AN: Just a quick note here! This is my first real fic, may as well kick it off with the field trip trope. I love reading these, so I thought, "Hey, let's try writing one". Peter's identity usually get's revealed in some super intense situation, which works well, don't get me wrong, but I wanted to try something different. Please have a read, maybe a review at the end? That would mean a lot to me. Thanks very much, and I hope you enjoy!
Peter Parker was not having a good day.
See, the thing is, Peter is a pretty intelligent dude, but that doesn't mean he has a lot of common sense.
Oh, don't get him wrong, he knows the basics, but he tends to overanalyse situations when really the solution's pretty simple; Like when he accidentally gave the team food poisoning after the dumpling incident and set fire to the compound (his Aunt May's cooking hasn't taught him much), or when he tried to explain to his teacher that yes, he did have a Stark internship, and no sir, he didn't want to come clean before the field trip, thank you very much.
It had started with the disaster that was the Acadec Washington trip, though anyone with eyes could see that Mr Harrington has been at the end of his rope for a while. Too many lost students, near-death experiences and constant jibing from teenagers will do that to a guy. So, after that trainwreck of a field trip, he decided that he just couldn't handle any more trips.
Of course, that was before Principal Morita excitedly told him about the deal he'd managed to get from Miss Virginia Potts herself, CEO of the world's leading tech industry, for a few select students to attend a tour of the Avengers Compound facility upstate. And being the heartfelt man Morita was, of course he meant for those poor kids who almost lost their lives on their last trip to enjoy a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to tour the actual Avengers facility.
Now, Mr Harrington couldn't say he wasn't looking forward to the tour himself, but if something went wrong he felt he might drop everything and move to Canada. Hence, he needed to prevent disaster before it occurred, so he needed to talk to the source of most (if not all) of his field trip drama.
On that bright and sunny Monday morning, Peter walked into Midtown and knew it was going to be a bad day.
He'd spent his weekend at his Aunt's, as he usually did unless a mission came up, and it'd been nice. They'd stayed in and had a Harry Potter marathon and ordered takeout, May was on call but hadn't had any issues, so while it wasn't completely relaxed it was still good to spend quality time with his Aunt. Since he'd moved into the compound they hadn't had much time to chill out, and while he'd never regret his decision to become an Avenger, it was nice to catch up and be just the two of them again. He'd be heading to Vienna the next Saturday to sign the Sokovia Accords, so he wouldn't see her this weekend either.
When he walked into the school, though, his hackles were immediately raised, so to speak. He felt a faint buzz at the nape of his neck and Peter was on guard right away. He spent his day chatting with Ned and MJ, who he'd recently got closer to through Acadec (he was proud to be considered one of her friends), and everything had been going fine, so he was confused as to why his spidey-sense was going haywire.
That was, until the announcement.
It was at the end of practice that Mr Harrington handed out the papers, and Peter could see his teammates' faces lighting up and whispers starting as they started to read.
"Now guys, I know we haven't had the best of luck with our excursions", he looked at Peter, almost pained. "Though I'm glad to announce that on Friday we'll be taking a tour of the Avengers Compound!"
Peter was doomed.
Mr Harrington continued, "You kids just have to get those forms and NDAs filled and handed in by Wednesday, lunch and transport will be provided, and we'll be arriving back here at around six in the evening because of travel times upstate. Let me know if that's an issue for you and we'll try to work out some travel arrangements. This is a great opportunity for us to see security and tech development in action, and hopefully it'll give you guys an idea of what you want to do when you graduate."
By this point the small group was buzzing with excitement, the Avengers were legends, getting to see where they lived and trained was unheard of. Peter, on the other hand, wanted to bury his face in his hands and cry.
Okay, maybe that was an overstatement, but he'd really rather not have his classmates taking a tour around his home. He, Mr Stark, Pepper and Vision lived at the compound along with Rhodey when he wasn't out of the state, they'd steadily gotten closer to each other and worked well as a team. The compound was Peter's safe space, so he wasn't very comfortable with the prospect of the teens invading his space.
"Dude this is so cool! Do you think we'll meet the Avengers? Or Tony Stark? Oh! Do you think Captain America will be there?"
Peter snorted, "No Ned, he's still on the run."
Ned's face fell slightly, before perking up again, "Oh, right, but you have to admit this is pretty awesome!"
"I don't know, Ned. It doesn't feel like a great idea."
MJ cut in, brushing some stray hair from her face, "It's gonna happen whether you want it to or not, no point in worrying over it."
"I know that MJ, it's just kind of weird y'know? I work there, it's just strange." MJ shrugged and snapped her novel shut, slouching nonchalantly while readying to leave. Peter groaned, frustrated as he grabbed his backpack and turned to leave with Ned and the others.
Flash knocked into him purposefully on the way out, before huffing out a laugh, "Watch out Parker, looks like you can't hide anymore. Such a shame, really, but it'll be fun to watch you flounder, I guess."
