The plan was a simple one; Peter would go to school and try his best to make it through the day, more so seeing if Asburrow gave him special attention in class and then he'd venture to the park and wait for him to show up.

Tony didn't like it.

When Peter had woken up and come down stairs, Tony hadn't expected him to say he had set up a meeting with Asburrow after school. As a matter of fact he was expecting him to stay as far away from school as possible until they figured everything out. But Peter did have a sort of predictability when it came to situations such as that and Tony knew he should've known something like that was going to happen.

The question now was who was going to accompany him to the park. Rhodes and Steve had been keeping an eye on May and watching out for suspicious persons around the hospital and house, Tony himself couldn't very well go because of the general attention he would attract and Asburrow would recognize him. The only logical choice was Bucky.

That was why Tony didn't like it. He trusted the soldier to keep the kid safe if anything went wrong, but he wanted to be there to confront the man. It was Tony he was after in the first place and dragging Peter into it to get back at him was despicable. He didn't want anyone else to be dragged into it if he could help it. But it was too late to change anything; Peter and Bucky were already at the park waiting and Tony wished he would've send a drone to record the whole encounter instead of having to just listen to it.

AVENGERS

"Thanks for coming Mr. Barnes." Peter said as they entered the park. "I woulda asked Ned but I don't think his poor excuse for kung fu would be much help in this situation."

"It's no trouble kid." Bucky replied. "You said nothing happened at school?"

"Yeah. He just acted like a normal sub would. I mean- he's supposed to be a history sub so we talked about a lot of things that happened on the last few years but he related almost everything to Mr. Stark like he had an obsession."

Bucky nodded. "We'll stick to the plan then. I'll just be over there." He gestured to a bench. "I'll hear everything you say."

Peter nodded and the two of them split off from each other; Bucky going to the allotted bench and Peter to lean on a nearby lamppost. There was an odd sense of calm as he waited even though he figured nothing would turn out as simple as he would hope.

He was listening to low music and checking things on his phone, looking up every so often at people walking by. He stopped himself from looking at Bucky as to make it seem he didn't know the man, but if Asburrow was as they all thought then he was probably already there watching from a distance.

It was a few minutes before someone approached him.

"Peter?"

He tried to act surprised as his sub walked up to him. "Hey Mr. Fitzpatrick. What're you doing here?"

"I'm meeting someone here actually. What about you? Not skipping out on homework I hope."

"No, of course not. I'm actually waiting for someone too. He said he was family but I've never met him before so I'm kinda nervous about the whole thing."

"Well isn't that a coincidence? I'm also meeting family. It's been just about fourteen years since I've seen him so I doubt he'll actually recognize me." There was silence for a moment. "Do you recognize me?"

Peter furrowed his brows in mock confusion. "Am I- are we supposed to be meeting each other Mr. Fitzpatrick?"

He laughed. "Yes Peter. We talked on the phone yesterday evening. You couldn't believe how shocked I was to see I was substituting for your class. Where's Ned? I expected you to bring him to keep an eye on me to make sure I'm not some sort of creep."

"Ned- uh, couldn't make it. He has a project he needs to finish so it's just me." He paused for a moment. "You're serious? You're not just making this all up right?"

"Of course not! I mean after I learned of Ben's death, I figured I'd try to reconnect with the family and help out as much as I could. I know it's been a few years since then but I couldn't just drop what I had going on and leave to come find you, no matter how much I wanted to."

Peter felt sick. How much did that guy know about him? Ben's death made it in the paper, sure, but it's not like general knowledge for anyone.

"I know I said it wouldn't take long, but do you wanna go get something to eat maybe? I'm sure you know all the best places in town."

"Why are you really here Mr. Fitzpatrick?" Peter asked with a sigh. He was tired of pretending. He couldn't help it. He wasn't going to make it seem like they were family.

"I'm- sorry? I don't understand. I'm just trying to connect with my nephew." He answered with a confused grin.

"The business card I got from Spider-man said you're an accountant, yet you appear to be my history substitute. The two are difficult jobs and I sincerely doubt you'd be able to do both at once… my mom didn't have any siblings; May would've know about them and told me. She's the only blood relative I have left."

"Peter I know this is all really far-fetched but really-"

"I've seen- the death of three family members in my lifetime. Please don't give me false hope and happiness. Why are you here, Mr. Asburrow?"

All the sounds of the park- the kids playing, birds chirping, distant music, car engines from the street, the silent buzz from his earpiece- they all seemed to go quiet. Peter stared at the man in front of him with tired eyes.

Asburrow's shouldered sagged slightly and he rubbed the bridge of his nose. "You're a smart kid Peter. Why don't you tell me why I'm actually here? Since I seem to know so much about you, tell me what you know about me."

"You got out of prison a few weeks ago on good behavior, whether that's true or not I don't actually know. You came to New York in search of your wife and child but found out that they moved states; I guess being Hammer's lackey had some- setbacks, otherwise your wife wouldn't have divorced you." Peter's eyes didn't break contact. "We don't know what you were going to do after that."

