This is a fan made story. I don't own the rights to Captain America, any of its characters or any characters within the MCU… Much to my disappointment. This will have some violent content and possible triggers. Steve/Bucky Established Relationship. Constructive criticism is welcome but if you don't like it simply because you don't like the line of thinking, please don't attack me for it.
Chapter 20: Processing and the First Lesson
Tony had told Peter to come back the next day for his training. Peter did so, carefully slipping through the crowd of fans that stood outside the main entrance. He noticed a few of them attempted to open the doors only to fail to get them open. When he attempted, he was mildly surprised that he had no issues with it. He glanced behind him and pulled the door closed quickly as a group of fan girls rushed the door. They tried yanking it open and started screaming angrily when the door didn't open. Once he was in the lobby, he looked around and saw a receptionist and walked over to her.
"Ah… Hi. My name is Peter Parker. I am here to start my internship," He shuffled awkwardly as the woman glanced briefly at him.
"Right, Ms. Hill informed me about you. Bit unusual that someone that high up is interested in you. Where you a prospective SHIELD recruit or something?" She asked as she typed something into the computer in front of her.
"Ah… No. I'm just smart," Peter felt really awkward as he spoke.
"Oh. Another genius. That should be interesting. You can wait over there. Ms. Hill will be here shortly to get you your I.D. and security badge and what not," The receptionist waved him over to a few chairs scattered around the lobby.
Peter didn't even get a chance to sit down before a brunet woman came out of an elevator and called out to him, "Parker, right? Follow me."
Peter adjusted his back pack on his shoulder a little as he walked over to her. She seemed to be sizing him up as he walked and nodded firmly, "Sorry for the delay. I had to deal with the kids' nanny and tutors. Tony wanted a full body scan done on them after what happened yesterday." She spoke quietly.
Peter followed her through a door in the lobby and found himself in a small room, "Where am I going?"
"Oh, you can ignore this. We usually inspect people before letting them into the security area for the processing. I have to bring you in her so that the receptionist and the crowds outside think you are just a normal kid starting his internship," Hill fiddled with her phone, to allow for enough of a time lapse to prevent suspicion.
"But you won't do that with me?" Peter asked, confused.
"You are an Avengers recruit. They figured that it would be a bit unreasonable to treat someone who will be one of their own like a common civilian. Of course, I still have to finger print you and photograph you for your building I.D. so that you can access the right parts of the building but no one is going to bat an eyelash at you in the security department. We are all former SHIELD, have gone through the most vigorous vetting possible and we understand the need to keep a super hero's identity a secret. That should be long enough," Hill stated and waved for him to follow her back out of the room and to the elevator.
Once they were inside, Hill pushed a button that scanned her finger before placing her eye into a retinal scanner, "FRIDAY, you remember Peter Parker. Take us up to the security floor. He needs to get his official paperwork done."
"Of course, Ms. Hill. Welcome back Mr. Parker. It is good to know that the team will be increasing," FRIDAY responded as the elevator started to move.
"Did all the Avengers have to do this when they joined?" Peter asked, shifting slightly nervous.
"Not exactly. Though, they are all openly members of the Avengers. Your identity is being kept a strict secret under Steve's orders. He feels a bit guilty to be recruiting a kid but you are clearly already in the thick of it, with your work in Queens being all over YouTube," Hill commented. The elevator opened and Peter was surprised to see a room full of cubicles and very fit looking men and women at the desks or moving around the floor. "Follow me."
Peter glanced around curiously as they wove their way through the room of hundreds of people. Hill then led him through a door with a bunch of machines. The first was a camera, which Hill waved him to stand in front of. Peter smiled weakly and the camera flashed. Hill immediately pulled the chip in the camera out and shoved it into a computer.
"What are you doing?" Peter asked as Hill hit a few commands on the computer and the machine next to it whirred to life.
"Printing out your security badge. We have them made in house. It prevents the potential for counterfeiting. Over here now. We need to get your fingerprints and a retinal scan for you to be able to use the elevators on your own," She gestured over to another machine.
Peter walked over to it and she positioned his hands on a scanner. As soon as they were in the right spot, the machine began slowly scanning his hands, "Why both fingerprints and retinal scans? Wouldn't one do?"
"No, there is plenty of tech out there to copy fingerprints or mimic your retina. One or the other can be copied, but to get both, you have to have the person with both in your custody or be a better spy than Natasha," Hill responded blandly. She hit a few keys and what looked like a script popped up in front of Peter while his hands were still being scanned. "Read off the script. We need a vocal comparison for you as well, just in case there is a spy out there better than Natasha or you get captured."
