Second to Last chapter is here! It's getting away from me again so there is a slim chance for an additional chapter (but its real slim).
There will be a little epilogue though so stay tuned for that shortly after the final chapter.
Thank you all for the watches and faves and kind reviews, sorry I have to add a little danger to the story…
(Also Note: I have not seen The new Spider Man yet… yeah, I know… so sorry if facts or characters that appear in this chapter are off I did look it up to get the gist of the plot)
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"Parkour."
"What?" Peter looked up.
"Not Parker numbskull, Parkour."
"Oh, yeah, what about it?"
"Steve and I are going for a run, wanna come?" It was late in the evening after Coulson and Maria had left and Clint was antsy. "Just around the city for a bit, maybe to Steve's apartment. I dunno."
"Yeah sure!" Aside from his brief interlude with the Hulk, Peter hadn't gotten much serious exercise since he got to the tower. Not that he was complaining, that meant all was quiet; it was just nice to get out once in a while.
The three of them walked a few blocks in the rapidly darkening city before taking off. They leapt and climbed and vaulted, it was exhilarating. Peter was well able to leave the other two well behind. He paused on a window ledge to wait for them to catch up.
"Guys?" It was taking much longer than he thought. "Here we go." he mumbled as he dropped down to the alley below. He found them one block over in the mouth of another alley. Clint leaning heavily on Steve and both of them were talking to a very familiar blonde.
"Gwen? What are you doing here?"
"Peter! I was almost mauled by a wild animal, what are you doing here?" She gave him a light smack on the arm.
"I was - almost WHAT? Gwen!" He put his arms around her.
"I'm fine, I'm fine. I guess there was something following me, and these two spotted it before, you know, anything bad happened." She shrugged just a little embarrassed.
'I don't mean to be patronizing Miss, but aren't you a little young to be out on your own in a place like this?" Steve shifted his weight to support Clint better.
"Yeah, it's just I didn't want to be inside anymore, I was driving myself crazy I guess I walked farther than I thought." She looked a little more embarrassed now that the situation had sunk in.
"We'll walk you home?" Steve offered.
"No, thanks, um I don't really want to go back. Nobody else is home and it's just too quiet."
"She can come back with us? It's not like there's no space." Peter offered.
"Hey wait, aren't you supposed to be in hiding or something? Why are you running around out here?"
"Gwen you'll have to trust me when I say there is no place safer than where I'm staying." He flashed the other two super heroes a grin. Steve was clearly thinking things over, and apparently not fast enough for Clint.
"Yeah sure kid, we can bring her back for the night. But no funny business hot shot, leave that to the professionals." He winked. Gwen gave Peter a scathing look.
"Clint, Clint Barton." He extended a hand to Gwen. "Sorry you're going to have to come to me."
"Yeah what did you do to yourself?" Peter asked as the two shook hands.
"I sprained an ankle leaping down onto the thing." he gestured to the fire escape above them. "Not sure what it was, huge ugly fucker. But I gave it a good whumping."
"Hah, Hawkeye master assassin sprained his ankle leaping from a lousy fire escape?"
"Wait, Hawkeye? Like the Avenger Hawkeye? Ohmygod, oh... you must be Captain America then. Oh wow." Gwen's eyes lit up.
"Here we go." Peter mumbled for the second time that evening.
"Peter how does she -?" Steve trailed off.
"Gentlemen this is Gwen Stacy, daughter of the late Captain Stacy of the NYPD."
'Steve Rodgers, pleased to meet you Miss. I'm sorry for your loss." Steve saluted as best he could.
"Thank you" she breathed. "Peter you didn't tell me you were staying with the Avengers."
"I kind of wasn't allowed to tell you anything."
"Sshhh Peter, let the girl bask." Clint was seriously enjoying the opportunity to tease Peter, swollen ankle or not. "So how we gonna do this?"
...
Needless to say Steve did not appreciate Clint's 'onward noble steed!' after the super soldier offered him a piggyback ride. He did smile when Clint buried his face in the crook of his neck and inhaled.
"Jeez Steve you always smell so good. Is that a serum thing too?"
Peter was glad he and Gwen were trailing slightly behind the two men so they couldn't see the look she gave him. Peter waved her off, now was not the time or place to try and explain the bizarre relationship web that was the Avengers. Maybe if he were lucky she'd forget about it, he had really come to love them but they were difficult to put into words.
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At the tower Steve put Clint down in the elevator.
"JARVIS? Can you find Dr. Banner please; ask him to meet us on the common floor? Clint is going to need his ankle looked at."
"Yes Captain Rodgers."
"I can wrap my own ankle, I've done it more times than I can even remember."
"I know, but." Steve rubbed the back of his neck.
"All right pops. I'll be a good boy and let the Dr. patch me up, but I want a sticker when it's done."
Gwen had been unusually quiet the whole time and Peter was beginning to worry. He laced his fingers through hers, and she gave him a tired smile.
"We'll find you a room while Clint's getting fixed," he said softly.
"If I may Mr. Parker, both rooms the Agents stayed in have been remade."
"Oh, thanks JARVIS."
"Okay I've only seen the lobby and the elevator, but already this place is really cool." She was roused a little by the interactions with the AI.
"It only gets better." Clint winked at her. She turned a little pink and looked at the floor. Peter was more than a little surprised by her reaction; he flat out expected it was going to be Steve, but Clint? That was going to be a nightmare.
