Shadowbreath: The New Avenger

Chapter 9

Edit (02/01)

"Peter Benjamin Parker!"

Tony watched Peter sink further down into the couch, ducking out of sight from Aunt May, who had just stepped off the elevator accompanied by Pepper. He couldn't help the amused grin that spread across his face and called out, "He's over here, May!"

The kid groaned and narrowed his eyes at Tony, who shot a wink in his direction. Peter's dangerously attractive aunt stomped over, blocking their view of the television with her hands on her slim hips while Pep lingered in the kitchen. May quickly took in the light bruising on his face, which had been healing nicely over the past few hours, and the thick gauze covering the burns on his arms, and a flicker of concern danced behind her eyes.

May took a deep breath and seemed to be trying to keep her cool. "Would you please, PLEASE explain to me what you think you were doing out as Spider-Man until three o'clock in the morning? And why I had to hear from Mr. Stark that you were hurt?" Her jaw twitched as Peter looked at Tony through the corner of his eye.

The billionaire raised his hands defensively, "Hey, don't blame me, kid. It's not like I was going to keep this from her, especially since she knows that you like to go fight street crime in pajamas."

Peter's lip curled upwards, "They aren't pajamas anymore. You would know, you designed my suit."

Tony shrugged, "Spandex, pajamas, I don't see a difference here, kid."

May snapped her fingers in front of Peter's face, and he jumped to attention. Right, the kid was being reprimanded. Tony found himself wondering if he should take notes. He never knew what the right thing to say to the kid was when he didn't follow the rules. "Focus, Peter. What were you doing out so late, anyway?"

Peter chewed on the inside of his cheek sheepishly, "It sort of just happened, May, I'm sorry. Things kept coming up, and I wasn't ready to go home yet."

She rubbed her temple, clearly exasperated. Tony couldn't blame her. "Peter, you are sixteen years old. You can't break curfew without consequences, with or without your powers." May moved to sit on Peter's other side, and rested a hand on his knee. "When I say you need to be home by eleven, it's not a request. Mr. Stark agrees with me." Her eyes flickered to Tony's, silently asking for backup.

He would be the first to admit that he wasn't very good at this whole good role model situation he was trying out, but Tony was honestly a little afraid to contradict Peter's aunt in any way, shape, or form, so he nodded when Peter flashed those big brown puppy dog eyes at him. "She's right. You're just a teenager, kid. You need to listen to your aunt." Tony felt a little trickle of pride when Pepper nodded at him from the kitchen.

Peter groaned again and grimaced, running a hand across his face "I can't just leave when I know my city is in trouble. If anything happens while I'm gone, it's on me."

Tony sighed and placed a hand on Peter's shoulder, giving it an affectionate squeeze. "Kid, I know it sucks, but you have to trust that the police can handle things when you hang up the suit for the night. It's something all of the Avengers have to accept at some point. We can't save everyone."

May nodded, shooting Tony a grateful smile. She frowned again, and Tony knew the punishment was coming next. The kid seemed to be holding his breath too. "Peter, I'm sorry, but you broke the rules. No Spider-Man for a week."

Tony tightened his jaw when Peter flinched in response, clinging onto his aunt's hand. "What? No, May! A week!?" His voice raised half an octave, and the billionaire was glad May was handling this part.

Her steely expression didn't change, and she crossed her arms. "Yes, Peter, a week. You broke the rules, and then got hurt because of it. You need to know that you can't do whatever you want, whenever you want." She swallowed thickly, "And I don't trust you not to sneak out, so I need you to hand over the suit."