The visit to the vet takes a bit longer than originally planned. Darwin's burn had apparently gotten infected, hence his fatigue and fever, so the vet had to give him some pain medication in order to thoroughly clean out and properly wrap the burn. As promised, Happy covered the costs and Peter desperately tried to think up an explanation to give May about why Darwin had his shoulder wrapped.

It ends up not mattering once they get home because May is too distracted by the new Spider-Man suit she catches Peter wearing to even notice the dog.

The next ten minutes are filled with pure panic and chaos. Peter frantically tries to calm down his aunt as she shrieks "What the fuck! What the fuck!" repeatedly. Then, she's shrieking at him and demanding answers. Peter quickly caves, not seeing the point in trying to lie anymore, and tells her everything, from the spider bite, to Germany, to Toomes, and to Stark's offer only a few hours prior. May listens with a mixture of disbelief and shock on her face.

Then, seething, she says, "I am going to kill that man."

She pesters Peter until he gives her Happy's phone number, then she pesters him until he gives her Stark's number, then she yells at him for nearly fifteen minutes seemingly without taking a breath.

Meanwhile, Peter sits on the couch, leaning forward with his elbows on his knees and his head in his hands. Darwin sits beside him and rests his chin on his shoulder supportively.

He honestly isn't sure what's going to happen now. May is… really angry. He's never seen or felt her so upset before. He wonders if she'll make Peter stop being Spider-Man.

He wonders if Peter would listen to her.

It takes a long time, but with reassurances from both Stark and Peter, May eventually calms down. She sits down on the couch with a heavy sigh and rubs her forehead.

"I am not happy about this, Peter," she says seriously, "I'm not happy that you lied to me for so long. Dammit, Peter, even the dog knew!" She exclaims the last part and Peter's lip twitches. Another sigh. "But… I don't know. I feel like I should stop you. I'm your aunt, I'm supposed to stop you from doing dangerous things. But… you do good, as Spider-Man. And you have these… these powers now?" She sounds so unsure and Darwin takes pity on her, padding over to her and resting his head on her knee. She smiles a bit and pats him before continuing, "If you're going to do this, then I'm glad you at least have someone like Stark looking after you. That doesn't mean I like him, or that I'm not still pissed off with him, because I am. But you said his suit makes you safer, so I guess he's… alright." Her teeth grit at that last part.

Peter feels relieved and is only slightly annoyed when she declares that she's giving him a curfew from now on. He has to return home by 11PM every night and has to text her multiple times throughout his patrols. Darwin isn't so upset with that part. It's not good for his boy to be staying up so late anyway.

The next couple of weeks pass by slowly. It's kind of odd, everything going back to normal after what just happened. Peter still feels bad about Liz moving away, but MJ seems to be taking her new role as Academic Decathlon captain well. She has the team stay for an hour after school on Tuesdays and Thursdays and even lets Peter bring Darwin with him to team meetings. The dog quickly decides that he likes her and often lays next to her feet while she quizzes her fellow students.

Darwin's shoulder heals up nicely, much to Peter and May's relief. Just like Ned, May asked Peter if Darwin was enhanced too. When he denied it, May simply responded with, "But he watches TV!"

Peter laughed.

May seems to be getting more and more comfortable with the Spider-Man thing as time goes on. She runs her hand through Peter's hair fondly whenever the news reports on his latest heroic act and Darwin can feel her pride.

So for a while, things are going good. But of course, something has to change.

"I don't know, man, don't you think we're too old to go trick-or-treating?" Peter asks Ned as the two walk out of school.

"Dude, it's free candy," Ned replies bluntly, "Besides, now is your chance to go as Han Solo and Chewbacca."

"Oh my God."

They both laugh and Darwin rolls his eyes fondly. However, their laughter dwindles when a fancy black car pulls up in front of them. To the trio's shock, the back window rolls down to reveal Tony Stark, clad in his usual suit and sunglasses.

"Greetings, young ones," he says dramatically, "Mind if I borrow the Spiderling for a while, Fred?"

Ned wheezes in shock and nods breathlessly.

Peter is too surprised to do anything other than get in the car. A few other school goers notice him getting into the fancy vehicle and whisper among themselves, eyeing him curiously. Darwin hops in after him, careful not to step on anyone's feet.

