Chapter 9: We need to get along

Harley's POV:

Peter and I sat next to each other, both feeling absolutely awkward and mortified as we attempted to look anywhere but at each other or our torturer, Tony. After we'd woken and had breakfast, Tony had sat both Peter and I down in the living room (making sure we were next to each other) and had us hash things out. He forced me to admit my jealousy before having me profusely apologize for my behavior. Peter graciously accepted, which I was grateful for.

Afterwards, Tony forced Peter to confess that he was jealous of me, which only somewhat surprised me. I had gone out of my way to make it seem as if Tony liked me more than him.

Once our embarrassing confessions were over, Tony got all touchy feely telling us how much we both meant to him and that neither one of us was replacing the other. It was stuff he'd told me last night, and while last night I'd gotten emotional at hearing it, today I just felt embarrassed that he was telling me this in front of Peter.

The dreaded conversation took far too long to end, and when it did Tony suggested (ordered) that Peter and I talk things out some more.

"Get to know each other," he said. "You never know, you might find that you have some things in common."

With those lovely words, the old man had walked away. I was no fool, though. I knew the genius had Friday watching, and she would inform her creator if we did as we were told.

Sighing heavily, I got up and just lay myself down on the floor.

"This sucks," I grumbled, and Peter gave a snort of amusement. Looking over at the teen, I had to admit to being extremely grateful for how forgiving and kind-hearted he was. He could totally have been holding my attitude against me or blaming me for our situation, but he didn't. In fact, he seemed almost eager to talk. Ugh.

I sat myself up, pulling a knee up to my chest and wrapping an arm around it. Might as well take this seriously. Peter was a part of Tony's life, which made him a part of my life. The least I could do was be friendly with him.

"You were really jealous of me?" Peter asked abruptly, looking disbelieving.

I grimaced while giving a nod. Peter continued to look confused, so I rolled my eyes as I remarked, "You're pretty blind for someone with enhanced eyesight. It's obvious to everyone that Tony loves you like a son. You're brilliant, way too nice, and a freaking kick-ass superhero. What's not to be jealous of?" I asked rhetorically. Peter, of course, felt the need to respond.

"You're the one he loves like a son!" the fledgling hero retorted emphatically. "He talks about you all the time, even before you moved in, telling me about projects you'd worked on alone and with him. I can't even imagine working together on a project with Mr. Stark. I'm not that smart."

"Christ, Parker, yes you are," I argued, giving him a mild glare. "You are just as smart as me if not smarter. What you lack is confidence."

"That's another thing," Peter continued as if I hadn't spoken, "you're like a miniature Tony Stark. You guys are so much alike that if I didn't know better I'd say you really are his biological son. The way you were talking with everyone at the party yesterday. It was so easy for you, and all I did was have a panic attack like some pathetic loser."

Damn, I thought with sympathy. He really did think lowly of himself, just like I did of myself. We really were a pair of idiots.

"Just because I looked calm didn't mean I was," I felt the need to tell him. "Before we walked into the party Tony had to calm me down because I was the one freaking out. I was so worried about embarrassing him," I admitted with a shake of my head, finding it somewhat amusing how alike Peter and I seemed to be.

"I'm a nobody from a nobody town in the middle of nowhere," I stated with a shrug of my shoulders. "Until you brought me to the tower, Tony and I hadn't even been in the same room since the day he broke into my barn years ago. Yeah, we stayed in contact and stuff, but I always thought he felt some sort of obligation towards me because I'd helped him out."

"That's crazy," Peter replied, giving a slight laugh. "From my point of view, I've always known he cared about you. Even before you showed up, I knew he didn't think of you as an obligation."

"And from my point of view," I added, "I knew from the moment he first started talking about 'his awesome new intern', that you were someone special. He talked about you all the time, telling me how amazing, funny and smart you were. It wasn't hard for me to figure out your identity because he spoke about spider man with the same pride and joy that he spoke about you. He sought you out, Peter," I felt the need to say. "Tony doesn't do anything he doesn't want to, so if he willingly spends so much time with you, then you know it's because he wants to."

