🕸 :rewrite 2.0 || ❝ then they'll say to me, they'll say to me, there goes the fighter. ❞

[withresponsibility]

"Hey, Peter!"

[ Peter Parker looks up from his locker, stepping closer to the opened door as the after school rush swarms the halls. He even aptly ducks to the side in time to miss an oncoming basketball tossed by someone wanting to cause a scene. His eyes swing over to the person calling his name. All grins and brilliant red hair Mary-Jane Watson ducks to his side.

He gives a nervous smile. ] Uh, hey, MJ. Heading off with Harry?

"Yeah. You know how he is. Showing off." [ MJ rolls her eyes and shakes her head. A flippant shrug before she glances around and leans close. ] "Is it true you got a scholarship with Stark Industries?"

[ Peter suddenly chokes on his breath before his eyes swing to look at her, wide and turning his head side to side. He swings the locker door to hide the two of them and lowers his voice. ] Who told you?!

"Oh, you know. Aunt May told my Mom on Facebook Message." [ MJ grins and taps him on the arm. ] "Congratulations, Peter! See? Things are looking up. Did you tell Harry?"

Uh, no, no. Definitely not yet. [ Peter slowly exhales. ] Uh, actually, I'm on my way to the Tower. The uh tour and stuff, you know. On-boarding. Want a souvenir?

[ MJ laughs. ] "I think Harry would dump me on the spot... but, I mean, if you could get me an autograph from Ms. Ariel what would be so awesome. You know they consider her a fashion icon?"

[ Peter's eyebrows pull together with a frown. ] Do they? I haven't heard anything about her in months. She's not really in the news.

[ MJ shrugs and then pats his arm again. ] "Maybe she's camera shy? Anyways, Harry is waiting. Get me that autograph okay? Bye!"

Y-yeah, sure. Autograph. Bye MJ. [ Peter mumbles the reply to himself, but manages a wave as MJ records into the crowd. He lingers for a moment before closing the locker door and heading out of Midtown High School through another door.

Earbuds in, connected to phone, and he begins the normal walk he has back to the apartment rented by May Parker. The house he grew up in had to be sold. No amount of money made from videos of small unknown Spider-Man would help catch up on those payments. Payments that fell behind because the house went to one income when Ben Parker died. That's ultimately the reason he took up the scholarship he totally didn't apply for. It would take care of Aunt May and the bills. A guaranteed job after high school. Sure, the super hero tech and getting to work with his childhood hero is the best part of the deal. But, he has someone to take care of, because he failed to be a better person.

After a few steps he breaks into a small jog. Nice end of spring day going into summer. School will be ending soon. MJ will have her modeling gigs over the summer, and Harry Osborn is being groomed to take over Oscorp one day. It means he has plenty of time over the summer to spend at the Avengers Tower or Stark Industries. The details of how this scholarship works weren't really defined.

A ping comes through the ear buds. Peter slows down to look at his phone and the text from MJ. A few swipes and he pulls up the message: ]

See, told you! FASHION icon. 💅 Thx again for the autograph! You're the best, Peter. 💯

[ Peter looks below the text to find an image he of course knows. Unveiling of the latest technology for clean energy that Stark Industries had announced in January. Tony Stark is standing beside the woman he announced as his fiancée, Ariel. Tony in his usual sort of suit with red and yellow tones in it (because, duh, he's Iron Man), with Ariel in, frankly a stunning sparkling deep blue dress that kind of reminds him of shiny scales. All off to the side of the image are notes from MJ--because he knows her hand writing anywhere. Names of shops and brands with dresses close to what the woman in the photo is wearing. ]

I never thought MJ would fangirl over someone close to Mr. Stark.

[ Yeah, hopefully, Harry doesn't know.

He feels a sudden tingle over the back of his head. A spin on the balls of his feet to avoid how close a black car drives up to him. Peter looks it over before reaching up and pulling out his ear buds. The windows rolls down and his eyes widen. ]

Holy shit.

"Hey, kid. Watch your language, okay? You're too young to use that word." [ Happy Hogan looks out the window and gestures to the back of the car. ] "You missed the pick up so we're running late. Get in."

W-wait, what? You were going to pick me up?! And, hey, I'm sixteen!

"Yeah, yeah. You're a big kid now. Didn't you hear me? Get in!"

[ Peter awkwardly shifts to the back door of the car and slides in. Part of him braces to find Tony Stark, but no such luck. A sigh of relief is breathed out before he pulls off his back pack and buckles up. The car ride to the Avengers Tower can be best summed up as Happy going on about rules of conduct and safety. A badge gets tossed to him at on point with the rules being restated that the badge has to be shown at all times. Face forward. Otherwise, they'll have problems, regardless if he's a "Spider Kid."

It's Spider-Man, by the way.

