Same old disclaimer…these fine folks belong to Marvel.
A/N: I hope you stick with me. I feel the need to spend a little more time on character development before getting back to the problem at hand. It's like the Marvel directors said in the Infinity War bonus features, "Character first!"
Chapter 7: Saturday Afternoon
The elevator doors opened to the second floor, and May was quick to exit. She was on a mission to find Peter. She didn't even bother to ask FRIDAY which way to go. How hard could it be track down her own teenage kid? She made her way carefully down the hall, sipping her coffee (which was delicious) as she went along. Most of the rooms were empty. As she made her way towards the end of the hallway, she saw light and activity coming from one lab in particular. "Bingo!" She thought to herself. May marched into the doorway, ready to give Peter a proper scolding for letting her sleep too long and leaving her alone.
However, what she saw stopped her in her tracks and made her take a step back out into the hallway. She leaned her head back against the wall just outside of the lab door. Carefully, she leaned to the side and turned her head so that she could spy on the two people working away in the corner of the lab.
"My God," May thought to herself, "He looks just like he used to look when helping his Uncle Ben with things around the house!" May once again leaned back against the wall and took a moment to breathe. In her mind, she could see a younger Peter determined to help his uncle change a flat tire. Little Peter was so focused, and when he was really focused he would squint his eyes and nibble at his lower lip as he concentrated. May stealthily looked through the door again.
Peter was standing next to Tony at the lab table. They had some hologram image in front of them, but they were focused intently on something Peter had in his hand. Sure enough, May recognized the same intense look of concentration on Peter's face; the same look he had that first time he helped his uncle with the car tire. Perhaps even more interesting was the way Tony worked with him. Tony was leaning closely next to Peter and was patiently explaining something about the item in Peter's hand.
"Ben used to patiently teach him things; the look on his face wasn't so different from the look on Tony's face right now," May noted to herself. Again, May turned away and leaned back against the wall. If she didn't know any better, she might think Stark was excited to spend time with her dear nephew. She took another determined breath before stepping away from the wall and turned to step into the room once more.
As she went to move into the room, she heard Tony say something to Peter about, "Go ahead and give it a try."
Before she had time to figure out what that meant, she found herself ducking to avoid being hit by something that was coming straight at her head. It was a good thing she had the travel mug, or Stark would have coffee all over his lab floor.
From her crouching position, May peaked up to see what looked like webbing stuck to the upper right side of the door frame. Slowly, she stood up, keeping her eyes on the webbing. She let out the breath she was holding and used her eyes to follow the webbing back to its source. Finally, her eyes landed on her nephew's shocked face. His mouth opened and closed, like a fish gasping for air.
"Aunt May…I'm so sorry…are you…I didn't mean it! FRIDAY told me you were up, but I didn't hear you or see you there! I probably should have noticed, but I was so focused…Mr. Stark…um…he was showing me…I'm so sorry! Are you ok?"
Before he could continue his frantic apology, Tony stepped in. "Take a breath, kid. She's fine. She just looks a little surprised." Tony gave May his signature smile before taking a step in her direction and turning to face her fully. "Gosh, May, you look well. It's so nice to see you looking refreshed! Pete and I were just talking about how we might be able to improve this suit of his…" he used a hand to direct her attention to Peter's suit on the table, "…and possibly upgrade his web-shooters." Tony now pointed to the webbing near her head, "But I'm sure you figured that part out."
May cleared her throat and stepped closer to see what they were doing. "You're working on the suit that Peter isn't going to be using for a couple of weeks?" She directed her gaze to Peter.
"Yeah, well…I mean…uh…I saw you packed it in my bag, and Mr. Stark wanted to work on it, so I thought it would be ok. It is ok, right? I'm sorry, Aunt May. I keep screwing this up. I didn't mean to upset…"
She cut him off. She smiled and shook her head at him, "Oh Peter, you make it too easy." She took a deep breath, took a sip of coffee, and continued, "I suppose I don't mind you working on it." She stepped up to the table and set her coffee down. "So, tell me…just how does this ridiculous spandex outfit help keep Peter safe?"
Peter clearly looked relieved.
Tony answered her question, "This ridiculously expensive suit has everything in it. Audio, video, tracking, parachute, heater, his own AI (he calls her KAREN), a place to store his web liquid canisters, and more," Tony beamed and looked quite proud of himself.
