good to have the suit on again.” You admitted.

“Yeah?” He asked softly, a proud smirk on his lips. “You think you’re gonna get back into it?”

“Not sure.” You sighed. “I just know it was the most normal I’ve felt since I came back. I love helping people, but I don’t know what I really want yet.”

“Y/N, when you jumped off the roof today, you didn’t hesitate.” Peter argued gently. “If that’s when you feel happiest, when you feel whole. It’s not something you should give up.”

“Does that make my suit a crutch?” You worried. “Maybe I’m too dependent on it as a safety net and I can’t be without it.”

“What was it that you told me on the roof before the Hello Kitty pajamas?” He pretended he forgot. “Oh! If you’re nothing without the suit, then you shouldn’t have it.”

“And you’re telling me this why?”

“Because. I met you without the suit. I know you without the suit.”

“Without my suit, I’m-”

“You’re Y/N Stark.” He interrupted. “I had a crush on you since I first saw you on TV, and that was well before any suit. When you came to my room to talk me into going to Germany, you didn’t have the suit. When you showed up at my school after fighting on the beach, you didn’t have the suit.”

“Are you trying to convince me to keep the suit or ditch it?” You squinted in suspicion, smiling slightly.

“All I’m trying to say.” He chuckled. “Is that you’re more than a suit. I learned it the hard way, but you’ve always known that. Your heart is what makes you who you are, and your heart is what wants to save people.”

“What if it’s only good for hurting the people around me?”

“How many times has wearing that suit saved your life?” He countered. His expression showing he was tired of the circular conversation.

Obviously, Peter was going to support whatever you decided to do. But to him, it just seemed like what he was saying was going in one ear and out the other. Peter honestly felt like he was talking to a wall, but he knew it was no fault of your own. After what happened last time you put on the suit, of course you’d be hesitant to commit to it again. He just knew how important having the option to wear your suit was to you. And he could tell that you felt that you didn’t have that option anymore.

“More times than I care to admit…” You mulled it over. “I think I do want to start up again… It’s risky, but I’ve known that. It saved me and my dad eight months ago, and I think that’s why I want to put it on. But, I’m just… scared.”

“The amount of time you’ve cheated death already makes me think you’re invincible.” Peter tried to lighten the mood. “Nothing bad is going to happen to you while I’m around.”

“You gonna be my hero, Peter Parker?” You smiled widely, tilting your head in admiration.

“I’ll be whatever you need me to be.” He said proudly, a smirk on his face.

Your phone rang in your pocket so answered it, not moving from your position. Peter toyed with your free hand while you talked to your dad.

“B.A.R.F.” He said when you answered.

“Barf?” You repeated.

“B.A.R.F.” He confirmed.

“Okay but I have no idea what you mean.”

“Binarily Augmented Retro-Framing.” Your dad explained.

“Oh! B.A.R.F.” You realized.

“The guy who worked with us on it? Remember him? Yeah, that’s who’s in the fish bowl.”

“Wait, didn’t you have to fire him cause he was-”

“Unstable.” You and your dad said at the same time.

“That’s exactly what those ‘Elementals’ are. Projections.” Your dad continued. “Also, you put the suit on again. How’d it feel?”

“Terrifyingly normal.” You admitted. “I didn’t think I could or would want to do it again… Tonight might’ve been the push I needed to make a real decision.”

“Which is?”

“I’m making a comeback.” You laughed slightly. “As long as I have you and Peter to support me, I can do anything.”

“What about your mom?” Your dad teased. “We both know I’m your favorite, but I think you’re gonna have to change sides cause she can’t have both her daughters being daddy’s girls.”

“I was born first so Morgan is gonna have to switch.”

“I don’t know. I think she’s giving you a run for your money.”

“Anyways!” You laughed.

“What’s he saying?” Peter asked from beneath you.

“Beck’s a fraud but we figured that out.” You told Peter before returning to your dad. “Fury trusts this guy. He wants to bring Beck to Berlin, help convince some council to form Avengers 2.0. Which means Pete and I are going to Berlin, aren’t we?”

“You’re gonna need Fury on your side.” Your dad sighed. “Take him the folder you sent me and then call me. I’ll show him what I can find in the archives and hope that’ll convince him.”

“Thanks.” You said as a knock sounded on the door. “Gotta go Pops. I still better be your favorite when I get back! Morgan is cute but she isn’t that cute! Love you forever.”

“And ever.” He laughed. “And behave!”

“Who-” Peter began to ask as you climbed off of him to open the door. Ned and Michelle walked in, the drone in hand and shutting the door behind them. “What are they doing here?”

“You’re Spiderman.” Michelle pointed at Peter.

“What?” Peter said softly as you sat on the bed with him again. You climbed next to him, leaning into his chest and placing both of his arms over your shoulders. “No, I’m not Spiderman.”

“I mean, I’ve been watching you for a while.” She said plainly. “It’s kinda obvious.” You nodded slightly in agreement, wondering how no one had caught on yet.

“I’m not Spiderman.” He insisted. “What makes you think I’m Spiderman?”

You had to bite back your laughter. Ned was sitting in a chair across the room, smiling widely as Peter was flustered.

“Washington?” She said as if it was obvious. “The fact that you disappear all the time for no reason?”

“Yeah, I was sick. Remember, I had the uh- The tummy?”

“Susan Yang thinks you’re a male escort.”

That time you had to laugh.

“Of course I’m not a male escort.” Peter defended, covering your mouth to stop your laughter.

“Then you’re Spiderman.”

“I’m not Spiderman. At all.”

“Okay, so what about tonight?” She challenged. “You stayed at the hotel claiming you were sick and Y/N was looking out for you. She comes out to the carnival to fight that thing and I saw you there, too. I mean, Night Monkey?”

“Yeah, who came up with that?” You cut in, moving Peter’s hands from your mouth.

“I was under pressure!” Ned defended.

“Ned!” Peter scolded.

“You couldn’t have seen me cause I’m not Spiderman.” He tried desperately.

“So Night Monkey and Spiderman use the same webs?” She asked, tossing the projector to the bed in front of you two.

As Peter and Michelle continued their conversation as to Peter’s alter ego, you toyed with the projector. You removed the webbing, allowing the drone to spread out and activate. It jumped from your hands, showing the Air Elemental swiping it’s arm through you.

“These are advanced.” You exclaimed.

