Hey everyone! Welcome back to another chapter! I hope you had a great week! :)
If you prefer to read on Ao3, it's posted there!
Anyway, enjoy!
DISCLAIMER: I don't own any of these characters! They belong to the MCU! I only own the plot!
"TONY! HELP! STAY AWAY! PLEASE NO!" someone screams. Peter and Tony's eyes shoot open.
"What was that? Tony?" Peter asks, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes quickly. Tony shifts out of Peter's lap and sits up, listening for the sound that they missed before.
"NO PLEASE! PETER! TONY!" Pepper's scream fills the room.
"PEPPER!" Tony and Peter scream at the same time. They run at the door with all their might banging on it relentlessly.
"Let us out you idiots! Pepper!" Tony screams. Peter's eyes fill up with tears at the agonizing screams of his mother-figure coming from the speakers in the room.
"No no no," Peter whispers. "How did they get her?"
"Peter! Help! PETER! NO! PLEASE! DON'T DO THIS!"
This time May's voice fills the room.
Peter freezes. "May? MAY!" Peter desperately claws at the door in vain. He kicks the door with all his might but falls to the floor. He immediately gets up and starts banging at the door again.
"Peter. Peter! Look at me! Petey, look at me." Tony says, almost calmly.
"They're here Tony! They're here and he's hurting them!" Peter yells through his sobs.
"No Pete. Look at me." Tony commands. Peter reluctantly stops banging at the door and turns to Tony.
"Who is Pepper?" Tony asks.
"Why are you-" Peter tries.
"Just answer the question," Tony says gently. Peter sighs, he can't argue when Tony uses that tone.
"Well, she's your fiance and CEO of SI." Peter says, trying to block out the wailing through the speakers.
"Yes. And who's May?" Tony asks.
"My aunt! Tony what is this? We have to get out of here!" Peter says frustratedly, clutching his ears.
Tony ignores him and goes on. "Yes. We're both kidnapped, right? And those are the people we love. Do you think the Avengers would let them out of they're sight?"
"No, but we heard-" Peter tries.
"These bastards took audio from Pepper interviews and twisted it to mess with us. And I'm sure they probably stalked your Aunt too." Tony says calmly.
"But we-we can't be sure." Peter says, sinking down to the floor. Tony kneels down and puts a hand on the teen's back.
"You know why I'm sure? Because if anything happened to them, the Avengers know I'll kill them one by one." Tony smirks. Peter half-smiles and lets out a sigh.
"Ok." Peter whispers. As soon as he agrees, the sound shuts off.
"See? We just got validation. It was fake." Tony tells him. "You hear that douchebag? You're an idiot!" Tony yells, looking at the camera.
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"You boys surprised me. I wasn't expecting you to figure it out that quickly." Ryan says stalking into the room, the two guys beside him holding scary looking guns.
"Nice try asshole. You forgot that we're both geniuses. If one doesn't figure it out the other will." Peter retorts, trying to push Tony behind him and away from the guns. Of course, Tony was having none of it.
"Peter." Tony says warningly. Peter gives Tony a look but reluctantly lets go of his forearm.
"Aww, how sweet. Tie him up." he says, gesturing to Tony.
"No!" Tony says lunging forward.
Peter holds him back and grabs his hand. "It's ok." Peter whispers. Tony struggles as he's tied up and forced into the corner of the room while Peter is sedated.
"Peter! Ryan stop this right now!" Tony yells.
"Oh, Anthony. This is getting old." Ryan yawns. "Ok, Pete. It's very simple. You tell me what I want to know and you don't get cut by this big scary knife, ok?" Ryan asks as if he's talking to a kindergartener.
"Don't call me that." Peter snarls. "And if I don't know?"
"Well, that's unfortunate for you." Ryan shrugs.
"Hm. Fair game. Not at all unfair and psychotic." Peter tells him, as he's tied into the chair. Meanwhile, Tony's still struggling with his bonds in vain.
"Ryan! You idiot! I know all the information you want! Do you have no brain cells at all?" Tony yells.
