Hallie

Despite the very unwelcome news, lunch had been otherwise pleasant, and now Peter was working rapidly on some coursework for one of his MBA classes while Hallie was curled up next to him on the couch catching up on her Psychology course reading. Peter seemed a little extra stressed, but it's not like she could touch his soul mark while he was typing. She moved a little closer into his side.

"I can't believe I forgot about this," Peter muttered in annoyance.

"I did send you a notification yesterday, Peter," Karen piped up from his phone. "And one this morning, actually…"

"Sorry, Karen. I know. There was a whole lot going on this morning."

Hallie grimaced. She hated not really being able to help Peter. She pursed her lips and gave him a sideways glance. FRIDAY had inserted Tony and Pepper's numbers into her phone on the first day, but she hadn't had any reason to contact them until now. She opened her phone up.

If you're not busy, any chance you can come sit with Peter too? He's really stressing about this assignment with everything else we have going on.

His reply came in just a couple minutes.

Sure thing, Samwise.

What the… Hallie just shook her head and smiled in bemusement. Her father-in-law was something else.

Five minutes later Tony strolled into the shared living space, hands tucked in his pockets casually, and approached Peter and Hallie.

"Scoot," he said, gesturing for them to both move over so there was room on Peter's left.

Peter looked up in confusion while Hallie was already moving over to the next cushion. Peter seemed mildly annoyed, but did as his dad directed requested, huffing a little as he rearranged his laptop and the article he was referencing on his StarkPad.

Tony settled on his left and pushed his arm right up against Peter's, so their soul marks were both in contact with each other, and picked up his phone with his left hand to send a text to someone. Hallie could see and feel Peter drop his shoulders a little, and take a deeper breath. Perfect. Hallie leaned her head on Peter's other shoulder and picked her book back up.

"Okay, that's amazingly helpful. But how did you know?" he said to Tony after another minute.

"Your other soulmate tattled on you. No stressing out over school stuff today, Roo. C's get degrees."

Peter turned towards Hallie and kissed the side of her head. "Thanks, sweetheart," he breathed.

"But, Dad, I can't just not turn it in," he argued in the next breath, while keeping his arm firmly against Tony's. "I have to try and at least get some credit for it. And this professor already doesn't think much of me. I have no idea why. "

"Sounds like a 'her' problem, bud. It is Professor Harrigan, isn't it?"

"Yeah."

"Phone it in, Pete, and let's get back to the important stuff."

Peter sighed. "Yeah, yeah. Give me like fifteen minutes, and I'll just submit it."

"Fair enough," said Tony, crossing his arms, closing his eyes and leaning his head over onto Peter's shoulder.

Hallie finished her Psychology reading a few minutes later. "Peter, will it disturb your concentration if I ask Tony a couple questions?"

"Nah, I'm just putting in some citations right now. You're good."

"Fire away, kiddo," said Tony, not sounding as drowsy as he looked.

"Does it really matter that everyone might know that Peter and I are soulmates now?" she asked softly.

"Well, for the most part, no. In a lot of ways it will be easier. No more hiding your relationship, no more needing excuses to stay together. But now that people know how essential you are to Peter, it makes you a little more of a target."

"More than when he announced we were engaged?"

"Yes, actually. They know he'd do pretty much anything to get you back now, and that he actually can't be without you. Your leverage-value just went up with that little revelation," he said, mildly disgruntled. "But really, it was just a matter of time. Not that we can't quietly retaliate at the source." That last part was muttered.

Peter shifted uncomfortably between them. "When I said you wouldn't distract me, I didn't know you were going to be asking how eager people are to kidnap you now, babe. Officially distracted," he grumbled darkly.

"Sorry, love," she said contritely, sliding her hand along the inside of his wrist briefly. He smiled his thanks for that.

"But," Tony said, sitting up, "along with knowing that she's essential to you, Pete, the same things that make her a target also protect her. You know that. Of all the trackers and security and other protection we can put in place, one of the strongest deterrents is knowing you're part of a bigger team. A team that includes some fairly competent people. And some scary ones," he said, quirking an eyebrow. "They tried to take Peter a few times after people found out he was my soulmate, but instead of letting him bust himself out, which he totally could have done most of the time, the Avengers showed up with an excessive show of force."

Hallie could feel how big her eyes were. "How many times?" She breathed out, realizing she was holding her breath.

"I dunno? Maybe two or three," said Peter absently. He was trying to submit his paper now.

"Five times they were successful, and there were four other attempted kidnappings or shootings," Tony said morosely. It was obvious he wasn't guessing at the numbers. "And every time I was a complete wreck until I got you back," he finished quietly.

"Hey," Peter said softly, setting his laptop on the other side of Hallie, and turning to grab his dad's hand. "I'm fine. And most of those I was never in any real danger. You know that, right?"

"I know. It was still rough, though. Gives me lots of motivation to avoid ever having Hallie in the same situation, though. I don't ever want you to have to feel that way."

"Um, what about the two times you were taken, huh?" Peter argued. "I've definitely felt that way before, and it was awful," he said firmly.