Peter wordlessly follows Happy past the front desk, taking in the sights and sounds as best he can. An elevator ride up and he notes the different floors. Offices, meeting rooms, gym and training, personal living spaces, helipad, and R&D. That's where the elevator stops and Peter follows Happy down the hall. Happy grabs onto a glass tinted door. ]

Hey, uh, so, Happy. What are the chances of seeing the other Avengers?

"Depends on their schedules, kids. They got lives too. Besides, you're here to see Tony. Don't get all fanboy, okay? It'll annoy him faster than anything."

[ Happy pauses as the hydraulics on the door release. A nod and he opens the door, shuffling Peter inside. A final sharp look is given before the door closes behind Peter.

Peter shuffles the backpack onto his shoulder again and looks around the workshop. Pieces of armor, tech, lit up desks, and pretty much anything someone would actually thinks belongs to Tony Stark's workshop can be seen. Even an open pizza box. Peter makes a note of all the pieces as he hesitantly walks in the room. ]

Uh, Mr. Stark?

Ah, welcome, Mr. Parker. [ JARVIS voice comes from some unknown area of the room.

Peter jumps slightly. So much for the Spider Senses letting him know that. And there goes his heart rate. ] Shit!

Comments

[doesntpaint]

[ Even before all this started, a lot of people thought Tony Stark just intentionally zoned out into his own world, losing himself in whatever insane idea he had thought up that day or that minute and just shutting everything else out. It drove people insane, because Tony very obviously had his own world and almost no one knew how to enter it. Sometimes, someone could brute force their way into it, and that got marginal results, but it also led to Tony snapping and biting and letting the sarcasm out in full force.

And honestly, these days, Tony was much pricklier than usual. Ultron was his fault; that's what people say. He'd argue otherwise until he's blue in the face, but he can't really argue with what's in front of him: the facts printed on paper. It doesn't help that he's been told that most, if not all, of the Avengers are down for the count.

In hindsight, the thought is that Tony shouldn't have been told that, since it made him spin out in ways no one expected. He had a period of shutting down harder than anyone's ever seen before and then when he dragged himself out of that, he just threw himself at his work and his workshop and shut everyone else out.

Everyone, that is, but someone he considers new blood. Young, obviously, but new and with fresh eyes and a slightly brighter outlook on life than he does at the moment. Oh, he read up on Peter. He knows he's had losses, and he knows he's had to grow up quickly. But he's still young and fresh and he has the added benefit of not being one of the primary targets of a rogue AI program that Tony really wishes he could nuke from orbit.

What he's also not saying is that it's too quiet in the workshop, even when he turns up the music. Something feels wrong, like he's missing something, but he can't figure out what the hell that is. Someone let slip to him that one of the common side effects he and the other Avengers are experiencing is memory loss, and now that he knows that, he can't stop thinking about it.

And that's what leads him to this incoming visitor. It's half distraction and half trying to do his part to set up the next generation or something like that. Tony snorts to himself, knowing that's bullshit, but maybe there's an element of truth to it. 5%, maybe.

He grins to himself as JARVIS greets Peter, and Peter jumps in response. That never really gets old. ]

Hey, you made it. Good. Want a drink to calm your nerves? And before you ask, it's just soda. I might be a bad influence at times, but I'm not that bad.

[withresponsibility]

O-oh, uh, what? [ Peter turns his head towards Tony. A nervous smile then a laugh. His accent comes out thicker. ] Yeah, sure, sounds great. A drink with Tony Stark himself and his uh... disembodied... voice...

My name is JARVIS. I'm Mr. Stark's assistant and help operate the Tower and other key sites.

Oh. [ Peter nods as if that explains everything. He slowly walks over to stand near Tony, but not too close. He scratches the back of his neck. The other hand slides into his pocket. ] Sorry about being late. I, uh, didn't know that Happy was going to pick me up? I was just going to go home, get changed, and make my way here.

[ By that he means on the bus. With the bus pass. ]

Uhm, so, what did you want me to do?

[doesntpaint]

Real haunted house kinda stuff, right? That's exactly what I was going for here. [ Tony does his best attempt at an evil laugh that's meant to be over the top jokingly spooky. ] But yeah, what JARVIS said. We've been together a long time, haven't we? [ He makes a mental note to work on improving JARVIS's systems so that no one can break in again. If that's what happened, because he doesn't remember it. For just a second or two, he makes a face, because he really hates having holes in his memory like this. ]

You know, in hindsight, maybe the whole "planning" part of the plan could've been done better. But in my defense... Some stuff's been going on around here. [ Never mind that on a normal day, Tony and planning never really went hand in hand. ]

I don't want you to do anything; well, I mean, you're going to follow me around as I give you the big tour of the place. That, and ask questions, which I assume you have.

[withresponsibility]

[ A smile tugs at the corner of his mouth. He never expected an evil laugh from Tony Stark. Then again, what exactly did he expect? He feels like maybe he had some idea in his head of who his hero was. Some weird put together Frankenstein of Tony Stark the news and press put together with his childhood understanding of super heroes.

For some reason he expected more fanfare and show. Tony Stark in front of him seems... withdrawn. ]

Yes, sir. For serveral years now. More than a few decades.

