The man cornered him after school with a strange accent and a badge and asked him to help stop The Winter soldier.
He'd seen it all over the news. Sergeant Barnes had been spotted fleeing after the explosion at the Sokovia accords. It was an honour to be asked to help, although he was a little worried about how they knew who he was.
"Can you do this?"
Peter opened his mouth to answer, only to hesitate when something glinted off the man's badge. Was that...blood?
He frowned before the man pulled it away and straightened. His eyes were impatient, his tone hard. "Will you come with me or not?"
Peter nodded, taking the suit offered and straightening his shoulders. "Yeah, I'll help."
He said he was from the government, and that he needed Spider-Man to keep people safe. Who was he to say no?
…..
"It's really cold here, I don't know that I do too well in the co-"
"What did I say about talking?"
Peter stepped back at the harsh tone and dipped his head. "Sorry."
"Put your mask back on, and don't speak to them at all. Just keep them occupied. That is your only job."
The heavy metal doors opened, and the man stepped forward, not bothering to look back as he spoke. "Stay here for a moment."
Peter did as he was told, liking the man less and less, and feeling less confident about what he was supposed to be doing as time went on, but he stayed.
It was so cold, he couldn't stop shivering but he did as he was told and put the stiff black mask on. It covered the lower half of his face, coming right over his nose, so only his eyes were visible above it. The man had given him black gear to wear too, with black goggle type glasses to hide his eyes. They didn't do much to help his senses but they protected his identity, so he didn't argue.
He wished he had his own Spider-Man suit. He didn't look like Spider-Man at all, he wasn't even allowed to bring his web shooters.
If he really thought about it, he looked more like The Winter soldier.
He shivered, scuffing his heavy black boots in the snow before he flinched as gunshots rang out inside the building. But there was no return fire, just five distinct shots. It chilled him far more than the cold did.
….
They came in just like he said they would and Peter tried his best to keep his cool. He wasn't really sure how to feel.
Captain America and Tony Stark were there, right in front of him. But The Winter soldier was there too, and the news said that Captain America was a fugitive now. He wasn't sure whether to be afraid or excited to see them. Especially since it was his job to keep them from leaving.
To be honest, he wasn't sure if he could stop them on his own, but he wasn't going to back down no matter how scary Cap's friend was.
He stood in the middle of the room, while the man talked from inside his booth, safe. Steve and Tony seemed to get angrier with every word he said. Peter didn't understand a lot of it, but he kept careful watch of Sergeant Barnes, who stared at him with cold, almost frightened, eyes.
…
Bucky wasn't sure what he was expecting when he walked in. but it wasn't another winter soldier. He knew there were others, but he'd never seen the one before him.
Steve lifted his shield a notch, but the figure didn't move.
"You know this guy?" Tony's voice was hushed, and Bucky shook his head minutely, not wanting to alert the other version of him.
Steve watched the eerie figure, trying to determine how much of a threat it could be. He didn't appear to have any weapons, and he was smaller than the normal soldier, slimmer too. Bucky was bulky, as were the other, murdered figures in the tanks.
Something wasn't right.
"If it's any consolation, they died in their sleep." Zemo's voice came over a speaker, and the sight of the other soldiers killed in their capsules made Bucky jumpy. He pulled his weapon up, readying it to fire at anything that might jump out.
His memories of the place were all jumbled, as were the memories of training the other super soldiers, but he was sure he didn't recognise the figure ahead.
Zemo finished his speech and tapped his ear. Steve could see his mouth moving but didn't hear him speak, but the figure ahead of them appeared to, tilting his head and giving a slight nod.
And then Zemo was escaping while the soldier ahead of them charged.
He was surprisingly fast, and Bucky immediately drew his weapon, as Tony flew off to stop Zemo.
Bucky fired at the black-clad figure, only for him to leap into the air and dodge the bullets. He moved so fast and was so agile he even dodged Steve's shield when he threw it, and instead caught it and flung it back, striking Steve in the chest and sending him skidding backwards.
Steve let out a grunt, and righted himself, taking up his shield once more. His voice was lowered for only Bucky to hear. "He's strong. Our kind of strong. You sure you don't remember him?"
He lifted his gun, firing again, and watching as the figure leapt onto the wall and crawled along the surface, before ripping a piece of metal from the wall and sending it soaring his way.
Bucky rolled out of the way before it could lodge itself in the floor where he'd been standing, Strong was an understatement.
Bucky shook his head as the figure peeled more metal from the wall. "He's not a winter soldier. He's not trained the way we were."
Steve dodged another projectile. "How do you know?"
Bucky lifted his weapon and lined up the shot. "We were trained to fight head on and to use weapons. This guy's not armed, and he's staying back. Also, we don't stick to walls."
Bucky fired, just as the figure seemed to switch tactics. It peeled a piece of the wall away, using it as a shield as he sprinted across the room, before throwing it towards Steve and rushing Bucky.
