A/N:This story is written after the request of vampirequeen666. Thank you for trusting me with your idea and wanting me to be the one to write this! I hope it ends up how you envisioned it and that you enjoy it ?

Haven't written spanking stories in a while now and have to admit I felt a little rusty. I hope I managed to pull this off.

Context nobody asked for: For this tory to work in my head so that I can write it I created this AU:
-There is an established mentor/mentee/irondad relationship between Tony and Peter and Tony and Harley and a brotherly bond between Pete and Harl.
-During the blip Peter doesn't die, but Harley does.
-Tony and Peter return to earth to find him gone and they work together to figure out how to bring him -and the rest lost in the blip- back and as in canon figure out time travel.
-This is fanfiction, so we shamelessly ignore the final battle and we pretend they found another way to kill Thanos and our beloved Tony is alive and kicking and so are the boys.
-The story takes place the summer after the blip reversal (summer 2023).
-Harley is 15 and Peter 21.
-Harley is visiting Tony during summer vacation and staying at his house, where he and Peter work in Tony's lab daily.

WARNINGS: This is a spanking-discipline story. Keyword: story. Not a parenting manifesto. Writing spanking stories doesn't mean I condone spanking of real children. Just like, you know, writing murder doesn't mean the writers condone murder of real people. Now that that's all cleared and settled, enjoy!

A crumpled Monster can soared across the lab in a perfect arc, landing with a loud metallic clank in the trash can. Harley whooped and took a bow. Five years dead or not, he still had it. Skidding between half-finished projects scattered around him, his head bopping to Eminem's rhymes, Harley buzzed on his third caffeine fix. He inhaled deeply, savoring the tangy smell of heated metal and burnt circuits, exhaling with an expression of deepest enjoyment.

That smell deserved its own scented candle or some shit.

Glancing at the holographic time indication above the door, he grinned. Still more than three hours before Peter returned. Having the lab to himself was a rare treat between him, Peter, and Tony, and he was going to make the most of it. Inspecting the state of the gutted Mark 42 armor on the floor in front of him, he scrunched his nose in distaste. He wanted to spruce this old thing up, and Tony had given him his blessing to toy with it. But he simply couldn't figure out something creative enough to do with it. Merely fixing it and getting it working was basic-bitch stuff.

He was no basic-bitch.

Shifting his gaze to the assortment of labeled cabinets lining the walls of the lab, he strolled around, looking for inspiration. Something finally catching his interest, he threw the spanner he was holding over his shoulder before dancing his way to the large white metallic cabinet with the 'Asgardian Artifacts' label.

"Now, we're talking," he murmured and cracked his fingers before reaching to open it. Unsurprisingly, it was locked and the pincode panel taunted him.

Harley clicked his tongue, annoyed. "Damn it, Mech'. Such distrust."

Eyeing the cabinet as if it was a complicated math problem, he considered his options. Ask Friday to open it. Parsimonious plan, sure, but it would likely fail without Tony's authorization. And if he was notified by one ridiculous protocol or another, his fun might be ruined.

Taking out his phone, he shrugged. "Plan B it is."

Lip-syncing to the song currently blasting in the lab, he waited for Tony to pick up.

"Hey, Harley. Anything on fire?"

"It was one time, you gotta let it go!"

"Didn't answer my question."

"Nothing's on fire, Mech'. How's California life?"

"Hectic. We're on a business trip, not a vacation. You giving Peter hell?"

"You know it!"

"Don't torment him too much, kid. Remember, he's in charge. No funny business until I'm back, got it?"

"Sure, sure. I'll be my usual model-citizen self. Yo, listen, could you have Friday give me access to the lab cabinets? I need a bunch of stuff, and they're all scattered, and I can't open them without a pin. Could hack them, but that'll take too long, and I'm in the zooone."

Harley could picture Tony's brow furrowing suspiciously.

"Which cabinets?"