You had an AI before anyone else? [ He sounds impressed and less surprised. Of course Tony Stark would. ] I mean, there is probably always a lot going on between the Avengers and Stark Industries... right?

[ A nod. ] Okay. Ask questions, take notes, don't be surprised by the disembodied AI voice. I mean, not a lot of questions. A few. But, nothing like huge.

[ Asking for a autograph from his fiancée? That's tacky. Maybe once they run into her. Also, he's not like really an Avenger. Right? And is he on a check in? Does he just do what he usually does? What about actually working here or... probablg better not to ask so many questions. ]

So, uh, this is the workshop. Right? Where you build the Iron Man suits?

[doesntpaint]

[ Tony knows the laugh is too forced, but he's also trying to make himself act like his usual self, and leaning into off the wall humor is the best way to do that. ]

See, me and JARVIS, we go way back. [ He rolls a shoulder idly. ] You could say he knows me better than anyone.

And yeah, pretty much. It's no big deal, right? Oh, who am I kidding, it's a huge deal and I did it first. [ Honestly, sometimes, if he could, he'd kick himself just to get himself to shut up. ] But hey, don't get the wrong idea. I don't go around telling people that. [ He really isn't trying to turn Peter off by acting like an arrogant tool. He wants to keep Peter around; he doesn't want to drive him away already. ]

Kid, you can ask all the questions you want. Maybe not all of them will get answered, but the floor is open. [ He nods twice, or three times. ] Yes, yes, and yes. This is where all the magic happens and this is where I do all my building. You wanna see them?

[withresponsibility]

Right, yeah, way back. [ Peter glances around the room as if he is going to find a screen that has JARVIS running on it or something. Way back. That's older than him. It sort of puts the whole age thing into perspective considering he's still in high school. ] Basically ask him for all the really embarrassing stories?

[ He's trying... or something. ]

I mean--it's not, it's not surprising that you'd do it first. How many things have you done first? [ A gesture made to the workshop as if to say everything in the room explains that. He's so nervous he keeps stumbling over his own words. God, that's embarrassing. Imagine meeting your hero and making a damn fool of yourself. Twice. ] You don't... really need to tell people that.

[ It's sort of obvious, is what he means to say.

A nervous smile shows up on his face. Then, he shoves his other hands in his pants pockets. Uncle Ben and Aunt May always made sure that he was polite. Respectful. Which is part of why things had gotten out of hand leading up to Ben's death. He finally had the ability to make bullies pay for what they did... and it got to his head a bit. He isn't going to make that same mistake of rushing in here. ]

Yeah! I mean, sure. If--if that's okay. If it's not some sort of like NDA agreement--I can see them. Right?

[ He's had his designs for suits of course--his own suits. Those pipelines of "if I had all the money in the universe." He just took the ideas he had and made them more workable for honestly a middle class budget and what a kid who dumpster dives can do. Seeing how the actual Iron Man suits are? That's a hell of an opportunity. ]

Not that I'm going to take any of the ideas or anything. I wouldn't even be able to replicate this back home. [ Meaning the apartment he and May share. ] What, uh, works for your suits isn't really the same for mine.

[doesntpaint]

[ Tony doesn’t interrupt him. He just watches, not in a bored way, not in a dismissive way. He watches n a very specific, analytical, mildly fascinated way, like Peter is a prototype he didn’t expect to work this well. Of course he knows that Peter isn't one of his experiments, but he just has a certain frame of reference he operates from, and that's what he's working with now.

His arms are folded as he keeps surveying Peter. ]

Kid.

[ He says it gently, or as gently as Tony Stark manages to be. ]

Hold your horses. Take a breath. You’re not in trouble. You’re not being graded. And I don’t care if you borrow ideas. If you can reverse-engineer anything in this room from memory, I’m hiring you on the spot and retiring early.

[ He uncrosses his arms and walks past Peter, motioning for him to follow as they move deeper into the workshop. ]

And for the record? I did not invent everything in here. Some of it I stole from my dad. My dad had good ideas and I borrowed some of them. A lot of them. Maybe. Some of it I stole from people smarter than me. That’s called research. You’re allowed to do that. You can steal ideas from me. Cycle of life without the lions.

[ He stops beside a case where several older suit gauntlets rest in various states of disassembly. ]

You know what I’m actually looking for? [ He glances at Peter. ]

What I want to know is how a high school kid builds web shooters that don’t jam, don’t leak, don’t dissolve in humidity, and don’t glue his own fingers together.

Why do I care about that? I care because that’s not luck. That’s iteration. That’s failure. That’s problem solving. Trial and error. Practice. Trying, and trying again.

Simply put, that’s engineering. And by the way, I don’t recruit people because they’re impressive. I recruit them because the facts speak for themselves.

You didn’t rush in here asking how to make your suit stronger. You asked if you were allowed to look. That tells me a lot.

