Hey!
I know it's been a while and I apologize. I was actually going gangbusters on another story, but then I started reading one that I knew I'd read before and wondering why my dumb self hadn't bookmarked it . . . and then I got to The Scene.
The fic is billed as 'Team Iron Man', but we had the 'Tony misses them so much even though he's upset at them' theme, which - not my deal, but okay, I can go with it. Then the plot required that he call Romanova for help and she had to come to him and the ONLY thing he asked was that she come alone, he absolutely did not want to see, hear, or have anything whatsoever to do with Rogers.
So naturally, she shows up with Rogers and Barton because - get this - 'they wanted to come and I didn't want to figure out how to leave them behind'.
I'm already frothing at that, but naturally, Tony objects - and is quite literally told, 'look, I blatantly ignored your wishes again. Get over it'. And when he still refused to see Rogers and Barton, was told 'you're burning this bridge permanently' aaaaand cue 'guilty, unhappy Tony'. No apologies were offered from the Rogues, but we had the 'Tony guilt and shame' package for having the audacity at being upset that he and his express wishes were ignored by not one, but three, people.
That flipped the initial switch. Then I read another one a few days later, where things are cordial but barely, and Romanova and Rogers barge into Tony's penthouse without permission, because of course, and Tony is exasperated but it's them, so whatever. That had me gritting my teeth. Then they met Peter and fell in love, which Tony was trying to avoid, and he explicitly tells them to leave, they'll talk later - and Romanova says, 'yeah, I don't care what you want, I'm staying for coffee and talking to Peter' and shoves past him into his kitchen and living room, with Rogers following.
And Tony just . . . accepts that.
Then there was the story where Tony openly acknowledges multiple attempts by the Rogues to break into Peter's personal, private room in his penthouse and is smug that they can't get past his security. Not upset at the violation of his space and the deliberate attempts of GROWN ADULTS trying to break into a minor's room in Tony's home, just amused at their failure. Because this is acceptable behavior from them.
Cue: impending explosion of Mount St. xfphile. The blatant disrespect that's written as acceptable, even cute at times, is enough to give me hives on a good day and royally piss me off on a bad one. But I can't help noticing that no one ever writes the opposite, where someone breaks into Barton's or Romanova's rooms, and I can't help but wonder why. Could it be that it's - GASP - disrespectful?! And they wouldn't tolerate it?
So, have FIC. I pounded this out in two days and proofread it today, it was that insistent on being written. Please comment and share your thoughts; I am really looking forward to seeing what you guys, awesome readers that you are, think about my take on this particular trope.
Hypocrisy (I Know You Are, but What am I?)
When the former Avengers, now unfortunately pardoned (and unofficially renamed (to their extreme but thus far fruitless irritation) the Scavengers by a very vocal, well-organized, and determined majority of the American population), successfully managed to bring Peter Parker up before the Accords council on accusations of violation of privacy, alleged theft, and potential espionage on behalf of Stark Industries, they were all shocked and angry to see that he was completely and utterly unconcerned. He and Tony Stark settled next to each other at the defendant's table, along with their lawyer and Tony's Accords liaison. The two of them were talking quietly back and forth about . . . a vine and some marshmallows?
Steve Rogers didn't understand a word of what they were saying and he didn't care to, scowling fiercely as he sank into his own seat. Natasha and Sam were at his side (it should have been Bucky, but someone had guilt-tripped him into agreeing to stay in Wakanda for a full year after the others returned to the US), with Clint and Wanda (wearing delicate power-dampening bracelets, to everyone's fury) beside them. Tony was too petty to give his former team a lawyer and they couldn't afford one, nor did anyone offer to take them pro bono, so it was just the three of them and their own liaison, who was as unhappy about being there as Steve was. Of course, Perkins was just upset because he'd tried hard to convince Steve's team to let the matter drop as unwinnable and been adamantly and aggressively refused. Steve didn't care about hurt feelings and he sure as hell didn't care about something called reca—reci—oh, what was the word? Something about Peter doing the same thing they had, which was ridiculous. They had just been trying to get information on a stranger who had full access to their home, including places they were now denied, and since first Stark and then Peter himself refused to tell them what they wanted to know, they'd had no choice but to take matters into their own hands.
