Happy Tuesday!

I know it's not a regular update day, but I'm well ahead on Story V now so can get away with extra updates. Also, I need the boost today. I started working on the second arc of the story yesterday and… Well, it did not go well. I spent some time on Skype with Snarks last night. and we came up with a game plan which I'm excited about. Hopefully today will be better. Either way, I thought some feedback from you guys would help me along.

Chapter Eight

Tony dropped down onto the couch beside Peter and eyed the slice of pizza which Peter was quickly devouring.

"Still hungry?" he asked.

Peter chewed quickly, swallowed, and said, "I'm getting full, I think, but I don't want to see good food go to waste. May taught me better. If I can eat her creations, I can put away this pizza to save it from the trash."

Tony sighed. He was a billionaire, a couple wasted pizzas weren't going to even put a dent in the cash he had in his wallet, but Peter wouldn't accept that argument. He was stuck on the lessons his aunt and uncle had taught him, and that was part of what made him such a good person. Tony loved Peter, thought of him as his son, but he knew he had no part in what made Peter who he was. That goodness had all come long before his influence had entered Peter's life.

Tony looked over his shoulder and called, "Bruce, come help my kid out with the leftovers. He's got it into his head that it can't go into the bin, and I know you can pack it away as much as he can."

Bruce nodded, said something to Natasha whom he had been speaking to, and came to join them. He sat down on the armchair opposite them and pulled over a pizza box, picked up a slice, and devoured it much faster than Peter could manage.

Peter grinned and slowed his eating, now having an ally in his war against leftovers, and relaxed back against the cushions. Tony eyed him covertly. Peter had gained back all the weight he'd lost during his time on the Raft, he was visibly glowing with health, and—best of all—happiness. He thought Peter's happiness was only matched by his own in the situation. He knew things were going to change soon, too, and he was looking forward to that even more, though he would never tell anyone else.

With half of their group going away for various reasons, he was going to have more time with his son. He would miss them all, but they were all going for reasons that were invested in, if not necessarily happy about. Wanda and Vision were eager to travel together again, and Sam wanted to get back to helping people in a larger capacity; Steve and Rhodey were less excited about their tour, but they both knew how important it was for the cause of The Returned.

Peter finally conceded defeat with two slices left, and Bruce took over the mission to eat it all with a gleam in his eyes. Peter rubbed his stomach and said, "That was good."

Bruce nodded eagerly. "It was. This is great pizza."

Tony shrugged. It wasn't as good as pizza in the city, but it was okay.

Tony shot a text to Pepper to ask if Morgan had settled to bed, got a reply with a photograph of his daughter fast asleep with a teddy tucked under her chin, and he grinned. Yep, Pepper would be able to have the peaceful bubble bath and movie that she'd wanted, and he could spend time with everyone else.

Bruce pushed away the empty box and leaned forwards with an intense look in his eyes. "I actually wanted to talk to you about something, Peter," he said.

Peter sat up and said, "Sure. Go ahead."

Bruce looked a little nervous, and he shot at glance at Tony before saying. "I'd like to do some studies of you. I was curious about Spider-Man when I saw you fight before, and now with the Stones…" He whistled. "This is a once in a lifetime chance to learn. No, it's once in an eternity chance. No one has ever or will ever be what you are."

Tony looked at Peter, wanting to gauge his reaction, and was surprised to see Peter was beaming.

"Yeah! Definitely!" he said. "I'd love that!"

"You want to be a lab rat?" Tony asked, narrowing his eyes at Bruce when he voiced a protest of the term. "Really, Pete?"

Peter waved a hand. "I won't be a lab rat with Bruce." He stated it as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. "I'd be part of something awesome." Seeing Tony was still lost, he rushed on. "Tony, this is my chance to learn from The Doctor Banner! This is the kind of thing I dreamed about. I never thought I'd have the opportunity to do something like that. This is like a nerd dream."

Bruce looked a little surprised by Peter's enthusiasm, but he smiled eagerly when Peter went on.

"I can help, too, right? I won't just be the one you're looking at. I can have a part of it."

Bruce nodded. "Peter, from what Tony told me about your intellect and the things you've done with him in the past, I would love to have your input. I promise, nothing I am going to is going to hurt you or be invasive—apart from some blood draws. I'd like to test your strength, speed and reflexes, and then see if there's a way to actually detect the Stones in you."

Peter nodded eagerly. "Sure. Okay. Great."

"Hold on!" Tony said. "What do the Stones think about this? Are they going to be happy being poked and prodded?"

Peter frowned. "Uh… They kinda don't mind either way. I am the one in charge now. They're mine."

Tony was stunned, He knew Peter had embraced them, taken the power, but he didn't know that meant Peter was now essentially in command of the sentient power cores that had existed since the dawn of time.