As I said those words, I mentally told myself the same thing. I knew Tony loved me. He'd never exactly said the words, but I knew now that he did. His actions alone proved it. I just needed to remind myself of that, I thought. He cared too much about me to get rid of me for causing him any trouble.

"Look," I felt the need to say again, "I'm sorry for how I've been acting. It sounds stupid now that I'm saying out loud, but I felt like if Tony had you then he wouldn't want me, and I have nowhere else to go." Peter looked ready to respond, so I rushed to cut off any of his reassuring words. "I know, I know, I know. It's not true, and I get that now, so I'm sorry. I can't say if we'll ever be best buds or anything, but I do promise to be nicer."

Peter was silent for several moments before smiling genuinely and saying a simple, "Okay." Once again, I marveled at his forgiving attitude.

"So, how much do you bet that Mr. Stark is listening in to our every word?" Peter asked disgruntledly, and I looked up towards one of Friday's cameras.

"Is Tony listening to us, Fri?" I questioned dryly.

"He is not listening in at the moment, Mini Boss (I resisted rolling my eyes at the name)," she informed me. "I have been advised, though, that if you two begin arguing with one another than I'm to inform him immediately."

"I can't believe she calls you Mini Boss," Peter teased with mirth in his eyes.

"That's Tony's doing," I griped, although it really didn't bother me. "I told him I didn't want to be called Mr. Stark as it made me sound old, so he chose that."

"If it really bothers you, I could call you something else," Friday spoke up, sounding apologetic, and I waved a dismissive hand.

"It doesn't bother me, Fri," I assured her kindly.

"So, do you think Mr. Stark would be mad if I left? I want to get in some patrolling before heading home," he asked aloud.

"First, who cares what he thinks, and second, for the love of all that is holy, Parker, will you stop calling him Mr. Stark. You're basically family, dude, so grow some cojones and call him Tony," I griped. "You treat him with way too much respect."

Peter blushed as he argued, "Well, I was taught to always show respect, and Mr. Stark is definitely someone who deserves it. He's my mentor, and I just…I don't know. It'd be weird to call him Tony. What if he didn't like it?"

I gave him an exasperated look. "What if he didn't like it?" I asked in disbelief. "I guarantee you Tony would prefer you refer to him by his first name. He just knows you too well to insist on it. And, Tony so does not deserve the amount of respect you show him. He's a totally normal guy whose way too arrogant for anybody's liking."

Peter frowned, looking uncomfortable yet contemplative. "How can you be so casual with him? You call him names and tease him, and I'm always stuttering as I try not to say anything stupid."

"I met a different Tony Stark than you," I answered plainly. "Tony was injured, in need of help, and suffering from anxiety when I found him in my barn. The first thing I did was threaten to shoot him with my potato gun. Also, I've never been big on respecting people, not until they earn it at least. Not to say I don't respect Tony. I respect him tons, but it's just…hmm…I guess teasing is how we show each other we care. It's our thing, I guess."

"Oh, um, I never did say thank you for what you did yesterday," Peter spoke up, a light blush on his cheeks. "For helping me with the panic attack," he added when I looked confused.

"Don't mention it," I insisted before he could give me a long drawn out apology. "I've seen Tony go through enough of those to know they're no fun."

"I had no idea he got panic attacks," Peter mumbled.

"Anxiety attacks," I corrected, "but that's not surprising. You put him on a pedestal and don't always remember that he's all too human. Also, Tony doesn't exactly talk about his issues with anyone…usually. He did forewarn me about them when we first met."

"I know he's human, but it's just that I've looked up to him for so long that it's hard to remember at times," the teen replied. "Now that I'm a hero I want to be just like him, and yeah, I know he's flawed, I'm not stupid, but I also can't help but see the best in him. What I mean is that even with his flaws, to me, he's perfect," he admitted sheepishly. "I know that sounds stupid and childish, but Mr. Stark is everything I hope to be."

I nodded my head in understanding while contemplating his words. Did I want to be like Tony too? I hadn't really thought about it, but if I was honest, I think I felt the same way as Peter. Despite all his mistakes and character defects, Tony was perfect to me too, and I'd count myself lucky if I turned out anything like him.

