Some dialogue was used from Spider-Man: Homecoming so I'll do a quick disclaimer. I DO NOW OWN ANY MARVEL CONTENT USED IN THIS STORY! ALL RIGHTS GO TO THEIR RIGHTFUL OWNERS!
Peter knew that he should've gone straight home after his little meeting at the Avenger's compound, but he needed some air. He needed to calm his racing thoughts and get his head back in the game.
How he ended up at the same roof where he had that argument with Tony after the Ferry incident, he couldn't answer that. Maybe he went there unconsciously, or maybe it was because of something else, he honestly had no clue.
As he sat at the edge of the roof, his feet dangling over the side, he couldn't help but remember the conversation that happened almost a year ago.
Peter was sitting at the edge of the roof, his feet dangling off the side. He was staring off into the distance when Tony's Iron Man Armor flew up behind him and hovered a few feet off the ground.
"Previously on Peter screws the pooch; I told you to stay away from this, instead you hacked a multimillion dollar suit so you could sneak around behind my back, doing the one thing that I told you not to do."
Peter felt his shoulders sag in defeat when he heard Tony's pissed off voice. "Is everyone okay?"
"No, thanks to you," Tony harshly replied.
Those words aggravated him. He turned around to look at Iron Man incredulously. "No, thanks to me?" He threw his legs back over the side and got onto the roof floor. He began to walk towards the suit as he ranted, "Those weapons were out there and I tried to tell you about it, but you didn't listen. None of this would've happened if you had just listened to me!" He hated how his voice cracked. "If you even cared, you'd actually be here."
The last thing that he expected was for the billionaire to step out of the suit. He thought that it was just the armor he had seen when he first encounteed the Vulture. As far as Peter was concerned, Tony was halfway across the world. So when Tony stepped onto solid ground, he took a step back, suddenly uncertain and his confidence gone.
"I did listen, kid. Who do you think called the FBI, huh? Do you know that I was the only one who believed in you?" Tony shot back. "Everyone said I was crazy for recruiting a fourteen year old kid..."
"I'm fifteen," Peter weakly interjected.
"No! This is where you zip it, alright? The adult is talking!" Tony shouted. "What if somebody had died tonight? Different story, right? Cause that's on you. And if you died? I feel like that's on me. I don't need that on my conscience."
"Yes sir, I understand. I'm sorry," Peter apologized.
"Sorry doesn't cut it."
"I know. I..." Peter stuttered. "I just wanted to be like you," he admitted guilty.
Tony just looked at him in disappointment. "And I wanted you to be better."
Back in reality, Peter hated himself for being so pitiful. He hated Tony for being right, he hated Tony for telling him to stay away from something that was his fault to begin with. Vulture was out for his head, not Tony's. That's why Peter just couldn't leave things well enough alone. Sure, in Tony's defense, it was his cleaning crew that put Vulture out of business and eventually led to the creation of the villain himself along with an illegal weapons business. However, Peter provoked him. He got in Vulture's way and Peter had a mess to clean up. His mess.
Of course, at that time, Peter hadn't known that the Vulture was actually Liz's father. Boy, was that that a slap in the face. However, that made things more personal, and when Vulture threatened everyone he cared about, he went after the villain.
The one thing that he couldn't really wrap his head around, was the message that seemed to always pop up.
"I want you to be better."
It wasn't the first time that the message had surfaced. Tony kept reminding him that he wanted Peter to be a better hero than Tony ever was. Whether it be during a training session, or even a mere invention that Tony invited Peter to work on with the billionaire. Now it's Tony's goodbye message to him? Is that all Tony wanted for him? The only thing that he cared about? Did Tony see it as a way to clear his conscience? Or repay a debt?
