Reviews

DBZFAN45: You know Maggie, she loves her research!

shorttrooper: reading those two reviews back to back was a joy haha. Sorry to hear you're not feeling well, hopefully all cleared up now? Thank you for your unending and honest support and reviews, it's been my pleasure.

September, 2024
Superstars Karaoke, Brooklyn

Peter Parker sat awkwardly on the long, squeaky couch that wrapped around the walls of the private karaoke booth, watching the discoball on the ceiling spin and the projected kaleidoscope of lights washing over the walls. The screen on the far wall prompted him to select your first song!

He ignored it, instead fidgeting with the seam of his trousers and once more anxiously checking his phone. There it was, the last message he'd received, about two hours ago:

M: Superstars Karaoke, 1500. Ask for room booked under the name Molly.

He'd been at home with May, who had been eager for him to go out and meet 'M', despite being worried about him being recognized. He'd seen Ms Stark a couple of times since Mr Stark died, and she'd looked out for him wherever she could. Still, she hadn't been able to visit much, since she mostly stayed at her house, wherever that was, but she'd called a lot, and sent Aunt May money every month. Peter had even called Ms Stark when all of the Elemental stuff had happened in Europe, with Mysterio - well, Quentin Beck. She'd helped provide him with some tech, and when she'd heard he was with Nick Fury had said "Well, I'm even more glad Bucky and I didn't manage to kill him back in the day", which had kinda freaked him out.

She'd even sent Happy to come help.

When his identity as Spider-Man got revealed by Quentin Beck two months ago, on J Jonah Jameson's show, it had been rough. Ms Stark had been so much help, though; she'd immediately paid for lawyers for him, May, and his friends, paid for safe houses and drivers, and even offered to create entirely new identities for Peter and May. They'd turned her down.

They'd both known that her showing up in person to protect him would only make things worse, but it had been comforting to know that she was looking out for him from afar.

But it seemed today, finally, things had died down just enough that they could meet in person.

Peter just hadn't expected it to be here. The discoball refracted light right into his eyeballs and he winced. Sighing, he inspected the jugs on the table in the middle of the room, sniffing each one. Juice and soda, no alcohol. He supposed that made sense.

He was just thinking about pouring himself a cup of orange juice when the door creaked open and an old woman with a cane and a big furry overcoat limped into the room.

Peter shot upright, pushing his hair back nervously. "Oh, ma'am, I think you might have the wrong room-"

The old woman was already shutting the door behind her, her back to him. "No, I'm in the right place," said a familiar voice. She turned, and Peter saw suddenly that she wasn't old at all - the grey hair was a wig she was already tugging off her head, and those wrinkles were traced there with makeup of some kind. Margaret Stark smiled, unhunching her posture to her full height. Her dark hair tumbled around her shoulders and her eyes crinkled in her artificially-old face.

"Ms Stark!" Peter exclaimed, started forward a step, then stopped. He didn't know what kind of a relationship they had. Was he supposed to hug her? Shake her hand? Wave awkwardly?

Ms Stark shrugged off the big overcoat and said: "Come here, kid, you look like you need a hug." She opened her arms.

With renewed confidence Peter stepped forward, but then halted a step away once more. "Uh - whoah."

Ms Stark followed his gaze down to her belly.

It wasn't huge, but there was a definite protruding curve that had made Peter pause. Holy shit, he didn't say. The technicolour lights flashing in the room swirled over Ms Stark and her… her…

"Oh, did I not tell you about this?" Ms Stark said, resting her hand on top of her curved belly.

"No!" Peter looked up into her dark eyes. "I, um, congratulations, Ms Stark."

"Thanks," she smiled, and he was struck by the happiness he saw glinting there. The last time he'd really spent any time with her had been… Mr Stark's funeral. Ms Stark patted her stomach. "I'm almost five months in. We've been keeping it super secret, so don't tell anyone."

"Yeah, I get how important it is to keep things secret," he said, with an awkward laugh.

Her eyebrows contracted. "That's why I wanted to check in." She opened her arms once more, and Peter awkwardly leaned forward to return the hug, avoiding her pregnancy bump as if it would explode. "Let's sit."

They took their seats on the Karaoke booth couch.

"Would you like some juice?" Peter asked politely, and her teeth flashed as she smiled.