"You guys really aren't taking any chances, huh?" Peter asked before he began reading the lines out loud.
When Peter finished, the hand scan was done. Hill moved him over to another machine and positioned him where his eyes were level with the scanner, "Try not to blink. No, we don't take any chances. This place needs to be one of the most secure buildings in the world. It contains the daughter of Tony Stark and Natasha Romanoff as well as the children of Captain America and the Winter Soldier. Imagine for a second the chaos that would have occurred had that kidnapping had succeeded."
"Fair point. I guess I was really in the right place at the right time," Peter responded as the scan finished and Hill gently pulled him away from the machine.
Peter blinked a few times and then glanced at the first machine that was supposed to be printing out his I.D. when Hill walked over to it. She picked up the card that was now sitting in the slot it had fallen into when it was done printing out. Peter noted that it was chipped and that she immediately put the card into another computer and started tapping away at the keyboard. While she was putting data on the chip, Peter fiddled with his phone, checking Twitter and Facebook in boredom.
"All done," Hill commented as she pulled to badge from the slot in the computer and added a clip to it so that he could clip it to his clothing while he was in the tower. "Be careful not to lose that. It's encrypted but that doesn't mean that the government doesn't have people who can break the encryption if they work on it long enough."
Peter nodded and clipped it to his t-shirt while following Hill back to the elevator, "Now, put your thumb on the finger print scanner, eye to the retinal scanner and ask FRIDAY to take you to the Avengers' Gym."
Peter did as he instructed before awkwardly speaking, "Ah… FRIDAY? The Avengers' Gym… please?"
"Of course, Mr. Parker," FRIDAY responded and the elevator started moving down.
"The gym is in one of the sub-basements. I trust you brought a change of clothing?" Hill looked amused as she glanced at his bag.
"Yeah, figured it would be a good idea," Peter responded.
"Good. Oh, one more thing. You have access to both the public and private elevators. The first elevator we got onto was a public one but this one is the private. The public elevator doesn't go the Avengers' private floors, the private goes to all the floors. There is a hidden entrance that you can go through, now that you are in the system, that will give you access to the employee garage. Just so you don't have to deal with the crowds out front, I recommend leaving that way today so you know where to find it tomorrow," Hill finished just as the elevator doors opened. "Good luck."
Peter hesitated for a minute resulting in Hill pushing him out of the elevator. He stumbled out as every one of the Avengers stared at him. Peter wanted to cower a little when he noticed that Thor was looking at him with particular interest. When he finally reached the group, along with their children, he was feeling the nerves from the day before coming back full force. The presence of his aunt the day before had given Peter something else to focus on besides the fact that he had just been thrust into the world of the Avengers.
"So, this is the young man who aided Natalia and Sarah when they were accosted by Hydra?" Thor asked, eying Peter carefully when he reached them.
"Yep. Thor, this is Peter Parker, aka Spider-Man. We are going to be keeping his identity a close secret for now though, since he is still a kid," Steve Rogers responded before waving a couple of other people forward. "Peter, I also would like you to meet Col. James Rhodes, aka the War Machine or Iron Patriot, depending on who you ask and you weren't introduced to Bucky Barnes, my fiancé and the Winter Soldier yesterday either. Oh, and that is Sam Wilson, aka The Falcon. This is Rebecca, Bucky and I's oldest and over there by Clint are Cooper and Lilah, those are Clint's kids of course. They usually join us for our morning workout."
Peter waved at them weakly, "Um… where do I get changed?"
Clint smiled at Peter, realizing the boy was nearly quaking in his metaphorical boots, "Come on, I will show you where you can get changes. We do have a locker room down here, though only Rhodey uses it because the rest of us either live in the Tower or we don't really work out like normal people, like in the case of Thor." Clint led Peter over to a door that Peter hadn't noticed before.
Peter followed Clint into the locker room and glanced around, noticing that there were only a few lockers and none of them had locks on them, "No need for locks when you know everyone who is going to have access. This floor is for team work outs. Only the Avengers or Hill can access it. And one more thing, kid. The Avengers are a family, one that you and your aunt May are now a part of. Try not to be so tense. Think of it as having a bunch of older and wiser siblings. God knows that Steve and Tony are going to treat you like you're their kid. The important thing about family is that we stick together and have each other's backs, even when the going gets tough. You can come to us with anything. Understand?"