Harley, prepared for the question, smirked. "Told ya, a bunch of them, but if you want them listed, fine by me… Arc Reactor Components, Advanced Alloys and Metals, Nanotechnology Supplies, Experimental AI and Robotics, Energy Shield Prototypes, As—"

"Fine, fine. I'll grant you access. I'm equally curious and terrified to see what you've cooked up. We're out here for another three days. Just three more days. Try not to blow up the lab or the city while I'm gone."

"Deal."

"Talk to you later, kid."

"Bye, old fart."

Ending the call, Harley smirked devilishly at the cabinet. "Friday, has Tony granted cabinet access?"

"Yes, access has been granted."

"Let's see what Nordic magical toys we can play with, then," Harley grinned and opened the cabinet. As the door slid open, it revealed the softly illuminated shelves inside. He leaned closer, inspecting the various items. The first thing he noticed was underwhelming—a piece of armor in a weird shape with ornate engravings.

"Way to make an armor lame."

Next to it was a cool-looking thunder-shaped piece of tech.

"Whatever you are, I like you," Harley smiled, picking it up and bringing it close to his eyes. "You're a weird friggin' thing. I hope you're not just looks but have inner beauty, too. I'll introduce you to Mark and we'll see; I'm sure you two will hit it right off."

On the next shelf, there was a small stone tablet with an intricate sigil engraved.

"Boooriiiing!"

But right next to that was something that made Harley raise an interested eyebrow.

"Holy shit," he muttered as he inspected a palm-sized crystal. He traced the smooth, icy-blue surface with his fingertips, noticing the tingling sensation on his skin.

"Where did you come from, you fancy little shit? Thor's jewelry box?"

It glowed softly, and Harley nodded approvingly. Glowing meant energy. Freaking Norse-mythological-magical-energy. He could work with that.

"And what are these? I'm no new-age creep, but I know me some runes…" Harley continued, squinting at the tiny etchings that seemed to shimmer with their own light. "Bet Tony doesn't even know half of what this baby can do," he smirked, imagining all the ways he could mess with it.

"Maybe it shoots lightning," Harley mused, his eyes enlarging. "Maybe it can make Mark work like a giant Thor's hammer. That would be dope! A freaking wearable Thor-hammerish Iron Man armor! Only the worthy could wear it and shit!"

Eyes glinting with excitement, he paused to marvel at his own genius. "I'll freaking create a new hero! And guess who's gonna don that armor? Its creator! Harley freaking Keener!"

Harley, crystal in one hand and ambiguous-thunder-shaped device in the other, hastened to the armor and looked at it, pacing in front of it skeptically.

"I'll make a new mantle. Hammer-man… No. Mjolnir-man! No… Maybe no hyphenated-man names. They're overused. Fuck it, I'll figure it out later. On to business! Yo, Friday? Do you speak Asgardian?"

"Yes, Harley."

"Can you tell me what this is or says or does or whatever?" Harley asked next, pointing to the crystal.

"That's an Asgardian Rune-Infused Crystal. It uses rune magic to channel a unique form of energy that can enhance physical abilities and has properties similar to the Odinforce, though on a much smaller scale."

"What's Odinforce?" Harley asked, his heartbeat racing in excitement.

"Odinforce is the divine force wielded by Odin, the ruler of Asgard in Norse mythology. It's a cosmic energy source that grants Odin incredible abilities like superhuman strength, energy manipulation, and the ability to cast powerful spells."

"So this crystal enhances abilities like Odinforce?" Harley asked enthusiastically.

"No. It enhances abilities, but at a much lower scale than Odinforce."

"Hypothesis: If infused and combined with Mark 42's arc reactor, would it enhance the suit's capabilities?"

"It likely would."

"I'm a freaking genius," Harley pumped a fist in the air. "I'm guessing increased efficiency and output?"

"Plausible."

"Increased speed and enhanced flight maneuverability?"

"Plausible."

"Enhanced durability?"

"Plausible."

"Developing Thor-hammer-like properties?"

"Implausible."

"Damn it! What about this?" He indicated the thunder-shaped gadget.

"Asgardian lightning conductor. Used to belong to Thor. He gifted it to Mr. Stark when he expressed interest in testing it. It channels and regulates lightning."