That little bastard had no right to break into the Avengers' rooms in response and Steve was eager to see him finally have to face the consequences of his actions — and he didn't give a damn what the American people said, his team were the Avengers, and everyone could just deal with it. They refused to answer to any other name, though so far, their defiance of this petty humiliation had made little noticeable difference. But Steve wasn't worried; sooner or later, he would prevail, because he always did. 'Right' would always prevail over 'might'.
The Council President (Dansen? Draper? Something like that; it wasn't like he really needed to know) banged her gavel to start the meeting, startling Steve, and he jerked to attention, seeing Sam do the same out of the corner of his eye. Nat just looked bored, which was both reassuring and a little irritating, but that was always how she made him feel, so he didn't think anything about it. Instead, he turned his anticipation to watching this snot-nosed child, who had never showed Steve or any of his team an ounce of respect, no matter how hard they tried to show him that they were much better mentors and teachers than Stark and Rhodes could ever be, get his comeuppance.
Steve was glaring so hard at the teenager who was completely ignoring him that he missed the opening monologue, the stated purpose of the hearing, and the recitation of charges. So it caught him completely by surprise when Parker nodded in response to something and stood up, giving the president a — had he really just bowed to the woman?!
Steve didn't have the chance to begin to process the obvious brown-nosing when Parker glanced at him and . . . winked. That little bastard had the audacity to wink at Steve, like this was a joke and Steve was the butt of it!
Well, if he had needed more evidence that Stark was a bad influence on the boy, this was it, and he made a mental note to remember to bring the insolence and disrespect up later, once the teenager had been punished for his actions, even if Steve now suspected that they hadn't been completely voluntary. After all, he'd long thought that it was incredibly dangerous to allow a man like Tony to have as much power as he did. The money just made it worse and people's misdirected adulation for him had all combined to create a man with an ego so huge and out of control that he had become a danger to everyone but people like Steve and his team, who had seen Tony for who and what he was: an egotistical, narcissistic wastrel who had been given everything instead of working to earn it, like Steve had, and Nat and Clint and Sam and certainly poor Wanda.
And Bucky, of course.
No. No, Tony Stark did not understand the value of hard work and he certainly hadn't sacrificed anything to get what he had. And he was clearly corrupting this young man to follow in his footsteps.
"—ke a statement before we begin?" the Accords president asked, making Steve come back to the present, and he turned his full attention to Parker's table, reluctantly curious to see what the kid would try to say in his defense. Yes, Tony was corrupting him, but the boy wasn't stupid and could have thought things over and stopped at any point before he'd violated everyone's privacy and forced the Avengers to take this extreme step.
After a quick look, first at Tony and then their liaison, Peter nodded. "I would indeed, President Denisof," he replied, his voice full of confidence. "I would like to apologize to this council for the complete waste of time the Scavengers have forced on us in dealing with these bogus charges, though I do appreciate your quick, measured response and reaction time."
Silence fell so hard, it felt like the floor was going to crack from the force, and the entire room was staring at Peter Parker with gaping mouths, wide eyes, and facial expressions ranging from stunned to appreciative to outraged.
Other than Tony, Steve suddenly noticed, narrowing his eyes. Tony was completely unsurprised by this. More than that, though, he saw pride . . . and what looked a lot like anticipation. Behind his own rage and disbelief, Steve was wor—no, not worried. Captain America did not 'worry' about things. But he was very wary about what his former teammate was going to try. The man was as slippery as an eel and had no compunctions about doing whatever it took to get what he wanted.
While Steve was processing things, he absently noticed that Nat had her hands full keeping Wanda calm, while Sam was watching Tony very closely, while holding Clint in place with a tight grip on his wrist. Steve badly wanted to ask his thoughts about this, but before he could get that far, Tony, their liaison, and their lawyer all stood as well, silencing the few murmurs that had just broken out and pulling everyone's complete attention to them.
Without so much as hint of his usual showboating, Tony also gave the president a respectful nod before taking Peter's arm and urging him to take a single step back, which the boy did. Then the liaison, whose name Steve didn't know, cleared his throat and opened the folder on the table in front of him.
"As Mr. Parker so eloquently said, I too would like to apologize for the waste of time this would have been, but since we're already here, Peter Parker and Tony Stark chose not to call a second hearing and would instead like to make use of this gathering, which is legal according to the bylaws established when the Accords were ratified. They are requesting that this court drop Mr. Rogers' charges against Peter Parker on the grounds that they are not legitimate, and would like to file charges against Steve Rogers, Natasha Romanova, Sam Wilson, Clint Barton, and Wanda Maximoff for attempted theft and/or burglary, breach of their SI housing contract, violation of their Accords contract, and repeatedly threating the safety of a minor."