Peter was surprised by this. He had been thinking that when Tony said he was a recruit, an intern, that he would going through a sort of testing phase, to see if he had what it took to be one of them, apparently they saw it as him just needing training, "Uh… yeah. Okay, I guess that makes sense."
"Just relax. Today isn't even really going to be training. They just want to see what you can do. Steve is all about finding the right fit for everyone on the team," Clint smiled and left Peter to get trained.
It was a new feeling, to be automatically accepted into a fully formed group, especially one that that was clearly as tightly knit as the Avengers. As Peter thought about it, he realized that he wasn't the first person to be welcomed into the group after if formed, War Machine, Scarlet Witch, Quicksilver and Vision were all relatively new additions as well. Peter changed quickly, he had brought regular exercise clothing, not certain of what they would be doing.
When he got to his shoes, he hesitated, the costume he had made for himself had sock like boots because real shoes interfered with his ability to grip with his feet. It was odd, he wasn't certain why he could clingy to the walls with his hands and feet but anything too thick seemed to interfere with the clinging though. When he came out, he got more than a few raised eyebrows at the lack of shoes but shrugged it off. It wasn't like he needed them anyways.
"Forget your shoes?" Natalia asked, of course it would be the four-year-old to ask the question.
"No. Clint said that you wanted to see my powers. Thick layers, like the soles of my shoes, interfere with some of them. Since I don't have anything to substitute right now, I am going with my socks," Peter was quick to defend himself.
"What kind of powers make it so you can't wear shoes?" Sarah asked, confused. Her little face looked like she was thinking really hard to try to figure out what it might be.
Peter sighed and was glad that he was still near one of the gym walls. He turned to the wall and going with the show rather than tell method, began to climb the wall. He had to suppress the chuckle when the kids gasped. A glance over his shoulder once he was two-thirds up the wall showed that the Avengers all had thoughtful expressions on their faces. Clearly, they were thinking of how the power could be put to use.
"FRIDAY, design notes for Parker's suit. Thin fabrics are mandatory. Also, look into light weight cold weather gear. New York can get frigid in the winter, no need for him to suffer unnecessarily," Steve stated firmly.
"Understood, Steve," FRIDAY responded promptly.
"Okay, kid, what else do you got?" Steve asked, returning his attention to the teen still hanging out on the wall.
Peter held on with his feet and one hand as he twisted a bit away from the wall to activate the web shooters that he had designed and wore on his wrists constantly. The only reason he hadn't used them the day before was because he had naively hoped to get away without any questions if they weren't used. As soon as he had a solid web to swing on attached to the ceiling, he released the wall and swung down until he was at the lowest point and then released and landing in a crouch.
"Is that tech or did that web come from your web?" That was Natasha asking as she approached him, with Tony not far behind.
"It's tech. The web is based off a spider's web design, it is fluid in the cartridge but once it hits the air, it becomes solid. I go to Midtown Science, so access to the chemicals needed was pretty easy to get," Peter held up his wrists so that they could examine his web shooters.
Tony immediately unclipped one of them and tossed it to Bruce, "See if you improve the cartridge design, wouldn't want Parker falling from the sky because he doesn't have enough webbing. Parker, I need to know exactly what you put in your webbing. I want it to be thoroughly tested. Your aunt has threatened my genital several times already. I would rather she didn't attempt to go through with her threats if there was something I could have improved but didn't."
Peter was a little startled by the brisk manner in which Tony spoke to him but Natasha shrugged, "Alright, anything else?"
"Um… Well I have increased agility, speed, strength, stamina, can jump way further than any human should be able to, and Aunt May has commented on how I am eating enough for three teenagers?" Peter wasn't certain if that last one counted but he figured that it couldn't hurt to add it.
"Increased metabolism. Don't worry too much about that, Bucky, Thor, the kids and I all have the same thing. It is your body's way of coping with the requirements that come with all the extra strength and such. Bucky and I can't even get drunk unless Thor brings Asgardian Mead back on his trips home. I suspect, you probably won't be able to either. Ever get really hurt?" Steve asked, suddenly.
"Not since I got these powers. I mean, I stopped a car that was about to crash into a train a few months ago but I only got a little bruising from that," Peter shrugged, slowly growing a little more comfortable with the adults surrounding him.
"Stopped a car? Was it inching slowly closer to the rails after stopping because the brakes failed?" Sam asked, skeptical.
