Peter walked into his room at Avengers Headquarters and found that Annie wasn't in there but MJ was. MJ had a robe on.
"Where's Annie at?" Peter asked.
"OH so, new development, Annie sleeps well with Ned because of the winter soldier chemicals. So, he and May are looking after her tonight." MJ said and then she walked over to Peter and kissed him. She pulled away and Peter smiled at her.
"Do you remember after you killed Carnage and we had sex and you were really, forceful?" MJ asked as she avoided eye contact with Peter and Peter looked a little confused.
"When I dislocated your shoulder and gave you like fifty bruises?" Peter asked.
"Yeah, well, I think I would enjoy it if you started getting more assertive and used some of that strength of yours when we are having our fun." MJ requested and Peter smiled and then he grabbed her shoulders gently.
"I'm only gentle with you because I love you so much, but I guess if I love you then I can change that." Peter said and then he started kissing her passionately and then gently pushed her against the wall as he kissed her and MJ wrapped her leg around his waist and Peter grabbed it and he picked her up and brought her over to their bed...
The next morning Tony was drinking coffee in the kitchen as Nat and Wanda were making their own breakfast. Ned and May were feeding Annie. That's when Peter walked in with his arm around MJ and MJ had a few bruises on her neck. Nat raised an eyebrow as she saw that both Peter and MJ were quite happy.
"It's too bad your already happy cause guess who is on their way here as we speak?" Tony asked and Peter looked to him.
"No way." Peter said as he smiled even wider as Peter and MJ sat down.
"Yep the Guardians of the Galaxy apparently just finished a massive mission and Quill wants to talk to us about the other half of the soul stone. Apparently they found a way to destroy it but they need to see how that will affect you and apparently only you can tell." Tony replied and Peter got uncomfortable.
"Oh." Peter sighed and MJ leaned her head against his shoulder.
"They should be here any minute, I mean," Tony started and Peter jumped to his feet as his chest started to glow orange.
"OOOHHH!" Peter yelled and then he looked to Tony as his eyes glowed orange. "They are here and this is NOT good." Peter said and Tony looked confused and then suddenly the sound of the Guardians landing at Avengers Headquarters came to everyone's ears and Tony looked shocked.
"You know maybe we should get Peter out of here." Bruce suggested. The glowing didn't go away and then Peter closed his eyes and the glowing very slowly dimmed and then went away.
"No I've got this under control." Peter sighed….
Quill walked in and had a steel box and Peter saw the box and had an orange glint in his eye.
"Pete, you ok?" Quill asked and Peter snapped out of it and looked to him.
"Yeah." Peter said and then he hugged Quill. "It's good to see you bro."
"Good to see you too." Quill sighed and then they parted. "I wish it were on better circumstances." Mantis then walked over to Quill and smiled and then hugged him and Peter looked shocked.
"Hey Mantis. What's up?" Peter said with a laugh and then Mantis parted with him and Peter saw that she was hiding how she was feeling. "Your worried." Mantis looked sad and looked at the ground.
"Hey Peter." Gamora sighed and then she hugged Peter and Peter realized something as Gamora parted.
"OK, why is everyone hugging me?" Peter asked.
"There's a reason that the stone is in the box, we are worried that if we take it out it might try to attach itself to you." Quill explained and then Peter shook his head.
"It won't. Trust me, the second you guys entered our earth's atmosphere I felt that stone. It doesn't want to be a part of me. I'm too powerful and that stone knows it. The Soul stone absorbs powers but it knows that it can't absorb me because I can control the other half. It knows that if it's part of me, then it's over." Peter replied and everyone seemed to be a little uneasy.
"Your lying." Tony said and Peter looked to him and frowned.
"Excuse me?" Peter sighed.
"When you know things that you shouldn't, the mind stone glows. When your powers get in control of YOU, your eyes glow a color other than red and green. Your eyes were glowing orange. Your power wants that other half." Tony pointed out.
" , I know my powers better than you think. If that stone were wanting to enter me, the box would be moving. The stone is incredibly powerful. It would have jerked that box towards me already." Peter pointed out.