"Sorry I haven't contacted you sooner," Stark begins as soon as the car pulls away, "Past couple of weeks have been kind of busy."

"That's alright," Peter says, slightly confused.

"So, how are things with Aunt Hottie?"

Peter wrinkles his nose and the older man laughs.

"I notice the suit is no longer being used past 11PM," Stark points out.

"Yeah, it sucks," Peter huffs, annoyed, "I feel like I barely have any time to patrol anymore."

"Ah, she'll lighten up sooner or later, don't worry," Stark reassures him with an amused glint in his eyes, "Besides, growing boys need their beauty sleep."

Peter snorts and rolls his eyes. He adds, "She's still pretty mad at you, by the way."

Stark winces. "Yeah. Not that I blame her, of course. Sweeping her superpowered teenage nephew off to Germany and giving him a multi-million dollar suit without telling her may not have been my best idea. But it all worked out in the end! In fact, how would you like to tell your aunt that you actually do have an internship with me?"

Peter blinks and tilts his head. "Er-but I don't?"

"You do now. I figured it'd be good for us to meet up every couple of weeks, ya know, check in and stuff. We can work on the suit- I can finally re-install that parachute that I hope you never use again- and I can, I don't know, show you around the lab and we can see what's in that big brain of yours…"

As Stark rambles, Darwin is mildly surprised to feel nervousness coming from him. He appears completely calm and cool on the outside, however, so he doubts Peter notices too.

'How odd,' Darwin thinks, 'I wouldn't think that such a famous and powerful man would be nervous around a teenager. Perhaps he's worried that Peter will refuse him again?'

To the man's delight, Peter nods and eagerly agrees.

"That's awesome!" He nearly squeals, then catches himself, "I- I mean, uh, I'll have to ask Aunt May first, but I'm sure she'll be fine with it. When do you wanna meet? And where?"

"The Compound," Stark replies cooly, "Every other Friday. So Happy will come and pick you up tomorrow after school."

Peter gives him a blinding grin and expresses his excitement and gratitude. Darwin snorts at the odd mix of discomfort and satisfaction coming from Stark, watching as the man clears his throat and nods.

"Alright, then, Mr. Parker. Any questions?"

Peter looks a bit hesitant. "Uh, I can bring my dog, right?"

Stark blinks. "Of course you can bring the dog."

"Darwin."

"Darwin."

Said dog leans over and rests his head on Stark's knee. A moment later, he feels a hesitant hand on his head.

"Well, I can't say much about your aunt, but at least your dog likes me."

Darwin wags his tail and Peter laughs nervously, "Yeah, Darwin's really friendly, he likes everyone."

"Oh, great, well now I don't feel special anymore."

"Oh, no, no, I didn't mean it like that-"

Stark interrupts Peter's anxious rambling by laughing. Peter's eyes widen and then he huffs, a smile on his face.

Darwin glances between the two, his heart warming. 'This could be great for Peter.'

It could be great, except it seems that Stark has never dealt with children before.

May hesitantly lets Peter go to the Compound the next day, glad that at least the internship is somewhat real this time. Happy picks the boy and the dog up from school on Friday and takes them on the long drive to the Compound. Peter is nervous the entire time, practically vibrating with energy.

Happy leads them to Stark's lab before disappearing. To the man's credit, Stark greets Peter warmly and gives him a tour of the lab and all of its facilities. Peter practically gawks the entire time, looking as if he's just seen heaven itself. Stark is, as usual, cool and confident, but Darwin can still feel his underlying nervousness.

It only becomes blatantly obvious that the man has no idea how to deal with children when they start to work. Conversation is… stilted, to say the least. And it's noticeably awkward. Darwin notices it. Peter notices it. Stark notices it. And so the next few hours are filled with so much tension and anxiety that Darwin almost feels sick.

Thankfully, it doesn't last much longer. Around 8PM, Stark casually suggests that Happy should take Peter home and the boy agrees. As they bid their goodbyes, Darwin can't help wincing at the mutual feelings of disappointment coming from both of them.

'They both want so badly for this to work,' he thinks, 'This has to work, it could be really good for Peter to have a mentor! They just need to… break the ice or something.'