Harley whistled. "Could it also be combined with the suit?"

"Plausible. It would be compatible with the rune crystal."

"I'm gonna be the coolest self-made superhero ever," Harley grinned.

Setting the two artifacts on the floor next to the armor, he stared at them in contemplation, pacing some more in front of the armor, his brain shifting into engineering mode.

"First things first... I need to figure out the fusion of the crystal with the reactor. The conductor can be attached anywhere on the suit, once I figure out how to integrate the crystal. Easy-peasy."

Hurrying to the whiteboard in the back of the room, he started a series of calculations, pausing every now and then to ask Friday questions as they came to him. Soon he had his numbers and moved to the next step. Grabbing the crystal, he kneeled in front of the suit.

"All right, pal. Let's see what we can do," he mumbled as he unlatched the arc reactor from the armor's chest. Using a small blowtorch, he warmed up the metal of the suit enough to adjust the size of the hole where the reactor was originally housed. Attaching new circuits and several cables, he then placed the crystal inside, hooking it up with the armor's central system. When a bluish light coursed through the inner part of the suit, Harley whistled.

"So far, so good. Alright. Now let's get you some company, lil Rune guy."

Taking the reactor, he placed it on top of the crystal and worked the two sets of cabling to connect the two artifacts. The metal armor vibrated violently for a few seconds before its eyes glowed a vibrant blue.

"Damn!" Harley mumbled excitedly. "Friday, is the fusion successful?"

"The fusion is successful, but the contraption is still unstable. The fusion of these two elements is unprecedented, and there's no way to accurately estimate the success rates of a trial run," the AI informed Harley.

"How about inaccurately?" Harley asked, already working to reassemble the parts of the armor he had removed earlier and trying to decide where he'd put the conductor.

"The success rate can be anywhere between 4 to 55 percent."

Harley grimaced at that. "That's a damn big margin. Well, let's hope it's closer to 55," he mumbled.

He worked silently for the next couple of hours, entirely lost in his endeavors, letting the music drown out everything and allowing his brain to focus entirely on the task at hand. Once he finished reassembling the armor and attached the conductor to the armor's left gauntlet, he moved to the nearest computer bench and pulled up the coding interface.

"Alright, Fri. I need your help to integrate the runes into the suit's circuitry. I can handle the integration, but you need to codify the runes for me. Can you?"

"Affirmative. Runes will be ready for integration in 75 seconds."

Harley's fingers danced on the keyboard next, integrating the runes and ensuring the suit could connect and interact with the crystal just like it could with the arc reactor — the only way to harness the new fused source of energy.

"Cool, cool, cool. Now we're recalibrating the thrusters, repulsors, defensive systems, yada-yada to play nicely with their new Rune friend… And done!" Harley looked at his code masterpiece and grinned.

"Alrighty then," he said excitedly, getting to his feet and stretching out his neck. "On your feet, Mark!"

To Harley's excitement, the armor's eyes glowed brighter blue as it stood up. "Success rates now, Fri?"

"7 to 62 percent."

"Damn it," Harley exclaimed, annoyed. His code was a masterpiece; the success rates should have increased considerably more than that.

"Alright, the only way to smooth this out is to test it. Let's run a pilot trial, Fri. Record everything so we can figure out what to fine-tune."

"I am obliged to strongly discourage you from testing the altered armor with such low success rates and with nobody else present. I also have to remind you that the desired success margin for a pilot trial should be between 90-95 percent."

"Gotcha. We're still doing it. What's the worst that can happen?"

"Death, amputation, severe burns, electrocution…"

"Rhetorical question, Fri! Geez!" Harley wore the right gauntlet of the armor and stared at his hand as the mechanical contraption secured snugly around it. Pausing as a thought passed his mind, he asked, "You're not ratting me out to Tony, are you?"

"As of right now, there are no active protocols obliging me to contact Mr. Stark. But if the experiment ends up endangering your physical safety, protocol 'keep the brats alive' will be activated, and Mr. Stark, along with Mr. Parker, who is currently the adult in charge, will be notified."