"Peter, what is going to happen if we destroy that stone?" Gamora asked.
"You can't destroy the soul stone. You can just destroy its vessel. If you do that then the stone WILL enter me because it won't have any other option, and I don't know if I can overpower the entire soul stone to be honest." Peter admitted and the second he did the soul stone inside the box flew strait at him and Peter caught it and his hand started to glow purple and his other hand glowed blue and he pulled his hands outward and the box floated in between them and Peters eyes started to glow yellow and his head glowed yellow and then the yellow glowing went away and then revealed that Peters eye was glowing red and then Peter turned into Thanos and everyone jumped.
"It's still me guys, but I can't let the soul stone know that." Peter said.
"Turn into someone else then!" Gamora snapped.
"I can't really think of anyone else off the top of my head to be honest. It's either him or Ben, or my parents, I," Peter stopped as he had a lot on his mind at that moment.
"Peter turn into someone else, now." Quill said calmly and the calmness made Peter think of someone that no one would have expected. He turned into Eddie Brock.
"He's going through his conscience." Mantis said as she sounded like she was going to cry. "It's how he controls the stones, he thinks of everyone he has ever felt guilty about so he doesn't mess up and lose control of them."
"Everyone just stop for a minute. I've almost got the stone calmed." Peter said calmly and then he let the box go and it fell on the ground and Peter turned back into himself and threw himself into a chair and looked a little tired.
"You ok Pete?" Tony asked and Peter nodded.
"She was wrong. I think about everything I could have stopped with the power of the infinity stones, which is why I feel like Thanos when I use them. Because I'm not that far from him." Peter explained.
"You are nothing like Thanos." Gamora said instantly and everyone looked at her, especially Peter. "Trust me Peter, I lived with him for most of my life. He was corrupt, he was self-absorbed, and you are neither of those things. You need to understand that." Gamora insisted.
"I know." Peter replied and then he looked to Quill. "You can't destroy it. Keep it separate from me. That's the best thing you can do. Find a place to hide it and keep it far away from me. As long as it isn't part of me there won't be a problem." Peter explained.
"Ok, we can make that work. By the way," Quill said and then he looked to Tony. "Since when don't you trust him?" Quill asked as he was clearly talking about how Tony didn't trust Peter a moment ago.
"Oh he's just worried about me." Peter said sarcastically.
"Actually yeah, I fucking am. What's so bad about that?" Tony snapped at Peter and Peter frowned at him.
"There's nothing bad about that, but when your acting like a selfish asshole about it then you're doing something wrong. If the only way to do something good is to do something awful then maybe you just shouldn't do it." Peter snapped back at Tony.
"Look I know you're pissed off about Ned but you can't just," Tony started and Peter turned to him again.
"This isn't about Ned! You nearly killed Wanda because YOU didn't want to have to deal with me!" Peter snapped and Tony looked at the ground.
"You know what, clearly you're not mentally ready to even deal with this maturely so," Tony started and Peter very quickly got offended.
"You know what, I might not be the most stable person right now but I'm a hell of a lot more stable than you are. At least I KNOW when I've crossed a line. At least I KNOW when I've done something wrong. And at least I can ADMIT when I've fucked up but YOU, no you can never be wrong, can you? Maybe you shouldn't let your pride get the better of you!" Peter snapped. Tony and Peter shared an intense stare with each other.
"Ok you two are usually really close. What the hell happened?" Quill asked.
"Nothing new, he was just being Tony." Steve pointed out and then he turned to Peter. "Then again, he WAS trying to do what was right." Peter looked at Steve and shook his head and Steve decided to point something out even though he would seem like a jerk. "You know there were a few times when you were trying to do what was right and messed up. I'm sure you don't want me getting specific." Steve said this and Peter got very frustrated and then he felt incredibly stressed out and decided to walk out of the room. The second he was out Tony decided to take the opportunity.
"Wow, Rogers I didn't realize that you were going to defend me. That's so uncharacteristic of you." Tony pointed out and Steve turned to him.
