Irondad and Spiderson One-Shots

Peter's True Inheritance

Ever since the day Peter was given the stunning news that Tony had put his name in the will, the young man felt incredibly conflicted. On one hand, he was happy that not only did Tony have that much pride and faith in him, but truly believed that he was ready even long before gaining everything. On the other, however, Peter felt that he had stolen what should have been Morgan's future as well as Pepper's safety net. And while Morgan may not have been upset (she's just a kid after all, and Tony himself said that odds are "when I pass on, Morgan might still be too young to inherit everything"), what about Pepper then? Shouldn't she, as Tony's wife, be the one to get everything?

Peter felt like a thief. He was thinking of asking Tony about this but was worried that he would be deemed ungrateful, so he only spoke with Ned and MJ about it to get a second opinion. And that opinion was that he was overthinking per his usual Peter Parker self and being dumb.

"Just ask him, Peter," MJ said with great exhaustion. "He's not going to think you're ungrateful. If you bottle this up, who knows how this will blow up? Next thing you know, a huge emotional mess ends up happening. And the reason shouldn't be just because he chose to believe that you deserve to continue his legacy. As a matter of fact, since you so strongly believe that it belongs to Morgan or Mrs. Stark, how else are they going to have it other than speaking with your stand-in dad?"

Peter can always count on MJ to give him either a literal or metaphorical and much-needed smack on the back of his head. So, the next time he was at the tower, he gave himself an internal pep talk while having what MJ said in mind as he made his way up to the top. He grew more anxious with each floor he passed but held his nerve the best he could. He found himself in front of Tony's lab and took a deep breath before entering.

"Mr. Stark?"

"Hm? Hey kid, what brings you here?"

"Uh, I've actually been wanting to speak with you about the will. The inheritance?"

"Sure, what's the matter? Because if this is your usual 'I don't deserve nice things' spiel, I'm not hearing it. If you weren't deserving of it, I wouldn't give it to you."

"No no no, that's not it. I know I earned it, it's something else. This is a whole other 'should it be me' sort of thing."

And from there, Peter explained everything. It was incredibly refreshing to just say everything he felt. And after it all came out, he could only hope that Tony understood. And he did. The billionaire walked up to his mentee and hugged him.

"Why am I not surprised? Even when it's not what I expect, I'm still met with something that I know only you would say or do. And yeah, you're not wrong. But do bear in mind, I spoke with Pepper about this. I wouldn't make this decision on my own without her knowledge. Tell you what, I'll set up a meeting with her and Happy. We'll talk it over and see what we can do, that way we can find a way to make everyone happy. How does that sound? Plus, now that I think about it, it would be better if it was Pepper. She's an adult with many years of experience of watching over the industry. It wasn't fair of me to put that pressure on you just because you'll be the next Iron Man."

"Yeah, that would work. Thank you so much, Mr. Stark."

"Come on, kid. Mr. Stark makes me old."

"That's kind of the idea."

"Really? Ugh, anyway, what made you doubt you ought to have the industry? Besides Pepper or Morgan?"

"Well, why me and not your daughter and wife? Aren't they family?"

Tony then pulled back and gave Peter a confused look.

"Uh, so are you? Or did you not realize that? You may be my mentee, but you're like a son to me, kid. Or at least, a son figure. It was actually thanks to you that I realized that I wanted to be a father, and thus Morgan came along. I guess since, deep down, I thought of you as my first kid, that that was why I wanted to give the industry to you. You know, first born and all that stuff? Especially considering how young Morgan is, so she won't be able to inherit it anytime soon. But that means you won't be able to as well. MIT, right?"

Peter nods. "Yeah, and since, you know, you said at one point that you might not be around long enough for Morgan to take over, I might not be able to take over either. Who knows where I will be in life at that point? I might still be getting an education or something. Besides MIT. So, maybe give it to Pepper?"

"You know what, yeah. I guess the meeting will mostly be us convincing Pepper to take over. But seriously, thanks for talking to me, kid. Just know that you have a place in our family. Besides Stark Industries, I think loved ones is the best thing that someone can truly have."

And Peter knew that he was right. As cheesy as it sounds, the family that he gained was his true inheritance.