Pandemonium.
Steve didn't realize he was on his feet and shouting until Sam got a hand clamped over his mouth and shoved his chair into his knees, forcing him to drop into the seat or fall on his ass. Muffled screams next to him made him turn and he watched in wide-eyed astonishment as Nat somehow managed to subdue Wanda, who was literally shaking with rage. Seeing that his team was okay freed Steve to return his attention to Stark and his group of backstabbing liars, and he wanted his shield so badly his hands physically ached for it. Instead, he was forced to watch with powerful but useless anger as Parker and Stark calmly ignored the commotion they'd caused, while their Accords lapdog conferred quietly with the lawyer, who was rummaging in his briefcase. Then an out-of-place stillness from his left made Steve glance that direction, only to stare in confusion when he realized that the council president didn't seem surprised, either.
This was starting to feel like a set-up, and Steve clenched his jaw. Stark thought he was so clever, pulling this cowardly act in an effort to protect the child he'd corrupted, but he'd soon learn that Steve Rogers, Captain America, did not bow down to bullies. Ever.
And Tony Stark was the ultimate bully.
The noise filling the room suddenly tapered off, almost like it was recorded or planned, and the subsequent silence was jarring. But before he could take advantage of it, Steve was rudely cut off by the sound of a pounding gavel and blinked, mouth open in preparation to speak.
"Indeed?" the woman said calmly, giving Stark's group an unimpressed look that made Steve feel better. He didn't like or trust the Accords and anyone associated with them, but it was reassuring to see that not everyone had fallen for Tony's false charm. "And what, precisely, makes you think this council will be open to such a suggestion?"
The lawyer cleared his throat and picked up a small item from the table, displaying it on his palm as he said, "We have evidence to substantiate our charges compiled on this drive, but each member of this council has also received notice of each incident, along with a copy of the recording of the illegal acts in question. Those were provided in real time, both as a way to create a working timeline of events and to avoid the accusation and appearance of tampering and bias."
"Which recordings are you referencing?" Denisof interrupted him, eyes glinting with the same curiosity that Steve felt, though his was backed by disgust that Tony really would stoop so low as to take things out of context to make the Avengers look bad — or, more likely, just make up evidence.
Well, it was too bad for him that Steve was always truthful, and his team hadn't done anything wrong. Tony was a skilled liar and gifted manipulator, but the truth always came out in the end.
"The ones labeled PBPS; the appendices indicate the specifics of the incident itself," the lawyer answered, once more catching Steve's attention. "If you recall, before this . . . arrangement . . . was finalized, Mr. Stark felt it would be a wise idea to provide a real-time chain of evidence of any serious, and repeated, issues, should that be necessary." Denisof's frown cleared when she heard that and the lawyer continued when she nodded. "So the recordings were made and provided to everyone on the approved list, but at Representative Janeiro's request, approved by the council, he locked them from being viewed — for everyone, including himself — for a period of twelve weeks in order to establish an indisputable history of malfeasance or the lack of such. Unfortunately for my clients and this council, in this occasion, the evidence of wrongdoing is substantial and consistent."
Again, Steve tried to stand up and object, and again, Sam restrained him. Furious and hurt, Steve turned to his friend and teammate, pinning him with a hard look that demanded an explanation, only to be met with a grim expression and the sight of two security guards standing very close to the table, hands resting on their still-holstered weapons. The threat was obvious and since Steve was unarmed, he had no choice but to sit down, fuming with impotent rage as his continued inability to do something, say something, anything, to stop this travesty and make these people understand just how dishonest Tony was, how willing he was to hurt people so he could get his way.
Through the roaring in his ears, Steve vaguely heard people talking and absently noticed that someone was setting up a computer by the far wall, but he didn't surface from his anger-fueled fugue until a splash of cold water unexpectedly hit him in the face. Spluttering and shaking his head like a dog, Steve focused his ire on Nat, only to be met with a look of complete indifference. As always, her poker face made him envious and just a smidge intimidated, though he was more unnerved than normal, given their current, unexpected circumstances. A glance to his left showed that Clint was pissed off, and another look to his right confirmed that Wanda was absolutely furious (which Steve understood, given everything Tony had done to her, how badly he'd hurt her). Thankfully, Nat seemed to have convinced her to get her temper under control, which he was thankful for. The last thing they needed was an accidental burst of magic, no matter how much Tony deserved it.