May blinked at the man, "So, you spy on my kid as he runs around in a skin-tight spider outfit?"
Peter coughed and tried to hide the chuckle that escaped from his mouth at Tony's horrified expression.
"I do not spy on the kid!" Tony insisted. "I just…he needs to be monitored in case he makes a bad decision. You know…like getting taken up into the sky by a vulture-man and dropped into a lake!"
May continued to stare at him.
"Look, I don't sit here and watch the kid's every move! FRIDAY is connected to KAREN, and I simply get an alert if something is amiss!" Tony threw his hands in the air, and he looked completely flustered by May's interpretation of the suit.
Peter's aunt quirked her mouth up into a satisfied smirk. "Oh Tony…" she said, "You make it too easy!"
This time is was Tony's turn to blink. Did May just tease him? Is that what happened? He recovered quickly, "Ahem…well, you needed the win. You looked a little flustered after Spider-Kid nearly webbed you in the face."
The three looked at each other for a moment before a fourth person entered the room.
"Tony, I'm sorry to bother you, but I need you to sign a few things for me. I need to get this paperwork out to the board so that they can look it over before our meeting on Monday." With heels clicking on the floor, Pepper Potts herself stepped into the lab and took in the three flustered faces before her. She started by acknowledging May.
After setting down the papers for Tony, Pepper extended her hand to Peter's aunt, "You must be May Parker," she smiled. "I must say, I am huge fan."
May shook Pepper's hand but looked genuinely confused, "A fan? Of me?" she asked.
"Absolutely!" Pepper confirmed, "It's not everyday I meet someone else who can put Tony in his place. Nice shot by the way." She nodded her head towards the slight bruise that was still visible on Tony's face.
May laughed nervously, "Haha…that…yeah. I feel like I should apologize to you for that, Pepper." She looked over to Tony, "Then again…I just really couldn't stop myself."
Pepper gave May a beautiful smile, "Please…no worries! I told Tony he was on his own, and I knew you would give him a proper scolding for dragging Peter into this mess."
"Excuse me," Peter said, "I am standing right here!" He crossed his arms in front of him, looking indignant. "And no one dragged me into anything. I became Spider-Man without anyone's help. Mr. Stark…" he gave a wave in Tony's direction, "… just tried to help me. Or at least he helped me after I helped him…err…um…"
Tony sent a disbelieving look in Peter's direction. He placed a hand on his heart and pretended to be wounded. "That hurts, Pete. After all that we've been through…"
"That's enough, boys." Pepper spoke up. "Tony, I need you to sign those and then it is really about some time we all get lunch." She looked at May, "You must be hungry…did you eat?"
As May and Pepper started to talk, Tony and Peter were distracted once again with the web-shooter.
"Well…" May started, "I had a muffin before coming down." Her stomach rumbled, and a blush appeared on her cheeks. "However, I didn't eat much yesterday, so I guess it would be good to eat something more substantial."
Pepper smiled and picked up the papers, noting that Tony had quickly scribbled his signature before focusing back on his project with Peter.
"A little more to the right…that might be too tight," he was telling Peter, who listened intently to his mentor.
Pepper smiled and shook her head a little and spoke again to May, "I think perhaps the two of us should get lunch, and we'll have someone bring sandwiches up to them." She nodded towards the two men in front of them. It was as if Pepper and May had become invisible.
"Peter…" May said, "Does that sound ok? Do you want someone to bring you a sandwich or something?"
"Huh?" Peter responded, "Oh yeah…sure, May! I'm starving. Um…could I get a nice big one with pickles? Oh…and I like it when it's squished down real flat!" Peter added.
"I'm sure we can make that happen," Pepper commented.
Tony added, "You know what I like, hon. Or you don't have to worry, sometimes I forget to eat what they bring me anyway."
"Hmm…yes, I know that Tony, but I do think your guest needs the food." She said. Tony smiled and gave her a nod in confirmation.
The two women stood and watched the men for a few more seconds before Pepper put her hand on May's shoulder. "Come on, there's no talking to men in the lab when they're like this." They began walking to the door before Pepper called back to get Tony's attention. "Don't forget, you promised me that I would have you all evening! I want you upstairs by 4:00 o'clock, Tony. Ahem…Tony?!"