"No, the driver was texting and not paying attention. I think he was going 40 mph," Peter answered, shifting uncomfortably at that.
"What, are you made of steel too?" Sam asked, stunned that something like that was possible.
"I don't think so. I mean, I cut my finger last week when I was helping Aunt May cook dinner," Peter had shifted uncomfortably at the staring that was now occurring again.
"Oh, good. Wouldn't want to know you are too perfect," Clint quipped.
"Okay, so you stopped a car going average speed. That is impressive, I don't think I could do that. Do you know how strong you are?" Steve redirected the conversation to the task at hand.
"Not really. I mean, it isn't exactly like there was an easy way for me to measure my strength," Peter relaxed as they refocused.
"Alright, see that bench press over there? The weights on it are set to what is, for me, a light workout. It's 500 pounds. Go ahead and try lifting it," Steve pointed in the direction and Peter obeyed.
Peter only used one hand to lift the bar, well balanced, over his head. Sam, Clint and Rhodey all groaned. Tony shrugged, it was clear that if the kid could stop a car, he would have no issues with lifting 500 pounds. Steve directed Peter to put it down and added another 500 pounds to the bar. This was the max that the bar could handle without starting to bend, even if it was reinforced.
Peter once more effortlessly lifted the bar over his head with one hand. Steve was now impressed while Bucky started speaking to Natasha in Russian. They all stopped when Natalia approached Peter, "What kind of car was it that you stopped?"
"Hatchback. Why?" Peter was confused by the kid getting involved.
"That means your body can handle the impact of, at a conservative estimate, 11 tons of psi. Considering that the average human can lift only their own body weight and someone weighting the same as them, impacting at a much slower velocity would knock them backwards, which in this case didn't occur to you, we can estimate that at minimum, you can probably lift more than 11 tons," Natalia stated simplistically. "Though, we would have to test that somehow to be certain."
"Okay. So, safe to say the kid out classes all of us strength wise on a bad day then," Bucky stated, having gotten over his annoyance that Peter was clearly stronger than he and Steve were.
"Natalia said that was a conservative estimate. I am guessing, since it was only light bruising, we are looking at him being able to handle around 15 tons," Bruce added. "We should factor that in when looking to improve the tinsel strength of the webbing. If he is trying to say, stop a car from falling from a bridge, we wouldn't want the webbing to snap, even if he can catch the car, he can't fly, so that has to factored in."
"Which means the only one on the team stronger than him, is you, Bruce. Looks like we have a heavy hitter here," Steve pointed out.
The others nodded in agreement. Peter was a little surprised to realize that they were looking at him with a relative level of respect, which was odd considering his age compared to the rest. Natasha was the only one who looked like she was still analyzing him, "You didn't kill those Hydra goons. If you can handle that weight, killing them would have been as simple as swatting flies. How much strength did you use?"
"Um…" Peter was now extremely uncomfortable. The Black Widow was staring at him intensely. "Not much. Honestly, I have been trying to hold back as much as possible. I really don't want to kill anyone if it can be avoided."
Natasha and Steve both gave approving nods. Peter relaxed when he realized that they weren't judging him for not killing when he could have, but rather wanting to know why he didn't. Clint actually smiled at him for that response, "Smart move, kid. You take a life and that's something you won't ever get back, no matter how much you regret it. Take it from those of us who have our fair share of bodies that we've put in the ground. Don't kill unless it is the only way to ensure that the bad guy gets stopped."
Tony, Peter noticed, had flinched at them mention of bodies in the ground and Peter was a bit curious to know why. He didn't get a chance to ask, as Steve and Natasha began discussing how to account for his strength when training him. Natasha pointed out that since he had increased agility, they should focus on maximizing that as sometimes the best offense was an iron defense, an opponent that was worn down from failed attempts to make contact was much more likely to be subdued with less force than one that was still in prime condition.
From there, they started discussing agility regimes that could be used or adapted. Tony and Bruce shrugged, "Alight, I think that is it for the fitness nuts today, kid. They will probably spend the rest of the morning working out your training program, not that you will need much of one. With that level of strength, it doesn't matter how you punch a guy, he is going down hard."
"Probably why they are focusing on defensive rather than offensive. Sure, they can teach him a better fighting style or styles to use, but all the strength in the world isn't going to do you a damned bit of good if you get shot with a bullet," Bruce shrugged as they headed towards the locker room with Peter.