“But there- there was fire and destruction.” Peter reasoned. “How could someone do something like that?”

“B.A.R.F.” You said with a shrug. When Ned and Michelle stared blankly, you explained. “Binarily Augmented Retro-Framing, but this version of it is paired with some sort of weaponized drone to create real damage. It was a partnered Stark Industry project, something my dad used for an MIT presentation, but the co-creator was a nutcase so we scrapped it. Dad cut him loose and now he’s claiming Quentin Beck, a.k.a. Mysterio, as his new identity.”

“So I am Spiderman.” Peter said quickly. “And we need to do something about this.”

“We can go to Fury soon as possible.” You said, leaving Peter’s embrace to grab your glasses and see his flight details. “You’re not supposed to leave until 11 A.M but you’ll miss the flight no matter what. One of them-” You gestured to Ned and Michelle. “-will tell your teachers you stayed and are gonna fly back with me. But we have to go tonight if we’re gonna get to Berlin.”

“I need my suit.” Peter jumped up, quickly pulling his shirt over his head. He paused at his pants, staring at Michelle with wide eyes.

“Oh, so you can be shirtless in front of M.J. but I’m shirtless to cover your ass in front of Brad-” You joked before Ned cut in. Michelle turned so Peter could finish changing as Ned spoke.

“You were shirtless in front of Brad?” He said loudly.

You waved your hand to dismiss it. “I had to cover Peter’s pants being on the floor.”

“This isn’t the same thing, Y/N, and you know it.” Peter said, mild annoyance tinting his voice.

“The fact that you have to wear that suit is the real issue here.” You commented, using your glasses to get a ride to Berlin. “We’ve gotta get to the train station. Next train to Berlin is in about twenty minutes.”

“Ned, call May. Have her call Mr. Harrington and tell him I’m staying with Y/N in Berlin.” Peter said as he hurried his friends out the room. You placed your bracelets on your wrist again, tapping them to suit up. The familiar feeling sending adrenaline through your veins. Yeah, you were ready to pick up where you left off.

“So cool.” Ned said in awe as your suit covered your body. “Wait, Y/N!”

“Yeah?” You asked, sitting in the open window, now fully suited and ready to go.

“Do you have like, a superhero name? Oh! Do you need a guy in the chair?”

“A guy in the…” You repeated slowly, wondering why on Earth he thought now was the time to bring that up. Peter offered you a look that asked you to be nice. You knew Ned was just excited and meant no harm, but his timing was terrible. “No, I don’t have a name and no, I don’t need anyone in a chair for me. That’s what I got F.R.I.D.A.Y. for.”

You leaned back, falling from the window to the streets below. You let yourself fall a few feet before igniting your stabilizers and guiding the swinging Peter to the train station.

#beaconfalls whb #where happiness begins #peter parker #peter fanfic #peter parker fanfic #peter parker fic #peter x you #peter parker x reader #peter parker x you #peter parker x stark!reader #peter parker x yn #peter parker x y/n #spider-man #spiderman #spiderman fanfic #spiderman ffh #ffh #sm ffh

[petertingle-yipyip]

Where Happiness Begins - Peter Parker

Chapter Eight - Comeback

//WHB Masterlist //

//Series Inspo: @stuckonspidey @cxptain-capsicle // Series Tags: @mc225g @fandom-princess-forevermore @istg-lyssa-stop @im-a-fucking-mess-jfc @olliekookie @rosegoldhome @chubsluda @missmulti @eternaleviee @freerebel @peter-parker-glee-other @disgustangg @jackiehollanderr @imsobored​3000 @eridanuswave​ //

Pairing: Peter Parker x Stark!Reader

Word Count: 7,915 (And this is a condensed version!!)

Summary: Some time has passed since fighting Vulture. Just as Y/N is fully healed, she gets thrown into a battle she doesn’t know if she can handle. All she knows is that she can’t let her dad do it alone. She wants to make sure that even if she doesn’t, he’ll Comeback. But it’s a different story when Peter tags along.

Things had been calm. You knew the calm wouldn’t last forever, but you enjoyed it nonetheless. You had talked to Peter often, having him come to visit on the weekends. You and your dad had finished your nanotech for your latest suit upgrades, along with a few minor tweaks to the Iron Spider suit. Peter helped play with it when he was there and you could tell that he wanted to take it for a test run. Tony wouldn’t allow it and you thought it was kind of funny.

So, you lived a normal life. You helped take care of Stark Industries. You helped Peter with homework. You tried to track down Steve. You tried to contact Thor and Bruce. It was the same things you had been doing, and yet something didn’t feel quite right about your life recently. But you’d never tell your parents that.

You were on a run with your parents one day when your dad wanted to tell you and your mom about the dream he had just had. You noticed he took the housing unit for his nanoparticles, knowing your mom wasn’t a fan of the fact that it was a mock arc reactor. You wondered if your mom knew that you had your bracelets on with your own nanoparticles.

“He’s rambling again, Mom!” You complained as your dad chattered on.

“No, I’m not.” He countered.

“You lost me.” Your mom admitted.

You stuck your tongue out at your dad before smiling in triumph.

“Look, you know how you’re having a dream, and in the dream you gotta pee?” He started over.

“Sure, happens all the time.” You agreed, even though you couldn’t recall that specific sensation.

“Okay. And then you’re like ‘Oh my god, there’s no bathrooms. What am I gonna do? Oh, someone’s watching. Oh, I’m gonna pee.” He kept going.

“And then you wake up and in real life, you actually have to pee.” Your mom finished.

“Yes.”

“Yeah.”

“Okay.”

“Everybody has that.”

“Right, that’s the point I’m trying to make.”

“I don’t.” You interjected.

“You just said you did!” Tony pointed out.

“I lied.” You shrugged. “Continue.” You motioned for him to keep talking.

“Apropos of that, last night, I dreamt we had a kid. So real. We named him after your eccentric uncle. Uh, what was his name?”

“Right.” Your mom nodded slightly as you spoke.

“Morgan.” You answered.

“Morgan! Morgan.” He exclaimed excitedly.

“So you woke up and thought that we were..”

“Expecting.”

“Yeah.”

“Yeah?” You asked quickly. “Did you forget you already have a kid? Hello? I’m right here. Y/N Stark, your pride and joy!”

“No.” Your mom shook her head. “I’m not pregnant.”

