"So let me get this straight," Peter began, confusion clearly clouding his face, "there are multiple universes, just like ours, with the same people, but different timelines?"

Mysterio nodded. "You've got it right."

"Alright then..."

The young hero was clearly still confused but didn't want to bother Mysterio with so many questions. Peter just fell silent. This supposed multiverse meant that there were multiple copies of every one. That both freaked him out and made him curious. What would happen if the universes collided and suddenly there were two of everyone? This was something he wanted to know but doubted he ever would.

"Okay, great. Well, I'm sorry, but I don't really want to fight people right now. I just want to go back on my vacation with my friends," he muttered, standing up. "It was nice to meet you though."

Peter Parker walked out of that building, thinking that that conversation was the last of everything he would have to deal with.

It was not the last of what he dealt with.

No less than two days later, Spider-Man was swinging around the city, trying to avoid the giant portals being thrown at him. He knew what they were. They were tunnels into the multiverse and he also knew that if he got stuck in one, there was a good chance of him not coming back. Dropping to ground and flinching as his body hit the hard concrete, he had to jump up to a building to avoid being sucked right in.

He wasn't sure why he ever thought to trust Mysterio. Sure, some things he had been telling the truth about, but most were just complete lies. Unfortunately, he hadn't been lying about how the tunnels to the multiverse worked and were now trying to trap him inside one. He shot a web towards another building only for mid-swing to have five portals to random universe open up right in front of him.

Even though Peter tried, he fell right into one, it closing behind him and he was quickly knocked unconscious as he hit the rooftop of a building.

When the young hero woke up, his first thought was how the hell he had gotten back to Queens.

He knew exactly where he was. Only a few blocks from here was his apartment. He must have gotten knocked off his feet and hit his head during a fight. But he had been in Rome fighting Mysterio! The realization of what had happened hit him hard. He was in an alternate universe. He was stuck in the multiverse with no way back!

Peter started to panic, having no idea what to do. The AI in his suit, however, was trying her best to calm him down. "Peter you need to breathe. Take deep breaths to help slow everything down and allow yourself to think. In. Out. In. Out. In. O-"

She was promptly cut off by Peter. "Karen! I can't! I- I can't!"

When that failed to calm Peter, Karen did what she needed to do and what she was saying programmed to do. In almost every protocol, the default for an emergency was Tony Stark. So she called Tony Stark. Except lately, Tony Stark never came. Tony Stark was dead. And then the call was answered.

"Hey, kid. What's going on?" Tony's voice came through the mask.

Peter froze for a second at that. "M- Mister Stark?" he whispered.

"Mister Stark? Really, Pete, I thought we were way beyond last names," a jesting tone came from the billionaire. "Now really. What's wrong? Karen hasn't contacted me because of anything for months. Are you okay? You better not be calling to cancel movie night on me."

"No. I'm not," he muttered through a sob, tears starting to fall. "I'm not okay."

It took Tony two seconds to decide what to do. "Stay where you are. I'm coming to you. Just hold on son. FRIDAY, get me Peter's exact location. I'll be there in a minute okay?"

Peter found himself unable to respond as he sat on the roof sobbing. Yet true to his word, it was only a few minutes before the Iron Man armor landed on top of the building and Tony stepped out only to kneel down by Peter and pull him into a tight hug. The young super sobbed into his shoulder, mask lying discarded on the ground next to him and his hands grasping at his shirt desperately. Tony held him close, rubbing his back.

"Just breath. I'm here Peter. What's going on? What happened?" he asked in a hushed tone, remaining calm, but worries for the boy. Peter however just continued to cry, showing no signs at all of stopping. "FRIDAY scan Peter for injuries," he spoke softly.

"There is some slight bruising up his left side and he has a minor concussion."

"Nothing too bad then," he said softly. "Let's get you back to the tower so you can rest and then we'll talk," he muttered.

With no response from Peter, Tony stepped back into the suit and quickly shot off towards the tower with Peter.

Peter hardly noticed the entire ride to the tower. All he knew is that Tony Stark was alive. He was alive and was actually holding Peter for the first time in months. When they reached the tower, Tony placed him carefully on a couch and exited the suit.

"Pete, buddy, are you with me?" he asked, wiping away his tears. "What happened out there?"

Finally sitting up, he opened his mouth to explain, but his mouth and throat were terribly dry. "Need water... Mister Stark, please," he croaked, feeling terrible for being so needy, but also feeling safe because this was Mister Stark. He would take care of him.

"You got it buddy," was all the billionaire said in response as he stood up, promptly bringing him back a glass of water.

The teenager took it, hands shaking slightly, and brought it up to his mouth, gulping the water down. "Mister Stark," he said again, this time clearly and not pained. "You're alive."

"Of course I'm alive kid. It's only been two days since you last saw me. Pepper would have contacted you if something had gone wrong."

"You're not... You're not the Tony Stark I know," he whispered. "I'm from another universe. Mysterio trapped me here. I panicked and Karen did what she's programmed to do. She called you. When Mysterio said that each universe had the same people, I didn't realize that could mean that you were still alive."

"I'm sorry, what?" he looked at Peter, completely bewildered. "Mysterio? Different universe? What in the world are you talking about?"

Peter took a deep breath. "Mysterio is a villain from my universe. He told me a few days about this thing called the multiverse, made up of multiple universes that are all the same, yet different. In my universe, you're dead," he whispered somberly. "You died several months ago. Against Thanos, you snapped and it was too much and you died," he whimpered.

"Mysterio disguised himself as a good guy. We all trusted him. Then he started trying to trap me in a different universe so I couldn't foil his plan and it worked. Now I'm stuck here and I have no way to get back," he whispered, looking down. "I'm so sorry for bothering you Mister Stark."

Tony was slightly astounded by the story. "Hey. Don't apologize. I don't care if you're from this universe or not. I'm still going to help you."

"Really?"

"Yes of course. On one condition. Don't call me Mister Stark. My name is Tony. Use it."

Peter's eyes lit up. "Thank you, Tony," he threw his arms around his mentor's neck.

"No problem kid."

Hey, lovelies! It didn't take me long to go and find a prompt on Tumblr to write! You can find me there as StolenAvalanche. This was so much fun to write and this is only part one. Part two should be out in a few days. I am leaving on vacation on Wednesday though, so it may not be until Saturday night until the final product is up.

Best Regards,

DiamondHexagons3000