"You know, I just want the kid to calm down and be ok. It had nothing to do with you." Steve said and then Quill walked out of the room and went after Peter. He found Peter holding Annie. They were in the downstairs kitchen and MJ, May, and Ned were with them. Quill walked over to Peter and Annie and Peter looked up at him.
"I don't want to talk about it." Peter sighed.
"Honestly, you don't need to. I trust that he screwed up and your upset about it. Typically your heads screwed on pretty well, thanks to your Aunt May. Your smart. But I can tell that somethings bothering you, something other than Tony. So what's going on?" Quill asked in genuine concern and Peter looked to MJ.
"As long as you're talking to someone who supports you, I'm fine with it." MJ sighed and Peter looked at May.
"Go ahead sweetie." May sighed and Peter motioned for Quill to follow him as he carried Annie. Peter headed to his room and Quill followed. Once they were in his room Quill closed the door and Peter put Annie in a bouncy seat and sat down on his bed.
"Your kind of wrong. It's SO about Tony, just not the current issue with him." Peter sighed and Quill pulled a chair over and sat in front of him.
"Let it out. I'm listening." Quill replied.
"He's got me doing news shows, interviews, and he is using me like I'm an asset. It's like that's all I am to him now. I've been on magazines, I've been on tv, I've been on newspapers, and it's at the point where I don't even want to be a hero anymore. It feels like it's not even worth it." Peter explained. "I have my city to worry about, not curtain calls and set calls and interviews. I don't get why he is making me do these things. I used to be good enough just as myself but now I have to be this celebrity for everyone. I mean, I have a family and I have responsibilities that are important and now Gwen is stuck protecting Staten Island and I'm now not doing my job as her mentor OR my job as a hero. He doesn't even ASK if I want to do these things. He just tells me to do them." Peter admitted.
"Why haven't you talked to him about it?" Quill asked.
"I don't have time to talk to him about it. I have NO time to myself." Peter replied and Quill nodded.
"He's working you that hard?" Quill asked and Peter looked to him like he was being stupid.
"Yeah he used to care whenever I would get injured." Peter said and then he stood up and took his shirt off to reveal about twenty bruises on his chest. Most were healed but you could still tell there were bruises at one time.
"I thought you heal quickly." Quill said.
"Yeah, I do, but my body heals what is important first. I crushed six ribs a week ago and punctured one of my lungs. I'm lucky I didn't die, but Tony has no clue about it because he doesn't care anymore. All he cares about is making sure that Spider Man is in good rep with the wealthy part of New York." Peter started and he went over to a hamper and started to fold clothes. "In all honesty I don't even really care about that side of New York. I care about the ones who ACTUALLY need my help. The other day this guy came up to me. A true business man and he said that I make good conversation." Peter said as the words seemed to taste like vinegar coming out of his mouth. "I love my job as a hero, but doing this side of things may be all great for Tony, he might be used to it, but I can't stand being this famous freak." Peter sighed. "I have enough on my mind."
"He made you an iron suit didn't he?" Quill asked suspiciously.
"Yeah but he changed it and gave my old suit all of those abilities because the Iron suit was too heavy for me to do my stuff properly. Yeah, it was back when he gave a shit." Peter sighed.
"Is it possible that he could be trying to have you replace him in the Avengers? He IS settling down." Quill proposed and Peter looked to him and seemed to know that he was right.
"Look I know what he wants me to do, but he can fucking ask instead of acting like he's not doing anything." Peter snapped.
"I understand your upset with him, but maybe you should just talk to him. You have time now and you're just yelling at him." Quill suggested and Peter looked to him and nodded.
"Yeah I should." Peter replied….
Everyone seemed to be frustrated with Tony about Wanda and they were all talking as calmly as they could. Suddenly a man walked in with Happy Hogan and Happy and him were laughing. Everyone turned to them. Tony slightly smiled.
"Curtis. How are you?" Tony sighed and he walked over to the man and they shook hands.
"I'm doing well" The man replied and Tony noticed that the man had only one arm.