“I had a dream about it.” He continued, as if he could convince your mom otherwise. “It was so real.”

“If you wanted to have another kid, you wouldn’t have done that.” She tapped your dad mock reactor. “And you wouldn’t have let her do this.” She lifted your wrist to show your bracelet.

“I thought you were leaving those.” He said to you.

“You bring yours, I bring mine.” You slowly took your hand away from your mom’s grip. “Actually, Mom, I’m glad you brought this up.” You began and stepped around your mom to stand by your dad’s side. “These-“ You gestured between your bracelet and your dad’s chest attachment. “-are nothing. They’re housing units for nanoparticles.”

“You’re not helping his case.” She scolded gently.

“No. She’s right. It’s an attachment. It’s not-“ Tony tried.

“But you don’t need it. Neither of you need that.”

“I know, I had the surgery. I’m just trying to protect us, and any future uses. That’s it.”

“Just in case there’s a monster in the closet instead of, you know,” You shrugged.

“Shirts?”

“You know her so well.” He added. “You even finish her sentences.”

“You guys should have shirts in your closets.” She sighed.

“Yeah.” You nodded slowly, agreeing with her on some level.

“You know what there should be?” Your dad said. “No more surprises. We’re gonna have a nice dinner tonight, as a family. Show off this Harry Winston, right? Y/N can bring Peter. And we won’t have any more surprises. I should promise you that.”

“Yes.” Your mom agreed with a smile.

“I will.”

Suddenly, an orange glow created a circle and a man stepped through the new portal. He spoke as if he you knew you. But then again, everyone knew you.

“Tony Stark, I’m Dr Stephen Strange.” He began. You stepped around your mom, stopping a few steps in front of her. You weren’t really sure if you were protecting her or your dad. Maybe both. You glanced at your dad, who only looked at the man in confusion. “I need you to come with me. Oh, congratulations on the wedding, by the way.”

“So, what? You giving out tickets to something?” You added with lifted eyebrows. “What do you need my dad for?”

“Y/N.” Your mom said quietly in warning. She didn’t want either of you to get involved in whatever the guy came asking for.

“We need his help.” Strange explained. “Look, it’s not overselling by saying that the fate of the universe is at stake.”

“And who’s ‘we’?” Tony asked.

“Hey, Tony. Hey, Y/N.” Bruce said as he stepped around Strange.

“Oh my god, Bruce!” You smiled, quickly running to hug him.

“Bruce.” Your dad said in shock.

“Pepper.” Bruce greeted your mom when you stepped away.

“Hi.” She breathed.

Your dad hugged Banner tightly, not having seen him in years. Meanwhile, you spoke to your mom.

“Mom… I think- I think we have to go with him.” You said quietly.

“No. You’re not going anywhere.” She shook her head and took a tight hold of your wrist.

“I can’t let dad do this alone.” You sighed in desperation, you shook your free wrist to emphasize what you meant. You had your suit for a reason, to help your dad. Your mom knew that, and that was the only way she’d allow you to have it.

“Y/N, no.” She tried again, knowing she couldn’t convince you otherwise.

“I’m sorry…” You turned away from your mom, your wrist slipping easily from her grip. “After you, Magic Man.”

You and your dad followed Strange through his portal where he and his friend, Wong, explained everything. They explained the Infinity Stones and Thanos. Bruce explained what happened to Thor, what he had seen. Tony and Strange bickered about what to do with the time stone. You had noticed your dad’s demeanor and attention shift when Bruce mentioned New York. Thanos was behind New York, why your dad wanted to put a suit of armor around the world.

“Probably Steve Rogers.” Tony said.

“Call him.” Bruce insisted.

“It’s not that easy anymore, Bruce.” You began, shrugging slightly. “The Avengers had a falling out.”

“Cap and I fell out hard. We’re not on speaking terms.”

“And no one’s heard from him in months. He just disappeared. Trust me, I’ve tried to find him.”

“You’ve done what?” Your dad turned to you, irritated that you did that without him knowing.

“Doesn’t matter. He’s gone AWOL.”

Your dad rolls his eyes slightly before pulling out a phone that you had never seen before. He mumbled something before opening it and the only contact is Steve.

“You’ve had this the whole time?” You asked in shock. It wasn’t an angry shock, maybe partly. How could he hide this from you? “That’s what was in the box when that old mailman called you Tony Stank, wasn’t it? The package that you wouldn’t tell me what it was?”

“Tony Stank?” Strange chuckled.

Before your dad could offer a rebuttal, the action moved outside. Before you knew it, you were fully suited up and trying to fight off aliens that called themselves the Children of Thanos. Peter also found his way into the mix and you weren’t exactly thrilled about that. All of you fought them as best you could, but they proved to be quite the challenge. And you thought fighting the Vulture was hard.

“Uh, Y/N? I’m getting beamed up.” Peter said over the comms.

“What the hell?” You turned to see a ray of blue light taking Strange and Peter to the donut shaped spaceship.

“We gotta go, Dad. Like now.” You said before taking off to help Peter.

“You mom is gonna kill me.” He sighed, following after you.

“Unlock 17-A.” You said quickly on your way up.

“Gimme a little extra, F.R.I.D.A.Y.” You asked as you tried to save Peter. “You gotta let go, Pete. We’ll catch you.”

“But Mr.Stark said save the wizard!” Peter reasoned before panting. “I can’t breathe.”

“You’re running out of air.” Your dad explained. “He’s too high up.”

“Yeah… That makes sense.” Peter said lazily before falling unconscious and letting go of the spaceship. The pod for 17-A catches up to him quickly, releasing the Iron Spider suit. Peter quickly comes to and lands on the bottom half of the spaceship. Your dad sends Peter home before you two sneak onto the ship.

“Incoming call from Ms. Potts.” F.R.I.D.A.Y. announces to you both.

“You answer it.” You said quickly.

“Oh my God.” She said to your dad. “Are you two alright? What’s going on?”

“Yeah, we’re fine..” He answered carefully, looking around the alien ship. “I think we’re gonna have to push our 8:30 res.”

“Why?”

“Just cause… We’ll probably not make it back for a while.”

“Tell me you two are not on that ship.”

“Yeah.” He sighed.

“God, no. Please tell me you’re not on that ship. Where’s Y/N?”

“I’m sorry, Mom.” You said sadly. You weren’t one hundred percent sure she would hear, but you wanted to know you said it. “I don’t know what to say.” You admitted.