"No thanks. The superserum is giving me a relatively easy pregnancy, I think, but I still get the heartburn."

Peter tried not to look too astounded at that statement. "Um… I didn't even think about that, is it…" he failed to think of a question that wasn't offensive.

But she only smiled again. "I know, lots to absorb. I'm the first ever pregnant supersoldier that I know of, it's a proper science experiment. I'm starting to feel some movement and it feels strong, but Pepper reassures me that it's normal." She flapped a hand dismissively, as if she hadn't just introduced the concept of a super-powered baby to Peter's mind.

"Do you know if it's going to be a boy or girl?" Peter asked, because that seemed like a normal question to ask.

"We've decided to leave it a surprise," she said, resting an arm on the back of the karaoke couch. "Bucky kind of wanted to find out, because they didn't have the ultrasound technology to find out back in his day so he thinks it's the best technology he's ever heard of, but we agreed the surprise would be better." She waved her hand again. "Anyway, I'm not here to brag about my baby," she laughed. "I'm here for you. How are you coping, Peter?"

"Um." He rubbed his elbow. "It's been, um… difficult." He swallowed, and under the dancing lights of the discoball began to describe the craziness his life had become.

November 13th, 2024

"If I haven't heard anything by tomorrow I'm going down there, Bucky."

"Let me go, doll, if they're into something dangerous…"

Bucky followed Maggie as she paced across their living room, one hand hovering anxiously over her belly - seven months pregnant now, and practically the size of a basketball - and the other scrolling through her phone. Her brows were furrowed. They'd been having this argument since night had fallen.

There had been reports of strange activity in New York in recent days - an attack on a bridge, and then a power grid, and now there were reports of an explosion in a building in Brooklyn. Maggie had spent the last hour trying to call May, Peter, and Happy, to no avail. Last she'd heard, Happy had told her that Peter was up to something with Stephen Strange, which didn't exactly comfort her.

"You can't go down there, Meg-"

She whirled on Bucky, who looked just as anxious as her. "You are just as much a parent here as me, Bucky." She ground her teeth, and her hand rested over her stomach. She scrolled through the Daily Bugle's website, since they usually had the most up to date information on Spider-Man, even though it was usually spun to make him out the villain. Still nothing. "Peter better not be in any danger."

Now she'd stopped pacing, Bucky was able to come up and loop his arm around her. "He's a strong kid, doll, whatever it is I'm sure he's got a handle on it. Strange won't put him in danger either."

"I wouldn't put it past him," she said darkly. She pulled out her car keys and strode over to put them by the front door. "First thing in the morning," she declared. "If we've still heard nothing, we're both going."

Bucky sighed. "Alright."

The next morning, Maggie woke up, yawned, and slowly went about getting ready for the day. Prosthetic on, clothes to fit her rapidly expanding belly, and a brief stretch of her nanotech wings. She'd decided not to fly in the later stages of her pregnancy, because that seemed like a reckless thing to do, so she walked around with the wings out every now and then to satisfy the itch. She was sure she looked bizarre, a pregnant lady with a metal leg and wings, but Bucky barely blinked at it anymore. Morgan thought it was delightful.

As she headed downstairs, Maggie checked her phone and found a few alerts - there had been a battle at the Statue of Liberty overnight, and the new Captain America shield that had been affixed to it had been knocked into the harbor.

"What the hell," she said, scrolling through the article. There wasn't much information yet about what had happened. Damage Control was on the scene already.

In the living room, Maggie looked up and spotted her car keys by the door. She frowned. "Bucky, why are the car keys here?"

He came out from the kitchen, his hair tied up and a spatula in his hand, and looked to the door. He shrugged. "Were you planning on going somewhere? I didn't put them there."

"Well I don't remember putting them there either," she said, a little uneasy now. She didn't like thinking her memory could be failing, or unreliable.

Bucky came over and rubbed her back. "I'm sure it was you or me putting it there, not thinking. It's fine."

"Should I be going somewhere?" she said, still frowning.

He shook his head. "Not that I know of. C'mon, Pepper rang a minute ago and said they were coming over, I'm just finishing breakfast."

Maggie nodded and followed him into the kitchen to help. And neither of them noticed it, but one of their pictures on the wall, where all their family and friends were hung up, had gone blank.