Harley nodded his understanding. "Fair enough. But see, Fri, I'm a very lucky person. Came back from the dead and all. I'm sure this will go awesome!" With a smirk, he turned to the armor. "Mark, come to daddy!"

Harley felt a surge of adrenaline coursing through him as the armor parts detached and flew to him, locking around his body. The smell of motor oil, freshly cooled-down metal, and the warmth emitting from the armor's altered core engulfed him. The moment his head was covered entirely by the mask and the holographic interface pulled up in front of him, he let out a loud whistle.

"This is fucking dope! Alright, let's see what you got, Rune-Mark. Friday, pull up the testing targets!"

Holographic targets appeared at the far end of the lab in front of a blank wall that Harley knew was reinforced for similar testing processes. He raised his hand aiming at the first target and shot an energy blast that jolted him backwards with its force.

The target absorbed the energy of the blast and Harley requested, "Comparison to Mark 52 force of blasts."

"46 percent more powerful," Friday informed.

Harley hooted. "Flight simulation, Fri!"

The virtual reality of a cityscape appeared in front of him, and Harley felt his heart kick in his chest. Excitement, adrenaline, and fear coursed through him. He had always wanted to experience this, and despite knowing it was a virtual reality test, he still felt equal parts of enthusiasm and terror as he ran ahead and thrust himself into flight over the rooftop he was on. He forced the armor to increase speed and tested its agility with sudden changes in direction.

"Speed and agility score 32 percent higher than current Mark 52 armor," Friday informed him.

"I'm so not letting Tony live this down," Harley howled excitedly. "Ok, let's try the lightning conductor." Pressing the button on the gauntlet, Harley howled excitedly at the reap of light that cracked below him.

It was then that the holographic interface turned red and started blinking, while a beeping alarm echoed inside the mask.

"System malfunction. Power overload. Power overload. Power overload."

"Fuck!" Harley mumbled. "Fri, end simulation!"

The walls of the lab reappeared instantly around him, but the beeping never ceased. Harley felt the armor vibrating hard and heat started building up inside to an uncomfortable level.

"Mark, get off me!" Harley yelled.

"System failure. Energy overload. System failure. Energy overload."

"Fuck! Get off me, Mark! Shit! Fri, can you turn it off?"

"No, because it's fused with the Rune crystal, which does not allow me to interact with the suit or the reactor. Protocol 'keep the brats alive' activated," Friday's melodic voice echoed.

"Fuck! No! Fri, I got this, don't…" Harley never made it to finish his words, as the gauntlets thrust forward on their own accord, shooting full-force, causing the armor to thrust backwards and slam against the wall.

Peter had just entered the penthouse after a long day of classes. Noticing the quiet, he assumed Harley was buried in the lab creating something new, destroying something old, or both at the same time. Peter had been pleasantly surprised with how well the last two days had gone. He had been skeptical about babysitting Harley while Tony, Pepper, and Morgan were away, but Harley had begged him to say yes. And he didn't blame him. The Stark Industries business trips were a huge bore, especially compared to spending time at the penthouse and playing in Tony's lab. If he were a fifteen-year-old squirt, he would prefer staying behind too. Plus, Peter had to admit he enjoyed spending time with the pain.

He and Harley had found their new groove since the blip reversal. It wasn't the same as before. Going from a one-year to a six-year age-gap wasn't easy to navigate, especially for Harley. Which was yet another reason that Peter had said yes. Five days just the two of them, building robots in the lab, going for long night drives, playing video games, and eating as much junk food as they could stomach didn't sound half bad. Especially if Harley managed to keep out of serious trouble for the remaining three days so that Peter didn't have to chew him out.

Deciding to make himself a cup of coffee before going to check on the kid, Peter moved towards the kitchen and Tony's fancy coffee maker, punching the buttons for a triple espresso. After two back-to-back classes of quantum mechanics and math, his brain was screaming for a caffeine pick-me-up. He had just cradled the warm cup in his hands and took a tiny sip of the strong bitter liquid when the alarm on his phone went off. Grabbing it, he checked the screen and his eyes widened. Slamming the cup down, he sprinted full-speed towards the lab.