[ Then, his tone turns slightly lighter again and he very visibly relaxes. ]

So relax. You’re doing great at the ‘not making a fool of yourself’ part. You’re just narrating your anxiety out loud. Which, honestly? I respect.

[withresponsibility]

[ Peter stops the moment Tony cuts in after being quiet. His mouth closes and he stands there awkwardly, as if trying to test out what Tony is going to say or do next. If he's screwed this up like he has so many other things in the last few years.

He glances down and nods. A spin on his heel and he's following Tony as instructed. Not like a dog with his tail tucked between his legs. He's someone who wants to learn and impress his hero. He wants to feel as if he's made someone proud instead of disappointed and angry. The last time he spoke with his uncle was an argument. Nothing is going to take that back; nothing is going to fix it. He knows because he can see it on his aunt's face when she comes home from her shifts.

He just... wants to actually be helpful instead of hurtful.

Stealing from Tony Stark just feels wrong somehow. He's not in the same league.

Then, what he feels like an invitation is laid on the floor. Not only to show off what he's made, but a place where he can show everything he has to keep hidden. Tech, suits, the day to day of just trying but feeling like a failure. His eyes sweep over the gauntlet on the table... it looks like the gauntlet from the Stark Expo.

Yeah. Of course he knows that gauntlet well.

Peter swings his backpack off and onto the ground. In a fluid motion he pulls out one of the notebooks and flips to an empty page in the back. He fishes out a pen and starts writing. Within a few minutes he is turning the notebook towards Tony for him to take.

Yeah... he doesn't know that whole "pet peeve" thing. ]

This? This is the webbing. It's formula, chemical breakdown. Nucleus. All of that. [ He pulls his hand back and taps the pencil to his palm. ] Salicylic acid, toulene, methanol, carbon tetrachloride, potassium carbonate, and ethyl acetate. Fit it in a 16 gram tube I took from old CO2 cans and just... load it in. The, uh, web shooters? Based off being water proof like the health watches from Apple or Samsung.

[ He rolls up his sleeve of his coat to show off one of two, on his wrist. A small trigger extends down into the palm. ]

It shoots it out like a wide spread spray bottle nozzle? But, because it's limited in how much goes out how fast, it doesn't have the same spread. Narrower gap. They go over the suit.

[ He pauses and points to the gauntlet. ] Is that the gauntlet from the suit used at Stark Expo?

[doesntpaint]

[ Tony leans over, tilting his head to inspect the page Peter’s holding out. He doesn't take it, because it's kind of his thing to not be handed things, but his eyes scan the formulas, the notes, the drawings, and he lets a slow whistle escape. He's not making fun of him; his reaction is genuine, slightly impressed, though he doesn’t let it go too far. He's never been one to just heap praise on someone in paragraphs. A sentence or two, maybe. ]

Huh. Not bad, kid. I mean, wow, you actually wrote all this down? No, more than that, you actually puzzled this all out? Smart.

[ His eyes flick up to Peter’s sleeve and the tiny shooter strapped to his wrist. Tony’s lips curl into that half-smile that means he’s already imagining the potential, and the room for improvement. ]

Okay, that little trigger is clever. Waterproofed like health watches, huh? I see what you did there. [ He leans closer, inspecting the nozzle. ] Limited spread, narrow gap... that’s smart. Practical. Gets the job done. You didn’t just copy someone else’s tech, you created your own, and you thought about the constraintss and worked with it.

[ He glances at the gauntlet next and nods. ]

Yeah, that’s the one. You recognizing it could mean you just saw it on the news, but I get the feeling it's not just that. Maybe I'm wrong, though. Did you just see it on the news?

Alright. Here’s the honest assessment: you’re not just scribbling chemicals and hoping it works. You're seeing a problem and working out a solution. That’s rare. And the fact that you’re testing real-world conditions on it? Of course you are, or you wouldn't be making it out there. But bottom line is, that’s exactly what I want to see.

[ Then he tilts his head, eyes scanning Peter like he’s weighing the kid’s potential. ]

So, tell me, Spidey... Spider-ling... What's your goal here? [ He pauses and smirks a little. ] At the risk of sounding like a bad salesman, what can Stark Industries do for you?

[withresponsibility]

[ A nervous smile and a tap to his temple as if to say that he had figured it out. Lots of testing. The web had to hold his body weight and potentially more. Not that he expected it to be strong enough to hold onto cars long enough to save people. It worked out though. An amazing success. That's what got everyone paying attention to the Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man.... or better known as The Spider-Guy from YouTube.

Peter flicks his wrist upwards so Tony can get a better look at the webslinger. It won't shoot the web unless the trigger is pushed, so, it's safe to inspect. He wouldn't be surprised if Tony asked him to take it off so he could detail the whole thing out. ] I mean, it's not really like this tech exists anywhere else, you know? Who else is going to design a thing that shoots web out like a spider?

[ He scratches the back of his head nervously. ] I uh, y'know... my Aunt and Uncle took me there as a kid. That's all.