As they drive back to the apartment, Happy asks, "So… did you have fun, kid?"

Peter straightens up. "Oh, oh yeah, totally! It was, uh, really cool. So cool…"

Happy gives him a knowing look in the rearview mirror. "Was he weird?"

"What?"

"I mean, was he, like, awkward?" When Peter doesn't reply right away, Happy adds, "I've never known Tony to willingly want to hang out with kids, but you're a special case for him."

Peter deflates a bit. "I don't want him to… you know… feel like he has to hang out with me or anything," he says softly. His fingers run through Darwin's fur.

"Listen, kid, Tony doesn't do anything he doesn't want to do. So, if he's inviting you to visit him in the Compound, it's because he wants to hang out with you. I was just trying to say that, well, since he's never really hung out with kids before, he might not be so good at it… at first. Do you get what I'm trying to say? Just… give it some time and you'll be more comfortable with each other."

"Oh." Peter blinks, looking down at Darwin, "Okay, I think I get it… Thanks, Happy."

"No problem, kid."

"Aww, you look adorable!"

'I look ridiculous.'

Darwin stands in the middle of the living room, wearing a Chewbacca dog costume and glaring at his owners as they coo at him.

"Hey, Darwin, speak!" Peter says as he holds his phone up, no doubt taking a video, "Howl! Go awooo wooo! C'mon buddy, make a Chewbacca noise!"

'No,' Darwin thinks, 'Absolutely not. This is stupid. I look outrageous.'

Peter gives him a blinding smile and a pleading look.

Darwin sighs.

"Awoooooooo…"

"Ha ha! Yes!" Peter cheers and high-fives May, "That was amazing, I can't believe I got that on video!"

"That was the most adorable thing I've ever seen him do!" May squeals.

Sensing their utter joy and happiness, Darwin figures the humiliation was worth it.

"Alright, go on, Han Solo, go have fun with Ned," May says, ushering her nephew towards the door.

Peter, who is in fact dressed as Han Solo, leads the way downstairs and meets with Ned in front of the apartment. Ned is dressed in a fairly impressive Darth Vader costume.

"Oh my God, Darwin looks adorable!" The other boy says.

"I know, right?" Peter holds up his phone, "Look, I made him my background."

'Oh great.'

"Awesome. So, which neighborhood should we go to first?"

Trick-or-treating is an… odd experience, to say the least. There are a lot of people out, but Darwin notices that most of the people seeking candy are younger than Peter and Ned. Darwin never really paid much mind to the holiday as a stray, but even he knew that trick-or-treating was something that the younger humans did.

However, aside from getting a few odd looks, Peter and Ned continue on throughout the night. They seem to be enjoying themselves, laughing and chatting while they eat candy. Darwin is upset when Peter doesn't let him have any.

'I let you dress me up in this stupid costume to help you get candy, and I don't even get a nibble? Where's my pay?'

Peter yanks his bag of candy away when Darwin sticks his nose in it.

"Bad dog!" He scolds, "Candy is not good for you!"

'Not good for you either,' Darwin thinks, nudging Peter. The boy rolls his eyes and turns back to Ned. Darwin sighs. 'Oh well, at least he's having fun. Any time with candy is a good time to Peter. Well, actually, any time with food is a good time to Peter. Especially free food.'

"Wow!" Peter's exclaim catches his attention. He and Ned are looking down in their bags. "Those guys just gave us full Hershey's bars! Not even the mini ones, just full-on bars!"

"They must be rich," Ned instantly assumes.

Peter laughs and Darwin tilts his head. 'Hmm, I wonder what kind of candy Stark would give out if we were trick-or-treating at his place. Probably some fancy stuff, a guy that rich has got to have some amazing- heeeyy, wait a minute! Idea!' A metaphorical lightbulb goes off in the dog's head. 'They can break the ice with food! Peter loves food and he's always hungry after school. I'm sure if Stark had some snacks for him while they worked Peter would be more comfortable. Maybe they could even have a normal conversation!'

Darwin glances up at Peter as he chats with Ned. He feels the comfort and happiness emitting from the boy, watches as he converses with Ned easily.