"Yes, mam! 4:00 o'clock! Wedding discussion over dinner," he looked up and flashed her a smile, "I'll be all yours!"
"Good," Pepper said, "And then I'm sure Peter's aunt will appreciate getting her nephew back!"
Tony and Peter ignored her last comment as they were back to being completely engrossed in their project.
"Wow," May said, "that was…" they were walking down the hallway now back towards the elevator, "…Tony's really good with him, isn't he?" May asked the beautiful woman beside her.
"I've only met Peter briefly before today," Pepper confessed, "But Tony is definitely different since Peter came along."
"Really?" May asked as they entered the elevator and Pepper pressed the button for the main floor.
"Oh yeah…I'll tell you over lunch," Pepper said with a smile.
Downstairs, Pepper led May to the cafeteria. This is where anyone else on duty at the compound could get something to eat, but it looked more like a nice restaurant than a cafeteria. The women walked up to what looked like a carving station where Pepper placed an order for them and asked that someone take food up to Tony and Peter.
May looked around with wonder, "This place really has everything, doesn't it?"
"I can have Happy give you the grand tour after lunch if you'd like. I have a feeling Peter and Tony will be busy for a while," Pepper added.
"Yeah…I guess," May looked down and started to play with the silverware as they sat down.
"I'm sure this is a lot to take in. I wanted to sit down with you because I do have some idea of what you're feeling," Pepper explained.
May looked up and gave her a quizzical look.
"Tony is like a big kid," Pepper went on. "I've worked with him and looked out for his interests for years now. Falling in love with him ten years ago…at the same time he became Iron Man…" Pepper took a deep breath, "…that was unexpected…and crazy!"
May studied her from across the table and waited for her to continue.
"I've worried about him everyday since this all started. We even took a break around the same time that Tony met Peter," she sighed, "The worry eats at me sometimes. I mean…he carried a nuclear weapon into a worm hole! I almost lost him then! It's hard not knowing what he will do next." She stopped and locked eyes with May, "I imagine that you are terrified for Peter. Probably even more worried for him than I am for Tony because Peter is so young."
This time it was May's turn to speak up. "I do worry. I'm not even a blood relative," May explained. "But my husband, Ben, and I had made a promise to keep Peter safe." Tears began to form in May's eyes, "Pepper…how am I supposed to keep him safe when he is climbing skyscrapers and swinging around the city on webs?! I am out of my realm here!"
Pepper reached across the table and placed her hand on top of May's. "Over the years, I've learned not to worry about the things that I can't do for Tony. There are countless things that Pepper Potts is unable to do for Iron Man." She gave May's hand a squeeze. "However, Pepper Potts can so an awful lot for Tony Stark."
May nodded her hand and blinked away the tears that were trying to form in her eyes. "So, you're saying that I should not worry about what I can do for Spider-Man, and focus only on what Aunt May can do for Peter Parker?"
"It's worth a shot, right?" Pepper asked.
"I guess you're right," May agreed. "That's all I can do right now." She looked up at Pepper and squeezed her hand again before releasing it and pulling her hands down onto her lap. "There was something else that you told me earlier…you mentioned that Tony was different since meeting Peter. What did you mean?" May asked.
Pepper leaned back in her chair. As she did, someone brought over a tray with their sandwiches. May blinked at the food in front of her. The bread looked like it was freshly made, and the meat was freshly carved. It looked nothing like the lunch meat May used to make Peter a sandwich at home. May took her plate off the tray and eagerly took a bite of the delicious-looking sandwich. She had to suppress a moan as it melted in her mouth. She really was hungry.
Pepper smiled at her as she took a bite of her own sandwich and placed it back down on the plate in front of her. She took a sip of her water before answering May's question.
"Well…Tony treats Peter differently. Oddly, he has more respect for Peter than he ever had for anyone else on his team." Pepper looked thoughtful a moment, "except perhaps for Bruce…" seeing May's confused face she continued, "oh…never mind. The point is that Tony treats Peter the way I think…" she looked at May before lowering her voice a little and finishing her sentence, somewhat insecurely, "…I think he treats him more like a son." She looked up, trying to read May's expression.
May wasn't sure exactly how to respond. She had witnessed some of that behavior herself before Peter had nearly sent his webbing into her face.