"You can get changed and meet us up in Bruce's labs. I want to keep your web shooters between the four of us. No need for the formula or an imitation to get out. Also, we want to figure out something to dissolve it quickly at need. We can market it to the cops, say we noticed your webbing and wanted to help them speed up the arresting process. That way if you detain someone of a criminal inclination the cops aren't waiting around for however long it takes for the webbing to dissolve," Tony stated, all business.
It was at this point that Peter realized that Stark's daughter, Natalia was following them. He stared down at her a little before responding to Tony, "On average, it takes about two hours to dissolve. I also already have something that can speed up the process. I kind of needed to make it when I kept webbing up my testing sight."
"Good. That will help," Natalia responded, just as business like as her father.
"You like helping your daddy work?" Peter decided to indulge the girl a little.
"Don't be ridiculous. Daddy's teaching me the important stuff I need to know to run Stark Industries one day. I'm not a stupid little kid that can't follow the information. My tutors say that my studies are on par with an undergraduate at MIT right now, though I am a little behind on history, but that is Hydra's fault for not teaching me and not because I can't learn it," Natalia was indignant enough to attempt to continue to follow Peter into the locker room but Tony stopped her at the door, earning him a huff.
"Go on and get changed. Once you're all set, just ask FRIDAY to take you to my labs," Bruce stated as Tony was already walking away, carrying his daughter, talking to her in a hushed tone.
Peter obeyed, figuring that this is where his real internship would begin. They had made it clear that it really would be an internship with Stark Industries, just a little extra on the side in the form of super hero training. He repeated what Hill had taught him earlier with the scanner, asking to be taken to Dr. Banner's labs.
He jumped a little when FRIDAY responded, "Of course, I feel I should inform you however, that now that your voice is in my programming, you only need to use the retina scanner and finger print scanner if you have a non-Avenger in the elevators with you."
"Um… Okay, good to know," Peter responded, just a little uncomfortable that the AI was interacting with him in a similar manner that a human would.
When he reached Dr. Banner's labs, he realized that he was standing in a specialized lab designed for Banner. The floor had just about every scientific piece of equipment out on the market and more than a few that were only allowed for people with Top Secret security clearance. That shouldn't surprise Peter though, since the Avengers were literally tasked with protecting the world from major threats.
"Peter, there you are. Come here. We set up this station over here for you. You are going to be Bruce's personal intern so you will likely be learning a lot more in a month here than you will in a year at Midtown Science. Bruce is the head of R&D so you are going to be learning all about the inner workings of the most vital parts of Stark Industries," Tony smiled at him as Peter reached the desk. It was set up with the latest in Stark computers, the screens were holographic and Peter couldn't help but smile a little in excitement.
"Normally, we wouldn't have an intern allowed into one of our labs, but we are making an exception for you, since your basically an Avengers Intern more than a Stark Industries one. I think I can trust you not to touch anything that I haven't taught you about, right?" Bruce looked at Peter expectantly.
"Of course. I understand how important all this equipment is. Plus, the stuff that Stark Industries does is remarkable, I will follow your orders to the letter, Dr. Banner," Peter was nervous and extremely excited at the same time.
"Good. Some of my personal research is delicate, so we don't want to make any mistakes. On that note, you don't have to call me Dr. Banner. Bruce is fine. Dr. Banner reminds me of a time when I was a little naïve when it came to the government," Bruce responded. "Or at least, since that level of informality would seem weird when we have other people around, call me Bruce when it is just the team.
Peter nodded, making a mental note not to call Bruce Dr. Banner when they were alone, "Okay. I can do that."
"Boss, Secretary Ross is in the lobby with a few assistants, requesting permission to come up," FRIDAY spoke up suddenly.
"Okay, let him know I will send someone down to get him immediately," Tony responded to the AI before turning to Peter. "You're up. This is the kind of thing that interns are here for, so Ross shouldn't think too much about it. Just act as if you're new at this. It should be easy since you are. Just bring him up here, he is probably just dropping off some documents we've requested. Oh, and stop down in security to get a few visitor's badges. I like making Ross uncomfortable by reminding him that he can't just walk all over the place here."
"Okay," Peter nodded, his adrenaline spiking at the instructions.
His first task as an intern was to escort the Secretary of State up to Bruce's labs. He took a deep breath and headed for the elevator, "FRIDAY, security floor, please."
"Certainly, and Mr. Parker, please remember to use the public elevators for Secretary Ross and his assistants. They will not understand why you have access to the private elevator," FRIDAY reminded Peter. He nodded and then confirmed it out loud, now thankful that the AI was giving advice.