'They just need to get comfortable with each other,' Darwin thinks, 'I don't know much about Stark, but it doesn't seem like he's going to be the one to relax first. But I'm sure if Peter gets comfortable, Stark will soon follow.'

The trio stops in their tracks when a kid in front of them vomits up a bunch of candy onto the street. Darwin winces and looks at Peter.

The boy is still munching away at his candy, looking undisturbed as he eyes the houses they haven't gone to yet. Ned is slowing down a bit, though, eating his candy with much less vigor. In fact, he's starting to look a bit queasy.

'You know what,' Darwin thinks as he glances at Peter's heavy candy bag, 'We've been here for hours. You boys don't need more sugar.'

With that thought, he snatches the bag from Peter's hand and trots away, leaving the boy spluttering behind him.

"Hey! Hey, wait!"

On Friday evening, Peter and Darwin are back in Stark's lab. The silence is awkward, just like last time, and Peter's leg jiggles nervously. Meanwhile, Darwin glances around, wondering how to leave without alerting Peter.

Thankfully, Stark provides him with a distraction.

"Hey, uh, kid," the man says, feigning nonchalance, "Uh, come over and check this out."

Peter perks up. "Sure."

As soon as the boy leaves his side, Darwin quietly trots out of the lab. He knows the kitchen is attached to the main living area, so he makes his way over there. Once he's in the kitchen, he sniffs around the cabinets, pawing open one that smells like it has a lot of snacks in it. His reward is a large bag of potato chips. Grabbing it in his mouth, he turns, closes the pantry with a whack of his tail, and heads back down to the lab.

"Hey, where's Darwin?" He hears Peter ask right as he walks in. Peter turns around and his eyes widen. "Darwin! Where did you get that? Put that down!"

Peter reaches over and grabs it out of his mouth. "Sorry, Mr. Stark," Peter apologizes, putting the bag on the table, "He's not usually like this."

"Hey, it's alright, dogs like to eat, I get it," Stark says. He reaches for the bag of chips and opens it. "At least he brought us a snack. You hungry?"

Peter laughs nervously and lies, "Oh, no, I'm good, thanks."

Peter's stomach then decides to growl very loudly.

Stark raises an eyebrow and Peter blushes. Darwin stifles an amused snort.

"You're good, huh?" Stark asks.

"Well," Peter stammers, "I guess I could use a snack. I usually eat after school."

Stark offers him the bag of chips and Peter takes it. "They don't feed you lunch at school?"

"Oh, no, they do," Peter replies, scratching the back of his head, "It's just, I, uh, well- I mean, with my powers, I just eat more. Than usual, I mean." He munches on a chip.

Darwin feels a flash of surprise from Stark. "Right." The man nods. He opens his mouth as if to say more, then hesitates and closes it. There's a moment of silence, then he turns back to whatever he was working on and asks, "So... what do you think of this, then?"

"Well, I think it's cool, but admittedly I don't know much about nanotechnology," Peter replies, a bit uncertain.

"Eh, I wouldn't expect you to, I bet they don't teach this stuff at school, do they?"

Peter laughs, "Unfortunately, no, they don't. Although my science class would be a lot more interesting if they did."

A flash of warm emotion and Stark gives Peter a grin. "School a bit too slow for you, eh?"

"Oh! No- well, I don't mean to sound-"

"No, no, it's alright," Stark laughs, "I thought school was slow when I was your age. My teachers never told me anything I didn't already know."

Peter smiles nervously and asks, "When you were my age, you were already in MIT, weren't you?"

"Yeah, I was. Met my friend Rhodey there, too. You remember him, he was in Germany too."

Peter perks up. "Yeah, War Machine! He's so cool!"

"Yeah, well, this one time we were…"

Darwin wags his tail as Stark spends the rest of the evening telling stories from his days at MIT to Peter while they eat chips. The boy is delighted, listening to the stories with his eyes practically sparkling. Darwin can tell that Stark likes the attention too.

By the time Happy comes to bring Peter home, the boy has a couple of books on nanotech in his hands and a huge grin on his face. When he sees this, Happy smiles softly but says nothing, driving them home in silence.

Meanwhile, Darwin feels triumphant. 'Mission accomplished.'