When the doors of the lab slid open, he remained still for a second, taking in the scene in front of him: an Iron Man suit thrusting around the lab, slamming against walls, randomly shooting laser blasts, blinding lightning cracking down every other second, Harley screaming swear words Peter didn't even know existed, and the lab's alarm blaring.

"Friday, terminate the suit!" Peter screamed over the commotion.

"Impossible. The fused reactor needs to be taken off the suit or it won't power off," came Friday's answer.

Peter didn't waste any time asking why; he'd get answers later. Right now, he had to save the pain's neck. He jumped onto the suit and used all of his super-strength to detach the sternum of the armor. Pieces of metal started tearing, but he couldn't get it entirely off. Changing course, struggling to keep himself latched onto the armor, he locked his legs around its waist. Effectively avoiding the blasts and lightning, he started ripping the metal piece by piece until he had a visual of the inside of the suit.

His eyes widened at seeing not just the arc reactor, but something beneath that, emitting an intense pulsing glow. Grabbing the reactor first, he ripped it off and crushed it in his right hand before taking hold of the crystal with his left. He screamed at the intense burning sensation but pushed through the pain and ripped it out of the armor too, throwing it on the lab's floor with a hiss as he leaped off the suit.

And just like that, Mark 42 collapsed on the floor like a muppet whose strings had been severed.

The silence that engulfed the lab when the alarm ceased was short-lived, as the song that was playing before the incident blasted right after.

"Holy fucking hell!" Harley's voice sounded over the loud music as he took hold of the suit's mask and removed it from his head, looking at Peter with widened eyes. "Thanks, man. That was close!"

"Fri, stop the damn music!" Peter yelled to be heard over the noise. Turning to the teen, he extended his hands, indicating the chaos that used to be Tony's lab with an incredulous expression. "What the hell happened, Harl? Are you okay? Are you hurt?" he demanded, panting.

"No, I… I'm fine. Not a scratch. I was trying out some new things with Mark 42 and then it royally malfunctioned," Harley said, managing to manually unlock the armor, causing its parts to detach from his body and clang on the floor as he scurried to his feet.

"What the hell is going on? Peter? Harley? Are you both alright?"

Tony's voice echoed through the lab's speakers before Peter had a chance to further question the kid about what exactly had gone down.

"We're good," Peter answered loudly, trying to sound reassuring, glancing at his left hand and noting that his enhanced healing had kicked in and the burn from the crystal thing looked better already. "Harley had an incident with one of his projects, apparently."

"What incident?"

"Nothing, nothing. All good, Mech'. No fires or anything. I was toying with your old Mark 42, but he acted up a bit. I'll figure it out," Harley said in a no-big-deal tone.

Peter's eyes narrowed as he read the subtle but telltale signs of Harley Keener lying his ass off—the swift run of a hand through his blond hair, his head tilting slightly upwards, the clearing of his throat.

"I'm here, Tony. It's all under control. Go do your thing, and we'll talk later," Peter said resolutely as he moved near the crystal he had detached from the armor, which was now softly glowing.

"Fine, I bolted out of a meeting like a madman the moment I got the alarm. Gotta head back and clean up that mess. This isn't the end of it. I'll ring you up tonight. And Harley, remember..."

"Not blowing up the lab or the city, Mech'. Bye!" Harley eagerly said, letting out a relieved breath when Tony finally hung up.

Crouching down, Peter checked the crystal's temperature, and when it only felt slightly warm against his fingers, he took it in his palm, inspecting it. Still crouched, he turned to Harley, eyeing him closely.

"What's this? Where did you find it?" Peter demanded.

Harley shrugged. "One of the cabinets."

"What cabinet?"

"Why do you care?"

"Fri, what cabinet was this taken from?" Peter asked impatiently.

"Hey, no fair!" Harley yelled, pointing an accusing finger at Peter.

