Inspired by Ultimate Spiderman Issue 99. I can't wait for 100 to come out already! Takes place immediately after the end of 99. Won't make much sense if you haven't read it. Written in an hour or two this morning while I should have been packing.
A one-shot. Slashy. Ult.Torch/Ult.Spidey
xxx
Johnny knocked on the door of the Parker residence. It looked like such a normal house. It was hard to believe that Spider-Man lived here. But this was the address in the file Reed had shown him after Peter took off and left the scorpion clone with them. Peter had been so genuinely freaked out when he left that Reed suggested Johnny check in on him at home.
The door was answered by a brown haired man with a perfect, cool smile. Johnny wondered if he was at the right house. Didn't Peter live with his aunt?
"Hello. I'm a friend of Peter's. Is he here?"
The man shook his head and said pleasantly, "I'm sorry. It's a bit late for my son to have friends over right now."
Johnny frowned. He could have sworn Peter's parents were dead. He spoke quickly, before the man could shut the door.
"I'm sorry Mr. Parker. But I really, really need Peter to help me with this Calculus problem. He's the only one who understands it. It will only take a minute."
He smiled his most winning smile at the man, the one guaranteed to win over any parent.
"Oh, I know. My boy is a quite the math wiz already. Aren't you Peter," he called over his shoulder. There was no response, but the man's movement allowed Johnny to see what was happening beyond the door. Johnny could see Peter standing with wide, frightened eyes in the corner, clutching his backpack to his chest. A blonde girl dressed in a nightshirt stood near him, looking dazed and confused. An older woman with pursed lips and an angry expression sat on the couch. The man turned back to him, serene smile still on his lips. "I'm sorry, though. We're dealing with family issues right now. Why don't you ask him tomorrow?"
He started to shut the door but Johnny stopped it with his foot. He met the man's cool smile with a dangerous one of his own.
"Why don't you let Peter come out and talk to me for just a moment?"
The older woman heard this.
"Just let him go," she snapped nastily. "I don't want this little liar in my house anymore."
Johnny's eyes widened when she grabbed Peter and dragged him to the door. Peter allowed it, eyes wide and glassy.
Mr. Parker's previously unflappable smile faltered at this and he moved to separate the two, leaving Johnny at the doorway.
"Enough!" He pulled the woman away from Peter roughly. "May, don't treat my son that way. Go sit down."
Huffily, the woman complied.
"Now, Peter," the man took Peter by the arm. Peter stood ramrod straight and began to shiver. "Tell your friend to go home."
Peter looked him in the eye and Johnny flinched from the pain he saw in there.
"J-j-jo-johnny…" he spoke slowly, stuttering over the word. The man grew impatient and shook him. Peter gasped.
"Tell him to leave!"
"D-d-dad, I…"
"Peter come with me," said Johnny, reaching for him, but the man smacked his hand away.
"Leave him alone! Look at him, look what you're doing to him."
Peter looked back and forth at them, about to hyperventilate.
"Peter, let's go!"
The man's eyes darkened.
"Are you telling him to ignore his own father? I won't have anyone being a bad influence on my son."
He raised his hands and the fingers darkened and lengthened, morphing into five sharp claws. The man grinned maniacally.
"He's my dear baby boy after all."
Then he brought the claws down and Johnny ducked quickly. He heard Peter cry out and saw him grab his father's shoulder, pulling him back into the house. Johnny stood up and barreled into the man, knocking him down as the girl and the woman cried out in outrage. Peter fumbled through his bag, pulling out his web shooters as the man kicked out at Johnny, knocking him to the ground.
"Flame on!" shouted Johnny and grabbed the man, throwing him into the china cabinet.
The man hit it with a crash and growled, standing up.
"Oh fuuuuuck," breathed Johnny as he saw the cuts and burns on the man's skin disappear before his eyes. The man's eyes narrowed and darkened, both his hands and arms lengthening and hardening. He opened his mouth and his voice was raspy, sibilant.
"Leave my dear sssson alone."
Then he lunged at Johnny, but Peter pushed him out of the way. They rolled together on the floor, landing in front of the woman and the girl. The man hissed.
"Bad boy, Peter. You're grounded."
Peter didn't say anything, too busy gasping in great sobbing breaths of air, his face soaked with sweat and twisted by fear. He aimed both wrists at the man and hit him webbing. The man fought, but he was soon covered with the stuff, stuck the floor. Peter stared at the figure struggling on the ground then pulled at Johnny.
"Run!"
He turned and disappeared out of the house, leaving Johnny to chase after him. He saw him disappear into an abandoned house. Johnny entered it with trepidation.
It was so quiet inside, not a sound except for rapid, uneven breathing. Peter sat shivering in the corner of the darkened room.
"Peter?"
Peter looked up at him with wide eyes, tears streaming down his face. "Th-they took MJ. A-a-and then G-gwen came back…, b-b-but I saw her die. I s-s-saw her die. I-I-I c-c-can't take i-it. My father… he- he's dead. He's d-dead a-a-and Aunt May h-h-hates Spiderman."
"Oh man," sighed Johnny. "I thought I had problems."
He sank down to sit next to him.
"Why… why w-w-would someone do this t-t-to me?" whispered Peter. "Why?"
Johnny gave into impulse and wrapped his arms around him.
"Just calm down Peter. We'll help you fix everything."
"They were dead," Peter whispered, sinking in to Johnny's embrace. "Why would someone do that?"
Johnny soothed him wordlessly, stroking his hair and back as Peter buried his face in his shoulder and shuddered, lean muscles tight and coiled under his hands. Soon, they would have to go back to the Baxter Building, to face Reed and Sue and Ben and Fury and deal with whatever this was. But for now, he would just let it be them alone, together in the quiet of the empty house.