"I guess I feel the same way too," I confessed before suddenly glaring at the ceiling. "Friday, you better not breathe a word of this conversation to Tony. He's head is big enough as it is," I warned, face heating up at the mere thought of Tony hearing any part of this heart to heart Peter and I were having.

"No worries, Mini Boss," the AI responded amusedly, "your conversation will remain between you and Peter."

Letting out a sigh of relief, I stood up, shoving my hands into my pockets as I looked at Peter. "Great chat. See ya around, Spiderboy," I stated before walking away.

"Later, Gizmo," Peter called out teasingly, and I gave him a half-hearted glare. He just smiled cheekily before making is way towards his room. Shaking my head, I made my way to the lab, throwing myself into the chair next to Tony before kicking my feet up onto his lap. The mechanic simply raised an unimpressed eyebrow at me as he set down his latest model of the arc reactor.

"You two friends yet?" he asked me, and I shrugged as I replied, "Sure."

"Do I need to ask Friday for a transcript of your conversation?" he threatened, and I scoffed as I shook my head negatively.

"Everything's fine between us. We talked and got things sorted. No worries. I plan on being nothing but nice to your golden boy," I assured him, and Tony frowned lightly.

"You're not still feeling jealous are you?" he asked concernedly, and I immediately replied that I wasn't.

He looked like he didn't quite believe me, but only pursed his lips rather than prying. "Just know that you can talk to me if you need to, okay, Harls?"

"I know," I replied somewhat tiredly, having heard this statement more times than I could count the past couple months.

"Hey, I told Pete to start calling you Tony, so don't give him a hard time when he does. He's all about being respectful, and…," I trailed off with a wave of my hand as my guardian began to chuckle.

"Didn't see that as a fight worth taking on," he informed me with a smile. "Wanna make a bet on when he'll start using my name?" he then asked mischievously, and I immediately agreed.

"Three days," I said, and he smirked before saying, "Three weeks."

"Winner gets excused from all household chores for a month," I declared, Tony's eyebrows rising in amusement before he shook my hand.

The bet ended up spreading through the current inhabitants of the tower, Natasha smirking as she bet one week, Pepper looking at us in exasperation before betting two days, Rhodey rolling his eyes before while betting two weeks, and Happy snorting before betting nine days. May even got in on the bet, and I still had no idea how she found out. After glaring at Tony, she guessed that it'd be eight days before her nephew worked up the nerve to call Tony by his given name.

Peter never found out, and I honestly had no idea how that happened as we all weren't very subtle. Any time Tony wasn't around all of us had taken to asking him if he'd called Tony by his first name, although why we bothered asking was beyond me as Friday was instructed to let us know the second it happened.

When three days passed and I clearly lost the bet, I stormed into the spider boy's room, grabbed one of his pillows and repeatedly smacked him, letting him know that he'd cost me a bet. He stared at me with a gob smacked expression, his hair an absolute mess, and I simply glared before leaving the room without further explanation.

Tony, the arrogant, all-knowing schmuck ended up being right, but only because his bet was the closest as it took Peter a freaking month! In fact, he took so long we were all certain it'd never happen, so when it did, we almost didn't notice.

It was an ordinary day in the lab with Tony, Peter, and I all working on our own projects. I was building myself a motorcycle, something that amused Tony but concerned Pepper. She warned me that if I even thought of riding "that contraption" before I got a license that she'd make sure I'd regret ever being born. I thought the threat a bit much, so I'd blandly replied, "Bold of you to assume I don't already regret that."

The frigid glare and lecture from Pepper I'd received following my blasé words almost had me regretting them, but they hadn't taken away from my desire to ride the bike. I'd just have to find a way to get a license sooner rather than later. I wouldn't turn sixteen for a couple months, but the bike would be done by the end of this month. I had luckily been able to convince Natasha to teach me how to ride and keep it from my adoptive mom. I'd love to keep this from Tony, but almost nothing remained secret from him in a tower he'd created.

Anyways, Peter had been fixing a tear in his suit when he'd casually called out, "Hey, Tony, can I make myself a new suit? I've got a lot of new ideas and…what?" he asked after noticing both Tony and I looking at him with wide eyes.

"You called him Tony," I proclaimed in a near whisper, causing Peter's face to turn red, his eyes flicking from mine to Tony.