"Oh please, Tony. People tell me you don't even know your own social security number. And plus, no matter what I do to you, you won't care because, again, you hate yourself more than I hate you." Ryan tells him. Tony flinches and swallows the lump in his throat. Even though it's just a psychotic douchebag that saying it, it still stings.
"You're a douche." Peter says, leaning back in his chair.
"So I've heard. Now, let's start! I'm excited!"
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"Tell me what the password to Tony's private lab is." Ryan repeats, slowly losing his patience.
"Seriously though, I thought you were doing this to get revenge. Why do you need the password to the lab?" Peter asks weakly, trembling with exhaustion.
"Because I can. Stark robbed me of my family, why can't I rob him?" Ryan asks.
"He didn't rob you!" Peter yells. "We couldn't save everyone! We're human too!"
"What is the password?" Ryan says, pushing the blade deeper into Peter's forearm. Peter shifts slightly but doesn't let out a sound.
"Ryan! Stop this! Peter just tell him!" Tony pleads.
"Again, if you tell me Stark, I'll make it worse for your kid. I want to hear it from him." Ryan says, smiling evilly.
"You're a bastard, you know that?" Tony asks, struggling with his bonds.
"I've heard." Ryan smirks. He pulls the blade out slowly and Peter yelps in agony. Ryan lifts up Peter's shirt and Peter's breathing quickens.
"Tell me what the password is." Ryan requests.
"Go eat some horse shit." Peter snarls. Ryan shrugs.
"Have it your way." he says as he drags the ridged blade across Peter's abdomen. Peter can't help it. He screams.
"Stop!" Tony screams. Trying desperately to reach his kid. Ryan just keeps pushing it deeper into Peter, as slowly as possible. He pushes just enough to cause excruciating pain but not enough to damage Peter's interior organs. Ryan finally lets up, wiping the blood onto his jeans. Ryan leans down and takes in Peter's sweating and exhausted body.
"If you tell me now, I'll let you go back to Stark. I might even let you have a first aid kit." Ryan tells him, smiling slightly.
"Go to hell." Peter groans. Ryan huffs in annoyance and sinks his blade into the flesh of Peter's thigh.
"Stop! Please! PETER! Just tell him! I-I can't-" Tony swallows the lump in his throat. He can't do this. He can't. He can't save his kid.
"You better tell him to shut up before I put him in your place." Ryan whispers in Peter's ear. Peter's eyes widen.
"Tony, please. Just be quiet." Peter says, his eyes welling up. Tony, thinking Ryan just threatened his kid with more pain, nods, and shuts his mouth.
Ryan pulls the blade out quickly making Peter let out a muffled yell. Ryan traces the blade across Peter's other thigh.
"Tell me, and I won't do it." Ryan tells him frustratedly.
"Go ahead," Peter tells him, tilting his chin up. Ryan lets out a huff and throws the knife out the door in anger. "Anger issues much?" Peter asks.
"Untie them." Ryan yells before stalking out the door.
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"Jesus." Tony says in a pained voice as he looks at Peter's cuts.
"I'm fine Tony. Really! It looks worse than it is." Peter insists, lying through his teeth. Tony, of course, sees right through it.
"You never were good at lying, kid." Tony tells him.
Peter sighs. "Just to you."
"Should I be flattered?" Tony asks.
"Maybe a little. Seriously Tony, I'm fine. It'll heal, especially if they give us food today." Peter says, laying in his mentor's lap.
Tony shakes his head and looks at the door. "Hey, assholes! Give me something so my kid doesn't bleed to death! Can't get shit from him if he's dead!" Tony yells, cringing painfully at his words.
Silence.
"Pieces of shit." Tony mutters under his breath.
"Agreed." Peter sighs.
"This is disgusting." Peter complains, as he greedily gulps down the pathetic soup provided for them so they don't starve to death.
"Agreed." Tony says, gulping it down almost as fast. They both uncap their water bottles and drink from it, sighing in content as the water wets their sandpaper tongues.
"Is water wet?" Peter asks cheekily.
"Don't start me kid." Tony says, ignoring the question. Peter knew just how to annoy him.
Peter giggles. "What's the problem?" he asks, innocently. Tony traps Peter's head with his arms and plants a kiss on the top of his head.