The thought aggravated Peter. Tony was a good superhero. He was a freaking hero without his armor. If the Mandarin scenario hadn't proved that to him, then maybe Tony was too self-loathing to open his eyes and see that. So why did Peter have to be better? His Uncle Ben already died because of Peter and that blood is already on his hands. Along with Liz's heart-broken eyes, Aunt May constantly worrying herself sick about him, and even Ned now having to carry the burden of Peter's secret identity. Spider-Man wasn't some super solider, he was human. Sure, a human that has arachnid abilities, but people often forget that he's only fifteen, almost sixteen. He's still a kid.
Nothing he could say or do could change any of those things. If he could go back and time and change everything, he would. He didn't care about losing his powers if it meant he could have his uncle back. Now every time he turned onto the street that where his uncle was shot, or even when he puts on the suit, his uncle's words still rang clearly in his ears.
With great power comes great responsibility.
What disgusted him the most was how he had already failed his Uncle Ben with all of the mistakes he had made. He let everyone down, and even if he couldn't fix everything, it doesn't mean that he'd give up that easily. Tony's disappearance is one thing that he's never going to give up trying to solve. He needed his friend back, he needed to let Tony know that there was someone who gave a damn about what happened to him. The billionaire had a family back at the Avenger's compound, and Tony had become like a father to him. Tony had left him that device for a reason and one way or another, Peter was going to crack the code, even if it was the last thing he did.
Peter was snapped out of his train of thoughts when his phone started to ring. He glanced at the caller ID before answering it. "Hey, Aunt May, I was just going to call you."
"Funny, I've heard that one before," His aunt's voice came through the phone, her tone amused.
Peter winced. "I was just going to let you know that I was on my way back to the apartment."
"And that's what I was calling you for. Glad you decided to actually try to make your curfew this time. Remember, Dinner's at 8:00."
"I'll be there in like fifteen minutes," Peter promised before hanging the phone up
He threw his legs over the wall of the roof and plopped himself down onto the roof's surface. He wouldn't have noticed it if it weren't for the light shining the way it was. there was a small engraving on the door to the stairs. It was so microscopic, that if Peter's vision wasn't enhanced, he wouldn't have known it was there at all.
Taking a step closer, Peter knelt down to get a clear view of the engraving. It was a letter. H.
Suddenly, things began to make sense.
"I want you to be better."
"You son of a bitch," Peter let out a breathy laugh.
That night, Peter did some work. He snagged a notebook from the connivence store on the way back to his apartment and now he was jotting down everything that he had on the case so far. From the tower, to the messages, to the phone, to the device and lastly, the newfound clue he discovered on the rooftop.
When Peter had called Rhodey after dinner and explained his finding, Rhodey wasn't convinced that the letter held any significance. In fact, the older man thought that it was just a coincidence. Peter on the other hand, well he wasn't so convinced of War Machine's opinion. Something just didn't feel right when he noticed that letter and Peter needed to hold onto all the hope that he could find.
After writing what he had in what he deemed his "Investigation Journal," Peter stared at his notes blankly. He was still so confused about the whole ordeal. What the hell was the device that Tony left him? He'd been trying to figure that out since day one, but it keeps surprising him and just raising more questions, to which the answers might forever be hidden. Why did it keep spitting out random messages for different people? Peter had been around that device for weeks before Fury showed up and suddenly, out of the blue, it prints another message? Why? Why then? And why not Rhodey or Coulson?
He knew it was a lost cause to keep trying to decipher the strange gadget, so he just sat back at his desk chair and let out a groan of defeat.
Maybe he would think better when he got some sleep. Climbing into bed, Peter drifted off into a restless sleep.
Another update down and wow, I had trouble with this chapter. I haven't hit a writer's block, but I guess I've been so busy lately, that I hadn't really planned out what was gonna happen in this chapter. Yes, the flashback was cliche but I thought it fit the text pretty well.
Anyways, I won't keep you guys long. See you next Sunday!
Was it good? Was it bad? Feel free to let me know!
P.S. We've reached 100 Favs and I want to thank everyone for the huge accomplishment!
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