A/N: OMG GUYS! Where did the time go? Sorry for the longer than usual wait for this chapter. Holidays and house projects and work literally took over my life. But here's a new chapter for you! I hope it is worth the wait, and I hope everyone had a FABULOUS Thanksgiving!

Chapter Ten: Carry On My Wayward Son

Steve Rogers

I wince as I shift in the leather seat, the burns on my chest and side making the skin tight, raw, and no fan of movement. Helen Cho had tried to insist on using the Cradle to create new tissue to replace the burned ones, but I had politely declined. I was the last one that needed medical attention, and I would heal just fine on my own.

Now I am seated in a small waiting area at the entrance of the Avengers compound's medical wing. Bucky isn't too far off, and I can't help but notice he chose a corner seat that is facing the main entrance, and coincidentally, the only exit.

I don't blame him for being uneasy. I am uneasy, and this place is as close to home as I had ever come. But Bucky and I are wanted fugitives now, and to be honest, I hadn't been sure I would ever be welcomed inside of this place again.

It's been several hours since we landed and rushed the teenager into Cho's capable hands, but it feels like it's been much longer. Every minute that passes that we sit here and do nothing makes me even edgier .

All of my plans to disappear the moment Stark and the kid were in safe hands had vanished the moment Natasha had uttered that name.

Thaddeus Ross.

My hands curl into fists.

This. This was the exact reason I had refused to sign the Sokovia Accords. I had learned from S.H.I.E.L.D.'s infiltration and downfall, but it seemed no one else had. I had been right. There were no safer hands than our own. But the others had chosen to place their trust, and the world's safety, in the hands of the United Nations, and in extension, to Secretary Ross himself.

There will always be corruption. Organizations like these just couldn't be trusted, not when it came to the protection of Earth, or apparently, to the safety of the Avengers themselves.

Though I had never trusted Ross, had never believed in the Accords, the betrayal is still a knife to the back. He had been seduced, like so many before him, by the so-called peace that Hydra was offering through their new world order. And then he had given them one of our own.

In that moment when Natasha had uncovered the truth, we had made the decision to wait to tell Tony. He was injured, dangerously sleep deprived, and completely on edge with everything that had happened with Peter. If we had told him then, it would likely have ended with disastrous results for everyone involved.

Before landing, Natasha had convinced Tony to make a few calls, which had nearly emptied the Avengers compound of all of its staff with the exception of Cho, a few trusted men and women from the medical team to provide what assistance they could, and of course, Vision, who had yet to be seen. It left the compound as safe as it could be for me and Bucky to remain without alerting Ross or anyone else of our whereabouts.

The doors to the medical wing open, and Natasha, now dressed in street clothes, the cut on her face neatly closed with a butterfly bandage, comes striding forward. I sit up straighter, anxious for news, and even Bucky looks up.

"No word yet on the kid," she admits. "But Tony finally let them take a look at his arm. He has minor fractures in his left radius and ulna, and they already have him in a brace. He's resting right now."

"Resting?" I raise a skeptical eyebrow at that.

"I...might have slipped him a sedative about an hour ago," Natasha admits, not looking even remotely apologetic. "Helen needs to be able to do her work in peace, and we need Tony back to, well, back to whatever counts as his normal, before we deal with...everything else."

"Did you give her the files?"

Natasha nods. "She has everything Hydra had on Muller's experiments and whatever they knew about what they put inside the kid. Now, we wait."

We lapse into silence, both of us lost in our own thoughts. My mind goes straight to the worst case scenarios, a habit that has proved impossible to break. If you know the worst that can happen, you can plan for it.

Whatever the Hydra scientists did could kill Peter, or turn him into their ultimate weapon, forcing us to take him down. Ross could get wind of our location, or guess it easily enough, and send an army to arrest us or destroy us in order to prevent word getting out about his association with Hydra. He could use the team imprisoned on the Raft as some kind of leverage or bait, or worse, he could decide the risk of keeping them alive is too high, and eliminate them before we can even set foot there.

"We need a plan," I say finally. "We can't just sit here and wait for Ross to retaliate."

Bucky glances over at us at my words, and rises to join us.