[ Admitting he was the kid that stood up to a drone with a Iron Man mask and toy gauntlet? No, he's not really ready for that. ]

It's Spider-Man. [ Peter mumbles the name a little, knowing he's still just a teenager. It sounds better than Spider-Boy though.

"What can Stark Industries do for you?"

Oh, man.

There was a time where he was hoping he'd hear those words and he could ask for all the cool tech in the world. A mentor more like what he thought his father would of been, given his affinity for chemistry and building. A time where he'd love to be on the Avengers fighting along Earth's mightest heroes--just like anyone his age. When he could stand next to the hero that saved his life and many others and never asked for anything back for it.

If he was the same person he was a year ago? Maybe he would have.

Peter's shoulders deflate and he looks down, fidgeting with the pencil in his hand. Tapping it, thoughts going a million miles an hour in his head as his senses usually do ever since that spider-bite. What can Stark Industries--maybe even the Avengers--do for him? Peter Parker.

It's not really hard to think of the answer now. Not anymore. ]

A job. [ Desk clerk, intern, mail room. Doesn't matter. ] Something that will pay bills and set me up after high school. That way I can move Aunt May out of that apartment and...

[ He presses his lips together and looks away for a moment. A quick breath escapes him. He's not really ready to tell his hero what happened to Uncle Ben. How he let his uncle down, how the family broke because of it, how they lost the house because of it. All his fault. He's owning up to that. He can't bring back Ben, but he can take care of his aunt and save people like he couldn't save his uncle.

Peter looks back at Tony. ] When you can do what I do--and you don't? You weren't a man--you didn't do the right thing? That's when the bad things happen. That's because of you.

I'm just trying to do the right thing, Mr. Stark.

[ Great power and great responsibility. All of that. ]

[doesntpaint]

[ Tony doesn’t say anything right away. He watches Peter deflate.

He watches the bravado, the excitement, the budding engineer brain give way to something much heavier than what a kid his age should be dealing with. He hears the pencil tapping, sees the eyes dropping, notices the way his voice changes when he says a job.

Tony’s expression shifts, recognizing patterns. He turns without a word and walks to his main workstation, and with a few taps across the glass surface, a holographic screen springs up between them with a soft hum.

It's obviously just a rough outline based on Tony's own observations, but there's
lines and measurements, depictions of fabric layering, more depictions of reinforced seams at shoulders, hips, and spine, prototype wrist housing ports clearly designed around the exact dimensions of Peter’s web shooters.

Obviously it's rough and unpolished but it should be unmistakable.

Tony keeps his eyes on the screen as he speaks. ]

Funny thing about heroes, kid. [ He expands the schematic, rotating it slowly. ] They all think the moment that defines them is the one they messed up. Well, I'm going to tell you it’s not.

[ He glances back to the screen, highlighting the wrist assembly. ]

It’s what they do after. [ He pinches and drags, bringing up material layering designed for flexibility and impact absorption. ] You already figured that part out.

[ Then, more casually than the moment deserves, he says: ] You don’t need a job. You need training, education, resources... And someone making sure you don’t get yourself killed trying to be noble in a hoodie.

[ The schematic shifts as Tony overlays stress simulations across the joints. ]

I might know someone who can help with that. [ He offers Peter a faint smirk. ]

And if what you really want is a paycheck with your name on it? I can pull strings and create something that didn’t exist yesterday and suddenly does tomorrow. Or I can make a call and have you placed somewhere else that pays well, sets you up clean after high school. Your choice.

[ He gestures vaguely with two fingers. ] You don’t have to dumpster-dive your way into a future, Peter.

[ In the upper corner of the screen, a small alert begins flashing red. Silent. Repeating. Tony doesn’t look at it. He’s focused on the design. The alert continues blinking: PRIORITY — CONTINGENCY PROTOCOL: STARK COGNITIVE COMPROMISE.

Tony continues to not notice. ]

[withresponsibility]

[ Peter watches Tony walk over to one of the main work stations. There is the worry that maybe he's disappointed the older man with the truth. At least it was the truth. There will be regrets, but at least all the cards in what he's looking for are on the table. The "ulterior motives" if they can even be called that.

He looks up at the schematics with his eyebrows raised. It's not hard to tell that's supposed to be his suit and not an Iron Man suit. The lines are more in line with a closer made silhouette, reinforced differently, and the holes for the web shooters are the dead give away. His eyes scan over it, already coming up with ideas and improvements he'd make to fit more what is already in his head. The more finished designs he would make if he could make it.

Peter comes up to the work station and looks over it once more. ] That's... that's really good.

[ Obviously, Tony Stark made it.

He looks back over at Tony. Yeah. He wants a paycheck. Not for being a hero, but really working. A real job. ] I can do photography or designing or... just typing. I'm fine with any of that. It just needs to be real. I mean, I do real work. Honest. No being under the table or being paid for being Spider-Man.

As for this? This suit--[ Peter turns back to the hologram with a hand raised.