"I think I know what you mean…when I saw them earlier," she cleared her throat, "it reminded me of the way Ben used to be with Peter. Ben was the brother of Peter's father, Richard. The death of his parents was really hard, but Ben…Peter was his last link to his brother. Ben adored Peter, and it surprised me to see Tony act so much like Ben," May admitted.
Pepper chuckled a little before adding, "You know…" she smiled, "Tony has even started to drop what he thinks are subtle hints about the two of us having kids." She shook her head a little, "It seems that Peter has activated some kind of paternal instinct in Tony." She quirked an eyebrow at May. "I don't hate the idea, but it does worry me that something could happen to him. I'd hate to bring a kid into that."
May nodded her head in understanding, then gave a cheeky smile to her new friend, "Being a single parent isn't so bad. I love my life with Peter. I would just recommend learning all about school field trips and making sure your kids stay away from facilities that are experimenting with spiders!"
The two chuckled a bit more before digging back into their sandwiches and finishing lunch in a companionable silence.
After lunch, Pepper excused herself to get some more work done before meeting with Tony later. Pepper had put Happy in charge of showing May around the compound a little.
The man looked less than thrilled at first, but he seemed to take a shining to May after learning that she was responsible for the newest mark on Tony's face.
About an hour into Happy's tour, they were in the elevator heading towards the lower level.
"I beg your pardon, Mr. Hogan," Came FRIDAY's voice, "But I think you should know that Mr. Stark and Peter have moved into the lower level training room. Will you be needing me to inform them of your arrival?"
Happy smiled over at May, "Oh! No, FRIDAY…I think we'll surprise them. I'm sure May is a little curious to see what they're up to."
May gave Happy a smile and nodded her confirmation.
They stepped off the elevator only to walk up to window that overlooked something that reminded May of a giant gymnasium a lower down. From the window, they could watch what was going on below. May was impressed to see that Stark had set up a space that had massive blocks that mimicked the buildings in the city. She watched as Peter, in his suit, swung around the room on his webs as Iron Man flew above him. She was impressed to see how quickly Peter moved. Suddenly, Iron Man charged in Peter's direction. The boy used a quick maneuver so that he was crawling along the wall away from danger. He shot a web out over towards a large block and started swinging once again.
May couldn't help but to smile in wonder at her nephew as he twisted and flipped through the air with ease. Her smile quickly faded when she saw Iron Man blasted a web loose and Peter tumbled to the floor below.
She squealed and leaned forward to get a closer look at the floor below. Peter was shaking it off, and he removed his mask to look at Tony as the other man landed and removed his helmet. The two were talking to one another below when May turned to Happy with determination and said, "I want to hear what they're saying."
Happy pressed a button nearby and May could hear Tony's voice as he spoke to Peter.
"…You're doing a great job, Pete. However, I noticed that, when you swing around on your webs, you're too focused on the webs to take in other things around you. You need to be tapping into your abilities, use those enhanced senses to recognize danger."
"…I know, but…"
"No buts, kid! You won't do anyone any good if you go splat! Navigating with your webs should be more instinctual, so that you aren't so focused on it. You should practice more, especially since you don't have to worry about running out of webbing. I can help you manufacture it here. As you move around, try to pay more attention to what else you can see and hear, ok?"
"Yes, sir," Peter confirmed. "Although, I don't know that anyone will be using technology like yours. These webs are really strong!"
"Never underestimate your opponent, Pete. You need to be prepared no matter what!" Tony gave Peter a firm look before once again replacing his helmet. "Ready? Let's go some more. Try using some of the adjustments we made to your suit. Become more familiar with your web combinations. I know we haven't perfected the web-shooters and you still need those refills, so practice doing that quickly as well."
May watched as Peter replaced his own mask before shooting a web back up to pull himself back into the air.
She looked at Happy, "Thank you. I don't need to hear anymore." She looked thoughtful a moment. "I think I would like to head back to my room, Happy. I'd like to do some thinking before Peter joins me later."
Happy gave her nod, "Of course, Mrs. Parker. I'll walk you back."
"Please…call me May," she smiled to him.
Happy didn't miss just how beautiful the smile was. He looked away to hide the blush he felt creeping onto his cheeks, "May…" he repeated.
After accompanying her back upstairs, Happy left May to her thoughts.
She had a pretty good plan forming in her mind. Now all she needed to do was hope that Peter and Tony would agree that it would be a good idea.