“Come back here right now! Both of you, I swear to God.”

The call broke off as did F.R.I.D.A.Y.’s automated voice. You and your dad watched from above, trying to think of a way to get the Doctor out safely. Strange’s Cloak appears next to you as does Peter.

“What the hell are you doing here?” You grabbed him by his arm and yanked him out of view.

“You should not be here.” Tony said from your side. “I specifically sent you home.”

“I was gonna go home-” Peter tried.

“I don’t wanna hear it.” Tony shook his head.

“But it was such a long way down and I just thought of her being here on the way…” Peter looked at you with a slight blush on his cheeks.

“And now I have to hear it.” Tony sighed in exasperation.

“A-And this suit is ridiculously intuitive, by the way. So if anything, it’s your guys’ fault that I’m here.” Peter tried to explain.

“Excuse me?” You said seriously.

“What did you just say?” Your dad said with the same tone.

“I take that back.” Peter said quickly. “And now I’m in space.”

“Exactly where you don’t need to be.” You pushed your fingers through your hair.

“You’re one to talk.” Tony glared at you. “This is a one way ticket, do you both hear me? Don’t pretend that either of you thought this through. You could not have possibly thought this through.”

“I did not think this through.” Peter admitted.

“I didn’t have to.” You countered, almost defiantly. “I saw the look on your face when Bruce talked about New York.”

“And what does that mean, young lady?”

“It means that I promised Mom you wouldn’t do this alone. Wherever you go, I’m going. Wherever you die, I’m dying.”

“This isn’t your fight!” Your dad insisted.

“Wait, we’re not gonna die, are we?” Peter asked in concern.

“See him down there?” Tony said instead of arguing with you. You didn’t say anything else on the subject and simply looked back down to Strange. “He’s in trouble. What’s your plan?”

The three of you knelt down, looking between the bars to see the Doctor. You saw the alien man steering the ship. You rubbed your forehead in thought. You couldn’t fire anything at the alien. It could put a hole in the ship or even get Strange killed.

“Did you ever see this really old movie, Aliens?” Peter said suddenly as he stood upright.

After Peter explained his idea, you all got into positions. You watched, waiting for your dad’s signal. It’d be an understatement to say that you were scared. You were hundreds of miles from home, on an alien spaceship, headed to some alien planet, and trying to keep the Time Stone away from Thanos. You wondered how your life had changed so much.

“Could end your friends life in an instant.” The alien concluded when your dad landed behind him.

“I gotta tell you, he’s not really my friend.” You dad said simply.

“Saving his life is more of a professional courtesy.” You added as you appeared next to Strange.

“You’ve saved nothing.” The alien mocked, calling for large objects from on the ship to surround him. “Both of your powers are inconsequential to mine.”

“He has a point.” You leaned over to joke with your dad.

“Yeah, but your boy has seen more movies.” He answered.

You dropped to the floor as your dad shot a missile over the alien’s shoulder. It blasted a hole in the side of the ship, sucking out the alien and the doctor. You shot a wire from your forearm, aimed at Strange’s ankle, but a loose piece of metal knocked the wire off course.

“Loose Wizard!” You exclaimed without moving, knowing that if you got up you’d be gone too.

Peter shoots a web at Strange, his artificial limbs catching him from flying through the hole. He pulls Strange back inside and once they’re both safe, you and your dad shoot nanites to cover the opening. While Peter tried to talk to Strange’s Cloak, you and your dad let your suits return to their housing units and stand in front of the vast window.

“We’ve gotta turn this ship around.” Strange said pointedly.

“Now he wants to run.” You rolled your eyes.

“I want to protect the stone.” He clarified.

“And I want you to thank us. Now. We’re listening.” Your dad added, standing by your side with crossed arms.

“For nearly blasting me into space?” Strange laughed.

“Who just saved your magical ass, hmm?”

“I seriously don’t know how you fit your head into that helmet.”

“You should’ve ducked out. I tried to bench you and you refused.”

“Unlike everyone else your lives, I don’t work for either of you.” He looked between you and your dad.

“And now we’re billions of miles from Earth in a flying donut with no backup.”

“We’re backup.” Peter added form your other side, raising your hand with his.

“No, you two are stowaways.” He shook his head before gesturing between himself and Strange. “The adults are talking.”

“Wh- what is he, your ward?” Strange looked at your dad.

You took your hand from Peter’s and thunked the back of his head. He looked at you with wide eyes and you gave him a look that said for him to shut up.

“He’s Peter.” You introduced him. “He’s not anyone’s ward.”

“Dr. Strange.” He said quickly.

“We’re using made up names!” Peter added. “Then I’m Spiderman.”

“I’m going to kill him.” You said quietly, walking away from Peter and towards the controls of the ship. “It’s on autopilot. Look, it’s self-correcting.”

“Can we control it?” Strange asked. You turned, thinking he was talking to you, but he was talking to your dad. Your dad was lost in thought, staring at the emptiness in front of him. “Stark?”

Your dad didn’t answer. You moved to stand beside your dad, placing a hand on his shoulder gently.

“Stark.” Strange said with more urgency.

“Shut up.” You said in annoyance. You shook your dad slightly. “Dad?”

“Yeah?”

“You okay?”

He offered a small smile before placing his hand over yours. “Yeah, I’m alright. Thanks.” He said softly to you.

“You’re not alone.” You offered.

“I know.” He nodded. “Maybe that makes it worse.”

“Can you get us home?” Strange interrupted.

“Yeah, we heard you.” You said in annoyance, again.

“I’m not so sure we should.” Your dad replied.

“We cannot bring the Time Stone to Thanos.” Strange said like your dad was stupid. “I don’t think you quite understand what’s at stake here.”

Your dad turned on his heel and snapped. “No, it’s you who doesn’t understand that Thanos has been inside my head for six years since he sent an army to New York and now he’s back! And I don’t know what to do. So I’m not so sure if it’s a better plan to fight him on our turf or his but you saw what they did, what they can do.”

“At least on his turf…” You offered support. “He’s not expecting it. So we take the fight to him. You in, Doc?”

Strange paused, looking between the three of you. “We go to him.” He agreed hesitantly. “But if it comes to saving you or your daughter or her lover over the Time Stone, I will not hesitate to let any of you die.”

“Great. Moral compass.” You nodded once before looking to Peter. Your dad tapped both shoulders, mimicking someone being knighted.