Then, he pauses.

PRIORITY — CONTINGENCY PROTOCOL: STARK COGNITIVE COMPROMISE.

Stark cognitive compromise?

The hand raised swings to point to the words in the upper corner of the hologram. ]--Is that alert supposed to go off?

[doesntpaint]

[ Tony doesn’t look at the alert right away, because he's still watching Peter, trying to assess his reactions, measuring how he's standing, how his voice sounds, and definitely noticing the way his eyes already picked apart the suit design without meaning to. Maybe it's creepy, almost invasive, but it's how Tony reads people.

Then Peter points and Tony's gaze shifts to the upper corner of the screen. He blinks once then squints at it like it's just personally offended him. ]

No, that is absolutely not supposed to be going off. [ He steps closer to the workstation and flicks his fingers through the air, pulling the alert forward, isolating it. Lines of code and status flags bloom around it.

Tony scans them quickly and then his expression tightens. ]

That’s a false positive; it has to be. I’m not concussed, I’m not drugged, I’m not— [ He gestures vaguely at his own head. ] Compromised.

[ Confident in his assessment of himself, he makes a sharp motion to dismiss the alert. The warning flickers but it doesn't go away, and Tony pauses. He tries again, more deliberately this time, attempting overrides and when those don't work, manual dismissal using a series of keystrokes only he would know.

The alert minimizes for about five seconds before immediately expanding again to full priority, this time taking over the majority of the screen. ] Playing hardball, huh? Okay then. Now I'm getting annoyed. [ He hasn't addressed JARVIS very much because he hasn't needed the program for anything just yet, but now he decides it's a good time to attempt reaching out to his trusty AI companion. ]

JARVIS, kill the contingency flag. [ There’s a half-second of silence, followed by the speakers crackling softly in a way that doesn't normally happen. Then JARVIS’s voice comes through, but it’s... off. It's not way off, but it's fragmented enough that it alerts Tony to something being not right. ]

Sir… I… apologize. I am… unable to comply with that request. [ Tony glares at the screen, suddenly a little annoyed. ] Seriously, J? You hardly ever say no to me. Yeah, yeah, I know that "hardly ever" isn't "never", but come on.

[ He glances sideways at Peter. ] Yeah, so I guess this is Exhibit A of "when machines malfunction". But before you ask, no, this is not a normal occurrence, and yes, I'll have it sorted out before you can say "boo." [ Maybe. Hopefully. ]

[withresponsibility]

I kind of figured, but, better safe than sorry. [ Or, something. ] You, uh, have the systems checking your health?

[ It would make sense. Something to keep an eye on long acting lingering effects from battles with who only knows what. Aliens, terrorists, stuff the public doesn't even begin to hear about. He could probably fill days worth of questions asking about things the public has never even heard about. Another time though, because Tony is clearly on a losing battle with the alert.

Peter puts his hands in his pockets once more as he watches the argument between man and machine. The, JARVIS cuts in. Poorly. Peter's eyebrows come together. The AI sounded fine earlier. ]

Uh, Mr. Stark? [ Peter tilts his head back further to get his voice to carry further. ] Mr. Stark. Maybe you should look into it. I'm just saying. If the AI who runs the systems in the Tower can't override it? It might be something you should look into.

Cognitive issues? Not something to over look. Especially with how you can get tossed around. Maybe not a conscious but, it could be something else.

[ He points at the code underneath the alert. ] It's not listing it coming from a medical center, right? "Internal alert." Maybe it's another system you have set up elsewhere?

[doesntpaint]

[ Tony doesn’t even turn around at first, because he doesn't want to. He's not stupid; he knows something isn't right because he can feel it in his thoughts and in how he talks, and he can feel it in... well, in his feelings, but he's never been the most forthcoming about that.

So, at least for a few more seconds, is fingers keep moving across the holographic controls like the alert isn’t there, like Peter didn’t say anything. Sure, he knows he's blatantly ignoring the red box in the corner of his display, but he's not ready to confront it yet.

He tries to make the alert minimize again, which it does for about ten seconds before coming right back. ] Damn, this thing is stubborn. [ He's only half listening as Peter keeps talking, and the more he does, the less Tony wants to look at him. He can hear the notes of sensibility, logic, concern... Things he really isn't interested in dealing with.

Is he deep in denial? Maybe. He definitely doesn't like how reasonable it all sounds. Then he finally turns halfway, giving Peter a look that isn’t angry, but is equal parts done with this topic and more tired of everything than he can put into words. ]

Pete, when I'm in the suit, I have about seventeen systems monitoring my heart rate, brain activity, blood chemistry, and whether I’ve had enough water today to qualify as a houseplant. If something was wrong with me, I’d know, even outside the suit. Even with JARVIS not being himself, he'd tell me. [ Whether he'd listen is another story.