"What happened to your arm?" Tony asked.
"That's what I'm here about. I hear you have mastered making artificial limbs." The man sighed and Tony smiled.
"Arms are a little tricky but if I can get your measurements I can see what I can do." Tony replied and the man smiled.
"You're the best Tony." The man sighed and Peter walked out of his bedroom holding Annie and he started walking down the stairs.
"Hey, , I think you and I," Peter started and he looked forward and saw the man and grinned from ear to ear. " ?" The man looked to Peter and smiled as widely as Peter.
"Little Petey Parker." The man laughed and he walked over to Peter and hugged him. They parted and Peter seemed genuinely happy to see him. Connor looked to Annie and seemed a little taken back.
"She's not yours is she?" Connors asked.
"Yeah she is. Her names Annie Mayday Parker." Peter replied proudly as Annie looked to Connors and giggled and Connors smiled.
"So, according to TV you're Spider Man now Peter. You prove your mothers studies on genetic enhancement and mutation." Connors said and Peter looked confused.
"You worked with my mother? Wait, if you worked with my mother then worked with Norman Osborn?" Peter pointed out two big facts that he instantly had difficulties dealing with.
"Yes I worked with your mother and your father as well. Your father came up with the theory. But no, we all worked FOR Norman Osborn. Oscorp has been handed over to me since he tried to hurt you." Connors explained and Peter looked unsure. "My father created the Winter Soldier serum, but it was originally meant to control our enemies in telling us military secrets. I've been trying to find you for months Peter, so I could personally apologize for what happened with the spider and for what happened with Norman Osborn. I know how much he meant to you and your family and when I heard about Harry, God I wish I would have been there to save him." Connors explained and Peters smile slowly returned. It wasn't as big but it was there.
"My mom and Dad came up with the idea of genetic modification?" Peter asked.
"Yeah, we never got it to work before your parents went on their mission, but of course, I continued their studies after they left. When I heard they had passed I sent as much money as possible to your wonderful Aunt and Uncle, and then I heard about Ben and I was so saddened. He was a great man as well." Connors sighed and then suddenly May walked down the stairs.
"Curt! It's been too long." May laughed and May walked over to him and hugged him and she smiled at him.
"So how has our young Peter been doing? Using his instincts, keeping his head strait, taking care of his family?" Connors asked and May smiled and nodded.
"He's a hard worker, like his father, and he's a very strong and kind person, like his mother." May replied.
"Because you raised him right. You raised him well." Connors said and Peter smiled at the ground and then MJ walked out and smiled.
"Oh my God, your Doctor Curtis Connors. The scientist, genius, oh my God." MJ said as she started geeking out and she ran down the stairs and Peter let out a laugh and then MJ smacked Peter on his shoulder.
"Hey," Peter laughed.
"Why didn't you TELL me you knew Doctor Curtis Connors?" MJ snapped at Peter.
"I didn't know you were a fan." Peter replied.
"I read his books all the time. Are you kidding me? I am more than a fan, I am an, an, a, uh, um," MJ started and then Connors held his hand out to MJ.
"You're a respectable young woman, and I suspect another genius just like Peter. He wouldn't settle for anything less than an incredible young woman. Back when I came to teach at his NORMAL school, none of the girls really interested him. Then again, all the girls were quite confused about him. He was definitely very attractive to girls back then," Connors started to say and Peter blushed.
"Oh come on, that's my girlfriend, can we NOT embarrass me?" Peter asked and Connors laughed.
"You were the most eligible bachelor in the high school but you were also brilliant beyond your years. Girls didn't know what to say about you. You refused to play sports but you were also sweet and nice to everyone. Everyone knew you by name Peter. The school wasn't the same without you. That's why I left, the brilliance of the school was gone, but I'm glad you moved on to the place where you belonged. I never should have asked you to stay though. That fight we had, I just," Connors started.
"Don't even worry about it. I've come to terms with that fight, and I just, I was pushing you away. That's why I left. I didn't WANT a figure in my life that could have replaced my dad, but I've gotten over that. So don't worry about it." Peter replied and Tony seemed to be very uncomfortable. Connors sighed sadly and then he slightly smiled.