“Alright, kid. You’re an Avenger, and not my daughter’s lover.” He stared pointedly at Strange, not wanting to look at Peter. You knew that your dad knew what he was signing Peter up for.

Peter stares in disbelief before smiling widely to you. You offer a smile, but not one with any joy behind it. You knew how dangerous it was to dub Peter an Avenger, especially in that moment. It was suicide to be on that ship. You knew from the moment you stepped inside. But if you did die, you had prayed Peter would live.

You and Peter sat on the floor by yourselves. You had one knee bent, and an arm resting on top. Peter had his arms wrapped around both bent knees and was staring in concentration at the floor.

“I can’t believe you’d be so stupid.” You nagged.

“W- What do you mean?” He replied, taken back by your sudden anger.

“Why the hell are you up here?”

“I- You were- And then I- I don’t know, you were coming.” He tried to reason.

“Peter, do you remember what I told you in Germany? That I put on this suit to help him?” You pointed to your dad, who was bickering with Strange still. “I didn’t do this for fun.”

“I know. I know.” He nodded. “But I can help.”

“You’re going to get yourself killed.” You scoffed.

“I can handle myself, Y/N.” He said. His voice was defensive, with hints of sadness. “I thought it’d be different between us.”

“Why?”

“After that night on the beach, with Vulture, I thought we’d be different.” He wrung his fingers and avoided your eyes.

“Peter, why do you think I’m so pissed that you’re here?” You let your head fall so you could look at him. “I don’t want you to get hurt… Do you understand that we-” You took a deep breath to steady your racing heart and churning stomach. “We might not be going home.”

“Mr. Stark can get us home.” Peter said with certainty. “If anyone on this ship can, it’s him.”

“Peter-”

“He can do it!” He said with more determination. “We’re going to go home.”

“You said we’d be better… Together.” He added when you were silent.

“Well, I didn’t want us to die together.” You let your head fall back against the ship wall.

“Not yet..” He mumbled.

“I hate you.” You said casually. “You do know that, right?”

“Wait, what?” His eyes went wide. “What did- Cause I’m in space? I didn’t- That’s n- That’s not fair!”

You chuckled lightly, taking his hand in yours. You squeezed slightly and Peter laced his fingers through yours. You thought back to what Strange called Peter when he was asking your dad who Peter was, your daughter’s lover. You thought about what that word could mean, the weight it held. You could be a romantic lover, a sexual lover, a platonic lover. So what was Peter to you? Not sexual in any sense, but you’d be lying if you said you hadn’t thought about it from time to time. Thought of Peter in your room at night for more than to get a cut cleaned and stitched. Sure, you loved Peter as a friend. Who wouldn’t? And you knew you had feelings for Peter, but was it enough to call him your lover?

“Come on.” You said when your mind settled. You stood, leaving Peter and the gentle grip he had on your hand. A cold emptiness quickly took place of Peter’s warm hand, but you ignored the itch to reach for him as you approached your dad and Strange. Peter wasn’t too far behind.

Peter knew that wasn’t the time to be thinking of you. It wasn’t the time to remember you falling asleep against him on the plane back from Germany. He shouldn’t be thinking about your hands on his face when you went to his school. And he definitely shouldn’t be thinking about the rasp in your voice after fighting Vulture, and how he found that incredibly sexy. He definitely shouldn’t think about being with you, in every way he could be. Peter was so lost in his thoughts that he didn’t realize people were talking to him.

You nudged Peter when Strange asked Peter how he got his powers.

“Y/N?” Your dad asked, pulling you away from Peter and Strange.

“We aren’t going home, are we?” You asked quietly when you were out of earshot from Peter. You figured he’d be able to hear you anyways, but maybe he wasn’t paying enough attention to find your voice. You swallowed back tears, setting a determined face for your dad. You knew your dad was already scared. You couldn’t let on just how scared you really were. “After we get to Thanos, that’s it for us. Isn’t it?”

“You’re going home.” He assured you. “I’d die before I let anything happen to you.”

“That’s the problem, Dad.” You whined. “I need you to live for me. I know that you want to protect me, but I don’t know a life without you and I don’t want to. I shouldn’t have to.”

“Y/N/N, you’re just a kid. You shouldn’t even be here.” He said softly, pulling you towards him for a tight hug. You let out a shaky breath and shook your head slightly. “Your mother is going to kill me if you get hurt. You do know that, right?”

You laughed sadly. “And she’s going to kill me if you don’t come home with me. Dad, we both go home, or neither of us go home.” You said, not leaving any room for discussion.

“That’s not what I meant.” He sighed, pulling away enough to look down at you. “If only one of us is go-”

“Uh, Mr. Stark?” Peter called, drawing both of your attention elsewhere. “What’s going on?”

“Looks like we’re here.”

“This thing isn’t slowing.” You noted out loud. “Dad!?”

“I don’t think this rig has a self-park function.” Your dad realized, quickly moving to one of the steering controls and sending Peter to the other. “Get your hand into this steering gimbal. Close those around it. Got it?”

“Yup, got it.” Peter said, following the directions and trying his best.

“This was meant from one big guy so we gotta move at the same time.” Tony instructed.

“You might wanna turn.” You said, watching the tall hill coming closer to the ship. “Turn! Turn! Turn!!”

Strange puts a shield around your group, your dad suits up, Peter dawns his mask. You quickly suit up and grab onto your dad when the side of the ship collides roughly. Your and your dad are thrown to the ground, Peter is thrown as well. You reached your hand out as Peter rolled. He grabbed your outreached hand and you pulled him back to you. The ship rattled you all, tossing your bodies enough to hit the ground again. When the colliding stopped, you all stood up carefully and looked at the new planet you were on. You didn’t see Peter around you and part of you panicked. Peter came down from above you, upside down like a real spider.

“Are you alright?” You asked your dad who simply nodded. You turned to Peter who gave you a thumbs up. “Thanks, Strange. I owe you.”

“Let me just say, if aliens wind up implanting eggs in my chest or something, and I eat one of you, I’m sorry.” Peter said randomly.

“Not another pop culture reference from you for the rest of the trip. You understand?” Your dad pointed at Peter.

“I’m trying to say that.. something’s coming.” Peter explained.