The sudden sound of Steve's voice echoing through the room yanked his attention to the giant screen on the wall and his indignation was replaced by confusion as he watched himself, surrounded by his team, face Tony down and demand answers about the mysterious teenage boy they'd all seen roaming the upper floors and corridors of the Tower. His eyes narrowed as he again saw Tony sneer at their extremely justifiable concern before telling them in a cold voice that the boy was off-limits. He was Tony's personal intern and therefore no concern of theirs, and they were absolutely forbidden to have anything to do with him. No questions were to be asked and no attempts at contact were to be made, unless and until the boy himself initiated them.
Steve's fists clenched as he watched and heard again the grating condescension in Tony's voice when he said, "And even if that happens, Rogers, you get nothing but what he wants to tell you. No breaking into his room, or my labs, or any of the floors of the Tower and compound you aren't already cleared for."
The clip ended as Tony exited the room after that last statement, segueing immediately into a date and timestamped recording of Nat trying to get around Tony's firewalls at Steve's urging in an effort to find out the kid's name, if nothing else. That video was replaced by another one showing her doing the same thing, then another. And another. Then three, four, five clips of Peter being warned by FRIDAY that he was in close proximity of some of Steve's team, which made him turn and go a different direction every single time, something that bothered Steve immensely. Then there was one of Clint, complaining on their comms with Sam about Tony being an uptight asshole as he tried to bypass the blocks in the vents so he could get either to Tony's personal floor or his private lab and spy on the kid. Three more of those clips followed, then switched to Sam trying to use Redwing to discretely follow Tony home so he could record whatever he could get, while Nat worked on disabling FRIDAY so the AI couldn't warn her creator. Both attempts failed.
More clips of Peter being warned about running into the Avengers and going out of his way to avoid them, two attempts by Wanda to get close enough to read his mind that failed for no reason that Steve could see, a half-dozen more tries by Nat to hack FRIDAY's systems, three of Steve cornering Tony and demanding answers, only to be brutally refused . . . until the day, over a month after they started their house arrest, when Peter willingly agreed to meet them — and promptly refused to have anything to do with them. He gave it no thought or consideration, and wasn't even a little polite in his refusal, much less respectful. And they learned nothing whatsoever about him except his first name. Steve remembered being so frustrated he could break something after that meeting, and the vindictive triumph in Tony's eyes had pushed him over the edge of his control, to the point he'd been forced to go to the gym and demolish four punching bags before his temper finally cooled. This video, however, didn't end with Tony and Peter's exit from the room; it showed the conversation between Steve and Nat about bringing the boy to their team; now that they'd finally met, it shouldn't be hard to show Peter that the Avengers were much better than Tony and Peter would learn everything he needed to know from them and be properly trained as an Avenger.
That clip faded after Sam's agreement with the idea and Clint's offer to try the vents again, but this time from a much lower floor. What followed were multiple videos of all of them seeking Peter out and pushing him to accept their offers of training and mentoring, with him refusing politely but coolly every time — when he allowed them to catch him, something that Steve hadn't realized until this moment.
Then came the clip of Nat's first successful breach of FRIDAY, followed by her subsequent failed attempt to break into Peter's room — along with her obvious frustration. Her second failure was shown, her emotions much darker and much more dangerous, though she remained in control and just left Tony's floor after planting the listening device she'd brought . . . which was disabled a half hour later, suggesting a standard security sweep. The next video was of Wanda and Steve trying to physically remove Peter's door, and their gaping disbelief at their inability to do was shown in clear, high-definition detail that made Steve feel a little nauseous. Then it was him trying, with Nat standing guard at the elevator. Clint. Wanda. Sam. A recording of Peter being told of their attempts to violate his privacy — what the hell?!
First of all, how could the AI have known? Nat had suspended her access each time, meaning it couldn't see or hear or record anything. Secondly, they had done no such thing! They were just trying to find any information they could about the kid, since he refused to say anything and Tony was still being his usual childish self. How dare that biased computer twist their words and intentions, making Peter afraid of them? It wasn't like they were going to hurt him; they just needed to know who and what he really was, because there was no way he could be allowed to work under Tony. The man was just too selfish and too dangerous to be a mentor to anyone, let alone a teenager.
