AN: Based on a set of drawings from Giuls-233 on Tumblr, where Ron meets Spiderman
The hot sun beats down on Ron's shoulders, and for once, he is grateful for the amount of suncream Hermione poured over his skin before they left the hotel room that morning. He could do without the shit muggle baseball cap, though; it just makes his head extra warm.
The Florida heat is unbearable, and he doesn't think he'll ever adjust to it. He knows he should be grateful to be able to go on holiday and enjoy the freedom they fought hard for, but Ron is already annoyed at the amount of sweat, the sunburn and the extra freckles the sun forces out of his skin.
Ron tightens his grip on his girlfriend's hand as they weave their way through the crowds of people at the entrance to Islands of Adventure. Large groups of people still make him nervous, even a year after the war. Still, at least it's easy to follow Harry; his jet black messy hair sticks out amongst the sea of hats, especially when it's next to Ginny's brilliant red hair.
The group has one goal in mind. Since they landed in Orlando five days ago, Harry has not stopped talking about the new Hulk rollercoaster and today, they will finally get a chance to ride it.
"Did you know that the train reaches top speeds of sixty-seven miles per hour?" Harry rambles as the shining green track comes into view. Like its namesake, a formidable frame lurks over the lake at the newly opened theme park. "And there are seven inversions."
Ron opens his mouth to respond with his own facts, but as they get closer to the ride entrance, his attention is drawn elsewhere. A few feet away, five superheroes entertain the tourists, and Ron knows all of them by name. He's spent a lot of his downtime reading muggle comic books whilst Hermione has been in school, and he now considers himself a Marvel genius.
There's Captain America, who tosses his shield and flexes for the masses. Next is Wolverine, baring his razor-sharp claws with a growl. And in the middle stands…
Spiderman.
A shudder travels down Ron's spine as he sets eyes on the shorter hero. Sure, the costumed character doesn't look anything like the disgusting creature, but just the thought of those eight furry legs wriggling at him makes him want to run away and hide.
"Hey, Ron, look! It's Spiderman!" Harry exclaims. "You should get a photo."
Ginny nods along in agreement. It was her idea to fly all this way to celebrate her and Hermione's graduation from Hogwarts, as well as the boys doing well at Auror Academy. "Yes! Mum and Dad would love to see."
"Uhm, guys." Ron's hand instinctively tightens around Hermione's, whilst the other reaches up to rub the back of his neck. "I don't know about this."
"You can do it. He doesn't even look like a spider," Harry placates his best friend.
They're always trying to push him out of his comfort zone, and Ron hates his friends for doing this to him. Grumbling his complaints only to himself, he untangles his fingers from Hermione's, then takes a small step closer towards the hero, his palms sweating.
When Ron is five feet away from the red and blue-uniformed man, he stops and glares, trying to work out if there's any malintent behind the silver gauze eyes. He is pretty sure the whole park can hear this heart pounding in his chest, despite the blare of the theme music surrounding them.
"You can get a little closer. I don't bite," Spiderman quips, then does a fancy little flip before dropping into a low squat.
I bet you bloody do.
He's survived worse than this—Aragog, for a start. The thing in front of him is just a man in a suit. Ron pats his wand, hidden away in the pocket of his shorts. It's always there to protect him, although he doesn't fancy having to explain a massive breach of the International Statute of Wizarding Secrecy to MACUSA after he hexes Spiderman to smithereens.
Swearing under his breath, Ron takes another couple of steps towards the character.
Fed up with the wait, the actor closes the gap and loops his arm around Ron's waist before posing, sticking his other arm out and turning his hand up as if shooting a web from his palm.
It takes all of Ron's self-control not to attack the man. His hands curl into fists, clamped tight against his sides, and he focuses on the breathing exercises they learned during their first week of training. A flash blinds him, and then the icky spider thing lets go and moves to the next person waiting, a small, grinning child.
Ron has survived.
Relief washes over him, but he still retreats to Hermione a little faster than he usually would. Harry and Ginny linger, admiring the picture.
"You could have at least smiled, Ron." Harry laughs before stepping towards his friend to show him.
"No thanks." Ron pushes the camera away. "I don't want to relive that."
His sister pouts. "It's just a man in a costume."
Ron is about to argue back, but Hermione takes the lead, spotting his discomfort and tangling her hand with his. "I thought we were here to ride this rollercoaster? Now, are we going to join the queue before I chicken out completely?"