"Asghardian artifacts," Friday replied.

Peter's eyes widened in realization as he stood to his full height. "Are you out of your god-damn mind? You don't play with Asghardian tech, Harley! It's freaking powerful!"

"That's the point, dumbass! I wanted to make a powerful armor, so I needed powerful shit. And I figured out how to do it, tested a theory nobody had tested before… It was bound to get a bit rocky!"

"A bit rocky? A bit rocky?" Peter snapped. "Hadn't I been home already, I'd find you dead!"

"Death was only one of the possible scenarios," Harley informed him with a huff. "You might have just found me… amputated, electrocuted, or severely burned!"

"I'm gonna severely burn you myself, brat! Do you realize how dangerous what you did was?" Peter snapped, taking a step closer to Harley."I'm not stupid, Peter. I coded the rune crap and recalibrated the suit. I took precautions!" Harley shot back, anger bubbling up inside him at Peter's demeanor. Sure, Tony had said he was 'in charge', but that didn't mean Peter had to actually act like it…

"If you'd taken precautions, Friday would have been able to power off Mark, Harley! I had to rip the damn thing off you with my bare hands before it could combust or smash your head into pulp!"

"You're exaggerating!" Harley countered, frustrated. "And you need to back off. It's not that big of a deal! Stop acting like Tony!"

"I'll stop acting like Tony when you stop risking your neck, pain! Do you have any idea what went through my brain when that alarm blared? When I realized you were in the damn suit and couldn't get out? Have you forgotten you were dead for five freaking years? And you decide it's a good idea to choose something potentially lethal for a fun project?"

Harley swallowed hard at Peter's words and his menacing glare, unconsciously taking a step back as Peter moved closer and closer to him.

"I might cover your ass when you miss curfew or sneak a beer, Harl, but risking your damn life? That's where I draw the line." Peter's tone was heavy with emotion and resolution, visibly making Harley gulp. Peter watched the kid take another step back and knew Harley was doing the math about where this was heading—exactly where it would go if Tony were there with them. Peter wished Tony were there, dealing with this mess. But wishful thinking was just that.

Grabbing Harley's arm, Peter saw the teen's face flush and his eyes widen.

"No! Peter, fuck no!"Harley's resistance was no match for Peter's super-strength. Ignoring Harley's protests, he tugged his little brother behind him toward the nearest empty workbench. Sitting on top of it with his left leg dangling from the edge and right foot firmly on the floor, Peter threw Harley over his left knee, lowering his sweats and boxers with a strong pull. Not missing a beat, he brought his hand down on the exposed ass with a thundering smack. He measured his strength enough to make a strong impression but not go overboard.

"No!" Harley protested, trying to wiggle off Peter's leg, his face blushing furiously, but in the position Peter had him in, his feet didn't even reach the floor, and Peter's left hand had him securely pinned in place.

"You don't risk your life, Harley!" Peter snapped, his hand gaining speed and force as he reddened the pale ass in front of him.

Harley struggled with all his might, frustration skyrocketing when he couldn't escape his predicament. This situation was awful! He hated that Peter was the one enforcing this, even though it fell under Peter's 'in charge' duties. Tony had made it painfully clear to both of them when Peter had accepted to stay here for the week and keep an eye on Harley.

"It was an experiment! You experiment all the time too, you fucking hypocrite!" Harley ground out next.

"Not with Asgardian tech and never without backup, Harley! Did you even run success projections?"

"Yes, I did! What do you take me for? An amateur?"

"And what was the percentage?" Peter asked, smacks never relenting.

"85 percent," Harley growled out shamelessly.

"That is incorrect, Harley. It was 7 to 62," Friday chimed in.

"The fuck, Fri! Whose side are you on?" Harley managed through gritted teeth.

"7 to 62? 7 to 62?" Peter bellowed, his smacks intensifying, causing Harley to start hissing and yelping incessantly.

"Damn it, Harley! You know we're not cleared for pilot trials before a 90-95 percent success margin! And even then, never alone!"