The kid's voice made him look up, curiosity warring with anger and something else he didn't recognize, and he clenched his jaw as he listened. "So, taking their stalking out of the equation, they've tried to physically break in to my room how many times?" he demanded, hands on his hips as he turned to look at a spot on the wall that Steve, after a minute of confusion, assumed must be one of FRIDAY's cameras.
"The combined efforts of Team Crap to gain entrance to your personal rooms totals 21, as of yesterday," the AI replied, sounding upset, which again made Steve nervous. No computer should sound that real, that human; it was asking for trouble. Just look at ULTRON, for heaven's sake.
"Really?" the Peter on the TV drawled, his voice hard and his face angry. Steve took a quick glance to his sides and was reassured to see that Nat and Clint were upset, Wanda was nearly apoplectic with rage, and Sam was grim and unhappy. At least they understood how manipulative this was, and how desperate Tony must be to stoop this low. "Well, then. I'm done with that. Please let me know the next time one of them tries, FRIDAY. They're clearly too stupid to learn from the obvious, so we'll see if they do any better with subtlety."
"Of course, Peter," came the warm, almost approving reply, and Steve swallowed down his unease. It would be so easy for Tony's pet computer to go rogue, and since they were unarmed, it would be very difficult for his team to take it down — and it wasn't like Tony would help. He'd be proud of it and encourage the destruction, convinced it was happening for a good reason.
The brightness on the screen suddenly turned dark, so much so that it was very jarring, and Steve had to blink away the afterimage so he could see again.
And there, big as life, was Peter Parker blatantly breaking into Nat's room. There was no hesitation in his movements, and no evidence of guilt or remorse. It — wait. Was he . . . was he humming as he worked?!
Appalled, Steve closed his eyes and inadvertently leaned forward, trying to focus his sensitive hearing on what might be a non-existe—no, it wasn't. The brat was actually singing the lyrics to a song that sounded vaguely familiar as his fingers moved with terrifying ease and familiarity on the keypad outside the Black Widow's personal quarters. It took him a little over thirty seconds to succeed and he strolled in, giving the room one long, thorough once-over before clearing his throat and saying, "Okay, FRI, please mark out the boundaries where she's got secrets or weapons or . . . well, anything, really, stashed. I just want to prove a point, not cause any real damage. And frankly," he added, looking at the camera again with a straight face, "I don't want to know what SHIELD is up to."
"Certainly," FRIDAY replied, followed by a rather startling number of gridlines glowing on the floor. Even Steve was taken aback, and he knew perfectly well how secretive Nat was, unless it was him or Clint. But he was forced to watch, hands fisted in anger, as Peter scrupulously stayed inside the small area that had been declared 'safe' and moved things on the desk in such miniscule amounts that Steve couldn't begin to fathom what the point was. Then he turned and gave the sofa a thoughtful look, biting his lower lip, before going to it and moving two pillows with a smile that was so gleeful, it bordered on manic; this did not help clear up Steve's confusion. Beside him, though, Nat took a sharp breath and he turned to look at her, puzzled by the chilly respect behind the anger in her eyes but unable to ask yet. Instead, he brushed his arm against hers in a show of support before turning back to the TV.
He might as well watch all the lies and misdirection all the way through.
The scene was repeated four more times, one for each Avenger . . . and when it showed Peter futzing with the stuff on his desk, Steve felt the first stab of real confusion, coupled with profound irritation. He didn't remember that happening, so what were the boy and Tony playing at? Why were they so blatantly admitting to Peter's crimes?
He promptly received an answer, though it did nothing to clear up his confusion.
"Are you really telling me that not one of these idiots noticed that someone had obviously been in their rooms?" the teenager asked, standing in his bedroom and looking so bewildered that Steve felt an involuntary stab of empathy; he was in the same boat right now and it wasn't fun.
"Not that I've been able to detect," FRIDAY replied, sounding . . . well, Steve wasn't sure. But he still didn't like it. "None of them have made any reference to your actions and nothing has been moved back to its original place. However, Stupid Rogers, Not-a-Spy Romanova, and Vent Barton have all tried again to break into your room in the last six days."
Peter heaved a sigh and flung himself down on his bed, covering his face with a pillow and screaming into it with pure frustration. After a couple of minutes, he sighed heavily and sat back up, tossing the pillow behind him and giving a very evil, very unnerving smile to . . . himself?