A slow smile spread across the billionaire's face before he let out a triumphant cheer, turning to me and proclaiming, "I win!" before rushing over to a shocked Peter and pulling him in for a hug.

"Damn," was all I could mutter, knowing that Tony was going to boast about this for ages.

We eventually got around to confessing to Peter about the bet after Tony had finished celebrating, and the teen had managed to look both outraged and embarrassed before turning resigned.

"Everybody was involved?" he asked in disbelief.

"Even May," I had to rub in with a smirk, delighting in his embarrassment.

Being the easy-going guy that he was, Peter quickly got over his embarrassment and simply pouted (or glared, if you asked him).

"From this moment forward I will only respond if you call me Tony," he informed Peter grandly. "No more of this Mr. Stark nonsense."

Peter had blushed even as he laughed. Tony ruffled Peter's hair before asserting that we needed to celebrate this historical moment.

We ordered in from a multitude of take-out places, everyone being invited, including May to our impromptu party. There was a good amount of ribbing with Peter, everyone hassling him on taking so long. Peter managed to look both mortified and pleased by the attention, especially Tony's attention.

"I swear," I teased Peter later, "the old man is acting like you're a baby that just called him Daddy for the first time."

Peter groaned loudly, his face taking on the red tone it'd had most of the evening.

"I told you he'd love it," I then added, eliciting a small smile from the teen.

"I still can't believe you were all betting on this," he groaned, and I laughed.

"I wanted to ask Ned to get in on it, but I knew he'd give it away. I did ask MJ, but she just rolled her eyes and walked away without a word," I informed him.

"So, are you really not coming back to school?" Peter asked after laughing.

"Nope," I answered with a wide grin. I'd finally managed to make it a month without causing any trouble, and Tony had kept his promise that I could be home schooled by him if I wanted. I'd all too happily chosen home schooling, having long since grown both annoyed and tired of the drab high school routine. Both Tony and Pepper had tried to convince me to stay at the high school, but I'd been adamant that I hated it and never wanted to return.

"You promised me," I had told Tony pointedly, and the man had let out a sigh before nodding his head and giving in.

"Being home schooled by Tony sounds awesome, but I'd miss my friends too much," Peter admitted, to which I shrugged. I hadn't even attempted to make friends, settling with occasionally hanging out with Peter, Ned, and MJ. The majority of my time was spent with adults, specifically Tony, Pepper, Natasha, and Rhodey.

Tony was both my adopted dad and best friend. We really did have a lot in common, most specifically our work ethic. We'd spend hours in the lab, getting lost in our work until someone reminded us to do such common things like eating, sleeping, and bathing.

Pepper was great to talk with, and I loved spending time with her as well. Where there was a chaotic energy with Tony that I craved, with Pepper there was a calming energy that I needed just as much. I felt more comfortable talking about my feelings with her. She was also teaching me about the business aspect of Stark Industries, and what it took to be CEO. Neither one of us discussed whether or not I was going to become CEO, but I enjoyed learning from her.

Natasha was my trainer and confidante. I could tell her anything and knew she wouldn't judge or tell anyone else. For example, I told her I wanted to be like her. I wanted to be able to fight and shoot, so I could protect not just myself but others. She'd asked whether I wanted to be a SHIELD agent, but I'd declined.

"I'm not good at following orders," I'd admitted.

She trained me hard, harder than Tony or Pepper would no doubt have allowed if they knew. The long, intense hours paid off, though, and I could see my muscle mass increasing along with my fighting skills. Obviously, I was nowhere near Natasha's level, but she was pleased with my progress.

Rhodey was someone I could just chill with. He was someone who I let myself be a kid with as he took me to arcades, the park, bowling, ice skating, museums and even an amusement park. Hell, we'd even gone on a ghost story tour one night, which had been more exciting than I'd thought it'd be. When I'd asked him why he did all this with me, he'd simply shrugged and said it was stuff he'd done with Tony when Tony had been the same age as me.

Peter and I were slowly getting to know each other better, but I still wouldn't call us close as we rarely spent much time around one another outside of school. We had an understanding that we were both Tony's "kids", which bonded us, but I wouldn't have described our relationship as close or even brotherly, which was what I'm sure Tony hoped for.