Asburrow bit his lip and turned to watch a couple walking their dog. "That pretty much sums it up. Here's the deal," he turned back to Peter. "You're going to come with me; leave your phone and watch here so you can't be tracked."

Peter frowned. "Why would you assume I'd go with you?"

"I'd like to think you'd like to keep your aunt safe." He shrugged. "But I'm also not stupid to assume she's being watched over right now and it would practically be a death trap for me if I attempted anything that involves her. But, I bet I can call Ned and have him here in an instant if I say you're in some sort of trouble. He is your best friend after all."

That was something he hadn't anticipated. Ned would almost definitely drop whatever he was doing and help Peter if requested, especially if it was by a person of authority, even if it was fake. Peter didn't even know how Asburrow pieced it together that they were best friends. The short time he spent in class wouldn't have indicated that; maybe that they hung out a bit at least but not best friends.

"You think he's home, working on his project? Maybe I should call his parents and have them all come down to see us. That'll give me three more people to work with. Can you see it; even if my plan fails, do you really think his parents would allow him to stay friends with someone who gets him in such dangerous situations?"

That hurt. Even if he knew Ned's parents wouldn't do it, just thinking about it was horrible.

Peter let out an aggravated sigh. He took his phone out of his pocket and turned it off before taking his watch off as well. He walked over to a trashcan and dropped them in.

"Where are we going?" He asked in a somewhat defeated voice.

Asburrow's tone turned chipper and he sling his arm around Peter's shoulders. "I told you, I'll take you out to eat. There's a diner not too far from here that's supposed to have the best burgers ever, but then again we're in New York and that's what every diner says about their food."

He led him from the park, passing by Bucky who seemingly had no interest in them and was deeply enamored with someone on his phone, like a father talking to his child. Asburrow didn't pay him any attention.

Bucky on the other hand had been watching the exchange from his peripheral, listening to the whole thing through his earpiece. Hearing that Ned and his family was a possible target wasn't something they planned on and had nicked the plan a bit; even if he was bluffing, they weren't going to risk it.

"Hey kiddo. You having a good birthday?"

"I called Ned as soon as he was mentioned the first time." Tony answered back through the phone. "Told him to block any and all calls from unknown numbers. I've got his cell and landline traced just in case. His parents' cells were a bit tricky to go after but I've got those covered too."

"Wow, that's awesome! Did you open all your presents? What'd you get?"

"I called Cap and Rhodes too; Cap's gonna stay at the hospital to keep an eye on Aunt Hottie whole Rhodes goes to hang with Ned for a while. If you have the chance to take him then do it. We have probable cause to send him back to prison."

"That's really cool buddy. We need to play with those when daddy get back from his trip. Can you put mommy on?"

Peter had half a mind to laugh as he passed Bucky; he just seemed so out of character, but that's what made it so believable. He didn't know what to expect though. The plan was sort of a blur after that and it was really up to him and Bucky to finish everything out.

"Is there anywhere you'd like to go?" Asburrow's grip on Peter tightened as they walked past some people.

Peter stayed quiet. He tried to look scared for what it mattered, trying to make eye contact with everyone they passed in hopes of something happening. He could hear the quiet murmur of Bucky and Tony still talking, about how he should intercept them without putting himself or anyone around them in danger.

"Excuse me." Peter's head snapped to the man that had approached them. "Do either of you happen to have the time?"

"Yeah, it's 4:37." Asburrow answered before trying to lead Peter away.

"And- do you happen to know the quickest route to the subway? My phone died right as I was looking for directions."

Ah, a tourist.

"Sorry, I'm not too familiar with the area, just visiting my nephew." Asburrow smiled though Peter could tell he was thoroughly annoyed with the man.

"Uh, which line were you trying to get to?" Peter asked, locking eyes with him.

The man stared at Peter as if sending something was wrong. "I'm not too sure actually. I'm supposed to meet an old friend at some bar downtown and he said to take the redline I think."

"Well the nearest subway station is a few blocks from here but I don't think all of them are on a main way with the redline."

The man watched his eyes as Peter gave him directions. The way he was blinking was strange; three really quick ones, three long ones, then another three quick before waiting a few seconds and starting again.

"Okay so, from the park, left for three blocks, right for one, and then left again until I get to the burger place; if I reach a hotdog place I went too far." He said back to them.

"Yeah, that should take you to the entrance of the station. You can see on the maps they have down there if that one is a direct to the redline, other wise you need to get a connecting one."

"Thanks so much. My buddy would kill me if I missed our meeting. Sorry for taking up your time. Have a nice evening." He started to walk away.

Asburrow's cheap smile was gone in an instant. "You think you're real clever don't you?"

"What are you talking about?" Peter asked.

"Acting like you didn't know him in an attempt to get away."