"I agree," Natasha says, "But we are going to need Stark on this one, and we aren't in any condition to start another fight, especially one on this level."

"The longer we stay here, the more time Ross has to organize an attack," Bucky argues. "We'll be playing into his hands. We need to strike now."

The doors to the medical wing open suddenly, and a short statured man with graying hair at his temples and deep set smile lines around his mouth comes forward, still clad in his surgical clothes. His eyes flit between all of us, lingering longest on Bucky, before he clears his throat and says, "He's out of surgery. Doctor Cho would like to see you all now."

Natasha Romanov

We enter the conference room, my eyes darting to the wall of holographic screens portraying a myriad of diagrams, charts, and photographs, some of which contain the files I downloaded from the Hydra database. Then I look at Helen Cho, her dark hair pinned neatly back, save for twin strands that frame her solemn face.

She is trying to remain expressionless, and to an untrained eye, is doing a remarkable job. But I can read the anxiety in her overly straightened spine, the twitch of uncertainty at the corner of her lips, the barely visible clench of her jaw that reveals her hesitancy.

My stomach sinks, and I prepare myself for the worst.

"How is he?" Steve asks, his voice filled with concern.

Helen's lips part to answer, and the door to the conference room swings open, bouncing off the wall with a dull thud as Tony enters, a brace around his left forearm, and a large, steaming mug in his right hand.

"I thought you gave him a sedative," Steve murmurs, glancing between us.

I stare at the man in disbelief, even as he gives me a murderous look in return. "I did."

"You underestimated my liver's ability to siphon through pharmaceutical substances. Next time you try to drug me, don't," Tony's brown eyes cut into me as he stiffly knocks back whatever was in his mug. I can smell the rich aroma of very expensive coffee, but it has an undertone of something I can't place.

"Now, you were saying?" He turns to Helen, and we follow suit, apprehension lacing the air.

Vision chooses that moment to appear, his strange, synthetic skin covered by a pair of pale blue surgical scrubs, and walks straight through the wall to stand beside the scientist. His eyes roam quickly over each one of us before settling on me.

I tense, and I see the others follow suit as we all wonder the same thing. Not all of us were on the same side in Germany, and based on what I'd seen, Vision's moral compass had been rather firmly in place.

"We going to have a problem, here?" I ask him straight out, my voice low and tight with warning.

Vision's strange eyes are piercing as he cocks his head slightly to the side. "No, Miss Romanov, we are not. I have taken the liberty of going through the files you decoded, and assisted Doctor Cho in her examination and surgical procedure on Mr. Parker."

Rogers relaxes, and I see Vision give me a slight, imperceptible nod, his gaze knowing. If he had been as thorough as I think he had in his perusal of those files, it looked like Steve and I weren't the only ones aware of Ross's betrayal.

I glance quickly at Tony, whose dark gaze is still on the pair, and then give the android a small shake of my head, telling him very firmly with my eyes, not now, not yet.

"Peter is stable," Helen begins hesitantly after glancing at Vision. "His body has experienced a massive trauma, but with his accelerated healing abilities, he should make a full recovery. I found evidence of multiple tests performed on him, including a lumbar puncture, biopsies of his organs and bones, and genetic testing of his blood, the data of which was all recorded in the files you brought from the facility."

"Can we get to the main issue here, please?" Tony interrupts before she can go on. "Did you get that thing out?"

I can see it in her eyes, her composure beginning to slip as she performs what is no doubt the worst aspect of her job: delivering the bad news.

"I was able to isolate the organism inside of him," she says, her voice getting heavier with each word. "But I cannot remove it."

"Why the hell not?" Stark sets his mug down gently, a surprising move, giving the tension lining his body. I had expected it to go flying across the room.

"It has…taken root inside his body," Helen explains. "The organism had started weaving itself through his central nervous system, his blood, his bones…It was well on its way to integrating itself into his brain. I was able to reverse most of the damage, to loosen the organism's hold in his body and reduce it to an isolated area in his chest, but it was a slow, intricate process. It has burrowed in deep, latched itself to his heart. Removing it will likely be fatal for both of them."

