Caught

The sound of creaking could be heard further down the hallway, getting louder toward the pristine white door with a smoothly printed red symbol. Closer to the door new sounds were becoming clearer, shouting and noises made by a raw throat. Tony picked up his pace, his heart pounding as he heard two loud shouts crescendo and then froze when it all went quite. He broke into a run, not knowing or caring who was in the room, he would blast them if they dared to hurt his s- protege.

He stopped in front of the door and tried to slam it open, charging up his repulsors, only to find it locked. His heart was racing and his head pounded as he anxiously told Friday to unlock the door. When Tony heard the lock click open he didn't hesitate to swing the door open, scanning the room for Peter. When he finally saw him, snuggled under the covers and looking shocked but unharmed, he let out a breath but kept his tense posture. His eyes searched the room wildly, and when he found nothing and started to calm down he finally noticed the awkward position Peter was in.

Peter was clutching the duvet close to his chest, hiding his body except for bare shoulders, and the large lump that was trying and failing to hide under the covers as well. His terror that Peter had been hurt faded and he put on his best press face, not powering down the gauntlet. This did not go unnoticed by Peter, eyes nervously darting from his d- mentor's face to the charged repulsor to the large 'lump' he was hiding under his sheets and back again. Tony obviously wasn't fooled by his partner's hiding spot.

Tony cleared his throat, looking at Peter and the lump pointedly as he said, "So kid. Anything... interesting going on?" Peter could feel the flush creeping down his cheeks, "N-no... ?" He winced as his voice cracked. Stupid puberty, he was 18 and it still tormented him. Tony sighed, hi- this kid was a hopeless liar. "Pete, I know I'm old but even you must remember my reputation of countless romps in the sheets-" He was interrupted by the shrill shriek of the young adult (barely), "M-Mr. Stark!" Tony cracked a smile, more like a smug smirk.

"Mind introducing me to the lump in your bed, I don't think we've met." Peter's face turned redder and he was stuttering looking for an excuse. Suddenly the lump moved, revealing scarred skin and a hairless head. "Oh, we have Tin Can! Nice to see you again!" Tony went rigid before he jumped to action, pulling up his gauntlet and pointing it straight at the man's skull. "Deadpool. Get away from my- protege." Deadpool, Wade fucking Wilson, laughed right in his face.

"M-Mister Stark! Don't hurt him!" Tony looked over at Peter now, face stern. "Oh, so you know him? You know what he does? He's a mercenary Pete! He kills people for money-" Peter interrupted him again, more serious and... angry than Tony's ever seen. At least directed at him. "He's changed!" Tony bristled at his outburst but stayed calm in his questioning. "Oh really? And how do you know?" Peter was determined, Tony knew that look, the kid was not going to give up. Stubborn ass- "Because I helped him. He helps me now. During patrol."

Oh. Tony paused at that, couldn't help it, it was involuntary. When he could move again he cleared his throat. So that's what this was. "So he knows. I thought we agreed, Avengers only. And your aunt and friends who *found out* themselves." He and Peter had agreed one day when talking about the future of Spiderman. Only the Avengers would know his identity along with his loved ones, and even then it was for safety purposes. It had taken weeks for Peter to finally introduce himself to the team maskless. Which stirred another question, "How long?"

Despite the tense atmosphere, Deadpool cracked another joke. Of course he did, the freaking nut case- "Oh wouldn't you like to know? Well, a lady never tells!" Scowling at the menace, Tony tried to calm himself if only for Pete's sake. He typed on the screen of his repulsor, calling Steve to the room. He'd be good back up, especially for this whole par- babysitting thing. He was basically the Father of America. "Shut up Wilson, I'm not talking to you. I'm talking to my- Peter."