You can trust now, Peter darling

35

Peter settled in pretty quickly, but uneasily. He missed Tony terribly and it had only been a day. T'Challa said he wouldn't start anything with Peter's therapy until he felt comfortable with his surroundings, which Peter thought was nice but also annoying because he felt like he would never feel comfortable. Or at least, it would take him a while to get there. And he didn't want to stay in Wakanda any longer than he had to, despite how beautiful and how nice everyone was.

He was given a hut to stay in. It was actually really nice. It was cosy and secluded, just what Peter liked. And there was a huge lake in front, surrounded by trees. It was beautiful, which wasn't a surprise because everything about Wakanda was. Beside the hut was, what looked like, a campfire, which was interesting. The inside of the hut was extremely comfortable, much to Peter's surprise. He had even been given some Wakandan clothes, which were sat in a few, nicely designed, boxes inside.

He was currently sat just outside his hut on the grass, looking at the scenery. It was surprisingly comforting, but he guessed that was the point. He had his phone to his ear, on the phone to Tony.

"They said they were going to take my phone...cuz of distractions, or whatever." He mumbled. "I think today is my last day of using it."

"I bet they won't keep it from you forever. They might let you use it from time to time, otherwise T'Challa wouldn't of told me that you could call me." Tony reassured the sniffling boy.

"He was probably talking about today and that's it."

"Peter, I don't think he was. Just...relax, okay? Everything will be fine." He sighed into the phone. When he got no reply, he decided to ask questions to distract him. "So, what's going on now?"

"I'm sitting outside my hut. It's where I'm gonna stay. It's actually really nice...and it has a lake. Um...and a campfire." Peter said, pulling out strands of grass just to occupy his hand.

"Sounds great, buddy." Tony said, trying to make his voice sound reassuring and comforting. "Are you making friends with Shuri? You were talking to her earlier."

"Uh...I wasn't really talking to her much. The words didn't come out. But she spoke to me." Peter said sadly and heard Tony sigh.

"Remember what I said, Pete?" Tony asked.

"Yeah...talk more n' stuff..." Peter mumbled and rubbed a hand down his face. Tony chuckled.

"Yeah, n' stuff. I know you find it hard, Peter. But you have to try, okay? You promised me."

"I know. I will."

"I love you, Peter. Call me whenever you get the chance, okay? I'll always pick up. No matter what." Tony said with an affectionate sigh. Peter felt tears swarm his eyes again but he swallowed them back.

"I love you too. Bye, Dad." He croaked and hung up. He chucked his phone to the side and hugged his knees to his chest. This was much harder than he initially thought it would be.

"Hey, Peter." A soft voice said from beside him. Peter jumped and let go of his legs. Shuri smiled and sat down next to him.

"Hi, Shuri..." Peter whispered, then stared back at the lake. There was silence between the two for a while before the girl finally spoke up.

"Is it okay if I ask you a few things? Just to get to know you." She asked. Peter didn't reply for a while, so she spoke again. "You can ask me questions too if you'd like. Maybe it will make you feel more comfortable if you knew me better."

Peter finally let out a deep breath before nodding. Shuri smiled and adjusted herself to get more comfortable on the ground.

"So, how old are you?"

"Um- 14. I turn 15 in-in 4 months." Peter said before tears swarmed his vision. What if he had to celebrate his 15th birthday in Wakanda? He would of loved the idea in totally different circumstances, but in his situation, he's without his dad and starting therapy. He'd rather not celebrate his birthday whilst going through all of that. He asked a question before he could linger on the thought and become more upset. "What about you?"

"I'm 16." She said with a smile. "I know this might be a difficult question for you to answer because of your past but...how did you and Tony meet?"

Peter thought for a few seconds, and then smiled to himself. Some might think the question would be triggering, but it actually made him feel happy thinking ahout it. After all, Tony saved him.

"I was...being held captive. Tony and the other Avengers saved me on a mission." He said, smile twitching.

"Oh. That must've been...a confusing time for you. Do you want to talk about it?" Shuri asked. Truthfully, she knew all about what happened with Peter and why he was here. T'Challa explained everything to her before he came so she was aware of the situation. She still wanted to ask Peter personally, though, because it's different when it's coming from the person who actually experienced it.

Peter took in the question, took in a deep breath, and exhaled. "Well...that's the best word for it, really. Confusing. I didn't know what was happening, I didn't know where I was being taken, I didn't recognize who Tony even was until a while later. I had no idea that he and the Avengers were trying to help me. I was frightened, and brainwashed." He explained. He shifted uncomfortably with an awkward cough, soon realizing that he didn't really want to talk anymore.

"S-So...uh...w-what about you? How- How do you know Tony?" Peter asked, cursing himself for stuttering so much.

"Well, I've never actually properly met him before. Only on holograms whenever he wants to talk to T'Challa about a mission. He seems pretty cool though. Maybe a bit arrogant..." She joked, making Peter let out a small laugh. "But he seems like a really good Dad."

Peter stared back at the lake, hugging his legs tighter. "Yeah...he is."

*

Peter woke up feeling a little bit better the next day. The first thing he did was give his phone to T'Challa when he and Ayo visited him. He bit back tears as he handed his only contact with Tony over to them, but he knew it was the right thing to do.

"How are you feeling today, Peter?" Ayo asked him once he had woken up a bit more. The three of them were standing further away from the huts and towards the lake.

"Better." Peter responded, staring at the lake again. He could never tear his eyes away from it. Even though he hated water. The boy squeezed his eyes shut.

"Keep adding more water. There isn't enough. He can do more."

"How long has it been?"

"An hour. How long do you think he'll last?"

"No clue, but I don't care. This is about pushing his limits. Vex is going to be a perfect little solider soon enough, just you wait."

Peter opened his eyes again, his vision quickly coming back to him. He stared at the lake, despite his haunting memories.

"That's good. How do you feel about starting today?" T'Challa asked, dragging Peter away from his thoughts. He took a deep breath and finally looked at them.

He nods. "Okay."