"They do what you want?" he asked.

Peter nodded, frowned and muttered, "If you want, but don't start shouting again. I saw what you did before when I went back." He tilted his head then his eyes became a little more intense and he spoke in a voice that Tony knew at once was not Peter. "Really, Stark, you don't get it. We are his now. If the kid wants to use us to turn into an entertainer for kid's parties, shooting butterflies out of his fingers and toes, that's what he does."

Tony narrowed his eyes. "Power?"

He grinned. "The one and only, dude. I figured I could make you understand better than Peter. We want what he wants. We are part of him, and he is part of us. We're one being."

Bruce's mouth dropped open. "Peter is like a Stone now?"

He rolled his eyes. "Peter is all of the Stones now, dumbass. What he does is what we want because he wants it. This is what being Worthy means. We know he will not abuse us—though I'm pretty sure he would pull out a children's entertainer skit at your kid's next birthday if she asked since he absolutely adores her. The kid makes the right choices and we trust him."

Bruce and Tony exchanged a stunned look. This was more than the power and ability Tony had witnessed Peter displaying. This was incredible.

He crossed his arms over his chest. "You don't have a chance of unpicking what we are with your technology and science, obviously, but you're welcome to try." He glared at Tony and went on in a warning tone. "You should know, though, Stark, as much as he adores your kid and would do anything for her, he loves you even more. That idiot would throw himself into the fire if you wanted it. He would—" His eyes widened, he shuddered, and the next voice was definitely Peter's. "Sorry about that. Overshare. I thought he'd behave."

Bruce opened his mouth to speak, looked at Tony's stunned face, and snapped it closed again.

Tony stared at his son in awe. He loved him as much as he loved anyone in his world, and to know that Peter felt the same was heartwarming, but he also saw now that it was a responsibility. Peter really would hurt himself if he thought that was what Tony needed from him. He would have done that even before the Stones.

"Okay, now it's awkward," Peter sighed. "I'm not letting him out again."

Tony placed a hand on his arm and said, "Not at all awkward, Pete. You know it's exactly the same for me. But if you can keep Power locked down in future, that'd be great."

"You're still willing to work with me, Peter?" Bruce asked.

"More than willing," Peter said. "Absolutely. Whenever you want to start."

"Tomorrow?" Bruce suggested.

"Yep. I'll be there."

"Give it a little longer than a day. You're going to need to set up a lab, Bruce," Tony said. "I know you've not gotten to that yet. You can take the one beside Peter's."

Peter's head snapped up. I have a lab?"

"Lab, workshop, Willy Wonka's science factory, you've got it."

Peter beamed. "Awesome."

"And both of you have generous budgets to kit them out. And for a change, it's not on my dime. Ellis was really grateful for the publicity, so The Avengers got a budget boost. Don't worry," he rushed on when Peter's eyebrow knitted together. "It's coming out of defense funds. It's not taking a cent away from the people we want to help. Come up with a shopping list and any tech you want my help with, and I'll get it done." He tousled Peter's hair. "I'd like to see what my Spider-Baby is really capable of, too."

Peter grumbled, "Not a baby."

Tony smiled in response, but he was surprised by how true the words felt. Peter was not a baby, not a child, but despite his age and maturity, he wasn't quite a man either. He was something much more than that, one with the Infinity Stones and in command of their power.

Peter was something new and unique, and he loved Tony enough that he would injure himself for him.

That was a lot of weight on Tony's shoulders to bear, and he would never forget or betray it.

Peter leaned against the wall of the new Stark Industries building in Manhattan and prepared a text to Happy.

Peter: Go to the bathroom.

He pressed send, then tapped his phone against his chin as he waited for the answer. He expected a grumpy reply, or maybe to be ignored—which would mean he'd have to go find Happy himself. Before a minute had passed, his phone rang with Happy's photo displayed on the screen.

"Hey, Happy," he answered.

"Which bathroom?" he asked gruffly. "I don't know if you're aware, kid, but this building has ninety-three floors and a few bathrooms on each floor. And I don't have time to tour them all looking for you."

"Relax, Happy," Peter laughed. "That was a joke. I'm waiting outside for you."

"Why didn't you say so? Idiot kid. I'll be out there in a minute."

Before Peter could say another word, Happy ended the call.

Peter stowed his phone back in his pocket and watched the people streaming in and out of the building. He tried to guess what they did for the company, which team they worked with.

There was a time when it was his dream to be one of them, working for Stark Industries. It had seemed an impossible dream before Spider-Man, even with May and Ben supporting him and extolling on his potential and intelligence. When he actually met Tony, it seemed even more impossible because he had firsthand knowledge of how brilliant a mind Tony was from the time they spent in the lab together, and he didn't know what he could offer him and his team. But then Tony started referencing it, talking about how he was MIT material and how he could have a bright future with the company.