"Yeah, I guess so," Tony said quietly. It was silent for a few moments.

"Wow, so, heavy topics for 1:30 in the afternoon," said Hallie awkwardly, trying to stand up to go get a drink of water. She had a hard time escaping from the couch with her center of gravity being extra low where she was tucked into Peter's side, so he gave her a little boost.

"If it's okay with you, Pete, Natasha, Clint, Steve, and Bucky have all offered to take days accompanying Hallie to class, along with her team, for the next few days. Just as a show of support, and to remind anyone who may be thinking about it, whose family she belongs to."

"Oh, I hadn't thought of that. Strategy-wise, it's probably a good move, actually. Especially when they have no idea who's actually with her the rest of the time," he said wryly. "Man, that almost makes me want them to try to take her while I'm nearby, just because I kinda feel like punching someone right now at the thought of it all."

Hallie came and sat back down, giving Peter the side-eye. "Sounds like someone needs to go to the gym tonight," she said lightly. And really? You're going to let some of the OG Avengers just come sit in while I go to class? That seems overkill. And boring for them."

"Nah, it's good for them," Peter said with a cheshire-cat smile. "And what I really need tonight is a little swinging. You still up for shadowing me?" he said to Tony.

"I'm always ready," Tony said, yawning and stretching. "And then I have something I cooked up in the lab to show you that I think you'll like."

Hallie didn't know exactly what they were talking about, but anything that got some nerves and, apparently, aggression, out for Peter, she was in favor of.

"So, do I get to go to my Psych class today?"

"Oh, right. FRI, tell Alex we're on our way down," he said, grabbing his jacket. He almost picked up his backpack, but then smiled and stood up a little straighter, then left it. That's right. He didn't have to pretend to be another student anymore. Hallie grabbed her own backpack and joined him as they headed towards the elevator.

Peter

Their trip back to campus was mostly unremarkable. There were more photographers and journalists than before, but campus security did a decent job of keeping them off property, so once they got in, things settled down. Peter went ahead and went to Psych with Hallie, because he could, and because he wanted to. Casey went in and sat by the back door as well, ready to run interference if needed, and Alex and Ty were outside the building. It would have been so much easier to just stay home, especially after that unwelcome revelation re: Trent, but Hallie had already missed Psychology on Friday, so it was best that she didn't miss it two days in a row.

By the time they left campus via the pick-up lanes, the few reporters had turned into a small crowd, and their team actually got to flex some muscle making people keep their distance. Peter noticed Chase was on hand as well, and another woman, Amira, who would pinch-hit on his team sometimes. Alex must have called for reinforcements. Peter sighed, watching Hallie as she looked through the (thankfully, quite tinted, as most SI vehicles were) windows at the small glob of curious journalists (though he used that term loosely for many of them). She turned back to him, her eyes wide.

"That was a little bit crazy."

"Yeah," he said, raising his arm to invite her in close to him. As usual, she happily joined him in his personal space, and he sighed a little as some tension bled off. "Unfortunately, 'a little bit' is the key part of that. It gets much crazier."

"Wow." She laid her head over on his shoulder, bringing one leg up and wrapping an arm around it. "We mentioned working out and stuff tonight? Is Bruce okay with me missing the internship, do you know? Because we can maybe be apart long enough for some of that, and then I could come for the last half and do some running while you train?"

I had already talked to him about you just missing mostly, this week, and he said he's okay with it. But that would probably work too, if you want to go in for at least an hour. It might be a good time to see how we're doing time-wise, you know?" Hallie gave him a mildly confused look. "You can see how you're feeling, and whenever you start getting symptoms, you can change and come join us?"

"Oh, yeah. That's a good idea. Let's do that." She yawned and snuggled as close to him as her seatbelt would allow. Peter sighed happily, holding her close to him. Yes, life was a lot more stressful than it had been a few weeks ago, but it was also more rewarding.

When they got home, they both changed, and then Peter had went with Hallie down to Bruce's lab. He gave her a thorough kiss goodbye, and tried not to feel anxious as he turned around and walked away from her. They should be completely safe in Stark Tower, but Casey had volunteered to shadow her anyway until she was back with Peter, for which he was grateful. She and Bruce had been happy to see each other, and he wasn't worried about her while she was with him, but you just never knew. He did know they were going to start being apart more this next week or two, and the goal was to be able to both do their things independently, and not be forced together, but man, he didn't want to be separated from her. Not only for the anxiety factor, but because he was used to having her close now, and wasn't ready to give it up.

He had to admit, though, getting into the gym with a larger group this afternoon had been fantastic. Steve, Sam, Bucky, Nat, Clint, and Yelena were all still there to train with him, and Tony had even jumped in on the fun. Alex, Chase, and Ty, as well as a few of the other most physical, most adventurous security members were also running ground drills with them. It was a party, and it was hard work, and it was awesome. Peter needed something like that to get his head back in the game before he went out later, and before he planned for the regional training, which was in several weeks.