"Then I guess I'll have to up my game," he stated, malicious satisfaction oozing off every word, and Steve swallowed, unaccountably disquieted. It made no sense; Peter was nothing but a teenager, albeit one who was clearly intelligent and just as clearly being groomed by Tony to advance his next dangerous scheme, so why should the sight of him plotting against the Avengers make Steve so nervous?
Once more, he was provided with an answer that made no sense, though it finally ended the tedium of watching all of them being dragged through the mud and viciously lied about, since the context of the 'evidence' had been skewed or just left completely out. Clear as day, the recordings showed Peter once more effortlessly hacking his way into the Avengers private rooms . . . but this time, he simply dropped a single piece of paper on each sofa and immediately left. Steve's anger flared yet again as he stared at the one he'd found: a rough sketch of a door, drawn in black ink, with a nameplate showing PETER in big, block letters next to it . . . and a startlingly good depiction of a skull and crossbones in the middle of the door, done in bright, vibrant red, with the words KEEP OUT below the drawing. The next two clips showed Nat and Clint receiving an identical piece of paper, and the date on Clint's showed it happened the day before Steve forced his Accords liaison to file formal charges against Peter for breaking into their rooms and whatever else he could think of.
Silence fell over the room as the screen faded to black, and something about the atmosphere held everyone in thrall for several minutes.
To Steve's complete lack of surprise, it was Tony who finally broke it.
Or rather, his lawyer.
"That's the foundation of our intent to press charges against the five current plaintiffs, Madame President," he said clearly. "We do have a few more pieces of correlating evidence, should they be needed, but my clients would like to restate their desire to have the current charges against one Peter B. Parker dismissed and new charges, all of which were listed earlier, filed against the aforementioned plaintiffs."
The president gave a short nod of acknowledgement before turning her attention to Steve. After several seconds of uncomfortable scrutiny, she gestured for him to rise; irritation churning in his gut, he obeyed, but once again, he was denied the chance to speak.
"I must confess that I am disturbed by what we've just seen, Mr. Rogers," she said quietly but clearly, her face impassive. "But I'm giving you a chance to respond, to explain your side, before I make a decision. The floor is yours."
Steve had never been one for eloquent speeches or anything like that, and he knew it. Under other circumstances, he would have handed things off to Nat, but that wasn't an option, so he cleared his throat and waded in, finally setting his building anger free.
"It's obvious that Tony is just trying to manipulate everyone into thinking they're innocent; every single one of those so-called occurrences were taken out of context," he stated confidently, glaring at Stark and nearly losing his temper entirely when the insufferable man just winked back at him and leaned back in his chair, making a show of getting comfortable. Beside him, Parker did the same, and that finally pushed Steve too far. "All we wanted was information we deserved to know and should have been told at the beginning. Stark is the one who decided to play God and be difficult, leaving us no choice but to find answers on our own. And there is no reason for Parker to break into our rooms; that's a huge violation of our privacy and completely unwarranted!"
Steve was panting when he finished and he noted with satisfaction that the people he could see looked appalled. He turned back to Tony and gave him a smug sneer, only to falter when he was met by satisfaction from Tony and . . . was that sadness? . . . from Parker.
What the hell?
"Mister Rogers, I — I don't even know where to begin," Denisof slowly said, and Steve reluctantly turned to her, his brow furrowing in puzzlement when her words registered. The evidence was plain as day, so what was the problem? "This . . . you . . . I — I honestly have nothing to say right now except to call an emergency session of the Accords Council. As we have a majority present, I am requesting a vote on dismissing the charges against Peter Parker and his legal benefactor, Tony Stark. All in favor?"
Hands began to rise, as Steve watched in disbelief. Horror and righteous anger swelled up when he realized that it wasn't just a few people, but at least a dozen . . . and all of them were voting against Steve and his team.
How had Tony done this? Had he bought them all before the hearing? Used some new kind of magic to twist their minds? He had to have done something, because the evidence of Parker breaking the law was clear as day.
He was so deep in his anger that he missed the next few minutes, so the loud BANG of the gavel badly startled him and he instinctively reached for the shield he wasn't wearing (no longer had). A deep sigh to his left made him glance at Sam, who looked grim and unhappy, while Clint was visibly fuming. Nat was still stone-faced, but Wanda was as furious as Clint and the bracelets were glowing in the telltale sign that they were keeping her abilities dampened.