Harley lost the fight with his tears, his ass smarting and burning unbearably under Peter's hand.

"I'm sorry! I got excited! Just stop, Pete, please! It won't happen again!"

Peter aimed the next rounds of hard swats on Harley's upper thighs and sit-spots. "You bet your ass it won't happen again! And of course, you go and pull this crap when Tony isn't here! You thought I'd yell at you and call it a night, didn't you? Well, newsflash, Harl, you can count on me handing you your ass every single time I catch you risking your neck so stupidly. Do you hear me?"

"Yes, for fuck's sake, yes! Stop, dude!" Harley was now openly crying, his entire sitting region already throbbing. Damn Peter and his fucking super strength. This was worse than any ass-handing Tony had ever doled out to him. Though, now that he was thinking about it, he hadn't really done anything life-threatening before.

"You're not gonna die on me again, Harl. And especially not from pulling moronic shit like this!" Peter reprimanded, tone thick with emotion, punctuating his words with resounding smacks.

"I get it, I swear! It was stupid! Lock me out of the damn lab if you have to, just… no more! I'm sorry!"

Listening to the pitiful crying and earnest regret in Harley's tone, Peter stilled his hand. The kid's ass and upper thighs were glowing red, and he knew from first-hand experience that his point had been made. Acting entirely on instinct the moment he realized what Harley had done, it hadn't even dawned on Peter until that second that this was the first time he found himself on the doling end of a spanking. It felt surreal. But also appropriate, considering what the brat had pulled. Taking in a steadying breath, Peter pulled Harley's clothes up and watched him scurry to get up.

Harley turned his back to Peter, furiously wiping at his face and trying to pull himself together. Peter stood from the bench and clasped a hand on Harley's shoulder, squeezing it comfortingly.

"This is where Tony breaks out the hugs," Peter said in a slightly calmer tone."Hug me and I'll punch you," Harley growled, side-eyeing Peter.

Peter contemplated it for a second before shrugging. "I'll risk it," he informed Harley, before pulling him into a one-arm hug, ruffling his hair with his free hand.

"Dick!" Harley mumbled, but didn't try to get away from the embrace. Peter just shook his head.

Letting go of the kid, Peter grabbed the crystal and returned it to the appropriate cabinet. "Friday, lock up the lockers again," he called out.

"Mr. Stark allowed access to Harley," Friday informed him.

"Protocol 'spider in charge,' Fri. Override Tony's order until he's back," Peter replied, closing the cabinet's door.

"Protocol activated. Access withdrawn."

"Oh come on! That's so not fair! Since when do you get to override Tony's orders?" Harley tried to sound accusatory, but all he managed was a miserable whine.

"Be grateful I'm not restricting your access here altogether," Peter said drily. "I trust you now know what to expect if you do anything this dangerous again?"

Harley's muffled curses told Peter he did know.

"Pizza or burgers?" Peter asked next.

"Burgers," Harley mumbled, sending Peter a half-hearted glare.

"Cool. Friday, order us burgers, please. The usual. And make sure you have Tony call as soon as he's available." Turning to Harley, he added, "You're gonna tell him what you did in great detail!"

"Dude, c'mon! You just busted my ass, why tell Tony?" Harley protested, eyes widening.

"Because Friday will send a report anyway, since the protocol was activated. Trust me, you'd rather have him hear it all from you. I'll let him know it's handled. It's not like he'll…"

"No, but he'll lecture the living shit out of me, dude," Harley said in a pleading tone.

"If you're looking for sympathy, you're not getting any. If you don't want your ass busted and Tony lecturing the shit out of you, don't do stupid things that risk your life!"

"But…"

"Zip it, squirt. Being the cool and awesome big brother I am, I'll help you clean up here. Get to work," Peter instructed, as he started gathering metallic scraps from the floor.

"Asshole," Harley mumbled as he begrudgingly joined the cleaning process.

As Peter continued picking up trash, he noticed the burn marks on the floor and remembered the lightnings.

"Where the hell did the lightning come from?"

Harley only smirked.