Two weeks later.

Peter had planned the surprise party in a frenzy, originally thinking that it was going out on a limb to assume that she would pass the test. After spending the Monday before asking Mr. Stark, he was reassured that it was highly unlikely that she wouldn't pass.

"No niece of mine will ever be set up to fail!"

A week after announcing her existence to the world, she walked up to him. For the first time. On her own. For a month she had been crutching around the compound, unable to stand for more than a minute, and now she was walking towards him, a huge grin on her face, only almost losing her balance every few steps, but she never fell over. Something had clicked.

"I think her brain finally understood what we were trying to get it to do," Dr. Blythe had apparently said, "You know how a baby knows when to take their first steps? I think it was very similar to that. It would be an interesting psych study if we had more subjects to test it on."

He had lifted her up, spun her around, happily listening to the laughter that he brought out of her. When he set her down, he was even more pleased to see that she was beaming at him, proud of her new accomplishment. Even though he had just seen her standing with Mr. Stark's contraption a week prior, it was almost odd to see her standing upright on her own. He had grown used to helping her get from place to place, but now they could walk anywhere that they'd like. She was short, and that was saying a lot compared to Peter's (technically) short stature. She had to be at least eight inches shorter than him, if not more.

A week after, she was speaking in full sentences. It could still be choppy and awkward, but she was starting to speak in his head less and less, relying heavily on her new verbal skills, and it was nice to be able to hear her voice. She was so close to fully adapting, coming so far in the span of five months.

The week of her test, she was shaking with anxiety almost every day. In the time she had to prepare for it, she had developed a desire to go to midtown, and while her enthusiasm was better than fear, he could also see that she was putting an intense amount of pressure on herself. No longer needing physical therapy, she spent most of her day with her tutor, exhausting herself with the endless amounts of studying she inflicted on herself.

It was crazy how quickly she grasped concepts. Things that had taken Peter his entire life to learn, like algebra and literature, she could understand in a few weeks. She would truly excel in the academic atmosphere, and while it would be difficult for her to interact with other humans, there was no better way for her to develop those skills than to throw her into the water. No doctor or tutor could ever help her with social interaction.

Mr. Stark had loosely brought up the idea of the surprise party, and it was Peter who took it and ran. With Lena filling all of her energy into her test, he didn't want to bother her, so he took on a project of his own for the week. It wasn't until he was knee deep that he realized it would be hard to plan a surprise party for a half-siren with hardly any friends, but he was sure Mr. Stark would show up, possibly Pepper, and if he was lucky Happy and all of her doctors would make an appearance. So he proceeded with the idea, with Mr. Stark providing him with everything he needed.

While she was at Midtown Tech, acing her test, Peter ran around the main landing, making sure catering was squared away, handing out noisemakers, and double checking every single decoration to make sure nothing was out of place. After another day of Peter begging Mr. Stark, he had finally gave in to let Ned come, and he saw his best friend excitedly annoying his mentor, causing a twinge of embarrassment, but simultaneously a bit of warm pride. Two of his favorite people interacting couldn't be a better sight to see.

Well, Lena might be.

"Peter, stop acting like this is your final project for the class on half-mermaids," Ned called out across the room as Peter straightened the banner he had made. He heard Mr. Stark chuckle at the teasing comment.

"I just...she just…"

"She deserves it, we know, Pete," Mr. Stark joined in, playfully nudging Ned next to him, who had never been more excited in his entire life.

Peter, Lena has entered the building and is taking the elevator towards your location. Mr. Stark's AI, F.R.I.D.A.Y., had been keeping an eye on the entrance for him. He smiled, looked at everyone in the room, and motioned for them to hide.

It wasn't until he was sat behind a counter that he realized she had never been surprised before. The door creaked open, and there was a beat of dread, hoping that they wouldn't give her a heart attack, and soon noise makers were going off, Peter jumping out to find a shocked looking Lena, smiling and laughing. A full, hearty laugh, as if all tension had flown out of her body.

She walked to him, as fast as she could and threw herself into his arms, still laughing softly. He held her tight, happy that after a week of isolation, she had finally returned to him, elated and ready to carry on.

"It was easy," she said, somehow grinning wider than before. She was resting her chin on his sternum, her arms still tightly twisted around his body.

He brushed away a stray hair that had gotten caught on her lip, "Of course it was, you're the smartest person I know."

For a moment they stared at each other, holding each other within their eyes. Peter completely forgot about the world around him, the party, and all he could see was her. She was coming to school with him. He would be able to show the world one of the most important people in his life.

"That's not even true!" Ned snapped them both out of it, jerking their heads to his direction. Peter laughed halfheartedly, and remembered that he was finally able to introduce his two best friends to each other. Taking her hand, he led her over to Ned, who was giving him that look.