He pauses for a second and then says in a tone that's almost too offhand: ] I probably set that up myself one day. No, actually, I know the exact day. There was a little snafu with the arc reactor and the core kind of not working, and, well- let's just say I was trying to wrap up loose ends. That was probably part of the Loose Ends Protocol. Yeah, let's call it that.

Actually, I should've tweaked that into a failsafe. "In case Tony gets mind-zapped by aliens, robots, gods, or bad sushi." That kind of thing. But, all of this to say... It's old. Oversensitive. And therefore, it's wrong.

[ He pins Peter with a look that's more pointed now but if he's looking, that tiredness isn't quite gone. It's just been covered up a little. ]

Right now, we're talking about you, your web juice, and why you think you’re qualified for a desk job when you clearly have a brain that belongs in a lab. [ He purposefully doesn't clarify that he means working in a lab. ]

[withresponsibility]

[ Eyebrows raise as Tony continues on with an explanation he really isn't sure he buys. Oh, he could see something like that happening. He figures the "arc reactor" is the thing that powers the Iron Man suits. There's no way he'd know it powers Tony Stark himself.

He's trying to be polite and respectful. Tony Stark is his hero. That must be why he feels so strongly about this. It's not his Spider Sense going off; there's no threat to him. No, this is a gut feeling. A feeling he ignored when it came to stopping the crook who ended up killing his uncle. He damn well won't ignore it again and cost the life of Iron Man. ]

Yeah, yeah, Loose Ends Protocol. Sure. [ He makes a face and gestures to the alert again. He is a teenager. ] It's not like you've been thrown around New York, or got attacked in California, or what happened in Sokovia. None of those things could actually cause a problem that would make a system monitoring your cognition outside your suit go off.

[ Peter sighs and shakes his head. It's obvious that Tony hasn't been his "usual self" since Sokovia. At least not to the kid who follows his heroes patterns. There has been less public appearances. Less sightings of Iron Man. Less news from Stark Industries with Tony's face on it.

Absolutely no sign of Tony with his fiancée. Who, at one time, was there at pretty much every public appearance Tony ever made after announcing the engagement. He remembers because of the amount of girls wailing they'd never have a chance with Tony Stark now--let alone noting they were all middle schoolers.

He can tell Tony is tired. He can see the wear of something breaking the man he admires down. It's not hard to really see. ]

What point is there in talking about me looking for a desk job if the man sponsoring me drops to the floor because he's ignoring an alert his AI guy distorts over? [ Peter fixes Tony a worried look in return. ] I mean--I mean what's Ariel going to think if she walks in and finds you collapsed on the floor one day?

All I'm saying is you need to look into it. Not ignore it. We have gut feelings for a reason--right?

[doesntpaint]

Loose Ends Protocol. [ He repeats it with just a trace of emphasis, like saying the name twice makes it more legitimate. But then in a subtle movement that's easily missed, his jaw shifts slightly in annoyance at the screen and also at himself... not to mention the fact that someone Peter's age is making more sense than he wants to admit. ]

It’s a glitch. [ He says with what's meant to be his usual level of confidence, but there's also a touch of uncertainty in it now. ] I've got a lot of legacy systems stacked on top of each other. Suit telemetry, personal telemetry, health diagnostics, neural pattern baselines, backup baselines, backup of the backup baselines... you get the idea.

At some point they start talking to each other like gossiping old ladies and someone in the crowd panics.

[ Peter keeps talking, and Tony finally looks at him. He actually looks, and he's not seeing just Spider-Man. He's seeing the kid himself: the kid who is worried, not impressed or starstruck but actually worried.

Then Peter says her name: Ariel. Tony’s expression changes in a way he doesn’t manage to catch in time. Maybe there's a flash of recognition followed by confusion as he rubs a hand over his mouth and exhales through his nose. ]

See, I don’t feel compromised. I don’t feel off. I don’t feel foggy. And I definitely don't feel like I’ve taken a hit to the head. [ He won't say it out loud, but that's what's bothering him. His systems aren't reading feelings, they're reading data, and everyone knows that if there's anything Tony believes in, it's cold hard facts. ]

If it makes you feel better, I'm not collapsing on the floor. But I am going to figure out why I made the system so reactive, because that's gotta go. And also, who's Ariel? I'm guessing she's at least somewhat important if I let her come in here.

[withresponsibility]

[ The longer Tony talks? The more Peter is convinced something is wrong. His Spider-Sense doesn't go off if he isn't in danger. That isn't what gives him the signs. It's the fact he can't believe that Tony Stark would dismiss a dangerous sign from his own technology. He doesn't believe that his effective sponsor would be that stupid.

Not after turning everything around with seeing what his technology was doing to real people.

He looks back at the blaring red warnings.

PRIORITY — CONTINGENCY PROTOCOL: STARK COGNITIVE COMPROMISE.

He's not much into psychology or the study of the mind. He'd chemistry or technology. That doesn't take a genius to know that it means there is an issue with the way the mind is processing information. Precieving information. It would mean something is blocking or made a rupture or...

