Flower Child (Peter Parker, MCU)

Chasing a Vulture

False Alarm - The Weeknd

Peter shot a web to make the turn into the warehouse where Toomes was hiding. He pulled the car he was still driving along, but it ended up tipping over onto its side, making a horrible scraping noise in the process. As soon as the car slowed down enough, it came off of its side and back onto all four wheels, and Peter breathed a sigh of relief.

"Peter! Are you okay?" Ned asked, hearing only the heavy breathing of Peter on the other end.

Peter nodded, even though Ned couldn't see him. "Yeah. Just keep trying to get through to Happy." He hung up the phone and headed to the building, figuring the best way to sneak inside would be the roof.

Much like Tom Cruise in Mission: Impossible, Peter descended into the empty-looking building via his web. Staring around, he dropped into the middle of a workstation, where computers ran specs of Tony's plane and the cargo that was to be carried in it. Other unfinished weapons were scattered all around the tables and even on the sofa pushed up against the wall. A quick glance past the computers told Peter he was on a balcony of sorts. Staring down to the center of the room, he saw the Vulture's wings propped up on a stand.

On the opposite side of the room, a light was shining down a hallway, and from it came noises of someone moving something around. Peter balled his hands into fists, swinging down from the top of the balcony and into the hall. A vast, empty room was all Peter was met with, and across it, he saw Toomes with his back to Peter, moving around at a small table.

"Hey!" Peter yelled, striding forward and feeling on edge. Toomes looked up to see him, but didn't do much else. "Surprised?"

Toomes wiped his hands on his pants. "Oh, hey, Pete." He said offhandedly, as if he ran into Peter at the grocery store. That made Peter more tense. He leaned back against the table and watched Peter walk closer. "I didn't hear you come in."

"It's over, I've got you," Peter declared, his voice firm and unwavering, not betraying the nervousness his senses set off.

Leaning back against the desk still, Toomes reached for his jacket and began to put it on. His movements were still casual, though his eyes never wavered from Peter's figure. "You know, I gotta tell you, Pete, I really, really admire your grit. I see why Liz likes you, I do. When you first came to the house, I wasn't sure. I thought, 'Really?' But I get it now."

Peter finally stopped walking about thirty feet away from Toomes. "How could you do this to her?"

"To her?" Toomes mused, shaking his head. "I'm not doing anything to her, Peter. I'm doing this for her."

"Huh, yeah," Peter scoffed, then quickly sent a web to Adrian's hand that was still attached to the desk. It only seemed like a minor nuisance to the man who had just threatened to kill Peter little under an hour prior.

He shook his head, and with a level voice said, "Peter, you're young. You don't understand how the world works."

"Yeah, but I understand that selling weapons to criminals is wrong."

A flicker of annoyance crossed Toomes' face. "How do you think your buddy Stark paid for that tower, or any of his little toys?" He took Peter's silence as an invitation to continue. "Those people, Pete, those people up there, the rich and the powerful, they do whatever they want. Guys like us, like you and me, they don't care about us. We build their roads, and we fight all their wars and everything, but they don't care about us. We have to pick up after them, we have to eat their table scraps. That's how it is." He paused for a moment and considered the boy in front of him. "I know you know what I'm talking about, Peter."