"I would NEVER try to replace Richard. I COULD NEVER replace Richard. He was a greater man than anyone I've ever meet. Fearless, brave, kind, brilliant. He was the whole package, and your mother was just as incredible. They were the perfect couple, and they had the perfect son. They would be so proud of you. You are literally the perfect combination of those two." Curt got tears in his eyes. "You look just like him you know?" Curt looked to May. "Doesn't he?"
"Who? My Dad?" Peter asked and Curt nodded. "Aw, no. I could NEVER be like my Dad. Don't say something like that." Peter sighed as he pulled Annie even closer to him.
"Peter, why don't you want to be like Rich? That always made me curious." Curt asked and Peter looked to Curt and shook off the feeling he had.
"It's not that. I know he was so great, it's just, as much as I love him, I just want to be like me. I don't want to be anyone else, because I do the most good when I'm being the person I am, and not the person that others want me to be." Peter said as he looked at Tony after he was done talking. "I just wanna be me." Tony realized what he was talking about and he looked at the ground.
"Sometimes we have to be different though for the better of others." Tony said and then Peter looked at him again. "Your part of our team Peter, and I won't always be here. I should have asked though." Peter shook his head at him.
"I'm not you. You can put me an iron suit, you can give me hundreds of trillions of dollars, you can put me in front of a million cameras, but I'll never be you. You can even release video footage of me and reveal my identity, but I'll never be you." Peter said this and Tony looked at him in shock.
"When did you find out about that?" Tony asked.
"You revealed his identity. I thought it was Liz." MJ said.
" said that he suspected it was Liz. So I used my time stone and went back. My mask, was taking the video. That was the video that was released." Peter replied and he looked to Tony. "It was a test. You wanted to see what I would do. You wanted to see if I could be like you. I found out three months ago, when you first asked me to go on TV. It made sense. It didn't make sense that Liz did it. The only reason she went after me before she died was because I took away her only protection that she had left. She was desperate." Peter explained and Tony looked down at the ground. "Half the shit I've been through, the danger you've put my family in, is because of you. To top that off your taking me away from my job. Your forcing me to do things when I should be PROTECTING people. You have me go to events with rich people and I was stuck making a speech and thirty five people died and I told you this and you brushed it off. Everything you taught me, you have thrown it in the garbage." Peter explained this. "You've done all this to ensure that there would be someone to replace you when you retired. You did all of that but you didn't do the one thing that may have surprised you. I may not be you, but I WILL lead the Avengers once you retire. But right now, I can't keep looking at you. You've done too much, and I need time to process my frustration with you. I need time to heel from it." Peter said this and Tony looked relieved.
"Your ok." Tony sighed and Peter slightly smiled.
"Oh you care?" Peter joked and Tony frowned and Peter let out a laugh. "I'm not angry, I'm just frustrated and I can't keep doing this crap with TV and events. I have a city to protect, not a city to impress and if they're not ok with that, then who gives a shit?" Peter said and Tony let out a laugh.
"OK Pete. I'll cancel everything." Tony sighed. "So, your moving back into your house?"
"If you'll let me keep the house, yeah." Peter replied.
"Your leaving the Avengers?" Nat asked sadly and Peter looked to her.
"For now. I can't stay because I have a lot to catch up on. I think I have a pretty damn good replacement though." Peter replied and then he looked to Gwen who was upstairs. "You lost your first life, well you lost 3, I think you're ready. It's about time that you let the team shape you like it did me. So good luck." Peter sighed and then he turned to Connors. "Uh. Mr. Connors would you like to get something to eat? I'd like you to meet my best friend and my girlfriend and, get to know all of us." Connors smiled and nodded.
"I'd love to." Curt said and Ned ran down the stairs excitedly.
"We get to have lunch with Doctor Curt Connors." Ned said excitedly and Peter couldn't help but smile.
"It's nice to know Ned really hasn't changed." Peter laughed and MJ let out a laugh.