It would take something big for us to reach that level, something like a kidnapping.

Yeah, that's right, a kidnapping.

I was coming home from the grocery store one evening when I happened upon Peter, or more specifically Spiderman fighting with some enhanced beings. They seemed to glow an orange-red color that immediately caused my mind flash back to 2013. I stiffened, my bags dropping from my hand as I ran towards the fight. People were screaming, panicking, especially when they saw the beings literally breathing out fire.

I now remembered Tony telling me about Extremis and how the people he'd fought when saving the President had the capability to breathe fire. He'd also told me that the man responsible for the whole Mandarin schtick was dead and that he was the only one with the formula.

Apparently not, I thought, as I ran behind a car to hide from one of the fire-breathers. Watching Peter, I marveled at his abilities, but I could also tell he was outmatched. It was five against one, and he was slowly losing. I'd barely begun to wonder where the hell Tony was when I remembered he was out of the country.

Digging into my backpack that I always carried with me when outside the tower, I grabbed my handmade blaster and an arc reactor, slapping it onto my chest before activating it. It was strictly armor, just for protection and evasion, a last case scenario according to Tony.

I'd begged him for an actual Iron Man suit, but he'd been adamant that there was no way in hell I'd be getting one. I'd put it in my mind to modify this one into one, but when Tony had caught me, he'd been furious. An entire 24 hours went by before he'd calmed down enough to talk to me without yelling, but even then, he'd still been angry enough to threaten to permanently ban me from his lab if he ever caught me in an Iron Man suit without his permission. I had no idea if he'd been exaggerating or not so I'd decided for once in my life to just do as I was told without question.

Whether his threat was real or not, however, I'd also seen the fear and concern behind his anger and knew that he wasn't trying to just be a dick. He was scared of me being hurt. He was scared of losing me, so I'd kept my hands off this suit as promised.

Staring at the five fire breathers almost made me regret being such a rule follower as I desperately wished I could blast these assholes. I was glad that Tony didn't know about the blaster I'd created because I put it to good use when I shot at two goons right as they were ready to ponce on my spider brother from another mother.

"T-Tony?" Peter slurred as I quickly helped him to his feet.

"Sorry, but no," I replied, shooting my blaster towards anybody who tried to approach. The fire-breathers seemed momentarily caught off guard, no doubt thinking like Peter that I was actually Iron Man. This bought us enough time for me to pull Peter into my arms and begin to fly away with him. I prayed to all the deities I could think of that we'd be able to get away from the creeps.

Unfortunately, luck was not on our sides as when I went to dodge one fire blast and then two when I was shot with a third, which caused both Peter and I to let out a yell in both pain and fright. We crashed down onto the roof of some building and were promptly descended upon. I tried to fight off as many as I could, but once my blaster was melted, it didn't take them long to restrain me. Two strong arms wrapped around me, heating up my suit, which began to sear my skin. I screamed out in pain right before a woman grabbed my arc reactor and ripped it off my chest. Completely unprotected, they knocked my unconscious with a single punch.

I came to with a gasp, groaning at the pounding in my head. The room was spinning as my stomach churned, and I promptly rolled over and threw up what little I had in my stomach. A hand came to rest on my back, and I flinched horribly before immediately relaxing when I saw it was Peter.

"You okay?" he asked me in concern, and I nodded my head even as I grimaced from the pain that caused.

"What about you?" I asked with the same concern, taking in his disheveled state. Peter was in sweats and a large, dirty shirt that clearly didn't belong to him. There was some weird collar around his neck, and a rather nasty bruise on his cheek.

"I'm good," he replied quietly before gesturing to his collar. "This is suppressing my powers, so I can't—I'll figure a way to get us out of this," he assured me, and I pursed my lips as I sat myself up.

"We'll find a way out of this," I corrected firmly. "We're in this together, Spider man. I'm not some helpless kid."

Peter's face was grim as he looked back at me with eyes that suddenly made him look much older than his sixteen years. I had no idea what he was thinking, but he eventually gave me a curt nod before saying, "Don't be reckless, okay? We're both going to get out of this alive. No self-sacrificing moves."