I see her words hit like a blow. Even the stoic Barnes is affected, though he barely lets it show beyond the slight curling of his fingers. Tony collapses into the nearest chair, like his legs are unable to hold his body up any longer. A hand, trembling ever so slightly, rubs across his forehead as he releases a long breath.

"What is it?" Steve asks finally.

Vision is the one to answer him this time. "A symbiotic alien life form, discovered several years ago by Hydra scientists at one of the crash sites from the Chitauri invasion. It is a parasite, entirely codependent on a host in order to survive. Doctor Heinrich Muller and the other scientists gave it a name: Venom."

He raises a burgundy colored hand to gesture at one of the screens. It shows a series of photographs, each one increasingly zoomed in. The first is merely what looks like a black speck in a petri dish, but the final slide shows a microscopic view of the alien organism, a mass of writhing black tendrils and jagged cells that look more like crystalline minerals than biological life.

"Jesus," Steve mutters under his breath.

"So you're telling me that an alien parasite is inside of the kid, and removing it will kill him? That's what—I'm just trying to wrap my head around this—that's what you're telling me right now?" Tony removes his hand from his face, letting it fall to his lap.

"Yes," Helen affirms with a frown. "I'm sorry, Tony. I wish I had better news to offer you. But I assure you, I won't stop working on this. Given time, if I can study the Hydra scientist's notes, do some thorough examinations and tests of my own on Mr. Parker and the parasitic organism, I may be able to find a way to separate them, but I can't promise you anything."

"Does the kid even have that kind of time?" Steve asks suddenly, and I watch as Tony's gaze jerks towards him. "If the alien is a parasite, won't it be...feeding off of him?"

Both of us wince at the same time at his choice of words, but Tony straightens, staring at Cho and waiting for her answer.

"I don't know," she admits.

"You don't know," Tony repeats in a slow deadpan, his tone dangerously low.

"Tony, none of us know exactly what we are dealing with here-"

"You have the goddamn files!" he stands, almost but not quite slamming his hands down on the table. "You have everything those psychotic bastards had, and you worked on the kid yourself! How could you not know?"

"Because those scientists did not understand what they were tampering with, not really," Vision cuts in, his voice stoic and reasonable. "They knew basic things about the alien life form they found; that it needed a host for survival, that it was dangerously strong and highly adaptive. They thought they could use it to create a weapon, when paired with their own brand of super soldiers."

More files are pulled up with a slight wave of Vision's hand, and I frown as I look upon the twelve photos and files of the dead Hydra soldiers, the ones Steve had been looking at on the quinjet.

"None of their attempts were successful, as each trial proved fatal. Something about Peter's genetic makeup, his altered DNA due to the radioactive spider bite he received, allowed Venom to successfully join with him."

"For the love of god, please get to the point," Tony says through clenched teeth.

"Tony, all those men and women died when they tried to implant the parasite," Helen answers. "Peter is the first one to survive the joining. This is new, unprecedented territory here. We don't know what to expect. I don't have all the answers for you, but I will do my very best to get them for you. Until then, we will have to monitor him closely, make sure Venom doesn't start to spread again."

Tony's hand rubs the stubble surrounding his usually neatly groomed facial hair as he releases another strained sigh.

"I'd like to keep him here, at the compound, for observation and testing," Helen continues.

Roger's lips part like he's about to argue, but Tony beats him to it.

"I can't do that to him," he straightens, folding his arms over his chest. "He's a kid, Helen. A kid who was taken and tortured and locked up. I'm not going to lock him up here so we can do the same things to him."

Helen looks affronted. "I'm not-"

"-I know," Tony holds up his hand to stop her protests. "I know it would be different. That we are helping him where they hurt him. But he's a kid. He needs to go home to his Aunt. Go back to some kind of normal."

Helen nods. "Alright. But I'd like him here at least once a week, if not more, so I can monitor him and work on a solution. The bonding will likely have adverse side effects, and I can't help him or treat him if he isn't here."

"Fair enough," Tony agrees. "Where is he now?"

"I have him in one of the rooms near my office. He's heavily sedated. Should be for some time. But I'd like to check on him, if you don't have any more questions."