"This would be great if we weren't abducted by a psychopath who wants to torture as ya know." Peter points out.
"Way to suck all the happiness out of it kid." Tony smirks, but it slowly turns into a frown. "We gotta get out of here."
"I know. But I've thought of everything. There's no way unless he makes a mistake and leaves something here." Peter says, cringing at the thought of the horrible knife.
"That's gonna happen." Tony says sarcastically.
"Aren't you supposed to be optimistic? You're the adult." Peter teases.
"Who said?" Tony asks, sticking his tongue out at his kid. They both laugh and for the moment, somehow forget where they are, if only for a moment.
"Are your cuts healed?" Tony asks worriedly.
"The one on my arm is already scabbed over. I can feel the one on my stomach healing, it honestly wasn't that deep. The one on my thigh...umm...well it stopped bleeding." Peter tells him.
"Let me see." Tony says gesturing to Peter's leg.
"Fine." Peter grumbles. He knows better than to argue.
Tony examines the wound, mentally relishing breaking Ryan's jaw. "It's stopped bleeding but we need to make sure it doesn't get infected." Tony tells him. Peter nods.
"It'll be scabbed over by tomorrow." Peter says, yawning.
"Let's hope." Tony says.
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Peter wakes up to a silent room. He shifts his head to hear a small curse. He feels warm hands running through his hair and he takes some time to appreciate the comfort the gesture brings. He hears the quietest of sniffles, so quiet Peter almost missed it. But with Tony, Peter almost never misses anything.
"Tony? Are you ok?" Peter asks after a few minutes of Tony cursing himself.
"You're awake?" Tony asks in a surprisingly even voice.
"Yeah what's wrong?" Peter asks.
"Nothing kid. Really. Go back to sleep. You need it." Tony sighs.
"No. You rarely cry, Tony. There's no one else here so you're going to have to talk to me." Peter says in his no-nonsense voice.
"Geez, kid. I got us into this mess. It's my fault and still, you're not mad at me. I don't...I don't deserve you." Tony says, his tears finally halting.
"First of all, it wasn't your fault. Whatever you say won't change my mind, but you shouldn't have to because you shouldn't be blaming it on you anyway. Second, do you want me to get mad at you? Because I only get mad at you for not letting me go out patrolling and taking my suit. There are a few exceptions but this isn't one of them." Peter tells him.
"Sorry kid. That was weird. I don't know where it came from." Tony says, wrinkling his nose.
"They're called emotions Tony. Even genius billionaires have them sometimes." Peter reminds him.
"Emotions? I've never heard anything like it. It is a thing of your imagination." Tony says sarcastically.
"Right." Peter giggles. "But really. It's not your fault."
"I've got the best kid in the world, you know that?" Tony asks, hugging Peter around the middle, careful to avoid his healing cut.
"I know. I'm the best." Peter answers cheekily.
"I was talking about D.U.M.M.Y." Tony teases.
"Sure." Peter says, wrapping his arms around Tony's.
"Go to sleep kid."
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May and Pepper sit on the master bed both looking at their hands. They had always liked each other, since the start, but now, they were each other's best friends. They had bonded over this, for better or for worse. And yes it was horrible what they came together for, but they needed each other.
"They'll be ok. We know that." May says quietly, glancing over at Pepper.
"I know. They protect each other. That's what they do." Pepper tells her, rubbing her red-rimmed eyes. May takes a deep breath.
"You know, I didn't like Tony when I first met him. "Didn't like" is really an understatement." May says, a wisp of a smile coming across her face.
"Does anybody?" Pepper snorts. May chuckles.
"I thought he was egotistical and narrow-minded. And I thought he was bad for Peter." May admits. Pepper nods. "But, media Tony isn't the real Tony. The real Tony would do anything for his family." May says.
"I know. When did you figure it out?" Pepper asks.
"I was out of the state to do an interview for a promotion. I had to leave Peter home alone for two days. Peter being well, Peter, didn't tell me he was sick. I came home two days later to find them both sleeping on the couch, the table littered with medicine, soup, and tissues." May says, smiling at the memory. "Peter had begged Tony not to call me. He probably used his irresistible puppy dog eyes on him." Pepper laughs, picturing the two boys.