"Got it," I immediately agreed before shooting him a pointed look and adding, "and the same goes for you."

The teen gave me a single nod before settling himself down comfortably next to me.

"What do you know?" I questioned, and he frowned as he answered, "Not much. I was knocked out not long after you were, and I only woke up a couple minutes ago. I haven't heard or seen anyone, and I have no idea how long we've been unconscious or where we are," he admitted, sounding immensely frustrated.

I felt my heart rate kick up as the magnitude of our situation began to hit me. We were in a dark, cement room with a single light bulb to illuminate it. I saw stairs leading up to a door that I was sure was locked, leading me to believe we were in a basement. Were we in someone's house? Continuing to look around, I looked for anything that could help us, but found nothing. There were no windows, and the piping was too high up for me to reach.

Liquid got into my eye, and I wiped away at it only to realize it was blood. Tentatively feeling around the side of my head, I winced when I felt the gash.

Peter grabbed hold of my hand to keep me from touching it anymore. "Are you sure you're alright?" he pressed, and murmured a quiet, "Yeah," before pulling off my t-shirt and placing it on the gash to help stem the bleeding or at least soak up some of the blood.

Leaning close to Peter, I briefly explained to him what I knew about the fire-breathers.

He nodded, his expression weary as he remarked on having seen their extraordinary healing abilities in person.

"Do you think they know who we are?" I queried, and Peter raised an eyebrow at me.

"I have a feeling they know who you are, but I don't know if they know who I am, besides being Spider man, of course," he stated.

"What do you think they want?" I then asked, but before Peter responded, the door burst open, a trio of men coming down the stairs. One was an older guy in a business suit, unrecognizable to me while the other two I recognized from earlier.

Peter and I both got to our feet, Peter forcing me to stay behind me. I shoved his arm away, forcing myself next to him. I wasn't going to let him get hurt protecting me, especially when he was now as vulnerable as me.

"Your bravery is admirable," the old man in the suit remarked with mild amusement, "but I suppose I shouldn't expect anything less from Tony's son and protégé."

I frowned, biting my tongue to keep from saying something flippant and stupid. The man's single statement and the tone he used clued me in that he knew Tony personally, which made this kidnapping revenge.

Had they been after just Peter though? Did they know his secret identity? Did they know I'd been there? Peter and I gave each other side glances, and I knew the same thoughts were coursing through his mind.

"What do you want?" Peter asked boldly, his face, posture, and tone showing nothing but confidence and assuredness. There was no sign of the awkward, shy teen I'd come to know over the past several months. This was Spider man, and he wasn't going to let anyone intimidate him. I felt my respect rise for the other teen.

"Revenge," the man answered flippantly, "but I'm sure you two already realized that."

"Who are you and how do you know Tony?" I questioned, heart pounding as I wondered what revenge would mean for us.

"My name is Obadiah Stane," the old guy answered amicably, and I instantly recognized the name.

"You ordered the terrorist attacks on Tony," I accused with sudden venom, and Peter gave me a look of shock. "You're supposed to be dead."

"So is he, yet here we are," was the calm response I received, causing me to narrow my eyes.

"What do you want from us?" Peter hissed in sudden fury, and I realized he was pissed about what Obadiah had done to Tony. He clearly hadn't known.

Obadiah raised an eyebrow before looking back at the man on his left. Apparently, that was a signal for the man immediately approached us, reaching a hand out towards me.

"Don't you dare touch him!" Peter hollered, shoving the man away from me. The words had barely escaped his mouth when he let out a loud yell of pain and collapsed to the floor. I watched in stunned horror as he practically convulsed as electricity coursed through his body from the collar around his throat.

"Stop it," I barely whispered, before coming to my senses and shouting, "Stop it!" as loud as I could. "

"You'll kill him!" I roared, giving the bald man a pleading look. Peter immediately stopped yelling, and I noticed for the first time the little device Obadiah had in his hand. I knelt next to Peter, gently rubbing his back as I murmured over and over, "You're okay, you're okay." Peter was breathing heavily, his muscles twitching as he forced himself into a seated position. I helped him stand up, steadying him as he nearly fell to the floor again. He gave me a brief, thankful look before I found myself being grabbed by the back of the neck.

