Author's Note: Amazing Spiderman two made me cry so much. So yes I'm kinda getting back on track of the episode here but we're still gonna see a lot more 'Black Suit Spiderman' in the next chapter or so. But Worried Dad Tony is gonna make a resurgence. This chapter starts off with some implied bad intent on the part of the faceless goon, please be warned. I own nothing.
38. On the Rooftop
Piper turned her phone off as she walked through downtown. She just needed to think for a while, without the near constant buzzing of her phone in her pocket. The team could yell at her for missing training again later. Eddie had offered her his slightly broken couch for the night but she had needed some air after the revelation of the day. Her whole world had just been turned on its ear. Everything she'd ever thought she knew about her parents was a lie. It was likely that her Uncle Ben had known her parents worked for SHIELD from the beginning, her father had given him the usb after all. And he'd hidden it well. Fury definitely knew. Tony, the man she considered her father, probably knew. Yet no one in the past twelve years since her parents' deaths had though she maybe deserved to know the truth. Not Fury who she technically worked for, and not Tony who had become family to her. She shook her head. Sighing she took a left into an alley she nearly always swung through as Spider-girl. She was so distracted she didn't notice the figure behind her until she heard the flick of a switch blade being opened.
She knew better than to freeze, she really did. She'd lived in New York her whole life with only occasional trips to Malibu. She knew how to react to a mugging, hell she stopped muggings on the regular, but only as Spider-girl. Never as Piper. She knew better she really did but still her muscles decided it was a good idea to freeze solid at that moment and she stumbled. The man behind her took his chance and grabbed her wrist slamming her into the wall. She managed a short scream before he got his hand over her mouth. He smelled like beer and cigarette smoke. His breath wreaked like spoiled milk. His hand began to slide down her arm and she struggled. She could have thrown him across the alley with ease and was a mere second away from doing so when something came crashing out of the shadows and tackled the man knocking him away from Piper and into the dumpster a few feet away. Any sensible person would have run, but no one who knew Piper well would ever accuse her of being sensible.
Instead of running she took a step forwards, towards the shadowy figure now beating on the mugger. There was a pained groan from the man and Piper jumped slightly still shaken up. Her foot connected with a can behind her and sent it spinning into the wall. The shadowy figure leapt up the wall sticking there in a very familiar way and began to crawl up the wall at top speeds. Piper called after him after glancing over at the mugger to make sure he wasn't getting back up any time soon.
"Wait!" There was silence for a moment. Piper thought her rescuer might have left her alone in that alley but then there was a sound familiar to only herself and the few people who'd worked with Spider-girl, the sound of a web line being shot. Her rescuer lowered himself down to her level and Piper got a decent look at him in the dim light of the alley. The costume was the same as before and the eyes still kind of gave her the hebie jeebies but knowing who was under that mask helped ease that a touch. She could hear his smile in his voice as he spoke.
"I see trouble knows how to find you Miss." Piper rolled her eyes glancing over at the mugger to make sure he was out before she spoke.
"Miss? Harry you aren't slick, I know it's you." The Spider-man dropped down on his web line slightly but chuckled.
"You are way too smart for your own good Piper." Piper's already small smile dropped a notch. Harry tilted his head slightly before flipping off the line to stand directly in front of her.
"You look down." Piper ran a hand through her hair and sighed.
"Yeah that's one way of putting it." Harry reached out a hand.
"I know just the thing. Do you trust me?" Piper giggled slightly, Harry was very secretive about it but he was a closet Disnerd.
"Of course I trust you Harry." She said as she reached out and took his hand. Moving faster than a regular human was capable of Harry pulled Piper close and slipped a hand around her waist so they stood close facing each other.
"Good. Hold on tight." Piper was about to ask him what he meant when his arm around her tightened and he shot a web line at the top of a nearby building. Piper threw her arms around his neck as he pulled them up out of the alley. They swung across the city and Piper couldn't help the belt of laughter that escaped. No matter what there was nothing like a good web swing to clear the head. They were across downtown in a matter of minutes and with a mighty tug Harry pulled them up to the top of Stark Tower. He gently set her down and brushed her hair behind her ear again, much like he had the first time he'd set her up here. Piper laughed and took his hand.
"Thank you Harry. That was fun." Spider-man glanced around and the mask peeled itself back. Piper stared. She still wasn't sure what the suit was but the way it moved and the symbol on his chest was eerily familiar. Harry smiled and tilted her chin up gently.
"There's the smile I love. He didn't hurt you did he? The man in the alley?" Piper shook her head.
"No you got there in the nick of time." Harry's smile looked different somehow, darker.
"Good. I'll always be there for my favorite Damsel in Distress." Piper scoffed.
"I'm no damsel in destress Harry. But thank you." Harry grinned a bit wider.
"You're welcome." He leaned in and pecked Piper on the cheek. Then without warning he dove backwards off the roof his mask sliding back into place on its own. Piper stared after him her hand absently touching the spot on her cheek that he'd kissed.
"Oh I'm in trouble." She sighed and headed for the roof entrance door. She had some research to do on symbiosis.
'Mister Stark, Miss Parker has arrived home.' Tony glanced at the clock on the wall. It was almost midnight.
"Thanks JARVIS, redirect the elevator to this lab please." Tony said before turning back to his latest project. It took the elevator a few minutes to ding signaling its arrival. The doors opened and Piper stuck her head out of them. She stepped into the room. It wasn't often Tony called her down to this particular lab. It was his main armory at Stark Tower and normally he only called her here to show her something or tell her she was in trouble.
"Hi. Everything ok?" Tony nodded. He glanced up at her and frowned. She looked like she'd been crying.
"I'm fine, looks like I should be asking you that question. Did something happen?" Piper shook her head.
"I don't wanna talk about it right now." Tony shrugged.
"Ok well the reason I called you down here was because I have something for you." Tony turned to his work table and picked up two red bands. He motioned for Piper to hold out her hands. She did so, knowing that her web shooters were at the bottom of her back pack and wouldn't get in the way of whatever this was. Tony slipped the bands onto her wrists. On closer inspection Piper saw that they were in fact red and gold, the same shades as the Iron Man armor. They were about an inch and a half wide. There was a small gem like circle on each band. Piper raised an eyebrow at Tony.
"They're for your protection. Push the button." Piper pushed the button on the left hand and the metal sprang to life and unfolded around her hand. The familiar sound of a repulsor blast charging up filled Piper's ears. The other glove came to life on its own seconds after the first, forming another glove.
"Cool. But why?" Tony flicked a switch on the side of the gloved and they folded back into the bands.
"Like I said, for your protection. Too much has been happening at your school lately and since you wont let me transfer you or even homeschool you I'm doing my bit to keep you safe." He handed her two more metal bands. These were bigger and shaped like a shoe.
"Slip those onto the soles of your shoe, I wanna see if they're too heavy. I gutted almost everything and you'll only have five minutes of flight time before they die out but they should get you away from any danger faster than running would. Please don't argue with me about this, this is for my own sanity if nothing else." Piper nodded slightly and slipped the bands onto her shoes. They added a bit of weight but nothing she couldn't handle. She thanked him and made her excuses, heading off to bed. Tony frowned after her.
"JARVIS, did she seem off to you?" Tony asked eyes still locked on the elevator.
'I believe she is upset Mister Stark.' Tony nodded and glanced at his work bench. He sighed and walked over to the elevator.
"Take me to the kitchen. I need two grilled cheeses and two cups of tea." JARVIS called the elevator down once Piper was off it and started up the chief bot. Tony might be a decent father but he was no cook.