Right as those words left Peter’s mouth,a grenade rolled across the floor. The blast sent everyone in a different direction. Through the smoke, you saw three silhouettes enter the ruins of the ship you travelled in. One of them came in yelling and threw a blade that Strange easily deflected. The Cloak attacked the knife man while your dad fights with a different one.

“Next time, Spidey, just say that!” You shouted in moderate annoyance. You looked around and tried to find Peter, but you only heard his shouting voice.

“AH!” Peter screamed as he crawled backwards. “PLEASE DON’T PUT YOUR EGGS IN ME!”

You easily aimed and shot a wire around their ankles while Peter shot a web to pin their arms to their body. Whoever was fighting your dad comes at the two of you feet first, kicking you into each other.

“You go high, I’ll go low?” You tell Peter as you get to your feet. He nods and swings towards their head. You drop to a kneel and kick out at their knees, making them buckle. They couldn’t keep up at first until they fired their weapon and locked Peter in an electric coil.

“Shit.” You mumbled as you hurried to free your dad of the magnet he was stuck in.

“Gee, thanks for the help.” He commented sarcastically.

“Eh, should’ve said something.” You shrugged.

You and your dad stood over the one who was stuck in the Cloak. The man with the gun grabbed Peter, pointing a gun at his head. Strange stood with his magic ready, and their third friend was still stuck in Peter’s webs.

“Lower the gun.” You said firmly, raising your own blaster at him and keeping the other trained on the man on the floor.

“Everybody, stay where you are. Chill the F out.” The man announced. His mask disappeared and you noticed he seemed human. “I’m gonna ask you this one time. Where’s Gamora?”

“Yeah, I’ll do you one better.” Your dad replied, dropping his mask. “Who’s Gamora?”

“I’ll do you one better. Why is Gamora?” The man on the floor exclaimed.

“I’m going to ignore that because that was ridiculous and I’m embarrassed for you.” You shook your head once, letting your mask fall away. “Let him go.”

“Tell me where the girl is, or I swear to you, I’m gonna French Fry this little freak.” He warned.

“Let’s do it!” You and your dad exclaimed at the same time. “You shoot her guy, I blast him. Let’s go!” Your dad continued. The nanites shifted the regular blaster to a canon with an opening bigger than the man’s head.

“Do it, Quill!” That was the man’s name. “I can take it!”

“I seriously doubt it.” You commented over your shoulder.

“She’s right. You can’t.” Strange agreed.

“You don’t want to tell me where she is? That’s fine.” Quill laughed out of stress. “I’ll kill all of you and beat it out of Thanos myself. Starting with you.” He pushed the gun against Peter’s head harder.

“You do that again and I’ll shoot that hand off before you can pull the trigger.” You threatened quickly, lifting your second hand to point at Quill.

“Y/N, wait.” Strange said suddenly. “Let me ask you this. What master do you serve?”

“What kind of…” You trailed, turning to look at Strange.

“What am I supposed to say? Jesus?” Quill mocked.

“You’re from Earth?” Your dad clarified.

“I’m not from Earth. I’m from Missouri.”

“That’s on Earth, dip-shit!” You said in annoyance, lowering your blasters. “Come on, let the kid go.”

“What are you hassling us for?” Your dad asked.

“So, you’re not with Thanos?” Peter asked in a small voice.

“With Thanos?” Quill’s voice betrayed offense. “No, I’m here to kill Thanos. He took my girl. Wait- who are you?”

“We’re the Avengers, man.” Peter said as he dropped his mask. Your chest tightened at Peter being able to officially say he’s an Avenger.

“You’re the ones Thor told us about!” The girl in the back exclaimed happily.

“You know Thor!?” Your dad was relieved to hear that Thor had been around.

“Yeah. Tall guy, not that good looking. Needed saving.” Quill tried to be cool.

“Look, Marty McFly, where is he now?” You asked, mocking his 80’s costume.

After Quill let go of Peter, he explained Thor went  to some fabled forge to get a “Thanos killing kind of weapon”. You helped the girl, Mantis, get out of the webs and apologized for locking her ankles. As Quill wandered the planet, measuring whatever it was he was measuring and talking to your dad, you stood away from everyone. Peter soon joined you with a cheeky grin.

“Don’t give me that look.” You couldn’t help but smile.

“You almost shot a guy’s hand off for pointing a gun at me.” He said happily.

“He was going to shoot you, Peter.” You rolled your eyes in amusement. “I told May I’d look out for you, remember? That includes keeping you alive.”

“You like me.” Peter teased.

“Not right now, I don’t.”

“How long have you been in love?” Mantis asked, suddenly in front of you.

“Jeez, you’re quiet!” You exclaimed in shock. “We’re not- I don’t think we-“

“I felt it! When you shook my hand.” She explained. “You love him!”

“Y/N? Did you hear what I said?” Your dad called out.

“Huh? No, sorry.” You yelled back. “Come on.” You lead Peter to your dad, Mantis close behind.

“Not winging it isn’t really what we do.” Quill commented as you two apporached.

“So you guys actually do something?” You mocked.

“What exactly is it that they do?” Peter asked.

“Kick name. Take ass.” Mantis said confidently.

You and your dad shared a look and sighed internally.

“Okay, look, just get them over here.” You said, trying to get some control of the situation. You and your dad both knew your time to plan was running out.

“Mr. Lord, can you get your folks to circle up?” Your dad said with mock politeness.

“Mr. Lord.” Quill repeated. “Star Lord is fine.”

“Now that’s a made up name.” You joked with Peter, who chuckled under his breath. “Your hair looks cute.” You smiled as Peter blushed. You turned your focus back to the conversation.

“Don’t call us plucky.” Quill stated. “We don’t know what it means.”

“We’re doomed.” You announced plainly.

“Tell them about the dance-off to save the universe.” Drax said with pride.

“A dance-off?” You and your dad laughed.

“Like in Footloose, the movie?” Peter commented.

“Exactly like Footloose!” Quill agreed quickly. “Is it still the greatest movie in history?”

“Was it ever?” You retorted as Peter said “It never was.” You both laughed as Tony spoke again.

“Don’t encourage him, alright?” He said simply.

“Yeah, sorry.” You nodded with a laugh.

“We’re getting no help from Flash Gordon here.”

“Flash Gordon?” Quill interjected. “That’s a compliment. I’m half-human, okay? So the 50% of me that’s stupid, is 100% you.”

