Spiders and Seas (Heroes Come in Many Forms)

Chapter 3: Its Not That Easy

Percy didn't like his new house, or tower, or whatever it was. Don't misunderstand, he was eternally grateful to be away from Smelly Gabe, and the pretty but far too quiet foster home he had been in before (to be away from the uncertainty of when he was going to be forced to leave), but it was too much here, the voice from the ceiling and walls was always too loud, the lights to bright, the movie nights to crowded, and Tony Stark terrified him.

It wasn't really that Percy thought the billionaire would hurt him - he had shown nothing but kindness, and Peter clearly looked up to him. No, it was the constant drinking that triggered the response he had to the man. He tried to hide it, but Percy had a nose for alcohol, and an inability to leave rooms on his own. So, he was stuck in a tower (he hated heights and every pass by a window terrified him) with an alcoholic and the Avengers.

There was press outside his door constantly, he couldn't actually tell anyone about who was living with (not that he had anyone to tell), and he just wanted to go home. (He had no home, not really, but he avoided that train of thought whenever he could. It just made him cry, and crying had always meant pain for him.)

The worst part was probably the therapist they were making him see - no, he didn't want to talk about his problems, no, he didn't want to talk at all. He wasn't sure why he was seeing one and no one else there was however. Just from looking around it was immediately obvious that most, if not all, of the people he was living with had some kind of potent trauma. It wasn't fair that he was the only one who had to relive it once a week in a room with the ticking of a clock bothering him the whole time.

The only part of this that really brought a smile to Percy's face was Peter. He was Percy's best (only, first) friend, and while he had been angry at Peter for telling what had happened at first (Angry may be the wrong word - Percy had been scared to be thrust into a new environment. It wasn't safe with Gabe, but it was familiar and he was terrified that the new environment would be dangerous in a much different way.), but Peter had looked so happy to see him, and was so nice, and tried so hard to make Percy feel welcome. It didn't take Percy long to cave into the demands of the young boy.

(There was also the fact that he was living with THE Captain America. He had been Percy's favorite since he was little. The fact that he had once been nearly as tiny as Percy was only added to the love that Percy felt for the blonde nazi-fighting hero. It was a fine replacement for the tattered poster Percy had been forced to leave behind. Really, if the Captain asked Percy to talk personally, he'd be tempted. He wasn't sure why but each time he thought about it, Gabe's mocking echoed in the back of his mind. "Sounds about right coming from a *** . Now get out of my sight.")

But, those two things weren't enough for Percy to enjoy living in the massive display of opulence that was Stark Tower, and really he just wanted to go home. Especially considering how much he had to hide. (He had been making a careful effort to avoid water when he was near one of the Avengers - they worked for the government, and the government wasn't exactly fond of people like him.)

So yeah, Percy was miserable, and didn't see it getting better any time soon. (Despite that, he still found himself smiling, a warm feeling sitting in his chest, when he went to bed in his blue room each night, to a soft smile from one of the Avengers and a knowledge that he would be safe in his bed.)

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Tony didn't know why he had taken Percy in. Peter hardly knew him, really, and whether he meant to or not he was going to bring trouble into the tower. Percy was a good kid at heart, Tony could tell, but it was hard to predict what a traumatized eight-year old was going to do at any given moment - especially one with a record like what Percy had. (It's not his fault Tony reminded himself not only does he have ADHD, he was stuck in that god awful situation.) Not to mention the accommodations he was being forced to make (the ones he always should have had, really. Ones he'd find himself grateful for in the not too far off future.) The tower wasn't built to handle someone stuck in a wheelchair. It had elevators sure, but that was it, and there needed to be more - for one, if there was a fire and the elevators shut down, anyone who couldn't take the stairs would be stuck.