Now… Well, now, everything he'd once wanted seemed impossible. He couldn't even guess at what his life would look like in five years, in ten. He knew some of his family would say nothing needed to change, he could still have college and a career, but the Stones required his time and attention more than a life of dreams.

He'd not spoken to them about it, had no idea what they expected of him, but he thought it was going to blow what he'd wanted before out of the water. Just because Thanos and his people were dead, they weren't the only threats out there.

Happy strode out of the open doors, glancing up and down the street with a furrowed brow and his security pass hanging from his jacket pocket.

Peter raised a hand to him and called, "Happy, over here."

Happy came towards him, eyes strained, and said, "What's wrong?"

"Uh… it's lunchtime?" Peter said, feeling a little wrongfooted.

Happy frowned. "You came two hours into the city for lunch?"

"Well, I figured it'd be asking too much to ask you to come to me."

"And there's no big problem you're here to warn me about? Everyone's okay?"

Understanding finally, Peter smiled. "Yep. Everyone's fine. Tony is spending the day with Pepper and Morgan—they've gone for a drive back to the lake house to pick up some stuff, and so Morgan can rotate some of the stuffed toys she brought with her. Everyone else is doing their own thing, so I figured I'd come spend some time with my favorite head of security."

Happy's lips quirked into a smile, but his voice was gruff as he said, "And the text was a joke?"

Peter laughed. "It's Throwback Thursday—you know, a nod to the good old days. I thought it was funny. I mean, you summoned me to the bathroom once, so I figured I'd do the same. I couldn't actually come in since I don't have a security pass anymore—it was in my schoolbag which got left stuck to a dumpster before I stowed away into space."

Happy rolled his eyes. "Really, the good old days? Kid, the days in which you spammed my inbox and voicemail with ramblings about your patrols were not the good old days, and if you're calling Coney Island a good thing, I'm going to have Tony get you assessed by a shrink since that was what most people would call a nightmare. I'll get you a new security pass, so next time you can come find me. And finally, did you seriously hitchhike into the city just to have lunch with me?"

Peter raised a finger. "You loved my updates, and you know it. Coney Island was a nightmare, yeah, but it was also the thing that stopped you wanting to block my number."

"Hmph, I wouldn't go that far," Happy grumbled.

"And finally," Peter went on a little louder. "Happy, I did not hitchhike here. I used the Stones to—"

Happy held up a hand. "If you're about to impart some new detail about your crazy glowy friends, I don't want to know about it. I've had my fill of crazy for a year already, thanks. Tony told me enough to give me nightmares about you getting lost in space already."

"I'm not going to get lost, Happy," Peter said. "I know what I'm doing."

Happy blew out a deep breath. "Kid, I don't need to hear it." He looked Peter in the eyes, taking in the brown contacts. "The eyes look better now, at least."

"They're contacts," Peter said. "Nat gave them to me. I figured it was better than saying it was all some Post-Blip identity crisis. I kinda like them, too. It makes me feel a little more like myself."

Happy stared at him a moment, gave a small nod, then said, "Where are we eating?"

"Wherever you like," Peter said. "What are you in the mood for? There's that vegan cuisine place a few blocks up. How's your cardiogram looking these days?"

"It's just fine. And I'm not eating rabbit food. Let's get a burger."

Peter had been mostly joking with the vegan idea, so he was more than happy to follow Happy across the street and a few blocks up to a diner they'd visited together before a couple times.

Happy led them to a booth in the corner and pushed aside the menu without looking at it.

A waitress came, and he said, "Coffee, cheeseburger, and fries. He'll have the same only doubled up—two burgers, double pickles, and extra fries, with a large coke." He glanced at Peter. "Anything else?"

"Nope, that sounds great," Peter said.

Happy thanked the waitress as she jotted down his order and walked away.

"You remembered my order," Peter said cheerfully.

"I did?" Happy asked with a quirked brow. "I was just ordering a monster meal since I know you can pack away the food."

"You got it exactly right," Peter said.

Happy pursed his lips then said. "Okay, I remembered. Don't think it means we're going to hug or something."

Peter ducked his head to hide his smile. Happy remembered his exact order from the times they'd eaten out together before, and Peter knew that meant something. Happy wasn't going to admit that since it was a sign that he actually cared, and Peter thought he'd spent his ability to show affection when they'd been reunited at the Tool Shed.

When their drinks had been delivered, Happy sipped his coffee and said, "So, kid, when are you going back to school?"

Peter fiddled with the napkin holder and said, "I, uh, I don't know that I will."

Happy frowned. "What do you mean? You're sixteen years old, Peter. You need to be in school."