Steve was knocked over by the metal, for just a moment, as Bucky took on the mysterious figure. Steve was right, he was fast and incredibly strong, and he ripped the gun from Bucky's hands and flung it across the room, before throwing a few punches.
Bucky could take a hit, but the strength the soldier possessed sent his back a few steps. He swung his metal arm forward, with all his strength, only for it to be caught in a quick hand.
The other hand came to throw another punch but it left him open, so Bucky dodged the hit and pulled out his knife, thrusting it forward into the figure's stomach. He ripped it out as the hand let go of his metal one, the man stumbling back with a gasp.
But Bucky didn't stop, adrenaline pumping through him as he moved with swift determination, gripping one of the figures arms and twisting it behind his back, pulling it up until it popped and something inside snapped.
His victim screamed, and Steve called out to him to stop, but Bucky's mind was slipping and he let go of the arm, to instead wrap his own around his target's throat. Their knees crumpled as he pushed them to the ground and he gritted his teeth as he squeezed until the screaming stopped and the figure started to squirm, desperate for air.
"Bucky stop!"
Something inside him snapped back to reality and he blinked to see Steve's frightened face in front of his.
His grip was tight around his missions...it wasn't a mission, it was a person. He pulled his arm back, getting to his feet as the figure slumped to the ground.
Steve knelt next to him, hands gentle as he helped the figure lay on the floor.
Bucky dropped the knife and gestured to the man. "He was going to kill us, Steve."
He frowned in confusion as the figure let out a sob, between his desperate lungfuls of air. Definitely not a winter soldier.
Steve looked up at him, eyes wide. Buck, he's a kid."
Another whimper came from beneath the mask, as Steve reached for it, fingers carefully pulling it away to reveal...god what had he done?
Bucky took a step back, feeling sick. "Shit."
Steve leant over the boy and quickly began tearing his jacket into pieces. His voice was soft, as he gently pushed that trembling hand away from the stab wound, and pressed the ruined bits of jacket there instead.
"You'll be okay, just hang on."
The boy moaned in pain at the pressure, his bad arm lying crooked beside him. His voice was high and wet with tears. "I can't let you kill anyone else. I have to-ughh-have to stop you."
Steve shook his head, pressing harder on the kid's stomach. "We didn't kill anyone. We aren't the bad guys."
Tears rolled down the kids temples, as he gasped, words thin. His frightened eyes found Bucky, even as he addressed Steve.
"He blew up the meeting for the-"
Bucky tried not to sound so scary as he answered, but the kid still flinched at his quiet voice. "That wasn't me. I don't want to hurt anyone."
He knew it was a stupid thing to say after almost killing a kid, but it was the truth.
Steve nodded. "I promise, we didn't mean to hurt you but you attacked us. How old are you? What's your name?"
"Peter Parker?" Tony flew back in, lifting the face plate on his suit to stare at the kid on the floor. Those bright eyes widened at the name.
"Y-you know me?"
Tony nodded, coming to kneel beside him. His hands hovered over that fragile form. "Yeah, I saw you doing your thing on youtube. I was going to recruit you for the fight, but when I got to your place your Aunt said you were away on some school trip. You're the spider...thing right?"
Peters' eyes went wide, and Steve nodded at him encouragingly. "It's okay."
Despite having just fought him, it was impossible not to trust Captain America. He sucked in a breath., his answer shaky as he began to tremble all over.
"Yeah, I'm Spider-Man. That guy is an agent, he told me I had to come and stop you. The news said you broke the law and were helping your friend escape."
Steve shook his head and tried not to show how bad the situation was getting.
"That man wasn't an agent. He's the one that blew up that building. He tricked you, Peter."
The boy's eyes were beginning to grow glassy, and he let out a sob as he scrunched them closed.
"I'm sorry."
Tony shook his head, as Steve cursed and added more shreds on Peters jacket to the wound.
"It's okay, it's not your fault. I talked to your Aunt, she said you're a good kid. You'll be okay, we'll get you some help."
His Iron-Man suit retracted away from his hand so that he could gently brush away the tears running down Peters temples.
Steve cursed again under his breath. "We need to get help here now, he's going into shock."
Tony nodded, noting the way Peter was shivering, his cold clammy skin, and the way his words began to slur.
"S'okay, I heal f-fast."
Tony slid his faceplate back down and began speaking to Friday, calling in for help and a med team.
Peter blinked up at the hero's above him, as the pain began to make the edges of his vision blur and stain like ink.
His mouth felt clumsy as he tried to speak, and he tasted copper on his tongue. "M'sorry I hit...you."
Steve lifted a hand from the makeshift bandages and pressed two, blood-stained, fingers to Peters' neck to feel the fluttery pulse begin to fade.