"I have no idea who that was. He was just a guy asking for directions. Just because you have me as a hostage doesn't mean I'm going to stop being a decent human being."

Asburrow clung to Peter's shoulder, shaking him slightly. "I honestly can't believe you're lying to me in the situation you're in right now. You really aren't worried about your aunt or Ned?"

"I'm telling you I didn't know him."

"He knows me though." The two of them turned to see Bucky standing there. "It's over Asburrow. Let the kid go."

"Ah, ya see, can't do that." He pulled a gun out and aimed it at Peter. "Stark make me lose something important to me so I'm going to do the same to him."

Peter stiffened. He didn't know why they hadn't factored in that he was most likely going to be armed. Perhaps if he kept up his act of believing he had another family member, it wouldn't have gone that far.

"Now you're going to leave. If my demands aren't met then the boy dies."

"Ah, ya see, can't do that." Bucky mocked. "Do you honestly think I'm going to let you walk away from here unharmed after threatening him? Do you honestly think you're going to get away with threatening someone who has ties to the Avengers?"

"Of course not, but then that's the point." Asburrow smirked and cocked the gun. "I know I'm not gonna make it out of this and that's where he comes in. I know you like this kid because of you didn't then you wouldn't be here right now. You'd hate to see him hurt. So if you want him back, alive, then you're going to meet my demands."

Bucky stared at him before glancing to Peter. He looked just as anyone would expect but Bucky knew he wanted to take the guy out; pretending to be family after what he's lost already?

"What're your demands?" Bucky asked, glancing behind the two of them upon seeing a figure approached.

"Oh no, that's between me and Stark." He lowered the gun slightly. "You get to stand there and watch as we leave. If you try to follow then I shoot him."

Bucky's frown deepened but he made no move to stop him.

"I'll call Stark after me and my nephew have had a chance to sit and talk over a few things." Asburrow tucked his gun away and turned to guide Peter from the park, only to be met by the same man the two of them had talked to earlier. "Oh, did you need something else?"

"Yeah, something like that."

Peter didn't really know what happened after that. He watched as the man punched Asburrow in the nose and went down. Peter was slightly pulled away from him in an attempt to keep him safe; there was one gunshot, then another a few seconds after. When everything was calmed a bit Peter was finally able to take in the scene.

Asburrow was lying on the ground, blood leaking from his nose and shoulder, Bucky was standing over him with a gun drawn. The mystery man had been in front of Peter trying to shield him from the view and pressing extremely hard on his forearm, which he had only then realized was bleeding.

"Are you alright kid?" The man asked while looking at Peter arm. "I think the bullet just grazed ya so you should be okay as long as we get it treated properly."

Peter blinked a few times before answering. "Yeah, yeah I'm fine. Uh, thank you for- um, this..."

"Hey, I'm a cop. I should hope I can recognize a kid in a bad situation and help them get out of it." He was silent for a second. "Sorry I couldn't help sooner. I saw you as I was walking past and you looked uncomfortable. I didn't know what the situation was so I tried to come off as non threatening to whatever was happening. But I saw you blink SOS and when you gave me directions, it landed me to the tunnel outside the precinct, not the burger joint."

"You blinked SOS?" Bucky asked, slightly surprised. "I didn't even know you knew Morse Code."

Peter let out a slight laugh. "Me and Ned thought it would be cool if we could learn and send messages to each other. Guess it came in handy."

"Yeah, really handy. I don't know what I would've done if I hadn't noticed you doing it." The man cut in. "I would've acted right there but I needed to call some buddies of mine. They should be getting here right about now along with an ambulance." He turned to Bucky. "I can take over watching him until my team comes if you want to take your friend to wait for the ambulance."

Bucky eyed Asburrow before nodding. "I'll get the kid taken care of."

The man removed his hand from Peter's arm, placing Peter's other on the wound before moving over to Asburrow. "I know you two probably want to leave but I will need statements from you before you do."

The two of them nodded before Peter spoke. "Thank you for what you did, but, uh, who are you?"

The man smiled. "Officer Jefferson Davis; NYPD."

"Come on, let's get that arm checked out." With one last nod of thanks, Bucky led Peter to the opening of the park where police cars and an ambulance had gathered. "Don't worry, we'll have Stark send him a fruit basket or something to officially thank him."

Okay there it is. In my defense, it wasn't supposed to go on this long so that's why the end is kinda lack luster. It was either end it here or making it go on for like millions of more chapters that probably wouldn't have come out in forever like this one did. But it still turned out rather nice I think. And I guess this could sorta kinda be apart of the It Happened At School series because of his pretending to be a teacher and all but that's for you to decide.

Did you get that? The little tribute tidbit? About a certain officer? Hinthint a certain spiderling's father? I think I'm clever.

Please point out any spelling or grammatical mistakes I might have missed so I can fix them in the future. Leave a review! It's late but here's my Christmas gift to all of you! And thank you to everyone that's left reviews in the past. You give me will to write!

Hope ya liked it. See ya next time!