Stark nods, looking lost in thought.

"Thank you, Helen," Steve adds as the woman slips out the door. The room falls into a heavy silence as we process the news we'd just been delivered.

Stark looks...well, he's looked better. And though I hate the idea of being the one to convey even worse news than Helen had, I know the time is now. Tony doesn't have the luxury of being coddled, not on this. Not when the clock is ticking.

"Are you going to tell him, or should I?" Vision asks, breaking the silence and nodding towards Stark, who looks at him sharply.

"Tell me what?"

Here goes nothing.

"When I decoded those files, I was able to find the man behind everything; the funding of the Hydra facility, the resources provided to them, the hiring of Doctor Muller, and," I pause, taking a breath. "how they got Peter's name."

His voice is low, savage as he asks, "Who?"

"It's Ross, Tony," Steve answers wearily. "Secretary Ross is responsible for all of it."

Stark is frozen, his expression unchanging as he pales before the blood comes rushing back to his face. I see a vein on his forehead begin to pulse, his pupils dilating slightly as he finally turns his gaze from me to Steve.

"The files," Vision supplies helpfully, swiping away everything on Venom and bringing up the trail I followed on Elias Eklund as well as several more I hadn't had the chance to delve through yet. "Peter Parker has apparently been a person of interest for quite some time, even before he became Spiderman. He was one of the millions of people Hydra tagged and targeted with Doctor Zola's algorithm before you wiped it out of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s database and took down the helicarriers three years ago."

He nods towards Steve and I, and I see Barnes tense as he stares at the files. He had played a large, albeit unwilling, role in launching the algorithm that would have killed all those people if Steve and I hadn't stopped him.

Steve's brow furrows. "That information was deleted. Natasha unleashed all of Hydra's secrets onto the internet that day, but those targeted by the algorithm were wiped from the system completely."

"Not all of it," VIsion negates. "While Miss Romanov was uploading that data, a Hydra agent must have slipped through and restored some of those files. Secretary Ross, and by extension, Hydra, has been watching those few named by the algorithm very closely ever since, including Mr. Parker."

"And when they saw their chance to take him, they took it," I add speculatively, stepping close. "But why did they wait so long? Why didn't they try to take the kid before he was recruited to fight in Germany? Or try to eliminate him before he became Spiderman?"

"That was probably their initial plan," Bucky finally speaks, looking like every word he speaks is an effort. "They would have named him as a threat, not a potential weapon for their arsenal, especially when he got involved with the Avengers."

"But when all of their experiments with Venom failed, Ross saw him as a candidate instead," Steve continues, looking grim. "If he survived, they'd have a new weapon to use against us. If he died-"

"-one less hero in the way," I finish.

Tony has been silent this entire time, despite the revelations that had just been thrust upon him. He's staring off at the far wall, his body coiled so tight I can see his muscles quivering.

"Tony?" I say softly.

He doesn't respond.

"Tony," I say again, stepping into his line of sight. When his brown eyes finally meet mine, I nearly flinch at the unbridled rage simmering there.

"I'm going to kill him," he promises, his voice heavy in its quiet savagery.

Before I can warn him not to, Vision says, "That is highly unadvisable."

Tony whirls, a promise of murder in his eyes as the android foolishly continues. "Murdering Secretary Ross will not accomplish anything, other than making those of us who are not already wanted fugitives criminals as well."

"He's Hydra. He gave those monsters the kid and let them put that goddamn alien parasite inside of him," Tony seethes.

"Killing him will not change anything," Vision persists, infuriatingly calm. "I agree that his betrayal is abhorrently substantial, but taking his life won't change what has happened to the boy, and despite what you think at this moment, it will not make you feel any better."

Tony stalks forward, halting only at Steve's hand on his shoulder. He looks like he might snap at Rogers for a moment as well, but Steve says, "Whether or not he deserves to die is something we can discuss later. We need to move quickly. He's likely guessed that we returned to the compound. Getting the others out of the Raft is our number one priority. We get them out, then we get Ross."

We all wait for Tony's response, and I swear I can actually see his blood boiling.

"Fine, we do it your way for now. But on one condition."

