The early morning sun was just peaking over the horizon when the orange panel van pulled up to the front of the Compound. Peter attempted once again to rub the sleep from his eyes as Scott and Cassie Lang hopped out. Peter envied the bright and energetic nine-year-old that bounded towards him.
"PETER!" She squealed, running towards the teenage superhero. Peter instantly shook his exhaustion off and let a huge cheesy grin spread over his face.
"Cassie-bug!" the boy barely opened his arms in time to catch the girl as she launched herself towards him. Peter spun with the extra momentum as Cassie wrapped her arms tightly around the young Avenger. Scott chuckled as he waved a greeting to the boy.
"Mornin' Pete!" The older man clapped Peter on the back as Cassie was lowered back to the ground. "Man, I can't thank you and MJ enough for agreeing to watch Cass this weekend while I work."
"Don't worry about it, man. It'll be great. We'll play video games, and eat tons of sugar, stay up late. Ya' know, responsible adult stuff." Peter shrugged as he shoved his hands into the pockets of his Stark Industries hoodie.
"I'd expect nothing less." Scott leaned down to lock eyes with his daughter. "I'll be back Sunday afternoon to pick you up and resume our great adventure in New York, okay?" Cassie nodded vigorously. "And be good for Peter and MJ, alright, bug?"
"Okay, Daddy." Cassie hugged the man before leaping back to Peter's side. Scott wiped a fake tear from his eye and giving an exaggerated sniff.
"I just don't know how I'm gonna survive without you," Scott whined as he walked backwards towards the van and made a heart shape with his hands as he drove away.
After a brief pause, Cassie jumped up and dashed towards the entrance.
"LET'S GO PLAY VIDEO GAMES!" she shrieked. Peter laughed and turned to chase after her.
"Cassie, it's like, not even seven, it's way too early for video games!" His call, however, went unheeded as the girl made her way towards the living quarters where they would be staying, steadfastly ignoring the stares from various staff as the two raced through the halls.
Pepper's heel clicked rapidly against the grey floors of the kitchen.
"I've pumped what should be plenty of milk for Morgan this weekend, but if you do happen to run out there's formula in the cabinet here." The strawberry blonde chattered as she paced around anxiously. MJ was watching her closely from the breakfast bar while Tony was sat at the table, Morgan cradled gently in his arms. He was forced to sit down by Pepper after he began to question if they should leave at all.
MJ had originally harbored something akin to hatred for Tony. For the empire he ran and his flippant and careless personality. She hated him for dragging Peter into a world she thought he had no business being involved in. For his womanizing past, there were plenty of reasons, and while she was still in no way his biggest fan, she understood a lot more about Tony now than she ever thought possible. The gentle way he handled Morgan and Peter was something she didn't think she'd ever get used to seeing, but it made her respect the man more. She was snapped out of her thoughts when Pepper began speaking to her again.
"FRIDAY knows her sleep schedule, so just ask her if you need to know anything. Call if you need to, but go to her first." The woman ran a hand through her hair. "I think that's everything." Pepper cast a longing look at her baby girl just as Cassie and Peter thundered into the common room. The death glare that both Tony and Pepper shot at the two caused them to freeze in their path. Peter hissed slightly as he placed a gentle hand on Cassie's shoulder.
"Shoot, sorry, Mr. Stark, Ms. Pepper." Peter giggled slightly as Cassie trotted towards the couch in front of the massive flatscreen TV.
"Kid." Tony seethed quietly. "If she wakes up it's on you and your girlfriend." Peter nodded when MJ's glare joined the already two pointed ones directed at him. Pepper softly clapped her hands against her thighs.
"Alright, Tony, if we don't leave now we never will. Let's go." Tony stands and shifts Morgan into MJ's arms.
"I can't believe I'm leaving my child in the care of another baby." Tony snapped playfully at Peter. "You think you can handle these three kids on your own, Michelle?" he teased, running a hand through his peppered hair.
"Don't worry, Cassie will help me keep Peter in line, right, Cass?" Cassie perched over the sofa, a lopsided grin spreading across her face.
"Yeah!"
"Good," Tony smiled before tapping Peter's watch.
"Don't think just cause I'm gone this weekend you get to take that off. FRIDAY will still alert me the second you inevitably get in over your head. No, extracurriculars this weekend got it?" With Cassie in the room, no direct comments on Spider-Man could be made, but the point was crystal clear.
"Of course not, Mr. Stark. That would be careless and irresponsible of me." Peter had the nerve to laugh at his overprotective mentor.
"Alright, kids, we're out." Tony nonchalantly waved a peace sign behind him as he handed Pepper her purse and walked out into the elevator. Almost the second they closed Morgan wailed. This weekend may be a lot harder than they initially thought.
It took MJ nearly an hour to calm Morgan down. After Peter's several failed attempts at getting the girl to calm down MJ had left for the nursery and demanded he occupy Cassie. So, that's how he found himself watching Cassie play The Last of Us at 7:30 in the morning. In his opinion, it was way too early for zombies. He wasn't even sure she should be playing this game, but she assured him Scott let her play it during his weekends.
"Those are called Clickers." Cassie whispered matter-of-factly as if the mutated zombies could actually hear her. "They have this gross fungus on their face so they can't see and then they use echolocation to find their prey!" she almost growled out the word prey, causing Peter to chuckle at her dramatics.