Hill was waiting for him when he got off the elevator. She handed him three visitor's badges and waved him to the public elevators. Peter immediately went onto on that already had the doors open for him, "Lobby, please, FRIDAY."
It only took a few moments for the elevator to get to the lobby. Peter's heart was in his throat by this point. He took another deep breath as the doors opened and he got off. Immediately, he saw the Secretary of State and two men flanking him, holding boxes. He made a bee-line for them, knowing this was why he had been sent down.
"Secretary Ross, hi. I am Dr. Banner's intern, Peter Parker. Mr. Stark asked me to bring you up to the labs as that is where he is right now," Peter was stunned that he managed to get that out without it fumbling but Ross appeared to take it in stride. Peter held out the badges to Ross who gave him a light glare before taking them and clipping one on himself before clipping the other two on the men whose hands were full.
"Banner has an intern? What are you? A genius or something? Never mind, just get us to Stark. I want to get this over with sooner rather than later," Ross was gruff which just made Peter more nervous.
"Of- of course, sir. Right this way," Peter responded and led them over to the elevator that opened as they approached.
When they got onto the elevator, Ross spoke again, "How old are you kid? You don't look like you're college age. I thought Stark Industries took grad students for interns."
"I'm sixteen. Mr. Stark made an exception for me. I designed a formula to help break down the webs that Spider-Man uses and sent it in with my application," Peter was surprised how well he was speaking given the high of his nerves. Though, Aunt May had drilled that line into Peter's brain the night before, she didn't want anyone to be suspicious of Peter's internship and something like that would be considered suitably impressive enough to have an exception made. Peter quickly went through the process of the scanners and requested the labs after responding.
"So, you are a genius. Stark's probably going to corrupt you though. I really don't understand that man. One minute he is working hand-in-hand with the government to be as helpful as possible and the next he is borderline paranoid towards us. I suppose it just goes with the territory of being a super hero though," Ross dismissed it, eyeing Peter in a way that made Peter uncomfortable.
"I wouldn't know. Today's my first day," Peter blurted out, to get the man to stop staring.
"Well, if you end up not liking it here, I am sure I can pull a few strings to get you an Internship at a government connected lab," Ross stated as the elevator doors opened.
"Really, Ross? You couldn't even wait five minutes to attempt to poach our intern? He just started, doesn't know anything yet and he and his guardian signed a non-disclosure agreement. If you are looking to steal someone, try one of the grad students down in payroll, I'm sure they would be happy to go with you," Tony snarked immediately, having heard Ross's line.
"None of them got an internship at sixteen though. I am intrigued by the kid," Ross commented as they got off the elevator. He waved at the two assistants to drop the boxes on one of the tables.
"Well, maybe they should have tried harder a little earlier. Peter's a smart kid. And he was assigned to me. I don't appreciate you attempting to get at my intern," It was Bruce speaking now. He was absolutely glaring death at Ross.
It was then that Peter remembered that the Harlem incident, as it was known, had a General Ross involved in it. He sidled away from Ross and the assistants just in case things got nasty. He didn't think that Bruce would Hulk out, but he didn't want to be in the middle of a verbal argument either. He stopped when he reached where Natalia had been standing.
"Don't get your panties in a bunch Banner. I didn't come to steal your intern, though he does peek curiosity, I am here to deliver the copies of the Sokovia Accords Stark requested. I don't know why he wanted so many but, whatever," Ross was glaring with equal violence towards Bruce.
"I requested that many because I wanted my team of lawyers to look them over. Also, I figured it would go faster for the team if they had their own copies, rather than passing around and sharing just one. These are very thick. Lot more than really should be involved with an international law that pertains to a total of fifteen people max, if you are including those that are independent of the Avengers," Tony had picked up the booklet that was indeed quite thick.
"That is because it pertains to all enhanced individuals, regardless of the side of the law they are one. It also covers what is being dubbed as 'super tech', things like your suits, Mr. Stark. Oh, I was supposed to tell you one more thing. They decided that since it was an international issue, you will be presenting your case to the full UN rather than just to Congress. The session will be in three weeks, you can bring anyone you want to argue on your behalf but remember that you are being allotted four hours to present your position before the full UN will be allowed to question all the Avengers. The hearing is expected to last a week since there are so many different nations that have questions for you," Ross looked smug, as if he dropped a bomb on Stark that he wasn't going to be prepared for.