Peter was having so much fun that Bucky almost got the drop on him. He'd been hiding on the side of one of the "buildings," and Peter had unknowingly swung right by him when his spidey sense screamed at him at the last moment. His senses were a little unreliable working with the team, since he'd known all of them so long, and mostly trusted them. But they were all also quite dangerous, and he usually got at least a warning buzz. Tony, of course, and, most of the time, Rhodey, weren't able to set it off anymore, so he really had to watch for them. But Bucky could usually give him a strong warning, if he wasn't so distracted. He'd been away from Hallie for an hour, and was doing fine, but he'd let himself think about her while swinging. Bucky almost caught him, and clipped his side just a bit, enough to throw him off.

When he opened his eyes and his breath returned, he was flat on his back, with Natasha, Clint, and Bucky all staring down at him, grinning.

"How's it going there, fearless leader?" asked Clint, smirking like crazy. Peter glared mildly at him, jumping to his feet quickly enough that they all had to step back.

"Okay, there, Pete?" asked Bucky, trying not to laugh.

"Yeah, yeah, so I'm still a little distracted. That was my bad," Peter admitted. "Shall we take it from the top?"

Tony had realized something was happening, and landed next to him with a quiet metallic clang. "Hey kid, you okay there?"

"I'm fine, Tony," Peter said, rolling his eyes.

"Nothing a little concentration can't fix," Natasha said dryly, turning to head back to her starting mark.

The others also dispersed, leaving just Tony and Peter for a moment. "Sure you're good?"

"Yeah, dad, I promise. Just got the wind knocked out of me for a couple seconds."

"Not like you to be sloppy or distracted when we're working like this."

"Yeah, well, do you remember how useless you were in R&D the first couple times we started spending time apart after our initial bond? Pepper almost fired you, if I recall."

"Fair enough. Focus up. I'm not letting you go out tonight if you hurt yourself at all during some simple exercises."

" Let me go?" Peter sputtered, but Tony grinned at him and blasted off. Of all the ridiculous...

They hit the next drill hard, and everyone was feeling very satisfied at the end of it, sitting around and taking a water break, when Peter felt a little thrill in his spine (not completely unlike his spidey-sense) and turned to see his other soulmate walk into the room. She was wearing some cute new leggings and tank top that FRIDAY must have ordered for her, and her hair was up in a high ponytail.

Peter checked his watch as she approached him eagerly. Oh, wow. It had been almost two hours. She pushed into his arms immediately, to the rest of the Avengers' good-natured amusement, from the noises they made, and reached up for a kiss. Wow, maybe he should leave her more often if this was "reunion-Hallie."

His cute wife eyed them shyly, then probably surprised a few of them as she snarked, "Looks like you guys are working 'super' hard here. Do you always train at the water cooler?"

"Only when poor Peter here needs a break," muttered Bucky loudly, prompting laughter. They all knew Peter could outlast any of them on any given day. They started dispersing, Steve calling the security team over to explain a new formation to them that he, Bucky and Sam had used on their last few missions.

"It was like an hour and forty minutes before I noticed any symptoms," Hallie said excitedly.

"That's fantastic, Hallie! Except, you know, the part where we weren't together," he said quietly, pulling her closer and really kissing her this time. He'd missed her. Of course, even though the others had given them space, it didn't mean they weren't watching, and Peter earned a few catcalls before he was willing to release her.

"Ignore them," he said, rolling his eyes with a smile. "Were you feeling bad by the time you got changed and down here?" he asked in concern.

"Not too bad. Headache and nausea, but it wasn't ramping up too fast. It's gone now," she said, hissing his neck where her face rested. "Missed you, though," she added quietly.

"Same, love, I promise. Though this was really good. It's been a good session so far. We probably have another hour. Are you going to run?"

"Yes," she said excitedly, drawing back where she could see him. "I am so ready to work out some of the stress of today. I'll run until I get tired, then I'll watch you guys."

"Sounds good. It looks like they've started another session without me, so I'll run with you until they finish. If that's okay?"

"Yep. Like I said before though, you can't talk to me," she said, pulling out her headphones. "Running inside is harder than outside, and I need my music to know if I'm getting the pace I want."

Peter eyed her headphones with concern. "Those look like they're on their last legs. Sweetheart, can we please replace your phone, and get you some decent ear buds?" With zero shame, Peter used one hand to stroke a finger down the side of her face, turned what Pepper and Tony called his 'puppy dog eyes' up to full force, and used the other army to pull her towards him, palm flat against her soul mark."

She melted into him, but also growled, "you are the worst , Peter Parker. You cheat, like all the time."

"But you love me," he chuckled.

"I do. And fine, you can replace my phone. But only because I think there's a short in my headphones, and I start losing pieces of the song if I run too hard," she gave in.

"Wait, really?" He pulled back, beaming at her. "I thought it was going to be way harder than that."

"It's really not worth fighting you on. I really could use a new phone that I don't have to carry around a battery back-up for, and it makes you so happy. Win-win," she said airily.

"Definitely a win. Now let's hit the track. Lead the way, beautiful."

She rolled her eyes a little, then set a blistering pace over to the indoor track.