Peter pauses at Tony's question. It almost annoys him. He swings back to his hero, letting the annoyance show. ]

"Who's Ariel?" Haha, very funny, Mr. Stark. This is some sort of test, right? "Oh, how much does Parker know about me and my life? Let's pretend not to know anything!" [ Peter shakes his head. His hands raise and flick in frustration. The accent comes out thicker then--being able to tell he really is from Queens. ] Funny, Mr. Stark. Very funny.

Everyone knows about your fiancée. I mean everyone. Girls in my class were crying when you announced it. [ He gestures to the area beyond the doors to the workshop. ] I figured she was private, because she's only ever at events, and I haven't seen her once! Which, that's okay and fine, especially if she is private and maybe even shy.

Trying to pretend you don't know who she is to try and test me? That's ... that's low. I'm a teenager but I'm not stupid about relationships.

[ Ignoring the fact he's never had a girlfriend. ]

[doesntpaint]

[ The longer Peter talks, the more something in Tony’s expression tightens with the kind of clarity that he absolutely does not like. ]

Testing you? Nah, believe it or not, I don’t run psychological experiments on teenagers out of some mildly insane sense of fun. Yeah, I know, I don't always play by the rules, and books on ethics are definitely not anywhere on my shelf, but that? Nah.

[ A hand comes up to rub across his mouth, buying himself a second to think, to steady the strange hollow feeling that's starting to form. ] I asked you who she was because I don’t know. Obviously I should know, but come on, have you tried knowing someone your brain is telling you you've never met?

[ There’s no performance in it. No cleverness. No typical Stark spin, just a flat, honest statement. ] And the fact that you think I should? That's the part that's... well, okay, fine, maybe I'm starting to worry a little.

[ His gaze drifts back to the alert again, and this time, he doesn't look away from it as quickly.

When he looks back at Peter, the frustration isn't there, just a strange kind of quiet he's not used to. ]

I’m not trying to trick you. What I'm trying to do is unpacking how I could have possibly forgotten the name of the person you said I was going to marry.

[withresponsibility]

[ Eyebrows raise as if to say "Really?", just because he could see Tony pranking him. There's a group at school that does, so he wouldn't be surprised by anyone else doing it. Although Flash pulled it back after Uncle Ben died. He's just used to being the butt end of jokes and it shows. How much of a teenager he is shows.

Then, Tony drops the next sentence. "I asked you who she was because I don’t know."

Peter looks back at the alert with his finger still pointing to it.

Cognitive Compromise.

The thought comes to mind then that he's surprised Tony is taking him so seriously. He's just a kid from Queens. Sure, a kid with crazy powers because he was bit by some genetically mutated spider. Still, just a kid. Tony's a billionaire, genius, philanthropist... listening to some kid about the state of his cognitive abilities.

What the hell is going on? Did he just step into some weird alternative dimension or something? Not that it's possible or anything.

Peter fishes his phone out of his pocket. A few swipes and he pulls the image back up from MJ. He scrolls to the side so the handwriting isn't as noticeable. Then, with a flip, the phone screen is facing Tony.

The big announcement of Stark Industries newest clean energy technology that was supposed to be first implemented in New York City. It's an official image from a news site, given the trademark in the corner. Tony Stark standing there with Ariel, close with no space between them. Smiling widely while Ariel has a smaller bit just as bright smile. Engagement rings. The picture is from January--just shy of six months ago. ]

You really don't know her? [ The level of skepticism and doubt is obvious in his tone. ] There's a few others I have. You can scan them or whatever because they're not photoshopped. My friend sent me this one... because she really likes how Ariel dresses.

[ No, no, not mentioning the autograph. ]

Come on... Mr. Stark. You've been engaged since 2013.

[ As far as he knows and the public knows. It's 2015, so two years. There's no way that Tony would just forget a woman he decided to settle down with. The playboy wouldn't forget that--right? Peter can tell they're in love. It's the same look his uncle and aunt had when Ben was still alive and with them.

He realizes that that some part of him had been hoping to see Tony and Ariel together on the tour. Not because of MJ's request or because it was an insight to Tony's life. It... he wanted to see two people smiling like that again at one another. Two people so in love that no one else mattered when they look at each other. It was in his life nearly as long as he can remember, and losing it when Uncle Ben died has been so noticible that it feels like salt in the wound whenever he catches Aunt May looking at their photographs.

Maybe he was just hoping to see it with his hero because it would be a reminder that the bad guys don't always take the important things away. That the good guys can hold onto the most important thing to them and inspire it for others around them.

If Iron Man could have that? Then there is hope for people like Aunt May, or MJ and Harry.

His tone quiet obviously shifts to something a bit more personal, distant, and somehow vulenerable. ]

Look, I know I'm just some kid you barely know. It's probably weird and maybe overstepping. Maybe you'll get Happy to throw me out of the building and ban me from coming back... but, come on, Mr. Stark. Everyone can tell you guys love each other. Iron Man settled down with someone and you really don't remember her?