"It's okay, kid. Everything's okay, I just need you to stay awake. Can you do that? Open your eyes, Peter!"
Bucky clenched his jaw shut, as he tried not to vomit. He squeezed his hands into fists as he watched blood drip down Peters side, and stain Steve's hands. It was his fault, no matter how red Steves hands were, that kids blood was on him. He should have known he'd lose control again.
Peters' eyes blinked up at the swirling colours above him, everything blurry and far away. He shivered, breaths dragging in through his blood-stained teeth.
"I don't like the cold."
His eyes slid shut, as Steve called out to him. "No, no, no. Come on, kid! Wake up!"
The medics came ten minutes later.
…..
Peter experienced the world in flashes and brief bursts of consciousness. Pain, hands, voices, more pain.
He was run through with agony, lighting up every nerve ending in a lump of him supposedly meant to be his arm. He heard a scream, his throat tearing apart, as hands pressed against him, and voices crowded the air.
"-get that line in!"
"-eart rates dropping!"
"Peter stay aw-"
It faded away, and there was nothing but blackness before the voices returned. It wasn't so noisy, and it didn't hurt so much but he still couldn't open his eyes.
"He's going to be okay. He's healing faster than I expected him to. I don't even think any of it will scar."
"Thank you so much, Doctor. When will he wake up?" That voice was familiar, but Peters thoughts melted too fast to form anything solid.
"We hope soon, but the cold and the blood loss took a toll on him, and he just needs time to get stronger."
The voices faded again, giving way to new ones.
"I don't care what you have to do, just get that Maximoff girl here...because I have a kid that...if he remembers what happened he could be...yes, so just send her here, already."
Something was being pulled from his throat and out his mouth, but he didn't stay awake long enough to find out what it was before more voices came.
This one was softer and accented. "How much do you want him to forget? I can erase the- he can hear us."
The more familiar voice came closer. "He can? Is he waking up?"
"No. He's...swimming." He could hear the smile in her voice, and Peter supposed that swimming was an accurate description of what he was doing. He didn't feel tethered to consciousness, and simply drifted where he pleased. He only knew he had a hand because someone with delicate fingers and soft skin, took his and gently squeezed.
"Hello, Peter. It's nice to meet you. I'm sorry you won't remember me."
He was sorry too. She sounded nice. He wished he could squeeze her hand back.
"Its okay, it's just because they want to keep you asleep. Steve said it will help you get stronger. I'm going to take some of your memories now so that you won't remember what happened to you, or what you did. It won't hurt, it will feel like a dream. You'll wake up, and it will drift away before you can translate the colours and feelings into meaning. Think of something safe, Peter. All of this will be gone when you wake up. It will be like it never happened."
Images drifted into Peter's mind, pulled from his happiest memories. May's smile and his mother's soft hands. His fathers rumbling voice telling him everything would be okay. He was safe.
…
Knock. Knock. Knock.
Peter jerked awake, pulling a hand to his stomach as he gasped. Something had happened….something had...Peter blinked around at his bedroom. He had been sure something was wrong but when he tried to think about what it might have been it just...slipped away.
He looked down to where he was clutching his stomach, confused about his own actions.
"Peter, can you get that?"
Knock. Knock. Knock.
Peter quickly scrambled from his bed and padded out to where May had called from. She was trying to smother a small fire that had taken over one of the frying pans but looked over at him as he entered.
"Oh, honey you still look so tired. Are you feeling any better?"
Peter frowned and watched her race around the kitchen. "What?"
Her eyebrows creased in concern, as she ditched the pan and went over to place a hand on Peters' forehead. "You were so out of it when you came home last night, you went straight to bed. How hard did they work you on that school trip? I thought camping was supposed to be relaxing."
Peter pushed her hand away, catching sight of the flames still licking at the, now black, contents of the pan and pointing to it. "What camp? May, the fire."
May quickly ran back over to it and slammed the lid on, pulling it off the element. "I got it. Go get the door, will you?"
Knock. Knock- "Coming!" Peter called out tiredly, still trying to sort through the bizarre conversation when he pulled open the door.
"Hello, Peter."
Peter blinked up at the man in the doorway, frozen in shock. "M-Mr Stark? You know my name?"
He smiled, looking Peter up and down before patting his shoulder, seemingly pleased with what he found. "Yes, I know a lot about you. I should since I'm offering you an internship, don't you think?"
Peter's mouth fell open as May appeared behind him. "Oh, Mr Stark, nice to see you again. Peter, let him in."
Peter stumbled back as Tony entered.
"Um, what-what is this about? Exactly?"
Tony turned to May, charming smile on his face that she was definitely not falling for. "Would it be alright if I talked to Peter for a little bit?"
May nodded, going back to her failed breakfast as Peter led Tony to his room.
Tony locked the door and turned to the stunned teenager, a knowing smile on his face. "So, Spider-man huh?"