"Oh, good. Looks like my contacts did manage to pull through after all. I will see you then Ross. Peter, please escort them back to the lobby," Tony's remark made Ross's expression fall.
Peter had to fight back a smile and noticed that Bruce had been doing the same. Peter led them back to the elevator. This time, Ross was silent, clearly fuming that it was Stark who now held the upper hand. As soon as the three government men stepped off the elevator, they handed Peter their visitor's badges and Ross stormed out of the tower, his assistants clearing a path through the crowds for him.
Peter just backed back into the elevator and asked to be taken back up to the labs. When he reached them, Tony waved him over, his nose already buried in one of the booklets the carried the Accords information.
"Peter, I want you to take a copy of this home to your aunt and one for yourself. Whether we like it or not, if this damned thing passes, it will affect you as well. We may have to send Bruce to Asgard to keep him out of Ross's hands as well if it passes. I don't doubt there is some clause about locking up enhanced individuals with limited control over their abilities," Tony was growling.
Peter picked up two copies, sliding them into his back pack. Bruce waved him over to his desk just as Hill arrived and grabbed the still unopened box, taking it down to, presumably, the legal department.
Once Bruce had Peter standing in front of him, he looked Peter in the eye seriously, "You may want to try convincing your aunt that moving into the tower would be a good idea if you want to maintain your privacy. I saw the way Ross was eyeing you. He has some major pull and he tends to want the best when it comes to everything. That is how I became the Hulk. He had me attempting to recreate the Super Soldier serum that was used on Steve, not that he told me what it was really for. You have a lot of potential when it comes to the sciences. Those web shooters are a very clear indicator of that. I don't want Ross even getting a chance to corner you."
"Bruce is right. Ross is all about the bottom line and he doesn't care how he gets there. Maybe we should offer May a job working under Helen. That way if Ross tries to coerce her to move to DC or something it won't work," Tony suggested.
"Is the Secretary of State really that horrible?" Peter was now extremely confused.
"Lesson one, kid. No matter what era you are living in, politicians are always only looking out for themselves. That makes them untrustworthy and very dangerous to people like us. If Ross found out what you were capable of, he would be salivating and chomping on the bit to get his hands on you and your DNA. The only thing keeping him from going after Bruce is that he would have New York rioting if he touched the Hulk. He is massively popular," Steve had appeared while they were talking, clearly coming for the other box of copies. "No doubt that the Accords are his way of attempting to get his hands on Bruce and the rest of us."
"Oh," Peter shifted uncomfortably. He knew that he wasn't as strong as the Hulk, but the others had already made it clear that after the Hulk, he was definitely the strongest. What was more is that, unlike Bruce, Peter had excellent control over his strength. In the months since he had started operating as Spider-Man, he hadn't accidently hurt a single person.
"Try not to get too worked up about it, Peter. We're all working on speeches for the UN and I was going to ask your aunt and a few other people that I know of to testify about the Battle of New York. With luck, we can nip this thing in the bud with most nations," Tony patted him on the shoulder. "Now, back to where we were before the interruption. Bruce was telling you not to touch anything until he's taught you to handle it properly. I am sure you two can have fun with that later. Now, we need to work on redesigning your suit so that it works more effectively for you."
Steve smiled at Peter before leaving with the box of copies and Peter was seated at his desk, told to slide his badge into the chip reader on the computer and Tony and Bruce immediately got to work talking him through the system. It was much more advanced than anything he had worked with before. Once they were done talking him through it. Tony set him to work on redesigning his Spider-Man costume to his exact needs before leaving with Natalia in tow. Bruce puttered around the labs for the rest of the day while Peter worked on his one task. Lunch was four chicken wraps brought down by Bucky and Peter ate while working.
At just after five, Bruce told him it was time to leave for the day. Peter had just finished his design so he saved it to a folder and then logged off. As he pushed away, he realized, he had really lost track of time, "What were you doing while I was working on the design of my suit?" Peter asked, realizing that he really hadn't talked to Bruce since he started.
"Analyzing your web shooter's mechanics. Did you finish designing your suit?" Bruce paused long enough to see Peter nod before continuing. "Good. We will send that over to development first thing tomorrow. Don't worry about your secret identity being revealed, the guys who are working on it used to be SHIELD lab techs. They won't know it's you and they won't talk about working on the suit. Tomorrow we will go over the formula that you used for the webbing and we can see how it can be improved. You aren't going to be looking at a limited supply of things to work with here, Peter. We will get the best webs developed that can be. High tinsel strength and flexibility will be our priorities, I think."