"Very well. Dr. Stark, Mr. Parker, on behalf of this council, I apologize for this inconvenience."
THAT made Steve's head snap back to the podium. He was vaguely aware that he was gaping, but his mind was so full of emotions that he had no hope of sorting out that he didn't even try to speak. Barton had no such inhibitions, but before he could get more than two words out, a large, beefy security guard had appeared and firmly pushed him back into his chair.
"Thank you, Madame President, but that's not necessary," Stark replied, giving Denisof a gentle smile that Steve had rarely seen. "This is exactly what was supposed to happen, and now we know the process works. I have no complaints."
"Neither do I," Peter added, standing as well. "But I do have a . . . well, a request."
One dark red eyebrow lifted slowly as Denisof studied the young man for what seemed like an eternity to Steve, who was also staring. He, however, was extremely suspicious. Parker had so far proven to be highly intelligent, capable, and conniving. God only knew what he'd come up with now.
"Very well," the Accords Council president finally said. "The floor is yours, Mr. Parker."
"Thank you, Ma'am," he said quietly, looking at the table for a second before turning his eyes to Stark, who gave him an encouraging smile. That was apparently enough, because Parker smiled back and straightened before looking Mediva Denisof straight in the eye. "Since you have all the evidence of wrongdoing, as well as proof and confirmation that it hasn't been edited, compromised, or tampered with, then I . . . I would . . . may I speak freely?" he asked, sounding unsure for the first time that day.
Both eyebrows arched now, but that was the president's only outward reaction before she simply nodded. Parker swallowed hard, gave his mentor another quick look, and squared his shoulders. His voice was suddenly strong and confident . . . and if Steve hadn't already been sitting down, what the kid said next would have knocked him flat on his ass in an unholy mix of shock and pure, unfettered rage.
"I would like to request, as the victim of their willfully malicious attacks and behavior, that a trial be foregone in favor of a direct vote. I am perfectly willing to undergo questioning under a truth spell, if administered by Dr. Strange or Mr. Wong of the New York Sanctum, and I would have no issue with the same being done to them, and I will accept the results with no objections, but . . . not only have I been forced to suffer their persecution for nearly three months, I've watched them throughout the entirety of these proceedings and I'm saddened and disheartened to say that I haven't observed any signs of remorse or regret from any of them," he said slowly, clearly, his voice ringing with sincerity. "I haven't even seen a sign of understanding that what they did was wrong. And, for the record, I did not once hack the system to get into their rooms. I have full access to the Tower, but that access does require certain security measures to be met, such as fingerprints. Because they're on house arrest, Dr. Stark wanted to ensure my safety should it be necessary. So I have access to their quarters should I need it, but I have to follow the established procedures, and if — when I used that access, it was automatically conveyed to Dr. Stark and I submitted a written report explaining the necessity within 24 hours," he explained, looking a little frantic. It was obvious he'd only just thought of that and Steve was vindicated at seeing more evidence that the teenager was wrong and might even realize he was guilty.
"I — I'm not a child, but I am legally underage, and five grown adults have made repeated attempts to break into my bedroom," Peter murmured, suddenly seeming very vulnerable, and Steve narrowed his eyes when Tony laid a hand on his arm in obvious support and reassurance. That was not like Tony. What was he up to? "Not only did Mr. Rogers already state here, today, that their actions were acceptable because they decided it was so, but not once in all those recordings did I see or hear anyone express any qualms about they were planning to do. One of those adults made multiple attempts to mentally violate me and force me to provide information against my will. I — that's rape," he breathed, now looking and sounding horrified, to which Steve mentally scoffed.
It was no such thing; Wanda was just going to find the information they needed and that he refused to give them. People in this time were so fragile and it drove Steve up the wall. "But what made me decide to make my request and file my own charges is the knowledge that none of them, today or at any earlier point, have offered any kind of disagreement or protest against their own actions, showing that they do understand it was wrong. To a person, they still believe their actions are justified and defensible and right, and . . ."
He paused and took a few deep breaths before nodding to himself and continuing. Not once did he look Steve's way, which infuriated him even more.