"It's okay!" I quickly yelled to Peter, not wanting him to interfere and get electrocuted again. He was trembling, and I knew it was from rage this time rather than the aftereffects of the electricity. I kept my eyes locked on his as I was hauled away, wanting to reassure him that I would be fine.

I don't think he believed me, but he remained quiet and motionless as I was pulled up the stairs and out of the basement. My eyes were everywhere as I was dragged through what appeared to be a mansion. Not what I expected, but I attempted to memorize my path and take everything in before I was shoved into a lab room. For a non-Stark lab, it was pretty high-tech, and I found myself impressed.

I whistled lowly, raising an eye at the ugly thug who I assumed was my new babysitter. It didn't take a genius to figure out what I was doing in a lab. These guys clearly wanted me to build something. Only question now, was what did they want? I was smart, yeah, but I was very obviously no Tony Stark. Not only did I doubt I could build what they wanted, but I doubted I could fool them and pull off some kick-ass escape like Tony did in Afghanistan.

I withheld a sigh, attempting to appear unconcerned as I watched several people walk into the room, Stane leading them.

"What do you want me to build?" I blatantly asked, not wanting to play games.

Stane raised an eyebrow, his lips quirking in amusement. Rubbing his chin thoughtfully, the old man walked towards me and placed a heavy hand on top of my head. He ruffled my hair, and I glared as I pushed his hand off me.

"You certainly have your adopted father's arrogance," Stane remarked, his eyes full of hatred. I couldn't help the but shiver at the look, never having experienced someone looking at me like this. I'd been stared at with disgust and disdain, but never had I seen such cold, hateful eyes. I had no doubt that this man wouldn't hesitate to kill me. In fact, he'd probably enjoy it.

"I don't need you to build anything, though" Stane stated dismissively. "You may be intelligent, but you are no Tony Stark, and I have plenty of intelligent people working for me."

I couldn't bring myself to even feel insulted, my stomach twisting itself into knots as I thought over what this could mean. If he didn't want me to build him anything, then what was I here for? I hadn't forgotten how he said Peter and I were here for revenge…

My attention was drawn as Thing 1 pressed a button on a wall causing a steel table to fold out. My palms began to sweat at the sight of the restraints, and I pathetically attempted to fight against Thing 2 as she far too easily forced me onto the table. Restraints were wrapped around my wrists and legs, a leather strap pulled across my chest while another was pulled over my forehead keeping my head flat against the metal.

I was effectively pinned down, and for the first time I felt my fear begin to overwhelm me. My mouth went dry and my heart pounded as I heard movement go on around me. Out of my peripheral vision I noticed tools of some sort being placed on a nearby table before multiple footsteps seemed to leave the room.

"It's just you and me now, Harley," Stane informed me with an easy smile as he removed his suit jacket and began to roll up the sleeves to his pristine dress shirt.

"What're you gonna do?" I had to ask, the tremor in my voice giving away my fear. I cursed my cowardliness. At least attempt to be brave, I scolded myself, especially when I watched Stane's smile widen.

"Tony's weakness has always been his heart," the old man began to explain, his tone coming off disgusted. "I tried to rid him of that in childhood, but eventually I learned to use it against him. I learned to use his love for me to get him to do as I wanted. He eventually became too big for his britches, which is why I ordered the hit on him, and well…we both know how that turned out." He paused, a prominent frown marring his face before he gave a slight shake and began to smile again.

"Clearly, my insufferable godson has feelings for you otherwise he wouldn't have adopted you," the man continued conversationally. "What this means for you, my unfortunate child, is that you are my ticket to hurting Tony. I could kill you outright, but there's no fun in that. I think long, drawn out torture will hurt him more, don't you think? And, after I grow bored, I'll put you out of your misery and send your lifeless corpse along with a video of our time together to your father."

Even though I could feel the blood draining from my face and my heart racing, I managed to dredge up a bit of bravado as I hissed, "You better kill me now, asshole, because Tony will find me, and when he does he'll tear you to shreds."

Stane laughed loudly before giving me an almost pitying look. "Let's see how long that unwavering faith in Tony lasts once the pain starts."