Peter rolled his eyes and didn't comment, though he supposed it was good to see Flash back at his usual self, he hadn't been acting right since Homecoming night, he was almost subdued, and Peter found it more unnerving than anything else.
"Peter, could you please hang back for a moment?" Peter startled but nodded his affirmation, said goodbye to Ned and MJ and headed back over to Mr Harrington.
Once the last student had filtered out, Mr Harrington shut the door and motioned for Peter to sit down and sat down himself. There was a stack of papers sitting on his desk which upon closer inspection were an earlier class' test papers, along with some more clutter and stationery.
Mr Harrington started, "Listen, Peter, I know high school can be tough. I know what it's like to feel under pressure to be someone you're not, and I know things can get stressful at this time of year."
Peter nodded, confused.
"Well, there's a good chance we'll be talking to people who work at Stark Industries, and I really don't want you getting in trouble. So maybe tone down or come clean about your, ah, internship." Harrington put it gently, but Peter was still looking at him like he had two heads.
"But sir, it is a real internship," Only a half-lie. "I'm not lying, I can get official documentation if the school needs it."
Mr Harrington looked on, tired. "Very well Peter, I won't press. I must ask though, that you won't try to provoke any of your classmates while we're away. I just want the best for you kids. I also ask that you don't find yourself, ahem, lost while on the tour." He gave him a pointed look.
Peter flushed sheepishly and nodded, "Of course, sir."
Mr Harrington smiled, "Thanks Pete, knew I could rely on you. Now off you go, I have marking to do."
Peter nodded and headed out after grabbing his bag, slightly confused.
Peter was not having a good day.
The week passed fairly quickly; all things considered. There'd been a few half-hearted run-ins with Flash, and he totally bombed that physics test, but otherwise it was a pretty standard week.
Mr Stark has honest-to-god cackled when he noticed the permission slip and NDAs, as if he'd had no idea, but said nothing. Peter could tell he was plotting something though; he could see his eyes twinkling any time the trip was brought up. Peter was scared.
The Decathlon team had been bouncing all week over the trip, even MJ wasn't immune, she was more hyped about the possibility of meeting Miss Potts, but Peter was drained. It was all they could talk about in their group chats and in school, so there was no escape.
Peter just wanted the trip over with, so he didn't have to worry. He was looking forward to the weekend, so they could escape to Vienna, though he was nervous about the storm that would follow his signing of the accords. See, he knew that in signing, he'd have to reveal himself as Spider-Man. He'd made peace with it, his secret identity for a chance to make real change in the world.
He loves being an Avenger, and he wouldn't change that for anything. May was to be moved to the compound on Saturday morning so there'd be less of a security risk. She was conflicted about the move but knows it's necessary for her own and her nephew's safety.
He and Vision had headed a couple of states over to do some recon on Doom on Thursday night, which didn't go as well as they'd hoped (you try doing reconnaissance with a guy who refuses to use doors), but they'd gathered some intel so it wasn't completely useless.
Friday came soon enough.
He slapped his alarm just before it sounded and heaved himself out of bed. He was still tired from the quinjet home the night before, and he knew it was going to be a long day. Peter grabbed a quick shower and threw on a hoodie and jeans, slipping on his nanotech watch and webshooters.
He grabbed his Stark phone and took a second to catch up on the latest news and messages from Ned and MJ, who had woken up earlier than him and were buzzing about the trip.
Peter knew as soon as he hit the lounge that it was going to be one of those days. He and Mr Stark had a solemn curse that any time Vision decided to cook, nobody should expect to get anything done because it was simply bad luck.
See, the thing is that Vision, while being constantly connected to every public network in the world, was not very good at the simple things. Ask him to access an employee database for an insurance firm over in England, sure, that's no problem. Take down a HYDRA security system? No sweat. However, if you ask him to stick a wash in the washer, you know your spidey suit's gonna end up seven times smaller and green.
One time, Vision tried to change the lightbulbs in the main foyer of the compound, he managed to set alight every socket and fixture in the room and block the main entrance shut. Every employee had to use the back entrance for three days since they couldn't work out what the fault was. Vision is just that skilled. Needless to say, Peter fixes the lightbulbs now.
So that morning, when Peter walked across the threshold of the lounge and spotted Vision attempting to make some toast, he just closed his eyes, exhaled and walked to the public elevator as he heard Vision fumbling with a fire extinguisher and an oven glove.
If you asked Peter, he'd tell you that the subway, while unpleasant, was the fastest way to get to Midtown high from the compound. Who wanted to sit in morning traffic on a trip across the city? That morning wasn't too bad though, he caught his train right as the doors closed and ended up beside someone who was only a bit intrusive and rude.
He did curse his enhanced senses though, since the subway smelled much better before the spider bite.
He reached the school just as the Decathlon squad was getting on the bus, and Mr Harrington gave him a disapproving glance before taking the role. He slumped down in the seat next to an obviously ecstatic Ned Leeds and fiddled with his hoodie strings.