When the elevator reached their floor Clint hobbled out unassisted. Bruce was waiting for them at the door fingers already on the bridge of his nose pushing his glasses up.
"Clint."
"I know, I know Doc." Was all he got out before Steve had him over his shoulder. "This is a first" he laughed. They settled in the living room for Bruce to get a better look at the archer's swollen ankle.
"Yeah, you did a number to it, lemme go get the ACE from the first aid kit."
"Who's your friend Pete?" Bruce asked as he began to work.
"This is Gwen, she's my um..."
"Bruce Banner." He cut off Peter's fumbling for an answer. "I had an 'Um' once, her name was Betty. It's nice to meet you. We should make that stick, 'Um'."
Clint wiggled his toes and hissed. "Cut it out." Bruce scolded. "Steve would you make sure he doesn't loose his foot on the way to his room."
"You got it."
"Oh, Natasha is down on the cot in the lab. Want me to send her up?"
"Nah, you don't have to wake her." Clint replied as Steve helped him to his feet.
...
"I guess I'd just feel better if you stayed in my room. You'll be too far away in the guest suites." Gwen just looked at him. "I'll be on the couch on the common floor, it's nice I promise I'll be fine. I've already slept there once."
"Are you sure? I can -"
"I'm sure it's okay, you stay here. Pick out a shirt to sleep in; you can even shower if you want. I'll see you in the morning okay." He kissed her forehead.
"Alright." She pulled him in for an actual kiss. "Goodnight." Then she may have stolen two or three more before a yawn interrupted them and they parted ways for the night.
...
It was about 4AM when the alarm siren went off.
The tower roared into life. Tony was the first one dashing for his suit; he was probably still awake after all. Peter was on his heels to the armory.
Steve, Natasha, Clint, and Thor followed shortly; Bruce appeared a moment after them.
"Dog things, rat things? The cops aren't sure but there are a lot of them, like a whole army's worth apparently. Suit up and head towards Central Park. Peter you stay here." Stark had not even given him a chance to speak.
"Right. We'll hit ground and come up with a plan." The change in Steve's stance was incredible. If Peter had met him as Captain America he probably would have been more than a little intimidated.
"Who is getting a lift?" Tony asked.
"Take Clint, you can station him somewhere right away. Banner, Agent Romanov and I will take the jet. Thor, you know where you're going?"
"I'll follow Iron Man."
"Oh good the Jet." Bruce was the only one not gearing up or checking any weapons.
"Come Dr. Banner, it could be much worse. It could be like that time Clint took us 'joyriding'." Thor still wore a smile and that put Bruce more at ease. It took them mere minutes to be ready for a fight.
"Peter, stay here." Tony repeated before he cozied up to Clint -who had just put on his sunglasses- and took off. He was not about to sit around and wait for them to come back, so when the jet was out of sight he suited up.
...
Meanwhile four floors below Pepper lay awake. She hated the alarm more than any of them she was sure. Not for the noise, not for it's sudden and unwelcome disruption of whatever it was they were doing. She hated it because it put them all in danger. Not that they weren't good at finding it on their own, but the alarm meant something that needed all of them and something bad enough to need The Avengers was something pretty awful. Freya howled in the quiet, presumably as shaken as she was and JARVIS was right behind.
"Ms. Potts, I would like to inform you Ms. Stacy is on the common floor and looking quite alarmed."
"Oh shit, thank you JARVIS. Could you let Freya out and to the elevator? Have her meet us there." She pulled a pair of sweatpants on and headed to the elevator. Freya was waiting. "It's okay girl, nobody warned you about that did they. Let's go find another friend."
Gwen was on the couch, Peter's pillow in her lap.
"Hi, Gwen Stacy? I'm Pepper Potts, Tony's handler? Girlfriend? It's the same thing really. Are you alright?" Pepper asked gently.
"Yeah, I just wasn't expecting that." Freya noted her discomfort (as dogs do) and rested her head beside her in support.
"You never really get used to it." Pepper sat on the couch beside her. "Would you like anything while you're up?"
"No I'm okay. I don't think I can get back to sleep though. I sort of hoped to find him still here." She added after a pause and pulled a loose thread on the pillowcase.
"Mister Stark told him explicitly to stay put twice." JARVIS offered. Gwen sighed in frustration and defeat and rolled her eyes. Pepper liked her already. She knew what it was like to be a teenage girl, and she knew what it was like to be the girlfriend of a super hero. Combined they had to be a nightmare.
"I have Carmel Sutra and Pride and Prejudice?" Gwen smiled at the offer.
...
"So what does all this formal city saving stuff entail? I mean before Peter was always 'I'll go charging into places I don't' belong and trouble comes to me'." She asked after they were settled again.
"Sounds like another scientist under this roof, at least I know Tony won't be too bad an example now." Pepper laughed. "Well, alarm goes off, they suit up, go wherever they need to. Then they kick some ass, Tony does something dumb somewhere in there, and when they're done they debrief. They'll come back here afterwards, usually there is food, lots of it. I've started to think S.H.I.E.L.D lets them stay in the tower because Tony is the only one that can afford to feed them all. After that there is something few people ever witness that almost makes all of that worth it. I'll let you see that for yourself though.
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(Sorry for the strange ending spot… it's a natural stopping point before the upcoming action! Consider this chapter 8 part 1)