"To be honest, I was looking forward to seeing them suffer the same indignity they were going to force me to go through, but now, after watching them and seeing what they really, truly are, I . . . it's not worth it. They aren't worth it," he explained, gesturing to the table the seething, furious Avengers were sitting at — still without looking at them. "A trial would do nothing but waste time, effort, and money, because none of them will learn anything from it. They've seen their own actions and still think they're in the right, because none of them are capable of understanding when they're wrong, so there will no regret and no change in behavior, even when — if — a guilty verdict is returned. And I'm not like them, I refuse to be like them, and I will not be that petty. Frankly, we all have better, more productive things to do than drag out dealing with a group of sulky toddlers who have wasted every single opportunity and chance they've been granted and, given everything that's happened today, clearly will not learn from this one either. If a trial is mandated due to the rules and regulations laid out in in the Accords or their contracts, then of course I'll cooperate fully, but if using direct evidence and testimony to bypass it is possible, then I am formally making my request to this council for that expedited process to be implemented."
Silence fell again, but this one was different.
It was a difference that Steve didn't notice for several minutes, because he was too busy choking on his outrage at Parker's brazen attempt to bully the Avengers into compliance while wriggling out of the consequences of his own illegal actions. But when the red cleared from his vision and he was finally able to take a full breath, Steve realized that the entire room was looking at Peter Parker with . . . no. No, it couldn't be. There was no possible way a teenage boy was getting the respect of people from literally the entire planet.
Especially not one being raised and groomed by Tony Stark.
But even as his mind flailed in frantic disbelief, Denisof nodded once and called for a vote to pass immediate sentence. Once more to his horrified shock, the agreement was unanimous. Wanda began shrieking in rage as the gavel came down to confirm their doom, but even as the bracelets stifling her powers shattered, thick but somehow translucent orange bands replaced them, and a matching collar shimmered into place around her throat, knocking her unconscious. Clint lost his mind on seeing that and lunged for Wanda, but he didn't get three steps before a set of those orange manacles was restraining him. Then Sam grunted quietly and when Steve turned to him in a panic, he saw that his loyal vanguard was also confined. And even as he tried to take that in, he saw a flash of orange in the corner of his eye, followed by Nat's fierce but quiet curse, and knew she was down, even as he felt something ghostly but also solid circle his own wrists.
Raw instinct had him lashing out in a desperate attempt to free himself and fight his way out, but with each desperate attempt to use his strength, something jolted inside him and he felt more and more drained. But he refused to stand down, to back down, to the bullies running this corrupt operation, so he kept struggling, knowing that if he just tried hard enough, he could get free. And then he would take down Tony Stark and finally prove to the world that he, Steven Grant Rogers, was the better man.
As his vision and hearing began to fade out, he heard Parker speaking again, and his words chased Steve into and out of the encroaching darkness.
"I've never given up on someone before," the boy said, sounding sad. "But there's no choice here. And that's just . . . sad. They could have been so great. I — do you think anyone will remember them?"
Stark hummed in response before answering. "For their sake, I hope not, because if people do, it will only be as a bad joke. But they made their choice — and I'm proud of you, Peter. You did amazingly well today and God willing, we'll never have to do this again. Now come on; I'm hungry, so you've got to be starving. And Barnes asked if we could bring back shawarma; he's never had it and neither has Pepper. We also have a Lord of the Rings marathon to start."
Bucky?
Bucky was here? Bucky knew what was going on and hadn't come?
Bucky had sided with Tony Stark and Peter Parker, Steve's enemies?
Bucky had . . . Bucky had abandoned him?
The black depths of despair and bitter realization finally overwhelmed Steve and he willingly succumbed.
When he came back to himself, locked in a 10x10 prison cell for the next 57 years, Steve Rogers swore retribution on the boy who had destroyed his life and his future and his dreams. He didn't even notice at first when Sam was paroled after he openly acknowledged that he'd fucked up, still too furious about the corrupt, unfair process that had left the Avengers, Earth's Heroes, in prison. About a year later, when Clint was killed trying to escape and Nat was permanently crippled helping him, he upgraded his plans to dark, bloody vengeance. When word came that Wanda had been executed for the crimes he'd covered up or flat-out ignored, the only thought left was his hunger for revenge.
But he'd never learned to keep his mouth shut.
Thirty-four months into his prison sentence, Steve Rogers instigated a vicious brawl that killed one prisoner, injured five more, and put him in a coma that he would never wake up from.
The world kept turning.
~~~
fin