"Did you learn about echolocation in school?" Peter wondered idly as he watched the girl rather deftly moved Joel around the screen.
"My daddy taught me one night when we saw some bats flying around." she stated fondly, although her eyes never wandered from what was laid out before her. "I think it's cool. I wish I could use echolocation." Peter hummed thoughtfully just as MJ emerged from the nursery, Morgan babbling softly in her arms.
"Are you seriously letting her play that game?" MJ scolded. Peter had enough sense to look slightly remorseful.
"She said Scott let's her play it, and based on how she got through the tutorial in record time I'm gonna wager she's not lying to me."
"Uh huh, well, how about we go outside for a little walk while it's still cool out, huh? Morgan shouldn't really be outside during the heat of the day and morning air is ten times better than afternoon air." Michelle's tone left no room for debate as Cassie instantly saved her progress and shut off the Playstation and TV.
Walking with two kids was way more work than Peter had thought possible. Well, to be fair, MJ was single-handedly taking care of Morgan while Peter ran and kept pace with Cassie, and people called him an uncontrollable ball of energy. This girl would one second be directly beside him and the next be somewhere he was fairly sure a quinjet could squish her at any moment. He would swear she could teleport. Nevertheless, he had to admit he was definitely enjoying himself. There was something so utterly domestic about walking around the paths that lined the compound with his girlfriend and two little kids. He shot a glance back towards MJ a blush he couldn't help warming his cheeks.
She was leaning over the stroller Morgan was propped in, wild curls falling into her face as she cleaned something from around the baby's mouth. The morning sun lit her frame softly, the giant hoodie and leggings she was wearing was her usual lounge attire, but it just seemed different in this situation. Peter was so lost in thought he didn't notice that Cassie had returned to his side.
"Are you gonna marry her?" the girl's voice snapped Peter from his fantasy. His entire face turned beet red and his brown eyes widened to almost match the Spider-Man suit.
"Wh-what?" he stuttered, trying to regain some semblance of control in the situation.
"You look at her like my Daddy looks at Hope, and he says he's gonna marry her someday." Cassie explained and repeated her question. "So, are you gonna marry MJ?" Peter was just about to attempt and throw together some BS answer, but Michelle saves the day. Well, Morgan saved the day as she began crying and hiccuping.
"Wellp," MJ popped the 'p.' "I think it's about time, Iron-Baby gets inside for some second breakfast." The girl turned around on the path and began heading back towards the living quarters.
The rest of the day was mainly spent between Peter and MJ switching who fed and coaxed Morgan to sleep, while snapchatting Scott with Cassie. Peter was finishing up cleaning up after dinner with Cassie while MJ laid Morgan down to sleep in her crib. Just as Cassie dried the last dish Peter spoke up.
"Alright, is there anything, in particular, you wanna do tomorrow, kiddo?" he wondered, leaning against the counter. The girl hummed thoughtfully.
"We aren't stuck here at the compound, right? I wanna walk around Queens with you and MJ and go to the places you guys hang out." Peter tilted his head.
"That's a pretty long road trip, Cass. I dunno if Morgan can handle that, but I'll see what we can figure out. If that doesn't work out anything else you're itchin' to do?" Peter slowly started guiding the girl towards the guest rooms to get ready for bed. He tried to ignore the slightly crestfallen look on her face at the prospect of not going to his home. However, he could see the idea the second her eyes lit up.
"OH! You said Black Widow had been training you how to fight! Can you show me some of the stuff you've learned and teach me how to fight?" She jumped forward into the hallway and began walking backwards. "Please!?" Peter chuckled as they arrived outside of her room.
"Okay, I think we can manage that." He ruffled the girl's light brown hair. "Get some sleep, okay? Lemme know if you need anything, mkay?" Cassie nodded before dutifully running into her bathroom to prepare for bed.
Peter's spider-sense suddenly spiked and he turned around Just as MJ walked up behind him.
"Did Morgan fall asleep?" Peter wondered quietly as he slipped his hand into MJ's.
"Yep, she's out, and Pepper says she sleeps through the night now... So, we're free until about five in the morning." Peter was not blind to the implication but laughed as he gestured to his watch.
"MJ, this thing monitors my vitals." he murmured, a hot blush creeping up his face. MJ scowled.
"Are we seriously getting cock-blocked by Iron Man?" she raised an eyebrow as Peter's blush only grew.
"Yes, because if I take it off he immediately gets notified..." Peter's voice drifted off slowly as he came to a stop in front of his room. He shuddered slightly as his once again he felt the familiar uneasy buzz tingle at the base of his skull. "Uh, FRIDAY?"
"Yes, Peter?" the slightly Irish voice replied in a hushed tone.
"Run a scan of the building, please. Is there anything unusual?" Peter wondered, ignoring the curious and slightly worried glance from his girlfriend.
"Peter?" MJ began, a little perturbed at how easily Peter slid away and Spider-Man took his place.
"I can't detect anything unusual, Mr. Parker." Peter nodded, not looking quite satisfied with the answer.
"You okay?" she watched as the Spider-Man persona slowly melted away and Peter returned.
"Yeah, just felt a little off." He shrugged the last of his anxiety away and smiled sweetly. "Wanna find something to watch on Netflix?"
Since he had fallen asleep in the middle of an episode, Peter never felt MJ get up to move to her room. He also never noticed the power go out and FRIDAY's desperate crackled attempt at an alert before she fell silent.