Hey everyone!
I decided to write a story about Peter and Thor meeting, since they haven't had an MCU interaction, and wondered what would've happened if Thor had stayed on Earth for a while before going to space with the Guardians (you know, since he did so little during the five years after killing Thanos to help his people). So I wrote this story about Aunt May sending a depressed Peter to spend time with the god of Thunder, who's had his own experiences with loss.
I hope you all enjoy it!
-aggiefrogger
Aftermath:
It was a month after the Funeral, and Peter Parker was nowhere near okay.
Even seeing his old friends (especially Ned and MJ) didn't lift his spirits. Seeing his Aunt May didn't help, either, and he remained in a constant state of depression. It was as if every piece of news, good and bad, didn't do anything to make him feel better… or help him forget Tony.
The news stations didn't help either; everyone seemed to be mourning the loss of the head of Stark Enterprises, and everyone at school was talking about him and what he did to save everyone. The Ultimate Sacrifice, they called it; it was one for the history books, to be sure, and the surviving Avengers were hailed as heroes by some, nuisances by others. Peter just wished they would shut up about Tony, but felt guilty for wishing it afterwards.
Peter hadn't worn his suit since the final battle. Happy had fixed it and sent it back to him, but he couldn't wear it; it was made by Tony, and he just wanted to purge himself of anything that reminded him of the former head of Stark Enterprises. How kind but stern he was, how smart he was, and how much he believed that Peter would do great things someday…
He didn't talk to Ned outside of school, he didn't do his homework; his grades slipped, but the teachers thought it was normal (he was technically gone for five years, so it was expected of him to struggle with school). MJ knew something was off, however, and sometimes slipped him pictures she drew of him, but he threw them out, hating how sad she made him look, even if it was accurate. He was depressed and angsty, but he didn't care; after everything he went through, he deserved some time to get over it.
Aunt May worried about her nephew, asking him if he wanted to talk about what happened, but he shut himself in his room as soon as he came home, only coming out for meals. His room was a mess. He hadn't shaved, so he was starting to get some stubble on his face, and he had dark circles under his eyes from lack of sleep; if he stayed awake, the nightmares couldn't get him. Peter kept dreaming of that moment on the Battlefield, watching the one person who believed in him die. Why hadn't Peter given the gauntlet to that flying woman who blew up Thanos' ship? Why did Tony do what he did? Why didn't Peter use the Gauntlet himself? Why seemed to be that eternal question that he could never answer.
He didn't answer the calls from Happy or Pepper; he didn't want anything to do with the Avengers or heroes. He'd learned from Pepper after the war about how Tony had figured out time travel with the help of Scott Lang, but the other Avengers hadn't done anything to try to use said time travel to save him. The Hulk (who was now a green Bruce Banner), had explained that they couldn't do anything to save him, but Peter couldn't see why they didn't use the Time Stone to revive him. By now, it was too late, since the Stones were now back in their original timelines, and Peter doubted he'd ever forgive them for not helping the man who helped them.
Finally, Aunt May couldn't take seeing someone she considered her son be so upset anymore, and called someone she'd met at the funeral; someone who'd worked with Tony Stark, if only briefly, asking if he could help Peter…
One Friday, when he got back from school, he was surprised to see that Aunt May was home and sitting in the living room; usually, she was at work until six, and home by seven.
"Hey, May," he grumbled, heading towards the fridge for a few snacks before he banished himself to his room. "You're home early."
"Yeah," she said from the living room. "I got off early. Peter, can I… can I see you for a second in here?"
Peter froze, realizing she probably wanted to talk about the Snap, the Blip, the Battle, the Sacrifice… "I'm good," he said quickly, walking past the living room towards his bedroom. "Gotta lot of homework and-"
"Peter," another voice said, and the teen stopped cold, backtracking to the living room.
It was small; they'd lost their old apartment and most of their stuff when they disappeared, but this new one was about the same size as the last one, and they had a settlement from the Avengers to pay for it until May built back up some credit and money in her bank account. It was filled with new, generic furniture; more purpose over style. Aunt May was sitting on the couch, staring expectedly at Peter, and standing next to her, red cape flowing behind him, was-
"Doctor Strange," Peter said, flashing back to the Battle. The sorcerer was wearing some blue robes, and the red cloak behind him seemed to flutter without wind. "H-H-Hi."
"Peter Parker," the man said, seeming to give off an aura of power as the cape fluttered windlessly. "I assume you remember who I am?"
The teen nodded; when Hulk brought everyone back, it was Doctor Strange who got everyone to the battle to fight Thanos. He was also the one who knew that Tony was going to die before Thanos snapped everyone away (thanks to the Time stone), so he didn't particularly like the sorcerer. "Aren't you supposed to be protecting the Earth? Because you did such a good job last time."
"PETER," May reprimanded.
"I got a call from your Aunt May," the magician continued, seeming to ignore what the teen said. "She told me you haven't been yourself since Tony-"
"Stop," Peter demanded, taking off his backpack, "I know what you're gonna say; that everything's gonna be okay, that what happened with Tony wasn't my fault, or whatever you're gonna say to try and make me feel better-"
"No, I'm not," the sorcerer responded.
"So don't try to - - - What?" Peter wasn't expecting this; wasn't he supposed to be that adult that told the kid everything would be OK? The teen didn't want his help, but he was upset he didn't at least offer any aid.
"I'm not here to do any of that. That's not why your Aunt called me."
"Then why are you here," Peter asked, looking at his worried Aunt.
"Peter," she started, tears swimming in her eyes as she looked at her hands, then something behind Peter, then back at her feet. He whirled around, seeing his uncle's old suitcase, which had been sitting in a closet since forever ago.
"May, why is Uncle Ben's-"
"I love you so much, Peter," she said, starting to cry.
Suddenly, Peter realized that the bag was meant for him, and he turned back to his aunt. "No-"
"Don't worry Peter," Doctor Strange said, lifting his hand and making circular motions with it, his fingers glowing with energy, "you'll be home before you know it."
"MAY," Peter yelled, starting to get angry. "WHAT DID YOU-"
A ring of orange passed over him, and he was no longer in the living room. He wasn't even sure he was in Queens.
I hope you enjoyed the chapter!
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