Tony's eyes darken about three shades. "Ross is mine."

A/N: Holy cow you guys, I can't believe we are nearing the end here! I can tell you all that there is only ONE more chapter left in this story. One. :O

I know, I can't believe it either. But! Good news is, it's halfway written, so I should post it very soon! Also, THERE WILL BE A SEQUEL! I promise! I've already written some scenes for it and have TONS of ideas. I am also working on a realistic charcoal drawing that will be the cover story for my sequel, and I am super proud of it. If you'd like to see my progress so far, check out my instagram! I am mscrystalbeard :) I can't say when I will start posting the sequel, as the holidays are here and things are only going to get crazier! I may also take a break to work on some original work for a little bit while writing here and there for the sequel. I will keep you posted! So make sure, if you haven't already, to follow me as an author so you get an alert for when I post the sequel!

So I totally wasn't going to have Vision in this, but he sort of just phased through a wall and into my story! XD He does that often, I guess.

As always, please send love to your incredible beta, PippinStrange, who has written the BEST Avengers/Spiderman fan fiction on the website! Like guys, she is the reason I started writing fan fiction for this category, and is such a support and encouragement and incredible writer, that I couldn't do this without her. GO READ HER STORY Down Came the Rain RIGHT NOW!

ALSO CHECK THIS OUT! PippinStrange, being the insanely talented and wonderful beta she is, created a MOVIE TRAILER FOR THIS STORY! It is INSANE how awesome it is. Like, I may have teared up, and squealed, and watched it a million times. Here is the link below, just copy and paste, add a . com and delete the spaces. Hopefully this works, because I have never posted a link to a chapter here before, so let me know if it does or doesn't work in your reviews. And then message her or leave her love here to tell her how incredible it is!

www. youtube watch?v= TqWlBlVA9Q4 &feature=

THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH FOR YOUR REVIEWS! I'm sorry for all the caps, but I am just blown away by your support and kind words and thoughts and it makes me SO happy. Seriously, it makes me want to write alllll the time. MUCH LOVE!

Phoenixhp5: Thank you! Sorry this wasn't a quick update like the others, but I hope you enjoyed it anyway! I'm glad you loved the comfort and awkwardness that was Tony and Peter, as I really enjoyed writing it!

Nathissica: Omg thank you! I can't tell you how much I love hearing that, and how happy it makes me that you are that invested in this story. Seriously THANK you! :) That comment made my day!

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gandalf537: Thank you so much!

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Shoyzz: You were right! Tony is PISSED. Thank you SO much for your reviews and your amazing sketches! Once you are done with finals and post them on tumblr, be sure to let me know so I can share them with all these awesome people! They are SO good. YOU ARE AMAZING!

Guest: You are so welcome! Thanks for the reviews! I hope so too!

Thespianpoet: Lol! I love that it was such a big plot twist for everyone that no one saw coming! Makes me so happy!

Guest: Agreed! Ross sucks!

DarylDixon'sLover: Right?

Amanda Lili: thank you!

FrostedFeathers: WOW! Thank you! Tony isn't always the easiest to write, so thank you SO much for your compliments on how I write him! Trying to keep everyone in character is really important to me. Thank you so much for your review!

wolftattoo: yeah, Ross is in deep shit now!

Agatha: Happy Thanksgiving! :) Thank you so much for your kind words!

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PippinStrange: I still can't get over how horrible that movie was that you watched! I am so glad I could help make you feel better, and even MORE glad you were there for me to rant about my terrifying experience while babysitting! XD and OMG thank you for always saying the best things that make my heart and ego swell! lol! YOU ARE THE BEST!

MultipleFandomGirl123: Thank you so much!

xxxLeanniexxx: Right? He's AWFUL! I couldn't resist making him even worse because I can't stand him!

heartbreakerninja: FOR SURE! Worst of the worst! I also look forward to the takedown! ;)

whimsicalbubbles: Thanks! :) Sorry this update took longer!

gammathetaalpha: Thank you so much! I love hearing that the characters are written in character, as that is definitely something I strive for. Thank you for the review!

THANKS GUYS! See you at the final chapter!