"His puppy dog eyes are irresistible." Pepper admits. Pepper had let him have ice cream cake after dinner once, just because she melted at the sight.
"That's when I realized, Peter wasn't just my kid anymore. He was Tony's too. And your's." May smiles. Pepper's eyes well up.
"And you're ok with that?" Pepper asks softly.
"That's all I've ever wanted for him. To have a full loving family. I've always been content being his aunt. I know I was never his mother-figure because that's just how we did it." May tells her. "But he found a mother and father figure with you guys and I couldn't be happier."
"How did you know about me?" Pepper asks. She did act like a mother toward Peter but she doesn't remember acting like that in front of May. Right?
May giggles. "You know how he rambles. He was telling me about a lab day with Tony and he told me how you scolded them both to eat dinner and go to bed."
Pepper frowns. "Yes, because they are irresponsible. What does that have to do-"
"He called you mom." May smiles. Pepper gapes at her and lets out a tiny squeal.
"He was all like, "Me and Tony were so close to fixing my web-shooters which kept malfunctioning and spraying us with webs every five seconds and then mom came in and told us to eat dinner and go to bed or she'll tell FRIDAY to wake us up with the default ringtone the next morning cus she knows both me and Tony hate it."
"Really?" Pepper asks, laughing. May nods.
"You're ok with that?" Pepper asks, barely containing her excitement.
"Of course. Again, I am happy being the Aunt. I always wanted him to find people that he's comfortable calling "mom" and "dad". And now he has." May says, with a sad smile. She wishes they were both here right now.
"Can I show you something May?" Pepper asks. May nods.
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Pepper gets up off the bed, wipes her eyes and opens her personal drawer. She takes out a thick envelope and sits back down.
Pepper hands the envelope over to May. "I was going to give this to Tony after their ice-cream run that day. I was thinking he could go over and ask your permission." Pepper says sadly.
May takes the envelope in confusion and opens it. As May reads it, her eyes shine with tears.
"Are you sure?" May asks, grinning.
"I love Peter. And so does Tony, more than we know. So we were thinking, with your permission of course, that we could be kind of like the second guardians?" Pepper asks, a bit sadly. The circumstances were really not ideal.
"Of course it's a yes! Peter will…" May trails off.
"I know." Pepper says, looking down.
"We'll save their irresponsible butts and then ask them. I'm sure they're fine." May says, clutching Pepper's hand.
"Tony will do everything in his power to keep Peter safe." Pepper says, knowingly.
"And Peter will do the same." May tells her. Pepper nods.
"They're idiots like that." Pepper chuckles. May smiles. They are idiots.
They both sigh at the same time.
"Let's go see if they've found anything."
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"How are we supposed to find anything if they were stripped of anything we can use to track them?" Bruce asks frustratedly.
"I don't know. It would be easier if we at least had the traffic cams to go off of." Steve says.
"What if they somehow sent us a signal? They're two geniuses, I'm sure they can outsmart their kidnapper right?" Sam asks.
"If they are given an opportunity. It's not so simple if they're being threatened." Natasha points out.
"Threatened with what?"
"Each other's safety."
Steve nods. "If it's Peter's safety on the line, Tony's going to stick it out and not try anything."
"Which makes it a hell of a lot harder for us. But I got FRIDAY looking out for signals just in case." Clint says. This whole thing is stressing the team out. They need to get Tony and Peter back and fast.
"How's it going?' Pepper asks, coming down the hall with May.
"We're looking for possible signals, but we still don't know." Natasha informs them.
"So there's nothing we can do? Just wait?" May asks, tears welling up in her eyes.
"We'll find them, May. Somehow. All I know is that we will." Bruce says softly.
"Ok, guys It's time for patrol. If you find something, send us coordinates." Rhodey tells them. They all get up and head to their rooms to suit up.
Steve stops to look at the two women in the room. "I promise. We'll find them. Soon." Steve tells them.
May and Pepper nod, both thinking the same thing.
I hope.
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