“Does your friend often do that?” Mantis pointed to Strange who was cross legged, floating with his head twitching and the stone glowing around his neck.

Your dad went over and got Strange back to reality. He came back with a start, as if he was out of breath.

“What the hell was that?” You asked carefully, hurrying to see if he was okay.

“I went forward in time to view alternate futures. To see all possible outcomes of the coming conflict.” Strange explained.

“How many?” You asked quietly. Something about the way Strange explained it didn’t sit right with you.

“How many?” Peter asked for you.

“14,000,605.”

“How many did we win?” Your dad asked.

Strange looked at you, then back to your dad, then over to Peter before looking back to Tony. “One.”

That fear hit you in the stomach. Something bad was going to happen to either you, Peter, or your dad. You knew you couldn’t live without either of them, whether or not it saved the world. You didn’t care if it was selfish. You didn’t care about the world if it didn’t have the people you cared about in it.

“We’re going to die.” You said to yourself.

“Y/N.” Peter said, tugging your hand slightly. He tilted his head for you to follow him so you two slipped away while the rest came up with a plan.

“I don’t want to die.” You said quietly.

“You’re not going to.” Peter reassured you.

“I don’t want you to die.”

“I won’t.”

“I don’t want my dad to die.”

“He won’t.”

“Did you see the way Strange looked at us?” You said a little louder. “One of the three of us isn’t going home. At least one of us won’t make it.”

“You’re gonna be fine, I promise!” Peter said suddenly.

“Maybe not this time.”

Peter hesitated. He wanted to kiss you, at least once before the fight of your lives, but your dad called you two back. You got into positions and waited for Thanos to arrive. Peter wouldn’t get that chance again.

“If only one of us-” You tried to tell your dad as Strange talked to Thanos.

“Y/N Stark, if you say what I think you’re going to say, you’re grounded forever.” He cut you off.

“I think.. you’ll find.. our will.. equal to yours.” You heard Strange, summoning his magic.

“Showtime.” You said after a deep breath. The fight of your lives.

“Ours?” Thanos asked as you and your dad lead a piece of the ship’s wreckage to come crashing down on top of him.

“Piece of cake.” Your dad commented as you and him went separate ways. “Quill.”

Thanos used the Reality Stone to turn the wreckage to bats and chase down you and your dad. The bats chase your dad into the ruins, while they chase you into the ground. You swat at them, knowing they aren’t real but find them impossible to beat. Until suddenly they’re gone.

“Magic!” You heard Peter’s voice. “More magic!” You turned, trying to find Peter. “Magic with a kick!” Peter flew through a portal Strange made for him. “Magic with a-” Peter’s voice was cut off by Thanos grabbing him by the throat and throwing him into Strange.

You charged into battle, joining your dad in assaulting Thanos with shots. Thanos absorbed the fire within one of the Stones and sent it back at you and your dad. You two didn’t have time to react and were sent through an old wreck.

“Y/N?!” Your dad shouted when he got his bearings.

“Help.” You said with a cough as a piece of the wreck and pinned you down and was weighing on your chest. You held your hand out for your dad, who grabbed it and pulled your free.

“Should’ve stayed on Earth, huh?” He said and you could tell he was using sarcasm to cover his worries.

“And miss the fun?” You joked breathlessly. “Nah. Can’t get chest pain like this back home.”

“The gauntlet.” Your dad commented as you took in the scene in front of you. They had Thanos down to one knee, an arm pinned and his hand with the gauntlet held open. Mantis dropped in, trying to put Thanos to sleep. Even though she put everything she had into it, he wouldn’t go fully under.

You and your dad hurried to help, both of you pulling on the gauntlet. You call Peter over to help and the three of you nearly have it off. Until something caught your attention.

“He took her to Vormir.” Nebula explained. “He came back with the Soul Stone… but she didn’t.”

“Shit.” You mumbled. You let go of your pull on the gauntlet and moved to stand in front of Quill, your helmet now gone and your hands slightly out in front. “Okay, Quill? Hey, you gotta cool it, like right now. You understand?”

Quill looked around you to Thanos.

“Don’t. Don’t. Don’t engage. We’ve almost got this off!” Your dad added.

“Listen to me, Quill.” You tried again.

“Tell me she’s lying.” Quill pleaded. “Asshole! Tell me you didn’t do it!”

“I.. had.. to..” Thanos breathed.

“Dad!” You shouted, hurrying to trade spots with him and Quill moved to push past you to get to Thanos. You replaced your dad in pulling on the gauntlet, and your dad tried to calm Quill.

“We got it!” Peter shouted as the fingers came loose. “We got it!”

Thanos came to and quickly knocked Mantis away from him. He yanked the gauntlet from your hands, sending you and Peter to the ground.

“Oh, God.” Peter lept away to help Mantis when he realized how high she was thrown.

When Quill and his crew are knocked to the side, you charge back into battle at your dad’s side. You both fire blasts at Thanos, but are swatted away like flies. Thanos knocked you both into the ground and using the stones, shattered one his planet’s moons and crushed you both under the rubble.

The air was knocked from your lungs, and your forehead slammed the ground. You were thankful for how the nanites absorbed impact better than old suits, or else you knew something would’ve broke. You coughed heavily as you and your dad tried to shove the piece of the moon off you both.

“Okay.” You groaned as you stood up. “That one hurt.”

“It’s a moon, Y/N. I think it was meant to hurt.” You could practically hear your dad rolling his eyes.

“What are we gonna do, Dad?” You asked honestly. “If we can’t get that gauntlet off, we can’t stop him.”

“And we won’t get that shot again.” Tony agreed, knowing where your head was at. “We just have to hope this is the one where we win.”

“Where the world wins..” You corrected. “But our family loses.”

You turn your attention back to the fight and you see Strange had made projections of himself to surround Thanos.

“Dad.” You said to get his attention. “Your wizard is gonna need some help.”

You and your dad quickly head back and see Strange be knocked unconscious. Your dad sends a replacement hand to keep Thanos from closing his fist as you two land in front of him.

“You throw another moon at us.” Your dad begins, the irritation obvious in his voice. “And I’m gonna lose it.”

“Stark.” Thanos greeted you both. “And the Little Stark.”

“You know us?” Your dad asked.

“I do.” He nodded. “You two aren’t the one ones cursed with knowledge.”

“Our only curse is you.” You commented, small rockets launching out of both your suits.