"I know, and I'd like to, I think, but things are different now, Happy. I've got the Stones, and that's a responsibility I can't just ignore."

Happy pushed aside his cup and leaned forward. "That's bullshit, kid. Sure, you've got a bucketload of crazy in your life now, more than you had before even, but that doesn't mean you can't have your life the way it should be."

"What if something happens, a threat comes, and I'm sitting in chem class?"

Happy pinched the bridge of his nose and said, "You know who you sound like?"

"Uh… no."

"You sound like Tony. After the Battle of New York, that wormhole, he thought like that. He was convinced some huge threat was coming, and that messed him up. He ended up with PTSD and more paranoia than you can imagine. That led to the Ultron disaster."

"Yeah, but I'm not going to create some crazy AI that tries to destroy the world."

Happy shook his head. "No, you're not, but you might go through the rest of it. No one could tell Tony that it wasn't on him back then, he wouldn't listen to anyone, but you know better. Learn from his mistakes. Yeah, you've got more power than anyone ever has had, but the fate of the universe is not on your shoulders. When Thanos came, there were a lot of people fighting him. You finished him off, I know, but you weren't alone, and you won't be next time." He stopped and stared at Peter a moment, then said, his voice softer, "It's not all on you, Peter."

Peter nodded. "I know that. I don't think I'm some big hero that has to protect everyone, really. I wasn't the one that won that fight for us—it was everyone on that battlefield. But don't I have to be ready?"

Happy sighed. "Yeah, be ready, do what you can to prepare, but don't use that as a reason to live some kind of half-life waiting for the fight to come. You only get one life to live, kid, so make the most of it."

Peter bit his lip. He could tell Happy was serious about what he was saying, he was impassioned in a way he'd never seen before, but he didn't know it all. Peter didn't have one life to live—he had an eternity of them. He didn't want to tell him that as he sensed Happy wasn't going to take it well."

"Look, kid, don't let this Stones thing destroy what you wanted from life," Happy said. "It's not what your aunt would want; you know that as well as I do. She thought Spider-Man was too much on the shoulders of a kid, but she supported it because she loved you and knew it was what you needed to do. She would not support you giving up on everything you ever wanted because some stupid rocks decided you were worthy."

Peter laughed in spite of himself, stopping when he heard a voice rouse in his mind.

"You know, he might have a point, kid. It's not like you can't have both—us and the whole school thing."

"But there are limitations, Power," Time replied. "He has a responsibility."

"Really? I didn't notice," Power said scathingly. "But he's a responsible kid. He can take care of the world while living in it. Soul, back me up."

"He is right," Soul said. "There would need to be adjustments made, but he could live a full life with us.

Happy snapped his fingers in front of his face. "Hey, kid! You listening to me?"

"The Stones are talking," Peter explained.

Happy's lips parted, and his eyes widened, but the waitress arrived with their food before he could speak. She set the plates down, said, "Enjoy, fellas," then walked away.

Peter picked up a fry and nibbled it as Happy worked through what he'd said.

He scowled down at his plate and then said, "Okay, I'm going to say it, since I don't think anyone else is, and I know your aunt would if she was here. Peter, you're sixteen years old, a kid, and you belong in school. You need to finish school, get into a good college, study hard, and graduate with honors. After that, you can decide what you do with your life—become a full-time superhero or start a brilliant career. Your new superhero friends probably won't say this because they're superheroes and they know exactly what these Stones are capable of. I can see past them to see what you need and deserve."

"I like him," Power said. "He's smart and doesn't waste time on the huggy parts of life."

Peter laughed, and Happy scowled. "Are you laughing at me?"

"No, it was just… something else. I know what you're saying, Happy, and I think I'd like to go back to school, but—"

"No buts!" Happy snapped. "I told you what you need to do. Get your ass back to school."

"You know, Ned says we're not going back to school until summer…"

"Don't be a smartass, Parker. Do homeschool or whatever everyone else that came back is doing." He picked up his burger, took a huge bite, and nodded as if the subject was closed.

Peter smiled and began to eat his own lunch. He thought Happy was wrong, that he couldn't slip into his old life, but a part of him wanted to. He'd like to be back in classes with Ned and MJ; he'd like to go to college. He'd like to do it properly at least once.

One day, he was going to be alone in the world; everyone he loved would have died over the years. Unless he stayed a part of the lives of Morgan's descendants, he'd have nothing. It would be good to get through school, have a graduation his family could attend. He thought Tony might like that, too. But not yet. He had to make peace with the idea it wasn't going to happen with his friends, he wasn't ready, but one day, he would be just Peter Parker for a while.

So… What do you think? Do you think Peter should be back in school or living as he is now? Did you enjoy the time with Happy? I enjoyed writing it.

Until next time…

Clowns or Midgets xxx