Ned grinned widely as he sat down, "Hey Dude! What's up? Can you believe we're going to the Avengers Compound? I have so many questions. Do you think we'll get to meet Tony Stark? What do you think we're having for lunch?"
"Good morning to you too, Ned." Peter snorted and smiled fondly.
MJ looked up from her book, "Hey loser, how's it going? How's your morning been?"
"It's been good, my cousin set fire to our toaster though. I got the new Lego Star Wars set ordered though, so once it arrives you gotta come over, Ned!"
"Oh yeah, totally dude! That'd be sick!"
The journey passes pretty uneventfully, nothing strange or startling happened, MJ sketched Peter when they brought up his crush on the human torch, and Ned told them about the program he was working on to make any Alexa in a specific radius play Despacito. Flash had been pretty quiet; he'd sat beside Jason and was pretty absorbed in his phone. Mr Harrington sat up front and had fallen asleep five minutes into the trip, and the bus driver was playing some funky 80s tunes.
A wave of awe passed through the bus as the compound came into view. Peter had to admit, it made quite a sight. The compound site consisted of several large silver and white structures, the central one being the largest with the Avengers logo carved into the side. In front of the main building, there was a quinjet in the landing bay, the sun shone down making the buildings glisten in the light.
"Wow," he could hear Flash breath across the bus.
"You live here," Ned whispered, awed.
Peter grinned a little, he couldn't believe it sometimes, himself.
After a second headcount, they filed out of the bus and into the reception of the main building, and the second wave of awe hit the group.
Now, one thing you have to understand about the Avengers Compound facility is that it was designed almost entirely by Tony Stark and Pepper Potts. This means, of course, that it's an elegant, straight-up cool building. When you walk in, you need to have that rush of excitement.
The room was completely open and was themed in shades of silver and blue, with panes of stained glass ornamentally framing the room in a pattern that resembled the Avengers logo. Scattered strategically around the room were seating areas and drinks stations, including water machines and snacks, as well as tech on a secluded network for personal tasks installed into stations lining the room.
Immediately by the entrance was the reception booth and security scanner, where a harsh woman with brown hair pulled back in a bun was standing, holding a clipboard and a small box of ID cards. As the group entered, she turned to them and greeted them professionally.
"You're Midtown tech, right? We've been expecting you. I'm Agent Maria Hill, I'll be your guide today. Since we don't usually do tours, we don't have an assigned guide, so I'll be taking that post today. The first thing we need to get down are the rules, I know that's not much fun, but let's get it out of the way first."
She outlined basic rules of the compound, though they'd been included in their packet before the trip, and the class nodded their agreement before they moved on.
"Now, I'm going to hand out your active ID cards for the day, these are white cards for visitor use. If you need to visit us again they'll be reactivated, but for the time being, they'll only be active for the day. You can hand them back afterward, but feel free to keep them if you want. These cards let our security know that you're sanctioned to be here, and FRIDAY knows not to flag you in our system. Any questions?"
Cindy raised her hand, "What do you mean by white cards?"
Maria smiled at the girl before continuing, "Good question. We'll not get too far into it, but in basic terms, we have 4 main clearance levels with many sub-levels, white is the lowest we can offer you today."
Maria handed out the cards one by one while checking with Mr Harrington that everyone had the right card. Everyone but Peter. Damn Happy's stupid reprint rule.
Maria turned to Peter, "I assume you have your pass, Mr Parker?" Mr Harrington tried not to look shocked.
Peter nodded in affirmation, "Yes ma'am." He then clicked it onto his hoodie, if they were to look closely they'd notice a red and gold outline around his name and details. If they were to look very closely, they'd see a faint holographic spider and Avengers logo on the back.
Ned grinned and nudged him in his side, and MJ looked impressed at the agent that was leading them (in her own, MJ kind of way, of course).
Maria turned to address the group, "Alright, we're going to be heading through this scanner, FRIDAY will scan you and announce you if you're safe and cleared for entry. We shouldn't have any issues, but in a facility like this, we need to take precautions."
The class nodded and Agent Hill stepped through the scanner.
"Agent Maria Hill, SHIELD level access, Gold, Co-director of the SHIELD division. Welcome back, Agent Hill."
A couple of students startled but some chattered excitedly.
Agent Hill nodded the first student into the scanner.
"Betty Brant, Visitor. Enjoy your field trip, Miss Brant."
Betty smiled widely and flushed as she was announced, before heading through to stand by Maria.
This continued through the rest of the students and Mr Harrington. Ned somehow looked even more excited when FRIDAY called his name, and even MJ cracked a smile at the AI.
Peter suddenly got attacked by the invasive image of a smirking Tony Stark and his heart jumped into his throat. He admittedly hadn't thought about this.
He made eye contact with Maria and tried to plead with his eyes to no avail. Mr Harrington gave him a long-suffering Look.
Peter stepped through the scanner.
"Peter Parker, Avenger level access, Red-Gold, Special Operations and Research division. Welcome back, Spider-Man."
Peter Parker was not having a good day.