The rockets go off, blinding Thaons with smoke. You two go on the offensive, kicking Thanos with your super-jet function. Upon landing, you both use that same function to stabilize yourselves as you turn your fists to battering rams and knock Thanos into the ruins behind him.

The titan reached out and yanked off both of your masks. As your suits were recovering, Thanos landed a solid punch to both your faces, sending you flying several meters apart. Thanos used that time to remove the spare hand your dad had launched earlier, and utilized his Power Stone to shoot incredible blasts at both of you. You managed to get a shield up in time, and were only pushed back by the force of the energy.

You spun away and charged Thanos, who simply chuckled. You aimed a kick, and when it missed, you clamped your foot to the ground as your dad was coming in to help. You both landed a battering ram powered punch to the face, cutting the titan’s cheek.

“All of that for a drop of blood.” Thanos commented in disgust.

He knocked you both away, your dad landed farther than you did. Thanos threw punches, landing sharp blows to your face. You threw your forearms up to defend yourself, but the titan didn’t let up. He grabbed you by your helmet, and blasted you with the Power Stone. You knew your nanites had to be losing the ability to recover. It was too intense, too much damage.

You shakily got to a kneel, shooting a repulsor at Thanos. Your dad was by your side suddenly, helping you to your feet and trying to give you time for your suit to repair. You fired again, but Thanos deflected it easily and backhands you both into the rocks behind you. In one well angled blow, he knocked off what was left of both your helmets. You threw your forearms up to block the next, and Thanos took your left arm in his hand. You redirected your nanites to your right hand for a blade and you saw your dad do the same out the corner of your eye. When you swung your right hand, Thanos caught it, turned your around and snapped the blade off. He let go of your left hand to catch your dad’s blade.

Thanos snapped both weapons off and drove them into both of your exposed sides. You gasped suddenly, your breath caught in your throat. A small whimper left your mouth as Thanos back you two both into a sitting position.

“You have my respect, Starks.” He said to you both. “When I’m done, half of humanity will still be alive. I hope they remember you.”

Your head bobbed, you coughed blood. You let your head fall back and your eyes fluttered. The pain was still there, your breathing was hitched. You turned your head, looking for Peter. You couldn’t find him.

“Dad..” You managed, reaching out for his hand. “I’m sorry.”

“It’s okay, Y/N/N.” He nodded, carefully reaching to pull out the blade.

You felt the tears welling in your eyes. You could see the glow of the Stones as Thanos raised his fist. “I’m so sorry.”

“Stop!” Strange yelled suddenly. “Spare their lives… And I’ll give you the Stone.”

“Strange, no!” You managed. “I’d rather die than let him win.”

“Y/N…” Peter said softly, suddenly kneeling beside you.

“Hi, Petey.” You whispered, a sad smile on your lips. “You okay?”

Tony helped you seal your wound before dealing with his as Thanos leaves. You lost.

“Why would you do that?” Tony asked Strange. He wasn’t mad. He was heartbroken. Without looking at Strange, your dad helped you to your feet and carefully passed you to Peter for support. Peter carefully put an arm around your waist as you draped an arm over his shoulders. You tried not to lean too heavily on him.

“We’re in the Endgame now.” Strange answered simply.

“What does that mean?” You asked hoarsely. “Was all of that for nothing?”

“I can’t tell you.”

“Bullshit!” You screamed, your voice breaking. “Did we just get our asses handed to us for nothing? 14 million futures and you can’t say which one this is?” You laughed in disbelief. “And what happened to not sparing our lives, huh? I guess that didn’t matter cause we’re as good as dead right now anyways, right?”

“Y/N..” You dad said, putting a hand on your shoulder. “We knew this was a long shot.” He said gently, hoping to calm you down. Your dad’s voice was calm, and his words were intended to be soothing, but the sadness in his eyes made your chest tight. He knew what was coming. “We did what we could.”

“I guess staying on Earth wouldn’t have mattered, huh?” You asked him with a small chuckle.

“I guess not.” Your dad offered a sad smile.

“Something… is… happening.” Mantis said in confusion before disappearing to ashes.

“Dad?” You said, a sick feeling creeping into your stomach as you watched the others around you turn to ash.

“Tony, there was no other way.” Strange said before fading.

“Peter? I-“ Now you were scared.

Your dad saw it before you did. You were disappearing, just like the rest of them.

“I love you, fore-.” You couldn’t finish before disappearing fully.

Tony dropped to his knees in front of what was left. Nothing but a pile of dust was left where you were once standing. He knew what you were going to say. He didn’t get to hear you say it. He didn’t get to say the rest. You didn’t get to hear it. Tony felt the crushing guilt grip his heart. He promised you a hundred times that day that you’d be going home, that you’d be safe and sound even if no one else was. But he failed. That’s what Tony felt. Like he had failed.

“And ever.” Tony whispered.

“I love you.” Peter said to himself, wishing he had the courage to tell you just a few minutes ago.

Peter felt empty. He wasn’t sad. He didn’t want to cry. Peter felt numb, nothing. He had come close to losing you more times than anyone should in the short amount of time that he knew you, and now you were really gone. Who would answer his calls when he couldn’t sleep? Who would ask him for help in Physics that they really didn’t need? Who would suit up at 3 a.m. just to hang out on top of a skyscraper? He shouldn’t have hesitated.

“Mr. Stark?” Peter said as he realized he’s fading too. Peter felt it coming. His super healing tried to save him, tried to fight back. But not even Spiderman could cheat this death. “I don’t feel so good…”

“You’re all right.” Tony said, trying to keep the panic out of his voice. He already lost his daughter. He couldn’t lost Peter too. “You’re gonna be okay.”

“I don’t know what’s- I don’t know what’s happening. I don’t-“ Peter fell forward into Tony’s arms. Peter didn’t fully understand what was happening, and that scared him the most. “I don’t wanna go. I don’t wanna go. Mr. Stark, please. Please, I don’t wanna go…. I’m sorry.” Peter’s fear-filled rant ended as he faded from Tony’s arms too.

Tony looked at his hands, your ashes on one and Peter’s on the other.

“He did it.” Nebula confirmed sadly.

Tony sat in silence, mourning the loss of his only child and the kid that meant more than anyone thought he would. In those moments, he realized he didn’t know if Pepper had survived. Had he just lost everything? Would what he had left be enough compared to what he lost? Would he ever get home to find out?

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