Peter nodded again as he shouldered his bag, "Okay, Bruce. See you tomorrow."
"Will do. Don't forget to give your aunt that copy of the Accords and talk to her about moving into the tower. I really don't trust Ross not to interfere," Bruce was serious as he spoke, only waving Peter away after he nodded his confirmation.
Peter got into the private elevator and it immediately started moving, "The hidden exit is through the garage. The other interns and daytime employees are leaving right now, so just try to blend in with them when you leave the elevator. Captain Rogers asks that I remind you that you are expected to be here at 5 am tomorrow morning for your training and that you eat a hearty breakfast." FRIDAY stated as the elevator moved.
When the elevator doors opened, Peter joined the crowd, following the flow. He was immediately relieved to have access to the private elevator, as the four public ones had all just released a flood of people when he exited, making it clear to Peter that they had to have been packed tight with people leaving for the day. He gripped his bag a little tighter and followed those who weren't going to their cars. They all went through a door that led to a tunnel, the end of the tunnel let out at another door that went directly into the subway.
When Peter glanced back at the door, he noticed a card reader right next to it, clearly intended for his work badge. Peter took note of where which platform it was before boarding the train he needed to get back to his place in Queens. As he thought about it, he realized that it was designed intentionally to be as convenient as possible for Stark Industries employees that didn't have cars.
By the time he got home it was almost six. His aunt was going to be home from the hospital for another hour, so Peter ordered Chinese for them, knowing that she would be too tired after her two scheduled surgeries that day to do any cooking. The Chinese arrived just before his aunt did and she gave him a tired smile when she noticed the food on the table while he got the plates and chopsticks out.
"So, care to tell me why I got a call from Natasha Romanoff today, asking me to reconsider moving into Stark Tower and asking me to give a speech to the UN about the Battle of New York, and then a call from Dr. Helen Cho, the world's foremost expert on reconstructive surgery, offering me a job as her chief Pediatric surgeon?" May asked, sitting down and dishing out the food for herself while Peter got glasses of lemonade for them both.
"Uh… the Secretary of State might have shown up at the Tower today and was curious about be because I was Bruce's intern. He even offered to get me an internship with a government funded lab 'if I didn't like working at Stark Industries'. I guess it spooked Tony and Bruce a bit. I got a lecture on how I can't trust politicians because they will do anything to get their own agenda done," Peter stated as he filled his plate and started in on it immediately.
"Hmm… Tell them I will give it serious thought. They are right about trusting the government, Peter. You are the only family I have left. I am not going to let you become some lab rat because of your powers. Did you mention your eating habits to them?" May asked. She had become a bit concerned about Peter's need for massive calorie intake without him gaining any weight. It simply wasn't natural.
"Yeah. Steve said it is probably that my metabolism was upped to keep up with the demands that the powers place on my body. The others who have the increased strength and stuff have the same needs. Apparently, even Steve and Bucky's kids have a higher metabolism rate and so does Natalia," Peter answered between bites, lunch felt like it had been hours ago.
May nodded as she ate, "I suppose that makes sense. I guess it is a relief that there is a legit reason for you needing that much food. I've already reworked the budget to account for it, but it will probably increase a little more now that you are going to be more actively burning off the energy."
Peter nodded with his mouth full. Once he swallowed, he spoke, "Oh, and Tony said to give you a copy of the Sokovia Accords, that is why they need you to testify for the UN. They want people who experienced the Battle of New York and the aftermath to be testifying on their behalf. Apparently, the governments of the world are considering putting serious restrictions on powered people."
May frowned, knowing that if something like that came out, it could put Peter in serious risk of becoming the lab rat that she refused to allow him to become. She determined, then and there, that she would lie through her teeth if it meant keeping Peter safe, not that she would have to. She was intelligent enough to know that without the Avengers, things would have been a million times worse than it had been.
"Let Stark know that I will testify, Natasha said it was in three weeks? I will let the hospital director know. He can't really complain about giving me a day off if it is to speak before the UN, though, he might offer his own opinions on what I should say. The entire hospital really respects the Avengers. They came by a week after the battle to visit with all the injured kids and Stark paid all the medical bills for everyone in the hospital," May stated. Peter nodded, he remembered hearing about it from his aunt when it had first happened. After they finished eating, Peter retrieved his aunt's copy before settling down to start reading through his own while in bed.
He fell asleep two pages in, the writing style was so dull.