Ned knew when Peter was falling for someone, and most of the time he knew before even Peter did. The look was one he had been seeing since fifth grade, which was the first crush that Peter could even remember. There had probably been more times he had been given the look, but it happened too many times for Peter to archive it in his mind. He was lucky that Lena had no idea how to perceive most facial expressions, so he rolled his eyes as they approached.

"Lena, this is my best friend since kindergarten, Ned. Ned, my girl-my friend Lena," he fumbled over his words, almost introducing her as something she wasn't. He heard a snicker from Mr. Stark.

"Well, I've heard a lot about you!" he reached out for her to shake his hand, which brought Lena to look at him, puzzled.

"Hand-shake, Lena, like this," he demonstrated, "It's what you do when you meet someone for the first time. You'll probably be doing it a lot at Midtown Tech."

"If I passed the test."

"You passed the test," this time him and Mr. Stark said it at the exact same time, both of them laughing when they realized what had happened.

She shrugged, "I do not know until three days from now."

You'll pass He thought it at her, something he had been trying to effectively do for the past few days. She winked at him, a response she had picked up from Mr. Stark, and telling him that she heard.

He had seen the blueprints of the pool, so Mr. Stark anticipated that she was passing. He had sat in on some of her tutoring sessions, so he would know better than anyone, apparently even Lena. She had the same doubt in herself that every teenager seemed to get. The smartest kids still assumed the worst. It was easier than expecting the best only to be let down.

As the small party wrapped itself up, Peter satisfied with how it went, Mr. Stark instructed his staff members to clean up, a slight relief to the boy who saw every single crumb on the ground, and the stain on the carpet caused when Dr. Loud laughed a little too carelessly. Everyone had left except Ned, who was riding home with Peter.

They were about to make their exit, having homework to do, when Mr. Stark grabbed Peter by the arm and non-discreetly pulled him to the side, looking like a secret was on the tip of his tongue.

"Peter," he was looking around for someone specific, not wanting them to hear, "Do you think your extremely attractive aunt will let Lena stay at your place for the next two nights? I'm adding the pool to her room while she waits for the results, and I want it to be a surprise."

It was a moment from Mr. Stark that Peter had never seen before. The man was nervous and excited, occasionally looking over at Lena with the same amount of pride he had that morning. It was a vulnerable headspace that was rare for the emotionally blocked off Tony Stark. Peter chuckled.

"Yeah, of course. I'll text her right now."

"Great. You're the man, Peter Parker. I mean. The kid," Mr. Stark winked and walked off towards Lena's direction.

Hey May, Mr. Stark is re-doing his niece's room, and she needs somewhere to stay. Is it alright if she stays at home?

He waited, and almost immediately got a response.

Of course! She's more than welcome to! She can use the top bunk of your bed.

Peter grinned at his phone screen and shoved it in his pocket, excitement building up in his chest. First Ned, and now May was going to meet the person that had changed his worldview completely. He felt like he was finally able to share a significant part of his life with everyone on the outside, and it was liberating.

"Lena! Pack a bag! We're going to my place!" he called across the room. She turned to him, confused. "I want you to meet Aunt May!"

Her eyes crinkled into a smile, and he could almost feel her match his excitement. She looked to Mr. Stark for the approval that he had already given, and ran off in the direction of her room. Peter had told her everything about how incredible his Aunt was, and Lena had mentioned her desire to meet her.

Two of the most important women in his life were going to meet. It was exhilarating.

…

After dropping off Ned at his apartment, it was only a few blocks until they would reach Peter's place. He looked over to her, seeing that her hands were shaking atop the backpack she had brought for the next two nights. He placed his hand on top of them, giving her a comforting look.

"She'll love you. She loves most people, but she's bound to love you, Lena. Temptress. And if she doesn't, just use your voice to change that."

Lena's head snapped quickly, and she shoved him hard, hardly laughing at the joke, more laughing at him almost hitting his head against the window.

"It was funny!"

"No it was not!"

As they rose up through the elevator, Lena's silver eyes could only stare at the numbers growing larger. With a startling DING the doors opened, and Peter led her down the long hallway towards apartment 706. Sticking the key in the door and opening it, he found May in the kitchen probably concocting something inedible.

"You must be Lena Potts! I've been dying to meet you!"

AN: Thanks for reading! I hope to be connecting with readers more. Shoot me a message any time you like, and be sure to let me know what you think of Serenity! I'm planning for the story to be a trilogy. The last chapter of Act 1 will be chapter 20, with Act 2 being called "Tranquility." Thank you for your support! Allie x